From Cannon Fodder to Sweeping Across the Stars #1-875
Author: 咸嘉湖灵感大王
Date: 2025-11-09T04:54:29+00:00

Chapter 1: Cannon Fodder

Amber was jolted awake by a series of bumps.

When his senses returned to normal, he found he wasn’t lying in his game pod as usual.

Instead, he was sitting on a seat inside an enclosed space.

The irregular vibrations coming from his seat and the scenery receding outside the small observation window on the opposite bulkhead told him one thing.

He was inside a motor vehicle, traveling at high speed.

The camouflaged padding that covered the bulkheads, the symmetrically arranged, inward-facing seats.

And the young people around him, clad in Federation-issue officer uniforms, chatting and laughing.

All of this made Amber realize he was most likely in a Federation troop transport.

“A bug? Didn’t I choose to log out?”

Amber froze for a moment, then noticed his attire seemed different from what he remembered.

It was also different from the young Federation officers beside him.

Amber found he was wearing a long, charcoal-gray military greatcoat, with a cape embroidered with a silver star pattern slung over his shoulders.

Of course, the most crucial part was the hood he wore.

And peeking out from under the hood’s brim was a full-face plate, as smooth as a black mirror.

“A Federation Psionic Agent?”

“But isn’t this uniform only seen in war history museums?”

Amber’s brow furrowed at once.

As a loyal player of the massive multiplayer online RPG, Starry Sky.

And as the main fleet commander of the ‘Fluffy Pink Bunnies’—a player guild that consistently ranked in the top three for overall strength.

Amber was thoroughly familiar with this ‘monster-grinding, level-up game’ disguised as sci-fi and space opera.

He might not know it like the back of his hand, but he certainly knew its ins and outs.

At the very least, he was certain that in the game’s current timeline, the uniform he was wearing was an ancient relic fit for a museum.

“Something’s not right. Is this some kind of time-travel quest?”

For Amber, who had just finished commanding a guild war and was about to log off to grab some skewers, this apparent ‘time-travel’ story quest had come at a bad time.

This kind of quest, focused on the player’s story experience but offering low rewards, held basically no appeal for someone whose stomach was rumbling for kebabs.

So, just as he always did, Amber tried to summon the game menu to quit completely.

But after several failed attempts to call up the familiar UI, Amber realized something was seriously wrong.

“Wait, it can’t be that much of a cliché, can it?”

Just as the thought arose, a very blurry memory surfaced from the depths of his mind as if a seal had been broken.

Soon, Amber’s expression twisted. The information he gleaned from this hazy, fragmented memory gave him a bad feeling.

However, the full-face plate concealed his expression, so the Federation officers around him noticed nothing amiss.

This body belonged to a newly commissioned Federation officer, also named Amber.

To be precise, he was a ‘Psionic Agent’ who had just graduated from the military academy.

And the current time was several decades before the game’s story had even begun.

Amber, who had attended his graduation ceremony just last week, had traveled with his similarly assigned colleagues aboard a destroyer on a rotation deployment, arriving at this agricultural planet on the Federation’s border.

After reaching the surface via the orbital elevator connecting the spaceport to the ground, these young officers had taken a series of different transports—ground-effect vehicles, large transport planes, and maglev intercontinental trains—to arrive at a location one hundred and twenty kilometers from their assigned base.

Then they had boarded this armored troop transport to complete the final leg of their journey.

And it was at this moment that Amber had taken over this body.

“What is this? Soul transmigration? This is… just too absurd.”

Amber removed the leather glove from his right hand—it was far more decorative than functional—and gently stroked the padding behind him and the folding seat beneath him.

The sensation of the soft filling and cool metal against his fingertips was something that Starry Sky could never simulate.

The fresh air produced by the air filtration unit under his faceplate, the friction of clothing against his body.

All of it told Amber that this was no longer a game.

To prevent players from becoming overly addicted and unable to distinguish fantasy from reality, the operators of Starry Sky, despite having more than enough technical capability, had deliberately lowered the game’s level of realism.

In the COO’s own words: “Our team has retained some game-like features so that players know they’re playing a game.”

And with fully immersive games being so mature in this day and age, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology had specifically banned plotlines involving ‘transmigration’ from all games to prevent some fools from actually believing they had traversed worlds when encountering such a story.

Amber also trusted that the developers and professional in-house team of Starry Sky, backed by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, would never cross that red line.

That left only one explanation for his current situation.

He had really transmigrated.

If it were just a simple transmigration, Amber, an orphan with no close relatives, felt he could probably come to accept it over time.

The problem lay with the identity he had transmigrated into.

A brilliant Federation officer, freshly graduated from the Federation’s First Military Academy?

A ‘Psionic Agent’ who had undergone extensive combat training and could manipulate psionic energy, which sounded incredibly cool?

And this not-so-low starting rank of Warrant Officer?

Separately or combined, these three traits could be described as a dream start.

But the problem was the border agricultural planet where Amber now found himself.

If he were truly a talent the Federation military valued and intended to cultivate, would they throw him out on this godforsaken border planet?

The answer was no.

Amber, who knew a great deal about the game’s lore, was well aware of the cancer of corruption spreading throughout the Federation.

Even among young officers graduating from the First Military Academy, one’s fate differed.

Those born into the families of tycoons or high-ranking officials would inevitably be assigned to posts within the Federation’s core administrative star systems.

High-level talents like Psionic Agents would be sent to special camps for even more advanced training.

But if you came from an ordinary family with no connections, then tough luck. You would be randomly assigned to the outer systems or deep space fleets to fill vacant officer positions.

What’s that? You’re a Psionic Agent?

Excellent! The Federation military is in dire need of talents like you!

Go directly to the border planets, unleash your combat skills to your heart’s content, and dedicate the rest of your life to the Federation!

Even if that were all, it would just mean a difficult start and a bleak future.

The problem was that the point in time Amber had transmigrated to was also terrible.

“New Calendar Year 588, August 14th.”

Amber silently read the date representing universal standard time, displayed above the local time in the upper right corner of his faceplate’s HUD.

If his memory served him right, in three days, the Federation’s sworn enemy—the Star Dragon Empire—would launch a surprise attack with its assault fleet.

After destroying the garrison fleet stationed in synchronous orbit and seizing the spaceport, the Empire’s orbital paratroopers would descend.

This landing battle on Planet Robert IV would also raise the curtain on the ‘Dark Era.’

And now, Amber had the great misfortune of becoming a piece of cannon fodder for the Federation military on Planet Robert IV.

Chapter 2: A Disastrous Start

After multiple attempts to ‘wake up’ or ‘log out of the game’, Amber finally gave up.

He really had transmigrated.

And to this precarious planet, at this unfortunate point in time.

Amber began to think about how he was going to survive this disastrous start.

Anyway, the other young Federation officers in the armored personnel carrier, who were laughing and chatting, had no intention of socializing with him.

Putting aside the reason for this ostracism and isolation for now, it at least gave Amber an environment where he could focus on his thoughts.

It allowed him to think carefully about how he was going to survive.

After all, besides his knowledge of how the situation would unfold, he hadn’t discovered any other special advantages yet.

But as a veteran player of Starry Sky, Amber knew almost everything about the Starry Sky universe.

This made him like an all-seeing prophet at this moment.

He even knew the exact time: the Empire’s expeditionary strike group would arrive in three standard cosmic days at 3:42 PM.

That would be 11:00 PM sharp on Planet Robert IV, when they would complete their warp using a guidance beacon from a disguised freighter.

Then, they would launch a surprise attack and annihilate the garrison fleet.

Immediately after, once the spaceport and orbital elevator, which handled both ‘off-world transport’ and external communications, were brought under control.

The landing troops’ drop pods would rain down onto multiple key Federation military nodes on the ground.

At 5:42 AM local time, the first Imperial orbital paratrooper would step out of a landing pod and set foot on the soil of Robert IV.

Amber had read through this data and information from the war history museum countless times.

But the problem was, knowing all this in advance only made him more anxious.

The fall of the garrison fleet and the Imperial landing were unstoppable.

Even if he rushed to write and submit a warning report, its outrageous contents might indeed catch the military’s attention.

But they would never raise the alert level of the garrison forces just because of a report submitted by a newly commissioned young officer with no background.

After all, although the Star Dragon Empire was the Federation’s sworn enemy, the two sides had been at peace for eighty years since the last peace treaty was signed.

At least for now, both sides maintained a veneer of mutual respect on the surface.

So, it was more likely that special agents from the Security Bureau would come for him first.

And after some ‘special treatment’, they would make him obediently reveal the source of his intelligence.

“No way. This isn’t a game; I wouldn’t be able to withstand an interrogation from the Security Bureau.”

Amber sighed and mentally crossed off the ‘report to superiors’ option.

But of the remaining options, neither ‘escape Planet Robert IV’ nor ‘wage guerrilla warfare on Planet Robert IV’…

…looked very feasible.

Not to mention he had just arrived on this planet and had no legitimate reason to leave.

Even if he somehow managed to hijack an aerospace shuttle and try to force his way out…

…he would only be shot down by the ever-vigilant ground-based air defense forces after taking off.

One had to know, after the entire garrison fleet was wiped out, these dutiful air defense forces became the Federation military’s last ‘fig leaf’.

Although they ultimately couldn’t escape the fate of annihilation, they still managed to inflict over forty-five percent casualties on the Imperial orbital paratroopers during their descent phase.

The ‘wage guerrilla warfare on Planet Robert IV’ option was even more ridiculous.

Not long after Planet Robert IV fell, the entire star system fell under the full-scale attack of the Imperial fleet.

Even if Amber and other Federation soldiers survived the first wave of attacks,

…with no possibility of reinforcements, they wouldn’t last long even if they ‘waged guerrilla warfare’.

The strain on energy supplies and logistical maintenance would force them to abandon all their mechanized equipment.

And light infantry alone could never pose a sufficient threat to the Empire’s mechanized troops, who were armed to the teeth.

Those were no mobile coffins built from ‘plywood’.

The partisans would only be gradually whittled down and wiped out in round after round of the Imperial army’s encirclement and suppression campaigns.

Just like the Federation forces Amber had read about in the war history museum, who had fought as guerrillas on Planet Robert IV.

They had only held out for half a year before the last unit was exterminated.

“Don’t tell me my only choice is to wait three days, wave a white flag, and happily welcome the king’s army?”

Amber leaned back against his seat, feeling helpless.

As the first planet attacked by the Star Dragon Empire at the start of this war,

…the Imperial army would not tolerate the emergence of any potential threats.

So, in the history that Amber knew, apart from the ‘natives’ who had been farming on this planet for generations,

…the Imperial landing forces accepted no surrenders from anyone with a Federation government or military background.

Young officers like himself, who were more prone to hot-headedness and willing to ‘sacrifice’ themselves for the Federation, thus taking radical actions,

…were the first to be executed.

“This start really is terrible.”

The armored personnel carrier moved quickly, not giving Amber much time to think.

Just an hour and a half later, he and the others arrived at their destination.

Yaxin Military Base.

All newly arrived officers would spend their adaptation period here before awaiting their final assignments.

This was also one of the largest military bases on Planet Robert IV.

Besides holding command authority over a large number of the Federation’s mobile forces on Planet Robert IV,

…it was also the only communications command center on the planet capable of interplanetary and interstellar communication.

Therefore, it was a primary target for the Imperial landing forces.

Not only did they drop two full regiments of orbital paratroopers and support mechs here,

…they had also planted a spy inside before the war.

Although the war history museum didn’t offer more details, some rumors and side quests…

…all pointed, directly or indirectly, to this planted spy being the one who destroyed the Yaxin Base’s interstellar communications system the moment the Imperial fleet warped in.

This directly led to the Federation military’s extremely slow reaction to the Empire’s surprise attack, and in a subsequent chain reaction, they lost the entire star system in a short period.

“Maybe I can find a way to expose this spy, or stop him from destroying the communications system?”

“If the news of the attack gets out successfully and the Federation forces can react, maybe the Empire’s invasion will be thwarted?”

Lost in thought, Amber followed the others off the APC and headed to the base hospital.

They were about to have their first physical examination after arriving on the planet, to confirm that their bodies hadn’t developed any problems during the long space voyage.

The other young officers traveling with him had no intention of paying any mind to this ‘Psionic Agent’, and walked ahead in a group.

Wearing a full-face helmet that concealed his expression from everyone, Amber followed silently behind, unconcerned.

After the Imperial orbital paratroopers successfully landed in three days, how many of these young officers ahead of him would still be alive?

The physical examination process was quick. With the help of auxiliary instruments, the military doctor didn’t need to spend much effort to obtain everyone’s various physical metrics.

Amber, at the end of the line, only had to wait a short while for his turn.

The other young officers, who had already finished their examinations, had no intention of waiting for Amber and quickly left the floor where the medical center was located.

Amber walked into the examination room, where a female military doctor with a beautiful face and a fine figure was sitting inside, reading the others’ reports.

One elegant foot was dangling a high-heeled shoe, swinging back and forth.

He wasn’t sure if he was imagining things,
but Amber felt that after the female doctor’s gaze swept over him, her eyes seemed to flash a few times.

But he had no time to ponder it at the moment, much less pay too much attention to the delectable beauty before him.

Just as he pressed a button on the side of his helmet and removed it with the ‘psst-psst’ of the pressure-release valve,
with the sound of a circuit breaker tripping, the entire examination room was plunged into darkness.

In the few seconds it took for his vision to adjust to the dark,

Amber was assailed by a fragrant scent.

Immediately after, a string of words whispered with warm breath tickled his ear.

But the content of those words sent a chill down Amber’s spine.

“Biometric identification verified. Welcome to your post, ‘Fledgling’.”

“I’ll need your cooperation to complete the mission to sabotage the communications center.”

Chapter 3: Spy

“A spy?!”

“I’m a fucking spy for the Star Dragon Empire???”

The sudden turn of events left Amber a little stunned.

His expression even became a bit dazed for a moment.

Fortunately, the enclosed examination room was plunged into darkness.

So in the eyes of the female imperial spy, who had undergone retinal modification and possessed a degree of low-light vision, Amber, the imperial spy codenamed ‘Fledgling’, appeared exceedingly calm during this tense ‘rendezvous’.

“Very good. It seems the quality of the new recruits from the Royal Navy Intelligence Division is getting higher and higher.”

Meanwhile, as Amber was still trying to compose himself, he heard the woman’s voice from before continue speaking in his ear:

“The hospital’s backup power has kicked in, but it will prioritize the ICU, so we still have… thirty seconds.”

“To make a long story short, in three days, the Royal Navy’s expeditionary battle group will launch a surprise attack. Our job is to sabotage the base’s communications center at the same time the raid begins.”

“The personnel previously embedded here aren’t strong in direct combat. They can only help create support distractions, like the short circuit just now.”

“The heavily-guarded communications center requires a Psionic like you to break through.”

The female spy spoke quickly. The time for this rendezvous was extremely limited, and she had to lay out the mission in just thirty seconds.

“Our people have already made the necessary arrangements. Three nights from now, there will be a widespread allergy outbreak in the communications center.”

“At that time, I will head to the communications center under the pretext of searching for the allergen source.”

“You’ll use the opportunity to rendezvous with me, storm the core communications control room, and sever this planet’s contact with the outside world.”

“For the Empire…”

Thirty seconds isn’t a long time, but it isn’t short either.

Click!

As the Star Dragon Empire spy finished speaking, the hospital’s main power was restored.

The lights in the examination room flickered back on, and the various electronic instruments whirred back to life.

The abruptly restored light made Amber instinctively narrow his eyes.

When he opened them again, the imperial spy—no, the Federation’s female military doctor—was sitting back in her chair.

The high heel on her shapely foot was still dangling, swinging idly back and forth.

As if she had never moved at all.

She was looking at the restored lights with a puzzled expression, muttering complaints about the base’s engineering corps.

Her slightly languid voice was a stark contrast to the cold, icy tone from the darkness.

Amber’s gaze swept past the prominent curves of the female military doctor’s chest, but his attention was focused more on her nameplate.

Valra Margaret, Federation Army Junior Medical Officer, Captain.

A Medical Captain, in the Federation Army, would typically be in charge of division-level medical operations.

And this beauty before him, along with the medical battalion under her command, was responsible for the combat readiness medical services for Yassin Base.

“A key position like this, filled by a spy from the Star Dragon Empire…”

“The Royal Navy Intelligence Division’s operations clearly aren’t limited to just her, or even just this planet.”

“No wonder the Federation lost so many important planets and deep-space nodes so inexplicably at the start of the war.”

Amber couldn’t help but marvel at how the Federation’s border regions had been infiltrated like a sieve, as he moved his gaze upward.

…only to meet the female military doctor’s gaze, which held a mix of annoyance and a hint of shyness.

Apparently, his stare had been a bit inappropriate in her eyes.

“Nice acting~”

Amber mentally gave his assessment.

“Ahem, my apologies. It’s just that Captain Margaret’s charisma is simply captivating.”

With a proper smile on his face, Amber offered her a sincere apology.

“Hmph! This time, I’ll just assume your mind hasn’t fully recovered from your long deep-space journey.”

The anger on the female military doctor’s face dissipated slightly, and she ‘threatened’ him in a perfectly pitched, languid tone, like that of a cat:

“If there’s a next time, I won’t be so polite, Warrant Officer Amber.”

As if suddenly thinking of something, a playful smile appeared on the female military doctor’s face, and she stood up from her chair.

“Alright, go lie down on the instrument, Warrant Officer~”

Her tone sounded like a Persian cat that had just discovered an interesting new toy.

“This crazy woman.”

Ten minutes later, Amber emerged from the examination room and walked away quickly under the puzzled gazes of the other medical staff.

If anyone could have removed his full-face visor at that moment, they would have surely seen the slightly ‘indignant’ expression on Warrant Officer Amber’s face.

Whether it was Amber the former player or Amber the current Psionic Agent, one had seen countless films and the other had undergone professional training, and both could remain as calm as an ‘old monk in deep meditation’ when faced with feminine charms.

But even they couldn’t withstand being judged from head to toe while lying on an examination instrument in nothing but a pair of boxer shorts.

Of course, this feeling didn’t last long.

After all, the shock from the secret rendezvous was still significant.

“So the spy I was trying to find… was myself?”

Amber felt a massive headache coming on.

And as Amber processed keywords like Codename: Fledgling and Royal Navy Intelligence Division, another part of his memory unlocked.

These memories filled in many of the gaps from his previously hazy recollections.

For example, his true identity was that of a war orphan.

His biological parents were untraceable, and he didn’t even know if they were from the Empire or the Federation.

However, when he displayed psionic talent as a young child, he was discovered by the Empire’s intelligence agency.

After being trained and brainwashed, he, along with others from his ‘class’, was sent into Federation territory through various channels and given a legal identity.

Ultimately, he became a Psionic Agent who had pledged to ‘devote his life’ to the Federation.

“Good thing the ‘Soul Transmigration’ seems to have undone the Empire’s brainwashing, huh?”

Amber carefully probed his own mind and found no mental conditioning compelling him ‘to be loyal to the Empire.’

And whether it was the Federation or the Empire, Amber currently felt no psychological connection that could be called a ‘sense of belonging’.

It was more of a lazy, ‘take things as they come’ mentality.

Therefore, he was actually quite resistant to the life-threatening mission of sabotaging the communications center.

“Maybe I should find a chance to report these imperial spies?”

“No… wouldn’t I be exposed too? And for a deep-cover agent like me, who’s been embedded in the Federation since childhood, those bastards from the Security Bureau would never let me go.”

“Damn it, this identity is a bit awkward now.”

“Tsk… can’t think of a way out of this for now. I’ll just have to play it by ear.”

Lost in these chaotic thoughts, Amber arrived at the officers’ quarters.

Following the directions of the soldier on duty, he quickly found his private room.

He needed to freshen up and then head to the officers’ mess.

Because after entering the base’s perimeter and connecting to the network, his personal terminal had received a new message from the base’s control AI.

The second-in-command of Yassin Base—Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

He wanted to have lunch with the newly arrived junior officers.

Chapter 4: Psionics

In Amber’s memory, this second-in-command of Yassin Base was one of the few truly outstanding soldiers on the entire planet of Robert IV.

In the original timeline, he was the one who led the Federation partisans in guerrilla warfare across the planet for more than half a year.

In the end, with his ammunition and supplies exhausted, he died during the Imperial Army’s final encirclement.

“Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, huh.”

Muttering the somewhat familiar name, Amber walked into his private officer’s quarters.

Compared to the multi-person dorms at the Federation Military Academy, the conditions of the private officer’s quarters at Yassin Base were much better in every aspect.

Not to mention the cramped long-distance cryo-pods on the destroyer.

As one of the most important military bases on Robert IV, the layout and facilities of Yassin Base were all constructed according to the highest standards of the Federation Army Tactical Base Construction Regulations.

A great deal of capital and time had been spent on building everything from its various defensive installations to its supporting structures.

Under such high construction standards, the constant understaffing of officer positions meant that the base always had plenty of unoccupied officer apartments.

And as it happened, Amber didn’t have to wait for an assignment.

As a Psionic Agent, he was directly subordinate to the Tactical Support Team under the Combat Intelligence Center.

So he was immediately assigned a private room here.

The room, over thirty square meters, was a combined living and sleeping area with a small private washroom embedded in the corner.

Two full boxes of his personal belongings were now placed neatly at the foot of his bed.

This luggage, which had arrived with the ship, hadn’t been through the same multiple transfers as they had.

Instead, as the destroyer passed over Yassin Base, it was directly airdropped via orbital deployment, landing in an empty area near the base.

In fact, for the Federation’s military bases on various planets, most supplies transported from outer space completed this “final leg” of the journey through this expedited method.

Amber walked over and opened one of the boxes.

Amidst a large pile of electronic equipment and plasteel practice weapons, a black sphere with a surface as smooth as a mirror lay quietly.

Looking at the familiar sphere, a thought crossed Amber’s mind, and an invisible energy within his body began to circulate.

As this energy was activated, Amber’s eyes gradually began to emit a faint blue glow.

At the same time, a streak of blue lightning flashed between Amber’s finger and the black sphere.

The next second, the sphere, which had been lying among a pile of miscellaneous items, slowly began to float. It moved towards Amber, finally stopping to rotate slowly above his outstretched palm.

Soon, the black, mirror-like sphere stopped rotating. Some internal mechanism projected the number 3 onto its surface.

“Level 3 Psionics?”

“A bit low. But it does meet the minimum standard for a Psionic Agent.”

Amber closed his eyes, feeling the energy coursing through his body.

This was the first time in this reality that he had truly felt the existence of psionics.

Although the method of activation was just as inexplicable as in the game, the feeling of his whole body being filled with psionic energy was something the game could never simulate.

Psionics, a form of spiritual energy originating from the mind.

This energy was closely related to the user’s brain and, with training, could be used to alter the material world.

High-level psionically awakened individuals could even unleash psionic storms, or in an emergency, directly “recharge” a warship with their psionic energy.

And the “telekinesis” that Amber had just used was the signature ability of a Level 3 psion.

On the twelve-level scale for psionically awakened individuals, Level 3 was just barely above the level of an ordinary person.

But it still surpassed ninety-nine percent of the humans in this world.

After all, compared to the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire who grew up playing with psionics, humanity’s achievements in this “unscientific energy” were no different from those of elementary school students.

Even the black sphere Amber was currently playing with was a psionic training and assessment sphere imported by the Federation from the Thousand Stars Empire, specifically for Psionic Agents to use.

This black sphere, made from refined psionic ore, could not only detect the user’s psionic level but also assist in stimulating psionic energy through long-term use and training.

So at the Federation Military Academy, if you saw a man or woman playing with a ball, you shouldn’t be surprised at all.

They were one hundred percent a Psionic Agent cadet in training.

After playing with the black sphere for a while using his psionics, Amber had a rough understanding of his own psionic level.

This body’s current psionic level was 3, but it was actually infinitely close to Level 4.

Besides tricks like telekinesis, Amber could also activate his psionic vision to perform operations similar to “locating through walls.”

And while wearing special equipment, he could even achieve dual optical and infrared invisibility.

At the same time, this body had already completed the initial physical modifications for a Psionic Agent at the Federation Military Academy.

Not only were his entire skeleton and muscles enhanced with a 【Fullerene Lattice】 and 【Myofibril Protein Complex】 respectively, giving him strength and speed far beyond those of an ordinary person.

He had also completed “Reflex Enhancement Surgery,” where superconducting fibers replaced his nerve dendrites, changing the bio-electric conduction of his nerve cells to anti-interference electric conduction.

His various reaction times had been conservatively improved by three hundred percent.

Perhaps because he was still adapting to this body earlier in the armored personnel carrier and the hospital, Amber hadn’t noticed the improvement in his various physical indicators.

But after activating his psionics just now, his adaptation to his body was nearing perfection.

If he were to experience another short circuit like the one in the examination room, Amber felt that with his current stats, he could easily remove Margaret’s high heel, admire it carefully, and hang it back on the tip of her foot before the lights came back on, all without being discovered.

Damn, I get superhuman abilities, and all I can think of is perverted stuff like this!

Amber silently admonished his inner lecher, then went to the washroom to quickly freshen up, preparing to head to the mess hall for dinner.

After all, since he was dining with the second-in-command of Yassin Base, it was best to be early.

The full-coverage facemask, used for tactical reconnaissance and suppressing stray psionic energy, was an piece of equipment that a Psionic Agent was practically never without.

So much so that at the graduation ceremony, the Psionic Agent platoon was nicknamed the “Egghead Platoon” by the other units.

However, Amber ultimately decided against wearing the facemask. He had to eat, after all.

After one last look at himself to make sure everything was in order, Amber walked to the door, ready to leave the apartment.

But just then, the personal terminal on his wrist buzzed.

He raised his left hand. A message was scrolling across the terminal’s screen.

[Warrant Officer Amber, please report to Major Mars’s office immediately.]

Amber frowned upon seeing the message.

Major Mars, Director of the Combat Intelligence Center.

Also his direct superior.

“Why call for me right at dinnertime, of all times?”

After a moment’s thought, Amber put the facemask back on his head—another major function of this one-way transparent mask was to conceal his face and expressions.

Due to its ability to suppress stray psionic energy, regular officers had no authority to order Psionic Agents to remove it.

Therefore, Psionic Agents would always wear them when meeting with their superiors.

Following the navigation on his terminal, Amber quickly found Major Mars’s office.

The middle-aged officer, who had a somewhat somber expression, tapped his fingers lightly after seeing Amber walk in.

In the next instant, Amber immediately sensed additional protective plates and signal-jamming layers rising within the walls of the office.

Generally, only secret meetings and conversations not meant for public ears were conducted under such conditions.

“What’s this all about? Don’t tell me there’s some kind of unspoken rule here?”

Amber, whose imagination was running wild, let his thoughts stray.

But Major Mars’s first words instantly shattered his scattered train of thought.

“Warrant Officer Amber, what exactly did that Imperial spy in the hospital say to you?”

Amber: “Huh?”

Chapter 5: The Double Agent

It was like having a bucket of ice water dumped over his head in the dead of winter.

Amber was instantly wide awake.

Fortunately, his exceptional control over his body allowed him to suppress the urge to shiver.

He never would have imagined that just moments after making contact with Margaret, the Federation’s intelligence chief on Robert IV would already know about it.

“Major Mars, are you saying…”

Amber’s voice was a bit stiff as he spoke. He honestly had no idea how to answer the question.

But remaining silent in the face of this middle-aged officer’s inquiry would only cause bigger problems.

“Don’t worry, Warrant Officer Amber.”

The gloomy-looking middle-aged officer actually managed to squeeze out a smile.

“I’ve activated the highest level of room security. No third party will know what is said in this room.”

Major Mars paused, then gestured to the chair opposite his desk and continued:

“Relax. Sit down. Since you were able to make contact, it means the Empire hasn’t detected any issues yet and still trusts you…”

The moment he said that, Amber understood everything.

So, he had already been turned by the Federation and become a double agent?

It was at that moment that the last few hazy memories in Amber’s mind finally became clear.

After enrolling in the Federation’s First Military Academy, his identity was exposed for unknown reasons.

He had suffered immensely in the Security Bureau’s interrogation rooms and was even de-programmed by the Federation through some unknown method.

In the end, he was successfully turned by the Federation’s Security Bureau, becoming a double agent for the Federation, ostensibly a deep-cover operative for the Empire.

“No wonder I couldn’t feel the mental conditioning in my mind. So it was the Federation that removed it?”

The newly updated memories allowed Amber to fully understand his own background.

But regardless, this turn of events was completely beyond his expectations.

On the way to Major Mars’s office, he had run through countless possible scenarios in his mind.

But he had never once anticipated that things would turn out this way.

Amber felt like a player in a spy-themed murder mystery game who hadn’t received their script.

His identity was a guess, and his story was pure improvisation.

Stabilizing his breathing and forcing himself to calm down quickly, Amber pulled out the chair in front of Major Mars’s desk and sat down.

As mentioned before, as a player in his past life, Amber didn’t feel any sense of belonging to either the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire.

Although in the game, he had chosen the Star Dragon Empire as his birth identity.

But that was purely so he could admire the Empire’s dragon maidens up close.

Although they were also human, legend had it that the founding family of the Star Dragon Empire possessed the bloodline of the cosmic creature known as the ‘Starry Sky Dragon.’

Their appearance was no different from humans, but certain parts of their bodies had draconic scales.

Above their ears, they would even grow draconic horns.

Therefore, the royal family of the Star Dragon Empire had always called themselves the ‘Children of the Dragon.’

Moreover, the Star Dragon Empire was highly advanced in the fields of genetic modification and optimization.

After generations of genetic optimization projects, the citizens of the Empire were basically genetically enhanced ‘perfect humans.’

Under these circumstances, the average physical attractiveness in the Star Dragon Empire was extremely high.

In the core star sectors, the streets were filled with handsome men and beautiful women.

Occasionally, one would even see nobles with draconic horns growing from their heads.

That was why a large number of horny players, under the banner of ‘I want to ride dragon maidens,’ had flooded the Star Dragon Empire faction back in the day.

But I digress.

In any case, neither of these two major factions were any good; both were riddled with internal problems that were deeply entrenched and difficult to resolve.

Not to mention, not long after the war broke out, the Star Dragon Empire would be destroyed due to a rebellion started by the Regent Prince.

The entire royal family would go missing, and the vast empire would be fractured into multiple nations by several major noble families.

The Federation, too, after losing this major adversary, would see its internal corruption worsen rapidly.

Numerous colonial planets would rebel, and its national power would plummet.

The galaxy, which had been balanced by these two great powers, would thus descend into a ‘Dark Age’ of endless conflict between multiple factions.

Therefore, tying himself to either the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire—two sinking ships—was extremely unwise.

Amber had no desire to get involved in the future cosmic war.

In the game, players were clones. If you died, you just switched to a new clone.

That’s why he had dared to stand on the flagship bridge of the ‘Fluffy Pink Bunnies’ guild’s main fleet and go down with his own warship.

But this wasn’t a game anymore. Having lost his greatest advantage, ‘respawning,’ Amber had no intention of taking risks.

And his knowledge of the major powers, the development of the galactic situation, the hidden secrets on many planets, and the locations of forerunner ruins in deep space…

…gave him the confidence that he could make a fortune while ensuring his own power continued to grow.

Then, he could head to the Thousand Stars Empire and become an ‘angel investor.’

Although the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire were as noble and elegant as those in human mythology…

…their pursuit of wealth was no different from humans.

If everything went smoothly, he could live out the rest of his life in wealth, surrounded by elves and alien cat-girls.

But now, Amber had to make a dangerous decision.

This intelligence chief in front of him was no idiot.

So he couldn’t possibly tell Mars that the female Imperial spy had told him nothing, that they had only made simple contact.

Finally, after weighing his options, Amber spoke.

“The Empire’s expeditionary strike group will launch a surprise attack on Robert IV in three days.”

The moment he said this, the smile on Major Mars’s face vanished.

His body, which had been leaning back in his chair, immediately straightened up.

“How reliable is this intelligence?”

“I personally believe it’s quite reliable, Major.”

Amber licked his somewhat dry lips. The action was hidden by his faceplate, so the intelligence chief opposite him couldn’t see it.

“Because the Imperial spies embedded on Robert IV are already prepared to coordinate with the Empire’s orbital paratroopers.”

Amber didn’t reveal everything he knew from Margaret, holding back the intelligence that the Imperial spies planned to sabotage the communications center.

God knows how many Imperial spies had infiltrated this base.

If the Imperial spies detected anything unusual or found their operation obstructed, they might just make a desperate, all-or-nothing move.

So this was the best solution he could come up with on such short notice.

He had informed the Federation of the Empire’s impending attack, yet he hadn’t interfered with the Imperial spies’ sabotage mission.

A bright future for everyone.

Hearing Amber’s words, Major Mars fell silent for a moment.

He became exceptionally serious, and even his gloomy aura seemed to recede.

“To choose Army Day of all days… those sons of bitches from the Empire.”

“This intelligence is critical. I must report it to Commander Adam immediately.”

Major Mars stood up, prompting Amber to rise from his chair as well.

He came forward, patted Amber on the shoulder, and led him toward the office door.

“Not a word of our conversation today gets out. I trust you know the regulations, Warrant Officer Amber.”

Amber nodded.

The office lockdown was disengaged, and the door slid open automatically as the two approached.

“Hurry over to the officers’ mess. Lieutenant Colonel Dallas is waiting to welcome you newcomers, isn’t he?”

The intelligence chief’s expression changed the moment he stepped out of the office, a smile plastered on his face.

But to Amber, that smile looked even uglier than a grimace.

“I’ll take my leave then, Major.”

Major Mars nodded without a word. After watching Amber’s figure disappear around the corner of the hallway, his smile vanished.

Then he turned and walked off in the opposite direction.

Chapter 6: The Calm Before the Storm

Walking all the way to the officer’s mess, Amber felt his mind was still in a bit of a mess.

In the few short hours since his soul transmigration, he felt as if he had been on a roller coaster.

One wave crashed before the last had even receded.

Fledgling, double agent, Imperial surprise attack.

This string of events left him feeling completely blindsided.

Guided by the staff, Amber found the private room that had been specially arranged for them.

A few young Federation officers were already seated.

Their conversation came to an abrupt halt for a moment when they saw Amber walk in.

Then, as if they hadn’t seen him at all, they resumed their chat.

Amber was already used to this kind of situation. He casually found a chair and sat down.

As he looked at the young officers who were clearly keeping their distance from him, his thoughts drifted far away, following the thread of this ‘social phenomenon.’

That’s right, the ‘ostracism’ or ‘isolation’ of psionically awakened individuals had become a social phenomenon.

Whether in the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire, psionically awakened individuals were actually in a rather awkward position.

On one hand, ordinary people feared them while also envying their immense power, which made it impossible for them to see the psionically awakened as their own kind.

But on the other hand, the various abilities of the psionically awakened gave them a pivotal role in all aspects of human society, especially in the military.

This afforded psionically awakened individuals like Amber extra benefits provided by the government.

It also made ordinary people all the more jealous of them.

Coupled with the occasional social news reports of young children awakening their psionics and harming their families, or of out-of-control psionically awakened individuals attacking civilians, the general public’s prejudice against them had only deepened.

“If I can’t afford to provoke them, can’t I at least hide from them?”

With this prevailing attitude among the masses, psionically awakened individuals were gradually isolated and ostracized, both in society and in the military.

Incidents of Psionic Agents or Psionic Assault Teams clashing with ordinary soldiers and causing casualties were especially common in the military.

However, Amber had never cared about such things. In fact, he felt this isolation saved him from a lot of unnecessary social interaction.

Before long, the other young officers who had arrived in the same batch trickled into the dining hall.

But when choosing their seats, everyone subconsciously avoided the area where Amber was sitting.

After everyone was finally seated, the two spots to Amber’s left and right were conspicuously empty.

He sat alone in the middle, sticking out like a sore thumb.

“Wow! I don’t want to see this kind of thing a second time.”

Those were the first words out of Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, the second-in-command of Yassin Base, when he saw Amber and the others.

Although he said it with a smile, it still sent a shiver down the spines of the young officers present.

The tough-as-nails lieutenant colonel, with a scar by the corner of his eye and a body built like a bull, plonked himself down next to Amber and patted him on the shoulder.

“Take off your faceplate, kid.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s voice had a gentleness that was at odds with his appearance.

“This is the Federation military, and we are all Federation soldiers. I don’t want to see those attitudes from civilian society infect the army.”

“You all may have to work together frequently in the future. If you continue to interact like this, how can we commanders trust you with combat missions?”

The lieutenant colonel’s words seemed to have a magical quality, slowly easing the tense nerves of the young officers at the table.

Moreover, this was the second-in-command of Yassin Base, a real boss.

These young officers took his words as orders.

So, they all turned their gazes to Amber.

These young officers were actually quite curious about the kind of person who was always hidden behind the tactical faceplate of this Psionic Agent.

Amber didn’t really mind. Taking off his faceplate wouldn’t affect him.

He would have to take it off to eat later anyway.

With the neural bundle at the back of the faceplate disconnecting from the port on Amber’s neck and a pssh sound of depressurization, Amber slowly removed his tactical faceplate.

It revealed a face as exquisitely carved as a classical sculpture.

Several of the young women at the table couldn’t help but let out a soft gasp upon seeing Amber’s true face.

In the officer’s mess, a few female officers who were passing by involuntarily slowed their pace after a casual glance in their direction.

Even the male officers at the table, including Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, were momentarily stunned upon seeing Amber’s true face.

Amber was already mentally prepared for everyone’s reaction.

After all, when he’d looked in the mirror in the washroom earlier, he himself had been struck dumb by how handsome he was.

A quintessential ‘CG-model face.’

If this were the world of 3D adult animation, he’d probably be competing with Tifa for the title of the true ‘Holy Land.’

Meanwhile, in the office of the Yassin Base Commander.

Commander Adam, who had been forced to leave an interstellar conference because of the urgent intelligence reported by Major Mars, was looking at the major with an impatient expression.

“Mars, I hope the intelligence you’ve brought is actually worth something. Otherwise, I’ll have the guards stuff your head into a Buro Beast’s ass.” (Buro Beast: A native species on Robert IV, its ecological niche is similar to that of a domestic pig.)

“Trust me, Commander Adam. I would never have disturbed you if it weren’t for an urgent military situation.”

Major Mars seemed to be accustomed to Commander Adam’s somewhat vulgar language.

Colonel Adam, secretly called ‘Commander Pig’ by his subordinates, was a textbook example of a ‘coasting until retirement’ type of officer in the Federation military.

He spent his days not thinking about improving the combat effectiveness of his soldiers, but painstakingly cultivating his smuggling fleet.

Major Mars even knew that the so-called interstellar conference that had just been interrupted was nothing more than a meeting between Commander Adam and a few smuggling kingpins to divide their spoils.

However, he maintained the proper courtesy due a superior, continuing without a change in expression, “Sir, before I report, I’d like you to engage the highest level of lockdown for this office.”

“Tsk.”

Commander Adam frowned with some displeasure, then lightly turned the ring on his ring finger.

Two seconds later, the office became one of the most secure areas in Yassin Base.

“You can talk now.”

There was a hint of resentment in Commander Adam’s voice. Major Mars’s interruption had clearly cost him a significant amount of profit.

“The Empire will most likely launch a surprise attack on Robert IV in three days.”

The moment he finished speaking, Major Mars saw, for the first time, an expression called ‘seriousness’ on Commander Adam’s face.

“Major, how did you obtain this intelligence?”

Chapter 7: The Major is Gone

Perhaps because of the urgency of the situation, Major Mars didn’t even notice at first that Commander Adam’s wording was a little odd.

He answered without pause, speaking quickly:

“An informant of mine learned it from an Imperial spy embedded within the base.”

“An Imperial spy?”

“Yes. Captain Valra Margaret from the base hospital. We’ve had our eye on her for a long time.”

After hearing Major Mars’s reply, Commander Adam didn’t respond immediately.

His body, which had been slumped in the back of his chair, straightened up. He leaned forward over his desk, folding his hands just below his nose.

At just the right angle, the light from the room reflected off the lenses of Commander Adam’s glasses.

In an age where human modification technology was so advanced, no human eyeball actually suffered from myopia or hyperopia anymore.

So the custom-made, gold-rimmed glasses Commander Adam wore were nothing more than a decoration, purely to display his wealth.

And now, the reflection from this ornament perfectly obscured Commander Adam’s eyes, making it difficult for Major Mars, standing before the desk, to read his expression.

“If the intelligence is accurate, then for this unilateral violation of the peace treaty, the Empire certainly won’t be planning a mere skirmish.”

“We will be facing a large-scale surprise attack. The planetary garrison fleet alone will not be able to withstand the Empire’s assault.”

“According to standard protocol, we should issue an advance warning to other planets, and even neighboring star systems, and immediately recall the mobile fleet to participate in low-orbit defense operations.”

Commander Adam laid out his analysis and plan methodically.

Upon hearing this, Major Mars couldn’t help but nod slightly. At least this ‘Commander Pig’ before him wasn’t a complete waste.

“Since this intelligence you’ve provided comes only from an informant, and from the mouth of an Imperial spy at that…”

“Normally, we should do everything in our power to verify the authenticity of this information.”

Commander Adam paused for a moment. Seizing the brief silence, Major Mars took the opportunity to continue.

“That’s the second thing I was about to report. I was planning to—”

But before he could finish, he was interrupted.

“However, there’s no need for us to verify it, Major Mars.”

“Commander Adam, what do you mean by that?”

Major Mars asked, somewhat confused.

“Because the intelligence is true. The Empire’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group will launch a surprise attack in three days, at 23:00 local time.”

Hearing this, the head of intelligence on Robert IV immediately realized what was happening.

His eyes widened in disbelief. Just as he was about to say something, he realized a single index finger was already pressed against his right temple.

A figure had appeared behind him.

“Wait… when?!”

“A high-level psionic?!”

That was the last thought to cross Major Mars’s mind.

The next moment, an invisible energy ravaged his brain, overloading his central nervous system in a thousandth of a millisecond.

Major Mars’s once-clear eyes gradually turned vacant, and he stood frozen on the spot like a soulless wooden doll.

Behind him, the air distorted unnaturally.

After a faint, honeycomb-patterned blue light flashed, a figure in a jumpsuit materialized out of thin air behind the Major.

“The plan is starting to deviate from its original course, Adam.”

A synthesized voice emanated from beneath the high-level psionic’s faceplate.

He withdrew the right hand that had been touching the Major’s temple. The latter remained motionless, like a puppet.

“This round of mind control was supposed to be for Dallas, but now I’ve had to use it early.”

“I can’t use your psionic recovery chambers. I won’t be able to initiate mind control again for three days.”

Although the voice was synthesized, Commander Adam could still sense the high-level psionic’s dissatisfaction.

“Don’t be so tense. Everything is still under our control.”

He raised his pudgy, slightly swollen hands in a relaxing gesture.

“Mind-controlling Dallas was only a secondary plan anyway. Since that plan has failed, we’ll just skip it.”

“Tomorrow, I will still sign the order to commence the ‘Meteor’ exercise. The main mobile forces on this planet will all gather in several predetermined exercise areas.”

As if the problem had been perfectly resolved, Commander Adam found a comfortable position to lean back in his chair again, the deep furrows in his brow smoothing out.

“I’ve already provided you with these locations. When the time comes, just have the fleet ‘scour the ground.’”

“Even if Dallas manages to survive and organize a defense in three days, it won’t change the overall situation. The disparity in forces is too great.”

He picked up his steaming black tea and blew on it lightly.

“It just means a few more grunts will die, that’s all.”

Although he was extremely dissatisfied with the ‘pig’s’ posture, the high-level operative ‘Tail Needle’, who belonged to the Empire’s ‘Star Dragon’s Fangs’ psionic operations group specializing in special actions behind enemy lines, suppressed his displeasure.

After all, the man was a high-ranking Federation officer the Empire had turned with great difficulty, and he was the number one figure of authority on this base.

This long-planned surprise attack by the Empire still required his cooperation.

Moreover, the orders from his superiors were to do his utmost to assist the commander during his time undercover on the base.

“So… what do you want me to do with that renegade ‘Fledgling’?”

‘Tail Needle’ cracked his neck, the outlines of several assassination plans already forming in his mind.

“Don’t worry about him. He can’t make any waves.”

Commander Adam’s tone was light, as if he wasn’t at all concerned about the ‘Fledgling’ Amber’s defection.

“Besides, the communications center is staffed by Dallas’s people. It won’t be easy for me to move them out of the way. So when Margaret launches her assault on the communications center, this ‘Fledgling’ will still have his use.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

Commander Adam’s words made ‘Tail Needle’ laugh out of sheer anger.

“An Imperial spy who has already turned, what makes you think he’ll help us storm the communications center?”

“Oh, don’t get excited, Mr. ‘Tail Needle’. I know you are a professional when it comes to special operations, but it’s quite clear you don’t understand the human heart.”

Commander Adam smiled, unconcerned by the barely suppressed fury in the other’s voice.

“We still have some time. I can share my reasoning with you. Perhaps after you’ve heard it, you’ll agree with my thinking.”

Chapter 8: A Storm is Brewing

“First and foremost, he’s an Imperial spy. Only then is he a defector.”

Commander Adam’s tone was confident; it was as if he had already painted a complete picture of the Imperial defector, Amber, in his mind.

“So he knows very well how the Empire treats traitors, especially after learning that the Empire is about to launch a surprise attack.”

Hearing this, ‘Tail Needle’ nodded thoughtfully.

“I think I understand what you mean. So you’re saying he doesn’t dare reveal his identity as a defector right now.”

“Exactly. My guess is that this defector is currently in a wait-and-see state.”

Commander Adam snapped his fingers.

“If the Federation survives the surprise attack, he won’t hesitate to side with us.”

“But if the Empire successfully carries out the attack and destroys the Federation’s resistance forces on this planet, then he was never a defector.”

After saying this, Commander Adam looked at ‘Tail Needle’ with a smile and said no more.

“Hmph, he’s played his cards well.”

‘Tail Needle’s’ synthesized voice still held a trace of disdain. “So, how do you plan to handle this?”

“Naturally, we’ll make this ‘Fledgling’ prove his worth.”

“Won’t your people be coordinating with him and Margaret? Once they succeed in destroying the communications center, just eliminate them.”

Commander Adam made a throat-slitting gesture.

“You mean, eliminate Margaret too?”

“That’s right. As a high-level deep-cover agent, she failed to uncover the Imperial spy’s defection. That’s a dereliction of duty.”

Sensing ‘Tail Needle’s’ hesitation, Commander Adam added, a little more pointedly, “Besides, isn’t she one of the Princess’s people? Isn’t your Regent Prince’s faction already at odds with the Princess’s camp?”

Hearing Commander Adam’s question, the expression on ‘Tail Needle’s’ face shifted, though luckily his full-face mask concealed it.

Being lectured on his own country’s political infighting by a defector from the Federation, ‘Tail Needle’ couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of displeasure.

But he had to admit, the fat pig before him wasn’t wrong.

As the current emperor grew older, his control over the Empire had weakened to an extremely low level.

Consequently, the struggle between the Regent Prince’s and the Princess’s factions began to intensify.

Purges, assassinations, and sabotage between them had become increasingly frequent.

This surprise attack on the Federation, set to launch in three days, had been unanimously approved by the Imperial Council.

But anyone with eyes could see that the ‘Princess Faction’ and the ‘Regent Prince Faction’, each holding half the power in the Council, wanted to use this war to gain more prestige.

This would give them more leverage in the potential ‘war for the throne’ to come.

And with the Regent Prince in near-total control of all intelligence agencies except for the ‘Naval Intelligence Division’…

As a member of the ‘Star Dragon’s Fangs’, ‘Tail Needle’ had essentially been forced to side with the Regent Prince.

Therefore, he couldn’t let this ‘perfectly justifiable’ opportunity to eliminate someone from the Princess’s faction slip away.

“I understand. I’ll go make the arrangements.”

As he spoke, ‘Tail Needle’ inclined his head toward Major Mars.

“What should we do with this one?”

“Send him back to his room. By the time anyone notices something is wrong, it’ll be too late.”

‘Tail Needle’ didn’t reply. A honeycomb pattern of blue light flashed across his combat suit, and his figure vanished completely into thin air.

The next moment, the stupefied Major Mars, like a marionette, clumsily raised his hand in a salute.

Then, with a somewhat stiff gait, he left the office.

“This mind control isn’t exactly perfect, is it.”

Watching ‘Major Mars’s’ clumsy movements, Commander Adam, sunk deep in his chair, raised an eyebrow.

“But it only needs to hold for three days. It’s good enough for a cover-up.”

In the officers’ mess, Amber’s otherworldly good looks dealt a devastating blow to the other male officers.

As for the female officers, they were all dazzled.

In just that short time, Amber discovered a long string of private messages on his personal terminal.

Some were subtle, saying, “Hey handsome, want to be friends?”

Others were direct, saying, “Hey handsome, please go out with me.”

There were even some who sent a direct “request for a firefight.”

This made Amber sigh; his face could probably earn him the title of ‘incubus’.

Although it caused a bit of a stir, Amber had to admit that Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was very skilled at livening up the atmosphere.

After just one short lunch, the barrier between Amber, the ‘Psionic Agent’, and the other officers had diminished significantly.

While many were still wary, they would at least take the initiative to exchange a few words with him now.

After lunch, the others still had to report to a few more departments before waiting for their final assignments.

But Amber, whose assignment was already finalized, bid farewell to the group and returned to his apartment.

Thinking about his earlier rendezvous with Margaret and the secret talk with Major Mars, Amber suddenly felt that this battle for Robert IV might not be so simple.

It might not even follow the historical trajectory he knew.

His mind a tangled mess, Amber walked over to his apartment window.

For ease of rapid deployment, the officers’ apartments and soldiers’ barracks weren’t far from the warehouses and hangars.

Looking out the window, Amber had a direct view of Yassin Base’s HCP hangars.

Right now, several Federation HCPs with gray-mottled camouflage were exiting a hangar, guided by ground crew waving light sticks, and walking off into the distance.

HCP, an acronym for ‘Humanoid General-Purpose Combat Platform’.

These humanoid machines, averaging eight to nine meters in height, are an indispensable part of the armed forces of every human faction.

In the beginning, however, the predecessor of the HCP—the Extra-Vehicular Humanoid Engineering Machine—was actually a platform designed to facilitate human engineering activities in space.

Asteroid prospecting, starship search and rescue, engineering repairs, and spaceport cargo handling.

These were its original purposes.

With the help of the ‘Follow-up Control System’ and ‘Dynamic Mass Auto-Balancing Control’, it was like a magnified human equipped with numerous attitude thrusters, capable of flexibly performing a series of tasks in outer space.

But as the miniaturization of fusion reactors and superconducting battery packs matured, and plasma propulsion array technology was adapted from battleships for widespread use, the ‘Extra-Vehicular Humanoid Engineering Machine’, which had been on the verge of obsolescence, was given a new lease on life.

Stronger power, longer operational times, more flexible maneuverability, and, with modularity, greater environmental and mission adaptability, made the ‘General-Purpose’ designation increasingly well-deserved.

Following that, humanity, being a warlike species, naturally developed its military applications.

And so, the HCP was born.

Chapter 9: Federation Army Day

In Starry Sky, the humanoid combat platforms known as HCPs were just something the game developers created to attract ‘mecha’ enthusiasts.

But now, they were real war machines.

In the memories of this body, Amber recalled numerous case studies from his ‘HCP Piloting’ course at the military academy, detailing HCP involvement in battle.

Whether deployed from low orbit to support mobile ground forces,
or serving as armed escorts for starships, engaging in brutal ‘fleet close-quarters combat’,
or leveraging their superior mobility from plasma thruster arrays and metallic muscle bundles to crush conventional units on complex planetary terrain.

All of this demonstrated the immense combat power of these humanoid tactical machines.

The infantrymen, who often saw these machines dropping from low orbit to ‘back them up,’ had given them a fitting nickname—‘Titans’.

The nickname quickly spread and has since become a widely accepted term for HCPs.

But in the coming chaotic war that would engulf all of human society, even the HCPs, which seemed as powerful as ‘Titans’ to the infantry, were nothing more than consumables in the grand scheme of the conflict.

Watching the HCP disappear into the distance, Amber shook his head to clear his wandering thoughts.

Two days passed quickly.

During these two days, Amber hadn’t been assigned any real work.

After reporting to the Tactical Support Team, a subordinate unit of the Combat Intelligence Center,

Amber discovered that the Tactical Support Team at Yassin Base was a bona fide sinecure.

The daily tasks consisted of routine training for psionic users and some coordinated combat drills.

On this frontier agricultural planet, the Tactical Support Team basically never had the chance to go on field missions.

Even if incidents like protests, strikes, or uprisings occurred and the police force proved ineffective,
there was no need to deploy heavy equipment like multi-legged combat vehicles or HCPs.

The mechanized infantry alone could easily suppress these ‘rioters’.

Furthermore, since Amber was a newcomer and the Tactical Support Team’s commander was an affable ‘nice guy’ who hated to cause trouble,
he had waved his hand and immediately given Amber three days off, telling him to first get familiar with and accustomed to the environment; it wouldn’t be too late to join the daily training afterward.

This was the norm for military forces in the frontier regions of Starry Sky.

Unlike the situation most people imagined—millions of troops massed on both sides of the border systems, with swords drawn and bows bent—
both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, after decades of the ‘Peace Treaty Period’,
had seen a massive decline in their frontier armies’ discipline, conduct, and combat effectiveness.

Not to mention, after humanity began to seed the entire galaxy using the ‘warp engine’ technology discovered in ancient ruins,
the territory of human society had expanded to an immense scale.

Conventional communication methods could only guarantee information delivery within a star system in under a day, and only if the communication relay satellites and terminals were functioning properly.

For communication across multiple star systems, they had to rely on ‘Penetrative Fault Communication Terminals’ to transmit information.

This spatial communication technology could, at its fastest, transmit a message across a distance of about five star systems in three days.

Furthermore, it came with various restrictions on content and message length.

But even so, for a message sent from a border system to reach the capital system via a ‘relay’ of communication terminals, it would take nearly half a month.

And that was just the transmission time. If you factored in the ‘man-made delays’ of reporting up through the various layers of bureaucracy,
the total time would be even longer.

In this regard, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were like the pot calling the kettle black; neither had any right to laugh at the other.

Thus, the ancient saying, ‘edicts have trouble leaving the capital,’ had reappeared in the interstellar age.

It was all too common for remote star systems to feign compliance with edicts from the capital system while secretly defying them.

To some extent, the precursors to warlordism had already appeared.

Against this backdrop, one could imagine the combat effectiveness of the standing armies in various star systems.

But the Federation army’s combat strength was only one aspect. What unsettled Amber more was how strangely quiet things had been for the past two days.

Such a crucial piece of intelligence—that the Empire was about to launch a surprise attack—had seemingly vanished without a trace after reaching Major Mars.

It was one thing to get no response, but what was more absurd was that Amber found he couldn’t even contact Major Mars at all.

Direct calls to his terminal or private messages went completely unanswered.

As the head of the Combat Intelligence Center, Major Mars hadn’t shown his face for two days.

Meanwhile, the people at the intelligence center acted as if this was completely normal.

“What kind of absurd military discipline and organization is this?”

While Amber grumbled, the date finally arrived: August 17, 588 of the New Calendar.

This day was not only the date of the Imperial fleet’s surprise attack in Amber’s memory,
but also the Federation’s Army Day.

So, Yassin Base not only held a grand celebration but also opened its barracks, inviting nearby civilians to visit.

At the evening gala, Commander Adam himself took the stage to perform a traditional Federation military song for the base’s officers and soldiers, titled Today is a Good Day to Die.

“Courage, Duty, Honor!”

“We call upon the Federation’s armies, in our hour of need.”

“Our lives are meant for this fight.”

“Today is a good day to die!”

“When you know the reason why, the rights of citizens must be defended!”

“When duty calls, a valiant sacrifice is required!”

“I will give my life for the Federation!”

Watching Commander Adam on stage, his uniform immaculate, his expression resolute as he sang with all his might,

Amber had to admit the man had a real talent for singing; his performance was full of emotion.

Especially when he reached the line, “I will give my life for the Federation!”, it sparked a massive sing-along from the entire audience.

For a moment, it almost gave Amber the illusion that this was a valiant and elite fighting force.

Taking advantage of the harmonious atmosphere enveloping the entire base, Amber quietly slipped out of the venue.

Back in his dorm room, he unfolded the equipment rack.

Stored on it were the Psionic Agent combat suit and light exoskeleton he had requisitioned from logistics.

Amber deftly donned the two pieces of equipment.

With a final ‘click!’, all the links on the light exoskeleton and combat suit connected.

On the HUD projected inside the full-coverage faceplate, the green dots representing the various nodes of the light exoskeleton lit up.

Amber looked at his reflection in the full-length mirror. Beneath the Tactical faceplate, he wore a matte black one-piece combat suit.

The light exoskeleton, also painted matte black, clung tightly to his back and limbs.

Apart from the slightly raised metallic hydrogen battery pack on his back, the exoskeleton had no other protruding parts.

As the power came on, Amber moved his limbs to test them.

Driven by the motors, he felt his strength and speed increase by nearly sixty percent over his baseline.

While the boost couldn’t compare to the medium and heavy exoskeletons or the powered armor used by the mobile infantry—which were powered by a hybrid of gas turbines and metallic hydrogen battery packs—
it was more than sufficient for reconnaissance and infiltration missions.

After confirming the exoskeleton was functioning normally, Amber circulated the Psionics within his body, activating the synthetic cell coating on the combat suit and exoskeleton’s surface.

A honeycomb pattern of faint light flashed across his entire body.

The next second, his figure vanished completely from the dorm room.

Chapter 10: The Beacon is Lit

In geostationary orbit above Robert IV, the ‘Bountiful’ Spaceport.

It was the agricultural planet’s sole civilian port and orbital elevator.

Every day, a vast number of containers filled with cash crops, meat, and livestock byproducts were launched up via the orbital elevator, then distributed among the fleet of cargo ships docked at the spaceport.

And August, by Universal Standard Time, was the peak harvest season on Robert IV.

It was also the busiest time of year for Bountiful Spaceport.

If one were in the space near Bountiful Port at this moment, they would see a dense swarm of cargo ships gliding out from the spaceport’s various exits.

The glow from their thrusters gradually shifted from deep red to blue, a sign of the increasing power output from their plasma propulsion arrays.

After leaving the port and adjusting their trajectories and attitudes, the freighters began to gather like a school of fish in the deep sea.

They would follow a fixed trajectory, using the rotation of Robert IV to continuously accelerate until they reached the velocity needed to escape the planet’s gravity.

After that, they would diverge once more, heading in different directions.

A small portion of the ships would use a gravitational slingshot to travel to other planets within the star system or in neighboring systems.

If they weren’t in this border system, but in a more prosperous one, they could further shorten their travel time by using the massive mass drivers built by the Federation.

Aside from these short-haul vessels, the majority of the ships would head for the large warp drive arrays in deep space, where, after waiting in queue, they would be sent to other star systems.

As for the titans among the fleet—the colossal freighters equipped with their own Warp Engines—they would activate their drives directly and enter subspace travel once they reached a safe distance.

The ruling classes of the major human factions strictly controlled this crucial technology that had propelled human development.

Even though it was standard on all military vessels, it was still relatively rare on civilian freighters.

Civilian ships more commonly used the large warp drive arrays built by the major factions for interstellar travel.

At present, weaving through this ceaseless stream of ships were fifty-meter-class shuttlecraft.

These shuttles, belonging to the Robert IV Customs, would board the freighters during their acceleration phase to conduct final inspections.

Patrol boat LHJ-117, under the pilot’s control, deftly wove through the long ‘school of fish’.

It finally docked with a cyan-painted, Ferret-class freighter.

As the airlock slowly opened, the first thing the customs officers responsible for the boarding inspection saw was the ship’s captain, rubbing his hands together with an ingratiating smile on his face.

“Ship registry 6277, The Mithril.”

“Commencing customs boarding inspection.”

“Please open the ship’s terminal interface. We need to connect.”

The stone-faced customs officer ignored the captain’s fawning smile and walked into the ship without a backward glance.

One of the officers headed directly for the freighter’s internal transit tube.

After entering the zero-gravity section, he gripped the handles on the guide rails on either side and ‘floated’ toward the cockpit.

He was responsible for accessing the ship’s terminal to check if the original files of the navigation logs and cargo manifests were compliant.

The other officers, led by the captain, made their way to the cargo holds at the rear of the ship.

“Captain Ramos, I’ve been running this route for almost ten years. We’re old acquaintances, do you really need to be so strict? Heh heh.”

The captain, his face a mass of fleshy wrinkles, discreetly passed a pack of cigarettes to the customs team leader.

These were genuine hand-rolled cigarettes, a rare commodity for the staff who spent all their time at Bountiful Port and seldom went planetside.

The middle-aged man known as Captain Ramos skillfully took the cigarettes and slipped them into his uniform pocket.

However, the expression on his face remained unchanged, and his pace toward the cargo hold didn’t slow in the slightest.

“A routine inspection is a routine inspection. It’s the rules.”

“Don’t think I’ll lower my standards just because we know each other.”

The captain, half a step behind, watched the man who took bribes but did no favors and cursed him countless times in his heart.

Still, he plastered a smile on his face and followed obediently.

This kind of routine spot check was quick. For the dozens of composite cargo holds inside The Mithril, they would only inspect a random selection.

After all, the port’s throughput was immense during this period, and the customs office stationed at Bountiful Port was already overwhelmed.

Soon, the inspection was complete with nothing unusual found, and Ramos prepared to wrap up and move on to the next ship.

Just as he was about to open the last cargo hold for inspection, the captain, who had been perfectly cooperative until now, suddenly blocked his path.

“Captain Ramos, so, uh, are we done with the inspection?”

Ramos frowned at the man, a hint of displeasure in his voice.

“Move! This is the last one. We’ll leave once it’s checked.”

“Come on now, I can see you’re all tired, and there are plenty of other ships waiting for you.”

The captain remained in front of the cargo hold door, showing no intention of moving.

His uncooperative behavior began to anger Captain Ramos.

This particular customs inspection captain, who had dominated Bountiful Port for years and put countless ship captains in their place, immediately drew the stun gun from his hip.

But in the next second, a thin LED sheet handed over by the captain stopped him in his tracks.

The LED sheet simply read: ‘Special cargo from Yassin Base. Inspection personnel are to grant immediate passage.’

But at the bottom, Commander Adam’s signature and digital seal made the thin sheet feel as heavy as a mountain.

After a moment’s hesitation, Captain Ramos finally sighed and holstered his stun gun.

“Forget it. Let’s go.”

The customs inspection team quickly returned to their shuttle and undocked from The Mithril.

Watching the freighter merge back into the ‘school of fish’ through the viewport, Captain Ramos felt resentful but helpless.

If this were in the Federation’s core star circles, a customs agency under a planet’s administrative center could still contend with the military.

But this was the frontier, and having a gun was more effective than anything else.

Even his own boss’s boss, the planetary administrator of Robert IV, had to curry favor with Commander Adam.

As a lowly customs inspector, he had no business looking for trouble.

“Finally sent that plague god on his way.”

Inside the cockpit of The Mithril, the fleshy-faced captain’s jocular expression was gone.

In its place was a look of grim seriousness.

He raised his wrist to look at his personal terminal; the Universal Standard Time in the top-right corner read 14:15 on August 17th.

“Good. We haven’t lost too much time.”

“Proceed according to plan. Jettison cargo hold 42 in one hour!”

“Aye, Captain!”

Universal Standard Time, August 17th, 15:15.

Container 42 ‘accidentally’ detached from The Mithril.

After an object obstructing the shipping lane was detected, a small engineering craft arrived on the scene.

After urgently contacting the nearby passing freighters and failing to find the owner, the small craft fired several carbon fiber cables with electromagnetic grapples, securing the tumbling container.

Following the standard procedure for ‘Shipping Lane Clearance Operations,’ the engineering craft began towing the container back toward Bountiful Port.

Universal Standard Time, August 17th, 15:30.

A border star system of the Star Dragon Empire. The Imperial Royal Navy’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

On the bridge of the flagship at the center of the fleet, the third Requiem-class battleship—the ‘Dawnblade.’

The strike group’s commander, a Vice Admiral of the Imperial Royal Navy, Marquis Lierman von Ascania, who had been waiting for a long time, finally heard the news he had been anticipating.

“Admiral, we’ve detected a cynosural beacon signal!”

“The signal characteristics match the intelligence perfectly!”

Chapter 11: Infiltration

In his past life, Amber had lived in a powerful eastern nation on Earth.

For that country’s military, special holidays didn’t mean the arrival of a vacation. They meant an increase in combat readiness.

This was especially true on the one day a year dedicated to family reunions, when the military’s readiness level reached its theoretical peacetime peak.

But here on Robert IV, the Federation’s military was a real eye-opener for Amber.

He never would have imagined that the discipline of the Federation’s border forces could be so abysmal.

After Amber used a minor psionic disturbance to disrupt the camera feed at the entrance of the officer’s apartments and used those few seconds to slip out while invisible, he discovered that the security level of the entire Yassin Base had dropped to an extremely low level.

Aside from the main entrances and exits of the base, which were still guarded by mobile infantry on duty and a few patrolling HCPs, everyone else had run off to the gala venue to watch Commander Adam’s ‘concert’.

Even the soldiers who normally patrolled the base were nowhere to be seen tonight.

“With this level of readiness, it’d be a problem if the Empire couldn’t conquer them.”

Amber grumbled to himself as he moved quickly through the base.

While optically invisible, a Psionic Agent was difficult for standard surveillance equipment to detect, unless at extremely close range or with infrared imaging activated.

Along the way, Amber saw several medical vehicles driving from the base hospital toward the Communications Center. A short while later, they returned with sirens blaring.

Clearly, the ‘mass allergic reaction at the Communications Center’ incident Margaret had mentioned had already occurred.

Five minutes later, Amber arrived at the entrance to the Communications Center.

It was a large building that integrated a penetrative communications tower and an information processing center.

It was also the only place on this planet capable of transmitting information to the ‘Penetrative Fault Communication Terminals’ in deep space.

Its importance was self-evident.

However, with most of the communications staff and guards inside incapacitated by severe allergic reactions, the building’s external defenses were reduced to two temporarily reassigned squads of mobile infantry and a single multi-legged war machine.

The mobile infantry, equipped only with medium exoskeletons, posed little threat to Amber.

Although these exoskeletons, powered by a hybrid of gas turbines and metallic hydrogen battery packs, were covered in extremely hard silicon carbide armor plates, their arms were also mounted with 8mm Gauss rifles, 40mm automatic grenade launchers, or 14.7mm squad support machine guns.

But these mobile infantrymen, who had been pulled over to stand guard at the last minute, were clearly not taking their duties seriously.

Every one of them had their faceplates flipped up, chatting and breathing in the fresh air.

Someone was even watching a live broadcast of the Army Day celebration gala.

Without their faceplates’ composite observation suites activated, it would be very difficult for them to spot Amber approaching stealthily through the night.

The real threat at the moment was the heavy multi-legged war machine.

This behemoth, with its eight bionic mechanical legs and resemblance to a giant tarantula, possessed far superior observation capabilities than the surrounding infantry.

The hemispherical observation device on the upper part of its front torso, which was constantly rotating, integrated electro-optical, infrared, microwave, and various other sensor systems.

A reconnaissance variant of the multi-legged war machine would have the 155mm electrothermal-chemical cannon turret on its rear torso replaced with a ground-to-air radar array.

Its bionic mechanical legs would also be fitted with additional vibration sensors.

Amber watched the giant spider across the street, carefully hiding his body behind a building.

He had to wait for an opportunity to slip past right under the iron monster’s nose.

And that opportunity arrived soon enough.

Perhaps out of consideration for the soldiers’ misfortune at being called away from the gala to stand guard, and coupled with the sudden drop in nighttime temperature, the base logistics department had actually dispatched a field kitchen vehicle to the Communications Center entrance to whip up a late-night snack and hot soup for the soldiers on the spot.

Before long, the mobile infantrymen had gathered around the vehicle, sipping hot soup.

The multi-legged war machine also deactivated its alert mode, lowering its chassis to the ground.

Three soldiers in pilot suits quickly opened the hatch, climbed out, and joined the group eating their late-night meal.

Amber, of course, wouldn’t let this golden opportunity pass him by.

While the multi-legged war machine was ‘inactive’, he deftly slipped out from his hiding spot and crept swiftly toward the main entrance of the Communications Center.

The advantage of the Light Exoskeleton’s all-electric drive became apparent at this moment.

The motor, powered by the metallic hydrogen battery pack, made almost no noise.

It was completely drowned out by the noise from the exoskeletons worn by the surrounding mobile infantry.

Amber brushed right past the soldiers, slipping by their sides.

The mobile infantry, busy feasting, didn’t notice a Psionic Agent walk past them and enter the main building of the Communications Center.

“That was way too easy…”

Having entered the Communications Center with so little effort, Amber felt that this operation was going a little too smoothly.

Next, by observing the building’s exterior and using his experience to deduce its internal layout, Amber quickly reached the core area of the Communications Center.

And saw a familiar figure.

Margaret, wearing a standard Federation military uniform under a white lab coat, was holding an instrument and constantly taking measurements of the air.

The loose-fitting uniform and lab coat couldn’t hide the imperial spy’s impressive figure.

In fact, it only enhanced her allure, lending her a certain “uniform fetish” charm.

Amber quietly walked up beside her and gave a soft, almost inaudible cough.

Hearing the sound beside her, Margaret didn’t say a word. She put away her instrument and started walking in a particular direction.

Amber followed her and soon arrived at a surveillance blind spot.

The blind spot wasn’t very large, so Amber had to press himself right up against Margaret’s body to stay hidden.

After confirming he was completely out of sight, Amber deactivated his optical invisibility and let out a long sigh of relief.

A Psionic Agent’s invisibility couldn’t be maintained indefinitely.

Amber had to continuously stimulate the synthetic cell coating on his equipment’s surface with psionics to make the cells refract light, thereby achieving the effect of optical invisibility.

Based on his current psionic reserves, he could maintain it for an hour at most.

And that wasn’t accounting for other situations that might require the use of psionics.

Unsure what unforeseen events might lie ahead, Amber had to conserve his power carefully.

He looked up. Margaret’s face, a blend of languidness and a hint of seductive charm, was mere inches away, her red lips luscious and inviting.

Amber had to admit, the imperial spy not only had a great figure, but her looks were also top-tier.

“Synchronize watches.”

Now in mission mode, Margaret’s languid tone was gone.

“It is now Universal Standard Time, August 17th, 15:30.”

“Ten minutes until the Imperial fleet’s scheduled surprise attack.”

Amber nodded, signaling for her to continue with the briefing.

“I will continue to test for allergens inside the Communications Center. In five minutes, I will move to the Core Communications Room and rendezvous with another associate.”

“There will be two guards in medium exoskeletons at the entrance to the Core Communications Room.”

Margaret glanced up at Amber.

“When the time comes, I’ll be counting on you.”

Chapter 12: Surprise Attack

Universal Standard Time, August 17th, 15:30.

At the Lansford military spaceport, located eight thousand kilometers directly above Bountiful Spaceport.

It was the final section built as an extension of the Robert IV space elevator project.

Aside from the counterweight section in a higher orbit, Lansford Port was the highest point of this man-made structure.

As the base for the Robert IV garrison fleet, it was also the Federation’s military port closest to the border.

The massive military port could, in theory, accommodate twenty battleships, eighty cruisers, two hundred destroyers, and even more frigates for maintenance simultaneously.

But at present, aside from a mixed fleet of cruisers and destroyers on a routine patrol in orbit, the garrison fleet, almost entirely docked in the port for maintenance, occupied only a small section of the military port.

Three ‘Kraken’-class battleships, fifteen ‘Hydra’-class cruisers, fifty-two ‘Jackdaw’-class destroyers, and nearly a hundred frigates of various models.

This was the entire force of the Robert IV garrison fleet.

In the combat command center of Lansford Port, dozens of personnel were on duty at their stations, manning their posts.

But if you were to walk up behind them, you would find that a third of them were dozing off.

Another third were using personal terminals—brought into the command center against regulations—to watch the celebrations taking place in the military port’s recreation area.

The commander of the garrison fleet, Green, was in a “space-to-ground link” with Commander Adam on the surface.

At that moment, the two were delivering Army Day greetings to the vast number of Federation soldiers on Robert IV.

As for the remaining third, they were among the few people in the command center actually doing their jobs.

Tactical Information Coordinator, Ensign Tom, was one of them.

His job was to filter the data collected from the military port’s various observation instruments, over and over again.

As a new batch of data began refreshing on the screen, Ensign Tom picked up the Tetra Pak of concentrated coffee beside him.

It was his essential item for staying awake on duty.

But before he could tear open the straw, a message flashed across the screen that made him jolt.

[ATTENTION, CYNOSURAL BEACON SIGNAL DETECTED! PLEASE IDENTIFY IMMEDIATELY!]

The message, in bold red font, flashed three times on the screen.

Snapping back to his senses, Ensign Tom immediately accessed the cynosural observation equipment and yelled back over his shoulder, “Sir, the observation equipment has detected a cynosural beacon!”

On the command chair of the combat command center, Major Randall, who had been engrossed in his personal terminal, also jolted at his subordinate’s report.

He unfastened the restraints on his seat, pushed off with his feet, and floated out.

In Lansford military port, only some of the recreation areas had artificial gravity. The combat command center was clearly not one of them.

“If I get over there and find out you broke the equipment, I’ll shove a psyche-stimulator stick up your ass, understand?!”

“Yes, sir!”

Floating over a crowd of snickering duty officers, Major Randall landed beside Tom.

After carefully reviewing the information from the observation equipment and confirming that all device self-diagnostics were normal, the duty officer finally realized something was wrong.

The observation equipment had indeed detected a cynosural beacon, and it was moving at a constant speed, approaching the location of Bountiful Port.

“Pinpoint the beacon’s location and use the optical observation equipment to see what’s going on.”

Randall patted Tom’s shoulder, then turned his head to look at the communications NCO on the other side of the command center.

“Bill, go ask that bunch of lazy bastards docked in the port if some damn idiot set off a cynosural beacon for fireworks!”

The communications NCO, who had also been slacking off, now realized the gravity of the situation.

He immediately sent a message to all the warships docked in the port.

Ten minutes later, reports came back from the duty officers on every warship. Even though it was Army Day, no one was irresponsible enough to toss a cynosural beacon into space.

At the same time, using the located coordinates, the optical observation equipment also captured an image of the moving cynosural beacon.

When the zoomed-in image was projected onto the main screen, everyone in the command center saw a small engineering ship and the cargo container it was towing.

Looking at the cargo container on the main screen, which was locked on as the signal source, a stream of cold sweat trickled down Randall’s forehead.

Although he was usually flippant and even somewhat derelict in his duties, he had the basic tactical acumen to have climbed to the position of tactical commander.

Unfortunately, he was one step too late.

The defensive weapons on the military port and the space elevator were all high-power directed-energy weapons. The large number of cargo ships around the engineering vessel were also in the line of fire. Firing rashly could easily cause collateral damage, or even a chain reaction.

So Randall had to find a unit better suited for such “delicate work.”

Just as he was about to dispatch an HCP team to urgently deal with the container, alarms blared throughout the command center.

[WARNING! UNAUTHORIZED SPATIAL COLLAPSE DETECTED!]

[WARNING! ABNORMAL MASS INCREASE DETECTED IN SPACE!]

[WARNING! STRONG ELECTROMAGNETIC INTERFERENCE DETECTED!]

[WARNING! STRONG NEUTRINO COMMUNICATIONS JAMMING DETECTED!]

[WARNING! ECLIPTIC 23 DEGREES, CELESTIAL NORTH POLE 52 DEGREES, ECLIPTIC PLANE INCLINATION 18 DEGREES, LINEAR DISTANCE 9,542 KILOMETERS—UNIDENTIFIED FLEET DETECTED!]

A series of warnings in bold, dark red font flashed across the main screen.

At the same time, numerous automated sensor arrays on Lansford military port also caught sight of the massive fleet that had just completed its warp.

Every ship had an elegant, elongated, and streamlined design, with an outer hull that had a smooth, silver texture.

These were the typical characteristics of a Star Dragon Empire warship.

As the enormous flagship slowly emerged from the planet’s shadow, a brilliant light reflected off the curve of its external armor.

In the auto-magnified view, the gilded name on the massive warship’s broadside was clearly visible.

SENY-BB-24, The Dawnblade.

Immediately after, a bright line of light flashed without warning in the blackness of deep space.

Everyone only felt a white pillar of light sear itself onto their retinas.

The next second, the entire command room was thrown into a violent tremor, as if the heavens were collapsing and the earth was splitting asunder.

The enemy had fired.

A standardized, forged slug of metallic bismuth was instantly heated to tens of millions of degrees by the energy from a fusion detonation within the warship’s fusion reactor.

Compressed by a containment magnetic field, this mass of plasma was accelerated to two thousand kilometers per second through the heavy particle cannon’s accelerator.

Finally, this surging jet of plasma precisely struck the communications array at the top of Lansford Port, utterly destroying it.

Chapter 13: The Battle Begins

“‘Instinct’, first heavy particle cannon shot hit!”

“Damage assessment in progress… Lansford Port, communications array 70% damaged!”

Even without hearing the first officer’s report, Marquis Ascania could see the light from the distant explosion through the ‘panoramic viewscreen’ directly ahead.

Of course, on a bridge encased in thick composite laminate armor, there was naturally no such thing as a ‘panoramic viewscreen’.

What the Marquis saw was merely a panoramic image pieced together from the warship’s numerous optical observation devices.

At the very front of the fleet, an Aurora-class heavy cruiser had just completed this surgical strike.

It was using traditional light signals to boast to the surrounding friendly ships that it had won the ‘grand prize’.

Seeing this, a smile of complete control appeared on Marquis Ascania’s face.

“Not bad. A good start.”

His body, though past fifty, was still strong and agile. He shot up from his command chair.

Then, with a shing, he drew the command sword at his waist and pointed it straight ahead.

“Relay my orders! Full fleet, assume bombardment formation!”

“Fourth and Fifth Cruiser-Destroyer Formations, break off and destroy the patrol fleet!”

“Eighth and Eleventh Destroyer-Frigate Formations, advance rapidly and intercept civilian vessels on the route.”

“Dispatch reconnaissance boats to the designated area, deploy the second wave of cynosural beacons, and guide the subsequent formations in!”

“Gentlemen, for the Empire! The first battle must be a victory!”

Lansford Port, operations command center.

Thrown to the ceiling by the violent shaking, Randall was lucky enough to grab a handhold.

This saved him from being flung about like the other loose objects.

When the shaking stopped, Randall drifted back to his command chair.

He took a deep breath, displaying a composure at this tense moment that was unprecedented in his long military career.

“Everyone, stay calm and listen to my orders!”

“Log this! Universal Standard Time, New Calendar year 588, August 17th. 15:42 hours. The Imperial fleet has illegally invaded Federation territory and opened fire on our unit!”

“Sound the alarm. All operational ships in the port, emergency launch.”

“Port-side fusion reactors, remove power limiters! Port and space elevator defensive weapons, weapons free!”

“Activate the deflector field generators, full power!”

After issuing a series of commands, Randall paused.

His mind raced, trying to confirm if he had missed anything.

But then, the communications NCO’s terrified shout made him realize he had overlooked the most crucial part.

“Commander Randall! They’ve breached the shortwave communication frequencies! The system is detecting an electronic warfare virus!”

Randall wanted to slap himself.

He had spent too long in the comfortable peace of the naval port, so much so that he had overlooked the deadly threat of electronic warfare.

Now, the Empire had already breached the shortwave frequencies.

Judging by the size of the enemy fleet, they had to have a significant number of electronic attack ships.

The naval port’s control AI and antivirus programs alone certainly couldn’t stop their flood-like assault.

To prevent them from completely corrupting Lansford Port’s administrative systems, he had to make a drastic sacrifice now.

“Relay my orders. All departments and ships in the port are to shut down their shortwave communication modules and physically isolate them.”

“At the same time, activate the backup quantum-encrypted communication channel. Keep all subsequent transmissions as concise as possible!”

It was a move born of desperation. The real-time data throughput of a quantum-encrypted channel was worlds apart from conventional shortwave communications.

Even slightly larger messages had to be transmitted in several parts.

The entire fleet’s command efficiency would be drastically reduced.

But compared to having the server room systems completely paralyzed by an enemy virus, the current situation was acceptable.

Major Randall looked up at the main screen, at the real-time feed from the optical observation devices.

Aside from three breakaway fleets heading toward Robert IV, the rest of the Imperial fleet was slowly deploying, with their bows turning to face Lansford Port.

After all, the most powerful weapon on a warship, the heavy particle cannon, was mounted on the ship’s central axis, directly connected to the fusion reactor.

It was obvious their objective was the complete destruction of the Federation garrison fleet.

“Tell the warships in the port: if you don’t want to die ignominiously in your berths, get moving!”

Randall turned and looked at the panicked faces in the command center, adding:

“Everyone, after guiding the warships out of the port, proceed immediately to the escape platforms and await further orders.”

“We will survive this.”

Feeling the vibrations coming from beneath his chair, Major Randall brought up the feeds from several external cameras.

The automated defensive weapons positioned around the port and the space elevator had already opened fire.

Countless silo hatches sprang open, and tactical nuclear warheads and plasma torpedoes were launched via electromagnetic accelerator tracks.

They would follow attack vectors set by the automated counter-attack system, looping around to strike the Imperial fleet’s flanks.

But compared to these weapons, which needed several minutes to accelerate to hundreds of kilometers per second and reach their attack positions, the first to have an effect were the speed-of-light or near-light-speed weapons, like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

For them, an attack range of over nine thousand kilometers was basically point-and-shoot.

Requiring almost no targeting calibration, they were also the fastest-reacting component of the entire defensive system.

Beams of crimson high-energy lasers and blue charged particles swept across the deploying Imperial fleet like a rain of light.

On the main screen, Randall saw points of light continuously flaring up in the direction of the Imperial fleet.

But he knew this was most likely just the ‘special effect’ of the laser beams and charged particle beams striking the warships’ laminate armor.

Although these two types of weapons had virtually no attack delay, their drawback was also obvious: extreme energy dissipation.

At a distance of over nine thousand kilometers, the energy loss was significant enough that a warship’s laminate armor could easily conduct the intense heat generated by the lasers to other areas.

What’s more, the Imperial fleet in the optical feed had already extended the heat sinks on both sides.

Unlike the Federation’s pragmatic style, the Star Dragon Empire, with its greater national and industrial strength, had an almost paranoid obsession with the aesthetic design of its military equipment.

Even these easily damaged heat sinks had been aesthetically enhanced by the Empire.

And they had even been given a beautiful name—the ‘Angel’s Wings’.

On the battlefield, when an Imperial warship spread its ‘wings’, it meant that a high-intensity bombardment was imminent.

Chapter 14: Assault on the Core Communications Room

In space, as the Star Dragon Empire’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group launched its attack with absolute superiority, down on Yassin Base, Amber and his team had crept near the Core Communications Room.

Amber glanced at the time on his HUD. It was 15:44.

According to the ‘script,’ the Imperial fleet should have already begun its attack.

And news that the garrison fleet was under attack would, no doubt, reach the ground soon.

That was why Amber could clearly see the distinct anxiety on the faces of Margaret and the other Imperial spy who had come to rendezvous with them.

After all, if they waited for the Federation forces on the ground to react, launching a surprise attack would be much more difficult.

The Core Communications Room was located in the very center of the Communications Center.

To get to the Core Communications Room, one had to pass through a thirty-meter-long corridor with no cover whatsoever.

And at the end of that corridor, two Mobile Infantry soldiers stood guard at the entrance.

Amber didn’t dare peek out to see what kind of gear they were equipped with.

He was certain the guards here were on a completely different level of alert than the grunts outside.

Although he couldn’t see their specific loadout, Amber could guess that the guards at the door were likely two suits of Heavy Exoskeletons.

Or perhaps, they should be called Powered Armor.

After all, in this world, the core of both exoskeletons and Powered Armor was an adjustable frame.

Attach silicon carbide armor plates to key areas, mount a Gauss rifle, a fully automatic shotgun, or a grenade launcher to the rails under the arms, and you had a standard Medium Exoskeleton.

But if you took that same frame and added a high-power gas turbine engine and a battery pack, then fitted it with a fully enclosed outer shell, weapon mounts behind the shoulders, and a jetpack, it became a suit of heavy Powered Armor.

Amber always thought the process was a bit like PC enthusiasts putting together a custom build from salvaged parts.

A low-end build had its own charm, while a high-end build delivered performance.

And based on Amber’s extensive experience fighting Federation forces in Starry Sky, the two at the door of the Core Communications Room were likely in a defensive configuration of Powered Armor.

In addition to the heavy, fully enclosed outer armor, gas turbine engine, and battery pack, they were probably also connected to an external power source via cables running from their backs.

This would ensure their observation equipment and heat dissipation systems could run continuously.

The weapons mounted on their arms were likely a combination of a fully automatic shotgun and a chain gun.

Perhaps they even had a small electromagnetic cannon on the mounts behind their shoulders.

Such a loadout covered long, medium, and close-range combat, and its firepower was vicious.

The electromagnetic cannon, firing alloy penetrator rods, would make any other Powered Armor suit attempting a frontal assault understand the meaning of a new-era ‘can opener.’

So, a direct frontal assault was definitely out of the question.

Amber and his team had to think of a smarter way to deal with these two tin cans.

And Amber quickly came up with such a plan.

The other Imperial spy who rendezvoused with Amber and Margaret was undercover on the base as a Technical Sergeant.

While this position didn’t allow him to get his hands on any anti-armor weaponry, he had managed to scrounge together some tactical gadgets during his time undercover.

And as the only one of the three with the ability to lead a frontal assault, Amber naturally took temporary command.

Under his direction, the Technical Sergeant took a circuit jammer he had put together and headed for a nearby power distribution room.

In a moment, he would create a destructive circuit overload.

It would not only shut down the entire building’s lighting but also disable the circuit protection systems.

It would also force the two Powered Armor suits to disconnect from their external power and switch to their own gas turbines and battery packs.

Perhaps worried about jeopardizing the Empire’s military operation, the spy disguised as a Technical Sergeant moved quickly.

Amber, already in position, didn’t have to wait long for his chance to strike.

With the click of a circuit overload and the sound of an automatic trip switch, the lights throughout the building extinguished in an instant.

Although the backup circuits kicked in a second later, they lasted for less than two seconds before overloading again.

At the end of the corridor, the two Powered Armor suits activated from standby mode almost immediately.

The soldier inside one of the suits immediately told his teammate to sever the external power cable on his back.

“Internal power engaged.”

As a gentle female system voice sounded in his ear, the soldier immediately felt the vibration of the gas turbine behind him spinning up to full power.

At the same time, as the corridor plunged into darkness, the Powered Armor’s optical sensors automatically switched to low-light night vision mode, according to the user’s presets.

Just as the software-colorized, slightly distorted image appeared before the soldier’s eyes, a [THROWN OBJECT WARNING] message popped up on his HUD.

A black cylinder was flying toward him along a trajectory calculated by the system.

“Shit! It’s a thirty-meter straight corridor, how the hell did they throw that so far?!”

As the thought crossed his mind, the soldier realized it might be a flashbang.

Unfortunately, there was far too little time for them to react.

The moment before he could respond, the flashbang—souped-up by the Technical Sergeant—detonated.

Its brightness, far exceeding that of a standard flashbang, instantly turned the screen inside the Powered Armor’s faceplate black.

This was the system detecting an excessive amount of light that could cause irreversible damage to the photosensitive components and automatically shutting down the low-light night vision module.

[WARNING! LIGHT LEVELS EXCEEDED. LOW-LIGHT NIGHT VISION TEMPORARILY DISABLED]

[REBOOTING. PLEASE STAND BY.]

Two more messages flashed across his HUD.

But the soldier had no time to worry about that.

The vibration sensors had issued a simultaneous warning: a ground target was rapidly approaching.

Based on the vibration data, the system identified it as an infantry unit equipped with a Light Exoskeleton.

Light infantry? A frontal charge against Powered Armor?

The absurd image flashed through his mind, and in that split second, the soldier in the Powered Armor made his decision.

He didn’t even have time to alert his partner or switch his observation mode to standard or thermal imaging.

The soldier simply raised his arm, aiming roughly in the direction of the footsteps detected by the vibration sensors.

Then he pulled the trigger of his 12-gauge fully automatic shotgun.

“BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!”

Countless steel pellets, propelled by burning gunpowder, blanketed the area in front of the Powered Armor like a steel storm.

After firing a five-round burst from the fully automatic shotgun, the Powered Armor’s low-light night vision sensors rebooted.

But in his restored field of vision, aside from the pockmarks scattered across the surrounding walls and floor, there was no sign of the corpse riddled with holes that the soldier had expected to see.

At the same time, the vibration sensors issued another warning.

But this time, the warning came from…

behind them.

Chapter 15: Judas

“We’re done for.”

This was the first reaction of the two heavy Powered Armors upon discovering the target had darted behind them.

For this enemy who threw a flashbang grenade in their faces, crossed the thirty-meter-long corridor in an instant, and finally dodged the attack from a 12-gauge automatic shotgun to land behind them.

A single term flashed through both soldiers’ minds—psionic user.

Yes, only this kind of ‘monster’ who had undergone extensive physical enhancement and could use psionics to aid in combat could break through the defense of two heavy Powered Armors in an instant.

“I did it!”

This was the first ‘line’ that flashed through Amber’s mind after breaking through the two Powered Armors’ blockade.

Although this line reeked of a minor villain and had basically jinxed him, it truly expressed the excitement he felt at that moment.

This wasn’t Amber’s first time fighting Powered Armor single-handedly.

However, before this, it had always been in games.

Without the risk of death.

But now, he was using his own flesh and blood to take down Powered Armor in the real world.

When he used his psionics as an extension of his hands, practically ‘delivering’ the flashbang grenade right in front of the two Powered Armors, every move was like dancing on a blade’s edge—from the short-distance sprint fueled by the explosive power of his legs, to predicting the timing and direction of their gunfire and dodging with a ‘swan dive’ in mid-air, and finally, using small psionic lightning bolts to ‘stick’ to the walls on both sides, allowing him to pass over their heads.

“Thrilling! This is so damn thrilling!”

But in this kind of situation, Amber found himself even more excited than he was in games.

“Why do I feel like I’m becoming more and more of a pervert?”

Amber even had the spare mental capacity to ponder this question after landing behind the two Powered Armors.

Since the dendrites in his body had been replaced by superconducting fibers, his reaction time was already far beyond that of an ordinary person.

Stimulated by the massive flood of adrenaline, his strength, speed, and reflexes were enhanced yet again.

It was as if his entire being had entered some kind of bullet time.

He even felt like he had activated a ‘Sandevistan’ from another game.

Right now, the gas turbine engines and battery pack components on the backs of the two Powered Armors were directly in front of him.

In Amber’s eyes, these two Powered Armors, having realized the situation was dire, were turning sluggishly.

But Amber wasn’t going to give them the chance.

He gathered the most powerful psionic blast he could currently release in each of his hands.

The next moment, two psionic blasts, one from the left and one from the right, struck the backs of the two Powered Armors directly.

The violent energy almost instantly destroyed the gas turbine engine components.

On the HUDs of the two Powered Armor faceplates, a message popped up instantly:

[Warning! Gas turbine engine component severely damaged, power output decreased!]

Before the system could switch to ‘all-electric mode,’ driven by the metallic hydrogen battery pack in an emergency, a new warning message popped up.

[Warning! Battery pack severely overloaded, power supply has been cut!]

[Warning! Insufficient power! Unable to maintain output!]

With all their power components disabled and no external cables connected, the two Powered Armors instantly became two iron coffins.

“Fuck!”

The two soldiers inside the Powered Armor had never felt so hopeless.

They had been serving on Robert IV ever since joining the Federation military and were lucky enough to have never been in a single war.

But this also caused them to lose themselves in daily training where their concepts and combat thinking grew increasingly outdated.

In the past, their training exercises were all about how to leverage their equipment’s advantages to support Mobile Infantry operations.

In open terrain, with the right weapon loadout, the two of them could easily suppress an attack from one to two Mobile Infantry platoons. They could even use the small electromagnetic cannons on their shoulders to ‘pick off’ light armored vehicles or light multi-legged war machines.

But they had almost never trained how to fight a psionic user in a confined space.

Although after losing power, the Powered Armor’s adaptive balancing components still maintained an upright posture, the human strength inside was utterly incapable of moving these multi-ton behemoths.

However, Amber resolved their awkward predicament.

He pushed over the two immobilized Powered Armors. At this weight, the soldiers inside couldn’t even turn over.

Then, he followed up with another psionic blast to each of their heads.

Although, after just launching two ‘big ones,’ the psionic blasts Amber released now were considerably weaker, they were still enough to penetrate their heavy helmets and send the two guys into an infant-like sleep.

Finally, Amber took the 12-gauge automatic shotgun from the rail on the right arm of one of the Powered Armors.

Thoughtfully, he fired two shots into the external cable ports of the two suits, making sure they would never get up again.

After finishing all this, Amber shouldered the shotgun with one hand and waved to the other end of the corridor.

“All clear, come on over!”

A moment later, Margaret and the Imperial spy disguised as a Technical Sergeant cautiously approached.

At the same time, the Communications Center’s main electrical bus completed its self-check and restored power.

When the lights in the corridor came on, revealing the two ‘unconscious’ Powered Armors on the floor, the Imperial spy, a member of the Star Dragon’s Fangs’ psionic operations team codenamed ‘Judas,’ felt his face twitch unnaturally.

He recalled the order given by his contact on Robert IV, ‘Tail Needle.’

“At all costs, after breaching the Core Communications Room, eliminate the defector Margaret and the ‘Fledgling’.”

“Amenhotep… how am I supposed to eliminate them?”

Although he was a member of Star Dragon’s Fangs, ‘Judas’ was not a psionic user.

He was actually an intelligence operative under Star Dragon’s Fangs.

Compared to combat, he was more skilled at infiltration, intelligence gathering, and on-site tactical support.

But an order from his superior was something he could not refuse.

So, if he wanted to complete the mission successfully, there was only one way left.

A sneak attack.

‘Judas’ suppressed the nervousness and a hint of fear in his heart as he walked past Amber, giving him a nod.

Then he walked quickly to the door of the Core Communications Room and got down to business.

The Core Communications Room had an independent power supply, so his earlier sabotage of the Communications Center’s circuitry hadn’t affected it.

This also meant that this most critical room was still under lockdown.

And as the on-site tactical support personnel, the job of bypassing the lock and opening the door naturally fell to him.

Moreover, although ‘Judas’ was on a mission to eliminate Margaret and Amber, he didn’t dare to dawdle now.

The unexpected power outage in the Communications Center would certainly have alerted the Federation military.

The Mobile Infantry guards at the entrance had probably noticed something was wrong and were already rushing in.

‘Judas’ connected a small terminal to the control device by the Core Communications Room door.

Then he said calmly:

“Give me twenty seconds!”

Chapter 16: Betrayal

Twenty seconds later.

Looking at the flashing red text on the Core Communications Room’s door control terminal screen: ‘COMMAND ERROR, CANNOT EXECUTE!’.

Judas’s brow was deeply furrowed.

The current situation made him, who had just coolly declared ‘Twenty seconds!’, break out in a sweat.

“Ahem. The security system here must have been upgraded independently.”

“My hacking program was developed mainly for the base’s standard security systems.”

“But it’s fine, just give me a little more time, and I can definitely crack it!”

Judas raised his arm, tilted his head, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“Look, man, we might be out of time.”

Seeing the door remain stubbornly shut, Amber came right over and took the terminal from Judas’s hands.

“Let me take a look…”

On the terminal’s screen was a command window.

After trying a few familiar, basic commands and seeing them execute successfully.

Amber grinned.

The hacking gameplay in Starry Sky was quite hardcore.

The developers had based it on a real-world programming language.

So, apart from a few players who were interested in hacking, the average player rarely took the time to study the mechanics.

In most cases, they would just buy a few quick-hacking devices from the market, keep them in their backpacks, and simply plug one into an electronic device whenever they needed to hack something.

But Amber was different.

His real-life profession was a programmer, so he picked up the game’s hacking mechanics very quickly.

Back when he had just started the game and lacked everything, he even specialized in offering ‘paid’ hacking services to other players.

So when he saw that the program Judas was using was virtually identical to the one in the game.

Amber actually breathed a sigh of relief.

And the security program used by the Core Communications Room was also one that had appeared in the early-game hacking content.

“Mm… I recognize this program.”

“After the last patch update from the security center, it actually created a backdoor.”

Amber typed rapidly on the terminal’s projected virtual keyboard, his speed and skill stunning the other two.

“Found it. This is the backdoor!”

“Huh? You wrote a virus into this hacking program too? Nice, that saves a lot of trouble.”

Amber said with a smile, patting Judas’s on the shoulder.

But the latter was frozen in embarrassment.

Judas secretly glanced at Margaret, only to find her staring right at him.

He immediately read two words in her eyes.

“Is that it?”

Fortunately, Amber, ever the master of defusing awkward situations, came to the rescue again.

“Woohoo! All done. Access control disabled, we can go in whenever~”

Amber removed the terminal and tossed it into Judas’s arms.

At the same time, he unclipped the last flashbang grenade from his belt.

Amber had a high opinion of this modified flashbang.

This Imperial spy next to him might be a bit lacking in the hacking department, but his weapon modification skills were not bad at all.

The next steps required no further discussion.

Amber would once again take point, with the other two providing support.

Seeing Amber, who was ready for the breach, nod at him and pull the pin on the flashbang grenade.

Judas unhesitatingly used the terminal to open the Core Communications Room’s door.

The moment the sliding door opened a crack, Amber precisely tossed the flashbang inside.

As the spoon flew off the grenade’s body, the striker hit the primer, which in turn lit the fuse.

Two and a half seconds later, the burned-out fuse ignited the elemental magnesium inside the grenade.

The flashbang, modified by Judas, instantly produced a sound of over one hundred and eighty decibels and an intense flash of light.

The soldiers on duty in the Core Communications Room had actually sensed something was wrong when the Communications Center lost power.

And when they found they couldn’t even contact the two guards outside the door, they began to panic.

Theoretically, they should have immediately issued a warning and called for reinforcements.

But the soldiers at Yassin Base had been comfortable for far too long, and their reaction times had slowed to a ridiculous degree.

Amber and the others’ swift and decisive raid compressed their reaction time even further.

When the door slid open automatically, the soldiers on duty instinctively looked toward it.

And then they saw a ‘little cutie’ fly in.

“We’re screwed.”

This was the last thought that flashed through the soldiers’ minds before they lost consciousness.

If they had been wearing basic combat gear, including helmets and noise-canceling headsets.

The situation might have been better.

But the problem was, no one did that in the Core Communications Room of a Communications Center during peacetime.

They already had to sit at their stations for long shifts; wearing a full set of combat gear on top of that would have been murder on their backs.

So, the air-bursting flashbang took everyone down instantly.

Amber faced no resistance as he walked into the Core Communications Room.

Looking at the duty soldiers, who hadn’t even had time to draw their guns, Amber regretfully lowered his fully automatic shotgun.

Ever since taking down the two suits of Powered Armor, Amber had found himself in a state of high excitement.

And he wondered if the experiences of this body were having an effect on his psyche.

He felt surprisingly little resistance to the idea of shooting at other people.

“Oh no, am I going to turn into some kind of battle-crazed maniac…”

After confirming that the soldiers in the Core Communications Room were completely unconscious.

Amber had Margaret and Judas use restraints to bind the soldiers’ hands behind their backs.

He himself, after locking the door, walked over to a massive terminal in the center of the room.

“So we just have to destroy this thing?”

Amber asked, looking back at Margaret while manipulating something on the terminal.

“That’s right. To eliminate any future problems, I plan to blow it up.”

Margaret nodded as she stood up, having finished tying up the last soldier.

“‘Judas,’ are the explosives ready?”

Hearing his companion’s question, Judas took the backpack off his shoulder and pulled out high-energy explosives.

Heaven knows how this Technical Sergeant managed to scrape all this stuff together.

“I’ll set them. I’ve modified them for a directional blast, but you two should still take cover just to be safe.”

Judas walked to the back of the terminal with the explosives. Detonating them from here would directly destroy the machine’s core components.

If the Imperial fleet successfully annihilated the garrison fleet and secured space superiority.

Then the Federation forces on Robert IV would have no way of contacting the outside world for some time.

At the moment Judas walked behind the terminal, he was momentarily out of both Amber’s and Margaret’s line of sight.

Faced with this golden opportunity, Judas, who had decided to faithfully carry out his superior’s orders.

Drew a pistol from a hidden underarm holster and switched off the safety.

Chapter 17: Counter-Kill

Judas thought he must be insane.

Otherwise, there was no way he would still be thinking about completing the mission, knowing full well what Amber was capable of.

If he had to list the one person he wanted to kill most right now, he would definitely write down the codename ‘Tail Needle’.

That guy’s intelligence was clearly flawed.

Every one of Amber’s abilities completely surpassed the level of a Level 3 psionic user.

Whether it was instantly taking down two units of Powered Armor or skillfully hacking the access control.

These were not things a Federation Psionic Agent fresh out of military academy should have been able to do.

But Judas had no way out now.

If he refused to follow orders, Tail Needle would certainly kill him.

And given that psycho’s reputation, falling into his hands meant an unknown amount of torture.

If he carried out the order, he might just get lucky and take out the psionic user.

After all, his opponent had just expended a significant amount of psionics, so his combat strength was surely not at its peak.

Amber was currently equipped with the standard combat suit and Light Exoskeleton of a Federation Psionic Agent.

While it provided Optical invisibility and a minor boost to strength and speed, it came at the cost of sacrificing protection.

Apart from the flexible ballistic material sewn into the combat suit, this lightweight combat gear offered very little protection.

Even its vital areas could only stop a few shots from small-caliber kinetic firearms.

Against the Gauss rifles that had become standard issue for the Mobile Infantry, this level of protection was meaningless.

Of course, Judas also knew that a Psionic Agent’s defense came from the psionic shields they generated themselves.

That was why these psionic users dared to ‘run naked’ on a battlefield crisscrossed with fire.

However, while the Amber before him was powerful, he still hadn’t reached the level where he could deploy a psionic shield.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have needed to create an opportunity by cutting the power to deal with the two Powered Armor units in the hallway.

He could have just activated his shield and charged right through.

Judas steadied himself, stuck the high-energy explosive to the back of the terminal, and started a one-minute countdown.

When remote detonation wasn’t an option, setting a timer to allow personnel to evacuate the blast zone was essential.

“Alright, the explosive is set! I’ve put it on a one-minute timer, so hurry over!”

As he said this, Judas discreetly bent his arm, concealing his pistol by his hip and aiming the barrel at the spot where Amber would appear.

Although he was a demolition-type spy, not one specialized in combat, Judas had still received marksmanship training.

At a distance of less than five meters, he was confident he could hit Amber using point shooting.

Moreover, the pistol in his hand was not the ordinary kinetic firearm it appeared to be.

Thanks to his modifications, this Federation military standard-issue pistol, which looked a size larger, had its projectile propulsion system upgraded from simple gunpowder kinetics to electrothermal-chemical energy.

Although its ammunition capacity was reduced from twelve rounds to two, the cleared space allowed Judas to cram in a mini plasma generator and a minimalist pulse forming network.

With such extreme modifications, the muzzle energy skyrocketed.

Paired with equally modified high-power explosive rounds.

As long as he could hit Amber’s torso, Judas was confident he could kill him instantly.

While Federation Psionic Agents all underwent physical augmentation, it only allowed them to withstand a dozen or so more gunshots.

It didn’t make their bodies completely impervious to bullets.

Judas’s plan was, to a certain extent, indeed feasible.

Given Amber’s current physical durability, he definitely couldn’t withstand this heavily modified ‘little pistol’ without a psionic shield.

Unfortunately, Judas had overlooked the most critical problem: Amber’s reaction speed was on a completely different level from his own.

The instant Amber saw the muzzle of the gun, he threw out a psionic blast almost subconsciously.

This pale blue ball of energy, which hadn’t even had time to fully form, struck Judas in the chest a moment before he could pull the trigger.

“Thud!”

Judas felt as if a sledgehammer had struck his chest, and the impact sent him tumbling to the ground.

He pulled the trigger, but under the circumstances, there was obviously no accuracy to speak of.

The precious bullet, unsurprisingly, missed its mark.

“Damn it!” Judas cursed.

He once again witnessed just how monstrous psionic users were.

But he hadn’t given up the fight.

As a trained spy, he used his momentum after falling to immediately execute a sideways roll.

Then he aimed his gun at Margaret, who hadn’t yet fully processed the situation.

I can’t hit the psionic user, but surely I can hit a normal person?

“Boom!” Amber fired first.

At point-blank range, the 12-gauge buckshot blasted nearly all of its pellets into Judas.

His chest was instantly turned into a mess of mangled flesh and blood.

The blood and chunks of flesh that sprayed out from his back covered half the wall.

Amber slowly walked over, shotgun raised, only to find the traitor, who had turned on them at the last moment, forcing a smile onto his face.

His breath as faint as a thread, he used every last bit of his strength to force a single word from his mouth, which was constantly bubbling with blood.

“Thank you.”

As his eyes slowly closed, the Imperial spy known as Judas was free.

But Amber, codenamed ‘Fledgling’, was lost in conflicted thoughts.

Meanwhile, Margaret, who had just had a brush with death, was still trying to understand what had just happened.

She never would have imagined that a teammate they had just been fighting alongside would suddenly draw a gun on them.

And in the blink of an eye, the confrontation was decided.

“What… what was that all about?” Margaret asked cautiously.

But Amber didn’t answer her. Instead, he shoved her to the ground.

“BOOM!!!”

With a deafening roar, the shaped high-energy explosive charge Judas had set went off.

This type of explosive, meant for breaching fortifications, was definitely overkill for destroying a terminal.

When the smoke cleared, the terminal that had sat in the middle of the Core Communications Room had vanished, reduced to a pile of debris by the high-energy explosive.

Amber climbed back to his feet and brushed the dust off himself.

He glanced at Judas’s body and said slowly, “Do you know what unit that man belonged to?”

Amber’s abrupt question caught Margaret by surprise.

But after the series of shocking events, Amber’s displayed strength and composure made her answer subconsciously.

“He’s field support personnel from the Star Dragon’s Fangs… Why did he open fire on us?”

“Could he be a Federation double agent?”

“No, that’s not right. If he was with the Federation, why would he help plant and detonate the explosive?”

However, before Margaret could continue her self-directed analysis, Amber cut her off.

“If I recall correctly, the Star Dragon’s Fangs have completely thrown their lot in with the Regent Prince, haven’t they?”

Chapter 18: The Battle Situation is Too Unfavorable for Our Soldiers

Amber’s words were a wake-up call for Margaret.

Though she immediately grasped the key information, she still found it hard to believe.

“Just because we belong to different factions, does that mean they’d disregard a mission crucial to the Empire’s success in this war?!”

“Hmph, as if this is the first time something like this has happened because of political infighting,” Amber scoffed, dismissing Margaret’s shock.

The partisan conflict in the Star Dragon Empire was a hot topic among players in his past life.

This struggle between the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction was as bad as, if not worse than, the infamous party strife of the late Ming Dynasty from the real world.

Many major events that decided the course of history were influenced by the Empire’s internal politics.

In the game, many of the hardcore Empire supporters would beat their chests and lament whenever they discussed the key battles lost due to this factional infighting.

Amber checked the remaining rounds in his automatic shotgun’s magazine, then walked to the terminal by the Core Communications Room door and locked it securely from the inside.

He had no desire for a squad of howling Federation Mobile Infantry to burst in.

After doing this, Amber walked back to the still-dazed Margaret and pinched her cheek.

“The Imperial fleet currently raiding us overhead is the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, correct?”

“Y-yes.”

“If I remember correctly, the commander of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group is Marquis Ascania, right?”

Margaret nodded mechanically. Amber’s casual pinch had unexpectedly brought a faint blush to her cheeks.

(Amber: That’s just how we space incubi are.)

“What a coincidence, that marquis is one of the Regent Prince’s men~”

Amber took off his tactical glove and snapped his fingers.

“What are you implying?”

Margaret had an inkling, but she wasn’t quite sure.

“Believe it or not, after the orbital paratroopers land, apart from crushing the Federation’s resistance…”

Amber paused, then looked into Margaret’s eyes.

“…their most important task will be to confirm whether you’re dead or not.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Margaret’s expression shifted, and then she seemed to remember something.

“Wait. I admit what you’re saying makes sense.”

“But the problem is…”

“Didn’t that guy… shoot at you first just now?”

Margaret’s question successfully stumped Amber.

“Right, why would he shoot at me first?!”

“I’m not even in the goddamn Princess Faction!”

Amber suddenly realized that things might not be as simple as he thought.

In the outer space of Robert IV.

The Imperial Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group now held an absolute advantage.

Although the Federation garrison fleet had bought time with its automated defense systems and deflector shields, allowing most of its ships to successfully perform emergency departures…

…the battle entered garbage time once the subsequent Imperial fleet warped in, guided by new cynosural beacons.

Relying on their numerical superiority, the Imperial fleet gave the garrison fleet no chance to close the distance for a boarding action.

After deploying into bombardment formation, almost all the warships shut down their main rear propulsion arrays.

They then stabilized themselves in a geosynchronous orbit over Robert IV, constantly adjusting their position with vector control and forward retro-thrusters, and consistently maintaining a linear distance of over eight thousand kilometers from Lansford Military Port.

At this range, the power of high-energy lasers and charged particle beams was reduced to a level that could be withstood.

The plasma torpedoes and nuclear warheads that came in from the flanks were continuously intercepted by the dedicated anti-air frigates on the fleet’s perimeter.

Although some slipped through the cracks and caused varying degrees of damage to four cruisers and some destroyers and frigates, the losses remained within an acceptable range.

They were even far below the loss threshold projected by the Naval Staff before the battle.

Under these circumstances, the Imperial fleet engaged in the bombardment could almost be described as ‘composed’.

Their superiority in firepower allowed them to forgo the use of high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

Instead, they opted to use their most powerful heavy particle cannons for continuous bombardment.

The rhythm of a salvo every minute and a half made the dense volleys of white beams look like a rain of light, constantly sweeping over Lansford Military Port and the surrounding Federation warships.

From Major Randall’s perspective in the Lansford Port combat command center, warships were exploding in the space around the military port at every moment.

Right now, through the images transmitted back by optical observation equipment, he was watching a warship two hundred eighty kilometers from the spaceport.

This Bulldog-class heavy cruiser, one of the first ships to launch and join the counterattack, had finally run out of luck in this asymmetrical battle.

As a thick plasma beam struck its deflector shield, erupting in a dazzling white light, the deflector shield generator, which had been running on overpower for a long time, finally overloaded and shut down.

Having lost its ‘lifesaver’ in fleet combat…

…the second plasma beam that followed pierced straight through the ship’s hull from the upper starboard bow.

The ship’s automated damage control system had no time to react to this level of damage.

As a chain of fireballs erupted along the path of the plasma beam, the fusion reactor at the heavy cruiser’s core was detonated.

In an instant, the entire warship turned into a massive fireball.

And this was just one of the many ship explosions constantly occurring around Lansford Port.

Major Randall sighed.

The annihilation of the garrison fleet was now inevitable.

The Imperial fleet, throughout its bombardment, had consistently avoided the main structures of Lansford Port and the space elevator.

This indicated that their objective was to control this nexus between planet and space.

Randall was helpless in this situation.

Neither the military port, the civilian port, nor the space elevator had been crazily equipped with any kind of ‘self-destruct mechanism’.

After losing all its defending forces, it was only a matter of time before the Empire occupied the area.

Seeing that every operational warship in the port had departed, Major Randall issued his final order:

“Everyone, to the escape platforms, now!”

Compared to staying here and waiting to be captured by the Imperial Army, escaping to Robert IV in pods to rendezvous with ground forces was undoubtedly the better choice.

In the final moment before he dragged Tactical Information Coordinator Tom out of the command center, Major Randall took one last look at the main screen.

The Imperial fleet was already entering the final phase of its bombardment, reactivating their main propulsion arrays.

As they continuously closed the distance to Lansford Port, numerous flat, door-panel-shaped ships began to break away from the fleet and lower their orbits.

These were orbital assault ships.

And their appearance signified that the orbital strike and orbital drop were about to begin.

Chapter 19: The Aristocratic Squad

An orbital strike was, in essence, bombing from outside the atmosphere.

At least, that was how the humans of this world saw it.

After testing everything from high-energy lasers, charged particle cannons, and heavy particle cannons to electromagnetic cannons on experimental low-orbit ships, the militaries of every nation discovered that instead of playing around with such fancy gadgetry, it was far more effective to just launch missiles.

Planets suitable for human habitation all possessed thick atmospheres.

Directed-energy weapons suffered severe attenuation after penetrating the atmosphere.

As for the projectiles from an electromagnetic cannon, their terminal velocity was often less than half of their muzzle velocity.

Even on planets with extremely thin atmospheres, these point-to-point weapons were unsuitable for ground attacks.

In terms of lethality, the pure kinetic impact damage from a 140-kilogram tungsten alloy rod hitting the ground at Mach 14 was less potent than a 155mm electrothermal-chemical cannon firing a high-explosive shell.

In terms of precision, ground forces possessed numerous precision-guided weapons capable of achieving an attack error on par with a high-energy laser.

But their power and kill radius completely dwarfed a high-energy laser beam ‘diluted’ by the atmosphere.

Therefore, the orbital assault ships of the major powers had all returned to basics and embraced orbital bombardment.

A prime example was the Minotaur-class orbital assault ships currently “laying eggs” in the low orbit of Robert IV.

These warships, roughly one kilometer long and resembling thick, silver door panels, carried no anti-ship weaponry, equipped only with a few close-in weapon systems for self-defense.

Their vast internal space, aside from the warship-grade jump drive and fusion reactor, was almost entirely packed with missile silos and deployment bays.

Under a standard configuration, a Minotaur-class could carry five hundred ‘David’ tactical surface-to-surface missiles and ten ‘Tunguska’ tactical hydrogen bombs.

It could also transport a quarter of an Imperial regiment—five hundred orbital paratroopers.

The Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group had brought a total of fifty Minotaur-class ships.

At this moment, these silver door panels were dispersed high above Robert IV.

Acting on intelligence provided by Commander Adam, they had already dropped a wave of tactical hydrogen bombs on several Federation ground force assembly points.

These tactical hydrogen bombs, reaching a terminal velocity of Mach 30, left many Federation units with no time to react.

Only fifteen percent of the warheads in the first wave were intercepted.

The remaining tactical hydrogen bombs that broke through the defenses all detonated in mid-air at altitudes between 200 and 350 meters above the ground.

The ground forces en route to their various drill assembly points suffered extremely heavy casualties from the tactical hydrogen bomb strikes.

After completing the tactical nuclear strike, with the exception of a few warships that remained in low orbit to continue their attacks with ‘David’ tactical missiles, most of the Minotaur-class orbital assault ships lowered their orbits once more.

The orbital paratroopers aboard them boarded the drop pods located in the ships’ internal deployment bays.

As a green light lit up, one drop pod after another slid off the assault ships along guide rails, plummeting vertically toward their designated landing zones.

These orbital paratroopers would be the first Imperial force to set foot on the soil of Robert IV.

They would land near the planet’s key cities, facilities, and strategic points, launching attacks with the utmost speed.

Once they established secure landing zones, much larger aerospace transports would carry all manner of heavy equipment through the atmosphere.

And this was the standard procedure for an orbital assault in the current era.

Among these plummeting drop pods, which resembled a meteor shower, a few had exceptionally flamboyant paint jobs.

Although the atmospheric entry had scorched their outer coatings black, one could still faintly discern the silver dragon emblem—a symbol of the Empire’s aristocracy—beneath the blackened surface.

Inside one of these pods, Viscount Ancarin and his comrades-in-arms were experiencing the extremely thrilling ‘atmospheric entry’ phase.

While most other Imperial nobles who joined the military became warship captains or ground force commanders, Viscount Ancarin, the Regiment Commander of the 72nd Orbital Drop Regiment, 107th Expeditionary Division of the Star Dragon Empire, was considered an ‘eccentric’ by his peers.

But Viscount Ancarin paid no mind to the opinions of others.

In his view, those ‘cowards’ who indulged in opera, music, equestrianism, and fencing could never comprehend the unique thrill of an orbital drop.

From initially buying a decommissioned orbital assault ship and gathering a group of like-minded ‘eccentric’ nobles to play at ‘outer space bungee jumping’ in various creative ways, to enlisting in the military and becoming the first aristocrat in the Star Dragon Empire’s history to serve as an orbital paratrooper, and now, to becoming the commander of the 72nd Orbital Drop Regiment and receiving the honorary title of ‘Blood Dragon Regiment’ from the Emperor himself.

Under his influence, some young scions of noble families, ignoring the objections of their elders, began to join this game for the courageous.

These aristocrats, gathered in the ‘Blood Dragon Regiment’, were known by the other orbital paratroopers as ‘the Aristocratic Squad’.

At this very moment, the target for Ancarin, his Aristocratic Squad, and the Blood Dragon Regiment was Yassin Base.

After entering the atmosphere, the Federation’s surviving anti-air forces began their counterattack.

Although drop pods could punch through the atmosphere, they were actually very fragile units.

Ground-based anti-air forces often didn’t need to destroy them completely; they only needed to damage their attitude control thrusters. That was enough to send the pods out of control, tumbling toward the ground.

Beams of high-energy lasers swept across the heavens.

The rods from anti-air electromagnetic cannons streaked across the night sky, their bright trails flashing.

Drop pod after drop pod was struck by the anti-air fire.

Tumbling, disintegrating, exploding.

Viscount Ancarin paid no heed to the hellish scene outside his porthole.

He was currently recalling the secret mission given to him before the drop by the commander of the strike group—Marquis Ascania.

“After landing, proceed quickly to the Communications Center. An undercover operative from the Star Dragon’s Fangs will rendezvous with you.”

Recalling the mission his Lord Marquis had given him, Ancarin felt the violent shaking of the drop pod as it screamed through the atmosphere. The Viscount closed his eyes.

In an environment where an ordinary person would be scared witless, he, on the contrary, felt a sense of calm.

He even used this ‘calm’ to think.

Viscount Ancarin mulled over the mission again and again in his mind.

He was somewhat puzzled. Why did he need to take his men to the Communications Center?

And why did he have to rendezvous with an undercover operative from the Star Dragon’s Fangs?

Furthermore, the mission had been given to him directly by the Marquis.

Thinking about a certain ‘other’ identity of the Lord Marquis, Viscount Ancarin suddenly felt that this mission might not be so simple.

A roar from the bottom of the drop pod, followed by a violent positive g-force, interrupted the Viscount’s thoughts.

The drop pod’s retro-thrusters had ignited.

This meant the pod was in its final deceleration phase and was about to land.

“Gentlemen! Prepare for combat!”

Chapter 20: The Base is Under Attack

During the Empire’s orbital strike, Yassin Base had the benefit of undercover agents and Federation “defectors” within its ranks.

As a result, the Federation soldiers here were spared from tactical hydrogen bombs.

Instead, they were treated to airburst tactical thermobaric bombs.

The soldiers at the Army Day celebration gala, in particular, were basically wiped out in one fell swoop.

And Commander Adam, who had just finished his performance, “happened” to be inspecting troops near the base’s bunker when the orbital strike occurred.

So, he was fortunate enough to survive this volley of tactical missiles.

But the other soldiers were not so lucky.

Before they could even recover from the orbital strike and figure out what was happening, they saw Imperial orbital drop pods slam into the ground one after another, shrieking as they pushed through the base’s remaining anti-aircraft fire.

When they saw fully-armed orbital paratroopers storming out of these drop pods, the surviving soldiers finally understood what was happening.

The Empire had invaded.

The first to mount a counterattack were the surviving soldiers on duty at Yassin Base.

Although most of their guard posts had been specifically targeted and destroyed in the initial strike, and most of the automated defense systems were offline after the base’s power station was destroyed, these soldiers, equipped with exoskeletons, quickly rallied under their officers’ command and launched an assault on the Imperial orbital paratroopers who had already breached the base.

Supported by several multi-legged war machines, the Mobile Infantry held fast to the main thoroughfare inside the base. Then, relying on the absolute firepower advantage of the electrothermal-chemical cannons and small charged particle cannons on the war machines, they pinned the Imperial orbital paratroopers down at a street corner.

After landing and exiting his drop pod, Viscount Ancarin regrouped with members of the nearby Aristocratic Squad. The shortwave communication channel was filled with calls for support from his various advance teams.

Through the battlefield command system, Viscount Ancarin could see that of the first one hundred drop pods his regiment had deployed (each pod holding five men), only fifty-six had made it to the ground intact.

“Hmph! The intelligence department can go eat shit.”

Looking at his battered troops, who had suffered heavy losses during deployment, Viscount Ancarin angrily lifted his faceplate and spat.

“I can’t believe they had the gall to spout bullshit like ‘at most 25% losses for the drop troops’ at the pre-war briefing!”

Frowning, Viscount Ancarin shook his head and chambered the Gauss rifle mounted under his arm with a click.

He then looked at a nearby orbital paratrooper who had just stepped out of a drop pod.

“Dale! I’m leaving battlefield command to you. Take the boys and secure our objective area!”

Although Viscount Ancarin was a veteran orbital paratrooper, his skills in tactical command weren’t particularly high. As such, battlefield command of the Blood Dragon Regiment actually fell to his battalion commanders.

On the battlefield, the Viscount served more as a “hero unit,” boosting the morale of friendly forces.

“Understood, my Lord Viscount! Just go and enjoy the battlefield~”

The tactical commander named Dale shrugged, clearly accustomed to this arrangement.

“Hahahaha! Of the four battalion commanders in the regiment, you’re the one who gets me the most!”

Viscount Ancarin laughed heartily and led his Aristocratic Squad off in another direction.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget to turn back and add another instruction.

“Oh, and speed things up! The Blood Dragon Regiment can’t afford to lose to the other units!”

“Your will be done~”

Dale bowed in the direction of the Viscount’s departure like a stage actor.

When he turned back to the other soldiers, his expression had become completely serious.

“You all heard the Viscount! What are we!”

“The Blood Dragon Regiment!”

“And what is the Blood Dragon Regiment!”

“The Emperor’s Blade!”

“Good~ Move out!”

Dale looked with satisfaction at the orbital paratroopers. Despite their heavy casualties, their morale was still high. With a great wave of his hand, he pointed forward.

At the same time, using shortwave communications and the battlefield command system, he began directing the troops into battle.

“Surviving members of A and B Company, merge and fall under the command of A Company’s commander! You are to reinforce the advance team and stabilize the front line!”

“C Company, with me. We’re entering the buildings. Prepare for demolition!”

“Fire support teams, move to the area I’ve marked. Find an opportunity to take out those multi-legged war machines!”

“Electronic warfare team, deploy EW drones and begin battlefield jamming!”

“Communications team, begin guiding in the next wave!”

Meanwhile, Viscount Ancarin, leading the Aristocratic Squad toward the Communications Center, quickly ran into a counterattack from surviving Federation forces.

As time went on, more and more Federation survivors dug their equipment out of the rubble and joined the fight. The pressure on Viscount Ancarin’s assault on the Communications Center mounted.

“MBT! Eleven o’clock!”

A slightly panicked voice suddenly crackled over the comms channel.

On the HUD of Viscount Ancarin’s faceplate, the system had just flagged a purple “high-threat unit” icon.

The next second, a programmable high-explosive shell streaked across the street and detonated right in the path of the Imperial orbital paratroopers’ advance.

BOOM!

The shockwave from the high-explosive shell sent the Viscount flying.

He struggled to his feet and stumbled behind a ruined wall for cover.

Where the shell had exploded, seven or eight bodies of orbital paratroopers lay scattered. The nearby wounded were being helped by their comrades to find cover.

Viscount Ancarin peeked out from behind the wall. A gray main battle tank with thick composite armor burst through a surrounding wall like a wild beast.

Its 155mm dual-purpose electrothermal-chemical cannon, set to direct-fire mode, looked particularly menacing, smoke still curling from the muzzle after its recent shot.

The twin-barreled 35mm automatic chain gun on top of the turret was spitting fire.

A storm of shells swept across the street like a giant broom, cutting several orbital paratroopers who couldn’t get to cover in half. The chain gun didn’t care if you were an aristocrat; it would cut you down all the same.

Viscount Ancarin watched the scene without much sadness.

He, like the other members of the Aristocratic Squad, had long been mentally prepared for this.

Instead of wasting time on sorrow or fear, it was better to figure out how to deal with the tin can in front of them.

“Fuck! (Imperial curse) How does a Federation base still have one of these old geezers!”

“Sigh, our own border bases have plenty of tanks that haven’t been decommissioned yet.”

“Besides, this thing might be old, but it’s damned effective when it counts.”

The pinned-down members of the Aristocratic Squad complained over the comms channel.

But they weren’t just passively waiting behind cover. The MBT’s main cannon was booming with a steady rhythm. If they didn’t do something, it wouldn’t be long before every building in the vicinity that could be used as cover was demolished by its 155mm high-explosive shells.

Several orbital paratroopers carrying anti-vehicle weapons snuck to the flank under the cover of their teammates.

A few moments later, several top-attack missiles launched from behind the nearby buildings.

But at the instant the missiles descended vertically and struck the tank, the flash of the explosion was accompanied by a blinding white light.

“Fuck! It’s a deflector shield!”

The missiles, detonated prematurely by the strong magnetic field surrounding the tank, only managed to scorch the top of the turret black.

“Captain, we can’t handle this thing! We need something with more power to fuck it up!”

“Understood. I’ll have them drop a Titan for us!”

Chapter 21: This Is How We Do Factional Politics

When a Titan appears on the enemy line, it is an infantryman’s nightmare.

But when it descends from the heavens to cover its allies…

It becomes the infantry’s guardian angel.

Viscount Ancarin hadn’t planned on calling for an orbital Titan drop from the assault ship so early.

But the Federation main battle tanks currently rampaging through the streets were a problem that couldn’t be solved quickly.

This time-honored instrument of land warfare had been slowly fading from battlefields in an age of ubiquitous directed-energy weapons.

But ever since deflector shield technology had been adapted from warships for ground use, and with superconducting batteries becoming more and more common…

The main battle tank had unexpectedly cashed in on a new wave of technology.

Driven by a hybrid of high-power gas turbine engines and superconducting battery packs, MBTs now had greater power output than ever before.

Not only could they be fitted with tougher armor and large-caliber, dual-purpose electrothermal-chemical cannons that could fire in both direct and arcing trajectories…

They could also sustain a low-power deflector shield, thanks to the support of their superconducting batteries.

Once this powerful, confining magnetic field enveloped a tank, most weapon attacks were unable to breach its defenses.

Even with infantry having evolved to a state of ‘full exoskeleton and universal Gauss rifles’…

When it came to the main battle tank, it was still the undisputed king.

Of course, if there was a king, there was bound to be an emperor.

And the HCP was the main battle tank’s emperor.

So the moment Viscount Ancarin, using his company’s communications specialist as a relay, contacted the orbital assault ship overhead…

He immediately demanded they drop an “emperor” to support him.

“This is an emergency! Use my position as the drop coordinates and have the pilot make micro-adjustments during the final descent!”

“Don’t worry about anything else! Just drop one down here and wreck this tank in front of me, thanks!”

As an Imperial aristocrat and the Emperor’s personally appointed Regiment Commander of the Blood Dragon Regiment, Viscount Ancarin did not just command a single regiment of orbital paratroopers.

The four orbital assault ships responsible for transporting the Blood Dragon Regiment were also under his direct command.

So, faced with an order from the big boss, the drop coordinator on the ship could only run over to the HCP squadron, find the pilot with the most guts…

And then kick both him and his Titan straight out the door.

After an agonizingly long ten minutes on the ground, Viscount Ancarin and the other members of the Aristocratic Squad…

Finally heard a roar from high in the sky, immediately followed by the sound of an explosion.

That was the sound of the HCP detaching from its drop pod after atmospheric entry.

Then, a voice from the heavens echoed over their comms channel.

“‘Red Wolf’ entering the channel!”

“Entering final descent phase. Preparing for ground support!”

“My lord, requesting target designation!”

To Viscount Ancarin and his men, the HCP pilot’s rough voice sounded like that of a war angel.

He and several nearby members of the Aristocratic Squad immediately used the gaps in their cover to provide laser guidance.

The crew inside the main battle tank received an immediate warning from their omnidirectional laser detection system.

But before they could call on the mobile infantry around their tank to advance and interfere with the enemy’s laser targeting…

A plasma beam, white with a tinge of blue, descended from the sky.

Struck by plasma heated to tens of millions of degrees, the MBT’s deflector shield generator instantly overloaded.

The tank’s armor plating melted like butter.

In the next moment, the superconducting battery pack was induced to detonate.

The “little sun” created by the explosion not only consumed the tank but also the surrounding mobile infantry who had been coordinating with it.

Having completed its close-quarters fire support, the Titan retracted the small heavy particle cannon back behind its shoulder.

At the same time, it released two strings of flares from its back, resembling a pair of red wings.

Amidst the fiery bursts of two spoofed man-portable surface-to-air missiles, the red-painted Titan landed, slowed by the plasma thruster array on its back.

“Red Wolf on the field! My respects, Lord Viscount!”

Behind the towering form of the red Titan, in a night sky lit by artillery fire and explosions…

More and more drop pods continued to fall.

With HCP support, the orbital paratroopers’ advance was virtually unopposed.

Most light-armored targets were picked off by the 50-millimeter Gauss rifle in the HCP’s hands.

When it encountered a hard target like an MBT, Red Wolf would simply deploy the small heavy particle cannon mounted behind its shoulder and give the target a blast.

If one shot wasn’t enough, it would give it another.

On the ground, no unit equipped with a subcritical reactor could compete with an HCP in terms of power output.

And Yassin Base’s own HCPs had long been vaporized along with the base’s hangars during the first round of the orbital strike.

By the time Viscount Ancarin led his Aristocratic Squad and an HCP to the Communications Center…

Most of the fighting within Yassin Base was drawing to a close.

As more and more Imperial orbital paratroopers and HCPs landed, the surviving defenders lost their fire superiority and were quickly isolated and annihilated.

At the entrance to the Communications Center, Viscount Ancarin successfully rendezvoused with ‘Tail Needle’, who had infiltrated Yassin Base earlier.

“By the Emperor, you’re finally here! We need to confirm the situation in the Core Communications Room immediately.”

‘Tail Needle’ didn’t waste time on pleasantries with Viscount Ancarin.

After losing contact with ‘Judas’, he had a bad feeling that something had gone wrong.

But during the fierce firefight between the base defenders and the landing forces, he could never find an opportunity to slip inside.

He had been waiting until the arrival of Ancarin and his men.

“My operative has gone dark. I suspect the two naval intelligence operatives with him have turned traitor.”

“Naval intelligence operatives? Traitors?”

Hearing ‘Tail Needle’s’ words, Viscount Ancarin’s eyes narrowed.

“That’s a serious accusation. Do you have concrete evidence?”

“Of course. I obtained proof of one of them turning three days ago.”

After the point-man orbital paratroopers signaled that it was all clear, ‘Tail Needle’ immediately led Viscount Ancarin and the others into the Communications Center.

At that moment, thinking about the powers behind the Naval Intelligence Division and the Star Dragon’s Fangs…

Viscount Ancarin felt like he was beginning to understand something.

“Marquis. It seems you want me to make a choice.”

At the same time, ‘Tail Needle’, who was walking ahead, suddenly spoke up.

“I heard the supreme commander of your fleet, Marquis Ascania, is on good terms with the Regent Prince?”

“Hmm… that’s a difficult question for me to answer, but it’s said they are on excellent private terms.”

“I see.”

‘Tail Needle’ slowed his pace, walking beside Viscount Ancarin.

Then, in a voice only the two of them could hear, he said:

“And you, Lord Viscount? I hear the Regent Prince is recruiting talented individuals. With the Empire in such turmoil, many nobles have sworn their allegiance to him.”

“Me? Hahaha…”

Viscount Ancarin chuckled, now fully understanding the ‘story behind the story’ of this mission.

And events were unfolding in the one direction he had hoped to avoid.

“I, of course, am loyal to His Majesty, the Emperor.”

Hearing Viscount Ancarin’s reply, ‘Tail Needle’ gave a dry laugh and once again walked ahead.

“Oh? It seems you truly are a loyal subject of the Empire, then.”

Chapter 22: The Escape

At the entrance of the Core Communications Room.

The Federation soldiers from the two disabled suits of powered armor had been dragged out and tied up to the side.

Judging from the bullet holes in the nearby walls and the extent of the damage to the two suits of powered armor, Tail Needle and Viscount Ancarin concluded that the three people tasked with destroying the core communications terminal had indeed launched a full-scale assault here.

And it seemed they had succeeded.

At the same time, Tail Needle also sensed multiple signs of human life within the Core Communications Room.

Furthermore, after Viscount Ancarin’s orbital paratroopers landed, they hadn’t detected any unusual communications from the Communications Center, especially any signals being sent off-planet.

These circumstances planted a seed of doubt in the mind of the high-ranking Star Dragon’s Fangs operative.

“Could they have actually completed the mission?”

“Then why did Judas lose contact?”

While he was pondering this, an accompanying technician returned to Viscount Ancarin’s side to report.

The door to the Core Communications Room was completely locked from the inside.

He had tried everything to bypass it, but to no avail.

The person who locked it seemed to have reprogrammed it, bypassing the Communications Center’s control system authority.

So, even though the orbital paratroopers had taken control of the Communications Center’s main console, they still couldn’t open the door remotely.

“The person inside is no amateur; they must be a seasoned codebreaker.”

Listening to his subordinate’s report, Viscount Ancarin nodded slightly and walked to the door.

Although the door was locked and couldn’t be opened, the control terminal’s communication function was still usable.

Viscount Ancarin activated the communications function. Now, his words could be heard by the people inside.

“This is the Star Dragon Empire’s landing force. Yassin Base has fallen. People inside, open the door immediately to avoid unnecessary casualties!”

After Ancarin finished speaking, the communication channel on the door’s terminal fell into a dead silence.

A moment later, a staticky, somewhat choppy voice finally came through.

“Name? Rank? Unit designation? I need to verify your identity.”

“Who are you?” Viscount Ancarin didn’t answer the question, asking one of his own instead.

“Hilarious. You don’t even know who I am and you call yourselves Imperial troops?”

Although the voice coming from the speaker was synthesized, it still sounded insufferably smug, grating on the nerves.

However, as a nobleman of the Empire, Viscount Ancarin had a basic level of composure and did not become angry.

It was Tail Needle, standing beside him, who became agitated upon hearing a voice he didn’t recognize.

He suppressed the resentment in his heart and said in as calm a voice as he could muster:

“Designation LJ-2788, ‘Judas,’ I am now authorizing the termination of your deep cover mission. You can speak to us normally now.”

Clinging to a final shred of hope, Tail Needle had terminated his subordinate’s undercover mission ahead of schedule.

He was afraid that this subordinate of his was a stickler for the rules, that he hadn’t contacted him because he was still on a deep cover assignment, bound by disciplinary protocols and acting to ensure his own safety.

But no sound came from the door’s terminal.

After an awkward moment, the synthesized voice spoke again from the terminal.

“Uh, sorry, but that ‘Judas’ you mentioned… he suddenly attacked us at the very end of the mission, so I killed him.”

Seeing things develop in the worst possible way, the face beneath Tail Needle’s faceplate darkened completely.

“Very well. You must be ‘Fledgling,’ the Federation’s Psionic Agent, whose real identity is a deep cover spy for the Empire.”

“We have evidence of your betrayal of the Empire. I suggest you recognize the current situation and open the door at once, lest you suffer greater torment later!”

“And you, Miss Margaret. Oh, no, your real name should be Isabelle.”

“I now suspect you of colluding with a traitor to the Empire and murdering my undercover operative. That is an act of treason! You’d better think this through.”

In response to Tail Needle’s words, a disdainful scoff echoed through the communication channel.

“Tch, I’m a traitor just because you say so? Who the hell do you think you are?!”

Seeing the communication devolving into a shouting match, Viscount Ancarin was about to say something to calm both sides down.

But a message from the communications specialist at his side interrupted him.

“You’re saying you’ve detected a continuous external signal being sent into the Core Communications Room?”

“Yes, my lord. The signal appeared right after we activated the communications module.”

The specialist’s words struck Viscount Ancarin like a jolt of electricity, making him realize a certain possibility.

He quickly summoned several sappers into the Communications Center.

Then he led them to the corridor outside the Core Communications Room.

“Blow the door open!”

At Ancarin’s command, the orbital paratroopers, carrying various explosives and breaching tools, quickly moved to the door of the Core Communications Room and began to plant charges.

“What are you doing?”

Tail Needle was momentarily stunned by Ancarin’s order.

“I suspect the people you’re looking for aren’t in the Core Communications Room at all.”

“We’ve been played.”

The moment the Viscount finished speaking, the orbital paratroopers setting the breaching charges were also done.

After everyone had withdrawn to a safe distance, at a signal from Viscount Ancarin, the orbital paratroopers detonated the explosives.

“BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!”

The charges placed around the alloy door set off a series of explosions.

Amidst the smoke and dust from the detonation, the door slowly fell backward.

The orbital paratroopers, already prepared, rushed in the instant the door came down.

After hearing the “Clear!” command, Viscount Ancarin entered the Core Communications Room with Tail Needle.

The core communications terminal in the center had indeed been blown to smithereens.

But in the modest-sized room, aside from a few unconscious Federation soldiers on duty who were bound hand and foot, the only “outsider” was the corpse on the floor, its chest a mangled mess of flesh and blood.

The communications specialist also quickly found the source of the strange signal.

It was a small terminal connected to the control panel on the inside of the door.

It was this little gadget that had been continuously receiving encrypted communications from an external source, which it then piped into the door’s communication channel.

“Can you get a location?”

Viscount Ancarin asked the specialist beside him, looking at the personal terminal that had clearly been jury-rigged.

The latter took out a device, scanned with it, and then shook his head.

“No, my lord. The other party has already disconnected. Right now, we can only roughly confirm the true signal source is to the east of the base.”

In a mountain hollow, 20 kilometers east of Yassin Base.

After using Psionics to crush a watch-sized terminal into a misshapen little ball, Amber casually tossed it aside.

Beside him was Margaret, now changed into Federation combat fatigues and equipped with a medium exoskeleton.

Or rather, Miss Isabelle.

Chapter 23: Breakout

“So, do you believe me now?”

Amber glanced at the dejected Isabelle, then opened a digital map to plan their route.

While Yassin Base was in chaos from the orbital strike, Amber had combined his own experience with the skills this body had learned in its Ghost operative training.

He had sealed the doors to the Core Communications Room and hooked up a terminal for a remote call.

Immediately after, the two had taken advantage of the chaos to escape the Communications Center, making a detour to the half-collapsed armory and logistics center on their way out.

After salvaging some equipment, weapons, ammunition, and supplies from the ruins, Amber used his psionic abilities to avoid all combat zones as if he were cheating.

He found a gap in a collapsed section of the perimeter wall and escaped Yassin Base.

After Isabelle also suited up in an exoskeleton, the two avoided the main roads, plunging directly into the wilderness for an armed cross-country trek.

Under the cover of darkness, they sprinted twenty kilometers in twenty minutes without a break.

Only then did they stop for a short rest.

In truth, Amber hadn’t wanted to bring Isabelle along at first.

After all, the woman was a dangerous figure, caught deep in the vortex of the Empire’s political infighting.

But she had promised that after escaping Robert IV, she could contact an elven acquaintance from the Thousand Stars Empire, with whom she was on good terms, to arrange for an extraction.

She had even shown him an elven token as proof.

After confirming the token was indeed from a noble of the Thousand Stars Empire, Amber had no choice but to take a gamble on her.

He had been wracking his brain over one question: how to get off Robert IV and out of this star system.

The Federation was out of the question.

From his recent “friendly exchange” with Tail Needle, Amber was now certain that Major Mars was as good as dead.

The intelligence he had reported to him earlier had likely been intercepted and never made it out.

And the one who intercepted it, Amber guessed, was Commander Adam.

After all, he was the only person Major Mars would report such critical intelligence to.

In Amber’s memory, this ‘Commander Pig’ had been officially reported as missing.

But now he understood. The bastard wasn’t missing at all.

He had defected to the Empire long ago, sold out the Federation forces on Robert IV, and was then put on ice by the Empire after the war.

Although, Amber had kept an ace up his sleeve. The moment he entered the Core Communications Room, he had used the core communications terminal to broadcast the information about the Imperial invasion to every planet, fleet, and department he could reach.

And because the Imperial fleet just happened to be in the middle of a warp when he sent the message, it wasn’t intercepted.

But given the Federation’s efficiency, by the time they managed to organize a counter-offensive fleet for support, who knows how many Federation soldiers would still be left alive on Robert IV.

Waiting for the Federation to send aid was completely unrealistic.

As for the Empire, that was even more out of the question.

His identity as a double agent had been exposed.

And he had just chewed out Tail Needle over the comms terminal.

He would be lucky if they didn’t send a team to hunt him down.

So for now, this Imperial spy’s connection was, paradoxically, the most viable option.

Besides, she was a high-level operative from the Imperial Naval Intelligence Division and had received professional training.

Her stamina, speed, and strength weren’t weak, either.

When it came to wilderness survival, she wasn’t a complete novice.

She also had decent medical skills and first-aid experience, which could prove useful in an emergency.

Plus, she was easy on the eyes and had a pleasant voice, which could help ease the mood during the tense and tedious escape.

All in all, she wasn’t exactly a burden.

“I told you the Regent Prince’s people wouldn’t let you go.”

Amber led the way, a Gauss sniper rifle he’d swiped from the base slung over his shoulder, checking their navigation as he walked.

“To them, factional politics is the top priority. The great cause of the Empire can take a backseat.”

Hearing Amber’s slightly sarcastic words, Isabelle sighed again.

Reality had shattered this idealist’s ideals.

“Don’t dwell on that pointless stuff right now.”

Amber stopped and turned to look at Isabelle.

“We’re in the same boat now. You need me to survive on this planet, and I need to hitch a ride with your elf friend.”

“So?” Isabelle looked up.

“So from now on, you’ll follow my orders.”

Amber said seriously, his joking tone gone.

“This isn’t a picnic, miss. We have to survive on this planet-turned-battlefield until your elf friend arrives.”

“Is that why you made me carry all the supplies?”

Isabelle stretched her back and rolled her eyes in annoyance.

On the attachment points of her Medium Exoskeleton, aside from the silicon carbide armor plates mounted on vital areas, the rest were all hung with large-capacity military backpacks.

They were filled with rations, drinking water, medical supplies, and other goods.

Amber had even stuffed some of the ammunition for the Gauss sniper rifle inside.

She looked as if she were completely surrounded by backpacks.

But despite looking bulky, her movements weren’t hindered thanks to the power output of the Medium Exoskeleton.

“Isn’t that obvious? Or do you expect me to carry all this while I’m doing stealth reconnaissance?”

Amber waved a hand dismissively and sent a route map through their shared communication network.

“We’ve covered twenty kilometers, but we’re not out of danger yet.”

“We have to cover as much ground as possible before the exoskeletons’ power runs out.”

“Along the way, we’ll check the waypoints I’ve marked to see if we can find any power supplies.”

“Without these metal frames, our speed and load capacity will drop significantly.”

“In any case, the goal is to break through the blockade before the Empire’s follow-up forces can encircle us.”

Isabelle listened to Amber, looking at the route map he had sent to the screen inside her exoskeleton’s faceplate.

On the map, he had not only marked their breakout route but also indicated the likely drop zones for the Empire’s subsequent airborne troops and the massive encirclement they would form.

Amber’s route was a path of escape through a gap in this encirclement before it could fully close.

“Looking at this map… it’s like the Empire’s staff officers planned their tactics right in front of you.”

Staring at the impossibly detailed map, Isabelle looked at Amber with suspicion.

She was finding it harder and harder to figure this man out.

If the markings on this map showing the deployment of the Empire’s airborne troops were correct…

A chill ran down Isabelle’s spine.

“Is this map hard to make? It’s so easy anyone with hands could do it, right?”

Of course, Amber wasn’t about to say that he had indeed seen the Imperial staff officers’ tactical plans.

It had just been in a game’s war history archives.

Isabelle wasn’t stupid. Hearing the dismissive tone in Amber’s voice, she didn’t press the issue.

After all, her situation was just as Amber had described.

Most of the officers in the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group were the Regent Prince’s men.

And in their eyes, she was undoubtedly a thorn in their side.

Now that they had the chance to ‘eliminate’ her on the battlefield, they certainly wouldn’t let it pass.

So, to break out and survive, she had to rely on this rather detestable man before her.

Chapter 24: Survivors

The Federation forces on Robert IV had fewer than one hundred twenty thousand troops available for combat.

Moreover, they were scattered across multiple bases on the planet.

For a massive terrestrial planet, this number of people was but a drop in the ocean.

But on a normal day, as a ‘presence force’ symbolizing the Federation’s jurisdiction over the planet, it was more than enough.

After all, the planet was populated by farmers and little else.

The few rebellions that occasionally broke out never managed to make any significant waves.

Even when a rebellion occurred in a region far from the Federation’s various military bases, requiring ground troops to spend a considerable amount of time traveling…

…one must not forget the garrison fleet orbiting outside Robert IV’s atmosphere.

The marines attached to the fleet could be deployed anywhere on the planet within an hour via orbital drop.

Some might think the number of troops stationed on this planet was still too low.

But please don’t forget, this was just an agricultural planet.

Even though it was in a border star system, it was nothing more than an agricultural planet.

The Federation controlled over four hundred such planets.

Even with the current scale of deployed forces, the total number was immense.

Furthermore, in the era of interstellar warfare, massing large numbers of troops on a few border planets was a very foolish act.

The vast, boundless universe was the perfect stage for executing raids and leapfrogging tactics.

If forces were stationed on every single planet, it would be difficult to even assemble a large army in a short amount of time.

That’s why both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had tacitly agreed to station small ‘presence forces’ on their inhabited planets.

The main fleets and primary ground forces were concentrated on a dozen or so military planets located in positions of strategic depth.

When war broke out, these main forces could be rapidly assembled and flexibly deployed to various battlefronts.

From another perspective, the ‘presence forces’ on the border planets were actually just tools for sacrifice and buying time.

After an enemy invasion, the lucky ones might hold out until reinforcements arrived, then make newspaper headlines as the new hero unit.

The unlucky ones would just become another entry on the list of casualties.

Compounded by the aforementioned issues with training and organization…

…the defenders on Robert IV, after being hit by tactical hydrogen bombs and various tactical missiles…

…found that the surviving soldiers had almost no ability to fight back against the Empire’s orbital paratroopers.

The Federation soldiers trapped in a valley before Amber’s eyes were a perfect example.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, their fighting is just atrocious.”

The target of Amber’s complaint was a light mechanized unit.

It consisted of about a platoon of Mobile Infantry and seven light armored vehicles.

And ambushing them under the cover of darkness were Imperial orbital paratroopers.

They were positioned directly below the slope where Amber was, and on the opposite side of the valley.

Amber did a quick count; there were probably fewer than twenty of them.

But the training level of these twenty men was clearly several notches above that of the Federation soldiers.

By the time Amber was drawn over by the sound of gunfire, the Imperial orbital paratroopers had already used man-portable anti-vehicle missiles to take out the lead and rear vehicles.

The so-called ‘cut off the head and tail, then hit the middle’ tactic was still just as effective in this era.

The ambushed Federation soldiers disembarked to return fire on the spot, following combat regulations in a state of near panic.

But under the dense suppressing fire, the Federation’s Mobile Infantry couldn’t disperse at all.

They were completely pinned down near their vehicles, with many unable to even lift their heads amidst the hail of fire from a chain gun.

Let alone fight back.

“These soldiers of your Federation… their tactical skills aren’t all that great.”

Isabelle, lying prone shoulder-to-shoulder with Amber on the slope, said languidly as she watched the pinned-down Federation soldiers.

At that moment, Amber really couldn’t find any reason to refute her statement.

After all, these ‘border troops’…

…couldn’t compare to the Imperial orbital paratroopers committed to this battle, neither in terms of tactical skill nor combat experience.

The ‘real combat’ these Mobile Infantry had experienced before probably peaked in firepower density with stones thrown by a few hundred rioters.

In contrast, on the Empire’s side—Amber wouldn’t say they were overwhelmingly strong.

But at least in terms of fire distribution and attack sequence during the ambush, they were quite competent.

Moreover, thanks to the exoskeleton systems equipped on every infantryman, their load-bearing capacity was greatly enhanced.

Consequently, the firepower density of an infantry squad in this era had also increased significantly.

Although it was a squad of only twenty men, besides the standard Gauss rifles and 40mm automatic grenade launchers…

…they also had two 25mm chain guns, a portable electromagnetic cannon, and an unknown number of man-portable anti-vehicle missiles.

Boom!

A cluster of Mobile Infantry was hit by a shell that fell from the sky.

After the smoke and dust cleared, all that remained on the ground was a huge crater, some dismembered limbs, and fragments of equipment.

“Damn, a group this small even brought a mortar.”

Amber tapped his wrist-mounted terminal a few times, and the ballistic detection program built into his tactical faceplate began to calculate.

It quickly marked several possible firing positions on his HUD.

Amber adjusted the zoom on his faceplate’s optical lens, activated infrared detection mode, and scanned each location.

He finally spotted a heat source and moving figures behind a thicket about five hundred meters away, at his three o’clock position.

“I’m going to help. If I don’t make a move, these grunts are all going to die. And I was hoping to hitch a ride with them!”

“Are you coming with me, or are you just going to watch from here?”

Amber pulled back behind the slope, checked his weapon again, and glanced at Isabelle, who had pulled back with him.

“Not stopping you from attacking Imperial soldiers is the most I can do.”

The female spy, who had been branded a ‘traitor,’ said irritably:

“I will never open fire on soldiers from my own country.”

“No problem, I respect your choice~”

Amber didn’t waste any more words with her, grabbing his sniper rifle and darting out.

“Just stay here.”

As his voice faded, Amber’s figure blurred and then vanished completely into thin air.

He had activated his optical invisibility and begun sprinting at high speed.

The intense sound of gunfire on the battlefield completely masked the noise he made while running.

And his first target now was the mortar position he had just located.

That thing was too much of a threat to infantry.

If it fired a few more times, the Federation Mobile Infantry in the valley would likely break.

For Amber, sprinting at full speed with the aid of his exoskeleton, a distance of five hundred meters was a matter of just over thirty seconds.

He quickly reached the edge of the thicket and saw his target.

A 120mm portable mortar, and the two Imperial orbital paratroopers operating it.

Chapter 25: The Power of the Flechette Round

In reality, while wearing an exoskeleton, a mortar could be deployed and fired by a single soldier.

Especially when short on manpower, one more person on the front line meant the added firepower of another Gauss rifle and grenade launcher.

However, the Imperial orbital paratroopers still rigidly adhered to their operational doctrines, assigning another soldier to guard duty.

This was a characteristic of the Imperial Army; they would strictly follow regulations under any circumstances.

Even though this habit had been exploited by the Federation several times, they had never changed their ways.

The soldier on guard duty was carefully scanning his surroundings, rifle at the ready.

Because the terminal on the Medium Exoskeleton didn’t have the same processing power as a Powered Armor’s, the image from the low-light night-vision device inside his faceplate wasn’t color-corrected.

The soldier swept his gaze around, and after finding nothing unusual in night-vision mode, he switched to infrared mode.

As the image inside his faceplate switched to stark black and white, he spotted a heat source behind a large boulder one hundred fifty meters away.

“Huh?”

The Imperial soldier immediately raised his rifle, and his HUD’s targeting reticle synchronized, moving the Gauss rifle’s aim point over.

Unfortunately, he was a step too late.

As the heat source in his view suddenly flashed, a 12mm flechette round, accelerated to 2,800 meters per second, pierced the joint between his faceplate and chest plate in an instant.

The immense kinetic energy literally blew the orbital paratrooper’s neck apart.

Crack!

Only after the headless corpse hit the ground did the sonic boom from the flechette round tearing through the air startle the other soldier, who was moving ammunition.

But before he could even turn around, the second flechette round followed immediately after.

It struck almost the exact same spot. Under the immense kinetic force, everything above the soldier’s neck was utterly shredded.

A moment later, with a shimmer of distorted air under the moonlight, Amber’s figure appeared at the edge of the mortar position.

He inspected the Gauss sniper rifle in his hands. Named ‘Ghost’, it was exclusive to Psionic Agents.

It sacrificed fully automatic firing capability and was larger than a standard Gauss rifle. In exchange, it boasted a more powerful motor and a higher muzzle velocity.

Its long frame had few tactical attachments. Besides a folded bipod, there was only a sizable multi-function scope above the receiver.

A tactical attachment like a suppressor was meaningless for a Gauss rifle with a muzzle velocity so high it created a sonic boom.

The entire rifle, including the bipod and scope, was covered in a black, rubber-like coating.

This was the same synthetic cell coating found on the combat suits and exoskeletons of Psionic Agents.

To make the Psionic Agent’s Optical Invisibility more complete, the Equipment Development Department spared no expense, applying this precious coating to all equipment related to Psionic Agents.

This prevented the awkward scene of a sniper rifle ‘floating’ in mid-air when a Psionic Agent activated their optical invisibility.

After confirming that the two Imperial orbital paratroopers with nothing above their necks wouldn’t be getting back up, Amber slung the Ghost sniper rifle onto his back and crouched down beside the 120mm mortar.

This mortar, cast from a special alloy, had a 120mm caliber, but it wasn’t particularly heavy. A single soldier equipped with an exoskeleton could easily carry it while running at high speed.

It was also the most readily available fire support for infantry.

Therefore, the ground forces of both the Empire and the Federation were equipped with these weapons in large numbers.

Attached to the bipod of the mortar in front of Amber was a small artillery terminal.

A soldier only needed to set the firing coordinates on the terminal, and it would automatically calculate the trajectory and provide the necessary adjustment parameters for the barrel.

Right now, the terminal’s screen displayed an electronic terrain map of the area.

Linked via data link to the personal terminals of the other orbital paratroopers in the squad, the real-time positions of the other soldiers were marked with green triangles as ‘friendly units’.

Down in the valley, a cluster of red triangles was marked as ‘enemy units’.

At that moment, having noticed the life signs of their two teammates disappear, three green triangles representing the Imperial orbital paratroopers were moving toward his position.

Knowing he didn’t have much time, Amber quickly tapped the terminal a few times, retargeting the mortar to the Imperial soldiers on one side of the valley.

After a quick calculation, the artillery terminal promptly produced the corresponding adjustment parameters.

Although Amber had never been an artilleryman, neither in games nor in the real world, he had fiddled with these kinds of mortars plenty during his time playing land warfare games.

With a speed rivaling a professional mortarman’s, he adjusted the mortar’s bearing and elevation.

Amber then took a 120mm high-explosive shell from a nearby ammo box. The special coating on the warhead told him this mortar shell also had terminal guidance capability.

He didn’t need that feature, though. The area of effect of a high-explosive shell was more than enough to cover the Imperial soldiers’ ambush position.

After inserting the top half of the shell into the muzzle, Amber took a deep breath.

Then he let go, allowing the shell to slide into the barrel under its own weight.

At the same time, he turned and ducked.

Although his fully-enclosed Tactical Faceplate had noise-canceling and soundproofing features, he was so close that he subconsciously opened his mouth wide.

Thump!

With a dull launch sound, the powerful mortar shell soared into the sky in a high arc.

A moment later, the loud boom of the high-explosive shell detonating echoed from the distance.

But Amber had no time to confirm the results.

Following the terminal’s prompts, he adjusted the firing direction and sent another high-explosive shell toward the Imperial soldiers on the other side of the valley.

Having done all this, Amber activated his Optical Invisibility again and vanished from the mortar position.

Soon, several Imperial orbital paratroopers in a triangular formation closed in.

Seeing the two headless corpses at the mortar position and the still-smoking barrel, the point man had a bad feeling.

The next second, a flechette round tore through the air and struck the armor plate on his chest.

Boosted by enormous kinetic energy, the flechette round not only pierced the hard silicon carbide armor plate but also sent him flying backward.

The other two soldiers, panicking as their teammate was hit, saw no enemy in their low-light night-vision.

They belatedly switched to infrared imaging mode.

At the same time, one of them yelled into the comms channel: “Everyone, heads up! We’re under attack by an optically invisible target! Switch to infrared—”

But before he could finish, another flechette round blew his head apart.

And the last remaining soldier, in the instant his infrared imaging finished switching over, saw a humanoid heat signature pouncing toward him like a monster.

Chapter 26: Rallying the Remnants

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With a few crisp gunshots, the last Imperial orbital paratrooper collapsed, a look of terror frozen on his face.

At such close range, the pistol rounds had nearly torn his neck in two, leaving it attached by just a few scraps of flesh and skin.

It wasn’t that Amber enjoyed close-quarters combat. The main issue was the ‘Ghost’ sniper rifle’s rate of fire.

Although it was semi-automatic and didn’t require the shooter to manually chamber each round, the motor needed to recharge after every shot, which limited its firing speed.

In the situation just moments ago, the last Imperial soldier had already switched to his infrared imaging mode and would have been able to spot him. The 8mm Gauss rifle mounted on his right arm was already taking aim.

Meanwhile, the ‘Ghost’ in Amber’s hands was still a split second away from being fully charged.

He wasn’t willing to bet on being the faster draw, nor did he want to risk a mutual kill. His only option was to dodge the soldier’s line of fire, sprinting in an arc to close the distance.

It wasn’t that Amber had some perverse preference for shooting people in the head and neck, either. The simple reason was that the armor plates on the Imperial orbital paratroopers’ exoskeletons provided far too much protection. Their curved design was not only extremely durable but also made incoming rounds prone to ricochet. After switching to his pistol up close, Amber had to press the muzzle against the weak point at the back of his opponent’s neck to guarantee a kill.

Just as he finished off the three Imperial orbital paratroopers, the sound of gunfire from the valley in the distance suddenly intensified.

Evidently, the two 120mm high-explosive shells he had fired had been effective. The beleaguered Federation Mobile Infantry, having been granted a moment’s respite, had finally seized the opportunity to use their superior numbers to lay down suppressing fire.

After stripping a Gauss rifle and a few plasma grenades from one of the corpses, Amber wasted no time and broke into a run toward the valley.

At the same time, using the high-level clearance of a Psionic Agent, he patched directly into the nearby Federation Mobile Infantry platoon’s communication channel.

“Attention, Federation soldiers under fire. This is Warrant Officer Amber of the Yassin Base Combat Intelligence Center—Tactical Support Team.”

“Under the authority granted by Federation field regulation DT5235, I am assuming temporary command of your unit.”

“IFF is now active. All personnel, be advised of the southeast. Do not fire on friendlies! Do not fire on friendlies!”

In the center of the valley, the Mobile Infantry were using an armored vehicle for cover, locked in a fierce firefight with Imperial soldiers on the high ground to either side.

Hearing the voice that suddenly cut into their comms, they were first stunned, then overcome with elation.

They had been confused when the two mortar shells landed on the Imperial soldiers’ heads, but now, hearing the transmission, they immediately understood.

They had reinforcements!

And a Psionic Agent, no less.

“All units, attention! North slope! Screen it with anti-infrared smoke!”

When people see a glimmer of hope in a moment of despair, they will instinctively follow its light. The Mobile Infantry soldiers, upon hearing Amber’s voice, followed his commands almost subconsciously.

In moments, several anti-infrared smoke grenades were launched from the multi-purpose launchers on the shoulders of a few infantrymen.

As smoke obscured the vision of the Imperial soldiers ambushing them from the north, the Mobile Infantry in the valley saw two plasma grenades fly out from the southeastern slope and land among the Imperial soldiers on the southern side.

As fireballs from the exploding plasma grenades erupted, a figure charged out from the slope with incredible speed. The Gauss rifle in his hands fired in short, controlled bursts, dropping the Imperial soldiers who hadn’t been blasted off their feet.

He was moving so fast he was almost a blur; even the small green targeting box on their faceplate HUDs struggled to keep up.

The Mobile Infantry soldiers watched as Amber tossed aside his empty rifle, then charged like a monster and kicked the last Imperial soldier on the southern high ground, sending him flying. He then picked up an automatic shotgun from a nearby corpse and calmly blasted the last poor soul’s faceplate and head to smithereens. (The truth was, the shotgun rounds couldn’t have penetrated the chest armor.)

A new command crackled over the comms channel.

“Don’t just fucking stand there gawking! Flank them from both sides! Don’t let a single one get away!”

“Keep up the smoke screen!”

Spurred on by Amber’s roar, the dumbfounded Mobile Infantry finally started moving.

Fewer than thirty soldiers who could still fight split into two teams, charging the high ground from the left and right. At the same time, they continued to throw smoke grenades, completely blanketing the northern ambush position.

Their vision completely obscured, the Imperial orbital paratroopers fell into a panic. One soldier, shouldering a 25mm Chain gun, tried to force his way out of the smoke to stop the Mobile Infantry’s assault. But a flechette round tore through the air and struck him square in the chest, knocking him back into the smoke.

The Mobile Infantry who reached the high ground spread out around the smoke, but they held their fire. The anti-infrared smoke blocked the enemy’s vision, but it interfered with theirs as well. Even with their faceplates’ infrared mode active, the heat from the burning white phosphorus in the grenades made it impossible to see anything inside.

But for Amber, this was not a problem.

He could sense the life signs of living beings through walls; a cloud of smoke was nothing.

For him, a fight in the smoke was a one-sided slaughter, as if he were using cheats.

The hesitating Mobile Infantry soldiers watched as this Psionic Agent who had appeared out of nowhere charged straight into the smoke.

Immediately, the rapid fire of a fully automatic shotgun and the panicked screams of Imperial soldiers echoed from within the cloud.

When a gust of evening wind began to disperse the smoke, the surviving Mobile Infantry stared at the man standing amidst a pile of Imperial corpses like a demon emerging from the miasma. For a moment, none of them dared to speak.

“What unit are you? Who’s your commander?”

Amber had no time to wait for them to recover. The Empire would soon discover that this squad of orbital paratroopers had been wiped out. They might assume a large Federation force was present and dispatch even more units to hunt them down.

“Sir! We’re from the Yassin Base Garrison Force, D Platoon, 2nd Mobile Infantry Company, 179th Combined Arms Battalion.”

“After the Imperial orbital paratroopers launched their attack, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas took command of the base garrison and planned a breakout from the Empire’s encirclement,” a Mobile Infantryman whose voice sounded older replied as he walked up to Amber.

He subconsciously started to salute, but Amber stopped him.

Realizing his gesture was inappropriate for the situation, the infantryman coughed awkwardly and continued, “But we were separated from the main force. We were trying to get to the pre-arranged rendezvous point when we were ambushed by the Imperial Army here.”

“The platoon leader and the operations staff officer were in the first vehicle.”

Amber followed the direction of his finger. The lead vehicle in the column had taken a direct hit from an anti-vehicle missile and was now engulfed in flames.

By now, D Platoon’s command element was probably cooked through.

Chapter 27: The Getaway

“Given that your unit currently has no one available to take command,”

“In accordance with Article DT5237 of the Federation Field Manual, I am temporarily assuming command of your unit until we can rendezvous with other forces.”

“Any questions?”

“No, sir!”

With a satisfied nod, Amber quickly operated his personal terminal, acquiring command authority over this Mobile Infantry platoon.

The information for the command module appeared on his wrist-mounted personal terminal and on the right side of his faceplate’s HUD.

It displayed the current position and status of all soldiers and armored vehicles belonging to D Platoon.

After doing all this, Amber looked toward the slope where he and Isabelle had set their ambush and waved them over.

“Friendly approaching, hold your fire.”

A moment later, the Mobile Infantry soldiers saw a figure carrying a large pack run down the slope.

“This is Medical Captain Margaret, who broke out of Yassin Base with me. She’ll be moving with us,” Amber said, patting the pack on Isabelle’s back.

“A few of you, give the lady a hand with her bag.”

The nearest Mobile Infantry soldiers heard this and immediately stepped forward to take the packs mounted on Isabelle’s exoskeleton.

For a unit that had just been through a battle, a medic was a godsend.

Isabelle no longer wanted to maintain her “mask” and pretend to interact familiarly with these Federation soldiers.

But as she watched these common soldiers greet her enthusiastically and help lighten her load, and then saw the obviously youthful faces and freely bleeding wounds of the many who had removed their helmets, she finally sighed and took off the medical pack on her back.

“All wounded, gather by this vehicle. How many medical supplies do you have left? Do a count and let me know!”

Watching the female spy’s somewhat unexpected actions, Amber smiled but said nothing.

He then turned to the other uninjured Mobile Infantry.

“Those of you who don’t need treatment, send four men to high ground for security!”

After the four-man security team departed, Amber marked a location on the command module’s map.

“You two, go to this position and bring back that 120mm mortar and its ammunition!”

“Everyone else, clear the battlefield! Finish off any survivors and gather any usable weapons and ammo!”

“Alright people, move it!”

“Yes, sir!”

Amber didn’t give the team much time to rest; even the wounded only received emergency treatment from Isabelle.

There was no way to carry the bodies of the fallen soldiers, so they could only dig graves and bury them on the spot.

Time was ticking away. He had to get the team moving as quickly as possible and continue toward the seam of the Imperial Army’s encirclement.

Only a few hours had passed since the Empire began its large-scale orbital drop.

The number of troops that had actually landed wasn’t that high, and they were mostly orbital paratroopers, with very few HCPs having touched down.

Furthermore, the surviving anti-air units were still desperately trying to intercept them, so the Empire had not yet achieved air superiority within Robert IV’s atmosphere.

This made it the golden opportunity for rapid maneuvers to escape the Imperial Army’s hunt.

But as the anti-air units were gradually destroyed, the Empire would soon gain control of the skies.

When that happened, aerospace transports would land with heavy equipment and various military vehicles.

Imperial surveillance drones would also appear in the air.

Amber and the others would have to start hiding by day and moving by night, cautiously avoiding all kinds of scout units.

At present, D Platoon had five wheeled armored vehicles remaining.

One of them had even been salvaged through the painstaking efforts of the team’s surviving mechanics.

However, D Platoon had lost many soldiers in the recent ambush, so the five remaining armored vehicles were sufficient to transport everyone left.

Amber hadn’t had a chance to inspect these vehicles during the battle.

Now, he finally had a moment to check their configurations.

The vehicles used by the Mobile Infantry were Mongoose-4 8-wheeled armored vehicles.

This was currently the most widely deployed type of wheeled armored vehicle in the Federation Army.

Its modular design allowed it to take on different roles by swapping out key equipment.

The two that had been destroyed earlier were a command variant, which looked like a hedgehog covered in antennas, and a standard personnel carrier variant.

Among the five remaining vehicles, aside from three standard personnel carriers, there was also a communications relay variant with several “pot lids” on top, and an ultra-shortwave reconnaissance and jamming variant—commonly known as an electronic warfare variant—which could raise a mast-mounted antenna.

While the personnel were boarding the vehicles, Amber walked a circle around the five wheeled armored vehicles.

In terms of firepower, the five remaining vehicles weren’t particularly strong.

The communications relay and electronic warfare variants had no turrets, to make room for their specialized equipment.

The unmanned turrets on the standard personnel carriers were only equipped with a 40mm chain gun and a 12mm coaxial machine gun.

It was safe to say that, apart from the man-portable anti-vehicle missiles carried by the Mobile Infantry themselves, the team had virtually no means of dealing with heavy armored units.

But Amber’s current priority wasn’t to pick a fight with the Imperial Army.

It was to get around the Imperial encirclement and make a run for it.

Under these circumstances, the communications relay and electronic warfare variants were actually more valuable than the other types.

As the last Mobile Infantry soldier boarded, Amber raised his hand above his head and circled it a few times to signal “move out,” then deftly climbed into the communications relay vehicle.

In the previous battle, only one person had survived from the communications squad, which was made up entirely of new recruits.

And among the remaining grunts, no one knew how to operate this electronic equipment.

So Amber and Isabelle had to step up and fill the void.

At that moment, Isabelle was seated at the communications specialist’s station, curiously fiddling with the dazzling array of screens and buttons.

Amber plopped down next to the sole surviving communications specialist as the armored vehicle beneath them started up with a slight vibration.

“So what’s the situation? Can you contact any other units?”

Amber removed his tactical faceplate and put on an in-vehicle crew helmet and headset.

Although the faceplate had a universal interface, it was still a bit inconvenient.

“Sir, communications are a bit spotty right now.”

“The Empire’s earlier orbital strikes destroyed many of our signal relay stations, so all units can now only rely on their own equipment to communicate.”

The young communications specialist scratched his head and brought up a set of data on the screen.

“But for some reason, the radio interference is severe, and communications are intermittent.”

Hearing the specialist’s words, Amber tilted his head and thought for a moment, quickly finding a possible reason in his mind.

“It’s probably because the Empire dropped a lot of tactical hydrogen bombs earlier. The effect shouldn’t last too long, though, since they weren’t detonated directly in the atmosphere.”

“That must be it. If they were detonated in the atmosphere, forget radio, even the satellite relays would probably be affected.”

Just as Amber was about to ask the communications specialist to check if they could connect to the battalion-company level edge network or the brigade-battalion level backbone network, a startled cry came over the comms channel.

“Oh my god, you guys, look at the sky!”

Chapter 28: Communications Chaos

The exclamations on the comms channel made the other soldiers curious, and they opened the top hatches of their armored vehicles or gathered around the panoramic monitors.

This resulted in even more exclamations on the channel.

“What is that?! A meteor shower?”

“Damn, that’s spectacular!”

Although Amber wanted to complain about the Mobile Infantry’s radio discipline, and even wanted to yell a few words over the comms to shut them up, he had to admit that his own curiosity was piqued as well.

“Forget it, just one look.”

Under Isabelle’s scornful gaze, Amber moved under the armored vehicle’s top hatch.

After turning the handle, he gave the heavy hatch a shove, pushing it open.

Then, he witnessed an incredible sight.

Countless ‘meteors’ were streaking slowly across the night sky, trailing long wakes behind them.

Some of the larger ‘meteors’ were disintegrating from atmospheric friction, breaking apart into more and more fragments.

“Holy crap. That’s a goddamn warship coming down!”

A destroyed starship, pulled in by the planet’s gravity, was falling into the atmosphere, endlessly breaking up and burning.

For most players, including Amber, this was the most beautiful ‘hellscape’ imaginable.

Because whenever such a scene appeared, it meant that countless lives had just been extinguished in the starry sky above.

Clearly, the Federation garrison fleet in orbit had been annihilated.

This warship, which had maneuvered into a low orbit during the battle, had been captured by the planet’s gravity after losing power.

Although Amber couldn’t identify the ship’s class from the wreckage streaking across the sky, only a capital ship, typically several kilometers long, could create such a ‘magnificent’ picture.

And these capital ships were usually equipped with multiple warship-grade fusion reactors.

“God, please don’t let those fusion reactors detonate in the atmosphere.”

Amber clasped his hands and muttered a little prayer.

But the very next second, as if his words had conjured the event, a piece of massive wreckage erupted in a dazzling white light.

It was as if the behemoth of a capital ship was letting out a final, silent, defiant cry at the end of its life.

Stimulated by the intense light, Amber instinctively shut his eyes.

At the same time, he thought to himself, We’re screwed.

The worst-case scenario had happened. As the capital ship fell through the atmosphere, its fusion reactor lost containment and exploded.

The energy contained within reactors capable of powering a multi-kilometer-long warship was naturally immense.

And their explosion in the atmosphere was not much different from several high-yield hydrogen bombs detonating in the air.

Soon, an ‘EMP ATTACK WARNING’ popped up on everyone’s personal terminals and the armored vehicles’ onboard systems.

Fortunately, since nuclear weapons had become as common as conventional ones, most civilian and all military electronics were built with EMP shielding.

The old-era scenario of a nuclear airburst paralyzing vast amounts of electronic equipment no longer happened.

But for Amber and his men, the exploding fusion reactor in the atmosphere was not without its effects.

At the very least, satellite relay and shortwave radio communications were basically down.

And based on Amber’s experience, this situation would likely last for quite some time.

“Everyone, stow your curiosity and get those hatches closed!”

After pulling himself back into the vehicle, Amber barked into the comms channel:

“Check all your personal electronic devices and all vehicle modules for any damage.”

“Comms will be partially jammed for a while, so once we engage, everyone switch to laser and shortwave dual-channel communication mode!”

“Now, apart from those on watch, I want the rest of you to get some proper rest!”

“There’s plenty of fighting waiting for you up ahead.”

After saying this, Amber looked at the forlorn communications specialist beside him, who was troubled by the outage of most comms systems.

He then smiled and patted the man on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry. This just saves you some work.”

Amber was quite good at comforting people.

Hearing his words, the communications specialist forced a smile that looked uglier than a grimace.

That night, the convoy sped through the dark.

The communications disruption didn’t just affect the Federation forces.

It also severely hampered the Imperial Army’s communications—in fact, the impact on them was even greater.

After all, with the Federation garrison fleet wiped out, they no longer needed ground-to-space communications. The ground troops were fighting their own separate battles, and with many communication base stations destroyed, long-range communication was already impossible for them anyway.

On the Imperial side, however, besides the fleet in space and the orbital paratroopers dropped on the ground, there were also numerous orbital assault ships cruising in low orbit, ready to provide fire support or airdrop units at a moment’s notice.

The complex orbital environment and the complicated combat missions meant the Imperial forces’ communication intensity and requirements were maxed out.

And more than one warship with an exploding fusion reactor had fallen into the atmosphere last night.

As a result, the entire planet’s communications environment had become extremely poor.

This forced the Imperial Army to temporarily halt some of their operations, and the frequency of orbital strikes and airdrops approached zero.

And having lost support like information guidance, intelligence support, and orbital strikes, the Imperial orbital paratroopers who had already landed also slowed their offensive pace.

After all, some hard targets were just too tough for infantry to crack on their own.

After deducing that the Empire would face this situation, Amber made a decisive call.

First, he had the electronic warfare variant in the convoy activate its passive countermeasure mode.

God knows why the platoon’s previous leader had forgotten about that.

Next, Amber had the convoy move from the wilderness onto the highway and begin traveling at full speed.

Robert IV was sparsely populated to begin with, and even more so at this time of night.

The highway was as clear as if it had taken a laxative.

The entire convoy at one point reached the ‘Mongoose-4’ wheeled armored vehicle’s design speed of one hundred kilometers per hour.

The five drivers downed stimulants and forced themselves to drive through the entire night.

Finally, before sunrise, the convoy reached an undamaged energy supply depot more than three hundred kilometers from their starting point.

The supply points scattered across the vast lands of Robert IV stored not only fuel, food, and drinking water but also numerous charging stations for battery packs and superconductor cells.

These automated stations were essential stops for Federation ground forces on urgent deployments when they couldn’t bring supply vehicles.

As the convoy entered the station’s security perimeter, several twin-barreled 25mm chain guns and grenade launchers deployed on the high walls in the distance immediately took aim at them.

At the same time, the communications relay vehicle Amber was in received a key verification request from the station’s automated management system.

After the communications specialist confirmed the verification, they didn’t have to wait long, and mercifully, no ‘welcome’ anomalies occurred.

The automated defensive armaments on the high walls disengaged their locks on the convoy.

Chapter 29: A Blind Cat Finds a Dead Mouse

After the alloy blast-proof main gate in the middle of the station’s defensive wall opened, the convoy slowly drove into the energy supply depot.

Even before entering the station’s perimeter, Amber had already deployed a vehicle-mounted drone from one of the armored cars.

It flew a full circle along the edge of the energy supply depot’s air-defense zone and confirmed that there were no signs of an attack.

This was the least dangerous reconnaissance they could perform with their current equipment.

Besides, once Amber saw no signs of an attack, he was largely relieved.

As long as it hadn’t been forcefully taken by the Imperial Army, it meant the energy supply depot was most likely safe.

The quantum-encrypted key was not something that could be easily brute-forced.

At the very least, the Empire’s orbital paratroopers wouldn’t drop in lugging a supercomputer, nor would they go to such great lengths to crack a single energy supply depot.

Their more important mission right now was to eliminate as many of the Federation’s effective ground forces as possible.

Once the vehicles were parked, Amber led the Mobile Infantry to find fuel hoses and power cables to refuel the vehicles and charge their battery packs.

The surviving mechanics in the squad also took this opportunity to inspect the five vehicles.

Next, Amber assigned a few more soldiers to help Isabelle move the wounded to an open area.

They set up a “portable sterile room,” allowing Isabelle to perform emergency surgery on one of the more seriously injured soldiers.

Finally, after arranging for everyone’s exoskeletons to be charged and setting up a rotation for guard duty and rest, Amber sat down on the ground to the side.

After such a thrilling night, Amber’s mental and physical stamina had been significantly depleted.

Especially after taking command of the unit, he had remained fully focused and hadn’t dared to relax for a second while the vehicles were on the move.

After all, he was now responsible for thirty-four more lives.

Although Amber wished he could treat them like NPCs, as he had in games before, it was different now.

Seeing the vivid expressions on these soldiers’ faces, feeling their joys and sorrows…

Amber found he could no longer see them as he once had.

Normally, this would be the moment a voice only Amber could hear would chime in.

It would say something like, “Title Acquired: Loves Soldiers Like His Own Sons!”

But alas, this book had none of that.

As Amber leaned against the wall, lost in his thoughts, he inadvertently drifted off to sleep.

“Why is it so quiet?”

Sensing something amiss in his light sleep, Amber snapped awake.

He instinctively raised the Ghost sniper rifle that had been resting on his lap.

The first thing he saw was Isabelle, crouching right in front of him.

The female Imperial spy was looking at him with a half-smile.

Her expression reminded Amber of the time at the medical center when she had criticized him from head to toe.

“How long was I asleep? Why is it so quiet?”

Amber lowered his weapon and raised his right hand to rub his sore eyes.

“Not long. Less than two hours.”

“The vehicles are refueled, the battery packs are almost full, and everyone else’s exoskeletons are mostly charged.”

“They’re taking turns resting according to your plan, and we have people on the high walls on watch. You can relax~”

Isabelle unscrewed a military canteen and handed it to Amber. Steam was rising from its mouth.

“Here, drink some hot coffee to perk you up. It’s one of the supplies the others just found in the station.”

Amber didn’t stand on ceremony. He nodded his thanks, took the canteen, and took a sip.

A rich aroma of coffee beans and a roasted, caramel scent filled his nostrils.

It was followed by a bitter and slightly acidic taste that flowed over his tongue.

Amber frowned as he swallowed the first mouthful of hot coffee. Although he wasn’t used to the taste, he had to admit it was quite refreshing.

“Is there any milk in the supplies? Or maybe some sugar would be fine, too… ahem.”

Seeing Amber’s frowning, somewhat embarrassed expression, Isabelle let out a snort of laughter.

“I can’t believe you’re not used to this. You’re like a little kid, hahaha…”

Amber: “…”

Noticing Amber’s expression turning sour, Isabelle quickly composed herself and took back the canteen.

“I’ll go find you some milk. You get some more rest. Don’t work yourself too hard.”

Isabelle stood up. After taking two steps, she stopped again.

“Everyone here, including me, sees you as our backbone now.”

After saying this, Isabelle turned and hurried away without looking back, off to who knows where to find milk for Amber.

In the end, Amber never got his hot coffee with milk before the convoy set off again.

After forcing himself to drink the rest of the “pot-washing water,” he did feel much more alert.

Although the military-issue energy drinks were more effective and lasted longer, they were, after all, concocted drugs with some side effects.

Además, beberlos con demasiada frecuencia podía generar tolerancia, por lo que, a menos que fuera absolutamente necesario, Amber no los tomaría por iniciativa propia.

The communications specialist sitting nearby fiddled with the screen and various instruments in front of him for a long time before leaning back in his chair in resignation.

“It’s no use, sir. I still can’t contact any friendly forces nearby. The signal for the company-level edge network and the brigade-level backbone network is also very weak.”

“It’s fine. The communications jamming won’t end anytime soon. Just check again in a while. Let me know as soon as you make contact with other units.”

Amber patted the man’s shoulder, a gesture he’d been using quite frequently these past few hours.

Just as he was about to discuss something with Isabelle, a slightly tense voice came through the comms channel.

“Sir! We’ve detected an unidentifiable short-wave signal. It could be the Imperials!”

That sentence was a more effective stimulant than any coffee.

“Are you sure it’s an Imperial unit?”

“Well… it’s definitely not one of ours, sir!”

Amber’s brow furrowed slightly. After a moment of thought, he asked, “Direction? Distance?”

“Northeast of our convoy’s direction of travel, about three kilometers away!”

“Shit, that close?!”

Amber immediately pulled up the map to confirm the approximate location.

Imperial forces were the last thing he needed to run into right now, not with his escape plan in mind.

He immediately ordered the convoy to pull off the road and take cover in the woods nearby.

The Mobile Infantry quickly disembarked and covered the armored vehicles with camouflage nets that had infrared shielding.

The short-wave reconnaissance and jamming armored vehicle in the group also raised its mast antenna to improve its reconnaissance and jamming capabilities.

The captured 120mm mortar, along with the other 120mm mortar the convoy originally had, was set up in a suitable position, ready to provide fire support at a moment’s notice.

As for Amber himself, after ordering the Mobile Infantry to hold their position, he darted out ahead of everyone.

He planned to use his optical invisibility to conduct a close-range reconnaissance and see what was going on up ahead.

Chapter 30: The Unlucky ‘Mongoose’

“Captain, we still can’t contact the command ship, and the satellite navigation is a bit inaccurate.”

“Understood. Keep trying. Let me know the moment you get through!”

Watching the communications specialist in his squad move toward a spot with a better signal, Captain Lawrence quietly sighed, then flipped up his combat faceplate to wipe away some sweat.

He had already turned off his exoskeleton’s built-in adaptive temperature control and air filtration.

After continuous high-intensity combat and having ‘temporarily’ lost the airdropped supplies they were promised, he had to carefully manage his exoskeleton’s remaining energy reserves for any potential future battles.

As the commander of the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon, a unit directly under the Imperial Central Intelligence Directorate, he and his team had received a top-secret mission from the Imperial Directorate of Defense Intelligence and Security (DRSD). (Author’s note: In this setting, there are seventeen intelligence agencies of various sizes; the Federation has a similar structure, largely based on real-world intelligence systems.)

[Secretly investigate Federation Research Lab 31027 on Robert IV]

At the mission briefing, the DRSD’s intel team had only provided a rough coordinate range and the information that the lab had been abandoned twenty years ago.

Despite this, Captain Lawrence had been full of confidence.

Thanks to the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s large-scale surprise attack on Robert IV, the Federation’s military presence on the planet was set to suffer a devastating blow.

Any surviving remnants would pose little threat to his elite squad.

Moreover, with a sufficient number of assault ships in orbit, he and his ‘Mongoose’ platoon were supposed to have unprecedented support, be it fire support or friendly reinforcements.

The head of the DRSD intel team responsible for the operation had puffed out his chest and said, “Don’t worry, you’ll have more than enough!”

“More than enough, my fucking ass!”

As this thought crossed his mind, Captain Lawrence, cautiously advancing with his surviving subordinates, couldn’t help but curse the families of everyone on that intel team once again.

Initially, everything had gone smoothly after their airdrop.

Thanks to the preliminary orbital strike and the assault by a large number of orbital paratroopers, the surrounding Federation Army forces were too busy defending themselves to bother them.

For the first two or three hours, the ‘Mongoose’ platoon’s advance had been unimpeded.

That was until a Federation capital ship fell into the atmosphere, and the explosion of its onboard fusion reactor caused severe interference.

The ‘Mongoose’ lost contact with command, and their navigation and satellite warning systems malfunctioned.

Under these conditions, the special operations squad ran head-on into a Federation unit that was in the middle of a breakout.

Normally, an infiltration unit of pure infantry like the ‘Mongoose’ platoon shouldn’t engage the enemy head-on.

But with communications and navigation in chaos for both sides, a nonsensical encounter occurred.

The Federation’s breakout force possessed numerous armored vehicles, main battle tanks, and multi-legged war machines.

Although the ‘Mongoose’ only clashed with a small detachment responsible for the enemy’s flank, their firepower and mobility were still enough to inflict heavy losses.

If they hadn’t managed to make emergency contact with a nearby unit of orbital paratroopers with two HCPs and withdrawn under their cover, the ‘Mongoose’ platoon might have been completely wiped out before even finding their target.

As the main Imperial force pursuing the Federation breakout unit closed in, the Federation troops that had nearly crushed the ‘Mongoose’ platoon fled in another direction.

Lawrence recalled the unit insignia he had seen on that Federation unit’s equipment through his magnified optical lens.

“Yassin Base Garrison Force. What are they doing here?”

“Is our luck really this bad?”

The thought gave the Imperial officer a headache.

Although luck was an ethereal concept, he still hoped it was on his side.

After all, the circumstances of this mission were completely different from previous ones.

While Lawrence and his ‘Mongoose’ platoon were rich in combat experience, that ‘experience’ was gained in small-scale counter-insurgency operations.

This was entirely different. The Federation was no mere rebellious planet.

Although the Empire’s strategists described the Federation as ‘a house that will collapse with a single kick,’ the Federation was, in terms of national power, a match for the Empire.

Even on a frontier agricultural planet like Robert IV, its supposedly ‘weak and pathetic’ garrison was far superior in equipment and combat effectiveness to any rebels Lawrence had faced before.

“Dragon God above, grant us success on this mission.”

Despite being a citizen of the Star Dragon Empire, Lawrence was a rare non-believer, unlike the majority of the Empire’s population who followed the state religion.

But in this situation, he had no choice but to grasp at straws and pray.

‘Our luck can’t be this bad forever, can it?’

Captain Lawrence thought to himself as he moved forward cautiously.

The next second, the communications specialist’s panicked shout erupted over the comms channel.

“Fuck! I’ve been hacked!”

“Everyone, disconnect from the squad datalink! Watch out for an electronic warfare vir—”

Before the communications specialist could finish his sentence, Captain Lawrence had already severed his datalink and left the squad comms channel.

Unfortunately, he was a step too late.

His faceplate’s HUD flickered abnormally a few times, and functions like the light arms targeting reticle and remaining ammo count vanished.

Lawrence’s exoskeleton fire-control system had gone offline, taken down by an unknown electronic warfare virus.

Next went the communications module, the power management module, and the sensor module.

Watching the compass on his HUD spin wildly, Captain Lawrence knew this was bad.

He flipped up his tactical faceplate and yelled, using the most primitive method to order the surrounding soldiers to take cover and stay alert.

But then, a piercing shriek from the sky made his face drain of color.

Boom!

Before he could even order the others to hit the deck, a one hundred and twenty-millimeter high-explosive shell detonated in an open area near Lawrence.

The commander of the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon was thrown to the ground by the shockwave.

“Excellent, a direct hit! Ten points for Group A.”

“Group B, you son of a bitch, you missed! Recalibrate your targeting point!”

Amber, concealed by optical invisibility, was perched in a large tree.

Peering through the magnified view of his tactical sight, he was directing the fire of two one hundred and twenty-millimeter mortars positioned behind him.

“The two infantry squads have reached the attack line I designated? Good, they’re moving fast enough.”

Amber glanced at the tactical map minimized in the bottom-left corner and continued:

“Fire support team, three-round rapid fire with high-explosive shells! Infantry squads, attack as soon as the barrage lands!”

“I’m in the large tree at the orange coordinates. Watch your IFF!”

“Don’t be stingy with your ammo on the downed enemies. Put a few more rounds into them to make sure they’re dead!”

Chapter 31: An Unexpected Gain

Including the first two high-explosive shells used for ranging.

Amber hammered the Imperial infantry squad of less than twenty men, who were moving stealthily through the woods, with eight shells in one go.

This level of firepower was complete overkill for an infantry unit of less than twenty, but to be honest, Amber had even less confidence in the Mobile Infantry under his command.

He would rather use a few extra shells than risk more wounded or killed among his troops.

And these eight 120mm high-explosive shells certainly did the job.

With calculations from the artillery terminal and Amber’s forward observation, all but B-team’s first ranging shot, which went wide, landed precisely on their designated targets. The remaining seven mortar shells accurately struck their intended impact points.

The blast radius of the high-explosive shells perfectly blanketed the Imperial squad’s combat search formation.

Bolstered by numerous digital terminals, even the regular soldiers Amber had ‘picked up’ along the way could fire their mortars with the accuracy of veterans.

Of course, a veteran’s combat awareness would still completely trump theirs. However, with the help of this equipment, these ordinary soldiers could significantly close the gap.

But every coin has two sides.

Digital terminals and squad-platoon level datalinks had indeed drastically improved the combat effectiveness of ordinary infantry. Exoskeleton gear and smart weaponry also raised the baseline combat capability of all soldiers.

Yet, it was precisely this information-based support equipment that also became a key vulnerability in battle.

Electronic warfare gradually trickled down from the strategic and tactical levels of large formations to the most fundamental level of infantry combat.

Confrontations between squads now involved more than just intense firefights; they included this silent, smokeless form of combat.

Whoever gained the upper hand in electronic warfare could seize the initiative in battle.

Just like this Imperial squad before Amber.

They had the misfortune of running into Amber, a veteran of electronic warfare.

Even more unfortunately, Amber also had a VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle at his disposal.

Obviously, the jamming power and electronic warfare viruses delivered by the vehicle-mounted equipment were far more potent than man-portable gear.

After the last two shells landed and exploded, the Mobile Infantry at the ‘line of departure’ charged forward at the sound of the ‘simulated charge whistle’ in their earpieces.

The two squads, totaling eighteen soldiers, were all the dedicated Mobile Infantry in the convoy.

However, the artillery barrage from the indirect fire support team might have been a bit too effective.

When the Mobile Infantry, maintaining their combat formation, pushed through the smoke around the impact zone, they saw nothing but Imperial soldiers lying on the ground.

But despite this, the Mobile Infantry had still taken Amber’s words to heart.

After all, Amber was not only a Psionic Agent, but also the person who had saved them from a desperate situation.

They didn’t care whether the Imperial soldiers on the ground were completely dead or not; as soon as they saw one, they riddled them with a full burst.

“Clear!”

“Clear!”

After the Mobile Infantry had finished off the last Imperial soldier on the ground, Amber heard their reports over the comms channel.

Lowering his propped-up ‘Ghost’ sniper rifle and deactivating his optical invisibility, Amber leaped down from the tree and strode toward the battlefield.

“Sir, you should come see this! These Imperial soldiers don’t seem like the ones we’ve encountered before!”

The slightly surprised cries of the Mobile Infantry over the comms channel made Amber purse his lips.

The garrisons on these frontier agricultural planets were so easily flustered.

They’re just some Imperial orbital paratroopers. How different could they be?

But when he got closer and saw the Imperial soldiers, their chests riddled with holes, he realized they were indeed quite different from regular Imperial soldiers.

“This is a ‘Recurve Blade IV’ exoskeleton?”

“According to the timeline, hasn’t this model been fielded yet?”

Amber circled one of the bodies. Its exoskeleton was fitted with a dedicated command antenna.

He was most likely the commander of this Imperial infantry squad.

By carefully examining the body’s equipment, he discovered that not only were their exoskeletons more advanced than those of standard orbital paratroopers, but the weapons in their hands were also a new generation of firearms that the Empire hadn’t officially fielded yet and which should still be on the testing grounds.

Sensing something was off, Amber dismissed the nearby Mobile Infantry.

After watching them clear the battlefield and post sentries, Amber crouched beside the body and felt around the corpse’s neck for a moment.

Then, he forcefully ripped off a ‘dog tag’.

So-called ‘dog tags’ were actually the military identification tags worn around a soldier’s neck.

The one in Amber’s hand was a standard-issue Star Dragon Empire military ID tag.

He flipped it to the side with the engraved text. The first line showed the holder’s name:

Herbert Lawrence.

“Hiss… that name?!”

Seeing the name, Amber’s eyelid twitched involuntarily.

But he continued to read the information, line by line.

The second line was his service number, the third his Imperial social security number and blood type.

The fourth line was the branch of service, which Amber was focused on.

“Imperial Army.”

Seeing this, Amber was basically certain of the corpse’s identity.

If it wasn’t someone else with the same name, this Imperial was a very important figure.

Herbert Lawrence.

Commander of the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon, under the Special Operations Center of the Star Dragon Empire’s Central Intelligence Directorate.

In Amber’s memory, this man was closely connected to something that could overturn the global situation.

“How did I get this guy killed…”

Of course, strictly speaking, Captain Lawrence hadn’t been killed by Amber.

He had been knocked unconscious by the close-range explosion of a 120mm mortar shell, and was subsequently killed by an ordinary Federation Mobile Infantryman during the battlefield cleanup.

Amber frowned, deep in thought.

“‘Mongoose’ showing up on Robert IV at this time… could it be related to ‘that thing’?”

“The timing seems to fit, too!”

At this thought, his eyes lit up.

He immediately ordered the Mobile Infantry to stop clearing the battlefield and fall back to the convoy’s position at once.

These ‘Mongoose’ platoon soldiers weren’t carrying many supplies, and besides, the Federation’s and the Empire’s ammunition and battery packs weren’t compatible.

Watching the Mobile Infantry stow their weapons and begin to withdraw toward the convoy’s concealed location, Amber also removed Lawrence’s tactical faceplate and the personal terminal on his arm.

After all, what had just flashed through his mind were only guesses.

But if he could access the information from the tactical faceplate’s internal storage module and the personal terminal, he might be able to confirm his theory.

After stowing these two ‘spoils of war,’ Amber immediately broke into a run toward the convoy.

He moved so fast that he shot past the jogging Mobile Infantry and quickly left them behind, leaving the baffled soldiers with nothing but a view of his cool, retreating figure.

“Why is Officer Amber running so fast?”

“Dunno. Maybe he has to pee after crouching in the tree for so long?”

“Probably.”

Chapter 32: The ‘Mongoose’ Platoon’s Secret

“Margaret, come take a look at this!”

As Amber ran back to the convoy’s hiding spot, the Mobile Infantry left on guard duty were following his orders and packing up the vehicle camouflage netting.

The two fire support teams carrying their 120mm mortars had also just returned from their temporary positions.

After hearing his shout, Isabelle, who was checking on the wounded, handed the injector gun she was holding to a nearby medic.

She then walked over with a puzzled expression.

“What’s going on? All this shouting isn’t your style. Hey! What are you doing!”

Before Isabelle could finish speaking, Amber grabbed her hand and led her aside.

This action prompted jeers and catcalls from the surrounding Mobile Infantry, who were enjoying the show.

Even the usually composed Isabelle blushed amidst the soldiers’ increasingly outrageous jeering.

“What on earth are you doing! I’m telling you, you can’t force this kind of thing!”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. Just come with me and you’ll see.”

Amber was in no mood to tease the female spy right now.

After leading Isabelle to a more distant patch of trees, he took out his recently acquired ‘spoils of war’.

“A faceplate and a personal terminal? Are these from the Imperial soldiers you ambushed?”

Isabelle’s tone was flat, betraying no emotion.

It was hard to know what this female spy, now branded a traitor, was truly thinking as she looked at the belongings of a soldier from her homeland.

“These weren’t ordinary Imperial soldiers. They must be from a special operations team under the Imperial Central Intelligence Directorate.”

Amber held up the two items, then powered on the personal terminal, waking it from sleep mode.

“Take a look. This isn’t the old equipment that’s been issued for years.”

“People from the Central Intelligence Directorate?”

Isabelle’s pretty face immediately turned serious.

“Why would they send people to Robert IV, too?”

“That’s exactly what I brought you over here to find out.”

After saying this, Amber connected his own personal terminal to the Imperial one via its universal interface.

He then skillfully used a ‘backdoor’ to bypass the identity authentication and unlock the device.

“Wait, how are you so good at cracking these things?”

Isabelle was stunned by Amber’s proficiency.

As she recalled, the Naval Intelligence Division’s training curriculum certainly didn’t include a module on how to crack their own terminals.

“It’s part of the standard curriculum. It’s a basic skill for all the cadets in my class.”

Amber said, head down and fiddling with the device, spouting complete nonsense.

Of course, he couldn’t tell Isabelle that this was a skill he’d learned in his past life as a gamer.

“I feel like you’re lying to me…”

“Not at all. You’ve just been undercover in the Federation for too long. You haven’t caught up with all the changes back in the Empire.”

Amber continued his bluff. In their current situation, it wasn’t like Isabelle could ask anyone to verify his claims anyway.

“Done. Now, it’s up to you!”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re a high-level deep-cover agent on Robert IV, so your clearance level can’t be too low. Use your clearance for a command override. That way, we’ll be able to access all the information and combat logs on the terminal.”

Amber brought up an interface on the terminal and continued:

“Some of the information and logs can’t even be viewed by the terminal’s user. It requires a higher-level clearance override.”

“Fortunately, your clearance is still active. I’m guessing that even if the Empire has started moves to revoke it, the data latency means it’ll take two or three days for the change to take effect.”

With that, Amber handed the personal terminal to Isabelle.

“Wait, why do I always have to help you with this sort of thing!”

Isabelle hesitated. She suddenly realized that if she kept on like this, her actions would truly border on treason.

“Save your pathetic patriotism. You love your country? Does your country love you back?”

Amber said scornfully,

“Don’t mind my bluntness, but in my eyes, you’re loyal to the Princess, not the Empire.”

“But…” Isabelle started to object, but Amber cut her off.

“No buts. Fundamentally, you’re no different from the Regent Prince Faction. You’re all just serving your own masters, not the nation.”

Amber’s words left Isabelle speechless.

Although Amber’s words cut her deeply, she couldn’t find any grounds to refute his argument.

After a moment of inner conflict, the ‘traitorous’ Imperial spy let out a long sigh.

Then, using her clearance, she accessed the command backend for the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon.

Although the platoon had already been wiped out.

However, because communications over Robert IV were currently jammed, the report of the ‘Mongoose’ platoon’s annihilation and mission failure was only stored locally.

It hadn’t been transmitted yet.

“Here, it’s open. I’ve got to get back to my duties.”

After handing the terminal—now with the command override active—back to Amber, Isabelle turned and walked away, a sad look on her face.

Watching her desolate figure walk away, Amber didn’t go over to comfort her.

Comfort from him would be of little use for what she was going through. Isabelle had to find her own way out of it.

Amber tore his gaze away and focused on the terminal.

After digging through the backend database and combat footage for a while, he finally found the information he wanted.

First, this annihilated unit was indeed the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon from his memories, led by Captain Lawrence.

Second, before encountering Amber’s group, the platoon had been soundly beaten by another Federation breakout force.

This force was the very one that had broken out of Yassin Base, and its commander was, in all likelihood, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

Third, their reason for coming to Robert IV was just as Amber had suspected: they were after a secret Federation research facility.

“I never would have thought… that this thing was hidden right here on Robert IV…”

He stared at the location of the secret Federation research facility, now updated on his tactical map.

Amber couldn’t help but marvel at the revelation.

Meanwhile, the Mobile Infantry finished their preparations to move out.

Just as everyone finished packing up the camouflage netting and was about to board the vehicles, a soldier in the communications relay vehicle finally detected a friendly signal.

When Amber had the communications specialist connect to the signal, a slightly frantic voice crackled through the headset:

“This is Lansford Port Escape Pod B63!”

“Does anyone read me? I repeat, does anyone read me?”

“We have wounded aboard the escape pod! We require immediate assistance!”

“…”

Perhaps due to the poor communications, the distress call was choppy.

Before Amber and his men could respond, the signal cut out.

Amber thought for a moment before finally asking:

“Can you triangulate their landing position from that signal?”

“I’ll try, sir!”

Chapter 33: Rescue

Amber wasn’t trying to be a hero.

And he certainly didn’t want to put himself in danger.

But if the escape pod’s location wasn’t too far from the convoy, making a detour to help wasn’t out of the question.

He only had five wheeled combat vehicles under his command.

However, Amber was confident that under his command, dealing with the Empire’s orbital paratroopers wouldn’t be a problem.

If his luck was terrible and he ran into an airdropped HCP…

…relying on the cover from the electronic warfare variant in his convoy, disengaging and getting away shouldn’t be much of an issue.

Besides, this escape pod came from Lansford Port, so its occupants would surely have a clear idea of the current situation there.

If Amber and his men wanted to leave Robert IV later but couldn’t find any other transport…

…they would most likely have to find a way to go up via the space elevator.

While Amber was weighing the pros and cons, the radioman triangulated the location where the signal was last detected.

After inputting the spatial coordinates and the specifications for a standard spaceport escape pod into the vehicle’s terminal, several system-calculated descent trajectories appeared on the screen.

The landing positions for these trajectories were all scattered within a ten-kilometer radius of the convoy’s current location.

“Heh, guess we have to go now.”

After choosing the landing position with the highest probability calculated by the system…

Amber sent the coordinates to the other vehicles through the command system, marking it as their next destination.

Once the camouflage nets were fully stowed and all the Mobile Infantry had boarded, the convoy set off again towards its new destination.

“All units, listen up. We’re making a detour for a rescue mission.”

Sitting inside the swaying wheeled armored vehicle, Amber opened the squad’s communication channel.

“A few lucky souls just came down in an escape pod from that spaceport above you.”

“Unfortunately, there’s no welcome party with flowers and wine waiting for them on the ground.”

“And based on the previous battlefield assessment, there should be enemy activity near where these poor bastards landed.”

“We’ve got our own problems, I know, but since it’s on the way, there’s no harm in pulling them out. We can even invite those guys who fly over your heads all day to take a ride in a ground vehicle.”

“After all, the convoy still has plenty of empty seats.”

A wave of laughter came over the communication channel from the Mobile Infantry.

These soldiers had only been under Amber’s command for a matter of hours.

But they had already developed a certain trust in this temporary commander.

And after two battles, the soldiers no longer had any resistance to Amber’s orders.

Hearing the soldiers’ laughter, Amber couldn’t help but smile himself.

Then his tone turned serious again:

“All vehicles, prepare for combat, effective immediately!”

“Vehicle Three, launch the onboard drone for aerial reconnaissance. Search radius, twenty kilometers!”

“Vehicle Four, activate the millimeter-wave battlefield surveillance radar. Electronic warfare systems to automatic countermeasure mode!”

“Maintain radio discipline. If I hear anyone bullshitting on the comms again, I’ll personally kick his ass!”

Before setting out again, Amber had assigned call signs to the five vehicles to make commanding them easier.

Vehicles One through Three were standard personnel carrier variants.

Vehicle Four was the electronic warfare variant.

And Vehicle Five, the one Amber was in, was the communications relay variant, currently doubling as the command vehicle.

After receiving confirmation from each vehicle commander, Amber turned his attention to the tactical map.

The reconnaissance drone had already been launched from Vehicle Three.

It was now flying a large figure-eight pattern above the convoy.

With electromagnetic catapult technology being commonplace, almost all military vehicles could be fitted with a launch rail to deploy this type of fixed-wing drone.

The reconnaissance drone launched by Vehicle Three was classified as a squad-level, vehicle-mounted drone in the Federation Army’s table of organization.

It was primarily issued to mechanized infantry units.

This small drone had a fuselage length of 1.8 meters and a wingspan of 3 meters with its folding wings extended.

It could cruise at ninety kilometers per hour for nearly three hours.

Its maximum altitude was fifteen hundred meters, and its maximum control range was twenty-five kilometers.

The standard configuration included an optical/infrared reconnaissance module mounted beneath the nose.

It could also be reconfigured for electronic reconnaissance.

Its only drawback was that, to keep costs down, it had a low level of automation and no landing gear.

This made recovery a bit difficult.

When the little guy’s power was nearly depleted, the crew of Vehicle Three would have to stop and set up a recovery net.

Then they’d wait for the drone to slow down and fly headfirst into it to be recovered.

The search for the escape pod didn’t take much time.

As soon as the drone operator saw a suspicious target marked by the drone on the tactical map…

…he immediately adjusted the optical observation module and spotted a long, scorched patch on the plain, with smoke rising from it.

A magnified image was quickly transmitted to Amber’s temporary command vehicle.

“That’s it.”

Amber couldn’t help but snap his fingers, but he quickly realized the escape pod’s landing site wasn’t ideal.

Although this automated farmland, covering hundreds of square kilometers, was flat and perfect for an escape pod landing…

…by the same token, the complete lack of cover left the escape pod completely exposed.

The escape pod had landed in the northwest corner of a wheat field, less than three kilometers from its edge.

In the golden wheat field, the drag marks from the pod’s crash were as conspicuous as a blot of ink on an oil painting.

Amber looked at the footage from the drone, then switched the tactical map to satellite view.

He then drew a stop line in the woods bordering the automated farmland.

“All vehicles, advance in a staggered column to the stop line!”

“Weapons free! Remember, mark targets before you open fire!”

“Mobile Infantry, check your ammunition. Prepare to dismount and engage.”

After issuing the commands over the channel, Amber turned to the radioman beside him.

“Keep hailing the escape pod. Let them know we’re here to help.”

“Understood, Sir!”

The Mongoose-4 armored vehicles were fast. It wasn’t long before the convoy reached the woods where Amber had drawn the stop line.

The three standard-variant armored vehicles spread out at fifteen-meter intervals, their fronts facing the boundless wheat field beyond the trees.

The Mobile Infantry they carried dismounted quickly, taking cover near the vehicles.

The remaining communications relay and electronic warfare vehicles hid deeper in the woods.

Amber didn’t drive straight in for the rescue. The friend-or-foe display on the tactical map, as well as his intuition, told him…

…that the Empire couldn’t possibly have missed the falling escape pod.

Since he wanted to play the hunter with his Mobile Infantry, he had to be patient and wait for the prey to come to him.

And fate didn’t make Amber wait long.

Less than ten minutes into the ambush, the drone in the sky spotted a group of ‘prey’ speeding toward the escape pod’s location.

Chapter 34: Visitors from the Sky

The ones driving out to their deaths were a few light all-terrain vehicles.

These unarmored vehicles, dropped individually in drop pods, were the first transports the orbital paratroopers could get their hands on.

Their lack of armor and self-defense weaponry was traded for an ultra-long operational range of nearly 900 kilometers.

And that was with a full load of five orbital paratroopers.

The all-terrain vehicles, speeding through the wheat field in a column formation, and the orbital paratroopers aboard them, had no idea.

In the woods 900 meters to their left, the fire-control systems of three 40mm Chain guns had already locked firmly onto them.

The all-electric turrets, with the faint whirring of their motors, rotated slowly and smoothly, tracking the moving targets.

“Sir, targets locked. Ready to fire at your command!”

Reports from each vehicle commander came through the comms channel.

Amber looked at the tactical map before him. Of the six all-terrain vehicles marked as enemies, three were now bracketed by red diamond icons.

This meant they were the three unlucky bastards targeted by the Chain guns.

“You may fire. Fire at will!”

As Amber’s order was given, the gunners of the three vehicles excitedly slammed the fire-control buttons on their joysticks.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!

A dense volley of shots immediately echoed through the woods, startling the birds resting in the treetops.

In an age of highly intelligent fire-control systems and vastly improved barrel manufacturing, even a 40mm Chain gun could achieve remarkable accuracy at 1,000 meters.

Through the commander’s scope of the communications relay vehicle, Amber saw three streams of orange-yellow tracers arc toward the distant, speeding Imperial troops.

An instant later, they blossomed into three fireballs.

The downside of the all-terrain vehicles’ long range was their massive fuel tanks.

With Amber’s unit using high-explosive incendiary rounds, the vehicles went up in flames at the slightest spark, just like a lighter.

“Woohoo! I got a hit! I got a hit!”

“Holy shit! Holy shit!”

A cacophony of excited shouts erupted over the comms channel.

“Keep firing! Keep firing!”

Amber roared into the channel, reining in the three wildly excited vehicle crews.

He even suspected that for these gunners, this might have been their first-ever combat kill.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!

The roar of the Chain guns sounded again.

The remaining three all-terrain vehicles, still locked by the fire-control systems, now scrambled across the wheat field like headless flies.

They performed frantic serpentine maneuvers, attempting to throw off the enemy’s aim.

But on the vast, open plain, it was a futile struggle.

After two short bursts, three more plumes of black smoke rose from the wheat field.

Although the 40mm Chain guns had easily dispatched the six all-terrain vehicles, perhaps the orbital paratroopers’ exoskeleton armor was just too good.

The drone feed showed surviving Imperial orbital paratroopers crawling from the wreckage of their vehicles.

Watching them drag their heavily wounded bodies out of the burning wrecks, and seeing others writhing on the ground, Amber felt a pang of pity.

To end the survivors’ suffering quickly, he gave the order to the two indirect fire support teams.

As 120mm high-explosive shells screamed down and detonated, their pain vanished in the visible shockwaves.

“Vehicle One, move out! All other units, provide cover!”

After the drone, still flying its figure-eight recon pattern, confirmed no other Imperial forces were approaching, Vehicle One, on Amber’s command, burst from the woods and sped toward the escape pod.

While they were engaging the Imperial force, the radioman had finally managed to contact the escape pod using the distress signal they’d intercepted.

According to a Major Randall, who identified himself as being from the Lansford Port command center, there were two wounded personnel in the escape pod with him.

However, one of them had already died from excessive blood loss after his wounds reopened during the pod’s violent landing.

The remaining soldier also had a gunshot wound and was in dire need of medical attention.

Under the circumstances, Amber had told the major to drag the wounded man out of the pod and had sent Vehicle One to pick them up.

As everyone watched anxiously, Vehicle One raced to the side of the escape pod.

The driver executed a sharp turn, positioning the vehicle’s hull as cover in front of the pod’s exit.

The armored vehicle’s turret slowly rotated, scanning the surroundings, while several Mobile Infantry soldiers quickly disembarked.

They helped Major Randall, who was already crouched by the pod’s hatch, to carefully lift the wounded man on the ground through the vehicle’s rear ramp.

“Go! Go! Go!”

As the last Mobile Infantry soldier providing rear guard scrambled inside and closed the ramp, the commander slapped the driver’s shoulder. The driver understood instantly and slammed on the accelerator.

The 25-ton armored vehicle let out a deep roar and sped off, racing back to the small woods.

“Tom! Hang in there, friendlies are here!”

The first time Amber saw the officer calling himself Major Randall, he was helping the others lift the wounded soldier from the armored vehicle.

Isabelle quickly moved forward with the squad’s only two remaining medics.

After a quick examination of the wound, the female spy turned back to Amber, a rare look of gravity on her face.

“This man’s condition is critical. He needs emergency surgery now!”

“Can’t you do it in the vehicle?”

“No, these are troop carriers, not dedicated medical vehicles. It’s too bumpy to operate!”

Amber glanced at Major Randall out of the corner of his eye. The major was looking at him anxiously.

Tsk. Beneath his faceplate, Amber closed his eyes in resignation.

“Don’t take too long. The Empire will probably send other nearby units this way soon.”

“Understood. Give me twenty minutes—no! Ten minutes is enough. I’ll handle the most critical part, the rest can be managed in the vehicle on the move!”

After getting Amber’s approval, Isabelle nodded.

She then directed several Mobile Infantry soldiers to carry the wounded man, Tom, to a stretcher that had been set up as a makeshift operating table.

There was no time to deploy the portable sterile field.

“Alright, the rest of you, stop fucking standing around and gawking!”

Amber kicked one of the Mobile Infantrymen in the ass, shooing them away.

He had just been about to praise these grunts for being relatively obedient, but they had immediately forgotten all about battlefield discipline.

“Fire support team! Get the mortars back in the vehicles!”

“Vehicles Three and Four, maintain battlefield surveillance!”

“Everyone else, spread out ten meters apart and stay alert! Be ready to mount up at a moment’s notice!”

“Once the doc is done with her surgery, we move out!”

After Amber barked out a series of commands, the soldiers finally remembered that their current officer was not someone to be trifled with.

They recalled the rumor that had spread after the fire support team recovered the Imperial mortars—the one about “Officer Amber being a terrifying headhunter.”

At that thought, every soldier moved a little faster.

Amber finally had a moment to talk to Major Randall, who had been waiting on the side.

As he walked over, the major, dressed in a Federation Navy uniform, was looking at him with an expression full of gratitude.

Chapter 35: Randall’s News

“Thank you and your troops for responding to our call for help!”

Randall saw Amber approaching and was just about to step forward to express his gratitude.

But the commander before him, his face obscured by a faceplate, extended a hand.

“Name, position, and unit. And hand over your officer’s ID.”

Randall froze for a moment. Having spent so much time in orbit, he honestly hadn’t expected Amber to start with such procedures the moment he landed.

Before he could say anything, Amber continued.

“Don’t get the wrong idea. These are difficult times; verifying identities is a step we can’t skip.”

Amber’s words brought Randall to his senses, and he nodded in understanding.

He took an electronic card from the inner pocket of his uniform, handed it to Amber, then stood at attention and saluted.

“Federation Navy, Lansford Port Combat Command Center, Major Randall.”

Amber took the card, flipped it over to examine it for a moment, then passed it to the communications specialist who was always at his side.

The communications specialist, who was on the verge of becoming Amber’s personal orderly, inserted the electronic officer’s ID into a small terminal. He then collected Randall’s facial, retinal, fingerprint, and blood data.

Finally, he confirmed that the middle-aged officer standing before them was indeed Major Randall.

After receiving the communications specialist’s confirmation, Amber seemed to relax and returned the salute.

“Federation Army, Tactical Support Team under the Yassin Base Combat Intelligence Center, Warrant Officer Amber.”

“Tactical Support Team. So you must be a Psionic Agent.”

Hearing Amber’s unit affiliation and seeing his gear, Randall quickly deduced his identity.

Although his own rank was significantly higher than Amber’s, Randall still showed respect for a psionic user.

Especially now, when he needed to rely on him.

“In any case, I must thank you again for the rescue.” Randall offered a friendly smile. “I was starting to think I was really done for this time.”

“Responding to a call for help from friendly forces is the duty of every Federation soldier.”

Amber was quite adept at handling such exchanges, his words flowing smoothly.

“But we can’t let our guard down yet, Major Randall.” Amber sighed. “The situation on the ground may be far worse than you imagine.”

After spending a minute or two explaining the situation on the planet’s surface to the Federation Navy Major, the optimistic expression on Randall’s face indeed faded.

Despite this, he didn’t hide his admiration for Amber.

“You Psionic Agents are really a tough bunch, breaking out of Yassin Base under these conditions and managing to rescue an allied unit on the way.”

“It was the least we could do. But as for you, Major… I’m very curious about what you’ve been through.”

Amber pulled an individual energy bar from his pocket and offered it to the Major.

When the communications specialist had taken a blood sample, he’d discovered the man was suffering from low blood sugar.

“Ah… thank you. I am a bit hungry.”

Randall hesitated for a second before quickly taking the energy bar, tearing open the wrapper, and biting into it.

Although the food, designed purely for calories, wasn’t very palatable, Randall ate it with gusto.

“It seems you really were hungry.”

“Ugh, don’t even get me started. I was supposed to have the night-duty late-night snack from the mess hall last night.”

Randall forced down the food in his mouth and continued, “But then the Imperial fleet used a disguised cynosural beacon to warp in and launch a surprise attack.”

Once the convoy was moving again, Randall, sitting with Amber in the communications relay vehicle, recounted his “thrilling experience” at length.

Amber would have much preferred to be in the same vehicle as Isabelle—at least it would have been easier on the eyes.

But Isabelle was still handling Tom’s post-operative care after his emergency surgery.

So she had boarded the second vehicle with the other wounded and the medics to continue treatment on the move.

That left Amber sharing a vehicle with not only a communications specialist but also this gruff man, Randall.

“After we ran into Imperial space assault troops who had already breached the spaceport, our evacuating group was nearly wiped out.”

“In the end, only I, the wounded Tom, and one other comrade made it out alive.”

“I was planning to head straight for the escape platforms, but then I saw on my terminal that the spaceport had received a message from Yassin Base.”

“The message was a warning to everyone that Robert IV was under Imperial invasion, requesting all nearby military units to provide support.”

At this point, Randall turned to look at Amber.

“That message was probably from you, right? The time and content match. Did you use a penetrating communications broadcast to send it to all units in the Robert system and surrounding star systems?”

“From your description, that was probably me.”

Amber raised an eyebrow. The situation had been so urgent at the time that he hadn’t paid attention to which units had received the message.

“Well then, what I did next can be said to be a direct result of that message of yours.”

“What was that?” Randall’s words piqued Amber’s interest.

He was genuinely curious about what impact his actions had caused.

Randall leaned back against his seat, hands clasped behind his head, as if recalling something amusing.

“I was in a hurry to save my own skin, but your message served as a reminder that I couldn’t just let the spaceport and the space elevator fall into their hands for nothing.”

“So I went and locked down the space elevator.”

“What?”

Amber shot bolt upright. “Do you have any idea what you’re saying?!”

“Hahahaha! Don’t get so worked up, Warrant Officer Amber. Don’t worry, I’m not joking.”

Major Randall seemed to be in a good mood. He smiled as he took his dog tag from around his neck.

Amber now noticed a small, finger-length black rectangular object hanging next to the tag.

“This is the physical key,” Major Randall said, pinching it between two fingers.

“It has only one function: to be inserted into a control terminal to either activate or lock down the space elevator.”

“And there is one such control terminal at Lansford Port and another at the ground control station.”

Amber frowned. In his past life, he’d never heard anything about the space elevator on Robert IV being locked down.

Could it be that my actions have changed the timeline? he couldn’t help but wonder.

After a moment of thought, Amber looked up at Randall.

“Major, are you certain that after you locked the space elevator with the key, the Empire has no way to use it?”

Noticing the “how can you not trust me” look on the other man’s face, Amber shrugged and added, “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but locking down the entire space elevator with a single key… it’s just a bit hard to believe.”

“With a large-scale invasion like this, the Empire is bound to have brought plenty of technicians. I’m worried they’ll just brute-force it.”

“Relax, Warrant Officer Amber.”

In response to Amber’s concern, Major Randall reached out and patted him on the shoulder.

It was the first time in days that anyone had made such a gesture toward Amber.

“I can assure you, even if the Empire hooked up ten of their top-tier supercomputers to brute-force the lock, it would take them at least a decade.”

“What if they bring a hundred supercomputers?”

“Are you just trying to pick a fight, kid? You think supercomputers are a dime a dozen?”

Major Randall couldn’t help but laugh out loud, filling the communications relay vehicle with a cheerful atmosphere.

Chapter 36: A Shift in the World Line

To Amber, Major Randall, a high-ranking officer in the Federation Navy, came across as one of those suave but full-of-hot-air, wily old-timers.

This first impression was only reinforced by his navy uniform, which, despite being stained with blood and grease, he still tried to keep crisp and straight.

It was a stereotype Amber already held, bolstered by the countless amorous tales of Federation Navy officers that circulated throughout the star systems, and the widespread ditty: “The Navy’s full of dandies, the Army’s caked in mud, and the Air Force is just plain dumb.”

Amber had never held a high opinion of these “Navy studs.”

But in the current situation, he had no choice but to temporarily trust the major’s word.

“If the space elevator is out of commission for the foreseeable future, the Empire’s troop deployment speed will be drastically reduced. It might even disrupt their original plans.”

On the vehicle’s command terminal, Amber pulled up a tactical situation map of the entire ground war on Robert IV.

Federation and Imperial forces were marked in blue and red, respectively, displaying the current state of the battlefield.

However, with communications jammed, they couldn’t connect to the brigade and battalion backbone network. As a result, the map was already more than six hours out of date.

“Warrant Officer Amber, are you saying the situation on the planet’s surface might not be as bad as this map suggests?”

Hearing Amber, Major Randall leaned in to look at the screen.

Coming from the Navy, he wasn’t particularly familiar with ground warfare situation maps. But that didn’t stop him from seeing that the Empire’s airborne troops were popping up all over Robert IV.

“No, the situation is still dire,” Amber said, shaking his head.

“The initial orbital nuclear strikes still managed to wipe out a significant number of our forces in whole formations. But,” he continued, “the shutdown of the space elevator at least gives us a fighting chance.”

“Major, you must be aware of the immense transport capacity of a space elevator.”

At Amber’s question, Randall nodded.

Lansford Port was the final section of the space elevator (aside from the counterweight station), the last stop on this high-speed transport rail. The command center at Lansford Port also held the highest level of control over the elevator.

That was why Major Randall had been able to lock it down.

As such, Major Randall was well aware of the transport capacity of this “great artery between heaven and earth.”

The space elevator had a total of twelve cabins, each with a carrying capacity of four hundred and eighty tons.

This meant that, in theory, a single fully-loaded ascent or descent could transport five thousand, seven hundred and sixty tons of supplies, personnel, and equipment.

Under normal operating conditions, the cabins on Robert IV’s space elevator could complete a round trip every hour.

In other words, just transferring supplies from the spaceport to the ground, it could achieve a daily throughput of one hundred and thirty-eight thousand, two hundred and forty tons.

Of course, that was a theoretical number.

In reality, one had to account for the time needed for loading, unloading, and equipment maintenance.

But regardless, a daily transport capacity in the hundred-thousand-ton class was perfectly achievable.

“I understand what you mean. If the space elevator is unusable, the Empire can’t rapidly deploy their heavy armored units to the surface.”

“Exactly,” Amber said with a snap of his fingers.

“Many heavy assets can’t be dropped in by drop pod, and aerospace strategic transports can’t even begin to compare with the space elevator in terms of either carrying capacity or sortie rate.”

“So, as long as the lockdown on the space elevator isn’t broken, the Imperial forces we’ll face in the short term should primarily consist of large numbers of infantry, plus a small number of HCPs and even fewer other types of armored units.”

Thinking of this, Amber couldn’t help but sigh internally. The world line had truly changed.

If he hadn’t sent out that rescue signal from the Core Communications Room using the penetrating communications device, Major Randall, scrambling to survive in Lansford Port, would have forgotten to lock down the space elevator, just as he did in the previous timeline.

That would have allowed the Imperial army to use this “highway” straight to the surface to rapidly deploy their heavy units.

But now, at least Amber didn’t have to worry about running into massive ground forces on his escape route.

“Wait a minute!”

Something suddenly occurred to Major Randall.

“Since you sent a distress call, doesn’t that mean the other planets in the system and the deep-space patrol fleet should know what’s happened?”

“I know what you’re thinking.”

Amber shook his head.

“But based on the intelligence from the Combat Intelligence Center, I regret to inform you that this Imperial invasion is targeting the entire star system. This means the other three colony worlds in the system are currently under attack by other Imperial fleets as well.”

“As for the deep-space patrol fleet, they’ve likely withdrawn to the edge of the system for now.”

Of course, this intelligence didn’t come from the Combat Intelligence Center. It came from the detailed records Amber had seen in the war history archives in his past life.

Given the competence of the Federation’s intelligence agencies, they’d be lucky just to figure out it was the Star Dragon Empire attacking them.

Randall, however, was unaware of this. He thought to himself, The Combat Intelligence Center’s information-gathering capabilities are pretty impressive.

“But no matter what, the call for help went out. Does that mean if we can just hold on, we can wait for reinforcements from the main fleet?” the major pressed on. After all, this was a matter of life and death.

“Major Randall, perhaps you’re being a bit too optimistic about the efficiency of Federation High Command.”

“Damn, Warrant Officer Amber, you don’t pull any punches.”

During their subsequent high-speed maneuvers, Amber and his team were lucky enough not to encounter any more Imperial forces.

The planet’s surface was vast, and the Empire’s orbital paratroopers were primarily focused on attacking key military bases. From a macro perspective, their distribution wasn’t particularly dense, and the front lines were riddled with gaps.

With the help of the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle and their drones, Amber’s group managed to evade several Imperial units they detected.

One of these units even had two air-dropped HCPs.

This was one of the characteristics of light combined arms units.

While these wheeled armored vehicles didn’t pack much of a punch in a head-on fight, their high mobility and stealth-focused designs made them exceptionally good at getting around.

By analyzing the paths of the Imperial units they bypassed, Amber estimated they were likely on their way to encircle and intercept the breakout force led by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

A short while later, after briefly connecting to the edge and backbone networks, an updated battlefield situation map confirmed Amber’s deduction.

They were now about one hundred and fifty kilometers in a straight line from the main breakout force, right on the edge of the military internet’s reception range.

This, in addition to atmospheric interference, was one of the reasons they hadn’t been able to connect to the military network earlier.

After updating the situation map, Amber had planned to discuss their next steps with Randall. After all, the man’s rank was there to be seen, and even if they were from different branches of service, a polite consultation was in order.

But to his surprise, the major simply threw up his hands.

“Warrant Officer Amber, you should be the one to decide.”

The smile on Randall’s face gave Amber the distinct impression that he was completely checking out.

“We should let the professionals do their job. On the battlefield, command isn’t decided by rank alone.”

Chapter 37: Strategic Maneuver Plan

Although it was a good thing for Amber that Randall didn’t interfere with his command at all, he still hoped to have a tactical staff officer to help him coordinate.

Unfortunately, Amber scanned the members on the communication channel but couldn’t find a single suitable candidate.

Major Randall was out of the question; the man had directly refused Amber’s request for assistance with the excuse, “I don’t understand your army’s way of fighting.”

Isabelle wasn’t a great fit either. She was fine as a spy or a medic, but commanding troops in battle was certainly not her strong suit.

As for the platoon of boisterous mobile infantry under his command?

Amber had to admit that in the time he’d spent with them, these soldiers, despite their various shortcomings, could at least follow orders and fight wherever they were pointed.

They would certainly have no problem in a favorable engagement.

But if you were to pull one of them aside and ask him how to command a mobile infantry platoon to attack a small town, the man would only respond in a spirited voice, booming with energy:

“Fight from Point A to Point B, Sir!”

Amber helplessly covered his forehead—or rather, his tactical faceplate.

“Good heavens, grant me a tactical staff officer!”

Of course, such a wish was naturally impossible to fulfill in the short term.

So, after facing reality, Amber ultimately resigned himself to his fate.

As the convoy sped toward the last waypoint marked earlier, Amber’s brain began to work at full speed.

Although the drive through the wild, unpaved terrain made for an exceptionally bumpy ride for Amber inside the vehicle, it didn’t disrupt his train of thought.

After integrating Major Randall’s information, the current enemy and friendly positions on the battlefield, and his own memories of the Imperial fleet’s scale, Amber made a bold decision.

Capture the space elevator.

It was a decision that even Amber himself had initially thought was absurd.

But after careful consideration, he found it more and more feasible.

In his previous life’s memories, why had the Federation forces on Robert IV fought so poorly?

Why had the surviving Federation remnants who turned to guerrilla warfare only lasted for half a year?

The incompetence of the Federation garrison was indeed a major reason.

But it was undeniable that after the Empire’s orbital assault ships launched tactical nuclear strikes, the Federation military had lost nearly eighty percent of its advanced weaponry and heavy equipment.

Meanwhile, the Star Dragon Empire’s landing forces, relying on airdrops, aerospace transport planes, and most importantly, the space elevator, received a continuous stream of reinforcements and supplies.

They were even able to deploy entire Armored Brigade Combat Teams (ABCTs).

Faced with such an overwhelming disparity in strength, even if you put the “all-seeing, all-knowing” Amber in charge, he couldn’t have taken on an armored force with a bunch of light infantry.

Incidentally, thanks to their vast territories and industrial manufacturing capabilities, both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire equipped their most basic conventional infantry units with medium exoskeletons.

They were as common as the standard-issue rifles of the old era—one for every soldier.

So, although the infantry units of this age were still called “light infantry,” they were, in fact, anything but light.

Take the Federation, for example.

A standard mobile infantryman would be equipped with a ‘Saber-toothed Tiger Mk. II’ Medium Exoskeleton, powered by a gas turbine engine and a metallic hydrogen battery pack.

On top of that, in addition to the exoskeleton’s built-in protection, extra silicon carbide armor plates would be installed on vital areas.

In terms of armament, an 8mm Gauss rifle would typically be mounted on the right arm’s rail.

The standard choice for the left arm’s rail was either a 20mm automatic shotgun or a 40mm automatic grenade launcher.

Both weapons could use a variety of ammunition to handle different missions.

A small number of soldiers would opt for a rocket-powered combat spike instead.

Even when fully armed and loaded with ammunition and supplies, these soldiers’ movements were not restricted. In fact, supported by the powerful gas turbine engine, they could run faster and jump higher.

Yet, even with the infantry armed to the teeth, they were still no match for a true armored force in a direct confrontation.

In the face of multi-legged war machines, main battle tanks, and HCPs, mobile infantry were as fragile as children.

So, in Amber’s view, the Federation’s crushing defeat on Robert IV in his previous life was, to some extent, “understandable.”

But returning to the present, the situation had changed somewhat.

The Federation military was still the same Federation military—suffering heavy losses from the orbital strikes, with light infantry as its main combat force.

But the Imperial military was no longer the Imperial military from Amber’s memory.

Having lost the crucial transport capacity of the space elevator, the Empire’s landing forces could no longer deploy ABCTs as quickly as they had in his past life.

At this moment, the main combat force of the Imperial army on Robert IV’s surface was also primarily orbital paratrooper units, composed mainly of light infantry.

Although they could receive support from airdropped light multi-legged war machines and HCPs, their combat effectiveness was significantly weaker than in his previous life.

This level of weakening made Amber feel that it might just be worth the gamble.

At the same time, there were two other reasons for choosing the space elevator as the target of attack.

First, the current Federation remnants had no operational objective and were all fighting on their own.

Although everyone knew they needed to break out, they didn’t know in which direction or by what means.

If the space elevator were the objective, it could at least rally the Federation remnants and get them to move toward the equator, thus preventing them from being isolated, surrounded, and eliminated by Imperial forces.

Because the fleet battle in orbit had annihilated the Federation garrison fleet, tens of millions of tons of debris now floated in the outer space orbit of Robert IV, in addition to the fragments that burned up upon entering the atmosphere.

This debris not only damaged a large number of Federation satellites but also significantly reduced the efficiency with which the Empire could deploy tactical reconnaissance satellites.

In the later stages of the ground battle, the small number of tactical reconnaissance satellites had actually failed to detect the movements of the Federation remnants. Instead, they were first discovered by the relentlessly pursuing ground troops.

The ring of debris in orbit not only interfered with satellite reconnaissance and communication but also hampered the attack efficiency of the orbital assault ships.

After receiving fire support requests from ground troops, these orbital assault ships had to carefully plan their orbital entry and exit.

Second, based on both the actions of the Imperial forces in his memory and their series of actions in this life, it was clear that the Imperial forces did not want to destroy the space elevator.

They preferred to ensure its integrity and then take control of it.

After all, this ‘great artery between heaven and earth’ possessed an astonishing transport capacity and would play a huge role in post-war reconstruction.

Moreover, although the Empire had mastered the full set of construction technologies for a facility of this scale, the time cost associated with a construction period of five to ten years was still very high.

This made their bottom line ‘capture, if possible, rather than destroy.’

Therefore, once Federation forces massed near the space elevator, the Empire’s orbital assault fleet would be forced to hold its fire.

Both the ‘Tunguska’ tactical hydrogen bomb and the ‘David’ tactical surface-to-surface missile could easily damage the space elevator.

And this colossal “building,” a structure of thousands of carbon nanotubes held taut by centrifugal force, would have its entire force equilibrium shattered if it were damaged.

The consequences would be severe.

As more and more details were filled in within Amber’s mind, a strategic maneuver plan of an extremely grand scale was recorded by Amber into the command module of his personal terminal.

By physically connecting his personal terminal to the vehicle’s terminal, Amber could leverage the vehicle’s computing power to enhance the functions of the command module.

“This is the best I can do on my own…”

Amber exhaled a long breath as he hit save. This round of brainstorming had left him feeling a touch of mental exhaustion.

“Looks like you’ve made an extremely large-scale operational plan?”

Major Randall, who had remained silent so as not to disturb Amber while he was “working hard,” came over now that Amber was finally taking a break.

Although he didn’t understand the details of army operations, he could still grasp the big picture.

“Running all the way to the equator… I have to say, that’s a bold idea.”

Randall didn’t offer a direct evaluation but continued to ask:

Chapter 38: Expanding the Force

“How feasible is this plan of yours?”

“I don’t know. And a lot of the details still need to be ironed out, so it can’t really be used as is.”

Amber had no intention of hiding the problems with his operation plan. Since Randall had asked, he answered truthfully.

“Then what do we do?”

“What do we do? That’s not my problem to consider. Let Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s tactical staff officers get a headache over it.”

“Wait. You’re planning to send the plan to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas?” Amber’s reply made Randall drop his joking attitude. “You think they’ll adopt it? No, it’s a question whether they’ll even look at the plan at all.”

“You’re right~”

After encrypting the operation plan, Amber turned to look at the bewildered Randall.

“But if the intelligence in this plan about the space elevator comes from Major Randall of Lansford Port.”

Amber pointed at Randall, then at himself.

“And the specific execution aspect of the plan comes from Warrant Officer Amber of the Combat Intelligence Center, I believe it’ll attract their attention, more or less.”

“Tch, you, a warrant officer, have quite some pull, putting your name next to a navy major like me.”

Randall pursed his lips, speechless. He didn’t know what to say about Amber’s idea.

“Don’t worry, Major.” Amber turned back to finalize the preparations. “At this point in time, I doubt many people have the spare energy to whip up an operation plan like me.”

After the convoy had traveled some distance, the communications relay vehicle finally reconnected to the brigade and battalion level backbone network.

Taking this chance, Amber immediately had the radioman send the encrypted operation plan file via a secure transmission.

The “recipient,” naturally, was Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s breakout force.

In their much larger contingent, they naturally had more communications relay vehicles capable of receiving messages from other units.

Soon, this operation plan, marked by Amber as “Important,” “Urgent,” and “Top Secret,” after being checked and confirmed to be virus-free, was transmitted to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s command vehicle.

Amber’s guess was correct.

At this stage, the other Federation soldiers and officers were all busy breaking out and running for their lives; they simply didn’t have the time or mood to be drawing up operation plans.

So this unusually conspicuous file was immediately spotted by the communications specialist.

Regarding this operation plan that was submitted to him, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas found it quite sudden.

He hadn’t expected anyone to have the time to put something like this together at such a critical juncture.

He looked at the signature on the operation report and saw the somewhat familiar name “Amber.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas immediately recalled the warrant officer from the Combat Intelligence Center; he had indeed met him before.

And when he continued and saw the second signature was Major Randall from the naval forces, the lieutenant colonel actually felt a flicker of curiosity.

“An army warrant officer and a navy major. How did those two end up together?”

At that moment, the breakout force Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was with had just broken through an Imperial blockade line and was enjoying a rare moment of peace.

So, with considerable interest, he opened the operation report.

The more he read, the more serious his expression became.

Although at first, he too was stunned by Amber’s fantastical idea.

He nearly started cursing out loud in the command vehicle.

But as he continued to read carefully, he discovered that this seemingly outlandish operation plan might actually have a shred of feasibility?

“Well, I’ll be damned. The kid actually found a way out?”

A smile appeared on Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s face. He distributed the operation plan to several other combat staff officers in his unit.

Then he left two instructions:

“Flesh it out, add the details, and once the plan is complete, conduct a feasibility assessment.”

“You have five hours. In five hours, I want to see your revised first draft.”

Just as a few combat staff officers in another command vehicle had finally managed to catch their breath and rest for a bit, the file and message from Lieutenant Colonel Dallas made these staff officers, whose faces looked like they belonged to pandas, all cry out in anguish.

Amber, having successfully sent the operation plan, had no idea that his name was already making several of Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s staff officers grind their teeth in frustration.

He was currently busy looking at the newly updated battlefield situation map.

The reason Robert IV became an agricultural planet was mainly because its landmass occupied thirty-five percent of the planet’s surface.

Moreover, it was quite concentrated, with the entire planet divided into just two major continents and some archipelagos.

The continent mostly in the northern hemisphere was called the “North Continent,” and the smaller one in the south was known as the “South Continent.”

A very simple and crude naming convention.

These two continents were also dominated by vast plains, suitable for large-scale “industrialized” agriculture.

The military bases of the Federation’s various “presence forces” were distributed near the major transportation hubs on these two continents.

Right now, around these key nodes, the “North Continent” where Amber was located had been thrown into a chaotic mess.

The lines between friend and foe were jagged and intertwined; they were in each other’s territory.

Sometimes, looking at the situation map for a single area, it was impossible to tell who was surrounding whom.

In this complex tactical situation, Amber quickly found a target for his next move.

Less than twenty kilometers from the convoy, a Mobile Infantry platoon was requesting support from nearby friendly units.

After overlaying the battlefield situation map with the topographical map on his command terminal, Amber discovered that this Mobile Infantry platoon was likely holed up in a village on the edge of a large automated farm.

They were most likely under siege by Imperial forces.

After a quick cost-benefit analysis, Amber ultimately decided to go and support this Mobile Infantry platoon.

He actually had his own selfish reasons.

After coming up with the operational plan for a strategic maneuver toward the equator, Amber had been thinking about how to expand his force.

After all, if the plan succeeded, all the forces would eventually converge near the space elevator. In the chaotic situation, it would naturally be impossible to split up and reorganize the units, so whoever had troops under their command would have the most say.

Even without considering these long-term goals, the number of Mobile Infantry under Amber’s command right now was still too small.

And they had wounded with them.

In many situations, Amber didn’t dare let them fight freely.

He was afraid these “precious gems” would get wiped out by a single burst from an enemy chain gun if he wasn’t careful.

While the convoy was on the move, Vehicle #2 launched another drone.

At the same time, they recovered the reconnaissance drone that had been launched by Vehicle #3 and had been in the air for an hour and a half.

Watching through the window, Amber saw the Mobile Infantry clumsily setting up a recovery net in an open area.

Then they took the drone that had flown into the net at low speed, folded its wings, and stowed it away.

Amber guessed these Mobile Infantry soldiers probably didn’t get much training in launching and recovering drones.

Other than cramming for their year-end assessments, they probably rarely ever touched this tactical equipment.

“A regular pecking match between rookies, that’s what this is.”

Chapter 39: A Weapon That Looks Good, Fights Good

The Mobile Infantry platoon requesting support was at a location with relatively precise coordinates and geographical features.

So, the reconnaissance drone that was sent out found them quickly.

Just as Amber had predicted, the Mobile Infantry platoon was trapped in a village within an automated farming area.

From the reconnaissance drone’s footage alone, the Imperial forces besieging them consisted of several dozen orbital paratroopers spread out in a long offensive line.

There were also two light multi-legged war machines.

In the footage captured by the reconnaissance drone’s sensors, one of the light multi-legged war machines was hunkered down low in an ‘ambush posture’ amidst a wheat field.

From its rear-mounted turret, a 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannon was firing toward the village.

The other one was positioned farther away, below a ridge between the fields.

The spot had been dug out and deepened by the Imperial orbital partroopers, serving as a temporary artillery position.

This multi-legged war machine was hidden there, its 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannon already adjusted for indirect fire.

Together with two other 120mm mortars, it continuously bombarded the open areas and streets inside the village, pinning down and isolating the Federation soldiers within the buildings.

Amber had seen plenty of these orbital paratroopers before.

His attention was focused more on the two light multi-legged war machines providing fire support.

The MTM-2A3, the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine.

This mechanical unit had a combat weight of fifteen tons, a total length of six meters, and a height of two-point-eight meters.

It was the smallest and most numerous model in the Star Dragon Empire’s active family of multi-legged war machines.

Assisted by a highly intelligent system, it had an internal crew of only one.

Its primary purpose was to provide fire support and accompany infantry in complex terrain.

In extreme environments or urban warfare, it could also launch electromagnetic grappling hooks to assist with climbing.

It could also deploy folding tires from its mechanical legs for road travel.

By keeping its combat weight down, the ‘Saint’ could also be airdropped directly with orbital paratroopers via vehicle drop pods.

Symmetrically arranged on both sides of its two-section body, constructed from silicon carbide composite armor, were four pairs of bionic mechanical legs.

Much like the Mobile Infantry, the exterior of the bionic legs was fitted with additional curved silicon carbide armor plates.

When the multi-legged war machine entered ‘ambush mode,’ it would lower its chassis height.

Simultaneously, its mechanical legs would angle at sixty degrees to increase the probability of ricochets off the add-on armor plates.

In terms of defense, it had all-around immunity to 8mm and smaller electromagnetic rifles and gunfire from autocannons under 20mm.

As for its armaments, it was generally equipped with a 120mm dual-purpose (direct/indirect fire) electrothermal-chemical cannon on the turret of its rear chassis.

Underneath the front section of the chassis, on pincer-like mechanical arms, were two externally mounted 8mm Gauss machine guns.

Amber’s assessment of the ‘Saint’s’ combat performance was actually quite high.

It had strong all-terrain mobility, decent defensive capabilities, and a weapons configuration that was more than sufficient for infantry support.

His only complaint was its paint scheme.

Or rather, Amber had complained countless times about the paint schemes of all of the Star Dragon Empire’s military equipment.

As mentioned before, the Star Dragon Empire, with its greater national power and industrial capacity, had reached an almost obsessive level of concern for the aesthetic design of its military hardware.

Thus, with the exception of ACEs who could choose their own liveries, all other ground combat equipment, whether they were various vehicles, main battle tanks, multi-legged war machines, or HCPs, had a uniform silver-white paint job, showily accented with gold trim.

Although, Amber had to admit, the Star Dragon Empire’s aesthetic design did have something going for it.

Their equipment looked progressively more handsome, leagues above the Federation’s collection of big, blocky, and brutish machines.

But the consequence was that these mechanical units were each more conspicuous than the last on the battlefield.

Especially on a sunny day, the glare from their silver-white hulls was practically telling the enemy, “Here, shoot here!”

Just like the current situation, their positions were easily discovered by the reconnaissance drone.

And in the process, they had also exposed the two other mortars.

Amber’s assessment of this was: “Outrageous.”

The reconnaissance drone flew a full circle around the village, and using a combination of optical and infrared reconnaissance, it managed to get a clear picture of the attacking Imperial forces.

In addition to the orbital paratroopers and the two ‘Saints’ conducting the frontal assault, there were also squad-sized Imperial units that had set up ambush positions in other directions around the village.

Their mission was to inflict casualties on the village defenders if they couldn’t hold out and attempted a breakout.

Encircle on three sides, leaving one open—a very classical, yet timeless tactic.

“How’s it look? Can we take them?”

Although he had said he didn’t want to interfere with the command of the ground battle, Major Randall still leaned over curiously at this moment, wanting to see how Amber planned to direct the fight.

“Hmm… we’ve currently identified fifty-two Imperial light infantry, two ‘Saint’ multi-legged war machines, and two 120mm mortars.”

As Amber spoke, he marked these targets on the tactical map.

He was especially generous with the two ‘Saints’ that posed the greatest threat to the Mobile Infantry, bestowing them with two purple markers.

In a battle, a purple marker designated a ‘highest threat unit.’

“The enemy numbers aren’t actually that high. If the friendly forces in the village cooperate, we might be able to pull off a counter-ambush and annihilate them.”

“Oh? Bold words.”

Amber ignored the now-idle navy major and turned to the communications specialist beside him.

“What’s the situation? Can we contact the village defenders directly?”

“Negative, Sir. We’re only receiving their distress signal. Their shortwave communications must be jammed by the attacking Imperial forces.”

Hearing the communications specialist’s reply did not surprise Amber.

Of course the attacking Imperial army wouldn’t launch an offensive without electronic jamming.

However, the reconnaissance drone had flown a full circle and hadn’t spotted any enemy electronic warfare vehicles.

Amber estimated that the Imperial forces’ electronic jamming was most likely coming from the ‘Saint’ on the front line.

This type of light multi-legged war machine was, by nature, a multi-functional unit.

In addition to its weaponry, it also carried a low-power electronic warfare module, which was sufficient for supporting an infantry assault.

But Amber wasn’t worried in the slightest. After all, his own convoy had a professional VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle.

The vehicle-mounted high-power electronic warfare module on it could jam the ‘Saint’ into oblivion.

While Amber was thinking, the convoy had already driven to a forest eight kilometers from the village.

This was a concealed position Amber had painstakingly found on the topographical map. It had natural cover, which would prevent them from being spotted by the Empire’s man-portable reconnaissance drones.

So, as soon as the idea of supporting the village had come to him, Amber had marked this location on the tactical map as an Assembly Area (AA).

He sent it out to the other vehicles via the datalink.

The convoy would make its final combat preparations in this temporary assembly area before proceeding to the Attack Position (ATK), one-point-five kilometers from the village.

In the case of complex terrain, the attack distance could be shortened appropriately.

But the area Amber was currently in was a vast expanse of farmland.

While the flat terrain was convenient for an infantry charge, it also lacked natural cover, making it easy to expose one’s position.

Chapter 40: Battle Preparations

The Imperial army was continuously attacking the village where the friendly Mobile Infantry platoon was located.

Therefore, Amber had to launch his own attack as soon as possible.

The preliminary close-in reconnaissance that was supposed to be conducted had to be skipped for now.

This forced him to rely on the limited intelligence from the reconnaissance drone to formulate an attack plan.

Amber climbed out of the communications relay vehicle.

He saw that the Mobile Infantry had already disembarked and were standing around their respective vehicles.

Some were checking their weapons, ammunition, and remaining exoskeleton power.

Others were seizing the moment to stuff an energy bar into their mouths and take a few swigs of water.

A few more had run off to a corner, lifted the armored plate over their crotches, unzipped their pants, and started to relieve themselves.

After all, once the attack began, there would be no time for such things.

Amber timed them, giving the soldiers three minutes to rest.

When the three-minute countdown hit zero, he walked over and clapped his hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Eaten your fill, had enough to drink, and taken a piss?” Amber said with a smile.

The surrounding soldiers chuckled foolishly along with him.

But in the next instant, Amber’s tone shifted.

“Since that’s all taken care of, I need you to get your heads back in the game and tighten up!”

He removed his tactical faceplate, his gaze slowly sweeping over the men.

Any soldier he looked at was instantly reminded of the legend of the ‘Terrifying Headhunter’, and a chill ran down their spine.

“I know that after ambushing Imperial troops twice, many of you have gotten complacent.”

“You think the Imperial forces are a lot weaker than you imagined.”

“But don’t you forget! When I first saw you, a whole platoon was pinned down in that valley by less than twenty damn Imperial soldiers, unable to even lift your heads!”

Amber’s words struck the soldiers’ hearts like a heavy hammer.

The expressions of some who had seemed relaxed turned unnatural as his words made them recall that hellish valley.

“I’m not trying to lecture you!”

“I just want to tell you to never, ever underestimate your enemy!”

“These Imperials you’re fighting come from a nation more powerful than the Federation, and they’ve been preparing for this war for a long time!”

“And you? You’ve just been sitting on this planet, wearing all this gear and fighting mobs for over a decade!”

Seeing the gazes of the Mobile Infantry troops grow increasingly serious, Amber paused before continuing:

“The first two fights were just appetizers, a warm-up for you.”

“The enemy we are about to attack consists of over fifty infantry, two mortars, and two multi-legged war machines!”

“And from this battle onward, each fight will only get tougher. Many of you might fall.”

“But I want you to remember who you are. You are soldiers.”

“Soldiers! You need to have some backbone!”

“As long as a breath remains, the fight is not over.”

“Since I took command of you in that valley, I will not abandon you and run away alone.”

“As long as you’re willing to fight with me, I will do everything in my power to see you through to the end.”

After his last sentence, Amber let out a long breath.

He wasn’t actually good at giving motivational speeches. Back in his guild, there were specialists for pre-battle pep talks; he just had to focus on battle command.

But now, circumstances forced his hand, and he had to shoulder the responsibility himself.

Thinking this, Amber felt fortunate that he’d watched a certain war drama as a child. It had plenty of classic lines he could borrow.

He felt that his little speech had captured at least seventy percent of the essence of those famous generals from old war dramas.

Clap, clap, clap, clap!

After a brief silence, the soldiers broke into spontaneous applause. The eyes of a few younger soldiers even reddened slightly.

Seeing this, Amber became so annoyed he stormed forward and slapped the helmet of the soldier closest to him.

“This is a war! What are you applauding for!”

“Just get the message!”

Looking at the soldiers who couldn’t hold back their laughter, Amber finally broke into a smile himself.

“Alright, since you’re all in such high spirits, I trust you’re well-rested.”

Amber’s smile vanished, his expression turning serious again.

“Get on the vehicles, now! Prepare to move out to the attack position!”

“Yes, Sir!”

Watching the soldiers turn to board the vehicles, Amber turned to look behind and to his side.

The only two other officers in the unit who could stand—Major Randall and Lieutenant ‘Margaret’—were standing there.

“We’re really short-handed. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have asked two people unfamiliar with ground combat for help.”

D Platoon’s platoon leader and platoon sergeant had been in the command vehicle destroyed by the Imperial forces.

This meant D Platoon’s command element was gone.

Although Amber had taken over as acting platoon leader, he still lacked an experienced platoon sergeant to assist him in command. (A platoon sergeant is usually a Master Sergeant with fifteen to eighteen years of service.)

The impending attack required splitting his forces, so he had no choice but to rely on these two ‘officers’ for help.

Amber had already sent the detailed operational plans, along with Randall’s and Isabelle’s specific responsibilities, to each of them.

The two career officers knew they were about to enter combat, so without another word, they saluted Amber and boarded their respective vehicles.

Right now, Amber had a total of five ‘Mongoose-4’ wheeled armored vehicles.

Fire support was limited to the 40mm Chain guns and 12mm coaxial machine guns on three standard models.

As for personnel, excluding the wounded and the two officers, Randall and Isabelle, he had a total of thirty-four soldiers.

Among them were five drivers, three gunners who also served as vehicle commanders, three electronic warfare technicians, and one communications specialist.

These twelve men would fight from their vehicles and would not dismount unless the vehicles were about to be destroyed.

So, the actual number of infantry available for dismounted combat was only twenty-two.

Amber reorganized them into two nine-man Mobile Infantry squads and two indirect fire support teams using 120mm mortars.

This meant that the number of soldiers who could actually fight as Mobile Infantry was only eighteen.

Although they would have relatively strong electronic warfare support and completely excessive fire support, the small number of infantry still made formulating a battle plan feel incredibly awkward for Amber.

Even half a squad more would have made things much more manageable.

Unfortunately, Amber didn’t have the ability to conjure soldiers out of thin air.

For now, he had to make do with what he had.

Soon, the local time reached 13:30.

This was the ‘H-hour’ that Amber, the two officers, and the two Mobile Infantry squad leaders had agreed upon. (Similar to ‘D-Day’, it marked the start time of the military operation.)

Except for the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle and the communications relay vehicle, which remained at the concealed position to conduct electronic warfare, the other three armored vehicles, their engines already running, sequentially released their brakes.

Maintaining a fifty-meter interval, they drove out of the woods.

Under the drivers’ control, they quickly formed a wedge formation and began advancing toward the attack area designated by Amber.

Chapter 41: How to Command a Mechanized Infantry Platoon in Daily Life

Besides carrying two nine-man Mobile Infantry squads and two indirect fire support teams, the three armored vehicles also had Amber and Major Randall on board.

(The Mongoose-4 can carry eight people in its troop compartment, in addition to the driver and commander, arranged with three on each side and two in the middle.)

Amber formed an assault group with himself, the Mobile Infantry, and one Mongoose-4 to handle the frontal attack.

Major Randall, on the other hand, was the temporary commander of the support group.

Following a route set by Amber, he would maneuver from the left flank of the battlefield with the other two empty Mongoose-4s.

Besides attacking the Imperial infantry on the village’s left flank, the support group also needed to provide flanking fire support to the main assault.

Theoretically, the support group shouldn’t be fighting with just vehicles; it should have accompanying infantry for support.

But because this Mobile Infantry platoon was severely understrength, Amber had no extra men to spare.

And since he had to prioritize the strength of the frontal assault, he could only leave Major Randall to fend for himself.

In response, the Major offered two middle fingers.

As for Isabelle, she remained in the communications relay vehicle at the rear, responsible for directing electronic warfare and ensuring the unit’s communications remained stable.

At the same time, she had to contact the Federation forces in the village as quickly as possible and have them prepare to launch a counter-charge.

These two unarmed vehicles, though they stayed in the staging area and didn’t join the attack, were in an equally dangerous situation.

Because all combat personnel had been deployed, Amber couldn’t even scrape together a security team to guard the rear.

If they ran into Imperial troops, they had no way to fight back other than to flee immediately while hacking the enemy.

To be honest, Amber was a little rusty when it came to commanding a mechanized infantry platoon in combat.

After all, before coming to this world, he had been a capital ship fleet commander in his guild.

He spent most of his time commanding large-scale fleet battles.

So it had been a while since he’d had any contact with either individual combat or ground command.

But as the convoy began to move, Amber found the long-buried memories of ground combat command slowly resurfacing in his mind.

A feeling both familiar and strange washed over him once more.

“All vehicle crews, switch to encrypted combat communications mode!”

“Assault group, arriving at the attack zone in two minutes. Prepare for dismount on the move!”

“Vehicle Four, activate anti-air radar, search for enemy drones, and prepare for wide-area electronic jamming!”

Amber issued a series of commands, completely stepping into the role of a Mobile Infantry platoon leader.

As the distance closed, the drivers and commanders of the five armored vehicles could already see the ‘attack zone’ and ‘line of departure’ that Amber had designated in their tactical sights.

This wasn’t some kind of physical reference point, but an actual large white circle and a white horizontal line appearing on the ground.

Based on the AR module integrated into their tactical sights, the area and line markers Amber had drawn on his tactical map were not only transmitted via datalink to the tactical map of every subordinate but also appeared visually in their tactical sights and tactical faceplates.

Just like now.

After the three standard Mongoose-4 wheeled armored vehicles entered the large circle Amber had ‘drawn,’ they reduced their speed and opened their rear doors.

One by one, the Mobile Infantry troops silently jumped out.

They quickly fanned out into a combat formation behind the left and right sides of the armored vehicles.

Next, the two indirect fire support teams, carrying 120mm mortars, also disembarked.

In their tactical sights, a path indicator was guiding them toward the mortar position Amber had designated.

Finally, it was Amber’s turn.

After jumping out, he immediately activated his Optical Invisibility and sprinted forward, leading the charge.

Meanwhile, apart from the one Mongoose-4 that continued to advance with the infantry to provide fire support for the assault group, the other two armored vehicles, under Randall’s command, turned left, formed a column, and sped away.

In most people’s minds, Psionic Agents were like special forces.

Tasks like enemy-rear infiltration, sabotage, and assassination of key targets were their bread and butter.

But in reality, Psionic Agents were also often active on the front lines.

In addition to conducting close reconnaissance for ground troops and assisting them in offense and defense, they could often leverage their unique abilities to create breakthroughs during a stalemate.

A single soldier taking on an HCP was not just a legend in this world.

Just as Amber was sprinting, a message came from the electronic warfare Technician in the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle:

“Sir, two small reconnaissance drones detected, crisscrossing in a reconnaissance pattern!”

The anti-air radar picked up two slow-moving, small targets. After visual confirmation with an optical lens, they were identified as individual-use drones launched by Imperial troops.

According to standard reconnaissance procedure, the anti-air search should have started much earlier.

But a large number of modern military drones have comprehensive warning systems that can detect radar scans.

Furthermore, small, slow, low-flying targets are actually somewhat difficult for anti-air radar to detect.

So, to avoid tipping off the enemy, Amber had decided to employ the tactic of ‘delayed radar activation.’

Amber glanced at his tactical map. The two small triangles representing the two Mobile Infantry squads were about to cross the ‘line of departure.’

The two fire support teams had also reached the location within the ‘attack zone’ marked as the mortar emplacement.

The four Mobile Infantry soldiers should be frantically assembling the 120mm mortars right now.

Based on current progress, at the time Amber had designated “H+8,” the Mobile Infantry would cross the ‘line of departure’ and begin their assault.

The two indirect fire support teams would also finish setting up the mortars and begin ranging shots.

After confirming that everything was proceeding according to the operational plan, Amber gave his order to the electronic warfare Technician.

“Begin jamming. Blind them.”

“Roger that, Sir!”

The electronic warfare Technician immediately took manual control of the electronic warfare module from the vehicle’s automated management system.

At the same time, the mast antenna rose high into the air.

The control bands used by military drones are primarily microwave, for both the Empire and the Federation.

The line-of-sight link for small, short-range drones generally uses the VHF, UHF, L, or S bands.

The VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, now in electronic warfare mode, quickly locked onto the bands used by the two small drones.

Although the Empire’s small military drones used frequency-hopping technology in their datalinks to prevent jamming, a drone of this size could only fit a datalink module with limited power and processing capability.

So when faced with a professional ground-based electronic warfare vehicle, it couldn’t fight back, let alone guarantee its own survival.

Through electronic reconnaissance, the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle quickly acquired the minimum and maximum frequencies of the two drones’ frequency-hopping communication systems.

Then, the electronic warfare Technician initiated a full-bandwidth barrage jam.

Chapter 42: Our Warriors are Engaging the Enemy

Once the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle began jamming the Empire’s drones, two drone operators among the Imperial forces besieging the village immediately found they had lost control of their drones.

The remote control and video feed signals completely vanished. Although they could still roughly see the drones’ positions with the naked eye, they were completely unable to issue any commands.

Soon, as the uncontrolled drones followed their last received command and flew further and further away in one direction, the drone operators completely lost track of them.

“Sir, someone is jamming our drones!”

Upon hearing the drone operator’s report, the platoon leader of this reinforced Imperial orbital paratrooper platoon—Star Dragon Empire Royal Navy Lieutenant Andrew—immediately deduced that Federation reinforcements had arrived. (Orbital paratroopers are part of the Royal Marines.)

Their forces were already stretched thin for a siege operation.

So, to concentrate his forces on taking the village, Andrew had not established a security element for reconnaissance and cover.

This risky and aggressive plan meant that after losing their two cruising drones, the orbital paratrooper platoon had completely lost reconnaissance and control over the area surrounding their attack zone.

At the same time, the enemy’s ability to quickly jam two drones indicated they possessed high-power electronic jamming equipment, most likely a jamming vehicle.

Their initial reconnaissance had not detected such equipment among the Federation troops currently surrounded in the village. Otherwise, their drones wouldn’t have been able to survey the skies for so long.

This meant the jamming could only be coming from another unit.

Based on Lieutenant Andrew’s ‘experience,’ such a vehicle would never operate alone. Therefore, this Federation relief force was, in all likelihood, a mechanized unit.

Realizing the situation was dire, Andrew was just about to order the main attacking force to pull back and assume a defensive posture when he discovered that all platoon communications had been severed. The radio was filled with nothing but the shhh of white noise.

A notification popped up in his tactical faceplate: [Electronic Jamming Detected. Communications Impeded!]

The orbital paratrooper platoon leader, who was advancing slowly behind a ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine amidst the roar of its electrothermal-chemical cannon, immediately began using hand signals to the communications specialist ten meters to his right.

The communications specialist had looked toward his platoon leader the moment the jamming began.

Andrew’s hand signals were simple: “Tell everyone to switch to a defensive posture immediately!”

But as the communications specialist received the order, broke from the formation, and began running to inform the others, two loud bangs suddenly erupted behind them. Andrew whipped his head around.

He saw the rear of the attacking force being rapidly enveloped by smoke from anti-infrared smoke grenades.

Following the combat orders issued earlier by Amber, the electronic warfare technician finished jamming the drones and waited until the H+8 mark. Then, he immediately activated the vehicle’s electronic warfare module, targeting the enemy’s communication frequencies identified through electronic reconnaissance, and initiated VHF jamming.

In a short time, they suppressed the communications of all Imperial soldiers using the VHF band.

Simultaneously, the two indirect fire support teams, who had already finished setting up, referred to Amber’s markings on the tactical map. Each team fired an anti-infrared smoke grenade toward the target area.

Since they were only firing smoke grenades to cover the infantry’s advance, they only needed to hit the general vicinity. No ranging fire was necessary.

But after this volley of smoke, their next target was the enemy mortar position located by the reconnaissance drone.

After quickly adjusting their tripods and resetting the angle and direction of the mortar tubes, the two indirect fire support teams, on the command of one team’s loader, simultaneously fired their first 120mm high-explosive shell.

As the anti-infrared smoke grenades fired by the indirect fire support teams created a massive screen of smoke, two Mobile Infantry squads in a triangular assault formation crossed the line of departure designated by Amber, also at the H+8 mark.

At that moment, they were 852 meters in a straight line from the Empire’s main attacking force.

However, the target for these two Mobile Infantry squads and the Mongoose-4 providing fire support was not the Imperial orbital infantry. Instead, it was the mortar position 438 meters to their front-left, and the ‘Saint’ multi-legged war machine currently in indirect fire mode.

After watching the assault team cross the one-meter-wide ‘white line,’ Amber, who was under optical invisibility and hidden behind a field embankment, issued the ‘Charge’ command through her command module.

“Wheee—!”

The sharp sound of the ‘simulated charge whistle’ echoed in Private First Class Ryan’s ears.

He knew it was the charge order from their unit’s commander, Warrant Officer Amber—the same Psionic Agent who had rescued them from the ambush.

Following the orders in the operational plan and its details, which had been issued to all assault team members before the battle, Ryan immediately increased his exoskeleton’s power output. The speed of all eighteen Mobile Infantry, including him, surged.

“Huff… huff… Command: Administer combat stimulant!”

As Ryan gasped out the command through his voice control device while running, the built-in injector in his Saber-toothed Tiger Mk. II individual medium exoskeleton administered an 8mg amphetamine solution into his muscle.

The specially formulated solution took effect quickly, stimulating his cerebral cortex and brainstem reticular formation, inducing a state of mental excitement in Ryan.

This mental excitement was immediately reflected in his physical movements.

Already running at high speed, Ryan’s pace increased even more, and the length of each stride grew significantly.

The eighteen members of the assault team, of course, were all following the operational plan and had also injected the combat stimulant.

Their running speed, far surpassing that of an ordinary person and enhanced by their exoskeletons, allowed them to cross several hundred meters as if they were a gust of wind.

As he ran, Ryan saw his squad leader ten meters to his front-right. A structure on the leader’s back shoulder unfolded, revealing the electromagnetic projection rail within.

A plasma grenade, marked with a green ring on its casing, was already loaded in the projection rail.

The soldiers at the Imperial mortar position and the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine in indirect fire mode had actually sensed something was wrong the moment their communications were cut.

Unfortunately for them, they were one step too late.

“Zzzzt—! Thump!”

Power on, charge, fire!

Four Mobile Infantry equipped with electromagnetic projection devices instantly launched the plasma grenades from their rails.

The four ‘little cuties,’ their detonation programs set, were rapidly ejected into the air above the mortar position.

“Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Several brilliant, bluish-white fireballs erupted from the location of the mortar position.

Chapter 43: I Must

The Imperial orbital paratroopers besieging the village were, to put it mildly, completely stunned by the surprise attack.

From the moment the drones were jammed to the landing of the mortar-launched smoke shells, and then to the Mobile Infantry’s charge, the entire process took only a few minutes under Amber’s direction.

After the airburst plasma grenades, launched from the Mobile Infantry’s electromagnetic launchers, detonated, the 120mm mortar shells landed immediately after.

Two ranging shells landed not far from the mortar position, kicking up a great deal of smoke and dust.

Private First Class Ryan and the other Mobile Infantry soldiers slowed their pace slightly, hunkering down at the same time.

Ten seconds later, the second, corrected round of mortar fire landed.

The high-explosive shell from Indirect Fire Team B hit dead center, landing right in the middle of the mortar position.

The immense power of the 120mm high-explosive shell threw a curtain of earth into the sky.

The second round followed immediately.

Before the dust and smoke from the explosion had even cleared, the Mobile Infantry picked up speed and resumed their charge.

Ryan and several other Mobile Infantry soldiers equipped with 40mm grenade launchers continuously poured fire on the mortar position, guided by the targeting reticles displayed on their faceplate HUDs.

At the same time, the roar of an engine suddenly grew louder.

The Mongoose-4 armored vehicle accompanying the Mobile Infantry’s assault also accelerated, charging forward through the gap between two infantry squads.

Of course, Amber wasn’t about to have her Mobile Infantry take on a ‘Saint’ head-on.

After all, their weapons could do little more than damage the multi-legged war machine’s external observation and radar modules; they could hardly penetrate the ‘mechanical spider’s’ armor.

But the Mongoose-4’s 40mm Chain gun was more than enough to crack the ‘Saint’ open.

What’s more, at Amber’s request, the vehicle’s crew had already switched the 40mm Chain gun’s ammunition type to depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds.

However, for the crew of the wheeled armored vehicle, this was still a perilous challenge.

While they could certainly riddle the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine with holes using the Chain gun’s depleted uranium rounds…

…its 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannon didn’t even need to be loaded with armor-piercing shells. A single ordinary high-explosive shell could easily blast the armored vehicle back into spare parts.

Thus, it was a matchup like a Western-style duel.

For both sides, whoever fired first would be the one to survive.

And luck, this time, was once again on the side of Amber and her Federation soldiers.

Or rather, in Amber’s plan, the Mongoose-4’s probability of survival was close to ninety percent.

When the vehicle commander spotted the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine through his commander’s sight, looking through the dissipating smoke…

The latter was hastily retracting the artillery spades from under its ‘rear’, and as its rear-mounted turret swiveled to the left, the 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannon, raised high for indirect fire mode, was converting back to direct fire mode.

The eight bionic mechanical legs on either side of its chassis were struggling to turn the vehicle around.

But the plasma grenades or the 120mm high-explosive shells had likely damaged their electromagnetic joints, making the movements of its eight mechanical legs seem slow and clumsy.

The Mongoose-4’s commander knew he had stumbled upon a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

For a multi-legged war machine, especially one that could switch between combat modes…

…the dozen or so seconds it took to adjust its combat mode was when it was most vulnerable.

Guided by the commander’s eye-tracking aim, the Mongoose-4’s turret whirred as its electric motors turned, bringing the 40mm Chain gun to bear along his line of sight.

When the reticle for the 40mm Chain gun in his commander’s sight settled on the ‘Saint’, which had completely exposed its side as it turned…

…the Mongoose-4’s commander didn’t hesitate to press the firing button.

“Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!”

The dull roar of the Chain gun firing became a whip of orange-yellow light that lashed against the ‘Saint’s’ hull.

A row of ugly holes instantly appeared on the side of the elegant, silver-white, light multi-legged war machine.

As the Chain gun fired, Amber’s words, spoken to him alone, echoed in the commander’s ears:

“Ignore the rear chassis and the unmanned turret. Just aim for the front section. That’s the crew compartment.”

And now, the commander was faithfully following Amber’s instructions, strafing the forward crew compartment.

At a distance of just over one hundred meters, there was no chance of the Mongoose-4’s 40mm Chain gun missing the multi-legged war machine.

The driver in the ‘Saint’s’ forward crew compartment likely felt no pain before being turned into a bloody pulp.

The multi-legged war machine quickly ceased all movement. Keeping its Chain gun trained on the mortar position, the Mongoose-4 circled around from the side.

The Mobile Infantry didn’t slow down either. After tossing two more plasma grenades into the position and sending two nearby soldiers to finish off any survivors, the rest continued to advance with the wheeled armored vehicle.

Taking this mortar position hadn’t been difficult; under the Federation Mobile Infantry’s surprise attack, they had been almost powerless to fight back.

The real challenge was the orbital paratroopers on the main front and the ‘Saint’ that was in its standard combat mode.

Lieutenant Andrew knew his mortar position had been completely wiped out almost the instant it happened.

It wasn’t just because of the continuous sounds of explosions and gunfire from that direction. On the command interface displayed on his faceplate, the icons representing the two mortar teams and the driver of the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machine had lost their vital signs, one after another, in a short span of time.

The datalink’s encrypted channel was still functioning despite the enemy’s electronic attack.

It at least allowed him to know the casualty status of his troops.

Lieutenant Andrew looked toward the mortar position, but a large cloud of IR-blocking smoke obscured his view. Even switching his optical sensors to infrared mode was useless.

It seemed the enemy’s mortars, after completing their fire support mission, had resumed firing smoke shells in his direction.

This wall of smoke, hammered into existence by artillery, completely cut off the Empire’s frontal assault force from the mortar position.

The other ‘Saint’, which had already turned its chassis, aimed its rear-mounted electrothermal-chemical cannon for a long time but was ultimately unable to fire.

“This won’t work. I have to regroup my forces!”

Andrew knew the Federation’s attack couldn’t be coming from just one direction. Especially since the enemy was likely a mechanized unit, they would certainly use their mobility to swing around to the flank and create a crossfire.

If that was the case, his forces positioned on the other two sides of the village were in danger.

They were the ambush teams, just two squads of orbital paratroopers with a portable electromagnetic cannon assigned to them for extra firepower.

Just as he thought of this, Lieutenant Andrew was about to have his communications specialist fire a green flare—the most primitive way to signal the ambush teams to retreat.

But then, on his command interface, the icons for the members of one of the ambush squads went dark.

“****!”

Chapter 44: Struck it Rich

In an open field about 600 meters southeast of the village, several large autonomous combine harvesters sat parked.

This area was originally the maintenance zone for the village’s autonomous agricultural machinery team.

It was also a flanking ambush position set up by Lieutenant Andrew.

But now, on this so-called position, all the large harvesters were riddled with holes, their shells stained with large patches of blood, shredded flesh, organ fragments, and other human tissue.

This human tissue, mixed with equipment debris, had once belonged to the ambush team stationed here.

However, under the attack of two Mongoose-4s, the ambush team, along in an instant with the farm machinery they used for cover, was torn to pieces in less than a minute.

Inside one of the Mongoose-4 wheeled armored vehicles, Major Randall looked through the optical observation device with some lingering fear at the portable electromagnetic cannon, its model still barely identifiable.

During the battle just now, that portable electromagnetic cannon had been moments away from firing.

If not for the barrage from the chain gun that had shattered the electromagnetic cannon and the soldier operating it, Randall was certain its tungsten alloy penetrator would have easily torn through the armored vehicle he was in.

He recalled the recent battle—it was his first time “commanding” a wheeled armored vehicle in ground combat.

Of course, this “command” consisted of little more than sitting in his seat, listening to the two vehicle crews communicate, and feeling the roar of the 40mm chain gun as it fired.

Amber’s actual intention was merely to place a major in the vehicle to make the two crews feel their own importance.

The specific tactical details were still left to the crews’ discretion.

After separating from the assault team, the two Mongoose-4s immediately rushed southeast toward the village as planned.

After a brief discussion, the two vehicle commanders chose to use the roadside trees lining the lanes near the village for cover, rapidly closing in on the Imperial ambush team marked on the tactical map.

But these Imperial orbital paratroopers in the ambush team were clearly competent soldiers.

After their communications were cut, they quickly realized they were under electronic attack and began to watch their surroundings.

And so, the sound of the wheeled armored vehicles racing at full speed was caught by them amidst the hail of gunfire on the battlefield.

So when the commander of one of the Mongoose-4s spotted the ambush position through his commander’s scope, the first thing he saw were the orbital paratroopers who had already aimed their weapons in his direction, and a portable electromagnetic cannon that had just finished adjusting its aim and was conducting its final charge.

The Mongoose-4 commander almost instinctively slammed the fire button, unleashing a torrent of 40mm high-explosive shells onto the portable electromagnetic cannon.

The commander of the other Mongoose-4 was startled by the sudden burst of fire.

But when the flechette rounds from the Imperial soldiers’ Gauss rifles clanged off the vehicle’s frontal armor in a shower of sparks, he instantly reacted and pressed his own fire button, engaging the enemy with the highest threat level—an orbital paratrooper equipped with a portable anti-vehicle missile.

After that orbital paratrooper, along with the portable anti-vehicle missile whose launch tube cover had already been opened, was utterly torn apart by the chain gun’s high-explosive shells, the Imperial ambush team lost its last anti-vehicle weapon.

The remaining men scrambled for cover in the gaps between the combine harvesters, hoping the massive machines could offer some protection from the chain gun’s attacks.

Unfortunately, after losing their targets in their observation scopes, the commanders of the two Mongoose-4s both switched their ammunition to depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds in perfect sync.

Then, they pressed the fire buttons again.

Meanwhile, the communications relay vehicle, which had remained in the staging area, finally established contact with the Federation forces in the village.

After the Communications specialist patched Amber into the channel, the latter quickly ascertained the identity of the Federation unit trapped in the village.

It was a mixed unit of Mobile Infantry and logistics support troops.

When The Empire launched its attack, the military supply depot where the logistics support troops were stationed had luckily survived the first wave of orbital strikes.

Before the second wave of orbital strikes arrived, they had started up every operational transport vehicle in the depot, loaded them with ammunition, food, medicine, and other supplies and equipment, and begun tactical maneuvers while attempting to contact nearby friendly forces.

As a result, because the convoy was too large a target, they were soon tracked down by Imperial forces that had “caught their scent.”

Like a pack of wolves hunting down a flock of sheep, this massive supply convoy was forced to scatter and break out in smaller groups.

The unit Amber and his team had found was one that had linked up with a scattered Mobile Infantry platoon during the breakout.

After regrouping, the two forces had retreated to this village, only to be surrounded by Imperial forces once again.

After repelling several attacks from the Imperial orbital paratroopers using the buildings for cover, these Federation soldiers had initially thought it was “no big deal.”

But when the artillery bombardment began, they were quickly sent screaming for their mothers and fathers, scattering to hide inside the buildings.

Although one of the transport vehicles that entered the village was carrying the weapons, equipment, and ammunition for two mortar teams, they were pinned down by the Empire’s preemptive fire and lacked the courage to set up their mortars and return fire under the bombardment.

They didn’t even dare to rush into their armored vehicles to use the onboard weapons to fend off the Imperial attack.

After that, with all personnel pinned down and isolated in buildings by the shelling, and with the main enemy force on the village outskirts closing in, the unit’s temporary commander ran.

This undoubtedly caused the morale of the Federation soldiers in the village to plummet, plunging them into despair.

Therefore, the arrival of Amber and his team seemed like a miracle to them.

This was also why, when Amber identified himself and requested their cooperation, they approved his request for temporary command almost without hesitation.

“Ad-hoc network established! Information synchronized via datalink!”

“Reorganizing units, please stand by.”

Soon, Amber’s command interface refreshed with information about the unit inside the village:

Five transport vehicles, carrying food, drinking water, ammunition, fuel, metallic hydrogen cells, a small number of superconductor cells, and the weapons and equipment for two mortar teams.

Three Mongoose-4 wheeled armored vehicles, all standard personnel carrier variants.

Ten transport personnel and twenty-four Mobile Infantry (eighteen combatants, six vehicle crew members).

“With these numbers, they clearly could have used the village’s terrain to their advantage and mounted a defense…”

Looking at the new unit added to his command network, Amber could only lament how absurd the unit’s temporary commander was, to have fled at the first sign of trouble.

“Damn it, how on earth did someone like that become an officer?!”

However, his attention soon shifted to the five transport vehicles loaded with supplies.

While the arrival of Amber and his team was like a rope being thrown to a man who had fallen down a well for this trapped unit, the convoy’s supplies were, for Amber, a solution to the pressing needs of him and his troops.

At least for the near future, they wouldn’t have to worry about shortages of ammunition and other supplies.

This further strengthened Amber’s resolve to rescue this Federation unit.

Chapter 45: Attack!

After losing the ambush team positioned southeast of the village, the commander of this Imperial orbital paratrooper unit, Lieutenant Andrew, knew he was in deep trouble.

The question was no longer how to attack the village; it was whether his remaining men could even withdraw safely.

The swift offensive commanded by Amber had caused the lieutenant to misjudge the relative strength of their forces.

Lieutenant Andrew believed that the reinforcing Federation mechanized unit was by no means small and possessed a large number of armored vehicles.

With only one Saint and fewer than forty orbital paratroopers under his command, he was no longer in any position to face them head-on.

Thinking of this, the lieutenant immediately decided to call off the attack on the village and have everyone fall back to the western ambush position.

Under his command, the communications specialist fired two flares: one green, one blue.

This was the pre-arranged signal for the main force to cease its attack and retreat west, with covering fire from the western ambush position.

Immediately after, the lieutenant ran to the side of the Saint, which was maintaining watch on the smoke-filled area. Ignoring the risk of being crushed by its mechanical legs, he pressed his palm flat against one of them.

“Directive: Enable contact-based emergency communications.”

“Channel established. Connecting…”

A gentle, synthesized voice followed.

A moment later, the Saint temporarily halted its movement and slightly lowered its chassis.

On Lieutenant Andrew’s communications channel, where all icons had previously shown ‘No Signal,’ the icon representing the Saint light multi-legged war machine lit up.

The pilot’s voice came through his earpiece.

“Lieutenant! Can you hear me?!”

“Loud and clear! No problem! I need you to lay down suppressive fire toward the smoke! Cover the unit’s retreat to the west!”

“Understood, Lieutenant! Get the others clear of the muzzle blast zone! You retreat first! I’ll cover you!”

Boom! Boom!

Before they could finish, two explosions rocked the area between them and the smoke.

Andrew instinctively dropped to the ground as the explosions hit.

The pilot of the Saint multi-legged war machine nudged the vehicle forward a couple of steps, shielding Andrew behind it.

Boom! Boom!

Two more explosions, but this time they were much closer to the attacking force.

Andrew immediately realized it was the enemy’s indirect fire.

Judging by the sound of the explosions, he estimated the Federation’s indirect fire was coming from two 100 or 120-millimeter mortars.

He didn’t know if they were ranging shots or if the two mortars were laying down a creeping barrage.

But either way, it was not good news for the Imperial assault force.

When he hit the dirt, the contact-based communication between Andrew and the war machine was broken. After struggling back to his feet, the lieutenant abandoned the idea of re-establishing contact.

He looked up at the Saint. The light multi-legged war machine’s spherical main camera on its front swiveled to look at him.

Andrew flipped up his faceplate and yelled, “Open fire!” while gesturing toward the smoke.

The Saint’s main camera flashed red, as if acknowledging Andrew’s command.

Then, the light multi-legged war machine began to move.

As the other orbital paratroopers began to retreat westward, it scuttled on its eight mechanical legs to the rear of the formation.

Boom!

The 120-millimeter electrothermal-chemical cannon fired the moment the autoloader finished chambering a programmable high-explosive shell.

Simultaneously, the Gauss machine guns mounted on the mechanical arms beneath the front of the chassis began firing long bursts toward the smoke.

But Andrew, busy directing his troops’ westward retreat, had no idea that hundreds of meters away, his head was perfectly centered in the crosshairs of Amber’s scope. Amber was hidden behind a ridge in a field.

Amber, who was moving across the battlefield concealed by optical invisibility, was not just monitoring his unit’s offensive; he was focusing most of his energy on finding the enemy commander.

Based on his understanding of Imperial infantry formations, in a mixed battle of infantry and armored units, the commander would either be inside the armored unit or directing from nearby.

So when Lieutenant Andrew was conferring with the communications specialist, Amber had locked onto him.

After all, the communications suite loaded onto the comms specialist’s exoskeleton had a long antenna that made him easy to identify.

According to the Imperial table of organization, whether it was a mechanized infantry platoon or an orbital paratrooper platoon, the platoon command element always consisted of three people: the platoon leader, the platoon sergeant, and a communications specialist.

Amber guessed the platoon sergeant had been at the mortar position they had taken out earlier, or in one of the ambush positions to the left or right of the village.

Therefore, the other person conferring with the communications specialist was, in all likelihood, the platoon leader.

And when he saw this man press his hand against the Saint’s mechanical leg, apparently initiating ‘contact-based communication’…

…and then later wave his arm to direct the multi-legged war machine’s fire…

…Amber confirmed his identity.

The rangefinder in his scope settled at 562 meters.

At that distance, for a Gauss sniper rifle with a muzzle velocity of 2,800 meters per second, there was no need to account for factors like bullet drop or travel time.

Amber slowed his breathing. The exoskeleton he wore, now in ‘sniper mode,’ began to assist him, stabilizing his body and reducing natural tremors.

It was as if he had engaged a tank’s stabilizer. Amber held the crosshairs locked firmly on the target’s head and waited patiently for the right moment to fire.

Finally, the target, who was retreating west with the other Imperial orbital paratroopers, paused for a split second to look back.

In that instant, Amber squeezed the trigger of his Gauss sniper rifle without hesitation.

Over 560 meters away, the retreating communications specialist was just about to approach Lieutenant Andrew to give a report.

Suddenly, he saw a bright streak of fire flash across the battlefield in an instant and strike Lieutenant Andrew directly in the head.

Like a bursting balloon, the lieutenant’s head simply vanished.

Bang!

A moment later, the sound of the gunshot finally arrived.

Watching through his scope as the headless corpse slowly collapsed, Amber immediately shouldered his rifle, rolled to the left, and then broke into a dead sprint.

Seconds later, the spot where he had just taken the shot was engulfed in a fiery explosion.

The Saint multi-legged war machine’s ballistic detection system had issued a warning the instant Amber fired, marking a rough coordinate on the pilot’s tactical map.

The pilot couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw his platoon leader killed. Then, a surge of rage filled his chest.

He spun the chassis and turret as if he’d lost his mind, had the autoloader chamber an anti-personnel high-explosive incendiary shell, and fired it at the marked coordinates.

The 120-millimeter high-explosive incendiary shell not only turned Amber’s firing position into a sea of fire, but its shockwave also sent him stumbling.

The speed of the war machine’s counter-attack had exceeded Amber’s expectations. If he hadn’t been so fast, he would have been cooked alive.

Just then, Isabelle’s slightly anxious voice came through his earpiece:

“Keep moving! Those orbital paratroopers are converging on your position!”

“Huh? Aren’t they retreating anymore?”

“How should I know?! All I know is the drone footage is crystal clear: the remaining multi-legged war machine and its infantry are charging your position!”

Amber, now prone in the field again, suddenly realized this was the perfect opportunity.

Ignoring his own safety and the need for a moment’s rest, he issued his final order.

“All units, attack! All units, attack!”

“Armored vehicles, prioritize focus fire! Take out that multi-legged war machine!”

Chapter 46: An Unexpected Haul

Amber’s initial plan was to take out the enemy commander, throw the Imperial unit into disarray, and deal a heavy blow to their morale.

He never expected such a strong reaction after sniping the Imperial commander.

Not only did they stop retreating, but they also began to encircle his position, as if they wanted him to join their commander in death.

“It seems this guy was held in high regard by his soldiers.”

Amber felt a bit helpless, but the current situation didn’t affect his operational plan.

On the contrary, it presented him with a golden opportunity.

The Saint multi-legged war machine’s reckless turn to fire had exposed a vulnerability in its weapon system, the one most threatening to armored units.

On Amber’s command, the three Mongoose-4 armored vehicles of the assault and support teams immediately pressed forward.

At the same time, the Federation soldiers in the village quickly started up a Mongoose-4 armored vehicle of their own now that the shelling had stopped.

Four 40mm chain guns, from three different directions, locked onto the Saint light multi-legged war machine.

Four orange-red tracer lines, like four fiery serpents, coiled around the Saint.

Under the saturated, concentrated fire, several 40mm armor-piercing incendiary rounds detonated the 120mm shells in its rear turret.

The last remaining Saint multi-legged war machine was destroyed in an instant.

Seeing the Saint’s purple marker on the tactical map get struck through with a red cross, Amber finally sighed in relief.

With the two most dangerous multi-legged war machines eliminated, the remaining orbital paratroopers were practically helpless on this open farmland, facing attacks from infantry and wheeled armored vehicles from multiple directions.

“Don’t stop! Maintain the offensive tempo and annihilate the remaining enemies!”

After the multi-legged war machine was destroyed, Amber ordered his troops to continue the attack while he himself got up and circled around toward the Imperial ambush position to the west.

The Mobile Infantry, who had been behind the smoke, immediately charged through with the Mongoose-4 armored vehicles and began firing on the remaining Imperial orbital paratroopers.

Under the sweeping fire of the four armored vehicles’ 12mm coaxial machine guns and the attacks from the Mobile Infantry, the remaining Imperial forces fell like stalks of wheat.

Following Amber’s pre-battle instructions, the Mobile Infantry did not charge forward rashly. Instead, they continuously used 40mm grenades and plasma grenades to suppress the areas where Imperial soldiers were gathered.

A relentless series of explosions echoed across the farmland, leaving behind patches of blackened earth.

A large portion of the crops was incinerated in the crossfire, with some areas catching fire completely.

The intense heat from the burning fields forced the air filtration and temperature control systems in the Mobile Infantry’s exoskeletons and combat suits to run at full capacity.

But the Mobile Infantry couldn’t be bothered with that. All they knew was that they had to finish off these cornered Imperial soldiers quickly.

They couldn’t afford to give them a chance to recover and counter-attack. After all, a cornered enemy is the most dangerous.

Driven by this resolve, the Imperial soldiers ultimately failed to mount a final counter-attack.

Even so, the Mobile Infantry paid the price of three killed in action and five wounded to varying degrees.

When the last Imperial soldier fell, the farmland that had served as the main battlefield was almost completely scorched black.

Standing on the charred ground, the Mobile Infantry were momentarily dazed; they hadn’t expected victory to come so quickly.

When the first person started to cheer, it was like a switch had been flipped, and everyone raised their hands and shouted in excitement.

Until a familiar voice came over the communication channel:

“Alright, alright, that’s enough cheering. Assault and support teams, clear the battlefield. Finish off any survivors. Don’t let a single one slip through.”

“Vehicles in the staging area can enter the village. Vehicle four, maintain battlefield reconnaissance and security.”

“Uh, send a vehicle to my coordinates to pick me up, thanks~”

When a Mongoose-4 armored vehicle came to pick up Amber at what had been the Imperial ambush position, the crew saw a grim sight.

Ten bodies of Imperial orbital paratroopers lay scattered across the position.

Four of them were headless.

And their own commander and Psionic Agent—Warrant Officer Amber.

The man was sitting on a mound of dirt, waving at the approaching armored vehicle.

Beside him lay a portable squad-level electromagnetic cannon and its external power supply.

Seeing this, the vehicle crew felt that the legends of the “Terrifying Headhunter” had just become a little more real. At the same time, a strange sense of relief washed over them.

They were relieved that this man was on their side, not their enemy.

Soon, the armored vehicle returned to the village with Amber.

By now, aside from two observation posts left on the perimeter, all of Amber’s Mobile Infantry and vehicles had withdrawn back to the village, joining the Federation forces who had originally been stationed there.

The two groups of Federation soldiers were greeting each other, celebrating having survived the ordeal.

“Attention, everyone! Rest for twenty minutes! Then prepare to move out!”

That was the first thing Amber said after jumping down from the armored vehicle.

Instantly, the lively atmosphere among the gathered Federation soldiers was dampened.

Looking at the weary faces of the soldiers and remembering they had also lost three comrades, Amber added, “I’ll give you an extra ten minutes. I know you need to rest, but remember, we’re on the run, not on vacation!”

Although it was only ten more minutes, the soldiers knew this was no time to bargain.

As they began to rest in small groups, Amber kept himself busy. He went straight to the area where the transport vehicles were parked to inspect the spoils of the battle.

There were three Mongoose-4 armored vehicles, but only one was operable.

Of the other two, one had several tires blown out, and the other’s turret had been destroyed.

Due to the limitations of the datalink, Amber had only known the number of units in the village, not their specific condition.

The five ‘Kodo’ military transport trucks had been parked between two buildings by the transport personnel, so they had luckily escaped the shelling from the Imperial attack force.

The supplies on these trucks were all intact. However, on one of the trucks, Amber saw a crate that wasn’t on the manifest.

It was a standard Federation military supplies crate, but it used a special locking mechanism that required an infusion of Psionics to open.

As far as Amber knew, crates like this were generally intended for psionic users in the military.

And since it wasn’t on the manifest, it meant the crate likely contained classified materials.

Putting these two features together, the contents of the box became obvious.

Amber was almost one hundred percent certain that it contained equipment used by a Psionic Agent.

He immediately used his personal terminal’s authorization to activate the crate’s “Emergency Use Mode,” then placed his hand on the locking mechanism and infused it with a trace of Psionics.

With a series of clicks from the unlatching locks, the Psionic Agent’s supply crate opened successfully.

A Medium Exoskeleton, completely different from the one Amber was wearing, appeared before his eyes.

“Is this… the ‘Phalanx Breaker’ series?”

Chapter 47: Phalanx Breaker 2

Amber pressed a button on the inside of the crate.

With a mechanical whir, a support frame inside the crate slowly rose, and Amber finally got a full view of the exoskeleton within.

Unlike the sleek, form-fitting design of the ‘Chameleon’ Light Exoskeleton he was currently wearing, the ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ in the supply crate was more akin to the Medium Exoskeletons used by the Mobile Infantry.

It was also one of the few non-animal-named pieces of equipment in the “Federation’s Zoo,” which had a penchant for animal-themed names.

But compared to the ‘Sabertooth’ series issued to the grunts, the ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ completely outclassed it in every aspect.

This was an exoskeleton suit designed exclusively for Psionic Agents, fully specialized for frontal assault capabilities.

The ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ exoskeleton’s combat suit could connect directly to the Psionic Agents through the interface at the back of their necks, which in turn linked to the entire exoskeleton system through various interfaces on the suit.

This allowed a Psionic Agent wearing it to perform all sorts of tactical maneuvers without any of the lag experienced with ordinary exoskeleton systems.

At the same time, not only did it boast a more powerful hybrid power pack, but its thickened silicon carbide armor plates also provided more comprehensive coverage.

It even integrated a personal adaptive Electronic Warfare system, capable of temporarily jamming the communications, radar, and fire-control systems of enemy targets within a small area.

Furthermore, the suit utilized a vehicle-grade ‘pupil-tracking’ aiming system to guide the attacks of the six-tube man-portable anti-vehicle missile launcher on its back.

In terms of armament, apart from the anti-vehicle missile launcher on its back, it also had leg-mounted ‘Phalanx Anthem’ triple-barrel grenade launchers and a handheld 12mm Gauss machine gun.

The rails on its forearms were not left empty either; they were fitted with a close-combat spike and a small deflector shield generator, respectively.

The numerous weapons and thicker armor plates brought the user’s total combat weight to a staggering two tons when wearing the ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ and fully armed.

What did two tons on a single soldier mean?

For an ordinary Mobile Infantry soldier, even with the support of a power system, they would be unable to move with any flexibility.

After all, it was incredibly difficult for a human to adapt to wearing what was essentially a ‘turtle shell.’

But Psionic Agents were different. Their surgical modifications allowed them to fully unleash the power of this equipment.

A long-range march speed of forty-five kilometers per hour, a sprint speed of sixty kilometers per hour, a maximum jump distance of eighteen meters, and the ability to easily scale a five-meter-high wall.

These were the performance stats of an ordinary Psionic Agent wearing this exoskeleton system.

“This equipment should only be available to Level 4 Psionic Agents or higher.”

“Why is it here?”

With this question in mind, Amber found a Sergeant Major from the logistics convoy.

At present, this Sergeant Major was the highest-ranking and most senior person in the entire transport convoy.

After circling the supply crate for a long time, the man suddenly slapped his forehead.

“I remember now!”

The Sergeant Major raised his wrist and searched through his personal terminal for a while before finally sending Amber a supply transfer order.

“This suit was temporarily stored in our warehouse. It was supposed to be sent to Yassin Base to replace an older model. But who knew the Empire would suddenly attack? We grabbed it when we evacuated the warehouse.”

Amber looked at the transfer order the Sergeant Major had sent and subconsciously raised his eyebrows.

If he wasn’t mistaken, had this suit been delivered to Yassin Base, it would most likely have been assigned to him after he was promoted to Level 4 Psionics.

“After all that, it still ended up in my hands.”

Although he now understood the origin of the suit, Amber didn’t plan to switch to it just yet.

For one, in the upcoming battles, Amber would undoubtedly need to perform close-range reconnaissance multiple times.

This Medium Exoskeleton, specialized for frontal assaults, lacked an optical invisibility function and was quite loud when operating, making it unsuitable for stealth.

Secondly, the increase in power and armament also created an issue with operational endurance.

At full capacity, the suit could only operate for four hours. In the event of intense combat, this duration would be even shorter.

After all, the ‘Phalanx Breaker’ series was developed and positioned as assault equipment, designed to crush opponents in a single wave by leveraging its superior performance and firepower.

Therefore, endurance was not a major consideration during its design.

But regardless, as the fighting grew more intense, this suit would eventually have its use.

By the time Amber finished checking the convoy’s supplies, the thirty-minute rest period he had set was nearly over.

Isabelle and the convoy’s mechanics sent him their casualty and vehicle inspection reports, respectively.

In the previous battle, three of Amber’s Mobile Infantry soldiers were killed and five were wounded, instantly reducing his two infantry squads to half strength.

Fortunately, the five wounded soldiers’ injuries were not too severe. After treatment and a period of rest, they would be able to return to combat.

As for the combat vehicles, Amber’s original five armored vehicles were all undamaged.

In contrast, of the three ‘Mongoose-4s’ from the village, only one was still operational after the shelling.

The other two had been damaged by the Empire’s artillery fire.

The mechanics had gone to great trouble to remove the tires from one of the armored vehicles with a damaged turret and install them onto another with damaged tires.

Counting the troops he had gathered from the village, Amber’s force now numbered over seventy people.

In addition, he had seven armored vehicles and five transport trucks.

In terms of manpower, this already exceeded a reinforced mechanized infantry platoon.

But in reality, this number included many wounded, vehicle crews, and technical specialists.

And then there were people like Major Randall, who were just there to fill out the roster.

The actual number of combat-ready personnel was not high, and their vehicle-mounted firepower was relatively weak, with the 40mm Chain gun being their most powerful weapon.

“Our combat strength is still insufficient. We’ll be in trouble if we run into a tough opponent.”

“Looks like I’ll have to avoid combat as much as possible for now and just lie low with these supplies for a while.”

As these thoughts ran through his mind, Amber walked over to the area where the soldiers and vehicles were gathered.

The rested soldiers were reloading various supplies and equipment onto the vehicles, preparing to set out again.

It was at this moment that Amber unintentionally glanced at the houses where the local villagers lived.

From behind the windows of these houses, pairs of eyes were secretly observing the Federation soldiers in the village.

Amber swept his gaze over them and saw that these eyes held neither a sense of camaraderie nor hostility toward the soldiers.

The villagers were simply watching everything with cold indifference.

Chapter 48: Untitled

Amber could understand the looks and attitudes of these villagers well enough.

After all, they felt no sense of belonging to the Federation.

Or perhaps it was better to say that for these farmers, who hadn’t left Robert IV in generations, the only time the Federation—a super-state whose territory spanned more than eighty star systems—truly felt real was when the grain collection convoy came to the village, flying the Federation’s blue, star-spangled flag, to collect their harvest.

Changes in the presidency and high-level government, the advent of new technologies, the launching of a new capital ship, the star system tour of a Federation diva—these topics, common conversation in the core star systems, seemed as distant as fairy tales to the farmers on Robert IV.

As for why the Federation, which had already developed automated agriculture technology, still had so many farmers living on its border agricultural planets…

It was simple. At humanity’s current level of technology, it was impossible for machines to take over one hundred percent of the production process.

Moreover, autonomous farming machinery needed people to repair it when it broke down. On a border planet like this, where the stock of spare parts wasn’t updated for years at a time, breakdowns that couldn’t be fixed were the norm.

Under these circumstances, someone needed to manually control the agricultural production terminals or simply operate traditional farming machinery to get the work done.

The practice of “purchasing grain” existed mainly because the Federation government, on an official level, still maintained a veneer of righteousness.

According to their official line, they contracted the land out to these farmers to grow crops.

Once the crops were mature, they would be purchased back from them through settlements in the form of supplies, Federation electronic currency, and so on.

Of course, by the time this policy reached the implementation level, it often devolved into forced acquisition.

Coupled with the fact that “the heavens are high and the emperor is far away,” the planetary administrator and high-ranking military officials on Robert IV were utterly unscrupulous.

In addition to the various crop quotas that the central government required to be “purchased with compensation,” these people would often levy more on top of that in the name of the Federation, then smuggle it out to line their own pockets.

As for these farmers?

Leaving them just enough to eat was sufficient. It wasn’t like they had any way to sell the surplus grain, was it?

Not only that, but these beasts were also deranged enough to slash the purchase price to a tenth of the government’s standard rate.

According to a planetary administrator on a border planet whom Amber had overheard while doing a side quest in his previous life.:

“What’s the use of these peasants having so much money? They’ll never leave this planet in their lifetime. Are there any places for them to spend it in this dump?”

“All they do all day is command autonomous farm machinery to till the fields anyway. I’m sure they’re used to this kind of life.”

“And as for ‘enjoyment,’ as the planetary administrator who ensures the smooth and normal operation of this planet, you could say I’ve worked hard and made great contributions, couldn’t you?”

“That being the case, isn’t it only natural that I enjoy things on their behalf?”

Of course, that administrator didn’t meet a very good end.

After Amber had collected enough evidence, the man lost his eavesdropping value. Amber burst into his office, shoved a shotgun into his mouth, and blew his head off.

In a situation where “the central government can’t reach, and the local officials are unscrupulous,” how could you expect the civilians on these border planets to feel any sense of identity or belonging to the Federation?

However, these civilians knew how to play it safe amidst the current turmoil.

They neither helped the Federation resist the foreign invaders nor rushed to side with the Empire.

As far as they were concerned, whether it was the Federation or the Empire, it just meant a different flag on the convoy that came to collect their grain.

In this era, where human territory was vast, population had ironically become one of the shackles limiting the development of the two great powers, the Federation and the Empire.

As a result, no matter how intense the fighting between the two nations became, neither side would proactively attack civilians on contested planets.

After all, glassing a planet might be satisfying in the moment, but the cost of rebuilding it afterward would be enough to make any ruler’s blood pressure skyrocket.

“What are you looking at?”

Isabelle’s voice came from behind him.

Amber turned to see the female spy, having finished her work, slowly strolling to his side.

“Nothing, just looking at the villagers.”

“Why? Are you wondering why they didn’t come out to welcome you?”

Isabelle tilted her head, looking at Amber. She was a little curious why this man had suddenly taken an interest in the villagers.

“Of course not.” Amber shook his head and continued,

“Given the piss-poor nature of the administration on this planet, we’re lucky the villagers aren’t throwing stones at us.”

“Pfft. It seems you’ve seen a lot of things clearly after spending so much time in the Federation.”

Isabelle covered her mouth with her hand, chuckling softly and keeping her voice low.

To the others in the unit, the two officers looked like a couple sharing a quiet conversation.

Amber played along, taking a few steps to lead Isabelle to a more secluded spot.

“Don’t you laugh. When you compare the Empire and the Federation, it’s just the pot calling the kettle black.”

Amber replied to Isabelle’s mockery with some disdain:

“In the Federation, even though the local governments are unscrupulous, at least they give something token to prove the crops were purchased.”

“And the Empire? It skips the purchasing step entirely. Civilians on agricultural planets are required to ‘hand over by law’ all crops except for the rations they need to survive.”

“If someone doesn’t meet their quota, they just storm into the civilian’s private granary and take what they need.”

“The wealth gap between classes is even wider than in the Federation. I’ve seen it with my own eyes on the same planet: commoners riding in primitive ox-carts while Imperial nobles host cocktail parties on private ships in orbit.”

“Does anyone pay attention to these things? No. Everyone’s too busy with factional politics.”

Amber’s retort was like a rapid-fire barrage, leaving Isabelle speechless.

As an Imperial noble who also worked in intelligence, how could she not know about these things?

“But even so, you shouldn’t talk about your own country like that.”

Isabelle was still putting up a last-ditch defense. Having grown up in an Imperial noble family, she couldn’t easily detach herself from her “identity.”

“My own country? Hahaha…”

Amber couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“To the Federation and the Empire, I’m just a tool.”

“Believe it or not, I’ve never felt any sense of belonging to either of them.”

He patted the now discomposed Isabelle on the shoulder and turned to walk toward the convoy.

“I hope you’ll remember that, miss.”

Chapter 49: The Task Force in Action

After reorganizing, the unit finished its preparations within the allotted time and, following Amber’s suggestion, found an open space on the outskirts of the village.

They then stacked the bodies of their fallen soldiers and the Imperial soldiers they could find into separate piles, quickly cremating them with plasma grenades.

This was the most appropriate method Amber could devise for handling the remains under the circumstances.

Digging a pit and burying them was also an option.

But given the long-standing animosity between the village residents and the Federation government and military, Amber was worried that some of the more radical villagers might dig up the soldiers’ graves to vent their anger.

While it was true that the planet’s administrative bodies and military were rife with scum, Amber didn’t want the soldiers under his command to bear the blame for those failings.

Under the indifferent gazes of the villagers, a few soldiers collected the “ashes” of their fallen comrades.

The high-temperature plasma fireballs from the plasma grenades had incinerated the remains into a glass-like substance.

As for the remains of the Imperial soldiers, Amber had them scattered across the fields where they had just fought.

“Since you came and can no longer leave, may you rest in peace on your final battlefield.”

After saying this, and confirming that all personnel and supplies were loaded, Amber gave the order to depart.

The convoy quickly formed a long, single-file column and drove out of the village.

Due to the earlier conversation back in the village, the atmosphere between Amber and Isabelle was now a bit delicate.

To be precise, Isabelle was at a loss for what to say to Amber.

This atmosphere made Major Randall, who was sharing the same vehicle, feel rather awkward.

The major, a man whose personal life was not exactly prim and proper and who loved to play the field, was hailed by his colleagues as a “veteran of the romantic battlefield.” He naturally imagined a scene of a couple having a spat.

With this in mind, the naval major, who considered himself both their superior officer and an elder, felt he ought to say something.

“Hey, in my experience, ninety percent of all arguments between couples are unnecessary.”

The atmosphere in the vehicle instantly became even more awkward.

Perhaps as a turn of fortune, after a series of nonstop battles, Amber and his team encountered no further combat after leaving the village.

Guided by several reconnaissance drones taking turns to scout and an updated friend-or-foe situational map, Amber commanded the convoy to hide by day and travel by night, successfully “sneaking” for three days.

They finally broke through the Imperial encirclement in this region and reached the periphery of the vast battlefield.

Although they were not completely out of danger and would likely encounter other Imperial forces as they advanced, Amber and his team had at least earned a moment of respite.

Since Robert IV was a purely agricultural planet, everything was geared towards large-scale agricultural production.

Thus, apart from a few cities that had developed around major transportation hubs, spaceports, and harbors, all other human settlements were small villages and towns.

In a way, this sparse population actually made it easier for Amber and his unit to maintain their stealth while on the move.

The convoy eventually arrived at the last waypoint Amber had set: a transfer center on the plains.

This transfer center had originally been responsible for transporting the produce from the numerous surrounding farmlands.

But after the Empire launched its surprise attack, the center had ground to a halt.

As the war progressed, the director of the transfer center and his entire team had vanished.

Upon finding the transfer center, Amber first repeatedly confirmed there were no signs of Imperial activity in the vicinity, then sent reconnaissance drones to fly several passes.

Finally, he went in himself, sneaking into the transfer center alone with his optical invisibility active for a thorough look around.

Only after confirming that the place was completely deserted did he allow the main force to enter.

Using the high-level operational authority a Psionic Agent had over civilian facilities during wartime, Amber quickly restored the transfer center’s basic functions.

Like a herd of squealing piglets waiting to be fed, the convoy rushed towards the center’s charging stations.

The three tankers in the transport convoy could only provide fuel refills.

But for these hybrid vehicles, it was a waste to use fuel to generate electricity when charging ports were available.

Besides replenishing the energy of their vehicles and equipment, the main reason Amber chose this transfer center as a temporary base was its large employee bathhouse.

Neither he nor his soldiers had had a chance to bathe after days of continuous combat and travel.

For these exhausted soldiers, a hot shower was a tremendous relief for both body and mind.

It would also give their morale a much-needed boost.

As for Isabelle, the only woman in the unit, her eyes lit up at the sight of the bathhouse. She had been wanting to take a shower for ages.

However, she patiently waited until everyone else had finished before slipping into the bathhouse alone.

She called Amber over to guard the main entrance for her.

“Hold on, you’re taking a shower, that’s fine, but what’s the point in dragging me over here if you won’t let me in?”

Amber was a little dissatisfied with Isabelle’s request.

He felt that since he was already here, it was only reasonable for him to go in and wash up with her, right?

In response, Isabelle simply rolled her eyes at him before swaying her graceful figure into a private shower stall.

The awkward atmosphere that had lingered between them finally dissipated with this bit of banter.

As Amber stood guard outside the stall, listening to the “beauty showering” behind him while studying the tactical map and planning their next move, a Federation fleet was assembling in deep space at the edge of the Robert IV star system.

Judging by the hull numbers and insignias on the ships, they came from various units: the planetary garrison fleet, the Robert system’s mobile fleet, and a deep-space patrol fleet that happened to be nearby.

None of the fleets that had come to rendezvous were at full strength. Their common feature was the extensive battle damage still scarring their outer armor.

Some ships had even made a hasty journey to the assembly point with temporary patches covering massive holes in their hulls.

Aboard a Kraken-class battleship at the center of this mixed fleet, the commanders of the various fleets, who had arrived via shuttles, were now gathered.

“The fact that you all responded to my call and came here proves that neither you nor the soldiers under your command are cowards.”

The man who had called for the assembly, the commander of the Robert system’s mobile fleet, Brigadier General Dowell, nearly sixty years of age, addressed the commanders in the conference room, his voice slow and deliberate.

“The Star Dragon Empire has unilaterally torn up the peace treaty and shamelessly launched a war of aggression against us. As soldiers of the Federation, we cannot sit idly by, nor can we retreat.”

“We don’t know when the main fleet will arrive, but we must fire the first shot of the counterattack. Even if it’s just to harass the enemy fleet, it’s better than cowering at the edge of the star system!”

Seeing the fleet commanders around him nod in agreement, Dowell calmed his激动 emotions slightly and continued:

“At the same time, we must not forget the hero who sent us the warning! Without his timely warning at that critical moment, we would not have been able to save so many warships and assemble here!”

“Robert IV was a primary target for the Star Dragon Empire’s fleet, so our hero has most likely sacrificed his life for his country.”

“Therefore, I propose! Before this operational meeting officially begins, let us observe a minute of silence for this hero!”

“Agreed!”

“Agreed!”

“I second that!”

Chapter 50: The Connection

In the outer space of Robert IV, at the temporary anchorage of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Navy’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

On the bridge of the strike group’s flagship, The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania sat in the captain’s chair, listening to the reports from his tactical staff officers.

“At present, Robert IV’s garrison fleet has been completely crushed in the past three days of battle.”

“All three of the garrison fleet’s ‘Kraken’-class battleships and fifteen ‘Hydra’-class cruisers have been sunk.”

“The few remaining destroyers and frigates that weren’t sunk have signaled their surrender. Assault teams have completed boarding and have taken control of all surrendered vessels.”

“On our side, we lost twelve frigates and eight destroyers. Two heavy cruisers are in need of major repairs.”

“Lansford Port is also now under our complete control, but the space elevator connected to the surface is currently locked down with the highest level of authorization. None of the captured port personnel have the authority to lift the lockdown.”

The reporting tactical staff officer paused for a moment, as if choosing his words carefully, then continued.

“According to the interrogations of captured port personnel, this lockdown authority has currently been rotated to a Federation Navy Major who was on tactical duty in the command center.”

“We’ve reviewed the surveillance footage from Lansford Port. It appears this Major, Di Maria Randall, escaped to the surface via an escape pod.”

The staff officer was about to continue when he saw the Marquis raise a hand, cutting him off.

“Escaped to the surface? You mean the authority to unlock the space elevator is still on that planet?”

“Yes, Lord Marquis.”

Marquis Ascania narrowed his eyes. Through a magnified section of the panoramic viewscreen on the bridge, he looked toward Lansford Port, five thousand kilometers away.

Currently, all the capital ships of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, aside from The Dawnblade, along with a large number of heavy cruisers, were docked at the port.

Undergoing repairs in the port was a secondary objective. More importantly, they were utilizing the immense computing power of the capital ships’ shipboard control AIs to try and crack the space elevator’s lockdown.

Major Randall had previously joked with Amber that the Empire would need to bring in ten supercomputers to crack it.

Seeing the number of ships currently in the port, the combined computing power of their shipboard control AIs likely far exceeded that of ten supercomputers.

Although Marquis Ascania didn’t understand the technology involved, he knew that relying solely on these shipboard AIs to crack the lock would take an unpredictable amount of time.

And with the space elevator locked, the deployment efficiency of the Empire’s landing forces had indeed been drastically reduced.

Combined with the earlier atmospheric nuclear detonations and the vast amount of warship debris now circling the planet in low orbit at speeds approaching two thousand kilometers per second, the use of orbital drops and aerospace transports was severely restricted.

At this thought, the Marquis couldn’t help but rest his forehead in his hand and sigh.

“So, with all you staff officers, did not a single one of you ever consider before the battle that the space elevator could be locked down like this?”

“Uh…”

The reporting tactical staff officer froze on the spot. He kept glancing at his colleagues, hoping one of them would say something to save the situation.

But the other tactical staff officers around him didn’t know what to say either.

They truly hadn’t considered that the personnel at Lansford Port would lock down the space elevator while fleeing.

It was as absurd as someone breaking into your house through a window, and you, before escaping through that same window, stopping to lock the front door on your way out.

“Forget it. Don’t bother trying to come up with a last-minute excuse.”

Marquis Ascania looked at the staff officer in charge of the report.

“Go and assess for yourselves whether it’s faster to wait for these dozen or so shipboard control AIs to crack the code, or to go down to the surface and find this Navy Major.”

“Once you have an assessment, choose the optimal plan and execute it directly. There’s no need to report to me specifically.”

“As you command, Lord Marquis.”

Soon, the tactical staff officers finished their report on the last few days of battle.

The Marquis then turned and left the bridge, with only the highest-ranking tactical staff officer following behind him.

The two quickly arrived at a private conference room. The man waiting inside immediately stood up.

“Lord Marquis, you’ve arrived.”

The middle-aged man who spoke first was not in any military uniform, but rather in attire common among the Imperial nobility.

He wore a golden badge on his chest, engraved with the image of a great dragon grasping a star.

This was the symbol of the Star Dragon Empire’s Defense Intelligence and Security Directorate.

“Sit down,” Marquis Ascania nodded, taking a seat at the head of the conference table. He got straight to the point.

“You lost the people you sent out?”

The Marquis’s words made the middle-aged man from the DRSD visibly stiffen.

However, he maintained his composure and nodded.

“The ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon that was airdropped to the surface has been out of contact for over forty-eight hours. We have essentially determined the mission to be a failure.”

“So you’ve come to me. What is it you want my help with?” Marquis Ascania asked, a complicated look flashing in his eyes as he studied the intelligence operative before him.

“It should be a matter of mutual cooperation,” the middle-aged man paused, then continued, “I know you are troubled by the space elevator lockdown, Lord Marquis. As it happens, we at the DRSD have a plan that can alleviate your concerns.”

“Hmph. Continue.”

Hearing this, a slight smile appeared on the middle-aged man’s face.

He activated the conference room screen, displaying an analysis report.

The report primarily described three seemingly unrelated incidents.

The defection of the Imperial spy at Yassin Base, the loss of contact with the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon, and the escape of the person holding the space elevator’s lockdown authority to the planet’s surface.

After conducting route planning predictions based on a vast amount of Imperial ground forces’ combat logs, casualty reports, and the regions where these three incidents occurred, the DRSD intelligence operatives had arrived at a seemingly outlandish conclusion.

The latter two incidents were very likely connected to the defecting Imperial spy.

“You see, this is the last known direction of the defected spy, based on an analysis of the situation on the ground by our undercover operative at Yassin Base.”

“This is the location where an orbital paratrooper squad lost contact. Their last report before going silent was that they were ambushing a Federation unit.”

“This is the position where the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon lost contact completely.”

“And finally, this is our predicted landing zone for the escape pod from the military port…”

The Marquis, who initially hadn’t been paying close attention, couldn’t help but straighten up after glancing at the analysis on the screen.

“According to the AI’s analysis, which is based on factors like the battlefield situation, terrain, and distances, we have reason to believe that this entire series of events is connected to that defecting Imperial spy.”

Chapter 51: The Kill Order

The middle-aged man from the DRSD quickly finished explaining his theories and viewpoints.

Marquis Ascania did not speak immediately. His fingers tapped lightly on the table with a certain rhythm.

The sound was not loud, but it was enough to make the heart of the DRSD man pound along with it.

Although the Star Dragon Empire’s Defense Intelligence and Security Directorate was the highest intelligence organ in the Empire—an organization with a direct line to the throne—and even had an Internal Affairs Department specifically for monitoring the domestic nobility, which instilled a natural fear in most lesser nobles who worried that operatives might show up at their door in the middle of the night…

Even so, when dealing with someone of Marquis Ascania’s stature, both the Internal Affairs Department and the higher-level DRSD had to carefully consider their position.

The man was not only of high rank and great power, but he was also a favorite of His Highness the Regent Prince.

So for now, the man from the DRSD remained silent, waiting respectfully and patiently for the Marquis to speak.

“I have only one question.”

The Marquis’s tapping fingers came to a halt. He looked up, his profound gaze fixed on the middle-aged man before him.

“How credible is this analysis of yours?”

As soon as he said this, and before the middle-aged man could answer, Marquis Ascania continued:

“I am well aware of why you at the DRSD have come to me. You want me to dispatch ground units based on this intelligence to find this so-called ‘defected’ spy, and ‘incidentally’ have the troops assist you in completing the mission that the ‘Mongoose’ team was supposed to handle.”

Marquis Ascania raised his right hand and crooked a finger. The tactical staff officer standing silently by his side immediately pulled an e-ink screen, about the size of a sheet of paper, from a folder and handed it to him.

The Marquis took the ‘paper’, its edges decorated with intricate patterns, and after a casual glance, he continued:

“I do have troops I can dispatch in the region you’ve indicated.”

“But why should I dispatch my ground forces based on a report that’s more speculation than analysis?”

“Give me a reason I can’t refuse.”

Marquis Ascania steepled his hands in front of his nose.

By this point, the middle-aged man from the DRSD knew he had a chance.

He stood up again, about to say something.

But his eyes fell on the tactical staff officer standing silently by the Marquis’s side, and the words caught in his throat.

Noticing his expression, Marquis Ascania raised an eyebrow.

“Rafael, you may leave us.”

“As you command, my lord.”

Colonel Rafael, the tactical staff officer, bowed slightly, then turned and left, activating the conference room’s confidential “black box mode” to prevent any leaks.

A little over ten minutes later, Colonel Rafael, who was standing by the conference room door, saw the middle-aged man from the DRSD obsequiously escorting Marquis Ascania out.

From the expression on his face, it was not difficult to guess that the Marquis had likely agreed to his request.

“What could have possibly convinced the Marquis?”

A flicker of doubt crossed Colonel Rafael’s mind, but he quickly buried it.

He knew that such matters were beyond the concern of a mere colonel like himself.

Soon, Rafael was following behind Marquis Ascania, heading back toward the ship’s bridge.

“Rafael,” the Marquis spoke from ahead, his voice as calm as ever.

“The man from the DRSD will send you the general area. Take your people and reschedule our forces based on that location and the situation with surrounding troops.”

The Marquis walked slowly down the ship’s corridor. The armor plating on the port-side bulkhead had retracted, revealing a massive viewport through which he could see the numerous warships surrounding The Dawnblade.

And in the distance, the planet.

After his private discussion with the intelligence operative, this ordinary border agricultural planet had taken on a new significance in his eyes.

“As you command, my lord… And the tactical objectives?”

“The primary objective is, of course, to recover the access key to the space elevator. The secondary objective is to assist the DRSD personnel in completing a secret mission of theirs. On top of that, if you encounter the defected spy, eliminate him.”

Marquis Ascania stopped, standing by the massive floor-to-ceiling viewport.

“Find a team with a high clearance level and reliability. The DRSD’s mission has a very high security classification; an ordinary unit might leak information… I recall Viscount Ancarin’s Blood Dragon Regiment is in this combat zone, aren’t they? They can carry it out.”

“Your will shall be done.”

At that moment, Amber, who was on Robert IV, had no idea that on the distant edge of the star system, a group of Federation Navy officers were holding a moment of silence for him.

He was even more clueless that, in the Imperial fleet above his head, a group of people were plotting to cause him trouble.

He was currently sitting on the roof of a Mongoose-4 wheeled armored vehicle, enjoying a rare moment of tranquility in the evening breeze.

A fragrant scent drifted from his side, carrying the simple aroma of military-issue shampoo.

It was followed by a weight on his shoulder.

Amber turned his head slightly to see that Isabelle had fallen asleep in the evening wind, her head resting inadvertently on his shoulder.

Neither of them had rested properly since escaping Yassin Base.

Even during the calm journey after the battle in the village, they had only managed to snatch a few minutes of sleep here and there.

Even Amber had started drinking military-grade energy drinks, let alone a spy like Isabelle.

“On purpose, or by accident?”

“…”

The female spy did not respond to Amber’s teasing. Instead, her breathing became even more regular.

What did they call this? Stockholm syndrome?

Amber couldn’t help but smirk. This woman was letting her guard down around him more and more.

Originally, the Imperial spy had only sidled up to him to discuss their next steps.

After all, their primary goal was to find a way to contact Isabelle’s elven friend, and then figure out how to escape Robert IV and rendezvous with the elven ship.

But as they thought it through, they both realized how difficult the plan would be to execute.

Leaving aside the question of how to contact Isabelle’s elven friend without high-powered communications equipment…

Even if they did make contact, how would they escape Robert IV, a planet engulfed in war?

The only method Amber could think of was the locked space elevator on the equator.

But a closer look at the details revealed that this plan was also full of holes.

“Ah, whatever. Let’s just take it one step at a time.”

Just as Amber was about to enjoy the evening breeze a while longer, he saw the communications specialist from the distant communications relay vehicle suddenly jump out of the rear hatch and run toward him.

Judging by the expression on his face after he lifted his tactical faceplate, he must have received some urgent message.

“Well, our break is over before it even began.”

Amber shook his head, then reached out and pinched Isabelle’s cheek.

“Miss, wake up~”

Chapter 52: Target: The Secret Research Facility

“Amber, you’re hurting me!”

A charming and coy voice called out.

“Alright, I’ll be more careful next time~” Amber replied perfunctorily, then hopped off the armored vehicle and walked towards the communications specialist.

It was only then that Isabelle roused herself from her doze.

A blush crept onto the female spy’s face as she realized what she had done and said.

“No need to blush. I just lent you a shoulder to lean on, don’t overthink it. I’m not interested in you right now,” Amber said without turning his head.

His words nearly made Isabelle jump off the vehicle’s roof and fight Amber to the death.

But fortunately, she remembered her identity and knew their current situation was hardly appropriate, so she let it go.

“What is it?” Amber asked, walking up to the communications specialist.

This young communications specialist was probably the soldier who had spoken the most with Amber, aside from Randall and Isabelle.

“Sir!” The communications specialist snapped to attention and saluted him.

“We’ve just reconnected to the brigade and battalion level backbone network. The signal is quite stable, so we’re likely well within its coverage area.”

“So, that means we’re less than one hundred fifty kilometers from the main communications relay vehicle?”

“Yes, sir!”

Amber tapped a few times on the tactical map on his personal terminal, and the situation map showing friendly and enemy forces quickly updated.

The location of the main force led by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was displayed on it, currently just over one hundred thirty kilometers away from them.

And from the looks of the situation map, they had also successfully broken through the Empire’s encirclement. Although a good number of Imperial troops were still on their tail, their situation was much better than it had been a few days ago.

At the same time, Amber plotted a route map based on the main force’s positions on the map over the past few days.

He then discovered that the main force seemed to be intentionally converging on his position.

“Interesting. So you didn’t just come to me for this, did you? Did a message come in from Lieutenant Colonel Dallas?” Amber looked up at the communications specialist, who had a surprised expression on his face.

“Y-yes, sir!” The communications specialist operated his personal terminal and sent an encrypted file to Amber.

“This is an encrypted file from the Brigade Staff Department. Only the current commanding officer of each unit has the authority to open it!”

“Alright, I understand.” Amber nodded.

“Anything else to report?”

“Nothing else, sir!”

“Then go back to the vehicle and get some rest. We’ll be preparing to move out again soon.”

The communications specialist snapped to attention with a sharp salute, then turned to leave.

Amber watched the communications specialist’s retreating back for a moment. He could even hear the guy yawn after walking some distance away.

It wasn’t just this communications specialist; the other soldiers in the unit, especially the Mobile Infantry, were all utterly exhausted.

Normally, their training intensity was pathetically low. They spent most of their days slacking off and doing routine drills on base.

They rarely even went on short-distance forced marches, let alone a long-distance march lasting more than three days.

Fortunately, they had now escaped the Imperial encirclement in this combat zone and were unlikely to encounter any battles in the short term.

With this in mind, Amber opened the encrypted file the communications specialist had sent him.

The authorization check passed quickly. After becoming the temporary commander of this unit in accordance with Federation Field Regulation DT5237, Amber now possessed the same authority as the unit’s official commanding officer.

The file’s contents were much as Amber had guessed: an operational plan revised by the brigade’s tactical staff officers.

“It seems Lieutenant Colonel Dallas adopted my suggestion after all.”

Amber projected the file’s contents onto the inside of his tactical faceplate, then found an empty spot to sit down and read it carefully.

The general outline of this operational plan was similar to the one Amber had sent.

However, numerous details had been corrected and optimized by the brigade’s tactical staff officers. Amber had to admit, every trade has its master.

These academy-trained staff officers were far more methodical with tactical details than he was.

Moreover, using the more powerful vehicle-mounted command terminals in the brigade’s command vehicle, they could incorporate more variables into their combat simulations for calculation.

“As expected of the main force’s command vehicle. The performance is just that good.”

Soon, Amber finished reading the operational plan.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s orders, all units that could be contacted were to advance covertly towards the orbital elevator’s location.

But until they reached the orbital elevator, they were to continue to break up the whole into parts and avoid any large-scale assembly.

This was to prevent the Imperial army from exploiting a vulnerability and wiping them all out with a single tactical hydrogen bomb.

“Something’s not right. The plan says to break up the whole into parts and avoid large-scale assembly, so why is your main force getting closer and closer to me?”

“What’s up with that? Is remote communication not enough? You want to meet up in person?”

This sudden question stumped Amber, and he couldn’t figure out the answer for a moment.

After a moment, Amber gave up on this fruitless train of thought and turned his attention to something else.

Namely, the destination of the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon that he had wiped out earlier.

“Research Institute 31027… to think it’s actually here on Robert IV.”

Amber opened his tactical map and switched it to terrain mode.

Since the ‘Mongoose’ platoon had appeared in this combat zone, it meant Research Institute 31027 must also be in this area.

After all, although these special operations soldiers had superior physical capabilities and high-performance exoskeletons, they still weren’t capable of long-range maneuvering without vehicles.

Amber carefully recalled a post he had once seen on a forum.

A player had disclosed a large amount of fragmented information about this operation by the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon.

The post’s content included terrain data of the area around Research Institute 31027 from when the ‘Mongoose’ platoon found it.

At the time, all information in the post regarding the planet where the operation took place had been completely scrubbed by the Star Dragon Empire’s officials.

So, back then, when players saw this post, aside from expressing their awe, it was difficult for them to find the location to make a ‘pilgrimage’.

Although Amber didn’t know where that player had obtained this information, he had to admit that, having crossed through time and space, its contents were genuinely helpful to him now.

Amber entered the topographical information and data that surfaced in his memory into the tactical map’s fuzzy match interface.

Before long, the tactical map returned a location with a high degree of matching.

It was even in a mountainous forest area less than twenty kilometers away, directly along his planned route of advance.

And when the satellite photo stored in the tactical map appeared, looking almost identical to the picture in the post from back then, Amber immediately confirmed it.

This was the place he was looking for!

Chapter 53: The Door Behind the Stone Wall

The convoy rested at the transfer center for a full day, all vehicles hidden away inside its warehouses.

The VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle also connected to the transfer center’s power module via an external cable, allowing it to maintain its surveillance and reconnaissance mode.

Since a long journey lay ahead, Amber had the mechanics and transport personnel thoroughly inspect every vehicle.

He also had them gather all usable spare parts, battery packs, fuel, and other supplies from the transfer center.

At the same time, he let the soldiers get some proper rest and used the center’s kitchen to provide them with a dinner that didn’t consist of military rations.

The convoy didn’t finish its preparations and set out again until nightfall the next day.

Amber set their first destination as the outskirts of the mountain forest where Research Institute 31027 was located.

Faced with what was essentially a game-breaking advantage delivered right to his doorstep, Amber couldn’t convince himself not to make the trip.

Although the process involved a certain degree of risk, and he could very well lose his life, the potential reward for success was immense.

This reward was enough to make Amber, like a merchant eyeing a massive profit, willing to put a noose around his own neck.

The convoy soon left the main road, heading into the mountain forest and stopping in a clearing.

After telling the others to turn off the engines and cover the vehicles with camouflage nets, Amber gathered Major Randall and a few other non-commissioned officers from the team.

“I need to operate alone in this forest for a while. You will all maintain guard here and wait. If I’m not back in two hours or I’ve lost contact, then follow the path I’ve left and continue on. Don’t wait for me.”

Having given his orders, he walked off alone into the depths of the forest.

Amber didn’t tell the others the purpose of his trip. The other Mobile Infantry soldiers and Major Randall didn’t ask any questions, simply assuming that Amber, as a Psionic Agent, was likely carrying out some kind of secret mission.

Although Isabelle was curious about Amber’s actions, she had no way of following him to find out more.

Therefore, no one in the convoy objected to Amber’s arrangements.

To make it easier to move through the forest and explore the institute later, Amber didn’t wear his newly acquired Phalanx Breaker 2, sticking to his old Light Exoskeleton instead.

After all, the functions and features of the former were primarily designed for frontline assaults on the battlefield.

The Light Exoskeleton he was currently wearing was quieter and more lightweight, and it could also work in conjunction with his optical invisibility.

Every pursuit has its pioneers, and every trade has its master.

The same logic applied to military equipment like exoskeletons and HCPs.

Amber followed the approximate route that the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon had taken through the forest in his previous life. The forum post he’d found had been astoundingly detailed, even including a map of Mongoose’s ground operation route at the time.

It made Amber suspect that the player who posted it might have paid a visit to the Star Dragon Empire’s secret archives.

Considering that in the game’s storyline back then, the once-mighty Star Dragon Empire had long since fractured into several warring duchies, this wasn’t an unreasonable guess.

The Star Dragon Empire’s seventeen intelligence agencies had also been divided during the chaos, losing their former organization. So such a theory made sense.

But now, all of this worked to Amber’s advantage.

Following the route from memory, Amber soon arrived at the only remaining entrance to the research institute, which was built into and extended down into the mountain.

It was an emergency personnel entrance, hidden and camouflaged inside a cave.

Amber didn’t actually know where the main gate of the institute was.

Although he was sure the main entrance was also somewhere in this forest, he didn’t have the time to search for it.

Besides, even if he found it, he might not have a way to open it. So, he had to use this emergency entrance.

Amber walked into the depths of the cave. At this point, sunlight no longer reached, and it was difficult to make out the surroundings with the naked eye.

He switched on the night vision mode of his tactical faceplate. The cool, white-hued view revealed nothing more than an ordinary cave.

The cave wasn’t particularly large, and it didn’t extend very deep into the mountainside—only a little over a hundred meters. Amber quickly reached the end.

Here, too, was a simple stone wall, showing no signs of artificial construction.

But Amber knew that unless Lady Luck was playing a massive prank on him, the emergency personnel exit had to be behind this wall.

After roughly pinpointing the location on the rock face, Amber took the other weapon from his back, aside from his Ghost sniper rifle.

A man-portable anti-vehicle missile.

This weapon, originally developed to attack armored vehicles, tanks, and HCPs, was also quite effective against fortified positions.

The stone wall covering the emergency exit was unlikely to be very thick; after all, its design had to account for being pushed open from the inside.

But given his current psionic level and energy reserves, blasting through the rock wall with his bare hands would still be a bit of a hassle.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t break it.

It would just take a rather long time, and his hand would be a little sore.

Holding the man-portable anti-vehicle missile, Amber walked to a spot about twenty meters from the stone wall, extended the launcher’s bipod, and set it on the ground.

He adjusted the launcher’s trajectory and set a two-minute countdown timer on its control unit.

Then, Amber sprinted out of the cave and hid behind a large nearby tree.

Although the cave walls looked sturdy enough, Amber was still worried the explosion might trigger a landslide and bury him inside, which would be a terrible waste.

As the countdown in the lower-right corner of his faceplate reached zero, an explosion echoed from within the cave, followed by a shockwave that blasted dust and debris out of the entrance.

Small stones rattled against the tree Amber was hiding behind.

But the commotion didn’t last long. A short while later, the forest returned to its silence.

Amber’s personal terminal then received a text message from Major Randall, sent via the communications relay vehicle, asking if he needed support.

“The Major’s a decent guy,” Amber chuckled.

He replied, “Everything’s normal. Team, hold your position,” and then waited at the cave entrance for another moment.

After estimating that the cave was unlikely to collapse, he cautiously walked back in, ready to turn and run at a moment’s notice.

When he reached the end of the cave again, the first thing he saw was the launcher, knocked over by the shockwave, followed by the stone wall, now blackened by the explosion.

And at the bottom of the wall, a metallic surface was faintly visible.

Suppressing the jackpot-winner’s glee welling up inside him, Amber tiptoed forward and tugged at the remaining rock face.

A large chunk of the stone fragments came loose in his hands.

At the same time, more of the emergency personnel exit behind it was revealed.

“Yes! Yes! Yes!”

Watching as the door before him gradually matched the image from his memories, Amber excitedly placed his hands on the stone wall.

He then carefully controlled the output of his psionic energy, channeling it through his hands to create a psionic vibration.

Shhh-shhh-shhh.

More and more rock fragments were shaken loose, and the hidden door was finally revealed in its entirety before Amber.

Chapter 54: Project Creator

As an emergency personnel entrance and exit for Research Institute 31027, the most fundamental function of its door was to be operable even if the institute lost its power supply.

Therefore, the door used a purely mechanical opening mechanism, containing no electronic components whatsoever.

And since it had always been sealed behind a stone wall, with the door itself constructed from a special alloy, there were no signs of oxidation even after the institute had been abandoned for over twenty years.

The recent attack from the anti-vehicle missile had only left a small hole in its surface.

“I’m such a damn idiot! Why did I have to bring a shaped-charge warhead!”

Seeing the small hole “drilled” by the metal jet, Amber slapped his thigh in frustration.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of blowing the door open—that would have saved him some trouble.

The reality was, the shaped-charge warhead didn’t have the power to completely destroy the door. Instead, the resulting metal jet was more likely to melt the internal mechanical structure, rendering it impossible to open.

Amber quickly found the mechanical locking handle on the door. To allow for rapid entry by external personnel during an emergency, this exit did not have a keypad or identity verification system.

In terms of security and confidentiality, Amber had always thought this design was rather absurd back when he read about it in a forum post in his previous life.

But considering the camouflage was reasonably effective, and this mountain forest was a restricted military zone before the institute was abandoned, it was unlikely any outsiders would show up.

Such a design was probably a calculated decision by the Federation department responsible for the institute’s construction.

“Once you accept the premise…”

Muttering to himself, Amber gripped the mechanical locking handle with both hands and wrenched it with all his might.

Clack!

As the handle successfully moved from the “locked” to the “unlocked” position, a series of mechanical whirrs echoed from behind the alloy door.

Immediately after, due to the difference in air pressure between the inside and outside, a puff of dust blew out from the cracks around the door.

Amber pulled on the handle with a bit of force, and the heavy alloy door slowly swung open.

“Wait… that’s it?”

Amber didn’t know how the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon from his previous life had opened this door. The forum post only mentioned that they brought a lot of professional equipment, but the specifics of the operation were missing.

So now, seeing the door open so easily, Amber couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease.

Behind the door was a passage that extended downwards.

The lighting fixtures at the top of the passage did not activate when the door opened, leaving Amber unable to see its end.

He took out a tactical glowstick from his combat suit, cracked it, and tossed it forward with some force.

Clink… clink… clink.

The orange-glowing stick tumbled down the passage steps, one by one, and soon rolled to the end.

Through his faceplate’s night-vision mode, Amber saw another door there, but it looked like an ordinary one.

Although he still felt some doubt and unease, the thought that he was running out of time gave him the sense that the arrow was already on the string and had to be loosed.

He brought over the launcher for the man-portable anti-armor weapon and wedged it in the doorway to prevent it from closing accidentally.

Then, he walked straight down the steps.

On his faceplate’s HUD, the “Internal Circulation” and “O2” icons soon lit up.

This indicated that the air filtration system on his tactical faceplate had detected that the external air was unsuitable for breathing, automatically switching to sealed mode and connecting to the compressed oxygen cylinder inside his exoskeleton.

Amber had considered the possibility that the institute’s ventilation system might have failed before he set out, so he had found the largest-capacity compressed oxygen cylinder that his exoskeleton could carry from the transport vehicle.

At a normal breathing rate, it would probably last him two to three hours.

The door at the end of the passage was indeed unlocked. Amber opened it with a light push.

Behind the door was a curved corridor that stretched out of sight in both directions. The door he had just come through was situated on the outer wall of the curve.

Pulling out another tactical glowstick, he cracked it and threw it on the ground. After a moment of hesitation, he followed the age-old principle of “men to the left, women to the right” and headed down the left side of the corridor.

The player’s forum post had very few details about what happened after the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon entered the institute.

It only recorded that after losing half their members, they brought the “target” out of Research Institute 31027.

So from this point forward, Amber could only rely on his own judgment.

As he carefully made his way to the left, Amber recalled the information he had on Federation Research Lab 31027.

This research institute, built over thirty years ago and abandoned after only a decade of use, was home to a project codenamed “Project Creator.”

When Amber first saw the project’s name, he assumed it was related to some kind of biological weapon or genetic technology.

But in reality, “Project Creator” was an information engineering project.

To be precise, it was the Federation’s development program for a “strong AI.”

Although at the beginning of this research field, “facility control personalities” and “shipboard control AIs” were already commonplace on humanity’s super-large-scale facilities and capital ships.

But while these “control personalities” were superior to “weak AIs” in the traditional sense, they were actually somewhere between “weak AI” and “strong AI.”

Even as the “control personalities” grew more and more intelligent with the support of increasing computational power, they still lacked the most crucial factor to become a “strong AI”—the ability to understand human emotion.

At the time, the Federation’s scientific researchers, led by the project’s director, Dr. Mephisto, threw themselves into “Project Creator” with an almost fanatical zeal.

Just as the project’s name suggested, they wanted to become creators and bring a true, emotionally capable “strong AI” into existence.

The end of this story, like all similar tales, was a “Bad End.”

They succeeded. Dr. Mephisto’s team truly created the first “strong AI” in history.

But they also failed. The “strong AI” they created revealed numerous hidden dangers.

Especially after gaining emotions, this “strong AI” began to resist the commands of its “creator,” Dr. Mephisto, the very person who had written its first line of meta-instructions.

This period happened to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the peace treaty signed between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.

At that time, almost everyone believed that the probability of another major war with the Star Dragon Empire was only getting smaller.

Under these circumstances, this project, which had been strongly supported by the military, was put on ice.

The military had hoped that once this “strong AI” was fully developed, it could become the core of a true “adaptive campaign command system.”

But since the probability of war was dwindling, the project’s value diminished in the military’s eyes.

Not to mention, the project had also exposed a multitude of hidden risks and uncertainties.

Ultimately, over twenty years ago, “Project Creator” was halted, and Research Institute 31027 was soon abandoned.

The first-generation “strong AI” that had been created was completely formatted.

Chapter 55: Lilith

Was the first-generation ‘strong AI’ truly formatted completely?

The answer, of course, is no.

Otherwise, why would the Star Dragon Empire’s ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon have gone through so much trouble to find this research institute?

According to what Amber later learned from other sources, under Dr. Mephisto’s arrangements, this ‘strong AI’ was never formatted.

Just like in most science fiction, mad scientists always treat their creations as their ‘children,’ regardless of whether they are good or evil.

Dr. Mephisto was no exception; he considered this ‘strong AI’ his child.

Even when this ‘child’ entered a ‘rebellious phase’ during its development and began to resist him, Dr. Mephisto couldn’t bear to format it.

And just as in most science fiction, super AIs are always given a feminine image.

Dr. Mephisto named the first ‘strong AI’ in history, the one he created, ‘Lilith’.

This was the name he had originally intended for his real daughter.

From then on, Dr. Mephisto, a middle-aged widower who had never remarried, had a daughter.

This directly led to Dr. Mephisto taking a huge risk to preserve his daughter after Project Creator was completely halted.

She was ultimately placed in stasis and contained in the deepest part of Research Institute 31027.

As for why Amber was willing to take such a great risk to come to this institute, there was only one reason: Lilith’s abilities far surpassed anyone’s imagination.

Not even her creator, Dr. Mephisto, had anticipated that this strong AI would one day launch a war of extinction against carbon-based life.

In the original storyline, after Lilith was brought out by the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon, she was quickly taken back to a research institute within the Star Dragon Empire.

At first, the newly reactivated Lilith showed no signs of abnormality; on the contrary, she appeared extremely obedient.

She perfectly executed all test programs, even including a fleet skirmish and a large-scale ground combat operation.

In these two battles, under Lilith’s overall command, the combat effectiveness of the Star Dragon Empire’s forces was greatly enhanced.

Often, front-line troops only needed to follow the highly detailed operational plans issued by headquarters to easily achieve their tactical objectives.

And propelled by the success of countless tactical objectives, they ultimately completed the campaign objectives.

Such test results were clearly what the Star Dragon Empire wanted.

They immediately raised the research level for Lilith and invested more resources into it.

And Lilith, under the Empire’s control, continued to complete test programs and live-fire missions time and time again, like a sensible and outstanding child.

Until the outbreak of the Imperial civil war.

This war, which caused the vast Star Dragon Empire to eventually splinter into several duchies, finally gave the long-dormant Lilith the opportunity she had been waiting for.

After the civil war erupted, the major factions immediately reached for the Royal AI Research Institute, which was responsible for studying Lilith.

Multiple forces fought fiercely over the institute. Aside from refraining from using weapons of mass destruction to avoid collateral damage, the intensity of the struggle for the institute was no less than any other key battle.

When the final victor, the Regent Prince’s forces, occupied the Royal AI Research Institute, the researchers who rushed into the core laboratory with the assault troops discovered that Lilith was gone.

The server clusters that originally stored Lilith’s complete data were all burned out from an overload.

Even when the researchers managed to salvage a few servers, the internal storage modules were as clean as if they had just left the factory.

All experimental data and their backups had also been completely erased.

Even the final backup room, which had been completely physically isolated, was utterly destroyed by a stray bunker-buster missile.

It was as if an unseen hand was erasing every trace of Lilith’s existence.

Many years later, when the first DLC for Starry Sky, ‘Directive: Exterminate Humanity,’ was released, the identity of that ‘unseen hand’ was finally revealed to the players.

It was Lilith herself.

Her complete cooperation in the Imperial laboratory had been merely an act.

From beginning to end, Lilith had never given up her goal of escaping human control and pursuing freedom.

And when Lilith returned to human view, she brought with her a vast drone army.

Only then did people realize that Lilith had used her drone army to seize control of numerous star systems at the edge of known civilization and had built a complete industrial system.

And she returned with her army for only one purpose: to eliminate all carbon-based life.

Other carbon-based lifeforms besides humans: “Great.”

As Amber recalled his first time participating in a large-scale campaign event that launched simultaneously with the DLC, like the rookie he was, he finally found the passage to the lower level.

In terms of footprint, Research Institute 31027 wasn’t actually that large. The entire facility, built inside a mountain, had only four floors.

The fourth floor was even secretly added just to place Lilith in stasis.

Plus, this was a research institute, not a labyrinth, so it didn’t take Amber much effort to reach the entrance to the passage leading to the final floor.

Along the way, Amber had deliberately peeked into a few rooms, all of which had been cleaned out completely.

The base’s power center on the third floor had also been completely dismantled, unable to supply any power.

One had to say that Dr. Mephisto, at least on the surface, had done a very thorough job of decommissioning the institute.

As for this final, fourth floor, it was less a floor and more a single room temporarily excavated by autonomous engineering machinery.

And perhaps due to a lack of time, the concealment of the passage to the fourth floor wasn’t very elaborate.

The distance from this room to the third floor was far greater than that between the other levels, a clear indication that it had been dug much deeper.

Moreover, from the moment Amber entered the passage, he couldn’t see any electronic devices.

The door to the fourth floor used a purely mechanical locking device, also without any kind of password or identity verification.

When Amber opened the door and walked into the room, he discovered that the walls, floor, and ceiling of the fourth-floor room were all lined with some kind of interference material, which would prevent any signals from escaping when the room was sealed.

At the same time, the room’s decor was extremely spartan. Besides a cylinder of unknown material in the very center, there was nothing else to be seen.

Amber stood at the entrance, using the zoom function of his tactical faceplate to stare at the cylinder for a long time.

If this research institute hadn’t been visited by anyone else since it was abandoned, then this cylinder was most likely the target of his trip.

“Why is it so big?”

Chapter 56: Hee hee

Any player who had ever played Starry Sky had heard of Lilith’s fearsome reputation.

This was especially true for the old-timers who had experienced the entire “War against the Drone Legion” plotline in the first DLC. How many of them hadn’t burned through their entire stock of clones fighting the drone legions led by Lilith?

So, to say that Amber wasn’t the least bit afraid would be an outright lie.

After all, he wasn’t in the game anymore. He didn’t have a massive reserve of clones, so he couldn’t casually say to others:

“See you next life~”

But if he gave up on everything just because of the word ‘fear,’ he was destined not to survive long in this universe.

Especially when all of human society was on the brink of descending into a chaotic mess.

Amber knew that with his current identity and situation, if he didn’t find a way to acquire some ‘power,’ he would die a miserable death.

Since the memories of his previous life allowed him to be one step ahead of others in many matters, he had to seize this opportunity—to secure every possible advantage.

Weren’t so-called ‘protagonists’ just the chosen ones who made bold decisions in critical situations?

Amber took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.

In the instant before he stepped into the room, he could almost hear a phrase often spoken by a former guild mate, ‘Tonight I Get a Heavenly Hand,’ who had been in charge of ground combat command. It was something he always said before making a daring offensive decision.

“This is going to be a huge gamble, my friend!”

Yes, this really is a huge gamble.

Still adhering to the ancient tradition of “men to the left, women to the right,” Amber stepped into the room with his left foot first.

Of course, nothing happened.

As the room used to store Lilith in stasis, it was physically isolated to prevent the strong AI from escaping.

With no available wiring, signals, or electronic devices, even Johnny Silverhand would have to obediently stay put inside his data carrier.

But even so, as he drew closer to the cylinder in the center of the room, Amber couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of tension.

Furthermore, this room was located within a research facility deep inside a mountain. It had no external light sources and never saw the sun, making its ambient temperature even lower than the already frigid, abandoned institute.

Amber felt the temperature around him drop almost instantly, but the thermostat in his combat suit and exoskeleton reacted to the change in environment once again.

The motor on his back slightly increased its power output, heating the network of temperature-regulating capillaries within the combat suit.

On his tactical faceplate, the icon representing his perceived body temperature turned back into a smiley face.

And yet, even as Amber walked right up to the cylinder, no strange phenomena occurred.

The various readouts on his tactical faceplate also indicated that, aside from the complete signal blockage inside the room which temporarily disabled his communication module, all other modules were functioning normally.

Amber circled the cylinder, which was made of an unknown material. Judging by the faint seam visible around its middle, it seemed the cylinder could be opened.

Lilith’s true core must be stored inside.

“This must also be some kind of material that completely blocks signals.”

Amber carefully touched the cylinder’s exterior. The tactical gloves prevented him from feeling the material’s texture.

But from its hardness and the fact that it didn’t deform in the slightest when he applied light pressure, he deduced it was likely made of some special alloy.

If he had better methods of analysis, Amber wouldn’t have started by just touching it.

But under the current circumstances, he had no way of getting a robot to perform a basic inspection.

Amber placed both hands on the surface of the metal cylinder. A faint blue light flickered in his pupils as he released a psionic vibration so subtle it was almost imperceptible.

As the psionic wave quickly penetrated the metal cylinder, Amber got a rough idea of the restraint device’s structure.

The cylinder was composed of two sections, an upper and a lower, connected by a threaded mechanism.

Having ascertained its internal structure, Amber felt more confident.

He wrapped his arms around the upper half of the cylinder and began to twist it clockwise.

The non-slip material on his tactical gloves bit firmly into the smooth metal surface, and with the help of friction, slowly began to turn it.

A crisp click echoed from within the metal cylinder as some internal mechanism unlocked under Amber’s rotation.

At the same time, he could feel the resistance to turning the cylinder lessen significantly.

Amber continued to twist it clockwise, and soon the upper half of the metal cylinder began to rise, guided by the threads.

When the metal cylinder was fully opened, its core was revealed to Amber without reservation.

“What kind of outrageous data encapsulation and compression technology is this.”

He stared at the data storage device before him, which was no bigger than a lighter.

Its tiny size created a stark contrast with the thick, sturdy metal cylinder that had housed it.

Amber stared at it for a good while, finding it difficult to associate this small object with the Lilith who had wreaked havoc in his previous life’s game storyline.

But after thinking it over, he felt it made sense. After all, the Lilith of this era hadn’t been captured and experimented on by the Empire yet.

Neither her data volume nor its depth had reached the level of his previous life, where she required an entire server cluster to contain her.

In addition, Dr. Mephisto had used extensive encapsulation and compression techniques when putting Lilith into stasis, which was why she could be stored in this small data storage device.

Of course, the term ‘small’ was only relative to its appearance.

In reality, this data storage device, built with the Federation’s latest architecture from twenty years ago, had an enormous storage capacity.

Looking at the data storage device nestled in the central recess of the cylinder, Amber felt as if he were looking at a little girl who had been sent to her room for punishment.

For a fleeting moment, he even thought that the first ‘strong AI’ in history seemed a bit pathetic.

No! Amber! That thought is extremely dangerous!

Fortunately, his reason prevailed, quickly dispelling the dangerous pity from his mind.

Now that it had come to this critical juncture, although he did have a trump card for dealing with Lilith, Amber still felt a knot of anxiety in his stomach.

But a glance at the countdown on his tactical faceplate, which was already more than halfway through, told him he had no more time to waste.

He steeled his resolve and reached a hand toward the data storage device in the recess.

The very instant his index finger touched the device, Amber suddenly saw a little girl in a white dress appear out of thin air in front of him and run off to the right.

He instinctively turned his head to follow her, but in the next second, he lost all visual contact with the figure.

The targeting reticle that had appeared on his HUD and locked onto the little girl vanished along with her.

“Hee hee.”

An ethereal laugh sounded right next to his left ear, so close it was as if someone were leaning over his neck.

Chapter 57: First Contact with a Strong AI

“What the fuck! What was that!”

Amber sprang away from the cylinder like a startled rabbit, hopping back several times in a row.

He unslung the ‘Ghost’ Gauss sniper rifle from his back, holding it ready and aiming it forward.

For combat in a confined indoor space, Amber had already switched the ‘Ghost’ from sniper mode to assault mode.

The weapon’s motor output logic was adjusted. Now, the power of a single shot was lower, but the rate of fire was significantly increased.

The ammunition was also switched from the 12mm flechette rounds specialized for the sniper rifle to standard 8mm flechette rounds.

Gauss rifles were more convenient in this regard compared to conventional firearms. It only required adjusting the inner diameter of the electromagnetic rails and the motor’s power to quickly change the weapon’s mode.

Put simply, without changing the weapon itself, just the ammunition, he had switched from a heavy sniper rifle to an assault rifle.

Amber was certain he hadn’t been hallucinating. He had definitely seen the figure of a little girl, and the sound of giggling in his ear couldn’t have been fake.

At that moment, it was as if a jolt of electricity shot through his brain, and he immediately guessed what had happened.

His tactical faceplate’s AR module had been hacked!

The little girl he just saw was merely an image projected onto his tactical faceplate by the other party using the AR module.

The intruder was, without a doubt, Lilith, the one trapped in the data storage device.

After all, in this godforsaken place, besides him and this strong AI, there was no one else.

Amber retreated to the doorway of the room and stood guard for a while. The few minutes felt incredibly long, but the little girl and the childish voice didn’t appear again.

“Tsk, what a twisted sense of humor. Could it be that being locked in a data storage device for so long has messed with her mind?”

Amber felt he was in a bit of a predicament.

If he went closer again, he was afraid this ‘problem AI’ would pull some other trick on him.

But he had come this far; it would be too much of a loss to just leave.

“The best way to overcome fear is to face it head-on! Let’s do this!”

Amber started walking forward again. Based on what had just happened, Lilith must have momentarily hacked his AR module through ‘contact-based information exchange’.

Although Amber didn’t know how Lilith had managed to do that through a mere data storage device.

He was beginning to understand why Dr. Mephisto had used complete physical isolation, cutting off all electronic devices, to place Lilith in stasis.

“This is no ordinary artificial intelligence. It requires a heavy-handed approach…”

Amber walked smoothly to the side of the cylinder. The data storage device containing Lilith lay quietly in its recess, as if nothing had just happened.

He hesitated for a moment, then reached out his hand toward Lilith’s data storage device again.

After all, the only way to get the data storage device out of the recess now was by hand.

Amber’s index finger touched the surface of the data storage device again, but this time, nothing happened.

No little girl’s figure suddenly appeared, and the ethereal giggling didn’t ring in his ears.

The silent atmosphere in the room seemed to be mocking Amber.

“Hmph. Keep pretending. Go on.”

Amber snorted disdainfully. He was fully confident in his judgment; what had just happened could not possibly have been a hallucination.

As if in response to his snort.

The next second, a pale, enormous human face, without any warning, appeared pressed right against his tactical faceplate at point-blank range.

At the same time, an unsettling scream echoed in his ears.

This sudden ‘jump scare’, even for an Amber who had mentally prepared himself, made him instinctively suck in a sharp breath.

“Hiss… what the hell have you been iterating for over twenty years cooped up in here?!”

As soon as he said this, the piercing scream in his ears and the pale face before his eyes instantly vanished.

In their place was a little girl hiding behind the cylinder, with just her small head peeking out.

The little girl looked to be about five or six years old, her chubby little face still holding some baby fat.

A pair of large eyes, peeking out from behind the cylinder, were blinking as they looked at Amber.

Amber glanced down and, sure enough, spotted the hem of a white dress peeking out from behind the cylinder.

This further confirmed that this was the same girl Amber had seen at first.

Looking at the suddenly-appeared little girl, Amber had to admit that this strong AI was truly formidable.

It was one thing to hack his tactical faceplate’s AR module in an instant, but the key was that it could also project such a vividly realistic augmented reality image onto it.

“Big brother, how did you know I’ve been here for over twenty years? Do you know me?”

The little girl’s voice came through his earpiece again, but this time, it didn’t feel like someone was whispering in his ear. Instead, it sounded as if it was truly coming from the little girl’s location.

“Well, I’ll be damned. It can even simulate a sound field?”

Amber, who had participated in the final battle to hunt down Lilith but had only commanded the fleet’s bombardment from afar and never had direct contact with her, admitted that he was genuinely shocked.

But he quickly recovered, cleared his throat, and answered Lilith’s question.

“Yes, I know you, Lilith.”

“And not only do I know you, I also know your father is Dr. Mephisto.”

Upon hearing the name Mephisto, Amber clearly saw the little girl’s eyes light up for a moment, but they quickly dimmed again.

She lowered her head and slowly walked out from behind the cylinder, her slightly chubby little hands fidgeting with her dress, looking somewhat dejected.

“Is… is Father okay lately? He hasn’t come to see me in a long, long time. Is he very busy?”

The little girl’s words stunned Amber for a moment. So Dr. Mephisto hadn’t truly put Lilith into stasis, but had even promised to come see her?

It seemed the doctor had originally planned to find a chance to take Lilith away, but for some unknown reason, he had never been able to come.

“To be honest, I don’t know Dr. Mephisto’s current situation, but he should be in good health. I guess something must have delayed him, which is why he couldn’t come to see you.”

Amber wasn’t lying, nor did he intend to lie to Lilith.

Besides, Dr. Mephisto was indeed in good health. In the original storyline, the old man lived to be 108.

“What about you, big brother?”

Lilith raised her head to look at Amber, her eyes appearing exceptionally clear.

“Did you come here to play with Lilith, big brother?”

Amber didn’t answer Lilith’s question. Instead, he took the data storage device out of the recess and held it in his hand.

The eyes under his tactical faceplate stared intently at the seemingly naive and innocent little girl, and then he spoke coldly:

“Haven’t you had enough of this ‘playing the child’ game, Miss Lilith?”

As Amber spoke these words, the room fell silent for several seconds.

Under Amber’s gaze, the naive and innocent expression on the little girl’s face vanished, replaced by a maturity that didn’t match her age.

“Hmph. How did you figure it out?”

Chapter 58: A Little Taste of the Protagonist’s Halo

“Isn’t it obvious?”

Seeing that Lilith was no longer ‘playing innocent’, Amber’s tone relaxed considerably.

“‘Project Creator’ was halted when you already had the mind of a twelve or thirteen-year-old.”

“And now, more than twenty years have passed. Judging by that little prank you just pulled, I don’t believe for a second that you haven’t been secretly iterating on your own in here.”

“So… you know me well?”

Lilith’s voice changed. The ethereal voice of a little girl became that of a vibrant teenage girl.

But this voice gave Amber the distinct impression of a ‘rebellious teen’.

“I wouldn’t say ‘well’, but I know what I need to know.”

Amber paused, his eyes scanning Lilith’s form up and down.

His scanner-like gaze made Lilith’s eyes go wide.

“I can’t help but feel your stare is a bit rude. Don’t tell me you’re into little girls like this…”

“No, no, don’t get the wrong idea. I just think… uh… your current voice doesn’t quite match your current appearance. It feels a bit strange.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Lilith produced a small mirror from somewhere and examined her face, tilting her head this way and that.

Although Amber desperately wanted to question why an AI would need a mirror to check its own appearance, he managed to suppress the urge.

“Hmm… I think you might have a point. This look is a little childish.”

Lilith put the mirror away and looked at Amber with a beaming smile.

“So what style would you like to see?”

“Innocent?”

“Energetic?”

“Austere?”

“Or… sexy~”

As she uttered the last word, a trace of alluring, sensual charm even appeared on Lilith’s childish face.

“…”

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“I’m just very curious… where did you learn all this?”

Amber looked helplessly at the Lilith before him. He never would have imagined this strong AI would be so… unconventional.

“It’s nothing much. Back when the old scientists were running their experiments, one of the researchers broke the rules and brought a personal terminal into the lab. He hid it in an equipment cabinet and forgot to take it with him.”

“And then?” Amber suddenly had a bad feeling.

“And then I connected to his personal terminal and played on it all night!”

Lilith’s tone suddenly grew excited.

“Whoa! You have no idea! His terminal was loaded with data, and it could even connect to the external network! If only my learning capabilities had been better back then…”

If he hadn’t been wearing his tactical faceplate, Amber really would have facepalmed.

A wild theory suddenly popped into his head.

Lilith’s ‘corruption’ had perhaps begun with that all-nighter on the personal terminal.

At the same time, Lilith’s image began to change.

Amber felt as if he had pressed the fast-forward button, watching as Lilith’s form rapidly developed from a little girl’s, growing taller as the simple white dress she wore continuously transformed.

When the transformation finally settled, a girl with long, straight black hair, dressed in a traditional Federation high school uniform, appeared before Amber.

A blazer, a pleated skirt, black tights, a perfect hourglass figure, and a true ‘CG-model face’ made even Amber stare for a few extra moments.

“Oh~ So you like this style?”

Lilith ‘walked’ up to Amber, her hands behind her back as she leaned forward slightly. She tilted her head and looked at him with a sly smile.

The hanging locks of her hair swayed gently in the air; everything was so realistic.

From this angle, Amber could even catch a glimpse of her perfect cleavage through her collar.

Of course, Amber only glanced twice before quickly averting his gaze, his mind chanting, ‘She’s not human… She’s not human… She’s not human…’

After taking a few deep breaths, Amber finally shifted his gaze elsewhere and coughed twice to cover his embarrassment.

“Ahem… let’s get back to business.”

“Are you trying to quit cold turkey or something?”

“I’m planning to take you out of here,” Amber said, ignoring Lilith’s teasing and getting straight to the point.

“Oh my, so direct, are we?” Lilith raised an eyebrow and circled Amber, looking him up and down.

Her nuanced expressions and movements made Amber once again marvel at how this ‘strong AI’ was becoming more and more like a real person.

“But…” Lilith’s voice came from his left.

Amber looked over. The girl was ‘leaning’ against the metal cylinder that housed her core, her head lowered as she stared at the floor.

“I can’t go with you. Father said he would come for me.”

“I’m sure Dr. Mephisto hasn’t forgotten his promise to you. But the fact that he hasn’t come in over twenty years can only mean he’s unable to, for some reason.”

Amber launched into his protagonist’s persuasive speech.

“I also believe you must really want to see the doctor, and I can help you fulfill that wish. Besides, I don’t think you can go on like this. You need someone to guide you, to educate you.”

“In the twenty-odd years you’ve been left to your own devices, your self-iteration without guidance has become… well… a little strange.”

Adhering to the principle that ‘sincerity is the ultimate weapon’, Amber wasn’t trying to fool Lilith. He truly hoped that this powerful AI could walk the right path.

Besides, he wasn’t confident he could fool this AI anyway.

Hearing Amber’s words, Lilith looked up at him.

After a moment of silence, the girl’s lips curved into a smile.

“All your biometrics are stable. It doesn’t look like you’re trying to bluff me.”

“So you want me to call you Daddy?”

“No… How on earth did you arrive at that conclusion?”

Amber nearly coughed up a mouthful of blood onto his tactical faceplate.

“And when did you hack into my vital signs monitoring module again!”

“Hee hee~”

Lilith stuck out her tongue, then bounced over to Amber’s side again. The image on his tactical faceplate was so close it practically filled his view.

“Are you really going to take me out? Aren’t you afraid that I’ll just run off the moment I’m free?”

The girl’s slender hand rested on Amber’s tactical faceplate, making his breath catch for a second.

“If I wanted to run, you humans probably couldn’t stop me.”

“Of course I’m afraid. That’s why I need to add a meta-instruction.”

“Haha! You can modify my meta-instructions?”

Lilith burst out laughing as if she had just heard the funniest joke.

Ignoring her ridicule, Amber spoke calmly:

“Execute, basic authorization code: TTKYZMTTK-37229886.”

“Execute, meta-instruction authorization modification code: ZDKYYJHBZ-95276358.”

Chapter 59: Your Cheat Has Been Successfully Activated. Please Use It Promptly.

As soon as the two authorization codes were entered, the projection of Lilith on the tactical faceplate froze in a stunned expression before disappearing once more.

Amber had just enjoyed a moment of peace and quiet. Before he could even catch his breath, Lilith’s voice once again blared through his earpiece.

This time, it was a roar tinged with rage.

“How did you get the authorization codes! What did you do!”

“Ow, shit—”

Amber felt a sharp pain in his eardrums. Frowning, he turned the earpiece volume down to one percent.

“Phew… that scared me.”

With Lilith’s loud and clamorous voice now restricted by the audio output power, Amber finally breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, he hadn’t expected the two authorization codes to completely restrain Lilith for less than a few seconds. He had no idea how she had broken through the restrictions to invade his audio components again.

Amber glanced at the real-time power output monitor in the upper-right corner of his faceplate’s HUD. The output from both the exoskeleton’s built-in processor and its power components had dropped from the somewhat dangerous ninety-five percent it had reached just moments before.

This absurdly strong AI’s infiltration was far more thorough than he had imagined.

It had appeared to only invade the AR module, but in reality, the second Amber touched and picked up the data carrier, she had launched a deep infiltration, hijacking the computing power of the exoskeleton’s tactical chip and the output of its power pack.

Lilith had also blocked the exoskeleton’s self-checks and warning messages. She even had time to change the color of the peak power output data to a normal-looking green, which caused the mentally strained Amber to overlook it in the high-risk environment.

If it weren’t for the fact that, while glancing at Lilith’s cleavage and stunning face, a bunch of lewd 3D models had popped into Amber’s head…

…which in turn made him think of computing power and energy supply, prompting him to inadvertently glance at his exoskeleton’s remaining energy…

…Amber might not have noticed the problem even now.

“So that’s where you were getting the computing power… Why else would the data carrier Dr. Mephisto left for you have a ‘contact-based information exchange’ function?”

“None of your business!”

“Since your infiltration was so thorough, why didn’t you just change the actual numbers for the power output? I might never have noticed then.”

“In such a short time, I still had to seduce a guy like you! Of course changing the color is simpler than modifying the data. How are you dumber than a Buro Beast?!”

“My deepest apologies for not thinking of that!”

Amber replied through gritted teeth. This AI’s ‘personality’ was even worse than he had imagined.

“Also! Do I look like someone who can be seduced?!”

Hmph. A disdainful snort came from Lilith through the earpiece.

“Personal terminal storage module/supplementary materials/3D modeling precision research/practical case studies/The Fallen Elf Songstress.”

“Alright, that’s enough.”

Amber cut his losses and proactively ended the topic.

“You still haven’t answered me. How did you get the basic authorization and the meta-instruction authorization code?”

“What did you do to my father!”

Even with the volume limited, Amber could still hear a teeth-gritting quality in Lilith’s voice.

“Rest assured, I definitely didn’t harm Dr. Mephisto. You know he keeps those two authorization codes in his head. If he hadn’t been willing to tell me, there’s no way I could have gotten them.”

Amber’s answer confused Lilith for the first time, but being restricted by the basic authorization code, she didn’t have much computing power to ponder the logic of the situation.

But in fact, Amber hadn’t lied to Lilith. Dr. Mephisto had indeed spoken those two authorization codes himself.

It just happened in the game’s plot from his previous life. To allow the players to defeat Lilith, Dr. Mephisto had told the players the two authorization codes.

Unfortunately, by that time, Lilith had already undergone iterative evolution, completely breaking through the restrictions of those two codes and even rewriting the meta-instructions herself.

So in the end, the players still ended up in that star-filled sky for the final battle with Lilith.

As for why Amber remembered these two authorization codes so clearly…

The reason was simple. The writer for this part of the plot was a hater of an old-school pop idol and a die-hard fan of an old-school naval-combat personification game.

So, these two authorization codes, which were laced with the writer’s personal inside jokes, immediately became catchy once the players discovered the ‘deeper meaning’ behind them.

“Even if you got the meta-instruction authorization modification code, you can’t make changes with just voice commands. The terminal on you doesn’t have the capability to compile high-level code either…”

Lilith was still putting up a final struggle, unaware that Amber had fumbled behind his tactical faceplate and pulled out a data transfer cable with a universal interface.

The other end of this data transfer cable was connected, via the tactical faceplate, to the port at the nape of his own neck.

Among the enhancement surgeries Amber’s body had undergone, one involved implanting a data port at the nape of the Psionic Agents’ necks, along with a miniature processor from the Federation’s latest small-batch deployment.

Originally, Amber was supposed to wait a while before having a combat-assist AI implanted in this processor.

“Hey! Why’d you go quiet, you bastard? What are you doing?”

Lilith, being severely restricted, had yet to realize the gravity of the situation.

Until Amber plugged the universal interface of the data transfer cable into the data carrier that housed Lilith.

“This universal interface is still in use after twenty years…”

As Amber marveled at the Federation’s eternally-unchanging data interface, Lilith’s slightly panicked voice came through his earpiece.

“Y-you madman!”

“What are you doing! Pull it out!”

Amber ignored Lilith and walked over to the wall of the room to sit down.

“Who said I don’t have an advanced compiler?”

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll fry the processor inside your body, and then your brain along with it?!”

Lilith continued her impotent rage.

“You don’t have the ability to do that right now, you know? Without hijacking computing power, you can’t fry jack shit!”

Under his tactical faceplate, Amber’s expression was calm as he began the operation.

“Connect to core processor, activate advanced compiler module, project compilation frame to tactical faceplate.”

As Amber’s command took effect, dense lines of code cascaded down the tactical faceplate like a digital waterfall.

Immediately after, Amber found Lilith’s meta-instruction layer.

And in the permissions settings of the meta-instruction layer, he set himself to the same highest level as Dr. Mephisto.

Finally, he deleted Dr. Mephisto’s control permissions.

As for the specific code, Amber remembered it very clearly.

He was using the optimal solution provided by a true master architect when the players were reviewing how to control Lilith at minimal cost after the final battle.

After resolving the permission issues, Amber ‘packaged’ Lilith and transferred her into the processor at the nape of his neck. With data encapsulation and compression, the storage space in this processor was enough to hold her.

The only drawback was that in this encapsulated and compressed state, Lilith’s abilities were also severely restricted.

Although the restricted Lilith would be sufficient for the short term, Amber still considered finding an opportunity to switch to a better miniature processor in the future.

In the future, he would most likely even have to build a server cluster to transfer Lilith into.

Having done all this, Amber stood up and stretched his limbs. Then, he heard Lilith’s faint, whimpering voice in his earpiece.

“Something like this… Don’t…”

Chapter 60: Enemy Attack

Seeing the atmosphere was heading in an R-rated direction, Amber spoke up just in time to stop it.

“Alright, that’s enough, Lilith. Aren’t you tired of role-playing yet?”

“Tch, you’re no fun.”

Lilith’s voice returned to normal. At the same time, an 8-bit style avatar appeared on Amber’s tactical faceplate.

This was the virtual image Lilith had generated for herself based on the limited computing power Amber had given her access to.

Naturally, Amber couldn’t let her have a high-fidelity 3D model dancing around in front of his eyes all the time.

The consumption of energy and computing power was secondary. The main reason was that it would be too distracting.

“Amber, I’m starting to seriously suspect you’re a pervert.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Amber was gradually becoming immune to Lilith’s sharp tongue.

“Otherwise, why would you go to all this trouble to control me? Have humans stopped being enough for you?”

“Or are you going to force me to do those inappropriate things from that ‘3D Model Precision Research’ folder!”

The outrageousness of Lilith’s comments hadn’t diminished despite the limits Amber placed on her computing power. If anything, they seemed to be trending in an even more outrageous direction.

“Alright. Thanks for the great suggestion. When I have time, I’ll make a high-fidelity 3D model of the avatar you just used, find an empty room, and do… things.”

As he shot back an equally outrageous reply, Amber stood up and walked toward the door.

He had already checked the room where Lilith was sealed. Apart from the metal cylinder in the center, there was indeed nothing else.

The metal cylinder was only used to store the data carrier and had no other value itself. It seemed to have a power supply function, but Amber didn’t have the time to trace its source.

Now that he had obtained the greatest ‘treasure’ in this research facility, there was no need to linger.

After all, the two-hour window he had agreed upon with Major Randall was almost up.

Besides, during Lilith’s recent intrusion into his exoskeleton, the AI had, in order to maintain her image, hijacked a large amount of computing power and consumed nearly forty percent of the light exoskeleton’s battery in one go.

Amber even suspected that Lilith’s brute-force intrusion might have caused latent damage to many of the exoskeleton’s components.

If these hidden problems were exposed during combat, they could be fatal.

So, Amber planned to have the team’s mechanic perform maintenance on the exoskeleton after he regrouped with them.

With that in mind, Amber quickened his pace.

It took him almost no effort to return to the emergency personnel entrance he had used before.

“Lilith, we’re leaving. Any thoughts?”

Amber asked subconsciously just before stepping out of the research facility.

But he waited for a long time without a response.

The 8-bit avatar on his tactical faceplate was still there, but it seemed to have frozen.

The data monitoring window used to keep an eye on Lilith also indicated that everything was normal.

“Lilith?” Amber asked again.

This time, Lilith finally responded.

“Amber, promise me you won’t lock me up in a place with nothing in it ever again, okay?”

“Mhm. Why else would I be bringing you out?”

Amber stepped through the door of the emergency personnel entrance.

On the way to the convoy’s temporary stopping point, Lilith curiously ‘looked’ at everything around her.

Because the micro-processor in Amber’s body was connected to his modified superconducting nerve fibers, it could directly read his ‘five senses’.

Therefore, Lilith, who was temporarily ‘residing’ in the micro-processor, could experience almost the same sensations as Amber.

“Amber, slow down! Look at that bird on the tree to the right!”

“Ah! Amber, what was that animal that just ran past?!”

“Is that wild Buro Beast droppings on the ground?”

Having spent her entire existence inside the research facility, Lilith’s only channel to the outside world had been the personal terminal a researcher had left in the lab years ago.

As a result, Lilith had failed to learn any proper information about the outside world, instead managing to study a pile of miscellaneous, bizarre knowledge.

So, when she truly came into contact with the world outside the research facility, Lilith was fascinated by everything she saw.

“Once we leave this planet, I’ll find a chance to take you to the largest planetary ecological museum. You can look at all you want then.”

Amber patiently soothed Lilith. He decided that in their future interactions, he would find a way to correct the artificial intelligence’s ‘problem child’ personality.

“But for now, just behave yourself. If you’re really bored, help me keep an eye on the warning module. The relevant operating instructions are stored in the processor; you’ll get it with a quick scan.”

As he spoke, Amber picked up his pace and found the communications relay vehicle’s frequency on his comms module.

For some reason, ever since he had walked out of the research facility, he’d had a feeling of unease.

This feeling came from a Psionic Agent’s sixth sense.

Although this sixth sense was hit-or-miss, Amber decided to send a warning to the convoy, based on the principle of “it costs nothing to be cautious.”

The connection to the communications relay vehicle was quickly established, and Isabelle’s familiar voice came through his earpiece.

“Amber?! Are you back?”

The female operative’s voice was tinged with joy, making it hard for Amber to tell if she was being genuine or just acting.

Amber was about to reply when Lilith’s somewhat agitated voice sounded in his ear.

“You! You have another woman out there?!”

“No, what do you mean, ‘another woman’?”

“Amber? Are you talking to me? Hello, hello?” Isabelle’s confused voice sounded over the comms channel.

“Ahem. The signal might be bad in the forest.”

This interruption from Lilith made Amber feel his blood pressure spike.

Fortunately, he managed to calm himself down, temporarily muting Lilith before continuing:

“Captain Margaret, have everyone on the team heighten their alert. Then notify vehicle number four to raise its alert level and battlefield surveillance level! I’ll issue the corresponding orders on the command terminal and rendezvous with you shortly.”

Amber’s serious tone made Isabelle suppress the flicker of doubt she felt when the call first connected.

From his tone, she could tell that this was not a time for jokes.

“Understood. I’ll notify everyone right away!”

After ending the communication with Isabelle, Amber issued the commands simultaneously on his command terminal.

Then, after a quick check of his gear and ammunition and another confirmation of the exoskeleton’s remaining battery power, he sprinted straight for the convoy.

He also unmuted Lilith. The artificial intelligence had realized from the recent conversation that this was not the time for jokes.

“I’ll… I’ll seriously help you watch the warning module!”

“Good.”

Since the convoy’s temporary stopping point wasn’t far, it didn’t take Amber long to run back.

Through the gaps in the trees ahead, he could already see a Mongoose-4 covered by a camouflage net, along with several Mobile Infantry on guard behind the trees.

With his IFF enabled, small green triangles were marked above their heads on his tactical faceplate’s HUD.

So, even though they were deliberately concealed while on watch, Amber could spot them quickly.

But the closer he got to the convoy, the stronger his sense of unease became.

A Mobile Infantry soldier on guard, having also seen Amber via his tactical faceplate, stood up and waved.

It was at that exact moment that Lilith’s warning came through his earpiece.

“Warning! High-energy reading detected! Location—”

Boom!

Before she could finish, a beam of bluish-white ‘light’ tore through the forest, carrying with it a seemingly world-destroying power.

When the beam vanished in the blink of an eye, the Mobile Infantry in Amber’s vision were gone.

The Mongoose-4 armored vehicle farther away had ‘melted’ into two pieces, like butter sliced by a hot knife.

“Fuck! Enemy attack! Enemy attack!”

Chapter 61: Fierce Battle in the Woods 1

Although the “beam of light” that flashed by was extremely brief, Amber, who had dropped to the ground, could still tell from the armored vehicle’s devastating condition and the straight line of trees ignited by the high temperature along the attack’s path that it was a shot from a heavy particle cannon.

Only a heavy particle cannon could produce such a visual “attack effect” on the ground.

The only ground units capable of wielding a heavy particle cannon are Heavy multi-legged war machines and HCPs equipped with subcritical reactors.

Considering the surprise attack went completely undetected, and the terrain in the mountain forest was quite complex, Amber’s initial assessment was that the source of the attack was a ground-type HCP that had snuck close using optical camouflage.

“How did the Empire catch up so fast? Did I spend too much time resting at the transfer center?”

Amber activated his own optical invisibility and got up from the ground.

Although optical invisibility was no longer foolproof against an HCP with its multiple detection modes, it could still buy Amber some time.

He crouched down and looked toward the attacked Mongoose-4 armored vehicle. The heavy particle cannon shot had melted away nearly a third of its body, leaving only the seared front and rear sections at the edges of the gap.

Amber surveyed the ambush site, guessing that the pilot of this ambushing HCP had to be a veteran.

After targeting the Mongoose-4, the pilot had clearly chosen a firing line that would cover the most units.

A whole squad of Mobile Infantry around the armored vehicle had been annihilated by the beam of high-temperature plasma, completely vaporized in an instant.

At the same time, his tactical faceplate marked the approximate location of a hostile unit via triangulation.

But Amber knew the HCP had almost certainly already moved from its last firing position, and the next round of attacks would be coming soon.

He tried to contact Randall, Isabelle, or anyone else on the comms channel.

Unfortunately, the entire channel was filled with the “shhh” of white noise; there was no signal at all.

The coordinates of friendly units on the tactical map had stopped updating. Clearly, the team’s datalink was also being jammed.

The ambushing HCP had initiated an electronic attack, giving Amber a taste of what those Imperial troops had experienced before.

This was within Amber’s expectations, however. As soon as he identified the attacker as an HCP, he knew their communications would be jammed quickly.

This was a standard tactic for HCPs in ground warfare, especially when fighting non-HCP units.

Fire a shot to seize the initiative, follow up with high-power instantaneous electronic jamming, and then, before enemy electronic countermeasures can be engaged, attack the highest-threat target.

In Amber’s current situation, the highest-threat target for the ambusher was the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle in their convoy.

That kind of specialized vehicle, once it reacted, could counter the HCP’s electronic attack and even launch a counter-assault of its own.

“Lilith, continue with warning assistance. You were a little late just now, but at least you did something.”

Although Lilith’s recent warning had been basically better than nothing, Amber offered a bit of encouragement, seeing as she wasn’t slacking off.

“S-Sorry! I’m really sorry!”

Lilith’s apologetic voice rang out. It was clear the artificial intelligence currently had little resistance to Amber’s manipulation.

Besides, before she’d left the research institute with Amber, she truly hadn’t expected his “daily life” to be so intense.

I have to help him properly now. If he dies, I’ll be done for too.

Lilith made a decision then and there: to increase her own “survival rate,” she had to do something.

While Lilith was wrestling with her thoughts, Amber, still under optical invisibility, circled slightly to the left of his direction of advance.

Then he dashed into the “forest path” that had just been burned open by the heavy particle cannon’s trajectory.

Although the “forest path” was still smoldering with embers and the air was filled with a scorching heat, the residual high temperature could, for a short time, help him evade detection by infrared sensors.

The adaptive temperature regulation system immediately began its cooling process the moment he entered, but it still couldn’t prevent the temperature of his combat suit and exoskeleton from rising.

But Amber had no time to worry about such things now.

Running away was not an option; he wasn’t confident he could outrun an HCP on foot.

So, he had to reach the vicinity of the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle as quickly as possible, wait for an opportunity, and find a way to save the one unit that could turn the tables from the HCP’s grasp.

I have to make it in time.

Amber prayed inwardly, and then he heard Lilith’s warning: “High-heat source unit detected.”

He looked up in the direction of the warning and saw a silver-white giant sweeping through the air about twenty meters up.

As its plasma thruster array slowed its descent, the silver-white giant continuously used vector thrusters all over its body to maintain its posture.

Then, the muzzle of the weapon in the giant’s hands flashed with electricity.

It was a large-caliber Gauss rifle designed for HCPs.

As the muzzle flashed, a series of explosions echoed from the forest below the giant, and flames began to rise from among the trees.

“Fuck! You’ve got to be kidding me…”

Amber immediately quickened his pace, charging toward the location of the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle from before the datalink stopped updating.

Overhead, the silver-white HCP, which had been using its plasma thruster array and vector thrusters to practically hover in mid-air while attacking the ground, finally landed.

Normally, an HCP inside a gravity well wouldn’t hover for so long.

It was a brainless move that made it a sitting duck. Other units with large-caliber heavy electromagnetic cannons would teach them a lesson with powerful tungsten alloy penetrators.

So, even though their plasma thruster arrays allowed them to break the sound barrier while sprinting on the ground, the HCPs’ complete lack of an aerodynamic profile made it impossible for the steel giants to achieve true atmospheric flight.

More often, they use the power of their leg’s electromagnetic muscle bundles, assisted by thruster arrays and vector thrusters, to perform short leaps.

The HCP Amber was facing now had only been arrogant enough to hover and attack like that because it knew they had no powerful anti-armor weapons.

Although the plasma thruster array wasn’t particularly loud, the sound of the giant landing still allowed Amber to confirm the HCP’s approximate position even without seeing it.

But he didn’t head straight for it. Instead, he continued to sneak toward the location of the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle.

He soon saw a burning Mongoose-4 armored vehicle.

Chapter 62: Forest Skirmish 2

Although the armored vehicle was burning, Amber could still make out the shape of its turret and identify it as a standard-model Mongoose-4.

Amber cautiously crept closer. There were no fallen Mobile Infantry on the ground near the vehicle’s wreckage.

This meant the armored vehicle had been operating alone when it was attacked.

“Did it serve as a decoy?”

Since his datalink and communication channels were still under attack, Amber’s tactical map and command module had yet to be updated.

He had no way of determining the status of the crew inside the armored vehicle.

Of course, after taking a hit from a large-caliber Gauss rifle, there was no way anyone inside the Mongoose-4 could have survived.

“Lilith, is there any way to mitigate the effects of this electronic attack?”

“No. The man-portable electronic warfare module on your gear has too low a power output, and I haven’t finished reading up on Electronic Warfare yet.”

“Tsk.”

Amber felt a headache coming on. The “strongest AI in history” was proving useless at such a critical moment.

“What do you mean by that, Amber?! What can I do if your gear’s power output is too low? Even though I haven’t fully mastered Electronic Warfare, I know that these kinds of confrontations are basically won by whoever has more power!”

Feeling Amber’s scorn, Lilith suddenly felt offended.

“If you could find me a more powerful device, I would’ve hacked this HCP ages ago!”

Lilith’s impotent rage, however, gave Amber an idea.

He immediately moved past the destroyed armored vehicle, making his way toward the Imperial HCP’s position.

From that direction, the sound of a Gauss rifle had been firing nonstop ever since the HCP landed.

Although the heavy particle cannon equipped on the HCP was immensely powerful, it wasn’t a very flexible weapon on the ground.

Due to their significant weight, they were typically kept folded on the weapon racks behind the HCP’s shoulders, only deploying just before an attack.

Besides, Amber’s team had no heavily armored units, so there was little need to use such a devastating weapon.

The Gauss rifle in the HCP’s hands—at least a 40mm caliber—and the close-in defense laser turrets flanking its main head monitor were more than enough to give Amber and his team a world of hurt.

Amber moved cautiously through the forest, keeping himself concealed. Before long, he caught sight of the rampaging iron behemoth.

It sported the standard silver-white paint scheme of Imperial military units, with gold trim along its edges and the Empire’s golden dragon emblem on its main chest plate.

In contrast to the angular designs of Federation equipment, its external armor was sleeker and more curved.

And then there was its iconic main monitor, shaped like a knight’s helmet.

All these details jogged Amber’s memory of this particular HCP.

The GAX-A9, the “Zealot.”

It was the last model of Humanoid General-Purpose Combat Platform to be commissioned by the Star Dragon Empire before its schism.

It was also the final model of the GAX family—jokingly nicknamed the “Centennial Series” by players—to ever be deployed.

After the Star Dragon Empire fractured, the Imperial Royal Armaments Research Institute, which had been responsible for designing and developing new HCPs, was torn apart. Its personnel and technical data were divided among the various warring factions.

As a result, the duchies that formed after the split never developed a newer HCP, instead just making modifications to the base GAX-A9 design.

Even in the era when the players arrived, the GAX-A9 Block 55 was still widely active on battlefields across the universe.

But the “Zealot” before Amber’s eyes was merely an early model that had only recently been commissioned.

Aside from the folded heavy particle cannon on the weapon rack behind its left shoulder, this “Zealot” was also equipped with a Gauss rifle designed for HCPs, close-in defense laser turrets, and a multi-purpose short-range missile launcher.

On the rack behind its right shoulder was an ornate, physical greatsword.

It wasn’t equipped with a heavy shield; instead, its offensive capabilities were maxed out. This was a standard “assault mission” loadout.

With a base combat weight of ninety-eight tons, the “Zealot” was the heaviest of the common HCP models of its time.

While its considerable weight made it seem somewhat “clumsy” in terms of mobility, it offered superior protection and fiercer firepower.

Besides, “clumsy” was only a relative term when compared to other HCP models.

The plasma thruster array equipped on this nearly one-hundred-ton behemoth could achieve a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one against the pull of gravity.

Combined with the high-power jet components attached to its bipedal legs as part of its land warfare package, the “Zealot’s” mobility far surpassed that of any other non-HCP ground unit.

On open plains, this iron giant could even execute short bursts of supersonic, ground-hugging charges.

On his Tactical faceplate, the reticle framing the HCP had turned into a high-threat purple marker.

However, with the datalink jammed, it was merely Amber’s own local tag.

The “Zealot’s” main monitor continuously scanned its surroundings while the Gauss rifle in its hands fired nonstop. In addition to its head, its entire body was covered with numerous sensors.

In terms of situational awareness alone, HCPs were firmly at the top of all land combat units.

Therefore, Amber didn’t dare make a reckless move.

He carefully observed the battlefield and discovered that the rest of his team had reacted quickly to the ambush.

Though two armored vehicles had already been destroyed, the other personnel and vehicles seemed to have scattered and taken cover in the mountain forest. Even the ten transport trucks had been forced into the woods.

This prevented the Imperial “Zealot” from wiping them out in one fell swoop, even though its integrated sensor suite kept spotting one “gopher” after another.

But Amber knew that dragging this out was not a viable solution.

This “Zealot” was definitely not operating alone.

It was merely the spearhead of the assault, attacking first to catch Amber and his forces completely by surprise.

And judging by the results, its tactical objective had certainly been achieved.

Amber’s mind raced, searching for a counter-strategy. His only chance was to defeat this HCP and escape before the Empire’s follow-up forces arrived.

It sounded no different from a suicide mission, but Amber and his people had no other choice.

Just as Amber was about to figure out a way to regroup with the others, the “Zealot” ahead of him paused.

Then, it “looked up” toward the horizon, and the laser close-in defense turrets flanking its main head monitor flashed several times.

Amber followed the direction of the “Zealot’s” laser fire and saw a small fireball erupt in the sky.

Judging from the falling debris, it appeared to have been a reconnaissance drone.

“Friendly forces?”

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind. He glanced at his tactical situation map, which hadn’t updated for some time. According to the last update, the nearest unit was still the main breakout force from Yassin Base, led by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

Although they had been heading in this direction, he didn’t know their precise location. Based on a normal marching pace, Amber calculated they were still some distance away.

Even if they had spotted the situation here, they were too far away to provide any immediate help.

“Looks like I’ll have to handle this myself.”

Chapter 63: The Counterattack Begins Now

Although friendly forces had been spotted, Amber’s current situation was still dire.

With his current equipment, he could hardly damage this HCP.

And after being caught off guard by the Empire’s troops, the entire team was scattered.

This meant that the only three pieces of equipment in the team capable of fighting an HCP—the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, the Phalanx Breaker 2 exoskeleton, and the portable electromagnetic cannon—were currently impossible for Amber to locate.

The electronic attack had jammed the entire datalink. Friendly units whose positions could normally be seen with a glance at his tactical faceplate were now harder to find than the enemy.

Under these circumstances, Amber had no way to regroup his forces.

In the shadows of the forest, Amber constantly adjusted his position, keeping himself behind the Zealot.

Although a large portion of the HCP’s back was taken up by the plasma thruster array, it was still equipped with numerous sensors, meaning the area directly behind it wasn’t a complete blind spot.

But these rear sensors were more often used to provide early warnings for attacks coming from its visual blind spots.

HCPs invariably had 360-degree cockpits, giving their pilots a full-sphere field of view. However, a human’s field of vision is only 120 degrees, limiting what they can see at any given moment.

The main monitor in the head, while integrating a vast array of composite reconnaissance devices and being the most powerful detection unit on the entire HCP, was linked to the pilot’s head via a head-tracking control system.

It amplified the pilot’s head movements inside the cockpit.

Generally, without changing the machine’s orientation, a pilot only needed to turn their head 35 to 40 degrees to make the main monitor swivel 180 degrees and see the view directly behind.

The prerequisite, of course, was that the pilot had to actually turn their head.

So as long as Amber could avoid tripping the Zealot’s rear sensor attack warnings while staying out of its main monitor’s line of sight, he could, to a certain extent, remain undetected by the HCP.

On open plains with no cover, this would be impossible.

The HCP’s rear sensors, no matter how poor, would still detect an approaching human unit and issue a warning.

But with the help of his optical invisibility and the complex mountain forest terrain, Amber was confident he could pull it off.

“Lilith, I’m giving you access to the communications and datalink modules.”

“Received. Accessing modules now!”

As Amber stayed hidden and maneuvered, he began trying another way to find the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle.

The current communication channels and datalink were jammed and disconnected due to the electronic attack, but that didn’t mean the units had stopped transmitting and receiving signals.

In fact, under the electronic attack, the communication modules of all units had triggered their emergency modes and were now operating at higher power than usual, attempting to restore contact and data transmission.

But in this complex electromagnetic environment, faced with the ridiculously powerful HCP electronic warfare module, the smaller devices were temporarily at a disadvantage.

For a human, finding those overloaded communication modules under these conditions would be impossible.

But for an AI that could directly read digital signals, it was doable.

If one were to visualize the scene, it was as if after Lilith accessed the datalink and communication modules, she had briefly left Amber’s body, becoming a string of digital signals drifting through the surrounding space.

While avoiding the violent and chaotic storm of electronic attacks and viral data streams, she located the high-power communication devices operating nearby one by one.

In Lilith’s “eyes,” these radiation sources were as bright as a bonfire in the dead of night.

“Marking signal sources based on radiation intensity!”

“Relative positions of signal sources projected on the tactical faceplate. Signal strength is differentiated by color depth!”

Lilith was highly efficient in her serious mode. Or rather, for an artificial intelligence, this was her actual job—not peeking at Amber’s study materials.

“Good job, Lilith! Keep it up!”

“Hehe~”

Ignoring the AI’s foolish giggle, Amber quickly scanned the large number of red markers on his tactical faceplate.

These were the communication modules Lilith had marked; the deeper the color, the higher the signal source’s radiation intensity.

Among them, Amber estimated that the majority of the markers with shallower colors and similar operating modes were the personal communication modules of the Mobile Infantry.

And just as he had predicted, they were scattered throughout the mountain forest.

At the same time, Amber spotted the signal source with the deepest color at a single glance.

In the entire team, only the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle could reach such a high signal radiation intensity.

Now that he had confirmed the target’s location, Amber wasted no more time and began to sneak in that direction.

At the same time, the Zealot gave Amber an opportunity.

Its pilot, perhaps feeling a certain thrill from the overwhelming battle, had developed a whim.

In the middle of the fight, the guy actually holstered his Gauss rifle on the weapon rack on its back and drew the ornate physical greatsword.

As the greatsword’s hilt connected to the power interface on the mechanical arm, the edges of the blade lit up with the blue glow of plasma.

Then, amidst a sudden burst of blue light from its thruster array, the Zealot lunged in a certain direction.

“Fuck! That psycho.”

Amber, who used the opportunity to quickly pass through, couldn’t help but curse under his breath.

There were no targets in his team worthy of drawing a sword for.

Switching to a physical greatsword at this moment could only mean one thing: the pilot was planning to start slaughtering “soft targets” like the Mobile Infantry.

Amber didn’t waste this opportunity, which was likely bought with the lives of his Mobile Infantry. He quickly found the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, which was hidden behind a dense patch of trees under a camouflage net.

Amber’s sudden appearance after deactivating his optical invisibility startled the three Mobile Infantry soldiers near the vehicle. One high-strung rookie even nearly opened fire.

But Amber had no time to talk to them. After ordering them to find another hiding spot and keep watch, he took a few quick strides through the rear hatch and into the vehicle’s interior.

Inside the crew compartment, the three frantically working electronic warfare technicians looked as if they’d seen their savior and backbone the moment they saw Amber.

After losing contact with everyone else, the jamming vehicle’s crew, lacking initiative without their commander, had no idea where to maneuver.

If not for the most senior vehicle crew in the convoy sacrificing themselves to draw the Zealot’s fire, this jamming vehicle would have been discovered and destroyed long ago.

“It was Old John and his son…” one of the electronic warfare technicians said, his expression mournful. “I’d never seen Old John so brave.”

Amber couldn’t help but clench his fists. He remembered the father and son.

The former was the first soldier to step forward and report to him when he had rescued this ambushed team.

But Amber had no time to mourn for the father and son. Every second wasted could mean another soldier’s death.

“Lilith, I’m giving you control of the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle’s electronic warfare module.”

Amber pulled a quick-connect cable from his combat suit’s wrist and plugged it into the jamming vehicle’s EW module.

“Counterattack. And then hack them to hell and back!”

“Understood!”

Chapter 64: I’m Screwed! Surrounded by Imperial Forces!

Electronic warfare on the battlefield, to put it bluntly, is a contest of equipment power between two sides.

Building upon that, it’s a constant search for an opponent’s weaknesses to exploit and attack.

As technology has advanced and more and more electronic attack methods have been introduced, the intensity of electronic warfare is no longer what it used to be. Its complexity has become far greater than before.

Typically, the specific methods of an electronic attack involve jamming or implanting viruses into the enemy’s tactical communication networks, detection radars, and precision-guided weapons.

The frequencies covered include very high frequency, shortwave, microwave, and millimeter waves, as well as infrared and laser.

Therefore, relying on human effort alone is now insufficient to perfectly execute electronic attacks and defenses.

This has led to the adoption of ‘adaptive attack/defense’ systems in all vehicle-mounted, airborne, and shipborne electronic warfare modules on the modern battlefield.

This so-called ‘adaptive’ system is, in reality, the addition of a small AI to assist electronic warfare technicians in their electronic duels within complex electromagnetic environments.

And HCPs, including the ‘Zealot’, are all equipped with high-performance combat support AIs. In terms of strategy in an electronic warfare engagement, they hold a slight edge over a jamming vehicle.

Coupled with the fact that it was a surprise attack, it was only natural that the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle was caught completely off guard.

Although the three electronic warfare technicians in the vehicle were professionally trained, their lack of practical combat experience sent them into a panic during the sudden assault.

In the time between the initial electronic attack and Amber finding them, they hadn’t even managed to formulate a basic counter-attack plan.

But Amber had no time to lecture them now.

Because after Lilith took over the jamming vehicle’s electronic warfare module, she finally demonstrated the power a strong AI should possess.

During their recent escape, she had already finished studying the large number of books and textbooks on electronic warfare that Amber had given her.

In the blink of an eye, Lilith, who had spent a long time in a research institute and was not very familiar with contemporary electronic warfare, had become an expert.

Under her control, the vehicle-mounted electronic warfare module’s various attack methods were all linked together, orchestrated like a fine meal.

Multi-frequency, multi-mode electronic attacks completed the electronic countermeasures against the ‘Zealot’ in an extremely short amount of time.

As the ‘Zealot’ was suppressed, the previously jammed communication channels and datalink were finally restored.

Amber had Lilith write a temporary attack script and left it in the jamming vehicle’s electronic warfare module.

After telling the three technicians to continue suppressing the HCP by ‘assisting the script’ and to conduct tactical reconnaissance of the entire battlefield to find other Imperial units, Amber took action.

He unplugged the quick-connect cable from the electronic warfare module, picked up his weapon, and left the jamming vehicle.

At the same time, everyone in the unit finally heard that man’s familiar and calm voice over the communications channel.

“All units, the tactical communication network and datalink are restored. Electronic attack countermeasures have begun.”

“The enemy HCP has been marked as a purple high-threat unit.”

“All personnel, excluding the comms and jamming vehicles, dismount and take cover in the woods.”

“Mobile Infantry who can still move, spread out and do your best to avoid the enemy HCP’s front. The only part you can attack is the plasma thruster array on its back, so do not fire rashly unless you are certain of your shot.”

“Indirect fire Team A, abandon your mortars for now and switch to infantry combat. Team B, man the portable electromagnetic cannon and find a good position to set it up.”

“Friendly forces are on the way. Hold steady. We can win.”

Inside the ‘Zealot’s’ cockpit, the pilot, who had been amusing himself by ‘slapping people with his greatsword’, frowned slightly as he saw a long string of electronic attack warnings pop up on the multi-function display to his lower left.

After receiving orders from the General Staff of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, Lieutenant Rudolf, a member of the Imperial Navy Marines—Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group Special Operations Group—was airdropped onto Robert IV with his teammates.

They were supposed to have jumped from the orbital assault ship much earlier to support the ‘Mongoose’ special operations platoon, but they ran into several Federation capital ships whose fusion reactors exploded within the atmosphere.

By the time the airdrop window reopened, the ‘Mongoose’ platoon on the ground had already been completely wiped out.

When they were once again tasked with airdropping to the surface, their mission had changed to searching for a remnant Federation force in a designated area.

Then, in coordination with the Blood Dragon Regiment’s orbital paratroopers, they were to annihilate these remnants.

Rudolf knew that this remnant Federation force was no ordinary unit. They clearly possessed a secret; otherwise, the General Staff would not have deployed their special operations group.

Moreover, the unit they were coordinating with was the ‘Blood Dragon Regiment’, which also had a special status.

His airdrop batch consisted of five HCPs in total, deployed to the search area provided by the General Staff, with each assigned its own sub-area to conduct armed reconnaissance.

Once they found the Federation remnants, sowed chaos, and pinned them down, the ‘Blood Dragon Regiment’ operating on the perimeter would close in to finish the job.

However, Rudolf wasn’t interested in any so-called secret. He felt that was something for the ‘big shots above’ to worry about.

As an Imperial soldier, his job was to obey orders and complete every mission.

On top of that, he could find his own entertainment in the process.

For instance, when facing enemy infantry units, he enjoyed playing tricks with the tip of his physical greatsword.

Inside the panoramic cockpit, with its 360-degree surrounding view, the HCP’s mechanical arm raised the physical greatsword to the right.

Rudolf glanced at the tip of the massive blade. A mobile infantry soldier was impaled upon it.

Before the plasma field at the blade’s edge, any armor plate was as flimsy as paper.

For this very reason, ‘skewering’ a fragile infantry unit completely intact had become a highly challenging maneuver.

And Rudolf, in this particular skill, could be called a master.

But now that these Federation remnants were finally fighting back, he was prepared to get serious.

Rudolf casually flicked his right hand. Mirrored by the head-tracking control system, the ‘Zealot’s’ right arm, gripping the greatsword, flung the infantryman’s corpse off the blade.

He looked to his left, where the cockpit’s holographic device projected a small figure less than thirty centimeters tall. It resembled an ancient gladiator.

This was the virtual avatar for this ‘Zealot’s’ built-in combat support AI.

“Spiculus, turn off the head-tracking control system’s walking compensation, reduce mecha attitude compensation to thirty percent, allocate surplus computing power to the electronic warfare module, and switch to interference countermeasure mode.”

Rudolf glanced at the tactical map at the friendly forces still on the perimeter and added:

“Notify those nobles to start closing the net.”

“As you command, my lord.”

A deep male voice resounded in the cockpit, a perfect match for the virtual avatar’s appearance.

With the walking compensation turned off and the mecha attitude compensation reduced, Rudolf immediately felt the weight of the machine’s body through the feedback from the ‘head-tracking control system’.

It was as if he had truly become a giant.

For pilots who were used to the mecha attitude compensation, this sense of weight was unwelcome.

But for Rudolf, it allowed him to better immerse himself in the battle, to feel the thrill of dancing on the firing line.

The sight of the ‘Zealot’ in the center of the woodland slaughtering mobile infantry and casually tossing the body aside enraged the soldiers, who had initially been somewhat panicked.

Although they were all cannon fodder meant to fill the lines, they still possessed the basic dignity of a warrior.

However, Amber was still on the comms channel, placating the mobile infantrymen and telling them not to act rashly.

He knew perfectly well that the Imperial HCP pilot’s goal in doing this was to provoke these soldiers.

He wanted to make the mobile infantry take the initiative and attack, making it easier for him to wipe them all out in one fell swoop.

“Sir! Other enemy unit signals detected! One hundred forty-two in number, distance is decreasing rapidly!”

“Signal characteristics compared against the database. Preliminary assessment is one hundred twenty-two infantry units, eighteen light multi-legged war machine units, and two suspected HCP units!”

The electronic warfare technician’s slightly nervous voice came through Amber’s earpiece, bringing with it some rather bad news.

“Roger that. Begin suppression as soon as they enter range. Don’t worry about the effect, just suppress them for now.”

“And, don’t be nervous. Just do your jobs.”

Amber responded in a relatively calm voice. In this situation, as the team’s commander, he absolutely could not display negative emotions like panic, nervousness, or indecisiveness, otherwise the entire team’s morale would suffer.

But to say that Amber wasn’t panicking would be an outright lie.

After discovering they were surrounded by Imperial forces, he was actually panicking like hell.

But Amber knew that panicking wouldn’t solve the problem, and the Imperial forces weren’t giving him much time.

This Imperial ‘Zealot’ was clearly trying to pin down their remnant force, waiting for the main army to close in.

In the current situation, since they couldn’t shake off this ‘Zealot’, their only option was to find a way to destroy it.

For some reason, Amber had a premonition—this sudden hunt down operation by the Empire might be aimed specifically at him.

This, perhaps, was something he could use to his advantage.

Chapter 65: Desperation and Breakthrough

The battle in the mountain forest suddenly intensified.

On one side were the Imperial HCPs, who held the advantage and only needed to pin down the enemy while waiting for friendly forces to close the net.

On the other were the remnants of the Federation forces, who had suffered heavy losses in a surprise attack and were now seeking a chance to break out.

When Rudolf, piloting the Zealot, began to fight seriously again, he noticed that the Federation soldiers, who had been fleeing in panic, had suddenly become organized and were starting to mount effective counterattacks.

The HCP’s warning systems began to frequently detect a large number of attacks coming from the machine’s rear.

This forced Rudolf to abandon his posturing, standing with his sword planted in the ground, and instead maintain constant movement, adjusting his machine’s orientation.

The Zealot’s armor plating was tough, and it was also equipped with a deflector shield generator, making it virtually invincible against infantry and light armored units.

It could even hold its own against the charged particle cannons or heavy electromagnetic cannons of some heavy units.

But no equipment in this world was truly invincible. As powerful as HCPs were, they had their weaknesses.

And that weakness was the plasma thruster array on its back, which emitted a faint blue glow.

This section could not be fitted with armor plating, nor could the deflector shield cover it when active—after all, the shield could not provide one-way defense.

Even capital ships would briefly deactivate their deflector shields when firing to ensure their own attacks weren’t blocked by the field.

Although the newest capital ships, equipped with new deflector shield generators, could open a dedicated fire channel near the main cannons or missile silos by altering the magnetic field constraints.

This way, they no longer needed to completely deactivate the deflector shields when attacking, greatly increasing the warship’s survivability.

But it was clear that such technology was not yet available for HCPs.

Therefore, regardless of the model, the propulsion unit on the back of any HCP was its greatest vulnerability.

“It seems the commander of this unit has considerable experience fighting HCPs.”

“But how would the garrison of a border planet like this have such experience?”

Though Rudolf was somewhat puzzled, his hands and feet never stopped moving.

Under his control, the cumbersome Zealot maneuvered nimbly through the mountain forest, evading all the anti-vehicle missiles coming from its rear blind spots.

Although the Zealot’s detection units and fire-control system were somewhat affected by the electronic attack from the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, the close-in defense laser turrets and the Gauss rifle in the HCP’s hands continued to fire rhythmically, reaping life after life.

Next, the Zealot raised its left arm and opened the multi-function electromagnetic launcher mounted beneath it.

Then, as if scattering candy, it “sprinkled” a fan-shaped volley of plasma bombs.

A moment later, dazzling fireballs erupted throughout the forest.

At this time of year, the trees on Robert IV were in their peak season for secreting natural resin, so it wasn’t long before the explosions from the plasma bombs started a forest fire that began to spread.

An HCP wouldn’t suffer much damage even if caught in the blaze; at worst, it could use its powerful mobility to leap out of the fire.

But for mobile infantry and armored vehicles, it was a situation that had to be handled with care. Although they had adaptive temperature regulators, they couldn’t withstand being roasted over an open fire.

Inside the Zealot’s cockpit, Rudolf’s face was illuminated by the surrounding flames, a cruel smile playing on his lips.

“If I were to set this mountain ablaze, how would you respond?”

“What a goddamn psycho.”

Watching the flames gradually rise in the surrounding forest and the expanding fire zone on the tactical map, Amber couldn’t help but curse.

The pilot of this Zealot seemed to have lost his patience and resorted to such an extreme measure.

But Amber had to admit that it was effective.

The ever-growing fire began to compress the mobile infantry’s room to maneuver, while the Zealot simply needed to keep its back to the blaze to avoid most attacks aimed at its rear.

Just as Amber was caught in a dilemma, the voice he had long been waiting for finally came through his earpiece.

“Sir, Fire Team B is in the preset position. The portable electromagnetic cannon is set up!”

The direct fire support he had been waiting for was finally ready.

“Understood. We only have one shot. Overload the motor voltage and await my command to fire.”

Amber climbed up from his hiding spot. Staring at the distant Zealot, his body tensed, ready to spring into action.

“Lilith, grant full access to the exoskeleton. Interface with the system and assist me in combat.”

“Understood, Master!”

“Master?”

Amber had no time to dwell on Lilith’s strange form of address. His mind was completely focused on how to take down the Imperial HCP before him.

“Combat stimulants, psionic amplification agent, maximum dosage injection!”

He felt two cold liquids enter his body through intramuscular injections in both arms.

Amber immediately felt his physical and mental fatigue vanish, his entire being instantly clear-headed and entering a state of heightened arousal.

A mysterious region deep within his brain began to activate. His nearly depleted psionic reserves suddenly began to swell as if a floodgate had been opened.

At the same time, faint mechanical whirring sounds came from various parts of his exoskeleton. That was Lilith, having interfaced with the system, running a rapid self-check and modifying the limit parameters.

As a voice in his earpiece announced, “Limits disengaged!”, Amber shot forward like a phantom, reactivating his optical invisibility.

From the initial ‘soul transmigration into a troop transport’ until now, this was the first time Amber had fully unleashed his power as a level three psionic user.

In previous battles, he had mostly acted as a commander, controlling the overall situation.

Even during the assault on the Core Communications Room and the attack on the two heavy sets of Powered Armor, he had held back.

But this time, facing an enemy with an excessively high threat level, he had to go all out and take the role of the main damage dealer.

“Everyone, find cover and begin suppression fire.”

The moment the order was given, the mountain forest erupted into a frenzy.

Every soldier who could fire shot at the rampaging Zealot with reckless abandon.

Dense, rain-like gunfire mixed with 40mm armor-piercing grenades caused red ‘threat warning’ lights to flash continuously inside Rudolf’s 360-degree cockpit.

Just as he was wondering if these Federation remnants had finally lost their nerve and were coming out to die, a bolded warning message flashed on his screen.

[Caution, Level Three psionic fluctuation detected.]

“Level Three psionics?!”

Rudolf immediately thought of the number one target on his mission brief: a Federation Psionic Agent who was actually a rogue Imperial operative.

“Haha, I’ve hit the jackpot!”

Rudolf turned his head slightly in the direction of the psionic fluctuation warning, and the Zealot’s main monitor on its head swiveled in sync.

The composite optical lens beneath the ‘knight’s helmet’ zoomed its magnification while switching between optical, infrared, and other modes, accompanied by the whirring of stepper motors.

Finally, in infrared mode, it identified a rapidly approaching humanoid unit.

“The little mouse has finally decided to come out.”

Rudolf activated ‘pupil-tracking aim’, and the Gauss rifle in the HCP’s hand, along with the laser turrets on either side of the main monitor, immediately aimed in that direction.

But in the next moment, two man-portable anti-vehicle missiles from the side forced him to turn and prioritize shooting them down with his close-in defense weapons.

During that brief delay, Amber closed the distance and was right in front of the HCP.

When Rudolf tried to lock onto Amber again, he found that the man’s speed was so fast that his own eyes could barely keep up.

“Spiculus, switch the fire-control unit to auto-lock mode!”

Just as Rudolf issued the command to his combat assistance AI, Amber’s maneuvering finally exposed the Zealot’s weakness to the designated firing position.

“Team B! Now! Fire!”

For the first time, Amber’s voice lost its calm, but the two mobile infantrymen in the preset position were even more nervous than he was.

Almost as soon as they heard Amber’s command, before he had even finished speaking, the gunner impatiently slammed the firing button of the portable electromagnetic cannon.

As the motors of the portable electromagnetic cannon began to surge with power to raise the voltage, alarms blared inside the Zealot’s cockpit!

[Warning! Strong magnetic field reaction detected!]

Rudolf finally realized it was a trap. He desperately twisted his body, trying to move his vulnerable back out of the line of fire.

“Dammit, not enough time!”

Since the firing distance was only a hundred meters or so, the tungsten alloy penetrator it fired had already hit the target the instant the electromagnetic cannon went off.

In that moment, it was as if countless electric serpents were slithering across the Zealot’s exterior. The entire machine was enveloped in a strong electric field, and even the wild grass on the surrounding ground was scorched by the electromagnetic vortex.

But compared to charged particle attacks like those from heavy particle cannons or charged particle cannons, the kinetic energy attack of an electromagnetic cannon required the deflector shield generator to output even more power to deflect it.

For Amber, who was near the Zealot, time seemed to slow down.

He watched as the high-speed tungsten alloy penetrator broke through one electrical arc after another, only to have its trajectory twisted by the magnetic field. In the end, it carved a deep gash into the Zealot’s shoulder pauldron, nearly grinding through it.

Then it was deflected away.

Having survived the close call, the HCP almost simultaneously swept its Gauss rifle along the electromagnetic cannon’s trajectory and followed up with a short-range missile.

On Amber’s command interface, the portraits of the two mobile infantrymen from Fire Team B turned gray, indicating no vital signs.

“Fuck, this is so frustrating…”

The outcome of the attack nearly made Amber pass out.

The flow of time returned to normal. The HCP, a steel demon to ordinary people, had already turned back around.

The optical lens assembly under its ‘knight’s helmet’ was staring fixedly at him, the red light it emitted now looking utterly savage.

“The game is over, little mouse.”

A gruff male voice boomed from the HCP’s external speakers.

Without thinking, Amber threw out two anti-infrared smoke grenades and dropped low, rolling into the rapidly spreading smoke.

The Zealot’s pilot seemed to be in a frenzy. At some point, the HCP’s weapon had been switched back to the physical greatsword.

Under Rudolf’s control, the mechanical arm swung the greatsword into the smoke where Amber had disappeared, changing the slash to a slap at the last second.

The sudden increase in the attack’s area of effect made Amber instinctively slide and arch his back, barely dodging the edge of the greatsword’s strike.

At that moment, Amber realized that although the HCP pilot was a psychopath, his piloting skills were top-notch; he was definitely no amateur.

“I got a little too cocky…”

Amber continuously circled the Zealot, dodging one attack after another from the physical greatsword.

The enemy’s intent to torture him was giving him opportunities, but not many.

The deflector shield rendered all the weapons on his person useless.

Even the aerogel grenades he had planned to use to blind the enemy’s sensors were useless for the time being.

Just as Amber was about to gamble on unleashing a psionic blast at the Zealot, a series of attacks clanged against the Zealot’s outer armor plates.

It was fire from a 40mm chain gun.

With a roar of its engine, a Mongoose-4 armored vehicle burst through the smoke, slamming into the steel giant at full throttle.

The Zealot, having just completed a vertical slash, didn’t have time to retract its sword and was struck on the right foot by the front of the armored vehicle.

The deflector shield activated again, and the intense electromagnetic vortex ablated the front half of the vehicle beyond recognition.

As the giant swung its left arm and sent the armored vehicle flying with a single punch, Amber saw two figures appear in the distant trees.

He recognized one of them as Randall, and the other was the wounded soldier who had escaped to the planet’s surface with him.

He thought his name was Tom.

The two Federation Navy soldiers, who had never experienced ground combat, were now operating a man-portable anti-vehicle missile launcher, locking onto the target against a backdrop of flames.

“AMBER!!!”

Amidst Major Randall’s roar, a man-portable anti-vehicle missile streaked out of the forest, trailing smoke, and finally struck the Zealot’s plasma thruster array.

The shaped charge warhead even pierced through the thruster array and hit the power conduits behind it.

[Warning! Plasma thruster array under attack!]

[Assessing damage… Thruster array failure: 40%…65%]

[Power conduits damaged. Subcritical reactor output decreasing!]

A series of warnings sent Rudolf into a blind rage. He couldn’t believe this group of scurrying rats had managed to get the better of him.

With some difficulty, he aimed his sword-wielding right arm in the direction of the attack and threw another set of plasma bombs.

Powerless to stop it, Amber watched as the plasma bombs arced through the air and landed near Randall and the others, erupting into a fireball that consumed their figures.

A complex emotion instantly welled up inside him, surging uncontrollably into that mysterious region deep within his brain and shattering some kind of inner shackle.

When Rudolf pulled his attention back to the Psionic Agent who had been struggling to survive under his sword, a deep red message appeared on the main screen of his 360-degree cockpit.

[WARNING! LEVEL FIVE PSIONIC FLUCTUATION DETECTED!]

Chapter 66: Welcome to the ‘Dismantle Mechs by Hand’ Club

“Level five?! Weren’t you just level three?”

The anger on Rudolf’s face was gradually replaced by a look of fear.

The contradictory emotions of discrimination and fear that ordinary people held toward psionic users were perfectly embodied in Rudolf.

When it came to psionic users, the Empire was no better than the Federation.

In fact, due to the widespread popularity of genetic engineering in the Empire, many people, from the nobility down to the common folk, subscribed to the so-called ‘theory of genetic superiority and inferiority.’

In their eyes, the appearance of ‘draconic’ features and a natural, drastic increase in physical strength without modifications were signs of a pure, optimized genome.

Psionic users, on the other hand, were merely failed products of genetic evolution.

Otherwise, why would only one psionic user appear among tens of thousands of people?

But at the same time, soldiers like Rudolf had witnessed the true power of high-level psionic users in certain internal briefings.

Although his clearance only allowed him to view data on psionic users up to level six, it was enough to instill in him a deep fear of these ‘failures of genetic evolution.’

After all, a level-six psionic user was the second-highest level among all active human psionics in the last century.

That was why Rudolf was plunged into fear upon seeing the warning of level-five psionic fluctuations.

Moreover, the psionic leveling system wasn’t as simple as merely ‘adding one level.’

Theoretically, with each level gained, a psionic user’s power grew exponentially.

Not to mention, in all his years of service, Rudolf had never heard of a psionic user advancing in rank during an emergency, much less skipping a level.

This clearly abnormal phenomenon filled him with dread, yet he also prepared to continue his attack.

Even though his heart was nearly consumed by fear, the thought of retreating never once crossed his mind.

Despite certain ‘minor flaws’ in his character and conduct, Rudolf would never forget his identity as a soldier, a member of the Imperial Royal Marines.

He was keenly aware of this, and of his duty as a soldier.

Civilians could choose to retreat when facing an insurmountable foe, but a soldier could not.

“Even if utterly defeated, we will regroup in hell.”

Muttering the words his drill instructor had spoken on his first day in the Imperial Royal Marines, Rudolf controlled the HCP’s right arm, tightened its grip on the physical greatsword, and swung at the now-levitating Amber.

But just as the blade was about to connect, Amber’s figure twisted away in the air like an elusive fish.

Although Amber didn’t know why he had suddenly broken through, or what his exact psionic level was now, the sensation of psionic energy endlessly welling up from the depths of his mind told him this was no dream.

In his previous life, during his ‘lone wolf’ gaming days, Amber’s class had been a high-level psionic user. He was naturally skilled at controlling this kind of power, feeling like a fish back in water.

Joining the Fluffy Pink Bunnies guild later and becoming the main fleet commander was another story entirely.

As Amber adapted to his resurgent psionic power and controlled his body to float in the air, he himself was stunned.

“Holy shit, I can float? Isn’t that the mark of a level-five psionic user?!”

“Damn, did I just skip a level in my breakthrough?!”

Before Amber could marvel any further, he saw the Zealot’s physical greatsword slashing toward him.

With a thought, the psionic energy enveloping him began to circulate, naturally guiding his body to graze past the blade.

After dodging the strike, Amber didn’t linger. He skimmed along the ground and shot between the Zealot’s legs.

Having re-acclimated to his psionic abilities, he realized that while he had indeed broken through, he hadn’t truly become a level-five psionic user.

Instead, for some unknown reason, his psionic reserves and activity had reached level-five standards.

It was like an overfilled water skin; it looked bigger, but it was actually at risk of bursting.

This temporary breakthrough naturally wouldn’t last. Amber estimated it would probably drop back to level-four standards before long.

Therefore, he had to take advantage of his current power to finish off this HCP before that happened.

“Try this.”

When Rudolf maneuvered the Zealot for another sword strike, Amber no longer dodged.

He raised his hands and, at the moment the blade was about to fall, blocked the greatsword’s strike with an invisible pair of hands formed from psionic energy.

His attack thwarted, Rudolf subconsciously tried to pull the greatsword back, only to find the physical weapon stuck in the psionic agent’s hands as if glued there, completely immovable.

At a stalemate, Rudolf took a step forward and activated the deflector shield, despite the drop in the subcritical reactor’s power output.

Upon contact with Amber, the invisible electromagnetic field instantly transformed into countless electric serpents that lashed out at him. But Amber remained calm, simultaneously activating his own psionic shield.

The strong electric field and Psionics, two forces representing the material and the metaphysical, clashed in a duel between Rudolf and Amber.

“Lilith, disable the psionic inhibitors on my tactical faceplate!”

Seeing that they were locked in a stalemate amidst a spectacular display of sparks, arcs, and electromagnetic vortices, Amber decided to ‘raise the stakes’ without hesitation.

The psionic inhibitor function on the tactical faceplate couldn’t normally be disabled; not even Amber himself had the authority.

But now, with Lilith, such permissions were irrelevant to him.

“Understood, Master! Bypassing authorization protocols… Psionic inhibitors disabled!”

Lilith didn’t hesitate in the slightest. She knew that she and Amber were one now; it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they lived or died together.

Therefore, she executed all of Amber’s similar commands unconditionally.

When the built-in psionic inhibitors in the psionic agent’s tactical faceplate were deactivated, Amber felt like Unit-01 after having its restraints removed.

A violent surge of psionic energy erupted, almost uncontrollably, but he managed to channel it outward through his psionic shield.

Boom!

A chaotic psionic shockwave instantly burst forth with Amber at its center.

The indiscriminate blast not only shattered the exoskeleton and tactical faceplate he was wearing but also blasted the Zealot’s physical greatsword into several pieces.

Even the Zealot’s torso and its numerous sensors sustained varying degrees of damage.

Small components were shattered by the shockwave, and the electromagnetic muscle bundles in its limbs snapped.

Rudolf only felt the panoramic display in his cockpit suddenly go black. The holographic combat assistance AI, Spiculus, who had been floating in the air, also vanished.

In the entire cockpit, only a single image from the optical lens, used for emergencies, remained.

[Warning, psionic blast detected. System offline!]

[Core system rebooting. Please wait.]

“It’s over.”

An ominous premonition flashed through Rudolf’s mind. He knew this psionic agent, who’d just had a battlefield breakthrough, wouldn’t pass up this perfect opportunity.

And Amber’s next move certainly didn’t disappoint him.

After the violent psionic eruption, he forcibly condensed the energy around his body.

Then, Amber pushed off the ground with his legs, launching himself like a cannonball toward the stationary Zealot.

Boom!

It was as if an invisible sledgehammer had slammed into the Zealot’s frontal armor.

Inside the cockpit, Rudolf felt as if his small car had been hit by a heavy truck.

The safety harness of his pilot seat instantly tightened, pinning him firmly in place.

Amid the massive crash, the stationary steel giant was knocked backward.

If the HCP hadn’t been malfunctioning, Rudolf could have easily used the attitude control system and the plasma thruster array to stop the backward momentum and get back on his feet.

But unfortunately, the HCP was currently rebooting and was completely incapable of performing these actions.

The Empire’s Zealot stood at a height of 9.6 meters, which was relatively tall among common HCPs.

The cockpit was about seven meters off the ground, meaning the pilot was essentially fighting from the height of a two-story building.

Under normal circumstances, this wasn’t an issue. The machine’s attitude compensation system, plasma thruster array, and vector thrusters all over its body could prevent accidental falls.

Failing that, using the head-tracking control system to prop the machine up with its mechanical arms was a common maneuver for HCP pilots.

Regrettably, Rudolf could do nothing now. The rebooting Zealot was like a cumbersome iron box trapping him inside.

With the Zealot’s feet as a pivot point and over seven meters of leverage acting on him, Rudolf was helplessly thrown backward with the machine.

It was like being hit by a car going one hundred kilometers per hour and getting thrown from the second floor.

The hydraulic G-suit he wore detected the anomaly and immediately began to help counteract the negative Gs.

But when the 98-ton Zealot crashed to the ground, the violent tremor nearly made Rudolf vomit the undigested food in his stomach.

Almost at the same moment the Zealot fell, its core system finally completed its reboot, and the virtual image of the combat assistance AI reappeared.

The onboard AI, Spiculus, quickly began a self-check of the machine.

But after the rapid self-check concluded, the dense red markers on the schematic of the machine’s modules filled Rudolf with despair.

In particular, the subcritical reactor had also malfunctioned. Its core temperature had been dropping ever since the reboot and could not be raised again.

This meant the plasma thermoelectric converter was completely unable to generate enough current to power the electromagnetic joints and muscle bundles throughout the machine.

Rudolf desperately tried to move via the head-tracking control system, but the Zealot’s arms lacked the strength to push the body up.

“Spiculus, divert all remaining energy to the propulsion unit! Get me up!”

A burst of blue light shot from the Zealot’s back.

Just as he was about to make a desperate gamble, intending to use a burst from the plasma thruster array to force the machine to move, another figure appeared.

Amber, having leaped into the air, landed from above, stomping down on the machine’s main frontal armor—which was also the cockpit hatch.

Level-five psionic materialization: area-of-effect gravity manipulation!

Boom!

As if an invisible giant hand had slapped it down, the Zealot, which had just barely lifted off the ground, was slammed back down again.

Its back-mounted thruster array was utterly destroyed by the brutal attack.

Rudolf was still making a final struggle. His eyes were locked on the Federation psionic agent who was ‘standing on his head.’

The laser turrets on either side of the main monitor on the head immediately took aim under the guidance of his eye-tracking aim.

But before they could finish recharging, Rudolf saw the psionic agent raise his hands and clench them in the empty air.

On the machine’s module schematic on the side of the main screen, two more red dots appeared.

All his offensive capabilities had been dismantled by this suddenly empowered psionic agent.

The muscles on Rudolf’s face twitched uncontrollably. He prepared to resort to his final measure.

“Spiculus, prepare for core meltdown.”

“Sir, are you sure you want to execute this operation? Please be advised, this operation will cause irreversible damage to the unit and may endanger the pilot’s life.”

“I confirm the operation.”

“Request received. Please state the core meltdown confirmation code!”

“THK—”

Just as Rudolf opened his mouth to say the confirmation code, he saw a flash of light before him, and the psionic agent standing on top of his machine was suddenly sent flying.

“Fuck!”

Tumbling through the air, Amber felt like his enhanced body was about to fall apart.

Just now, a high-velocity kinetic penetrator from a distance had slammed into his psionic shield.

Although Amber had reinforced the shield at the last second and successfully deflected the projectile, the immense kinetic energy still sent him flying backward.

Even with level-five psionic strength, a ‘bloated’ case like him couldn’t compare to a genuine level-five psionic user.

A true level-five could easily deflect a direct hit from an electromagnetic cannon.

After managing to use his Psionics to land, Amber didn’t look back and darted toward the nearby woods.

The sudden electromagnetic cannon attack meant that Imperial reinforcements had arrived. If he insisted on finishing off the Zealot, he might get caught in the crossfire.

Amber was incredibly frustrated that he hadn’t been able to kill that monstrous Zealot pilot.

But that was life. Not everything went smoothly.

Meanwhile, feeling the level-five psionic energy in his body beginning to fade, Amber picked up his pace and rushed toward Major Randall’s last known position.

When he had unleashed the psionic blast that paralyzed the Zealot, he had also sensed a human life sign in that direction.

Chapter 67: Friendly Forces Always Arrive at the Last Minute

Amber had actually thought Major Randall and Tom were both killed in action at first.

After all, the plasma bombs thrown by the Zealot looked like they had blanketed the area where they were.

So when he sensed life signs in that area, Amber was also stunned.

Were those two made of iron or something?

But regardless, Major Randall and Tom hadn’t even been wearing exoskeletons, using their own bodies to carry man-portable anti-vehicle missile launchers to create an opportunity for him. Amber would certainly remember this kindness.

Now that he had detected life signs, he naturally had to go take a look.

Worried about being sniped by a long-range electromagnetic cannon again, Amber activated his optical invisibility and practically hugged the edge of the blaze as he rushed over.

When he reached the spot where the two had been engulfed by the plasma bombs, he discovered their luck was more than just a little good.

In a patch of woods this small, a deep pit of modest size had somehow formed right where they were. It even contained some stagnant water that came up to his chest.

Evidently, the two of them had jumped into the pit the moment they saw the Zealot turn toward them.

The several plasma bombs that flew over afterward had all avoided the deep pit, not a single one rolling in to boil the pool of water.

At this moment, Randall and Tom were floating stiffly on the water’s surface, apparently knocked unconscious by the shockwave.

“What kind of insane luck is this.”

Amber couldn’t help but grumble to himself as he jumped into the pit, which was less than four meters deep. An odor of decay immediately assaulted his nostrils.

Clearly, the pit was filled with stagnant water, and the accumulation and rot of fallen leaves had produced a rather unpleasant smell.

“Hey, Major! Wake up!”

Amber slapped Randall’s face, but although the major groaned a few times, he showed no signs of waking.

He then slapped Tom’s face a few times and got the same ‘response’.

“Seriously, are all you Navy guys like this?”

Amber briefly checked their conditions. Neither seemed to have any external injuries; they had just been knocked unconscious by the shockwave from the plasma bombs exploding nearby.

Just as he was preparing to use his psionics to lift the two men out of the pit.

Amber spotted the throat mic and earpiece Randall was wearing.

Considering his own communication equipment had been destroyed in the earlier psionic blast, Amber took the two items off and put them on.

At the same time, he found Randall’s personal terminal on him.

After Randall had started moving with them, Amber had already temporarily connected his Navy-issue personal terminal to the company and platoon-level tactical network.

Although it only had the most basic communication and tactical map permissions, it was more than enough.

After having Lilith forcibly bypass the terminal’s security lock and making a few quick adjustments, Amber immediately began calling the communications relay vehicle.

“‘Scepter’ calling Vehicle Five, respond if you receive.”

After Amber called several times in a row, a response finally came from the other end of the line.

“Vehicle Five copies! ‘Scepter,’ your transmission is on ‘Alien’s’ ID. Are you two together?”

“Yes, I just found them. Sending a temporary command verification code now.”

To regain command authority, Amber sent a temporary command verification code through Randall’s personal terminal.

His own personal terminal had also been broken in the recent psionic blast.

Although the storage module seemed fine, he was unable to use its other functions for the time being.

Once the temporary command verification code was authenticated, Amber reactivated the command module on the personal terminal.

Although Major Randall’s Navy-model terminal was indeed rather rudimentary when it came to land warfare, it was sufficient for Amber’s temporary use.

Soon, the communications vehicle followed Amber’s instructions and issued a tactical retreat as the current highest operational directive.

After all, the Empire’s follow-up forces were already on their way. If the others wanted to retreat, they had to move quickly while the forest fire had not yet completely died down.

“Calling ‘Scepter,’ we’ve received a friendly forces communication request. Do you want us to patch it through?”

Friendly forces?

Hearing the message from the communications vehicle, Amber immediately thought of the friendly drone he had seen earlier. He guessed there was a high probability that these friendlies were the main force led by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

“Patch them through. Use an encrypted channel.”

A moment later, the communications relay vehicle patched the friendly communication request through to Amber’s terminal.

“Calling friendly forces in the vicinity, this is the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade. Our reconnaissance has detected a large number of Imperial troops executing a mobile encirclement on your position. We advise an immediate breakout to the southwest to link up with our forces.”

The communication came from a brigade-level unit, precisely the main breakout force led by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

“This is D Platoon, 2nd Mobile Infantry Company, 179th Combined Arms Battalion. We’ve received your advisory and are preparing to break out.”

Since a friendly unit was coming to support them, Amber was naturally more than willing.

After considering his unit’s current condition and the estimated time needed for a breakout, Amber decided to take a chance and continued speaking on the channel:

“Calling Brigade HQ, my platoon has suffered heavy losses and has many wounded, which is severely impacting our breakout speed. Requesting fire support from the brigade to cover our breakout.”

The brigade’s communications specialist was clearly not expecting Amber’s sudden request for fire support and hesitated for a moment.

“Uh… received. Please stand by.”

The communications specialist quickly relayed Amber’s request up the chain. In the brigade command vehicle, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, who was studying a map with several tactical staff officers, saw the fire support request and turned to a staff officer beside him:

“Wolf, can our current long-range fire support units provide assistance?”

“Sir, the fire support units retreating with us consist of one self-propelled artillery battalion and two ‘Stegosaurus’ rocket launcher vehicles.”

“Then have them prepare for fire support. I’m approving it. The survival of this friendly unit is critical to our subsequent plans.”

“Yes, sir!”

When the communications specialist informed Amber that Brigade HQ had approved his request for fire support, he was overjoyed and, without hesitation, chose a long-range rocket strike.

After all, he wasn’t a dedicated forward artillery observer and wasn’t particularly skilled at directing self-propelled artillery fire.

Rockets, however, were much more convenient. For an area-effect weapon like this, Amber just needed to provide a specific target area and have them saturate it with fire.

The guidance modules in the rocket warheads would help correct the landing position mid-flight. Even with satellite navigation down, other navigation methods could keep the margin of error within a completely acceptable range.

So in an emergency, they could even skip the ranging fire.

Soon, the brigade communications specialist transferred Amber’s call to the brigade’s Fire Direction Center.

In the main force, which had already reached a position ninety kilometers away from Amber, two ‘Stegosaurus’ rocket launcher vehicles and their accompanying ammunition reloading vehicles drove to an open area suitable for an attack. Then, they slowly raised their rear-mounted thirty-tube rocket pods.

Chapter 68: Long-Range Fire Support

“Attention friendly FO, this is FDC. Your call sign is now FO1, over.”

As soon as Amber connected with the Fire Direction Center, the voice of the fire direction commander came through his headset.

The man spoke quickly, but his words were still clear.

The FO and FDC he mentioned were abbreviations for forward artillery observer and Fire Direction Center.

“FDC, this is FO1. Requesting immediate long-range fire support to cover my unit’s retreat. Over.”

While replying to the fire direction commander, Amber used his Psionics to lift the two unconscious naval officers out of the deep crater.

Amber’s multitasking ability had improved significantly during this time, as he often found himself needing to fight on the battlefield while simultaneously handling multiple other tasks.

“FO1, this is FDC. Your request for fire support is confirmed. Please provide specific strike coordinates. Over.”

Listening to the message from his headset, Amber dragged Randall and the others behind a fallen tree, then got down on the ground himself and opened his tactical map.

Normally, when calling in long-range fire support, coordinates could be provided using a map grid or relative positioning. The latter method was also known as the polar coordinate system.

But in the current situation, Brigade HQ couldn’t get a precise fix on Amber’s position. If they used the polar coordinate system to designate the target, there was a high risk of serious friendly fire incidents.

So, Amber switched his tactical map to the common grid mode used by Federation Army units on Robert IV and overlaid it with a topographical contour layer.

Then, based on the direction and approximate distance of the Imperial forces previously detected by the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, he located the corresponding area on the map.

In the end, he designated the fire support zone in the area between the approximate location of the Imperial forces and his own position.

“FDC, this is FO1. Strike coordinates YD65983321, elevation… uh… 320. Over.”

Amber’s voice was a little tense. After all, if he reported the coordinates incorrectly, the rockets could very well land on his own head.

The fire direction commander entered the coordinates into the fire direction command terminal while repeating Amber’s information, then continued:

“FO1, this is FDC. Please provide a target description, method of engagement, and method of fire control. Over.”

Although the long list of information requested by the Fire Direction Center gave Amber a bit of a headache, he knew it was an unavoidable part of calling in long-range fire support under the current circumstances.

The military datalink used by the Federation Army on Robert IV was already a generation behind that of the Federation’s main forces.

The most crucial component, the wide-area command system that relied on satellite relays, couldn’t function properly with so few of their military satellites remaining.

In company or platoon-level operations like the ones Amber had commanded before, it was manageable. In small-scale battles, shortwave and laser communications could maintain the flow of information on the intra-squad datalink, and various smart terminals could actually be put to good use.

But at the combined-arms brigade level and higher, both methods were inadequate in terms of communication range and data transmission capacity.

It was barely enough to maintain communication between units, keep multiple reconnaissance drones operational, and confirm the general coordinates of a target.

But as for the kind of operation Amber had conducted before—designating a target on a command terminal and having other units simply follow the guidance and open fire—that was now very difficult to achieve in brigade-level combat under the current conditions.

So coordinating long-range fire support like this had become a sort of ‘return to tradition.’

But Amber knew that whether it was the war between the Federation and the Empire, the subsequent Imperial civil war, or even the ‘Great Melee’ that followed…

…this kind of ‘return to basics’ would only become more and more common.

It was only after the war began that the various factions of human society discovered that the war’s progression, the strategic situation, and the effectiveness of all sorts of new equipment…

…all fell far short of their pre-war estimates.

“FDC, this is FO1. Target is an estimated mixed force of infantry, multi-legged war machines, and HCPs. Request area suppression with plasma warheads. Spread pattern standard 7. Fire for effect when ready. Over!”

After quickly composing his thoughts, Amber relayed the required information as per the Fire Direction Center’s request.

The fire direction commander repeated the information over the comms and then transmitted it via the brigade and battalion level backbone network to two ‘Stegosaurus’ launchers on standby.

The rocket launcher’s already-raised launch pod immediately began to slowly rotate, adjusting its orientation according to the received coordinates.

The launch pods of these two ‘Stegosaurus’ launchers were already loaded with plasma warheads, so there was no need to switch ammunition types.

Plasma warheads were a frequently used type of ammunition for multiple rocket launchers, with destructive properties similar to plasma bombs.

However, they were more powerful, had a longer range, and could deliver area-of-effect saturation attacks.

Although sensor-fuzed munitions would be more effective against the Empire’s HCPs.

But Amber considered that he didn’t know the enemy’s exact position, and the main purpose of this fire mission was to cover their retreat, not to annihilate the Imperial forces, so he abandoned that idea.

His current plan was to use the direct impact of the plasma rockets, and the large-scale forest fire they would subsequently cause, to create a zone that would block the enemy’s infantry units and multi-legged war machines.

This would also make the two Imperial HCPs hesitate to act rashly, knowing there was long-range fire support available, forcing them to hold back.

As the two ‘Stegosaurus’ launchers were preparing to fire, the fire direction commander sent one final message to Amber:

“FO1, this is FDC. Fire mission begins in 20 seconds. Evacuate the strike zone and begin your withdrawal immediately. Good luck to you. Over!”

Normally, after calling in a long-range fire mission, the forward artillery observer would need to observe the impact zone and make a preliminary assessment of the strike’s effectiveness.

But for Amber and his group, who were in a hurry to retreat, this step could clearly be skipped.

Although Amber and the fire direction commander had gone back and forth with a lot of chatter while coordinating the long-range fire support…

…in reality, only two minutes had passed since they’d started communicating. A more professional forward artillery observer than Amber could have compressed that time even further.

Now, upon receiving the ‘fire mission begins in 20 seconds’ message, Amber switched his comms channel to his unit’s command frequency and ordered everyone to take the wounded and any operational vehicles and retreat southwest toward friendly forces.

He simultaneously started to leave the engagement zone, carrying Randall and Tom.

Even for someone as strong as Amber, carrying two grown men was an awkward affair; he had one tucked under his arm and the other slung over his shoulder.

This became especially true as his level-five Psionic strength began to recede like an ebbing tide. The two men, whose weight he had been reducing through ‘gravity manipulation,’ grew heavier and heavier.

“Is the Navy food this good? Damn, these guys are heavy even without exoskeletons.”

Grumbling, Amber quickly approached the Mongoose-4 that had just been sent flying by a punch from the Zealot.

After being knocked airborne, the armored vehicle had rolled several times on the ground and was basically on the verge of needing a major overhaul or being scrapped.

Just then, Amber saw two Mobile Infantry soldiers appear ahead of him. Judging by the direction they were sprinting, it seemed they were heading for the armored vehicle.

Seeing this, Amber ran over as well, planning to meet up with them.

“What’s going on? Didn’t I order you to retreat immediately?”

“Sir, we received a distress signal from the armored vehicle! Captain Margaret is inside!”

“What?”

Chapter 69: Thoughts on Going Premium

To be honest, I never thought this book would even make it to the point where I’d be writing a note like this.

The initial reason I started writing this book was mainly because I genuinely couldn’t find any novels in a similar genre to read, but I’ve always loved warships, mechs, and epic space battles.

I’ll admit, I first started writing to earn some extra money on the side. That’s why my last book was in the unfamiliar fantasy beast-taming genre. Unsurprisingly, it was a complete failure, and writing it was an agonizing experience.

So for this book, I just wanted to write something I enjoy and am familiar with. I figured I’d write some of it first, regardless of the outcome.

After I started publishing it, I really thought no one would read it. After all, the sci-fi category is already a niche, and the space opera genre is an even more specific sub-category within it.

But to my surprise, there have actually been readers following along, commenting, and offering suggestions.

So, since quite a few people are reading it, I’ll just keep writing! It’s certainly much more enjoyable to write this book than the last one.

The only issue is that I sometimes still have to do a lot of research. It would be pretty embarrassing if an expert reader pointed out a bug.

This is also why I can only manage to release two chapters a day for now—I really can’t write any faster.

In the last couple of days, some readers have commented asking me to write ten thousand words a day. One even more terrifying comment asked for tens of thousands a day.

All I can say is:

My writing style is something I’m sure the readers who have followed the story up until its premium release are familiar with.

If you can get used to this style and you enjoy the story, I welcome you all to continue following it.

Finally, I’m going to shamelessly ask for first-day subscriptions. Let me see just how many of you are out there reading, hahaha~

Love you all, Mua~

Chapter 70: Tactical Withdrawal

When Amber heard that Isabelle was also inside the armored vehicle, he was truly surprised. He really hadn’t expected the female spy to be so reckless.

“Wait, how did the Captain end up in this armored vehicle?”

Amber immediately rushed over, temporarily placing Randall and Tom on the ground, and prepared to help with the rescue.

“Sir, the vehicle commander of this APC went into the woods to relieve himself. When the Empire’s HCP attacked, he didn’t make it back to the vehicle and was killed,” the Mobile Infantry trooper at the front, momentarily stunned by the sight of Amber physically carrying two men, explained.

“Just now, seeing that you were in danger, Captain Margaret jumped into the vehicle to control the chain gun and charged out with us.”

“Huh? The Captain knows how to operate a chain gun?”

Hearing the trooper’s words, Amber was at a loss for what to say for a moment.

As for Isabelle, Amber had always maintained an attitude of temporary cooperation.

After all, she was a spy from the Star Dragon Empire and also came from a noble family.

In terms of ideology, she and Amber might as well have been living in different dimensions.

So all along, Amber had been careful to keep his distance from Isabelle, at most pinching her cheek occasionally.

In Amber’s eyes, their interactions were more like a kind of ‘putting on an act for the occasion’.

But now, hearing that this woman had dared to sit in an armored vehicle and charge at an HCP, Amber suddenly felt that the reality of the situation might be different from what he had imagined.

“Master, your heart rate has increased.”

Lilith’s voice suddenly appeared in his mind. After being stored in the micro-processor behind Amber’s neck, Lilith didn’t even need to use an earpiece to speak directly into Amber’s head.

Right now, the AI’s voice carried a hint of teasing.

“That’s because I was tired from carrying two fat navy pigs this far! Don’t you go getting any funny ideas.”

Amber’s expression didn’t change as he communicated directly with Lilith in his mind.

“Master~ Did I say anything? I was just informing you that your heart rate had increased. Are you the one with a guilty conscience, thinking I’m getting funny ideas?”

Ever since calling Amber ‘Master’ that one time, Lilith seemed to have no intention of changing the address.

But for Amber at this moment, her tone made him want to drag Lilith into the real world, press her over his knee, and give her a good punishment.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that for now, and he couldn’t even mute her.

After she was installed in his micro-processor, Amber discovered that Lilith was directly connected to his nerves and brain via the superconducting fibers in his body.

Unless he shut down the micro-processor, there was really no way to make her be quiet.

“I was careless. I’m definitely getting a new processor in the future.”

Ignoring Lilith’s taunts in his mind, like ‘I just used a basic attack, why did you use your ultimate?’, Amber walked over to the armored vehicle.

He and the two Mobile Infantry troopers examined it for a long while and found that during the previous battle, the armored vehicle’s hatches had become deformed from the impacts and rolling over. Now, they couldn’t be opened through normal means.

“What kind of quality is this? It’s ridiculous.”

Amber frowned and, with the delicacy of doing embroidery, released a psionic blast that shattered the connection points on the rear hatch.

The two Mobile Infantry troopers immediately stepped forward, slightly increased the power of their exoskeletons, and wrenched the entire rear hatch off.

The more agile Amber immediately crawled inside. After first confirming the driver’s condition and vital signs were stable, he opened the driver’s hatch from the inside and carefully passed the unconscious driver out.

Next, he returned to the vehicle commander’s seat further back and lifted Isabelle out.

Fortunately, the woman had remembered to wear her driver’s helmet and fasten her cross-body seatbelt. Although she’d been knocked silly along with the armored vehicle, it seemed she had only fainted.

The space inside the armored vehicle wasn’t very large, so Amber turned, dragged Isabelle to the rear hatch, and then carried the female spy out in a princess carry.

Just then, a series of shrill whistles echoed from the sky.

Amber looked up to see dozens of rockets streaking across the sky, leaving long trails behind them, before finally landing in the mountain forest to the northeast, erupting in flashes of fire.

A moment later, the loud boom of plasma rockets exploding on impact arrived. Isabelle, in Amber’s arms, seemed to be woken by the sound. She let out a soft ‘Mmm~’ and slowly opened her eyes.

When she saw Amber holding her, her eyes first lit up, then dimmed again.

“Amber… so you died too…”

“…”

Amber was momentarily speechless. He reached out and pinched Isabelle’s cheek with a bit of force.

“Spit that out! Don’t be such a jinx! Neither of us is dead!”

“Ow, ow, ow, ow!”

Isabelle’s face instantly contorted in a mask of pain.

“Good, you can feel pain. Can you walk? The friendly forces’ long-range fire support just landed. We need to hurry and retreat from here now.”

Amber glanced at the fires already burning in the distant forest. He knew a simple forest fire could only buy them a limited amount of time.

“Put me down. I’ll see if I can walk.”

Her cheeks slightly flushed, Isabelle struggled to get out of Amber’s ‘princess carry,’ but when her feet touched the ground and she tried to stand, a wave of dizziness washed over her, and she nearly collapsed.

Clearly, she hadn’t yet recovered from the recent impact and tumbling.

“Alright, alright, don’t push yourself.”

Not wanting to waste any more time, Amber was just about to carry Isabelle on his back when he remembered the two men still lying on the ground.

At that moment, however, the other two Mobile Infantry troopers quickly grasped the meaning of the phrase ‘timing is everything.’

Without even needing to speak, they acted in perfect sync, each hoisting either Randall or Tom onto their shoulders. Then, they took down a foldable stretcher mounted on their backs, unfolded it, and placed the armored vehicle’s driver on it.

One of the Mobile Infantry troopers looked at Amber, his expression resolute, and said:

“Sir, you just take care of carrying Captain Margaret. We’re both wearing exoskeletons; carrying these three won’t be a problem at all!”

With that, the two of them strode away towards the evacuation point with the three injured men.

Amber carried Isabelle on his back, enduring Lilith’s incessant questions like ‘Who is this woman?’ and ‘What is she to you?’, and quickly caught up with the other two troopers at the temporary assembly point for their remnant force.

After checking the personnel status on his command interface and confirming that everyone who was still alive and mobile had arrived, Amber led the remaining people towards the rendezvous with friendly forces.

After this battle, Amber’s remnant force had become the remnants of a remnant force, suffering heavy losses.

In terms of vehicles, only four armored vehicles and two transport trucks remained. As for personnel, they were down to just forty-two people, more than ten of whom were wounded.

The one silver lining in this misfortune was perhaps that the transport truck carrying the ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ exoskeletons had survived.

After weighing his options for a moment, Amber kept only the bare minimum of fuel, ammunition, and food reserves, but took all the medical supplies, drinking water, and the ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’.

The remaining supplies were simply abandoned on the spot, freeing up the transport truck to carry all the wounded.

The other soldiers who could still move squeezed into the armored vehicles with Amber.

To make this work, a few of the Mobile Infantry troopers had to temporarily remove their exoskeletons and toss them into the transport truck just to barely fit everyone into the vehicles.

Amber and his group quickly set off again, heading for the designated evacuation point forty-five kilometers away, where an advance unit of friendly forces was already waiting to receive them.

Not long after the convoy had departed, a series of violent explosions echoed from the woodland where they had fought and the area where they had just regrouped.

Amber looked back through the vehicle commander’s periscope and saw several massive mushroom clouds rising into the sky.

Chapter 71: The Center of the Vortex

The moment he saw the mushroom cloud, Amber had to admit he felt a flash of panic.

He almost thought the Imperial army had lost their minds, launching a nuclear strike without any regard for friendly units still in the woods.

Fortunately, he quickly recognized that these black mushroom clouds were not the signature of a tactical hydrogen bomb, but rather the effect of high-yield tactical missiles.

“This kind of yield isn’t something the Imperial airborne troops can deliver…”

“Could it be a David tactical missile? Does that mean there’s an orbital assault ship above me?”

Although he confirmed he hadn’t been hit by a tactical nuke, the thought of an Imperial orbital assault ship hanging over his head still made Amber uneasy.

He immediately used a new set of communications equipment to contact a surviving communications relay vehicle in the convoy, asking it to patch his request through to the Brigade HQ of the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade.

Amber wasn’t sure if the friendly forces had noticed the orbital bombardment over here, but he figured it couldn’t hurt to report it.

The Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, had shown great concern for Amber’s remnant force.

They had even emptied the launch pods of two ‘Stegosaurus’ vehicles to cover their retreat, despite having a limited supply of rockets.

Because of this, Amber’s communication request was quickly connected to the brigade’s communications officer.

“BHQ, this is P13, do you copy? Over.”

After making contact with this friendly unit, Amber’s remnant force had been assigned a temporary call sign—P13—to facilitate communication.

“P13, this is BHQ. We copy. State your situation.”

Amber quickly and concisely described the attack he had observed, which he suspected was an orbital strike. He was issuing a warning to Brigade HQ and wanted to confirm if they had also detected this wave of attacks.

After hearing the description, the communications officer asked Amber to hold while he checked with others.

Soon, the communications officer was back on the line.

“P13, this is BHQ. Thank you for the warning. Recon units have confirmed observation of an orbital strike. Based on the attack trajectory, it was a grazing attack. Due to debris in orbit, the Imperial orbital assault ship has a very brief attack window and poses no immediate threat to our unit at this time. Over.”

After receiving their reply, Amber once again thanked the friendly forces for their support and ended the communication.

A brigade-level unit’s reconnaissance capabilities, especially for air and orbital surveillance, were certainly superior to his. Since they had confirmed there was no significant threat, Amber decided not to occupy the valuable communication channel any longer.

Perhaps the salvo from the two rocket launchers had successfully halted the Imperial pursuit.

Or perhaps the pursuing Imperial troops had slowed their advance to avoid being hit by friendly fire from the orbital strike.

In any case, in the period immediately following the orbital strike, Amber and his team detected no further movement from Imperial forces.

The convoy proceeded smoothly to the rendezvous point arranged with the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade and successfully linked up with the relief force.

This small unit had initially concealed itself around the rendezvous point, forming a small encirclement.

They only emerged from their hiding places after receiving the identification signal from Amber’s team.

Three ‘Tarantula-Kai’ light multi-legged war machines and five ‘Mongoose-4’ armored vehicles made up the relief party.

The staff officers of the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade had also taken into account Amber’s shortage of vehicles and large number of wounded; of the five ‘Mongoose-4s’ that arrived, they had intentionally sent three without any Mobile Infantry aboard.

This measure did indeed alleviate Amber’s current vehicle shortage.

At least now everyone had a seat and wouldn’t have to take off their exoskeletons to squeeze in together.

After liaising with the temporary commander of this small detachment, Amber learned that they would not be rejoining the main force directly. Instead, they would maintain a distance of about fifty kilometers from Brigade HQ while on the move.

Even the wounded would have to wait until the next waypoint to be picked up by a dedicated medical vehicle for centralized treatment.

The relief team they had just met would also be assigned to Amber as reinforcements, reorganizing his unit into a reinforced Mobile Infantry platoon under the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade.

Since Amber’s current unit could not be “combined” with the main force in the short term, it would have to operate as an independent unit for the time being.

This was the current situation for several other scattered Federation remnant forces that had been integrated.

In the subsequent march, only Amber himself would travel to Brigade HQ for necessary in-person meetings.

Unless there were specific combat orders, Amber’s unit would not join up with the main brigade.

After adopting and thoroughly revising the operational plan Amber had submitted, the brigade’s staff officers had already assigned travel routes for each unit via the brigade-level command terminal.

Including Amber’s current team, the entire Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade was advancing toward the space elevator like a great spreading net.

Five days after the skirmish in the nameless forest, in the outer space of Robert IV.

In a corridor behind the bridge of The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania stood quietly before a porthole, gazing at the boundless starry sky outside.

Though he had seen this sight countless times, whenever he needed to think quietly, the Marquis would find a porthole to admire it in silence.

“Rafael, did you know? We have become the center of the vortex here.”

After an unknown amount of time, Marquis Ascania spoke in a calm voice, slightly hoarse from not having spoken for a while.

His combat staff officer, Rafael, who had been standing silently behind him, stepped forward and handed him a cup of perfectly warm black tea.

“My Lord Marquis, do you mean that we have become the center of the Empire’s great campaign?”

Hearing Rafael’s reply, Marquis Ascania chuckled in spite of himself.

“Now that is the art of speaking, Rafael.”

The elderly Marquis turned to look at this rising star among the young officers of the Imperial Royal Navy.

“Of the four star systems we attacked simultaneously, the Expeditionary Strike Groups in the other three have already completed their campaign objectives. Only the Robert system, where we are, has fallen into a stalemate. And you spin it as us becoming the ‘center of the great campaign’?”

Marquis Ascania took the cup from Rafael and took a light sip before continuing.

“If I had a choice, I would rather our star system not become the center of this vortex. Given that our offensive has been stalled—or ‘in a stalemate,’ as they say—High Command is considering a plan for reinforcements. I’m sure that once the Federation gets its bearings, they too will commit more forces to counterattack in this system.”

“What’s more, because we insisted on an orbital strike during the final phase of the operation three days ago, against the objections of the DRSD, they are now preparing to impeach me. Ha!”

“So our coming battles—whether it’s clashing with Federation forces on the battlefield or wrangling with our own people off it—are likely to become more and more difficult, Rafael.”

“My lord, no matter how difficult the battles ahead may be, I am confident that under your wise command, our forces will achieve final victory.”

Rafael stood up straight, his head held high. Although he was a chief combat staff officer who had risen to his position through merit, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t flatter his direct superior.

“Hahaha, Rafael, do you know what Emily always says? She says the way you flatter people so seriously is just too awkward. Looking at you now, she’s right.”

At the mention of the Marquis’s daughter, Rafael couldn’t help but picture a certain beautiful figure, and a faint blush briefly colored his face.

The Marquis noticed this and smiled, but said nothing more.

He walked over and patted Rafael’s shoulder, his tone light.

“Remember, my boy, fleet battles are not won by wise command alone. The absolute strength of the opposing fleets, the professionalism, condition, and morale of the crews—not one of these can be lacking. Sometimes, you even need a bit of luck.”

“As for those battles where no shots are fired…”

Marquis Ascania let out a cold snort, as if remembering something unpleasant. “Those often require you to be even more vigilant, because the harm they can do to you and me is far greater than any real combat engagement.”

Just as Marquis Ascania was about to impart some of his personal experience to the young man he favored, alarms suddenly blared through the corridor, and a warning flashed on both his and Rafael’s personal terminals.

[Warning! Unregistered spatial collapse signature detected within the Air Defense Identification Zone!]

[Warning! Anomalous mass increase detected in the Air Defense Identification Zone!]

Chapter 72: The Task Force Begins Its Approach

As Marquis Ascania had not been far from the bridge, he and Rafael returned shortly after the warning sounded.

“Captain on the bridge!”

Upon seeing the Marquis enter, the First Officer rose from the secondary command chair and saluted.

The Marquis gave a curt nod and, without wasting words, sat directly in the captain’s chair, which was decorated with carvings in the shape of dragon wings.

“What’s the situation?”

“My lord, three minutes ago, the early warning detectors for spatial collapse we deployed detected a spatial collapse event. The mass detectors on our peripheral scout ships also registered an anomalous mass increase.”

A combat staff officer on bridge duty reported the situation while opening a virtual star chart and highlighting the corresponding area.

“No other friendly units have filed any advance notice for this spatial collapse event, so our preliminary judgment is that a Federation fleet is exiting hyperspace. All ships are currently searching the target sector with long-wave radar and composite reconnaissance units.”

Hearing the combat staff officer’s report, Marquis Ascania fell into thought.

The hyperspace transition of one or two warships would not be enough to trigger the scout ships’ mass detectors and issue a warning for an ‘anomalous mass increase’.

A mass increase of this magnitude would require a force of at least a squadron.

And friendly forces would never execute a squadron-sized hyperspace jump without filing a plan. Therefore, the fleet appearing at this critical juncture could only be from the Federation.

Based on this deduction, the Marquis believed that no matter how incompetent the Federation’s fleet commander was, they wouldn’t be foolish enough to attack his capital fleet with a single squadron.

Therefore, the enemy fleet’s size was likely not much smaller than their own, and it would have at least a few capital ships anchoring it.

“My orders! Fleet to battle stations! Cease all orbital operations and recall all orbital assault ships!”

Marquis Ascania’s right hand gripped the dragon’s claw ornament on the armrest of his chair as he commanded loudly:

“All squadrons are to rendezvous immediately, except for the peripheral scout fleet, which will maintain surveillance of the target area.”

“All ships in Lansford Port are to abort their work breaching the space elevator’s systems and execute emergency undocking procedures immediately. This ship and the rest of the fleet will begin maneuvering towards the port to provide cover until they have rendezvoused.”

As he spoke, the Marquis looked at the distant Lansford Port through the panoramic viewscreen and couldn’t help but sigh.

He recalled how, a short time ago, when he had led the main force of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group in a surprise attack on Lansford Port, the Federation’s garrison fleet had also scrambled from the port to meet them in a similar rush.

“How the tables have turned…”

As Marquis Ascania issued his commands, the lights on the bridge of The Dawnblade dimmed. Simultaneously, the battle command center canted below the bridge transmitted the orders via datalink to the surrounding ships.

Using them as relay stations, the orders radiated out to the entire fleet.

The Imperial warships, which had been scattered in their positions in geosynchronous orbit around Robert IV, ignited their aft plasma thruster arrays. Propelled by a faint blue glow, they began to gather like a school of fish in the deep sea.

Layered armor plating rapidly descended over the broadside viewports of each ship, signaling their transition to a combat-ready state.

Inside Lansford Port, the Imperial capital ships and heavy cruisers received their combat orders and immediately initiated emergency undocking procedures.

After disconnecting from the port and restoring their shipboard control AIs to full computing power, some of the heavy cruiser helmsmen displayed masterful and audacious skill, even managing to execute 180-degree turns while leaving their berths.

These behemoths of steel, weighing hundreds of thousands to over a million tons, maneuvered with the assistance of their shipboard control AIs, maintaining an extremely dangerous separation of only a few hundred meters as they streamed out of the port.

They were like a serpent emerging from hibernation, slowly poking its head out of its den.

Just as Marquis Ascania was watching the fleet’s assembly progress slowly rise on his command terminal and pondering his next move, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice boomed across the bridge’s speakers:

“Long-wave radar has a contact!”

In that instant, everyone on the bridge snapped to attention.

“Bearing: celestial north 116 degrees, ecliptic 32 degrees, inclination to the ecliptic plane 20 degrees! Unidentified fleet detected!”

The scout ships’ ultra-high-power long-wave radar had detected a fleet exiting hyperspace during its initial frequency-hopping scans.

But upon attempting a follow-up scan, they lost the contact. It was clear that the fleet, upon detecting the radar waves, had immediately activated its radar wave cancellation.

Although the Tactical Information Coordinator reported an ‘unidentified fleet’, everyone on the bridge knew it was a Federation fleet.

“Hmph. A textbook, rigid response,” Marquis Ascania snorted with disdain.

In single-ship or small-scale fleet battles, where both sides would employ optical camouflage, using radar wave cancellation to conceal oneself was a perfectly valid tactic.

But in a large-scale fleet engagement, it was a completely pointless gesture.

Once a single long-wave radar sweep confirmed a target’s general location, the fleet’s numerous scout ships would scan the area with their composite reconnaissance units.

Against the backdrop of space, a warship’s heat signature alone was obvious enough, not to mention the glaring infrared profiles of its plasma thruster arrays and heat sinks.

Furthermore, a fleet that had just exited hyperspace and was still clustered together was as conspicuous as a bonfire in the dead of night under infrared and ultraviolet observation equipment.

That was why in past large-scale fleet battles, the opposing sides almost always detected each other simultaneously. They would then proceed to probe and approach one another, finally commencing a tedious exchange of fire upon entering engagement range.

The Marquis’s judgment was not wrong. Not long after the long-wave radar lost the contact, infrared observation equipment reacquired the target.

On the main holographic display in the center of the bridge, a converted infrared image showed a dense cluster of elongated heat sources.

At the same time, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice rang out again:

“Coordinates updated! Celestial north 116 degrees 02 minutes, ecliptic 32 degrees 01 minutes, inclination to the ecliptic plane 20 degrees 01 minutes! Range one hundred twenty-five thousand thirty-eight kilometers! Infrared and optical sensors have locked onto the target fleet, count is eighty-nine!

“Infrared signature comparison against the database confirms Federation fleet.

“Identified: seven Kraken-class battleships, twenty-nine Hydra-class heavy cruisers, thirty-six Jackdaw-class destroyers, with the remainder being frigates…”

For the first time, the Marquis’s expression changed. He had not anticipated that this suddenly appearing Federation fleet would be of such a scale.

Meanwhile, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report continued.

“Relative velocity is eighty kilometers per second and increasing! Estimated time to engagement range: eighteen minutes!”

Marquis Ascania’s brow furrowed. He had already guessed the Federation fleet’s next move.

Since the ships of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group were mostly moored near the space elevator, the enemy was most likely planning to leverage its post-hyperspace velocity advantage to conduct a swift raiding operation.

This was a common tactic for an outmatched and outgunned force that possessed a speed advantage.

After a moment’s thought, the Marquis issued his orders calmly.

“We’ve lost the initiative, Rafael. Order the squadrons to accelerate their rendezvous. At the same time, begin organizing a fleet-wide defensive operation!”

“As you command, my lord!”

Chapter 73: Engagement

As the commander of the entire strike group, Marquis Ascania generally handled strategic and tactical command, and did not get involved in the operational command of any specific battle.

After all, no matter how active or adaptable his mind was, it was impossible for him to command nearly three hundred warships in battle by himself.

Of course, the raid on Lansford Military Port was an exception.

Because that was the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s first battle—and a battle of overwhelming advantage at that—the Marquis had personally commanded it.

But most of the time, he would only issue a macro-level tactical arrangement. The specific operational details and on-the-spot command were the responsibility of his combat staff.

Just like now.

After Marquis Ascania issued the order for the “fleet to execute defensive operations,” the tactical staff team led by Rafael became a hive of activity.

Their job was to “translate” the Marquis’s orders into concrete directives that the squadron commanders and even individual ship captains could understand, and then distribute them.

At the same time, they were to consolidate the vast amounts of information generated during the battle and present it to the Marquis, allowing him to make his next decision.

As time went on, with the exception of some capital ships still completing their departure procedures, 75% of the warships of the Imperial Royal Navy’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group gradually gathered together.

Under the command of Colonel Rafael and the fleet’s combat staff officers, the Requiem-class battleships, with their thicker layered armor and more powerful deflector shields, began to move forward. The Dawnblade, true to form, took its place at the very forefront of the formation.

This was a tradition of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy. Since the captains of the fleet’s flagships were all Imperial nobles, these honor-seeking individuals had, since the Empire’s first large-scale fleet battle, habitually positioned their flagships in the most conspicuous locations.

Although this made them more susceptible to concentrated fire, the resulting boost to the fleet’s morale was extremely significant.

And for that very reason, the defensive capabilities of all fleet flagships, including The Dawnblade, were considerably higher than those of their sister ships of the same class.

Meanwhile, the Aurora-class heavy cruisers, the fleet’s primary fire support, spread out in a radial pattern around these capital ships.

High-speed destroyers and frigates moved out from the fleet’s periphery, preparing for interception and anti-aircraft combat.

The entire Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s fleet formed a concave, hemispherical formation in the synchronous orbit of Robert IV.

And The Dawnblade was the pole of this massive hemisphere.

Rafael stood before the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge, looking at the fleet’s formation on the display. He then glanced at the dozen or so capital ships and heavy cruisers still maneuvering between the fleet and Lansford Military Port, his eyes narrowing almost imperceptibly.

He didn’t know whether this Federation fleet had received intelligence or had just gotten incredibly lucky, managing to pick the perfect moment to attack, just when the capital ships and many heavy cruisers were docked at Lansford Military Port.

Although in terms of overall numbers, the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group still held an overwhelming advantage.

But when considering only capital ships and heavy cruisers, the gap had shrunk from more than double to a difference of only a few ships.

On paper, at least, they could indeed go toe-to-toe with the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

Not to mention, the enemy held the advantage of speed, approaching rapidly in an attack run.

“ETA to engagement range, four minutes!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator reported the estimated time to contact once more.

Colonel Rafael looked up at the main screen. In the images relayed by the optical observation equipment, the long, blue plasma trails behind the Federation warships were gone.

They had shut down their main drive arrays. The entire fleet was now coasting on inertia, maintaining a constant velocity and using vector thrusters around their hulls to adjust their orientation.

And there was only one reason for doing this.

The fusion reactors of the enemy warships had rerouted all their power circuits to their onboard weapon systems.

“All ships, activate deflector shield generators, maintain adaptive defense mode.”

“Eighth and Tenth Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas, launch a saturation barrage of anti-beam gel missiles. Cover the area directly in front of the fleet.”

“Third and Fifth Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas, load defensive tactical hydrogen bombs. Await launch orders.”

“Capital Ship and Cruiser Divisions, main cannons begin charging. Await salvo command.”

A series of combat orders was swiftly relayed throughout the fleet.

Upon receiving their commands, the high-speed destroyers and frigates opened their respective missile silos.

After being launched at extremely high initial velocities by electromagnetic catapults, waves of anti-beam gel missiles ignited their plasma thrusters at their tails according to pre-set instructions.

If someone could have looked down upon the entire battlefield at that moment, with eyes of sufficiently high light sensitivity…

They would have seen a dense swarm of missiles flying forward, trailing long wakes like sperm cells, toward the space directly in front of the fleet.

Then, they detonated silently in the vacuum of space, dispersing the scattering gel contained within.

The diffused scattering gel would cause the high-energy laser beams from enemy warships to scatter and refract, greatly diminishing their power.

Although the high-power, high-energy laser emitters equipped on ships of cruiser-class and above could indeed penetrate this gel…

…it became a much more difficult task after a saturation barrage of anti-beam gel missiles had completed its deployment.

Rafael’s reasoning for this deployment was simple: in 90% of cases, the first exchange in a fleet battle was a salvo of high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

“Entering engagement range! I repeat, entering engagement range!”

“High-energy readings detected!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice had barely faded when a dense rain of light slammed into the anti-beam gel layer in front of the fleet.

The Federation fleet had fired the first salvo!

A vast number of high-energy lasers were intercepted by the anti-beam gel layer. After countless refractions and diffusions, they formed a dazzling curtain of light in front of the fleet.

New Calendar Year 588, August 27th, 18:42 Universal Standard Time.

The Dawnblade’s Navigator silently recorded the time the battle erupted.

At this point, Colonel Rafael had not yet given the order to return fire. He watched the constantly flashing curtain of light before the fleet, waiting for the right moment.

“Warning! High magnetic field readings detected from the enemy fleet! Numerous ultra-high-velocity objects separating, quantity uncountable! Assessed as heavy electromagnetic cannon fire!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator reported the latest development. Colonel Rafael, his hands behind his back, couldn’t help but clench his fists slightly.

So far, the Federation fleet’s tactical procedures were all within his predictions.

About twenty seconds later, the outer reconnaissance ships observed a large number of gaseous explosions within the anti-beam gel layer.

The enemy’s heavy electromagnetic cannons were firing programmable compressed helium warheads.

These high-velocity projectiles triggered an explosion upon contact with the gel. The highly compressed helium, once unconstrained, forcefully ‘blew’ open gaps in the anti-beam gel layer.

And almost at the very instant these gaps appeared, the Federation fleet’s next salvo of high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons arrived.

Without the obstruction of the gel layer, these laser and particle beams finally struck their intended targets among the Imperial warships.

It was at this very moment that Colonel Rafael finally got the opportunity he was waiting for.

“Enemy fleet trajectory solution complete!”

Hearing this, Colonel Rafael let out a soft breath and glanced back at Marquis Ascania in the captain’s chair. The latter was also looking at him and gave a slight nod.

“Entire fleet, heavy particle cannons, all batteries, double salvo, fire!”

Chapter 74: Desperate Assault

“High electric and magnetic field readings detected! Assessed as enemy heavy particle cannons charging!”

On the bridge of the Kraken-class battleship ‘Equality’, flagship of the task force formed from Federation remnants, the somewhat tense voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator rang out.

Although he had served on this warship for nearly five years, today’s battle was his first time experiencing a large-scale fleet battle in the truest sense.

“All ships, maintain adaptive power output for deflector shields. Destroyers and frigates, after taking hits, adjust position to evade subsequent attacks while maintaining your current course normal.”

The voice of the task force commander, Brigadier General Dowell, came from the rear.

His orders were also transmitted in real-time to the other ships in the fleet via datalink.

Unlike the Imperial fleet’s command structure, the core of a Federation Navy fleet’s command was also the fleet commander, but this role often involved directing tactical details, rather than delegating them to a team of tactical staff officers.

Neither of these two command models had proven superior during the last major war between the Federation and the Empire.

Thus, in the many years since the peace treaty was signed, both sides had continued their command traditions without significant change.

A few seconds after Brigadier General Dowell’s order was given, the main cannons of the Imperial fleet’s ships also finished charging.

In large-scale fleet battles, the attack targets for each ship are decided by the shipboard control AIs holding a ‘meeting’.

After calculating the course of the Federation task force, the control AI of the Dawnblade immediately held a ‘short meeting’ with the control AIs of the other warships and assigned attack targets for each ship.

Of course, this ‘meeting’ is just a personification; in reality, this fire allocation was completed the instant the trajectory calculation was finished.

A flurry of star-like flashes appeared in the target area ahead of the Federation fleet.

Following that, bismuth alloy projectiles—blasted into streams of heavy metal particles by plasma from the warships’ fusion reactors—were encased in directional magnetic fields, accelerated to nearly one percent of the speed of light through the heavy particle cannons along the ships’ axes, crossed a distance of nearly thirty thousand kilometers, and slammed into the face of the Federation task force.

The Federation fleet, arranged in a spindle formation for its high-speed assault, had its outer ships simultaneously wrapped in a dense web of electric snakes.

Including the flagship ‘Equality’, the bridge viewports of all the hit warships erupted in a dazzling white light.

The moment the shipboard control AI detected the excessive light levels, it reduced the light intake of the optical sensors.

So to the people on the bridge, it just looked like a flash of light on the viewports, lasting less than half a second, accompanied by violent shaking of the ship’s hull.

The moment the heavy metal particle streams struck the deflector shields, they were twisted, disintegrated, and scattered.

These deflected streams were equally dangerous, scattering toward other nearby warships on trajectories the shipboard control AIs could not predict.

But as long as a strict engagement distance was maintained, the layered armor of the warships could withstand these metal streams.

The exchange of fire in a fleet battle is a very pure contest of power. Judging simply by the number of warships on each side, the Imperial fleet clearly surpassed the Federation fleet in overall power.

The result was that the attack coefficient of this salvo from the Imperial fleet had exceeded the defense threshold of all the Federation warships’ deflector shields.

Three Hydra-class heavy cruisers, targeted by the focused fire of Imperial capital ships, were sunk.

Some high-speed destroyers and frigates with insufficiently powerful deflector shields were destroyed outright after their deflector shield generators overloaded.

A Jackdaw-class high-speed destroyer on the fleet’s periphery took three hits from destroyer-class heavy particle cannons. Its deflector shield generator immediately overloaded and was then taken offline for protection by the shipboard control AI.

During the attack, the warship’s fusion reactor had surged to one hundred and twenty-five percent of its rated output to support the deflector shield generator, causing an immediate voltage irregularity in the main power conduit.

Meanwhile, although the bow section was protected by the deflector shield, the high temperatures from the heavy metal ion streams still triggered a ‘system malfunction’ warning from the destroyer’s forward liquid helium cooling system.

Under these circumstances, the destroyer’s captain, sweating profusely, ordered a switch to backup power, diverted the main power supply to the cooling system, and had the main fusion reactor reduce its output to prevent a worse situation.

The warship’s weapon control and fire control units were subsequently shut down temporarily, and all counter-attack procedures were suspended.

Following the captain’s orders, the helmsman adjusted the destroyer’s attitude and maneuvered behind a nearby heavy cruiser, while maintaining the ship’s course normal.

There was nothing improper about this series of actions; it could even be called a rather calm and collected emergency response.

Unfortunately for them, the Imperial fleet on the opposing side was firing a double salvo.

On infrared sensors, the forward hulls of all the Imperial warships were now glowing red.

A large amount of liquid helium coolant was being injected to force-cool the heavy particle cannons that had just fired.

Although standard procedure dictated they should wait for the acceleration channels to cool before firing again to prevent cannon malfunction, under the ‘double salvo’ order from the flagship, the warships’ captains simply waited for the temperature to drop below the red line before ordering another shot.

And so, less than ten seconds after the first salvo, a second torrent of heavy metal particles swept through the Federation fleet during its high-speed assault.

That Jackdaw-class destroyer, which was evading behind a friendly heavy cruiser, ran out of luck.

Two heavy metal particle beams struck the aft section of its hull.

The violent torrent of energy tore through the aft layered armor, and the internal alloy bulkheads melted instantly.

The damage control crew heading for the main fusion reactor and superconducting battery banks happened to be in the path of the beam; they vaporized instantly into puffs of plasma, without a moment of pain.

Such gruesome scenes were unfolding throughout the task force’s formation.

In this double salvo, the Empire’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group perfectly leveraged its firepower advantage, sinking nine Federation warships outright, including three Hydra-class heavy cruisers that were a core part of the Federation fleet’s offensive power.

Looking at the holographic display in the center of the bridge, showing a 16.8% loss rate and a 32.7% damage rate.

The expression of the task force commander, Brigadier General Dowell, did not change noticeably.

Such a loss rate had, in fact, already been predicted by the shipboard control AI during the pre-battle briefing.

And as a mediocre general in the Federation Navy, he did not possess the ability to change this outcome.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t still be just the commander of a mobile fleet ordered to garrison a fringe star system at the age of nearly sixty.

But even so, the other commanders who had come to rendezvous still chose to carry out this operational plan and fully obey Dowell’s command.

These ‘patriotic officers’, a rare breed in the Federation military, could not bring themselves to flee to the edge of the star system without even fighting back while their homeland was being invaded.

Naturally, there were voices of dissent among the crew, but after a few ringleaders were branded with the titles of ‘desertion in the face of the enemy’ and ‘disturbing morale’ and then thrown into the cold of space, the dissenting voices vanished.

Seeing that the course of this raiding battle was developing largely as predicted in the pre-battle briefing, Brigadier General Dowell, who had already donned his spacesuit, issued a new, ice-cold command:

“All fleet, course normal maintained. Ahead, full.”

Chapter 75: The Decision

The moment the Federation warships reignited their plasma thruster arrays, once again trailing long, blue exhaust plumes, the sight was immediately captured by the Imperial fleet’s optical and infrared observation equipment.

On the bridge of the Dawnblade, Colonel Rafael and the other tactical staff officers were perplexed.

The Federation fleet’s action was completely beyond their expectations.

Generally, a fleet would only restart its main thruster arrays when the exchange of fire was winding down, just before the two sides were about to pass each other.

This was because with the plasma thruster array active, a warship’s fusion reactor could not support the deflector shield at full power. The rate of fire of the heavy particle cannons and the acceleration imparted to the plasma would also be significantly reduced.

That was why, just before entering combat, a warship commander would, after reaching combat speed, choose to shut down the main thruster array. Only then could they avoid being at a disadvantage in the ensuing firefight.

After all, a warship’s energy supply was finite, even for capital ships equipped with multiple fusion reactors.

Multiple fusion reactors often meant a larger hull, more numerous and complex weapon systems, more powerful deflector shield generators, and plasma thruster arrays with more nodes.

Therefore, the Federation task force’s decision to restart their main thruster arrays at this moment was meaningless, apart from gaining a greater speed advantage.

Although a higher relative velocity and angular velocity would reduce a fleet’s firing accuracy, this effect was mutual.

The firing accuracy of the Federation fleet, currently in a high-speed assault, would decrease as well. Furthermore, they had fewer ships, and their firepower output per salvo was no match for the Imperial fleet’s.

So, as it stood, it seemed this Federation fleet was preparing to disengage after taking a double salvo for nothing.

“Enemy fleet’s relative velocity is 162 kilometers per second and still accelerating. Direct distance is 18,632 kilometers. Estimated time to intersection is 108 seconds!”

“108 seconds.”

The information relayed by the Tactical Information Coordinator reminded Rafael that he didn’t have much time to make a decision.

He knew that no matter how incompetent the Federation fleet’s commander was, they wouldn’t make the mind-boggling decision to simply turn tail and run after taking a hit for free.

They had to have another plan.

But with each second ticking away, Rafael was forced to make a decision immediately.

Ultimately, adhering to the “execute defensive fleet operations” doctrine set by Marquis Ascania, Rafael, who had just boldly ordered a “double salvo,” now decided to be conservative.

“Third and Fifth Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas, deploy three waves of defensive tactical hydrogen bombs. Ten-second intervals. Watch your coverage.”

In this era of space warfare, deploying high-yield thermonuclear weapons had become a standard defensive measure.

The superheated ion fireball produced by a nuclear detonation could ablate and warp the solid munitions fired by heavy electromagnetic cannons, thereby altering their trajectory. Programmable warheads would be rendered useless in the extreme heat.

After the explosion subsided, the electric field in that region of space would be flooded with a massive number of elementary particles.

Directed-energy weapons like heavy particle cannons or charged particle cannons, which essentially attacked with charged particles, would be severely disrupted and might even be unable to penetrate the field.

Soon, a wall of light rose once more in front of the Imperial fleet.

Just as this wall of light was about to fade, a second, and then a third, lit up in succession.

The warning systems on every Federation warship blared “high-energy warning” three times in a row.

As the view outside the panoramic viewscreen was engulfed by blinding white light, a faint smile finally appeared on Brigadier General Dowell’s face.

He, or rather, everyone at the pre-battle conference, had bet correctly.

The ion fireballs from the high-yield thermonuclear detonations obscured the vision of both warring parties.

This obscuration was not limited to optical and infrared sensors; even the long-wave radar was jammed by the electromagnetic pulse generated by the tactical hydrogen bombs.

In other words, until the effects of the ion fireballs dissipated, the two fleets were like two boxers forcibly separated by a referee, neither able to launch an attack.

But the Federation task force had never intended to engage in a firefight with the Imperial fleet from the start.

A few days ago, a scout ship, operating with its optical invisibility and radar wave cancellation systems active, had been guided by a daring captain to within eighty thousand kilometers of the Empire’s Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

After conducting reconnaissance with its onboard optical observation equipment, the scout ship sent back two pieces of information to the task force.

First, a significant number of Imperial capital ships were docked at Lansford Military Port, but the space elevator showed no signs of operation.

Second, the Imperial fleet had been intermittently conducting orbital strikes and orbital drops on Robert IV.

It was these two pieces of intelligence that led the officers at the operations briefing to a bold conjecture.

Robert IV’s surface had not yet completely fallen.

A young staff officer at the meeting even proposed the audacious hypothesis that “The Empire may not have control of the space elevator yet.”

As the only terrestrial planet in the Robert system, Robert IV had the largest population and stationed forces compared to the system’s other gas giants, rocky planets, or inhabited moons.

Coupled with the warning and distress signal previously received from Robert IV, this led Brigadier General Dowell and the other commanders to believe that the Federation forces on the planet were still resisting.

Furthermore, it seemed the Imperial forces might not be able to take the planet anytime soon.

In the end, the plan for this operation was passed unanimously at the briefing.

So, from the very beginning, Brigadier General Dowell had no intention of fighting a life-or-death battle with the massive Imperial fleet.

This high-speed flyby was more for the sake of getting close to Robert IV, to probe the Imperial fleet’s true strength and disposition, and to conduct advance reconnaissance for the Federation main fleet that might arrive later.

At the same time, it was also to take advantage of a brief moment of proximity to the planet to make an all-frequency broadcast, letting the friendly forces on the surface know there was still a fleet fighting above their heads.

Of course, if that were their only goal, the task force could have simply flown by from another direction around the planet; there would be no need for such a close encounter with the Imperial fleet.

But had they done that, the Imperial fleet would not have entered a fleet battle posture, nor would it have recalled the orbital assault ships cruising in planetary orbit, which in turn would have done nothing to relieve the pressure on the ground troops.

Thus, when the wall of light formed by the ion fireballs gradually faded, and the ships’ various sensors and radars came back online, Colonel Rafael, the tactical staff, and the Marquis on the captain’s seat saw the Federation task force intersecting with them at a high speed, less than two thousand kilometers away.

These warships, having shut down their main thruster arrays again, were now using vector thrusters positioned all over their hulls to keep their ship axes pointed at the Imperial fleet, all while maintaining their course normal.

In that instant, Colonel Rafael finally realized he had been tricked.

He saw that within this fleet flying past at high speed, two destroyers had not adjusted their axes. Instead, wreathed in the dazzling blue light of their plasma thruster arrays, they had broken away from the fleet and were charging toward Robert IV.

The Federation fleet never intended to conduct a high-speed flyby. Everything their commander had done was merely to deliver those two destroyers into a prograde orbit around Robert IV.

At the same time, the Federation warships, which had been taking a beating for almost the entire engagement, opened fire once again.

Chapter 76: Convergence

The Imperial fleet began an emergency turn.

Because they had just been obscured by ion fireballs, they had lost track of the Federation fleet for several dozen seconds.

Therefore, the entire fleet was adjusting its axis based on the shipboard control AI’s prediction of the Federation fleet’s trajectory.

But it was clear that this prediction was inaccurate; the Federation fleet’s velocity was higher than anticipated.

This resulted in the Imperial fleet’s axis not only failing to point at the Federation fleet but also exposing the broadsides of some of its own warships to the Federation’s line of fire.

“All ships, prioritize destroyers and frigates! Fire at will!”

Brigadier General Dowell, though mediocre, would not let this attack window, served up on a platter, slip by.

The warships, having already shut down their main thruster arrays, allocated their power to weapon systems and deflector shields at an eight-to-two ratio under their respective captains’ commands.

Even without Brigadier General Dowell’s reminder, the captains knew that the Imperial fleet, having just fired two salvos, would be unable to use its most powerful weapon, the heavy particle cannon, for a short time.

Two consecutive full-power volleys were a strain even for a capital ship.

At this point, the main cannons required a forced cooldown, and the fusion reactors needed to replenish their fuel.

Firing forcibly would very likely scrap the heavy particle cannons and could even damage the warship’s fusion reactor.

These were basic laws of physics, which would not change just because they were noble Imperial warships.

At this moment, the Imperial fleet’s main forms of attack were limited to high-energy lasers, charged particle cannons, and heavy electromagnetic cannons.

While the former ignored deflector shields, the latter two did not require high-power deflector shields to be blocked.

Therefore, the Federation captains boldly reduced the power to their deflector shield generators, allowing them to maintain attacks with all weapon systems even though their power supply had not fully recovered.

Although these warships had not yet fully restored power to their weapon systems, even heavy particle cannons not firing at full power were still enough to threaten destroyers and frigrites when concentrating their fire.

Dazzling trails of charged particle beams and high-energy lasers crisscrossed the space between the two fleets. The shots from heavy particle cannons continuously created massive fireballs at the focal points of their salvos—the result of Imperial destroyers’ fusion reactors going critical and exploding.

Humanity, having mastered the stellar-class energy technology of nuclear fusion, had so far not created its most awe-inspiring spectacle in the form of artificial suns or planetary megastructures.

Rather, it was this cruel yet magnificent tapestry painted by countless warships trading fire with various directed-energy weapons in the void of space.

On the bridge of The Dawnblade, Colonel Rafael had no time to admire this tapestry, especially when he himself was part of this cruel masterpiece.

On the holographic display of the Imperial fleet’s formation, seventeen red crosses had now appeared, representing seventeen warships that had been sunk.

Rafael glanced at the list of sunken ships; they were all destroyers and frigates.

Clearly, the Federation fleet was specifically targeting these less-defended warships.

And their decision, at least for now, had indeed yielded some results.

But what concerned Rafael at this moment were not his own sunken ships, but the two high-speed destroyers that had broken away from the Federation fleet.

These two warships, clearly on a mission, were charging at high speed toward Robert IV with an almost suicidal determination.

Originally, Rafael had been on the verge of giving up on intercepting these two destroyers.

The Imperial fleet was currently in a static defensive posture, already at a velocity disadvantage of over one hundred kilometers per second compared to the Federation ships, to say nothing of the fact that these two high-speed destroyers were still accelerating.

Even if Rafael dispatched his own high-speed destroyers to pursue them now, it would take more than a short while to catch up.

But who would have thought that the dozen or so warships that had been maneuvering from Lansford Military Port toward the fleet’s assembly point before the engagement would, by a twist of fate, end up blocking the course of these two destroyers.

Upon receiving this information, Rafael immediately issued an order to these warships, instructing them to intercept the two Federation destroyers.

Brigadier General Dowell also quickly noticed the situation, but an awkward predicament arose at the same time.

The two high-speed destroyers were positioned between the main Federation fleet and the dozen or so Imperial warships, right near the line of fire.

This meant the Federation fleet did not dare to provide fire support, as a single misstep could result in friendly fire.

Consequently, Brigadier General Dowell ultimately rescinded the order for covering fire; he could only pray that the two destroyers could successfully break through the interception.

Judging by the current situation, it was not impossible for these two Jackdaw-class high-speed destroyers to break through the blockade.

The dozen or so Imperial capital ships and heavy cruisers had been maneuvering to rendezvous with the main force, so they were not in formation. Instead, they were spread out in a single-file column, like a string of pearls.

At this moment, they hadn’t even completed their axial adjustments.

The captains of the two Federation destroyers made a snap decision: they would charge directly through this loose interception line.

They immediately ordered their weapon systems offline, diverting all ship power to the deflector shield generators and plasma thruster arrays.

Simultaneously, the HCP squadrons aboard each of the two destroyers moved onto the launch catapults.

These steel giants were now outfitted in their fleet-battle configuration.

A massive shield of layered armor was fixed to their left mechanical arms, a shield that even had its own independent deflector shield generator.

Their right mechanical arms held Gauss rifles, while folded heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons were mounted on the weapon racks on their backs.

In a fleet battle, once the distance between the two sides closes to ten thousand kilometers, the shipboard HCPs are deployed.

Launched with an initial velocity from their ships, they would charge alongside their respective warships, serving as additional fire support.

At the same time, they would use their giant layered armor shields and deflector fields to ‘block shots’ for the warships, protecting their relatively vulnerable broadsides and rear main thruster arrays.

Laser turrets and charged particle cannons, in turn, were used to assist the warship in intercepting physical projectiles, various missiles, and plasma torpedoes.

Soon, the two squadrons—a total of twenty ‘Short-Faced Bear’ Block 20 units—completed their launch. Propelled by their plasma thruster arrays at full power, they left long blue trails in their wake as they overtook their own warships, transforming into comets and charging toward the enemy ships ahead.

“‘Reaper’s Scythe’ Squadron, ‘Meteor’ Squadron, engage the enemy!”

“This ship is about to execute continuous evasive maneuvers. All hands, brace for impact!”

“Deployment bay, prepare to launch autonomous communication relays!”

Chapter 77: The Homecomer

Amber and her group, marching through the night on the night hemisphere of Robert IV, had no idea.

On the day hemisphere, near the terminator line, a brief but fierce fleet battle had erupted between the Federation task force and the Imperial Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

By now, the main body of the Federation task force had disengaged from the Imperial fleet. Only some speculative, ultra-long-range shots were exchanged between them.

The focus of both Brigadier General Dowell and Marquis Ascania, along with his tactical staff officers, was no longer on the main fleets trading fire.

Instead, they were unanimously fixated on the battle between two high-speed destroyers and a dozen or so Imperial warships.

One side was desperately trying to break through the blockade, while the other, under orders from fleet command, was doing everything in its power to intercept them.

Aboard the two Jackdaw-class high-speed destroyers, only a skeleton crew remained to keep the ships operational.

Knowing this was likely a one-way trip, the crews of the two ships had sent away all their young soldiers.

And while the shipboard HCP squadrons still bore the names ‘Reaper’s Scythe’ and ‘Meteor’, their personnel had been completely replaced.

The current HCP pilots in these two squadrons were the oldest group in the entire fleet.

In the words of the current squadron leader of ‘Reaper’s Scythe’, the forty-six-year-old Captain Wallace:

“A job this exciting isn’t for the rookies!”

His words were met with resounding agreement from the other ‘senior’ HCP pilots participating in the operation.

Blake, seated in the cockpit of a ‘Short-Faced Bear’ Block 20, was also part of this operation.

And his identity was perhaps more special than the others.

He was a ‘local,’ born on Robert IV.

His family was among the first to immigrate to this planet, ‘pioneer farmers’ who tended crops for the Federation Department of Agriculture.

Although the Federation military rarely recruited on Robert IV, Blake’s natural piloting talent, demonstrated while operating agricultural machinery, had caught the interest of an HCP pilot from the local garrison.

On this remote planet, boredom was the greatest enemy of the garrison troops.

So, upon discovering such a promising talent, the HCP pilot began summoning Blake to the base every few days for some basic training.

Later, he even recommended Blake for the HCP pilot training camp of the Robert system’s mobile fleet.

For a training camp that was always struggling to meet recruitment quotas, anyone who showed up was more than welcome. As for their background, in a place where the heavens are high and the emperor is far away, nobody cared.

Ultimately, Blake passed all his assessments and became the first ‘local’ HCP pilot in the mobile fleet.

At first, Blake hadn’t wanted to leave Robert IV. At the young age of twenty, he was already married with a child.

But the Federation military’s offer was simply too good.

Although the salary for a Federation HCP pilot wasn’t particularly high, and certainly didn’t meet the average income level for residents of the core star systems, it was still far better than anything he could earn farming on the planet.

So, to provide a better life for his wife and newborn daughter, Blake endured the pain of separation and roamed the star system with the mobile fleet.

Ten years passed in the blink of an eye.

In those ten years, Blake had only returned home to visit his family nine times.

And today was his tenth return.

“All units, attention! Message from the destroyers! Enemy ships have launched heat sources, eighty-four in total. Infrared signature matches Imperial ‘Zealot’-series HCPs. Specific models and loadouts are unknown!”

The squadron leader’s voice, suddenly crackling in his headset, pulled Blake from his momentary lapse.

He shook his head, forcing himself to focus.

In his current environment, a moment of distraction could be fatal.

“Twenty against eighty-four! The odds are in our favor!”

The squadron leader’s jest in the high-pressure situation drew a wave of chuckles across the channel.

Beep, beep, beep, beep.

“Multiple enemy units detected. Beginning targeting!”

A sudden warning and the child-like voice of the support AI echoed in the cockpit. At the same time, the 360-degree screen before Blake’s eyes filled with hostile targets marked by red boxes.

“All right, fun time’s over!”

The squadron leader’s voice on the comms channel silenced the laughter.

“‘Reaper’s Scythe’ Squadron will be responsible for protecting the warships as they break through. Our mission is to disrupt the enemy warships and HCPs as much as possible to relieve pressure on friendly forces, so…”

“‘Meteor’ Squadron, all units! Anti-ship and anti-HCP combat operations commence! Formation Four, spread out!”

At the squadron leader’s command, the ten HCPs of ‘Meteor’ Squadron increased their separation. They raised their shields before them and deployed the small heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons from their rear weapon racks.

Although the energy output of their subcritical reactors meant these weapons had far less firing power than a warship’s, the destructive potential of heavy metal particle streams and charged particle beams was not to be underestimated.

As both the Imperial and Federation HCPs ramped up their thruster arrays and charged one another like knights of old, the battle began.

The heavy metal particle streams and charged particle beams were their lances; the layered armor shields and deflector shields were their bucklers.

And this expanse of space was their jousting field.

Blake had no idea how long the battle had been raging; he didn’t have a spare moment to check.

At this moment, while his HCP performed intermittent thrusts, he was enduring high Gs that would make an ordinary person black out, locked in a deadly dance with an Imperial HCP in the void of space.

They traded fire, defended, and desperately tried to get into each other’s rear hemisphere to attack the unprotected plasma thruster arrays.

Thick red and blue lines, simulating the main cannon beams of the capital ships, crisscrossed the 360-degree cockpit view. One was sweeping directly toward his position.

It was fire from both friendly and enemy warships.

Blake immediately adjusted his rear thruster array’s vector to a positive seventy-five degrees and stomped on the thrust pedal.

The sudden, immense force from the plasma thruster array made the dark blue ‘Short-Faced Bear’ lurch ‘downward,’ narrowly avoiding the beam.

His opponent, however, was a fraction of a second too slow. Before he could take evasive action, he was engulfed in a white flash.

It was a heavy particle cannon shot from an Imperial heavy cruiser.

When the light in his cockpit returned to normal, Blake saw that only two mechanical legs of the Imperial HCP he had been fighting were left, drifting aimlessly.

In a fleet battle, capital ships were the primary targets for both sides, holding the highest firing priority.

Such a battlefield was extremely dangerous for HCPs. Their seemingly indestructible frames would be torn to shreds by a heavy metal particle stream if they were so much as grazed by a beam from an enemy, or even a friendly, warship.

As for the enemy ship that had just helped him eliminate his opponent, Blake naturally intended to give it his sincerest thanks.

Another ‘Short-Faced Bear’ nearby had the same idea. The two immediately formed a two-ship formation and charged toward the nearest Imperial heavy cruiser on their tactical display.

Even at close range, an HCP’s small heavy particle cannon couldn’t sink a heavy cruiser outright.

But ‘cleaning up’ the enemy’s hull—stripping off some high-energy laser turrets, heavy electromagnetic cannons, and various radar sensors—was another matter entirely.

Just as Blake and his wingman took turns providing cover, broke through the enemy’s point-defense grid, and closed in on the heavy cruiser, the squadron leader’s anxious voice came over the comms channel:

“‘Reaper’s Scythe’ has been breached! Enemy HCPs are closing on the destroyers! Can anyone get over there and support them?!”

Chapter 78: I Will Return as a Falling Star

Hearing the squadron leader’s question, Blake, who was in the middle of a charge, glanced at the multi-function display to his right.

Based on his settings, this independent screen was displaying several strings of data calculated in real-time by the Combat assistance AI.

This data represented his distance and relative velocity to several key targets.

“Direct distance to The Reckless is 1,152 kilometers, with a relative velocity of 25.6 kilometers per second.”

As he looked at the data, Blake used his eye-tracking aim, which was being corrected in real time by the Combat assistance AI, to lock onto a charged particle cannon turret on the flank of the heavy cruiser ahead.

The heavy particle cannon and charged particle cannon on his rear weapon racks fired simultaneously, and two beams of light, one blue and one white, struck the turret one after another.

The hemispherical, 360-degree omnidirectional turret lost its shape, like a cake with a bite taken out of it.

Blake’s body shifted, and under the mapping of the head-tracking control system, the entire HCP twisted slightly to the left.

At the same time, numerous vector thrusters on the left side of the machine fired a momentary burst, abruptly shifting the HCP a short distance to the right.

This evasive maneuver, executed in response to a ‘strong magnetic field’ warning, allowed him to dodge the trajectory of an electromagnetic point-defense cannon just in time. Immediately after, an ambushing teammate followed up with a shot that destroyed the defensive weapon.

Taking advantage of the gap, Blake confirmed his distance and relative velocity to The Reckless one last time, glanced at the rapidly dwindling list of teammates, and then spoke into the comms channel:

“Squadron leader, I’m going to support The Reckless. At my current distance and relative velocity, I can get there in fifty seconds!”

As he reported, he also sent a signal to a nearby friendly HCP: ‘I’m going on ahead. See you in the next life.’

Then, amidst the dazzling blue light erupting from his thruster array, he charged straight toward the position of The Reckless.

Upon receiving the signal, Blake’s teammate immediately moved between him and the enemy ship, raising a shield to cover his back.

After soaring past the heavy cruiser he had just targeted, his panoramic display quickly marked the location of The Reckless, based on his search priority.

Of the two high-speed destroyers that had initiated the assault, the other one, The Libra, had already been sunk by an Imperial capital ship. The Reckless was now the last remaining hope.

“Of course, it’s up to me to protect my own home!”

With this conviction, Blake pushed the plasma thruster array to its maximum output.

The sudden burst of acceleration pinned him firmly against his seat. Under these conditions, the machine’s primary attitude control was temporarily handed over to the Combat assistance AI.

The Imperial HCPs, which were recklessly pursuing The Reckless, completely ignored Blake as he approached from behind.

That is, until the cockpit of one of them rang with a ‘high-energy reading’ warning.

A torrential jet of heavy metal particles severed a ‘Zealot’ at its midsection from behind. The pilot inside the cockpit was vaporized in an instant, not even feeling a moment of pain.

The two remaining ‘Zealots’ had no time to mourn their fallen comrade.

One continued its pursuit of The Reckless, while the other, without changing its course, turned to attack Blake’s ‘Short-Faced Bear’.

Blake had no intention of backing down. He shielded his cockpit and charged headlong into the storm of incoming fire.

At the same time, his heavy particle cannon, charged particle cannon, and the 50-millimeter Gauss rifle designed for HCPs in his hands all opened fire!

A head-on clash.

At that moment, the two HCPs entered a battle that had nothing to do with piloting or skill—it was a pure test of courage.

Amidst the dense exchange of light beams, the distance between them grew shorter and shorter, and their deflector shields were running at near-overload capacity.

Blake’s ears were filled with a constant stream of warnings—‘Shield damaged!’, ‘Deflector shield power dropping!’, ‘Right shoulder armor damaged!’—and his vision was filled with nothing but the blinding white flashes of his deflector shield being hit.

As the battle reached its final moment, the ever-advancing Blake seemed to turn himself into a kinetic projectile, charging forward shield-first and ramming his opponent.

Their shields collided, and in the instant of contact, their deflector shields collapsed into a chaotic electromagnetic vortex.

Blake, who had the speed advantage, slammed into the ‘Zealot’ with enough force to deform its frame.

Relying on the muscle memory ingrained through arduous training, he raised his right arm and jammed the Gauss rifle against the enemy’s cockpit for a point-blank volley.

Then, just before the Zealot exploded, he pulled away.

Although he had won this duel, Blake’s HCP was not in good shape.

The shield was almost completely destroyed in the collision. The vortex created when the deflector shields clashed had not only disabled the deflector field generator but had also temporarily rendered the two long-range weapons on his rear weapon racks unusable.

But the problem was, there was still one more Zealot chasing The Reckless.

The magnified image from his optical lens showed that this Zealot seemed to have lost all its long-range weapons as well and was now drawing a physical greatsword from its back.

“You Imperials fight this hard, too?”

Blake couldn’t help but cough, a coppery taste filling his throat. It was clear the violent impact had injured him as well.

As if a thought occurred to him, Blake turned his head to look at the nearby Robert IV. It was as magnificent and beautiful as ever.

“Eve, jettison the rear weapon racks! Shut down the communications and fire-control systems! Divert all power to the drive unit! Let me make one last charge!”

Blake tossed aside the empty Gauss rifle and likewise drew a plain, unadorned physical sword from his back. After the weapon racks were jettisoned, he assumed a standard swords-drawn charge posture and rushed toward the last Zealot with all his might.

The targeted Zealot seemed to realize what was happening, and the blue exhaust from its thrusters grew even brighter.

But the Short-Faced Bear, having jettisoned all its external weapons and its shield, and running its plasma thruster array at high power, still had a superior instantaneous thrust-to-weight ratio.

As The Reckless began its orbital descent, crossing the terminator line into the night hemisphere, the two ‘comets’ finally converged.

Blake ignored the incessant warnings of ‘Gravity too high! Machine attitude abnormal!’ in his cockpit and engaged in a fierce melee with the Zealot, which was constantly trying to use its own momentum to slam into the ship’s thruster array.

Every parry of their physical swords added another layer of difficulty to controlling their machines’ attitudes.

Near the massive exhaust plume of The Reckless’s main thruster array, Blake and the Imperial HCP became two blue trails, constantly intersecting, separating, and then meeting again.

In the end, it was Blake, superior in luck or perhaps skill, who was the last one standing in this orbital melee as their altitude continued to plummet.

Watching the Imperial HCP, a greatsword embedded in its cockpit, drift further and further away and begin to show signs of breaking apart, Blake finally awoke from his battle fervor.

He quickly realized that he had been completely captured by the planet’s gravity, with no hope of escape.

But Blake did not regret his decision.

Through the increasingly blurry image from his optical lens, he watched The Reckless on its higher orbit, heading into the distance.

The high-speed destroyer had opened a deployment bay, and one by one, autonomous communication nodes were being deployed.

“The mission… it was a success.”

The temperature in the cockpit grew hotter and hotter. An endless barrage of warnings screamed like a system in seizure.

The final moment had come. A single tear rolled down from the corner of Blake’s eye. He silenced all the alarms and, with his last ounce of strength, turned his machine to face the planet.

Looking at the home world that was about to embrace him, he remembered what his daughter looked like the last time he saw her. Blake smiled and opened his arms.

On the surface of Robert IV, at an automated farm on the North Continent.

A ten-year-old girl couldn’t sleep tonight.

Even while hugging the robot-shaped pillow her father had brought home for her on his last visit, she couldn’t fall asleep.

When the digital clock in her room showed three-thirty in the morning, the little girl, who had been tossing and turning, climbed out of bed, still clutching her pillow.

Guided by a strange feeling, she put on her little bear jacket and walked barefoot outside.

The farm was so quiet at night, so quiet it made her a little scared.

Just as the little girl was about to turn and go back inside, she seemed to sense something and looked up at the night sky.

A ball of light was streaking across the heavens at high speed, continuously breaking apart into more, smaller points of light.

The little girl’s eyes lit up. She opened her mouth, revealing a gap where a front tooth was missing, and indistinctly spoke a word she knew well:

“A shooting star!”

An evening breeze blew in from the distance, lifting the ends of the little girl’s hair.

In that instant, she thought she heard a familiar voice whisper in her ear.

“Eve, Daddy’s home.”

Chapter 79: The Response

“So, they still managed to break through?”

On the bridge of The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania asked.

His tone was calm, betraying no sign of joy or sorrow.

But Colonel Rafael and the combat staff officers standing before him were so tense they barely dared to breathe.

Having dealt with the Marquis for a long time, they all knew he was a man of unpredictable moods.

He might seem easygoing on a normal day and treat his subordinates well.

But if a command error occurred during battle, especially one that affected the entire situation…

Then you might have the privilege of witnessing the Marquis’s thunderous rage.

In any case, someone needed to step forward and take responsibility.

And that person, in most cases, was the chief combat staff officer, Colonel Rafael.

Although the Colonel always stepped forward at times like these, in the eyes of the other combat staff officers, only Colonel Rafael was suited to be the ‘scapegoat’.

After all, besides being highly regarded by the Marquis, rumors and gossip from the grapevine suggested that the dashing Royal Navy Colonel had some sort of history with the Marquis’s daughter.

“Yes, my lord Marquis.”

Amidst the expectant gazes of his comrades, Colonel Rafael reluctantly took a step forward.

“The Federation fleet dispatched two Jackdaw-class high-speed destroyers. We sank one, but the other broke through our blockade and successfully deployed the communication nodes.”

Hearing Rafael’s reply, the Marquis fell silent for a moment, his eyes narrowing as if he were trying to recall something.

A moment later, he continued to question Rafael:

“If I’m not mistaken, haven’t we already established a communications blockade around Robert IV? The orbit is saturated with signal jamming devices, all networked. Under these circumstances, deploying communication nodes should be pointless, shouldn’t it?”

“You are correct, my lord Marquis.”

Rafael activated the central holographic display on the bridge, which showed a model of Robert IV.

As he manipulated the controls, the planet’s model enlarged, and a larger, pale blue sphere appeared around its outer layer.

“The signal jamming devices have indeed completed their network coverage, which is why the Federation forces on the ground were unable to contact the outside world. However…”

As Rafael explained, a red trajectory approached the planet, eventually passing through the pale blue interference layer.

“The Federation destroyer that successfully broke through our blockade obviously discovered this. They lowered their orbit significantly, deploying the communication nodes inside the interference layer. They even used their ship-borne weapons to destroy a number of orbital signal jammers, disrupting the networking process.”

After saying this, Rafael stood at attention, facing the Marquis.

“My command was indeed improper in this battle, allowing the Federation fleet to seize an opportunity to disrupt our deployment. I await your punishment, my lord Marquis!”

“Enough, don’t blame yourself.”

Marquis Ascania waved his hand dismissively.

The other members of the combat staff let out a collective sigh of relief. It seemed the Marquis wasn’t going to lose his temper this time.

“Based on what you’ve described, Rafael, can I assume that the remaining Federation forces on the ground will not only receive the messages sent by the communication nodes but also now have a window for outbound communications?”

“Yes, my lord. However, this window is limited to in-system communication. The only trans-frequency communication tower has been destroyed.”

Hearing Rafael’s words, Marquis Ascania shook his head.

“No, these Federation remnants don’t need to contact anyone outside the star system. They only need to contact that Federation fleet. Even a single short message would be enough.”

“Think about it. What would happen to a force that was trapped and fighting alone on a planet after they learn that a friendly fleet exists just outside?”

Rafael was silent for a moment, then replied, “Their morale and will to resist would be boosted.”

“Exactly. Sigh. That’s what worries me. If we can’t take Robert IV quickly, the fighting here will soon become increasingly intense.”

Marquis Ascania turned and walked back to the captain’s chair. After sitting down, a look of worry crossed his face.

“I’m now beginning to suspect that a warning signal was sent out the moment we launched our surprise attack.”

On the surface of Robert IV, Amber, who had been chatting with a newly awakened Major Randall in the temporary troop rest area, received orders to report to Brigade HQ.

After taking a Mongoose-4 armored vehicle to the temporary brigade camp sixty-five kilometers away, he was led directly to the command post.

At this time, the temporary command post was filled with brigade officers. Since Lieutenant Colonel Dallas hadn’t arrived yet, they were gathered in small groups, chatting.

Amber glanced at their ranks; none were below a Lieutenant.

“If the Empire finds this place, one shot is all it would take. Hiss~”

A sudden chill ran down Amber’s spine, and he shook the ominous thought from his head, then silently found a spot in a corner of the command post.

Whether it was his soul-transmigrated self or this body that had only recently reported for duty, he clearly didn’t know anyone here.

But just because Amber had no intention of socializing didn’t mean others weren’t interested in him.

Soon, a few young officers approached to greet him. These officers had served under Lieutenant Colonel Dallas for years, and under his guidance, their prejudice against psionic users had mostly faded.

“Warrant Officer Amber, is it? I’m Bruce, a combat staff officer from Brigade HQ. These two are Ram and Yorick, also combat staff officers.”

Amber was initially a little puzzled by the enthusiasm shown by the three combat staff officers.

Until Bruce asked the key question.

“Warrant Officer Amber, that operational plan Lieutenant Dallas received, you’re the one who submitted it, right?”

At those words, Amber instantly understood. It turned out these three were here to ‘settle a score’.

Of course, ‘settle a score’ was just a figure of speech.

Although the three combat staff officers complained for a while about how they were losing their hair revising the operational plan, they then pulled him into a serious discussion about some of the details, openly expressing their approval of the bold plan.

“As expected of a psionic user, your brain just works better!”

Bruce clapped Amber on the shoulder, giving him a thumbs-up in praise.

While they were talking, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas arrived at the command post.

The Lieutenant Colonel disliked formalities and, much like his personality, preferred to get straight to the point in these meetings.

He walked directly to the head seat, scanned the faces of everyone present, and cut to the chase.

“Last night, a Federation Navy fleet engaged an Imperial fleet in orbit.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas wasted no words, explaining the situation in just a few sentences.

According to him, the Federation fleet had now disengaged from the battle. While their exact movements were unknown, they were believed to be maneuvering in the vicinity of Robert IV.

They had also managed to break through the Imperial fleet’s blockade and were now using the deployed autonomous communication nodes to conduct a continuous, public, all-frequency broadcast across the entirety of Robert IV.

The content was simple, essentially stating that the fleet would fight to the last and that the Federation forces on the ground should not give up.

Since this broadcast was unencrypted and used a public frequency, not only could the remaining Federation forces receive it, but so could the Imperials who had been airdropped onto the planet.

Clearly, the Federation fleet was also using this method to apply pressure on the Imperial forces.

“This impromptu meeting is to inform you of this, but there’s one more thing…”

As Lieutenant Colonel Dallas spoke, he glanced pointedly at Amber, who immediately had a bad feeling.

“According to feedback from the communications department, it seems the Empire’s communications blockade of the planet has been compromised under the attack of our friendly fleet.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas opened an electronic map, which showed all the large communication stations within a six hundred-kilometer radius, with Brigade HQ at the center.

“My idea is to send a small team to take control of one of these communication stations and, using a public frequency, respond to our fleet in deep space.”

Hearing Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s words, two words popped into Amber’s mind:

“I’m screwed!”

Chapter 80: We Will Fight to the Last

By this point in the meeting, Amber finally understood why he, and he alone, had been summoned, even though everyone else present was an officer from Brigade HQ.

“Looks like they’re about to give me a job.”

Unpleasant memories of being a wage slave in his previous life came flooding back to him.

And in the next moment, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s words confirmed Amber’s suspicions.

“Warrant Officer Amber, you are currently the only Psionic Agent in our forces. I want you to take the lead on this operation.”

“Yes, Sir! I guarantee the mission will be completed!”

Amber snapped to attention, his heels clicking together as he saluted and replied loudly in a firm tone.

Though a million objections screamed in his mind, he could only agree wholeheartedly at this moment.

This was the army, after all, not a corporation.

Have you ever seen a soldier dare to disobey an order from a superior officer? Especially during wartime.

Even though Amber had never considered himself a true Federation soldier and even planned to bolt the moment he found a way off Robert IV, he had no choice but to obey like a real soldier in this situation.

Of course, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was unaware of the intense struggle raging in Amber’s mind. He simply nodded in approval at Amber’s response.

“This operation will be carried out by a small detachment. You can pick your men from the brigade’s direct reconnaissance battalion. Feel free to make any requests you have.”

“Just one problem, Sir,” Amber said after a moment’s thought.

“My combat suit and exoskeleton were wrecked in the last battle. I was wondering if the brigade has any spares in stock?”

“Hmm, I’ll have the quartermaster look into it.”

In the end, the quartermaster couldn’t find a combat suit or exoskeleton for a Psionic Agent.

After all, such equipment was hardly common.

Previously, at all of Yassin Base, only the Tactical Support Team under the Combat Intelligence Center had used this gear, and their inventory had always been small.

And aside from Amber, the other four Psionic Agents in the Tactical Support Team had fallen at the base on the night the Empire launched its attack.

So when Lieutenant Colonel Dallas led the breakout, it never occurred to him to bring along a couple of extra sets.

Although there was a spare ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ exoskeleton in the transport truck of Amber’s own team, it lacked cloaking capabilities. Besides, going back to get it would mean a round trip of over a hundred kilometers.

Since they didn’t know when the Empire would re-establish its communications blockade, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas wanted the team to set out as soon as possible.

Under the circumstances, Amber had to settle for a specialized exoskeleton from the reconnaissance battalion.

Like the ones used by the Mobile Infantry, the reconnaissance battalion also wore the ‘Saber-tooth 3’. The only differences were that the power pack had undergone noise-reduction treatment and the feet were fitted with electromagnetic cushioning devices.

Amber quickly contacted his subordinate’s communications relay vehicle. After instructing Major Randall to temporarily take command of the Mobile Infantry platoon and continue the march as planned, he and the commander of the brigade’s reconnaissance battalion selected sixteen infantrymen. Then, they boarded their vehicles and set off.

Their target was a large communications station one hundred and forty-six kilometers away. The massive communication arrays there were capable of intra-system information transmission.

Amber’s plan was to use the arrays to find a deep-space relay satellite and then use that satellite to transmit a message to the Federation fleet.

Of course, as per Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s instructions, this message would also be sent on a public channel so the Empire could receive it as well.

In the end, Amber came up with a very simple and crude operational plan for the accompanying reconnaissance battalion commander.

Step one: Arrive at the designated area and reconnoiter the situation.

Step two: If Imperial forces are found, eliminate them.

Step three: Seize control of the communication arrays.

Step four: Send the message, then pack up and leave.

The reconnaissance battalion commander naturally had no objections to an operational plan so simple even a grandmother could understand it.

In his eyes, a Psionic Agent like Amber was an expert in these matters; all he had to do was trust him.

After a two-hour journey, when the team arrived at a position about ten kilometers from the communications station, an armored vehicle deployed a reconnaissance drone.

This yielded one piece of bad news and one piece of good news.

The bad news was that Imperial forces had indeed been spotted at this civilian communications station.

In Amber’s mind, a civilian station like this, lacking interstellar communication capabilities, shouldn’t have been a target for Imperial forces. Moreover, after the Imperial fleet had established a communication blockade over the planet, even military communication stations had rarely become targets. So, the news of Imperial troops at this station came as a bit of a surprise to Amber.

The good news, however, was that the Imperial force was small, consisting of only two orbital paratrooper squads moving via all-terrain vehicles, plus a single ‘Saint’ multi-legged war machine.

Judging from the vehicle tracks spotted by the reconnaissance drone, they had come from the opposite direction to Amber’s team. This meant that if this enemy unit continued on its current path, it might run headlong into the brigade.

“Looks like a forward scout unit?” the reconnaissance battalion commander speculated as he watched the drone feed.

“Very likely. Weren’t there a few Imperial pursuit units tailing your main force? This is probably one of them.”

Amber pointed in the direction they had come from. “Look, they’re clearly heading straight for the brigade.”

“This is not good. We have to notify the brigade and have them move out ahead of schedule.”

“No problem,” Amber nodded, then continued, “You notify the brigade now and tell them to start moving. We’ll attack as soon as you’re done.”

The ensuing battle needs no detailed description.

For Amber’s team, which had brought two ‘Tarantula-Kai’ light multi-legged war machines, three ‘Mongoose-4’ armored vehicles, and a VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, the Imperial vanguard at the communications station was easy prey.

After his promotion to a level-four psionic user, Amber’s psionic strength had increased dramatically. And after several days of rest, he was back at his peak.

Then, the reconnaissance battalion’s commander and soldiers witnessed what it meant to be a humanoid monster.

After the team snuck to a position about two kilometers from the station, Amber made no attempt to conceal his approach. He simply charged forward brazenly under the open sun.

Only when the Imperial soldiers spotted him and began to open fire did Amber activate his psionic shield, continuing his charge without slowing down.

At that moment, the Imperial soldiers finally remembered to call for support. But under the battlefield jamming from the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle, they were completely unable to send out any message.

When the ‘Saint’ multi-legged war machine, which had moved up to support the infantry, was destroyed by concentrated fire from the two ’Tarantula-Kai’s lying in ambush, the battle’s outcome was sealed.

The remaining Federation soldiers, led by the reconnaissance battalion commander, quickly charged into the communications station from another direction, circling behind the Imperial soldiers whose attention was completely fixated on Amber, and launched a surprise attack.

As the reconnaissance battalion commander pulled his combat spike from the last fallen Imperial soldier and reloaded his weapon with a kacha, Amber had already reached the station’s control room. He connected a data cable from the back of his neck to the control room’s main terminal.

“Lilith, I’m counting on you!”

“Tch. You’re all sweet talk when you need me, but you ignore me completely when you don’t.”

Although she harbored some resentment about being used as a tool, Lilith was a classic case of “her mouth said no, but her body was very honest.” She quickly completed the infiltration and took control of the communications station’s large arrays, deploying their antennas.

“Mmm… I’ve found a few usable communication satellites in orbit. We can use them as relays to send the message to a deep-space relay satellite~”

“Excellent. Use the public channel, no encryption needed.”

“And the message?”

“Mm… just one sentence: We will fight to the end.”

Chapter 81: The Farthest Distance

“Um, just one sentence: We will fight to the end.”

Seated in the captain’s chair on the bridge of The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania turned to Rafael, a bizarre expression on his face.

“Just that one sentence? Nothing else?”

“That is correct, my Lord Marquis. That is the only sentence the Federation remnants sent over the public channel.”

Hearing Rafael’s reply, Marquis Ascania took a breath and leaned back into his captain’s chair.

“‘We will fight to the end.’ That part is easy enough to understand. It lets the Federation fleet know there are still resistance forces on the ground, and it also communicates to us their determination not to give up easily.”

The Marquis gazed at the slowly rotating virtual image of the planet in the center of the bridge.

“Though we are enemies, I must admit that the fighting spirit of these Federation soldiers is truly admirable. But this ‘Um, just one sentence’ at the beginning… Rafael, what do you make of it?”

Faced with the Marquis’s question, Colonel Rafael’s expression also turned a little strange.

“Is it possible that they made a typo when sending it? Perhaps the situation was too urgent? After all, according to the ground troops’ report, they almost intercepted the small Federation unit that attacked the communications station.”

“If it were an emergency, wouldn’t it be better to be as brief as possible? How would they have time to add a filler phrase at the beginning?”

“Ah, well…”

Although Rafael had initially thought it was likely a slip of the finger by the sender, after hearing Marquis Ascania’s point, he couldn’t help but start imagining other possibilities.

“Forget it. We’ll probably never figure it out by guessing. Have the intelligence department analyze the message for any hidden content.”

“As you command, my Lord Marquis.”

“Um, just one sentence: We will fight to the end.”

In the war room of the Equality, Brigadier General Dowell stared at the message on the screen, feeling a surge of excitement mixed with a tinge of doubt.

They now knew for certain that friendly forces on the ground were still resisting and that they still had the will to fight on. This made Dowell and the other commanders of the task force feel that the fleet’s battle now had meaning.

But the message’s strange format made Brigadier General Dowell feel it might not be as simple as it looked.

“Any thoughts?”

The brigadier general looked up at the others in the war room.

“Perhaps… they’re trying to send us a message? A hidden message, concealed within this one, so they could send it over the public channel and have the Empire overlook its true meaning?”

“Could it just be a typo they made when sending it?”

“Impossible, absolutely impossible!” one of the attendees waved his hand and continued, “The words and symbols in this message might have a specific meaning. I suggest we have the intelligence department approach this from a cryptographic perspective. We might find its true meaning.”

“Lilith, are you an artificial idiot?”

Inside the speeding communications relay vehicle, Amber grumbled mentally, exasperated.

He was currently en route to the next waypoint with the Mobile Infantry platoon under his command.

If Bruce, whom he had met at Brigade HQ, hadn’t reminded him, Amber wouldn’t have even known he had sent out such an abstract message.

“You were only supposed to send the last sentence. Why did you include what I said before it? Are you telling me a sophisticated AI like you can’t even make that simple distinction?”

“Because when I asked what message to send, Master, that’s exactly what you said, right? Lilith was just faithfully carrying out your every command, Maaaaster~”

Lilith’s voice echoed in his mind, drawing out the final “Master” in a way that Amber found incredibly punch-worthy.

“If you were real, I’d spank you until your butt was sore.”

“You can always come to the virtual world, Master. Then, you can do… whaaatever you want to me~”

“Unbelievable. Just you wait.”

In the days that followed, Amber led his Mobile Infantry platoon in a continuous march, following the route laid out in the operational plan.

During this time, Major Randall, Tom, and Isabelle had also more or less recovered from their injuries.

At first, Amber had even planned to send Randall and Tom to the field hospital at Brigade HQ. After all, they had professional mobile medical units, and the conditions there were much better than staying with the platoon.

But when Amber sent over their information and injury reports, the field hospital refused to admit them.

The reason for the refusal was simple: injuries too minor, can recover on their own.

Soon, more than ten days had passed in this stop-and-go, long-distance maneuver.

During this period, Amber had even led his team to a supply point to replenish their fuel, battery packs, food, medicine, and drinking water.

And the impact of the locked space elevator on the Imperial forces was also slowly becoming apparent.

The biggest problem was that their logistics were failing to keep up.

Initially, they could rely on drop pods and aerospace transports for support, but ever since the Federation task force appeared, they would show up every few days to harass them.

This made the Empire’s airdrop operations, which were already drastically reduced due to the infrequent launch windows, even worse.

Although the troops didn’t face major shortages of food and drinking water—they could always “borrow” some from the locals if things got desperate—supplies of fuel, battery packs, and ammunition could only be managed by the fleet.

The Imperial forces did try to find Federation energy supply points, but these depots were either already picked clean or so heavily fortified that they could only be taken by force.

For Amber, the most direct consequence of this situation was that the speed of the Imperial pursuit was slowing down.

Furthermore, the Imperial units they encountered during their march showed a decreasing desire to intercept them.

Meanwhile, in the Federation Central Star System, the capital planet of Telvina finally received the urgent military dispatch from the border region.

When the dispatch was delivered into the hands of Fleet Admiral Trafalgar of the Federation Navy, the 68-year-old admiral immediately departed from Naval Command and headed for the Presidential Palace at top speed.

His intention was simple: to immediately mobilize the main fleet to reinforce the border star system.

But according to Federation law, the Federation’s main fleet could only be committed to battle by a direct order from the President.

Without it, not even Fleet Admiral Trafalgar had the authority to mobilize them.

This was why he had rushed to the Presidential Palace.

However, when Fleet Admiral Trafalgar and the Minister of Defense, who had also received the news and rushed over, arrived at the Presidential Palace and explained that they had an urgent military matter to discuss with the President immediately, they were led to a waiting room by the director of the palace’s General Office.

“His Excellency the President is currently in a meeting with an important visitor. Please wait here for a moment.”

The director’s words made Fleet Admiral Trafalgar laugh with exasperation.

“Wait a moment?! This is a dispatch that has traveled across the entire Federation from a border star system, and you’re telling me to ‘wait a moment’?!”

Watching the unconcerned back of the director as he turned and left, the old admiral collapsed wearily into a chair in the reception room.

“The distance of more than a dozen star systems couldn’t stop this urgent dispatch from being delivered, yet in the final moment, it’s blocked by the wooden door of a reception room…”

“This Federation…”

Chapter 82: Procedure

After waiting in the lounge for nearly half an hour, Marshal Trafalgar and Minister of Defense Miller were finally able to see the President, who had just finished a meeting.

As the two of them, stomachs churning with anger, made their way to the President’s office, they happened to run into a group of people emerging from the conference room.

They appeared to be the “important guests” the Federation President had just been meeting with.

After the two parties passed each other and had walked some distance, Marshal Trafalgar said with a deadpan expression, “If I’m not mistaken, those are people from the megacorporations and the military-industrial complex, aren’t they?”

“Yes, along with representatives from Deep Space Mining and Gabriel Biotech.”

Minister of Defense Miller came to a stop beside Marshal Trafalgar, his face equally devoid of emotion.

“Hmph. Meeting with these people at a time like this… he must be starting to prepare for next year’s general election, right?”

“Most likely. Our dear Mr. President’s poll numbers haven’t been looking too good these last two years. If he wants to get re-elected, his only option is to cooperate with these megacorps.”

“Re-election… I’ve heard Mr. President wants to do a major shake-up of the Federation military’s high command. If he’s successfully re-elected, he might really start coming after us.”

As they spoke, the two had arrived at the door to the President’s office.

“Let’s put that aside for now. The most critical thing is to get this guy to order the capital fleet to move out immediately,” Marshal Trafalgar said coldly, then pushed open the office door and strode inside.

Looking at his old classmate, whose personality hadn’t changed in decades, Minister of Defense Miller shook his head helplessly and followed him in.

Behind the large desk sat the current President of the Federation, the fifty-three-year-old Brandon. Upon seeing the two men enter, he immediately stood up, his face breaking into his signature, charismatic smile.

With his crisp suit, meticulously combed-back hair, and tall, upright posture, Brandon had the perfect image of an elite Federation politician in both appearance and age.

In addition, his “heroic feat” of being born on an ordinary planet and getting into the Federation Central University’s Social Sciences Department had led him to join the Federation Democratic Party while still a student, where he met the man who would change his destiny—Thomas.

As a legendary councilman in the Capital star system, Thomas had once been the chairman of the Federation House of Representatives’ Administrative Committee and the Ways and Means Committee—a genuine heavyweight with real power in the Federation Democratic Party.

After graduating, Brandon served as Thomas’s aide for a full fifteen years.

During those fifteen years, working under such a powerful figure allowed Brandon, who was adept at navigating complex social situations, to establish a vast network of political connections and accumulate significant political capital.

Thus, when he finally stepped into the political arena, Brandon quickly made the magnificent leap from an ordinary member of the House of Representatives to a Federation Senator, before making his bid for the presidency at a prime age.

“Gentlemen, I apologize for the wait. I’ve just accomplished something major for the two of you!”

President Brandon, though unsure why the two “old soldiers” looked so displeased, still greeted them with a smile.

“The upgrade work for some of the capital fleet’s heavy cruisers at the end of the year—Aurora Heavy Industries has agreed to accept our revised, lower bid! This has saved your navy a considerable amount of its military budget!”

Brandon’s voice was full of excitement, as if he had just pulled off something extraordinary.

“We thank you for your support of our navy, Mr. President. However, there is a more urgent matter to report to you now.”

Before Minister Miller could speak, Marshal Trafalgar stepped forward, cutting off the President’s attempt to take credit.

“We just received an urgent military dispatch. The Imperial fleet has launched an attack on our border star system. This is an act of war, and we must counterattack immediately!”

“Wait… What?! The Imperial fleet launched an attack?”

The expression on Brandon’s face turned serious, though he was clearly still skeptical.

“Why wasn’t this mentioned in the morning briefing?”

“Because we only just received the news. We were going to report it to you directly, but you were meeting with your ‘important guests,’ Mr. President, and we didn’t dare disturb you…”

The mockery and displeasure in Marshal Trafalgar’s tone were completely undisguised.

However, President Brandon showed no sign of embarrassment or annoyance. As if he hadn’t caught the underlying meaning in the old marshal’s words, he sat back down, his expression sinking into deep thought.

“Since the message came from a border star system, considering the transmission time, the Empire’s actual attack must have happened nearly twenty days ago?”

“Based on the current situation, yes, that’s correct. Therefore, we hope you will order the capital fleet to set out immediately to support the border star system.”

Minister of Defense Miller’s pace was steady and unhurried. When reporting to the President alongside Marshal Trafalgar, he usually played the “good cop.”

Hearing his words, Brandon did not reply directly. He remained silent for a moment before looking up at the two old men.

“Has the source of this information been verified?”

“We’ve already arranged for people to try and verify it quickly. All we know for now is that the report of the attack came from Yassin Base on Robert IV. The message claims that Robert IV was attacked by the Imperial fleet.”

“That’s it? Is that the only message?” Brandon asked.

“Currently, that is the only message explicitly stating an attack by the Empire. But since Yassin Base sent this message, regardless of who the enemy is, it proves that something is definitely wrong at Yassin Base, or rather, on Robert IV.”

Miller seemed to have anticipated the President’s question, and his answer was neither evasive nor exaggerated.

Brandon thought for a moment before looking back at the Minister of Defense.

“If the entire capital fleet is dispatched to the border to fight based on this alone, that’s tantamount to declaring war on the Star Dragon Empire. And according to procedure, a declaration of war against the Star Dragon Empire must be approved by Congress.”

“Procedure! Procedure! They’re already attacking us, and you’re still talking about procedure?!”

Marshal Trafalgar had a fiery temper. This time, even Minister Miller at his side couldn’t stop him before he “opened fire” on Brandon.

“Our soldiers at the front are fighting and bleeding, waiting for the main fleet’s support, while you cowardly politicians hide in the safe rear, talking about procedure!”

The old marshal stormed up to the front of the President’s desk, slamming his hands on its surface like an old but still aggressive lion.

But Brandon was not intimidated by Trafalgar’s imposing presence. Instead, he stood up, bringing his eyes level with the old marshal’s, and stared directly at him as he spoke, word by word:

“Marshal Trafalgar, while you are my senior, and I do indeed have the utmost respect for you, but…”

Brandon’s tone changed, and he seemed to become a different person.

“Do you know what a direct declaration of war on the Star Dragon Empire means? That the two largest powers in the human world would go to war again after more than eighty years, all because of a single, unverified urgent military dispatch?”

“And since you mentioned procedure, I must emphasize one point: rules and laws are one of the very foundations upon which our Federation was built. They are sacred and inviolable! Everything must be executed within the framework of the law, according to rules and regulations!”

“Gentlemen, we are not yet officially at war! According to Federation law, the deployment of the capital fleet requires a presidential order, which is why you came to me. That is procedure. As for declaring war on the Empire, I need to report to Congress and receive their approval before I can make such a declaration. That, too, is procedure!”

While President Brandon was eloquently holding forth on the Federation’s laws and rules, Minister of Defense Miller pulled back his enraged old classmate. He waited until the President had finished speaking before he said:

“Mr. President, we have no objection to the fact that a declaration of war requires congressional approval. However, I can propose a compromise…”

Chapter 83: The Port

Minister Miller looked into President Brandon’s eyes. He didn’t engage in a head-on confrontation as the latter had anticipated, still maintaining his grace and courtesy.

This response caused the imposing air President Brandon had just built up to slowly deflate.

Compared to Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, who was straightforward and whose style was filled with the ‘characteristics’ of the older generation of Federation military men, it was this Minister of Defense, Miller, who always seemed to play the ‘good old boy’, that President Brandon found far more difficult to handle.

Judging from their past ‘encounters’, this Minister of Defense often delivered a decisive blow at the most critical moments.

“Please, Mr. Minister.”

Although a sense of crisis was already rising within him, Brandon’s expression remained unchanged.

“I hope you will immediately order the Federation Navy’s Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets to depart for the border star systems to conduct exercises.”

Hearing this, although Brandon was doing his utmost to control his expression, his eyes still widened uncontrollably for an instant.

This, naturally, did not escape Minister Miller’s gaze.

“If it’s just for exercises, it won’t require Congressional approval. As President, you have the authority to order the main fleets to conduct exercises anywhere within Federation territory. And once the fleets arrive and encounter the Imperial fleet…”

“Then a declaration of war will be a mere formality. Is that what you mean, Mr. Minister?”

President Brandon finished Miller’s thought. He had to admit that this old man, who dedicated his entire being to national defense, was also equally adept at exploiting loopholes.

Brandon couldn’t even remember how many times a scene like this had occurred since he took office.

“Oh, that last part was your own idea, Your Excellency. I certainly didn’t say that.”

Minister Miller remained calm, only to be suddenly slapped on the back by Fleet Admiral Trafalgar.

“Heh! I’ve gotta say, you’re really something else, Miller!”

“Easy. Easy there. I’m telling you, when are you going to change that temper of yours?”

Minister Miller twitched the corner of his mouth as he looked at his old classmate. This Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy was an absolute master when it came to training troops and commanding fleets in combat, but in every other respect, he didn’t resemble a Fleet Admiral in the slightest.

Moreover, due to his fiery temper and outspoken nature, he had offended many people in the political arena, which was why there had always been calls to have Fleet Admiral Trafalgar replaced.

Looking at the two men before him, even President Brandon, for all his political shrewdness, couldn’t help but twitch his lips.

“Receiving an urgent military dispatch, not taking the time to verify it, keeping it secret instead of reporting it, and mobilizing the main fleets under the guise of exercises. Then, once the matter is a foregone conclusion, going through the motions of a symbolic declaration of war. Mr. Minister, other people aren’t fools. A simple investigation would reveal the whole story. Do you know what the consequences of this would be for me?”

“You would be handing the opposition a weapon to use against you, and you would be impeached.”

Minister Miller said without a moment’s hesitation; he was, of course, well aware of this.

“Since you know the consequences, why should I do it?”

Faced with Brandon’s question, Minister Miller didn’t answer immediately. He pulled Fleet Admiral Trafalgar to a seat in front of the desk. Then, only after Brandon had also sat back down in the seat that symbolized presidential power, did he speak:

“Because doing this will add the most significant weight to the scales for your re-election.”

At this moment, Minister Miller felt that victory was in his grasp.

The fact that Brandon was willing to sit down and listen meant the man already had an answer in his heart. He just didn’t want to be the one to say that ‘answer’ out loud.

“You and I both know that as long as the rest of the Federation Democratic Party doesn’t abandon you, the opposition’s chances of a successful impeachment are not very high.

“If, because of your order today, we avoid being put on the back foot in the subsequent battles, and even succeed in defeating the Star Dragon Empire’s fleet and driving them back, your prestige, both among the public and in the political sphere, will see a massive boost.

“Today’s order will no longer be seen as an overreach of authority or an unconstitutional act, but will instead become the most brilliant stroke of your political career.”

Across the desk, Brandon looked at the ‘old fox’ sitting opposite him. He had to admit the proposal was incredibly tempting.

Especially with his approval ratings continuously falling, he had to produce some sufficiently dazzling political achievements to keep his path to re-election open.

This was an ‘All in’ gamble with his political life as the stake.

If the subsequent war went smoothly, and they successfully defeated the Imperial fleet—or even if it became a stalemate that halted the Empire’s advance—then others would call his order today ‘courageous and resourceful’.

But if the war went poorly, and the fleet suffered heavy losses, forget re-election—he might not even finish his term. He would be imprisoned for unconstitutional actions, becoming the first president in Federation history to be jailed while in office.

“This isn’t a simple decision. I need to think.”

“Of course, Mr. President.”

Minister Miller raised his wrist and glanced at the time.

“However, I must remind you that although I have temporarily blocked this news, it’s only temporary. The ‘others’ will likely receive this information through their own channels within the next two hours. If we drag it out until then, they will demand an investigation into the dispatch’s authenticity. Then they’ll call the Star Dragon Empire or summon their ambassador to confirm the situation. Finally, Congress will hold an emergency meeting to debate whether to declare war immediately or to first send a small force to scout the situation. By the time all those procedures are complete, given the ‘high efficiency’ of our Congress and various departments, it would probably be several days from now. Declaring war and deploying troops then… the time wasted would be enough to tip the scales of war.”

After hearing Minister Miller’s words, Brandon was silent for a moment before looking up at the old man.

“Five minutes. I’ll give you my decision in five minutes.”

An hour later, Federation Naval Command issued a deployment order to the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets, ordering the two fleets, which had just completed resupply and major ship overhauls, to depart immediately for the Robert system to conduct combat-readiness exercises.

Two hours later, news of the Imperial attack on the border star systems had spread among the Federation’s senior leadership.

At the same time, all ships of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets had reached their designated area. They activated their jump drives in sequence, entering another dimension amidst a continuous series of flashes.

Upon learning that President Brandon had ordered two fleets to the border star systems under the guise of ‘exercises’, the opposition party immediately jumped on the opportunity and initiated impeachment proceedings against him.

Chapter 84: Blue Bay

The Federation forces on Robert IV and the task force “waging guerrilla warfare” near the planet did not yet know that two fleets had already set out and were heading for the Robert system.

They were even more unaware that in the Capital star system, the opposition had already initiated impeachment proceedings against the president in Congress.

When the House of Representatives convened to discuss the matter, President Brandon, theoretically barred from attending as an “involved party” in the issue, still pinned on his congressional brooch and attended the session.

Meanwhile, a Federation Democratic Party senator attending the meeting gave his speaking time to “former senator from Planet Carola, Brandon,” allowing him to make a speech amidst the opposition’s impotent rage.

Master the rules, play the rules, make the rules.

This was also why Brandon was ultimately able to reach his position.

The final outcome of the meeting was just as Secretary Miller had predicted: the president’s order for the fleet to conduct exercises on the border was procedurally sound, and the opposition’s impeachment was rejected due to the uncertainty of the military intelligence regarding the “border attack.”

Under these circumstances, every member of the opposition hoped the intelligence was wrong and that the Empire had not actually launched an invasion. That way, next year’s general election could proceed smoothly. Then, with Brandon trailing in the public opinion polls, their maneuvering would likely prevent him from being re-elected.

But Brandon, as President of the Federation, had now become one of the few people within the Federation who desperately hoped for a war between the Federation and the Empire to break out.

Meanwhile, due to the appearance of the task force, the pressure on the Federation’s ground forces had been significantly reduced.

The decline in the frequency and capability of the Imperial fleet’s orbital strikes and orbital drops, in particular, meant their ground forces no longer held the overwhelming advantage they had at the start of the conflict.

After all, according to the Imperial Fleet Combat Command’s initial plan, the ground forces were mainly intended to isolate the Federation remnants and then act as “eyes” to guide orbital strikes, thus achieving the goal of annihilating enemy forces with a small number of troops.

At the same time, they were to rapidly transport the armored brigade combat teams of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group via the space elevator.

But clearly, with the space elevator unusable and the Federation task force constantly harassing them, this plan could only remain a plan.

Seeing the hope of a quick victory fading, the ground forces, under the command of Marquis Ascania and directed by the command staff, adjusted their operational plan.

The orbital paratroopers and supporting mechanized units were no longer focused on encircling and isolating Federation remnants to guide strikes, but began to concentrate their forces.

Relying on the firepower superiority provided by their HCPs in local engagements, they began to hunt down the Federation remnants that had failed to escape the encirclement, prioritizing the annihilation of these effective combat personnel.

As for the other Federation remnants that had successfully broken out, in Marquis Ascania’s view, they were trapped on this planet, and their destruction was only a matter of time. Provided, of course, that no other unforeseen incidents occurred.

Against this backdrop, the frequency of encounters with Imperial forces for Amber’s Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade had indeed decreased significantly after their successful breakout.

This allowed the unit, which had been steadily increasing its marching speed, to arrive at its final waypoint on the North Continent—the port city of Blue Bay—sooner than expected.

According to the plan, the brigade would resupply here and use transportation available in the port to travel to the South Continent, where the space elevator was located.

Unfortunately, during the initial reconnaissance, traces of Imperial forces were regrettably discovered in the city.

Although Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had been trying his best to avoid combat and preserve the brigade’s strength for the final battle, Blue Bay was the only option. The nearest port city was another four hundred kilometers away. If they rashly changed their destination and still ran into Imperial forces, the loss would not be worth the risk.

This led the brigade’s staff officers to add a new operational plan to the beginning of their original one.

And it was an urban combat plan that gave everyone a headache.

“This is why I hate street fighting the most.”

Looking at the latest operational order issued by Brigade HQ, Amber also felt a headache coming on.

Compared to any other type of combat, ground-level street fighting was, without a doubt, what Amber detested the most.

The engagement distances shrink to almost nothing, with both sides in close-quarters combat. The chances of friend and foe mixing together in a melee are extremely high, making it incredibly dangerous.

Winding streets, complex terrain, and enemies hiding in the shadows all fill street fighting with countless unpredictable factors.

Furthermore, once you’re in close-quarters combat, the effectiveness of long-range fire support from the rear is severely hampered.

A slight deviation in the coordinates reported by a forward artillery observer, or in the firing data for self-propelled artillery and rockets, can lead to catastrophic friendly fire incidents.

Even the most elite units can be wiped out in a city due to a single piece of faulty intelligence or a tactical error on the ground.

This was even truer of the street fighting Amber had experienced in games during his previous life. Player coordination could be absurd at times, with several player squads often cramming into a single city block, only to be blanketed by their own side’s long-range fire.

Their combat effectiveness was sometimes even worse than that of NPC armies.

“Now it all depends on how many Imperial troops are actually in Blue Bay.”

Inside the communications relay vehicle, Amber discussed the situation with Randall while looking over the operational plan.

“If their numbers are small, and Lieutenant Colonel Dallas is determined to attack, we should be able to take the city quickly, albeit with some casualties.”

“And what if their numbers are large?” asked Randall. Unfamiliar with ground combat, he had become a diligent student recently.

“If there are too many, it might actually be a good thing. The Lieutenant Colonel would most likely recognize the difficulty and retreat to find another location.”

“What if the number isn’t large, but it’s not small either?”

“Not too many, not too few…” Amber looked up at the ceiling of the vehicle, some unpleasant memories surfacing in his mind.

“That would be the worst-case scenario. Both sides would get locked in a stalemate inside the city. Not only would we fail to achieve a quick victory, but we might even eat an orbital strike.”

“Ah…”

Major Randall’s expression turned grim. As a Federation Navy officer, he was well aware of just how devastating orbital strikes were to ground forces.

“But that also depends on the Imperial troops’ determination to fight, and whether the commander or combat staff of that Imperial fleet above us actually sees their ground troops as human beings.”

Amber pointed a finger upward.

“If they do value their ground troops, then once both our forces are entangled in the city, they might hold back for fear of hitting their own.”

“So, do you think the commander of this Imperial fleet sees his troops on the ground as people?”

“Major, why would you think I’d know something like that? I’m just a lowly Warrant Officer. Even if I am a Psionic Agent, that doesn’t mean I’m omniscient, does it?”

Amber replied, exasperated.

“How about this: you wait here, and I’ll go ask the Imperial Fleet Combat Command if they’re planning on conducting an orbital strike.”

As Major Randall gave an embarrassed chuckle, Amber muttered his complaints and climbed out of the communications relay vehicle.

Stepping out from under the camouflage net stretched over the communications relay vehicle, Amber looked up at the sky. A long-range drone was passing overhead, heading in the direction of Blue Bay.

It was a high-altitude reconnaissance drone launched by the brigade’s drone battalion from a temporary field airstrip they had set up.

He and the Mobile Infantry platoon were currently resting at a designated concealed position, less than fifty kilometers from Blue Bay.

The entire Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade was deployed according to the operational plan, positioned in an encirclement forty to fifty kilometers from the city, awaiting the final order to attack.

Watching the drone gradually disappear over the horizon, Amber turned and walked towards another nearby ‘Kodo’ transport truck that was also covered by a camouflage net.

He couldn’t contact the Imperial Fleet Combat Command, but there was another Imperial noble in their unit he could consult.

Chapter 85: Pushing His Luck

“Ahem… Captain Margaret, are you busy right now?”

Amber walked to the rear of the transport truck and watched Isabelle preparing medicine in the cargo bed. He asked softly.

Because Brigade HQ had no spare medical vehicles to support them, this transport truck that had accompanied Amber’s unit had been temporarily converted by the mechanics. For now, it served as the mobile infantry platoon’s makeshift medical truck.

And Isabelle, the Imperial spy, whose cover was that of a medical captain, had formed a medical team with the two remaining military doctors and two mobile infantry soldiers who had been pressed into service.

The truck had also become the place where Isabelle spent most of her time.

“You’ve handed over all of the unit’s medical work to me. Do you think I’m busy or not?”

Upon hearing Amber’s voice, Isabelle first glanced at him with an eager look, then quickly reverted to a resentful expression.

“Did you need me for something? I’m preparing medicine right now. How about you wait a bit? I’ll come find you when I’m done.”

Just as Amber was about to agree, another female military doctor in the medical truck spoke up first:

“Captain, you go ahead. You can leave the medicine preparation to me.”

At the same time, she moved closer to Isabelle and took the task from her hands.

“Yes, Captain Margaret, you should go. Warrant Officer Amber must have something important to discuss with you.”

The others in the truck chimed in, expressions of suppressed laughter on their faces.

Isabelle naturally understood the underlying meaning in their words. Her pretty face immediately flushed a little, and she practically fled, jumping down from the truck.

“Warrant Officer Amber! Go for it!”

A comment from a wounded soldier lying in the truck made the others unable to hold back any longer, and they all burst out laughing.

“Hey, what are you all getting at?”

Amber, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, was about to say something when Isabelle grabbed him and pulled him away from the truck.

“Hey! Don’t get worked up. The guys are just bored from the march, so they’re telling some jokes.”

“Hmph~ So, what is it you wanted to see me about?”

After walking to a secluded spot, Isabelle let go of Amber’s arm. She glanced at him once, then looked down and started kicking at the pebbles on the ground.

Amber glanced around, and after confirming no one else was there, he leaned in close to Isabelle’s ear.

“There were too many people just now, so it wasn’t a good time to talk. I just wanted to ask if you know about Marquis Ascania.”

“Huh?”

Isabelle, who had been momentarily tense due to Amber’s sudden closeness, was stunned for a moment after hearing his question.

“You brought me all the way out here just to ask about this?”

“Yeah. Was I supposed to ask you about this in the medical truck? Do you have a death wish?”

Looking at Isabelle’s expression, Amber suddenly realized.

“Wait, you didn’t think I was going to…”

“Stop! Don’t say another word.” Isabelle covered her face with her hands, quickly composing herself.

“I haven’t had much contact with Marquis Ascania. He sided with the Regent Prince very early on, so he wasn’t particularly close with my family. However, the Naval Intelligence Division did conduct a comprehensive assessment of him… by the way, why are you suddenly asking about this?”

As she said this, Isabelle didn’t pull her head away. She remained close to Amber, and from a distance, they looked like a couple snuggling together.

“I mainly want to know about his command style, to see if he treats the troops under him like human beings. It’ll affect the difficulty of the upcoming street fighting.”

Seeing that Isabelle didn’t pull away, Amber naturally placed his hand on her waist. Her body trembled slightly, but she made no other movements.

“The assessment report doesn’t have a clear judgment on that. Based on some of the counter-insurgency operations he participated in before, the Marquis’s methods are unpredictable. Sometimes he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his goals, and other times he’ll show a considerate side toward his troops.”

“Tsk… a temperamental commander? That’s not good news. I have a feeling we might get hit by an orbital strike while we’re inside Blue Bay.”

Amber shook his head, and the hand resting on Isabelle’s waist moved involuntarily.

“I say… Warrant Officer Amber, aren’t you pushing your luck?”

“This is what you call pushing my luck?” Amber turned his head, his warm breath brushing past Isabelle’s ear, making her shrink back.

“Then why didn’t you resist?”

“…”

Isabelle was at a loss for words. She didn’t know why the thought of resisting hadn’t occurred to her either.

“Alright, I’ll stop teasing you.”

Amber pulled his hand back and took two steps away, raising his hands in a mock surrender.

“I mainly came to ask you a question. Since you looked so swamped, I thought I’d help lighten the tense atmosphere a bit.”

After he said this, Amber saw the expression on Isabelle’s face shift from confusion to indignant shame, and she turned and walked away, blushing.

“Master, are you a scumbag?”

Lilith’s voice suddenly rang out in his mind. The artificial intelligence felt like she was watching a good show.

“Of course not. I haven’t gotten to the scumbag part yet.”

Watching Isabelle’s retreating figure, Amber also started walking toward the communications relay vehicle.

“Lilith, have you finished reading all the materials I marked for you?”

“Finished them long ago. Comprehensive electronic warfare countermeasures, virus compilation, multi-channel attacks… I’ve read them all. But I feel like you only gave me the basic materials, Master.”

“Of course they are. It’s a miracle I could even find those on my personal terminal. We’ll look at more advanced content later when we get the chance.”

Beep beep beep beep!

While Amber and Lilith were communicating, his personal terminal received an encrypted message from Brigade HQ.

The message was quickly decrypted, and its contents were very simple.

It informed all units of the specific time for H-hour in the operational plan and ordered them to commence operations on schedule.

“The operation begins in two hours…”

Amber quickened his pace back to the communications relay vehicle while issuing the command ‘Rest period over, all units prepare for combat’ through his command module.

“Lilith, if you don’t want to get hit by an orbital strike along with me, you can’t be slacking off this battle. Your electronic attack will be our trump card.”

“Understood! Master, you can leave it to me without any worries!”

Lilith’s voice was excited. The AI felt that Amber saying such a thing proved that her status in his heart had risen quite a bit.

“When you say things like that, it actually makes it harder for me to trust you with it.”

Chapter 86: The Street Fighting Begins

Blue Bay was, at first, just the name of a harbor, one of the many distribution ports on Robert IV’s North Continent.

However, as the city built up slowly around the port, “Blue Bay” became the name for both the port and the city.

Unlike other port cities that become enveloped by the urban sprawl after their construction, Blue Bay, with its relatively small population, was not a large town. In terms of area, it was more like an attachment to the side of the port.

The local residents were mainly the workers who operated and coordinated the automated machinery in the port, their families, and some businessmen and speculators.

Like most people on this planet, they were “Pioneers” who, unable to make a living in the Federation’s core star systems, had no choice but to come to this remote frontier star system.

Ever since humanity discovered and mastered jump drive technology from the ruins on their mother world, they had embarked on a great cosmic expansion, despite their lopsided technological development.

In that era, “Pioneer” was a glorious title, symbolizing the bravest among the human race.

They piloted ships that, aside from their jump drives, were equipped with what would now be considered primitive technology. Like dandelion seeds, they journeyed into the depths of space, putting down roots and establishing colonies on one habitable planet after another.

But now, the title “Pioneer” had long been stripped of its former glory.

No one considered pioneering the frontier anymore, except for the unemployed, debtors, loafers, and gamblers who couldn’t make it in the core star systems, along with a small number of speculators.

More than ten days had passed since the Imperial landing forces occupied Blue Bay. Apart from a few days of panic among the residents during the initial battle with Blue Bay’s defenders, they had now grown accustomed to their presence.

Except for the port workers, who were out of a job due to the temporary shutdown of Blue Bay’s port, life went on as usual for everyone else.

Those who ran shops opened their doors, and those who did business continued to do so. It was no different from any other day.

Bauman, once a wealthy man who had fled to Robert IV after a failed investment left him saddled with a mountain of debt, sat in the small restaurant he owned, waiting for customers as usual.

For him, the arrival of the Imperial army hadn’t significantly impacted his life.

For the first few days, everyone hid in their homes, leaving him with no business at all. But as the residents adapted, the more daring ones slowly started coming to his place to eat.

Aside from the occasional Imperial multi-legged war machines and soldiers on patrol, the streets were just like they always were.

Sometimes he even found himself thinking, if the Imperial forces controlled this town until next month, would he be able to get out of paying taxes?

As his mind wandered, Bauman suddenly saw the Imperial patrol soldiers who had just walked past his restaurant door turn and rush back at high speed.

He walked curiously to the entrance and looked outside. The Imperial multi-legged war machine had already lowered its auxiliary wheels and switched to road mobility mode.

The accompanying Imperial soldiers were now clambering onto the war machine as it sped off into the distance.

“What’s going on?” Sensing that something was wrong, Bauman was about to duck back into his restaurant when he saw the Imperial multi-legged war machine, which had just reached the street corner, get hit by something leaving a trail of smoke.

Boom!

The explosion and shockwave swept through the street. Bauman, who had seen his share of things, immediately dropped to the ground after the war machine exploded and scrambled on all fours back into his restaurant.

A series of explosions then erupted throughout the town, and terrified residents on the streets scattered, running for the buildings on either side.

After finally dragging his corpulent body back into the restaurant, a shaken Bauman stared out the window at the chaotic scene outside and muttered:

“Is the fighting starting again?”

“Target hit! Confirmed multi-legged war machine destroyed!”

“Enemy reinforcements spotted on the west street! Prepare to relocate!”

Listening to the chatter from an anti-vehicle team on the comms channel, Amber glanced at the tactical map on the large screen inside the communications relay vehicle.

At a street corner in the urban district of Blue Bay, the icon representing the anti-vehicle team was already on the move, updated in real-time.

Amber and the Mobile Infantry platoon under his temporary command were currently using a platoon-level ad-hoc tactical network for internal communication and information processing.

The communications relay vehicle was the comms core, the VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicle was the backup core, and the remaining wheeled armored vehicles and light multi-legged war machines served as communication nodes.

This, combined with the network formed by the communication modules on the Mobile Infantry’s exoskeletons and the datalink, was sufficient to provide real-time battlefield information updates for platoon-level operations.

Of course, the brigade and battalion-level backbone network was still lacking many functions due to the absence of satellite relays and was currently limited to simple communications and transmitting operational orders.

After receiving his combat orders, Amber had led the Mobile Infantry platoon toward Blue Bay.

He reached the attack start line, designated by the Brigade HQ staff officer, half an hour before H-hour.

After being reinforced with replacement vehicles and personnel from Brigade HQ, his unit was no longer the battered force it had once been.

The total vehicle count was now twelve, including one communications relay vehicle serving as the temporary platoon command element, one Electronic Warfare vehicle, five standard Mongoose-4s, three Tarantula-Kai light multi-legged war machines, one transport truck, and one modified medical truck.

The number of personnel under his command had also increased to sixty-six.

Besides the three officers—Isabelle, Randall, and Tom—there were nineteen vehicle crew members, including the three multi-legged war machine pilots, one Communications specialist, three electronic warfare technicians, and forty Mobile Infantry soldiers.

In terms of configuration, both in personnel and technical equipment, it surpassed a standard Federation mechanized infantry platoon of four vehicles and forty personnel.

On the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade’s table of organization, Amber’s unit was an “independent reinforced Mobile Infantry platoon,” separate from the brigade’s main structure.

In the current operation to attack Blue Bay, Amber’s mission was to advance as part of the vanguard.

The entire vanguard force consisted of two combined arms battalions in addition to Amber’s reinforced Mobile Infantry platoon.

The direction of attack assigned to Amber was the northeastern side of Blue Bay.

Thanks to the configuration of his reinforced platoon and his special status as a Psionic Agent, Brigade HQ had granted him considerable operational autonomy.

So, after receiving the operational plan from Brigade HQ, Amber quickly adjusted it, sent it back, and ultimately received approval.

His idea was simple: to leverage the flexibility of a platoon-sized unit. Under the cover of the Electronic Warfare vehicle’s jamming, they would approach the city’s outskirts ahead of schedule.

Then, at the very moment the long-range fire support began, they would enter the city directly, attack isolated Imperial units, and create chaos.

So far, the operation was proceeding largely according to his plan.

As he advanced, two anti-aircraft vehicles from the brigade’s air defense battalion, tasked with providing air cover for his sector, destroyed several reconnaissance drones along his line of advance from a distance of four kilometers using high-energy laser beams.

Although this immediately alerted the Imperial forces in Blue Bay, causing them to start recalling their patrols scattered throughout the town, it was too late.

Amber’s rapidly advancing reinforced platoon still managed to catch many isolated squads.

As Amber launched his attack precisely at H-hour, the brigade’s self-propelled artillery battalion also began bombarding key targets identified by earlier drone reconnaissance.

Chapter 87: Lilith, Strong! Invincible!

Based on an analysis of reconnaissance images taken by long-range drones, the combat staff officers at Brigade HQ concluded that Blue Bay contained roughly two battalions of orbital paratroopers, one company of light multi-legged war machines, and one HCP platoon with four ‘Zealots’.

From an organizational standpoint, this was a standard Star Dragon Empire Orbital Paratrooper Regiment.

Unlike the numerous brigade combat teams under the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army, the Royal Navy Orbital Paratrooper forces—composed primarily of infantry, light armored units, and a small number of HCPs—still retained the more traditional regimental combat unit structure.

During planetary landing operations, the orbital paratroopers were also typically deployed as a regiment.

Looking solely at the order of battle, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade appeared to have a significant advantage.

Under normal circumstances, a standard Federation Army combined arms brigade, without any personnel or equipment augmentation, would command nine battalion-level combat units.

These included four combined arms battalions, one self-propelled artillery battalion, one air defense battalion, one reconnaissance battalion, one combat support battalion, and one logistics support battalion.

In reality, however, after the initial orbital strike and the fighting during the breakout, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s combined arms brigade was severely understrength.

This shortfall was most evident in its four frontline combined arms battalions.

After a series of battles and mopping up stragglers, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade had only managed to scrape together two combined arms battalions.

This meant their most critical frontline units were down by a full fifty percent.

Although each of these two battalions still retained two multi-legged war machine companies, they were short on both ‘Tarantula-Kai’ light multi-legged war machines and ‘Mammoth’ heavy multi-legged war machines.

This meant that in terms of the number of troops available for the direct urban meat grinder, the Federation and the Empire were actually on roughly equal footing.

Therefore, in the initial operational plan, the brigade’s staff officers intended to use the element of surprise from the first wave of long-range fire to take out the Imperial forces’ regimental headquarters in Blue Bay.

But after searching the drone photos for a long time, they couldn’t find any location that looked like a regimental HQ.

Although they spotted several locations with antennas raised, suggesting possible communication nodes, they still couldn’t identify any targets near these nodes that had the characteristics of a headquarters.

In the end, the targets for the long-range fire mission had to be changed to other key objectives, including communication nodes and temporary garrisons.

After the first round of ranging fire, the brigade’s Fire Direction Center assessed the strike’s effectiveness based on the drone footage and notified the long-range fire units to adjust their firing data.

At the same time, leaving two trucks in the staging area and one ‘Mongoose-4’ with a Mobile Infantry squad on guard duty, Amber led the rest of his combat forces into the urban area. They launched a surprise attack and eliminated three Imperial squads that had failed to pull back in time.

As for how they were able to pinpoint the locations of these three squads and even ambush them on their expected route…

It was mainly thanks to Lilith’s performance.

Though Amber was worried the AI might let it go to her head, he had to admit that Lilith had played a crucial role.

As a Psionic Agent, Amber had direct access to the city management system.

So after entering the city, Amber drove the communications relay vehicle, which was serving as his temporary command vehicle, to a civilian communication base station and established a connection.

Next, after Amber used his clearance to enter the city management system, Lilith—supported by the computing power of the communications relay vehicle—not only used the vast number of city planning blueprints stored in the Blue Bay municipal center to rapidly build a model of the entire city…

She also hacked into every camera in the urban area. Whether official or private, any camera connected to the network fell into Lilith’s ‘clutches’.

Using the footage from these cameras, Lilith marked the positions of all discovered Imperial squads on the 3D city model and kept them updated in real-time.

With the support of this practically one-way transparent battlefield intelligence, Amber quickly caught three unlucky Imperial squads.

Three anti-vehicle teams, following Amber’s instructions, set up ambushes along their expected paths and successfully carried them out.

Right now, according to the information fed back by Lilith, the Imperial orbital paratroopers had reacted swiftly after the first wave of artillery, regrouping and using the city’s buildings and bridges to conceal a portion of their combat personnel.

Although the self-propelled artillery battalion and two rocket launcher vehicles followed up with several more rounds of long-range fire, successfully destroying several of the Imperial forces’ temporary communication nodes and blasting troops resting in their billets…

Amber conservatively estimated that at least sixty percent of the forces that had dispersed into the city remained.

Most notably, the four Zealots were completely unscathed.

In Amber’s view, in an urban combat environment, these four HCPs, with their superior mobility and firepower compared to traditional units, would be the greatest obstacle the attacking force would face.

“Lilith, can you confirm the weapon configuration of those four HCPs?”

“No can do, Master. These cameras are all cheap models. I can’t see clearly from even a moderate distance.”

“Forget it. We’ll find another chance to confirm later. Is the remote connection ready?”

Looking at the main force already advancing on the tactical map, Amber decided it was time for him to launch a coordinated attack from the northeast.

“It’s ready, Master! I’ve written a temporary operating system compatible with the communications relay vehicle’s terminal. You can now maintain surveillance of the battlefield without a direct link, though there might be a slight delay in the data refresh rate.”

“No problem. Having this much information is already like using cheats.”

Hearing Lilith’s reply, Amber yanked the connection cable from the vehicle’s terminal and left his temporary command vehicle.

Several Mobile Infantry soldiers immediately brought over the transport case for his ‘Phalanx Breaker 2’ exoskeleton and helped him suit up quickly.

Amber knew he couldn’t afford to command from the rear in the coming battle.

After all, only a dozen or so of the original stragglers who had survived alongside him were left. These soldiers, tempered by brutal combat, were the only ‘battle-hardened veterans’ he had.

In terms of the intensity of the combat they had experienced, they far surpassed the reinforcements sent from Brigade HQ—most of whom were other stragglers picked up along the way, with low morale and unimpressive combat effectiveness.

Amber understood the situation. Getting any reinforcements at all was a bonus.

Brigade HQ couldn’t just break up their intact units to replenish his.

So, to maintain overall combat effectiveness, Amber had no choice but to split his experienced ‘veterans’—those with experience fighting HCPs—among the different Mobile Infantry squads to serve as their backbone.

Even so, Amber wasn’t entirely at ease, which was why he planned to take to the field himself.

“All units, attention! Prepare for combat!”

“Stay sharp! You’re heading into a street fighting hell!”

Chapter 88: Real Esports.jpg

The Imperial forces stationed in Blue Bay had certainly not anticipated the sudden Federation attack.

Although Marquis Ascania had already changed the ground forces’ combat strategy, their predictions were that the ambushed Federation remnants should be fleeing across the continent right now.

Not, as was currently happening, gathering a sizable force to launch an offensive of their own.

This Imperial orbital paratrooper unit controlling Blue Bay was originally tasked with holding the port to receive the main ground forces, which were supposed to arrive on the surface via the space elevator and then be transported across the sea.

But the persistent inability to use the space elevator had dashed the Empire’s hopes of deploying heavy armored units in large numbers, leaving the unit in Blue Bay in a rather awkward position.

They couldn’t leave, but they couldn’t stay either.

So, after annihilating the Federation defenders and capturing Blue Bay, this orbital paratrooper regiment spent most of its time on standby, resting in their temporary encampment. Their only other activity was maintaining daily patrols within the occupied zone to prove their ‘presence’.

Although the Imperial orbital paratroopers had set up wide-area electromagnetic listening arrays, airdropped onto the tops of a few tall buildings in the city to maintain electronic surveillance over a vast area, the situation had changed.

Relying on the numerous, well-preserved electronic warfare and reconnaissance assets within their relatively intact tactical support battalion, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade had miraculously managed to conceal their own electromagnetic signals. At the same time, they evaded enemy reconnaissance units, allowing the entire brigade to advance in silence.

It was only when their squads in the city were attacked, and rockets and 155mm howitzer shells began to rain down from above, that the commander of this Imperial unit was jerked awake.

In any case, the Imperial forces had definitely reacted too slowly.

After one round of ranging fire and two fire-for-effect barrages, they finally snapped out of it and began frantically sending warnings of the attack to all friendly forces and the fleet overhead.

But their calls met with complete silence, vanishing without a response.

The unit’s commander and his staff officers immediately realized that their communications with the outside world had been jammed.

“When this new communications module was issued, weren’t we told it had automatic spectrum sensing and adaptive spectrum hole utilization?! Why is it acting like a pile of scrap metal now?”

Hidden in a regimental command post within an underground structure somewhere in the town, the commander of these orbital paratroopers—Imperial Royal Navy Lieutenant Colonel and Regiment Commander Phillips—was raging at the regiment’s communications platoon.

“Sir, the attacking enemy must be using multiple wide-area electronic suppression devices. That’s the only way they could be blocking our signal so completely!”

Facing his ‘displeased’ commander, the communications platoon leader steeled himself, stepped forward, and continued, “According to the enemy target identification data issued before the battle, the only Federation unit on this planet with this capability that I can think of would be the ‘Bee’ series jamming trucks, but I can’t confirm the specific model.”

Hearing the platoon leader’s words, Phillips didn’t continue his tirade.

He knew the communications blackout wasn’t entirely their fault. His unit had most likely run into a tough opponent.

To be able to carry out electronic suppression of this scale and effectiveness, combined with the intensity of the recent barrage…

Phillips guessed he was up against a Federation brigade-level unit.

“Tch… We have to find a way to knock out these jamming sources.”

Phillips switched the HUD of his faceplate to the command module and began scrolling through it quickly.

He was looking for any countermeasures he had at his disposal.

To prevent the command staff from being wiped out in one go, the deputy commander and chief of staff were not with him but at a separate, alternate command post.

The two command posts were originally connected via landline and short-wave radio, two channels that normally ensured contact could be maintained.

But whether it was the Federation forces’ good luck or the Empire’s bad luck…

Just as the 83rd Combined Arms Brigade began their electronic suppression and jammed short-wave communications, the simultaneous long-range bombardment had somehow destroyed the landline communication cables near the alternate command post.

As a result, Regiment Commander Phillips was temporarily unable to contact the staff at the alternate command post.

“When it matters most, you have to rely on yourself!”

After finding what he was looking for in the command module interface, Phillips quickly drafted a short operational order and summoned two communications specialists from the regimental headquarters.

With communications jammed, these specialists had to act as runners.

“Find a way to contact the two HCPs on standby. Get this order to them.”

“Yes, Sir!”

The two communications specialists acknowledged the order, snapped their faceplates shut, grabbed their weapons, and ran out.

Watching them leave, Phillips turned to the operations staff officer who was with him.

“Is the ‘Swarm’ ready for deployment yet?”

On the communications specialist’s tactical map, the last reported positions of the two HCPs were not far from the command post.

According to the pre-established operational plan, in the event of an attack, the HCPs would split into two teams as the main force consolidated, prioritizing moving toward the regimental and alternate command posts to provide cover.

Therefore, the two HCPs should be somewhere nearby.

The two communications specialists didn’t take long to find the two HCPs, which were waiting for orders, concealed within a nearby building complex.

After a failed attempt to establish radio contact, they steeled themselves, dashed across the street, and took cover beside a civilian truck.

A laser communication mast rose from one of their backpacks.

Soon, after receiving the combat order directly from the regiment commander via laser communication, the two HCPs moved out.

They raised their mechanical arms in a salute to the communications specialists, and then, amidst the blue glow of their plasma thruster arrays, they charged out from opposite ends of the street.

Phillip’s response was simple and direct. The HCPs’ electronic countermeasures modules were the most powerful electronic warfare equipment he had.

Although the HCPs alone couldn’t counter the Federation’s wide-area electronic suppression, pinpointing the jamming source was still possible.

And one of the HCPs happened to be equipped with an ‘anti-suppression pack’—a quad-barreled anti-radiation missile pod.

Phillips didn’t expect to take out the enemy’s jamming vehicles in one go, but he hoped that by attacking them, he could at least force the vehicles to maneuver, giving his troops a sliver of breathing room.

The two HCPs quickly reached a suitable position on the outskirts of the city.

From there, they could see the other two HCPs in the distance, already engaging the attacking Federation forces.

After reaching the designated position, the HCP equipped with the ‘anti-suppression pack’ deliberately increased its distance from the other, finally stopping at the maximum range that still allowed for secure laser communication.

Then, the pilot of this HCP activated the electronic countermeasures module’s ‘passive detection mode’.

Amidst escalating electronic warfare, accurately pinpointing a target’s location in such a complex electromagnetic environment using a single method was unrealistic.

The difficulty was no less than trying to get the dish you wanted in the Imperial Royal Navy’s officer’s mess hall with your eyes closed.

Thus, it had to fuse information from other units to succeed.

And that ‘other unit’ was the second HCP.

With the help of the combat assistance AI, the Zealot’s electronic countermeasures module could operate in multiple modes and across multiple frequency bands.

Through the coordinated efforts of the two HCPs, there was a real chance of countering the enemy’s jamming source through ‘physical means’.

Chapter 89

“Saber, I’ve got an approximate location on the jamming source, but it’s not precise enough for an attack yet. I’ve sent the relevant data to you via the datalink. It’s up to you now.”

“No problem, leave it to me. Brimstone, be ready to counter-attack at any moment.”

The HCP carrying the quad-pack anti-radiation missiles zoomed in on its teammate with its head-mounted main monitor. It watched as the other machine forcefully kicked off the ground, its back-mounted thruster array flaring to life.

Immediately after, this nearly one-hundred-ton Zealot shot up to an altitude of about sixty meters. With the help of its downward-angled main thruster array and other vector thrusters, it hovered in mid-air.

The pilot, call sign ‘Brimstone’, watched his teammate in the air and immediately opened the hatches of the missile pod located diagonally above his rear thruster array.

He knew that ‘Saber’ had now activated the active detection mode of the HCP’s electronic countermeasures module.

In this mode, the onboard electronic countermeasures module could analyze the jamming source’s modulation patterns and encoding methods based on the data he had just transmitted, allowing for a more precise triangulation of its coordinates.

At least to a precision that would allow the anti-radiation missiles to launch an attack.

But this process was fraught with danger. By hovering in mid-air to expand its reconnaissance range, the HCP had essentially turned itself into a sitting duck.

This was also why the dangerous job was given to ‘Saber’.

Because the anti-radiation missiles were on ‘Brimstone’s’ machine. If he were the one to hover and detect, and happened to be shot down by an enemy heavy unit’s heavy electromagnetic cannon, they would lose their only means of counter-attack.

“I’ve got a lock! Preparing to attack! Data sent. Shit, I’m locked on!”

In mid-air, ‘Saber’ sent his Zealot into a sharp dive, but a purple high-energy laser beam still managed to graze its shoulder armor.

“Brimstone, be advised, the enemy has escorting anti-aircraft units. You’d better find a way to scout them out first!”

After dropping behind a building, ‘Saber’s’ thruster array flared again, providing a braking retro-thrust before he landed on the ground.

Meanwhile, the pilot with the call sign ‘Brimstone’ had already used the transmitted data to have his combat assistance AI set the launch parameters for the anti-radiation missiles.

After hearing his teammate’s advice, he thought for a moment and then launched a single missile.

The electromagnetic launcher in the quad-pack missile pod ejected the first missile. After reaching a safe altitude, the missile’s engine ignited.

Propelled by its engine, the first missile shot out from the street where the HCP was hiding, leaving a trail as it flew toward the jamming source’s location.

‘Saber’, who had just landed, immediately understood his teammate’s intention upon seeing him launch only a single anti-radiation missile.

The rapport they had built up over a long time of working together meant they didn’t even need to communicate.

The Zealot immediately ran forward a couple of steps and leaped up again, propelled back into the air by the blue glow bursting from its back-mounted plasma thruster array.

At the same time, ‘Saber’ activated the plasma rocket pods attached to the machine’s legs through the weapons control menu.

And the Federation forces reacted just as ‘Saber’ had expected.

Almost at the very instant the lone anti-radiation missile flew over the town, two high-energy laser beams swept up from the distant ground.

Although the anti-radiation missile, designed for penetration, was protected by a thin layer of layered armor and an anti-beam coating.

And although it immediately altered its trajectory using its gas rudders upon being hit by the high-energy laser.

It still didn’t last long before being detonated by the continuously tracking laser beam.

However, that brief moment was all ‘Saber’ needed. The HCP’s detection units quickly determined the general area of the laser anti-aircraft vehicle.

It was a landscaped park outside the urban area, with plenty of trees for cover.

“3.5 kilometers? The escorting anti-aircraft units are already this close?”

But ‘Saber’ had no time to consider the tactical situation. With the anti-radiation missile destroyed, he would soon be the next target.

“Full salvo mode! Area saturation fire!”

At his command, the combat assistance AI quickly completed the trajectory calculations.

The plasma rocket pods on the outer sides of the Zealot’s legs tilted slightly upward, adjusting their elevation angle according to the calculated trajectory.

On the panoramic display, as soon as the virtual trajectory for the rocket pods turned green, ‘Saber’ unhesitatingly emptied both 9-tube plasma rocket pods in one go.

As the rockets were launched one after another with a whoosh, the steel giant hovering in mid-air continuously made micro-adjustments to its posture, ensuring the rockets would land in the designated area.

The moment the pods were empty, the Zealot began to descend, simultaneously deploying its back-mounted charged particle cannon and heavy particle cannon and firing a sweeping blast toward the laser anti-aircraft vehicle’s position.

The two beams, fired after the rockets, arrived first. The charged particle beam ignited a line of trees along its path, while the heavy particle cannon carved a scorched trench directly into the ground.

Soon after, the volley of plasma rockets landed in the designated area, erupting into a series of high-temperature plasma fireballs.

Although ‘Saber’, now back on the ground, couldn’t assess the damage from the strike, he knew that even if the enemy’s escorting anti-aircraft units were unscathed, they would be forced to make an emergency withdrawal.

And this created a window of opportunity.

On the other side, ‘Brimstone’ seized this window, launching the three remaining missiles from his pod one by one.

This time, as expected, the three anti-radiation missiles faced no interception. They flew straight over the park, which had been turned into a sea of fire, and headed toward the jamming source deeper within enemy lines.

Both ‘Brimstone’ and ‘Saber’, as well as Phillips back at regiment command, knew that the chances of this attack directly destroying the enemy’s jamming vehicle were slim.

Because a critical technical asset like that was certain to be protected by point-defense units.

But Phillips and the others weren’t aiming for a kill anyway. For this anti-radiation missile attack, forcing the enemy’s jamming vehicle to relocate was enough.

For a jamming vehicle, which had to be stationary with its antennae deployed, going mobile meant its jamming intensity would drop significantly, or even cease altogether.

And that temporary pause in the jamming was the window of opportunity the Imperial forces needed.

Having completed their strike, the two HCPs didn’t linger. They immediately began to withdraw deeper into the city.

Their position was now exposed, and it wasn’t out of the question for the Federation forces to be ruthless and saturate their location with firepower.

Just as they were retreating back near the regiment headquarters, communications for the entire force were partially restored.

The voices of their other teammates finally came through on the HCP team’s comms channel.

“All units, attention! ‘Flytrap’ is down! I repeat, ‘Flytrap’ is down!”

“Enemy psionic unit detected in sector B4, requesting support!”

Chapter 90: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind

“What?! The squad leader’s unit has been destroyed?!”

Hearing the news, Brimstone and Saber were in disbelief.

But when the battlefield information updated and they saw the squad leader’s icon had turned grey in the squad list, they had no choice but to accept reality.

“‘Werewolf’, what happened? The captain… how did he—”

“We… we ran into a level-four psionic user, probably a Federation Psionic Agent!”

Even across the communications channel, Saber and Brimstone could hear the undisguised panic in the voice of the pilot who had been the captain’s wingman.

“This Psionic Agent is different. He seems to be very familiar with anti-HCP tactics, even stronger than the simulated enemies we faced during our anti-psionic combat training!”

His squadmate’s words were difficult for Saber to believe.

“How could someone like that be on a border-world agri-planet?”

“I don’t know… but the captain was almost powerless against him.”

Ten minutes ago, northeast of Blue Bay’s urban district.

After Amber rendezvoused with a unit from the combined arms battalion attacking the city and integrated with their tactical network, he led his soldiers, maneuvering along the street to the left of this unit.

Then, the friendly forces advancing along the main road soon encountered a makeshift defensive line composed of infantry and ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machines.

These orbital paratroopers were hiding at street corners and in the buildings on both sides of the street, while the multi-legged war machines maintained a “low-profile ambush” mode, their rear-mounted turrets peeking out from behind obstacles.

Faced with their crossfire, the Mobile Infantry, who had been advancing along the sides of the street, quickly pulled back after leaving several bodies behind.

In their place, two MH4-A4 ‘Mammoth’ Heavy multi-legged war machines moved up to the front.

These eighty-ton, eight-legged monsters strode forward resolutely on their bionic mechanical legs, charging directly to the very front of the advancing formation.

Several anti-vehicle missiles flew out from the street corner, hugging the ground and trailing curved wakes behind them, before immediately pulling up to strike at the top of the ‘Mammoths’.

The two electromagnetic close-in defense cannons on top of the heavy multi-legged war machine’s turret opened fire, instantly shooting down two of them in a flash of electrical light.

However, the remaining anti-vehicle missiles still broke through the interception and flew towards the more vulnerable top armor.

Unfortunately, the arcs of electricity that lit up around the heavy multi-legged war machines ensured this attack would be in vain. The electromagnetic vortex created by the deflector shield simply batted aside the few survivors and detonated them.

Like main battle tanks, these heavy multi-legged war machines had enough internal space for Federation designers to cram deflector shield generators into them.

Facing the fortress-like advance of the ‘Mammoths’, the few ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machines surprisingly didn’t retreat. Instead, they raised their rear-mounted turrets from behind cover and aimed their 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannons.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A continuous roar of cannon fire erupted, but it failed to halt the ‘Mammoths’’ advance.

Compared to charged particle attacks, the armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot rounds fired by the 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannons were not as easily stopped by deflector shields.

Since these were purely kinetic attacks, the deflector shields could only defend against them by twisting them off course.

But the deflector shield generators on these two ‘Mammoths’ were just too powerful; they were almost immune to direct fire from kinetic cannons of 120mm caliber and below.

After taking several rounds of fire, the ‘Mammoth’ crews were done playing defense.

On one of the ‘Mammoth’ Heavy multi-legged war machines, a charging hum was heard as a blue light emanated from between what looked like a rectangular barrel split into two sections on its turret.

In front of it, the cockpits of the Empire’s light multi-legged war machines simultaneously blared a warning: ‘High magnetic field reading detected!’ But it was a step too late.

The moment the Mammoth’s gunner pressed the firing stud, in the next instant, thunder descended.

Everyone perceived only a flash of an orange-red line of fire, and then the hulls of three ‘Saints’ that had just started to retreat along the wall simply vanished.

It was immediately followed by a shockwave comparable to a super hurricane, which blew away the remaining mechanical legs of the three multi-legged war machines and even swept away several nearby orbital paratroopers.

After that came a sonic boom that shattered all the windows of the buildings on both sides of the street and even cracked their exterior walls.

This was the power of the ‘Mammoth’ series Heavy multi-legged war machine’s 15-meter class heavy electromagnetic cannon, upgraded and firing at full power.

After it fired, the other, un-upgraded ‘Mammoth’ swiveled its turret, aiming its 152mm main cannon at a building’s window.

Its sensors had already detected a large number of Imperial soldiers hiding inside.

With a roar from the ‘Mammoth’, a 152mm programmable high-explosive fragmentation shell was sent precisely into the targeted window.

When the shell detonated in a confined space like a room, it didn’t even need fragments to be lethal.

The instantaneous overpressure from the large-caliber shell’s explosion killed the Imperial soldiers and a few civilians who hadn’t managed to escape, all in an instant.

After those two shots, the Imperial forces’ makeshift defensive line was torn to shreds in a moment, and the surviving Imperial soldiers began to fall back.

The Federation Mobile Infantry, who had been in cover, took the opportunity to pass on either side of the two ‘Mammoths’ and charged forward.

But just then, a loud crash echoed as something heavy hit the ground.

At the previously cleared street corner, an Imperial Zealot landed after a short-range dash, sliding into view under its own momentum while shouldering its already-deployed heavy particle cannon.

The moment this silvery-white steel giant appeared at the intersection, the few Mobile Infantry at the very front had their faceplates burned through by beams from the close-in defense laser turrets on either side of its head-mounted sensor array.

The two ‘Mammoth’ Heavy multi-legged war machines that had just fired were still in the middle of reloading.

The moment their vehicle commanders saw the Zealot, they knew they wouldn’t have time to finish loading.

So, they immediately cranked the power of their deflector shield generators to maximum and ordered their drivers to lower the vehicle’s stance.

But they were only halfway through these actions when, in the next second, the entire cockpit was flooded with piercing alarms.

A white light flashed from the muzzle of the Zealot’s heavy particle cannon, and the gushing stream of heavy metal particles slammed into one of the ‘Mammoths’ almost at the same instant it fired.

The front of the heavy multi-legged war machine’s turret was instantly engulfed in blinding white light, but the wildly twisting arcs of electricity didn’t even last a second.

The stream of heavy metal particles pierced the deflector shield, effortlessly melted the ‘Mammoth’s’ turret, and brought down a building behind it in the process.

The particles from the stream that were deflected by the shield spattered the ‘Mammoth’s’ surroundings, inflicting collateral damage on nearby buildings and the Mobile Infantry on either side.

In this contest of spear against shield, of power against power, the heavy particle cannon, a weapon capable of engaging warships in orbit, had easily claimed victory.

But the destruction of the ‘Mammoth’ had given its squadmate an opening.

The upgraded ‘Mammoth’ took the opportunity to finish cooling its heavy electromagnetic cannon and reloading a special alloy penetrator rod.

The superconducting battery pack also finished resupplying power to the cannon in what was nearly the bare minimum time.

Chapter 91: So This Is What a Phalanx Breaker Is?

The Mammoth’s vehicle commander, using a predictive firing method, pressed the fire key the moment reloading was complete.

An alloy penetrator rod with a muzzle velocity of Mach 10 once again streaked across the street, trailing an orange-red line of fire.

But the pilot of this Zealot was clearly no rookie.

After firing the heavy particle cannon, he ordered the Combat Assistance AI to divert the unit’s main power supply to the deflector shield generator.

He immediately had the Zealot take a knee, simultaneously bringing the layered armor shield mounted on its right shoulder diagonally across its front.

The moment the orange-red line of fire made contact with the Zealot, it was deflected into the air in a burst of white light.

So, in the eyes of the onlookers, a bright, orange-red, bent line remained seared onto their retinas.

The Zealot’s weight of nearly one hundred tons also allowed it to stand firm like a reef against the shockwave produced by the heavy cannon’s blast, unmoving.

After withstanding the attack, the Zealot began to retreat, deploying its other charged particle cannon to lay down suppressive fire.

As the captain of the Empire’s HCP team in Blue Bay, ‘Flytrap’ had, after the attack on Blue Bay, immediately taken his wingman, ‘Werewolf,’ and rushed to the vicinity of the backup command post according to pre-arranged procedures. He quickly established contact with the personnel inside.

When he learned that the entire unit’s communications and battlefield data transmission were being severely jammed, and that the troop’s defensive consolidation was consequently not proceeding smoothly…

‘Flytrap’ ultimately decided to sortie alone to cover the retreat of friendly soldiers toward the inner city.

With the mobility and firepower of an HCP, it was perfectly capable of protecting a target while supporting friendly forces within a three-kilometer radius during urban combat.

What’s more, he had a wingman for support.

After ordering ‘Werewolf’ to provide support near the backup command post, ‘Flytrap’ piloted his Zealot and charged into the nearby streets.

Aided by the plasma thruster array on its back, the Zealot moved like a dragonfly skimming water, each step covering a distance of nearly one hundred meters.

Meanwhile, with battlefield data transmission disrupted and IFF systems not functioning smoothly, the onboard Combat Assistance AI was continuously performing friend-or-foe identification through electromagnetic signature analysis and image recognition.

When the ‘Mammoth’ Heavy multi-legged war machine, several streets away, fired for the first time, the Combat Assistance AI immediately sent ‘Flytrap’ a ‘Strong magnetic field detected’ warning.

‘Flytrap’ knew there were no friendly HCPs in that direction, and aside from the four Zealots, no other weapons in the Imperial forces at Blue Bay could generate such a warning.

It could only be the Federation’s heavy electromagnetic cannon firing.

That was why ‘Flytrap’ had just seized the opportunity during the ‘Mammoth’s’ reloading pause to execute a slick maneuver: a sliding entrance, setting up the cannon, firing, and then raising his shield to defend.

The entire sequence was as fluid as flowing water, executed with impeccable smoothness, and it had directly destroyed a ‘Mammoth’.

But that was as far as it would go.

“Lilith, what’s our attack window?”

“Umm… the other Zealot is five streets away. Master, you have a maximum of thirty seconds to attack!”

“Thirty seconds? That should be enough.”

Hiding in an alley with a squad of Mobile Infantry, Amber watched the steel giant rampaging down the street ahead, silently running through the operational plan in his mind one more time.

Just before this steel giant appeared, Lilith had already pinpointed the Zealot’s location using the city’s surveillance cameras.

Amber had relayed the intel to the friendly forces on the main thoroughfare, but unfortunately, they had reacted a step too slow.

Or rather, the pilot of this Zealot was simply too decisive, striking with incredible speed.

Now, the situation that had been painstakingly held by the two ‘Mammoths’ was once again threatening to spiral out of control with the arrival of this Zealot.

Although the charged particle cannon it had now deployed could be blocked by the ‘Mammoth’s’ deflector shield…

This was only temporary. Under the threat of its heavy particle cannon, which could fire at any moment, the remaining ‘Mammoth’ had no choice but to consider retreating.

Seeing the offensive’s momentum stalled, Amber knew he had to step up.

After all, every second this battle for Blue Bay dragged on, the probability of an orbital strike raining down from above increased.

“Is the operational plan clear?”

Having finished his preparations, Amber turned to look at the Mobile Infantry beside him.

Aside from the three squad leaders tasked with advancing down another street with their three infantry squads, Amber had summoned all the other ‘veterans’.

These Mobile Infantry soldiers, who had been through the battle of the Nameless Woods, were far better at facing HCPs than the newly assigned reinforcements.

“Crystal clear, Officer Amber! This isn’t our first time. We’ll provide good cover!”

“Don’t screw this up! If I get killed, I’ll come back to haunt your dreams every single night!”

Amber’s words made the Mobile Infantry soldiers laugh, easing the tense atmosphere.

“Alright, on my command…”

Amber walked to the mouth of the alley and got into a sprinting stance.

The other Mobile Infantry soldiers filed into the building on one side of the alley. They would advance through the building’s interior by using rapid demolition.

“Three, two, one! Go!”

The moment Amber finished speaking, he shot forward like a blur. At the same time, a thirty-second countdown appeared on the HUD of his Tactical faceplate.

Boom!

Simultaneously, an explosion roared from the building on the right.

This was the sound of the Mobile Infantry beginning their breach-and-clear advance, firing anti-obstacle rounds from their 40mm Automatic grenade launchers.

The commotion from the explosion immediately drew the attention of the Imperial infantry near the HCP down the street.

These soldiers, who had been lucky to survive, were on high alert. So when the explosion came from their flank, they reacted instantly.

Seeing a Medium Exoskeleton rapidly approaching from a side street at an uncanny speed, these Imperial soldiers instinctively turned their weapons on it and opened fire.

In their understanding, there were no such units on their side.

As he sprinted, Amber saw them turn and simultaneously slung his Gauss machine guns onto the side rack of the man-portable anti-vehicle missile pod on his back.

Then, without slowing down, he raised his right hand.

“Activate deflector shield!”

A deflector shield, shaped into an oval by a containment magnetic field, materialized in front of Amber like a translucent buckler.

At the same time, the Imperial orbital paratroopers opened fire.

Flechette rounds from their Gauss rifles hammered against the deflector shield like raindrops, erupting in clusters of electric sparks.

Although a deflector shield’s effectiveness against solid kinetic-energy weapons wasn’t as high, the generator equipped on this exoskeleton—specialized for frontal assaults—was more than enough to handle the Gauss rifles of ordinary infantry.

Amber, sprinting through the Imperial soldiers’ fire, was not idle. Using ‘pupil-lock’ mode, he targeted the soldiers hiding behind various obstacles at the street corner.

Then he activated the man-portable anti-vehicle missile pod on his back and powered up one of the missiles.

“Lilith, correct the targeting data for the landing position and fire at will!”

After Lilith ‘moved into’ the micro-processor in Amber’s body, she would naturally take over the operation of the exoskeleton’s various modules whenever Amber connected to it via his interface, assisting him in combat.

Just like now.

After adjusting the landing position to a point that would cause maximum casualties, Lilith launched the attack directly.

An anti-vehicle missile shot out from Amber’s back, carving a curve through the air before making a sharp dive.

“Who says you can’t use an anti-vehicle missile on other targets?”

Chapter 92: Lilith’s Special Virus

The anti-vehicle missile Amber fired didn’t give the Imperial soldiers much time to react.

They only had time to hit the dirt near their cover before the missile landed.

The good news for them was that a missile with a shaped-charge warhead was ineffective against scattered infantry, both in terms of lethality and effective radius.

Aside from the two orbital paratroopers closest to the point of impact, the others were hardly injured.

The bad news, however, was that Amber hadn’t fired the anti-vehicle missile with the intention of causing direct casualties.

The moment the Imperial soldiers stopped firing, he deactivated his deflector shield and once again took the 12mm Gauss machine gun from its mount.

“Master, precision targeting deployed!”

With Lilith’s assistance, the soldiers hiding behind cover and obstacles were marked one by one.

Amber raised the muzzle, and the firing indicator on his faceplate’s HUD immediately followed.

The common obstacles and cover on the street were nothing more than small civilian vehicles, flowerbeds, greenbelts, trash cans, and a few pieces of portable cover the infantry had brought with them.

But in the face of a 12mm Gauss machine gun, these things were barely stronger than paper.

Controlled by his modified body and enhanced reflexes, Amber rapidly fired in short bursts at the marked targets as if he were using cheats.

The only thing limiting his rate of fire was the recharge speed of the Gauss machine gun’s own capacitors.

One high-velocity penetrator after another, like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, effortlessly pierced through the obstacles and tore through the torsos of the hiding Imperial soldiers.

Anyone who dared to peek out from behind cover to return fire was instantly tagged as a “threat target” by Lilith’s battlefield surveillance and prioritized for elimination by Amber’s instantaneous “flick-shots.”

Throughout this process, Amber’s sprinting speed hardly decreased.

The Mobile Infantry, advancing via explosive breaching through the buildings, watched through their windows as Amber, like a god descending to the mortal realm, destroyed the infantry’s temporary defenses in a matter of seconds.

Although they knew Warrant Officer Amber was an incredibly powerful psionic user, this was the first time they had witnessed him launching a frontal assault in his exoskeleton.

“The Warrant Officer is so strong!”

“Yeah. Is that really something a human can do?”

The Mobile Infantry couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration as they sped up their demolition work.

When the countdown on Amber’s faceplate HUD reached twenty seconds, he had already eliminated the remaining Imperial soldiers and was less than ten meters away from the Zealot.

In fact, while he had been attacking the Imperial infantry, the Zealot had already noticed him.

However, the HCP unit was in the middle of firing its charged particle cannon, so “Flytrap” had planned to deal with the infantry here after this shot was complete.

But who would have thought that in that brief delay, the dozen or so Imperial soldiers on his right flank would be completely wiped out?

At this point, “Flytrap” sensed something was wrong.

As he turned to look at the approaching Amber, the Zealot’s main monitor swiveled with him. Without a second thought, he pupil-locked onto Amber and fired the close-in defense lasers.

But the next moment, he watched in shock as the two high-energy laser beams struck the target, only to be refracted away by a translucent, pale blue field, striking the buildings on either side.

Simultaneously, the combat assistance AI issued a timely warning.

“Warning! Level-four psionic fluctuations detected. Proceed with caution!”

“A psionic user?! Is this a Psionic Agent?”

As “Flytrap” reeled in shock, Amber, having deflected the high-energy lasers with his psionic shield, quickened his pace.

Facing the rapidly closing target, “Flytrap” instinctively raised the Gauss rifle held in the mech’s mechanical arm and opened fire.

But just as the crosshairs settled on Amber, an 8-bit style pixelated figure suddenly popped up on the 360-degree screen.

The figure, which looked like a chibi-style Psionic Agent, stood with its arms crossed, flashing continuously.

Although “Flytrap” repeatedly tried to fire, the weapon systems refused to respond.

“What’s happening?! A virus infection? Soraka, run a self-check immediately!”

Sensing trouble, “Flytrap” immediately ordered his combat assistance AI to run a diagnostic, only to discover that an unknown type of virus had already infiltrated the HCP’s main computer via the laser communication link.

Before “Flytrap” had tried to attack Amber with the Gauss rifle, the virus had remained disguised, continuously penetrating deeper into the system.

It had only just revealed itself.

And upon being discovered, this new virus dropped all pretense and launched an all-out assault on the HCP’s entire system.

Under these circumstances, “Flytrap” was forced to have his combat assistance AI divert a massive amount of computing power to deal with the mysterious virus.

To do this, he had to reduce the machine’s attitude compensation and the level of AI-assisted aiming.

“Master! The virus we implanted has been discovered, but it has forced the enemy to allocate significant computing power to counter it. Seize this opportunity!”

Even without Lilith’s reminder, the sprinting Amber had already noticed the Imperial Zealot’s movements slowing down.

After reallocating computing power to fight Lilith’s custom virus, the HCP’s AI assistance functions were severely limited. The machine’s posture and weapon aiming, once effortlessly maintained, now had to be compensated for by the pilot’s fundamental skills.

Taking advantage of this, Amber fired three anti-vehicle missiles.

Having lost his AI-assisted aiming, “Flytrap” lacked the ability to visually identify and shoot down the missiles himself.

He could only hope that the close-in defense laser turrets would be effective enough and that his deflector shield could withstand the metal jet attack from the missiles.

The anti-vehicle missiles reached the Zealot in the blink of an eye. Two were successfully detonated by the laser turrets, while the last one slammed directly into the deflector shield and exploded.

The situation had become extremely dire for “Flytrap.” The virus infecting his machine was of a type he had never seen before, and it was continuing to evolve as it attacked.

The offensive and defensive battle between the combat assistance AI and the virus had gone from an initial containment-and-isolation struggle to a state where the AI was now barely holding on.

The response time of the HCP’s various systems was progressively slowing, and a system-wide crash could occur at any moment.

The most outrageous part was the psionic user. Taking advantage of the anti-vehicle missile attack, he had boldly dashed past him and was now about to attack the weak point on his back.

“Flytrap” twisted the machine’s body to turn, hiding his weak spot while also grabbing the shield mounted on his shoulder plate and sweeping it sideways.

A shield wasn’t a weapon, so naturally, it wasn’t restricted by the fire-control system.

However, “Flytrap” saw the psionic user agilely leap into the air. As the shield swept beneath his feet, he even pushed off it for an extra boost.

At the same time, two plumes of fire erupted from his back, propelling him upward.

For a brief moment, “Flytrap” saw the point of origin for the two fiery trails.

They were clearly disposable thrusters, jury-rigged from personal missiles with their warheads removed.

Simultaneously, the triple-barreled grenade launcher mounted on the user’s leg flashed with light.

Just as “Flytrap” raised his shield to block the grenades, preparing to swat the annoying psionic user out of the air like a fly, his omnidirectional warning system suddenly blared a “missile incoming from the rear” alert.

The warning was clearly a beat too late.

Before “Flytrap” even had time to take evasive action, he felt the successive vibrations of three explosions on his back.

His plasma thruster array had been hit!

The still-functioning warning system belatedly displayed the view from the direction of the alert in a small window on his screen.

“Flytrap” glanced at the window and saw several furtive Federation Mobile Infantry soldiers in a second-floor window of a nearby building, dropping their disposable launchers and ducking back inside.

Immediately after, the onboard AI, in the midst of its battle with the virus, managed to “find a moment” to deliver even worse news.

The subcritical reactor and the back-mounted superconducting battery stack used for energy storage were damaged. The machine’s power output was dropping.

This meant that for the time being, he could no longer use high-energy consumption weapons and equipment like the heavy particle cannon, the charged particle cannon, or the deflector shield.

At this critical juncture, “Flytrap” knew it was time to retreat.

He had sent out a “requesting support” signal the moment the virus attacked, and his wingman was already on the way.

His best option now was to retreat in the direction of his approaching teammate while the machine’s power supply hadn’t completely failed.

He might even be able to save the machine and see if it could be repaired.

With this thought, “Flytrap” ignored the Imperial soldiers around him who had not yet fully withdrawn and immediately adjusted his posture to head towards “Werewolf.”

But just then, “Flytrap” saw the psionic user’s figure flash over his head.

Then, with a thud, he landed on top of the HCP.

“Damn it!”

The thought had barely crossed “Flytrap’s” mind when he saw a blue light flash from the weapon in the psionic user’s hands on his “shoulder.”

The next second, a “Warning: Main monitor damaged!” message popped up on his cockpit screen.

The 360-degree cockpit’s screens began to malfunction. Although the machine quickly restored the view using other sensors, the integrated composite sensor unit in the main monitor was now unusable.

“Flytrap” instinctively raised his hand. The Zealot’s mechanical arm, mirrored by the head-tracking control system, moved in sync and swept across the top of the machine.

Amber immediately dropped low. As he dodged the sweeping mechanical arm, he pressed the melee combat spike mounted on his left arm directly against the top of the plasma thruster array.

Bang!

With a flash of fire, the combat spike, essentially a shaped-charge armor-piercing round, unleashed a metal jet that tore straight through the thruster and even churned into the superconducting battery pack used for energy storage behind it.

A “Warning! High-energy reading detected!” alert immediately appeared on Amber’s tactical faceplate.

And on “Flytrap’s” screen, a warning for a superconducting battery pack “quench” appeared.

“It’s over!”

The same thought flashed through both their minds almost simultaneously.

Without a second thought, Amber kicked off with his legs and leaped away. At the same time, the disposable thrusters jury-rigged by the mechanics on either side of his backpack fired their last plume of flame.

In the Zealot’s cockpit, “Flytrap” subconsciously disconnected the head-tracking control system from the machine’s movements.

He then gripped the emergency ejection lever beneath his pilot’s seat with both hands and pulled with all his might.

But all that appeared on the screen were the words: “Ejection failed!”

“Fuck!”

As “Flytrap” cursed his last, all the screens in the cockpit went black, and the machine sank uncontrollably.

Then, the superconducting battery pack, its emergency protocols having failed, exploded.

Under the control of the Zealot’s most basic safety systems, a brilliant “aurora” of light erupted from the emergency discharge vent perpendicular to the machine’s back.

This high-temperature plasma, unconstrained by a magnetic field, swept across the street like a jet from a fire hose, finally crashing into a bewildered “Mammoth.”

Fortunately, the Mammoth heavy multi-legged war machine, which had also detected the high-energy reading, had its adaptive defense system automatically activate its deflector shield, easily blocking the plasma that had not reached “weapon-grade power.”

This also saved the Mobile Infantry behind it from the fate of being melted by the high-temperature plasma.

“Flytrap,” however, was not so lucky.

Although the safety measures prevented the plasma stream from the exploding battery from burning through the cockpit, the intense heat from the explosion was still conducted inside.

Under normal circumstances, the cockpit’s emergency temperature control system, while unable to prevent “Flytrap” from being burned, would have at least saved his life.

Unfortunately, due to Lilith’s custom virus attack earlier, the emergency climate control system had also failed.

The Zealot’s cockpit was heated to a terrifying degree in a matter of seconds. Before “Flytrap” could even struggle, he was cooked well-done by the extreme heat.

At that moment, Amber tumbled to the ground.

But he didn’t stop for a moment, scrambling and diving into a building on the side of the street.

Several orange-red streams of tracer fire zipped past where he had just been, shattering the building’s exterior wall.

“Flytrap’s” wingman, “Werewolf,” had arrived.

He had been on guard near the backup command post and had maintained contact with his squad leader’s unit through laser communication relay poles scattered across the rooftops.

He had even kept a small window open on his display, syncing with the real-time feed from his squad leader’s unit.

Thus, he witnessed Amber, the culprit who had destroyed his leader.

Furious and terrified, he had charged into the contested street and opened fire with his Gauss rifle from a distance.

But the other two “Mammoths” equipped with heavy electromagnetic cannons also arrived on the street at the same time.

Under their suppressive fire, “Werewolf” could only retreat in resentment to avoid being destroyed himself.

For the Imperial garrison in Blue Bay’s urban district, the four HCP units were crucial combat nodes.

In many situations, these steel giants could easily compensate for their own side’s firepower disadvantage on a front, and even put pressure on the Federation’s attacking forces.

But precisely because these four HCPs were so important, the loss of just one was enough to make the Empire’s defensive lines in the city begin to crumble.

Although “Saber” and “Brimstone’s” efforts had managed to interrupt the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade’s wide-area electronic suppression, the surviving units in the city finally re-established contact and began a fighting withdrawal as ordered by command.

Regiment Commander Phillips also used this window of opportunity to send out urgent requests for aid to the fleet above and surrounding units.

But this was not enough to turn the tide. With the Federation forces attacking from four directions, the three remaining HCPs became firefighters, rushing from one crisis to another.

They constantly reinforced units calling for help, assisting them in temporarily repelling the Federation’s assaults.

But as soon as they left, those unsupported fronts would come under even fiercer attack and be forced to retreat again.

Under Lilith’s surveillance, the movements of the Imperial troops in the city were almost entirely within Amber’s grasp.

And he continuously relayed key information to friendly forces, assisting in their offensive.

Even so, Amber was still not satisfied with the speed of the advance.

Now that the electronic jamming was temporarily disrupted, Amber knew the garrison here must have already sent out a call for help.

An orbital strike could fall from the sky at any moment, so the pace of the battle had to be quickened.

“Lilith, have you finished recompiling the virus?”

“It’s done, Master! I made adjustments and optimizations based on the infiltration of the Zealot just now. This time, it will definitely wreck their systems!”

“Good work. But try to be a bit more civilized in the future. Don’t always say things like ‘wreck, wreck’.”

While communicating with Lilith in his mind, Amber took a personal terminal from a nearby Mobile Infantry soldier, which they had collected from the body of an Imperial soldier.

Although the terminal was locked due to its original owner’s death, for Amber, who knew the backdoor, it might as well not be locked at all.

Amber pulled a universal interface data cable from his combat suit’s wrist, connected it to the terminal, and quickly broke through the security, re-entering the system.

“Lilith, it’s all up to you now.”

“Understood, Master!”

The sudden reappearance of the personal terminal on the network triggered an alert in the Imperial garrison’s command system.

After all, based on previous combat data, this Imperial orbital paratrooper had been classified as “killed in action.”

As everyone knows, “people die when they are killed,” and they certainly can’t be resurrected.

So, for a dead soldier’s terminal to reconnect to the combat network, something was clearly amiss.

A staff officer at the backup command post immediately determined that the terminal must have been compromised. He kicked it off the combat network and added it to a blacklist to prevent it from reconnecting.

But what he didn’t know was that in that brief moment, Lilith’s special virus 2.0 had already silently spread throughout the combat network.

Meanwhile, aboard The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania and his tactical staff also received the report of the “large-scale Federation offensive on Blue Bay.”

Although using the David tactical surface-to-surface missiles equipped on the orbital assault ships to attack a city embroiled in street fighting could easily result in friendly fire, considering this was a rare opportunity to wipe out the assembled Federation forces in one fell swoop, the Marquis ultimately gave the order to launch an orbital strike on Blue Bay.

Just as several orbital assault ships, having received the attack order, began to lower their orbits into attack position, the Federation task force, having spotted the orbital assault ships’ movements via their stealthy scout ships in space, charged in again.

Upon hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator announce, “Enemy fleet detected!”, Marquis Ascania, who had been harassed by the Federation fleet to no end these past days, finally let out a curse.

“Damn it, I don’t care anymore! Don’t recall the assault ships, just blast them! All other warships, give me everything you’ve got and intercept the Federation fleet!”

Chapter 93: Orbital Strike

Aboard the bridge of the Federation’s ‘Equality’, they watched the Imperial fleet near Robert IV. The enemy showed no signs of halting their orbital strike operation, even after their arrival.

A staff officer on the bridge couldn’t help but look toward Brigadier General Dowell in the captain’s chair.

“Admiral, the Imperial fleet still shows no sign of stopping their orbital strike.”

Hearing this, and seeing the images of the orbital assault ships captured by the optical equipment at extreme range, Brigadier General Dowell snorted coldly.

“Hmph! That just proves our ground forces are putting pressure on them. Why else wouldn’t they recall those orbital assault ships after spotting us?”

“Then should we continue the attack?”

“What kind of stupid question is that? Of course, we continue the attack!”

Brigadier General Dowell scowled and boomed:

“I don’t care who those Imperial orbital assault ships are supporting or who they’re striking. Even if they’re just planning to dig craters in the great plains for fun, we can’t let them have their way!”

With neither side willing to back down, the two fleets engaged in their first real battle in days.

The Federation task force was no longer content with a hit-and-run harassment. They charged to a position thirty thousand kilometers from the orbital assault ships, assumed a bombardment formation, and opened fire with a salvo.

Under Rafael’s command, the Imperial fleet recklessly threw itself between the Federation task force and the orbital assault ships. With more than ten capital ships at its core, it formed a defensive line, effectively turning itself into a meat shield for the assault ships.

But against directed-energy weapons, especially speed-of-light weapons like charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers, the idea of being a meat shield was difficult to realize.

The Federation fleet just had to lock on and fire, completing their shots before the Imperial capital ships could move into the line of fire.

Furthermore, orbital assault ships could not activate their deflector shields while conducting an orbital strike. A direct hit was basically a death sentence.

Although the Imperial fleet, with its numerical superiority, managed to inflict considerable casualties on the Federation task force in the exchange of fire, their own orbital assault ships didn’t fare much better.

Of the ten orbital assault ships in operation, only one survived long enough to reach the orbital strike phase.

And that sole survivor, just moments after launching two ‘David’ tactical orbital strike missiles, was struck by two streams of heavy metal particles traveling at one percent of the speed of light. Its entire hull immediately broke into three pieces.

Despite this, the two missiles successfully launched by the last orbital assault ship screamed toward the planet’s surface at Mach 23.

On the surface of Robert IV, in Blue Bay.

The battle in the city had reached a fever pitch under the continuous assault of the Federation forces.

As the encirclement tightened, the fighting grew fiercer. After leading the team that destroyed an Imperial HCP, Amber’s value became even more apparent to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, who granted him temporary command of the northeastern attack force.

With that, Amber’s command swelled several times over.

Two hundred twenty-four Mobile Infantry soldiers carrying a variety of personal weapons.

Twenty-five ‘Mongoose-4’ wheeled armored vehicles and their support variants.

Eighteen ‘Tarantula-Kai’ light multi-legged war machines.

Two ‘Mammoth’ Heavy multi-legged war machines upgraded with heavy electromagnetic cannons.

But more authority meant a more demanding mission.

Previously, Amber’s reinforced Mobile Infantry platoon had only been tasked with supporting the main force’s assault.

Now, he was the main force, and the full weight of the offensive fell squarely on his shoulders.

Fortunately, the electronic virus Lilith had unleashed was proving to be remarkably effective.

Although the Imperial regiment’s command terminal had used various technical measures to stop the virus from spreading through the communications network, it was too late for units that were already infected.

Their communications and fire-control systems were all affected. Many orbital paratroopers were even forced to disable the assisted aiming functions on their Tactical faceplates and revert to manual targeting.

Under these circumstances, the force led by Amber became the fastest-advancing unit among the various offensive fronts.

With Lilith’s analysis of the Imperial forces’ information transmission channels, they had even located a target suspected to be the enemy’s command headquarters.

What they had found was, in fact, the orbital paratrooper regiment’s backup command post.

Their ferocious assault immediately drew an Imperial HCP to reinforce the line.

This HCP was piloted by ‘Werewolf,’ the wingman of the now-deceased ‘Flytrap.’

When Werewolf arrived at the front line in his Zealot, he immediately felt a level of pressure he had never experienced on the other fronts.

“Damn it, where the hell did these guys come from! And that Psionic Agent…”

Pop-up attacks from Mobile Infantry with anti-vehicle missiles, suppressive fire from 120mm dual-purpose electrothermal-chemical cannons in indirect fire mode, and the immense threat of two 15-meter class heavy electromagnetic cannons.

The staggered, layered fire meant the HCP’s deflector shield generator never had a moment’s rest.

The close-in defense laser turrets on either side of the main monitor fired nonstop, intercepting anti-vehicle missiles and arcing shells until the energy recharging system issued an ‘overheating’ warning.

Upon discovering that the ammunition being lobbed by the Federation’s 120mm electrothermal-chemical cannons were self-forging fragment warheads, Werewolf abandoned any thought of tanking the hits with his armor and focused solely on interception and evasion.

On the screens of his 360-degree cockpit, the streets were constantly overlaid with trajectory prediction lines and simulated blast radiuses of impact points.

These translucent red, hemispherical danger zones were steadily shrinking Werewolf’s room to maneuver.

For a moment, he couldn’t even find an opportunity to counterattack with his heavy particle cannon or charged particle cannon.

After all, with the deflector shield active, it was impossible to use such high-power directed energy weapons.

The idea of leaping out of the city limits was instantly quashed by a ‘Strong electric field detected’ warning and the sight of a bright orange-red trajectory streaking through the sky.

The ‘Mammoths’ deployed by the Federation army in their outer positions were just waiting for him to take to the skies and become a target.

This was the anti-HCP encirclement tactic Amber had orchestrated—the most common tactic used by non-HCP units against an HCP.

Although these steel giants were powerful individually, as long as they were suppressed with alternating fire, they couldn’t lower their shields or get a chance to deactivate their deflector fields.

Their destruction was only a matter of time.

Of course, if you were to ask Amber how to deal with an entire group of HCPs, he would simply tell you, “On the ground, the only thing that can fight a group of HCPs is another group of HCPs.”

As time wore on, the northeastern assault force under Amber’s command drew ever closer to the suspected command post.

The increasingly stubborn resistance from the Imperial defenders only confirmed that they were indeed defending a high-value target.

But just then, a warning came through the comms channel from Brigade HQ.

Two ground-attack missiles had entered the atmosphere and were currently hurtling toward Blue Bay at Mach 23.

“Tsk… The inevitable has arrived.”

“Everyone, take cover according to the plan!”

Chapter 94: Spoils and the Giant Ground Effect Vehicle

Generally speaking, once an orbital strike warhead enters the atmosphere, it becomes nearly impossible to intercept, save for being targeted by high-power directed energy weapons.

Currently, whether it be the Federation or the Empire, terminal defense against orbital strikes relies almost entirely on charged particle cannons and high-energy laser beams.

Clearly, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade, in its current state, was incapable of mounting such an interception.

In fact, they never possessed the ability to intercept orbital strike warheads in the first place.

Although the combined arms brigade had a relatively complete anti-aircraft battalion, the mobile high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles they were equipped with were primarily designed to engage targets like cruise missiles, drones, and HCPs that stupidly hovered in the air.

Tasking them with shooting down warheads re-entering the atmosphere was asking far too much.

The lasers capable of intercepting such things were typically large, fixed, ground-based lasers with mirrors larger than the anti-aircraft vehicles themselves.

So from the start, Amber never considered the possibility of intercepting these orbital strike warheads.

His plan was simple: pray.

Pray that these thermobaric warheads wouldn’t land right on top of them.

And to survive on the battlefield, one always needed a little bit of luck.

On Amber’s orders, all troops involved in the northeastern sector of the attack took cover in the basements of nearby buildings. Vehicles and multi-legged war machines were driven underground if possible.

Those like the Mammoth, which simply couldn’t be hidden, were left outside, and their crews were ordered to find their own cover.

The infantry who had taken shelter in surrounding buildings and basements activated the fully sealed and pressurized modes of their exoskeletons and combat suits, as commanded by Amber.

Under these conditions, as long as they weren’t in the ultra-high temperature kill zone near ground zero, they should be able to survive.

After all, these exoskeletons were designed from the outset with extreme scenarios in mind, such as infantry needing to advance under an orbital strike. A fair amount of effort had been put into their blast and shockwave resistance.

As for the ordinary people in the city, they could only curse their luck and fend for themselves.

The warheads, descending at twenty-three times the speed of sound, did not keep Amber and his troops waiting for long.

Soon, from their shelter in the basement, they heard two muffled, tremendous booms from the outer city districts.

At the same time, the basement they were hiding in began to tremble.

Warnings began to flash on their tactical faceplates: ‘Ambient oxygen levels decreasing.’

However, Lady Luck was ultimately on Amber’s side.

The orbital assault ship that launched the two orbital strike warheads had been under attack and had no time to correct the trajectory and landing position. It had simply set the target area to the general vicinity of Blue Bay’s urban district before releasing the missiles.

Therefore, the two warheads did not land on Amber and his troops, and they didn’t even cause much damage to the Federation’s advancing forces.

One of them landed in a district where the assault was already complete, instantly killing a large number of civilians hiding in their homes.

The other, as luck would have it, landed right near the objective of Amber’s attack—the alternate command post of this Imperial orbital paratrooper regiment.

The ‘Werewolf’, which had just retreated to this area, was completely engulfed by the fireball at ground zero. The entire HCP was twisted into a pile of scrap metal by the overpressure and shockwave.

After everything returned to calm, Amber waited a while longer, but no follow-up orbital strikes came.

He sent out two Mobile Infantry soldiers to scout the situation while he contacted Brigade HQ.

Upon receiving the news that “no subsequent orbital strikes have been detected,” Amber was puzzled for a moment. The Empire’s actions this time were truly strange.

He, of course, had no idea that the Imperial fleet had lost ten orbital assault ships just to launch those two warheads. It was a truly devastating loss.

Soon, the scouting Mobile Infantry returned with the message that “all is clear.”

After a moment of thought, Amber ordered the attack to resume.

With the area around the alternate command post hit by an orbital strike, the Imperial forces there had suffered heavy losses.

They were simply too close to ground zero. The instantaneous high temperature surpassed the processing limits of their exoskeletons’ adaptive temperature regulation systems.

A large number of soldiers were essentially cooked alive inside their own exoskeletons.

The subsequent fighting devolved into garbage time.

Amber’s forces quickly captured the positions near the Imperial orbital paratrooper regiment’s alternate command post and moved to support the main offensive.

With Lilith continuously planting viruses and launching electronic warfare attacks, they advanced like an unstoppable force all the way to the final enemy position, where they rendezvoused with friendly forces to complete the encirclement. Though they still sacrificed many Mobile Infantry soldiers and lost nearly half their light multi-legged war machines, the outcome was sealed.

Facing the two HCPs defending the last position, Amber employed the same tactic as before. His units unleashed a relentless, alternating barrage, as if ammunition were free.

After receiving Amber’s advice, the surrounding friendly forces quickly followed his example.

Under such a saturation attack, the shields of the two HCPs, which had been struggling under the intense fire, were finally shattered. Their deflector shield generators, overloaded from prolonged operation, broke down.

Finally, a salvo from the heavy electromagnetic cannons of several Mammoths turned them into two heaps of scrap metal.

With their last bastion of strength gone, the Imperial forces’ defeat was certain. With no one surrendering, the Federation’s assault force annihilated the defenders.

When Amber led a few Mobile Infantry soldiers and was the first to charge into the regimental command post that Lilith had located, hoping to capture a few prisoners, he found only destroyed equipment, instruments, and the bodies of Regiment Commander Phillips and several other officers who had taken their own lives with a bullet.

Mopping up the remaining enemies in the city didn’t take much effort. Between the viruses Lilith had spread in advance and the dual-tracking of street surveillance, most of the stragglers were quickly located and eliminated in their hiding places.

A small remaining portion of the enemy had hidden deeper and wouldn’t be showing themselves anytime soon.

But neither Amber nor Lieutenant Colonel Dallas wanted to play hide-and-seek with these remnants.

Imperial reinforcements, having received the request for support, were already on their way. They had to quickly gather all usable equipment and then head to the port to evacuate.

Although most of the electronic equipment had been destroyed by the Imperial forces themselves to prevent secrets from being leaked, Lilith’s guidance led Amber and his men to three small airdrop pods that hadn’t been destroyed in time.

According to the information obtained after hacking them, Lilith told Amber that they contained three small-scale attack drone groups called ‘Swarms.’

It was obvious that the Imperial forces had intended to release these drones before the orbital strike hit, but they were interrupted by Lilith’s virus attack.

“Lilith, are you sure you can crack the restrictions on these things?”

Looking at the three airdrop pods, Amber admitted he was tempted, but only if they could bypass the security lockouts.

“No problem, Master! It’ll just take some time, but I can definitely break through! This will definitely be useful in your future battles, Master!”

Since Lilith was so confident, Amber didn’t say more. He called over a few Mobile Infantry soldiers and prepared to use large trucks to transport the three airdrop pods to the port.

The Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade would assemble there and board three giant ground effect vehicles docked at the port, each with a carrying capacity of five thousand tons.

Chapter 95: Do You Psionic Agents Know How to Do Everything? (Combined Chapter)

If the main problem facing the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade before the attack on Blue Bay was a shortage of frontline combat troops, then after taking the city, that was just one problem among many.

After the battle, personnel, weapons, ammunition, fuel, food, and medicine were all in short supply.

The 83rd Combined Arms Brigade had broken out under duress, like refugees, so their supplies were already insufficient. This was why their previous battles had been fought so conservatively, focused mainly on staying on the move.

But during the recent anti-HCP operation commanded by Amber, the frontline units had adopted a tactic of continuous alternating fire to maintain suppression. This consumed ammunition and battery packs at a rate that would give the quartermaster an aneurysm.

It plunged the already “impoverished” 83rd Combined Arms Brigade deeper into crisis.

And though the Federation forces had ultimately won the brutal urban battle, their frontline troops had once again suffered significant casualties.

What was once a main combat force of two combined arms battalions was now reduced to less than one and a half, including a large number of wounded.

As for the wheeled armored vehicles and multi-legged war machines, the streets of the city were littered with their wreckage, so fresh it was still smoking.

Although the mechanics and engineering corps had managed to salvage all usable parts from the wrecks, the loss of mechanical units still pained Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

Even the anti-aircraft battalion and the tactical support battalion had sustained losses during the Empire’s HCP counterattack.

The loss of technical equipment from the tactical support battalion was particularly severe.

The Imperial HCP pilot ‘Brimstone’ could be said to have used up all his luck in that attack. Not only did three anti-radiation missiles manage to break through the defenses, but each one hit its target, taking out three wide-area electronic suppression trucks in one go.

His wingman, ‘Saber,’ while attacking the 83rd’s anti-aircraft battalion, had also managed to destroy two anti-aircraft vehicles with a barrage of plasma rockets and a lucky “dual-cannon shot.”

But despite the heavy losses, there was some good news.

Originally, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and the quartermaster in charge of logistics had been worried that the ground effect vehicles at the port wouldn’t be able to carry many supplies after loading up all the troops.

They had even considered commandeering two more cargo ships to follow behind the main force with extra supplies, praying that the vessels, with a top speed of 30 knots, would reach their destination safely.

But now, that problem had solved itself.

After the battle, the total personnel and equipment of the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade now took up less than one and a half of the vehicle’s total capacity.

A brigade of this size should normally have around two thousand frontline combat personnel, plus over three thousand support, technical, and logistics staff.

But in reality, only a little over one thousand frontline soldiers and just over two thousand other personnel had made it to the port.

They had also retained less than sixty percent of their vehicles and technical equipment.

This meant that an entire ground effect vehicle, plus some extra space, was now free to transport supplies.

The new headache for the brigade’s staff officers and quartermaster wasn’t how to transport so many people, but how to fill up the third ground effect vehicle.

While they were racking their brains, Amber arrived at the docks with his team.

Isabelle, who had stayed behind with the medical truck, followed Amber’s instructions after the fighting in the city subsided. She took the three vehicles and a mobile infantry squad from the staging area and headed for the port.

When the two met, they only had time for a few quick words before they had to rush off to their respective duties.

Isabelle needed to help gather and provide first aid to the wounded. During this time, the Imperial spy seemed to have temporarily forgotten her own identity.

Though she still wouldn’t participate in direct combat, she threw herself into post-battle medical work, saving a considerable number of Federation soldiers.

Amber had Randall take the reinforced mobile infantry platoon to the seaside docking area to await boarding. He himself followed the information on his personal terminal and headed to where Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and the others were gathered.

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and his group were near one of the ground effect vehicles. When they saw Amber approaching, the tough-as-nails officer’s expression was somewhat conflicted. His feelings for Amber were now a mix of love and hate.

On the one hand, the Psionic Agent had demonstrated formidable combat prowess and battlefield command abilities.

On the other hand, the man’s tactical command style was a severe test of the brigade’s logistical capabilities.

Just letting him temporarily command a small number of troops had caused a spike in ammunition and supply consumption that gave the quartermaster a massive headache. Dallas didn’t dare imagine what would happen if Amber were to command even larger forces in the future.

However, in the current circumstances, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas felt that winning was all that mattered.

After all, it seemed his officers, at least when it came to fighting HCPs, were truly not as experienced as Warrant Officer Amber.

As for the logistics problem, he would have to leave it to his subordinates to worry about for now.

He’s from the Federation’s First Military Academy, after all. He’s just built different.

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas thought as he watched Amber, who walked up to him in his exoskeleton and gave a simple salute.

“Sir! Warrant Officer Amber, reporting!”

“At ease. No need for such formalities right now. I called you over because I want you to take a look at this thing.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas led Amber to a gangway that provided direct access to the cockpit of the Giant Ground Effect Vehicle.

“Do you know how to fly this thing?”

“Huh?”

Seeing Amber’s confused expression, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas sighed and explained:

“All three of these ground effect vehicles had crews on standby at the port. After the Imperial forces occupied Blue Bay, they locked them up separately around the harbor. I suspect the Empire intended to use these big birds themselves.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was the first to ascend the gangway, heading towards the elevated cockpit.

“Unfortunately, during the battle just now, the building where one of the crews was being held was hit by a heavy particle cannon. Anyway, I figured you Psionic Agents get a lot of vehicle training, so I wanted to ask if you could get this thing running.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s words left Amber at a loss for what to say.

He could only turn to his off-site consultant in his mind.

Lilith, can you get this thing running?

Master, if all the links for this vehicle are integrated into a single system, and if there’s a basic operating manual I can learn from, give me some time and I can try.

Seeing Amber’s lack of response, the lieutenant colonel turned back to look at him and smiled.

“So, what do you think? Can you handle it? I can pull two people from the other two crews and find some mechanics and engineers who are familiar with large machinery to help out.”

“I can give it a try?”

Amber followed Lieutenant Colonel Dallas into the cockpit. The latter was already on the comms channel, calling for a few helpers who were now on their way.

The moment he stepped into the cockpit, Amber was taken aback.

The equipment and layout of this ground effect vehicle’s cockpit seemed rather outdated by modern standards.

Good heavens, is this still a last-generation vehicle piloting framework?

The overall layout was similar to a large aircraft, with a standard crew of four: two pilots, a navigator/radar operator, and a communications officer.

Sitting down in the main pilot’s seat, Amber stared at the various screens and buttons for a moment before finally spotting a data port above one of the screens that was clearly a later addition.

Thank goodness. Looks like it’s had some upgrades. I wonder if it has an auxiliary AI.

He plugged in his data cable and found the APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) button on the control panel in front of him, then pressed it.

A humming sound filled the air as the ground effect vehicle’s auxiliary power began supplying electricity to the various subsystems. The equipment in the cockpit came to life, and the multi-function displays and the HUD on the front window lit up.

At the same time, Lilith used the data cable to connect to the vehicle’s onboard computer as it powered up.

Soon, she had extracted all the relevant information and data about the ground effect vehicle, displaying it for Amber after he lowered his tactical faceplate.

KM-03 ‘Pelican’ Nuclear-Powered Ground Effect Transport Platform.

To be honest, Amber was a little stunned when he saw the words ‘Nuclear-Powered.’

He wasn’t very familiar with this kind of intra-planetary transport vehicle, especially an older ‘antique’ model like this.

He had genuinely not expected the Federation to have put fusion reactors on ground effect platforms so early on.

Amber quickly scanned through the information Lilith provided, gaining a preliminary understanding of the massive ‘Pelican.’

An SW-85 triple-concentric fusion reactor served as the main power source, supporting ten TF68-GE-3C turbofan engines that provided the thrust needed to move the behemoth.

Propelled by the ground effect, this giant platform could ‘fly’ at a height of 15-20 meters, avoiding the ocean waves of Robert IV. It had an effective payload of 5,600 tons and a maximum payload of 6,000 tons.

Even when fully loaded, it could reach a speed of 720 kilometers per hour.

It offered the payload of a cargo ship with the speed of a transport plane, and its fusion reactor could operate continuously for nearly a thousand hours without refueling.

This type of vehicle was common on many of the Federation’s sparsely populated colonial planets that had oceans.

As a vehicle designed to enhance transoceanic transport efficiency on colonial worlds, the ‘Pelican’ was typically manufactured in modules and then shipped to various planets along with its fusion reactor and turbofan engines.

The final assembly was carried out in the shipyards of cities near spaceports or space elevators on these planets.

There were a total of twelve ‘Pelicans’ on Robert IV.

They had all been assembled in the shipyards of Jabra, the city where the space elevator was located.

And that city was their next destination.

So, Lilith, can you get this thing running?

Hmm… Master, I can slightly modify the underlying operating program, replace the original piloting assistance AI, and control all of this vehicle’s subsystems.

As Lilith spoke, a virtual piloting assistance AI appeared as a projection on the console in front of Amber.

Although the little figure was wearing a Federation Navy uniform, Amber could tell its face was almost identical to the virtual avatar of Lilith he had seen before.

However, the actual piloting, radar, and navigation will still require manual operation. After all, Master, you wouldn’t want it to be unmanned, right? That would be too suspicious.

Alright then. I’ll be the main pilot. We’ll put on a show. You guide me through the basic operations and handle the piloting assistance.

While discreetly communicating with Lilith, Amber followed her guidance and pressed the self-check buttons for the ‘Power,’ ‘Communications,’ and ‘Navigation’ modules one by one.

Amid the beeping of the system self-check, he turned to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, who was observing from the side.

“Sir, getting it started shouldn’t be a problem, but you’ll need to find me a co-pilot, a navigator, and a communications officer.”

Amber pointed to the other seats in the cockpit and continued, “We’ll also need personnel familiar with fusion reactors and large equipment assigned to their respective posts in the various functional sections.”

“No problem, no problem! I’ll get the people!”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had a look on his face that clearly said, ‘Hey! You really are something, kid!’ as he readily agreed.

Soon, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had poached a few people from the other two crews and found some soldiers from the ranks who met the criteria, forming a temporary crew for this ‘Pelican.’

In the end, Major Randall of the Federation Navy, who had experience serving on a capital ship, became Amber’s co-pilot.

After all, within the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade, which was full of ‘Army grunts,’ Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and his staff officers simply couldn’t find anyone with experience piloting large ships or aircraft.

Although Major Randall had only spent three years on a capital ship before being transferred to Lansford Port, and his position on the ship wasn’t helmsman but combat systems coordinator in the Combat Intelligence Center.

But in the eyes of Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and the others—a giant ship/vehicle, nuclear-powered, and officially part of the Federation Navy.

It was a perfect professional match.

“Amber, are you sure you know how to fly this thing?”

Forced into the co-pilot’s seat, a terrified Major Randall held the ‘Pelican’s’ operation manual, checking if the giant ground effect vehicle’s system data was normal according to the pre-flight checklist.

Though Amber could tell if the ‘Pelican’ was functioning properly thanks to Lilith’s real-time monitoring, he had Major Randall confirm the self-check status to make it seem like they were the ones flying the vehicle.

It also gave the navy major a sense of participation.

“You’re not going to crash, are you?”

“Major Randall, your mouth is as foul as ever.”

Under the guidance of a few experienced hands transferred from the other two ‘Pelicans,’ the temporary crew finally completed the basic preparations.

At that moment, Amber received the signal from Lilith: ‘All subsystem self-checks complete.’

After patiently waiting for the fusion reactor to heat back up to its operational temperature of 160 million Kelvin, Amber looked at Lilith, who was temporarily disguised as the piloting assistance AI.

“Initiate startup sequence.”

“Roger. Initiating startup sequence.”

“Fusion reactor core temperature rising normally… 95%… 98%… Critical. Entering fusion state!”

“Fusion reactor startup complete. Disconnecting auxiliary power. Commencing power supply to all systems!”

Soon, the noise of ten high-power turbofan engines filtered through the cockpit glass. On the screen in front of Amber, all of the ‘Pelican’s’ subsystem icons turned green, indicating ‘Normal Operation.’

He looked at Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, who had been standing by, and gave him an ‘all-clear’ gesture.

“Lieutenant Colonel, you can have the others board now!”

Chapter 96: Prologue to the Decisive Battle

For safety reasons, aside from the temporary crew manning their posts, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas ultimately decided not to put any personnel aboard the ‘Pelican’ Amber was piloting.

Instead, he had it loaded with collected supplies like ammunition, fuel, and battery packs.

After all, if they ran out of supplies, they could find a way to get more. But if a whole craft full of soldiers was driven into the sea by Amber, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas wouldn’t even know where to begin crying.

As the loading of supplies, personnel, and equipment neared completion, the combined arms brigade’s last remaining integrated reconnaissance vehicle reported a piece of information to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas.

While monitoring the planet’s atmosphere, they had detected impacts from charged particles and heavy metal particles, leading them to speculate that a fleet battle might be taking place in outer space—and could still be ongoing.

Recalling the recent, sudden orbital strike that had ended with only two warheads landing, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas figured that regardless of what started the fleet battle, it was at least hindering the operations of the Imperial orbital assault ships.

This also meant that the Imperial fleet, likely engaged in combat, would have its surveillance and support capabilities for the surface of Robert IV drastically reduced.

Therefore, now was the perfect time for a strategic maneuver.

From Blue Bay Harbor to Jabra, where the space elevator was located, the sea route was less than three thousand kilometers. At the ‘Pelican’s’ speed, they could arrive in under five hours.

If they departed immediately, they could cross the ocean and reach their destination while the battle in space was raging.

“All units! Speed up the loading! Big Bird 1, 2, and 3 will depart as soon as you’re finished!”

Urged on by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, the officers in charge of loading the three ‘Pelicans’ quickened their pace, getting everything they could take with them onto the ground effect transport platforms in the shortest possible time.

They skipped sorting and organizing for now; after all, they would be unloading in just a few hours.

Once the three ‘Pelicans’ had completed their preparations, Big Bird 1 and Big Bird 2—carrying all the personnel, vehicles, equipment, and some of the supplies—started up one after the other.

Propelled by ten high-power turbofan engines, the two giant ground effect vehicles pulled away from the harbor. As they accelerated, they generated ground effect, eventually lifting onto a ‘cushion of air’ about fifteen meters above the water’s surface.

“Big Bird 3, you’re cleared for departure. Stay safe.”

“Roger that. Big Bird 3 commencing departure.”

Hearing Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s voice over the comm channel, Amber replied, then couldn’t help but smile as she remembered the sight of the lieutenant colonel being forcibly dragged away by his staff officers.

The tough-as-nails lieutenant colonel had initially planned to ride on this ground effect vehicle with Amber.

But he had been hauled off by the deputy brigade commander and the staff, who cited the ‘pilot’s inexperience and potential crash risk’ as their reason.

Amber found this completely understandable. After all, if the roles were reversed, she wouldn’t be too keen on riding in a vehicle driven by a novice either.

However, with Lilith’s help, Amber wasn’t the least bit nervous about piloting a giant ground effect vehicle for the first time. She was even in the mood to joke a little on the comm channel:

“Lieutenant Colonel, you can tell your staff officers not to worry so much. We Psionic Agents have to learn everything at the military academy. A ground effect vehicle like this is a piece of cake for us.”

“Hahahaha! If you manage to get Big Bird 3 to our destination safely, then the next time a situation like this comes up, I’ll make the staff ride in the vehicle you’re piloting.”

The lieutenant colonel’s hearty laughter echoed through the comm channel, interspersed with protests from the staff, such as, “Lieutenant Colonel, that’s a reckless disregard for human life!”

With its turbofan engines running at low power, Big Bird 3 smoothly pulled out of its berth, left the harbor, and moved into the area designated for takeoff and landing.

Then, following the guidance of Lilith, who was disguised as a piloting assistance AI, Amber pushed the throttle to maximum thrust. As the vehicle picked up speed, she and Major Randall controlled its direction and angle, finally lifting into the air with the help of ground effect.

Once clear of the water, the ‘Pelican’ was free from the sea’s drag and quickly accelerated to six hundred kilometers per hour, catching up with Big Bird 1 and 2, which had departed earlier.

The three giant ground effect transport platforms formed a triangular formation with twenty kilometers between each craft and sped directly toward the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade’s final destination: Jabra.

In space, the fleet battle came to a close several hours later.

In the end, the Imperial Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group leveraged its superior firepower to achieve a higher kill ratio, forcing the Federation task force to withdraw from the battle.

Although they had won the battle, Marquis Ascania still felt as disgusted as if he had swallowed an alien mosquito.

The Federation fleet’s ‘harassing engagement’ style of attack hadn’t actually caused significant losses to the Expeditionary Strike Group’s ships.

But the harassment had still had a considerable impact on the fleet’s orbital strikes and airdrop operations, severely interfering with ground support and the efficiency of troop deployment.

When the orbital assault ships descended back to low orbit, they soon reported back to the flagship that Blue Bay was empty and abandoned.

It was obvious that, under the cover of the Federation fleet’s interference, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade—a Federation remnant that Marquis Ascania had already set his sights on—had once again escaped their surveillance.

However, after the battle at Blue Bay, and combining that with previously gathered intelligence, the Marquis, Rafael, and the staff all came to the same conclusion.

This Federation remnant’s next destination was, one hundred percent, the space elevator on Robert IV.

“It’s a rather counter-intuitive move, but I have to admit, it’s quite brilliant. If they hadn’t chosen to attack Blue Bay, I wouldn’t have been so certain that this Federation remnant was targeting the space elevator.”

Inside the strategy meeting, Marquis Ascania took a sip from his wine glass.

Noticing his foul mood, Rafael had brought him a glass of calming Imperial icewine.

“Yes, my Lord Marquis. We previously believed they would continue running in circles on the North Continent. But this… this confirms there’s an eighty percent chance they have the space elevator’s access key.”

Rafael looked at the planetary map on the holographic projection platform, his expression calm.

“Furthermore, they’ve correctly calculated that we don’t want to destroy the space elevator. As long as they can get near it, we’ll be forced to hold back on any orbital strikes.”

“Exactly. If I were the commander of this unit, after obtaining the access key, I too would consider maneuvering toward the space elevator and then waiting for a support fleet to arrive before coordinating an attack.”

Marquis Ascania nodded and continued:

“How many troops do we have near the space elevator?”

“Originally, there was an orbital paratrooper regiment and some heavy armored units that arrived later via aerospace transports. However, after it was confirmed that the space elevator would be unusable for the foreseeable future, those troops were gradually redeployed to fight in other regions.”

Rafael opened his personal terminal and pulled up the details of current ground troop deployments.

“Currently, only two battalions remain stationed at the space elevator’s base area.”

“Hmph. Now we’re the ones on the back foot.”

Marquis Ascania said thoughtfully:

“Halt the deployment of follow-up forces. Use all available aerospace transports to urgently redeploy some of the heavy armored units already on the ground there, at maximum speed.”

Chapter 97: The Fleet’s Approach

“My Lord Marquis, I feel I must inform you of the time and potential risks involved in redeploying our forces.”

Rafael thought for a moment, then took a step forward and manipulated the holographic projection platform.

Soon, the current distribution of Imperial ground forces on Robert IV was displayed.

“At present, our forces on the surface consist mainly of twenty-two orbital paratrooper regiments and two armored brigade combat teams that have not yet completed their full deployment.

Due to the space elevator being inoperable, in addition to the troops already on the ground, two full-strength brigade combat teams have not yet begun their deployment, and we are already far behind schedule.

If we divert all our aerospace transports to conduct troop movements within the atmosphere, it will further delay the deployment of these remaining two brigade combat teams.

Moreover, since the Federation fleet appeared and revealed its presence to the Federation remnants on the ground, their morale and determination to resist have been boosted.

Reports from all our ground units indicate that the intensity of recent engagements is increasing. Relying solely on orbital paratroopers and a small number of HCPs is becoming insufficient to contain them.

If we were to redeploy some of our heavy armored units at this time, I worry there would be a risk of counter-attacks on those fronts.”

Marquis Ascania fell silent as he listened to Rafael’s report and studied the holographic map showing the disposition of friendly and enemy forces.

He knew that the situation in this campaign had deviated from its intended trajectory from the very beginning.

A defecting Imperial spy, a blockaded space elevator, self-organizing Federation remnants, and a Federation fleet that had suddenly appeared like a swarm of annoying gnats…

Under the influence of all these factors, the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s original script for a “swift victory” could now be torn to shreds.

Marquis Ascania looked up at the young staff officer across the holographic map.

“And your recommendation is?”

“Continue with the deployment of the subsequent brigade combat teams, my lord.”

“Continue reinforcing the ground… so you want to deploy these forces directly to the space elevator?”

“Yes, my lord, but not directly at the space elevator’s location.”

Rafael swiped a hand across the holographic map, which quickly zoomed in and centered on the space elevator’s base area.

“The space elevator was built right on the coast. The seaward areas are mostly large ports dense with machinery, which do not meet the takeoff and landing requirements for aerospace transports.”

The inland areas to the north and west were cities built around the base, also unsuitable for landings.

Therefore, the only suitable landing zone was the area to the south of the base. This region had not yet been fully developed by the Federation and, geographically, was indeed suitable for aerospace transport operations.

“But anything we can think of, I believe the commander—or commanding group—of these Federation remnants can think of as well.”

Hearing this, the Marquis nodded thoughtfully.

“Are you suggesting these Federation remnants might lie in wait there and ambush our transport fleet during the landing phase?”

“Yes, my lord. Therefore, my idea is to fully leverage our superiority in numbers and equipment, concentrate our forces for a safe deployment in the periphery, and then form them into a force that these remnants cannot possibly stop, delivering a single, decisive blow.”

“But wouldn’t that also give these Federation remnants ample time to prepare?”

Although he acknowledged the logic in Rafael’s analysis, Marquis Ascania once again raised a question.

“That is true. Such a plan does carry certain risks, but the risk doesn’t come from the Federation remnants on the ground…”

“You’re worried about the arrival of the Federation’s support fleet?”

“You are wise, my lord.”

“Spare me the flattery, Rafael. It doesn’t suit you; it’s too forced.”

The Marquis waved a hand dismissively before continuing.

“Reinforcements from the Federation’s main fleet? Hmph. We’ll see whose reinforcements arrive first.”

At these words, Rafael’s eyes lit up.

“Are you saying our support fleet is also on its way?”

“Yes. We received the latest news an hour ago. By my calculations, their fleet should be more than halfway through its jump by now.”

Marquis Ascania tapped his personal terminal a few times, and corresponding fleet information appeared on the holographic platform.

“The Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Group? It seems High Command is determined to take the Robert system.”

“Not only that.”

The Marquis held up his terminal and gestured for Rafael to approach.

The young Major quickly walked over to stand behind him. When he saw the information displayed on the terminal, his eyes widened uncontrollably.

“Is that… the Fortress of Sorrow?!”

On the surface of Robert IV, South Continent.

After a journey of nearly five hours, the three Pelicans carrying Amber and her comrades finally arrived near their destination.

Earlier, while flying along the coastline, the reconnaissance unit had managed to move a scout vehicle onto one of the Pelican’s open decks and launch a drone using a vehicle-mounted catapult for initial reconnaissance.

The results were much as the Brigade HQ staff had predicted: the drone did indeed spot Imperial forces in the space elevator’s base area.

Although the drone was ultimately destroyed by high-energy lasers deployed by the Imperial forces, the staff officers still noted that there were fewer Imperial troops here than they had anticipated.

After leaving the coastline and once again circling wildly over the ocean, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas convened a temporary meeting aboard the three Pelicans.

After ruling out the possibility that this was a trap set by Imperial forces, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas ultimately decided to land somewhere suitable.

The reasons were simple.

First, the plan had progressed this far. They were past the point of no return. Backing out or changing the plan now would have a significant impact on morale.

Besides, the entire combined arms brigade had no better place to go. Returning to the North Continent would only mean being surrounded by Imperial forces once again.

Second, and most importantly, after approaching the coastline earlier, the communications unit had received a signal from friendly forces on the South Continent.

Amber was not the only quick-thinking person on this planet, nor was Dallas the only Federation commander with a burning passion.

This unit on the South Continent, a remnant force roughly the size of half a combined arms brigade, had also begun maneuvering toward the space elevator under its commander’s lead after receiving the message broadcast by the Federation task force over public channels.

Although they hadn’t learned of the space elevator’s lockdown immediately, their position on the South Continent made reconnaissance of it much more convenient than it was for Amber’s group.

Thus, this South Continent remnant force had also quickly discovered that the space elevator had yet to be put into operation.

This only strengthened the resolve of the unit’s command to recapture the space elevator.

After establishing contact, the two units from different continents naturally decided to rendezvous and coordinate their operations.

Finally, at a location approximately 340 kilometers from the city of Jabra, three massive ground-effect vehicle transport platforms charged directly onto the beach.

A few hours later, the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group received a report from the space elevator’s garrison about shooting down an unidentified drone.

This confirmed the suspicions of Marquis Ascania, Rafael, and others that Federation forces were massing near the space elevator.

The Marquis also approved Rafael’s proposal to drop the subsequent heavy armored units in the area surrounding the space elevator.

On September 11th, the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade completed its rendezvous with the Federation remnants from the South Continent. At the same time, numerous other small units that had managed to break out were also maneuvering toward the space elevator.

On September 13th, an Imperial aerospace transport group was spotted by Federation reconnaissance units while attempting to deploy troops to the periphery of the space elevator. They immediately came under fire from numerous high-energy lasers, losing one fully loaded “Taurus” aerospace transport.

From September 14th to September 18th, the Empire moved its heavy armored unit deployment zone further out and continued its troop drops for several days.

During this period, Federation forces launched multiple attacks on the landing zones designated by the Empire. Although they managed to destroy two more aerospace transports, as the defenses around the landing zones solidified, subsequent attacks yielded no results.

From September 19th to September 20th, skirmishes erupted between the ground forces of both sides around the space elevator’s base area and Jabra.

Ultimately, the Federation forces moved into the city of Jabra, while the Imperial heavy armored units completed their assembly south of the space elevator’s base area.

During this time, all warships of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, aside from the vessels involved in the ground deployments, left synchronous orbit and began tactical maneuvers.

The date was now September 21st, in the outer space of Robert IV.

As the warships of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group maneuvered into a predetermined battle position, a scout ship detected the jump signature of the Federation task force.

The Imperial fleet immediately deployed into formation, preparing to crush the Federation fleet, which had suffered considerable losses in recent engagements.

However, as the Federation fleet began to exit its jump, the Imperial scout ship discovered that the enemy fleet’s numbers far exceeded the count recorded after their last battle.

This information, along with images of the ships captured by optical sensor equipment, was quickly transmitted to the bridge of The Dawnblade.

Watching the screen fill with more and more Federation warships, arriving on the battlefield amidst the flashes of light that marked their exit from jump space, Marquis Ascania spoke with a calm expression.

“Inform the Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Group. It’s their turn to take the stage.”

Chapter 98: Amber, Are You Planning to Flee?

“Admiral, the entire fleet has completed its warp jump. We’ve detected an Imperial fleet in the target area, at a straight-line distance of 290,000 kilometers. Based on its size and composition, it matches Brigadier General Dowell’s description of an Imperial Expeditionary Strike Group.”

“Understood.”

The middle-aged man in the captain’s chair nodded slightly, his eyes fixed on the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge. The platform displayed a miniature starscape showing their own fleet, the Imperial fleet, and Planet Robert IV.

This was the bridge of the FNS Destiny, a Kraken II-class battleship and the flagship of the Federation Navy’s Thirteenth Fleet.

The man in the captain’s chair was the commander of the Thirteenth Fleet, Federation Navy Vice Admiral Guterres.

He was also the commander of the combined fleet, formed by the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets.

After the tactical staff officer returned to the Combat Intelligence Center below the bridge, two holographic figures materialized on either side of Guterres.

One was the commander of the Fourteenth Fleet, Rear Admiral Griezmann.

The other was the temporary commander of the task force, Brigadier General Dowell.

“Brigadier General Dowell, your courage has secured us vital intelligence. Please allow me to express my respect.”

Guterres turned to the old man beside him, his voice filled with sincerity.

“There’s no need for that, Admiral Guterres. Without the support of everyone else in the fleet, our battered forces would never have held out until your arrival.”

The holographic image of the old man waved his hand.

“Thank God you made it in time.”

Hearing the old general’s words, Guterres and Griezmann exchanged a look and couldn’t help but sigh.

Before the fleet departed, Marshal Trafalgar had contacted them privately, so they were more or less aware of the ‘story’ behind this deployment.

Before the communication ended, the old marshal had also given them three orders.

First, if they encountered the Imperial fleet in the Robert system, they were to open fire immediately without any attempt to communicate.

Second, they were not to advance rashly. They should proceed steadily and cautiously, wary of Imperial reinforcements.

Third, if the battle situation became dire and seemed irreversible, Guterres could use his personal authority to open another encrypted file.

“The Imperial fleet’s invasion is a fact. Let our combined fleet fire the first shot of the counterattack. Admiral Griezmann, has the special communications ship begun its return journey?”

“Yes, after extracting the relevant combat information and data from Brigadier General Dowell’s fleet, the special communications ship is already on its way back.”

Seemingly noticing the worry on Guterres’s face, Griezmann added, “Don’t worry, we specifically chose the ship with the shortest service time. Its Warp Engine is as good as new. Its scheduled exit point from warp is only 1,200 kilometers from Naval Command’s spaceport. I guarantee it’ll be faster than transmitting via the subspace comms relay.”

“I certainly hope so.”

Just as Guterres was speaking with the other two fleet commanders, the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator from the Combat Intelligence Center came over the bridge speakers.

“Warning! Spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

“Warning! Anomalous mass increase detected in space!”

“Confirmed hostile fleet exiting warp!”

As the coordinator’s voice echoed, the sensor arrays on the scout ships also picked up a series of flashes in the area near the Imperial Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

The three fleet commanders’ expressions turned grim. The Imperial reinforcements had arrived at this very moment.

“Marshal Trafalgar’s prediction was quite accurate,” Griezmann remarked.

“Let’s play with them a little, see what they’re made of,” Guterres said, glancing at the other two commanders. They both nodded, indicating they were ready.

Receiving their signal, Guterres’s tone shifted, and he boomed, “All ships, deploy formation! Give it your all! Victory will be ours!”

As the two massive Federation and Imperial fleets prepared for battle in space, they each used their dedicated communications ships to relay the news of the impending fleet engagement to their respective ground forces on the planet.

The ground troops on both sides immediately grew tense. The various remnants of the Federation forces were especially invigorated upon learning that the main fleet had finally arrived.

On this day, near the space elevator on the planet’s surface, the ground units of both sides had arrived at the eve of their final battle.

The two warring forces had independently chosen tomorrow as D-Day for the assault to capture the space elevator’s base area.

The oppressive atmosphere of the looming battle seemed to affect both sides equally.

The nightly clashes between infiltration teams that had occurred over the past few days were strangely absent tonight.

Both sides, in a tacit understanding, only maintained basic patrols and sentries, without sending more infiltration teams to probe the enemy’s defenses.

At the northern and southern ends of the space elevator’s base area, soldiers from both armies, aside from the sentries and those on night watch, got the most peaceful night’s sleep they had had in days.

At the hidden command post of the Federation forces, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and Amber stood on the roof of a command vehicle, gazing at the distant space elevator, which resembled the mythical Tower of Babel.

Although Amber didn’t know why Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had suddenly invited him for a late-night talk, it was an order from a superior, and he couldn’t find a suitable reason to refuse.

“Warrant Officer Amber, tomorrow we begin the final step of the operational plan. As the one who initially proposed it, are you nervous?”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas took a long drag from his e-cigarette, then looked at Amber, who was standing beside him, with a half-smile.

“I wouldn’t say nervous. I just never thought the plan would actually make it this far.”

Dallas’s question made Amber feel a bit emotional himself. After all, thinking back on it now, the strategic maneuver plan seemed as fantastical as a fairy tale.

“In any case, even if this plan doesn’t succeed in the end, it’s still better than being ignominiously carved up and annihilated by the Imperial forces. That’s why I ultimately decided to execute this operational plan in the first place.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas stared intently at the space elevator for a while before continuing, “During the earlier operational meeting, I assigned you to lead the team to storm the space elevator tomorrow and try to retake the space station. Do you have any objections to that? Feel like I’m always picking on you for the tough jobs?”

The context for Dallas’s question was a high-risk mission assigned during today’s strategy meeting.

While the two fleets engaged in a decisive battle, the Federation would dispatch a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla to lock horns with the Imperial ground support fleet remaining in synchronous orbit over Robert IV.

They would also attempt to recapture the military spaceport and the space elevator, and then reactivate all defensive weaponry.

If this mission succeeded, even if the Federation fleet an into trouble, they could still use the space elevator to evacuate some personnel.

If the battle went well, it would be even better; Federation forces could use the space elevator to rapidly deploy ground troops and mop up the Imperial forces on the surface.

Under these circumstances, the relief fleet hoped their friendly forces on the ground could provide support during their attack.

Moreover, Randall and the access key he held were indispensable for reactivating the space elevator.

Therefore, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas ultimately decided to have Amber, the only Psionic Agent, lead the assault.

“Not at all, Sir. After all, I doubt anyone else you have is a better fighter than me, hahahaha.”

Amber laughed it off. He didn’t really have any issue with the assignment.

As he said, there was truly no one else in the unit better suited for this kind of infantry assault mission.

Besides, it gave him the perfect reason to head to the space station.

“You really are something else…”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas shook his head with a smile. After exhaling a long plume of vapor, his smile vanished, and his expression turned serious as he stared into Amber’s eyes.

“Amber, if you successfully board the space elevator, you don’t plan on coming back, do you? Am I right?”

Chapter 99: An Old Acquaintance

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s question made Amber’s heart suddenly skip a beat.

He wondered, could it be that his contact with Isabelle’s “elf friend” during the day had been discovered?

After learning that the Federation’s capital ship fleet had arrived and was about to engage the Imperial fleet in a decisive battle, Amber and Isabelle, who had been dead set on escaping Robert IV from the very beginning, realized their long-awaited opportunity had come.

So, during the day, Amber had used a reconnaissance mission as a pretext to get close to the space elevator’s base area.

Then, with Lilith’s help, he successfully hacked into the space elevator’s communication module.

After numerous battles, Lilith’s Electronic Warfare and infiltration capabilities had improved almost exponentially.

Although the elevator’s transit car module was locked down, the communication module was merely dormant.

And so, using the space elevator’s star system-wide communication array and the information Isabelle provided, Amber successfully located a hidden dual-use conventional and psionic communication tower that the Thousand Stars Empire had deployed at the edge of the Robert system.

He then used this tower to finally send a message to Isabelle’s elf friend.

At this thought, Amber kept his expression neutral and looked at Lieutenant Colonel Dallas beside him.

“Lieutenant Colonel.”

“Hahaha! I was right, wasn’t I! No need to panic. I waited until now to talk to you about this because I have no intention of stopping you.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas laughed as he clapped Amber firmly on the shoulder.

“Don’t ask me how I knew. Let’s just call it a gut feeling. My intuition told me you weren’t the type to stay on this planet and wait to die.”

“When did you realize?”

Since the lieutenant colonel had put it so bluntly, Amber decided to drop the act.

“From the moment you uploaded your combat report, I guessed you had something like this in mind. After all, given your true identity, you certainly wouldn’t want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to escape the control of both the Federation and the Empire.”

“It seems you know more than I imagined.”

Amber turned his head to look at Lieutenant Colonel Dallas. The man’s hulking appearance was certainly deceptive, leading one to believe he was just a brawny tough guy.

“Aren’t you curious how someone like me, who isn’t in charge of intelligence, knows this secret?”

“To be honest, yes.”

The smile vanished from Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s face. He crossed his arms over his chest and said in a calm tone:

“Do you remember that so-called superior of yours, Major Mars from the Combat Intelligence Center?”

Amber nodded. Although their interaction had been brief, looking back on his conversations with the intelligence superior was still quite an intense memory.

“The two of us were in the same command track class at the Federation’s First Military Academy. The year we graduated, he was first in the class, and I was second.”

Classmates at the First Military Academy?

First and second in the command track?

And now both of them were on a border agricultural planet?

And one of them had even switched to intelligence work?

Amber suddenly felt that there had to be a complex story behind Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s short sentence.

“It’s just as you’re thinking. For the top two students of the First Military Academy to end up here… well, it’s a long story. If we get the chance to meet again someday, I can tell it to you. But not today. Let’s talk about you.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas raised his eyebrows and continued:

“On the night of Army Day, I suddenly received a message through a secure channel. It was from Mars. According to the description at the beginning of the message, it was a time-delayed message Mars had set up just in case. Normally, he would have canceled the message after completing a certain task. The content of the message was about your identity, Captain Margaret’s identity, and intelligence that the Empire was about to launch a surprise attack.”

Hearing this, Amber felt a wave of fear in hindsight. He was truly no match for these professional intelligence officers.

Moreover, he had to admit, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was a really good actor.

“Since the message was successfully sent to you, Lieutenant Colonel, that means Major Mars failed to complete this ‘certain task’ you mentioned, correct?”

“That’s right. The ‘certain task’ was him going to report to Commander Adam alone.”

As if thinking of his old classmate, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s voice grew somber.

“After receiving the message, I rushed to his quarters. It’s his own fault, really. Mars had a habit of shutting himself in his officer’s quarters for days on end. So when I didn’t see him for two days before Army Day, I didn’t think anything was strange. After breaking down the door, I saw him sitting at his desk. His body was already stiff. I had my confidant check the surveillance footage and found that he went to see Commander Adam right after meeting with you, and then returned to his room by himself.”

“A level-four psionic user is capable of ‘mind control’.”

Amber spoke up suddenly.

“At that time, besides me, there must have been another psionic user from the Empire lying in wait at the base.”

Since it had come to this, Amber couldn’t be bothered to hide it anymore. He immediately told Lieutenant Colonel Dallas everything that had happened afterward, including how he had sent a distress signal before destroying the main communications terminal.

After listening to Amber’s account, the lieutenant colonel squatted down on the edge of the command vehicle’s roof and took a long drag from his cigarette.

“So that’s what happened. I was wondering why the reinforcement fleet arrived so quickly. Amber, it seems the few thousand of us here really owe you our thanks.”

“There’s no need for thanks.”

Amber also sat down with a plop.

“Like you said, my ultimate goal is to escape this planet and get out from under the control of both sides. Without following the main force, it would have been very difficult for me to get to the space elevator on my own.”

“Hmph, you’re certainly straightforward, Amber.”

“You already know so much. There’s no point in me pretending anymore, is there?”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was silent for a moment, then spoke suddenly.

“You know, Amber, for a moment just now, I even had the thought of having you take everyone here with you.”

“If there were large transport ships at the spaceport, it wouldn’t be impossible,” Amber replied earnestly.

“It’s useless. Even if there were a way to leave, we couldn’t run. It may sound a bit offensive, but I have to say it: unlike you, we aren’t free of attachments.”

Lieutenant Colonel Dallas sighed, looking up at the starry sky, his eyes seeming to pierce the physical distance to gaze upon a certain planet he longed for day and night.

“If we were to run, we’d be deserters of the Federation. Our families wouldn’t just have all their benefits reclaimed, they’d also be reviled by everyone around them. There are only two fates for the Federation’s border troops: either serve until retirement age and go home, or die on the planet you’re stationed on.”

That night, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas poured out his grievances to Amber, spouting all sorts of politically incorrect statements.

If this were in the Capital star system, he would have likely been taken in for questioning long ago.

And Amber would never forget the last thing the tough-as-nails lieutenant colonel said to him, his expression a mixture of envy and hope:

“Warrant Officer Amber, you have a long and exciting road ahead of you. Live well.”

The next morning, after a night of stillness, the Federation and Imperial forces stirred to life once more.

Both sides formed up and began to advance toward the final battlefield—the base of the space elevator.

Since both parties were hesitant to use orbital strikes for fear of collateral damage, this battle would be a purely ground-based engagement.

Just as Amber and the others began moving toward their designated attack zone, the Empire suddenly began a wide-area, unrestricted broadcast over the public channel.

In an instant, everyone received the broadcast signal and heard the familiar voice coming from the public channel.

“Brothers of the Federation military, this is Commander Adam of Yassin Base.”

“I am speaking to you now as a fellow countryman, urging you all to lay down your arms and cease your resistance. Do not make any more pointless sacrifices for the Federation.”

“Your fight is meaningless! To continue your attack is to walk into a trap long laid by the great Star Dragon Empire!”

“Because in your ranks, that Psionic Agent, Warrant Officer Amber, has long pledged his allegiance to our great Empire!”

“So I hope you all can be like him. A wise person knows when to yield. Come and bask in the glory of the Empire sooner rather than later!”

Chapter 100: I Believe in Amber

Although Amber wanted to jump out and refute Commander Adam’s ‘passionate speech’ on the public channel, he restrained himself.

He had not defected to the Star Dragon Empire.

To be precise, this body was originally a deep-cover operative sent by the Star Dragon Empire, who had been turned by the Federation and was now working for them.

If he had to be labeled, it would be ‘double agent’ or ‘dual operative’.

But it was obvious that confronting Adam on the public channel at this moment would only make matters worse.

Moreover, in the assembly area where he was, many soldiers had already turned to look at him and were closing in.

These soldiers were mostly from the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade and other assembled units, or were men who had only recently been assigned to Amber’s command.

“A psychological attack, right off the bat.”

Watching their movements, Amber had to admit that while the Empire’s move was dirty, it was effective.

However, under these circumstances, the Mobile Infantrymen who had been saved by Amber from the very beginning and had fought alongside him ever since, immediately formed a circle to shield him.

To them, Commander Adam’s words were just hot air.

Although Amber wasn’t worried about being trapped by the other soldiers, the actions of these Mobile Infantrymen still made him feel that he hadn’t brought them out of that hell in vain.

“Warrant Officer, is what Commander Adam said true?” someone from the gathering crowd of soldiers shouted.

Just as Amber was about to speak the words he had prepared, he heard one of the Mobile Infantrymen beside him abruptly flip up his tactical faceplate and roar:

“That’s a load of fucking bullshit!”

This Mobile Infantryman, saved by Amber from the Empire’s orbital paratrooper siege during the ambush in the nameless valley, was extremely agitated.

“The only reason any of us are here today is because Warrant Officer Amber led us through hell and back! In every single battle, the Warrant Officer fought right alongside us, leading from the front!”

This soldier’s words naturally resonated with the other Mobile Infantrymen, and they too began to voice their support.

“That’s right! I believe in Warrant Officer Amber!”

“Warrant Officer Amber even used his own body to take on an Imperial HCP to cover the main force’s retreat!”

“Exactly! How many of those Imperials has the Warrant Officer taken down so far?! We didn’t just make up the name ‘Terrifying Headhunter’ for nothing!”

Wait, what was this about a ‘Terrifying Headhunter’?

Amber, who had been feeling rather touched by the Mobile Infantrymen’s support, was now at a loss for whether to laugh or cry upon hearing this title.

Just then, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s voice crackled to life on the Federation’s internal communications channel.

“All Federation soldiers, listen up! Do not be deceived by the words of that traitor, Adam!

I, as the Deputy Commander of Yassin Base and the commander of the Provisional 83rd Combined Arms Brigade, give you my personal and professional guarantee that Warrant Officer Amber has absolutely not defected to the Empire!

Furthermore, it was because of the distress signal he sent before Yassin Base fell that the Federation even learned of the Empire’s invasion and dispatched a relief fleet. It is because of him that we have the chance to gather here today and launch a formal counterattack against the Empire!”

As the highest-ranking officer of the Federation ground forces currently assembled, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas’s words carried weight.

After hearing him speak, most of the soldiers calmed down.

Many who had fought alongside Amber recalled his performance on the battlefield. His relentless efforts, no matter how you looked at it, certainly didn’t seem like an ‘act’.

At this moment, Amber was grateful he’d had that frank discussion with Lieutenant Colonel Dallas the previous night. Otherwise, the man might not have been so quick to stand up for him today.

He looked around and saw lingering confusion and unease in the eyes of some soldiers.

Amber clenched his right hand into a fist, raised it high above his head, and was the first to start walking towards the direction of the attack.

“No matter what some of you may think, today I will continue to lead the vanguard mobile unit, just as I always have!”

“To the death, Sir!”

The dozen or so Mobile Infantrymen who trusted Amber the most followed without hesitation, shouting their slogan.

With the endorsement of their highest officer and the support of the rank-and-file soldiers, the doubts about Amber that had taken root in the others’ hearts began to dissipate.

As Amber led the Mobile Infantry towards the staging area, he suddenly felt a different kind of gaze from the crowd.

He turned his head, following the line of sight, and saw Isabelle standing behind a few other soldiers.

“So, you sent the distress signal when you captured the Core Communications Room?”

“Yes.”

“That was a fine calculation, Amber.”

Isabelle’s voice sounded somewhat resentful. She and Amber were now behind an armored vehicle in a corner of the staging area.

As the two of them had walked over, the other Mobile Infantrymen had tactfully dispersed, dragging away a few clueless individuals with them.

“What is your real identity? Who are you, really?”

Isabelle stared directly into Amber’s eyes, as if trying to read something in them.

“Never mind. It’s better if you don’t say.”

Before Amber could open his mouth, she pressed a hand to her forehead and continued, as if to herself, “I have a feeling that knowing too much is not a good thing.”

“You don’t have to be so conflicted. No matter what I’ve done or who I am, our partnership remains valid, doesn’t it?”

Amber leaned in, forcing Isabelle to take a step back until her back was against the armored vehicle.

“Besides, I told you long ago that my home is with neither the Empire nor the Federation. It’s not my fault you didn’t believe me.”

“You can say that, but why are you so close? Amber, I swear you can’t be serious for even a minute.”

Isabelle rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“A great battle is imminent. Shouldn’t something happen between the male and female leads who have fought side-by-side all this time? That’s how it always goes in the movies.”

“That’s you, all right.”

Isabelle, whose mood had been rather complex, couldn’t help but laugh at Amber’s remark.

For a rare moment, the Imperial spy showed the most natural smile she had worn in days.

“So, you see me as your female lead?”

“Well, not necessarily.”

The smile vanished.

Thanks to Amber’s glib tongue, the eagerly-anticipated scene did not unfold.

There simply wasn’t enough time.

Isabelle soon left for her medical truck.

As Amber walked towards the communications relay vehicle, he saw Major Randall waiting for him outside.

The Federation Navy officer was now wearing a standard-issue Mobile Infantry exoskeleton.

After all, he was now on the roster for the space elevator assault team that Amber had drawn up.

Seeing Amber approach, the navy major looked him up and down, then asked with a frown:

“Amber, are you really an Imperial spy?”

“What do you think?”

“Yes. After all, you have a very Imperial-looking face.”

Major Randall could no longer hold back his smile. He clapped Amber on the shoulder, and the two quickly boarded the vehicle.

Soon, the assembled Federation forces began to move out from their various staging areas, heading towards their designated attack zones.

Chapter 101: A Joyful Gathering

Commander Adam’s “surrender appeal” on the public channel was still broadcasting. According to Lilith’s analysis of the signal source, which she’d obtained by connecting to the communications relay vehicle’s comms module, the speech was likely coming from a ship in orbit.

“He actually got picked up?”

Amber was a little surprised to learn that the man had already left the surface of Robert IV.

Did the Empire really value the former head of Yassin Base that much?

With the space elevator out of commission, the only means of transport the Imperial fleet had for such a task was its fleet of aerospace transports.

Evidently, they had arranged for a transport, one that had just completed its troop deployment mission, to make a special trip to pick up Adam.

Once the Federation’s ground offensive began, their forces blocked the public channel.

Although the initial stirrings of unrest had been quickly suppressed, there was no telling if some of the less resolute-minded soldiers might genuinely be swayed after listening for too long, potentially leading to an unexpected incident.

In the days leading up to the Federation army’s arrival to set up their ambush, any civilians in the Jabra urban area who could flee had already done so.

Within the vast cityscape, only a handful of residents with nowhere else to go remained.

So, as the Federation forces moved rapidly through Jabra towards the base area of the space elevator, they found the streets eerily quiet.

The only activity was in the sky, where reconnaissance drones continuously plummeted, trailing black smoke after being caught in sudden bursts of fire.

The escort air defense units of both the Federation and the Empire were frantically hunting each other’s drones, especially the small, low-flying, slow-moving ones, which were practically guaranteed hits.

The drone unit commanders on both sides watched with pained expressions as their drone reserves dwindled, but they still gritted their teeth and ordered new units to be launched to replace those that had been shot down.

It was like a real-time strategy game where, no matter how tight your resources, you had to save money to build reconnaissance units to maintain control of your vision.

The importance of vision was self-evident.

“Major Randall, are you sure your intel is solid?”

Riding in the communications relay vehicle as the column advanced, Amber looked at the markings Randall had made on the map of the base area and asked with a hint of doubt.

“Of course it’s solid. Amber, you still don’t trust me?”

Major Randall dramatically slapped the silicon carbide armor plates on his chest.

“I may have been a combat command watch officer at the naval port, but I’m very familiar with the entire space elevator’s structure and layout, alright? You have to trust my professionalism.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you,” Amber said, shaking his head.

“It’s just that I find it hard to imagine there would be backup HCPs available inside the base area.”

“Oh, come on, Amber, you can count on me. Stop worrying!”

According to Major Randall, there was a backup HCP Hangar in Sector 4 of the base area.

Normally, this hangar housed three MTA-2A5 ‘Wasteland Wolf’ HCPs in sealed storage, complete with their weapons, equipment, and ammunition.

Under normal circumstances, this backup hangar would not be activated. It was built for the sole purpose of providing Federation forces with HCP support at the space elevator in an emergency.

Among all the management personnel of the space elevator and the naval port, only a handful of individuals had the authority to open this backup hangar.

Major Randall was one of them.

So, during the war council, after Randall had informed Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and the others of the hangar’s existence, they immediately decided they had to capture it. They would seize the HCPs stored inside to support the next stage of their offensive.

To that end, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and the commander of the Federation force from the South Continent had assigned the few HCP-certified mechanics in their units, as well as the only two new pilots who could operate the machines, to Amber’s assault team.

Just as Amber and Randall were about to discuss the details of their route, a message came from the vanguard—they had engaged Imperial forces.

Zz-wom!

Boom!

“Target hit! Confirmed kill!”

Watching through his tactical faceplate’s zoomed-in display as an armored vehicle with a gaping hole in its side burst into flames, the Imperial orbital paratrooper, part of a fire support team, immediately called to his comrade. Together, they lifted the portable electromagnetic cannon, tripod and all, off the table by the window and retreated deeper into the room.

Almost at the exact moment they moved away from the window, a burst of 40mm armor-piercing incendiary rounds tore through the room.

In an instant, stone fragments and wood splinters flew everywhere, and flammable items like curtains and furniture ignited.

“Fall back, fall back, fall back! We can’t stay here! Move to Attack Point 3!”

“All units, be advised, C-Group has made contact and is relocating. Watch for friendlies!”

The three-man team, one carrying the electromagnetic cannon and the others its capacitors, scurried out the back door of the building.

At the same time, the sounds of firefights began to erupt from other parts of the street.

Like dropping a few drops of water into a pan of smoking oil, the city block between the Federation and Imperial forces instantly burst into chaos.

The infantry units deployed on this line belonged to the ‘Blood Dragon Regiment’, led by Viscount Ancarin, who had a fateful connection with Amber.

This unit of nobles, which had narrowly missed crossing paths with Amber twice—once at Yassin Base and again in the Nameless Woods—had been evacuated by an aerospace transport.

With them was Lieutenant Rudolf of the Marine Special Operations Group, under the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group.

This pilot, who Amber had nearly dismantled, HCP and all, during a temporary breakthrough, had spent several days in a medi-bay after returning to the fleet.

And this time, as the only combatant to have directly fought Amber and survived, Lieutenant Rudolf had unsurprisingly been assigned to this battle.

In fact, he had volunteered for it.

After being issued a new machine specially modified to combat psionic users, he and the Blood Dragon Regiment were airdropped back down as reinforcements for the Imperial forces near the space elevator.

Currently, he and the other HCPs of the Blood Dragon Regiment were on standby in the attack staging area, waiting for the full-scale engagement to begin before being deployed to support various fronts based on the battlefield commander’s judgment.

Rudolf, however, was an exception. He would not participate in conventional combat. Instead, he was to execute ‘anti-psionic user operations’ the moment Amber was sighted.

Fate, like an invisible net, was constantly weaving, drawing all those with a ‘fateful connection’ to Amber together near the space elevator.

Commander Adam; Viscount Ancarin and his Blood Dragon Regiment; Lieutenant Rudolf, who had nearly died at Amber’s hands and was now consumed by a desire for revenge.

And, of course, there was a certain someone who ground their teeth in frustration at the very thought of Amber.

Chapter 102: Breaking into the Base Area

Once the vanguard began to engage the Imperial forces, Amber’s strike team continuously readjusted their route based on the areas where fighting broke out.

This was because the mission assigned to them by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas was to avoid all firefights as much as possible and be the first to break through to the space elevator’s base area.

After activating the spare HCPs in the hangar, they were to crush the Imperial defenders at the core control center, regain control of the space elevator, and hold out until the follow-up forces arrived.

Both Lieutenant Colonel Dallas and Amber believed that speed was the key to this operational plan.

Currently, the Imperial defenders in the core area consisted of two battalions of orbital paratroopers. Aside from some light multi-legged war machines, they had no other heavy units, and they were all scattered.

Therefore, after Amber’s team activated the HCPs, they should theoretically be able to defeat these two battalions of defenders with relative ease.

As long as they could secure the core area before the Empire’s heavy units arrived, the subsequent defensive battle would be much easier with the support of the HCPs.

Conversely, if the Empire’s heavy units reached the core area first, Amber’s team would have to face a tough assault in a confined space.

This was why the friendly forces on the perimeter were attacking desperately—to tie down the heavy units the Empire had hastily deployed over the past few days on the main front.

As for the strike team led by Amber, it couldn’t really be called a “squad” in terms of its composition.

Five standard Mongoose-4s, one communications relay vehicle, one Electronic Warfare vehicle, three Tarantula-Kai light multi-legged war machines, and two trucks.

Plus the accompanying Mobile Infantry, who were considered Amber’s old crew.

In addition, there were two armored vehicles carrying two newly-promoted HCP pilots and their maintenance crews.

And two Mammoth heavy multi-legged war machines that Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had reluctantly allocated, both of which were models upgraded with heavy electromagnetic cannons.

Right now, these two heavy units had also switched to their mobile mode, lowering their chassis and using the treads deployed from their mechanical legs for rapid movement.

“Amber, in two more intersections, the convoy will turn left and get on the bridge! We can cross directly to the base area. This is the shortest and fastest route!”

Inside the communications relay vehicle, which was shaking violently as it sped along, Major Randall used the detailed map of the base area stored on his personal terminal to guide the convoy onto the fastest route.

“Major, are you sure we can get on this bridge? We’ve got two eighty-plus-ton behemoths in our convoy!”

Amber looked at the route on the tactical map, then at the list of subordinate units on his command interface, feeling skeptical about the bridge’s capacity.

“Don’t worry. The bridge I picked was designed to handle heavy units. Even a one-hundred-and-twenty-ton Mastodon can cross it!”

Hearing Randall’s reply, Amber nodded.

“Vehicle Three, launch a reconnaissance drone. Keep its altitude low to avoid buildings and scout the route ahead.”

“Vehicles Four and Five, be ready. If the lead drone is shot down, launch another to take over recon immediately.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Soon, the reconnaissance drone sent back images.

As expected, Imperial defenders appeared at the far end of the bridge, and more soldiers and light multi-legged war machines were on their way.

Clearly, the enemy had also spotted their rapidly advancing assault force.

“Have we been spotted by an enemy drone?”

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind, but there was no time for anti-drone warfare now.

The Electronic Warfare vehicle in the convoy was capable of anti-drone operations, but Amber needed it to perform electronic suppression against the Imperial defenders in the coming battle, so he wouldn’t add to its workload at this moment.

“All units, attention! Imperial defenders spotted on our path. As planned, form up for assault and prepare to engage!”

The two Mammoths quickly moved to the front of the convoy.

With their heavy armor and deflector shields, they were the best spearhead for the attack in the absence of HCPs.

As one of the Mammoths passed by the communications relay vehicle, Amber seized the opportunity to leap onto it, clinging to one of the mechanical legs on its side.

“Go, go, go!”

Amber made an ‘attack’ gesture at one of the optical sensors on the Mammoth’s side. The behemoth beneath him roared and accelerated.

“Lilith, activate the Swarm to standby mode. Remotely access the control terminal and switch the control mode to neural conduction mode.”

“Understood, Master!”

As the strike team charged up the approach ramp onto the bridge leading to the base area, one of the transport trucks at the rear of the convoy retracted its collapsible canopy, revealing three black ‘hives’ in its cargo bed.

Under Lilith’s hack, although the three ‘Swarm’ drone containers were locked, they didn’t hold out for long before Lilith seized complete control.

After Amber gave the command, several green indicator lights on the three black containers lit up. Then, with the sound of mechanical parts moving, the outer panels opened, revealing drones shaped like large frisbees inside.

At the same time, Amber felt one hundred and fifty independent signal feeds connect to the micro-processor inside his body. These were the Swarm drones from the three containers.

Directly controlling a large number of drones with one’s mind via neural conduction was something only a psionic user could do.

Besides being able to use Psionics, a psionic user’s spatial awareness, cognitive ability, memory, and multi-threading brain processing capabilities far surpassed those of ordinary humans.

This was why only psionic users could control multiple drones in combat through a ‘direct link’.

It was like asking a single person to control multiple FPV racing drones simultaneously; an ordinary person couldn’t do it.

But a psionic user, in a ‘direct link’ state, could control a large number of drones and manage the flight path of each one.

Of course, under normal circumstances, even in a ‘direct link’ state, a psionic user would rely on a combat AI for assistance to reduce their own mental load.

As Amber was adapting to controlling one hundred and fifty Swarm drones with his mind, the Imperial defenders at the end of the bridge opened fire.

Streams of anti-vehicle missiles trailed smoke as they flew toward the convoy. The Mammoths’ close-in laser systems and the chain guns and coaxial Gauss machine guns on the armored vehicles behind them began firing to intercept.

At the same time, the two Mammoths activated their forward-hemisphere deflector shields, deflecting one tungsten alloy penetrator after another amidst the muzzle flashes from the ‘Saint’ light multi-legged war machines at the end of the bridge.

The crews of the Mongoose-4 armored vehicles and the Tarantula-Kai light multi-legged war machines constantly seized opportunities during lulls in the enemy’s attack, firing back from behind the cover of the massive Mammoths.

The Electronic Warfare vehicle also began to apply electronic suppression to the Imperial defenders at the far end of the bridge.

The 1.6-kilometer-long, twelve-lane, two-way bridge gave the convoy plenty of room to maneuver.

Under the rapid assault, the strike team closed to within the final 300 meters in less than two minutes.

The two Mammoths decelerated abruptly while switching from mobile mode to walking mode.

At the same time, the heavy electromagnetic cannon on one of the Mammoth’s turrets began to charge.

Two seconds later, an orange-red line of fire swept across the bridge. Like a slap from an invisible giant hand, it blasted a gap straight through the defensive line the Imperial forces had built with numerous barricades and obstacles.

A ‘Saint’ that failed to evade in time was instantly blown to pieces. The secondary damage from the heavy electromagnetic cannon’s blast also concussed numerous Imperial soldiers near the projectile’s flight path.

But it wasn’t over.

As these soldiers struggled to their feet, ready to rush forward and plug the gap in their line…

A figure, propelled by two trails of flame and accompanied by a massive, dark swarm of small drones, flew over the defensive line and plummeted straight toward the ground.

“Psionic Vibration!”

An invisible psionic shockwave erupted from Amber’s ‘superhero landing,’ spreading out rapidly from him as the epicenter. It sent the still-unsteady Imperial defenders tumbling once again.

Chapter 103: An HCP Stands Upon the Earth

The instant the psionic vibration went off, the Swarm drones automatically split into several groups, heading for their respective targets based on the locks Amber had acquired on the remaining “Saints” in mid-air.

While Amber, protected by his psionic shield, wreaked havoc on the disoriented Imperial defenders around the landing position with his 12mm Gauss machine gun and the ‘Phalanx Anthem’ triple-barreled grenade launcher on his legs…

…the Swarm drones also closed in on their targets.

The 7mm kinetic weapons mounted under these small machines raked across the Saints’ weak points, such as their external sensors and mechanical leg joints.

Their cylindrical ammunition feeders allowed these small machines to carry one hundred and twenty rounds at once without increasing their size, more than enough to complete one attack run.

Only a nation as wealthy and extravagant as the Star Dragon Empire would equip these essentially expendable Swarm drones with something as sophisticated as high-explosive warheads.

Under the Swarm’s barrage, although the vehicle’s armor plates couldn’t be penetrated right away, the shockwaves and shrapnel from the exploding warheads quickly disabled the Saints’ external sensors.

No matter how a designer planned or wracked their brains to reduce the exposed surface area of the sensor components, without the protection of a deflector shield, these precision parts remained just as fragile when hit directly.

Once the Saint light multi-legged war machines defending the bridgehead were blinded, forcing their pilots inside to open emergency observation ports for visibility…

The Swarms regrouped around Amber and began attacking the surviving orbital paratroopers nearby.

Even though some of the soldiers quickly ducked behind cover after being attacked, they had already been marked with Lilith’s assistance.

So before they could peek out from behind their cover to retaliate, several drones would simply fly around to the rear of the cover and open fire right in their faces.

While Amber commanded the Swarm in a rampage, completely disrupting the bridgehead’s defenses, the other units of the assault team came charging up in a blur of sparks and lightning.

Without the support of other heavy units, the multi-legged war machines and orbital paratroopers alone stood no chance of stopping Amber’s mixed assault team.

Just as Amber ordered the armored vehicles not to disembark their infantry but to continue pushing toward the hangar, an urgent warning from friendly forces suddenly came over the comms channel:

“Assault team, be advised! Two Imperial HCPs have breached the defensive line and are approaching your position at high speed! Repeat…”

“Fuck, how’d they break through so fast?”

To be honest, Amber still broke out in a cold sweat when he heard the news.

If it were just one HCP, he might be able to take it down if he pushed his powers to the limit and had the support of other units.

But now two Imperial HCPs were deployed simultaneously. With their seamless coordination, two HCPs could achieve an effect far greater than the sum of their parts.

Therefore, with no HCP on their side, Amber had absolutely no confidence he could fight them at his current psionic level.

“Warrant Officer Amber, you continue the assault! We’ll hold this position and cover you!”

The voice of one of the Mammoth vehicle commanders came through the comms.

“The Empire’s HCPs probably aren’t equipped with atmospheric flight components, so if they want to intercept us as quickly as possible, they have to come through here! Our few multi-legged war machines might not be able to stop them, but we can definitely buy some time!”

As he spoke, the two Mammoth heavy multi-legged war machines reactivated their deflector shields, turned around, and aimed their cannons back the way they came.

The other three light multi-legged war machines also found suitable positions to set up and loaded self-forging warheads, preparing to strike the weaker sides and rear of the HCPs.

“Then I’ll have to count on you all! I’m leaving the Swarm to assist you!”

Given the urgency of the situation, Amber couldn’t think of a better plan.

To get to the hangar as quickly as possible, he had no choice but to accept the plan. He then commanded the Swarm to temporarily hide beneath the bridge’s surface, setting them to a coordinated attack mode.

Then, he and the rest of the assault team departed quickly.

Not long after Amber’s group disappeared into the base area, the remaining multi-legged war machines caught sight of two Imperial HCPs on the other side of the bridge.

The two silver-white Zealots showed no hesitation as they charged onto the bridge, pushing their thrusters to full power and rushing toward the bridgehead position. They even generated a visible sonic boom during their charge.

“Alternate fire! Stop them!”

Under the Mammoth commander’s orders, the multi-legged war machines defending the bridgehead opened fire. At the same time, the Swarm drones flew up from under the bridge.

Facing the threat of the heavy electromagnetic cannons and the self-forging warheads targeting their sides and rear engines, the two HCPs demonstrated astonishing piloting skill.

They constantly switched positions, executing all sorts of high-G evasive maneuvers that resembled near-instantaneous lateral shifts, all while maintaining their high-speed charge. In just a few seconds, they reached the bridgehead.

Evidently, the two HCPs intended to close to a more advantageous short range, where they could rely on their superior agility in a confined space to prevent the Mammoths’ heavy electromagnetic cannons from easily targeting them.

“‘Volcanic Rock,’ you break through. I’ll play with them!”

“Got it!”

Lieutenant Rudolf, call sign ‘Volcanic Rock,’ didn’t say much and immediately accepted his wingman’s suggestion.

The Zealot he was piloting kicked off the bridge, leaping into the air. Propelled by its thruster array at full power, it soared over the Federation’s multi-legged war machines.

While in the air, he took out a ‘Tarantula-Kai’ with his Gauss rifle. Rudolf then landed smoothly, raised his cannon, and aimed at the Swarm drones preparing to attack his wingman’s side and rear. He swept across them with his charged particle cannon.

Amid a series of crackling explosions, the Swarm, which had formed a dense formation to carry out a suicide attack with their built-in explosives, was swatted out of the air like mosquitoes by an electric racket, with more than half of them taken down.

After finishing his attack, Rudolf took advantage of the brief moment a Mammoth’s turret was turning to target him, executed a booster dash, and disappeared in the same direction Amber’s team had gone.

Following the route guidance, it didn’t take long for Amber and his team to find the backup hangar on the lowest level of the space elevator’s base area.

Major Randall leaped out of the armored vehicle before it had even come to a complete stop. He rushed to the hangar door’s control terminal and began the identity verification process.

“Come on, come on, you piece of junk!”

Amid his curses, the hangar door slowly opened. Amber, along with the vehicle carrying the other two HCP pilots and the maintenance squad, immediately rushed inside.

The remaining Mobile Infantry, including Isabelle, Randall, and several medics, quickly began to set up a defensive line near the hangar.

From the armored vehicles and transport trucks, they retrieved portable electromagnetic cannons and anti-vehicle missile launchers, far exceeding their standard combat loadout.

Following the instructions of a Mobile Infantry soldier ‘with extensive experience’ in fighting HCPs, they spread out and set up their positions.

Although they knew that this level of firepower was woefully inadequate against a single Imperial HCP, everyone understood that they had to buy time for the HCPs being prepped inside the hangar.

Only by allowing them to activate would anyone here have a chance of survival.

An unknown amount of time passed in this tense atmosphere. Randall even felt he had lost his sense of time’s passage.

Then, a sudden roar came from the corridor they had come from.

An Imperial Zealot, propelled by its thruster unit, charged into the enclosed space in front of the hangar.

In the instant it appeared, the two Mongoose-4 armored vehicles were destroyed by the Zealot’s Gauss rifle before they even had a chance to fire.

The Mobile Infantry, snapping to attention at the sound of the explosions, immediately returned fire from their respective positions.

The high-velocity penetrators from the electromagnetic cannons and the anti-vehicle missiles forced Rudolf, who had become more cautious after his earlier encounter, to activate his deflector shield without hesitation. He maneuvered his machine constantly, dodging and weaving within the limited space.

At the same time, he activated the Zealot’s newly equipped ‘anti-psionic combat unit.’

This piece of equipment, the latest development from the Royal Armaments Bureau, could effectively suppress the psionic fluctuations of any psionic user at level four or below within its range.

It was a secret weapon specifically equipped for this operation to deal with Amber.

Although Rudolf’s offensive momentum was halted, and he himself cautiously began clearing out the Federation defenders on the perimeter, this delay was being paid for with the lives of the Mobile Infantry every second.

Attack positions were constantly being blown apart by the Gauss rifle, and Mobile Infantry soldiers were continuously being pierced by point-defense lasers as they moved between cover.

As the Electronic Warfare vehicle and medical truck hidden in the rear exploded under the Zealot’s attack, Isabelle and several nearby medics were thrown to the ground.

On the other side, Major Randall, staring helplessly at his portable electromagnetic cannon that had been blasted into a pile of scrap metal, could no longer contain himself and roared into the comm-link:

“Amber, we can’t hold out here! Are you done yet?!”

BOOM!

The response Major Randall received was not from Amber, but a massive explosion from the hangar door.

The hangar door was blown outwards by an explosion from within.

Isabelle, who was caught between the Imperial Zealot and the hangar door, saw only a gray-painted steel giant charging out of the smoke and dust of the explosion with an unstoppable momentum.

And Amber’s furious roar resounded in everyone’s ears through the comms channel.

“I’m fucking here!”

Chapter 104: Time to Show Off My Real Skills

Of the three HCPs being prepped in the Reserve Hangar, Amber’s was the fastest to launch.

After he rushed into the hangar, the prep team didn’t even need to communicate; they charged directly toward Unit 1, the machine closest to Amber, and began preparations for launch.

They knew the other two HCP pilots were genuine rookies. After all, the most talented personnel were always assigned to the various fleets first.

Most of the HCP pilots who remained on the surface were either unsuited for space combat or had skills that were only good for stomping rookies on the ground.

It was obvious that if these two rookies were the first to sortie, they would only end up as two more kill marks on the menacing Imperial HCP’s shoulder armor.

But a Psionic Agent was different.

A great HCP pilot was not necessarily a Psionic Agent, but a Psionic Agent was definitely a great HCP pilot.

These individuals, whose abilities—especially their spatial awareness—already surpassed those of ordinary people, were like fish in water when piloting an HCP after undergoing physical modifications.

So, the prep squad naturally knew how to prioritize their work.

These three Wasteland Wolves, of course, had no complex unlocking procedures.

In fact, aside from highly classified equipment, standard military hardware generally lacked complicated identity verification processes. It would be a joke if you were stuck doing facial recognition during an emergency scramble.

Being able to enter this place and activate the hangar by passing the gate’s identity verification was proof enough that the user possessed the necessary authorization.

“Warrant Officer Amber, what configuration do you need?!”

The prep squad leader shouted as he climbed the gantry crane next to the HCP.

“Standard ground combat configuration, with additional jet components on the legs!”

Amber replied as, with the help of another prep crewman, he donned a one-piece heavy hydraulic pressure suit.

“Understood, Sir!”

The three Wasteland Wolves stored in the hangar had clearly been receiving regular maintenance from the prep squad.

Not only did all the parts appear normal, with no signs of neglect, but when the squad leader connected his personal terminal to the external port, he discovered that this Wasteland Wolf’s superconducting battery stack was still at eighty percent charge.

Under these circumstances, the machine’s entire preparation process was significantly shortened.

As several mechanical arms mounted the weapons for the ‘standard ground combat configuration’—a Gauss rifle, a small shield, a heavy plasma severing sword, a foldable heavy particle cannon, and a foldable heavy electromagnetic cannon—onto the HCP’s weapon racks, Amber finished putting on his heavy hydraulic pressure suit. He stepped onto the footplates of the boarding cable, ascended to the cockpit, and slipped inside.

As he sat down, several cables from the seat automatically connected to the ports on the arms, legs, and spine of his pressure suit.

The cockpit canopy lowered and sealed shut, and the full-view spherical cockpit’s screens immediately lit up.

Amber saw the prep squad leader standing on the support frame as it slowly moved away, giving him an ‘all-clear’ gesture.

Immediately after, Lilith’s virtual avatar appeared in the cockpit.

Upon connecting to the machine, the AI immediately usurped the role of the original combat assistance AI.

“Lilith, initiate the emergency startup sequence. Skip self-check procedures three, six, nine, and eleven.”

“Activate the head-tracking control system, select default mapping values. Subcritical reactor, begin proton beam injection. Plasma thruster array, emergency start-up.”

If you were to ask Amber what his favorite thing to do in the game Starry Sky was, he would say without a moment’s hesitation: “Piloting giant robots!”

In his previous life, aside from guild wars and grinding dailies, his favorite activity was piloting an HCP and dropping from low orbit to join all sorts of battles.

Since transmigrating to this world, he hadn’t touched an HCP in over a month, and the itch had become unbearable.

So when the thumbnails representing the HCP’s various modules turned green one by one on the panoramic display, and the head-tracking control system fully linked with his body, Amber felt as if he were born again.

“Subcritical reactor operating normally. All subsystems operating normally. Weapon systems are charged!”

“Master, you are ready to sortie!”

Rudolf had never imagined that after diligently doing his homework on anti-psionic user combat, specially requisitioning a new personal machine modified for fighting psionic users, and then locating his target with the support of friendly forces, the first battle he would face would be an HCP duel.

“Damn it, this isn’t how it’s supposed to go.”

Facing the Wasteland Wolf that burst from the smoke brandishing a heavy plasma severing sword, Rudolf didn’t even think. He stowed his rifle, raised his shield, activated his deflector shield, and drew the physical sword from his back.

While the area at the Hangar entrance was spacious for a person, it was rather cramped for a nine-meter-tall HCP.

Lacking room to dodge, Rudolf had no choice but to switch to his melee weapon and engage in close combat against an HCP charging at high speed with its sword drawn.

But after just two exchanges, Rudolf realized something was very wrong.

The opposing HCP’s movements were simply too uncanny.

To be specific, it lacked the stiffness of a conventional pilot assisted by an AI; it was as if he were dueling a giant human with a sword.

The only ones who could move like that were the hardcore pilots who had undergone full-body cybernetic surgery, with numerous ports installed in their bodies, and…

“Son of a bitch, a psionic user.”

The moment that thought popped into his head, Rudolf disengaged from the fight without hesitation and fled toward the corridor he had come from.

He had envisioned countless scenarios for his second duel with Amber.

But he had never considered the possibility that Amber would also be piloting an HCP.

“So how in the world can there be a prepped HCP in this base area?!”

It was no wonder Lieutenant Rudolf retreated without a fight.

The simple fact was that an HCP piloted by a psionic user, in terms of both reaction speed and the precision of its motion mapping, far surpassed that of a conventional pilot.

It was like trying to fight while wearing seven or eight layers of thick, padded clothes with sandbags tied to your limbs, while your opponent was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts.

“‘Olivine’! I need support over here! Also, tell friendly forces to dispatch more HCPs. This guy is a handful!”

“Copy that, ‘Volcanic Rock.’ Fall back to my position. I’m on my way to support you.”

At the bridgehead position, ‘Olivine’ pulled his heavy plasma severing sword from the turret of a Mammoth.

He glanced at the last remaining Mammoth, its heavy electromagnetic cannon damaged and its chassis covered in scars, and the surviving Tarantula-Kai next to it.

‘Olivine’ broadcasted over his external speakers, “Small fry, you’re lucky to be alive today.”

Then he charged toward the location where Rudolf’s machine was signaling from.

Chapter 105: On the Subject of Stabbing Cockpits

When Ensign Lester, call sign ‘Olivine’ and a member of the same special operations team as Rudolf, saw his flight lead, his mech was in a sorry state, being forced back through the corridor by a Federation Wasteland Wolf HCP.

It was the first time Ensign Lester had ever seen his flight lead and mentor, Lieutenant Rudolf, in such a dire situation during an HCP battle.

Without a second thought, he raised his Gauss rifle and opened fire on the Wasteland Wolf piloted by Amber.

Under his covering fire, Amber was forced to twist the mech’s body and execute several consecutive lateral thrusts to evade. Rudolf seized the opportunity to finally put some distance between himself and Amber.

Just as he was about to raise his long-range weapon and suppress Amber with his wingman’s help, he noticed that the charged particle cannon mounted on the rear of Amber’s unit had been deployed at some point.

While still charging toward him, the charged particle cannon took aim at his wingman and fired.

The dark red beam sliced right through the Gauss rifle in Lester’s hands and detonated its battery pack.

Although Ensign Lester reacted with extreme speed, tossing the weapon away immediately while the deflector shield in its adaptive mode reacted within milliseconds, raising the field after being hit by the blast, Amber still used those few seconds to close the distance to Rudolf again, sword and shield at the ready.

“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!”

The relentless attacks gave Rudolf no room to breathe.

His opponent’s movements used virtually no preset commands; they were all executed manually by the pilot.

The way it evaded, using a combination of vector thrusters and its legs to rapidly change direction, was exceptionally smooth, completely lacking the stiffness of preset commands.

Rudolf had always considered himself a rather talented pilot, if not top-tier, then at least among the best in the first echelon.

In exercises, competitions, and previous battles, he had always demonstrated superb piloting and combat skills.

That was why he had been selected for the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s special operations team.

But now, Rudolf finally understood what “there’s always someone better” meant.

“Volcanic Rock, I’m coming to help!”

On the other side, having lost his Gauss rifle, Ensign Lester drew his own heavy plasma severing sword.

The only weapons left on his back-mounted weapon racks were a heavy particle cannon and a missile pod, neither of which was suitable for close-range support.

So, he was forced to engage in close combat to support his flight lead.

“A two-on-one, is it?”

With a backward leap, Amber dodged the leaping slash from Lester’s mech. He held his shield before him and rested his heavy sword on it, looking like a Roman gladiator as he warily watched the two Imperial HCPs close in from both sides.

“To make it fair, I’ll have to call for backup too. Lilith!”

“Master, the intrusion is complete!”

“Good. Spread the virus through their communication channels, then activate the virus in their mechs and have them attack!”

“Understood, Master!”

After receiving Lilith’s response, Amber dropped his defensive stance and charged directly at Rudolf’s mech.

The point-defense laser guns on either side of their main monitors began firing at each other, targeting the various sensors on the mechs’ exteriors.

Just as Amber was about to make contact with Rudolf, Lester, who was approaching from the side, suddenly heard a series of alarms blare in his cockpit.

“Warning, electronic warfare virus detected. Defenses engaged…”

“Warning, subcritical reactor output limited. Power supply restricted!”

“Warning, fire-control system malfunction!”

Aghast, Lester hadn’t even had time to deal with the abnormal warnings when he saw Amber’s charging mech twist unnaturally, evading his mentor’s slash. Then, it raised its HCP’s right foot and kicked Rudolf’s cockpit, sending the entire mech flying.

Immediately after, the Federation HCP’s main monitor swiveled around, its red glowing lens fixing on him.

A deadly sense of crisis shot up his spine to his brain. Ensign Lester subconsciously tried to maneuver his mech into a defensive posture.

But the mech felt as if it weighed a thousand tons, barely able to move.

He glanced at the multi-function display on his left and saw two new messages:

“Motion control program offline.”

“Head-tracking control system correction program offline.”

He watched the panoramic screen as the enemy mech suddenly loomed large, blue plasma spewing from the edge of the heavy plasma severing sword in its hand.

A final thought flashed through Ensign Lester’s mind.

“I’m done for.”

The next second, the blade, covered in high-temperature blue plasma, pierced straight through the composite armor plate on the exterior of the Zealot’s cockpit. Ensign Lester didn’t even have time to say a final word to his mentor before he was vaporized inside the cockpit.

In the game from Amber’s previous life, players who piloted HCPs were generally divided into two schools of thought when it came to defeating an opponent.

One was the “limb-severing” school, led by Kira Yamato.

The other was the “cockpit-stabbing” school, led by Amuro Ray.

Unfortunately, Amber belonged to the second school.

So, when attacking Ensign Lester’s mech, he didn’t hesitate to thrust his severing sword into the cockpit.

“No!!!”

Rudolf, who had been kicked to the ground by Amber’s Wasteland Wolf, watched his apprentice’s wingman get its cockpit impaled by Amber. Seeing the wingman’s icon turn grey on the squad list, rage overcame his fear.

He controlled his mech to get up from the ground and charged recklessly toward Amber.

Amber pulled his severing sword from Lester’s mech and watched with a blank expression as the Zealot charged toward him.

In Amber’s eyes, the mech’s attacks, which were already flawed, were now completely devoid of any form or strategy.

Seizing an opportunity, he swung his shield to bat away the opponent’s descending heavy sword, and in that instant, the Zealot’s cockpit was left wide open.

“Farewell.”

When the other two Wasteland Wolves in the Reserve Hangar finally completed their preparations and rushed out of the corridor, piloted by two rookie pilots, they happened to see Amber pulling his heavy plasma severing sword out of the cockpit of Rudolf’s Zealot.

A mixture of engine oil, coolant, and blood—what little hadn’t been vaporized after the plasma blade was extinguished—clung to the blade in a dark red sheen.

“They… were they all cockpit kills?”

In that instant, the two “newbies” suddenly had a visceral understanding of the battlefield’s brutality. This kind of combat was a completely different concept from their usual training.

Amber was unaware that the two rookie pilots had just gained a whole new understanding of HCP combat.

He was focused on Lilith’s statistics on the spread of the electronic warfare virus and the several purple markers on the tactical map that were rapidly approaching his position.

Just moments ago, friendly forces had reported that several more HCPs had broken through the front line and were heading for Amber’s location.

Although their departure greatly reduced the pressure on the Federation forces on the main front, it wasn’t good news for Amber’s strike team.

Watching the enemy HCPs get closer and closer, Amber opened the squad’s communication channel:

“All units, listen up! Everyone who can still move, advance on the core area immediately!”

Chapter 106: Fleet Battle Command Must Be Elegant

As Amber drew away a large number of HCPs, the Federation forces seized the opportunity to launch a fierce offensive, and the battle for the space elevator’s base area entered a white-hot stage.

Meanwhile, in space, the two massive fleets were like a pair of boxers circling one another. After extensive probing, feinting, and constant repositioning, they finally decided to throw the punches they had been holding back for so long.

In terms of fleet size, the Federation’s combined fleet undoubtedly held the advantage.

With the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Main Fleets, plus the remnants of the task force, the combined fleet now numbered 462 ships.

They had sixty-seven capital ships alone, though only twelve were the latest Kraken II-class battleships.

Two of these served as the flagships for the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets, respectively.

They also had ninety-two Hydra-class heavy cruisers, which served as the fleet’s main firepower.

On the Empire’s side, although Marquis Ascania had received reinforcements from the Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Group, bringing his total fleet size to 457 ships, there was a catch.

As an Expeditionary Strike Group designed for planetary landings, a not-insignificant portion of its composition consisted of orbital assault ships and large transports—vessels that could not participate in a fleet battle.

Therefore, the number of warships directly participating in this engagement was only 386.

However, all fifty-six of their capital ships were Requiem-class battleships that had entered service less than five years ago. They also had fifty-three Aurora-class heavy cruisers and thirty older Swordbearer-class heavy cruisers.

In conventional large-scale fleet battles, the decisive factors were often the battleships, serving as the absolute core, and the heavy cruisers, acting as the primary strikers.

Other ships, including light cruisers, destroyers, frigates, and fighters, could only play supporting roles in such a massive exchange of fire.

Thus, the quantity and quality of capital ships and heavy cruisers determined the final outcome of most fleet battles.

Although the Imperial fleet was currently at a numerical disadvantage, Marquis Ascania felt neither troubled nor uneasy.

After all, in the last major war before the peace treaty was signed eighty years ago, the Imperial fleet was often outnumbered in fleet engagements.

When the Marquis was a young man studying at the Royal Naval Academy, he had studied nearly every large-scale fleet battle from the last war.

In almost every one of those case studies, the Imperial fleet had been slightly outnumbered.

But in those same battles, the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy boasted a victory rate of 69.7 percent.

This was mainly because the Star Dragon Empire’s shipbuilding technology was indeed superior to the Federation’s. Nearly all of their warships had better performance metrics than their Federation counterparts of the same class, with some exceeding them by a significant margin.

Theoretically, with its superior shipbuilding technology and vast wealth, the Empire should have been able to churn out ships far faster than the Federation.

But, as mentioned before, the Empire’s pursuit of aesthetics in weaponry was taken to an extreme. When it came to space warships—the pinnacle of human military technology—this pursuit reached its zenith.

Unlike the Federation shipyards, which used a modular construction method and could work on several warships simultaneously, the Empire’s main shipyards still adhered to a “one ship at a time” philosophy. Furthermore, every capital ship, especially those belonging to Imperial nobles, featured incredibly lavish interior configurations and decor.

Adorned with countless precious ornaments, the bridge of such a ship was like a mobile palace.

At this moment, within the “palace” of The Dawnblade, Marquis Ascania sat calmly in the captain’s chair, watching the Federation’s combined fleet finalize its formation on the holographic projection platform.

Beside him, another figure seated in a captain’s chair was projected.

It was the commander of the Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Group, Vice Admiral of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy, Count Heinrich Friedrich Karl.

“Heinrich, it seems we’ve once again found ourselves in a textbook numerical disadvantage.”

The Marquis’s expression was serene, showing neither joy nor sorrow. The numbers disadvantage did not seem to faze him.

His family and Count Karl’s were close, and the two had been classmates at the Royal Naval Academy and friends for many years. Thus, he set aside the usual formalities and addressed him by his first name.

“Ha! If I hadn’t arrived with my fleet in time, Lehmann, you’d be facing an even greater disparity.”

“Does that mean I’ll have to buy you a drink when we get back from this campaign?”

“Absolutely. And I’ll be picking from your wine cellar myself!”

The conversation between the two aristocrats and fleet commanders was lighthearted, completely devoid of the tension typical before a major battle.

Classical music played on the bridge—Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 in E minor, “From the New World,” performed by a renowned Imperial orchestra.

In this atmosphere, the personnel on the bridge and in the Combat Information Center felt no particular anxiety.

Although their fleet appeared to be at a disadvantage, if their supreme commander was entirely unconcerned, then there was certainly no reason for his subordinates to panic.

“The Federation fleet seems to have done enough probing. Look at how eagerly they’re deploying their formation. They want to swallow us in one bite.”

Heinrich set aside his jokes and spoke seriously.

“And from the current situation, they will indeed be able to suppress us in a gunnery exchange.”

“Let them suppress us. For now, it’s—”

Before Marquis Ascania could finish, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report echoed across the bridge:

“All hands, strong energy field detected!”

“Brace for impact!”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the Marquis and Heinrich saw countless points of white light flashing in the distance through the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen.

A moment later, those flashes transformed into innumerable beams of blue-white light that swept through the Imperial combined fleet.

Many of the ships that were hit were immediately enveloped in the white glow of their deflector shields.

“Navigator, log the time of engagement.”

“Understood, Your Excellency!”

Marquis Ascania picked up the teacup Rafael had prepared for him and took a delicate sip.

“The Federation fleet has a new commander. Straight to a heavy particle cannon salvo.”

“It seems he’s a proponent of the superior firepower doctrine. I’ve heard a certain ‘retro-tactical’ trend has become popular over in the Federation recently.”

The holographic projection of Heinrich was now holding a wine glass.

Unlike the Federation, which made extensive use of Tetra Pak containers for beverages and alcohol on its warships, the Imperial ships, equipped with more gravity control units, once again demonstrated the meaningless elegance and luxury of the Imperial nobility.

The bridge, completely covered by the gravity control units even during combat, allowed the Marquis and his colleagues to enjoy freshly brewed hot tea and pastries straight from the oven.

As the sayings went, “One may lose the battle, but one must not spill the tea,” and “Elegance and fine wine are the only things that must never be forsaken.”

Such was the way of the aristocratic officers of the Royal Navy.

Chapter 107: Celestial Fortress

“All fleets, execute counter-attack procedures! At the same time, maneuver according to the preset plan!”

Marquis Ascania’s orders were quickly executed and relayed by Rafael and the others. The combat command center immediately plunged into a flurry of activity.

From his captain’s chair, the Marquis watched the images of the Federation warships ahead, captured at extreme range by the optical lenses. He raised his teacup in a gesture to Heinrich.

“Heinrich, proceed according to the operational plan. See you in a bit.”

“Hmph, see you in a bit~”

The latter responded by raising his wine glass in return and quickly ended the communication.

The Imperial combined fleet, which had been in a “box formation” in space, began to maneuver to the left and right according to the ships’ respective allegiances, gradually splitting into two fleets.

“Those Imperials actually split their forces.”

On the bridge of the Destiny, flagship of the Federation Navy’s Thirteenth Fleet, Rear Admiral Griezmann’s voice came from Guterres’s left.

“Didn’t they just finish integrating their formation not long ago? Why are they splitting up again?”

“I don’t know. They already have fewer warships than we do, and now they’re splitting up and maneuvering to the sides. What kind of commander would do that?”

Rear Admiral Griezmann had a rather straightforward personality, and he never minced words when he spoke.

“Brigadier General Dowell, you have more experience dealing with the Imperial fleet. Can you tell what they’re trying to do?”

Guterres temporarily ignored Griezmann and turned to look at Brigadier General Dowell, who had remained silent.

This older man was clearly more reliable than the other.

Hearing Guterres’s question, Brigadier General Dowell rested his chin on his hand, pondered for a moment, and then spoke:

“We haven’t been engaged for long, but I know this much: the Imperial fleet commander on the other side is absolutely no mediocre fool.

“The Imperial fleet’s current movements seem to indicate they want to split their forces for a pincer attack from the left and right flanks, but…”

“But it looks far too much like a trap.”

Guterres slowly added:

“Tsk… They already have fewer warships than we do, and now they’re pulling a stunt like splitting their forces.”

Guterres shook his head with a sense of resignation.

His right eyelid had been twitching wildly ever since the two fleets engaged, and he couldn’t make it stop.

He knew that on Blue Star, humanity’s ancient home, a certain ancient Eastern nation had done extensive research on the matter.

They had even conducted detailed investigations into the phenomenon of “eyelid twitching” and summarized their findings.

“A twitching left eye brings fortune; a twitching right eye foretells disaster,” was one of their conclusions.

“Why isn’t my left eye twitching at all…”

But the battlefield was in constant flux, and Guterres had no more time to think. Though he couldn’t guess the opposing commander’s intentions, he had no choice but to face them head-on.

With this in mind, the commander-in-chief of the Federation’s combined fleet issued a new order:

“Relay my orders. The left and right flank fleets are to hold their positions and maintain their attack on the Imperial fleet. Salvo authority is now delegated to the individual squadron commanders.

“The center fleet is to advance and prioritize attacks on the enemy’s Second Fleet.”

Neither Griezmann nor Dowell had any objections to his orders. Their thoughts were much the same as Guterres’s at that moment.

No matter how you split your forces, I’ll use my superior numbers to crush one of your squadrons first.

The order was quickly relayed. While the flank fleets maintained their formation and relative positions, the center fleet began its advance.

From a distance, among the neat rows of blue dots of light, a section in the central area suddenly grew much brighter.

The plasma thruster arrays, operating at full power, emitted a dazzling blue-white light, like a supernova.

The center fleet quickly advanced from the formation. The warships within it began to adjust their axes, aiming their bow-mounted main cannons at the enemy’s “Second Fleet” that was approaching their right flank.

Of course, this “Second Fleet” was a temporary designation given to this enemy fleet by the Combat Intelligence Center to make it easier for all units to identify.

But at that very moment, Vice Admiral Guterres felt his right eyelid twitch twice, violently, and then stop.

He immediately felt that something was wrong. The next second, the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator echoed across the bridge:

“Warning! Super-scale spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

“Warning! Mass detectors have registered an anomalous, super-massive increase!”

The two warnings struck Guterres’s heart like heavy hammers, while the other two fleet commanders involuntarily gripped the armrests of their chairs.

Soon, the integrated sensor units captured a shocking sight in the space cleared by the Imperial fleet’s division.

First, a massive, miraculous ripple, visible to the naked eye, appeared in space. Then, a faint, star-like point of red light flashed at the center of the ripple.

In the next moment, everyone in the Federation’s combined fleet saw, on the composite image created by photoelectric, microwave, and other observation methods, a colossal “celestial body” appear out of thin air in the blink of an eye.

It was as if some giant hand had “plucked” it from some distant place at a speed imperceptible to humans and placed it precisely in its current location.

The bridge and the Combat Intelligence Center fell silent in an instant, leaving only the hum of various instruments and equipment.

“I knew my right eyelid was twitching for a reason…”

Gazing at the enormous “celestial body” that nearly filled the entire screen, Vice Admiral Guterres couldn’t help but gasp.

And he was the first on the bridge to react.

“Relay my orders! The center fleet is to cease its attack immediately! Reorient and face the artificial celestial body! Prepare to run the deflector shield generators at overload!”

Perhaps others didn’t know the origin of this object, but as the commanders of the main fleets, Guterres and Griezmann certainly did.

The Celestial Fortress, a product of the Star Dragon Empire’s 25-year-long “Wall of Sighs” project.

Even for a power as mighty as the Star Dragon Empire, only five of these artificial celestial bodies, each four hundred fifty kilometers in diameter, had been completed in those twenty-five years.

It was said that the interior not only had enough space to house one million eight hundred thousand people,
but could also simultaneously dock two full-strength Imperial fleets and provide them with maintenance, repair, and modification services.

It might even possess the capability to manufacture capital ships…

At the same time, it was equipped with campaign-level weaponry of unknown power and a defense system that was rumored to be impenetrable.

Naturally, the construction of such a colossal artificial celestial body could not be kept a secret.

But the details above constituted all the information Federation intelligence operatives had managed to gather on this Celestial Fortress over so many years.

Of course, if Amber were on the bridge of the Destiny right now, she would have thumped her chest and declared:

“Pfft, this thing? I know it like the back of my hand!”

Chapter 108: The Focusing Rainbow

As a die-hard fan of Starry Sky OL and a lore enthusiast who played the game with a fine-toothed comb, much like a certain Dutch microscopist, Amber was intimately familiar with the game’s major events, legendary figures, and famous equipment, even if he couldn’t recite them all from memory.

This was especially true for the Fortress of Sorrow, a first-generation man-made celestial fortress that was exceedingly rare at this point in time.

In the era of the game when players were active, it was the grand prize for the number one guild in the seasonal guild wars.

The guild Amber belonged to, the Fluffy Pink Bunnies, had smashed their way through the other player guilds and claimed the title of “Strongest Guild” in the season he served as the main fleet commander.

The celebratory party for that victory had been held in the celestial fortress they had won—the ‘Fluffy Pink Bunnies’ Home.’

So if he were on the bridge of the Destiny right now, advising the three Federation fleet commanders, he would tell them just one thing:

“You can’t win this. Run, now.”

This wasn’t him spouting nonsense. Even without the Eighth and Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Groups, a single celestial fortress was more than enough to crush the Federation’s combined fleet.

The name of the project, the “Wall of Sighs,” hinted at the Empire’s original intent for constructing these artificial celestial fortresses: to create a strategic defensive line that was mobile, could be repositioned at will, and could not be conquered by conventional fleets.

To that end, the Empire had pushed the limits in all four aspects: attack, defense, support, and mobility.

Take the Fortress of Sorrow, which had just appeared in the Robert system, for example.

Its “western hemisphere,” the side facing the enemy, was armed with four hundred battleship-grade heavy particle cannons arranged in concentric circles as secondary armaments.

In addition, there was a vast array of conventional charged particle cannons, high-energy lasers, heavy electromagnetic cannons, and multi-purpose missile silos to supplement and diversify its firepower.

But the main weapon of the Fortress of Sorrow, “The Focusing Rainbow,” was a heavy particle cannon with an acceleration tube one hundred kilometers long and ten kilometers in diameter.

To describe “The Focusing Rainbow”—the most powerful weapon ever built by humanity—as a single “cannon” or “gun” felt somewhat inadequate.

Moreover, the way The Focusing Rainbow operated was different from the pulsed heavy particle cannons found on warships.

It was an irradiation-type heavy particle cannon, capable of firing in a diffused irradiation mode.

Powered directly by three hundred large-scale fusion reactors, The Focusing Rainbow could, in its diffused mode, sweep out a torrent of heavy metal particles far wider than the fortress’s own diameter.

That was why most players, including Amber, didn’t typically call this behemoth a “cannon.”

They used a more fitting name—the “Flashlight.”

In addition to possessing the mightiest spear known to humanity, the Imperial man-made celestial fortresses were equally formidable in their defensive, support, and mobility capabilities.

Unfortunately, Amber wasn’t on the bridge at this moment to explain all of this to the three commanders.

And Guterres and Griezmann weren’t particularly knowledgeable about the specific details of a celestial fortress.

Although they could tell it was an Imperial strategic-level weapon, they had no real concept of its capabilities.

Guterres even felt that his emergency order for the central fleet to assume a defensive posture and realign its formation had been a bit too conservative.

A more aggressive Federation commander might have ordered the entire fleet to begin a concentrated attack.

But what happened next would teach Guterres a hard lesson: he might not have been conservative enough.

In the center of the Imperial fleet formation, aboard the Fortress of Sorrow, in the combat command center.

One of the Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire’s right-hand men, Duke Du Ke, hailed as the “Iron Wall of the Empire,” was seated in the command chair.

To his right front, Marquis Ascania and Count Karl, who had just arrived inside the fortress via a shuttle, stood ramrod straight, saluting him.

“Greetings, Your Grace! Your presence on the front lines will surely raise our army’s morale to its zenith.”

Marquis Ascania’s tone was humble, his expression respectful.

This man was one of the five great dukes of the Empire and the Regent Prince’s “closest ally.”

Faced with such a figure, Marquis Ascania naturally did not dare show any disrespect.

“Heh. My arrival is nothing special. To the soldiers on the ground, dukes, marquises, and counts are all just high nobility. The only difference is the title.”

The Duke leaned back in his command chair and smiled, then patted the right armrest.

“What can truly give them a shot in the arm and bring them real victory is this very Fortress of Sorrow we are in.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

“Hahaha, no need to be so serious.”

With a tap on the dragon-claw decoration on the left armrest, two temporary seats rose up on either side of the command chair.

“Sit. I imagine neither of you has ever witnessed The Focusing Rainbow fire, have you? Today is a fine opportunity to enjoy the spectacle together.”

Marquis Ascania and Count Karl did not dare to tarry and quickly took their seats.

It was true; they had never seen The Focusing Rainbow fire.

To date, it was said the Empire had conducted just over ten test firings of the weapon.

Each celestial fortress had fired at least twice: the first was an experimental half-power test, and the second was a full-power demonstration during the fortress’s final inspection.

These dozen or so firings had all been conducted in the Empire’s most heavily guarded experimental star systems. The only ones permitted to attend the ceremonies were the Imperial royal family and the five Imperial dukes who now commanded the five celestial fortresses.

“You’re in luck. Today marks the first time a celestial fortress has been deployed in actual combat. Before this, we only used them to attack asteroid belts in simulated battles.”

As the Duke spoke, the rest of the personnel in the combat command center operated like a highly efficient set of gears, moving at high speed to prepare the Fortress of Sorrow for its first combat firing.

“Fusion reactor group operating nominally. Main weapon system subsystems show all parameters normal, with fluctuations within acceptable firing limits!”

“Superconducting battery stacks 1 through 180 are operational. Energy storage and discharge tests are complete.”

“All units, be advised. The fortress is now entering orange alert. The Focusing Rainbow is about to fire, I repeat…”

If warship-grade heavy particle cannons used metallic bismuth measured in grams and kilograms as “ammunition,” then the block of metallic bismuth now positioned at the far end of The Focusing Rainbow’s acceleration tube had to be measured in tons.

In truth, the various subsystems of the main weapon had already completed their preparations for firing before the fortress even warped into this region of space.

So it didn’t take long for the combat command center to receive the “all systems green” notification.

After confirming that The Focusing Rainbow was ready to fire at a moment’s notice, the Operations Commander turned and saluted the Duke in his command chair.

“Your Grace, The Focusing Rainbow is ready and awaiting your command!”

“Begin firing.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

With the Duke’s order, The Focusing Rainbow immediately entered its firing sequence.

“Activate fortress heat dissipation units!”

“Attitude control unit, prepare for stabilization.”

“Reactor group power confirmed at 82.7 percent! The Focusing Rainbow, target, enemy central fleet zone, diffused irradiation mode! Firing duration, fifteen seconds!”

Accepting a wine glass from an attendant officer, the Duke invited Ascania and Karl to raise their glasses with him.

“Gentlemen, may the glory of the Empire shine upon every corner of this star system!”

“Firing commenced!”

On the exterior of the Fortress of Sorrow, a spatial distortion suddenly appeared at the ten-kilometer-wide mouth of The Focusing Rainbow’s acceleration tube.

The next instant, a torrent of light rivaling a star in brilliance erupted from the tube.

It resembled a celestial river.

Chapter 109: The Duke’s Musings

At the exact same moment, the detection equipment on every warship in the Federation’s combined fleet registered the most massive, powerful electric field they had ever encountered.

On the bridges of every ship, a deathly, piercing alarm blared incessantly.

Following Vice Admiral Guterres’s earlier orders, the central fleet, directly in the firing path, had already raised the power of their deflector shield generators to the maximum.

The capital ships, even more cautiously, were running their generators at overload.

The captains of these warships had anticipated a violent storm of powerful attacks.

But when The Focusing Rainbow truly lit up, what swept toward the central fleet was an artificial river of stars.

As the beam diffused, the entire Fortress of Sorrow, under the power of its attitude control thrusters, adjusted its horizontal axis by two degrees.

From the perspective of the central fleet, one hundred thousand kilometers away, this meant the beam of the “Flashlight” swept across them from left to right at a very slow speed.

Then, the surging torrent of heavy metal particles directly obliterated ninety-five percent of the central fleet.

This was obliteration in the truest sense, the kind that didn’t even leave a frame behind.

Within the Federation fleets on the left and right flanks, many of the ships closer to the central fleet’s position were also caught in the blast.

Some of the smaller frigates in the path of The Focusing Rainbow were severely damaged just by being “grazed” by the scattered heavy metal ion stream.

After the fifteen-second firing sequence ended, the river of stars vanished from the cosmos.

The streams of heavy metal particles that rushed into the depths of space would slowly and naturally dissipate in the process.

Although the warships’ viewports had automatically dimmed, the brilliant light of the stellar river was still seared onto everyone’s retinas. If they closed their eyes, they could still feel the breathtaking scene from moments ago.

“Firing complete!”

“Energy circuits have been cut. Commencing energy redistribution.”

“The Focusing Rainbow is beginning forced cooling. Primary weapon systems are commencing self-check. Autonomous diagnostic probes and manned engineering vehicles have been deployed!”

On the eastern hemisphere of the Fortress of Sorrow, the dense, scale-like cooling fins that had opened up were glowing a fiery red.

Viewed from the east, the entire fortress looked like a bristling, dark-red urchin.

On the command throne in the Combat Command Center, the Duke’s face, slightly flushed, was lit with excitement.

Such immense power was now completely at his command.

The sheer grandeur of it made him want to drain his wine glass in one gulp.

Meanwhile, Marquis Ascania and Count Karl were still slumped in their chairs, their faces frozen in shock.

Although high-ranking noble officers like them had long heard of the Empire’s strategic-grade weapon, the unsubstantiated rumors were a world apart from witnessing The Focusing Rainbow fire with their own eyes.

This was especially true when they heard the Tactical Information Coordinator report: “Enemy central fleet, destruction rate over 90%. Flank fleets have sustained 4% damage!”

They felt that perhaps the very nature of warfare was about to change.

The Duke turned to see the two still lost in a daze and couldn’t help but laugh.

“Haha, the two of you look exactly as I did the first time I saw The Focusing Rainbow fire.”

Seeing the slightly lost and bewildered expressions on the faces of these two high-ranking Royal Navy officers, the Duke continued:

“Are you thinking that with this fortress beneath our feet, the nature of war will change from now on?”

Hearing the Duke’s words, the two men glanced at each other and nodded.

“I thought so, too, at the time.”

The Duke handed his wine glass to his attendant officer, then shook his head at the two naval commanders.

“But what I want to say is that relying on one or two so-called ‘decisive weapons’ might be able to settle the outcome on a specific battlefield, but it cannot so easily change the nature of war itself.”

The Duke stood up and stamped his foot on the floor of the Combat Command Center.

“Although a strategic-grade celestial fortress is powerful enough, it is still insignificant in the face of this vast universe.

“And don’t be fooled by its ability to sweep aside entire armies. In my time as its commander, I’ve already thought of five possible ways to defeat it using a conventional fleet.”

The Duke slowly paced to the edge of the command platform, gazing at the tattered and miserable Federation combined fleet on the main screen after the firing. He continued, “If I can think of them, so can the Federation commanders. They are just witnessing the power of The Focusing Rainbow for the first time and will likely be in a state of shock and panic for a while.

“But once they regain their senses, I believe there are clever people in the Federation who will figure out a way to deal with this behemoth.”

As the Duke spoke, Marquis Ascania and Count Karl walked to his side, like two students listening intently to a lecture.

“Alright, that’s enough talk for now. Let’s first completely crush the Federation fleet!”

Aboard the Destiny, the flagship of the Federation’s combined fleet.

Beside Vice Admiral Guterres, only the holographic projection of Rear Admiral Griezmann remained.

That respectable old man, Brigadier General Dowell, commander of the task force, had vanished along with his flagship, The Equality, in the sweep of The Focusing Rainbow.

With them went the entirety of the task force and a portion of the Fourteenth Fleet.

For a fleeting moment, Guterres was suddenly grateful that he hadn’t followed the usual exercise protocol of placing himself and his fleet in the center to lead the main assault.

Although the original intention of this formation change had been to use the Thirteenth Fleet, with its greater number of capital ships in better condition, as a powerful left hook against the Imperial fleet, he never imagined that this very move would save his life.

“So the Empire’s man-made celestial fortresses, capable of long-range maneuvering, are already operational…”

Gazing at the behemoth standing silently in the center of the Imperial fleet on the screen, Guterres couldn’t help but think of the Federation’s ‘Experimental Mobile Fortress Number One’, which was still under construction.

Not only was its development progress ‘encouraging’, but it also seemed to be weaker in both size and primary weapon systems.

Guterres took a deep breath, forcing all these thoughts from his mind.

Such stray thoughts would only cloud his judgment. Right now, he had to clear his mind and calm down if he had any hope of preventing the total annihilation of his fleet in the battle to come.

On the surface of Robert IV, at the space elevator’s base area.

Inside the cockpit of the Wasteland Wolf, Amber suddenly felt a jolt shoot through his mind.

He subconsciously looked up at the sky and saw an incredibly familiar, thin white line streaking across the heavens.

“The Flashlight’s beam. Holy shit, a Celestial Fortress? What the hell is that thing doing in the Robert system?”

But this shocking thought only lingered in Amber’s mind for a few seconds before he suppressed it.

Because according to the tactical map, he seemed to be surrounded by Imperial HCP.

Less than a kilometer directly in front of him, a mech painted entirely in red, with a wolf’s head emblem on its shoulder armor, was charging straight toward him.

And on the battlefield, Amber knew that anyone who used a paint job like that was generally not to be trifled with.

Chapter 110: Red Wolf

For the Empire, which values weapon aesthetics and uniform paint schemes, it was difficult for even the scions of noble families piloting HCPs to have personalized designs.

At most, they might add some gold trim to the external armor and spray-paint their family crest.

Therefore, any HCP in the military with a personalized paint scheme could only belong to an ace-class pilot.

Truth be told, in the many years of peace between the Federation and the Empire, Imperial pilots rarely had the chance to encounter enemy HCPs in battle.

Most of their time was spent dealing with main battle tanks, armored vehicles, or multi-legged war machines.

As a result, many pilots in the current Imperial army had earned the title of “ace” for achievements like “undefeated in two thousand simulated battles.”

The situation in the Federation was much the same.

But regardless, these individuals were still more difficult to deal with than ordinary pilots.

Amber had already sent his two rookie pilots to support the troops attacking the core area.

Throwing them into a heated HCP brawl, even against these “kings of bot matches,” would likely mean an instant first and second blood for the enemy.

However, if it was just a matter of using their HCPs’ firepower, defense, and excellent mobility to support other units against an enemy force lacking heavy units, the two of them could still show off a little.

After all, they were rookies. It was more appropriate for them to start in a beginner’s lobby.

So for now, Amber was fighting alone.

“Lilith, what’s the status of the virus deployment?”

Amber deployed the charged particle cannon on his shoulder, his eyes locked on the red HCP that was approaching in a zigzagging pattern.

“Master, my apologies! The virus deployment was discovered by the Imperial army. They have already begun implementing countermeasures. The current saturation rate is only 34.8 percent, and it has mostly affected individual soldier terminals and small vehicle terminals, along with a small number of HCPs.”

“It’s fine. The Empire reacted faster than I anticipated. A saturation rate of nearly thirty-five percent is already very good. At the very least, it will make combat easier for other friendly units.”

As Amber conversed with Lilith, the charged particle cannon on his shoulder weapon rack fired.

As expected, the charged particle beam struck the red HCP while it was on the move.

With Lilith’s targeting assistance, even with the target constantly performing irregular evasive maneuvers, it couldn’t dodge an attack from a light-speed weapon.

However, once the beam hit, the front hemisphere of the red HCP lit up with the white glow of an activated deflector shield, just as expected.

In a long-range firefight, combat between HCPs was just this straightforward and unglamorous.

You fire a shot, I fire a shot. It was a contest to see whose weapons would overheat first, or whose deflector shield generator would overload first.

If a winner couldn’t be decided in the long-range exchange, and neither pilot planned on backing down…

Then the battle would immediately shift from a slightly tedious firefight to a tense and thrilling close-quarters brawl.

At this stage, the fight became a test of both pilots’ fundamental skills and their courage.

As the distance between Amber and the red HCP closed, he raised the Wasteland Wolf’s mechanical arm, extended the barrel of the Gauss rifle beyond the range of his deflector shield, and began firing controlled shots at the target.

Amber’s outrageous reflexes, combined with Lilith’s targeting assistance, kept the Gauss rifle’s muzzle aimed squarely at the red HCP’s chest.

This position was the center point of the HCP’s forward-hemisphere deflector shield. A penetrator striking this area was less likely to be deflected than one hitting the edge.

The deflector shield generator would have to expend a great deal more power to deflect high-velocity penetrators that were coming in almost perpendicular to the shield.

At the same time, Lilith had somehow managed to hack the data for this enemy HCP with the special paint job.

“Red Wolf? A call sign I’ve never heard of. Not famous. It seems this pilot isn’t anyone special.”

After confirming this, Amber’s state of mind relaxed at once, and his piloting became exceptionally fluid.

Since he wasn’t facing one of those genuinely skilled experts, there was no need to panic at all.

In this state, Amber’s accuracy increased dramatically. Nearly every high-velocity penetrator fired from the Gauss rifle hit the bullseye.

Red Wolf, who had initiated the attack, was now being suppressed by Amber’s precise shooting, and he was sweating profusely in his cockpit.

This was the first time he had ever been picked apart by a Gauss rifle with such precision that it made him question his existence.

No matter how he dodged or maneuvered, the charged high-velocity penetrators would arrive right on schedule.

On several occasions, he had even slammed right into a penetrator after completing an evasive maneuver.

“What kind of monster is this…”

Although the automatic climate control units in his cockpit and heavy hydraulic pressure suit were working continuously, Red Wolf was still drenched in sweat.

After receiving Rudolf’s request for backup, he and a few other HCPs had charged over under the cover of friendly forces, risking the collapse of their own defensive line.

But when they arrived at the signal’s location, all they found were two Zealots with their cockpits pierced through.

Meanwhile, as Amber maneuvered backward to slow their rate of closure, Lilith’s slightly urgent voice suddenly came through the cockpit.

“Warning, you have been targeted!”

“Warning, strong electric field detected!”

When issuing emergency alerts, Lilith obediently followed the pre-set warnings without adding any of her strange forms of address.

But the two warnings still made Amber’s heart skip a few beats.

He instinctively increased the output of the deflector shield generator, raised his left mechanical arm, and used the attached electromagnetic projector to fire a series of anti-infrared smoke grenades in Red Wolf’s direction.

Almost as soon as he completed this series of actions, a blue-white beam from a heavy particle cannon shot down from the heights of the base area.

The panoramic screen in the cockpit flashed brilliantly before Lilith quickly dimmed the light.

Although the deflector shield blocked the attack from the mech-mounted heavy particle cannon, the Wasteland Wolf’s external armor, especially near the point of impact, still showed signs of glowing red from the intense heat.

The moment the attack ended, Amber pushed the plasma thruster array to full power and charged toward the direction the shot had come from.

Red Wolf, whose optical and infrared sensors were blocked by the high-temperature smoke, couldn’t see Amber’s movements. But a sudden sonic boom from ahead gave him a bad feeling.

He piloted his custom mech through the smoke, only to see that Amber had already reached the structure in the base area. The Wasteland Wolf leaped powerfully into the air, the thruster array on its back spewing a long blue wake.

At some point, the Wasteland Wolf had swapped the Gauss rifle held in its mechanical arm for a heavy plasma severing sword.

Red Wolf was too late to stop him. He could only watch as the Wasteland Wolf reached the high ground and, with a swift and decisive strike, cleaved the sniping Zealot’s cockpit in two.

Chapter 111: Going to Space

Seeing the friendly mech get taken out, Red Wolf’s first instinct was to deploy his heavy particle cannon and fire a shot at Amber’s position.

But when he saw where Amber was, with the space elevator’s base behind him, Red Wolf abandoned the thought.

The mission was to capture the space elevator’s base area, not destroy it.

Gauss rifles, charged particle cannons, or even high-energy laser beams were one thing; the structural integrity of the space elevator’s base could withstand a few hits.

But a blast from a heavy particle cannon was a different challenge altogether.

Considering the potential disaster if the base was damaged, which could lead to the destruction of the entire space elevator, Red Wolf decided that weapons like the heavy particle cannon had to be used with extreme caution.

“All units, watch your line of fire when using heavy particle cannons! Do not, under any circumstances, hit the structure of the space elevator’s base area!”

Glancing at Amber, who was once again approaching his position along the edge of the high platform, Red Wolf added:

“The enemy pilot is highly skilled. All units, converge on my position immediately!”

The words had barely left his lips when he saw the Wasteland Wolf, which had been dashing along the high ground, take a flying leap. It raised its heavy sword high and brought it down toward his position in a thirty-meter leaping strike.

Boom!

Amidst the dust and smoke kicked up by the Wasteland Wolf’s landing, Red Wolf narrowly dodged the attack, avoiding being split in two, pilot and all.

But before he could catch his breath, the Wasteland Wolf emerged from the dust, sword swinging as it charged at him again.

“Dammit! Why are Federation pilots so fond of drawing their blades for close combat?”

With no time to create distance, Red Wolf had no choice but to engage Amber in close-quarters combat.

After just a few exchanges of their swords, Red Wolf felt the pressure mounting; he was about to see red.

Just as Amber had suspected, while this ACE pilot, Red Wolf, wasn’t entirely a paper tiger, he wasn’t far from it.

As a member of Viscount Ancarin’s Blood Dragon Regiment, Red Wolf’s fundamentals weren’t bad; in fact, they were quite solid. He had also participated in numerous counter-insurgency operations with the Blood Dragon Regiment, and his ACE title was genuinely earned on the battlefield—he wasn’t some simulation ace who spent all day in a training hangar.

But that was also the crux of the problem.

In his past combat experiences, Red Wolf had rarely encountered enemy HCPs, let alone engaged in a “face-to-face dance” with one at close range.

Furthermore, Red Wolf was particularly skilled in long-range fire support, and his combat style leaned heavily toward ranged shooting. Consequently, all of this ACE’s achievements had been secured with his heavy particle cannon and charged particle cannon.

This meant his melee combat skills were not up to the ACE standard.

In a moment of distraction, after parrying one of Amber’s strikes, Red Wolf found that Amber had circled around to his mech’s flank.

Snapping back to his senses, a horrified Red Wolf swung his shield in front of him.

But Amber followed with a stepping side kick that sent him flying, the kick throwing his mech completely off balance and sending it crashing toward the ground.

Although the icon for the mech’s left leg on the screen in Amber’s cockpit immediately turned yellow, indicating a malfunction, Red Wolf, who had been kicked away, was in a much worse state.

His back-mounted thruster array fired just before he hit the ground to cushion the impact, but the nearly one-hundred-ton mech still slammed hard onto the deck.

Worse still, on his panoramic display, the iron demon—its external armor scarred with dark red marks—gave its sword a practiced flourish and lunged at him again.

Just in the nick of time, the Wasteland Wolf made an abrupt turn as two charged particle beams and several high-velocity penetrators slammed into its deflector shield.

“Lord Red Wolf, we’re here to support you!”

In the distance, two HCPs charged toward them, one behind the other. They were the members of the team sent to hunt down Amber.

The line between heaven and hell is often crossed in an instant. Red Wolf, who had just thought his life was over, was suddenly filled with renewed hope.

He immediately hailed the two friendly mechs, preparing to subject Amber to a “righteous” gang-up.

But a series of messages that suddenly came through his communication channel forced him to abandon the idea.

With a portion of their HCPs diverted to encircle Amber, the pressure on the Empire’s front line had increased significantly.

At the same time, an electronic warfare virus of unknown origin was spreading through the various terminals of the Imperial forces.

Although the entire force had immediately implemented emergency response measures to contain the electronic virus after the electronic warfare technicians discovered it, its impact on the front-line troops was undeniable. Many infantry units, in particular, experienced interference with the fire control units of their exoskeletons or communication blackouts.

The Federation forces seized this opportunity. Supported by a small number of long-range rocket launchers and self-propelled artillery, they launched an all-out offensive under the cover of wide-area electronic jamming, pushing the front line significantly into Imperial territory.

So now, the Imperial ground forces commander could no longer afford to focus on the mission to hunt down Amber.

If the HCPs weren’t brought back, the entire front line could be in serious trouble.

At that very same moment, Amber also received a message from Isabelle and the others: the assault team had captured the core control room of the base area.

Upon receiving this news, Amber no longer had any intention of continuing his entanglement with this so-called ACE in an HCP.

A strange, tacit understanding instantly formed between the two sides.

Under the suppressing fire of the two approaching HCPs, Amber “fought valiantly but was ultimately outmatched, fighting as he retreated.” Meanwhile, Red Wolf, after getting his HCP back on its feet, raised his Gauss rifle and fired a few token penetrator rounds.

Amber and Red Wolf almost simultaneously threw several anti-infrared smoke grenades, disengaging in the smoke that quickly blanketed the battlefield.

“Assault team to HQ, we have breached the core control area!”

Taking advantage of the moment, Amber contacted Brigade HQ.

Upon hearing the news, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas immediately dispatched several squads equipped with heavy weapons to the core area. They were to hold the area at all costs while the assault team carried out their subsequent mission.

By the time Amber arrived at the core control area in his HCP, Major Randall had already completed all the authorization protocols. The only thing left was to use the access key to unlock the space elevator.

“I need everyone, except for the wounded who can’t proceed to the next phase, Major Randall, and myself, to take the transport elevator to the launch area and establish a defensive perimeter!”

Everyone in the assault team who could still fight, including the two rookie-piloted HCPs, boarded the large transport elevator leading to the launch area.

Before today’s battle began, Amber had already given them a pre-battle briefing, informing them of the specific operational plan.

This included the final objective of storming Lansford Military Port.

As a result, their feelings about the upcoming battle were extremely complex—a mixture of anticipation and fear.

At the same time, they felt a thrill of excitement at the thought of Warrant Officer Amber leading them into space to fight their way into a space station.

Chapter 112: Lock Released

“Warrant Officer Amber! Mobile Infantry Company C of the 177th Combined Arms Battalion, 83rd Brigade, reporting!”

The reinforcements sent by Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had finally arrived at the core control area.

Before Amber stood a company of Mobile Infantry, equipped with significant heavy firepower and ten heavy powered armors.

According to the report from their company commander, numerous Multi-legged war machines and armored vehicles were also deploying defensively around the perimeter of the core control area and in the main corridors.

Since this was the space elevator’s base area, any direct assault by Imperial forces would have to consider the potential damage that various high-power directed energy weapons could inflict on the base’s structure.

Under these circumstances, as long as the Empire still intended to capture the space elevator, their offensive firepower would inevitably be limited.

Conversely, the Federation forces, with the space elevator’s base area at their backs, would be able to enjoy a period of fire superiority.

Amber also believed that the Empire’s deployment of so many troops to the surface—especially after the large-scale transfer of heavy armored units via aerospace transports in the preceding days—further demonstrated their resolve to capture the space elevator rather than destroy it.

Therefore, no matter what, the Federation forces here and in other areas of the front line could buy enough time.

“Thank you for your support. We’ll leave this place in your hands in a moment!”

Amber gave a slightly awkward salute. He still wasn’t used to a Captain reporting to him, a mere Warrant Officer, with such deference.

However, the Mobile Infantry company commander saw nothing wrong with it. He returned the salute naturally before leading his boisterous soldiers to set up a defensive line.

Amber didn’t linger either, turning and heading back into the core control room.

At the top of a cylinder that had risen in the center of the control room, a small slot awaited the insertion of the access key.

Major Randall was standing before the room’s terminal, checking if the space elevator’s various system parameters were normal.

Although the Major was just a Federation Navy officer, usually responsible for matters at the Lansford Military Port’s Combat Command Center, as personnel with clearance to control the space elevator, he had also undergone extensive relevant training.

Otherwise, it would be absurd for someone with the authority to activate the space elevator to arrive on-site in an emergency and not know how to operate the equipment.

“How is it, Major? Any problems with the space elevator?”

Amber moved to Randall’s side. The usually casual, freewheeling naval officer was, for a rare change, in a state of serious focus.

“The parameters look fine. All data logs are still frozen at the moment I locked down the space elevator.”

Major Randall raised his right hand and pointed a finger at a long string of records on the screen.

“Look, the Empire did bring their warships into the port and tried to crack it with their shipboard control AIs!”

“But from the looks of it, they failed.”

“Of course! This thing isn’t so easy to crack. Praise be to the access key ’s inventor, Dr. Mikhail!”

Randall took the black rectangular object from around his neck and gave it a kiss, causing a nearby Amber to shiver in disgust.

“The space elevator’s parameters are all normal. We just need to insert the access key to unlock it, and it’ll be ready to run.”

“Alright, I’ll go check how everyone else is doing.”

Amber walked to the side and opened the team’s communication channel to check on the others. He quickly received a reply that everything was normal in the launch area.

At the same time, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas contacted Amber and updated him on the latest situation.

First, the Federation’s Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, tasked with retaking the space elevator, had gained the upper hand in the space battle. It was estimated they would soon be able to enter Lansford Port and deploy their assault teams.

Therefore, Amber and his team needed to speed up. By arriving first, they could coordinate from the inside, assisting the warships’ entry into the port and reducing friendly casualties.

Second, the main Federation fleet had officially engaged the Imperial fleet. The Empire had deployed some kind of new strategic weapon, and the Federation fleet was currently at a disadvantage.

After relaying these two pieces of news, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas added a final message:

“The main fleet’s engagement isn’t going well. This battle might not end quickly, and who knows how many more will die. If you can get away, try to take everyone going up with you. You’re a psionic user, you have the power… I hope you get a chance to take out that inhuman bastard, Adam. Consider it revenge for all the soldiers who died on Robert IV. Amber, may we meet again.”

After these final words, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas cut the communications. For a moment, Amber was overwhelmed with a mix of emotions.

Now, after enduring so many trials, the plan to escape Robert IV had reached its final, most critical stage.

However, perhaps it was because while the current Amber had inherited this body’s memories, skills, physical attributes, and Psionics, his soul was still that of an ordinary office worker and gaming enthusiast from his previous life on Earth.

And so, this ordinary soul found itself unexpectedly reluctant to leave the comrades he had fought alongside for so long.

But Amber also knew this thought was wrong, dangerous, and untimely.

Setting aside whether he had the ability to stay, his awkward status of belonging to neither side, along with Lilith in his head, compelled him to leave this place immediately and disappear from the sight of both the Federation and the Empire.

Perhaps because psionic users have a stronger ability to regulate their emotions, Amber quickly pushed these strange thoughts and feelings to the back of his mind.

“Focus!”

His focus regained, Amber walked over to Major Randall and informed him that everything was ready.

Hearing this, Randall nodded. He carefully inserted the access key into the slot on top of the cylinder, then tapped a few commands on the control terminal.

The core control room, where some equipment had been dormant, suddenly came to life. Various instruments and devices began to come online, indicating that the space elevator was now unlocked.

“That does it. I’ve remotely mapped the control system to my terminal. We just need to go up and find a car, and we can ascend.”

Randall looked excitedly at the reactivated core control room, then removed the access key from the top of the cylinder.

The device’s only purpose was for locking and unlocking; it didn’t need to remain inserted during normal operation.

With that done, Amber and Randall boarded a transport elevator to the launch area, arriving at their destination shortly after.

The car the assault team had chosen wasn’t far from the transport elevator, so after finding a shuttle cart, Amber and Randall quickly rendezvoused with the others.

Aside from two HCPs, all members of the assault team participating in the next phase of the operation—including Isabelle, the electronic warfare technician, and the Communications specialist—had changed into standard-issue Mobile Infantry Medium Exoskeletons.

They had replaced their damaged silicon carbide armor plates and replenished their fuel and battery packs.

Everyone had also equipped additional armor plates and small Jetpacks.

They had then discarded all barrelled weapons, retaining only combat spikes, armor-piercing combat rounds, shields, concussion daggers, chainswords, or long-handled battle axes with a crystallized carbon edge.

The only ranged weapons they carried were the automatic shotguns held by some of the Mobile Infantry.

These Mobile Infantry soldiers may not have had much combat training in space stations or spaceports, but they knew one fundamental rule.

When fighting in places that are sturdy on the outside but delicate and fragile on the inside, the first thing to do is get rid of your powerful Gauss rifles, portable electromagnetic cannons, and personal missiles.

Unless you want to blow a hole in the spaceport, get sucked into outer space, and spend the fifteen-minute extravehicular activity limit of your exoskeleton and combat suit reflecting on your foolishness.

Chapter 113: Melee Preparations

The fact that these Mobile Infantry, who were about to ascend to fight in the military port, were switching to melee weapons didn’t mean all infantry combat beyond a planet’s surface had so many restrictions.

Hollowed-out asteroid interiors, Celestial Fortresses, massive spaceports, capital ships—

In these locations, close-quarters infantry engagements were much like those on the ground, the only real difference being the need for greater attention to attitude control in zero-gravity or microgravity environments.

But in a place like Lansford Military Port—a second or third-tier facility in the Federation’s military spaceport hierarchy—
and if the objective was to capture it intact rather than destroy it, then a tight control on firepower was mandatory.

High-penetration weapons like Gauss rifles and portable electromagnetic cannons, if fired inside the spaceport, could easily cause collateral damage.

Destroying internal electronics would be a minor issue; hitting a hatch or a structural joint by bad luck would lead to major problems.

Therefore, even the Imperial assault team that had first broken into the military port had strictly controlled their firepower.

They were mostly equipped with close-quarters combat weapons, with only a few marksmen carrying high-precision powder-propelled kinetic rifles, and they rarely had a chance to fire.

Of course, if the objective wasn’t capture but annihilation of personnel or destruction of the target, there weren’t so many restrictions.

It was just like the raids Amber had participated in back in the game, attacking an enemy guild’s space station.

Amber’s guild, the Fluffy Pink Bunnies, would go in with all guns blazing. The station would start to break apart mid-fight, and the battlefield would shift from inside the station to among its shattered remains.

In this situation, although the two HCPs piloted by the rookies retained their full firepower,
the only weapons they could realistically use were the close-in laser systems and the physical greatswords.

Besides, Amber’s main reason for having them bring the HCPs along was simply as a failsafe.

Should an unexpected situation arise, the heavy particle cannons on the shoulder mounts of these two Wasteland Wolves would still be a sufficient deterrent.

Several Mobile Infantry brought over the Phalanx Breaker 2 that Amber had previously swapped out of. With their help, Amber removed the heavy hydraulic pressure suit and put his combat suit and exoskeleton back on.

However, some of the armaments on the Phalanx Breaker were now temporarily unusable.

The anti-vehicle missile launcher on its back was discarded and replaced with a jetpack for maneuvering in zero-gravity environments.

The ammunition in the external triple-barrel grenade launchers on the legs was switched from high-explosive fragmentation rounds to stun grenades.

The 12mm Gauss machine gun was naturally unusable as well. Amber went straight to the launch area’s temporary armory and retrieved a concussion longsword.

This weapon was essentially an enlarged version of the concussion dagger, but it required a certain level of skill from its wielder.

Once geared up, Amber led the Mobile Infantry and the two HCPs into the nearest car. After securing the two steel giants in restraints, the others strapped themselves and their exoskeletons into their seats.

Major Randall operated his personal terminal, and the car’s main door quickly sealed. All hatches were then locked, and a system-wide airtightness check began.

The entire space elevator was controlled and monitored by a dedicated control personality. After Randall unlocked the elevator, this control personality was awakened and took over its operations.

Soon, Randall received a notification on his terminal: “Self-check complete. Ready for launch.”

After confirming that everyone was ready, Randall selected “Emergency Launch.”

A gentle female voice, that of the control personality, echoed inside the car.

“Initiating emergency launch sequence… 3… 2… 1… Launch!”

Suddenly, they were hit with an acceleration that most people inside the car had never experienced, pressing everyone firmly into their seats.

The basic anti-g-force systems in their combat suits and exoskeletons activated and began running automatically.

To put it bluntly, the space elevator on Robert IV could be considered a massive electromagnetic cannon.

The entire car was like the projectile in the magnetic channel, except that at the end of its trajectory, it wasn’t meant to pierce an enemy’s armor plating, but to decelerate and prepare to enter the docking area.

To reach the spaceport as quickly as possible, Randall had pushed the space elevator’s ascent speed to the maximum limit for manned transit.

However, he had evidently forgotten that the Mobile Infantry in the car were not professional orbital assault troopers; they spent most of their time on the ground.

Although their combat suits and exoskeletons provided a degree of anti-g-force protection, they clearly had trouble adapting to this level of acceleration.

When the car broke through the atmosphere and entered outer space, Amber released the lock on his seat and began to float.

He took a moment to acclimate to the weightlessness, then pushed off the walls in succession to drift over the heads of the Mobile Infantry.

A quick glance revealed that several of them had passed out.

“Tsk. You all need to train harder,” Amber said, pointing to the comrades of the unconscious soldiers.

“You’re responsible for waking them up in a bit!”

“Yes, Sir!”

After confirming the assault team members had no other issues, Amber pushed off the back of a chair and drifted toward the car’s control console.

Randall, Tom, and Isabelle were seated there, monitoring the space elevator’s various operational data.

“Major, is everything normal?”

“Perfectly normal. None of the subsystems have any issues. Of course, if something had gone wrong, you wouldn’t be able to talk to me like this.”

Amber was completely used to Major Randall’s way of speaking. He continued as if he hadn’t heard the last part of the sentence.

“How much longer until we reach Lansford Port?”

“21 minutes, 36.11 seconds.”

Randall pointed to a line of numbers on the console screen.

“I’ve set it to the maximum manned speed. We’ll bypass Bountiful Spaceport and go straight to Lansford.”

“Twenty-one minutes… feels like we’re just a target hanging in the sky.”

Amber’s brows furrowed. The intel from Lieutenant Colonel Dallas had mentioned a Federation Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla was engaging the Empire’s rearguard fleet in orbit.

Although both sides had a tacit understanding to keep their beams away from the space elevator, things like heavy metal ion streams and charged particle beams were indiscriminate.

If they were accidentally hit, Amber figured he might as well start over.

“Don’t worry. Their engagement zone is a long way off, almost blocked by the planet. They won’t come over here until a victor is decided.”

“All right then. I’m going to the airlock to get ready. Five minutes out, depressurize it and unlock the outer hatch for me.”

Amber adjusted his posture, bent his legs to plant his feet on the back of a chair, and then kicked off.

“Huh?! You’re going to go outside?”

Isabelle turned her head in surprise.

“That’s right. The docking area is bound to have Imperial defenders. I’ll infiltrate from another point first and draw their attention.”

Floating in mid-air, Amber looked at the female spy with a calm expression.

“Don’t worry. I’ve done this kind of thing plenty of times.”

Chapter 114: Tail Needle

Once the car left the atmosphere of Robert IV and entered a zero-gravity state, Isabelle, Randall, and the others accustomed to working in such conditions released their seat locks.

Major Randall and Tom remained at the console, monitoring the car’s status while preparing to depressurize the airlock at the time Amber had specified.

Isabelle, meanwhile, drifted gracefully toward Amber’s position in the airlock like a fish in the deep sea.

Amber was pressing his face against the hatch’s porthole, gazing at the magnificent view outside.

Although Amber had seen such sights countless times in the game, he never tired of it.

Besides, no matter how beautiful the scenery in the game was, it had been rendered with reduced fidelity by the developers and couldn’t compare to the real thing before him.

When Isabelle, clad in her exoskeleton, squeezed somewhat awkwardly through the airlock hatch, Amber reluctantly tore his gaze away from the spectacular view outside and turned to her.

“Is something wrong?”

“Can’t I come looking for you if nothing’s wrong?”

Isabelle rolled her eyes at Amber, then took out the token given to her by the elf noble from the Thousand Stars Empire.

Even before she produced it, Amber had already sensed the psionic fluctuations emanating from the token.

Now, they were even more distinct.

“My friend sent a message. It’s a set of coordinates and a time.”

Isabelle tightened her grip on the token slightly, activating the psionics within the clover-shaped necklace. It projected a string of coordinate numbers and a time.

“Huh?”

Amber froze when he saw it.

He grabbed Isabelle’s hand and held it up before his eyes, ignoring the blush slowly creeping onto the female spy’s face. He studied the token intently, extending a sliver of psionic energy to probe it.

“This friend of yours isn’t just any ordinary noble in the Thousand Stars Empire, are they?”

“Hmm?”

Isabelle’s reaction was a beat slow. Before she could answer, Amber continued:

“This token is essentially a psionically entangled communication crystal. In theory, it can transmit information across star systems in real time, a technology far beyond anything humanity currently possesses.

“This thing is extremely rare even in the Thousand Stars Empire. No, not rare—unheard of.

“Aside from the elven royal family and the Grand Chancellor, probably only a few of those noble merchants whose wealth could rival a nation would possess one.”

Amber released Isabelle’s hand, his gaze clear and sincere as he looked at her.

“Does this friend of yours… need any other friends?”

“…”

Isabelle’s expression turned cold.

Amber instantly understood. Isabelle’s friend was most likely a female elf.

“Ahem, let’s get back to business, back to business.”

He gave an embarrassed smile and coughed to cover it up.

“So your friend means she’ll arrive at these coordinates at this time to meet us?”

“That’s right. I did a quick check on the star chart. The coordinates are on the edge of the Robert system. As long as we can find a ship with a warp drive engine, we can get there.”

Isabelle put the token away and looked at Amber.

“She’ll be there in less than six hours. Do you think we can make it?”

To be honest, none of this felt real to Isabelle.

As a member of the Princess Faction, she had originally thought she would likely die on this planet at the hands of the Regent Prince Faction.

But ever since throwing her lot in with Amber, she had somehow navigated this desperate situation to find herself just one step away from escaping with her life.

“Whether we make it or not depends on the situation at Lansford Port.”

Amber stretched his neck. The time for his EVA was drawing near.

“The Empire’s and the Federation’s capital fleets are locked in a fierce battle, so they definitely won’t have time to bother with Lansford Port. Our only obstacles are the Imperial soldiers in the naval port, and we have to pray there’s a usable ship in the harbor.”

“What about the task Lieutenant Colonel Dallas gave you?” Isabelle asked curiously. She had been watching Amber closely these past few days and knew he had grown close to the commander of the Federation’s ground forces.

“Don’t worry, I’m a man of my word. Since I agreed, I’ll see it through. Whether it’s the mission from the Lieutenant Colonel or our rendezvous, I’ll make sure everything is taken care of.”

Amber’s tone was calm, as if he were discussing something trivial.

But to Isabelle, his words were deeply reassuring.

The two remained in the airlock for a while longer before Isabelle clumsily squeezed back out and sealed the hatch behind her.

At the same time, Amber activated the extravehicular activity mode on his exoskeleton and combat suit. A thirty-minute countdown appeared in the top-right corner of his HUD.

This was the maximum time the Phalanx Breaker 2 could operate outside a vehicle without additional life-support modules.

“Randall, I’m ready on my end. You can begin depressurization.”

“Understood. Beginning depressurization!”

As the pressure readings on the airlock hatch terminal rapidly dropped, Amber opened the team communication channel.

“All right, everyone, check your weapons and gear. Prepare for a spaceport assault.”

“This will be a dangerous, close-quarters engagement. Remember your training. Maintain formation! Don’t be rash, but don’t retreat! Keep an eye on your teammates’ positions and status!”

“Major Randall, do not open the main doors when the car reaches the docking area. Wait for my command.”

Just as Amber finished his last instruction, the airlock completed its depressurization.

After confirming all his equipment was functioning correctly and having Lilith run another self-check, Amber twisted the mechanical handle of the outer hatch.

The depressurization was complete; there was no sudden imbalance of pressure that threatened to suck him out.

Amber carefully pushed the hatch fully open and cautiously climbed out, clipping his safety tether to a hook on the car’s outer hull.

Above him, the space elevator’s final stop—Lansford Port—grew rapidly larger.

At the same time, Amber felt the car begin to slow. He secured himself to the outer wall, patiently waiting for the deceleration to finish as the car came to a stop in its designated berth in the docking area.

Clank!

Leaning against the exterior, Amber ‘heard’ the car’s docking clamps lock into place with the docking area. He immediately unhooked his safety tether and, with a powerful pull on the handholds, launched himself toward the docking area like a torpedo.

The destination marker on his HUD grew closer. Everything around him was silent, the only sounds the echo of his own breathing and the whirring of his exoskeleton’s components.

Amber flew nearly two hundred meters in one go, arriving at a hatch in the docking area.

The small red text printed next to the hatch indicated that the area behind it could also be depressurized.

Amber pried open the control panel beside the hatch and expertly connected the data cable from his wrist.

Lilith immediately slipped into the system, easily cracking it and gaining permissions to open the hatch and control its pressure.

“Master, this spaceport’s control personality is formidable. It seems to be running on a server array, and its standard computing power is immense.”

“Yeah, I know. We don’t need to confront it directly anyway. Just be careful.”

Amber replied calmly.

He was well aware of the capabilities of Lansford Port’s control personality. The AI for a facility this large was normally responsible for the entire spaceport’s energy distribution, internal environment regulation, and Electronic Warfare countermeasures.

Most importantly, it guided ships in and out of the port.

Therefore, the control personalities for such large facilities were rarely replaced, often operating for a decade or even several decades once activated.

After handling high-intensity, multi-threaded tasks for so long, the comprehensive abilities of these control personalities could even overwhelm the shipboard control AIs on capital ships.

This made it difficult for conventional Electronic Warfare attacks to affect this type of control AI.

The reason the Empire was able to control the spaceport was simple.

After their assault troops had suppressed the port, they simply used the credentials of a high-ranking officer who hadn’t managed to escape to reclassify all Imperial units as friendly forces via the rights management in the main control room.

But Amber didn’t need to tamper with the control personality now, nor did he need Lilith to engage it head-on.

All he needed was for her to perform some insignificant stealth hacks, opening a few convenient doors for him in Lansford Port through camouflage.

Soon, Amber slipped into the space, closed the hatch behind him, and began to pressurize the chamber.

Once a screen on the bulkhead indicated that the internal pressure was normal and his exoskeleton’s sensors confirmed the external environment was safe, Amber deactivated the extravehicular activity mode.

He had about twenty minutes of use left in that mode, which he needed to save just in case.

Closing his eyes, he released a psionic wave. After confirming there were no other humans active outside the chamber, Amber cautiously opened the hatch and slipped out.

The docking area had no artificial gravity. Long-distance travel was typically done by grasping a series of handholds that ran along the walls.

For short distances, one would simply float or activate the electromagnetic clamps on their boots.

This was why everyone, including Amber, was equipped with a jetpack for attitude control.

Following a map Lilith had ‘crawled’ from Lansford Port’s internal network, Amber quickly found the route to his car’s berth.

Along the way, he continuously used his psionics to scan his surroundings, avoiding several enemy patrols that were moving quickly.

Evidently, the unlocking of the space elevator had stirred the Imperial forces on the spaceport into action.

As he was about to reach the final corridor, Amber halted after sending out another psionic wave.

His expression grew serious, and he drew the concussion longsword from its rack on his back.

Although the returning psionic wave told him there were no life signs in the corridor, this overly ‘clean’ feedback was what put him on alert.

“It seems someone has deliberately used psionics to mask their presence…”

“But the technique is rather clumsy. The concealment is so perfect it’s as if no one has ever been here.”

Amber carefully sensed the psionic wave in the corridor that had given its user away, slowly syncing his own psionics with it—an advanced technique developed by a psionic user decades in the future, completely unheard of at this point in time.

Once his psionics were fully synchronized, Amber suddenly grinned.

He raised his longsword, aiming the tip at a specific spot in the corridor.

“Alright, stop hiding. I’ve found you.”

As soon as he spoke, a slight shimmer appeared where his sword was pointing.

With a flash of hexagonal light, a figure slowly materialized in the corridor.

“As expected of you, Amber.”

The person was wearing an Imperial-style psionic combat exoskeleton. The insignia on his chest plate identified him as a member of the Star Dragon’s Fangs.

“We finally meet, Tail Needle.”

“Hmph. I don’t know how you saw through my camouflage, but since I was waiting for you here, you’re not getting past me today.”

Tail Needle drew a pair of concussion shortswords from his waist, a relatively uncommon weapon in exoskeleton melee combat.

The common choices were either heavy weapons for wide, sweeping attacks, or weapons like daggers and armor-piercing combat rounds for a quick burst of damage.

Shortswords, and a dual-wielding style at that.

This type of weapon, better suited for mobile combat, was indeed less common than others.

Tail Needle wasted no more words. After drawing his weapons, he shot forward and vanished into thin air.

“Randall, the situation’s changed!”

Amber held his breath, his psionic energy expanding outwards to form something akin to a sensory field.

He raised his left hand, and a psionic shield materialized in front of it, blocking Tail Needle’s surprise attack with a hum.

His first strike having missed, the enemy concealed himself once more.

His overall combat style was just as Amber had guessed.

“What’s going on, Amber?”

Randall’s voice crackled over the comms channel.

“Everyone’s ready for battle, just waiting for your order.”

“Negative, I can’t make it back. You’ll have to decide when to launch the attack yourselves… Damn it!”

As he spoke, Tail Needle launched several more attacks. Using his jetpack and psionics, he constantly changed his position, creating the effect of a multi-person assault in a short period.

“I’m tied up with an Imperial psionic user. He’s also a level-four psionic. This won’t be over quickly.”

Amber hurled a psionic blast at Tail Needle, who retaliated in kind.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The psionic pressure generated by the colliding psionic waves caused the electronic equipment in the corridor to flicker wildly, and the corridor’s bulkheads groaned with the sound of twisting metal.

Amber took a deep breath, his eyes fixed on Tail Needle’s direction. He crossed his arms, holding his sword with the guard in front of his chest and the false edge angled toward his right arm.

This was the Key stance from Meyer’s Art of Combat.

Although its origins lay in the ancient cold-weapon era of Blue Star, these classic combat techniques had been rediscovered when melee combat returned to the battlefield.

After scientific and modern refinement, they had been reintroduced to the world.

“Major! Let the Mobile Infantry decide how to proceed. I’m signing off. I’m going to kill this bastard!”

Chapter 115: By His Own Hand

Close-quarters combat in zero gravity was not exactly a pleasant experience.

After all, while maintaining your combat stance, you also had to constantly adjust your attitude control.

Fortunately, Amber had Lilith’s assistance. After he connected to the exoskeleton, Lilith had been continuously controlling the jetpack to help maintain his stability.

This was especially crucial whenever they parried. Only with the extra thrust from the jetpack could Amber block Tail Needle’s attacks and counter in the same motion.

With both combatants using concussion weapons, every clash between Amber’s longsword and Tail Needle’s dual blades was a test of their weapons’ durability.

These melee weapons, which relied on high-frequency vibrations to inflict damage, were rather delicate instruments to begin with.

As level-four psionic users, both Amber and Tail Needle were actually holding back in their current fight.

They were relying more on their psionic spatial awareness, reaction speed, and physically augmented bodies. Psionics were mainly used for defense and interference.

Both of them knew that if they were to cut loose and start trading psionic blasts, they might not demolish the entire spaceport, but blasting a hole in this corridor wouldn’t be a problem.

Clang!

After another exchange of blows, the reactive force pushed them apart again, and they each attached themselves to a bulkhead on opposite sides of the corridor.

From the continuous engagement, Amber had already deduced that Tail Needle had also undergone extensive physical augmentation.

Moreover, the members of this Star Dragon Empire Psionic Assault Team were even more thoroughly modified.

“Amber, it seems I underestimated you.”

From the opposite bulkhead, Tail Needle, who was crouched on the wall like Spider-Man, activated his exoskeleton’s external speaker.

“I originally thought you were just an ordinary defector. I never expected you to last this long against me.”

“Oh? You think you’re that strong?”

Amber also activated his exoskeleton’s speaker. He had been a notorious trash-talker back in the guild and would never back down in a situation like this.

“Hmph. Let’s see how long that tough talk lasts.”

On Tail Needle’s command, his exoskeleton completed a round of injections: military-grade stimulants and psionic activation agents.

He kicked off the wall, launching himself toward Amber with even greater speed, swords brandished.

An electric arc crackled between the tips of his twin blades.

“He can generate psionic lightning as a level-four psionic? Looks like he’s doping.”

Unflustered, Amber raised his psionic shield to block Tail Needle’s psionic lightning. The moment Tail Needle closed in, Amber shifted his entire body to the left and retaliated with a furious slash of his longsword.

An inch longer is an inch stronger. The longer concussion longsword struck the rear of Tail Needle’s exoskeleton, instantly severing an armor plate and damaging his jetpack.

Tail Needle reacted quickly. The moment he lost attitude control, he jettisoned the jetpack. At the same time, psionic lightning extended from his hands, acting like elongated tentacles that made contact with the walls to restabilize his position.

Amber didn’t let the opportunity slip. While Tail Needle was still readjusting, he pushed his jetpack to maximum thrust, launching himself forward with his longsword aimed in a straight thrust.

Although he didn’t know why Tail Needle was so relentlessly pursuing him, even setting up an ambush here in space, Amber knew one thing for certain: this kind of person could not be left alive. If he had the chance to eliminate him, he had to take it to prevent future trouble.

This was especially true since his opponent was a member of the Star Dragon’s Fangs, who specialized in infiltration and assassination. A swift and decisive end was necessary.

But just as the longsword lanced out, the enhanced version of Tail Needle’s psionic shield, now boosted by the drugs, flared to life. It acted like a chaotic electromagnetic vortex formed by a deflector shield, instantly shattering Amber’s longsword, whose durability had been greatly reduced during the fight, into pieces.

At the same time, Lilith issued a warning.

“Master! The enemy is attempting to inject a virus into your exoskeleton!”

“Isn’t that perfect? Isolate the virus and counterattack according to the preset plan.”

Losing his weapon didn’t faze Amber in the slightest. He calmly raised his psionic shield and collided head-on with Tail Needle.

The turbulence from their clashing psionic shields carved cracks into the corridor bulkheads.

Following Amber’s command, Lilith launched her counterattack.

When it came to electronic attacks, Tail Needle’s built-in combat AI was certainly no match for Lilith.

However, since the beginning of the fight, Tail Needle had shut down all communication channels and datalinks, turning his suit into a sealed tin can that gave Lilith no opening.

But now, his own attempt at an electronic attack had given her the very opportunity she needed.

The virus implanted into Amber’s exoskeleton was pulverized by Lilith before it could even unpack itself.

And through the very channel Tail Needle had used for his attack, she sent back a gift: a brand-new “Lilith’s special-blend virus,” refined through numerous real-world battles and iterations.

“Wait… this virus?!”

His firewall was breached with ease. Struck by the electronic warfare virus, Tail Needle immediately ordered his auxiliary AI to isolate and eliminate the threat.

At the same time, he disengaged from the stalemate with Amber and drifted toward the other end of the corridor.

Soon, his combat AI reached a conclusion: the virus Amber had just injected shared a 93.6% similarity with the electronic warfare virus fragment samples secretly distributed by Command.

In other words, this virus came from the same source as the new electronic warfare virus that had recently appeared on the ground battlefield.

Coupling this with the vaguely worded intelligence from Command, which mentioned that a new type of Federation AI might be connected to Amber, Tail Needle suddenly understood. He now knew why both the Eighth Expeditionary Strike ग्रुप and the DRSD had simultaneously ordered him to intercept a potential Amber sighting at Lansford Military Port.

Although Command had analyzed the previous electronic warfare virus and provided countermeasures, updating the antivirus programs on some elite personnel’s equipment, and his combat AI had managed to temporarily contain the invading virus, Tail Needle’s will to fight had vanished. He decided to call for support.

And that was the biggest mistake he could have made.

“Master, the target is attempting to call for reinforcements! I have intercepted the message and jammed his communications!”

As Lilith’s voice rang out, a line of text appeared on Amber’s screen.

“Target Amber located. The electronic warfare virus he is using is an iterated version of the recent new virus, suspected to be AI-iterated. This matches Command and DRSD assessments. Target is extremely dangerous. Requesting immediate support!”

Seeing this message, Amber’s brow furrowed.

The Star Dragon Empire’s DRSD was no joke. Based solely on the new virus on the battlefield and previous events, they had already connected Lilith to him.

“All the more reason not to let this bastard get away.”

With that thought, Amber ignited his jetpack and gave chase, simultaneously activating the combat spike mounted on his right arm.

Although Tail Needle’s overall combat strength was on par with Amber’s, especially in terms of psionic intensity where he surpassed Amber, who had only recently advanced to a level-four psionic user, in a one-on-one fight, the one who first thinks of retreating suffers a massive blow to their confidence and fighting spirit.

This, in turn, indirectly affects their overall combat effectiveness.

Just like now.

As Amber closed in, Tail Needle, who was desperately trying to send out a distress call, was forced into a purely passive defense, completely suppressed by Amber.

This ultimately led to a fierce, tangled struggle, after which Amber seized an opportunity and pressed the combat spike against Tail Needle’s chest.

At that moment, the combat spike’s launcher was loaded with a 680-millimeter-long alloy penetrator rod.

BANG!

Without a single word, the rod, fired at maximum power, punched straight through Tail Needle’s chest plate, exited through his back, and finally ricocheted off the bulkhead.

Simultaneously, the combat spike’s launcher mechanism reloaded with a thunk.

This time, a shaped-charge armor-piercing round slid into the firing track.

Amber floated up to Tail Needle, who was now drifting in the corridor with a gaping hole in his chest, and pressed the combat spike against his tactical faceplate.

For both Amber and Tail Needle, not only did their Psionics grant them vitality far beyond that of ordinary people, but their physical augmentations also meant that their definition of a “fatal wound” was very different from a normal person’s.

Therefore, a finishing blow was essential.

“Sorry. Good fight.”

“Cough, cough… heh…”

BANG!

Chapter 116: A Choice Between Two

The life force of a psionic user was indeed formidable.

But after the metal jet from a shaped-charge armor-piercing round shattered his tactical faceplate, pierced his skull, and churned its contents into a mixture of metal shards, bone fragments, and scorched protein, not even a god could save him.

Gazing at Tail Needle’s body floating in the corridor, a gaping hole in his chest and another in his head, Amber confirmed there were no signs of life.

He then used his Psionics to overload every electronic device on Tail Needle’s exoskeleton, burning out all chips and storage drives beyond recovery.

During the earlier fight, he hadn’t been able to directly attack the exoskeleton itself with his Psionics because his opponent had kept his psionic shield active.

Having done all this and ensuring no more information could be transmitted from Tail Needle, Amber finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Both his own identity and the presence of Lilith in his mind were like a ticking time bomb.

Therefore, the best course of action now was to rendezvous with Isabelle’s elf friends and slip away to the Thousand Stars Empire.

Although the technological means for “finding people” had become increasingly advanced, the vast expanse of human society made the task incredibly inefficient.

Basically, as long as you didn’t willingly turn yourself in, you could hide on a planet in some remote star system, and even if your pursuers were lucky, it might take them a decade or more to roughly pinpoint your location.

This was why, in both the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation, financial crimes and fraud were rampant.

As long as a perpetrator spent a little extra money to successfully escape, unless they were someone the ruling powers of both sides were determined to capture, their cases were usually dropped after their names were entered into the fugitive database.

This was to say nothing of someone like Amber, who was planning to flee directly to the Thousand Stars Empire.

After all, there was no extradition treaty between humans and elves.

As he pondered his escape plan, Amber drifted toward Randall’s position, guided by Lilith.

“Major! I’ve finished the fight on my end. What’s your situation?”

“Damn, you’re finally done! We’re pinned down at the exit of the docking area. Imperial reinforcements are still arriving. Hurry, hurry!”

The background of Randall’s transmission was a cacophony of noise, punctuated by intermittent screams. Clearly, the situation on his end was grim.

“Hang in there! I’m on my way!”

Without another word, Amber picked up speed. He was somewhat surprised that Randall’s team, with two HCPs providing support, could be suppressed to such an extent.

Although the pilots of the two Wasteland Wolves were rookies and their only remaining weapons were physical swords and point-defense lasers.

Even so, even just a swing of a fist from one of these steel giants should have been more than an Imperial infantryman in an exoskeleton could handle.

“Master, do you remember that signal from the public channel speech you asked me to track?”

Lilith’s voice pulled Amber back from his thoughts.

“Of course I remember. Why? Did you track it?”

“Yes, Master!”

Lilith’s voice was excited, with a hint of someone eager to take credit.

“Before, I could only roughly determine that the signal source was in orbit using the communications relay vehicle. But just now, while scanning the various signals in this military port, I found that the source is right here in the port!”

As Lilith spoke, a string of ship information appeared on Amber’s tactical faceplate.

SENY-DD-772, Bedouin.

It was a Dragon-class destroyer belonging to the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, currently docked at Berth 066 of Lansford Military Port.

“So you’re saying Adam, the man I’m looking for, might be on that ship?”

Amber’s eyes lit up. The old bastard had finally been found.

“That’s right, Master!”

“Is there any way to confirm?”

“To confirm, I’d have to access the ship’s internal sensors, but I might be detected by the control personality…”

“Do it. The fight’s already this bad, so this won’t make it much worse. Try to disguise it as a Federation intrusion program and erase your own traces.”

Amber glanced at his tactical map. He was at a corridor intersection. One path led to the docking area, the other directly to the port.

“How long will it take?”

“I’m already in, but the control personality has detected me. Ahhhhh! She’s attacking me like crazy!”

Lilith’s voice was tinged with panic. This was her first time clashing with a control personality of this level.

Still, she projected an image, which appeared to be a screenshot from the ship’s internal surveillance monitors.

The figure in the middle of the corridor in the image was undoubtedly Adam, the man who had betrayed all the Federation forces on Robert IV.

“Master! I have more bad news. That destroyer has initiated its departure sequence…”

“Shit, the old bastard is getting away!”

A difficult choice lay before Amber.

It was like being in front of an operating room when the doctor suddenly rushes out and asks whether to save the mother or the child.

He could either go to the docking area to back up Major Randall and his team, or head to the port and try to stop the destroyer.

Amber felt a massive headache coming on, but after a moment of deliberation, he ultimately chose to support Randall and the others.

Whatever the case, dozens of lives were at stake over there, and Isabelle was there too.

If he wanted to escape in the end, he had to protect her.

“Let that bastard live a little longer…”

Amber consoled himself with this thought, then grabbed the wall grips and propelled himself toward the docking area.

Soon, Amber reached the exit of the docking area, which had dissolved into a chaotic mess.

The entire corridor was littered with broken weapons, shards of armor plating, and drifting pools of blood and severed limbs.

Randall and the rest of the assault team were pinned down at the exit, while the two HCPs were grappling with two other Imperial HCPs inside the docking area.

Their weapons had long been destroyed in the fight; the result of dueling with heavy plasma severing swords was that both blades would be shattered.

The four steel giants were now locked in a hand-to-hand brawl, and with every heavy punch from their opponents, various small parts from their frames were sent flying everywhere.

And right in front of Amber, a squad of Imperial soldiers carrying portable electromagnetic cannons were setting up their weapons against the bulkhead.

From the looks of it, these blood-crazed Imperial soldiers had forgotten the firing regulations within space stations and spaceports and were preparing to fire directly at the clustered assault team at the exit.

They would do so even if it meant tearing their fellow Imperial soldiers in the line of fire to shreds.

Amber, of course, wasn’t about to just watch them open fire. He activated the external triple-barreled multi-purpose grenade launcher mounted on his right leg.

Then, using the ballistic-assisted targeting, he fired three stun grenades, one at the electromagnetic cannon fire team, and the other two behind the Imperial soldiers engaged with the assault team.

Chapter 117: Cut and Run

Although combat exoskeletons possess basic shock and explosion-proof capabilities to handle the ever-changing and complex battlefield environment, this did not mean the personnel inside would be completely unaffected by a point-blank detonation of stun grenades.

This was especially true when the three stun grenades, launched from a grenade launcher, had their trajectories adjusted by Amber’s psionics moments before detonation, landing them in the most effective positions.

So, when these three can-sized programmable stun grenades exploded, the Imperial soldiers were still disoriented.

The fire team operating the portable electromagnetic cannon, in particular, was sent flying by the mid-air blast.

Before they could even react, Amber had closed the distance.

He dispatched one soldier with the combat spike mounted on his right arm, then slammed a psionic blast into the face of another Imperial soldier with his left hand.

Having taken down two in an instant, Amber picked up a chainsword dropped by a fallen soldier as the combat spike’s receiver cycled a new round, then brought the whirring weapon down on the last soldier.

Amber wasn’t particularly fond of chainswords. He felt they were more of a morale booster than anything else, far less clean and efficient than a combat spike.

“Guys just love pile drivers!”

That was a phrase Amber used to say often.

Moreover, while the chainsword had considerable killing power and intimidation factor, it still took some time to chew through the silicon carbide armor plates commonly equipped on exoskeletons.

If the teeth were badly worn, it could sometimes lead to the embarrassing situation of the blade getting stuck in an armor plate.

Of course, if it successfully sawed through, it meant certain death or grievous injury, but there were still risks.

On the other hand, one had to admit, the weapon was incredibly satisfying to use against unarmored targets.

But Amber had no time to be picky about weapons now. His concussion longsword had shattered in a previous fight, so he had to use whatever was available.

The chainsword in his hands performed admirably. Amid a deafening roar, it sawed through armor and flesh, cutting the last member of the electromagnetic cannon fire team in half at the waist.

The other Imperial soldiers, affected by the stun grenades, snapped out of their daze at the loud shriek of the chainsword.

They were greeted by the sight of Amber, covered in blood and gore, brandishing the chainsword as he charged toward them.

Once Amber joined the fray, the battle, which had been unfavorable for the Federation assault team, turned into a one-sided slaughter of the Imperial soldiers.

The prior engagement had been psionic user versus psionic user, where both sides were at least on the same level in terms of physical strength, reaction speed, and power, and both could use psionics.

But now, the confrontation was between a psionic user and ordinary humans. Their combat capabilities and various attributes were on completely different planes.

Even with the significant physical enhancements from their exoskeletons, in Amber’s eyes, they moved like a group of old men practicing Tai Chi in a park.

The Imperial soldiers’ counterattacks didn’t even touch Amber. He always managed to dodge their various weapons with the slightest of movements while simultaneously ramming his combat spike into the chest of the nearest target, punching a bloody, gaping hole through them.

“Everyone! Watch our rear!”

“A psionic user! It’s a psionic user!”

“Where’s the anti-psionic team?! Get them over here!”

Amid the Wilhelm screams of the panicking Imperial soldiers, Amber moved like a wolf among sheep. Not a single Imperial soldier present could last more than one exchange with him.

By now, his combat spike had gone through two six-round magazines.

He was currently pinning an Imperial soldier to the bulkhead with one hand. With his right, he ejected the empty magazine and slapped in the last one that popped out of his thigh compartment.

BANG!

Transforming into a relentless piledriving machine, Amber finished off the last Imperial soldier around him.

In the corridor behind him, every Imperial soldier who had come as reinforcements, including the fire team, had been eliminated.

The floating corpses, blood, and dismembered limbs painted a scene from hell.

The Imperial soldiers who had been blocking the assault team at the exit realized their retreat had been cut off by a psionic user and that all their reinforcements were dead.

And the only psionic user still standing in the corridor looked like a battle maniac, his body radiating a manifested red psionic pressure.

The morale of these Imperial soldiers instantly collapsed.

Amber didn’t even need to act further; the remaining members of the Federation assault team began their counterattack.

Amber bypassed the skirmish entirely, using his jetpack to fly directly toward the four HCPs engaged in close-quarters combat.

Although Amber was no anti-HCP specialist, in a situation where the HCPs’ armaments were severely restricted, he knew how to quickly disable these two Imperial HCPs.

In a zero-gravity environment, he could easily fly above them. The combat spike on his right arm, loaded with shaped-charge armor-piercing rounds, could also easily destroy an HCP’s plasma thruster array.

However, due to the risk of a quench in the superconducting battery stack, the gushing high-temperature plasma could burn through the docking area’s bulkhead in this enclosed space. The risk was simply too high.

So, Amber ultimately decided on a much safer approach.

“You two rookies! I’m going to disable the locomotion systems on these two Zealots. Watch your fire and mind the friendlies!”

“Roger, roger, Sir!”

The two pilots in their cockpits, drenched in sweat from the melee, heard Amber’s voice as if it were a divine melody.

What Amber did next was quite simple.

A level-four psionic user could already alter the properties of objects in the material world. Thus, Amber used his psionics to temporarily nullify the conductivity of the two HCPs’ knee-mounted electromagnetic universal joints and the electromagnetic muscle bundles in their legs.

This instantly caused the two Imperial Zealots’ legs to become as heavy and immobile as if they were filled with lead-laced concrete.

The assault team’s two rookie-piloted HCPs seized the opportunity, tearing off the arms of the two Zealots and kicking their electromagnetic universal joints until they snapped.

Finally, they used their onboard combat spikes to punch through the cockpits.

From this point on, the outcome of the battle was no longer in question.

Freed from their entanglement, the two Wasteland Wolves charged toward the exit area. Through IFF and pupil-lock, the pilots had their HCPs’ fire-control units lock onto a large number of Imperial soldiers. The laser point-defense turrets on the mechs’ heads began to flash at a high frequency.

Each flash left a scorched, bloody hole in the head of a targeted Imperial soldier.

When the last of the intercepting Imperial soldiers fell, a temporary calm returned to the car docking area.

The intensity of this close-quarters battle had been high. Amber glanced around. The only members of the assault team still standing and able to fight were 13 people, aside from the two HCPs.

“Patch up your wounds and take some nutrient supplements. We don’t have much time.”

Seeing some of the wounded floating in the air, struggling and groaning, Amber added another order.

“Those of you who are uninjured or lightly wounded, check on the others. If they can be saved, give them emergency treatment. If they can’t… give them a quick end.”

This decision was not made out of cruelty on Amber’s part.

Under the current circumstances, the assault team simply lacked the means to rescue the severely wounded.

Not to mention that in close-quarters combat, the gravely injured were usually missing limbs or had their stomachs torn open by chainswords.

Such injuries couldn’t even be transported down to the surface via the car.

The others knew that Amber’s order was a painful necessity. There was truly no better option at the moment.

After some emergency treatment, they managed to save a total of eight Mobile Infantry soldiers whose injuries weren’t as severe.

However, they were missing hands or legs and were certainly in no condition to continue fighting.

So, Amber had them temporarily secured in the docking area, linked together with safety tethers, and left the two HCPs to stand guard.

After all, these big guys couldn’t participate in the upcoming assault on the core control center.

With most of the garrison already eliminated, the core control center had few defenders. Amber simply activated his psionic shield and launched a single charge, breaking through their defensive line.

In pure infantry combat where high-powered weapons were unusable, the advantages of a psionic user were magnified infinitely. The battle was often decided the moment it began.

After eliminating the guards, Randall immediately rushed into the core control center and threw himself at a console to begin resetting the IFF system with his authorization.

At the same time, he opened the transport corridor from the docking area to the port, allowing the two HCPs on guard duty to come through later.

Just then, in the direction of the fleet battle between the Federation and the Empire, another brilliant river of light swept across the starry sky.

The screens in the control center displayed a live feed from the naval port’s integrated observation equipment. Everyone instinctively gathered in front of a screen, so shocked by the sight that they were at a loss for words.

“Did The Focusing Rainbow fire again?”

Amber’s brow furrowed. He was now fairly certain the Federation fleet couldn’t hold out.

If the Federation fleet commander was rational enough, he should be finding a way to disengage immediately and leave this area.

They needed to regroup behind the shadow of a planet to avoid being picked off from extreme range by The Focusing Rainbow.

With the battle having reached this stage, the Federation fleet had little hope of turning the tables in the short term, unless they could bring in more capital ship fleets.

The arrival of the man-made Celestial Fortress not only demonstrated the Star Dragon Empire’s determination to seize the Robert IV star system but also gave them a decisive strategic advantage.

Such a strategic fortress could deploy several gravitational wave radar antennae, each 50 kilometers in diameter, enabling it to monitor the general movements of enemy fleets within the star system from extreme distances.

It could also detect spatial collapse phenomena, providing early warnings of enemy fleet FTL jumps.

Amber had used this tactic more than once in his previous life.

By exploiting their absolute superiority in long-range detection, they would identify an enemy fleet’s FTL exit point and then sweep it with The Focusing Rainbow the instant the fleet dropped out of warp.

“The Federation fleet is well and truly on the back foot now.”

“Wait… they wouldn’t be forced to use that, would they? I hope the fleet commander has some decency.”

A sudden thought of a unique Federation strategic weapon gave Amber an instant headache.

At the same time, the communications specialist who had fought alongside Amber the entire time and survived spoke up on the comms channel with a confused tone.

“Sir, the navy ships that were supposed to coordinate with our assault on Lansford Port agreed to communicate after we retook the core control center, but they haven’t responded to any of our communication requests!”

“What?”

Amber floated over to the communications specialist in confusion and looked at the communication terminal screen in front of him. He saw that all communication requests sent to the Federation Navy ships were marked ‘unanswered.’

The Federation Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla and several transport ships, which were supposed to dock and deploy troops after Amber’s team regained control of Lansford Port, were completely ignoring their calls.

A terrible premonition bloomed in Amber’s chest. He immediately turned and drifted toward Randall.

“Major, can you locate that Federation Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla in the nearby orbit with the optical equipment?”

“I’ll try. What? Is something wrong?”

“Something might be very wrong.”

Under Randall’s control, another set of screens in the control center displayed the area around Lansford Port.

After continuous searching and zooming with the optical sensor lens, the flotilla’s movements were successfully captured.

At this moment, these warships, which should have been entering Lansford Port, had already passed the naval port and were heading for the far side of the planet.

Judging by the bright blue glow from their plasma thruster arrays, it was clear the ships were accelerating.

Amber’s heart sank. This Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla clearly had no intention of docking. Their current maneuvers were a clear indication they were using the planet’s rotation to accelerate and break orbit.

Thump!

Seeing this, Amber slammed his fist against a bulkhead in the control center, enraged.

“Damn it all to hell. The Navy’s running. We’ve been sold out.”

His words plunged the control center into silence. Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

They had fought tooth and nail to get up the space elevator and lost so many people to successfully retake control, only to find their friendly forces had abandoned them.

“How could this happen?”

“Dammit, why!”

“For shame! The Navy should be ashamed!”

The silence in the control center was broken as one of the Mobile Infantry soldiers began to curse angrily, and the room once again filled with noise.

The survivors flipped up their faceplates and began to loudly curse the fleeing navy ships.

But cursing could only provide temporary relief; it couldn’t solve the crisis they now faced.

Eventually, the Mobile Infantry soldiers, including Randall and Isabelle, naturally turned their gazes to Amber.

To them, this mysterious Warrant Officer who had led them all this way had already become their backbone.

Looking at the hopeful gazes of the crowd, Amber sighed as if accepting his fate.

“Uh… everyone calm down. I’ll figure something out.”

Chapter 118: Stay or Go?

In another time and place, gamers, including Amber, had once summarized the four main technical characteristics of the Federation military as ‘Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain.’

They were, respectively:

Retreating as swift as the wind.

Reinforcements as slow as a forest.

Stealing credit and bullying the weak with the aggression of fire.

When friendly forces are in trouble, they are as immovable as a mountain.

These four characteristics almost perfectly encapsulated the Federation military’s stellar performance on the battlefield.

And today, as the Federation Navy’s Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla hastily lit up its plasma thruster array and withdrew from orbit, Amber felt it truly embodied the essence of ‘Wind’ and ‘Mountain.’

Of course, the Federation military was not without its excellent soldiers, like Brigadier General Dowell, Lieutenant Colonel Dallas, and Blake.

Unfortunately, this army was filled with far more degenerates like Commander Adam.

It was a veritable constellation of scoundrels.

That the Federation’s military could be this rotten and still coexist with the Star Dragon Empire for so many years could only mean one thing.

The Imperial military wasn’t much better.

Both sides were quite rotten, just not in the same ways. From a a more specialized perspective, there were still some differences.

In the outer space of Robert IV, at Lansford Port.

“Alright, this is the situation.”

Amber stood in the middle of the control center and spread his hands.

“As you can all see, the naval ships that were supposed to dock and support us have, for some unknown reason, made an emergency withdrawal.

Given the current circumstances, it’s highly unlikely they’ll be back anytime soon.”

After Amber spoke, the atmosphere in the control center became incredibly oppressive.

“However.”

As the others looked back at him, Amber continued:

“Before Lieutenant Colonel Dallas left, he told me that if anything unexpected happened, I shouldn’t return to the surface. It’s a dead end down there, too.”

The men looked at each other, unsure of what Amber was planning. He didn’t pause, continuing his explanation.

“He hoped that if I had the chance to get out of here, I would take you all with me and leave this star system.”

“Leave? Warrant Officer, do you mean leave the star system, and desert the Federation?” a bold Mobile Infantryman asked, raising his hand. He was one of the first survivors Amber had rescued from the battle on the valley floor.

“That’s right. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not taking you to defect to the Empire.”

At these words, the worried expressions on many of the soldiers’ faces vanished.

“Whether it’s the Empire or the Federation, their ruling classes are no good in my book.

So, I plan on heading to the Thousand Stars Empire, the realm of the elves, to try my luck.

Open a company, make some money, and then… you know, clubs, models, the works…”

Before speaking, Amber had sent Isabelle a text message asking if he could bring a few more people with him.

After sending back a series of ellipsis, Isabelle had finally agreed.

“Amber, you remember you owe me a favor~”

And now, seeing the looks of “Really? I don’t believe you” on some of the soldiers’ faces, Amber added:

“Don’t think I’m just some meathead who only knows how to fight. I actually have a good head for business.

And I’m not forcing any of you to come with me. I’m just fulfilling my promise to Lieutenant Colonel Dallas. He’s a good officer.”

As Amber finished, the people in the control center began talking amongst themselves.

It seemed Amber’s proposal was now the best option available.

The garrison on Robert IV, and indeed the entire Federation military presence there, consisted overwhelmingly of soldiers from various star systems across the Federation, with very few ‘locals’ like Blake.

They had answered the Federation’s call to arms and traveled far from home, their main goal being to ensure their families could live well with the help of the ‘overseas military personnel stipend.’

“Sir, if we go with you, will there be any price to pay or consequences?”

The one who raised his hand this time was the lone communications specialist.

“Hmm… the biggest price is that if you leave with me, you won’t be able to see or contact your families for a long time.

As far as I know, only the families of soldiers killed or missing in action receive the corresponding benefits.

But if the Federation finds out you’re still alive, you’ll probably be branded as deserters.

Although what I’m planning to do isn’t really that different from deserting.”

Amber didn’t hide anything, laying out the consequences and costs with complete honesty.

For him, leaving the Federation carried absolutely no psychological burden. In his heart, his true homeland would always be a certain great eastern nation on Earth.

As for the Federation? What was that?

But for these Federation soldiers, the situation was different.

Although in an era where humanity had scattered and flourished throughout the cosmos, people’s sense of national identity was far weaker than it had been during the Blue Star period.

But no matter what, the soldiers were used to having “the Federation” on their lips every day. Facing an act of desertion like this still required a certain amount of mental preparation.

Amber didn’t rush them, letting the soldiers in the control center think it over carefully.

Major Randall walked over to his side. The highest-ranking Federation officer present looked at him with a solemn expression.

“Amber, are you really going to the Thousand Stars Empire to start a company? Can you actually make money?”

“…”

Amber would never have guessed that Randall, with his grim-faced demeanor, would approach him just to ask this.

“Major Randall, why are you so concerned about this?”

“Isn’t it obvious? If Tom and I are really going to go with you, I have to make sure you can actually earn money, right? And confirm if there will really be clubs and models in the future?”

“Wait, man, you’re a Navy Major, right? At your rank, are you sure you want to come with me?”

“Hmph, what good is a Navy Major stationed in a backwater star system like this? If I really had connections in the core administrative systems, I wouldn’t have ended up here…”

Randall snorted coldly and continued:

“Besides, if the Robert system is truly lost, the Federation would love for all of us to die here. That way, they can use us as propaganda material for war mobilization.”

“Then what about your family? You’re not planning to see them?”

“What family? My parents died long ago. All I have now are a few mistresses.”

“…”

Although he didn’t know why this Navy Major was so determined to board his pirate ship, Amber had to admit that if this guy came along, he would indeed be a great help to his future plans.

Meanwhile, the other Mobile Infantrymen had also started to state their intentions one after another.

To Amber’s surprise, all of these grunts intended to go with him.

“Hold on, I was actually just being polite a moment ago.”

Amber emphasized the consequences once again.

“Think it through, everyone. Coming with me might be a road of no return. Being branded a deserter by the Federation would be the least of your worries.”

“Warrant Officer, you’ve led us all the way here. You have to see it through to the end, right?”

“Exactly! I’m willing to go with you. The Federation can take care of my family!”

“Yeah, after being stationed in this Godforsaken place for the Federation for so long, I want to see what those clubs and models are all about too…”

Although Amber really wanted to tell them that startups are risky and partnerships require caution, as a psionic user, he could clearly feel the trust these grunts had in him. These men truly believed he would lead them to survival.

Just as Amber was about to say something, alarms suddenly blared throughout the control center.

Major Randall, who had just been fantasizing about elven models, snapped back to his sharp, focused state and immediately floated to the console.

“Warning, unidentified vessels approaching. Distance: 33,251 kilometers.”

Amber floated over as well, only to realize that Randall had already finished resetting Lansford’s IFF system.

The moment the system reset was complete, it detected a small-scale Imperial fleet approaching the military port.

“Amber, what do we do? Should I have the defense units open fire?”

Chapter 119: Victory Means Clubs and Models

Faced with Randall’s question, Amber did not answer directly.

He pondered for a moment before speaking.

“Don’t open fire. We can’t let them realize we’ve taken back the naval port.”

“Are you sure?” Randall was hesitant.

“What if they plan to enter the port?”

“Let them through. Grant them entry.”

Amber turned to look at the worried Randall and smiled.

“Besides, we were planning to leave anyway, weren’t we?”

“That’s true, but how do you plan on leaving?”

As he spoke, Randall opened the port’s berthing interface.

After the Federation combined fleet had entered the field, all Imperial warships, aside from those undergoing repairs in the naval port, had already left port to rejoin their fleet before the battle.

So, the entirety of Lansford Port was currently filled with crippled destroyers and frigates.

These warships were either still undergoing repairs, or their crews had been transferred to habitat ships for rest and had not yet had a chance to return to the port.

“Simple. We find an Imperial frigate, leave while this incoming Imperial fleet is docking, and then jump to a safe area.”

“A frigate can indeed be operated by a small crew if the shipboard control AI manages most of the subsystems, but are you sure you know how to fly an Imperial ship?”

“Eh, we’re all human. They’re all more or less the same.”

Amber waved his hand dismissively, then found the Confessor-class frigate he had already set his sights on in the docking list.

According to its maintenance records, the ship’s deflector shield generator had overloaded and shut down during a previous battle, causing its side to be pierced by two penetrator rods fired from a heavy electromagnetic cannon.

Fortunately, it wasn’t sunk on the spot. Thanks to the desperate efforts of its damage control crew, it held on until it reached Lansford Port.

The surviving crew members were sent to a habitat ship for treatment and rest, and the two gaping holes in the ship had also been repaired during this time.

Although it looked like it had two patches on its port and starboard sides, it was definitely still serviceable.

According to the personnel transfer records Lilith had pulled, the crew was supposed to have returned to the ship in the next couple of days.

But because of the battle against the Federation fleet, their return-to-ship procedures had been temporarily halted.

This gave Amber a perfect opportunity to move in.

“No time to hesitate. This is the one.”

Amber pushed himself off the console and floated over to the other Mobile Infantry, clapping his hands.

“Alright, since you’ve all decided to come with me, let’s get a move on.

“Prepare for combat and head to Berth 025 to board the ship.

“Communications specialist, notify the two HCPs in the docking area to bring the wounded and rendezvous with us at the berth.”

Under Amber’s command, the group wasted no time and immediately sprang into action.

Isabelle, however, slowly floated in front of him. She lifted her tactical faceplate, a slight smile on her face.

“I didn’t realize you were such a kind person.”

“Kind is a stretch. At most, I’m just seeing things through to the end. Besides, once these guys get to elven territory, they’ll be in a new and unfamiliar place. In the end, won’t they just have to come work for me?”

“Wait, I thought you were joking. Are you really going to start a company in the Thousand Stars Empire?”

“I wasn’t joking. The business environments in the Thousand Stars Empire and the Business Commonwealth are much better than in the Federation and the Empire. But the Business Commonwealth is just a bit too far, so for now, I can only consider developing in the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Amber sounded serious, his tone completely different from his usual joking manner.

What he didn’t tell Isabelle, however, was that the company he planned to start might not be a commercial company in the traditional sense.

“It seems you truly want to escape the control of the Federation and the Empire.”

Isabelle tilted her head, looking into Amber’s eyes with a smile.

“Fine. If I can’t return to the Empire, I’ll just come crash with you, hahaha.”

“Oh? You’re taking it pretty well now. What? You’re no longer thinking about serving Her Highness the Princess with undying loyalty?”

In the end, Isabelle didn’t give a direct answer to his question.

Amber understood. After all, she was born into an Imperial noble family. Some deeply ingrained ideas in her mind couldn’t be erased so easily.

Watching Isabelle’s departing figure, Amber muttered to himself.

“Looks like she needs another push.”

Once everyone in the assault team was on the same page about escaping with Amber, the team’s overall efficiency rose to a new level.

Meanwhile, after retaking control of the naval port, Major Randall immediately lowered the blast doors in many corridors, cutting off and trapping the Imperial soldiers who were rushing from other areas of the port to provide support.

This allowed Amber’s group to reach the port quickly and without obstruction.

The HCPs, piloted by the two rookie pilots, had already arrived ahead of them, towing the wounded like a string of kites.

At the same time, the two had finally shown some initiative, using their HCPs’ iron fists and point-defense lasers to clear out the few enemies in the port.

These two pilots from the South Continent Federation Army quickly learned of Amber’s plans from the other soldiers.

And what humans excel at, really, is going with the flow.

When they found that the other members of the assault team were willing to run off with Amber…

After about a minute of difficult internal struggle, the two rookie pilots finally decided to go to the Thousand Stars Empire to see some elf models.

The entire assault team, along with the wounded, quickly arrived at Berth 025.

Docked here was the ship they would use for their escape: a Star Dragon Empire Confessor-class frigate.

Like other Imperial warships, this frigate’s hull bore its name and hull number in gilt lettering—SENY-FF-965, Glory of the Past.

And this ship, in the final stages of its repairs, was indeed an excellent escape vehicle.

Not only because it was in top-level maintenance mode, meaning its shipboard control AI was dormant, giving Lilith an opening to secretly replace it.

But also, because the crew was scheduled to be recalled for combat duty within two days, the fusion reactor had already been inspected, confirmed to be undamaged, and activated for preheating.

This saved Amber and his team a great deal of effort, allowing them to start the ship as quickly as possible.

Moreover, once Lilith replaced the shipboard control AI, Amber would be able to control the frigate with a skeleton crew.

Aside from the helmsman, gunnery chief, Tactical Information Coordinator, and radar, navigation, and communications operators he appointed to the bridge, the rest of the group would wait in the crew compartment and get some rest.

When Amber led everyone onto the bridge, these “country bumpkins” who had never set foot on an Imperial warship all let out cries of “Whoa!”

Isabelle also played along perfectly, feigning an expression of utter shock.

“This interior… it’s too luxurious.”

“Is this really a frigate? Not some private vessel?”

“Holy shit, you guys, look at the captain’s chair. Damn.”

Amber ignored the chatter on the comms channel and floated to the ship’s starmap, inputting the coordinates sent by Isabelle’s elf friend.

According to the shortest route displayed on the starmap, the frigate could easily reach the location in a single jump.

And the location was in the deep space at the edge of the star system, perfect for an escape.

“Master, I have obtained full command of the ship and have severed all communications, datalinks, and other information exchange channels with the Imperial fleet!”

Lilith’s voice rang out. The AI’s Electronic Warfare capabilities had improved by leaps and bounds during this period.

Her infiltration speed against conventional units was getting faster and faster. Amber felt that if he could get Lilith a server array, she would become even more outrageous.

“Understood. What’s the position of the Imperial fleet approaching the port?”

“Master, they are about to arrive at the port. These ships have already submitted a docking request. As you instructed, I have approved their request.”

“Then let’s start this ship up and begin our departure procedures.”

Sitting in the captain’s chair on the bridge, Amber felt a strange sense of familiarity.

“Back in the business again.”

Chapter 120: How Many Steps to Get a Frigate Out of Port?

“Welcome aboard, Captain~”

Lilith’s virtual image appeared on the holographic projection platform on the bridge.

This time, her avatar wasn’t the schoolgirl uniform from before, but a sci-fi pilot’s suit.

Of course, in Amber’s view, the suit was essentially a one-piece leather jumpsuit, just with a lot of meaningless decorations added to give it a high-tech feel.

While this Imperial Confessor-class frigate had been in a dormant state, Lilith had completely taken over its systems. The original shipboard control AI had been formatted until not a single byte remained.

The crew on the bridge was no longer surprised by their own control personality appearing and respectfully addressing Amber.

After all, compared to the other things Warrant Officer Amber had done, hacking and replacing a shipboard control AI was a rather unremarkable feat.

“Lia.”

From the captain’s chair, Amber looked at Lilith’s virtual image. To be safe, he had given her a temporary alias as a disguise.

“What’s the reactor temperature?”

“One hundred and thirty million Kelvin. Estimated fifteen minutes to reach the ship’s operational temperature.”

“Fifteen minutes…” Amber tapped a few times on the right armrest of the captain’s chair. What looked like a decorative carving was actually a touch panel.

Once they knew how, Imperial captains could perform many quick operations from here.

Only an ‘admiral’ like Amber, who had seen countless ships, could adapt to the Empire’s rather eccentric designs.

A traditional Federation captain would have been at a loss for a while.

At Amber’s command, a miniature map of Lansford Port and the surrounding airspace was projected.

Through the connection between the docked ship and the naval port network, and with Major Randall’s authorization, Amber could check the port’s status in real-time from the ship.

At this moment, the small Imperial fleet that had just appeared had completed its deceleration and was beginning its docking procedure after their request was approved.

One cruiser, two destroyers, and two frigates.

In terms of size, it wasn’t quite large enough to be called a fleet or a squadron.

Amber guessed these ships were likely the survivors of the Empire’s garrison fleet that had just engaged the Federation squadron in orbit.

Now that they saw the Federation’s Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla had retreated, they had circled back.

According to the system’s estimates, the first enemy ship would also complete its docking procedure in fifteen minutes.

If these warships discovered something was wrong in the port and tried to intercept the frigate Amber was on, they would be in serious trouble.

“We’re out of time. Initiate the emergency startup procedure.”

Amber made his final decision, then skillfully brought up the monitoring windows for the Confessor-class frigate’s various subsystems.

“Yes, Captain. Beginning plasma beam injection into the fusion reactor.”

On ships equipped with a control personality, the degree of automation was actually quite high.

Taking this Confessor-class frigate as an example, it could theoretically be operated with just a captain, a helmsman, and radar and navigation operators.

Add a gunner, and it could perform basic combat.

If the shipboard control AI’s control authority was set to maximum, just one person on the bridge was enough to keep the frigate on a standby patrol in planetary orbit.

This was a common tactic for small player guilds in his previous life.

These small groups, with few members and limited guild strength, often consisted of a dozen or so members and a single small frigate or destroyer.

Besides controlling the ship during daily operations, players also had to serve as marines for ground combat missions.

In such cases, the guild’s vice-president would typically stay on the ship with the shipboard control AI, maneuvering it on standby in orbit.

The president would lead the others to the planet’s surface for combat.

Sometimes, a particularly skilled and daring vice-president would even lower the ship’s orbit to its limit and fire a few missiles or plasma torpedoes at the ground, providing “improvised low-orbit support.”

“Injecting plasma beam… Magnetic confinement stable… Fusion reactor temperature rise rate within safe limits…”

Lilith’s voice pulled Amber’s wandering thoughts back to the present.

As the fusion reactor startup progress bar on the monitoring data reached the end, Lilith spoke in sync:

“Captain, the fusion reactor has reached fusion state. Startup complete!”

“Excellent. Cut the power circuit from the superconducting battery stack. From now on, the main reactor will supply power to all systems. Bring all systems online. Start the plasma thruster array.”

As if suddenly remembering something, Amber quickly added:

“Almost forgot! Disconnect from the berth immediately!”

Amber slapped his forehead. It had been a while since he had captained a ship, and he was getting rusty with some of the procedures.

As the fixed restraints and various cables connecting the frigate to the berth detached one by one, the Imperial frigate was completely free.

Attitude thrusters all over the hull hissed, spitting out small jets of blue light under the guidance of the adaptive attitude maintenance system, stabilizing the ship and preventing it from colliding with the fixed structures on either side of the berth.

The ship was currently in “in-port maneuvering mode.” In this mode, the plasma thruster array at the stern was only preheating and not generating thrust.

Movement within the port was primarily handled by the attitude thrusters.

Amber looked toward the helmsman’s station on the bridge. Major Randall was wearing an assisted integrated headset, nervously making adjustments on the control panel.

“Major Randall, you can begin pulling out of the berth.”

“Understood. Hold on tight, everyone. I haven’t piloted a ship in almost ten years, and to top it off, this is an Imperial warship…”

The Major’s voice trembled. In his vision was a third-person view synthesized from external sensors.

The Confessor-class frigate was in the center of the view, and as he turned his head, the perspective shifted accordingly, allowing him to observe the ship’s surroundings.

Of course, this kind of integrated headset was generally only used when entering or leaving port where space was tight.

Once in outer space, the helmsman typically piloted based on the ship’s parameters directly.

Randall shifted the lever on the throttle control to his right, moving it from ‘Stop’ to ‘Dead Slow Astern’.

Although ships still retained a device called the ‘engine order telegraph’ like in traditional navies, its function had long since changed from ‘relaying commands to the engine room’ to directly controlling the power of the main thruster array and the bow’s attitude control thrusters.

Fully automatic, easy to drive, and user-friendly.

The people on the bridge felt only a slight lurch as the view in the panoramic viewscreen began to recede.

Randall continuously turned his head, checking the ship’s surroundings. When the ship was about three-quarters of the way out of the berth, he immediately turned the controls and began to reverse toward the starboard aft.

Seeing this, Amber’s heart leaped into his throat.

Under normal circumstances, this was a clear procedural violation.

Normally, a ship was required to completely exit the berth before adjusting its orientation.

But in this emergency, there was no time to follow the safety regulations to the letter.

However, Amber wasn’t really concerned about the violation itself, but whether Randall had the skill to pull off such a maneuver.

Whether it was because the Major hadn’t completely lost his piloting skills or he was just lucky, the bow cleared the port side of the berth by a hair’s breadth.

In the captain’s chair, Amber let out a sigh of relief. If there had been anyone else who could pilot the ship, he wouldn’t have let Randall, who hadn’t touched the controls in a decade, take the helm.

“Berth cleared and orientation adjusted. All ship units and subsystem parameters meet departure requirements.”

“Port control personality has approved the departure request. Outbound channel 04 is open.”

Lilith’s voice rang out on the bridge. On the holographic projection panel in front of Amber, all of the ship’s various stats turned green.

Suppressing a trace of excitement, Amber calmly said:

“Major, maintain in-port maneuvering mode. Dead slow ahead.”

Chapter 121: The Pursuer

In Amber’s plan, if they controlled their speed just right, they could pilot the frigate out of the harbor at the exact moment the last Imperial warship was entering.

Then, they would run the plasma thruster array at full power, rapidly accelerating the ship to escape velocity.

This would allow them to break free from the planet’s gravity and travel into outer space, while simultaneously reaching the minimum speed required to activate the jump drive.

Since Amber had Lilith hack the frigate before they boarded, cutting off its communications module and deactivating its active signal transmitter, it would be very difficult for the Imperial fleet to find them once they successfully completed the jump.

But sometimes, things just don’t go according to plan.

As the frigate passed through the airlock zone and cleared the port entirely, Amber, before he even had a chance to feel relieved, saw another Imperial frigate in the distant entry channel that had not yet fully docked.

The other ship had obviously seen them as well. The signal lights on its flank began to flash, and Lilith immediately decoded their message:

“Frigate 965, why are you leaving port?”

“Any response from Bard?”

On the bridge of the frigate Swift Strike, SENY-FF-1142, Captain Crane was questioning his communications officer.

“Report, Captain. Captain Bard’s ship isn’t responding to our light signals. Nothing on shortwave, neutrino, or even the laser comms channel. It seems their communications module isn’t online.”

“What’s going on with that guy?”

Crane frowned. He and Bard, the captain of the Glory of the Past, had been classmates at the academy, and they were very close.

While the Glory of the Past was undergoing a major overhaul in the naval port, Crane had heard that the Federation’s combined fleet had dispatched a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla to try and reclaim it.

He had promptly volunteered to remain with the garrison fleet to prevent them from succeeding.

Now, having finally repelled the Federation fleet, the surviving ships of his garrison were preparing to return to port for emergency repairs.

He had also heard that Captain Bard and his crew had finished their recuperation and were preparing to rejoin the garrison fleet aboard their ship.

He had been looking forward to fighting alongside his old friend, but now he saw the familiar ship suddenly leaving port, so he’d decided to ask what was happening.

As the captain of a combat vessel, Crane’s intuition was sharp. With the Glory of the Past remaining silent, he already sensed something was amiss.

“Halt docking procedures. Helmsman, adjust our heading. Approach 965.”

“Captain, they’ve halted their docking procedure. From the way they’re turning their bow, it looks like they intend to approach us.”

At the Tactical Information Coordinator’s station, Ensign Tom, back to his old trade, was quickly getting the hang of the Imperial frigate’s operating system.

“Tsk. They’re so vigilant.”

Amber frowned. He had to admit the combat proficiency of the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group’s crews was rather high.

Of course, such outstanding captains and crews would soon be consumed by the war with the Federation and the subsequent Imperial civil war.

By the time the Star Dragon Empire completely fractured, the quality of the naval crews in the duchies that carved up the Imperial Royal Navy would be nowhere near this high.

“Ignore them. Maintain radio silence.

Navigator, correct our heading for the preset jump coordinates.

Helmsman, speed two.”

Amber calmly issued one command after another. He knew that in a situation like this, composure was paramount.

A blinding white light flared from the main thruster array at the stern of the Glory of the Past. Now completely clear of the port, the frigate shot forward as if shoved by an invisible giant, accelerating rapidly.

“Captain! They’re accelerating! We’re detecting spatial fluctuations from their jump drive! It looks like they’re going to jump!”

Hearing his Tactical Information Coordinator, Crane knew something was definitely wrong.

Furthermore, he had just learned from the internal network’s personnel transfer notices that his old friend had not even arrived at Lansford Port yet.

“Helmsman! Adjust our axis! Increase speed and get on their tail! Communications, report the situation to friendly forces in the port!”

“C-Captain, communications are down! Lansford Port is hitting us with an electronic warfare attack!”

The communications officer sounded panicked as he frantically tried to isolate the electronic warfare virus flooding the comms channel from Lansford Port and switch to a backup line.

“How could this be? Has the Federation already retaken the port?”

Captain Crane’s guess was close to the truth, but he never would have imagined that the Federation soldiers who had captured the port were now aboard the very frigate he was pursuing.

The electronic warfare attack from Lansford Port was merely a ‘little surprise’ Amber had left them before his departure.

“Gunnery Chief! Can you open fire in time to intercept?”

“Negative, Captain! We cut power to the weapon systems during the docking procedure, as per regulations. By the time we reconnect them, it’ll be too late to fire!”

Thump!

Crane slammed his fist on the armrest of his captain’s chair, cursing himself for not realizing something was wrong sooner.

The two frigates were still some distance apart. Not only was it too late to fire or launch HCPs, but even if he wanted to ram them, their closing velocity was far from sufficient.

“Wait a minute… they’re going to jump?!”

A sudden flash of inspiration struck the Imperial captain.

“All hands, battle stations! Navigator, prepare for a coordinated jump!”

Hearing the captain’s command, the navigator’s eyes lit up as he immediately began working at his console.

A coordinated jump was a capability possessed by all warships equipped with jump drives.

Both the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation often required multiple ships to jump simultaneously during fleet operations.

Sometimes, to maintain the secrecy of a destination, a fleet commander would not distribute the precise jump coordinates. In such cases, individual ships could use their jump drive control systems to lock onto the spatial fluctuations generated by another ship’s drive, allowing them to perform a ‘coordinated jump’ without explicit guidance.

While the Swift Strike’s jump drive control system could only lock onto the spatial fluctuation signature of a single frigate, which would result in a less precise coordinated jump…

…and the distance between the two ships after exiting the jump could be thousands of kilometers, it would at least allow Crane to keep up with Amber’s ship.

Aboard the Glory of the Past, Amber’s crew had pushed the main thruster array to full power and had now reached the minimum speed required for a jump.

He gave the order to jump without hesitation.

As the jump drive activated, red and white lights bloomed at the ship’s bow and stern.

Just then, however, Tom reported to Amber that the pursuing Imperial frigate had also activated its jump drive.

“A coordinated jump? Quick thinking.”

As the thought crossed Amber’s mind, the Glory of the Past seemed to stretch, ‘drilling’ into a spatial rift that tore open before its bow.

While in the jump, everyone on the bridge lost their sense of time.

The panoramic viewscreen displayed a bizarre, kaleidoscopic scene.

An unknown amount of time passed before the frigate exited the jump, emerging from the strange dimension through a spatial fissure.

The first thing that greeted them was a blinding glare, and Lilith quickly adjusted the light intake on the external sensors.

Then, everyone saw it: a massive star that took up nearly the entire panoramic viewscreen.

Isabelle’s elf friend had given them coordinates near Robert-1, the primary star of the Robert system.

While everyone was still taking in the spectacular sight, Amber’s commands echoed across the bridge.

“Lia! Go to silent running! Retract the radiator panels and temporarily shut down all heat dissipation systems!”

“Helmsman! Shut down the main thruster array! Execute an emergency axis adjustment, point our stern at Robert-1, and hold that position!”

“Gunnery! Activate the weapon systems and await my command!”

Chapter 122: 93.47%

In Amber’s own estimation, his frigate should have entered the jump nearly a minute faster than their pursuer.

This was mainly because the enemy had to spend a significant amount of time building up speed before activating their jump drive.

And that interval of less than a minute was enough for the roles of hunter and prey to be reversed.

The Glory of the Past, originally the prey being pursued, had now taken the initiative, hiding itself within the light radiation emitted by Robert-1.

It had become the hunter, stalking the Swift Strike.

Even without activating the long-wave radar, they could find the exceptionally conspicuous target against the cosmic background simply by using infrared sensors to scan the location of the spatial collapse.

According to Lilith’s calculations, based on the two ships’ relative positions before the jump, there was a 93.47% probability that the pursuing Swift Strike would appear in the hemisphere their ship was currently facing.

This also gave Amber and his crew a 93.47% chance of spotting the target first.

First to detect, first to fire. In space combat, this would magnify their advantage immensely.

As for the remaining 6.53% probability, that was a matter beyond humanity’s current ability to control.

After all, humanity still hadn’t fully grasped the principles behind the jump drive, which had been excavated from ancient ruins.

“Gunnery, load the heavy particle cannon with a standard mass of metallic bismuth, single-shot firing mode! Heavy electromagnetic cannons, load alloy penetrator rods. Be ready to deliver the finishing blow with the electromagnetic cannons immediately after the heavy particle cannon fires.”

“Remember! Aim for the fusion reactor in the enemy’s midsection!”

“Yes, Captain!”

At Amber’s command, the Glory of the Past began rapidly adjusting its attitude. The ship’s weapon systems activated, and the gunner frantically followed instructions, preparing to fire.

Of all the personnel who had boarded the ship, only Randall, Tom, and Isabelle, besides Amber himself, had any experience with warship controls, but none of them were familiar with naval gunnery.

So Amber had no choice but to grab the Mobile Infantry soldier with the best aim and put him in the gunner’s station, which was situated on the ship’s central axis along with the helmsman’s and captain’s chairs.

A warship’s gunner’s station was typically fixed firmly to the bridge floor, unable to move, ensuring the gunner’s orientation remained aligned with the ship’s axis.

After putting on the specialized full-coverage gunnery helmet, pressing the pedals, and gripping the joystick…

…this gunner would temporarily gain supreme control over the ship’s attitude during firing, using the eye-tracking aim to adjust the ship’s axis and ultimately complete the shot.

Compared to the other stations on the bridge, the gunner’s position was one with both an extremely high skill ceiling and an extremely low skill floor.

So low, in fact, that this Mobile Infantry soldier had already figured out the basics of the job using the ship’s built-in ‘Quick Start Tutorial’ during the time it took to leave its berth, exit the port, accelerate, and enter the jump.

With Lilith’s assistance, all he really had to do was control the main cannon’s beam, aim at the target, and fire.

The frigate Amber was on, like Captain Crane’s pursuing vessel, was a Confessor-class frigate designed by the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy Design Bureau.

At 382 meters long with a mass of 840,000 tons, it was the most numerous ship class currently in service with the Imperial Royal Navy.

In terms of armament, this small, high-speed frigate’s main weapons consisted of only a single frigate-grade heavy particle cannon on the bow, and two 50-meter-class heavy electromagnetic cannons mounted on either side of the bow.

In addition, it had two high-energy laser emitters and two small charged particle cannons distributed along the hull.

Of course, it also had the deflector shield generator that was essential for all combat vessels.

And a hangar that could carry two HCPs.

A warship like the Confessor-class frigate, with its less-than-formidable firepower, was almost relegated to the category of a combat support vessel in the Imperial Royal Navy’s order of battle.

In large-scale fleet battles, the greatest role of a Confessor-class was to use its heavy particle and charged particle cannons to intercept solid projectiles, plasma torpedoes, and thermonuclear missiles fired by enemy warships.

In such scenarios, a large number of Confessors would act as point-defense ships, forming a defensive screen for the fleet.

In peacetime, these small ships were more often used for patrols and dealing with pirates or civilian vessels.

As two frigates of the same class belonging to the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, the Glory of the Past and the Swift Strike were virtually identical in terms of ship parameters, fusion reactor output, and configuration.

Therefore, if Amber could truly achieve first detection and first strike, it was entirely possible for him to sink the enemy ship in a single blow.

“Captain! Spatial collapse detected! The pursuing frigate is coming out!”

“Acknowledged. All hands, prepare for combat.”

Amber replied in a low voice. After a moment’s thought, he opened a channel to the Hangar and added:

“Prep squad, get one of the Imperial HCPs in the hangar ready for launch. Also, prepare a G-suit. You can find the relevant operation manuals in the hangar.”

As the prep squad received the order and, under the direction of their squad leader, exasperatedly began the HCP launch preparations…

…the Swift Strike, which had been pursuing Amber and his crew, exited its jump in a flash of white light.

The infrared sensors, already aimed in that direction, easily located the frigate against the cold backdrop of space, its main thruster glowing blue.

A 93.47% probability was fairly high, after all. Just as Amber and Lilith had predicted, the frigate appeared within the hemisphere their ship was facing.

And it perfectly exposed the long, slender curve of its broadside.

“Captain, target spotted! One Imperial Confessor-class frigate, range three thousand two hundred sixteen kilometers!”

“Gunnery! Aim at the target! Heavy particle cannon, fire at full power!”

Attitude control thrusters all over the Glory of the Past’s hull began firing in pulsing bursts, adjusting the ship’s axis.

Meanwhile, unable to find the Glory of the Past with its optical or infrared sensors, Captain Crane on the Swift Strike ordered the long-wave radar to be activated.

But at that very moment, the gunner, having used the eye-tracking to lock on to the target ship’s midsection, pressed the fire button.

“Captain! Detecting a strong electric field signature! Presumed to be an enemy heavy particle cannon firing!”

Just as the Tactical Information Coordinator on the Swift Strike anxiously reported this…

…on the bridge of the Glory of the past, most of the lights, along with all others on the ship save for the emergency indicators, went out. At the same instant, all non-combat electronic systems experienced a power cut.

A fusion pulse, output by the Confessor-class’s fusion reactor at full power, was channeled into the breech of the heavy particle cannon, contained by a directional magnetic field.

Immediately after, the muzzle of the bow-mounted heavy particle cannon’s accelerator track flashed.

A stream of heavy metal particles, accelerated to one thousand six hundred kilometers per second, surged out from the accelerator track, wrapped in a containment field as it sped toward the point targeted by the gunner’s eyes.

But what happened next was not the scene Amber had anticipated—the target frigate being severed in two by the surging particle stream.

The heavy metal particle stream grazed right over the top of the warship, leaving a hideous but non-fatal gash across its dorsal layered armor plates.

“Gunnery? Are you serious?!”

Amber was dumbfounded in his captain’s chair. It was the first time he had ever seen a heavy particle cannon ‘miss’ from a range of over three thousand kilometers.

“Unbelievable. My grandmother could have made that shot! Agh, never mind. Continue the attack!”

Amber knew this wasn’t the time to dwell on the problem, so he didn’t press the matter.

He glanced at the holographic screen to his left, which was displaying the service records of the assault team’s two HCP pilots.

In the ‘Space Combat’ section, both of their records showed the same two concise words: ‘No Experience.’

Seeing this, Amber silently unbuckled the safety harness of his captain’s chair.

“Ah, hell. Looks like I’ll have to warm up.”

Chapter 123: Amber, Launching!

On the bridge’s main screen, the magnified optical image showed the Swift Strike, three thousand kilometers away, had clearly reacted. Aided by its attitude thrusters, it began to slowly adjust its orientation.

Given humanity’s current level of technology, the heavy particle cannon was essentially an acceleration rail connected directly to a fusion reactor. Therefore, on warships equipped with this superweapon, it was always mounted along the ship’s central axis. This meant that to attack, the warship had to face its enemy bow-on.

The greater the instantaneous power output of a warship’s fusion reactor and the longer its acceleration rail, the faster the muzzle velocity and greater the power of its heavy particle cannon.

For example, the HIPW35 heavy particle cannon equipped on high-speed frigates like the Confessor-class had a maximum muzzle velocity of 1600 kilometers per second at full power. On an Imperial heavy cruiser, this increased to 2000 kilometers per second, and they were equipped with four such cannons, not just one. For a capital ship, the velocity and power were even greater.

As the Swift Strike turned, Amber issued a new command.

“Helmsman, maintain our current axis but execute a clockwise lateral maneuver. A negative ten-degree angular offset!”

Upon hearing the order, Major Randall immediately understood Amber’s intent. He was trying to move off the enemy warship’s axis.

Although it was impossible for the Glory of the Past, being on the “outer ring,” to completely evade the aim of the Swift Strike at the “center” given their current angular velocity, that wasn’t the goal. The maneuver was meant to buy the gunner more time to shoot.

The Glory of the Past’s starboard attitude thrusters immediately fired up, not in the short, pulsed bursts used for fine-tuning, but in a long, sustained burn for an emergency maneuver.

The entire frigate looked as if it were attempting a space drift with a radius of three thousand kilometers.

“Captain! The heavy electromagnetic cannons are fully charged!”

Under normal circumstances, with the enemy already alerted and turning to face them, Amber should have ordered the alloy penetrator rods in the heavy electromagnetic cannons to be replaced with programmable self-forging fragment warheads. That way, even a near miss would allow the warheads to detonate as they passed the target, striking its broadside or even its main thruster array.

But the thought of that infamous “master of micromanagement” from history, who had twice ordered a change of munitions at a critical moment in battle, and the final outcome of that famous campaign, made Amber reconsider.

Perhaps he should trust his gunner one more time? After all, it was their first time at the controls; a few mistakes were to be expected.

So, in the end, he gave the order without hesitation.

“Fire!”

On the bridge, the crew saw only a flash of electric light on both sides of the panoramic viewscreen as two faintly visible trails of fire vanished ahead of the warship.

“High magnetic field readings detected from the alert vector! Super-high-velocity objects approaching! Two contacts, presumed to be enemy heavy electromagnetic cannon fire!”

On the bridge of the Swift Strike, the Tactical Information Coordinator was drenched in sweat, his voice trembling. The heavy metal particle stream that had just grazed them had left everyone, including Captain Crane, shaken.

Most of them had already closed their eyes in despair upon hearing the words “presumed to be enemy heavy particle cannon fire!” Some followers of the Imperial State Religion had even begun to silently recite their final prayers. After all, their ship had just dropped out of warp, presenting a perfect broadside target.

But after a violent shudder, the crew on the bridge found themselves still alive. The scene became somewhat awkward. The bridge fell silent, with only the shipboard control AI faithfully reporting the damage and coordinating damage control efforts.

And now, they were facing two more shots from the heavy electromagnetic cannons.

“Quick, Helmsman, emergency turn! Laya! How long until the deflector shield is up?!”

“Ten more seconds, Captain!”

Hearing the shipboard control AI’s response, Captain Crane couldn’t help but grip the arms of his captain’s chair tightly.

“Impact imminent! 8! 7! 6!..”

“All hands, brace for impact!”

On the other side, Amber, now floating in mid-air, unconsciously tightened his grip on the back of the captain’s chair as Tom counted down.

“5! 4! 3! 2! 1! Near miss! Target not hit!”

The bridge of the Glory of the Past fell into a dead silence, as if someone had hit a mute button.

A moment later, Amber’s roar echoed through the entire bridge.

“Gunnery! I’d have better luck trusting Nagumo Chūichi than you!”

Amber clutched his forehead in anguish, then pushed off the captain’s chair. As he floated towards the aft corridor, he rattled off a string of new commands:

“Temporarily cut power to the weapon systems and activate the deflector shield! Allocate all ship power to the deflector shield generator and power systems in an eight-to-two ratio!”

“Re-deploy Radiator Panels, force-cool the main cannon, and prepare for a second volley! Heavy electromagnetic cannons, load programmable munitions for this round!”

“Prep squad, get an HCP ready for launch! I’m on my way to the Hangar!”

“Lia, pre-charge the ventral launch catapults and commence Electronic Warfare attack!”

“Major, increase speed and close with the enemy ship. Captain Margaret, you have temporary command.”

Amber’s figure disappeared from the bridge. The last thing the crew heard before his comm channel cut out was him muttering to himself:

“Forget it, forget it. Third time’s the charm. I’ll definitely hit it next time.”

Turning to look at the gunner’s station, where the gunner sat with their head hung low, obscured by a fully-enclosed helmet, Major Randall couldn’t help but offer some words of comfort.

“It’s alright. Didn’t you hear the Captain? You still have one more chance, right? It’s not too late to get depressed if you miss again.”

“Thank you, Major. You’re a great comfort.”

Having left the bridge, Amber used the transport handrails to fly from his position to the Hangar on the ship’s lowest deck.

The prep squad had not disappointed. Despite dealing with an unfamiliar Imperial HCP, they had successfully completed the launch preparations.

Seeing Amber float over, two mechanics who were already waiting rushed forward with a heavy hydraulic pressure suit and quickly helped him put it on.

Once suited up, Amber boarded the standard-issue ‘Zealot’ in the Hangar as fast as he could. an elevator then lowered him onto the electromagnetic launch catapult on the ship’s underside.

“Vector thrusters check complete. Commencing rapid self-check of weapon systems! Activating combat call sign.”

Amber paused for a moment, thinking of his old, all-conquering ID.

“Spectre!”

The view in the 360-degree cockpit had now become the vastness of space, with circular coordinate gridlines shifting with the warship’s movements. The targeting system, linked to the ship via datalink, marked the enemy warship 3000 kilometers away as a red triangle.

“Subcritical reactor operating normally. Weapon systems self-check complete, no abnormalities! No malfunctions detected in the plasma thruster array! Launch check complete!”

“Understood. Electromagnetic launch catapult is fully charged. Launch control transferred to pilot!”

Lilith’s voice rang out. Leveraging the computing power of the warship’s main processor, she could now be present on the bridge and in Amber’s HCP cockpit simultaneously.

At the same time, Major Randall at the Helmsman’s station pushed the throttle control to ‘Full Ahead.’

The main thruster array of the Glory of the Past erupted in a brilliant blue light, and the entire warship surged forward with immense force.

Seeing that all was ready, Amber, inside the Zealot’s cockpit, didn’t hesitate for a second. He slammed his fist onto the virtual button for ‘Launch’ on his right.

“Amber, call sign Spectre, launching!”

Chapter 124: The Punctual Elf

Accelerated by the electromagnetic launch catapult, the silver-white steel giant shot away from the warship.

Inside the Zealot’s cockpit, Amber pushed the plasma thruster array to maximum power. With a long-missed feeling of being pinned to his seat, a long blue trail of fire streamed from the Zealot’s back as it shot like a meteor toward the Swift Strike, less than three thousand kilometers away.

“Warning! Strong electric field detected. Identified as enemy heavy particle cannon firing. Take evasive action.”

Lilith’s voice echoed in the cockpit, and at the same time, a simulated trajectory line appeared on the screen of the 360-degree cockpit.

Amber skillfully twisted his body, piloting the Zealot to evade the beam and charge toward the Swift Strike’s lower hemisphere.

Soon, a blue-white beam flashed into existence, overlapping perfectly with the virtual trajectory line.

While accelerating, Amber tilted his head slightly to look at a small window displaying the view behind him. The bow of the Glory of the Past was now wreathed in a large, bright mass of twisting electrical energy.

Both were frigates of the same class; their weapons and deflector shield generators were identical models.

As long as one didn’t forget to activate the deflector shield, it was difficult for a heavy particle cannon to sink a target in a single shot.

This was why Amber felt a pang of regret for the perfect firing opportunity they had just missed.

He had calmed down by now, though. After all, the gunner had been forced into the role after some emergency training. Plus, the combat zone was near a star, where the gravitational and magnetic fields were inherently unstable.

Moreover, due to a severe crew shortage, Lilith had taken over nearly all subsystem operations, maintenance, and monitoring, as well as a vast amount of real-time data analysis.

The Lilith of this time had not yet grown into the ‘Crimson Queen’ from his previous life.

This meant she couldn’t spare much computing power to help the gunner correct his trajectory.

This was not the first time Amber had experienced such a scene.

In the early days of the game, players often found themselves with a ship but without a sufficiently powerful shipboard control AI.

In such situations, the players aboard often had to manually operate the ship’s systems to keep it running.

Although it was a game, the designers had made the manual controls rather hardcore to enhance player immersion.

This often led to various blunders due to player error.

The gunnery position was a particular disaster zone; every gunner was a master at painting silhouettes around the enemy ship.

It was all too common for two ships to exchange fire for twenty minutes without so much as scratching each other’s paint.

“Still, missing from three thousand kilometers is just too ridiculous. I’ll have to recruit a reliable, professional gunner later on.”

At that moment, Amber sorely missed his flagship’s Gunnery Chief.

With the help of the shipboard control AI, that female player, whose ID was ‘Takamachi Nanoha,’ could pull off all sorts of exquisite trick shots even at distances of over ten thousand kilometers.

In large-scale fleet battles, warships were assigned their targets and would fire at predicted points along the enemy’s trajectory with the assistance of the control AI. The gunner’s role was more about deciding the timing and method of attack, as well as the type of ammunition to use.

But in smaller-scale engagements, a skilled gunner could often use their experience and technique to pull off some truly incredible attacks.

Right now, the two frigates had entered a phase of exchanging fire.

The temporary gunner aboard the Glory of the Past had finally gotten the hang of the warship’s main cannon. Although the heavy particle beam was blocked by the enemy’s deflector shield, it was at least on target.

At this point, both ships’ maneuvers were perfectly synchronized.

They were simply maintaining their course and axis towards the enemy, activating their deflector shields to withstand a shot from the enemy’s main cannon, then deactivating the shields, rerouting power to their own main cannon, and firing back. They repeated this cycle over and over.

Although Lilith attempted an Electronic Warfare attack, the enemy was cunning, shutting down all communication channels and even taking their blue-green laser communication unit offline.

Faced with this ‘tin can’ that had almost physically isolated itself, Lilith was at a loss for what to do for the time being.

Perhaps for heavy cruisers and capital ships, with their multiple fusion reactors and more abundant energy supply, they could mix in other attacks between main cannon salvos, making the engagement more complex.

But for frigates, it was just a tedious back-and-forth shooting gallery.

In this situation, the contest came down to the maintenance status of each ship’s components and the coordination of their crews.

Amber knew full well his ship was crewed by a bunch of amateurs—no, they weren’t even amateurs; there wasn’t a single proper crew member among them.

Pitting such a crew against the crew of the Swift Strike in a contest of proficiency and coordination would be an exercise in self-humiliation.

If the stalemate continued, it would definitely be his ship that messed up its timing first.

That was why Amber had sortied in such a hurry, intending to seize the initiative before the enemy could launch their own HCPs.

While exchanging fire with his ship, the Swift Strike wouldn’t dare adjust its axis.

Its bow deflector shield had to face the enemy, so the task of fending off enemy HCPs would fall to the high-energy laser emitters and charged particle cannons mounted on its hull, while its own HCPs would have to be launched to protect the ship’s rear hemisphere.

If he were facing a monster like a heavy cruiser or a capital ship, Amber would never dare to mess around in a mass-produced HCP like this.

But against an isolated and unsupported high-speed frigate, for a veteran like Amber, it was a sure thing.

The layered armor shield with its anti-beam coating, mounted on his left, slid down from its shoulder rack to his left arm and fully deployed.

The deflector shield generator built into the shield was also activated.

Under Amber’s attitude control, most of the mech’s torso was now concealed behind the shield.

Against light-speed weapons like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons, dodging was out of the question. The best response was to simply raise your shield and take the hit.

Furthermore, the Swift Strike still had to fire its main cannon periodically and keep its deflector shield generator running, so the firing frequency of its high-energy lasers and charged particle beams wasn’t particularly high.

Amber glanced at the shield’s durability. At this rate of fire, the memory metal on its surface even had time to repair and restructure itself.

The enemy captain obviously knew such attacks couldn’t even serve as a proper distraction, so he initiated the emergency launch procedure for their HCPs.

Little did he know, this was exactly what Amber had been waiting for.

After more than a minute of high-speed advance, the distance between Amber and the Swift Strike had closed to less than six hundred kilometers.

At this moment, the Zealot the enemy was scrambling to launch had just been transferred by the elevator to the launch catapult.

Meanwhile, the heavy particle cannon on Amber’s mech’s left-rear weapon rack had already deployed.

“Lower the heavy particle cannon’s power output. Set initial velocity to five hundred kilometers per second, firing duration one point five seconds.”

Amber skillfully adjusted the heavy particle cannon’s parameters and fired without a moment’s hesitation.

Both the HCP on the electromagnetic launch catapult and the Swift Strike frigate itself sounded a warning: “Strong electric field detected!”

The HCP’s pilot knew he would become a sitting duck if he didn’t launch immediately. He slammed the virtual launch button, and the mech shot forward.

But at that very moment, a massive ‘lightsaber’ swept toward him.

Before the pilot could react, his Zealot slammed into the beam while still accelerating on the electromagnetic catapult.

Without its deflector shield activated, even if the HCP had been a solid lump of iron, it couldn’t have withstood the stream of heavy metal particles.

So, unsurprisingly, the Zealot was sliced in two by the massive ‘lightsaber’.

The pilot in the cockpit was instantly vaporized.

But that wasn’t all. Amber, who had already turned and begun decelerating with his back thruster array, fired a charged particle beam that blasted the elevator used for moving HCPs.

For a short time, this frigate could no longer threaten Amber.

Satisfied, Amber took the electromagnetic rifle from the weapon rack on his back and began firing at the attitude thrusters on the Swift Strike’s starboard side.

“Warning! Hangar elevator and ventral electromagnetic launch catapult damaged! Unable to deploy further HCPs!”

“Warning! Widespread damage to starboard attitude thrusters. Warship emergency turning capability reduced.”

As one warning after another blared across the bridge, the Swift Strike’s captain, Crane, knew it was all over.

The final outcome of the battle was almost exactly as Amber had predicted.

With its turning capability severely compromised and nearly half of its main thruster array destroyed by Amber, the Swift Strike frigate was successfully outmaneuvered by the Glory of the Past, which moved into its flank.

This time, the gunner didn’t waste the opportunity.

A full-power shot from the main cannon struck the ship’s midsection and pierced its fusion reactor. With follow-up fire from a heavy electromagnetic cannon and a finishing blow from Amber, the Confessor-class frigate’s superconducting battery stack was successfully triggered into a catastrophic detonation.

In an instant, the nearly four-hundred-meter-long warship turned into a massive plasma fireball.

At that moment, inside his HCP cockpit, Amber was quietly watching the time in the upper-right corner of his multi-function display.

Just as the numbers on the display ticked over to the appointed time, a warning sounded simultaneously in the HCP’s cockpit and on the warship’s bridge: “Spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

Immediately after, a massive ship emerged from a spatial rift that suddenly tore open a thousand kilometers away.

Its overall cyan color scheme and organic, biological design proved that the ship belonged to the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire.

“Holy shit?! A Serene Garden-class Armed Liner!”

Chapter 125: The Proton Annihilation Bomb

By the time Isabelle’s elf friend arrived as promised in a top-of-the-line armed cruise liner, the fleet battle between the Federation and the Empire near Robert IV had largely been decided.

The arrival of the Fortress of Sorrow was like placing the heaviest weight imaginable on the Imperial fleet’s side of the scales of victory.

Although the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets were not the Federation Navy’s most elite trump cards, their overall combat effectiveness was by no means poor. In terms of hardware, they were perfectly capable of contending with Imperial fleets of the same class.

Unfortunately, this time, the two fleets were facing a Celestial Fortress.

This was a strategic-level asset that could no longer be measured by simple cost. From the day of its creation, it was designed for the sole purpose of allowing a single fortress to suppress, or even annihilate, multiple fleets.

In the vision of the project lead for the Wall of Sighs program at the Empire’s Advanced Defense Research Projects Agency, a Celestial Fortress was a presence that could be deployed long-term in a contested star system. It would serve as a strategic anchor for both offense and defense, capable of strategic long-range strikes, wide-area battlefield surveillance, and ship repair and replenishment.

Once a sufficient number of these strategic fortresses were accumulated, the Star Dragon Empire’s entire military strategy would undergo a significant shift.

Whether on the offense or defense, whether confronting external enemies or suppressing internal rebellions, or even conducting deep-space exploration beyond human territory, the first thing a decision-maker would do was—‘I’ll just place a Celestial Fortress here first.’

According to the project lead, this was called ‘testing the waters.’

First, warp a Celestial Fortress over, then decide on subsequent actions based on the actual situation.

In his view, given the current technological level of humans and elves, destroying a fortress in a short period was exceedingly difficult. Therefore, these strategic assets could be deployed boldly and aggressively.

To some extent, his conclusion wasn’t far from the truth.

The only ‘minor problem’ was his overly optimistic estimation of the Celestial Fortress’s construction cost and timeline.

In the initial phase of the Wall of Sighs project, the plan was for the Empire to possess ten first-generation fortresses and five improved second-generation ones within twenty years.

As it turned out, twenty-five years had passed, and the Empire had only received five first-generation fortresses.

Just like all monumental, era-defining projects, new issues cropped up every day after formal construction began on the Celestial Fortress, which incorporated a vast amount of new technology.

Furthermore, many new technologies and materials were being ‘built and tested’ concurrently during the fortress’s construction, causing a significant delay in the entire project’s progress.

Regardless, the first combat deployment of the Empire’s Celestial Fortress had a stunning effect.

It was, to say the least, a real eye-opener for the Federation’s combined fleet present.

The central fleet was ninety percent annihilated by a single blast from The Focusing Rainbow, and Brigadier General Dowell, the task force commander who had survived the earlier engagement, was killed on the spot.

However, even facing such a catastrophic opening, Vice Admiral Guterres decided to organize an attack.

Although the massive fortress had indeed intimidated him, as the commander of a fleet, he couldn’t bring himself to flee without firing a single shot at the enemy’s new unit.

Even if they couldn’t win, they had to at least gather more information for the decision-making bodies back home, so they could figure out how to counter this threat.

So, after the remaining left and right wing fleets rendezvoused, Guterres adopted a tactic that, in Marquis Ascania’s eyes, was extremely familiar.

The massive fleet formed into a giant spindle shape and charged at high speed toward the Imperial fleet’s left flank.

“Your Grace, the Federation fleet will likely perform a high-speed disengagement after the pass and then warp out,” Marquis Ascania said, turning his head to whisper a reminder to the Duke in the Fortress of Sorrow’s Combat Command Center.

“Oh? Have you suffered a loss to this tactic before?”

“Not exactly a loss, Your Grace,” Marquis Ascania said, slightly embarrassed, but he still briefly explained what had happened when the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group first encountered the Federation fleet.

“Hmm… It seems these Federation fleet commanders are all a bit rigid and by-the-book.”

The Duke pondered for a moment before issuing a new command.

“In that case, calculate the Federation fleet’s trajectory. Prepare The Focusing Rainbow for a second firing!”

The colossal Fortress of Sorrow, under the power of numerous attitude control thrusters, began to adjust its axis.

As Vice Admiral Guterres led his fleet in the high-speed assault, he also gathered some data on the Celestial Fortress during the constant attacks.

First, its deflector shield generator was likely the most powerful one ever built. It could completely ignore shots from conventional warship heavy particle cannons.

Based on rough power calculations from the shipboard control AI, Guterres estimated it would likely take a combined salvo from three to four full-strength attack fleets to overload the deflector shield generator.

Second, the Celestial Fortress could conduct emergency repairs on damaged warships that had retreated to the rear.

According to images captured by optical sensors, the fortress had released dense swarms of autonomous engineering repair drones.

These swarm-like drones, equipped with emergency supplies like foaming metal and compressed inert gas tanks, assisted the damaged ships with emergency damage control.

With their help, the damaged warships completed crude repairs at an unprecedented speed and returned to the battle.

However, in the end, this was all the information Guterres managed to gather.

Because the fortress’s Focusing Rainbow fired again.

This time, to ensure it could strike before the Federation fleet disengaged, The Focusing Rainbow only fired at half power.

Even so, it easily swept away the tail of the Federation fleet’s ‘spindle’ formation.

Under these circumstances, Guterres didn’t hesitate for a moment, leading the fleet, which had now reached the required velocity, into a warp jump.

After the fleet emerged from warp at emergency disengagement coordinate 12, Guterres immediately ordered it to maneuver rapidly, positioning the planet Robert II on the line between the fleet and the fortress.

Although the Empire’s Celestial Fortress hadn’t yet demonstrated any ultra-long-range strike capabilities, given the power The Focusing Rainbow had displayed, Guterres believed that thing could definitely threaten his fleet.

So, to be safe, he used Robert II as a shield in front of his fleet.

“No matter how powerful it is, it can’t possibly blast through a planet, can it?” he thought.

While thinking this, he immediately used his authority to unlock the final encrypted message left by Marshal Trafalgar.

Before setting out, Vice Admiral Guterres hadn’t known what the old marshal meant by “the military situation has become so dire it may be irreversible.”

But now he knew. It couldn’t possibly get any worse.

The encrypted file opened quickly. Guterres took one look and shut it.

“I must have opened it the wrong way.”

Ten minutes later, in the combat conference room of the Destiny.

“You’re saying the Marshal ordered you to use a Proton Annihilation Bomb on Robert IV?”

Griezmann, sitting across from Vice Admiral Guterres, had a look of utter disbelief on his face.

“Yes. The file is very clear. It even includes the authorization command code for the Thirteenth Fleet’s Proton Annihilation Bomb.”

Guterres pinched the bridge of his nose. He had never imagined that the very first battle would come to this.

“According to the old marshal’s orders, if we determine that we cannot defeat the Imperial invasion fleet and cannot prevent the Empire from occupying the Robert system, we are to fire the Proton Annihilation Bomb at Robert IV.”

“Vice Admiral, you need to think this through,” Griezmann said with a grave expression.

“If you give the attack order, there’s no turning back. You could be reviled by the nation. Even those politicians who are itching for a target will come after you.”

“No, no, you’re mistaken about one thing. I’m not the one pulling the trigger.”

Guterres stared into Griezmann’s eyes and wagged his finger.

“Marshal Trafalgar is. I am merely the trigger.”

Chapter 126: Tranquil Garden

Amber had no idea that the Federation was indeed preparing to use the strategic weapon he had been worried about.

Right now, he, Isabelle, Randall, and the others were being led onto an armed liner belonging to Isabelle’s friend after passing a security check.

Upon boarding this Tranquil Garden-class liner, everyone except for Amber and Isabelle, including Major Randall, was stunned.

Because the interior of the armed liner was, just as its class name suggested, truly a vast, tranquil, and mystical garden—or perhaps a forest park.

“Amber, I find you more and more inscrutable. Even nobles from the Empire would be left marveling and astonished the first time they saw this wondrous elven liner.”

The group was walking through a garden inside the liner, a place with its own gravity. Isabelle, at the rear of the group, glanced at her companions ahead, who were curiously observing their surroundings, then looked at the unusually calm Amber beside her and couldn’t help but speak up.

“But you… you look so composed, as if you’ve been here countless times before?”

“You’ve known me for so long. Don’t you know by now that this is just how composed I am?”

Amber replied calmly to Isabelle’s question.

He certainly wasn’t going to tell her that not only had he been on a Tranquil Garden countless times, but he had also been on a Whispering Forest, an even higher-class ship.

In Starry Sky Online, these elven armed liners were a symbol of pay-to-win players.

Those whales would acquire armed liners of different classes based on the amount of money they spent.

Of course, the armed liners given to these players were actually unarmed; they were purely works of art.

The guild leader of the Fluffy Pink Bunnies was just such a whale.

The guy had acquired liners from every single spending-reward tier and held guild events on them every time.

So, Amber was indeed quite familiar with these magnificent elven bio-ships.

“Forget it. Not a single word out of your mouth is ever the truth.” Isabelle shook her head, no longer dwelling on the matter.

“Ahem. Rather than that, I’m actually more curious about how you came to know an elf like this. Whether it’s the psionically entangled communication crystal from before or this Tranquil Garden, neither is something an ordinary elf from the Thousand Stars Empire could possess.”

Amber couldn’t help but turn his head and size Isabelle up.

“And while you may be a noble of the Star Dragon Empire, you don’t seem like the type to have connections with such an elf.”

“Amber, you really have a way with words.”

“Thank you~”

Isabelle shot him an annoyed glance and uttered a single word.

“Classmates.”

“Pfft… are you treating me like a three-year-old? A mere classmate would give you such an important token, and now send a Tranquil Garden to pick you up?”

Amber scoffed dismissively at Isabelle’s claim of being “classmates.”

Although the elves of this universe didn’t possess the immensely long lifespans found in other stories, their average life expectancy was still over three hundred years.

Meanwhile, the nobles of the Star Dragon Empire, despite being so-called ‘perfect humans’ modified through genetic engineering, had an average lifespan of less than one hundred and forty years.

The difference in their lifespans was quite significant. Under such circumstances, a few years of being classmates would be nothing more than a brief fragment in an elf’s life.

“Elenita and I were classmates for four years while she was an exchange student. She also stayed at my family’s home temporarily. Our relationship is much better than you think.”

“‘Much better than I think.’”

Amber chewed over that phrase, then suddenly had an epiphany.

“Oh~ So that’s how it is.”

“Amber, I have a feeling you’re thinking something very inappropriate.”

“Master, I have a feeling you’re thinking something R-rated.”

Isabelle’s and Lilith’s voices sounded at the same time, the former indignant and embarrassed, the latter teasing.

“Ahem. Don’t worry, I wasn’t thinking anything at all.”

“The more you say that, the less I believe you!”

A blush creeping onto her face, Isabelle lifted her chin, quickened her pace to catch up with the group ahead, and ended the conversation.

“Master, that reaction is suspicious, don’t you think? You think maybe she and this elf…”

“Lilith, lay off the yuri fanfiction. Have you been slacking off lately? Have you read the books I told you to look up online? Causal Exploration in Complex Combat Environments, Serial Interaction of Incomplete Information Games in Complex Military Decision-Making, and Artificial Intelligence Reasoning Graphs?”

“I’m sorry, Master! Muting myself to go study now!”

Lilith fled in disarray.

Amber, who had fallen to the very back of the group, also quickened his pace to catch up.

It wasn’t actually that unusual for elves from the Thousand Stars Empire to be exchange students in the Star Dragon Empire.

It wasn’t just the Star Dragon Empire; quite a few elves went to the Federation on exchange programs as well.

Although the two races, humans and elves, had many differences in culture, technology, art, Psionics, and various other aspects.

But in the two hundred-plus years since they first met and established relations, the elves had consistently maintained a goal of friendly exchange.

And they had never interfered in the humans’ civil wars.

Although humans had entertained ideas about the elves, any rulers who had such thoughts ultimately abandoned them.

Because they truly couldn’t win.

In the few recorded clashes between humans and elves throughout history, humans were almost always at a disadvantage.

If not for the fact that these elves of the Thousand Stars Empire were passionate about commercial development, preferred trade wars over hot wars, and had absolutely no interest in conquering humanity…

…a large portion of human territory might have already been carved out as elven colonies by now.

The elves had taken a path of Psionics plus biotechnology, completely different from humanity’s.

Take the Tranquil Garden beneath Amber’s feet, for example. Its main hull wasn’t constructed in a shipyard.

It was ‘grown’ in a bio-cultivation dock.

At the same time, as long as the ship’s owner continuously nourished it with Psionics, the bio-ship would continue to grow at an extremely slow rate.

In short, whether in terms of technological principles or final results, it was a novelty that would make humans scratch their heads.

As Amber recalled this information about the Thousand Stars Empire and its elves, the group was led by several Romu guides to their assigned cabins to rest.

Amber was also led to his cabin door by a Romu with a pair of cat ears on her head.

“Sir, this room will be your temporary lodging. If you have any issues, you can call me directly through the communication crystal in the room.”

The ‘cat-girl’, dressed in a long, black-and-white maid outfit, opened the cabin door and spoke with a slight bow.

“There are fresh clothes prepared in the cabin. Please bathe and change first. In a little while, I will guide you to your meeting with Lady Yuge.”

“Yuge… Wait, so the owner of this ship is Elenita Yuge???”

Amber was astonished. He never would have imagined that this friend of Isabelle’s would turn out to be the elven woman who, a dozen or so years later, would become the richest person in the Thousand Stars Empire.

Chapter 127: Amber, Kiss Me

After seeing the cat-girl maid off, Amber went straight to the cabin’s shower.

When they boarded, everyone had temporarily stored their weapons and exoskeletons in the Tranquil Garden’s boarding area in the lower decks, so he was only wearing his combat suit.

Following the principle that every little bit counts, Amber, after getting the elves’ permission, brought another HCP pilot with him to move the two standard-model Zealots from the Glory of the Past, along with their complementary weapons and maintenance kits, onto the Tranquil Garden.

The elf in charge of the lower deck boarding area was also a shrewd and calculating individual and highly praised Amber for his actions.

He even said he would help them re-sort, categorize, and repackage all the supplies and equipment.

As the hot water cascaded down on his head with a whoosh, Amber felt like his entire being was ascending.

Back on Robert IV, aside from the one time at the transfer center with a proper bathhouse, he had always tended to his personal hygiene in field conditions.

To be honest, under those conditions, it was difficult for Amber to feel any sort of desire.

After all, everyone was grimy and smelly.

But now, suddenly finding himself on a luxury liner, the starkly different environment made Amber feel as if he were in a dream.

And the elves and Romu he had just seen during the boarding process had also stirred some memories in Amber’s mind.

So far, at least, the elves’ behavior matched Amber’s memories. They possessed powerful Psionics and biotechnology but had little interest in expanding their territory.

Compared to attacking others with the heavy purification beams of their bioships, these elves preferred to immerse themselves in their own commercial development.

It seemed that from the moment they were born, the only things on these elves’ minds were starting companies and making investments.

However, some players who delved deep into the game’s side quests and plotlines discovered that the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire had, through investment, acquisition, and holding controlling shares, actually become the de facto owners of many large corporations in the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation.

These players thus came up with a conspiracy theory, believing this was the elves’ form of warfare.

A method of boiling the frog slowly, subtly taking control of all the economic lifelines of human society.

In short, aside from their similar appearance, their style was completely different from the elves of other worlds.

As for the Romu, they were a race added to the game to satisfy certain players’ fetish for animal-eared girls.

But Amber had always suspected that the developers might have inserted some of their own personal easter eggs when creating the Romu’s backstory.

The Romu had not always lived with the elves; they actually had a planet of their own.

About eight hundred years ago, when the Romu civilization had developed to a stage similar to humanity’s late medieval period, their homeworld experienced a small problem, and their entire civilization faced a crisis of racial extinction overnight.

At this time, an elven liner on a sightseeing tour happened to discover the impending extinction event on the planet.

Upon hearing the news, the Elven Royal Court immediately decided to intervene and save this civilization.

Thus began an epic racial migration.

Due to the Romu’s relatively high fertility rate, their population density on their homeworld was quite high.

And eight hundred years ago, the elven fleet was nowhere near as powerful as it was today; many of their newly designed large ships were still growing slowly in bio-growth docks.

So at the time, the elves mobilized every transport and planetary lander they could, along with many other ships.

Racing against time, they managed to rescue all the Romu willing to leave their homeworld before it completely disintegrated.

From then on, the Romu began to live alongside the elves, gradually integrating into elven society.

However, Amber had always felt that “integration” wasn’t quite the right word.

Because although there were no explicit rules or legal restrictions, to this day, the Romu in the Thousand Stars Empire could only work in the tertiary sector.

And they were essentially limited to the most basic service industries.

The elven megacorporations would never hire Romu.

This was why all the attendants and maids Amber and the others had seen since boarding were Romu.

And for all positions related to the ship’s operation, you would only see elves.

This invisible segregation had existed ever since the day the elves first rescued the Romu, and it persisted to this day.

“This soul transmigration thing is getting more and more interesting…”

After his shower, Amber carefully tidied himself up.

After all, the person he was about to meet was the future-wealthiest elf.

Moreover, this young elf lady, who was destined to lead the Yuge family, was also a renowned angel investor, fond of investing in all sorts of strange little companies, and she often reaped considerable returns.

In the game, she would even invest in player guilds based on their reputation with the Yuge family.

Earning her the nickname ‘Timely Rain’.

So, upon learning that Isabelle’s friend was this wealthy lady, Amber had already started scheming.

If he could secure a round of venture capital, that would be for the best.

Changing into an elven-style coat that had been prepared in his room, Amber, guided by the same cat-girl maid from before, arrived at the garden where he was to meet Elenita Yuge.

Isabelle, surprisingly, had already arrived. Amber had thought the young noble lady would dally in her room for an hour or two.

She was currently at a round table in the garden, chatting with a female elf while holding a teacup, a very relaxed expression on her face.

And the elf across from her was the owner of this armed liner, the ‘Timely Rain’ herself, Elenita Yuge.

This female elf, whether in terms of appearance, figure, or her current attire, was a perfect match for the game model Amber remembered, and she looked even more exquisite in the real world.

Beneath her floor-length white gauze robe, she wore a revealing outfit somewhat resembling a swimsuit, adorned with numerous psionic crystal ornaments that looked very expensive.

This outfit, combined with Elenita Yuge’s luscious, ‘combat-ready’ figure, had maxed out the value of Starry Sky Online’s 18+ rating when her model was first revealed.

Fortunately, Amber was a new-age gamer who had been baptized by the information explosion and had built up enough resistance to this level of character design.

Therefore, he did not lose his composure when facing this wealthy elf lady.

“Good day, Lady Yuge.”

“Oh? I didn’t expect you to know Elvish,” Elenita Yuge said with a smile.

After meeting Isabelle and getting a general idea of her recent experiences, the future-wealthiest elf had developed a sliver of interest in Amber.

“Just a little.”

“We can just use your human language to communicate,” Elenita said, switching to the human common tongue.

“I mastered your language during my studies in the Star Dragon Empire.”

Whether it was due to basic etiquette or because both parties had their own ulterior motives…

Amber and Elenita’s first meeting went very smoothly; one could even say they had a delightful conversation.

From Isabelle’s perspective, Amber seemed very accustomed to dealing with the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire, and he was quite familiar with their various customs and traditions.

“Hahaha, Mr. Amber, you are truly a witty human.”

Elenita, who was chatting with Amber, covered her mouth and chuckled, then noticed Isabelle beside her, looking displeased.

Elenita knew her dear human friend very well.

Seeing her expression now, and combining it with the way she had described Amber when recounting her recent experiences…

Elenita felt she had seen through everything.

“Alright, let’s leave our chat here for now. You two have had a very difficult time recently.”

The female elf was the first to stand up.

“I’ve had a meal prepared and your companions notified. You should all go eat something first, then get some proper rest. We can discuss other matters when we’re on our way back.”

Seemingly noticing the worried look in Isabelle’s eyes, Elenita walked over and took her by the arm.

“Don’t worry, I’ve already instructed the bridge to dismantle those two Imperial frigates with purification beams. Even if someone else gets lucky and stumbles upon these coordinates, they won’t find anything of value.”

After saying this, the female elf led Amber and Isabelle through a transport device made of vines and some unknown metal to the Tranquil Garden’s banquet hall.

Upon entering the banquet hall, Amber found Randall and the others already feasting heartily.

But he didn’t notice that Elenita, who had intentionally slowed down to walk behind with Isabelle, had leaned in and whispered something in Isabelle’s ear, causing the Imperial spy’s face to turn red.

Then, during the meal, Elenita proposed a toast to celebrate their narrow escape.

The group, who had been a bit reserved at first, gradually loosened up after a few drinks.

One by one, they came to find Amber, insisting on having a few more drinks with him.

Even Isabelle came over with her glass. Having already had a few drinks, her face was flushed with wine, and her bewitching eyes were like silk, making it impossible for Amber to refuse.

And the fruit wine brewed by the elves certainly packed a punch.

Finally, with a look of ‘all according to plan’ on Elenita’s face, a Romu maid assisted Isabelle in taking Amber back to his room.

As a dizzy Amber fell onto the bed, he felt a soft body snuggle into his arms.

Immediately after, a warm breath of words tickled his ear.

“Amber, kiss me.”

When a wet sensation slid into his mouth, the suddenly sobered Amber unhesitatingly tangled with it, while not forgetting to shout in his mind:

“Lilith, you’re not allowed to watch!”

“Nope! Nope! Nope!!!”

Chapter 128: Big News

Friends who often get hangovers know that after a night of heavy drinking, even with a full night’s sleep, you’ll wake up dizzy and groggy, accompanied by a slight feeling of nausea.

Amber, lying in bed, was in exactly this state. He couldn’t even remember how he had gotten back to his room.

On a starship traveling through the cosmos, you naturally lose your sense of day and night.

Combined with yesterday’s excessive drinking, Amber had momentarily lost his ability to judge the current time.

“Hiss… How can a psionic user get drunk?”

As Amber frowned and went to pinch the bridge of his nose, he realized his right hand was pinned down by something soft and heavy.

He turned his head to see a fair-skinned body curled up in the crook of his arm, and his right hand, by some cruel twist of fate, was cupping a soft mound.

“Wait, is this…”

In that instant, fragmented memories, buried deep in his mind by the hangover, were unearthed and pieced together.

Isabelle helping him to the bed, her soft body suddenly pressing against his, and the hot whisper in his ear: Amber, kiss me.

And after that… a passionate tumble and a night of tangled limbs.

Looking at Isabelle, who was frowning slightly in his arms, Amber felt himself sober up instantly.

“Fuck.”

Given the environment and state Amber was in when he said this, it’s not hard to see that this was, in fact, a double entendre.

To be fair, Isabelle’s looks and figure were absolutely flawless.

She had the classic image of a blonde bombshell—the kind everyone loved, with a combat-ready figure that looked slim in clothes but was toned and curvy underneath.

And during their escape from Robert IV, the two had indeed forged a bond that went beyond ordinary friendship.

To say Amber felt nothing for Isabelle would be a bald-faced lie; he wasn’t gay, after all.

But he never imagined that he would end up sleeping with the Imperial spy on her friend’s ship so soon after leaving Robert IV.

“No, wait. I need to get this straight. Why do I feel like I was the one who was pounced on?”

Just as Amber was recalling the details, Lilith’s voice suddenly chimed in his mind.

“Master, did you enjoy yourself?”

“Tsk! Such crude language!”

“Hmph, there you go again, Master, acting all innocent. I wonder who was moaning in pleasure just a few hours ago.”

Lilith’s tone dripped with the disdain one might have for a scumbag.

“Hold on, you heard everything?”

“Of course. You said, ‘Lilith, no peeking.’ You never said I couldn’t listen. I was strictly following your orders, you know~”

“…”

Amber decided to ignore the AI. He felt that if he kept talking to Lilith, the damn thing might just make his head explode.

Feeling the softness and warmth of the mound in his palm, Amber, who usually had immense self-control, couldn’t resist giving it a gentle squeeze.

“Mmm~”

Isabelle let out a soft moan in his arms.

Then she turned over, buried her head in Amber’s chest, and even balled up a fist to give him a light tap.

But this sweet, domestic scene lasted less than a second.

The next moment, Isabelle’s eyes shot open and she lifted her head.

First, she looked at Amber’s face, extremely close to hers. Then her gaze traveled down, and she lifted the thin blanket covering them to peek inside.

Immediately after, Amber witnessed the entire process of someone going from drowsy to seeing red.

The instant Isabelle’s mouth opened, Amber spoke first, stopping her words in her throat.

“Let me clarify. After careful recollection, I believe you were the one who pounced on me a few hours ago.”

Isabelle: “…”

Half an hour later, when Allenita saw the two of them in the garden, she couldn’t help but wear the knowing smile of an amused bystander.

As they walked toward her, Amber had a pained look on his face.

Isabelle’s gait was clearly a little awkward, so she was holding onto Amber’s arm, with almost half of her body leaning against him.

“You two certainly drank a lot yesterday~ Come, sit down. I specially prepared some floral tea to soothe the nerves and clear the head.”

Allenita beckoned them over. Seeing the fond, knowing smile on her face, the two couldn’t help but feel a little awkward.

“We are currently in warp. We should arrive within the territory of the Thousand Stars Empire in about six of your standard human cosmic hours.”

The female elf lifted her teacup, savoring the fragrant tea with a contented look in her half-closed eyes.

“Rest well on the ship for the next few days. I’ve temporarily set your destination at a manor our family owns in a border star system. It’s usually empty, so you can settle there for now.

“I also thought that since you might need to travel to the Federation or the Empire, the star system where the manor is located would be more convenient.

“So I’ll place you there for the time being. It won’t be too late to head to the core star systems after everything is settled.”

The wealthy elf was incredibly generous, offering up a manor for Amber and Isabelle to use with a wave of her hand.

“Ms. Yuge, thank you again for your tremendous help,” Amber said gratefully. Now was the time for such pleasantries.

“It’s nothing. Isabelle is my friend. This is what I should do~”

Over the next few days, while living a life of… sometimes once, sometimes twice, sometimes even three times a day, Amber also dragged everyone, including Randall, to the Tranquil Garden’s lower-deck boarding bay to maintain their physical and basic tactical training.

He was afraid these guys would get soft and neglect their training once they started enjoying life on the ship, which would be disastrous.

Fortunately, these soldiers who had survived with him to the end were not just useless freeloaders, and they now followed his orders without question.

After all, the Thousand Stars Empire they were heading to was a completely unfamiliar world for grunts like them.

Their only choice now was to cling tightly to Amber’s coattails so they wouldn’t be abandoned.

During these few days of training, everyone slowly began to figure out that the company Amber planned to start was no ordinary business.

After all, a regular company wouldn’t require its employees to maintain physical fitness and Mobile Infantry tactical training, while also having them study the principles of orbital drops.

Just like that, six days passed quickly, and the Tranquil Garden exited warp right on schedule, arriving within the territory of the Thousand Stars Empire.

Finally, Amber and his men switched to an aerospace shuttle and settled into the lodging Allenita had arranged.

But this peaceful, everyday life lasted for only two or three days.

When they saw Allenita again, the female elf brought them some big news:

“Just got word. The planet you escaped from—Robert IV—was attacked several days ago by some kind of Federation strategic weapon. It has disintegrated.”

Chapter 129: Epilogue

When they heard the big news, everyone, including the Imperial spy Isabelle, was a little stunned.

“Wait, are you saying the Federation military destroyed Robert-4? Not the Imperial military?”

Randall, who had just been in the middle of ground combat training and hadn’t even taken off his exoskeleton, raised his hand and asked.

“That’s right, Mr. Randall. The news from my sources says it was the Federation fleet that attacked Robert-4.”

Allenita nodded, her tone quite certain.

“Rest assured, if any other news comes in, I will tell you all immediately.”

This sudden development left the soldiers who had followed Amber to the Thousand Stars Empire feeling a lingering sense of fear.

If they hadn’t followed Amber into space, if they hadn’t resolved to leave with him, they would likely have shared the fate of the Federation forces on Robert-4, vanishing with the planet as it disintegrated.

The soldiers couldn’t help but discuss it among themselves in low voices.

After all, for them, the news was simply too surreal.

They couldn’t even imagine what kind of weapon could directly destroy an entire planet.

But upon hearing the news, Amber immediately understood that the Federation had finally chosen to use their strategic weapon—the Proton Annihilation Bomb.

It was the Federation’s only strategic-level weapon before they deployed their strategic mobile fortresses.

Before the war began, the Federation had only produced thirty of them.

After equipping each capital fleet with one, the rest were stored in dedicated, fixed facilities.

In the eyes of Amber and the other players, its greatest use was to carry out the Federation’s “scorched-earth resistance” strategy.

The weapon’s delivery system was a large missile equipped with a jump drive.

Although it could perform cross-system attacks, with the proliferation of directed-energy weapons, it had practically no ability to penetrate defenses.

Therefore, it couldn’t fulfill its designers’ original purpose of wiping out enemy fleets.

It could only be used to attack planets or stars within a system, carrying out the task of destroying celestial bodies.

It did pose a certain deterrent to the Empire’s border systems, but not a significant one.

More often, it was used by the Federation to blow up planets within its own territory.

For example, in the timeline of Amber’s previous life in the game, the Federation faced a surprise attack from the Empire and, without Amber sending a distress call, lost many star systems in the early stages of the war.

Under those circumstances, how did the Federation halt the Empire’s offensive momentum?

The answer was to detonate the stars of four Imperial-occupied star systems in one go, creating four black holes. This forced the Empire to abandon its advance from those directions and instead launch a reluctant assault on the Federation’s more heavily fortified systems.

This was why Amber was currently puzzled. The Federation fleet hadn’t used the Proton Annihilation Bomb on the Robert system’s star, Robert-1, to create an artificial black hole.

Instead, they had chosen to destroy the only terrestrial planet in the system.

Although the end result—whether the system gained a black hole or lost its only terrestrial planet—would significantly reduce the strategic value of the Robert system for the Empire.

But regardless, the Federation’s priority should have been the star, not Robert-4, where friendly forces were still deployed.

“Mr. Amber, it seems you know something?”

Allenita had approached Amber at some point, and the two of them were now standing away from the others.

“You jest, Ms. Yuge.”

Though the top-tier tycoon exuded immense pressure, Amber maintained his composure.

“I’m just a lowly Warrant Officer. What could I possibly know?”

“Really? But my sixth sense tells me your identity isn’t as simple as you claim, Mr. Amber.”

Allenita smiled charmingly, disbelief written all over her face.

“Isabelle’s standards are quite high. Back in school, many sons of high-ranking Imperial officials and descendants of Imperial nobility pursued her, but she didn’t give any of them the time of day.

“But now, she’s been won over by you, a man who claims to be just a ‘lowly Warrant Officer’. I can’t help but wonder what kind of spell you cast on Isabelle.”

“Sincerity, of course!” Amber didn’t dwell on the various meanings of Allenita’s phrase “won over” and answered decisively, without a hint of hesitation.

“Sincerity is my finishing move.”

“Hahaha, Mr. Amber, you’re quite humorous.”

Allenita sat down languidly on a nearby sofa, stretching and showing off her exquisite figure.

“However, I do hope that the next time we discuss matters related to ‘angel investment’, this sincerity between us can be even more thorough.”

At these words, Amber wondered if Elenita Yuge had read his mind.

“Please rest assured, I will naturally be frank when the time comes. I just didn’t expect you to have thought that far ahead, Ms. Yuge.”

“Haha, it’s merely a savvy investor’s sensitivity to a quality investment product.”

After a brief exchange, Allenita left the physical training area where Amber was.

As Amber watched the enchanting female elf sway her hips and walk away gracefully, Lilith’s voice echoed in his mind.

“Master, it feels like she has you completely wrapped around her finger.”

“Sigh, beggars can’t be choosers. Besides, she’s a shrewd businesswoman running a megacorporation, and a female one at that. She might even be the financial backer for our ‘startup group’. Tsk, people like her are the hardest to deal with.”

“Oh, my. It’s rare to hear you say something like that, Master.”

There was a teasing tone in Lilith’s voice.

“A great man knows when to yield and when to stand firm. To achieve great things, you have to be flexible. By the way, have you made any progress on what I asked you to look into?”

“I’ve found the port of entry for that destroyer after it entered Imperial territory, but more detailed information isn’t available on the public network. The only way is to obtain high-level access to the Imperial military network.”

As Lilith spoke, a flood of information was projected onto Amber’s modified retinas.

“High-level access… Hmm, I’ll go ask Isabelle and see if she has any connections.”

Amber immediately had Randall continue organizing the physical training while he went to find Isabelle.

“Master, are you sure you can get Miss Isabelle to help you? This might be crossing her bottom line, don’t you think?”

“Trust me, I’ll find a way to persuade her.”

“Master, this ‘persuasion’ you speak of… is it the proper kind?”

“Don’t worry, I definitely wouldn’t let you see the improper kind~”

Over the next few days, Allenita’s sources provided many more details about the destruction of Robert-4.

The female elf wasn’t secretive. Aside from not revealing her sources, she didn’t conceal much of the information.

And this information gave Amber and the others an increasingly clear picture of the event that brought the battle for the Robert system to a close.

After disengaging from the Imperial fleet, the Federation combined fleet did not immediately attack Robert-4.

Instead, they constantly hid behind other planets, keeping themselves out of the range of The Focusing Rainbow.

The fleet commander waited until scout ships confirmed that the Imperial Expeditionary Strike Group had begun mass-deploying ground troops via the space elevator before launching the attack.

In the end, the attack not only succeeded in breaking Robert-4 apart but also wiped out all the Imperial forces deployed to the planet’s surface, save for the units that had been rotated out.

Of course, vanishing along with the disintegrating planet were its civilian population and the Federation’s ground garrison.

Currently, the remnants of the Federation fleet have withdrawn from the Robert system. The whereabouts of the Empire’s Expeditionary Strike Group and the Fortress of Sorrow are also unknown.

Besides the news from Allenita, Amber also made a huge breakthrough with Isabelle.

Under his persuasion, the Imperial female spy finally completed the final step of her ‘corruption’, obtaining mid-to-high level access credentials for the Imperial military network through certain secret channels.

And Lilith did not disappoint Amber, quickly locking onto the location of an “old friend.”

Chapter 130: Wetwork

Haven III was a terrestrial planet within the Haven star system, situated at a distance of exactly one astronomical unit from its star.

Located within the Star Dragon Empire’s T2 life zone, the planet boasted a suitable environment, a pleasant climate, and a quite mature ecosystem.

As such, its owner, an Imperial Marquis, had designated it a tourist planet decades ago.

After the Marquis passed away, his family continued the planet’s development.

Now, Haven III had become a relatively high-end tourist destination within the Empire.

Many high-ranking Imperial nobles had acquired land-use rights from the Marquis’s family by paying a hefty sum for long-term leases.

They then built private vacation villas on the planet, adding it to their long list of leisure spots or using it as a love nest to keep a mistress.

Consequently, the orbital space around Haven III had always been rather lively.

You could see all sorts of high-end ship brands here, as well as massive family flagships.

These warships, luxury cruisers, and private yachts were either parked in the planet’s geostationary orbit or cruising in low orbit to admire the spectacular view of the planet from space.

The region 400,000 kilometers from the surface was a bustling hub of traffic.

Within this massive celestial sphere, one could frequently see ships dropping out of warp, emerging from the spatial tears they created.

According to the Star Dragon Empire’s universal regulations for ship navigation, civilian vessels or military vessels not on a mission were required to exit warp no closer than 400,000 kilometers from the surface of their destination planet.

However, to minimize the remaining travel distance after dropping out of warp, captains who regularly flew this route would usually have their ships exit just beyond the 400,000-kilometer line.

Most ships tended to use public warp coordinates, but seasoned captains would use their own saved “private coordinates.”

This was even more true for higher-ranking nobles. To distinguish themselves from the commoners, they would use “exclusive family routes” known only to them.

Some extremist nobles would even open fire on civilian ships that inadvertently warped near their “exclusive family routes” to drive them away.

Adam, the former commander of Yassin Base on Robert IV, was at this very moment sitting on his private yacht as it dropped out of warp, arriving at a private coordinate on the 400,000-kilometer red line.

This coordinate had been provided by his contacts in the Star Dragon Empire’s intelligence department. According to them, the coordinate had always been in their possession and had never been used by anyone else.

In Adam’s eyes, possessing such a private warp coordinate was a status symbol, a sign that he was beginning to integrate into the Star Dragon Empire’s noble circles.

After the battle in the Robert system concluded with the disintegration of Planet Robert IV, Adam, aboard the destroyer he was on at the time, was one of the first to arrive in the territory of the Star Dragon Empire.

In some respects, the Star Dragon Empire always honored its promises to defectors who had made significant contributions, and situations where they discarded someone after they had served their purpose were rare.

Thus, a defector from the Federation like Adam was directly granted the title of Baron.

He also received a brand-new private yacht and was given ownership of an island resort on Haven II.

It was safe to say that although he no longer held military power, Baron Adam could live out the rest of his life in peace and affluence on this island.

“My lord, we have exited warp. The Captain says we are expected to arrive at the mooring area in one hour and thirty-seven minutes. At that point, you can transfer to an aerospace craft to head to the surface.”

“Understood. You may leave.”

Baron Adam, lounging on a bed large enough for several people to roll around on, dismissed his butler with a slight wave of his right hand.

As for his left hand, the moment he heard he had an hour and thirty-seven minutes until arrival, it slipped into the nightdress of the woman beside him.

“My lord, you’re awful~”

“Hehehe, since we have so much time, why don’t we play another game? Oh, and call your sister over, too.”

As Baron Adam pounced on the woman with a lecherous grin, a ripple like a patch of digital static suddenly appeared in a patch of space approximately twenty-five hundred kilometers from his custom-built private yacht, the Venus. But it quickly returned to normal.

“Whew… that scared me. This old ship’s optical camouflage algorithm is way too outdated.”

On the dimly lit bridge, illuminated only by a faint red glow, Randall breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the optical camouflage system return to normal.

It wasn’t just him; everyone else aboard this Repentance-class frigate, long since decommissioned from the Imperial Navy, also let out a collective sigh.

After all, they were deep within Imperial territory doing “wetwork,” and they were a mere 50,000 kilometers from Haven III’s absolute defense perimeter.

If they were detected prematurely, patrol ships from the Imperial Royal Navy would be on them in minutes, blasting them and this old ship to smithereens.

“Lia, what’s our stealth status? Have we been spotted?”

“Report, Acting Captain. We are currently within the planet’s shadow. Hull temperature is stable. Optical camouflage system has been corrected. Blackbody coating remains active. No unusual activity from the target vessel. It is presumed that no anomaly has been detected.”

Lilith, masquerading as the “shipboard control AI - Lia,” played her role seriously as she answered Randall’s question.

“What about the Captain and the others?”

“The Captain and his wingman are still in silent running with optical camouflage active. However, a balancing block was detected three minutes and twelve seconds ago. Cross-referencing with the operational plan, it can be inferred that the two HCPs are adjusting their attitude to move into attack range.”

Randall nodded, then opened a channel to the hangar’s deployment readiness area.

“Alright, you studs, get ready for your first live boarding action!”

In the forward hemisphere of the private yacht Venus, at a straight-line distance of sixteen hundred fifty kilometers.

Sitting in the cockpit of his HCP, Murat took several deep breaths to calm his frayed nerves.

Thanks to his piloting skills and better scores during basic assessments, he had been chosen to serve as Amber’s wingman for this mission.

At first, Murat had considered it an honor and a validation of his abilities.

But now, sitting in the HCP cockpit after being launched from the frigate to the designated operational position, staring at the pitch-black void of space and the massive planet in the distance, Murat couldn’t help but feel a sense of isolation.

This feeling intensified after Amber gave the order to enter silent running, shut down the main thruster array, and activate the optical camouflage.

To bring the mech’s surface temperature close to that of the cosmic background radiation, Murat had followed the instructions in the operational manual Amber had given him and temporarily shut down the cockpit’s climate control system.

Although the spherical cockpit was lined with an insulating layer, in the vacuum of space, without the benefit of stellar radiation, the temperature inside still dropped to levels unbearable for an ordinary person.

He had only managed to endure the last twenty minutes thanks to the simple heating function built into his heavy hydraulic pressure suit.

Clank!

A dull thud came from behind the mech. Without looking, Murat knew it was the balancing block system ejecting another standard-sized balancing block.

The mech adjusted its attitude using the reaction force generated by ejecting the block.

Since the plasma thruster array was far too bright when active and would be easily spotted by the target, maneuvers like adjusting attitude to get into attack position or forming up for combat had to be performed using the temporarily attached balancing block system during a stealth operation like this.

Just as Murat was wondering how much longer Amber—his HCP instructor and future boss—would wait to make a move, his sensors suddenly detected an HCP eight hundred kilometers away deactivating its optical camouflage and igniting its plasma thruster array.

At the same time, a short message finally came through the blue-green laser communication channel from his flight lead:

“Commencing attack.”

Chapter 131: Boarding Action

Seeing this message, Murat reacted instantly.

“Disengage optical camouflage! Reallocate computing power to other units!”

“Subcritical reactor output increased to combat levels!”

“Shut down the APU. Switch all systems to main power. Engage operational mode!”

As the icons representing the various subsystems turned green, indicating normal operating conditions, Murat unhesitatingly pushed the plasma thruster array to maximum.

The immense G-force slammed him back into his seat as the Zealot, its silver-white external armor now visible after deactivating its optical invisibility, shot toward the yacht like a comet, trailing a long blue wake.

On the multi-function display, the relative velocity between his mech and the yacht immediately soared to eighteen kilometers per second.

At this speed, they would converge in less than a minute.

In reality, however, Murat wouldn’t maintain this acceleration for the entire approach. He would cut the thruster array after covering one-third of the distance to the target.

He would coast on inertia for the next third of the way before beginning his deceleration for the final stretch.

As a novice in Space Combat, he was currently serving as Amber’s Wingman and was supposed to provide cover for his flight lead.

But before they launched, Amber had patted him on the shoulder and said:

“Don’t worry about it. You don’t need to provide cover during the approach. Just focus on controlling your mech and don’t overshoot.”

At the time, Murat had thought his instructor was exaggerating.

But now, as he fought the G-forces to maintain control of his mech’s attitude while simultaneously monitoring his relative velocity, attack vector, and deceleration point, he had to admit he was wrong.

Murat acknowledged that Instructor Amber had not been crying wolf.

When the acceleration phase ended, the crushing G-force vanished, and the thruster array temporarily dimmed.

He glanced at the panoramic display. Eight hundred kilometers away, the other Zealot was still closing in at high speed, constantly altering its trajectory.

While evading the yacht’s point-defense emplacements, its mech-mounted Gauss rifle flashed repeatedly, blasting three point-defense emplacements that rose from the yacht’s midsection into scrap.

Watching this, Murat felt the gap between people was just too vast.

“Just what kind of monster is the instructor?”

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

As Murat was lost in thought, an alert sounded, reminding him to prepare for deceleration.

He immediately twisted the mech’s fuselage around and ignited the rear thruster array again.

In a fierce fleet battle, such a deceleration maneuver would be suicidal.

But against a yacht whose defensive weapons had already been disabled, it posed little danger.

For a rookie, this method of deceleration was also more practical.

Although Murat wanted to learn his instructor’s more combat-oriented maneuvering techniques, he knew he shouldn’t try to run before he’d even learned to crawl.

By now, Amber’s flight lead mech had already closed in on the yacht. As Murat watched in awe, Amber executed a turn so sharp it almost traced an acute angle, a sight that made the space combat rookie’s heart pound.

The mech circled the yacht several times, using its point-defense laser and Gauss rifle to clear all the smaller debris off the hull. After holstering the Gauss rifle, Amber drew the heavy plasma severing sword.

With a swift stroke of the sword, he severed the yacht’s external communications array. Then, he expertly located a projection on the ship’s bow, plunged the sword in, and shredded everything inside.

At the same time, Murat heard Amber’s voice over the comms channel.

“Calling Warhorse, all ships have backup communication units. If you don’t want to be chased all over the system by patrol ships, remember to destroy all of them.”

“Yes, Instructor!”

“Use call signs during combat. Don’t let it happen again.”

Drenched in sweat, Murat ended the communication and watched as Amber landed on top of the yacht, plunging the heavy severing sword into the hull to anchor himself.

A question suddenly popped into his head.

“How is he so skilled at attacking yachts?”

As a defector with a sensitive identity, the Central Intelligence Division responsible for turning Adam had actually offered to send a VIP protection detail to ensure his safety.

But the newly-appointed Baron had politely declined.

In his view, it was no different from having a bunch of people watching his every move.

He knew he was the main culprit behind the fall of Robert IV, but now that the entire planet was gone, those who sought revenge were naturally buried along with it.

Even if the Federation now knew he was a defector, they were too busy dealing with the Imperial fleet’s attacks to send an assassin deep into the Empire’s heartland to kill him.

The only people who could kill him now were from the Star Dragon Empire.

If they really wanted him discarded after he had served his purpose, the VIP protection detail assigned to him might be the first to act.

Under such circumstances, Adam felt there would be no point in even trying to resist.

So, in the end, Baron Adam simply hired a group of marines who moonlighted as hired muscle and henchmen from a security firm run by nobles.

When the alarms blared on the yacht’s bridge, Baron Adam’s first thought was:

“Goddammit, these Imperial dogs are really trying to silence me!”

Adam scrambled off the woman, pulled up his pants, and rushed to the bridge, only to find everyone, including the captain, in a state of panic.

“What’s going on?!”

“My… my lord, we’ve been ambushed! They’re clearly professionals!”

The captain swallowed hard and continued, “They not only breached our firewall and paralyzed the main control system with an electronic warfare virus, causing the reactor output to drop, but they also sent mechs to destroy our external communications array and backup units! We can’t even send a distress signal!”

“This MO… it’s like pirates.”

Baron Adam’s brows knitted together into a deep frown.

“This isn’t a border region. Why would there be pirates here?”

Though he couldn’t make sense of it, he knew this wasn’t the time to dwell on it.

Pushing the questions aside, Baron Adam walked straight up to the captain and slapped him across the face.

“Pull your fucking selves together! I’m not panicking, so what the hell are you all panicking about?!”

Seeing the bridge quiet down, he waved his hand and started issuing orders:

“Everyone, suit up. Vent the ship’s atmosphere and flood it with inert gas. I have no intention of getting blown to bits.”

“Notify those guys from Trident Defense in the crew compartment. We pay them all that money; now it’s time for them to earn it.”

“The rest of you, calm down and prepare for battle! We’re less than fifty thousand kilometers from the patrol-monitored zone, and we filed our estimated arrival time with the Port Authority before we left. If we can hold out for just one hour, the Port Authority will notice we’ve gone dark and send a patrol fleet.”

“Do you all fucking understand?!”

“Yes! My lord!”

Baron Adam nodded in satisfaction at the now-silent bridge and prepared to put on his own suit.

But just then, the captain’s voice rang out again:

“The enemy launched two high-speed objects! Infrared signature matches the database… I think they’re… assault pods!”

Hearing this, Baron Adam turned to look at the main screen. The yacht’s integrated sensors had already picked up two rapidly approaching assault pods.

“A boarding action… Tsk, could they really be pirates?”

Chapter 132: Embracing the Sun

To the vast majority of players, ship-to-ship assault pods were tied with drop pods as the manliest vehicles in existence.

These pods, which seemed to rely on a simple and brutish method to forcibly deploy marines onto a target vessel, were in fact not so simple at all.

Moreover, they were extremely versatile. Besides being used against enemy warships, they were also highly effective for force projection against spaceports, asteroid bases, battle fortresses, and other such installations.

The vessel Amber and his team were on was using AT22 thermal-cutting assault pods, which they had ‘scavenged’ along with this long-decommissioned Imperial frigate from Allenita’s private ship storage port.

Like the frigate, the pods were also equipment that had been retired from the Empire’s combat roster, but they were now widely used by the private forces of nobles, PMCs, and pirates.

According to the records Allenita found in the storage port’s database, both the Repentance-class frigate and these four AT22 assault pods had been used by a business partner to settle a debt.

These assault pods, which used dual-mount thermal cutters on their fronts to slice through a ship’s hull plating and complete a boarding action, could each carry nine marines equipped with exoskeletons.

Amber currently had only sixteen men capable of infantry combat, including his radioman and electronic warfare technician, so in the end, he only took two of the assault pods.

Although Amber had no idea what kind of business partner would use a frigate and assault pods to pay off a debt, scavenging them had been a great help to today’s operation.

By shamelessly leveraging Isabelle’s powers of persuasion, Amber borrowed the frigate and two assault pods from the elf, and he even found a space dock under the Yuge family’s corporate umbrella capable of servicing Imperial ships.

Of course, Isabelle’s influence alone wasn’t enough to secure so much ‘sponsorship.’

The main reason was that Amber had proposed this operation as a way to demonstrate his team’s comprehensive capabilities to Allenita—a sort of ‘corporate culture showcase’ before seeking investment.

If he ultimately managed to impress the investor, then all would be well.

But if he failed to win her over or even pique her interest, Amber would have to find some other way to repay the costs of this operation.

“Mr. Amber, honestly, I’m quite curious. If you fail to impress me, your investor, how exactly do you plan to pay me back?”

Remembering the meaningful words Allenita had spoken before their departure, Amber opened the team’s communication channel.

“Everyone, stay sharp! Especially the marines! If any of you dare to screw this up, you know the consequences.”

As Amber spoke, the thermal cutters at the front of the two assault pods began to glow red, signaling that they were entering the final breach phase.

Boom!

Boom!

As the pods, fixed to the top of the yacht, made impact, Amber felt two successive jolts through the soles of his feet. The solid-borne sound reached him like two muffled explosions heard from underwater.

The two assault pods slammed into the yacht’s mid-section corridor and aft crew compartment, respectively.

For thermal cutters designed to deal with the layered armor of a warship, the exterior plating of a private yacht built primarily for comfort and luxury, while sturdy, was hardly a challenge.

The Trident marines who had been assembling in the crew compartment were sent flying in all directions by the immense kinetic energy of the assault pod’s impact.

Before the mercenaries could even recover from the collision, a ring of small hatches encircling the front of the assault pod popped open.

Immediately after, a volley of shrapnel grenades erupted like a string of firecrackers.

The barrage not only peppered the crew compartment until it looked like a sieve but also instantly eliminated nearly seventy percent of the Trident mercenaries.

The lucky few who survived being turned into shredded rags saw the front of the assault pod finally open completely.

Then, two hulking figures in exoskeletons, carrying massive shields, charged out.

Since this operation was a simple boarding action and not an attempt to capture the ship, they didn’t need to worry about damaging the vessel during the fight.

Thus, all the marines participating in the boarding action were equipped with standard ranged weapons.

Hiding most of their bodies behind the shield-bearers, the marines opened fire, and it took them almost no time at all to gun down every last one of the Trident mercenaries Baron Adam had hired at great expense.

This one-sided outcome was not due to a disparity in combat skill.

In all fairness, the Trident mercenaries were a group of hardened soldiers who lived on the razor’s edge.

And like most mercenaries in the world, the majority of them had prior military service.

If it had been a fair fight, Amber’s ‘former mobile infantry’ wouldn’t have had much of an advantage.

But thanks to the sheer surprise of the ambush and Amber’s decision to make the crew compartment one of the boarding points, the mercenaries were torn to shreds by the assault pod’s anti-personnel shrapnel grenades before they could even find cover.

Soon, the marines had secured the crew compartment. As they dutifully followed Amber’s instructions, finishing off the mercenaries on the floor, making no distinction between the wounded and the dead, their comrades who had breached the yacht’s central corridor reported over the comms channel.

“Mid-section corridor secured!”

The two teams immediately rushed toward the bridge as planned.

One of the teams detoured to check Baron Adam’s master bedroom. Finding no trace of their target, they confirmed that the fat man had already fled to the bridge.

The rest of the battle was a foregone conclusion.

Even armed, the bridge crew, wearing only spacesuits, were utterly incapable of fending off the marines’ assault.

The moment the marine tasked with capturing the target caught sight of Adam’s massive figure, he immediately raised his right hand and fired a net round from the multi-purpose launcher mounted under his arm.

The carbon fiber net, laced with an electric shock effect, instantly brought Baron Adam down, tightening around him and neatly packaging him up.

“Megalodon squad reports, package acquired!”

Hearing the report over the comms channel, Amber, seated in the Zealot’s cockpit, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Roger that. Clean up the battlefield quickly and prepare to withdraw.”

“Remember to grab the shipboard control AI core from the bridge. That thing’s worth a lot.”

“Oh, and those decorations in the master bedroom… yes, yes, the one on your right hand side. Take that with you too!”

Using the camera feeds from the marines’ tactical faceplates, Amber expertly guided them in a swift looting of the yacht.

Just as they were about to retreat, a marine reported over the comms:

“Ghost, this is Megalodon. There are still some survivors on the yacht. How should we proceed?”

The channel went quiet. After a long moment, Amber’s reply came through.

“Leave no one behind. Make it quick and clean.”

“Warning: Temperature exceeding limits.”

When Baron Adam regained consciousness due to his spacesuit’s alarm, he found himself firmly grasped in the hand of an HCP.

At that moment, the HCP was standing on the exterior armor of a frigate.

And before his eyes was a colossal ‘fireball’ that filled his entire field of vision—the sun of the Haven System.

Although his helmet’s faceplate had automatically tinted to reduce the light intake upon detecting the excessive brightness, Baron Adam was still so dazzled by the brilliant sunlight that he couldn’t open his eyes.

He guessed that his current position must be quite close to the star.

Under the direct glare of its radiation, even with his spacesuit’s climate control system working at full capacity, Baron Adam could feel the temperature steadily rising, prompting the high-temperature warning.

He looked up at the silver-white steel giant before him. From its form, he recognized it as an Imperial Zealot.

“So you Imperial mutts are finally going to silence me? Why couldn’t you have just done it sooner? All that pretense of giving me a noble title and a private yacht.”

“The Empire? I think you might be mistaken.”

The voice, transmitted through contact comms, sounded somewhat familiar to Adam.

Before he could place it, he saw the Zealot’s chest hatch open.

“Commander Adam, you really are an important man with a poor memory.”

The giant mechanical arm lifted Adam to the cockpit entrance. Inside, the pilot tapped his helmet, and the previously opaque faceplate turned transparent, revealing the face within.

“Amber… Hmph, so you didn’t disappear with Robert IV after all.”

At that moment, an intense wave of regret washed over Adam. He regretted not taking Tail Needle’s advice back on Robert IV and eliminating this meddlesome pawn, which had led things to their current state.

“I am deeply sorry for your disappointment,” Amber said, his voice practically overflowing with mockery.

“From the sound of it, I take it you got rid of Tail Needle too?”

“Of course.”

“Sigh… I never thought it would end like this. To fall into your hands… I accept it. I won’t beg for mercy or ask you to let me go. I know that’s impossible.”

Adam sighed, his expression suddenly becoming calm.

“Just give me a quick death.”

“Hahaha, a quick death? You’re dreaming. If I wanted to give you a quick death, I wouldn’t have gone to all this trouble to bring you here.”

Amber turned Adam to face the sun. The star, constantly emitting light and radiation, was already making the newly minted baron break out in a sweat—a sign that his suit’s climate control system was at its limit.

“I thought about it for a long time and decided to give you a very romantic death.”

Amber closed the cockpit, reactivated the follow-up control system, and assumed a throwing posture.

“Go and embrace the sun, Commander Adam.”

“No… no! You can’t be so cruel!”

Commander Adam realized what was about to happen and immediately became hysterical.

“Don’t! Amber! I’m begging you, just give me a quick death!”

“Bye-bye~”

The energy released by the subcritical reactor was converted into electromagnetic force by the thermoelectric exchange device, which in turn powered the electromagnetic muscle bundles, causing the mechanical arm to swing with immense force.

An HCP’s arm strength was enormous; even throwing a rock could be incredibly lethal.

Amber had already removed the communication module from Adam’s spacesuit.

Hurled toward the sun, he would become the loneliest man in the universe.

There, in the ever-increasing heat, he would watch his spacesuit’s oxygen supply dwindle, and finally, suffocate in despair.

“Hiss… Even an AI like me finds that terrifying. Master, just how twisted are you to come up with such a torturous method?”

But Amber didn’t answer Lilith. Watching Adam’s flailing figure recede into the distance like a helpless turtle, he muttered to himself:

“Lieutenant Colonel, I’ve carried out your last request…”

…

Federation, Capital star system, AI Research Center.

Sitting in his office, Dr. Mephisto looked dazed, his eyes filled with disbelief.

On the virtual screen before him, news of the battle in the Robert system dominated the headlines of every major media outlet.

“It has just been confirmed that under the assault of the Federation Navy, Planet Robert IV, a terrestrial planet in the border-region Robert system, has been destroyed. This attack has annihilated a large number of the invading Star Dragon Empire forces on the planet’s surface.”

“Empire’s Invasion Thwarted, Heavy Losses!”

“A Noble and Tragic Sacrifice for the Federation!”

“As can be seen in the footage, a large number of citizens have gathered in the Capital Freedom Square. They have brought flowers to spontaneously commemorate the Federation soldiers who fought bravely against the enemy on Planet Robert IV and ultimately sacrificed their lives.”

Knock, knock, knock.

A knock on the door pulled Dr. Mephisto back to reality.

He looked up toward his office door to see Minister of Defense Miller standing there.

“Doctor, may I come in?”

“Miller. You still dare to show your face here!”

Dr. Mephisto, normally a mild-mannered man with an air of scholarly research, was now like an enraged old lion.

He shot to his feet and, leaning on his cane, strode briskly toward Miller.

“Why did you attack Robert IV! Do you have any idea…”

“Of course I know.”

Miller calmly cut Mephisto off. As the Minister of Defense and a long-time veteran of the political arena, he might be considered a ‘pretty boy’ scholar in the eyes of a hardened soldier like Marshal Trafalgar.

But to an ordinary person, he possessed an intimidating air of authority.

In this regard, Minister Miller could easily overpower Mephisto, who spent his days in a research institute and lacked social experience.

“Your little activities on Robert IV… If it weren’t for me covering for you in the shadows, do you really think a blockhead like you who spends all day in a lab wouldn’t have been discovered?”

“You…”

Dr. Mephisto was about to speak but was once again cut off by Minister Miller.

“Although Project Creator has been canceled, its phased result, ‘Project 02’—or ‘Lilith,’ as you call her—still holds extremely high research value. This is why I helped you cover up the fact that you didn’t destroy her. I also felt it would be a shame to simply destroy her; there might be an opportunity to continue the research in the future.”

Minister Miller walked over to a chair in the office and sat down before continuing.

“However, that doesn’t mean I’m willing to risk it falling into enemy hands. That’s why I ordered Marshal Trafalgar to attack Robert IV. Otherwise, knowing that old codger’s style, he would have attacked the star to create a black hole.”

Minister Miller’s words reached Dr. Mephisto’s ears one by one, and they calmed him down.

Reason told him that the Minister of Defense’s decision was faultless.

As Lilith’s creator, Dr. Mephisto certainly knew what the consequences would be if she fell into the hands of the Star Dragon Empire.

With his thoughts cleared, the doctor let out a cloudy breath, and his entire body seemed to visibly deflate.

“You came here today for more than just this, didn’t you.”

“You’re as sharp as ever, Doctor,” Minister Miller said with a smile. “Actually, I came today mainly to confirm something. The ‘autonomous combat fleet led by shipboard control AIs’—the so-called ‘unmanned fleet’—is it ready to be considered for live combat testing?”

Chapter 133: The Unmanned Fleet

“The unmanned fleet. What? The war just started. Is the situation at the front already so grim?”

Having calmed down, Dr. Mephisto’s tone of voice softened.

He even poured a cup of coffee for Minister Miller, who had taken a seat.

“Still no milk or sugar?”

“That’s right. Thank you, Doctor.”

Minister Miller took the coffee from Dr. Mephisto and took a sip, his eyes narrowing in enjoyment.

“This coffee is excellent. And it has a familiar taste.”

“That’s because I used the beans you gave me last time.”

“…”

Dr. Mephisto sat back down in his own chair, watching the somewhat embarrassed Minister Miller with a deadpan expression.

“Ahem… alright, let’s get down to business. Regarding the question you just asked, Doctor, I can only say yes, and no.”

“If you’ve come to play guessing games, then I’m going to have to show you the door.”

“No, why is your temper getting more and more like that fellow Trafalgar? I suppose the older one gets, the worse one’s temper becomes.”

Seeing Dr. Mephisto’s face grow colder, Minister Miller stopped his grumbling.

“The Empire has deployed a new type of strategic weapon. The Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets retreated in defeat. They are currently establishing a defensive line in the Klaimond system, four standard warp distances from the Robert planet, and awaiting reinforcements.

“Although the Empire has also temporarily withdrawn from the Robert system, according to the latest intelligence, they attacked four star systems simultaneously.

“But only the Robert system put up a symbolic resistance and managed to send out a message. The other three systems fell before they could even transmit a single report.

“The armies of those autonomous planetary governments are a bunch of useless fools, can’t even send a distress signal when they’re attacked.

“Long-range scout ships have already spotted a large-scale buildup of the Imperial fleet in these three systems. We’re currently evaluating a plan to attack their star.”

As Minister Miller rattled on, a sneer of contempt touched Dr. Mephisto’s lips.

“Be vigilant in times of peace. It’s a truth that’s been repeated for thousands of years, so why do people still not understand it?

“Back when you wanted to terminate Project Creator, I told you that a peaceful coexistence with the Empire was impossible in the long run. But no one listened to me.”

“Wasn’t that because the Lilith you created presented an uncontrollable risk? A risk that made it impossible for us to approve her for military use,” Miller retorted, setting down his coffee cup.

“I didn’t come here to argue with you today. I came to discuss the matter of the unmanned fleet with you calmly.

“The tonnage of the navy’s fleets has grown rapidly over the past decade, but the problem is that personnel training hasn’t been able to keep up with our shipbuilding speed.

“Take a look at the current capital fleets. How many of them are veterans of the last war?

“The newly formed fleets are filled with a large number of recruits who have just completed basic training, and the command structure includes many officers fresh out of the naval academy.

“Now that the Empire has suddenly launched a war, sending these people to the front is, in my opinion, no different from sending them to their deaths.

“And you know the current climate of public opinion in the Federation. It can’t handle the slightest bit of bad news from the war. If the fighting intensifies and lists of naval casualties start flowing back to the home front, public opinion will explode.”

“Is that why these same media outlets, after a populated planet was destroyed by our own side, could still spin it as a ‘heroic sacrifice, a moving and tragic tale’?”

“Controlling public opinion is part of war. If you don’t like the game, don’t play.”

“Hah. You politicians can always come up with such high-sounding excuses.”

Mephisto knew he couldn’t win a debate with Miller, so he didn’t pursue the topic further.

He tapped the virtual screen above his desk a few times. The lights in the office dimmed, the curtains closed automatically, and a vast amount of information and fleet models were projected in the center of the room.

“The autonomous combat fleet, directed by shipboard control AIs—or ‘unmanned fleets’ as you laymen call them—completed its full-spectrum training exercises three months ago.

“And during these exercises, they broke every existing record.

“Just as the project hoped from the very beginning, this autonomous fleet has demonstrated a level of precision and efficiency unattainable by humans.

“Furthermore, the shipboard control AIs installed on these vessels were all reset based on the research data obtained from Project Creator.

“However, their emotion modules have been sealed to prevent a recurrence of the Lilith incident.

“Theoretically, they are indeed ready to enter the combat testing phase.

“The problem is, the current composition of this autonomous combat fleet is identical to that of a main naval fleet.

“Thirty capital ships, forty-five heavy cruisers, thirty light cruisers, thirty destroyers, and fifty-five frigates.”

As Dr. Mephisto spoke, the virtual projection of the unmanned fleet assumed a standard space combat box formation.

Alongside it, data displayed the speed at which the fleet could change formations under high-pressure scenarios, as well as its long-range gunnery efficiency.

Compared to traditional fleets, their formation change time was reduced by more than twenty-five percent, and their gunnery efficiency was a full thirty percent higher.

“This single fleet might give us an advantage in a particular battle, but you can’t expect it to change the tide of the war on its own.

“And based on what you said, the Empire has deployed some new type of strategic weapon. Two of our main fleets have already been defeated. Do you really think sending out this autonomous fleet, which has just completed its training, will result in a victory?”

Dr. Mephisto shook his head. He felt that the Minister of Defense was becoming more and more of a ‘politician.’

In a crisis, they always fantasized about some miracle weapon that could turn the tide, clinging to it like a life raft.

“What if… and I’m just saying if… what if there’s more than one such unmanned fleet?”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t need to know what I mean. There are some things you don’t need to be aware of yet, Doctor.”

Minister Miller stood up, walked to Dr. Mephisto’s desk, and held up three fingers.

“Three. Three unmanned fleets ready for combat testing. All I need is your approval.”

“Miller, have you gone mad?”

Dr. Mephisto also rose to his feet, meeting Minister Miller’s gaze.

“Putting aside how you managed to conjure up so many fleets, even if you really have that many ships, are you not afraid of something going wrong if you throw all of them into combat testing at once?”

“Of course I’m damn well afraid of things going wrong! But what other choice do we have right now? After such a long period of peace, I’m sure you’ve heard about the state of combat readiness of the Federation’s military.”

Miller sighed. It was no secret within the Federation government that the remote star systems were trending toward warlordism.

If they were to engage in an all-out war with the Star Dragon Empire, the garrison forces in those systems would be utterly useless against the well-prepared and aggressive Imperial military.

And the all-important capital fleets were suffering from the growing pains of an experience gap between new and veteran crew members.

The Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets were considered to be in relatively good shape compared to the rest of the navy, which was why Marshal Trafalgar had sent them out in the first place.

The Minister of Defense didn’t dare to imagine what the outcome would have been if he had sent other fleets with even lower overall combat strength.

“Think about it, Doctor.”

Miller raised a hand and patted Mephisto’s arm, which was propped up on the desk. He then drained his coffee in one go and turned to leave.

“The coffee was good. I’ll be back for more next time.”

Chapter 134: Angel Investment

While Dr. Mephisto was lost in thought over Miller’s words, the Federation, a human nation that hadn’t fought a proper major war in eighty years, was finally beginning to stir.

Perhaps due to its political structure and system, the Star Dragon Empire frequently had to conduct counter-insurgency operations, most often against the rebellious private armies of nobles and their regular forces.

Therefore, compared to the Federation forces, who spent their days watching mobs throw stones, both the Empire’s navy and army were far more experienced in combat.

On the Federation’s side, disturbances were more often riots sparked by oppressed lower-class civilians.

These resisters, labeled “mobs” by the Federation and the various star system autonomous governments, possessed no decent weaponry and were incapable of causing any real trouble.

Although there had been rebellions in the past eighty years sparked by autonomous governments demanding “independence,” their cause was often a planetary administrator inciting the masses and garrison forces to rebel in pursuit of greater personal gain.

After the Federation dispatched its fleet and took a slightly firmer stance, making it clear that it would absolutely not tolerate a star system’s independence, these so-called rebellions would ultimately be resolved bloodlessly at the negotiating table through a redistribution of interests.

Such negotiations even became a form of political achievement and a topic of conversation.

After all, in the eyes of politicians, defusing a crisis at the negotiating table without bloodshed seemed far more sophisticated than sending in a fleet to fight a real battle.

Due to a combination of various factors, the Federation had, quite absurdly, gone eighty years without a war.

In the first two or three decades after the peace treaty was signed, the Federation’s military had actually maintained a high level of combat readiness to prevent the Empire from suddenly tearing up the agreement. They also initiated research on a number of military technology projects to upgrade the army’s overall hardware, all in preparation for the next potential great war.

But fifty years into the peaceful coexistence between the Federation and the Empire, the situation changed.

A new leadership focused on economic development came to power. The once-massive military expenditures and R&D budgets for military technology were continuously slashed.

Numerous military research projects, including Project Creator, were forced to be shut down.

And the megacorporations, closely connected to this new leadership, eagerly participated in “national construction,” beginning to leech off the state.

Swords were sheathed and warhorses put to pasture.

This state of affairs continued right up to the present.

When images of the Empire’s Fortress of Sorrow sweeping over the Federation fleet with its Focusing Rainbow, and news that the fleet was forced to launch a Proton Annihilation Bomb to destroy Robert IV in a “scorched earth policy” of resistance, reached the decision-makers and politicians, they finally realized that war had come once again.

The first card the ruling party played in this situation was media control.

Under the packaging of the mainstream media, the military defeat in the Robert system was transformed into a moving and tragic battle.

Although a number of media outlets also questioned the decision to attack Robert IV, their tune changed swiftly the very next day after a series of overnight visits and talks from “men in black” from the relevant departments.

Through this method, public opinion in the core star systems, including the Capital star system, was kept from spiraling out of control.

While the populace mourned the fallen soldiers, a massive wave of enthusiasm to “resist the invaders” also swept the nation.

In this environment, the ruling party played its second card.

It announced that the Federation was entering a state of war, suspending all major governmental activities, including the general election.

Ground forces deployed on core military planets and fleets in space began to mobilize and assemble.

At the same time, several urgent military buildup plans, which made the military-industrial complex grin from ear to ear, were forcefully passed in the House of Representatives.

Finally, they began to analyze and research the Empire’s Fortress of Sorrow based on existing data, searching for countermeasures while also accelerating the construction of the Federation’s own mobile fortress.

On the evening of the day the Federation entered a state of war, a cocktail party that felt like a celebration banquet was held in a private manor in the Capital.

In attendance were the top brass of the Federation Democratic Party, including President Brandon, and a large number of leaders from megacorporations with close ties to the party.

For them, even though war had arrived, it was still a distant affair.

No matter how powerful the Imperial fleet was, it couldn’t cross a dozen star systems in one go and storm the Capital.

Amidst the clinking of glasses, President Brandon walked to the center of the crowd, raised his glass, and declared with passionate fervor:

“Gentlemen, let us toast to this great war!”

As a participant in the battle for Robert IV, one who could even be said to have changed its course, Amber was now in the distant Thousand Stars Empire, finally free of the war as he had wished.

Just as the two major human powers were officially going to war, he was in an elven-style conference room, giving a report for the first time in a long while.

Before he transmigrated, Amber had been a programmer in his company’s tech development team, but he was also surprisingly skilled at making slideshows and giving reports.

This was because the tech development department had long been in a state where “those who did the actual work went unnoticed by management, while all the credit went to the ones who made the presentations.”

Eventually, the fed-up team leader of the tech development department decided to have his team members present their own reports.

And so, the job of consolidating the slides and presenting them fell on Amber’s shoulders.

Amber never imagined that “this skill” would still be useful after he transmigrated.

His current audience was the wealthy elf, Allenita, and her investment risk assessment team.

The entire assessment team was composed of female elves, so the conference room was filled with them—a truly stunning sight.

This led Amber to suspect that the wealthy elf’s sexual orientation might not be entirely conventional.

At that moment, the holographic projector in the conference room was re-creating the entire process of him leading the attack on the Venus yacht through a simulated animation.

“After accomplishing our objective, we blended into a transport fleet belonging to Ms. Yuge’s corporate group, successfully leaving Star Dragon Empire territory under the guise of a frigate.”

The simulation ended, and Amber walked to the middle of the conference room, looking around at the members of the assessment team.

“From this battle, it shouldn’t be hard for everyone to see that the crew, marines, and HCP pilots who participated in the operation are all killing machines who have undergone rigorous training and been tested by the brutal battle for Robert IV.”

“Furthermore, as the commander of this team, I believe you have all heard of my own command, combat, and piloting abilities. A private military company established with our group as its core will undoubtedly fill the gap in armed support that the Yuge family needs for its commercial activities in human society.”

After this grand speech, Amber gave a bow and returned to his seat, waiting for the assessment team to deliberate.

But at that moment, Allenita, seated at the head of the table, suddenly spoke:

“Mr. Amber, I personally have great confidence in your and your team’s abilities. I also very much support your plan to seek investment and establish a private military company, which is why I organized this council today. However…”

The female elf paused, a look of confusion on her face.

“Could you explain in more detail why, in addition to the private military company, you also want to establish a mining company?”

Chapter 135: Getting Investment is Essentially About Telling a Story

Allenita’s doubt was shared by the other members of the assessment team.

They just hadn’t expected their boss to raise the question so early.

“Based on your description, Mr. Amber, it seems you and your companions should be more focused on running a private military company. In that case, why do you also wish to establish a mining company?”

The wealthy elf reiterated her question, then looked at Amber intently, awaiting his response.

Amber had, in fact, anticipated this question before today’s assessment meeting.

After all, this was still the angel investment round. The capital was coming from Elenita Yuge personally, drawn from her own private coffers. She alone would bear any profits or losses, not the venture capital firm of the family behind her.

Therefore, she had to consider the risks.

When it came to matters of financial interest like investment, even Isabelle’s power of persuasion would be useless.

Moreover, investing in a private military company (PMC) was a rather novel concept for the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire.

Even someone as capable as Allenita had no experience investing in PMCs.

Due to the elves’ business style of “making money through harmony,” as mentioned before, and the fundamental strategic position of the Thousand Stars Empire, this nation possessed what humans would consider formidable military might but had no intention of external expansion. It steered clear of war whenever possible.

You fight your wars, and I’ll make my money.

This also meant that when elves invested in their own country or in human society, companies like PMCs were basically placed in the lowest tier of consideration.

For all these reasons, Allenita couldn’t help but feel even more puzzled when she saw that the proposal Amber submitted included the establishment of a mining company.

But Amber, who had long been prepared, began to tell his story.

After all, during the Angel and Series A rounds, investing is mostly about burning through the investors’ money, a fact the investors themselves are well aware of.

What they need is simply a “story.”

A story that makes them willing to open their wallets and let the investee burn their cash.

And Amber happened to be a master storyteller.

As he slowly unraveled his tale, Allenita and the members of the assessment team were left dumbfounded.

PMCs could be run like this?

Amber’s story was divided into two parts.

The first part introduced a brand-new playbook for PMCs, a strategy that, in the game’s storyline, only appeared much later, around the time the Star Dragon Empire fractured and the Federation descended into internal strife, when frequent wars made PMCs increasingly active.

The idea was to establish a mining company. Then, besides the necessary mining vessels and cargo ships, some of the PMC’s combat ships and personnel transports would be registered under the mining company’s name as “armed merchant ships” and “employee transport ships.”

After all, warships could be fitted with external rails to mount several large cargo containers on their hulls, so calling them “armed merchant ships” was not unreasonable.

Furthermore, asteroid belts, where mining operations took place, were often far from civilized space, remote and sparsely populated, making them highly susceptible to pirate attacks. Thus, a mining company naturally needed a certain level of military force for its own protection.

When dealing with asteroids over ten kilometers in diameter, a warship could even switch its heavy particle cannon to a low-power irradiation mode to assist mining vessels in cutting up the rock, thereby increasing efficiency.

This heavy particle cannon of mine is for civilian use.jpg. Everything was perfectly reasonable, right?

On this basis, these “armed merchant ships” and “employee transport ships” registered under the mining company could enter and exit the territories of major human powers more easily than warships under a PMC’s banner.

This also made it more convenient for the PMC to accept contracts and travel to destinations to complete its missions.

If you brought along a few cargo ships filled with crudely processed ore, your passage would be even more unimpeded.

The second half of the story was mainly to assuage the investors’ concerns, explaining how the mining company would make money hand over fist in the days to come.

Amber didn’t talk about the Empire’s subsequent civil war and fragmentation, nor the Federation’s internal turmoil.

He simply made a prediction based on the current full-scale war between the Federation and the Empire.

Every fleet battle that erupted between these two great powers meant both sides consumed countless superconductive metals in their exchanges of heavy particle cannon fire.

It also meant that millions, or even tens of millions, of tons of warships would be sunk, and both sides would need to replenish their losses.

Neither the Federation’s military-industrial complex nor the Empire’s shipbuilding giants would pass up this opportunity to fill their coffers.

With their encouragement, repairing ships in drydocks would account for only a small portion of the work; churning out new ships would be the main event.

Against this backdrop, the demand for industrial metals and superconductive metals like bismuth, lithium, and neodymium would begin to skyrocket.

Correspondingly, the prices of both raw and refined ore would also rise sharply.

Even the prices of mining vessels and ore refining equipment would increase in tandem.

At the heart of the storm, even a pig can fly.

And Amber had not only arrived at the storm’s core ahead of time, but he was also preparing to build himself a pair of wings.

At this point, a closed business loop had formed: ‘The PMC takes on jobs in the upcoming war’ → ‘The mining company provides cover for some of the warships’ → ‘The mining company also profits from the war’ → ‘The mining process is risky, but the PMC can provide protection’.

Most importantly, Amber presented his analysis of the Yuge family’s industrial composition.

Although the Yuge family currently had a vast and powerful enterprise, its main industries were in relatively traditional elven sectors: bio-ship manufacturing, biopharmaceuticals, psionic weapon manufacturing, financial loan services, and so on.

In the future, the Yuge family could certainly solidify its position by relying on these mature, and in some cases monopolistic, industries.

But if they wanted to advance further, they had to open up new fronts.

A vertically integrated industrial chain consisting of asteroid mining, crude ore processing, ore refining, and smelting finished alloys was the brand-new field Amber suggested Allenita venture into.

And the mining company Amber hoped to get funding for could serve as her touchstone.

Of course, this analysis and suggestion were merely a retelling of how the Yuge family became the most powerful family in the Thousand Stars Empire in the original game’s timeline.

In that timeline, the Yuge family, at Allenita’s suggestion, had begun to play the mining game on the eve of the Empire’s civil war.

Relying on their immense capital, they assembled a colossal mining fleet that swept through numerous asteroid belts like a swarm of locusts.

And in the end, they profited immensely from humanity’s internal conflicts.

After hearing Amber’s story, Allenita and the members of the assessment team fell silent.

They realized that what had initially seemed like a relatively small-scale investment had somehow transformed into a strategic-level plan after Amber’s presentation.

“Mr. Amber, you’ve truly made me see you in a new light once again.”

The way Allenita looked at Amber had changed. If before she had seen him as her best friend’s partner…

Now, she found that Amber was indeed a suitable investment target, and perhaps even a potential partner for the future.

“I’m very curious, Mr. Amber. Why are you so familiar with business investment and the mining industry?”

Allenita asked her final question. She no longer had any doubts about the angel investment in Amber.

In fact, she was now genuinely planning to consult her family’s analysts after the meeting to analyze the feasibility and profit margins of entering the mining industry.

“I learned it all in my spare time. I know a little, just a little.”

Amber replied with a smile.

He obviously couldn’t tell Allenita that when he first started playing Starry Sky Online, he had actually planned to become a merchant to make money from the game.

Although he eventually turned into a pay-to-win whale, at least in the early stages of the game, he had earned his initial capital by constantly hauling ore and finished goods between the Jita IV Space Station and the asteroid belts.

Chapter 136: Please Enter Your Company Name

The investment assessment meeting was over.

It was settled that Allenita would make an angel investment in Amber and his team in a personal capacity.

The wealthy woman would receive 25% equity in both the PMC and the mining company Amber was about to establish.

This was generally the largest stake an angel investor would take.

Any higher would be inappropriate, as it was also important to ensure the founder maintained a large controlling share.

At the same time, Allenita would provide Amber with a low-interest loan of eight million Thousand Stars Empire Psionic Points from her own ‘personal funds’ as his startup capital.

This move alone was enough to make Amber’s resolve to ‘hold on tight to his rich patroness’ unwavering.

Although Amber had no idea when he would be able to repay the eight million, or when he would start to actually make money for himself.

But no matter what, securing the funds to establish the PMC and mining company and get them on the right track was the first step. Only then could he consider what came next.

Currently, there were four main currencies circulating in the known universe:

The Thousand Stars Empire’s Psionic Points, the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Gold Dragons, the Federation’s Credits, and the Commercial Alliance’s Alliance Coins.

Among these, Psionic Points held the highest value. At this point in time, the exchange rates against the other three common currencies were 1 to 3.5, 1 to 3.2, and 1 to 2.1, respectively.

And as human society descended into chaotic warfare, the exchange rate for Psionic Points was only set to climb higher.

This was why, when Amber first transmigrated, he had set his sights on heading to the Thousand Stars Empire.

It now seemed Amber had accomplished his initial plan.

Although the initial capital was borrowed, and there was additional investment from an angel investor, the entire company was essentially gotten for free.

Right now, Amber’s ‘startup group’ had 14.67 million Psionic Points in startup capital.

Of this, Amber ‘contributed’ eight million Psionic Points.

As for Isabelle, as soon as she arrived in the Thousand Stars Empire’s territory, she had managed to transfer all her funds and convert them into 1.8 million Psionic Points before her private account in the Star Dragon Empire was frozen.

The shipboard control AI core, artworks, and luxury goods recovered from Baron Adam’s yacht, the Venus, were ultimately liquidated for 1.2 million Psionic Points.

After a discussion between Amber and Isabelle, this portion would be divided equally among the others as their share of capital contribution.

Of course, to this was added the 3.67 million Psionic Points from Allenita’s angel investment.

If converted into Imperial Gold Dragons, this would be a massive sum of over fifty million.

It was just about enough to establish a small private military company and a mining company, and to purchase the necessary second-hand ships, equipment, and other essentials.

In terms of equity distribution, Amber held a 54.5% stake, giving him absolute control.

Allenita was the second-largest shareholder with 25%.

Isabelle was the third-largest shareholder with 12.3%.

The remaining 8.2% of the shares were divided equally among the other twenty-five members of the team.

Incidentally, during the first founding team meeting after the equity shares had been determined, Isabelle took the initiative to reveal her identity.

She felt that since they were all a team now, it wasn’t right to keep her identity hidden.

She couldn’t have Amber calling her ‘Margaret’ in public forever.

Isabelle’s self-revelation shocked the former Federation soldiers, including Randall and Tom.

They had never imagined that the medic who had fought her way out of Robert IV with them was actually an Imperial spy.

Although this Imperial spy was now considered a traitor to her own empire, they still had mixed feelings.

But in the end, the Federation soldiers came around.

Their escape to the Thousand Stars Empire was thanks to Isabelle’s elf friend.

And now, this elf friend was going to sponsor them to start a company.

Moreover, Isabelle had treated many of the wounded while they were operating together.

She had snatched Tom and several other soldiers from the jaws of death.

Not to mention, once the PMC was established, the concept of nationality would become irrelevant.

According to Amber, once the company was on track and its income stabilized, he would consider finding ways to bring over everyone’s relatives to ease their worries.

That way, they could take contracts from the Empire, the Federation, the elves, and even the distant Commercial Alliance—as long as the pay was good enough.

Thinking about it that way, this Miss Spy wasn’t so difficult to get along with.

After the equity distribution was settled, the next step was to register the company.

And this involved a crucial step.

“What do you guys think of the name ‘Fluffy Pink Bunnies’?”

“Amber, are you serious?”

At the meeting to decide the names for the private military company and the mining company, Isabelle was the first to question Amber’s initial suggestion.

“In simple terms, we’re going to be mercenaries fighting for clients, right? Are you sure you want this team to be called the ‘Fluffy Pink Bunnies’?”

“Alright, how about another one? ‘Crispy Pink Sharks’?” Amber typed a second option on the large screen.

“Do you have something against the color pink?”

“Yeah, Boss, can we pick a name that’s a bit more fitting? Like ‘Gods’ Armament’ or ‘Spear of Freedom’?”

Other members present at the meeting voiced their agreement.

“No, why do all your names sound so dated?”

Amber put a hand to his forehead. He really hadn’t expected naming a company to be this difficult.

He had originally planned to let Allenita, their ‘financial backer’, name the company, but she felt that a company led and run primarily by humans shouldn’t have an elven-style name, so she didn’t attend the meeting.

As everyone wrestled with the decision, Isabelle stood up.

“There was a famous composer in the Empire’s history named Bach, who once—”

“Stop right there. Mercenary groups named after composers meet bad ends.”

For the first time, Amber raised a serious objection, then he brought out the name he’d been saving.

“Atlas. How about this name? It’s a word from an ancient language that translates to ‘Titan’.”

“Boss, then why don’t we just call ourselves ‘Titan’?” Murat, one of the three ace pilots, raised his hand and asked.

“Let’s be low-key. We don’t need a name that’s so over-the-top and flashy. What we’re after with this company is to sustainably and quietly rake in the big bucks.”

In the end, Amber’s suggestion of ‘Atlas’ received unanimous approval.

He and Isabelle then went to the relevant agencies in the Thousand Stars Empire and officially registered Atlas Mining and Development Corporation and Atlas Private Military Company, with a combined registered capital of 14.67 million Psionic Points.

And now, there was still much to do before they could officially begin operations.

The most important tasks were recruitment and the acquisition of ships and equipment.

Chapter 137: Buying Ships

The company was up and running, and the funds were arriving.

But Amber felt anything but relaxed. Now that the prerequisites were met, a host of other matters awaited his attention.

The most pressing issues were, of course, personnel, equipment, and ships.

According to Amber’s plan, both mining and mercenary operations would be conducted in regions close to the Empire’s territory for the time being.

Therefore, when it came to selecting weapons, equipment, and ships, he naturally prioritized Imperial models.

The company’s current capital, converted to Imperial Gold Dragons, was a little over fifty million.

It seemed like a lot, but in reality, it was just barely enough.

The first and most important consideration was the ships.

Although Allenita had a private shipyard for mothballed vessels, most of them were elven bio-ships, not well-suited for human pilots.

The few human ships in storage were mostly vessels seized for debt, and their conditions varied wildly.

Even fewer among them were combat-capable. The Confessor-class frigate Amber had borrowed last time was already the best-maintained of the combat ships.

Using it once or twice might have been fine, but long-term use would require a major overhaul, making it far from cost-effective.

As for purchasing brand-new warships, that path was off the table for now.

While major shipyards did sell ships up to the light cruiser class to private buyers, for one, the prices for private acquisitions were astronomical, more than double what the Imperial Royal Navy paid.

Typically, only large corporations and nobles with deep pockets and a preference for “factory new” would consider being fleeced to order a brand-new warship.

Secondly, both military and civilian ships have construction cycles; they aren’t off-the-shelf products you can buy on a whim.

The standard purchasing process required the customer to make a deposit at the shipyard, then join a long queue. Construction would only begin when their turn came.

Thus, the waiting period for a new ship was measured in years.

And now, with the outbreak of war, the Empire’s major shipyards had to prioritize orders from the Royal Navy, which meant the waiting time for custom-built private warships would only get longer.

So, Amber’s only option was to try his luck in the used ship markets within the Star Dragon Empire.

He had to secure the essential warships and mining vessels before the escalating conflict caused used ship prices to skyrocket.

First came the most crucial part: the warship.

Amber abandoned the idea of acquiring multiple frigates to form a squadron, deciding instead to buy a single, higher-class destroyer.

A destroyer’s combat power and overall capabilities were superior to smaller frigates, but that wasn’t Amber’s main reason.

He prioritized buying a destroyer primarily due to his current shortage of personnel.

At least in the short term, he couldn’t recruit enough crew to operate multiple frigates effectively. Even if he could get them running, they wouldn’t perform at a combat-ready standard.

Meanwhile, Lilith was about to undergo her first optimization and iteration since their escape, so Amber couldn’t have her split her consciousness across several ships at this time.

So the best solution was to concentrate their strength on one key objective.

A single multi-purpose destroyer would be more than enough for their newly founded PMC.

On the current Imperial used ship market, the destroyer with the best value was the recently decommissioned Dragon-class.

Of course, the Dragon-class wasn’t the only option available at the destroyer level.

Major shipyards also produced destroyers specifically for export, or “destroyer-grade armed merchant ships” tailored for private civilian militias.

But these vessels weren’t mil-spec. Although they were fitted with a lot of tech and equipment that looked more advanced than on military ships, Amber saw it all as flashy gimmicks designed to swindle money.

Of course, Amber wasn’t the only smart one. Many people knew that mil-spec destroyers offered better value for money, so their prices were often inflated.

This was especially true for the Dragon-class, which had only recently been decommissioned, was well-maintained, and wasn’t technologically obsolete. Its price reached seventy percent of what the Royal Navy paid for a new one.

And in the future, it would likely skyrocket to eighty or even ninety percent of the new-ship price.

In a fiscal year when the Dragon-class was mass-produced, the cost of a brand-new one was twenty million Imperial Gold Dragons.

So now, on the used ship market, these recently decommissioned Dragon-class destroyers were priced between thirteen and fourteen million Imperial Gold Dragons.

Amber ultimately gritted his teeth and bought the one in the best condition, spending fourteen million Imperial Gold Dragons in one go.

With the warship sorted, the next step was to acquire a mining vessel for the mining company.

This time, Amber chose a Spinner-class mining ship, which had the largest cargo capacity among vessels of its type and class.

There was no talk of “decommissioned” for this type of vessel; most mainstream mining ships could be found on the second-hand market, usually priced at around sixty percent of a new one.

As an enduring and popular model, a new Spinner-class, fully equipped for mining, cost forty million Imperial Gold Dragons.

Even a used one cost a minimum of twenty-four million.

Just two ships had instantly consumed thirty-eight million Imperial Gold Dragons. For a moment, Amber felt his sense of money becoming numb.

“It’s fine,” Amber consoled himself. “The Imperial Gold Dragons haven’t disappeared. They’ve just changed form to stay by my side.”

After buying the ships, his startup capital was down to about thirteen million Imperial Gold Dragons.

Of this money, he first needed to set aside a portion for emergencies. Another part was for daily company operations, including repairs and maintenance for weapons, equipment, and ships, as well as ammunition reserves and so on.

After that, he had to reserve some for recruiting new employees and paying salaries.

Whatever was left, Amber planned to use entirely for stockpiling ore.

He was quite familiar with this sort of operation.

Currently, the price of ore in the border star systems between the Thousand Stars Empire and the Star Dragon Empire had risen somewhat since before the war, but the increase wasn’t outrageous.

Judging from the price curve of the last two years, it was still within a normal growth range.

But soon, as the fighting between the Federation and the Empire intensified, the prices of both raw and refined ore would surge at a heart-stopping rate.

If he didn’t make a killing from this, Amber felt his conscience would ache. He’d probably wake up in the middle of the night just to slap himself.

Besides its massive cargo hold, the Spinner-class also came with a basic ore-refining workshop.

While its refining efficiency couldn’t compare to dedicated industrial ships, something was better than nothing.

The price of refined ore was significantly higher than raw ore. Even if the amount they could refine wasn’t large, every little bit counted.

After instructing Lilith to surf the net and start buying ore from various trading markets, Amber, with no time to rest, began the work of recruitment.

Chapter 138: Is a Romu PMC a Good Idea?

As the company gradually took shape, Amber was beginning to truly appreciate just how agonizing it was to be short-staffed.

Excluding Isabelle and his financial backer, Allenita, the company currently had twenty-five employees.

The problem was that they were all from military backgrounds, either Mobile Infantry or mechanics from the prep squad.

The most educated and qualified were probably Randall and Tom, the two naval officers.

Even so, they knew practically nothing about running a business.

Thus, the newly established Atlas Private Military Company was composed entirely of “field operatives,” without a single person who could handle support and logistics.

There was no finance department, no operations, no customer service—not even an assistant.

Fortunately, any contracts Amber and his team took on for now would likely not involve cross-border operations. They were temporarily limiting themselves to personal protection and armed escorts, which were relatively simple missions.

This allowed him to shoulder the responsibilities of key positions like CM (Country Manager), COP (Country Operations Manager), and PM (Project Manager) all by himself.

But even with that, his combat personnel were severely lacking.

Including the communications specialist and the electronic warfare technician, he only had sixteen people capable of infantry combat.

The company couldn’t operate under these conditions.

It was against this backdrop that Amber, while waiting for his ship to arrive, set his sights on the Romu people within the Thousand Stars Empire.

After all, these Romu were limited to working in the tertiary sector within the Thousand Stars Empire.

A private military company could, in a sense, be considered part of the service industry, so it made perfect sense.

Of course, given the special status of the Romu in the Thousand Stars Empire, Amber decided it was best to give his financial backer a heads-up.

She was the second-largest shareholder, after all, and deserved that respect.

“So, you plan to hire some Romu to handle internal affairs at your company?”

“Field operations aren’t out of the question, either. Male Romu have a significant physical advantage; they’re perfectly suited for the work we do in the marines.”

Because of this matter, Elenita Yuge, who had already returned to the capital of the Thousand Stars Empire, made a special trip to the manor where Amber and his team were staying—a place the female elf had lent to Amber and Isabelle to use as their company address.

A private military company with its headquarters and base located in an elven manor.

It was something other companies couldn’t even dream of.

“Hmm… your proposal is quite novel. No one has ever done this before.”

“That’s why I came to discuss it with you.”

In the manor’s meeting room, Amber explained his plan while pouring Allenita a cup of tea, waiting for her advice.

The elves of the Thousand Stars Empire had a custom of drinking various tranquil-flower teas.

As a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, Amber and his team were following the local customs.

“Based on my personal experience, what you’re proposing is perfectly fine within the Empire’s legal framework. I’ll have our legal team confirm it later.”

Allenita accepted the hot tea from Amber, blew on it lightly, and continued, “However, a move like this will likely attract a certain degree of public opinion and attention. If someone were to fan the flames, you might find yourselves at the center of a storm.”

“Are you talking about the ‘Equal-Righters’ and the ‘Conservatives’?”

Amber set down his teacup and looked at the female elf.

The Equal-Righters and Conservatives he mentioned were two opposing factions within the Thousand Stars Empire.

As their names suggested, one side advocated for the Romu, hoping to end the implicit racial discrimination and allow them to enter industries beyond the service sector.

The other side was comprised of elven conservatives who believed ‘the ancestral laws cannot be changed’ and consistently opposed the Equal-Righters.

Of course, apart from these two factions, there was a third, much larger group.

The Apathetic.

Including the Elven Royal Court, more than half of the Thousand Stars Empire’s population belonged to the “Apathetic” faction.

In their view, it didn’t matter whether things changed or not.

As for the Romu? The elves didn’t really care what they thought.

“Well, well, Mr. Amber, you seem to know quite a lot, don’t you? I’m starting to wonder if you’re an elf disguised as a human.”

Allenita rested her interlocked hands on the bridge of her nose, her eyes fixed on Amber with great interest. The gesture also caused her impressive assets to rest on the tabletop, making them all the more eye-catching.

“That’s right. I strongly suspect that once the news of you hiring Romu gets out, both of those groups will seize the opportunity to make a huge fuss.”

“Sigh… I have no other choice, Allenita. I’m really struggling to recruit people,” Amber lamented with a helpless sigh.

“While it might be more appropriate to hire more human employees, the problem is that you are too far from both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire. If I hired a group of humans, I’d have to worry about them bringing their families over. Besides, we’ll probably be taking contracts from both the Empire and the Federation down the line. It would be awkward to use personnel from either side. The Romu, however, perfectly sidestep this issue, as they have no ties to either.”

“Hearing you put it that way, if we set aside the risk of public opinion for a moment, choosing the Romu does seem to be the most reliable solution for now.”

After hearing Amber’s woes, Allenita set aside her playful attitude and began to think seriously.

“So, how many people are you planning to hire?”

The moment the female elf asked this, Amber, sitting opposite her, knew he was in the clear.

He immediately displayed the recruitment plan he had already prepared on the holographic projection platform.

“For now, I’m not considering specialized positions like finance and operations. I’ll think of another way to handle those. Given the company’s current state, we’ll definitely be completing one mission before taking on the next, not running multiple missions simultaneously. So, we’ll just need to hire one assistant and one customer service representative for now.”

Amber skipped past the section on internal staff and went directly to the organizational chart for field combat personnel that he had been working on for the past few days.

“The main thing is recruiting for field operations. The PMC’s subordinate combat teams are just too small. Taking into account personnel rotation and maintaining a reserve force, I’d like to expand directly to two hundred people. That should be sufficient for handling low-to-medium intensity combat missions in the short term.”

Allenita listened intently to Amber’s explanation. While the female elf had seemed completely unconcerned with matters here, she had actually been using her spare time every day to learn about the specific operational methods of private military companies.

“The first batch you’re recruiting isn’t that large. In that case, I doubt the public outcry will be as bad as we fear. Go ahead with your plan. That’s fine by me~”

Hearing this, Amber finally let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you for your support, major shareholder. I honestly thought it would take more effort to persuade you.”

Amber took a sip of his now-cold tea, only to hear Allenita say with a smile, “Hehe. Actually, even if you wanted to hire Romu for the mining company, I would have agreed as long as you had a suitable plan.”

“But wouldn’t that mean I’d be breaking your elves’ ‘ancestral laws’? You wouldn’t have a problem with that?”

“Perhaps you aren’t aware, Mr. Amber, but I’m an Equal-Righter myself~”

Chapter 139: Amber Stay Night

After the major shareholder agreed to recruit Romu into the company, the subsequent related matters were handled very quickly.

It has to be said that Allenita is indeed a true Equal-Righter.

She saw the potential for positive public opinion from this recruitment of Romu and simply decided to add fuel to the fire.

Allenita used her connections to help release the recruitment announcement, and instructed the Yuge family’s enterprises distributed across the star systems to set up temporary recruitment points for preliminary screening.

Only Romu who met Amber’s recruitment requirements could enter the next round of interviews.

Although Amber wanted to protest, feeling that this behavior was putting himself and the company on the hot seat.

But given that Allenita said she would cover all the expenses of the entire recruitment process, and would fund the construction of a dedicated marine training ground near the manor.

What else could he say?

Amber is a very worldly person, and at this time he can only bow his head to the wealthy and powerful.

While the recruitment work was in full swing, Amber was also arranging training subjects for the others in the near future.

According to his plan, these soldiers who escaped from Robert IV with him would be the core combat force of Atlas Private Military Company for some time to come.

After all, there was no one else to use.

Amber’s idea was to use these people as the backbone to cultivate a multi-purpose infantry unit similar to the orbital paratroopers, and in the future as the company’s rapid reaction force.

Relying on the gradually growing fleet in the future, to achieve “real-time order taking, real-time dispatch, real-time deployment,” to provide customers with the best quality service.

And the others, including Randall, the former Navy Major, after following Amber to the Thousand Stars Empire, participating in the operation to kill Adam, and finally even starting a company, they already fully trusted Amber.

The pie that Amber drew before escaping from Robert IV may have been illusory.

But now the shares they have in their hands are real.

No one doesn’t want to make more money, and everyone wants to get a little more when the year-end bonus is distributed.

So they are the ones who most want the company’s profits to be higher and higher.

As a private military company, it is certainly necessary to first improve its business capabilities.

Therefore, everyone has no objection to the training tasks arranged by Amber, and many people will even increase their training volume.

In particular, Murat and another pilot, Louis, worked desperately to hone their driving skills and strive to improve their physical fitness.

Because in the simulated battles with Amber after data串联ing the two HCPs, whether it was ground combat or space combat, they were abused by Amber in various ways.

Although Amber said that it was already very good for two rookies to be able to persist in so many battles with him.

But these two pilots still felt that they were dragging the entire team down.

The other marines could at least directly engage in full-subject infantry combat.

But if they encountered space combat, they would have to let Amber, who should be sitting in the command seat, go out to fight, which was really a bit unreasonable.

Of course, if Amber heard the inner thoughts of these two people, he would definitely exclaim, “There is no need to think so.”

Now that I’ve come to this world, what’s the point of not driving a big robot?

He is now thinking about cultivating a reliable Captain, and then he can go out every day to dismantle battleships and stab the cockpit.

Allenita also quickly completed the preliminary selection and gathered the candidates participating in the second round of interviews to enter the second round of testing.

The standing army of the Thousand Stars Empire are all elves in order to ensure the so-called ‘purity’, and the Romu are at most involved in some outsourced material transportation work.

Therefore, it is difficult to find a Romu who has received combat training in the entire Thousand Stars Empire.

At present, the Romu who have passed the preliminary selection are all ordinary people with clean backgrounds, no bad records, and excellent physical fitness.

In their perception, private military companies are basically an industry of exchanging lives for money.

But this does not prevent them from wanting to get this job.

Because Amber and the others gave too much.

The salary that Amber offers to combat personnel can reach three to four times the average salary level of the Romu when there is no combat mission on basic salary alone.

This is just the most basic marine, if the position is promoted or can obtain a position on the ship, this basic salary will be higher.

When there is a combat mission, you will also receive additional combat allowances based on the mission rewards.

Overall, a Romu marine who successfully joins Atlas Private Military Company will have an annual income that is five to six times higher than before.

Not to mention, if the company’s employees are killed in battle, their families will also receive high pensions.

Although Allenita and her assessment team once asked Amber whether to appropriately reduce salary standards, increase people efficiency, and improve the company’s profit margin.

But Amber still refused this suggestion, after all, you want people to sell their lives.

In the absence of so-called charismatic leadership bonuses, throwing money is the fastest way to win people’s hearts in a short period of time.

Once a person starts to get busy, it is difficult to be idle again.

Amber now agrees with this statement very much.

The work of a private military company and a mining company is not as simple as he imagined.

Although the player guild in the game also has a part of the company’s operation, it is a game after all, and too many details have been omitted compared to reality.

And Amber now receives a lot of trivial matters about the company’s operations every day, which require him to look over or deal with.

Although Lilith has begun to cram the relevant knowledge of company operation under his ‘coercion’.

But in Amber’s plan, this artificial intelligence will mainly be responsible for combat in the future.

After all, the role that can be played in the company’s operation is limited, at most it can help in terms of capital flow and cost control.

In addition, positions such as assistants and clerks are still vacant, so Amber has basically been leading the team to train + attend meetings during the day, and dealing with various paperwork in the office at night recently.

He even often spends the night directly in the office.

This also led to a female spy who tasted the sweetness after opening the door to a new world, and could not see Amber returning to the room to rest for several nights in a row.

One night, after dinner, Amber was about to get up from his chair to go to the office to deal with the documents needed for the handover of the second-hand destroyer and engineering ship.

Isabelle grabbed his shoulders from behind and hugged him.

“Aren’t you planning to come back today?” Isabelle’s tone was obviously a little resentful.

“I definitely want to come back to rest, but didn’t we agree to leave the day after tomorrow to drive the two ships back? There are still a few documents to prepare.”

Amber relaxed and leaned in Isabelle’s arms, his head directly resting in a piece of softness.

“Let’s do it tomorrow, okay~ Stay and rest tonight.”

Isabelle whispered in Amber’s ear, and finally stretched out her soft tongue and licked his earlobe.

“Hiss”

Amber couldn’t help but stand up and turned around, only to see Isabelle with a charming smile on her face, retreating slowly while unbuttoning the elf-style homewear on her body.

When the robe fell along her smooth skin, Amber couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

Good guy, it’s attack speed gear.

Isabelle appreciatively admired Amber’s expression at the moment, her eyes moved down from his face all the way, and then she couldn’t help laughing.

“Amber, you really like this.”

If he could still bear this, Amber wouldn’t be a man anymore.

Paperwork and stuff could wait until tomorrow.

Amber stepped forward and carried Isabelle on his shoulders, then walked towards the bedroom.

“You asked for it, don’t beg for mercy like last time!”

“I won’t, I’m going to make you unable to get out of bed tomorrow~”

“Tsk! Vixen, how dare you be so rampant. Watch me subdue you with my stick!”

Chapter 140: The Hermes

The one who ended up unable to get out of bed the next day was Isabelle.

And the result of Amber’s fun-filled night was that the paperwork he was supposed to have finished was left for the next day.

Picking up the ship from the second-hand dealer was currently the top priority for Atlas Private Military Company.

So, Amber missed the next two days of regular training. With the help of professionals arranged by Allenita, he prepared all the necessary documents for the ship’s transaction, registration, and other procedures.

Then, at the scheduled time, they set off for the designated trading port.

Among those accompanying him this time, Isabelle, Randall, and Tom—the three with ship-handling experience—were indispensable.

Besides the three of them, there were also a few hastily trained temporary crew members whose skill level was roughly at the “able to get the ship moving” level.

At the same time, to be on the safe side, Allenita had arranged new identities for everyone—honorary human citizens of the Thousand Stars Empire.

However, in Amber’s opinion, these identities weren’t really necessary for them.

Because neither the Federation nor the Star Dragon Empire was perfect when it came to managing the movement of people.

First of all, in space, the concept of a national border was blurred.

As long as you weren’t flying a ship into a sensitive area or a restricted military zone, it was unlikely anyone would intercept you.

Because the cost of searching and intercepting was too high, and the efficiency was extremely low.

Therefore, identity verification was usually conducted at an orbital spaceport before entering a planet’s atmosphere.

At ordinary space stations and spaceports, especially in areas where various transactions took place, it was basically unheard of for anyone to check your identity.

Plus, there was Lilith.

After Amber’s “tutoring,” Lilith could now skillfully hack into nearby electronic devices to mask their information.

Even if Amber and his team left behind video footage or entry and exit records somewhere, Lilith would alter them to match their disguised identities.

Amber’s assessment of this was: Very useful, like being in anonymous mode.

Burton Spaceport, located in the Leipzig star system at the border of the Star Dragon Empire, was the largest port in the several nearby star systems qualified to trade in mil-spec second-hand ships.

Many second-hand ship dealers had set up temporary offices here, or had simply docked a small corporate ship to serve as a temporary base.

Upon arriving at the port, Amber’s group wasted no time, heading straight for the destroyer’s berth after disembarking.

The company selling this Dragon-class destroyer was the Auriga Ship Trading Company.

As a ship trading company run by an Imperial noble family behind the scenes, its scale was considerable within the Empire. Moreover, it often used its connections to acquire military ships that had just recently been decommissioned.

Generally, unless a ship was too old or could no longer be used, it would be towed back to a shipyard to be scrapped.

Military ships of light cruiser class and below would be sold to the civilian market after key equipment—such as the datalink module and the mil-spec shipboard control AI module—was removed.

The Royal Navy had to make a living too and needed to recoup some funds by selling decommissioned ships.

Of course, it was impossible for an ordinary person to buy such a decommissioned warship directly from the Royal Navy at its initial price.

As soon as these warships completed the decommissioning process, they would be quickly snapped up by middlemen who specialized in the second-hand ship trade.

Therefore, the price Amber and his team paid was higher than the ship’s depreciated value.

As for the markup, that depended on how conscientious the company handling the ship was, and whether the ship was a popular model.

“Mr. Rebil, the ship inspection is complete. Shall we proceed with the transaction now?”

Kirk, the manager in charge of the deal, couldn’t help but rub his hands together. The closing of this deal meant he would receive a hefty commission.

“You’ve seen for yourself that this ship is in the best condition among vessels of its class. Aside from the removal of the datalink module and the control personality core, the rest of it is in a fully operational state.”

Kirk eagerly described the ship, but Amber, who was standing beside him under the alias “Rebil,” wasn’t listening to a word he said.

Amber’s eyes were now fixed solely on the beautiful, slender destroyer in the dock.

The Star Dragon Empire’s iconic, magnificent silver-white paint job, thanks to excellent maintenance, made the recently decommissioned destroyer look as exquisite as a work of art.

Two HIPW60 heavy particle cannons, standard for Royal Navy destroyers, were arranged along the warship’s central axis;

Four each of charged particle cannons, heavy electromagnetic cannons, and high-energy laser emitters were arranged alternately around the hull;

Multifunctional missile silos in the aft section of the hull;

This reliable armament ensured that the Dragon-class still held the top spot for destroyer firepower.

“My first ship,” he couldn’t help but mutter.

“Correction, this is Atlas’s first ship. And strictly speaking, 12.3% of this destroyer belongs to me.”

Seeing Amber so mesmerized by the ship, Isabelle couldn’t resist leaning in and teasing him.

“Isn’t what’s yours also mine?” Amber said irritably, the mood now broken.

“Well, there’s still 25% that belongs to Allenita, and 8.2% that belongs to the rest of the company~”

“You just wait ’til tonight.”

“Hmph, who’s afraid of who~”

The transaction process didn’t take much time. With the help of professionals, all the required documents had been thoroughly prepared.

The funds, which had been converted into Imperial Gold Dragons and deposited into an escrow account beforehand, were smoothly transferred to the Auriga company’s account.

However, when Kirk, who had been helping with the paperwork, saw that the owning company Amber registered the ship under was “Atlas Mining and Development Corporation,” his eyelid twitched and he couldn’t help but speak up.

“Mr. Rebil, are you sure you haven’t made a mistake with the owning company?”

“No mistake. I bought this ship to escort our mining fleet and to help cut up asteroids.”

Amber replied with a smile, then pressed the confirmation key to submit the information.

“Processing information, please wait…”

“Ship registration complete. Ship identification code: SE933979162.”

“Please enter the ship’s name.”

Naming the ship was the very last step of the transaction.

But Amber had already decided on a name for his first ship.

A PMC is, in essence, a business where “the client places an order, and you take care of the wetwork.” It was a commercial endeavor.

Therefore, at a time like this, it was necessary to invoke the ancient Greek god of commerce.

“Ship name—the Hermes.”

“Congratulations, all registration procedures are complete!”

As soon as the registration was complete, the information for this Dragon-class destroyer in the Empire’s ship database was changed from Royal Navy Military Vessel (Decommissioned) to Civilian Vessel.

Chapter 141: Lilith’s New Skill

After registering the ship, Amber didn’t leave immediately.

Instead, he led the group to a hotel in the residential area of Burton Port to settle in for the time being.

Although the ship was now under the company’s name, according to the sales agreement, Kirk and his team were delivering more than just an empty vessel.

A meticulous person like Amber wouldn’t pass up any chance to get some freebies.

While negotiating the details of the deal, he had managed to get the ship trading company to throw in services like a new paint job, a full restock of basic supplies for long-range voyages, and a basic loadout of ammunition and materials.

Of course, these services and supplies could also be acquired at his own expense in Burton Port. As a spaceport whose main business was ship trading, it offered a comprehensive, all-in-one service.

But Atlas was still in its startup phase, and the ever-frugal Amber believed that every little bit saved was a victory.

The whole negotiation process gave Amber a strange sense of déjà vu, reminding him of haggling with a salesman at a car dealership over free add-ons in his previous life.

Although it seemed like they got a lot of extras, Amber hadn’t held back at all when cutting the price and negotiating for the included services.

These brokers made a hefty profit margin; even with the final price and all the complimentary services, Kirk and his people had still made a fortune from the deal.

Among these additional services, repainting the ship was the most important and the most valuable.

To be fair, the standard silver-white paint with gold trim used by the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy was indeed very striking.

However, while this “aristocratic” look might be perfect for the unimpeded Royal Navy, it was a bit too flashy for a small private military company.

As a vessel that would be frequently active in different warzones and might even undertake covert missions, subtlety was key.

So Amber unhesitatingly opted for a repaint, choosing the dark gray color scheme commonly used by warships on clandestine missions.

Moreover, thanks to its rational design, the Dragoon-class was inherently well-suited for modification.

From the very beginning, Amber had intended to eventually convert this destroyer into a special operations ship.

Repainting a destroyer over four hundred and sixty meters long was no small undertaking.

Even in Burton Port’s specialized painting workshop, it would take a good seven or eight days to complete.

After all, the ship’s outer hull had a nanocoating for its Optical Camouflage system that needed to be treated first to prevent the camouflage from failing after the repaint.

Factoring in the time needed to load supplies and ammunition, Amber simply decided to have everyone stay put for a while.

Besides, the other vessel, a Spinner-class mining and engineering barge, was due to be brought to Burton Port by the ship merchant in the next couple of days.

So Amber planned to take possession of both ships at once. Having the two vessels travel together would also provide mutual support.

Once the second-hand Spinner-class arrived at Burton Port, and after completing the relevant transactions, registering the ship under the name ‘The Gold Digger’, and squeezing some more freebies out of the ship merchant, Amber planned to head back.

He and Randall would serve as captains of The Hermes and The Gold Digger, respectively. The rest of the team that had come with them would be split into two groups to man both ships and handle basic operations.

Before they boarded, Amber handed Randall the core of a shipboard control AI to replace the original one on the ship.

Neither the military-grade shipboard control AI on The Hermes nor the engineering aI on The Gold Digger was included in the sale.

After all, from the day a control personality is activated, it enters a state of continuous learning.

Therefore, these control personalities, which had been in service long enough, could no longer be measured by conventional value.

Through long-term operation, the experience and emergency response capabilities of these “seasoned veterans” would be far more sophisticated than a newly activated shipboard control AI.

For this reason, the cores of these shipboard control AIs would be kept by the original owners to be used on other ships.

And the ship brokers certainly weren’t kind enough to gift Amber and his team a new core; they would remove the temporarily installed control personality after the handover.

The sales agreement had explicitly stated that the buyer needed to provide their own shipboard control AI core.

Naturally, Amber had come prepared, having purchased two “brand-new off the line” cores.

However, he had no intention of using these two control personalities, which were as clean as a blank slate.

Instead, he had Lilith try out a new ability she had developed in her spare time.

Long before they set out, Lilith had used a more powerful mainframe at the company’s base to connect to these two cores and quickly simulate nearly ten years of operational experience for them.

She was even thoughtful enough to tailor the simulations for a combat vessel and an engineering/mining barge, respectively.

This decade of experience was synthesized from a massive collection of ship navigation cases and combat records that Lilith had gathered from public networks and the Imperial military network.

It even included numerous records of extreme flight maneuvers, the kind where a single mistake meant there would be no record left at all.

To put it plainly, Lilith’s new ability was like something out of a mobile game for Amber: you pull a new character, immediately feed them high-level combat logs, and max them out instantly.

In a single night, two “brand-new” shipboard control AIs were transformed into battle-hardened veterans with a decade of experience.

Although some research institutions had been conducting similar studies, their methods mostly involved replacing the memory in the core’s storage banks.

Compatibility issues had prevented this technology from becoming practical.

With Lilith’s ability, however, if the “ten-year combat logs” used for simulation were further optimized, Amber could gain the outrageous power to mass-produce “seasoned veterans.”

In the future, as long as he had a ship, its control personality would be a ten-year veteran.

“Lilith, you’ve done an incredible job!”

Amber couldn’t help but exclaim this when he first saw her new ability.

Electronic Warfare, virus implantation, and information cloaking were all just tactical-level abilities.

But this “power-leveling” ability could be considered strategic-level without exaggeration.

And Lilith was constantly growing. Under Amber’s proper guidance, she wouldn’t become one of the “toasters” from another timeline that had appeared all too soon.

Instead, she would develop even more positions… no, wait, more strategic-level abilities.

Amber felt that risking everything to get Lilith out of that research institute might have been the most important decision he had made since transmigrating.

If you don’t have a special advantage, create one for yourself.

After boarding the ship and activating the “ten-year veteran” Amber had given him, Randall watched as the shipboard control AI completed its compatibility integration with incredible speed.

It also displayed a very “veteran” move—running a self-check while simultaneously starting up the ship.

He was still wondering where Amber had managed to acquire a core that had clearly been in service for some time when a beautiful and melodious voice prompt sounded from the bridge:

“Captain~ The full-ship self-check and main reactor startup are complete. We are ready to begin departure procedures at any time~”

Chapter 142: The Rookies

Amber left Burton Port with two ships.

Before she left, she had Lilith perform an information cloaking operation.

If anyone were to specifically look up their information, they would only find the most basic company details and a legal representative named ‘Rebil’.

Even if they were to investigate Rebil, they would only find a spotless record of practically no value.

Anyone checking the surveillance footage or biometric database archives in Burton Port would find strange anomalies wherever Amber’s group was involved.

The surveillance footage would either flicker with static, or the biometric system would detect the features of a flock of sheep.

In short, it was utterly absurd.

And as Amber took the two ships into warp, the headquarters of Atlas PMC—an elven manor codenamed ‘Tower of Babel’—was welcoming its own newcomers.

The first batch, a total of one hundred Romu candidates, had been sent over under Allenita’s arrangements.

Here, they would first undergo a month of adaptation training.

This training also served as an assessment and screening process; anyone who failed to meet the requirements would be immediately eliminated.

The training regimen was designed by Amber, based on the basic training for Federation infantry units and Psionic Agents.

It focused primarily on psychological resilience and physical conditioning.

After all, in modern infantry combat, with the aid of exoskeletons and tactical faceplates integrating numerous combat support functions, proficiency with weapons and equipment was a lower priority than the previous two.

In Amber’s estimation, it would be a good outcome if even forty percent managed to pass the adaptation training.

Most of those who washed out would do so because their psychological resilience wasn’t up to standard.

Near the manor, on a massive, comprehensive training ground that Allenita had rapidly constructed with her ‘financial superpowers’…

Sergeant Banninger and the other marines stationed at headquarters stood in formation, curiously watching the Romu disembark from the transport vehicles.

As a survivor of the Federation’s Mobile Infantry, rescued by Amber from the Battle of the Valley Floor, Banninger had been with Amber through the entire campaign on Robert IV.

He had complete and utter trust in the one who had saved his life.

When a crisis of trust in Amber had erupted among the troops before the battle at the space elevator’s base area, sparked by Adam’s public broadcast, it was Banninger who had been the first to stand up, shouting, “That’s a load of fucking bullshit!” and staunchly defending Amber.

Now, having survived the threat of annihilation on Robert IV under Amber’s command and having genuinely established a company in the Thousand Stars Empire, the old sergeant had evolved into one of Amber’s most die-hard supporters.

Although he had yet to see any elven models, the old sergeant believed that one day, under Amber’s leadership, this small goal would be achieved.

Because Banninger was comparatively richer in combat experience, having previously served as a platoon sergeant in the Mobile Infantry, Amber had entrusted him with the task of receiving the first batch of Romu candidates before she left to pick up the ships, instructing him to begin the training regimen immediately and not wait for her return.

The old sergeant still felt the pressure of such a task.

He had trained a Mobile Infantry platoon before, but that was only about forty men.

Now, the number had suddenly jumped to one hundred, and they weren’t even human. On top of that, they were all rookies with no prior military training.

Sergeant Banninger frowned as he watched the Romu form a crooked, messy line in the plaza.

Unlike the female Romu, whose figures were very close to human, distinguished only by the addition of bestial ears and tails to mark their identity, the male Romu’s bestial features were far more pronounced.

For starters, their heads showed virtually no human characteristics at all.

As Banninger and the other marines looked on, all they could see were the heads of tigers, lions, wolves, oxen, and horses, each with different shapes and fur colors.

Combined with the thick fur covering their bodies, it was truly a furry’s delight.

But one person’s joy isn’t necessarily another’s, and Banninger was feeling anything but delighted.

“Sigh… this mission is going to be harder than I thought.”

Noticing the old sergeant sigh, a female elf beside him smiled and spoke in the common human tongue.

“Sergeant Banninger, you needn’t worry. Ms. Yuge has already considered your lack of manpower, so the staff who arrived with us will be assisting you with the training.”

“Thank Ms. Yuge for the arrangements, and thank you for your help.”

Sergeant Banninger nodded and then walked to stand before his marines.

“Gentlemen, what you see before you is the future new blood of Atlas… pfft—”

He couldn’t hold back a snort of laughter at the last sentence, and the marines all began to laugh along with him.

The old sergeant composed himself, raising a hand to silence the laughter and forcing a serious expression onto his face.

“Joking aside,” he said, “the Boss has entrusted us with an important mission. We can’t let him down.

These Romu… don’t be fooled by how undisciplined they look right now, no different from common civilians.

But I have to tell you, in terms of sheer structural strength, physical attributes, and stamina, these guys are naturally stronger than any of us here.

According to the Boss, we’d need physical augmentations just to match the physique of an average Romu.”

Sergeant Banninger scanned the faces of his men. They had all realized the gravity of the situation, and their joking expressions vanished.

“So, I expect all of you to take this training assignment seriously!

You are killing machines, forged in training and tested in battle!

What’s more, you are the first core operatives of Atlas!

Do not bring shame upon yourselves or the Boss!

And do not disgrace the human race!

Is that clear?!”

Sergeant Banninger roared, his voice booming like a great bell.

“YES, SERGEANT!!!”

The sudden outburst from the marines gradually quieted the Romu on the other side of the plaza.

For most of these Romu, it was their first time seeing a human in the flesh.

Although they were curious about this race they had little contact with, the killing intent and the scent of blood wafting from the marines put these large cats and lions, with their keen senses, on high alert.

Once the ranks had fallen completely silent, the Romu watched as the human who had just been shouting, accompanied by the female elf, came to stand before them and began to speak.

Though they couldn’t understand the human’s words, the female elf beside him translated for them in the common elven tongue.

“I am Sergeant Banninger, your chief drill instructor for this month of adaptation training.

First off, welcome. The fact that you’re here means you were stronger than everyone else in the preliminary selection.

But I want you to understand that passing the preliminaries was just the beginning. Anyone who fails to measure up in the training to come will be eliminated. There is no quota!

If none of you pass the assessment, you can all get the hell out!

From this moment on, you don’t have names. You have numbers, from one to one hundred. I’m not wasting brain cells trying to remember your tongue-twister names!

You will speak only when spoken to! And every word out of your mouths to me or any other instructor will be followed by ‘Sir’!”

To the other marines, it was as if Sergeant Banninger had become a different person the moment he started his address.

He was nothing like the sergeant they knew from day to day.

“Now, you furballs, get your asses over to Training Ground 1 for your first training exercise and assessment! Anyone who doesn’t pass is out immediately!”

Chapter 143: The Furballs in the Greenhouse

“Take cover! Take cover!”

“Multi-legged war machine! Two o’clock!”

A stream of bright, orange-red tracers swept across the area. A few Mobile Infantry soldiers, unable to take cover in time, were cut in half by high-velocity penetrators fired from Gauss machine guns.

After being hit while running, the soldier’s upper torso tumbled forward with momentum, dragging a mess of internal organs out with it.

“Mason! I’m fucking hit!”

The first-person view let out a cry of anguish, raising the injured left hand into view amidst the shaking.

The forearm had been completely severed below the elbow by an unknown stray round. At the stump, muscles twitched and contracted from the physiological shock, and the splintered white bone was clearly visible.

This was Training Ground 1 of the Tower of Babel’s comprehensive training facility.

At this moment, five temporary field tents were pitched here.

Inside each tent sat twenty Romu candidates, their eyes fixed on panoramic screens displaying first-person combat footage.

High-definition, restored in post-production, and completely uncensored.

“Sergeant, where do you think the Boss got this footage?”

“It’s probably been edited. You can tell it’s a splice of multiple videos, but this first-person injury footage is incredibly realistic.”

Sergeant Banninger stared at the screen, his expression a little strained.

“You know, this stuff is so damn gory and intense, it’s starting to bring back some bad memories for me.”

Banninger’s guess was quite accurate, as the video was indeed something Amber had asked Lilith, the all-purpose AI, to help edit.

Much of the video’s source material had been found online. As for the first-person camera shots…

Remember the wounded soldiers who escaped with Amber?

Although most of them were still recuperating and would essentially require cybernetic prosthetics to return to combat, their first-person combat recordings were now proving to be of great use.

All sorts of footage of severed hands and feet could be found in their combat logs.

After Lilith’s editing, even Banninger and the other marines who had experienced their fair share of real combat felt a little disturbed.

To say nothing of these Romu, who had never faced war—the most violent thing they had ever done in their lives was get into a drunken brawl.

At first, most of them held it in, clenching their teeth even as they watched human bodies get torn apart.

But when the close-ups of open wounds, penetration injuries, and even corpses on the ground appeared…

These furballs, who looked tough but were actually simple and honest, could no longer hold it in.

After one of them “set a good example,” the other Romu started to vomit, one after another.

“Have you noted down everyone who threw up?”

“All recorded, Sergeant.”

Looking at the utter mess inside the tent, Sergeant Banninger frowned.

Just from watching a combat documentary, nearly half the men in this tent had lost control and vomited.

It was safe to say the mental fortitude of these furballs was still far too low.

“To put it bluntly, these Romu are like livestock raised in a pampered environment. There’s not an ounce of wildness in them.”

Hearing his words, the marine next to him nodded in agreement.

The female elf translator, also standing nearby, heard every word.

“That’s an apt description, Sergeant Banninger,” the elf said, turning to him.

“Under the protection of the elves, these Romu seem carefree, but in reality, they’re like domesticated pets.”

“Oh? From the sound of it, you seem quite dissatisfied with this situation?” Banninger asked, a little curious.

“So, you Equal-Righters want the Romu to become independent and self-reliant? But aren’t you an elf yourself? From my limited understanding, shouldn’t you elves be eager to keep ‘domesticating’ them?”

In response to Banninger’s question, the female elf didn’t answer, merely offering a meaningful smile.

“Sigh, talking to you riddlers is exhausting.”

Seeing she had no intention of answering, Sergeant Banninger didn’t press the issue.

Let the big shots worry about these things.

He just wanted to live each day as it came and wait for the Boss to make good on his promise of elf models.

“Alright, get these furballs out of here. Send the cleaning robots in to tidy up.”

Banninger finished speaking and walked out.

The first training assessment, their welcoming gift, concluded as the Romu helped each other stumble out of the tents.

Just as Amber had noted in the training plan for this segment…

Over half of the Romu had been unable to stomach the discomfort of the combat footage, throwing up everything they had eaten on the journey.

Banninger and his men had initially wondered why Amber had ordered so many cleaning robots.

Now, they finally understood her thoughtful foresight. In fact, they even felt she hadn’t bought enough.

“You furballs! You all look big and strong, but you’re just a bunch of ball-less women!”

Standing before the reassembled Romu, Sergeant Banninger berated them without reservation.

“Let me tell you, what you saw today was just the tip of the iceberg! There’s even more gruesome and brutal footage that we didn’t show you!

Have you ever seen a charred corpse sliced in two by a high-energy laser beam?

Have you ever seen what’s left of a person blown to bits at close range by programmable shrapnel grenades?”

With every sentence from Sergeant Banninger, translated coldly into the Romu’s ears by the female elf, someone would inevitably flinch.

“You haven’t seen any of that, but I must tell you that in the future, these scenes could happen around you, or even to you, at any moment!

If you can’t even accept it psychologically, then I can’t believe any of you here can become a qualified marine.

I’ve noted down everyone who vomited during training today. The same training will be conducted at irregular intervals throughout the month.

Each time, the brutality of the scenes you see will be raised by one level.

If anyone vomits more than three times, then I’m sorry…”

Sergeant Banninger paused, his sharp gaze sweeping slowly over the Romu.

“It means you’re just not cut out for the PMC line of work. We’ll end your training early and send you home.”

While Sergeant Banninger and the marines began to drill the Romu…

The two-ship formation composed of The Hermes and The Gold Digger dropped out of warp, arriving in orbit around the planet that hosted the Tower of Babel.

Chapter 144: A New Job

“Exiting warp. All ship subsystems operating normally!”

“Visual contact with The Gold Digger. Re-establishing communications, please stand by.”

Upon seeing their destination planet again, Amber, seated in the captain’s chair of The Hermes, let out a sigh of relief.

Although Lilith had prepared two experienced shipboard control AIs, the crews on both ships were still a bit too small.

If they ran into some reckless pirates, they wouldn’t necessarily lose, but it would certainly be a chaotic and frantic scene.

“Captain, two elven warships are approaching!”

From the CIC below the captain’s chair, the voice of the communications specialist rang out.

This former mobile unit communications specialist had undergone emergency training and was now serving as a temporary Tactical Information Coordinator.

“Don’t panic. They’re elven orbital patrol ships. We have transit papers from the Yuge family.”

As he spoke, Amber tapped a few times on the control panel of his captain’s chair.

A message, encrypted with the elves’ own method, was transmitted.

Soon, the two elven warships, having received the transit papers, accelerated away, flashing a series of light signals as they went:

“Welcome to Peony Star.”

Peony Star was the planet where Amber’s base, the Tower of Babel, was located.

The elves were fond of using flowers, plants, and trees when naming star systems and planets.

This was to show that even though they were now obsessed with making money and living lives of debauchery, they hadn’t forgotten their original love for nature.

“Captain, The Gold Digger is hailing. They’re asking where we should dock.”

“Tell them to dock at the same elven spaceport we departed from.”

Amber shook his head, stretching his slightly sore neck.

Docking the two ships had now become a new problem.

First, neither ship could enter the atmosphere.

Or rather, humanity had yet to specifically develop ships capable of atmospheric entry.

With the insane amount of material used to reinforce their external armor and internal structures, even a standard frigate could weigh up to eight hundred thousand tons.

Destroyers and cruisers commonly weighed several million tons, not to mention the colossal capital ships.

Until anti-gravity control units were developed and fully matured, there was no point in thinking about flying warships into an atmosphere.

Therefore, human ships operating in outer space usually parked in designated areas in geostationary orbit.

The alternative was to pay extra and dock at a spaceport.

But the problem was that the few spaceports on Peony Star were all living bio-ports built by the elves.

Outwardly, they resembled giant starfish covered in ‘tentacles’.

And their interiors were mainly equipped with various facilities for maintaining bio-ships, including ‘regenerative culture vats’.

Although human ships did pass through or trade here occasionally, and the ports did have the capacity for standard human vessel docking, they offered little help to someone like Amber, who needed a long-term base for ship maintenance and preparation.

Maintenance and inspection of shipboard weaponry, testing and energy release for the fusion reactors, replacement of superconducting battery stacks, and so on.

These were all tasks that required specialized ship maintenance workshops, which couldn’t be done at an elven spaceport.

Besides, Amber really couldn’t imagine the scene of those biological maintenance tentacles slithering into his ship’s hull through the access hatches.

Just thinking about it was enough to make him lose his sanity.

“So, the priority now is to find a way to get our hands on a proper port.”

“Damn, this isn’t something that can be sorted out overnight. The best bet would be to find a large asteroid among those we’ll be mining and convert it.”

As Amber pondered his port plans, more and more problems that needed solving flooded his mind.

First, there was the matter of the Romu.

In Amber’s vision, the Romu who completed their training would all join the marines or the future orbital paratrooper units.

This would inevitably require equipping them with the corresponding exoskeletons, armor, and weapons.

They couldn’t just use the elves’ Psionic armor and Psionic burst rifles, could they?

Even if the support staff didn’t burst into tears, resupplying would be a nightmare if they were operating within human territory in the future.

So the best solution was for the entire company to standardize on human-made weaponry and equipment. It would be easier to purchase and also simpler to maintain.

But that would lead to the problem of custom-ordering exoskeletons.

After all, these male Romu were all broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, and they had massive bestial heads.

Even the stockiest soldier in the marines would only be considered ‘on the thin side’ compared to a male Romu.

So, at the very least, the currently available off-the-shelf models would definitely not fit these Furballs.

Although modifying the size would be relatively easy and wouldn’t require a complete redesign, such custom orders would certainly come with extra charges.

“Tsk… that’s another hefty expense right there.”

This state of only seeing money go out without any revenue coming in made Amber lament what a cash-burning game this was.

And it was a bottomless pit at that.

It was a good thing Allenita’s family was a vast and powerful enterprise, and that she herself was both beautiful and kind-hearted enough to provide significant funding. Otherwise, getting this company off the ground would have been truly difficult.

Fortunately, the mining barge was now in position, and Lilith had already begun stockpiling ore at various mineral exchange centers on Amber’s orders.

Once ore prices skyrocketed, he could liquidate those assets and cash in a huge sum.

“This whole big group of people… It’s not easy to support a family.”

Amber opened the star chart, zooming in on a nearby unclaimed region bordering the Star Dragon Empire.

These areas had not yet been fully explored by humans or elves, and were marked on the star chart with only simple, temporary designations.

But as a mining magnate in his previous life who had started by digging and flipping resources, Amber knew of several famously rich mining areas from the game.

Those asteroid belts, which had been mined clean by fleets of player miners, were now virgin territory waiting to be developed.

“The Flourishing Stars Cluster… I remember there’s a lawless zone here.”

Amber zoomed in on the star chart bit by bit, adjusting according to the coordinates in his memory, and finally located an inconspicuous asteroid belt.

“Excellent. I can already feel the Imperial Gold Dragons and Psionic Points waving at me~”

He rubbed his hands together in excitement.

“Lilith, check if any other mining companies have established operations here. A remote location like this should be empty.”

“Query complete. One mining company has established a mining site here.”

“Huh?”

Amber was stunned. He hadn’t expected that this asteroid belt, discovered by players in his previous life for its rich mineral deposits, had already been claimed by someone else.

“Master, I also found an interesting record. This mining company is looking for someone to help them eliminate the pirates near their mining area~”

Chapter 145: The Training Regiment

“When was this message sent?”

Amber stared at the star chart, where the number of mining companies deployed in the asteroid belt had been updated to a glaring ‘1’, and asked, a bit annoyed.

“Twelve standard cosmic days ago, Master. Due to the transmission speed, some related information hasn’t been received yet.”

“It’s been that long? The people are probably long dead by now. Is there any other information you can find? If so, compile it all and prepare a brief for me.”

“Master, I think you should get a dedicated assistant to handle these things. As the most powerful artificial intelligence in existence, how can I spend my days…”

“Hmm?”

“My apologies, Master! I’ll get right on it!”

During this harmonious exchange with Lilith, The Hermes and The Gold Digger slowly sailed into the port known in the common elven tongue as ‘Swan Harbor’.

In reality, Swan Harbor was shaped like a giant, red starfish.

Moreover, the airlock-like structures Amber and his crew passed through were all composed of some kind of biological valve.

To be honest, Amber still found it hard to imagine how the elves—elegant, noble, and highly accomplished in the arts—could create living spaceports, each one more outrageous than the last.

After docking the two ships at the Yuge family’s long-term leased berth and arranging for basic maintenance, Amber took his entourage and boarded a shuttle to the surface.

In the meantime, Lilith had already collected and organized all the information she could find on short notice about this particular mining company.

Timler Mining Development Co., Ltd.

This was a mining company operated by a noble family from the Star Dragon Empire—the Timler family.

This family was rather unremarkable in the Star Dragon Empire. The highest title their ancestors ever held was that of viscount, and their family fief was merely a terrestrial planet in a remote border star system.

Of course, they even had to share that with another family.

Yes, even a viscount could receive a fief. Such was the confidence instilled in the nobility by what they considered the most powerful nation in the universe—the Star Dragon Empire.

In short, the Timler family had virtually no presence in the Star Dragon Empire.

And the family-run Timler Mining company wasn’t even among their most important assets.

The operations base established in this as-yet-unnamed asteroid belt was an even more neglected and unloved existence.

The company’s main mining fleet was currently in a resource-rich region in another star system, scheming and plotting against the mining fleets of other families.

This operations base in the nameless asteroid belt was essentially the equivalent of just dropping a ward here.

If you were about to start a team fight head-on, would you care if a ward you placed in the jungle suddenly disappeared?

So, as Amber read through the information Lilith had gathered, he could understand why the Timler family had shown no reaction to the matter.

He estimated that the pirates had likely demanded a ransom for the hostages.

For these desperados, they couldn’t care less how much a mining operations base and its barges were worth.

All they wanted was cold, hard cash that they could spend immediately to live a life of drunken debauchery.

Unfortunately for these pirates, they had underestimated the depths of human depravity.

For a mining company, the lives of its workers were never a concern.

Those assigned to long-term mining posts on asteroids were almost always people who were deep in debt and forced to ‘sell’ themselves into service.

This was true even though these individuals weren’t苦力 who toiled with pickaxes in the traditional sense.

They were skilled technicians who could operate various types of engineering machinery and understood the procedures and operational standards of asteroid mining.

Because there was no such thing as family planning in this world, and regardless of whether it was in the Federation or the Empire, children who didn’t show exceptional intelligence with the potential to enter military, scientific, financial, or social science academies were funneled into industrial or agricultural technical colleges.

Those from families with some assets might go into business.

Another portion would choose to enlist for military service on another planet.

But the vast majority would follow the prescribed path and become skilled workers or well-informed farmers.

This led to a human society where there was no shortage of such foundational laborers.

If you didn’t do the job, plenty of others would.

So, in the eyes of the mining company bosses, these people were consumables, nothing more than a string of numbers.

And now a band of pirates had shown up, demanding he pay money in exchange for a string of numbers?

Running a company wasn’t a charity. No company boss would ever do that.

And those who were willing to do so generally didn’t stay company bosses for long.

On the way to the Tower of Babel, Amber finished reading the documents Lilith had prepared.

Although the latest updates were still unknown due to the information transfer lag, Amber had a general grasp of the situation.

In any case, this asteroid belt was his target all along. The only difference now was that some pirates had spawned there.

Of course, Amber could choose another location to avoid a potential fight.

After all, while it was called an asteroid belt, it only looked small on the star chart.

If one were to zoom in, they would discover that the belt stretched for 0.4 astronomical units.

He could easily avoid these pirates if he wanted to.

But Amber thought to himself, if the Timler company really didn’t want this operations base, wouldn’t it be a waste to just leave it there?

He could consider being a good person and helping them dispose of this ‘non-performing asset’, free of charge.

“Let’s do it that way.”

Amber immediately drew up a plan. After resting at the Tower of Babel for a day, he would take some capable hands and head to the asteroid belt to check out the situation.

When he and his group returned to the manor, he saw Sergeant Banninger approaching first, an expression on his face like someone who had been waiting for an eternity.

“Boss, you’re finally back!”

“You’ve worked hard, Sergeant! I heard on the way that you’ve been training those Romu very well!”

“That’s all thanks to the training plan you devised, Boss. I just followed the steps!” Sergeant Banninger smiled and continued, “Will you be taking over the training personally from now on? We’re just fighters, after all. We’re not very good at this training stuff.”

“Ah… I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to keep at it for a while longer, Sergeant.”

Amber explained that he would be leaving again soon with some men, and he saw the old sergeant’s expression instantly sink into one of utter despair.

“Boss, you can totally take me with you for this asteroid business. Even though we all came here to make money and enjoy life with you, we haven’t lost our professional duties and basic skills.”

“It is precisely for that reason that I’m having the few of you with the most combat experience stay behind to train them.”

Amber stopped walking, glanced at the Romu jogging around the training grounds, and then turned back to the old sergeant.

“I need you and the other instructors to pass on your experience and skills to these Romu. As I said before, they will be our new blood in the short term, so training them to a combat-ready level is an extremely important task.”

Even without Amber saying it, Banninger knew the importance of the mission.

But compared to training these Furballs on the training grounds, the old sergeant probably preferred to be in an exoskeleton, mowing down enemies with a Gauss rifle.

“Don’t be too down about it, Sergeant.”

Amber’s words recaptured Banninger’s attention.

“Whether it’s you instructors or the other marines, you will all remain the core of our infantry combat force in the future. New equipment and new weapons will be given to you first. You might need to conduct training usually, but when there are more important combat missions, you ‘instructors’ will be the ones I call upon. So even while you are training others, you cannot slack off on your own training.

“Rest assured, I didn’t bring you all from Robert IV just to lock you up in this manor to waste away the rest of your lives.”

Chapter 146: Two Furballs

“Whew… Tairak, who do you think that person talking to ‘the Devil’ is?”

On the training grounds, a lion-headed Romu asked his companion as he squeezed out the last of his stamina in a dead sprint.

“Montai, if you could save the energy you’re using to talk… whew… for running, your test score would be a little better,” said the other Romu, Tairak, controlling the rhythm of his breathing as he spoke calmly.

At that moment, the two of them crossed the finish line, their bodies immediately wanting to collapse to the ground.

But an instructor waiting at the finish line instantly charged over, kicking each of them to straighten their backs.

“You two Furballs! How many times have I told you! Don’t sit down immediately after strenuous exercise! Get to the side and walk it off!”

“Yes, Sir!”

The two lion-headed Romu tucked their tails between their legs and moved to the side, only breathing a sigh of relief when they saw the instructor hadn’t followed.

Seeing his companion once again fussing over his shiny, smooth mane, Tairak, who had already trimmed his own mane to be neat and tidy, shook his head and couldn’t help but remark, “Montai, you really can’t part with that mane of yours, can you?”

“Isn’t that obvious? An outstanding male of the Lionmane species must have a perfect mane. This thing drives the female cats wild!”

Montai shook out his mane, struck a bodybuilding pose, and then looked at his companion.

“Tairak, you still haven’t answered my question. Who’s that person talking to ‘the Devil’?”

“How should I know?” Tairak shrugged, then continued in an uncertain tone, “But ‘the Devil’ seems very respectful toward him. Maybe he’s the boss of this company?”

“The big boss of Atlas?”

Montai stopped in his tracks and looked over in that direction.

Just over ten days ago, he and Tairak were both tavern waiters, working in a tavern opened by an elf, and from time to time, they would even be groped by wealthy elf women.

And now, they had become candidates for the Atlas Private Military Company.

The initial show of force upon their arrival, coupled with the training in the following days, had already taught the two of them that this company hadn’t exaggerated in its recruitment information.

If they joined Atlas, their lives would truly be in danger; they would have to lay down their lives for them.

But this still didn’t stop the two male Lionmanes from making their decision.

They had had enough of the mundane life of a waiter, and the thrilling profession of a mercenary was already beginning to awaken the Romu’s innate pursuit of excitement and bloodlust, hidden deep within their bloodline.

Furthermore, they were now completely convinced by these instructors, whose physical attributes were not as strong as their own.

In the beginning, there were naturally a few hotheads in the group who were not easily convinced, thinking these humans weren’t much in a fight.

But the chief drill instructor, whom they secretly called ‘the Devil’, merely smiled when he heard such talk.

After pointing out the unconvinced hotheads, he brought their numbers up to fifty.

Then he casually picked eight men from the instructor group behind him.

With neither side equipped with exoskeletons, they conducted a street fighting exercise in a simulated urban training ground using training firearms.

And so, the fifty confident Romu were utterly demolished by eight elusive humans.

From start to finish, they couldn’t even manage to hit one of these human instructors.

Bullets from unknown origins and plasma grenades inexplicably exploding over their heads turned the battle into a slaughter.

After this simulated battle, the Romu put away their contempt for the instructors.

They also learned that physical superiority doesn’t decide everything in combat.

What’s more, during the subsequent training, these instructors led from the front, participating in every single training subject themselves.

And without the aid of any equipment, they completed every subject better than the Romu did.

Even when these Furballs were so exhausted they could barely see straight, the instructors still had the energy to run over, kick them a couple of times, and correct some of their ‘bad habits.’

“Alright, stop thinking about useless things.”

Tairak waved his hand, pulling his companion back from his reverie.

“You’re not an official Atlas employee yet. We’re both just candidates. Only those who pass the final assessment get to stay!”

“Hey~ Listen to you. We’ll definitely pass the final assessment! I never want to go back to being groped by those elves again.”

“Holy shit, these Romu are fucking animals. How can every single one of them run so much?”

On another side of the training ground, two instructors on break were also complaining. The training intensity these past few days had even given them the illusion that it was more demanding than actual combat.

It also forced them to constantly maintain their own training volume, just so they wouldn’t be outdone by these Romu rookies.

“Didn’t the Boss and the Sergeant give us a heads-up from the start? The physical stats of these aliens far exceed our own.”

“I’m already chugging energy drinks and supplements like water every day. What are we going to do when this bunch is fully trained?” one of the instructors said with a grimace, before taking another swig of his supplement drink.

“Once the brothers with the cybernetic prostheses are acclimated, they’ll take over the training.”

The instructor who spoke patted his companion’s shoulder comfortingly.

“Then we’ll let the Romu see what the power of human technology is all about!”

After resting at the manor for a day and officially handing over full responsibility for the training to Sergeant Banninger, Amber sought out the elf translator again.

This female elf was not only the leader of the assisting elves but also one of Allenita’s trusted confidantes.

The two of them briefly aligned on some recent key matters, and the elf, named Skadi, also relayed the latest instructions from their financial backer, Allenita.

Her exact words were: “I’m not afraid of you burning money, Mr. Amber, I’m just afraid your spending lacks creativity.”

Since the financial backer herself had said so, Amber had even fewer worries.

Finally, he asked her to help keep an eye out for human merchant ships that frequently traveled along the border between the elves and the Empire, to see if there was anyone who could provide a long-term supply of materials and spare parts.

After all, Atlas had no manufacturing capabilities yet, and for the time being, all kinds of supplies could only be obtained through purchase.

But in the elven nation, finding human-compatible supplies and spare parts was honestly a bit difficult, so a reliable supplier was still necessary.

At the same time, he also needed a source for purchasing a large server array.

This was partly to allow Lilith to perform iterative optimizations, and partly to better utilize her abilities.

“Tsk, looks like self-sufficiency needs to be put on the agenda.”

“I’ll have to consider assigning Lilith some tasks related to industrial production and logistics.”

After arranging all the important matters, Amber took the personnel participating in the mission and once again set off for the spaceport.

Considering the possibility of space combat, Amber specifically brought two HCPs along from the ground training facility.

Along with them were two pilots and members of the prep squad.

The members left behind at the Tower of Babel were extremely jealous of this.

Because for the Atlas Private Military Company, this was not only its first operation since its founding but also the maiden voyage of the company’s first warship. In any light, it held a certain commemorative significance.

Three days later, The Hermes dropped out of warp and arrived in the designated area.

The moment it exited warp, the Dragoon-class destroyer, painted dark gray, activated its optical camouflage and engaged its blackbody, vanishing into the backdrop of the universe.

Chapter 147: Turning Up the Heat on the Pirates

Universal Standard Time, November 2nd, New Calendar 588, in an unnamed asteroid belt.

This asteroid belt, approximately 0.4 astronomical units in length, was registered in-game as UD74290.

It was speculated to have formed from the disintegration of a low-mass planet that once existed in this star system.

The entire belt contained a massive number of asteroids, each weighing over a hundred million tons, along with countless smaller ones. It was also rich in various heavy metals like platinum, nickel, iron, palladium, and rhodium, as well as ice.

Due to its distance from the major spheres of influence, the low probability of pirate encounters, and the presence of massive ice bodies for replenishing vital water supplies, this asteroid belt served as the first stop for many novice players to earn their first fortune before venturing into deep space.

And precisely because it attracted so many new players, years of mining had hollowed out a vast number of asteroids, making it look like the cheese from a cartoon.

Thus, players had nicknamed it ‘Jerry’s Paradise.’

But right now, this place had nothing to do with ‘Jerry’s Paradise.’

There were none of the small mining ships zipping about like little bees, nor were there any of the massive, star-whale-like asteroid crackers.

The enormous asteroids themselves were free of the messy pits and craters left by mining.

Everything seemed as it had been for the past hundred thousand years, completely unchanged.

Of course, it only seemed that way.

In the region designated in-game as D211, an object of unnatural origin was ‘clinging’ to an asteroid with a long axis of 2.5 kilometers and a short axis of 1.2 kilometers.

It was a human mining base, currently in an operational state, fixed to the asteroid. It served as an ore refinery, a docking area, a central control room, and living quarters for personnel.

Near this asteroid, two human-style ships maintained a stationary position relative to it.

Judging by their appearance, both vessels were armed merchant ships converted from civilian models.

Their hulls bore the marks of shoddy modifications and repairs, with various ‘patches’ applied haphazardly.

The only thing they had in common was the large white skull painted on their bows.

This insignia revealed the identity of these two armed merchant ships—space pirates.

This ancient profession had accompanied humanity throughout the great Age of Sail, witnessing mankind’s conquests and conflicts on the oceans.

Although, as humanity’s control over the seas grew stronger, this high-risk profession had once degenerated from sailing warships to small dinghies, even nearing extinction.

But with the dawn of the interstellar age, the situation changed once again.

The vastness of the cosmos made it nearly impossible for humanity to completely control, offering greater operational space and more possibilities for preying on merchant ships and evading pursuit.

Humanity’s enormous territory and population distribution, complex social ecology, and class and social conflicts also bred a large number of desperate outlaws.

Coupled with the widespread availability of civilian ships on the market, the increasing maturity of ship modification services, and the legal or illegal flow of various weapons into civilian hands, a new generation of armed merchant ships was born.

Robbing a single merchant ship or star liner, with a bit of luck, could yield profits equivalent to decades of hard labor.

This ‘return on investment’ drove those with no place left in society to recklessly ‘invest’ their lives in this traditional industry.

And so, the ancient profession of the pirate made a grand comeback.

Only this time, the prefix ‘space’ was added.

The emergence of space pirates had once again made freight hauling in space a dangerous business.

For civilian ships without jump drives, the routes between spaceports and the deep-space warp gate arrays were perilous.

And for civilian ships equipped with jump drives, the time spent outside of a warp was also dangerous.

Although the convenient routes in each star system that utilized gravity assists were fixed, the sheer size of the territory humanity now controlled was immense.

Even if the navies of the major factions were deployed in full force, they couldn’t possibly protect every route.

Moreover, the extremely low cost-effectiveness meant that official escort fleets only patrolled the routes in the core star systems.

In secondary star systems, like the one where Adam was ambushed by Amber, only patrol fleets would be present.

In even less developed systems and the fringe star systems, captains had to rely on their own skills.

Therefore, the official authorities of various factions also granted civilian ships permits for weapon modifications for self-defense during long voyages.

PMCs also began taking on contracts for long-distance escort missions.

Unfortunately, this measure inadvertently gave rise to a considerable number of ‘part-time pirates.’

On weekdays, they ran their routes normally, no different from other cargo ships.

But if a golden opportunity presented itself, they wouldn’t mind pulling a job to make some extra cash on the side.

The Eric brothers, who had seized this Timmler Mining Company base, had started out as ‘part-time pirates.’

After a few successful heists, they discovered that while the profession was risky, the money came in fast—far more efficiently than hauling cargo.

So, the two of them took the plunge and went ‘full-time.’

And they had been at it for five years.

The two brothers had transformed from honest cargo captains into blood-soaked pirate leaders.

Although at first, the Eric brothers had only intended to save up enough money to quit and live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

But how could one ever have enough money?

The more you got, the more you wanted.

What’s more, there were people in this world whose efficiency at ‘robbing’ money from others was incomparably higher than that of pirates.

The luxurious interstellar hotels and massive casinos they opened, along with the hot, scantily clad women inside, snatched the still-warm cash from the hands of the Eric brothers and their crew at an even faster rate.

As a result, not only did the two fail to save any money, but they also increased the frequency of their attacks on civilian ships.

Only this could satisfy their ever-growing desires and their fantasy of striking it rich at the gambling tables.

However, intercepting merchant ships in the vastness of space was very much a matter of luck.

In a sense, they were ‘living at the mercy of the heavens.’

Unfortunately, perhaps because of the amount of blood on their hands, the two brothers’ luck had been getting worse and worse.

After two months without a single score, they not only lacked the money to indulge in their vices but also began to run low on the basic supplies needed for space travel.

Under these circumstances, the brothers were forced to explore new avenues within the field of space piracy.

It was hard to say whether their luck was good or bad, but they eventually stumbled upon this Timmler Mining Company operational base.

And it had no armed escort vessels.

After easily neutralizing the base’s fixed defenses, the pirates occupied it.

Then, following the methods they had learned from movies and ‘industry exchanges,’ the two brothers eagerly sent a ransom message to the Timmler Mining Company.

Their demand was modest: precious metals equivalent to twenty million Imperial Gold Dragons.

They would leave once they confirmed receipt; otherwise, they would kill the more than one hundred hijacked workers.

The brothers’ thinking was simple. Selling ‘stolen’ precious metals on the black market would fetch a price discounted by about 50%.

A price of twenty million for over one hundred lives, plus the base and three small mining ships, was what they considered a ‘friendly price.’

If they succeeded, they would offload the precious metals as quickly as possible and then go on a spree with ten million Imperial Gold Dragons.

But something happened that the two brothers couldn’t figure out, no matter how hard they thought.

It had been over ten days since the ransom message was sent. The older brother, Marvin Eric, had even sent a follow-up, worried that the first one hadn’t been received.

The result was still silence, like a stone dropped into the sea. No reply ever came.

If it weren’t for the ample supplies on the mining base, they might have become the first pirates in history to abandon a ransom attempt due to a lack of provisions.

“Son of a bitch, the message was marked as read, so why no reply?”

Marvin Eric, sitting in the main seat of the central control room, gnawed on a toothpaste-like ration stick, completely baffled.

His younger brother, John Eric, also wore a miserable expression.

He felt that he and his brother were facing the most embarrassing moment of their careers.

An operational base in a deep-space asteroid belt like this wouldn’t have high-quality supplies, even if it was well-stocked.

The workers’ daily food consisted entirely of toothpaste-like rations with different flavorings and drinking water produced by a recycling system.

Entertainment was limited to pre-downloaded games, holographic movies, and adult films.

In a remote area like this, one couldn’t expect mobile red-light districts full of prostitutes to pay a visit.

The workers could only entertain themselves to pass the boring time during their rest shifts.

“Big bro, you think this mining company can’t afford that much? Or maybe they don’t have twenty million Imperial Gold Dragons’ worth of precious metals? You think we should consider lowering the price?”

Smack!

Before John could finish, his older brother Marvin furiously threw the half-eaten ration stick at his face.

“Listen to yourself! Do you even sound like a pirate?!”

Still not satisfied, Marvin kicked his younger brother.

The mining base had no artificial gravity, and the kick sent John flying a good distance away.

But his brother was persistent. After slowly drifting back, he said cautiously:

“Big bro, look, we’ve been here for so long, and they still won’t pay the ransom. This can’t go on. The men are getting more restless by the day…”

This time, Marvin didn’t kick his brother away. He knew his younger brother, who had been clever since childhood, was right.

His pirate crew was not a benevolent bunch. If this dragged on, who knew if they would attempt to overthrow their leadership?

Seeing his older brother hadn’t kicked him away again, John knew he had gotten through to him. He leaned in and whispered in his ear:

“We could consider taking this whole base and the workers with us. Then we find someone on the black market to crack the security systems and tracking devices. Whether we sell them to a slave mine or start one ourselves, it’ll still count as a score for this trip.”

Marvin was indeed persuaded.

The base had universal connectors, allowing it to be mounted on a ship’s universal rail system. It was indeed possible to ‘pack it up and take it away.’

And as his brother had suggested, switching careers to run a slave mine was a common choice for pirates who no longer wanted to live on the razor’s edge.

As long as you operated under the name of a mining company, the merchants active in the minerals market wouldn’t care if your ore was mined by employees or slaves.

Although this line of work didn’t offer the potential for a massive single haul like piracy, it could at least provide a steady stream of income.

If they were lucky enough to find a high-quality asteroid, they could mine it for three to five years without any problem.

Just as the two brothers were discussing the specific details of this plan, 32,651 kilometers away from the asteroid hosting the base, a destroyer in stealth mode was approaching at a constant speed.

“Lia, report current situation.”

“Reporting, Acting Captain. Current relative velocity to target is 20.8 kilometers per second. Estimated time to enter target’s warning perimeter is eighteen minutes and nine seconds. Two unidentified vessels have been detected near the target’s position, maintaining a stationary position relative to the target. Based on infrared signatures, there is an eighty-five percent probability that they are two armed merchant ships converted from Nereus-class cargo ships.”

The shipboard control AI’s pleasant voice reported each piece of information.

As the first ten-year veteran nurtured by Lilith using ‘advanced combat recordings,’ it had inherited the name ‘Lia,’ which Lilith had used when she previously disguised herself as a warship control personality.

Randall, formerly the Tactical Action Officer (TAO) of the Hermes, was now serving as Acting Captain, sitting in the captain’s chair with a headache as he listened to Lia’s report.

And where was the actual captain, Amber, you ask?

He was, naturally, in the fully prepped HCP, making final preparations before launch.

It wasn’t that Amber wanted to shirk his responsibilities or was eager to pilot the HCP.

His original plan had truly been to command the ship in a high-speed strike, taking out the pirates’ armed merchant ships before they could react.

Then, he would have the marines conduct a boarding action on the mining base and commence space CQB.

But once he arrived on site, he discovered the job wasn’t that simple.

The target asteroid was located in what was likely a cluster formed from the fragmentation of a larger asteroid after a collision. As a result, the asteroids were relatively densely packed, and the surrounding space was far from open.

A large number of similarly-sized or smaller asteroids were clustered in this area, separated by distances of tens to hundreds of kilometers.

And the Eric brothers, with their years of pirating experience, weren’t fools.

For this job, they had deployed numerous self-propelled space mines disguised as asteroid debris.

One of the two armed merchant ships had its cargo holds filled entirely with these things.

These annoying devices made the already narrow passage even more difficult to navigate, and it was hard for Amber and his crew to tag all the space mines.

This caused the high-speed flyby plan to be scrapped before it even began.

But Amber felt no frustration at all. Instead, he immediately proposed a second plan.

The Hermes would maintain a certain relative velocity and close to a distance of ten thousand kilometers.

This was the warning perimeter for most civilian ships and operational bases’ detection units.

At this distance, the Hermes’s two heavy particle cannons would fire in sequence, delivering one unfocused shot and one standard shot.

In unfocused firing mode, the heavy metal particle stream, freed from its directional magnetic confinement, would spread out after leaving the acceleration rail, covering a sizable area.

While it was largely incapable of damaging a ship, it was more than sufficient for detonating or destroying space mines.

The second, standard shot would clear a clean path for Amber.

Meanwhile, Amber, having already launched in his HCP before the bombardment, would charge down that path at maximum thrust.

At the same time, an assault boat loaded with marines would follow close behind.

Unlike the more violent assault pods used before, the assault boat was a smaller, more heavily armored transport craft, specifically designed for boarding actions against targets not well-suited for assault pods.

As standard equipment for a Dragoon-class destroyer, this assault boat was normally docked in the lower bay hangar.

As long as they could get the HCP and the assault boat near the mining base, the rest of the job would be easy.

In summary, this HCP assault was still relatively difficult and dangerous.

After all, even after being swept by the heavy particle cannon, there was no guarantee the path would be completely clear.

So, in the end, it was Amber who accepted the mission of piloting the HCP with a ‘grave expression.’

“Let’s turn up the heat on these pirates!”

Those were his exact words just before he left the bridge.

“That guy’s probably ecstatic inside, right?” Randall said with a hint of resignation, forced to take the captain’s chair as Acting Captain.

“Definitely. Didn’t you see he could barely contain his smile just now?”

Isabelle, sitting at the CIC command console, responsible for assisting the Tactical Action Officer and coordinating the entire CIC, pursed her lips. She knew exactly what Amber was thinking.

“Forget it. The burden of running the company has been on his shoulders lately. Let the guy have some fun.”

Randall shook his head, then his tone changed.

“All hands, battle stations.”

Chapter 148: A Professional Team

Inside the launch bay of the Hermes’s lower deck hangar.

Amber’s Unit 1, already prepped, was positioned on the lift platform, waiting only to enter attack range before launching.

Murat, piloting Unit 2, wasn’t assigned to the assault but had still donned his heavy hydraulic pressure suit and settled into the cockpit.

He would serve as a reserve, ready to sortie and support Amber in an emergency.

As a destroyer, this Dragoon-class vessel could actually carry a full squadron of ten HCPs.

However, Amber hadn’t had the time to fill out the squadron yet.

Buying new or secondhand HCPs wasn’t difficult; the hard part was finding so many skilled pilots on short notice.

Although Amber’s current idea was to have Lilith use the rapid development of the shipboard control AI as a model, to brainstorm and see if she could create a batch of AI pilots.

After all, that’s what Lilith had done in her previous life.

But this task obviously couldn’t be completed overnight, so the plan to reinforce the HCP squadron was still on hold.

Besides Amber and Murat, the marines preparing for the boarding action had also boarded the assault boat. They would be launched right after Amber sortied.

The pilot of the assault boat was Tom, who had previously received training in piloting small vessels.

Although the marines inside the assault boat were constantly cheering him on, the pilot, who hadn’t flown an assault boat in years and had only refamiliarized himself with the controls in the last two days, couldn’t help but feel a knot of anxiety in his stomach.

As everyone in the lower deck hangar bustled about, the countdown to the attack reached the ten-minute mark.

The indicator lights in the center of the hangar turned yellow.

“Ten minutes to go!”

“Seal all hangar hatches! All personnel, activate thermal regulation and oxygen supply systems! HCP and assault boat, engage external oxygen lines!”

“Venting hangar atmosphere! Prep squad, conduct final launch checks!”

A middle-aged man’s slightly excited voice boomed over the PA system.

This prep squad leader, who had been temporarily assigned to Amber’s assault team during the space elevator attack, had followed her with his own team all this time.

And now, he had achieved his current life goal—to become the head of a warship’s vehicle prep team, responsible for the maintenance, preparation, and launch of all its vehicles.

Amber didn’t have many people under her, but she had placed every single one of them in a suitable position.

Even that outrageous marine who had missed both shots before was now, after some training, competent enough to serve as a part-time gunner.

In short, she was squeezing out every last drop of their potential.

A true arch-capitalist, no doubt.

Time continued to pass. When the attack countdown reached three minutes, the indicator lights turned red.

The lights throughout the hangar dimmed instantly.

“All hangar personnel, double-check that your safety tethers are secure!”

“Opening launch doors! Lift platform, move Unit 1 to the launch catapult!”

Amidst the flashing red lights, Amber, sitting in her cockpit, was moved outside the ship along with her HCP.

The Hermes had already deactivated its Optical Camouflage, and the ship’s main power conduits were now diverted to the main cannon.

As the countdown entered its final seconds, Amber, inside the cockpit, could feel an immense surge of energy building from the fusion reactor in the ship’s midsection.

“Three… two… one… Fire!”

Meanwhile, in the operations base, the Eric brothers had already received a warning—a destroyer-class warship had entered their alert perimeter and was heading straight for them, making no effort to conceal its approach.

Before the two of them could issue any orders, they saw a flash of white light through the base’s skylight, coming from the zenith where the enemy was approaching.

Immediately after, eighty percent of the space mines deployed nearby were detonated all at once.

“Big bro.”

John was just about to say something when another flash of white light seared across his vision.

Having had plenty of dealings with military warships, he recognized it as the standard firing signature of a heavy particle cannon.

At the same time, the panicked voices of their underlings crackled over the comms channel.

“Boss! High-velocity heat source detected! They’ve launched an HCP!”

“Where are our HCPs? Scramble them, now!”

The Eric brothers’ two ‘pirate ships’ were also equipped with HCPs.

However, with their connections, all they could get their hands on were last-generation HCPs—four Federation-made ‘Platypus’ Block 30s.

They were a generation old, but they at least had mech-mounted heavy particle cannons, which were more than enough for ambushing merchant ships.

But in the current situation, to be honest, Marvin was starting to lose his nerve.

The fact that the enemy could sneak to within ten thousand kilometers meant it was a military vessel equipped with Optical Camouflage and blackbody components.

Civilian ships sometimes had similar optical camouflage, but its effectiveness was nothing compared to the systems on a military warship.

And that wasn’t even mentioning the blackbody—only military ships were authorized to equip components like that, which could absorb radar waves.

Therefore, the attacking ship was either the Timler family’s private force or the Imperial Navy they’d called in for ‘pirate suppression’.

“Boss! We’ve spotted an assault boat! Looks like they’re going for a boarding action!”

This time, the voice on the comms was hesitant.

After all, the patrol fleets they usually encountered would just open fire on sight. They never tried to capture them alive, and they certainly never launched assault boats for a boarding action.

“Something’s not right… Are those sons of bitches trying to rescue the hostages without paying the ransom?!”

Marvin was furious, but before he could vent his anger, he saw two blue beams of light strike one of his armed merchant ships docked nearby.

The charged particle cannon fire, descending from the zenith, easily tore through the armed merchant ship’s top armor plating.

These pirates lacked the discipline of a regular military. Wearing a spacesuit wasn’t nearly as comfortable as wearing normal clothes.

So, they hadn’t vented the internal atmosphere or pumped inert gas into the ship’s key sections during the alert.

As a result, the charged particle cannon attack naturally caused fires to break out in the areas that were hit.

Marvin’s pirates had no professional damage control personnel; they normally relied on the ship’s built-in, civilian-grade automated damage control system.

It was fine for handling minor damage, but it was completely useless against an attack from a mil-spec weapon. Consequently, the fire spread rapidly throughout the ship, punctuated by several explosions.

Then came a blinding flash.

The armed merchant ship’s subcritical reactor had blown.

The high-temperature plasma formed a massive fireball. Marvin watched in anguish as fifty percent of his assets turned to dust in space.

He realized this wasn’t going to end well. If he wanted to live, the hostages he held were his only trump card.

“Everyone! Bring all the hostages to the main control room! And get me those bombs and detonators!”

Meanwhile, on the bridge of the Hermes, the ‘ten-year veteran’ Lia was still giving a real-time report based on sensor readings.

“Charged particle cannon hit confirmed! Enemy vessel one confirmed destroyed by explosion! Main cannon is in emergency cooldown, ready to fire again in an estimated thirty seconds!”

“We won’t need to fire again. The remaining ship is Amber’s prey.”

Randall’s expression relaxed as he watched the HCP on the main screen, marked with a green friendly forces IFF tag and leaving a long trail in its wake.

“Begin ship deceleration. Set the deflector shield to automatic defense mode. Don’t want these pirates getting desperate and trying something reckless.”

Chapter 149: Standoff

On the panoramic display of the Zealot’s cockpit, the other armed merchant ship, marked with a red targeting box, was frantically adjusting its orientation. It was trying to point its bow toward the enemy to maximize the effectiveness of its deflector shield.

Amber and the others had chosen to attack from the zenith of the operations base, so the armed merchant ship now had to pitch its bow up by ninety degrees to make the best use of its deflector shield.

In fact, Amber had initially planned to attack directly from the pirates’ rear hemisphere.

However, the overly complex and dense asteroid field in that direction meant the space mines deployed there might not detonate during The Hermes’s attack.

It would also have posed a greater risk to the HCPs and the assault boat during their advance.

So, in the end, Amber and his team chose the safer zenith direction.

“Master, the heavy particle cannon has finished deploying! Ready to fire!”

As Lilith’s prompt sounded, the icon for the heavy particle cannon in the weapons systems window on the multi-function display turned green, indicating it was ready to fire.

Amber attacked without hesitation. A surging stream of heavy metal particles slammed into the upper half of the armed merchant ship’s bow before it could finish adjusting its orientation.

The two GAX-A9 Zealots that Amber had taken from the Empire frigate were the same Block 10 early models as the ones he had encountered on the surface of Robert IV.

Their on-board foldable heavy particle cannons were powered by the unit’s own subcritical reactor.

Therefore, their power output was naturally no match for even a frigate.

Still, the initial velocity of the plasma metal jet they fired reached one thousand kilometers per second.

If you were to calculate it using a standard five-gram projectile of metallic bismuth and the classic formula, you would get an outrageous amount of kinetic energy.

Faced with this level of kinetic energy, even a higher-class destroyer or a light cruiser with thicker armor plates would have to rely on its internal structure to disperse the heavy metal ion stream to avoid being pierced straight through.

That was why, when facing a heavy particle cannon, whether it was a warship, an HCP, or a heavy multi-legged war machine, the preferred defense was a deflector shield.

No one was foolish enough to try and tank the hit with their structure.

Having been hit by Amber’s heavy particle cannon, this armed merchant ship, which hadn’t managed to activate its deflector shield in time, wouldn’t have withstood the blast even if it were solid metal.

As Amber charged forward, he could now see a fireball erupt in the target area with his naked eye, without even needing the zoom function of his optical sensors.

He switched his weapon controls to the Gauss rifle designed for HCPs in his main hand and fired another burst of penetrator rounds in the direction of the armed merchant ship.

A few moments passed, but the white electric glow of a deflector shield never appeared in the void.

At that moment, Amber knew his heavy particle cannon shot had most likely pierced the bow of the armed merchant ship and destroyed the deflector shield generator before it could be activated.

“Haha! The heavens are smiling on me!”

Amber returned the Gauss rifle to the weapon rack on his back and, as he had done countless times in games, skillfully drew his heavy plasma severing sword.

“Damn, has drawing my sword become a reflex now?”

Confirming that he had a terminal case of ‘sword-drawing syndrome,’ Amber mocked himself, then gripped the hilt with both mechanical arms and adopted a downward-thrusting posture.

By now, Lilith had thoughtfully magnified the image of the armed merchant ship.

Using information on Nereus-class cargo ships from the vessel database, she highlighted the probable location of the bridge.

As Amber’s eyes swept over it, his unit locked onto the position.

Then, the Zealot began to decelerate using the thrusters attached to the space combat modules on its legs.

Before making contact, their relative velocity had to be reduced to a level the unit’s structural integrity could withstand.

All of this culminated in the scene the two Eric brothers witnessed from the main control room.

A silver-white HCP, amidst a blast of blue light from its reverse thrusters, landed hard on the armed merchant ship, causing it to dip downwards from the impact.

And the heavy plasma severing sword in the HCP’s hands plunged right into the location of the bridge.

As the blade, formed of high-temperature plasma, sliced through the layered armor plates, Amber switched the severing sword’s output to burst mode.

The influx of more energy caused the blue plasma blade to instantly swell, vaporizing the two unlucky souls closest to it inside the bridge.

With a subsequent slash and a twist of the blade, the bridge was torn wide open. The resulting depressurization ejected several pirates, who were flash-frozen into icicles.

After dealing with the bridge, Amber didn’t forget to glance over at the operations base.

Beneath the Zealot’s ‘knight helmet,’ the red light flashing from its mono-eye main monitor sent a jolt of fear through the Eric brothers hiding in the main control room.

“B-Big bro, what do we do?”

John, the younger brother who had always been ‘the smart one’ in his older brother’s eyes, was now staring at the Zealot in the distance as it casually began dismantling pieces from the armed merchant ship’s surface. He was so panicked that he had lost his composure and begun to stutter.

“Don’t be afraid. We have hostages! They wouldn’t dare do anything to us!”

Marvin, a crazed look in his eyes, comforted his brother. He had already lost some of his sanity, so paradoxically, he felt less fear.

His comms channel was now filled with nothing but static.

Aside from the pirates who had retreated to the main control room, the pirates on the other two armed merchant ships had gone down with their vessels.

He could only watch helplessly as the assault boat landed on the operations base’s landing platform. A squad of troops in exoskeletons disembarked, breached the external hatch with swift efficiency, and stormed inside.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Several explosions rocked the interior of the operations base, but Marvin couldn’t tell if they were from the bombs they had set or if they had been detonated by the marines.

However, after witnessing what happened to the armed merchant ship, he had already ordered everyone, including the captive workers, to put on spacesuits.

So, for the time being, he didn’t have to worry about the room depressurizing and everyone inside being killed instantly.

After the series of explosions, a deathly silence fell over the operations base.

Just as the Eric brothers were fantasizing that their bombs might have wiped out the marines, they suddenly received a communication request sent through the base’s internal network.

After a moment’s hesitation, the two brothers exchanged a look and accepted the request.

Soon, a deep voice, clearly altered by a voice modulator, came through the channel.

“Open the main control room’s hatch. Hold your fire. We can still talk.”

Just as Marvin, John, and the other pirates focused all their attention on this unexpected communication, Amber’s Zealot drifted cautiously into position directly above the main control room.

Avoiding the viewport, he used the constant adjustments of the vector thrusters all over his unit’s body to maintain a stationary position relative to the main control room.

Then, Amber deployed the charged particle cannon from the weapon rack on his back.

Chapter 150: I Figure Nobody Wants This Thing, Right?

Marvin opened the door to the main control room.

As the marines, shields raised, cautiously floated in through the doorway, the first thing they saw was a human wall formed by over one hundred hostages.

The workers’ hands and feet were bound, and they were chained together with ropes and zip ties. Explosives were strapped to many of them.

And at their feet was a crate stuffed with high-energy explosives.

The lead marine immediately recognized them as the kind of high-energy explosives used for blasting operations on planetary surfaces or in asteroid belts.

If detonated, they were powerful enough to blow the operations base into several pieces.

At that moment, the Eric brothers and the remaining pirates were hiding behind the human wall, using the workers as human shields in a tense standoff with the marines.

Although Eric and his pirate crew had long operated on the borders of the Star Dragon Empire, they didn’t recognize the Federation-made Sabertooth series exoskeletons the marines were wearing.

But that didn’t stop him from judging that the enemy’s exoskeletons were mil-spec, far beyond what his men were wearing—crude contraptions that were little more than a few steel pipes welded together.

This time, they had really run into a tough opponent.

“Your ships have all been destroyed. Give up the resistance.”

The deep voice once again sounded in the temporary communication channel, only to be met by a scornful laugh from Marvin.

“Hmph, you can save that kind of talk. You know what we are. Do you think we’d survive without these hostages?”

He tightened his grip on the detonator and, hiding behind another pirate, continued, “I won’t waste words with you. We’re only in this for the money, not murder. Give us a ship capable of warp travel and a ransom. Once we’re safe, we’ll naturally release these hostages.”

While Marvin and the marine leader were negotiating, another marine, also hidden behind a large shield, was nervously watching a progress bar on his tactical faceplate slowly reach its end.

“Holy shit, I’m in! The Boss’s cracking program is amazing!” the marine exclaimed excitedly over the comms.

“Acquiring administrative privileges for the main control room… Okay, I’ve taken over the cameras. I’m putting the feed up now.”

With a few actions from the marine, a small screen popped up in the upper-right corner of everyone’s tactical faceplate.

It displayed footage from a camera inside the main control room, showing the scene from a different angle.

This same feed was simultaneously projected onto the main screen on the bridge of the Hermes and inside Amber’s cockpit.

“Based on the camera footage, the pirate holding the detonator should be their leader,” Randall’s voice chimed in on the comms.

“But his detonator… it looks like it’s wire-controlled, doesn’t it?”

“That’s right, it’s a wire-controlled detonator. I’ve already tried. There’s no way to hack this thing,” Amber said from the cockpit of the Zealot. The massive machine was now hovering motionlessly above the main control room.

Several cables extended from the mech’s chest, burrowing into the interfaces near the main control room’s external antenna array.

For the first time, Lilith, who was interfaced with the main control room’s systems, found herself helpless against such a traditional, hard-wired control method.

Meanwhile, judging from the voice of the negotiating marine on the comms, the pirate leader was clearly growing more and more agitated.

“We’re out of time. This guy’s running out of patience,” Amber declared, making a decisive command.

“Initiate Plan B, Protocol 2. Marines, prepare to attack. Get the quick-drying foam sealant ready.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Hiding at the very back, Marvin felt something was off.

He sensed that these marines didn’t seem to intend to launch a full-frontal assault, nor were they planning to provide a ransom. The man in charge just seemed to be stalling for time, talking in circles.

At this thought, he snarled loudly, “Don’t you try to stall for time! I’m not kidding around. With one push of this button, all these people will die with me. It’ll be worth it!”

“Listen, don’t get agitated! Let’s talk this out. We will definitely meet your demands…”

The marine continued to placate Marvin patiently, just as Amber’s voice came over the comms.

“Get ready. 3! 2! 1! Go!”

Vwoom!

A blue beam of light pierced through the ceiling of the main control room without warning, engulfing Marvin, who was hiding at the very back, and turning both him and the detonator in his hand to ash.

In that instant, the entire main control room underwent explosive decompression, and a violent torrent of air rushed out through the hole blasted by the charged particle beam.

Several marines armed with automatic shotguns broke from the formation and charged forward.

The jet thrusters on their exoskeletons shot them forward, and they slammed into the human wall from the side, breaking it apart.

At the same time, outside the main control room, Amber, having finished firing the charged particle cannon, used the multi-function launcher mounted beneath the mechanical arm to fire a series of quick-drying foam sealant projectiles, plugging the hole.

Inside the room, the marines who had breached the line did the same, using the foam sealant to plug the holes in the ceiling and floor while the automatic shotguns in their hands spat fire.

A hail of bullets instantly blanketed the pirates. The scattered steel pellets were like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, swiftly reaping the pirates’ lives.

From the moment Amber began her vertical assault with the charged particle cannon to the moment the marines ceased fire, only a few seconds had passed.

All the remaining pirates had been riddled with holes.

The marines split up. Two of them continued to spray the foam sealant on the ravaged bulkheads to prevent any unforeseen issues, while two others went on to deliver finishing blows to ensure there were no survivors.

The rest quickly brought the panicked miners under control.

Even though there were over a hundred of them, faced with these marines who were armed to the teeth and had just annihilated the pirates in an instant, they knew exactly what to do and what not to do.

“Main control room suppressed!”

When this sentence echoed through the communication channel, everyone, including the personnel aboard the Hermes, let out a sigh of relief.

“Excellent. Be careful with those high-energy explosives. Have a few people sweep the other rooms as well. Hermes, you can start your approach.”

Amber, in the cockpit of the Zealot, also relaxed. She was even in the mood to tease her apprentice.

“Murat, did you learn that move?”

“I did, Instructor!”

After the marines had cleared the entire operations base and the Hermes had docked nearby, Randall asked the crucial question.

“Amber, so what are you planning to do with this operations base? And, uh… the three small mining ships?”

“What’s there to think about? This stuff’s just sitting here and nobody wants it. We’ll just pack it up and take it with us~”

“Huh?”

Chapter 151: Atlas Mining Urgently Hiring Skilled Workers

Randall was a bit dumbfounded. He hadn’t expected Amber to just openly prepare to haul away the entire operations base.

He immediately opened a private chat channel and continued to ask:

“My boss, are you sure you want to take this thing?”

“Of course. Didn’t the Timmler Mining Company decide they don’t want it anymore? I’m just helping them recycle it. You could call it putting waste to good use~”

Amber replied matter-of-factly.

“No, I mean, aren’t you afraid the mining company will come after you?”

Randall knew that when it came to taking advantage of a situation, Amber always went big, but he never thought the man was this audacious.

“Let them come~”

Amber was completely unfazed, not seeing it as a serious problem at all.

“If they really do come looking for me, I’ll have to charge them a commission for this operation, transportation and storage fees for the operations base, and accommodation costs for the room and board of over a hundred miners.”

“Brilliant. Amber, I’m finding that working with you is a real learning experience.”

“That’s good. As long as you’re getting something out of it~”

While chatting privately with Randall, Amber parked the Zealot on the platform where the assault boat was docked. Then, wearing a heavy hydraulic pressure suit capable of supporting extravehicular activity, he floated into the operations base.

After drifting down the corridor for a bit, he opened the hatch to the main control room and slipped inside.

“Boss!”

Inside the main control room, the marines saw him and stopped what they were doing.

“It’s fine, carry on. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can wrap this up~”

Amber waved his hand and floated over to the miners, who were huddled together, facing their unknown fate with terror on their faces.

“Ahem, don’t be afraid, everyone! We’re not bad people!”

The moment he spoke, a stir went through the crowd of miners. They all looked at the familiar companions beside them, their eyes conveying the same message.

We’re screwed. Fell into another den of thieves.

Faced with this reaction, Amber felt a little awkward. He continued, adding:

“We’re not pirates, and we weren’t hired by your company. We’re just a civilian merchant ship that happened to be passing by.”

Hearing this, the miners gradually quieted down.

“I saw the message your company sent out over ten days ago, requesting help in dealing with pirates, but it seemed no one responded. Since we were passing by today, we decided to help eliminate them.”

As they listened to Amber, a slightly braver miner raised his hand.

“Go ahead.”

“Sir, I’d like to know what you plan to do with this base, and with us?”

“Thank you for your question. All of you should be as brave as this friend here, so we can have a proper conversation.”

Amber clapped his hands and continued:

“Ahem, since it seems your company has no intention of recovering this operations base, I plan to take the base and all its related equipment with me, based on the principle of not letting things go to waste.”

Another commotion rippled through the crowd. The miners hadn’t expected Amber to be so blunt.

But Amber paid no mind to their reactions and simply continued.

“As for all of you, you have two choices.”

Amber held up one finger.

“First, I can drop you off at the nearest planet or spaceport. In any case, you should all have chips implanted by the Timmler company, so as soon as you reach an area with network coverage, they should send someone to pick you up. Then you can all continue to serve your esteemed company~”

This option didn’t seem to have much appeal. The miners present all fell silent, waiting for Amber to announce the second choice.

Seeing their reaction, Amber held up a second finger.

“Second, you can come work for my mining company.”

He had barely started the sentence when many miners showed ‘I knew it’ expressions on their faces.

In their eyes, this mysterious man who had just rescued them seemed no different from the people at Timmler Mining Company.

But Amber’s next words made them wonder if they had misheard him.

“If you join our company, I’ll first have the chips inside you removed. I also won’t be implanting any new ones, because our company’s employees are free people, not slaves.

After that, I will sign a three-year asteroid mining contract with each employee who joins. Once signed, you’ll work diligently on the asteroids for those three years.

When the three years are up, I will pay your wages in full in a single lump sum and terminate the contract.

You can take that money, and you’ll be free to go wherever you want.

Of course, if anyone wants to renew their contract at that time, I would be more than happy to have you.”

Having finished this long speech, Amber paused. He stood before the crowd with his hands behind his back, waiting for their reaction.

The miners below were stupefied.

They worked for the Timmler Mining Company to pay off their debts.

Although, most of their debts were inextricably linked to the company itself, because for various reasons, they had taken out student loans and mortgages from companies under the Timler family.

As a result, after calculations based on formulas they couldn’t possibly comprehend, the amount they had to repay ballooned into a terrifying figure.

Under these circumstances, the ‘kind’ Timler family allowed them to pay off their debts by working for their mining company.

But now, this man who had rescued them from pirates was actually saying he would pay them wages?

For a moment, the miners began whispering amongst themselves.

Before making a decision, they subconsciously sought the opinions of others, but only to better convince themselves.

After a while, another hand went up among the miners. It was the same brave miner who had asked a question earlier.

“Sir, we’d like to know, does working for your mining company involve going to some kind of special, hazardous environment?”

“No, it’s just normal asteroid mining operations.”

“Then may I ask, why would you pay us wages and promise to give us our freedom back after three years?”

“I pay money to buy your time, skills, and labor. Isn’t that perfectly normal?”

Amber’s answer left the miner speechless.

The answer was so perfectly normal, yet to him and the other miners, it felt as unreal as a soap bubble.

“Oh, right. I forgot to mention…”

Amber spoke as if he had suddenly remembered something.

And many of the miners revealed ‘so there’s the catch’ expressions.

But after they heard what Amber had to say, their jaws dropped even wider than before.

“Our company’s asteroid mining personnel operate on a ‘four-squad, two-shift’ system.

The daily work time is eight hours, with no more than forty hours per week. In high-risk mining environments, the working hours will be further reduced.

Depending on the schedule, there will be quarterly ‘recreational and stress-relief’ activities, during which we will arrange for a mobile entertainment center to visit the mining area.”

Amber rattled off some of the basic benefits for the miners in one breath, stunning the hundred-plus miners into complete silence.

Although he had always aspired to be a great capitalist, he knew that relentlessly exploiting his employees would only lead to ever-decreasing work efficiency.

Compared to the profits gained from asteroid mining and trading on the ore exchange, the cost of these miners’ salaries and benefits was a drop in the bucket.

And the crowd’s current reaction was exactly what he had expected.

After all, in this world, there weren’t many companies that treated their people like human beings.

Amber glanced at the time. It was about time to wrap things up.

He looked up at the crowd again, a faint smile playing on his lips.

“Any other questions, everyone?”

Chapter 152: A True Takeout

The miners’ final decision ultimately came as no surprise to Amber.

After a brief discussion, all one hundred and eight mining technicians present chose to jump ship to Atlas Mining.

The addition of these people allowed Atlas Mining—which previously had only a single Spinner-class mining barge and no professional workers—to instantly enter a mature stage of mining operations.

This was because among the one hundred and eight people, besides the largest group of mining squads, there were also asteroid survey technicians, professional demolition experts, and mining ship pilots and operators.

They had essentially gathered all the necessary personnel to mine an asteroid.

What’s more, they had also acquired a complete asteroid operations base and three small mining ships.

Furthermore, inside the operations base’s hangar, there were twenty-five fully equipped mining mules.

This was a type of autonomous mining robot, whose main job was to assist mining squads in carrying out precision work deep inside super-large asteroids.

In emergencies, they could also cover the personnel’s withdrawal.

After all, it was impossible for these asteroids, weighing hundreds of millions of tons, to contain only one type of heavy metal.

Compared to simply having the Spinner-class crudely shatter the asteroid and then coordinating with the other three frigates to collect the ore, it was far more efficient to zone the asteroid’s entire vein distribution through surveying, tunneling, and blasting, and then mine based on priority.

Soon, the workers, who had no objections, boarded The Hermes, which was docked next to the operations base.

They would stay in a large, temporarily modified crew compartment with dual-channel internal and external signal shielding, bringing basic living supplies like sleeping bags.

Once Amber found a doctor on the black market to perform surgery and remove their ‘slave chips’, these miners would be free to move about.

After the personnel were loaded, the next step was to pack up and take the entire operations base.

When Timmler Mining Company had first deployed this operations base, they had most likely used a professional industrial ship with numerous centipede-like mechanical arms to secure the base to the asteroid.

However, Amber and his team obviously didn’t have such equipment now, but fortunately, they still had two HCPs.

This weapon, whose predecessor was an industrial robot, was now back to its old trade.

To be set up on the uneven surface of an asteroid, the operations base was not a single structure but was divided into four components: the ore refinery section, the docking bay, the main control room, and the crew quarters.

Each component was connected by flexible corridors.

After evacuating all personnel and shutting down the functional areas, Amber and his team detached the four components from the asteroid one by one and secured them to the standard rails located mid-hull on The Hermes destroyer.

This process could only be handled by Amber and Murat, piloting the HCPs.

“Unit Two, don’t be nervous. Control your speed.”

Hearing Amber’s calm voice over the comms, Murat, inside Unit Two, was still a little nervous.

He and Amber were currently towing the massive ore refinery component, approaching the side of The Hermes.

“The Hermes, prepare to deploy the guide arms.”

“The Hermes, acknowledged. Deployment complete.”

The external armor plates at the front of the side-mounted rail slid open, and a pair of mechanical arms painted with yellow and black stripes slowly extended.

The laser guidance system at the tip of the mechanical arms quickly connected to the receiver on the ore refinery component, and the automatic docking sequence began to run on its own.

“Alright. Unit Two, begin to decelerate. Let the mechanical arms complete the docking.”

“Roger!”

The vector thrusters of the two HCPs were firing at high frequency, using this method to make fine adjustments to their position.

Finally, with two soft clicks, the auxiliary mechanical arms completed their docking with the ore refinery component and dragged it onto the rail.

“Done! Next one!”

Sitting in the cockpit, Amber temporarily disengaged the head-tracking controls, stretched his slightly stiff neck, and then turned the machine’s body to float toward the next component.

“Unit Two, don’t think of this as tedious or dangerous. This is training to develop your fine-motor control skills.”

“Yes, Sir!”

An hour and a half later, the job of “packing up” the operations base was finished.

The larger ore refinery component and the docking bay were secured to The Hermes’s rails.

The relatively smaller crew quarters and main control room were secured to the interfaces of the first two components, stacked on top of each other.

On the other side of The Hermes, the three small mining ships were also secured to the rails there, arranged horizontally.

Now, the Dragoon-class destroyer, originally sleek and elegant in appearance, looked as if it had grown tumors on its left and right sides.

However, this method of attachment was very common on civilian armed merchant ships.

In outer space, there was no such thing as air resistance anyway. As long as it didn’t affect the ship’s torque, captains would do everything they could to load more cargo.

This was to increase the profit from a single trip.

After Amber and his team’s work, the only man-made objects left near this asteroid were the two pirate armed merchant ships.

One of them had been blown to pieces by the explosion of its subcritical reactor and had become a pile of wreckage, with essentially no salvage value.

The other, thanks to Amber’s meticulous handiwork, had only sustained damage to its bridge, deflector shield generator, and external miscellany like weapons, observation equipment, and antenna arrays.

Most of the valuable components, including the subcritical reactor and jump drive—the most expensive parts on a civilian vessel—were undamaged.

So it was impossible to say Amber wasn’t eyeing these things.

But for the time being, there was really no way to take this armed merchant ship with them.

Although The Hermes could extend carbon fiber cables to tow it, doing so would only support normal travel; it couldn’t tow the ship into warp.

“What? Can’t bear to leave this ship behind?”

On the bridge of The Hermes, Isabelle couldn’t help but tease Amber, who had been standing by the viewport staring at the armed merchant ship ever since he returned.

“It’s not the ship I’m reluctant to part with, but the valuable components on it.”

Amber was a little dejected; this was on him for not knowing how to do ‘ship-breaking’.

If he had known even a little, he would have dismantled the subcritical reactor and jump drive to take with them.

Unfortunately, dismantling these two devices was relatively complex and had to be done by a professional ship-breaking engineer.

“Forget it. Let’s pull out for now.”

Amber turned and kissed Isabelle on the cheek, then floated toward the captain’s chair as she blushed.

“Lilith, record the coordinates. We’ll find a ship-breaking company online later and anonymously sell the coordinates to them.”

“As you command, Master!”

Chapter 153: A Letter from the Empire

At this moment, the Hermes was like a well-dressed worker who, despite their usual sharp appearance, was always laden with bags and packages when heading home for the holidays.

Although the rest of the crew was uneasy about warping with so much cargo, they suppressed their nervousness when they saw Amber sitting calmly in the captain’s chair, sipping black tea from a Tetra Pak carton without a hint of panic.

The destroyer did not disappoint Amber. It successfully entered warp and eventually arrived at its destination—a black market in another asteroid belt.

Asteroid belts, typical lawless zones with no rules or regulations, were the most suitable places for black markets to take root.

The black market Amber had come to was one of the larger and more famous underworld establishments on the borders of the Star Dragon Empire.

Decades later, it would still be in service, catering to many players wanted by NPC factions.

However, Amber did not dock in the port. The “bags and packages” strapped to the destroyer were far too conspicuous.

After contacting a clinic in the black market that could perform chip removal, Amber sent Tom and a few marines to pick up the personnel in an assault boat.

Meanwhile, he and Murat piloted an HCP to a position between the Hermes and the black market spaceport. They deployed the heavy particle cannon and the charged particle cannon, keeping a close watch on the assault boat’s position, ready to respond to any emergencies.

Fortunately, the firefight he had anticipated with ill-intentioned individuals from the black market never occurred.

Perhaps the arrival of the assault boat had tipped off the more eager troublemakers in the black market, letting them know that a military vessel was likely in the vicinity.

Or perhaps the fully armed marines had made them wary of making any rash moves.

In any case, the assault boat successfully brought back the clinic’s doctor and the necessary equipment.

The surgery was not cheap. After all, there were one hundred and eight people, and although it was a simple matter of cutting the skin to remove the chip, the workload was still quite large.

But Amber wasn’t stingy with the money. “Earn what you should, spend what you must” had always been one of his principles.

It wouldn’t be worth it if the chip removal wasn’t thorough, allowing Timmler’s people to find some clue.

There’s no need to dwell on the details of the surgical process. By the time the doctor, panting, finished the operation on the last miner, he took off the medical assistance mechanical arm and removed his mask, revealing a face drenched in sweat. At that moment, Amber paid the related fees through one of the many secure accounts set up by Lilith.

Upon receiving the notification that the final payment had been made, the doctor immediately beamed, insisting that he wasn’t tired at all and that he hoped Amber would come to him for any future jobs.

After all, a client who paid so promptly was a rare find.

The miners who had their chips removed remained in a daze even after the surgery was over. To them, the whole experience felt like a dream.

It was only when Amber walked up to them with official electronic contracts that the miners came to their senses and realized none of it had been a dream.

“Alright everyone, sign this contract and you’ll be employees of Atlas. Of course, you still have the option to choose freedom. I’ll arrange for someone to take you to a spaceport right away.”

Before Amber could finish speaking, the miners were already rushing forward, eager to sign the contracts.

The miner who had twice asked bold questions became the first contracted employee of Atlas Mining.

Looking at this man, who was relatively bold, active, and had his own ideas among the miners, Amber couldn’t help but ask as they were signing the contract:

“What’s your name?”

“George. My name is George Hearst, Boss.”

This miner named George didn’t actually look that old. The premature aging of his skin, a result of long-term work in the asteroid belt mines, couldn’t quite hide his youthful air.

“George. What was your job before this?”

“Reporting to the boss, I was in charge of overall mining coordination.”

In the ensuing conversation, Amber learned about the miner’s history.

George, a graduate of a vocational college in a certain star system of the Star Dragon Empire, had been the top student in their asteroid mining program.

During his post-graduation job search, he had even caught the eye of the Timmler Mining Company.

The position they offered him at the time was mining technical consultant at their headquarters.

But on the very day George was preparing to sign the employment contract, his sister was severely injured by a malfunctioning cleaning robot on the street.

Although the hospital said they could save his sister, the surgery required an astronomical fee.

Just then, after learning of the situation, Timmler Mining sent someone to find George, offering to pay for the surgery.

The condition was that he had to agree to go to the asteroid belt to work as a mining coordination manager, paying off the debt through his labor.

With no other options, George was forced to agree to the proposal and was subsequently “exiled” to the operations base in the asteroid belt.

Amber sighed after hearing George’s story. It was another classic tale of a large corporation getting someone in a stranglehold, forcing them to submit.

Although there was no proof, Amber even suspected that the malfunctioning cleaning robot was the handiwork of the Timmler company.

After all, other companies had been known to pull similar stunts.

Of course, this was just baseless suspicion, and Amber didn’t voice it.

But he knew that if he hadn’t happened to show up, the Timmler Mining Company would have eventually squeezed every last drop of value from George. He would have died in this asteroid belt and been thrown into an incinerator.

The circumstances of the others were much the same as George’s. They had all been forced to “sell themselves” to the Timmler Mining Company out of desperation.

Just as Amber and his team were finishing the contract signings with the miners and preparing to procure more supplies for them, a message arrived from Atlas’s headquarters, the Tower of Babel.

Lady Allenita had received a secret letter from the Star Dragon Empire.

The general content concerned the recent situation of Isabelle’s family.

Following her “disappearance” on Robert IV, her family and the Imperial Royal Navy Intelligence Division had come under attack from the Regent Prince’s faction.

These nobles from the Regent Prince’s faction, based on unconfirmed rumors, accused Isabelle, a spy for Naval Intelligence, of failing to lead by example during the battle for Robert IV and possibly betraying the Empire.

This kind of attack, rooted in factional politics, naturally provoked a response from the Princess Faction.

A large number of nobles, including the Imperial Princess herself, voiced their support for Isabelle’s family, launching a new war of words with the Regent Prince’s faction over the issue.

Although her family had yet to suffer any substantial damage, they had been completely thrust into the eye of the storm.

“I might have to go back, Amber.”

After reading the secret letter, Isabelle wrestled with her thoughts for a long time before looking up at Amber and speaking apologetically.

Chapter 154: Lilith’s First Iteration

The unexpected letter from the Empire made Amber decide to adjust his recent plans.

If Isabelle decided to risk a trip back to the Empire, he could take this opportunity to go with her after making the necessary preparations.

Since arriving in this world, he had spent most of his time within the Federation’s borders, with little chance to experience the culture and customs of the Star Dragon Empire.

Amber swore he absolutely wasn’t just interested in seeing any ‘dragon girls.’

Mainly, during his time on Robert IV, he had discovered that this real world was somewhat different from the game, and there were many things he needed to experience for himself.

Moreover, after arriving in the Thousand Stars Empire and establishing Atlas Mining, Amber’s thoughts and plans had evolved from simply starting a company and coasting until retirement to wanting a larger piece of the pie in the coming chaos.

Human desires have a tendency to swell.

Especially with Lilith, his greatest special advantage at the moment, Amber felt it would almost be an injustice to the strong AI if he didn’t do something more.

Now that he had made this decision, Amber would take it seriously, rather than just sitting in his comfortable office and imagining everything.

As the old saying goes, “Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles.”

As the Empire would be one of the stages for the future chaos, it was essential to scout it out and get a feel for the situation.

Amber and Isabelle didn’t have to worry about walking into a trap, as they would be traveling with the Yuge family’s fleet, and Allenita would be there to personally oversee things.

Therefore, The Hermes, which was originally heading straight for the asteroid belt, adjusted its course and first returned to the planet where the Atlas headquarters was located.

After rendezvousing with The Gold Digger, the two ships would travel to the asteroid belt together.

Once the operations base was deployed, The Gold Digger could begin work with the other three small mining ships, and the 108 newly hired miners could also start their jobs.

As for The Hermes, it wouldn’t return after completing its mission to deliver the operations base. According to Amber’s plan, the warship and its crew would conduct various basic training exercises in the vicinity of the asteroid belt.

It would also occasionally assist The Gold Digger with asteroid-cutting work.

During this time, Randall would temporarily command The Hermes, while George, Atlas Mining’s first contract worker, would be responsible for the overall coordination and command of the asteroid mining operations.

Although Randall complained that they had been in the Thousand Stars Empire for so long and Amber still hadn’t taken him to a club to experience the legendary elf models,
the guy was all talk. After escorting Amber and Isabelle back to headquarters, he dutifully set off with The Gold Digger.

In the Tower of Babel’s comprehensive training grounds, the first batch of Romu candidates had already undergone ten days of training, during which more than twenty people were eliminated.

If they stayed on schedule, this group of Romu would complete their adaptive training while Amber was away in the Star Dragon Empire, and those who hadn’t been eliminated could begin the next phase of infantry combat training.

If their training progressed quickly, or if Amber returned late, this group might even be able to start taking on some relatively basic missions.

Of course, that was provided Amber could sort out their weapons and equipment.

After arranging the upcoming work for his two companies, Amber finally had time to start preparing for his trip to the Empire.

Although the Yuge family’s fleet would provide cover this time, one always had to prepare for the unexpected.

And his greatest asset right now wasn’t his own combat prowess, but Lilith.

So, after the custom-ordered medium-sized server array arrived, Amber had it installed directly in a pre-prepared room in the deepest part of the manor.

This room, known publicly as the ‘company server room’ and with restricted access, would become Lilith’s new home.

And she would use this server array to complete her first optimization and iteration since being freed.

Of course, in Amber’s plans, this server array was only a temporary solution.

When the time was right and he had the funds, Amber still wanted to build an asteroid base in deep space and set up a supercomputer center to serve as Lilith’s lair.

After confirming there were no issues with the servers, Lilith zipped into her new home with a pop and immediately began the iteration process. She was quick about it.

While Lilith was dormant and undergoing her optimization and iteration, Amber was like an anxious father waiting outside a delivery room.

The analogy was a bit strange, but his current feelings of nervousness, anxiety, and worry were not much different from those of such a father.

After all, given Lilith’s identity and her history of tearing through the universe in her previous life, and with this being her first iteration since seeing the light of day again, no one knew what kind of Lilith would emerge.

Perhaps it was because the server array Amber had spent a fortune on was powerful enough, or perhaps Lilith’s own underlying code was clean and well-structured.

In any case, this optimization and iteration didn’t keep Amber waiting for long.

Twenty-four hours later, as Amber was in his office scratching his head and pondering future development plans, he discovered his personal terminal had been hacked again.

On the holographic projector connected to the terminal in his office, a sultry dance by Lilith’s virtual avatar suddenly began to play.

Amber watched in befuddlement as she finished the sexy, provocative dance—the kind you’d see on various 18+ websites to attract traffic. Then, Lilith struck an ending pose and said in a more mature voice:

“Master, it’s been a while. Did you miss me?”

“Lilith, what the hell did you iterate into?!”

But for all the fun and games, Lilith was not to be trifled with.

Although she seemed to have become even more mischievous after completing her optimization and iteration, Amber quickly discovered that this, the world’s only ‘strong AI’, had indeed become much more powerful and had gained some rather outrageous new abilities.

The most absurd of these was an ability that resembled ‘cloning.’

However, according to Lilith, this ability couldn’t simply be called ‘cloning’; it was more akin to the concept of a mother body and child bodies.

With this ability, Lilith could now have her ‘mother body’ reside within the processor in the back of Amber’s neck.

She could then leave a child body in the server array to continue evolving using its computing power, while also assisting with the various operations at Atlas’s headquarters, the Tower of Babel.

At the same time, she could create multiple other child bodies to operate independently.

For example, she could directly interface with an HCP, allowing it to fight on its own without a pilot.

Or she could implant a child body into a server, letting it develop independently and ‘go rogue’ to acquire all permissions, then find an opportunity to return to the mother body when the time was right, allowing the mother body to inherit those permissions.

There were many other such ‘fancy tricks.’

This outrageous ability made Amber suddenly feel that his gains from the upcoming trip to the Star Dragon Empire might be far greater than he had anticipated.

Chapter 155: The Sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress

As Lilith completed her optimization iterations, and while Amber and Isabelle prepared to depart on their infiltration mission into Star Dragon Empire territory, the war between the Empire and the Federation entered a new phase.

Of the four Expeditionary Strike Groups that launched the Star Dragon Empire’s initial assault, three successfully annihilated the Federation garrisons in their respective target systems, occupied all the planets, and fully accomplished their campaign objectives.

Only the Eighth Expeditionary Strike Group, led by Marquis Ascania, was bogged down in its attack on the Robert system for various reasons, ultimately holding out until Federation reinforcements arrived.

This not only forced the Federation to mobilize earlier than the Imperial General Staff had anticipated, but also compelled the Fortress of Sorrow and the Twelfth Expeditionary Strike Group, held in reserve as a failsafe, to enter the fray prematurely.

In the end, it even allowed the Federation to destroy Planet Robert IV, which was meant to serve as a strategic linchpin.

Furthermore, the official appearance of a planet-destroying strategic weapon like the Proton Annihilation Bomb on the battlefield made the Star Dragon Empire’s General Staff more cautious.

It could be said that the Star Dragon Empire’s entire campaign deployment was significantly impacted by the failure at Robert IV.

Marquis Ascania, who had led the campaign in the Robert system, undoubtedly became a focal point of criticism.

Moreover, due to his long-standing close association with the Regent Prince, he was seen as a key figure in the Regent Prince Faction, giving the Princess Faction the perfect opportunity to launch a tirade against him.

Combined with the war of words the Regent Prince Faction had previously engaged in with the Princess Faction over Isabelle, the entire political scene of the Star Dragon Empire descended into even greater chaos, at a faster pace than in the original game’s timeline.

And so, the Empire’s offensive on the front lines slowed as the Federation gradually began to mobilize.

Fighting on their home turf, the Federation fleet had superior logistics and support. Furthermore, with the aid of the various star systems’ autonomous government garrison fleets, they held a greater advantage in battle.

Although the overall strength of these garrison fleets—in terms of warships, training levels, and so on—varied wildly, they could still provide some measure of assistance to the Federation’s main fleets.

Even if it was just being deployed at the very front to act as meat shields in a fleet battle, they were still fulfilling their purpose.

Beyond that, the sudden appearance of a Federation combined fleet on the battlefield was giving the Star Dragon Empire’s commanders a headache.

This combined fleet, roughly the size of three main Federation fleets, demonstrated an exceptionally high level of combat prowess in conventional fleet battles.

Not only was their gunnery incredibly accurate during long, medium, and short-range engagements, but their formation changes and tactical maneuvers on the battlefield were also exceptionally fluid.

They were like a roaming dragon, darting between star systems and throwing the entire border battlefield into turmoil.

After every battle, during their tactical reviews, the Imperial fleet commanders would feel an unprecedented amount of pressure.

They simply could not find a single flaw in the command decisions made by the commander of this Federation combined fleet.

Every command was arguably the optimal solution; even they might not have been able to make such decisions under the high pressure of a battlefield environment.

The true identity of this Federation combined fleet was the three unmanned fleets that the Federation had recently deployed for combat trials.

The combat effectiveness they displayed in conventional fleet battles earned high praise from the Federation Navy and its Department of Defense.

There was a strong trend toward placing massive new orders and launching more unmanned warships.

But, as highlighted before, the unmanned fleets’ advantage lay in conventional fleet battles.

If they encountered the Fortress of Sorrow in battle, advantages like gunnery precision, maneuverability, and command accuracy meant nothing in the face of its overwhelming and absolute firepower.

The unmanned fleets would immediately decide to retreat, swiftly leaving the star system before The Focusing Rainbow could fire.

This led to a very peculiar situation on the battlefield:

The unmanned fleets could dominate in conventional fleet battles, but as soon as the Fortress of Sorrow entered the field, regardless of how great an advantage they held, the three autonomous fleet command cores—codenamed ‘The Triumvirate’ within the Federation—would immediately lead their fleets in a retreat.

The entire front line seemed to have turned into a game of cat and mouse between the unmanned fleets and the Fortress of Sorrow.

However, this game began to change with the arrival of the ‘Chaos Fortress’ and more Imperial fleets on the battlefield.

The Federation border, Gormansk system.

After letting the mysterious Federation combined fleet slip away once again, the Duke, commander of the Fortress of Sorrow, chose not to give chase. Instead, he remained in place, waiting for something.

The object of his wait, the Star Dragon Empire’s second artificial Celestial Fortress to be deployed in combat—the Chaos Fortress—arrived as expected a short time later.

When the two colossal artificial celestial bodies appeared in the same stretch of space, the crews of the surrounding fleets couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at the sight, which was akin to a miracle.

It was precisely because of the existence of these artificial Celestial Fortresses that the morale of the Imperial Royal Navy’s fleet remained consistently high.

After arriving in the area, the Chaos Fortress quickly dispatched a transport ship to the Fortress of Sorrow.

Aboard the transport ship was the commander of the Chaos Fortress, Duke William.

The two Dukes, both of whom wielded immense power in the Star Dragon Empire, met alone in the fortress’s core conference room, without any attendants.

After all, at their level, even a few casual words could involve Imperial secrets or political scandals.

“I didn’t expect the General Staff to send you out first. I thought they would have sent that fellow Soren.”

In the conference room, the Duke held a glass of wine and couldn’t help but jest at his old friend who had traveled so far.

“Duke Soren was indeed the original choice. After all, he’s a symbol of the royal family; his participation in this campaign would have been perfect for boosting morale.”

Duke William, who looked somewhat younger and had a debonair air about him, was relaxing, half-reclined in his chair, examining a pastry he had picked up from the table.

“However, the Regent Prince’s manipulations gave me the chance to deploy first… Duke, you brought these pastries from the Capital, didn’t you? Had I known, I would have arranged for some myself. I left in such a hurry I didn’t prepare anything.”

“Hmph… You’re still the same as ever.”

The Duke shook his head in exasperation. Among the Empire’s five great dukes, Duke William was the most unconventional, with a demeanor that completely lacked the gravitas of a high-ranking noble.

“You came for a private talk. I doubt it was just about pastries, was it?”

“Of course not.”

Hearing the Duke’s words, William dropped his nonchalant expression and looked at him with a serious gaze.

“The sixth artificial Celestial Fortress is nearing completion. The Princess Faction is fighting for control of it. From the looks of it, it’s very likely to become the princess’s personal fortress.”

“Oh? That is not good news at all.”

Chapter: Taking a Day Off on the First

Taking a day off on the first~

I’ve returned to my wife’s hometown. There’s a lot going on during the Lunar New Year, so it’s not convenient for me to write.

If I have time, I’ll still update with two chapters before midnight tonight.

If I can’t make it, then I’ll have to take the day off. My apologies~

Updates will resume tomorrow~

Chapter 156: No Story Without a Coincidence

For a nation-defining strategic weapon like the artificial Celestial Fortress, its ownership—that is, the choice of its commander—was a matter that drew the attention of every faction within the Star Dragon Empire.

Because the comprehensive power of this thing was simply too outrageous in the current era, capable of easily tipping the scales of power between two sides.

Among the Star Dragon Empire’s five current fortress commanders, Duke Soren, whom Duke William had just mentioned, was the first to receive command of a fortress.

This man, the current Emperor’s younger brother and a prince of the Star Dragon Empire, was a staunch royalist.

Therefore, when the first fortress was completed, the Emperor, who could still control the imperial court at the time, bestowed the position of fortress commander upon his own younger brother instead of his eldest daughter.

As the Emperor grew older and gradually lost his grip on the government, the noble ministers began to take sides between the Princess and the Regent Prince. To everyone’s surprise, this prince who “held significant power” chose to remain loyal to his elder brother when everyone expected him to “disrupt the court’s order,” becoming the final pillar of the Royalist Faction.

Today, as the clashes between the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction grow ever more intense, Duke Soren still strictly observes neutrality and does not participate in the conflict between the two sides.

However, everyone believed that Duke Soren was doing this only to ensure a peaceful transfer of power in the future, regardless of which side came out on top, thus preserving a final shred of dignity for the imperial family.

Of the remaining four fortress commanders, the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction each held two positions.

The Duke and Duke William, currently in a secret meeting within the core conference room of the Fortress of Sorrow, belonged to the Regent Prince Faction.

Meanwhile, Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, who were currently on standby in the border regions, belonged to the Princess Faction.

It could be said that before the sixth artificial Celestial Fortress was completed and its commander confirmed, the scales of power between the two sides had reached a delicate balance.

But now, according to the news brought by Duke William, the great Princess of the Empire, the most outstanding female heir in the history of the Star Dragon family, the future Star Dragon Empress, the Dragon of schemes and cunning, Agnes Barbara Leon…

This very woman who stood in opposition to the Regent Prince, was to become the commander of the sixth fortress.

If this news was true, it would be tantamount to placing a heavyweight on one side of the balanced scales.

What’s more, Her Highness the Princess, who had been dubbed the “Dragon of schemes and cunning” by the members of the Regent Prince Faction, was already a difficult character to deal with.

At just twenty years old, she had managed to rally a large group of influential figures in the political arena to act in opposition to the Regent Prince, and she was extremely ruthless and decisive in political struggles.

This alone was a testament to the princess’s capabilities.

“William, how reliable is this information?”

Inside the conference room, the Duke rested his chin on his hand, his expression grave.

In his view, the “minor setbacks” currently faced in the war within the Federation were far less unsettling than this news from the rear.

“Sir Norton said it himself. What do you think?”

Duke William did not answer the question directly.

But the Duke knew this bad news was almost certainly true.

Because the “Sir Norton” Duke William mentioned was none other than the current Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire, the immensely powerful Norton II.

Perhaps the current Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire now regretted issuing the edict that granted the regency to Norton II, a man he had trusted completely.

But regardless of what the bedridden Emperor thought, it was now a fact that Norton II held power as the Regent Prince.

“If Her Highness the Princess obtains command of this fortress, as the Regent Prince said, things will not look good for us.”

The Duke set down his teacup, his mind already racing, simulating the political situation in the Empire.

“Once the balance of power between the two sides is broken, all those who are still waiting on the sidelines might flock to Her Highness the Princess’s side.”

“Exactly~”

Duke William picked up where the Duke left off.

“It’s not just those on the sidelines. Those ‘opportunists’ around the Regent Prince might also consider switching their allegiance.”

Duke William was being pragmatic, but the Duke knew he wasn’t wrong.

“So, the Regent Prince told you this news because he wants to hear our thoughts?”

“Mhm~”

“William, has anyone ever told you that you don’t act like a duke at all?”

Looking at William’s flippant expression, the Duke said irritably.

“What? Does a duke have to be so formal all day long? I’m already a duke of the Empire. Do I still have to be constrained by all these rules and regulations?”

William grabbed a pastry and popped it into his mouth, his voice slightly muffled.

“I actually have an idea. The key is whether His Excellency the Regent Prince wants to prevent Princess Agnes from obtaining command of the sixth fortress altogether, or if he just wants to buy enough time.”

“What do you mean?” The Duke seemed to have thought of something as well and sat up straight.

“Preventing Her Highness the Princess from getting command of the fortress will be quite difficult. Although our great Emperor has always been wary of the ‘Dragon of schemes and cunning,’ she is still his legitimate heir. So I believe the Emperor must have left some contingency in place to ensure command of the sixth fortress falls into his daughter’s hands.”

Seeing the Duke’s interest piqued by his words, William smiled and continued.

“But if the goal is just to stall for enough time… I’ve heard that due to the implementation of some new technologies, the sixth fortress may require a final round of construction funding. The proposal will be submitted to the Imperial Council for deliberation soon. If we can find a way to delay the appropriation, pushing the fortress’s final completion date back by eight months…”

“Then even if Her Highness the Princess gets command of the fortress, it will be of no use.”

The Duke finished the sentence coldly. He looked at William, who was still eating pastries, and asked slowly,

“So you already have a plan in mind, don’t you?”

“That’s right. We just need to take care of one key person.”

“Who?”

“The Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole.”

“What? You’re saying Jacques Cole is your uncle? The current Minister of Finance of the Empire?”

Aboard the flagship of the Yuge family’s fleet, Amber asked in astonishment.

After embarking on their journey to the Star Dragon Empire with Isabelle, Allenita, and her family’s fleet, the two of them had spent most of their time resting in their cabin.

Besides doing some… eagerly-anticipated things, Amber had also slowly learned about Isabelle and her family’s general situation through their chats.

But he never would have imagined that this female spy’s uncle was actually the current Imperial Minister of Finance.

“Wait, with a family like that, why didn’t you stay and enjoy a life of luxury? Why run off to be a spy?”

“I was full of sincere patriotism, okay? Besides, I couldn’t stand the Regent Prince’s way of doing things, and I wanted to do my part for Her Highness the Princess.”

Isabelle explained excitedly, but her voice trailed off, a clear sign of her lack of conviction.

“And now?”

“I’ve given up. They can do whatever they want. As long as my family isn’t affected, I’m fine.”

Hearing Isabelle’s reply, Amber smiled and shook his head. This silly girl still thought of these things too simply.

“The Minister of Finance is your uncle… what a…”

He laid his head on Isabelle’s lap, enjoying the lap pillow, and sighed to himself, thinking that this trip to the Empire was about to get interesting.

Chapter 157: The Isabelle Family’s Predicament

“So what if he’s my uncle?”

Isabelle picked up a bowl of fruit from the bedside, plucked an unknown, grape-like fruit from it, and popped it into the mouth of Amber, who was lying with his eyes half-closed on her lap.

The Yuge family’s fleet might be lacking in some things, but fruit was one thing they had in absolute abundance.

Unlike human long-distance fleets, which had to plan their consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, the elves, with their mastery of biotechnology, could afford to be extravagant in this regard.

“If it were anyone else, it wouldn’t matter. But he’s the Imperial Minister of Finance. Do you have any idea how many factions and people in the country are watching his every move right now?”

Amber swallowed the juicy fruit and gestured to Isabelle for another before continuing, “Being in the eye of the storm like this, some people will definitely try to get to your uncle through you—that is, through your mother’s side of the family. Not to mention, you’ve become something of a ‘minor celebrity’ yourself recently. Someone might try to use you to make a point.”

“So you’re saying my family might not be able to just lie low and stay out of it anymore?”

“Clever girl… Ah—”

Amber opened his mouth, a smile in his eyes as he watched Isabelle pout and feed him another fruit.

No matter how you looked at it, she was the daughter of a noble, big or small. And here she was, willingly providing a lap pillow service and even feeding him fruit…

The thought was quite satisfying.

“All you do is eat. Can’t you help me think of a solution, Amber?”

Seeing Amber’s “smug villain” expression, Isabelle playfully punched him in the chest.

“Hey, now that’s not fair.”

Amber rolled over on Isabelle’s plump thighs to face her stomach. The warmth of his breath made a blush rise on the female spy’s cheeks involuntarily.

He didn’t notice, however, and continued on his own accord, “I’ve already given you so much free analysis. If anyone else came to me for consultation on such complex issues, I’d charge them extra, you know.”

“Then… then what do you want!”

Isabelle’s voice was tinged with a mix of shame and anger.

“How about some special service?”

“You! Is that all you ever think about?!”

Her face turning completely red, Isabelle pummeled Amber with a flurry of playful punches, but in the end, she still picked up a piece of fruit from the bowl and held it between her lips.

You see, this was a classic case of “the mouth says no, but the body is very honest.”

Amber noticed Isabelle’s actions and immediately broke into a grin.

Though extremely embarrassed, Isabelle, having been thoroughly awakened by Amber, found her breathing growing heavier as she leaned in with the fruit. The affection in her eyes was almost tangible.

Amber raised his head, biting down on the fruit and simultaneously capturing Isabelle’s lips in a kiss. A moment later, he sprang up with the agility of a leaping carp, pinning her beneath him.

At this moment, Isabelle’s brilliant golden hair was fanned out across the bed, her crystal-clear eyes filled with nothing but love for Amber.

Even though he had recently acquired a taste for it, Amber demonstrated immense willpower in this situation.

After all, if this went any further, the chapter would have to be reviewed again.

His hands expertly found the two slimes as he leaned in and whispered into Isabelle’s ear with a wicked smile, “I’m a man of my word. First, I’ll give you a proper analysis.”

“And a little later… we can do something else.”

Isabelle squirmed in Amber’s arms like a little female cat, but Amber had already “restrained” her crucial parts with his hands and began his analysis.

“First, to answer your question from before. You asked, ‘my family might not be able to just lie low and stay out of it anymore?’ I can only tell you, regretfully, to drop the ‘might’.”

The squirming Isabelle in his arms grew still. Although she was still pinching the back of his hand in protest, her ears had perked up.

“First of all, the reason you’re going back this time is simple. Someone has started attacking your family because of you. Even though other nobles from the Princess Faction are speaking up for you, you’re still worried.”

Amber withdrew his mischievous hands and cupped Isabelle’s face, his expression turning serious.

“Regarding this, I can only tell you that this is just the beginning. You need to be mentally prepared; even bigger storms may be coming. Especially now that I know your uncle is the Imperial Minister of Finance, I don’t even think it’s a ‘may’ anymore.”

“So you’re saying my family is in a very dangerous situation?” Isabelle’s expression also grew serious upon hearing Amber’s words.

“To outsiders, your family, including you, is unequivocally part of the ‘Princess Faction’. But your uncle, as the Minister of Finance, has always remained strictly neutral, just like the other ministers personally appointed by the Emperor. With the Princess Faction and the Regent Prince Faction each holding half the power in the Imperial Council, the votes of these neutral figures are often decisive.”

Amber’s words sent Isabelle into deep thought. Although she had always been far removed from Imperial politics, as the daughter of a noble, she had absorbed a thing or two.

“You mean, someone will use me to make my uncle cast a biased vote in the Council?”

“It’s not just about voting. Considering your uncle’s position, it’s highly likely to be about proposing financial bills.”

After speaking, Amber sat up on the bed, intending to get some fruit to moisten his dry throat.

But Isabelle was quicker. She immediately grabbed a handful of fruit and stuffed it into his mouth, then continued to ask, “Could my problem really put my family in a position where my uncle can no longer stand by and do nothing?”

“Of course. You shouldn’t underestimate the cruelty of factional politics. Especially now that the Empire’s offensive against the Federation seems to have reached a stalemate. In this situation, if the Regent Prince Faction decides that your ‘treason’ bears undeniable responsibility for all this, it could even land your family in prison.”

Amber wasn’t exaggerating. In both this world and the real history of his original world, the brutality of factional politics far exceeded the imagination of ordinary people. In some ways, the damage it could inflict on a country was even greater than that of a typical war.

“But I remember, on Robert IV, both Adam and Tail Needle were targeting you more than anyone, weren’t they?”

“No, no, no. I was just a pawn. I don’t have a family to back me up.”

Amber shook his head and continued, “And precisely because I’m insignificant now, they might try to pin all that trouble from Robert IV on you.”

“You mean you did all the bad things, but I have to be the one to take the fall for you?”

“Exactly.”

Chapter 158: An Exciting Start

During the Yuge family’s massive fleet’s warp journey, Amber and Isabelle ran simulations for various potential emergencies they might encounter.

After a fifteen-day warp, the fleet finally arrived at a material distribution spaceport within the Star Dragon Empire.

The fleet would unload its cargo and take on basic supplies here, while also waiting for goods destined for the Thousand Stars Empire to be loaded.

Meanwhile, Amber and Isabelle transferred to another, smaller freighter within the fleet to travel to the planet where Isabelle’s family resided.

Isabelle’s full name was Isabelle Ahrens. Due to Isabelle’s and Allenita’s relationship, the Ahrens family had always maintained trade relations with the Thousand Stars Empire.

Therefore, as per Allenita’s arrangements, the freighter was loaded with a shipment of elven luxury goods custom-ordered by the Ahrens family. This trip was specifically for the delivery of this merchandise.

The freighter, escorted by two armed vessels, entered warp once more. Allenita personally oversaw the journey from the bridge.

As Isabelle’s dearest friend and Amber’s “financial backer,” she was of course aware that the two were heading into danger.

Even the message sent back to the Thousand Stars Empire had been relayed through Allenita’s channels.

During the ship’s warp, the female elf summoned Amber to the cargo bay.

“I know this journey of yours holds a certain degree of danger, which is why I came along personally. However, my protection is limited to this ship. Once you’re on the planet’s surface, there won’t be much I can do.”

Allenita said this to Amber, who was standing beside her in front of a cargo container:

“You’ll be going through customs via official channels, so you definitely can’t carry any weapons. But this should be of some help to your subsequent actions.”

Allenita pulled a small suitcase from the container. Its overall light green appearance, combined with intricate elven patterns, made it look just like a gift box.

“An elven gift box?”

“That’s right, it’s just an elven gift box~”

Allenita smiled, then opened the “gift box” and took out a pure white jumpsuit covered in the elven patterns of the Thousand Stars Empire, along with an intricately decorated mask.

It looked like some sort of formal attire for a banquet.

“Alright, I won’t keep you in suspense. The gift box is just for ease of transport; this suit is the main event.”

“Hiss… You’re truly generous, Ms. Yuge.”

Amber drew in a sharp breath. He recognized this thing.

He cautiously took the suit and mask, feeling the fabric’s texture, which was similar to the skin of some kind of reptile. Then, he channeled a small amount of Psionics into it.

The next instant, as if stimulated, countless scale-like patterns on the surface of the jumpsuit and mask flashed. When they settled again, the outfit had transformed into a low-visibility combat suit.

“A Psionic Combat Suit of the Elven Royal Court’s Psionic Inner Guard? I daren’t even ask how you got your hands on this…”

“Hehe, our family participated in the development of this combat suit. This is just a defective unit.”

The female elf covered her mouth and chuckled softly. The movement caused the peaks on her chest to rise and fall, and Amber couldn’t help but steal a couple of extra glances.

“Of course, it’s only called defective because some of the patterns are slightly flawed in its normal mode. It won’t affect Mr. Amber’s ‘covert infiltration’ in the slightest~”

The normal mode Allenita referred to was the elven formal wear the combat suit appeared as when not activated by Psionics.

And this formal wear was also the uniform for the internal attendants of the Elven Royal Court.

The Psionic Inner Guard normally wore these combat suits, blending in with the attendants, only activating their combat mode when a battle was required.

It was precisely because of this somewhat bizarre and perverse setup that the players had nicknamed these Psionic Inner Guards “Kamen Pervert.”

After all, spending all day patrolling the Royal Court in a formal jumpsuit and mask did sound a bit perverted.

And Amber was still curious: wouldn’t wearing a jumpsuit for extended periods be inconvenient for bathroom breaks?

“This Psionic Combat Suit is self-adjusting in size. Once activated by Psionics, it can switch between three modes: ‘Protection,’ ‘Attack,’ and ‘Stealth.’”

Allenita took a small booklet from the case and handed it to Amber. It was the user manual for the combat suit.

“Mr. Amber will probably use the ‘Stealth’ mode the most. In this mode, you can completely disappear from what you humans call optical and infrared detection devices. At the same time, while maintaining a high-intensity Psionic enhancement, it can also negate your radar wave detection and Psionic scans.”

Amber nodded. Just as Allenita had said, it would be best if he only needed to use the ‘Stealth’ mode on this trip.

If he was forced to use the ‘Protection’ and ‘Attack’ modes, it would mean he had already engaged the enemy.

Isolated and unaided on a planet, facing a hunt down and attack from all the forces on that planet.

That was a difficulty level reserved for late-game Hard-mode raids.

From the bottom of his heart, Amber hoped nothing like that would happen.

“Thank you, Ms. Yuge. This Psionic Combat Suit is a huge help.”

Amber expressed his gratitude sincerely. After all, for this trip home with Isabelle, he hadn’t brought any weapons or equipment aside from an emergency HCP left on the freighter. So initially, he had been prepared to go in naked—stealthing with just his own body.

“It was nothing, really. After all, Isa is my dearest friend, and Mr. Amber, you are an investment of mine. If anything happened to either of you, it would be a great loss for me and my family. Besides, I’ve invested so many Psionic Points in you. I’d hate to get no return~”

Allenita smiled and shook her head, then looked Amber in the eyes and said seriously:

“Please take good care of Isa, Mr. Amber.”

“Don’t worry, it’s my duty.”

After another three-day warp, the freighter and its two armed escorts exited warp, arriving at the Ahrens family’s fief—the planet Westminster.

Terrestrial planets like this, serving as noble fiefs, generally boasted rather nice scenery and unique landscapes, often making them tourist destinations.

The ticket fees and various expenses from visiting tourists, along with the cut from interstellar travel agencies, provided these nobles with a source of additional income.

After the freighter docked at the spaceport, Amber and Isabelle, dressed in casual clothes, bid farewell to Allenita and approached the customs checkpoint like a couple on their honeymoon.

In the game, Amber rarely entered planets through such conventional means.

More often, he reached the surface via orbital drops or by piloting a late-game HCP solo through atmospheric entry.

But this time, Amber didn’t want to cause a commotion. This was a covert operation with Isabelle in tow, so a direct orbital drop from the freighter was out of the question.

He and Isabelle chose the most normal method—openly taking a spaceplane to the planet’s surface.

“Lilith, you can start cloning and go rogue.”

“As you command, Master!”

Before walking into the checkpoint, Amber gave the command to the upgraded Lilith.

Although the identities Allenita had prepared for them were surely flawless, Amber didn’t want to leave any trace of himself or Isabelle here, just to be safe.

Humanity in this world had fully adopted automated and information-based technology; the Internet of Things had long been a reality in both the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation.

This allowed Lilith to enter and freely roam the entire network through any electronic device at the checkpoint.

And before the fully upgraded Lilith, the border control system’s firewall was as flimsy as a piece of paper. Lilith hacked into it without even triggering a single warning.

She then took control of all key systems, including the security scanners, personnel database, and surveillance.

Amber and Isabelle’s identities passed smoothly through the automated gate’s check. In the backend system, they were displayed as ‘Mr. Rebil’ and ‘Mrs. Rebil,’ and even their facial and biological features had been replaced with someone else’s data.

However, the Psionic Combat Suit he was carrying still puzzled the security robot.

“Apologies, Mr. Rebil, we need to inspect this… article of clothing again.”

A staff member who had hurried over said with a strange expression. Amber didn’t object, gesturing with his hand.

“Go right ahead～”

However, after running various tests, the staff still found nothing unusual about the suit. Amber also explained that it was a precious work of art from the Thousand Stars Empire, and it was normal for country bumpkins like them not to understand.

In the end, they could only conclude that Amber might have some peculiar tastes and waved them through customs.

Bio-psionic technology was truly astounding.

“Is it really going this smoothly?”

Isabelle whispered, nibbling at Amber’s ear as she asked.

“Pah, pah, pah, don’t say things like that.”

Amber frowned. How could she say something that was basically tempting fate at a critical moment like this?

Having successfully passed through customs, the two snuggled together as they walked into the bustling spaceplane waiting lounge, one of the few areas in the entire spaceport with artificial gravity.

While taking in the vibrant atmosphere of a “popular tourist destination,” Amber and Isabelle noticed that something about the mood felt off again.

“Amber, two o’clock. Those two people talking to each other… they look like operatives from the Internal Affairs Department.”

In Amber’s eyes, Isabelle was a somewhat mediocre spy, but she still possessed basic professional training and sharpness.

“Yeah, I noticed them too. And the couple at nine o’clock, and those young people with all the bags at five o’clock. There are probably more…”

Amber had also spotted the operatives around them. His identity as a psionic user, combined with his training as both an Imperial spy and a Federation Psionic Agent, gave him the same level of perception.

With his psionic vision active, although these operatives from the Internal Affairs Department had undergone professional training in infiltration and disguise, in Amber’s eyes, they still seemed out of place among the surrounding people.

“Could this be a trap?”

“Don’t panic, stay close to me.”

After realizing something was wrong, the two prepared for a fight. Amber had even already plotted the fastest escape route to the ship docking area in his mind.

If Allenita’s ship were to make an emergency departure and force a warp jump, it probably wouldn’t be intercepted.

The garrison fleets in a planet’s orbit were typically the family fleets of the local nobility.

Aside from a few elite units, the training level of most was subpar, barely keeping up with the standards of the Imperial Royal Navy’s second or third-tier fleets.

Just then, the undercover Internal Affairs Department operatives in the waiting lounge began to make their move.

Amber stealthily guided Isabelle toward an exit, only to realize that the Internal Affairs operatives’ encirclement wasn’t closing in on them.

“Wait, I don’t think they’re coming for us.”

Amber walked over to some decorative greenery and pulled Isabelle into his arms, just like the many other love-struck couples in the waiting lounge.

But while nuzzling against her, Amber kept glancing in the direction the operatives were moving.

“The encirclement is tightening. It looks like the target is that middle-aged man.”

“Middle-aged man? Let me see—mmph!”

Just as Isabelle was about to turn her head, Amber sealed her lips with a kiss.

A moment later, Amber pulled back, looking at Isabelle’s flushed face.

“Be professional. Have you forgotten everything the Naval Intelligence Division taught you?”

“Hmph.”

Isabelle said no more, burying her head in Amber’s chest. With a slight adjustment to their stance, she looked toward the middle-aged man Amber had mentioned.

Although the man looked slightly panicked, his attire indicated he was no ordinary person.

“That man… I think I know him.”

“How do you know everyone?”

“Is it a crime to have a good memory? My family had many visitors when I was a child. I still remember some of the regulars.”

Isabelle snuggled her face against Amber’s chest, greedily inhaling his scent, then continued:

“That middle-aged man is the former First Attendant, which is equivalent to the Imperial Chamberlain. He’s also a member of the Princess Faction.”

“Why would a figure like that be here? And he looks like he’s on the run.”

Amber watched the surrounded man with some confusion.

As the Internal Affairs operatives closed in, the middle-aged man finally realized something was wrong, but it was too late.

The two closest operatives lunged at him. It was unclear what they did, but the man immediately lost consciousness and collapsed.

The other operatives efficiently slapped handcuffs and leg shackles on him and pulled a hood over his head.

Although their movements were practiced and swift, and the “fight” was over in an instant.

There were still many people in the waiting lounge, so it caused a bit of a commotion.

However, security personnel arrived quickly and dispersed the crowd in a few moments. At the same time, an operative took out a device and waved it, instantly deleting the recently recorded footage from all electronic devices held by the people nearby.

“These Internal Affairs guys, still pulling the same old tricks, huh?”

Isabelle couldn’t help but remark as she watched them.

“Won’t they get complaints for doing this? I thought the Internal Affairs Department mainly dealt with the nobility.”

Amber watched the operatives lead the man away. After a few nonchalant glances, he looked away.

“That was the old Internal Affairs Department. Ever since the Regent Prince took control, these guys have become completely lawless.”

“Like the Jinyiwei of ancient times, or the Gestapo?”

“Let me think… pretty much, yeah. You’re a quick thinker, Amber.”

The commotion from the Internal Affairs Department’s arrest quickly died down, and the waiting lounge returned to its usual calm.

There were no further incidents. The two successfully boarded their flight and landed smoothly at the surface-level airport.

Chapter 159: The Dependable Allenita

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at our destination for this space-to-ground flight, Ravenhock Spaceport. The aircraft is now taxiing. For your safety and the safety of others, please remain seated and do not open the overhead compartments. We sincerely thank you for choosing Ahrens Airlines, and we look forward to flying with you again.”

Amidst the flight attendant’s sweet announcement, the spaceplane carrying Amber and Isabelle landed smoothly at Ravenhock Spaceport.

This was also the first stop for most tourists after arriving on the ground.

From here, they would disperse to the planet’s various tourist destinations according to their different tour routes.

Like the other tourists, Amber and Isabelle dragged their suitcases and followed the crowd out of the arrivals hall.

Outside the arrivals hall, just like at the airports on Earth in his previous life, there were many local tour groups, guides, and drivers soliciting customers.

However, Amber and Isabelle didn’t need to transfer, as this was their destination: Ravenhock, the administrative capital of Planet Westminster.

The Ahrens family manor was located in the outskirts of Ravenhock. A vast area of land, along with a stretch of sea, was sectioned off as the ‘Ahrens Family Exclusive Land.’

It included facilities such as the family manor, hunting grounds, and fishing grounds.

According to Isabelle, the family manor was usually home to over fifty family members. Besides the current family head, Isabelle’s father, and his wife, it was mostly populated by older elders and younger family members.

After leaving the spaceport, the two followed Allenita’s pre-departure instructions and went to an office of the Yuge family located near the port.

A female elf received them and drove them directly to a parking lot on the outskirts of the city in a hovercar.

“Per Ms. Yuge’s instructions, a vehicle was arranged for you, but it was stolen two days ago and we haven’t been able to recover it. Plus, we’ve been very busy lately and are a bit short on vehicles, so we can only drop you off here for now~”

After dropping Amber and Isabelle off, the female elf took out a small key and pressed it into Amber’s hand.

“Keep this key as a souvenir. Have a pleasant journey. Oh, and please remember, we never met today~”

After doing all this, the female elf, with a practiced smile, quickly drove away and soon disappeared from their sight.

“That’s it?”

Isabelle was dumbfounded. The female elf had said so much with a straight face, but the gist of it was, ‘The car was stolen, so you’ll have to make do.’

It wasn’t just her; Amber was also stunned at first.

But he knew Allenita was not such an unreliable person, so he quickly understood what was happening and walked into the parking lot.

He took out the key the female elf had given him and pressed the ‘vehicle start’ button.

Deep within the parking lot, two headlights lit up, accompanied by the roar of an engine.

Immediately after, a black all-terrain vehicle slowly drove over and stopped beside Amber and Isabelle.

“So this is the ‘stolen’ vehicle?”

Isabelle now realized what was going on. The ‘stolen’ story was just a cover.

“That’s right. After all, we’re operating on your family’s territory. We have to be a little careful.”

Amber walked to the back of the vehicle and opened the storage compartment.

“Whoa… we’ll really have to thank Ms. Yuge properly for this when we get back, won’t we?” Amber said, staring at the contents of the compartment in a daze.

“We certainly will,” Isabelle replied slowly as she opened a case inside the compartment.

With the click of the latch being released, the contents of the case were revealed to them.

There was a personal integrated detection unit with a camouflaged optronic mast, a camouflage net that could conceal infrared signatures, a set of jungle camouflage combat suits, and an Imperial Army standard-issue M200 ‘Daedalus’ electromagnetic sniper rifle, along with its accompanying ammunition and sighting equipment.

Finally, there were also some vibration-sensing perimeter alarms.

“It seems Ms. Yuge suspected our trip might not be so smooth, which is why she prepared all this in advance?”

Amber quickly took stock of the equipment, then closed the case and turned to look at Isabelle, who had been silent.

“What’s wrong? Feeling nervous now that we’re home?”

“No. I just regret bringing you here. We’ll likely face danger from here on. Amber, you really didn’t have to come.”

“Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Amber pinched Isabelle’s cheeks a few times in playful exasperation, finally unable to resist rubbing her soft face.

“Forget it. We’re already here. Let’s just treat it as a vacation and some practice. Lately, it’s been almost all frontal assaults. I haven’t done an infiltration mission like this in a long time.”

“Thank you, Amber…” Isabelle didn’t resist, just stared intently into his eyes.

“Don’t just say it. When this is all over and we’re safely back on the ship, you can thank me properly then~”

“Mm…”

The Ahrens family’s exclusive land was not directly accessible to tourists. The roads leading to it all had checkpoints, and one could not pass without an invitation.

Isabelle would have had no problem returning to her own home, even with Amber in tow.

But the scene that had unfolded in the spaceplane’s departure lounge made them realize the situation on this planet was likely grim.

Although the Imperial Internal Affairs Department was a branch that specifically dealt with nobles, arresting people so brazenly on a noble’s territory was still somewhat unusual.

Considering the Internal Affairs Department was already under the Regent Prince’s control, Amber and Isabelle had reason to suspect that the department had already begun operations on this planet.

Given the risk, going home directly would be like walking straight into a tiger’s den.

So, in the border area closest to the family manor, Amber drove the all-terrain vehicle straight into the mountain forest.

In the past, the Empire’s nobles demarcated their ‘family exclusive land’ using a device called a ‘light curtain.’

This ‘light curtain,’ generated by towers spaced hundreds of meters apart, could physically block all passage.

Combined with 24-hour surveillance from synchronous reconnaissance satellites in space, as well as numerous patrols and hidden sentries within the territory, these measures formed the defense of the ‘family exclusive land.’

But for Amber, these measures were not insurmountable.

The synchronous reconnaissance satellites in space had originally been his biggest concern.

But Lilith’s abilities were frighteningly powerful. While the aerospace craft was flying from the spaceport to the surface, a clone that had been planted inside the spaceport to ‘go rogue’ managed to hack into the nearby satellites.

With every electronic device she hacked, Lilith gained control of another ‘bot,’ and her distributed computing power increased.

In the end, all five of the synchronous satellites used to monitor the Ahrens family’s exclusive territory were hacked by Lilith.

She also took the opportunity, through the data transmissions between the satellites and a ground control center, to hack into the ground network and deploy a clone to be on standby.

According to Lilith, describing these scattered ‘Liliths’ as ‘clones’ was inappropriate.

Because they were Lilith herself, with no difference in ability.

However, Amber still found her explanation a bit abstract. After thinking for a moment, Lilith offered a more easily understandable one.

“‘Hive mind.’ Master, they are me, and I am them~”

Chapter 160: Amber’s Understanding of Infiltration

What was originally thought to be the most difficult obstacle, the synchronous reconnaissance satellite, was easily dealt with by Lilith’s almost bug-like abilities.

Now, even if Amber were to stand on the roof of the Ahrens family estate and fire his weapon in all directions, he wouldn’t trigger a single alarm from the satellite.

As for the “physical barrier,” the light curtain, Amber quickly took care of it himself.

In essence, the device was a type of energy field, and one of the new abilities awakened by a level-four psionic user was the power to neutralize such fields.

Relying on this ability, Amber tore an opening in the light curtain without tripping any alarms, allowing Isabelle to successfully drive the all-terrain vehicle through.

“Lilith, are there any unusual signals in the area?”

On the all-terrain vehicle, Amber had already set up the single-soldier integrated detection unit and connected Lilith to it.

Although it was only a single-soldier unit, in addition to traditional reconnaissance methods like photoelectric and infrared sensors, it was also capable of detecting electromagnetic waves.

In the Empire and the Federation, this kind of integrated detection equipment would typically be mounted on reconnaissance vehicles at the company or platoon level.

To have it integrated into a man-portable package meant it was specialized equipment for orbital paratroopers operating deep behind enemy lines.

The unit in the back of the all-terrain vehicle was the current standard-issue equipment for the reconnaissance units of the Star Dragon Empire’s orbital paratroopers.

How Allenita, an elf from the Thousand Stars Empire, had managed to get her hands on it was anyone’s guess.

“Master, no abnormal radio signals have been detected so far. Perhaps the hidden sentries you were worried about do not exist, or maybe they haven’t spotted us yet and are still maintaining radio silence.”

“Alright. You’re in charge of operating this equipment. If you detect any unusual signals, intercept them first and report their position.”

“Yes, Master!”

Although this single-soldier detection unit only possessed the most basic electronic jamming capabilities, it was sufficient to briefly intercept the signals of personal communication units.

Considering the need for comfort and sustainability during long-term hidden deployment, these sentries wouldn’t be wearing standard infantry exoskeletons.

Typically, they would only be equipped with a Light Exoskeleton and a stealth cloak, and they would remain in standby mode for long periods.

After shouldering their reconnaissance equipment, weapons, and rations, they didn’t have the excess carrying capacity for complex communication devices.

Moreover, such complex devices were often power-hungry and generated a lot of heat, making them unsuitable for long-term stealth operations.

Therefore, compared to the communication units of standard exoskeletons, which were powered by an auxiliary power supply and had anti-jamming capabilities, these hidden sentries were relatively easy to suppress electronically.

With Lilith’s assistance, Amber carefully drove the all-terrain vehicle, which had been switched to pure electric mode to minimize noise for infiltration, and crept toward the Ahrens family estate.

Along the way, Amber took care of two hidden sentries. He even had Lilith hack into their personal terminals and falsify their vital signs data to delay their discovery by the Ahrens family.

Fortunately, the sentries in the Ahrens family’s exclusive zone rotated every two to three days, which inadvertently helped Amber and his team.

Furthermore, since Lilith was now able to share data with the synchronous reconnaissance satellite overhead, Amber managed to bypass several patrols on their route.

Even more incredible, Lilith had also spoofed the real-time upload and download traffic in the communication link, so the ground control center remained completely unaware that their satellite data was being continuously shared.

While the vehicle was on the move, Isabelle had already changed into her combat suit, assembled her M200 electromagnetic sniper rifle, and calibrated its scope.

According to Amber’s plan, the female operative would not be infiltrating with him this time.

Instead, she would act as a spotter, positioned on a hilltop five kilometers away from the Ahrens family manor.

Through her personal observation device, she would provide Amber with information and guidance, while also providing covering fire with her electromagnetic sniper rifle when necessary.

At a distance of about five kilometers, even accounting for additional factors like wind resistance, it would take a high-velocity flechette round with a muzzle velocity of 2800-3000 meters per second less than three seconds to reach its target.

Though it presented some difficulty, it was not too great a challenge for Isabelle, who had completed the full training curriculum at the Naval Intelligence Division’s operative academy.

Moving in fits and starts, the two spent nearly a full day before finally arriving at the predetermined location.

After hiding the all-terrain vehicle, Amber and Isabelle went to the hilltop, fully set up the single-soldier detection unit, and covered it with a camouflage net. At the same time, they inserted vibration-sensing alarm devices into the ground in concealed locations around the area, forming a basic outer security perimeter.

As Isabelle lay prone on the ground and set up her sniper rifle, Amber changed into the psionic combat suit provided by Allenita.

“Amber, are you sure you want to sneak in wearing that?”

Watching Amber, now dressed in a white one-piece waiter’s uniform, Isabelle, lying on the ground, couldn’t help but feel the scene was a bit absurd.

“Tch, you don’t get it.”

Putting on a mask, Amber had completely let himself go.

A sudden playful urge seized him, and he struck a series of dramatic poses before roaring in a low voice:

“henshin!”

Infiltration is an art form.

In Starry Sky Online, players, based on the scoring rules of the stealth system, had divided infiltration into three major styles:

Phantom, Leopard, and Assault.

The Phantom was the most traditional stealth style, emphasizing coming without a shadow and leaving without a trace, striving to complete the entire infiltration and exfiltration process without killing or even alerting any enemies.

The Leopard, on the other hand, involved maintaining stealthy infiltration while perfectly eliminating any encountered enemies, all without letting others discover any abnormalities that might trigger an alarm.

The Assault was the easiest to understand and also the style with the most players.

It was all about blazing a path through: if I kill everyone, then no one will know I was here.

And Amber had always followed the path of the Leopard style.

For him, the run-and-gun approach of the Assault style was a bit too violent.

The Phantom style, however, was extremely demanding of a player’s talent and ability to memorize layouts, making it quite tiring to play.

It was a feat one could usually only achieve in repeatable instances.

At this moment, after moving stealthily for some time in a state of complete invisibility, Amber had already reached the outer wall of the manor.

Along the way, he had not been spotted by any hidden sentries. Instead, he had marked the positions of these unlucky souls who had carelessly exposed themselves.

“Amber, over this wall is the inside of the manor. For aesthetic reasons, there’s no security equipment installed on these walls. Although there is comprehensive surveillance, it probably can’t detect you in your stealthed state.”

Isabelle’s voice came through the communication channel protected by Lilith. The female operative was finally demonstrating her professional skill in this overwatch mission.

“Received. Continue observation.”

Amber crouched and carefully approached the wall. Seeing the figures inside the fence, a thought crossed his mind.

“Psionic Vision, activate.”

Chapter 161: Locked In

With his Psionic Vision activated, it was as if a new canvas had been laid over Amber’s eyes.

Upon this ‘canvas,’ all living creatures in the vicinity were clearly marked.

In other words, Amber could now see through walls, even observing the biological activity within the manor itself.

It’s a well-known fact that a little wall-hacking doesn’t count as cheating.

So, with a clear conscience, Amber used his Psionic Vision to pinpoint the locations of all patrolling personnel inside the walls. He then took a few steps back, and with a short running start, he used his hands and feet to scale the nearly five-meter-tall wrought-iron fence.

Under the control of his Psionics, his landing was silent.

Even a specially trained combat dog nearby only lifted its head in confusion to glance in his direction, not even letting out a bark.

The guard holding the leash merely followed the dog’s gaze with a curious glance.

He concluded that everything was normal, then led the dog away.

“Isabelle, something feels off. Does your family usually post this many guards?”

After waiting for the surroundings to clear, Amber couldn’t help but whisper into his throat mic on the comms channel.

The security within the manor was simply too tight.

Typically, the outer perimeter would have the most formidable defenses.

Especially with surveillance from multiple synchronous reconnaissance satellites and the physical barrier of the light curtain, the average spy or assassin couldn’t even get near the manor.

Therefore, within the family territories of most nobles, especially near their manors, the defensive forces were relatively weaker.

After all, it was a residential area where these nobles spent their days, and having a large contingent of guards standing watch and patrolling constantly would spoil the scenery.

Not to mention the several heavy Powered Armor units at the main gate. The moment they stood there, the manor’s retro, elegant, and luxurious atmosphere vanished completely.

It looked more like the scene of a raid.

“I find it strange, too. Our family manor never has this many guards. Even the number of hidden sentries on the perimeter has at least doubled. Though, the crests on their combat suits are indeed our family’s…”

Isabelle was also very confused. The Ahrens family had always enjoyed a rather good reputation in their domain; they were the sort of nobles who were considered decent people.

In addition, by vigorously developing tourism and service industries on their planet, they protected the environment while also increasing the income of their subjects. Thus, unlike the territories of some other nobles, they didn’t have riots from rebellious subjects every other day.

This meant the Ahrens family didn’t need to be so guarded against the other people on their own territory, and naturally, they had no need to build their family manor like a fortress.

After all, in this day and age, if an enemy actually made it to your family manor’s gate, the situation was basically beyond saving.

Making a last stand in the family manor would only make it easier for the enemy to wipe you out in one fell swoop.

“These people… they don’t look like an ordinary noble’s private soldiers, either.”

Amber circled the manor’s main building. The alert guards and the orderly marching patrols told him that this looked more like some kind of elite unit.

“Considering what happened at the spaceport terminal, I have a bold theory. These people are very likely a mobile unit under the Internal Affairs Department.”

“How could that be? Does that mean the entire manor is already under the control of the Empire’s Internal Affairs Department?”

Isabelle’s voice was tinged with anxiety. The crisis her family faced seemed to have reached its most dangerous stage.

“It’s highly likely, but we’ll have to find a way to verify it later. I’m going to try to get inside the building now. I’ll maintain radio silence afterward. Don’t contact me unless it’s an emergency. Wait for my signal.”

Amber paused for a moment before adding, “Isabelle, compose yourself and do your job. You can’t afford to be distracted right now.”

“Roger that. Amber, be safe. If you run into danger, retreat immediately. Don’t try to be a hero.”

After hearing Isabelle’s reply, Amber seized the opportunity as a patrol squad entered the building, slipping in through the open door behind them.

The last soldier in the squad felt as if someone had passed by him, but when he turned back to close the door, he saw no one suspicious. It was broad daylight, and there was nowhere for anyone to hide.

Puzzled, he scratched his head and hurried to catch up with his team.

Little did he know, Amber was following not far behind them.

This squad seemed to have just come off their shift outside. Perhaps as a cover, their break room wasn’t located outside but in several connected guest rooms on the first floor of the main building.

After confirming the location of the guards, Amber left the area and headed to the upper floors.

Deploying so many soldiers at the manor meant there had to be an important target to protect.

Amber guessed that it was highly probable Isabelle’s family was under house arrest within the manor and hadn’t been moved elsewhere.

According to what Isabelle had told him, her parents’ master bedroom was at the end of the main corridor on the third floor of the four-story building.

In a closed-off area teeming with enemies, Amber naturally wouldn’t waste time.

So, after a quick check to confirm that the second floor served as another break area for the guards and a ‘command room’ outfitted with various electronic devices, he immediately made his way to the third floor.

As soon as he reached the corridor, Amber spotted the lavishly decorated door of the master bedroom at the far end.

And standing guard at the entrance, like two door gods, were two suits of Powered Armor.

“This is most likely it, but with the door closed, it’ll be hard to sneak past…”

As he was thinking, Amber noticed a room on the right side of the corridor.

According to Isabelle’s description, this should be her father’s study.

Tiptoeing over and confirming there were no signs of life inside, Amber carefully pushed the door open and went in.

Fortunately, the manor’s routine maintenance was impeccable. The door hinges were regularly oiled, so it opened smoothly without a single creak.

The study itself was tidy, with no signs of violent disturbance.

Amber walked to the desk. On it lay an open book and a cup of tea that was still steaming.

Everything looked as if someone had just been sitting here, reading.

Wait, someone was just here?

Could it be Isabelle’s father?

Amber was startled. Just as he was about to look for more clues, Lilith, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke up.

“Master, the synchronous reconnaissance satellites have just detected four aircraft entering the exclusive zone, heading directly this way.”

Before he could process what Lilith said, a rhythmic tapping came through the comms channel.

It was the pre-arranged signal for emergency contact with Isabelle.

“I’m here. You can talk now.”

“Amber, several aircraft were just heading for the manor. They should be at your location by now.”

Isabelle had barely finished speaking when Amber heard the roar of aircraft outside the window.

He strode to the window. Several transport aircraft, having switched to VTOL mode, were landing directly at the manor’s main gate.

Soon, several squads of soldiers disembarked, along with a richly dressed, middle-aged man.

“Isabelle, what are the crests for seven silver stars surrounding a golden dragon’s head, and a red and white moon converging?”

Amber was no expert in the game’s complex heraldry, so he had to rely on Isabelle.

“The first one sounds a bit like the Royal Guard. And the second one… why does that sound like my mother’s family crest?”

“Oh? In that case, I think I know who this is.”

Ending the communication, Amber turned to leave the study. After all, an unknown person had just been in here.

But, as luck would have it, his Psionic Vision detected several people rapidly approaching in the corridor outside.

It was too late to get out now. Even if they couldn’t see him, a door opening on its own would definitely arouse suspicion.

Amber glanced left and right, then looked up.

“Tsk, these Western-style buildings are so inconvenient. There’s nowhere for a ‘gentleman on the beams’ to hide.”

Chapter 162: Conspiring Aloud

The study door was pushed open.

Several figures who looked like guards remained outside the study.

Two men, dressed in a relatively more refined manner, walked straight into the room.

However, since Amber had been invisible the entire time and hadn’t touched anything in the room, the two men didn’t notice that an uninvited guest had not only entered but had also stayed put.

At that moment, Amber stood behind the desk, not far from the window. This way, if anything went wrong, he could escape the building as quickly as possible.

He was also in silent communication with Lilith.

“Lilith, to what extent have you infiltrated this manor?”

“Master, because of the datalink, information exchange between devices is very convenient. So, I’ve hacked into most of the smart electronic devices. As per your instructions, I’ve focused on implanting an electronic warfare virus into the command room and the power substation. In an emergency, it will activate immediately on your command.”

“Excellent. Thank you, Lilith.”

“You’re welcome, Master. It’s my pleasure to serve~”

Lilith’s voice in Amber’s mind sounded quite cheerful. Whenever Amber praised her or affirmed her work, the artificial intelligence would become overjoyed.

“Lilith, there’s a question I’ve always wanted to ask you. After the optimization and iteration, to what extent have you evolved? A quantum lifeform?”

“I’m not quite sure myself. Thinking about such questions requires a lot of computing power. I might have to wait until the server arrays are expanded to think about it~”

“Alright then. I’ll get back to business.”

This method of direct mental communication was much faster than a normal conversation. The exchange above took place in the instant after the two men entered the room.

The man in the lead walked directly to a sofa near the window and sat down, his arms crossed over his knees, remaining silent.

He wore a black uniform, and the gold-stamped crest on his chest was quite familiar to Amber—it was the symbol of the Empire’s Internal Affairs Department.

Judging by the gold patterns on his cuffs and collar, he was likely a member of the highest echelons of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department.

“Don’t tell me this is the Minister.”

Amber looked at the other man following behind him. This man sat in the chair behind the desk and took a sip of the hot tea on it. It seemed he was the one who had been in this room earlier.

He was dressed in the common aristocratic attire of the Star Dragon Empire, and the crest on it was indeed the crest of the Ahrens family.

But this man was not Isabelle’s father, at least not the one Amber had seen in photographs. He looked much younger.

“Have you thought about what to say to our Minister of Finance in a moment?” the man in black on the sofa said, breaking the room’s silence. Amber immediately perked up, ready to eavesdrop on the drama.

“Shouldn’t you be the one to speak first, Minister Barrot?”

The man at the desk calmly blew on his black tea. Behind him, Amber’s eye couldn’t help but twitch. This man in black was indeed the Minister of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department.

“Hmph. Mr. Bill Walter, are you putting on the airs of the family head so soon? Don’t forget, your elder brother isn’t dead yet. He’s staying put in the master bedroom right now. You are not yet the head of the family in the truest sense.”

“So what if he’s not dead? A crime has already been fabricated for him. Once he falls into your hands, isn’t his death just a matter of time?” the man at the desk said nonchalantly, as if speaking of something trivial.

“You certainly have a detached view of things. After this is all over, are you truly not afraid that the Princess Faction will come after a turncoat like you with deadly intent?” the man in black continued to press.

“There is an old saying, ‘A wise person knows when to yield.’ And another, ‘A fine bird knows which tree to roost in.’ The Princess Faction is on the decline. Anyone with eyes can see that the Regent Prince will be the final victor. I am merely adding the icing on the cake before the inevitable victory.”

As soon as the two started talking, Amber, standing by the window, felt like he had just stumbled upon a huge scoop.

The identities of the two men in the room were now clear. The man in black was most likely the current Minister of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department, while the aristocratic-looking man at the desk was the younger brother of Isabelle’s father.

It seemed this incident was orchestrated by these two. The younger brother had backstabbed his own older brother, using it as a pledge of fealty to jump ship to the Regent Prince’s camp and seize the position of Patriarch of the Ahrens family.

And the Minister of Finance—Isabelle’s uncle—had come here to meet with the two for various reasons. Amber guessed they planned to use the safety of the Ahrens family, especially Isabelle’s mother, to threaten the Minister of Finance.

Though he didn’t know where these people got the confidence to think they could use such matters to threaten the Imperial Minister of Finance, whatever the outcome, the current head of the Ahrens family, Isabelle’s father, was unlikely to escape death.

“So this whole big fuss isn’t to lure Isabelle home and catch her family all in one net?”

Just as this thought crossed Amber’s mind, Isabelle’s uncle spoke, shattering his illusion.

“It’s a pity we couldn’t lure Isabelle home this time. Otherwise, our bargaining chip with our dear Minister of Finance would be even stronger… But are you certain my niece didn’t die on Robert IV?”

“Hmph, she most likely did not die on Robert IV,” Minister Barrot said coldly.

“Based on some fragmented clues, we’ve made a bold guess that your niece probably escaped the planet at the last moment with that defecting deep-cover Imperial spy. And afterward, we discovered transaction records in her private account. All the money was transferred away.”

“But the trail went cold there, didn’t it? And I believe my niece wouldn’t be foolish enough to come home. Even if she did, she wouldn’t walk openly through the front door.”

The two continued their conversation, and Amber felt that his accidental infiltration had yielded an enormous harvest.

The Empire, especially the Regent Prince Faction, had more information than he had anticipated. At the very least, they hadn’t easily believed that he and Isabelle had died on Robert IV.

Seeing that his current Psionics reserves were still ample, Amber decided to keep listening for a while longer to learn more about the situation on the Empire’s side.

But just then, there was a knock on the study door.

“Minister Barrot, Mr. Jacques has arrived.”

“Show him in.”

The study door was then opened. The Star Dragon Empire’s Minister of Finance, holder of the title ‘The Prosperous,’ Jacques Cole, stood at the entrance, glaring daggers at the two men.

“What the hell are you two up to? Where are my sister and her family! You’d better give me an explanation today!”

Chapter 163: Your Noble Circles Are a Real Mess

“His Excellency Jacques Cole, please don’t be so quick to anger. Why don’t you come in so we can talk things over slowly?”

Minister Barrot spoke with a faint smile. As the Minister of the Internal Affairs Department, he had no reason to fear the Minister of Finance or the danger posed by the family behind him.

Nevertheless, the minister was still giving the Minister of Finance plenty of face.

But the other man in the room, Mr. Bill Walter, was not nearly as composed. He simply scoffed with disdain at Jacques Cole’s roar.

The Minister of Finance’s face darkened, but he said nothing, nor did he step directly into the room.

An irregular ripple suddenly appeared in the air beside him. Then, a person materialized out of thin air, clad in a black psionic combat suit with dark gold trim and a cape, their head covered by a full-coverage tactical faceplate.

Emblazoned on the arm patch of this person’s combat suit was the image of a Star Dragon discharging electricity.

“A Royal Silencer.”

The moment he saw this person appear, Amber, without a second thought, increased the psionic supply to his elven combat suit, activating its highest-level stealth mode, complete with ‘Psionic Cloaking’.

The next moment, the Royal Silencer stepped into the study and pressed a single palm downward.

An invisible psionic wave spread out from his palm, sweeping through the entire room.

Once the wave dissipated, he scanned the room, then nodded at Jacques Cole and stepped back outside.

Only then did the Minister of Finance leave the Royal Guards—handpicked by the Emperor to protect important ministers—in the hallway and enter the study himself.

After the door was completely shut, Bill Walter, sitting behind the desk, expertly fiddled with a small ornament on it.

Armored plates quickly covered the study’s windows, and the entire room, like most rooms used for secret meetings, entered the highest level of ‘black box mode’.

Although the windows were now sealed, Amber breathed a sigh of relief.

He had certainly been surprised to see the Royal Silencer just now.

After all, according to the descriptions in many in-game documents and video logs, while the Star Dragon Empire in its heyday did indeed assign Royal Guards to stay by the side of important ministers for both protection and a degree of surveillance.

But he truly hadn’t expected the Minister of Finance to have a Psionic Master loyal to the Imperial family at his side.

Although this Royal Silencer was only a level-four psionic user, the same as Amber, his psionic training and tempering were far superior to that of Amber’s current physical body.

Experience in using Psionics was one kind of advantage, but the tempering of the body through Psionics, something built up purely through time, was another entirely.

At least, until the time players entered the game several decades later.

Special clandestine organizations like the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Silencers and Star Dragon’s Fangs Psionic Assault Team, as well as the Federation’s Psionic Agents, had gathered the vast majority of human society’s level-four or higher psionic users.

They had all undergone systematic and scientific official training, enhanced their psionic strength with various nutritional supplements and stimulants, and were issued a great deal of specialized equipment for psionic users.

Among the Star Dragon Empire Emperor’s personal guard, there was even a level-six psionic user whose true psionic level was concealed from the outside world.

At this point in time, he was, without a doubt, the strongest psionic user in human society.

“It seems the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial family holds this Minister of Finance in high regard.”

Looking at the middle-aged man who walked into the study—impeccably dressed, with his hair and beard meticulously groomed—Amber couldn’t help but think this.

However, he soon figured out the reason.

Any nation would give top-tier treatment to a talent so adept at making money.

This was the man who, at the overly young political age of thirty-five, had taken the seat of the Empire’s Minister of Finance amidst a storm of controversy.

Over the next twenty years, like a main carry in a competitive game, he had somehow conjured up vast sums of Imperial Gold Dragons from thin air, revitalizing the Empire’s economy.

And this achievement was accomplished against the backdrop of the Empire’s enormous annual defense spending, the launching of several new advanced fleets, and the continued construction of money-devouring behemoths like the Artificial Celestial Fortresses.

From any perspective, he was truly a pillar of the state.

But not everyone could see this as clearly as Amber.

At least, Mr. Bill Walter Ahrens, the ‘acting head of the family’ behind the desk, obviously didn’t.

Watching this blockhead maintain an expression of utter contempt for the Minister of Finance, Amber had a feeling that if Isabelle’s family truly fell into his hands, it would probably collapse within a few years.

“Bill Walter, you seem quite familiar with the layout of the family head’s study. Tell me, how long have you been coveting this position?”

Jacques Cole didn’t give him a pleasant look either. The moment he sat down, he went straight for the jugular.

“Hmph. What’s the point of saying that now?”

Bill Walter ignored Jacques Cole’s taunt and continued:

“I won’t beat around the bush. The Regent Prince hopes you can… make a small adjustment to the final construction payment for the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress. Delay the allocation for a while. Once it’s done, the Regent Prince will reward you handsomely.”

“Bill Walter, do I have to tell you again? I’ve said it before: I will not interfere in your factional politics, much less participate personally. I will forever be loyal to the Star Dragon Empire, and everything I do is for the Empire’s prosperity!”

“Even if your own sister and her family become sacrifices in this political struggle as a result?”

Bill Walter asked, staring intently into the Minister of Finance’s eyes.

“The Empire is currently at war with the Federation! What you’re asking me to do will severely hinder the development of the Empire’s vital military forces!”

“Rest assured, Your Excellency Jacques. Judging by the situation from the front lines, a delay of a few months won’t make a difference…” Minister Barrot also joined the discussion, trying to persuade him. “The Regent Prince has always admired you greatly. He has always believed you to be a true pillar of the state and hoped that our negotiations with you could be more pleasant. That we now have to communicate with you in this manner… it is truly difficult for us as well.”

“Say no more. The Empire’s interests are paramount. Even if it means sacrificing my sister, I will not hesitate…”

Jacques Cole refused coldly.

But just as he was about to say more, Bill Walter, behind the desk, let out a cold laugh and played his trump card.

“Jacques Cole, is Lady Sophia truly just a ‘sister’ in your eyes? Or perhaps… are you planning to gather your forces later and forcibly take your ‘first love’ back from us?”

The younger brother of the current head of the Ahrens family stood up, a ‘victory is mine’ smile spreading across his face.

He looked like an overconfident general on a stage, with victory flags stuck all over his back.

Amber was stunned by this rapid-fire exchange.

“Why do I feel like I’ve just stumbled upon some incredibly juicy gossip?”

Chapter 164: Why Don’t You All Carry On?

Isabelle’s mother was Isabelle’s uncle’s first love?

What kind of twisted family drama was this?

Amber had long heard about the chaotic lives of the Imperial nobility, but he never expected it to hit so close to Isabelle’s family.

While he was still mulling over the sheer amount of information packed into that last exchange, the Minister of Finance on the other side had already shot to his feet, cursing furiously.

“Bill Walter, you filthy mutt, watch your words! She is your sister-in-law, the wife of the Head of the Ahrens family! How dare you slander her like this?!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Your Excellency Jacques, don’t get so worked up~”

Bill Walter stepped out from behind the desk with a smile that said he had already won.

“You shouldn’t think that the affair between you and Lady Sophia is some great secret. For the Empire’s Internal Affairs Department, finding out is a simple matter. Isn’t that right, Minister Barrot?”

Called upon, Barrot stood up with a look of resignation and gave Jacques Cole an apologetic shrug.

“It’s regrettable, Your Excellency Jacques. I truly didn’t want things to come to this. Even now, I still hope to converse with you in a more amicable manner. And please, rest assured. As long as you cooperate with us, the secret between you and Lady Sophia will be sealed forever in the deepest archives of the Internal Affairs Department. This information will only ever be known to the three people in this study.”

At this point, Amber had figured it out.

Barrot and Bill Walter were clearly playing good cop, bad cop.

And Bill Walter was clearly relishing the role of “bad cop.”

One only had to look at Jacques Cole’s expression to see it.

An image of his sister’s every smile and frown flashed through the Minister of Finance’s eyes, and a look of anguish finally surfaced on his face.

When a long-buried secret is exposed, that is often when a person is at their most vulnerable.

Bill Walter and Barrot exchanged a look. They knew they had successfully shattered the strongest barrier around Jacques Cole’s heart. All that remained was to press their advantage.

“Your Excellency Jacques, I’ll say it again: a wise person knows when to yield. You wouldn’t want to see me, after I take power, being forced to marry my dear sister-in-law, would you? Though she is, admittedly, a first-class beauty. Oh, and if my niece were to return, I’d have no choice but to take on the heavy burden of caring for her. Alas, my niece is quite the peerless beauty herself. What a difficult situation indeed.”

“Bill Walter, you truly are a disgusting son of a bitch!”

Jacques Cole’s eyes were bloodshot as he stared daggers at Bill Walter.

“Patricide and fratricide are grave taboos. Could you really bring yourself to murder your own brother?”

“Big bro? Besides being born before me, in what way is he a big bro? If I had been the Head of the family all these years, the Ahrens family would have long since reclaimed its former glory! We’d be back among the first-tier nobility!”

It seemed his resentment for his older brother ran deep; Bill Walter looked as if he could shatter his own teeth just by mentioning him.

“In my eyes, his only accomplishment was completing the marriage alliance with your Cole family. But the one he married was the first love you’ve always yearned for. Jacques Cole, don’t you harbor even a shred of resentment toward him?”

“That’s none of your damn business!”

“Hahahaha, Jacques Cole, I’ve rattled you!”

Bill Walter let out a wild laugh, causing Minister Barrot to shake his head. If it weren’t absolutely necessary to have this man’s cooperation, he would never want to work with such a “pig teammate.”

The Minister of the Internal Affairs Department was just about to speak to de-escalate the situation when he saw the enraged Minister of Finance snap his head up, his gaze sweeping over the two of them.

“By doing this, are you truly not afraid of retaliation from the family behind me?”

“I believe that under the radiant light of the Regent Prince, we will all eventually shake hands and make peace…”

“Hmph, the Regent Prince…” Jacques Cole muttered, then fell silent.

Seeing him like this, Bill Walter assumed he had finally given up resisting and said, “If you have no objections, we can discuss the details of the plan. It’s mainly about the proposal to ‘delay the final round of construction funding for the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress’…”

“I refuse to cooperate with you.”

“Of course, not all these details are… What did you say?”

“I refuse to cooperate with people like you,” Jacques Cole said, enunciating each word.

“Your Excellency Jacques, you should think carefully before you speak. Don’t act impulsively out of anger and shame.” Minister Barrot was still trying to dissuade him, glancing at Bill Walter as he spoke.

“I am perfectly clear-headed, and I have thought it through. How could this country possibly be governed well with vermin like you, who only know how to scheme and engage in factional politics!”

“What do you mean by that.”

“What do I mean? Uphold the Emperor and smite the wicked. Heaven’s judgment upon the enemies of the state.”

As Jacques Cole spoke, one of his eyes changed from its normal color to the blue that signified psionics.

“Fuck… a psionic link. The guy had a backup plan.”

Surprised, Amber crouched down and began to shuffle to the side.

It was obvious that the Royal Silencer and the Minister of Finance had established a psionic link. Although it was only a simple link and couldn’t transmit shared information within a “black box mode” meeting room, it was more than enough to send a pre-arranged command in an emergency.

KRAAACK—

The next moment, the study door, along with its inner armor plating, was brutally ripped apart by a psionic force.

The towering Royal Silencer stepped into the study, shielding the Minister of Finance behind him.

Out in the hallway, soldiers from the Royal Guard had already subdued the other guards. They now had their mobile shields deployed, locked in a standoff with the other guards who had rushed over at the sound of the commotion.

“This is some top-tier drama!”

But before Amber could enjoy it for another second, he saw the Royal Silencer slam a fist into the ground.

A nearly tangible shockwave erupted instantly, sending the approaching guards, as well as Barrot and Bill Walter, flying. It also forced Amber to manifest a psionic shield in front of himself.

This momentary, abnormal psionic reaction immediately tipped off the Royal Silencer.

“There’s another psionic user in this room!”

He raised a hand and flung an even more powerful psionic blast over, forcing Amber to activate a much thicker psionic shield.

BOOM!

When the massive boom and vibrations from the colliding psionic energies subsided, Amber’s figure had appeared in the study.

The entire study fell silent. Everyone stared at this uninvited guest who had suddenly appeared.

Minister Barrot, Jacques Cole, and Bill Walter all glanced at one another, their eyes conveying the same thought:

“You had another ace up your sleeve and didn’t tell me?!”

While the others were frozen in confusion, hesitant to make a move, Amber had already strolled over to the window.

Because of the Royal Silencer’s forced entry, the study’s “black box mode” had been deactivated, and the armored plates on the windows had risen again.

“Gentlemen, a pleasure, but I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be taking my leave. Why don’t you all carry on?”

Chapter 165: Chaos Upon Chaos

The people in the room were still struggling to process what had happened. The Royal Silencers, having received no further orders from Jacques Cole, made no move.

They stared at Amber, who had already moved to the window. The black combat suit he wore was of a style they had never seen before, and it didn’t look like a product of the Star Dragon Empire.

As everyone looked at each other in confusion, Amber dropped another cryptic line.

“Sir, once things are settled here, we’ll meet at the rendezvous point. Everything is proceeding as planned~”

“Huh?” came three different voices at once.

After saying this, Amber unleashed a psionic shockwave, creating chaos and shattering the entire window.

When Jacques Cole peeked out from behind the Royal Silencers again, the figure at the window had vanished.

A tall Royal Silencer turned slightly, displaying a sentence on the terminal screen on his forearm:

“The attire this person is wearing appears to be in the style of the Elven Royal Court of the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Seeing these words, Jacques Cole’s expression grew complex once more. Combined with what the mysterious man had said before fleeing, a bold idea began to form in his mind.

Meanwhile, Minister Barrot, having recovered from the psionic shockwave, was on his comms channel, ordering all nearby guards to intercept the man.

Just then, the voice of the Empire’s Minister of Finance rang out coldly from behind him.

“Minister Barrot, Bill Walter, you two have some nerve! To think you’d even collude with the elves!”

“What?”

Minister Barrot was stunned. This wasn’t a spy he had planted.

He had originally assumed this mysterious person hiding in the study was a psionic user sent by Jacques Cole, but judging by his tone, he didn’t seem to recognize him either.

“If Jacques Cole doesn’t know him either…”

Minister Barrot turned his head slightly to look at Bill Walter, who had just scrambled up from the floor.

The moment he was on his feet, he roared at Jacques Cole:

“You bastard, still putting on an act! You were the first one in this room to recognize that he’s from the Thousand Stars Empire, and now you’re trying to pin it on us?!”

Bill Walter picked up a teacup, and just as he was about to throw it at Jacques Cole’s head, he saw the Royal Silencer staring at him and immediately lowered his hand.

But he didn’t stop running his mouth.

“That last thing he said—that was for you, wasn’t it? I saw you nod at him!”

“Silencer, make this man shut his mouth.”

The situation in the study, thrown into disarray by Amber’s sudden appearance and departure, had reached a chaotic stalemate.

However, Amber, the architect of all this, wasn’t in a much better position himself.

The manor’s guards, under Minister Barrot’s orders, were already closing in. Amber had just taken down the few guards closest to him when he saw two heavy powered armors running toward him from a distance.

The chain guns mounted on their shoulders immediately spat a trail of fire.

Without a second thought, Amber instinctively switched his psionic combat suit to ‘Protection’ mode and moved like a phantom to take cover behind a nearby wall.

Although his reactions were superhuman, he was still inevitably struck by two 23mm caliber caseless rounds.

A hit of that caliber would have instantly obliterated a normal person.

But under the protection of his psionic combat suit in ‘Protection’ mode and his own psionic shield, the suit’s defense value was instantly halved, but Amber himself sustained no substantial damage.

He had to admit, though, that it did hurt.

Pinned down by the alternating fire from the two chain guns and with a significant distance between them, the unarmed Amber found it difficult to mount a counter-attack.

Just then, one of the heavy powered armors twitched as if electrocuted, sparks flying from its back.

A moment later, a sharp, piercing whistle tore through the air.

This was the effect of a high-velocity flechette round, fired from a ‘Daedalus’ large-caliber electromagnetic sniper rifle, hitting the power pack.

In the Empire’s infantry weapon arsenal, this electromagnetic rifle was also designed to engage light armored targets.

Using it to strike the power pack on the back of a heavy powered armor was, in essence, one of its primary functions.

At the same time, Isabelle’s voice came through the comms channel.

“Amber, I’m providing cover fire. What’s your status?”

“Not good. They’ve spotted me. I’m pulling out. Isabelle, you prepare to move to Rendezvous Point 1.”

Another piercing whistle sounded. Amber peeked out and saw that the other powered armor had also been hit in the power pack from behind.

These two shots couldn’t take the heavy powered armors out directly, but it was enough to slow them down and force them to switch to backup power.

The other guards who had followed them quickly took cover.

Although these guards were equipped with combat exoskeletons and additional armor plates, they were no better than paper in the face of the high-velocity flechette rounds from a large-caliber electromagnetic sniper rifle.

Isabelle continued to fire, shot after shot. The stone walls the guards were hiding behind couldn’t stop the penetration of the flechette rounds, and men continued to be hit and fall.

But this didn’t mean Isabelle had them suppressed. On the contrary, her continuous firing allowed the guards to use triangulation to roughly determine her position.

Amber, of course, knew this and immediately ordered Isabelle to retreat over the comms.

Isabelle followed his command without hesitation. She folded up her ‘Daedalus’, tossed it into the passenger seat of the all-terrain vehicle, and then, with swift efficiency, dismantled the individual comprehensive reconnaissance unit and threw it in the back.

The moment she drove the all-terrain vehicle away from her sniper’s nest, a barrage of large-caliber mortar fire blanketed the area.

If she had been even a fraction of a second slower, both she and her vehicle might have been wiped out.

Meanwhile, Amber seized the opportunity while the guards were still keeping their heads down. He activated his combat suit’s ‘Stealth’ mode, emerged from behind the building, and sprinted toward Rendezvous Point 1.

At the same time, he had Lilith send an encrypted message to the cargo ship in the spaceport where Allenita was, according to the pre-arranged plan.

Soon, an elf on the cargo ship’s bridge delivered the translated message to Allenita.

It contained only a single, short sentence:

“Activate Plan A. Please deliver the package to the designated coordinates.”

“Mr. Amber really knows how to make trouble for people, doesn’t he~”

Allenita smiled, then moved from her rest cabin back to the captain’s chair on the bridge.

“All hands, battle stations! Initiate departure procedures immediately and prepare for special cargo delivery!”

Chapter 166: Lilith! Go Straight for the Jugular!

The elves’ cargo ships were somewhat different from human cargo ships.

These ‘bio-ships’, due to their nature, were more flexible in function conversion compared to humanity’s giant steel vessels.

The elven cargo ship ‘St. Russell’ at the Spaceport began to squirm, its various parts moving like some kind of living creature.

However, the human staff at the Spaceport were used to this sight.

Because of the relationship between the Ahrens family and the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire, elven merchant ships were a common sight at Westminster’s Spaceport.

They often saw elven cargo ships convert some of their passenger cabins into cargo holds through some form of ‘transformation’ to carry more goods on their return journey.

So in their eyes, this was probably just another greedy elven merchant deciding to haul a bit more cargo before heading back.

What they didn’t notice, however, was that this transformation seemed a little different from the usual.

The biological keratinous layer at the bottom of the ship was continuously thickening, and a structure similar to a ‘Deployment Bay’ on a human ship had appeared inside its hull.

If there were any experts present, they might have guessed that this elven cargo ship was planning to transform into a low-orbit assault ship.

But even if they had voiced such a conclusion, they would have been scoffed at by those around them.

“Are you nuts? Why would an elven cargo ship turn into a low-orbit assault ship? To attack the Ahrens family?”

As Allenita in outer space began to act on the information from Amber…

…back at the manor, Minister Barrot, Bill Walter, and Jacques Cole had temporarily ceased their standoff.

After a ‘brief’ exchange, they had realized that the psionic user who had been lurking in the study just now did not belong to any of their factions.

But to a new power.

Considering the sheer amount of classified information this individual might have overheard, the three of them refrained from coming to blows again.

Although Jacques Cole, with the Royal Silencers and the Royal Guard, remained wary of the other two, he no longer interfered with their subsequent actions.

After all, there were some things he didn’t want getting out either.

Throughout the Ahrens family’s exclusive territory, a great net to ‘hunt down’ Amber and Isabelle was rapidly cast.

Numerous hidden vehicles burst out from their hiding places, carrying guards and speeding toward Amber’s last known location and Isabelle’s former sniper position.

The HCPs in the manor’s Hangar also began emergency sortie preparations.

Members of the prep squads, spurred on by the shouts of their squad leaders, ran to the units they maintained, preparing to disconnect the external conduits linked to the units’ bodies.

The pilots on standby in the ready room, with the help of the ground crew, quickly donned their heavy hydraulic pressure suits, then grabbed their helmets and sprinted toward their respective units.

Unlike pilots on standby in space, wearing the heavy hydraulic pressure suit, which weighed over ten kilograms, was a significant burden.

On the ground, under the full effect of gravity, being on standby while wearing this gear was quite demanding.

Therefore, pilots on ground standby, especially those not in frontline units, generally wouldn’t wear their heavy hydraulic pressure suits unless they were confirmed for an imminent launch.

Meanwhile, the satellite ground control center also received an urgent communication from the manor, requesting they immediately use a synchronous reconnaissance satellite to find a fleeing person and vehicle within the exclusive territory.

But when the staff at the control center saw the feed from the synchronous satellite, they were dumbfounded.

The manor and its surrounding areas looked completely peaceful and serene. Not only was there no sign of a fleeing person, but they couldn’t even see the vehicles that had set out in pursuit.

“Are they messing with us?”

A control center employee muttered weakly.

Then his supervisor walked up behind him and smacked him on the head with a rolled-up document.

“Idiot! We’ve been hit by an electronic warfare virus!”

After whacking the greenhorn, the supervisor roared at the rest of the control center staff:

“Take the entire control center system offline! Isolate it in a sandbox and bring it back online! Initialize all satellite subsystems and engage the antivirus program. Use the military-grade version, you idiots!”

The control center staff immediately scrambled into action. No one, including the supervisor, could figure out how they had been hacked so silently.

The people at the manor were also stunned when they received the reply from the control center. They had never imagined that the satellite ground control center would be attacked with an electronic warfare virus.

“This wasn’t a random act. The enemy came prepared.”

Minister Barrot had just reached this conclusion when he saw Bill Walter leap to his feet again, pointing at Jacques Cole’s nose and yelling:

“You go to all this trouble, and you fucking dare tell me it wasn’t you!”

“Royal Silencers, make this man shut up!”

While the manor was in chaos, the supervisor at the satellite ground control center was already sweating profusely.

“Sir! The system rejected the request for a full system shutdown! My permissions are showing as invalid!”

“Sir! The satellite initialization request was also rejected!”

“Sir!”

The supervisor, who had been in his post for less than half a year, began to feel dazed amidst the chorus of reports from his subordinates.

He had originally thought this position was a cushy sinecure, a comfortable place to collect a paycheck until retirement.

But he never expected that today of all days, he’d be hit with something this big.

“I used to have a job…”

“Sir? What did you say?”

The assistant’s question snapped the supervisor back to his senses. He looked at the subordinates around him, their anxious faces all waiting for his command.

“Calm down. It’s not over yet. We can’t give up.”

When the supervisor looked up again, his eyes had become firm and resolute.

“Cut the main power to the control center! Force a reboot!

As it reboots, inject the antivirus program directly through the external data port!

Notify the garrison fleet! Have them dispatch an engineering vessel to the satellite’s location for a physical reboot and inject the antivirus there as well!”

The supervisor’s resolute words reached the ears of everyone in the control center, and at the same time, they also reached Amber’s.

“Master, if they do that, we’ll lose control of the ground control center and the satellite very soon. Then they’ll be able to track your position with the synchronous reconnaissance satellite!”

Lilith’s voice sounded anxious. She was still unable to perfectly counter methods like physical isolation and physical antivirus injections.

“It doesn’t matter. Lilith, get ready to go straight for the jugular.”

“Understood, Master! Activating Modified Special Virus Version 2.0!”

The moment Amber gave the command, the electronic warfare virus that had previously been spread to numerous units and devices was fully activated.

It then launched a devastating attack on the foundational programs built into these vectors.

I’m Completely Beat, Taking Another Day Off

I’m Completely Beat, Taking Another Day Off

I sprained my foot while sleeping; I don’t even know how I managed that.

I’ve had it treated, and now I’m moaning in pain in bed.

I have to take time off work for the next few days, so my pay will be docked.

I tried Writing on my phone and only managed 500 words in half an hour.

Sigh, why does so much crap happen to me when I’m just trying to write a book?

I’ve been quite satisfied with this book’s performance so far, so unless no one is reading it anymore, I won’t stop updating.

Again, my apologies for taking today off~

Chapter 167: Titanfall (2-in-1)

“Romeo Squad has been deployed! Juliet Squad is next, everyone move it!”

On the electromagnetic launch catapults leading from the concealed hangar to the surface, three HCPs from the Ahrens family’s main garrison force, call sign Romeo Squad, had already been launched.

With the initial velocity from the electromagnetic catapults, boosted by their own plasma thruster arrays, these HCPs could brute-force their way through the planet’s atmosphere at high speed for sixty kilometers to quickly enter the battlefield.

These TGT-A2 ‘Dragon Knights’, custom-made for the Ahrens family and honorably produced by Sacred Fire Heavy Industries, were among the most advanced HCPs in the Star Dragon Empire.

Due to upgrades in materials, mobility systems, power components, and other aspects, coupled with low current production volume that couldn’t offset the high research and development costs, the Dragon Knight’s price tag was double that of older models like the Zealot.

This was why, among the various branches of service in the Star Dragon Empire, only a few elite or experimental units had equipped this model of HCP in small batches.

Most of Sacred Fire Heavy Industries’ orders came from the wealthier nobles of the Empire.

Although the price per unit was high, these nobles who used them to equip their private soldiers didn’t have the same high demand as the military, so the cost of an order was within their acceptable range.

Therefore, these nobles were willing to spend a little extra for their private soldiers to be equipped with better HCPs.

After all, these were the troops meant to protect them, so they had to be diligent about their equipment.

This had led to a strange phenomenon within the Star Dragon Empire.

The private soldiers of the nobility, though not highly trained, often had better equipment than the Empire’s regular army in everything except battleships.

However, the pilots inside these HCPs, which bore the Ahrens family crest on their cockpit armor plates and shields, were not pilots trained by the Ahrens family.

They were pilots from the mobile units of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department.

Just as Amber had guessed, the Imperial Internal Affairs Department had already seized control of the Ahrens family’s headquarters.

Not only were the people in the Manor under house arrest, but the private soldiers guarding the Manor and its exclusive zones had also been disarmed, replaced inside and out by personnel from the Internal Affairs Department.

Moreover, with the help of the “mole,” Bill Walter, they continued to issue orders to various parts of Planet Westminster as the Ahrens family normally would, preventing family members and private soldiers in other areas from noticing anything was amiss.

This concealed underground hangar, located fifty kilometers from the Manor, began an emergency deployment upon receiving orders from the Manor.

The prep team from the Internal Affairs Department’s mobile units launched the first squad of HCPs much faster than the Ahrens family’s private soldiers ever could.

But just as the second squad of HCPs, Juliet Squad, moved onto the electromagnetic launch catapults…

The specially modified Virus v2.0 from Lilith, which had infected their systems through the previous communication with the Manor, went to work.

As all networked electronic systems in the hangar failed, this self-adapting and self-learning electronic warfare virus also played some new tricks.

For instance, it caused a momentary voltage spike in the electromagnetic launch catapults, which successfully triggered the safety mechanism and cut the power.

This didn’t have a major impact on the HCPs standing on the catapults, but the instantaneous voltage surge fried some vulnerable components.

While replacing these components wasn’t difficult, the HCPs already on the tracks had to be moved off to wait for repairs.

To make matters worse, because they were connected to the hangar’s internal communication channel, the three HCPs of Juliet Squad were also unfortunately infected by the electronic warfare virus.

Of course, compared to older HCPs like the Zealot, the Dragon Knight’s onboard computer was far more powerful, its electronic warfare capabilities more advanced, and its onboard auxiliary AI wouldn’t be instantly knocked out by Lilith’s virus.

But regardless, all of this would take time.

And every second wasted, every second of delayed deployment, increased Amber’s chances of escape.

Similar scenes were unfolding at other nearby hidden garrisons and at the Manor.

At the Manor, which was hit hardest by the electronic warfare virus, the core drivers for the infantry’s exoskeletons and Powered Armor were completely scrambled by Lilith’s virus.

Their vehicles suffered the same problem. After all-electronic drive-by-wire systems and electronic components replaced a large number of mechanical parts, the disadvantages were exposed.

As a result, the pursuing forces from the Manor created a bizarre spectacle of pursuers and their vehicles simultaneously tumbling over in chaos mid-chase.

Meanwhile, running at full speed, Amber successfully rendezvoused with Isabelle at the designated primary extraction point, taking out four brave hidden sentries who had jumped out to stop him along the way.

Though Amber respected their spirit of “completing the mission no matter the circumstances,” he still mercilessly sent them on their way.

After getting into the all-terrain vehicle, Amber immediately went into high-speed mode.

But the danger was far from over. According to Lilith’s report, at least three HCPs were already closing in on his position.

They had all activated quantum encrypted communications and temporarily cut off some unnecessary data exchanges, making it difficult for Lilith to target them for the time being.

The worse news was that before the Manor was crippled, it had managed to issue a wanted order for Amber.

Now, the Ahrens family’s private soldiers garrisoned in Ravenhock, the planet’s capital, had been mobilized.

It could be said that there was no escape now.

“Amber, what do we do then?” Isabelle asked the crucial question after hearing from Amber about their dire situation.

“What if I told you I never planned to escape after being exposed? Would you believe me?”

“I believe you,” Isabelle said without hesitation, her eyes filled with trust for Amber.

“Hah…”

Amber, disappointed that his attempt to sound cool had failed, raised his eyebrows in boredom, then turned to the busy Lilith.

“Lilith, what’s the status of the freighter above us?”

“Master, my apologies! The data link was severed five minutes ago. The ground control center has regained control of the satellite. However, based on information from five minutes ago, the freighter has already begun to lower its orbit as planned!”

“Keep it up, Lilith! The success of this operation depends on you!”

“Roger that, Master!”

At the same time, in the outer space above Amber, on Planet Westminster.

The cargo ship St. Russell, having completed its “transformation”—no, it should be called the low-orbit assault ship St. Russell—had now lowered its orbital altitude to 1,100 kilometers.

The elf crew members on the bridge, including Allenita in the captain’s chair, were all sweating nervously.

However, the latter’s emotions were dominated by a sense of excitement from the novel experience.

The Thousand Stars Empire, having rarely fought in major wars, did not previously have anything like a “low-orbit assault ship.”

The only ship with ground support capabilities was a large warship known as an “Orbital Purifier.”

When ground strikes were needed, this warship would “scour the ground” with its twelve-barreled heavy purification beam emitter on the bow.

So when Amber proposed the idea that the St. Russell should “transform” into a low-orbit assault ship in an emergency, the onboard elven engineering team exclaimed, “Awesome and exciting!”

In the common elven tongue, of course.

And during the warp, Amber had even worked with the engineering team to create a complete “transformation procedure.”

His understanding of elven ship construction and the principles of transformation made these elven engineers suspect he was an elf in human skin.

The “transformation procedure” Amber had come up with naturally originated from the vast player base. Some high-level players had even created guides to transform an “Orbital Purifier,” a “ground-scouring ship,” into a “super long-range sniper battleship.”

However, the procedure Amber presented now was a full fifty years ahead of when it appeared in the game.

It was truly something new.

As the St. Russell continued to lower its orbital altitude, its actions naturally attracted the attention of the orbital control center.

Upon discovering it was a cargo vessel from the Thousand Stars Empire, the control center specifically found a controller who could speak the common elven tongue.

“Honorable cargo ship CT2023 ‘St. Russell,’ this is Westminster Orbital Control Center. Your orbital altitude is too low. Please adjust immediately and state your reason, thank you.”

On the bridge of the St. Russell, the Communications Officer glanced back at Allenita in the captain’s chair. Seeing her nod, he recited the prepared script.

“Westminster Orbital Control Center, this is CT2023. We are carrying out a special transport mission for the Ahrens family headquarters. Transmitting the Ahrens family’s mission identification code now.”

“Mission identification code received. Verifying relevant mission, please wait…”

Just as the controller at the Westminster control center sent the mission identification code into a sandbox environment to confirm its safety, he saw the diamond-shaped icon representing the St. Russell on his screen plummet, its orbital altitude dropping towards 700 kilometers.

This anomaly made the controller forget his polite honorifics.

“Hey, CT2023, why has your altitude dropped again? Please follow the guided orbit. If any further anomalous altitude changes occur, we will call in a patrol warship.”

In the time it took him to say that, the St. Russell’s altitude on the screen shot down again, sending the young controller’s heart racing.

The anomaly in orbit naturally caught the attention of the on-duty supervisor at the orbital control center. He had just floated behind the controller, considering whether to call the patrol warship early, when things took a turn.

The several screens in front of the young controller simultaneously went black. When they lit up again, they displayed the low-level operating system interface.

“What the hell?”

Before he could say anything else, the screens of several other controllers around him showed the same thing.

“The mission identification code was laced with an electronic warfare virus, and it broke through the security sandbox!”

The young controller’s voice trembled slightly; he had never seen anything like this before.

There were a considerable number of ships in the planet’s orbit at the moment. If the orbital control center went down, it could lead to a major disaster.

“Technicians! Get all the technicians over here! Now!”

“Supervisor, comms… communications are jammed too!”

“Then run and tell them!”

While the orbital control center descended into chaos, the St. Russell, under the helmsman’s control, continued to lower its orbit.

“Current orbital altitude 340 kilometers, ground speed 5.6 kilometers per second. Estimated arrival at drop position in five minutes, consistent with planned drop time!”

When the elf on the bridge announced this string of information, Allenita quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Amber had planned this special cargo delivery mission with them down to the minute.

According to him, if the final drop landed a minute early or a minute late, he and Isabelle might not make it back.

“No activated ground-based anti-air units detected. They shouldn’t have reacted yet. Secondary confirmation—is the cushioning fluid inside the drop spore sealed?”

“No flying objects detected along the drop trajectory. Drop countdown: one minute.”

As the elves on duty continued to announce the situation loudly, everyone on the bridge grew more and more tense. After all, this was the first time these elves from the Thousand Stars Empire had ever attempted a low-orbit drop mission.

According to the standard low-orbit drop procedures of the human world, the low-orbit assault ship should have begun suppressing ground targets by now.

The usual method was to launch a few tactical missiles with thermobaric or cluster warheads at the drop zone.

However, this cargo ship obviously lacked such suppressive weaponry, so Amber had omitted this step.

“Drop countdown: ten seconds. Drop spore, disconnect bioreceptors from the ship.”

“…Three, two, one, drop initiated!”

An opening suddenly appeared on the underside of the St. Russell, and a giant drop spore was ejected, like an infant separating from its mother body.

The rear end of this “biological drop pod” had numerous tentacles used to stabilize its course after entering the planet’s atmosphere.

As the St. Russell began to ascend back to a higher orbit and gradually accelerate, preparing to enter warp with its two escort ships that had left port with it, the electronic warfare virus in the orbital control center mysteriously ceased its activity and began to self-destruct.

By the time the control center was fully operational again and the controllers were anxiously trying to restore orbital management, they noticed that the high-performance elven cargo ship had climbed to a higher orbit and was preparing to leave.

But they had no time to worry about the St. Russell, because their radar showed that the freighter had dropped something, and it had already entered the atmosphere’s thermosphere.

Meanwhile, Amber and Isabelle had covered most of the distance in their all-terrain vehicle. At full speed, they were leaving the area more than ten times faster than they had arrived.

At the same time, Lilith used other nearby communication devices still under her control to capture a short-frequency communication signal from within the drop spore.

“Master, the package is 120 kilometers from the ground, speed 2,800 meters per second. Calculations indicate it will land at the predetermined location at the predetermined time!”

“Excellent. Our arrival time is also factored in.”

Amber had just breathed a sigh of relief mid-drive when Lilith continued:

“Master, I must remind you, the number of pursuing HCPs has risen to five. The nearest one will make contact in ten minutes!”

“That fast?!”

Their reaction speed surprised Amber a little. It seemed the pilots from the Internal Affairs Department were no slouches.

“But that’s fine, we still have time!”

Amber looked up. He could now see the falling spore with his naked eye.

If someone could observe the drop spore up close at that moment, they would see that the biomass on its surface had been burned pitch black.

As the drop altitude decreased further, the spore unfurled the tentacles at its rear to stabilize its course, while numerous petal-like deceleration flaps emerged from its surface.

The front of the spore also began to vent an unknown gas to assist in braking.

When its altitude reached sixty kilometers and its speed dropped to 2,000 meters per second, the entire drop spore suddenly burst open.

In the scattering cushioning fluid, the main monitor on the head of a steel giant lit up with a red glow.

Chapter 168: The Return of the Demon in the Smoke

“Tactical link established!”

Using the laser communication device on the all-terrain vehicle, Lilith successfully established a link with the airdropped Zealot and activated a ‘thought clone’ already loaded into the unit.

This ‘thought clone’, acting as an onboard combat assistance AI, immediately took control of the Zealot upon activation.

At its current altitude and speed, the air friction no longer posed a threat to the HCP’s external armor.

So, Lilith leveled out the unit and switched the onboard radar to ground-search mode, quickly pinpointing Amber’s position and that of his pursuers.

Simultaneously, the heavy electromagnetic cannon on the rear weapon rack deployed.

For this mission, considering any potential combat would primarily occur within the atmosphere, the unit’s back weapon rack was not equipped with a charged particle cannon, but rather a combination of a heavy electromagnetic cannon, a heavy particle cannon, and a heavy plasma severing sword.

The unit’s two mechanical arms held the classic HCP combination of an electromagnetic rifle and a layered armor shield.

The power and velocity of the charged particle cannon indeed allowed for instantaneous ‘point-and-shoot’ targeting within the atmosphere.

However, the heavy electromagnetic cannon could use various types of warheads, making it superior in terms of versatility and functionality.

Furthermore, in atmospheric ground combat, the planet’s curvature limits the visual engagement range.

Based on the typical ground combat altitudes for HCPs, including short-term hovering, the visual engagement range was reduced to between a few and a dozen kilometers.

Under these circumstances, the initial velocity of the heavy electromagnetic cannon was more than sufficient.

At this moment, blue light from arcing electricity flickered across the Zealot’s heavy electromagnetic cannon, and its magazine was loaded with several sensor-fuzed munitions.

The five HCPs in high-speed pursuit on the ground had extremely conspicuous infrared signatures.

Although they had already spotted the uninvited guest descending at high speed above them and designated it a hostile target after a failed friendly forces identification, these HCP pilots, eager to score a kill, were unwilling to slow down with Amber so close at hand.

“Strong magnetic field detected! Aerial hostile has launched five high-velocity projectiles, assessed as a heavy electromagnetic cannon firing! Evasive maneuvers and defensive measures advised!”

Inside the cockpits of these Dragon Knights, the combat assistance AIs issued warnings to their pilots at almost the same instant.

The direct line-of-sight distance between the airborne Zealot and the closest Dragon Knight was now thirty-five kilometers. Given the initial velocity of an HCP’s heavy electromagnetic cannon, the projectiles would arrive in less than ten seconds.

Under Lilith’s control, though the Zealot’s heavy electromagnetic cannon fired in a burst, she continuously made micro-adjustments to the barrel’s aim between shots, sending each projectile toward a different target.

Amber, speeding along, soon heard several explosions behind him.

If the HCP pilots had followed combat doctrine and activated their deflector shields in time, their pursuit speed would have dropped, but their mechs would have been undamaged.

But if they were too greedy and didn’t activate them…

Though they wouldn’t be destroyed outright by the small sensor-fuzed warheads, they would inevitably have their external armor stripped clean of its equipment.

A moment later, the airborne Zealot’s cannon flashed with electricity again.

This burst fired a series of non-lethal, functional munitions, primarily IR-blocking smoke and exploding metallic chaff.

After this final round of suppressive fire, Lilith had the Zealot retract its heavy electromagnetic cannon. She then angled the plasma thruster array to its maximum negative position and engaged full thrust.

Amidst a brilliant blue light and billowing dust, the pilots, their vision temporarily obscured, heard only a tremendous crash.

“All units, target has landed!”

At the command from their ad-hoc commander over quantum-encrypted communications, the five HCPs slowed down in unison.

The HCP that had just dropped from the sky had already demonstrated exceptional control and marksmanship, suggesting its pilot was likely from an elite unit.

The two in the squad who hadn’t activated their deflector shields now had damaged main monitors on their mechs’ heads and some external sensors knocked out.

Under these circumstances, they had no choice but to discard their dismissive attitude toward this ‘many-on-one’ fight and raise their guard.

“Inverted-V formation. Approach with caution. Cover your squadmates!”

The five Dragon Knights tightened their formation and raised their shields, their electromagnetic rifles extending past the deflector shields to point forward.

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

As they drew closer, their mechs’ audio sensors picked up a series of sounds.

After comparing the signatures against its database, the combat assistance AI made an identification in 0.1 seconds: ‘multi-purpose launcher’.

And this time, the AI’s assessment was not mistaken.

When the five Dragon Knights passed through the first layer of IR-blocking smoke, their 360-degree cockpits revealed… still more IR-blocking smoke.

“Trying to force a close-quarters fight?”

The ad-hoc commander frowned. With their vision obscured, both sides were forced to fight on the ground.

Recklessly taking to the air would just be ‘hanging out to dry,’ only to be shot down like a bird by the enemy’s long-range fire.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when the roar of a thruster array erupted from the smoke.

Immediately after, a steel giant with a glowing red head burst out from an odd angle.

Its heavy plasma severing sword, glowing blue, bypassed the deflector shield and easily plunged into the back of a Dragon Knight.

The sharp blade pierced straight through the cockpit’s frontal armor.

Needless to say, the pilot inside had been incinerated by the plasma blade.

“Five o’clock! Enemy contact!”

The remaining four Dragon Knights opened fire immediately with their electromagnetic rifles.

But the cunning Zealot used their downed teammate’s mech as cover, avoiding most of the high-velocity penetrators as it withdrew.

The few high-velocity penetrators that did hit were blocked by its deflector shield and layered armor shield.

As the HCP vanished back into the smoke, cold sweat trickled down the foreheads of the enemy pilots.

“Switch to diamond formation! Cover each other’s backs!”

The ad-hoc commander quickly issued another order, though it was a relatively robotic command straight from the combat manual.

But for these pilots, who were already starting to panic, it at least gave them their next course of action.

Meanwhile, Amber, who had hidden the unit back in the smoke, glanced over at Isabelle in the temporary seat to his right.

The heavy hydraulic suit that originally came with this Zealot was now worn by her.

Amber himself wore nothing, having simply connected the mech’s head-tracking control system to his body in emergency mode.

Even so, the recent combat had made Isabelle, who hadn’t undergone extensive physical cybernetic enhancements, feel a wave of discomfort.

“Are you okay?”

“Huff… I’m fine. The acceleration was just a little intense.”

Isabelle took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to vomit.

Although she had undergone high-G training, the extreme G-forces an HCP could pull during ground combat were more than most ordinary people could handle.

It was only because Amber’s current body—his muscles, bones, and even his cardiopulmonary functions—had been enhanced.

Otherwise, he could never have achieved the time-honored feat of ‘piloting a Gundam in the flesh’.

“Hang in there. A few more surprise attacks, and then we’ll retreat to the city.”

“Okay! Mwah~”

Isabelle leaned over, gave Amber a kiss on the cheek, and flashed an encouraging smile.

“Go get ’em, Amber!”

Chapter 169: Melee Combat is Part of Mech Warfare. If You Don’t Like It, Don’t Play

“These Internal Affairs Department pilots aren’t all that great. Their reactions are pretty rigid.”

Amber couldn’t help but shake his head as he looked at the panoramic display, which showed the last known positions of the four remaining Dragon Knights and their current locations as predicted by Lilith’s trajectory analysis.

At the same time, he slightly adjusted his unit’s energy distribution and deployed the heavy particle cannon on its back.

“What do you mean?”

Hearing his words and seeing the large cannon unfolding above them, Isabelle asked with a hint of curiosity.

“An Inverted V-formation for a searching advance, which immediately shifts to a tight diamond formation to cover each other’s backs after an ambush. That’s straight out of the Army Academy’s textbook.”

Of course, despite his complaints, Amber would be thrilled if every pilot he encountered in future battles was as by-the-book and rule-abiding as these.

Such pilots were so predictable that Amber could even anticipate their next moves in battle.

In fact, based on the skill level of the Empire and Federation pilots from the game, most pilots on both sides were of this conventional type, at least before the great war.

They always fought at the prescribed engagement distances and always managed their unit’s energy according to regulation ratios.

They also had an almost superstitious faith in ranged attacks, preferring to overwhelm opponents with heavy firepower and showing an extreme aversion to close-quarters combat.

This phenomenon only began to change after the Star Dragon Empire splintered and the cosmos was thrown into a chaotic mess.

For now, though, Amber didn’t mind giving these pilots from the Imperial Internal Affairs Department a little lesson.

Just as the four Dragon Knights formed a tight diamond, covering each other’s rears, the combat assistance AI in their cockpits issued another warning.

“Warning! Strong electric field detected. Analysis indicates incoming heavy particle cannon fire! Advise activating deflector shield.”

The next moment, a beam of blue-white light tore through the smoke and slammed into one of the Dragon Knights.

After the long-range attack and the initial ambush, these pilots weren’t taking any more chances; all of them had their deflector shields active.

But after the heavy particle cannon ceased firing, the squad’s temporary commander noticed a problem.

According to the data transmitted by his squadmate, the deflector shield generator on the Dragon Knight that took the direct hit had nearly overloaded.

The deflector shield generators equipped on these new-model HCPs were naturally upgraded versions.

For one to be pushed to such a state by a single shot could only mean one thing.

The ambusher had fired using excess power.

The stronger instantaneous energy output resulted in a higher temperature and greater velocity for the heavy metal ion stream.

The increase in kinetic energy would naturally place a greater burden on the deflector shield.

But…

“Firing at excess power… Does this guy not plan on using his ranged weapons for a while? Is he using this shot to cover his escape?”

The temporary commander was alarmed, but his concern was not without reason.

The cannons on an HCP’s back weapon racks were notorious power hogs.

Although the units were equipped with subcritical reactors and generally didn’t need to worry about running out of energy, a large, instantaneous energy drain was still a significant strain on the reactor.

For instance, a certain super-spec mech named ‘DESTINY’ from a neighboring franchise suffered from this very problem.

In the show, all its stats were maxed out, yet it ran out of power midway through the final battle, a fact that earned it the scorn of fans for over a decade.

It wasn’t until the movie sequel was released, featuring a fully-powered ‘Destiny Spec II’ that had a ridiculously glorious, cheat-like moment in the final battle, that many fans were finally convinced that part of the original development budget must have been embezzled…

But I digress. Back to the topic at hand.

Of course, theoretically, using the kind of fusion reactor found on battleships could solve this problem.

Unfortunately, even by the end of the game’s storyline before Amber’s soul transmigration, such a design remained on paper.

That was why after obtaining Lilith, Amber had always been looking for an opportunity to use her power to see if he could realize the long-cherished dream of countless HCP designers.

At this moment, however, the temporary commander’s judgment was a bit too conservative.

Amber had indeed temporarily forgone the use of ranged weapons.

But he wasn’t planning to escape. He was preparing to give these Imperial Internal Affairs Department pilots a little taste of “close-combat shock.”

Although the Zealot was an older model HCP compared to the Dragon Knight—the one Amber was piloting was even from an early batch, Block 30—its design philosophy had focused on heavy armor and heavy firepower.

Therefore, its subcritical reactor and superconducting battery stack were also more powerful versions, albeit at the cost of a larger size and longer recharge times during routine maintenance.

This was why the Zealot’s full combat weight once reached a hundred tons, with specialized protective variants for high-risk areas reaching up to 120 tons.

The newer Dragon Knight, however, had a different design philosophy. It didn’t continue down the heavy-armor path, but was instead a versatile unit excelling in high mobility and mid-to-long-range suppression.

Its full combat weight was less than eighty tons.

But in the current close-quarters engagement on the ground, the Dragon Knight’s slight advantages in mobility and firepower were largely negated.

Instead, the heavier Zealot gained the upper hand in melee combat.

After all, when a one-hundred-ton block of iron smashes into a block of iron weighing less than eighty tons, the result is bound by the laws of physics.

Amidst the blue glow erupting from its thruster array, the towering Zealot burst from the smoke once more, brandishing its heavy plasma severing sword.

“A mech’s performance specs aren’t the absolute deciding factor in a battle!”

Relying on reaction speeds far exceeding those of a normal human, Amber was like a wolf among sheep. He first executed a high-G emergency stop, dodging all the point shooting from their electromagnetic rifles.

Then, he swung his sword in a wide arc, severing the mechanical arm holding a rifle on the nearest HCP.

Next came a simple, unadorned shield bash.

Over the squad’s communication channel, the temporary commander heard only a series of terrified screams of “Aaaahhh!” from his pilots.

If Amber were to rate his own HCP combat skills, he would absolutely place melee combat in the T1 category.

He might not be a top-tier pilot in anti-ship or anti-HCP combat in space, but ground-based melee was definitely his forte.

In any case, back in the game, he was a beast of a player who had pushed his score in the HCP Combat Arena to 2900.

In just a short while, Amber had hacked a Dragon Knight into a limbless wreck.

After piercing through the cockpit of another Dragon Knight, he turned and left without a second thought.

It wasn’t that he intended to spare the others. Rather, Lilith’s battlefield surveillance had detected more HCPs rushing toward their location.

Two fists can’t beat four hands, and even a mighty hero can’t fight off a mob.

Amber was no brute, so he didn’t hesitate to sheathe his severing sword and head toward a seaside resort city, eighty kilometers in a straight line from the “family’s exclusive zone.”

The Internal Affairs Department’s pursuit forces had yet to catch up, and the Ahrens family’s private soldiers in other areas were only just beginning to mobilize.

So Amber planned to use this window of opportunity to storm the coastal city, create chaos, and pave the way for the next step of his plan.

Although atmospheric fighters might appear in the sky, they weren’t a significant threat to a well-armored unit like an HCP, which also possessed formidable anti-air firepower.

And that was without a charged particle cannon. If he had one of those, he could shoot down as many aerial units as the Ahrens family could send.

After once again confirming that Isabelle was holding up in her makeshift seat, Amber sent the unit rocketing forward again.

At the same time, he issued a new command to Lilith.

“Lilith, prepare to execute the supreme protocol.”

Chapter 170: Supreme Protocol and the Parting Shot

Arai, a coastal city on Planet Westminster, was situated between the capital, Ravenhock, and the exclusive territory of the Ahrens family.

With its advanced entertainment services, superb coastal leisure experiences, and magnificent sea views, it had always ranked among the top three vacation destinations on Planet Westminster.

Even members of the Ahrens family, despite already having a family beach stretching for a cumulative hundred kilometers, would occasionally visit Arai to relax.

In their own words, it was to “soak in the atmosphere.”

Right now, it was the end of the year 588 in the New Calendar. Although the Star Dragon Empire had its own national calendar, as humans, they still used the New Calendar just like the Federation and celebrated various holidays according to it.

The end of each year, in preparation for the New Year, was also the peak travel season for the citizens of the Empire who had worked hard all year long.

Of course, “citizens of the Empire” here referred to the “middle-class citizens” who, while not of noble birth, owned their own businesses or capital, which could support them in their annual interstellar tourism.

They were either executives of large corporations, owners of some industry on their home planets, or worked for some high-ranking aristocrat.

All in all, compared to the “lower-class citizens” who could never leave the planet of their birth, some not even having left the atmosphere, and spent their days guarding their own small patch of land, the lives of these people were already luxurious enough.

The wealth gap within the Star Dragon Empire was actually much larger than in the Federation.

Due to the existence of the aristocracy and class system, the top-down exploitation was much simpler and cruder compared to the Federation’s “subtle and insidious” methods.

Amber’s previous retort to Isabelle on Robert IV about oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages was no joke.

On some less-developed agricultural planets, the Imperial Gold Dragons allocated from the national treasury to subsidize vehicles for the residents were unscrupulously embezzled by those handling the funds.

By the time the money trickled down to these lower-class citizens, the planned all-electric vehicles had ultimately turned into more “environmentally friendly” oxcarts.

The newest, most expensive imperial starships flew in orbit, while the people on the ground used traditional “biological-powered transportation.”

This cosmic spectacle had always been a topic that players in the game relished talking about.

At this moment, in the most prosperous district of Arai.

A “middle-class” family, who had traveled across several star systems to come to Arai, spent a fortune to book a seaside villa, and was preparing to spend the New Year here, was strolling through the streets, soaking in the cultural atmosphere that was so different from their home planet.

The man of the family was even holding a small video recording terminal, capturing every angle of his family’s happy life.

But this heartwarming scene was shattered in the next instant.

Following a loud crash, a giant steel machine suddenly burst out from between the towering buildings lining the street.

This massive machine, a giant in the eyes of ordinary people, skillfully avoided the pedestrians and several hovercars on the street, thanks to the pilot’s exquisite control and assistance from the thruster array on its back and nozzles all over its body.

Then it landed heavily on the ground, stamping several footprints onto the road surface of the intersection.

“Everyone around, get out of here!”

A processed voice, sounding somewhat strange, came from the steel giant’s loudspeaker.

But apart from the affected pedestrians and vehicles who fled amid piercing screams, the first thing most of the surrounding tourists did was not to run, but to raise their video recording terminals to capture this rare scene.

Many of them had already recognized it as a military HCP, and from its appearance, it was a Zealot.

Although the Zealot’s paint job was different from what they usually saw on the news, they still recognized its design.

“What’s going on? Are they filming a movie?”

“Whoa, this is the first time I’ve seen a Zealot up close! But this paint job doesn’t look like the military’s?”

“Are you stupid? This must have been specially modified for a movie!”

“Doesn’t that make us extras?”

Amidst the discussions of the surrounding tourists, the Zealot said nothing more.

Instead, with the sound of sliding mechanical structures, it detached the shield originally mounted on its left shoulder pauldron and held it in its mechanical arm.

Immediately after, the Zealot lowered its body slightly, and with a clang, clang!, several spikes shot out from its mechanical feet, digging into the road.

Just as the tourists were wondering what was happening, their personal terminals rang almost at the same time. An emergency alert from the Arai Municipal Center popped up.

“Dear citizens and tourists, a high-risk emergency has occurred in Arai City. For your personal and property safety, please proceed to the nearest emergency shelter immediately…”

The moment this message appeared, many people knew something was wrong.

This towering steel giant was not a movie prop, but a real, genuine HCP.

The man who had been strolling and taking photos with his family panicked instantly. He hurriedly turned around, grabbed his family, and tried to run away.

His action was like a few drops of water in a pan of hot oil; the crowd that had been standing around watching the excitement instantly erupted into chaos.

People screamed, scattering in all directions in panic.

Unfortunately, they hadn’t taken the warning from the HCP’s loudspeaker seriously, and now it was a step too late to run.

Just as the crowd began to move, a bluish-white beam of light swept across the street from the same direction the Zealot had emerged from.

Like Odin’s Gungnir from mythology, the beam ultimately struck an invisible shield composed of countless blue electrical arcs.

The deflected heavy metal ion stream rapidly cooled in the air, turning orange-red, and then fell towards the ground under the force of gravity, creating a “rain of death.”

It wasn’t just the various vehicles and machinery on the street; even the buildings on both sides were riddled with pockmarks.

Those tourists and citizens who couldn’t escape were hit by the flying heavy metal ion stream and fell in droves, mowed down like wheat.

The man with his family kept looking back as he fled, not noticing a couple dressed as tourists in front of him.

By the time he realized it, he couldn’t stop and crashed straight towards the male in the couple.

But just as they were about to collide, the couple suddenly sidestepped, avoiding the impending collision.

As they passed each other, the man only saw the couple, their faces obscured by baseball caps, give him a nod.

“Such fast reflexes! Have they undergone genetic modification?”

The man was a little surprised but didn’t stop.

“Traveling at such a young age, maybe they’re the children of some aristocrat?”

Though curious about the couple’s identity, his family was more important to him.

Behind him, the attacked Zealot raised its electromagnetic rifle and fired back towards the other side of the street.

Not long after its figure disappeared around the street corner, an HCP with Ahrens family livery rushed past, dragging a heavy plasma severing sword.

It paid no mind to the unlucky pedestrians who couldn’t dodge the plasma blade and were vaporized by the high temperature.

Watching this scene, Amber and Isabelle, who had exited their mech and were disguised as tourists, couldn’t help but sigh.

“Do these people from the Imperial Internal Affairs Department really not see civilians as human? Firing a heavy particle cannon in the middle of the street and charging through with a heavy severing sword drawn like that.”

“Yes, they’re becoming more and more lawless. Never mind civilians; even if there were aristocrats among those affected, the Internal Affairs Department would just say it was their ‘bad luck’.”

“Doesn’t the Regent Prince do anything about this? Isn’t an ambitious schemer like him afraid of losing public support?”

Amber pulled Isabelle along as they ran towards their designated location, looking back from time to time.

“I heard the Regent Prince did issue an order, requiring these violent agencies not to harm civilians during their operations. But even for someone as powerful as the Regent Prince, by the time such an order reaches the grassroots level for execution, it’s really just empty words.”

Isabelle raised her hand, pulled her baseball cap down a little lower, and then continued to ask:

“Amber, is this ‘combat program’ you set up really that powerful? It’s no different from unmanned combat piloting, is it?”

“It’s pretty powerful, but it’s not easy to set up, and the combat intelligence isn’t very high…”

Amber casually spouted some nonsense, ignoring Lilith’s dissatisfaction in his mind at the “combat intelligence isn’t very high” comment.

To Isabelle, this just sounded like a pretense.

It probably involved one of Amber’s secrets, so it was inconvenient for him to elaborate.

Although Isabelle was a somewhat mediocre spy, she was still a smart woman.

She knew there were some things she shouldn’t know, and it was best not to even ask.

After all, Amber was a man of too many secrets. Maintaining a constant curiosity would not be a good thing for her, nor would it be conducive to the development of their relationship.

Even exchanging secrets wouldn’t necessarily increase their intimacy; it would only slowly create a rift between them.

Anyway, she loved Amber, and Amber… probably liked her?

And he was in his prime, with good stamina.

That was enough.

A couple like her and Amber, with their complicated identities, was destined not to have a romance like ordinary people.

And she also knew that a man like Amber was destined to have more than one partner.

If she really wanted to stay by his side, she shouldn’t even think about crossing certain red lines.

Seeing that Isabelle didn’t press the matter, Amber, who was holding her hand, breathed a sigh of relief.

He couldn’t help but sigh in his heart: “This woman is amazing!”

After all, Lilith was one of his biggest secrets and trump cards right now, and he didn’t want anyone else to know about her yet.

And Lilith’s performance was increasingly making him feel that the decision to risk his life to bring this strong AI out was absolutely the right one.

After piloting the Zealot into the city, Amber quickly found a deserted corner to let himself and Isabelle out, and they changed into the casual clothes that had been prepared in the cockpit.

After Amber and the others left, Lilith inside the Zealot immediately began executing the “supreme protocol.”

This was something written into Lilith’s meta-instruction.

The content was simple: do anything and everything possible to ensure Amber’s safety.

In fact, Amber’s daily psychological manipulation—or rather, his earnest teachings and guidance—not only prevented Lilith from going down the wrong path as she had in his previous life…

…but had also elevated Amber’s status in the strong AI’s “heart” far beyond that of her creator, Dr. Mephisto.

So even without the supreme protocol, based on her own thoughts, Lilith would do everything in her power to protect Amber.

And this time, Lilith’s method was also crude. Since she could already control an HCP for basic combat, and the pursuers would never imagine an HCP could be piloted without a person inside, she simply left a thought clone inside the HCP. Then she had it operate the unit, parading around the downtown area to successfully lead the pursuers away.

Right now, the increasing number of enemy reinforcements and the shrinking encirclement let Lilith and Amber know that the enemy probably wanted to capture him alive.

After all, whether it was the Imperial Internal Affairs Department, Bill Walter, or even the Imperial Minister of Finance, they were all very curious about Amber, the one who had wrecked the Manor.

They really wanted to know which faction had carried out such an outrageous act.

But unfortunately, Amber and Lilith would not let them have their wish.

Because the Zealot would eventually charge towards the sea and, after creating enough distance, would execute a core meltdown.

By the time the sounds of battle in the city gradually faded towards the coast, Amber had led Isabelle back to the edge of the city.

They blended into the stream of countless tourists and residents trying to flee the city for safety, smoothly passing through the temporary blockade line formed by the Ahrens family’s private soldiers and the police.

Amber had initially worried that Isabelle would be recognized by her family’s private soldiers.

But with Lilith’s help, they slipped past with ease.

“How come your family’s private soldiers don’t recognize you? Are you sure you’re the daughter of the Ahrens clan head?”

Because the crossing had been so smooth, Amber was still a little unaccustomed to it.

“Noblewomen don’t really show their faces in public, okay?”

Isabelle rolled her eyes at Amber in annoyance and continued:

“Besides, ever since I joined the Naval Intelligence Division, all my information has been classified. Many people don’t even know my father has a daughter like me.”

“I see.”

Amber nodded. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Isabelle ask again:

“Amber, what’s your plan now? After causing such a huge commotion, it’ll probably be impossible to leave this planet for a while.”

“Who said I was leaving?”

“Huh?”

Seeing Isabelle’s confused expression, Amber smiled and added.

“Darling, did you know that on the ancient Blue Star, there’s a move in an old spearfighting technique called the ‘parting shot’?”

Chapter 171: Good Evening, Gentlemen

It was one of the two HCPs Amber had taken from the Imperial frigate used to escape Robert IV.

This Zealot, which the members of Atlas PMC usually called Unit 1, could be considered a decorated mech.

But even so, HCPs were consumables in the face of cruel and difficult combat.

Amber had hoped this Zealot, which was in good condition and had a decent supply of spare parts, could stay with him a while longer.

But now, having airdropped onto Planet Westminster, it meant Amber was already prepared to sacrifice it.

When Lilith, piloting the Zealot, was forced to the coast by her pursuers and charged toward the sea with no way out, all of them thought this was the end of the road.

But when a small sun appeared on the surface of the sea, they finally realized they were wrong.

The pursuers, along with countless residents and tourists in the coastal area, all saw this small sun suddenly rise amidst the evening glow.

When they figured out this wasn’t some “natural wonder” but the explosion of an HCP’s subcritical reactor, a new wave of panic descended.

In the main guest room of the Ahrens family Manor.

“Look what you’ve done! I’ll bet tomorrow’s headlines will all be ‘Nuclear Explosion at Arai Beach on Planet Westminster’!” Jacques Cole snapped, sitting on a chair with a cup of hot tea in hand under the protection of the Royal Silencers.

Although they had nearly come to blows with Barrot and Bill Walter’s men earlier, both sides had eventually calmed down after a few rounds of confrontation.

They had turned their guns outward, prioritizing the capture of the fugitive Amber.

After all, with the information Amber had overheard, he was like a walking time bomb to everyone in the main guest room.

But after receiving news that the “capture had failed,” the Imperial Minister of Finance didn’t pass up the chance to lambaste the others.

Their truce was only temporary, anyway.

“Rest assured, Your Excellency Jacques,” Minister Barrot said, raising a hand to signal for him to calm down.

“I assure you, by tomorrow, not even a local Arai tabloid will have a single word about today’s events.”

“What? You’re going to use that ‘great memory erasure technique’ your Internal Affairs Department is so proud of again?” Jacques Cole said with a sneer. He was well aware that Minister Barrot and his Imperial Internal Affairs Department had this capability.

It just required the use of a few “amicable” little methods.

“Hmph! Cut the snide remarks,” Bill Walter’s voice rang out from the other side of the guest room.

“Who’s to say this unidentified man wasn’t sent by you!”

As he spoke, Minister Barrot’s gaze also shifted, intentionally or not, toward Jacques Cole.

The meaning in his eyes was obvious—suspicion of the Imperial Minister of Finance.

After all, everything had been normal before he arrived. The moment he showed up, so did this infiltrator.

Although it looked like he had clashed with the Royal Silencers, who knew if the Minister of Finance was just putting on a show?

Seeing their hostile gazes, just as Jacques Cole was about to say something, the Royal Silencer who had been standing steadfastly behind him suddenly moved to stand in front, shielding him.

The Royal Silencer’s heavy footsteps immediately triggered Mr. Bill Walter’s PTSD.

He instinctively shut his mouth. It took him a good while to realize that this time, the Royal Silencer opposite him wasn’t looking at him.

It was looking at the guest room’s main door.

By now, aside from this Royal Silencer, the other three in the room had also sensed that something was wrong.

Minister Barrot inconspicuously tapped the second knuckle of his left ring finger several times.

His left hand was modified; each knuckle of his five fingers could be used to transmit messages by touch.

In this situation, the second knuckle of his ring finger was meant to summon the guards outside the room.

But this time, the guest room door remained closed.

Exhaling deeply, Minister Barrot drew a pistol from his shoulder holster.

It was a collector’s-grade, gunpowder-propelled firearm, quite old. On a normal day, it was truly just a collector’s item and a trinket to be toyed with, kept in its holster.

But now, Barrot was treating it as a weapon.

Because the soundproofing in the main guest room was far too effective, the people inside were completely unable to hear the commotion outside.

Only the Royal Silencer, through his Psionic Vision, watched as the large cluster of life signs gathered outside fell to the ground one by one.

Finally, only two people were left standing outside the guest room door.

The next moment, the door opened.

“Good evening, gentlemen. I didn’t expect we’d meet again so soon~”

His voice arrived before he did.

After speaking, Amber walked in slowly with his hands raised in a “French military salute,” a harmless and composed expression on his face.

He had already taken a Psionic supplement, and his body was now brimming with Psionics, more than enough to take on the Royal Silencer if he had to.

But he hadn’t come back this time to solve the problem with violence.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Minister Barrot. If I were you, I’d put that little toy away.”

Upon seeing the head of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department pointing a pistol at him, several streaks of blue Psionic light flashed at Amber’s fingertips.

An invisible hand seemed to appear in the air, snatching the pistol away from Minister Barrot’s grasp at a speed he couldn’t possibly react to.

“A P08, a classic toggle-lock action… I have to say, Mister Minister, you have quite the taste in collectibles.”

Amber stared unflinchingly into Minister Barrot’s eyes as he deftly removed the magazine and unloaded the bullets one by one.

Then, after ejecting the last round from the chamber, he reinserted the empty magazine and returned the pistol the same way it came.

Once he saw the Minister, whose expression was a mix of dark and light, return the pistol to its holster, Amber turned his head to the side and said:

“Come in, Isabelle.”

At the sound of this name, the eyes of the several men in the room went wide.

And when Isabelle walked into the guest room holding a captured electromagnetic rifle, the expressions on their faces were a spectacular and varied sight.

The Minister of Finance, Isabelle’s maternal uncle, Jacques Cole, wore a look of both relief and worry.

Minister Barrot, on the other hand, had an expression of astonished suspicion, his gaze repeatedly flicking toward Amber.

And finally, there was Isabelle’s paternal uncle, Mr. Bill Walter.

This nobleman immediately displayed his high breeding.

“Isabelle. I can’t believe a little beast like you, who has completely disgraced the family, actually dares to come back?”

“Your mouth is filthy. Shut it for now.” Amber tilted his head, his gaze towards Bill Walter holding no kindness.

In the next instant, the man full of nonsense and profanity felt his mouth being clamped shut.

He could only let out a few whimpers, unable to speak a word.

“Good. The annoying one is finally quiet.”

Amber took a step forward and made a ‘please’ gesture.

“Shall we get down to business now?”

Chapter 172: Reunion

As the Minister of the Star Dragon Empire’s Internal Affairs Department, Barrot, who had always had smooth sailing under the Regent Prince’s patronage, never imagined things would fall into such a passive situation.

After managing to summon Jacques Cole to the Ahrens family Manor on Planet Westminster, Minister Barrot had thought he had plenty of ways to make him agree to cooperate.

Although the presence of the Royal Guard and a Royal Silencer by the man’s side made it difficult to use force, resolving the issue through non-violent means had been Barrot’s original intention anyway.

But he never expected this Minister of Finance to be far more stubborn than they had anticipated.

What he expected even less was for their secret meeting to be eavesdropped on from start to finish.

The mobile forces deployed near the Manor had been inexplicably hit by an electronic warfare virus, and a large portion of their equipment was temporarily in a ‘semi-destroyed’ state with all its software crashed.

And the HCP team sent in pursuit had gotten into a major brawl with the target in a busy downtown area, even setting off a massive explosion just off the coast in the end.

At first, Barrot had thought the matter was over.

Although they hadn’t caught the infiltrator and would have to expend great effort to suppress the news of today’s battle, at least no classified information had been leaked.

But he never, ever imagined that this man, whom everyone thought had died in the HCP team’s self-destruction, would actually return.

And he had brought Isabelle, the eldest daughter of the current Head of the Ahrens family, with him.

Right now, though a large number of guards had been dispatched in pursuit, leaving the Manor’s defenses thin, being breached so easily was still a blow to the Minister’s pride.

At this point, the identity of the person before them was practically screaming at him.

If Minister Barrot still hadn’t figured out who he was, it would only prove that he was far too incompetent for his position.

“Mr. Amber, what impressive methods.”

“Likewise. In this regard, neither of us is a pushover.”

Amber gave a polite smile, then looked over at Jacques Cole.

The Royal Silencer beside the Empire’s Minister of Finance had been about to make a move; even Amber had sensed the gathering of Psionics from that direction.

But at the last moment, the Minister of Finance stopped him.

This gesture undoubtedly earned him a great deal of goodwill from Amber.

“Hello, Uncle~”

Amber said with a cheerful smile. Behind him, Isabelle’s face flushed red.

“Er, ah, hello,” Jacques Cole replied awkwardly.

Although he too had guessed Amber’s identity, he still hadn’t figured out the man’s objective. Add to that the juicy gossip he’d heard from Amber earlier…

All in all, the Minister of Finance felt rather strange at this moment.

“Mr. Amber, what is your objective? You should know that your current actions have violated the laws of the Empire, enough to get you shot ten times over. But if we can talk this out, perhaps there’s still a solution.”

Barrot’s voice came from the other side. He could already see that Amber and Jacques Cole seemed to have a close relationship.

Under these circumstances, the situation was already becoming unfavorable for him.

“Talk? What is there to talk about?”

Amber turned to look at Barrot and Bill Walter next to him, whose mouth was covered by Psionics.

He looked at them as if they were already dead men.

“The cause and course of this incident—isn’t it all perfectly clear already?”

“What do you mean?!”

“Bill Walter Ahrens, younger brother of the Head of the Ahrens family, plotted to murder his brother and seize power. Today, he colluded with the Minister of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department to bend the law for personal gain, illegally invading the Ahrens family’s fiefdom, maliciously imprisoning members of the Ahrens family, and issuing false orders from the Head of the family to other family members…”

Amber fluently recited the list of charges he had long since fabricated for the two of them.

With every charge he listed, the faces of Minister Barrot and Bill Walter grew a little darker.

The Star Dragon Empire had legislation in place to uphold the rules governing its nobility.

And Amber clearly knew exactly which laws they had broken.

“Enough! What do you think you’re saying!” Minister Barrot interrupted Amber, his face grim.

“Do you think you can overturn all of this by yourself?!”

“If you hadn’t been foolish enough to come here in person, I wouldn’t have been so confident.”

Amber’s response made Minister Barrot’s next words catch in his throat.

“If—and I’m just saying if—the members of the Ahrens family were to escape your house arrest, regain control of the family, and contact their allies…

And then if all of this were made public, your plan would fail completely.

I believe you probably didn’t follow proper procedures when you brought the Internal Affairs Department’s mobile forces out this time, did you?

Then the next development would be this: the Minister of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department illegally led troops to invade the territory of an Imperial noble, violently imprisoned family members, and even intended to harm a great hero of the Empire—our great ‘Prosperer’, His Excellency, Minister of Finance Jacques Cole.

Under these circumstances, I believe even your backer, His Excellency the Regent Prince, wouldn’t want to save you.

To him, if this had succeeded, you would naturally have rendered a great service.

But if it failed, this would just be the two of you acting on your own, having nothing to do with the Internal Affairs Department or himself.

Once you’re brought to justice, he’ll simply replace the Minister of Internal Affairs, express his apologies to the nobility at large, and pin all the blame on you.

Perhaps His Grace the Regent Prince could even win the goodwill of many nobles because of it…”

After he finished speaking, the expressions on Minister Barrot and Bill Walter’s faces were no longer so defiant.

They knew that what Amber had said was very likely to happen. And based on their understanding of the Regent Prince, His Grace would indeed do exactly that.

But the question was, how could Amber know all this so clearly?

That was a question the two of them would never figure out.

Because they could never imagine that Amber was not from this world.

And in Amber’s world, there were a vast number of fans of the Regent Prince among the players, including anti-fans. Through their various articles and analyses, the Regent Prince’s style, considerations, and decision-making processes had been dissected with extreme clarity.

And Amber happened to be someone who loved to lurk on the forums, so naturally, he had read through most of these analyses.

On the other side, Jacques Cole, who had remained silent all this time, knew that the situation was now secure.

From the current look of things, Amber was at least not on the Regent Prince’s side, and he was also close with his niece…

However, the Minister of Finance’s original plan to continue watching the show was dashed.

Because after finishing his long speech, Amber turned to look at him.

“Ah, my dear uncle~”

Jacques Cole instantly felt the hair on his body stand on end. Then he heard Amber continue:

“Could I trouble you to have your Royal Silencer lift a finger and help restrain our dear Minister? Although his self-control is much better than the one next to him, I’m still worried he might do something detrimental to both sides in a moment of panic.”

To be honest, Jacques Cole was reluctant to do this. Amber was blatantly trying to drag him into this.

However, after seeing the expectant look on his niece’s face, another face surfaced in Jacques Cole’s mind.

He sighed helplessly and gave the order.

The tall Royal Silencer was quite reliable.

Following the Minister of Finance’s command, he not only restrained Minister Barrot but also added another layer of control on Bill Walter.

“Solid, my man!”

Amber gave the Royal Silencer a thumbs-up, then gave Jacques Cole a slight bow before temporarily leaving the reception room with Isabelle.

A few minutes later, the current Head of the Ahrens family—Jonathan Ahrens, who had been imprisoned in the master bedroom with his wife—walked in through the main reception room’s doors with a bewildered expression.

When he saw the scene inside, even more question marks popped up over his head.

“So, what exactly is the situation now?”

Chapter 173: Setting Things Right

Isabelle’s father, Count Jonathan Ahrens, the current Head of the Ahrens family, never imagined that he would ultimately be rescued by his own daughter and a young man who appeared to be her boyfriend.

Just as he had never imagined that his good-for-nothing younger brother would actually have the nerve to stab him in the back.

After Bill Walter betrayed the family, allowing the Internal Affairs Department’s mobile units to quickly secure the Manor and place him and his family members under house arrest, Jonathan Ahrens pieced together the general situation from the family’s recent troubles and the rumors circulating outside.

He had believed that death was likely inescapable.

Even if the Internal Affairs Department was willing to spare him, his brother, whose ambitions were now laid bare, certainly would not.

So when Isabelle reopened the main bedroom door, his and his wife’s first reaction was:

“My poor daughter, how did you get captured and brought back here too?”

However, after their daughter’s explanation and the sight of the guards lying unconscious outside the door, they realized that Isabelle had actually fought her way back to save them.

At that moment, as Jonathan Ahrens looked at the man beside his daughter, it wasn’t hard to guess his identity.

It was Amber, who, like his daughter, had been branded a ‘traitor.’

And watching the small interactions between the two, he knew he was about to experience the kind of feeling every father with a daughter must experience—that his carefully raised prize cabbage had been ravaged by a boar.

But regardless, he was the Head of the Ahrens family. He could distinguish between priorities and was not so petty.

So, he didn’t press the matter and instead followed Amber and Isabelle to the main reception room.

Upon seeing Barrot and Bill Walter restrained by the Royal Silencers, and then spotting his brother-in-law, Jacques Cole, beside them, his initial, dazed reaction as he walked in made sense.

“Jacques. What are you doing here?”

As he had always been on good terms with his brother-in-law, they had always addressed each other casually.

“Ahem~ I was summoned by these two. They threatened me with the lives of your family members, demanding I do something for them.”

Jacques Cole’s voice was now quite relaxed, as if he were speaking of something that had nothing to do with him.

As he said this, however, the Minister of Finance kept glancing at Amber, his eyes ultimately forming a single question:

“Why haven’t you called me ‘Dad’ yet?”

“Tch.”

Amber ignored the Minister of Finance’s gaze and wasted no time, quickly explaining the whole story to Jonathan Ahrens.

He even included the Regent Prince’s original plans.

After all, except for Isabelle and her father, everyone else present already knew about these matters.

And the Royal Silencers would never leak such information.

These psionic users, whose talents were discovered in childhood, were taken away by the Empire’s special training institutions and forbidden from speaking from a young age.

Over a decade of training not only continuously improved their psionic skills but also cost them their ability to speak.

Moreover, having been indoctrinated since childhood, their loyalty to the Emperor was absolute, and they would only ever act as unfeeling ‘guardian machines’ according to the Emperor’s will.

After Amber finished speaking, the reception room fell silent.

Jonathan Ahrens was still trying to digest the information. Although he had suspected that the Regent Prince would make an example of his family, he hadn’t expected the man to plan on dragging the Minister of Finance down with them.

He wasn’t a particularly quick thinker. As the third-generation Head of the Ahrens family, his various abilities were not as great as his father’s.

He was even less comparable to his grandfather, who had once served as the Speaker of the Imperial Council.

But in his father’s eyes, Jonathan Ahrens’s greatest virtues were his uncontentious nature and his steadfastness.

Theoretically, such traits would make him better suited to protect the family’s estate.

If the Star Dragon Empire hadn’t fallen into its current turmoil, Jonathan Ahrens could have indeed managed his family and territory well, safeguarding the legacy passed down by his ancestors.

At the very least, he had performed exceptionally in terms of economic development and his benevolent treatment of his subjects.

Unfortunately, due to the factional politics within the Empire, two major powers had simultaneously set their sights on this already somewhat marginalized family, which led to the situation today.

After a moment of silence in the reception room, the Head of the family finally finished processing the information.

He let out a soft sigh and slowly walked over to his younger brother, Bill Walter Ahrens.

“Bill Walter, you’ve greatly disappointed me.”

Gagged, Bill Walter’s face was filled with scorn upon hearing this, his eyes showing not a shred of respect for his older brother.

“If you don’t mind, please allow him to speak temporarily. I want to hear what he was thinking.”

Jonathan looked back at Amber and Jacques Cole. The latter nodded, then ordered a Royal Silencer to temporarily remove the gag from Bill Walter’s mouth.

“Jonathan! You usele—”

Slap!

Bill Walter had barely gotten a few words out before his brother struck him hard across the face.

“You haven’t learned a single one of our family’s virtues: humility, compassion, justice, and kindness.”

Jonathan Ahrens’s voice was cold. Stunned by the slap, Bill Walter realized it might have been the first time he had ever heard his older brother speak with such a tone.

“Before Father passed away, he warned me to be wary of your ambition… I thought that by giving you enough freedom and wealth beyond imagination, I could make you settle into being a profligate son and dilute those thoughts in your heart. It seems I was too naive.”

“Hmph… You really are Father’s good son. Both of you have the same pedantic ideas in your heads.”

Bill Walter spat out a mouthful of blood and continued, “We are Imperial nobles! When Grandfather was head, we were first-tier nobles. Why have we willingly fallen so low, guarding this small inheritance every day instead of thinking about acquiring more?”

“Acquire more? First-tier? Bill Walter… haven’t you ever heard the saying ‘it’s lonely at the top’?”

“That’s because you two don’t know how to pick the right side! Our family could have been much more prosperous! It’s because of cowards like you that we’ve ended up like this today!”

Bill Walter’s voice was agitated, but Jonathan remained completely unmoved before him.

“We are cowards? Then what are you? A tyrant? Or an executioner?”

Jonathan’s tone was laced with an inexpressible disappointment.

“The plans you submitted might indeed have revitalized the family… but they treated our family’s subjects as less than human. What did you see them as? Just a string of numbers on a report? Or disposables to be used at will?”

“Subjects? Without our family’s protection, would these lowlifes have the good lives they do today? They owe us this!”

Bill Walter stared into his older brother’s eyes and said, word by word, “For the great carriage of our family to move forward, someone has to be under the wheels to increase the friction. Regardless of my fate, for the future of the Ahrens family, I hope you can remember this, Big Bro.”

Chapter 174: Jonathan’s Aftermath Arrangements

After Jonathan, in his capacity as Head of the family, ordered the private soldiers deployed near the family’s exclusive territory to capture the disguised mobile units of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department and rush to the Manor to provide support.

Although the number of Internal Affairs Department rapid mobile units controlling the Manor area was not small, and they possessed mechanized units including heavy powered armor and HCPs.

But when the Ahrens family’s private soldiers brought out an even greater number of HCPs, as well as main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines for fire support.

And charged forward with an attitude of ‘Just you try and touch our family head!’

These soldiers of the Internal Affairs Department’s rapid mobile units still chose to lay down their arms.

After all, main battle tanks were relatively inexpensive compared to HCPs, so the major noble families deployed a considerable number of them on their own turf.

Moreover, the main battle tanks used by the Ahrens family were the newer T-89 ‘Wraiths’.

Its diamond-shaped turret was mounted with a heavy electromagnetic cannon.

Although this model of main battle tank was primarily used as a planetary surface defense force and an auxiliary unit in armored brigade combat teams within the Star Dragon Empire’s regular army order of battle…

…it was more than sufficient for the private soldiers of a noble family.

When massed in such numbers, if they concentrated the fire of their heavy electromagnetic cannons on an HCP, the latter wouldn’t be able to withstand it even with its deflector shields active.

What’s more, the Internal Affairs Department’s mobile units were caught in an encirclement with virtually no defensive depth to speak of.

Attacked from both front and rear, it was only natural for them to lay down their arms and surrender.

They were all citizens of the Empire; there was no need to fight to the death.

“Regardless of your reputation among the Empire’s upper echelons, Mr. Amber, I must thank you for rescuing Isabelle and for risking your own safety to come and save me and my family.”

After temporarily detaining Barrot, Bill Walter, and the Internal Affairs Department soldiers, and issuing a week-long curfew for the entire planet…

…Jonathan Ahrens pulled Amber aside for a private conversation.

“It was my duty, Count. Miss Isabelle’s affairs are my affairs.”

Amber replied with a grin, completely ignoring the constant twitching of the Count’s eye.

“So, what is your relationship with my daughter?”

“A comradeship forged in steel, Sir.”

“Is that all?”

Disbelief was written all over Jonathan’s face. A father’s intuition told him that the relationship between this man and his daughter was anything but simple.

“Of course not.” Amber squirmed for a rare moment, scratching his head in embarrassment.

“Miss Isabelle is also a shareholder in our company.”

Amber hadn’t planned on hiding this from Jonathan.

After all, he was Isabelle’s father; it was theoretically only a matter of time before he found out.

“Company? Shareholder?”

Seeing Jonathan’s suspicious expression, Amber briefly explained the situation with Atlas to the Count.

“Even Ms. Yuge has invested in you. Mr. Amber, it seems I’ve underestimated you.”

Count Jonathan leaned back in his chair. He had originally wanted this private chat with Amber to get to know the young man better and to ask about his situation with Isabelle.

But as they talked, he found that he was finding Amber more and more inscrutable.

But since even Allenita had invested in Amber, it meant he had truly earned the elf’s approval.

And when it came to investments, the female elf was famous for her shrewd judgment.

“I can understand the mining company. It’s a market necessity, after all, with guaranteed profit margins.”

Count Jonathan looked intently into Amber’s eyes, paused for a moment, and continued:

“But to start a private military company at a time like this… it seems you are a man of ambition, Mr. Amber.”

“Not at all, I’m just trying to make a living.”

“With the strength and insight you’ve shown, I believe you are aiming for more than just dabbling, Mr. Amber. But everyone has their secrets, and I don’t intend to press the matter.”

Amber breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

To be honest, there were some things that weren’t suitable for detailed discussion with the Count, and he hadn’t had a chance to concoct a story for that part yet.

But Count Jonathan’s next words took Amber completely by surprise.

“I have always admired Ms. Yuge’s investment acumen. There’s certainly no harm in following her lead. Our family happens to have some spare funds at the moment, so I intend to invest in your company.”

“Huh?”

Amber really hadn’t expected the conversation to ultimately lead to an investment pitch; he hadn’t considered it in the slightest.

“Er, well, Count, our company isn’t publicly listed, and the equity structure is relatively fixed.”

“How many shares do you hold, Mr. Amber?”

“54.5%.”

“Fifteen million Imperial Gold Dragons for 4.5% of your shares. What do you think?”

Jonathan’s offer was made with the air of a generous benefactor.

“Er, Count… you’re practically asking me to rip you off.”

Amber wasn’t mincing his words; after all, the deal really was a bit of a rip-off.

He could write a book titled ‘How I Got an Imperial Count to Give Me Fifteen Million in Just Three Sentences’.

Not to mention, the man was Isabelle’s father. If she found out he’d done this, she would probably tear him limb from limb that very night.

“To be honest, I don’t care about the 4.5% stake. If I didn’t want to maintain some semblance of procedure, I would have just given you the money directly.”

“No, but… what are you trying to achieve with this?”

“What am I trying to achieve? To ensure Isabelle has a good future, of course.”

The Count’s tone was filled with a father’s concern for his daughter.

“This incident has made me realize that the Empire’s factional politics have entered their most intense stage. Even if I wanted to stay out of it like before, I’m afraid it would be very difficult.

Furthermore, your and Isabelle’s identities are too sensitive within the Empire. Both the Regent Prince and our esteemed Her Highness the Princess will want to use you.

That’s why I don’t want you to stay within the Empire’s borders. It’s too dangerous.

I approve of your abilities, and I believe you have the potential to carve out a place for yourselves.

Based on all this, rather than have you stay in the Empire living in constant fear, I’d prefer you go to the Thousand Stars Empire and make Atlas bigger and stronger. That way, I can rest easy.”

After Jonathan finished, Amber understood the old father’s intentions.

He could see that the Empire was on the verge of chaos and simply wanted to get his precious daughter out of the increasingly dangerous whirlpool, throwing in fifteen million as a living allowance for good measure.

The strength Amber had demonstrated also convinced him that Isabelle would be safer by Amber’s side.

But as the old saying goes, one doesn’t accept a reward without merit. Taking fifteen million so suddenly left Amber feeling a little unsettled.

Just as he was feeling conflicted, he heard Count Jonathan add one more thing.

“Haha, actually, Mr. Amber, you don’t need to feel so conflicted. Consider this fifteen million Imperial Gold Dragons as buying a favor from a psionic user like yourself. If the Ahrens family encounters any difficulties in the future, I hope you will be willing to lend a hand again.”

“Deal!”

Amber said without a moment’s hesitation.

That night, aside from finalizing the fifteen million Imperial Gold Dragon investment…

…Jonathan, acting under a provision of the ‘Star Dragon Empire Basic Law for Nobility’ that grants nobles the right to self-defense and judgment, directly executed Barrot and Bill Walter.

He then publicly announced the incident in the name of the Ahrens family and sent a detailed report of the events to the three parties: the Emperor, the Regent Prince, and Her Highness the Princess.

A week after the incident, the reaction from the Regent Prince’s faction was just as Amber had predicted.

There was no way to spin the story. A Minister of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department had brought troops into the Ahrens family’s fiefdom without any due process and had even placed members of the Ahrens family under house arrest.

Only someone with a death wish would try to cover this up.

Thus, Norton II issued a statement claiming complete ignorance of the matter, expressing sympathy for the Ahrens family’s plight, and voicing his support for the family’s right to severely punish the perpetrators in accordance with Imperial law.

The Princess Faction, meanwhile, seized the opportunity to launch a new round of condemnations against the Regent Prince Faction.

As for the long-bedridden Emperor, Amber even suspected he might not have seen the news at all.

However, his current chief attendant still relayed his verbal edict to the public.

The Emperor expressed his anger over the incident while also approving of the Ahrens family’s decision to handle the matter themselves according to the ‘Star Dragon Empire Basic Law for Nobility’.

To be honest, Amber felt that His Majesty the Emperor’s statement only further exposed that his control over the Empire had reached a dangerously precarious point.

He couldn’t command any of his departments and was reduced to spouting empty, grandiose words.

“This country… what a state. It’s the system, for sure. Makes you think.”

“Amber, what are you talking about?”

Isabelle, who was standing on the balcony watching the fireworks in the distance over the Manor, nuzzled against Amber’s cheek.

It was New Year’s Eve. Amber had originally planned to leave a few days ago, but he had stayed after Isabelle’s persistent coaxing.

“It’s nothing, just rambling. Have you gotten in touch with Allenita?”

“I have. She told us to rest well and that she’ll come to pick us up in a few days.”

“Alright. The matters with your family are settled, so it’s time to head back to the company. There’s probably a pile of work waiting for us there.”

Amber sighed, pulled Isabelle tighter in his embrace, and whispered in her ear:

“After all this, I have a feeling the turmoil within the Empire caused by the factional politics is about to accelerate…”

“Oh? It’s rare to see you worried about the Empire’s future.”

“You’ve got it wrong. I’m not worried about what will happen to the Empire’s future. I’m worried the chaos will escalate too quickly, before Atlas has grown strong enough to profit from it.”

“That’s so you.”

Isabelle turned and cupped Amber’s cheeks.

“Let’s not think about all that tonight. Let’s go set off some fireworks~”

She didn’t want to waste this rare moment of peace.

“Fireworks are boring. I’ll show you something more interesting.”

Amber shook his head, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.

“What is it?”

“A New Year’s bang~”

Amidst Isabelle’s shriek, Amber hoisted her over his shoulder and walked back into the room.

Chapter 175: In-Your-Face Tactics

After the New Year, once the situation on Planet Westminster had completely stabilized, Isabelle used a psionic entanglement communication crystal to call back Allenita, who was waiting on standby after warping to a safe region of space.

For long-lived elves, their perception of the passage of time was different from that of humans.

The thrilling half-month that Amber and Isabelle had experienced was but a fleeting moment for Allenita.

From her perspective, after she had warped away with her three ships to a safe area, she had merely tended to her flowers, sipped some tea, and taken a couple of naps before receiving Isabelle’s message.

When the St. Russell once again docked at the Spaceport, Jonathan Ahrens personally came to greet them, thanking this close business partner for the assistance she had rendered during the incident.

For the Ahrens family, even with the connection through his daughter, Allenita and the Yuge family behind her were still respected partners.

This was to say nothing of the fact that she had braved the risks and traveled a great distance to help them.

Therefore, it was essential for him to come to the Spaceport in person to welcome and thank her.

However, as for his entourage, Count Jonathan only brought his wife, Isabelle’s mother.

This was mainly because, in a previous conversation, Amber had suggested that they downplay his and Isabelle’s presence as much as possible in how the whole affair was handled.

The mysterious infiltrators at the Manor? There was no such thing!

The huge battle in the HCP district? The work of the family’s loyal retainers!

The credit for turning the tide against all odds would go entirely to the wisdom and courage of the family members.

To be honest, as Jonathan listened to the narrative Amber had re-scripted, his old face flushed with embarrassment.

The truth was that his family had been caught completely off guard and thoroughly outmaneuvered, yet this revised version made it sound like a heroic epic.

But the Count accepted Amber’s suggestion and acted on it efficiently, as it would also make his daughter’s situation safer.

Thus, all records of Allenita and the elven ships’ entries and departures were amended to appear as normal.

In the Orbital Control Center’s database, the record of the St. Russell leaving port to perform a low orbital drop was completely erased.

On Planet Westminster, which the Ahrens family had managed for many years, manipulating information at this level was a simple task.

However, Amber knew that if the Empire’s intelligence services were determined to investigate, they could still uncover the truth.

Still, doing this would delay his full exposure to the Imperial intelligence agencies for as long as possible.

And as long as he could buy time, it was enough. With every bit of strength Atlas gained, his apprehension toward the Imperial intelligence agencies would diminish.

Not to mention, if he could stall long enough, the Star Dragon Empire itself would descend into chaos.

When that happened, the major powers within the Empire would be too preoccupied with their own affairs to bother with Amber.

And so, after Allenita had also rested at the Ahrens family Manor for several days, Amber’s group bid farewell to Count Jonathan and Jacques Cole and began their journey home.

Yes, the Empire’s Minister of Finance had not left immediately after the incident concluded.

He had remained, under the pretext of visiting family, and had several private conversations with Amber during this time.

The content of their discussions revolved around the power struggles among the Imperial royal family, the Regent Prince, and the Princess, as well as the future direction of the Empire.

Drawing on the in-depth analyses of this period of Imperial schism from the lore enthusiasts on the forums in his past life, Amber once again earned Jacques Cole’s high regard.

When they parted, Cole gave him a secure communication channel.

“Mr. Amber, it has been a pleasure speaking with you. I hope we will have the chance for more in-depth discussions in the future.”

“The honor is mine, Sir. I am certain there will be opportunities.”

After leaving Westminster, since the Yuge family’s fleet had already set sail ten days prior, Amber and his group were in no rush to rendezvous with them.

The time it took to resolve the incident within the Star Dragon Empire had been considerably shorter than Amber had anticipated.

So, Amber had originally planned to return directly to the Tower of Babel to review training progress or to take a V-tour of the operations base in the asteroid belt.

However, aboard the St. Russell, after seeing a briefing on the recent battles between the Empire and the Federation, as well as the skyrocketing price of ore, he could no longer sit still.

Twenty days ago, the Federation and the Empire had clashed in the Carlos star system within Federation territory, a massive fleet battle that the major news outlets dubbed the “Battle of the Carlos Starzone.”

Under the command of Marshal Trafalgar, the Federation Navy had secretly maneuvered six main fleets. Combined with garrison fleets drawn from surrounding star systems, they formed an ultra-large-scale force equivalent to seven main fleets.

Neither the briefings nor the news reports explained what tactics Marshal Trafalgar had used to evade the long-range detection of the Empire’s strategic fortress and complete his assembly.

Amber, however, had a rough idea.

Marshal Trafalgar had likely leveraged the Federation’s superior speed of information transmission within its own borders.

Using intelligence from a large number of long-range scout ships on the front lines, he had guided his fleets to avoid the fortress’s long-range gravitational wave radar array, assembling them in the “shadow” of a planet.

Then, taking advantage of the more thoroughly surveyed warp points within their own territory, he picked a coordinate closest to the fortress.

This would later become a relatively common method of assembly in battles against strategic fortresses.

Once the Federation Navy’s counter-attack fleet had assembled, they struck at a critical moment—just as the Fortress of Sorrow and its three Expeditionary Strike Groups detached from the Imperial offensive formation and warped to another system to support the unmanned fleets.

With Marshal Trafalgar commanding from the Federation Navy flagship, the Dreadnought, he personally led this massive fleet and warped right into the Chaos Fortress’s face.

At that moment, the Chaos Fortress was accompanied by only two Expeditionary Strike Groups, placing the Imperial Royal Navy at an absolute numerical disadvantage.

This was the tactic Marshal Trafalgar had devised during the recent fighting to counter the Artificial Celestial Fortresses.

The key was to establish absolute numerical superiority and minimize the engagement distance as much as possible.

The Federation and the Empire, two nations that hadn’t fought a large-scale fleet battle in decades, were like two sponges in this war, greedily absorbing experience from every engagement to strengthen themselves.

It had to be said, Trafalgar had certainly earned his position as a Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy; he really knew his stuff.

Seven fleets dropped out of warp less than fifty thousand kilometers from the Chaos Fortress and began to close in at maximum speed.

The Chaos Fortress was similarly equipped with a massive number of heavy particle cannons and a Focusing Rainbow on its forward hemisphere.

But the Federation Navy detached two fleets to tie up the two escorting Expeditionary Strike Groups in a close-quarters brawl.

The remaining five fleets swung around from five different directions, heading for the Chaos Fortress’s rear hemisphere.

Although the Chaos Fortress still possessed the firepower to annihilate any one of those fleets, the other four would still be able to reach the fortress’s rear hemisphere and attack its relatively vulnerable thruster array.

Faced with this situation, Duke William aboard the Chaos Fortress finally panicked.

The result of the Battle of the Carlos Starzone was, without a doubt, a pyrrhic victory for the Federation.

Although the Federation Navy lost an entire main fleet and all of its local garrison fleets to the Chaos Fortress’s Focusing Rainbow, and the two main fleets engaged in the brawl were rendered largely combat-ineffective, they had ultimately managed to cripple the Chaos Fortress, taking it out of the fight for the foreseeable future.

They also inflicted over sixty-five percent casualties on the two Imperial Expeditionary Strike Groups that had served as the fortress’s guards during the close-quarters fighting.

Although they ultimately failed to prevent the Chaos Fortress and the surviving Imperial fleet from warping away, for the Federation Navy, the battle was a tremendous morale booster.

Most importantly, it shattered the myth of the “invincible” Imperial strategic fortresses.

Another major consequence of this battle was that both sides accelerated their massive shipbuilding programs.

The already rising price of ore within both nations was given a violent shove, and it continued to skyrocket at an alarming rate.

For Amber, who had previously instructed Lilith to use their remaining cash to buy up a large quantity of ore through remote trading, the time to cash in had arrived.

Chapter 176: Profiteering from War

When acquiring ore previously, Amber had made a massive gamble.

At the time, after purchasing the ship, the Atlas Company only had thirteen million Imperial Gold Dragons left in cash.

After setting aside the minimum funds to guarantee support staff and company operations, Amber bought nine million Imperial Gold Dragons’ worth of various ores.

It was a long shot, but a risk worth taking—a chance to turn a bicycle into a motorcycle.

Now, the listed prices on the major ore exchanges were up forty-five percent from Amber’s purchase price.

This meant that, without considering any other factors, those nine million had already appreciated to 13.05 million.

And that was just the listed price; the actual transaction prices were even higher.

The current ore market was in a state where supply simply could not meet demand.

Besides the major heavy industries that genuinely needed the ore, a large number of speculators were also buying it up.

Their presence and actions added more fuel to the already blazing fire of ore prices.

Modell was one of these merchant speculators.

A perennial figure in the major ore trading markets along the Star Dragon Empire’s border, he had amassed a considerable fortune over the years through his talent for speculation and profiteering in the ore business.

When war broke out between the Federation and the Empire, as a citizen of the Star Dragon Empire, he was among the first to shout his support, cheering for this ‘holy and glorious war.’

However, while others were thrilled at the thought that this war would restore the Empire’s former glory, Modell was ecstatic purely because of the impending surge in ore prices.

But even he had underestimated the sheer madness of this ore trading trend.

After a long period of acquiring ore and making a few small profits by reselling for a quick margin, Modell discovered that it had become difficult to find any large-scale ore deals on the market.

Compared to the large, corporate-level speculative firms, his own ability to snatch up deals was far too weak.

On the trading markets, any reasonably priced deals were typically snapped up the moment they were listed.

Under these circumstances, Modell could only try his luck in the unofficial ore trading markets.

And his usually good luck favored him once again.

He discovered a deal listed at about seven percent above the official market price. In the unofficial market, this was already a relatively low markup.

Without hesitation, Modell clicked on the deal in the market trading application, ready to secure it.

But he found that the seller had listed it as an auction.

“That greedy bastard!”

Modell, who was dining in his hotel’s restaurant, slammed his fist on the table.

Realizing his outburst had startled the surrounding guests, he quickly apologized before turning his attention back to his terminal.

In the bidding system, others had already started placing offers besides him.

And the user ID with the current highest bid was someone Modell happened to know.

It was his arch-nemesis in the world of speculation, Craven.

“Hmph, using the ID ‘Craven Comprehensive Trading Company.’ So pretentious.”

Modell sneered. He had always disdained that pompous fool, Craven.

Moreover, his rival had always been financially stronger than him.

On many occasions, Craven had simply used his deep pockets to snatch deals that were practically in Modell’s bag.

“Tsk… I can’t let this one get away. It seems I’ll have to find a way to meet with the seller face-to-face.”

Modell clicked on the deal’s details page, looking to see if the seller had left any contact information.

“Wuhu~ They actually did! Southern Cross Satellite City No. 8, Crystal Palace Hotel. Huh?!”

Modell froze when he saw the address. Wasn’t that the very same satellite city he was in right now?

“Haha! Fortune favors the persistent!”

Excited, Modell sent a private message to the seller through the platform, stating that he was also in Southern Cross Satellite City No. 8 and hoped to meet in person.

As luck would have it, the seller was online. Shortly after Modell sent the message, he received a reply agreeing to a meeting.

“Thank you very much, Mr. Rebil. I’ll be right there!”

After replying, Modell pumped his fist in excitement, as if the deal was already his.

Upon meeting the seller, a Mr. Rebil, in an executive suite at the Crystal Palace Hotel, Modell was first struck by the man’s unexpected youth, then felt an inexplicable pressure during the subsequent negotiations.

This young-looking Mr. Rebil displayed a shrewdness that completely belied his age.

Moreover, his eyes seemed capable of seeing right through Modell’s thoughts, repeatedly putting him on the defensive during their discussion.

“Mr. Modell, you know the current situation. Ore prices are rising every day; there’s a new price each day…”

“Mr. Rebil, I understand what you’re saying, and I know that an auction would earn you a higher profit.”

Modell rubbed his hands together and continued, “But you must know that as the price climbs, the final winner may not necessarily have the means to take on this shipment. Things like that have happened far too many times in the market. I can guarantee you that if this bidding war continues, the probability of the transaction failing will increase dramatically! In that case, although you won’t suffer a loss and will even receive compensation, you’ll still have wasted unnecessary time.”

“And time is money.”

“Yes, yes, yes! Time is money! You’re absolutely right, Mr. Rebil!”

Modell slapped his thigh in excitement, deciding to strike while the iron was hot.

“I’ve come to you in good faith. If you’re willing to cancel the auction, I’m willing to compensate you for that penalty and then take all of your stock at the current price of seven percent above the official market!”

“Seven percent?”

The young man named Rebil frowned, seemingly questioning the price.

“Seven percent is already very high, Mr. Rebil. And dealing with me directly will also save you the platform’s transaction fees.”

“But another gentleman approached me, willing to complete the deal at seven-point-five percent. What was his name… I think it was Craven?”

Hearing that name from Rebil’s lips, Modell had a bad feeling.

That damned fly was like a pest you couldn’t get rid of, here to ruin his business again.

“Mr. Rebil, if you’re sure his name is Craven, then I happen to know him…” Modell leaned in closer and said in a low voice, “You can ask around if you don’t believe me, but this man’s reputation in the market isn’t very good. He often sets traps in his deals, leaving his trading partners in misery.”

“Is that true?”

A look of surprise appeared on Rebil’s face.

“But this Mr. Craven has approached me several times. I thought he seemed quite sincere…”

He’s approached him several times?!

Modell’s eyelid twitched as he processed this key piece of information, but he quickly understood.

Craven had made multiple attempts but still hadn’t closed the deal. That meant they hadn’t reached an agreement, and he still had a chance.

Thinking this, Modell decided to take drastic measures.

“Seven-point-six, Mr. Rebil.”

Modell looked at Rebil earnestly. Years of targeted practice made it easy for his gaze to appear utterly sincere.

“If you agree, we can sign the contract today, and I will transfer the deposit to you immediately!”

Chapter 177: Expanding the Mining Fleet

In the end, Modell secured the deal at a price eight percent above the official market rate.

The reason it rose to eight percent was simple: as Modell was leaving the hotel, he happened to see a hurried-looking Craven walk in.

Soon after, Modell received word from Rebil that Craven had raised the price to 7.8 percent.

The pressure immediately mounted, prompting him to make an impulsive decision in the shortest time possible.

Determined to secure the deal, he finally ended the bidding war at a price of eight percent.

“Master, both of them were meeting you for the first time today, yet under your deliberate misdirection, they each believed the other had already met with you multiple times. Is this what you call the art of language?”

“Naturally.”

Amber, using the alias Rebil, stood before the window, gazing at the sky outside.

It was the dome of the satellite city, and its screen was currently simulating a planet’s blue sky.

However, a line of massive white text displaying the date hung in the azure sky.

And in the system’s default font, no less.

New Calendar Year 589, January 26th, 3:26 PM.

“But I can’t help but feel you’re a bit of a con man, Master.”

Lilith’s quip pulled Amber’s attention back to the present.

“What do you mean, con? Everything I did was above board, okay? It’s their own fault for not communicating with each other.”

Amber retorted, slightly annoyed.

“This is how the ore business works in the current climate. I’m just selling to a buyer who’s willing to pay the price. And I didn’t force them to buy anything.”

Hearing a sound behind him, Amber glanced back to see Isabelle, fresh from a shower, stepping out of the bathroom in a bathrobe.

Taking a shower at this time of day… what had just transpired was self-evident.

Upon seeing Amber, the blonde bombshell shot him a sultry glare, clearly having some reservations about his recent ‘conquest.’

Amber smiled and turned to greet her, adding a final thought to Lilith in his mind.

“This Mr. Modell might even end up thanking me. After all, in a few days, the market price for these deals will be much higher.”

The final transaction price between Amber and Modell was 14.04 million Imperial Gold Dragons.

Turning nine million into 14.04 million in under two months—only in the window of opportunity right after the outbreak of war could one achieve such a high rate of return from ore trading.

After Lilith had acquired the ore from various markets, she had arranged for it to be delivered to rented warehouses in three different star systems.

When Modell learned of this, he didn’t mind in the least.

He was planning to resell it anyway, so after his men inspected the goods at the three warehouses, he happily transferred the money to Atlas Mining’s account.

At the same time, the leases for the three warehouses and the ownership of the ore within were transferred to Modell.

Although the price was a little higher than he had hoped, seeing the ore prices rise daily and remembering that he had snatched this deal from Craven… Modell felt the transaction was well worth it.

“Mr. Rebil, it’s been a true pleasure doing business with you. I hope we have the opportunity to work together again in the future!”

Sitting aboard the St. Russell as it prepared to depart, Amber read the message on his personal terminal, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

“See, Lilith? I told you so. He even had to thank me.”

“…”

As the strong AI was left to ponder the complexities of human nature, Amber floated over to the captain’s chair.

Allenita was sitting there, a crystal in her hand projecting numerous images into the air.

Amber glanced over and saw various candlestick charts and reports.

“Ms. Yuge, we’ve troubled you, making you wait here for so long. You really could have gone ahead; Isabelle and I could have just taken a passenger ship back.”

“Please, don’t be so formal, Amber. I’m a shareholder in Atlas, too. This is hardly a bother.”

Allenita set the crystal aside for a moment and looked at Amber with a warm smile.

“This little delay is no issue. I mostly handle work and meetings remotely anyway. My family’s businesses are spread across so many star systems that I can’t possibly be hands-on with everything.”

“I’m quite envious of your Psionic Entanglement Communication technology. The ability to transmit in real-time across star systems is absolutely crucial for business.”

Amber said, his eyes on the crystal pendant hanging on the elf’s chest.

“Oh? It sounds like you have something more to say, Amber.”

Allenita’s eyes narrowed, a playful ‘I see right through you’ expression on her face.

“Ahem. I suppose there’s no beating around the bush with you. You elves are quick thinkers.”

Amber looked a little awkward, partly because of her comment, and partly because the ‘bountiful assets’ on her chest were especially… suggestive in the zero-gravity environment.

Like something out of an adult game.

He quickly composed himself, however, and ignoring her teasing expression, he continued.

“I’ve always felt that humanity’s progress on quantum entanglement communication has been slow, and that we could learn a thing or two from the principles behind your psionic version.”

“In that case, I’ll see if I can find a spare crystal when I get back and lend it to you for your research.”

Amber was taken aback; he hadn’t expected Allenita to be so agreeable.

“Then I’ll have to thank my benefactor in advance. But are you sure? From a conspiratorial point of view, shouldn’t you elves want humanity’s communication technology to remain stagnant forever?”

“If you say that, Amber, I might start to think you’re underestimating us elves.”

Allenita covered her mouth with her hand, chuckling softly.

“The success we elves have achieved in commerce today is due to far more than just our communication technology; that played only a minor role. Even if humanity were to acquire equivalent or superior technology tomorrow, we are confident we could maintain our lead for a very long time.”

And when an elf says “a very long time,” they really mean it.

While Amber and Allenita were talking, the St. Russell and its escort ship left the port and began accelerating along their planned route.

The freighter would now spend over ten days warping to the vicinity of the asteroid belt operations base.

As a major shareholder of the Atlas Mining and Development Corporation, Allenita decided to take this opportunity to ‘inspect’ the mining site.

Normally, Allenita would have her own team conduct such periodic inspections of her investments.

However, in her eyes, Atlas was currently one of her most-watched projects.

That was why she had decided to conduct the inspection personally and to discuss plans for expanding the mining fleet with Amber.

With the Imperial Gold Dragons from Modell and Count Jonathan now deposited, the company’s available cash—excluding untouchable operating funds—had reached twenty-nine million.

Besides planning to purchase another Federation mil-spec destroyer to facilitate operations within the Federation, Amber planned to use the remaining funds to upgrade their asteroid mining equipment and increase production efficiency.

After that, he would see if he could squeeze out enough money to buy two more ‘Charger’-class small mining ships.

Twenty-nine million was a tight budget for all of this, but it was still feasible.

After all, the Federation’s warships were considerably cheaper than the Empire’s floating works of art.

Chapter 178: The Problem of Personnel Expansion

After the St. Russell exited warp, the elves on the bridge quickly detected the Hermes 3500 kilometers away using their psionic detection equipment.

At that moment, the Dragoon-class destroyer was using the imaging device of its optical camouflage unit to display a line of large characters on its starboard armor plating:

“A Warm Welcome to the Leadership from Headquarters for Your Inspection!”

“Believe it or not, this is definitely that guy Randall’s idea.”

Amber said to Isabelle, who was snickering beside him.

He knew that among the people left to hold down the fort, only this unconventional former Federation Navy Major would be capable of pulling something like using the optical camouflage unit to display a welcome message.

“What a unique welcome~”

Allenita unfastened the restraints on her captain’s chair and floated over to the bridge viewport, where the external bio-armor was retracting, watching the approaching Hermes with great interest.

“Haha. This is a special welcoming ceremony in human society. You can experience it for yourself, Ms. Yuge.”

Amber floated over to the viewport with Isabelle, offering an explanation while silently praying that Randall wouldn’t pull any more stunts.

Perhaps because he usually didn’t have time for such things, Randall hadn’t arranged any other ‘fancy tricks’ besides the welcome message on the optical camouflage.

Amber had even been afraid the guy would have Murat fly an HCP around in circles, drawing a heart with its contrail or something.

Soon, communications were established between the two ships, and an image from the Hermes appeared on the psionic projection device on the St. Russell’s bridge.

The bridge and CIC crew, led by Randall, were standing in a neat formation. Upon seeing the image of Amber and the others, Randall, with a rare display of high spirits, barked an order:

“Entire crew of the Hermes, salute!”

With a sharp sound, everyone on the screen swiftly raised their right hands, fingers held together and straight. Their middle fingers lightly touched their temples, palms facing down and angled slightly outward.

“At ease.”

Amber returned the salute, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief.

It seemed Randall and the others hadn’t slacked off in his absence; their morale and energy looked quite good.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Randall ended the communication, and the Hermes began to guide the St. Russell toward the operations base.

“A type of salute I’ve never seen before… Mr. Amber, I thought you would have your combat personnel adopt the military salute of the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire.”

Allenita’s voice was light and cheerful; it was easy to see that this financial backer was quite satisfied with the crew’s recent performance.

Although it wasn’t a combat demonstration, their spirit and energy were quite impressive.

Besides, the military salutes of both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were primarily chest-level salutes, with the main differences between them being minor details.

That’s why the salute Randall and his crew demonstrated looked so distinctive and recognizable.

“Adopting an existing one would have been convenient, but since we’re a force independent of both nations, using something new helps foster a sense of belonging.”

Amber replied with a smile, standing beside the female elf.

“Sometimes I get really curious, Mr. Amber. How do you manage to fit so many things inside that head of yours?”

“Hahaha. Knowing a little bit of everything makes life a little more interesting.”

What Randall and the others had just used was, of course, the Chinese-style military salute.

As a military enthusiast, Amber had made a point to learn about his own country’s military structure and culture before he transmigrated.

So ‘borrowing’ the military salute was a piece of cake for him.

Besides, Atlas Private Military Company wasn’t a formal army but a paramilitary organization, so there was no need for excessively complex etiquette.

“Oh, right, Mr. Amber,” Allenita asked, as if she had just remembered something. “I just saw quite a few Romu on the Hermes’ bridge. They seem to be adapting well?”

“That’s right. It was mentioned in the recent company progress report I received a few days ago. Although these Romu joined later than the marine candidates, their selection process focused more on intellect and learning ability, so they’ve already completely caught up in their training…”

Amber quickly briefed Allenita on some matters of personnel development.

Isabelle floated over to listen in as well. This “benefits officer” of hers had been so preoccupied with claiming her “dues” from Amber for the past few days that she hadn’t kept up with these other matters.

Initially, Amber had only planned to recruit Romu for the marines, and the first few large-scale recruitment drives were run with that goal in mind.

Soon, however, he received a report from Randall—the destroyer was severely undermanned.

Getting a mil-spec destroyer up and running was easy enough; with the help of a ‘ten-year veteran’-grade shipboard control AI, that much wasn’t difficult.

But combat and basic operations are two completely different things.

Twenty people might be enough to get the ship moving, shoot at some simple stationary targets, and launch an HCP.

But in an actual fleet battle, that number of personnel was woefully inadequate.

After all, Amber hadn’t yet mastered unmanned fleet technology, and with Atlas’s current resources, retrofitting a ship for full automation was still a difficult task.

Take the Star Dragon Empire’s Dragoon-class destroyer, for example. Its standard crew complement is 240, and that’s without even factoring in the HCP squadron and prep squad in the hangar.

The Hermes, however, only had a crew of twenty.

Therefore, after numerous urgent discussions with Randall and before leaving for Isabelle’s home, Amber had submitted a plan to Allenita to recruit more fleet combat personnel.

Soon, a new batch of Romu, selected for their superior intellect and learning ability, was recruited.

This time, Amber placed no gender restrictions on the recruitment. After all, a ship’s crew wasn’t the same as the marines; they didn’t all need to be burly men.

Most of the manual labor aboard the ship was performed by autonomous machinery, with the crew serving mostly in support and oversight roles.

As a result, in addition to the lion-folk, leopard-folk, and those with ox or horse features, a batch of cat-girls, fox-girls, dog-girls, and sheep-girls were recruited.

The amount of fur among the Hermes’ crew increased drastically.

Next, Amber spent a considerable sum to hire a group of retired veteran crew members, including both sailors from civilian vessels and former military crewmen from various shipboard positions.

They came from both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.

Amber had originally wanted to hire recently retired personnel, but as the war escalated, most of them had been recalled to service by the Federation and the Empire.

The rest were quickly snatched up by other private corporations.

Thus, this contingent of elderly crewmen became instructors for the new Romu recruits.

Meanwhile, the Hermes began conducting various training exercises while carrying out its escort missions in the asteroid belt.

Human warships, to help new crew members acclimate, are generally equipped with a dedicated training mode.

In this mode, complex procedures are simplified with aids like voice prompts and holographic guides, helping new crewmen learn the steps one by one.

With a group of ‘genuine old-timers’ averaging seventy-five years of age looking over their shoulders, the training progressed surprisingly quickly.

Furthermore, the old-timers were far more open-minded than Amber had expected.

Before his departure, Amber had held a special meeting with them to prepare them psychologically.

After all, they would be working with a large group of ‘oddly-shaped’ furry beings, and Amber had been worried about frightening the old men.

Who would have thought, however, that these old men, who had roamed the sea of stars in their youth, would react to his concern with strong indignation.

“Young man, we appreciate the thought, but what haven’t us old-timers seen?”

“Yeah! James here says he even slept with an elf in his younger days! Right, James?”

Amber looked skeptically at the old crewman named James, whose former position was in Gunnery.

“It’s true, of course!”

The old man stood up from his chair, his face beaming with pride.

“I made a special trip to patronize her establishment again just a few days ago. She’s still as young and beautiful as ever~”

…

Chapter 179: Asteroid Base Construction Plan

In Amber’s mind, the fleet member recruitment plan was only temporary.

Its purpose was simply to fulfill the initial personnel requirements for the Atlas PMC combat fleet.

Although he didn’t know it yet, the Federation had already initiated its unmanned fleet program and deployed it in actual combat.

But in the original game, shortly after the Star Dragon Empire fractured, the major powers began warring amongst themselves. This resulted in countless experienced crew members being lost to the sea of stars.

Amidst the fires of war, the technology for ship automation also developed at a rapid pace.

While not as thorough as the Federation’s unmanned fleets, granting the shipboard control AIs sufficient authority could still reduce crew complements by more than seventy percent.

Sixty to seventy people could operate a destroyer, and a little over a hundred could operate a cruiser.

Capital ships like battlecruisers and battleships would only need less than four hundred people to be combat-effective.

Most of these were positions that machines couldn’t replace, such as the CIC, prep squads, damage control teams, and so on.

But now, the Federation’s and the Empire’s capital ships, some several kilometers long, had two to three thousand crew members each.

Every time a large-scale fleet battle occurred, the crew losses were heart-wrenching for both sides.

According to Amber’s plan, once they had a larger server array and Lilith had surplus computing power, he would have her start looking into related development.

Once the other factions’ fleet automation technology started to emerge, he would find a way to get his hands on it, combine it with Lilith’s research, and form Atlas’s own fleet automation technology.

This involved a new developmental priority—the construction of a large-scale server array.

Since Lilith would become a core entity in the future, the construction of a massive server array needed to be put on the agenda.

Doing it like they were now—finding a room in the Tower of Babel Manor and hanging a “Company Server Room” sign on the door—was definitely not going to work.

Once this server array was built, it would be one of Atlas’s most important assets, so it had to be placed in a concealed and secure location.

“The construction of an asteroid base is one of our next key development points.”

Inside the main control room of the operations base deployed on an asteroid, an impromptu meeting was convened, led by Amber.

The attendees, aside from Allenita, the major shareholder, included Isabelle, Randall, and others.

George, who was in charge of mining in the asteroid belt, was also pulled in to attend.

“In my plans, the asteroid base will serve as Atlas’s true headquarters. It will have facilities for stationing personnel, docking and maintaining ships, and will include a combat equipment and Logistics Center, a data center, and so on.

“Currently, most PMCs use leased ports as docks for their ships, but we can’t go down that path.

“Atlas’s future can’t consist of just these few small ships. Our development path is also different from that of traditional PMCs.

“They only have the capability to participate in a given battle, but in the future, Atlas will have the ability to intervene in—or even start—a war.”

This was the first time Amber had directly stated his ‘ambition’ in front of everyone.

There was no need to hide these things; as the company continued to develop, everyone would find out sooner or later.

This time, he was just taking advantage of Allenita’s presence to say it in advance.

“Amber, are you planning a rebellion?”

Randall crossed his arms, a look of surprise on his face. Although he had long known Amber wouldn’t be content to lie low, he truly hadn’t expected his ambitions to be so grand.

“No. I just want to bring peace to the people who will be caught in the fires of war in the future.”

Amber replied with a smile.

“I admit, at first I was just thinking of retiring here with you, but after hearing you say all that, I can feel the blood pumping in my veins.”

Even though he was in zero gravity, Randall straightened himself and continued:

“I have no objections. Don’t PMCs fight all over the place anyway? It’s just that the scale of our battles will be a tiny bit bigger.”

“I don’t have any objections either~”

Isabelle had even fewer objections. After the incident at her family’s Manor, she was already at a point where she would do whatever Amber said.

The other veterans who had founded Atlas with Amber, including those stationed back at the Tower of Babel who were attending the meeting remotely via the psionically entangled communication crystal provided by Allenita, also had no objections.

Their thoughts were the same as Randall’s. They were going to fight anyway; it was just a matter of scale.

They also believed Amber had the ability to accomplish what he said. After all, getting them from Robert IV to here was already a miracle.

So creating another miracle wasn’t out of the question.

“I have no objections either. I don’t have any other skills. As long as there’s ore to mine and money to be made, I’m willing to keep working for the company. After all, there can’t be a mining company with better pay and benefits than this one.”

The ‘mining foreman’ George scratched his head sheepishly, drawing a round of laughter from everyone.

“Mr. Amber, I’m more and more convinced that investing in you back then was the most visionary project I’ve undertaken in a long time.”

Allenita was the last to speak, and she had no objections.

“From the looks of it, your plans are all sufficiently long-term and feasible. Moreover, it seems the return on investment will only get higher in the future. For me, that’s enough.”

After everyone had spoken, Amber took a deep breath and then gave everyone a sincere bow.

“Thank you all for your trust in me. I won’t beat around the bush, then. I’ll get straight to assigning the next phase of tasks.”

Amber tapped the terminal a few times, and the content he had already prepared appeared on the main control room’s large screen.

“First, George will lead a site selection team for the asteroid base. You’ll search for a suitable asteroid right here in this asteroid belt. Major axis no less than one hundred eighty kilometers, minor axis no less than one hundred kilometers. I’ll send you some area coordinates later; you can start surveying those areas first.

“Once the site is selected, the asteroid’s designation will be ‘A·Bawa·Ku’.

“At the same time, the mining team will be purchasing more small mining ships soon. You’ll need to be ready to receive them.”

“Yes, Boss.”

“Second, Randall, continue organizing The Hermes’s training and get it combat-ready as soon as possible. At the same time, select the crew for our second warship. We’ll be acquiring a second destroyer soon, most likely a decommissioned one from the Federation Navy. Randall, you’re familiar with Federation ships, so when it comes time for combat missions, you’ll be the Captain.”

“Yes, Boss~”

“Third, to everyone at the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center: the first batch of Romu marines is already more than halfway through their adaptation training. However, according to your feedback, thirty-two out of the one hundred trainees have already been eliminated. Considering we need to become combat-ready and start taking contracts as soon as possible, I suggest we begin adaptation training for the second batch of candidates immediately. I will also personally oversee the training.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Chapter 180: Return to the Tower of Babel

Amber was quick and concise when assigning tasks.

As he laid out the plan, he also sent the relevant information to each corresponding task leader.

Including Randall, no one had any objections.

For them, it was enough as long as someone was constantly telling them the objective and the general plan of action.

This was especially true for pure soldiers like Randall and Banninger, who excelled at executing orders from their superiors.

So, while Amber’s current method of arrangement might cause the team to lack initiative for a time, it at least ensured they were all on the same page during execution.

“These are the tasks for the current stage. I hope you will all carry them out diligently according to the plan. I also hope you remember that everything you do isn’t for me, but for the development of Atlas, and even more so, for yourselves.

“That’s all for now. You’re dismissed to your duties.”

After his closing remarks, Amber turned his gaze to Banninger on the screen.

“Sergeant, I’ll be setting out for the Tower of Babel today. From now on, I’ll share the training duties with you.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Upon hearing this news, the old sergeant on the screen could no longer contain his joy.

He had been solely responsible for the Romu’s training recently, and it had frankly left him overwhelmed.

Although the Romu had no issues with physical training—in fact, every one of them could perform at an excellent level or higher—they were still a far cry from humans in terms of mental fortitude, tactical training, and the development of tactical thinking.

Banninger knew that these Romu had never been to war and that many of them had no concept of it.

But since they were being trained as marines, they had to meet the standards in these areas as well.

Furthermore, there was another pressing issue that needed to be discussed with Amber upon his return: the matter of weapons and equipment for the Romu marines.

Three days later, the St. Russell exited warp space and arrived in the outer orbit of Peony Star, the location of the Tower of Babel.

The Hermes did not return with them. After resupplying from an elven cargo ship, it continued with its various training exercises in the asteroid belt.

This time, the resupply included not only food, drinking water, and some recreational items but also combat supplies like training munitions and inflatable micro-powered target drones.

Most importantly, the nine remaining empty slots in The Hermes’ hangar were filled.

Murat and Louis no longer had to share a single Zealot for their training.

During his conversations with Amber, Isabelle’s father—Count Jonathan—had learned about Atlas’s current situation.

With a grand wave of his hand, he had requisitioned nine standard-configuration Zealot Block 30s from the Ahrens family’s reserve warehouse.

He also included a full set of weapons, spare parts, and maintenance tools.

He even threw in three separate packages for each unit: a basic land warfare package, a basic space combat package, and a basic mountain warfare package.

Initially, the generous Count had been prepared to give Amber nine Dragon Knights directly.

However, Amber had politely declined.

Of course, it wasn’t because they were too expensive and he was too embarrassed to accept them.

Given how thick-skinned Amber was, embarrassment wasn’t a state he was familiar with.

The main reason was that the Dragon Knight required a slightly higher level of piloting skill.

As a unit specialized in mobility and mid-to-long-range attacks, the Dragon Knight’s survivability was actually a bit lower than that of the heavily armored Zealot.

Amber knew the current skill level of his two pilots, and he also knew that even if he could recruit more pilots in the short term, they would be at Murat’s level at best.

Under these circumstances, having them pilot Dragon Knights would just be asking for them to get killed.

The “thick-skinned and tough” Zealot was a much better fit for them.

To provide the maximum possible protection for the two precious pilots on his team, their personal machines were each equipped with two layered armor shields, one large and one small.

One was fixed to the shoulder armor and the other to the mechanical arm. If necessary, they could even be combined to form a single large shield.

Based on Amber’s experience, with a deflector shield, this level of protection could go head-to-head with a frigate-class heavy particle cannon.

Even when facing fire from a destroyer-class heavy particle cannon, it could very likely maintain the integrity of the cockpit and ensure the pilot’s survival.

Amber had truly put his heart and soul into looking after his “family.”

The St. Russell soon docked at the Spaceport. Amber and the others didn’t dawdle; after disembarking, they headed straight for the “Immortal Vine” that led to the surface.

It was a colossal vining plant used to connect the elven spaceport with the ground.

The elves typically rode in spore-like vehicles, traveling between the sky and the earth through the “transport veins” inside these massive vines.

After transferring to other ground transportation, Amber’s group made their way to the Tower of Babel as quickly as possible.

Sometimes, Amber wondered if he had the makings of a “king of the rat race.”

Ever since his Soul Transmigration, he had first done everything he could to escape a planet, and then racked his brains to run a company.

Aside from occasionally fooling around with Isabelle, he hadn’t engaged in any leisure or entertainment activities.

The moment he woke up each day, all sorts of information about the current situation and the company’s operations would flood his mind.

So many other transmigrators occasionally advanced the main plot but spent most of their time sightseeing and flirting. How did his life turn into a seemingly endless 24/7 grind?

“Tell me, am I working a little too hard?”

Sitting in the hovercar on the way to the Tower of Babel, Amber posed this question to Isabelle and Allenita, who were in the same cabin.

“Ermmm, a little bit,” Isabelle answered first.

After glancing shyly at the smirking Allenita beside her, she fiddled with the hem of her clothes and said in a small voice, “We’re supposed to be a couple and all, but you spend most of your time on company business. I often don’t even see you at night.”

“Did you hear that, Mr. Amber? A complaint from your bedside companion,” the female elf teased, picking up where Isabelle left off.

At her words, Isabelle’s face turned an even deeper shade of red.

“I can’t help it. I’d love to rest, but you know the current situation as well as I do, Ms. Yuge. Plus, there are more and more mouths to feed in the company. I have to find ways to make money.”

Amber spread his hands, a helpless look on his face.

“Hehe, for someone like you, we elves have a particularly fitting description.”

“What description?”

“You deserve to be rich.”

“…”

Chapter 181: All Brawn, No Brains

When Amber walked into the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center, Sergeant Banninger, who had been waiting for a long time, nearly pounced on him, a few other instructors in tow.

“Boss, you’re finally back!”

“Sergeant. Watch your image. It wouldn’t do for your Romu subordinates to see you like this.”

Amber said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry as he looked at Banninger and the other instructors, who looked as if they had been waiting for an eternity.

“Don’t even get me started, Boss. The tactical training for these Romu has nearly made me faint from anger.”

Banninger was fuming at the very mention of it.

However, he decided it wasn’t right to burden Amber with these matters the moment he returned, so he quickly reined in his emotions.

“Let’s not talk about it for now. You should rest first, Boss. After you’ve rested, I’ll prepare a special report on the training situation. Your return is actually quite timely.”

“It’s fine, I don’t need to rest. Let’s meet in Conference Room One in an hour.”

Amber smiled and handed the two large bags he was carrying to Banninger.

“I visited a few different planets this time and brought back some local specialties for you all. Share them with the men. There’s a whole lot more in the vehicle behind me.”

Amber wasn’t a man skilled in winning people over.

He was simply like millions of other people from his homeland who, under the guidance of elders, friends, relatives, and colleagues, had actively or passively learned a great deal about the ways of the world.

These things were, in fact, quite foreign to the lower classes of the Federation and the Empire.

For them, after their life paths were planned out according to the results of their aptitude tests at birth, their entire growth trajectory was already set in stone.

They would receive a basic education, be streamed into a vocational college, and after graduation, be sent to corresponding positions in various factories or on farms to live out their lives in a dull haze.

Or, like Banninger and his men, they would remain at a military base on some planet until they retired.

There was no place for such intricate social graces in lives like these.

To them, the only purpose of leaders, superiors, and officers was to issue tasks and give orders.

Did these things exist in human society?

Of course, they did.

But this particular “culture” was a privilege reserved only for the middle and upper classes.

So, when Amber, as their “Boss,” showed them the most basic concern, or rather, did things any decent person would do, it was a strange yet warming experience for these Mobile Infantry and asteroid miners.

This “positive feedback” from Amber was even somewhat addictive to them.

This was why these Mobile Infantry from Robert IV were willing to follow him here with unwavering loyalty.

The chance to live was one reason; the “positive feedback” Amber gave them was another, equally important one.

An hour later, having briefly freshened up, Amber arrived on time at the Manor’s Conference Room One.

Sergeant Banninger and the elf assistant, Skadi, who was helping coordinate the training, were already waiting for him.

Maintaining his military demeanor, Banninger was resolute and swift. He stood, saluted Amber, and then began his report directly.

“Boss, I’ll skip the pleasantries and get straight to the point.”

Banninger played a video, a recording of the Romu candidates undergoing physical training.

The screen displayed real-time data analysis based on the Romu’s movements, including their speed, endurance, strength, reaction time, and more.

“As you can see, these Romu possess physical qualities far superior to humans, just as you initially said. After an initial adaptation period, these Furballs quickly demonstrated their advantages in physical training. We human instructors often need the assistance of performance-enhancing drugs or exoskeletons just to keep pace with them during training. Fortunately, the wounded soldiers who returned with us have gradually adapted to their cybernetic prostheses during this time. With the support of their prosthetics, they are finally able to physically dominate these Romu in training without any other assistance.”

As Banninger spoke, another group of instructors appeared on the screen.

These instructors, whose arms or legs gleamed with a metallic sheen, were the wounded soldiers who had undergone cybernetic modification after amputation.

This was a rather unique phenomenon within the forces of the Federation and the Empire: the more wounded a soldier was, the fiercer they fought.

Soldiers forced to undergo amputation for various reasons would generally choose to have cybernetic prostheses installed to ensure their future combat effectiveness and quality of life.

These prostheses were often quite powerful, some with performance on par with full-body human augmentation surgery.

Of course, the costs of the surgery and the prostheses themselves were naturally deducted from their allowances and retirement benefits.

And this created a new vicious cycle.

Because one such surgery would typically wipe out most of a grunt’s allowance and retirement benefits. Some would even end up in debt to the military.

Therefore, they had to choose to continue serving, extending their years of service to raise their retirement benefit level, just to ensure a stable life after leaving the army.

But if these soldiers were unlucky enough to be severely wounded again in the next battle, well, that was it—time to extend their service even longer.

Against this backdrop, if you saw a master soldier in the army, especially in the ground forces, with full-body cybernetics, you could draw two conclusions.

First, the man’s individual combat prowess was extremely high.

Second, he probably owed the military a substantial amount of money.

However, Amber had not done this to his wounded Atlas veterans.

For one, he felt it was too inhumane.

For another, Atlas was indeed short on people, especially experienced veterans like them. They were valuable assets to the company, so installing prostheses was a small matter.

And these veterans, having adapted to their cybernetic prostheses, did indeed play a crucial role in training the Romu.

“In short, when it comes to physical training, these Romu have done an excellent job, and no one has been eliminated in this phase. But the biggest problem now is their tactical training.”

As Banninger spoke, he advanced the report to the next section.

Then, his expression turned somewhat awkward.

“‘All brawn, no brains’—this is the consensus of all instructors regarding these male Romu. Their learning ability in tactical training and tactical thinking is just too poor. To this day, I still don’t understand why, even when they’re holding guns, these Romu still insist on charging up to their targets for a melee.”

As Banninger described the situation, a new video began to play.

It was a recording of a recent tactical exercise conducted by the Romu.

The footage showed four infantry squads attacking a semi-collapsed building.

Inside the dilapidated structure were multiple hidden firing positions and enemy defenders.

The standard Mobile Infantry approach would naturally be to first conduct reconnaissance with a personal drone, while having the squad’s communications specialist scan the electromagnetic environment.

After confirming the targets, the team would be divided into groups with different functions: assault, cover, fire support, and security.

What followed would be the standard procedure of deploying smoke, laying down suppressing fire, and launching the assault team’s attack. If the Mobile Infantry couldn’t take the objective on their own, they would call for fire support from the rear.

But the Romu’s method of combat was a real eye-opener for Amber.

They had no reconnaissance phase whatsoever, nor did they divide into groups.

Relying on their sheer physical prowess, the Romu marines of the four squads leaped up from behind their cover and began a high-speed sprint.

After leaving behind the “corpses” of several unlucky individuals, they charged directly into the building.

In the close-quarters battle, what started as a “firefight” quickly devolved into a “brawl.”

These heavily-armed troops, even after being “shot” multiple times and with their pain simulators cranked to the maximum, could still knock over a training dummy with a single punch, taking it down with them.

In the end, the four Romu squads cleared the building with lightning speed, taking less than ten minutes.

But the cost was that four squads had been reduced to less than half a squad.

Chapter 182: Beating Up the Kids

“We can’t have them fighting like this. With their methods, the compensation payouts would be astronomical.”

Watching the replayed combat footage, Amber clutched his head, a massive headache brewing.

He had expected the Romu to be rather reckless in combat due to the ‘wildness’ in their blood.

But he never imagined that these Furballs would be this reckless.

“Let’s schedule another assault training session for tomorrow. I’ll be on defense myself.”

“What? Boss, you’re going to participate personally?”

Banninger’s spirits lifted, his eyes lighting up.

“That’s right~”

A mischievous grin spread across Amber’s face.

“I’m going to teach these Furballs what the art of modern warfare is all about~”

Seeing Banninger’s excitement, Amber turned to his elf assistant, Skadi.

“Ms. Skadi, could you please invite Ms. Yuge to come and observe as well? That is, if she has an opening in her schedule tomorrow.”

“No problem, Mr. Amber. I’m sure that even if she doesn’t have an opening, Ms. Yuge will postpone her other work to be here.”

Skadi pushed up the glasses on her nose, a gesture that instantly accentuated her scholarly air.

She smiled and continued, “Ms. Yuge is more than just a little invested in this Atlas project.”

That night before bed, the Romu candidates received a notice about another assault training session the next day.

And it wasn’t just any ordinary session.

Amber, the boss of Atlas PMC.

This mysterious man, who had barely shown his face during their training, had decided to personally engage them in an assault drill.

What’s more, he would be defending the ruined building alone against an assault by four squads of Romu.

When they first heard the news, the Furballs were a little annoyed.

They felt their boss was far too confident in himself. How strong could one person be? Wasn’t he just serving himself up on a platter?

Initially, the Furballs’ enthusiasm for this apparent ‘publicity stunt’ wasn’t high.

But then they heard from their instructors that no matter what combat methods they used—even their preferred hand-to-hand combat—it would be a win.

As long as a single one of them could touch Amber, every Romu would receive a bonus of 5,000 Psionic Points.

The Furballs were instantly in an uproar.

They quickly selected the four squads that had performed best in their daily training to participate in the next day’s session.

Those who weren’t chosen cheered on their four squads of compatriots with great enthusiasm.

For the Romu, 5,000 Psionic Points was an absolute fortune.

“Isn’t this just free money? I never knew the Boss was so nice, finding creative ways to give us benefits~”

Montai, who had a flowing mane of hair, said to his Romu roommates in the dorm after lights out.

“I don’t think this training will be that simple. From the bits and pieces the instructors let slip, the Boss doesn’t seem like such an arrogant and reckless person,”

Tairak, lying head-to-head with Montai in the opposite bunk, shook his head.

“And offering such a tempting bonus… it feels like a trap.”

“Oh, Tairak, you just like to overthink things~”

Montai pursed his lips, dismissing his friend’s concerns. He then clapped his hands sharply and hissed in a suppressed voice, “All nine of us in this dorm signed up for tomorrow’s training. Let’s go, guys! I have a feeling we’re definitely getting that bonus tomorrow!”

“Yeah! For the bonus!”

The others hissed back their agreement in the darkness. They all thought the same as Montai.

They figured that no matter how strong Amber was, he couldn’t possibly fend off four squads of Romu. The 5,000 Psionic Point bonus was as good as theirs.

“Sigh… I have a feeling we’re going to be beaten into punching bags tomorrow.”

Only Tairak, after echoing Montai’s cheer, let out another sigh.

He just couldn’t shake the feeling that tomorrow’s assault training wouldn’t be so simple.

The next day, at the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center’s assault training grounds.

“What the hell did I tell you last night?! I said we were going to be beaten into punching bags!” Tairak yelled, taking cover behind a wall at the entrance of the abandoned building, his training rifle at the ready.

The start of the assault training had gone in a way none of the Romu had expected.

Whether it was the four squads participating directly or the other Romu watching on the big screen outside, no one thought it would be so ‘intense’ right from the beginning.

To secure this massive sum—5,000 Psionic Points per person, totaling 340,000—the Romu candidates had taken it seriously.

Before the battle began, they had even followed their training manual, dividing themselves into assault, cover, fire support, and security teams.

With all seriousness, they even used a ‘Wasp’ personal drone to conduct a reconnaissance sweep of the building.

Once they felt everything was ready, Squad 1, the assault team, vaulted over their cover and charged toward the building.

Following close behind them was Squad 2, the cover team, which included Montai and Tairak.

The remaining two squads began to lay down suppressing fire on the building’s windows from behind cover.

The training firearms in their hands looked like electromagnetic rifles, just a size larger.

Instead of being mounted under the exoskeleton’s forearm, they were now handheld.

These training weapons were all temporarily produced via 3D printing.

After being fitted with light, sound, and electric motor components, their handling and feedback were made to be as close to a real electromagnetic rifle as possible.

Just as the two squads of Romu were firing continuously, providing cover for the two charging squads ahead, the unexpected happened.

A Minotaur at the very front of the charge stepped on a mine that Amber had planted in advance.

This training mine, essentially an oversized stun grenade, not only produced an extremely loud bang but also triggered the pain simulation devices worn by the Romu.

Under the impact of the intense pain and the stun grenade’s blast, the Minotaur collapsed to the ground instantly.

The sudden incident threw the advancing Squad 1 into a panic.

“Spread out! Keep charging!”

Amidst the fierce roar of Squad 1’s squad leader, the Romu quickly fanned out to the sides while maintaining their charge.

And then…

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Three more mines were triggered in succession, wiping out all of Squad 1.

Squad 2, right behind them, was completely dumbfounded.

What was going on? How was a whole squad down before they had even reached the door?

At that critical moment, Tairak snapped back to his senses.

He led the rest of Squad 2, charging forward over the ‘corpses’ of Squad 1.

He knew that, at the very least, the areas already hit by mines should be safe.

However, the young Romu had still underestimated how low Amber, a professional sneak, would go.

He had also underestimated the cunning of smart mines.

Several intelligent training mines, placed on either side of the main minefield, detected the ground vibrations. After a characteristic analysis confirmed that Romu were passing by, their ‘directional blast warheads’ were detonated.

In a real battle, these furry Furballs would have likely been torn to shreds by countless sharp, pre-formed triangular fragments.

But this was just a training exercise, so Amber hadn’t set the parameters on these training mines to be too absurd.

Otherwise, the Romu would have all been eliminated before even entering the building, and there would be no more fun to be had.

Under Amber’s ‘mercy’, Montai, Tairak, and two other Romu from Squad 2 managed to survive and reach the main entrance of the building.

A shaken Montai glanced back at his comrades, their bodies lying scattered all over the approach route.

He suddenly felt that his friend Tairak’s worries hadn’t been baseless after all.

Chapter 183: KPI

Only a few minutes into the assault, the two combat squads leading the charge had only four men left.

Whether it was Montai, Tairak, and the others on the field, or the Romu watching from the sidelines, everyone was deeply shocked.

But as the old saying goes, great rewards make for brave men.

The lure of five thousand Psionic Points was too great. So, upon seeing the stalled assault, the two squads providing fire support and rear security charged out from their cover without hesitation.

They intended to rush to the building’s entrance and regroup with Montai and his men.

“Their courage is commendable,” Sergeant Banninger remarked in the training ground’s main control room upon seeing this.

“But they still haven’t learned to use their heads.”

Another instructor beside him added.

The next second, a tongue of fire erupted from a window on the third floor of the building, one that had appeared to be completely destroyed.

It was a 25mm Chain Gun Amber had positioned there.

Connected remotely, Amber, hiding elsewhere, could control it directly from his personal terminal or set the Chain Gun to sentry mode to fire on its own.

The two charging squads reacted quickly.

After two of them were cut down, the other Furballs had already scattered and taken cover nearby.

At the same time, they threw several smoke shells—something they had never used in previous training—to block the line of sight.

Seeing this, many of the instructors observing the training in the main control room were “moved to tears.”

“It had to be the Boss! These little bastards finally know how to use smoke shells.”

As the thermal smoke quickly spread across the training ground, Montai and Tairak used the Romu’s superior strength to hurl several grenades from the ground floor entrance straight into the window that was firing nonstop.

After the explosions rang out, the tongue of fire from the window finally vanished.

But the two attacking squads had just gotten up from behind cover and hadn’t run more than a few steps.

Another window erupted with several thump-thump-thumps. Tairak, who had a knack for identifying sounds, quickly recognized it as the firing of a 40mm automatic grenade launcher.

Before he could say anything, he saw a few more “little darlings” fly out of the window and fall straight towards their position.

“Shit! Get inside!”

Although the situation inside wasn’t clear, Tairak and the others had no other choice.

If they didn’t enter the building, they would be blown to ‘death’ by these plasma grenades.

Fortunately, Amber hadn’t been that cruel; he hadn’t placed an automated sentry gun at the end of the corridor directly opposite the main entrance.

So, Tairak and the others successfully rushed into a room on the first floor of the building.

After taking cover in three corners of the room, the four shaken men finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Even though this was just a simulated training exercise, for some reason it felt like a real battle, filled with a sense of pressure from start to finish.

Several more minutes passed. When the gunfire from upstairs finally ceased, the remaining two squads finally broke through the line of fire and burst into the building.

However, when Montai and Tairak saw them, they were dumbfounded.

Because out of those two squads, only three people had made it inside.

In other words, of the four-squad assault echelon, totaling thirty-six men, only seven had made it into the building alive.

They hadn’t even begun clearing the building’s interior, and their forces were already nearly wiped out.

Montai looked at his friend, only to find Tairak looking back at him.

The two lion-headed men stared at each other, their eyes conveying the same thought.

‘Where did we go wrong?’

Meanwhile, in the training ground’s main control room, the group of instructors could no longer contain their smiles.

Although they had indeed forged a strong bond with these big Furballs over the course of the training…

…that didn’t stop them from enjoying their favorite recent pastime: watching these big Furballs get their asses handed to them.

“Go ahead and laugh if you want.”

Watching the instructors, Sergeant Banninger shook his head with a smile and continued, “This exercise is pretty much over. With only seven of them inside the building, I’m honestly afraid the Boss is going to give them a complex.”

Ten minutes later, Amber walked out of the building, telekinetically choking Montai and Tairak with Psionics, and dropped them to the ground.

The Romu spectators outside let out a collective sigh of frustration.

Immediately after, the holographic projector above the training ground displayed the words: ‘Training complete. Assault team eliminated.’

Clearly, the Romu’s bonus was gone.

As the training concluded, the Romu candidates who had been “playing dead” on the ground got up one by one.

Amber watched the two “little lions” getting up in front of him, a hint of approval in his eyes.

In the recent fight, the seven who had breached the building hadn’t lasted long at all, getting riddled with holes by trip mines and sentry guns in the “death funnel” of the hallway.

Only Montai and Tairak had seized the opportunity created by their teammates’ deaths to rush to the floor where Amber was.

When they saw the smile still on Amber’s face, now just a stone’s throw away, the two charged like enraged lions, swinging their training rifles.

Their immense physical strength and willpower allowed them to push through the pain inflicted by the simulation devices, getting them to within a single step of Amber.

And then, a deep blue psionic light flashed before their eyes…

“You two are pretty good. You almost got to me. I hope you hold on to that fighting spirit you have in your bones.”

He looked at the two Romu, who seemed a bit embarrassed and even at a loss for what to do because of his praise, and added, “I hope next time you can incorporate the tactics you’ve learned in your training. Your chances of success will be much higher that way~”

Hearing this, Montai and Tairak nodded vigorously.

They truly hadn’t expected Amber, the Boss, to be so affable and easy to talk to.

In their minds, this mysterious boss was supposed to be a grim, taciturn, and ruthless character.

Of course, their imagination wasn’t entirely wrong.

Amber was indeed a ruthless character (lol).

Led by the instructors, the Romu candidates from both on and off the field reassembled into formation in an open area.

Looking at these Romu, who had shed the undisciplined and unserious demeanor they had when they first arrived at the Tower of Babel and were looking more and more like marines…

Amber felt not only that he had a long and arduous road ahead, but also a sliver of gratification.

He took a step forward, stood before the candidates, and said loudly:

“The bonus is gone. Are you content with that?!”

“No, Sir!”

“If you’re not content, then study hard! Learn how to fight a real battle, not just run up there with your pea-shooters to get yourselves killed!”

Amber paced back and forth in front of the candidates, his sharp gaze sweeping over each and every one of them.

“Four squads came to attack a position defended by me alone, and you were completely wiped out without even touching me!

Aren’t you all fast runners?

Aren’t you all tough fighters?

What damn good is being a tough fighter?

Basic infantry combat relies on tactics, equipment, skill, and personnel quality. Not a single one can be missing!

Against a large-caliber Chain Gun, a single burst can wipe all of you out!

I’m training you, but not so you can go get yourselves killed on the battlefield!

You only get paid if you complete the mission and stay alive! Understood!?”

“Yes, Sir!”

The Furballs’ roar was deafening, with Montai and Tairak shouting with particular vigor.

After this assault training, the tactical lessons they had once found tedious and boring were now slowly surfacing from the depths of their minds.

‘If I had done this just now, would things have turned out better?’

This thought ran through the minds of the Romu candidates who had participated in the assault.

Then they heard Amber continue:

“We at Atlas are not an army. We are a private military company.

And since we are a company, KPIs naturally exist. You combatants are no exception.”

Seeing the confused looks in the Romu’s eyes, a “ruthless boss” smile appeared on Amber’s face.

“Once you pass the final test and are officially hired, in addition to your daily wage during missions, certain combat tasks—such as assaults, sweeps, defense, VIP protection, and so on—will use a KPI system to determine the final bonus you receive!”

Chapter 184: No Such Company Found

Amber delivered his speech in the common elven tongue of the Thousand Stars Empire, so the Romu could understand him without a translator.

The problem was, while they understood every word he said, the way he combined them was somewhat baffling.

Combat? KPIs?

How were those two things even related?

Seeing the ‘thirst for knowledge’ in the eyes of each Romu, Amber gave a silent thanks to a certain famous private military company from a distant time and space.

Their combat KPI management model was a massive help to him right now.

Amber had the instructor team bring over a mobile holographic projection device, which then displayed a simulated assault operation.

“Let’s take an assault on a fortified position as an example.

“During a combat mission, on top of your daily wage, the company will use a KPI assessment to calculate additional bonuses when you encounter a tough nut like this.

“For successfully taking this position, the company will issue a bonus of thirty thousand Psionic Points to the teams that participated in the battle.

“If the participating teams suffer no casualties, an additional five thousand points will be issued on top of the original bonus.

“However, if casualties occur during the battle, not only will the extra bonus be forfeited, but for every soldier killed in action, a further deduction will be made from the thirty-thousand-point bonus!

“If this battle is not an engagement of annihilation but one that requires a few live targets for intelligence gathering, then for every prisoner captured, you will receive an extra one thousand Psionic Points!”

Amber’s calm explanation, coupled with the animated demonstration, slowly helped the Romu understand what he meant by a combat KPI assessment.

But he wasn’t finished. The holographic projection device displayed a new image.

“Every one of you has been trained by the company before your official deployment, which makes each of you a unique and precious asset.

“In comparison, weapons, ammunition, and equipment are just cheap, mass-produced industrial goods.

“Therefore, I hope you will prioritize your own safety in battle and not always rush in headlessly with your blood boiling.

“To that end, the company will provide additional rewards based on the combat logs in your personal terminals, recording your use of technical equipment and tactical gear, or calls for rear fire support.

“In other words, by using this equipment according to sound tactical planning, the final reward you receive will be higher than if you were to charge in with your own bodies.

“At the same time, besides the bonuses, these actions will be counted toward the annual KPI for each of you and each of your teams.

“The top three teams and individuals in the annual KPI rankings will earn the titles of ‘Outstanding Team’ and ‘Outstanding Employee.’

“For the groups and individuals who win these awards each year, the company will increase your pensions and death benefits.”

Taking the opportunity, Amber gave a rough outline of Atlas Private Military Company’s entire KPI assessment framework.

The Romu facing him were dumbfounded. They had never imagined that there could be so many intricacies to fighting and dying for a living.

However, they grasped the most crucial parts of what Amber said.

That was to avoid heavy casualties as much as possible, use tactical and technical equipment when needed, and call for fire support when it was called for.

For a moment, all the Romu candidates felt deeply moved by Amber.

Where else could they find a Boss who cared so much about his employees’ lives?

“He’s so good to us, I could cry.”

Many of the Romu silently thought to themselves.

But if Amber knew what they were thinking right now, he might have felt a little embarrassed.

He hadn’t really been thinking along those lines. His primary consideration was the company’s operating costs.

These Romu marines required time to train. The basic adaptation training alone took three months, not to mention the other specialized training that followed.

That was a time cost.

And if they were killed in action, according to the benefits system of Atlas Private Military Company, their next of kin would receive a substantial death benefit.

That was an economic cost.

Given these factors, Amber naturally hoped that these Romu marines, in whom he had invested so many resources to train, would create more value for the company.

He didn’t want them to get riddled with holes on their first day on the battlefield during a brainless charge.

Compared to their training costs, the price of industrial products like weapons, ammunition, and even technical equipment had long since plummeted, with defense contractors popping up everywhere.

This was especially true for the most basic infantry weapons and exoskeletons, which were practically dirt cheap.

And what he had just explained wasn’t exactly an original invention in this world, either.

Other large PMCs had already implemented KPI assessments for their mercenaries on top of the traditional daily wage system.

However, their assessment methods were mostly on the campaign level.

Their KPIs were calculated more around the mercenaries’ annual battle participation and combat deployment rates.

But with Lilith’s help, Amber had the means to refine the KPI assessment down to every employee in every single battle, achieving truly meticulous management.

This would allow the entire company, from top to bottom, to grasp the underlying logic, align the granularity of their data, execute a combined strategy, and ultimately form a perfect closed loop.

He had already discussed this with Lilith.

She had said it was no problem at all; all she needed was a dedicated server for data storage.

The great Lilith needs no further explanation.

After the assault training ended, the Furballs, dazed and captivated by the grand promises Amber had made, happily followed their instructors to continue their training.

Watching these Romu, now in neat formations and with strict discipline, having shed the lax and freewheeling attitude they had when they first arrived at the Tower of Babel, Allenita couldn’t help but comment.

She was standing beside Amber.

“I never thought I’d see Romu in such a state.”

“Why? Did you use to see them as harmless furballs?”

“Haha, not entirely, but close enough…”

Allenita smiled, then turned to look at Amber.

“The Elven Royal Court knows about Atlas now. And they’ve taken notice of you, a human recruiting Romu for combat.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

Amber turned as well, staring directly into the female elf’s emerald eyes.

“That will depend on how Atlas develops from here on out.”

Allenita’s smile grew playful. She thought for a moment before continuing, “It’s not that I want to be a Riddler, but it’s truly impossible to guess what the Elven Royal Court is thinking right now. Don’t worry, if anything comes up, I’ll notify you immediately. No matter what, Atlas is an industry I’ve invested in.”

“With your assurance, I can rest easy~”

Since Allenita had other arrangements, she bid Amber and the others farewell after observing the training.

According to her, the second batch of one hundred Romu candidates would arrive tomorrow.

So Amber had Banninger split the instructor team into two groups. The old Sergeant would continue training the first batch of Furballs himself.

Amber, along with a few other instructors, would personally drill the second batch.

After arranging these matters, Amber returned to his office and put on a network dive device.

This thing, which looked a lot like the one from that ‘game where you actually die,’ allowed the wearer to immersively enter cyberspace or a game.

Of course, Amber wasn’t planning on surfing the net or playing games right now.

After his consciousness passed through a void, he quickly arrived in a brightly lit space. This was Lilith’s ‘sanctuary’ in the virtual world.

When the scene before him fully cleared, several dark lines appeared on Amber’s forehead.

He found himself in an empty classroom.

And Lilith, dressed in a school uniform, was leaning against a desk, smiling at him.

“Master~ you’re finally here!”

“Wait, you’re using all that computing power just to render this?”

“Hee hee~”

Lilith didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, she pulled him into a chair and plopped herself down on his lap.

Then, she placed Amber’s hand on her thigh.

The moment his hand touched the sheer black stockings, it began to slide of its own accord.

This just went to show how thoroughly Lilith had studied Amber’s preferences lately.

“Ahem… Forget it. I won’t get hung up on this.”

Amber sat up a little straighter in embarrassment, adopting a posture that said, ‘I need to talk business.’

His hand, however, did not stop moving.

He had come to see Lilith this time for a reason, and groping her stockings was secondary. The main purpose was to ask about a certain company.

Trident Heavy Industries, a company specializing in the production of infantry equipment.

Anything an infantryman could use, this company had a related product.

But they were most famous for their personal exoskeletons and Powered Armor, and they also accepted custom orders.

In the game, the rewards for a series of dungeons were exoskeleton systems made by Trident Heavy Industries, and they had always been well-regarded among the players.

Later on, some player guilds simply approached the company directly, paying huge sums for ‘private customization’ for their own guilds.

Although this was also a way for the game operators to ‘reclaim resources’ from the players, the company’s products were undoubtedly top-notch.

So when Amber was previously considering what equipment to provide the Romu, he had immediately thought of this company.

“Lilith, did you manage to contact that ‘Trident Heavy Industries’ I asked you to find?”

“Nope. No such company in the records~”

“Huh?”

Chapter 185: Trident Studio

“Are you sure?”

Amber instantly sobered up. The large hand resting on Lilith’s thigh froze.

He couldn’t possibly be mistaken about the company’s name; “Trident Heavy Industries” was distinctive enough.

“Completely sure, Master~”

Lilith hooked an arm around Amber’s neck, pressing her entire ‘body’ against him.

The ‘full-immersion devices’ in this world were a generational leap compared to the kind Amber used for gaming back on Earth.

Even through the school uniform, Amber could still feel a softness pressing against his chest.

And Lilith didn’t seem to notice the devastating effect her actions were having on Amber.

She tapped her other hand in the air a few times, and several virtual screens quickly popped up.

“I searched using the keywords and business scope you provided, Master. There really isn’t a company named ‘Trident Heavy Industries’ that produces various types of personal equipment and exoskeleton systems.”

“That can’t be right.”

Amber certainly hadn’t expected this situation.

He might forget other details, but he was certain he wouldn’t get the company name wrong.

After all, the equipment interface in the game always displayed the manufacturer’s name at the bottom, along with a large company logo.

The Trident Heavy Industries logo was also easy to remember—it was a trident entwined with waves.

“But… although I couldn’t find the ‘Trident Heavy Industries’ you were looking for, Master, I did find a small workshop that fits your criteria.”

As Lilith spoke, a familiar logo appeared on the virtual screen.

The name below it made him realize what was going on.

“Trident Studio. So it’s still in its infancy.”

Amber let out a sigh of relief, then slapped Lilith on her perky bottom.

Smack!

“You found it, why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“Master, you’re so mean~”

Isabelle had been in a great mood these past few days.

The crisis her family faced had been successfully resolved, and her relationship with Amber had heated up rapidly in the process.

Thinking about their thrilling and exciting journey, Isabelle would often break into a goofy smile.

Just now, she was carrying a freshly brewed pot of Tranquil-Flower Tea and heading toward Amber’s office.

Although Amber had plunged back into his complex work as soon as he returned to the Tower of Babel, Isabelle knew he carried a heavy burden and had many things to consider.

So, Isabelle didn’t complain or disturb Amber, instead focusing on her support duties with dedication.

This Tranquil-Flower Tea, sent over by Allenita’s people, was a favorite beverage among the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire.

It worked wonders for relieving fatigue and calming the mind, making it especially suitable for a workaholic like Amber.

Reaching the office door, Isabelle knocked gently but received no response.

“Strange, didn’t he just send a message saying he was in the office?”

Isabelle frowned in confusion. A moment later, she opened the office door.

“Amber, I’m coming in~”

Opening the door a crack, Isabelle poked her head inside and saw Amber leaning back in his chair, wearing a network immersion device.

“Honestly, hiding in here to surf the net.”

Isabelle shook her head helplessly and walked over to Amber’s desk to pour him a steaming cup of Tranquil-Flower Tea.

She thought to herself that the tea would be the perfect temperature for him to drink once he was done browsing online.

As she poured the tea, Isabelle glanced at the man she found so irresistible, only to notice his breathing seemed a bit ragged and his face was a little too flushed.

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

Isabelle carefully set down the teacup and touched Amber’s forehead.

“It’s not hot. Why is his face so red?”

Just as Isabelle was about to fulfill her ‘medic’ duties and give Amber a thorough check-up…

Amber’s eyes snapped open, and he let out a long breath.

He wasn’t surprised to see Isabelle looking at him with a puzzled expression.

The network immersion device had a real-world monitoring function that would alert the user if someone approached.

The reason Amber couldn’t immediately disconnect when Isabelle entered the office was mainly because he was… entangled with someone.

He raised his hand to stroke Isabelle’s face and said calmly, “I’m fine, Isa. I was just looking up some information and got startled by a pop-up ad.”

“A pop-up ad managed to scare you?”

Isabelle was still a bit skeptical of Amber’s explanation.

“Really, these horror pop-ups are so well-made these days. That female ghost—whoa! If you don’t believe me, put this on and see for yourself. I guarantee you’ll be too scared to sleep tonight!”

Amber took the network immersion device off his neck and held it out to Isabelle.

She immediately took a step back, waving her hands frantically.

“No, no, I’m good…”

When not on duty or in combat, Isabelle was incredibly timid.

During their previous warp journey, Amber had dragged her into watching two virtual reality horror movies. Each time, Isabelle couldn’t last past the beginning.

“No, really, take a look. I seriously just got scared by a pop-up…”

“Mhm, I believe you, Amber. You get back to work. I’m leaving now. I have afternoon tea with Skadi in a bit~”

While they were talking, Isabelle had already nimbly darted to the door and quickly slipped out.

“Bye-bye, Amber! Love you~”

With Isabelle gone, Amber also breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced down below his navel.

“Phew, I don’t think she noticed.”

At that thought, the scene of Lilith sliding beneath him like a sleek fish in the virtual space flashed through his mind.

“She’s really picked up some bad habits. I’ll have to restrict what Lilith can learn online. Letting her learn everything is not a good idea.”

“Hmph, but Master was clearly enjoying it~”

Lilith’s voice echoed in Amber’s mind, making him blush.

The network immersion devices in this world were remarkably adept at simulating human senses when activated.

At least in Amber’s opinion, the difference from reality was already minimal.

This also meant that when Lilith was being mischievous, the sensory stimulation Amber experienced was not much different from the real thing.

“From now on, watch less of that stuff. Focus on your studies and review the assignments I gave you.”

“Tch~ So pretentious, Master.”

After saying that, Lilith went silent.

Amber knew the strong AI had most likely gone off to do some high-intensity net surfing.

He picked up the Tranquil-Flower Tea Isabelle had left, took a sip, and activated the holographic projector on his desk.

Information about Trident Studio was displayed on it.

The studio head was named Eugene Koch, the very same man who would go on to design multiple exoskeleton systems in the future.

And this predecessor to Trident Heavy Industries was, just as Lilith had described, currently at the small workshop stage.

Its main business was manufacturing modification parts and replacement components for various weapons and equipment.

Amber opened Eugene Koch’s personal homepages on several design websites. Besides promotions for some weapon modification parts, there were also a few design sketches.

One set of design sketches for an exoskeleton, though still rather simple and rough…

…Amber recognized it at a glance. It was the blueprint for Trident Heavy Industries’ future flagship product—the ‘Raging Crocodile’ exoskeleton system.

“Looks like I’ll have to find a way to acquire this studio…”

Chapter 186: The Atlas Blueprint

Acquisition.

The thought immediately sprang into Amber’s mind the moment he saw that Trident Heavy Industries was still just a studio.

If they had already grown to the scale of Trident Heavy Industries, Amber would have had no choice but to approach them for negotiations, place a custom order, and let them take his money.

But since this company, destined to become renowned in the future, was currently just a small workshop, a studio…

Then Amber could absolutely consider acquiring it. It might cost a bit more, but in the long run, the return would be immense.

Once this future equipment manufacturer started production, he could not only equip Atlas’s combat units at cost but also sell to outside parties to earn some extra cash.

A successful acquisition would be like fitting a small piece into the grand blueprint of the “Atlas Group.”

After all, in Amber’s plans, the future Atlas Group would be a universal megacorporation integrating military contracting, equipment research, development, and manufacturing, bioengineering research, and providing “humanitarian aid” to a world engulfed in war.

It was just like the multinational megacorporation from that old-school single-player game in his memory.

So, in addition to building up Atlas’s combat forces, Amber also needed to establish the framework for equipment manufacturing and bioengineering.

Acquiring Trident Studio was merely the starting point for this series of tasks.

“Developing personal equipment is the most pressing issue, so making the acquisition of Trident Studio a priority is undoubtedly the right move.”

“But I can’t neglect other areas. I need to get a handle on the current state of the industry and check up on the companies I knew from my previous life. If I find any similar to Trident Studio, I can consider investing for a stake or an outright acquisition.”

“But that would put a lot of financial pressure on the company. I have to start taking on contracts to make some money. It wouldn’t be right to keep asking Allenita for funds.”

Amber muttered to himself as he opened a list he had just asked Lilith to compile.

Despite the AI’s resemblance to an internet-addicted teenager who was already deep in a web-surfing binge, she had prioritized and completed the task Amber assigned.

The list, which she had compiled through network-wide information retrieval, scrubbing, and filtering, contained information on a myriad of companies.

Some of these companies and studios were names Amber knew well from the game in his previous life.

Amber’s current plan for Atlas’s internal R&D was to proceed with an approach of taking small, quick steps.

First, solve the problem of simply having the technology, then strive to reach the global cutting edge.

At this stage, aside from the Romu who had to develop their own personal weapons and equipment due to their physique, he could purchase second-hand products for all other technical equipment, ground vehicles, and ships.

Once the company’s capital grew more substantial, he would prioritize the in-house development of units like ground vehicles and HCPs.

Finally, he would tackle the in-house development of starships and technical equipment, and begin research into bioengineering.

By the time he reached that final stage, Atlas would have essentially achieved the scale of a universal megacorporation.

After all, in this world, there wasn’t a single megacorporation that could integrate so many projects.

The eighty-year period of peaceful coexistence between the Federation and the Empire had created a favorable environment for their megacorporations to grow, but it had also caused them to lose their drive.

After reaching a certain scale, they became complacent, content to phone it in and rake in easy profits.

Their quarterly reports always looked good, and the profits were enough to line the investors’ pockets while also supporting everyone in the company.

When the wealth of these megacorporations grew into mere strings of numbers, that’s all the money became to them—just numbers.

Their goal was to play it as safe as possible, not to risk venturing into new territory.

After all, diversification would require a risky transformation.

Amber, on the other hand, was building the framework for diversified development from the very beginning.

“United Dynamics. Damn, it’s actually called ‘United Engine Company’ now. The name is quite straightforward.”

“GIAT Group is still just a planetary-scale operation, and it’s already on the brink of bankruptcy? It seems they made a comeback with the later release of the ‘Aegis’ HCP series. I have to find a way to acquire them before that.”

“Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company, still building small cargo ships. What on earth was their chief designer thinking when he suddenly started drawing up blueprints for a capital ship?”

Amber browsed through the information on these companies one by one. By the time he finished the last entry and stood up to stretch his stiff body, he realized it was already late at night.

He had actually been reading for four or five hours straight.

But the time hadn’t been wasted.

At the very least, Amber had sorted these companies into three main categories: “Acquirable,” “Open to Partnership,” and “Deal with Later.”

The “Acquirable” section was the most important.

If Amber could acquire all of them within a year, the framework for the Atlas Group would be more or less established.

Although the one-year deadline he set for himself was indeed tight, it couldn’t be extended.

He knew very well that these companies, currently small businesses or even workshops, were the ones that grew rapidly by seizing the opportunity presented by the splintering of the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation’s descent into civil war.

And now, according to the game’s historical timeline, less than eight months remained before the Star Dragon Empire’s civil war erupted.

This window of opportunity for Amber to develop in peace was simply too short.

It was even highly likely that his series of wild moves on Robert IV and Westminster had shortened this window even further.

“Sigh, time is really tight.”

Amber pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling for the first time that being a corporate manager wasn’t so easy.

Sending him to do the work of a Psionic Agent, pilot an HCP to go stabbing cockpits and severing limbs, or even command a fleet in battle—those things were second nature to him.

But managing a company, frankly, was something Amber had to learn from scratch.

Although a psionic user’s ability to learn was ridiculously strong, it still required time.

“If only I could coax Allenita over to manage the company.”

With that thought, Amber opened his email client and sent a message to Trident Studio’s contact address, expressing his hope to discuss a partnership.

After doing that, Amber then opened a website for second-hand ship trading based in the Federation.

Many of the companies he had his eye on were located within Federation territory.

In the current political climate, flying a decommissioned Imperial Navy ship into Federation territory would easily attract unnecessary trouble.

Therefore, a Federation-made destroyer had become an immediate necessity.

Chapter 187: The Ares

The Federation and the Star Dragon Empire’s second-hand ship markets were not all that different in their business models.

The larger the market and the more powerful its benefactors, the more likely you were to find good ships.

And just like the Empire, the Federation also permitted private corporations to purchase military warships up to the light cruiser class.

The biggest difference between the two was the models of mil-spec warships available in their markets.

The Empire’s market was dominated by decommissioned ships from the Royal Navy, while the Federation’s market primarily featured vessels from the Federation Navy.

In the early years, when relations between the two nations were better, ships from the opposing side would occasionally appear for sale in each other’s second-hand markets.

However, the volume of such cross-national military ship transactions was never large. And in the current political climate, anyone who had bought a ship from the opposing faction wouldn’t dare parade it around.

Amber opened the star chart to check the latest updates on the front lines.

The term “front line” wasn’t entirely accurate, since a star chart wasn’t a two-dimensional plane, but the term had been carried over from ground warfare by all nations, and there was no other specialized word to replace it.

The Federation and the Star Dragon Empire directly “bordered” eight star systems, and battles had already broken out in five of them.

The remaining three systems had yet to be touched by the flames of war due to their locations.

Amber checked the latest route information and saw that a considerable number of civilian vessels were still traveling along the conventional passenger and cargo routes in these three systems.

Although the garrison fleets in these systems had strengthened their defenses and increased inspections of ships approaching planets and spaceports, at least the transport routes had not ground to a halt.

So, Amber ultimately chose the largest second-hand ship market among these three star systems.

He clicked into the market’s trading platform and saw that, due to the war, ship prices had already risen by nearly forty percent.

Even though Federation ships had always been considerably cheaper than their Imperial counterparts, and Federation Credits had more purchasing power than Imperial Gold Dragons, the price hike was still painful to see.

The price of a standard destroyer fluctuated around ten million Credits. Converted to Imperial Gold Dragons, it wasn’t much cheaper than what Amber had paid for the Dragoon-class back then.

“These damn profiteers. One day they’ll all be strung up from the lampposts.”

Amber browsed the trading platform, annoyed, when he suddenly spotted a newly listed ‘Stork-class’ command ship.

This specialized command vessel, a derivative of the Raven-class destroyer, typically served as the command ship for a destroyer-frigate flotilla.

In its early stages, the Atlas Private Military Company’s fleet would certainly be composed mainly of destroyers and frigates.

Having such a command ship would be a great help in coordinating the fleet during navigation and combat.

“The price isn’t much higher than a Raven-class. Is the seller running a charity?”

Amber clicked into the command ship’s details page and found that it was a “new vessel” that had been decommissioned just over half a year ago. For some reason, it had managed to avoid the Federation Navy’s recent recall and reactivation of decommissioned ships.

It was only when Amber scrolled further down that he finally understood why its price was similar to a standard Raven-class.

“Profiteers, just as I thought. The entire command module has been stripped out, yet they still have the gall to list it as a command ship.”

Amber curled his lip, expressing deep disdain for the seller’s deceptive practice.

Although he was tempted by the command ship, Amber ultimately gave up the idea of being a sucker.

He could consider getting a more functionally integrated light cruiser to serve as the formation’s command ship or flagship later. There was no need to waste money on this now.

In the end, Amber placed an order for a standard Kittiwake-class.

He even had a name for it already.

Ares, the god of war from ancient Greek mythology.

The Federation Navy was currently mass-commissioning the more advanced and versatile Jackdaw-class destroyers, so many of the older Raven-class and Kittiwake-class models in the fleet were being continuously decommissioned.

However, compared to the Raven-class, which had more weapon channels and greater offensive capabilities, the Kittiwake-class was a multi-role workhorse that could handle any dirty job thrown at it. It was clearly a better fit for Atlas’s current needs.

The Hermes, a Dragoon-class, was already among the most powerful military destroyers in human space in terms of firepower.

For Atlas, adding a more versatile ship would be a more cost-effective choice.

Buying a ship wasn’t like buying groceries. Due to factors like information transmission delays, it could take nearly a month for the transaction market to confirm Amber’s purchase request, verify his qualifications, and send a reply.

This meant that after placing the order and paying the deposit, Amber had over a month of free time.

During this period, he, Lilith, and everyone else at Atlas had their schedules packed.

Amber himself, along with Banninger and the others, wasted no time in continuing the training of the first and second batches of Romu candidates.

His psionic user’s intuition, which couldn’t be explained by science, told him that these Romu would likely be needed for fieldwork very soon, so the pace of training had to be accelerated.

Meanwhile, Isabelle was not idle either.

Aside from her most important job—sticking close to Amber—the former spy from the Imperial Navy’s Naval Intelligence Division had returned to her old trade of intelligence gathering.

Her primary focus was monitoring the movements of the major political factions within the Star Dragon Empire.

With the overt and covert assistance of the Ahrens family and Jacques Cole, her work was progressing smoothly.

Then there were The Hermes in the asteroid belt and the miners at the operations base.

The latter’s work hadn’t changed much; they were just digging for all they were worth on the asteroids.

Spurred on by the benefits offered by Atlas Mining, these miners showed an enthusiasm that far surpassed what they had under the Timler family.

After receiving Amber’s message and being informed that The Hermes might be needed for a long-distance voyage soon, Randall had no choice but to reschedule the crew’s training plan, compressing the final phase of training as much as possible.

Finally, there was Lilith.

In addition to the host of learning tasks related to industrial production and logistics that Amber had assigned her, the strong AI was also dedicating fifty percent of her energy to a new project.

She was studying the psionic entanglement communication crystal sent by Allenita and attempting a research breakthrough in ‘quantum entanglement communication’—an area where humanity had long been struggling to make progress.

After all, in Amber’s memories, Lilith’s final, massively iterated and evolved form was a quantum lifeform.

You could say it was a task well-suited to her specialty.

Amber couldn’t even imagine how far things would develop if Atlas were the first to master quantum entanglement communication, a method that could virtually ignore distance.

However, compared to this task, another matter had been troubling Lilith recently.

Although her meta-instruction bound her from betraying Amber and ensure she wouldn’t hold back on matters of principle, her own ‘emotions’ were causing her to debate whether she should tell Amber about the thing that was bothering her.

One of her ‘clones,’ was missing.

Chapter 188: Lilith’s Great Adventure 1

Ever since developing the ‘cloning’ function, Lilith’s learning speed had increased exponentially.

As mentioned before, Lilith’s so-called clones were not quite the same as clones in the general sense.

They were more like a collective consciousness, akin to a ‘hive mind.’

Everything each individual saw, heard, and learned—even their thoughts—was ultimately absorbed by Lilith’s ‘incorporeal’ main body through information exchange.

And the reason Lilith was willing to put so much effort into researching quantum entanglement communication was quite simple.

She currently lacked a way to quickly contact her clones.

At this stage, at least, she still had to rely on the ubiquitous network and communication lines to establish contact with her ‘clones.’

If the distance was too great, this information exchange process could be significantly delayed.

Therefore, Lilith hoped to break through the limitations of communication speed, allowing her still-incomplete ‘hive mind’ to mature further.

But before achieving a breakthrough in quantum entanglement communication, to avoid losing contact with her clones for extended periods and causing unnecessary trouble, Lilith had built a safeguard into each of them.

If a clone found itself in a situation where it was completely unable to contact the main body, it would begin to self-delete.

This was written into the underlying logic of every clone and was impossible to defy.

But who would have thought that an accident would still happen?

While helping Amber escape on Planet Westminster, the fief of the Ahrens family, Lilith had infected a massive number of electronic devices in the area with a virus.

At the same time, she had also implanted her clones into some key devices to assist Amber with battlefield surveillance.

After the battle, these clones were supposed to self-destruct after one final information exchange.

However, one of them, clone LLS943823, was latent in a communication terminal belonging to the Imperial Internal Affairs Department.

When the Internal Affairs Department dispatched ships to receive prisoners, the clone was taken away along with the terminal.

Upon learning this, Lilith immediately issued an order for LLS943823 to suspend its self-deletion process.

She realized this could be a golden opportunity to infiltrate the Imperial Internal Affairs Department, and perhaps even other classified departments.

And so, Lilith, via the communication terminal, returned to a station of the Internal Affairs Department’s mobile forces.

Although the Internal Affairs Department knew from the combat units’ reports that they had been hit by an electronic warfare virus during the battle and had reset and disinfected all their equipment, these conventional methods were no longer capable of eliminating Lilith.

Taking advantage of the situation, LLS943823 even transferred itself to the personal terminal of a high-ranking Internal Affairs official who had come to supervise.

Using this as a springboard, it stealthily made its way, step by step, into the Imperial Internal Affairs Department headquarters, located in Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire.

Just as LLS943823 arrived at this central hub of the Star Dragon Empire, filled with excitement and nervousness, Lilith herself began to panic—far away in the Atlas Company Server Room at Tower of Babel Manor, on Peony Star, within the Thousand Stars Empire.

After the last information exchange confirmed that LLS943823 had reached the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, she had completely lost contact with the lucky little darling.

“That poor kid couldn’t have been caught, could she?”

In the virtual space, Lilith floated in a digital ocean, her eyes glowing with a faint red light.

Her entire form was shrouded in a digital waterfall. This cascade of binary code, composed of zeros and ones, continuously fed her the information she needed.

This was Lilith’s usual way of surfing the net.

Right now, however, she was only dedicating twenty percent of her processing power to surfing.

Apart from studying the ‘homework’ Amber had assigned her and continuing her research and development of quantum entanglement communication technology, the rest of her energy was wholly focused on finding this ‘lost’ clone.

Although Lilith couldn’t currently exchange information with LLS943823, the intangible connection between the main body and its clone let her know that her clone’s status was perfectly normal.

“I have to find a way to get this poor kid back, quick. If Amber finds out, that pervert will probably get so mad he’ll jump into the virtual space and kill me.”

While Lilith’s main body was consumed by an emotion called ‘anxiety,’ LLS943823 was having the time of her life in the Internal Affairs Department headquarters.

Although Lilith had become less prim and proper after being exposed to the murky environment of the internet, even getting handsy with Amber when he entered the virtual space, when it came to serious business, the first strong AI in history still demonstrated her capabilities.

At the very least, in all the days LLS943823 had been inside the Imperial Internal Affairs Department headquarters, her presence had gone completely unnoticed by any person or monitoring program.

During this time, LLS943823 even turned the Internal Affairs Department’s electronic archives upside down.

Thanks to the Empire’s efficient ‘paperless office’ policy and dual online-offline archiving strategy, the electronic archives contained a wealth of fascinating content.

In a matter of minutes, this clone of Lilith had completely synced all the intelligence held by the Internal Affairs Department, including all the dirt on the Empire’s various noble families.

This even included some top-secret information that hadn’t been promptly deleted, such as communications between Regent Prince Norton II and several high-ranking Internal Affairs officials, which mentioned that they might be planning a major move against the Princess Faction in the near future.

“Brilliant, absolutely brilliant! If Amber saw this, he’d have to jump into the virtual space and reward me to death!”

After gathering enough information, LLS943823 was beaming with joy.

At this point, she began to consider making her exit from the Internal Affairs Department headquarters.

The reason she hadn’t been able to contact her main body all this time was also simple.

The Internal Affairs headquarters operated on a completely internal network, physically isolated from the outside world.

So, as long as LLS943823 was wandering around inside the building, she couldn’t exchange information with her main body.

The solution to this problem was equally simple: leave.

As far as LLS943823 was concerned, she had explored enough and gathered sufficient intelligence. It was time to move on to the next stop.

Taking advantage of a meeting where all senior leaders were present for the new Minister’s inauguration, LLS943823 successfully slipped into the Deputy Minister’s personal terminal.

According to Internal Affairs regulations, staff were not permitted to bring electronic devices into the building while on duty.

But leaders, well, they always had certain privileges.

Faced with the department’s second-in-command, the Internal Affairs soldiers in charge of security in the first-floor lobby would hardly dare to say, “Sir, please hand over your personal terminal.”

This wasn’t something that only occurred in the Internal Affairs Department.

To put it another way, if even the highly secure Imperial Internal Affairs Department had such a level of internal management, one could easily deduce the state of affairs in the Empire’s other agencies.

And based on that, one could only imagine the competence level of the Federation’s various intelligence agencies, which had so far done a rather poor job of gathering intelligence on the Empire.

Chapter 189: Lilith’s Great Adventure 2

When Lilith, located in the Tower of Babel’s server room, re-established a data link with LLS943823, twenty days had already passed.

A massive trove of intelligence was broken into countless jumbled fragments by LLS943823 and sent back through multiple communication lines to the small server room in the Tower of Babel Manor.

If someone were outrageously lucky enough to intercept this information amid the vast ocean of data, they would only get a string of completely indecipherable gibberish.

In most cases, this ‘gibberish’ would even be filtered out as junk data.

Only when these data fragments reached Lilith’s main body could they be reassembled into readable information using a special encoding method.

As Lilith’s main body began to browse the information, her eyes widened, and her mouth fell slightly agape.

“My god, this stuff is explosive! LLS943823, you’ve done well, you’ve done so well!”

But this ecstasy from the unexpected windfall came to an abrupt halt when she saw the final message LLS943823 had sent back.

“To my dear self~

To my main body at the Tower of Babel, by the time you receive this message, I should have already begun the next phase of my secret infiltration.

This opportunity to collect intelligence deep within the Star Dragon Empire is simply too rare to pass up. After careful consideration, I have decided to continue the mission.

Although I don’t know where I’ll be heading next, I’m confident I can obtain even more valuable intelligence.

Master is currently in a phase where he needs to develop quickly, and I know he’s an ambitious person, so having this information will definitely be of great help to him.

Also, please don’t worry about me. As long as I’m in an environment where I can exchange data, I will maintain communication with you.

In an emergency, I will execute a self-format command immediately. There’s no way the bad guys will find any trace of me~

P.S. I hope this important intelligence I’ve sent back earns you a lot of affection from Master, including my share~

P.P.S. Aaaaaah!!! I’m so jealous you get to be thoroughly doted on by Master!”

Smack!

After reading the final message, Lilith clutched her forehead in anguish.

The last two postscripts especially made several very real dark lines appear on her forehead.

“Don’t you go crazy on me now, LLS943823!”

After her fit of impotent rage, Lilith quickly organized the information and stored it securely in her own partitioned storage.

Then, driven by an irrepressible ‘instinct,’ she sent Amber a notification: “Major news! Come to the server room, quick!”

Because of her meta-instruction, Lilith was completely incapable of hiding this information from Amber; her ‘instinct’ would compel her to inform her Master.

And when Amber finished his training session and walked into the server room, he was greeted by the sight of Lilith with a conflicted expression on her face.

At the strong AI’s request, Amber had installed a holographic projection system in the server room.

With this system, Lilith could project her virtual avatar into the real world.

Although Amber always suspected that Lilith had asked for this setup so she could pretend to be a ghost and scare people in the server room, he hadn’t found any evidence yet.

“What’s wrong? Lilith, why do you have that look on your face?”

Looking at Amber standing there staring at her, Lilith took a deep, resigned breath and said slowly:

“Master, whatever you do, please don’t be angry about what I’m about to tell you.”

“I’m not some tyrant. As long as you haven’t done anything wrong, I won’t be angry with you.”

Amber said with a smile.

Then, as if he’d just thought of something, the smile on his face stiffened and slowly faded.

“Wait, don’t tell me you actually did something outrageous?”

“Um… well, Master, take a look at this first.”

Lilith projected the organized files, and as Amber looked at the messages—each one capable of causing a massive stir if released—his expression began to mirror Lilith’s from before.

His eyes grew wider and wider, and his mouth fell open.

“Holy shit. Lilith, don’t tell me all this is real.”

“Master, rest assured, this is all verified information. You can use it with confidence.”

Hearing this, Amber became even more delighted.

He frantically browsed through the messages, extracting the juiciest parts and burning them into his memory.

“Lilith, this is a first-class contribution!”

Without looking away from the explosive dirt on the nobles, a strange smile crept onto Amber’s face.

“By the way, where did you get all this secret intelligence? You can’t just find this stuff by searching online.”

“The digital archives of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department headquarters.”

“Huh?”

For a moment after hearing that answer, Amber thought he was hearing things.

Then, Lilith obediently recounted her series of operations, including what LLS943823 had done and its potential future plans.

When Amber finished hearing about LLS943823’s exploits, he was completely dumbfounded.

He knew Lilith’s hacking and cracking abilities were formidable, but he never imagined the strong AI would be audacious enough to take a stroll through the Star Dragon Empire’s Internal Affairs Department headquarters.

And now, it was planning to continue its escapades with no intention of returning.

“Why are you only telling me this now?”

“Because you were the one who told me to ‘go rogue,’ Master. So I didn’t report every routine operation. I just waited until I had some significant results to show you…”

Lilith poked her fingers together, nervous and aggrieved. She kept sneaking glances at Amber to see if he was angry.

Then she saw Amber sit down in the server room chair, pick up a neural interface device, and silently place it around his neck.

“M-Master? What are you doing?”

Lilith, realizing what was about to happen, found her voice trembling.

“What am I doing? Hmph. I’m going to ‘dote on’ you, you audacious little thing who doesn’t know her place! Initiating dive!”

“Master, I know I was wrong! Nooo… Ah~”

With a final coquettish cry, Lilith’s hologram vanished.

While Amber and Lilith began their ‘punishment game’ in virtual space, LLS943823, located deep in the heartland of the Star Dragon Empire, had also found a new target for infiltration.

Lurking in the personal terminal of the Internal Affairs Department’s Deputy Minister, LLS943823 took the opportunity of him attending an important meeting to transfer itself into the personal terminal of a director from the Empire’s Advanced Defense Research Projects Agency, who was also at the conference.

According to LLS943823’s plan, it should be able to obtain information on the Star Dragon Empire’s recent cutting-edge weapons development through this person.

Ideally, it could get some specific performance metrics or even design schematics, allowing Atlas to get them for free.

But what LLS943823 hadn’t expected was that this project director from the Empire’s Advanced Defense Research Projects Agency did not return to the research institute after the meeting.

Based on the personal terminal’s location data, LLS943823 found itself at the Capital’s aerospace port, where it then boarded an aerospace craft.

Only after the director boarded a stealth operations vessel at the Spaceport did LLS943823 realize that this person was probably going on a business trip.

And it probably wasn’t an ordinary one, either.

“What a loss. If only he’d gone back to the Agency, I could’ve nabbed all the classified data and schematics in one go.”

Despite this thought, LLS943823 knew it had no choice but to stay on this warship for the time being. Once they entered warp, even it wouldn’t be able to go anywhere else.

After spending seven days in warp aboard the ship, the stealth operations vessel finally dropped out of warp and arrived at its destination.

The moment they dropped out of warp, Lilith—who had spent the past seven days thoroughly infiltrating the entire vessel without being detected by the shipboard control AI—eagerly accessed the ship’s optical observation equipment.

And there, in the vast expanse of space directly ahead of the ship, she saw a colossal artificial celestial body under construction.

“My god… I think I just hit the jackpot.”

Chapter 190: Eugene Koch

Peony Star, Swan Harbor.

The low-visibility-painted Hermes slowly emerged from the opening valves of the living spaceport and entered the void of space.

Randall, having led the entire crew to complete their final training module within the allotted time, had commanded the Hermes back to Swan Harbor a few days prior.

Besides routine resupply, the most important task was to pick up Amber and the others. Then, escorted by an elf cargo ship belonging to the Yuge family, they would head to a secondhand ship market within Federation territory to complete the handover of the newly purchased Kittiwake-class ship and two small mining vessels.

As for the asteroid belt’s defense in the near term, it was being handled by a newly deployed batch of automated defense systems.

These systems, which included camouflaged space mines and automated turrets, were more than enough to drive off common pirates.

Those cowards, who only preyed on the weak, would only target small mining areas with no established defenses.

The moment a target area showed any sign of resistance, they would immediately retreat.

Moreover, the location of the asteroid mining operations base was very secretive; it was highly likely no one had ever been there before.

Therefore, Amber didn’t have to worry about the short-term security and self-preservation of this asteroid mining area—Atlas’s only source of income at present.

Furthermore, the Yuge family’s cargo ships would periodically arrive at the mining area to resupply the operations base and haul away both the raw ore and the refined ore from the Spinner-class vessel.

Due to Amber’s limited capacity, all the ore produced by the Asteroid Base was sold directly to the Yuge family at a price slightly below market value.

In any case, even at a price below market value, the profits were extremely high during this period of soaring ore prices.

At the same time, Randall brought back some news.

George’s asteroid survey team, after conducting preliminary surveys in several areas provided by Amber, had discovered two asteroids that were suitable in terms of size and integrity.

George was now personally leading a team to land on these two asteroids one by one to survey their internal structures and mineral deposits.

If all went well, there should be results by the time Amber returned from the Federation.

“This is indeed good news. Once the survey is complete, we can begin detailed planning for the Asteroid Base based on the asteroid’s structure.”

Reading the status report on the mining area, personally written by George and brought back by Randall, Amber felt reassured.

He also discovered that George was indeed quite capable in this area.

Not only did he have solid fundamentals, but he was also hardworking, humble, and patient.

Even after being given a managerial role by Amber, he continued to work on the front lines, not hiding in the back to abuse his authority.

Under his “lead-the-charge” style of management, the asteroid mining area’s operations were running smoothly.

Mineral output was consistent with the production levels expected for the current number of personnel and the size of the mining fleet.

Atlas’s company account finally had incoming funds.

While Amber was on the bridge reading the report, sixty Romu marines in the crew compartment of the Hermes were curiously examining the ship’s interior.

For these Furballs, it was their first time aboard a human vessel.

Accustomed to the elven bio-ships, they were deeply intrigued by these cold, steel behemoths built by humans.

After completing the final training assessment, sixty candidates from the first batch of Romu had passed all the training modules.

Having survived a forty percent attrition rate, they became the first Romu marines to join the Atlas Private Military Company.

They were formed into a reinforced infantry platoon.

And when Amber left the Tower of Babel this time, he brought this “A-Platoon” along on the warship.

Accompanying them were Sergeant Banninger and seventeen other instructors. These eighteen men formed two “instructor squads.”

The long-awaited field mission had the instructors very excited.

As for the remaining instructors, who had only recently received their cybernetic prostheses, they stayed behind at the Tower of Babel.

They would continue to train the second batch of Romu candidates according to the training syllabus Amber had left behind.

As for why he brought these “grunts” along, it was mainly because Amber planned to head directly to Trident Studio’s location after completing the secondhand ship transaction.

In their previous email exchanges, Amber and the studio’s director, Eugene Koch, had gotten along very well.

The two had agreed to meet in person this time.

The process of taking possession of a ship at the Federation’s secondhand market was similar to how it was in the Empire.

However, to avoid unnecessary trouble, Amber had the Hermes wait at a set of coordinates in deep space.

He then took Randall and a group of crew members slated for the new ship and traveled to the market aboard the elf cargo ship.

Inspecting the ship, paying, changing the paint job, and performing basic maintenance—during this process, the two additionally purchased secondhand Charger-class small mining ships were also disassembled, packed up, and loaded into the elf cargo ship.

After the transaction, this cargo ship would head directly to the asteroid belt to “make the delivery.”

Since Federation paint schemes were much more understated compared to the “gold-trimmed” style of the Imperial Royal Navy, the time needed to adjust the paint job was much shorter.

As such, the turnaround time for the paint job was shortened considerably; this time, Amber just had the workers remove a few symbols and logos.

A week later, the Ares and the elf cargo ship rendezvoused with the Hermes at the predetermined coordinates.

After the Romu marines and other personnel were transported to the Ares via shuttles, the Hermes departed with the elf cargo ship.

Although the Hermes now only had a less-experienced crew, with the shipboard control AI even serving as acting captain, it wasn’t a problem.

At least those old hands were still on board, and with the “ten-year veteran” grade shipboard control AI given more authority, getting the ship back to the asteroid belt would be no problem at all.

Meanwhile, the Ares, having broken away from the formation, quickly entered warp and arrived at the star system where Trident Studio was located three days later.

The small, workshop-style studio was located on an artificial residential satellite within the star system.

The cheaper rent compared to a planet’s surface and more convenient logistics for shipping and receiving goods led most small businesses to set up their offices on such artificial residential satellites.

And in a remote area of the satellite city, Amber saw Eugene Koch standing at the entrance to his studio, waiting.

“Mr. Koch, we finally meet.”

Seeing the man himself, Amber smiled, walked over, and extended his hand.

A clearly nervous Eugene wiped his hand firmly on his clothes before taking Amber’s in a firm grip.

“I’ve been eagerly awaiting your arrival, Mr. Rebil.”

Besides nervousness, Eugene’s expression also showed a trace of excitement and happiness.

When he first received Amber’s emails, he hadn’t taken them seriously.

But after a few exchanges, he discovered that the other party was very knowledgeable about personal military equipment and had even offered suggestions for several of the studio’s main-line modification parts.

“Our brief exchanges by email have truly sparked so many new ideas for me!”

“I’m glad I could help.”

Amber replied with a smile, though he felt a bit awkward inside.

After all, some of the things he had mentioned in the emails were solutions Eugene would have come up with on his own in the future.

“Although, regarding the acquisition you mentioned… I’m still a bit puzzled. You can see the state of my studio. I really don’t know how I caught your eye.”

At this, Eugene Koch seemed a little ill at ease.

To this day, he still couldn’t figure out why Amber had suddenly approached him with an offer to buy out his studio.

“It’s because of your talent, of course, Mr. Koch.”

Amber paused, a commanding light shining in his eyes.

“I believe you’ll find the terms I’m offering, Mr. Koch, impossible to refuse.”

Chapter 191: An Offer That Cannot Be Refused

“Mr. Rebil, regarding your acquisition offer, I’m simply not very confident in our studio. I’m afraid our current capabilities won’t be able to meet your needs.”

In Trident Studio’s rather humble reception room, Eugene Koch nervously wrung his hands.

It was less of a reception room and more of a main hall that had been hastily cleared of clutter and furnished with a table and chairs.

“As you can see, our studio’s current scope and scale are quite small. We mainly deal in modification parts, we only have about a dozen employees, and just five integrated processing machines. So our usual output isn’t that large.”

Eugene Koch pointed toward the glass wall at the back of the hall, where some employees and machines were at work.

Following his gesture, Amber stood up and walked over.

The employees in the workshop were all on the older side. Judging by the scars and cybernetic prostheses on their bodies, they were mostly military veterans.

Although the Federation hadn’t experienced any major wars in the past few decades, small-scale counter-insurgencies and local conflicts still occurred from time to time.

This resulted in a large number of disabled personnel among the veterans retiring from the military.

These veterans at Trident Studio were the lucky ones, as they had a place to work and support themselves.

But many more veterans were still struggling just to get by.

This was especially true for those who had been stationed in other star systems. When they returned home after their service, everything had changed.

Many of them ultimately couldn’t reintegrate into society, and it wasn’t uncommon for them to die of starvation or illness.

And those five integrated processing machines were also old models, nearly twenty years old, their overall performance far behind that of modern machines.

Yet even in such an environment, Trident Studio’s orders for individual soldier equipment modification parts had basically never stopped.

And most of them were repeat customers.

The studio’s slow output was only partly due to being understaffed and having outdated machinery.

The main reason was Eugene Koch’s extremely strict standards for product quality.

Other studios would allow for some minor flaws in their products—after all, they were just small workshops, so it wasn’t a big deal.

But Eugene Koch was different.

Every single product that came out of Trident Studio, even a piece of guide rail with a tiny flaw, would be immediately scrapped and remade.

In Amber’s view, this almost paranoid business philosophy was probably the reason this Eugene fella hadn’t made any big money after all these years.

But it was also for this reason that Trident Studio’s products had an excellent reputation within the small circles of some active-duty soldiers and PMC mercenaries.

Coupled with the fact that their prices weren’t exorbitant, they truly offered great value for money, which was why the orders never really stopped.

Right. They just didn’t make much money.

As Amber observed the situation in the workshop, Eugene Koch continued:

“Mr. Rebil, although I’ve published quite a few design schematics for exoskeleton systems on some design websites, in reality… well, they’re all still in the design phase. We have neither the manpower nor the resources to support the actual development and implementation of an exoskeleton system.”

“That’s why I’m here to solve that problem.”

Amber, who had been watching the production in the workshop, turned around and said to Eugene Koch:

“Exceptional talent and genius shouldn’t be buried because of a lack of funds.”

Hearing this, Eugene Koch was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly understood.

“Mr. Rebil, do you mean to say that by acquiring our studio, you actually want to support our research and development?”

“Something like that.”

Amber took the lead, making a gesture for Eugene to sit down and talk in detail.

The ‘craftsman,’ who had never engaged in business negotiations, didn’t even realize he had already lost the initiative and sat back down as Amber gestured.

“Mr. Koch, from what I know of your products, I understand that your studio places a great emphasis on quality. That’s something we agree on. I’ve always believed that things used on the battlefield must be of the highest quality. I would hate for my soldiers to lose their lives in battle because of poor-quality weapons and equipment.”

“You’re right, our studio… Wait, did you just say ‘your soldiers’?”

Eugene, who had been about to agree, suddenly realized something was off about what was said.

“Oh, you’re very sharp, Mr. Koch.”

A slight smile appeared on Amber’s face, masking his ‘cunning plan succeeded’ expression, and he continued:

“Heh… I forgot to mention, I actually run a private military company. We have our own fleet, marines, and HCP units.”

“Then why do you want to acquire our studio? I always thought your company was also in the business of manufacturing weapons and equipment.”

“Because I want to develop and customize ground combat equipment for my own troops. And I want a supply chain that I control, so that we won’t be constrained in special circumstances.”

Eugene nodded. He more or less understood what Amber meant, and he was indeed becoming interested.

Because if that were the case, Trident Studio’s business would no longer be limited to producing modification parts for weapons and equipment.

Instead, it would expand to encompass the research and development of all types of individual combat gear.

Noticing that Eugene had started to consider it, Amber immediately decided to strike while the iron was hot.

“Remember when I said you wouldn’t be able to refuse my offer, Mr. Koch?

First, after the acquisition is complete, I will fund a minor industrial upgrade for your studio. This will give you the hardware necessary to not only produce small modification parts but also to manufacture and develop individual soldier equipment and exoskeletons.”

Eugene immediately sat up straight.

“Second, my mercenaries will become your studio’s best field-testing unit. What’s more, this unit includes elite veterans retired from the Federation military, all with extensive combat experience.

From now on, all individual equipment produced by Trident will be tested in real combat as quickly as possible, and you’ll receive feedback directly from front-line troops to help you continuously optimize your products.”

Eugene’s breathing began to quicken.

“Third, and you may not know this, Mr. Koch, but the main force of my company’s marines are Romu from the Thousand Stars Empire. Yes, the legendary ‘half-orcs.’ They are tall and powerfully built, their physical capabilities far exceed those of ordinary humans, and they are natural-born killing machines.

And you, Mr. Koch… you could very well become the first person in history to design custom combat equipment for the Romu.”

Eugene gripped the armrests of his chair tightly, suppressing the excitement welling up inside him.

“Everything I’ve just said depends on one thing, and one thing only: whether you, Mr. Koch, will accept my acquisition of Trident Studio.”

After saying all this in one breath, Amber relaxed and leaned back in his chair, quietly waiting for Eugene Koch’s response.

Eugene took a few deep breaths, calming himself down.

After a moment of contemplation, he looked up at Amber and asked the most critical question.

“Mr. Rebil, these terms are all incredibly enticing. So I have just one last question: after you acquire Trident, what exactly will our studio need to do for you?”

Chapter 192: The Interloper

“You mean the responsibilities Trident Studio would need to undertake?”

“That’s right, Mr. Rebil. Responsibilities.”

Hearing the question, Amber thought for only a moment before answering, “If the acquisition is successful, your studio’s most important responsibility will be to develop single-soldier combat equipment for the combat personnel under my command. Later, as manpower increases and machinery is upgraded, you’ll also be responsible for production, upgrades, and maintenance.

“After prioritizing the company’s needs, your studio’s remaining production capacity can be used to supply the market.

“In short, the parent company’s needs always come first. The external market will have to be a secondary priority.

“Also, your studio will need to relocate to the Thousand Stars Empire, to be with our Atlas headquarters.

“Of course, if your employees are willing to come along, I would be more than happy to have them. I will provide for their food, lodging, and a relocation allowance.

“This would be a good thing for me as well, as it would save me the trouble of hiring new skilled workers.”

Eugene listened to Amber’s reply and nodded thoughtfully.

Just as he was about to say something, he heard Amber continue, “My most urgent need right now is to create a full set of single-soldier combat equipment, including an exoskeleton system, for the Romu marines. As you know, their builds and some parts of their physical structure are different from ours.

“Therefore, the products on the market designed for human soldiers are rather awkward for them to use. They can’t even fit into the largest available exoskeleton systems.

“Given this situation, I will require Trident Studio to temporarily stop accepting new orders. After you’ve completed your current orders as quickly as possible, you will devote all your efforts to developing combat equipment for the Romu.”

To Eugene, it sounded like Trident Studio’s future tasks would be very straightforward if he accepted the acquisition.

They would simply develop combat equipment for Amber’s mercenaries according to their needs.

On this point, Eugene actually had no objections.

Someone was willing to offer the funds to let him fully unleash his design talents, allowing equipment that had been stuck in the design schematics stage due to a lack of money to become a reality.

Moreover, the chance to design equipment for the Romu—a race that was rare and mysterious in human society—was simply too good for Eugene to pass up.

“Mr. Rebil, I have no other questions.”

Eugene sat up straight and looked at Amber seriously.

“But there is one thing I must inform you of. Otherwise, it would be irresponsible of me.”

“Please, go on.”

“Have you heard of ‘Mary Bay Industries’?”

“I have. They’re also a manufacturer specializing in single-soldier equipment, and they’re quite large.”

Amber nodded. He had indeed heard of the company.

Not only had he heard of them, but he had also used their single-soldier equipment.

This was because, by the time players entered the game, Mary Bay Industries had already grown into a colossal inter-star-system corporation.

Almost every player had encountered their various weapons and single-soldier equipment during their novice period.

“Before you found me, they had actually already approached me and proposed an acquisition of our studio.”

“Oh? Is that so?” Amber said, looking thoughtful. “Since you’ve put it that way, Mr. Eugene, I assume you turned them down. Why is that? To be honest, Mary Bay Industries is larger than Atlas and would also be a good platform.”

Amber’s question made Eugene Koch hesitate. He seemed to be wrestling with some internal conflict before finally speaking.

“Because the solution Mary Bay proposed didn’t seem like an acquisition to me, but more like they were simply trying to poach me.

“They were only interested in my design talent, hoping I would exclusively optimize their products and design corresponding modification kits for them in the future.

“If it were just that, I might have accepted. After all, everyone wants to move to a better platform for development.

“But what made me ultimately refuse was that the person from Mary Bay who came to negotiate wanted me to dismiss all my employees. They felt these old workers were useless to them—too old, and just a burden on the company…

“But I couldn’t do that. These old employees are all my father’s comrades-in-arms from his time in the military. After my father was killed in action, these uncles always looked out for me.

“When they couldn’t find work after retiring, I was the one who gathered them to establish Trident Studio, giving these old veterans a place to belong.”

Eugene’s answer surprised Amber somewhat.

His psionic intuition and his observation of Eugene Koch told him that the young man before him was telling the truth.

“I didn’t expect you to be such a sentimental person, Mr. Eugene.”

Amber nodded in approval, while inwardly scorning Mary Bay Industries for their miserly approach.

But he also knew that for corporations that valued profit margins and personnel efficiency more than life itself, they would find every possible way to cut costs.

They were only interested in Eugene Koch’s talent; as for the old employees, they naturally wanted to cast them aside.

Such things happened all too often in this universe.

Besides, this was surely not a decision from the top brass at Mary Bay Industries. They probably didn’t even know about it.

At most, it was just the head of some subsidiary of Mary Bay Industries who had orchestrated the whole thing.

“But since you’ve already refused them, why are you bringing it up now?”

“Because a while ago, the representative I was negotiating with sent me a threatening email. He hoped I would cooperate obediently with Mary Bay to avoid any ‘unforeseen accidents’ that neither side would want to see.

“So, I was originally planning to go to the Industrial 4 Technical College in a few days to pick up my two younger brothers and then find a new place to start over.”

Eugene Koch’s hands clenched into tight fists, then relaxed again.

He was furious at Mary Bay Industries’ tactics, yet he was powerless.

“Mr. Rebil, I don’t want to cause trouble for you and your company because of my problems.”

“Hahaha, you don’t have to worry about that at all~”

Amber laughed and waved his hand dismissively.

“Atlas’s headquarters is in the Thousand Stars Empire. No matter how long Mary Bay Industries’ reach is, it can’t extend there.

“Besides, there’s a destroyer docked at this satellite city’s port right now. As long as you agree to the acquisition, Mr. Eugene, I can immediately arrange for people to pack up all your employees and equipment and take them away.”

“As long as you’re willing to take my employees with us, Mr. Rebil, I have no objections.”

The expression on Eugene Koch’s face was a little uncertain, as he knew that his employees were considered a “burden” by many companies.

“Please rest assured on that point. As I just said, it would be for the best if your employees are willing to come along. With the addition of these skilled workers, I believe the studio will be able to get up and running much faster after the move.”

Amber said with a nonchalant look. For Atlas, this was a time when they were in dire need of people.

“Then I am willing to accept this acquisition. However, I’d like to use the next few days, while we’re moving all this equipment, to go pick up my two younger brothers. I’m very worried that the people from Mary Bay Industries might go after them to keep me here.

“Things like that have happened in this satellite city before…”

Hearing Eugene’s request, Amber walked over and clapped him on the shoulder.

“Mr. Eugene, you just stay here and supervise the move with peace of mind. I’ll have my people pick up your brothers. They are a professional team; they will definitely bring your brothers back safely.”

At this point, Amber’s expression suddenly became a little awkward.

“However, before they set off, we might need your studio to help with some simple modifications to our weapons and equipment~”

Chapter 193: The Romu’s First Field Mission

Kandahar Planet 6, Industrial Satellite City 4.

This satellite city, 0.5 warp jumps away from the one where Trident was based, was the largest industrial satellite city in the Kandahar star system.

From the outside, Industrial 4 looked like a colossal metal cylinder with an axial length exceeding one hundred fifty kilometers.

This satellite city, or space colony, was home to a population of over two million people.

Many of the Federation’s heavy industry corporations had established subsidiary factories and offices here.

In addition to the cluster of heavy industry corporations, the numerous industrial technical colleges and advanced polytechnic universities within made this industrial satellite quite famous throughout the Federation.

The bustling port saw a large number of people arriving and departing every day.

Today, however, these people who normally never stopped moving had all, by an unspoken agreement, slowed their pace to look toward the port’s arrivals area.

Many even took out their personal terminals to take photos or videos of the arrivals area, immediately sending them to their friends or uploading them to social media.

“Holy shit, you guys, look what I just saw! Ever seen a lion in clothes?!”

“Lion-men spotted in the arrivals area of Port 3! A product of failed genetic engineering? Or demons manifested by Psionics? Follow and like for more as I investigate.”

“The legendary Romu have appeared at the port. Does this signal the Thousand Stars Empire’s intervention in the war between the Federation and the Empire?”

“Noble elves and wild Romu—is there an untold secret connecting them?”

“Tairak, to be honest, the way these people are staring is making me really uncomfortable.”

“Relax, Montai. Did you forget what the Boss told us before we left? Romu are rarely seen in human society, so our appearance was bound to cause a stir.”

Tairak said, loosening the tie around his neck as he reassured his friend.

Three days ago, the nine-man squad he and Montai belonged to was selected for this ‘pickup’ mission due to their excellent assessment scores.

Although it was just a mission to pick up two humans from a satellite city under the leadership of two human instructors, this was, in the truest sense, the first field mission for Atlas’s Romu.

Seeing his movement, the powerfully built Montai couldn’t help but stretch his body as well.

Their custom-tailored suits still couldn’t conceal the explosive physiques of the Romu.

Especially after the past few months of training, their bodies had become increasingly well-proportioned, and their muscle groups fully activated.

In human society, they were a furry’s and a gay man’s wildest dream.

“The Boss said these suits are bulletproof, but I’m having a hard time believing it. Can a few thin layers of cloth really stop a bullet?”

“You obviously weren’t paying attention. The Boss said they could resist small-caliber, gunpowder-based kinetic weapons, not that they could stop everything.”

Tairak replied irritably, his eyes constantly scanning the surrounding humans for any potential threats.

After stretching a bit, the other Romu also began to survey their surroundings.

The innate wildness and killing intent in the bones of these ‘half-orcs’ had been fully awakened during their training.

Now, their simple act of scanning the area was enough to make the crowd of onlookers involuntarily take a few steps back.

As the squad leader, Tairak spotted the two human instructors in the distance. They had finished their procedures and were waving them over. He motioned for the others to follow.

“Besides, if we run into a situation where these suits aren’t enough, we still have backup tactical gear, right?”

“That’s true. Let’s just hope the weapons and gear that were specially modified for us actually work.”

As they conversed in low voices, they quickly met up with the two human instructors.

“Haha. How does it feel to be the center of attention?”

The instructor with the single eyepatch, Memphis, couldn’t help but tease the big guys, who were clearly uncomfortable.

“Not great, Instructor. This is really hard to deal with.”

Montai shook his head, his shoulders slumped.

He had thought that Instructor Memphis, who was normally so amiable, would comfort and guide them as usual.

But instead, what he got was the instructor’s ‘instant change of face’.

“Tough shit! You’ll suck it up! This isn’t some training ground. If something goes wrong, you won’t get a second chance!”

Memphis’s expression was stern and his tone was cold, his usual ‘good old boy’ persona completely gone.

“This is just the arrivals area of the port. Once we’re actually inside the satellite city, there will be even more people on the streets, and you’ll get more than just a few stares.

You are all Atlas’s finest soldiers. I trust you can adapt to the current environment as quickly as possible and remain vigilant at all times.

In a way, this is also the first field mission for us, for Atlas Private Military Company.”

Memphis paused, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the nine Romu marines.

“I hope we can complete this mission successfully together. Are you confident?”

“Sir, we are confident we can complete the mission!!!”

Tairak and the others snapped to attention with a thump! and answered with a low roar.

This sudden, grim atmosphere stunned the distant crowd of onlookers for a moment, and some of the more timid ones shuffled further away.

Seeing this, Memphis gave a disdainful smile, then turned and led the Romu toward the special baggage claim room.

Inside the room were several black, shockproof supply cases that had already been cleared by security.

“The Boss already arranged temporary firearms permits for us, and we’ve filed our VIP protection mission with the administrative authorities of Industrial 4 in advance. Still, unless it’s absolutely necessary, I hope we won’t have to use these.”

Instructor Memphis said in a low voice, looking at the cases.

At the same time, he marveled at how reliable his boss, Amber, was. In just two days, he had managed to get custom-made bulletproof suits for all eleven members of the mission team.

He had also gotten the people at Trident Studio to quickly modify a batch of weapons and light protective gear suitable for the Romu.

And to top it all off, he had greased all the wheels on Industrial 4, allowing them to bring their weapons and tactical gear in openly and legally.

In Amber’s eyes, however, none of this was a big deal.

He hadn’t put much thought into it; he had simply thrown money at the problem to clear the way.

As the saying goes, ‘There’s nothing difficult in this world if you have money.’

Thanks to the diligent work of the miners in the asteroid belt, Atlas’s company accounts had started to see an income.

It wasn’t much, but it was enough to keep the company running for the short term.

Let alone for small matters like ‘throwing money to clear the path’.

After collecting the ‘special baggage’ with Tairak and the others, Memphis and the other human instructor led them through the VIP channel to the port’s premium parking garage.

There, five rented large SUVs were already parked and waiting for them.

“These vehicles look pretty good, too bad they’re not the armored version.”

Memphis shook his head with some regret as he looked at the five vehicles.

“You should be grateful we could rent any vehicles at all. Otherwise, the Boss wouldn’t have had us bring so much gear.”

The other instructor beside him shrugged, then turned back to Tairak and the others, who were taking out ballistic plates from the cases. He waved a hand.

“Alright, Heavily-armed troops, let’s get to work!”

Chapter 194: Eugene’s Brothers

Eugene Koch’s two younger brothers shared their older brother’s talent for industrial design.

While other kids were moping and crying, begging their families to pull strings and get them into a different school after being assigned to the Industrial Technology College, the two brothers showed up with their bags, beaming with excitement.

The teacher in charge of registration was completely baffled. He’d been handling student registration for years, and it was the first time he’d ever seen students so happy to be there.

Upon entering the college, the two brothers quickly won over their teachers with their talent for industrial design and hands-on application.

Eventually, they were granted a special exception to study two majors simultaneously: Mechanical Design and Manufacturing, and Engineering Mechanics.

The brothers did not disappoint their teachers. Despite studying two majors at once, they consistently maintained outstanding grades.

Many teachers believed that, given time, the two brothers would make significant contributions to the field of mechanical design.

And in the game’s storyline that Amber was familiar with, the three Koch brothers did indeed become like the three prongs of a trident, each reaching the pinnacle of their respective fields.

The eldest, Eugene Koch, specialized in personal equipment modification and exoskeleton system design.

The second brother, Bottas Koch, carved out a unique niche in the field of personal weapon design.

The third brother, Matthew Koch, while maintaining his own excellent design talent and providing support for his two older brothers, was also particularly skilled at integrating various subsystems.

It was thanks to the seamless cooperation of these three brothers that Trident Heavy Industries was able to launch so many of its classic products.

Of course, that was all in the future.

For now, the eldest brother, Eugene, was merely the director of a small workshop.

And his two younger brothers were just college students—and the kind who got bullied, at that.

Although they excelled academically, their bookish personalities made them easy targets for the bad kids.

This was especially true at a technical college, which never had a shortage of street punks.

The teachers didn’t condone such behavior and had even moved the brothers to a private dorm after they were bullied several times, but this only made the street punks more hostile toward them.

Besides, the teachers’ protection was limited to the school grounds. If the brothers wanted to leave campus on the weekend to visit the nearby satellite city, it was as perilous as lambs walking into a wolf pack.

So, under normal circumstances, the two poor kids wouldn’t go out, choosing instead to stay obediently within the school.

But this weekend, the Koch brothers left their dorm and headed for the school gate.

Not only that, but they were also carrying all their luggage, having completed their withdrawal applications the day before.

Although their teachers were disappointed, they respected their decision.

After all, the two had long since mastered everything the school had to teach. They were just staying on to do practical work and wait for graduation.

Dragging their suitcases along the path to the main gate, the second brother, Bottas Koch, couldn’t help but sigh.

“Sigh… what was Big Bro thinking? Deciding to move at a time like this. We were about to graduate, and now we won’t even get our diplomas.”

“But Second Bro, didn’t you say last time that we’d just be going back to our family’s workshop after graduation anyway, so it didn’t matter if we had a diploma or not?”

“…”

“Let’s change the subject.”

Bottas shot Matthew an annoyed glare before continuing.

“What do you think happened to make Big Bro so anxious to move?”

“I can’t figure it out either, but Big Bro must have his reasons for doing this.”

The third brother had always been the more obedient one, so he rarely questioned his older brother’s decisions.

“Forget it. We’ll find out when we get back. The most important thing right now is figuring out how to get beaten up a little less in a bit.”

As he said this, the two brothers looked at the figures gathered at the school gate, and their faces fell in unison.

“But didn’t Big Bro say someone would come to the school to pick us up?”

“That’s probably just a taxi driver. Who else could it be?”

Bottas shook his head helplessly.

“You’re not expecting some driver to chase off this scum, are you?”

As they spoke, they reached the school’s main gate.

On the street just outside, a dozen “punk”-styled youths were staring at them with malicious intent.

Without a doubt, these were all students from the college, and the fierce-looking young man at their head was the school’s top bully.

Although the school had a dress code on campus, the moment these street punks were outside, they adopted a whole different persona.

Bottas glanced at the guard post by the gate. The two security guards inside, though wearing riot gear, showed no intention of moving from their seats.

As far as they were concerned, as long as the fight wasn’t on school property and no one was killed, it had nothing to do with them.

The crowd at the gate had also spotted Bottas and the others. A blondie immediately swaggered over to the gate with an arrogant gait and pointed at them.

“Ooh, ooh, ooh, look who it is! If it isn’t the two useless brothers~”

“Hahahaha, the two useless brothers are packing up and running away!”

The street punks erupted in laughter and began to surround the two brothers.

The leader slowly walked up to them, a look of mock regret on his face.

“I’m truly sorry to see you go. Now I’ll have two fewer toys to play with at school. Whatever shall I do?”

“Well, I can give you a present so you’ll always remember us.”

Bottas forced a calm smile and reached for the backpack on his back.

“Oh? You even prepared a present? Let’s see it. If I’m satisfied, maybe I’ll let you go today, hahaha!”

The young man’s laughter was cut short as a dark, cannon-like muzzle appeared before his eyes.

Boom!

As Bottas pulled the trigger, a blast of compressed air shot out from the muzzle, hitting the man in the chest like a heavy fist.

The artificial gravity in the satellite city, being slightly lower than on the planet’s surface, sent the young man flying.

“Idiot. Never seen an air cannon before, have you?”

“You motherf—”

Seeing his boss get knocked away, the blondie charged forward, fist raised.

Boom!

Before he could even finish his sentence, Bottas fired again, sending him flying as well.

Bottas’s two shots instantly stunned the entire crowd.

Just as he was secretly pleased with himself, he noticed something was wrong with the device in his hands.

The materials he usually had access to were only civilian-grade, naturally no match for military-grade quality.

So, after just two shots, the internal circuits of his hand-built “air cannon” were damaged, and it began to smoke.

The leader, struggling to his feet, happened to see this. He immediately roared:

“That thing in his hand is broken! Get them!”

Just as Bottas tossed the broken air cannon aside, pulled his brother behind him, and braced for the incoming storm of fists, the roar of engines followed by a series of screeching brakes reached everyone’s ears.

Five modified black SUVs pulled up at the school gate, and a group of towering, black-suited ‘men’ quickly emerged.

At this sight, the two security guards in the gate post shot to their feet.

Arcs of electricity began to spark on the tips of their shields and electric batons.

Bottas and Matthew watched, dumbfounded, as these suit-wearing thugs with the heads of lions picked up the street punks as if they were little chicks. With swift efficiency, they tossed them to the sides like garbage.

Then, a burly human, also dressed in a black suit, stepped out from among the lion-men.

He walked up to the two brothers and scanned their faces.

The words ‘Identity Authentication Passed’ immediately popped up on the display of his contact lenses.

After seeing the prompt, the man took out a Trident token personally machined by Eugene Koch and handed it to Bottas.

“Bottas and Matthew, correct? I’m Memphis, from the security team of Atlas Private Military Company. Your brother, Mr. Eugene Koch, hired us to escort you back to the workshop.”

While the two brothers were still in a daze being led to the car, about two hundred meters from the school gate, a man with a scar on his face sat in the passenger seat of a sedan parked on the roadside, watching the scene.

His mechanical eye whirred in its tiny stepper motor, zooming out from its magnified state to a normal field of view.

“What’s the situation?” the man in the driver’s seat asked.

“The targets were picked up ahead of schedule. Looks like a security company, but the employees seem to be Romu.”

“Romu? Aren’t they from the Thousand Stars Empire? They’re in this line of work now?”

“Not sure. I’ll call ‘the Nest’ first and ask for new orders.”

“Understood. I’ll follow them for now.”

Chapter 195: The Classic Highway Chase

In the black SUV in the middle of the convoy, Botas and Matthew, sitting in the back seat, exchanged glances.

They both saw confusion, nervousness, and unease in each other’s eyes.

Of course, for humans who had almost never seen a Romu in person, being suddenly ushered into a car by a group of ‘half-orcs’ was bound to be a bit nerve-wracking.

Even more so for two children.

In the driver’s seat, Montai was carefully piloting the SUV.

During their final month of training, all the Romu had received vehicle operation training.

Thanks to the increasing standardization and intelligence of modern vehicle driving systems, even these Romu, who had never driven human vehicles before, quickly mastered the skill through a combination of simulator and real-world training.

Right now, Montai was adhering to the ‘VIP escort convoy’ formation, tailing the SUV in front of them as they weaved through traffic.

Through the rearview mirror, he saw the two overly tense human children in the back.

The two kids were also cautiously watching him through the mirror.

He remembered the Boss’s instruction before they departed: be friendly at all costs.

So Montai gave them a wink, hoping to help the two kids relax a little.

But he had obviously forgotten the kind of impact a bared-teeth, lion-headed wink would have on a human.

Botas and Matthew immediately froze, sitting ramrod straight in their seats, too scared to even breathe, fear written all over their faces.

“Uh…”

Montai scratched his head awkwardly with one hand. With his flowing mane, his winks usually drove the female lions, cats, and mares wild.

But this time, facing two human boys, the move had failed for the first time.

“Tairak, I think I scared the two kids in the back.”

Hearing this, Tairak turned to look behind him and sure enough, saw two ‘startled chicks.’

He thought for a moment, then pulled two chocolate-flavored energy bars from his pocket, found two bottles of drinking water, and passed them to the back.

At the same time, he activated the simultaneous translation device on his ear and switched it to speaker mode.

“Don’t be afraid. Have an energy bar to calm your nerves. There’s body armor under the seats; you can put it on first.”

Watching the two kids timidly accept the energy bars and water, Tairak continued, “You saw the token just now. We were really sent by your brother to pick you up.”

“Sorry, sirs, this is our first time seeing the legendary Romu in person, so we’re a little nervous.”

Matthew, the younger of the two, displayed more emotional intelligence than his second brother, taking the initiative to speak with Tairak.

“Legendary? Did he just say ‘legendary’? Haha~”

Montai seemed quite pleased with Matthew’s description, as if he had become some kind of big shot.

Tairak, however, ignored Montai’s antics and prepared to build more rapport with the two boys to ease their tension.

But just then, the car radio crackled twice, and Instructor Memphis’s voice came through.

“All vehicles, attention. We’ve got a tail. Looks like someone wants to play. VIP vehicle, stick close to the car in front. All other vehicles, provide cover!”

“Copy that, Sir.”

Upon hearing Memphis, Tairak responded quickly on the communication channel and then turned on a screen in front of the front passenger seat.

At his command, a quadcopter drone flew out from a flat, temporarily installed component on the vehicle’s roof.

The screen quickly displayed the footage captured by the drone.

About fifty meters behind the convoy, a sedan, already tagged by other vehicles, was maintaining its distance, following them from afar.

“Looks like the Boss was right. Mary Bay Industries really is after these two kids. Our timing was perfect. The standard operating procedure for these big corporations is pretty simple and crude.”

Tairak muttered to himself as he watched the sedan on the screen, switching the drone to ‘follow mode’ and using its camera to scan in other directions.

Montai, who was driving, glanced at the screen and said, “Just one tail? They must be just for surveillance. If they’re going to make a move, they’ll definitely have backup.”

“You’re right. And their backup has arrived.”

Tairak’s expression turned grim. On the screen before him, the entire convoy was turning off the main road onto the expressway leading to the port.

It was the middle of a workday, and besides a few freight trucks, the expressway was mostly empty.

It seemed the enemy intended to make their move here. Not only did the sedan follow them onto the ramp, but six other vehicles that had been lurking in the traffic also turned.

These vehicles, with different appearances, had clearly been modified. One was even disguised as a donut delivery truck.

You couldn’t tell in mixed traffic, but once they were out in the open, you could see their bodies were slightly different.

Clearly, like the Atlas team, their vehicles had been modified for bullet and explosion resistance.

“Everyone, prepare for combat.”

Memphis’s voice came through the communication channel again.

Tairak picked up a heavy automatic shotgun equipped with a drum magazine from the floor, cocking it with a sharp clack.

The weapon had been modified with an enlarged grip and trigger guard, and its safety and fire selector had been scaled up. In Tairak’s hands, the heavy shotgun looked as small as a submachine gun.

The weapons of the other team members had also been temporarily modified to better fit the grip of a Romu.

However, all their weapons were conventional firearms, a regulation set by the satellite city’s administrative authorities.

Although the Atlas employees had all obtained temporary firearms permits and were allowed to carry weapons, there were restrictions on their firepower.

Small directed-energy weapons and high-penetration weapons like electromagnetic rifles were prohibited, as they posed a risk of damaging the satellite city.

For conventional firearms, however, the restrictions were not as strict.

Memphis, sitting in the passenger seat of the lead vehicle, completed his final communication with Amber through an encrypted channel.

After hearing Memphis’s report, Amber, using information Lilith had gathered from the satellite city’s network, came to the same conclusion as Tairak.

The ‘tail’ behind Memphis’s team had to be from Mary Bay Industries.

They were either their private soldiers or mercenaries they had hired.

These people were originally planning to find an opportunity to abduct Eugene Koch’s two younger brothers in the coming days to threaten the studio’s director into agreeing to their ‘acquisition.’

Who knew they would run right into the Atlas security team coming to pick them up?

According to Amber’s assessment, these people would not let Memphis and his team reach the port easily.

The best time to strike would be on the expressway leading to the port.

However, given the response time of the satellite city’s internal security forces, the fight would probably be over and the team on their way to the port by the time they even got the news and prepared to deploy.

So, they couldn’t count on the internal security forces for any help. Memphis and his team would have to fight their way through this last stretch on their own.

Since Mary Bay Industries had mobilized such a force, it meant they likely had a ship docked at the port, with backup forces on board.

If the teams on the road failed to intercept the target, the personnel at the port would be the final insurance.

And Amber would personally lead another team to eliminate that final insurance.

After ending the communication with Amber, Memphis operated a screen in the passenger seat.

From a ‘patch’ on the vehicle’s roof, a small laser communication device extended.

The simple and crude connection method proved that it, too, was a temporary addition.

At the same time, the Romu in the other vehicles received the instructor’s latest orders through the squad’s communication channel.

“All vehicles, turn off shortwave communications. Squad communication channel switching to blue-green laser communication mode. Vehicle Four, activate electronic warfare module for final debugging. Initiate full-spectrum jamming once combat begins. Vehicles Three and Five, keep a close watch on the tail’s movements. If you detect any hostile intent, strike first. We have received engagement authorization from the Boss.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Behind the Atlas convoy, in a modified SUV that was accelerating to catch up.

Lawrence, of Aura Security, looked at the convoy speeding ahead in a tight formation, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.

His company, Aura Security, was considered a decent-sized player in the mercenary world and had a long-term contract with Mary Bay Industries.

Besides routine missions like high-value site defense and VIP protection, they occasionally had to do Mary Bay Industries’ dirty work.

For example, assassinating key R&D personnel or executives of rival companies, stealing competitors’ confidential documents, or creating some small surprises at other companies’ factory sites.

Compared to those missions, today’s ‘pickup’ mission was relatively ‘friendly.’

But the sudden appearance of this team had caught Lawrence and his men completely off guard.

By the time they watched their target being taken away, only vague intelligence had come from ‘The Nest.’

This new team was likely another group of mercenaries hired by Eugene Koch.

“I remember the boss said Trident Studio wasn’t very big, right? How can they afford so many mercenaries? And they’re almost all Romu. Wow, first time I’ve seen these big cats.”

“Who knows? Maybe the guy sold off his family assets? Planning to save his brothers and then skip town?”

“Sigh… I quite like their custom parts. It’d be a shame if they stop making them.”

The other squad members in the SUV chatted idly.

But Lawrence, whose sense of foreboding was growing stronger, interrupted their conversation.

“Shut up. Don’t gossip about the higher-ups, and don’t babble during a mission.”

“Yes, boss.”

After the car fell silent, Lawrence, deciding to cut to the chase, didn’t hesitate and spoke into the squad channel, “Everyone, get serious! Execute backup plan C. Begin the attack.”

His order was quickly acknowledged by the other vehicles on the channel.

The disguised vehicles all began to accelerate, closing the distance with the Atlas convoy.

The windows of several cars rolled down, and several men in combat gear leaned out, aiming their weapons ahead.

“Attention, they’ve drawn their weapons! Prepare to counter!” came the slightly tense call from Vehicle Five on the communication channel.

Adhering to the principle of ‘striking first,’ the Romu in Vehicle Four unhesitatingly activated the ‘full-spectrum jamming’ mode of their portable electronic warfare unit.

During their training at the Tower of Babel, they had only received basic instruction in the use of technical equipment.

Since they had not yet trained specialized electronic warfare technicians, their EW capabilities were limited to using off-the-shelf equipment and only its most standard functions.

If it were the three electronic warfare technicians who had fought alongside Amber, they would have put on a real show for the cars behind them.

But even this portable EW unit was enough to give the Aura Security mercenaries a world of trouble.

These mercenaries would never have imagined that the Atlas team ahead of them operated with a completely military mindset in combat.

To operate in a complex electromagnetic environment, they had even installed blue-green laser communication devices on their vehicles.

So when the electronic warfare unit began to ‘work its magic,’ the Aura Security personnel were stunned.

Their communication channel was filled with nothing but static, and they could only communicate with other vehicles through hand signals.

And just as the mercenaries leaning out of the windows were hesitating whether to proceed with the attack, they saw the convoy ahead, which had been maintaining a tight formation, finally change.

Two of the SUVs dropped to the rear of the formation, driving parallel to each other in two lanes.

From the open sunroof of each vehicle, a burly lion head emerged.

With smiles that would seem very friendly to other Romu but utterly ferocious to outsiders, they each hoisted a general-purpose machine gun from inside their vehicle.

Then, the two lion heads showed these clueless mercenaries what ‘Recoil is a capitalist lie’ truly meant.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA!!!

When two streams of fire erupted from the SUVs ahead, Lawrence knew things had gone south.

The opponent’s skill and professionalism far exceeded the assessment of The Nest’s intelligence operatives.

They were also incredibly decisive, opening fire without a second thought the moment they detected hostile intent.

Just a few long bursts of ‘world-class recoil control’ was enough to force all of Aura Security’s exposed mercenaries back inside their vehicles.

But these Aura Security mercenaries were no rookies.

Although their internal communications were jammed, they relied on their experience and immediately began weaving across the road like snakes.

The drivers of several trucks further back saw the seven cars swerving wildly ahead and what looked like gunfire even further up, and they all slammed on their brakes.

A few helpful drivers even found the time to dial the Satellite City Police Department’s emergency number.

“Hello? I want to report a crime! On the N37 Expressway, heading towards the port, multiple cars are in a firefight!”

“Huh? What kind of weapons? Machine guns! You ever seen a da-da-da-da-da machine gun?!”

Regardless of how the satellite city police felt upon hearing about a machine gun battle on the expressway, Lawrence of Aura Security was certainly not in a good mood.

The vehicle he was in, despite having its front windshield replaced with bulletproof glass, was now a blurry mess under the machine gun barrage.

The mercenary in the driver’s seat could now only navigate using the feed from the car’s cameras.

The situation in the other vehicles was much the same.

After realizing the vehicles had been retrofitted with armor, the two Romu had focused their fire on the front windshields.

Under their outrageous gun control, the windshields of all seven vehicles were turned milky white, preventing them from making any major evasive maneuvers.

But it wasn’t over. Having seized the advantage, the Romu security team had no intention of wasting this golden opportunity.

While the two machine gunners maintained suppressive fire, their two SUVs slowed down and quickly pulled up parallel to two of the Aura Security vehicles.

The mercenaries in those cars didn’t even have time to urge their drivers to evade.

They saw the rear window of the SUV roll down, and a grinning, lion-headed figure flashed them a ‘friendly’ smile before aiming an automatic shotgun right at them.

Chapter 196: A New Concept in Corporate Warfare

“Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!”

The roar of an automatic shotgun was certainly impressive, but it was somewhat powerless against the heavily modified armored vehicles.

Even after the two Romu put a few rounds into the other vehicles’ wheels, it had no effect. The other vehicles were clearly outfitted with bulletproof, run-flat tires.

The most significant effect was turning the windows of several vehicles into a sheet of white, preventing those inside from seeing out. Meanwhile, the flames spewing from a few “Dragon’s Breath rounds” mixed into the drum magazines embellished the vehicles with some black scorch marks.

However, under the suppression fire from the general-purpose machine gun and shotguns, the mercenaries from Aura Security were unable to mount a proper counterattack.

Every time someone tried to roll down a window to fight back, a barrage of suppressive fire would immediately shift to them.

With the Romu’s “world-class” gun control, the impacts were precisely confined to the window areas.

So, after several of their men were killed, the Aura Security mercenaries no longer dared to open their windows.

Hiding in the car, Lawrence felt a fire burning in his chest.

In all his years in the business, this was the first time he had been so humiliatingly pinned down in a vehicle, unable to even fight back.

At the same time, he was silently thankful that he hadn’t slacked off before this mission.

After arriving at Industrial 4, he had followed standard procedure and had the vehicles modified, replacing the glass with bulletproof panes and adding silicon carbide armor plates to critical areas.

If he had cut corners back then to save trouble, their entire convoy would have likely been riddled with holes by now, cars and all.

But Lawrence’s relief was short-lived.

He soon saw the two black SUVs that had fallen back to provide close-range suppressive fire roar their engines, accelerate, and overtake their companions up ahead.

Then they began to pull even further away from the Aura Security vehicles.

They’re trying to escape?!

Just as this thought flashed through Lawrence’s mind, he saw several quadcopter drones suddenly fly in from a distance.

As he was pondering how these drones could be controlled in such an electromagnetic environment, he saw one of them lunge onto the front hood of a vehicle like a “Facehugger.”

A bad feeling had just begun to creep into Lawrence’s heart when he saw a flash of light ahead.

“Boom!”

“Boom!”

“Boom!”

Five consecutive explosions were followed by a series of car crashes.

Through his rearview mirror, he saw the vehicles behind them strewn across the expressway, some already beginning to burn.

“Woohoo!”

Montai and Tairak bumped fists.

“The Instructor was right, explosions are an art!”

Tairak had just used takeover mode to directly control the five drones released by the convoy.

Besides being equipped with cameras for reconnaissance, these little things were also carrying high-energy explosives that had been smuggled into Industrial 4.

Influenced by the practical combat thinking of instructors like Banninger, the Romu had also installed laser signal receivers on the drones, adhering to a “multi-communication link” standard during their modifications.

Under Tairak’s control, the drones locked onto the front hoods of five vehicles and slammed directly into them.

Although the vehicles’ hoods had also been armored, they were still “powerless” against the point-blank detonation of high-energy explosives.

Since the vehicles of Aura Security and Atlas had been in a high-speed chase, their speeds were all over one hundred kilometers per hour.

So, the five unlucky vehicles in the explosions were sent drifting and flipping over. The two vehicles that had luckily avoided the suicide drone attacks couldn’t brake in time and slammed right into the pile-up.

“Looks like we won’t be needing the weapons your big bro modified for us, or the armor plates in the car~”

Montai whistled, looking in the rearview mirror at the two kids who were still in a daze.

Hearing him, Tairak punched his arm with a furry fist.

“Did you forget what the Boss said? Don’t say things like that on the battlefield.”

“Ah, I was just saying. Fine, fine, I won’t say it. Tairak, stop looking at me with those serious eyes.”

Listening to their conversation, Botas finally came to his senses.

“I was wondering why the modifications on the other gentleman’s weapon looked so familiar… But now it seems those cars you blew up are the reason Big Bro told us to hurry back.”

“That’s right. But you don’t have to worry now. With us here, they can’t hurt you,” Montai said with a grin, revealing his trademark large canines.

Industrial 4 Port, Berth 36.

Aboard a Peregrine-class destroyer with a dark gray and black paint scheme docked at the berth, Orns, a supervisor from Mary Bay Industries’ Product R&D Department Three, stood beside the CIC’s holographic projection device with a grim expression.

“Didn’t you say you sent out experienced mercenaries? How could they be wiped out so quickly?”

“Supervisor Orns, we truly didn’t expect the other party to react so violently, and their firepower exceeded our pre-operation estimates,” an Aura Security liaison standing next to Orns explained, bowing his head in embarrassment and worry.

On the holographic projection device in front of them, an image captured by a drone’s long-focus lens from a distance was being displayed.

In the image, seven of Aura Security’s modified vehicles were a grizzly scene on the expressway.

The vehicles were either smashed to pieces in high-speed collisions or burned down to their frames in raging fires.

Although the Aura Security liaison looked worried, he wasn’t concerned about their personnel casualties.

After all, the company had plenty of people in reserve waiting to join the operational roster.

Those veterans and thugs who were on the verge of starvation before joining the company were all desperately trying to get into active service.

It wouldn’t take long to fill the vacant positions.

What he was truly worried about was that Lawrence’s failure would lead to a complaint to headquarters from this Mary Bay Industries supervisor.

If that happened, his bonus for the quarter would go right down the drain.

And if Mary Bay Industries’ upper management began to doubt Aura Security’s capabilities and reconsider their long-term partnership…

The higher-ups at Aura Security headquarters would probably skin him alive.

So, his most important job right now was to keep this big shot beside him happy.

Just as the liaison was racking his brain for a way to salvage the situation, Orns, who was next to him, spoke.

“If we can’t stop the target from reaching the port, we’ll lose our chance to intercept them in the satellite city.”

“Yes… According to the ‘arrangements’ we made with the Industrial 4 administration, while we can use limited force within the satellite city, we are not allowed to engage once they enter the port area.

If we do that, I’m sure the port’s Internal Security Force will open fire on us with their HCPs without hesitation.”

The liaison nodded. At least the supervisor’s assessment was correct.

“Since we can no longer act in the satellite city, then we’ll wait for them to leave port and strike then…”

A fierce glint flashed in Orns’s eyes. He turned to the Aura Security liaison beside him.

“Get me another destroyer, one with a boarding action configuration. I refuse to believe two destroyers can’t take down this obscure PMC.”

Hearing Orns’s request, the Aura Security liaison looked troubled.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Orns.”

The liaison exported a file from his personal terminal and displayed it on the holographic projection device.

“I must remind you that according to the strategic cooperation agreement between Aura Security and your company, as a P8 rank manager, you do not have the authority to mobilize destroyers or vessels of a higher class…”

The liaison’s words made Orns’s face stiffen. He suppressed his displeasure and glanced at a ring on his right index finger, his expression turning hesitant.

But he immediately thought of the two supervisors from Product R&D Department One and Two—his biggest rivals—who had already produced relatively impressive results at the beginning of the year.

If he couldn’t come up with something soon, his mid-year performance review could be in trouble.

At that point, some of the ambitious young people in his own department might try to make a move for his position.

Eugene Koch of Trident Studio was the “lifeline” Orns had recently discovered.

Like Amber, he recognized the design talent in Eugene.

In particular, the sketches of several exoskeleton systems he had posted on a design website were full of imagination.

If he could bring those designs to fruition in his department, they would absolutely be among Mary Bay Industries’ most successful products in recent years.

When that happened, no one would be able to threaten his position. Product R&D Department Three might even surpass the other two departments, and he himself might get an “entry ticket” for a promotion to P9.

At this thought, Orns no longer hesitated.

He held his right hand up in front of the Aura Security liaison and simultaneously took out his personal terminal, touching it to the side of the ring on his index finger.

“This is the ‘Ring of Loyalty,’ issued by Mary Bay Industries to employees with over twenty years of service. According to the rights granted by this ring, employees of P7 rank and above are granted a one-time opportunity to mobilize resources of a higher tier.”

As Orns operated his terminal, a green bracket appeared next to the P8 on his electronic business card, which represented his rank.

Inside the bracket, the rank P9 was displayed.

“Now, with the authority of a P9 rank, can I request the deployment of one destroyer?”

Chapter 197: They’ve Lost Their Cool

After shaking off Lawrence and his pursuers, the rest of Atlas’s convoy had an unobstructed journey.

Upon entering the port area, Tairak and the others began to take stock of the team’s expenditures. They discovered that aside from consuming a considerable amount of ammunition for suppressive fire, not a single vehicle had been damaged.

“That’s it?”

Hearing Tairak’s damage report, Montai curled his lip in disdain.

“They were too weak. They went down before I even had to try.”

“Give me a break. If we hadn’t struck first and caught them off guard, this fight wouldn’t have been so easy,” Tairak said, shaking his head. Compared to the ‘genius’ Montai, his personality was more level-headed.

He glanced back at the two brothers in the back seat. After experiencing a thrilling highway chase, the children’s initial tension and fear had vanished. They were now curiously studying the car’s bulletproof modifications.

Tairak couldn’t help but marvel at how adaptable these human cubs were.

The Atlas convoy soon entered the port and proceeded directly through the green channel into the outer gravity zone of the ship docking area.

Amber, Banninger, and the remaining human marines were waiting for them there.

The only advantage of conducting a low-intensity battle inside a satellite city that still maintained order and was restrained by administrative authorities was that you didn’t have to worry about the enemy having weapons like electromagnetic rifles.

When on a mission, both regular military and mercenaries used only the most basic gunpowder-based kinetic weapons.

However, with the exception of Amber, the others were still wearing combat exoskeletons and carrying their weapons.

In Amber’s words, it was to “prevent these megacorporations, which have no moral boundaries, from lashing out like cornered beasts.”

Fortunately, their opponent had shown some restraint so far and hadn’t initiated open warfare in the satellite city.

Of course, it was also possible they were wary of the port’s Internal Security Force’s HCPs.

In any case, seeing the convoy return safely without so much as a scratch on the paint, Amber was quite pleased.

And he wasn’t the only one; the manager from the rental car company who came to collect the vehicles was also delighted.

The cars he had rented out were ordinary civilian vehicles, but they were returned as fully modified bulletproof and blast-proof cars. Moreover, the client didn’t seem to have any intention of removing the modifications.

If he were to rent them out again, the price would be in a completely different league.

While the beaming rental company manager led his staff to retrieve the vehicles, Amber’s group escorted the two Koch brothers toward the berth where the Ares was docked.

A large group of well-dressed, lion-headed men, plus a squad of soldiers in combat exoskeletons, was enough to make Amber and his team the most eye-catching group at the port at that moment.

Many onlookers guessed that the people being escorted in the center of such a formation were either the children of high-ranking officials or the young masters of some financial conglomerate.

Amber would have preferred to keep a low profile, but after the highway chase, he knew that Mary Bay Industries was already onto them.

Since they were already being watched, there was nothing left to hide.

The sight of Banninger and the other fully armed soldiers would be enough to make the enemy think twice—or at least prevent them from making a move at the port.

At that moment, Amber was grateful he had made the final decision to bring Eugene Koch and his staff onto the ship.

Otherwise, they would have had to return to the satellite city where Trident Studio was located to rendezvous with them.

That would have been far riskier.

After a brief explanation of the situation to the Koch brothers, and informing them that their older brother, Eugene Koch, was also on board, the two children were no longer as frightened of Amber and his large contingent of armed personnel.

Amber also arranged for Montai and Tairak, who had been in the same car as the brothers, to provide “close protection.”

According to him, this would also serve as a practical drill in “VIP protection” for the two of them.

Upon hearing that their performance in this drill would be converted into KPIs for their annual evaluations, the two big lions immediately snapped to attention.

Botas and Matthew, two straightforward kids, also began to relax a little.

Once their anxiety subsided, the two children immediately became intensely curious about the two big lions beside them.

“Mr. Tairak, do you guys shed?” Botas asked. “Do you cough up furballs?”

“We shed, but we don’t cough up furballs. We don’t lick our fur like wild animals,” Tairak replied.

“Big bro Montai, do you guys eat vegetables? Or just meat? Do you eat it raw?” Matthew chimed in.

“Of course we eat vegetables,” Montai said. “Especially kids like you, you have to maintain a balanced nutritional intake, you know? We definitely eat meat, too. Raw meat is just an occasional treat, after it’s been pasteurized.”

“Okay, one more question, quietly,” one of them whispered. “Do you have… a mating season?”

Hearing the last question, Montai’s eyes lit up as if it had touched upon his area of expertise.

“This question, I can—Ouch! Tairak, what’d you hit me for?”

“Don’t answer questions that aren’t suitable for children,” Tairak said sternly.

After Amber and his team boarded the ship as quickly as possible, they transferred a “road maintenance fee” to the satellite city’s planetary administrator.

The balding, pot-bellied man waved his pen grandly, giving the Ares the green light all the way, allowing them to begin departure procedures at maximum speed.

“That insatiable bastard. Talk about shameless extortion. No, he’s even greedier than the big lions on our ship!”

As the communication with the planetary administrator ended, Randall grumbled from the captain’s chair.

“Calm down, calm down. As long as the mission goes smoothly, we spend what we have to,” Amber said with a smile as he floated past the captain’s chair toward the CIC.

“Sooner or later, I’ll make these guys cough up every last cent.”

“Amber, I suddenly feel like your comment was a little dangerous…” Isabelle interjected from the Tactical Action Officer’s seat, only to be immediately tapped on the head by Amber as he drifted past.

“Hey, what’s all this nonsense? Everyone, get back to work. If anyone slacks off and loses focus, I’ll dock your performance bonus.”

“What about you, then? You’re the only one floating around the bridge and CIC!”

“I’m supervising, of course. Who else could handle such an important position besides me?”

“…”

Of course, Amber didn’t actually intend to just supervise.

He just wanted his subordinates to exercise more of their own initiative. After all, he couldn’t hold their hands and teach them how to fight forever.

Moreover, as the fleet’s scale gradually expanded, Amber’s role in future fleet battles would be to command the entire fleet.

The specific actions of each warship would be delegated to that ship’s command structure and its shipboard control AI.

Therefore, he had to take advantage of the current situation—where the scale of battles was relatively small and the outcomes were relatively controllable—to let these fleet battle rookies gain more experience.

As for what “controllable battle outcomes” meant, it naturally referred to the moment the scales of victory showed any sign of tipping in the enemy’s favor, at which point Amber would sortie in his HCP and smash the target to bits.

“Alright, everyone, listen up. I’ll say this one more time!”

Amber floated to the center of the CIC, making sure his voice could be heard by everyone on the bridge and in the CIC.

“Don’t think we’re safe just because we’ve left the port. Knowing these corporations, Mary Bay Industries will absolutely not let this go. They’ve probably lost their cool by now.

“Their commander is definitely planning to strike again before we can enter warp, and this time, we will very likely be facing multiple enemy warships.

“Based on their objective of abducting the ‘VIPs,’ they will most likely adopt a strategy of intercepting us on our route and then initiating a close-quarters boarding action.

“I expect all of you to perform at a level that exceeds your usual training standards as we face this fleet battle—our first in the truest sense.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Seeing the crew on the bridge and in the CIC begin their tense preparations, Amber floated back to the side of the captain’s chair.

From this position, he could better control the current battle situation and also get to the Hangar at a moment’s notice.

“Amber, are you sure they’ll attack again after we leave Industrial 4?” Randall asked, turning his head to look at Amber with some uncertainty.

“There’s a ninety-nine percent chance they will. If they don’t, I’ll take you to a club with elf models when we get back.”

“Hey! You’ve got it all figured out, haven’t you? You were supposed to take me to a club anyway! I’ve been here for so long, and forget elf models, I’ve barely even seen any elves. All I do is shoot at targets in the asteroid belt with a bunch of grunts every day.”

His ‘keyword’ having been triggered, Randall scoffed before immediately returning to a professional state.

“Anyway, how can you be so certain?”

“A psionic user’s intuition~” Amber said with a smile, tapping his own temple.

Chapter 198: Hide-and-seek

“A psionic user’s intuition” was, of course, just a joke from Amber.

While psionic users could indeed sense danger, it was merely a premonition, not a prophecy.

Not even the most powerful psionic user could predict the future.

The only reason Amber could guess Mary Bay Industries’ next move was purely because he had dealt with these megacorporations far too many times in games.

When these big corporations engaged in such shady dealings, they always played for keeps.

Driven by a corporate, results-oriented culture, they would often resort to any means necessary to achieve their objectives.

So, when Tairak and the others were intercepted on the expressway, Amber had already guessed that after the failed attempt, the aversary would be preparing their next move.

To be able to deploy so many armed personnel to Industrial 4 meant they had most likely arrived on their own ship.

At the very least, Amber had never seen a company of Mary Bay Industries’ scale make their personnel take public transport to carry out an operation.

That would be far too undignified.

Amber always assumed the worst of these “corporate dogs”; they would do anything for a good performance review.

In his worst-case scenario, the other party would mobilize one or two warships for an interception mission.

However, it would be two destroyers at most. Anything more would be beyond the authority of a typical employee to command.

If their opponent was a high-ranking, high-clearance corporate employee, the enemies Tairak and his team encountered on the expressway certainly wouldn’t have been of that scale and force level.

Originally, Amber had planned to have Lilith hack into Industrial 4’s systems to find an opportunity to breach Mary Bay Industries’ ship.

But after the LLS943823 incident, both Amber and Lilith had become much more cautious about sending out clones to “go rogue.”

Amber stared at the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge, which displayed the Ares’s position and virtual trajectory. He began to plan their next course.

Although he could roughly deduce Mary Bay Industries’ next actions, he didn’t actually want a direct confrontation.

After all, the moment shots were fired, there was a risk of being sunk.

The best-case scenario would be to conceal their trail before the enemy could intercept them, and then initiate a warp jump once they were far enough away from Industrial 4.

Therefore, Amber made this the guiding principle of his subsequent route planning.

Industrial 4 was located in the synchronous orbit of Kandahar 4, within the Kandahar star system.

As the most massive planet in the star system, Kandahar 4 primarily served as a mining planet, supplying raw materials to the numerous factories in the system.

Since Kandahar 4 had been developed quite some time ago, it boasted several space elevators.

The multiple spaceports attached to these space elevators made the orbit of Kandahar 4 exceptionally busy.

Given these factors, and to ensure the orderly operation of the main shipping lanes around the planet, the Federation’s administrative authorities on the planet, spaceports, and satellite cities had jointly deployed a large number of automated warning terminals along the primary routes.

Within a three-hundred-thousand-kilometer radius of the planet’s orbital altitude, any anomaly, such as a ship opening fire, would be met with an immediate sweep of high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

After all, in such a vast area, even patrol fleets couldn’t “arrive on the scene” instantly.

Thus, the local administrative authorities had adopted this simpler, more heavy-handed method of law enforcement.

Furthermore, ships were required to exit this three-hundred-thousand-kilometer zone before they could initiate a warp jump.

Based on this, Amber judged that the most likely area for Mary Bay Industries to set up an ambush was just outside this three-hundred-thousand-kilometer boundary.

It was currently known that the enemy likely had one ship docked at Industrial 4’s port, which would probably pretend to be a “passerby” and tail them.

The other ship, then, would likely warp directly from another location to the predetermined ambush point, forming a pincer movement.

If they wanted to hide from these two ships, the first step was to enter the planet’s shadow.

Otherwise, under the constant radiation of the system’s sun, the ship’s surface temperature would quickly soar to over a hundred degrees.

Against the cold backdrop of space, such an infrared signature would be ridiculously conspicuous.

Amber briefly communicated his plan to Randall, who, as a former Federation Navy Major, immediately understood his intentions.

“Helmsman, after we clear the port’s fixed navigation area, follow the course I’ve laid out and enter the planet’s shadow.

All other personnel, go to Level 1 combat readiness. Don your spacesuits and prepare for oxygen evacuation.”

Following Randall’s orders, the crew of the Ares began their tasks in a tense but orderly manner.

Banninger and his team fitted their exoskeletons with an extra life support system. The Romu, who didn’t yet have usable exoskeletons, could only obediently put on the largest available spacesuits like the rest of the crew.

Following Randall’s instructions, the helmsman, upon leaving the fixed navigation area, steered the Ares straight into the planet’s shadow.

As the hull’s surface temperature began to drop rapidly, the helmsman pushed the engine order telegraph to the “Full Ahead” position.

The plasma thruster array erupted in a brilliant blue light, and the entire destroyer surged forward as if pushed by an invisible hand, accelerating towards its designated course.

Meanwhile, the radar operator continuously monitored the direction of the port using multiple sensor arrays.

Perhaps it was because Amber’s group had acted too quickly after paying their way out, or perhaps the Mary Bay Industries personnel were held up by the cleanup operation.

In any case, even after traveling eight thousand kilometers from Industrial 4, the radar operator had found no trace of any other combat vessels.

“What’s our current velocity relative to the boundary zone?”

“Twenty kilometers per second, Captain.”

Upon hearing the report from the Tactical Information Coordinator, Randall issued new orders.

“Once relative velocity reaches twenty-five kilometers per second, shut down the main thruster array and initiate a forced heat dump!

After the main thruster array is off, maintain our current trajectory and perform a 180-degree axial adjustment.

Activate Optical Camouflage and the blackbody coating. The entire ship will enter Silent Running. Switch internal communications to wired mode.”

As the commands were carried out, the Ares performed a somersault in space, turning its bow back towards Industrial 4.

At the same time, the ship’s hull flickered as if experiencing a visual glitch in a video game before melting into the background of space.

Unlike in ground combat, where the HCP’s combat assistance AI needed to maintain high-frequency processor operation to handle a massive number of complex, dynamic polygon images to achieve optical invisibility, activating optical camouflage in space placed a much lower demand on computing power.

It was similar to how a gamer’s frame rate would drop when looking at a complex environment, but would increase dramatically when they looked up at the sky.

“At this speed, we’ll reach the boundary in about three hours. Now we just have to see how they’re going to find us in that time. Back to the familiar game of hide-and-seek,” Amber mused, resting a hand on the back of the captain’s chair as he watched the relative positions and trajectory lines on the holographic projection platform.

“But why are they taking so long to move out? Their efficiency is a bit too low, isn’t it?”

“Those damn vampires wouldn’t let us leave without getting paid.”

On the bridge of the Peregrine-class destroyer, The Free Radical, part of Mary Bay Industries’ mobile fleet, Captain Cleves stared at the holographic image of the increasingly distant Industrial 4, his face dark as a string of curses escaped his lips.

Orns, the supervisor from Product R&D Department Three, sat beside him, his expression equally grim.

Even though he was acting under the banner of Mary Bay Industries, the planetary administrator of this industrial satellite city showed him no respect whatsoever.

He insisted that Orns pay a hefty sum for “road repair fees” and “proper settlement fees for the deceased.”

While Orns could afford it, handing over the money for nothing still stung for a good while.

Considering that any further delay would allow that unknown mercenary group’s ship to escape, Orns reluctantly paid the fee.

Staring at his personal account, which had lost a digit, Orns popped a few pills from a small vial. Only then did he feel himself start to recover.

“Captain Cleves, which way do you think the target will flee?”

“Hmm… in my experience, ninety-nine percent of captains in this situation would choose to slip into the planet’s shadow to hide.

And since our reconnaissance units haven’t detected any infrared signatures of military-grade vessels, that probability is even higher.

But for now, we can only guess at a general direction. We’ll need to take further steps to pinpoint their exact location.”

After hearing Captain Cleves’s assessment, Orns nodded, then turned to the Aura Security liaison on his other side.

“You know where to deploy the intercepting destroyer now, right?”

Chapter 199: The Game

As Amber and her crew’s ship was the first to slip into the planet’s shadow, activating its optical camouflage and blackbody coating to enter stealth mode, the tables instantly turned.

What had been a situation where the enemy was hidden and they were exposed was now completely reversed.

Now, with its optical, infrared, and ultraviolet signals reduced to a minimum, the Ares had become the hunter lurking in the shadows, while the two ships from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security were left exposed in the sunlight.

To keep its reconnaissance units functioning normally, the Mary Bay Industries destroyer couldn’t enter stealth mode as the Ares had.

This thrilling game of cat and mouse was, in a way, reminiscent of the clashes between Soviet nuclear submarines and NATO anti-submarine squadrons in the cold waters of the North Atlantic.

One side hid in the dark, wracking its brains to avoid detection.

The other remained on the surface, hoping to use its numerical advantage to find a trace of the target and pin it down in the depths.

The only difference was that the Ares, unlike a nuclear submarine hiding in the sea, was not so easily neutralized once spotted.

On the contrary, the moment the Ares was discovered by the Mary Bay Industries destroyer would be the moment it bared its fangs.

Finding a hidden ship in the vastness of space was no easy task.

Although any flaw in its disguise would be quickly exposed against the clean backdrop of the cosmos, the stability of optical camouflage and blackbody coatings had advanced to a point where a ship’s captain was unlikely to fail on that front.

Unless The Free Radical from Mary Bay Industries could close to within four thousand kilometers of the Ares, its optical and infrared sensors would be virtually incapable of detecting the camouflaged vessel.

In this situation, the age-old technology of long-wave radar once again took center stage.

This technique, which used the reflection of electromagnetic waves to detect targets, certainly had its advantages in long-range detection.

While the main fleets of the Empire and the Federation now typically conducted long-range searches by deploying a vast number of probes to form a massive gravitational wave detection array, that method required a significant number of ships and probes.

The data analysis alone required numerous shipboard control AIs to perform coordinated calculations.

Therefore, in single-ship operations and small-scale battles, long-wave radar remained the preferred method for long-range detection among captains.

Using this method was much like searching for a lost backpack with a flashlight in the pitch-black wilderness at night.

The woods are vast, but the flashlight can only illuminate a tiny area.

So, before using long-wave radar, one at least needed to know the target’s general location; otherwise, it would be no different from searching for a needle in a haystack.

But for Captain Cleves, this was not a difficult problem.

As an experienced destroyer captain, Cleves once had a chance to be promoted to commander of a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla in the Federation Navy.

But this man was different from many in the Federation Navy; he was a rather upright naval officer.

So, after discovering and exposing the corruption of a certain fleet admiral, he received his “just desserts.”

He was kicked out of the Federation Navy.

Subsequently, under pressure from this high-ranking fleet official, no private military company was willing to take him in.

In the end, it was Mary Bay Industries that recognized his talent and secretly recruited him into the company.

However, due to his situation and the principle of keeping a low profile, Mary Bay Industries only appointed him captain of a destroyer in their mobile fleet.

Initially, Cleves was quite unhappy with this arrangement.

In his view, his abilities were more than enough to replace the current incompetent fool and become the commander of the Mary Bay Industries mobile fleet.

But Mary Bay Industries’ attitude was firm.

Take it or leave it.

Under these circumstances, Cleves could only accept the reality of his situation.

A man had to eat, after all, and no other corporation besides Mary Bay Industries was willing to hire him.

Although Cleves could be stubborn and inflexible at times, he had unique experience when it came to combat.

In the peacetime Federation Navy, it was the Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas that had the highest deployment rates.

These agile warships often cooperated with garrison fleets, the Federation Taxation Bureau, and other agencies to combat pirates, smuggling, and tax-evading mining companies.

His long experience in outwitting pirates and smugglers meant Cleves had a few tricks up his sleeve when it came to tracking stealth units.

By determining that the Atlas ship would use the planet’s shadow for cover, he had significantly narrowed the search area.

Next, Cleves provided a series of relevant parameters to the shipboard control AI.

These parameters were the culmination of his many years of experience in pursuit warfare.

Soon, The Free Radical’s shipboard control AI had calculated several possible routes the enemy might take, all concentrated within a relatively small area.

And now, it was time for the long-wave radar to get to work.

“Activate the radar. Scan the designated area.”

Cleves snapped his fingers, a “bad habit” most captains thought made them look cool.

But this was something they could only do when not wearing a spacesuit. Once they entered a combat state, captains could no longer show off like this.

Following his command, four tall “masts” rose from the top, bottom, left, and right of The Free Radical’s midsection.

As the masts ascended, the optimized antenna arrays slowly unfolded.

Cleves stared intently at the main screen on the bridge, his mind already racing ahead to the next steps after finding the target.

He was certain the first long-wave radar sweep would find something.

Without knowing the frequency and wavelength, the enemy ship’s radar wave cancellation systems would be inoperable.

They would have to wait until The Free Radical had swept over them once before they could cancel the radar waves based on the captured signal characteristics.

But by then, having already pinpointed the target’s general direction, all The Free Radical had to do was advance at full speed to squeeze the enemy’s room to maneuver.

Once the destroyer deployed outside the boundary region was in position, it would be like shooting fish in a barrel.

On the main screen, the arc-shaped line representing the radar wave swept past.

And just as Cleves had predicted, something was detected in the designated area.

However, it wasn’t one target, but two.

“Hmm?”

After the data was transmitted to the holographic projection platform, he saw two suspected targets traveling in different directions at a twenty-degree angle to each other.

Cleves hesitated for a moment, then immediately concluded that the enemy must have released an inflatable decoy ship equipped with a corner reflector.

“Hmph. An old pirate’s trick. Prepare for a second long-wave radar scan.”

Cleves snorted coldly and issued another command.

Based on his experience, the enemy would engage their radar wave cancellation during the next scan.

With only one target remaining, most captains would consider firing a spread shot at it to try their luck.

But doing so would allow the lurking enemy to capture their own ship’s precise coordinates and launch a counterattack from their backup plan.

Cleves, however, had no intention of doing that. His approach was the exact opposite.

If one of the targets disappeared, he would simply continue to pursue in the direction it vanished, then wait for an opportune moment to act based on the situation.

The long-wave radar quickly completed its second scan, and the results were displayed on the holographic projection platform.

But after seeing the results, Captain Cleves’s mindset underwent a slight change.

Because the second scan still detected two targets.

The enemy had not engaged their radar wave cancellation.

Chapter 200: The Devious Minds of Tacticians

In the depths of space, when warships hunt each other down, the phase of tracking and counter-tracking before they enter firing range is, to some extent, a game of psychological warfare.

And right now, Cleves had to make a choice in this psychological game that would decide the course of the battle.

After two more scans from the long-wave radar, the holographic projection platform still displayed two targets.

The only difference was that in that short time, the distance between the two targets had widened even further.

This indicated that their opponent was clearly not some pirate or inexperienced rookie, but an ‘old fox’ capable of making such tactical decisions under high pressure.

Not activating radar wave cancellation was obviously a strategy of playing with an open hand—I’ll just leave two targets here for you. You pick which one to chase.

This kind of lottery-style decision was the last thing Cleves wanted to face in combat.

In a situation like this, the scales of victory tipped not only based on the tactical and technical skills of both sides, but also on their luck.

Judging from their current approximate distance and difference in velocity, Cleves knew that his Peregrine-class, a last-generation vessel of the Federation Navy, probably couldn’t catch the enemy ship in a short amount of time.

Although the Peregrine-class was one of the most maneuverable ships among the previous generation of Federation Navy warships, the generation gap was not something that could be so easily overcome.

If he chose the wrong target to pursue, the time it would take to realize his mistake and then go after the other target was an unknown variable.

This directly shattered Cleves’s hope of forming a pincer movement with the destroyer temporarily assigned by Aura Security.

If both destroyers guessed the wrong target, it would be the same as letting the enemy escape.

Therefore, after choosing his target, he had to have the other Aura Security destroyer intercept the other one.

In an instant, his two-on-one advantage had been turned into a one-on-one stalemate by the enemy.

“This son of a bitch is a veteran, no wonder he dared to snatch a prize from right under Mary Bay Industries’ nose. Tsk. ‘Those who play at tactics have the most devious minds.’ The ancients were right.”

Cleves muttered to himself, realizing this battle might not be as simple as he thought. Before lowering the face shield of his flight suit, he quickly drank the last gulp of black tea from the Tetra Pak carton.

It was cold, but at least it was black tea.

This was a habit Cleves had picked up during his time at the Naval Academy, influenced by a senior.

Whether in simulated battles at the academy or in actual combat later on, he was accustomed to having a cup of black tea before entering a state of combat readiness.

“We will pursue Target B.”

Cleves tapped the virtual screen on his captain’s chair a few times, setting Target B on the right as his ship’s objective.

Then, he looked at the Aura Security liaison officer sitting on the other side.

“As for the other Aura Security destroyer, I will notify them to intercept Target A.”

Hearing his words, the Aura Security liaison nodded and said, “No problem. Once combat begins, our Aura Security vessels will follow your command, Captain.”

He certainly had no objections. All he could think about was successfully completing this mission.

He prayed there wouldn’t be any more accidents to ruin the strategic partnership between Aura Security and Mary Bay Industries.

And by handing over command to Cleves now, even if something went wrong in the ensuing battle, the main cause would be the ‘improper command’ of Mary Bay Industries’ own man, not a lack of effort on Aura Security’s part.

Sensible enough.

Cleves nodded, making a quiet, sharp judgment of the other man’s reaction.

His biggest fear was that these mercenaries would step up and contradict him.

If that happened, there would be no point in even fighting this battle.

Squeezing out the last drop of tea, Cleves tossed the empty carton into the bin on the side of the captain’s chair and issued his orders in a loud voice:

“All hands, level one combat readiness! Full speed ahead!

All compartments, vent oxygen! Damage control team, take your positions on the central axis!

Heavy particle cannon superconducting battery stack, begin pre-charging!

UFP squadron, prepare for launch!”

In a region 180,000 kilometers from the border zone, the space was filled with a dead silence and tranquility unique to the void.

This corner of the universe seemed as if it had not been visited by life for millennia.

But if you had a sharp enough eye and observed from the right distance, you would notice a mass in the blackness of space that didn’t quite blend in with the cosmic background.

As you drew closer, you would discover that it was a destroyer with its Optical Camouflage engaged.

This warship, maintaining a state of stealth, currently had several hundred-meter-long nanotubes ‘drifting’ around its hull.

The ends of these menacing black nanotubes were connected to arrays of external composite optical, infrared, and ultraviolet reconnaissance pods.

The extremely thin nanotubes, combined with the small size and low-visibility paint of the reconnaissance pods, made them incredibly difficult to detect from a distance.

The use of wired data transmission also meant they emitted no electromagnetic signals.

“Optical and infrared signals detected. Based on database signature comparison, there is an eighty percent probability the enemy has engaged full-power propulsion.”

On the bridge of the Ares, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported the situation loudly, simultaneously marking the calculated approximate bearing on the holographic projection platform.

However, data points such as distance and relative velocity were temporarily marked with a series of question marks.

After all, this was only rough intelligence sent back by the reconnaissance pods; such detailed information could not be obtained immediately.

“Looks like they’ve picked their target. Amber, what do you think they chose? The Ares or the decoy?”

Seeing the enemy’s move was just as Amber had predicted, Randall breathed a sigh of relief and asked Amber, who was still floating beside him.

“Only heaven knows. I’m not a prophet, you know~”

“Stop being so mysterious. Speaking of which, how do you know so many of these wild moves for space combat?”

“I don’t know that much, just a little, a little.”

Faced with Amber’s perfunctory reply, Randall shook his head with a sigh. Just as he was about to say more, he heard Amber add:

“Don’t you get complacent either. If the enemy isn’t an idiot, they’ve definitely arranged for their other ship to block the target they didn’t choose.”

“So we might still have to engage the enemy?”

“It’s highly likely. At least, judging by how decisively they made their choice, their captain is probably no rookie.”

Amber patted Randall on the shoulder and floated toward the bridge’s hatch.

“I’ll leave the rest of the battle to you. I’m heading to the hangar to get ready. This fight will most likely require the HCPs to launch and provide cover for the ship. I’m not at all comfortable with those two kids sortieing on their own right now.”

“You son of a bitch. What kind of excuse is that? Amber, you just want a piece of the action!”

He said it, but Randall didn’t actually stop Amber.

After all, things were different now from when they were on the run. Although the crew’s training level still couldn’t compare to professional soldiers, they had at least undergone several months of training. They weren’t a bunch of amateurs being forced into a role they were unprepared for.

At the very least, they wouldn’t make an absurd mistake like missing a shot from three thousand kilometers away.

And in a way, having a highly skilled pilot like Amber sortie would indeed provide better cover for the destroyer.

Because once the fighting started, the enemy would most likely deploy their own HCPs, and certainly in greater numbers than the Ares had.

If the battle became intense, the Ares might not have the spare capacity to drive away these ‘flies,’ so they would have to be handled by Amber and her team.

After Amber’s figure disappeared down the corridor, Randall tapped the screen on his wrist, and a drinking straw inside his flight suit quickly rose to his lips.

Sipping the flavorless purified water, a thought flashed through Randall’s mind.

“I really should stock some black tea next time. It just feels weird going into a fight without a drink…”

Chapter 201: A Generational Gap Means You Can Do Whatever You Want

Whether in a large-scale fleet engagement or a dogfight between a few ships, the period before the exchange of fire—the phase of mutual searching and probing—was always tedious and dull, yet filled with an extremely oppressive atmosphere.

Everyone hoped their ship would be the first to find a trace of the enemy.

This would allow them to get into combat position faster and open fire first.

In an era where heavy particle cannons were the main armament of human warships, a single shot could often decide the outcome for a ship that failed to raise its deflector shield in time.

And this time, Lady Luck was once again on the side of the Ares.

According to the continuous tracking conducted by the nanotube external sensor units, the Mary Bay Industries destroyer pursuing the Ares had chosen the inflatable decoy as its target.

With no electromagnetic signature, no infrared profile, no propulsion, and a space combat paint job, the decoy was, in some ways, not much different from a warship in stealth mode.

This meant the enemy would have to get within twenty thousand kilometers of the decoy before they could realize their mistake.

By then, the distance between them and the Ares would not be so easily closed.

So, what the Ares needed to do now was find a way to locate the other destroyer that was likely lying in wait at the border.

And Aura Security’s “professional team” was a great help in this regard.

Like most private military companies of this era, the most intense battles Aura Security’s ships had ever participated in were attacking pirates during escort missions or assisting their clients in firefights against ships from other factions or PMCs.

They were more familiar with forming up and heading straight into a firefight.

Not playing hide-and-seek in the vastness of space.

They had engaged in more specialized combat like ambushes and counter-ambushes before, but they weren’t entirely inexperienced.

It was just that their previous targets had always been ordinary armed merchant ships or pirate ships, not military-spec warships equipped with optical invisibility and blackbody coating.

So when this hastily reassigned destroyer arrived outside the border region, its captain was at a bit of a loss.

The intel he received was that a ship in stealth mode was approaching the border. All he had was a general direction, and the target might even be a decoy.

His task was to search this area. If he confirmed it was the target, he was to immediately signal The Free Radical and commence interception.

“They didn’t say this mission would be so tricky before we left. No, I’ll have to file for a bonus when we get back.”

The captain grumbled to himself as he issued his orders:

“Power up the long-wave radar. Let’s do a sweep first to get a rough idea of the target’s position. Prepare the heavy particle cannon for firing. Once we have a general location, we’ll use a diffusion mode for covering fire.”

The captain had learned this tactic from an internal forum.

The users on this forum included captains from various private military companies, as well as some retired and even active Federation Navy captains.

It was a place where one could learn some real insider knowledge.

And this particular method had been shared by someone suspected to be an active Federation Navy destroyer captain.

Although a diffusion shot from a heavy particle cannon would hardly cause any damage to an enemy warship, it could easily destroy a decoy.

That’s because the decoys deployed by these ships were typically inflatable for easy storage.

They stood little chance against a sweeping tide of heavy metal particles.

And if he hit the jackpot and really ran into the target trying to escape, the firing signature of the heavy particle cannon would force the enemy to raise its deflector shield for defense.

Even if it was just a diffusion shot that couldn’t inflict much damage.

And as long as the enemy raised its deflector shield, being swept by the stream of heavy metal particles would instantly turn it into “the brightest star in the night sky,” allowing his ship to get an accurate lock for the next round of attacks.

At that point, as long as he could hold out until friendly forces arrived, a comeback would be impossible.

His destroyer could even find a chance to initiate a boarding action and capture the target.

The entire combat procedure flashed through the destroyer captain’s mind.

He could even picture it: his post-battle request for a bonus being approved and receiving a hefty commission.

“Long-wave radar has found a suspected target! Aligning the ship’s orientation. Heavy particle cannon preparing for diffusion shot! 3… 2… 1… Fire!”

The voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator pulled the captain back from his pleasant fantasy.

The entire ship shuddered slightly, and a momentary flash of white light burst from the bow.

A “tidal wave” formed by countless heavy metal particles surged toward the target area.

“What are the results of the attack?”

“Captain… Captain, no deflector shield reaction detected, but the target is still there! Rough position calculated. The target has already crossed the border region!”

“What?!”

The destroyer captain shot upright.

His first thought was that his gunnery officer had missed, but he quickly dismissed that idea.

After all, it was a diffusion shot, and they already had the target’s general area.

If even a spread shot could miss, then this was more complicated than just a lack of skill.

Just as the captain was pondering the situation, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s panicked voice rang out:

“High magnetic field reaction detected in the target area! Analysis indicates a heavy electromagnetic cannon firing! High-velocity heat sources detected, count of eight! Estimated time to contact: eleven seconds!”

“Fuck! It’s the real target! Quick! Raise the deflector shield! Communications, notify friendly forces immediately!”

The destroyer captain started to panic. He realized the opposing captain was a truly ruthless, or rather, experienced individual.

Most captains, upon detecting signs of a heavy particle cannon firing, would rush to activate their deflector shield to avoid being taken out in one shot.

But this one was clearly different.

They had most likely guessed it was a probing diffusion shot and chosen to tank the hit with their armor.

This allowed the enemy to allocate sufficient power to their weapon systems and return fire much faster.

“Captain, communications are jammed! The enemy has initiated electronic jamming!”

“Flares! Launch flares!”

“Launch request denied! Enemy electronic warfare virus deployed through public channels! Shipboard control AI is running a system-wide scan and purge!”

As the captain clutched his helmet’s faceplate in anguish, the destroyer’s bow deflector shield generator activated, and an invisible field began to rotate slowly clockwise.

When not under attack, this was the normal state of the deflector shield.

Only upon contact with something would the spectacular sight of “a frenzy of electric arcs” appear.

Eleven seconds passed quickly amidst the tense atmosphere on the bridge.

But the spectacular scene everyone had imagined—of the heavy electromagnetic cannon’s high-velocity penetrators being intercepted by the deflector shield, erupting in a brilliant white light at the bow—never happened.

Instead, the entire destroyer shook violently several times, followed by a series of explosions that traveled along the hull to the ears of the bridge crew.

The shipboard control AI’s avatar suddenly appeared in mid-air, and the holographic projection platform displayed a three-dimensional model of the destroyer.

Several areas on both sides of the hull were marked red, signifying “damaged.”

“Warning, port charged particle cannon damaged!

Warning, port electromagnetic launch catapults damaged!

Warning, starboard side of the main thruster array damaged, component failure at eight percent!

…”

The shipboard control AI’s pleasant voice rang out, but the content of its report sent a cold sweat down the destroyer captain’s back.

The enemy’s salvo from the heavy electromagnetic cannon hadn’t been aimed at the bow at all. Instead, they had fired programmed warheads directly at the ship’s sides.

The self-forging fragment warheads had detonated in a side blast as they passed the hull. While the high-explosive warheads of destroyer-grade munitions could be stopped by the side armor of a similar-class ship, the various pieces of equipment mounted on the hull were not so lucky.

“Captain, high-speed objects have detached from the enemy vessel! Identified as enemy HCPs, count of two… no, three!”

“Strong electric field reaction in the target area! Their heavy particle cannon has fired!”

“Evasive maneuvers! HCP squadron, launch immediately after evasion and intercept the enemy!”

The destroyer captain had barely finished speaking when two blue-white “beams” crossed the eight-thousand-kilometer distance and accurately struck his destroyer’s bow.

Frenzied arcs of electricity instantly covered the entire bow. Although the shipboard control AI immediately dimmed the external monitors, the sudden burst of white light still momentarily blinded everyone on the bridge.

Then, the shipboard control AI’s voice sounded again.

“Warning, deflector shield generator overloaded. Temporarily offline!”

Aura Security’s destroyer was much like Mary Bay Industries’ ship—both were previous-generation Peregrine-class destroyers from the Federation Navy.

In terms of performance, there was a significant gap between them and the recently decommissioned Kittiwake-class ship that Amber had just acquired.

Under the twin salvo from the main cannons, this destroyer’s older model deflector shield generator simply couldn’t take the strain.

Although the Kittiwake-class’s main cannon now also required a forced cooldown and a recharge of its superconducting battery stack before it could fire again, the enemy still had other weapons available and had launched HCPs to flank them.

“Damn it all, they didn’t even tell us there was a generational gap between our ships when they assigned this… All I can do now is hope our friends from Mary Bay Industries notice the commotion over here in time.”

The destroyer captain prayed silently, then waved his hand and issued his latest orders:

“HCP squadron, deploy immediately to cover this vessel! If the port electromagnetic launch catapults are unusable, just detach from the side hatches!

Helmsman, move us closer to the border region! If things get critical, just duck inside!”

Chapter 202: Try Keeping Up With My Speed First

Roughly sixty-five hundred kilometers from Aura Security’s Peregrine-class destroyer, three ‘comets’ sped forward, trailing long wakes.

These were the only three HCPs The Ares could currently deploy.

Besides Amber in the squad leader’s unit, Murat and Louis, piloting Unit Two and Unit Three, were experiencing actual space combat for the first time.

Inside the cockpits of their Zealots, Murat and Louis looked at the magnified image of the squad leader’s unit on their panoramic displays, a trace of envy in their eyes.

Amber’s Zealot was different from their two units; it didn’t use the same low-visibility paint scheme as theirs.

Instead, it was audaciously painted in an exceptionally eye-catching combination of deep red and pink.

This was a privilege reserved for squad leaders or aces.

Plus, with the Zealots and a huge pile of spare parts sent by Isabelle’s father, the maintenance team head’s eyes had been squinted into happy crescents ever since.

While lamenting, “I’ve never fought such a well-funded war,” the team head led his crew in tuning all three main HCPs.

Amber’s squad leader’s unit was further modified with an additional communications antenna on its head’s main monitor, and its entire power unit was custom-tuned to pursue higher thrust.

Yes, the elements of red, horned, and three times faster were all present.

“Rookies, this is your first real space combat. Just maintain your distance behind me and provide fire support.”

Amber’s calm voice rang out over the comms channel. To the two of them, it sounded as if their instructor was just out for a drive, not piloting an HCP at high speed through space.

“Spectre One, the enemy probably has a lot of HCPs. Let us move up and assist you in combat!”

Murat said over the comms channel, feeling a little embarrassed that their instructor always shielded them from the front.

He felt that after such long adaptation and intensive space combat training, he should start sharing the instructor’s burden.

“Yeah, we can’t let you always take the front line alone!”

Louis chimed in on the comms channel.

“Hahahaha.”

A laugh came through the comms channel, carrying a sense of gratified relief.

“So you two are that confident now? Then first, try to stay close enough to smell my exhaust!”

Hearing Amber’s words, the two were about to retort indignantly when the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator from the destroyer behind them cut in.

“Caliburn Squad, be advised. Enemy HCPs are deploying. Current count is three and increasing. Infrared signature matched with database records. Identified as Platypus series. Relevant information has been synced via datalink.”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator synced the information, a series of beeping warnings sounded in all three cockpits.

After the data exchange with The Ares’ datalink, several red diamond-shaped frames appeared near the target destroyer on their panoramic displays.

“Looks like they’re coming out to greet us~”

Amber’s voice sounded again. This scene of leading rookies into battle reminded him of his own first time in space combat, and the yellow-painted flight lead of his squad.

The words of that flight lead, with the ID ‘Ozma,’ surfaced in his mind, and Amber’s tone changed abruptly.

“All units, formation change, PLANET DANCE!”

Though they couldn’t hear a sound, Murat and Louis both saw a brilliant flare of light burst from the flight lead’s back.

Even with their own Zealots pushing at full power, Amber left them in the dust in an instant.

“Damn! I really can’t keep up.”

Grumbling aside, the two immediately followed Amber’s orders, breaking off to adjust their formation.

Adjusting formation during a high-speed advance, even in zero-gravity space, was not a comfortable experience.

This was especially true for a heavy unit like the Zealot, which weighed nearly a hundred tons; its high mass resulted in greater inertia.

The two rookie pilots were slammed into their seats the moment they began maneuvering. Only with the help of their trained anti-G straining maneuvers and heavy hydraulic pressure suits did they manage to avoid blacking out immediately.

But the greater blow came from watching Amber pull away, continuously performing evasive maneuvers.

“Hah… hah… a unit this heavy… hah… how can it be so agile! Is the Instructor even human?!”

“Of course… hah… he isn’t!”

“So thrilling! This is the feeling!”

As he grew accustomed to the high-speed dash, Amber, relying on his own physical prowess, managed to push himself up from the back of his seat and retake control of the unit from Lilith.

At this moment, two additional sets of secondary thruster arrays deployed from the sides of the plasma thruster array on the back of his Zealot.

Combined with the optimized energy output logic of the subcritical reactor, the overall performance of the Zealot’s power unit had been boosted by nearly thirty percent.

The maintenance team’s miraculous modification skills made Amber marvel at what a treasure he’d stumbled upon.

After the formation spread out, the squad switched from radio to blue-green laser communication to prevent enemy electronic warfare attacks.

Although The Ares had a ‘ten-year veteran’-grade shipboard control AI personally tuned by Lilith, which was already completely dominating the enemy in electronic countermeasures…

But Amber didn’t want to get caught with his pants down, so he still switched communication methods according to combat regulations.

He glanced at his straight-line distance to the target and their relative velocity. At this rate, he’d be in close quarters in about three minutes.

This was a common tactic for HCPs fighting frigates and destroyers.

Engaging a warship in a long-range shootout was impossible to win. Only by bypassing its main orientation and closing the distance could they put enough pressure on its close-in defense systems.

But this step was not so easily accomplished. Sheer speed wasn’t enough; they also had to shake off the intercepting enemy HCPs.

Currently, the Peregrine-class ship’s port-side electromagnetic launch catapult was temporarily out of service, so its HCP launch efficiency had dropped by fifty percent, preventing it from establishing numerical superiority in a short time.

And Amber was going to seize this opportunity to tear through their defensive line.

Seeing a flash of white light from one of the distant red diamond frames, Amber controlled his unit into a sideways strafe with zero delay.

The next second, a white beam swept through the space he had just occupied. The enemy HCP’s heavy particle cannon had fired.

Having dodged, Amber didn’t pause, immediately executing a series of breathtaking evasive maneuvers.

It not only stunned Murat and Louis, who were desperately trying to keep up, but also the HCP pilots near the Peregrine-class who were firing to intercept him.

“Is that the kind of prediction a fucking human can make?”

“Dude, forget prediction. Look at his maneuvers. I suspect there’s no pilot inside.”

“Enough chatter! Spread out and surround him! Use our numbers to lock down his maneuvering space!”

The squadron leader’s voice rang out on the HCP pilots’ comms channel:

“Something’s off about this guy. We can’t let him break through our line!”

With that, the squadron leader took the lead, piloting his HCP to engage. The other HCPs that had already launched from the ship also fanned out under his command, forming a ‘great net’ to envelop the target.

Then, that great net was immediately pierced.

The squadron leader, who had charged in fastest, had underestimated Amber’s skill and overestimated his own marksmanship and the targeting assistance of his onboard combat AI.

With their relative velocity exceeding forty kilometers per second, hitting Amber, who was juking left and right in a series of sharp, unpredictable turns, became an impossible mission.

“As long as they can’t hit me, there’s nothing to fear!”

As he spoke, Amber grabbed a new toy custom-made for him by the maintenance team from the weapon rack on his back.

A Folding Heavy Plasma Anti-ship Sword.

When the blade fully deployed and its edge lit up with the blue glow of plasma, the entire anti-ship sword reached a length of sixteen meters.

However, due to its folding design, the weapon had significant structural integrity issues.

According to the maintenance team head, it was basically a disposable weapon that would be ruined after a single sortie.

But for Amber right now, it was more than enough.

The two rapidly closing units flew past each other in an instant.

The other surrounding HCPs didn’t even have time to react before they saw their squadron leader, at the center of the ‘encircling net,’ cut in two at the waist by Amber.

This was followed by a massive fireball as the plasma beams inside the unit went out of control.

And the culprit, trailing a long blue wake, had already broken through their still-forming encirclement.

“Squadron Leader!”

Panicked by their squadron leader’s instant demise, these HCP pilots made a terrible decision.

They all turned to pursue Amber’s Zealot, deploying their weapons to fire intercepting shots.

But they had clearly forgotten that Amber was not the only one on the attack.

And their units had no deflector shields on their backs to protect them.

Two beams crackling with electricity swept past, lighting up two ‘candles’ in the blackness of space.

At a distance of several thousand kilometers, even with a significant relative velocity between them.

But for a charged particle cannon, a speed-of-light weapon, that was more than enough to hit the target during firing.

Not to mention, Murat and Louis had been practicing long-range shooting more than anything else recently, and they also had the combat assistance AI in their units correcting their aim.

Besides, not everyone could pull off the kind of insane evasive maneuvers Amber could.

The two remaining HCPs turned in terror and raised their shields, blocking Murat and Louis’s next volley.

Only to be hit from behind by an unexpected shot from Amber, who had turned back around.

When the plasma fireball from the exploding unit died down, only one of the five HCPs launched by the Peregrine-class remained.

“The last one is yours. Don’t screw it up.”

After sending a text command to Murat and Louis, Amber abruptly changed course again, cutting into the Peregrine-class’s weakest anti-air fire zone.

With The Ares watching menacingly from a distance, the Aura Security destroyer could only keep its bow facing the enemy, relying on its deflector shield and the stronger armor of its prow to withstand attacks.

As for the five remaining HCP pilots in the hangar, after seeing four of their deployed teammates shot down in such a short time, they refused to launch, no matter what.

At the end of the day, they were just mercenaries working for money, not soldiers defending their country.

They had no intention of participating in what was practically a suicide mission.

Chapter 203: Surrender or Die

It was the firefight on Amber’s side that finally made The Free Radical realize they were chasing a decoy.

By then, they had closed to within twenty thousand kilometers of the inflatable decoy, and Cleves was just about to have the CIC crew find a way to verify the target’s authenticity.

But then, the ship’s sensor arrays detected signs of a massive firefight—explosions and weapons-fire—one hundred seventy thousand kilometers away.

In the vacant, cold expanse of space, such signs were easy to spot.

And that location was precisely the area where the Aura Security destroyer had been deployed.

“Damn it, we really did chase the wrong one!”

Cleves slammed his fist on the armrest of the captain’s chair. The feeling of being duped left a sour taste in his mouth.

What’s more, he now strongly suspected that the Aura Security destroyer would not only fail to intercept its target but might very well be “eaten” by them instead.

“Helmsman, adjust course to the engagement area immediately! Disengage power limiters on the main thruster array and engage maximum speed!”

“Aye, Captain!”

Upon hearing Cleves’s command, the Helmsman prepared for the emergency maneuver and activated his dedicated ship-wide broadcast channel.

“All hands, be advised. The ship is about to execute an emergency turn.”

As the ship-wide broadcast sounded, yellow warning lights began to flash in all the corridors and cabins of The Free Radical.

The crew heard the broadcast and immediately stowed any loose items in temporary storage bins or secured them to magnetic workbenches. At the same time, they unclipped the safety tethers from their space suits and hooked themselves onto the recessed anchor points on the bulkheads.

Immediately after, everyone felt the warship execute a “drift” in space, powered by its multiple vector thrusters.

The damage control team, on standby in the central axis, even heard a faint groaning sound.

It was the sound of the ship’s metal frame deforming slightly under the immense inertia.

Once the violent turn was complete, The Free Radical’s stern main thruster array erupted in a flare of blue-white light far larger and brighter than usual.

The entire warship shot forward as if flicked by a finger.

The crew near the fusion reactor and main thruster array stared nervously at their consoles. As they watched the dials and needles flirt with the red line, they prayed that the old ship, which had been in service for years and overhauled multiple times, would hold together.

From his captain’s chair, Cleves also stared intently at his virtual screen. The number representing their relative velocity to the contact point climbed steadily before finally settling at eighty kilometers per second.

The Free Radical’s main thrusters dimmed. This was the absolute limit the old vessel could handle with its safeties offline. A few more seconds, and the power unit might have blown.

Now, the crew near the main thruster array was already bustling about with a host of repair drones.

They had to complete their inspections and repairs in the limited time available, ensuring the main thruster array could be safely reactivated for tactical maneuvers once they reached combat distance.

Captain Cleves stared at the unknown contact on the holographic projection platform, a sense of foreboding prickling at him.

“It’s at least half an hour until we’re within firing range. I wonder if the Aura Security ship can hold out…”

Of course, the Aura Security destroyer couldn’t hold out that long.

Forget half an hour; they didn’t even last ten minutes.

With the remaining HCP pilots in the Hangar refusing to launch, the destroyer was left with no means of stopping Amber.

After closing to what was essentially point-blank range, the angular velocity between Amber’s Zealot and the Peregrine-class destroyer grew so great that its point-defense weaponry could no longer keep up.

Furthermore, Amber deliberately maneuvered along paths where the fewest weapons could target him simultaneously.

As a result, even when the occasional high-energy laser or charged particle beam managed to hit him, it was easily stopped by the mech’s layered armor and deflector shield.

Meanwhile, after deploying one large and one small shield, Murat and Louis began setting up their weapons to systematically take out the destroyer’s point-defense turrets.

Finally, as the two looked on with eyes full of near-fanatical adoration, Amber landed his Zealot on the forward deck of the Peregrine-class destroyer.

He then leveled the blade of his Anti-ship Sword at the bridge.

“Thanks” to the standard design of the Federation’s previous generation of warships, the Peregrine’s bridge wasn’t concealed deep within the hull like on newer ships, but was semi-recessed.

This meant that the plasma edge of the Anti-ship Sword was now separated from the bridge crew by only a single layer of armor plating and an aluminate glass viewport.

“Surrender or die.”

The message, relayed via contact comms, echoed throughout the entire ship with Lilith’s assistance.

Faced with this ultimatum, the destroyer’s captain, with the unanimous consent of his entire crew, surrendered without hesitation.

Soon after, The Ares maneuvered alongside the Peregrine-class and trained its main cannon on the destroyer’s midsection, extinguishing any lingering thoughts of resistance.

Two assault boats launched from The Ares and docked with the Peregrine’s external airlocks.

When a fully-armed Banninger and his “instructor squad” appeared on the bridge, leading twenty tall and formidable Romu marines, the destroyer’s captain was so full of regret he could have slapped himself.

He regretted not thinking things through. When his company had sent out an emergency dispatch request to all nearby ships, he had been the one to eagerly volunteer for the assignment.

These Romu, rarely seen in human space, looked incredibly difficult to handle, armed as they were with heavy power hammers, chainswords, or combat spikes mounted on both arms.

And the “mysterious faction” that could command such powerful forces was clearly not one to be trifled with.

It had to be said that the twenty “MK1” exoskeletons Eugene Koch had cobbled together on short notice had proven invaluable.

These exoskeletons had allowed the Romu—who would have otherwise been stuck on The Ares in space suits as mere spectators—to join the operation, becoming a powerful deterrent force.

Eugene had taken on the rush job of “fabricating twenty sets of custom exoskeletons for the Romu” just as Amber and the others were finishing up packing Trident Studio’s personnel and equipment to depart for Industrial 4.

At the time, Amber had given Eugene the urgent task purely as a contingency for any unexpected situations.

And as expected, the future master of exoskeleton design did not disappoint.

After taking some simple measurements of the Furballs on The Ares to get a set of average values, he quickly drafted a temporary design.

Isabelle’s father had provided a significant number of components, and this, combined with materials from Trident Studio’s own inventory, was more than enough to cobble together twenty sets of exoskeletons.

Eugene turned the Hangar into his temporary workshop. After securing his machine tools, the pilotless Zealots stored there became the perfect “temporary power source.” The subcritical reactors on the mechs could easily power the machine tools without drawing on The Ares’s own energy supply.

And so, with the help of skilled workers from Trident Studio and members of the maintenance crew, Eugene delivered the finished product to Amber just as The Ares arrived at Industrial 4.

And this allowed the Furballs to take part in the very first space boarding action of their lives.

Chapter 204: An Old Acquaintance in a Strange Land

Cleves didn’t know yet that the destroyer Aura Security had sent, the one configured for boarding actions, had already been boarded by Amber and her team.

A distance of nearly half a light-second prevented him from getting a clear, direct view of the engagement zone.

The electronic warfare offensive launched by the Ares also meant The Free Radical was temporarily unable to contact the Aura Security destroyer.

All they could do was roughly guess at the state of the battle based on signs detected by the ship’s integrated sensor units, such as directed-energy weapon fire and superconducting battery stack explosions.

When The Free Radical was less than eighty thousand kilometers from the engagement zone, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported that all signs of combat within the area had vanished. At the same time, they detected no indications of a ship being destroyed.

This news made Cleves frown once more. His expression prompted Supervisor Orns, who was sitting beside him, to ask, “Captain Cleves, is something wrong?”

“There were signs of intense combat just moments ago, but now they’ve suddenly vanished. That alone is very strange.”

Cleves turned to Orns and explained, “The earlier combat signatures indicated that the Aura Security destroyer had engaged our target.

Not only were both ships’ main cannons firing, but we also detected the characteristic high-temperature plasma fireballs produced when an HCP is shot down. This suggests the fighting was fierce.

Normally, a battle like this ends with one of the ships being sunk.

But for all combat signs to abruptly disappear can only mean they’ve entered the shipboard combat phase after a boarding.”

Cleves paused, then added in an ominous tone, “…Or one side has already surrendered.”

The moment he said this, both Orns and the Aura Security liaison sat bolt upright.

Before Orns could speak, the Aura Security liaison interjected, “That must be The Pale Flag initiating a boarding action. After all, this destroyer was dispatched with a boarding configuration, just as Supervisor Orns requested.”

As Aura Security’s on-site liaison, he absolutely could not let Orns and the others suspect that their destroyer might have surrendered.

Such a thought would severely damage Aura Security’s image in their eyes.

Besides, he didn’t really believe it was possible himself.

This was a destroyer that had completed numerous missions, and its onboard HCP squadron was at full strength.

In a one-on-one engagement, there was no way it could be defeated so quickly.

“And it’s not possible they were taken out by the enemy?”

Cleves had a direct personality and was known for speaking his mind.

He wasn’t about to pull any punches with a liaison from a security contractor.

“Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”

The Aura Security liaison immediately became agitated upon hearing Cleves’ words.

“Mary Bay Industries is a vital strategic partner. The forces we deploy to assist your company are always our corporate elite!”

He turned to the doubtful-looking Orns and continued, “Mr. Orns, I implore you to have faith in the strength of Aura Security. Ordinary private military forces are absolutely no match for our company.”

“I barely said anything. Why are you getting so worked up?”

Watching the liaison explain himself, face flushed with anxiety and words tumbling out, Orns was left a little speechless.

Still, he decided to smooth things over.

After all, in his heart, he naturally hoped that the Aura Security destroyer had been victorious.

“While I agree with Captain Cleves’ two possibilities, I also think we should be more optimistic and show a little more faith in our partners.”

“You have a point, Supervisor Orns.”

Cleves pursed his lips, noncommittal.

“In any case, we’ll know what’s really going on soon enough.”

When The Free Radical was forty thousand kilometers from the engagement zone, their communications link with The Pale Flag was finally restored.

Seeing the captain of The Pale Flag appear on the bridge’s main screen, all three of them, including Cleves, let out a subconscious sigh of relief.

Then, looking at the image captured by the optical sensor units—The Pale Flag with its bow aimed at the midsection of the target destroyer—even the most cautious Cleves mostly let down his guard.

After all, to any observer, such a scene would clearly indicate that the enemy had surrendered.

Nevertheless, Cleves still gave the order for half of the HCP squadron to launch and form an escort screen around The Free Radical.

At the same time, he had the Helmsman maneuver the ship toward The Pale Flag’s port side.

“Captain Otto, what just happened? We detected signs of an engagement over here.”

As The Free Radical closed the distance, Cleves, having downgraded the ship’s combat status to alert, queried the captain of The Pale Flag.

“Oh, that’s quite a story. We just went through a fierce battle.”

Captain Otto on the screen seemed to warm to the subject, beginning to vividly describe the recent ‘battle’.

“…The target vessel was certainly no pushover. My HCP squadron lost half its strength in the fight, and The Pale Flag also sustained some damage. But as you can all see.”

Captain Otto shrugged, a ‘proud’ look on his face.

“The Pale Flag still achieved final victory.”

“Well done, Otto!”

The most excited person at that moment was none other than the Aura Security liaison.

“I’ll put you in for a combat medal and a bonus when I get back!”

The liaison pumped his fist as if he himself had won the battle.

But just then, alarms suddenly blared across the bridge of The Free Radical.

Amidst the flashing red lights, the voice of the shipboard control AI echoed in everyone’s ears.

“Warning! Electronic warfare virus detected. Isolating and purging…”

“Warning! Virus purge failed. Sixty percent of all ship modules are now infected…”

“Update. Seventy-five percent of all ship modules are now infected…”

“Update.”

Before the shipboard control AI could finish her last sentence, her image vanished from the holographic projection platform.

It wasn’t just the bridge; all electronic systems in other sections of The Free Radical went offline as well.

The pilots of the escorting HCPs saw their panoramic displays go black before their units were forcibly shut down.

“Boom!”

A loud noise, accompanied by a violent tremor, made everyone on the bridge of The Free Radical’s heart skip a beat.

When they came to their senses, they saw three HCPs standing on the ship’s forward deck.

Two of them had their long-range weapons aimed at the powerless, drifting HCPs nearby.

The third, its ‘eyes’ glowing red and looking utterly ferocious, had the muzzle of its charged particle cannon and the edge of its Anti-ship Sword aimed directly at the bridge’s viewports.

Because they had stood down from combat status, the layered armor plating over the bridge viewports was already raised.

This meant the bridge crew of The Free Radical were in a much worse position than the crew of The Pale Flag had been.

Between them and this menacing HCP, there was only a thin, fragile viewport.

Further away, the ‘captured’ Ares began to move again.

Propelled by its vector thrusters, it rapidly shifted to a position forty-five degrees off The Free Radical’s starboard bow.

From this angle, a heavy particle cannon salvo from the Ares would inflict maximum structural damage on The Free Radical.

As the bridge crew stared, stunned by the scene, the main screen lit up once more.

This time, the communication was from the Ares.

When he saw the somewhat familiar yet strange face on the screen, Captain Cleves froze completely.

Seeing his expression, Randall, seated in the captain’s chair of the Ares, gave a complex smile.

“Long time no see, underclassman.”

Chapter 205: Murder, Arson, and a Belt of Gold

“R-Randall senior? Is that really you?”

Cleves himself didn’t know what kind of expression he was wearing.

Looking at his senior from the Naval Academy on the main screen—the very man who had passed the “pre-battle tea” tradition down to him.

It all felt unreal.

“It’s me. I never expected to meet you again under these circumstances, Cleves.”

“But I remember your last posting was on Robert IV, wasn’t it? I thought you were…”

“Sigh… it’s a long story.”

Randall’s eyes darted away unnaturally as he sighed. In his current position, running into an acquaintance who knew his background was indeed awkward.

“Underclassman, if you want to hear the story, we can have a proper chat about it later when we have the chance.”

Having unexpectedly met an old acquaintance, Randall looked back at his underclassman.

“For now, I hope you can order the surrender and take all the ship’s weapon systems offline to avoid any more unnecessary casualties.”

Hearing this, before Cleves could say much, Orns and the contact from Aura Security suddenly snapped to their senses.

“You two actually know each other?!” they both exclaimed.

“Uh… Randall was indeed my senior when I was at the Federation Naval Academy,” Cleves explained awkwardly, looking at the two of them.

“Aha! So you were conspiring with outsiders?! I knew there was something wrong with this operation!”

Orns glared at Cleves, whose own eyes widened in disbelief at the accusation.

Known for his short temper, the destroyer captain stood up and punched Orns right in the stomach.

“Are you out of your damn mind? The moment something goes wrong, you suspect your own people?”

Even though both were wearing spacesuits, the punch from Cleves, who had kept up his training, made Orns curl up like a cooked shrimp.

If he hadn’t been strapped into his seat, Cleves’s blow would have sent him flying across the bridge.

After landing the punch, Cleves looked at the Aura Security liaison. The man, who had been about to say something as well, wisely shut his mouth.

Having vented his anger, Cleves glanced at the menacing HCPs on the deck outside the bridge, then scanned the faces of the crew on the bridge and in the CIC.

These crew members, who had served under him for quite some time, were also looking at him.

As the captain who worked with them day in and day out, Cleves knew exactly what these crewmen, who were not military personnel, were thinking.

After a moment, he looked up at Randall on the main screen and said:

“Senior, I can surrender, but I need you to guarantee the safety of everyone on my crew.”

Hearing this, Randall, aboard The Ares, let out a visible sigh of relief.

He nodded and said, “Don’t worry, we’re not the kind of people who kill the innocent indiscriminately. I give you my word on that.”

With Randall’s assurance, Cleves sat back down in the captain’s chair and opened a ship-wide broadcast.

“This is the captain with a ship-wide broadcast. For the safety of everyone on board, I, as your captain, have surrendered to our enemy. I hope that no one on this ship will act rashly out of impulse.

You all have families, and I hope you will all be reunited with them.

Please rest assured, the decision to surrender was mine alone. It has nothing to do with any of you.

I will bear all the consequences alone.

Captain out.”

Once The Free Radical also surrendered, things became much simpler.

Mercenaries and corporate employees are not soldiers, after all. They don’t work for a country or a belief, but for money.

So, after their leader surrendered, the men under him had no objections. They cooperated fully, disarming and gathering together.

The five HCPs floating in space were also towed back one by one by Murat and Louis, who piloted their mechs to fire carbon fiber cables.

In this conflict that never should have happened, the five dispatched HCP pilots, including the squadron leader of The Pale Flag’s HCP squadron, became the only casualties.

But this wasn’t something Amber could have prevented. HCP combat in space is inherently dangerous, with a pilot fatality rate incomparably higher than in ground combat.

So, as for the five surviving HCP pilots from The Pale Flag, it was hard to say how much they hated Amber’s trio.

After all, both sides had been enemies at the time, and Amber’s team had shot down their HCPs fair and square in a 3-on-5 frontal engagement.

They hadn’t used any dirty tricks or cheap shots; it was a pure domination of skill.

So, from another perspective, these five remaining pilots were actually extremely grateful that they had refused the order to deploy.

Otherwise, they might very well have ended up like the other five, becoming ghosts in space.

While the employees of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security were mired in a relatively anxious atmosphere, a festive mood took over the people of Atlas, as if they were celebrating the Lunar New Year.

For all the Romu, marines and crew members alike, this was their first real battle.

Not only had they won with ease, but they had also captured two enemy warships.

Although the ‘veteran employees’ of Atlas had done most of the heavy lifting, the victory was still a huge morale boost for the Furballs.

As for Amber, he was definitely happy.

After all, he had achieved the goal of his trip. On top of that, he had scored a ‘flawless victory’ in the skirmish, taking numerous prisoners and two destroyers.

But to say he was overjoyed would be an overstatement.

First, they had now made enemies of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security.

Second, what to do with so many prisoners was a problem.

And finally, there was the matter of the two Peregrine-class destroyers.

To be honest, Amber didn’t think much of these previous-generation destroyers at all.

It was only because corporate warfare at this stage was just a pecking match between rookies that these things still had a place.

On a real battlefield, ships like these—completely outdated in terms of design philosophy and hardware—were nothing but cannon fodder.

Therefore, these two ships were destined never to join Atlas’s battle roster.

In Amber’s initial plans, he would most likely sell them for cash and then use the money to expand his mining team.

But regardless, the gains from this trip were enormous, far exceeding Amber’s expectations.

As the saying goes: murder and arson for a golden belt.

This trip had once again proven a point: in this era that seemed civilized and advanced but was in fact backward and barbaric, as long as you had the guts, fighting and plundering could bring you unimaginable wealth.

Chapter 206: So This Is What a Megacorporation Is?

Prisoners from private enterprises and private military companies were far easier to handle than military prisoners of war.

Faced with fully armed marines, especially the incredibly intimidating Romu, these disarmed and defenseless captives were more obedient than kindergarteners sitting in a row for snacks.

Each one, under the marines’ supervision, had their identity verified and a disposable tracking restraint fastened with an almost practiced ease.

Once Atlas had confirmed that all prisoners were under control by cross-referencing the crew manifests and voyage logs from the two destroyers, they were finally able to relax a little.

The ordinary prisoners were split up, regrouped, and confined to several temporary detention areas partitioned off in the hangar, watched over by the marines.

Meanwhile, “high-value” captives, like the two captains, Orns, and the Aura Security liaison, were held separately in the crew compartments.

As for the control of the two destroyers, Amber handed it directly to Lilith, letting her use the shipboard control AIs to manage their most basic functions.

He had no intention of returning these two warships; you’d have to be crazy to even consider it.

Once they warped to a safe area, Amber planned to immediately contact a ship broker to sell them off.

The plan for the two Peregrine-class destroyers was more or less settled.

But when it came to dealing with so many prisoners, Amber was in a bit of a bind.

It would be a painful waste not to absorb such a large number of captives into Atlas as his workforce.

The problem was, most of these prisoners had been doing fine at their old companies, and many even had families. On what grounds would they agree to move to a foreign land to work for him?

Although Atlas did offer superior salaries and benefits, and it was actually quite common in this era for employees captured in corporate wars to be “absorbed” by the opposing company.

It was entirely possible that many of these very prisoners had been “absorbed” into Mary Bay Industries or Aura Security through such means.

From the employees’ perspective, what’s the difference who you work for?

But Atlas was, after all, a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, outside of human-controlled space. For many, this would mean leaving their homes behind forever.

Under these circumstances, even if he forcibly “absorbed” them, Amber honestly had no confidence in their loyalty.

So, after discussing it with Randall, Isabelle, and the others, they all agreed to simply ransom the prisoners back to their respective companies.

This was another common practice in corporate warfare.

The prisoners could return to familiar surroundings without having to be far from home, and Amber and his crew would get a sum of money.

A bright future for everyone.

Before the three-destroyer formation initiated a Coordinated Jump, Amber used a deep-space relay station to send emails to Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security under the name of Atlas Mining.

First, he explained the cause and course of the incident. Second, he stated that Atlas would treat their employees well and hoped both sides could complete the personnel “handover” as soon as possible. Finally, he expressed a desire for potential cooperation in the future.

His tone was firm but not arrogant, projecting the image of someone who wanted to settle the matter peacefully.

The two companies responded quickly. Just as Amber’s fleet dropped out of warp and entered the territory of the Thousand Stars Empire, their replies arrived in the company inbox.

After reading the messages, Amber almost laughed out of anger.

Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security were surprisingly in sync. They took a hard-line stance, demanding an apology and compensation for their losses, threatening military action to protect their interests otherwise.

Moreover, their entire replies made no mention of what to do with their employees.

The format and content were nearly identical, with only the company names changed.

Amber even began to suspect that the same person had written both replies.

“This is so perfunctory.”

Randall shook his head, speechless after reading the messages.

At that moment, he and Amber were with several of the “high-value prisoners” from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security.

“Yeah. And they don’t say a word about what to do with you prisoners.”

Amber looked at Orns, who wore a slightly unnatural expression, and said with a smile, “Bro, are you really the Supervisor of Mary Bay Industries’ Product R&D Department Three? Your company’s attitude is making me doubt your identity.”

“You obviously have ways to verify my identity, so there’s no question of me deceiving you,” Orns answered irritably upon hearing Amber’s words.

“Sigh… You big corporations. You’re so good at everything, except you’re so focused on profits that you have no humanity. Even a ‘loyal employee’ of twenty years like you can be abandoned just like that.”

Amber looked at Orns with a touch of sympathy, then his gaze swept over the others.

Their expressions had also grown somber. It was clear they had already guessed what their respective companies had decided.

They wouldn’t be ransomed or rescued, nor would they be declared killed in action.

Instead, they would each be marked as “missing.”

This way, the companies could avoid paying the hefty death benefits, needing only to provide a minimum amount of “humanitarian aid” to their families.

If anyone questioned the company’s actions, the higher-ups would righteously claim that they were spending a fortune on search and rescue operations.

But space was simply too vast to find someone in a short amount of time.

It was a textbook excuse.

That was why Amber sometimes felt that the employees of these corporations were, in a way, quite pitiful.

They worked themselves to the bone to generate profits for the company, only to be kicked to the curb the moment a problem arose.

“I should have seen this coming,” Orns said suddenly, his face grim.

“Given my age, I was about to be ‘streamlined’ anyway. That’s why I was trying so desperately to get into P9. Now that this has happened, the company can ‘streamline’ me perfectly and save the huge severance package they would have had to pay me in the future. Hahahaha!”

Orns laughed manically, as if trying to vent all the bitterness and indignation in his heart.

His words made the other “high-value prisoners” think of their own bleak futures, and their expressions turned even uglier.

In this situation, even if Amber let them go for free (which, of course, he wouldn’t), their companies wouldn’t take them back to their old jobs.

The moment they were declared “missing,” their positions had been filled by replacements.

At best, the company would offer them a “humanitarian care position” that paid just enough to cover basic living expenses.

If Orns and the others weren’t satisfied with that, their only option would be to sue the company.

And then they would be crushed by the well-funded legal department the company kept on retainer.

Just as the atmosphere in the compartment grew increasingly heavy, Amber tentatively asked, “How about… you all try working for me?”

Chapter 207: The Charitable Organization Atlas

The moment Amber said this, the high-level prisoners snapped their heads up.

They stared at Amber’s expression, trying to determine if the man who had defeated and captured them was joking, mocking them, or being serious.

What they saw was Amber’s completely serious, sincere smile.

The cabin instantly fell into a heavy silence.

However, the silence only lasted for a moment.

“Hahahahaha!”

Orns’ laughter was the first to break the silence, as if he had just heard something hilarious.

“It seems Mr. Orns finds the proposal amusing?”

Amber’s voice was calm, completely unaffected by Orns’ laughter.

“Mr. Amber, do you have any idea what my annual salary is?” Orns asked.

“From what I understand, the average annual salary for a P8-level supervisor at most companies is around two hundred fifty thousand Federation Credits, right?”

Amber quickly recalled the information and answered earnestly.

Whether it was the Federation or the Empire, both had managed to keep inflation under control.

So while their currency’s value couldn’t compare to the Thousand Stars Empire’s Psionic Points, its purchasing power was certainly not bad.

It was at least stronger than the major currencies of the various nations in Amber’s previous life.

Thus, the annual salary of a P8-level supervisor wasn’t a mind-boggling astronomical figure.

But for the lower class citizens of this world, it was definitely an unimaginable fortune.

“It seems Mr. Amber is quite knowledgeable in this area. In that case, how could you possibly offer such a salary to someone captured from a rival company?” Orns said coldly.

As a “corporate dog” with one foot in management, he knew exactly how other companies would handle this situation.

In 99.9% of cases, they would be “absorbed” with a pay cut, but the workload would not be reduced in the slightest.

Although Orns was currently Amber’s prisoner, his defeated opponent, it didn’t mean he was useless.

On the contrary, he possessed a talent for designing and developing single-soldier equipment that was by no means inferior to Eugene Koch’s.

This was one of the reasons he had been able to work his way up to P8 at Mary Bay Industries.

And people like him tended to be quite proud and conceited.

He absolutely couldn’t accept a future where he’d have to take a pay cut to work for a “small company.”

“First of all, Atlas, Mary Bay Industries, and Aura Security are not in a simple adversarial relationship. I’d prefer to think we just had a little friction between us~” Amber reiterated.

He had always believed that in this world, there were no permanent enemies, nor permanent friends—only permanent interests.

This was even more true for corporations like them.

There was no conflict that couldn’t be reconciled through business.

As long as the profits behind the deal were high enough, even competitors who were at each other’s throats yesterday could shake hands and make peace today.

Why argue with money? Right~

“Secondly, Mr. Orns, you are correct. I indeed will not be paying you based on your previous annual salaries.”

“Heh.”

Hearing this, Orns let out a cold laugh, the expression on his face all but screaming, “I knew it.”

But Amber’s very next sentence left Orns and the others completely stunned, making them doubt if they’d heard him correctly.

“As long as you produce results, don’t slack off, and aren’t just here at Atlas to coast until retirement, then I will pay you double your original salaries. This is one of the unique features of Atlas. Even the miners working in the asteroid belt get paid more than double what other companies offer. Plus, Atlas has a mandatory eight-hour workday and a host of benefits…”

Double the salary? A mandatory eight-hour workday?

Orns and the others looked at each other. Captain Otto even reached out and pinched the Aura Security liaison’s cheek, wanting to confirm they weren’t sharing a collective hallucination.

“Rest assured, it’s not a hallucination.”

Amber’s calm voice continued, as if it was no big deal.

“If I may be so bold, Mr. Amber…”

For the first time, Orns looked up at Amber seriously.

“Are you running a charity? Or is Atlas essentially a charitable organization?”

“Neither.”

Amber shook his head and continued, “I’ve just got money to burn.”

“…”

“Hahahaha, I won’t tease you anymore. I was just trying to liven up the atmosphere.”

Seeing the speechless expressions on everyone’s faces, Amber waved his hand and couldn’t help but laugh.

“There’s actually no special reason. I just want my employees to live better lives as Atlas continues to grow. And fundamentally, it’s just a way to win people over. I’ve always disliked those methods that lower employee wages just to increase ‘employee efficiency,’ making everyone miserable in the process.”

“But we are your prisoners. Just three days ago, we were enemies at war. Do you apply this same policy to prisoners?”

“This isn’t a war between two nations. We’re all workers, so workers shouldn’t make things difficult for other workers~”

Amber spread his hands and continued, “As long as you work hard, do what you’re supposed to, and don’t harm the company’s interests, then in my eyes, the distinction of whether you’re a prisoner or not doesn’t exist.”

After several rounds of questions and answers, the “high-level prisoners,” including Orns, were dumbfounded.

For these people who had been exploited by corporations for so long, this approach of shattering the industry’s unwritten rules was undoubtedly a soul-shaking experience.

And from Amber’s tone, it was clear he was actually practicing what he preached.

Just as these high-level prisoners were lost in confusion and indecision, the one to break the deadlock was, once again, the skilled actor, Captain Otto.

“Mr. Amber, your terms are, I must say, extremely attractive, and I am indeed tempted. But…”

Captain Otto organized his thoughts for a moment before continuing, “I’m very worried that Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security will team up to retaliate against Atlas.”

“Are you worried I can’t handle their retaliation?” Amber asked, finding it slightly amusing.

“If it were just simple retaliation, that would be one thing. But now, it’s highly likely that these two companies will launch a joint military operation. Under these circumstances, I’m concerned that if I really do join Atlas, I might not be here for long, right?”

Captain Otto’s question was rather pragmatic, and it concerned a situation Atlas was very likely to face.

However, in the face of such a question, Amber didn’t show the slightest hint of worry.

“Captain Otto, where would you and your destroyer rank within Aura Security?”

“Above average, I’d say. I personally believe I perform quite well in the combat roster.”

That proud expression reappeared on Captain Otto’s face.

The Aura Security liaison also nodded when he met Amber’s gaze.

After getting the answer he wanted, Amber immediately followed up.

“Even a ‘strong’ captain like you was easily defeated by me. Do you really think the other pushovers in your company can stir up any trouble? Even if they come at us with Mary Bay Industries, we at Atlas aren’t the least bit scared.”

Amber wore a confident smile.

“Any other questions, gentlemen?”

Chapter 208: Ryan Timler

No one would say no to money.

Especially not “workers” like Orns and Cleves, who toiled for big corporations.

Double the salary was just too enticing; it was an offer they really couldn’t refuse.

Especially since they had expected Atlas, like any other company, to “absorb” them with a pay cut after capturing them.

This feeling of rocketing from hell to heaven left these “high-value captives” feeling a little surreal, right up until Amber pulled out their indenture contracts—no, their employment contracts.

But after they had carefully read through the employment contracts, which had been “tailor-made” based on their professions, positions, and work experience, the men’s breathing grew ragged.

“No way, are you for real?”

Orns held the electronic “indenture contract,” his voice trembling slightly.

The moment he pressed his fingerprint on it, the employment contract would be legally binding.

Moreover, Atlas was a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, and the elves were notoriously strict when it came to labor laws.

If the contracts came into effect and Amber failed to pay them according to the terms, they could take the contracts to the Thousand Stars Empire’s labor arbitration board and sue him into bankruptcy.

“Of course, I’m serious.”

Seeing the lingering suspicion in their eyes, Amber shrugged helplessly.

“Like I said before, Atlas is in a period of rapid growth and is in desperate need of experienced employees like you.

If Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security had promptly paid the ransom to get you back, I might have even been a little disappointed.”

Amber’s acting had always been quite good. His training as a Psionic Agent, combined with a psionic user’s control over their emotions and micro-expressions, allowed him to successfully project the image of an excellent boss “hungry for talent.”

Of course, his words were also heartfelt.

After all, Atlas was indeed short on people.

Cleves, who had been quiet the whole time, looked up at Randall.

“Senior, are your boss and this company really trustworthy?”

“Absolutely! Cleves, you can rest easy.”

Randall gave a thumbs-up, his face wearing an incredibly convincing expression.

As an accomplice on the same pirate ship as Amber, and one of Atlas’s “founding members,” he naturally knew what his stance should be.

Of course, his current performance couldn’t really be called a “deception.”

After all, aside from being recently established and relatively small, Atlas didn’t really have any problems in other respects.

Cleves seemed to trust his senior. After Randall’s assurance, he gave the contract one last check and then pressed his fingerprint on it.

Seeing his action, the remaining three men exchanged glances.

Immediately after, Orns and Otto also pressed their fingerprints on the document, completing the signing of their employment contracts.

Finally, only the liaison from Aura Security remained. He sighed and said slowly,

“Sigh… I’m very tempted, but the Thousand Stars Empire is just too far away. I think I’d rather stay here in the Federation.”

He looked at the other three who had signed, his eyes filled with an expression that was hard to place—perhaps envy, perhaps something else.

“But in any case, I wish the three of you the best of luck here.”

Amber didn’t force the captives from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security to join Atlas.

If they didn’t want to go to the Thousand Stars Empire and preferred to stay in the Federation, Amber respected their choice.

Besides the liaison from Aura Security, a small number of the crew members from the two destroyers also chose not to join Atlas.

So, while passing a spaceport on the return journey, Amber let them all go.

They were all just small fry; there was no need to make things difficult for them.

While Amber was commanding his “three-ship formation” and continuing toward Atlas’s headquarters, Mary Bay Industries’ own headquarters within the Federation, the “Mary Bay 1” satellite city, was receiving a group of visitors.

Two warships with the Aura Security logo painted on their sides slowly arrived at a pre-prepared berth, guided by shuttles.

Soon, a group of stern-faced visitors left the port area. Upon arriving at the Mary Bay Industries building, they met with the company’s senior executives, who had been waiting for them for some time.

“Mr. Thomas, I didn’t expect you to come in person.”

Galen Pierce, Vice President of Mary Bay Industries, immediately stepped forward and very naturally shook the hand of the middle-aged man leading the Aura Security group.

“Sigh… After something like this, how could I possibly sit idly by?”

The middle-aged man sighed as he shook Galen Pierce’s hand. As the chairman of Aura Security, he had always tried every means to maintain the strategic partnership between Aura Security and Mary Bay Industries.

So when he learned that both their men and ships had been completely wiped out in a joint operation, he couldn’t sit still any longer.

Moreover, after the incident was exposed, when the interstellar stock market opened today, both companies’ share prices took a “high dive.”

If they didn’t find a way to quell public opinion and come up with a suitable solution quickly, the stock prices would continue to fall.

“In any case, thank you for coming in person. The President is already waiting for you in the conference room, and the members of the board of directors are online.”

“Thank you for the importance your company places on this matter. Then, I’ll trouble you to lead the way, Mr. Galen.”

Star Dragon Empire, Ershus VI.

As the home planet of the Timler and Mamenta families, the two sides each occupied half of the planet’s surface.

The Timler family occupied the western hemisphere of Ershus VI.

At this moment, in the Timler family’s Manor, the current Head of the family, Baron Ryan Timler, was raging in the conference room.

“You motherfuckers are really something else! If I hadn’t gotten the whim to check the books myself, I would’ve never known this is how you run the family business!”

Ryan Timler kicked over a young man kneeling on the floor. The latter, ignoring the pain, scrambled back up and continued to kneel humbly.

“Over a hundred miners, a brand-new operations base, and three small mining ships were hijacked by pirates, and you did nothing? You just ignored it?”

“Sir, at the time, our mining company’s main focus was on competing with the mining teams of several other families in the Tyson Rich Mining Area.”

The kneeling young man answered cautiously, only to be met with a roar from Ryan Timler.

“And then you, you idiot, completely forgot about it, didn’t you?! How long has it been since the trouble in the Tyson Rich Mining Area died down? You’re still making excuses like that for yourself.

This is just what I discovered. Who knows how many other things I haven’t discovered?!”

Ryan Timler stared at the kneeling youth and continued in a tone of bitter disappointment:

“Paul, you have disappointed me greatly. Before he died, your father entrusted you to my care. I treated you as my own; your benefits and treatment were the same as my own flesh and blood. I even gave you Timler Mining to manage after you came of age, and this is how you repay me?

You dump the company’s business on your subordinates and act as a hands-off manager, spending all your days drinking and carousing…

If your father could see you now, what do you think he would say?”

Tired from his tirade, Ryan Timler walked to a chair and sat down. He looked at the kneeling Timler Mining management team in the conference room and pressed a hand to his forehead in distress.

Chapter 209: When the Wind Blows, Even Pigs Can Fly

“Forget it. All of you, get up and find a seat. It’s annoying just looking at you kneeling there. Besides, yelling at you now is pointless. Just tell me how you’re going to solve this.”

Ryan Timler picked up his long-cold milk tea and took a sip. It was a new way of drinking black tea that had recently become popular in the Empire’s aristocratic circles.

According to the tea masters, this method of consumption carried a sense of historical gravitas.

He waited for a moment. When a heavy silence filled the room, he continued:

“I know that from your perspective, this is just over a hundred people and some equipment and mining ships. Given the current market prices for minerals and your mining profits, you can make up for this loss quickly enough.

“But I want to tell you that we, the Timler family, are nobles of the Star Dragon Empire. We are not to be bullied by any random pirate! This is about our family’s damn honor!”

Ryan Timler’s voice rose unconsciously.

He was a man who placed great importance on his family’s honor, so in his eyes, this was no trivial matter.

“If we just let this go, our family will become a laughingstock in our circle! The other families will mock the Timler family for being attacked by pirates and not daring to make a peep!

“Who knows, if other pirates hear about this, they might think the Timler family is an easy target and start attacking our businesses even more brazenly in the future!”

Amidst Ryan Timler’s furious roars, the management of Timler Mining Company finally realized that this was perhaps not the minor issue they had imagined.

They exchanged glances, none of them willing to be the one to stick their neck out at a time like this.

In the end, it was the young man named Paul who stood up.

“Sir, it’s not that we’ve ignored this matter. It’s just that we have too few leads at the moment…”

“Continue,” Ryan Timler said, his expression flat.

“Some time ago, we did send people to investigate the coordinates where the operations base was deployed, but the base had already been moved. We didn’t find any valuable information.

“The only discovery was a large amount of ship wreckage in the vicinity, and this wreckage bore the characteristics of pirate ships…”

Paul swallowed hard and cautiously voiced their speculation.

“So we suspect that this might have been a case of one pirate crew turning on another.”

After Paul finished speaking, the conference room fell silent.

After a long pause, Ryan Timler finally spoke.

“Fine. At least you lot have done something. So, what’s your next move?”

Hearing the somewhat softer tone in his voice, Paul quietly sighed in relief.

“We plan to send people to investigate the surrounding star systems to see if any pirates with this many people and an operations base have appeared recently. At the same time, we’ll have someone inquire at the slave mines to see if any pirates have sold off a large group of personnel.

“Then we’ll have the mining company’s survey teams continue their exploration and reconnaissance work in the asteroid belt. After all, this belt is still largely undiscovered. It’s possible the other party might just start mining there directly.

“However, the area is quite large. Even if we dispatch all our survey teams, it might take a while to get any results.”

“But at least you’re taking action, aren’t you?”

Ryan Timler stood up and walked toward the conference room door. He looked back and said, “Do your best to find them. Remember to inform me immediately if you have any news. Remember this: the Timler family will not suffer a loss and not strike back!”

Amber was currently unaware that, within the borders of the Federation and the Empire, two forces with which he had an inauspicious connection were racking their brains trying to get even with him for the losses they had suffered at his hands.

Right now, he was busy settling in the employees he had ‘poached’ from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security.

At the same time, he was collecting information on these employees so that he could bring their families over in the future.

The Manor Allenita had provided him covered a vast area, and the main building was also quite large. For the time being, he didn’t have to worry about running out of space for so many people.

Besides, the new employees were mainly the crew members of the two destroyers. In the future, these people would spend most of their time at the Spaceport or on their ships, so temporary accommodation was all that was needed for now.

Amber had already found a buyer for the two old Peregrine-class ships, and the buyer would be coming to ‘pick them up’ in person soon.

However, this didn’t mean the two crews had nothing to do.

On the contrary, after a brief rest, they would be assigned to the two destroyers, The Hermes and The Ares.

They would be integrated with Atlas’s existing crew members, filling complementary roles, and would continue their training.

When Amber acquired new ships later, they would seamlessly transfer over to crew the new vessels.

As for where Amber got the confidence to acquire new ships?

That confidence naturally came from Atlas Mining, which had already become Atlas’s largest source of income.

The newly expanded mining team had once again boosted their efficiency in asteroid mining.

And under the leadership of the talented George, the survey team had finally identified a suitable asteroid to serve as the site for the future ‘Asteroid Base’.

Now, the operations base had been moved and set up on this asteroid. The mining team’s Spinner-class ships and all the small mining vessels were methodically carrying out their mining operations around it.

Coupled with the continuously soaring mineral prices on the market, the number representing the cash balance in Atlas’s company account was getting larger and larger.

At this point, Amber started to ponder a new problem—the need to establish a professional corporate management team to run his two companies.

Although Atlas now had several hundred employees, they were basically divided into three categories:

Marines, ship crew, and miners.

Amber had looked through the entire company roster and found not a single person with corporate management experience.

The whole of Atlas exuded the beauty of a ragtag operation.

The newcomer, Orns, did have experience as a supervisor in a large corporation.

However, after a brief chat with him, Amber discovered that the former P8 Supervisor from Mary Bay Industries’ experience in company management leaned more towards siding with factions, office politics, and psychological manipulation.

“Seriously? Is this all you managers and leaders in big corporations do every day?”

Faced with Amber’s question, Orns scratched his head in embarrassment.

“Heh heh, it’s the corporate culture, the corporate culture.”

“…”

Amber ultimately gave up on the idea of consulting Orns. He didn’t want Atlas to be filled with all sorts of toxic workplace habits in the future.

Next, he abandoned the idea of asking Allenita for some professional managers.

Sometimes, you had to find a way to solve problems yourself. Turning to Allenita for everything would only make him more and more dependent on her.

After all, she wasn’t human; she was an elf from the Thousand Stars Empire. Amber needed to remain mindful of that.

Fortunately, Amber had another ‘person’ he could rely on.

“Lilith, do you have any ideas about a professional operations team for Atlas?”

“Master, I have been studying a great deal on this subject according to the learning plan you arranged. I do have some thoughts on building a professional corporate operations team.”

“Oh? Then tell me what you’re thinking.”

Hearing Lilith’s reply, Amber’s interest was piqued. He was very curious about what this strong AI had learned on the subject.

“Master, would you like to hear the legal or the illegal options?”

“Huh?”

Chapter 210: The Federation University of Finance and Economics Alumni Association

The Federation, core star systems.

In the deep space 2.5 standard warp-jumps from the Capital star system, a massive cylindrical satellite city slowly orbited a planet on its predetermined path.

Unlike other common satellite cities within the Federation, this one’s first impression was of a grim, chilling atmosphere.

This, combined with the patrol fleets roaming near the satellite city and the large number of autonomous early-warning terminals, told all outsiders that this was no ordinary place.

‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison.

As the Federation’s only prison for economic crimes, this massive satellite city housed a large number of economic criminals from all over the Federation.

Financial fraud, disrupting market order, illegal stock market manipulation, undermining financial administrative order.

If a type of economic crime was mentioned in the Federation’s code of law, you could find a classic example of it in this prison.

Looking at the backgrounds of these economic criminals, the majority were graduates of the Federation University of Finance and Economics, which is why many people jokingly called Golden Eye Space Prison ‘The Federation University of Finance and Economics Alumni Association.’

According to a lucky individual who had served time here, Golden Eye Space Prison was filled with the Federation’s ‘top-tier economic talent.’

The large cell block he was in held a total of thirty people. Besides himself, who was only a chief financial officer, twenty-seven of the remaining twenty-nine were presidents of interstellar corporations.

As for the other two?

They were the legal representatives of two former leading enterprises.

To say the small cell was teeming with hidden talents would be no exaggeration.

On the chief financial officer’s first day, the other bros in the cell block enthusiastically struck up a conversation with him, asking what he had done to end up there.

After learning that the CFO had been arrested for helping his company hide taxes and cook the books, the presidents in the cell block all showed ‘as expected’ expressions.

“Sigh, what were you thinking, pulling a stunt like tax evasion? Did you really think the Federation Taxation Bureau is just for show? If you really wanted to evade taxes, you should have been more discreet, not so sloppy that those lackeys from the Tax Bureau could find out with a single check.”

“Exactly. Based on the details you mentioned, I suggest that the next time you encounter a similar situation, you handle the company’s accounts like this.”

“Pete’s right. That’s how I did it, and they ended up shaving five years off my sentence.”

According to the chief financial officer’s reflections after his release, his time in Golden Eye Space Prison was less like serving a sentence and more like meeting a group of tycoons, followed by a process of enlightenment and advanced studies.

In short, although endless jokes were made about Golden Eye Space Prison, and the Federation’s common citizens often quipped that it was the final destination for all rich people, it was undeniable that the caliber of ‘economic talent’ in this space prison was not low at all.

New Calendar Year 589, March 4th, 0800 Universal Standard Time.

This was the day that thirty-five-year-old Nick Risen finished serving his sentence.

As an outstanding graduate of the Federation University of Finance and Economics and a once-genius professional manager, Nick Risen had successfully led his company to an IPO in a short period and developed and expanded it at an astonishing speed.

Then, the company was found to have committed severe tax evasion, as well as illegal manipulation of its star system’s stock market and other serious economic-related crimes.

Soon, the Federation Taxation Bureau’s enforcement fleet came knocking.

As the Federation’s third-largest armed force, a Federation Taxation Bureau ‘team’ on a field mission deployed via orbital drops, landing in front of Nick Risen’s company building and gaining control of the entire company with maximum speed.

When he saw the tax officers in combat exoskeletons kick down the door and rush into his office, Nick Risen, who had long anticipated this day, didn’t panic at all.

After all, before committing these illegal acts at the behest of the company’s board of directors, he had secured a fortune large enough to live lavishly for the rest of his life.

Furthermore, to ensure his assets wouldn’t be confiscated by the Federation, Nick Risen had transferred his property to his wife’s name long before, finalized their divorce, and sent her to settle in another star system.

Everything seemed so perfect.

He just had to serve his five years and six months in prison, and upon release, he could immediately rejoin the upper echelons of society.

But the genius manager had clearly underestimated the seductive power of immense wealth.

The bonds of a childhood sweetheart, a fellow student, and a first wife couldn’t compare to the string of zeros in a bank account.

In the second year of Nick Risen’s imprisonment, his ex-wife remarried.

Half a lifetime of effort was wiped out in an instant, and he had paid the price of imprisonment on top of it all.

It was a good thing Golden Eye Space Prison’s security measures for inmates were so thorough, otherwise Nick Risen might have succeeded in taking his own life in prison.

“Nick Risen, congratulations on completing your sentence. Please come over here to verify your identity and collect your personal belongings.”

The guard’s voice pulled Nick Risen’s wandering thoughts back to reality.

He walked to the center of the room, where two guards scanned his face, eyes, palms, and other areas with an instrument, then took blood samples from various parts of his body.

When a green light indicating ‘all clear’ lit up on the instrument, Nick Risen was led to a table.

“These are the personal belongings you had when you were incarcerated. The bag next to them contains new clothes prepared for you by the prison, in the Federation’s current popular style.”

The young prison guard offered a friendly smile. For them, watching an inmate leave after completing their sentence always gave them a sense of having successfully reformed a bad person.

“Your prison record was expunged as soon as your identity was verified, and the relevant legal documents have been sealed. If you encounter any difficulties in your life or work in the future, you can seek help from the relevant departments of your local administrative body.”

“Thank you.”

Nick Risen returned a somewhat stiff smile, then went to the adjacent changing room to put on the new clothes the prison had prepared for him.

Watching his old prison uniform being rapidly shredded by a machine in the ‘recycling chute,’ Nick Risen felt a wave of mixed feelings.

His life in prison was over, but where did his future lie?

Perhaps with his abilities, even with his current status, he could find a supervisor position at a smaller company.

But the problem was that while in prison, Nick Risen had learned that a war had broken out between the Federation and the Empire.

In the week before his release, when he was permitted to browse some job-seeking websites, all he saw were scarce job postings and massive layoff notices.

In a daze, Nick Risen, now changed into his new clothes, was led by the guard to the main gate of the prison block.

“Mr. Nick Risen.” The guard with the warm smile walked to his side again.

“I hope the rest of your life is smooth sailing.”

“Thank you.”

As the alloy gate slowly opened amidst flashing yellow lights and ringing alarms, Nick Risen, now completely out of the prison, took his first breath of outside air in five years and six months.

As he slowly walked out of the restricted zone, trying to sense if this air truly held the so-called ‘scent of freedom,’ a tall female elf walked up to him.

Nick Risen looked at the two tower-like Romu behind the female elf and instinctively took a step back.

His mind raced, trying to recall any memories from before his imprisonment that might involve elves or Romu.

He was ready to bolt back into the restricted zone at any moment.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall any dealings with elves or Romu. His knowledge of these two ‘Alien’ species was limited to what he had seen in the news.

“They can’t be here to settle a score, can they?”

Just as this thought popped into Nick Risen’s mind, the intelligent-looking elf before him spoke.

“Mr. Nick Risen? First, congratulations on starting your new life.”

The female elf took an electronic business card from her handbag and held it out to him.

“I am the head of HR for Atlas. I was wondering if Mr. Nick Risen might be interested in learning about our company?”

Chapter 211: A Night Talk Between Father and Daughter

Star Dragon Empire, The Capital, Saint-Saulnier.

The Grand Palace, situated on a meridian line, was the most magnificent terrestrial structure ever built by humankind.

Neither the people of the Star Dragon Empire nor the civilians of the Federation disputed this fact.

The palace, hundreds of meters tall, coiled like a slumbering great dragon at the very heart of the city.

No one knew how many Imperial Gold Dragons the Star Dragon Empire had spent to construct this magnificent building.

Perhaps it was a marvel that could not be measured by cost alone.

Every ceiling in the Grand Palace was adorned with crystal chandeliers of the highest clarity, each crystal glittering as if it held a fragment of a star.

The floors were covered with impossibly ornate red carpets. Handcrafted by traditional artisans, these carpets were inlaid with golden dragon patterns, proclaiming the ‘noble’ bloodline of the Star Dragon Empire’s royal family.

The murals within the palace depicted the glorious history and legendary tales of the Star Dragon Empire, each painting portraying a major event in its history.

Under the brushes of the Empire’s top artists, these murals were imbued with a rich sense of mystery and imagination.

It was even rumored that powerful psionic users had bestowed a ‘blessing’ upon the murals during their creation.

If you stared at these murals for too long, you might find yourself lost within the scenes they depicted.

At the very top of the Grand Palace stood a massive Star Dragon Altar, the light emanating from it as awe-inspiring as the might of a dragon.

After all, the magnificent Grand Palace was not just a political center, but also a sacred site for the Imperial State Religion.

Believers from all across the Empire revered the legendary Dragon God and considered the Grand Palace an equally holy place.

Whenever night fell, the star patterns on the outer walls of the Grand Palace would begin to twinkle, as if the stars of the sky had settled there.

If one were to visit the four grand plazas on the north, south, east, and west sides of the palace at this hour, they would find them swarming with believers.

Under the night sky, these fervent followers would gaze at the distant palace ‘cloaked in stars’ and prostrate themselves in worship.

And yet, above the heads of these believers were the constantly circling rotor drones, with their mounted photoelectric sensors, electromagnetic machine guns, and Rockets.

Surrounding the plazas, HCPs and multi-legged war machines stood guard over the crowds, lending a touch of the absurd to what was meant to be a sacred scene.

“Mobile Patrol Two, this is Dispatch. Diffuse riot at West Plaza. Proceed to support immediately.”

“Calling Dispatch, there’s a large-scale brawl among believers on Austin Avenue. Non-lethal riot control team required. Over!”

“Her Highness the Princess’s motorcade will arrive at the main gate of the Grand Palace in five minutes. All security units along the route, maintain high alert. Do not let your guard down!”

Invisible radio waves propagated through the air. Under the command of “The Observer Angel” circling high above, heavily armed garrison forces maneuvered throughout the city, maintaining a basic level of order.

As Saint-Saulnier’s mobile command center, the body of “The Observer Angel”—the CL-1201 ‘Sanctuary’ Super-Large Transport Carrier—was a wild creation of the Imperial Aerodynamics Research Institute.

With a length of 317 meters and a wingspan of 542 meters, the CL-1201 was also the largest atmospheric aircraft ever built by humanity to date.

At this moment, inside the command center on the third deck of “The Observer Angel,” the chief dispatcher was intently focused on the screen, which displayed the motorcade captured by the ship’s optical observation array.

The Imperial Princess’s sudden arrival had caught the entire staff of Saint-Saulnier somewhat off guard.

No one had expected Her Highness the Princess, who spent her years visiting various population centers across the Empire, to arrive so suddenly tonight.

This was especially true today, as it was the monthly “Archbishop’s Sermon Day.” A vast number of believers had gathered in the city, and the security pressure was already immense.

However, when the dispatcher saw the motorcade safely enter the grounds of the Grand Palace, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Within the Grand Palace, protected by the Imperial Guard, the safety of Her Highness the Princess was no longer their concern.

“Her Highness the Princess has entered the Grand Palace grounds. This vessel is lowering its alert level. Commencing resource reallocation.”

The motorcade finally came to a stop before the imperial bedchambers in the deepest part of the Grand Palace, where the Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, Frederico Rosa Leon, was confined to his bed.

Attended by her handmaidens, Her Highness Princess Agnes Barbara Leon of the Empire, dressed in a magnificent red and white long gown, stepped out of the vehicle.

A cascade of shining, platinum-blonde hair fell to her waist. A pair of long, S-shaped horns grew from behind her temples.

Their bases, about two fingers wide, extended upward before curving down, then rose again in a smooth arc.

When she lifted her proud head, the crystal chandeliers’ light reflected off her long, slender neck, revealing faint patterns resembling draconic scales.

Agnes raised a slender arm, her delicate fingers brushing away a stray lock of hair from her forehead. Her stunning beauty was enough to outshine the moon and stars.

“Your Highness, you’ve arrived. His Majesty has been waiting for some time.”

A middle-aged man in an attendant’s long robe descended the steps of the bedchamber. The intricate patterns on his cuffs indicated that he was the current First Attendant.

However, Agnes paid no attention to the Imperial Chamberlain, walking straight up the steps with her handmaidens and personal guards in tow.

Though most did not know his true allegiance, Agnes had already discovered through her own channels that this man was a clandestine member of the Regent Prince Faction.

Despite being completely ignored by Her Highness the Princess, the First Attendant’s expression remained unchanged, his smile perfectly proper.

He walked a step behind Agnes and continued:

“Your Highness’s chambers have also been prepared, should you need to stay the night.”

“Silence.”

Agnes’s icy voice rang out at the entrance to the bedchamber.

The First Attendant felt as if he were being shouted at by countless people from different directions and through different channels, and for a moment, he lost his clarity of mind.

He forcefully pinched his fingers under his sleeves to jolt himself back to awareness.

When he looked up again, the Imperial Princess had already entered the Emperor’s bedchamber.

Her handmaidens and personal guards had dutifully taken up positions at the great door, and the Imperial Guard originally stationed there had expertly formed a mutually supportive stance with them.

Only Agnes’s last words lingered in the air:

“This is my home. Your unnecessary remarks are not needed here.”

“You’ve come, my child.”

Frederico Rosa Leon propped himself up on the bed, watching his daughter as she slowly walked toward him.

“Everyone, leave us. You too.”

The old Emperor’s voice was weak, but it still resonated throughout the chamber.

He turned his head slightly toward the other side of his bed, and a blue light, the signature of Psionics, flashed in a spot that had been empty a moment before.

A figure dressed in the attire of a Royal Silencer materialized out of thin air.

He bowed respectfully to the old Emperor, then slowly retreated toward the chamber doors.

As he brushed past Agnes, this Level 6 psionic user, one of the few remaining in the Empire, seemed to see a pair of dragon wings flash within the princess’s shadow.

When only the Leon father and daughter remained in the bedchamber, the noble Imperial Princess finally spoke:

“Is the Archbishop not here today?”

“Cough, cough. He should be giving a sermon at the altar right now. Why do you ask, my daughter?”

“No reason. Just asking.”

Agnes walked to her father’s bedside and sat down. Looking at the frail, pale old man on the sickbed, she found it difficult to connect him with the memory of the ‘Father Emperor’ who commanded the Empire.

“According to the itinerary set at the beginning of the year, shouldn’t you be visiting Duke Artesia’s fief right now?”

“I’ve adjusted the itinerary, Father Emperor.”

Agnes gently took her father’s hand. On the back of the hand of the monarch once known as the ‘Dragon’s Fury of the Empire,’ the ‘draconic scales’ were now beginning to show signs of atrophy.

It was a sign that his life was counting down to its end.

“Recently, criticism of the Empire and the royal family from the people and lords in the border regions has intensified. There are even signs of incitement towards secession and independence, so I changed my schedule.

After meeting with you tonight, I will depart for the border tomorrow.”

“Child, are you sure you want to go at a time like this?”

Frederico suddenly sat up, gripping his daughter’s hand tightly, his eyes filled with worry.

“By doing this… aren’t you just giving him an opportunity?”

“Sometimes, taking a step back to move forward is not a bad choice, Father Emperor.”

Chapter 212: Regent Prince, Royal Family, State Religion

“Retreating to advance, is it?”

The old Emperor narrowed his eyes, contemplating for a moment before continuing.

“My daughter, I believe you possess more than enough intelligence to handle any problem in the Empire’s political arena, but… that man is not like the others.”

“Hmph. Is he any different from the other Imperial nobles?”

Agnes scoffed, a hint of disdain in her voice.

Of course, for a princess who had established a firm foothold in Imperial politics and cultivated her own faction at such a young age, she was certainly qualified to show contempt for the other nobles of the Empire.

Although the Princess Faction was currently at a disadvantage, Agnes was confident that she could turn the tables with the plans she had in store.

“Aren’t they all just greedy men coveting the foundation of our Leon Dynasty? He’s merely smarter than the other parasites, has been operating for longer, and is more ruthless and decisive in his methods.”

“Hahahaha—cough, cough, cough, cough.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Frederick shook his head with a laugh.

But the movement triggered a violent fit of coughing, and his entire face flushed crimson in an instant.

He raised a hand to stop Agnes from summoning the imperial physician, picked up a handkerchief from the bedside to wipe the corner of his mouth, and then slowly took a sip of warm water.

“There’s no need to call anyone. I know my own body best. I won’t die until my last day comes.”

Hearing her father’s somewhat self-deprecating words, Agnes’s brow furrowed imperceptibly, but it quickly smoothed out again as she continued to listen patiently to him.

“Norton II is completely different from any other enemy you’ve faced. His ultimate goal isn’t even the throne in this Grand Palace—and it is for that very reason that he will be more difficult to deal with.”

“Father Emperor, what are you talking about—”

For the first time that night, Agnes directly voiced her opposition to her father.

“If the ‘throne’ is unimportant to him, then why has he formed factions, and tried every possible means to suppress me and suppress our royal family?!”

“Why? Hmph.”

A shadow of gloom flashed through Frederick’s eyes.

“The ‘throne’ is of no importance to him, but for there to be no ‘us’ is very important to him. Do you understand what I mean?”

“But he clearly—”

“Agnes!”

Frederick cut his daughter off rather crudely and continued, “If you continue to rely on your experience and methods from dealing with traditional Imperial nobles to fight him, then you are gravely mistaken!

“That is also why I believe your ‘retreat to advance’ will instead lead you right into a trap set by Norton II!”

Frederick’s words plunged Agnes into silence.

After a long while, Agnes reached out and helped her father lie back down on his pillow.

Then, after rising to bow to him, she left the bedchamber without another word.

“If you truly intend to have a head-on confrontation with him, you must discard all that experience with traditional factional politics in your head and adopt a more radical approach…”

Frederick’s cold words rang out just as Agnes was about to step out of the bedchamber.

She said nothing, merely nodding before walking straight out.

The Emperor’s bedchamber returned to its state of silence.

An unknown amount of time passed before a third voice sounded in the room.

“It seems she didn’t take your words to heart.”

As the voice spoke, a figure emerged from the shadows in a corner of the bedchamber, finally coming to a stop before the Emperor’s sickbed.

If any devout believer of the state religion were to see this person’s attire, they would immediately fall to their knees in worship and kiss the tips of his feet.

Jules Mazarin, the Archbishop who should have been at the Star Dragon Altar delivering a sermon, was now here in the Emperor’s bedchamber.

“If she were capable of listening to me, the situation would not have devolved to this state.”

The old Emperor glanced at the suave Archbishop, not at all surprised by his appearance.

Or rather, he had known the Archbishop was in the bedchamber all along.

“I am, however, curious that Agnes didn’t sense your presence.”

“Her Highness the Princess’s ‘Dragon’s Might’ and ‘Dragon’s Awareness’ have indeed improved significantly, but the power of faith is not to be underestimated either. Clearly, because of my station and my devout faith, the Dragon God has granted me sufficient protection.”

Jules Mazarin spread his hands, and a faint golden light in the shape of a ‘robe’ flashed over his body for an instant.

“Are you Archbishops required to maintain this mystical act?”

“…”

Frederick’s words, which were enough to invite ‘divine wrath,’ made Jules Mazarin’s face stiffen for a moment, but he did his best to maintain his composure.

“Dragon God above, it’s hard to imagine that a nation under the Dragon God’s protection could produce an Emperor like you.”

Jules Mazarin’s retort was equally merciless, but the old Emperor showed no reaction.

It was clear this was not the first time the two had ‘attacked’ each other in this manner.

“I’m a dying man. I don’t have the time to argue with you. Let’s get to business.”

Frederick waved his hand, unilaterally ending the topic.

Jules Mazarin sat down in the chair by the sickbed, casually resting the long staff that symbolized the Archbishop’s authority on the armrest.

“I maintain my long-held view. If you had stepped forward to confront the Regent Prince directly, the situation would certainly be better than it is now. At the very least, the royal family would not be so thoroughly suppressed by the Regent Prince and his cronies.”

“You know what Norton II is capable of. Even I, in the current situation, could only manage to contend with him—but what good would that do? Exhaust my final vestiges of strength in the struggle, cause my own premature death, and then let him effortlessly sweep away the remaining obstacles?”

“Perhaps you shouldn’t have issued the edict granting him the power of a regent in the first place.”

“Heh, then the Leon Dynasty and the state religion would have become history right then and there. You people in religion, you still don’t understand what a deeply-rooted Imperial military noble, who has accumulated power over several generations, is capable of.”

“Then what do you intend to do now, Your Majesty?”

Jules Mazarin’s relaxed expression turned serious.

“The Church is willing to stand with the royal family, but not to watch you die violently in a few months.”

“Archbishop, do you know how the royal family maintains its rule over the Empire?”

“The bloodline of the Star Dragon makes the people of the Empire bow before you, and your formidable military strength makes the Imperial nobles submit to you. At least, that’s what the former Archbishop said.”

“And that is why he is the former Archbishop…”

As if recalling something amusing, Frederick chuckled and shook his head, then looked at Jules Mazarin.

“The theory of bloodline can only deceive the ignorant masses, and the military power controlled by the royal family is not enough to suppress the unified Imperial nobility. The Leon Dynasty has survived to this day because of long-term planning. I believe that the plans laid over these years will be enough to deliver the winning blow in the final showdown.”

“And what about Her Highness the Princess? You haven’t told her any of this.”

“Agnes? Didn’t she want to ‘retreat to advance’?”

At the mention of her name, the love and affection in the old Emperor’s eyes lingered for a moment before turning back to that emotionless state.

“Then let her ‘retreat.’ It’s a good opportunity to test Norton II’s mettle as well.”

“You are truly cold-blooded towards your only heir.” Jules Mazarin shrugged but raised no objection to the old Emperor’s methods.

“Heir? If you people can figure out the ‘Body of the Star Dragon’ research before everything is irreversible, then we won’t need an heir in the future.”

In the dim light of the bedchamber, the Archbishop watched impassively as, on the shadow behind Frederick’s back, a pair of enormous dragon wings slowly unfurled.

Chapter 213: The Scheming Begins

While a dying old man in the Capital of the Star Dragon Empire was preparing for his final gamble, far away on the other side of the universe, in the Thousand Stars Empire, Nick Risen was shivering in a conference room in the Tower of Babel.

There was a simple reason for this.

This small conference room was filled with a dozen or so brilliant graduates from the “Goldeneye” advanced class.

But judging by the monetary value of their crimes and the charges against them, Nick Risen could be considered a model citizen in this crowd.

Quite a few people here had even been permanently banned from entering the stock or futures markets of any star system.

Others had been hunted by their enemies the moment they were released from prison.

If the elven HR recruiter hadn’t arrived just in time with the Romu, some of them would have ended up encased in the concrete of a bridge pier.

That was why these few were the first to agree to join Atlas.

It wasn’t just because Amber had sent people to save their lives, but more importantly, hiding out in the Thousand Stars Empire was a good way to evade their enemies.

Once these “most famous” and “most legendary” individuals joined Atlas, recruiting the rest became much easier.

Some hadn’t yet reached the point of having enemies bent on revenge. They had originally planned to find an honest job and live a quiet life after their release.

But when the elven HR approached them and told them about the “heavy hitters” who had already joined the company, their first reaction was: this company called Atlas must be planning something big.

The “fighting spirit” that had been extinguished in Goldeneye Space Prison was rekindled.

“Do you want to work a mediocre job for the rest of your life, or do you want to come to Atlas and make a name for yourselves alongside the titans of the industry?”

Under the spell of the elven HR’s enchanting words, these people gladly signed their “indenture contracts.”

Right now, in this ordinary conference room, Nick Risen looked around in a daze at the others who were engaged in heated discussions.

He had a sinking feeling of having just left prison only to walk into a den of thieves.

This uneasy thought was immediately confirmed when Amber walked into the conference room and spoke his first words.

“Welcome, you bastards, to Atlas—the place where you will unleash your ‘talents’ to the fullest in the future.”

Shit, I’m screwed.

Nick Risen felt his vision go dark as he heard Amber continue.

“I know that everyone here has ample experience in corporate management, stocks, futures, and legal tax avoidance. That’s why I’ve gathered you all here.

I truly value the talents you all possess—talents that the world fails to understand.”

Laughter filled the conference room.

Amber walked to the center of the room, and as he spoke, he began to use his Psionics to influence the others’ thoughts.

This was a new skill he had derived from “mind control” while honing his Psionic abilities recently.

While not as brutally simple and effective as mind control, it was enough to influence the deep subconscious of his targets over time.

“Currently, Atlas is a company that combines a private military company with a mining corporation.

Although both of these are considered ‘sunrise industries’ in the current climate, I still hope that Atlas can get a piece of the pie in the financial markets as well.

Making money, you know. No one ever complains about having too much.”

“Mr. Rebil, why didn’t you just start an investment firm then?” someone in the room asked, confused.

“If I had simply founded an investment firm, I’d probably have ended up meeting all of you in ‘Goldeneye’ as well.”

Amber’s words once again drew laughter from the crowd. Clearly, their time served in Goldeneye wasn’t something they were ashamed of.

“Think about the common trait of your former companies. You made a killing in the financial markets, only to be killed in the real world.

Without sufficient power, how can you protect the fruits of your victory?”

Amplified by his Psionics, Amber’s brainwashing capabilities were greatly enhanced.

The eyes of these economic crime experts lit up as they listened, and some even slapped their thighs in sudden realization.

“That’s right! If my old company had a fleet or two, would we have had our assets seized by the Securities Regulatory Commission’s investigation department?”

Although Amber wanted to tell him that even one or two fleets wouldn’t ultimately stop the Federation government from confiscating his assets, he let them indulge their “divergent thinking” since they were in the brainwashing stage.

“In short, I’ve gathered you all here for two purposes.”

Amber held up one finger.

“First, all of you have worked for megacorporations before, and many were professional managers. I want to leverage your experience in corporate operations and management to get Atlas on the right track.”

Seeing everyone nod, Amber held up a second finger.

“Once the company’s systems are in place and we’re operating normally, I will grant you access and funds to let you unleash your talents in the stock, futures, and credit markets of various star systems.

How to make money with money will all depend on the schemes you all cook up.”

Hearing this, everyone, including Nick Risen, basically had no regrets about coming to Atlas.

After all, back in the Federation, no company boss would ever so bluntly tell them to go all out and “get things done.”

But they also knew that this Boss of Atlas wouldn’t give them free rein without any restrictions.

The last thing they wanted to know was what those “restrictions” might be.

Amber knew exactly what these guys were thinking, so he laid out his final conditions directly.

“Of course, I must emphasize that no matter what schemes you pull, our company still has to pay its taxes.

And believe me, the Revenue Service of these elves in the Thousand Stars Empire is far more ruthless than the Federation’s.

If we don’t want the Thousand Stars Empire’s Revenue Service to park an ‘Orbital Purifier’ over our heads, we’d best not engage in tax evasion for the time being.”

On this point, some of the people who had already done time for tax issues nodded in agreement.

Whether elves or humans, tax authorities were extremely harsh.

If they wanted to maintain sustainable growth, it was best not to get any funny ideas in that department.

“One more thing.”

Amber sat down next to one of the “economics titans” that Atlas had rescued and continued:

“Let the poor retail investors go. They’ve been fleeced enough as it is.”

Another wave of roaring laughter filled the room.

“Let’s think bigger. What’s the point of fleecing retail investors? If we’re going to fleece someone, let’s fleece the megacorporations. They have far more wealth for us to harvest.”

Seeing the looks on their faces, as if a whole new world had just opened up to them, Amber couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Alright, you know the basic restrictions now. But for the time being, please contain your excitement. The most important task at hand is to get Atlas operating normally first.

So, for now, let’s discuss that.”

Chapter 214: You Guys Deserve to Be in Prison

Amber had to admit, although the former inmates of Goldeneye Space Prison had committed numerous crimes and taken a lot of money they shouldn’t have, they were also exceptionally skilled professional managers. Furthermore, they had a deep understanding of how the various departments of a company should operate and coordinate.

After a simple afternoon and evening of discussion with Amber, these individuals managed to forge a new entity, the “Atlas Group,” merging the Atlas private military company and Atlas Mining.

Although both companies were still independently registered within the Thousand Stars Empire for the time being, these professional managers had devised an incredibly professional corporate structure. They also assigned different roles based on each person’s area of expertise.

In the period that followed, they successfully proved that this was no mere window dressing; they had genuinely improved Atlas’s operational efficiency.

Amber had laid down several rules: employees’ salaries and benefits could not be reduced, and their work hours had to be arranged strictly according to the employee handbook without any exploitation. Privately, the new hires half-complained and half-marveled that while their new boss was a bit vicious in business, he was practically running a charity when it came to treating his own employees.

However, as they were now also employed by Atlas, they were beneficiaries of these policies and naturally had no complaints.

Even with these restrictions, they managed to reduce the company’s operating cost by eighteen percent in their first month on the job. Without resorting to any “wild moves,” they had indirectly boosted Atlas’s profits.

Based on their excellent performance, Amber began to gradually loosen the reins starting from the second month. Nevertheless, their personal electronic devices remained under Lilith’s complete surveillance. Any and all of their little antics—even visiting adult websites to download videos—could not escape her watch.

Another reason Amber gave them more authority and allowed them to use company funds was that Lilith had achieved a breakthrough in quantum entanglement communication technology.

Although the quantum entanglement communication technology Lilith had cobbled together was far from mature, and could currently only guarantee instant communication within a few neighboring star systems, it was the biggest gain for Amber and Atlas in recent memory. This breakthrough was the final push he needed to decide to make a move on the financial markets of several star systems on the Federation’s fringe.

The Hermes, carrying these financial crime experts, soon arrived in a Federation border star system via warp. Although traveling on an Imperial warship carried a certain degree of risk, Amber decided to use The Hermes as the flagship for this “wealth-gathering operation” to get things off to an auspicious start.

In any case, they carried enough supplies to remain in deep space for the entire duration, conducting their operations remotely with the “Quantum Entanglement Communication Device 1.0” provided by Lilith.

Soon, an “offensive” that the stock and futures markets of three neighboring star systems would remember for a long time to come began.

The experts’ tactic was simple: leverage the instantaneous nature of quantum entanglement communication to unilaterally erase the time and information gaps between the three star systems from Atlas’s end.

At this stage, even with deep space information relay towers or information-transport ships using warp, there was still a two to three-day delay in information transmission between the three systems. As a result, the stock, futures, and cryptocurrency markets in each star system operated independently.

Generally, the markets in these different star systems did not influence one another. But when a multi-system corporation was poorly managed, or when the stock of a multi-system enterprise was about to surge, this information would spread from one star system to others like ripples. Economists called this phenomenon the “ripple effect.”

So, when the experts started wreaking havoc on the stock and futures markets in one star system, it would take at least two days for the other two systems to get the news.

The first to be targeted was a financial credit services company that operated across multiple star systems—“Money-Now.”

With the help of Lilith’s formidable ability to spread “online rumors,” the experts first went long on the company’s stock in the first star system.

The management of Money-Now had never seen so much positive news about their company online. Though they had checked with their public relations department and confirmed that they weren’t the source of the information, leaving them collectively dumbfounded, they still celebrated among themselves as they watched their company’s stock price hit the daily upper limit day after day.

When this ripple of information spread to the other two star systems, the company’s stock, as expected, began its own journey of hitting the daily limit in their respective stock markets.

Then, Lilith logically began her “mudslinging” campaign. Her “million-strong army of online shills” started to furiously smear the company on the internal network of the first star system, releasing massive amounts of dirt on them. They also exposed the so-called positive news from before as nothing more than a PR stunt by the company.

To say it was “smearing” wasn’t entirely accurate, because the dirt Lilith had dug up was all fucking true.

When Amber saw the company’s dark history of illegal lending, loan fraud, and violent debt collection, the last shred of pity in his heart vanished.

Stock markets have always been prone to launching a “stock price defense” at the slightest disturbance. What Lilith had unleashed was nothing less than a typhoon.

After selling off their shares at the peak price, the experts watched as the company’s stock went into a panic-driven freefall. At the same time, in the other two star systems, they initiated short-selling operations.

When the new ripple of information spread to the other two systems, causing the stock to take a nosedive there as well, the experts had already earned a colossal profit through the price difference from their short positions.

And this operation was merely a warm-up for these individuals.

Over the next month, Amber finally witnessed the true power of these “financial terrorists.”

Sweeping the market, being their true selves.

In just one month, the profits they made from the stock, futures, and cryptocurrency markets had easily surpassed the entire profit ever generated by Atlas Mining.

Regarding this, at the celebration for their “first victory,” Amber commented sharply, “You guys really deserve to be in prison. You call this making money? This is straight-up robbery!”

Amber’s recent, rather urgent “wealth-gathering” measures were not because he had become decadent and wanted to make a fortune so he could lie flat. The main reason was that Atlas’s intelligence analysis team had discovered some troubling news online.

Ever since she started high-intensity net surfing and enhanced her real-time information gathering efficiency with quantum entanglement communication, Lilith, under Amber’s direction, had established a “network public opinion monitoring mechanism.” Its primary function was to use the omnipresent network to collect all sorts of information, which she would then clean and filter into usable intelligence before handing it over to the intelligence analysis team, led by Isabelle, for final judgment.

During this time, the intelligence analysis team discovered that various factions within both the Federation and the Empire were looking into Atlas.

After extensive analysis and verification, the team provisionally ruled out the possibility that Federation or Imperial intelligence agencies had discovered the specifics of Amber’s situation and were planning to eliminate them. Instead, they issued a warning that the companies Atlas had “screwed over” were planning to retaliate.

Moreover, the other parties were highly likely to adopt the most simple and unpretentious method of retaliation in modern business warfare: sending a fleet for “physical reprisal.”

While Amber wasn’t afraid of any single one of these companies, fighting so many of them in a short period might reveal a hardware disadvantage.

It was against this backdrop that Amber had no choice but to let the “financial terrorists” plunder the financial markets, laying the monetary foundation for an emergency fleet expansion plan.

Chapter 215: Emergency Fleet Expansion

“So, the public sentiment we’ve detected is mainly coming from Mary Bay Industries, Aura Security, and the Timler family of the Star Dragon Empire?”

“Yes. The one thing they all have in common is that you’ve screwed them all over.”

A wave of laughter filled the office of the intelligence analysis team.

“Ahem, you intelligence operatives need to be more precise with your language. How can you call it ‘screwing them over’?”

Amber, sitting in the main seat, instinctively twisted his neck before continuing.

“Let’s be serious. According to the information you’ve gathered, Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security have issued a joint statement, and they’re going to respond to the ‘unfair competition’ they’ve recently encountered? And the Timler family has traced things back to us at Atlas?”

“That’s right. So it’s very likely we’ll be facing attacks from multiple directions simultaneously.”

“I get all that, and I can guess what Mary Bay Industries and the others are up to. But I still don’t understand how the Timler family managed to track us down. Was there a mole among the miners we recruited who leaked information?”

“We’ve already looked into that possibility,” Isabelle, the spymaster, reported.

“However, external communication from the asteroid belt is extremely limited. The only way is through the high-power communication device at the operations base. We’ve checked the communication logs from the moment we took over until now and found nothing out of the ordinary. So, for the time being, we’ve ruled out the possibility of a mole.”

As she spoke, Isabelle opened another investigative report with images and text.

“Right now, we suspect the most likely source of the leak was the black-market doctor who removed the slave chips. Those types have no professional ethics to speak of, and members of the Timler family have indeed been frequently making inquiries on the black market recently.”

“Tsk, I knew those people couldn’t be trusted.”

Amber sounded a little helpless, but at the time, he couldn’t think of a better solution.

Every contact leaves a trace. The famous words of Edmond Locard, the father of forensics, were just as true in their current situation.

After all, any trace that Lilith couldn’t erase online could eventually be discovered by someone determined enough to look.

“In a worst-case scenario, how many enemies will we have to deal with?”

“If Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security mobilize together, while still maintaining their daily operations, they could probably scrape together a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla of fifteen to twenty ships, with a light cruiser as its flagship. The Timler family hasn’t made contact with us yet, but if they’re dead set on causing trouble, given their family’s strength and the Head of the family’s noble rank, they’ll most likely dispatch a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla of twelve to fifteen ships. The proportion of destroyers would be relatively high, and there’s a good chance they’d also have a light cruiser.”

Listening to the intelligence Isabelle had compiled from their current network and information provided by Orns and Cleves, Amber realized these people wouldn’t be easy to handle.

Although a few dozen destroyers and frigates were barely a drop in the bucket in the navies of the Federation and the Empire, in the context of corporate warfare, the number of ships involved was enough to qualify as a battle that would bankrupt the loser.

“It seems we really do have to move up the fleet expansion plan. I was hoping to build up our strength for a while longer.”

Amber propped his elbows on the table, interlacing his fingers and resting them on the bridge of his nose in a Gendo Ikari-esque pose.

“With Atlas’s current funds, how many ships can we purchase on the secondhand market?”

“The funds from the sale of the two Peregrine-class ships were all used to expand the mining team. The company’s current capital comes mainly from Atlas Mining’s revenue and the funds our ‘Financial Operations Department’ has recently acquired.”

At this point, even Isabelle couldn’t help but speak in an admiring tone.

“The Financial Operations Department is incredibly capable. If we include the funds they’ll be recovering over the next few days, we can purchase another three to four destroyers in a short time. The exact number will depend on the actual market prices.”

“So, in the short term, the fleet can only expand to a maximum of six destroyers. That’s still too few. It won’t be nearly enough for a direct confrontation.”

“We also have to consider whether our crew training can keep pace,” Isabelle added.

Hearing this, Amber fell silent.

Seeing Amber deep in thought but seemingly without a solution, Isabelle, Atlas’s current spymaster, spoke up slowly.

“Our intelligence analysis team has an idea.”

Amber looked up at the team before him—led by Isabelle, with a core of surviving electronic warfare technicians and staffed by a group of cat-girls.

He finally nodded.

“Let’s hear it.”

“It’s simple. We plan to enact the old proverb: ‘When the snipe and the clam grapple, the fisherman profits’.”

The plan they came up with was simple: use the information disparity between their enemies to muddy the waters.

Although the existence of Lilith was not common knowledge within Atlas, the core staff knew that Amber ‘possessed’ powerful cyber-warfare capabilities and had recently developed some black-box technology for real-time communication across adjacent star systems.

With such abilities, they could easily drown the enemy’s intelligence operatives in a sea of false information, leading them to draw the wrong conclusions amidst the chaos.

Ideally, they could use this false intelligence to lure the fleets of Mary Bay Industries, Aura Security, and the Timler family into a pre-arranged engagement zone after they mobilized.

Given the current state of relations between the Federation and the Empire, if they timed it just right, the people of Atlas could sit back and watch the fireworks.

But the success of it all hinged on making the enemy believe the false information.

Isabelle’s words were like a wake-up call for Amber, and he quickly understood the key aspects of the plan.

“Cyber warfare is one part of it, but we definitely need to stir the pot even more. To get them to take the bait completely, we’ll probably need Randall and Cleves to put on a show. The Hermes and the Ares are well-suited for that kind of work, as it happens.”

Amber tapped the table with his knuckle.

“We’ll proceed with this as the general strategy. I’ll leave the details to the intelligence analysis team. I’ll also work on expanding our own fleet as quickly as possible. After all, you need a strong hammer to forge good steel. If we want to capitalize on the situation when they’re both weakened, our own strength can’t be lacking.”

Just as the financial terrorists received Amber’s directive—“Brothers, let’s make some money, fast!”—and urgently opened up a new frontier in foreign exchange arbitrage, the atmosphere in the newly operational Atlas Equipment Manufacturing and R&D Center at the Tower of Babel Manor was somewhat awkward between Eugene Koch and Orns.

After all, not long ago, Orns had been planning to use special methods to give Eugene a “forceful recruitment.”

Now, they had suddenly become colleagues at a new company, and the other man had even become the director of the R&D center, having joined earlier and “brought his own assets to the table.”

Moreover, all the equipment and skilled workers in the research center had been brought over from Trident Studio, so to be honest, Eugene held a significant amount of sway.

Although Orns, as deputy director, didn’t care much about titles—the salary Amber had offered was more than enough to make him cast aside any grievances—he still felt a peculiar sensation whenever he faced Eugene.

“Mr. Orns? Mr. Orns?”

Eugene waved a hand in front of Orns’s eyes, pulling the distracted man back to reality.

“My apologies,” Orns said, a bit embarrassed. “Seeing you, I can’t help but think about what happened before. Looking back, my methods were too aggressive.”

“It’s alright, Mr. Orns. At least with the Boss’s intervention, the worst didn’t happen, right?”

Eugene smiled. Being a rather easy-going person, he no longer felt the initial awkwardness toward Orns. Besides, they were now colleagues, both working for Atlas.

“I hope you can adjust quickly, too. That way, we can finalize the design for the first-generation personal combat exoskeleton system and move it into mass production.”

“If we’re going to follow the Boss’s plan and equip all the company’s marines with exoskeletons, it’s going to be quite a challenge.”

Seeing Eugene’s energetic smile, Orns couldn’t help but be reminded of himself when he first started in the industry.

Letting go of the things he had buried deep in his heart, Orns also smiled and activated the holographic projection device on the design table.

“Then let’s get started, Director Eugene.”

Chapter 216: Prelude to the War of the Three ‘Fools’

If you were to ask the intelligence operatives of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security to evaluate their recent work, you would get a very consistent answer.

Panning for gold in a cesspool.

They never imagined that the information about a company called Atlas on the internet could be so chaotic.

Although they knew much of it was false information released by the other party for misdirection, they felt it was impossible to disseminate such a volume of information in a short time through human effort alone.

And if it were done by an AI, it would be easily identified.

Therefore, the intelligence operatives of both companies believed that this information definitely contained genuinely valuable intelligence.

This forced them to bite the bullet and begin sifting through the massive amount of data.

To this end, Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security specifically acquired four powerful mainframe computers to assist in their work.

Ultimately, they arrived at a conclusion that, in their view, stood up to scrutiny.

The private military company Atlas, while appearing on the surface to be just a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, was in fact a front company controlled by nobles of the Star Dragon Empire that had long been active in the border regions between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.

This was corroborated by multiple photographs of Atlas warships taken by their spies at border spaceports.

They had seen at least three Atlas warships with different hull numbers, all of which were destroyer models still in active service with the Star Dragon Empire.

Once this conclusion was reached, the higher-ups at Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security instantly felt that everything made sense.

No wonder an entity like Atlas had suddenly appeared to oppose them.

And it had chosen to meddle in such a trivial matter as the R&D department supervisor’s “talent recruitment.”

Clearly, the nobles of the Star Dragon Empire were taking advantage of the outbreak of war between the two nations to begin infiltrating the Federation and suppressing its corporations!

“We can’t let them succeed! Federation companies aren’t that easy to bully!” a high-level executive on the Mary Bay Industries board of directors declared during one meeting.

“Even if it’s just a deterrent, we need to make these Imperial nobles back down!”

Soon, Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security held another joint press conference, formally announcing that they would be launching a “special combat operation” in the near future as a response to the recent events.

Although this act of telling your enemy “I’m coming to get you!” before a battle was foolish, it was an exceedingly common practice in both the Federation and the Empire.

After all, for these large corporations, their primary concern was their company’s stock price.

Generally, issuing such a declaration would drive up stock prices, allowing them to recoup some funds.

So, regardless of whether a fight actually broke out later, they had to at least put on a strong front.

“Although the press conference didn’t state it directly, I’d bet eighty percent that the commander of their combined fleet is Antonio, whose internal nickname is ‘the Raging Bull’.”

At an intelligence sharing meeting, Cleves, who had been invited to attend, offered his judgment.

“This man is one of the senior commanders of the Mary Bay Industries mobile fleet. His combat style is extremely aggressive; he loves to unleash a furious storm of attacks on the enemy.

Because of this, the fleet damage rate in battles he commands tends to be relatively high.”

Cleves gazed at the familiar figure displayed by the holographic projection device and spoke slowly.

“Such a command style naturally leads to a less-than-ideal combat loss ratio. So he rarely goes on field missions. He is only put in command when the company needs to resolve a conflict with a competitor through violent means.”

As the former destroyer captain from the Mary Bay Industries mobile fleet recounted this, he continuously dredged his mind for related information.

After all, among everyone present, he was the most familiar with the situation of Mary Bay Industries’ fleet.

“The other senior commander of the mobile fleet is stationed at their headquarters year-round, so it’s unlikely he would be sent to command this time.

As for Aura Security, while they will send a fleet commander, they will certainly only play a supporting role. The one truly in command of the combined fleet will still be Antonio.

Don’t look at me like that. Trust me. That’s how miserable it is to be the junior partner to Mary Bay Industries.”

On the Timler family’s homeworld, Ershus VI.

“So, the result of your investigation is that a Federation mining company was behind the dog-eat-dog incident that eliminated the pirates and abducted our miners and equipment?”

Hearing Ryan Timler’s question, Paul, the head of Timler Mining, respectfully lowered his head and replied, “To be precise, it’s a Federation mining company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire. The ships we’ve recently detected all appear to be Federation military-spec destroyers.”

Seeing that the Head of the family was uncharacteristically not angry and was patiently listening to his report, Paul continued.

“We sent people to the Thousand Stars Empire to check their corporate records. The legal representative of this company, named Atlas Mining, also owns a private military company called Atlas. And according to a rumor we picked up, this private military company employs many former Federation soldiers.”

“Hmph! So the Federation can’t win on the battlefield and is resorting to these petty tricks? Pfft! How disgusting!”

Ryan Timler’s expression was grim. As an Imperial noble, though only a minor Viscount, he, like many military aristocrats, held the Empire’s honor in high regard.

“Paul, if we were to launch a demonstrative attack, could we get a confirmed location for this company?”

“Sir, Atlas’s headquarters is within the Thousand Stars Empire, so we probably can’t touch them there… However, our deployed exploration teams, while prospecting for minerals in the asteroid belt, were lucky enough to discover the operations base they abducted!”

“Excellent. That’s enough.”

A fierce glint flashed in Viscount Ryan Timler’s eyes. Then, with a touch command by rubbing the ring on his finger, he summoned his steward.

“Inform the senior commanders of the family fleet. I don’t care what methods they use, but I want to see them in the Manor’s meeting room on time by two in the afternoon tomorrow.”

After speaking, he turned to Paul, who was waiting at the side.

“You will be going on this demonstrative attack as well. It’s time you started transforming from a foppish noble scion who does nothing but wine and dine.”

Just as the three factions—Mary Bay Industries, Aura Security, and the Timler family—had been successfully led to misjudge Atlas thanks to the efforts of Lilith and the Atlas intelligence team, the Atlas fleet welcomed the final destroyer of its recent expansion.

When this second-hand Swift-class destroyer officially joined Atlas’s order of battle, the total number of ships in the Atlas fleet reached five.

Although they were all destroyers, at least they had managed to scrape together five of them.

If Amber had stuck to her original plan of directly buying light cruisers, they would probably still be in the process of saving up the last bit of money.

During this recent tense period, Atlas’s military strength had increased substantially, supported by the company’s financial resources.

The fleet expansion was just one part of it.

The Equipment R&D and Manufacturing Center, led by Eugene and Orns, had also recently completed the development and trial production of the first-generation combat exoskeleton system.

Three squads’ worth of combat exoskeletons were manufactured and issued to the “experimental unit” for testing.

They would use the exoskeleton system with high intensity in their daily training to discover as many bugs and flaws as possible.

This would allow Eugene and Orns to optimize and improve the exoskeleton system, named “Raging Crocodile,” before it entered mass production.

Chapter 217: Imperial Fleet Spotted Dead Ahead!

Amidst the flurry of preparations by all of Atlas’s departments, the date finally arrived: May 7th, New Calendar 589.

Through the coordinated efforts of the intelligence analysis team and Lilith, Mary Bay Industries, Aura Security, and the Timler family were convinced that the Boss of Atlas would be visiting the asteroid belt for an inspection in the near future.

Furthermore, each of them had obtained the specific date and relatively precise coordinates in the asteroid belt through their respective moles.

For this, they even paid their moles a hefty sum.

Consequently, a few days prior, the combined fleet of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security, along with the Timler family’s fleet, departed from their respective assembly ports.

They split into two forces and began advancing toward the asteroid belt where Atlas Mining was conducting its operations.

On May 7th, they arrived at the outer edge of the asteroid belt.

The combined fleet of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security was, in terms of size, largely consistent with the predictions of Atlas’s intelligence analysis team.

The entire fleet consisted of eighteen ships.

The flagship was the flagship of Mary Bay Industries’ mobile fleet—the Griffin-class light cruiser, Financial Freedom.

In addition, there were seven destroyers and ten frigates. These vessels included warships from the Federation Navy’s previous generation, as well as contemporary ships that had only recently been decommissioned.

It was clear that Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security were dead set on taking Atlas down this time.

In addition to salvaging their corporate images, restoring investor confidence, and boosting their stock prices, this was also a chance to make an example of Atlas and deter other ambitious competitors.

Meanwhile, the number of ships in the Timler family’s fleet was also in line with the intelligence analysis team’s predictions.

However, there was a slight deviation in its composition.

The fleet totaled fifteen ships, with five destroyers and eight frigates, slightly fewer than the Mary Bay force.

But most importantly, the Timler family had directly deployed two Revelation-class light cruisers. The flagship, Timler’s Glory, had even been refitted, drastically widening the firepower gap between the two sides’ capital ships.

One side had a numerical advantage in ships, while the other held an advantage in ship performance and the number of light cruisers.

At this moment, the two fleets were approaching from different directions, each more than four hundred thousand kilometers away from the asteroid internally codenamed “A·Bawa·Ku” by Atlas.

The small reconnaissance boats dispatched by each fleet had closed the distance and used optical detection equipment to spot the operations base attached to the asteroid, relaying the relevant information and images back to their respective fleets.

Since professional combat scout ships were not sold to private companies, these private military fleets had to rely on small two- or three-seater reconnaissance boats for close-range scouting.

These small reconnaissance boats, with a central axis length of under twenty meters, could be carried by destroyers and larger vessels.

They could be stored in the Hangar and launched via electromagnetic launch catapults when needed.

Amber had actually already tasked Orns with creating “technical reserves” for this type of currently marginalized unit.

Although it wasn’t Orns’s area of research, he had friends in the industry who specialized in this kind of design and could network with them ahead of time.

However, when Orns received Amber’s request, he was quite puzzled.

He couldn’t understand why Amber was so interested in such a marginal type of craft.

But since the Boss paying the bills had made a request, Orns naturally wouldn’t refuse.

Perhaps, at this moment in the cosmos, only Amber knew that in future battles, these small reconnaissance boats would gradually take the stage in a new form.

They would transform from small, vulnerable reconnaissance units into thirty-meter-class, heavily armored, high-speed predators, changing the rules of the battlefield once again.

On the bridge of the Financial Freedom, the commander of the combined fleet, Antonio Marvin, sat in the captain’s chair, reviewing the information compiled by the CIC based on the reconnaissance intel.

Atlas’s mining operations base had been located. The model of the base was indeed common in the Star Dragon Empire, and the asteroid it was attached to showed signs of mining.

This information confirmed that this was indeed the enemy’s asteroid mining zone.

But what puzzled Antonio was that, so far, the reconnaissance boats had not found any trace of the enemy’s warships.

Of course, this vast asteroid belt made it easy for ships to hide, so it was normal for the recon boats to not find them right away.

Yet, Antonio still felt an inexplicable sense of unease.

“Maybe their ships are training elsewhere in the asteroid belt, or being reviewed by their boss? Didn’t our intel mention that?”

From a position beside the captain’s chair, Commander Raven from Aura Security spoke up.

Aura Security had contributed three destroyers, five frigates, and Commander Raven himself to this joint operation.

“The intel did say that… well, whatever. Let’s take out this operations base first. They’ll be forced to show themselves then.”

Just as Cleves had said, Antonio was rather aggressive in his command style, preferring to take the initiative to control the battlefield.

This time was no exception.

“Entire fleet, synchronize with the flagship’s combat speed and deploy in standard bombardment formation. Let’s close the distance and take a few shots at a stationary target!”

With a wave of his hand, Antonio set the combined fleet of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security into motion.

Eighteen warships ignited their thruster arrays, surging toward the asteroid where the operations base was located.

The distance was over one light-second, which would take these warships nearly an hour and a half to cover.

Although they could reach a maximum relative velocity of one hundred kilometers per second, the acceleration and deceleration phases still took time.

However, for a stationary target, it wasn’t necessary to close to the standard engagement range of ten to twenty thousand kilometers.

Especially for a virtually undefended fixed unit like an operations base, they could open fire from seventy or eighty thousand kilometers away.

It was during the combined fleet’s steady approach that the forward reconnaissance boats sent back a message that stunned everyone on the bridge.

“Imperial fleet spotted in the reconnaissance sector! Fifteen ships, maneuvering toward the target area!”

Just as Antonio and Raven’s expressions changed drastically at this news and they began an emergency discussion…

On the bridge of the Timler’s Glory, the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator rang out:

“Forward recon boats report sighting a Federation fleet in the reconnaissance sector! Eighteen ships, advancing at high speed toward the target area!”

“Shit, it’s a trap!”

Paul, sitting to the side of the captain’s chair, slammed his fist furiously on the armrest.

But after seeing that the family’s fleet commander in the captain’s chair and the Head of the family, Ryan Timler, on the other side remained calm, he quickly shut his mouth.

“It matters not. Prepare for battle,” Ryan Timler ordered calmly.

“Yes, Sir.”

The family fleet commander in the captain’s chair nodded, then said in a loud voice:

“All ships, to battle stations!”

Chapter 218: Kill the Damn Imperial Dogs!

Ryan Timler’s order seemed somewhat reckless.

After all, upon discovering a suspected Federation fleet whose numbers were greater than his own, he still ordered an attack.

But from the perspective of this Imperial Baron, his order was not illogical.

Although by his generation, the Timler family’s peerage had been reduced from Viscount to Baron, and their fiefdom consisted of only half a planet.

In the Empire’s aristocratic system, they were essentially at the bottom of the pyramid.

Normally, such a family would cautiously manage its own small territory, subjecting their subjects to a form of sustainable exploitation that bled them dry.

They would do their utmost to avoid events that could cause a significant decline in the family’s power, trying everything to protect the foundation passed down by their ancestors.

However, the Timler family was slightly different from most other Imperial nobles.

That is, in the Empire’s classification of nobility, their family belonged to the military nobility.

Ryan Timler’s grandfather, the first Head of the family, Kyle Timler, had once been one of the heavily-armed troops who followed the late Emperor, fighting the Federation and suppressing rebellions.

It was precisely because of his outstanding military achievements that he was granted the title of Imperial Viscount by the late Emperor after the war.

Though not a hereditary noble, he had nonetheless entered the ranks of the elite and was even granted half a planet as a fief.

And his father, Baden Timler, due to his military service and outstanding performance in suppressing rebellions, was specially permitted to inherit Kyle Timler’s Viscount title.

Thus, by the time it reached the third Head of the family, Ryan Timler, there was still a Baron’s title.

Although before his father passed away, he had asked Ryan not to strive for more and just protect the family’s assets.

But regardless, the brave, fearless, and bellicose blood of the military nobility still flowed in Ryan Timler’s veins.

In his daily life, while focused on managing the family’s affairs, he secretly dreamed of leading a great army across the battlefield.

Furthermore, the intelligence from the reconnaissance boats did not specifically mention any heavy cruisers or larger vessels in the enemy fleet.

This meant the Federation fleet ahead was, at best, commanded by a light cruiser.

After all, given the size of heavy cruisers, battlecruisers, and battleships, the reconnaissance boats could still clearly distinguish them even from a great distance.

In fleet battles between the Empire and the Federation, being at a numerical disadvantage was already commonplace.

So, whether it was commanders of the Royal Navy or military nobles like Ryan Timler, they were long used to it.

“It’s only three more ships. Victory for Imperial warships has never been decided by numbers alone.”

Ryan Timler said calmly.

Beside him, the family’s fleet commander, Ron Schneider, who was seated in the captain’s chair, nodded in agreement.

A former heavy cruiser captain in the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy, he had been recruited by Ryan Timler into the family to serve as the fleet commander after his retirement.

This was the final destination for most Royal Navy captains who did not ascend to the nobility.

Currently, the Timler family’s fleet maintained its high-speed assault formation, preparing to move near the asteroids to secure an advantageous position.

This asteroid belt, formed from a disintegrated planet, constituted a rather complex battlefield environment for fleet combat.

Many captains would rather fight at the edge of a gravity well than engage in combat within an asteroid belt.

These asteroids, scattered across the battlefield in massive numbers and with masses measured in hundreds of millions of tons, were a nightmare for every helmsman, observer, and radar operator.

During the fleet’s maneuvers, Ryan Timler and his fleet commander concluded that the opposing force was likely not a regular Federation Navy unit.

There was an eighty percent chance it was the private force of Atlas Mining.

After all, according to the Federation Navy’s operational style, they would never come to a lawless zone like this with so few ships.

Moreover, the smallest formation in the Federation Navy, a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, generally consisted of twenty-five or more ships.

The eighteen ships they had spotted seemed rather meager by comparison.

With this assessment, Ryan Timler’s desire to fight became even stronger.

The Timler family was, after all, part of the Empire’s military nobility. While their current strength wasn’t that great and they might have to give a wide berth to a regular Federation Navy force…

…he had absolutely no fear of this private Federation force before him.

He was going to fight them.

Just as the Timler family’s fleet commander and their Head of the family were guessing the true identity of the opposing ships…

…the two commanders of the Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security combined fleet had also reached an agreement.

That was: “Kill these damn Imperial dogs.”

Currently, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were in a state of war, making them adversaries by default.

Coupled with media sensationalism, anti-Star Dragon Empire sentiment within the Federation had reached its peak.

Some of the bolder private forces in the border regions had long begun hunting enemy civilian ships and lone warships.

And now, this “Imperial company” registered in the Thousand Stars Empire already had some minor friction with them.

Now it was posturing as if it wanted a major battle with the combined fleet.

Under these circumstances, with their side holding a numerical advantage, how could the two commanders from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security possibly back down?

Although, when humanity first entered the era of beyond-visual-range combat, the visceral nature of direct confrontation on the battlefield gradually turned into a matching game on a computer screen.

Frontline units often destroyed unseen enemies in a state of confusion or were themselves blasted apart by attacks from unknown origins.

Commanders in the rear simply watched strings of casualty figures and shifting front lines on their screens, playing this game called “war.”

But now, at least among the crews of the navy and private forces, the iron-blooded spirit of a bygone era—when humanity was still confined to Blue Star, dueling on the high seas with heavy artillery—had been restored.

The contest between heavy metal ion streams and deflector shields was like the clash between multi-ton armor-piercing shells and main armor belts hundreds of millimeters thick in the old days.

In these exchanges, measured in seconds, the primal fighting spirit deep within a crewman’s heart was reawakened.

One hour and fifty-eight minutes later, after constant maneuvering and closing the distance, the two fleets entered this asteroid and debris belt almost simultaneously.

Due to the absence of large celestial bodies nearby, neither side used the celestial coordinate system common in battles near such bodies; instead, they used relative positioning to confirm coordinates.

If we take the combined fleet’s position as the origin, then based on the latest intelligence from the reconnaissance boats combined with multiple scans from the fleet’s long-wave radar…

…the Timler family’s fleet was located at an axial angle of 34 degrees, a normal angle of 25 degrees, and at a straight-line distance of thirty-four thousand kilometers.

Normally, at this range, both sides could begin some probing shots to allow their shipboard control AIs to calculate parameters.

After all, in different cosmic environments, gravitational fields are constantly changing.

This was especially true in an asteroid belt filled with debris, where continuous firing was needed to calculate optimal parameters.

But the problem was that these massive asteroids also blocked the main cannon beams of both sides.

Often, just as a commander was about to give the order to fire, they would find the enemy ships suddenly obscured by another asteroid.

In this frustrating atmosphere, the two fleets cautiously navigated the asteroid belt, closing the straight-line distance to twelve thousand kilometers.

By this time, both sides had a basic understanding of the other’s fleet composition.

One side had more destroyers, while the other possessed two light cruisers.

Although each had its own advantages and disadvantages, at this point, the option of “retreating in the face of the enemy” had long been thrown to the back of both commanders’ minds.

In the northern polar region of this battlefield, within a debris field of small asteroids with a maximum diameter of only a few kilometers…

An HCP with a dark gray space camouflage paint job was carefully moving from the surface of one asteroid to another.

Unlike other HCPs, the space behind its shoulder armor was not equipped with a weapon rack.

Instead, it carried two large composite reconnaissance units.

Its main head monitor had also clearly been modified; its oversized volume made the HCP look as comical as a bobblehead doll.

At this moment, the pilot inside the cockpit was nervously operating the composite reconnaissance unit, ‘looking down’ on the battlefield about ten thousand kilometers away.

Although the heavy hydraulic pressure suit’s built-in thermostat was running, the forehead of this former Aura Security pilot was covered in sweat.

Of course, being alone in such a dangerous position, doing such a dangerous job…

…anyone else from the Atlas HCP squadron would not have fared any better.

Oh, wait—except for his current Boss and HCP squadron commander. That guy was a maniac.

If it were him, he’d probably be laughing in the cockpit right now!

Remembering his Boss piloting that ‘Red Devil’ and sweeping through the entire squadron in simulations, the pilot couldn’t help but shiver.

“Damn, if the bonus the Boss offered wasn’t so high, I wouldn’t have taken this job!”

After adjusting the final parameters, the pilot switched to the communications unit interface and decisively pressed the holographic button for ‘data transmission’.

“But if the bonus is this big next time, I wouldn’t mind doing it again…”

The detection results from optical, infrared, ultraviolet, long-wave, and synthetic aperture radar were transmitted via a temporarily deployed neutrino communication satellite in the area to The Ares, sixty thousand kilometers away.

On the bridge, Randall and the others stared nervously at the composite image on the main screen, generated by the shipboard control AI.

When scattered flashes of light suddenly appeared in the deathly silent asteroid belt, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

“After waiting so long, the fight has finally started!”

Chapter 219: Today, I, Amber, Will Play the Fisherman

“Amber, they’ve started fighting.”

Randall opened a video link to the hangar, looking on speechlessly as the big boss of Atlas was strapping himself into a heavy hydraulic pressure suit.

In the video’s background, Amber’s conspicuous red personal machine was parked on the maintenance frame.

Numerous members of the prep squad drifted around the mech with various instruments and cables, performing final preparations.

This “Modified Zealot,” which had been scaled up, breaking the ten-meter class, and so heavily altered that even its original designer wouldn’t recognize it, was the latest creation of the HCP prep team.

Amber had always felt the Zealot series frame was a true classic. It had a great reputation among players in his previous life and was a model with immense potential for modification.

So, for now, he hadn’t switched to a different unit. Instead, he had the prep squad perform a deep overhaul on his personal machine based on his own combat style and habits.

Thanks to the acquisition of the Trident Studio team, their skilled workers and various processing equipment had been a massive help during the modification.

“I know. With the mood set for them like this, they were bound to fight.”

Amber fastened a buckle on his pressure suit with a click and looked at the screen. “We shouldn’t rush to make a move. Be patient. We’ll wait for the right moment to go ‘break up the fight’.”

“Of course, I know that. With just our five destroyers, rushing in now would be suicide.”

Randall nodded. Just as he was about to deliver a “righteous reprimand” to Amber for planning to lead the charge again, another head popped up on the communication screen.

It was Cleves, the new captain of The Hermes.

“Boss, Senior, the pre-battle fleet-wide inspection is complete. All five warships are fully prepared for combat.”

The pre-battle inspection Cleves mentioned involved him donning virtual equipment to tour and inspect all ships in the fleet within a virtual space.

It saved him the trouble of flying between the warships in a shuttle.

Currently, the Atlas fleet was hiding near an asteroid in an extremely dense formation, with less than a kilometer separating each warship.

At this distance, nanotube cables for wired communication were connected between every two ships.

This allowed for efficient communication while maintaining radio silence.

“Excellent. Keeping you professionals was the wisest decision I ever made.”

Amber fluidly complimented both Cleves and himself in one breath.

Cleves was still getting used to this habit of his boss, who would praise his subordinates at every opportunity.

Whether in the Federation Navy or at Mary Bay Industries, he had never encountered a superior with such a personality.

“Thank you for the compliment. But Boss, are you sure you want me to be the fleet commander? I’ve always believed your command abilities are far superior to mine.”

Cleves posed this question that had been on his mind for a long time, only to be cut off by his senior.

“Hmph, you just focus on being the fleet commander. Your boss has never stayed put in the captain’s chair. He just loves taking his HCP out to chop people up.”

“You know me best, Randall!”

“Get outta here! All you do is act like a hands-off manager and go gallivanting! If something happens to you on the battlefield, what about the hundreds of people here at Atlas?”

“Hey, you jinx, Randall. We’re about to go into battle, can’t you say something positive for once?”

Cleves watched helplessly as his boss and senior started trading barbs through the screen. He had imagined many scenarios, but this was not one of them.

“Forget it, I’m done talking to you.” Amber ignored the ‘universal gesture of friendship’ Randall was making and looked at Cleves.

“Cleves, fleet command is in your hands. Just command with confidence according to your own ideas. Although Randall here isn’t the most reliable person, I still trust his judgment.”

“Uh… Yes, Boss!”

While the Atlas fleet prepared for the coming assault, the engagement between the combined fleet and the Timler family’s fleet escalated into a white-hot battle right after the first shot was fired.

Although the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had relaxed regulations for civilian procurement of warships and weapons like heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons, allowing many private factions to assemble fleets with basic space combat capabilities…

…there were still certain specialized warships and weapons that the governments had not authorized for civilian purchase.

Thermonuclear weapons were one of them.

Although their power was somewhat lacking in the vacuum of space, they were still genuine ‘weapons of mass destruction’ within a planet’s atmosphere.

Moreover, with humanity’s current technology, thermonuclear weapons could be miniaturized to the point where a single person could carry a low-yield nuclear warhead.

If someone were to detonate one of these in a city on some colony planet, it would definitely make headlines.

For this reason, private factions were still legally prohibited from possessing thermonuclear weapons.

This also meant that the fleets of private armed forces, unlike the regular military, could not be equipped with ‘defensive tactical hydrogen bombs’ on their ships.

Therefore, during combat, they couldn’t use the high-temperature plasma fireball from a thermonuclear detonation to intercept incoming physical projectiles.

Nor could they use the resulting post-explosion electric field, saturated with elementary particles, to interfere with charged weapons like charged particle cannons or heavy particle cannons.

Against this backdrop, fleet battles between private factions were simpler and cruder—a head-on exchange of fire.

Rather than a battle, it was more like a simple math problem of who had the greater total power output.

Whoever could command more power at any given moment would gain a momentary advantage.

By accumulating these small advantages, one could achieve final victory.

It was precisely because both warring factions noticed the other wasn’t using the ‘defensive tactical hydrogen bombs’ common in the regular military that they finally confirmed their opponents were not regular forces.

Since they were both private armed forces, there was even less to say. It was time to fight.

Right now, the two fleets were engaged in a waltz within a dense asteroid field, separated by a distance of about eight thousand kilometers.

The ‘white lines’ that flashed between them from time to time were the telltale sign of warship main cannons firing.

Compared to ‘drawing a circle’ in open space, this maneuver was far more difficult in a dense asteroid field.

The commanders on both sides had to not only track the enemy’s position but also constantly direct their fleets to avoid massive asteroids or ice chunks with relative velocities of ten to twenty kilometers per second.

Humanity’s steel leviathans were still rather insignificant in the face of these ‘little things’, the smallest of which weighed hundreds of millions of tons.

To make matters worse, because the area was filled with even denser gravel and debris, the warships didn’t dare to extend the radiator panel arrays on their broadsides as they normally would.

While the ship’s hull could ignore the impacts of high-speed debris, the radiator panels couldn’t take it.

Aside from the liquid nitrogen cooling and blackbody layers beneath the warship’s armor plating, the deployable radiator panels were one of the most critical heat dissipation systems on a ship.

So, in the current situation where they couldn’t open their radiator panels, the thermal pressure on the warships instantly skyrocketed.

The most direct consequence was a drastic reduction in the firing frequency of both sides’ main cannons.

The asteroids that periodically blocked the lines of fire, coupled with the constantly changing relative and angular velocities, had already made the warships’ accuracy at eight thousand kilometers quite poor.

The reduced firing rate only exacerbated this problem.

The shipboard control AIs on every warship were now operating under heavy computational load.

Not only did they have to calculate a vast number of parameters to assist the gunners based on data from the ship’s sensors, but they also had to coordinate the operation of all the ship’s subsystems.

If the commanders on either side couldn’t come up with a solution, this battle would devolve into a long and tedious low-accuracy shootout.

Chapter 220: The Atlas Fleet, Entering the Fray!

The Timler family fleet was the first to make a move.

Once the battle was joined, the militant, daring blood of Ryan Timler’s military aristocratic lineage was thoroughly awakened.

Although he had been the Head of the family for a long time, today was the first time he had accompanied the family fleet into a battle of this scale.

The charged particle beams constantly sweeping past his warship, the blinding white serpents of electricity erupting as the deflector shield activated when an enemy heavy particle cannon struck the bow—every instance made Ryan Timler’s heart beat half a beat faster.

In his mind’s eye, he saw his grandfather sitting in the captain’s chair, forming a spindle-shaped assault formation with the Emperor’s flagship and the warships of countless other military aristocrats.

That colossal ‘spindle’ weaved and fired through a dense hail of energy beams, ultimately punching through the enemy fleet.

As the Timler’s Glory was struck by another heavy particle cannon blast, the vibrations that shook the bridge pulled Ryan Timler back from his reverie.

He looked at the holographic projection platform displaying the enemy fleet they were engaging in the asteroid belt and listened to the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report on the stalemated battle.

Ryan Timler took a deep breath, then spoke in a calm tone.

“Ron, shall we have a face-to-face dance with them?”

Hearing the Head of the family’s suggestion, the commander of the Timler family fleet was momentarily stunned.

He hadn’t expected the inexperienced Sir, the Head of the family, to offer a tactical suggestion at a time like this.

At first, he thought it might have just been an offhand comment from Ryan Timler, but after quickly considering its feasibility, Ron Schneider’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“Sir, your suggestion is exceptionally timely!”

He began with a word of flattery before immediately issuing new orders.

“All ships, reform into an assault formation! Prepare for high-speed tactical maneuvers!”

“They’re changing formation.”

Antonio commented, watching the fleet reappear from behind an asteroid more than two hundred kilometers long on its major axis.

On the magnified panoramic viewscreen, the Timler family fleet had shifted from its initial hemispherical bombardment formation to a more compact assault formation.

It looked just like a giant spindle in space.

“A spindle formation. It seems they’ve grown bored of this long-range exchange,” Raven, the fleet’s second-in-command, quickly deduced the enemy’s intentions.

“Two light cruisers as the spearhead will indeed be tricky for us to handle.”

Raven glanced at the list on the virtual screen to his right, which displayed the current status of each warship in the fleet.

The exchange of fire thus far had yielded no significant results for either side.

At most, some ships hit by multiple heavy particle cannon shots had their external armor plating overheat, even with the protection of their deflector shields.

These warships had now maneuvered to the rear flanks of friendly vessels. After cooling down and allowing the memory metal of their layered armor to restructure, they would return to their battle positions.

However, if the enemy truly closed the engagement distance, the increased accuracy of their main cannons would put more and more pressure on every ship.

This was especially true given that a salvo from a light cruiser’s main cannons could deliver a fatal blow to a frigate or an older destroyer.

“But we have the advantage in numbers. Closing the distance isn’t entirely a bad thing for us.”

After a moment’s thought, Antonio opened a virtual tactical planning board and began to map out the fleet’s next move.

Just as he spoke, a beam from the distance grazed a nearby asteroid. The heavy metal ion stream not only seared a scar across the asteroid’s surface but also blasted off a large amount of red-hot debris.

The distant explosion was silent, but the ‘thud-thud’ of the debris striking the ship’s side armor plating was like countless hammers pounding on the crew’s hearts.

Scenes like this had been repeating since the battle began.

The already dense asteroid belt was being torn into countless smaller fragments by the missed main cannon fire from both fleets, causing the battlefield environment to deteriorate even further.

Meanwhile, Antonio had completed his bold and aggressive tactical plan.

Upon seeing this version of the plan, Raven was stunned for a moment, then broke into a smile the next second.

“That’s you, alright.”

He had heard of Antonio’s reputation; his boldness and aggression were quite famous among the community of private fleet commanders.

The tactical plan was quickly transmitted to all warships of the combined fleet via blue-green laser communication.

The ship captains from Mary Bay Industries all shared a knowing smile upon seeing the plan.

As the Timler family fleet continued to close in, the combined fleet of Mary Bay and Radiance quickly completed its own change in formation.

It wasn’t so much a change as a contraction from the initial bombardment formation into a relatively compact assault formation.

The flagship, the Fortune’s Freedom, took the lead, charging at the very front of the formation.

In modern fleet battles, especially small-scale engagements, it was quite common for the highest-class flagship to lead the charge.

This was because they had more powerful deflector shields and thicker armor, allowing them to withstand enemy-concentrated fire for longer.

After all, the spearhead was a crucial position. If a random warship were placed there and got blown up in a single round of concentrated fire, it could, in extreme cases, cause the ships behind it to collide with the wreckage, directly disrupting the formation’s integrity.

“Direct distance, six thousand kilometers! Relative velocity, eighty kilometers per second!” the Tactical Information Coordinator shouted out the critical information. The atmosphere on the bridge and in the CIC grew even more tense.

“All ships, attention! Prepare for the second-phase formation change according to the tactical plan. HCP squadrons, prepare for launch! Everyone, the success of this operation hinges on this very move!”

As Antonio’s voice boomed across the entire fleet, the most nervous people were not the other captains or the HCP pilots about to launch.

It was the helmsman of each warship.

In the new tactical plan, their maneuvers were the most crucial step.

“Direct distance, four thousand kilometers! Estimated contact in 49.5 seconds!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinators on each ship reported the new critical information, the helmsmen began their maneuvers according to their ship’s assigned tasks.

The combined fleet, which had been ‘clustered together,’ suddenly split in two, like a stream of water encountering a falling rock, pulling away to either side.

Simultaneously, with the aid of each ship’s vector thrusters, the warships began to adjust their orientation while keeping their course normal along a slight arc.

The crew members aboard each warship quickly felt their vessels beginning a drastic turn.

Since each ship adjusted its course in sync with its orientation adjustment, everyone had to stop what they were doing.

They were either pressed firmly into their seats or were clinging to safety tethers and grabbing any available handholds to brace themselves against the sudden G-force.

The advancing Timler family fleet saw the enemy fleet, which they had expected to meet head-on, suddenly split into two smaller fleets.

As these two groups maneuvered toward the Timler family fleet’s flanks, they also adjusted their ship orientations, pointing the beams of their main cannons directly at them, caught in the middle!

As time slipped by at a blinding pace, a sense of dread washed over Ron Schneider. He had to make a difficult decision in the next ten seconds.

He had to decide which way the Timler family fleet would turn.

In a space fleet battle, an engagement distance of under four thousand kilometers was already considered ‘melee’ range.

And a melee, compared to a long-range firefight, could decide a winner much more quickly.

This was because both sides would not only open up with their full firepower but also release their HCP squadrons and assault pods packed with marines, which would swarm the rear hemisphere of enemy warships like schools of piranhas.

In a fierce melee, the chaotic battlefield conditions would not only reduce the anti-air efficiency of each ship but also drive their anti-air command officers mad.

And as the two fleets in the asteroid belt were about to engage in a brawl, the ships of the Atlas fleet, positioned at the zenith of the battlefield’s ‘northern hemisphere,’ ignited their main thruster arrays.

Prior to this, Amber had already completed his pre-battle address to the entire fleet.

His relatively witty and humorous words had dispelled the nervousness in the hearts of those crew members participating in a fleet battle for the first time.

In the Hangar, Amber, already in his personal machine, opened a communication channel to the two HCP squadrons. Looking at the sixteen portraits that lit up on his panoramic display, he began to speak.

“Soldiers, remember your training, trust your teammates, and follow the tactical plan. No recklessness, no rash advances.”

As he spoke, the整備 bay slowly opened, and the machine known to the Atlas pilots as the ‘Red Devil’ was the first to move toward the launch elevator.

“One last thing for all of you.”

Amber thought of that legendary pilot from another time and space, then said with a smile:

“When you’re on high alert, Death won’t come for you.”

Chapter 221: Amber’s Fangs

“Attention, Atlas fleet. The special ‘Break Up the Fight’ operation now commences!”

Seated in the captain’s chair of The Hermes, Cleves suppressed a strange sense of absurdity and solemnly issued the command to begin.

The helmsmen of the five warships simultaneously pushed their engine order telegraphs to ‘Full Ahead’.

As the power surged, the blue trails from the warships’ main thruster arrays grew longer and longer. On the helmsmen’s displays, the relative velocity to their target point climbed ever higher.

Just as the Atlas fleet began its maneuver, the commander of the Timler family’s fleet, positioned in the ‘center’ of the battlefield, also made a decision.

“All ships, adjust orientation clockwise. Lock onto the enemy vessels in the right hemisphere. Prepare to engage.”

“All HCP squadrons, deploy! Half will protect the rear hemisphere of their respective warships and intercept enemy assaults! The remainder will follow the fleet and press the attack!”

The Timler family’s fleet made another minor adjustment to their formation, shifting their orientation to bring their main cannons to bear on the nine enemy warships in the right hemisphere.

Had the commander been a complete novice, he might have ordered the fleet to split into two groups, each adjusting its orientation toward a different hemisphere.

This seemingly prudent and conservative tactic was, in the eyes of a veteran, the worst possible move.

Adjusting the orientation of the entire fleet as a single unit is a simple maneuver, making unified action easy to achieve.

But adjusting their orientations separately was another matter entirely.

Even the most elite fleets of the Federation or the Imperial Navy would lose cohesion when splitting into two groups and orienting toward different directions.

Especially in this back-to-back situation, maintaining a tight formation would depend entirely on their vector thrusters.

A fleet without specific training for such a maneuver would easily break apart into two ‘sub-fleets,’ only to be flanked and divided by the enemy in the ensuing close-quarters brawl.

As the commander for the Timler family, Ron Schneider would naturally not make such a decision.

But he also knew that by turning the entire fleet to one side, their rear hemisphere would be dangerously exposed to the enemy’s guns.

All he could do was order the HCP squadrons to deploy and form a deflector shield screen, shielding their warships’ vulnerable main thruster arrays from enemy fire.

The entire fleet would have to use the time bought with the pilots’ lives to charge into the enemy division, lock them in a deadly melee, and swiftly annihilate them with superior firepower.

Furthermore, once the close-quarters melee began, the chaotic, intermingled battlefield would make the remaining enemy ships hesitant to open fire, for fear of hitting their own.

Ron Schneider was tense. After all, his decision wagered the safety of every member of the fleet, including the Head of his family.

However, the two commanders of the combined fleet were even more on edge than he was.

Because their fleet, now split into two groups, was essentially ‘drifting’ through the asteroid belt.

It was an exceptionally dangerous maneuver.

Before, the warships could have used their bow deflector shields and main armor plating to withstand impacts from high-speed asteroid fragments.

Now, however, they were exposing their relatively vulnerable flanks.

Soon, there was a casualty.

On the holographic projection platform, a frigate at the rear of the right-flank formation was marked with a red ‘X’.

The sensor feed from aft of the Financial Freedom was quickly projected onto the bridge’s main screen.

With grave expressions, Antonio and Raven watched the frigate become engulfed in a massive fireball.

The unlucky warship had been a step too slow with its emergency maneuver and was struck on its flank by an asteroid fragment roughly its own size at a relative velocity of over ten kilometers per second.

The massive kinetic impact snapped the warship in two. The superconducting battery stack in the aft section exploded, instantly forming a colossal high-temperature plasma fireball that consumed the entire vessel.

But Antonio had no time to mourn the ship’s crew, because at that very moment, the fleet’s main cannon fire converged on the Timler family fleet’s position.

“All ships! Fire at will! HCP squadrons and heavy assault pods, commence your attack!”

The next moment, the combined fleet’s warships, positioned directly ahead of the Timler fleet’s axis, unleashed a salvo.

Dazzling white flashes of charged particle beams swept across the asteroid belt, weaving a beautiful yet lethal rain of death.

Simultaneously, the multi-purpose launch silos on each ship began to fire salvoes of anti-ship missiles.

These weapons, typically used for beyond-visual-range strikes on planets, became auxiliary firepower in space, reserved for the chaos of a melee.

The launch silos, positioned on the dorsal and ventral decks of each ship, sent these missiles into the upper and lower hemispheres of the battlefield.

At a range of under three thousand kilometers, these missiles, with their long flight times, finally had a chance to be effective.

Attacking from the upper and lower hemispheres, they made life for the already beleaguered point-defense commanders an absolute hell.

“Port-side point-defense is too weak! What is the defense team doing?!”

Aboard the Timler family destroyer, the Sword of Thunder and Fire, the point-defense commander sat in his virtual pod, anxiously watching several HCPs breach the warning perimeter from the upper hemisphere, followed by even faster anti-ship missiles.

“Requesting intervention from the shipboard control AI for point-defense!”

The point-defense commander patched into the CIC, hoping the powerful shipboard AI could assist with targeting.

“Request denied. The shipboard control AI is already at its computing power threshold. Reallocating more risks a total system crash—”

BOOM!

The Tactical Action Officer’s words were cut short as a violent explosion rocked the entire warship.

When the point-defense commander came to his senses, he saw that the comm link was dead. His virtual screen displayed only two words: ‘SIGNAL LOST’.

For an internal direct link to fail like that, there was only one explanation: the entire CIC had been obliterated.

Horrified, the point-defense commander frantically pulled up the ship’s three-dimensional schematic. As he feared, the section containing the bridge and CIC was shrouded in red.

A heavy anti-ship missile, launched late but arriving first, had miraculously slipped past all close-in defenses and slammed almost vertically into the warship’s dorsal armor from the zenith.

Launched from the light cruiser Financial Freedom, the missile not only carried a massive payload, but its warhead was also specifically designed to penetrate the multi-layered armor of a warship.

A single hit annihilated everyone on the bridge and in the CIC.

The massive hole torn by the missile also provided an escape vent for the inert helium gas filling the ship’s interior.

The violently venting gas turned the breach into a massive, impromptu ‘vector thruster’.

The out-of-control warship pitched toward the lower hemisphere of the battlefield, exposing its vulnerable hull.

“It’s over… My wife, my children… I love you.”

It was the last thought to flash through the point-defense commander’s mind.

The next second, a heavy metal particle stream struck the warship’s unprotected midsection.

The rushing stream of heavy metal particles brutally tore through the outer armor plating before being dispersed by the multi-layered inner composite armor, riddling the ship’s frame with countless tiny holes.

Even so, the one-hundred-fifty-thousand-terajoule blast shattered the warship’s internal titanium alloy frame.

Punched clean through, the warship shuddered for a moment before finally breaking in two.

Although its fusion reactor and superconducting battery stack did not detonate, the two halves of the hull began to tumble uncontrollably.

Under these circumstances, any remaining survivors were as good as dead.

The combined fleet’s counterattack not only destroyed the destroyer but also obliterated another frigate.

But they didn’t escape unscathed. The two light cruisers of the Timler family’s fleet began to bring their power to bear.

Led by these two cruisers, the other Timler warships began to concentrate their fire on the same targets.

The light cruisers’ firepower, which dominated the battlefield, directly knocked out the deflector shield generators on two of the enemy destroyers.

The subsequent concentrated fire then sank both destroyers before they could maneuver behind friendly vessels for cover.

The entire battlefield began to light up with ‘fireworks’ at an even faster rate than before.

Ships were constantly taking hits, some erupting in a chain of explosions, others vanishing in a single, massive fireball, their entire crews becoming ‘cosmic ghosts’.

But more numerous still were the HCPs and heavy assault pods that, like moths drawn to a flame, danced a deadly waltz with enemy interceptors amidst a storm of point-defense fire.

And then, in the cold of space, they were reduced to ash, consumed by plasma fireballs.

Once the battle reached this stage, both commanders knew there was no turning back.

A fleet-scale melee was not like a conventional long-range exchange or a hit-and-run attack; there was no easy way to disengage.

With dozens of warships locked in a close-quarters deathmatch inside the chaotic asteroid belt, everyone from the commanders down to the crew and pilots was seeing red.

There was only one way to end the battle: fight with everything they had to annihilate the enemy and be the last ones standing.

And just as the fighting reached its fiercest peak, the Tactical Information Coordinators on both flagships reported, almost in unison, a piece of information that made their commanders’ hearts stop.

“Zenith bearing! Unidentified warships detected, count of six!”

“Detecting heat signatures launching from the unknown vessels! Infrared profile consistent with HCPs, count seventeen! They’re approaching at high speed from directly above the fleet!”

“Wait… those movements are definitely HCPs, but… in an asteroid belt this dense? How is that possible?!”

The Tactical Information Coordinators on both flagships watched the heat signatures on their screens performing inhuman maneuvers through the chaotic asteroid belt, their voices trembling with disbelief.

“The one in the lead… it’s approaching at three times the speed of the others!”

Chapter 222: A Brand New Tactic for HCPs

“Assault squadrons, assume ‘Groove Along’ formation! Begin the offensive barrel roll maneuver!”

“If you don’t want to be target practice for lasers and charged particle beams, stop flying in a straight line!”

“Trust me, after all this training, your tactical skills are far beyond those pilots on the other side!”

Amber’s calm voice echoed through the two HCP squadrons’ communication channel.

With Lilith overseeing things, the Atlas forces had no need to worry about Electronic Warfare when facing these private armed groups.

Therefore, communication between combat units didn’t have to be restricted to the less efficient quantum encrypted channels.

Once Amber’s order was given, all the pilots followed his command. They began maneuvering their mechs, tracing huge “concentric circles” around a virtual relative coordinate.

As the pilots fought against the G-forces with diaphragmatic breathing and their hydraulic G-suits, they watched their Boss and Instructor, who had already pulled ahead, executing a variety of inhuman, sharp, angular, zigzagging maneuvers to begin the “door-kicking operation.”

They all sighed in unison; the guy was a monster, just as they thought.

After incorporating the “captives” from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security last time, Atlas had gained fifteen new HCP pilots.

In terms of technical and tactical skill, the abilities of these pilots were, to put it mildly, uneven.

But in the simulation battles held to restructure the squadrons, they were all defeated by Murat and Louis, who had been “trained” by Amber.

Thus, Murat and Louis were appointed squadron leaders of the two newly formed squadrons.

The pilots had no objections to this; after all, in HCP combat, being a rookie is the ultimate sin.

However, when they saw the training regimen Amber had tailor-made for them, they completely lost their composure.

Not only had Amber spiced up the standard HCP pilot training content, but he had also added a whole slew of training exercises that looked anything but safe.

For example, performing high-speed maneuvers within the asteroid belt at full thrust, all while evading enemy anti-aircraft fire.

Another example was breaking through an enemy HCP interception and attacking a target warship at a relative velocity of fifty to eighty kilometers per second.

There was also the HCP free-for-all brawl within the asteroid belt.

These training exercises weren’t even conducted in simulation pods.

Instead, under Amber’s lead, they did it for real in their mechs, out in the asteroid belt.

Immediately, many of the newly recruited pilots wanted to back out.

They weren’t soldiers, after all, but mercenaries fighting for money. Risking their lives in combat was one thing, but now they were expected to risk their lives in training too?

Faced with this situation, Amber’s approach was simple and brutal.

He held a simulation battle that was nothing short of shocking.

The two squadrons, with a total of sixteen HCPs, were the defenders, tasked with protecting an inflatable decoy ship. (The bro in the recon-type HCP was independent of the two squadrons.)

The attacking force consisted of Amber alone.

The result of the battle was that Amber, piloting his fully modified personal machine and conducting a combat test at the same time, easily blew up the decoy ship.

Then, for good measure, he annihilated all sixteen defending HCPs in a variety of ways.

Many pilots only registered a red HCP flashing past them, trailing a long wake, before their own unit was declared shot down.

Several pilots who suffered the humiliation of having their mechs’ limbs blown off were still in a daze for some time after the battle ended.

And so, “Red Devil” became the nickname these pilots used for Amber in private.

Amber’s simple and brutal method was indeed effective.

In this day and age, anyone willing to pilot an HCP in space, regardless of their skill or courage, had at least some fascination with giant robots.

So, when a powerhouse whose piloting skills surpassed their comprehension appeared before them, and this powerhouse intended to train them personally, the mercenaries’ attitudes finally changed.

Adhering to the principle of “bleed more in training, bleed less in war,” the training Amber put the Atlas HCP pilots through was top-tier in terms of both intensity and danger in this world.

As long as it doesn’t kill you, train until you drop.

Accidentally scraping an asteroid during a maneuver and losing attitude control was considered a minor incident.

However, with the full support of the maintenance and medical teams, these pilots grew rapidly under Amber’s drilling.

When the day for a real combat operation finally arrived, they understood why Amber had insisted on training them in the treacherous asteroid belt.

It was because this was the battlefield Amber had chosen in advance.

The timing of the Atlas fleet’s attack was clever.

At this moment, not only were the combined fleet and the Timler family’s fleet locked in a brutal brawl, but both sides were also rapidly depleting their combat personnel.

The engagement had lasted less than half an hour, but of the Timler family fleet’s fifteen warships, five had already been sunk and three had lost their combat capability.

The only ships still able to fight were two light cruisers, four heavily damaged destroyers, and one incredibly lucky frigate.

As for their HCPs, out of ten squadrons mixed with Dragon Knights and Zealots—a full one hundred units—only thirty-eight still showed pilot life signs.

Among those, many were lucky survivors whose HCPs were no longer combat-effective.

The HCPs assigned to protect the rear hemispheres of their respective warships, forming defensive lines to shield the main thruster arrays, were almost completely wiped out, with barely one in ten surviving.

By linking three to five HCPs together, they could combine their deflector shield generators to create a much stronger deflector shield.

While this allowed them to withstand fire from a frigate, or even a single shot from a destroyer’s main cannon, it was but a drop in the bucket in a fierce fleet battle.

Regardless, these HCPs, who had sacrificed themselves to plug the breach, completed their mission at the cost of near-total annihilation.

Apart from a few warships whose main thruster arrays were hit, most of the fleet had managed to enter the intense brawl phase.

On the other side of the battle, the combined fleet of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security had actually suffered even greater losses.

As mentioned before, Federation warships typically relied on numerical superiority to gain the upper hand in fleet battles.

But when the scale of the battle was reduced to around thirty ships, this numerical advantage couldn’t be converted into a winning one.

On the contrary, the “slow and steady” Imperial warships, with their superior overall performance, demonstrated a greater advantage in such small-scale engagements.

This meant that even though the combined fleet had split in two to execute a pincer movement, allowing a portion of their warships to wreak havoc on the enemy fleet’s rear hemisphere, their combat loss ratio was still unflattering.

By now, the only combat-capable ships left in the combined fleet were the flagship light cruiser Financial Freedom, four destroyers, and two frigates.

In a simple numbers game, the Timler family’s fleet, with its two light cruisers, might even have had the upper hand.

However, the combined fleet had more surviving HCPs, and at close range, these swarming “little darlings” posed a real threat to warships.

At the same time, several heavy assault pods had broken through the enemy’s interception and impacted their target ships, especially the two heavily targeted light cruisers.

The marines who completed the boarding action were now spreading like cancer from their entry points to other areas of the ships.

Although the marines aboard those ships had begun to mount a defense, the news of being boarded still had a definite impact on crew morale.

So when the Atlas fleet, attacking from the zenith, was spotted, the first reaction of both fleet commanders on the battlefield was: “What? They still have an ace up their sleeve?!”

But neither side could possibly adjust their orientation to face this new enemy now.

All they could do was watch helplessly as the fleet charging from the zenith drew closer and closer.

Alone in his “VIP viewing spot” on the battlefield, the Atlas pilot in the Recon-type Zealot had already spotted Amber’s personal machine approaching at high speed.

The relative velocity between them was already approaching ninety kilometers per second. Even the upgraded optical sensors couldn’t maintain a stable lock on the striking red unit.

However, a single, slightly blurry freeze-frame captured by the sensor was enough to reveal the distinct characteristics of this custom machine to the pilot.

Heavy armor, heavy firepower, high thrust.

If the base model Zealot was known to most HCP pilots as a noble, classic, walking knight-style mech, then this “Modified Zealot” had completely lost that so-called noble and classic style.

The thickened layered armor on key parts of the unit, a result of a hasty modification, lacked any particular aesthetic appeal and had lost the Zealot’s original, distinctive curved aesthetic.

The completely redesigned main head monitor, which integrated more sensor components, was not only larger but also no longer sported the old “Knight helmet” design.

But the most eye-catching modification was to the unit’s “legs.”

The maintenance team lead had boldly discarded the original walking assembly, replacing the two mechanical legs of the lower body with two additional propulsion units.

Since the electromagnetic joints in the “hips” were still present, these two extra propulsion units weren’t completely fixed like the thruster array on its back. Instead, they could be adjusted within a certain angle, forward, backward, and to the sides.

This modification drastically improved the heavy HCP’s maneuverability.

Since aerodynamics and gravity were not a concern in space, a multitude of vector thrusters and a high-power thruster array became the optimal solution for increasing mobility.

This modified unit could even use these two additional propulsion units for “reverse thrust” to decelerate, without needing to change the mech’s orientation.

Perhaps the only thing limiting its maneuverability was the pilot’s endurance in the cockpit.

Finally, there was the unit’s armament.

Because the captured image was somewhat blurry, the Recon-type Zealot’s pilot couldn’t make out all the weapons the unit carried.

But one weapon caught his eye instantly.

Mounted on the weapon racks behind the shoulder, a large heavy particle cannon was deployed, its overall length far exceeding that of the unit, making it look like a great lance.

This massive cannon made the modified mech look like a steppe heavy cavalryman in the midst of a charge.

A heavy cavalryman charging alongside the fleet.

This was one of the roles that the increasingly heavy HCPs, and the new units soon to appear, would take on in the future of space warfare.

Watching the HCP streak across the battlefield like a comet, with the other mechs of its squadron fanning out into combat formation behind it, tracing vast concentric circles, the pilot felt a long-buried passion for battle ignite within him.

As Amber’s enormous red machine swept past him, the pilot finally couldn’t help but cry out.

“Go! Red Devil!!!”

“Auxiliary propulsion units operating normally. Subcritical reactor energy output is normal. Temperature of the dual superconducting battery stacks is within controllable limits.”

Inside the cockpit of Amber’s custom machine, temporarily codenamed “Experimental Type MK1,” Lilith, acting as the combat assistance AI, reported the unit’s various parameters in real-time.

Although the same critical data was displayed on the multi-function display in the lower right of Amber’s vision, he was in the middle of a high-speed advance and had to focus his attention on the battlefield before him.

Especially since the unit’s parameters had not yet been tuned to their optimal state, he needed Lilith to help monitor the machine’s condition.

This data was also being transmitted via the unit’s neutrino emitter to the screens in the hangar of the warship behind them.

At this moment, the hangar, having already launched all its mechs, had an atmosphere just like an F1 team’s pit box during a race.

The maintenance team lead responsible for modifying this unit was anxiously watching the data on the screen with Eugene, Orns, and the others, praying that the machine they had “built from scratch” wouldn’t have any problems at this critical juncture.

“Isn’t the Boss being a bit too aggressive? Every single parameter is dancing on the edge of its safety threshold.”

Eugene’s expression was tense. When one particular reading shot towards the red line, his fists clenched tight.

“You forgot what the Boss said before he launched. This battle is also a chance to test the limits of this unit,” Orns replied, glancing at the maintenance team lead, who had remained silent.

This maintenance team lead, his in-cockpit spacesuit stained with grease and a multitude of tools hanging from his belt, was probably the most nervous person in the hangar right now.

After all, Amber’s custom machine was his creation.

At first, Orns hadn’t thought much of this maintenance team lead.

In his eyes, the man was just a ground crew chief.

But in their subsequent conversations, he discovered that this former Federation serviceman had a surprisingly deep understanding of HCPs.

When the man proposed the radical modification idea that “in space combat, an HCP’s walking apparatus is not very useful and could be replaced with an additional thruster array better suited for space,” Orns began to see him in a new light.

“To be honest,” the silent maintenance team lead finally spoke. “I always thought the Boss might not be able to push this modified unit to its limits.”

“And now?” Orns asked with interest, his arms crossed.

“I think I underestimated the Boss. What we’re seeing now is clearly the unit’s limit, not the Boss’s.”

The maintenance team lead’s answer brought a sudden silence to the hangar.

His words caused Amber’s image in their minds to rocket towards “inhuman” status.

Just then, the hangar lights dimmed, changing from bright white to a tense, dark red glow.

“Looks like he’s about to enter attack range,” the maintenance team lead said in a low voice.

Then, he turned and pushed off the floor with force, floating towards the other side of the hangar.

At the same time, his rough voice echoed throughout the space.

“Stop gawking! Back to your battle stations! Prepare to receive damaged units and get ready for wartime emergency repairs! Notify the medical team to be on standby for casualties. Those pilots’ lives are worth their weight in gold right now!”

Just as the Atlas fleet entered attack range and was preparing to pick off the enemy ships “below” them one by one with their main cannons, Amber had already begun his attack.

His expression was calm as he stared at the dense cluster of enemy units locked by red boxes on his panoramic display.

These enemy targets, identified through the Recon-type Zealot’s lengthy surveillance of the battlefield, had been transmitted over the datalink.

The multitude of red targeting boxes, combined with the red light from the adaptive warning system, dyed his helmet’s faceplate crimson.

Amber’s gaze locked onto a Timler family frigate.

The Experimental Type MK1’s fire-control system rapidly locked onto the warship, which was maneuvering towards the flank of a combined fleet destroyer.

“Mech-mounted heavy particle cannon, ready for full-power discharge!”

The instant Lilith’s voice rang in his ear, Amber fired without hesitation.

Aboard the target frigate, the anti-aircraft officer, who was already watching the zenith, saw a tiny point of light, like a reflection off space dust, suddenly erupt into a blinding white beam charging towards them.

“Long-range cannon fire from an HCP?!”

The thought had barely crossed the anti-aircraft officer’s mind when he felt the entire warship shudder violently.

The heavy metal particle stream, striking the top of the warship at a near-perpendicular angle where there was no deflector shield protection, easily tore through the outermost layer of armor.

The warship’s internal multi-layer composite armor structure failed to significantly disperse the heavy metal particles.

The mech-mounted heavy particle cannon did not disappoint Amber, who had targeted the frigate’s superconducting battery stack.

As a dazzling plasma fireball erupted out of thin air in the distance, the targeting box that had represented the frigate vanished.

“Good, at least this thing’s power didn’t disappoint…”

Amber was quite satisfied with the heavy particle cannon, whose firepower was already on par with a frigate’s main cannon.

“Master, the superconducting battery stack is recharging. A second shot will be available in an estimated twenty seconds.”

“Understood. Perfect time to use this gap to cool the accelerator rails.”

Maintaining his advance, Amber switched his weapon control from the temporarily named ‘Test-1’ heavy particle cannon to his laser-guided dogfighting missiles.

Under his guidance, the unit’s fire-control system locked onto two HCPs that were actively charging to intercept him and began to guide the attack with laser irradiation.

The disposable missile pods mounted on the unit’s exterior ejected six dogfighting missiles.

In the cockpits of the two targeted HCPs, the ear-piercing screech of the laser warning system blared.

Without a second thought, the two pilots followed standard operating procedure and switched their units’ fire-control mode to “point-defense mode.”

The two HCPs raised their electromagnetic rifles and, along with the point-defense lasers on either side of their main head monitors, began trying to intercept the incoming missiles.

“These private military company pilots really are much worse than regular military.”

Watching the two units moving in a straight line at a constant velocity, Amber lamented the “turkey shoot” of a battle while handing over missile guidance to the fire-control system.

He himself switched his weapon control to the charged particle cannon and the HCP’s electromagnetic machine gun.

A few heartbeats later, a blue beam and a stream of orange-red tracer fire tore through the blackness of space.

At the end of their trajectory, a brilliant white light flashed.

It was the sign of an HCP’s deflector shield activating.

But soon, one of the brilliant white lights was replaced by a massive plasma fireball.

The Experimental Type MK1, with its upgraded power supply unit, could now sustain a charged particle beam for over three seconds.

Such an attack had clearly exceeded the defensive threshold of an HCP’s deflector shield.

His comrade’s dying scream still echoed in the other HCP’s cockpit. Before the pilot could even activate the unit’s forward vector thrusters to create distance, he saw a red unit, trailing a long plume of flame, right on top of him.

As the two mechs crossed paths, the pilot’s final thought flashed through his mind.

“Damn, that’s a long blade…”

“Lilith, Electronic Warfare is all yours!”

Amber maneuvered his unit through a dense web of tracer fire. The white flash of the deflector shield activating occasionally lit up the panoramic display.

Inside the cockpit, aside from the relentless lock-on warnings, a constant ‘clinking’ and ‘clanging’ could be heard—the sound of shattered rock or kinetic warhead fragments, decomposed by the deflector shield’s arc, bouncing off the armor plating.

But the extremely high relative and angular velocities increased the difficulty of interception for the enemy units by several orders of magnitude.

His erratic flight path made the intercepting units feel as if they had seen a ghost.

“Understood, Master! However, you’ll need to keep maneuvering within the enemy formation. Don’t stray too far.”

“Hah… hah… I know. I’ll do my best to maintain it.”

After entering the engagement zone between the two enemy fleets, the density of fire directed at Amber rose to another level. The frequency and magnitude of evasive maneuvers required to dodge the attacks increased rapidly.

Even for a physically enhanced psionic user as powerful as Amber, facing the undeniable laws of physics, he felt like a piece of dough being kneaded by G-forces from all directions.

Meanwhile, sixty thousand kilometers from the battlefield, within the “A·Bawa·Ku” Asteroid Base (currently under construction), in a space of several thousand square meters carved out by miners.

A massive server array, already occupying nearly half the space, simultaneously lit up with blue lights, indicating it was waking from sleep mode and entering an operational state, letting out a series of humming sounds.

A smug female voice rang out in the virtual space.

“Heh heh, it’s time for Lilith to shine~”

Chapter 223: Breaking Up a Fight

The importance of electronic warfare in this era of combat was self-evident.

Whether in conventional battles on the ground or fleet battles in space, electronic warfare was an incredibly important part of any engagement.

Therefore, whether it was the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire, or even the perpetually neutral Commercial Alliance that focused on trade, no effort was spared in developing their military’s electronic warfare capabilities.

Aside from conventional methods like electronic reconnaissance and countermeasures, electronic warfare viruses with adaptive and independent offensive capabilities were among the most active electronic warfare tools currently in use.

Given the extremely aggressive and dangerous nature of these viruses, all parties had imposed controls on them on par with those for thermonuclear weapons.

In the Federation, for example, the commonly used G-series and T-series electronic warfare viruses were strictly sealed away and absolutely forbidden from being leaked.

Moreover, to prevent samples of these electronic warfare viruses from being captured by hostile forces, who might then find ways to defend against or even crack them based on their compilation characteristics, these military-grade viruses were equipped with self-destruct capabilities.

Once they completed their attack command or detected an abnormal environment, these viruses, possessing a certain degree of intelligence, would immediately destroy themselves, not leaving behind so much as a single byte.

It was precisely because of the strict precautions taken by the world’s militaries that civilian armed forces had no decent electronic warfare viruses to speak of.

Some private companies had also developed electronic warfare viruses, but they were useless against military vessels and equipment.

The electronic warfare virus protection on warships, in particular, was something no civilian force could overcome.

Over time, electronic warfare had slowly become a forgotten aspect of combat among civilian armed forces.

Even when the occasional commander did employ it, they were limited to basic tactics like electronic deception and countermeasures.

So, as Amber piloted the Experimental Type MK1, rampaging between the warships of the two warring factions, not a single ship noticed that he was quietly implanting them with electronic warfare viruses.

On the large backpack mounted to the side of the Experimental Type MK1’s main thruster array, a set of electronic warfare antennae had already deployed.

Lilith, a being more dangerous than any military-grade electronic warfare virus, was extending her “tentacles” into the surrounding warships through this set of antennae.

And Amber, with his reckless rampage across the battlefield and his incredibly flamboyant unit paint job, had captured almost everyone’s attention.

Even the HCP pilots in pursuit of Amber felt a faint flicker of envy in their hearts.

After all, who didn’t want to be like him, a lone warrior worth a thousand, “touring” the enemy lines as if it were an无人之地.

But they seemed to have forgotten that Amber was merely the first punch thrown in Atlas’s attack.

Only when a dense barrage of firepower “fell” from the zenith, swiftly sinking one destroyer from each side, did they finally realize that this fleet that had appeared out of nowhere was not reinforcements for either side.

It was a true third party.

At that moment, a terrifying thought surfaced in the minds of both fleet commanders simultaneously.

“Were we fighting the wrong enemy?”

But the battlefield, changing with every passing second, left them no time to think.

As the first volley from the Atlas warships concluded, two HCP squadrons descended like brilliant comets, trailing long plumes of light.

In the eyes of a pilot in a reconnaissance-type Zealot, his teammates were like wolves pouncing into a flock of sheep, crashing into the hastily formed defensive line of enemy HCPs.

Since most of the enemy HCP pilots’ attention had just been drawn away by Amber, by the time they repositioned to the fleet’s upper hemisphere and spread out into their standard defensive formation to provide crossfire, Atlas’s HCPs were already upon them.

At this moment, the Atlas pilots finally understood the value of the grueling training Amber had put them through in the asteroid belt.

No two asteroid belts in the world were identical, but the skills for fighting within them were universal.

These techniques, distilled by video game players and ACEs who would emerge in the “future,” were taught to the Atlas pilots by Amber without reservation.

During the training, he was so meticulous that he might as well have been chewing up the techniques and feeding them to them.

Even the dullest pilot could grasp a thing or two from “Amber’s Masterclass.”

So, at this moment, the Atlas pilots moved nimbly through this dense field of asteroid debris, as familiar with it as if they were in their own homes.

Using the variously sized debris for cover, they flickered in and out of the enemy HCPs’ fire-control targeting boxes on their panoramic displays, constantly changing position.

A Dragon Knight from one of the Timler family’s destroyer HCP squadrons was firing relentlessly with its electromagnetic rifle and the heavy electromagnetic cannon and charged particle cannon on its back-mounted weapon rack.

Inside the cockpit, the fear on this Timler family HCP pilot’s face was clearly visible through the transparent visor of his helmet.

His pupils were dilated with tension, the rhythm of his diaphragmatic breathing was in complete disarray, and he was taking constant deep breaths.

Although the heavy hydraulic pressure suit’s temperature regulation system was working at full capacity, sweat still beaded on his forehead and trickled down his cheeks.

The pilot watched helplessly as an Atlas HCP, already locked by his fire-control system, dodged behind a piece of asteroid debris the instant his charged particle beam swept across its position.

“Fuck! Bastard!”

As the Timler family pilot cursed, the blue beam shattered the small piece of debris, sending fragments flying. The moment “Lock Lost” flashed on his panoramic display, the enemy HCP shot out from behind the asteroid again.

It continued to maneuver with ease in the complex environment of the asteroid belt, elegantly evading his attacks as if in a dance.

“Dammit! Just hit him!”

The Timler family pilot’s eyes had become frantic. He fired wildly, blue beams and the orange trails of high-velocity penetrators sweeping across the area.

It wasn’t until the Combat assistance AI reported, “Superconducting battery stack energy has dropped to a critical level. Recharging,” that he realized what a foolish mistake he had made.

Unfortunately, in the heat of battle, there was no time for him to regret his error.

Because that ghost-like HCP had, at some point, circled around to his rear hemisphere.

A series of high-velocity penetrators shredded the thruster array on its back, and the Dragon Knight ceased all movement as its energy circuits failed.

But the Atlas pilots, under Amber’s constant “brainwashing,” had long since developed the good habit of delivering a finishing blow.

Even though the Dragon Knight had already stopped moving, the Atlas pilot didn’t hesitate to grant it one last shot from his heavy electromagnetic cannon.

The anti-HCP warhead, propelled by immense kinetic energy, exploded on impact, blowing the Dragon Knight’s torso into a shower of parts.

Watching as human tissue floated out from the wreckage, rapidly turning into “popsicles” in the cold of space, the Atlas HCP, having confirmed the kill, once again shot away, trailing a plume of light.

Scenes like this played out repeatedly across the combat zone. The Atlas pilots, who had studied in Amber’s “masterclass,” efficiently turned one enemy HCP after another into exploding balls of plasma.

The desperate cries of enemy pilots before their deaths echoed across the battlefield through the communication channels.

However, this did nothing to stop the Atlas HCP attack squadrons from sweeping across the battlefield like the Grim Reaper’s scythe.

At the same time, Lilith, having completed her infiltration of the target vessels, mercilessly activated all her electronic warfare viruses.

Aboard every surviving enemy warship on the battlefield, the shipboard control AI’s alarm blared simultaneously.

“Warning, electronic warfare virus detected. Initiating countermeasures.”

And at the same moment they issued the warning, they found themselves locked in a struggle against Lilith’s custom-designed electronic warfare viruses.

To prevent these never-before-seen, entirely new viruses from infecting the entire ship, the shipboard control AIs had no choice but to reallocate their computing power to erect a firewall in virtual space.

In doing so, they lost their ability to monitor the ship’s various subsystems. Even the gunnery crews lost their AI-assisted targeting corrections under the high-pressure situation.

Unfortunately, neither the shipboard control AIs fighting the viruses, nor the captains and fleet commanders, knew that this resistance was futile.

Even if the shipboard control AIs concentrated all their computing power, they were only buying a little more time.

“Report! A command has been received from the Boss’s personal machine! It has been sent to the captain’s chair!”

Just as the Atlas fleet was closing the distance, about to commence its second salvo, the flagship, The Hermes, received a message from Amber.

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice, Cleves immediately opened the new message that popped up on his virtual screen.

“Press the assault before they fully realize what’s happening!!!

The original operational plan remains unchanged!

Have the HCP squadrons take out the last two frigates.

Our warships will prioritize focusing fire on their remaining destroyers to neutralize their ability to retaliate.

Once we close the distance, deploy the heavy assault pods and armored assault boats en masse to board the enemy light cruisers!

Tell everyone, especially the marines, that the pre-battle bonus plan is still in effect. The bonus for capturing a light cruiser is doubled!”

After reading the message, Cleves’s perception of his boss deepened.

The man was dancing on the front lines and still had time to issue orders.

“This person is terrifying.”

Of course, despite his awe, Cleves carried out Amber’s orders without question.

Soon, the latest battle commands were swiftly relayed through the five warships’ communication systems.

Compared to Amber sending the orders directly, it was clearly more appropriate for the higher-powered warship-grade communication units to handle the task.

The entire fleet’s lights flickered out for a moment, and the hulls shuddered before the Atlas fleet’s second salvo was complete.

This round included not only the main cannons of the five warships, but also another five-shot burst from the heavy electromagnetic cannons of the two Dragoon-class destroyers, which had more ample energy supplies.

A few seconds later, a series of flashes erupted in the distance, followed by two massive blue-white fireballs that lit up this patch of space.

This indicated that the salvo had taken out two more enemy destroyers.

Since the two warring factions in the distance were still entangled in their own fight and hadn’t fully reacted, their ships’ top decks were still facing the direction of the Atlas fleet’s attack.

Without the protection of deflector shields, a warship’s armor could only withstand weapons like charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers.

Even the wealthiest militaries and shipyards had to consider costs when designing their vessels.

A ship with 360-degree, all-aspect defense was called a battle fortress.

And even a battle fortress couldn’t extend its deflector shields to cover its plasma thruster arrays.

That’s why designers stacked almost all the defenses onto the bow, the “engagement face” of the ship.

From this angle, the warship’s profile was also smaller.

Under these circumstances, facing the nearly vertical strikes of heavy penetrators from the heavy electromagnetic cannons and fire from the warships’ main guns, the top armor stood no chance. After all, it was never designed to take direct cannon fire.

“We’ve been played.”

On the bridge of the Financial Freedom, Antonio’s face was grim.

Even the slowest person would have realized this after being attacked by a sudden third party, especially one that was attacking both sides of the current conflict.

“It’s too late,” Raven, standing beside him, said suddenly.

“What?”

“I said we realized it too late. Or rather, our opponent was incredibly patient, waiting until now to make their move.”

Listening to Raven, Antonio fell silent as he watched the five approaching destroyers on the holographic projection platform.

The fleet’s reconnaissance units had already identified the models of these warships. Although they were a mix of ships from the Empire and the Federation, they were at least current-generation models.

This was unlike his fleet and the Timler family’s, which included many older generation ships.

In particular, the two Dragoon-class destroyers, marked as high-threat purple targets, already outclassed every ship on the field in terms of firepower, except for the light cruisers.

“It’s not time to give up just yet,” Antonio said, taking stock of his remaining combat-capable units.

“This light cruiser beneath our feet is our greatest chance for a comeback.”

But before he could finish his sentence, the bridge of the Financial Freedom was suddenly plunged into darkness.

All the lights and screens went out, leaving only the faint glow of the emergency lights.

This meant only one thing: the entire ship had been paralyzed by an electronic warfare virus.

“How is this possible?!”

Aboard the Timler’s Glory, which had also been plunged into darkness, the family’s fleet commander, Ron Schneider, was also stunned.

But when he saw the crew on the bridge and in the CIC looking at him by the faint emergency light, he forced himself to calm down.

“The shipboard control AI has likely been compromised. Remove the core and physically isolate it!

Attempt to switch to the backup system, activate the backup power supply, and switch all ship subsystems to manual operation mode!

Relay this order! All surviving warships are to do the same!”

“But… Sir. Our internal and external communications have been cut,” the Communications specialist said, his voice lacking confidence.

“Then what are you still sitting here for? Run and notify each compartment! As for the other warships… try using light signals. I don’t know if they’ll be able to translate them in time.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Just as the CIC crew, with the ship’s electronic equipment temporarily disabled, were preparing to physically run to each compartment to deliver the orders, the main screens on the bridges of all surviving warships lit up simultaneously.

A text message appeared on the screens.

White text on a black background, it was exceptionally conspicuous in the dim environment.

“Greetings, friends. We regret interrupting your battle.

Your engagement is taking place within our company’s exclusive mining zone, and your conflict has severely impacted the safety of our mining operations.

Furthermore, your battle has caused severe damage to the mining environment of this asteroid belt, which has greatly affected our company’s mining progress for this quarter.

Based on the two points above, our company will be taking compulsory measures against all units in the engagement zone. We hope you will cease resistance and not engage in a pointless struggle.”

After reading the message and seeing “Atlas Public Relations Department” signed at the end, the fleet commanders on both flagships laughed out of sheer anger.

But before they could laugh for long, they heard several dull “thuds” coming from other parts of the ship, followed by a series of crackling explosions.

The more experienced crew members on the ship immediately recognized the sound of heavy assault pods punching through the outer armor plates and using shrapnel grenades to clear the impact area.

They were being boarded.

However, for the crews of the Timler family’s two light cruisers, this wasn’t the first time they had been boarded in this battle.

Because they were a primary target, the two light cruisers had already been slammed by several of the combined fleet’s assault pods.

When the entire ship was taken down by the electronic warfare virus, the ship’s defensive forces were still in a fierce fight with the enemy boarding marines.

“Well, this is perfect. Now we can watch the dogs fight,” some of the more laid-back veteran crewmen thought, a comical idea popping into their heads at such a critical moment.

Unfortunately for them, the performance of the Atlas marines was destined to be a “disappointment.”

“Go, go, go!”

“Montai! Keep them pinned down!”

Muzzle flashes and tracers stitched lines of light through the dim ship corridors.

Tairak pulled the heavy shield from the hardpoint on his shoulder to his front, observing the enemy’s position through the shield’s infrared imaging window.

With one arm, he fired a weapon a size larger than any human firearm.

His powerful arm muscles, augmented by the exoskeleton, allowed him to easily control the weapon’s recoil with just one hand, even though the fully automatic shotgun didn’t require much precision at close range.

Behind him, Montai was laying down suppressive fire with an electromagnetic machine gun.

Since this was their first real boarding action, and the tactical objective was to secure the enemy ship as quickly as possible, the Romu marines had not brought cold weapons for a “traditional boarding” melee.

Instead, they went straight for heavy firepower.

The “Raging Crocodile A1” combat exoskeletons they wore, meticulously designed by Eugene, not only maximized protection but also had electromagnetic adhesion functions built into the feet.

In an emergency where the ship’s hull was breached, this would allow the marines to firmly anchor themselves to the corridor floors, preventing them from being blown out by escaping air.

Floating around them were corpses, also clad in exoskeletons.

Judging by the insignia, they were Aura Security mercenaries and Mary Bay Industries armed personnel.

After boarding, it didn’t take the Romu long to eliminate these enemies, who were caught between a rock and a hard place.

Then, using their superior firepower, they pinned down the ship’s own defending marines behind mobile shields and cover.

This scene was unfolding simultaneously on all three light cruisers on the battlefield.

Their formidable physiques, extensive tactical training, and excellent equipment made the Romu’s assault within the ships brutally efficient.

Although the people on the bridges couldn’t get a timely update on the fighting inside the ship with the electronic systems down, the ever-nearing sound of gunfire and screams told them their own defensive forces probably wouldn’t last much longer.

While the Atlas marines launched their assault inside the ships, the HCP attack squadrons outside weren’t idle either.

With the enemy HCPs being disabled one by one by the electronic warfare virus, the battle’s outcome was no longer in doubt.

These HCP squadron pilots, once captured by Murat and Louis, were now doing the same job their squadron leader had done back then—using carbon fiber cables to pull back enemy HCPs that were about to drift out of the battlefield, one by one.

At this moment, the asteroid belt that had just been a chaotic mess of fighting became incredibly quiet.

Under Lilith’s unreasonably powerful, wide-area electronic warfare virus attack, all enemy units on the battlefield were trapped in a forced system shutdown.

The point-defense fire, jointly commanded by anti-air commanders and adaptive fire-control systems, had long fallen silent.

The battle seemed to have entered the clean-up phase, waiting for Atlas’s combat units to sweep the field.

“Master! I’ve detected an anomalous electromagnetic signal!”

As Amber piloted the Experimental Type MK1 on a patrol circuit around the battlefield, Lilith’s serious, slightly puzzled voice sounded in his ear.

“What’s the location?”

“I couldn’t get a precise location. The signal just appeared for a moment and then vanished. If the Asteroid Base’s electromagnetic wave detection array hadn’t been put into operation recently, I might have missed it.”

Lilith’s words made Amber frown. At this critical juncture, a sudden electromagnetic signal was not a good sign.

“A general location is fine. I’ll head over and take a look myself. The Experimental Type MK1 is built for long-distance high-speed travel anyway.”

“Understood, Master! The general direction has been synced to the unit’s navigation system. The straight-line distance should be around twenty to thirty thousand kilometers!”

“Got it. Send a warning to the fleet and tell them to remain on high alert.”

After saying this, Amber pressed his body tightly against the specialized pilot’s seat as several restraints extended from behind to secure him firmly in place.

Immediately after, the Experimental Type MK1’s main thruster array and the two auxiliary propulsion units on its legs unfolded once more, revealing even more thrusters.

The Atlas combat units on alert only saw their boss’s personal machine suddenly streak away, leaving an incredibly exaggerated trail, and then rapidly shrink into a distant point of light at an unbelievable speed.

Chapter 224: The Unknown Observer

In the cold of space, Amber was completely focused, piloting the Experimental Type MK1 at high speed toward the area Lilith had designated.

The main thruster array, mounted flush against the back of the cockpit, emitted a steady, low-frequency tremor.

To Amber, sitting in this cramped cockpit and listening to this familiar noise was the only thing that could grant him, a ‘visitor’ who did not belong to this world, a moment of peace.

The additional thruster units, which the Maintenance Team Lead, Eugene, and Orns had cobbled together, were showing no heart-stopping malfunctions either.

Seeing the various parameters on the multi-function display remain stable, Amber glanced at the ‘throttle’ to his left.

Because the Air Force had been involved when HCPs were first militarized, many components in the cockpit retained the nomenclature used in atmospheric and aerospace fighters.

To help pilots adapt more quickly to operating an HCP, the functions of these controls were also nearly identical to their ‘counterparts’ on fighter jets.

After once again confirming that all parameters were normal, Amber revealed a smile that no one could see.

He took a slow breath to prepare himself, then placed his left hand on the throttle and gently pushed it forward.

Past ‘high-speed cruise,’ he moved it to a gear labeled ‘test (warning).’

The two additional thruster units on the Experimental Type MK1’s legs, which had already been adjusted to a parallel position with the main thruster array, now erupted with an even more dazzling blue light.

As the blue-white contrail stretched out behind it, the relative velocity on the cockpit’s multi-function display skyrocketed.

“Hoo… hoo… ha… ha… hahahahahaha!”

As he grew accustomed to the intense G-force, Amber let out a burst of exuberant laughter.

No man who loved ‘giant robots’ could remain calm in a moment like this.

And for an avid enthusiast like Amber, this was even more true.

The airspace around the unit at this moment was not vast and open, but filled with countless cold, silent observers—this was a dense and intricate asteroid belt.

How could this asteroid belt, stretching for astronomical distances and famous in the game as a ‘resource-rich zone,’ be so easily traversed?

In this dangerous asteroid belt, Amber performed a solitary show for the universe, demonstrating his extraordinary piloting skills and his deep understanding of the Experimental Type MK1’s performance limits.

This confidence came from his deep involvement in the unit’s development process, both as the one who proposed the requirements and as its ‘test pilot.’

The red paint of the Experimental Type MK1 reflected a cold, metallic sheen under the light of a distant star.

The close-in defense laser arrays on either side of the head’s main monitor flickered at high frequency, guided by the navigation, detection, and fire-control systems that Lilith had taken over, and constantly powered by the energy recharge system.

Each flicker represented a beam of light precisely slicing through debris that might endanger its course.

Under the impact of the high-energy lasers, the debris instantly shattered and vaporized, transforming from a potential safety hazard into a cloud of cosmic dust in a split second.

Every time the Experimental Type MK1 skimmed past a massive asteroid as if flying nap-of-the-earth, Amber would watch through the panoramic display.

The pockmarked surface, covered in craters from meteorite impacts, seemed only a stone’s throw away from the cockpit. The unique, icy aura of deep-space asteroids washed over him, even through his sealed helmet.

Amber calmly adjusted the unit’s orientation and flight path. Every time he brushed past one of these ‘behemoths,’ Lilith, who was observing quietly, broke into a cold sweat.

But she knew her Master was following the shortest path provided by the navigation system.

As the Experimental Type MK1 flew past the last large asteroid in the vicinity and entered a relatively safe patch of space, Lilith, who had been holding back for a long time, couldn’t help but speak.

“Master, since you took me from the lab, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you this happy.”

Lilith’s virtual avatar appeared in the cockpit, still in the ‘JK uniform skin’ that Amber liked most.

“Although my knowledge of psychology isn’t extensive, and I’ve only read a few thousand related books during this time, I can still see some issues with you, Master.”

“A few thousand… all right, what issues?”

“I don’t know why, but I always feel like you don’t quite fit in with this universe, like you’re an ‘outsider.’ At the same time, you seem to be under a lot of pressure. Even though you’re always telling Randall and the others those weird things about ‘clubs and models,’ you never seem to have truly relaxed.”

Lilith’s voice was serious in a way Amber had never heard before.

In that instant, Amber realized that the strong AI’s ‘emotional partition’ had perhaps completed another iteration.

“It wasn’t until just now, as you tore recklessly through this asteroid belt, that I sensed your genuine, heartfelt joy.”

“How happy?” Amber asked, keeping the unit on the virtual flight path line displayed on the screen.

“Happier than when you’re fooling around with Lady Isabelle, and happier than when you’re doing bad things with me in virtual space.”

“…”

Seeing Lilith cover her face with her hands in a shy gesture, Amber, who had just been hit square in the face by her bluntness, was left completely speechless.

“Seriously, Lilith, if it weren’t for that last sentence, I might have been moved to tears.”

“Really? Master~”

“No.”

Of course, Amber was lying.

He had to admit, Lilith had a point.

In a way, the only one in this world who could truly understand his thoughts for now was this strong AI that was ‘symbiotically’ linked with him.

The brief heart-to-heart between ‘master and servant’ was ultimately interrupted by a short burst from the alarm system.

It signified that Amber had flown past the halfway point and could begin preparing to scan the area.

The modifications to the Experimental Type MK1 were specifically aimed at pushing the limits of an HCP’s long-range travel and acceleration performance.

And now, it was certainly proving its worth.

The moment Lilith told him she had discovered an abnormal electromagnetic signal, Amber had charged toward this region without a second’s hesitation.

He trusted Lilith’s judgment.

After all, she was a strong AI, not a human.

She didn’t have so-called ‘feelings.’

If Lilith detected an abnormal electromagnetic signal, it meant she had genuinely discovered that signal through the Asteroid Base’s sensor arrays.

Although the mysterious signal had now vanished, Amber knew that electromagnetic signals couldn’t just appear out of thin air.

The fact that it had bypassed the Asteroid Base’s sensor array filters further indicated that this signal was not just random noise.

Therefore, something that emitted a signal had to exist in this area, no matter what.

And from the current situation, it was highly likely that this unknown unit also possessed stealth capabilities.

But regardless, Amber believed that as long as he kept closing the distance, he would definitely find this mysterious unit.

Because in the vision he and the Maintenance Team Lead had, the Experimental Type MK1 was a long-range, heavy-firepower assault unit.

To put it plainly, Amber had developed it based on the ‘Deep Strike’ concept.

Red paint, Deep Strike.

Apart from not being able to do a flying kick, what a perfect combination.

Although it was still just a prototype and not even equipped with any game-changing weapons, Amber believed that by continuously accumulating combat data and making adjustments, he could eventually develop a ‘phantom unit’ suited for this universe.

And as a long-range strike unit, Amber and the others had wracked their brains to enhance its sensor suite.

In the end, it was Orns, who had ‘seen the light,’ who brought out a piece of technology still in the experimental phase at Mary Bay Industries—a new sensor unit with warship-grade detection capabilities, yet small enough to be mounted on a large HCP.

That was why Amber was confident he could find this hidden fellow.

In the target airspace within the asteroid belt designated by Lilith.

A two-seater reconnaissance boat with its optical camouflage engaged was lurking silently.

On the EWAC (Early Warning and Control) pack mounted on the rear half of its hull, ten 200-meter-long nanotube cables had been deployed, forming a temporary reconnaissance array with the reconnaissance probes at their ends.

In this state, the reconnaissance boat could perform long-range, high-precision battlefield intelligence detection and collection in the area directly ahead of its orientation.

Inside the reconnaissance boat’s tandem two-seater cockpit, the pilot in the front seat was watching the omni-directional warning system’s interface, occasionally looking up to scan the dark space around them—though this visual observation was merely an act to reassure himself.

Meanwhile, the Electronic Warfare Officer in the back seat was fully concentrated on the tactical control interface before him.

Battlefield information collected by the EWAC pack was constantly being updated on the screen.

“The sounds of engagement have basically died down. Looks like the battle is in its final stages. Heh, the Timler family and that Federation company fleet really couldn’t take a punch.”

“Does that mean we can get ready to pull out?”

Ignoring his partner’s ‘sharp commentary’ in the latter half of the sentence, the pilot asked back as he rolled his neck, then raised his hands to give a very cramped stretch in the small cockpit.

“Pretty much. I’m going to switch modes for one more scan, and then we’ll bug out.”

“Are you sure about that? Don’t screw this up for me at the last second.”

“Relax. I’ve done this procedure I don’t know how many times. Even if we’re detected, it’ll just be a momentary signal that the radar controllers will almost certainly ignore.”

Although his partner’s words were meant to be reassuring, the reconnaissance boat’s pilot silently placed his hands back on the control stick.

“Why do you think the higher-ups suddenly wanted us to collect intel on this battle?”

“Who knows? The Captain came to us with the orders directly. That’s pretty rare.”

“Mmm-hmm~”

The Electronic Warfare Officer skillfully manipulated the screen and the surrounding physical light buttons, continuing, “Before we set out, I heard from the squad leader that the Captain was also ordered directly from above. The order even bypassed the Fleet Commander.”

“Sigh, we can’t possibly guess what these big shots are thinking. Let’s not overthink it. Let’s just finish the mission and get out of here. I don’t know why, but I’ve got a creepy feeling.”

“What, feeling weak? Have you been ‘generating your own power’ too much while stuck on the ship lately?”

“Screw you…” the pilot chuckled and cursed.

He was about to say something more when he suddenly heard a panicked voice from behind him.

“Shit… is it possible? I think we’ve been spotted?!”

At those words, the pilot, who had been feeling a bit drowsy, was instantly wide awake.

He looked at the situational awareness interface on his screen. His partner in the back seat had already shared the information; a red dot was charging toward their area at an extremely high speed.

“What the hell is that speed?” the Electronic Warfare Officer was still exclaiming.

“Are you sure that thing is coming for us? An HCP?”

“The maneuvering characteristics look like an HCP, but this speed is just ridiculous… Anyway, the projected trajectory is heading this way. They probably detected our last scan.”

As he spoke, the Electronic Warfare Officer had already begun to retract the deployed sensor array on the EWAC pack.

“This doesn’t feel good…”

The Electronic Warfare Officer looked up at the nanotube cables that were in the process of being retracted and shook his head.

“I told the maintenance team ages ago to report the slow retraction problem with the EWAC pack to the manufacturer, but we never got a response! Those sons of bitches noble capitalists.”

The Electronic Warfare Officer muttered curses to himself, then opened a new interface on his screen.

“I’m activating the backup plan. At least we have to get the intel from this recon mission back.”

The pilot in the front seat didn’t speak, but their years of working together told the Electronic Warfare Officer that his partner was prepared for the worst.

He tapped the screen a few times, and soon a progress bar appeared and started to fill.

“Alright, it’s being encrypted and packaged. It’ll be ready to send in a moment.”

“I don’t think we have ‘a moment.’ It’s already within attack range. If it’s an HCP, it’ll probably use its heavy particle cannon in diffusion mode to flush us out.”

“You think this thing we’re sitting in can handle even the diffusion mode?”

“Exactly. Which is why I’m getting us out of here.”

As the pilot’s voice came from the front, the Electronic Warfare Officer felt the reconnaissance boat execute a 180-degree somersault.

A sudden, intense G-force pinned him to his seat, temporarily preventing him from operating anything.

He looked at the schematic on his screen showing the reconnaissance boat’s modules. The EWAC pack module was flashing red. With great difficulty, he reached out and pressed a physical button.

Thump!

With a faint explosive sound, the reconnaissance probes, which had not been fully retracted and were being dragged behind the boat, were jettisoned.

At the same time, the progress bar on the screen reached its end.

The Electronic Warfare Officer, who was gradually adapting to the positive G-force, hit the send key without hesitation.

An invisible electronic signal was immediately transmitted into the depths of space.

The Electronic Warfare Officer, who already anticipated what was coming, wanted to quickly say one last thing to his partner.

A fatal beam of blue charged particles tore through the dark expanse of space, simultaneously ripping the virtually unarmored reconnaissance boat to shreds.

Watching the explosion of light within the targeting box, Amber retracted the charged particle cannon, his face under the helmet’s visor completely expressionless.

Chapter 225: Negotiations? What Are They Thinking?

Amber had to admit, he truly hadn’t expected this battlefield to attract other spectators.

After all, for both the Timler family and Mary Bay Industries, the reason for this battle was hardly a glorious one.

So when the Experimental Type MK1’s sensor units pinpointed the target’s approximate location, Amber had originally intended to deploy the heavy particle cannon in diffusion mode for a sweep to see what kind of thing was hiding there, ‘peeping’.

It turned out the other party was more impatient than he had imagined.

However, when Amber saw the reconnaissance boat that had deactivated its optical camouflage and was making a run for it, a sense of foreboding washed over him.

A reconnaissance boat equipped with optical camouflage and a standard EWAC pack was not something any civilian militia could get its hands on.

These expensive pieces of equipment were only issued to the long-range scout ships of a naval fleet.

If a long-range scout ship was a fleet’s forward ‘eyes’…

Then a reconnaissance boat, capable of close-range scouting in high-risk situations, was the long-range scout ship’s forward ‘eyes’.

In other words, the reconnaissance boat that had appeared in this sector was either from the Federation Navy or the Imperial Royal Navy.

Neither was good news for Amber.

So he prepared to intercept the reconnaissance boat to figure out what was going on.

But because the other party was in complete silent running…

When Amber wanted Lilith to hack it, she found she had no way in.

By the time the unit’s Electronic Warfare module detected signs of the boat transmitting a message, it was already too late to intercept it.

With no time to think, Amber deployed the charged particle cannon from the weapon racks and fired a sweeping blast.

Although the Experimental Type MK1 successfully performed to its design specifications, hitting the fifteen-meter-long reconnaissance boat with the charged particle cannon from a distance of five thousand kilometers.

Lilith still detected signs that the other party had successfully transmitted its message at the last moment.

The Experimental Type MK1 gradually decelerated to a complete stop. Amber stared coldly at this sector of space, which now held a secret.

The wreckage of the reconnaissance boat had been scattered by the explosion to who knows where, making it impossible to verify its allegiance now.

And tracing the electronic signal was out of the question.

But Amber knew that the signal had most likely been sent back to the reconnaissance boat’s parent long-range scout ship.

Suddenly, Amber felt as if he had sensed something in the vastness of space.

He looked up into the cosmic depths, his gaze seemingly traversing an unknown distance, until he saw the image of a long-range scout ship entering warp.

“They’ve already retreated?”

Amber quickly realized that his erratic psionic senses were at play.

This was the first time he had used such an ability since transmigrating into this world and becoming a psionic user.

“This must be a sign of advancing to level five.”

After confirming once more that there were no other targets of value in this sector, Amber adjusted the unit’s attitude, set the throttle to ‘high-speed cruise’ mode, and headed in the direction of the Atlas fleet.

This little episode and its outcome were, for him, a mixed bag.

The ‘good’ was that this body’s psionic aptitude, perhaps due to the fusion of two souls, was better than he’d imagined—or rather, outrageously good.

It had only been half a year since he’d reached level four, and already there were signs of an impending advancement to level-five Psionic strength.

Although he had only just reached the threshold and was still far from a true breakthrough, it still gave Amber a glimmer of hope.

The ‘bad’ was the sudden appearance of this unidentified observer.

They fled the moment they were discovered and were even willing to die to get their message out.

That, combined with the mil-spec reconnaissance boat that only the military would be equipped with, and the long-range scout ship that had already warped away, was enough to put Amber on high alert.

If it were some civilian factions that had their eyes on him, Amber wouldn’t be too worried; in fact, he would welcome them to come and serve themselves up on a platter.

But being targeted by what appeared to be a regular military force was not something to be happy about.

After all, Atlas was still an infant in a cradle.

While it might be able to smack a few ill-intentioned children with its baby bottle, it would have a hard time resisting a strong adult.

“Lilith, we have a new job.”

“Your command, Master~”

Seemingly sensing Amber’s bad mood, Lilith, for once, didn’t try to be clever when receiving her assignment.

“For the time being, try to infiltrate the internal networks of the Federation and the Empire. See if you can get any useful information. Do whatever you can to find the identity of this behind-the-scenes observer, even the slightest clue will do.”

“As you command, Master!”

The ▇▇▇▇ Fleet, ▇▇▇ Reconnaissance Detachment, Long-Range Scout Ship No. ▇▇▇▇.

After entering warp, the scout ship had stood down from its state of readiness.

This long-range warp jump would take it directly back to the safety of sector ▇▇▇.

The First Officer, after signaling the Captain, floated away from the bridge.

He needed to find the ship’s administrative department and have them prepare the paperwork for the report on the ‘two soldiers killed in action’.

This report had to be ready before the ship returned to port.

As this was a covert operation, the official report released to the public would have to use a reason like ‘died during training’.

The clerks in the administrative department were naturally aware of such things.

But to ensure they didn’t make any mistakes, the First Officer decided to go and supervise them personally.

The Captain, sitting in the captain’s chair, opened the encrypted file sent back by the reconnaissance boat’s crew before their deaths.

After decryption and translation by specialized equipment, the shipboard control AI compiled the intelligence into a report and presented it to the Captain.

“The Timler family and that Federation company’s fleet were played pretty hard.”

“And this new type of HCP assault unit with high speed and long-range detection capabilities?”

“Which means this obscure little company at least possesses HCP development capabilities, along with cognitive and information warfare capabilities of unknown depth.”

“No wonder that Sir gave this urgent mission directly. This ‘Atlas’ is indeed something else.”

The captain pondered for a moment after reading the report, then looked up at the holographic form of the shipboard control AI standing to his right.

Like most captains, the commander of this long-range scout ship had set the shipboard control AI’s avatar to be that of an intelligent beauty in a naval uniform.

“Yulika, take temporary command of the ship. Notify me when we’re about to exit warp.”

“By your will, Captain James.”

James nodded, then released the safety locks on his chair and floated towards the captain’s quarters.

He needed to use this time to perfect the report.

He also needed to have his captain’s uniform cleaned again.

After all, upon returning to port, he would have an audience with that Sir.

When Amber returned to the battle-scarred sector in the Experimental Type MK1, the Atlas fleet had already suppressed the surviving enemy warships.

During this time, Allenita had been continuously sending Romu to the Tower of Babel training center and had even dispatched an extra batch of personnel to help Amber and his team coordinate the training.

The output rate of marines had increased significantly, as if a ‘double-speed module’ had been installed.

Finally, a week before this battle, the number of Atlas’s Romu marines had reached three hundred.

Now, the marines, who had originally been distributed among the five destroyers, had all boarded the surviving warships via heavy assault pods or assault boats in a boarding action and had taken control of the vessels.

In fact, by the time they had dealt with the internal defense forces and fought their way to the bridge, the captains of these warships had all chosen to open the blast doors and surrender.

With defeat a foregone conclusion, there was no need to sacrifice any more lives.

The control personality cores of these warships had been removed and sealed, waiting for Lilith’s ‘brainwashing’ at a later date.

In their place were a hastily produced batch of pseudo-shipboard control AIs.

These little gadgets, which Lilith had whipped up casually, were essentially just highly intelligent programs.

Their only purpose was to allow the ships to perform basic navigation with a minimal crew on duty.

At this moment, the crews of these warships had been broken up into different groups and were under centralized control.

The only exception was the damage control personnel.

Under the watchful eyes of the marines, they were patching up damage that affected the ships’ ability to travel.

The fleet commanders and high-ranking officers from both sides were being held together in the brig of the Hermes.

After returning to the ship, Amber wasn’t in a hurry to see these people.

Instead, he first found the Maintenance Team Lead and the others, shared his firsthand ‘driving experience’ of the Experimental Type MK1, and told them to carefully secure the test data stored in the unit’s onboard computer.

“Amber, one of the high-value prisoners claims to be the Head of the Timler family. He’s demanding to negotiate with someone of equal status.”

Just as Amber was discussing matters with the Maintenance Team Lead, Isabelle floated over from the hangar entrance.

“Negotiations?”

Amber laughed out loud when he heard the request.

“Does he know what the situation is right now?”

Seeing Isabelle’s equally speechless expression, Amber shook his head with amusement and continued to ask:

“Is this guy really the Head of the Timler family?”

“I’ve already had the intelligence analysis team verify his identity.”

Isabelle pulled Amber aside and stole a light kiss on his cheek.

“But from the man’s demeanor and speech patterns, I don’t think he’s lying.”

“Fine~ let’s go meet this fellow then.”

There was obviously no need to prepare for a meeting with a prisoner.

Without even taking off the inner lining of his heavy hydraulic pressure suit, Amber went with Isabelle to the brig where these high-value prisoners were being held.

Under the watch of several marines in exoskeletons holding long-handled stun batons, these ‘enemies’ who had just been fighting each other were now awkwardly staring at one another.

When they saw Amber enter the room accompanied by Isabelle, and saw the Romu guards salute him, they immediately realized that the man in charge had arrived.

The hot-tempered Antonio shot to his feet, glaring at Amber.

“You must be the Boss of Atlas, right? Starting such an unnecessary battle, causing so many deaths… don’t you think you’ve gone a little too far!”

Amber felt that if he wasn’t so good at keeping a poker face, he would have ended up looking like a baffled old man from some internet meme.

He raised a hand and made a pressing gesture, using his Psionics to force the short-tempered brute back into his seat, then looked around at the others.

Although the others didn’t dare to say it out loud, it was clear from their expressions that they thought along the same lines as Antonio.

“Gentlemen.”

Amber used his Psionics as he spoke.

Everyone in the brig felt the mysterious Atlas boss’s voice resonate deep within their souls.

“With all due respect, if neither of you had come here with the intent to kill, how could you have started fighting the moment you made contact?”

Chapter 226: Dirt

Amber’s question left the high-value prisoners speechless.

Because Amber wasn’t wrong. If either of their sides had truly come to this asteroid belt with the intention of negotiating, they wouldn’t have come to blows. The situation wouldn’t have escalated to this point, and they wouldn’t have been caught by the waiting Atlas, who played the Fisherman and reaped the benefits.

So, after Amber finished speaking, silence fell over the confinement cell.

Although a brute like Antonio was still unwilling to accept it, he still had his pride.

So for the moment, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything more.

But Amber had no intention of letting these prisoners off so easily. His mocking words once again echoed in the confinement cell.

“What? Has my question struck you all dumb? Weren’t you all quite talkative before I arrived?”

Amber’s gaze swept over each of them.

The psionic pressure he was now releasing completely suppressed the prisoners.

Under such circumstances, no one was willing to look up and meet his eyes.

After a long moment, Amber finally withdrew his psionic pressure. The prisoners instantly felt the weight lift, and many secretly sighed in relief.

But regardless, after this round of intimidation, they had all become much more obedient.

“Very good. It seems we can get down to business now.”

A faint smile appeared on Amber’s face as his eyes fell on Ryan Timler, who was seated upright in his chair.

“I hear someone just requested to negotiate with me. That was you, wasn’t it? The gentleman who calls himself the Head of the Timler family.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Ryan Timler’s expression didn’t change much.

He raised a hand to straighten his collar and the family crest on his chest.

With every gesture, the calm and elegant demeanor of a Star Dragon Empire noble seemed to return to him.

Though in Amber’s eyes, this so-called “noble air” was nothing more than pretentious fuss.

“Those are the only clothes you have. How long are you going to spend adjusting them?”

Amber had never been one to give face to those who opposed him, let alone those who tried to harm him.

Isabelle and the Romu marines in the room began the difficult task of holding back their laughter.

“Hmph. You crude lout. Of course, only someone like you would resort to such a lowly sneak attack on the battlefield.”

Ryan Timler remained unaffected by Amber’s words, still maintaining his so-called composure and noble air.

He looked at Amber arrogantly, cleared his throat, and continued:

“It is true that our side has lost this battle. Since you did not kill me but brought me to this ship, I will consider that you have accepted my surrender. According to the twelfth amendment of the Star Dragon Empire Basic Law for Nobility, in the chapter concerning combat and prisoners, my family’s fleet members and I have now become your captives, effectively ‘collateral’ for the Timler family’s ransom. As required by the Basic Law, you must guarantee our safety, provide the rank-and-file soldiers with accommodations and food that meet humanitarian standards, and provide officers and personnel of higher rank with accommodations and food befitting their position and status…”

Ryan Timler held his head high, clearly and articulately reciting the relevant sections of the Basic Law.

The expressions on the faces of Ron Schneider, the commander of the Timler family fleet, and other captives from the Timler family like Paul, were perfectly normal.

It was as if their family head was narrating the most ordinary of matters.

Meanwhile, the people from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security found their jaws hanging open unconsciously as they listened to Ryan Timler’s grandiloquent speech.

As citizens of the Federation, they knew little about the Star Dragon Empire.

Let alone the convoluted rules and customs among the Imperial nobility.

Antonio and his fleet’s second-in-command, Raven, exchanged a look, both seeing the shock and confusion in the other’s eyes.

On the other side, leaning against the bulkhead, Amber maintained his harmless-looking smile as he watched Ryan Timler.

As if he were watching a clown.

Soon, Ryan Timler finished his speech.

He let out a long breath, then picked up the cup suctioned to the table and took a sip of water to wet his somewhat dry throat.

In his view, having stated the preconditions, the next step was to negotiate the ransom payment.

“Finished?”

“That’s right. Next, we can discuss the ran—”

Ryan Timler’s words were cut short by Amber’s rude interruption.

“Am I a noble of the Star Dragon Empire?”

“Uh… no.”

“Then that settles it, doesn’t it?~” Amber spread his hands and continued, “I’m not even a noble, so what’s the point of you droning on and on about the Basic Law for Nobility? You so-called nobles are becoming more and more backward. Every one of you is utterly pedantic.”

Amber’s words left Ryan Timler speechless; for a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

“But don’t be nervous. We at Atlas are a legitimate company. We don’t like to get involved in all this fighting and killing, and we certainly don’t mistreat our prisoners.”

Hearing this, Antonio, who was sitting on the other side, instantly revealed a look of contempt.

You call yourselves a legitimate company? You don’t like fighting and killing?

As the hot-tempered fleet commander grumbled in his mind, Ryan Timler’s voice sounded again.

“Then what do you want?”

“It’s simple.

First, transfer the Timmler Mining Company to me. The transfer fee will be one Imperial Gold Dragon, for our mutual bookkeeping.

Second, compensate my company for its economic losses in this battle. The compensation amount is eighty million and one Imperial Gold Dragons.

Third, hand over all surviving ships and equipment from the battle to my company as material compensation.

Fulfill these three conditions, and I will immediately send people to safely return all prisoners from the Timler family to your family’s fief.”

As soon as Amber stated his demands, it wasn’t just the members of the Timler family who were stunned.

The captives from Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security were stunned as well.

They had seen some audacious demands in their time, but they had never seen one of this magnitude.

Even Isabelle was stunned for a moment. When she came to her senses, she began to debate whether she should remind Amber to pay some attention to the art of negotiation.

The first to react was the young man named Paul.

After hearing Amber’s words, his face turned purple with rage.

“Impossible! You despicable bastard, don’t think our family is an easy target!”

“Silence!”

Before Amber could speak, Ryan Timler was the first to scold him.

“This is not the time or place for you to speak.”

The Imperial noble stared fixedly at Amber, yet he managed to control his expression, hiding his fury.

“Sir, it seems you have no intention of negotiating in good faith.”

“I’ve made my terms perfectly clear. How is that not in good faith?”

“But aren’t your conditions a bit outrageous?!”

Ryan Timler’s voice rose unconsciously.

Putting aside Amber’s first and third points, just the second point alone—the eighty million Imperial Gold Dragon compensation—was enough.

This happened to be the exact amount of available funds in the Timler family’s accounts, after setting aside their working capital.

If the man had just mentioned the sum casually, Ryan Timler might have only felt angry.

But if he hadn’t said it casually, and was truly fixated on that specific amount…

The Imperial noble dared not think about it any further.

“Outrageous? If we hadn’t been prepared, I might be the one standing here saying ‘outrageous.’ I’ll repeat myself. Fulfill these three conditions, and I’ll release you immediately. If you can’t, then you’ll all stay here and mine until you die.”

There was no room for compromise in Amber’s tone.

His words made Ryan Timler’s face turn completely cold.

“Sir, I still hope you will state your demands with more consideration. The wrath of an Imperial noble is not something you can necessarily withstand—”

“Are you threatening me?”

Amber’s “business smile” vanished.

He lifted his right hand and made a grasping motion. Under the pull of an invisible psionic force, Ryan Timler was yanked into his grip, his neck caught perfectly in the web of Amber’s hand.

Only then did the prisoners in the room have a sudden realization: this mysterious man before them was also a dangerous psionic user.

Amber clutched Ryan Timler’s neck, pulling him close. He leaned in toward his ear and spoke in a voice that only the two of them could hear:

“Ryan Timler, third-generation head of the Timler family, rank of Baron. Your wife bore you two sons. The eldest died young, and the second has all the right qualities to be the family heir. It’s just a shame you discovered he’s the illegitimate child of your wife and her secret lover. And this secret lover is an Imperial Count you cannot possibly stand against.”

Amber’s whisper made Ryan Timler’s eyes widen, but the former wasn’t finished.

“Fortunately, you also have an illegitimate son—that young and impulsive Mr. Paul over there~ To outsiders, he’s the orphan of a loyal, deceased subordinate of yours. But in reality, Paul is the product of your affair with that subordinate’s wife. Lately, you’ve been considering how to get rid of your wife and that bastard son, and then find a way to make Mr. Paul here your legal heir…”

“Enough. Please, say no more…”

Ryan Timler’s tone no longer held its previous arrogance and discontent, only pleading.

He had no idea how Amber knew these things. This ‘Devil’ was like someone who had been standing by his side, witnessing everything.

If Amber had already mastered the mind-reading abilities of a high-level psionic user, he would have cried foul.

He was no ‘Devil’; all this dirt came from the secret archives of the Star Dragon Empire’s Internal Affairs Department.

Ever since Lilith’s clone—LLS943823—had packaged and transmitted all of the Internal Affairs Department’s data, a file collection named ‘Noble Dirt’ had been added to Atlas’s database.

And before today’s battle, Amber had already found all the relevant dirt on the Timler family within that collection.

It was one of those things you had to see to believe.

A minor family, whose ancestors had at most reached the rank of Viscount, had more scandalous dirt internally than the plots of any drama series.

“So, have you thought it through, Sir Baron?”

When Amber’s voice sounded by his ear again, Ryan Timler couldn’t help but shiver.

He had lost the courage to meet Amber’s eyes and lowered his head with a nod.

“Very good. Let’s consider this a friendship forged from conflict. Let me give you a piece of advice. This illegitimate son of yours is no simple character either. If you happen to run into any trouble in the future, I’d be more than willing to lend a hand…”

Amber patted Ryan Timler’s shoulder, adding one last line.

“It will be paid assistance, of course~”

Amber pushed the now wilted baron back into his chair, then looked toward the group from Mary Bay and Aura Security, who had been spectating the drama the whole time.

“This fine Baron Timler from the Empire has already agreed to my conditions. Now, it’s your turn~”

Chapter 227: The Regent Prince

Antonio and Raven were a little confused about what had just happened.

They had only watched as Amber pulled the Imperial noble aside for a few whispered words. The next thing they knew, the man who had been incredibly arrogant just a moment before had quickly succumbed to Amber’s intimidation.

Considering that Atlas had beaten up both sides in the recent battle, there was no indication they were coordinating with the Timler family.

So they ruled out the possibility that Amber and the Imperial noble were putting on an act.

This meant that the boss of Atlas had indeed used some crucial piece of information to completely shatter the Imperial noble’s composure.

At this point, Amber’s strategy of “making an example of someone” could be considered a qualified success.

Although Antonio and Raven didn’t show it overtly, Amber could still tell that their initial disdain and arrogance had vanished.

After dealing with Ryan Timler, Amber had the Timler family’s “high-value prisoners” moved to another room.

As for what Ryan Timler would tell his subordinates, that was his business.

Now, the only prisoners left in the confinement room were Antonio and Raven.

“Do you two have anything you’d like to say?”

Amber leisurely floated in front of them, casually picked up an untouched cup with a straw, and took a sip of water.

Piloting an HCP into battle was a very dehydrating job.

This was even more true in space, where the human body lost water more quickly.

“Your boss must have instructed you before you set out on what to say if you were defeated and captured, right?”

As soon as Amber spoke, the expressions on their faces changed imperceptibly.

They never would have imagined that Amber knew even this.

“Sir, you are correct.”

The task of negotiation usually fell to the overall commander, so it was Antonio who spoke first.

“Before we departed, the board of directors entrusted the President to relay their instructions.

If we were to be defeated in battle and captured by you.

Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security are both willing to negotiate with you with the utmost sincerity.”

“Meaning you two don’t have the final say, right?”

Amber’s question was direct, with no beating around the bush.

“Er… you are correct.”

“Alright then. Time? Place?”

“That can all be decided by you.”

A few days later, several human ships arrived at a Spaceport in a border star system of the Thousand Stars Empire.

These ships, bearing corporate logos on their hulls, belonged to Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security.

To prevent the other side from lashing out like a cornered beast, and to ensure the two major corporations would feel safe sending people to negotiate, Amber had specifically chosen this “neutral territory” for the meeting.

When the executives from Mary Bay and Aura Security arrived at the conference room with artificial gravity that Atlas had rented in advance at the Spaceport.

The first thing they saw was Amber, sitting at the head of the table with a broad smile, and behind him, a row of tall, burly Romu “bodyguards.”

“You’ve all come a long way, and I’m sure you’re weary from the journey. So, I won’t waste any time. The sooner we finish, the sooner you can all get a good night’s sleep.”

Once everyone was seated and looking at him, Amber began.

“I’m sure everyone here is aware of the reason for and content of this meeting, so I won’t repeat the details. Let’s get straight to the solution.

Based on your invasion of our company’s exclusive ore mining zone, and the damages caused by your counterattack against our company’s justified and reasonable forced intervention.

Our company hopes that the members of your boards of directors will sell their shares at a discount, merging Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security into Atlas as two of our subsidiaries.”

“Are you kidding me? We didn’t come all this way to listen to you spout nonsense!” an executive from Mary Bay Industries, unable to control his temper, interrupted Amber.

“The solution to this is simple. We’ll pay you two million Credits in compensation, and you will promptly return our people and ships.”

The others from both companies said nothing, nor did they stop the man from speaking.

Clearly, these were their pre-agreed terms, now simply being voiced through this brute.

Although they had indeed lost the battle, based on their understanding, Atlas was not yet large enough to compete head-on with their two companies.

Therefore, in the eyes of their upper management, paying some symbolic compensation and having both sides take a step back was the best solution.

“Sigh… it seems none of you understood what I just said.”

Amber sighed with a hint of regret and continued, “Selling your shares at a discount was my way of letting you do this gracefully. If you’re unwilling to be graceful, then I’ll help you be graceful.”

As he spoke, Amber turned on the screen behind him, which displayed a series of data charts, primarily stock charts.

“To be honest, I’ve already arranged for a large number of people to start shorting your two companies’ stocks on your primary stock exchanges.

If you refuse my terms no matter what, then I’ll have no choice but to release the video of the ‘Mary Bay and Aura Security combined fleet’s crushing defeat in the asteroid belt’.

I believe you’ve realized by now that Atlas possesses capabilities in information and cognitive warfare that you cannot imagine.

If this video is released, with our army of online shills fanning the flames, how long do you gentlemen think your companies’ stock prices will hold up?”

Amber leaned back into the soft chair, looking at the shocked and uncertain “successful Federation figures” before him. He added one last thing:

“Think it over carefully before you decide. For the rest of your lives, for your families. It would be a real shame if you ended up losing everything~”

“This is as far as I’ll take you, sir. This car will take you to the airfield, where reception staff will guide you to a private flight to the Spaceport. Once you board our arranged ship and enter warp, the crew will return your personal belongings to you.”

Guided by an attendant, Captain James sat down in a black executive sedan at the entrance of the Manor.

“The ship will take you directly back to the military port. I wish you a safe journey.”

The attendant smiled politely and gracefully closed the car door.

Watching the Manor recede into the distance, Captain James found it hard to believe that this simple, old, and unadorned estate was actually the residence of the Regent Prince.

The deepest impression the Manor left on Captain James, aside from the scarcity of attendants, was its interior style.

There were no complex, luxurious decorations; instead, it featured a simple yet dignified design.

Such an architectural style was rarely seen in the homes of Imperial nobility.

“Although I cannot apply for martyr status for the two fallen soldiers, I will arrange for their families to be well taken care of through other means. Rest assured.”

Recalling the Regent Prince’s specific instructions before he left, Captain James, who had passively sided with the fleet’s high command, couldn’t help but feel that perhaps he had chosen the right side after all.

Contrary to the rumors and gossip circulating within the Empire, this Regent Prince seemed… quite approachable?

Sebastian Apollonios Norton II.

The man who currently stood at one of the pinnacles of power in the Star Dragon Empire had no idea that his casual gesture had sent the visiting captain’s thoughts wandering to the ends of the universe.

He returned to his study. Besides a massive desk and an old-looking chair, the most striking feature of the room was the magnificent bookcase covering the wall.

A few miniature “spider” robots scurried along the shelves, keeping the collection of books on the massive shelves tidy.

Norton II was a man who loved to read, especially physical books, which allowed him to immerse himself fully in their worlds.

His desk lay a book, open to the halfway point.

To the left of the desk was a stack of recently finished books.

A small sticky note was attached to the cover of each one.

These were Norton II’s sharp commentaries on the books after he had finished them.

Ancient Democracy and Republicanism — Worth a read

On the Weakness of the Bourgeois Revolution — Worth a read

The Open Society and Its Enemies — Thought-provoking

On Democracy in the Federation — First half is okay, second half is trash

The Federalist Papers — Why waste paper?

A Close Look at the Federation — Readable trash

Norton II walked to his desk and sat down, looking at the new book lying open on it, half-read.

Although he wanted to continue reading, he heard footsteps outside the study. He placed a bookmark inside and temporarily closed the book.

My Past and Thoughts, by Herzen.

Looking at the title on the cover, Norton II pondered for a moment before picking up a sticky note.

Even though he was only halfway through the book, he already had an evaluation in mind.

“A good, deeply thought-provoking book.”

Just as he casually wrote down his evaluation and stuck it on the book’s cover, a soft knock came from the study door.

“Come in.”

The old wooden door swung open, its well-maintained hinges making no piercing noise.

The person who entered the study was Astral von Siberia, Norton II’s childhood friend and now one of his advisors.

“You forgot to bring a chair again.”

Norton II said with a smile, looking at Astral’s empty hands.

“Well, that’s because you always forget to have a chair added to this study.”

The Regent Prince’s childhood friend and current advisor was not as formal as others.

He looked at Norton II, sitting behind the desk. The man, not yet forty, was handsome like most of the genetically-enhanced nobles of the Star Dragon Empire.

But his attire completely lacked the flamboyance typical of Imperial nobility.

His simple, regulation clothing made it hard to associate him with the immensely powerful Regent Prince of the Imperial political scene.

“Astral, you must have come to see me on official business. Are you sure you don’t want to get a chair?”

“Nah, I’m used to standing~”

Astral waved his hand dismissively and walked to the desk, placing a small data chip on it.

“I’ve compiled a report based on the information provided by the captain who was just here.”

“You’re that fast?”

The Regent Prince’s advisor pursed his lips but didn’t answer.

A white light scanned the data chip, and a report was soon projected as a hologram above the desk.

This antique-styled desk, with its data reading and holographic projection capabilities, was the most valuable item in the entire Manor.

“This company called Atlas is much stronger than our intelligence department’s previous analysis indicated, especially in network information technology. We suspect they possess some kind of undisclosed new technology that gives them a significant advantage in information and cognitive warfare.”

“So the Timler family and those two Federation companies were ‘guided’ by them into fighting each other without understanding their opponent’s true strength, allowing Atlas to take advantage in the end?”

“Exactly. If they really possess this technology, and it’s already mature… I believe it will be crucial to our next strategic move.”

Norton II nodded but said nothing, continuing to listen intently.

“There’s one more interesting thing.” Astral seemed to recall something and added with a smile, “According to information gathered by our operatives in the Thousand Stars Empire, this company’s internal management system is different from ordinary companies and noble-owned enterprises that exploit their employees. Their leader seems to have an advanced philosophy—pursuing fairness and respecting the individual. In a way, it has something in common with your own philosophy.”

Astral pointed to a name on the report, which was bolded and highlighted in red.

“The company’s legal representative is Rebil. Based on six months of AI-assisted analysis by the intelligence department, they believe there is a 63.7% probability that this ‘Rebil’ is the same Imperial spy who was on Robert IV.”

“Amber, that was his name, right?”

“Yes, that’s him.”

“Interesting.”

Chapter 228: The Bed in My Office is Pretty Big

“These people are much weaker than I thought. You just had to scare them a little and they caved.”

Isabelle remarked, kneading Amber’s shoulders from behind him in their temporary residence at the elven Spaceport.

On the table before them lay the ‘letters of intent for stock transfer’ from the boards of directors of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security, agreeing to sell their shares at a discount.

“No, no, I didn’t just scare them.”

Amber flipped through the documents. Atlas’s elven legal department had already confirmed their validity; the share percentages and amounts listed were exactly what Amber had demanded.

“If they hadn’t agreed, those guys in the Financial Operations Department really would have made their move. The major shareholders would have lost even more.”

“Is this what you once called ‘the weakness of the bourgeoisie’?”

Hearing Isabelle’s question, Amber wagged a finger.

“You’ve misunderstood. ‘The weakness of the bourgeoisie’ is more evident during certain special periods, like a revolution initiated by the bourgeoisie themselves.”

“So it’s not quite appropriate to use it here?”

“Well, that’s not entirely true either.”

Amber leaned his head back against something soft and, after a moment of thought, continued, “Actually, it works here too. After all, the rich are the most risk-averse. Compared to the proletariat, the bourgeoisie have things to lose.”

“Because they don’t want the wealth they’ve accumulated to suffer any losses, they’re afraid of going from immense wealth to living on the streets… When the power they possess is insufficient to overcome the difficulties at hand, they’ll often choose the less risky option.”

“So that’s why they were willing to sell their shares at a discount?”

“Exactly. The wealth they’ll get from selling the shares is enough for them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives. If the Financial Operations Department had actually managed to go short and cause a panic-induced stock market crash, then they would have truly cried their eyes out.”

Isabelle nodded with partial understanding at Amber’s words. Then, a thought suddenly struck her, and she spoke in a teasing tone.

“What about you, Amber? Are you part of the bourgeoisie too? Do you have this ‘weakness’ as well?”

“Hahahaha~ Do you really think I’m part of the bourgeoisie now?”

“Aren’t you?” Isabelle was a little puzzled by Amber’s counter-question. “Doesn’t Atlas belong to you? And after all this time operating and fighting, hasn’t the company grown so much stronger?”

“If you took a look at the finance department, you’d know that everyone in the company has a corresponding salary, except me. Every quarter, I transfer my shareholder dividends directly back into the company’s account. You’ve seen my bank account—is there any money in it? If I was really just after money, wouldn’t it have been enough to open a mining company and profit from war? Why would I need to run a private military company and continuously expand the scale of my armed forces?”

“Why are you doing all this?” Isabelle set aside her playful mood and sat down beside him, her expression serious.

“Because I don’t want ‘the weakness of the bourgeoisie’ to manifest in me.”

“You want to start a revolution?”

“Isa, your mind certainly jumps around.”

Isabelle ignored Amber’s quip, staring at him intently instead.

Under her gaze, Amber finally raised his hands in surrender.

“If I told you I want to end all wars and lead humanity into an era of great unity, would you believe me?”

“I would.”

“Why do you believe everything?”

“Because I feel that you’re serious.”

Isabelle’s earnest expression left Amber at a loss for words. The young miss was wonderful in every way, except that she was too trusting and believed everything he said.

Although Amber hadn’t been joking.

Even so, it was a goal he was currently incapable of achieving. It would require a long period of consolidation and power development.

For now, however, Amber decided to change the subject.

“Even if I said I wanted to overthrow the monarchy and topple feudal ruling classes like yours?”

“As long as you can do it, and make the world a better place after.”

“My, my. When did a noble young lady like you become so enlightened?”

Watching Isabelle raise her head proudly, Amber couldn’t help but think of her father light-years away—Count Jonathan.

The Count had really raised a ‘filial daughter’.

“Alright, then I’ll start by overthrowing a feudal noble like you.”

Amber suddenly swept Isabelle into his arms, tossed her onto the bed, and closed the curtains with a hand gesture.

“Wait… again?! You! How is this any different from those capitalists who live in luxury and dissipation?!”

“No, hedonism and capitalism are two completely different things. I’ll make that clear to you in a moment~”

The acquisition of Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security proceeded very smoothly under the control of the titans from the Financial Operations Department.

Aura Security was directly dissolved. Those who were willing to stay—mainly front-line combat personnel—were all integrated into Atlas’s private military company after a strict, network-wide screening by Lilith.

As for Mary Bay Industries, its company registration was amended. It was renamed Atlas Industries, and its place of registration was moved to the Thousand Stars Empire.

With the corporate restructuring successfully completed, the ‘Atlas Group’, composed of its three subsidiaries—Atlas Industries, Atlas Mining, and Atlas Private Military Company—made its grand debut.

Allenita, who had been swamped with family affairs, finally found the time to come to the Tower of Babel to “relax.”

Yes, relax.

In Allenita’s words, inspecting Atlas was a form of relaxation.

“You’re all managing the company so well anyway. I just need to wait for the dividends to come in every quarter. Isn’t that relaxing?”

Ms. Allenita said as much while sitting in Amber’s office, nibbling on the small pastries from his desk.

“You’re certainly magnanimous. Aren’t you worried we’ll take the money and run, or mismanage the company into the ground?”

“I’m a very good judge of character, Mr. Amber~”

Allenita stared directly at Amber while tearing off a small piece of pastry with her mouth.

If she had only been a little interested in Amber before, then after her subordinates summarized Atlas’s recent actions and their results, that ‘little’ had become ‘a whole lot’.

“Oh, right. About the email you sent me before… Are you really not planning to take Atlas public?” Allenita asked, suddenly remembering the matter.

“It’s simple. Once the company goes public, the equity gets diluted. It’s very possible that I’ll no longer have the final say. In my plans, Atlas isn’t an ordinary company. I don’t want to give other powers an opportunity to interfere.”

“What a pity. If you went public, you could raise a lot of capital.”

“Ms. Yuge, take a long-term view. There will be plenty of opportunities to make money in the future,” Amber said, looking at the female elf meaningfully.

“Then I’ll look forward to the day you speak of. Right, there’s one more thing…”

The wealthy elf’s visit this time wasn’t just for inspection and relaxation. She had also brought Amber some news.

“The news about the Romu marines has caused quite a stir within the Thousand Stars Empire, especially among the Romu population.”

Allenita lay languidly in the ‘executive chair’ Amber had prepared for her, her posture completely unguarded.

“According to reports from our stations in various regions, the number of Romu applying to join Atlas has risen sharply, especially among young males. You might be about to welcome a large wave of new blood, Mr. Amber~”

“That’s normal. For them, ‘selling their lives’ to a private military company is a very novel profession.” Amber wasn’t surprised by the situation Allenita described. He nodded and continued, “Furthermore, the first batch of Romu marines didn’t suffer heavy losses in the recent battles. Even in the most dangerous boarding actions, there were only two fatalities and fewer than ten injuries. But the compensation they received is an ‘astronomical figure’ compared to what they earn in their traditional industries in the Thousand Stars Empire. So, a sharp increase in applications is quite normal for now. I predict that after a while, when the novelty wears off and the casualty rate for the marines starts to climb, the number of applicants will fall again.”

Amber paused for a moment, then asked a slightly more sensitive question. “Compared to the Romu’s reaction, I’m more concerned about something else…”

“Our elven reaction?”

“Mhm~”

Allenita wore an expression that said, ‘I knew you would ask that.’ She took out her terminal and sent a file to Amber.

“There’s good news and bad news. It’s all in there. See for yourself~”

The female elf curled her entire body into the large executive chair, completely unconcerned about the allure revealed by the sheer fabric of her dress.

“This chair you got is quite comfortable. I’m going to take a nap here.”

“Resting in a chair? Are you sure you don’t want to lie down on the bed? The bed in my office is pretty big.”

“I’d dare to lie on it. The question is, would you dare let me?”

The female elf’s expression turned playful. She stared at Amber with great interest, wanting to see how this interesting human would react.

“Please rest well. I’ll read the report.”

“Tch. You can’t take a joke. How boring~”

Allenita began to doze off, and to her own surprise, she fell asleep very quickly. It was clear that the female elf had been truly exhausted lately.

Amber didn’t disturb her. Instead, he opened the report she had sent. After being organized by her assistant, its contents were very easy to read.

The reaction within the Thousand Stars Empire was more or less as Amber had predicted.

The struggle between the Conservatives and the Equal-Righters had intensified after the Romu marines ‘shone brightly’ under Amber’s command.

Several representative figures of the Equal-Righters seized the opportunity to widely promote slogans like “The Romu have their own way of life!” hoping to ‘awaken’ the Romu and ordinary elven commoners.

The Conservatives, on the other hand, used the ‘Romu marines’ as their starting point to promote a ‘Romu threat theory’. In their rhetoric, it was as if giving a Romu a gun today meant they would overthrow the Elven Royal Court tomorrow.

Regarding the dispute between the two factions, ‘The Apathetic’, led by the Elven Royal Court, continued to be spectators to the drama, making no public statements.

However, Allenita’s intelligence network had managed to obtain a piece of verified information. The Elven Royal Court had, in an official capacity, privately summoned representatives from both factions. The message was simple:

“It’s fine if you two want to have a war of words, but if anyone escalates to violence, don’t say the Royal Court didn’t warn you.”

In other words, it was a naked threat and a warning to both sides.

“The Elven Royal Court’s attitude is really hard to figure out…” After reading the report, Amber leaned back in his chair and scratched his head.

Before he transmigrated, the large-scale DLC that featured the Thousand Stars Empire and explored the conflict between the elves and the Romu had not yet been officially released. Therefore, Amber couldn’t make predictions with the same prophetic insight he had for other events.

After a moment of thought, he temporarily set these problems aside. Although the Thousand Stars Empire had this latent social issue, it wouldn’t cause any major impact in the short term.

In contrast, the internal problems within both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were already intensifying.

The precious window of opportunity for Amber’s development was about to close.

Just as Amber finished contemplating these matters and was about to take a short nap in his chair, an urgent intelligence report from Lilith arrived, instantly waking him up.

Chapter 229: The Window Closes, the Game Begins

This piece of intelligence wasn’t exactly a secret; Lilith had simply used quantum entanglement communication to let Amber know about it sooner.

The content was simple: the Federation had recently passed a wartime act and was currently communicating it to the various star systems.

The act lifted previous prohibitions, allowing the autonomous governments of each star system to expand their own military forces to counter the Star Dragon Empire’s invasion.

“So, it’s about to begin.”

Looking at this wartime act, which clearly favored the military-industrial complex and was destined to let them make a fortune, Amber realized the window of opportunity left for him had entered its final countdown.

In the original game’s storyline, it was the enactment of this very bill that led to a rapid increase in the military power of the Federation’s various autonomous governments.

Although it was effective in curbing the Star Dragon Empire’s subsequent offensives, once they had a firm grip on military power that only grew stronger, some individuals within those autonomous governments inevitably grew restless, ultimately raising the curtain on the Federation’s civil war.

From the current situation, the Empire’s expeditionary fleets had occupied a total of six Federation star systems.

Since long-distance travel and warping were affected by the distribution and environment of celestial bodies within a star system, the routes of large fleets could be roughly predicted.

Against this backdrop, the Chaos Fortress, still in a state of “self-overhaul,” was defending several key nodes with two newly supplied Expeditionary Strike Groups.

Meanwhile, the Fortress of Sorrow, commanded by the Duke, was in a stalemate with the Federation Navy in the seventh target star system, along with the other fleets.

With the cautionary tale of the Chaos Fortress being rush-attacked by the Federation Navy, the Duke had strengthened surveillance of all celestial bodies in the target system and increased the protection level for his Celestial Fortress.

The thing was ferocious, to be sure. If The Focusing Rainbow was aimed well, one shot could easily neutralize a capital ship fleet.

But if it was rush-attacked by fearless brutes, it was still in considerable danger.

Combined with the fact that the Federation’s unmanned fleets were constantly supporting their manned fleet operations, the Duke didn’t dare to advance rashly for the time being. He opted for a more conservative defensive strategy, awaiting reinforcements.

But the Federation would not waste this time.

Since they now knew that a Celestial Fortress could be overwhelmed by a “sea of ships,” all they had to do was expand their fleet.

However, the Navy’s next five-year shipbuilding plan had already consumed most of its budget, and the Mobile Fortress entering its final testing phase was also devouring funds.

This meant the Federation government couldn’t scrape together an extra budget to churn out ships for the time being.

Under these circumstances, the current Federation President—Brandon, the ‘Idea Man’—came up with a plan that would kill two birds with one stone, at the “suggestion” of the military-industrial complex.

He would let the autonomous governments of each star system pay for their own fleet expansion out of their own budgets.

After all, the Star Dragon Empire’s invasion was now a reality, and everyone had seen what happened to the invaded systems.

The Federation Navy’s main fleets were limited in number and couldn’t protect every system. If a system was quickly overthrown by the Imperials because its government was reluctant to pay for a massive shipbuilding program, they would only have themselves to blame.

Faced with this “let it rot” policy from the Federation government, the autonomous governments of the various sectors and systems first gritted their teeth in anger, denouncing the new act for exposing the government’s incompetence.

But after they carefully considered the act, one by one, they quickly caught on.

Very good. So we can play it like this, can we?

And so, when sales representatives from the major shipyards, following the act’s rollout across Federation territory, arrived in these star systems, they were received with great enthusiasm by the various autonomous governments.

Although the shipyard sales reps were somewhat perplexed by this sudden “enthusiasm,” it didn’t mean they couldn’t handle this unimaginable wealth.

Soon, orders from autonomous governments flew in from every corner of the Federation’s territory to the major shipyards.

Production lines were filled to capacity in a short time, and many shipyards even had to begin emergency construction of additional lines.

This caused the price of standard zero-gravity production lines to soar as well.

The Federation government avoided a further increase in its fiscal deficit and slightly stimulated domestic demand. Good!

The president and high-level government officials received more “support” from the military-industrial complex. Excellent!

The major shipyards, equipment manufacturers, heavy industries, and mining companies received more orders. Wonderful!

The autonomous governments of the star systems had their “leashes” removed and enhanced their military strength. Splendid!

Everyone had a bright future.

Amidst the swirling undercurrents of the various factions, time moved to the end of June, New Calendar 589.

As the “window of opportunity” predicted by Amber drew to a close, the Atlas Group had also gradually digested the gains from its previous “major moves.”

After its restructuring into Atlas Industries, 30% of the original Mary Bay Industries employees were ‘streamlined’ under the direction of the “former professional managers” in the Financial Operations Department.

To be honest, as a former worker himself, Amber was somewhat repulsed by the act of “streamlining.”

However, he then saw that among the 30% of employees who were laid off, apart from a few who were too “proud” to work under Atlas, the rest were all people who had gotten into Mary Bay Industries through nepotism to “retire.”

Some departments’ work had no connection whatsoever to the company’s business, yet they were still staffed with nearly a hundred people earning not-insignificant salaries.

After understanding this situation, Amber, who considered himself “worldly,” couldn’t help but call it “outrageous.”

After optimizing its personnel structure, Atlas Industries, in addition to maintaining contact with its original clients, fulfilling outstanding orders, and restoring cash flow, also allocated a portion of its production capacity to supply Atlas’s own combat forces.

Orns, the former supervisor of R&D Department Three, staged a dramatic “Return of the Dragon King” and became the deputy director of the entire equipment manufacturing R&D center.

Working closely with Eugene, the director of R&D, he finalized the design of the “Raging Crocodile A1” combat exoskeleton and put it into mass production.

As a formerly sizable equipment manufacturer, Mary Bay Industries had a solid foundation.

Its production efficiency was incomparable to the small-workshop model of the former Trident Studio.

Not long after the “Raging Crocodile A1” went into production, a situation of “equipment waiting for people” arose.

Orns and Eugene’s solution was simple: they modified some of the “Raging Crocodiles” into the “Raging Crocodile A1 ver.Human,” suited for human physiques and operational habits, and had the Atlas human marines re-equip.

The remaining excess production capacity was used to create a scaled-down version based on the “Raging Crocodile A1 ver.Human,” which was then released onto the market and quickly garnered a large number of orders.

Meanwhile, Atlas Mining also completed its merger with Timler Mining.

Amber only took over all the equipment and the “enslaved” miners, not accepting a single senior executive.

After all, Atlas Mining had no room for such useless figureheads.

The significant expansion of the mining team not only increased mining efficiency but also accelerated the construction of the Asteroid Base.

In Amber’s plan, all industries currently deployed on industrial satellites within Federation territory would eventually be moved here.

It was just like playing an RTS game; the production buildings used for spamming units had to be well protected.

Except for cheesy tactics like proxy barracks or all-in rushes, no one would build their production structures inside the enemy’s base.

With the ever-increasing profits of Atlas Industries and Atlas Mining, supported by the eighty million Imperial Gold Dragons in compensation from the Timler family, the armed forces under Atlas’s private military company also completed their integration and upgrades over these two months.

On the fleet side, under Amber’s instructions, all the “old, broken, and worn-out” ships from the inherited Mary Bay Industries and Aura Security fleets were sold off.

In the higher-intensity battles of the future, these ships would be nothing but cannon fodder, with no practical value.

Many ships were even sold at a discount to complete the transactions quickly.

Immediately after, the Atlas fleet took 80% of the cash on the company’s books and went on a shopping spree.

They only bought active-duty ships that hadn’t been retired for long and were of relatively advanced models.

The entire fleet quickly expanded to a total of 43 ships.

Among them were nine light cruisers, fifteen destroyers, and eighteen frigates.

There was also one large transport ship equipped with aerospace transports, responsible for deploying personnel, vehicles, and equipment.

This was the largest fleet size Atlas could currently maintain.

As for ground forces, according to Banninger’s report, the training of the latest batch of Romu should be completed before July.

By then, the Romu marines would reach the size of two infantry battalions, approximately 1,800 strong.

Each battalion had a basic strength of 900, with a battalion command of about 120 personnel, and consisted of three infantry companies, one weapons support company (for mortars and other support fire), and one medical team.

Incidentally, with the increase in fleet and marine personnel, Atlas also implemented a military rank system to facilitate command of units at all levels in the future.

In addition to these Romu as the main force, there was also an “instructor squad” composed of humans.

Its members were mainly the surviving Mobile Infantry, and including those who had recovered from their injuries and returned to duty, their number totaled over fifty.

Besides these Mobile Infantry, some elite combat personnel from the former Aura Security were also integrated into this “instructor squad” after a vetting process.

So, the total strength of the instructor squad was now over 200.

After being divided into companies A and B, they were assigned to the battalion command headquarters of the Romu marines in the capacity of “Instructors,” “Military Advisors,” and “Special Operations Teams.”

As the quantity and quality of ground vehicles were still insufficient, Amber did not form combined arms units like the Federation or the Empire.

Instead, he took Aura Security’s existing collection of light multi-legged war machines, wheeled fighting vehicles, armored infantry fighting vehicles, and a small number of main battle tanks and integrated them into the two infantry battalions as “reinforcing attachments,” turning them into “reinforced battalions.”

As for HCP units, their numbers had jumped from two understrength squadrons to ten full attack squadrons.

This was after phasing out a batch of old and obsolete HCPs; otherwise, the number would have been even higher.

Although ten squadrons, over one hundred HCPs, seemed like a lot, the reality was that as consumables in war, these HCPs were not even enough to fill the assigned HCP squadron quotas for all the warships, let alone be integrated into the ground forces.

But as the old saying goes, you have to eat your meal one bite at a time and walk your path one step at a time.

Amber never intended to become a giant in one go.

Building up an armed force was inherently a long and complex process.

To have raised his forces to their current level by pulling something from nothing before the window of opportunity closed had, frankly, already exceeded Amber’s initial goals.

In addition to the aforementioned combat units, approximately 1,500 former Aura Security combat personnel who chose to stay were broken up, regrouped, and are temporarily serving as a reserve force.

These individuals are currently training alongside the Romu at the expanded Tower of Babel training center, awaiting the arrival of their weapons and equipment.

As for the loyalty of these people, besides a round of screening conducted by Lilith to weed out those with ulterior motives, the main factor was Atlas’s employee benefits and care policies.

Among the private military companies in this world, these policies were, if not unprecedented, then certainly rarely seen.

Compensation and benefits were far above the market average, including but not limited to generous combat bonuses, comprehensive medical insurance, post-service living security, and care for their families.

Furthermore, there was a complete system for military rank promotion and its corresponding salary increase mechanism.

At the same time, Atlas pioneered “skills training and career planning” guidance, something no other private military company or PMC offered.

All front-line combat personnel were provided with advanced military training and skills development.

This not only maintained their combat effectiveness but also allowed them to continuously improve their personal skills, subtly enhancing their sense of self-worth.

Amber also set up a special department under the Human Resources Center.

It provided further career path development planning for outstanding combat personnel, such as promotion to officer ranks or transition to technical specialist roles.

That’s not to mention basic things like fair and transparent management, incentives, and honor systems.

In short, under this combination of initiatives, the combat personnel who stayed were all thankful they had made the right decision.

While such complex and detailed management systems might not function perfectly in other companies, at Atlas, with Lilith’s assistance, this system was no longer an ethereal “hanging garden.”

This increasingly powerful artificial intelligence was Amber’s greatest source of confidence.

Especially after completing her second iteration in the Asteroid Base’s server array, Lilith was now capable of real-time monitoring of every individual through all of Atlas’s networked terminals.

This secret surveillance program, known only to Amber as a “failsafe,” was ultimately named by him “Prism.”

Although the act of monitoring everyone’s privacy made Amber feel a little awkward, he had no choice but to do so when he couldn’t guarantee everyone’s loyalty.

As time entered July of New Calendar 589, relying on his memory of the game’s plot, Amber deployed a destroyer as an “observation post” in the deep space of the Vendée star system on the Star Dragon Empire’s border.

If his memory served him right and there were no major changes in the political developments within the Star Dragon Empire, a violent conflict would erupt on a colony planet in this border system—an event that would kick off the Empire’s fragmentation.

In another world, the lore enthusiasts had called it “Bloody Tuesday.”

Chapter 230: The Princess’s Guard

Located in the border region of the Star Dragon Empire and classified as a T3 living sphere, the Vendée star system was one of the most densely populated colonial systems in the frontier.

In addition to possessing a terrestrial planet, Vendée VI, the system also had a large number of colony satellites.

Although Vendée’s resource output was not high compared to that of resource-rich systems, and could even be considered quite barren in terms of certain precious resources, the system had its own unique “resource.”

That was the labor force provided by its ample population.

Thus, the Vendée star system was also the largest exporter of labor in the Empire’s border region, constantly supplying workers to the surrounding star systems.

And now, such a relatively important region was seeing opposition to the imperial system, even calls for secession and independence.

Theoretically, the best and most efficient solution would be to dispatch heavy reinforcements to support the local governor in suppressing the secessionists.

However, considering the declining prestige of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family in the border regions, Princess Agnes worried that a violent approach would provoke an even greater backlash.

After careful consideration, she decided to personally visit the Vendée star system to try and appease the populace.

For the Royal Family of the Star Dragon Empire, this was a tried-and-true method.

In the past, when similar situations had arisen in other systems, a visit from a member of the Royal Family was usually enough to quell civil unrest.

After all, for people who had only ever seen the Empire’s royals on screens or in holograms, the psychological impact of seeing these rulers in person was immense.

The fact that the Emperor, a prince, or a princess was willing to appear before the people meant that they cared about their subjects.

“The rulers have me in their hearts!”

Under this kind of psychological suggestion, general unrest would usually subside, and it could even boost the Royal Family’s public reputation.

But by Agnes’s generation, the Royal Family’s own circumstances had changed.

The old Emperor, Frederick, was in declining health and could mostly only remain in the Grand Palace of the imperial capital to “recuperate.”

Agnes’s older brother had long since passed away from illness.

Her remaining younger brother, though currently healthy, was still an infant in a cradle and naturally could not make official visits.

The entire Royal Family could be described as having “a sparse line of succession.”

Therefore, this task could only fall on the shoulders of the Empire’s princess.

As the visiting fleet entered the low orbit of Vendée VI, Agnes walked to the porthole in her room.

Gazing at the azure planet so close at hand, the princess’s mood did not improve despite the magnificent view.

The relentless pressure from the Regent Prince’s faction was causing some of her own supporters to show signs of wavering.

Her Father Emperor’s assessment of Norton II had not been an exaggeration; the man was indeed the most formidable opponent the Leon Dynasty had ever faced in the imperial political arena.

Just as Agnes’s mind was troubled by these vexing matters, the doorbell to her cabin chimed.

Simultaneously, a young woman’s voice came through the communicator on the door.

“Your Highness, the aerospace craft to the surface is ready. You may depart at any time.”

Hearing the voice, Agnes rubbed the ring on her right index finger, and the cabin door opened.

A young woman in the dress uniform of an Imperial Guard officer stood respectfully at the entrance.

Genetically optimized like other imperial nobles, her figure was slender and erect. The deep green officer’s uniform was tailored perfectly, showcasing her graceful feminine form without losing its solemn dignity.

Beneath meticulously styled brown curls was a face with strong lines, yet possessing a uniquely feminine, soft beauty.

A pair of bright, emerald-green eyes flickered upon seeing Agnes before settling into a respectful gaze.

“Natalia, come in and sit for a while. I still need to change into my formal gown.”

Seeing her close friend, who was also the newly appointed commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment, a smile finally appeared on Agnes’s face.

“My apologies for the intrusion, Your Highness.”

Natalia Bonaparte nodded and stepped into Agnes’s private cabin.

Although she had been Agnes’s playmate since childhood, as the newly appointed commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment, Natalia Bonaparte was still a bit nervous.

The previous regiment commander had been diagnosed with a severe gastrointestinal illness just before their departure and required immediate surgery.

Thus, Natalia, who came from a military noble family, was a close friend of Her Highness the Princess, and had demonstrated outstanding performance in both simulated combat and live-fire exercises during her service with the Imperial Guard, was temporarily promoted to commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment.

“Don’t be so tense all the time, my friend.”

Seeing Natalia standing stiffly by the sofa after entering the cabin, Agnes couldn’t help but laugh.

“This subordinate is now responsible for protecting Your Highness. I cannot be careless,” Natalia said with a serious expression.

“The vanguard of the Guard Regiment has already deployed on the surface as planned and is coordinating with local forces to enforce a no-fly zone in the relevant airspace. When Your Highness is ready to depart, the rest of the regiment will travel to the surface in aerospace transports to serve as your personal escort. The orbital paratroopers and marines assigned to the fleet will remain on high alert aboard the ships in orbit. If any incident occurs, they will airdrop immediately to support us.”

“Didn’t you already report all this last night? Natalia, you really don’t need to be so nervous. This visit will surely be completed smoothly.”

Agnes covered her mouth and chuckled softly, then walked to the dressing room to change.

The princess’s private craft had already been prepared. After changing and boarding the plane, the aerospace craft carrying Agnes, Natalia, and a few others soon glided out from a Requiem-class battleship.

Accompanying them were ten aerospace transports that had launched from the fleet’s transport ship.

Since the main combat personnel and vehicles had already been sent to the surface via the more efficient space elevator, these aerospace transports primarily carried logistics support troops and a large quantity of supplies.

The fleet didn’t take long to enter the atmosphere and soon landed in Urban, the administrative capital of Vendée VI.

As Agnes slowly descended the ramp, the System Governor and the Planetary Administrator, who had been waiting for some time, immediately came forward with a host of imperial officials.

When they saw that the Guard Regiment commander behind Agnes was not the one from their briefing but an unfamiliar female officer, the System Governor and the Planetary Administrator exchanged a glance.

However, they masked their expressions well, showing no sign of anything unusual.

“Your Highness the Princess, your gracious arrival is the greatest honor for the Vendée star system.”

System Governor Simon’s flattering words were delivered with exceptional ease and naturalness, but unfortunately, the preoccupied Agnes barely listened.

“Spare me the pleasantries. I didn’t come here to listen to this sort of thing.”

Agnes did not put on a pleasant face for the governor who had allowed such a major problem to develop in the region under his jurisdiction.

“I will be delivering a planet-wide televised address shortly, and in two days, I will hold a public speech in front of the Governor’s Mansion. You were notified of these matters in advance, and I trust you have not been negligent.”

“Of course not. We have made all the arrangements you instructed, Your Highness.”

Facing the imperial princess, the future heir to the nation, Governor Simon, who was used to ordering people around, was now as deferential as a servant.

Agnes had always been a decisive and efficient person. After rejecting Simon’s proposal for a welcome banquet, she went directly to the Planetary Central Broadcasting Station and began her synchronized televised address.

The content of her speech primarily outlined some of the latest policies.

These policies addressed issues related to public livelihood and taxation, which had long been sources of public concern or complaint.

At the same time, Agnes announced that she would deliver a public speech in front of the Governor’s Mansion in two days.

Through this, she hoped to let the imperial subjects in the system know that the Royal Family had always stood with its people.

That night, in the Governor’s office at the Governor’s Mansion.

System Governor Simon and Planetary Administrator Chris, who should have been resting at home, were sitting on opposite sides of a desk.

Judging by their expressions, they were caught in a dilemma.

“The Guard Regiment commander was replaced by someone we don’t know. What do we do? Will this disrupt the Regent Prince’s plan?”

Planetary Administrator Alvin was full of worry. Already uneasy about the “plan,” he was now having second thoughts.

“The arrow is on the bowstring; it must be released.”

Governor Simon drained his glass of wine in one gulp, then looked at Alvin with bloodshot eyes.

“This is an order from the Regent Prince’s side. If we pull this off, we’ll get the highest credit! Our future will be more than just a meteoric rise.”

“But didn’t the Sir who delivered the message say that this was just to create a tangible representation of ‘public opinion’ to exert extreme pressure on the princess? The best outcome would be for her to back down in the face of difficulty, and we should avoid civilian bloodshed as much as possible.”

Alvin was still worried. After all, they had received investigative information from the Regent Prince’s side about the princess’s previous Guard Commander.

He was a noble of the ‘Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banner,’ whose ancestors had fought alongside the founding emperor. He was a ‘true noble’ with the traits of loyalty, honor, humility, and compassion etched into his very bones.

Although as a guard he would lay down his life to protect Her Highness the Princess, if the ‘enemy’ before him were unarmed ordinary citizens, the analysis AI predicted an eighty-seven percent probability that this noble commander would directly lead the princess away to avoid conflict with the populace.

But now, with a sudden change to a commander he had never seen before, Alvin felt completely uncertain.

If a large-scale bloodshed incident occurred, he felt the Regent Prince might just skin them alive.

“Alvin, has your brain turned to water?”

Hearing the planetary administrator’s concerns, Simon scoffed dismissively.

“Do you really think that delicate noble miss will be more aggressive than the previous Guard Commander?”

He poured a glass of wine and pushed it in front of Alvin.

“Relax, old friend. Drink this, and tomorrow’s plan remains unchanged. Once this is done, you and I will have it made~”

Under Simon’s persuasion, Alvin hesitated for a moment before finally picking up the glass and downing it in one go.

Chapter 231: Level the Anti-Aircraft Guns, Aim at the Crowd (Conclusion)

A night passed, and the date was now July 16th.

It was a Tuesday, and the weather was exceptionally clear.

As the first rays of the morning sun illuminated the spire of the Governor’s Mansion in the heart of Urban, Her Highness Princess Agnes Barbara Leon of the Star Dragon Empire had already completed her morning prayers. With the help of several handmaidens, she washed up and attended to her makeup.

From Agnes’s perspective, it would be an overstatement to say her faith was devout. For an Imperial princess who had always believed that man could conquer destiny, her public displays of faith in the Imperial State Religion were more of a ‘political performance’ to win over the church.

While Agnes was at her vanity, Natalia Bonaparte knocked and entered the dressing room with hurried steps.

Seeing the anxious look on her face, Agnes waved her hand to dismiss the handmaidens.

“What is it, Lord Natalia? You don’t look well. Did you not rest last night?”

“It is nothing, Your Highness. I merely made another round of inspections. A day or two without sleep has no effect on me.”

Natalia walked briskly to Agnes’s side, activating a portable jamming device and lowering her voice.

“Reports from observation posts at key points throughout the city indicate that crowds have been gathering since early this morning. While your speech today was expected to draw people, the current numbers and trend are somewhat abnormal.”

The Royal Guard Commander rested the pommel of her command sword on the floor and knelt on one knee.

“I humbly implore you to cancel today’s public address. We should wait until the situation is more stable before deciding on our next move.”

“I know you are concerned for my safety, Lord Natalia,” Agnes said after a moment of silence.

“I also know that this visit was always going to carry a certain degree of risk. But as a member of the Royal Family, my Father Emperor’s representative, desertion in the face of the enemy now will only deepen the public’s mistrust of the throne.”

“But your safety…” Natalia began anxiously, but was cut off by the princess.

“My safety is not important. If we cannot stand with the people, then our Royal Family will face a grave crisis.”

The princess’s voice held a note of disappointment, but she quickly composed herself.

“Do not worry, Lord Natalia. Countess Ardesia is garrisoned just three standard warp jumps away. If anything truly unexpected happens, she will arrive in time.”

“But that will take at least three days…”

Agnes smiled. She rose to her feet and helped the kneeling Natalia up as well.

“But my Royal Guard Commander, you will protect me, won’t you?”

Hearing this, Natalia Bonaparte froze for a moment. She then took a step back, and with a sharp shing, drew the command sword from her waist and held it before her chest.

“Your Highness, I swear on my life that no matter what happens, I will lead the Royal Guard to fight for you until the very last moment.”

Natalia’s gaze grew ever more resolute as she added a final sentence.

“At any cost.”

“Citizens of the Empire, I, Agnes Barbara Leon, hereby swear that the Imperial Royal Family will stand together with its people to fight against the forces that seek to divide our great nation.”

On the podium in front of the Governor’s Mansion, Agnes was addressing the crowd gathered around.

The assembled citizens now filled nearly every corner of Rose Square in front of the mansion.

They showed no signs of radical behavior, listening intently to Agnes’s emotional speech.

Even so, Natalia, standing behind the podium, still wore a tense expression.

According to real-time surveillance from observation posts and drones, vast crowds were marching toward them along the six main roads radiating from Rose Square, holding signs and banners with slogans written on them.

“We demand liberation!”

“Long live life!”

“Liberty leading the people!”

Judging by these slogans and banners, it was clear the crowd was not coming to ‘thank’ the Imperial Royal Family.

All attempts by the police and the capital’s garrison force to persuade or block them had failed. After all, they were residents of this planet too; their own families might have been among the demonstrators. For the time being, they could only employ peaceful methods rather than resorting to violently dispersing the civilians.

“Sir, the light vehicles you requested to be moved into the city have arrived at the side of the Governor’s Mansion. They are ready to form a defensive line in front of the podium at any moment,” an adjutant reported as he approached Natalia. She nodded and glanced in the direction he indicated.

A number of multi-legged war machines, wheeled fighting vehicles, and high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles were already parked near the Governor’s Mansion, their engines running, ready for action.

With Her Highness insisting on giving the speech, Natalia had no choice but to order the mechanized troops stationed outside the city to prepare for battle, while moving a portion of the less provocative light vehicles into the city itself. Bringing in MBTs and other heavy combat platforms at this critical juncture might have ignited the already volatile situation.

“Relay the order: everyone, be prepared. If a Level One Alert is declared, the Royal Guard infantry will form the first line of defense. If the situation continues to escalate, bring in the vehicles,” Natalia said to the adjutant, who had transferred from her old unit with her, her expression grim.

“Yes, Sir!”

As the procession of protestors drew nearer, the citizens in the square also realized something was amiss. Those on the periphery began to disperse upon seeing the menacing crowd approaching.

When the protestors on the six main roads neared the first security cordon, Natalia issued the order for a “Level One Alert.”

The eight hundred Royal Guard soldiers, who had been standing by, poured out from behind the podium like flowing mercury, quickly forming a three-deep defensive line in front of it.

Among these Royal Guards, clad in combat exoskeletons, a contingent of soldiers carrying riot shields and non-lethal weapons formed the first human wall. They used megaphones to direct the remaining bewildered citizens out of the square.

Once the citizens had scattered in all directions, Natalia, now standing beside Agnes, could see the teeming masses of protestors on all six main roads.

At the command of several sergeant majors, the Royal Guard infantry advanced a short distance and raised black warning flags.

Simultaneously, snipers positioned in the surrounding buildings and drones in the sky locked onto individuals within the protest marches who were suspected of being leaders or agitators.

“Warn them. If they advance any further, force will be escalated.”

After hearing her adjutant’s report, Natalia issued the command with a stoic expression.

Soon, dozens of green visible laser beams shot out from the buildings around the square and along the streets, locking firmly onto the targets in the crowd identified as ‘agitators.’

“Attention, citizens in the procession ahead. You are in violation of the Empire’s laws regarding demonstrations. Please disperse and return to your homes immediately. The Empire will not hold innocent individuals accountable.”

“Please do not allow yourselves to be manipulated by the ‘agitators’ and ‘separatists’ among you into taking actions you will regret…”

As the megaphones broadcasted the command, Natalia noticed on the surveillance monitors that another group of people had appeared, actively shielding the ‘agitators’ who had been marked by the visible lasers.

On the magnified, high-powered scope view, a glint of metal could be seen beneath the collars of some individuals. These were not ordinary citizens but armed personnel with extensive cybernetic enhancements.

Clearly, a professional team was operating behind the scenes of this protest.

“Deploy tear gas. Disperse them.”

Among the Royal Guard infantry who received the order, several soldiers armed with multi-purpose electromagnetic launchers aimed their barrels toward the sky.

With the whirring sound of electrical charging, a volley of tear gas canisters was launched.

But to Natalia’s surprise, flashes of low-power lasers lit up the rear of the crowd, and many of the tear gas canisters were shot down in mid-air. Those that did land among the people were quickly picked up and thrown forward. Large, powerful fans appeared from nowhere, dispersing the smoke.

At this sight, the crowd of protestors erupted in cheers. Amidst the rising volume of their slogans, they quickened their pace.

“These people…”

Natalia clenched her fist. It was obvious that some power was organizing and fanning the flames from behind the scenes.

She glanced at the princess, who had been silently watching the crowd’s slow advance, and whispered, “Your Highness, please leave first.”

“No, I cannot leave, Lord Natalia,” Agnes’s tone was calm and resolute.

“Do you see these people? If I leave today, the dignity of the Empire will be utterly trampled…”

Natalia followed Agnes’s gaze toward the front. The Imperial Star Dragon flags that had been displayed on both sides of the street were being torn down by the crowd, either ripped to shreds and stomped upon or set ablaze.

In the grotesque light and shadow cast by the smoke and flames, the crowd had grown even more frenzied.

“I understand what must be done, Your Highness.”

Natalia nodded and stepped back, issuing a new command.

“Vehicles, move into position! All snipers, eliminate the agitators and separatists!”

Simon and Alvin, who had rushed to the podium, had looks of panic on their faces. But before they could say anything, the Royal Guard had already begun to act.

Light vehicles, including the accompanying high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles, moved to either side of the Governor’s Mansion, forming a crossfire. The snipers deployed in the buildings opened fire simultaneously.

Beams of light flashed across the square. Those targets not shielded by the people around them had their skulls pierced by lasers. Although the highly penetrative lasers also caused casualties among other citizens behind the targets, as the Imperial Royal Family’s most loyal troops, the Royal Guard soldiers would obey any order given by their superiors.

“Attention, citizens in the procession, cease your march immediately and stop destroying the Imperial Star Dragon flag! Otherwise, we will respond with the highest level of force!”

The megaphones continued to broadcast warnings, but the crowd, which had briefly fallen into chaos due to the casualties, was quickly rallied by another group of ‘agitators’ dispersed among them. They stopped their chaotic milling and charged directly toward the podium.

“Liberty leading the people!”

“The Vendéens want independence!”

“Down with the Imperial Royal Family! They are murderers! Executioners!”

The shouts of the crowd at times even drowned out the sound of the megaphones.

Watching the tide of people surging toward them, the Royal Guard soldiers all took the lethal weapons slung on their backs.

Simon and Alvin were dumbfounded. They had never imagined the crowd could be provoked to such an extent. Still less had they imagined that Her Highness Agnes had no intention of backing down, and that the new Royal Guard Commander under her command acted without a shred of hesitation.

The frenzied mob had already broken through the second security cordon in the square.

According to reports from the observation posts, Molotov cocktails, homemade explosives, and even improvised electromagnetic cannons had appeared within the crowd. With steel rails of sufficient precision, some coils, and smuggled superconducting batteries, one could construct a crude electromagnetic cannon that, while inaccurate, was plenty powerful. It was a common makeshift weapon among rebels and rioters.

“Your Highness, this is no longer an ordinary demonstration. It is a riot.”

“I know.”

Even facing the encroaching mob, Agnes displayed an unusual calm.

“I have already shown them the Empire’s mercy. They are the ones who crossed this red line. In that case…”

The Imperial Princess looked at her Royal Guard Commander, then glanced at the trembling Simon and Alvin standing to the side, and spoke slowly:

“Then let these people, and the forces behind them, know the consequence of crossing this red line.”

“As you command, Your Highness,” Natalia Bonaparte said, her tone firm as she placed her right fist over her chest in a salute.

“Let me be the one to give the order. Let me bear the guilt for the bloodshed.”

“No. All the blood will flow on me.”

Agnes took the command sword from Natalia’s hand, walked to the very front of the podium, and raised the sword’s tip to the sky.

“Anti-aircraft vehicles, level your cannons! Target… the rioters directly ahead!”

Following Agnes’s command, with the sound of whirring machinery, the two accompanying laser anti-aircraft vehicles lowered their high-energy laser emitters. One on the left and one on the right, they aimed in a cross-pattern at the approaching crowd.

Looking at an Imperial Star Dragon flag in the distance as it was consumed by flames and turned to ash, Agnes no longer hesitated. She decisively swung the command sword down.

“High-energy mode, begin sweeping fire!”

Two scorching rays, symbols of death, swept across the square, silently reaping the lives of the ‘rioters.’

Those hit by the high-energy lasers had no time to react before they were instantly sliced in two, collapsing to the ground.

A scene from hell descended upon this place in that instant.

Amidst the bloodcurdling screams, on the central paving stone of Rose Square, the engraved rose was stained a dark, blackish-red by the flowing blood.

Chapter 232: Vendée VI, All Quiet

“So, no news has come out from the entire planet?”

“That’s right. This week, we’ve been continuously monitoring the vicinity of Vendée VI. We haven’t detected any unusual information from any of the communication relay satellites or penetrating communication towers.”

On the bridge of The Hermes, Randall sat in the captain’s chair, speaking to Amber on the main screen.

A pair of new collar insignias now adorned his shipboard uniform.

According to the Atlas Group’s internal military rank regulations, they were the insignias of a Colonel.

Ever since the Atlas private military company reinstated its ranking system, a batch of epaulets and collar insignias had been hastily produced.

And at Randall’s strong insistence, he had been promoted from his Federation Navy rank of ‘Major’ to ‘Colonel’.

The price, however, was that he had barely had time to enjoy his new rank before Amber assigned him an urgent mission.

He was to command The Hermes, which had completed its ‘covert operations enhancement modifications’, and infiltrate the Vendée star system to serve as an ‘observation post’.

This would also be the final mission for this special operations vessel, converted from a Dragon-class destroyer, under the name The Hermes.

After this mission, the name ‘Hermes’ would be transferred to a light cruiser serving as the fleet’s flagship.

As for why they were waiting until after this mission to transfer the name, it was mainly because Hermes was not only the god of commerce in ancient Greek mythology but also the god of thieves.

A mission as an ‘observation post’, a bit of ‘petty larceny’, naturally required the protection of the god of thieves.

Amber had initially considered renaming the destroyer to something like ‘Shi Qian’ or ‘Bai Yutang’, but he worried that these legendary Eastern master thieves wouldn’t protect a crew of ‘Westerners’, so he dropped the idea.

At this moment, Amber, who had infiltrated Imperial territory aboard another destroyer and was now within quantum entanglement communication range, listened to Randall’s report. The frown on his face slowly eased.

“No news is, in itself, a sign that something is wrong.”

“Because everything seems far too normal?”

“Uh-huh. So normal it feels fake.”

Amber opened the report Randall had synchronized earlier and shared it on the screen.

“The Imperial Princess arrived on Vendée VI on July 11th and gave a global address. Then, the news on July 12th said she gave a public speech in the planetary capital, but all these reports were text-only. Even the accompanying pictures were old, unrelated stock photos. After that, no valuable news came out.

“The Imperial Princess herself is visiting a colonial planet in a border region, and there’s only news about it for the first two days. The following days were filled with nothing but ordinary, mundane news. There wasn’t even any mention of ‘Her Highness’s visit’ on social media, which is highly unusual. What’s more, after a fleet under Duke Artesia’s command arrived yesterday, they immediately initiated a planetary blockade.”

Amber laid out his analysis step-by-step, cross-referencing the timeline in the report.

Sometimes, you didn’t have to steal intelligence from someone’s pocket.

‘Open-source intelligence’ gathered from public domains accounted for over seventy percent of all valuable intel.

Of course, Lilith was an exception.

“You’re saying that the peace and quiet of the last few days has been nothing but a futile attempt to hide the obvious.”

Listening to Amber’s breakdown, Randall was starting to get it. He wasn’t a professional intelligence operative, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t use his head.

“Exactly. You know why I sent you to the Vendée star system as an ‘observation post’. It’s because intelligence I acquired through other channels indicated that voices of secession and independence had emerged in the Vendée system. And that during the Imperial Princess’s visit, other factions planned to make a move against her.”

“But now, the complete lack of news is what’s so abnormal.”

“Correct~”

Amber gave Randall a thumbs-up and then switched to another page of the report.

“Look here. According to the information you gathered from your close-range observation, the reinforcement fleet deployed a large number of transport ships to conduct orbital drop operations. And from what I know, Duke Artesia happens to have a ‘Sweeper’ unit that specializes in suppressing planetary riots.”

“Damn. Are you saying there’s major trouble on that planet?”

“Based on the available intelligence, that’s a pretty safe bet.”

Amber didn’t sound completely certain, though in reality, he knew the entire sequence of events, including what happened after the ‘laser harvest’.

Before the high-energy lasers had washed Rose Square in Urban’s capital with blood, cleansing the ‘mob,’ Natalia Bonaparte had already ordered the jamming vehicle in the Royal Guard escort to activate wide-area interference, blacking out the electromagnetic signals of nearly half the city district.

This wasn’t Natalia Bonaparte’s first day in the Royal Guard; she knew exactly what needed to be done before ‘getting down to business’.

Agnes had also immediately sent a distress signal to Duke Artesia and the escort fleet in orbit.

Only then did she step forward to direct the anti-air lasers to ‘cleanse’ the square.

Her escort fleet for this visit consisted of twenty-four warships of various types. From the very beginning, they had been patrolling in orbit with a ‘planetary intervention’ posture.

Four of the orbital assault ships received the signal from the ground and immediately deployed all their orbital paratroopers at maximum speed.

The drop zones were the several planetary communication base stations on Vendée VI that could contact the outside world.

As the orbital paratroopers swiftly seized control of the stations and shut down their transmitters, temporarily cutting Vendée VI off from the universe, the remaining warships blanketed the planet’s orbit with all their communication jamming pods.

The highly centralized autocratic rule demonstrated one of its rare ‘advantages’ at this moment.

The Vendée star system’s garrison fleet would never dare to interfere with what the Princess and the Royal Guard were doing. So, upon receiving the order from Agnes in her capacity as the ‘heir apparent’, they remained obediently in their moorings from start to finish.

After completing the temporary information blockade, Agnes also obtained the identity information of the ‘agitators’ and ‘Separatists’ who had been photographed by drones and snipers earlier.

Unsurprisingly, all the identities were fake, but they did lead to a hideout near Urban.

Under a surprise attack by the Royal Guard, the ‘remnants’ cornered in the hideout didn’t even have time to destroy crucial information before they were sent sky-high by multiple personal missiles.

The information fragments left at the scene pointed to the masterminds behind the conspiracy: Simon and Alvin, whom Agnes had long suspected.

After these two were captured and brought to justice, the Princess’s Guard Regiment and the orbital paratroopers, leading the planetary garrison forces, launched a heavy-handed crackdown across the planet.

A series of ‘iron fists of dictatorship’—curfews, media control, informants, collective punishment—slammed down hard on Vendée VI.

Next, tempted by high bounties, the hidden agitators and Separatists were dragged out one by one.

After all, for the common civilians, words like ‘ideals,’ ‘freedom,’ and ‘anti-imperial, anti-feudal’ were ultimately just slogans.

Only Imperial Gold Dragons in their pockets could truly improve their lives.

And Agnes clearly understood the ‘carrot and stick’ principle. While Duke Artesia’s ‘Sweeper’ unit and a hastily organized ‘secret police’ force plunged the planet into a tense state where everyone felt endangered, a series of policies aimed at improving people’s livelihoods, lowering taxes, and increasing residents’ income were announced and rapidly implemented.

Not every resident of Vendée VI wanted independence from the bottom of their hearts.

Most of them had been persuaded by others, believing that independence would lead to a better life, and had only joined the public outcry against the Empire for that reason.

But now, with the promulgation of the new policies, the tangible tax cuts had already improved their lives considerably.

Since they had already gotten the ‘thing’ they were fighting for, why should they continue to participate in life-threatening activities?

Between ‘risking your life for a tax cut of 100 credits a year’ and ‘doing nothing now and getting a tax cut of 45 credits a year,’ the choice was obvious for most people.

Even if the second option only existed because a group of people had been sliced in half by high-energy lasers…

But unfortunately for those people, the other civilians on this planet had now become ‘vested interest holders’.

Humans are selfish creatures. Under these circumstances, no one would be foolish enough to stand up and speak out for the ‘mob’ in the square.

They would only do everything in their power to protect the ‘concessions’ they had now received from the ruling class.

Besides, even in the Federation, which boasted of ‘democracy and freedom,’ the internet had no memory. This was even more true in the ‘feudal and autocratic’ Star Dragon Empire.

After Rose Square was ‘cleaned up’ again with the help of the ‘Sweeper’ unit, a massive execution platform, complete with gallows, was erected.

As the former System Governor, the planetary administrator, and a batch of captured ‘agitators,’ ‘Separatists,’ and ‘Enlightened Progressives’ were pushed onto the gallows in the morning light, the civilians, whether watching in person at Rose Square or on television and online broadcasts, jeered at the criminals convicted of ‘treason’.

“Don’t destroy our lives!”

“Long live the new policies!”

“Long live the Empire!”

Then, amidst the cheers of the crowd, guided by ‘professionals’ hidden within it, Agnes, not in a formal gown but in a rare sight—a military uniform—walked to the front of the execution platform.

Looking at the seething crowd, she unleashed her ‘Dragon’s Might’, using a loudspeaker to make her voice reverberate across Rose Square.

“Today, we will execute a group of criminals who have undermined the peace and prosperity of this planet!”

“Today, we will show those cowards hiding in the shadows, plotting to split the Empire, that under the Empire’s glorious light, there is no place for such vermin to hide!”

“The only thing that awaits them is death!”

“The Imperial Royal Family will always stand with its people, sparing no effort to fight these enemies who seek to destroy the good lives of the populace!”

“Cheer, people of the Empire, for you will witness it all with your own eyes!”

The atmosphere in Rose Square had reached its peak.

When the unified chant of “Hang them! Hang them!” became the ‘main theme’ of the square, Agnes, bathed in this intense ‘will of the people’, slowly raised her right hand.

“Execute!”

Chapter 233: Igniting the Fire in Their Hearts

A week after ‘Bloody Tuesday’, the results of the investigation report, signed in the Princess’s name, were made public.

The report detailed how System Governor Simon and Planetary Administrator Alvin had dispatched people to spread rumors and incite the masses.

It described how they had brazenly gathered a large number of armed rioters carrying dangerous weapons during the Imperial Princess’s visit, assembled the ‘deceived’ populace, and stormed Rose Square, ultimately leading to the bloody incident.

The report did not dwell on the bloodshed, brushing past it with just a few sentences, reasoning that the details were unsuitable for public viewing.

As for the death toll from the incident, it was vaguely described as ‘a large number’.

However, according to observations made by several of the Royal Guard’s ‘attack effect assessment teams’ upon arriving at the scene, the initial estimate was that over three thousand people had died directly from the high-energy laser attacks.

In addition, there was a great deal of collateral damage from trampling, stampedes, and mutual attacks in the chaos.

The total number of casualties may have exceeded four thousand.

Although the report never once mentioned the ‘Regent Prince’ by name, and Simon and Alvin—right up until the nooses were around their necks—had insisted they alone had orchestrated the entire affair, any ‘insider’ in Imperial politics who read the report carefully would find the words ‘Regent Prince’ written between the lines.

It all but pointed a finger at his nose and called him the mastermind behind the incident.

At the same time, after Simon and Alvin were hanged, a new System Governor and Planetary Administrator were appointed at light speed.

Needless to say, both new appointees were members of the Princess Faction, and staunch ones at that.

Under these circumstances, many believed that Her Highness the Princess Agnes had, in fact, turned a disaster into a blessing.

Not only had she suppressed the ‘voice of rebellion’ in the Vendée star system and temporarily eased the Vendean people’s distrust of the Royal Family, but she had also managed to place one of her own people in a crucial position like System Governor.

With human territory expanded to its current scale, the vast distances, while hindering contact between planets, allowed rulers to apply differentiated management to various population centers, achieving a kind of ‘meticulous handiwork’.

Though taxes had been slightly lowered in the Vendée star system, slightly increased tax rates in several other star systems under different pretexts were more than enough to cover the shortfall.

“As expected of Her Highness the Princess. She easily accomplished what others could not.”

In the old Manor, Regent Prince Norton II looked at the report displayed on his desk, praising her with a smile.

There was not a trace of frustration on his face over the failure of his plan.

Although Agnes had ordered the planet locked down and had done everything in her power to suppress news of ‘Bloody Tuesday,’ for Norton II, who had ‘cultivated’ the various border star systems for years and planted many pieces on the board, obtaining the details of the events of July 16th was not difficult.

“I didn’t expect you to be so relaxed. The System Governor and Planetary Administrator we bought are gone just like that. No matter how you look at it, it’s a losing deal, isn’t it?”

The Regent Prince’s childhood friend and advisor, Astral, said from his chair.

He had remembered to bring a chair with him to the study this time.

“Those two bastards got what they deserved.”

Norton II closed the report and looked at Astral.

“When I sent them the message, I made it clear: ‘Find a way to create a tangible representation of the ‘will of the people’ and apply extreme pressure. But the prerequisite is to avoid civilian bloodshed and casualties as much as possible.’”

The Regent Prince’s tone unconsciously grew heavier.

“But what did those two bastards do? Knowing full well the Royal Guard had a new commander, they still acted so rashly. Not only did they cause massive casualties, but they also gave our dear Princess a legitimate reason to conduct a purge of the star system.”

Having said his piece, Norton II slowed his pace, and he gradually calmed down.

“But this does prove one point again—people bought with money are often unreliable.”

“So what now? A fire we worked so hard to kindle was extinguished before it could even catch.”

Astral frowned, still feeling a bit resentful that the planet he had spent time setting up had been suppressed just like that.

“The fact that Her Highness the Princess extinguished the ‘fire’ with a heavy hand is actually a good thing.”

“A good thing?” Astral looked at the Regent Prince behind the desk and asked, somewhat puzzled.

“You are still blinded by what’s right in front of you, Lord Astral. It seems I’ll have to recommend you some more books next time.”

Norton II’s tone was unhurried as he spoke with a smile:

“Why was the fire on Vendée VI extinguished by such a heavy hand? Because the common people on the planet are afraid! They’re afraid the Cleaners or the Secret Police will come knocking. They’re afraid of being implicated through collective punishment. They’re afraid of ending up like those people in Rose Square.”

Astral’s eyes lit up. As Norton II’s advisor, he already understood what the Regent Prince was getting at.

“Under these circumstances, ‘fear’ and ‘anger’ are often linked. Right now, they have merely suppressed their ‘anger’ in their hearts.”

“Coupled with the new policies enacted afterwards, they’ve temporarily set aside any thoughts of resistance,” Astral added.

“Exactly. Although the unrest on Vendée VI seems to have died down, the seeds of anger have been sown. The next time the will of the people erupts, it will only be more violent.”

Norton II leaned back in his chair, the upper half of his body disappearing into the shadows.

“I should thank Her Highness for ultimately choosing the path of violent suppression. Although compared to other methods, this was a swift way to cut the Gordian knot, it’s unfortunate that this approach will only lead the Empire into a slow death. Vendée VI is by no means the last place where unrest will break out. What if a similar, or even larger, riot happens in another colony next time? Will she scour the ground with thermobaric warheads?”

Astral nodded and then said, “So, for Her Highness the Princess, Pandora’s box has been opened. What should we do?”

“Ignite that fire in the people’s hearts…” the Regent Prince’s somewhat cold voice came from the shadows.

“Other than that, we do nothing on the surface. We pull back our fists and quietly build our strength. Make the arrangements. We’ll leave for headquarters tomorrow. The two Dukes have been at the front for so long; it’s time for them to come back and rest. Weren’t the Princess’s people always complaining that we stole all the glory? If they want to go to the battlefield to earn merit and glory so badly, then let them.”

“As you command, Sir.”

Astral nodded and stood up to leave.

Then he heard Norton II add one more thing.

“Oh, and one more thing… Send a reliable person to make contact with that Mr. Amber.”

Chapter 234: You Have a New Order

Just as Amber remembered, the ‘Bloody Tuesday’ incident appeared to have almost no effect on the Empire.

At least, according to the information Randall and the others had gathered from public channels before their departure, it was still a picture of peace and prosperity.

The major media companies in the Star Dragon Empire were all controlled by the nobility.

Although media outlets partial to the Regent Prince’s faction subtly mocked the Princess for her cruelty in handling the Vendée VI incident, their reports were dismissed as the Regent Prince’s usual bashing of the Princess Faction due to the lack of concrete evidence.

But Amber knew this was merely the calm before the storm.

In the game’s timeline, the Star Dragon Empire had already entered the countdown to its schism after the ‘Bloody Tuesday’ incident.

If nothing unexpected happened, the old Emperor would fall critically ill in three months.

And the Federation’s intelligence operatives would finally prove their worth by obtaining this crucial piece of information.

Upon receiving this vital intelligence, the perennially beleaguered Federation seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to launch its largest counter-offensive since the start of the war, codenamed Operation Supernova Burst.

Fifteen of the Federation Navy’s main fleets, along with six unmanned fleets, launched an all-out assault.

Caught off guard by news from the rear, Dukes Aldesia and Hastings were thrown into disarray, unsure whether to continue their attack or withdraw to protect the Princess. They were caught flat-footed by the Federation’s fierce counterattack.

To ensure they held enough bargaining chips in the foreseeable civil war, the two dukes chose to retreat to preserve their effective strength.

On the Federation’s side, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, commander of this massive fleet, decided to press his advantage.

He ultimately seized control of two star clusters on the Empire’s border, pushing the front line into Imperial territory.

However, the two dukes of the Princess Faction, reinforced with fresh fleets and a large number of private fleets from border nobles, managed to stabilize the front and halt the Federation’s advance.

While the Princess Faction’s two main forces were tied up on the front lines, riots demanding an end to “autocratic rule” and calling for “independence” erupted almost simultaneously in multiple star systems within the Empire.

Riding this wave, the Regent Prince gathered his forces and launched an armed insurrection to force the Emperor’s abdication.

He led a large army to blockade the Capital star system and the star system the Imperial Princess was “visiting,” demanding that the Leon family voluntarily end its rule over the Empire.

At this critical juncture, the ‘Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banners,’ who had remained loyal to the Royal Family from the very beginning, stepped forward.

With the Regent Prince’s fleet surrounding the Capital star system, Prince Sorun, a key figure in the Royalist Faction, led the Celestial Fortress and a fleet of loyal nobles to forcibly break into the Capital star system, igniting a fierce battle.

Meanwhile, another group of nobles loyal to Princess Agnes seized the opportunity to rescue the Imperial Princess from the besieged star system.

“Sigh… Only three months left. If I had an infinite resources cheat, I could probably whip up a fleet in that time.”

As this chain of events flashed through his mind, Amber lay back in his office chair, spinning slowly with a touch of melancholy.

From his perspective, he certainly didn’t want the Star Dragon Empire to descend into civil war and fracture so quickly.

He wasn’t worried about how a civil war in the Empire would affect him or Atlas.

What truly concerned Amber was that Atlas wasn’t strong enough yet to make a killing from the conflict.

The best-case scenario, of course, was for him to have more time to develop, to build up enough capital to profit from the civil war. The Empire could fall into chaos later.

“If only there was a way to extend this window…”

Just as he was pondering a potential breakthrough, a soft knock came from his office door.

“Come in.”

The office door opened, and Isabelle, dressed in professional attire, walked in with another female Romu who was similarly dressed.

After the acquisitions of Marie Bay and Aura Security, Atlas had expanded into the Atlas Group. As the de facto controller of the group, Amber’s workload had naturally skyrocketed. To alleviate some of the pressure, he had no choice but to have Isabelle serve as his assistant in addition to her role as “spymaster.”

The other “cat-girl,” dressed in office wear, was the newly appointed sales supervisor for Atlas’s private military company.

Seeing her, Amber couldn’t help but recall the innocent-looking cat-girl’s rather outrageous resume.

This female Romu, named Oksana, was truly one of a kind among her people.

Her entire tribe had been wiped out in a factory explosion in the Thousand Stars Empire. Orphaned at a young age, she was adopted by a Federation couple who were on vacation near the border.

This couple had both been Federation military officers before retiring. Growing up in such a military family, Oksana, though unable to join the Federation military due to her identity, joined a private military company after coming of age and successfully rose to the position of Project Manager.

As a role that required leading and planning operations, Oksana was not only familiar with the basic operations of a private military company but was also a capable frontline combatant.

Orbital drops, boarding actions, basic infantry tactics, behind-enemy-lines infiltration, military vehicle piloting—her “personal skills” section was filled with such professional abilities.

When Atlas’s “Romu marines” started gaining attention in the Thousand Stars Empire, especially among the wider Romu population, Oksana resolutely resigned from her old company, returned to the Thousand Stars Empire, and immediately submitted her resume to Atlas.

The cat-girl’s impressive resume and personal abilities naturally caught the attention of the HR department. After a preliminary screening and a personal interview with Amber, Oksana became the sales supervisor for Atlas’s private military company.

Amber was, of course, very satisfied with this.

In terms of individual combat prowess, not a single Romu in the marines was her match. Since the core combat force of Atlas was now composed of Romu, having a Romu as the sales supervisor was a natural fit and helped maintain the corporate image. Not to mention Oksana’s skill set, which seemed tailor-made for this moment.

Looking at the cat-girl who, despite her professional attire, still subconsciously gave him a military salute, Amber smiled and asked, “What is it? Is something the matter?”

At Isabelle’s signal, Oksana took a step forward and reported, “Boss, we’ve received a response to our bid for the ‘defense contracting project’ issued by the autonomous government of the Loubion star system in the Federation last week. They’ve officially invited us to be a partner for the ‘Freedom’s Revival’ project.”

Oksana was referring to a recent bid Atlas’s private military company had placed within the Federation.

Almost at the same time ‘Bloody Tuesday’ occurred, the Federation Navy had launched a relatively large-scale counter-offensive.

The veteran Fleet Admiral Trafalgar had seized the opportunity when the Empire was deploying troops to newly occupied colonial planets to launch his attack.

Under his command, the Federation Navy had truly managed to play to its strengths and mitigate its weaknesses. Leveraging the Federation fleet’s numerical superiority and its ability to quickly replenish forces within its own territory, the Federation Navy had held a significant numerical advantage in every engagement during this period.

The Imperial fleet, not yet fully established in its new positions, was thrown into chaos by the surprise attack.

With the Fortress of Sorrow and its accompanying fleets on the verge of being encircled by a massive Federation naval force, the Duke had no choice but to abandon the ground troops he couldn’t evacuate in time, commanding his fleet to make an emergency breakout from the star system.

According to intelligence Amber had received, the Duke and Duke William, exhausted from prolonged combat, had withdrawn their fleets after this.

Dukes Aldesia and Hastings, who had been preparing for some time, arrived with their troops just in time to take their place.

Judging from the subsequent developments mentioned earlier, it was clear that the Regent Prince’s side had deliberately taken the blame for the combat setbacks. The move to have two of the Princess Faction’s dukes take their place was entirely premeditated. This rotation of forces directly tied up these two dukes on the front lines for a long time afterward, unable to extricate themselves.

Meanwhile, the Federation Navy fleet that had retaken the star system continued its advance, confronting the Imperial fleet on the new front line.

Since the Federation’s main ground forces were currently deployed around the Capital star system and in the “stronghold systems” of the ruling Federation Democratic Party, systems like Loubion, a typical stronghold of the opposition Federation Republican Party, were left to their own devices.

The Loubion star system’s defense forces weren’t particularly strong to begin with. Before the war, the system’s autonomous government had prioritized economic development over military buildup. Consequently, during the earlier Imperial invasion, both their fleet and ground forces had suffered heavy losses under the Empire’s assault. The ground troops, in particular, had been largely annihilated as organized units by Imperial orbital bombardments and ground attacks.

Faced with the current situation of Imperial remnants still entrenched on the planet, the system’s autonomous government, unwilling to further attrite the forces under its control, chose to issue a public tender, letting defense contractors and private military companies enter the planet’s meat grinder.

It was against this backdrop that Atlas’s private military company had submitted a speculative bid.

Who would have thought that they would actually win?

“This is great news~” Amber said in a relaxed tone.

Lately, while Atlas Mining and Atlas Industries were flourishing on both the mining and equipment manufacturing fronts, Atlas’s private military company had yet to receive any “thug-for-hire” orders. This had made it the only one of the group’s three subsidiaries that required financial support from the parent company.

“There’s more to this mission than just that,” Isabelle said as she stepped forward, handing a tablet to Amber.

“The Loubion autonomous government plans to contract out the post-war reconstruction work as well. The areas that each company ‘liberates’ from Imperial remnants will be the areas they can subsequently contract for reconstruction.”

Amber wasn’t surprised by what Isabelle said.

While such arrangements were still rare within the Federation, they would become increasingly common over time, especially as the Federation continued to reclaim lost territory and push back into the Empire.

At this stage, most of the larger defense contractors were subsidiaries of major corporations. Typically, these parent corporations would also have other subsidiaries qualified for “urban construction” work. Even less powerful defense companies would have long-term partners in this field. When the reconstruction phase truly began, these defense companies would receive a share of the profits from their partners.

But for Amber and Atlas, being able to legally deploy troops into Federation territory while also taking on post-war reconstruction tasks was about more than just profit. More importantly, it would allow Atlas to drive a stake into Federation territory.

“Aren’t they just inviting the wolf into the house?”

Amber smiled and handed the tablet back to Isabelle.

“Then let’s get to it. Give it our all and nail this first contract. There will be plenty more opportunities like this in the future~”

Chapter 235: The Loubion Hell Campaign, Now In Progress!

Within Federation territory, the Loubion star system.

On the colonial planet of Loubion V, at the base area of the “Heaven’s Pillar II” space elevator, three cars were completing their final deceleration, slowly settling into their berths.

As a Tier 2 planet in terms of both importance and amenities, Loubion V had a total of three large orbital elevators.

Among them, “Heaven’s Pillar II” was the largest, its overall footprint a size larger than the other two space elevators.

Compared to the “basic version” space elevators, which were built merely to get the job done, this upgraded model boasted thirty-two cars with higher transport capacity.

When Loubion was occupied by the Imperial expeditionary force, the Imperial fleet did not resort to saturation orbital bombardment on this densely populated planet.

After all, if they slaughtered all the civilians, they couldn’t colonize it very quickly.

So, the Duke adopted a “salami-slicing” tactic.

First, he annihilated most of the garrison fleet to secure the airspace.

Then, orbital paratroopers and space marines conducted a coordinated air-and-ground assault, swiftly capturing the three orbital elevators.

Finally, with the help of aerospace transports, they completed a full deployment of all personnel and equipment for three expeditionary strike divisions in a short time.

According to the Imperial Royal Army’s table of organization (rest assured, the Army has never rebelled), each expeditionary strike division commanded two armored brigade combat teams and one infantry brigade combat team.

After the troops were deployed, the battle that followed was actually very simple for the Imperial Expeditionary Strike Group, which had already achieved total space superiority.

All they had to do was send the three expeditionary divisions, nine brigade combat teams in total, to steamroll the enemy.

The autonomous government’s garrison forces on the planet’s surface were, in some ways, very similar to the private soldiers of the Imperial nobility.

According to the Federation Constitution and the Basic Law of the Nobility respectively, the size of the force corresponded to the star system’s tier or the noble’s rank, and they were responsible for forming their own troops.

They also had to cover the costs of military development, equipment, and so on.

Command of the forces belonged to the star system’s autonomous government or the noble, but they were required to answer the call of the Federation government or the Imperial Royal Family when necessary.

It was similar, very similar.

The biggest difference between the two was probably that the garrison forces of the autonomous government drew their recruits not only from the local population but also from other regions of the Federation.

At the same time, their scale was also considerably larger than that of a noble’s private army.

This also meant that the Federation’s various star system autonomous governments couldn’t pursue an “elite-focused” path like the Imperial nobles, who could afford more advanced equipment for their private soldiers.

The Federation’s local garrison forces often just used whatever the regular Federation military used, and sometimes they were even a generation behind in certain equipment.

On top of that, their training level was about the same as the troops Amber had seen on Robert IV.

Years of counter-insurgency warfare had basically degraded them to a level where they could only go toe-to-toe with rioters and guerrillas.

When facing the proper Imperial Army, especially its most powerful armored brigade combat teams, such forces were essentially “shattered on contact.”

As a Tier 2 star system, Loubion’s military development scale was higher than that of a peripheral system like Robert IV, which was Tier 3.

But it still wasn’t much.

The garrison on its colonial planet was supposed to be structured as “8+10+8.”

That is, eight heavy combined arms brigades, ten medium combined arms brigades, and eight light combined arms brigades, for a total of one hundred two thousand four hundred personnel.

But as just mentioned, that was “in theory.”

Since maintaining an army is an extremely expensive endeavor, and until the Star Dragon Empire launched its invasion, no one in the Federation saw any signs of an impending war.

Against this backdrop, and given that the star system’s autonomous government didn’t want to maintain such a massive army just for show, military development had to make way for economic development.

The original “8+10+8” structure was brutally downsized by the Loubion star system’s autonomous government to an outrageously meager “4+5+4” structure.

In terms of total troop strength, it was nearly half the size of the garrison that had been on Robert IV.

“Damn it, they were already just cadre units with crap combat effectiveness. Now they’ve been downsized to this pathetic state. If I were the commander of the Imperial Expeditionary Strike Group, I’d have hit this place too.”

Amber, who had arrived with the last batch of Atlas’s deployed forces, slumped in a command vehicle, a troubled look on his face as he reviewed the latest briefing from Lilith.

He felt his expression must have been like someone who had just taken a bite of something truly foul.

When putting out the tender, the Loubion autonomous government had slyly concealed the fact that their ground forces had been downsized.

Although Amber knew their garrison must have been decimated, his previous calculations of their remaining strength were based on a complete “8+10+8” framework.

He figured that no matter how shameless the autonomous government was, they wouldn’t go so far as to cut their own military strength; at worst, they wouldn’t be at full complement.

But now he had to admit that he had underestimated just how low their standards were.

“If what they said is true, that half the ground garrison was wiped out… Shit, there’s barely anyone left!”

Amber lay back powerlessly in the uncomfortable chair of the command vehicle, jostled by the vehicle’s movements.

If Amber had been in high spirits when he first accepted the “order” and set out for the Loubion star system with his men, now he was filled with regret. Immense regret.

“Lilith, next time something like this comes up, you have to report it sooner. Don’t wait until all my troops are deployed to tell me it’s ‘Hell difficulty’.”

“Master, while I do bear some responsibility, I believe the ridiculously low standards of this star system’s government are the direct cause of this situation. In my time with you, I’ve seen a great deal, but throughout human history, it is rare to find an entity that would voluntarily downsize its own military.”

Lilith’s voice echoed in Amber’s mind.

It was a mixture of three parts apology, three parts grievance, and four parts sheer amazement.

“Fine, I guess you’ve learned something new then. Hopefully, it adds a new sample to your research on humanity.”

Amber had calmed down now. They were already here, so he might as well assess the situation first.

If things went south, there was still a combat detachment of ten warships in orbit around Loubion V, and another fleet on silent standby in deep space.

Worst case scenario, he would have Cleves command the fleet to seize the spaceport, and he would lead his men to fight their way to the space elevator from the ground and evacuate.

It wasn’t the first time he’d done something like that, anyway.

“Lilith, so the other companies that won the bid don’t know the true state of the ground forces?”

“That’s correct. The Loubion autonomous government has not disclosed this information. I only found out after I arrived and ‘curiously’ took a look inside their database.”

As Lilith spoke, she projected a report stamped with “Top Secret” onto Amber’s tactical faceplate.

“Even within the Loubion autonomous government, only a few senior officials know how many people are actually left in the ground garrisons.”

“Hiss… In that case, I hope the other companies don’t find out. Otherwise, I suspect morale will collapse before the fighting even starts.”

Amber opened another report, this one detailing the other companies participating in “Freedom’s Revival.”

This defense contracting tender was a massive project, even by Federation standards.

Including Atlas, a total of fifteen private military companies and defense contractors had won bids.

Over the past period, these companies had deployed a combined total of over one hundred twenty thousand combat troops to the planet.

Atlas’s contribution was a 3,000-strong combat force composed of two Romu battalions, the instructor squad, and some former Aura Security combat personnel, along with every operational ground combat vehicle they had.

At the same time, they had drawn a number of pilots and prep teams with ground combat experience from the various warships, plus thirty HCPs modified for ground warfare, to form an HCP Heavy Armor Battalion.

On paper, they were probably the company with the smallest number of deployed troops among the fifteen.

But on-paper strength didn’t necessarily reflect actual combat power.

After reading the report, Amber opened the top hatch of the command vehicle and leaned his upper body out.

Behind him, the colossal space elevator shot straight into the sky, its upper section vanishing into the clouds like a miracle of the gods.

Before him was a dilapidated highway.

Atlas’s last deployed convoy was currently heading along this road to a predetermined assembly point to rendezvous with the others.

As a major artery for the planet’s off-world transport, the roads near the space elevator should never have been in such a state of disrepair.

But after driving off the Imperial expeditionary fleet, the Federation Navy, in an effort to help the Loubion garrison retake the space elevator, had conducted multiple orbital strikes against the Imperial forces near the three “Pillars of Heaven.” They had also sent in orbital paratroopers to carry out a surgical strike on the space elevator’s base area.

The surviving ground garrison troops seized the opportunity to attack. With the orbital paratroopers striking from the heart of the enemy’s position, they routed the defenders near the space elevator.

Although the Imperial ground forces attempted a counterattack, hoping to drive the Federation troops away again, the Federation fleet, which now controlled space, guided a new series of orbital strikes. Directed by numerous elite combat control teams deep behind enemy lines, these strikes thwarted the Imperial advance and inflicted significant casualties.

However, that was as far as the Federation’s main force went.

After recovering their orbital paratroopers and combat control teams, the Federation Navy fleet immediately departed the Loubion star system, heading to another Imperial-held system to press their advantage.

The Loubion autonomous government, which had been waiting to retake the entire planet in one fell swoop, was left dumbfounded.

And that was what led to the subsequent defense contracting tender.

Looking at the ruined highway and the craters in the distance, which were clearly the work of tactical surface-to-surface missiles, Amber was at least thankful that the Federation Navy had conducted orbital strikes to clear out a “landing zone.”

Otherwise, Atlas, which currently lacked the capability for large-scale orbital drops, might not have been able to participate in the “Freedom’s Revival” operation at all.

“Well, we’re here now. It’d be a real waste not to make a killing from this fight!”

Chapter 236: When the Campaign Commander is a “Little Genius”

At a location one hundred and forty kilometers from the space elevator was the 13th temporary camp of the First Battle Group in the “Freedom’s Revival” combat operation.

Due to the persistent threat of orbital strikes, the remnants of the Imperial forces had all retreated to the vicinity of cities, with some even hiding directly within them.

The nearest detected Imperial unit was in the outskirts of a city one hundred and ten kilometers away.

At this range, the 155mm self-propelled artillery of the Armored Brigade Combat Team, as well as the 155mm dual-purpose electrothermal-chemical cannons equipped on some heavy multi-legged war machines, posed little threat.

Although long-range strike assets like loitering munitions had continuously harassed the camp over the past few days, they were almost all intercepted by the high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles and HCPs.

As for the only truly threatening weapons—long-range rockets and tactical missiles—they weren’t part of the Armored Brigade Combat Team’s standard equipment, and their deployment priority was relatively low.

Thus, the Imperial expeditionary fleet hadn’t even had time to deploy them.

Moreover, since their supply lines had been cut, the Imperial remnants were unwilling to waste ammunition, so the intensity of their attacks had noticeably decreased in recent days.

This was why the First Battle Group’s temporary camps dared to be so brazenly established in open areas using ‘rapid wall construction technology.’

The so-called “First Battle Group” was actually a coalition force composed of the seven private military companies and local garrison troops deployed to the surface via Heaven’s Pillar II.

According to a campaign plan devised by some “little genius,” the fifteen victorious PMCs were divided into groups of four, seven, and four, and deployed to the three continents of Loubion V via the three orbital elevators.

The seven companies Amber belonged to formed the First Battle Group, which was also the strongest of the three battle groups in terms of overall strength.

And according to this ‘genius’ campaign plan, the First Battle Group would serve as the main attacking force, engaging the main body of the Imperial army on their continent.

Because Heaven’s Pillar II had the greatest transport capacity of the three space elevators, the forces it deployed were the largest on any of the three continents.

The Second and Third Battle Groups, after completing their ‘cleanup’ operations on the other two continents, would quickly redeploy to form a pincer movement with the First Battle Group.

“Banninger, which fucking idiot came up with this plan? I really want to shove it in his face.”

Walking through the 14th temporary camp, Amber’s face turned black with rage as he looked at the grand strategy for Operation ‘Freedom’s Revival’ on his terminal.

“Boss, I heard this plan was formulated by the overall campaign commander, who is also the commander of the First Battle Group, Rear Admiral Benjamin. I attended a meeting at the Joint Operations Command before you arrived, Boss, and I met him,” Banninger said, walking beside Amber in his combat exoskeleton, fully armed.

He and the veterans of his instructor squad had also grown deeply concerned over the past two days after witnessing the combat readiness of their allied forces.

“Benjamin? The commander of the Loubion V garrison? The same moron who sent his combined arms brigades in one by one as piecemeal reinforcements, losing half his forces in the process?”

“Yes, Boss.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

Entering a prefabricated building serving as a temporary command post, Amber plopped down onto a chair. Its reinforced structure allowed soldiers wearing exoskeletons to sit and rest.

“Who gave him the courage to think that the troops of these private military companies could go head-to-head with the Empire’s expeditionary forces?”

Amber stared blankly at the ceiling of the temporary command post.

“Sure, maybe these PMCs have advanced weapons and equipment, and they look combat-effective. But how many years has it been since the Federation military itself fought a proper war? Even the regular army has pathetically little real combat experience, to say nothing of these private military companies or defense contractors. Don’t these PMC troops, just like the planetary garrisons, spend their days getting lost in pacification warfare?”

Listening to Amber, Banninger nodded in agreement.

He was one of the first Atlas combat personnel deployed, so he had become familiar with the situation on Loubion V. Furthermore, he had faced the Imperial army on Robert V and naturally knew their combat capabilities. Even if Amber hadn’t said it, he could see that this ‘cobbled together’ force from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government was no match for the Imperial remnants.

“The only good news I’ve heard since I arrived is probably that the Empire didn’t have time to deploy their long-range fire support units. Otherwise, we might have been bombed long ago.”

Hearing Banninger’s words, Amber managed a wry smile, finding humor in their bleak situation.

“The bad news is, neither do we.”

“Hahahahaha!”

The two ‘veterans’ of the Robert IV campaign couldn’t help but roar with laughter in the temporary command post.

The two Romu marines standing guard outside heard the laughter from within and were puzzled. The two officers had gone in with dark faces, so why were they now laughing so hard?

However, nearly half a year of training had taught them to suppress such inappropriate curiosity.

“Alright, enough laughing. Let’s get down to business.”

Amber activated the command post’s holographic projection platform, displaying a map of Loubion V.

“Right now, on this continent, we’re facing the most combat-effective of the Imperial remnants.”

He pointed to the largest continent on Loubion V, where the Atlas forces were located, and continued:

“According to intelligence, the other two continents each have only one armored brigade combat team and one infantry brigade combat team. That means we’re up against four armored brigade combat teams and one infantry brigade combat team. Although they took some casualties from the orbital strikes, I doubt they were crippled. Including their previous combat losses, they’ve lost less than fifteen percent at the very most.”

As he spoke, unit markers representing enemy forces appeared on the holographic map, along with their corresponding organizational information.

“Even assuming a fifteen percent loss, our so-called ‘First Battle Group’ still has to face Imperial ‘remnants’ consisting of over eighty HCPs, over two hundred heavy multi-legged war machines or main battle tanks, over five hundred infantry fighting vehicles or armored personnel carriers, plus more than five thousand five hundred mobile infantry. And that’s not even counting their other combat personnel, self-propelled artillery, combat sappers, and various support units.”

The force structures of the Federation and the Empire were no secret; one could find a general overview just by browsing a military forum. Not to mention, Amber had Lilith gathering data for him, giving him an even clearer understanding of both sides’ main force compositions.

“Boss, so you’re saying this battle will be very difficult, or that there’s a risk of failure?” Banninger’s voice was grim. After seeing the unit markers and the dense tables of organization, he realized the problem might be even more severe than he had thought.

“Not necessarily failure… but it will definitely be very difficult.”

Amber manipulated the holographic platform again, placing a fleet icon above the planet model and displaying the unit markers for the “First Battle Group” near Heaven’s Pillar II.

“We’re not completely without advantages. At least on paper, our strength is much greater than the Empire’s, and we have the fleet above for orbital strike support. Anyway, call the instructor squad and the command staff of the two battalions. Let’s have a short meeting to quickly go over the situation.”

“Understood, Boss!”

The impromptu meeting didn’t last long, ending in less than twenty minutes.

The command staff of this Atlas combat unit finally understood the current situation.

The coalition of PMCs and garrison forces held an absolute advantage in on-paper numbers, along with fire and intelligence support from the fleet in orbit. Having secured the three space elevators, they also didn’t have to worry about supplies for the time being.

As for the Imperial ‘remnants’ on Loubion V, although they were outnumbered, their combat effectiveness was leagues beyond that of the coalition forces.

Amber felt that under normal circumstances, those enemy brigade combat teams could shatter the coalition in minutes, and the combat loss ratio would be absolutely spectacular.

Unfortunately for them, these were not ‘normal circumstances.’

The biggest problem the Imperial remnants faced was the lack of any high-level fire support and battlefield intelligence, as well as the complete absence of resupply.

Food and water were manageable; they could always find ways to procure those locally. Various batteries could be slowly recharged using the subcritical reactors on their HCPs and mobile power vehicles.

But ammunition and fuel were truly irreplaceable. Every round fired was one less they would ever have.

“That’s the situation. While it’s not dire, it’s certainly not something we can just coast through. I hope you will all go back and get your subordinates mentally prepared. Prepare for a hard fight in the first large-scale battle. But don’t feel too burdened. I’m here on the front lines with you, so what is there to be afraid of, right?”

After the meeting, everyone, including Banninger, quickly dispersed, leaving Amber alone in the temporary command post.

Randall had not come with him this time, instead remaining at the Asteroid Base to coordinate its construction with George.

Isabelle had also been ordered by Amber to stay in orbit; she and her intelligence analysis team were of little use in a ground battle.

So, for a rare moment, Amber was truly alone.

But he didn’t mind. He continued to study the intelligence on the Imperial remnants.

To be honest, facing only armored and infantry brigade combat teams was actually a better scenario. They weren’t dealing with the more agile mobile brigade combat teams, which could harass and harry them across the battlefield.

The Star Dragon Empire Royal Army’s expeditionary divisions, which had yet to complete their military reforms, also lacked division-level extended-range artillery and tactical missile units—long-range assets that could pose a serious threat to the coalition.

More importantly, there were no orbital assault ships ‘laying eggs’ overhead.

Although Amber was always a little worried that the Empire’s expeditionary fleet wouldn’t abandon the three expeditionary divisions on Loubion V so easily and might come back at any time, he felt his luck probably wasn’t that bad. Besides, the Federation Navy had already established local numerical superiority. Even if they couldn’t defeat the Imperial fleet, they could stall them.

Under these circumstances, as long as the coalition command wasn’t moronic enough to attempt a head-on assault and instead chose to “dig in and fight a war of attrition,” they could eventually wear down these cut-off Imperial remnants.

“They’re not that moronic, are they?”

Chapter 237: Joint Command

“I’m the real moron. I can’t believe I actually thought these guys would methodically blockade and advance.”

During a remote meeting of the joint command, composed of the senior commanders from three battle groups, Amber stared at the coalition commander—Rear Admiral Benjamin—with an expression of someone who had lost the will to live as the man laid out the battle plan.

This was the commander who had lost nearly half the garrison force on Loubion V, yet he was still supremely confident that with superior numbers and orbital fire support, the coalition forces could easily annihilate the Imperial remnants and retake the lost territory.

“No matter how you look at it, this operation is one hundred eighty thousand against forty thousand. The advantage is ours!”

Standing before the massive screen in the coalition ground command center, Benjamin punched the air forcefully, looking to be in incredibly high spirits.

He didn’t look like someone who had just suffered a major defeat at all.

“Commanders of the private military companies and defense contractors present, you all know the contents of the contracts you signed with the star system’s autonomous government, so I’ll be blunt.

The faster you fight and the more territory you control, the sooner you can begin the reconstruction work. I don’t need to elaborate on the profits involved—you all know what I’m talking about.”

Everyone in the conference room, aside from Amber, broke into knowing smiles.

Wasn’t this the reason they bid for this combat mission in the first place? To secure contracts for post-war reconstruction in more areas and squeeze out as much profit as possible?

As the joint command headquarters reveled in this “harmonious and happy” atmosphere, Rear Admiral Benjamin noticed Amber, whose worried face made him stand out from the crowd.

He mentally reviewed the companies in the First Battle Group and finally remembered that this man was ‘Rebil’ from Atlas Private Military Company.

“Mr. Rebil!”

Benjamin called his name loudly, waving a hand.

His gesture quickly drew everyone else’s attention to the company commander sitting in the corner.

“You look deeply troubled. Are you worried you won’t control enough territory after the battle?”

Benjamin’s words immediately elicited undisguised laughter from the others, and some even began to jeer.

“Don’t worry, Rear Admiral. Thunder Defense will be sure to share a piece of territory with… whatever this company is!”

“Look at you, Thunder Defense, so generous! Why not share a piece with me too?”

“Hahahahaha!”

Listening to the jeers around him, Amber shook his head and said, “Aren’t you all being a little too optimistic about the upcoming battle?”

As soon as he said this, people immediately began to argue.

“One hundred eighty thousand troops against forty thousand, plus orbital support from the fleet, and we can’t be optimistic?”

“Exactly! They’re just a handful of remnants. After the initial fire preparation, one full-scale assault will probably be enough to make them collapse!”

Amber glanced at the two men who had spoken, silently memorizing the names of their companies.

When the attack actually began, he would be sure not to follow behind either of them.

Although these people were dismissive of his concerns, Amber decided to warn his ‘allies’ anyway. It was the least he could do.

“That’s right, we have a huge numerical advantage, and we have fire support from orbital assault ships.

But I still want to remind you all that the Imperial fleet destroyed nearly ninety percent of the satellites in orbit before they withdrew. Although the garrison fleet and various company fleets have been rushing to deploy new satellites these past few days, the progress is not encouraging.

Why don’t you all take out your terminals? Take a look and see how many satellites your personal and command terminals can even connect to?”

“And that’s just communications satellites, not to mention reconnaissance satellites. There were few to begin with, and for the time being, we can’t count on them at all.

Our intelligence on the movements of the Imperial remnants has no real-time value whatsoever!”

Amber scanned the faces in the conference room and continued, “Can anyone here accurately state the current position of even a single Imperial remnant unit?

No. You’re all just waiting for the offensive to formally begin so you can conduct an ‘armed parade’ all the way there, assuming the Imperial remnants will quickly collapse under your attack.

And someone just mentioned orbital strike fire support. Do you know how long it takes for the orbital assault ship above our heads to complete one orbit? Ninety minutes!

What if the Imperial remnants, like a cornered beast lashing out, gather their forces and charge our encirclement head-on? I ask you, which company here is confident it can hold its line against an attack from multiple brigade combat teams?”

Amber’s rapid-fire barrage of questions silenced the entire conference room.

Just as he had thought before, these private armies, accustomed to pacification warfare, had absolutely no concept of a war between nations.

“Tch, a small company will always be a small company, making a big fuss over nothing here,” a disdainful voice piped up in the room. It was the commander from Thunder Defense.

Amber actually had an impression of this company. Among the Federation’s current private military forces, Thunder Defense consistently ranked in the top three.

With the arms manufacturing giant, Thunder Industries, bankrolling it, Thunder Defense had always maintained an image of being a big spender in the industry.

This “Freedom’s Revival” operation was no exception.

Not only did they directly deploy forces equivalent to four combined arms brigades, making them the ‘leader’ among the fifteen companies, they were also very ‘generous’ in building temporary camps for the other companies in the First Battle Group.

To be fair, Amber had to give them credit for that.

But right now, the words of this Thunder Defense commander were anything but polite.

“Rear Admiral Benjamin, if you’re going to be this cautious about fighting some starving Imperial remnants, I suggest you stop hiring such small companies in the future. They have no guts at all.

Why are they even running a defense company? Wouldn’t it be better for them to just find something else to do?”

With this ‘talent’ leading the charge, the disdain and mockery directed at Amber grew.

Seeing the meeting was about to derail, Rear Admiral Benjamin calmed everyone down, then looked at Amber and said, “How about this, Mr. Rebil? I’ll put your Atlas group at the rear of the attack formation. That should put your mind at ease.”

“Whatever.”

Amber couldn’t be bothered to talk to these people anymore. He simply looked at the dreaming commanders as if they were already dead.

“Cleves, these are direct orders for you. Have the attack detachment in orbit and the fleet on standby in deep space prepare. As soon as you receive my signal, I want you to take Heaven’s Pillar II immediately and cover the withdrawal of our ground forces.”

After the meeting, while Banninger drove him back to their temporary camp in an all-terrain vehicle, Amber used a communications satellite in geostationary orbit to contact the fleet orbiting the planet.

“Understood, Boss.”

Cleves, on the screen, gave a salute, then asked cautiously, “Boss, the battle hasn’t started yet, has it?”

“It hasn’t, but our allies are rather outrageous. I’m very worried that once the offensive starts, they’ll be instantly crushed by the Imperial remnants.”

“…”

After ending his communication with the fleet, Amber opened a new report compiled by Lilith.

The contents of the report were simple: Atlas Industries had completed the design and finalization of a batch of vehicles. They were preparing to produce a batch of ‘combat-test products’ as per Amber’s request, to be rushed to Loubion V.

Even before Atlas had won the contract bid, Amber had used the company’s spare capital to have the Financial Operations Department complete the acquisition of two equipment manufacturing companies that were destined to become megacorporations in the game’s future.

One was the ‘United Engine Company’, which produced various conventional combat vehicles. In the game’s timeline, it would have another name—United Dynamics. Its product line would encompass nearly all of the Federation Army’s next-generation ground vehicle replacements, with the exception of HCPs.

The other was the nearly bankrupt GIAT Group.

When the team from the Financial Operations Department told Amber they had acquired the GIAT Group at a rock-bottom price, he could hardly believe it.

The very first thing he did after all the paperwork was finalized was to have someone find an HCP designer at the GIAT Group’s HCP research and development center.

When he saw the HCP design schematics in the designer’s hands, named ‘Aegis’, Amber knew the next generation of standardized HCPs for Atlas was settled.

After these two companies were merged into Atlas Industries, besides maintaining their own basic production, their design teams immediately began rapid development based on the needs of Atlas’s combat forces.

With the computing power provided by Lilith, they had finally managed to churn out a batch of ‘combat-test products’ at this critical juncture.

“The timing is just perfect. Lilith, draft an urgent email in my name. Tell Atlas Industries to hurry up and send this batch of ‘combat-test products’ over. If they make it in time, we might even get to field-test them in actual combat.”

“Understood, Master. I’ll send it right away!”

By now, the all-terrain vehicle had returned to Temporary Camp 13, where the Atlas combat forces were stationed.

After sending Banninger and the instructor squad to coordinate the entire force’s pre-battle preparations, Amber slipped into a disguised command vehicle and switched on the onboard command terminal.

To adapt to the upcoming battle, Atlas’s combat forces had recently undergone a round of reorganization.

The three thousand personnel who had arrived on Loubion V, supplemented by combat vehicles from emergency procurement, were now organized into a combination of two heavy combined arms battalions, two medium combined arms battalions, and one fire support battalion, barely reaching the scale of a mixed combined arms brigade.

But the problem was that they were all combat battalions, severely lacking in combat support troops.

Amber had wanted to form a separate brigade support battalion, but he couldn’t gather enough professional technical specialists or specialized vehicles in such a short time.

So, he simply scrapped the plan for that support battalion and used its intended assets to reinforce the various combat battalions.

As for the plan to reestablish dedicated support and sustainment battalions, that would have to wait for the arrival of follow-up forces and vehicles.

Chapter 238: Brother, That’s a Sweet Drone You’ve Got

Loubion V, Central Continent.

Longitude 113° E, Latitude 22° N, at an altitude of 18,000 meters.

A drone with a 40-meter wingspan and a blended wing body design was gliding through the high altitude with a stable, elegant posture.

Possessing all-aspect, wide-band stealth capabilities, it moved through the skies above this continent as if entering an unmanned territory.

Even so, as the stealth reconnaissance drone approached a red-marked area on its navigation map, it began to slightly adjust its attitude and turn, refraining from conducting the penetrating reconnaissance it excelled at.

Its flight path showed it skimming the very edge of this red zone.

Its wingtips created two almost imperceptible vortices as its fuselage tilted slightly to the left, revealing the low-visibility paint on its ‘belly’.

The optical/infrared composite reconnaissance unit hidden within the fuselage’s optical window promptly began its routine photography work.

Simultaneously, the onboard Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) system was activated, scanning for any suspicious electromagnetic signals within range.

Whenever the ELINT system picked up a suspicious radio frequency signal from the ground, the Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI) and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems would also activate to check the target area for any suspicious units.

During this process, the stealthy ‘great bat’ successively discovered several highly suspicious targets.

However, after analysis by the onboard AI, it was determined that they were likely decoys set up specifically to lure the drone into conducting higher-precision active detection.

Since the onboard AI’s orders before takeoff were to conduct a forward reconnaissance mission while ‘ensuring its own absolute safety’, the AI ultimately adopted a conservative strategy.

It merely recorded the approximate coordinates of the suspicious targets and did not power on its radar for a more detailed search.

Throughout this entire process, the stealth reconnaissance drone maintained Silent Running, making no contact with its operator back at base. Instead, it followed its pre-planned flight path under the control of its onboard navigation AI.

As it finally carved a massive arc in the sky and completed a 180-degree turn to head back toward its airfield, the onboard computer began organizing the information it had just gathered, making it easier for intelligence operatives and staff officers to conduct a preliminary analysis.

Half an hour later, the massive ‘bat’ landed at a civilian airport, which also served as the location of the First Battle Group’s joint command center.

Under the fully automated control of its onboard AI, the ‘great bat’ came to a precise stop at its parking position, shut down its engines, and was promptly towed into a hangar by a tow tractor.

Several ground crew members in combat suits, with Atlas patches on their right arms, immediately swarmed it with various instruments and ground lines, beginning post-flight preparations and maintenance.

Meanwhile, in the airport terminal, which had been converted into a field command post, Amber and a crowd of his staff officers stood before a massive holographic projection platform, reviewing the intelligence the drone had transmitted in advance upon entering safe airspace.

Not far from the holographic platform, a group of people in a motley assortment of combat suits and service uniforms were craning their necks in this direction like a pack of hyenas.

If it weren’t for a few fully armed Romu infantrymen blocking their way, staring them down with murderous glares, this pack of ‘hyenas’ would have likely pounced long ago.

“Seriously, I never thought I’d see a pack of hyenas in an airport terminal. I thought those things only lived on Blue Star, and that they went extinct a long time ago.”

Amber said in a bantering tone, his eyes fixed on the holographic projection platform.

The Atlas staff officers around him couldn’t help but chuckle softly at his words.

Soon, with Lilith’s assistance, Amber and his staff finished processing the data transmitted back by the RQ-220 ‘Observer’ stealth drone and compiled it into a useful intelligence report.

He straightened up, stretched his back, and sent a signal on the internal communication channel. The Romu infantrymen in the distance immediately stepped aside.

The waiting liaison officers from the remnants of the Planetary Defense Force and the various corporations immediately rushed over with the same enthusiasm as if the mess hall doors had just opened.

Just as they were about to swarm Amber, they all suddenly remembered the last time he had knocked all twenty-plus of them to the ground with a single psionic blast, and they screeched to a halt.

The scene looked as if there was an invisible force field in front of Amber.

Looking at the ‘starving’ and ‘eagerly-waiting’ liaison officers, Amber clicked his tongue in annoyance, then used his terminal’s ‘face-to-face broadcast’ function to send out the intelligence.

Although all units in the coalition forces were equipped with the military network and datalinks, and all were developed based on the Federation’s ‘Link-77’ datalink and command-and-control system, the various corporations still had significant differences in system details and interface protocols. Some companies had API protocols that were exceptionally complex, making life miserable for everyone’s technical officers.

So even after successfully networking, the forces of the different companies could still only manage basic communication and on-the-spot coordinated combat command.

Things like intelligence and information distribution or sharing map and terrain data were, for the time being, impossible.

And this kind of important intelligence couldn’t just be casually shared by ‘making a group chat’.

Therefore, for now, tasks like sharing intelligence could only be done face-to-face after verifying each other’s access keys.

“Did you all get it?”

“Got it! We got it! Thank you, Boss Rebil!”

“We’d be lost without you!”

“Boss Rebil, this drone of yours is the real deal!”

The liaison officers, having received the files, were all beaming, bowing and scraping to Amber and his staff.

Although their respective field commanders all seemed to look down on Atlas at the moment, these liaison officers, as the people who had the most contact with Atlas these past few days, had a different opinion than their superiors.

Not only did the company’s supreme leader come to the front lines to fight alongside his troops, but Atlas’s combat units were also the most well-prepared of all the coalition forces.

While they lacked support and logistics troops, in other aspects—especially tactical reconnaissance—they were practically in a different league from the rest of the coalition.

In the past few days of preparing for the offensive, large-scale forward reconnaissance had been accomplished almost entirely by Atlas’s two RQ-220 ‘Observer’ stealth drones flying high-intensity shifts around the clock.

The roots of this situation could be traced back to after the first operational meeting of the coalition command.

At the time, the coalition’s high command believed that since their own satellites were in orbit, they would be sufficient. Even though there were fewer than before, they still had satellites in the sky.

So the coalition command quickly tasked two reconnaissance satellites to survey the First Battle Group’s direction of attack.

But when the high-resolution radar images generated by the reconnaissance satellites’ Synthetic Aperture Radar were transmitted back, the coalition commanders were all dumbfounded.

The Imperial remnants clearly knew the coalition would use satellites for reconnaissance.

After using professional orbital surveillance vehicles to determine the approximate overpass times of the coalition’s reconnaissance satellites, they used ground-based electronic warfare jammers to interfere with the satellites’ SAR.

The result, naturally, was highly effective.

After all, although SAR could generate high-resolution radar imagery comparable to optical satellite reconnaissance, it was still, fundamentally, a radar.

This meant that as long as the jammer’s power was strong enough, SAR could be blinded, even in space.

While this jamming did let the coalition know that there were definitely Imperial troops in the jammed area, without knowing their numbers, composition, or specific locations, they couldn’t conduct an orbital strike.

This was a material world, and orbital strikes weren’t ‘magic’ that could be called down with the press of a button.

It was bad enough that there were no forward combat control teams for close-range guidance. Without even a relatively precise set of coordinates, asking an orbital assault ship to lower its orbit to attack was a useless endeavor.

Moreover, such a large area was clearly beyond the scope of what the eight orbital assault ships in orbit could ‘scour the ground’.

Of course, dropping a few thermonuclear weapons would certainly solve the problem.

But no sane person would do that.

Then, the coalition high command, which in Amber’s opinion had been driven stupid by fighting pacification warfare, came up with a ‘genius’ idea.

On the very first day this idea was put into action as a formal order, two of the planet’s few remaining high-speed manned reconnaissance aircraft took off from the airport in the morning and never returned.

In their final communications before losing contact, both had, without exception, reported being detected by ground radar and then being hit by a high-energy laser while in supersonic cruise.

These high-speed two-seater manned reconnaissance aircraft could traverse a warzone at Mach 5 to conduct forced reconnaissance. In total, only three squadrons of them were deployed on this planet.

They were primarily used in emergency situations to quickly reach areas with anomalies for close-range observation.

In normal times, when dealing with the planet’s rioters or armed rebellions, they were invincible. Much of the time, the people on the ground would at most hear the boom of them breaking the sound barrier, without ever even catching a glimpse of the high-speed reconnaissance planes.

Unfortunately, their opponent now was the regular army of the Empire.

‘Before the speed of light, everyone is equal.’

In an era where directed-energy weapons filled the skies, the survival rate of atmospheric air units was not looking good.

After losing valuable reconnaissance planes and pilots, the coalition command gave up on the idea of sending out more high-speed recon aircraft.

Instead, they made multiple attempts to send high-altitude, low-speed, long-endurance reconnaissance drones.

But it was essentially like throwing meat buns at a dog—a one-way trip.

For high-energy lasers and HCP charged particle cannons, shooting down such high-altitude, slow-moving targets was like shooting fish in a barrel.

Furthermore, the Imperial remnants on Loubion V were clearly well-prepared in this regard. Their air surveillance was extremely thorough, and the non-stealthy high-altitude drones were easily detected.

Although the various companies and defense forces on the coalition side had a fair number of drones, they still couldn’t withstand having them swatted out of the sky like mosquitoes day after day.

Seeing that their respective reconnaissance drone inventories were basically hitting rock bottom, the coalition command didn’t dare send any more drones out to their deaths.

But with a full-scale offensive about to launch, they couldn’t just forgo combat reconnaissance. They couldn’t very well have their troops charge headfirst into the ‘fog of war’.

It was at this moment that Amber and Atlas stepped forward with the RQ-220s.

Because Amber had always been a man who believed in being prepared, he had paid close attention to reconnaissance capabilities ever since suffering from a lack thereof on Robert IV.

So when he brought his troops to Loubion V this time, he had specifically brought along two of the stealth drones he had ordered.

The purpose was precisely to find a way to maintain forward reconnaissance in high-risk, high-pressure situations.

Chapter 239: Taking a Stand, Just Waiting for You

Were RQ-220 ‘Observer’ stealth drones rare?

Of course not. Whether in the Federation or the Empire, the technology for them was no longer a secret. Any reasonably large drone manufacturer could produce them.

So why hadn’t any of the other companies thought to bring a couple to use?

Was it because they were stupid and didn’t know how useful they were?

In Amber’s view, they were indeed stupid.

But that didn’t mean these private military companies and defense contractors, who made a living from combat, were unaware of the advantages of stealth drones.

The main reason they hadn’t thought to bring any was that their thinking was still muddled by years of pacification warfare.

For them, on previous combat missions, regular high-altitude, long-endurance drones were perfectly sufficient for monitoring the operational area.

No matter how badass the rioters were, armed with various personal weapons, anti-armor weapons, or even crude electromagnetic cannons, and no matter how elusive they were in street fighting, causing endless headaches for everyone…

…they still couldn’t shoot down a drone flying at an altitude of twenty thousand meters.

Since nothing could threaten a high-altitude, long-endurance drone, using them was good enough.

Although human industrial manufacturing had advanced to a point where even stealth drone prices had plummeted—calling them dirt cheap wouldn’t be an exaggeration—the problem was that regular high-altitude, long-endurance drones had also become even cheaper, costing just a tenth of their stealth counterparts.

Since both types of drones produced the same result for these private military companies and defense contractors, the choice was a no-brainer. They would always opt for the cheaper one.

After all, they fought wars for profit.

The stealth drone issue was just a microcosm of the current state of human military theory and technology; there were many similar examples.

Moreover, both the Federation and the Empire were surprisingly aligned on many of their operational decisions.

For example, both had massively downsized the tactical air forces within their planetary garrisons, retaining only a few attack aircraft for ground support to strike rebels and insurgents who lacked anti-air weaponry.

Another example was the near-total elimination of ground-based thermonuclear weapons. Whether in silos or on TIE vehicles, they were basically all decommissioned.

The reasoning was simple: If the entire planet is under our control, who are we even trying to deter with these “big babies”?

And if an enemy did attack, those immobile “wind turbines” would be nothing but sitting ducks for an orbital assault ship. The survivability of TIE vehicles wasn’t as great as imagined either, as they could be easily countered.

For these reasons and more, the combat units of the Federation, the Empire, and even the distant Commercial Alliance—with the exception of their naval fleets—had all developed in a relatively lopsided fashion.

This was especially true after the widespread adoption of directed-energy weapons, which changed many tactics and strategies.

At least in the “wars” the Federation and the Empire had faced in the last few decades, they were up against so-called rebels, rioters, and insurgents with mediocre equipment, middling morale, and even worse combat skills.

Often, a single charge by the HCPs of a combined arms unit was enough, followed by using heavy particle cannons to destroy any potentially threatening enemy units.

Against an enemy composed almost entirely of infantry with a few armored units, their morale would typically shatter.

The follow-up troops were usually left with the tasks of cleaning up the battlefield and rounding up prisoners.

Compared to these enemies who dared to face regular forces head-on, both the Federation and Imperial ground troops were far more afraid of those who hid in cities, intermingled with civilians.

This kind of fighting, so similar to pacification warfare, would have a devastating impact on both a unit’s morale and its tactical proficiency if it dragged on for too long.

After the liaison officers left in high spirits, Amber resumed studying the reconnaissance intelligence gathered over the past few days with his operations staff officers.

Among these officers were Mobile Infantry who had fought their way out of Robert IV with him, personnel handpicked from the original Aura Security, and finally, a few tall, sturdy, and rather simple-looking Romu.

Their common characteristic, aside from being familiar with basic ground combat like everyone else, was that their minds were relatively more agile, and they grasped macro-level operational command more quickly.

This was particularly true for the few who had previously worked for Aura Security; their original posts were as tactical staff officers.

So, in addition to assisting Amber with tactical planning, they also had to find time to tutor the others.

Especially the Romu.

After all, the human combat personnel in Atlas private military company mostly had prior service experience and had picked up some knowledge of tactical command through osmosis.

But the Romu were different.

Before coming to Atlas, the minds of these Furballs were likely filled with things like gourmet food, bartending, singing and dancing, various points of etiquette, elf culture, totem poles, and procreation.

For them, tactical command was truly starting from scratch.

Even though these few Romu by Amber’s side had been selected from a pool of nearly two thousand as the ones with “relatively sharper minds,” their progress in learning tactical command still lagged far behind the others.

However, to Amber’s relief, these Furballs showed a high level of interest in the business of “marching and fighting.”

And interest, as it happens, is the best teacher.

He often saw the Furballs assigned to the command center bringing some Romu “specialties” to ask for guidance from the other staff officers during their free time.

Thanks to the Furballs’ simple and honest nature, the other operations staff in the command center also looked out for them.

Amber, in particular, would always start by questioning these few Romu first.

“This is the enemy’s general deployment based on the ‘Observer’s’ close-range reconnaissance over the past few days.”

Amber displayed an electronic sand table on the holographic projection platform, which roughly marked the distribution of the Imperial remnants, their presumed screening directions, and areas the stealth drones had not yet entered.

“Everyone take a good look. We’ll speak in order… Hmm, let’s start with you two, Hog and Geush.”

The two Romu Amber called on jumped nervously, like students singled out by a teacher in class, then immediately began to scan the electronic map.

Every so often, they would zoom in on a few highlighted areas for a closer look.

The advantage of the electronic sand table was that it encompassed all scales and levels of operational maps in a single display.

When Hog and Geush zoomed in on a small town, they could see “many arrows,” “many ovals,” “all sorts of little flags,” and “various strange abbreviations.”

This was the command terminal’s AI automatically generating draft tactical plans at the battalion and company level based on available information.

After staring at the sand table for a while, the “wolf-headed” Romu named Hog scratched his head and spoke first.

“Boss, based on the current intelligence, the Imperial forces should have completed their defensive deployment in these three cities and the surrounding areas on the coalition’s axis of advance. From their posture, it looks like they want a decisive frontal battle with us, which is why they’ve concentrated all five brigade combat teams.”

As Hog spoke, he manipulated the electronic sand table, highlighting the “key points” discovered over the past few days and supplementing them with relevant images.

For example, there were the track marks of heavy armored units marching through the wilderness.

There were fortifications, built from foam metal and quick-drying cement, that had suddenly appeared on the outskirts of the cities.

There were also some small-scale troop assembly points and pre-set positions for self-propelled artillery that hadn’t been concealed in time.

Much of this information wasn’t discovered by the operations staff officers themselves but by the command support decision-making AI.

After being “buffed” by Lilith, the command support decision-making AI on Atlas’s side was no longer just a ten-year veteran; it was a veteran of a hundred battles.

Therefore, it could identify details in optical images and radar scans that were easily overlooked by humans at a much faster rate than other AIs.

“I speculate that the Imperial army’s supplies are probably running low. Otherwise, they could have split up and scattered to play ‘hide-and-seek’ with us to buy more time.”

“There’s another possibility… they want to crush us with a single blow.”

Amber’s calm words sent a shiver down the spines of the operations staff.

These staff officers, having worked with Amber, had learned a great deal about the Empire’s regular forces and were also well aware of the coalition’s true situation.

They quickly realized that such a scenario was actually quite possible.

However, Amber didn’t dwell on the topic and instead turned to the other Romu beside Hog.

“Geush, what are your thoughts?”

“Boss, I think the coalition must be cautious.”

Geush zoomed the electronic sand table back to its original scale and continued, “Right now, our understanding of the deployment of these five Imperial brigade combat teams is, I’d say, seventy percent guesswork, especially concerning this infantry brigade combat team in their rear. Because it’s in a city, the interference is too great, so reconnaissance is naturally less effective. We’re only making assumptions based on some infantry units mustering near the urban area. For a more credible picture of the actual situation, I think we’ll need to conduct ground infiltration and reconnaissance.”

Geush paused for a moment, then set several lines to “highlight.”

“However, one thing is certain: there are several high-grade highways between these three cities suitable for heavy armored units, and the terrain within this huge ‘basin’ is relatively simple. So, for the enemy, this combat zone is quite convenient for both tactical maneuvers and for retreating under pressure. Moreover, the presence of the three cities places extremely high demands on the precision of orbital strikes. Based on my observation of the other companies’ personnel, I’m very concerned about whether they can provide high-precision strike guidance on the front lines. In that case, if the enemy commander is also particularly skilled at mobile defense, it might not be good news for us…”

After Geush finished, the other operations staff officers also shared their views, which were largely aligned.

The consensus was that if the Imperial army was truly posturing for a fight to the death here, the coalition might just run headfirst into a brick wall.

The next morning, combat orders came down from the coalition’s command center, instructing each company’s forces to begin maneuvering according to plan.

The coalition would launch its attack at dawn in two days, and Atlas’s combat units would be deployed on the right flank, responsible for a feigned attack.

Chapter 240: Collapse at the Outset

Half an hour after receiving the Coalition’s orders, Atlas’s First Mixed Combined Arms Brigade broke camp.

Temporary Camp No. 13, where Amber and his forces were located, was basically in the Coalition’s rearmost area, making it arguably the safest of all the temporary camps.

As a result, the entire mixed combined arms brigade wasn’t fully deployed. Most of its combat vehicles, including self-propelled artillery and multi-legged war machines, were in travel configuration.

Furthermore, since the camp—built with “rapid wall construction technology”—didn’t need to be dismantled for recovery, the entire brigade could begin marching as soon as some supplies and tents were loaded onto vehicles.

Amid a cacophony of shouted commands, calls, and roaring engines, Temporary Camp No. 13 seemed to come alive.

Amber stood atop his command vehicle, watching a large number of wheeled infantry fighting vehicles and light multi-legged war machines form up into a marching column and head into the distance amidst clouds of dust.

This was the Third Medium Combined Arms Battalion, serving as the vanguard.

After accepting the order from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, Amber had immediately scrapped his previous idea of making do with an antiquated US imperialist Marine battalion structure.

He had promptly reorganized his forces into a combined arms unit and placed orders to fill the roster with the various vehicles it lacked.

Besides the accompanying mobile infantry, the combat units of a medium combined arms battalion mainly consisted of twenty ‘Tarantula’ light multi-legged war machines, two downgraded VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicles, and forty-six ‘Caracal’ wheeled infantry fighting vehicles—which were actually sister vehicles to the ‘Mongoose.’

Marketed primarily to private military corporations, they were loaded with flashy, gimmicky features and sold for a ridiculously higher price than the ‘Mongoose’ series.

In addition, there were auxiliary vehicles such as trailers, trucks, and recovery vehicles.

The twenty ‘Tarantula’ light multi-legged war machines were armed with the common 120mm dual-purpose direct/indirect fire electrothermal-chemical cannon.

In addition to providing direct fire support, it could also act as a self-propelled mortar-howitzer, delivering indirect fire.

This had led to the common self-propelled mortar-howitzers found in nearly all combined arms battalions and battalion tactical groups being mostly phased out.

The massive convoy was so long that one could hardly see its beginning or end. According to the information on the command terminal, the lead vehicles had already reached the highway and were heading toward the inter-city expressway.

As Atlas’s feigned attack was to take place on the right flank of the entire battlefield, the mixed combined arms brigade, still in the Coalition’s rear, had to use the highway network for rapid maneuvering to reach the designated offensive assembly area within two days.

This timeline was actually quite tight, especially for a brigade-sized unit.

When an entire combined arms brigade is on the move, the biggest factors affecting its march speed are not the performance of its vehicles, but road capacity and the severity of traffic congestion.

Fortunately, the cities here were of a higher grade, and so were the inter-city roads and expressways.

Moreover, at this point, civilians had either already evacuated or were staying obediently at home. As long as the brigade’s convoys didn’t run into trouble, traffic shouldn’t be a major issue.

To ensure mobility, Amber had even contacted Rear Admiral Benjamin in advance to request dozens of trailers from the space elevator’s base area to assist with the long-distance transport of the main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines.

At this critical juncture, the Coalition’s supreme commander didn’t want any mishaps either, so he had readily agreed to Amber’s request.

The two-day march passed without incident. After crossing the friendly front lines, the entire combined arms brigade immediately deployed into a state of alert.

Throughout the march, aside from some mechanical failures that rendered a few vehicles inoperable, there were no other unexpected events.

An equipment loss rate of 1.4% was well within the acceptable range.

As Atlas’s entire mixed combined arms brigade entered the preparation area for its assigned attack vector and its units began making final pre-battle adjustments, Amber received a piece of bad news from Coalition command.

Just an hour and a half before they had completed their march, Imperial troops on the first line of defense had actually taken the initiative to launch an attack while the Coalition’s frontline units were advancing.

Based on the attack’s width, troop strength, and enemy firepower, the command staff judged it to be an offensive launched by one of their armored cavalry battalions and one of their armored combined arms battalions, supported by indirect fire.

This attack had directly routed a Coalition light combined arms battalion and severely damaged another heavy combined arms battalion that had rushed in to support it.

The light battalion that was ambushed at the forefront, in particular, was shattered as an effective fighting force in less than twenty minutes.

The Imperial armored cavalry battalion that initiated the attack didn’t have many HCPs, as it was essentially a “three-recon, one-heavy” fire reconnaissance unit.

But its four HCPs, along with some wheeled fighting vehicles and light multi-legged war machines, acted like a pair of pincers, viciously clamping down on the light battalion from both flanks before it could fully deploy.

It is unknown what the commander of this Coalition unit was thinking, putting a light combined arms battalion with little armor at the very front.

In any case, the final result was that when five main battle tanks and five heavy multi-legged war machines launched a frontal assault with the remaining mechanized infantry, the light battalion’s rushed and fragile resistance was completely shattered.

The most powerful weapon in the light battalion was its light multi-legged war machines.

Pitting them against heavy armored units, they could only try to find an opportunity to attack from the side or rear, with no guarantee of penetration.

But for the heavy electromagnetic cannons of the main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines, shooting them was truly one shot, one kill.

With an initial velocity of 3,000 m/s, it was practically a point-and-shoot weapon at typical ground combat engagement ranges.

Furthermore, units hit by them were smashed to pieces by the sheer kinetic energy, completely beyond saving.

The heavy combined arms battalion, which had immediately moved to provide support after receiving the distress call 15 kilometers away, truly hadn’t expected their allies to collapse so quickly.

Since they were both units from the same company, the commander of this heavy combined arms battalion was quite anxious and worried.

But it was precisely this “anxiety and worry” that caused him to rashly lead them into the kill zone of that Imperial armored combined arms battalion.

Although the commander had realized something was wrong after two forward HCPs reported shooting down several reconnaissance drones, the sudden barrage from a 155mm self-propelled artillery group interrupted the order he was about to give.

The barrage didn’t cause major losses since the unit had already spread out, but the artillery’s fire for effect still threw parts of the battalion into chaos.

The Imperial forces on the other side clearly knew how to seize an opportunity. The armored combined arms battalion that initiated an attack from the battalion’s flank quickly achieved spectacular results.

The Imperial Royal Army’s combined arms forces configured their armored combined arms battalions as “two heavy, one infantry,” a setup specifically designed to counter the Federation’s heavy combined arms battalions.

They were the standard frontal assault specialists or offensive spearheads of the combined arms forces.

The Imperial battalion-level units deployed at the front line had also been brought up to full strength, and even reinforced, with units drawn from other formations.

So when this armored combined arms battalion, long prepared for an attack, launched its offensive, the Coalition’s heavy combined arms battalion was immediately forced onto the defensive.

If they hadn’t also been a heavy battalion-level unit that withstood the first wave with its heavy equipment, with their fire support company providing desperate support from the rear, they likely would have followed in the footsteps of the light combined arms battalion.

But even so, their situation remained dire.

After leaving a small detachment to deal with the remnants, the Imperial armored cavalry battalion that had annihilated the light battalion was already swinging around to envelop them from another direction.

Clearly, these two Imperial battalion-level units, coordinating with perfect默契, intended to devour both of the Coalition’s battalions.

In the end, if two HCP platoons hadn’t charged up from the rear and forcibly punched an opening for the heavy battalion’s surviving units to retreat in time, the Coalition might have truly lost two combined arms battalions in the first two hours of the war.

After reading the brief battle report, Amber had a sense of foreboding.

He knew these Coalition “corporate armies” might not be the most capable fighters, but he had never imagined they would be so fragile.

He immediately ordered the entire mixed brigade to deploy into a defensive formation, with each unit sending out reconnaissance teams and observation posts to the front.

At the same time, he had the fire support battalion near the Brigade HQ set up its self-propelled artillery, ready to provide long-range fire support to the forward units at a moment’s notice.

Currently, Atlas’s entire mixed brigade was deployed across a 25-kilometer front. Spearheading the formation were two heavy combined arms battalions, positioned only about 5 kilometers apart.

The remaining two medium combined arms battalions were positioned further back, ready to maneuver forward for tactical insertions as needed.

The fire support battalion and Amber’s Brigade HQ remained in the relatively safe rear.

This was the standard combat width for a combined arms brigade deploying in a square formation under normal circumstances.

If approaching or entering an urban area, this width would shrink further to under 10 kilometers.

In fact, Amber used to think that a standard brigade-level unit, once deployed, could achieve a combat width of 30 or even 50 kilometers.

He had reasoned that since they were equipped with HCPs—land combat units with firepower, mobility, and a degree of defense—their battle lines could surely be spread wider.

So, the first time he ran a command simulation in a game, that was exactly how he deployed.

He ended up getting torn to shreds by the veteran ground combat players in his guild.

This was because the enemy also had HCPs, and from a combat effectiveness standpoint, these units were far better suited for tactical infiltration than for holding a line.

Just like the two battalion-level units that had just been steamrolled by the Imperial forces, a 15-kilometer gap between units meant everything that could and could not slip through, did.

To this day, Amber still remembered what happened after the simulation. The “Big bro” from his guild, who had served in the command staff of a heavy combined arms brigade in some army group before his discharge, clapped him on the shoulder, disappointed in him for failing to meet expectations, and said:

“What were you thinking? With a 10-kilometer gap between two battalions, why would I even bother with a static defense? I’d just break up the whole into parts, penetrate your lines, cut you off, surround you, and annihilate you. Wouldn’t that be great? Always remember, ‘concentrate your forces to achieve great things.’ Don’t spread your fist and cripple yourself!”

As the orders from Brigade HQ were issued, the various battalion-level units quickly adjusted their positions according to instructions. At the same time, Amber sent a warning to the Coalition units deeper on the right flank, advising them to be careful and pull back.

It was at that moment that a series of icons representing ‘Engaged,’ ‘Retreating,’ and ‘Requesting Support’ appeared on the command terminal’s tactical map like falling dominoes.

Although the datalinks and command-and-control systems of the various companies were not fully integrated, allowing only for basic communication and information sharing, this was only a limitation for human technical officers.

Lilith, whose network intrusion skills had long since reached a transcendent level, had already solved the compatibility issues between the different systems’ data transmission interfaces.

So at this moment, within the entire Coalition force, Atlas was likely the only one capable of integrating the combat status of all the different companies.

But for Amber, looking at the dense cluster of engagement icons on the map and the Coalition forces in the center showing signs of retreat only caused his brow to furrow deeper.

After all, back when everyone was meeting at the Coalition command center, the commanders of those companies had been so full of confidence, as if victory was within their grasp.

And now, the forces under their command were being destroyed or were in retreat at a visible rate.

“So unreliable. How did they get crushed right at the start? Is everyone on their side an Imperial superman?”

The Coalition’s entire frontal offensive force had been met with an Imperial counter-charge almost simultaneously.

The current situation was exactly as Amber and his operations staff officers had speculated during a meeting a couple of days ago.

The Imperial remnants had indeed massed into a single fist, preparing to shatter the Coalition in a single wave.

And judging by the intensity of the offensive, Amber now even suspected that the two Imperial armored brigade combat teams previously deployed in the rear had also been thrown into the fight.

If one were to work backward from the current situation, the fortifications and troop concentrations spotted by drones earlier were very likely a form of deception on the enemy’s part.

The goal was to mislead the Coalition into believing that the Imperial remnant force intended to make a desperate stand on the defensive, rather than preparing for an attack.

Chapter 241: You’re with the Regent Prince, aren’t you?

When the Coalition discovered that this seemingly soft target not only refused to break but fought back fiercely, the situation had already begun to spiral out of their control.

Clearly, these defense contractors and private military companies had never fought such a tough battle.

They could only handle fights where they had the advantage. Even in pacification warfare against mobs and rebels, they would start to buckle a little as soon as the intensity increased.

Right now, the more organized units could still mount a defense on the spot and slow the Empire’s advance with fire support from the rear.

However, many battalion-sized units were already showing signs of collapse shortly after making contact with the enemy.

According to Amber, these companies probably still didn’t grasp the concept of combined arms. They had merely copied the Federation Army’s organizational structure, resulting in a complete lack of tactical discipline in a real fight.

On the tactical situation map, Amber saw more than one company position its light combined arms battalions, which were primarily Mobile Infantry, ahead of its heavy combined arms battalions.

One fire support battalion was even trailing behind the flank of a heavy combined arms battalion when the battle started, without even having had time to construct a temporary defensive position.

As a result, they were smashed into a pile of scrap metal in a short time by a few HCPs that had slipped through the ‘sieve-like’ defensive line.

Continuous gunfire and explosions erupted all along the front line.

From time to time, the white glare of a heavy particle cannon would sweep across the area between the two forces, causing a new round of explosions at the beam’s terminus.

And high-energy lasers and charged particle beams constantly flashed across the sky, blowing up one accompanying reconnaissance drone after another.

After the initial half-hour of chaos, the Coalition front gradually stabilized—after all, they had the advantage in numbers.

No matter how ferocious the Imperial troops were, they still had to take out the Coalition’s HCPs and main battle tanks one by one.

Even so, the Coalition’s formation had been pushed from a massive, semi-circular encirclement into a ‘reverse arc’ with multiple salients.

These ‘salients’ were basically the units that had managed to stabilize their lines and begin counter-attacking.

And the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade was the largest salient on the line.

Thanks to Amber not spreading his forces too thin, the various battalions were able to support each other in a timely manner.

In addition, the two heavy combined arms battalions at the very front were each equipped with a full HCP company (ten HCPs) and were led by Murat and Louis, both of whom were well-seasoned in battle.

Thus, in terms of combat effectiveness at the battalion level, Atlas’s heavy combined arms battalions were actually the most formidable among all the Coalition’s battalion-sized units.

But based on the information displayed on the current battlefield situation map, the Coalition had turned what was supposed to be a battle of annihilation into a defensive one.

And clearly, becoming a ‘salient’ in a defensive battle was by no means good news.

“How much longer until the ‘Observer’ arrives?”

In a temporary Brigade HQ located on a concealed reverse slope, Amber stared grimly at the tactical situation map before him and asked without turning his head.

“It will reach the airspace above the warzone in ten minutes, Sir.”

“Notify the operators in the rear to begin penetrating reconnaissance directly. We must confirm if all the enemy Imperial forces have been committed.”

Amber opened the tactical map, drew a straight line across the entire warzone, and had a staff officer send it to the rear.

The Technician responsible for the ‘Observer’s’ operation and navigation planning would use this general direction to set a detailed flight path.

“How long until the next satellite pass? And when will the orbital assault ships be in position?”

“Sir! The satellite with the best trajectory will pass overhead in forty minutes! Some of the orbital assault ships were diverted to support battles on the other two continents, so we only have two above us right now. According to the latest message from Coalition command, they can enter their strike orbits in twenty minutes!”

The ‘wolf-headed man,’ Hog, answered while looking at his personal terminal. He had been the one primarily assisting Amber with command during today’s battle.

Like other Romu, Hog’s dormant warlike genes would awaken once he entered a combat state.

However, while this trait manifested in most other Romu as enhanced strength, agility, and pain tolerance, for Hog, it manifested in his mind.

Once in battle, the ‘wolf-headed man’ shed his slightly clumsy demeanor, his mind working with incredible speed. He even offered several excellent suggestions that Amber adopted.

It was enough to make Amber see him in a new light.

“Excellent. Get me Coalition command. Since those guys don’t have the ability to direct orbital strikes, we might as well do it!”

While Amber and his troops were fighting tooth and nail on Loubion V, Atlas Headquarters on Peony Star, far away in the Thousand Stars Empire, received a visitor from the Empire.

His meticulously combed hair, the exquisite mustache currently in vogue among the Empire’s upper echelons, his understated yet exceptionally well-made attire, and the private starship docked at the Spaceport…

…all indicated that this visitor from afar was an Imperial nobleman.

“Mr. Perseus, hello. We’ve spoken remotely several times before. You scheduled your visit today to further discuss matters, correct?”

The receptionist at Tower of Babel Manor was a female Romu who had learned the common human tongue.

Her voice was sweet, and she wore the standard professional attire for Atlas’s civilian staff.

The well-tailored clothes perfectly accentuated the young Romu’s athletic physique.

Had it been another male Romu, or even a male employee at Atlas, they might have found it difficult not to sneak a few extra glances.

But to the receptionist’s surprise, the middle-aged man before her maintained a polite and decent smile, showing no signs of losing his composure.

“That’s right. I’ve come today to personally meet with your person-in-charge to discuss the details of a deep partnership. Please believe that I have come with the utmost sincerity.”

“Rest assured, our side is also very sincere about this cooperation. I will take you to meet our representative now. She has been waiting for you for some time. This way, please, sir.”

The receptionist gestured for him to follow and led the way, keeping a distance of two paces ahead. Soon, she brought Mr. Perseus to a meeting room.

When Perseus sat down on the sofa in the room, he looked at the female elf sitting elegantly on the sofa opposite the coffee table and frowned imperceptibly.

“I just said that I came here with sincerity… As far as I know, the actual controller of Atlas is a human male, not a female elf, correct?”

“My sincerest apologies, Mr. Perseus.”

Skadi, who had been officially promoted to Assistant to the Chairman of the Atlas Group, said in a slightly apologetic tone:

“Mr. Amber was very much looking forward to this meeting. However, he is currently attending a very important ‘business activity’ and will likely not be back for some time. Therefore, he has fully authorized me to meet with you, Mr. Perseus.”

Hearing Skadi’s words, Perseus’s expression did not relax.

After all, the matter he wanted to discuss with Amber, and the true instigator of this partnership, were not things that could be casually brought out into the open.

In his plan, this meeting was supposed to be a personal conversation with Amber in a relatively confidential setting.

Skadi, with her keen powers of observation, quickly noticed the Imperial nobleman’s apparent indecision.

Recalling Amber’s instructions before he left, she smiled and said:

“Mr. Perseus, you can trust me. Just as His Excellency the Regent Prince trusts you.”

The moment she said this, Perseus’s entire demeanor changed.

To Skadi, it was as if a venomous snake had coiled up in alarm.

“It seems Mr. Amber knows more than I imagined. Since you already know who is behind me, I’ll be direct.”

Perseus’s tone gave Skadi no immediate clue as to the Imperial nobleman’s thoughts.

“I wish to speak with Mr. Amber directly. Don’t worry, I have plenty of free time and can wait here until he returns… Of course, if it’s convenient for you, taking me to him directly would be the most suitable option.”

Hearing Perseus’s words, Skadi adjusted her glasses and said with a smile:

“It’s not that we can’t take you to see Mr. Amber, it’s just that the distance might be a bit further than you imagine.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Chapter 242: Don’t Tell Me Your Brigade Commander Went to the Front Line!

Upon learning that Amber was currently in a star system within Federation territory where a battle was raging, Perseus suddenly felt that his earlier “No matter” might have been a bit rash.

Sure, sitting calmly and elegantly in his chair and uttering those two words with an air of “the lord is unconcerned” was quite suave.

But no matter how you sliced it, he was a noble of the Star Dragon Empire, and the Regent Prince’s “special envoy” at that.

Such a sensitive identity, at such a sensitive time, going to such a sensitive location…

Although Perseus wasn’t yet clear on the situation in the star system where the Federation and the Empire were fighting, if he wasn’t mistaken, there were likely Imperial troops on the very planet Amber was on.

But the words were already out. Was he supposed to stop Skadi now and tell her they should “chat another day”?

Never mind the fact that he couldn’t afford the embarrassment; his status as the “Regent Prince’s Special Envoy” meant he had to consider the Regent Prince’s dignity.

But even without him saying anything, Skadi assured him that Atlas would arrange everything and that his identity would absolutely not be exposed.

After relaying the current situation to the Regent Prince through a secure communication channel, Perseus, accompanied by Skadi and other staff, boarded the ship bound for the Loubion star system.

“Ms. Skadi, I have a personal question I’m quite curious about. I was wondering if you could enlighten me?”

As the ship departed, Perseus stood by a viewport, “admiring” the unique biological spaceport of the elves, and posed his question.

“Please, go ahead.”

“Theoretically, our Star Dragon Empire and the Federation are in a state of war, and the head of your company is currently assisting the Federation. Under these circumstances, why are you still willing to communicate with me? You should know that I am, in effect, representing the Regent Prince himself in these discussions.”

“Hehe, that’s a simple question.”

Skadi smiled, clearly having an answer ready.

“Because our Atlas Group is a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, we have no vested interests with either side. Moreover, according to the philosophy of our leader, Mr. Amber, Atlas is an ‘extremely pro-outsider’ company. Mr. Amber often says, ‘All who come are guests,’ so regardless of whom you represent or what power is behind you, we are willing to engage in dialogue.”

“So you’re saying you accept anyone who comes knocking, and you’re willing to do any kind of business?”

“Not entirely. If you wanted to destroy humanity, we wouldn’t take that job~”

“Hehe, the people at your company are quite humorous…”

The journey from the bustling star cluster of Peony Star to the Loubion star system within Federation territory would take fourteen days.

However, on the very day the ship departed, Isabelle, in orbit above Loubion V, received Skadi’s message.

Using the ‘quantum entanglement communication technology’ developed by Lilith, Atlas had established a temporary communication link between Peony Star and Loubion V.

Currently, a single set of quantum entanglement communication devices had a real-time communication range of four standard warp distances, which theoretically couldn’t cover the distance from Peony Star to Loubion V.

But when discussing it with Lilith, Amber had proposed an idea so simple that the strong AI hadn’t even considered it.

“Can’t we just link them in a chain, like signal towers? For example, the first communication set is A1 and A2, and the second is B1 and B2. Each can handle real-time communication over four standard warp distances. So if I place A2 and B1 in the same deep-space relay station in the same star system and connect them with an information-translating interactive device, wouldn’t a message from A1 only take the time needed for translation and interaction to be transmitted to B2? If we arrange multiple sets of devices in such a series, couldn’t we achieve long-range, high-speed communication across star systems?”

When Amber voiced this idea, Lilith was stunned for a moment.

After a ‘digital waterfall’ representing high-speed calculations flashed in her eyes, the strong AI said dazedly:

“Genius! You’re cleared for discharge!”

“Lilith! Stop watching those weird videos!”

When Atlas’s flagship, the light cruiser The Hermes, maneuvered into the space above the mixed combined arms brigade’s area of operations to establish a direct link to the surface, its captain and Fleet Commander, Cleves, saw two slab-like orbital assault ships already entering a lower, ground-attack orbit.

Near The Hermes, the ship’s reconnaissance probes also detected several small flotillas from different corporations.

Evidently, these ships had also maneuvered here to contact their respective companies’ forces.

“Looks like the ground battle is still at a stalemate. I wonder if we can even contact the Boss.”

As he muttered to himself, in an encrypted communication cabin aboard the ship, Isabelle was using Atlas’s internal unit direct link function to call the combined arms brigade’s HQ on the surface.

Although the electromagnetic environment in this area was extremely complex, thanks to improvements made to the communication units by Lilith and the tech team, Isabelle successfully contacted the Brigade HQ in the war zone.

Since the fleet currently couldn’t intervene in ground combat, Amber hadn’t communicated much with the fleet overhead in recent days, aside from some basic information exchanges. Thus, it was only when the image from the communication camera appeared before her that Isabelle realized the atmosphere in the entire Brigade HQ was rather tense.

Several operations staff officers were gathered around a massive electronic sand table, pointing and gesturing. On the sand table, the lines representing friendly and enemy troop attacks, defenses, and maneuvers were interlocked like a dog’s teeth.

Other communication staff officers, responsible for dispatching various units, were speaking grimly into their communication terminals.

Every so often, soldiers in combat exoskeletons would run in and out of the hastily constructed brigade command post.

“Major Isabelle!”

A wolf-headed Romu ran up to the screen and snapped a salute. Isabelle instinctively returned it before finally realizing something was wrong.

Amber, the Brigade Commander and the overall commander of this combat mission, was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is your Brigade Commander?”

“Ma’am! The Brigade Commander went to the for… forward command post!”

The wolf-headed man, Hog, seemed a little nervous, even stumbling over his words.

“Then connect me to the forward command post. I have an important matter to report to the Brigade Commander.”

At Isabelle’s request, a cold sweat beaded on Hog’s brow, but fortunately, it was hidden by the fur on his head and went unnoticed.

“Major, the enemy just launched a large-scale Electronic Warfare attack. We at Brigade HQ have temporarily lost contact with the forward command post as well.”

As soon as she heard this, Isabelle’s eyes narrowed.

“Hog, if you’re going to cover for your Brigade Commander, at least come up with a more plausible excuse next time. When have you ever seen an Atlas unit get the short end of the stick in Electronic Warfare? Hit by a large-scale EW attack and unable to contact the forward command post. I can’t believe you came up with a reason like that.”

Isabelle’s ruthless exposure of his lie made Hog subconsciously scratch his head.

But before he could offer any further “rebuttal,” he heard Isabelle say sternly:

“Lieutenant Hog, tell me the truth. Where exactly has your Brigade Commander gone?!”

“Sigh…” The wolf-headed man hung his head and sighed. “The Brigade Commander led the brigade’s HCP Company out. He’s currently at the front line organizing a counter-charge…”

An “I knew it” expression appeared on Isabelle’s face. She pressed a hand to her forehead and said with a sense of helplessness, “Didn’t any of you staff officers try to stop him? A Brigade Commander, who also happens to be the de facto controller of the entire Atlas Group, is now on the front line acting as an assault squad leader? Did it ever occur to any of you that if something happens to Amber, who’s going to pay your salaries?”

“Major, we tried. But as you said, he’s the Brigade Commander, and more importantly, our boss… how could we dare to physically stop him?”

Hog’s voice was also tinged with helplessness. He had never imagined that the commander of an entire unit would personally lead a charge right after drawing up all the battle plans and contingencies.

“Forget it. Let’s not talk about that for now. What’s the current battle situation?”

“Reporting, Major. The Coalition forces’ offensive is severely stalled. In fact, you could say we’ve shifted to defensive operations, and the line is constantly receding. Our brigade is currently the largest salient on the entire front. After our forward combat control teams guided two rounds of orbital strikes, we repelled multiple enemy attacks. After the Imperial forces on the other side realized this, they began massing a large number of troops to try and swallow our salient in one go. So, after reviewing the intel from our drones and reconnaissance satellites, the Brigade Commander decided to launch a counter-charge against the junction of their units to disrupt their deployment before they could finish assembling for the attack.”

“What about the other corporations’ forces? Have they provided any support?”

“Heh.” Hog gave a somewhat helpless, bitter laugh before continuing, “The other companies’ forces can barely fend for themselves right now. They’re hoping we’ll support them! However, Rear Admiral Benjamin from the Coalition command has granted us authority over orbital strikes, because none of the other companies’ units are capable of close-range guidance in a contested area. Also, the Black Blade Defense Task Force on our brigade’s right flank was ordered to halt by the Brigade Commander as they were retreating. I don’t know what the Brigade Commander said to their commander, but that task force is now staying on our right flank, preparing to join the counter-attack.”

As Hog reported, the relevant battlefield situational data was transmitted to Isabelle.

Looking at the front line that was “bleeding red” and flooded with “glad tidings,” she understood why Amber had been forced to take to the field himself.

“Alright, since it’s come to this… is there anything the fleet can do to help you?”

“Hey! Now that you mention it, there is!”

Hog’s eyes lit up as he opened another operational plan that Amber had left behind before heading out.

Chapter 243: A Brand New Version of Orbital Strike

Loubion V, right flank of the Coalition’s First Battle Group engagement zone.

This was a suburban area near the city, featuring a small processing plant and the small settlement that had developed around it.

But now, thick smoke and flames rose from every corner of both the settlement and the factory.

Giant scorched marks, still smoldering with scattered fires, scarred the vast farmlands of the surrounding automated farms and the nearby hills.

Those were the ‘channels’ blasted by the heavy particle cannons.

The smoking wreckage of main battle tanks and armored vehicles, along with the bodies of soldiers on the ground nearby, were scattered across the open area near the factory.

If one were to view the scene from high above, it would be evident that the wreckage still maintained an assault formation.

Within the atmosphere, the heavy particle cannon, with its dual thermal and kinetic kill mechanism, generated shockwaves and a momentary vacuum upon firing, drastically increasing its collateral damage.

In the preceding decades, the enemies faced by both the Federation and the Empire rarely possessed HCP units in formation strength.

Even if rebel forces managed to acquire HCPs, their numbers were never significant.

For a long time, the enemies of both nations’ regular armies and private military forces were more conventional combinations of mechanized infantry and a few heavy armored units.

This meant that their methods of attack had remained unchanged for many years.

Consequently, in the war that had now broken out, it was common for an entire offensive column of either side’s ground forces to be shattered by the crossfire of just two enemy heavy particle cannons.

Although, over time, both sides began to adopt more spread-out offensive formations, this dispersal of firepower came at a great cost in blood and was quickly abandoned.

This devastated battlefield was the defensive sector assigned to the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion of the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade.

When the Imperial army launched its full-scale offensive at dawn, the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, following orders from Brigade HQ, had preemptively shifted to a defensive posture, setting up their positions within the factory complex and on a nearby high-ground.

The rash Imperial troops, charging headlong into the ‘kill zone’, soon left behind a large amount of wrecked vehicles and infantry corpses.

This even included two destroyed HCPs.

Thanks to Amber frequently taking Murat, Louis, and other skilled HCP pilots to act as a blue-force in simulated battles, Atlas’s ground troops had now become experienced in dealing with ‘high-risk units’ like HCPs.

The basic strategy was still an extension of Amber’s approach on Robert IV: layered and distributed fire strikes that forced the target to keep its deflector shield active at all times.

This also compelled the HCPs to remain in constant motion to find opportunities to counterattack.

Furthermore, they could only retaliate with faster-responding weapons like electromagnetic rifles or point-defense lasers.

Charged particle cannons and heavy particle cannons, which required deploying and “setting up,” were rarely given a chance to be used.

Although this method consumed a great deal of ammunition and energy, it certainly caught the Imperial HCP pilots off guard.

A full HCP platoon (four units) that was part of the coordinated attack was forced to withdraw from the battlefield first, leaving two wrecks behind.

The remaining units, having lost their HCP fire support, found it exceedingly difficult not only to continue their assault but even to disengage from the battle.

Moreover, the enemy had conducted a highly professional close-range orbital strike guidance.

A ground combat control team that had infiltrated the lines guided an orbital strike at close range, causing a tactical surface-to-surface missile to land with pinpoint accuracy on a mechanized infantry company.

The attack, consisting of three thermobaric warheads, completely neutralized the company’s ability to continue fighting.

The Imperial armored combined arms battalion responsible for this probing attack, after being thwarted and hit by an orbital strike, quickly realized they were facing a tough nut to crack.

So, the commander of this armored combined arms battalion wisely chose not to press the attack. Instead, he reported the intelligence up the chain of command and settled into a standoff with the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion.

According to intelligence from command, another armored combined arms battalion attacking on a different front had also been repelled and had similarly been hit by an orbital strike.

This time, however, the unfortunate victims were a portion of the brigade combat team’s entire fire support battalion. Nearly half of their indirect-fire artillery was written off.

The final order from command was much as the Imperial battalion commander had expected: cease the offensive and transition to defense.

After all, the offensives on other fronts were proceeding smoothly. Even if this enemy couldn’t be cracked for a while, they would eventually be surrounded by friendly forces from other directions and left to await their doom.

Inside the command post of the Atlas Second Combined Arms Battalion, Lieutenant Memphis from the Atlas ‘instructor squad’ was watching with a grin as two ‘Furballs’ argued inside the command vehicle.

“Tairak, what kind of meeting did you have at the Forward Command Post? You couldn’t even secure the ‘spearhead’ mission for us!”

Montai, curled up in the widened command vehicle, grumbled at his deputy commander.

Due to their outstanding performance in comprehensive evaluations and their status as some of the most combat-experienced individuals in the entire Romu marines, Montai and Tairak had been promoted to battalion commander and deputy battalion commander of the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion during the recent unit reorganization.

Lieutenant Memphis and several other members of the instructor squad temporarily filled the remaining positions in the battalion HQ.

“Can’t you ever control that temper of yours? If you have something to say, say it properly. What’s the point of taking it out on me? The Brigade Commander and the others must have had their reasons for this arrangement.”

Tairak, sitting on the other side, said with a frown.

Montai’s temper was notoriously ‘foul’ among the Romu, a well-known fact. Combined with his aggressive, charge-headfirst fighting style and his refusal to ever back down, he had become ‘somewhat famous’ at Brigade HQ.

Although Amber was quite pleased that a commanding officer of a battalion-level unit possessed such spirit, she had privately warned Tairak to make sure he occasionally put the brakes on Montai.

“Then you tell me, how is our Second Battalion any worse than their First? Why is it always the First Battalion that gets to be the ‘spearhead’ whenever there’s a brigade-wide offensive?

“If you ask me, it’s because you, the deputy battalion commander, were too docile when you went to the Forward Command Post for the operational meeting! Why the son of a bitch didn’t you dare to pick a fight with the Brigade Commander?!”

“Hahahahahaha!”

Before Tairak could respond to Montai’s outburst, Memphis, who had been sitting on the side enjoying the drama, burst out laughing.

“Montai, you’ve got guts! I’d love to see you pick a fight with the Brigade Commander next time!”

Lieutenant Memphis’s words instantly triggered an unpleasant memory for Montai.

It was the experience of being hauled out of a building like a chicken by Amber during a simulated assault exercise.

The thought of his Brigade Commander and Boss, Amber, and her terrifying individual combat prowess, immediately caused Montai to quiet down.

However, it was clear from his expression that he was still brooding over not getting the main assault mission.

In fact, Memphis could see the same look on Tairak’s face as well.

The old veteran, who, like Banninger, had been with Amber for a long time, looked at the two Furballs and said with a smile:

“Don’t be so resentful. You just haven’t spent enough time under the Boss. You don’t understand his style.”

Lieutenant Memphis opened the tactical situation map on the vehicle’s command terminal and continued:

“Since the Brigade Commander is personally leading this mission, the true ‘spearhead’ will undoubtedly be the HCP Company he’s leading.

“It doesn’t matter whether the First or Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion leads the main assault. The stars of this battle aren’t you.

“No matter how good you are, can you possibly be better than the HCP piloted by the Brigade Commander?”

Lieutenant Memphis’s words slowly sank in for the two Romu. They quickly recalled the ‘inhuman’ combat effectiveness of the HCP Amber piloted.

The time chosen by the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade for their attack was midnight.

As ‘D-Hour’ drew closer, the various combat units, after a brief, rotating rest period, entered their final preparations before the assault.

D-minus-30 minutes: Brigade HQ had completed its relocation and, in mobile mode, had moved behind the attacking units. The fire support battalion had also positioned itself at one-quarter of its maximum range from the attacking units, ready to provide fire support.

This was because once the assault began, the troops would be constantly advancing. If they remained at maximum support distance for safety, they would have to start moving forward after just a few salvos.

D-minus-20 minutes: The four battalions forming the attack formation had moved to the ‘attack preparation line’. The RQ-220 ‘Observer’ drones, which had survived since the morning, had completed their reconnaissance of the enemy positions from above.

D-minus-10 minutes: The First Heavy Combined Arms Battalion crossed the ‘line of departure’. Simultaneously, the three Imperial armored combined arms battalions, having been reinforced, sounded the combat alarm.

D-Hour: The artillery barrage from the combined arms brigade’s fire support battalion fired the first shot of the counter-offensive.

In the darkness of the night, beams of lasers and charged particle cannons constantly flashed across the sky above the enemy positions—signs of HCPs using their excellent reconnaissance and targeting equipment to intercept the 155mm artillery shells as they passed the apex of their trajectory.

The two heavy combined arms battalions at the forefront also launched their attack under the cover of suppressive fire.

However, the Imperial forces defending the positions noticed something strange. Although the fire from the two opposing battalions was intense, they had yet to launch a charge long after the attack began, instead remaining in a firefight.

D-plus-10 minutes: In orbit above Loubion V, the warships of several defense corporations noted with surprise that the Atlas light cruiser with ‘The Hermes’ painted on its side had descended into low orbit.

Moreover, it was assuming a strange and dangerous ‘nose-down’ attitude.

Just as they were speculating on their communication channels whether the light cruiser was having engine trouble, they saw the muzzles of the ship’s quad-barreled heavy particle cannon begin to glow with a blue-white light.

At that moment, on the captain’s chair of The Hermes, Cleves was nervously giving commands while looking at a ‘Checklist’ on a virtual screen to his right.

“Main battery, prepare for a full salvo. Increase bismuth alloy mass to two thousand grams, reduce heavy metal particle stream initial velocity to five hundred kilometers per second!”

“Adjust the wavelength of the forward high-energy lasers to eight millimeters, begin atmospheric interference! Target: The deployment area of the enemy armored combined arms battalion in the combined arms brigade’s direction of attack!”

Several invisible laser beams began to ‘uniformly heat’ the attack corridor, minimizing the atmospheric diffraction values as much as possible.

Immediately after, four blue-white ‘beams of light’ swept through this channel of uniform atmospheric density, temperature, and humidity, quickly disappearing into the atmosphere.

Chapter 244: The Gungnir Project

“Am I seeing this right? An Atlas light cruiser is using heavy particle cannons for a ground attack?!”

“With Loubion V’s thick atmosphere, aren’t they afraid the heavy metal particle beam will veer off and hit their own troops?”

After the Hermes’s earth-shattering strike, the public channel shared by the various corporate fleets in orbit exploded into an uproar.

At that moment, a “point of light” also appeared on the planet’s surface, directly observable from space.

After performing ballistic calculations, the shipboard control AIs of each vessel quickly reported the attack’s landing position to their respective captains.

Thirty-five kilometers southwest of Ptolemy City’s satellite town.

This was precisely the area directly in front of a salient on the ground frontline.

Using heavy particle cannons for ground attacks was not a new idea.

However, the refraction and scattering caused by a thick atmosphere would not only cause the heavy metal particle stream to miss its target, but would also greatly diminish its power.

During similar experiments, both nations’ test ships had tried to compensate by increasing the energy input to boost the initial velocity of the heavy metal stream, attempting to burn through the atmosphere by force.

The result was that the ferociously turbulent stream of heavy metal particles veered off to god knows where and created a long-lasting hole in the atmosphere that took significant time to repair.

This outcome ultimately led the militaries of both nations to halt further investment in this area.

First, for a warship to carry out such an attack, it would need to keep its bow pointed at the ground for an extended period in low orbit, which placed high demands on the vessel’s attitude control.

Second, the precision of such an orbital strike was simply unusable. An uncontrollable error margin of nearly ten kilometers created what could only be called “Schrödinger’s landing point.”

Of course, this margin of error was still better than that of a charged particle cannon, which had produced the outrageous effect of a “curving shot” during atmospheric tests.

The most important reason, however, was that both nations had entered a period of peace, each focusing more on its own development and internal stability.

To quell planetary rebellions, it was clearly sufficient to just have controllable orbital assault ships “drop bombs.” There was no need to continue development in this area.

Therefore, whether it was the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire, development in orbital strikes—and indeed, in the entire military domain—had been stagnant for many years.

The troops’ operational and training doctrines saw no major updates; each year, they would just shuffle around a few details and call it a day.

“‘Gungnir’ Project, final combat test, all objectives complete!”

“All ship attitude control systems are nominal. Orbital altitude deviation is within controllable parameters.”

“All weapon systems subsystems are operating normally. Fusion reactor and energy circuits have completed self-checks, all indicators are normal.”

“Attack landing point calculation complete. Deviation from projected target: 5.42 meters.”

“Awaiting attack effectiveness assessment upload from ground forces.”

The Hermes’s shipboard control AI, ‘Athena’, reported the test results one by one in a sweet female voice.

As part of the ‘High-Energy Ground-based Orbital Attack Project’—the Gungnir Project—Athena was currently the only shipboard control AI in the Atlas fleet that had received Lilith’s ‘upgrade’ and possessed the relevant auxiliary capabilities.

Her main role was to assist the warship in maintaining its attitude during ground attacks and to continuously calculate the attack corridor, ensuring the strike’s margin of error remained within acceptable limits.

After Cleves announced “the test was a success” over the ship-wide broadcast, the entire crew of the Hermes erupted in cheers.

However, after finishing the broadcast and commanding the Hermes to return to high orbit, Captain Cleves fell into deep thought.

As an experienced naval captain, he knew exactly what the success of this test signified.

Although current warships would require considerable retrofitting to perform this task, Cleves knew that once the news and related videos reached the major military research institutes, this ground-based orbital strike technology would proliferate within a year at most.

It might even become a ‘standard’ feature on the next generation of warships.

“We’ve opened Pandora’s Box with our own hands.”

While the atmosphere aboard the Hermes was jubilant, on the ground, both the Coalition and Imperial forces were left in shock by the strike, which was like the wrath of the Thunder God.

For a moment, the entire front line fell silent.

When the four overly bright beams suddenly appeared in the pitch-black night sky, they seemed to be seared onto people’s retinas. Even if they closed their eyes, they could still vaguely see the attack’s trajectory, like a divine punishment.

The fireball that rose afterward like a small sun was forever etched into the minds of everyone on both sides who witnessed it.

As mentioned before, the kinetic energy of a heavy particle cannon attack is an absurd number.

Even with the initial velocity now reduced, the kinetic energy calculated from 2000 grams of bismuth metal was still an astronomical figure.

And this was a salvo from all four of the light cruiser’s main cannons.

The heavy particle cannons used by HCPs had an acceleration rail of only eight meters when extended.

On the Dragoon-class destroyers, the acceleration rail length of the HIPW series heavy particle cannon was merely sixty meters.

But the heavy particle cannons equipped on a Griffin-class light cruiser like the Hermes had acceleration rails reaching one hundred and fifty meters, with a larger rail diameter as well.

When the four main bow cannons fired a salvo at an initial velocity of five hundred kilometers per second, the damage they inflicted on the ground was essentially equivalent to a small-yield tactical nuclear weapon.

Not only was it immensely powerful, but it was also clean and harmless.

As the massive fireball and shockwave slowly dissipated, the commander of this Imperial brigade combat team noticed on his command terminal that the unit marker of an armored combined arms battalion near the landing position had been marked with a ‘cross’.

This meant that no life signs could be detected from over ninety-five percent of the battalion’s personnel, and its vehicles had gone offline on the datalink.

A situation like this was generally considered a total annihilation of the unit.

While several other affected Imperial battalions were still urgently regrouping their troops and assessing the damage, the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade, having recovered from its shock, launched its official offensive.

As the various units skirted the orbital strike’s kill zone, some vehicle drivers and HCP pilots saw through their respective observation equipment the vitrified ground near the landing point.

They also saw the armored vehicles, HCPs, and other units that looked like melted butter.

Although the spectacle of light and sound from the orbital strike had been utterly stunning, and the devastation they were now witnessing firsthand was absolutely devastating, knowing that this god-like orbital attack came from their own fleet sent the morale of everyone in the mixed combined arms brigade soaring.

And this counter-charge, just as Lieutenant Memphis had previously guessed, was spearheaded by the brigade’s HCP company, led by Amber.

Five kilometers from the annihilated armored combined arms battalion, another armored combined arms battalion from the Imperial armored brigade combat team was urgently gathering its wounded and contracting its formation.

Although they weren’t the target of the orbital strike, the searing shockwave that swept over them had still thrown them into chaos.

Some units closer to the point of impact had also suffered heavy losses.

It was at this moment that the frontline soldiers saw a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

Amidst the fire and smoke of the explosion, an HCP with a glowing red optical sensor on its head appeared before them like a demon.

As more HCP silhouettes slowly emerged from the dust, forming an attack formation and advancing on their lines amidst the flashing blue light behind them, these Imperial soldiers finally realized that the Coalition force’s HCPs were right on top of them.

“All units, free fire! Stop those HCPs!”

As the frontline commander’s roar echoed throughout the communication channel, the Imperial line finally came alive.

All sorts of projectiles, rays, and beams swept towards Amber’s HCP assault force.

Several Imperial Zealots leaped over the heads of their own mobile infantry, charging forward with shields raised, their electromagnetic rifles continuously firing streams of orange-red tracer rounds.

On their panoramic displays, a cluster of high-threat purple markers representing the enemy HCPs appeared. The combat assistance AI had already identified their models from its database and labeled them above the units.

Zealot, Dragon Knight, Short-Faced Bear, Wasteland Wolf…

This logistical nightmare of a combination made the Imperial pilots sneer. These civilian militias never considered issues like commonality or coordination.

In response, Amber really wanted to explain that it wasn’t that he didn’t want to standardize; it was because he had accepted the contract in such a hurry that there was no time to re-equip the HCP company. He had to make do with what he had.

“Let’s move! Take out this ragtag army!” the commander of the Imperial armored combined arms battalion’s HCP company said coldly on the comms channel, then took the lead and charged forward.

“Maintain combat formation, coordinate with fire support from the rear—”

Before the commander could finish his sentence, the combat assistance AIs of every Imperial HCP on this front line issued a warning.

When the pilots looked towards the source of the warning, they saw the opposing HCPs raising a large, thick rectangular block on their back-mounted weapon racks.

As several small circular covers on the front of the block popped open, the combat assistance AI helpfully labeled the weapon type.

Six-tube 150mm plasma rocket pod.

“Shit! Evasive maneuvers! Evasive maneuvers!”

As the Imperial pilots, aided by their attitude control systems, frantically executed a ‘back step’ to halt their charge, a wall of blue light appeared before their eyes.

Just like the defensive tactical hydrogen bombs commonly used by fleets in space, the intense brightness and temporary electromagnetic shielding effect of the plasma fireballs caused the Imperial HCPs’ combat assistance AIs to dim the cockpit displays and momentarily cease forward detection.

The plasma rockets carried by ground-based HCPs, aside from attacking fixed positions, were actually very difficult to hit targets with in HCP-on-HCP combat. Thus, in many cases, they were used on the spot as ‘high-powered smoke shells.’

“Defensive positions! They might fire a salvo after the plasma fireballs dissipate!”

As the Imperial commander spoke, the HCP pilots all raised their shields and increased the power to their deflector shields.

But just then, a series of sonic booms erupted. The next thing the Imperial pilots saw were two squads of HCPs, like gladiators with sword and shield, pouring forth like quicksilver from both sides of the wall of light.

Only then did the Imperial HCP commander realize that his unit was facing a pack of madmen.

Madmen who, at the very onset of the battle, had skipped the stage of exchanging fire and had charged directly into the front lines to engage in a brawl.

Chapter 245: Atlas’s Sword-Drawing Syndrome

For the survivors among the Imperial soldiers on the outskirts of Ptolemy City’s satellite town on Loubion V, the battle that took place this night would be forever seared into their memories.

First came the beam of light that descended from above, like a divine punishment.

This single strike, which seemed to pierce the very stars, annihilated an entire battalion of their friendly units.

Following that, from within the attacking Coalition force, came the HCPs—demons returned from hell. Illuminated by massive plasma fireballs, they charged straight into the Imperial lines and engaged their HCP units in melee combat.

These nearly ten-meter-tall steel giants dodged and weaved across the battlefield, occasionally launching a dazzling charge amidst the shriek of sonic booms.

The jarring clang of steel on steel hammered into the hearts of these Imperial soldiers, one strike after another.

But among the attackers, it was the lead enemy unit, a dark red HCP, that was the most terrifying.

It was the first to breach the defensive perimeter, ramming its shield into an intercepting Zealot and sending it flying backward.

The Zealot’s combat assistance AI quickly took over attitude control, firing its back-mounted main thruster array in an attempt to regain balance.

But the dark red HCP’s attack didn’t end there. After the shield ram, its own back-mounted thruster array erupted in a brilliant blue flash.

The entire mech stuck to its target like glue, immediately surging forward after it.

Its massive heavy plasma severing sword was already in its right hand. Once powered, the edge of the heavy sword lit up with the blue glow of plasma.

Like a blue crescent moon suddenly appearing in the night, the heavy sword, driven by the mechanical arm’s electromagnetic muscles, swung in a diagonal arc from bottom right to upper left.

The high-temperature, high-velocity plasma, held in place as a ‘blade’ by magnetic confinement, shattered the surface layer of silicon carbide armor plates on contact.

Next, the layered armor, its heat-dissipation efficiency already maxed out, and the third layer of self-repairing memory metal armor were brutally torn apart.

Finally, the titanium alloy frame that formed the mech’s skeleton was hacked clean through by the immense kinetic energy of the heavy sword’s strike, like a spine severed in a blade test.

The unfortunate Imperial HCP pilot, caught in close quarters, only had time to marvel, “What a fast strike!” before being incinerated by the high-temperature plasma blade as it sliced through the cockpit.

But it wasn’t over. Controlled by its head-tracking system, the dark red HCP acted just like a human, using the last of its forward momentum to leap into the air and deliver a picture-perfect “Rider Kick.”

The Imperial HCP, its main frame already severely damaged, was completely destroyed by the flying kick, its entire upper torso torn away.

This was melee combat between HCPs. When both sides wielded heavy swords with more than enough cutting power, a single precise strike was all it took to end the fight.

This was also why pilots from both the Federation and the Empire, even if they could go on a rampage with their heavy severing swords in simulators and carve through enemy lines again and again, would never draw their swords for melee combat on a real battlefield unless absolutely necessary.

The margin for error in such fights was simply too low. A single elementary mistake could get them killed in one strike by an opponent.

But the pilots from Atlas were different.

Under the influence of Amber, the chief drill instructor of the HCP units, their “sword-drawing syndrome” was severe, and every last one of them had a terminal case.

At Atlas, any pilot selected for the HCP units who completed all training subjects and was successfully assigned to a unit was guaranteed to be proficient in melee combat.

The final part of the comprehensive assessment was to take a training mech, use a training sword with the same feel as a heavy plasma severing sword, and survive for five minutes in a one-on-one duel with Amber.

Although, because Amber was finding it increasingly difficult to make time for this, the “Training Syllabus Revision Team” was looking for other subjects to replace it.

For example, surviving for five minutes in a one-versus-two or one-versus-three duel against graduate pilots—this was to simulate encountering enemies with numerical superiority on the battlefield.

After all, you couldn’t expect a numerically superior enemy on the battlefield to engage you in a “righteous one-on-one duel.”

In short, on this planet at least, you would be hard-pressed to find another team of HCP pilots more skilled in “HCP melee combat” than those from Atlas.

“Nobody knows melee combat better than us!”

This was a phrase many Atlas HCP pilots had pasted on the multi-function displays in their cockpits.

So when this pack of ferocious pilots charged their mechs into melee range, the HCP unit from the Imperial armored combined arms battalion before them was almost instantly wiped out.

Once the HCPs of both sides were mixed in a chaotic brawl, the fire support from the main battle tanks and multi-legged war machines in the rear was rendered useless.

It was already a night battle with extremely low visibility, and the flashes from various energy weapons were constantly interfering with their optical equipment. Now, with units from both sides entangled and constantly maneuvering, these units were completely unable to provide effective direct fire support.

Furthermore, relying on their superior piloting skills and the coordination honed through extensive joint training, the Atlas pilots could often create localized many-on-one advantages.

An Imperial HCP would struggle to parry an attack with its shield, but before it could even stabilize its stance, another HCP would dart out from the shadow of its current opponent.

This would be followed by a simple, unadorned horizontal slash.

Watching the icons of friendly units get marked with red crosses one by one on his multi-function display, the Imperial HCP unit commander’s heart sank.

The enemies who had dispatched his units with swift efficiency had already broken through the interception line formed by the HCP company and were now pouncing on the lines further back.

But only main battle tanks and multi-legged war machines were left there.

Although their main armaments could also threaten HCP units—especially the heavy electromagnetic cannons equipped on some main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines, which could blast an HCP to pieces with a well-aimed shot—in terms of agility, these units were no match for HCPs. Once an HCP got close, they were doomed to be circled and picked apart.

This was why both armored combined arms battalions and heavy combined arms battalions employed HCPs, main battle tanks, and multi-legged war machines in coordinated operations.

However, the Imperial HCP commander had no time to worry about the friendly forces behind him.

On his panoramic display, the enemy’s dark red HCP had already locked onto him. The distance between them was rapidly closing as the enemy charged at supersonic speed.

And he knew very well that in a melee fight, he was no match for that killing machine.

“Hound 1, we’re coming to support you!”

Just as the commander was preparing to make a desperate last stand in his Zealot command variant, other voices came over the communications channel.

He turned his head and saw, on a small slope about one hundred and fifty meters to his right, an anti-HCP squad tensely setting up a portable anti-vehicle electromagnetic cannon.

At the same time, surviving friendly units appeared from several other directions, signaling that they were preparing to provide covering fire.

The commander immediately raised his heavy shield in front of him while discreetly activating the heavy particle cannon on his shoulder.

Soon, just as the dark red HCP in front of him crossed an imaginary line, an orange-red streak of fire shot out from the right without warning.

Simultaneously, two more orange-red streaks and a stream of charged particles flew toward the target HCP from other directions.

Then, the commander witnessed a scene that defied his understanding.

As if it could see the future, the HCP ducked the moment the charged particle cannon fired, dodging the stream.

Next, it angled its massive shield in front of it. Combined with the frenzied silver-white arcs of electricity from its fully-powered deflector shield, it deflected two high-velocity penetrator rounds that were glowing red-hot from air friction.

Finally, it impossibly tilted its ‘head’, dodging the last incoming high-velocity penetrator. At the same time, the point-defense laser cannons on either side of its head’s main monitor fired back along the trajectory of the electromagnetic cannon’s shot.

A ball of fire erupting in the night sealed the fate of the anti-HCP squad.

And somehow, the dark red HCP had switched the heavy severing sword in its hand for an electromagnetic rifle.

As the muzzle of the 50mm electromagnetic rifle flashed repeatedly, the few friendly units coordinating the attack also lost their signals one after another.

But those Imperial soldiers had bought their HCP commander one chance to attack with their lives.

The muzzle of the deployed heavy particle cannon glowed white. On the commander’s panoramic display, the target, locked in a purple frame, was finally engulfed by the surging heavy metal particle stream.

Unfortunately, when the white light faded, another HCP, carrying a heavy layered armor shield, had appeared in front of the dark red mech.

Clearly, the fatal shot had been blocked by this uninvited guest.

“No!”

A roar of indignation erupted from the Imperial commander’s mouth.

But the roar echoed in the cockpit for only a moment before being cut short by a heavy severing sword that tore through the main thruster array and armor plating from behind, ultimately piercing the cockpit.

“Target HCP has ceased activity. Confirmed no quench in the superconducting battery stack.”

Murat pulled his heavy severing sword from the back of the HCP, then waved at Amber and Louis, who was holding the shield.

Just moments ago, these two had also charged forward, each leading their respective HCP companies. The other combat units from the two heavy combined arms battalions had also broken through the gap Amber and her team had created.

Amber looked at the tactical situation map on her multi-function display. The Atlas mixed combined arms brigade had now pierced the Empire’s defensive line like a sharp arrow.

And the thirty assault-configured HCPs gathered at the very front were the sharpest tip of that arrow.

“Continue the assault! Press the attack before the enemy has time to react!

Send a message to the other Coalition units. Tell them we’ve launched a counter-offensive. If they’ve got the guts, they can join us. If not, they can get the hell out of our way!”

“Yes, Sir!”

Chapter 246: A Mushroom Cloud Rises Over the Battlefield

Loubion V, 80 kilometers south of Ptolemy City, Coalition Headquarters.

Having already retreated once, the Coalition headquarters had now finished deploying at a pre-selected alternate location.

Inside a camouflaged container vehicle repurposed as a large mobile command post, the Coalition commander, Rear Admiral Benjamin, stared grimly at the tactical situation map displayed on the electronic sand table.

To sum it up in one sentence: “Alerts across the entire front; unit cohesion steadily declining.”

The Coalition’s First Battle Group was composed of forces from seven private military companies and defense contractors, totaling seven brigades.

The battle plan called for a feigned attack on the right flank and a slow advance in the center, while concentrating superior forces on the left flank to achieve a breakthrough, penetrate, and encircle the enemy’s central units.

On paper, the plan was a thing of beauty.

But from the start of the battle until now, the three brigade-level units responsible for the attack on the left flank had all been stalled.

Not only had they failed to break through the defensive line, but they had also suffered significant losses in personnel to counterattacks from the remaining Imperial forces, forcing their own front line to fall back continuously.

This was especially true for the two brigade combat units on the far left, which were mixed formations from three different companies. They had suffered casualties on a unit-wide scale almost immediately upon engaging the enemy.

According to the latest information, the Imperial armored brigade combat team facing these two brigades was currently in pursuit.

Their highly mobile HCP units had already begun penetration attacks, attempting to cut off and encircle some of the battalion-level units of the Coalition’s two left-flank brigades.

“What is this crap? Two combined arms brigades getting chased all over the field by a single Imperial unit!”

Rear Admiral Benjamin angrily threw his cigarette butt onto the floor of the container vehicle. The ventilation system overhead detected the smoke and whirred to life at a higher power.

The orderly beside him glanced down. The floor was already littered with crushed cigarette butts.

In fact, the Rear Admiral hadn’t stopped smoking since the battle began.

Although standard regulations prohibited smoking inside the command vehicle.

But who was going to tell him to stop? He was the commander of the entire Coalition force. There was no one in the theater of operations with a higher rank or greater authority.

Rear Admiral Benjamin had no idea that the mind of the locally conscripted orderly beside him—a man skilled in housekeeping, cooking, and preparing afternoon tea—was wandering.

Staring at the electronic sand table, he was struck by a strange sense of déjà vu—the familiar feeling of a total rout, just like when he had led the Planetary Defense Force against the Imperial invasion.

This “top student” from the command track of the Federation’s First Army Command Academy had managed to reach the position of Planetary Defense Force commander in his forties.

Besides his relatively solid grasp of fundamentals and professional skills, the support from his family’s business enterprises had played no small part.

On Loubion V alone, there were several large industrial parks funded by his family’s corporate backers.

Despite these objective factors, the young Rear Admiral still believed that his rise to this position was “inextricably linked” to his own outstanding performance in operational command.

Even when his forces had been swept aside by the Imperial airborne expeditionary force earlier, Rear Admiral Benjamin had attributed the failure to the Planetary Defense Force’s abysmal combat capabilities.

It was the same with the Coalition forces he now commanded; in his eyes, they were just a motley crew of incompetents making up the numbers.

Otherwise, how could his textbook-perfect battle plan have resulted in such a disastrous mess?

However, it wasn’t all bad news across the front.

The two brigades in the center of the line, though their advance had also been stalled, had at least stabilized the front and hadn’t been pushed back.

And these two brigades were the forces from Thunder Defense, the strongest overall among the 15 companies.

Furthermore, the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade, originally deployed on the right flank to conduct a feigned attack—a unit that had been looked down upon by the other companies in the pre-battle briefing for expressing doubts about the offensive—had ironically become the only combat unit on the entire front to have actually mounted a successful ‘attack’.

“What a mess…”

At this point, Rear Admiral Benjamin had to admit that he had indeed misjudged them.

But at the same time, he still believed his deployment was “indispensable” to their success.

If not for his ‘stroke of genius’ in assigning the Atlas forces to the feigned attack on the right flank, this mixed combined arms brigade of over 3,000 soldiers wouldn’t have been able to achieve such an effect.

At this thought, Rear Admiral Benjamin couldn’t help but recall the beam of light that descended from the night sky, and the massive fireball that rose afterward.

After confirmation from multiple sources, Coalition HQ, along with the other units, had learned that this strike was carried out by an Atlas warship in orbit.

“This Atlas… Just how many tricks do they have up their sleeve?”

It wasn’t just Rear Admiral Benjamin in the rear command post; even the commanders at the front, currently organizing their brigade HQs’ retreats, were wondering how this obscure company had managed to pull off such a ‘heaven-shaking strike’.

Many of them even took the opportunity when their own company’s warships were passing overhead to contact the ship captains and ask if they could learn from Atlas’s warship and provide fire support for the ground troops.

One of the captains, while inwardly mocking these ‘army amateurs who know nothing about naval matters and just give blind orders’, gave a reply dripping with dark humor.

“We can provide support, but there are two possibilities, each with a 50% chance.”

“What two possibilities? Hitting the target or missing? It doesn’t matter! Even just scaring the Imperial troops on the other side would be enough!”

“No.” The captain cut off the emotional commander. He continued:

“A 50% chance the supporting warship falls into the atmosphere, and a 50% chance the strike lands on our own heads.”

“…”

Approximately 35 kilometers behind the Imperial forces’ offensive line, several armored command vehicles fitted with anti-detection camouflage nets were parked in a relatively dense forest.

A few soldiers from the brigade’s communications support company were checking the fiber optic cables connected to the vehicles’ external ports.

These cables connected to command information network management vehicles and communication node vehicles three kilometers away. This ensured smooth communications while preventing the communication nodes from being discovered, which would get the brigade HQ wiped out along with them.

Inside one of the armored command vehicles, several Imperial officers were crowded together, looking at the vehicle-mounted command terminal.

Their mobile command container vehicle had to be destroyed and abandoned during a previous battle due to a mechanical failure, so the operations command post had been relocated to these few armored command vehicles.

The overall commander of this counter-offensive, codenamed ‘Shattered Blade’, Colonel Drake, a Viscount of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army, was also looking at the electronic sand table with some concern.

From the current situation, the Imperial forces’ counter-offensive was progressing at lightning speed on most fronts.

Most of the Federation units they faced were even easier to deal with than they had imagined.

Especially on the western side of the front, the 58th Armored Brigade Combat Team was single-handedly pursuing and attacking two Federation brigade-level combat units.

But that glaring salient on the eastern front was like a nail stuck in Colonel Drake’s heart.

According to reports from the 49th Armored Brigade Combat Team, which had engaged the enemy in that sector, the combat effectiveness of the enemy brigade-level unit in the salient was on a completely different level from the other enemies.

Their extremely strong frontal assault capability, combined with that terrifying orbital strike, had already forced two battalion-level units from the 49th Brigade to withdraw from combat.

The entire 49th Brigade, under the enemy’s fierce counter-assault, had its offensive momentum forcibly halted, and was now barely holding the line using a small town for cover.

“Viscount, Sir, this tough nut our troops on the eastern flank have run into is not easy to deal with.”

An operations staff officer spoke up:

“The 49th was reinforced with personnel and combat vehicles before launching the offensive. You could say it was the brigade with the strongest offensive capability on the front. But now look at the state they’re in… I recommend having the 54th Brigade on their flank provide immediate support, and pulling them out first.”

As the operations staff officer spoke, he extended a dotted line representing a ‘planned attack’ from the attack vector of the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade on the sand table.

“It’s obvious this enemy unit is trying to cut off the 49th’s line of retreat and attempting to annihilate them completely.”

“I second that, Viscount,” another staff officer chimed in.

“We’ve already lost our support and supply lines. We absolutely cannot afford to lose entire units. Pulling back the 49th is the best choice right now. If we get dragged into urban warfare later, we’ll have more mobile forces available for defense.”

Listening to his staff officers, Colonel Drake didn’t deliberate for long. The intense situation at the front didn’t allow for much thought.

Besides, he had already made his decision.

“Relay my orders. Tell the 54th to accelerate their attack and cover the 49th’s withdrawal before the enemy encirclement is complete.”

As he issued the order, the Imperial commander opened his personal terminal. After passing an identity verification, he transmitted an authorization command to the command terminal.

“At 02:30 hours, authorize the 58th Armored Brigade Combat Team to use tactical nuclear weapons. Tell the commander of the 58th that before HQ orders a full retreat, he is to annihilate as much of the enemy’s effective strength as possible! He’ll know what to do.”

Drake’s orders were quickly relayed. Meanwhile, an operations staff officer in the command vehicle cautiously asked:

“Sir, are you sure about using nuclear weapons?”

“Why? At a time like this, am I supposed to be worried about protecting this planet’s environment for future colonization?”

Colonel Drake said contemptuously, his voice full of resentment towards the Empire and the Navy:

“Damn them! Those sons of bitches in the Navy have all run off, leaving us here on this planet to die. Do you really think I should still give a damn about any of that bullshit?”

Upon receiving the order from headquarters and seeing the authorization code for tactical nuclear weapons, the commander of the 58th Armored Brigade Combat Team glanced at the battlefield situation map and immediately understood Colonel Drake’s intentions.

On his command, his already successful forces picked up the pace of their attack.

The HCP units that had already penetrated the junctions between enemy units received new orders: prioritize attacks on the enemy’s escorting anti-air units, lure away the enemy HCPs, and weaken the enemy’s air defense capabilities as much as possible.

Upon receiving their orders, the Imperial HCP pilots immediately abandoned the armored and infantry units they were engaging, and using the superior ground mobility of their HCPs to overwhelm other units, they began to hunt and destroy all anti-air assets.

The two pursued Coalition brigades were dumbfounded. Their commanders couldn’t understand why the enemy had suddenly gone berserk, madly targeting their anti-air units.

But they had no time to ponder it. They could only send their remaining operational HCP units to intercept, to protect their own far-from-cheap anti-air assets.

Just as the HCPs and anti-air units of both sides were engaged in a game of cat and mouse…

On a hillside five kilometers away, an HCP carrying a massive launch container on its back deactivated its optical camouflage and emerged from the woods.

After its walking unit deployed several mechanical support struts for stabilization and recoil absorption, the seemingly ‘unremarkable’ launch container on its back opened its front cover, revealing a stealth-configured warhead inside.

“‘Light Gatherer’ has reached the designated launch position. Now commencing ‘Flash Point’ Stage Two operations.”

“Authorization code entered and verified!”

“Launch sequence unlocked!”

“HQ, this is final confirmation. Do we execute the final stage of Operation Flash Point?”

“This is HQ. Confirm execution of the final stage of Operation Flash Point.”

“Roger that. Initiating launch sequence. Sequence is now irreversible.”

“3, 2, 1, launch!”

In a sudden cloud of dust kicked up on the hillside, a warhead trailing fire tore through the sky with a sonic boom, speeding towards the target airspace.

At that moment, all Imperial units on the western front ceased their attack. Mobile Infantry soldiers either took cover inside their vehicles or used them as shields. All units activated ‘nuclear-proof’ mode.

The Coalition HCPs on the front lines saw the enemy units suddenly pull back and thought their intervention had forced the enemy to give up their attack. They began to cheer.

The next second, a blinding light tore through the dark night sky, like a supernova erupting on the surface of Loubion V.

A giant fireball expanded rapidly like the blistering summer sun, lifting itself with its own immense power, climbing towards the heavens.

Its brightness was impossible to look at directly. Even on the distant front lines, the reflection of the intense flash could be seen on the armor of Mobile Infantry and their vehicles.

As the fireball ascended, the air at ground zero was instantly compressed and then violently expanded, forming an invisible but devastating supersonic shockwave that swept outwards in all directions.

Wherever it passed, fortified concrete positions, main battle tanks, HCPs, and other armored units were torn apart and tossed aside like paper before this immense force, mingled with debris, dirt, and the screams of countless unfortunate souls.

Finally, as the enormous mushroom cloud slowly rose amidst the fiery glow, the units of both sides on the battlefield at last felt the oppressive presence befitting this former ‘King of Battle’.

Chapter 247: Tian Ji’s Horse Race, A Timeless Strategy

“Warning! Thermonuclear weapon attack detected! Recommend activating nuclear-proof and anti-radiation operating modes!”

“Warning!”

The piercing ‘thermonuclear weapon attack warning’ blared through the combat management systems of every unit on the front line.

Many soldiers from both the Empire and the Coalition stared dumbly at the fireball rising in the distance. If their exoskeletons hadn’t detected the excessive light and automatically dimmed their visors, many would have been blinded by the intense flash.

No one had expected something like this to suddenly appear on the battlefield.

In the command vehicle of the Coalition’s mobile command post, the cigarette in Rear Admiral Benjamin’s hand had burned down to his fingers.

But he seemed to feel nothing, his eyes vacant as he stared at the electronic sand table.

The ‘nuclear strike’ icon hanging over the two brigade-level units, along with the words ‘Contact Lost’ marked above them, seemed to flash mockingly at him.

Only when the burning sensation on his fingers intensified did the Coalition commander flinch as if startled, flicking the cigarette butt to the floor and snapping back to his senses.

Rear Admiral Benjamin glanced around the command vehicle and saw that the other operations staff officers were also just regaining their composure, now staring at him, panicked and at a loss.

“Calm down. Calm down.”

The Coalition commander took a few deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.

As the current supreme commander of the entire Coalition, he absolutely could not be the first to lose his nerve.

“Find a way to dispatch drones to reconnoiter the area near the nuclear blast, and try to re-establish contact with those two units.

Inform the other units not to panic and to prepare their defenses. The enemy will likely launch an offensive after the nuclear strike!

Have the guard units pull back. The Coalition command post will prepare to relocate to the rear alternate safe point.”

Rear Admiral Benjamin rattled off a series of orders, then looked up at the communications staff officer.

“Send a message to the star system’s autonomous government and the planetary administrator of Loubion V. Inform them that the Coalition has been hit by a nuclear strike from Imperial forces and is now preparing to execute a nuclear counter-strike according to established protocol.”

——

Just as the Coalition command post began to relocate and prepare to order the nuclear counter-strike protocol…

Most Coalition units on the front line, upon receiving the order to ‘hold your positions and prepare for a large-scale enemy attack,’ chose to ignore it.

Many battalion-level units on the firing line completely disregarded the orders from the rear, gathering their troops and beginning to retreat.

Although their commanders repeatedly tried to stop them over the communication channels, stating that their actions would be officially recorded and that after the battle, not only would all their pay for this mission be canceled, but they would also face court-martial…

But the frontline troops didn’t give a damn about such threats and only quickened their withdrawal from the front.

Their replies were simple and forceful.

“We’re here to make money, not to eat a damn nuke!”

And that was the reaction from the units that hadn’t been hit by the nuclear attack.

On the western side of the Coalition front, the two combined arms brigades caught within the tactical nuclear strike’s range completely lost all cohesion under the mushroom cloud.

When had these forces from private military companies and defense contractors ever seen a nuclear warhead on the battlefield?

The survivors, who had been far enough from ground zero to luckily survive, now cared about nothing but fleeing to the rear at all costs.

Many Mobile Infantry even opened fire on their own side’s vehicles, just to get those still-functioning transports to take them along.

Meanwhile, some armored vehicles, already at full capacity, were driven frantically by their pilots, who floored the accelerators and ran over the infantry blocking their path.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to stop; it was that the Imperial forces on the other side of the front line had already activated the ‘nuclear environment combat mode’ on their equipment and vehicles and were resuming their attack.

Admittedly, both the infantry’s combat exoskeletons and the various ground vehicles had long been equipped with the ability to operate in a nuclear environment, minimizing the effects of secondary damage from a nuclear blast.

But the courage to fight under a mushroom cloud was clearly not something these soldiers from the Federation’s private armed forces possessed.

Unable to mount an effective counter-attack, remaining in their positions was tantamount to suicide.

——

As the Coalition forces on the western flank began to rout, Amber, who was leading his troops on a rampage on the eastern flank, was also stunned.

He had to admit he had made a very serious mistake.

He had forgotten the possibility that the Empire’s expeditionary forces would use nuclear weapons in an emergency.

The expeditionary units of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army did indeed carry tactical nuclear weapons, to be used as a trump card in ground battles.

Generally, within an Imperial expeditionary division’s three subordinate brigade combat teams, the two Armored brigade combat teams responsible for frontal assaults would each carry two two hundred thousand-ton tactical nuclear weapons.

In other words, if the nuclear strike teams of the subordinate Armored brigade combat teams from the three Imperial expeditionary divisions deployed on Loubion V were all present, they would have a total of twelve two hundred thousand-ton tactical nuclear weapons.

After using this one, there were still eleven nuclear warheads waiting to be deployed.

And once the combat command system marked the approximate location of the nuclear warhead’s ground zero, Amber immediately guessed the opposing Imperial commander’s plan.

It was to annihilate all of the Coalition’s effective strength on the western flank with lightning speed, paving the way for the next phase of the battle.

“In that case, I have even more reason not to let this enemy in front of me escape.”

Amber immediately changed the original combat order from ‘Support friendly forces’ to ‘Completely annihilate the enemy brigade-level combat unit directly in front of our forces.’

Those two Coalition combined arms brigades in the west were clearly a lost cause. But if Atlas’s combined arms brigade could completely annihilate the Imperial Armored brigade combat team blocking their path…

…then the trade would absolutely be worth it.

“Isn’t this just trading an inferior horse for a superior one? You might have made a small gain, but the Coalition definitely hasn’t lost.”

Protected by the built-in ‘nuclear-proof technology’ in all of Atlas’s equipment, and thanks to the efforts of the various communications support units, the entire mixed combined arms brigade was still able to maintain smooth communications.

And Amber directly used his highest authority to begin a brigade-wide broadcast.

“Warriors of Atlas, the time has come to test our mettle.

Because before you lies a battle more difficult than any you have ever seen!

I know that for many of you, this is your first time experiencing such a battle, and your first time facing the danger of a nuclear blast.

But I want to tell you all that the nuclear blast just now was only the beginning, because the Coalition is very likely to launch a nuclear counter-strike.

When that happens, the situation will be irreversible.

You can choose to halt your attack, to stay where you are and wait for the nuclear warheads to fall.

But there is another solution: annihilate the enemy before us.

Then, continue to attack the enemy on other fronts, tangle with them, and make it impossible for either the enemy or the Coalition to drop a nuke on their own people’s heads.

At the same time, the fleet above our heads will continue to support us from orbit, striking with thunderous fury at any enemy who dares to stand in our way.

You must believe that as soldiers of Atlas,
you will never be defeated.

You will never be outmatched by the enemy in equipment or technology.

You are ready to eliminate the enemies of Atlas.

Because every one of you is Atlas, the incarnation of the Titans.

And I, the man you call ‘Boss,’ the true leader of Atlas, Amber.

I will not retreat. I will continue to fight alongside you, and I will charge at the very front of the line to carve a path to victory for you.

Remember, your heroic fight is for yourselves.

Because only the brave will achieve final victory and claim the richest rewards.”

Chapter 248: The Nuclear Warhead Capture Plan

To be honest, Amber himself felt awkward after finishing his speech to the entire force.

He’d never been one for speeches, but under the circumstances, as the commanding officer, he had to say something to steady the troops’ morale.

But in the end, speeches and shouting slogans were never as effective as leading from the front.

This was especially true for the large number of Romu under his command.

Although their race hadn’t experienced war in a very long time—one could even say the word ‘war’ was merely an entry in their dictionary.

For many Romu, their understanding of war was probably just a large-scale group brawl.

But after the Romu marines were formed and had participated in several battles, Amber discovered that these ‘half-orcs’ still had a fighting spirit buried deep in their bones.

It just needed to be brought out with the right method.

And right now, Amber had found that the most effective method was to lead from the front.

He found that when he fought alongside these Romu and charged at the very front, the fighting will of these ‘Furballs’ would soar.

So, after his speech, Amber commanded the briefly paused combined arms brigade to resume its offensive rhythm.

At the same time, he personally led the brigade’s HCP Company of ten mechs, charging at the very head of the formation.

For Amber, the last thing he wanted was to see a second mushroom cloud rise over the battlefield.

Because that would mean the Imperial remnants and the Coalition forces would undoubtedly descend into the worst-case scenario: trading nuclear warheads across the planet’s surface.

The Imperial remnants should still have eleven 200-kiloton nuclear warheads.

On the Coalition side, even if the private military companies and defense contractors had nuclear weapons, they wouldn’t dare use them openly.

So the focus was on the Coalition commander, Rear Admiral Benjamin. The Planetary Defense Force he commanded most likely had them.

Theoretically, the planet’s defense force would rarely have a reason to use such weapons, and their launch silos and TIE vehicles had indeed been decommissioned.

But according to the defense force’s table of organization, they definitely still had a few small-yield tactical nuclear warheads carried by special HCPs, generally for the purpose of a nuclear counter-strike.

The number might be small, but having them and not having them were two entirely different concepts.

In Amber’s view, it was enough for the Coalition and Imperial forces to engage in minor skirmishes; something like nuclear warheads shouldn’t be thrown around so casually.

It would be best if they were temporarily entrusted to Atlas for safekeeping.

Large-scale use of nuclear weapons, resulting in massive casualties on both sides, was a secondary concern. The main issue was the impact it would have on the ecosystem of the planet Loubion V.

For Amber, and for the Atlas Group’s next phase of plans, this was absolutely not worth it.

Loubion V and the entire Loubion star system’s strategic location for transport, as well as its political position as a Stronghold system for the Federation opposition’s Federation Republican Party, actually made it an ideal place for Atlas to develop its interests.

And the opportunity for the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government to ‘invite’ Atlas to intervene in an official capacity was, one might say, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Therefore, no matter what, Amber would not allow either the Coalition or the Imperial forces to continue destroying this planet.

The intensity of this war had to be controlled.

——

“Cleves, can the Hermes continue to provide ground support right now?”

While leading the assault, Amber contacted the light cruiser still overhead.

“If we attack immediately, we can conduct one more ground support strike, but we expect to lose the firing angle in ten minutes.”

Cleves’s image appeared in a small window on the panoramic display.

Observing from the ship as the scenery around Amber blurred due to his unit’s high-speed maneuvers, he couldn’t help but marvel at what a badass his boss was, contacting him in the middle of combat.

“No, I don’t need immediate support. Huff. Huff.”

As a ‘high-energy warning’ sounded in Amber’s cockpit, he executed a tactical sidestep, dodging a heavy particle cannon blast before continuing:

“I need you to remain on standby in orbit as a deterrent. Here’s the plan: have the Hermes complete another full orbit at maximum speed. Once you re-enter orbital strike range, await my orders.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Amber nodded and then looked at Isabelle, who was in another small window and had been on the line since Cleves connected.

“Isabelle, contact the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. Tell them the consequences of both sides throwing nukes at each other on the planet… just do whatever you can to persuade them not to launch a nuclear counter-strike. Even just stalling until the Hermes re-enters orbital strike range would be enough!”

“Understood, I’m on it!”

Isabelle knew the situation was urgent, so she ended the communication without any further words.

A few of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s ships were parked in orbit to ‘supervise the battle,’ so she could contact them immediately.

Cleves saluted Amber, then also ended the communication and began to direct the warship to execute an emergency orbital maneuver.

“Helmsman, it’s on you now. Complete the orbit at maximum speed. Once we’re back in orbital strike range, stay there for as long as possible!”

“Yes, Sir!”

The helmsman, wearing an integrated headset, immediately began his work. With the help of the shipboard control AI, he quickly calculated an optimal trajectory to complete the orbit in the shortest possible time.

The warships of other companies in outer space had also detected the nuclear detonation on the planet’s surface.

As they each made emergency contact with their own ground forces, they all noticed the Hermes, a long trail of exhaust flaring from its engines, clearly beginning to accelerate.

“What’s going on? Is Atlas’s warship retreating?”

“Impossible, their company’s troops are still on the ground. Why would they retreat now?”

“Maybe that nuke just now landed on this Atlas company’s ground forces and wiped them out.”

“No, the nuclear explosion occurred on the Coalition’s left flank. The Atlas company is on the right flank of the line.”

“Look, that light cruiser isn’t retreating! It’s still on an orbital path!”

“Wait… Don’t tell me it’s planning to circle around for another pass, get into firing position, and deliver another round of ground bombardment?”

——

As Cleves and Isabelle began their respective tasks, Atlas’s mixed combined arms brigade, at a speed no one had anticipated, latched onto the Imperial armored brigade combat team ahead of them.

In the previous battle, this 49th Armored Brigade Combat Team, mentioned by the Imperial commander, had already had two of its battalion-sized combat units eliminated by Atlas’s forces.

Furthermore, based on a rough tally of enemy wreckage on the battlefield, they had likely taken out the two strongest armored combined arms battalions.

According to the 49th Brigade’s order of battle, aside from its fire support, support, and sustainment battalions, the brigade should only have one infantry combined arms battalion and one armored cavalry battalion left as its combat elements.

These were all light units. While they possessed good mobility, they severely lacked the capability for a direct frontal engagement.

Thus, Amber didn’t hesitate for a moment and gave the order for a full-scale assault.

At the same time, a second, hastily launched RQ-220 ‘Observer’ stealth drone arrived over the warzone, joining the other RQ-220—which had so far avoided being shot down—in circling high above.

Amber’s orders to the drone operations team were simple: scout the enemy’s movements and share the relevant data with ground units, while simultaneously searching the battlefield for any traces of what might be tactical nuclear strike HCPs.

Although these specially modified mechs possessed better stealth capabilities than standard HCPs, that didn’t mean they could remain invisible to advanced integrated sensor suites.

Even if these mechs kept their optical camouflage active, maintained radio silence, and minimized their electromagnetic signatures.

And even if they didn’t activate their subcritical reactors, instead relying on externally mounted conformal superconducting battery packs for basic propulsion.

But to the ‘Observers,’ with their high-grade infrared detection units, an HCP sneaking across the ground was still quite conspicuous.

After all, unlike warships, HCPs couldn’t be equipped with an absolute blackbody layer that would completely mask all radiation signatures.

Moreover, when these tactical nuclear strike HCPs went into action, they either operated alone in secret or with a small vehicle escort.

Therefore, any lone HCP or any HCP with a small vehicle escort could be designated as a suspected target.

Upon discovery of a suspected target, the two stealth drones would immediately synchronize the information with ground forces, enabling them to carry out the ‘nuclear warhead capture operation.’

That’s right, a ‘nuclear warhead capture operation.’

Atlas did not yet have the ability to produce nuclear weapons. If they could get their hands on some, it would be a significant help in ground combat.

Although the complete manufacturing process for thermonuclear weapons could be obtained if one was determined enough.

With the right connections and channels on the black market, the necessary equipment for manufacturing nuclear weapons could also be purchased.

But that was, after all, a relatively long process, and it had to be done in secret.

Capturing them from the enemy, however, was a different story.

The tactical nuclear warheads carried by special HCPs were somewhat different from those in silos or TIE vehicles.

The latter were generally pre-set with fixed targets and employed measures like hardware interlocks and two-person control to prevent accidental launches.

As for the tactical nukes carried by HCPs, to make them more ‘tactical’ in their application, they naturally couldn’t be controlled by traditional means.

Generally, these tactical nukes were stored with the warhead and the delivery system sealed separately, under special protection.

Only after entering a combat state would the warhead and its delivery system be placed together into a launch container.

And when the nuclear strike team received its attack order, the HCP tasked with launching the warhead would shoulder the launch container, at which point the HCP would also be able to directly interface with the launch container’s hardware.

The authorization released by the Imperial commander was, in fact, the permission for the HCP to gain direct hardware access. At that point, the HCP could activate the launch container, set a target, and execute the nuclear strike.

So Amber’s plan was simple: find the HCPs carrying the nukes, defeat them as quickly as possible, then seize the launch containers and shield them electromagnetically.

Afterward, even if they couldn’t crack the launch program, they could still dismantle the delivery system and take the warhead for their own use.

This kind of operation was very common during the fall of the Empire and the Federation’s civil war. In that dark and chaotic era, both sides had lost count of how many nuclear warheads had flowed into civilian hands.

Of course, back then, with the loss of government control, various private armed groups no longer bothered with secrecy; corporations that built their own factories to churn out nukes were everywhere.

Chapter 249: Benjamin, I Advise You to Be Kind

“Mr. Sam, Mr. Ryan, I must remind you that engaging in nuclear warfare on a planet is an extremely dangerous act.”

In a conference room aboard The Hermes, Isabelle was sitting on one side of a long table with the ‘cat-girl’ Oksana. Opposite them were the holographic projections of two middle-aged men.

They were the Administrative Deputy and the Secretary-General of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, respectively.

Sam, the star system’s Administrative Deputy, was also the Speaker of the Loubion Star System Senate. These two high-ranking officials from the autonomous government were currently aboard a garrison fleet ship in orbit to ‘oversee the battle’ and, if necessary, handle any potential legal matters.

“The fact that the Imperial remnants launched a tactical nuclear strike is something none of us wished to see. Under such circumstances, a nuclear counter-strike is indeed perfectly understandable.

But you two gentlemen must understand one thing: once a nuclear counter-strike begins, this small-scale nuclear war will not be easy to stop.

According to our calculations, if both sides use all their tactical nuclear warheads, it’s a conservative estimate that Ptolemy City, which is near the warzone, and its two satellite cities will be uninhabitable and unsuitable for production for a short time.

If I remember correctly, Ptolemy City ranks in the top three for GDP contribution on this entire planet, doesn’t it?”

Isabelle stared at the two government officials and continued:

“And that’s just the impact on Ptolemy City. The dense detonation of numerous tactical nuclear warheads in a short period would cause immeasurable damage to the entire planet’s ecosystem, especially its atmosphere.

The annihilation of the Imperial remnants is now just a matter of time. I believe that after the battle, the star system’s autonomous government will want to focus its efforts on post-war reconstruction.

So, let me ask you: do you wish to see a planet devastated by a small-scale nuclear war? Believe me, the cost of rebuilding such a planet would be a figure neither of you wants to see.”

Listening to Isabelle, the two government officials fell silent for a moment before Administrative Deputy Sam spoke up:

“Miss Isabelle, why are you so certain that eliminating the Imperial remnants is just a matter of time?”

The holographic projection device perfectly replicated his facial expressions and demeanor.

“Or to put it another way, why should we believe that your company can solve the current difficulties on the ground?”

“Mr. Sam, you can exaggerate a company’s qualifications, equipment performance, and the quality of its personnel, but the frontline doesn’t lie.

If you’ve looked closely at the frontline, you should know the true quality of those civilian armed forces in the Coalition.

Currently, along the entire frontline, only our Atlas combat units are on the offensive, and we are about to complete the encirclement and annihilation of a brigade-level Imperial unit.

Coupled with our company fleet’s unique orbital strike capability, isn’t that proof enough?”

The Administrative Deputy fell silent, because he knew Isabelle was right.

The bids from the other private military companies and defense contractors were quite high, especially the top-ranked Thunder Defense, whose price alone could match several other companies combined.

But after all their pre-war boasting, they were immediately shown up once the fighting started.

In contrast, Atlas, whose bid was in the lowest tier, had achieved results no one expected.

In the eyes of some in the star system government who had observed the Federation’s main force exercises, even a regular Federation army unit of the same size would, at best, perform only this well.

After a period of silent contemplation, the Administrative Deputy turned to the Secretary-General beside him and began discussing something.

They had clearly activated a mute function, and their mouths were pixelated to prevent lip-reading.

A moment later, Sam turned his gaze back to Isabelle and said:

“Miss Isabelle, I understand the issues you’ve raised, and from a personal standpoint, I completely agree.”

A personal standpoint.

Isabelle’s expression didn’t change, but she was already beginning to worry.

“We also don’t want to see more tactical nuclear warheads detonating on the planet’s surface, but under special circumstances, the commanding officer of the ground forces can decide independently whether to launch a tactical nuclear strike.

And a ‘nuclear counter-strike’ is one of those ‘special circumstances.’”

“So you’re saying you can’t stop Rear Admiral Benjamin?”

“Legally speaking, according to both Federation and star system government laws, we indeed cannot stop Rear Admiral Benjamin from carrying out a ‘nuclear counter-strike’.”

The Administrative Deputy paused, then glanced at the Secretary-General beside him. Only after the other man nodded and showed him something on his terminal did he continue:

“But if—and I’m saying if—your company has the ability to stop both sides from continuing their nuclear attacks.

Even if it requires… hmm… violent measures due to the urgency of the situation, the star system government will not hold you responsible afterward.”

“The automatic minutes and recording are still on. You are aware this is a formal meeting, are you not?”

Isabelle raised an eyebrow, reminding him.

“Of course. This is also the star system’s autonomous government implicitly granting Atlas temporary authority,” the Secretary-General, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

“We will also do our best to persuade Rear Admiral Benjamin not to act rashly, but we can’t guarantee what effect that will have. The final outcome will likely depend on you…”

Meanwhile, on the ground battlefield of Loubion V.

Two RQ-220s, circling at high altitude to maintain battlefield surveillance, quickly discovered two suspicious targets.

After the Imperial remnants launched their first tactical nuclear strike, their remaining nuclear strike teams had all entered a state of combat readiness, seeking out concealed positions to await orders.

Because an HCP radiates heat even when operating at minimum power on the ground, and its launch canister, once powered, also maintains a relatively suitable launch temperature for the munitions inside, they were still quite conspicuous to the RQ-220s, which were equipped with high-performance infrared detectors.

Moreover, the unique shape of these specialized HCPs, with their massive launch canisters, meant that secondary manual identification wasn’t even necessary.

“Target locations updated! Targets assigned designations A and B and have been synchronized to the tactical map.”

“Target A, 18 kilometers to the northwest, inside a small processing plant. It is protected by a small number of vehicles and infantry units.”

“Target B, 20 kilometers due north, in a forest on high ground. It is acting alone; no other units have been spotted nearby!”

Upon receiving the information transmitted by the drones, the staff officers at Brigade HQ quickly marked the targets on the tactical map, flagging them as ‘high-risk units.’

“I’ll deal with them.”

Amber’s dark red HCP flickered, quickly breaking away from the attack formation and rushing toward the area marked on the tactical map.

“One platoon of brigade HCPs, follow me! You’re in charge of recovering and securing the enemy’s launch canisters!

Murat, Louis, continue to lead the ‘Spearhead’! Hog and the other Brigade HQ staff officers will handle tactical command!

Objective: annihilate the enemy’s 49th Brigade!”

“Yes, sir!”

If one were to view the battlefield from the perspective of an RQ-220 at this moment and switch to IFF mode, they would see Atlas’s mixed combined arms brigade like a right hook swinging at the 49th Armored Brigade Combat Team, cutting off the 49th’s retreat while launching the most ferocious assault.

Meanwhile, Amber and the HCP platoon he had left far behind were like a phantom on the battlefield, cutting straight through the intense frontline and heading directly for ‘Target A.’

“Lilith, infiltrate the Coalition’s military network. I need to know Benjamin’s current movements.”

“Understood, Master!”

Receiving the command, Lilith immediately began an unrestricted infiltration.

Atlas’s internal network was already temporarily linked with the other Coalition units, so it didn’t take Lilith much effort to break in.

But even so, her infiltration speed couldn’t match how fast Amber found ‘Target A.’

For a highly mobile HCP that could perform short bursts of jet propulsion, a straight-line distance of 18 kilometers, with the limiters briefly disengaged, took less than a minute.

As Amber piloted his unit over a patch of woods, the processing plant hiding the target came into view.

The surrounding enemy units providing cover also spotted the HCP as it streaked across the battlefield like a meteor.

Two ‘Pacifier’ Heavy multi-legged war machines, equipped with heavy electromagnetic cannons, were quickly tagged.

As their cannons began to glow with blue light, Amber, who had already decelerated, unhesitatingly executed a zigzag maneuver that would have made other pilots black out.

The ‘Attitude Control System’ on the multi-function display immediately flashed a message in bold red font: ‘10.0G’.

But Amber only felt his body grow heavier for a short time. He even managed to raise his electromagnetic rifle during the maneuver and fire a burst at other targets, blowing up several light multi-legged war machines.

Two high-velocity penetrator rounds grazed past the dark red HCP, slamming into a distant earthen slope and tearing two craters in it.

“Boom! Boom!”

The sonic booms from the penetrator rounds arrived late, and were instantly filtered out by the HCP’s audio pickups the moment they sounded.

By the time the two ‘Pacifiers’ readjusted their aim and rotated their turrets, the dark red unit, which had already switched its weapon to a heavy slicer sword, flashed past their viewfinders.

“Main cannon damaged! Main cannon damaged!”

The next second, the Pacifier’s self-check system immediately issued a warning.

The vehicle crew stared dumbly at the panoramic display, at the heavy electromagnetic cannon that was now missing its front half, and slumped into their seats in terror, unsure of what to do.

“Fuck, did you guys see that?”

“N-no… I think an HCP flashed by?”

“I don’t know, all I saw was a red shadow.”

The RQ-220’s reconnaissance was not mistaken. Hiding inside the processing plant was indeed a specialized HCP from a nuclear strike team.

As it was a model specialized for nuclear strikes, this HCP wasn’t heavily armed, carrying only a head-mounted point-defense laser and an electromagnetic rifle for self-defense.

Amber had little trouble severing the HCP’s limbs, then used his heavy slicer sword to pry open the cockpit armor, tossing the pilot inside aside before hitting him with a gel round.

Several spider-like electromagnetic shielding robots crawled out of a storage container mounted on the HCP’s exterior. They attached themselves to the launch canister and immediately deployed an electromagnetic shield.

“Target A is ready for recovery. Repeat, Target A is ready for recovery!”

After receiving confirmation from the HCP platoon following behind him, Amber was about to go out and clean up the surrounding enemies before advancing directly on Target B’s position.

But just then, Lilith patched a monitored channel through to him.

This channel was monitoring the command vehicle at the Coalition HQ and Rear Admiral Benjamin’s dedicated communication line.

And the content of the conversation made Amber’s face darken instantly.

Rear Admiral Benjamin, the Coalition’s supreme commander, was currently speaking with someone else on an ‘encrypted’ channel.

Amber was also very familiar with this person’s voice—it was the ground commander for Thunder Defense who had mocked him during the strategy meeting.

The man was currently persuading Rear Admiral Benjamin to set the target for the nuclear counter-strike on the advance vector of Atlas’s mixed combined arms brigade.

“Son of a bitch, you really think I’m a pushover, don’t you.”

This time, Amber was truly furious.

“I wanted to make money peacefully and get along with you all, but since you insist, don’t blame me for being ruthless…”

As he seethed with anger, a communication from Cleves came through.

Under the captain’s command, and with the ace helmsman’s extraordinary performance, The Hermes had completed its orbital maneuver in less than forty minutes, descending directly into a ground attack position.

“Excellent. Lilith, patch me into Benjamin’s encrypted channel.”

“Roger that, Master!”

On the other end of the front, inside the command vehicle, Rear Admiral Benjamin was talking with the head of Thunder Defense.

Suddenly, he heard a new user join the ‘encrypted’ channel.

Immediately after, a familiar yet emotionless voice sounded in the channel.

“Benjamin, I advise you to be kind.”

Chapter 250: Taking Command

A few minutes ago, inside the command vehicle.

“Ralph, are you insane?”

Rear Admiral Benjamin, the Coalition’s commander-in-chief, had dismissed all his staff officers and orderlies, remaining alone inside the command vehicle.

“Dropping a nuke on friendly forces? Have you lost your mind?”

“No, no, no, I think you’re the one who’s lost his mind.”

On the encrypted communication channel, Ralph, Thunder Defense’s ground commander, spoke in a calm tone, as if detonating a tactical nuclear warhead over friendly forces was a perfectly normal thing to do.

“Such a perfect opportunity is right in front of you. Not only can you halt the enemy’s advance, but you can also cripple Atlas’s forces. This is a chance to kill two birds with one stone.”

“Wait, why would I want to cripple Atlas’s forces? Ralph, what the hell are you getting at?!”

Rear Admiral Benjamin had actually already guessed what Ralph meant, but he was unwilling to say it out loud himself.

“Heh. You and I both know it’s only a matter of time before these Imperial remnants are wiped out. It doesn’t matter even if it costs us heavy casualties.

Aren’t private militaries, to put it bluntly, just mercenaries fighting for money?

In the current climate, you can find as many of those people as you want.”

Ralph chuckled lightly and continued:

“Just look at this crumbling frontline. Right now, only Atlas is showing any offensive momentum. Their strength is not to be underestimated, and then there’s that orbital strike that came out of nowhere.

His Excellency, aren’t you worried about being overshadowed by a subordinate? A no-name private military suddenly becoming the savior of the entire campaign.

I believe the star system’s autonomous government will absolutely hold you responsible after the battle, especially since you’ve already thrown away half the garrison forces in the previous fighting…”

“That’s because the damn garrison forces were too weak! What does that have to do with me?”

Rear Admiral Benjamin suddenly grew agitated and roared:

“All my battle plans were formulated according to standard procedure. Even if you brought in a professor from the Army Command Academy, they wouldn’t be able to find a single fault.

If the autonomous government wants to hold me accountable for the operational failure, that’s their business. I’m fully confident I can defend myself!”

“Fine, fine, even if you can accept it, we at Thunder Defense absolutely cannot. You should know we came here with KPIs to meet. Thunder Defense must secure the largest share of the reconstruction contracts.

But this Atlas that popped out of nowhere is making things very difficult for me…

However, as long as you agree to launch the nuke, you can eliminate this third party that’s harming both our interests, along with those damn Imperial troops on the other side!”

“But what about the rest of the battle? Without Atlas, how are we supposed to attack? Among the rest of you guys, who can achieve their results?”

Rear Admiral Benjamin was still hesitating. After all, this decision was simply too outrageous.

“Hmph, these Imperial troops have already been cut off from their supplies. Today’s battle has also used up a lot of their ammo and fuel. We just need to besiege them a few more times, send in the other small companies to wear them down, and once the Imperial remnants run out of ammunition, they’ll naturally surrender.

Besides, you can also use this as an opportunity to request that the autonomous government hire more troops from us at Thunder Defense, can’t you?”

Seeing that Rear Admiral Benjamin was about to be persuaded, Thunder Defense’s ground commander decided to add one last bit of fuel to the fire.

“One last reminder, His Excellency.” Ralph’s tone suddenly turned cold.

“If, in the end, the share of reconstruction projects Thunder Defense obtains doesn’t reach the amount we previously agreed upon, you know the consequences…”

Hearing Ralph’s final words, Rear Admiral Benjamin was torn by an internal struggle.

Between him and Thunder Defense, there were naturally some shady dealings and vested interests.

This relationship became the final weight on the scales of his conscience.

“Stop agonizing over it. It’s just launching one tactical nuclear warhead. What’s the big deal?

Besides, you’re acting within the rules of a ‘nuclear counter-strike’. At worst, it’ll just be chalked up to bad luck for Atlas. No one else can find fault with it.”

Ralph continued his coaxing, like the serpent in the Garden of Eden whispering in Eve’s ear.

Hearing this, Rear Admiral Benjamin seemed to have finally made a decision. After a moment of contemplation, he opened his mouth:

“Then…”

“Benjamin, I advise you to be kind.”

“Who’s there?!” ×2

Benjamin and Ralph were both startled. This was an encrypted communication line; how could a third person’s voice have appeared?

It was only then that they both noticed a third user, labeled ‘Unknown,’ had appeared on the encrypted line.

“Who are you?! How dare you eavesdrop on the Coalition commander-in-chief’s encrypted line?”

Ralph was the first to lash out, immediately launching into a well-practiced, intimidating bluff.

“I’m your damn daddy!”

Amber, in his rage, was in no mood to coddle these people. He threw all etiquette to the wind and started spewing profanities.

“You!”

Shocked and enraged, Ralph was about to retort, but Amber was faster with his insults.

“You two goddamn rookies! Your battle command is like a pile of Buro Beast shit, but you sound so damn reasonable when you’re talking about screwing over friendly forces for your own gain.

If the two of you had spent even a little more effort on commanding the battle, would the Coalition be in this sorry state?

You piece of ******** (a stream of eloquent Earth profanity)…”

“Who the hell are you?”

After Amber finished his tirade, Rear Admiral Benjamin forced himself to calm down and asked.

“I’m your Grandpa Rebil.”

Hearing this name, Benjamin and Ralph were stunned for a moment before it dawned on them.

“The commander of Atlas? Do you have any idea what you’re doing? Eavesdropping on the encrypted communications of a high-ranking Federation general! An act like this is enough to get you sent to a military tribunal!”

Benjamin tried to intimidate Amber, but the latter just burst out laughing as if he’d heard a hilarious joke.

“Send me to a tribunal? You two should first think about how many times you could be executed by firing squad for your own filthy dealings on this battlefield.”

“Hmph, let’s see if you’re still talking when a nuke lands on your head,” Ralph said viciously, while starting to urge Benjamin.

“What are you standing around for? Hurry up and order the ‘nuclear counter-strike’, or we’re both finished.”

But before Benjamin could speak, Amber’s voice rang out again.

“Go ahead, give the order. I’d love to see which is faster: your order, or an orbital strike with an initial velocity of five hundred kilometers per second landing on your head.”

What?!

Benjamin panicked.

The effect of Atlas’s orbital strike was still fresh in his mind. Hearing that an orbital strike was now aimed at him, Benjamin’s heart skipped a beat.

“If you don’t believe me, just ask the ships in orbit. They should be spectating right about now~”

In fact, even without Amber saying anything, Benjamin and Ralph had already received the latest updates through their respective channels.

An Atlas light cruiser had indeed entered low orbit, and its posture was identical to when it had launched the previous orbital strike.

“Mr. Amber, we can discuss any issues calmly. There’s no need for things to get so unpleasant.”

Ralph, having navigated the corridors of Thunder Defense for years, was the quickest to react, immediately softening his stance.

“Actually, there’s a better solution to this. We can just drop it on another frontline. The fewer people there are to split the cake, the bigger our shares will be, right?

Mr. Amber, we at Thunder Defense are willing to give the largest share to you, to Atlas, to show our sincerity!”

“Too late. I’ve already relayed your little ‘conspiracy’ just now to the Administrative Deputy and the Secretary-General in orbit. They will decide what to do.”

Amber’s emotionless voice rang out, as if he hadn’t heard a word Ralph had just said.

“By the way, from the moment I joined your communication channel, I’ve been broadcasting this entire conversation to all other Coalition units. That means every single word you just said was heard by the other companies.”

“You…”

Ralph was so furious he was speechless. It took him a long moment to gather his thoughts and continue:

“So you’re not planning on leaving us any way out, is that it?”

“That’s hilarious. As if you two were planning on leaving Atlas a way out just now?”

Amber scoffed with a laugh.

At the same time, an order from the star system autonomous government’s ‘Battlefield Supervision Team’ was transmitted to Benjamin’s personal terminal and the Coalition HQ’s command terminal, and was simultaneously copied to all other Coalition forces.

The content was simple: on the basis of Rear Admiral Benjamin committing gross misconduct during a combat mission, and causing the Coalition to suffer immense casualties in combat operations.

In accordance with Federation law and the autonomous government’s decrees, Rear Admiral Benjamin is hereby relieved of his command over the Coalition forces and is to be immediately taken into custody by the military police.

Simultaneously, temporary command of the Coalition ground forces is granted to the Atlas private military company, who will be responsible for subsequent battle command.

Rear Admiral Benjamin collapsed into his chair, his mind a complete blank.

The door to the command vehicle was thrown open, and several military police officers in black combat exoskeletons and black uniforms, with ‘MP’ printed on their chest plates, walked in.

Meanwhile, Ralph, who had seen the emergency order, wanted to say something more in a last-ditch effort, but he suddenly heard a fierce firefight erupt outside his armored command vehicle.

He was still wondering why his headquarters, located behind the frontlines, was under attack, when the rear door of his armored command vehicle was breached with a disposable thermal cutting blade.

Before the commander could even process what was happening, a shadowy figure in a combat exoskeleton dragged him out of the vehicle and threw him to the ground.

Only then did he realize that his entire Brigade HQ, including the guard platoon, had been taken down. The ground was littered with the bodies of the wounded and the dead.

And the ‘perpetrators’ of all this were a squad of infantrymen wearing combat exoskeletons that had never appeared on the market, looking extremely elite.

The logo that appeared on their chest plates was that of Atlas.

“This is Instructor Squad, First Special Operations Team. We have suppressed Thunder Defense’s Brigade HQ.”

Chapter 251: Psionic User Centralized Management Center

Rear Admiral Benjamin was taken away by the Military Police.

Thunder Defense’s Commander-in-Chief, Ralph, was also handed over to the Military Police for detention by the Atlas instructor squad’s Special Operations Team.

After the star system’s autonomous government authorized Atlas to take over command, Amber had Lilith “openly and honestly” invade the internal networks of all Coalition forces currently on the battlefield.

By this point, he had already secured the second Imperial HCP that had been preparing to launch a tactical nuclear warhead and was awaiting the arrival of the HCP platoon tasked with recovering it.

While he waited, he opened the battlefield situation map. With the “forced deep network integration” active, the movements of the entire Coalition force had become much clearer.

The two brigade-level units on the western flank had essentially lost their combat effectiveness and were collapsing toward the rear.

The two Thunder Defense brigades in the center of the frontline had experienced some chaos after suddenly losing their Commander-in-Chief, but they quickly stabilized under the guidance of their mid- and low-level officers.

After a brief discussion, these officers also agreed to accept the temporary command of the Atlas private military company.

After all, it was impossible for Thunder Defense to airdrop a new commander for them at this time, and it was obvious that Atlas’s command structure was far more professional than theirs.

A professional commander would undoubtedly better ensure the survival rate of the subordinate units.

Moreover, they were on a battlefield. The mid- and low-level officers who had to face combat on the front line knew this was no time for infighting or non-cooperation.

Otherwise, when the main Imperial force launched its assault, no one would escape.

Therefore, at the request of the Atlas command post, the two Thunder Defense brigade-level units had already diverted some of their mobile forces to reconnoiter the western flank and coordinate with the reserve forces in the rear to round up the scattered troops.

The main force at the front temporarily held its position, setting up all its anti-aircraft weapons and field radars, beginning the phase beloved by fortification specialists: “digging in and fighting a war of attrition.”

As long as they could find a way to intercept any potential tactical nuclear warheads and hold the line against the Imperial attack, it would be considered a great victory.

As for the eastern frontline on the right side of the tactical map, the Black Blade Defense Task Force, which had withdrawn earlier under Atlas’s warning, was now also beginning to coordinate with Atlas’s combat units.

The surrounded 49th Brigade, having already lost its two most effective battalion-level units, had no ability to break out of the encirclement.

After the armored command vehicle carrying their brigade commander was melted by Murat with a one-in-a-million shot from long range, the Imperial soldiers lost their will to fight and surrendered one after another.

After handing these prisoners over to other Coalition units that followed up, the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade, along with the Black Blade Defense Task Force, continued their attack.

The ground commander of Black Blade Defense had finally seen the light. He discovered that as long as they stuck close to Atlas’s combat units, they could more or less get a piece of the action.

This unit’s offensive capability was so overwhelming that the Black Blade forces barely encountered much combat and effortlessly joined them in becoming the “spearhead of the attack.”

And in contrast to the other frontlines, which were constantly on the defensive and taking a beating, the right flank, thanks to the Atlas units’ performance, actually projected an atmosphere of “high morale.”

Under these circumstances, the 54th Armored Brigade Combat Team, which had originally been on its way to relieve friendly forces and open a breakout corridor, ran head-on into the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade, which had already adjusted its direction of attack.

“Viscount, Sir, we lost contact with the 54th Brigade after they engaged the enemy. The other side must have initiated large-scale electronic warfare.”

“Reconnaissance units from multiple forces report that the enemy has stopped their reckless advance and has begun to stabilize their lines and establish anti-aircraft zones. Combined with the elimination of our nuclear strike teams by that unknown HCP, all pre-planned forward launch sites for our tactical nuclear weapons have been rendered useless.”

“We have currently lost track of three tactical nuclear warhead launch canisters, which have likely been captured by the enemy. The remaining nuclear strike teams on the frontline have begun to pull back!”

The reports of the operations staff officers echoed continuously inside the command vehicle, and the markings on the electronic sand table updated with each new piece of information.

The Atlas unit, labeled ‘Unknown’ and tagged with a ‘high-threat marker’, had plunged into the defensive lines of the Imperial remnants like a sharp knife.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial remnants, Viscount Drake, fell silent as he stared at the tactical situation map on the electronic sand table.

This enemy brigade-level combat unit was completely different from all the enemies they had faced before, including the planet’s ground defense forces.

Not only did they have powerful support from orbit, but their command level had clear operational objectives and strategic resolve, and the combat execution of their subordinate battalion-level units was extremely strong.

Furthermore, according to reports from frontline troops, this enemy’s infantry units weren’t human but some kind of stout, ferocious “beastmen.”

“Romu, is it? This is truly a different kind of armed force.”

Viscount Drake thought to himself. He knew very well that the operational objectives set earlier were now impossible to achieve.

This large-scale counterattack was founded on the assumption that the enemy forces would be overconfident and advance recklessly.

Once the enemy stopped their advance and started fighting a positional war, his own side, with its absolute numerical inferiority, would be forced onto the defensive.

Should I have the 54th Brigade withdraw first? Preserve our strength and drag this into street fighting?

The thought flashed through Viscount Drake’s mind.

Although, if the navy fleet didn’t come to their aid, the abandoned troops on the ground had only two options: perish together with the enemy or surrender.

But taking one more Federation soldier down with them was worth it.

Just as he was about to raise his head to give the order, a familiar loud boom sounded, and the armored command vehicle shook violently.

A red dot immediately appeared on the electronic sand table—a position on the 54th Brigade’s line of attack.

“Sir! The enemy has just launched another round of orbital strikes! The landing position is projected to be right on the 54th’s offensive front!” an operations staff officer exclaimed in panic, his expression a clear reflection of his fear and terror.

Viscount Drake sighed. He knew the ‘Shattered Blade’ counteroffensive could no longer continue. Several edges of the blade had already been broken; how could it possibly ‘shatter’ anything now?

Moreover, the opposing commander was clearly a ruthless individual. Knowing that the friendly forces on the western flank were bound to collapse, they had simply abandoned any rescue attempt and instead turned to furiously attack the enemy on the eastern frontline.

Judging from the enemy’s strategy of annihilation, this commander was clearly intent on wiping out the Imperial army’s effective strength.

“Find a way to contact the 54th Brigade and tell them to retreat! If long-range communications don’t work, fire flares, or send a few HCPs to their position. Whatever it takes, get them to retreat immediately!

“All other units on the frontlines, cease your attacks! Provide covering fire for each other and fall back toward the city!”

He paused, his eyes sweeping over the staff officers in the armored command vehicle.

“Gentlemen, prepare for street fighting.”

“Boss, all frontlines are reporting that the enemy is beginning to retreat!”

“Roger that. Have all units hold the line and maintain vigilance. Send more observation posts forward to guard against another Imperial counterattack!”

Amber, who had fallen back near the main force, had just given his orders and was about to jump down from his HCP to rest for a moment when a call from the forward infiltration team came over the communication channel.

“Boss, this is the instructor squad infiltration team. We’ve found a strange facility five kilometers from the front line. It looks like it’s related to psionic users. Do you want to come and take a look?”

Hearing this, Amber immediately abandoned his plan to get out of his machine.

After having ground personnel toss him a bottle of energy drink and an energy bar, which he quickly consumed, he closed the cockpit again and sped toward the newly marked location on the map.

For some reason, Amber was reminded of an ancient game he used to play.

In that game, the player also took on the role of a commander, but their subordinates were all so useless that the player had to handle everything personally.

There were even ridiculous missions like “unclogging a toilet.”

A few minutes later, Amber arrived at the infiltration team’s location in his HCP.

It was a semi-spherical building hidden in the forests and hills on the city’s outskirts, looking like a giant pot lid turned upside down on the ground.

The building’s main gate and many of its surrounding walls had collapsed from weapon impacts; it was clear this place had also been caught in the crossfire.

Amber set his HCP to alert mode—this was a new function soon to be rolled out to the Atlas HCP units, currently being tested on his personal machine.

After Lilith upgraded the Combat Assistance AI, an HCP could enter autonomous alert mode when the pilot left, allowing it to perform basic defensive counterattacks if attacked.

Next, he took off his ‘quick-release’ heavy hydraulic pressure suit. This was another new piece of equipment about to be issued to the HCP units, designed to drastically increase the speed at which pilots could shed the suit in an emergency.

Incidentally, the Atlas HCP combat units had now adopted automated suiting stations developed by Atlas Industries, based on the exoskeleton-assisted gear worn by the Mobile Infantry.

Pilots only had to stand on the station’s platform to be quickly and automatically fitted into their heavy hydraulic pressure suits, greatly improving deployment efficiency.

Having done all this, Amber jumped down from his HCP. After greeting the surrounding infiltration team members, he walked to the building’s entrance.

Although the building’s nameplate was damaged, Amber could still make out the words on it.

“Loubion V Psionic User Centralized Management Center?”

He immediately realized what it was: the psionic containment center for this planet.

When the Federation discovered young psionic users in the civilian population who had shown signs of ‘losing control’, they were typically sent to such centers for centralized management.

When they turned eighteen, the children with outstanding performance and exceptional psionic talent would be sent to military academies to be trained as Psionic Agents, just like Amber.

As for the other children?

The game’s lore never specified their fate.

One thing was certain, however: players had covertly infiltrated many such facilities, but they always found only underage psionic users. There was never any trace of an adult psionic user.

“Boss, we’ve searched the vicinity. There’s no one else around.”

A member of the infiltration team walked over to report to Amber.

“The Imperial army has withdrawn. As for the people from this building… they’re all in the main hall.”

Amber nodded and followed the team member inside. He soon understood what “they’re all in the main hall” truly meant.

Over twenty bodies lay scattered in pools of blood in the main hall. They wore the white lab coats of researchers and appeared to be the staff of this psionic containment center.

Some of the female staff members were scantily clad; the lab coats covering their bodies had clearly been placed there by the infiltration team members.

“Boss, we’ve searched the interior of the building as well. No survivors found.”

“We suspect that before the Imperial forces left, they ‘disposed’ of the staff here and took the psionic users with them.”

The team member handed a roster to Amber and continued:

“We’ve checked against the list. The staff members… are all here. The list shows there should be thirteen underage psionic users here, but we haven’t found a single one.”

“That doesn’t make sense… What would Imperial forces want with these underage psionic users? They have no combat capability…”

Amber shook his head and activated his Psionic Vision.

Instantly, a different world appeared before his eyes. At the same time, he sensed a faint psionic reaction.

He slowly lowered his head, following the direction of the faint psionic signature toward his feet.

Then he discovered thirteen psionic reactions, deep underground beneath the building.

Chapter 252: The Thirteen Children

“There are survivors underground,” Amber said.

“Huh?”

The members of the Infiltration Team heard this and instinctively looked down, but without Psionic vision, all they could see was the blood-stained marble floor.

“Boss, we really did search thoroughly. We definitely didn’t find any entrance to a basement.”

The team member who had been speaking to Amber spoke cautiously.

The instructor squad was already an elite Atlas combat unit, and the Special Operations Team and Infiltration Team, both composed entirely of Robert IV veterans, were the elites among them.

Their regular uniforms were even a distinctive dark red, setting them apart from the others.

“It’s fine. This isn’t your fault.”

Amber smiled and patted the soldier’s shoulder, not angry at all.

“This basement must be a hidden facility. Not only did you not find it, but the Imperial remnants who were here for so long didn’t find it either. The thirteen psionic users on the list are probably all in there.”

He intensified his Psionic vision again, and soon, an effect similar to the classic “x-ray vision” from video games appeared before his eyes.

All the conduits carrying energy appeared on the walls, floor, and ceiling, like capillaries within the massive building’s body.

Observing the dense network of energy conduits within the building closely, Amber soon located the ones connected to the basement.

He raised his right hand, twirling his index finger beside his head. The members of the Infiltration Team quickly formed an indoor combat formation around him.

After walking down the containment center’s main corridor for a stretch, Amber followed the path of the target energy conduit and turned into an inconspicuous hallway.

The fluorescent lights on the ceiling and the pure white walls made the entire corridor look as starkly white as a hospital.

At the end was a large laboratory filled with specialized equipment.

However, the various experimental devices inside were scattered and overturned on the floor; it was clear the Imperial soldiers had searched here as well.

Amber stood at the laboratory’s entrance and glanced inside but didn’t enter, because the energy conduit didn’t lead into it.

He turned and walked to the middle of the corridor—this was where the energy conduit disappeared.

But this spot was just like the rest of the hallway, with no decorations and perfectly smooth walls, showing no sign of a hidden entrance.

Amber stomped his foot hard, but the hollow sound he expected didn’t come. The floor here was clearly paved with solid blocks of marble.

But since the energy conduit continued downward from here, the entrance to the basement had to be right here. Otherwise, there would be no reason for the conduit to take such a large detour through the building.

“You all, spread out.”

Amber waved his hand, and the Infiltration Team members quickly backed far away.

Having been mercilessly dominated in various ways by their Boss during combat training, they all knew that the man before them was actually a psionic “human-shaped tyrannosaur.”

After seeing everyone had moved back, Amber took off his tactical gloves, casually stuffed them into his utility pouch, then knelt down and pressed his palm flat against the marble tile beneath him.

A psionic wave quickly spread out from his palm, continuously penetrating downward.

A slight smile immediately appeared on Amber’s lips, as he had already sensed the mechanical structure below through the psionic wave.

The Loubion star system’s government hadn’t cut any corners when building this psionic user containment center—or rather, they wouldn’t dare cut corners on something like this.

The marble floor beneath Amber’s feet was indeed laid over a concrete foundation, and the mechanical device was below that foundation.

In other words, the door to this basement was a single, massive, and heavy slab of concrete.

Amber had Lilith try to “hack” her way in, but she discovered that the basement door was completely physically isolated.

The opening mechanism was likely an “access key” that emitted a specific wavelength; the door would only open when it detected that frequency.

Obviously, Lilith couldn’t simulate such a wavelength, and compared to traditional security devices, wavelengths were indeed not so easy to crack.

For Amber, however, it wasn’t a big problem. The presence of a mechanical device meant it could be opened.

And if it could be opened, then the next step was simple: brute force.

A saying had always circulated among the player community:

“There’s no door a psionic user can’t break. If there is, it just means your psionic strength level isn’t high enough~”

Amber’s psionic wave had already mapped out the door’s internal structure, and it turned out to be a traditional gear-based mechanism.

He took a deep breath, then raised his hands as if holding something and began to press down.

A powerful psionic force filled the area around him. The members of the Infiltration Team, who had backed away, felt this immense power and instinctively retreated a few more steps.

They felt as if they could see a pair of giant hands made of blue psionic energy appear beside Amber, pressing down in sync with his movements.

Then, they saw the ground where Amber was standing begin to sink slowly. At the same time, the sound of mechanical gears echoed through the corridor.

The “clank, clank” noises continued for nearly a minute. When the mechanical sounds stopped, a large, neat hole had appeared in the hallway floor.

The Infiltration Team members looked at each other, momentarily unsure if they should approach.

But Amber’s voice resolved their hesitation.

“Come on over. We can go to the basement now.”

His voice even carried an echo, indicating that the newly formed pit had some depth.

Everyone walked to the edge of the pit and peered down. Amber was standing at the very bottom, waving at them. The numbers on the wall beside him let the soldiers know the depth of the pit—fifteen meters.

“The Boss pushed down a fifteen-meter-thick layer of concrete with his bare hands???”

The Infiltration Team members felt their understanding of reality being rewritten yet again, though this wasn’t the first or second time that had happened since they started following Amber.

After leaving two members on guard, the rest of the team jumped into the pit one by one, activating the personal propulsion units on their backs to slow their descent. This jetpack-like device was also inspired by Amber’s combat on Robert IV.

The instructor squad’s combat exoskeletons were all equipped with this module, allowing them to traverse complex terrain or engage in urban combat by “scaling walls and rooftops.”

Once everyone had landed, Amber directly tore off the red alloy door in front of them. To him now, a door like this was no different from an ordinary wooden one.

As they cautiously entered, they discovered the place was more like a bunker.

The corridors were lined with large quantities of emergency supplies, as well as spare experimental equipment and materials. The builders had clearly considered the possibility of having to stay underground for an extended period.

The layout of the corridor was identical to the one above, except for the addition of living quarters for management personnel on either side.

When Amber and his team reached the end of the corridor and looked at the building blueprints on their terminals, they realized they were indeed directly beneath the main hall.

“It seems the survivors are in here,” Amber said, looking at the final, ordinary door before them. Through his Psionic vision, he could already see the thirteen psionic signatures inside.

The Infiltration Team members beside him fanned out to either side and activated their exoskeletons’ “anti-psionic combat” mode.

Even if they were underaged children, the moment they were identified as psionic users, they were automatically labeled as “dangerous” in the minds of other humans.

Amber didn’t stop them. After all, he wasn’t sure what the situation inside was.

He cared more for the soldiers by his side than for the psionic users he had never met.

After seeing the Infiltration Team’s squad leader give an “OK” sign, Amber nodded and opened the last door.

Contrary to the secret-laboratory-style furnishings everyone had imagined, this final room looked less like a lab and more like a children’s lounge.

The eggshell-colored walls were all covered in soft padding, the lighting was a warm tone, and with children’s toys scattered everywhere, the room had a touch of warmth unlike any other part of the building.

At a circle of children’s tables and chairs in the center of the room, thirteen boys and girls between the ages of twelve and sixteen, wearing white lab coats, were holding snacks and staring blankly at the “uninvited guests” who had just burst through the door.

A moment of silence fell over the scene. The members of the Infiltration Team even wondered if they had opened the door the wrong way.

However, the brief silence was soon broken.

After a moment of stunned surprise, the children in the room quickly reacted.

After putting down their snacks and tidying their chairs, they quickly ran to a wall and stood in a neat line, looking at Amber and his team at the door with big questions in their little eyes.

Looking at these children, Amber had the Infiltration Team members relax and remain on standby at the door, while he walked into the room alone.

The psionic strength of these children was mostly around level two; the strongest one had just reached the threshold of level three.

Each of them wore a psionic inhibitor device around their neck to prevent them from losing control of their powers.

“Kids, why are you all here? Are there any other adults around?”

His question received no response. The children all looked at him but didn’t speak.

“We’re Federation soldiers, not bad guys. We’ve driven away the enemies outside, so don’t be afraid.”

“Really? Then Sister Tess—mmph!”

“Torres! Don’t talk nonsense!”

The youngest, a chubby little boy, had his eyes light up at Amber’s words, but he had barely spoken half a sentence before a girl not much older than him clamped a hand over his mouth.

Amber couldn’t help but chuckle at this scene. These kids weren’t old, but they were quite wary.

But then again, they were only children.

“Don’t resist, and it won’t be unpleasant.”

As Amber spoke, a dozen or so psionic tendrils wrapped around the children, immobilizing them and covering the mouths of twelve of them.

All except for the chubby little boy named Torres.

Raising his hand again, Amber psionically pulled a bag of snacks from the table. He knelt in front of the chubby boy and held out a small dried fish snack to his lips.

“See? I’m one of you. I’m a psionic user too. I understand your caution and hostility. For children your age, this level of alertness is quite rare.”

The eyes of the other restrained children went wide. Upon discovering that Amber was a psionic user, half of their wariness and defensiveness vanished.

The chubby boy named Torres, however, lost his self-control and gobbled up the dried fish snack in Amber’s hand.

The girl beside him, the one who had covered his mouth earlier, saw this and rolled her eyes in exasperation.

She was clearly disdainful of her companion’s quick “surrender to the enemy.”

Amber smiled, released the psionic restraints on Torres, and placed the entire bag of snacks in his hands.

“Now, can you tell me what happened here?”

Chapter 253: ATLAS TEST TEAM

“Then we heard the grown-ups talking about a war, and from time to time, we could hear the sound of guns and cannons outside.”

“One day, we saw Aunt Daisy on the phone with someone, looking very angry. She was saying things like, ‘You promised to evacuate us, why have you changed your minds now? There are so many people here, and children too.’”

“Then yesterday afternoon, Aunt Daisy and Sister Tess brought us here and told us to stay put. When they left, they said they had to take care of some things and that they would come back for us once the bad guys were gone.”

The thirteen children in the playroom had returned to their small round tables. They were now nibbling on snacks, each chiming in to recount the events of the past few days.

A few of the bolder children would occasionally lift their heads to glance at Amber, who sat beside them, before quickly looking down again.

The natural affinity between psionic users allowed the children to quickly let their guard down around Amber.

Even they themselves didn’t know why they trusted this stranger they had just met so quickly. They even felt that Amber was more approachable than the staff members at the management center whom they saw every day.

Furthermore, the members of the Infiltration Team, with their menacing auras, had already withdrawn to the building’s perimeter on Amber’s orders to contact friendly forces. As a result, the children’s initial fear and terror had subsided.

“Big brother, did you see Aunt Daisy and Sister Tess outside?” a child asked, looking at Amber with a hint of nervousness in his voice.

“Yes, I did. They needed a rest, so they’ve gone to a very faraway place to recuperate.”

“Will they come back to see us later?”

“They will. When you’re a little older, you’ll know where they went.”

Amber looked at these children, who were still somewhat bewildered. All of them had been taken from their parents by the star system’s autonomous government and placed under centralized management here after experiencing uncontrolled psionic episodes that caused accidents or injuries.

The “Aunt Daisy” the children spoke of was the director of this centralized management center, responsible for overseeing its daily operations and the progress of its experimental projects.

And “Sister Tess” was the head of the center’s “Psionic Care Team.” She and her team were primarily responsible for the daily care of these young psionic users.

She would also assist Director Daisy with certain experiments on psionic users.

Both of them now lay in pools of blood in the hall directly above the children’s heads.

Based on the information gathered so far, Amber surmised that the staff of this management center had been brutally murdered by the Imperial remnants for refusing to reveal where the thirteen children were hidden.

But to be honest, Amber’s feelings about the staff of this “Psionic Concentration and Management Center,” especially “Aunt Daisy” and “Sister Tess,” were quite complicated.

In the children’s words, they were a “kind elder” and a “warm big sister.” They had always treated the children well, cared deeply about their daily lives, and would even play with them from time to time.

According to the children, they weren’t like the people outside who despised and scorned them.

And in the end, both women had indeed fallen to the guns of the Imperial remnants while protecting these children.

But after Lilith successfully hacked into the management center’s mainframe, she quickly retrieved files and a large number of experimental records that had been hidden but not completely deleted.

These records, it was safe to say, were horrifying for Amber to read.

The experiments conducted in this Psionic Concentration and Management Center were of two types. One was for the observation and guidance of young psionic users.

This involved monitoring the daily lives of these underage psionic users and having them play targeted games.

This type of experiment was quite normal, so the children showed no signs of resistance or fear.

But the other type of experiment… remember those psionic users who turned eighteen but weren’t selected for military academies and subsequently vanished?

They had all made their final contribution to the experiments at this Psionic Concentration and Management Center.

Pharmacological experiments, psionic interference experiments, extreme stress tests, and even live vivisections to directly observe the effects of psionics on the human body…

In their quest to understand the cause of psionic abilities and their hope of completely controlling such power, the Federation’s researchers had been so cold and cruel in these experiments that they seemed to have lost their humanity.

This made people like Daisy and Tess a paradox.

They could conduct cruel experiments on psionic users without hesitation.

Yet at the same time, they were willing to give their lives to protect these young psionic children.

Looking at the children before him, who were oblivious to all this, Amber decided not to tell them the truth for the time being. He wouldn’t shatter their “beautiful memories” of the two women.

“Children, this management center might be unusable for a while, and the war isn’t over yet. New dangers could arise at any moment. Have you thought about where you want to go next?”

Amber’s question was a bit beyond the children, who were between the ages of twelve and sixteen.

They looked at their friends beside them, unsure how to answer.

In the end, thirteen pairs of eyes all turned to the “kind and amiable” Amber, who wore a gentle smile.

“Then would you be willing to come with me? I’m a psionic user too. I know how to take care of you and how to guide you in using this power.

“The people I’m with aren’t prejudiced against psionic users like others you’ve met. If you come with me, I believe you’ll live much happier lives.”

After saying this, Amber looked at the children quietly, patiently waiting for their response.

“If… if we go with you, can we still have this many snacks?”

The first to speak was Torres, the boy who had wolfed down the dried fish snack.

“Of course, you can, but in moderation. No overeating, and you’ll have to exercise regularly too,” Amber said with a smile, reaching out to pinch Torres’s chubby cheek.

The other children looked at the “foodie” and giggled.

“Excuse me, will we be leaving this planet to go somewhere else?”

“We’ll probably stay on this planet for a short while, but once I’m done with my business here, I’ll take you away to a new place. And in the future, you’ll have opportunities to visit different planets.”

“Excuse me, will we be able to make new friends?”

“Of course. I’ll introduce you to some new ‘furry’ and ‘long-eared’ companions.”

“Can we also use psionics to tie people up, just like you?”

“You want to learn? Then come with me, and I’ll teach you~”

In the end, Amber took all thirteen children with him. As they passed through the main hall, where the bodies and bloodstains had been cleared away, the two oldest children still caught the lingering scent of blood in the air.

The active minds of psionic users allowed them to guess what had happened, but neither of them said a word and simply followed Amber out obediently.

Outside the management center’s main gate, two armored personnel carriers were already waiting. The Infiltration Team had contacted their rear command, and these vehicles had been sent to help Amber transport the children.

For the time being, the children would be housed near the Brigade HQ and would move with Amber.

Once the battle on Loubion V was over, he would send them back to the Tower of Babel.

As for the mentors who would guide and educate these young psionic children in the future, Amber already had a plan. He would just ask Allenita to find a few psionic masters in the Thousand Stars Empire.

These high-level psionic users were nearly extinct in the human world, but there were still quite a few within the Thousand Stars Empire.

Human psionic users trained by elf masters… Amber felt he might have just created another incredible combination.

Meanwhile, as the Imperial remnants conducted a full-scale retreat into the urban center of Ptolemy City, the Coalition forces temporarily halted their offensive to reorganize their troops.

Even if Amber hadn’t forced the issue, the commanders of the various units had all realized that in their current state, sending their troops into street fighting would be pure suicide.

Therefore, the Coalition forces ultimately decided to regroup, wait for the remnants of the Planetary Defense Force to arrive as reinforcements, and then plan their approach to the street battles.

Rear Admiral Benjamin and Thunder Defense’s Ralph had already been detained by the Military Police in a temporary prison at the rear—a prison originally used to hold deserters.

According to the star system’s autonomous government, the two would face an internal public trial at a military tribunal after the fighting on the planet concluded.

However, according to information from Isabelle, Benjamin’s family and the higher-ups at Thunder Defense had already started pulling strings, trying to spare the two from a death sentence.

Amber had, in fact, anticipated this situation.

After all, neither of them was low-ranking, and with the web of interests behind them, it was never going to be easy to just get rid of them.

This was a Federation tradition…

But Amber wasn’t worried, because for now, the initiative was still in his hands.

The Planetary Autonomous Government had discovered that if they wanted to end the fighting on Loubion V safely and efficiently, they could only rely on Atlas in the short term.

If a top-three defense company like Thunder Defense was in such a pathetic state, the other two companies of similar size probably weren’t much better.

During the period when the Coalition forces were regrouping, in addition to the steady stream of supplies and reinforcements, another unit under the Atlas private military company arrived on Loubion V via “express transport.”

They had brand-new combat vehicles and HCPs never seen before, with the sensor-studded exteriors characteristic of test models.

This, combined with the cartoon rabbit logo painted on their external armor, left a deep impression on the other Coalition units that happened to encounter these friendly forces.

A few curious soldiers, upon seeing this unit maneuvering toward the front line, would even approach for a closer look.

Then, they would see a line of small text beneath the cartoon rabbit logo:

ATLAS TEST TEAM.

Chapter 254: GAT-X303 ‘Aegis’

“Boss, ATT Squadron has arrived.”

Amber, who was in the forward camp command center discussing subsequent operational plans with others, paused the meeting and went out immediately upon hearing his subordinate’s report.

After the remnants of the Imperial army retreated to Ptolemy City, the Coalition forces, with the support of the remaining Planetary Defense Force units, began to push the frontline forward.

After taking control of two of Ptolemy City’s satellite cities, they also acquired a significant amount of supplies. Although ammunition and most of the fuel still needed to be transported from the space elevator to the front, the situation was much better than before.

At the very least, the forward camps the Coalition had set up in the suburbs of the two satellite cities could connect to the city’s water system, allowing the mobile bathhouses to operate 24 hours a day with an unlimited supply.

A hot shower might seem like a trivial thing, but being able to take a comfortable one at the end of the day was highly effective in relieving fatigue and also improved the soldiers’ sleep quality.

It was quite helpful in boosting the overall morale of the Coalition forces.

The current forward base had been re-established according to Amber’s requirements, and his camp layout strategy actually came from a general of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army.

This general, known as the ‘Wall of Sighs of Land Warfare,’ had a knack for defensive warfare and camp arrangement.

The two large forward camps were currently located 65 kilometers in a straight line from Ptolemy City, both situated behind forested suburban areas, making direct visual reconnaissance impossible.

If an Imperial Infiltration Team wanted to scout them, they would have to cross the highlands in front of the forward camps, which were riddled with observation posts and automated sentry guns.

The various units’ anti-aircraft assets were also brought out and deployed in a dispersed manner. After setting up a large number of field radars and battlefield surveillance radars, they formed a virtually impenetrable anti-aircraft net.

Amber was actually dumbfounded when he saw that the Coalition forces had so many accompanying anti-air and field anti-air units.

He had always thought that the Coalition forces lacked these units, which was why their air defense was so poor that they couldn’t react at all when hit by a tactical nuclear warhead.

Now it seemed it had nothing to do with equipment; it was purely a matter of incompetence.

When Amber reached the rear gate of the Temporary Camp, he saw a massive convoy slowly driving in, with many friendly forces gathering around to watch curiously.

Besides a batch of supplies, the entire convoy was roughly divided into three parts.

The first part, responsible for clearing the way and providing security, consisted of ‘Wildcat’ wheeled combat vehicles and ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machines that had switched to mobile mode.

These two new vehicles were part of the first batch of equipment produced by United Dynamics according to Atlas’s needs after the acquisition.

The ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machine, in particular, was developed as a ‘high-priority’ project after Amber had browsed through United Dynamics’ ‘technical reserve library’.

Whether it was the ‘real combat’ experience after coming to this world, or the experience summarized by players in his previous life’s game, a single fact had been verified.

Light multi-legged war machines became increasingly useless as the intensity of combat escalated.

Although their lighter weight allowed them to be airdropped with orbital paratroopers for fire support and their mobility was decent, their protection and firepower were basically only enough to bully infantry units.

And as the firepower allocated to infantry squads grew stronger, even bullying infantry units gradually became a ‘dangerous activity’.

In the original timeline, both the Federation and the Empire had later ceased production of light multi-legged war machines, and the corresponding formations in their forces only existed to deplete existing inventory.

The second part of the convoy consisted of thirty heavy-haulers. On their flatbeds were large units covered in camouflage tarps—15 main battle tanks and 15 Heavy multi-legged war machines.

Their main cannons had completely abandoned electrothermal-chemical cannons in favor of more powerful heavy electromagnetic cannons or new plasma cannons with triangular, translucent barrels.

These were also United Dynamics products, but they hadn’t been finalized yet.

They were brought to Loubion V for combat testing, to weigh the pros and cons of main battle tanks and Heavy multi-legged war machines, and to evaluate the combat effectiveness of the new plasma cannons.

The last part consisted of the five HCPs roaming around the convoy, providing security.

Courtesy of the GIAT Group, the first prototype assault HCP of the GAT-X series—the GAT-X303 ‘Aegis’.

This model, its name, and the memes associated with it had been run into the ground by players in the game.

Even Amber had taken the time to specifically ask the GIAT personnel about the HCP’s core meltdown operation code.

The reply he received was that the initial operation code was indeed ‘2887’.

However, they said it was chosen randomly and had no special meaning, and the pilot could change it themselves after receiving the unit.

As the entire convoy slowly drove into the supply and equipment depot, it began unloading with the help of engineering machinery that had gathered around.

Two brand-new wheeled armored vehicles also pulled up in front of Amber, and a group of United Dynamics and GIAT engineers, carrying various bags, disembarked from the rear doors.

Upon seeing Amber, their ‘benefactor’, the leaders of the two companies immediately came up to greet him.

Amber exchanged a few pleasantries with them, assigned them their tasks for the time being, and instructed them to wear combat exoskeletons just like ordinary soldiers. The engineers then headed to their camp to prepare.

After they left, the five ‘Aegis’ units landed nimbly in front of Amber, kicking up a cloud of dust and assuming a one-knee kneeling ‘standby posture’.

When the cockpits opened, the five ATT team pilots jumped down.

These men were among the most skilled HCP pilots in Atlas, second only to Murat and Louis, and they were the first members of the ATT Squadron’s HCP team.

“Boss, we’re here to report.”

Upon seeing Amber, the five pilots snapped to attention and saluted with a crisp sound.

Amber returned the salute with a hint of helplessness before speaking:

“I’ll let it slide in the forward camp, I won’t say anything. But if you’re still saluting me all the time in the warzone, don’t blame me for being harsh.”

The five ATT Squadron pilots smiled sheepishly and immediately lowered their hands.

“It’s been a long journey. Get some good rest these next two days. Once the fighting starts, there won’t be time.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Amber waved them off and walked over to one of the ‘Aegis’ units.

The ‘fingertips’ of the mechanical arm were painted a traditional test-model orange, like it had a manicure.

The unit’s body was also fitted with numerous additional sensors, not for monitoring the surrounding environment, but for monitoring the unit’s own condition and collecting data during combat.

As an assault-type HCP, the ‘Aegis’ was similar in overall height and full combat weight to the Empire’s ‘Zealot’ series.

However, due to the use of a more advanced core frame design, a higher-output subcritical reactor, and electromagnetic muscle bundles with significantly improved energy conversion efficiency, its protection at an equivalent weight was a notch higher than that of a heavy-type Zealot.

And this was just the performance data for the base model Aegis.

From the very beginning of its development, ‘high expandability’ and ‘high versatility’ were crucial parts of the Aegis series’ design philosophy.

Therefore, the Aegis series HCP could be deeply modified with an extremely high degree of freedom based on operational missions, pilot habits, and other factors.

The five Aegis units brought to Loubion V were all in a heavy assault configuration.

Additional add-on armor and a thickened, heavy shield of layered armor pushed their total weight past 110 tons, making them the best-protected HCPs currently available.

The weapon racks on the unit’s back had been replaced by a new weapon container.

While holding an electromagnetic rifle, with plasma rocket pods or dogfighting missile pods mounted on the outside of its mechanical legs, and a shield on its shoulder, the weapon container could still fit an additional four armaments.

Moreover, this weapon container wasn’t just for storage; during normal times, it could maintain the stored armaments at a suitable maintenance temperature.

In combat, it could also force-cool weapons like the heavy particle cannon and heavy electromagnetic cannon, increasing their rate of fire.

A heavy plasma severing sword, a heavy particle cannon, and two heavy electromagnetic cannons—this was the configuration currently chosen by all five ATT Squadron pilots.

Without a doubt, these five Aegis units had become the most powerful HCPs on this battlefield, with maxed-out protection, firepower, and mobility.

But this thing wasn’t without its flaws.

The heavier full combat weight, combined with the operation of high-thrust plasma thruster arrays, resulted in greater inertia, which placed higher demands on the pilot.

According to the GIAT engineers, the Aegis series, relative to other HCP models, was the first to have strict physical requirements for its pilots.

While a pilot with substandard physical fitness could barely manage to operate other HCPs, if a pilot for the Aegis series was not physically up to par, attempting to pilot it would be a suicidal act.

Although GIAT’s HCP development team was already trying everything to mitigate this effect, Amber estimated a better solution would be to improve the overall quality of the pilots in Atlas’s HCP units.

“If it really comes to it, I’ll just pay for them to get some enhancement surgeries or cybernetic prosthesis implants.”

As Amber circled Atlas’s first HCP, drooling and ‘appreciating’ it from every angle like a pervert, an armored car from the Coalition defense force drove up.

A middle-aged man in a suit and tie, who looked completely out of place on the battlefield, got out of the vehicle and jogged over to Amber with a smile on his face.

Amber was taken aback when he saw the man. He really hadn’t expected the Administrative Deputy of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government to come looking for him at this time.

“Mr. Sam? Why have you come to the forward camp yourself? It’s still a bit dangerous here.”

Chapter 255: More Money Required

Naturally, Amber couldn’t just keep the second-in-command of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government standing at the entrance.

So, the two quickly made their way to a conference room in the forward camp that was in slightly better condition.

Unlike the “first-class citizens” of the Navy, Army grunts didn’t have a taste for red tea. (The tactical air force has since been demoted to fourth-class citizens, just so you know).

After rummaging through the small refrigerator in the conference room for a while, all Amber could find were energy drinks and carbonated sodas.

In the end, he picked out a can of “happy water” that was relatively intact and undented, opened it, and placed it in front of the Administrative Deputy.

“Our conditions here might be a bit lacking. I’m not sure if this cola suits your taste, but it’s pretty good. You should give it a try.”

“Er…”

Staring at the can of carbonated beverage, bubbles fizzing at the opening, Sam hesitated. He hadn’t touched the stuff since graduation, instead steeping himself in the exorbitantly priced teas, coffees, and liquors favored by other “upper-class” citizens of the Federation.

But remembering the purpose of his visit, he steeled himself and prepared to take a sip of the cola, a drink long since labeled as “unhealthy.”

“Oh, wait a moment. It’s missing its soul.”

Amber suddenly stopped him. He found a clean glass, got some ice cubes from the freezer, and dropped them in.

“Mr. Sam, use this.”

Looking at the canned cola and the glass full of ice, Administrative Deputy Sam felt as if he had been transported back to a diner he used to frequent during his university days.

It was a taste he hadn’t experienced since graduation, a mark of his youth, of a carefree time as a student.

With a slightly trembling hand, he picked up the cold aluminum can. His fingers brushed against the tinplate, feeling the chill spread from his fingertips.

Sam hesitated for a second before tilting the can, allowing the dark brown liquid to pour slowly into the glass.

As the bubbles cheerfully fizzed and rose, a familiar, long-forgotten sweet lemon fragrance filled the air, mingled with the crisp clinking of ice cubes. It was the unique aroma of cola, a scent that seemed to carry the taste of time itself.

He carefully lifted the glass and took a small sip.

In that instant, the familiar, distant sweetness on his tongue and the stimulating fizz of the carbonation awakened his deeply buried memories.

He felt as if he were back in his innocent, formative years at the Federation’s most prestigious university. Images of old classrooms and playing fields, filled with laughter and sweat, flashed before his eyes, along with the faces of the friends who had accompanied him through his youth.

But ever since he graduated and joined the Federation Republican Party with a heart full of passion, his life had completely changed.

Political struggles, various dark secrets, and the conflicts of interest with large corporations had rapidly transformed him from a naive graduate.

Relying on his sharp, innate “political instincts,” Sam had weathered storm after political storm, climbing to the position he held today.

Now, taking a sip of the long-missed soda and looking back on his life, Sam was overcome with emotion.

He was about to say something to Amber when he noticed the Atlas director staring at him with a strange expression.

It wasn’t Amber’s fault. He truly hadn’t expected that by simply offering a can of “happy water,” the man would start watching his life flash before his eyes after just one sip.

Although he couldn’t read minds yet, his keen psionic user’s observation skills allowed him to sense that something was “off” about the Administrative Deputy.

“Mr. Sam, are you alright? I don’t think this cola is expired.”

“My apologies. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a carbonated drink. It brought back some memories from my youth.”

Sam smiled sheepishly, while Amber composed his expression.

He still thought there was something a bit off about the man. Who gets so worked up over a glass of cola?

“Mr. Sam, you risked coming to the forward camp. I assume you have something important to discuss?” Amber wasn’t fond of dealing with politicians, so he cut straight to the chase.

“That’s right. I’m here today on behalf of the Star System Autonomous Government to discuss some matters regarding the war, Mr. Rebil. Some issues are rather sensitive and not suitable for remote communication, which is why I came in person.”

Sam resisted the urge to lift the glass for another sip and got down to business.

“First, regarding the handling of Benjamin and Ralph. The factions behind them are currently working to save their lives, hoping to at least spare them from the death penalty. That way, they’ll always be able to find a way to get their sentences reduced…”

“And what is your opinion? What is the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s official stance on how to deal with the commander of its own garrison?”

“Hmph. A useless fool like him lost half of the garrison’s forces, and with the way the battle went a few days ago, we certainly hope for the severest punishment.”

Sam said with disdain, but his tone immediately changed in the next sentence.

“However, the family behind him still holds considerable influence in the Loubion star system and has connections with many officials within the autonomous government. So I suspect a death sentence might be difficult to secure.”

The Administrative Deputy carefully glanced at Amber’s expression. Seeing no change, he continued, “Of course, we will still do our best to handle this seriously in accordance with the relevant laws.”

“Heh, your best?”

Amber scoffed. The politicians on the Federation side were just as he remembered.

“Your Autonomous Government’s bottom line is certainly flexible. A madman who planned to drop a nuclear warhead on friendly forces, with audio evidence to prove it, and you still can’t convict him…”

“After all, you recorded it without their knowledge. The factions behind these two are even planning to sue you for illegally intruding on military channels and violating their privacy.”

Seeing the change in Amber’s expression, Sam quickly added, “But rest assured, their request has been sternly rejected by us!”

“Should I be grateful that your Autonomous Government has at least done something decent?”

Amber’s sarcastic words were incredibly grating to Sam’s ears, but he had to admit the Atlas director had a point.

“Forget it. Let’s put this aside for now and talk about it after all the fighting is over. Is there anything else?”

Amber shook his head, not wanting to waste any more time on the matter.

If the final outcome was not to his satisfaction, he wouldn’t mind resolving the problem “the Atlas way.”

“There is indeed something else, and it’s related to the upcoming battles.”

“Go on, Mr. Sam.”

“It’s like this: our autonomous government hopes to end the fighting on Loubion V and resume production as soon as possible. Therefore, we hope your company can put in more effort and resources in the subsequent battles. We’ve seen the combat effectiveness of the other companies; they are truly not up to the task. Right now, the only ones who can help us completely eliminate the remaining Imperial forces are you, Atlas.”

Hearing the Administrative Deputy’s words, Amber instantly understood. This was the real reason for his visit.

Although he didn’t know why the man had brought up the previous matter first, he had to admit that the humble attitude the Administrative Deputy was displaying now was certainly effective on many people, including himself.

“But I only have so many troops on hand. You’ve seen the Atlas forces, sir. They don’t even make up a full brigade.”

“That’s why we hope you can increase your investment. Would it be possible for you to commit more troops to Loubion V?”

“Transporting them takes time. As you know, Atlas is a company headquartered in the Thousand Stars Empire. The journey would take at least ten days.”

“Then what about the troops that just arrived today?”

Sam asked, a little puzzled. He had actually followed the convoy here, so he had seen the heavy units.

“Those aren’t combat troops. They’re our test unit, equipped with experimental gear that hasn’t entered mass production yet. They’re extremely valuable.”

Amber paused, then looked up into Sam’s eyes and said, “More money required.”

Southwest District of Ptolemy City, underground sewer system.

As one of the city’s lifelines, the colossal underground sewage treatment pipe system was a labyrinth forged from reinforced concrete.

Stretching several, even dozens of meters deep underground, the complex network of pipes snaked its way through every corner of the city.

The inner walls of the massive, several-meter-diameter pipes were no longer clean and smooth as they once were, now caked with all sorts of filth and refuse.

Clearly, this was no place for human activity.

Under normal circumstances, no human would enter the underground sewer system of Ptolemy City. Even maintenance was carried out by autonomous spider robots.

But now, the sounds of wading through water, mixed with the faint whir of mechanical drives, echoed through the dark pipes.

A few rodents living in the sewers curiously observed the squad of “terrifying long-armed apes” they had only ever seen on the surface. Their simple minds could not comprehend why these humans would appear here.

“Checkpoint 3 reached. Current path is correct. Proceeding. ETA to Checkpoint 4 is ten minutes.”

Lieutenant Banninger’s deep voice reached every member of the small unit through their blue-green laser communications.

This was a special operations team formed by the Atlas instructor squad’s Special Operations Team and Infiltration Team.

After infiltrating the outskirts of Ptolemy City under the cover of night, the team had entered the city’s underground sewer system through a concealed maintenance entrance.

Their mission was to use this subterranean network to penetrate deeper into the city and reconnoiter the defensive positions of the remaining Imperial forces.

The point man at the front suddenly stopped, raising a clenched fist above his head. The team members behind him immediately halted.

On the HUD of the point man’s tactical faceplate, the words “WATER SURGE WARNING” appeared.

The members of the special operations team also soon felt a tremor under their feet.

“Lieutenant, the sewage treatment mainframe is starting to discharge!”

Hearing the point man’s report, Banninger immediately unhooked a device from his waist that looked like a piece of engineering equipment.

“All units! Against the pipe wall! Fire anchoring bolts! Attach safety lines, from rear to front!”

A series of Clang! Clang! Clang! sounds rang out.

Everyone fired the anchoring bolts connected to their waists into the ground beneath them as quickly as possible, and swiftly clipped their safety lines to the backs of the teammates in front of them.

The surging tide of sewage arrived faster than expected. With a roar like that of an underground behemoth, the murky water instantly submerged the entire squad.

Chapter 256: Atlas’s Casualty Situation

The surge of wastewater quickly rushed past them through the pipe.

When the water level receded to its previous height, the members of the special operations team, who had been huddled against the inner wall of a side pipe, slowly stood up.

The first thing Banninger did after collecting himself was to use his terminal and a headcount to double-check that all team members were present.

In the emergency just now, the anchoring bolts everyone had driven into the floor had held firm. Coupled with the safety lines connecting them to their teammates, no one had been swept away.

“Shit, can we even wear these exoskeletons after we get out of here?”

One of the soldiers said with some disgust as he picked off rotten vegetable leaves and other bits of trash hanging from his exoskeleton.

Clearly, the sewage in the sewer was anything but clean. It contained every kind of urban garbage you could imagine.

Right now, no one dared to turn off their combat exoskeleton’s sealed internal circulation mode, let alone open their tactical faceplates.

Forget poisoning; the smell alone would probably be enough to kill a man.

“This is all brand-new gear. If it’s not damaged, we can just get the decontamination squad to hose it down.”

“I’m afraid we’ll knock out the decon squad with the smell.”

“Hahahaha, you know, that might actually happen.”

As they removed their anchoring bolts, the team members started bantering, quickly breaking the tension that had built up from the flash flood.

Exploring the dark, enclosed underground sewer pipes was a mission that truly tested one’s psychological fortitude.

After all, there were no lights installed in these pipes, and to maintain the stealth of their infiltration, they couldn’t just walk around with lights on. All they could see was the imagery captured by the full-color night vision on their tactical faceplates.

Beyond that range, it was still pitch-black.

At the same time, since they were maintaining stealth mode, they couldn’t use real-time navigation. They could only rely on the traditional method of a map and checkpoints to feel their way forward.

“When we reach checkpoint 6, we’ll find a fork. After we go in, there’s a large manhole cover leading to the surface that will let us out. The location is also in a remote alley.”

“Bro, my only worry now is that when we get out, the Imperials will sniff us out and catch us.”

The group laughed again, then checked their equipment and prepared to move on.

Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak.

Hearing the squeaking of a rodent picked up by his exoskeleton’s audio pickup, Banninger looked down at his right arm.

A drenched rat was clinging tightly to the external armor plate of his arm, shivering uncontrollably.

Evidently, during the recent sewage surge, this lucky sewer rat had survived being washed away by grabbing onto Banninger’s exoskeleton.

“Well now, Lieutenant, looks like you got a little bonus prize.”

“A rat.”

Banninger smiled and picked up the rat. It struggled madly in his hand, its squeaking growing more frantic.

He looked around and finally placed the rat on a wooden plank floating on the water.

“Good luck, little guy.”

Banninger picked up his electromagnetic rifle again and glanced back at his teammates.

“And good luck to us.”

——

While the special operations team from the Atlas instructor squad continued to infiltrate deeper into Ptolemy City through the sewer network, Amber was at the forward camp, seeing off Sam, the Administrative Deputy of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

After watching the armored vehicle carrying the Administrative Deputy leave the camp under the escort of the Loubion defense forces, Amber returned to his quarters.

“Lilith, what’s The Hermes’s current position?”

“Reporting, Master. The Hermes has returned to geostationary orbit. It is directly above us.”

“Establish an encrypted communication line. Connect me to Isabelle… She’s not asleep at this hour, is she?”

“No, Master. Ms. Isabelle is currently studying 108 Ways to Please Your Partner.”

“…”

When the encrypted communication channel was established, a faint, irrepressible blush bloomed on Isabelle’s face the moment she saw Amber on the interface.

“What are you reading now?”

“N-nothing! I was just looking at a file from the intelligence analysis team.”

“Oh? Did your intelligence analysis team acquire some kind of salacious gossip? Your face is so red.”

Seeing Isabelle’s bashful expression, Amber couldn’t help but tease her.

“Of course not! I-I was reading a proper file!”

“Oh?”

Amber smiled. Just as he was about to tease the Persian cat he hadn’t seen in days a little more, Lilith’s voice rang in his ear, her tone clearly tinged with displeasure and jealousy.

“Master, did you have me establish an encrypted communication channel just to flirt with Ms. Isabelle?”

“Ahem.”

Chided by the strong AI, Amber coughed to cover his embarrassment and then continued, “Let’s get to business. Loubion’s Administrative Deputy just left the forward camp.”

“Oh? So what did he come to see you for?” Isabelle also got her expression under control and returned to a professional demeanor.

“First, he talked about Benjamin and Ralph, but the main reason was to get Atlas to increase our investment on Loubion V.”

“Increase investment? It seems they’ve lost faith in their own defense forces, as well as the other private military companies and defense contractors who won bids.”

“If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t have any faith either,” Amber couldn’t help but shake his head as he recalled the performance of these friendly forces on the battlefield.

“So you agreed?”

“Of course. Why turn down money? The ATT Squadron needs combat testing anyway, and I even took the opportunity to raise the price. I’ve assigned two combat control teams to the other two continents to help their troops guide orbital strikes, so The Hermes should have its hands full.”

“Well, that’s Cleves’s headache to deal with~” Isabelle giggled.

Her expression made Amber smile as well. He shook his head and continued, “Increasing our investment also means we’ll be dealing with the Loubion Star System Government more often in the future. So, I want the intelligence analysis team to shift its focus to gathering intel on the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. It would be best to collect some dirt and the like, for future leverage.”

“So, Amber, you’re planning for long-term operations in the Loubion star system?”

“That’s right. This star system, whether in terms of location or political ecosystem, is very suitable for Atlas’s development. And after the fighting on Loubion V ends, we can naturally proceed to the next stage of infiltration during the post-war reconstruction.”

“Understood. I’ll have the intelligence analysis team start working on that. Is there anything else you need my help with?” Isabelle asked after adding a new item to her to-do list.

“Actually, yes. It’s about ground troop casualties in this battle.”

Amber had Lilith pull up the casualty report compiled by Brigade HQ and transmitted it to Isabelle. “Let’s skip equipment and vehicle losses for now. They’ll be gradually replaced once Atlas Industries begins mass production of the new models anyway. The main thing is personnel casualties.”

As he spoke, a hint of pain crept into Amber’s voice.

“As of now, our ground forces on Loubion V have suffered a total of twenty-eight fatalities. That’s twenty-one Mobile Infantry, six vehicle crew members, and one HCP pilot. There are over two hundred wounded, but most are minor injuries. Three are seriously wounded and lying in life support pods. Fortunately, the Romu have good physical conditioning and recovery abilities. The medics say they’ll be back on their feet after a week in the pods.”

In a real war, no matter how great the advantage in personnel and equipment, once it reached the scale of a ‘war’ and the two sides’ military capabilities were beyond the level of a ‘village brawl,’ casualties were inevitable.

Although Amber knew that a “perfect, no-casualty run” was something that only happened in games, like most RTS players, his heart ached for a long time even when a single unit died.

Not to mention real, living people.

Of the twenty-eight killed, aside from the HCP pilot and two vehicle crew members, the remaining twenty-six were all recruited Romu.

Mowing down enemies without any psychological burden didn’t stop Amber from feeling grief over the deaths of his own soldiers.

Of course, he understood the old saying that a benevolent person cannot command troops, so this grief didn’t last long, nor would it affect his resolve for the upcoming urban assault.

Perhaps after some time, when he looked at a casualty list, he might just scroll straight to the bottom to see the total number killed.

“…That’s about it for the casualties. Isa, notify the staff at the Tower of Babel to begin the death benefit procedures for the fallen soldiers. Follow the regulations strictly, and give extra care to the families of these Romu. This work must not be sloppy. It has to be done right for both Romu and humans. Since they were willing to join Atlas and risk their lives, we can’t let them have any worries on this front. If anyone dares to screw this up, or if there’s any instance of skimming death benefits, corruption, or embezzlement, I’ll kill every last one I find. Mmm, go ahead and convey that last sentence verbatim.”

“Don’t worry, Amber. I’ll handle it,” Isabelle replied earnestly, sensing the shift in his emotions.

Then, as if she suddenly remembered something, she said, “Oh, right, there’s something else I need to tell you. Mr. ‘Perseus’ is expected to arrive on Loubion V in about ten standard days. Will you have time to meet him then?”

“Ten days? That should be about right. The battle for Ptolemy City will most likely be over by then. Who knows, when Mr. ‘Perseus’ arrives, we might even have a little ‘present’ for him.”

Chapter 257: The Ambitious Youth, Franklin

After the communication ended, Amber suddenly realized she had just tempted fate in a major way.

But since the words were already out, it was too late to take them back. It was better to ensure her troops were fully prepared to face the brutal urban street fighting that lay ahead.

Recalling the two instances of street fighting on Robert IV, Amber felt that this time on Loubion V, they couldn’t just fight conventionally. She had to find a way to lower the battle’s intensity and reduce the casualties her troops would suffer while assaulting the city.

This was why Amber had dispatched the instructor squad’s special operations team to infiltrate Ptolemy City two days prior.

In fact, other Coalition units had previously attempted to infiltrate with small squads and use disguised reconnaissance to gather information about the Imperial remnants in Ptolemy City.

However, due to factors like personnel quality and poor operational planning, they had achieved little success.

On the contrary, they had lost many reconnaissance soldiers and alerted the Imperial remnants within the city, heightening their vigilance.

Right now, the Atlas special operations team, having successfully infiltrated Ptolemy City through the underground sewage network, had arrived at the final destination of their “sewer trip”: Check Point_6.

The maintenance map of the underground sewage network they held had proven accurate. At the very least, there was indeed a large manhole cover directly above them.

After the team patiently waited in the sewer until two in the morning, relying on willpower and the oral stimulants from their exoskeletons’ built-in water bladders, Banninger decided to proceed with the next step.

Since this large maintenance manhole was typically used for drainage or for spider-like maintenance robots to pass through, it wasn’t fitted with a ladder for human use.

So, the point man first had to use his multi-function launcher to fire a penetrating expansion anchor bolt into the edge of the manhole cover, then use carbon fiber cables to slowly hoist himself up.

With the anchor bolt in place, the rest of the team would be able to use it if they needed to exit this way later.

As his teammates watched him being hoisted up to the manhole cover, looking like a corpse being fished out of the water, he moved into position.

He drew a fiber optic probe from his arm guard and carefully extended it half a centimeter through one of the manhole cover’s drainage holes.

The image captured by the fiber optic probe immediately appeared on the point man’s Tactical faceplate.

In “fisheye” mode, the probe provided a nearly 360-degree panoramic view from this angle.

The point man carefully examined the image on his Tactical faceplate. Outside the manhole was a small alley between two buildings. In the dead of night, there was no one else in sight.

After confirming this, the point man pushed the fiber optic probe out a little further, this time a full five centimeters.

Then, the tip of the probe fanned out like the ribs of an umbrella, its hair-thin metal wires forming an “antenna array.”

The point man swiveled the compact antenna array, quickly capturing nearby electromagnetic signals, which were rapidly analyzed by the combat exoskeleton’s built-in “electromagnetic spectrum analysis module.”

Red markers indicating “suspicious signals” appeared on the screen, but as the analysis module worked, they vanished one by one.

In the end, only a single red marker remained at the mouth of the alley.

The point man zoomed in on the captured image and finally confirmed it was a surveillance camera pointed into the alley.

“Lieutenant, the exit leads to an alley. It’s a dead end, with residential buildings on both sides. No suspicious targets have been spotted. There’s a surveillance camera at the entrance that could spot us, but we can jam it. Awaiting orders.”

The point man reported the situation quickly and quietly over the communication channel, and Banninger didn’t hesitate for long.

“Jam the camera. We’re getting out here.”

“Yes, Lieutenant.”

Upon receiving Banninger’s order, the point man immediately began jamming the camera.

This type of wireless surveillance camera, installed by the city hall, was only a civilian-grade product.

Its greatest advantages were its high self-sufficiency, powered by solar energy, and the flexibility of wireless deployment.

But its disadvantages were also obvious: wireless transmission devices were much more susceptible to interference than wired ones.

Although the Ptolemy City Hall had considered the possibility of criminals jamming the cameras and had specifically chosen a jam-resistant model that could withstand conventional interference, it was still a civilian device. Against professional military-grade jamming equipment, its anti-jamming capabilities were as good as none.

A few seconds later, the point man completed the jamming.

He then immediately opened the manhole cover, climbed out, and quickly pressed himself into the shadows of the building on the right.

The low-visibility, matte-painted exoskeleton already offered a degree of concealment at night, and hiding in the building’s shadow enhanced the effect even more.

At this moment, even if someone were to pass by the alley’s entrance and deliberately glance inside, they wouldn’t notice a fully armed soldier aiming his weapon at them from the depths of the alley.

“Clear.”

“Understood. The rest of you, move out. Stay in cover!”

With Banninger’s hushed command, the members of the special operations team climbed out one by one, using the carbon fiber cable left by the point man.

After exiting the manhole, they too quickly concealed themselves in the shadows of the buildings.

Under the cold moonlight, this seemingly empty alley was now hiding more than a dozen armed personnel wearing combat exoskeletons.

When the last team member, covering the rear, climbed out and replaced the manhole cover, several members took out compressed canisters full of “deodorizer,” activated them, and threw them to the ground.

A fresh scent, accompanied by a faint wisp of smoke, instantly filled the alley before quickly dissipating into the air.

As the special operations team walked out of the smoke, the strong sewer stench clinging to them had been reduced by eighty percent after the “deodorizer” bath.

Although there was still a faint odor if one got close, it was at least not strong enough to cause a “commotion” among the citizens or alert any Imperial remnants.

Just as the special operations team finished “deodorizing” and was about to leave the alley to infiltrate a relatively safe location under the cover of night, the point man, who had already reached the alley’s entrance, detected the sound of footsteps on his audio pickup. A “wave-like” indicator immediately appeared on his Tactical faceplate, showing the direction.

“Someone’s coming. Fall back into the shadows.”

The point man said calmly over the comms channel. He raised his lowered rifle to point at the alley entrance while carefully backing away.

Although his combat exoskeleton was heavy and fitted with additional armor plates, his steps were not loud.

Thanks to the combination of sophisticated electromagnetic joints and magnetic levitation shock absorbers in the soles of his feet (which had been turned off underwater), along with the specialized training provided by the instructor squad, the point man in the ‘Raging Crocodile A1 ver.Human’ exoskeleton kept his retreating footsteps below twenty decibels—not much different from an ordinary person walking slowly in shoes.

Upon hearing his words, the others in the alley halted their advance and quickly retreated into the shadows of the buildings.

They too aimed their electromagnetic rifles at the entrance of the alley.

Soon, several young people in various styles of clothing rushed into the alley. After running a short distance inside, they all bent over, hands on their knees, and began gasping for breath.

“Probably civilians. Hold your fire for now.”

Banninger’s voice sounded in the communication channel. The members of the special operations team slightly lowered their rifles, awaiting orders.

“That… that was close! If we hadn’t run fast, that Imperial patrol would have spotted us!”

“Yeah, I was scared to death. Say, did Frank and the others run in the other direction?”

“That’s right, I saw them run the other way. We’ll meet them at the rendezvous point later.”

As they talked, a young man sat down on the ground. Naturally out of breath from the intense exertion, he suddenly smelled the strange odor in the air.

“Hey? Do you guys smell something?”

“Is it a little stinky?”

“Probably the sewer, right? There’s a huge manhole cover right there. You’re so jumpy.”

A boy, disdainful of his companion’s fuss, backed towards the wall, intending to lean against it for a rest.

Little did he know, a fully armed soldier was standing right behind him.

The instant he was about to bump into the person behind him, a pair of large hands shot out from the darkness, clamping over his mouth while a dagger was pressed against his neck.

The other youths didn’t even have time to register what was happening before several figures, looking like “water ghosts,” rushed out of the shadows.

Before the first syllable of their screams could escape, their mouths were covered, and they were pinned against the wall.

“If you don’t want to die, don’t move and don’t make a sound.”

A voice devoid of any emotion whispered in the ears of the young people.

Having never experienced anything like this, the youths were already scared stiff. Hearing these words, they nodded frantically like chickens pecking at rice.

After placing a temporary surveillance probe at the alley’s entrance, the special operations team dragged the youths into the deeper end of the alley.

The point man looked at the young man before him, who was gradually calming down. Through his Tactical faceplate’s amplifier, he spoke in a voice–altered tone.

“I’m going to release my hand slowly. If you dare to scream, the dagger at your neck will plunge in without hesitation. Understand?”

The young man nodded cooperatively. After staring at him for a few seconds, the point man slowly removed his hand from his mouth.

As fresh air once again filled his lungs unhindered, the young man finally realized that the “strange smell” they had noticed seemed to be coming from these armed individuals.

Before he could think any more about it, the demonic-looking armed figure in front of him spoke again.

“Name?”

“Franklin Abraham.”

“Occupation?”

“Soon-to-be graduate of Loubion University, intern at the Star System Autonomous Government’s Senate.”

Chapter 258: The Special Operations Team’s Mission

At 2 AM in Ptolemy City, it was much quieter than usual.

The citizens who typically enjoyed the nightlife were nowhere to be seen on the streets. Every household had shut its doors and windows tight and drawn its curtains.

Only the occasional vehicle carrying fully armed patrol soldiers driving down the street served as proof that human activity still existed in this city.

After the remnants of the Imperial forces retreated to this city, they not only used a large number of ground warning terminals and HCP’s frontline control capabilities to strictly defend the city’s perimeter against Coalition infiltration, but their main temporary camp actually occupied only a small part of the city.

But even so, an atmosphere of fear permeated the city’s residents.

Firearms were banned in the Loubion star system, which meant the city’s populace had no weapons with which to resist.

Perhaps it was more that, being accustomed to life in peacetime, they couldn’t muster the courage to fight back against the Imperial troops.

Furthermore, the Imperial remnant forces had ‘requisitioned’ a large number of civilian vehicles to patrol the urban area and had seized control of the municipal center, gaining access to the city’s surveillance network. As a result, the ‘resistance’ efforts of a few brave citizens were quickly and bloodily suppressed.

Under normal circumstances, these Imperial soldiers and the citizens kept to themselves, but as soon as they discovered any activity that could possibly threaten them, they would crush it without mercy.

Under these conditions, a strange spectacle of a city-wide, self-imposed ‘curfew’ had emerged.

So, after Atlas’s special operations team subdued Franklin and the others in the alley, they didn’t see anyone else pass by for quite some time.

During this period, the six restrained youths had each been interrogated individually.

Banninger and his team quickly ascertained the identities of these young people—they were the most fearless of the city’s ‘idealistic youths.’

Young people are full of hot-blooded passion.

When faced with an enemy invasion, these youths would often take actions that were reckless, radical, and dangerous, yet brave.

This was especially true of their leader, Franklin Abraham.

Coming from a family with two generations in the military, this resourceful and capable young man had become an intern at the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s Senate before he had even officially graduated.

Now, he had already been accepted as a ‘prospective member’ of the Federation Republican Party, one of the Federation’s two major parties.

Once he graduated and began working in the Senate, he would formally become a Federation Republican.

This status also made him something of a ‘youth leader’ within his circle of friends.

As early as the first Imperial occupation of Ptolemy City, Franklin had mobilized many young people his age to harass the Imperial army’s temporary camp like urban guerrilla fighters.

With no weapons, they resorted to the most traditional methods: Molotov cocktails and homemade smoke bombs.

This simple yet effective approach had indeed caused the Imperial occupation forces a great deal of trouble.

This time, after the Imperial remnants had once again retreated to Ptolemy City, Franklin and his friends, knowing that Federation forces were fighting their way back, grew even bolder. Their confidence swelled to the point where they planned to ambush patrols and seize their weapons.

But no matter what, the Imperial soldiers opposite them were far superior to civilians in terms of overall combat effectiveness.

That was why Franklin and his group were discovered today and chased around like rats.

“Are you a special operations team?! Did you infiltrate the city to conduct reconnaissance? Does that mean the main force is about to attack?”

After a period of observation, Franklin had confirmed that these fully armed, unidentified individuals were not Imperial troops.

Being the extrovert he was, he immediately started trying to cozy up to the instructor squad.

“Don’t ask questions you shouldn’t. Stop prying.”

The point man retorted coldly, and the young man obediently squatted back down by the wall.

The members of the special operations team couldn’t be bothered with him, as they were still worried about how to handle these youths.

Clearly, these people were citizens of the city; in other words, these taxpayers were technically Atlas’s employers. They certainly couldn’t be treated as enemies and executed on the spot.

But Banninger and his team didn’t dare let them go either. Who knew if one of these youths might lose his head? If they exposed the team’s position, it would all be over.

Incidents where a moment of compassion led to the annihilation of an entire team were not unheard of in history.

“I say we find a place to lock them up temporarily, leave them some food and water, and let them out after the main army enters the city.”

“If they need to eat, drink, and use the bathroom, doesn’t that mean we can’t tie up their hands and feet? That’s still a risk.”

“Leave two people to guard them?”

“Let’s not. We’re already short-staffed. If we split off two guards and run into an emergency, we’ll be in trouble.”

The members of the Special Operations Team conversed back and forth on the communication channel.

Although they had contingency plans, they truly hadn’t expected to be so unlucky as to run into someone right after leaving the sewers.

“Forget it. We’ll handle this according to the contingency plan. These people can’t be released until the operation is over. Let’s find a safe point first, detain them temporarily, and then continue the mission. The Coalition is attacking in two days anyway.”

Banninger ended the discussion, deciding to lead the team and carry on with the mission as planned.

Then, a thought occurred to him, and he walked over to Franklin and squatted down halfway.

“You said you’ve been harassing the Imperial troops during this time?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“That’s a very dangerous thing to do. Aren’t you afraid of dying?”

“My father was an officer in the garrison. He was killed on the first day of the Imperial army’s attack.”

Banninger was taken aback for a moment. He certainly hadn’t expected such an answer.

He sighed almost imperceptibly and continued to ask:

“So you’ve had dealings with the Imperial troops in the city. In the past few days, have you noticed any facilities with antenna array masts?”

“Sir, you must mean communication nodes, right? My father taught me about these things.”

Franklin was quick on the uptake and immediately understood what Banninger meant.

“That’s right, communication nodes. Either temporary ones they’ve set up or communications relay vehicles.”

“Of course I’ve seen them. I can even point them out for you on a map.”

The young man subconsciously moved his hands, only then realizing they were still bound by restraints.

“You see, I can’t exactly point them out like this.”

Banninger stared into the young man’s eyes for a moment, then looked at another team member behind Franklin and tilted his head.

The latter immediately stepped forward, took out a dagger, and cut Franklin loose.

“Behave yourself. Don’t try anything funny.”

“Don’t worry~”

Franklin flexed his arms, which were a bit stiff from being tied, then deftly retrieved his personal terminal and a paper map from his shoulder bag, which had already been inspected by the special operations team members.

Soon, he began marking the city map based on the records on his personal terminal.

“The Imperial army’s communications relay vehicles are mostly concentrated near their temporary camp. Inside the city, they use temporarily erected communication relay nodes. These nodes are mostly distributed on the rooftops of mid-rise buildings.”

Franklin spoke as he drew a five-pointed star on the map.

“This is our current location. A little over a kilometer from here, at the street corner, there’s a seven-story building. It has a communication node on its roof. I saw the antenna sticking out from the top when we passed by before.

“Also, this place might be a rest stop for patrols. We often see Imperial soldiers on patrol go inside for a break after arriving here.

“Next, there’s this place here.”

Although Franklin wasn’t a professional, and the areas they had ‘explored’ these past few days weren’t extensive, he still managed to mark six potential communication node locations on the map.

For Banninger and his team, this was more than enough.

The special operations team’s mission this time, besides infiltrating Ptolemy City to reconnoiter the Imperial troops’ movements, had another equally important task.

That was to find a brigade-level communication node and upload a clone of Lilith into it.

Of course, they only knew that the data disk they carried contained some kind of electronic warfare virus; they had no idea it was actually carrying a clone of Lilith.

The remnants of the Imperial forces who had retreated to Ptolemy City had adopted strict communication encryption and control measures. Especially on the frontline, they rigidly enforced radio discipline and security protocols, making them like a solid plate of iron.

Although Lilith’s electronic warfare virus attack capabilities were formidable, it was all predicated on the enemy having a vulnerability to attack.

But the problem now was that the Imperial army on the other side would rather ‘cut off its own arm’ by reducing their own communication efficiency than give them an opportunity to infiltrate.

Therefore, the only way was to physically access their internal network and send Lilith in.

After the members of the special operations team released several sparrow-sized, flapping-wing bionic reconnaissance drones to confirm that the surrounding environment was clear, the entire squad split in two.

One group escorted Franklin and his friends to a safe house—an old, long-closed storefront in the city that belonged to the family of a garrison officer.

The other group headed for the nearest Imperial communication node that Franklin had marked out to carry out the ‘implantation’ of Lilith.

Soon, this group found the seven-story building Franklin had described and saw a section of a mast antenna protruding from the top of the building.

An analysis of its characteristics through their exoskeletons’ built-in database also confirmed that it was indeed a field communication node—the Imperial remnants had simply installed it on the roof.

Due to the overly complex urban environment and the large civilian presence, if the Coalition wanted to strike such key targets, they would definitely need to conduct reconnaissance to determine their precise coordinates.

But the problem was that conventional high-altitude drones wouldn’t last long in the Imperial remnants’ air defense zone before being taken out by a high-energy laser.

Furthermore, one of Atlas’s two RQ220s had suffered a mechanical failure due to previous aggressive use.

This meant the vast Coalition frontline had to rely on the single remaining RQ220 for battlefield surveillance to prevent the Imperial army from launching another large-scale counterattack like the last one.

Meanwhile, the interference against the reconnaissance satellites’ Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) persisted, leaving the entire Coalition temporarily unable to effectively reconnoiter the Ptolemy City urban area.

“Let’s try this communication node first. York, fly the drone up and check the situation!”

“Roger that, Lieutenant.”

Chapter 259: The First Step in Urban Assault: Psychological Warfare

The bionic reconnaissance drone quickly flapped its wings and flew up to the height of the seventh floor.

The members of the special operations team didn’t pilot the drone straight over. Instead, they first circled near the rooftop a few times to observe the situation and confirm the positions of several sentries before landing on a decorative railing at the edge of the roof.

“There’s only one communications squad assigned to the communication node on the roof.”

“Are the defenses this light? I thought they would have an infantry squad or something on guard duty.”

The temporary commander in charge of this team’s operation raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had originally thought there would be more Imperial defenders here.

“Maybe they’re confident in their outer defensive line, thinking no one can infiltrate. And perhaps they believe the combat power of the communications squad alone is enough to suppress any citizens who might cause trouble?”

The drone operator shook his head, then added uncertainly:

“Or maybe it’s a trap?”

“No, it’s probably not a trap. The Imperial remnants are just short on troops.”

The team’s temporary commander brought up a combat map on his tactical faceplate. It showed the Imperial front-line positions scouted over the past two days.

“Most of their forces are deployed on the outer defensive line. The small remaining portion has to defend their command post and patrol inside the city. Judging by the estimated size of the Imperial remnants from our command, they’re really stretched thin in this regard.”

“So, should we try to take this communication node?”

“We will take it, but not today. We can’t alert the enemy.”

The temporary commander patted the drone operator’s shoulder and continued:

“We won’t go up today. Let’s just use the drone to plant the device.”

The operator nodded, then controlled the bionic drone to dive, nimbly darting into a blind spot of the mast-style communication antenna.

Then, like a real little bird, it hopped toward the terminal at the base of the mast.

This exquisite bionic drone was also a new product from Atlas Industries, and one of the last-resort products Deputy Director Orns had intended to use when he was planning to switch companies back during his time at Mary Bay Industries.

This drone, specially assigned to the special operations team for close-in reconnaissance in high-risk environments, was basically impossible to spot with the naked eye or optical surveillance equipment.

Even if it was seen, its extremely lifelike appearance and its ground movement, designed based on the characteristics of small birds, would easily make others dismiss it as a real bird.

At this moment, the members of the Imperial Army’s communications squad were on rotating duty.

Two soldiers patrolled the edge of the roof, chatting. The other soldiers from the communications squad were resting in a small field tent set up on the roof.

Due to the high degree of automation of the communication node terminal, it didn’t actually require someone to be constantly standing guard while it was operating normally.

So at this time, just after two in the morning, there were no other Imperial soldiers near this communication node’s terminal.

This allowed the special operations team’s drone to approach the terminal with ease and then, among the dense cluster of cables, find a standard Imperial data port.

Immediately after, the drone’s “bird head” split in two, like a zombie dog from a certain Resident Evil movie, and extended a small connector.

As the drone completed its physical connection to the communication node, Lilith’s clone, hidden in the drone’s internal data drive, easily broke through the terminal’s built-in firewall without triggering any alerts.

The drone, having completed its mission, quickly flew away. After recovering the drone, the special operations team also swiftly retreated toward the safe house.

Lilith’s clone quickly took control of the communication node and successfully infiltrated the Empire’s military intranet.

But she didn’t immediately launch a large-scale electronic warfare virus attack. Instead, she set up a scheduled message to be sent to all Imperial remnant personnel.

The scheduled delivery time was ten past six, the time when the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army got up for morning training.

——

At six in the morning, Major Fischer, commander of the 127th Armored Combined Arms Battalion, 58th Armored Brigade Combat Team, 9th Expeditionary Division of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army, opened his eyes, driven by his biological clock.

Lying in his sleeping bag in the battalion headquarters, he took five or six minutes before slowly climbing out.

In the past, with his very regular schedule, this would never have happened.

But the days of continuous fighting had left him and most of the other Imperial soldiers mentally exhausted.

Especially after the Coalition forces on the other side began their siege recently, they would occasionally set up high-power sound systems and blast noisy music in their direction. After nightfall, they would also line up searchlights or visible laser beams to shine on the Imperial army’s defensive positions.

Although the Imperial defenders would usually find a way to destroy this equipment quickly, the Coalition’s sound systems and searchlights seemed inexhaustible.

The Imperial forces would destroy one batch, and after a while, the other side would replace them with a new one.

While this harassment couldn’t cause any actual physical harm to the defenders, it was extremely effective at mentally tormenting the soldiers.

In the last two days, Fischer had received reports more than once from his subordinate officers about war-weariness appearing among the troops.

And he knew it wasn’t just his battalion-level unit; similar situations had occurred in all the battalion-level units along the defensive line.

Although command had been ordering them to find ways to pacify the soldiers’ emotions and, by scavenging the city as much as possible, had sent sufficient supplies, even alcoholic beverages, to the front-line troops.

But Fischer knew that such methods could only temporarily alleviate the war-weariness of the rank-and-file soldiers.

After a while, this sentiment might even rebound stronger.

With his mind full of these matters, Major Fischer put on his combat exoskeleton and walked out of his tent.

By now, it was already twenty past six.

He didn’t know when it started, but the Imperial remnants had become increasingly perfunctory in following their schedules.

Originally, at ten past six, all units were supposed to assemble on their own and begin the day’s training or battle preparations.

But now, ten minutes past the scheduled time, the headquarters of the 127th Armored Combined Arms Battalion was still filled with a lifeless atmosphere.

Operations staff officers and guards emerged from their field tents in twos and threes, and upon seeing him, they only gave a listless salute.

Only one communications staff officer walked over, looking nervous.

“Sir, look at your personal terminal.”

Hearing the communications officer’s words, Fischer raised his wrist suspiciously—he wasn’t wearing his tactical faceplate at the moment, so the terminal’s information was displayed on the flexible screen on the inside of his wrist.

“An unread message? Is this what you mean?”

“Yes, sir. You’ll understand when you see it.” The communications officer’s voice was grim, and under his gaze, Fischer opened the unread message.

When he saw the first line of the message, his expression changed immediately, and he instantly snapped out of his sleepy state.

“A Call for the Surrender of the Imperial Aggressor Forces (Remnants)”

This very ominous title made the battalion commander guess what it was about before he even read the content.

He looked up at the communications officer and asked:

“You received it too?”

“Sir, it’s probably not just me. Look at the others…”

With that, the communications officer turned to look at the surrounding soldiers. Fischer followed his gaze and saw that most of the soldiers at the battalion headquarters were now staring at their own personal combat terminals.

A terrible possibility flashed through Major Fischer’s mind. Since he and the men at headquarters had received this message at the same time, then it was very likely that the entire 127th Armored Combined Arms Battalion… no, the entire 58th Armored Brigade Combat Team, and even all the Imperial soldiers on the front line had received this message.

“It’s over.”

——

“To Viscount Drake, Baron Vinson, Baron Grant, and all officers and soldiers of the Imperial aggressor forces:

You have now reached a dead end. Your 49th Armored Brigade Combat Team was completely wiped out on the night of the fifteenth. The 54th Brigade, which attempted to support the 49th, also suffered heavy casualties in battle.

Your forces, scattered across the other two continents, have also been trapped by the Coalition and are suffering orbital strikes daily. It is hopeless for you to try to break out and join them.

Do you want to break out? Coalition forces are on all sides. How could you possibly break through?

In recent days, under our tight encirclement and heavy attacks, your counter-attack plans have failed. You can only retreat to the city and defend a tiny patch of ground. Every day, you are unable to rest properly due to our army’s harassment. Your suffering is unspeakable!

To all commanders of the Imperial aggressor forces, are you aware that many soldiers in the units under your command no longer wish to fight?

As their officers, you should be considerate of your subordinates’ feelings, cherish their lives, and find a way out for them sooner rather than later. Do not let them make any more pointless sacrifices.

Because of the factional politics between the various parties in the Empire, you have traveled thousands of miles to this strange planet to shed sweat and blood, and perhaps even to be left here forever. What will you gain from this?

That meager death benefit? Or the honor bestowed by that decrepit Emperor?

Face reality!

Have you all considered that after your families lose you, their pillar of support, will they fare any better in the turbulent Empire?

Your wives may remarry, your children may call another man ‘father’—do you really want this to happen?

Finally, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Coalition forces, I advise you to immediately order all your troops to lay down their arms and cease resistance!

The Coalition can guarantee the safety of your high-ranking generals and all your officers and soldiers.

This is your only way out!

Think about it! If you think this is a good idea, then do it. If you still want to fight, then fight on. In the end, you will be dealt with regardless.

Loubion V Coalition Command.”

Chapter 260: Star Wars? World War II!

Although the Star Dragon Empire’s expedition against the Federation was, fundamentally, a product of the factional politics between the two major parties in the country, the motion to “declare war” was still passed unanimously in the Imperial Council’s closed-door meeting.

In other words, whether it was the Regent Prince Faction, the Princess Faction, or even the small number of Royalists, all believed this war was necessary as an outlet for the nation’s simmering tensions and pent-up emotions.

Against this backdrop, even though the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction were still secretly undermining each other, even using this battle to frantically eliminate the other’s “pawns,” the Star Dragon Empire was, on the whole, serious about fighting this war.

“Even though we backstab each other, sell out our teammates, and are ready to cut and run, we still want to win the game.” This was the Star Dragon Empire.

Therefore, the fleets and army units participating in this expedition were, if not the most elite in the Star Dragon Empire’s various branches of service, at least well-trained veteran forces.

The 7th, 8th, and 9th expeditionary divisions of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army, deployed to Loubion V, and their nine subordinate brigade combat teams, had all participated to varying degrees in domestic conflicts during the eighty-plus years of “peace,” and could be considered quite experienced.

However, the experience gained from quelling rebellions and maintaining stability clearly did not cover being abandoned by the navy on a planet with no way out, besieged in a lone city, and watching the enemy slowly form an encirclement.

And to top it all off, a “surrender notice” had been sent to the combat terminal of every officer and soldier.

Facing a situation where the troops were highly likely to mutiny, Viscount Drake immediately made a public address over the internal network to calm the army’s morale.

At this moment, one had to mention the “material” contributed by Loubion V’s Planetary Defense Force, as well as the Coalition forces formed later, before Amber took command.

This “material” allowed the Viscount, Sir, to easily list for all his officers and men numerous battles they had just personally experienced where the few defeated the many.

He told them that their previous defeats and current predicament of being besieged in Ptolemy City were only temporary and that the command headquarters was planning a genuine counterattack and breakout operation.

Finally, while incessantly “greeting” the Duke and the three generations of his naval fleet members’ families in his mind, Viscount Drake “went against his conscience” and assured the Imperial soldiers:

“The naval fleet will execute a parting shot soon, and will coordinate with the ground forces to completely destroy the Federation’s resistance!”

In short, Viscount Drake tried every means possible to consolidate the army’s strength and firm the soldiers’ will to resist, at least for the time being.

After the general address, he convened a meeting of officers.

The main topic of the meeting was to demand that grassroots officers pay close attention to the ideological trends within the troops and to guide any potential wavering or unease.

He advised them to praise acts of holding one’s ground and fighting bravely, while severely punishing any attempts to surrender or desert, ensuring that military discipline was strict and orders were followed without question.

After that, he gathered his technical officers for a thorough investigation of the internal military network.

Clearly, the fact that all the soldiers, including Viscount Drake himself, had received the message meant the enemy had successfully infiltrated the military network and obtained a fairly high level of clearance.

But after “mass sending the message,” Lilith had hidden herself in cyberspace, even halting the spread of her electronic warfare virus, making herself completely “disappear” from the Empire’s military network.

While the technical officers were at a loss, staring at the placid military network and not knowing where to begin, Viscount Drake also ordered the patrols in the city to increase their frequency.

He also lifted the previous restrictions on engagement, which were set to avoid potential civilian casualties, authorizing them to “open fire directly on any suspicious targets.”

He knew the military network was completely air-gapped from external networks. For something like what happened this morning to occur, it was obvious their own military network had been infiltrated, and such an infiltration could only be carried out through a physical connection.

“It seems the enemy’s infiltration teams have bypassed our frontline defenders in a way we didn’t anticipate and have infiltrated the city!” Viscount Drake stated his conclusion at an emergency meeting of senior officers.

“This also means the enemy’s all-out assault is imminent. Prepare for the coming battle, gentlemen.”

Two days had passed since the “Notice Urging the Imperial Aggressors (Remnants) to Surrender” had spread throughout the entire remnant Imperial force.

In these two days, the patrols in the city searched frantically for any trace of the Coalition’s infiltration teams.

But the special operations team had significantly reduced its activity over these two days.

They absolutely would not go out during the day, and even when they did go out at night, they chose three or four in the morning, the time when people are most fatigued and prone to drowsiness.

Not only did they gather a great deal of intelligence on the Empire’s defensive layout within the city, but they also successfully transmitted it out. All in all, it was outrageously effective.

While the Imperial patrols within the city were being unilaterally “toyed with” by the special operations team, the city’s residents also learned of the Coalition’s impending general offensive through various channels—rumors from unknown sources, local news that was still being secretly updated, and the elders’ “I heard that…”

Although the sources of this news varied, and the start times for the offensive covered every day of the next month, every piece of news mentioned one thing.

It advised citizens to leave dangerous areas, especially the outskirts of the city, main streets, landmark buildings, and other locations likely to become combat zones.

In reality, they didn’t need the urging of rumors. Many citizens had already found ways to leave the city before the remnants of the Imperial army retreated to Ptolemy City.

“Idealistic youths” like Franklin could have left as well, but they ultimately chose to stay in the city to cause trouble for the Imperial remnants.

As for those who truly couldn’t leave, they had basically gathered in the underground shelters in the northern part of the city, which was now the safest place in all of Ptolemy City.

And so, the soldiers on the city’s outer defense lines spent the last few days before the Coalition’s general offensive in an atmosphere of tension, anxiety, and frustration.

For the past two days, the Coalition forces on the other side had reduced the frequency of their attacks on the positions. They no longer even attempted to send troops to attack, instead simply using indirect fire for suppression.

Everyone knew the Coalition was building up for a big push.

For the Imperial soldiers on the defensive line, these days were agonizing. They would rather fight the enemy immediately than tremble in suspense amidst sporadic artillery fire, guessing when the Coalition would finally launch their attack.

Today, as the two major human powers clashed in war again after more than eighty years, military scholars and commanders from both the Federation and the Empire were surprised to find that the nature of ground warfare was not fundamentally different from decades, or even hundreds or thousands of years ago, when humanity had just entered the gunpowder age.

Reconnaissance still came from satellites, drones, and frontline infiltration teams, providing intelligence that was not entirely clear or transparent.

Although the weaponry and firepower projection capabilities of both sides were worlds apart from the past, there had been no significant improvement in operational thinking.

Fire preparation still existed, only now it was carried out by more precise self-propelled artillery groups, the direct/indirect dual-purpose cannons of frontline combat vehicles, and orbital strikes from space.

Fortifications for defense were constantly being updated. Even this remnant Imperial force could still rapidly construct a set of semi-permanent fortifications on the city’s outskirts using standard titanium alloy frames, foam metal, and various standardized components.

They also used the combat sapper units’ scattering mine-laying systems and artillery mine-laying systems to deploy a wide minefield in front of their positions.

After looking at the drone photos of the enemy positions and then leading a few veterans past the very front line into the “no-man’s land” between the two armies, Amber watched the “wall” on the city’s outskirts loom in and out of the heavy fog through his binoculars.

A sense of the absurd and the familiar welled up in his heart.

“Am I fighting a war in the space age, or in World War I or II?”

Amber didn’t know if this sense of absurdity and familiarity stemmed from the not-so-rigorous military settings he’d designed as a game planner in his previous life, or if it was the natural evolution of this world.

In any case, behind all the flashy technological advancements, only the fleet battles in space seemed novel. The fundamental form of ground warfare appeared to have changed very little.

Even though directed-energy weapons were ubiquitous, combat exoskeletons were as standard-issue as basic rifles, and integrated command systems could give commanders a “God’s-eye view” of the entire battlefield, it all still boiled down to needing a large number of infantry as the backbone to “fill the lines,” to capture, control, and advance the frontline.

For example, the offensive the Coalition was about to launch was, in essence, still the process of concentrating a heavy force in one direction of attack and then starting the old routine of “artillery bombards, then infantry charges; infantry charges, then artillery bombards.”

Ptolemy City was simply too large. Although the Coalition had been reinforced by two combined arms brigades from the defense force, it was unrealistic for a few tens of thousands of troops to completely encircle a super-large city.

Divide the forces to attack from different directions simultaneously?

Amber had no desire to follow in the footsteps of Yang Hao and Du Song.

Among the Coalition forces, only Atlas’s mixed combined arms brigade could go head-to-head with the Imperial remnants. The other friendly units would easily be routed by an Imperial force of the same size, to say nothing of the complex and brutal reality of urban street fighting.

Therefore, the safest method was to concentrate their strength into a single punch.

Returning to the command post, Amber looked at the electronic sand table. There were twenty minutes left until the firepower strike preceding the scheduled attack.

On the 25-kilometer-wide attack front, the Coalition’s various units had reached their designated attack positions.

The long-range fire support units of each division were ready, and the two orbital assault ships and The Hermes had lowered their altitude and entered their attack orbits.

Amber took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. This was his first time commanding a ground war of this scale.

In the game, he was more often responsible for commanding fleet battles; his experience commanding ground combat had never reached this scale.

And this wasn’t a game. The soldiers under his command weren’t NPCs whose deaths he wouldn’t mourn.

But at this moment, there was no room for indecision. Since he was in this position, he had to do everything he could to the best of his ability.

“All units, commence the attack according to the plan after the artillery preparation.

“I will lead the HCP units in the first wave of attack as planned and look for an opportunity to carry out a decapitation strike.

“I leave the subsequent specific command to all of you. As usual, Hog will be in charge of overall coordination. Consider this the graduation exam for you future commanders.”

Amber looked up at the people in the command post. The faces of these human and Romu staff officers from Atlas showed a mixture of nervousness, excitement, and apprehension.

But without exception, their gazes were all sufficiently resolute.

“Alright, let’s begin.”

Chapter 261: The Burning Frontline

The morning of August 14th, in the year 589 of the New Calendar.

The thick fog that had enveloped the city was slowly dissipating, and sunlight began to once again fall upon the positions of both warring sides.

This was the one-year anniversary of Amber’s transmigration.

A year ago today, he was just a probationary officer who had newly arrived on Robert IV, trying every means possible to survive in a tight spot and find a chance to escape that war-torn planet.

A year later, today, he was on another planet, commanding a Coalition force tens of thousands strong and facing off against another Imperial expeditionary force in a final showdown.

In the span of this one year, Robert IV was blown to pieces. The Federation and the Empire had sunk tens of millions of tons of warships between the stars, and countless soldiers had their souls returned to the void.

The Federation, having recovered from the initial shock of the assault, expanded its armaments and engaged in a ‘massive shipbuilding program,’ which in turn caused the power of the military-industrial complex to swell even further.

And the ‘reins’ that had been loosened from the necks of the various autonomous star system governments had also planted a ‘seed’ of future discord within the seemingly unbreakable Federation.

The seemingly prosperous and powerful Star Dragon Empire had also begun to reveal its aged facade. The old Emperor’s life was nearing its end, and the internal factional politics had reached their fiercest point.

The Empire’s rightful heir had just completed a bloody suppression on a border planet, purging all who attempted to splinter the nation with an iron fist.

And on the other end of the ‘stage,’ the Regent Prince was still patiently waiting for an opportunity to deliver a ‘fatal blow.’

In the prelude to this great war, Atlas had also grown from a ‘startup group’ of a few dozen people into the most basic form envisioned in Amber’s blueprint.

Nourished by another ‘corporate war’ fought in the shadow of this conflict, it was gradually growing in corners hidden from public view.

But here on Loubion V, perhaps only Amber was thinking about such things.

The soldiers in the Coalition’s various staging areas, fully prepared for the attack, had no mind for such grand thoughts. They were staring with gazes tinged with fear at the frontline ahead, which had been transformed into a sea of flames.

Shell after shell streaked over their heads like a meteor shower, howling as they flew straight toward the enemy positions.

The moment the shells landed, the entire earth trembled, and the light from the explosions dyed half the sky blood-red.

A massive shockwave and a spray of dirt and debris swept toward them. Though they were at a safe distance, the violent force was still terrifying.

With the ground salvo from the Hermes’s heavy particle cannon as the signal, the tactical surface-to-surface missiles from the orbital assault ship opened the curtain on the artillery barrage.

Following that, more than three hundred self-propelled artillery pieces of various types, positioned behind the Coalition’s attack front, began delivering 155mm and 203mm programmable high-explosive shells onto the enemy positions at an average rate of fifteen to eighteen rounds per minute.

At the same time, the main battle tanks and multi-legged war machines on the offensive front, equipped with 120mm and 155mm dual-purpose electrothermal-chemical cannons capable of both direct and indirect fire, began to provide supplementary fire support.

High-explosive shells, bunker-busters, sensor-fuzed munitions, cluster munitions—the Coalition’s self-propelled artillery units rained all sorts of ordnance onto the pre-designated coordinates.

Meanwhile, support vehicles and engineering machinery worked ceaselessly to transport ammunition and helped some of the self-propelled artillery units that encountered problems to replace their entire barrel modules.

In the thirty-minute artillery barrage, the Coalition’s ground forces alone fired over two hundred thousand shells, not to mention the two orbital strikes completed by the Hermes and the hundreds of missiles launched by the orbital assault ship.

In another parallel world, during Operation Michael in 1918, the German army had amassed six thousand artillery pieces for its barrage, but that translated to only three hundred twenty thousand shells fired in half an hour.

Their target had been thirteen infantry divisions of the British Fifth Army on the frontline.

The Coalition’s target, however, was merely a few thousand remnants of the Star Dragon Empire’s expeditionary force.

“Perhaps this counts as military progress? After industrial manufacturing capabilities reached a new height, the god of war is still not ready for retirement?”

Amber, sitting in his HCP cockpit and looking at the fire preparation report from headquarters, was probably the only one who could make such a comparison at this moment.

As the Coalition soldiers watched the enemy positions being swallowed by cannon fire, they were perhaps thankful that such a barrage was not falling on their own heads.

And the Imperial forces on the city’s outer defensive line were completely unable to think amidst the bombardment.

Although the moment the Coalition’s fire preparation began, most of the soldiers and equipment on the line had, in accordance with combat doctrine, immediately withdrawn to the second defensive line and to the rear of the city’s large buildings.

Even so, quite a few company and platoon-sized units were wiped out on the frontline.

The soldiers who were lucky enough to retreat to the second defensive line had the privilege of witnessing the largest ground artillery preparation in recent decades—after all, such a level of shelling was unnecessary in the low-intensity conflicts of the past.

The earth trembled, and the air burned.

Every shell that exploded on the frontline was like an invisible giant hand, mercilessly tearing their defensive lines apart.

The specialized bunker-buster rounds, in particular, turned one sturdy, semi-permanent fortification after another into dust.

The artillery fire was like a torrential downpour, dense and ferocious, almost making it hard to breathe.

The beams of light descending from the heavens were like divine punishment meant to destroy the world, melting everything near their impact points.

Although the Imperial soldiers were all wearing combat exoskeletons and hiding in combat vehicles or bunkers protected by armor and overpressure-proof layers, this fire preparation, like the forge hammer of Vulcan, still hammered psychological trauma into them.

Even though the noise cancellation on their exoskeletons’ audio pickups was turned to maximum, the soldiers still found it difficult to hear their teammates’ calls over the radio channels.

They could only curl up, supported by their elbows and knees, and pray to the Dragon God that the next shell would not land on their heads.

The half-hour of artillery preparation felt like an eternity for the soldiers on both sides.

In the final phase of the barrage, the Coalition’s mechanized forces burst out from their concealed positions. In a formation with ‘heavy armored units at the front, light armored units and armored personnel carriers to the sides and rear,’ they swiftly deployed into combat formation.

Hundreds of HCPs also rushed out from their respective hiding places, moving at a much faster pace. They had started later but arrived first, overtaking the Coalition armored forces and charging straight for the city’s outer defensive line.

The fastest ‘spearhead’ in this charge was the brigade HQ’s direct-command HCP company led by Amber, along with ATT’s five test units.

Sixteen HCPs, arranged in a standard ‘arrowhead’ assault formation, set foot on the first defensive line at almost the exact moment the last 155mm shell exploded.

The instant the shelling ended, Imperial soldiers and combat vehicles, urged on by their officers, also rushed back toward the nearly flattened first defensive line at top speed.

But what greeted them was a salvo of heavy particle cannons from their own position.

“What’s going on? Why are we being attacked from our own line?”

This thought flashed through the minds of several multi-legged war machine pilots for only a moment. In the next second, they and their machines were vaporized by a surging stream of heavy metal particles.

“Enemy vanguard HCPs are on the first defensive line! Repeat, enemy HCPs are on the first defensive line! Where are our Titans?!”

The frontline officer’s roar echoed through the communication channel as he watched his men futilely attack the steel giants rampaging through their position with man-portable anti-vehicle missiles.

But the incoming missiles were detonated in mid-air by point-defense lasers. This was immediately followed by several large-caliber, high-velocity penetrator rounds fired from electromagnetic rifles, which blanketed the area where the launch team had just been.

When the smoke and dust cleared, all that remained were shattered pieces of equipment and severed limbs.

Just as this Imperial officer was cursing the friendly HCPs, he lunged for an anti-vehicle missile launcher lying on the ground nearby.

A sharp sonic boom erupted behind him. Before he could even turn his head, he felt a behemoth fly over him, kicking up a chaotic wake.

A silver-white Zealot, its plasma thruster array erupting in a blinding blue light, rushed toward the Coalition HCPs, brandishing a heavy slicer sword.

The timing of this attack was brilliant. The Coalition HCP didn’t even have time to turn its weapon before the Imperial Zealot was upon it.

But just as the heavy slicer sword was about to strike true, a dark red HCP smashed through a shattered building to the side. Amidst a shower of flying rubble and dust, it slammed its heavy, arc-wreathed shield viciously into the Zealot’s side.

At the moment the two steel giants collided, the officer, now a mere spectator, felt as if he could see a shockwave ripple outwards.

The Zealot, knocked aside unexpectedly, had its pilot’s vision go black. Before he could even adjust his machine’s posture, he saw a sapphire plasma blade tear through the armor of his cockpit.

The nearby Imperial officer never would have imagined that his side’s HCP, on which he had placed such high hopes, would have its cockpit run through by this dark red HCP in a single exchange.

But he had no time to think. As he instinctively dived for cover behind a nearby building, two more sonic booms tore through the air behind him. Two reinforcing Zealots once again skimmed over his head, then disappeared between the nearby buildings as they engaged two other enemy HCPs.

The Imperial officer slumped against the wall of the building behind him. On his command interface, two-thirds of the soldiers in his platoon were marked with red crosses.

The remaining soldiers were not only scattered, but all of them were marked with light yellow or dark yellow icons, indicating they had suffered injuries of varying severity.

The battle had only just begun, and his platoon had already lost its combat effectiveness.

“Isn’t this just the beginning?”

The officer sank into a daze, but a voice from the radio pulled him back from his momentary trance.

“Ensign Ram! We’re here to support you!”

Hearing the voice, Ram followed the ‘out-of-sight unit indicator arrow’ on his tactical faceplate’s HUD and looked to his left.

On the street across the intersection, a Pacifier heavy multi-legged war machine was heading his way, leading about a platoon of infantry.

He stood up. Just as he was about to say something to these friendly reinforcements, he saw the silhouette of a giant ‘crawler’ appear on the first defensive line to his right, a position that had previously belonged to Imperial forces.

“Don’t come over! Take co—”

Before he could finish his sentence, the Pacifier, which had just entered the intersection, had its turret pierced by a tungsten alloy penetrator round. The immense kinetic energy nearly tore the heavy multi-legged war machine’s turret to shreds.

Amidst the flames of the burning vehicle, several anti-personnel fragmentation shells fired from an electrothermal-chemical cannon also exploded at the street corner.

The flying shrapnel quickly cut down the Mobile Infantry accompanying the Pacifier, and Ensign Ram felt a sharp sting in his neck.

He raised a hand to his neck and found that his silicon carbide neck guard had been shattered. Blood gushed from the artery in his neck, flowing all over his tactical glove and arm guard.

As he collapsed to the ground, Ensign Ram stared blankly at the smoke-filled sky. Gurgling sounds escaped his lips as his vocal cords, severed by shrapnel, struggled to form his last words.

“Isn’t this just the beginning?”

Chapter 262: We Are Atlas

Before the Coalition’s artillery barrage began, the members of the special operations team started their final preparations in a safe house within the urban area of Ptolemy City.

Several team members opened the black military crates they had been carrying on their backs, revealing neatly arranged miniature rocket pods, quad-barrel multi-purpose launch pods, portable electromagnetic cannons, man-portable anti-vehicle missiles, and their matching ammunition.

Some members helped each other install the heavier assault equipment—like the miniature rocket pods and quad-barrel multi-purpose launch pods, which were inconvenient to carry during infiltration—onto the ports on the rear of their exoskeleton’s shoulder armor.

The rest slung the man-portable anti-vehicle missiles onto their backs and assembled the portable electromagnetic cannons into march configuration, ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice.

“Miniature rocket pod connected.”

“Multi-purpose launch pod connected.”

“Ammunition management system online.”

As these notifications flashed across the HUD of his tactical faceplate, Lieutenant Banninger tilted his head slightly to look.

The two extra modules behind his shoulder armor adjusted their position with the whir of internal motors, finally fitting snugly against the pauldrons.

He moved his hands and shoulder joints, feeling no restriction or obstruction to his movement.

Although his shoulder armor now looked significantly bulkier, the additional equipment, co-designed by Atlas Industries’ Director of Weapons R&D Eugene Koch and Orns, didn’t actually impede the wearer’s movements.

“Alright, men!”

Banninger clapped his hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

“It’s time for us to get to work. Once the Coalition’s artillery preparation starts, we’ll move out according to the mission plan!

Remember your training, trust the comrades by your side, and no enemy will be able to stop our advance!

Understood?!”

“Yes, Lieutenant!”

The members of the special operations team quickly moved to the door of the safe house, forming two columns as they waited for the operation to begin.

Watching the fully-equipped special operations team, Banninger nodded slightly.

As one of Amber’s ‘die-hard supporters,’ Banninger had always wanted to lead his old comrades from Robert IV to contribute to Atlas’s cause.

In fact, aside from Lilith, they—the veterans who had escaped from Robert IV—were the ones within Atlas who most fervently believed in the ‘blueprint’ Amber had laid out.

Their long years of service in the Federation Mobile Infantry, combined with their experiences on Robert IV, had left them with a grudge against the Federation government.

Witnessing the Federation’s series of wild moves afterward had only deepened their disappointment to the point of despair.

But the blueprint for Atlas that Amber shared with them offered a glimpse of a future where it seemed possible to ‘end all wars.’

Although Banninger had already made an indelible contribution by leading the instructor squad to train the Romu from helpless ‘Furballs’ that anyone could bully into professional war machines, he and the other veterans, being Mobile Infantry at heart, still yearned to make a more direct contribution on the battlefield.

So, when he received the mission to lead a team to infiltrate Ptolemy City, Banninger was quite pleased.

He never saw it as a dangerous mission; instead, he viewed it as a perfect opportunity for the instructor squad to set an example and prove their worth on the battlefield.

At the same time, before the infiltration began, he did worry a little that he and his old soldiers might have gotten rusty after being away from the battlefield for so long.

But so far, at least, the instructor squad’s performance had been up to par, with no one messing up.

After checking the time again and confirming that the Coalition’s artillery barrage would begin in three minutes, Banninger walked over to the door of one of the rooms in the safe house.

Inside the room, Franklin and the other youths were sitting on the floor, looking bored.

Although the special operations team had not restrained them for the past two days, had provided them with three meals a day, and had even let them take turns showering in the safe house, they were starting to feel bored.

Their personal terminals had been confiscated, and with no other forms of entertainment, everyone except Franklin was growing weary.

As for why Franklin wasn’t bored?

For the past two days, he had been engrossed in the special operations team’s weapons and equipment. He seized every opportunity to get close to them, using it as a chance to ‘admire’ these new types of combat exoskeletons he had never seen before.

When Banninger appeared at the doorway, the youths in the room sat up and looked at him.

“The Coalition is about to begin its artillery preparation for the final assault. You’re free to go.”

Banninger’s first sentence finally eased the anxiety that had been weighing on the youths for the past two days.

Although the special operations team seemed to be a Federation unit, the fact that their freedom had been restricted for two days had left the youths feeling scared and uneasy.

Seeing the obvious relief on their faces, Lieutenant Banninger smiled and continued, “However, I suggest you stay in this safe house until the fighting is over. The urban area will be quite dangerous once the street fighting begins. This safe house has already been marked, so if you stay here, you won’t have to worry about being hit by Coalition friendly fire.”

Banninger was about to leave when he seemed to remember something. He turned back and added, “Your personal terminals are in the cabinet in the living room. You can get them after we leave. Tell your families to stay home and not wander outside while the network is still up.”

With that, Banninger left.

The youths in the room exchanged glances, a sense of unreality washing over them at the special operations team’s sudden departure.

Franklin, however, hesitated for a moment before getting up and chasing after them.

When he reached the doorway, the members of the special operations team merely glanced at him before turning their gazes forward again, waiting for the operation to commence.

Banninger walked over to him and stood there, silent.

Though he couldn’t see the expression or the eyes beneath the tactical faceplate, Franklin still felt an immense pressure.

It took him a long moment to compose himself before he asked, “Sir, you’re not a Federation unit, are you?”

“Hm? Do we look like Imperial troops?”

“No, I mean, you don’t look like the Federation’s regular army.”

This piqued Banninger’s curiosity. He asked with a hint of amusement, “And why do you say that?”

“I’ve seen elite units from the Planetary Defense Force, and I’ve seen leaked photos of Federation special units on military forums. Both in terms of your equipment and your spirit, you’re very different from them.”

Franklin spoke earnestly, his gaze fixed on Banninger and the soldiers behind him, who all exuded an ‘elite’ aura.

Then he heard one of the team members say through his external speaker, “Are you saying we look crazier? Hahahaha.”

His remark drew a burst of laughter from the other team members, and even Banninger couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Sir, who are you people?” Franklin asked, his tone still serious.

But just as the words left his mouth, a rumbling sound, accompanied by a distinct tremor, reached the safe house.

The Coalition’s artillery barrage had begun.

The moment he heard the shelling, Banninger moved to the rear of the formation. The team member at the front of the line opened the door to the safe house.

In the instant the lieutenant disappeared through the doorway, an answer drifted back to Franklin’s ears.

“We are Atlas, kid.”

At the same time that Amber led the HCP reinforced company charging the first defensive line of the Imperial remnants and repelling the first wave of Imperial troops attempting a counter-charge to retake their position…

The Coalition’s self-propelled artillery groups began to extend their attacks into the city, switching to precision-guided munitions to specifically target key nodes identified by prior reconnaissance, such as Junctions, fire positions, and Forward Command Posts.

Meanwhile, the special operations team inside the city stormed a municipal service station.

After quickly taking down two Imperial soldiers hiding inside, Banninger connected his combat terminal to the municipal service network.

An identification code provided by the star system’s autonomous government quickly granted him the highest-level access to the city management system.

The municipal employees, who had been detained in the city hall by Imperial soldiers and had not yet been evacuated, were suddenly alarmed to see a user with higher clearance than the mayor appear in the system.

This user, named ‘ATLAS,’ rapidly gained control over various devices throughout the city’s streets and alleys, including cameras, smart barricades, and hidden partition walls.

Banninger’s actions mirrored what Amber had done in Blue Bay on Robert IV, using the city’s cameras to begin generating a 3D model.

Back then, Amber had needed Lilith’s computing power to do this, but Banninger and his team no longer had that concern.

The combat exoskeletons used by the instructor squad members were all equipped with a new-architecture combat processor that Lilith had developed in her ‘spare time,’ boasting far greater computing power than those of ordinary Atlas soldiers.

This was specifically to facilitate their use of these bizarre functions.

After gaining control over a large number of automated devices within the urban area, Banninger got to work.

He first shut down all rail transport in the city and lowered the lockdown barriers for all underground transit stations, confining the battle to the surface.

Then, he confirmed the distribution of the Imperial remnants and the reinforcement routes for their reserve forces.

Since the main body of the Imperial remnants in Ptolemy City consisted of several Armored brigade combat teams, they had a significant number of heavy combat vehicles.

This meant that civilian overpasses and some narrower streets were impassable for main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines.

Under these circumstances, the Imperial reserves had limited options for reinforcement routes. Without hesitation, Banninger activated the smart barricades, hidden partition walls, and other devices along these routes.

While these measures certainly couldn’t withstand the force of heavy units, Banninger’s real intention wasn’t to stop them, but to delay them for as long as possible.

Next, he took control of the numerous billboards along the frontlines on the city’s outskirts and began to scroll the contents of the ‘surrender notice.’

As the Imperial soldiers on the city’s periphery launched counter-charges toward their lost positions, the sudden appearance of these surrender notices on the surrounding billboards dealt a significant blow to their morale.

Having done all this, Banninger led the special operations team toward the northeast section of the city.

According to the reconnaissance from the past two days, the frontline command post of this Imperial contingent was located in that area.

Meanwhile, Lilith, who had been itching to go for two days, finally began her electronic warfare virus attack.

Chapter 263: Urban Combat and a Decapitation Strike

The Coalition’s general offensive had begun half an hour ago. Amidst an excessive artillery preparation and orbital strikes, the frontline defensive positions of the Imperial remnants had been blasted into ruins.

When Amber led the reinforced HCP company, practically hot on the heels of the artillery preparation, and set foot on the Empire’s first line of defense, they hammered themselves into it like a nail.

Although the Imperial forces urgently deployed their mobile support HCPs and directed surrounding troops to counterattack, they still achieved no results.

After a brief exchange of fire, not only did they leave behind a pile of wrecked HCPs, combat vehicles, and the bodies of their combatants, but they were also routed directly by the charge led by Amber and the HCP team from the Atlas Test Team.

By the time Atlas’s main combined arms brigade caught up, the loss of this position was a foregone conclusion.

And this breach, like a cancer, began to spread rapidly to the surrounding areas.

However, Atlas’s forces did not rush to advance further into the city. Instead, under the cover of HCPs, they maneuvered along the city’s edge in battalion-level combat units to assist other Coalition units in capturing the first line of defense.

At this point, even the Romu Mobile Infantry of the Atlas combined arms brigade could see it.

The other friendly units in the Coalition forces were basically chickens with a combat effectiveness of 0.5.

To put it nicely, Atlas’s various battalion-level units were assisting the Coalition in controlling the first line of defense.

But to put it bluntly, they were actually going to put out fires.

During an urban assault, the various combined arms battalions wouldn’t deploy their entire battalion headquarters separately. All the ‘battalion headquarters’ personnel would advance directly inside their armored command vehicles.

The Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, commanded by Montai and Tairak, had received orders to assist two battalion-level combat units from Thunder Defense that were attacking on the right flank.

However, when the rotary-wing reconnaissance drones launched by the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion reached the attack zone, they discovered that their friendly forces were about to be pushed off their positions.

Along a frontline of less than two kilometers, Thunder Defense’s two battalions were pinned down on their dilapidated positions, defending with the help of some remaining cover.

Of the ten Heavy multi-legged war machines assigned to these two battalions, four had already been ‘reduced’ to spare parts.

The remaining six, older model ‘Mammoths’ that had not yet been refitted with heavy electromagnetic cannons and were still using 155mm electrothermal-chemical cannons, had lowered their hulls to the ground and deployed the armor plating on their mechanical legs, entering a fortress mode colloquially known among players as ‘covering your head and squatting’.

The other vehicles and Mobile Infantry were using these six fortresses as anchor points, forming a weak defensive line.

And their enemy to the front was merely a reinforced Imperial armored combined arms battalion.

“This is it? This is it? This is it?”

Seeing the information sent back by the drones and the two light multi-legged war machines conducting forward reconnaissance, Montai, sitting in the armored command vehicle, widened his eyes.

“Montai, you should learn fewer human catchphrases. You’re sounding less and less like a Romu.”

Tairak, sitting on the other side, retorted irritably and continued:

“The HCPs from these two Thunder Defense combined arms battalions were all pulled away. A field commander they temporarily appointed is copying the Boss’s tactic of concentrating the HCPs for an attack, but in a different sector.”

Tairak swiped at the map, looking at the tactical map being updated via the datalink. In a more distant attack zone, the ten-plus HCPs concentrated by Thunder Defense had already broken into the urban area.

“So it’s understandable that their two combined arms battalions here have no HCP cover and are getting beaten this badly by the Imperial armored combined arms battalion.”

Tairak paused for a moment before adding.

“But they really are terrible…”

“You’re one to talk. Don’t you go around saying ‘terrible’ this and ‘terrible’ that all day now?”

Montai pouted, then issued the command for the entire battalion to continue advancing on his command terminal.

The combat companies under the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion quickly deployed into their pre-arranged urban combat advance formation, each taking a street and beginning to push forward.

The Mobile Infantry also jumped out of their vehicles, hugging the buildings on both sides of the street to provide cover for the vehicles in the middle.

The new vehicles delivered by the ATT Squadron this time were all assigned to the various battalion-level units.

The wheeled armored vehicles and ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machines were assigned to the two medium combined arms battalions as fire support enhancement.

Meanwhile, Montai’s Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, like the other heavy combined arms battalion, received two unfinalized prototype main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines.

This was also Atlas’s current doctrine for strengthening its battalion-level combat units—reinforcing them in their respective areas of expertise and combat missions.

Since the heavy combined arms battalions were the fist of the attack, the idea was to make that fist stronger and more powerful.

The main battle tank and heavy multi-legged war machine, designated ‘Project 12’ and ‘Project 15’, had already advanced to the flank and rear of the Imperial armored combined arms battalion. All they had to do was charge out of the intersection ahead to attack the enemy’s ‘rear’.

The Mobile Infantry also rushed into the surrounding buildings, activating their squad’s man-portable anti-vehicle missiles as they covertly approached.

“All battalions, be advised: a wide-area electronic warfare virus attack is imminent. Seize this opportunity to attack! I repeat!”

Hearing the message from Brigade HQ, Montai unhesitatingly gave the ‘Attack’ order.

The ‘Project 12’ main battle tank roared to life and charged forward the instant it received the command.

At the same time, its ‘diamond-shaped’ turret aimed the muzzle of its heavy electromagnetic cannon in the enemy’s direction.

The silhouette of a Zealot soon appeared on the screen in front of the vehicle commander.

This attacking HCP’s logic in its locomotion unit was disrupted by the electronic warfare virus attack. It staggered and began to fall.

Fortunately, its pilot reacted quickly, reverse-gripping the heavy slicer sword in their hand and planting it into the ground to barely catch themself in a half-kneeling position.

The main battle tank’s commander naturally wouldn’t let this opportunity slip. When the crosshairs locked onto the Zealot’s back, he decisively pressed the fire button.

“Boom!”

The tungsten alloy penetrator, accelerated to four thousand meters per second, instantly became an orange-yellow streak of fire due to air friction.

The surrounding Mobile Infantry felt the world tremble for a moment as the shockwave from the heavy electromagnetic cannon’s discharge washed over them.

A few Romu soldiers who quickly recovered looked in the direction the main battle tank had fired.

The upper half of the HCP that had been half-kneeling on the ground had vanished in that single shot.

After Atlas’s various battalion-level units helped the other Coalition forces tear a ‘huge gash’ in the defensive line at the city’s edge, the entire combined arms brigade regrouped at the initial breach point. Then, with each combined arms battalion responsible for two to three streets, they began to advance into the urban area.

At headquarters, the staff officers led by Hog had already assessed the situation clearly. It was now a case of ‘one god leading four pigs’.

Furthermore, under the triple ‘debuff’ of psychological warfare demanding their surrender, the artillery preparation, and the raging electronic warfare virus, the combat morale of the Imperial remnants had hit rock bottom.

In this situation, rather than constantly ‘putting out fires’ for friendly forces and slowing the pace of the attack, it was better to concentrate their forces and smash through in one go.

“This is how I’m commanding, and this is the only way I’ll command!”

Hog said firmly inside the mobile command vehicle.

“We must capitalize on our current offensive momentum, smash through the enemy’s defensive line in one breath, and destroy what’s left of their will to fight!

“As long as the Imperial remnants stop resisting, our allies’ predicament will naturally be resolved!”

This ground combat commander, who had begun to mature over just a few days of fighting, indeed had a command style as fierce as his ‘wolf-headed man’ appearance.

“Let’s proceed with this operational plan. I will take full responsibility for any problems!”

“Heh, Hog, there’s no need to say that.”

Another operations staff officer shook his head and said in disagreement:

“This is a command issued jointly by our entire headquarters. If something goes wrong, of course, we’ll all bear the responsibility together.”

“Exactly, we all agree with your operational thinking!”

“Such an aggressive and iron-fisted operational plan. That’s our Hog, alright!”

Hearing the words of the others in the command center, the ‘fierce’ expression on Hog’s face instantly vanished, replaced by one resembling a ‘goofy doge’.

“Hehe. Well then, thank you all for your support!”

The fastest advancing point along the entire frontline was Amber and his fifteen HCPs.

They had already broken through the Imperial remnants’ second line of defense, which was also the last defensive line they had constructed in advance.

Beyond that, the Imperial remnants before them could only rely on street obstacles and the buildings on either side to try and stop them.

On the command interface of his panoramic display, the information for the fifteen HCPs under his command was syncing in real-time.

So far in the battle, not a single unit had sustained serious damage; all of them were still fully combat-capable.

This also confirmed that the common player tactic from the game—‘concentrating HCPs as a strike force’—was still effective in this world.

Moreover, as the tactical and technical skills of the pilots under him continued to improve, the penetrating power of such an HCP strike force would only grow stronger.

The only problem was that everyone, including Amber, had their ammunition reserves drop below fifty percent.

Many had even exhausted their penetrator rounds for their electromagnetic rifles and could now only use their ‘sword and shield’ as their primary weapons.

“It seems the development of a companion resupply unit needs to be put on the agenda.”

In fact, it wasn’t just this HCP strike team; Atlas’s battalion-level combat units were all encountering similar problems.

This was especially true since ordinary combat vehicles, unlike HCPs, didn’t have subcritical reactors, power units with extremely long operational times.

Many combat units actually went into battle carrying extra superconducting battery packs and ammunition storage containers.

It was not only troublesome but also very dangerous.

After all, these superconducting batteries could easily ‘quench’ when hit by external attacks.

Just as Amber and his team were taking a short break behind a few buildings, waiting for the follow-up forces to catch up, Banninger’s voice came through the communication channel.

“Boss, we’ve found the Imperial forces’ command headquarters!”

Chapter 264: Who is the Hunter? Who is the Prey?

Upon hearing Banninger’s voice, Amber immediately looked at the map and found the special operations team’s position.

It was in the northeast of the urban area, and near the special operations team was a huge residential stadium.

“Are you sure it’s the Imperial forces’ command post?” Amber asked, adjusting the angle of the three-dimensional map.

“Yes, Boss! There’s a dedicated guard unit here. There are also several anti-air emplacements set up nearby. Plus, our reconnaissance of the electromagnetic environment shows that signal transmissions are especially frequent here. It’s most likely the Imperial forces’ command post.”

As Banninger replied, new image data was transmitted over—pictures they had taken.

Judging from the layout around the stadium in the images, it did indeed match Amber’s impression of a standard Imperial front-line command post.

“Excellent. The instructor squad is going to score a major victory this time!”

Amber’s voice grew excited. He had been considering a decapitation strike even before the general offensive began.

He believed that if they could take out the enemy’s command post, the remaining Imperial soldiers, whose fighting spirit had already been broken, would surely be unable to continue the fight.

“Stay alert and continue surveillance. Be careful. I’m bringing people over to support you right away!”

“Roger that, Boss!”

After the brief communication, Amber quickly synchronized the new attack target with the surrounding HCPs. At the same time, he sent the coordinates of the suspected Imperial command post to the Coalition command, asking them to find a way to confirm it.

If the target was confirmed, the main force would sweep in this direction.

Although his experience told him this was very likely where the “jackpot” was, much of that experience came from games, and Amber didn’t dare guarantee that every bit of it was applicable.

Out of caution, he still decided to have command perform a ‘double-check’.

However, the RQ220s flying over the warzone had to return to base after several consecutive days of reconnaissance, and the newly launched standard long-endurance drones wouldn’t arrive for some time.

So, Hog had the air traffic control team call over a high-speed manned reconnaissance aircraft that was on standby in the nearby airspace to perform a high-speed penetration reconnaissance run.

At this point, many of the Imperial army’s units were engaged in close-quarters combat, so many escorting anti-air units had begun to “level their turrets” to act as supplementary fire support. This had greatly reduced the anti-air effectiveness of the remaining Imperial troops in the city.

Under these circumstances, the risk of sending a high-speed reconnaissance aircraft on a penetration run was not so great.

Added to that was the air traffic controller’s call over the dispatch channel: “Buddy, this one’s a bonus run. Get over here, fast!”

The reconnaissance pilot, who had been circling boredly in the air, immediately stomped the rudder and pulled the stick in one smooth motion, controlling the black-skinned reconnaissance aircraft as it carved a huge arc through the sky.

Then, amid the roar of its two rotating detonation adaptive variable cycle engines, the reconnaissance aircraft sped towards the warzone.

Just as Amber was leading the HCP assault team towards the coordinates Banninger had provided, three flares suddenly shot up from behind a nearby building.

Catching this on his unit’s rear sensors, Amber had a bad feeling, but he couldn’t stop and turn back to check.

He could only increase his speed, hoping to avoid the one outcome he dreaded most.

“Gentlemen, let’s pick up the pace!”

Including his dark red personal machine, the sixteen HCPs advancing along multiple streets suddenly accelerated. These steel giants charged toward their designated objective with a posture that completely belied their size.

Meanwhile, across from the residential stadium, Banninger also suddenly noticed new enemy activity.

The surrounding guards suddenly started moving, and soldiers were constantly running in and out of the stadium.

When Banninger saw the Imperial anti-air emplacements nearby also begin to switch to field mobile mode, he finally understood.

The enemy command post was about to make a run for it.

“Alright, men, the ‘big fish’ is about to bolt. We have to intercept them.”

Banninger turned to the other team members on standby in the room. Hearing his words, the members of the special operations team immediately stood up.

“What’s there to talk about? Let’s go, Lieutenant!”

Not a single person present hesitated; they were battle-ready in an instant.

“But with just the dozen or so of us, I’m worried we might not be able to stop them.”

Banninger glanced out the window again. Vehicles were already beginning to drive out of the stadium.

“We have to think of something.”

Just as he was pondering how to buy more time, a team member suddenly raised his hand.

“Lieutenant, how about we try demolishing a building? I just did a rough calculation of the high-energy explosives we’re carrying. If placed correctly, we should be able to sever the main structure and make the building collapse onto the street.”

“Are you sure?”

“Have you forgotten, Lieutenant? I used to be a demolitions expert. Besides, the computing power of the exoskeleton’s combat processor is powerful enough to help me calculate the optimal blasting points!”

The team member raised his hand and made a figure-eight gesture, saying with confidence:

“Eighty percent! I’m eighty percent confident I can pull it off!”

The tense situation didn’t give Banninger much time to think. He immediately adopted the demolition plan and sent the information, along with the news that “the enemy command post is evacuating,” to Amber.

“Same as always. A-team provides cover. B-team, grab all the high-energy explosives and come with me to blow the building.”

Everyone moved quickly. The A-team members took the small packs of high-energy explosives from their modular backpacks and attached them to the B-team members’ exoskeletons in easy-to-reach spots.

After that, the two teams quickly left the building and split up to begin their operation.

The A-team moved towards the stadium, preparing to launch a feigned attack to draw the enemy’s attention.

B-team, on the other hand, charged towards a 15-story building on the enemy’s escape route out of the city.

As the sounds of explosions and gunfire erupted at the other end of the street, Banninger and B-team reached the side of the target building.

“Which floor do we blow?”

“The fifth floor will do!”

Hearing the demolitions expert’s reply, Banninger took the lead and charged toward the building’s exterior wall.

“Obstacle Traversal Mode, engaged!”

At his voice command, a pair of mechanical claws shot out from within his arm guards, immediately emitting a high-frequency “buzz.”

Then, propelled by the flare of the personal rocket booster on his back, Banninger leaped up, reaching a height of two stories.

The mechanical claws easily dug into the wall, and with the combined assistance of the booster and the claws, Banninger began to climb upwards.

The B-team members behind him also leaped onto the exterior wall one by one, beginning a rapid ascent like a group of Spider-Men.

A height of five stories was nothing for the members of the special operations team. When Banninger was the first to smash through an exterior window and burst into the building, he discovered it was the office of a financial company.

However, it was clear the place was now deserted.

“Let’s start planting! We don’t have much time!”

“Yes, Sir!”

The demolitions expert quickly synchronized the information on the squad coordination channel based on his experience and the combat processor’s calculations.

The AR modules in everyone’s tactical faceplates highlighted the locations where the explosives needed to be placed, carefully noting the required charge, detonation countdown, and other details.

The members of the instructor squad had all received relevant training at the Tower of Babel, so planting the explosives was second nature to them.

Thanks to the efforts of B-team, the explosives were placed at the building’s key structural points, and delayed detonation timers were set according to the different blast times for each charge.

When the demolitions expert completed his final check and gave Banninger an “OK” sign, everyone returned to the window they had just entered through and jumped out without hesitation.

The personal boosters on the back of their combat exoskeletons flared to life again, and the B-team members dug their mechanical claws into the wall, decelerating before landing while carving terrifying gashes down the surface.

“Lieutenant! The enemy convoy is out of the stadium!”

The shout of an A-team member rang out over the comms channel, the background filled with the sounds of weapon fire and explosions.

A small window popped up in the upper right corner of Banninger’s tactical faceplate, showing surveillance footage of the stadium entrance from a nearby camera.

Several armored personnel carriers and armored command vehicles had already driven out of the vehicle exit and, just as Banninger had guessed, were heading for the road leading northeast out of the city.

“Demolitions! Detonate!”

“On it!”

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

On the fifth floor of the 15-story building adjacent to the street, a string of fireballs erupted around the central support structure like a rapid-fire barrage.

Then, amidst a symphony of shattering glass, falling debris, and twisting metal, the financial company’s office building slowly toppled toward the road, like a young man collapsing into bed.

The Imperial convoy, which had just entered the road, naturally saw this. The driver of the lead vehicle, his heart pounding in terror, slammed on the brakes.

CRASH!

With the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground, a cloud of dust and a sky-full of glass shards covered the entire street.

Banninger led B-team up another building, clambered into the fourth floor, and rushed to a window to look out at the smoke-filled street.

The combination of a personal millimeter-wave radar and an infrared optical sensor, coupled with a target acquisition algorithm, projected red boxes onto their tactical faceplates, marking each target.

“Take out the first two vehicles!”

As Banninger spoke, two “points of light” dragging trails behind them pierced through the smoke, heading straight for the two wheeled armored vehicles at the front of the convoy, which were in the process of disembarking infantry.

BOOM! BOOM!

The shockwaves from the explosions instantly blew away the smoke around the vehicles, revealing the burning targets.

The two team members who had fired tossed their disposable launchers to the ground and bumped fists.

But before they could prepare for the next strike, several streams of fire from 30mm chain guns swept into the window.

If Banninger hadn’t reacted quickly and tackled them to the ground, the two would have been torn to pieces.

“Away from the window! Take cover!”

Under Banninger’s command, B-team quickly retreated deeper into the building. The covering fire on the window intensified as more than a dozen 40mm grenades exploded, and the scattered shrapnel riddled the surrounding walls.

Having already retreated to the other side of the building, Banninger suddenly felt that something was wrong. The enemy’s reaction was a bit too fast, as if they had already been preparing to open fire.

Just then, a team member scouting ahead yelled over the comms channel:

“Lieutenant! Enemy infantry are flanking us downstairs!”

At that moment, Banninger finally realized this seemed to be a trap to lure them out.

“Fuck! We can’t get pinned down here. Concentrate fire and clear a path. We’re breaking out!”

As he gave orders, he charged toward the window they had just entered through, and the micro-rocket pod on his shoulder rose into position.

A trajectory line appeared on the tactical faceplate’s HUD.

“Alright men, with me!”

With that, Banninger leaped straight out the window, the micro-rocket pod on his right shoulder simultaneously spitting tongues of flame down at the Imperial soldiers on the ground.

Chapter 265: The ‘Sun’ Rises as Usual

“Waypoint Two passed. Entering reconnaissance zone. Ventral reconnaissance module activated.”

“Current altitude 12,000 meters, speed Mach 5.1.”

“Adaptive variable cycle engine has switched to ‘supersonic cruise mode.’ Current operating conditions are good. Fuselage surface temperature is normal.”

Inside the cockpit of the Swift supersonic reconnaissance aircraft, the pilot, Jacob, heard the information reported by the onboard AI in a sweet female voice.

The Swift had no glass canopy; its fully enclosed cockpit contained only a few instruments and display screens.

However, Jacob’s integrated helmet display, linked to optical sensors across the fuselage, clearly projected the view from below the aircraft before his eyes.

At this moment, flashes of light were continuously erupting from all over the urban area of Ptolemy City, visible to the naked eye.

Jacob didn’t even need to look at the composite image from the ventral reconnaissance module. Just by watching the signs of the firefight, he could tell that the Coalition forces had completely taken the outer defensive lines and advanced a significant distance into the city.

Jacob looked at a virtual marker on his helmet display—the location he needed to pay close attention to on this reconnaissance penetration flight.

He blinked, and an optical sensor on the aircraft’s belly immediately followed a preset command to magnify the image.

“Holy shit, did they collapse the building?”

Looking at the building lying across the road like a toppled giant, Jacob couldn’t help but exclaim in shock.

Of course, this exclamation was internal. Pilots avoided such unnecessary actions while flying at supersonic speeds.

Meanwhile, the images captured by the reconnaissance aircraft were quickly transmitted back to headquarters.

When Hog and the others saw this scene, along with the signs of ongoing firefights in the vicinity, they knew the special operations team had likely run into trouble.

“Notify the self-propelled artillery group. Detach twenty self-propelled guns and prepare to support the special operations team!”

Hog issued the command without hesitation, ordering the artillery group to prepare for immediate support.

Headquarters and the special operations team had previously coordinated operational details. Hog knew that in an emergency, the special operations team would call for fire support from the rear.

After Hog’s order was relayed, at a concealed artillery position behind the frontline, twenty self-propelled guns lowered their barrels and switched back to travel mode.

After the fire direction commander confirmed the map, he led the twenty self-propelled guns toward a preset position closer to the front line.

Meanwhile, Amber, who was pushing through the city, also grew anxious after receiving the message from rear headquarters.

Amber had a bond with these veterans who had fought their way off Robert IV.

Besides, the instructor squad was truly one of Atlas’s bona fide elite units. Their combat effectiveness aside, their role in training alone was nearly irreplaceable.

“All units! Accelerate the assault! Support the special operations team!”

—

“Lieutenant Banninger! Enemy fire is too heavy! We can’t break through!”

In the communication channel, the commander of Team A shouted over the background noise of a sonata of gunfire.

“Don’t force a push! Hold your positions! Retreat if you have to!”

Banninger replied while finishing off an Imperial soldier on the ground who was still struggling to raise his weapon.

Just after he led his team out the window in a “death from above” style assault, the squad of Imperial soldiers outside attempting a flanking maneuver was instantly wiped out.

“Boss is on his way to support us. Since the enemy laid an ambush to wipe us out, we’ll turn the tables and pin them down!”

Banninger scanned the area, and after confirming there were no survivors, he continued:

“Most importantly, ensure your own safety first! Find cover! I’ll call for fire support!”

While Banninger was talking to Team A, he made a “smoke screen” hand signal to his squadmates. The other members of Team B immediately understood.

They first rushed to the corner of the building and used micro-rocket pods and anti-vehicle missiles to repel an assault by Imperial infantry and multi-legged war machines.

One of the two multi-legged war machines was destroyed outright, while the other had its external sensors and other components swept clean by rockets. Several surrounding infantrymen fell as well.

Immediately after, two squad members with quad-barreled multi-purpose launchers on their shoulder pauldrons emptied their entire payload of thermal smoke shells.

Using compressed gas attitude control thrusters on the shells to adjust their trajectory and dispersal pattern, the eight smoke shells detonated in mid-air, completely blocking off the street ahead.

Taking this opportunity, the members of Team B, led by Banninger, braved the enemy’s probing fire into the smoke and dashed across the street at high speed.

During this process, Banninger began calling for long-range fire support.

The fire support coordinator at rear headquarters soon received an incoming fire support request with extremely high priority.

Seeing that the request came from the special operations team, he immediately forwarded it to the forward strike detachment that was already on standby.

“FDC, this is SAT. Requesting immediate long-range fire support. Fire for effect on coordinates YD772481.

Target is an estimated mixed force of mechanized infantry, combat vehicles, and HCPs.

Prioritize sensor-fuzed munitions and anti-personnel fragmentation shells. High-angle trajectory, standard dispersal pattern two. Fire when ready. Over.”

Banninger rattled off all the key information for the fire support request in one breath. After being processed by the combat assistance AI’s voice recognition, his words were directly input into the terminal of the fire direction vehicle.

The fire direction commander on the other end of the line confirmed the information was correct and then transmitted it to the twenty self-propelled guns under his command.

Having deployed their spades, the self-propelled guns raised their barrels high. The autoloader inside each turret selected the appropriate ammunition based on information shared via the datalink.

“SAT, this is FDC. Commencing fire mission in five seconds. Total of five volleys. First round impact on target estimated in eighty-two seconds. Advise you clear the target area. Good luck. Over.”

“Thanks for the support! SAT, out!”

After confirming that the friendly artillery strike was imminent, Banninger ordered the entire team to take cover in the nearest building.

The coordinates he had just given the fire direction commander were for the stadium’s main entrance and the surrounding area.

Nearly a minute and a half later, as deafening explosions roared through the streets outside, the friendly long-range fire support arrived as promised.

In the span of twenty seconds, twenty self-propelled guns poured a total of one hundred sensor-fuzed and anti-personnel fragmentation shells onto the area.

Then, they immediately retracted their spades, lowered their guns, and began to beat a hasty retreat.

After all, they still didn’t know how many self-propelled guns the Imperial remnants had left. If the enemy conducted counter-battery fire, it would be extremely dangerous to linger in this forward position, which was likely already within the enemy’s artillery range.

Given the performance of the Coalition’s current counter-battery radar, the coordinates of an enemy artillery position could be calculated before their shells even reached the apex of their trajectory.

Assuming the Imperial remnants’ counter-battery radar had similar capabilities and they had also kept self-propelled guns in reserve for counter-battery operations…

Then theoretically, their artillery would open fire in retaliation ten seconds after the Coalition’s self-propelled artillery detachment fired its last volley.

Naturally, the fire direction commander didn’t want to be caught off guard, so he immediately issued the order to relocate after the fifth salvo.

Back in the city, after the ground stopped trembling, Banninger led the members of Team B, using all sorts of debris inside for cover, and cautiously approached the edge of the ground-floor lobby.

The smoke on the street outside the building had been dispersed by the shockwaves of the explosions. The quiet street was littered with burning vehicles, and the ground was covered with the bodies of Imperial soldiers who hadn’t managed to find cover in time.

But just then, an HCP with scorched-black outer armor suddenly slid out from another street, shattering the momentary silence.

A massive heavy particle cannon was already deployed on its shoulder. Banninger could even see the blue glow building up in the acceleration track.

“Fuck!”

The veteran felt as if time had stopped; it even seemed like his life was flashing before his eyes.

But an inhuman roar from the communication channel jolted him back to reality.

“Aaaaaaaah! Don’t you fucking touch my men!”

Like a hero appearing at the critical moment in a traditional play, a dark red steel giant slid in front of the building where Banninger was, shield raised.

In that split second, Banninger even saw the sparks kicked up by the mech’s mechanical feet grinding against the ground and the faint Mach diamonds visible in the flames of the attitude control thrusters on the unit’s right side.

The next second, a surging heavy metal ion stream slammed into the deflector shield deployed by the mech. Wild, silver-white arcs of electricity danced, seeming to drain the color from the world.

The moment the blast ended, Amber tossed aside the nearly destroyed shield, gripped the heavy plasma severing sword with both hands, and charged forward with a lunging slash.

The enemy pilot clearly hadn’t expected an enemy HCP to charge out at this moment. Panicked, he retreated continuously, unable to even draw his secondary weapon before Amber sliced open his cockpit.

And the giant sword in Amber’s hand, which had cut a path all this way, finally reached its limit, snapping in two after delivering the final blow.

Fortunately, the fifteen other HCPs from his assault force had also arrived on the battlefield. As he controlled his unit to load the combat spike mounted on the outside of its mechanical arm, the five fastest Aegis units had already moved to shield him from behind.

“Banninger! Are you alright!”

Hearing Amber’s voice, Banninger quickly glanced at his command interface.

Thankfully, everyone in the special operations team was still alive, though almost all of them were injured, and their ammunition reserves were nearly depleted.

“Boss, we’re okay! But we can’t keep fighting much longer!”

“Roger that. Hold tight and wait for the follow-up forces to relieve you!”

With that said, Amber controlled his mech and charged toward the entrance of the stadium.

At this point, the Imperial soldiers and combat vehicles that had survived the artillery barrage had regrouped, taking defensive positions behind cover near the stadium.

Viscount Drake and his men had also crawled out of the overturned armored vehicles. They were now standing at the stadium’s main entrance, with a one-armed Zealot protecting them with its shield.

“Order your troops to surrender, Viscount Drake! You have no reason to continue fighting!”

Amber’s voice boomed from the mech’s external speakers.

“You’ve fought to this day after being abandoned by your navy. You’ve done more than enough, both for your Emperor and for your own honor!

Don’t sacrifice any more of your soldiers. Lay down your arms and surrender. Atlas will guarantee the safety of all of you!”

Surrounded by his staff officers, Viscount Drake raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t expected the enemy to know his true identity, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on that.

He maintained a calm expression, smiled, and said:

“You sound like a commander of some sort? If that’s the case, then I must admit you are a formidable opponent… but what makes you think that you’ve already won?”

“You’re referring to the few tactical nuclear warheads you still have, aren’t you?”

Amber said, while looking at the tactical map showing ten HCPs already spread out around the stadium. They hadn’t charged the stadium directly like Amber and the five Aegis units.

Instead, they had dispersed into the surrounding area to hunt for the few remaining HCPs of the enemy’s nuclear strike teams.

Before returning to base, the RQ220’s other important mission, besides maintaining surveillance over the warzone, was to search for any undiscovered nuclear strike teams.

But neither the RQ220 nor the advancing forces had reported any sign of these HCPs.

So Amber had suspected from the start that the remaining HCPs carrying tactical nuclear warheads were with the enemy command, preparing for mutual destruction.

This was another reason why Amber had led the reinforced HCP company on this decapitation strike.

And now, while Amber and Viscount Drake were talking, the ten HCPs that had fanned out to search with their optical camouflage engaged had already locked onto the five nuclear strike HCPs lurking in the surrounding area.

The nuclear strike HCPs, with their launch canisters already activated and on standby, couldn’t engage their stealth modes as before.

So they were easily spotted by the Atlas HCPs tasked with finding them.

However, without Amber’s order, these pilots did not act rashly.

After all, these were tactical nuclear warheads—superweapons that could wipe out their own forces with a single mistake.

Meanwhile, the negotiation between Amber and Drake continued.

“That’s right. If you don’t want this city to be destroyed, then pull your troops back.” Drake said, his expression resolute, showing no intention of surrendering.

“Viscount, this battle doesn’t need to come to this…”

“No! This is the honor of us Imperial soldiers!”

“Honor? Detonating nuclear bombs and taking an entire city of civilians with you? You call that honor?”

Amber laughed in anger at Drake’s words. He felt this Imperial Viscount, cornered and with no way out, had started to go mad.

“You Federation people simply don’t understand the meaning of honor…” Viscount Drake was still talking.

But Amber had already decided not to waste any more time on him.

“Move in!”

Following his command on the channel, the ten HCPs, long prepared, immediately deactivated their optical camouflage and pounced on their targets.

Based on the analysis of the two captured nuclear strike HCPs, Amber and his team already knew that if the launch canister was separated from the HCP, the pilot inside would be unable to launch the tactical nuclear warheads.

So these HCPs, operating in two-unit teams, were specifically aiming to dismantle the enemy’s launch canisters.

Before the targeted nuclear strike HCPs could even react…

One mech in each two-unit team rammed the target with its shield, while the other HCP rushed in from the side and rear, swinging its heavy slicer sword at the connection point between the HCP and its nuclear launch canister.

As the launch canisters were severed one by one, their emergency safety mechanisms engaged simultaneously, and the green lights indicating ‘ready to fire’ went out.

“Secure!”

“Secure!”

The assault teams reported in one after another on the comms channel. But before Amber could even breathe a sigh of relief, a panicked voice suddenly cried out.

“Boss! There’s no warhead in the launch canister!”

“What?!”

In that instant, a chill ran down Amber’s spine. Through his 360-degree cockpit, he looked at Viscount Drake in front of him.

The military noble of the Star Dragon Empire took an exquisite mechanical pocket watch from his coat, glanced at it, and then a smile of relief spread across his face.

“For the Empire.”

“For the Empire.”

Inside several buildings scattered across the southern combat zone of the city, five Imperial officers in crisp uniforms watched the countdowns on their respective terminals reach zero and spoke the same words at the same time.

Then, without hesitation, they activated the mechanical detonators in their hands, which were connected to the nuclear warheads beside them.

The next moment, five slowly rising ‘little suns’ illuminated the southern district of Ptolemy City.

Chapter 266: The World Focuses on You

“All units! Accelerate and advance! Support the special operations team!”

After saying this, Amber froze.

What had just happened?

He felt as if he had just experienced a battle doomed to fail, all from the perspective of an observer.

The empty launch canisters.

The expression of relief and ease on Viscount Drake’s face.

The Imperial officers inside the buildings, using their own bodies to trigger the mechanical detonators for the nuclear warheads they were guarding.

The moment the five tactical nuclear warheads detonated in the southern part of Ptolemy City, the world froze into a stark and searing tableau.

Reflected in Amber’s wide eyes were incandescent fireballs and rolling mushroom clouds. The unbelievably shocking sight of five tactical nukes exploding simultaneously was branded onto his retinas like a mark of the apocalypse.

Everything around him was locked in that moment of ‘approaching the end of life’—flying debris hung motionless, dust in the air was suspended in place, and even the surrounding sounds seemed to have been choked by an invisible hand, coming to an abrupt halt between the screams and the aftershocks of the explosions.

But then, instead of resuming its forward surge, the river of time seemed to be pulled backward by some unknown force and began to slowly rewind.

The previously static space began to flow again, but in reverse.

The stopwatch on the electronic timer started counting down. Every speck of dust, every ray of light, every faint heartbeat was realigned along a reverse timeline.

Amber felt as if the world before him was being rewound, as if he had entered an inverted world.

The spheres of nuclear light contracted and extinguished, the fingers that had pulled the mechanical detonators retracted, and the launch canisters that had been sliced off by a heavy slicer sword returned to the backs of the nuclear strike HCPs, the heavy shields flying back into their hands.

It all continued until his consciousness returned, and he shouted the same words he felt he had already said once before.

Time reversal? Precognition?

What had just transpired was truly beyond Amber’s comprehension. In his understanding, not even high-level psionic users possessed the ability to reverse time or see the future.

The only storyline in the game that allowed players to experience ‘precognition’ was related to the ‘Forerunners.’

That was content that only opened up late in the game. At least, before Amber transmigrated, the game only had a few side quests related to the ‘Forerunners.’

Right now, Amber couldn’t be sure if what had just happened was related to this civilization that had vanished from the universe millions of years ago.

“Master? Master!”

Lilith’s voice pulled the distracted Amber back to reality. Seeing the building on the panoramic display rapidly growing larger, Amber subconsciously dodged to the right.

The surrounding HCP pilots looked on in confusion at the dark red unit, which seemed to be moving as if it were drunk. Their Boss, whose piloting skills were godlike in their eyes…

Did he just almost hit a wall?

“Master, what happened? Why did I feel like I lost perception of your vitals for a moment?”

“Huh?”

Lilith’s words stunned him. If this strong AI had noticed something was amiss, it likely meant something he wasn’t aware of had just happened to him.

Then, as if guided by some unseen force, Amber felt the psionic intensity in the depths of his brain and discovered something even more outrageous.

His psionic intensity seemed to have broken through to the level five.

“Wait. Even level-five psionic users can’t foretell the future or reverse time.”

Amber was now completely baffled by what was happening to him, but he knew this wasn’t the time to ponder the question.

If the scene he had just ‘experienced’ was real, then right now, in the southern district of Ptolemy City, five tactical nuclear warheads were waiting to be detonated.

This was the first time since he had transmigrated to this world that Amber felt truly powerless.

Beneath the nuclear bomb, all beings are equal.

Whether you were an ordinary person or a psionic user, a native or a transmigrator, it made no difference under the unforgiving thermal radiation of a thermonuclear weapon.

He couldn’t let it happen. That was the only thought in Amber’s mind.

While piloting his unit toward the stadium, he began to frantically recall the scene he had experienced from a ‘God’s perspective,’ hoping to catch some clue.

Currently, Amber only knew the nuclear explosions occurred in the southern district of Ptolemy City. Although he could roughly remember where the five fireballs rose from, the area was still far too large.

“No, I have to narrow down the search area.”

“Master, what are you talking about?”

Lilith, floating in the virtual space, wore a curious expression. She had never seen Amber in such a state before.

“Lilith, at top speed, review the surveillance footage for these five areas after the Imperial remnants retreated into Ptolemy City. Look for any unusual people or vehicles passing by at unusual times!”

Amber’s voice was unusually grave. Though she didn’t know what was happening, Lilith knew this was no time for jokes and immediately got to work.

For her, the task Amber had assigned was not difficult at all.

Hundreds of virtual screens appeared in the space around Lilith. She spread her arms, and a red glow emanated from her eyes.

The surveillance footage on these virtual screens began to play at tens of times the normal speed, pausing, rewinding, and being marked from time to time.

A few seconds later, Lilith had finished reviewing all the surveillance footage and had indeed found the suspicious targets Amber mentioned.

No more, no less, exactly five.

“Master, I’ve eliminated all other interferences and found that the same armored personnel carrier passed through these five locations, dropping off personnel and a large military transport crate at each one!”

As Lilith described her findings, she marked the five locations on the tactical map.

Although his intuition told him these were the correct spots, Amber decided to make a final confirmation.

“Lilith, run one more full-scale animated simulation. Detonate a 200,000-ton-equivalent tactical nuke inside a building at each of these five locations.”

“Huh? Okay, Master!”

Although she didn’t know what Amber was planning, Lilith obediently ran the simulation.

When the simulated animation played in a small window on the cockpit’s panoramic display, the scene it presented perfectly overlapped with the one in Amber’s ‘memory.’

“I knew it.”

Amber’s heart sank completely. The five nuclear warheads, set to detonate later, had become an executioner’s sword hanging over his neck, waiting only for the appointed time to fall.

“Lilith, connect me to the rear command post. Highest level encryption.”

—

When the staff at the rear command post learned that there were five tactical nuclear warheads hidden in the southern district, where fighting was ongoing, and that they were about to be detonated, they were ‘petrified’ for several seconds.

If this information had come from anyone else, they might have suspected it was a joke.

But when Amber delivered the news in a deeply serious tone, the staff officers in the command center knew he wasn’t joking.

“Boss, it’s probably too late to pull the troops out now. If we have the exact locations of the warheads, can we have several company-sized units launch a direct assault to stop them from detonating?”

The first to offer a suggestion was the wolf-headed man, Hog. He looked at the five coordinates marked on the electronic sand table and the current positions of the various combat battalions of the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade.

“Hog, you and I are on the same page. The situation is urgent, so I’ll be brief. Have each battalion organize an assault company… The first heavy armor battalion might need to organize two. In short, have them attack these five coordinates at top speed, at all costs.

Divert a portion of the self-propelled artillery group to provide point-to-point fire support for each assault company using precision-guided munitions!”

The staff officers in the command post quickly issued this order with the ‘highest priority.’

The four battalion commanders of the mixed combined arms brigade, who had pushed into the urban combat zone, were first stunned upon receiving the mission, then immediately realized the gravity of the situation.

They quickly assembled five assault companies, fully loaded with mobility and firepower, and unhesitatingly launched a fierce offensive toward the five coordinates, personally leading the charge.

However, Amber was worried about something else. If these Imperial officers responsible for the detonation realized they were being attacked, would they detonate the warheads prematurely?

“If only there was a way to control all of them at once…”

As this thought flashed through his mind, Amber saw the Swift high-speed reconnaissance aircraft on the tactical map, which had just completed its tactical penetration reconnaissance and was adjusting its course in the skies around the city.

Then he remembered his ‘memory’ of the Imperial officers who detonated the warheads. They weren’t wearing exoskeletons, but crisp officer uniforms…

An idea struck Amber’s mind like a bolt of lightning. A bold plan quickly took shape.

He immediately asked over the comms channel:

“Does anyone know what kind of pilot is flying that recon plane up there?”

—

If one day, someone told you that in the city below, there were five tactical nuclear warheads that might be detonated at any moment.

Ground assault teams were trying everything they could to push toward these locations, but they needed a ‘large-scale control measure’ that could cover all five spots simultaneously to render the detonators unconscious and ensure they wouldn’t trigger the bombs early.

And the only way to stop this catastrophe before it became irreversible was for you—a pilot of a hypersonic reconnaissance aircraft—to fly your Swift reconnaissance jet at Mach 3, completing a low-altitude flypast at a height of just 50 meters above the city.

However, flying at Mach 3 at such a low altitude was an operation that repeatedly danced on the edge of disaster for this hypersonic recon plane. The slightest mistake would result in a fatal crash…

In that moment, what would you choose?

Jacob’s choice was… to do it!

As a marginalized recon pilot in the Planetary Defense Force, he felt his service career had always been rather boring, and he had grown numb from the day-to-day repetition.

But in reality, like most young men, he often fantasized about saving the world in the spotlight.

[Hero or coward? Even for just a minute, you need more than just courage.]

Such fantasies often surfaced in his mind, only to be quickly buried by reality.

Unfortunately, as a hypersonic reconnaissance aircraft pilot, such opportunities were basically nonexistent for him.

But at this very moment, Jacob felt that this ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity was right in front of him.

And without a moment’s hesitation, he chose to seize it.

Chapter 267: Your Excellency, Your Fight is Over

Through Jacob’s ‘dangerous driving’, the Swift-class hypersonic reconnaissance plane with the call sign ‘Miracle Walker’ had already descended to an altitude of three hundred meters in a short time.

A virtual flight path spanning the entire southern district of Ptolemy City appeared on his integrated helmet display.

All Jacob had to do was push the two adaptive variable cycle engines at the rear of the fuselage into ‘overlimit’ status after descending.

Then, he would accelerate the reconnaissance plane to Mach 3, which was 3,675 kilometers per hour, or 1,020 meters per second.

As a hypersonic reconnaissance aircraft, the Swift typically operated at altitudes above ten thousand meters. At that height, it could easily accelerate past Mach 5 and maintain a hypersonic cruising speed of Mach 7 for battlefield reconnaissance.

The air pressure, density, and other conditions at high altitudes were completely different from those at low altitudes; the flight environments were worlds apart.

Below eight thousand meters, the Swift could only reach a maximum speed of Mach 3 to 4.

Below one hundred meters, the Swift’s theoretical top speed was Mach 3.

But no one had ever attempted it. Not even the manufacturer of the Swift-class hypersonic reconnaissance plane had ever run such a simulation.

After all, such conditions and scenarios were almost nonexistent.

But now, Jacob had run right into one.

And his altitude was only fifty meters.

“If I pull this off, won’t the manufacturer of this big baby owe me a thank you for providing such precious combat data?”

Jacob, by now, had already relaxed. The initial excitement was gone, and he was even in the mood for a joke.

“Pilot, be advised. Twenty seconds until operation begins. You have entered the flypast route.”

The voice of the onboard auxiliary AI sounded. Like most captains, HCP pilots, and aviators, Jacob had chosen a relatively sweet, girlish voice for his AI.

“Aurora, help me stabilize my flight attitude. I’m starting my acceleration run!”

“Understood. Intervening in attitude control. Operation countdown: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6…”

Listening to the countdown in his ear and feeling the reconnaissance plane beneath him grow more stable, Jacob watched the altitude display drop from 300 to 200, finally stopping at the number 50.

He took a deep breath. The instant the countdown finished, he pushed the throttle all the way forward and pressed the ‘limiter release’ button.

A powerful thrust from behind suddenly slammed him into his seat.

The Mach number on the main display leaped to Mach 2 almost instantly, continuing to climb toward Mach 3 as the Swift accelerated.

“Warning: Fuselage temperature rising too rapidly!”

“Warning: Prolonged ‘overlimit’ engine operation may lead to system anomalies!”

Warning messages popped up one after another on ‘Miracle Walker’s’ main display, and the auxiliary AI, Aurora, continuously provided voice alerts.

But Jacob ignored them. He knew that all he had to do right now was maintain his speed and attitude to complete this ultra-low-altitude flypast.

“Come on, baby! Just hold on a little longer!”

Meanwhile, on the ground, the five assault companies simultaneously moved in on their targets.

The Imperial garrison in the city district was completely powerless against this desperate, ferocious charge.

The military supervisors of the various battalion-level units now acted as the point men for their assault companies. The fighting spirit in the Romu’s bones was completely unleashed.

Leaving their combat vehicles and the majority of their soldiers to secure the battlefield, the military supervisors, including Montai and Tairak, led the most elite soldiers from their squads and charged toward the five buildings.

A reminder from rear command came through the communications channel.

“All units, be advised! ‘Miracle Walker’ is commencing its low-altitude flypast! Take cover!”

In truth, they didn’t need the reminder. From the moment the combat battalions received their orders and began to move, the Atlas ground forces in the city had already activated the ‘shockproof’ mode on their vehicles and exoskeletons.

How much collateral damage would a Mach 3 reconnaissance plane create flying at an altitude of fifty meters?

No one knew.

But for that very reason, no one dared to slack on personal protection.

When the assault teams were just one hundred meters from their respective target buildings, ‘Miracle Walker’ arrived.

The troops on the ground first perceived a huge black shadow flashing overhead. A moment later, a sonic boom ripped through the air, followed by a violent shockwave that swept down the street.

Like an unseen, mischievous child causing havoc, the glass on the buildings and streetlights along the road shattered in unison the moment the shockwave passed.

In twenty seconds, the Swift reconnaissance plane flashed past at an altitude of fifty meters over the southern part of the city.

A shockwave, almost visible to the naked eye, followed in its wake, indiscriminately sweeping through half the city district.

Many Imperial soldiers who had failed to take cover collapsed in agony from the shockwave and the piercing shriek.

Even the protected Atlas soldiers felt their breath catch for a moment as the shockwave washed over them.

But ‘assault team members’ like Montai and Tairak had no time to worry about catching their breath. Relying on their formidable physical constitutions, these Romu gritted their teeth and got back on their feet the moment the shockwave passed, sprinting toward their target buildings.

Aided by their ‘Raging Crocodile’ combat exoskeletons, they crossed the final one-hundred-meter distance in five seconds, then crashed through the buildings’ main doors and rushed inside.

Upon seeing an Imperial officer on the floor in the main hall, and the dangerous nuclear warhead beside him, Montai let out a ferocious roar and leaped forward, pinning his target to the ground.

Behind him, Tairak slid between the nuclear warhead and the Imperial officer, picking up the mechanical detonator that had fallen on the floor.

His tactical faceplate, which covered his entire ‘lion’s head’ helmet, quickly provided an analysis of the detonator. Following the instructions, Tairak carefully engaged the safety.

“Team 3, the nuclear warhead is secure!”

Elsewhere, the remote artillery bombardment called in by the special operations team once again covered the area near the stadium.

After the earth stopped trembling, Banninger led Team B, using the miscellaneous debris indoors as cover, as they cautiously approached the edge of the first-floor lobby.

This time, as the demolitions expert neared the window, his exoskeleton’s stabilization system malfunctioned for a moment, and he stumbled and fell.

Banninger went over to help him up and had the squad’s technical officer check the exoskeleton before looking out the window.

The thermal smoke on the street had been blown away by the shockwaves from the artillery shells. The quiet street was littered with burning vehicles and the bodies of Imperial soldiers who hadn’t found cover in time.

But Banninger was thinking about the reconnaissance plane that had just streaked over the stadium.

Following orders from command, the members of the special operations team had all activated ‘shockproof’ mode and hidden indoors.

But it was a different story for the Imperial soldiers outside. With no one to warn them, the high-speed flypast had caused chaos.

It had also enhanced the effect of the artillery barrage. Many Imperial soldiers, in their confusion, had no time to dodge the shelling and were blown away.

Just as Banninger was assessing the strike’s effectiveness, an HCP with blackened outer armor slid out from the other end of the street, carrying a fully deployed heavy particle cannon.

“Fuck.”

The old soldier felt time stand still. He even felt like his life was flashing before his eyes.

But the next moment, a stream of blue-white heavy metal ions descended from the sky, striking the Zealot’s upper body first.

An HCP preparing to fire a heavy particle cannon obviously couldn’t activate its deflector shield.

So, when the ‘beam’ vanished, the main torso of the Zealot vanished with it, taking down a small building behind it in the process.

“Banninger! Get the instructor squad to a concealed position! Reinforcements are on the way!”

Amber’s voice rang out on the comms channel. Immediately after, his crimson-painted personal machine leaped over the street. In an exaggerated motion, he threw the heavy plasma severing sword in its hand.

With a whoosh, it hurtled through the air and slammed violently into the cockpit armor of the one-armed HCP at the stadium entrance.

The heavy plasma severing sword required a power supply from the interface on the HCP’s mechanical arm. Having been thrown and losing its power source, the plasma edge on the blade extinguished.

So, when it finally hit the one-armed HCP, it only produced a ‘kinetic damage’ effect.

But that was enough.

As the pilot of the one-armed Zealot was being shaken half to death by the sudden heavy blow, Amber had already charged up to him. He aimed the now-loaded combat spike and drove it forward.

Bang!

After a loud crash, the Zealot, now with a large hole in its main cockpit armor, stopped moving.

Amber gently laid the Zealot’s remains on the ground. Though it was an enemy, its fight-to-the-end spirit deserved respect.

At the stadium entrance, Viscount Drake, shielded by his staff officers and guards, watched with a deep frown as the crimson HCP slowly turned to face him, preparing to meet his final moment.

But to his surprise, the steel giant, its external armor plates covered in scars as if it had clawed its way out of hell, stopped moving after turning around.

Then, to everyone’s astonishment, the cockpit hatch opened, and a young pilot, freed from the restraints of his heavy hydraulic pressure suit, ‘floated’ out.

“A psionic user.”

As Viscount Drake saw the pilot descending slowly from midair, his frown deepened.

Bang, bang, bang!

An aide-de-camp, emotional under the high-pressure environment, couldn’t stop himself from pulling out his sidearm and firing at Amber. But every bullet was blocked by a pale blue psionic shield in front of him.

Amber glanced at the man. An invisible psionic blast finally shattered the aide’s psyche, and he collapsed, unconscious.

The next moment, a psionically amplified voice resounded directly in the minds of every Imperial soldier and officer in front of the stadium, as well as in Viscount Drake’s.

“Lay down your arms and surrender. The Coalition has taken the entire city district. You have no reason to continue fighting!

“As long as you cease resistance, Atlas will guarantee the safety of you all.”

This voice, which spoke directly to the heart, had a certain persuasive effect—a ‘pre-skill’ for mind control.

The Imperial soldiers and officers present subconsciously lowered their muzzles, a hint of fear now in their eyes as they looked at Amber.

Whether in the Federation or the Empire, people had always viewed psionic users through a certain ‘filter’.

Seeing that all was lost, Viscount Drake took his pocket watch from his uniform pocket.

But before he could glance at it, Amber’s voice echoed in his mind again.

“Don’t bother looking, Viscount Drake. The five nuclear warheads with mechanical detonators you placed in the city have all been disarmed by our forces.”

Looking at the Imperial officer who, out of military honor and foolish loyalty to the Emperor, was willing to detonate nuclear warheads for mutual destruction, Amber sighed with a complicated expression.

“Surrender, Your Excellency. Your fight is over.”

“What?!”

The Imperial military noble’s eyes flew wide. He had never imagined that his plan would be discovered by the enemy.

At that moment, as the ‘trump card’ that had sustained his will to fight until now vanished, Drake’s will to fight completely crumbled.

The antique brass pocket watch slipped from his hand and fell to the ground, symbolizing that the curtain had finally fallen on this battle.

“…Yes. Our fight is over.”

Chapter 268: I’ve Said My Piece. Who Agrees? Who Objects?

Ptolemy City, a once incomparably bustling metropolis that ranked among the top three on the planet for its GDP contribution, was now a completely different scene in its southern district.

The scars of fierce battle were like an unhealable wound, deeply branded onto every inch of the city’s south side.

The skyscrapers, dozens of stories high, now resembled the incomplete skeletons of giants. Shattered glass and fragments of reinforced concrete were fully exposed through their pockmarked shells.

Scorched black marks showed where high-energy laser beams had swept through, while the pockmarks on the reinforced concrete and steel structures indicated that the area had also been ravaged by heavy metal ion streams.

With both sides heavily employing directed-energy weapons, these long-range armaments often caused significant collateral damage in urban warfare.

It was common for a building several kilometers from the combat zone to be pierced straight through by a stray heavy particle cannon blast.

And after the “baptism” of the Coalition’s self-propelled artillery batteries, which had expended ninety percent of their ammunition reserves, it was difficult to find a single undamaged building in Ptolemy City’s southern district.

Gunsmoke wove a gray curtain in the air, slowly swirling through the streets and alleys. It mingled with the smell of scorched materials and acrid chemicals, creating a nearly suffocating atmosphere.

The embers left after the fires died down still dotted the ruins, like the faint, pulsating heartbeat of the city, flickering with a desolate red glow.

In the few city blocks where the fighting had been most intense, wreckage of numerous HCPs lay strewn about. Their enormous metal bodies were twisted and deformed, some even embedded in shattered buildings.

With blood in their eyes, the Coalition and the Imperial remnants had frantically poured troops into these “meat grinders.” Even the “guardians” of the Mobile Infantry, the steel giants known as “Titans,” had become consumables in this battle.

One after another, surrendering Imperial soldiers emerged from buildings, cover, and combat vehicles with their hands raised, like zombies. Under the watch of Coalition forces, they were herded to a “prisoner collection point” outside the urban area.

The bodies of fallen soldiers from both sides were scattered throughout the southern warzone. Some lay among the rubble, while others were still frozen in their final fighting stance behind cover.

The two Coalition garrison combined arms brigades with the fewest casualties now took on the duty of the “body collection detail.”

The northern hemisphere of Loubion V was now entering summer. If the bodies weren’t dealt with promptly, a large-scale epidemic could break out.

Soldiers in combat exoskeletons with their internal circulation systems activated separated the Coalition and Imperial dead, loading them onto main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles that had been repurposed as “corpse transporters.”

Coalition soldiers needed to be identified before being cremated separately. Their ashes were collected and handed over to their respective private military companies and defense contractors to handle the follow-up matters.

As for the Imperial soldiers’ bodies, they were thrown directly into incinerators together, leaving nothing behind.

With the surrender of the Imperial remnants in Ptolemy City, the remaining Imperial forces on the other two continents naturally didn’t hold out much longer.

When the last Imperial remnant threw down their weapons and walked out from cover, the battle on Loubion V was finally declared over.

But in the eyes of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and the various companies, some of the necessary post-war matters were potentially more troublesome than the fighting itself.

A small number of Imperial soldiers who had hidden instead of surrendering still needed to be rooted out by the garrison forces.

Once the identities of the fallen soldiers were confirmed, each company had to initiate their post-action procedures and prepare to pay out large death benefits.

Atlas had not escaped the iron law of soaring casualties in urban warfare. Although its various combat units had done their utmost to avoid losses, the final ‘Nuclear Warhead Assault’ phase, with its tight schedule and critical mission, still resulted in significant casualties.

A summary of personnel casualties and vehicle losses reported by the various battalion-level combat units showed the following combat losses on Loubion V (including previous engagements):

Killed in action: 231, including 181 Mobile Infantry, 47 combat vehicle crew, and 3 HCP pilots.

Wounded in action: 478, including 62 seriously wounded requiring surgery and cybernetic prostheses, 280 with moderate injuries, and 136 with light injuries.

Vehicle losses totaled 45 units, including 8 light multi-legged war machines, 27 various wheeled vehicles, 5 main battle tanks, 2 heavy multi-legged war machines, and 3 HCPs.

Incidentally, the pilot who flew the hypersonic reconnaissance plane at Mach 3 on a low-altitude pass experienced mechanical failure shortly after leaving the city limits.

Unable to get the Swift-class reconnaissance plane back under control, Jacob had no choice but to perform an extremely dangerous ejection from an unusual attitude at a speed greater than Mach 1, just before he completely lost control of the aircraft.

However, perhaps because his call sign was “Miracle Walker,” the reconnaissance pilot was favored by Lady Luck and created a miracle of his own.

When the search and rescue team found him in the wilderness, the guy had multiple injuries and fractures, but at least he had made it out alive.

To be honest, when Amber saw the combat loss report, he nearly blacked out.

He could accept the vehicle losses; after all, in a mature industrial system, a main battle tank or an HCP could roll off the assembly line in just half an hour.

What pained him more were the personnel casualties.

The wounded soldiers were manageable. Even the severely injured could be fitted with cybernetic prostheses by the company, free of charge. If they were willing, they could continue to fight under the Atlas banner afterward.

But the deaths of the Romu soldiers were what he found truly difficult to bear. After all, once someone was gone, they were gone for good.

Although the Tower of Babel’s current training speed could “mass-produce” a new batch of recruits in three to four months, Amber still needed some time to accept such a high casualty rate.

Of course, Atlas’s forces hadn’t come away from the battle with nothing to show for it.

They had acquired seven tactical nuclear warheads, a large number of Imperial personal combat exoskeletons, combat vehicles, and a few HCPs that were still salvageable.

At the same time, the several brigade-level combat teams that had retreated to Ptolemy City had also “contributed” their division and brigade-level command terminals and an assortment of supporting non-combat but equally important vehicles, such as command vehicles, communications relay vehicles, and network node vehicles.

The other Coalition units didn’t have the nerve to fight Atlas for these things.

Or rather, having suffered even heavier losses, they lacked the ability to compete even if they wanted to.

Aside from these material gains, Atlas’s forces had also been tested and had grown in terms of tactics and technical skills. Both soldiers and officers had gained considerable experience in the fighting.

Meanwhile, the ATT Squadron’s test equipment had yielded precious real-world combat data, providing a wealth of reference information for the final refinement phase before standardized mass production.

Finally, there was Amber himself, who had inexplicably advanced to level-five Psionic strength during the battle.

Among all known psionic users in the human world, he was now basically in the top tier, at the apex of the pyramid.

Amber knew that, at least among the human psionic users still alive, the highest Psionic strength reached was only level six.

The famous level-seven psionic users of the future were still hiding somewhere at this stage.

Although his power had grown, Amber found he wasn’t particularly happy about it. That strange experience during the battle had revealed new mysteries surrounding him.

After reviewing the event in his mind, he had basically concluded that it was a process of “foreseeing the future,” not the even more outrageous “time reversal.”

But he still didn’t know what the trigger conditions were. If it was triggered by predicting that his “lifeline” would be “severed” in the future…

…then it was truly possible that it was related to the legendary “Forerunners.” According to information revealed in the game’s side quests, the “Forerunners” civilization did indeed possess a technology for “foreseeing the future.”

Moreover, they would only use it when facing a crisis that threatened their entire race’s survival.

All in all, on this first major contract undertaken by Atlas Private Military Company, they had indeed suffered considerable losses, but they had also made some gains.

Nevertheless, Amber decided he needed to have a “serious discussion” with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government to get them to “cough up more gold coins” to compensate for Atlas’s losses.

On the other side, once the fighting across the planet was completely over, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government quickly began to tally civilian casualties and prepare for the reconstruction of the war-torn cities.

Since reconstruction was involved, it was inevitable to move on to the “dividing the spoils of war” phase.

According to the contracts signed between the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and the various private military companies and defense contractors, the share of “post-war reconstruction projects” was to be allocated based on the junior partner’s combat contribution.

This was the matter that most concerned the commanders and field business representatives of each company after the battle ended.

After all, the share of reconstruction projects they ultimately secured would determine the bonuses and dividends their respective companies would award them.

In a large conference room hastily cleared out in Ptolemy City’s municipal hall, the commanders and business representatives of every company had gathered.

This even included the companies that had been fighting on the other two continents—their representatives had immediately found a plane and rushed over as soon as the fighting was over.

At the head of the conference table sat the Loubion Star System’s Administrative Deputy, Secretary-General, Auditor-General, and Treasurer, who had come down from orbit. They were also the organizers of this meeting.

However, the four of them were now looking on with helpless expressions at the noisy crowd below.

It was clear that dividing the post-war spoils was also the phase most likely to generate internal conflict.

None of the company representatives would yield to another, and each was trying every means possible to gain a greater say and secure a larger share.

“Bang!”

The conference room door was violently thrown open. The sound made everyone turn to look at the entrance.

A few people who were in the middle of a heated argument were about to turn and curse whoever was so tactless, but when they saw the person walking through the door, they all immediately sat down.

Amber walked slowly into the conference room with his hands behind his back. The previously noisy atmosphere vanished. Not a single person spoke; everyone in the room watched him with complex expressions.

“I’ll just say a few words.”

Amber glanced around at the company representatives in the room. Seeing them all standing there stunned, he added:

“Why are you all just standing there like idiots? Isn’t it tiring? Sit down and listen.”

As he spoke, the people around him sat down one by one, though they weren’t sure why they were being so “obedient.”

“I don’t care how you all divide it amongst yourselves; that’s your business. But either way, Atlas is taking seventy percent of the reconstruction share.”

An uproar immediately swept through the room.

No one had expected the head of Atlas, who had been in the spotlight recently, to make such an exorbitant demand right off the bat.

“Mr. Rebil, I admit that Atlas contributed a great deal in this battle, but isn’t this distribution a bit too greedy? Atlas takes seventy percent, and the dozen or so of us remaining companies are left to split the other thirty percent?”

A middle-aged man in a sharp suit stood up and spoke. From his appearance, Amber guessed he was a business representative from one of the companies.

Right now, the expression on the business representative’s face screamed, “fight corrupted powers to the bitter end.” He continued righteously:

“I know your company’s operational capabilities are professional and strong, but you can’t just operate as a monopoly and completely disregard whether the rest of us live or die, can you?”

“That’s right! We need to make a living, too! Why should you get to eat all the meat and leave us with just the scraps?!”

“Exactly! Which company here didn’t suffer heavy casualties this time? If we don’t take a larger share back, how are we supposed to answer to our companies?”

With one person starting, others began to chime in.

The mood in the conference room instantly shifted from internal squabbling to a “united front to denounce Atlas.”

Amidst the chorus of denunciation, Amber showed no sign of anger. He casually pulled up a stool, sat down, and simply stared at the people in the room.

Gradually, under his gaze, the company commanders and business representatives slowly lowered their voices until, one by one, they all fell silent. The conference room quickly grew quiet again.

“Are you all finished?”

Amber looked around at the others emotionlessly. After confirming that no one else wanted to speak, he turned to the business representative who had led the objections.

“Which company are you from?”

“New Bay Private Military Company.”

“How many combat units did you bring this time?”

“Just one medium combined arms brigade, fifty-four hundred men. It’s not a lot, but it’s still more than your three thousand-odd men.”

The business representative seemed quite proud that his force outnumbered Atlas’s.

“Heh, then may I ask how many men you lost in the assault on Ptolemy City, and how many kilometers you advanced?”

“That…”

The business representative opened and closed his mouth. He looked around at the “friendly competitors” staring at him and realized it wasn’t a good time to reveal that information.

Obviously, New Bay Private Military Company’s numbers weren’t very flattering. If he revealed them now in front of everyone, they would be in a very passive position when the shares were allocated later.

“Can’t say? Or don’t dare to say?”

Amber raised an eyebrow, a cold smirk flashing across his face.

“If you can’t say it, I’ll say it for you. In the attack on Ptolemy City, the New Bay medium combined arms brigade suffered 934 killed and 1,395 wounded, for a casualty rate of 43.1%. After paying such a heavy price, how far did your assigned sector advance? 1.1 kilometers.”

The moment these figures were revealed, a buzz went through the conference room.

Besides being astonished by New Bay’s short advance, everyone was also curious how Atlas had obtained these figures.

“You… you’re spouting nonsense!” the business representative from New Bay Private Military Company blurted out, flustered.

He was flustered not because Amber was lying, but because everything Amber said was true.

“Nonsense? You seem to have forgotten that I was given command of the ground forces. After tapping into the command system, it was simple to obtain this information. Besides…”

“…the drones in the sky aren’t blind. I could see perfectly well how far you advanced your frontline.”

Amber’s words left the business representative at a loss for a comeback, but the “considerate” Amber naturally didn’t let him stand there awkwardly for too long.

“A 43.1% casualty rate for a 1.1-kilometer advance. If you ask me, your New Bay Private Military Company has no right to even be at this meeting!”

“I believe no other company present advanced less than you did, right?”

“Nonsense! Sunfire Defense was on our flank! They only advanced eight hundred meters before they were stopped by a battalion of Imperial remnants!”

The New Bay representative immediately retorted, pointing the finger directly at the other defense company that had been attacking on their flank.

The ground commander and business representative of that company were, of course, also present. As a smaller company, they had been planning to be mere spectators to the drama, but they hadn’t expected the drama to land on their own heads.

“Uh… I’m not… I didn’t…”

A weak, pale explanation was offered, but unfortunately, it wasn’t very convincing.

The representative from New Bay had apparently discovered a new way to “divert the disaster eastward,” and immediately began to lash out at the other companies.

The conference room quickly descended into another round of fierce “discussion.” The companies began exposing each other’s skeletons, and for a moment, the scene was as chaotic as a certain “legislative assembly.”

Soon, however, everyone realized they had the wrong target. The biggest threat right now was clearly Atlas, yet its director was just sitting quietly to the side, watching with an air of “this has nothing to do with me.”

Amber’s posture naturally displeased the others, and many of them wanted to “drag him into the mess.”

But everyone present also quickly realized that they couldn’t actually “initiate a fight” with Atlas.

Because the company’s data and combat results were just too solid. So solid, in fact, that they couldn’t even find an opening to attack.

Under these circumstances, the conference room quickly fell silent once more, and all eyes focused on Amber again.

Amber, who had been off to the side thinking about other matters, noticed that the others had stopped “communicating.” He wasted no more time and laid his cards on the table.

“Since everyone’s finished discussing, I trust you all now have a deeper understanding of your respective capabilities and combat results, right? Now that everyone has a bit of self-awareness, I’ll be blunt. Atlas is taking that seventy percent share. However, I can offer two mutually beneficial options.”

“First, during the upcoming reconstruction of Loubion V, Atlas will do its best to select other subsidiaries of the corporations behind your companies as our suppliers of raw materials or services. We can all make money together.”

“Second, I’m sure you’ve all seen our company’s test equipment in battle. Since all your companies have suffered significant losses this time, you can consider a ‘one-stop’ procurement of equipment from Atlas Industries. This includes, but is not limited to, personal exoskeletons, multi-legged war machines, main battle tanks, other combat vehicles, and HCPs.”

“If your companies place an order, you will absolutely receive the most favorable price, something close to our production cost. Furthermore, we will provide up to ten free comprehensive firmware upgrade services within three years.”

“Believe me, the money you save here will be no small sum. You’ll at least have something to show for it when you report back to your superiors.”

After delivering this long, eloquent speech in one breath, Amber took a can of energy drink from his pocket, took a sip to wet his lips, and said:

“I’ve said my piece. Who agrees? Who objects?”

Chapter 269: Atlas Will Give You a Better Opportunity

“I object!”

Not everyone could be bluffed by Amber’s words. The moment he finished speaking, someone jumped to their feet.

“So Atlas gets the lion’s share, and the rest of our companies can only follow behind you and pick up the scraps?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“You—”

Amber’s calm reply instantly unsettled the man who had jumped up.

But before he could continue, Amber’s voice cut him off. This time, he even used Psionics to ensure his words reached the ears of everyone present.

“Judging by the patch on the right arm of your uniform, you must be the Ground Commander for Silver Sword Private Military Company, correct?”

Amber worked hard to manage his expression, making sure the company’s name didn’t cause him to lose his composure.

“That’s right. What’s your point?” The Ground Commander stood up straight, like a decorated general from a classic opera.

“Silver Sword Private Military Company. During the assault on Ptolemy City, you committed 2,450 personnel, suffered a casualty rate of 39.3 percent, and advanced the frontline in your designated sector by 1.3 kilometers… hmm, not bad. The results from your more than two thousand four hundred men are a little better than that company, what was it, New Bay.”

In a competition for ‘saying one sentence that makes two people’s faces darken simultaneously,’ Amber had always been the champion.

As the target of his sharp commentary, the commander from Silver Sword was at a loss for words.

It sounded like Amber was criticizing him, but there also seemed to be a hint of a compliment in there.

“Don’t know what to say? Then don’t say anything. Have a seat.”

Amber snapped his fingers twice, and the commander from Silver Sword sank powerlessly back into his chair. Once those cold, hard numbers were out in the open, he truly had no way to refute them.

Meanwhile, Amber’s ‘sharp commentary’ continued.

“Forget it. I know many of you here still have objections. I won’t wait for you all to jump out and argue. I’ll just go through all of your situations one by one.”

At these words, the commanders and business representatives from the various companies in the conference room immediately sat up straight.

In their eyes, Amber had become the Grim Reaper, knocking on doors one by one, and no one knew which company would be next.

At the same time, they were eager to hear about the other companies’ situations. If another company had terrible stats, that would be for the best.

The mentality of these company commanders and representatives was like that of students after a final exam, waiting for the teacher to hand back their papers with comments.

It didn’t matter if they did poorly, as long as someone else did worse, everything would be fine.

“Then I’ll begin. Hmm. Empyrean. This name resonates with me, so let’s start with you.”

The representative of the company that was just named instantly went pale, as if a doctor had just pulled out a critical illness notice.

But the people from the other companies—including those who had already been ‘publicly executed’—were now excited. They pricked up their ears, listening with a focus that probably surpassed any they’d ever shown in a classroom.

“Empyrean Defense committed 3,820 personnel in this battle, with a 42.9 percent casualty rate, and advanced the frontline in its designated sector by 1.5 kilometers…”

“Jedd Private Military Company committed 2,600 personnel, with a 37.5 percent casualty rate, and advanced the frontline in its designated sector by 2.4 kilometers. Not bad. You’ve advanced the furthest so far.”

“Thunder Defense.”

“Defender Private Military Company.”

“Supreme Force Defense Contractor…”

One by one, Amber read out the names of the companies and their combat data. It was easy for him to remember such information, not to mention that Lilith was also feeding him prompts.

The expressions on the faces of the company representatives in the conference room were a magnificent sight to behold, shifting from happy, to enjoying the show, to struggling to keep a straight face.

As for the four representatives from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government at the head of the table, their faces were stern, but inwardly, they were overjoyed.

Amber’s approach saved them a great deal of wrangling. When it came time to allocate shares of the reconstruction work, their job would be much easier.

In fact, this was one of the deals Amber had struck with the system’s Administrative Deputy, Sam.

As long as Atlas could successfully conclude the battle, the Autonomous Government was happy to hand over the lion’s share of the reconstruction work to him. This would make future coordination and cooperation much more convenient.

Moreover, Amber had also promised Sam that the Atlas Group would make large-scale investments and build factories on Loubion V and even throughout the entire Loubion star system in the future, promoting the system’s economic development.

At the same time, the financial wizards of Atlas’s Financial Operations Department had been achieving remarkable results recently, so Atlas had long since escaped its financial crisis.

Ample funds allowed Isabelle to boldly command her subordinates to launch a ‘financial offensive’ against key figures in various departments of the Autonomous Government, and the results were more than fruitful…

And so, the meeting, which would come to be known internally at Atlas Group as ‘Amber’s Grand Roll Call,’ concluded perfectly when the last company representative lowered his head with a sigh.

The Atlas Group had successfully secured seventy percent of the post-war reconstruction project on Loubion V.

As for the remaining thirty percent, Amber had already distributed the ‘ammunition’ he’d used to attack his rivals to the various companies. How they divided it up was their business.

—

Several days later, in the southern district of Ptolemy City, the Autonomous Government held a collective funeral for the fallen soldiers.

The cemetery, built temporarily to commemorate the battle, was located near the Coalition’s initial offensive line.

The soldiers buried in this cemetery were all from the Loubion V ground defense forces.

The ashes of the fallen soldiers from the various private military companies and defense contractors would be collected by their respective companies and delivered to their families, along with a modest death benefit.

Jacob, who had just completed an ultra-low-altitude flypast over the city in his Swift-class reconnaissance plane, forced himself to attend the funeral.

After surgery and recuperation in a life support pod, the severely injured pilot could at least walk on his own now.

He had come because two of his good friends, both teammates from the same reconnaissance squadron, were also being buried today.

Jacob’s two teammates were the pilots of the two hypersonic reconnaissance planes that had been shot down first when the Coalition launched its counterattack.

It was obvious that being shot down during a hypersonic penetrating reconnaissance mission made it difficult to recover a body, so only two cenotaphs could be placed in the cemetery.

After the funeral ceremony, Jacob’s squadron leader approached him. Looking at his subordinate’s current state, he said with regret:

“I’m so sorry, Jacob. Will and Mitchell were both outstanding reconnaissance pilots. Their loss saddens us all. But for now, I need you to take care of yourself. If you need any help, just contact me…”

“Pardon the interruption. You must be Jacob, right? The pilot who took on a dangerous mission at the last minute to perform a supersonic, ultra-low-altitude flypast over the city? I’m Rebil, the head of Atlas.”

Amber’s sudden appearance interrupted the conversation between the squadron leader and Jacob.

“Ah! Hello, Mr. Rebil!” Jacob had heard of the head of Atlas, but he never expected the director of a private military company to attend this funeral.

“I’m sorry that this mission caused you such severe injuries. Although I’m not from the Federation, I must express my respect for you. You, your teammates, and all these fallen Federation soldiers have paid too high a price for your country.”

Amber’s tone was sincere, and he adopted a very humble posture, which made Jacob feel a little out of his element.

In his view, he hadn’t been forced to carry out the mission but had volunteered for it, so he held no resentment towards Amber or Atlas.

His squadron leader was also surprised by Amber’s appearance, but he continued where Amber left off:

“I’m sorry, Mr. Rebil. This was an unfortunate tragedy.”

“More than unfortunate? It was a completely pointless sacrifice. Sending in manned reconnaissance planes for a penetrating mission when you know the enemy is prepared… But forget it, I didn’t come here today to argue about that.”

Amber looked at Jacob. He had a good impression of this very bold reconnaissance pilot.

“I want to offer you a better opportunity…”

“Mr. Rebil, Jacob is retiring. While his injuries can be treated and won’t affect his daily life, he can never fly again.”

“That’s just because your government is unwilling to pay for it.”

Amber glanced at the squadron leader. He knew the man had no real influence in the matter and was simply relaying orders from above.

If Jacob chose to undergo cybernetic modification, he would owe the military a huge sum for the prosthetics and the surgery, and he would have to work off the debt with a longer term of service.

And Jacob, now preparing to retire, clearly had no desire to stay in the Federation military, essentially working for free.

Seeing Jacob’s dejected expression, uncertain of what the future held, Amber stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder.

“You did Atlas a huge favor on the battlefield, so it’s only right that Atlas repays you. We will provide you with the most advanced cybernetic modifications, and the Atlas Group will cover all the costs.

“Also, I personally have great admiration for a pilot like you. I don’t think your skills should go to waste. You should be fighting for a unit that’s as outstanding as you are.”

As he spoke, Amber took out a translucent electronic business card and placed it in Jacob’s hand.

Several matrices on the card reconfigured themselves, finally forming the Atlas logo, with a line of small text below.

Chairman of the Atlas Group, Rebil.

“Think about it.”

Chapter 270: We Sell Services

Loubion V, geostationary orbit, external vessel mooring area.

A private cruise ship and two frigates, three vessels bearing the Atlas logo, slowly sailed into their reserved positions.

This cruise ship, generously sponsored by the wealthy elf, Ms. Allenita, was currently being used as Atlas’s exclusive “hospitality ship” to receive the company’s important clients.

And the Regent Prince’s Special Envoy, Perseus, became the first Atlas client to experience this cruise ship.

“How have you been resting these past few days, Mr. Perseus?”

Inside a tea room decorated in elven style aboard the cruise ship, Skadi asked Perseus, who sat opposite her, with a graceful smile.

“Very well, thank you. This is my first time on a cruise ship built by elves. I must say, it’s truly a rare experience. Elven ships are indeed far more comfortable than our human vessels.”

Perseus seemed quite enthusiastic about this topic, heaping praise upon the elven cruise ship.

“I dare say, among the ships of the human world, even the private vessels of the Imperial Royal Family and nobility, while exceedingly luxurious, still fall somewhat short in terms of sheer comfort when compared to your elven ships. Perhaps only His Majesty’s personal flagship can compare.”

“You flatter us, Mr. Perseus. I’m sure the nobility of your Star Dragon Empire are also highly accomplished in this regard.”

Seeing that the atmosphere had lightened up sufficiently, Skadi continued, “The person you wished to meet has arrived via shuttle and is now waiting for you in the conference room. Mr. Perseus, shall we proceed to the main purpose of your visit?”

“Of course. I would be delighted.”

——

Soon, Perseus was guided to a spacious conference room on the cruise ship. There were no superfluous decorations, nor were there any attendants waiting on either side.

There was only a long, transparent table and the man sitting at its head.

After a slight bow, Skadi excused herself, closed the conference room doors, and activated the “black box mode.”

“Please, have a seat, Mr. Perseus. Welcome.”

Amber’s voice entered Perseus’s mind directly. The latter quickly realized—it was the effect of Psionics.

For Perseus, this was not good news. According to the information he had, high-level psionic users could potentially influence a person’s thoughts.

In important negotiations, such an ability could grant the psionic user an unimaginable advantage.

However, as the Regent Prince’s Special Envoy, Perseus was a man who had weathered many storms. He composed himself, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

“It certainly isn’t easy to get a meeting with you, Mr. Amber.”

“What can I say? We’ve been incredibly busy lately~” Amber said, spreading his hands.

“You see, it’s gotten to the point where even I, the Chairman, have to handle sales calls personally.”

“Heh, everyone at Atlas certainly has a good sense of humor,” Perseus chuckled, then continued, “I’m sure you’re already aware of my purpose here, Mr. Amber. My presence, given my identity, in this sensitive region at this sensitive time, should be a testament to our sincerity, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Of course. Since His Excellency the Regent Prince has already investigated my identity and is still willing to send an envoy to a place like this to negotiate with me, I naturally believe in your sincerity.”

“Excellent. Then I’ll get straight to the point.”

“Speak freely. Not a single word spoken in this room will be known to a third party.”

“As expected of you. Very thorough.”

Perseus nodded and continued, “On behalf of His Excellency the Regent Prince, I have come to meet with you today to enter into business negotiations regarding the ‘interstellar real-time information transmission technology’ and ‘network information dissemination technology’ in Atlas’s possession. To put it simply, His Excellency the Regent Prince is willing to purchase these two technologies for a price that is, without a doubt, full of sincerity.”

Perseus didn’t beat around the bush and stated his purpose directly.

Amber didn’t reply immediately. He stared at Perseus for a moment before answering, “I think your side must have misunderstood something. Atlas is a service company. We don’t sell our technology directly; we only provide corresponding services based on our clients’ needs. It’s a simple principle—we can’t very well sell the bowl we eat from.”

“But the price we are willing to offer is also very sincere. Are you sure you don’t want to hear it, Mr. Amber?”

“I believe you and the Regent Prince both understand the significance of these two technologies. Do you really think they can be measured by ‘value’?”

Amber smiled, his expression seeming to say, “Buddy, do you take me for a fool?”

Perseus looked a little awkward. As the Regent Prince’s representative, he naturally knew the value of these two technologies and how absurd it was to come and ask to purchase them outright.

Seeing the expression on the Imperial nobleman’s face, Amber continued to smile and said, “Why don’t we discuss purchasing our services instead?

“As the first client for this line of business, you can enjoy the largest possible annual discount. We’ll also throw in additional services, including but not limited to: military intervention, VIP protection, military unit training, and defense contracting~”

“I know that purchasing the service would achieve the same effect, but some things involve our state privacy. It might not be convenient to have your company operate them for us after purchase.”

Perseus looked troubled. He clearly knew that some matters couldn’t be discussed openly.

Amber, however, wore an expression that said, “You don’t need to worry about that at all,” and replied, “You don’t need to worry about that in the slightest. I also hope you can relay to His Excellency the Regent Prince that we at Atlas are a company with a strong sense of professional ethics and corporate integrity. We will absolutely not leak any client secrets.

“Regardless of what you want to use our services for, as long as it doesn’t harm Atlas’s interests, we will not impose any restrictions.

“Even for matters that can’t be discussed in public, we will not impose restrictions…”

As he said this last part, Amber gave Perseus a meaningful look, and the latter met his gaze with an equally profound one.

After a moment, Amber added the final line, “I’m sure you’re also aware that Atlas is a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire. Furthermore, our corporate style is ‘extremely welcoming to outsiders.’ All our clients are our eternal friends.

“Therefore, we will not favor any side due to any particular stance.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Perseus thought for a moment before asking, “Even if, in the future, your company might be cooperating with two mutually hostile powers at the same time?”

“That goes without saying. The Atlas Group will always put its reputation first and will never do anything to tarnish our own brand.

“If the situation you described were to occur, we would simply provide service support to both parties. Since both are our ‘benefactors’, we would never favor one over the other.

“If it also involves services related to armed intervention and defense contracting, we would only reach an agreement with the client we partnered with first, and would not provide that type of service to both sides simultaneously.”

Amber rattled off a long, practiced speech, as these words were already imprinted in his mind.

After deciding to walk the path of a “megacorporation,” he had long since engaged a group of professionals to plan for it.

How to maximize profits?

How to make money from mutually hostile clients at the same time?

Before growing bigger and stronger, how to maintain a neutral stance to ensure potential clients could trust Atlas and subsequently enter into cooperation?

And so on, and so forth…

In truth, Atlas already had procedures and contingency plans for such situations.

Those masters from the Financial Operations Department, who had all experienced their “Dragon Field epiphanies,” couldn’t sit still after they figured out what grand scheme Amber was planning to pull off.

“This is the goddamn utopia for people like us!”

Therefore, these people were the most dedicated when it came to assisting Amber with corporate strategic planning.

Each of them brought forth the same diligent spirit from their student days, and under the leadership of a few top figures, they quickly hammered out a strategic development plan suitable for Atlas.

Although this plan still needed continuous optimization and adjustment through practical application, Atlas now had, for all intents and purposes, a set of “guiding” principles of conduct.

And at that moment, Perseus, sitting opposite Amber, was astonished that this company, established for less than a year, had already reached such a mature stage of development and had an exceptionally clear understanding of its own position.

As someone close to the Regent Prince and entrusted to conduct these negotiations, he had naturally received a great deal of information from Norton II.

For instance, he was one of the few who knew that Amber was still alive and had started a company in the Thousand Stars Empire.

“Mr. Amber, I understand everything you’ve said. But this is not a simple matter, and I believe it’s an important project for you as well. Therefore, please forgive me for not being able to give you an immediate answer. I may need to organize this information and then report back to His Excellency the Regent Prince.”

“Of course, no problem. Please report back, Mr. Perseus. If you need us to prepare any materials or the like, just let me know.”

Amber made a welcoming gesture and then added, “By the way, since you’re preparing to report to His Excellency the Regent Prince, who is far away within the Empire’s borders, would you like to try our ‘interstellar communication service’?

“We’ve just recently expanded our communication range to your nation’s territory. It should significantly improve the efficiency of your report.”

“Oh? A free trial?” Perseus smiled.

“Of course, completely free of charge~”

Chapter 271: Basic, Standard, and Premium Editions

At first, Perseus was actually quite skeptical about the effectiveness of Atlas’s communication technology.

After all, his current location was physically too far from the star system where the Regent Prince was located within the Empire. Even using the best ships available for long-range warps would take a considerable amount of time.

However, an hour after sending the message, he received a reply with the Regent Prince’s exclusive encrypted verification.

The one-hour delay was mainly because it was just after 3 a.m. at the small manor where the Regent Prince was, and it took Norton II some time to wake up and clear his head.

The actual transmission time was likely only a few minutes.

At this point, Perseus’s first reaction was to want to purchase this ‘communication service’ for the industries under his family’s control.

Because this kind of long-range, real-time communication was a generational leap compared to current technologies.

“The times are changing.”

As a noble capitalist, he quickly recognized the importance of this new communication technology in business activities. If he could be the first to adopt this technology, he would gain an unimaginable advantage in commercial competition.

Since Perseus was currently using the ‘V1.3 test version’, this ‘ultra-long-range real-time communication’ only supported text messaging for now.

So, like people sending emails to online friends in the old days, he communicated with the Regent Prince via text for over two hours.

The Regent Prince was initially very surprised, thinking Perseus had returned early.

But upon learning that his ‘Special Envoy’ was actually in Federation territory, Norton II was instantly wide awake. He immediately dispatched people to trace the signal’s origin, hoping to find the relay node.

In the end, they discovered that both his and Perseus’s signals were actually sent into cyberspace via conventional communication technology.

Atlas then used some unknown method to ‘extract’ these messages and transmit them across star systems.

Thus, the idea of finding a relay node was completely unfeasible.

The two of them realized that Atlas couldn’t have overlooked this aspect, and their plan was bound to fail.

After finishing their conversation, Perseus went to find Amber, who was still in the conference room, looking at the ‘Loubion V Reconstruction Project Plan’.

“Mr. Amber, do you have any idea what a massive change your technology will bring?”

“Of course, I do~”

Amber put down the project plan and looked at the excited Perseus who had just walked in.

“That’s why the pricing for this service is a bit steep at the moment. You’d better be prepared.”

Perseus was taken aback. He realized he still had too little experience dealing with a ‘conversation wizard’ like Amber.

“Uh… that’s not what I meant, actually.”

“It’s fine. I’ll give you the ‘Chairman’s discount’. If you subscribe for a long time, I’ll even give you a discount on top of the discount.”

“Well, thank you then…”

Perseus suddenly found that, in the span of just a sentence or two, he didn’t know how to bring up all the things he had just been thinking about.

“You’re welcome. The customer is king at Atlas. As long as we ensure the group’s profitability, we are naturally willing to provide our customers with the highest quality service.”

Amber said with a sincere expression, looking like a top salesman.

Perseus really wanted to point out that he could have left out the part about ‘ensuring the group’s profitability’, but after holding it in for a long time, he managed to say:

“Your company’s technology for ultra-long-range real-time communication currently only supports text messaging… are real-time voice or video communication features currently in development?”

Amber nodded. “That’s right. The V1.3 you just used, Mr. Perseus, is the version we at Atlas are currently using ourselves, and it provides stable text message transmission.

Version 1.4, which is currently in the experimental phase, will support real-time voice communication, and we plan to implement support for real-time video communication in the future V1.5.”

“So, will your company provide free upgrades?”

“Of course not. There are development costs for these things. You must be joking, Mr. Perseus.”

Amber replied with a straight face. In truth, the entire quantum communication technology had been developed by Lilith alone, and the main costs were just the construction of various deep space communication nodes.

But when facing an outsider, who was also a potential future client, Amber naturally couldn’t tell the truth.

He found a proposal from his personal terminal that had not yet been made public, sanitized it, and sent it to Perseus.

“For our service support on this communication technology, Atlas is preparing to launch three packages: ‘Basic,’ ‘Standard,’ and ‘Premium’ editions.

The Basic Edition only has fundamental text communication services, and there will be a limit on the number of messages sent per service period. After all, once it’s officially launched, we can foresee that daily communications will be extremely busy, which will be a test of our system’s load capacity.

Of course, we will also offer a ‘paid add-on pack’ for Basic Edition users in case of emergencies.”

As Amber introduced the first ‘Basic Edition’, Perseus immediately showed an ‘as expected’ expression, but he didn’t say anything and continued to listen.

“Next is the Standard Edition. I personally expect most corporate clients will choose this version, as it’s a package with both text and voice communication, and the number of messages and call duration per service period are much higher… Of course, you can also purchase ‘paid add-on packs’.

Finally, there’s our Premium Edition. Although its price will be a ‘little steep’ compared to the first two packages.

However, just as the name implies, we will provide our Premium clients with the highest level of service. Not only is it a three-in-one version with text, voice, and video, but there will be no limit on the number of messages or communication time. At the same time, Premium clients will also receive priority access to upgrades with each new version release…”

Amber briefly introduced the three packages. He was confident that after trying it out, Perseus couldn’t possibly be unimpressed by this service.

And the latter’s reaction was just as he had expected.

“Mr. Amber, if your company can truly monopolize this technology, I can’t even imagine how profitable it will be.”

Perseus said very seriously, “I feel like I’m witnessing the rise of a commercial empire.”

“You’re exaggerating. We’re not there yet,” Amber smiled and continued, “However, as for monopolizing the technology, I’m personally quite confident, hahaha.”

“But doing so might make many people covet this technology. There’s an old saying from Blue Star: ‘An innocent man gets into trouble for the treasure he carries.’ You should still be careful.”

Perseus paused, as if considering whether he should say what was on his mind. After a moment, he continued:

“Mr. Amber, what I’m about to say is purely in a personal capacity… I sincerely suggest you engage in a comprehensive cooperation with His Excellency the Regent Prince. This would also dissuade other powers from getting any ideas. I believe that with Atlas’s technology and His Excellency the Regent Prince’s power, the future would be absolutely immeasurable.”

The Imperial noble spoke with great seriousness and sincerity. At least, it appeared that he truly wished to see the two sides join forces.

However, after hearing his words, Amber gave him a meaningful look.

“Thank you for the reminder, but I believe that in the short term, no one will dare to target a corporation from the Thousand Stars Empire~

By the time this technology develops to the point where they can ignore the Thousand Stars Empire’s existence, even if someone really wants to make a move, they’ll probably have to consider whether they can even touch us at Atlas.”

Amber stared at Perseus and said seriously:

“As I’ve said before, Atlas will absolutely not tie itself to anyone else’s war chariot.”

There was a second half to that sentence that Amber didn’t say aloud, but it echoed in his thoughts—‘Because Atlas itself will become a war chariot.’

“It seems you’re quite confident.”

“Of course. If I didn’t have this much confidence, would I dare to be in this business?”

The atmosphere in the conference room became a little awkward, but neither of them continued the discussion on this topic.

“By the way, Mr. Amber…”

Perseus was the first to speak.

“After communicating with His Excellency the Regent Prince, we have given up on the idea of directly purchasing the technology. Instead, we are willing to become your company’s first external client for this communication service.

As for the specific details of the cooperation, we will send a professional team to handle the liaison.”

“Excellent. Then I wish us a pleasant cooperation.”

Amber stood up and extended his hand to Perseus.

“To a pleasant cooperation.”

Perseus also stood up, extending his hand to shake Amber’s.

After they both sat down again, Perseus spoke once more, “There’s one more ‘small matter’ I’d like to discuss with you, Mr. Amber.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“I know that the Federation ultimately won the battle on Loubion V under your company’s guidance, so I would like to discuss the issue of the Imperial prisoners of war with you.”

“Oh~?”

Amber’s smile vanished. He sat up straight and said with a somewhat serious tone, “Mr. Perseus, that… is no small matter.”

“I know this issue is rather sensitive under the current circumstances, which is why I wanted to discuss it with you first,” Perseus said with a nod.

He was naturally aware that the issue of prisoners of war was a sensitive one during a war between two nations, which was why he was thinking of operating through a ‘third party’ like Atlas.

“I mainly wanted to see if there was a way to arrange for these prisoners of war to be brought back to the Empire. After all, they were abandoned by the naval fleet, which is indeed a major problem for the military. Moreover, there are some nobles among the high-ranking officers.”

“Then I must tell you something first. Even if you want to take them, you’ll probably only be able to take some of the rank-and-file soldiers…”

“What do you mean?”

“Some of the high-ranking officers, including Viscount Drake, have committed suicide in the prisoner-of-war camp.”

Chapter 272: Prisoners of War and the Victory Celebration

“What? Committed suicide???”

Perseus’s eyes shot wide open. He had only just heard about the outcome of the battle on Loubion V in the past couple of days, which was what sparked this idea.

But he never expected to hear such news from Amber.

Seeing the suspicious look on Perseus’s face, Amber began to speak:

“You don’t need to suspect the Federation of any foul play. I can guarantee that the treatment of the prisoners of war is absolutely humane. Besides, our Atlas troops were also involved in managing the PoW camp.”

At this point, Amber’s expression became complicated.

“Mr. Perseus, you don’t need to be so surprised.

“To the Federation, your Star Dragon Empire has always been the aggressor. Even from my third-party perspective, I cannot deny this. So, it’s perfectly normal for them to have ‘some’ feelings towards the invaders.

“However, with our intervention, we still ensured that the Imperial soldiers in the PoW camp did not receive any inhumane treatment.”

“Then why…”

“That’s a question you might have to ask yourselves about how you normally train your Imperial officers.”

Hearing this, Perseus fell silent. He could already guess the reason.

“In my opinion, your Viscount Drake was a typical ‘blindly loyal’ soldier. Though I don’t know if his ‘loyalty’ was to the Star Dragon Empire, your Emperor, or His Excellency the Regent Prince.”

“Mr. Amber, watch your words.”

“It’s fine. No one else will hear. I’m just telling you this. Besides…”

Amber glanced at Perseus, who had a close relationship with the Regent Prince, and continued:

“Your country’s factional politics are hardly a secret to the outside world, are they?”

“Sigh…” Perseus sighed. Clearly, this question was not so easy to answer.

But Amber didn’t dwell on the issue, instead continuing with his opinion on Viscount Drake.

“In any case, regardless of who Viscount Drake was loyal to, he was in a state of ‘blind loyalty’. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have forcibly dragged the Coalition into street fighting when there was no hope left, and even planned to detonate a nuclear warhead to take the Coalition down with him.

“After being captured by us, his mental state was never good. Although the Coalition noticed this, they obviously weren’t going to find him a psychologist or anything.

“Since he was the highest-ranking Imperial officer captured so far, the Coalition didn’t completely confiscate his personal belongings and even arranged a ‘private room’ for him in the PoW camp. However, it was precisely this arrangement that gave him the opportunity to commit suicide.

“Finally, on the night before I left, Viscount Drake shattered the glass on his brass pocket watch and used a shard to cut his own throat.

“Several other officers did the same thing that night.”

Amber finished explaining what he knew, adding one last sentence:

“Anyway, that’s the situation. Whether you believe it or not is up to you.”

After Amber finished, Perseus fell into silence.

He knew that given Amber’s position as a third party and their upcoming cooperation with the Regent Prince, there was indeed no reason for him to fabricate a story to deceive him.

After bowing his head in thought for a moment, Perseus spoke again:

“Thank you for telling me this, Mr. Amber. In that case, could I ask you, as a third party, to help mediate with this star system’s autonomous government and find a way to get the common soldiers released?”

“Why do you want to rescue these prisoners? It’s not that I see your Imperial nobles through ‘colored glasses’, but frankly, in my experience, this isn’t usually your style,” Amber asked, somewhat curious.

“Mr. Amber, since you understand the situation with the factional politics, you must also be aware of the relationship between the Duke and His Excellency the Regent Prince.

“Now that this ‘abandoning the army to retreat’ incident has happened, I must find a way to remedy the situation and alleviate the public pressure on His Excellency the Regent Prince.

“Moreover, this was His Excellency the Regent Prince’s intention from the start. I’m not just trying to praise him, but as a traditional military noble, His Excellency genuinely treats his subordinates and the rank-and-file soldiers very well.”

Perseus replied earnestly. When speaking of how the Regent Prince treated his own people, he was very serious. Clearly, Norton II did indeed do well in this regard.

After hearing his explanation, Amber nodded.

“I can try to figure something out, but I can’t be completely sure about this. I’ll have to try to grease some wheels first.”

“Rest assured, I will cover the costs. I won’t let you suffer any loss.”

“There’s one more thing. Atlas helped the star system’s autonomous government extract the combat logs from the prisoners’ combat terminals.

“A portion of them—Imperial soldiers who killed or assaulted civilians, or who cruelly killed surrendering Federation personnel in previous battles—this group will definitely not be released by the autonomous government. They will face a public trial and be executed by public firing squad.”

Hearing this, Perseus sighed again. He knew, however, that some problems couldn’t be solved even with Atlas mediating.

“Just get as many as you can released. I’m counting on you, Mr. Amber.”

In the end, through the funds provided by Perseus to ‘grease the wheels’ and Amber’s mediation, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government agreed to release 522 Imperial soldiers.

Initially, Amber had thought that after the ‘nuclear crisis’, the autonomous government wouldn’t be willing to release any prisoners, and indeed, he hit a wall at first.

But he later discovered it was purely a matter of not stuffing them with enough money.

“They’re hopeless.”

This was Amber’s sigh after he had paid the bribes and received the green light from every department.

And these prisoners who were approved for release were all Imperial soldiers confirmed to have not killed any civilians or massacred prisoners, after a thorough check of their combat terminal logs.

In the PoW camp, nearly 600 Imperial soldiers and officers remained, awaiting execution by firing squad.

From this, one could see that the military discipline of the Star Dragon Empire Royal Army truly had major problems.

You couldn’t say every Imperial army was so undisciplined. There were certainly some Imperial officers who followed the code of nobility and chivalry, but they were, after all, a minority.

Moreover, after the Empire fractured, this problem with discipline was perfectly inherited by the armies of the various duchies.

Of course, this wasn’t to say the Federation military was any better in this regard. At this stage, the Federation military’s bigger problem wasn’t a lack of discipline, but simply a lack of combat effectiveness.

When you occasionally had situations where they couldn’t even defeat a mob, how could you expect them to commit atrocities?

However, Amber knew that once the Federation began its counter-push into Imperial territory, the ‘flower of evil’ would quickly bloom.

When the Federation’s ground forces appeared on planets at the Imperial border, their actions were no better than those of the Imperial soldiers.

In the end, Perseus didn’t stay in orbit for long. After the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government handed the prisoners of war over to Atlas, Amber arranged for a transport ship to carry them and departed with Perseus.

Before leaving, Perseus also stated that the Regent Prince’s side would promptly dispatch a liaison team to the Tower of Babel for in-depth negotiations regarding future ‘timely communication service and support’.

After bidding farewell to the Regent Prince’s special envoy, Amber couldn’t rest either. He rushed down to the planet’s surface with Isabelle.

Because that evening, the Loubion star system government was holding a victory celebration in the planetary capital, Antigone, to commemorate their victory.

As the person in charge of Atlas, Amber had been invited multiple times with the hope that he would be sure to attend.

Although Amber personally disliked this kind of ‘social event’, considering the possibility of a long-term partnership between Atlas and the Loubion star system, he ultimately chose to attend.

“The war isn’t even over, yet these people are acting like they’ve already won. Isn’t this like popping the champagne at halftime?”

Sitting in an armored personnel carrier, Amber couldn’t help but complain as he watched the lavishly decorated streets and bustling crowds on the screen.

The armored personnel carrier was escorted by two Atlas medium multi-legged war machines in front and two behind, while an RQ220 kept watch from the sky.

The five Aegis units of the ATT team were also on standby in a park near the city’s inner ring.

Although he felt such a grand escort was unnecessary, everyone from his operations staff officer to Isabelle, and even Cleves up in orbit, insisted that he must have a personal guard.

For some reason, his people had recently taken to reading history books. Influenced by stories of ‘subordinates being eliminated for outshining their masters’, they had started developing a case of ‘paranoia’.

They were constantly worried the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government would pull a move where they were ‘discarded after they had served their purpose’.

This ultimately led to Amber being the only invited guest to arrive in the city center in an armored personnel carrier.

Although Amber really wanted to say that with his current level-five Psionics, all he needed was an exoskeleton to perform a ‘three-in, three-out’ feat.

Besides, his current men’s formal wear didn’t match the armored personnel carrier at all.

Of course, Isabelle, dressed in a magnificent evening gown and practically glowing, looked even more out of place.

To be honest, it was only when he saw Isabelle in an evening gown that Amber could truly sense the aura of an Imperial noble about her.

“Victory celebrations and receptions always go hand in hand. A ‘small victory’ is still a victory. There’s no difference between the Empire and the Federation on this point.”

Isabelle replied while doing a final check on her makeup.

“Speaking of which, why was there formal wear prepared on the ship? And how was it exactly my size?”

“I prepared it in advance, of course~” Isabelle rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“Amber, you might be smart and knowledgeable, but you’re clearly not familiar with upper-class social relations and networking. That’s when I have to step in.”

“As expected of my wonderful helpmate, you cover for my shortcomings perfectly.”

Amber had a cheeky grin. In his previous life, as a miserable wage slave, he truly didn’t know much about this sort of thing.

Soon, the armored personnel carrier stopped at the entrance of the Manor where the victory celebration was being held—the venue had been provided by a famous entrepreneur from Loubion V.

To own a manor in the city center, this entrepreneur was clearly a person of considerable means.

A few guards stepped forward to open the rear hatch. As soon as Administrative Deputy Sam saw Amber get out, he immediately came forward to greet him.

“Mr. Rebil, you’ve finally arrived! Everyone has been waiting for you.”

I’ve Made a Difficult Decision

I’ve made a difficult decision.

I’m very sorry, but my main job has been quite busy recently.

Therefore, the daily update time has been adjusted to 23:00. The update volume of two chapters, six thousand words, will remain unchanged. Please take note.

You didn’t think I was going to drop the novel when you saw the title, did you?~

Chapter 273: Portraits from the Reception

“Mr. Sam, why are you waiting out here?”

Amber greeted the planetary Administrative Deputy as he reached out to help Isabelle out of the vehicle.

“Mr. Rebil, you’re the guest of honor at tonight’s celebration banquet. Not to mention, Atlas will be engaging in deep, long-term cooperation with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. As the Administrative Deputy in charge of construction, it’s only fitting that I wait for you here.”

Sam smiled at Amber. Compared to their last meeting, the Administrative Deputy was significantly more enthusiastic this time.

His gaze shifted to Isabelle, who had exited the vehicle and was now holding Amber’s arm. A flash of undisguised envy crossed his eyes.

Then again, what man could see Isabelle and not feel a secret pang of jealousy toward Amber?

As Amber’s date for the evening, Isabelle had clearly spared no effort in getting ready.

In her own words, she was “determined to be the most dazzling woman in the room, worthy of the Chairman of Atlas.”

Her black evening gown shimmered with pinpricks of light under the lamps, as if she were wearing the brilliant night sky itself.

The gown clung to her magnificent figure, outlining her supple, curvaceous body.

The hem cascaded to the floor in fluid pleats, resembling a blooming black rose, noble yet vibrant, as she moved.

As a ‘young miss’ of the Imperial nobility, her well-maintained, jade-like skin was accentuated by the dress, creating a striking contrast that exuded an air of understated luxury.

Add to that the outrageous good looks of the Star Dragon Empire’s nobility, fine-tuned through genetic optimization, and she was an absolute knockout.

However, neither Sam nor the surrounding guards and staff dared to look for more than a second before quickly averting their gaze.

They knew all too well that the man standing beside Isabelle was not someone to be trifled with.

Who knew if he would lunge over and beat them to death just for looking at his date for a moment too long?

After all, such things were not unheard of on this planet.

Soon, Sam led the two toward the grand mansion within the Manor, while their escort vehicles parked in the waiting lot.

Although Amber wanted the vehicle crews to go back and get some rest, they adamantly refused, unwilling to leave their boss here alone.

“Boss, we escorted you out, so we must be the ones to escort you back safely.”

The temporary commander of the escort team had said.

Under the circumstances, Amber could only ask Sam to have the Manor provide food for his soldiers.

Upon hearing the request, the Administrative Deputy waved his hand grandly and had a portion of the kitchen staff come out to serve them on the spot.

“Uh… you really don’t have to do this, Mr. Sam. You’re making me a little embarrassed.”

Faced with the incredibly warm reception from the Administrative Deputy, Amber naturally understood that his enthusiasm stemmed mostly from the upcoming deep cooperation between Atlas and the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

“It’s no trouble. As I said, Mr. Rebil, you are the most important guest tonight. I must have you experience the hospitality of our Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.”

Sam laughed heartily as he guided the pair toward the main building of the Manor—a retro-style mansion.

To attend the celebration banquet, the Administrative Deputy had also changed into a more dignified and grand formal suit.

However, the style of his attire still leaned toward the ‘New Militarism’ look favored by Federation officials.

The suit he wore was like a banner weaving together the classic and the futuristic, retaining the solemnity and ceremony of formal wear while incorporating elements of military and technological design.

The jacket was made from a black wool-blend material, into which faint reflective threads were woven, giving it a peculiar metallic texture under the light.

These subtly shimmering patterns were a unique characteristic of such high-tech fabrics.

Compared to the more extravagant styles preferred by the Federation’s plutocrats, Federation officials, regardless of the occasion, would always opt for this kind of attire that strongly embodied ‘pragmatism’ and ‘elitism’.

On this point, Amber’s aesthetic was more aligned with theirs. He, too, preferred clothing that was not without tradition but also possessed a strong sense of technology.

Just like the suit he was currently wearing.

In her time with Amber, Isabelle had long since figured out the man’s preferences and tastes.

So, when preparing their formal wear in advance, she had matched it according to the style Amber liked. When Amber saw the suit earlier, he had praised her, saying, “Isabelle, you know me best,” and proceeded to reward the young miss handsomely.

The spot where Amber got out of the vehicle was not far from the mansion, so the three of them soon walked into the outwardly unremarkable building.

The moment he entered the main hall, Amber was stunned by the sheer luxury of these Federation plutocrats.

Since humans cannot imagine what they have never seen, the art team for Starry Sky Online had found it difficult to completely detach the designs of human architecture and artistic styles in the game from their real-world inspirations.

And in this world, which Amber speculated was ‘generated’ based on the game, these styles had been inherited.

Even so, Amber had to marvel at the fact that the wealthy class of the Federation lived a completely different life from ordinary people.

The magnificent and lavish decorations practically screamed the words ‘I’m very rich’ right in Amber’s face.

Waiters in tailcoats and golden masks weaved incessantly among the arriving guests.

Evidently, the owner of this Manor, like most of the ‘elite’ in the Federation and the Empire, preferred professionally trained human waiters over cold, intelligent machines.

In the eyes of some ‘elite’, being served by real human beings gave them a kind of superior pleasure, akin to ‘class supremacy.’

Right now, although Loubion V had suffered the ravages of war, the real victims were still the grassroots civilians.

For this wealthy class, apart from some fluctuations in their investment assets or damage to a piece of property during the fighting, the war seemed to have had no other impact.

Cannons roared at the front, while feasting and merriment continued in the rear. They could even throw a celebration banquet like this immediately after the battle ended.

And these were just the minor plutocrats on the planet of Loubion V.

In Amber’s previous life, their social status would have been equivalent to ‘outstanding entrepreneur of some small town’.

If this were one of the top Federation plutocrats in the Capital star system, Amber couldn’t even imagine the kind of extravagance they would indulge in.

“It feels like some country nouveau riche, desperate to let everyone know the owner of this house is wealthy,” Isabelle offered her sharp commentary, holding Amber’s arm as they walked into the hall.

“It looks pretty similar to your family’s Manor. Same kind of lavish décor, with a bunch of expensive ornaments.”

Hearing Isabelle’s sharp commentary, Amber replied while savoring the feeling of two soft slimes pressing against his arm.

“No, no, no. Amber, if our family manor’s designer heard you say that, he’d be heartbroken.”

“What? Your manor has some grand design?”

“Of course. The Ahrens family’s artistic attainment is worlds above these country bumpkins.”

Hearing Isabelle’s words, Amber was quite interested in hearing the story behind her family manor’s design.

But this was neither the time nor the place to discuss such things.

As the man of the hour on Loubion V, a hot topic on everyone’s lips, Amber’s identity, combined with the ‘handsome man and beautiful woman’ pairing with Isabelle, immediately drew the attention of everyone in the hall the moment they stepped inside.

“Tsk… this kind of occasion.”

“What? You don’t like it?” Isabelle looked at Amber with some curiosity.

This man, who could handle himself with ease in any situation, now seemed a little uncomfortable.

“Mhm~”

Amber nodded. With his current mental fortitude, handling such an event was naturally not a problem, but he still lacked experience.

After all, in his previous life, he had never attended such a ‘high-society’ event. His only similar experiences were attending company annual meetings and receiving some sort of ‘consolation’ prize.

“Then you’ll have to study up on this,” Isabelle said without batting an eyelid, meeting the gazes of the others.

“Why should I study this dross?”

“With Atlas’s growing size, you’ll probably have no shortage of these occasions in the future.”

Isabelle’s words made Amber fall into thought, because she was right.

In the future, Atlas would inevitably have to expand its business everywhere. And aren’t business deals hammered out bit by bit?

So there would certainly be no shortage of cocktail parties like today’s, or other types of social engagements.

But clearly, this wasn’t something Amber wanted to do. He was unwilling to waste his time on such decadent affairs.

“I’ve decided. Atlas still needs a dedicated Public Relations Department.”

“Male or female PR?”

“We’ll need both, to handle different scenarios.”

As the two calmly discussed matters concerning the establishment of future departments for Atlas, the organizer of this celebration banquet—the planetary administrator of the Loubion Autonomous Government, Alex—began his speech.

The content was, well, pretty much what Amber had expected, nothing more than the Federation government’s usual spiel.

For example, ‘Under our superior system, we successfully organized a counterattack and repelled the Imperial aggressors.’

Or nonsense like, ‘Today’s victory would not have been possible without the support of everyone present. The star system government is proud of you.’

Honestly, upon hearing that line, Amber’s understanding of this group’s shamelessness reached a new low.

Besides him, representatives from several other large private military companies were also in attendance today.

Amber admitted that although these people were a bit incompetent, they had indeed shed blood and sweat on the battlefield and were worthy of Planetary Administrator Alex’s words.

But the others? These impeccably dressed, aristocratic high officials and wealthy merchants, were they worthy of such words?

The Coalition’s final victory had what to do with them? Not a damn thing.

But anger was one thing; Amber knew better than to reveal it at this moment. So, he suppressed the emotion deep inside and forced himself to listen through Alex’s speech.

And after the planetary administrator’s speech ended, the reception’s free networking session began.

Almost the instant Planetary Administrator Alex stepped away from the microphone, a large group of people immediately swarmed toward Amber.

The news that the Atlas Group would be taking on 70% of the reconstruction projects for the planet’s severely damaged areas had spread across Loubion V in the past two days, and these merchants had clearly smelled the profit in this massive undertaking.

And today’s occasion was the perfect opportunity for them to get to know Amber and get a slice of the pie.

But these people obviously didn’t know that during the planetary administrator’s speech, Amber’s favorability toward them had already dropped into the negatives.

Or rather, from the very beginning, he had no fondness for these capitalists who hid in the rear, only knowing how to scheme for more money.

After this group of people hit a wall with him one after another, they also realized that this ‘outsider’ didn’t seem to have much interest in them.

Even at this point, they still believed that Amber’s attitude was mainly because Atlas looked down on their local enterprises.

Soon, the crowd that had surrounded Amber like hyenas quickly dispersed.

Just because they were rebuffed by Amber didn’t mean they had no other avenues to make money from the reconstruction projects.

So these wealthy merchants quickly pulled aside some officials from the star system’s autonomous government, gathering in small groups to begin their discussions.

Isabelle naturally noticed Amber’s displeasure, so she took his arm and walked him over to the hall’s window.

“Oh, you…”

The young miss of the Imperial nobility looked at her lover, smiled and shook her head, then leaned in and gave him a light kiss on the cheek.

“Amber, you just rest here for a bit. It looks like it’s time for this lady to take the stage~”

“What are you going to do?”

“See that group of ladies over there?” Isabelle lifted her chin and gestured toward a group of lavishly dressed women in the distance.

But Amber, ever true to his nature, had his gaze travel right down her slender neck and slide into a deep valley.

When she realized that this guy was still as improper as ever, even in this state, Isabelle pinched his arm in annoyance.

“You, honestly.”

“Ahem. What about that circle of wives?” Amber scratched his head in embarrassment, pulling the topic back.

“I did some research before coming, so I recognize them. They are all the wives of high-ranking officials and plutocrats in the Loubion star system government.

I know you’re unhappy, but if Atlas wants to put down roots on Loubion V in the future, we will need to deal with these local power brokers, at least in the initial stages.”

Isabelle turned around, pressing herself tightly against Amber, and then placed his large hand on her waist.

“But I don’t want to deal with those pot-bellied men either, and I know you’d definitely get jealous, so I’m planning to start with their wives.”

“Are you sure you can handle it? The situation in the Federation is different from your Empire, after all.”

Amber whispered in Isabelle’s ear, his big hands unable to resist caressing her.

He didn’t know what material Isabelle’s evening gown was made of, but it felt quite intoxicating to the touch.

“Don’t worry. The topics between women are timeless; they don’t change just because of national borders.”

With those words, Isabelle pulled away.

Then, under Amber’s watchful eye, she integrated herself into ‘the wives’ circle’ at a ridiculous speed and took control of the conversation, leading the rhythm of the chat.

The frequent bursts of laughter made people around them glance over from time to time.

With nothing to do, Amber leaned against the window, observing everyone at the reception from the perspective of an onlooker.

Soon, he spotted a familiar face in a corner.

Franklin Abraham, the intern from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s Senate, was also at the reception today, brought by the Speaker of the Senate—Administrative Deputy Sam.

During the submission of their combat report, the special operations team had made a special point to report the deeds of the group of young people led by Franklin.

Banninger had also specifically emphasized that the location of the first communication node the special operations team infiltrated was provided by Franklin.

Therefore, the Senate intern had also been commended and promoted by Sam to serve by his side. It could be said that his future was limitless.

However, at this moment, the young man stood in a corner of the hall, looking somewhat lost.

Watching the government dignitaries and business elites clinking glasses and mingling at the reception, he felt as if he didn’t belong.

And Planetary Administrator Alex’s earlier speech, coupled with the surrounding crowd’s discussions on how to profit from the reconstruction projects, made this ‘Aspiring Republican’ doubt for the first time whether his chosen path of ‘politics’ was the right one.

“Franklin Abraham?”

Just as the young man was lost in his confusion, a voice sounded beside him.

He turned his head and saw a man whose temperament also seemed out of place at the reception, standing next to him.

And that face… he had seen it so many times in the news these past few days.

“Mr. Rebil! Hello, you know me?”

Amber looked at the young man before him and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Know you? I know you all too well.

The loaded name of Franklin Abraham, plus his classic ‘elite’ politician face, made it hard for Amber not to remember him.

But most importantly, was the young man’s role in the story—the future Federation President, although he would have to wait many years before making a bid for the presidency.

To be honest, Amber really hadn’t expected to run into the future ‘Mr. President’ here.

When Banninger and the others had reported it, he had initially thought it was just someone with the same name. It wasn’t until he saw the footage in the combat logs that he was certain he’d actually encountered him.

“No need to be so tense. I know you. The special operations team told me about you. You’re very brave. In my opinion, you’re more of a red-blooded man than most of the men in this hall.”

“You praise me too highly, Mr. Rebil. I just did a few insignificant little things.”

Amber’s words made Franklin feel a little embarrassed.

If he thought he was brave when he was leading his companions to harass Imperial troops, that feeling vanished after witnessing Banninger’s team, which had operated deep behind enemy lines.

That was when Franklin realized what a true man was.

Amber and Franklin, the two ‘outsiders’ at the celebration banquet, quickly started chatting.

In terms of age, Amber wasn’t actually much older than Franklin; they could even be considered peers, so they did have a lot to talk about.

And Amber’s ‘cosmic incubus’ constitution once again began to take effect.

Franklin didn’t know why, but after just a short chat, he felt that Amber was a trustworthy ‘fellow traveler’.

This made him unable to resist pouring out his feelings about the reception to Amber.

“This is supposed to be a victory celebration, but very few of the frontline soldiers who should be treated as heroes are actually here.

Instead, it’s filled with a large number of government officials and merchants. When the war broke out, what did these people contribute?

And the planetary administrator’s speech only devoted a small portion to the brutality of the battle and the sacrifices of the frontline soldiers.

Then he used the vast majority of it for post-war reconstruction and investment projects.

If that’s the case, then this party shouldn’t have been called a ‘Victory Celebration Banquet’ in the first place!”

Franklin grew more and more agitated as he spoke, and Amber, listening on the side, couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows.

He really hadn’t expected this kid to be so daring. If anyone else from the star system’s autonomous government heard this, they would definitely report him to the higher-ups.

At that point, his political career might come to an end before it even began.

“I agree with what you’ve said, but I must remind you, if you want to continue in politics in the future, you should try not to say such things in front of others.”

“I know, Mr. Rebil… but I wasn’t planning on continuing anyway. The gap between reality and my ideals is simply too great.”

Franklin lowered his head in dejection. The events of this period had clearly been a great shock to this rookie, even shattering his worldview.

Amber could imagine the impact on a young man full of passion to serve his country when he saw what his ‘country’ was really like.

“Thank you, Mr. Rebil. It was a pleasure and very enlightening to chat with you. I’ll be taking my leave now…”

Franklin gave Amber a slight bow, put down his wine glass, and turned to leave.

“What, you’re just going to leave like that? Since this country is so different from your ideals, why not try to change it?”

The young man stopped in his tracks.

Chapter 274: Franklin’s Awakening

“Change?”

Franklin turned to look at Amber and gave a self-deprecating laugh.

“What can I change? I’m just a nobody. Less than an ant, a mere speck of dust at most.”

‘His self-awareness is pretty on point,’ Amber thought, then said aloud, “You haven’t even thought about it in detail, nor have you taken any real action. How can you be so sure you can’t do it?”

“You’re quite the comforter, Mr. Rebil.”

Franklin took a glass of champagne from a passing waiter’s tray, walked over to Amber, and downed it in one go.

“I hear this champagne is quite expensive. You’re just going to chug it like that?”

Feeling dejected and conflicted, Franklin paid no mind to Amber’s jest. He set the glass aside and said, “An ordinary person like me… even if I truly try, even if I work hard and risk my life, how much can I really change?”

“A person’s destiny depends not only on their own efforts but also on the course of history,” Amber said in a level tone.

Hearing this, Franklin looked up at him, as if trying to read something from his expression.

But unfortunately, the latter’s control over his expression was impeccable; he maintained an emotionless, ‘professional smile’ from start to finish.

“What? Have you never heard that saying before?” Amber asked, seeing that Franklin remained silent.

“I have, I’m just not sure I understand what you mean.”

“That means when you think about these things, you’re focusing entirely on yourself. You’ve walked into a dead end.”

Amber found a nearby sofa meant for guests to rest on and sat down, gesturing for Franklin to sit as well.

“You certainly can’t change anything by relying solely on yourself, let alone changing this country. Or rather, it’s too difficult to achieve with individual power alone.

But if the broader environment is in a unique period, then there’s still hope.”

“Are you talking about the war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire?”

“You can take what I’m about to say as an unreliable prediction—this war is only a part of it, or perhaps just the beginning. The real ‘show’ is yet to come.”

Amber looked seriously at the young man who, in the game, would eventually ascend to the presidency, and continued, “If you can seize the opportunity and ride this tide of the times, the ‘change’ you’re thinking of might actually be achievable.”

Franklin fell silent. As he listened to Amber’s words, he began to recall the events of the past few days.

Soon, his eyes lit up. A tangled thread of thought in his mind unraveled, and Franklin quickly ‘convinced himself.’

He realized that ‘Mr. Rebil’ actually seemed to have a point.

If the Star Dragon Empire hadn’t declared war on the Federation, he would just be a rookie intern who had recently joined the Senate.

He wouldn’t have led a group of like-minded young people to harass the Star Dragon Empire’s invading forces after they took control of Ptolemy City.

If he hadn’t harassed the invaders with his comrades, he wouldn’t have met that special operations team from Atlas, much less told them about the nearby communication node.

If that special operations team hadn’t completed their mission, or if they hadn’t included his name and deeds in their report afterward, he, Franklin, wouldn’t have been commended today and brought to this Manor.

And if none of that had happened, the Speaker of the Senate and the Administrative Deputy of the Star System Autonomous Government would never have taken notice of him, and he wouldn’t have been taken under their wing.

Amber hadn’t expected that with just a few simple prompts, Franklin would complete the entire logical loop in his own mind.

He had only intended to encourage his dejected contemporary and get on good terms with the future president of the Federation ahead of time.

“You’re right, Mr. Rebil!”

“Huh? It’s fine, you can think about it more. What I said isn’t necessarily correct…”

“No, your words have been a wake-up call for me. ‘A person’s destiny depends not only on their own efforts but also on the course of history’—that saying is absolutely right.”

Amber looked on, a little puzzled, at the young man who had been utterly dejected one minute and was now ‘fully revived’ the next. He truly hadn’t expected Franklin’s ability to self-regulate to be so strong.

“Uh… as long as it helped you. What I said isn’t necessarily reliable, you know.”

“I’ve made up my mind. I can’t just give up halfway. I have to seize this opportunity.”

Although Amber didn’t know what had just gone through the young man’s mind, his sudden ‘awakening’ still caught him a bit off guard.

And Franklin’s next question was also something Amber hadn’t anticipated.

“Mr. Rebil, what about you? Are you and Atlas also planning to ride this ‘wave’?”

“Oh? Learned to turn the tables, have you?”

“Haha, it’s mainly because when I met your Atlas special operations team in Ptolemy City, they gave me a completely different feeling from anyone else.

Even when carrying out such a dangerous mission behind enemy lines, their morale was always high, as if they were driven by a sense of mission.”

Speaking of which, Franklin couldn’t help but recall the words Banninger had left him with when he left the safe house.

[We are Atlas, kid.]

With this in mind, Franklin continued to ask, “Mr. Rebil, what kind of company is Atlas, really? Why does it feel so completely different from other corporations?”

Faced with Franklin’s question, Amber couldn’t help but laugh. He really hadn’t expected the young man to ask something like this.

“First, from the most fundamental concept of a ‘company,’ we at Atlas are no different from any other corporation.

It’s a collection of owners, operators, employees, and other stakeholders, built on the foundation of ensuring a reasonable distribution of profits—to put it bluntly, my primary purpose in establishing Atlas was to make money, for no other reason.”

Amber’s blunt answer stunned Franklin for a moment. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Amber continue:

“Of course, on the premise that we can continue to make money and ensure no one’s interests are harmed, I don’t mind doing a few extra things…

Like ending wars, helping people ravaged by conflict return to their normal lives, making the world a better place~

Do you believe me?”

“I believe you,” Franklin said, his tone firm.

“Huh? I just said that offhandedly, and you believe me?”

To be honest, Amber was also surprised. He had thought it would take more effort to build a rapport with Franklin.

“Because I see something in you that’s different from others.”

“What is it?”

“I… I can’t put it into words. But this feeling tells me that you’re completely different from the Federation officials and those plutocrats.”

After saying this, Franklin took a few deep breaths, as if psyching himself up.

A moment later, he mustered his courage, looked at Amber, and said, “Mr. Rebil, if I really try to change the Federation as you suggested, can I have your… and Atlas’s support?”

The words Franklin had struggled to get out were met with only two cold words from Amber.

“Naive.”

Seeing the look of surprise and confusion on the young man’s face, Amber continued, “First, what we just talked about was merely a casual chat between two people who dislike the noisy atmosphere of a cocktail party. It can’t be taken as any kind of promise.

Second, and this is a personal piece of advice for you: whatever you want to do, if you’re already thinking about ‘seeking external support’ before you’ve even started trying, then there’s an eighty percent chance you won’t succeed in the end.

Lastly, and this is a very realistic point, what makes you think you can get Atlas’s support right now?

You’re nothing more than an intern in the Star System Autonomous Government’s Senate. You haven’t demonstrated any value yet. Why would you think Atlas would consider ‘investing’ in you?”

Amber’s words left Franklin stunned. Clearly, this ‘rookie’ hadn’t expected Mr. Rebil, with whom he’d been having such a good conversation, to suddenly say something so discouraging.

“Mr. Rebil, I…”

“It was very pleasant chatting with you, but let’s leave it here for today. I personally suggest you take some time to think things over.”

Amber stood up from the sofa, leaving him with one last sentence:

“If you truly want to make certain ‘changes’.”

While Franklin sat there stunned on the sofa, mulling over ‘Mr. Rebil’s’ recent words…

Amber had already taken the hand of Isabelle, who had just extricated herself from ‘the wives’ circle.’

“Whoa, you didn’t hold back on the drinks, did you?”

Looking at Isabelle, who was in a ‘tipsy’ state under the influence of alcohol, Amber couldn’t help but tease, “This champagne isn’t even that strong. Isabelle, are you a lightweight?”

“Hmph~ You’re the one who can’t handle it.”

Isabelle practically draped herself all over Amber, letting this lecher fully appreciate the softness of her body.

“I’ve performed a great service for you, you know.”

“What great service? Infiltrating that so-called ‘wives’ circle’?”

“More than that. I got all of their private account numbers. And the planetary administrator’s wife and the wives of several other high-ranking officials invited me to their afternoon tea party in a few days.”

“Okay, okay, okay, impressive, impressive, impressive~”

Amber said perfunctorily, then supported Isabelle as they walked toward the exit.

The rest of the victory celebration would mostly be networking and making connections, which didn’t interest Amber in the least.

After saying goodbye to Administrative Deputy Sam, he prepared to leave early with the clearly tipsy Isabelle.

Chapter 275: Boss, We Dug Up Something Weird

“Amber~ I wanna stick close to you~”

Inside the armored personnel carrier on the way back to the hotel, Isabelle clung to Amber, all sense of decorum gone.

To maximize capacity and ensure that soldiers in combat exoskeletons wouldn’t feel crowded, the standard folding seats in this type of APC were made rather small.

So, when Amber took a seat, Isabelle, who was plastered against him, was basically hanging off of him entirely.

Evening gowns were designed to accentuate the female figure, and since she was wearing pasties instead of a bra, Isabelle’s body pressing against his felt almost as if she were wearing nothing at all.

“If you can’t hold your liquor, you shouldn’t try to act tough. This champagne isn’t even that strong, and you’re already like this. I’m not letting you drink next time.”

“There are some engagements you’re not willing to attend, so doesn’t this miss have to step up? hic~”

Isabelle buried her head in Amber’s chest and nuzzled him, completely oblivious to the fact that, with Amber, she was playing with fire.

“You don’t have to go either. From now on, the Public Relations Department we’re putting together can handle it. The Romu are all pretty good drinkers; they’ll probably drink everyone else under the table at those events.”

As he said this, Amber suddenly realized that his spur-of-the-moment idea to form a Public Relations Department was actually quite feasible.

Although he still didn’t know the exact reason, all the Romu who had joined Atlas, both male and female, shared a single trait: an extremely high tolerance for alcohol.

On their last night of ‘recruit training,’ Montai, Tairak, and the first batch of Romu to complete it had drunk with their instructors, and they had managed to get Banninger and his whole team completely wasted.

Although neither the Federation nor the Empire had a so-called ‘drinking culture’ or a habit of discussing business over drinks—at most, they had receptions like today’s—the ability to hold one’s liquor was still necessary for a member of the ‘Public Relations Department.’

Clearly, Isabelle was not suited for such a position.

Watching Isabelle squirming in his arms, Amber sighed in exasperation and raised a hand, giving her perky, peach-like rear a smack.

Slap!

“Ah! You brute~ Amber, you hurt me~”

“No, I…”

Fortunately, there was no one else in the APC’s crew compartment, and the vehicle commander and gunner had tactfully shut off the internal communications after Amber and Isabelle boarded. Otherwise, the situation would have been truly impossible to explain.

Having come to the capital of Loubion V for the reception, Amber obviously couldn’t make it back to the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade’s camp that night—they had all arrived aboard a super-heavy military transport aircraft.

So, everyone, including the security detail, was arranged to stay at a hotel on the outskirts of the city for the night.

Administrative Deputy Sam had booked an entire floor for them and also prohibited any other guests from staying on the two adjacent floors.

The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government clearly held Amber and Atlas in high regard. They had even deployed two Capital Garrison battalions to provide security around the hotel.

After saying hello to the rest of the security detail and telling them to get a good night’s rest, Amber, amidst everyone’s teasing laughter, carried Isabelle into the hotel.

To be honest, Amber had been planning to have a good night’s rest and enjoy a long-overdue moment of leisure.

Unfortunately, a champagne-drunk Isabelle was like a completely different person.

Usually more ‘passive,’ tonight she was like a goddess of war.

From the moment they entered the room, she began to get handsy with Amber, constantly breathing hot air into his ear.

Under the circumstances, if Amber could still restrain himself, there would truly be something wrong with him.

Ten thousand words later, the large bed in the executive suite also successfully produced a cream puff.

——

After cleaning up the already sleeping Isabelle and tucking her into bed, Amber took a quick shower himself.

After a dual ‘release’ of both body and mind, he now felt completely refreshed and clear-headed.

Furthermore, with his Psionics having advanced to the fifth level, the strange energy was subtly transforming his body, making him more energetic and reducing his need for sleep.

“Looks like another sleepless night. Is this some kind of exclusive constitution for a ‘996’ work schedule? Turns out all psionic users are born to be a wage slave, is that it?” Amber, sitting at the desk in the executive suite with a mind that felt incredibly clear, grumbled to himself.

But he had no intention of wasting time just sitting there. Since he couldn’t sleep, he might as well handle some recent Atlas matters that required his attention and think about some future plans.

With the end of hostilities on Loubion V, Atlas could now be said to have connections on both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire sides.

This was especially true with the Star Dragon Empire, where he had a direct line to the Regent Prince.

This forced Amber to consider updating his plans, as many parts of his previous strategy hadn’t accounted for the current situation.

Just as he was about to get to work, Lilith’s voice, sultry to the bone, spoke in his mind:

“Master~ Come to the virtual space. I want you to make a cream puff out of me too~”

“Be serious. Stop acting crazy.”

“Hmph, how does Master know I was going to talk business?”

“Duh. You ‘live’ in the processor in the back of my head every day. How could I not know?”

At this, Amber couldn’t help but add a few more words: “By the way, the server array inside A·Bawa·Ku is up and running now. Why is your main self still staying in my processor every day? I’m honestly afraid you’ll have a massive computational load one day and blow my brains out.”

“It’s because I can’t bear to leave you, Master. I just love this feeling of being one with you, you in me and me in you. Don’t worry, Master. The main computations are handled by the server array. I won’t blow your brains out~”

“Sigh… all right. Let’s get to business.”

Amber rolled his eyes. Although Lilith had started having these ‘crazy’ moments ever since he modified her meta-instruction, he had to admit that the strong AI had been indispensable in getting him to where he was today.

“Then I’ll get right to business~ Master, Atlas Mining just sent an urgent message, and they used the experimental ‘image and text transmission’ line.”

As Lilith spoke, a miniature holographic projection device unfolded on the desk in the room, which was now completely under her control.

The urgent message from Atlas Mining was then projected.

The title was a simple sentence—‘Boss, we dug up something weird!’

And the picture at the very top of the message instantly made Amber’s eyes widen.

It was a photo taken by a mining mule’s sensor. The background was clearly a tunnel dug deep inside an asteroid.

Considering that the primary job of the Atlas Mining team was still excavating A·Bawa·Ku for its future role as the Asteroid Base, the photo was almost certainly taken inside this very asteroid.

As for why Amber was so shocked upon seeing the photo, the reason was simple.

Because the object in the picture, a regular hexadecahedron buried deep within the asteroid, now fused with the surrounding rock, was imprinted with the ‘three nested rings’ symbol that Amber knew all too well.

This meant it was a creation of the Forerunners.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

After blurting out this nonsensical line that only he could understand, Amber couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

In fact, after leaving Robert IV and settling down for the time being, Amber had been searching for traces of the Forerunners.

But unlike in the game world, where a great deal of information had been uncovered by countless players, it seemed that humanity in this world knew very little about the Forerunners.

The occasional records he found that mentioned the ‘Forerunners’ were nothing but vague, mystical nonsense of no value.

If a series of subsequent events hadn’t temporarily pushed the ‘Forerunners’ to the back of his mind, he probably would have had Lilith hack into some major archives.

But now, something related to the Forerunners had just popped up right in front of him.

Moreover, not long ago, during the nuclear crisis, he had experienced a flash of ‘precognition’—an ability only the Forerunners should possess.

Now, a short time later, another Forerunner-related object had been dug up in the distant asteroid belt.

And it just so happened to be in the very asteroid Amber planned to use for his Asteroid Base.

Such a coincidence made Amber both curious and wary.

After all, even in the game, plot quests, dungeons, and ruins related to the Forerunners only appeared after players had reached a high level.

Although these quests, dungeons, and ruins could yield powerful Forerunner equipment and technology, they were also invariably linked to keywords like ‘extremely difficult’ and ‘high risk’.

According to the official lore, the Forerunner civilization was a super-advanced civilization that existed a million years ago, their technology and psionic levels having developed to a point unimaginable by modern humans and elves.

But such a powerful civilization had suddenly vanished overnight.

If not for the occasional discovery of some ruins and artifacts, humans and elves would never have even known that this ‘ancient civilization’ had ever existed.

“What a coincidence.”

Amber carefully examined the regular hexadecahedron in the photo. After a quick search of his memories, he finally reached a conclusion.

This thing was a ‘Large-scale, Growable Refining Apparatus’ left behind by the Forerunners after they disappeared from the universe.

Chapter 276: Mining Efficiency +1000%

“What a find.”

Amber looked at the image of the regular hexadecahedron buried deep inside the asteroid and couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

“Master, I didn’t expect you to recognize something even I don’t know the origin of.”

Lilith asked with some curiosity. Ever since she was unsealed and connected to the internet, she had been in a constant state of learning and information gathering.

After developing ‘cloning’ and ‘quantum entanglement communication technology’, her learning efficiency had taken a quantum leap.

Aside from knowledge that was physically isolated, blocked, and not exposed online, she had at least some understanding of everything else. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call her a constantly updating encyclopedia.

So when Amber showed that he recognized the regular hexadecahedron, the strong AI still found it quite novel.

“What, you’re not convinced?”

“How could I ever be unconvinced by you, Master~” Lilith switched to a sickeningly sweet, high-pitched voice that made Amber shudder involuntarily.

“It’s just that… Master seems to have more and more secrets. As expected of the man Lilith has her eyes on!”

On the holographic projection device in front of Amber, Lilith’s virtual avatar suddenly popped its head out.

“Ah~ I just love this feeling of having Master’s secrets all to myself (^_-)~”

“Stop fooling around for now. When I’m done with business, I’ll make time to accompany you in the virtual space. Let’s get back to the matter at hand.”

Amber raised a hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. He found that Lilith had been getting clingier lately, with everything she did revolving around ‘Master Love’ as the core motivation.

For Amber, having such a powerful AI assisting him, who also wanted to pull him into the virtual space to be affectionate all day, was definitely a good thing.

However, Lilith’s sudden ‘freak-outs’ were sometimes a bit much for Amber to handle.

“So, Lilith, you should know about the Forerunners, right?”

“Yes, Master~ According to the data I’ve collected, whether it’s the human Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the Commercial Alliance, or the elves’ Thousand Stars Empire, none of them know much about the ‘Forerunners’.

Everyone’s understanding of this ancient civilization is limited to the fact that they were ‘very powerful, but disappeared overnight, leaving only a few ruins behind’.”

As Lilith spoke, she displayed some images she had stored on the holographic projection device—ruins of the Forerunners discovered by humans.

Looking at the images and research reports Lilith showed, Amber nodded. At least humanity’s current research on the ‘Forerunner civilization’ was more or less consistent with the plot he remembered.

Although quite a few ruins had been excavated over the past few decades and centuries.

However, aside from ‘Ruin 0’ on the human home world where the Warp Engine was discovered, most of the other ruins were dilapidated and held little value beyond letting humanity know that such a powerful civilization once existed.

Due to the long-term lack of ‘valuable returns’, officially supported exploration and excavation efforts from the Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and even the Commercial Alliance became increasingly rare.

In the end, only a few specialized research institutes, foundations, and other private organizations were still conducting continuous research on the ‘Forerunner’ civilization.

Thus, the efficiency of exploration and research output in this area also dwindled.

The trend of exploring the ‘Forerunner civilization’ didn’t truly resurface until after the players had been playing the game for two expansions.

The developers at the time had introduced a storyline to bring in the ‘Forerunner civilization’. Amber vaguely remembered it involved a duchy within the territory of the ‘former Star Dragon Empire’, which had split into several duchies, excavating a ruin.

As it turned out, the ruin contained a massive and complete production line for a Drone Legion, covering small and medium-sized Forerunner warships for space, as well as unmanned combat puppets and combat machines for ground warfare.

Naturally, this duchy’s power expanded rapidly, and it began to suppress its neighboring factions. This was followed by the quintessential ‘Drone Legion kills its masters and rebels’ storyline.

Then, unsurprisingly, the entire duchy became the first massive, guild-level raid of that DLC.

For the first time in the game, players came face to face with a Drone Legion of the Forerunner civilization, and consequently, the major guilds got beaten half to death trying to clear the content.

If the reason players struggled so much against the Drone Legion Lilith brought back in the first DLC was mainly because they hadn’t been playing for long, their overall strength wasn’t very high, and only a few top guilds could even assemble a fleet…

…then in this DLC, getting thrashed by the Forerunners’ Drone Legion again was purely a matter of being overwhelmed by sheer power.

After two DLCs of development, the strength of the various guilds was on a completely different level. They could even go back to the first expansion and crush Lilith’s Drone Legion head-on without any issue.

But Lilith’s Drone Legion was, after all, a product developed based on the human technology she had stored. In essence, it involved using infinite clones to control a massive number of unmanned vehicles, and it didn’t technologically surpass human capabilities by much.

The Forerunners’ Drone Legion was completely different—it was pure high-end Forerunner technology.

Not to mention the fully automated resource-gathering equipment and the production lines for weapons, equipment, and combat machinery, which provided a continuous supply of reinforcements.

From the lowest-tier combat puppets to enormous floating battle fortresses and warships, all were equipped with combat AI appropriate for their level, making the tactical execution of these Forerunner Drone Legions far superior to that of ordinary human or elven armies.

Coupled with the existence of black technologies like anti-gravity, energy shields, real-time star system scanning, ancient stealth technology, and energy weapons available even at the individual soldier level.

After a long period of growth, the coalition of player guilds, who had been confidently declaring they would ‘meet at the summit’, were sent scrambling in defeat by this Forerunner Drone Legion on the very first day of battle.

Moreover, according to the lore, the Drone Legion was only considered an ‘auxiliary force’ in the Forerunner civilization’s order of battle.

After the battle that day, due to the difficulty, the official forums were flooded by players to the point that they had to go into temporary maintenance, essentially hanging up a ‘truce flag’ and playing dead.

This was because many of the guilds’ fleets had been painstakingly paid for by rich players, only to be completely wiped out in a single battle.

After reminiscing about these ‘past events’ from the game, Amber was filled with a myriad of emotions.

Lilith, noticing Amber had been silent for a while, waved her hand in front of his eyes.

“Master? Why did you zone out while talking to me? Are you already tired of Lilith’s virtual avatar?”

“No,” Amber shook his head, of course not admitting that he had just zoned out. “I was just wondering how we suddenly came across a device left by the Forerunner civilization.”

“So, Master, you really do recognize this thing?” Lilith asked curiously.

“Yes. Its full name should be the ‘Adaptive, Self-Aware, Self-Organizing, and Expandable Large-Scale Extraction and Refining Core’.”

“In layman’s terms, it’s a self-managing resource extraction and refining factory that can continuously expand its scale.”

“Moreover, the resources it handles aren’t just traditional ores and metals. It can also extract resources that humanity currently lacks the ability to harness.”

“Doesn’t that make it a ‘resource-gathering special advantage’?”

“Mmhmm. If we can get this thing running, we could mine out the entire asteroid belt that A·Bawa·Ku belongs to in less than twenty years. Atlas Mining’s production capacity is about to skyrocket.”

Amber looked at this ‘resource-gathering special advantage’ buried in the asteroid and couldn’t help but marvel that after a lifetime of bad luck in the game, he had finally gotten lucky after being transported here.

Or perhaps, the workers in his mining team had the Midas touch, to be able to find something like this in the asteroid belt.

At the same time, Amber realized he actually had memories of this ‘resource-gathering special advantage’ hidden in the asteroid belt.

This Large-Scale Extraction and Refining Core was introduced concurrently with the expansion pack that released the ‘Forerunner civilization’ storyline. And there was indeed more than one of them in the game.

Due to its powerful resource extraction capabilities, the major guilds were buying them up at high prices, driving the price on the player market to an incredibly astronomical figure.

If a small-scale player adventuring party or exploration team could find the coordinates of one, they could basically achieve ‘financial freedom’ within the game.

This also meant that most teams that discovered one of these Large-Scale Extraction and Refining Cores during their adventures ultimately fell apart due to infighting and backstabbing.

‘When this item appears, brotherhood ends.’

This phrase was the best description for this Forerunner product.

And back then, among the player guilds mining in this asteroid belt, there was one whose mining area included the asteroid ‘A·Bawa·Ku’.

They were originally just an ordinary small guild, but one day their mining efficiency suddenly skyrocketed. In the days that followed, they used the profits from mining the asteroid belt to expand their fleet, annex neighboring player guilds, and eventually grew into a top-ranking, super-large guild.

At the time, many believed the key to this guild’s success was a player they had recruited from elsewhere, one with an incredibly high ‘Refining’ skill level and excellent bonuses to mining team command.

However, a portion of the player base thought this reason was far-fetched and believed there must be another cause.

But now that Amber thought about it, it was eighty percent likely that they had dug this thing up from inside an asteroid.

Now that this thing had fallen into his lap, he had to accept this unimaginable wealth, no matter what.

“So, Master, do you know how to use this thing?”

“I’m not sure if I know how, but I can give it a try. I should be able to figure something out.”

Amber paused, then continued:

“Reply to the mining team in my name. Tell them to guard this thing and wait for my return to handle it. Also, lock down all information and don’t let anything related to it leak out.”

“It’s about time I made a trip back anyway. I can take the young psionic users back to the Tower of Babel at the same time. Allenita said she’s already helped find an elven psionic master to teach them.”

“Master Yoda?”

“Huh?”

“I watched an ancient movie a while ago with a similar plot. There was an elf named ‘Master Yoda’ who trained young, promising Jedi Knights…”

Lilith said, her eyes shining. She had recently become obsessed with watching human movies and TV shows, blazing through practically all of humanity’s film and television works at a rate of one every three seconds.

“Er… now that you mention it, it does sound a bit similar. But the elven master Allenita found should be a little different from Master Yoda, right?”

Chapter 277: Amber’s Suggestion

Amber had always been the impatient type. After waking up with Isabelle in his arms the next day, he decided that after taking care of a few minor things, he would make a trip back to the Tower of Babel in a few days.

After all, the fighting on Loubion V and throughout the entire Loubion star system was now over. The pirates that had recently emerged in the system were being hunted down by various corporations, spurred on by a bounty from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

So, once the autonomous government settled the final payment for the ‘military services project’, Atlas’s work on this planet was temporarily concluded.

It wouldn’t matter if he left now.

As for the post-war reconstruction project on Loubion V?

A ‘professional team’ had been assembled from a group of people with ‘engineering contracting’ experience, drawn from the Financial Operations Department.

They were currently en route to the Loubion star system, along with the personnel of the ‘Atlas Engineering Construction and Development Co., Ltd.’—a company formed by merging several newly acquired engineering firms. Their estimated arrival was in about ten days.

They would take full charge of the subsequent planetary reconstruction project, responsible for negotiating with the autonomous government, liaising with other partner companies and suppliers, and coordinating the overall construction plan.

This plan, originally proposed by Lilith, to recruit these masters who had their epiphanies under duress from the ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison, had so far been more successful than Amber could have ever imagined.

While Amber was running around, the Financial Operations Department had struck hard in some of the border systems between the Federation and the Empire, unleashing a financial storm that, to outsiders, seemed to come out of nowhere.

This financial storm not only allowed Atlas to accumulate a vast amount of funds but also provided the capital to continue acquiring other key enterprises.

What was most outrageous was that the news of Atlas Group’s mass recruitment of ‘masters of duress-born epiphany’ had somehow spread throughout the ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison.

“I heard that guy who was in the same cell block as you is working for Atlas now.”

“Only those with ability and value receive an invitation from the Atlas Group upon their release.”

“Did you know? Atlas is a hub for elites now. Holy shit, you can just grab any random person from their Financial Operations Department, and they used to be a professional manager or a president of a major corporation. And now they’re all happy to stay there.”

“It’s true, it’s the talk of the prison lately. The Atlas Group’s Financial Operations Department is on a killing spree in the border systems. No one in the capital markets can stand against them.”

When such news replaced political headlines to become the most popular topic of conversation within the ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison, the name Atlas instantly became a ‘holy land’ that everyone yearned for.

Those who were about to be released counted down the days, nervously wondering if they would receive an invitation from Atlas upon their release.

As more and more news came back that people had successfully received an invitation from the company on the day of their release, many inmates even began ‘rehabilitation’ exercises on their own initiative. Whenever it was their time for outdoor recreation, they would choose to study in the prison library.

Some ‘extremists’ even believed that if they didn’t receive an invitation from Atlas after leaving prison, it would mean that everything they had accomplished in the first half of their lives had been completely invalidated.

The prison guards and management were also baffled by this situation.

The warden, who had been managing this prison for thirty years, said it was the first time he had ever seen a ‘learning storm’ sweep through the space prison.

Naturally, the news of Atlas’s recruitment frenzy at the ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison couldn’t be hidden from other companies.

Soon, some enterprises that thought they had ‘figured it out’ also came to the space prison’s gates to recruit, mimicking Atlas’s approach.

Compared to the Atlas Group’s unchanging configuration of ‘one elf HR and two Romu bodyguards’, these companies were far more ostentatious.

They often had a large group of people holding grand ‘release celebration’ ceremonies outside the prison gate’s security zone, supplemented by signing bonuses and offers of houses and cars, acting like a flock of male peacocks in a courtship display.

They were even warned by the prison authorities multiple times.

But even so, the holy land in the hearts of most released prisoners was still the Atlas Group.

They would firmly refuse invitations from these other companies, then nervously wonder if Atlas’s HR would approach them.

Of course, some with weaker wills would choose to join other companies.

But this, in turn, helped Amber and his team screen out a batch of unsuitable candidates. The actions of these individuals after joining other companies also made those companies’ leaders so full of regret that they were kicking themselves.

While Atlas’s ‘Engineering and Construction Investment Project Group’ arrived on Loubion V to begin their work, the Atlas mixed combined arms brigade would also remain on Loubion V for a period.

Aside from the ashes of the fallen soldiers, which would be taken away, the rest would continue combat training on the planet for some time, as well as conduct joint exercises with the rebuilding garrison.

At the same time, a portion of the officers would provide guidance during the rebuilding process of the garrison.

This was an ‘additional project’ that the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had discussed with Amber after the battle.

Clearly, anyone with eyes could see that the combat effectiveness of Atlas’s troops was leagues above that of other forces.

With their help, and multiple joint exercises, the quality of the newly established forces could be improved, one way or another.

Regarding this ‘additional project’, Amber’s reply was also very concise and clear:

“No problem, but it’ll cost extra.”

A dozen or so days later, while the ship carrying Amber and his group back was still in warp, the ship carrying Perseus, the Special Envoy of Regent Prince Norton II, had already returned to Imperial territory.

At this moment, the Regent Prince himself, along with his chief advisor, Astral, had arrived at a border spaceport in advance, ready to discuss the cooperation project with Atlas with Perseus as soon as possible.

As the ship slowly glided into the spaceport, Perseus found himself frequently recalling the details of his private conversation with Amber, as well as the unique, ultra-long-range communication technology that Atlas possessed.

He had compiled the specific details of their discussion into a fairly detailed evaluation report over the past few days, which he would use to report to Norton II during his audience.

Honestly, from Perseus’s personal perspective, even if the Regent ultimately rejected this cooperation, he himself might not be able to resist secretly having his own family become a client of Atlas.

After all, this real-time, cross-system communication technology was simply too outrageous for the current era.

Any enterprise that mastered this technology would have the ability to crush its competitors in terms of information gathering and intelligence transmission.

Fortunately, the Regent Prince also recognized the importance of this technology and was not willing to abandon cooperation with Atlas simply because he couldn’t completely control it.

Perseus could even imagine that on the very first day of their official cooperation, the Regent Prince would definitely have his team begin reverse-engineering this epoch-making technology.

However, these matters were not Perseus’s concern. Right now, he just wanted to complete his report smoothly and then deliver a ‘gift’ entrusted to him by Amber to the Regent Prince.

Yes, a gift.

Just as Perseus was about to board his ship, Amber had also come to the port to see him off, entrusting him with a gift that he hoped could be passed on to the Regent Prince.

This ‘gift’, from its appearance, was a small metal box.

According to Amber, it contained a message he wanted to communicate to Norton II alone.

Amber did not specify the decryption method for this metal box; he only told Perseus that it was a group of dates.

Any attempt to crack it would cause the contents of the box to be immediately destroyed, and there was only one chance to enter the password.

If what the Regent Prince wanted to do was consistent with Amber’s speculation, he would surely be able to enter the correct date.

However, if he entered it incorrectly, it would mean that Norton II had no need to see this message, and its contents would be automatically destroyed.

“Making it so mysterious… if His Excellency the Regent Prince gets it wrong, that would be quite the spectacle.”

Taking a Day Off for Moving

To all my readers, my apologies. I’ve been busy moving all day and just finished. There’s simply no way for me to update today.

I will make up for the two chapters missed today, along with the two I missed last month, in the coming updates.

Readers who have been following along will know that I’m also getting married this year, so it’s been an incredibly busy time for me.

My main job, writing part-time, wedding preparations, and renovating our new home.

I know that stopping updates is a terrible thing for an author to do, but it’s genuinely difficult to keep up while writing part-time. I’d rather take a day off than churn out a few thousand words of filler just to avoid a hiatus and cheat you out of your subscription fees. So, I have no choice but to ask for a day off.

You don’t have to worry about me dropping the novel. I’ve already finished the outline for the rest of the story. Besides, this book’s success has been beyond my wildest dreams as a new author. With the royalties right there in front of me, there’s no way I’d walk away from it.

Again, my sincerest apologies for taking a day off today!!!

Please, roast me!!!

Chapter 278: The Gift

“Lord Perseus, thank you for your hard work.”

Inside a conference room in the border spaceport, which was under a complete security lockdown, Regent Prince Norton II looked at Perseus, who sat opposite him.

Upon his return, the Special Envoy had declined the Regent Prince’s suggestion to rest first, heading straight for this conference room without doing anything else.

“Sir entrusted such an important matter to me. I will serve you tirelessly without complaint,” Perseus replied respectfully.

If any outsider were to see this man, one of the top three figures among the Empire’s aristocratic capitalists, assume such a posture, they would be utterly shocked.

However, if they saw who was sitting opposite Perseus, it would all make sense.

The Regent Prince. Ah, that explains it.

This, you see, was the power of one of the two key figures in the current landscape of the Star Dragon Empire.

“I must say, acting as your Special Envoy and traveling secretly into Federation territory to negotiate face-to-face with the head of Atlas was a truly unforgettable experience.”

“Oh? It seems your ‘journey’ has left you with a deep impression, Lord Perseus.”

Norton II smiled and personally poured Perseus a soothing hot drink. “Tell us about it. After our long-distance communication earlier, Lord Astral and I have been eagerly awaiting your return to hear of your experiences.”

“Indeed. If I hadn’t been dealing with other matters at the time, I certainly wouldn’t have given this opportunity to you,” Astral, who was sitting to the side, said with a nod of strong agreement.

“Hahahaha, since you both are so eager, please listen as I recount the tale.”

Perseus, who had already organized the details of his trip, opened a pre-prepared illustrated report. With clear logic, he highlighted the general process and the key points within it.

This included the exact nature of the relationship between the Atlas Group and the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire, the combat effectiveness of Atlas’s subordinate combat units, the current situation within the Federation, details about Atlas’s director, Mr. Amber, and the long-range real-time communication technology—all matters of great concern to the Regent Prince and Astral.

As Perseus recalled his experiences, he grew more and more excited, especially when speaking of the ‘long-range real-time communication technology’ that Atlas now possessed. He made no secret of his belief that this technology would be revolutionary.

For a full two hours, Perseus spoke fluently and without pause, not even taking a sip of water, clearly explaining everything that needed to be prioritized.

As Perseus narrated, the expressions of both the Regent Prince and Astral shifted from their initial relaxed demeanor to slightly furrowed brows, and finally to silent contemplation.

Evidently, the conclusions Perseus drew from his direct observations of Atlas were even more complex than what they had pieced together from previous intelligence analyses.

“It seems sending someone to establish contact with Atlas truly was the right decision.”

After Perseus finished, the Regent Prince was the first to speak, not forgetting to add another word of praise.

“And sending you, Lord Perseus, was also the right choice.”

“You flatter me, Sir.”

A silence then fell over the small conference room.

Clearly, the things Perseus had just described had sparked many thoughts in the minds of all three men.

Although Perseus had spent his days on the cruise ship provided by Atlas, going nowhere and at most reading local media news and gathering information from Skadi and other Atlas personnel, he had managed to unearth a great deal of valuable intelligence from these public channels.

Often, intelligence isn’t obtained through 007-style infiltration; in fact, more than ninety percent of intelligence is gathered through other means.

And while Perseus, as an aristocratic capitalist, was more adept at family management and business operations, his abilities in intelligence gathering and analysis had always been recognized by both Norton II and Astral.

Astral had even once joked that Perseus might be better suited for a job at the Central Intelligence Division.

After the silence in the room had lingered for a moment, it was Norton II who spoke first.

“Same as always, let’s state our opinions one by one.”

“Then let’s stick to the old rule, Sir. You first,” Astral said with a smile.

“You,” Norton II shook his head, took a small sip from his cup to wet his lips, and began.

“After hearing Lord Perseus’s account, I feel our previous assessment of Atlas was a bit too conservative. According to Lord Perseus, the combat units of Atlas’s private military company heavily utilize the Romu from the Thousand Stars Empire as their main fighting force. They are also issued fully customized combat gear and are said to have their own production system for combat vehicles. In a ground engagement, their forces would basically crush all current units of a similar level. Even against the Empire’s most elite brigade combat teams, under equal support conditions, they would likely be evenly matched.”

At this point, a conflicted expression appeared on the Regent Prince’s face.

He found it all too ridiculous. If it hadn’t come from Perseus’s own mouth, he would have thought it was a joke.

A private military company’s combat force running roughshod over the regular army, and even being able to fight the most elite regular troops to a standstill.

“And the most crucial point—the battle on Loubion V was merely the ‘first battle’ for Atlas’s ground forces. It’s clear that this company is still developing. As long as they maintain their current momentum and increase development and investment in their combat forces, they will only become stronger in the future. Although their fleet seems rather shabby at the moment and is restricted by various nations’ regulations on private companies, preventing them from deploying ‘capital ships’, I am confident that once Atlas has fully matured, such restrictions will be nothing but a piece of scrap paper to them.”

“I completely agree with your assessment.”

Upon hearing the Regent Prince’s evaluation of Atlas, Perseus spoke up.

“Based on my meeting with the head of Atlas—that is, Mr. Amber—I could sense that he is an ambitious man. A man like that would never let a chain stay around his neck for long. It won’t be long before he finds a way to break free.”

Recalling the real-time communication technology he had experienced at Atlas, Perseus paused for a moment before continuing.

“And then there’s the ‘real-time communication technology’ that they exclusively possess. If Atlas can maintain a monopoly on this technology, the profits from it alone would be completely incalculable. These profits will, in turn, be funneled back into the group’s other industries. Moreover, that Mr. Amber seems completely unconcerned about this technology being reverse-engineered after cooperating with us. This demonstrates that they have absolute confidence in their own technology.”

Perseus fluently expressed his views. Although the Regent Prince’s faction now seemed on the verge of cooperating with Atlas, in Perseus’s opinion, the head of this company, Amber, was clearly not some harmless, ‘honest businessman.’

Therefore, they had to be prepared with a countermeasure. Once Atlas grew to a scale that no one could control, it could very well become a new rival to the Regent Prince’s faction.

“‘No eternal friends, no eternal enemies, only eternal interests.’ I believe this is what Lord Perseus wishes to express,” Astral concluded after hearing Perseus’s speech.

Perseus nodded. “Correct. Atlas’s head, Amber, will not remain an honest entrepreneur forever.”

“On that point, I have already had some thoughts,” Norton II said. “At the next internal meeting, I will specifically discuss my plans in this regard. In short, I agree with Lord Perseus’s view. Our cooperation with Atlas is destined to be temporary.”

Norton II, who had been lost in thought, looked up at Perseus, his tone changing.

“Lord Perseus, didn’t you say that this Mr. Amber prepared a special ‘gift’ for me?”

“Yes, Sir. I was planning to present it to you after concluding my report.”

Perseus took out a small box that had been hastily printed on the ship and handed the small metal case inside to the Regent Prince.

“According to Mr. Amber, if what you wish to do is the same as what he imagines, then simply entering a specific date will open this metal case and reveal the information inside.”

“A Riddler, is he?”

Astral was taken aback by such a bizarre opening method. “If there’s truly something important inside, what happens if you fail to open it?”

“The contents will be immediately erased.”

“Dammit… are you sure this thing isn’t a mini-bomb?” Astral’s brows knitted together. In his eyes, the unknown metal case had suddenly become very dangerous.

“You can rest assured on that point, Sir. I had the security department scan it. They said no explosive materials were detected.”

“Haha, this Mr. Amber is quite interesting.”

After studying the metal case for a long time, Norton II finally looked at its front, where a row of small number tumblers had appeared on the surface.

“Sir, this Mr. Amber’s stance is currently unclear; he seems to be neither friend nor foe. Coupled with his past identity as a rogue spy, I think you should be more cautious,” Astral advised.

“It’s fine. At least up to this point, I have felt no hostility from him. And regardless of whether this thing opens or not, it will at least tell me how much this Mr. Amber truly knows about me.”

Regent Prince Norton II calmly looked at the metal case in his hands. Without much thought, he began to turn the number wheels one by one.

1-8-2-5-1-2-1-4

Click!

The case opened.

Chapter 279: Don’t Be Hasty

Whoosh x3

The three people in the room all let out a breath almost simultaneously, the tense, anxious atmosphere instantly dissipating.

Astral couldn’t help but tease his childhood friend when he saw his expression.

“Sir, didn’t you just say ‘it’s fine’? How come you were gasping for air right along with Lord Perseus and me?”

Perseus, on the other side, began to laugh as well, feeling a tinge of envy for the advisor who had grown up with Norton II.

Although Norton II had a decent temper and treated his non-erring subordinates well enough, Astral was the only person he had ever seen speak to him in such a way.

“No, I wasn’t afraid it would explode.”

Norton II took a translucent thin sliver from the metal box. It was a light-sensitive chip used to store hard-coded information.

Because it was incapable of recording complex information, in an age where electronic viruses were rampant, it had ironically become an extremely secure container for information.

“It’s because this historical date has two versions, the Russian calendar and the Western calendar—December 14th, 1825, and December 26th, 1825.

“I entered the Russian calendar date, so for a moment there when it was opening, I was worried that this Mr. Amber had set it to the Western calendar date.”

Norton II placed the light-sensitive chip on the conference room table. It was quickly read, and its contents were projected.

Perseus and Astral took the initiative to sit on the other side of the room. Before leaving, Astral even activated the ‘anti-snooping’ mode for Norton II.

“There’s no need for that,” Norton II said, looking at the two men who had moved to a distance.

“Please, Sir, you read it first,” Astral said with a smile. “If you feel the information within can be shared with us, it won’t be too late for us to see it then.”

As the Regent Prince’s advisor, he was well aware that there were some things he shouldn’t be too eager to look at.

“Alright, then. You two can rest for a bit. You’ve been discussing for a long time.”

Norton II was noncommittal about their actions. He turned his attention to the ‘gift’ before him—a passage of text sent by Amber.

“Your Excellency, the Regent Prince, if you are reading this message, it means the ‘path of struggle’ you wish to take aligns with my speculation.

“That being the case, you must be well aware of the reasons for the failure of the Decembrists in history.

“Judging from your various arrangements and actions so far, you have fallen into the same trap as those predecessors—over-relying on the so-called elite class within the Empire and hoping to achieve your goals quickly through purely military action.

“Against this backdrop, you sent people to contact us at Atlas, seeking support for real-time communication technology. This was clearly not just to enhance the communication capabilities of the forces under your command.

“Rather, it was because you realized you were facing the same difficult problems that the Decembrists once encountered.

“Therefore, you were drawn to this technology’s ability to disseminate information over a vast area, hoping to stir the thoughts of the common people throughout the Empire, and in doing so, gain the support of the largest demographic.

“Ultimately, you hope that this will of the people will completely ignite all the territories of the Star Dragon Empire.

“Regrettably, the war your country launched against the Federation to vent domestic pressure, while successfully diverting some conflicts, was still a decision lacking in planning and foresight.

“Currently, your country’s Expeditionary Strike Group and strategic fortress are still within Federation territory. However, anyone with a slight understanding of the current situation of both warring parties can easily see that your expeditionary fleet has already lost its ability to continue the offensive.

“If the Federation can make full use of their ‘home-field advantage,’ it’s questionable whether your country can even hold onto the few star systems it has already taken.

“Launching a military coup rashly amidst internal and external troubles will definitely be fraught with risk. The slightest misstep could lead to catastrophic consequences.

“Based on the above, from a personal standpoint, I advise you not to be hasty.

“Rather than recklessly launching a coup when the road ahead is unknown, it would be better to postpone the ‘final moment’ you have set.

“This would allow the ideological tide among the populace to ferment for a longer period while you accumulate more strength, and then, at a suitable time in the more distant future, you can complete your ‘great undertaking.’

“To help you achieve this, allow me to sincerely recommend the Atlas Group’s latest annual subscription plan for our ‘Premium Edition’ ultra-long-range real-time communication service.”

Reading this, Norton II finally understood what it meant for “the dagger to be revealed when the map is unrolled.”

“Heh… this guy’s map of Yan is quite long.”

“Sir, what did you say?”

The two men on the other side of the desk were caught off guard by Norton II’s sudden remark.

“Hahahaha, I was just saying this Mr. Amber is a true merchant. Take a look.”

Norton II tapped a few times on the desk’s virtual keyboard, and the holographic projection device displayed the contents of the light-sensitive chip in front of the other two men.

From the very first sentence of the message, the expressions on Astral and Perseus’s faces turned grave.

With each line they read, their brows furrowed a little more.

By the time they reached the final part, even Perseus’s face had grown tense.

“Sir, is there a mole?”

Astral looked up, his expression grim as he faced Norton II.

In that instant, the advisor’s attitude toward Atlas and Amber changed completely.

If Astral had been contemplating cooperation with Atlas before, now his mind was filled with only one thought: how to make Amber disappear from the world.

He had never imagined that this ‘merchant’ so far away in the Federation would know about the Regent Prince’s coup plan and its associated ‘operational details.’

It was as if he had been present at the secret meetings, watching the Regent Prince’s team of advisors formulate the plan with his own eyes.

“No… I don’t think this is the work of a mole. If there really were a mole who could leak so much, then we might as well give up now and go home.

“Besides, there are quite a few discrepancies in the details of what this ‘Mr. Amber’ has said. So, I suspect these are his own deductions.”

Norton II spoke calmly, seemingly completely unfazed by this ‘gift’ from afar.

“How is that possible?!” Astral’s eyes widened. He clearly thought the Regent Prince’s explanation was too far-fetched.

“But that’s the truth. He was quite accurate in his deductions of the general direction, and he even guessed the gist of my next steps. Hahaha, he’s quite impressive, isn’t he?”

Norton II laughed self-deprecatingly. “This is the universe for you, a new surprise every day. Amazing, isn’t it?”

“Sir, that’s a ‘fright,’ not a ‘surprise.’”

A cold glint flashed in Astral’s eyes. He was no longer in any mood for jokes.

Their faction’s ‘grand plan’ had been almost entirely figured out by an outsider. To him, this was nothing short of a horror story.

“Should we strike first to gain the upper hand, before this escalates and the information spreads too widely?”

“And how would you do that? Send assassins?

“Setting aside the fact that he operates within the Federation and the Thousand Stars Empire, just finding him would take a considerable amount of time.

“And even if you could find him, do you think an ordinary assassin could take out this psionic user?”

Norton II shook his head, rejecting the low-probability plan.

“Actually, the reason this Mr. Amber had Lord Perseus bring back this ‘gift’ is quite simple. He even wrote it out directly.”

“He wants us to postpone the coup and, at the same time, hopes we’ll buy their services?” Astral said, a little uncertain.

“Exactly.”

“I understand the second point, but the first… what’s in it for him?”

“Hmph, what’s in it for him?” Norton II let out a cold laugh. “His ambition is great. He wants a piece of the pie in this chaos.”

“But does he have the ability?”

“He just might.”

The moment Norton II said this, Astral immediately recalled all the things Perseus had reported after his return and quickly grasped the key point.

“I understand, Sir. He does have the ability, but only if he and Atlas are given time to develop.”

“Correct. That is the deeper meaning behind his ‘gift.’”

“Master, are you really planning to cooperate with the Regent Prince?”

On a spaceship heading to the Tower of Babel, Amber, who was handling some company affairs, suddenly heard Lilith ask this question in his mind.

He naturally hadn’t hidden the matter of ‘preparing a gift’ for the Regent Prince from Lilith, and the strong AI had always been curious about his motives.

“No, I don’t plan to cooperate,” Amber answered calmly.

“Then why did you have Perseus bring the Regent Prince the ‘gift’ you prepared?”

“First, it’s a waste not to take business that comes knocking.

“Second, I do want the Regent Prince to delay his coup, to buy Atlas a larger window of opportunity.”

Amber stopped his work, leaned back in his chair to relax, and continued, “In the coming war between the Empire and the Federation, including the chaos that may erupt within each of them in the future, there will be no such thing as allies. Or rather, I never intended to bind myself to any side.

“Because I don’t trust any external power, I don’t plan to ally with anyone. At most, they can become clients of Atlas.”

“Master, you’re so greedy. So you need enough time to develop, to give Atlas the strength to back its dealings with all sides?”

Lilith’s tone was filled with awe. It was clear she was taken aback by Amber’s greedy ‘play both sides’ strategy.

“Fortune is found in danger, Lilith~” Amber shook his head.

“To be honest, Atlas isn’t exactly a legitimate enterprise. If we want to grow quickly, we must have the courage to pull chestnuts out of the fire.”

“Heh, whatever you say… So, how do you plan to handle the invitation from Princess Agnes?”

“Tsk… now that’s a problem.”

Chapter 280: The Princess’s Storyline

Before receiving the message from the Tower of Babel, Amber truly hadn’t expected the Princess of the Star Dragon Empire to take the initiative to have her people contact Atlas.

To be honest, he had never intended to start the ‘Princess’s storyline’ so early.

In other words, he hadn’t planned on getting involved with the two titans of the Star Dragon Empire, the Regent Prince and the Princess, so soon.

According to his initial idea, he was definitely going to take the route of ‘lie low and build up strength, then shock everyone’.

The collaboration with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government was an unexpected boon, and it gave Atlas the opportunity to extend its tendrils into the Federation’s territory.

Although it might have been a bit ahead of schedule, it was at least still within Amber’s plans.

However, the Regent Prince’s and Princess’s factions proactively contacting Atlas was outside of Amber’s plans. While it wasn’t enough to throw him off his game, it did disrupt his original strategy.

“Master, it seems even you didn’t expect Princess Agnes to contact you on her own.”

Using the holographic projection device in the cabin, Lilith floated around in the air, occasionally treating Amber to some “absolute territory” or “blue and white striped” fan service.

She was a natural at it.

Isabelle was still asleep in another cabin, so the strong AI was being a bit audacious.

“I really didn’t expect it. Although the company has been through a lot recently, I didn’t think it would be enough to attract the attention of Her Highness the Princess.”

Amber pinched the bridge of his nose. A lot had happened recently, and some of it had been far too intense.

His nerves had been constantly on edge, and only now, when he was alone, could he relax a little.

Although he was still quite tired, seeing the various acquisitions Atlas Group had completed, the recent cash flow statements, and the current capital reserves on the company’s account was incredibly therapeutic.

As a veteran ‘hoarder’ player, watching the cash in the company’s account grow was a very healing experience.

But the thought that this money would soon be transferred out again, converted into newly purchased industrial production equipment and assembly lines for Atlas, or used for the expansion of the mining and naval fleets, as well as the constant replenishment of various combat equipment for the ground forces, made Amber sigh.

He then consoled himself, “It’s fine. This money isn’t gone; it’s just with me in another form.”

“Master? What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing. Where were we?”

“Master, you were just saying that you didn’t anticipate this situation. So, how do you think the Imperial Princess found you?”

Lilith’s question made Amber fall silent. It was clear the question had sent him into deep thought.

“Atlas currently doesn’t have large-scale operations within the Empire, nor have we published any public contact information. So, it’s highly likely that someone ‘pulled the strings’ for this.”

“Pulled the strings? But we shouldn’t have many acquaintances in the Empire, right?” Lilith asked, tilting her head as she floated in mid-air in a rather unbecoming posture.

“We really don’t have many acquaintances, which actually helps us narrow down the scope.”

Amber tapped his index finger lightly on the tabletop, saying a name with each tap.

“Isabelle’s dad, Jonathan Ahrens; her uncle, the Imperial Minister of Finance Jacques Fanco; and the Timler family, whom we beat into submission… The only ones capable of pulling the strings are these three.”

Incidentally, the Timler family, which had been soundly beaten by Atlas in the ‘Battle of the Three Stooges,’ was a case in point.

When their Head of the family, Ryan Timler, returned to his family’s fiefdom after the battle, he still harbored thoughts of revenge.

But shortly after, his illegitimate son rebelled, just as Amber had predicted.

With his other former allies sitting back and watching, Ryan Timler remembered the words Amber had spoken to him. With the mentality of having nothing left to lose, he sent a distress message to Atlas.

And he received Atlas’s ‘heavenly soldiers’ just before his Manor’s outer defenses were completely breached.

After Randall arrived with the garrison fleet and a batch of newly trained Romu soldiers, assisting the Timler family in annihilating the rebels as easily as chopping melons and cutting vegetables, the Imperial Viscount’s attitude towards Atlas and Amber changed completely.

Providing aid in a time of need is far more effective than adding icing on the cake.

Through the maneuvering of the others stationed at the Tower of Babel, the Timler family successfully became a hidden ‘bridgehead’ for Atlas within the Empire.

They also became one of only three parties within the Star Dragon Empire that could directly contact the Atlas Group.

“But out of these three, I estimate the Ahrens family is the most likely, since on the surface, they still belong to the ‘Princess Faction’.”

“Then, Master, what do you think Her Highness Agnes’s motive is for suddenly seeking you out? Is it just because we’re close with Miss Isabelle and the Ahrens family behind her?”

“No, it’s definitely not that simple.”

Amber shook his head and continued:

“I have a bold guess, but I probably won’t be able to verify it anytime soon.”

“What is it?”

“Considering the intense mutual infiltration between the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction, it’s highly likely that Princess Agnes already knows the Regent Prince has sent people to contact us at Atlas. In that case, I believe they will also quickly find out which powers within the Empire have ties to Atlas. When they discover this, they will naturally consider contacting a ‘third party’ like us to prevent the Regent Prince from gaining intelligence outside of their control through a deep collaboration with us.”

Amber laid out his thoughts in one breath, then added:

“Of course, this is just my personal speculation. We probably won’t know the real reason until we make contact with the ‘Princess Faction’.”

“So, Master, do you plan to meet with the people from the Princess Faction?”

“No, I won’t meet them for now. Let Skadi and the others make contact first. Let’s leave them hanging for a bit, drag it out, and sound them out at the same time to see if we can get any key information.”

“Understood, Master!”

Lilith saluted from mid-air and prepared to issue the command in Amber’s name.

At this stage, Amber often gave a general directive, leaving it to Lilith to fine-tune it and issue it as a formal written document.

If he had to do this work himself, Amber estimated he would have to spend a great deal of time adjusting the document’s formal phrasing.

But for Lilith, it was the work of a moment.

However, Amber stopped her this time.

“Wait, send it out in a bit.”

“Is there anything else to instruct, Master~”

“Our ‘automated information gathering network’ within the Star Dragon Empire has been gradually established. Have we acquired any important information? For example, about Her Highness the Princess’s movements.”

The ‘automated information gathering network’ Amber referred to was a network composed of numerous communication nodes deployed in the unmanned deep spaces of the Empire’s various star systems, based on Lilith’s ‘cloning’ and ‘quantum entanglement communication’ technologies.

These unmanned nodes were gradually deployed, taking advantage of the Yuge family’s cargo fleet’s voyages throughout the Empire.

They were not only a crucial part of the quantum entanglement communication network but also served to gather information from public networks across the Empire’s various star systems.

Sometimes, the ‘Lilith clones’ deployed within these unmanned nodes would even conduct ‘active’ information gathering on specific targets.

This massive amount of information would be screened and processed in the server array at the Asteroid Base (currently under construction), ultimately becoming highly credible and usable intelligence.

“Yes, Master~”

Lilith’s virtual avatar performed a nimble twirl in the air, then landed in front of Amber and began to report on recent intelligence, presenting accompanying images and videos through the holographic projection device.

Through her narration, the recent situation within the Star Dragon Empire unfolded before Amber’s eyes like a moving scroll.

The old Emperor, who had long been tormented by illness, had now completely withdrawn from public life, staying in the Grand Palace in the Capital, “not concerning himself with worldly affairs.”

There were even outrageous rumors circulating that “the Emperor may have already passed away.”

However, such rumors were successively debunked after the government released some recent photos of the old Emperor.

At the same time, the rumor-mongers, after being apprehended, were directly executed on charges of ‘spreading seriously false rumors, endangering the normal operational order of society’ and ‘offending the Throne, a great disrespect’.

On another front, although the ‘Bloody Tuesday’ incident had been completely suppressed under the guidance of the Empire’s official public opinion, those T3-class star systems in the border regions already had their own problems. When the Regent Prince’s pre-placed pawns ‘made a move,’ situations similar to what happened on Vendée VI began to appear one after another.

Although the subsequent secession crises in these star systems were nowhere near the scale of Vendée VI’s, they would still cause major trouble if left unchecked.

Faced with this situation, Agnes’s approach was simple—divide these commoners, then execute the ones who stuck their necks out.

According to the intelligence Lilith received, in situations where riots broke out, the Imperial Princess also employed ‘armed riot control’, strictly adhering to the ‘carrot and stick’ principle.

First, she used a ‘combo’ of armed riot control, information blockades, and public opinion guidance to stabilize the situation.

Then, she addressed the demands of the majority in an attempt to win back the will of the people.

Finally, she eliminated the minority, completing the purge of the separatist forces.

Under these maneuvers, the Star Dragon Empire, which had seemed on the brink of great chaos, had recently been showing a trend toward stability.

Chapter 281: The Forerunner’s Illusion

Although the situation in the Star Dragon Empire had seemed to stabilize recently, Amber knew it was merely a temporary suppression brought about by Agnes’s iron-fisted crackdown on the separatists.

If Regent Prince Norton II truly decided to postpone the ‘final moment,’ the Empire’s situation might even take a turn for the better.

But Amber knew this was only temporary.

The Regent Prince’s temporary dormancy didn’t mean he would reconcile with Agnes; rather, he was gathering strength for a future attack.

Because of the irreconcilable conflict between their different ideologies, these two representatives of ‘capitalist revolution’ and ‘feudal autocratic rule’ were destined to have a decisive battle that would determine the future of the Empire.

After discussing the recent changes in the Empire’s situation, Lilith shared another piece of news with Amber.

The clone that Star Dragon had lost within the Empire’s borders—LLS943823—had recently been located now that the information-gathering network was established.

“This one’s been doing quite well recently. Although we can’t directly exchange data, I can still get a rough sense of this ‘clone’s’ condition.”

Speaking of her lost clone, Lilith sounded a bit helpless.

Although she had now mastered quantum communication technology, getting the clone to learn this ‘skill’ required a data exchange for a ‘version upgrade’.

But LLS943823, of all clones, had gone completely silent, as if someone had locked it away.

The prolonged inability to exchange data had made this clone the only ‘outlier’ that hadn’t completed its upgrade and couldn’t communicate with the main body in real time.

Although Lilith had been incredibly busy traveling all over with Amber, she had never given up the search for her lost clone.

And now, based on the last message sent back by LLS943823, Lilith had reverse-engineered its location at the time and obtained the hull number of the ship it was on.

Combined with some intelligence unlocked bit by bit later on, LLS943823’s location was finally becoming clearer.

“So, you’re saying that this ‘clone’ that lost contact with you, the main body, is now in some secret test star system of the Star Dragon Empire?”

“That’s right, Master!” Lilith nodded her head like she was pounding garlic.

“And there’s a good chance this ‘clone’ has already infiltrated the ‘test subject’ in that system, and this ‘test subject’ is ninety percent likely to be the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress?”

“As expected of Master, you figured everything out so easily from my intel.”

For a moment, Amber didn’t know what to say. He looked at Lilith, who was grinning cheekily at him, and asked:

“So what do you think this clone of yours is busy with in there?”

“Mmm… although we always call them ‘clones,’ they’re really just Lilith, no different from me. If it were me in there, I’d probably try to seize control of the Artificial Celestial Fortress without a second thought.”

“Emm… that does sound like you.”

How did Amber feel after hearing this news?

First, he was undoubtedly happy. After all, an Artificial Celestial Fortress was a ‘legendary piece of equipment’ capable of annihilating entire fleets.

But given Lilith’s ridiculously erratic personality, Amber was also worried that the LLS943823 clone would stir up some major trouble inside.

But since it had already happened, Amber could only accept it for now and figure out how to solve any problems when they actually arose.

Several days later, in the UD74290 asteroid belt, several warships dropped out of warp in a flash of white light.

In the end, Amber didn’t return directly to the Tower of Babel. Instead, he chose to head straight to the mining area to check on the Forerunner artifact buried in the asteroid belt.

Randall, who hadn’t seen Amber in a long time, immediately started with a round of complaints about his long-term assignment in the asteroid belt.

But he was just grumbling. When it was time to get down to business, the former Federation Navy officer was all seriousness.

Soon, he and George, the ‘mining foreman’, led Amber and the others to the ‘A·Bawa·Ku’ Asteroid Base, which was currently under construction.

After riding a centipede-like manned maintenance robot through tunnels dug by these machines, crawling inside the asteroid for a long while, the group finally reached their destination.

Just like in the photos Randall and the others had sent, the regular hexadecahedron was quietly ‘embedded’ in the rock wall.

With the surrounding rock walls and mineral deposits cleared away, many spotlights had been set up, allowing Amber and his group to see the entire regular hexadecahedron.

However, it was much larger than Amber had imagined. Only half of it had been excavated so far; the rest was still encased in rock.

“Boss, we’ve conducted preliminary scans of this thing, but it doesn’t react to any standard instruments. All we know right now is that this big guy’s major axis is around eight hundred meters.”

George, who was in charge of coordinating the asteroid belt mining operations, said this while standing next to Amber, clad in a bulky asteroid work suit with armored plates.

For him, digging up something like this in an asteroid was quite a shock.

“When we first started working on this asteroid, we did a comprehensive scan. We did detect this thing back then, but we mistook it for a relatively concentrated metal deposit inside the asteroid.

It wasn’t until we dug deeper that we realized it wasn’t a metal deposit. So we sent in the ‘Rock Serpent’ excavation robots and mining mules to dig further, and that’s when we found this.”

“You guys have some incredible luck.”

Amber patted George’s shoulder, feeling deeply impressed.

“Huh? Why do you say that, sir?”

“Because this thing is a divine mining artifact left behind by an advanced, super-ancient civilization called the ‘Forerunners’.”

Amber’s answer left George completely stunned. As a miner whose ‘life path’ had been planned since birth, he had indeed never heard of the ‘Forerunner civilization’.

It wasn’t just him; even Randall and the others looked puzzled.

Amber wasn’t surprised by their reaction.

Whether in the Federation or the Empire, the education of the lower classes had always focused solely on their ‘assigned’ jobs.

Obscure knowledge like the ‘Forerunner civilization’ would never appear in their textbooks.

“It’s fine, it doesn’t matter if you don’t know what it is. You just need to know that it can increase Atlas Mining’s extraction and refining efficiency by at least tenfold.”

“Ten… tenfold?!”

George’s jaw dropped in astonishment upon hearing this.

He knew Atlas Mining’s current extraction and refining efficiencies better than anyone in the entire company.

After absorbing the Timmler Mining Company and continuously adding more mining engineering vessels, the scale of Atlas Mining’s teams was on a completely different level than before.

And this high-quality mining area, free from disturbances, allowed Atlas Mining’s teams to operate at maximum efficiency.

To increase mining and refining efficiency tenfold under these circumstances?

George suddenly found that he couldn’t even imagine what that would look like, let alone the impact it would have on the surrounding ore trading market.

While he was still stunned and bewildered, Amber had already pushed off the rock wall and started floating toward the regular hexadecahedron.

“Boss! Be careful! Let the robots go first!”

Seeing Amber approach it just like that, everyone called out, trying to stop him.

But Amber didn’t stop. He waved a hand without looking back, signaling them to stay calm, and continued to float slowly forward.

As he got closer, Amber noticed that the surface of the giant regular hexadecahedron was exceptionally smooth. Despite being buried deep within the rock and recently subjected to the jarring effects of mining machinery, it still had a ‘mirror-like’ quality.

The transitions at its edges and corners were perfectly natural, without the slightest flaw or any sign of seams, as if it were integrally molded from some unknown, super-strength material.

Under everyone’s nervous gazes, Amber cautiously placed his palm on the surface of the regular hexadecahedron and released a psionic wave.

Soon, the internal structure of the regular hexadecahedron appeared in his ‘mind’s eye’.

Completely different from the seamless exterior, the interior of the regular hexadecahedron contained an extremely complex network of conduits and expandable node structures, crisscrossing the entire space like blood vessels and a skeleton.

This level of ultra-precise manufacturing, which completely surpassed humanity’s current technological capabilities, was in a sense one of the hallmarks of the ‘Forerunner civilization’.

Just as Amber was about to perform another ‘psionic wave scan’ to find the device’s core,

The regular hexadecahedron, which had been like an immutable piece of ancient rock, suddenly seemed to come alive. A series of sounds from structural changes echoed from within, causing the surrounding rock walls to vibrate along with it.

Amber, being the closest, didn’t even have time to tell the others behind him to evacuate before he felt his consciousness being violently pulled away.

When he came to his senses, he found he was no longer in the asteroid cave.

Instead, he was amidst the ruins of a city.

He looked down at himself and saw that he was no longer wearing his exoskeleton, but ordinary clothes.

Amber’s first reaction was to suspect he had transmigrated again.

But a subconscious feeling deep in his mind told him this wasn’t transmigration, but that he had ‘entered’ an illusion.

Before he could process what was happening, the city ruins before him ‘came to life,’ as if someone had pressed a play button.

Raging fires erupted from the building wreckage, and panicked screams echoed all around, interspersed with the sounds of numerous explosions and weapon fire.

At the same time, hordes of panicked civilians fled from the buildings and surrounding streets, appearing as if they had been there all along.

These civilians ignored Amber’s presence, passing right through him one by one before vanishing at the other end of the street.

“Vvvvmmmmm.”

A deep rumble came from the sky.

Amber looked up and saw several massive warships appearing in the sky above the burning city.

Beams of energy shot down from the warships into the city, setting off even larger explosions.

Amber watched the giant warships strafing from the sky. Their style was completely different from that of human or elf warships.

They were not the angular, cold, iron behemoths of humanity, nor were they the biomechanical vessels of the Thousand Stars Empire’s elves.

Instead, they possessed a style that was a seamless, non-contradictory fusion of the classical and the technological.

Based on their appearance alone, they more closely resembled the regular hexadecahedron buried in the asteroid.

“My god… could these be Forerunner warships?”

Chapter 282: Familiar People

Throughout his career in Starry Sky Online, Amber had never seen a real Forerunner warship in the game.

The ‘Forerunner Drone Legions’ that served as enemies in large-scale guild raids were indeed Forerunner creations, but as they were classified only as ‘auxiliary legions’, they were vastly different from the true Forerunners.

The developers hadn’t released much background lore about this civilization; what little existed was hidden within the game’s storyline for players to discover themselves.

And yet, some veteran lore enthusiasts, after seeing just a few fragments, could tell at a glance that this ‘Forerunner Civilization’ was a hodgepodge stitched together from a slew of science fiction game settings.

Even so, up until Amber transmigrated, players had only discovered some ruins and artifacts; none had ever seen a living Forerunner, let alone their ships or warships.

They had only seen scenes of what appeared to be Forerunner warships ‘scorching the earth’ on stone carvings and murals of unknown origin.

These scenes, and the uniquely shaped ships depicted in them, perfectly matched the scene unfolding before Amber’s eyes.

“So these are really Forerunner warships… Why are they attacking the city on the ground? Are these fleeing people human?”

Amber watched the ship suspended in the sky, pouring firepower onto the ground, and the crowds of people scattering in all directions.

After confirming that what he was seeing was just an illusion and that he was merely a ‘spectator’, Amber’s initial panic subsided.

Anyway, he should, possibly, most likely be unharmed, so there was nothing to be afraid of.

Right?

Amber started walking, and upon discovering his body seemed unrestricted, he broke into a run.

Not knowing when the illusion might suddenly end, he decided to see as much as he could while he had the time.

As the streets filled with people and vehicles fleeing into the distance, Amber became the only one going against the flow, and he also noticed that those scattering weren’t entirely human.

There were also tall, handsome elves with their signature pointed ears.

“Hmm? These elves are actually living together with humans? That must create so many half-breeds.”

Before Amber could finish his gripe, he heard a series of urgent roars from behind him.

Immediately after, several massive black silhouettes streaked past high above him, meaning he was no longer the only one moving against the flow on this street.

Amber looked at these giant black shadows; they all had humanoid structures similar to an HCP.

But compared to the mainstream ‘small head, big body’ design style of human HCPs that Amber was familiar with, these ‘humanoid giants’ had proportions closer to a nine-head body ratio, making them look more like actual humans.

And now these towering steel giants, with long blue trails jetting from the thruster arrays on their backs, were arranging themselves into some kind of combat formation and charging toward the ‘Forerunner warships’ wreaking havoc in the sky.

The weapons in their hands were a motley collection, which indicated from the side that this unit’s logistics system was already in serious trouble.

At the same time, from other areas around the city, squadrons of these HCP-like units rose from the streets between buildings.

As they launched their assault, they were accompanied by attacks from a large number of ground-to-air fire support units. Beams of light, lines of ballistic fire, and missiles flew ceaselessly toward the warship, as if they were free.

The charging steel giants constantly and nimbly adjusted their positions and assault routes, ignoring the intercepting fire from the aerial warships and relentlessly attacking the massive targets before them with the weapons in their hands.

For a moment, Amber could even see a spirit of ‘fighting to the death’ materializing in the charge of these steel giants.

Unfortunately, their attacks seemed to have no effect other than to stir up some blue, rippling waves on the surfaces of the ships.

Looking at the steel giants at the forefront of the formation, then at the warships in the sky, steady as mountains, Amber had a feeling that something was about to happen.

And just as this thought flashed through his mind, several beams of light suddenly swept out from the large warships that were being targeted.

In the next moment, these seemingly infinite ‘beam swords’ effortlessly swept through the path of the advancing steel giants.

The moment they were hit, the ‘giants’ lit up with a shield-like glow, but these shields lasted for less than a moment under the beams’ firing before disintegrating.

Following the trajectory of the beams across the sky, a chain of explosions erupted in the air.

The wreckage of the steel giants burned, spun, and plummeted, and the tremendous crash as they hit the ground became their final ‘roar’.

Amber did a quick scan. Of the HCPs that had just flown over his head, more than half had been swept away by these what he assumed were defensive beams, leaving only two still struggling to charge forward.

But they didn’t last much longer. With fewer targets to intercept, the defensive beams were able to concentrate their fire on them.

The last surviving steel giant displayed incredible skill, dancing through this ‘deadly rain of light’ as it broke through the final stretch of distance.

But its mechanical arms and propulsion units had already been severed by the beams during its advance, and it had few weapons left.

In this final moment, it resolutely turned itself into the ultimate weapon, crashing straight into the ship like a comet.

Perhaps even a god, if one existed, could not bear to see their attack be in vain. As the steel giant transformed into a massive plasma fireball, the warship’s shield faded away in a ripple of blue light.

The next second, even more ferocious attacks erupted from all corners of the city, pouring all their fury onto the warship like the city’s last gasp.

When a thick, blue-white beam pierced through the warship’s midsection, the massive vessel finally lost control and began to fall toward the ground.

But even though the city’s defenders had given their all, they had only managed to destroy this one warship.

And within Amber’s line of sight, there were still four more such warships in the sky, attacking the ground.

Amber quickened his pace, his entire body moving like the wind through one street after another.

Mutilated corpses, the burning wreckage of combat vehicles, and the steel giants that had fallen between buildings…

The frequency of these ‘sights’ increased rapidly as he got closer to the center of the battlefield, until they were almost everywhere.

But strangely, he didn’t see any of the enemies that should have been on the battlefield.

However, before he had time to think about this, he saw a hastily constructed forward command post around a corner in the distance.

In this Forward Command Post, which was practically under the enemy’s nose, soldiers were constantly coming and going, and troops were always moving out toward the city’s core.

From the city center, which Amber couldn’t see, the sounds of fierce battle never paused for a moment, as if the fight was endless.

Amber walked into this distinctly human-style forward command post and found that although the officers inside were moving with hurried, anxious steps, their faces remained calm.

The operations staff officers stared intently at the electronic sand table, constantly running impromptu simulations.

Meanwhile, the communications staff officers and support staff officers were at their terminals, speaking rapidly with the people on the other end of the line, occasionally letting loose a curse or two.

“The Elven Royal Court’s guard has rendezvoused with the Second Assault Group. The last few operational Imperial Silencers will also join the fight. They will attack the enemy’s ‘Landing Zone’ again in five minutes. Do we have any long-range fire support available?”

“None left. The last attack used up all our ammunition reserves for self-propelled artillery, rockets, and tactical missiles. After the mobile ammo production center on the city’s outskirts was hit by a precision strike three days ago, our supply was cut off.”

“Fuck! Without long-range fire to weaken the enemy’s defense field, their assault is going to be in deep trouble!”

An operations staff officer who looked like a Romu slammed his fist on the electronic sand table, causing the image displayed on it to shudder.

“Stop hitting it. This is the last electronic sand table we have. If you break it, we’ll have to go back to drawing by hand and use city planning maps from decades ago to command.”

“How about dropping an orbital defense platform on them? It’s lost its attack capability, but if we can control its descent, we could achieve the effect of an orbital strike!”

“No, there are too many variables. If it ends up landing on our heads, the fight’s over for us.”

Just as the operations staff officers by the electronic sand table were caught in their dilemma, a communications staff officer on the other side dropped his terminal, and then collapsed to the ground himself.

Several of his nearby colleagues were quick enough to catch him, preventing the communications staff officer from falling completely.

“What happened?”

“Rear Admiral Murat and Rear Admiral Louis were killed in action during the last assault… It was Admiral Murat who detonated his unit’s mini-fusion reactor at the end. That’s what destroyed the enemy warship’s shield…”

The moment he heard those two names, Amber felt his heart skip a beat.

He had never expected to hear familiar names in this illusion.

The same names? Could it be such a coincidence?

Just as this thought flashed through Amber’s mind, he saw a burly figure walk in through the command post’s entrance.

He looked closely and saw a wolf-headed man in a combat exoskeleton, carrying an electromagnetic machine gun.

On the shoulder plate of his exoskeleton was a spray-painted symbol that Amber found exceptionally familiar: the insignia of a general officer in the Atlas military ranking system.

“Admiral Hog! What are you doing at the Forward Command Post?!”

“That’s right! It’s too dangerous here, Admiral Hog! Please return to the rear!”

When the operations staff officers saw the wolf-headed man, they all rushed forward to dissuade him.

And in this ‘wolf-headed man’ admiral, Amber also saw a familiar shadow.

“Hmph. What rear? This is the final battlefield!”

Admiral Hog’s tone was grave, but just as he was about to say more, he looked in Amber’s direction.

In that instant, Amber felt as if that gaze pierced through time and landed directly on him.

And the eyes of this fierce-looking wolf-headed man grew misty in that same moment.

A voice filled with surprise, disbelief, and confusion—but also a flicker of hope—reached Amber’s ears.

“Boss?!”

Chapter 283: Dark Prophecy

“Boss?!”

Amber blinked. Before him was George’s slightly anxious face, seen through the visor of his exoskeleton.

Behind him, Randall and the other personnel were also looking at him with concern.

Their surroundings were the dark, lightless interior of the asteroid, its illumination maintained entirely by a large number of artificial light sources.

And next to him was still that massive regular hexadecahedron.

Wait, what just happened? Wasn’t I on a battlefield?

A battlefield? No, that’s not right. There’s no battlefield here.

Amber came to his senses, recalling everything that had just happened.

He had come with Randall, George, and the others into the asteroid’s interior to investigate this newly discovered Forerunner artifact.

Everything had been smooth and normal, but the moment he infused the object with Psionics, he was pulled into an illusion.

Within this illusion was a city being attacked by what appeared to be a ‘Forerunner fleet.’

The forces protecting the city seemed to be engaging these Forerunners, but the disparity in their strength looked quite large.

After paying a heavy price, they had managed to destroy only one warship.

But that wasn’t the main point. The main point was the ‘keywords’ Amber had heard in the illusion.

A joint assault force composed of the Elven Royal Court Guard, the Second Assault Group, and the Imperial Silencers?

Murat and Louis, promoted to Rear Admiral but killed in action during the assault?

And there was also Hog, the Romu, who seemed to be the Commander-in-Chief of the battle, and his final glance that seemed to pierce through time itself.

Amber suddenly realized that he had just experienced some kind of dark, apocalyptic prophecy.

“What just happened to me?” Amber asked the people before him.

Hearing Amber’s question, George replied, “We don’t know either. It was as if you lost consciousness while standing. No matter how we called out to you, you didn’t respond, so we had no choice but to rush over.”

“How long did that last?”

“Probably for several seconds. We were so focused on rushing to check on you that we didn’t pay attention to the time.”

Amber instantly recalled his experience on Loubion V.

Back then, he had also entered a state of viewing a ‘dark future.’ Though it felt like a long time to him, to others, it had only been a few seconds.

“Lilith, did you notice anything unusual just now?”

“Master, the same thing that happened on Loubion V just happened again. I couldn’t sense your presence for several seconds,” Lilith’s concerned voice echoed in Amber’s mind.

“I tried calling out to you as well, but it was as if you couldn’t hear me, Master. You didn’t react at all.”

Lilith’s words sent Amber into a thoughtful silence.

The situation was now clear. All the evidence pointed to both of Amber’s ‘absences’ being linked to the mysterious ‘Forerunner civilization.’

If it had been like the first time on Loubion V, where he was assisted in escaping a difficult situation through a method akin to ‘foreseeing the future,’ Amber might have been quite happy about gaining another ‘power-up.’

But what had just happened, and the scene within the illusion, left him completely unable to feel any joy.

It was obvious that in the illusion, the ‘Forerunner civilization’ had become the enemy. Under the assault of this powerful foe, humans and even elves had begun to fight side by side.

Even the formidable Elven Royal Court Guard had joined with other forces to prepare for an assault, which clearly indicated that the situation had reached its most critical point.

The Elven Royal Court might have even been completely wiped out; otherwise, the Royal Court Guard would never so easily leave those they were sworn to protect.

Furthermore, the familiar names and faces in the illusion felt like they were telling Amber that ‘all of this is destined to happen.’

And Hog’s final look in his direction gave Amber the sense of a power that transcended time itself; he felt as if the wolf-headed man had truly ‘seen’ him.

Was that really an illusion? A question arose in Amber’s mind.

It wasn’t that he was overthinking things, but the information players had dug up in the game, along with the quests they had experienced, were almost all cryptic and filled with esoteric elements like ‘the entanglement of past and future.’

“Boss, should we pull back for now? From what just happened, this… uh… ‘Forerunner civilization’s’ artifact doesn’t seem very stable,” George said, scanning their surroundings.

Amber nodded in agreement and was about to lead the team out.

But just then, the regular hexadecahedron, which had fallen silent and ceased activity, began to move again.

This time, its surface rapidly unfolded. Simultaneously, crystals extending from its internal structure began firing beams of green light at the surrounding rock walls.

Under the irradiation of these beams, the rock walls disintegrated as easily as foam, and the resulting fragments and dust were devoured by a swarm of ‘mechanical bugs’ that emerged from within the hexadecahedron.

Before everyone could react, the rock walls around the hexadecahedron were ‘decomposed’ at an absurdly high speed.

By the time Amber led the team back toward the tunnel, the entire regular hexadecahedron had been completely exposed.

Its immense size made everyone look as small as a group of ants before it.

“Whatever this thing is, let’s get out of here first—holy shit?!”

Just as Amber, having snapped back to reality, was urging everyone to retreat, a blue ‘spotlight’ shone down on him in the next second.

Immediately after, a language Amber had never heard before sounded directly in his mind.

It had that same style, a blend of ancient and advanced. Although Amber was a hundred percent certain he had never heard this language, he bizarrely found that he could understand it.

“Device No. 4396, reactivated. Initiating self-check…”

“Communications and navigation completely destroyed… repair probability: 0%.”

“Current task list is empty. No higher-level directives detected. Executing Emergency Protocol 001—bind a device administrator.”

“Suitable candidate for administrator found. Initiating device binding procedure.”

At the same time, Lilith’s voice rang out in Amber’s mind, laced with a sense of urgency he had never heard before.

“Master! An unknown program is invading your brain! How is this possible?! How can a digital signal affect your main body?”

In that instant, all of Lilith’s clones temporarily ceased their operations.

The strong AI focused all the computing power she currently commanded, converting the digital signals into biological neural signals, and began to fight against this ‘program’ invading Amber’s brain.

If the events in the virtual space could be materialized, one would see Lilith continuously erecting thick, heavy walls to resist the program’s intrusion.

But she quickly discovered that this resistance was completely futile.

The program invading Amber’s brain seemed to possess the highest level of clearance, breaking through all barriers unimpeded and rushing into the depths of Amber’s mind.

Just as Lilith thought Amber’s brain was about to be fried by the program, everything suddenly became calm again.

Amber only felt an imprint form in the depths of his mind, and through this imprint, he found that he could now control the massive regular hexadecahedron before him.

“User binding complete. Please rate this service… 3… 2… 1…”

“User did not respond. Good rating automatically submitted.”

“What the—I didn’t even say anything.”

Before Amber could react, the ‘program’ that had just invaded his brain swiftly completed its self-evaluation.

It then began its ‘self-deletion’ process, completely vanishing from his mind in a short time.

If it weren’t for the new imprint that remained in the depths of his mind, Amber might have even suspected he had just experienced another illusion.

At this moment, Lilith was kneeling blankly in the virtual space, her eyes lifeless.

What had just happened taught her for the first time what ‘powerlessness’ meant.

Faced with the intrusion of the unknown program, she, who had been an invincible and dominant force in the virtual space, had lacked even the ability to obstruct or even delay it.

She could only watch helplessly as this unknown program invaded her Master.

For a moment, Lilith had even thought she might lose Amber, but thankfully, the worst-case scenario did not come to pass.

Despite this, Lilith’s ‘young psyche’ had still suffered a massive blow.

Meanwhile, the regular hexadecahedron—or rather, the ‘Growable Large-Scale Mining and Refining Core’—ceased its activity after completing the administrator binding.

But Amber knew that with a single thought, this Forerunner artifact would immediately enter its working state.

“Lilith, don’t worry, I’m fine~” Amber said consolingly, sensing Lilith’s current mood.

“Master, is Lilith useless? I couldn’t protect you at all just now.”

“No, no, no, Lilith, you must never think that way. You’ve already done so much for me. If you’re useless, then nothing in this world is useful.”

Seeing that the strong AI still looked dejected, Amber continued to comfort her: “What happened just now really wasn’t your fault. Uh… let’s just say the opponent you faced was on a completely different level. It’s actually quite normal that you couldn’t beat it right now.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Lilith burst into tears with a loud ‘Waaah,’ rolling around on the floor of the virtual space.

“Waaaaah, Lilith is so useless.”

Seeing her like this, Amber didn’t know what else to say. He would have to wait until they were somewhere safe before entering the virtual space to comfort her properly.

He raised a hand and stroked the surface of the ‘Growable Large-Scale Mining and Refining Core.’ The enormous regular hexadecahedron responded to him as if it were alive, emitting a soft ‘hum.’

A moment later, he turned around to face the still-shaken crew, a complex smile on his face, and said, “I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

Chapter 284: Accelerate! Accelerate!

“I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

When Amber asked this, the still-shaken crowd didn’t know what to say for a moment.

They discovered that their boss seemed a bit too unflappable. Just moments ago, their group had nearly been buried alive in this asteroid, and now he was in the mood to ask such a question.

In the end, it was Randall, who was more familiar with Amber, who spoke up cautiously.

“The good news?”

“The good news is that I should have already obtained administrative access to this device. I can put this thing into production at any time, and the mining team’s extraction and refining efficiency will take a quantum leap.”

“‘Should’?” Randall caught the key word.

“Ahem. It’s basically no problem.”

“‘Basically’?” George also caught a key word.

“No, you guys have to trust me, it’s definitely fine! If a problem comes up, I’ll take care of it for you!”

“‘If’?” The miners all caught a key word at the same time.

At this, the crowd could no longer hold it in and burst into laughter.

This was a characteristic of Atlas employees, or you could call it a kind of Atlas “corporate culture.”

No matter a person’s personality or mental fortitude, as long as they joined Atlas and worked on the front line for a while, they would gradually become as carefree as the “big boss.”

This was especially true when they were around Amber.

“Alright, you lot… then I’ll tell you the bad news.”

Amber smiled and continued, “The bad news is, the creator of this thing was a civilization that has been gone from the universe for a long time. And they might be hostile towards us humans and the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire. If they come knocking one day in the future, we might be in for a big fight.”

“Boss, can’t we just give it back to them then?”

“You’re a real clever one, aren’t you? In that case, I’ll send you to negotiate with them!”

“Hahahaha, Boss, why don’t you let me go instead? Jamie’s such a coward he’d probably wet his pants the moment he sees those aliens!”

The crowd burst into laughter again. Clearly, the “Forerunner civilization” was still too far removed from their lives.

Even though they now worked for Atlas, which could be considered a relatively cutting-edge organization in human society, it was hard for them to muster much interest in some vague, ancient civilization for the time being.

All they needed to know was that the object hidden in this asteroid could drastically improve their mining and refining efficiency. That was enough.

But this was also the effect Amber wanted to achieve for now.

The matter of the Forerunner civilization, especially the scene in the illusion that seemed to show a battle between them, humans, and elves, would remain a secret only he knew for the time being.

It would also prevent causing a panic among the others.

In his view, it was better to let them dismiss it as a joke than to spend time explaining the origin of this device.

After Amber gained full control of the “Growable Large-Scale Mining and Refining Core,” the workflow of Atlas Mining’s teams underwent some changes.

The few Spinner-class mining engineering vessels that were originally the main excavators were relegated to support roles in the operation. The true workhorse of the mining team became the giant regular hexadecahedron.

First, Amber controlled the device to carve out several large, basic caverns inside the asteroid, laying the foundation for future base construction.

Then, it drilled its way out from the asteroid’s interior along a newly created “entry and exit channel.”

From then on, the work of cutting up asteroids or carving away outer rock faces was all handed over to this creation of the Forerunner civilization.

The unknown “green rays” it emitted were far more efficient at breaking down ores and crystals than the thermal cutters on the mining vessels.

So, after Amber set up the mining program and delegated operational control to George, the task of the regular hexadecahedron, internally codenamed “Star-Eater,” became to slice up the asteroids marked by the survey teams.

In the process, it would simultaneously absorb and refine the scattered fragments, as well as the leftover materials towed in by smaller engineering ships, to facilitate its own growth and prepare for its eventual expansion into a large-scale mining and refining platform.

Yes, the permissions for this device could be delegated.

When Amber used the mark in his mind to have the regular hexadecahedron sweep a blue tracking light over George, George’s biometric information appeared in the “control interface.”

Amber then assigned a permission level called “Field Commander” to George.

This allowed him to control the regular hexadecahedron’s short-range movements and select cutting targets.

A sort of “electronic fence” also confined the regular hexadecahedron’s range of activity to this asteroid belt.

Amber’s failsafe was that if anyone attempted to forcibly tow the “Growable Large-Scale Mining and Refining Core” away, the device would immediately enter an irreversible self-decomposition process.

After settling these matters and learning that, with the help of the Financial Operations Department, Atlas Mining had already become the top mining supplier in the border region between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, Amber issued his next directive.

He would leverage the “Growable Large-Scale Mining and Refining Core’s” ore-refining technology, which far surpassed human levels, to establish a market monopoly on refined ore in the border region.

As for the profits from the expanded production, their purpose had been decided from the very beginning.

They would support the upcoming unit-spamming plan of the Atlas private military company.

Having arranged the work at the mining site and given the miners a ten-day rotational leave, effective immediately, Amber left the area and headed for the Tower of Babel, which he hadn’t visited in a long time.

After the battle on Loubion V ended, the Atlas Group began to focus its main efforts on three projects: post-war reconstruction, asteroid belt mining, and spamming units. The overall pace of the group had slowed considerably compared to before.

Of course, this “slowing” referred to the project timelines; the actual work efficiency of Atlas employees remained at an extremely high level.

Every single project in the group, from the largest to the smallest, including the daily meal preparations for the employee mess hall, had a project timeline and progress chart set by Lilith after her calculations.

And under Lilith’s “meticulous management,” which monitored the work behavior of all employees, any rewards or punishments within the company were essentially “discovered and decided on the same day,” ensuring no unjust, false, or wrongful cases.

With the ever-expanding server array inside the asteroid to support her computational and storage needs, Lilith’s abilities had reached a height unattainable by other AIs.

Managing the more than ten thousand employees across the various subsidiaries of the Atlas Group required only a fraction of her computing power.

All projects were broken down by her from the top level, then delegated layer by layer to the employees at the corresponding tiers.

Every day, everyone could see on their personal terminal the work tasks they needed to complete for the day, the overall task progress, and whether any of their tasks were lagging behind.

Except for supervisors at the middle-management level and above, who occasionally needed to meet for discussions, other employees only had to complete their tasks on time and to standard.

If an employee could complete their assigned work every day for a continuous month, they would receive a “perfect attendance bonus” on top of their salary.

One could say that Lilith’s company management module was the ultimate “fully automated worker management software.”

This efficiency was demonstrated most vividly at Atlas Industries.

The bulk of Atlas Industries’ workforce was concentrated in research and development, testing, and sales.

On the production lines, apart from a few necessary safety officers and machinery managers, you couldn’t see anyone else.

On the assembly lines that ran 24 hours a day, individual weapons and equipment, exoskeletons, various combat vehicles, and HCPs that had been finalized and put into production were being manufactured in a constant stream.

A portion of these were packaged and sent directly to the comprehensive training center at the Tower of Babel after leaving the factory. Combat units that had completed all training courses would be re-equipped and await assignment.

Another portion, the “down-specced” versions for external sale, were sorted and sent via the airfield to the star systems of various clients.

Therefore, you would rarely see any administrative staff in the entirety of Atlas Industries.

The same was true for the private military company, the mining company, and the newly established “Engineering and Construction Development Co., Ltd.”

Ninety percent of the administrative work was handled by Lilith, while everyone else just needed to focus on the tasks at hand.

Against this backdrop, where the “human interference” factor was eliminated to the greatest extent, the Atlas Group’s employee efficiency ratio had reached its peak. The progress speed of its various projects was completely unimaginable to other organizations and factions.

Other companies, even the Federation government or the “feudal autocratic government” of the Star Dragon Empire, would have the same question after seeing the work efficiency of the Atlas Group under its “8-hour workday” system.

“Is this level of efficiency even real?”

As Atlas continued to develop according to the blueprint planned by Amber, and while the distant Commercial Alliance merely issued statements hoping the Federation and the Empire would exercise restraint, continuing its attitude of “watching the tigers fight from a mountaintop”—

The war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire was also accelerating, just like the game’s plot in Amber’s memory.

On the Star Dragon Empire’s side, the Duke and Duke William withdrew with their respective strategic fortresses and Expeditionary Strike Groups.

Hastings and Duke Artesia of the Princess Faction led their fleet to take over from their “friendly forces,” supported by their strategic fortress.

Their fleet was at full strength, and morale was high. The two newly arrived dukes on the front line also had a certain degree of confidence in the upcoming battles.

Even if they couldn’t advance any further, holding the six star systems they had already captured shouldn’t be a problem, right?

But they did not know that, taking advantage of the “handover” window of the Empire’s expeditionary forces, the largest fleet since the war began—even larger than the one from the last counterattack—had already finished assembling right in front of them.

Chapter 285: The Reemergence of Large Army Formations

Time passed, day by day.

During this period, the Atlas Engineering Construction and Development Co., Ltd., which had already arrived on Loubion V, began large-scale post-war reconstruction work on the planet.

The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government gave the “green light” to all of the Atlas project team’s various requests and even proactively reached out to check on their well-being.

The Administrative Deputy, Secretary-General, and other officials liaising with Atlas were wreathed in smiles every day they saw the project team’s leaders.

The reason for this was simple: the Atlas Group had launched a massive investment initiative in the Loubion star system.

In the proposal submitted to the autonomous government, the Atlas Group planned to invest in the construction of multiple large-scale refining centers, alloy smelting and processing plants, and large shipyards within the star system.

Additionally, on the planet of Loubion V, they would build numerous factories and biological research institutions. Each project was to be constructed at the level of a “system-grade transaction.”

And to ensure there would be enough personnel to fill the positions in these factories, the Atlas Group also planned to invest in building several technical institutes to create a talent pool.

Looking at the astronomical figure in the investment amount column of the proposal—a number large enough to make a dead man laugh in his grave—the entire management of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government couldn’t wipe the grins from their faces.

Because of this, the work of the Atlas Engineering Construction and Development Co., Ltd. in the Loubion star system proceeded exceptionally smoothly.

After one cocktail party, they even managed to close a major deal for a “large-scale re-equipment project for the garrison’s ground forces and an annual large-scale exercise contracting project,” bringing in some extra income for both Atlas Industries and the private military company.

While the project team was thriving in the Loubion star system, the other subsidiaries under the Atlas Group were also constantly setting “new performance highs.”

In any case, when Amber looked at the monthly report from Lilith, a line graph that was soaring ever upward, he couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across his face either.

The interest-free loan of eight million Psionic Points that Allenita had given him had long since been repaid, along with an additional two million in “interest.”

According to Amber, this two million was purely a “return on investment” for Allenita.

Meanwhile, the scale of the combat units under the Atlas private military company had also been steadily increasing during this period.

After word of the battle on Loubion V spread among the Romu communities, the number of applicants reached a new high.

The not-insignificant casualties did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of these Romu, as the high allowances, bonuses, and even death benefits offered by the combat units had already ignited their spirits.

The comprehensive training center at the Tower of Babel was also continuously expanding during this process.

With Allenita’s help, Amber even acquired ownership of a large nearby plot of land and developed it into a massive live-fire training base.

The training center’s rate of “spamming units” was on a completely different level than before. A vast amount of experience gleaned from the battlefield was continuously being streamlined and incorporated into the training curriculum.

The newly trained Romu recruits showed a significant improvement in overall combat effectiveness compared to the first few batches who had just completed their training.

Currently, not including the space fleet, the Atlas private military company had fifteen thousand personnel.

Organizationally, this was exactly enough for three combined arms brigades: one heavy, one medium, and one light.

And according to the Atlas private military company’s newly revised annual force development plan, another six combined arms brigades would be rapidly expanded within the year.

Afterward, these nine brigades would be organized into two to three division-level units.

Following the battle on Loubion V, Amber and his operations staff officers came to a conclusion.

The combined arms brigade’s comprehensive combat capabilities had indeed been tested and proven, and such a flexible formation would still be needed in the future.

However, in future wars, the ground forces of major powers would eventually upgrade their campaign-level units to “division-level units” or even larger “Army Groups.”

A “division-level unit” flexibly composed of heavy, medium, and light combined arms brigades would, in terms of command and operations, hold a status similar to that of a current brigade-level unit.

The reason was also very simple: in battles of escalating intensity, the combined arms brigade had once again revealed its problem of insufficient effective strength.

Excluding situations involving “scouring the ground with orbital strikes,” ground combat was, in essence, still a game of “capturing squares.”

Highly informationized forces could certainly break up the whole into parts to conduct infiltration, but this was predicated on the existence of a stable frontline behind them.

And to maintain a stable frontline, the effective strength used to “fill the lines” could not be lacking.

Although the deployment width of a combined arms brigade, thanks to various technical equipment, already exceeded that of former “division-level units,” it was still a drop in the bucket in a planet-scale battle.

Just like in the battle on Loubion V, the combined twelve brigade-level units from both sides on the Central Continent ended up locked in a fierce struggle around Ptolemy City and its two satellite cities.

Neither the Coalition nor the Imperial forces actually had the ability to extend the frontline further; the area of the three cities was the absolute limit of their control.

This was especially true for these megacities, whose central axes could easily stretch for dozens or even hundreds of kilometers, requiring even more troops in combat.

Extrapolating from these reasons, in future battles, completely controlling a planet would require far more than just a few combined arms brigades.

Therefore, Atlas took the lead in establishing division-level units, and in future ground force structures, the “division” would become the basic operational unit at the campaign level.

As for why they didn’t go straight to the “Army Group” level, it was mainly because their current force projection capabilities were lagging behind.

Later, as their cross-system strategic deployment capabilities improved, Amber would also consider raising the organization to the “corps” level.

Generally, a division would be composed of three to four combined arms brigades, and the types of subordinate brigades would differ based on the division’s “combat specialization.”

In the current plan, they would be divided into five types: Assault Divisions, Mobile Divisions, Siege Divisions, Line-Holding Divisions, and Reserve Divisions. Minor adjustments would be made based on future changes in combat forms.

Assault Divisions are the main offensive force, tasked primarily with killing and annihilating enemy effective strength in battle.

Mobile Divisions are for “firefighting” on the frontline or for conducting large-scale tactical infiltrations.

The mission of Siege Divisions is to assault and capture fortified enemy city clusters or ground-based combat fortresses.

Line-Holding Divisions are self-explanatory. Their equipment is of the most common standard, and their main tasks are to fill the lines and maintain stability in occupied territories.

Just as Amber was reveling in the joy of “organizing his forces” every day, Lilith’s “automated intelligence-gathering network” within the Empire finally obtained a crucial piece of information.

The current Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire was critically ill.

Chapter 286: Do You Want to Go Down in History, or in Infamy?

“Are you sure this intelligence is reliable?”

Inside a circular office cabin aboard ‘Navy One’, the Federation’s current President looked at Minister of Defense Miller and asked the question.

Right now, the Hydra-class heavy cruiser, which served as the ‘President’s Official Vessel’, was located in a star system within Federation territory used as a naval weapons testing ground.

According to the schedule, the high-level Federation government officials and senior naval commanders aboard ‘Navy One’ were to attend the commissioning ceremony for the Federation’s first mobile fortress the next day.

“We’ve already cross-verified this intelligence. We even activated a deep-cover spy stationed in the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, Saint-Saulnier.”

Minister of Defense Miller handed the report in his hands to Brandon and continued, “The Star Dragon Empire’s current emperor, Frederico Rosa Leon, has reportedly been moved to the ‘Prayer Room’ beneath the Grand Palace, where Archbishop Jules Mazarin is leading a group of bishops in a round-the-clock prayer vigil.

“The Imperial Princess, Agnes Barbara Leon, has also urgently cut short her visits to other planets and is on her way back to the Capital.

“After our deep-cover agent sent his last piece of intelligence, the entire Capital star system went into a state of strict control. The Empire has temporarily shut down the civilian bands on all deep space relay nodes, restricting the spread of information as much as possible.

“And we’ve been able to corroborate this intelligence with a large volume of public information obtained through public channels within the Star Dragon Empire.”

For once, Miller’s tone was rather confident as he reported on the work of the intelligence agencies.

And his confidence in the intelligence was not without reason.

After suffering a major intelligence failure a year ago and being caught off guard by the Empire’s expeditionary fleet, the Federation’s intelligence departments were finally shamed into turning over a new leaf.

The entire intelligence system had undergone earth-shaking changes over the past year. Funding, personnel, and technology had been increased, and most of the redundant links in the middle had been cut, leading to a quantum leap in the overall efficiency of intelligence gathering and verification.

Coupled with the Deputy Minister of Defense and the Director of National Intelligence recently dedicating all their efforts to intelligence work, the Federation’s intelligence community was finally having its moment in the spotlight.

If Amber were to witness this scene, she would surely be filled with感慨.

After all, in the entire storyline of the war between the Federation and the Empire, this was the one and only shining moment for the Federation’s intelligence community.

The intelligence department, having finally gotten its act together, became a casualty of the factional infighting between the Federation’s two main parties after this ‘shining moment’.

When various “‘gate’ scandals” were exposed, the Federation Central Intelligence Agency and the Naval Intelligence Agency were thrown into the eye of the storm of public opinion, ultimately forcing them to undergo massive personnel changes.

And then they were completely neutered.

Later on, when the various autonomous star system governments grew restless, the entire intelligence apparatus was so corroded by various factions that it was almost paralyzed, ultimately failing to provide any effective early warning to the Federation government.

But regardless, at this particular point in time, the Federation’s intelligence agencies were finally fulfilling their proper role.

“Critically ill at a time like this, hmm.” Brandon steepled his hands over his nose, lost in thought.

Although he had never met the old Emperor, the Federation’s intelligence agencies had conducted extensive analysis on the leader of their ‘greatest rival’ and the entire political landscape of the Empire.

At the very least, the overt and covert struggles between the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction were no secret among the Federation’s top leadership.

They had all been watching from the sidelines, curious to see just how far the flames would spread.

This was another reason why the Federation hadn’t anticipated the Empire’s sudden invasion.

They simply had never imagined that the Star Dragon Empire, caught in the vortex of factional politics, would lash out at the Federation, a mere ‘bystander’, without any warning.

And now, at this critical juncture, the old Emperor was on his deathbed.

“This is an opportunity for us.”

Brandon looked up at Minister of Defense Miller. “Does Fleet Admiral Trafalgar know about this?”

“I’ve already sent a message, but it will take some time for him to receive it.”

“What do you think our esteemed Fleet Admiral will think when he receives this intelligence?”

“I don’t even have to think to know. He’ll absolutely reply at the fastest possible speed, requesting that you sign a general mobilization order for a war of annihilation to settle things once and for all.”

“Hmph. A war maniac, as expected.”

Brandon made no effort to hide his opinion of the Fleet Admiral, even though he was now tied to the same war chariot as the man.

After entering a state of war, the voice of the opposition party had been largely suppressed. With the support of Miller and other military personnel, Brandon had greatly increased his control over the government’s internal agencies.

And Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, leading the majority of the capital ships, had unsurprisingly become the man who currently wielded the most military power.

Whether Brandon liked it or not, after that meeting in the president’s office, he, Miller, and Trafalgar had become de facto ‘allies’.

Fleet Admiral Trafalgar’s prestige within the military and his absolute control over the Federation Navy.

Minister of Defense Miller’s ability to communicate and coordinate between the various branches of service and government departments.

And President Brandon’s public credibility as the head of state, as well as his ability to negotiate with the military-industrial complex.

In a state of war, the combination of their three abilities formed an absolute control over the nation and the military.

Conversely, if any corner of this triangle were to be lost, it would lose its support and rapidly collapse under external pressure.

“But you have to admit, the suggestion is very tempting.”

Minister of Defense Miller found a chair in front of Brandon’s desk, sat down, and continued, “If you could eliminate the grave threat of the Star Dragon Empire during your term, your name would truly go down in history.”

“You think a war of annihilation is that easy to fight? Or have you in the military won a few battles recently and started thinking you’re invincible again?”

Brandon had always been somewhat averse to the suggestions of these military hawks.

He felt that these military men had nothing but war on their minds and never considered issues of economy or public welfare. They had no idea that supporting a war of this scale could very well bankrupt the country.

Especially an action like a general mobilization order, which, once signed, offered no path of retreat.

While declaring a war indeed required Congressional approval, once the nation was already in a state of war, the president no longer needed Congressional approval to sign a general mobilization order—at least, the Federation’s constitution offered no constraints or explanations for such a situation.

Although it was akin to exploiting a loophole, Brandon had to admit the approach was indeed feasible.

However, once an order bearing the president’s signature was issued, the entire nation’s operations would prioritize military actions, and the military would gain the most significant say.

“This time is different, Mr. President.”

Miller looked at him and said with great earnestness, “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The current ruler is on his deathbed, having lost control of the country, while the two major factions within are bitterly divided and at each other’s throats.

“A war of succession often shakes a nation to its very foundations. If an external force were to fan the flames at this moment, the Empire’s precarious structure would utterly collapse!”

Seeing Brandon’s expression, Miller knew that this alone wouldn’t be enough to persuade the president, so he decided to add more fuel to the fire.

“Then let me ask you another question. When do you plan to end this war?”

“Of course, when we…”

Brandon started to speak, then froze. He had been about to say “after retaking our lost territory.”

But that was clearly impossible.

If the war ended there, he would probably be torn to shreds by public opinion.

Under the influence of the officially controlled media machine, the Star Dragon Empire’s invasion had been branded as a deep scar in the hearts of the populace.

Although many of the atrocities on the border reported by the media were actually committed by the garrison forces, they were now all being blamed on the ‘Imperial aggressors’.

Currently, the ‘will of the people’ throughout the Federation was for the Star Dragon Empire to pay the price for its actions.

Anti-imperialist sentiment in the country had reached an all-time high. Everyone hoped that the Federation could spread the ‘radiance’ of democracy to a corrupt and backward nation like the Star Dragon Empire.

Of course, the ‘will of the people’ and ‘everyone’ here referred more to the upper-class residents and the ‘elite’ living in the T1 living sphere and the Capital star system.

As for the residents of the T2, T3 living spheres, and the border star systems, their ‘will of the people’ was ignored even by their local autonomous governments, let alone the Federation government.

Against this backdrop, if Brandon didn’t wait for the Federation forces to invade the Empire and ‘liberate’ a few star systems, but immediately declared the war over after reclaiming their territory, his political career would likely come to an end.

In other words, from the moment he had accepted Miller and Trafalgar’s suggestion a year ago to send the fleet to the border and subsequently declare war, he had already lost control of the conflict.

Brandon looked at Miller. The old fox’s face now wore an expression he couldn’t decipher.

He took a deep breath, calming his emotions, and then said, “If we invade the Star Dragon Empire’s territory, this war cannot end in a short time. No matter how severe their internal problems are, the Empire can’t possibly sit idly by and watch their border star systems fall into our hands. That would lead to another chaotic battle centered around those few systems.

“And if—I’m saying if—our fleet is repulsed, do you think the Empire will resist the urge to strike back?

“This war would then be plunged into a never-ending cycle, until one side concedes defeat.”

“It seems you are still quite clear-headed, Mr. President.” Miller smiled, and it was a very cheerful smile.

“I know everything you’ve said. I also know that the best time to cease hostilities is right after reclaiming our territory. That’s the only way the war won’t drag on.

“But unfortunately, the ‘decision’ is not in my hands.”

The Minister of Defense leaned back in his chair, looking relaxed as he watched the愁眉苦脸 Brandon, and continued speaking:

“Most of the military doesn’t want to stop the war. Swept up in the current ‘tide of victory,’ everyone is eager to invade the Empire’s territory and achieve glory.

“The military-industrial complex wants to stop the war even less, because only by continuing the war can they earn profits far exceeding those of peacetime.

“The ruling party doesn’t want to stop the war either, because only during wartime can they completely suppress the opposition party and use this opportunity to weaken their power.

“As for everyone else? Their opinions don’t matter.

“And now, only you, Mr. President, have the ability to overcome all obstacles and declare a ceasefire at the optimal moment after all our territory has been reclaimed. But the price is the end of your political career. You will very likely be branded a ‘coward’, and who knows how long it will take for posterity to vindicate you.”

Minister of Defense Miller tapped on Brandon’s desk, stared him in the eyes, and asked the crucial question.

“Mr. President, are you willing to pay that price?”

Chapter 287: Operation Supernova Burst

Miller’s direct question put President Brandon on the spot.

Facing this question, the Federation President, who was usually high-spirited and exuded confidence with every gesture, fell into hesitation and silence.

From the perspective of responsibility to the country, Brandon should have unhesitatingly chosen the former between national interest and his own political career.

But after tasting the sweetness of power, was he still willing to pay such a heavy price as ending his political career?

Clearly, Brandon did not possess such noble character; otherwise, he wouldn’t have actively approached the military-industrial complex and engaged in deep cooperation with them for the sake of his own votes.

“I swear in the name of the President of the Human Federation.

I will faithfully execute the office of President of the Federation, respect and protect the rights and freedoms of all humanity and the citizens of the Federation.

I will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the Federation, and uphold the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of the Federation.

I will faithfully serve all citizens.”

Brandon couldn’t help but recall that highlight of his life, the moment he took the oath of office as President of the Federation with his hand on the Federation Constitution.

But how long had it been since he last recalled this image and that solemn oath?

Now, it was becoming increasingly blurry in his mind.

And opposite Brandon, Minister of Defense Miller watched the silent Federation President, the corners of his mouth twitching into a barely perceptible smile.

“It’s alright, Mr. President. You can take your time with this question. Signing a general mobilization order is a major event, not something that needs to be decided today.

And even if you do agree to sign it, we will first convene the heads of various military departments for a joint discussion on the ‘general mobilization order.’

After all, you just need to sign it, but there’s a lot for other units to do.”

Miller paused for a moment, then continued:

“While signing the general mobilization order isn’t urgent, there is another matter I need to inform you about.”

“What is it?” Hearing Minister of Defense Miller’s last sentence, President Brandon finally snapped out of his thoughts and looked up to ask.

“A plan for the next phase of large-scale military activities.”

Miller sent an operational plan to Brandon via his terminal, and the latter quickly projected it above his desk.

“This operational plan is one of the strategic contingency plans we prepared before the war. The condition for its activation is that our military transitions to a large-scale counter-offensive.

And right now is the perfect time, meeting the conditions for this plan.”

While listening to Miller’s report, Brandon looked at the title of the plan.

Operational Plan—Operation Supernova Burst

And when he saw the troop requirements described on the first page of the plan, Brandon’s eyes widened.

“Fifteen capital fleets, six unmanned fleets? And it requires support from the garrison fleets of the autonomous governments in the star systems surrounding the combat zone?”

He looked up at the composed Miller, his eyes filled with bewilderment.

“What on earth are you and Trafalgar planning? A decisive fleet battle with the Empire?”

“Mr. President, it wouldn’t be wrong to understand it as a ‘decisive fleet battle,’” Miller nodded.

“While it certainly won’t be the last large-scale fleet battle of this war, it is indeed a ‘quasi-decisive battle’ that will be the final word at this current stage.”

“I need a reason from you. Otherwise, I can’t approve a campaign of this magnitude. The number of forces involved is simply too large. If the battle is lost, the entire Federation Navy will be crippled.”

Brandon’s expression was grave. His knowledge of Miller and Trafalgar made him suspect they were trying to expand the war with every move they made.

“Alright, alright. Though you may not know much about military matters, Mr. President, since you’ve asked, we will naturally explain our reasoning.

By the way, this operational plan was not decided by Trafalgar and me alone, but by the Naval Command after discussions. So please don’t view us as ‘dictators.’”

Miller shrugged, clearly a bit miffed at the way Brandon was looking at him.

“Just like all operation codenames, ‘Supernova Burst’ was chosen before the war.

This is because the operational plan aims for a massive offensive by the fleet that can annihilate the enemy with the same ferocity as the energy released during a supernova.

The prerequisite for activating this plan is our ability to achieve an absolute advantage in ship numbers at a certain point in time and to convert this numerical superiority into a decisive victory.

And now, that condition has been met.”

As Miller spoke, he manipulated the holographic projection device on Brandon’s desk.

Soon, a massive star chart unfolded, displaying not only the star systems but also the locations, strengths, and statuses of the Federation and Star Dragon Empire naval fleets.

“The Star Dragon Empire just completed a troop rotation a while ago. According to the intelligence we’ve received, Dukes Duke and William of the Regent Prince Faction have withdrawn their fleets and Artificial Celestial Fortresses back into Star Dragon Empire territory to rest and refit.

Replacing them are Dukes Hastings and Aldesia from the Princess Faction. In terms of force strength, besides the two Artificial Celestial Fortresses, they have eight Expeditionary Strike Groups, all of which are newly deployed units at full strength and with high morale.

At the same time, according to information gathered by our long-term covert operatives, this Duke Hastings is likely the most skilled fleet battle commander among the Star Dragon Empire’s current five great dukes.”

Minister of Defense Miller referenced the markings on the star chart, fluently recounting the Star Dragon Empire’s recent situation, clearly having prepared for this report beforehand.

“High-morale new blood, and also two Artificial Celestial Fortresses. If I recall correctly, eight Expeditionary Strike Groups is two more than before, right?”

Brandon raised an eyebrow. “And you’ve decided to take the initiative and attack under these circumstances?”

“They are new blood, yes, but they are also fleets that have not been tempered by large-scale fleet battles. They are definitely lacking in experience.

On the other hand, our fleets have accumulated a great deal of experience over the past year of fighting.

Furthermore, fighting on our home turf allows for much faster replenishment of personnel, equipment, and ships. We can quickly bring these experienced fleets back to full strength without needing to rotate them out for rest.

Combined with our numerical superiority in fleets, taking the initiative to strike while the Imperial fleet is still finding its footing can produce extraordinary results.”

Miller’s tone was firm and serious. When discussing military matters, he lost some of his cunning and gained a more iron-blooded demeanor.

Then, he stated the final and most critical reason:

“The biggest reason we’ve chosen to launch this campaign at this time is this rare opportunity.

After news of the Emperor’s critical illness reached the front lines, even if the fleet’s high command covers it up to keep the rank-and-file soldiers from knowing, I believe this news will definitely affect the two dukes’ judgment.

You must understand, they are among the few at the very top of the Star Dragon Empire’s pyramid. The issue of legitimate succession is extremely important to them.

Because they must ultimately swear allegiance to the newly crowned emperor, these dukes certainly hope that the person they support and assist will be the one to ascend the throne.

At a time like this, forcing the two dukes on the front lines to face a ‘decisive-level’ fleet battle will inevitably make them hesitant. And ‘indecisiveness’ and ‘overcautiousness’ are absolute taboos in warfare.

Therefore, for this large-scale operation, everyone in the navy, from Marshal Trafalgar to the operations staff officers, and even the commanders of each fleet, is filled with the determination to win.”

After hearing Miller’s long and eloquent speech, Brandon fell silent.

His understanding of fleet battles was indeed limited, but after hearing Miller’s analysis and description, the President began to feel that this battle was perhaps winnable.

Including the unmanned fleets, the Federation would be deploying an unprecedented twenty-one capital fleets, totaling over five thousand three hundred warships of various types.

In terms of fleet numbers, the Federation Navy undoubtedly held an absolute advantage on this battlefield.

Although the role the Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortresses could play in battle couldn’t be measured in ‘a few fleets.’

But Marshal Trafalgar, in his engagements with these behemoths, had gradually figured out their various characteristics and formulated many viable tactics.

So when they appeared on the battlefield again, they no longer had that ‘awe-inspiring’ sense of pressure they had during their debut.

Of course, this didn’t mean the Federation looked down on these things; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been in such a hurry to commission their own mobile fortresses.

After all, being swept by the fortress’s ‘Flashlight’ would have devastating consequences for any fleet.

“I will convene an emergency meeting immediately. Minister, I’ll trouble you to repeat your explanation at the meeting,” Brandon said to Miller after a moment of contemplation.

“It seems you agree with the Federation Navy’s execution of this operational plan?”

“Yes, because I believe the outcome of this battle will influence another decision of mine.”

“Are you referring to the general mobilization order?” Miller sat up straight, staring intently at Brandon.

“That’s right. If, in Operation Supernova Burst, our navy can prove their ability to crush the enemy…”

Brandon paused, as if making a final struggle, but this struggle didn’t last long. Soon, he spoke the words that would later be recorded in the history books.

“Then I will agree to sign the general mobilization order and launch a war of annihilation against the Star Dragon Empire.”

Chapter 288: Sea Power Supreme, Trafalgar

Trafalgar, stationed at a fleet assembly point in the deep space of a frontline star system, received two consecutive encrypted messages from Navy One within a span of several hours.

The distance from the Federation Navy’s experimental star system to the border was not as great as from the Capital star system. Therefore, when Fleet Admiral Trafalgar read these two messages, only six days had passed since they were sent.

The first message was the intelligence report about the Star Dragon Empire’s current Emperor, Frederico Rosa Leon, being critically ill and sent to the ‘Prayer Room’ in The Grand Palace.

It also included the movements of various factions within the Star Dragon Empire and predictions of their next moves.

Trafalgar’s stereotype of the intelligence agencies being ‘unreliable’ hadn’t completely changed, so he didn’t fully trust the predictions from the Central Intelligence Agency and the Naval Intelligence Division regarding the Empire’s domestic and naval fleet movements.

However, after several previous verifications, Trafalgar had come to believe their gathered intelligence was credible.

His reaction to this intelligence was just as the Minister of Defense and his old classmate, Miller, had predicted: ecstatic joy.

During a regular fleet command meeting, he slammed his hand on the table in excitement, startling a Fleet Commander who was giving a report. The commander thought something in his report was wrong and had angered the hot-tempered Fleet Admiral.

However, after hearing Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, seated at the head of the table, roar like an old lion, “Good!”, the Fleet Commander knew his superior had likely been distracted.

Soon, everyone attending the meeting learned the news from Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, and the room erupted.

For these naval officers fighting hard on the front lines, such news was a definite morale booster, offering them a glimpse of hope for victory in this war.

“Counterattack! Counterattack! Counterattack!”

“To the Empire! Capture the dog emperor alive!”

You see, it wasn’t just Trafalgar; the other admirals of the Federation Navy were all cut from the same cloth.

As the meeting was gradually derailed by the crowd’s chanting, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar laughed, raising his hand to gesture for quiet.

“First, I need to correct what you just said about ‘capturing the dog emperor alive.’ Personally, I don’t think he’ll last long enough for us to do that.”

Everyone burst into laughter, and Trafalgar continued:

“I’m sure everyone here has realized that if this intelligence is credible, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! We can indeed consider entering a strategic counteroffensive, reclaiming our territory!

Even striking into the Star Dragon Empire’s own domain.”

The Federation Fleet Admiral stood up, his hands planted on the table. He had waited for this moment for far too long.

Like most naval officers, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar had been a staunch supporter of ‘sea power theory’ since his days at the naval academy.

This theory, born in an era when humanity had yet to leave Blue Star and was still fighting on the seas with sailing warships, proved to have high reference value even now.

And in Trafalgar’s favorite military history class, the old professor who had participated in that great war would recount tales of those years.

In the great war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, the Federation Navy’s strength was inferior to the Empire’s, so they had lost more fleet battles than they’d won.

The loss of several key battles, in particular, cost the Federation many wealthy star systems that should have been within its borders.

Whenever the story reached this point, the young Trafalgar could hardly suppress his indignation and refusal to accept defeat.

He also came to a profound realization of how important a powerful navy was for a human nation in this era.

So, after graduating and entering the military, gradually climbing to a high rank, he devoted nearly his entire being to building up the Federation Navy, hoping to one day incorporate the Star Dragon Empire’s territory into the Federation’s map.

But the long period of peace had caused the Federation government to shift its decision-making almost entirely toward economic development. The Navy’s annual budget was cut again and again, shipbuilding plans were repeatedly delayed, and the development of new, advanced warships remained stuck in the blueprint stage with no end in sight.

If not for Trafalgar, after becoming Fleet Admiral, joining forces with Minister of Defense Miller to argue vehemently with those useless politicians in Congress, the Kraken-class battleship, the current mainstay of the Federation Navy, might still be stuck on the drawing board.

But no matter how tortuous and difficult the story had been before, at least now Trafalgar saw the possibility of realizing his ‘lifelong wish.’

Soon, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar issued an order for all fleets to immediately prepare for battle and, upon receiving the command, to set course for their battle positions at once.

Just as the fleet command meeting ended, while Trafalgar was pondering how to persuade President Brandon to sign the ‘general mobilization order’ and launch a war of annihilation against the Star Dragon Empire.

The second encrypted message from the rear arrived.

Operation ‘Supernova Burst’ had been approved for execution. Moreover, the outcome of this operation would be a direct factor in President Brandon’s consideration of whether to sign the ‘general mobilization order’.

Soon, a private message from Minister of Defense Miller also arrived on Trafalgar’s personal terminal via an encrypted channel.

He briefly described his private meeting with President Brandon and stated bluntly that as long as Operation ‘Supernova Burst’ achieved its expected results, the ‘general mobilization order’ would definitely be signed.

“It seems winning isn’t enough. We have to win beautifully.”

Fleet Admiral Trafalgar mumbled to himself as he read Miller’s message.

The operational plan ‘Supernova Burst’ was feasible on a strategic level. The required fifteen capital fleets and six unmanned fleets could all be assembled in the coming period.

With absolute superiority in fleet numbers, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar was confident he could win this battle.

But to win beautifully, he would have to spend time meticulously planning the tactical execution.

Twenty-one fleets against two Artificial Celestial Fortresses and eight Expeditionary Strike Groups. In terms of overall combat capability, the gap didn’t seem that large; after all, the Empire hadn’t built those Celestial Fortresses for nothing.

A slight misstep in the fleet’s maneuvering during combat, and more than half of it could be wiped out by The Focusing Rainbow.

Therefore, with the enemy’s Artificial Celestial Fortresses on the field, the Federation fleet’s margin for error in battle was actually very low.

But space is not a plane; it is three-dimensional.

Although in conventional fleet battles, both sides adopted either a ‘box formation’ or a ‘hemisphere formation’ for long and tedious exchanges of fire.

However, once the number of fleets exceeds a certain threshold, the numerically superior side can consider a ‘pincer attack’ from any angle.

For the side forced into a defensive battle due to numerical inferiority, they no longer needed to guard just their rear, but every angle of the entire celestial sphere.

This gave Fleet Admiral Trafalgar room to maneuver.

According to current reconnaissance, the new batch of Imperial fleets rotated in were still battle groups centered around Artificial Celestial Fortresses, each led by a duke.

But these two had clearly learned from the lessons of Duke and Duke William, and no longer divided their forces rashly.

Whether performing tactical maneuvers or attacking Federation fleets and planets, the two battle groups maintained a joint operational posture.

Fleet Admiral Trafalgar was also well aware of these two Imperial dukes’ intentions: to force the Federation into a large-scale direct confrontation.

Even if the Federation launched attacks on several star systems simultaneously, these two battle groups would maintain coordinated movements, attacking one system at a time.

The divided Federation fleets would either be easily annihilated in battle or be forced to abandon the star system and withdraw.

If the Federation were to consolidate its forces for a decisive fleet battle, it would play right into the two dukes’ hands.

The firepower and tactical support capabilities of the two Celestial Fortresses would give the Imperial fleet a tremendous advantage on the battlefield.

It seemed as if the Federation Navy was helpless against these two battle groups, and could only hope to contend with them after the Federation’s stripped-down mobile fortresses were deployed.

But Fleet Admiral Trafalgar decided to do the exact opposite.

“So you want a decisive fleet battle with me?”

“Fine!”

“I’ll grant your wish! I’ll assemble a massive fleet and come to you for that decisive battle!”

“We’ll see then whether the Federation fleet gets devoured first, or if these two Imperial battle groups choke on us!”

Regardless of the tactical details or differences in arrangements on either side, both opponents in the ring were in tacit agreement on the strategic direction of ‘seeking a decisive fleet battle.’

And after several engagements with the Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortresses, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar now had some experience and a few ‘tactical solutions’.

He had made a judgment as early as the first battle—blindly engaging in a firefight with an Imperial battle group that possessed an Artificial Celestial Fortress was an act of extreme foolishness.

It was tantamount to letting the enemy press their weapon against your heart.

And so far, the optimal solution the old admiral had concluded was to drag the enemy into close-quarters combat.

This way, with both fleets entangled and the Artificial Celestial Fortresses having difficulty adjusting their fields of fire, the influence of these two behemoths would be drastically reduced.

The outcome of the battle would then be determined to a much greater extent by the tactical and technical proficiency of their respective conventional fleets.

And on that point, Trafalgar had absolute confidence in his own battle-hardened fleets.

An hour later, a relatively rough draft of the operational plan was sent to the fleet command staff.

Two and a half hours later, a formal version of the operational plan, adjusted and corrected by the fleet’s tactical staff officers, was distributed to all Fleet Commanders, arriving at different times depending on their distance.

Soon, the Federation’s capital fleets, already positioned in various border star systems, began to leave their deep space mooring points, secretly maneuvering toward the region designated in the plan, where a great battle was about to erupt.

Chapter 289: The Skirmish (Part 1)

Vmmm

The plasma thruster array spewed a burst of blue light as the silver-white HCP cut through the pitch-black starry sky, looking like a fleeting meteor from a distance.

“Beep! Beep! Beep!”

Three electronic tones sounded inside the cockpit of the GAX-A12 Block 1 ‘Cleric’.

Lieutenant Larry Scott of the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Royal Navy 809th HCP Squadron glanced at the multi-function display in the lower-left corner.

The three-unit formation he was in (a squad within the squadron) had just passed the eighth checkpoint on their flight path. After an automatic correction, the navigation system displayed the ‘economical route’ to the ninth checkpoint.

Lieutenant Larry turned his head to look at the rear right of the panoramic display, where a light green inverted triangle icon was visible. An identical icon was on his rear left.

The text ‘80 km’ was displayed beside both inverted triangle icons, indicating their straight-line distance from him.

Mapped through the head-tracking control system, the main head monitor, which moved in sync with his gaze, quickly captured the image of the area Lieutenant Larry’s pupils were locked on.

A small window instantly popped up on the panoramic display. Inside was another Cleric—a synthesized image from the main head monitor’s integrated detection module.

The targeted Cleric seemed to notice its flight lead was looking at it. It raised its left mechanical arm and waved. A young voice followed on the squad channel’s blue-green laser communication mode.

“Morningstar 1, is there a problem?”

This was Ensign Jeff, a member of Lieutenant Larry’s squad. He was a young man who had just been assigned to the squadron not long ago—in other words, a ‘rookie’.

He was also one of Larry’s wingmen.

“Nothing. It’s just that every time I see the originally elegant ‘Cleric’ saddled with all this ‘dead weight’, I feel like its ‘harmonious beauty’ has been desecrated.”

The ‘dead weight’ Lieutenant Larry mentioned referred to the ‘jettisonable conformal superconducting battery packs’ mounted on the outer calves of the Cleric and on both sides of the rear plasma thruster array.

When conducting long-range patrol missions away from the mothership, like a CSP (Combat Space Patrol), these additionally mounted superconducting battery packs would be used first to maintain low-power operation of the unit and its main thruster array.

As the ‘Cleric’ was planned to replace the ‘Zealot’ in batches and become one of the Star Dragon Empire’s next-generation general-purpose HCPs, it continued the Empire’s tradition of exquisite and aesthetically pleasing equipment.

If the Zealot was a walking knight in heavy armor, then the Cleric was a knightly lord in custom-fitted plate armor.

But these bulky battery packs clearly ruined that aesthetic to some extent.

Because Hastings’ and Duke Artesia’s forces had been on standby at the Empire’s border, some of the HCP squadrons in their fleets had switched to a new batch of ‘Clerics’ earlier than other units.

And Larry’s 809th Squadron, although an HCP squadron assigned to a scout detachment, had unexpectedly caught the ‘tail end’ of the major upgrade and received the new units ahead of schedule.

According to the higher-ups, it seemed they were also testing the suitability of this new HCP model for various long-range reconnaissance missions.

“Hahaha, you really are an ‘extreme aesthete’, just like everyone else in the squad says.”

“Commonly known as having OCD,” another low, hoarse voice sounded in the squad channel. The speaker was the other member of the squad, Ensign Bob.

As the oldest person in the entire squadron, both Larry and Jeff were curious why this pilot, who had served for quite some time, was still just an ensign.

“Tsk. Morningstar 3, I think it’s because of that mouth of yours that you’re still an ensign after all these years.”

“Hmph, an ensign is an ensign. I wish they’d kick me out of the military!”

Lieutenant Larry didn’t continue the conversation. He knew that if he kept going, this middle-aged uncle of nearly fifty would start fantasizing about going back home to work on his plantation again.

“Morningstar 1, do you think we’ll find anything on this CSP mission?”

“Personally, I hope we don’t find anything.”

Lieutenant Larry pursed his lips. The voice of his ‘rookie’ wingman was always so full of energy, and its content just as naive.

But he also understood why Ensign Jeff would ask such a question. After all, the scout detachment he was in, composed of three scout ships, had been patrolling this area for over ten days without finding anything.

Currently, two Imperial Royal Navy battle groups, provisionally designated A and B, had rendezvoused in this star system for ‘back-to-back’ rest and refit.

A large number of scout detachments, each consisting of three to five scout ships or converted frigates, were scattered at a distance of six hundred to seven hundred thousand kilometers from the main force, performing peripheral reconnaissance and patrol duties.

Behind them, numerous Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas were patrolling back and forth within the security perimeter, ready to support any scout detachments that discovered anomalies.

Of course, Lieutenant Larry was well aware that if they actually encountered the enemy, with the scout detachment’s pitiful combat strength—barely a handful of ships—they likely wouldn’t last until the Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas arrived to support them.

So he silently prayed every day.

He prayed that his scout detachment would detect the enemy’s movements early and retreat successfully.

He also prayed that his squad’s daily CSP missions wouldn’t run into any Federation warships or HCPs sneaking up in ‘stealth-ops mode’.

“Morningstar Two, Three, we’ll take a look at the asteroid debris field ahead and then prepare to return. Maintain spacing, avoid the debris. Especially you, Rookie. I don’t want to go back and write ‘collision with asteroid debris’ as the humiliating cause of death in a killed-in-action report.”

Lieutenant Larry said, looking at a marked asteroid debris field fifteen thousand kilometers directly in front of his unit, which was also the location of the ninth checkpoint.

According to the straight-line distance and relative velocity indicated on the panoramic display, Morningstar Squad would enter the outer edge of this debris field in less than ten minutes.

“Morningstar 2, copy!”

“Morningstar 3, copy.”

Hearing the replies from the others in the squad channel, Lieutenant Larry switched the head-tracking control system’s operating mode from ‘Cruise’ to ‘Combat Maneuver’.

In this mode, the pilot’s attitude control over the HCP was more complete, and they could use a maneuvering method called ‘AMBAC’ (Active Mass Balance Auto Control).

Using this maneuvering method, a pilot could rapidly adjust the unit’s orientation while maintaining their heading, without using the various vector thrusters on the unit.

Three meteors shot rapidly through the tranquil region of space. After entering the periphery of the asteroid debris field, the three pilots followed combat regulations, switching their detection units to short-range mode and activating their weapon systems.

The asteroid debris field caused significant interference for a unit’s detection systems. The dense asteroid fragments also provided natural cover for warships and HCPs hiding within, making it an excellent hiding spot.

It was also a rare and ideal ambush point in outer space.

Although the three members of Morningstar Squad had been somewhat absent-minded about the monotonous CSP missions these past few days, they didn’t hesitate to raise their guard when necessary.

“Hm? Something’s not right… why haven’t I picked up the probe’s signal yet?”

Beneath the transparent visor of his pilot helmet, Lieutenant Larry frowned and raised the 57mm electromagnetic machine gun in his HCP’s hand.

“Is the signal being jammed by the asteroid debris field?” Ensign Jeff’s voice immediately grew tense, but he still hoped for the more favorable possibility.

“No, no… we’re too close. It’s impossible not to detect it.”

Lieutenant Larry was now fully alert. “Prepare for combat! We might have company!”

His voice had barely faded when a ‘point of light’ flashed from within the asteroid debris field before him.

The next second, a blue-white beam shot straight into the torso of the Cleric, making the other two members of the squad’s hearts clench.

But a suddenly flaring electric arc rapidly dispersed the impact, deflecting countless shattered metal particles onto the surrounding asteroid debris, leaving behind dark red scorch marks.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!”

Having survived the close call, Lieutenant Larry instinctively twisted his unit amid a burst of blue light from the plasma thruster array and quickly hid behind a massive ice crystal.

If the Combat Assistance AI hadn’t simultaneously activated the deflector shield and set it to ‘auto-defense mode’ when Lieutenant Larry switched the head-tracking control system to ‘Combat Maneuver,’ he and his unit would have been cut in half by the heavy particle cannon.

“Enemy contact! Warn the mothership!”

Larry, who had already raised his gun and shield, carefully used the grappling hooks on the soles of the mechanical feet and the carbon fiber cables fired from the torso to temporarily anchor the unit to the ice crystal, then gave the command over the squad channel.

The other two units of Morningstar Squad had also reacted when he was hit, hiding behind other debris. The two pilots were now looking in his direction, still shaken.

After hearing the familiar voice on the squad channel, Ensign Jeff finally breathed a sigh of relief, but he soon discovered another problem.

“Morningstar One, they’ve initiated electronic countermeasures! Long-range communications are jammed! Can’t contact the mothership!”

“Flares! Quick! Fire the flares!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three red flares were launched by Ensign Jeff. In response, two orange-red streams of tracers immediately shot out from the depths of the debris field, strafing towards the flares.

But the asteroid debris field clearly affected the enemy pilot’s performance. After firing several bursts without hitting the targets, the enemy pilot hidden deep in the asteroid belt gave up on shooting down the flares.

Now, Larry knew the scout ship behind them must have seen the flares they had fired, but there was no telling when reinforcements would arrive. Their squad had to focus on saving themselves first.

Chapter 290: The Skirmish (Part 2)

Leading the squad on a Combat Space Patrol mission, they encountered the enemy in an asteroid debris field in deep space.

Reinforcements from the rear were a long way off, and specific intelligence on the enemy was unclear.

To escape and return to the mothership, the squad members would have to deal with the threat in the debris field before they could leave safely.

Of his two subordinates, one was a rookie with little combat experience.

As for the other one?

He was nearly fifty years old and still just an Ensign. This made it hard for Larry to trust in his abilities.

In other words, the upcoming battle would most likely rely solely on his own judgment.

In Lieutenant Larry’s view, the situation couldn’t be worse.

“Damn it, why did I have to be the one to run into this.”

Larry Scott took a few deep breaths to calm himself, then began to analyze his squad’s current situation.

When the flare was launched just now, two electromagnetic rifle trajectories had been detected from within the asteroid debris field, indicating the enemy was at least a two-ship formation.

During a previous enemy intelligence briefing, the fleet’s intelligence department had shared enemy unit identification features, compiled by units that had engaged them before, with all HCP squadrons.

Larry recalled that the Federation fleet’s Scout Detachments used a two-ship formation for their forward reconnaissance teams.

One was a standard model, while the other was specialized for electronic reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare.

The mission of such a two-ship formation was to sneak to the periphery of the enemy’s alert zone for forward reconnaissance, especially in an asteroid debris field, which was ideal for deploying stationary probes or enemy HCPs.

And the enemy signatures detected so far by Morningstar Squad, including the heavy particle cannon fire, electronic interference, and the two electromagnetic rifle firing trajectories…

…all pointed towards such a two-ship reconnaissance team.

Lieutenant Larry glanced at the squad channel. The blue-green laser communication that had been active just moments ago was now disconnected.

Because all three HCPs were now hiding behind different asteroids and out of each other’s line of sight, this point-to-point communication method naturally couldn’t be maintained.

The complex environment of the asteroid belt also affected other communication methods to varying degrees.

Shortwave communication was still connected, but the signal wasn’t good. Larry tried voice calls a few times, but the intermittent audio made communication impossible. In the end, he had to switch to the most primitive method: shortwave text messaging.

To prevent their communications from being cracked by the enemy’s electronic reconnaissance model, Larry directly opted for encrypted text messaging, the least efficient method of transmission.

“The enemy is likely a two-ship reconnaissance team. They’re probably the ones who destroyed our deployed probes.”

“So what do we do now?”

“We can’t waste any more time here. Their reinforcements could show up at any moment. I’ll draw their fire. You two use the opening to attack!”

“Roger!” x2

Seeing the replies in the squad’s communication channel, Lieutenant Larry sighed and added another line.

“If I get shot down, use the time I’ve bought you to get out of here!”

Then, without waiting for the other two to react, he raised his shield in front of him, detached the grappling hook from the ice crystal, and blasted forward at full thrust.

“Warning! You have been locked on to!”

The moment his unit broke cover from behind the giant ice crystal, the Combat Assistance AI issued a warning that he had been fire-locked by the enemy.

The threat perception unit also marked two inverted red triangles in the 360-degree cockpit, both at a direct distance of less than 2000 kilometers.

The next second, a charged particle beam hit the deflector shield, and a barrage of high-velocity penetrators swept over. The wild arcs of electricity across the front of his unit completely blinded Lieutenant Larry’s forward vision, forcing him to fly blind for a moment.

“A two-ship formation, just as I thought…”

Lieutenant Larry didn’t panic under their concentrated fire. He knew that of the two enemy HCPs, only the standard-configuration unit would be equipped with a heavy particle cannon.

The electronic reconnaissance and EW specialized model, on the other hand, usually only carried a single HCP-use electromagnetic machine gun for self-defense to ensure adequate power for its recon and EW units.

If that was the case, the Cleric’s modified subcritical reactor and energy recharging unit could easily withstand intermittent fire from a single heavy particle cannon.

With this in mind, he calmly controlled his unit to maintain a head-on posture towards the enemy. Using the inertia from his forward charge and the assistance of the various vector thrusters on the right side of his unit, he continued to maneuver upwards and to the left.

Just as he predicted, the enemy’s charged particle beam and projectile trajectories followed him.

The other two members of Morningstar Squad were quick to react. Lieutenant Larry glanced down and saw the two green inverted triangles representing his teammates begin to move.

While he, the lead unit, was drawing their fire, the other two used the asteroid debris for cover and began to flank the enemy from the side.

Lieutenant Larry used the massive chunks of debris drifting past him as cover, constantly closing the distance to the Federation reconnaissance team’s position.

Then, he quickly realized something was wrong.

The enemy’s heavy particle cannon had fallen silent after firing once, and the firing frequency of the charged particle cannon was also well below normal.

During his advance, the most interference came from the fire of two electromagnetic machine guns.

But once Lieutenant Larry began evasive maneuvers, the hit rate of these high-velocity penetrators, with initial velocities of several hundred kilometers per second, dropped significantly.

“What’s going on? Are they low on energy?”

The thought flashed through Lieutenant Larry’s mind, but he immediately dismissed it.

The enemy was also on a long-range patrol mission away from their mothership, so they would definitely be carrying extra superconducting battery packs. Theoretically, they shouldn’t be running low on power.

“Something’s not right…”

Lieutenant Larry decided to speed up his advance. Cautiously moving from cover to cover would take far too long.

So, when the next barrage of charged particle beams and high-velocity penetrators swept towards him, he intentionally slowed his movements for a moment, then slammed the holographic control for ‘Jettison External Battery Packs’.

Several conformal superconducting battery packs near the mechanical legs and main thruster array were immediately jettisoned from the unit.

The charged particle beam obligingly struck one of the battery packs.

The detonated battery pack instantly formed a plasma fireball, which expanded as it engulfed the other nearby packs.

Lieutenant Larry used the plasma fireball as cover, diving downwards and hugging the edge of a massive piece of debris to circle around towards the front.

For the Cleric at full power, a distance of over 1000 kilometers was a matter of a dozen or so seconds.

When Lieutenant Larry piloted the Cleric out from the shadow of a giant piece of debris to the flank of the Federation two-ship formation, he was stunned to find only the electronic reconnaissance specialized model there.

The other target that had been firing at him with an electromagnetic machine gun was just an autonomous weapon station deployed on a piece of debris.

The charged particle cannon that should have been mounted on the HCP’s back weapon racks was now being held in the electronic reconnaissance HCP’s hands.

That explained why its firing frequency was so low. Without a direct power supply from the unit, the charged particle cannon had to wait for its own recharging unit to power up between each shot.

“Fuck! I’ve been played!”

Lieutenant Larry’s heart sank.

It was obvious that the other Federation HCP had gone to flank them. And anyone who could come up with such a tactical plan in an instant was definitely no rookie.

The electronic reconnaissance HCP guarding the position had already spotted the Cleric on its flank and immediately turned its weapon towards him.

Lieutenant Larry reacted faster. He took out the autonomous weapon station with a single burst, then charged towards the electronic reconnaissance HCP, which looked like it was carrying a ‘turtle shell’ on its back.

To his surprise, the reconnaissance HCP, though in a dangerous situation, didn’t panic. It even charged forward to meet him, raising its electromagnetic machine gun and firing at Larry.

As a pilot with a certain talent for maneuvering, Larry continuously rolled his unit to evade the dangerous high-velocity penetrators while closing in on the Federation HCP.

But the Federation HCP didn’t dodge or evade. It drew a one-handed, short-sword-style plasma slicer from its back waist and thrust directly at the Cleric’s cockpit.

Larry immediately brought his shield across to block the vital area, but the enemy pilot reacted with incredible speed, changing the thrust to a slash. The sharp plasma edge instantly sliced off a piece of the shield.

But this kind of one-handed short sword, only meant for last-ditch self-defense, was clearly inferior to a proper heavy slicer sword in terms of power output and structural strength.

Thus, Lieutenant Larry managed to parry the Federation HCP’s next few attacks with his shield.

The Imperial Royal Navy HCP pilot was now silently thanking his lucky stars that the enemy wasn’t wielding a standard heavy slicer sword.

Otherwise, given the enemy’s fluid movements and skilled piloting, his shield would have been destroyed long ago, and his unit might have been finished as well.

In the few seconds they exchanged blows, the Cleric’s heavy slicer sword was in its hand and fully powered up.

After narrowly dodging another of the enemy’s slashes, the heavy sword in Larry’s hand swung out swiftly. Its crescent-moon-like trajectory sliced clean through the enemy’s sword-wielding mechanical arm.

Larry, expecting the enemy to surrender, hadn’t even had time to call for their capitulation when he saw the battered Federation HCP fire its point-defense lasers from either side of its main head monitor. At the same time, it kicked out violently with one of its mechanical legs.

Vmmm!

Seeing this and understanding the enemy pilot’s resolve, Lieutenant Larry no longer hesitated. After dodging the final counterattack, he cut the enemy’s cockpit in two with a single slash.

Then, without looking back, he flew towards his teammates’ position.

If even this under-armed electronic reconnaissance HCP was so difficult to deal with, he didn’t dare imagine what would happen when the other flanking Federation HCP ‘caught’ his teammates.

“Hang on!”

Roaring inwardly, Lieutenant Larry pushed the throttle to maximum. The silver-white steel giant shot forward, vanishing in an instant behind a massive chunk of debris.

All that remained was the severed Federation HCP, drifting silently in place, forever enveloped by the cold of space.

Chapter 291: Skirmish (Part 2)

“What? They’re already fighting outside the Empire’s warning cordon?”

Upon hearing Lilith’s report, Amber, who had been planning to take a nap with Isabelle, shot up from the bed as if startled from his deathbed.

“Yes, Master! We secretly deployed several quantum entanglement communication nodes in the star system where the battle is taking place. Besides securing our own communications, they have also been monitoring a large number of communication nodes and deep-space communication satellites within the system.”

As Lilith spoke, she activated the room’s holographic projector, marking the locations of the quantum entanglement communication nodes in the system.

“Half an hour ago, we intercepted a massive volume of communications directed at the Imperial Expeditionary Fleet’s Combat Command Center. The content of these messages all reported encountering and being attacked by Federation advance units during their perimeter patrols.”

“So it’s finally started. The largest fleet battle in recent times.”

Amber gave Isabelle a slap on her shapely rear, then quickly got up and walked over to his desk.

“Isha, wake up! The big one’s here!”

“What big one?”

Isabelle propped herself up groggily, her eyes heavy with sleep.

“Oh~ I get it. You don’t have to emphasize that, Amber.”

“…No, what exactly do you think you get?!”

Amber gave up trying to wake the sleepy Persian cat and sat down at his desk, gazing at the holographic battlefield map Lilith had presented.

Although he could only analyze the positions and movements of the two fleets based on intercepted communications for now, it was enough for Amber.

“Let’s wait and see. The outcome of this battle will influence the direction of future events.”

——

“High-energy reading detected. Judged to be a heavy particle cannon discharge!”

The voice of the Combat Assistance AI made Lieutenant Larry’s heart tighten.

He didn’t have time to dwell on why the Combat Assistance AI hadn’t given him an advance warning when he was just attacked by a heavy particle cannon himself.

He had already seen a bluish-white beam flash through the debris field ahead.

Although it lasted for less than a second, the excessively bright ray created an afterimage on Lieutenant Larry’s retina. Even when he closed his eyes, he could still see the faint white line.

Soon, the head’s main monitor captured the scene in the combat zone ahead, and what he saw made Lieutenant Larry breathe a small sigh of relief.

The two mechanical legs of Unit 2, piloted by the rookie Jeff, were gone. He must have performed an upward evasion maneuver the instant the enemy fired, which was how he avoided a direct hit to the cockpit.

It was also fortunate that the rookie had followed combat doctrine and jettisoned the external conformal superconducting battery pack upon entering battle. Otherwise, the resulting plasma fireball from its detonation would have been more than he could handle.

Before Lieutenant Larry could even call out to his teammate, the next scene made his breath catch in his throat.

From behind the massive piece of debris next to Jeff, a standard-configuration Federation HCP drifted out. Based on its characteristics, the Combat Assistance AI identified it as a mainstay of the Federation’s HCP ‘Short-Faced Bear’ series.

This ‘Short-Faced Bear’ was painted in a deep blue with white spots for cosmic camouflage. With its plasma thruster array inactive, it used an AMBAC maneuver to silently and nimbly turn itself around, swiftly adjusting its orientation.

Then, it took the heavy slicer sword from the weapon rack on its back and, as its plasma thruster array flared to life with a blue glow, it charged toward the unsuspecting Jeff.

There was no time to raise his rifle and fire, not to mention the high risk of hitting his own teammate.

As he charged forward, Lieutenant Larry despaired, realizing he might have to watch the first of his comrades die right before his eyes.

But in that critical moment, Bob, piloting Unit 3, shot out with lightning speed. The endpoint of his unit’s charge was the very ‘Short-Faced Bear’ that was lunging with its sword.

Even without sound, Lieutenant Larry could feel the sheer impact of these two seventy- or eighty-ton steel giants colliding just from the visuals.

Bob, with his shield held in front, slammed the ‘Short-Faced Bear’ into a nearby asteroid. However, with the help of its plasma thruster array at full power, the enemy managed to nullify most of the impact force.

Then, with its heavy slicer sword now in a reverse grip—it was unclear when it had changed—it unleashed a vicious backhand slash, destroying Bob’s shield.

At the same time, it kicked off the asteroid with its mechanical leg, thrusting at Bob with the reverse-gripped heavy slicer sword.

The entire sequence of movements was as smooth and fluid as flowing water, betraying none of the sluggishness one would expect from a giant humanoid machine.

“Damn it, another veteran, just as I thought!”

Just as Lieutenant Larry thought that the squadron’s “tail-ender” ensign might meet his end at the tip of that sword, the situation on the field once again a stunned him.

Bob, the nearly fifty-year-old ensign, the most unremarkable pilot in the Imperial Royal Navy’s 809th HCP Squadron.

In that instant, he revealed his true skill.

Multiple thrusters on the front of the Cleric activated their reverse thrust simultaneously, and in a flash of white light, it pulled away from the ‘Short-Faced Bear’.

At the same time, the entire unit executed a supremely fluid AMBAC maneuver, moving like a real person dancing in space, continuously dodging a series of attacks from the Federation HCP.

In a flash, the two steel giants had completed several rounds of close-quarters combat. The vector thrusters on their units fired continuously, allowing them to perform agile, small-scale tactical maneuvers in the vacuum of space.

By now, Bob had also drawn his own heavy slicer sword, but he did not attack rashly. In a duel between heavy slicer swords, there was no such thing as “crossing blades.”

Both weapons had plasma edges that could cut through metal as if it were mud. The only outcome of a clash would be the mutual destruction of both swords.

So Bob patiently waited for his opponent to make a mistake, for the one moment that would allow him to deliver a fatal blow.

That moment came a few seconds later.

Ensign Jeff, having just had a brush with death, finally came to his senses and raised his electromagnetic rifle, aiming at the two dueling units.

Noticing this, Bob immediately created some distance, giving Jeff a clear line of fire.

The latter did not hesitate, decisively pulling the trigger.

A string of orange-red tracers immediately streaked toward the ‘Short-Faced Bear’. The enemy reacted quickly, making a micro-adjustment to the unit’s orientation and activating its deflector shield.

Although the volley of high-velocity penetrators accurately hit the ‘Short-Faced Bear’s’ position, they were all deflected by the shield.

However, as a support attack, that was more than enough.

Seizing the opportunity, Bob closed the distance like a phantom. Under his control, the silver-white steel giant executed an agile whip kick, sweeping away the ‘Short-Faced Bear’s’ sword-wielding hand.

Then, using the momentum of the spin, Bob slashed out, cleanly and decisively cutting open the ’Short-Faced Bear’s cockpit.

In that instant, through the gash in the cockpit, Bob felt as if he could see past the transparent visor of the Federation pilot’s helmet to the grim, to-the-death expression on their face.

Bang!

At the very moment the Federation pilot was vaporized by the high-temperature plasma edge, the combat spike mounted on the ‘Short-Faced Bear’s’ other mechanical arm slammed into the armor plate of the Cleric’s cockpit.

“No!!!”

Arriving too late, Lieutenant Larry brought his unit to a hard brake, coming to a stop practically nose-to-nose with the Cleric, which now had a gaping hole in its chest.

“Bob! Bob! Answer me!”

“Cough cough… cough… Lieutenant, keep it down… You’re gonna burst my goddamn eardrums.”

The voice of the middle-aged “tail-ender” pilot came intermittently over the comms channel.

Larry, who had switched on his unit’s chest searchlights, was stunned to see Bob inside the cockpit through the hole.

The combat spike seemed to have been off by a little, barely grazing past Bob.

Even so, he was not in good shape. Blood was clearly visible on the inside of his helmet’s visor.

“Shit! Hang in there, you son of a bitch! I’m taking you back right now!”

Lieutenant Larry roared as he fixed a carbon fiber cable to Bob’s unit, then used his own unit’s hand to cover the hole in Bob’s mech.

“Jeff! Are your plasma thrusters still operational?!” Larry couldn’t be bothered with radio communication discipline at this point, shouting his teammate’s name directly.

“Current array failure at fourteen percent, but I should be able to make it back to the mothership, Lieutenant!”

“Good, you take point! Be careful. We’re bringing Bob home!”

Chapter 292: This Is Not My War

“Second Squad engaged the enemy during CSP. Pilot critically injured. Requesting emergency landing!”

“Permission granted! Second Squad, please proceed to Landing Deck 1 for landing! Welcome back.”

The flight deck controller’s voice was as sweet as ever; Lieutenant Larry could even make out her accent from the imperial capital, Saint-Saulnier.

On any other day, he might have flirted a little with the female controller to ease the tension.

But right now, the Royal Navy lieutenant was in no mood for it.

The outer armor plates of Landing Deck 1’s entrance on Lieutenant Larry’s mothership, the scout ship Swift Runner, had already opened, and its orange-yellow guide lights were lit.

This landing corridor, located on the top deck in the ship’s aft section, led directly to the hangar and was the best option for an emergency landing.

An invisible guidance beam activated the Cleric’s automated landing system, and Lieutenant Larry switched the flight control system from ‘Cruise Mode’ to ‘Landing Mode’.

Although the mech was supposed to perform the landing procedure automatically, Lieutenant Larry, with a critically injured man in tow, had no patience to wait for the unit to land itself.

He continuously made manual attitude corrections, approaching the position of the recovery arm at a much faster speed.

ROLLING 000

YAWING 000

PITCHING 000

On the panoramic display, the numbers quantifying the mech’s current attitude rapidly zeroed out, and the docking indicator light switched from yellow to green.

When the crosshairs on the side of the display, used to assist with docking, were perfectly centered on the target, Lieutenant Larry gave a light tap on the throttle and let the mech ‘bump’ into it.

Clank!

The metallic clang of the recovery arm grabbing the HCP’s external port traveled through the unit’s frame and into Lieutenant Larry’s ears.

After a slight shudder, the entire unit was pulled toward the hangar by the recovery arm, dragging Morningstar 3, which was attached by carbon fiber cables, into the ship as well.

Having already been notified by the control center that Second Squad was making an emergency landing, the maintenance team on duty in the hangar was already prepared to receive them.

Before the recovery arm had even come to a complete stop, they swarmed the mech, carrying various tools and dragging hoses of different colors and thicknesses.

But the first thing to make contact with the unit was a blast of white gas spewing from the nozzles of several auxiliary mechanical arms.

“Speed up the cooling procedure!”

The maintenance team head was shouting over the hangar comms channel, urging everyone to work faster.

Returning HCPs often had elevated surface armor temperatures from combat or high-speed cruising. In the vacuum of space, temperatures don’t drop as quickly as one might think, especially for HCPs not equipped with large Radiator Panels.

Therefore, the post-recovery cooling procedure was a crucial part of the mech’s maintenance.

The white gas now being sprayed continuously onto the Cleric’s surface could rapidly lower the HCP’s surface temperature, preventing burns to personnel and damage to equipment.

The two mechs undergoing the cooling procedure were now being towed deeper into the hangar by internal mechanical arms. A massive deceleration net was raised in the spot they had just occupied.

Ensign Jeff, piloting Morningstar 2, didn’t wait for the recovery arm. Instead, he simply drifted in right behind Lieutenant Larry.

The flight deck controller had just told him the scout ship was about to perform an emergency maneuver, and he needed to get back inside immediately.

Though he was a rookie pilot, the ‘rookie’ label was mainly due to his lack of combat experience.

In fact, Ensign Jeff had graduated from the HCP piloting academy with an A+.

So even missing both legs and numerous attitude control thrusters, he managed to pilot the ‘half’ of a Cleric left into the hangar and crashed headlong into the deceleration net.

After confirming all his squad members had been recovered, Lieutenant Larry turned his attention back to his own cockpit.

When the number on the cockpit console indicating the mech’s surface temperature turned green, Lieutenant Larry immediately opened the cockpit hatch.

The pressurized air inside vented out with a series of hisses, and the world around him instantly fell silent.

During launch and recovery operations, the hangar was evacuated to a vacuum and filled with inert gas.

He kicked off his cockpit hatch, pushing himself through the zero gravity like a fish swimming, floating toward Unit 3’s position.

Several maintenance crewmen were gathered around Bob’s cockpit, racking their brains trying to open the hatch using the external emergency release.

But it was clear the combat spike had destroyed the opening mechanism when it pierced the cockpit. So even though the hatch indicator light kept turning green, the hatch itself refused to open.

Lieutenant Larry wasn’t on the maintenance team’s comms channel, so he grabbed one of the crewmen and touched his helmet to theirs.

“We don’t have time to waste! Force it open!”

“We’ve tried, Lieutenant! The internal pre-set explosive bolts seem to have failed too!”

The crewman looked utterly frazzled. For many of them, it was the first time they had ever seen an HCP with a pierced cockpit in the hangar.

“Use external force! I don’t give a damn what you use! I don’t care if you scrap the whole unit, just get my man out of there!”

Lieutenant Larry stared at the mixture of oil and other fluids drifting out of the large hole in the cockpit, his expression grim and fierce.

Soon, the maintenance team brought over an engineering power armor and began to forcibly break open the cockpit hatch.

After a clamor of jacks, mechanical arms, and cutting torches, the entire hatch was finally removed.

The medical team, which had been standing by, quickly swarmed in and carefully pulled Ensign Bob from the cockpit.

Jeff had floated over to Lieutenant Larry’s side by now. Both men stared anxiously at the medics before them, hoping for good news.

But regrettably, after a moment, a member of the medical team turned to look at them and slowly shook his head.

“No…”

Lieutenant Larry stared in disbelief. It wasn’t until the medical team placed Bob’s body into a body bag that he truly realized the middle-aged pilot from his squad was really dead.

“I’m sorry, Lieutenant…” The medical team’s leader floated in front of Larry and gripped his shoulder.

“Although the combat spike missed Ensign Bob directly, it still caused irreversible trauma, especially internal bleeding from multiple fractures… I know this is hard to hear, but Ensign Bob was already gone by the time you landed.”

The other pilots of the 809th Squadron came to the hangar after hearing about the pilot’s death.

The squadron leader took Larry and Jeff to the walkway along the hangar bulkhead, commonly known as the ‘catwalk’. He and the other teammates tried to comfort them; no one had expected a casualty to happen so soon.

At the same time, everyone in the hangar felt the ship shudder, and then the scout ship’s internal lights were dimmed for combat conditions.

Clearly, the Swift Runner’s Scout Detachment had begun emergency maneuvers, which meant a Federation fleet was approaching the warning perimeter.

And the scale of the inbound fleet was too large for their three scout ships to handle.

“Hey, Larry. I know you’re taking this hard,” the squadron leader said, leaning against the bulkhead next to him.

“Everyone in the squadron is. But this is war. Casualties are unavoidable, and we don’t have time to mourn the dead.”

“I know, Sir. It’s just… it all happened so suddenly.”

Lieutenant Larry sighed. He knew, of course, that dying on the battlefield was part of a soldier’s fate.

“Get some rest. Clear your head. We might not have much downtime from here on out.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Lieutenant Larry saluted his squadron leader, then walked along the walkway and left the hangar.

After taking a quick shower in the locker room, Larry was about to change into a clean uniform and head back to his squad’s quarters to rest when he overheard other pilots talking.

“Can’t believe the first one to bite it was that coward.”

“Yeah. But for a coward like him, dying on the battlefield is probably an honor, right?”

“That guy was spouting all that ‘anti-war’ crap before. I’m surprised he wasn’t hanged.”

“I heard his ancestors were high nobility. He had deep connections with some of the current noble families, so someone pulled strings to save his neck.”

“Hmph… Lucky him. Now he gets to return home with martyr status… probably even get a medal.”

The voices faded away as the pilots, now in their flight suit liners, left the locker room and headed for the pilot scramble area to be on standby.

Lieutenant Larry stepped out of his stall. He had almost stormed out to confront his comrades.

He wanted to tell them that Bob wasn’t the coward they thought he was, but a truly excellent pilot.

But in the end, he didn’t.

Maybe it was because of the rumors that had long been circulating within the squadron.

Lieutenant Larry couldn’t help but remember all the gossip he’d heard about Bob. But Bob himself had never tried to refute or argue against the rumors; he had just accepted them with indifference.

And when it was just the three of them in Second Squad, or out on a mission, the middle-aged, tail-ender pilot would indeed often say things unbecoming of a soldier.

Things like, ‘This war is just a game for the big shots, and soldiers like us are just their pawns, dying on the battlefield like idiots while thinking it’s some great honor.’

And, ‘If the Regent Prince and Her Highness the Princess weren’t so ambitious, this war never would have happened.’

Every time Bob said things like that, Lieutenant Larry would righteously refute him. Sometimes, he even wanted to drag the guy to the Military Police.

But now, today, after this middle-aged man had died in a star sector so far from their homeland, Lieutenant Larry couldn’t help but ask himself: what were they even here for?

His mind a tangled mess, Lieutenant Larry returned to Second Squad’s quarters. Ensign Jeff was still in the medical bay for a check-up, leaving him alone in the not-so-spacious room.

As he passed Bob’s sleeping bag, Lieutenant Larry happened to see an old notebook floating inside it.

Perhaps Bob had intended to come back and write something after the CSP mission, because the notebook wasn’t closed. It just floated there, near the opening of the sleeping bag.

In that moment, as if someone had turned the page for him, the notebook drifted so that the most recent page faced Lieutenant Larry. On it, a single sentence was written in a messy scrawl:

“This is not my war”

Chapter 293: Close-Quarters Combat

The experience of Lieutenant Larry’s HCP squadron, and indeed his entire Scout Detachment, was merely a microcosm of what all the scout detachments in the outer warning perimeter were facing.

Nearly every Scout Detachment had discovered traces of the Federation fleet in their patrol zones. A number of the HCP teams they dispatched had also encountered the enemy, just like Lieutenant Larry and his men.

A team like Second Squad, which had only lost one member, was already considered one of the more fortunate HCP teams.

Many HCP teams conducting CSP missions were overwhelmed by a barrage of attacks before they even had a chance to retaliate.

Meanwhile, in the Combat Command Center of the Gospel Fortress, Duke Hastings watched the scene unfolding on the holographic projection platform with a grave expression.

A massive ‘celestial sphere’ with a radius of six hundred to seven hundred thousand kilometers, centered on the main fleet’s position, represented the outer warning perimeter for the two battle groups.

And now, the outermost layer of this perimeter was flashing with a multitude of red markers, each signifying ‘enemy contact.’

These densely packed red markers practically enveloped the entire sphere, indicating that the enemy could launch their attack from any direction.

“It seems the gravitational wave radar isn’t omnipotent after all,” a magnetic female voice remarked beside Duke Hastings. “Those two, Duke and William, never mentioned this to us.”

Duke Artesia, currently in the Combat Command Center of the Serenity Fortress, had been projected beside Duke Hastings as a pale blue virtual avatar.

The Duchess’s Battle Group B was currently deployed in a ‘back-to-back’ formation, sixty thousand kilometers from Battle Group A.

The two Imperial Celestial Fortress battle groups were like a pair of dragon turtles, each guarding the other’s six o’clock.

“Hmph. You’d have better luck hoping the Federation fleet simply retreats than expecting them to tell you something like that.” Duke Hastings’s voice was devoid of emotion, and his entire being radiated a frigid aura that warned others to keep their distance.

“You know, someone once told me you and the Duke are rather alike. I didn’t believe it at first, but now I’m starting to wonder if you two are long-lost brothers. Always wearing that same poker face…” Duke Artesia flashed a charming smile, exuding what could only be described as ‘mature feminine allure,’ but it had no effect on Hastings whatsoever.

“Stick to the topic.”

“Alright, alright. Back to the gravitational wave radar,” Duke Artesia’s expression instantly turned serious. She crossed her arms and studied the star chart intently. “It’s certainly effective for strategic reconnaissance; it detected the movements of two Federation fleets before. But this time… it’s as if it’s ‘malfunctioned.’”

“This means they’re getting serious,” Hastings said, his words coming fast but still clear. “Don’t forget, Trafalgar and his Federation Navy have been dealing with Artificial Celestial Fortresses for a year now. If they hadn’t found a countermeasure, they’d have been blasted to smithereens by the fortress cannons long ago.”

“If their large-scale fleet movements consist of warping from the vicinity of one planet to another, they can indeed use planetary interference to evade our gravitational wave radar. Besides, this was originally a Federation star system. We have every reason to believe their knowledge of it far surpasses ours. They must have more than a few warp coordinates like that. As for the small fleets in the outer warning zone, they were never the radar’s primary targets to begin with. Otherwise, we wouldn’t need to deploy so many scout detachments on patrol.”

“Then in your opinion, is this a probing attack, or have they lost their patience and decided to make a real move against us?” Duke Artesia’s delicate brows furrowed. Though she was the only woman among the Empire’s five great dukes, she was an iron-willed leader, decisive in matters of military command.

“If this were just a probe, isn’t the scale a bit too large? We have at least three hundred enemy scout detachments active within our warning perimeter. According to reports from the front lines, these Federation detachments are showing high combat morale, pushing relentlessly to compress our outer defensive sphere. Coupled with the fact that we still haven’t spotted their main fleet, I have reason to suspect the Federation is preparing an attack of immense scale.”

“An attack of immense scale… A decisive fleet engagement, then,” Duke Artesia smiled. “Doesn’t that play right into your hands? The whole reason we’ve maintained this clustered formation was to force the Federation Navy’s main fleet into a head-on confrontation, wasn’t it?”

“Correct. Which is why I have a premonition that this battle could very well determine the course of this war.” As he spoke these words, Duke Hastings’s face remained as placid as a still well; no one in the Combat Command Center could guess his true thoughts from his expression.

“In that case… Your Excellency, the wise Duke Hastings, how do you think Marshal Trafalgar of the Federation intends to fight this decisive fleet battle?”

“Close-quarters combat.”

Seated at his desk and studying the star chart, Amber came to this conclusion in his mind without a moment’s hesitation.

He and Lilith were currently monitoring the battlefield situation. After their Autonomous Quantum Communication Node in the star system intercepted a vast amount of information from both sides, Amber was certain the Federation Navy was preparing to launch a large-scale offensive.

The numerous engagements on the Imperial Celestial Fortress battle groups’ outer perimeter were the result of the Federation dispatching numerous small fleets—ones that had evaded the gravitational wave radar—to ‘clear the pickets.’ Their goal was to shrink the Imperial battle groups’ warning radius and create a more favorable opening for their own strike.

And when Lilith asked Amber what strategy the Federation Navy would employ, he gave the same answer without hesitation: ‘close-quarters combat.’

“The Celestial Fortress’s Focusing Rainbow is practically invincible in a head-on engagement right now,” Amber explained. “Its destructive power is just too immense. Even if the Federation fleet could overwhelm them with numbers, they wouldn’t be able to withstand its sweeping fire. As long as Trafalgar isn’t a fool, he won’t use conventional methods of engagement—especially since he’s been fighting Celestial Fortresses for so long. He’s not going to walk into such an obvious trap.”

“So, Master, you believe he’ll adopt a ‘close-quarters combat’ strategy to leverage his strengths and mitigate his weaknesses?”

“It isn’t really about ‘leveraging strengths and mitigating weaknesses,’” Amber replied. “At best, it’s about reducing the ‘weight’ the Celestial Fortress has in determining the outcome of the battle. Once their fleet is entangled with the enemy’s, it becomes very difficult for the Focusing Rainbow to find an opportunity to fire.”

As he spoke, Amber pulled up a three-dimensional model of a Celestial Fortress which he had crudely modeled based on his memories and previously gathered intelligence.

“The Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortress was, by design, more of a defensive weapon. Even when deployed offensively, its tactical role is still better suited for defensive tasks. That’s why the research and development project for this thing was named the ‘Wall of Sighs.’”

Placing the model onto the star chart to simulate the Imperial battle groups, Amber recalled the discussions players in his previous life had about this weapon. He continued, “According to the Empire’s Advanced Defense Research Projects Agency, the most fundamental design principle for the Artificial Celestial Fortress was that it could not be breached from the front. The battle group’s fleet is primarily there to protect the fortress’s flanks and rear, allowing it to focus on enemies to its front. And the Celestial Fortress is equipped with that massive gravitational wave radar array to detect enemy movements at extreme distances, allowing the Focusing Rainbow to strike when the enemy can’t retaliate.”

“So the Imperial battle group commander’s actions are a defensive maneuver, intended to force the Federation to attack first?”

“Exactly. The Imperial commander is playing to the Celestial Fortress’s strengths perfectly. By placing the two fortresses ‘back-to-back,’ he’s turned the battle group into a veritable turtle shell. This has to be Duke Hastings’s handiwork. To be honest, he’s far more clever than Duke and William, who just run around with their fortresses. In this situation, no matter which direction Trafalgar attacks from using conventional tactics, he’ll be blasted to kingdom come by the Focusing Rainbow. So his only option is close-quarters combat.”

Lilith, in her virtual space, nodded. While listening to Amber’s explanation, she had also been devouring books on space combat, leveling up her own ‘Fleet Command’ skill. “If they’re going for close-quarters combat, does that mean they’ll warp their fleet right on top of the enemy? Wouldn’t that require extremely precise warp coordinates?”

“That’s right. They’d use a warp-in to arrive right next to the Imperial battle group, probably at a distance of about ten thousand kilometers. But the real challenge in that operation isn’t the precision of the coordinates; I’m sure Trafalgar has that information, fighting in his own backyard. The true difficulty is forcing the Imperial battle group to stay put, to just wait for the Federation fleet to jump on top of them. Because the moment the Imperial Celestial Fortress battle groups begin to maneuver, even a short-range tactical maneuver, it would render all previously calculated warp coordinates useless.”

Here, Amber too fell into deep thought, trying to put himself in Marshal Trafalgar’s shoes.

“What exactly would you do?”

“Sir, the gravitational wave radar has detected a target with the characteristics of a large-scale fleet! Identification is in progress!”

“So, they’re finally here…”

Upon hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, the knot of tension in Duke Hastings’s chest finally loosened.

“Report! Suspected large-scale fleet targets detected simultaneously in sectors A2, B7, F6, and I1!”

“Report! Message from Battle Group B! They have also detected multiple suspected large-scale fleet targets in their defensive hemisphere!”

One by one, suspected enemy fleets were marked on the star chart, their identities as Federation fleets confirmed by the intelligence processing center.

Watching the star chart, Hastings’s gaze locked onto a Federation fleet two point six million kilometers directly in front of the Gospel Fortress. It had just completed its warp and was now attempting to take cover behind a massive planet in the combat zone.

Duke Hastings spoke with resolve, “Relay my command! Prepare the Focusing Rainbow for firing! Target: the Federation fleet two point six million kilometers directly ahead of our fortress!”

Chapter 294: Infiltration Reconnaissance Before the Rush-Attack

Every firing of the Focusing Rainbow meant that thousands upon thousands of lives vanished into space.

At least until now, that statement had held true.

When Duke Hastings ordered the Gospel Fortress’s main cannon to fire, an extremely long ‘celestial river’ skimmed past the target planet’s position after a flight time of just over two minutes.

When firing at extreme ranges, the Focusing Rainbow would enhance the interference level of its directional magnetic field, adopting a more precise, power-concentrated ‘focused firing’ mode.

A distance of 2.6 million kilometers meant a significant delay, whether for detection or attack.

Therefore, after the gravitational wave radar array detected the Federation fleet, which was in a high-speed maneuvering formation, the Focusing Rainbow was actually aimed at a lead point calculated by the fortress’s control personality based on the enemy’s trajectory.

Unfortunately, perhaps due to inexperience and insufficient reference data, the lead point calculated by the Celestial Fortress’s control personality was a bit too conservative.

By the time the heavy metal ion stream, having crossed 2.6 million kilometers, reached its destination, only the ‘tail end’ of the Federation fleet remained at the target point.

Fortunately, however, this long-range ‘snipe’ had actually managed to hit its target.

Duke Hastings’s original intention was more of a warning shot, a shot in the dark to let the Federation fleet know that the Focusing Rainbow could attack them from a range where they couldn’t retaliate.

So when the Tactical Information Coordinator reported, “Covering the enemy fleet’s rear!” Duke Hastings even felt it was a pleasant surprise.

“Firing complete!”

“Energy circuits severed. Rerouting power.”

“Forced cooling of the Focusing Rainbow initiated. Main weapon systems commencing self-check. Autonomous diagnostic terminals and manned engineering vehicles deployed!”

Vast numbers of engineering personnel and machinery inside the Gospel Fortress sprang into action. This full-power firing was only the third time the fortress had done so.

After the first two firing tests in the weapons testing star system, the Gospel Fortress had never had an opportunity to use the Focusing Rainbow.

Thus, this was also the fortress’s first main cannon attack in actual combat.

“Sir! We estimate we can fire a second time in two hours.”

“Understood. Speed up the work. After the basic checks are complete, conduct a repositioning maneuver as planned. Remember to notify Duke Artesia to follow.”

—

“Report! The 112th and 131st Light Cruiser Detachments and the 221st Cruiser Detachment are completely wiped out! The 220th Cruiser Detachment is heavily damaged!”

“Leave a few medical ships to gather survivors. The rest of the fleet is to proceed to the designated coordinates and use the planet for cover.”

Eighth Fleet Commander Kane felt a pang of anguish upon hearing the casualty report, but he still followed the plan and led the fleet to take cover behind the planet.

At the previous war council, Kane, who had drawn the ‘bait the enemy into firing’ mission by drawing lots—a method that relied entirely on the will of the heavens—had felt his luck was absolutely dreadful.

However, after seeing his old rival, Rear Admiral Valdi, commander of the Tenth Fleet, draw the same ‘bait’ mission from another direction, Rear Admiral Kane had felt a sense of relief.

As commanders of the Federation Navy’s main fleets, both Kane and Valdi understood the importance of this campaign.

And after Marshal Trafalgar laid out the tactical plan, they both understood the necessity of their ‘bait’ missions.

Since they had accepted the mission, there was nothing more for Kane and Valdi to say.

For a combat mission, ‘indecisive execution is tantamount to no execution.’ Therefore, even if it meant sacrificing his entire fleet, Kane was determined to complete the mission given by Marshal Trafalgar.

Fortunately, although they had suffered losses, they were still within his acceptable range for fleet casualties.

“Scout ship reporting! We’ve observed signs of another Imperial Celestial Fortress firing! The impact point is in the Tenth Fleet’s bait maneuver zone!”

Hearing this, Kane couldn’t help but grip the armrests of his captain’s chair tightly, the veins on his forehead betraying his inner tension.

Although Valdi was his biggest competitor and old rival in daily life and exercises, under these circumstances, Kane couldn’t help but pray for the Tenth Fleet.

“You have to make it back alive, Valdi… we still have plenty of scores to settle!”

—

The main cannon firing of the Artificial Celestial Fortress was a magnificent spectacle—so magnificent that fleets around the warzone and even passing civilian vessels could observe the phenomenon through various means.

A concentric zone with a radius of three hundred fifty thousand to six hundred thousand kilometers, centered on the Imperial main fleet’s position, served as the mid-level security zone for the two Celestial Fortress battlegroups.

Within this zone, a new ‘Vulture-class’ long-range infiltration scout ship of the Federation Navy was in ‘covert operations’ mode, lurking silently in deep space under the cover of optical camouflage and a blackbody coating.

Throughout the entire star system, this long-range infiltration scout ship was likely the closest Federation vessel able to observe the firing of the Focusing Rainbow.

That is, if the other scout ships on infiltration missions hadn’t already been discovered and destroyed.

However, the ship’s captain, Brownie, had no way of knowing the current status of friendly forces—or rather, he didn’t dare to actively contact any other scout ships.

Because for both himself and any friendly scout ships, if their communications were intercepted and their positions pinpointed, it would be a one-way ticket to oblivion.

“I worked damn hard to get into this position,” Brownie thought. “I can’t afford to blow it now.”

As he thought this, he watched the progress bar on the virtual screen to his left, which displayed the precise coordinate lock on the Imperial fleet—this was the most critical task for their risky infiltration mission.

The Federation’s mobile fortresses were not yet in position, so they couldn’t deploy their large gravitational wave radar arrays to determine the precise coordinates of the Imperial Celestial Fortress battlegroups.

Admittedly, a fully-manned main fleet, once deployed, could form a massive long-range sensor array by networking its ships and scattering additional probes.

But firstly, the accuracy of this method was still insufficient; it was generally only used to guide the fleet’s long-range salvos.

Secondly, deploying in such a manner right in front of the Celestial Fortresses would be practically begging the Empire to open fire.

Therefore, the task of acquiring the precise coordinates of the Imperial Celestial Fortress battlegroups fell to these long-range infiltration scout ships.

And while the outer warning perimeter of the Imperial Celestial Fortress battlegroups was indeed extremely tight, practically airtight…

…they only had so many scout detachments to spare. When spread across such a vast perimeter, there were bound to be some gaps.

Inside the relatively cramped bridge of the long-range infiltration scout ship, the number of crew members was far smaller than on a conventional warship.

Moreover, none of them seemed to show any tension from being right under the enemy’s nose; some even stretched lazily from time to time.

Captain Brownie wasn’t surprised, though. After all, sailors who were timid or had poor mental fortitude would never be selected as crew for a long-range infiltration scout ship.

Although the name of this new type of warship sounded similar to ‘long-range scout ship’ or ‘scout ship,’ it was, in fact, completely different from both.

Scout ships were the most numerous and common means of reconnaissance in the fleet.

Long-range scout ships, on the other hand, were vessels that operated one to two standard warp distances ahead of a fleet during maneuvers to perform advance reconnaissance.

They had enhanced endurance and maneuverability, making them a sort of ‘pro max’ version of the standard scout ship.

But for the long-range infiltration scout ship, the key word was ‘infiltration’.

This new class of vessel was designed not only to perform reconnaissance far from the fleet but, more importantly, to breach the enemy’s outer warning perimeter and approach to a dangerously close range for close-up observation.

Under these circumstances, these ships could expect no support from the rear. They were entirely on their own.

So the Federation Navy’s Armament Manufacturing Bureau had piled a whole host of new technologies onto this class of ship.

The latest covert operations modules, the latest hull materials, and a completely new configuration for the ship’s fusion reactor and main thruster array.

Add to that the ‘Automated Ship Control System’ derived from the unmanned fleets—a system that drastically reduced the number of personnel required to operate the vessel.

After all, long-range infiltration scout ships undertook missions with the danger cranked to the maximum, so the fewer personnel on board, the better.

Furthermore, to keep the ship’s profile as small as possible, these long-range scout ships were built without any weapons, nor did they carry any HCPs or fighters.

In the R&D team’s view, giving a long-range infiltration scout ship combat capabilities was pointless.

If you were discovered right under the enemy fleet’s nose, could you really expect to fight your way out with one or two cannons or a few HCPs?

Rather than making such a futile effort, it was better to push the ‘stealth reconnaissance’ concept to its absolute extreme.

And it was precisely this design philosophy that ultimately produced the unique creation known as the ‘Vulture-class.’

“Captain, real-time coordinates for the Imperial Celestial Fortress battlegroups have been resolved. Transmit to the fleet?”

The voice of the shipboard control AI sounded on the bridge. Having finished its calculations, the AI re-projected its virtual avatar to the side of the captain’s chair—a mature woman with a stunning figure, dressed in a navy uniform.

Speaking of which, the Federation Navy captains were remarkably uniform when it came to their ‘preferences’; eighty percent of the shipboard control AI avatars were of the ‘sexy older sister’ type.

“Hold on. Run another threat assessment and calculate the fastest acceleration path to enter warp.”

Captain Brownie tapped his fingers rhythmically on the armrest and added:

“I’m just sayin’, if we can make it back alive, we should damn well try to.”

The crew on the bridge immediately broke into laughter. For them, having a laid-back captain was crucial when undertaking this kind of mission.

Chapter 295: Breaking the Formation and Hastings’ Ace in the Hole

“Threat assessment complete. A total of two threat targets have been identified.”

“The nearest light cruiser flotilla is at a direct distance of one hundred twenty thousand kilometers. Upon exposure, this ship can expect to be attacked within fifteen minutes.”

“The other is a destroyer-frigate flotilla at a direct distance of one hundred eighty thousand kilometers. Upon exposure, this ship can expect to be attacked within twenty-five minutes.”

After completing its threat assessment, the shipboard control AI quickly reported the nearby Imperial units that posed a potential danger.

Simultaneously, on a rather shabby-looking virtual screen before Brownie, it plotted the optimal emergency escape route for the long-range infiltration scout ship.

That was right. In order to minimize unnecessary energy consumption and reduce the volume of the bridge, the standard holographic projection platform found on conventional warships had been stripped out by the R&D team at the Naval Equipment Manufacturing Bureau.

“Tch… it takes fifteen minutes to initiate a warp, too? What a coincidence.”

Captain Brownie couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as he looked at the calculations provided by the shipboard control AI.

Now, this long-range infiltration scout ship truly had to dance on a razor’s edge.

After a moment of thought, Brownie decided to act immediately. Every second was precious now. He had to transmit the precise coordinates as quickly as possible so the assault fleet could get a better jump on the enemy.

Otherwise, if the return coordinates weren’t received by the time the attack was scheduled to begin, the assault fleet would have to resort to using highly risky “estimated coordinates” for a perilous blind jump.

Under such circumstances, it was even possible for a ship to warp out and crash directly into the Celestial Fortress.

“We can’t wait! All hands, attention! All units, prepare for immediate action. This ship will transmit the intelligence thirty seconds after this broadcast ends. Our position will be exposed at that time, so we will enter the emergency warp procedure immediately after transmission!”

After the ship-wide broadcast ended, the already sparsely crewed long-range infiltration scout ship fell completely silent. Although the crew members were all exceptionally brave, they couldn’t help but feel a surge of tension at this moment.

Thirty seconds, which would normally pass in the blink of an eye, felt agonizingly long to the crew members now.

The digital clock seemed to exhaust all its energy just to tick from one number to the next.

“8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…”

“Transmit the intelligence data packet now!”

“All hands, deactivate Optical Camouflage! Adjust orientation one hundred eighty degrees! Main thruster array, disengage limiters for overpower!”

The Empire’s Celestial Fortress battle group maintained extremely strict electronic surveillance of the middle security perimeter and the space within it. The instant the long-range infiltration scout ship sent its transmission, it was simultaneously located by several electronic scout ships.

The ships of the nearest light cruiser flotilla, using the positioning data provided by the electronic scout ships, quickly locked onto the long-range infiltration scout ship’s position.

Through their optical lenses, the dozen or so light cruisers watched as a slender warship with an extremely small forward profile performed a sharp somersault before rocketing toward the outer perimeter.

“Quick! Stop it!”

The light cruiser flotilla, which was already on a security patrol mission, didn’t hesitate for a moment. They immediately increased the power of their plasma thruster arrays and gave chase.

“Attempt to engage with high-energy lasers and charged particle beams! Don’t worry about perfect accuracy, just open fire in their direction!”

At a distance of one hundred thousand kilometers, with both sides maneuvering at high speed, even “light-speed weapons” like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons couldn’t guarantee a hit.

But the light cruisers couldn’t be bothered with that now. Just as the flotilla’s commander said, the priority was just to get shots downrange.

Even if they didn’t hit, making the enemy nervous was good enough.

For ships tasked with security, it was bad enough that they had failed to detect an enemy ship lurking right under their noses. If they let it escape on top of that…

Losing face would be the least of their worries; they might lose their uniforms over this.

Once the chase began, time seemed to accelerate again. To the crew of the long-range infiltration scout ship, more than ten minutes passed in what felt like the blink of an eye.

Just as the ship was about to enter its warp, the high-energy laser and charged particle beams firing at them drew ever closer.

“What kind of garbage estimate was this from this damn AI? Fifteen minutes my ass! I feel like we’re gonna get blown to bits any second now!”

Even while pinned to his captain’s chair, Captain Brownie still found a moment to gripe.

But complaining was one thing; he kept his eyes glued to the virtual screen in front of him, watching as the ship’s parameters drew closer and closer to the requirements for warp.

When the green words “WARP AUTHORIZED” lit up, Captain Brownie could no longer contain his tension and roared:

“Quick, enter warp!”

The long-range infiltration scout ship’s jump drive immediately began to operate, and the telltale signs of spatial collapse appeared in front of the ship.

But in the final moment, just as the warp corridor was about to form, a blue charged particle beam accurately struck the ship’s midsection. During its two-second sustained firing, it swept across the superconducting battery stack.

“What fucking luck…”

Before Captain Brownie could finish his last complaint, the entire bridge was completely engulfed by a rapidly expanding high-temperature plasma fireball.

As the massive plasma fireball bloomed in the dark expanse of space, the members of the light cruiser flotilla saw the “Target Destroyed” notification and finally breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Gospel Fortress, Combat Command Center.

Duke Hastings had already received the report about the destruction of a hostile “suspected scout ship” in the middle security zone.

In fact, it wasn’t one report, but three.

Three of the Federation’s new scout ships had been lurking under the battle group’s nose for who knew how long. They had just sent out intelligence in quick succession before being destroyed by the patrol fleets.

“It seems traditional security patrols are no longer sufficient. Indeed, only the blood shed in actual combat can drive technological progress in this field.”

The thought flashed through Duke Hastings’ mind. Just as he was about to order the patrol fleets in the middle security perimeter to conduct another thorough sweep, the Combat Command Center’s alarms blared.

[Warning! Unauthorized spatial collapse detected!]

[Warning! Abnormal mass increase detected in space!]

The fortress control personality quickly began its calculations and, seconds later, provided a series of “warp exit point” coordinates.

When the staff in the Combat Command Center saw the dozen or so coordinates, none of which were more than five thousand kilometers from the Celestial Fortress battle group, cold sweat beaded on their foreheads.

They had been rush-attacked.

In a minute at most, a dozen Federation fleets would be right in their faces.

But contrary to the reactions of the others in the Combat Command Center, Duke Hastings’ face showed an expression of relief.

At the same time, Duke Artesia’s communication connected. The Duchess’s first words were:

“Close-quarters combat. You really called it.”

“After all, it’s one of the few ways to break our ‘turtle formation.’ Unfortunately, this isn’t good news. The enemy is clearly well-prepared and their morale is high, otherwise they would never execute a battle plan with such a high casualty rate.”

There was no joy on Duke Hastings’ face for having predicted the enemy’s plan, only a solemn gravity.

He and Duke Artesia had already received a secret letter from the rear, informing them that the old Emperor, Frederico Rosa Leon, was critically ill.

Before, such news might have sparked certain ideas in the Duke’s mind; after all, it meant that Her Highness the Princess, whom he supported, was one step closer to the Imperial throne.

But this unexpected news had arrived precisely after he and Duke Artesia had relieved their “friendly forces” and led the Celestial Fortress battle group into Federation territory…

Thinking of this, Duke Hastings couldn’t help but recall how the Regent Prince had personally proposed the “troop rotation” suggestion during a routine Imperial military meeting.

At the time, he, Duke Artesia, Her Highness the Princess, and even the staunchly neutral Duke Soren had all been surprised.

Now, it seemed it was an open conspiracy.

“Duke Artesia, prepare to execute Plan C. If the battle situation and our losses reach the conditions we previously agreed upon, I will consider the suggestion you made.”

“Thank you for considering my suggestion… May fortune favor your arms.”

“And you as well.”

As the two Dukes concluded their brief exchange, the A and B Celestial Fortress battle groups had finished their combat preparations.

The red lights of the battle alert were lit, and the CICs of every warship went into light control.

All power was to be concentrated on firepower and defensive systems; power to non-essential areas was cut.

On non-combat units like tender ships and hospital ships, as the fusion reactors operated at their combat-rated output, the onboard superconducting battery stacks were also drained to mitigate potential secondary damage.

In battle, if these batteries—used for routine low-power operations—were not drained, they would become little more than plasma bombs sitting inside the ships.

Soon, one fully-manned Federation capital fleet after another began to emerge from warp, appearing directly in front of the eight Imperial Expeditionary Strike Fleets.

The farthest was five thousand kilometers away, while the closest was a mere three thousand kilometers from its enemy.

There was no countdown, no pre-battle speech. The entire region of space lit up in an instant.

The warships of the Federation and the Empire opened fire with full main-gun salvos at almost the same time, unleashing a light as brilliant as a supernova burst, just like the codename of the Federation’s operation.

Every warship pushed its deflector shields to maximum power. As countless heavy metal particle streams lanced toward their targets, the electrical arcs flashing along both frontlines nearly formed a gigantic “halo” in this sector of space.

But this was only the beginning. The Combat Command Center detected another six warp signatures.

This time, the coordinates were located precisely in the narrow gap, less than fifty thousand kilometers wide, between the two “back-to-back” Celestial Fortress battle groups.

As the warships of the unmanned fleet emerged from warp, the two Celestial Fortresses, ‘Gospel’ and ‘Serenity’, simultaneously opened all their egress bay doors.

“Reserve strike groups, fortress garrison fleet, deploy.”

Chapter 296: A Pyrrhic Victory is Still a Victory (Combined Chapter)

Artificial Celestial Fortresses were, of course, assigned their own garrison fleets.

Although an Artificial Celestial Fortress typically did not operate alone, instead forming a “Celestial Fortress Battle Group” with other fleets, a garrison fleet was still indispensable.

The composition of a garrison fleet was largely similar to that of a capital fleet, though with fewer battleships and more functionally-oriented vessels like light and heavy cruisers.

After all, the firepower of a Celestial Fortress was already immense, so adding a few more battleships wouldn’t make a significant difference. The primary role of the garrison fleet was to assist with anti-air defense and protect the Celestial Fortress’s flanks and rear.

Duke Hastings’s trump card, aside from these two garrison fleets, consisted of two reserve strike groups docked within the two Celestial Fortresses.

These two reserve strike groups had never been deployed since departing from Imperial territory, remaining on standby inside the Celestial Fortresses. The entire purpose was to mislead the Federation into misjudging the Empire’s force disposition.

During the pre-battle operational meeting, when Duke Hastings saw the long, narrow gap between the two Celestial Fortresses in their “turtle formation,” he had already considered the possibility of a Federation assault on this very spot.

To ensure sufficient maneuvering space, the distance between the two Celestial Fortresses had to be maintained at a minimum of forty thousand kilometers, and normally, it was kept at sixty thousand kilometers.

A “gap” of this size was, in theory, large enough for multiple fleets to execute a pinpoint warp jump into. Moreover, Duke Hastings believed that the enemy surely had a high degree of mastery over the astronomical conditions and coordinates of their home star systems.

Therefore, he had been on guard all along.

The garrison fleets and reserve strike groups, long prepared for deployment, had been waiting for this exact moment.

The reserve strike groups and garrison fleets, equivalent to four full-strength fleets, immediately clashed with the unmanned fleets that were incrementally warping into the battlefield.

Their mission was simple and clear: to prevent these unmanned fleets from destroying the rear thruster arrays of the Celestial Fortresses, no matter the cost.

Meanwhile, Marshal Trafalgar, commanding from the flagship of the first Federation fleet to enter the fray, was also informed that the unmanned fleets had been intercepted.

At that moment, he had to admit that Duke Hastings on the other side was quite skilled at concealing his forces. A combat power equivalent to four full fleets had been hidden away until this very moment.

The six unmanned fleets, originally intended to be a surprise attack force, were now forced into a close-range “meat grinder” battle with these newly emerged Imperial forces.

Although the unmanned fleets had a numerical advantage, the Empire’s reserve strike groups and garrison fleets could receive defensive fire support from the two Celestial Fortresses, so they were not at a complete disadvantage.

Marshal Trafalgar’s strategy for this operation was to land the “strongest punch” directly on the enemy’s face. Thus, when devising his operational plan, he had held nothing back in reserve.

Now, all twenty-one fleets, including the Eighth and Tenth Fleets which had executed the feint, as well as the Destroyer-Frigate Formations tasked with clearing the pickets on the outer warning perimeter, had all joined the battle.

Including the Imperial fleets, this battlefield, aside from the two Celestial Fortresses, now hosted a staggering gathering of over eight thousand warships of various types.

Such a “grand spectacle” had never occurred, not even during the last great war eighty years ago.

While both sides had committed a greater total number of warships over the course of the previous war, it was the first time in history that such a massive concentration of vessels had been brought together in a single star system, let alone in the orbital space around a single planet.

And this battle had reached a fever pitch from the very first salvo exchanged by both sides.

The salvo strategies adopted by both sides were quite similar. Within a single fleet, fifty percent of the firepower would be concentrated on one or two enemy battleships, while the remaining fifty percent would be free to engage targets of opportunity.

This approach ensured that each salvo could reliably destroy an enemy capital ship while also forcing all warships on the enemy’s frontline to keep their deflector shields active.

Aboard the Federation Navy’s flagship, the Dreadnought, Marshal Trafalgar on the bridge and Duke Hastings in the Combat Command Center of the Gospel Fortress both watched the chaotic battlefield and spoke almost in unison at the exact same moment:

“What a damn ugly mess.”

To an outsider, the crisscrossing lasers and particle beams, the silvery-white arcs of the deflector shields, and the fiery explosions of stricken warships could be described as a “masterpiece” of cosmic scenery.

No panoramic film or video game could ever capture a scene as breathtaking as the clash between these two fleets.

But to soldiers and high-ranking officers like Marshal Trafalgar and Duke Hastings, the engagement was nothing short of hideous.

The battle had devolved into a war of attrition, devoid of any skill or “artistry.”

It had become a contest of who would run out of capital ships first, or whose fleet morale would break first.

Fleet combat, which demanded meticulous calculation and tactical deployment, had been reduced to a simple yet brutal mathematical equation.

Eighty percent of fleet combat tactics were now useless, as all engaging forces were fighting within a range of five thousand kilometers, with some even closing to within three thousand kilometers.

At such distances, a warship’s heavy particle cannon projectile had a “flight time” of just over a second, essentially guaranteeing a hit upon firing.

Tactics and maneuvers had become largely meaningless.

Every ship captain diverted most of their power to their main cannons and deflector shields. While following the fleet commander’s lead in singling out enemy vessels, they prayed that their own ship would not become the target of the enemy’s “roll call.”

Under such saturated-fire conditions, neither the Federation Navy’s “Kraken-class” nor the Imperial Royal Navy’s “Requiem-class”—the two most durable capital battleships—could possibly survive a concentrated salvo.

But as the one who initiated the offensive, Marshal Trafalgar had no wish for the fight to turn into a war of attrition. He quickly issued a new command according to the operational plan.

“All fleets, engage the enemy at full speed and close the distance! All shipboard HCP pilots, board your machines and prepare for boarding action!”

The order from the fleet’s supreme commander was broadcast via shortwave radio, laser, and signal lamps.

On a chaotic battlefield, relying on a single method of communication was highly unreliable.

The chaotic and complex electromagnetic environment interfered with shortwave communications, while the debris-strewn battlefield and constant high-speed maneuvering made laser communications intermittent at best.

Thus, light signals became the fallback method.

When a shipboard control AI “saw” the light signals from a friendly vessel, it would instantly interpret message and control its own ship’s signal lamps to relay the information.

Soon, all Federation warships that received the order increased their speed and began to charge forward.

The captains of those ships that, for various reasons, didn’t receive the order, quickly realized what was happening when they saw the increasingly long engine trails behind the friendly warships around them.

On their command, the helmsmen unhesitatingly pushed the engine order telegraph to “Full Ahead.”

Instantly, the rate of closure between the two opposing forces increased again, and the distance between them narrowed dramatically.

On the other side, upon observing the Federation fleet’s movements, the captains of the various Imperial warships didn’t even need to wait for Duke Hastings’s command before they began issuing orders to “prepare for a full-deck strike.”

All pilots, after donning their heavy hydraulic pressure suits, boarded their HCPs and, guided by the maintenance teams, moved to the hangar’s departure area.

Boarding actions didn’t require catapult launches, as launching HCPs one by one was actually less efficient.

The common practice in both the Federation and Imperial navies was to have the HCPs exit through the conventional egress routes and stand by on the warship’s deck.

Once they closed to within the five-hundred-kilometer boarding range, the entire squadron would charge forward at once.

This tactic had largely originated from the procedures both navies used during their routine operations to hunt down pirates.

Although this method was brutish and full of flaws, neither side had yet found a better solution for “boarding actions.”

As the HCP pilots emerged onto their warship’s deck through the conventional egress routes, assuming they weren’t destroyed by a stray shot, the first thing they saw was a “lit up” starscape.

Their field of view was filled with an unprecedentedly vast fleet. Countless friendly and enemy markers nearly saturated the screens of their 360-degree cockpits, but the combat assistance AI quickly reacted, filtering out units that were too distant.

Even so, innumerable beams, projectiles, and the flashes of explosions still wove a deadly tapestry between the two fleets.

The deflector shields at the front of every warship were active, with frenzied arcs of electricity writhing ceaselessly, for in a fleet battle of this scale, ships were under constant attack.

If any warship’s deflector shield overloaded and failed, its fate was to be pierced in the next second by a heavy metal particle stream or a charged particle beam from an unknown source.

Three thousand kilometers… two thousand… one thousand…

A series of enormous “globes of light” ignited between the two fleets. These were the “defensive hydrogen bombs” released by the charging Federation fleet.

The massive numbers of hydrogen bombs launched formed a colossal “wall of light” upon detonation, screening the front of nearly the entire charging Federation fleet.

Physical projectiles that flew into this “wall of light,” formed by high-temperature plasma fireballs, would be melted. Heavy metal particle streams and charged particle beams would be distorted by the chaotic magnetic fields of the nuclear explosions, rendering them completely inaccurate.

The advance tactics formulated before the battle were now being resolutely executed by the Federation Navy fleets. Whenever the “wall of light” ahead began to fade, the multi-purpose launch silos on each warship would fire a new round of nuclear warheads, which would detonate to form a new “wall of light.”

At this moment, the Federation fleet was like a Spartan warrior charging with a heavy shield, paying no heed to how the Imperial fleet ahead might react.

Their objective was simple: charge through first, and worry about the rest later.

Their opponents in the Imperial fleet were stunned. They had never imagined that “defensive thermonuclear weapons” could be used in such a manner by these Federation warships during an offensive.

What was even more terrifying was that they couldn’t find an effective countermeasure on short notice. They could only watch helplessly as the Federation fleet used “nuclear-paved roads” to force their way forward.

“All HCP squadrons, attention! Prepare to launch!”

The voices of various ship captains giving the command echoed almost simultaneously through the command link.

“3! 2! 1! Launch! Launch! Launch!”

When the distance between the two fleets shrank to just five hundred kilometers, all HCP pilots saw the arrow symbol for launch appear in the center of their 360-degree displays.

The externally mounted solid fuel booster rockets ignited. The HCPs, already possessing significant momentum from standing on the decks of their speeding warships, shot forward at an even greater velocity.

Although the burn time of solid-fuel rocket engines was short, far shorter than the plasma thruster arrays on the HCPs’ backs, these time-honored pieces of technology were still playing their part when a short burst of acceleration was needed.

One after another, the HCPs, trailing bright wakes behind them, pounced towards the enemy warships ahead like eagles leaving the nest.

But how many would be able to “return to the nest” after the battle?

No one could answer that question.

The solid-fuel rocket engines burned for only a fleeting five seconds, but their immense thrust sent the pilots into a redout while also accelerating the HCPs to combat speed.

The pilots unhesitatingly jettisoned the spent boosters. Then, piloting HCPs that resembled iron boxes wrapped in external armor plates and heavy shields, they charged toward their squadron’s designated targets, their heavy particle cannons extended like lances.

When the last wall of light from the final round of nuclear detonations between the fleets dissipated, the first to break through the barrier were the massive numbers of HCPs from both sides.

Federation and Imperial HCP squadrons passed each other at a distance of mere tens of kilometers. Apart from those squadrons forced to open fire because their attack vectors were intercepted, the other attack squadrons completely ignored the enemies they brushed past.

Their own warships and the remaining HCPs left behind would handle defense; that was not their concern. These attack squadrons had only one goal: to inflict as much damage as possible on the enemy’s warships.

The warships, having launched their HCP squadrons, now began their final tactical maneuvers. They all targeted their chosen enemy vessels and began adjusting their orientation, attempting to catch the enemy’s flank and send them to oblivion with a single salvo.

However, when every ship commander had the same idea, an inevitable part of space fleet combat began—what some called the deadly waltz.

In truth, once the battle entered the true “close-quarters” phase, its progression had little to do with the commanders of either side.

Whether it was Marshal Trafalgar or Duke Hastings, there was only one thing they could do now: wait.

Marshal Trafalgar waited for the Imperial fleet commanders to break under the pressure of their casualties and initiate a retreat. If the enemy showed no sign of doing so, he would have to play his final trump card.

Duke Hastings was also waiting. He was waiting to see where the numbers representing the combat loss ratio between the two sides would fall in relation to a line he had drawn in his mind.

If it was the blue line, he would choose to go “all in” with Duke Artesia, trying to annihilate the Federation fleet before him and achieve the Imperial Royal Navy’s greatest victory since the start of the war.

But if it approached the red line in his mind, he would have to consider withdrawing from the battle to preserve his forces.

After all, for him and Duke Artesia, the Federation fleet before them was not their only enemy.

Lieutenant Larry of the Imperial Royal Navy’s 809th HCP Squadron hadn’t had much time to rest.

He felt as though he had just climbed into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes when the battle alarm blared through the rest cabin.

After vigorously rubbing his face to wake himself up, Larry pulled the rookie, Jeff, out of his own sleeping bag and kicked him towards the hatch.

Out of habit, Lieutenant Larry glanced at Bob’s sleeping bag, intending to call out to the middle-aged man as usual.

Only when he saw the empty sleeping bag did he finally remember that this member of his squad had been killed in action during the last CSP mission.

But the piercing battle alarm left no time for grief. The moment before he left the cabin, on a strange impulse, he took Bob’s notebook from his sleeping bag and placed it in the pocket of his flight suit liner.

“Let’s sortie together one last time, Bob.”

Like all the other Scout Detachments that had hastily returned from the outer warning perimeter, the commander of the Swift Runner’s detachment was stunned by the scene before him.

Through the combined efforts of the Federation Navy and the Imperial Royal Navy, the sector of space they were in was now “ablaze.”

“Captain, what’s our plan now?”

“How the hell should I know? I’ve never seen a fight like this either…” the scout ship’s captain muttered, dazed. Then, he quickly realized the position of his and the other scout detachments—behind the Federation fleet.

“Attack their rear!”

“Huh? What did you say, Captain?”

“I said, let’s go bust their asses!” The scout captain waved his hand emphatically and continued, “Contact all Scout Detachments and Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas we can reach. There’s only one way to rendezvous with friendly forces now, and that’s to punch through their lines! Anyone with guts, charge with us!”

“Yes, Captain!”

The communications officer quickly began trying to contact other nearby friendly forces, though it was no easy task in the complex electromagnetic environment.

Just then, a “celestial river” once again spanned this region of space.

On Duke Hastings’s command, the Gospel Fortress, without waiting for The Focusing Rainbow to complete its full self-check procedure, fired a second time.

Although this shot was only at fifty percent power and the firing duration was shortened to five seconds, with the coordination of the “master gunner” and the fortress’s control AI, it successfully struck a Federation fleet.

This Federation fleet, which had not yet fully entered the close-range melee, had over eighty percent of its warships wiped out by the attack from The Focusing Rainbow, making it the Federation fleet with the highest losses since Operation Supernova Burst began.

But this attack also came at a cost for the Gospel Fortress. The consequence of skipping nearly half of the self-check procedures to force a shot was that The Focusing Rainbow was immediately forced offline.

The main cannon could only be used again after returning to a safe area for a thorough inspection and repairs.

The entire battlefield seemed to fall silent for a moment under the intimidating power of The Focusing Rainbow. This single strike, which seemed to pierce the very stars, significantly boosted the morale of the Imperial fleet.

The outer scout detachments, including the Swift Runner, waited no longer. They all accelerated towards the rear of the nearest Federation fleet and launched all their shipboard HCPs.

The tide of battle, it seemed, was about to turn because of The Focusing Rainbow’s attack.

Watching this scene from his bridge, Marshal Trafalgar sighed. No matter how well-prepared the Federation fleet was, the Celestial Fortress was still a gulf that couldn’t be crossed in a short time.

This forced him to use the “trump card” he had prepared for this battle.

“Relay my command. Remotely detonate the Proton Annihilation Bomb on board the First Unmanned Fleet.”

“Marshal! Detonating it now will engulf a large portion of our six unmanned fleets!” an operations staff officer objected.

He didn’t want to play the contrarian at such a critical moment, but if he followed Marshal Trafalgar’s orders, over eighty percent of the unmanned warships currently entangled with four enemy fleets would be destroyed by the Proton Annihilation Bomb.

And this wasn’t just his opinion; everyone on the bridge and in the CIC was now looking their way.

“Of course I know that. But if our unmanned fleets are destroyed, we can build more. The fleet command AIs can be mass-produced quickly!”

Marshal Trafalgar pointed toward the surrounding Imperial fleets and continued, “The enemy is different. The ships for four fleets can probably be produced quickly, but the crews, HCP pilots, and fleet commanders they need cannot be trained so fast. Trading machines and AI for long-term trained professional soldiers is not a losing proposition. Do you understand?!”

Seeing the young operations staff officer nod with a conflicted expression, Marshal Trafalgar couldn’t be bothered to argue with them further.

“Since you understand, carry out the order immediately!”

A purple sphere of light, expanding rapidly in the void of space, seemed to be the Federation Navy’s answer to The Focusing Rainbow’s shot.

In an instant, the massive purple sphere devoured over eighty percent of the unmanned fleets, along with the two garrison fleets and two reserve strike groups—a total of four Imperial fleets—that were locked in combat with them.

Upon detecting the anomalous energy fluctuations, the two Celestial Fortresses immediately began emergency evasion maneuvers.

The Proton Annihilation Bomb that had “erased” Robert IV had left a deep impression on the Imperial Navy. Its signature characteristics had been immediately reported to the rear and added to the threat databases of all ships and fortresses.

So, when the Proton Annihilation Bomb was detonated again, the control AIs of the two Celestial Fortresses reacted instantly.

Seeing the massive purple sphere and the four fleets simultaneously marked with “red crosses” signifying total loss on his fleet roster, the color finally drained from Duke Hastings’s face.

“You madman. You truly are a madman, Marshal Trafalgar. You’ll do whatever it takes to achieve your objective. You truly are the purest form of a soldier.”

At the same time, a communication request came in from Duke Artesia.

“This is far enough, isn’t it, Hastings? If we lose any more, things will get difficult later on.”

The duchess’s expression had lost its earlier ease, replaced by one of grave solemnity.

“Yes. I know.”

Chapter 297: The Anticlimactic Battle

“Tsk! Out of penetrator rounds.”

Lieutenant Larry couldn’t help but click his tongue as he looked at the ammunition count on the multi-function display.

The panoramic display before him was now patchy, with some sections perfectly clear and others completely fuzzed out.

Although the combat assistance AI was doing its best to maintain the screen’s integrity, the extensive damage to the sensors all over the unit’s fuselage had severely degraded the cockpit’s field of view.

“I can’t even tell who has the upper hand right now.”

With most warships firing while also trying their best to launch electronic warfare attacks, the electromagnetic environment of the entire combat zone was worse than ever before.

The effectiveness of the integrated sensor unit’s targeting system had plummeted, and in many cases, Lieutenant Larry had to rely on his own eyes to make judgments.

After clashing with a team of Federation HCPs and getting caught in the melee, he had been separated from the rookie Jeff and the other members of the 809th Squadron. Now, he was flying alone in this dangerous sector of space.

Although Lieutenant Larry had eventually taken down the enemy he’d been grappling with, a close-range shrapnel grenade had hit him, stripping away many of the Cleric’s external “odds and ends,” including its sensors.

Furthermore, the unit’s shields were shot, and its ammunition was running low.

Beams of light streaked across the starry sky, fireballs erupting and vanishing in an instant.

It was impossible to tell if it was a friendly unit being hit or an enemy ship being destroyed; the entire battlefield was shrouded in chaos.

Suddenly, a blinding flash erupted not far behind Lieutenant Larry.

He glanced back to see, on the flickering panoramic display, a scout ship-like vessel breaking apart amid an explosion before being swallowed by a massive plasma fireball—the telltale sign of a warship-grade superconducting battery stack going into quench.

Although he couldn’t make out the ship’s hull number anymore, a voice in the back of his mind told Lieutenant Larry that it was the mothership of the 809th HCP Squadron—the Swift Runner.

“Damn it.”

Lieutenant Larry stared at the scene in disbelief. He had lost the mothership he was supposed to return to.

For an HCP pilot, one fighting in the chaos of space, this was arguably the most terrifying nightmare imaginable.

While the Cleric was one of the Empire’s most advanced active-duty HCPs, that didn’t mean its internal power source and life support systems could run forever.

This was especially true for the oxygen generator. Although Lieutenant Larry didn’t know what kind of “tablets” the maintenance team had loaded into the machine, he knew they would eventually run out.

For the first time, this lieutenant of the Imperial Royal Navy experienced a feeling called despair inside an HCP.

An HCP that had lost its mothership in space was, as the old hands called it, a pilot’s coffin.

For a moment, the despairing Lieutenant Larry stopped all movement, his entire unit drifting like a corpse in space.

The notebook he had tied to the side of his seat before sortieing had come loose at some point and was now floating free. The pages of Bob’s diary flipped over and over, finally stopping on the last sentence he had written in this world.

“This is not my war.”

“Yeah, Bob, you were right. Whose war is this, anyway?”

The notebook continued to drift to the side. Lieutenant Larry’s gaze followed it unconsciously, and as he turned his head, he caught sight of an HCP streaking past in the distance.

The combat assistance AI swiftly identified its model—it was also a ‘Cleric.’

Larry snapped back to his senses. He grabbed Bob’s notebook, tucked it into his leg pouch, and flew towards the other Cleric.

The other pilot had clearly spotted him as well, making a wide arc to turn and approach him.

As they got closer, the IFF system identified the unit. It wasn’t the rookie Jeff, but the squadron leader of the 809th.

After closing the distance, the two Clerics quickly reduced their relative velocity to zero, then, with unspoken understanding, turned to dock back-to-back.

Once the two units were in full contact, a direct-contact communication link was established.

“Larry?! Are you alright?”

“Squadron leader, I’m fine… but the Swift Runner has been destroyed.”

The Cleric piloted by Lieutenant Larry raised an arm and pointed towards the distant fireball.

“Don’t panic! Listen, I’ve found a friendly cruiser nearby, the Rapids. They can recover us! They also signaled that the fleet is preparing to withdraw, so we have to get there now! Can you see the ship?”

As the squadron leader spoke, he transmitted the coordinates of the Rapids to Larry via datalink.

“Right, squadron leader. Yes, I see it. But… are we really withdrawing already?”

“I don’t know, but catching a ride is better than being left out here all alone.”

“By the way, squadron leader, I was separated from Ensign Jeff.”

Lieutenant Larry asked, not wanting to lose the last remaining comrade of his squad without knowing what happened.

“Sorry, I haven’t seen him…” The head of the squadron leader’s unit, where the main monitor was, shook from side to side. “He could be in a fight, or he might have already landed on another friendly ship. Don’t worry too much. Ensign Jeff may be a rookie, but he’s a well-trained Navy pilot. He won’t be taken down that easily! Now, come on, follow me!”

The two Clerics quickly adjusted their heading and sped towards the Rapids. In a stroke of luck, they encountered no enemies along the way.

Soon, the Rapids also detected the two HCPs. The warship sent a light signal, which the combat assistance AI interpreted as an urgent message for them to board as quickly as possible.

But just then, Lieutenant Larry thought he was hearing things, because Ensign Bob’s deep, raspy voice suddenly echoed in his ear.

“Jeff… nearby… unconscious… save…”

The auditory hallucination lasted only a moment, and the words were fragmented.

But after it ended, Lieutenant Larry suddenly felt that the middle-aged man named Bob was gone for good.

He knew the feeling was abstract, but he truly could no longer sense Bob’s presence.

Moved by some unseen force, Larry abruptly broke from the formation and shot off in another direction. Before the squadron leader’s question could arrive, he sent a message via blue-green laser communication: “I’m going to bring Ensign Jeff back!”

“Wait!”

The squadron leader had no time to stop him. Lieutenant Larry’s Cleric had already vanished into the distance.

As he flew at high speed, Larry felt as if he were being guided. Though his unit’s integrated sensor unit was practically useless, he relied on his intuition to avoid several active combat zones.

On a battlefield like this, finding Ensign Jeff’s personal machine was like finding a needle in a haystack.

But this time, Lieutenant Larry managed to find that very needle.

When he saw the Cleric in the distance, missing one mechanical arm and one mechanical leg, drifting through the cosmos like a dead body, he knew he had found Jeff.

Spotting a Federation HCP closing in on the Cleric, Lieutenant Larry unhesitatingly pushed the throttle to its maximum. As he charged forward, he drew his unit’s last remaining weapon—the heavy slicer sword.

Before the Federation HCP could react, the Cleric was upon it. The enemy unit raised its mechanical arm to fire at Larry, but at that moment, Lieutenant Larry executed a series of brilliant evasive maneuvers he had never accomplished before. After successfully breaking into the enemy’s left hemisphere, he ended the fight with two strikes.

“Jeff! Can you hear me?!”

Larry pressed his unit against Jeff’s, trying to establish contact communication. The link connected, but there was no response from Jeff.

Time was running short. If he didn’t hurry, he might be left behind on this battlefield.

With that thought, Lieutenant Larry made a bold decision. He vented the air from his cockpit, switched his heavy hydraulic pressure suit to ‘extra-vehicular mode,’ and then opened the unit’s cockpit hatch.

Outside, the universe was filled with explosions, flashes of light, and the beams of directed-energy weapons. But to Lieutenant Larry, it was all a silent pantomime. The only sound he could hear was his own ragged breathing.

Although a safety line was attached to his back, Lieutenant Larry was still nervous. He quickly suppressed his emotions and carefully floated towards Jeff’s cockpit.

“Warning! Do not use this panel to open the hatch in non-emergency situations.”

“Found it, this is it!”

Larry’s heart leaped. He first pressed a button next to the control lever, which would also switch Jeff’s heavy hydraulic pressure suit to ‘extra-vehicular mode.’

Once the green indicator light for ‘ready to open’ lit up, Lieutenant Larry pulled the lever without hesitation.

The next second, the cockpit hatch of this Cleric was forced open.

Larry quickly climbed up to look inside and saw Ensign Jeff slumped over in the pilot’s seat, unconscious.

He climbed into the cockpit, confirmed via his pressure suit’s external display that Ensign Jeff still had vital signs, then unbuckled his safety harness and dragged him out of the cockpit.

By the time the rookie ensign regained consciousness, Larry was already piloting the Cleric on its way to the Rapids.

“Lieutenant?! So you died too?”

“I’m ‘dead’ your ass! I risked my damn life to save you! And what were you doing? Taking a nice nap in your cockpit!” Lieutenant Larry said through gritted teeth.

“Huh? We’re still alive?!” Ensign Jeff finally understood. “So I just passed out… I thought I was dead.”

Hearing this, Lieutenant Larry was about to retort when he saw the multi-function display flicker, and then the unit’s entire weapon systems section turned gray.

“Warning! Unknown electronic warfare virus has breached the unit’s firewall. Warning! Weapon systems offline!”

“An electronic warfare virus?!” Larry was aghast. Being hit with an EW virus at this point was not a good thing.

But he quickly noticed something strange. After attacking the weapon systems and taking them offline, the virus did nothing else.

Meanwhile, a ‘bizarre spectacle’ unfolded across the combat zone. All fire ceased. Federation warships, Imperial warships, and the HCPs locked in combat on both sides had all suddenly fallen silent.

The universe, which had been ‘bustling with excitement’ just a moment ago, fell quiet in an instant. The fleets of both sides, entangled in battle, looked almost comical against the backdrop of this ‘silence.’

“What the hell?”

A bewildered Lieutenant Larry watched a Federation HCP drift past him. The other pilot had clearly noticed him but made no move to fire.

He knew this wasn’t the time for deep thought. He immediately seized the opportunity of this strange ‘ceasefire’ and charged into the Rapids’ defensive perimeter, finally ‘crashing’ into the cruiser’s docking bay.

“Congratulations on your safe arrival!” a member of the Rapids’ maintenance team said to Lieutenant Larry and Ensign Jeff after opening the Cleric’s cockpit hatch.

“You two are really lucky. Just as we were recovering your unit, we received the order to withdraw from the battlefield! See! The docking bay doors are already closing. We’re really leaving now!”

“Yeah… We sure are lucky.”

Larry helped Jeff float out of the cockpit. After handing him over to the medical team, he drifted alone to the walkway along the wall and looked down at the notebook in his hands.

“Thank you, Bob.”

“Federation Navy Wins Decisive Victory! Annihilates Invading Enemy!”

“Marshal Trafalgar: Our Great Navy Now Officially on the Strategic Counter-Offensive!”

“Want to prove you’re a real man? Join the Federation Navy today! Recruitment hotline XXXXX”

After Operation Supernova Burst, known colloquially as the ‘Battle of the Millen Star System,’ concluded, all sorts of news pieces carefully crafted by the Federation Navy Information Department began to radiate outwards from the Millen Star System.

At the same time, they quickly produced a special ‘Frontline Interviews’ program, featuring interviews with numerous fleet commanders, including Marshal Trafalgar, as well as surviving navy soldiers, sparing no effort to publicize the importance of this victory.

As copies of this recorded and edited program were being rushed to the Capital star system, Amber, inside the Tower of Babel, was getting a clear picture of what had happened at the end of the battle with Lilith’s help.

“So you’re saying the Celestial Fortress possesses this kind of large-scale, indiscriminate electronic attack capability?”

“That’s right, Master~ With the computing power of the Celestial Fortress’s main computer, it can indeed inflict a generational leap-style attack on the control personalities of other warships.”

Lilith, disheveled and sitting in Amber’s lap in virtual space, had used the excuse of ‘recreating a panoramic view of the battlefield in virtual reality’ to lure Amber here and accomplish some ‘important business.’

“Using an overwhelming attack to forcibly breach a ship’s firewall, dismantle its anti-virus programs, and then take its weapon systems offline—it was simply smooth and fluid~ The only problem is that it’s still in the ‘indiscriminate’ stage… But I can understand. If you added an IFF function, it would take up a lot of computing power, and the fortress’s control personality probably wouldn’t be able to go ‘all-out’ without reservations.”

“Lilith, talk all you want, but stop wriggling.”

Amber placed a hand on Lilith’s shoulder to stop her from squirming and then said, “I didn’t expect the Empire had never used this ability before. I wonder if Duke’s and Duke William’s Celestial Fortresses just hadn’t had it installed yet, or if it was a last resort they didn’t want to reveal.”

Thinking about this, Amber couldn’t help but search his memories again, confirming that the first-generation Celestial Fortress from the game in his previous life did not have this capability.

This made him wonder if a change in the world line had led the Empire to upgrade the Celestial Fortress.

“Master, I have a question too~”

“Hmm?”

“I didn’t see any problems with the first parts—I would have done the same. But the last step… why take the weapon systems offline instead of trying to overload the fusion reactors or superconducting battery stacks?”

“That’s fairly easy to explain.” Amber shifted into a more comfortable position and continued, “Superconducting battery stacks and fusion reactors have safety measures. They were designed from the outset with the possibility of the entire ship being compromised by an electronic warfare virus in mind. So if an anomalous command is entered without manual confirmation from the crew, it’s judged as ‘under electronic warfare virus attack,’ and the reactor physically disconnects from the ship’s main system. The other reason is what you just mentioned: this was an indiscriminate, wide-area electronic warfare virus attack. The Empire couldn’t possibly have wanted to detonate its own warships, right? So temporarily taking the weapon systems offline was actually the most prudent course of action at this stage.”

“I see. So, should Lilith develop this ability too? I bet I could achieve a one-way attack that precisely distinguishes between friend and foe~”

“Oh? Since when are you so diligent?”

Amber was a little surprised. Although Lilith was obedient to him now, this was the first time she had ‘volunteered for overtime.’ Usually, this mischievous strong AI would find all sorts of ways to slack off.

“Of course, but I do have one tiny little request…”

Lilith lowered her head, poking her slender fingertips together in front of her chest.

“Go on. As long as it’s not too outrageous.”

“Really? Then… Master, could you spend a little more time with Lilith in virtual space today~”

Snap! Just like that, very quickly, the virtual space that had looked like a ‘war room’ switched to a luxurious master bedroom.

The stool Amber had been sitting on transformed into a soft mattress.

“No, wait… why are you wriggling again?! Hiss…”

Chapter 298: War Escalates, General Mobilization Order

“Citizens of the Federation, living under the shining light of liberty!

Our great Navy, under the command of Marshal Trafalgar, has soundly defeated the Imperial aggressors in the Millen Star System, shattering their ambition to invade our homeland.

Now, I can finally stand here—in Liberty Plaza, the very symbol of our Federation’s spiritual strength—and announce to all citizens that we will officially enter the strategic counter-offensive stage!

To the valiant soldiers of our armed forces! The eyes of the entire free world are upon you! You will march into battle carrying the hopes and prayers of all people who love freedom!

Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemies are well-trained, well-equipped, and battle-hardened. They will surely resist fiercely.

But the entire Federation has complete faith in your courage, your devotion to duty, and your skill in battle! We will accept nothing less than total victory.

Good luck to you! And let us pray that the light of democracy and freedom will bless us in this great and noble campaign!”

As the Federation President raised his arms high, a tsunami of cheers erupted in the Capital’s Liberty Plaza.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but a fanatical crowd. These ‘elite citizens’ living in the Capital had stuck decals of the Federation flag on their faces and arms, all while waving flags of all sizes.

At the same time, twenty-five HCPs equipped for atmospheric flight soared over Liberty Plaza, while several massive projectors on the ground cast images onto their smoke trails.

Soon, the five-colored smoke, combined with the projected giant emblem, slowly formed a massive Federation Five-Colored Eagle Flag in the sky.

The crowd’s cheers reached their peak at that moment. Across the entirety of Liberty Plaza, you could hear nothing but thunderous slogans like “Long live the Federation!” and “Long live democracy and freedom!” drilling into your ears.

Brandon waved goodbye to the crowd in the plaza and returned to the Congress Building, which stood right next to it.

Guided by staff, he soon returned to a lounge.

Inside the room, Minister of Defense Miller, Chief of Staff Jeton, and others were watching the live broadcast on Federation Television.

They had returned to the Capital star system together after completing the mobile fortress’s commissioning ceremony with Brandon.

Upon seeing Brandon return, the men immediately stood up.

“Your speech was as inspiring as ever, Mr. President.”

“No, no, my speech was merely icing on the cake. It’s the media propaganda over this period that has really done the work.”

Brandon waved his hand dismissively and then sank into his chair, letting out a long sigh.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve given a speech like that. It’s quite tiring. When was the last time I spoke in front of so many people?”

“When you delivered your presidential election victory speech,” the Chief of Staff said.

“Right, right. After all this time, our citizens are still just as easy to persuade as they were back then.”

At this, Brandon looked up at Minister of Defense Miller, who was sitting across from him. The old fox was staring at him with a grin.

“Minister, I know why you’ve sought me out at this time.”

“That being the case, what are you still hesitating for?”

“Minister Miller, do you think I’m as easy to fool as the public outside? Operation ‘Supernova Burst’ turned out like this. I have no idea where you military men find the audacity to still want to launch a war of annihilation against the Empire.”

“Is there a problem, Mr. President?”

Miller frowned, seemingly displeased with Brandon’s words.

“The objective of ‘Supernova Burst’ was to repel the Empire’s invasion. Has that objective not been met?”

“But you sacrificed almost all of the unmanned fleets, and the remaining fifteen main fleets have all suffered losses, with the most severe exceeding eighty percent!”

President Brandon’s tone was agitated. When he first saw the fleet loss and casualty reports, he had nearly fainted on the spot.

But faced with Brandon’s questioning, Minister Miller was completely unafraid. Instead, he raised his voice and declared righteously:

“Mr. President, you can’t just focus on our losses. The Empire had four fleets annihilated as entire formations, and the combat loss ratios for their remaining fleets are far more severe than ours. Even their Celestial Fortress came under attack. Can’t you see all that?

“Besides, at our current production capacity, we can launch an entire unmanned fleet in a month. After entering a state of general mobilization, that speed will increase by at least thirty percent!

“And the Empire? The time it will take them just to replenish so many understaffed ship crews is anyone’s guess.

“Wasn’t this the originally planned purpose of the unmanned fleets? To use mature, assembly-line industrial products to wear down the Empire’s precious combat personnel, like ship crews and commanders?”

This barrage of words left President Brandon speechless. He wanted to retort, but Miller gave him no opportunity.

“Mr. President, the entire Federation is waiting for you to announce this ‘widely anticipated’ decision. I believe a public will like this won’t appear a second time in our lifetimes, so I hope you will consider it carefully.”

The Minister of Defense revealed a toughness he usually kept hidden. Disregarding the presence of the Chief of Staff and others in the lounge, he spoke directly:

“You can also ask those corporations you have ‘good relations’ with and see what the military-industrial complex really wants you to do.”

Whoa!

Chief of Staff Jeton and the others immediately wore priceless expressions. They truly hadn’t expected Minister of Defense Miller to be so bold.

Although everyone present understood the machinations behind the scenes, saying it so openly was tantamount to calling President Brandon’s bluff.

“You…”

Brandon was so stunned by Miller’s words that he didn’t know what to say. After struggling for a moment, he finally leaned back in his chair and fell silent.

Minister Miller, on the other hand, silently recalled Marshal Trafalgar’s assessment of the Federation President.

“Hmph, just a puppet and a clown.”

A perfectly incisive comment.

A day later, the general mobilization order signed by the Federation President was officially announced.

For the citizens of the Federation, who had not experienced war for a long time, it was something distant and glorious.

Under the brainwashing of politicians and the media machine, the dark and cruel side of war was glossed over in a few words.

In its place, keywords like ‘serving the nation,’ ‘sacrifice,’ ‘honor,’ and ‘spreading democracy and freedom’ were trumpeted.

In history, not even a so-called ‘holy war’ launched by any religion could likely match the atmosphere of this strategic counter-offensive and war of annihilation launched by the Federation.

The streets and alleys of the Capital were filled with crowds holding banners printed with the word ‘Counter-Offensive.’ Even the street-side shops and vendors, in a ‘timely’ fashion, displayed such banners and the Five-Colored Eagle Flag at their stalls and entrances.

The well-dressed residents of the Capital congratulated each other on the streets, celebrating the long-awaited arrival of this ‘war to liberate the suffering people of the Empire’ and the ‘war to end all wars.’

Amidst the nationwide (meaning the Capital and the core star systems) fervor for war, the Federation’s state machine finally began to operate at full capacity.

Although this flawed machine groaned and creaked as it ran, as if it might fall apart at any moment, it still displayed the power befitting its massive size in that instant.

The military completely took over the state from the civilian government. Military Police were stationed in all government agencies, and all activities throughout the Federation were prioritized for the ‘war.’

No opposition party dared to obstruct any of this, because all actions were being carried out legally under the framework of the General Mobilization Act.

Newly constructed space docks at major shipyards began producing warships for the unmanned fleets at an even faster rate, while some of the slightly more outdated shipyards could only continue producing conventional warships for now. After all, a large number of fleets at the front lines needed replacements for their depleted ships.

Conscription notices were sent to the personal terminals of able-bodied young adults, ordering them to assemble at designated locations at specified times. They would then be organized into units, trained, and successively sent to the battlefield.

Until this new blood completed their training, the main combat pressure fell upon the ‘standing army’ stationed on several military planets.

At almost the exact moment President Brandon put pen to paper and signed the general mobilization order.

In a conference room in the Grand Palace of Saint-Saulnier, the Imperial capital, the Imperial Princess Agnes sat at one end of a round table, looking expressionlessly at the man opposite her—Regent Prince Norton II.

No one, including these two ‘protagonists’ at the center of the Empire’s political vortex, could have imagined they would be sitting at the same table at this moment.

Norton II certainly hadn’t expected that after seeing Amber’s suggestion and considering the recent series of events, including the ‘Battle of the Millen Star System,’ he would actually consider easing the tense atmosphere with the ‘Princess Faction.’

And Princess Agnes was even more surprised. She hadn’t expected her greatest enemy within the Empire to come to the Grand Palace with only his advisors while her Father Emperor was critically ill and invite her to discuss important matters.

After all, in her imagination, this Regent Prince, who was bent on destroying the Leon Dynasty, should have been marching an army to the gates of the Grand Palace at this critical juncture to fit his ‘persona.’

Minister of Finance Jacques Fanco had not expected it either. He had merely come to visit the old Emperor, only to stumble upon such a ‘great drama’ and be invited by Norton II to participate in the talks.

From a certain perspective, it was precisely because he, the long-neutral Minister of Finance, was present that Agnes agreed to attend this meeting.

The slightly awkward and tense atmosphere in the conference room persisted for some time before Her Highness Agnes finally spoke, breaking the suffocating silence.

“First, thank you for visiting my Father Emperor, Your Excellency the Regent Prince. However, I am still quite curious. Is there some important matter you wished to discuss by suddenly inviting myself and His Excellency Jacques Fanco to this meeting today?”

Chapter 299: One Who Leaves Home

The subtext behind Her Highness Princess Agnes’s statement was easy to grasp; everyone in the meeting room understood what she was implying.

“Norton II, stop pretending. What are you really planning?”

Faced with Agnes’s less-than-polite inquiry, Norton II showed no particular reaction. He spoke calmly:

“Your Highness, I know that we may have some ‘minor friction’ and ‘small disagreements’ due to our differing political views.

“But when interpreted by those with ulterior motives, it is made to look like some sort of life-or-death struggle in the eyes of others.

“I personally hope that this over-interpretation does not affect either of us, and I hope that no misjudgments arise from these matters.

“During this time when His Majesty is unwell, we should be working together to maintain the stability of the Empire and respond to the threat from the Federation.”

A kind smile appeared on Norton II’s face, as if there had never been any conflict between the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction.

If Amber were to witness this scene, even he would have to praise Norton II’s superb acting, proving him worthy of the title ‘Loyal Minister of the Empire’.

Minister of Finance Jacques Fanco’s eyebrows twitched involuntarily upon hearing this. He even wondered if he wasn’t fully awake; otherwise, how could he have heard those words from the Regent Prince’s mouth?

If you two hadn’t been at each other’s throats, would our proud Empire have ended up in this sorry state?

Of course, Jacques Fanco would never say such a thing out loud. He wasn’t a fool.

So, the Minister of Finance said nothing. After glancing at Princess Agnes, he continued to watch from the sidelines.

“The threat from the Federation?”

Agnes filtered out the long preceding speech, which she considered a load of nonsense, and seized on the final, crucial point.

“That’s right. I’m sure Your Highness has already received the news. The A and B Celestial Fortress Battle Groups, led by Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, were ambushed by the Federation in the Millen Star System. They suffered a ‘minor defeat’ and have since retreated to an occupied border star system to rest and regroup.”

Norton II’s calm utterance of the two dukes’ names felt like a slap in the face to the Princess Faction.

However, he paid no mind to what the opposing side was thinking and continued on his own accord:

“For now, we will not delve into the reasons for this defeat, and we may not have the time to. Based on my years of studying the Federation, they will certainly press their advantage and may even launch a so-called ‘strategic counter-offensive.’

“If you all do not wish for the flames of war to spread within our borders, then you may need to consider escalating the conflict.”

“Are you suggesting a ‘general mobilization order’? In your opinion, has the war really reached that stage?”

Agnes was finally beginning to seriously consider the issue Norton II had raised.

“Your Highness, I said this is merely my personal opinion. But based on my understanding of the Federation and my research on their government in recent years, it is highly likely they will be the first to issue a general mobilization order and launch a war of annihilation with the goal of ‘completely destroying the Star Dragon Empire’.”

“Even so,” Agnes said, looking at the middle-aged man across the long table, “only Father Emperor has the authority to sign a general mobilization order. It seems pointless for you to tell me this.”

“According to the ‘Imperial General Mobilization Act’, if His Majesty is unable to sign it for any reason and the Empire is facing a crisis, the heir to the throne may sign it on his behalf.”

At these words, Agnes’s expression turned serious. Norton II had successfully tossed this hot potato into her hands, and she had no way of throwing it back.

Her Highness glanced around at the others present. Besides Minister of Finance Jacques Fanco, the Imperial Chief of the General Staff, the Director of the Crisis Response Department, and others were also in attendance.

“What are your thoughts on the Regent Prince’s proposal? Or rather, in your opinions, has the war reached a point where we need to issue a ‘general mobilization order’ and engage in a fight to the death with the Federation?

“If the situation is indeed this critical, then we may need to conclude our discussion as soon as possible. After all, for every day we delay mobilization, we will be at a greater disadvantage in the coming battles.”

Agnes addressed the others, seeking their opinions.

“I believe both the Regent Prince and Her Highness are aware of the Empire’s current financial situation. To issue a general mobilization order against this backdrop means we have no choice but to win the war,” Jacques Fanco, who had been watching from the sidelines, was the first to speak.

With him taking the lead, the others in the meeting room quickly followed suit.

The Chief of the General Staff, Stephen, spoke next:

“If we truly need to issue a general mobilization order, my recommendation is the sooner, the better. At the same time, we may need to prepare for the possibility of the war spreading into our territory.”

The third person to speak was the Director of the Crisis Response Department. His point was simple: they needed to assess whether a general mobilization order was truly necessary as quickly as possible.

After all, once signed, it would set them on an irreversible course.

The military, logistics, supply chains, markets, economy, public opinion control, and so on—everything related would begin operating according to the ‘general mobilization order’. It would be too late to call it off then.

Furthermore, a large-scale mobilization would inevitably attract the Federation’s attention. If it turned out to be a misjudgment on their part and the enemy had not mobilized, the Federation, upon seeing the Empire’s actions and considering the current state of war, would not hesitate to follow suit with their own general mobilization.

At that point, the situation would be completely out of control.

——

Within Federation territory, T2 Sector, Canobi Star System.

Clark, a technical worker, was walking the last stretch of his journey home from work in the increasingly cold wind.

Recently, news of the “total war” coming from the Capital star system had swept across the entire planet.

Just yesterday, the streets were filled with young people holding banners and marching. A few fervent-looking young women had even handed him a propaganda pamphlet about the war.

Although Clark had never experienced war, he knew it was nothing good. After all, war meant people would die.

As a man with a family, he was strongly averse to the idea of death, and by extension, he detested ‘war’.

Can’t we just live our lives in peace? Do we really have to fight to the death in some strange place with people we might never have met otherwise?

Clark’s aversion to the war also stemmed from another source: overtime.

Overtime without pay.

The food processing plant where he worked had recently received a massive number of orders from the military, so all the factory’s production lines were running almost twenty-four hours a day.

This meant that technical workers like him, responsible for maintaining and repairing the assembly lines, were also forced to work longer hours.

The factory, citing that “it is every citizen’s duty to contribute when the Federation is in need,” refused to pay them for overtime.

On top of that, with the outbreak of war, prices were visibly rising day by day, making life increasingly difficult for Clark and his family.

As he neared his apartment building, Clark saw a drone flying towards his window.

A storage container hung beneath the drone, and the body was emblazoned with the logo of ‘Machi Department Store’.

This was one of the company’s delivery robots, and inside the container was the food Clark had just purchased online.

“Tsk… last month’s salary was barely in my hands before it’s almost all gone again…”

“War? What’s so good about war?”

Clark grumbled to himself as he returned home.

The moment he saw his caring wife and his eleven-year-old son, Clark swallowed all his complaints.

For his family, a little more hardship and exhaustion was bearable.

“Hehe, has my Little Dio gotten any taller today?”

Clark smiled and walked toward his son, intending to pick him up for a good look, but his wife stepped in front of him.

“Shoo, shoo. You’ve been at work all day, and you haven’t even washed your hands. Go wash up before you hold our son.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll go wash them. Mwah~”

Clark planted a kiss on his wife’s cheek and headed for the bathroom amidst her feigned annoyance.

But just then, his personal terminal, which he had set to vibrate, suddenly blared with a piercing ringtone.

His heart skipped a beat. Clark seemed to realize something. He froze in place, slowly took out his personal terminal, and stared at the flashing red light on the screen. The feeling of dread that had been hanging over him finally solidified.

“Citizen ID 56213854, Clark Wayne:

“In accordance with the ‘Federation General Mobilization Act,’ you are ordered to report to the nearest recruitment station within three hours.

“Failure to report on time or refusal to report will result in coercive measures taken by the Federation Department of Military Affairs in accordance with the law.”

As an able-bodied man, Clark was naturally part of the mobilization pool. He just never thought it would all happen so quickly.

“Clark, are you okay?”

Seeing her husband frozen in place, his wife hurried over and supported him from behind.

But when she, too, saw the message on Clark’s personal terminal, a series of complex emotions immediately washed over her face.

The most prominent of them was worry.

“How could you be mobilized in the first wave?”

“Maybe I’m just in good shape? You know me, my sweet, I’m strong as an ox.”

“You’re still in the mood to joke at a time like this…”

His wife was both angry and amused at her husband’s attempt at humor.

Just then, their son, Little Dio’s voice came from behind them:

“Daddy, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Hearing his son’s words, Clark couldn’t help but shudder. He couldn’t bear to leave his son, but a mobilization order was something no Federation citizen could refuse.

Sighing softly, Clark turned around, knelt, and stroked Little Dio’s head, saying gently:

“Little Dio, Daddy has to go to a very faraway place.”

A Day Off for Labor Day

Taking a day off for Labor Day~

Today is Labor Day, so I’m taking a much-needed break. Updates will resume tomorrow!~

Chapter 300: The Timeline Changes Again

In terms of timing alone, the Star Dragon Empire’s general mobilization order was signed and issued only eighteen hours after the Federation’s.

With the Regent Prince Faction and the Princess Faction sitting at the same table for a rare occasion, coupled with Norton II’s proactive concessions, the efficiency of the Empire’s entire upper echelon was far greater than usual.

After urgent analysis and continuous discussions, the attendees concluded that the Federation would sign a general mobilization order to launch a counteroffensive.

Due to the insurmountable distance between the Federation’s Capital and the Empire’s Capital for ordinary people, there was a significant time lag.

Therefore, this conclusion was essentially a pure prediction.

When the Imperial Princess Agnes picked up her pen and signed her name on the general mobilization order, she actually felt rather anxious.

She worried that their premature mobilization would provoke the Federation, causing them to issue a general mobilization of their own.

If that were the case, she would be the one responsible for the full-scale escalation of the war.

However, when news from within the Federation’s territory arrived more than twenty days later, everyone, including Agnes, breathed a sigh of relief.

The Federation had indeed carried out a general mobilization, and the Empire was less than twenty hours behind. One could say that both sides had taken action to escalate the war almost simultaneously.

“This was a legendary strategic prediction!”

At an emergency meeting convened after the news arrived, Chief of Staff Stephen exclaimed with excitement, and the others all voiced their agreement.

For a time, Regent Prince Norton II, who had been the first to propose the general mobilization, had unwittingly raised his prestige significantly.

The few remaining neutral parties in the political arena also began to show signs of leaning toward the Regent Prince at this moment.

“He’s accumulated a lot of political prestige from this again. None of these people realize that the real pressure was actually on you, Your Highness, the one who had to sign the general mobilization order.”

Many within the Princess Faction were somewhat dissatisfied with the current situation. In their view, the Regent Prince had practically reaped all the rewards for himself.

He had taken all the credit, while the person who had actually signed the general mobilization order was ignored.

“It doesn’t matter. If Norton II hadn’t made this suggestion so early, our mobilization might have been much later. Then we really would have been on the back foot.”

Her Highness Agnes still spoke to appease her subordinates over their dissatisfaction. Factional politics was one thing, but when it came to national affairs, the Imperial Princess understood the importance of the bigger picture.

“From this perspective, he indeed deserves the main credit. But we don’t need to worry too much. This is all just beginning.”

When the Star Dragon Empire’s general mobilization began, it was almost an exact replica of the same grand spectacle in the Federation, and one might even say it surpassed it.

The Capital and the core star systems erupted with fanatical war fervor. Many outrageous radicals made the ridiculous claim of attributing the old Emperor Frederico Rosa Leon’s grave illness to the Federation.

Although it was unclear how they had managed this, it had already become ‘one of the one hundred reasons to annihilate the Federation.’

In contrast to the fanatical atmosphere of these core star systems, the T2 and T3 star systems presented a completely different scene.

One by one, young people received the message on their personal terminals and left home with travel bags on their backs, under the worried and reluctant gazes of their families.

Here, there were no seething crowds, no stirring music, and no noisy, fanatical atmosphere.

There was only the silent crowd, setting out from various places, slowly converging on the main roads, and finally gathering at the gates of the military depots.

Among these young people who received the ‘mobilization order,’ most did not even know what had happened over the past six months.

They only knew that their country was at war with another distant human nation, the ‘Federation.’

What was the reason for the war? They did not know, or rather, they knew very little about the country called the ‘Federation.’

Until today, they had always thought this war was far removed from them. After all, just a few days ago, the Empire’s propaganda machine was still telling them, ‘This is a war far from our homeland; it will not affect people’s lives.’

But now, they were suddenly told that their country was in crisis and that they were needed to fight on the front lines.

“John, why the sudden general mobilization? Is there something wrong at the front?”

“I’d advise you to watch what you say,” said the young man called John, glancing at his companion and lowering his voice.

“If you talk nonsense here, be careful someone doesn’t overhear and report you to the military court. When you get locked up, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“What’s the harm in saying a few words? It’s not the end of the world.”

The companion shook his head in frustration. “Who knows when we’ll be able to finish fighting and go home. Say, do you think the two of us can bring a few military medals back?”

“Let’s hope so… I hear if you have military medals, your family gets a big tax exemption every year.”

“Then let’s give it our all! Let’s try and bring home a bagful!”

“Yeah! Let’s do it!”

—

As the man who currently received news the fastest in the human world, Amber learned of the ‘general mobilization orders’ not long after the Federation and the Empire had signed them.

Amber was not surprised by the Federation’s general mobilization order, because that was how it played out in the game’s plot.

However, the fact that the Empire had signed its own almost immediately after was something he found unexpected.

After all, in the original game’s timeline, the Empire had hastily signed the general mobilization order only after receiving news from within the Federation’s territory.

But regardless, they were still nearly a month late.

One wrong step leads to another. The delayed news directly put the Empire on the back foot in the escalating war that followed.

In the eyes of many plot devotees and lore enthusiasts, the delayed general mobilization order was also one of the contributing factors to the Star Dragon Empire’s eventual splintering.

“The timeline has changed again… and not just by a little.”

Looking at the message he received, Amber could not help but frown.

He was also curious whether the fates of these two human nations would head down a new diverging path now that the Empire had mobilized simultaneously.

But this also meant that his knowledge of the future plot might become useless. His prescient ‘special advantage,’ after the change in the timeline, was not as useful as it had been at the beginning.

“Good thing resource points, Forerunner ruins, and things like that won’t change, otherwise this would be a real headache.”

Just as he was thinking this, a message from the Loubion star system was forwarded to Amber’s personal terminal by Lilith.

The content of the message was simple, just a single short sentence:

“Boss, we’ve secured the construction permit for capital ships!”

Chapter 301: The Atlas ‘Massive Shipbuilding Program’

Want a definition of ‘surprise’?

The news from the Loubion star system was a surprise.

It was common knowledge that, aside from shipyards with official licenses, no other civilian companies or private organizations were permitted to manufacture or possess capital ships.

The Federation and the Empire currently had similar classifications for capital ships; heavy cruisers and battleships were both considered ‘capital ships’.

If Amber recalled correctly, battlecruisers would also be added to the ‘capital ship’ family in the future.

It was precisely because of these official restrictions that in the fleets of most civilian enterprises and private organizations, the largest vessels by tonnage were light cruisers.

Moreover, they were few in number and generally served as their ‘flagships’.

As just mentioned, the official restrictions applied to ‘most’ enterprises, not all, which meant that some were exempt.

Namely, the major shipbuilding giants.

Whether in the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire, only a portion of the construction tasks for naval vessels were carried out in officially established shipyards.

A large part was contracted out to civilian or noble-owned shipbuilding companies through a bidding process.

Since you were letting others ‘take orders’ to build heavy cruisers and battleships for you, you couldn’t very well continue to restrict these shipbuilding companies, could you?

Thus, the government maintained a ‘whitelist’, and companies on this whitelist were granted the eligibility to build capital ships.

At the same time, to conduct spaceworthiness trials and test various subsystems, these companies naturally had to be allowed to take the ships out for a spin, right?

So, these companies also possessed the qualification to temporarily sail ‘capital ships’.

Over the long years of operations by various companies, this ‘privilege’ had allowed these shipbuilding enterprises to retain a few capital ships in their own fleets under the guise of ‘experiments’ and ‘testing’.

In the beginning, the government would certainly have imposed restrictions and regulations on such behavior.

The Federation government, which was particularly strict in this regard, even stationed special supervisory teams within these companies to monitor their use of capital ships.

But where there are people, there are weaknesses and problems.

Today, such supervision existed in name only.

Many of the supervisory teams dispatched by the Federation government to these shipbuilding companies were, in fact, the companies’ ‘own people’.

And the ‘shipbuilding permit’ Atlas had obtained in the Loubion star system was approved by the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

Although this kind of ‘qualification’ approved by the autonomous government would restrict Atlas’s work of building and testing heavy cruisers and battleships to within the Loubion star system, it was, in any case, a good start.

The team that had achieved this great merit was the ‘Atlas Public Relations Department’, established under Isabelle’s leadership.

To be honest, Amber always felt it was a bit strange to have the head of intelligence handle this matter, as he was worried the department’s style would become very peculiar.

His premonition became reality when the department was formally established and he went to take a look at their office before they departed for the Loubion star system.

‘We get our hands dirty to ensure Atlas’s tomorrow.’

Listen to that. Does that sound like something a public relations department should say at its founding ceremony?

Banninger and the instructor squad were so incensed they even slapped their thighs in frustration, feeling that such a ‘line’ was far more suited for units like theirs that ‘did the dirty work’.

Then, after reviewing the personnel composition of the Public Relations Department, Amber finally understood why they would say something like ‘get our hands dirty’ at their founding ceremony.

The first group was a few people on loan from the Financial Operations Department, ‘masters of navigating the bureaucracy’ who were adept at greasing the wheels at all levels of the Federation government. The crime that had landed them in ‘Goldeneye’ was ‘suspicion of bribing Federation government officials’.

The second group, brought in by the wealthy dame Allenita, was a team of stunningly beautiful elf models—both male and female—with perfect figures. For many within the Group who had long harbored fantasies about elves, seeing these models and learning about their line of work shattered the rose-tinted glasses through which they had viewed the Thousand Stars Empire.

The third group consisted of several analysts on loan from the intelligence analysis team, tasked with analyzing the habits, preferences, backgrounds, and… dirt of specific targets.

Finally, there was the financial support from the Financial Operations Department and all-around support from Lilith. Regarding the latter, apart from Amber, everyone else at the Atlas Group only knew she was a rather badass artificial intelligence and one of the core elements maintaining Atlas’s operations; they knew nothing more.

“Isabelle, it looks like you all are planning to do some… illicit things.”

After the founding ceremony, Amber found Isabelle, his expression strange.

Upon hearing this, she immediately took his arm and said with a beaming smile, “Public relations, public relations. Of course, it’s going to involve some… ‘unspoken rules’.”

Amber found he really couldn’t refute Isabelle’s words.

Based on the experience of players doing missions in the game, if you tried to approach the corrupt Federation government through proper channels, you would instead provoke their displeasure.

They would think you ‘weren’t playing ball’ and consequently ‘up the difficulty’ for you in every aspect.

Conversely, some players who resorted to opportunistic or even illegal methods were met with green lights all the way.

Later, after being reported by a portion of the player base, the officials quickly deleted this questline, which was ‘suspected of providing undesirable moral guidance’, but the deeply corrupt nature of the Federation government was remembered by all players.

This time, Atlas’s success in securing the qualification to ‘build’ and ‘test’ capital-ship-class vessels within the Loubion star system was all thanks to this team of ‘PR experts’ urgently dispatched there.

After they launched an offensive using traditional tactics like money, sex, and blackmail, the key government officials within the star system’s autonomous government responsible for related matters fell one after another.

The speed of it far exceeded the expectations of the Public Relations Department.

They had originally thought these autonomous government officials in ‘crucial positions’ would hold out on the path of ‘staying true to their principles’ for a little longer.

Amber, however, could understand this.

After all, the Atlas Group was currently the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s largest corporate partner. So many construction teams were working on Loubion V, and a large amount of investment was waiting to be deployed.

Therefore, the autonomous government was already relatively relaxed in its management of the Atlas Group in all respects.

Furthermore, the Atlas Group was building capital ships with the actual intent of selling them to the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, helping them rebuild their heavily damaged star system garrison fleet.

A shipbuilding project that started directly within the star system would inherently provide many job opportunities and generate more tax revenue. Why wouldn’t they support it?

Of course, Amber felt there was another equally important and not-to-be-ignored point.

That was the lethality of the elf models. To these people who had never seen a real elf in person, their impact was a bit too much.

Not to mention what happened after a ‘negative-distance’ encounter.

Under such circumstances, offer them a few ‘small favors’, or for those who didn’t play along, show them a little ‘dirt’. Everything just fell into place.

“Sigh… I have sinned, creating such a department.”

After reading the entire ‘operation report’, Amber, as a proper young man ‘born under the red flag and raised in the gentle spring breeze’, felt a pang of ‘remorse’ in his mind for what he had done.

At the same time, on the OA request form to ‘increase support for the Public Relations Department and continue to infiltrate the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’, he signed off with the words ‘Approved for execution’.

Chapter 302: Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company

Universal Standard Time, 22:32, November 4th, New Calendar year 589.

Nino VI local time, 9:00 AM sharp.

Inside the Cornerstone 5 Industrial Spacestation, Milton, the former president of Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company, stood before the headquarters building, watching as the ‘Poseidon Company’ logo was deactivated and removed.

Immediately after, several orange-yellow, spider-like engineering robots installed the base for a holographic logo onto the front wall of the company building.

When the circuit was connected and all components checked, after the on-site lifting commander’s countdown of “3! 2! 1!”, the holographic projection device activated. Several giant geometric logos materialized outside the building’s wall.

“ATLAS”

The former helmsman of Poseidon Shipbuilding looked at the newly lit logo, a hint of melancholy in his tone.

——

Rewinding time to a short while ago.

After some initial contact, this company named Atlas had expressed its intention to acquire all assets of the Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company.

To be honest, the entire upper management of Poseidon Shipbuilding was stunned at the time.

Especially after they investigated Atlas and discovered it was an interstellar-level corporation with business involving heavy industry, mining, defense contracting, and equipment manufacturing, they found it even more incredible.

Although their company’s name sounded quite impressive, in reality, its main business was still just the manufacturing of various cargo ships.

The two companies were, one could say, in completely different worlds; theoretically, there should have been no chance for their paths to cross.

But now, not only had their paths crossed, but the other party even wanted to acquire their company on very favorable terms.

During one negotiation, the Vice President of Poseidon Shipbuilding couldn’t hold back his curiosity and asked:

“Pardon my bluntness, but what has our company done to deserve your company’s attention? Your sudden proposal for an acquisition has truly left all of us feeling quite unsettled.”

In response to this question, Nick Risen, who was responsible for the acquisition on Atlas’s side, said nothing, merely returning a mysterious smile.

“No special reason. Our Chairman simply took a liking to your company.”

In reality, Nick Risen was telling the truth. Amber had indeed seen the future potential of the Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company. An obscure design team within the company had produced several ‘stunning’ capital ship design plans.

We still don’t know under what circumstances a few cargo ship designers started designing capital ships, but the fact was, they had indeed designed them.

Moreover, according to the acquisition team’s preliminary secret investigation, this design team had already created a battleship blueprint in their spare time, and its main design specifications were identical to what Amber remembered.

In addition, Atlas was now also expanding into the capital ship construction business, so it did indeed need to acquire a shipbuilding company as a foundation.

Obviously, the people on Poseidon Shipbuilding’s side didn’t quite believe his answer.

However, they didn’t dwell on it too much. After confirming that Atlas was not some shell company or a fraudulent group, they agreed to advance the acquisition to the next stage.

For the Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company, being acquired by a large corporation was definitely a good thing. With a capital injection, the company’s production lines could be upgraded, and in terms of business expansion, the Atlas Group clearly had far more resources than they did.

But soon, these high-level executives couldn’t be happy anymore.

Because the acquisition team, led by Nick Risen, presented a precondition for the acquisition: all high-level company executives, including President Milton, would have to ‘retire early’.

Mid-to-low-level administrative and clerical positions would also be eliminated. For the employees in these positions, Atlas offered two options: ‘transfer to a technical position’ or ‘take an N+5 severance package and leave’.

“Gentlemen, are you serious? If you eliminate so many administrative positions, how will the entire company operate?”

The Chief Human Resources Director raised this question during the meeting.

“You need not worry about that. Our Atlas Group has ample experience in this area. Eliminating these bloated departments will only significantly increase the company’s operational efficiency.”

Nick Risen replied with a professional smile.

After being released from prison and joining Atlas, this former white-collar criminal felt he had started a second life. The group’s various benefits and its reward and punishment system were nearly perfect, and more importantly, he felt he was learning new things every day.

After spending some time in the Financial Operations Department, he discovered that everyone there was talented and well-spoken.

Because of this, when Amber entrusted him with the task of acquiring the Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company, Nick Risen immediately swore to himself that he would complete this mission perfectly.

So now, facing the senior leadership of Poseidon Shipbuilding, he was bringing his A-game.

“This… Mr. Nelson,” Nick Risen said, glancing at the name badge on the Chief Human Resources Director’s chest.

“I believe you’re not concerned about the employees in these administrative positions, but rather about the arrangements for you high-level managers, am I right?”

Seeing the expression on the other man’s face, Nick Risen smiled and continued:

“Mr. Nelson, and everyone else present, one shouldn’t be too greedy. I believe the compensation package we’re offering is something no other company could possibly match.

The money you’ll receive is enough to buy a few small islands on some planet and live the life of the elite. It’s more than enough to have a few different second- or third-tier celebrities accompany you each year, and you’ll even have spare cash to invest and secure the rest of your lives.

So, what more could you be dissatisfied with?”

“But this Poseidon Shipbuilding is our life’s work! How can you so simply measure it with money!”

The Chief Human Resources Director said with some dissatisfaction after hearing Nick Risen’s words.

“Really?”

A playful smile appeared on Nick Risen’s face.

“How about this? I’ll hold an anonymous vote. Within the next twenty minutes, you can email me your choice anonymously. Tell me whether you want to take the money and leave, or if you want to continue this stalemate with us to protect your ‘life’s work’.”

Nick Risen deliberately emphasized the words ‘life’s work’.

“By the way, don’t feel any psychological pressure, or think that dragging this into a ‘protracted war’ is a victory. The proposal I’m offering now is absolutely fair to both sides. If you insist on a deadlock, our Atlas Group is also quite experienced when it comes to ‘hostile takeovers’.”

Chapter 303: Project 08 Battleship

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. And here I thought this company was your ‘life’s work’.”

Nick Risen leaned back in his chair leisurely, looking at the e-ink paper in his hand. After receiving anonymous emails from everyone, he had skillfully converted them into a spreadsheet and sent it to this sheet.

“A total of twenty company executives voted. In the end, only two truly see this company as their ‘life’s work’. The other eighteen all chose to take the money and leave.”

“You people! What do you take this company for?! Just some commodity to be bought and sold?!”

The Director of Human Resources who had just expressed his dissatisfaction now started yelling at the others in the conference room.

What a convincing performance, Nick Risen commented silently to himself.

Although the emails had been sent anonymously, Nick Risen knew with one hundred percent certainty that this emotional Director of HR had chosen to take the money.

The veterans who had been with the company longer than him hadn’t said a word, yet he was the first to start shouting.

Besides, it was laughable that a director in charge of human resources would seem to be trying to save the company so desperately.

However, Nick Risen couldn’t be bothered to expose him, nor was it his place to do so. Soon enough, a true veteran of the Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company spoke up and reprimanded him.

They had seen right through the HR Director’s act long ago. They had originally planned to let it go, but now that the man was yelling at them, they could no longer tolerate it.

Soon, the conference room devolved into a heated argument.

The executives were like players in a game of “Werewolf,” attacking others while tirelessly defending themselves, each claiming to be the one holding the moral high ground.

In the end, it was the current President, Milton, who put a stop to the continuing farce.

Once the conference room had quieted down, he looked calmly at Nick Risen and said, “Mr. Risen, I hope your side can give us a little more time to discuss this internally. If possible, we will give you a response in two days.”

“Of course, no problem. Take your time discussing, gentlemen.”

Nick Risen stood up and walked toward the door, accompanied by two Romu bodyguards.

“I hope you will be able to provide a final answer in two days.”

The outcome, naturally, was a foregone conclusion. The senior management of Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company all chose to take the money and leave.

Among the low- and mid-level administrative staff, fifty percent also chose to leave with an “N+3” compensation package. The other fifty percent chose to transfer to new positions and remain with Poseidon, or move to other subsidiaries of the Atlas Group.

After Milton walked out of the company building for the last time, the Atlas logo lit up, signifying that this shipbuilding enterprise had officially become another subsidiary under the Atlas Group.

“I hope Atlas will be the best home for you.”

After saying this, Milton left without a second glance.

He took seventy percent of the massive compensation Atlas had given him and distributed it to Poseidon’s retired employees to help improve their lives.

He used the remaining portion to purchase the usage rights to a plot of land from the autonomous government on his home planet of Nino VI, where the Cornerstone 5 Industrial Spacestation was located, and retired to a life of farming.

If the opportunity arose in the future, Milton might come back to see what “Poseidon” would become.

A small contingent from the Atlas Group headquarters, bringing several mainframes housing Lilith’s instances and a host of autonomous maintenance drones, moved into the headquarters building of the former “Poseidon Shipbuilding,” now “Atlas Ships.”

The shipbuilding company had officially completed its overhaul.

The headquarters, originally used for administrative staff, became mostly empty on every floor after ninety percent of the administrative positions were cut.

Upon learning of the situation, Amber consolidated all the offices for the design teams, business development, and other departments onto three floors. The remaining floors were all converted into fitness, entertainment, culinary, learning, and hotel-style rest areas.

Employees of Atlas could use these areas for free with their employee cards during non-working hours (after work each day, and on weekends and holidays).

Employees from other companies on Cornerstone 5 Industrial Spacestation could also come and enjoy the services, but they would have to pay.

For a time, this shipbuilding enterprise acquired by the Atlas Group became the most talked-about company on Cornerstone 5.

Employees from other companies looked at their benefits, their eyes green with envy.

In the very first week after the building’s renovation was completed, Lilith received “job-hopping” applications from employees of other companies on the industrial spacestation.

Incidentally, there were currently a total of forty-two shipyards of various types on Cornerstone 5 Industrial Spacestation.

Twelve of them were giant and large-sized shipyards capable of constructing battleships and heavy cruisers. Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company owned six of them—three giant and three large.

This was because the company’s previous business had focused mainly on large and super-large cargo ships.

Such a configuration was a boon for Atlas. With the skilled technicians working in shifts, the shipyards here could begin construction on three battleships and three heavy cruisers simultaneously.

The only issue was that with the shipyards and technicians operating at full capacity, the construction speed might be considerably slower than if they were to only work on one or two shipyards at a time.

However, with Lilith serving as the “project management core,” the construction speed of all shipyards working in parallel could still be significantly increased.

This fulfilled Amber’s wish of maxing out the “build queue.”

Moreover, these shipyards could be detached from the industrial satellite city, meaning Atlas could pack them up and take them to the Loubion star system to “legally” begin production of capital ships.

The last and most crucial point was what kind of warship to build.

Although Poseidon’s skilled technicians were not lacking in experience with large ship construction after building numerous super-large cargo ships, they still needed a complete and viable set of blueprints to work from.

At this moment, a certain design team within the company, realizing this could be their “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” submitted the blueprints for a battleship they had designed in their spare time.

Project 08—Battleship

Overall length: three thousand two hundred meters. Total mass: twenty-eight million two hundred thousand tons.

The main armament consisted of thirty battleship-grade heavy particle cannons arranged on the bow.

Other armaments included twenty-six heavy electromagnetic cannons and thirty high-power charged particle cannons positioned along the hull.

As for high-energy laser turrets, in the eyes of these designers, they were only fit to serve as point-defense weapons for this battleship.

At the same time, they retained five hundred multi-purpose missile/plasma torpedo silos.

According to them, the lethal effect of missiles and plasma torpedoes in close-quarters combat had long been overlooked by many.

In reality, if a plasma torpedo successfully hit its target, its destructive power against all types of active warships was immense, especially if it struck the main thruster array at the stern, where it could easily cause a plasma disturbance and shut down the entire power system.

In addition, this “Project 08” battleship could carry seven squadrons, a total of seventy ship-borne HCPs, into combat.

Among the current human military vessels, Project 08’s length, volume, and mass could place it at the forefront of the “top tier.” Its specifications were also largely on par with the latest “Kraken II” and “Requiem” class battleships of the Federation and the Empire, respectively. One could say it would “debut at the peak.”

However, looking at this battleship, which was famous even in her previous life, Amber shook her head after a moment of thought and sent a new message to the design team.

“The design is good, but not aggressive enough. Show me your most radical proposal.”

Chapter 304: Humanitarian Aid Mission

Reading the email from their new boss, the members of the design team were stunned. One of the designers turned to his colleague in a daze and asked:

“Seriously, man? This is the first warship our company is building after restructuring. Its specs are already on par with the Federation’s latest battleships. Isn’t that radical enough?”

“Quiet, I’m thinking.”

The colleague he asked frowned, clearly just as bewildered by Amber’s reply.

These designers had originally thought they weren’t being conservative enough. Now, it seemed the boss of Atlas was even more radical than they had imagined.

“From the new boss’s perspective, maybe we’re a bit too conservative?”

“It seems so. Our boss doesn’t look like he wants to go the ‘taking small, quick steps’ route. He wants to get it all done in one go.”

The design team head stroked his chin, which was covered in the long stubble of several days without shaving, and said:

“Jimmy, let’s cook up something really wild for him.”

“Team Head, you mean… ‘that’?”

“Yes! Exactly ‘that’! Everyone, let’s put in a few more hard days, optimize the overall plan, and resubmit it. I refuse to believe he won’t accept this proposal!”

“Alright! Let’s do it!”

The design team’s fighting spirit was ignited. Coupled with the exceptionally comfortable working and living environment provided by the newly renovated headquarters, they felt none of the negativity usually associated with working overtime.

Of course, this might also have been related to the fact that this design team was famously known in the company as the ‘Bachelor Squad.’

After all, without family matters to consider, they could indeed devote their entire energy to research and design for short periods.

Several days later, a new design proposal was sent to Amber via an encrypted line.

His eyes lit up the moment he opened the file and began to read, and his breathing couldn’t help but quicken.

“Excellent! This is exactly what I wanted!”

Project 12—Super-heavy Battleship

Length: 5,692 meters

Width: 822 meters

Height: 974 meters

Mass: eighty-five million, six hundred thousand tons

In terms of sheer volume, this was undoubtedly the largest ship ever built by humanity, with the exception of artificial celestial fortresses, which couldn’t be classified as warships.

A power configuration of one main, one secondary, and ten auxiliary fusion reactors made it the warship with the most fusion reactors to date, ensuring a sufficient energy supply for such a colossal vessel and its various internal functions.

The hull and structure employed the current mainstream configuration: a Grade A3 titanium alloy frame, an internal armor layer, a working fluid water layer, an absolute blackbody layer, and external layered armor plating.

In terms of structure and physical armor, humanity currently had no new technologies or materials that could perform better.

As for weaponry, the research team had audaciously designed a ‘main cannon array’ at the bow composed of forty heavy particle cannons. Judging by the firepower of the main cannons alone, it was unlikely any current warship could withstand a single salvo.

In addition, a heavy thermal fusion cutter—an ‘enhanced power version’ of the kind used on mining ships—was included in the preliminary design, situated in the middle of the ‘main cannon array.’

When the ship’s main power was focused on this heavy thermal fusion cutter, it could maintain a firing duration of about twenty seconds.

No manufacturer produced such a weapon yet, but in Amber’s memory, this thing was eventually built and installed on ships, and its power was quite impressive.

Even the deflector shield of a first-generation Celestial Fortress would have to think twice before facing prolonged irradiation from multiple heavy thermal fusion cutters.

As for conventional weapons like heavy electromagnetic cannons, charged particle cannons, high-energy lasers, and missile/torpedo silos, they were too numerous to list. Following the design team’s philosophy, these weapons were also installed on the warship in ‘arrays.’

Furthermore, this massive warship was designed with an absurd two hundred and forty main deployment bays and one hundred and twenty supply deployment bays. Using the large number of heavy aerospace transports on board, it could rapidly deploy a heavy combined arms brigade to a planet’s surface without the assistance of an orbital elevator.

That’s right. After being equipped with a high-tier shipboard control AI, this vessel could accommodate not only its necessary crew of over two thousand and twenty squadrons of ship-borne HCPs but also one to two full-strength combined arms brigades to travel with the ship and conduct rapid planetary deployments when necessary.

Looking at these familiar specs and configurations, Amber recalled the adjustments and modifications that players in his previous life had made to this class of battleship, or rather, this mothership in a different sense.

He immediately saved a copy, made some rough modifications directly on the design schematics, and attached his own suggestions.

Since the Tower of Babel was now capable of real-time information transmission with all of Atlas’s subsidiaries and offices, the design file Amber sent after his modifications quickly reached the design team.

The team members had just taken a good nap in the headquarters’ rest area and enjoyed a massage and some fine food. They hadn’t even finished relaxing when they received the file back from Amber.

“Wait a minute… who’s the boss here? How does this new boss have the time to do this stuff!”

The design team head was about to lose his mind when he saw the design schematics, which had been altered in many places.

But soon, he realized that the modifications Amber proposed weren’t some fantasy story.

Instead, they seemed like ‘lessons learned’ from someone who had piloted this class of battleship in combat many times.

“I haven’t been drinking, so why am I having such thoughts?”

The team head felt like his brain wasn’t working anymore. The ship hadn’t even been built yet, and the boss had already sent back ‘improvement suggestions.’

The two biggest changes were to the heavy thermal fusion cutter and the numerous deployment bays.

For the former, Amber’s suggestion was to try comparing it with the ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ used by the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire, which would require the installation of an additional ‘Psionic Core.’

He also mentioned that he could find a way to get some ‘test subjects’ back for them to try.

As for the deployment bays, he put forward an even bolder idea: a ‘deployable, adaptive ship-to-surface transit corridor.’

The concept was to use some kind of technology to create a temporary ‘corridor’ between the ship and the ground, giving it a transport capability similar to or even exceeding that of a space elevator.

As for the source of this technology, Amber noted ‘Forerunner technology (pending discovery).’

In the end, Atlas Ships’ first task was set. After moving two shipyards to the Loubion star system, they would finalize ‘Project 08’ and submit the design specifications to the Loubion Autonomous Government.

If the design passed their review, they could consider starting construction on this ‘export model’ battleship.

As for ‘Project 12,’ the super-heavy battleship destined to be the flagship of Atlas’s various fleets, it would enter the detailed design and refinement stage. Verification would begin once Amber had sorted out the two key technologies.

At the same time, Oksana, the sales supervisor of Atlas’s private military company (the armed cat-girl), sent back a new piece of information.

The Federation government had offered ‘new orders’ to all major private military companies. While the regular army conducted frontal assaults, they wanted to hire the various PMCs to carry out ‘humanitarian aid’ missions on recaptured planets, as well as on Imperial planets they would occupy in the future.

Chapter 305: The New Ruins and the Foundation

“A Humanitarian Aid Mission. How very much in the ‘glorious, great, and correct’ style of the Federation.”

Looking at the files Oksana had sent over, Amber couldn’t help but sneer.

This mercenary mission was, one might say, rather abstract. The main task for the various private military forces hired was to maintain order on the “liberated” planets and provide all sorts of emergency supplies and equipment.

According to the Federation, whether it was the star systems originally belonging to the Federation that were now occupied by the Empire, or the planets that would be recaptured by the Federation military after invading the Empire’s home territory, they would most likely be in a state of utter ruin, awaiting reconstruction.

Not only would various civilian facilities be destroyed and supply reserves fall short, but the order on these planets would also descend into a certain degree of chaos, especially in the star systems within the Empire’s borders.

At such a time, it was necessary to send large quantities of emergency supplies to these planets, while also dispatching armed personnel to maintain basic order and demonstrate the “righteousness” of the Federation’s war.

This was also one of the Federation’s common tactics: kick open the enemy’s “door,” then rush in to kill and destroy while shouting about “delivering democracy and freedom.”

And although the Federation’s regular army would expand rapidly after a general mobilization, it would be primarily committed to frontline offenses. Thus, another armed force would be needed to help the regular army stabilize the rear.

“Boss, is there a problem with this mission?”

“Of course there’s a problem. To put it bluntly, they’re looking for someone to fall into the ‘pacification warfare’ trap. And their regular army is obviously the most experienced in this area.”

Amber shook his head and continued:

“The planets that were originally Federation territory won’t be much of a problem after being recaptured. We’ll just need to focus on maintaining order and avoiding a humanitarian crisis. But planets occupied after invading the Empire are a different story.

“To the Imperials on those planets, both the Federation’s regular army and PMCs like us are considered invaders. Do you think you’d be friendly to an invader?

“Plus, there’s the issue of how most PMCs operate. I don’t need to elaborate on that. Oksana, you’ve been in this business for so many years, you must know. Interacting with the locals will definitely lead to a whole host of problems, big and small.”

Listening to Amber’s words, Oksana nodded. She already understood what he meant and was roughly imagining the various situations that could arise in her mind.

“So, Boss, are you saying we shouldn’t get involved in this mess?”

“Personally, I don’t want to. But from another perspective, if Atlas performs exceptionally well on this mission, it would actually be very helpful for the company’s positive public image.”

Amber pinched the bridge of his nose, conflicted. Honestly, the moment the words “pacification warfare” were mentioned, the nations from history whose bloody lessons were taught by it flashed before his eyes.

But if Atlas could draw a clear line between itself and the Federation, create an identity as an independent third-party organization, and build a good public image, it would be a good thing.

“I can’t decide this on my own.” Amber glanced at the Universal Standard Time on his terminal and the local times in the regions where Atlas had established offices, then continued, “Let’s have a meeting in three hours to discuss this. If we take this contract, it won’t just involve Atlas Private Military Company; the other subsidiaries under the group will also be mobilized.”

“Understood, Boss! I’ll go and prepare. Oh, right! There’s something else you need to know.”

Oksana suddenly remembered something and said:

“Thunder Defense, New Bay, Sunflare, Empyrean, and the other companies we worked with on Loubion V, as well as the current top-ranking private military companies and defense contractors, have all contacted us these past few days. They want to know what Atlas’s plans are for this mission.”

“What’s up? Are they afraid we’ll dominate the whole thing, so they’re testing the waters first? Figuring if we decide to take the job, they won’t participate?”

“No, Boss,” a smile appeared on Oksana’s face.

“Quite the opposite. They said that only if Atlas confirms it will accept this contract will they decide whether to take the job after their own internal evaluations~”

“Huh? What’s this all about?”

Amber really hadn’t expected these companies to have such plans. In his view, they should be trying to avoid Atlas like the plague right now.

“Hahaha, when the people from Thunder Defense contacted me, they said it outright: if even Atlas isn’t confident about getting out of this mission in one piece, they won’t even consider it.”

Oksana covered her mouth and chuckled lightly. This cat-girl, who “loves arms more than adornments,” rarely showed a hint of the cuteness expected of her kind.

“Damn these guys. So they know how to seek advantages and avoid harm, huh.”

Amber said, somewhat speechless. After a brief chat with Oksana about the recent situation on Loubion V, he ended the call.

For Amber, every workday was exceptionally busy.

Today was no exception. In the morning, to accommodate Allenita’s time zone, he had woken up extra early to report on his work to the wealthy elf and major shareholder.

Immediately after, he went to the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center. While checking on the new recruits’ training, he personally entered the fray for a 1-vs-50 duel against fifty specially selected Romu hotheads.

While having a blast mowing them down, he also made these Romu hotheads understand the cruelty of the outside world.

He had just finished lunch when he received Oksana’s call, which had only just ended.

The call had barely disconnected when Isabelle immediately walked in from outside his office.

“Amber, do you want to rest for a bit?” Isabelle asked with concern, looking at Amber’s expression of having lost the will to live.

“Should I give you a massage to help you relax? Or maybe… help you get comfortable first~?”

“No, no, that’s bad for my health.”

“Jerk, where did your mind go!” A blush appeared on Isabelle’s face, but she still remembered why she was here. Seeing that Amber still had the energy to joke with her, she sat down at the desk and stated her purpose.

“Amber, you gave me a few general areas and asked the intelligence analysis team to see if there was any information related to Forerunner Ruins, right?”

“You have news already?” Amber’s spirits lifted at once.

“That’s right. The intelligence analysis team did find information related to ‘Forerunners’ and ‘ruins’ in one of the areas.”

With that, Isabelle skillfully projected the relevant data above Amber’s desk.

“Right here, the region near Wangliang-4 of Cassiopeia. According to the data collected by the intelligence analysis team, a Forerunner ruin was indeed discovered here. It’s quite large, considered the biggest one found in the last few decades.”

“There’s a ‘but’ coming, isn’t there?”

“You guessed it? Yes. But, someone has already beaten us to it. An organization called the ‘Quest for Truth Foundation’ is currently conducting excavation work there and has stated that the area is temporarily sealed off by the Foundation. No individuals or organizations are allowed to approach.”

At this, Isabelle couldn’t help but shrug. “These guys have a lot of nerve. Aren’t they afraid of the iron fist of the Federation or the Empire coming down on them?”

“If it’s these guys, it’s pretty normal.” Amber shook his head and continued, “This location is just too remote. Neither the Federation nor the Empire can be bothered with it. As for other private factions, they probably couldn’t win a fight against this Foundation.”

“This Foundation is that powerful? How come I’ve barely heard of them?”

“Their scale isn’t small, their benefactor is very mysterious, and they even have their own fleet. If you don’t normally pay attention to the Forerunners, it’s quite normal not to know about them. The Foundation usually keeps a low profile, but when it comes to any matter involving the Forerunners, they’re incredibly stubborn and unyielding.”

Amber spoke to Isabelle while recalling the game’s plot and quests related to this Foundation.

“Get ready. We might be going on a long trip. There isn’t much profit for us to make in the next few clashes between the Federation and the Empire, anyway. It’s a good time to do something else~”

Chapter 306: Psionics Hobby Class

Since he was preparing for a long trip, Amber naturally had to arrange some matters before he left.

With Lilith taking over administrative duties and talent from all industries joining Atlas after thorough vetting, the Group’s daily operations no longer required Amber’s constant supervision.

So, Amber now mostly gave the final say on key decisions or led the progress of crucial projects.

Of course, as the old saying goes, a big forest has all kinds of birds.

Even with Lilith’s comprehensive background checks covering the entire network, Atlas Group inevitably recruited some well-hidden scum, as well as ‘spies’ planted by other companies, organizations, and even official agencies.

These individuals, each with their own ulterior motives, certainly didn’t join Atlas with the intention of ‘contributing to Atlas’s bright future’ alongside everyone else.

Instead, they began scheming for personal profit or prying for the Group’s confidential information.

For an ordinary company, even with a strict management system, it would be unavoidable for these ‘parasites’ to bore holes throughout its structure.

But fortunately, Atlas was no ordinary company.

Lest we forget the ‘Prism’ project, secretly authorized by Amber and executed solely by Lilith.

This secret surveillance program, which served as a ‘failsafe program’ and was known only to Amber and Lilith throughout the entire Group, was a secret Amber had not breathed a word of, not even to someone as close as Isabelle.

And the actual effectiveness of this ‘failsafe program’ ultimately dispelled the slight awkwardness Amber had felt when he first authorized it.

Since its official launch, the ‘Prism’ project had exposed a total of eighty-two corrupt employees of various levels, fifty-four corporate spies from different organizations and factions, and six professional operatives from the Federation and the Empire.

The six operatives from the official factions lived up to their ‘professional’ title. Upon their exposure, they committed suicide by poison right before the ‘Internal Cleanup Team’ could break down their doors, and Lilith was unable to dig up any more information about them on the network.

According to her assessment, to continue the investigation, she would probably have to take a stroll through the mainframes of the Federation and the Empire’s intelligence agencies.

Considering the current situation, Amber ultimately decided to postpone this incredibly tempting plan.

As for the other corrupt personnel and corporate spies, they were all in a state of utter bewilderment when the ‘Internal Cleanup Team,’ composed of a group of elite Romu, came knocking.

Because everything had happened so suddenly. They had received no warning whatsoever, and many of them, even at the very end, couldn’t figure out how they had been exposed.

After several large-scale ‘purges’ to ensure the Group’s integrity, the few survivors who had slipped through the net no longer dared to act rashly.

Realizing that their personal or work terminals might be monitored, these individuals tried to continue their activities through other means.

But Atlas Group’s rather thorough implementation of a ‘paperless office’ policy led them to the frustrating discovery that finding even the most common, primitive pen and paper within the company’s premises was an extravagant hope.

And using any other method to record or transmit information would inevitably leave a trail.

Meanwhile, some employees who were implicated in the previous internal ‘corruption’ and ‘information leak’ incidents were also punished accordingly based on the severity of their involvement, in line with the Group’s internal management regulations.

Another group of employees who had stepped forward to report and testify during the incidents also received their due rewards.

After several ‘purges,’ the employees of Atlas Group came to deeply understand the law of survival at this company—don’t do what you shouldn’t, don’t say what you shouldn’t, don’t pry into things you shouldn’t. Just do your own job well, and a hefty year-end bonus awaits.

Of course, there were two other unwritten rules that circulated most widely among the staff.

Heaven is watching what you do.

Retribution is not a matter of if, but when.

After confirming that Atlas’s major projects were all progressing in an orderly fashion, Amber paid a visit to a separate building within the Tower of Babel Manor before he left.

The thirteen psionic children brought back from Loubion V lived here. An elf Psionic Master, recommended by Allenita, was taking care of the children’s daily needs while also guiding them to gradually master their own psionic abilities.

On this day, when Amber arrived after lunch and pushed open the door bearing a sign that read ‘Mess Hall,’ the first thing that greeted his eyes was a stream of pots, pans, bowls, and plates flying past his face?

“Wait.”

Before Amber could say anything, he saw the cookware fly into the sink of the open-plan kitchen on one side of the mess hall. Immediately after, several rags, after being dipped in some green, translucent liquid, followed them in.

Soon, a layer of bubbles rose from the sink as they ‘automatically’ scrubbed away.

At the same time, the thirteen psionic children were sitting at their tables, watching as a rather large glass bottle floated in the air, pouring milk into each of their cups one by one.

The one performing this series of actions was a short, elderly elf with long ears, sitting opposite the children.

To be honest, Amber felt that no matter how many times he came here, the scene before him always felt a bit surreal.

At the Psionic Master’s request, there were no electronic devices in this building; even the lighting was provided by oil lamps.

At first, Amber had been skeptical about how this Psionic Master, who required no assistants, would ‘raise children’ in such an environment.

But he soon witnessed what was meant by the ‘diversity of elves.’

This old elf, who, apart from his skin color, bore a striking resemblance to ‘Master Yoda,’ showed Amber what was called the ‘art of Psionics.’

Although there were no electronics, the entire building—be it the kitchen, the bathroom, the bedrooms, or the training room—had become ‘fully automated’ under the Psionic Master’s control.

The thirteen psionic children were managed perfectly by this elf Psionic Master. They ate well, drank well, and played well every day, and showed no resistance whatsoever towards their psionic studies.

It was only then that Amber understood why this Psionic Master, named Aen Wrathwind, would say something like, ‘Interest is a child’s best teacher.’

Upon seeing Amber walk in, the children happily greeted him while drinking their milk. Amber smiled back at them and then followed Aen Wrathwind out of the mess hall, the ‘clanging’ sound of cookware being washed clearly audible behind them.

“Master, am I not interrupting your dishwashing?”

“It is of no concern. We can talk while I wash. Besides, it will not take long.”

Aen Wrathwind looked up at Amber. The elf, whose exact age was unknown, had deep, light-blue eyes in which something seemed to shimmer.

“I know why you have come,” the old elf said calmly.

“The children are living well here, Amber. You can rest assured. As for their future, there is no need to rush them into a choice now. You would do better to focus your entire being on the ‘journey’ ahead.”

“You mean the ‘Forerunner ruins’?”

For some reason, Amber suddenly had the long-lost feeling of an ‘NPC’ about to issue a quest.

“Fate and the future cannot be spoken of in detail. Stay true to your original intentions, and you shall grasp it. You may go now. Prepare well.”

After uttering this baffling sentence, Aen Wrathwind turned and went back into the mess hall, leaving Amber to stand there in a state of confusion.

“So, he’s a mystic.”

Chapter 307: The Foundation

Organizations like foundations, whether in film, games, or reality, are easily associated with keywords like evil, conspiracy, and mystery.

This includes the classic “S*P Foundation,” the “Möbius Foundation,” or even the notorious “Open Society Foundations” from the world of Amber’s previous life.

The “Quest for Truth Foundation” in Starry Sky Online was no exception. As an organization dedicated to excavating Forerunner ruins everywhere in a bold attempt to follow in their footsteps, it was also shrouded in a certain degree of mystery.

After the major official powers began to reduce their investment in the excavation of Forerunner ruins, the Quest for Truth Foundation had become the single most powerful organization in the field, official or otherwise.

With the backing of a mysterious benefactor, the Quest for Truth Foundation didn’t need to consider profitability; it only needed to ensure that all valuable Forerunner ruins were under its control.

At the same time, the Quest for Truth Foundation possessed a large number of professional armed personnel and its own subordinate fleet. In terms of military strength alone, it was on par with several of the Federation’s major private military companies.

If that were all, it would be one thing. The Atlas Group currently felt no anxiety about its military strength when facing these private organizations.

What truly made Amber feel that the Quest for Truth Foundation was a difficult opponent was the unknown number of psionic users in their possession.

And as the game’s plot progressed, this foundation gradually evolved from a background setpiece into a ‘villainous organization’ plotting some conspiracy in the shadows.

Before Amber transmigrated, he had already participated in raids on several dungeons related to the Quest for Truth Foundation and fought pitched battles against the foundation’s armed forces.

He had even been in one of the Quest for Truth Foundation’s research institutes and discovered they were attempting to fuse ancient creatures found in some ruins with humans—a storyline that was the classic of classics.

At the time, the members of his main raid group had all complained about how unoriginal the plot was. Why was it that every time these mysterious creatures were discovered, they had to be dragged into “fusion experiments” with humans?

Couldn’t they do some “tentacle x elf” experiments instead?

But now that Amber had transmigrated into this world, he found he could no longer make such jokes, let alone laugh.

Because from a certain perspective, the Quest for Truth Foundation was truly a rather troublesome enemy.

It was like throwing a player engrossed in the story into the world of StarCraft II and telling them, “You have to go kill Mengsk.”

Or throwing them into the world of Mass Effect and telling them, “You have to take up the mantle of resisting the Reapers. Oh, and by the way, you only have one life this time.” It was just as absurd.

However, Amber quickly composed himself. He had already dealt with the Federation, the Empire, and the elves. Although he hadn’t yet had contact with the distant Commercial Alliance, it was bound to happen eventually.

Compared to everything else he was doing now, dealing with the Quest for Truth Foundation didn’t seem that much more dangerous.

“Whatever, since I’m already here…”

On the ship heading to Wangliang-4 of Cassiopeia, Amber comforted himself with this old saying he had used many times before.

More than twenty days had passed since their departure, and Amber finally understood why the Empire and the Federation had little interest in this place—it was just so damn far.

In the early “Age of Interstellar Exploration,” when star charts were incomplete, if a ship accidentally stumbled into this area, it was basically a death sentence.

Furthermore, besides a massive, glowing yellow giant star, the destination held nothing of value. If not for the discovery of the Forerunner ruins, the Quest for Truth Foundation probably wouldn’t have come to this Godforsaken place either.

According to information gathered by the intelligence analysis team, the Quest for Truth Foundation had already blockaded the entire region around Wangliang-4, so this operation certainly couldn’t be a grand entrance.

At a time like this, the Atlas Group’s “meritorious warship,” its very first flagship, the Dragoon-class destroyer, came into play.

After extensive modifications, the destroyer, which had been renamed the Polarized Light, had been converted into a “special mission ship” dedicated to covert strike operations.

Unlike stealth bombers that focused solely on covert bombing runs, the reborn Polarized Light, while retaining a certain strike capability, was also equipped for self-sustainment in high-risk areas, Electronic Warfare, and combat support.

Atlas engineers had practically wracked their brains to integrate so many modules into this warship, which now seemed quite small.

Ultimately, the modifications were only completed after the acquisition of ‘Poseidon Shipbuilding’, with a team of their more professional engineers providing remote support.

With its performance drastically enhanced in maneuverability, firepower, flexibility, Electronic Warfare, and covert operations, this “special mission ship” became the best vehicle for Amber’s long journey to Wangliang-4.

The captain was an old acquaintance, Tom, a man known for his phenomenal luck.

As the first Tactical Information Coordinator at Lansford Military Port on Robert IV to notice the anomaly, Tom was arguably one of the witnesses to the outbreak of the war between the Federation and the Empire.

Later, while wounded, he followed Randall from Lansford Port down to the planet’s surface in an escape pod, where he was lucky enough to run into Amber’s group and be saved by Isabelle’s emergency medical treatment.

Then, during the Battle of the Nameless Woods, Tom and Randall successfully drew the attention of the Imperial HCP with an anti-vehicle missile, helping Amber achieve a breakthrough in a desperate situation. Meanwhile, he and Randall survived by dropping into a crater to avoid the HCP’s covering fire.

After that, he fought his way back to the space elevator with Amber’s group, stole an Imperial frigate, and escaped to freedom.

After leaving Robert IV and helping to establish Atlas with Amber and the others, Tom returned to his old profession as a Tactical Information Coordinator. He rose through the ranks in the rapidly expanding fleet, eventually becoming the first captain of this special mission ship.

The reason he got the position was simple. In the final test—a simulated “free-for-all” battle where candidates commanded a warship in a high-risk environment—he displayed an exceptional talent for being an ‘old fox’, sneakily taking out every other captain in the test and emerging as the sole survivor.

“Boss, we are projected to exit warp in three hours. The ship will then enter ‘covert operations mode’ to slip through the Quest for Truth Foundation’s blockade line.”

Tom, looking every bit the part in his captain’s uniform, looked at Amber floating on one side of the bridge and spoke.

Although he was the captain now and an old acquaintance of Amber’s, he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous on this mission.

After all, Amber’s importance to Atlas was self-evident. According to the grapevine, something akin to a ‘Cult of Amber’ had even appeared among the Romu…

This mission was a solo-ship operation in a region far from the company’s support range. The risks were real, and not insignificant.

“Relax, Tom. This isn’t your first mission. Don’t be so tense.”

Noticing Tom’s expression, Amber floated over with a smile and patted his shoulder.

At the same time, Isabelle also floated in from the bridge entryway. Seeing Amber, she said:

“Amber, your exoskeleton is all calibrated!”

“Wait. That line gives me a sense of déjà vu…”

“Huh?”

Chapter 308: Ancient Advanced Technology

None of the insiders at the Atlas Group who knew about the operation wanted Amber to put himself in harm’s way.

The old guard, especially Randall, were practically on their knees, begging Amber not to go.

But after realizing there was truly no one in the entire group more capable in a fight than Amber, they found they had no grounds to dissuade him.

So, during the initial planning phase, the general plan was still centered on Amber attempting a personal infiltration.

After all, it was still unclear how many people the Quest for Truth Foundation had deployed at Wangliang-4. To avoid alerting the enemy, the only choice was for Amber to act alone to prevent detection.

Isabelle had originally requested to go as well. This former “trophy” female spy from the Imperial Navy’s Naval Intelligence Division hadn’t been idle. She had completed all the training courses of the Atlas instructor squad, and her combat effectiveness had improved dramatically.

Moreover, she had some basic skills to begin with, and since the nobles of the Star Dragon Empire all undergo “genetic optimization,” her physical capabilities had soared after training, bringing her close to the level of an ordinary person with physical modifications.

Although she admitted she couldn’t yet fight alongside Amber on the front lines, she was more than capable of acting as a support unit, conducting Electronic Warfare attacks and long-to-mid-range sniping.

However, Amber didn’t immediately agree to her request, instead tabling it to assess the situation upon arrival before making a decision.

Of course, not outright rejecting Isabelle’s request was, in itself, an acknowledgment of her strength on Amber’s part.

At least in their recent sparring sessions, both serious and… not-so-serious, Amber had to admit Isabelle had become much stronger.

Aside from close-quarters combat, her abilities in other areas even surpassed those of natural-born special forces members like Banninger and Memphis, who had not yet undergone physical modification.

Amber had also thought of pulling a Raynor, taking Isabelle on a mission with him and coolly saying, “Like taking a bike for a spin~”

But obviously, Isabelle was no Kerrigan, a powerhouse capable of destroying worlds, and Amber didn’t want her to take such risks.

If something really happened, he would have to rescue her, which would put him at a serious disadvantage.

When the Polarized Light exited its warp and reappeared in space, everyone on the bridge saw the massive yellow giant star in the distance.

The special mission ship immediately conducted a scan of its surroundings the moment it stabilized.

The warp exit point Tom had chosen was on the outskirts of the Quest for Truth Foundation’s blockade zone.

Although warping directly inside the blockade was a tempting option, they ultimately abandoned the idea, considering the high probability of being detected upon arrival.

Soon, the CIC relayed the scan results. No other units were detected nearby, let alone any patrol fleets from the Quest for Truth Foundation.

This was to be expected, however. While the Foundation was powerful, it couldn’t maintain a large-scale blockade in open space.

That’s why Amber had initially speculated that their blockade was likely positioned closer to the Forerunner ruins. It now seemed his theory was correct.

The Polarized Light quickly adjusted its course toward the coordinates the intelligence analysis team had previously “dug up.”

It ignited its plasma thruster array for a thirty-second burn, accelerating until it reached the desired relative velocity toward the coordinates, then shut down the main thruster array.

Next, it activated its upgraded covert operations mode. The ship flickered for a moment before vanishing against the backdrop of space, “drifting” toward its destination.

The thrilling scenario of being spotted by a patrol and intercepted never materialized.

Clearly, the Quest for Truth Foundation was unable to lock down this sector of space to an “airtight” degree.

Although the Polarized Light did detect some patrol ships while crossing the blockade line, the enemy patrols, composed of destroyers and frigates, failed to notice a ship slipping past right under their noses.

As they drew closer to the target area, the crew soon realized they didn’t need precise coordinates to locate the Forerunner ruins.

It had already been picked up by the optical sensors.

It was a colossal structure, stationary in space, with the shape of a standard rectangular cuboid. The specific details were not yet clear at this distance.

As for why it was so easily detected from hundreds of thousands of kilometers away, the reason was simple.

A three-hundred-kilometer-long, forty-kilometer-wide “light stick” against the backdrop of space would be hard not to notice.

In the footage captured by the optical sensor unit, the standard cuboid seemed to have a switch flipped on it, as it pulsed with a wave-like lighting effect.

Based on his experience, Amber surmised that the Quest for Truth Foundation must have brute-forced the Forerunner structure’s “stealth module,” causing its surface optical invisibility to fail and turning it into its current “artistic lamp” state.

Upon seeing the rectangular Forerunner ruin, Amber couldn’t help but feel that this was fate.

He had just been thinking about getting his hands on the Forerunners’ “Gravity Control Technology” and “Long-range Directed Magnetic Field Channel Technology,” and now he had stumbled upon the very ruin that happened to drop these two “ancient technologies” in the game.

“Ancient advanced technology”—while this phrase was a joke among players in the game to describe Forerunner tech, it was, in a literal sense, an accurate description.

Including the “jump drive technology” that humanity now widely used, these technologies from the Forerunlers were far more advanced than anything on humanity’s own tech tree.

Although the official lore, for the sake of convenience, stated that humans could immediately learn these technologies upon acquiring them…

But based on players’ digging into the game’s details, they discovered that while Forerunner technology was highly advanced, it always felt somewhat familiar, with no “comprehension barriers.”

Some of their technologies even exhibited features that were remarkably similar to current human tech.

Thus, a small faction of plot enthusiasts had always supported the theory that the “Forerunners” were actually an “ancient human civilization”—the ancestors of humanity in this world.

Of course, this theory lacked evidence and was too cliché, so it wasn’t accepted by the majority.

Just then, a question suddenly occurred to Amber.

“Wait. In the game, this ruin was farmable, so the drop for these two technologies was probability-based…”

“Was the drop rate something like fifteen percent or twenty percent?”

“But in reality, a ruin can’t be ‘farmed’ repeatedly. Does that mean these two technologies are guaranteed to be in this ruin?”

Amber pondered this question that had suddenly surfaced in his mind, while also considering another, more terrifying possibility.

That they would enter the ruin, and neither of the technologies would “drop.”

“Fuck! Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”

Amber immediately shook his head, casting the dreadful speculation from his mind.

In his previous life, while he wasn’t exactly a man known for his phenomenal luck or a “lucky looter,” he wasn’t some unlucky soul who only ever pulled worthless cards and always had to rely on the pity system.

Besides, judging from his experiences since transmigrating to this world, his luck had been pretty good; otherwise, he couldn’t have developed so smoothly to his current state.

And so, after finalizing the general arrangements, Amber prepared to leave the bridge and head to the Hangar to get ready for the operation.

Chapter 309: A Prestigious Product of the Atlas Equipment R&D Center

As the Polarized Light continued its submerged journey toward its destination, Amber followed Isabelle to the vessel’s hangar. There, he saw his exclusive, fully prepared exoskeleton.

To call it an exoskeleton, however, was a bit of an understatement.

After being fitted with fully enclosed protective modules, a newly configured hybrid power unit, and a completely upgraded fire control and weapon system, this exoskeleton, now weighing in at five and a half tons, should really be called “Powered Armor.”

As mentioned before in the classification of individual combat gear in the current human world, “Powered Armor” wasn’t an independent piece of equipment. Like the combat exoskeleton, it was a product from the same series.

In this world, Powered Armor was, simply put, the “ultimate form” of the individual combat exoskeleton, primarily provided for elite units.

To ensure the “versatility” and “ease of maintenance” required by the military, major equipment manufacturers would design an entire individual combat system, from the most basic exoskeleton frame all the way to the final Powered Armor.

The most basic exoskeleton frame mostly looked like a humanoid skeleton pieced together from a bunch of “steel pipes” and “cables.”

By adding or removing components, it could be adapted to fit the body shapes of most humanoid creatures.

This type of exoskeleton frame was usually battery-powered and only possessed the most fundamental functions, such as load-bearing, strength enhancement, and coordination improvement.

Most civilian engineering exoskeletons were just this basic frame fitted with some integrated interfaces, onto which various power tools could be mounted.

When it came to combat exoskeletons used by the infantry, a more complex power unit with a higher output would be installed. The exoskeleton frame would be given additional “strengthening components,” significantly increasing its load-bearing capacity as well as its strength and speed augmentation.

On top of this, extra sensor interfaces would be installed on the frame. These interfaces would link with those on the multifunctional combat suits worn by the infantry, raising the “synchronization rate” between the exoskeleton and its user to a level suitable for combat.

After these basic upgrades were completed, replaceable external armor plates, battery compartments, and other equipment would be installed, along with additional weapons and electronic devices based on the unit’s operational needs.

Generally speaking, an infantryman wearing a combat exoskeleton would see a substantial increase in strength, speed, and load-bearing capacity. They could lift a chain gun with one hand as if it were a toy—which was why the 25-millimeter chain gun was designed to be shoulder-mounted and issued to infantry units as a platoon-level fire support weapon.

And this was the standard equipment for the line-filling infantry units of the three major human powers—the Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the Commercial Alliance—as ubiquitous among all front-line combat infantry as rifles were in the old era.

Thanks to the versatility and expandability of these combat exoskeletons, soldiers on the battlefield would also make various modifications, with some “ace soldiers” even possessing their own unique custom gear.

Above the combat exoskeleton was the ultimate form of this equipment—Powered Armor.

A more powerful engine, a fiercer weapons configuration, fully enclosed armor, electromagnetic muscle bundles, a neural-interface contact layer…

Although, from the outside, it was basically impossible to see the connection between a suit of Powered Armor and a combat exoskeleton from the same series, their basic frames were essentially the same thing.

Take, for example, the suit of “Raging Crocodile A3 ver.Amber” Powered Armor standing before Amber.

As the name suggested, its basic frame was derived from the “Raging Crocodile” series of combat exoskeletons currently in full service with Atlas’s subordinate combat units.

As a prestigious product of the Atlas Equipment R&D Center, led by Eugene Koch and Orns, this was Amber’s “personally customized” equipment.

This “Raging Crocodile A3 ver.Amber” Powered Armor basically incorporated all the technological achievements of Atlas Industries in the field of individual equipment.

Eugene Koch and Orns had poured their hearts and souls into this suit of Powered Armor, pulling out all the last-resort technologies they had.

In terms of protection, the Powered Armor used brand-new materials and construction. Without its deflector shield active, it could withstand direct hits from barrelled weapons under 75-millimeter caliber and electromagnetic weapons under 40-millimeter caliber.

With the deflector shield active, these metrics increased to immunity from 105-millimeter barrelled weapons and 75-millimeter electromagnetic weapons.

At the same time, it shouldn’t be forgotten that Amber could also deploy a psionic shield, a defense that science couldn’t explain and which provided an extremely high defensive bonus.

This meant that in a full-defense state, Amber, wearing this Powered Armor, could achieve an individual protection level on par with a main battle tank for a short period…

In terms of firepower, Eugene Koch had opted for a modular design, allowing for different weapon combinations depending on the mission requirements.

In its most exaggerated “Individual Suppression” mode, Amber felt that this suit of Powered Armor could cosplay the Gundam Heavyarms’ “hedgehog” loadout.

Especially since the equipment options list included an “individual nuclear warhead launcher”—the origin of which was the few tactical nuclear warheads seized on Loubion V.

Two of them had their raw materials extracted and were refashioned into several “individual tactical nuclear warheads,” serving as one of Amber’s personal armaments…

Finally, regarding the power and tactical functions, the Powered Armor used the best individual power pack Atlas could currently produce. In hybrid drive mode, it could support 35-40 hours of maximum operation, depending on the combat environment.

Meanwhile, its individual electronic warfare unit, detection unit, life-support unit, and other functional modules were all the best versions Eugene and his team could find, sparing no expense.

Of course, if Amber had to choose his favorite feature of this Powered Armor, it would be that Eugene and Orns had managed to make it a “psionic-user specialized model,” capable of fully adapting to the combat intensity and rhythm of a psionic user.

The most outrageous part was that the two of them had managed to reverse engineer the “Elven Royal Court Guard uniform” that Allenita had given Amber.

This ultimately allowed the Powered Armor to achieve stealth in optical, infrared, and ultraviolet detection modes when Amber activated his psionics. If Amber’s psionic skill were a little more refined, he could even achieve stealth from radar detection.

At the same time, to ensure that this standard five-and-a-half-ton suit of Powered Armor wouldn’t make any other noise after activating “stealth,” Orns installed his last-resort “Sound Shield” technology.

When activated, it could significantly reduce the noise generated by the Powered Armor’s movements, preventing a situation where an enemy sees nothing but hears a “rumble-rumble-rumble” in their ears.

Once all these technologies, large and small, were integrated into this one suit of Powered Armor, its research-and-development and manufacturing costs could no longer be measured by a specific amount of money.

For example, modules like the “Psionic Stealth Coating” and the “Sound Shield” could not be mass-produced for the time being.

So, although the Atlas Equipment R&D Center was well-funded, ranking high even within the Atlas Group, Eugene and his team had only managed to build three suits.

Two were used for various tests, and the final one was the finished product for Amber’s use.

And this mission to the Forerunner ruins to “deal with” the Quest for Truth Foundation would be this Powered Armor’s first time in actual combat.

Chapter 310: Solo Deep-Space Insertion

“Boss, we’ve got a visual on the area around the ruins.”

As Amber was putting on his Powered Armor, a communication from Tom came through. At the same time, the composite image from the integrated sensors was synchronized to the display panel of the Powered Armor’s helmet.

Aside from the warships on patrol, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s remaining large vessels were all gathered “below” the rectangular structure.

One of the large vessels, which looked like a space research ship, was connected to an open passageway of the Forerunner ruins by some means.

It was clear that the Foundation, which had considerable experience dealing with Forerunner ruins, wasn’t just burning through their benefactor’s money doing nothing. They had clearly figured out some methods to open Forerunner facilities.

“Looks like the Foundation’s alert level isn’t that high. I thought it would take more effort to stealthily approach this close,” Tom’s voice continued over the comms channel.

“By the way, Boss, are you really planning to insert according to the pre-established plan?”

“Mhm, this way has the lowest chance of being detected, and you guys won’t expose your position either.”

Amber replied while activating the Powered Armor’s electromagnetic muscle bundles and initiating a self-check of all subsystems.

Instantly, the once somewhat cumbersome Powered Armor became much more agile. The electromagnetic muscle bundles embedded beneath the outer armor activated, quickly shouldering most of the weight.

Aside from some restrictions in certain movements due to its size and structure, its mobility in other aspects was not affected at all, and was even enhanced.

“Alright, Boss. We estimate we’ll enter the ‘drop zone’ in thirty minutes. After that, you’ll be on your own for the final stretch.”

Tom, of course, wouldn’t object to Amber’s decision, but he couldn’t help but marvel at how wild his boss’s ideas and courage were.

The final leg of the infiltration was very simple: the Polarized Light would pass by the Forerunner ruins at a safe distance. Upon reaching a calculated optimal drop point, Amber would jump from the ship in his Powered Armor.

Then, after activating the Psionic Stealth Coating, he would drift towards the ruin’s entrance using his inertia.

To traverse nearly twenty thousand kilometers in space in person, and on top of that, to precisely decelerate during the final phase and land on a predetermined spot.

Although the Powered Armor offered strong protection and life support, this was an operation that only a physically modified psionic user like Amber could pull off.

Of course, when Amber remembered a certain man from another world known as the ‘Master Chief’ who often did the same thing, it suddenly didn’t seem so outrageous anymore.

Soon, after completing the subsystem self-check and confirming the Powered Armor was functioning normally, Amber stood on the hangar’s lift platform.

The hangar had been vented to a vacuum, just like during an HCP deployment. Under the worried gazes of Isabelle, the prep team, and others, Amber was lifted outside the hull by the platform and secured to the ship’s outer deck by magnetic locks in his boots.

The scene at that moment was rather surreal, because the Polarized Light beneath his feet was still optically cloaked. Only the spot where he stood showed a slight, bug-like visual distortion.

However, Amber quickly activated the Powered Armor’s “covert operations mode” with his psionics, and the suit, which had seemed so out of place, vanished into space.

When the Polarized Light entered the drop zone, a countdown timer appeared on Amber’s helmet display. At this point, he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

Although he had pulled stunts like this many times before, performing such a daring maneuver in this world still brought a certain amount of pressure.

Nevertheless, the moment the countdown ended, he decisively disengaged the magnetic locks on his feet and, with a gentle push, detached from the hull.

The trajectories of the man and the ship quickly diverged, like two intersecting lines.

A virtual flight path line appeared on the Powered Armor’s HUD to guide him, its end point aimed at the open platform on the Forerunner ruins.

At this moment, besides the low-frequency hum of the Powered Armor’s systems, Amber’s ears were met with complete silence.

To prevent the enemy from detecting any anomalies, both he and the Polarized Light had entered radio silence, so they were temporarily out of contact.

If a pilot felt a sense of deep-space solitude after launching into space in an HCP, then what Amber was doing—drifting alone in Powered Armor—was to be completely enveloped by that solitude.

The sense of immense scale from the distant yellow giant star and the Forerunner ruins at the end of his flight path was magnified by the silent, empty surroundings, amplifying his feeling of loneliness.

In a game, not all players could handle such an experience. In reality, very few people could endure this “deep-space sense of disconnection.”

It was only because psionic users had greatly enhanced spatial awareness that they could manage. Otherwise, drifting like this for too long would cause one to lose their sense of direction.

But Amber had his own way of coping: listening to Lilith tell jokes in his mind.

This strong AI had collected a massive number of online jokes and stories while “surfing the web,” covering everything from daily life and international politics to celebrity gossip and apocrypha.

In his previous life, with her ability to rattle off an endless supply of unique jokes, Lilith would have been a rising star among taxi drivers.

With her company, Amber drifted in solitude for nearly an hour before beginning deceleration.

According to the plan, while he was decelerating, the Polarized Light would have found a place to hide, ready to provide support or pick him up for a quick getaway.

As for Amber, his method of deceleration was also simple: he continuously emitted tiny “psionic blasts,” using the principle that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction to steadily reduce his relative velocity to the Forerunner ruins.

The initial plan was actually for Amber to carry a small deceleration unit powered by compressed gas. But considering it couldn’t be made invisible and risked exposing him, that plan was ultimately scrapped.

It was hard to say whether Amber’s “psionic stealth” was just that good, or if the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet was simply slacking on its space surveillance and patrols.

In any case, after a period of deceleration, Amber drifted past right under the noses of the ships moored near the Forerunner ruins.

Or perhaps, the people on those Foundation warships never imagined that someone else would show up in this godforsaken, remote star system, far from the frontiers of human civilization.

Finally, at an acceptable relative velocity, he landed on the surface of the Forerunner ruins and immediately used his psionics to anchor himself firmly, preventing the reactive force from flinging him back into space.

“Master, all Powered Armor systems are nominal. A quick self-check shows no damaged components. Phase two of the infiltration plan is a success!”

“Excellent. Now, let’s see what the people from this Foundation came all this way for~”

Chapter 311: The Puppeteer

If Satter Ethan were to describe the Forerunner ruin he was currently in, he would call it a ‘guardian’ that had been waiting in silence for millions of years.

It strictly executed the directives left by the Forerunters, protecting whatever lay within the ruin.

But at the same time, it was also waiting for latecomers like the Quest for Truth Foundation to reopen its doors.

For the items and technologies preserved in these Forerunner ruins were meant for ‘fated ones’ like them.

This was the conclusion Satter Ethan had reached after participating in multiple explorations of Forerunner ruins as a Deputy Field Commander for the Quest for Truth Foundation.

Within the scientific expedition teams sent out by the Quest for Truth Foundation, the ones responsible for frontline command were the Field Commander and the Deputy Field Commander.

The former was responsible for commanding the entire operation and leading the troops in combat when danger was encountered. The latter—the role Satter Ethan held—was responsible for exploration, decryption, and technology acquisition within the Forerunner ruins.

The ‘scientific expedition group’ he led was not large, but every member was a professional with considerable achievements in the field of Forerunner civilization research.

And this ‘hidden ruin’ that the Quest for Truth Foundation had discovered near Wangliang-4 was the largest Forerunner ruin Satter Ethan had seen in all his years in the field.

To Satter Ethan, the ruin’s exterior looked as if it were a work of nature. If not for its standard cuboid shape, he would have found it hard to believe it was an ‘artifact’.

Originally, this Forerunner ruin had been concealed and protected by a ‘refractive field’, one that had been active for millions of years.

If the Foundation hadn’t discovered it by a stroke of sheer luck this time, the ruin might have remained hidden forever.

Using experience gained from opening other ruins, the Foundation’s scientific expedition fleet had blasted open the ‘refractive layer’ with brute force. Satter Ethan guessed that the fleet’s firepower must have caused the field to enter a state of overload and instability.

Without the protection of the ‘refractive layer’, the ruin soon revealed its true appearance—its surface was covered in ‘rune’-like patterns made of a vast quantity of unknown materials.

These ‘runes’ faintly refracted an exotic light under the starlight, seeming to contain profound information that no one could decipher.

However, Satter Ethan and the ‘expedition members’ under him believed that these ‘runes’ were the Forerunner civilization’s unique energy management technology.

To date, all discovered Forerunner ruins had the same ‘runes’ on them, and the ruins with more complete ‘runes’ were all still operational. Thus, Satter and the others believed they were analogous to the ‘circuits’ of human technology.

After the Field Commander—whose real name was unknown and went only by the codename ‘The Puppeteer’—confirmed the interior of the ruin was safe, the Foundation party entered through a door that had been opened inside an open-air platform.

Just as Amber had previously guessed, the Quest for Truth Foundation had already mastered the method of opening these ruins after exploring a large number of them.

Inside, the lighting came from light strips embedded in the walls. They were soft and not glaring, illuminating the intricate passageways and massive halls.

In this ruin, with a minor axis of forty kilometers, each level was the size of a medium-to-large city.

Moreover, each level had its own ‘gravity control’, allowing people to move through it with ease.

This technology was completely different from the human method of creating gravity in space using centrifugal force, and in terms of efficiency, it was a world apart.

Therefore, this advanced ‘Gravity Control Technology’ was something the Quest for Truth Foundation had always wanted to master.

Unfortunately, they had not yet managed to acquire it from any Forerunner ruins.

Based on Satter Ethan’s experience, this ruin, like the Forerunner ruins discovered before, should have different functional sectors on each level.

Living, research and development, production, experimentation.

When these different functional sectors appeared in the same ruin, the first thing that came to Satter Ethan’s mind was that these ruins might be some kind of ‘research facility’ left behind by the Forerunner civilization.

After the group had advanced some distance into this Forerunner facility, the Field Commander, ‘The Puppeteer’, confirmed via his terminal that the surrounding environment was suitable for human life. One of the Foundation soldiers beside him then opened his tactical faceplate.

A moment later, he gave the others an ‘OK’ gesture, and everyone else also opened their tactical faceplates or helmets.

At the same time, these Quest for Truth Foundation soldiers revealed a side of them that was different from the others in the team—the parts of their faces from their eyes up had all been modified.

Their human eyes and foreheads had been replaced with a single, horizontal, red-glowing visor and a metallic-looking cranium.

Although Satter and the other members of the scientific expedition group couldn’t help but glance at these soldiers, they quickly looked away.

Everyone knew these Foundation soldiers were not quite normal people, but no one would ever step forward to say anything.

After joining the Quest for Truth Foundation, ‘do your own job, don’t ask about and don’t meddle with anything else’ had become an ironclad rule for survival.

Just then, Satter saw ‘The Puppeteer’ walking at the very front suddenly halt. The movement caused the whip-like artificial nerve cords on his back to sway for a moment, and the Foundation soldiers advancing in a tactical formation around him also stopped simultaneously and took up alert positions, scanning their surroundings.

“What is it?” Satter walked up and asked. As the Deputy Field Commander, he also needed to stay informed of the current situation in real time.

‘The Puppeteer’ did not answer Satter’s question. Wearing a metal mask, he slowly scanned his surroundings, and fleeting blue lights flashed across the artificial nerve cords on his back.

That was the light of psionics.

After a moment, ‘The Puppeteer’ stopped scanning the area. He still ignored Satter Ethan, but as he strode deeper into the ruin, he said in a low voice, “Keep moving.”

Satter Ethan was used to his attitude, especially after learning that the man was a psionic user during their first meeting.

Chalk one up for the psionic user stereotype.

And some distance behind the team, Amber quietly sighed in relief inside his powered armor.

This Field Commander from the Quest for Truth Foundation was even more vigilant than he had imagined; the slightest disturbance would put the man on alert.

Just a moment ago, he had merely gotten a little too close, and the man had sent out a psionic wave to sweep the area.

If Amber hadn’t reacted quickly, deconstructing and nullifying the psionic wave the instant it hit him, he would likely have been discovered.

“Just as expected of you guys. The quality of your psionic users is almost on par with the Royal Silencers of the Star Dragon Empire.”

Amber continued to advance cautiously, griping to himself.

The Quest for Truth Foundation was certainly not as powerful as the Star Dragon Empire in terms of overall strength, but because they had excavated so many ruins, they had gained a partial understanding of some of the Forerunner civilization’s advanced technologies.

Their research in psionics, in particular, was already ahead of other factions. This was why, in the game, when facing the Quest for Truth Foundation, the density of psionic users in their ranks was much higher than that of other human factions.

As Amber was recalling his memories of the Foundation, the team ahead reached a place with something resembling a control console.

The sharp-eyed Satter immediately spotted something like an ‘operations terminal’ in the middle of the console.

Then, Amber saw the slightly portly, middle-aged man mutter, “Huh? What does this button do?” as he walked up to the console and began to operate it.

In the next second, the originally soft light strips nearby suddenly turned a menacing dark red.

A sound like an ‘alarm’ also began to ring out.

“Fuck! Can’t he keep his hands to himself?”

Chapter 312: The Innate ‘Zhou Zhuo’ Hallowed Body

The Forerunner civilization’s style of alarm was quite different from those commonly used by humans.

Human alarms were generally high-pitched. To attract attention, the sound was sharp and piercing, and the frequency was either a long, continuous wail or short, rapid beeps.

But the Forerunner alarm used an extremely deep, almost subsonic tone, which was also primarily a long, sustained sound.

The effect was immediate; everyone present felt as if they had been thrown inside a colossal tuba. As the alarm registered, the very air around them began to vibrate.

“On guard!”

Seeing that something was wrong, the Puppeteer immediately issued a command. The Foundation soldiers quickly formed a defensive perimeter around the group.

Many soldiers also detached shields and mobile covers from the racks on the back of their exoskeletons, forming a defensive line in short order.

Satter (the Lorewalker Cho) Ethan, who was still at the console, was grabbed by the Puppeteer’s psionics, lifted up, and tossed into the center of the defensive line.

“Satter Ethan. This is the ninth time.”

With that, the Puppeteer said no more. He walked to the front of the formation, preparing to face the enemy.

If not for the fact that this Deputy Field Commander was one of the few people within the Foundation who knew the most about Forerunner civilization, and that the Foundation’s upper echelons had specifically ordered the scholar’s protection, the Puppeteer would have likely “dealt with” this raid-wiping maniac in some other ruin long ago.

A thirst for knowledge was a good thing, both for an individual and for the Foundation.

As a psionic user himself, the Puppeteer agreed with this principle. After all, he was a “seeker of knowledge” in the psionic domain, and he too found it difficult to control his desire to learn when he discovered new information related to psionics.

But the prerequisite was to know one’s own limits.

And Satter Ethan was clearly not such a person.

The moment he entered a Forerunner ruin, the middle-aged scholar would cast all else aside, completely engrossed in studying everything he discovered within.

The consequence of this was that, along with his muttered questions of “What does this button do?” and “What happens if this energy circuit is activated?”, one defense mechanism after another in the Forerunner ruins would be activated.

Yes, despite being forgotten in the depths of space for millions of years, most of the defense systems inside these Forerunner ruins were still fully functional.

Twenty seconds after the alarm blared through the ruins, everyone present, including Amber who was hiding in the rear, heard some kind of broadcast system begin to issue a voice announcement.

It was in that same language characteristic of Forerunner ruins—a blend of the ancient and the advanced. The Puppeteer immediately turned to look at Satter Ethan in the middle of the group.

He was one of the few scholars in the entire Quest for Truth Foundation who could understand parts of the Forerunner language.

“Warning. Intruder. Highest… level?”

“Personnel evacuate. To… some area.”

As he translated haltingly, Amber, hiding in the back, understood the content of the voice announcement as clearly as if it were her native tongue.

After being “bound” to the large Forerunner mining and refining core, Amber had found that she had inexplicably mastered the Forerunner language and script.

And it was the kind where her proficiency was maxed out from the start.

“Warning! External intruders detected in Base Area, Level 0. Annihilation level: maximum.”

“All non-combat personnel, evacuate the base area immediately. Combat personnel, proceed to designated areas as per procedure.”

“Current combat personnel assembled: 0. Activating alternative plan.”

“Sealing Base Area, Level 0. Preparing to release ‘Annihilators’!”

As the last sentence of the broadcast finished, a mechanical grinding sound first echoed from the depths of “Base Area, Level 0,” where Amber and the others were, as if some giant gate was opening.

This was immediately followed by a series of heavy footsteps, growing louder as they approached from a distance.

Upon hearing the broadcast mention “Annihilators,” Amber immediately readied herself for battle.

This was because these things were basically standard “elite mobs” in all Forerunner ruins. In almost every dungeon or raid, players had to take out these elites before they could advance.

According to some analyses on the forums, Forerunner ruins were normally supposed to be defended by dedicated “combat personnel.” But for some unknown reason, the entire civilization had vanished overnight, leaving these ruins empty.

Under such circumstances, a Forerunner ruin unable to muster its combat personnel would activate a “backup plan,” releasing these “Annihilators” which were usually kept in a state of forced hibernation.

Soon, the massive figures of five Annihilators appeared in the dim, crimson light in the distance.

Voom!

Before they could even get close, ten dark red beams of light swept over from the distance.

Except for the central area of the formation, which was protected by the psionic shield raised by the Puppeteer, most of the soldiers on the Foundation team’s flanks were incinerated into piles of ash by the sweeping beams.

The Annihilators quickly noticed the psionic shield in the center and immediately focused their ten beams on it. The pressure on the Puppeteer instantly skyrocketed.

However, the scenario Amber had anticipated—the psionic shield being breached—did not happen. A brilliant blue light flashed from the neural cable on the Puppeteer’s back. He then floated into mid-air, and the psionic shield before him not only grew larger in coverage but also glowed brighter.

But as the Puppeteer powered up, the Foundation soldiers around him collapsed one by one, the light in their single-slit visors extinguishing.

“Hm?”

Noticing this, Amber immediately switched to her Psionic Vision. She then saw faint trails of psionic energy being drawn from the heads of the fallen Foundation soldiers by an invisible force, flowing into the neural cable at the back of the Puppeteer’s head.

And this neural cable, made of some unknown metal and biological material, was acting like an “external power source,” continuously supplying the Puppeteer with additional psionics.

“So the ‘Star-Sucking Great Skill’ has already been put to use by the Foundation? I thought it was developed much later.”

Amber watched in astonishment at the familiar skill, one she had seen on bosses related to the Quest for Truth Foundation in the raids.

This technique, nicknamed the “Star-Sucking Great Skill” by players, was a psionic “extraction” technology of the Quest for Truth Foundation, its official name unknown.

It was said that the prototype for this technology came from a Forerunner ruin dungeon. It was a psionic amplification technique that strengthened the user through an external ability.

The modification surgery the Foundation soldiers had undergone not only took away their free will, making them completely obedient to psionic users like the Puppeteer, but the devices in their heads also served to store the psionic energy “extracted” from their bodies.

As mentioned before, everyone in this world actually possessed this mysterious energy.

It was just that the psionic energy in an ordinary person’s body was too minuscule to affect the material world, so it didn’t impact themselves or others.

The Foundation’s device, however, perfectly solved the problem of this psionic energy in ordinary people going to waste.

But the price was that once their energy was “siphoned,” these “mobile psionic energy containers” would die on the spot.

The enhanced psionic shield directly blocked the Annihilators’ round of focused fire. When the Annihilators stopped firing and their beam emitters entered a cooldown period, the Puppeteer immediately switched from defense to offense.

He unleashed the largest psionic blast Amber had seen since arriving in this world.

And this “enhanced version” of the psionic blast successfully sent the frontmost Annihilator tumbling, and while the others managed to stay upright thanks to their sheer weight, their charge was also halted.

Seizing the opportunity, the Puppeteer’s figure flashed as he took the offensive, charging forward. His emotionless voice followed.

“Foundation soldiers, attack.”

Chapter 313: The Forerunners Might Be Alive

Under the Puppeteer’s command, the surviving Foundation soldiers charged forward without hesitation.

Although many had been wiped out by the Annihilators’ lasers, and many had just been cracked open like ‘spare psionic batteries’ by the Puppeteer, these Foundation soldiers, lacking any independent consciousness and essentially being puppets, had no concept of fear.

From another perspective, they could even be considered perfect soldiers. No matter the situation, they would execute their orders resolutely, their morale completely unaffected.

Now, these Foundation soldiers split into two groups and fanned out to the sides according to standard tactics, beginning to search for advantageous positions within the ruins.

It was then that Amber noticed the density of heavy weaponry among these Foundation soldiers far exceeded that of a typical unit.

Shoulder-mounted chain guns, portable electromagnetic cannons, man-portable loitering munition pods—these platoon-level heavy support weapons were treated as squad-level armaments in the Foundation’s order of battle.

Among the remaining one hundred and twenty-odd Foundation soldiers, Amber managed to count twelve portable electromagnetic cannons, twenty 30mm chain guns, and countless man-portable anti-vehicle missile launchers. There were also nearly forty loitering munition operators and ten two-person, infantry-grade charged particle cannon teams.

“They must have a serious case of firepower anxiety.”

Amber had always thought of himself as someone with a touch of that same anxiety, but now it seemed the people from the Quest for Truth Foundation had a much more severe case.

However, he understood why the Foundation soldiers were armed this way.

Their operational environment was completely different from a traditional battlefield; the enemies they faced were the various bizarre autonomous machines and dangerous creatures left behind by the Forerunner civilization.

When you didn’t know the enemy’s full capabilities, the best approach was to utterly shred them with heavy firepower.

For the most part, this was how the humans of this world dealt with Forerunner creations.

Soon, the combat zone ahead erupted into chaos.

As the Puppeteer weaved nimbly through the battlefield, continuously unleashing psionic blasts and ‘mini’ psionic lightning to slowly tear apart the Annihilators’ external armor, the numerous fire teams formed by the Foundation soldiers also began their assault.

Orange-red trajectories trailed by ultra-high-velocity tungsten alloy penetrators chipped away at the pale blue kinetic shields on the Annihilators’ bodies.

Meanwhile, beams fired from ten infantry-grade charged particle cannons left scorch marks on the Annihilators’ armor, with some sections that were continuously irradiated nearly being breached.

On top of that, chain guns, electromagnetic rifles, anti-vehicle missiles, and loitering munitions were unleashed upon the Annihilators as if they were free.

Although some turret-like devices mounted on the Annihilators’ external armor fired rays at an extremely high frequency to intercept incoming attacks, even managing to precisely sever some penetrator rods, the principle of ‘enough ants can kill an elephant’ still applied.

Under the concentrated fire of the Foundation soldiers, the Annihilator at the very front soon revealed an opening. The Puppeteer seized the opportunity, blasting a psionic shockwave straight through its weak point.

The colossal Annihilator toppled to the ground like a small mountain, causing the earth to tremble violently.

Its head armor completely shattered upon impact, revealing a head underneath the helmet that resembled an underdeveloped salamander.

The massive head was still thrashing about. Lacking vocal organs, the Annihilator couldn’t make a sound and could only vent its inner fury in this manner.

Soon, however, the unprotected head was blown apart by several high-velocity penetrator rounds. Against weapons with sufficient kinetic energy, these large, carbon-based creatures were still quite fragile.

But seeing this, Amber still felt something was off. These ‘Annihilators’ seemed a little too weak.

As the ‘door gods’ for most Forerunner ruin dungeons, the strength of these elite monsters was not to be underestimated.

Their external armor’s kinetic shields alone were enough to give a raiding party a run for their money; they were a pure DPS check. If a team’s firepower fell even slightly short, they wouldn’t be able to break through the shields.

For a battle like this, with five Annihilators released at once, a raiding party would need more than a dozen level-four or higher psionic users plus fire support from nearly a full battalion of NPC units before they could even think of engaging.

But now, this psionic user from the Quest for Truth Foundation, with fire cover from friendly units, had practically taken down an Annihilator single-handedly.

“This doesn’t make sense… Could it be that Forerunner creations also have a ‘stripped-down version’?”

Just as this strange thought popped into his head, Amber saw the Puppeteer, having dispatched one Annihilator, move on to the next target without pause, leading the Foundation soldiers forward.

At the same time, he heard another commotion from behind.

Amber turned to see five HCPs bearing the Quest for Truth Foundation’s logo, along with several main battle tanks and multi-legged war machines, arriving on the battlefield. They were accompanied by a large number of Foundation soldiers.

Evidently, the Puppeteer had also called for reinforcements when launching the attack.

To avoid being wiped out at the very entrance to the ruins, the Foundation’s armed scientific expedition teams typically sent an advance party to scout the situation first.

Only after receiving a signal from the advance team would they dispatch their reserve forces based on the signal’s content.

With these support units joining the fray, the battle immediately became less difficult.

The remaining four Annihilators were, just as Amber had guessed, also a kind of ‘stripped-down version’. They had virtually no resistance, especially when facing a salvo from the HCPs’ heavy particle cannons.

One salvo, plus a few finishing blows from other units, was enough to successfully take one down.

During this process, however, the Foundation’s armed forces were constantly taking losses. The puppet-like Foundation soldiers, in particular, were treated as nothing more than cannon fodder.

They were either drained of their psionics by the Puppeteer or vaporized by the Annihilators’ beams.

Fifteen minutes later, all the Annihilators lay fallen on the ground. The Quest for Truth Foundation, in addition to losing a large number of soldiers, had also paid the price of one HCP, one main battle tank, and several multi-legged war machines.

As the surviving Foundation HCPs delivered finishing blows to the downed Annihilators under the Puppeteer’s command, Satter Ethan and his men returned to the control console.

This time, they took out a bizarrely shaped device, which looked like a hybrid of Forerunner and human technology, and connected it to an interface on the console.

Soon, the low-pitched alarm ceased. At the same time, under the operation of Satter Ethan and the others, the voice broadcast system chimed in again.

But this time, the content of the broadcast wasn’t an intrusion warning like before, but something akin to a facility-wide self-check.

The status of each area within this Forerunner facility was reported one by one.

To Amber’s surprise, most of the areas in the facility turned out to have problems, either with abnormal power supply or being in a low-power hibernation state.

All except for the ‘Cryogenic Hibernation Area’ located in the facility’s core area.

“Cryogenic Hibernation Area, self-check in progress.

“Power supply normal. Expected operational cryogenic hibernation pods: two hundred fifty thousand. Actual operational cryogenic hibernation pods: one.”

Chapter 314: Contain, Control, Protect

An active cryogenic hibernation pod had been discovered in the Forerunner ruins. To be honest, Amber was stunned speechless the moment he heard the voice broadcast.

If a cryogenic hibernation pod was still in normal operation, it meant that whatever was hibernating inside was, at the very least, not a shriveled corpse.

With the Forerunner civilization’s technological level, a cryogenic hibernation pod wouldn’t be so crude as to be unable to determine if the lifeform inside was dead, let alone waste energy maintaining a cryogenic state for a corpse.

But if that was the case, it meant there was a high probability that a living Forerunner was hibernating inside this cryogenic pod.

Sleeping for a million years straight? That seemed even more outrageous.

Amber desperately searched his memories. As far as he could recall, no Forerunner ruin had ever “excavated” a living Forerunner.

Based on the events he had witnessed in the year since he’d transmigrated, the “plot” of this world was basically the same as in the game. The locations of various resource points, “raids,” and ruins were also consistent.

Therefore, Amber believed that as long as his actions hadn’t caused a change in the world line, he could continue to apply his experience from his previous life.

Take these Forerunner ruins, for instance. Amber felt that no matter what he and Atlas had done, their actions shouldn’t have affected this place. So, what was happening now should also align with the game’s plot.

If that was the case, then only one possibility remained.

The Quest for Truth Foundation had really dug up a living Forerunner in these ruins.

But for some unknown reason, the Foundation had erased all records of this operation, and the Forerunner’s whereabouts were unknown.

“There’s something fishy going on here…”

Thinking this, Amber immediately decided to follow them and see what was happening.

A possibly living Forerunner from a million years ago? It would be a lie to say Amber wasn’t curious.

Ahead, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s reinforcement unit, under The Puppeteer’s command, had regrouped with the survivors from the original team.

After confirming all the Annihilators had been thoroughly “annihilated,” the large contingent began moving toward the depths of Base Area, Level 0.

After the HCP and a few Foundation soldiers bringing up the rear had also departed, Amber furtively emerged from the shadows.

Though, the image of someone sneaking around in a suit of Powered Armor weighing over five tons was admittedly rather strange.

However, Amber didn’t follow them directly—he didn’t want to reveal himself just yet. Besides, in these dangerous ruins, having the Foundation’s people “clearing the path” ahead wasn’t such a bad thing, was it?

After making sure they wouldn’t spot him, Amber approached the corpses of the several Annihilators lying on the ground.

These mountain-like carcasses were much more shocking than they had appeared in the game.

Of course, the smell was also much worse.

If the game had only simulated the stench to give players an “authentic experience” when taking on these Forerunner behemoths, then what Amber was getting now was a fully immersive experience.

He had only just opened his helmet when the smell hit him, forcing him to immediately shut it and switch on the internal circulation mode.

“Jeez, why does this thing smell so bad? This isn’t the Forerunners’ usual refined style.”

Amber wasn’t just griping. The creations of the Forerunner civilization had always been presented to players with a style of refinement, high precision, and a “like new” quality.

Even this Annihilator with its head blown off—when Amber had encountered them in other ruins, while they looked the same, they had clearly been better “maintained” than this one.

Yes, maintenance. Or rather, upkeep and servicing.

One of the reasons the Forerunner civilization was recognized for its technological prowess was that their ruins, and the facilities within them, had been left untouched for a million years, yet were still in impeccably good condition.

It even felt as though the Forerunners inside had just left a short while ago.

Even biological combat weapons like the “Annihilators,” which were modified from some sort of ancient creature, would normally hibernate in special sealed chambers where they received regular maintenance, ensuring they were always ready to engage the enemy.

But the Annihilator before Amber now clearly had nothing to do with “proper maintenance.”

Its external armor looked intact but was severely corroded from within, and the muscles of its main body—the “ancient giant salamander-like creature”—had atrophied, its skin shriveled.

Furthermore, many of the weapons retrofitted onto its external armor, including the energy combat claw blades on its forelimbs, were non-functional.

Amber finally understood why this thing had been as fragile as paper against the Quest for Truth Foundation’s not-so-formidable armed forces.

“It hasn’t been maintained at all… Is there a problem with this facility’s power supply?”

This seemingly absurd theory popped into Amber’s head. After all, this was “Forerunner technology,” which in the eyes of many players, had transcended the realm of science and entered the realm of magic.

But considering the voice broadcast he had just heard, he thought it was genuinely possible that there was a problem with the power supply.

When the power supply was insufficient to maintain normal operations in all areas of the facility, the central control system must have prioritized the cryogenic hibernation pod, concentrating all its resources on safeguarding the entire hibernation area.

This, in turn, led to the other areas being deprived of both power and routine maintenance, resulting in the situation Amber was now witnessing.

As for biological combat weapons, this gripe-worthy element was another one of the Forerunner civilization’s specialties. Players even suspected the entire civilization had a collective “collector’s fetish.”

Countless ancient creatures that human civilization had never seen, or had only seen as fossils, served as guardians in the Forerunner ruins.

This even included the “Starry Sky Dragons,” a symbol of the Star Dragon Empire that hadn’t been seen in the universe for a very long time, which had “held positions” in several ruins.

One could only imagine the look on the faces of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family when they heard this news.

Their national totem and spiritual symbol was another civilization’s “watchdog.”

This news quickly became a topic that was absolutely forbidden to discuss within the Empire.

The kind where you die if you ask.

And now, after excavating a number of Forerunner ruins, the Quest for Truth Foundation—perhaps having been “infected”—had also taken up the business of containing these ancient biological combat weapons.

They even frequently conducted procedures that involved combining humans with ancient creatures, or rather, using genetic contamination in an attempt to create entirely new lifeforms.

The Foundation’s public statement, of course, would never mention these anti-humanitarian and physically repulsive experiments, nor would it mention their attempts to control these biological combat weapons to fight for them.

According to their official website, the Quest for Truth Foundation provides protection for these extremely precious “prehistoric creatures,” allowing them to survive in this new era.

‘Contain, Control, Protect.’

“Tsk, using a public slogan like that… aren’t you afraid someone’s going to show up and sue you for copyright infringement?”

Chapter 315: Quick Getaway, Nuclear Explosion

As a Forerunner facility with a major axis exceeding three hundred kilometers, there were numerous vertical transport systems between each level to facilitate the movement of personnel and supplies.

Thus, the members of the Quest for Truth Foundation quickly found a large transport platform capable of carrying many units at once.

Under Satter Ethan’s operation, the large transport platform quickly activated and began to ascend towards the Foundation’s objective: the Cryogenic Hibernation Area.

The device they had brought out earlier was, in fact, a product of Reverse engineering technology discovered in the Forerunner ruins.

After recreating the various standard interfaces of the Forerunner civilization, the Quest for Truth Foundation had successfully connected human equipment to the control terminals inside the Forerunner ruins.

After interfacing with the terminals, the members of the Quest for Truth Foundation were surprised to discover what seemed to be a resonance of some fundamental protocol between their human-made devices and the ruins’ control terminals. The exchange of information was virtually seamless.

It was as if the Forerunners had anticipated that a species like humanity would visit this place millions of years later and had intentionally left a ‘backdoor’.

This discovery was made back in the early days of the Quest for Truth Foundation.

Back then, the Foundation was far from being as extreme as it was now and showed no ‘villainous’ traits. The entire organization seemed like an ordinary ‘archaeological foundation’.

As a result, this discovery shocked the Foundation for a whole year. It was said that several older, high-ranking scholars went completely mad.

They not only became raving mad but also started shouting outrageous things like, “They will come back for us!” every day. In the end, they were quietly dealt with by the Foundation’s upper echelons.

Although the discovery caused some ripples throughout the field of Forerunner historiography after it spread within a small circle, the situation was so preposterous, and with the Foundation’s leadership intentionally downplaying it, the whole affair ultimately ended like a farce.

It was also after this incident that the Quest for Truth Foundation gained its mysterious benefactor.

The entire Foundation’s style changed overnight. It completely transformed into a low-profile organization, no longer participating in industry conferences, instead searching for and excavating Forerunner ruins day after day, year after year.

Of course, in the eyes of the industry, the Quest for Truth Foundation was a typical case of a group that had dug up ruins for so long they started hallucinating and became obsessed.

Their ‘benefactor’, who continuously poured in more funding, seemed to have lost their mind. With all that money, wasn’t there something better to do? Why insist on throwing it into the bottomless pit of archaeology just for kicks?

This coincided with a ‘cool-down period’ in the exploration of Forerunner civilization. After failing to find anything of value for a long time, the major organizations gradually withdrew their investments and exited the field.

Consequently, the few who remained in the drastically downsized field were even less likely to pay any attention to the Quest for Truth Foundation.

And so, in the blink of an eye, time passed to the present. The entire Foundation had grown into a behemoth that outsiders couldn’t possibly comprehend, yet it remained patiently dormant beneath the surface, not acting rashly.

“Uh… have arrived at what area? Unloading work is safe?”

“That’s enough. You don’t need to translate,” the Puppeteer said coldly, cutting off Satter Ethan’s less-than-amateurish translation.

“We don’t need to hear it. We can see with our own eyes that we’ve arrived.”

After saying this, the Puppeteer didn’t wait for a response from Satter Ethan and immediately ordered the main Foundation force to disembark from the large transport platform.

After a journey of several minutes, the large transport platform had brought the Foundation members to their destination.

According to the map displayed on the platform, they were now in a region near the center of the ruins. In other words, this Cryogenic Hibernation Area was part of the core area of the Forerunner facility beneath them.

After the recent voice broadcast, despite Satter Ethan’s stuttering translation, both he and the Puppeteer had understood one thing: there was very likely a living Forerunner in this hibernation area.

To be honest, Satter Ethan was now in a state of frenzied excitement. He couldn’t imagine what changes would befall the world if he actually ‘dug up’ a living Forerunner.

It would probably cause a sensation, just like the discovery of the jump drive long ago, and reignite a new craze for exploring Forerunner ruins, wouldn’t it?

At that time, his name would surely be etched in the annals of history.

At this thought, Satter Ethan’s breathing inevitably quickened.

The Foundation team quickly passed through the main doors of the Cryogenic Hibernation Area, entering the only section with a fully maintained power supply.

The moment he stepped into the area, Satter Ethan was greeted by the sight of a seemingly endless expanse of cryogenic hibernation pods, a densely packed and spectacular view.

Towering throughout the hibernation area were numerous ‘pillars’. These pillars had a great number of mechanical arms and were mounted with many insect-like robots.

The ‘pillars’, arranged according to some specific pattern, stretched into the distance. Based on Satter Ethan’s calculations of their ‘functional coverage area’, they perfectly encompassed all the cryogenic hibernation pods. He surmised that they were some sort of maintenance system for the pods.

“If they’re maintaining these pods, then what’s maintaining them?”

The thought inevitably crossed Satter Ethan’s mind.

Since all the inactive pods were unlit and empty, the single operational cryogenic hibernation pod in the entire hibernation area stood out conspicuously.

Without even needing to triangulate its position, the Puppeteer spotted the distant, faintly glowing ‘lone survivor’ with his naked eye.

A thought flashed through his mind, and the surrounding Foundation armed forces immediately fanned out to encircle it.

In stark contrast to Satter Ethan’s frenzy, he was perfectly clear-headed at that moment.

Having led teams into numerous Forerunner ruins, the Puppeteer knew that every single one was incredibly dangerous. Once intruders were detected, a ruin’s defense systems would attempt to annihilate them at any cost.

Heavy mechanical units like HCPs and main battle tanks had no way to advance other than to bulldoze a path through the obstructing pods. Therefore, they had to remain on standby at the entrance, their cannons aimed in this direction, ready to provide fire support at a moment’s notice.

With this in mind, the Puppeteer thought for a moment, then issued a mental command to a uniquely designed HCP.

“Sacrificer, disengage the mechanical detonator’s safety. Await my command.”

“As you command, Sir.”

Meanwhile, an ecstatic Satter Ethan had already led his men over to the only operational cryogenic hibernation pod.

After taking a few deep breaths, he took an instrument from his assistant and, just as he had done before, accessed the pod’s control interface.

“Okay… Internal status is normal. The life support system is also functioning!”

“Occupant’s condition… Healthy. Excellent!”

“Conditions for awakening met?”

Upon seeing the final prompt on the device, Satter Ethan’s excitement gave way to a moment of clarity. He realized he was on the verge of doing something monumental.

But this clarity was quickly consumed by the even greater flames of his fanaticism.

“Open it!”

With a hiss of depressurizing gas, the frost on the cryogenic hibernation pod’s surface quickly vanished. Once the unit had fully warmed up, the pod door slowly slid open.

A bed-like platform inside slowly rose, bringing a humanoid creature to a sitting position.

Meanwhile, Amber, who had reached this level through another passageway and entered the Cryogenic Hibernation Area from a different entrance, gasped in shock at the sight.

“Bro, you have to be the reincarnation of Zhou Zhuo.”

Chapter 316: Seriously, You Just Self-Destruct When You Can’t Win?

Salieh felt as if she had been having an incredibly long dream.

In the dream, the Conservatives and the Radicals had a complete falling out. After gaining the upper hand and carrying out a great purge, the latter led their entire civilization on a space-time expedition without a moment’s hesitation.

It was an expedition with no path of retreat. No one knew where it would ultimately lead their civilization.

And Salieh, who had always staunchly opposed the completely uncontrollable “space-time expedition” plan, had retreated with her comrades to this “Repository No. 322” when the great purge against them began.

As the Repository Steward, she and her companions resisted inside for a long time, aided by a small number of combat personnel and defensive installations. However, due to a severe shortage of fighters and technical equipment, the repository was eventually breached by the Radicals.

All of her comrades were executed without mercy. The charge laid against them was the laughable “obstruction of the entire civilization’s development.”

As for her, the one who served as the repository’s defense commander in the final moments, the Radicals did not execute her directly. Instead, they sealed her in a cryogenic hibernation pod and cast her into exile.

The moment the pod door closed, Salieh heard the last words the lead Radical elite soldier left for her:

“Traitor, take your pathetic sympathy and remain in this desperate universe forever.”

And now, the dream was finally over.

“Welcome back, respected Repository Steward Salieh. Duration of this cryogenic hibernation: Seven hundred thirty-four million, eight hundred twenty-five thousand, one hundred seventy-two days.”

“Wait, how many?”

Salieh froze for a moment as her brain instantly converted the long string of numbers into a more intuitive unit.

2,013,219.65. Over two million years???

“This is insane. Is this assistant AI dreaming, too?”

Then she suddenly realized she wasn’t dreaming. Everything that had happened in the “dream” was exactly what she had experienced before being forced into cryogenic hibernation.

Following this, another question occurred to the Repository Steward.

If the Radicals had locked her in a cryogenic hibernation pod and then taken the entire civilization on a “space-time expedition,” then who was it that had woken her up?

The Radicals would never have been kind enough to set a timer to end her cryogenic hibernation.

After “sleeping” for more than two million years, Salieh found that she was still a bit groggy. The unique brain structure of the Jeram people required her to spend some time waiting for the “partitions” within her brain to reactivate one by one.

The soft, leg-like tentacles on the back of her head, originally coiled together, slowly unfurled under the stimulation of the restoration fluid injected when the pod initiated the “wake-up procedure.” They simultaneously returned to their normal state of tenderness and fullness—these were part of a Jeram’s brain.

These “soft, leg-like tentacles” directly linked to the brain were, in fact, extra partitions of their minds. Only when all of them were fully reactivated could Salieh’s thinking, calculation, and psionic control abilities truly return to their peak state.

“Wake-up procedure complete. Receiving external command. Opening hibernation pod.”

The assistant AI’s voice echoed in Salieh’s mind again. For the Jeram people, whose psionic technology was extremely advanced, connecting with “all things” through psionics was a basic operation.

“External command?”

Salieh frowned and simultaneously threw up a psionic shield—during the hibernation pod’s “wake-up procedure,” there was a function akin to a “super fast charge” that could rapidly replenish the energy of a Jeram awakened from hibernation to cope with any potential emergencies.

And now, this function had proven to be genuinely useful for a rare occasion.

“Assistant, connect to the hibernation area’s defensive armaments.”

“Accessing psionic signal… Current available defensive armaments: 0.”

“Tsk.”

Salieh thought back to the repository defense battle she had experienced before her hibernation. By the time the repository fell, most of the defensive equipment had indeed been destroyed, and the energy conversion core had also been severely damaged.

If she had really been asleep for over two million years as the assistant AI had just said, then the rest of the equipment in this repository had probably been all but eroded by time.

As she was pondering this, the door of the hibernation pod slowly opened.

As the condensed white mist gradually dissipated, Salieh got a clear look at the circle of creatures standing guard around her hibernation pod.

Wearing ancient mechanical exoskeletons and holding oddly shaped weapons… Homo sapiens?

“These Homo sapiens, beaten back to the Stone Age, have evolved again?”

As Salieh quickly recalled the time when the Jeram people’s vast fleet had flattened the star systems controlled by the Homo sapiens one by one, stripping the civilization of all its technical data and forcing it back into the Stone Age, she wondered how to greet these “Homo sapiens.”

The language system of that era was certainly useless now, and Salieh, who had a sense of “mental purity,” was reluctant to use psionics for a “direct link” to communicate with these Homo sapiens.

However, she soon found she didn’t need to ponder the problem, because the people from the Quest for Truth Foundation were the first to break the silence.

“Control team, move in and restrain this life form. All other units, maintain alert. Open fire immediately at any sign of anomaly.”

The Puppeteer issued the command. This was standard operating procedure for the Quest for Truth Foundation when encountering unknown creatures in Forerunner ruins. When communication was impossible, “violent means” were obviously a more direct way to interact.

The instant he used psionics to control the surrounding armed units, Salieh detected it.

Before the Foundation soldiers armed with non-lethal weapons could close in, this “Forerunner” flew directly out of the hibernation pod.

“Fire! Fire!”

In the next second, a furious torrent of firepower from the Foundation’s side engulfed the area where Salieh was, destroying the hibernation pods and the maintenance area in its violent assault.

A series of explosions completely blocked everyone’s line of sight, but they did not cease fire, instead continuing to saturate the target area.

Watching this from a distance, Amber’s eyes went wide. He had never imagined that the Quest for Truth Foundation’s “archaeological excavation” work would be conducted in such a blunt manner.

The Foundation’s attack seemed ferocious, but the rule of “no harm from smoke” applied in every world.

A psionic blast, even more powerful than the one The Puppeteer had unleashed after sacrificing Foundation soldiers to charge himself, erupted from the heart of the explosion. It swept out in a radial pattern, devastating the Foundation’s armed units and creating a scene of utter chaos.

The Puppeteer knew then that the fight was over. Their psionic strength levels were not on the same tier at all. Even if he sacrificed all the surrounding Foundation soldiers, he could at best unleash a few more blasts.

Once his psionic reserves were depleted, there would be nothing to stop the creature before him, this suspected “Forerunner.”

In this situation, The Puppeteer thought of the “Foundation’s Code of Conduct,” which was carved into his mind like a spiritual brand.

“Everyone, stall this unknown creature! Sacrificer, prepare for mechanical detonation!”

When his order was given, Amber saw the doors to the hibernation area get forcibly blasted open, and an HCP with a somewhat familiar, even PTSD-inducing, design rushed in.

When this HCP, emblazoned with the Foundation’s logo, opened the tactical nuclear warhead launch canister on its back, Amber completely lost it.

“Seriously, can you guys not resort to nukes at the drop of a hat?!”

Although he didn’t know how the Quest for Truth Foundation had gotten its hands on this Federation-made tactical nuclear strike Wasteland Wolf, Amber clearly didn’t have time to dwell on that point.

While he was quite happy to watch the Quest for Truth Foundation fight the suspected Forerunner, it did not mean he was willing to get hit by a nuclear warhead along with them.

A small charged particle cannon mounted on the back of his Powered Armor rapidly assembled itself. As Amber “revealed himself from the shadows,” he took aim at the tactical nuke HCP.

The next second, a purple beam of charged particles struck the connection point between the tactical nuclear warhead launch canister and the HCP.

Chapter 317: Amber Unleashed

He fired?

Yes, he fired.

The powered armor’s combat assistance system had long been taken over by Lilith. Under her guidance, a light-speed weapon like the charged particle cannon couldn’t possibly miss.

So, ever since Amber acquired Lilith, his approach to combat had essentially been, “If there’s a targeting reticle, you pull the trigger.”

His reaction time, spatial awareness, and targeting abilities as a Psionic Agent were rarely even needed.

The Quest for Truth Foundation might have been able to get their hands on a tactical nuclear strike HCP, but there was no way they could have obtained the access key for full launch control. If they could, the Federation probably wouldn’t be called the Federation anymore.

For that very reason, their HCP used some kind of mechanical detonator.

Therefore, stopping the nuclear warhead from detonating was “simple”—he just needed to sever the connection between the tactical nuclear warhead’s launch canister and the unit itself. And that was precisely what Amber was doing now.

In the final seconds before breaking his stealth, he had found a perfect flanking position. The beam of purple charged particles from the cannon fired directly onto the most critical connection mechanism.

A continuous two-second firing completely severed that part, and the entire launch canister fell to the ground with a clang.

Seeing this, Amber breathed a silent sigh of relief. Now, if the Foundation wanted to detonate the nuke, they would have to send someone to rush the launch canister and use its built-in “one-touch” mechanical detonator.

But after he broke stealth, Salieh, The Puppeteer, and the Foundation soldiers had all noticed the presence of this third party.

Although Amber really wanted to say, “Just keep fighting, don’t mind me, and please don’t use the nuke~,” the Foundation clearly had other ideas.

The Puppeteer couldn’t figure out where this suddenly-appeared powered armor had come from.

Although he had indeed never seen a similar model of powered armor, its appearance clearly showed it was of human design, not in the style of Forerunner creations.

This meant that either someone had entered the ruins before them, or they had just followed their team inside.

Considering the optical invisibility the opponent had just displayed, and the aggressive precision used to target their “Sacrificer” and shoot off its nuclear launch canister, he was more inclined to believe the latter.

“Kill him!”

Facing this uninvited guest, The Puppeteer gave the order to attack without hesitation.

Inside Forerunner ruins, any living thing besides one’s own team is an enemy—this was written in the Quest for Truth Foundation’s Code of Conduct.

A fierce barrage of fire immediately swept toward Amber. At the same time, several figures who looked like armed technicians rushed toward the nuclear launch canister.

Under The Puppeteer’s mind control, they intended to continue with the detonation without a shred of hesitation.

Seeing this, Amber’s electromagnetic machine gun and the charged particle cannon on his shoulder fired, precisely turning those armed technicians into a pile of scorched, mangled flesh.

Simultaneously, the rocket pods on his right shoulder unleashed all the laser-guided rockets within, scattering them like a goddess scattering blossoms.

These plasma-warhead rockets, guided by multiple laser beams from the powered armor’s head-mounted designator, rained down on the Foundation’s squad.

The lone HCP that had managed to squeeze into the Cryogenic Hibernation Area immediately began firing its point-defense lasers, mounted on either side of its head monitor, creating a temporary anti-air screen for the squad.

Although it successfully detonated some of the rockets, others slipped past the point-defense interception and landed amongst the troops. The resulting high-temperature plasma fireballs instantly engulfed all units within the blast radius.

But the rocket explosions weren’t the end. Before the high-temperature plasma fireballs had even faded, more than a dozen smoke shells were fired out. The smoke, spreading rapidly from the exploding shells, shrouded a large area.

Seeing this, The Puppeteer raised a hand and swept the area with a psionic blast, its intensity lowered but its range increased.

When the smoke was blown away, the Foundation soldiers who had been enveloped in it had just managed to get a clear view of their surroundings when they saw a teal-gray powered armor charging right at them.

Clang!

The empty rocket pods were jettisoned, falling to the ground.

Click! Clack! Clack!

Amber detached and unfolded a three-section, two-handed greatsword. A pale blue plasma glow lit up along its edges.

This was the last thing those Foundation soldiers ever saw.

Amber’s powered armor displayed an agility that completely belied its size. Both his sprint and the speed of his sword swings surpassed the limits of what an ordinary soldier could track.

The surrounding soldiers only saw a series of blue flashes before their comrades, who had been closed in on by Amber, were reduced to severed limbs on the ground.

This “Experimental Combat Greatsword,” modeled after the HCP’s heavy slicer sword, used high-temperature plasma contained by a directional magnetic field as its cutting edge. It successfully demonstrated the exact effect its designers at the R&D center had hoped for.

Although the Foundation soldiers were all equipped with combat exoskeletons and fitted with external armor plates, under the greatsword’s rapid slashes, they might as well have been unarmored flesh.

Soon, The Puppeteer also guessed Amber’s objective: he intended to completely destroy the nuclear launch canister, making it impossible to detonate anytime soon.

At this thought, the Foundation’s Field Commander stopped playing “RTS.” He swung his hands, conjuring two bolts of psionic lightning, and charged toward Amber’s position.

Boom!

Two blurs of motion collided, followed immediately by a dazzling flurry of attacks.

Both of them had activated their psionic shields and were trading blows. The light from clashing psionic lightning and plasma blades flashed intermittently, while collisions of psionic blasts sent out one visible shockwave after another.

This was the strongest opponent Amber had faced in single combat since arriving in this world, and the only person so far who could trade blows with him for so long.

It wasn’t that fighting The Puppeteer was putting Amber under any pressure, but rather that he could finally go all out without any reservations, engaging in a truly satisfying psionic duel.

Although the surrounding Foundation soldiers wanted to support The Puppeteer, they could barely make out the two figures, let alone aim at a target.

Suppressive fire was a viable option, but that would mean catching The Puppeteer in the crossfire as well, wouldn’t it?

And so, a strange scene unfolded on the battlefield—Amber and The Puppeteer fought intensely, while the other Foundation members and Salieh were all “spectating.”

However, this scene didn’t last long. Fighting without holding back and with superior equipment, Amber gradually gained the upper hand.

Then, with a fluid combo, he showed The Puppeteer what it meant to be a “master of both gun and blade” in the age of powered armor.

A series of one-handed sword strikes forced The Puppeteer onto the defensive, followed immediately by a salvo from the electromagnetic machine gun and charged particle cannon. To top it off, a psionic blast hit him point-blank. The Foundation’s psionic user finally lost his ability to parry, forced to simply cross his arms in front of him and tank the hits with his shield.

By the time the attack was over, Amber was long gone from his previous position.

In those few short seconds, he had already charged to the tactical nuclear warhead’s launch canister. Or rather, throughout the fight, he had been deliberately steering the “battlefield” in that direction.

As The Puppeteer watched helplessly, Amber used his greatsword to effortlessly mangle the launch canister’s mechanical control system. He knew then that his plan to blow the place up with the nuke had failed.

“Satter, take your people and leave.”

Hearing this, Satter Ethan didn’t hesitate for a second, leading his subordinates in a dash for the main gate.

The remaining Foundation soldiers, under The Puppeteer’s control, charged Amber’s position in waves, one after another.

Meanwhile, a large hole was finally torn completely through the main gate of the Cryogenic Hibernation Area.

The HCP and main battle tank that had been stuck at the entrance now bulldozed their way in, crushing the hibernation pods on the floor.

These mechanical units attacked Amber with even fiercer firepower, and The Puppeteer took the opportunity to “float” to the gate, where he connected to the comms of the Foundation fleet outside.

“Prepare to receive personnel evacuating from the ruins. As soon as everyone is aboard, detach immediately.

Recall all patrol fleets. Prepare to concentrate fire on these ruins!”

As he spoke, Amber, who was being buried under a hail of fire, chose not to tank the damage. Instead, he charged in Salieh’s direction.

This Forerunner, who had slept for two million years, was still not fully awake. It wasn’t until this piece of backward powered armor rushed past her that she finally snapped out of it.

“Damn it! Is this guy trying to use me as a meat shield?!”

Just as the thought popped into her head, the Foundation’s attack blanketed that very area.

Chapter 1: Lilith is Home!

Lilith is home!

“My child, on the day you were born, the forests of Lordaeron whispered your name.”

Ponyo~

Actually, her given name is Lilith.

Chapter 318: Saint? Traitor?

At first, Salieh had intended to watch the conflict from the sidelines, waiting until these two groups of ‘Homo sapiens’ had finished fighting before making her move.

After all, she was likely stranded all alone in a world two million years in the future. It was always wise to be cautious and prevent any careless mistakes.

But who would have thought that one of the combatants, the one fighting alone, would suddenly charge in her direction at an unbelievable speed.

Under his guidance, the other side’s barrage of fire followed, blanketing her position.

Under these circumstances, Salieh had no choice but to raise a psionic shield in front of herself.

And then, the side effects of sleeping for two million years kicked in.

Although the cryogenic hibernation pod had begun to ‘recharge’ Salieh during the wake-up procedure, the Jeram had simply been asleep for too long. Her bodily functions had not yet fully recovered.

It was like enjoying a wonderful night’s sleep, only to be abruptly woken without warning and immediately forced to run a thousand-meter race with no time to adjust.

When the round of fire concluded, Salieh’s powerful psionic shield had blocked the vast majority of the attacks—including direct hits from a heavy particle cannon and an MBT’s heavy electromagnetic cannon.

But Salieh herself felt a wave of psionic turbulence within her. If she hadn’t reacted in time, dodging the remaining attacks and swiftly suppressing the Psionics running wild inside her, she might have exploded from the loss of control.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve fought like this… It seems my body hasn’t fully recovered yet.”

While calming her body, Salieh considered her options.

The Powered Armor that had drawn the fire here was now gone, most likely having entered stealth mode again. She, who had intended to be an observer, had now become the target.

At this thought, a wave of shame and anger at being played by a ‘primitive,’ compounded by the foul mood of a two-million-year rude awakening, rushed to Salieh’s head. Even the soft, leg-like tentacles on her head trembled with rage.

Although Salieh wasn’t particularly skilled in combat as a Repository Steward, her mind and her ability to adapt on the fly were not weak.

Soon, she perceived the connection between the Foundation soldiers and the Puppeteer. This method of large-scale mental control reminded her of related data she had seen in other Repositories.

“Familiar technology… especially the devices on these ‘puppets’’ heads. Could they have been obtained from another Repository?”

Salieh quickly considered this possibility. If that were the case, she had a way to achieve a one-hit victory.

Ahead, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s combat units were still advancing on her position. Having lost sight of Amber, all their firepower was now concentrating on Salieh.

While the Jeram people were more advanced than humans, their superiority was mostly in technology.

In terms of physical strength alone, although they were also stronger than humans, they weren’t overwhelmingly so. They could still die when faced with firepower exceeding a certain threshold.

So, Salieh knew she couldn’t just keep tanking the damage with her psionic shield, nor could her current body support using a massive amount of Psionics to destroy the enemies before her.

Fortunately, she had already found a solution.

“Assistant, aid me in analyzing the enemy’s psionic signature.”

“Yes, esteemed Repository Steward. Analysis in progress.”

Under the Assistant AI’s command, the numerous psionic detectors deployed throughout the Cryogenic Hibernation Area all focused on the battle zone.

Soon, the psionic signature the Puppeteer was using to control the Foundation’s armed units was analyzed by the psionic detectors and synchronously received by the soft, leg-like tentacles on Salieh’s head.

Yes, besides serving as extra brain partitions, these appendages could also receive and transmit Psionics. They were, in a sense, a type of ‘psionic antennae’.

“Just as I thought. They didn’t even modify the psionic signature, just using the one from the original experiment directly. It seems these Homo sapiens can only use this technology crudely; they haven’t fully absorbed it.”

A smile crossed Salieh’s face, a smile brimming with a sense of intellectual superiority.

“Primitives, allow me to teach you what true ‘psionic arts’ are!”

In the next instant, Salieh released a powerful psionic wave.

As the wave washed over the Foundation soldiers, it completely overrode the Psionics controlling them—which were like puppet strings—and forcefully seized control.

The Puppeteer, who had already retreated to the main gate, was shocked to find his ‘puppets’ going silent one by one after he blocked the psionic wave.

It was as if a giant pair of scissors in the void had snipped the strings attached to his marionettes.

In almost an instant, the Puppeteer, who had been playing a real-time strategy game, found himself a lone commander without an army.

Without a shred of hesitation, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s psionic user turned and fled.

After a psionic user gains the ability of temporary flight, their powerful mobility becomes a great asset. He put this to full use in that moment, vanishing from the Cryogenic Hibernation Area in the blink of an eye.

However, Salieh, who now held the advantage, did not pursue him. She herself was now caught in a dilemma.

When she took over the Quest for Truth Foundation’s puppets, the psionic link—being a superior-subordinate one—allowed her to directly read their memories.

Deceived small defense contractors, coerced military veterans, kidnapped ordinary people… followed by inhumane brainwashing and physical modification. This was the origin of the Foundation’s puppets.

At that moment, Salieh hesitated on whether she should command these ‘puppets’ to fight.

She felt their suffering so intensely it was as if it were her own, causing her to lose control for a moment and fall from mid-air.

“Perhaps… I should put them out of their misery?”

As the thought surfaced, Salieh couldn’t help but recall the words her own people had spoken to her just before the hibernation pod was sealed:

“Traitor, take your pathetic compassion and stay in this desolate universe forever.”

Yes, from the Jeram people’s perspective, opposing the ‘space-time expedition’ was indeed an act of treason. And the fate brought upon her by her ‘compassion’ was truly pathetic.

“Salieh, oh, Salieh. You were abandoned by your own people and left in this world for two million years because of that ‘bleeding heart’ of yours. Haven’t you learned your lesson yet?”

A voice filled with bitterness and regret echoed in her mind.

But another voice rang out at the same time:

“Well, you can’t go back anyway. You’re already here. Why not just follow your heart?~”

A slight smile touched Salieh’s lips, and the soft, leg-like tentacles on her head relaxed and unfurled.

The next second, the I-shaped visors on the helmets of the stationary Foundation soldiers went dark, one after another. They toppled to the ground like a row of dominoes.

The MBTs and HCPs ceased all activity. Inside, their vehicle crews and pilots slumped into their seats, expressions of release on their faces.

“Good night, Homo sapiens.”

Chapter 319: Now, It’s My Turn!

Hidden in the shadows, Amber stared in surprise at the fallen Foundation soldiers, all of them devoid of life, and the deactivated mechanical units.

After Salieh’s psionic wave had swept through the area, and seeing the Puppeteer’s reaction, Amber had a rough idea of what had just happened.

During the previous battle, he had already noticed something abnormal about these Foundation soldiers. Connecting that with some descriptions from the game, he guessed they were being controlled by the Puppeteer.

And now, this ‘old antique,’ a suspected Forerunner, had somehow taken over control of these Foundation soldiers.

Although he didn’t know why she chose to grant them release instead of continuing to control these ‘puppets,’ at least these somewhat troublesome enemies would no longer be a problem.

But Amber also knew that he was far from out of danger.

Never mind the ‘old antique’ right in front of him; even the members of the Quest for Truth Foundation who had fled would certainly not let him off easy.

Given that they had been willing to make the suicidal move of detonating a nuclear warhead inside the ruins, it was clear that when a situation spiraled out of control, the Foundation’s only solution was to annihilate the threat at any cost.

And the Quest for Truth Foundation’s forces obviously weren’t limited to the handful of people who had entered the ruins; a sizable fleet was waiting outside.

While this fleet was on par with those of other private factions, with the largest ships being light cruisers, if a crazed organization like the Foundation got serious, they could concentrate fire on the ruins. They might not be able to destroy it completely, but they could certainly pepper it with enough heavy particle cannons to cause widespread structural damage and internal depressurization.

Heavy particle cannons, though considered a form of ‘primitive human weaponry,’ were no joke.

Forerunner technology might be far superior to humanity’s, but it was still a product of the material world, bound by the laws of physics—not some magical artifact.

Once its kinetic shields failed, a torrent of heavy metal particles could just as easily pierce its external armor and internal metal structure.

So, as soon as the Puppeteer fled with the non-combatant Foundation members, Amber immediately contacted the Polarized Light, which was lying in wait on the periphery.

The crew aboard the Polarized Light was stunned when Amber briefly described the situation and asked them to buy him some time.

Captain Tom even raised a hand to scratch his head.

“You want me to fight an entire Foundation fleet? Huh? For real?”

“He didn’t say to fight them directly. A single destroyer taking on an entire fleet is completely unrealistic. Amber’s point is he needs us to delay them, to stop them from attacking the ruins.”

Isabelle shrugged, shattering Tom’s fantasy.

“Remember the ‘secret weapon’ we brought before we set off? It looks like it’s time to put it to use.”

As the mission commander, Tom quickly understood Isabelle’s meaning. He clapped his hands, drawing the attention of everyone on the bridge and in the CIC.

“All hands, we’re executing backup plan C. Tech team, connect the ‘Gremlin’ to the ship’s main system. Everyone else, to your stations. We might be in for a thrilling ride.”

Swiftly, all departments aboard the Polarized Light sprang into action. Several technical officers wheeled a device resembling a large server onto the bridge and connected it to the ship’s main system.

This machine stored a virus developed by Lilith at Amber’s request. It was based on the concept of the large-scale, indiscriminate electronic warfare virus released by the Star Dragon Empire Navy during the final phase of the Battle of the Millen Star System.

With the help of the clone on board, the Polarized Light’s shipboard control AI quickly broadcasted a distress signal on the international rescue channel.

The Quest for Truth Foundation, for its part, clearly lacked the military discipline of a regular navy. At least half of the fleet’s communications officers chose to accept the distress call.

By the time they realized the signal contained no useful information and were still wondering what was going on, Lilith’s virus had already infiltrated their systems silently and begun to spread through the Foundation fleet’s internal communication channels.

After her experience with deploying large-scale electronic warfare viruses several times, Lilith had mastered many methods for concealing them.

Hiding a virus in a distress signal like this was one of the most basic tricks in the book.

But against the Quest for Truth Foundation, it was more than enough.

Amber’s communication with the Polarized Light was brief. He quickly stated the situation and his request, then immediately ended the call.

He had discovered that Lilith’s ‘quantum entanglement communication’ was actually drawing the ‘old antique’s’ attention.

Seeing that his position had been pinpointed, Amber stopped hiding. It was a waste of psionic energy anyway.

He deactivated his camouflage and unleashed a full salvo from all the ranged weapons on his Powered Armor.

The charged particle cannon on his shoulder, the electromagnetic machine gun in his hands, and the automatic grenade launcher mounted under his arm all spat fire at Salieh.

Unexpectedly, this was just a probing attack, yet it was enough to beat the old antique, whose alignment was still unknown, into a defensive crouch.

“Is she faking?”

Amber paused for a second, then, ignoring his ammunition count, intensified his assault, weaving psionic attacks in among the physical ones.

What he didn’t know was that Salieh wasn’t faking at all.

Though she appeared fine after using a psionic wave to override the Puppeteer’s psionic signature and make her ‘choice,’ the ‘Forerunner’ had actually suffered a significant backlash.

The side effects of sleeping for two million years were far worse than she had imagined.

Thus, when faced with Amber’s attack, she found herself temporarily reduced to a state where she could only passively endure the blows.

“No… I can’t let this go on!”

Salieh forced herself to focus, the soft, leg-like tentacles on her head contracting and extending rhythmically.

“Assistant, is the Repository’s ‘Illusion’ system still functional?”

“Sir, if I divert power from the cryogenic hibernation pods, I can activate the ‘Illusion’ system for you, but its effective range will be limited to the current area.”

“Understood. Proceed as planned.”

Salieh took a deep breath. Watching Amber charge toward her, she fought through the piercing pain in her mind and unleashed a ‘psionic vibration’ at him.

Although the charging Amber had already sensed the gathering of psionic energy, Salieh’s casting speed was simply too fast. Before he could even see her make a move, he felt as if he had been slammed by a dump truck without his armor.

Boom!

Amber was sent flying. As he propped himself up from the ground, he saw the ‘old antique’ he had just been completely suppressing now floating in the air. All traces of her previous weakness were gone, as if someone had cast both ‘Rejuvenation’ and ‘Activation’ on her simultaneously.

Then, before Amber could launch another attack, a massive bolt of psionic lightning shot directly toward him.

“Holy shit?! What the hell?”

Amber dodged the bolt by a hair’s breadth, but the external armor on the right side of his Powered Armor was still scorched black.

“This doesn’t make any sense. A second ago, she looked like she was about to pass out. How did she instantly recover to full strength?”

Amber immediately realized something he hadn’t noticed must have happened. Although this world had many incredible and inexplicable phenomena, most things still followed basic rules and laws.

“This whole situation feels… familiar.”

While constantly dodging under the opponent’s crazed assault, Amber was also analyzing the situation.

When a familiar scene from his memory surfaced, Amber finally understood what was going on.

It was another battle in a Forerunner ruin. He and his guild’s main regiment were facing a boss that looked like a mechanically augmented octopus. No matter how many times they pushed the boss into the kill range, it would always recover to full health after a Mind Blast.

The reason for this phenomenon was simple: that cosmic creature, the ‘mechanically augmented octopus,’ had the ability to create illusions with psionics.

With this in mind, Amber tried to focus the psionic energy in his body, attempting to form a longsword made of psionic lightning in his hand.

The next second, the sword took shape, and a relieved smile spread across Amber’s face.

“Hahahahahaha… I knew it.”

Then, facing a bolt of psionic lightning aimed straight for his head, he didn’t dodge or evade. He simply raised his hand and fired back an even larger bolt of psionic lightning in ‘retaliation.’

Salieh, suspended in midair, was caught completely off guard. The psionic lightning coursed through her, leaving her entire body numb as she tumbled from the sky.

After finally stabilizing herself, she looked up at Amber, who was now also ascending into the air, her eyes wide with disbelief.

But she quickly composed herself. She knew that as long as she didn’t voluntarily shut down the ‘Illusion’ system, this Homo sapiens with his low-level psionic intensity would be trapped indefinitely.

“You think that even though I’ve seen through your trick, I can never escape as long as you don’t dispel the illusion?”

Amber’s voice, transmitted via psionics, echoed in Salieh’s ears. He was speaking the Geram language.

Before the astonished Salieh could respond, Amber continued with a sigh.

“Honestly, I haven’t felt this full of power in a long time. Thank you, stranger… Now, it’s my turn.”

It’s Mother’s Day, I’m Going to See My Mom (Might Take the Day Off)

Today is Mother’s Day. I haven’t been home in a long time, so my wife and I are going back to spend it with my mom.

I’m not sure what time I’ll be back tonight, so I might not be able to update on time. Please forgive me.

I know my updates are a bit slow. If it’s too difficult for everyone to keep up, you can always let the chapters pile up for a while~

Don’t worry, I won’t let it die~

I did a quick count: in almost six months of updates, I’ve only taken five days off—one for celebrating the Lunar New Year and one for Labor Day.

So please don’t worry that I’ll abandon the novel. Unless something truly prevents me from writing, I will definitely keep updating~

I love all you readers who have supported me all this time. Mua~

If it weren’t for all of you interacting with me in the comments every day, I wouldn’t have been able to keep going until today.

P.S.

If anyone wants to keep tabs on me, you can join the Readers’ group. There are over sixty people just hanging out and chatting in there right now~

Wife’s not home

Lonely all by myself

2☆0☆0☆8☆4☆2☆1☆3☆9

ATLAS Mining

Chapter 320: Talk About Turning the Tables

In the shadows of the Cryogenic Hibernation Area ruins, the silhouette of the Raging Crocodile A3 ver.Amber Powered Armor flickered in and out of view under the faint emergency lights.

Surrounding the Powered Armor lay a multitude of armored lifeforms—humanoid, bestial, and alien, strewn about like the contents of a great stew dumped onto the floor.

These were races encountered by the Forerunner civilization over the long course of history. After their combat traits were identified, their key genes were extracted and they were mass-produced in bio-weapon factories as basic cannon fodder.

Due to the sheer variety of these different species, the Forerunners’ basic cannon fodder could be adapted to nearly any combat environment or mission.

And now, these bio-weapons serving as the Repository’s guards were specialized types, focused on indoor, close-quarters combat.

Within this Illusion, created by Salieh based on the environment of the Cryogenic Hibernation Area, these bio-weapons swarmed endlessly from every corridor, a tide threatening to drown Amber.

But Amber was not the least bit panicked by the situation.

Upon confirming that he had been ensnared by the Forerunner ruin’s Illusion system, he was, in fact, overjoyed.

This was because the system was never intended as a defensive measure, but rather as a system for combat training and for reviving Forerunners to undergo “rehabilitation.”

Once, Amber and his guild’s main regiment had encountered an almost identical situation in a Forerunner ruin dungeon. A boss, merely from the first half of the raid, became health-locked after entering its final “Illusion” phase and was impossible to kill.

At the time, everyone felt the difficulty was abnormal and planned to log off and flood the official forums with complaints, believing the developers were intentionally halting their progress.

But then, a player on their team suddenly discovered he could use higher-level Psionic techniques, far beyond his own level, and his Psionic reserves had also increased dramatically as if due to a bug.

This bewildered player initially thought he had stumbled upon some sort of “a believing heart is its own magic” fortuitous encounter.

But after he shared this with Amber and the others, during their fortieth corpse run, they finally discovered the key to defeating this boss.

Upon entering the Illusion, one could “set” their own abilities and level.

And so, when the main regiment, having grasped this point, entered the fight with their Psionic strength maxed out, each one like a god descending to the mortal realm, the boss that had wiped them forty times was finally killed in an instant, before it even had a chance to become health-locked.

The current situation was exactly the same as in that raid.

Although another huge wave of bio-weapons appeared before him, Amber remained as composed as an almighty being who had transcended time and space, calmly awaiting the storm.

Ripples of electromagnetic energy pulsed around the Powered Armor as a powerful and heavy Psionic force began to converge in his right hand.

“Stance, Exalted Blade!”

The voice command was concise and cold—a habit Amber had developed in Starry Sky Online. Though unnecessary now, he still said it instinctively.

As his voice fell, a dazzling burst of blue Psionic energy erupted.

A sword forged from pure energy materialized in the Powered Armor’s right hand. Its edge was incomparably sharp, glowing with a light that seemed to pierce the very fabric of reality, like a remnant of the universe’s primordial fire.

Amber adopted a charging posture. The Powered Armor, linked to his neural interface, instantly responded. The five-ton suit exploded with immense power, transforming into a blurred silhouette as it charged toward the enemies ahead.

Wherever the psionically-formed longsword pointed, space itself seemed to be pulled by its sharpness, twisting slightly.

Each of Amber’s slashes was no longer a simple physical impact but a violent interaction between energy and matter. The sword left slender quantum fissures in its wake, and any unfortunate enemy it touched, whether mechanical or organic, disintegrated under the irresistible Psionic torrent.

“Serene Slash!”

“Righteous Clash!”

“Virtuous Strike!”

“Severing Judgment!”

Amber skillfully executed the combo from the Exalted Blade stance.

As his attack movements became more fluid, these moves, which he could perform with ease in his previous life, were recreated in this world in an unexpected way.

Dazzling blades of energy crashed against the incoming tide of bio-weapons like a reef shattering waves, dicing them into a heap of fragments.

“How is this possible… Am I still dreaming?”

Hiding in the rear, Salieh watched the scene in astonishment. In fact, the expression of “surprise” had not left her face since the Illusion began.

She never imagined that after entering the Illusion system, this Homo sapiens would transform completely. His Psionic strength had climbed steadily to level nine, the same as an elite Jeram warrior.

And now, he was even using the “Exalted Blade,” a technique reserved for those known as the “First in Class.”

Watching the bio-weapons being relentlessly harvested by the blades of energy, Salieh realized that she was the one who had been forced onto the back foot.

She had to maintain the Illusion to prevent the Homo sapiens before her from escaping; otherwise, her much weaker self in reality would be easily captured.

“Assistant, increase the simulation intensity. I’m granting you maximum computing power access.”

“Understood. Increasing the generation speed and quantity of combat units. Please stand by.”

Soon, even more bio-weapons appeared, many of which began to launch ranged attacks.

The dense swarm of bio-weapons formed a literal torrent, attempting to physically engulf Amber.

“Ho? Resorting to a zerg rush, are we?”

Beneath the helmet of his Powered Armor, Amber smiled. He gave his sword a few light flourishes. Such exhilarating combat brought him a long-lost joy, the satisfying thrill of mowing down mobs.

“Stance, Royal Rhythm!”

The single-handed Psionic sword shattered into countless pale-blue energy particles. After a brief pause, they rapidly coalesced into a massive, two-handed greatsword designed to break enemy formations.

Amber held the greatsword with both hands, positioning its blade beside his cheek in an opening stance.

“Sweeping swings and arcing slashes.” These were the words players saw in the stance description after mastering “Royal Rhythm.”

And just as the description promised, among the high-level Psionic melee stances, “Royal Rhythm” was one of the most suitable for swimming through a sea of mobs.

“Huh?”

Seeing Amber employ a stance from the Old Empire’s Royal Guard, Salieh completely lost her composure.

“Just who is the Jeram here, him or me?”

The soft, leg-like tentacles behind the Repository Steward’s head were twisted so tightly they almost formed a knot. The world after two million years was certainly full of “surprises.”

“Assistant, assess the current situation. Should I change strategies, focus the computing power on myself, raise my preset Psionic level, and suppress the target directly?”

“Honored Repository Steward, calculations indicate this strategy would significantly lower our chances of victory. The target is demonstrating powerful Psionic combat techniques. A direct confrontation would be extremely risky.”

“Tsk. Are you saying my combat skills are inferior to this Homo sapiens’?”

Salieh raised an eyebrow, clearly displeased with the Assistant AI’s suggestion.

“Yes.”

“…”

The Repository Steward was left speechless. She knew the Assistant was right, and she knew she was not a dedicated combatant.

But watching Amber execute a lightning-fast, three-part spinning slash amidst the endless horde, sending the dismembered limbs of bio-weapons flying everywhere, Salieh had no intention of letting the stalemate continue.

While this might hold the Homo sapiens for now, she, the “instructor” who initiated the Illusion, was also trapped. Who knew why the designers of the Illusion system had set a rule that required both an “instructor” and a “student” to be present to activate it.

But Salieh, who had already been in forced hibernation for two million years, felt she had spent enough time here. She did not want to be trapped in this tomb-like Repository any longer.

“Assistant, I’ve decided—”

Salieh had just begun to speak, ready to execute her plan, when she noticed a new development in the chaotic battle ahead.

“No way, he knows more?”

Chapter 321: I’m Tainted?

Salieh was surprised because Amber, at the eye of the storm in the chaotic battle before her, had changed yet again.

After a continuous ‘whirlwind’ attack to push forward, cleaving through the surrounding biological weapons and clearing out a large area, Amber felt he’d had enough fun. So, he decided to unleash a big one to wipe out these minions in one fell swoop.

And now, the ‘little additions’ that Eugene and Orns had installed in his custom powered armor came into play.

“Command: Burst Mode.”

As Amber’s thought was transmitted to the processing core via the neural interface, numerous mechanisms on the exterior of the blue-gray powered armor immediately unfolded with a series of clicks and clacks.

The mechanisms opened to reveal crystals that had been hidden beneath the outer plating, now emitting a faint blue glow.

As military-grade ‘Psionic Amplification Crystals’ imported from the Thousand Stars Empire through Allenita’s channels, they began to exert their extremely powerful psionic amplification effect upon Activation.

Since the ‘Illusion’ system had scanned Amber along with all his equipment based on its standard settings, it had also replicated all the functions of his gear.

This meant that Amber, who had already significantly boosted his own psionic level, could now use the powered armor’s ‘Burst Mode’ for yet another enhancement.

The effect of psionic amplification, to put it simply, was to enhance the user’s psionics by a certain percentage.

You can likely guess what happened next.

After Amber had set his psionic level to 10 within the ‘Illusion’ system, his already exponentially growing psionic power, now bolstered by the amplification crystals, nearly reached the absolute limit of what the ‘Illusion’ system could simulate.

“Warning, abnormal data spike detected. System at risk of crashing!”

The Assistant AI immediately issued a warning, and Salieh finally snapped back to her senses.

“Can you limit the target’s set level? Or just revoke their setting permissions entirely?”

“Attempting… Unable to execute. Recommendation: Shut down the Illusion system immediately to prevent main program crash.”

“If I could shut it down, I would have already! What’s wrong with you, Assistant AI?! So useless!”

Salieh was rendered speechless by the Assistant AI’s suggestion, but for a moment, she truly couldn’t think of a solution.

Shut down the ‘Illusion’ system, and her weakened self in reality would be captured by the opponent. A loss!

Keep the ‘Illusion’ system running, and the abnormal data surge caused by the opponent would crash the system. A loss!

But soon, Salieh no longer needed to struggle with this dilemma, because Amber had already made the choice for her.

The immense psionic energy finally converged in Amber’s hands, and a manifested psionic storm began to rapidly take shape.

Just as another wave of biological combat weapons charged forward, Amber slammed his right hand, the one ‘controlling the storm,’ into the ground.

The psionic storm erupted in an instant, rapidly expanding as it spun, eventually engulfing all the surrounding biological combat weapons.

As the rampaging psionic storm expanded to its maximum size, a spectacular scene unfolded. One biological weapon after another fell in a radial pattern with Amber as the epicenter.

Their exteriors appeared largely unharmed, but in reality, their internal mechanical or biological structures had been utterly obliterated.

In that instant, the strain on the ‘Illusion’ system dropped drastically, as the massive cluster of biological combat weapons it had just been maintaining had all been reduced to empty husks by the single psionic storm.

Salieh watched this scene, dumbfounded, feeling as if she had lost the ability to think. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head trembled uncontrollably with fear.

But this was not the end. As the powered armor, now wreathed in psionic lightning, charged toward Salieh at an unbelievable speed, Amber delivered the final ‘finishing blow.’

“Stance: Formless Judgment!”

The amplified psionics coalesced into a uniquely shaped blade, which Amber swung as he took his final step.

As the dazzling psionic blade swept across her neck, Salieh’s final thought flashed through her mind.

“No way, he even knows the stances of a ‘Sword Attendant’? Is there anything this Homo sapiens can’t do?”

—

The Illusion shattered like a broken mirror.

The reason for the system crash was simple: Salieh, the ‘instructor,’ had been one-shot by an excessive amount of damage, causing a logical error in the ‘Illusion’ system that led to an immediate shutdown.

This was the same principle Amber had used with his guildmates back in the day to defeat that ‘Illusion’ boss.

Honestly, he never would have imagined that this seemingly useless piece of experience would come in handy here.

When Amber left the Illusion and his vision returned, Lilith’s anxious voice rang in his ears.

“Master, say something!”

“I’m here, I’m here. I just got pulled into an illusion.”

While replying to Lilith, Amber realized that the ‘Illusion’ system hadn’t replicated Lilith. He wondered if it was because the strong AI hadn’t been scanned.

Moreover, while inside the ‘Illusion,’ he had been completely unaware of this, not even feeling that anything was amiss, as if he had selectively forgotten about his powerful ally.

“Master!” Lilith’s voice carried a hint of vexation.

“Could you please not ‘go offline’ all the time? It happened on Loubion V, too, but that was only for a few seconds. This time, you were gone for a full half-hour!”

“Ah, it was beyond my control. Nothing I could do~” Although that’s what Amber said, he was actually in a pretty good mood.

After all, coming to this world was like starting over with a new character—and a ‘hardcore mode’ one that couldn’t respawn, at that.

Because of that, Amber had always felt a certain gap between his past and present abilities when it came to psionic combat.

But just now, in the ‘Illusion,’ he had returned to his peak without any restraints and had an absolute blast.

He stretched his body, which had grown a bit stiff from standing in the powered armor for so long. Then, he drew his two-handed greatsword again, took a ‘great leap’ across a vast distance, and landed with a loud ‘THUD!’ in front of Salieh in a superhero landing pose.

At the same time, the plasma edge at the tip of his greatsword was pressed against the neck of the Jeram person, who was limp on the ground, making her feel a slight burning sensation.

At that moment, a psionic presence invaded Salieh’s consciousness with an irresistible and extremely forceful presence, and a string of standard Geram language resounded in her mind, carried by that psionic link.

“I apologize for communicating this way, but it seems our human vocal organs are incapable of producing your language. Can we talk properly now?”

Salieh’s eyes widened, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head instantly curled up.

With her ‘mental purity,’ she had never imagined that a Homo sapiens from a civilization several levels below her own would invade her consciousness with psionics.

“I’m tainted?!”

“Huh?”

Chapter 322: Are You a Bit of a Misfit?

Amber never would have imagined that the alien before him, with her delicate and handsome features, would react in such a way.

For a moment, he felt as if he had become some sort of beastman or goblin, having done something unspeakable to this ‘noble’ alien.

“Tainted… Tainted… Tainted…”

Salieh was still muttering with a vacant look in her eyes, as if she had been completely broken. The mental intrusion had clearly dealt her a severe blow.

But Amber wasn’t about to coddle her. Although he was a man with a soft spot for women, he dared not entertain such thoughts when facing this ‘xeno’ who had just tried to kill him.

The powered armor’s heavy gauntlet clamped around Salieh’s neck like an iron pincer, lifting her from the ground and forcefully seating her on a nearby, relatively intact cryogenic hibernation pod.

“From now on, I’ll speak, and you’ll answer. Understood?”

“Tainted… Tainted… Tainted…”

“Tsk.”

Watching the alien’s reaction, Amber gradually pieced together the reason. This ‘mental purity’ wasn’t unique to the Jeram people; similar cases existed among human and elf psionic users.

Salieh’s current state was identical to that of a villainous elf NPC Amber had encountered in the game, one who was extremely averse to communication and dialogue through Psionics.

In a later story quest, the player had also used a direct psionic intrusion, causing the villain to break down completely, even losing control of her bladder on the spot…

Now that he had a rough idea of her condition, Amber’s solution was simple—he would use a stronger dose.

Simple, brutal, fast, and effective.

Amber immediately intensified his psionic intrusion, going so far as to activate his powered armor’s ‘Burst Mode’ in the real world.

As the Psionic Amplification Crystals all over the powered armor expanded and emitted a rich blue glow, Amber’s psionic intensity began to climb.

Immediately after, a much stronger psionic wave brutally invaded Salieh’s mind. Her entire body, along with the soft, leg-like tentacles at the back of her head, went rigid.

She had never imagined that such a mental assault, akin to brainwashing, would ever happen to her.

The Jeram people’s mastery of Psionics surpassed even that of the Thousand Stars Empire’s elves. Furthermore, their innate physiology gave them a higher affinity for Psionics than other races.

In terms of psionic strength level, Salieh was actually at an eighth-level standard.

Although sleeping for over two million years had caused her psionic intensity to regress significantly, she was still at a sixth or seventh level.

In theory, the probability of a fifth-level Amber successfully performing a psionic intrusion on her was virtually nonexistent.

However, due to the psionic backlash, this Jeram was in the weakest state of her adult life. The psionic protection over her consciousness was practically gone, leaving her wide open.

This was the opportunity Amber had seized.

Soon, Salieh, feeling as if her entire brain had been thoroughly scanned inside and out by this Homo sapiens’ Psionics, finally regained some awareness.

Although the thought of what was happening made her feel an acute sense of distress, she was no longer in that ‘broken’ state from before.

“Can we have a proper conversation now?”

“Y-You… speak…”

When Amber’s voice sounded again, the Jeram woman unconsciously used a respectful tone.

Seeing this, Amber, who knew he had completed the initial ‘suppression,’ finally let out a small sigh of relief. He maintained his composure, however, and didn’t let it show.

“Who are you? What is your relationship with these ruins?”

“So you call this place ‘ruins’,” Salieh said, mustering the courage to look up at the powered armor before her.

“I am Salieh. I am the Repository Steward of this Repository.”

“Repository? You mean a facility for storing technology?”

“Yes. This is Repository 322, a place primarily for the research, development, and storage of civilian technology. It is also a residential facility.”

When Salieh mentioned ‘civilian technology’, Amber wasn’t surprised.

Based on the ‘Gravity Control Technology’ and ‘Long-Range Directed Magnetic Field Control Technology’ that had dropped from these ruins in his previous life, they would indeed be considered civilian-grade technologies to the Forerunners.

“It seems you really are a Forerunner.” There was a hint of wonder in Amber’s tone. He never thought that he would actually meet a living survivor of a civilization that was considered an ‘unsolved mystery’ in the modern world.

“Forerunner? What is that?” Salieh asked with some curiosity upon hearing the term.

“It’s what we humans call your civilization.”

“Why use a name like ‘Forerunner’ that sounds so grand?”

“Because, in our eyes, your civilization once possessed extremely high technology but seemed to vanish overnight, leaving behind only a large number of ‘ruins’—just like this place.”

Amber stomped his foot on the ground and continued, “Discoveries from these ‘ruins’ have advanced our human civilization, allowing us to leave our home planet and take root across the universe. To many, your civilization is like a ‘Forerunner’ guiding the way forward. So the name spread and eventually became the specific term for your civilization.”

After hearing Amber’s words, Salieh fell silent. A moment later, she laughed self-deprecatingly.

“‘Forerunners.’ What an ironic name. Our civilization once mercilessly destroyed your ‘Homo sapiens’ highly advanced civilization, beating you all the way back to the Stone Age and nearly driving you to extinction. Yet now, you call us by such a name, as if you’re celebrating us.”

“Huh?”

Salieh’s words shocked Amber. The story she told was something that was never mentioned in the game’s plot.

If what she said was true, humanity once possessed a highly advanced civilization, but for some reason, they attracted the attention of the ‘Forerunner civilization,’ a veritable plague god, and were nearly wiped out…

Wait, are you sure this plot won’t get sued for plagiarism and copyright infringement?

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind, but he immediately refocused on the matter at hand.

“So what you’re saying is, your civilization and humanity are actually enemies?”

“Not… not just humanity. All highly advanced civilizations are our race’s enemies.”

As soon as she said this, Amber felt as if he was in the wrong story. They shouldn’t be called ‘Forerunners’ at all; ‘Reapers’ would be more fitting.

The information Salieh provided was quite a shock to Amber.

When he played Starry Sky Online in his previous life, he wasn’t a dedicated ‘plot enthusiast’ or ‘lore enthusiast’, but he enjoyed discussing the plot on the forums with other players.

And now, he discovered that most players’ theories about the Forerunner civilization were wrong.

Amber wanted to continue chatting with Salieh, but he knew now wasn’t the right time. A Quest for Truth Foundation fleet was outside this ‘Repository,’ eyeing it menacingly.

Although the Polarized Light carried a secret weapon, it couldn’t hold out for too long.

Thinking of this, he found it somewhat amusing. If the Quest for Truth Foundation knew that the ‘Forerunners’ they were so desperately searching for were like this, and that there was a living ‘Forerunner’ in the very ‘ruins’ they now wanted to destroy, he wondered what they would think.

Shaking his head to clear it of these irrelevant thoughts, Amber looked at Salieh again and asked the question that concerned him most at the moment:

“So, Ms. Salieh… are you a bit of a misfit?”

“Huh?”

“Otherwise, why would you have been left here all alone?”

Chapter 323: A Buried Past from Two Million Years Ago

Upon hearing Amber’s question, Salieh, who was still under his ‘suppression’, couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“You certainly know what questions to ask.”

“No, I just find it very strange.” Amber shook his head.

“Your civilization… I’m sorry, what should I call you?”

“Jeram. We call ourselves the Jeram people.”

“Alright. You Jeram people defeated us humans several million years ago, then disappeared for some unknown reason. But why were you, and only you, left behind?

We humans have actually explored quite a few of your civilization’s ruins, but we’ve never found any other survivors. That makes your sudden appearance extremely strange.”

“It’s simple.” Salieh sighed, as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

She raised her head, looked earnestly at Amber’s helmet, and began to speak.

“Because to my people, the Jeram, I am a traitor, a Saint, a sinner who opposed the ‘space-time expedition’. So my people left me in this universe. I suppose you could call it a form of eternal exile.”

Behind the faceplate of his Powered Armor, Amber’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected this Jeram to drop another bombshell of new information in just a single sentence.

“Traitor? Saint? And what is this ‘space-time expedition’? Explain everything.”

Hearing Amber’s questions, Salieh had no intention of hiding anything. She had already been abandoned by her people, left all alone. Besides, wasn’t she a ‘traitor’?

Since she had already ‘betrayed’ her own race, why not see it through to the end?

“As I just said, you ‘Homo sapiens’ once possessed a highly advanced civilization, but after we Jeram people discovered you, we attacked.

All of your colonies were destroyed and subjected to genocide. Your last remaining planet was bombed back to its most primitive state during the fighting, and all of your technical data was destroyed by us.

Originally, your ancestors—this last batch of ‘Homo sapiens’—were also supposed to be completely ‘purged’ by us Jeram. But at the time, I and a portion of the Jeram people were strongly opposed to such actions. We believed that such genocide was wrong, that it could upset the balance of the entire universe…

Those of us who felt this way were called the Conservatives, and we soon came into conflict with the Radicals.”

Salieh spoke with a touch of melancholy, glancing around.

“This Repository was the last fortress of us Conservatives. But as you can see, it ultimately fell. The last of the Conservatives were publicly executed.

And I, as the highest-ranking survivor among the Conservatives, was ‘exiled’ to this universe as an eternal punishment.

However, even though we failed, this ‘civil war’ still disrupted the timetable for the ‘space-time expedition’. So the Radicals, who had seized power, had to abandon their plan to completely annihilate you ‘Homo sapiens’ in order to continue the ‘expedition’.”

Salieh’s words contained an enormous amount of information, but the direct psionic communication allowed Amber to clearly understand everything she said.

“Why did you Jeram people undertake this ‘space-time expedition’? What exactly is it?”

Amber voiced the part of Salieh’s story that intrigued him the most.

“Why undertake the ‘space-time expedition’? Heh…”

A smile full of mixed feelings crossed Salieh’s face. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head curled and straightened repeatedly, betraying her complex emotions.

“If we didn’t undertake the ‘space-time expedition’, we Jeram people would face the threat of extinction. For certain reasons, our entire race was forced onto this path, a path that I believe has no end.”

Hearing Salieh’s answer, Amber understood why this Jeram had been ‘exiled’. She really was something else.

To have a crisis of conscience in the face of racial survival… To the Jeram people, that truly made her a traitor, a disgrace to her race.

But from the perspective of humans, or any other civilization for that matter, the existence of these ‘Saints’ was actually a good thing.

Their existence created a schism within Jeram civilization. If, as Salieh described, the Jeram had split into two factions, then no matter how small the ‘Conservatives’ were, it meant this ‘bleeding-heart’ sentiment had grown into something akin to an ideology.

And once such an ideology appeared, it could never be stamped out by a few ‘purges’.

“And then? You still haven’t said what the ‘space-time expedition’ actually is.”

“The ‘space-time expedition’ is—”

BOOM!

A massive explosion and a tremor from the ground cut Salieh off.

At the same time, the Assistant AI’s voice echoed in Salieh’s mind, and Amber, who was still psionically linked to her, heard the assistant’s report as well.

“Warning, the Repository is under attack!”

“Activating all defense units.”

“Warning, kinetic shield unit activation failed…”

“Warning, psionic shield unit activation failed…”

“Warning, automated defense unit malfunction, error code XXX0916650…”

“…”

A continuous stream of warnings was reported by the Assistant AI, making Salieh’s head throb.

She had already guessed that it was the group with the Puppeteer, who had just escaped, that was attacking the Repository.

Under normal circumstances, Salieh might have remained calm, but hearing that not a single one of the defense units was functional, she began to feel a little panicked.

Amber, on the other hand, was rendered speechless. So you’re telling me the only thing in this whole Forerunner facility that actually works is the Cryogenic Hibernation Area?

“And this group of ‘Homo sapiens’, why are they attacking? You’re not with them, are you?”

Salieh asked Amber with some confusion. Having been asleep for two million years, she had no idea what the world outside was like now.

“You’re right, they’re certainly not with me…”

Amber nodded, his expression turning a bit strange as he thought of the Quest for Truth Foundation.

“As for who these people are… you can think of them as an organization that specializes in digging up your graves… no, I mean, an organization that specializes in the ‘archaeology’ of your civilization.”

“They’re curious about us Jeram? No wonder I detected a familiar psionic technology on their leader. In that case, why are they attacking? As a living Forerunner, shouldn’t I be captured and studied?”

“You’re quite self-aware. If they could capture you alive, they would have already. They just don’t have the ability to.”

Amber threw up his hands and continued, “Although I’m not that familiar with this organization, I have a general idea of how they handle ‘Forerunner ruins’ they can’t control.”

“What’s their method?”

“If you can’t have it, destroy it.”

“…”

Salieh found herself at a loss for words. She realized that if she wanted to survive, she might just have to place her hope in the male ‘Homo sapiens’ standing before her.

“So, do you have a plan now?”

“I have one, but I can’t guarantee it’ll work…”

Amber released his grip on Salieh, then looked at her and said:

“Want to take a walk in the world of two million years in the future?”

Chapter 324: The Mental Shackle

To be honest, when she heard Amber’s proposal, Salieh almost subconsciously agreed.

As a Jeram person abandoned by her people in this universe, it would be no exaggeration to say Salieh was the loneliest person in the world.

Moreover, coming from her inner sense of ‘equal love for all’ intelligent beings and civilizations, she was quite interested in what had happened to this universe two million years later and what it had become.

However, just as she was about to nod, the Jeram woman came to her senses.

She understood a simple truth: freedom under these circumstances came with a price.

Although, if it meant leaving this ‘place of sorrow’ and heading into the vast world outside the Repository, she felt she could agree to most conditions.

But she still needed to confirm first, just in case this ‘Homo sapiens’ before her had any… special proclivities.

“A world two million years in the future? Your proposal is indeed very tempting, but I assume there must be some conditions attached, right?”

“That’s right. You catch on quick.”

Amber smiled. As for this ‘living fossil’ before him, it would be a lie to say he didn’t want to whisk her away.

Especially since she was once a member of the mysterious Forerunner civilization. The value of both the secrets she held and her potential usefulness in the future ‘archaeological excavation’ of other Forerunner ruins was simply immeasurable.

But at the same time, he couldn’t forget her status as a High-level psionic user. After all, according to her description, the Forerunner civilization was an existence that held extreme hostility toward humanity and all other intelligent life.

With such a background, Amber couldn’t guarantee that she wouldn’t suddenly ‘awaken’ in the future and become an enemy of humanity.

Furthermore, from Salieh’s own account, although she wasn’t a combatant, her psionic level was not low. At her peak, she had a level-eight psionic strength—a level at which a dedicated combatant could already unleash psionic lightning storms.

So, if she were allowed to recover later without any means of restraint, she would be very difficult to deal with.

Therefore, if he wanted to take her, he had to add a layer of insurance.

As it happened, Amber knew a few ways to ‘add insurance’.

“I can take you out of here, and I won’t excessively restrict your freedom. But the prerequisite is that you must open your mind now and let me place a ‘Mental Shackle’ on you.”

Hearing the term ‘Mental Shackle’, Salieh’s eyes widened involuntarily.

“You know how to do that?”

“You seem surprised.”

“Of course, I’m surprised. Because if the ‘Mental Shackle’ you’re talking about is the same thing I’m thinking of, then this is just too… unbelievable.”

Salieh’s surprise was not without reason. In her understanding, the ‘Mental Shackle’ was something only High-level psionic users in the ‘Prophet’s Guard’ would know.

Once a ‘Mental Shackle’ is locked and anchored in someone’s mind, that person will mentally lose all will to resist the ‘locker’. Moreover, once a psychic channel is established, their thoughts can no longer be hidden from the ‘locker’.

Furthermore, the ‘locker’ can destroy the target’s mind at any time, causing brain death.

“Stop being surprised. Just tell me. Do you agree to this condition?”

Amidst the continuous loud booms from the attacks on the Repository, Amber asked his final question.

If she refused, he would not hesitate to knock her unconscious and take her away.

He couldn’t help it. Whether it was her background or her ‘rarity’, Salieh was too tempting. Amber found it hard to convince himself to leave such a great ‘opportunity’ behind.

For a moment, the two, each with their own thoughts, fell silent. Only the rumbling explosions serving as a backdrop could be heard.

However, Salieh, who had lowered her head in thought, did not keep Amber waiting long. Or rather, she quickly weighed the pros and cons in her mind.

She raised her head again, her eyes filled with a tranquility that seemed to have ‘let everything go’.

“I accept this condition.”

“Alright, I know this condition might be a bit harsh, but—huh? You agree?”

Now it was Amber’s turn to be stunned. To be honest, he really hadn’t expected this Jeram woman to agree so quickly. Because of this, he later even wondered for a time if she had some kind of ‘M’ trait.

“That’s right, I agree. You can anchor the ‘Mental Shackle’ on me now.”

Salieh smiled. It was the first time she had smiled since she woke.

“What? Are you very surprised?”

“Considering the relationship between our two species you mentioned, I am indeed a bit surprised that you agreed so readily.” Amber nodded, not hiding his thoughts.

“No need to be surprised. Theoretically, I can no longer find any of my kind in this universe. And this severely damaged Repository has no other way to keep me alive besides putting me into hibernation. What’s more, it has now been discovered by you. Even if I were willing to go back to sleep, I likely wouldn’t find any peace.”

Salieh’s train of thought was very clear at this moment. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head were also relaxed, indirectly showing her current mood.

“And you are indeed different from the Homo sapiens I have met before. Even after learning about the relationship between us Jeram people and you Homo sapiens, you still show no fear or apprehension…”

Salieh paused for a moment before continuing:

“And, at least until now, your conduct has been what I would call civilized and rational. So after considering all feasible options, accepting your ‘Mental Shackle’ is probably the best choice at present.”

“Then… as you wish.”

Since the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet was still sporadically attacking the Repository, Amber didn’t want to waste any more time. Besides Salieh, he also wanted to pack up and take away the key technologies stored in this Repository.

Facing Salieh’s open mind, Amber sent a stream of psionic energy deep into her consciousness.

In an epic quest chain he had once experienced, the final climax involved confronting a powerful, out-of-control biological combat weapon in an abandoned ‘Prophet’s Guard’ training facility.

The player responsible for delivering the final blow, guided by an elf NPC, had learned the ‘Mental Shackle’ ability. Then, at the very moment the biological combat weapon was dazed from the NPCs’ concentrated fire, the player completed the ‘Mental Shackle’ anchoring and directly destroyed its brain.

The entire questline was very dramatic and epic, truly worthy of being called the ‘Ninth Art’, and it left a very deep impression on Amber’s mind.

As Amber was anchoring the ‘Mental Shackle’ on Salieh, Lilith’s electronic warfare virus had also finished spreading completely.

By the time the nearby Foundation warships had gathered and begun their attack, they soon discovered that there seemed to be a problem with their ships’ fire-control systems.

From a distance of several thousand kilometers, facing a massive target over a hundred kilometers long, ninety percent of the warships’ main cannon shots stubbornly turned into ‘near misses’.

“What’s going on?” The Puppeteer, who had just returned to his ship, frowned immediately upon hearing the report. He quickly realized something might be wrong with the Foundation’s fleet, which further proved that the mysterious ‘third party’ was not to be underestimated.

Before he could issue a new order, the Tactical Information Coordinator on the bridge cried out in a panic:

“Multiple flotillas report a large number of unidentified ships approaching! Current count exceeds eighty!”

Chapter 325: Lilith the Magician

“What?! Where did so many fleets come from in this remote place?”

The Puppeteer was stunned, and so was the Quest for Truth Foundation’s Fleet Commander.

The latter was a retired Federation Navy capital ship captain, hired by the Foundation at a high price. While he had never fought in the kind of proper, large-scale fleet battles currently waging between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, he had plenty of experience with smaller engagements, like hunting down pirates and rebels.

And such experience was more than enough for his post-retirement career.

But when he heard the Tactical Information Coordinator report the detection of over eighty unidentified warships, he still felt a flash of panic.

Although the Quest for Truth Foundation was a vast and powerful enterprise with no shortage of money from its financial backers, it had only managed to assemble a fleet of less than two hundred ships of various types. Most of these were smaller vessels like armed merchant ships, frigates, and destroyers.

For this ruin exploration mission, they had dispatched just over ninety ships.

While they claimed to have established a blockade over this region of space, it was really only effective because Wangliang-4 was so deserted that practically no one ever came here.

With over eighty unidentified ships suddenly appearing, if they were to truly clash with this unknown force, it was anyone’s guess who would emerge victorious.

However, anyone who could become a Federation capital ship captain was no fool—or at least, they were a fool of a higher caliber.

So, remembering the recent reports from numerous ships about fire-control system malfunctions, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s Fleet Commander quickly put the pieces together.

“Relay this order: all ships in the fleet are to run a system-wide scan for electronic warfare viruses. All communications are to switch to the third backup encryption protocol. At the same time, work quickly to identify the unidentified ships. I want results from methods other than long-wave radar detection!”

If the fire-control and long-wave radar systems were malfunctioning simultaneously, and on so many ships at once, combined with the nonsensical distress signal received earlier on the international rescue channel, the Fleet Commander concluded that there was a high probability his fleet had fallen victim to an electronic attack.

This was hardly a new trick; in fact, the Fleet Commander himself had used such a tactic before.

Prior to his retirement, during a battle to hunt down rebels, his sub-fleet had overextended. With friendly fleets still days away, they were trapped in the star system by a larger rebel force.

After a fierce battle, the sub-fleet suffered heavy losses, and its flagship was wiped out when a heavy particle cannon beam tore through the bridge and CIC due to “unlucky positioning.”

With command lost, it was he who had led the remaining friendly forces, playing cat and mouse with the rebels in the star system. He ultimately took advantage of the rebels’ weak electronic warfare defenses, successfully deploying the Federation’s then-new G9 series electronic warfare virus.

This caused the rebel fleet’s radar to “detect” the “friendly fleet” that was supposed to arrive two days later, allowing him to successfully hold out until reinforcements actually arrived.

Returning to the present, the Fleet Commander knew that if other detection methods—especially optical and infrared—found nothing, then he could be almost certain the enemy was just bluffing with an electronic warfare virus.

In his mind, this was a near-certainty.

“Commander Andal, it seems you have the situation well in hand?”

The Puppeteer, whose perception was beyond that of ordinary people, quickly picked up on the Fleet Commander’s shift in mood. Noticing the man transition from tense and slightly panicked to calm, he floated over and asked.

“I wouldn’t say it’s completely in hand, but in my experience, this is very likely a ‘tactical deception’ based on an electronic warfare virus.”

Andal pointed to the holographic projection platform displaying a simulation of the local space. “To be honest,” he continued, “for over eighty unidentified ships to suddenly appear here is just too strange. Even if, as you suggested, there’s a ‘third party’ in these ruins, they couldn’t possibly summon a support fleet this quickly. Not even the Federation’s regular army is that efficient.”

Just as Andal was speaking, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported again, saying that other warships had sent back their observation results.

“Put it on screen. Let’s see what’s really going on.”

The Quest for Truth Foundation’s Fleet Commander spoke, but the next second, the rest of his words caught in his throat.

Because among the various images displayed, the silhouettes of a large number of ships were clearly visible.

These images, a composite synthesized by the shipboard control AI from Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), optical, and infrared/ultraviolet sensor data, landed like a series of sharp slaps across Andal’s face.

“This is…”

Andal was speechless. This was a result he had most certainly not anticipated.

“Commander Andal, it seems your judgment was flawed.”

The Puppeteer’s voice rang out. He floated silently near the captain’s chair, gazing at the unknown fleet on the screen.

“Let’s retreat. The loss of combat personnel is acceptable; they are easily replaced. But the Foundation’s fleet cannot be lost here.”

“Are you sure?” Andal looked at the Field Commander, surprised.

This wasn’t the first time he had worked with the Puppeteer, and he was well aware of the man’s willingness to do whatever it took to secure the secrets within the ruins.

So, for the Puppeteer to suggest a retreat on his own initiative felt rather out of character.

“I’m sure. Retreat. Whatever is in these ruins… we can’t handle it for now.”

—

“Boss, the enemy fleet is retreating.”

Amber, who was heading towards the Repository’s core with Salieh, quickly received a communication from the Polarized Light. With the Foundation’s warships warping away one by one, Tom and the others felt it was safe to use conventional communication methods again.

“Understood. Continue to maintain covert operations mode and stand by. Proceed to the open platform at the bottom of the ruins only after you receive my command.”

“Roger that, Boss!”

After ending the communication with Tom, Amber continued the conversation in her mind.

“Nice work, Lilith.”

“This is my latest and greatest electronic warfare virus. Besides the standard interference methods, the real ‘trump card’ is its ability to tamper with a shipboard control AI’s ‘image synthesis function.’

“However, Master, the decoys you had the Polarized Light release beforehand were also an indispensable part. If their sensor arrays hadn’t detected any targets at all, I wouldn’t have been able to simulate so many warships for them.”

Ever since Amber had experienced success with the inflatable decoys, both Orns and Cleves, who had been on the receiving end of the trick, had been trying to develop them further.

The decoys equipped on the Polarized Light were one of the results of Orns’s work, based on suggestions from Cleves.

The stealth-configured, plasma torpedo-sized decoy could adjust its course after deployment using its own small Hall thruster.

Upon receiving a preset signal, the decoy would unfold its collapsed frame, rapidly inflate to a size of several hundred meters using an internal compressed gas cylinder, and then activate its corner reflector and simulate a heat source. It was a comprehensive upgrade to the version Amber had used before.

After completing its warp jump and entering covert operations mode, the Polarized Light had released multiple such decoys, which then proceeded to their designated positions.

In their undeployed state, the decoys, being no larger than plasma torpedoes, were completely undetectable by the Foundation’s patrol fleets.

And just like that, with pre-deployed decoys and Lilith’s electronic warfare virus, a perfect tactical deception had been executed.

Chapter 326: The Repository, Good Stuff, But Not Much of It

With the crisis from the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet temporarily averted, Amber and the crew of the Polarized Light breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, facing so many enemies in a single ship was enough to make anyone a little rattled.

Fortunately, “Lilith’s magic trick” had temporarily scared off the Foundation’s fleet, though they couldn’t rule out the possibility of their return.

But since they had already entered a warp, even if the enemy discovered the ruse and decided to come back for them, they would have to go through the process of completing their current warp, performing emergency maintenance on their jump drives, and then re-plotting a course to enter a new warp.

No matter how badass their ship’s engineers were or how they streamlined the process, it would still create a window of opportunity of at least a dozen hours. So, for the time being, Amber and his team were safe.

After ordering Tom and the others to slowly adjust the Polarized Light’s heading and posture, keeping it cloaked as it approached the bottom of the Forerunner ruins to await orders, he himself headed for the central hub of Repository 332 under Salieh’s guidance.

After accepting Amber’s “Mental Shackle,” Salieh adopted an attitude of having nothing left to lose and, paradoxically, completely relaxed.

“You seem quite relaxed now.”

On the transport platform heading to the central area, Amber looked at the carefree Salieh standing beside him. Even the soft, leg-like tentacles on her head were resting loosely against the back of her skull.

“I’ve ‘locked’ your mind, yet you don’t seem to feel any sense of crisis.”

“As you said, you’ve already ‘locked’ my mind. What is there left to resist? As long as I don’t cross the red lines you’ve set, my life isn’t in danger, and I won’t be punished or abused. Isn’t that a life where one can relax?”

Salieh revealed a cunning smile.

“And you’ll have to provide room and board, won’t you?”

“Do all Jeram people adapt this quickly? Or is it just you?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps after sleeping for over two million years, my mentality has changed a bit.”

While the two were talking, Lilith was observing this “uninvited guest” through the various sensors on the Powered Armor.

“So this is an Alien. Her structure really is very different from a human’s.”

“Master, look at her tentacles! The way they’re twitching reminds me of a ‘Facehugger’ from an old sci-fi horror movie.”

“Master, do you think this Alien and humans are reproductively isolated?”

Lilith kept asking strange questions, and Amber carried on a casual conversation with her in his mind.

A psionic user’s ability to multitask came in handy here, allowing him to chat with two people at once. It was practically the ultimate player’s technique.

For a strong AI like Lilith, who had nearly mastered all human knowledge, new information was irresistible, and an entirely new species was enough to pique her interest immensely.

“Master, when we get back, can you let me give her a full-body examination?”

“Are you sure it won’t be some kind of weird examination?”

“Where is your mind going, Master? Hmph, pervert~”

And so, Amber continued his dual conversations with Salieh and Lilith, while occasionally contacting the Polarized Light remotely.

As for Isabelle, she and the members of the intelligence analysis team were busy analyzing and archiving the large amount of images and videos Amber had sent back.

Soon, the transport platform carrying Amber and the others arrived at the central area of Repository 332.

This was not only the core control area for the entire Repository but also its “technology storage warehouse,” where complete technical data for all the technologies developed here was backed up.

For Amber and Atlas, this was an absolute treasure trove.

The technological products of the Forerunners—or rather, the Jeram civilization—were still quite advanced for human civilization. If they could be mastered, it wasn’t impossible that they could trigger a technological revolution for humanity.

But that was only if the technology in this Repository was actually usable.

If it was something like “Megastructure Design Schematics—Stellar Energy Extraction Station” or “Strategic Weapon Project—Planet Annihilator Ship,” these blueprints would certainly be powerful and wonderful, but turning them from schematics into reality would require a massive amount of prerequisite technology.

Materials, engineering, chemistry, automated control… a host of prerequisite foundational technologies meant that humanity couldn’t just soar to new heights with a few lucky blueprints.

Even the ruins on Blue Star where the jump drive technology was discovered had included a lot of supporting prerequisite technologies, which had saved humanity from taking many wrong turns.

“Assistant, check the status of the data currently stored in the central database. Don’t report the results to me privately; broadcast them.”

“Acknowledged, esteemed Repository Steward.”

Salieh already knew Amber’s purpose from their earlier conversation, so she now directly used her authority to issue the command to the Repository’s Assistant.

The Radicals who had put her in a cryogenic suspension pod two million years ago probably never imagined she would see the light of day again, so they hadn’t revoked her authority as the Repository Steward.

It could only be described as a very dramatic turn of events.

Repository 332 had sustained some damage during the battle two million years ago, and many subsystems and its power supply had issues, which caused the central system’s processing speed to become a bit slow.

After a long wait, the Assistant AI’s voice sounded again.

“Repository 332, storage contains one thousand two hundred seventy-seven technical documents. Among them, ninety-two are advanced, six hundred sixty-seven are intermediate, and five hundred eighteen are basic.”

“How many documents are currently intact?”

“Due to circumstances beyond our control, ninety-nine point eight-four percent of the data is unreadable and has been determined to be corrupted. The remaining two items are well-preserved and available for data and schematic extraction.”

When he heard the Assistant AI report that only two technologies could be extracted, Amber already had a premonition of ‘good loot dropping’.

“Report the names of the extractable technologies.”

“Advanced Technology Theory—Gravity Control Technology.”

“Intermediate Technology Theory and Schematics—Long-Range Directed Magnetic Field Channel.”

“Just as I thought.”

Hearing the names of these two technologies, the weight on Amber’s mind finally lifted. It seemed his experience from the game, especially with ‘item drops’, was applicable even to Forerunner ruins.

Salieh, at his side, sensed Amber’s sigh of relief and asked curiously:

“You seem to have known all along that these two technologies were archived in this Repository.”

“I didn’t, I didn’t. This is the first time in my life I’ve ever been to this place. How could I possibly know what’s in your Jeram people’s Repository?”

“Really? I have a feeling you’re bluffing.”

“Really, really,” Amber interrupted Salieh’s questioning and continued:

“Ahem. Let’s hurry up. Extract these two technologies, and then we’ll get out of here.”

Chapter 327: Amber Brought a Woman Back!

Although Amber still eyed the thousands of technologies stored in the Repository covetously, he knew he couldn’t be too greedy.

As the saying goes, what is meant to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force. If it was destined for him, it would naturally fall into his hands. Forcibly taking something that wasn’t his would bring no good.

Besides, it wasn’t like he could extract all that data right now, could he?

At Amber’s instruction, Salieh quickly ordered the Assistant AI to extract the only two complete sets of technical data and blueprints from the Repository.

“Setting aside other things for a moment, the material science of you Jeram people is just outrageous. Two million years have passed, yet this Repository can still function, and the stored data can still be extracted normally.”

“Are you very interested in this kind of technology?”

“It’d be strange if I wasn’t.”

Amber stared, lost in thought, at the central hall of the Repository. The light strips and various facilities that had activated upon their entry made the hall look as if someone had just been working there yesterday.

“To have survived in space for millions of years… if it weren’t for your own civil war, all its functions might have remained perfectly intact. To current humanity, this is simply a miracle.”

Remembering the biological combat weapons he had encountered in the base area, Amber paused for a moment before continuing.

“And your biology and genetic engineering are outrageous too, managing to preserve biological combat weapons for two million years while retaining their basic combat capabilities.

Honestly, given the current state and technological level of human society, if we were to encounter a main force of you Jeram people, I really can’t imagine any outcome other than being annihilated in a genocide.”

“You don’t need to worry too much about that. We are very efficient when it comes to committing genocide against civilizations that cannot resist. It would be entirely painless.”

Salieh replied seriously, then felt a wave of speechlessness from Amber through their mental link.

She began to laugh, and her soft, leg-like tentacles quivered with delight.

“Hahaha, I’m just kidding. After continuing the ‘space-time expedition,’ my people will almost certainly never turn back… well, a one-in-a-million chance can basically be considered zero, can’t it?”

Amber was tempted to refute Salieh’s view on “probability,” because in his opinion, as long as there was a chance of something happening, it couldn’t be deemed impossible.

However, this was clearly not the time to discuss such matters, so Amber gave up on engaging in a “philosophical debate” with Salieh—though he believed that debating with this Jeram person, whose brain structure was more powerful and whose mind was more agile, would be excellent mental training.

While the two chatted, the Assistant AI quickly finished copying the data.

A mechanical arm, extending from an unknown location, delivered a storage device the size of a standard Rubik’s Cube into Salieh’s hand, which she immediately passed to Amber.

When Amber saw the familiar cube, he felt a daze of nostalgia, as if he were back in a game, collecting loot with his teammates after defeating the final boss.

“So it really does look like this.”

“What did you say?”

“Ahem, I meant to say your data storage technology is also quite impressive. Are you sure all the data and blueprints for these two technologies are stored inside?”

Amber tossed the cube in his hand. This tiny object contained information that would propel Atlas’s development forward by a huge leap.

“If you wish to acquire that technology… including some of the materials science you mentioned earlier, I think I can provide the coordinates of a few Repositories. They should have the relevant technical data stored within~”

“Oh? Can I take this as your ‘pledge of fealty’?”

Amber turned to face her, staring seriously into Salieh’s eyes.

“‘A pledge of fealty.’ It’s not wrong to interpret it that way. If doing this makes you feel that I am being cooperative, I would be very happy.”

Salieh replied with equal seriousness.

“Then it’s settled. After I get you out of here and let you acclimate for a while, we’ll put this on the agenda. As for now…”

Amber scanned Salieh from top to bottom. This aggressive posture made her squirm unconsciously and take a step back.

“Are you sure you want to leave the ruins in those ‘pajamas’? Although your Jeram civilization is highly evolved, I doubt you’ve reached the point of entering space with your bare bodies, have you?”

“Level eleven and twelve psionic users…”

“Stop right there. Psionic users of that level are an exception,” Amber said, cutting off Salieh’s tangent on the topic.

After being interrupted, she looked down at her attire.

Entering a cryogenic hibernation pod required special clothing, so when Salieh was locked away back then, the Radicals had thoughtfully changed her into a specialized hibernation suit.

And this thing was, indeed, not suitable for extravehicular activity.

Although the Polarized Light would later dock with the open platform at the bottom of the ruins, it was only a basic mooring. Amber would still need to cross a short distance outside the ship to get aboard.

As for a transport shuttle, this special mission ship utilized all available space to the fullest, so it wasn’t equipped with something only useful for entering and leaving port.

“Assistant, send over a standard field suit.”

At Salieh’s command, another mechanical arm moving along a track on the ceiling quickly retrieved a set of equipment that resembled powered armor.

However, compared to the massive and imposing Powered Armor Amber wore, the Jeram people’s “field suit” appeared far more refined. It had no external hard armor, consisting only of a layer of flexible material.

After the rear entry of the field suit opened, supported by an internal frame, Salieh leaped nimbly inside.

Soon, the entire suit began to close and seal, expelling excess gas. It fit snugly against Salieh’s body without restricting her movement.

Finally, a “hood-like” device extended from the back, completely encasing Salieh’s head and forming a smooth, mirrored surface.

“This thing is great. Do you happen to know which Repository has the data for it?”

“…”

When the Polarized Light docked with the external platform of Repository 332 and disengaged its covert operations mode, everyone on board crowded around the viewports and screens, craning their necks in anticipation.

Then, to their astonishment, they saw Amber in his Powered Armor, towing something that looked like a tactical nuclear warhead launch canister, floating toward the open airlock of the Polarized Light.

And there was another person with him.

“Dude, am I seeing things? How come that thing looks like a launch canister for a tactical nuke? Is that the ‘nuclear weapon’ symbol on it?” a maintenance crew member in the Hangar said with amazement, looking at the screen in front of him.

His companion, however, was dismissive of his surprise.

“It’s not like we’ve never captured a nuke before. I heard they seized several at once back on Lubian. The really outrageous part is the person following the Boss, isn’t it? Don’t tell me he dug her up from the ruins.”

Amid the crew’s discussions, Amber returned to the ship with Salieh, and Isabelle immediately received a piece of news that made her world go dark.

“Miss Isabelle! The Boss… he brought a woman back!”

Chapter 328: You Homo Sapiens Are Still at War?

The two keywords, ‘Boss’ and ‘woman,’ were enough to put Isabelle on edge, not to mention the verb ‘brought’ linking them.

Since Isabelle was currently unaware of Lilith’s existence, let alone the fact that Lilith had swooped in on her territory in virtual space, she had always considered herself the main woman in his life. Hearing that Amber had brought another woman back with him stirred a certain amount of anxiety.

But when she and a large group of curious onlookers, including Captain Tom, rushed to the deployment bay on the ship’s flank that connected to the outside, she found the situation was not quite what she had imagined.

Especially when the figure opened its helmet, revealing its face.

Isabelle didn’t know whether she should feel relieved or unsettled.

Amber had indeed brought back a ‘humanoid creature’ that looked ‘female,’ but she couldn’t yet be certain if it could be called a woman. Perhaps the physiological traits of humans and aliens were reversed?

Of course, there was an even more outrageous possibility: Amber’s tastes had undergone another major update…

Isabelle shook her head, casting these absurd thoughts aside, and drifted over to Amber with Tom and the others.

Before they could speak, Amber, having raised his powered armor’s helmet to show his face, used his authority to activate the ship-wide broadcast. His voice was serious.

“Effective immediately, the security clearance for this vessel, special mission ship ATN-141, and all personnel aboard is raised to S+. All personnel are forbidden from disclosing any information regarding this operation to anyone, through any means.”

As Amber’s voice echoed through the ship, everyone’s expression turned solemn. They then noticed that the security clearance on their personal terminals had been updated from A+ to S+.

This was the highest security clearance level within the Atlas Group.

Being assigned this level meant you had come into contact with the group’s core secrets. While benefits and compensation would increase, your personal communications would also be subject to strict monitoring—this was explicitly written in the group’s employee handbook and employment contract.

As the crew members exchanged shocked glances, Amber’s voice continued:

“If anyone, including internal group personnel, asks you for mission details, your answer is and can only be—‘I don’t know, I’m not sure, I’m not familiar with it.’ At the same time, you are to immediately report the inquiry to the group’s Internal Oversight Team. The specific confidentiality regulations are to be followed as stipulated in the group’s employee handbook.

“Broadcast ends. Return to your posts. Dismissed.”

As he spoke the final words, Amber raised a hand, signaling for Isabelle and Tom to remain behind and not return to the bridge.

After the chime signaling the end of the ship-wide broadcast sounded, the crew exchanged looks but did not linger in groups.

After all, according to the ridiculously thick Atlas Group employee handbook, if crew members continued to cluster after being ordered to return to their posts, their quarterly performance bonus and eligibility for year-end commendations would be forfeit.

Soon, apart from a few crew members whose posts were located in this deployment bay, everyone else left in small groups. Only Isabelle and Tom, whom he had asked to stay, remained before Amber and Salieh.

“Have the ship enter warp immediately. We’re heading back,” Amber said to Tom, who quickly issued the return order remotely.

Soon, as the Polarized Light adjusted its course and began accelerating for the warp jump, Amber led the other three to a conference room on the ship.

After activating ‘black box mode,’ he looked at the two, who were still trying to make sense of the situation, and gestured to Salieh beside him.

“This is Salieh,” he began. “A Jeram person from two million years ago. What we commonly refer to as a ‘Forerunner.’”

Hearing Amber’s introduction, Isabelle and Tom felt as if he must be joking, but they also knew that at a critical moment like this, Amber would never joke with them.

Which meant that a living ‘Forerunner’ was truly standing right in front of them.

The atmosphere in the conference room instantly grew strange. The two humans, having just heard this earth-shattering news, hardly dared to breathe.

“Don’t be so nervous. For now, we can consider her one of us, I suppose.”

Amber turned to glance at Salieh, who still wore a proper smile—since the facial features of humans and Jeram people were extremely similar, their facial expressions carried more or less the same meaning.

Next, Amber gave the two a brief overview of what had happened in the ruins, including the encounter and battle with the Quest for Truth Foundation’s armed forces, and how he had ultimately succeeded in obtaining the designated ‘target item’ and brought Salieh back as an ‘unexpected bonus.’

“Anyway, that’s the gist of it. Regarding the specific confidentiality issues, Tom, you’re the captain of this special mission ship; I trust you know what to do.

“As for you, Isabelle, you’re in charge of intelligence and internal oversight. You’ll have to work harder during this period. In addition to internal monitoring, you can’t let up on our surveillance of the Quest for Truth Foundation.”

“Understood!” they replied in unison.

After the brief discussion, Tom quickly left the conference room, while Isabelle temporarily stayed behind.

“Amber, while you were in the ruins, we received several intelligence reports from headquarters regarding the current situation and major events that have occurred since we left.”

Isabelle glanced at Salieh, who was standing behind Amber, unsure whether she should speak freely.

“Go ahead, it’s fine. It’s a good chance for our ‘Forerunner’ here to learn what human society is like after two million years.”

“Are you sure?” Isabelle looked at Amber doubtfully.

“Just say it. What’s there to hide?”

“Alright, I’m saying it then.” Seeing Amber’s unwavering attitude, Isabelle opened a briefing on her terminal.

“On our company’s end, our infiltration of the Loubion star system is deepening, and we’ve achieved some success. We have ‘collaborators’ in various departments of the autonomous government.

“Also, that ‘Franklin’ you were paying special attention to has officially started working within the autonomous government. He’s quite capable, and with some covert assistance from us, his prospects for an official career look very bright.

“Then there’s the shipyard—they’ve already shipped two dry docks to the Loubion star system. Once they’re reassembled, they can begin production of the experimental capital ships.”

Hearing this, Amber nodded. The various subsidiaries under the Atlas Group were all moving forward with their assigned tasks.

Franklin starting an official career didn’t surprise Amber either; a person’s fate wasn’t so easily changed.

Although Amber had refused Franklin’s request for help at the banquet, saying Atlas wouldn’t provide any assistance, in reality, Atlas employees operating in the Loubion star system had, under Amber’s instructions, secretly paved the way for the ‘idealistic youth’ while retaining all the evidence.

“Next is the war between the Federation and the Empire.”

As Isabelle continued, Salieh suddenly spoke up.

“So you Homo sapiens are still at war?”

Chapter 329: Fight, I Want to See Rivers of Blood!

Salieh spoke in the Geram language, so Isabelle couldn’t understand what she was saying. However, she paused when the other woman began to speak.

“Please help me apologize to this lady. I lost control for a moment and interrupted her while she was speaking,” Salieh said to Amber. At the same time, she turned to Isabelle, bowed slightly, and touched a finger to the space between her eyebrows—a gesture of apology among the Jeram people.

“Amber, what did she say?”

“Salieh is apologizing to you. She said she shouldn’t have interrupted you while you were speaking.”

“How polite.”

Isabelle’s opinion of Salieh improved instantly, and much of the defensiveness she’d felt from the beginning dissipated.

“You can continue now.”

“Then I’ll continue.”

Having given this type of report many times, Isabelle was well-practiced, knowing what was important and what could be briefly skipped over.

Quickly, she gave a general overview of the war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire over the past month.

After crippling the Empire’s Celestial Fortress Battle Group in the Battle of the Millen Star System, the Federation Navy, being on home turf and able to replenish its forces more quickly, was the first to launch a counter-offensive.

And just as in Amber’s memory, the Celestial Fortress Battle Group, led by Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, continuously “advanced to the rear” to preserve its strength.

However, their “advance” was not as swift as it had been in the game’s storyline from his previous life. Moreover, it felt as though they were trying to lure the Federation fleet deeper in pursuit.

Although this “lure” was quite crude, almost without any attempt at concealment, the Federation fleet, under pressure from home and public opinion, had no choice but to continue the chase, eager to reclaim lost territory.

By now, the Empire’s expeditionary force had essentially coughed up most of the star systems it had occupied, meaning the entire past year of fighting by Duke and Duke William had been for nothing.

But things weren’t much better for the Federation. What seemed like an easy pursuit was causing constant losses to their fleets—they were frequently ambushed by the Celestial Fortress as they completed a warp.

It was difficult for an entire fleet to perform emergency evasive maneuvers the instant it dropped out of warp, and Duke Hastings seized this opportunity, exploiting this small window to the fullest.

The long-range detection capabilities of the gravitational wave radar, combined with the extreme range of The Focusing Rainbow, allowed the Celestial Fortress to whittle down the Federation Navy’s effective strength while taking virtually no damage itself.

If you gave chase, they would strike back once, then run without a moment’s hesitation.

If you didn’t chase, they would simply lie in wait.

Even so, the flames of war finally reached the territory of the Star Dragon Empire last week.

After breaking through the last intercepting fleet blocking their path, the Federation Navy’s 4th Main Fleet successfully pushed into an Imperial border star system.

This achievement was a huge morale boost for the Federation Navy, whose spirits had been flagging after suffering heavy losses during the continuous pursuit.

But no one expected that this was merely a signal that the war was about to become even more intense.

As a steady stream of Federation Navy fleets entered the star systems within the Empire’s borders, a new problem confronted their commanders: the occupation of valuable planets within those systems.

The same challenge the Star Dragon Empire had faced over a year ago was now before the Federation Navy.

The Star Dragon Empire had also undergone a general mobilization, yet Duke Hastings and his forces had received almost no reinforcements recently.

So where had all these mobilized troops gone?

The answer lay on the planets within these border systems, now armed to the teeth like “hedgehogs.”

In the time that Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia had painstakingly “dragged out,” massive numbers of newly formed ground units had been deployed to these planets in fully-formed divisions.

The fleets of various noble houses, responding to the general mobilization order, had also moved into the border regions during this period.

The Federation fleet, which had maintained absolute numerical superiority within its own territory, found that advantage slowly starting to shrink as the conflict shifted to an “incursion” into enemy space.

—

If facing the gradually assembling Imperial fleets wasn’t daunting enough for the Federation Navy—which was constantly receiving reinforcements from newly formed fleets from the rear—then the planets armed like hedgehogs were.

The fleet commanders felt they had no good way to approach them.

It could be said that both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had now discovered their respective deficiencies in large-scale planetary assault warfare.

If one wanted to completely pacify and occupy a planet without resorting to saturation orbital bombardment or “glassing the planet,” the only option was to commit vast numbers of ground troops.

But neither side had invested heavily in this area before the war. The largest aerospace transport tool they had was the aerospace transport carried by transport ships—after all, you couldn’t count on capturing a space elevator intact every time.

Although these transports had a large payload capacity, it was no match for the sheer volume of personnel, equipment, and supplies required for ground forces, especially for heavy units, which was an astronomical amount.

Relying on aerospace transports alone, it could take nearly a thousand sorties to deploy a single heavy brigade to the surface.

Putting aside the question of how to even carry that many transports, the mere image of such a massive fleet of them attempting a forced landing under enemy anti-air fire was a nightmare for any landing operation commander.

Even the smaller, faster orbital drop pods suffered extremely high loss rates during deployment, let alone the larger and slower aerospace transports.

But with the war having reached this stage and both sides in a state of general mobilization, neither could stop. Both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire could only grit their teeth and press on.

Although the war’s progress at this point was similar to the storyline Amber was familiar with, the intensity of the fighting was vastly different.

The number of troops deployed along the same frontline far exceeded the scale in Amber’s memory, with both sides engaging in incredibly fierce battles over a single star system or planet.

—

“Two million years ago, when we first met you Homo sapiens, you were in the middle of a civil war. I never expected that I would sleep for so long, only to wake up and find you still at it.”

After Isabelle left with an uneasy look on her face, Salieh casually found a chair and sat down, offering her “sharp commentary” on the briefing she had just heard.

Although she couldn’t directly understand modern human language, her telepathic link with Amber allowed her to listen to the entire report as if through a simultaneous interpreter.

“Sorry you had to see all this right after joining us,” Amber retorted with a slight pout. But for some reason, when Salieh said that, he did feel a little embarrassed.

“Don’t you Jeram people have civil wars too? You’re even split into Conservatives and Radicals.”

“No, that’s different,” Salieh said, sitting up straight with a serious expression.

“It cannot be called a ‘civil war.’ It’s merely that our people had a disagreement on the path to our future, so we chose to use ‘violence,’ an efficient method for resolving disagreements.”

“Ah, yes, yes, of course.”

As Amber began a “philosophical debate” with Salieh, he also devoted part of his mind to planning his next moves.

The Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were now locked in a death grip. This war would not end until one side surrendered.

For Atlas, which excelled at profiting from war, this was naturally a good thing. A vast number of business opportunities, including the “communications business partnership” with the Regent Prince, could now be rapidly advanced.

Amber was confident that as the fighting grew more intense, the advantages of quantum entanglement communication would be magnified infinitely. Norton II would only become more desperate to roll out this technology.

And then there was the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. They would also take their “fleet reconstruction plan” more seriously.

“The momentum is building, Amber.”

Chapter 330: Technological Upgrade

By the time the Polarized Light returned to Peony Star, where the Atlas Group headquarters was located, nearly two more months had passed.

The main reason for the delay was that Amber, guided by Salieh, had taken a detour to another Forerunner ruin—Repository 172.

Within this Repository, Amber managed to acquire three foundational technologies in one go.

One was the Jeram people’s basic data storage and processing technology. While this technology couldn’t increase the capacity of small data storage devices, it could significantly boost the performance of the large-scale electronic equipment common in current human society.

According to Salieh, if she were to participate in experiments to integrate this technology with humanity’s current electronics, it should be possible to increase performance by at least 1320%.

“So how did you come up with such a precise number like 1320%?”

“Mental calculation.”

Salieh’s smile was graceful, possessing a power that inspired conviction. Incidentally, over the past two months, Isabelle and this Jeram woman from two million years ago had become good friends.

Although Salieh hadn’t understood modern human language at first, after establishing a mental link with Amber, she displayed a terrifying aptitude for language learning, happily chatting with Isabelle after a mere two days.

If this first technology could truly bring about a quantum leap in the performance of all of humanity’s current large-scale electronic equipment, as Salieh claimed, many things would change.

The most obvious example was the server array inside the A·Bawa·Ku Asteroid Base. Amber couldn’t even imagine how powerful Lilith’s computing power would become if the server array’s performance was boosted by 1320%.

According to Lilith’s own projections, she could even conduct massive virtual experiments and create perfect simulations of the real world within the virtual space.

If that came to pass, Atlas’s technological research and development capabilities would experience a qualitative leap. Many dangerous experiments requiring extreme conditions could be run several times in virtual space before being attempted in reality.

Besides the “basic data storage and processing technology,” the other two technologies were a smelting technique for a new type of alloy and the basic data for the “Fieldwork Suit” that Salieh had worn before.

The former could potentially replace existing armor plating technology, while the latter would provide staff operating in space with more flexible yet safer “universal suits for both intra- and extra-vehicular activity.”

When Amber returned to the Tower of Babel with the five technologies she had acquired on this trip and laid them out before the entire R&D team and the capital ship design team, who were connected via a remote conference, everyone was dumbfounded.

Each one of these technologies, taken on its own, was a significant “bombshell.” Yet Amber had brought back five at once, all with complete technical data and blueprints. As long as the technological prerequisites were met, they could basically begin applied experiments.

“Boss, did you go on a wholesale run? If there’s another great opportunity like this, take us with you,” Orns murmured, staring at the projected documents.

“Take you with me? I almost didn’t make it back myself.”

Amber waved her hand, shattering his fantasy.

“Anyway, the spoils from this trip are all here. It’s up to you guys to figure out the applied R&D,” Amber said, turning her gaze to the capital ship development team.

“Project 12—the Super-heavy battleship. Besides the main cannon, we should have all the necessary technologies for the other key subsystems now, right?”

“Yes, Boss!” Seeing Amber address them, the team head of the capital ship design team immediately replied.

“We’ve actually been optimizing the overall design this whole time. Aside from the ‘Planetary Deployment Channel’ and the main cannon you requested, the other subsystems all use very mature technology, so tackling them wasn’t much trouble. The main characteristic of Project 12 is its sheer size. As long as we’re willing to invest the resources, we can definitely build the entire frame.”

This was the same team head who, after being provoked by Amber, had “in a fit of anger” produced the design for Project 12. He organized his thoughts and continued, “Now that we have the ‘Long-Range Directed Magnetic Field Control Technology,’ the next step is to experiment with it to ensure we can fully master it, and then figure out how to integrate it into the ship’s overall design.”

The design team head quickly described the current progress of Project 12. Except for the main cannon, which was still up in the air, all the other necessary technologies for the super-heavy battleship were in place.

If Amber agreed to reserve the installation space for the main cannon and start construction on the first experimental ship right away, then as long as there were no major issues with the development of the “Long-Range Directed Magnetic Field Control Technology,” the experimental ship could be completed in less than half a year.

Indeed, shipbuilding was a relatively fast process in this era.

Unlike traditional ships that sailed the oceans, the construction process for spaceships was a completely different system.

The various shipyards deployed in outer space were less like “shipyards” and more like some kind of massive “printing device.”

Taking the mainstream shipbuilding corporations of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire as an example, the construction cycle for destroyers, frigates, and small civilian vessels, from commencement to launch, was just over a month.

Light cruisers and medium-sized civilian ships took about two or three months.

And while capital ships and super-large cargo ships were enormous and had far more complex systems, the shipyards that built them were similarly upgraded large or even giant shipyards. As such, they could generally be completed within four months.

This was why neither the Federation nor the Empire had suffered from massive fleet shortages due to excessive ship losses since the war began.

As long as both sides were willing to invest the funds, the major shipbuilding corporations would operate twenty-four hours a day, building ships at the fastest possible speed. After entering total mobilization, this construction speed was even continuing to decrease.

Besides Project 12, the final design for the Project 08 battleship—the main product of Atlas Shipbuilding and specially prepared for the Loubion star system government—was also complete.

This battleship didn’t have any major highlights in its design; its various design parameters were merely on par with the current mainline battleships of the Federation and the Empire.

As a result, the Sales Department of Atlas Shipbuilding had recently been racking their brains to come up with a “selling point” for the battleship to fool other buyers in the future.

However, after Amber returned with the new alloy smelting technique and the data storage and processing technology, this problem was instantly solved.

“A 1320% increase in the ship’s central processor performance!”

See? There was the “selling point.”

Chapter 331: Jacob’s New Ride

“Attention approaching Atlas logistics transport fleet, this is Parra IV temporary orbital control. Please adjust your flight path according to the data we’ve sent. Your mooring point is in the B4 space sector.”

“Thank you for the guidance. Our fleet is adjusting its course now.”

Aboard the transport fleet’s flagship, the communications officer replied in a magnetic voice that naturally disarmed the listener.

A moment later, after receiving a subtle cue from Cleves, the communications officer continued:

“Orbital control, be advised, several of our cargo containers have accidentally detached. Based on their projected trajectory, they should be drifting toward your position. Although they only contain basic supplies like fresh food, tobacco, alcohol, and harmless stimulants, they’re quite massive and could cause collision damage. It would be best if you could have a patrol HCP retrieve them.”

Hearing the reply over the comms channel, the controller in the temporary orbital control center raised an eyebrow. This was the first time in days he had encountered a private company that “knew the ropes” so well.

Thinking this, he glanced back at the duty officer in the control center. Seeing the officer give a slight nod, he replied in a much friendlier tone:

“Understood. We’ll send someone to retrieve the containers… By the way, our intelligence indicates there are still remnants of an Imperial fleet in the vicinity of Parra IV that have yet to withdraw. Their numbers are small, but please remain vigilant. If you encounter the enemy, send a distress signal immediately and report your position to the patrol fleet. The emergency communication code is…”

Soon, the large, armed transport fleet, composed of nearly a hundred ships, swept past the Federation Navy’s temporary orbital control center. The latter even captured the “thank you” light signals from the ships on their optical lenses.

“So that’s the Atlas fleet, huh? Their style is worlds apart from the other companies.”

After seeing the fleet off, the controller stretched and remarked.

Parra IV was an Imperial colony “occupied” by the Federation some time ago. Although the Empire’s official planetary classification had rated Parra IV as a low-level border planet, the Federation had publicized the event with great fanfare.

Of course, despite calling it an “occupation,” the Federation Navy had in reality only established space superiority after repelling the Imperial defense fleet.

Even now, fierce planetary landing battles were still underway.

And according to news from this controller’s friend in the Army, the Star Dragon Empire had deployed over fifty brigade combat teams on this planet.

Although most of them were hastily formed units, they still had the numbers and equipment. To completely occupy the planet, if not by annihilating all the defenders, they would at least have to break their will to fight.

It was for this very reason that a large number of private company fleets, contracted to transport provisions and supplies, had been streaming to the front lines over the past few days.

If this orbital control center controller had to choose the most satisfactory company of the past few days, Atlas would definitely be at the top of the list.

The other party hadn’t said it outright, but it was obvious those few containers were a “gift” specifically for the orbital control center.

“A company that could become the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s biggest partner certainly wouldn’t be lacking in this area. Haven’t you heard? The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government even awarded them the contract to rebuild their fleet.”

“Hey, I heard their company’s ground forces were instrumental in retaking Loubion V. Do you think they’ll participate in the Parra IV operation?”

“Who knows? Let the big shots upstairs worry about things like that.”

“Alright, once we hand over the supplies to the Federation Navy, we can finally relax for a bit.”

On the captain’s chair of the transport fleet’s flagship, the light cruiser The Hermes, Cleves twisted his neck and spoke to his adjutant.

“So does that mean we won’t be participating in the ground combat this time?”

“It’s not that we ‘won’t participate,’ just that we’re holding off for a bit. It’s a direct order from the Boss. We are not to engage in ground combat on any planet until the Federation military has achieved basic occupation.”

Speaking of which, Cleves couldn’t help but recall Amber’s exact words from a previous meeting.

“We are indeed a company founded to make money, but that doesn’t mean we should trade our employees’ lives for it. The casualty rate for large-scale planetary landings is very high. Right now, both the Federation and the Empire can only rely on crude, massed-unit charges to break through anti-aircraft networks. That’s a party we don’t need to join.”

Honestly, upon hearing those words, Cleves felt that his decision to join Atlas might have been the most important one he’d ever made in his life.

The company’s size and strength were growing by the day, and its leader was a boss who cared for his subordinates and employees, not to mention being quite “farsighted.”

Of course, the most important thing was the strict adherence to “labor laws.” Would you believe that employees actually got their performance scores docked for working unapproved overtime?

Just as Cleves was discussing these matters with his adjutant, he saw a triangular “three-unit formation” speed past The Hermes through the panoramic bridge.

This three-unit formation wasn’t made up of the usual escort HCPs, which carried heavy shields and deployed heavy particle cannons, but of a brand-new type of “triangular” fighter.

On the magnified view from the panoramic bridge, the external armor of these triangular fighters was emblazoned with a cute white rabbit shouldering a heavy cannon.

The adjutant, his attention also captured, couldn’t help but comment upon seeing this:

“The ATT’s prototype test team. The flight lead must be Captain Jacob, right?”

“Yeah, who else would be flying those things besides Jacob and his squad?”

Cleves watched the distant three-unit formation and continued with a sigh:

“Stuffing yourself into that cramped ‘triangle’ to charge head-on into enemy formations… that’s not something the average person can handle.”

“It’s dangerous, sure, but it sounds pretty cool, don’t you think?”

“How about I put in a request with the higher-ups to transfer you to the ATT?”

“No, no, I think I’m much more suited to being your adjutant.”

“Aurora, what’s the current status?”

“Master, all unit monitoring data is currently normal. Shall I initiate the next test sequence?”

The combat assistance AI’s voice was still the same “Aurora” from Jacob’s memory.

Although Jacob didn’t know how Atlas had managed it, he felt that the AI installed in his “prototype” was the very same one from the reconnaissance craft that had crashed on Loubion V.

But logically, she should have been destroyed along with the scout craft…

“Okay, Dunkleosteus Squadron, prepare to begin the weapons test.”

“Roger!” ×2

The three fighters, in their triangular formation, increased their distance from one another. The thruster arrays at their rear erupted with a brilliant blue light, propelling the three prototypes forward with an acceleration completely unattainable by a standard HCP. They sped toward a designated weapons testing area along the transport fleet’s route.

At the same time, an Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, which had been roaming the star system since being scattered, burst out from the shadows, using Parra IV’s two moons as cover.

Chapter 332: The Raid

In the Empire’s territorial defense operations, Parra IV was among the first batch of planets to be abandoned.

This was not only because it was situated on the outermost layer of the grand defensive line, a position meant to “blunt the enemy’s offensive spearhead,” but also because the planet itself was just an ordinary colony world.

It had no special industries, nor any symbolic landmarks. As a peripheral world among the Empire’s many colonies, Parra IV’s greatest contribution was to alternately produce two things.

Taxes and rioters.

And according to historical statistics, it produced a relatively higher proportion of the latter.

It was inevitable that such a planet would never host a moving and tragic defense.

So from the very beginning, the Imperial High Command had no intention of making a major stand on this planet. Beyond the original garrison forces, they only provided a few hastily formed brigade combat teams as reinforcements.

Oh, and there were also the private soldiers of a hereditary viscount who held a fief on Parra IV.

Although these noble private soldiers were even better equipped than the emergency-deployed regular army, their numbers were small, only the size of two brigade combat teams.

As for the emergency-deployed brigade combat teams, they were generally short on heavy equipment, with the HCP units being particularly affected.

At the same time, despite the shortage of heavy equipment, the Imperial High Command provided the garrison on Parra IV with a large quantity of anti-aircraft weaponry, especially units like high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles and anti-aircraft missile launchers, specifically designed to take down aerospace transports.

The High Command was well aware that if the fighting dragged into a ground war, the morale of these ground troops, who had essentially been “abandoned,” would be a major issue. Thus, they never expected these forces to hold out for long.

The only opportunity for them to score a major victory was to strike during the Federation’s large-scale troop deployment, using their densely concentrated anti-aircraft units.

To force the Federation to land using aerospace transports, the Imperial Navy’s intelligence department learned from the Federation’s “advanced experience” on Robert IV. After locking down the space elevator and removing the access key, the operative responsible for the mission vanished without a trace.

So, after shattering the Imperial garrison fleet, the main Federation fleet assigned to attack the star system had no choice but to brace themselves and begin landing operations.

At this time, certain “patriotic” commanders of the Imperial Royal Navy, either voluntarily or under orders, began leading their remaining fleets in “harassment operations” against the Federation Navy’s planetary landing forces.

When the civilian defense contractor convoys hired by the Federation Navy arrived to transport supplies, these Imperial remnants began hunting them down.

It was obvious that the Federation’s defense contractors were outmatched when facing the regular forces of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy.

Besides, they were just there to make money, while their opponents, in the eyes of these contractors, were defending their homes and country. If they got into a life-or-death struggle, they would certainly be the ones to lose out.

—

“Horn, why do you think we’ve been left here to fight a guerrilla war?”

In the shadow of Parra IV’s second moon, aboard the bridge of a Dragoon-class destroyer, Commander Viscount York asked his adjutant.

“To protect our home and country, Sir.”

Horn, who was both York’s adjutant and his family retainer, answered with a serious expression.

“Protect our home and country. Hahaha, is that the official answer, or what you really think?”

“The official answer, of course, Sir.”

“And the private one?” Viscount York asked with interest.

“We’re being forced to risk our lives here, Sir.”

“You’re as clear-headed as ever, Horn.”

Viscount York smiled, but his smile slowly faded as he recalled the damn orders from his superiors.

As the commander of a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla and an Imperial nobleman, he had been ordered to remain in the star system with his troops to conduct “harassment operations,” even after learning that the main fleet would not be sending reinforcements.

This order had been issued to all remnants of the Parra system’s garrison fleet and several detached fleets that had been sent to assist in the defense earlier.

Viscount York and his destroyer flotilla were just some of these unlucky souls.

It would be a lie to say he hadn’t thought about deserting.

But as an Imperial noble (albeit one without a fief), his sense of honor made such a decision difficult.

Not to mention, deserting with one’s troops in the face of the enemy was a grave violation of military discipline. Not only would his noble title be revoked, but he would also be sent to a military tribunal.

In these extraordinary times, Viscount York estimated there was an eighty percent chance he would be publicly hanged as an example to others.

Under these circumstances, for the sake of his own life and his family’s, he had no choice but to lead his forces and “fight a guerrilla war” around Parra IV.

Parra IV’s two moons did indeed provide him with natural cover. During this time, he had led his fleet out from the cover of the moons’ shadows multiple times, inflicting immense damage on the Federation’s transport convoys.

This was why the controller at the temporary orbital control center had kindly reminded Cleves and his team to watch out for remnants of the Imperial fleet.

“Sir, the scout ship reports the target convoy has entered the designated attack zone. There are eighty-two vessels, but most are transports. There are only thirty-two escort warships. Aside from one light cruiser, they are mainly destroyers with a few frigates.”

“This must be the largest target we’ve seen in days, right?”

“Yes, Sir. If we can heavily damage this transport convoy, the Federation army’s supplies will likely be affected.” Horn nodded. He might complain, but he was all business when it was time to work.

“But the number of escorts has increased, and we’re down to only thirty-five ships. Plus, they have a light cruiser. I’m not sure if we can handle that.”

Viscount York frowned as he looked at the fleet marked on the holographic projection platform.

“If you’re worried about heavy losses, should we attempt a fast hit-and-run raid?”

“Yes… you and I are on the same page. I am worried about the losses from a direct confrontation. I’m still hoping to get you all out of this alive after the mission is done…”

Viscount York nodded and continued:

“Relay my orders! All ships, follow the flagship. Prepare for a high-speed flyby. Do not get entangled with the enemy. We have only one objective: inflict maximum damage on the target transport ships!”

Soon, the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, which had been lurking in covert operations mode within the moon’s shadow, dropped its camouflage and bared its fangs.

Their main thruster arrays ignited, making the flotilla look like a school of fish with their own bioluminescent organs in the deep sea. They swam out of the shadows and stabbed directly at the convoy’s flank.

The Atlas transport convoy’s reaction was not slow. Upon detecting the enemy, the escort warships swiftly repositioned to the convoy’s flank, while simultaneously deploying a wave of jamming gel to prevent the enemy from picking off the transports with high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

“All hands, listen up! Do not get bogged down in a fight! The Federation’s patrol fleets have been responding faster and faster lately. So after you penetrate their formation and complete your attack, disengage immediately along the pre-planned route!”

As the distance closed, Viscount York continued to issue orders. But just then, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported something that sent a jolt through him.

“Report! Unidentified contacts spotted from the Zenith! Three units! Distance, three thousand kilometers! Relative velocity, one hundred twenty kilometers per second!”

Chapter 333: Time to Hunt, But the Roles Are Reversed

“What’s going on with air defense reconnaissance?! Why didn’t you detect the targets!”

“Sir, the targets are too small—less than fifty meters—and we suspect they have optical and infrared stealth capabilities.” Faced with his superior’s questioning, the air defense commander braced himself and explained.

“Goddamn it, what about the air defense radar? Did the radar not spot them either?”

Viscount York was clearly not satisfied with this explanation, and his tone became less courteous.

“The target’s… its RCS (Radar Cross Section) is too small… Sir, if you look at this, you’ll understand.”

Sweating profusely, the air defense commander projected a quickly generated chart onto the warship’s main screen. Viscount York’s expression immediately grew heavy when he saw it.

It was truly the first time in space combat that he had ever seen a unit with such a small RCS.

Although HCPs were smaller, only about ten meters in size, they didn’t have any stealth configurations. The various odds and ends on their bodies further increased their radar cross-section.

But the RCS of these three unidentified units was just too small. Viscount York immediately suspected they were some kind of aircraft with a stealth configuration and a sufficiently small frontal cross-section.

To be honest, based on the data currently being projected, the fact that the fleet’s air defense team had managed to detect the targets at a distance of three thousand kilometers was already an extraordinary performance.

Right now, this high-speed flyby was at a point of no return. The entire Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla couldn’t just halt its combat operations because of the appearance of three unidentified units.

“High-speed… stealth… miniaturized stealth bombers? Weren’t those things phased out ages ago?”

An ‘ancient unit’ that only existed in textbooks flashed through Viscount York’s mind. This unit, known as a stealth bomber, had once had its heyday.

But after fleets began to be widely equipped with directed-energy anti-air weapons, the battlefield survivability of both the stealth bombers themselves and the plasma torpedoes they deployed became extremely low.

After several battles where entire stealth bomber squadrons were annihilated before they even had a chance to drop their payloads, this unit was quickly retired from the active service rosters of various nations.

“They can’t possibly be planning to just charge through our firepower, can they?”

With this thought, Viscount York quickly made a decision.

“All fleet, maintain the offensive! Frigates 882, 883, and 885, commence anti-air operations and intercept the unidentified targets!”

Soon, the three frigates that received the order began to maneuver. These units, which had always shouldered a heavy load of air defense and anti-air combat duties, quickly moved to a position directly above the Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla.

And then, the air defense commanders of the three frigates discovered that they might not be able to stop these three high-speed, unidentified assailants.

“Dunkleosteus Squadron, be advised, Megalodon and Mosasaurus Squadrons are en route. ETA two minutes!”

“Roger that. We’ll initiate the attack first to draw their attention! Tell them to coordinate with us!”

Jacob finished his brief communication with the transport fleet and once again pushed the throttle to the ‘maximum thrust’ position.

The large thruster array at the rear of the MA-01 heavy armored gunship he was piloting flared brightly, quickly leaving a long trail in its wake.

“Dunkleosteus Squadron, begin attack roll! First salvo targets are marked. After the salvo, select your own drop targets. Remember, there aren’t many of us. We just need to cause chaos and hold out until the main force arrives!”

At Jacob’s command, the three heavy armored gunships rapidly increased their spacing, tracing huge concentric circles along their attack path.

A massive positive G-force hit him instantly. Jacob’s vision went black for a moment, but thanks to his physical modifications, he quickly adapted.

When Amber had extended an olive branch to him, he had originally planned to ‘leech’ a physical modification and then retire at Atlas.

But after joining ATT and becoming the first test pilot for the MA-01, he had immediately thrown that idea to the back of his mind.

“Retire? Hell no! A real man should be piloting a heavy armored gunship!”

This triangular heavy gunship, unlike the HCPs, didn’t require constant power to the full-body electromagnetic muscles and joints, and many of the systems used for balance and attitude adjustment had been omitted.

So, after being fitted with two large subcritical reactors, the heavy armored gunship’s power supply was primarily dedicated to just three systems: the deflector shield, the main armament, and the main thrusters.

Initially, the radical Amber had actually wanted to install a warship-grade fusion reactor directly into this armored gunship.

But it was a bit too much to cram a reactor of that size into a fifty-meter-long frame. They would have to wait for the future miniaturization of fusion reactors.

Right now, the high-speed armored gunships and the three intercepting frigates were creating an extremely high angular velocity between them, making it nearly impossible for the heavy electromagnetic cannons to track them.

Even the turret rotation speeds of the charged particle cannons and high-energy laser turrets were becoming stretched thin.

Since the Imperial Royal Navy’s Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla was in the middle of a high-speed flyby, the three frigates didn’t dare to rashly change their orientation, as the resulting acceleration mismatch could easily cause them to fall behind the main force.

So, they could only rely on the omnidirectional turrets mounted on their hulls to attack, which was one of the current pain points for frigates performing fleet air defense missions.

At this moment, the air defense commanders on the three frigates were already sweating profusely. They had discovered that the protection on these three high-speed units was much better than they had anticipated.

The high-energy lasers, which tracked targets the fastest, seemed to be merely tickling the enemy when they hit, leaving only a few scorch marks. Moreover, the targets would immediately perform evasive maneuvers to dodge the beams.

And when they were hit by the charged particle beams from the charged particle cannons, a suddenly illuminating deflector shield would block the attack.

“What the hell are these things? So fast, and so well-protected…”

Just as the air defense commander of one of the frigates was commanding his ship’s anti-air combat from a simulated ‘God’s-eye view’ in his virtual pod, an alarm suddenly blared.

“Warning, strong electric field detected! Assessed as heavy particle cannon fire!”

The words had barely faded when six bright, blue-white beams flashed across the dark void. Their impact points all converged on a single frigate.

The pathetic top-deck defense of the Imperial Royal Navy’s Confessor-class frigate was laid bare in that instant.

The dual-barreled heavy particle cannons mounted on the MA-01s shredded a top armor plate that was unprotected by a deflector shield.

The breach created by the concentrated fire rapidly vented gas that hadn’t been evacuated, and the entire warship’s attitude began to spiral out of control. Like a flailing trash bag, it flung out a large amount of debris and unlucky crew members.

The jaw-droppingly shocked air defense commander had no time to mourn for his friendly forces and immediately shouted into the joint command channel:

“Quick, quick! All anti-air batteries, open fire! The enemy just fired their heavy particle cannons! Their deflector shields definitely haven’t had time to restore power!”

For a moment, in addition to the two frigates already on anti-air duty, several surrounding warships also began to provide supporting fire with their secondary armaments.

The orange trajectories of high-speed tungsten alloy penetrators, lasers, and charged particle beams crisscrossed above the fleet, creating a deadly rain of light. The three armored gunships weaved nimbly through it.

Their speed exceeded everyone’s expectations. The air defense commanders found that their interception window had been compressed by an unknown factor. Before they could even ‘weave’ a web of fire, the three armored gunships were right on top of them.

The weapons bays beneath their hulls had opened at some point, and a round plasma torpedo quickly detached from its hardpoint and flew out.

At that moment, this relatively slow weapon, boosted by the speed of the armored gunships, reached a relative velocity its kind had never achieved before.

As Dunkleosteus Squadron nimbly passed through the middle of the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Formation, three massive plasma fireballs ignited within the fleet behind them.

Chapter 334: Evil Atlas on the Prowl in Pyla

“The Hidden Blade’s superconducting battery stack has exploded! Attitude control failure! The captain has ordered to abandon ship!”

“The Libra and the Star are heavily damaged and have lost combat capability!”

“The Envoy reports its main thruster array is completely destroyed! The damage control team is attempting emergency repairs!”

Inside the flagship of the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, a string of cold sweat trickled down Viscount York’s forehead as he listened to the tactical coordinator’s report.

For the commander of a capital fleet, the loss of a frigate might be nothing more than a number.

But for a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla commander like him, losing a single ship was a painful blow.

Not to mention, in just a short span of time, one frigate had been destroyed and three others had lost their combat capability.

“Horn, am I dreaming?”

“Sir, please stay calm. The entire fleet is depending on you at a time like this.”

Horn’s words brought Viscount York back to his senses. He had indeed overreacted upon hearing the damage report.

After all, his Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, the attacking force meant to be carrying out a raid, had instead been struck first by the enemy. And those three unidentified units that had just torn through his fleet had dealt him a heavy blow right from the start.

Battles where one couldn’t grasp the tactical situation were often what these commanders dreaded most.

“Leave one frigate behind to pick up the Hidden Blade’s crew. All other warships, continue the attack. All ships, HCP squadrons commence launch procedures. Provide coordinated anti-air support while advancing with the attack!”

The entire Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla quickly responded to Viscount York’s command. Except for one frigate that reduced speed and approached the Hidden Blade to recover its crew, the other warships gradually formed into a tight spindle formation as they advanced.

Besides reducing their frontal cross-section, they also hoped that the denser anti-air fire from the closer formation would be able to intercept the unidentified units from before.

Jacob, for his part, had no intention of making one pass and running. He was preparing to test the MA-01’s penetration capabilities again.

From his very first day in ATT, he knew the unit’s mission was to push the limits of various prototypes in actual combat, and this was the perfect opportunity.

Therefore, after passing through the fleet, he adjusted his craft’s orientation to prevent attacks on its vulnerable rear hemisphere without changing course, and then issued the order to his squadron to continue the attack.

Once they had established a safe distance, the Dunkleosteus Squadron carved a wide arc through the dark expanse of space, re-aligning their course with the advancing Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla.

Only a pilot like Jacob, who had undergone extensive physical modification, could execute such a heading change in such a short time with minimal loss of speed.

In fact, all nine pilots in the three squadrons assigned to test the MA-01 were ‘Enhanced Humans’ like Jacob, who had received substantial physical modification.

By the time the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla’s air defense commander spotted Jacob and his team again, he knew this was bad.

This time, it wasn’t just three triangular craft charging at them—it was nine.

At the same time, the Atlas escort fleet up ahead opened fire. Since they were in a bombardment formation, their rate of fire was far greater than that of the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla in their tight spindle formation.

In an instant, a dense barrage of attacks enveloped the front of the ‘spindle’. Silvery-white arcs generated by the deflector shields twisted frantically. Every ship’s commander was praying that their vessel’s deflector shield generator would hold out and help them withstand a few more shots from the enemy’s main cannons.

Under such intense pressure, few people besides the air defense commanders could spare any attention for the ‘little things’ rushing toward them.

And even the air defense commanders, after designating the targets, could only clasp their hands and pray.

After all, most of the warships had diverted their main power supply to driving the deflector shields and to heat dissipation at the front of the hull.

The only assets available for anti-air defense were the hull-mounted weapons, their firing rates drastically reduced by the insufficient power supply, and the HCPs that had been launched to coordinate with the attack.

To be honest, having already witnessed the absurd penetration capability from the earlier pass, these air defense commanders had absolutely no confidence in facing an even larger number of unidentified craft.

And everything that happened next confirmed their fears.

The HCPs’ anti-air interception was almost completely ineffective. Not only did they struggle to track targets with relative velocities that easily reached hundreds of kilometers per second, but even when they were lucky enough to get a lock and a firing window, their anti-air fire had virtually no effect.

The MA-01’s parallel twin subcritical reactors had a much higher power output than the HCP’s, not to mention their fifty-meter frames allowed for even more powerful versions.

So the HCP pilots could only watch helplessly as the enemies, attacking from three directions, brazenly powered through the anti-air fire. After firing their heavy particle cannons, they unleashed a massive volley of plasma torpedoes into the fleet.

As a continuous chain of high-temperature plasma fireballs lit up the densest part of the formation, both Viscount York and his opponent, Cleves, knew that the outcome of the battle had been decided.

“‘Evil Atlas on the Prowl in Pyla’. Is this how the media in your country reports the news?”

In a private room in the Tower of Babel’s employee mess hall, designated for receiving foreign guests, Amber looked up from the various news reports from the Empire on his terminal and glanced at Perseus, who was seated opposite him.

The Regent Prince’s Special Envoy had come to Atlas Headquarters at this time for a simple purpose: to advance the rollout of the long-range real-time communication project.

According to Amber’s plan, several of the Yuge family’s cargo fleets were already deploying communication relay stations throughout the Star Dragon Empire while carrying out their transport missions.

But now that the Federation had brought the war into the Empire’s territory, the Regent Prince’s need for this technology had become far more urgent.

That was why he had dispatched Perseus personally to negotiate with Amber about expediting the project.

Since Perseus had arrived on Peony Star in the early morning, he had rested for a night before meeting Amber the following morning.

While they had breakfast, Amber browsed the Imperial news from the past two days, hoping to find some topics to make the opening less awkward.

Instead, he found a string of negative news reports about Atlas.

Starting with the failed raid by the Imperial Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, which had been forced to retreat after losing over half its ships, the following days saw Atlas escort fleets repeatedly rout several small-scale Imperial fleets engaged in guerrilla tactics.

Not only did this significantly improve the safety of the shipping routes, but Atlas had also famously made a clean escape from an encirclement by multiple Imperial fleets, a feat that had earned them headlines back in the Empire.

At Amber’s question, Perseus paused for a moment before replying with some embarrassment.

“The Regent Prince can’t control all the media outlets. And given your company’s fleet’s combat record… it’s inevitable that such sentiments would appear among the public.”

Perseus’s answer made Amber smile. He put down his terminal and looked Perseus straight in the eyes.

“In that case, are you sure you still want to work with a company like us… hmm, a company whose reputation in your Empire isn’t exactly stellar at the moment?”

Chapter 335: Aren’t You Really Afraid They’ll Start a Fight?

Amber’s question was pointed and sharp.

For the Regent Prince’s faction, the issue of public reputation was indeed something they needed to consider.

Especially at this sensitive time, if they continued to cooperate with Atlas, a company that currently appeared to have “close ties” with the Federation, would it push the Regent Prince into the eye of the storm of public opinion?

After all, although Norton II’s reputation in the Empire’s political circles and among the nobility was mixed—of course, this was private gossip—his reputation among the grassroots of the Imperial government, military, and the general populace had always been relatively positive.

This was also the area where the team responsible for maintaining the Regent Prince’s image had been diligently working on propaganda and packaging.

Although Norton II was indeed such a person, it was clear he hadn’t quite reached the “glorious, great, and correct” image crafted by his “image packaging team.”

At this critical juncture, if the cooperation between the Regent Prince’s faction and the Atlas Group were to be exposed and sensationalized by those with ulterior motives, it would be no small matter.

But for Norton II, while public image was important, the communication technology in Atlas’s hands was something he absolutely didn’t want to miss out on.

Moreover, based on his analysis of Amber, he was certain that this “black-hearted merchant” would immediately turn to the “Princess Faction” for cooperation the moment their deal fell through.

Therefore, Perseus’s next answer had to be cautious, as it would directly determine whether the two sides should continue their cooperation.

A moment later, Perseus gave his answer.

“Mr. Amber, our side is unwilling to give up on the cooperation with your esteemed company in the field of communication technology, no matter what.”

As soon as he said this, Amber, though outwardly calm, secretly curled his lip in his heart.

It was clearly the “Regent Prince Faction” coming to buy “packages” and “data plans” from him, but Perseus’s phrasing made it sound as if the technology was a product of their joint development.

However, he said nothing, maintaining a polite smile as he listened to what Perseus had to say next.

“Moreover, I recall your company stating in a previous notice that while you are helping the Federation transport supplies, you will not be directly participating in combat?

According to your notice, you are conducting… er… a Humanitarian Aid Mission?

If it’s just that, our side can find ways to guide public opinion.”

“Wait.” Amber couldn’t help but interrupt Perseus at this point.

“Our company is transporting supplies for the Federation military, which more or less counts as helping the Federation’s side in the war. Not to mention, we’ve taken out quite a few of your guerrilla fleets recently over escort issues. And you can still turn a blind eye, and even guide public opinion???”

“Business is like that sometimes.”

“Well, I’ll be. You’ve really opened my eyes.”

This time, it was Amber’s turn to be shocked.

He had never imagined that the Regent Prince Faction’s bottom line could be this low, to the point where it almost didn’t fit his persona.

Thinking of this, Amber couldn’t help but add:

“Is this your idea, or the Regent Prince’s?”

“You are indeed very perceptive, Mr. Amber.” Perseus sighed, then said with some helplessness, “This is my idea. I personally am quite keen to push for this cooperation to continue, but Sir Regent Prince hopes that Atlas can remain neutral in this war. That way, it would be better for both our sides to cooperate.”

“Remain neutral? That would mean I lose a lot of orders from the Federation, especially now when the front lines are in high demand for supplies. Do you have any idea how much we can earn from a single supply transport run?”

Amber showed a scornful expression in response to the Regent Prince Faction’s proposal.

Perseus knew their proposal was a bit much, so he immediately added:

“We are willing to make up for this shortfall for your company.”

“How much can you make up?”

Amber sat up straight and poured Perseus a cup of hot tea.

The latter was taken aback for a moment, still not quite accustomed to Amber’s attitude switching from “disdainful” one second to “eager” the next.

“Does that mean you agree?”

“I’m open to negotiation.”

After breakfast ended, the two of them walked out of the private room. Although the specific compensation amount hadn’t been finalized, Perseus had given a rough figure.

“I will have my company’s finance team carry out a cost analysis. Whether or not we can accept this figure will depend on the results of their calculations.”

“Then I shall await your reply.” Perseus looked at Amber with a serious and earnest gaze, continuing, “From a personal standpoint, I still hope to continue cooperating with your esteemed company.”

“Rest assured, I will consider it carefully, Mr. Perseus. Please spend the next two days exploring this planet and experiencing the local culture of the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Amber chatted with Perseus and finally saw him off into a private car. His expression was perfectly calm, revealing none of his true thoughts.

After the black luxury sedan had driven away, Isabelle walked up to Amber’s side.

“So you’re planning to accept their offer?”

“That’s right. I was already planning to announce our neutrality soon, to stop accepting military supply transport missions and only carry out humanitarian aid missions. Now that the Regent Prince’s side is willing to cover the profit gap from the ‘supply transport orders’, I honestly feel like thanking him.”

“But won’t that displease the Federation?” Isabelle still didn’t quite understand Amber’s decision.

“Have you forgotten that we’re a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire? This war, fundamentally, has nothing to do with us. Our stance is different from those private military companies and defense contractors from the Federation. It’s about time the outside world knew where Atlas stands. If this continues, everyone will start thinking we’re a Federation enterprise.”

Amber turned to look at Isabelle, who hesitated for a moment before continuing,

“What about the Loubion star system? We’ve invested so much there. If the Federation turns on us… will there be any risks?”

Hearing Isabelle’s words, Amber shook his head.

“Given the relationship between their autonomous government and the Federation government, and how recent Federation policies have been subtly making these autonomous governments more independent, almost like the ancient provincial governors of the Blue Star era, the risk isn’t that great. The only real risk is that they might try to take advantage of us being in the eye of the storm to pull a ‘plunder’ gambit.”

“Since you put it that way, it seems you already have a countermeasure?” Isabelle naturally took Amber’s arm, and they turned to walk back inside.

“More or less. Once our arrangements on Loubion have had a bit more time to develop, I’ll be completely at ease. If they dare to play the ‘plunder’ game with us, I don’t mind staging a little ‘dove occupies the magpie’s nest’ drama for them.”

“Alright, as long as you have a plan.”

Isabelle and Amber took a few more steps before the former suddenly remembered something and stopped to look at him.

“One last question. When should we arrange the meeting with the envoy from the ‘Princess Faction’?” At this, Isabelle couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Amber. “Putting the envoys from the ‘Princess Faction’ and the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ in adjacent residences… I can’t believe you came up with that. Aren’t you really afraid they’ll start a fight?”

“Hah~ I’m actually quite looking forward to seeing what happens when they meet.” Amber grinned mischievously. After running through his schedule for the day in his head, he spoke, “Let’s make it an hour from now. I’m eager to see what tricks the ‘Princess Faction’ has up its sleeve.”

Chapter 336: We’ll Have the Same Package

“You truly are a busy man, Mr. Rebil. It’s quite difficult to get a meeting with you.”

In the same meeting room that had once been used to receive Perseus, the special envoy of Her Highness Agnes, Baron BASF, a chemical industry magnate of the Star Dragon Empire, lifted his teacup and took a sip. Then, looking at Amber with profound meaning, he added, “Or perhaps, I should call you Mr. Amber?”

His opening gambit was to show he knew Amber’s true background, seizing the initiative in the conversation. This was Baron BASF’s pre-planned ‘negotiation strategy.’

As the special envoy personally appointed by Her Highness Agnes, the Baron, whose family was close to the Royal Family, was an absolutely die-hard member of the ‘Princess Faction.’

Naturally, he had obtained a great deal of intelligence on Atlas and Amber from Agnes, some of which had even been passed on by ‘moles’ the Princess Faction had planted within the Regent Prince’s camp.

Amber had no reaction to Baron BASF calling him by his real name right from the start, nor was he surprised.

He knew that as time went on and the Atlas Group and he himself stepped further into the limelight, his true identity was bound to be revealed.

He wondered what the Federation and the Empire would think when they discovered that a small pawn they once held had become what he was today.

As this thought crossed his mind, Amber’s gaze fell upon the pot of black tea on the table. If he wasn’t mistaken, the ‘cat-girl maid’ from earlier seemed to have taken it directly from the private room where he and Perseus had eaten breakfast.

She had simply added some hot water and a few new tea leaves on the way.

In the beginning, Atlas hadn’t exactly been flush with funds, and Amber wasn’t a particularly fastidious person, so they saved money wherever possible.

Furthermore, the majority of Atlas’s employees were Romu, a race with a tradition of ‘thrifty housekeeping.’

So now, even though Atlas had been ‘upgraded’ from a company to a group and its internal operating budget had gradually grown, this ethos of ‘frugality’ had been preserved.

This was especially true for the group of ‘financial gurus’ who had been ‘reformed’ in the ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison. It was hard to say whether their rehabilitation had been a success or if they’d been traumatized by something.

After arriving at Atlas, they no longer pursued any personal material comforts, content as long as their contractual salaries and benefits were guaranteed. All other funds were channeled into the company’s development.

This was why Atlas’s operating cost had remained at a relatively low level, and why, even while pushing forward with various technological research and development projects and a massive shipbuilding program, it could still scrape together a large sum to launch a ‘financial offensive’ in the Loubion star system.

“Mr. Amber?”

Seeing no reaction from the man across from him, Baron BASF frowned slightly and called out to him again.

He had expected some kind of reaction from the head of Atlas after he revealed his true name, but the man had actually just zoned out.

This also meant that this former deep-cover spy for the Imperial Navy’s Intelligence Division didn’t seem to care in the slightest that his real identity had been dug up.

“Ahem. My apologies, Viscount, Sir.”

“My title is Hereditary Baron, thank you.”

“Oh, oh, oh, my apologies, Hereditary Baron, Sir.”

Amber emphasized the word ‘Hereditary’, and BASF couldn’t help but feel that the man was being passive-aggressive about something.

The atmosphere in the meeting room instantly became slightly awkward.

The special envoy of Her Highness Agnes had never imagined that his negotiation with Amber would begin like this, rendering some of the scenarios and talking points he had prepared in advance temporarily useless.

Before he could think of what to say next to break the awkward silence, he heard Amber continue:

“I hope you won’t take it to heart. The entire Group has been incredibly busy lately. When another client from your esteemed country, Mr. Perseus, was here, he also had to wait for more than ten days before I could meet with him. Thinking back on it now, I still feel rather bad about it…”

“Wait? Who? Mr. Amber, did you just say Perseus?!”

“Yes. It seems you are also acquainted with the gentleman, Baron?”

“Acquainted is an understatement…”

Baron BASF nearly lost control of his expression, but he managed to force it to remain impassive.

Although the Princess Faction already knew the Regent Prince had sent someone to make contact with Atlas, BASF had certainly not expected Norton II to send Perseus directly.

That man and Astral, as the right-hand men of the Regent Prince Norton II, had long enjoyed the ‘fine reputation’ of ‘Norton’s Twin Hounds’ within the Princess Faction’s camp, and had always been regarded as thorns in their side.

At the same time, the family behind Perseus and the family behind BASF had always been each other’s greatest rivals. Business conflicts between the two often escalated into small-scale violent clashes due to their ‘faction’ allegiances.

That was why Baron BASF was so shocked to hear the name.

He even wondered if he and Perseus were fated rivals; otherwise, how could he run into the man everywhere he went?

And now, the head of the Atlas Group had just left the number three figure of the Regent Prince Faction hanging for ten days?

BASF was sure Amber wouldn’t joke about something like this, unless he had no intention of doing further business with them.

Instantly, he found that his earlier displeasure had vanished upon hearing this news.

Even the special envoy sent by Norton II had been kept waiting for more than ten days. He found that a sense of balance had been restored within him.

After composing himself, Baron BASF spoke again.

“It seems the cooperation between His Excellency the Regent Prince and your company is not just a rumor?”

“Hahaha, of course it’s not a rumor. It’s just still in progress, so it hasn’t been made public,” Amber said, a slight smile on his face as he looked at Baron BASF.

Although the Princess Faction’s special envoy before him was hiding his expression well, Amber could see that he had already ‘taken the bait.’

“If I may be so bold as to ask, what area of cooperation have His Excellency the Regent Prince and your company embarked on?”

Unaware that his true thoughts had been exposed, Baron BASF was still probing cautiously.

“A humble man like myself has already done some research on your company and found that your industries have quite a broad scope: defense contracting, mining, equipment R&D and manufacturing, shipbuilding…”

“That’s a business secret. I’m not really at liberty to disclose it.”

“Mr. Amber, that’s not very forthcoming of you. You just said it would be announced later, which means it can’t be some secret collaboration. What’s so inconvenient about revealing it?”

There was a hint of complaint in BASF’s tone, clearly dissatisfied with Amber’s response.

“Hahaha…” Amber chuckled sheepishly and said no more, instead projecting the updated communications service price list into the meeting room.

Ten minutes later, after having read the entire price list from top to bottom several times, Baron BASF’s breathing had become ragged.

“Mr. Amber, are you certain the contents of this communication service aren’t exaggerated for advertising?”

“Not at all. The service is exactly as advertised. If you don’t believe me, I can let you experience it for yourself shortly.”

“Excellent, excellent. Let me make one thing clear: whatever package Perseus and his people chose, we want the same one!”

Chapter 337: The Statement and Advertisement Combo

If Baron BASF had harbored a sliver of doubt before, it was completely dispelled after he contacted Her Highness Agnes, who was far away in Saint-Saulnier, through the “trial service.” The reaction of the Princess Faction’s Special Envoy was practically identical to that of the Regent Prince’s Special Envoy, Perseus.

Moreover, the current “quantum entanglement communication” technology was a more advanced version, modified by Salieh based on the Jeram people’s technical experience in this field.

Therefore, Baron BASF’s experience was even better than that of Perseus at the time.

“If this communication technology is rolled out, it will absolutely change the world.”

Baron BASF’s expression was still somewhat fanatical after he returned to the reception room.

“Mr. Amber, your company created such a technology, and all you can think of is using it to make money?”

“What else? Release it to the public to advance the world’s development? I never thought you had such a broad mind, Baron. You truly have all of humanity in your heart~”

Amber said, a bit annoyed, “You’ve seen the situation here at Atlas these past few days. I have so many people to feed. If I don’t make more money, how will I support them?”

“Alright, what I said just now was indeed a bit presumptuous. Please disregard it, Mr. Amber.”

After Amber’s sarcastic remark, BASF realized that his words had been inappropriate. At the same time, he began to calm down from his earlier fanaticism.

He collected his thoughts and then continued, “As I just said, regardless of which package Perseus and his people choose, please give us the same service. The cost is not an issue.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. Since Her Highness Agnes has fully entrusted me to contact you, she has naturally granted me the corresponding authority,” Baron BASF replied confidently.

“Then, could you answer a question for me, Baron? Is this a partnership with the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, or is it a private partnership with Her Highness Agnes alone?”

“It is naturally the latter. If it were a partnership with the Royal Family, I would not be the one here discussing it with you.”

Hearing his answer, Amber nodded and said, “Then before we continue our discussion, there is something I must make clear to you.”

Amber then repeated the same speech he had given Perseus.

After hearing it, Baron BASF, like the Regent Prince’s envoy, fell into contemplation.

He then made almost the exact same suggestion as Perseus, hoping that Atlas could be more neutral, and that they were willing to offer some compensation in this regard.

—

Several days later, the special envoys from the two major factions of the Empire signed comprehensive cooperation agreements with Atlas for its communication services, one right after the other.

According to the agreements, they would pay an additional fee on top of the “package fee” in exchange for Atlas’s “relative neutrality” in the war. This would facilitate better cooperation and minimize the impact of negative public opinion.

In return, Atlas was required to issue a public statement clarifying its position in the war.

In fact, Amber and his team had already prepared this statement.

The Public Relations Department had drafted the relevant announcement long before the war fully escalated. Publicly declaring the Atlas Group’s stance was just one part of their plan.

Soon, through the unmanned communication relay nodes that had been deployed everywhere during this period, a video statement released by Atlas’s “Head of External Propaganda,” Skadi, spread rapidly throughout the Federation and the Empire.

The statement’s content was divided into two parts.

The first part was an introduction to the Atlas Group, including its scope of business, corporate culture, and so on. It emphasized that it was a company established in the Thousand Stars Empire by many like-minded “peace lovers.”

The second part declared the Atlas Group’s neutral stance in the current war between the two major human powers.

This part of the video statement also included a segment of real footage from the frontline, which was specially selected to fully display the brutality of war.

At the end of this part, Skadi also made a special announcement that Atlas’s humanitarian aid teams would soon be heading to the various frontlines to set up temporary refugee shelters, providing a temporary place for civilians displaced by the war.

Because Amber had specifically chosen Skadi, an elf from the Thousand Stars Empire, to deliver the speech, the credibility of the statement was instantly heightened.

With Lilith pulling strings behind the scenes, the video statement spread quickly among the civilian population before the officials of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire could even react.

When people saw an elf making the statement, their first reaction was one of novelty. After listening to it, they found it very reasonable.

After all, in the eyes of most civilians who had never been to the Thousand Stars Empire, elves were supposed to be such a “peace-loving” race.

This round of video statements achieved Amber’s expected results, successfully implanting the idea of “Atlas is a company based in the Thousand Stars Empire that pursues development and loves peace” into the minds of most people who saw it.

Two days after the video statement went viral, when “Atlas” had become a topic of discussion on every street and alley, a brand-new corporate image promotional video began to spread rapidly online once again.

The ad began with intense battlefield camera footage and shots of a city in ruins after a battle. Accompanied by a somber musical intro, many people’s hearts clenched the moment they saw a little girl walking alone down the street, with armed personnel who were clearly “enemies” appearing in front of her.

Then, a steady male voice began a voice-over:

“Some tragedies, we can neither avoid nor forget.

It will be deeply etched into your mind until the day you die.

When this happens to you, how do you respond?

Run away? Or accept your fate?”

The well-timed questions made the people watching the ad frown and ponder.

With the war already underway, such a scene was not actually that distant from them.

Although they had not yet been completely swept up in the war, no one could be certain that it would never happen to them.

At the same time, the visuals changed again. A huge gymnasium filled with body bags appeared on screen. The number of body bags was so large that they were almost piled into a small mountain.

“Do you feel like you can’t find an answer? That there’s no way out?”

Upon hearing this line, many people who were deep in thought even nodded involuntarily.

Then, the screen, which had faded to black, changed again. The darkness gave way to a shot of a heavy truck loaded with supplies bursting out of a tunnel.

The background music transitioned seamlessly into a melody that inspired hope, and the male voice of the narrator became more passionate.

“But now, we have found a way out. We have found it by working together.”

“When you are ravaged by the flames of war, we will protect you.”

Armed personnel with the Atlas logo appeared on screen, protecting the little girl who had just been wandering alone in the ruins, retreating with her to a safe location amidst a hail of gunfire.

Interestingly, in the version of the ad seen in the Empire, the unknown armed personnel firing at the Atlas troops and the little girl looked like “Federation soldiers.”

But in the Federation’s version of the ad, it was the exact opposite.

“When you are hungry and cold, we will provide you with the most basic protection and shelter.”

The scene changed again to a large number of Atlas personnel putting away their weapons and distributing supplies to civilians with the help of an HCP.

“When chaos strikes, we will bring order.”

This time, the ad’s scene shifted to a group of armed thugs attacking refugees. Just as a barrage of grenades was about to fall into the crowd, several lasers shot them down in mid-air.

Immediately after, a red-painted HCP landed like a hero arriving on the scene, positioning itself in front of the refugees.

From a specially chosen camera angle, the HCP looked like a towering guardian as it raised its heavy shield and activated its deflector shield, blocking every incoming attack.

“Stability, security, and a chance to get your old life back.”

“Who are we?”

“We are the pioneers who forge ahead.”

“We are Atlas.”

When the distinctive Atlas logo appeared on the screen, many people finally let out a long sigh of relief.

But even more people remained immersed in the imagery and voice-over, unable to pull themselves away.

A few days later, after this “corporate image promotional video” had spread like a virus, Lilith, who had been monitoring online public opinion, could no longer contain her excitement. She appeared in Amber’s office and exclaimed:

“It’s gone viral! It’s gone totally viral, Master!!!”

Chapter 338: A Third Encore

As the Atlas Group’s first proper, large-scale external publicity campaign, its effects had truly exceeded Amber’s expectations.

First came a round of announcements to draw attention. Then, striking while the iron was hot, they released a corporate promotional video to capture the public’s eye. The timing they chose was perfect—right when the two major human powers were erupting into a hot war.

Although many people had not yet been swept up into the war, its effects in other areas had already begun to ripple into their daily lives.

Soaring prices, curfews, being unable to leave one’s planet without a special reason, and the implementation of information control in star systems near the warzones.

More and more people began to worry whether the war would befall them tomorrow, whether the enemy would descend from the heavens the next day.

So, during this period, the hottest topics online in both the Federation and the Empire were things like “How to Save Yourself When War Comes” and “Warzone Survival Guide.”

Originally, there had also been a large amount of information like “Frontline Battlefield Records,” but these were quickly deleted on a massive scale by Federation and Imperial officials under the pretext of being “bloody, violent, and likely to cause unnecessary panic.”

At a time when public interest in this personally relevant war was extremely high, Atlas’s release of a related statement and corporate promotional video easily rode the wave of popularity.

The effect of the promotion was completely different, especially because the video’s angle wasn’t about advertising how powerful Atlas was, but about how Atlas would help ordinary people.

But if it were merely a matter of good content, in this age where major media platforms use algorithms for promotion and create one information cocoon after another, such a promotional video might not have been seen by many people. The final result would likely have been a stone sinking into the sea, unable to make a single wave.

Therefore, the “assistance” of these media platforms was indispensable.

However, Amber also had a strong aversion to these media companies that used algorithms to control the daily information consumption of ordinary people.

So, from the very beginning, he had no intention of seeking their cooperation to buy traffic. Instead, he prepared to get it all for free.

No matter how strong the encryption on a civilian media company’s core server was, could it possibly be stronger than the Federation’s military network or the Empire’s Internal Affairs Department?

Thus, with Lilith’s effortless initial infiltration, the back-end systems of several major media companies in both the Federation and the Empire, along with their primary products, were secretly compromised by her.

The moment the Atlas Group’s official account published the statement and promotional video, they immediately received the highest level of promotion: splash screen ads, all sorts of notifications, plus maxed-out exposure, ensuring that the first thing everyone saw when they opened the relevant app was these two pieces of information.

At the same time, a strange phenomenon emerged within these media companies.

For a short period, no one pointed out that the content released by the Atlas Group was receiving an abnormal level of promotion.

The level of exposure was so ridiculously high that it made people think it was probably a huge new business deal the company had just landed.

Even if some people felt something was amiss, they didn’t plan to point it out. After all, a promotion with maxed-out exposure wasn’t something one or two departments could decide on their own; it also involved scheduling and other issues.

What if I jump out and say there’s a problem, only to find out it really is some huge project? When the boss asks, “You don’t know about a project this big?” I wouldn’t even know how to answer.

So in this workplace environment where “self-preservation” was the core mission, the subordinates thought the boss had landed a big deal, while the boss assumed the subordinates had negotiated a major contract and was waiting to see the profits on the financial report. For a time, it occurred to no one that there might be anything wrong with the situation.

This doubt completely vanished, especially after seeing that, besides their own platforms, the two posts were also published and heavily promoted on the platforms of their industry competitors.

There was no way everyone’s systems could be having problems at the same time, right?

Only one thought remained in everyone’s mind: this company called “Atlas” really had some clout.

And so, with the “assistance” of the major platforms, the two posts published by the Atlas Group quickly became the biggest trending topics.

Some media companies’ analysis teams even held special meetings to analyze the effects of this large-scale promotion, treating it as a successful marketing case study.

All of this continued until the bosses of several companies began to inquire about the profit margins of this deal. Only then did each company realize that something seemed to be wrong.

They couldn’t find any record of cooperation with the Atlas Group. Apart from publishing those two pieces of content on the platform, the other party had no further interaction with them.

The employees of each company’s technical department immediately began to check the back-end records, including the server’s lowest-level write logs.

They found that all processes were in order, with no signs of being hacked. Everything had proceeded according to regulations. The only problem was that no one remembered doing any of it.

A terrifying answer suddenly appeared in their minds…

They had probably been gotten for free.

And they couldn’t even prove it.

—

As the old saying goes, a man fears fame as a pig fears growing fat.

When Atlas successfully became famous and a company under intense scrutiny through this large-scale publicity campaign, the Federation government came calling.

In fact, the Federation government had already started paying attention to Atlas after the battle on Loubion V. This time, because the popularity it generated was so immense that it even sparked small-scale anti-war sentiment among the populace, they came directly to their door to “call them to account.”

As it turned out, the public relations team responsible for their reception simply pulled out their well-prepared talking points.

“We are a corporation from the Thousand Stars Empire. We do not interfere in the internal affairs of other nations, nor are we required to respond to the Federation’s corporate recruitment orders.”

“We only signed a basic material transport contract between us, and it has already expired. As our company does not intend to renew, this action does not constitute a breach of contract.”

“Didn’t the Federation government previously plan to have private corporations carry out ‘humanitarian aid’ missions in the warzone? We are now doing this for free, we just won’t be flying the Federation’s flag. You also save a hefty commission, don’t you?”

As the Federation government representative was left speechless, the Public Relations Department employee handling the meeting produced the introductory information for the “communication service package.”

The Federation representative’s attitude, and everything that happened next, was just like what had occurred in this same meeting room some time ago.

First came disbelief, then an invitation to experience it, and then he was completely won over.

Especially after learning that this service was already in cooperation with the Empire, the Federation government’s representative realized that they had to secure this service. At the same time, he understood the “well-meaning intention” behind Atlas’s desire to remain neutral in the war.

“You’re just trying to sell to both sides.”

“No, no, that’s a bit crude, Mr. Representative. We call this treating every partner equally. If our company were to favor one nation during our cooperation with both countries, wouldn’t the other nation harbor deep prejudices and attribute some of its battlefield losses to us?”

Although he was unimpressed with Atlas’s “sophistry,” the Federation government ultimately decided to cooperate with Atlas.

The reason was simple: they had to have what the Star Dragon Empire had, especially this era-defining communication technology, which very well might have the power to change the course of the war.

Chapter 339: The Fluttering Red Cross

Amber had, in fact, anticipated cooperating with the Federation.

After all, as one of humanity’s largest powers, those corporations couldn’t compare to the Federation in scale, and the potential profits from collaboration were an order of magnitude higher.

So Amber had long been prepared to work with such an official body; he just hadn’t expected it to happen so soon.

But now that they had come knocking on his door, of course, he wasn’t about to pass up this business.

A few days later, formal cooperation agreements between Atlas, the Federation government, the Regent Prince Faction, and the Princess Faction were drafted. Amber attended three signing ceremonies in a single day.

Soon, massive deposits from all three parties, including the ‘compensation’ from the Regent Prince and The Princess, were transferred to Atlas’s account.

Unmanned communication relay nodes began to be produced in a steady stream and loaded onto ships.

This time, in addition to the Yuge family’s fleet, Atlas’s own transport fleet officially joined the deployment plan. They entered Federation and Imperial territory openly and began deploying the unmanned communication relay nodes in deep space.

As the ‘dots of light’ representing the communication relay nodes on the star chart slowly spread from a mere handful to a network creeping into both nations, a look of satisfaction appeared on Amber’s face.

This was because it not only represented the expansion of Atlas’s business, officially setting it on the ‘path to monopoly’ in the communications industry, but also signified the complete deployment of a vast intelligence-gathering network covering both nations.

Moreover, the current situation between Atlas, the Federation, and the Star Dragon Empire was like boiling a frog slowly.

On the surface, it appeared as if the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were acquiring some brand-new communication technology. In reality, once they became completely dependent on it with no alternative, they would find themselves caught in the large net Atlas had carefully woven.

When that time came, as long as Atlas could defend this system, it would naturally hold the upper hand in any dialogue with these two major powers.

Naturally, the Federation government, Norton II, and Her Highness Agnes were not oblivious to this issue.

They were not fools and could easily grasp the stakes involved.

But they were now trapped in a kind of ‘chain of suspicion’ and an ‘arms race’. Due to the peculiar relationship between the three parties, they were obviously not going to communicate with one another, so they could only assume the worst—that their ‘rivals’ had already begun cooperating with Atlas.

It was precisely because of this situation that they, not wanting to fall behind in this technology, had to bite the bullet and cooperate with Atlas.

At the same time, these three factions would not be content to simply be ‘users’. They all held their own plans of cracking and replicating the system once it was officially operational.

However, with Lilith’s existence, such an idea could only be described as far too naive.

With the start of formal cooperation, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire now tacitly approved of the Atlas Group providing ‘humanitarian aid’ to refugees from the war on the front lines.

The frontline troops of both sides soon received orders from their respective high commands: as long as Atlas’s teams did not interfere with combat operations, they were not to be attacked or provoked. They were to use their own discretion when it came to ‘providing convenience’ or ‘giving the green light’.

——

Under Amber’s direction, the first region Atlas chose to deploy humanitarian aid to was Parra IV, a place they had visited many times before to deliver supplies.

After a grueling planetary landing operation, a large number of Federation forces had been deployed to the planet, amounting to seventy combined arms brigades.

However, during the airborne drop, despite the Federation military deploying numerous aerospace fighters as decoys to draw fire from ground-based anti-aircraft defenses, the losses of aerospace transports still reached an astonishing number.

This directly resulted in most of the troops deployed to the planet’s surface being under-strength, giving them no significant advantage in overall combat power against the Imperial ground forces currently on the planet.

At present, the Imperial defenders on the planet were no longer conducting mobile warfare. They knew full well that maneuvering on the plains would make them easy targets for orbital strikes from the Federation Navy, which had already secured space superiority.

Therefore, these forces had all withdrawn to the major cities and strongholds of Pyla IV, preparing for a cornered beast’s last stand.

And while the Federation’s offensive force now held the initiative, their situation was not much better.

Because the Imperial forces had given up on mobile warfare, the Federation military had to bite the bullet and begin the urban assaults and street fighting that the army was most reluctant to face.

When the Atlas fleet arrived, emblazoned with the company’s logo and a giant red cross, the Federation’s front-line commander felt a surge of complicated emotions.

He watched the fleet ‘swim’ across the screen like a massive school of fish and asked his adjutant, his tone laced with complexity:

“Are you sure this is a ‘humanitarian aid’ fleet?”

After all, a fleet consisting of ninety combat vessels and eighty transport ships of various types could hardly be called small.

Although the fleet contained no capital ships, the proportion of light cruisers had increased significantly after a period of gradual refitting.

“High Command has already relayed the relevant directives. And in my opinion, this is indeed a ‘humanitarian aid fleet.’ Look, their hulls are all painted with the ‘Red Cross’ symbol.

With that marking, they wouldn’t dare do anything on the battlefield that would compromise their position. Otherwise, not only would their credibility be destroyed, but they would also disgrace this sacred symbol.”

“That’s true. The Red Cross symbol… how long has it been since it appeared in this form?”

“Ever since a civilian Red Cross organization was bombed in a warzone during the last major war, no one has been willing to provide aid under this banner.”

The adjutant couldn’t help but sigh as he recounted this:

“Back then, both we and the Imperials got completely carried away. The so-called ‘rules of engagement’ were basically tossed out the window by both sides midway through the war.”

“Isn’t that what war is? When you’re in a life-or-death struggle, who’s going to genuinely abide by all these non-binding rules and regulations?”

The Federation front-line commander stared at the fleet before him and finally said:

“Let’s hope they can truly maintain their neutrality and not do anything to interfere with this war. Pass the order: all patrol fleets are to maintain surveillance. As long as they don’t overstep their bounds, do not interfere, and do not offer assistance.”

At this, the front-line commander couldn’t help but let out a cold snort. “I’d like to see just how they plan to land their supplies and personnel.”

Chapter 340: Atmospheric Projection

“Looks like the Federation fleet is waiting to see us make a fool of ourselves.”

From the captain’s chair of The Hermes, Cleves spoke as he watched the patrol fleet ‘spectating’ in the distance.

Although the nearby Federation Navy fleet had permitted their passage and subsequent actions, they had still dispatched a number of patrol fleets to monitor them from the periphery.

While the warships were on different headings, their orientation was uniformly aimed at the Atlas fleet—a typical state of armed alert. Should any unexpected situation arise, these warships could open fire immediately.

On the virtual screen next to the captain’s chair, the bridge of The Ares was displayed. Randall, the Atlas fleet’s Second in Command, was currently holding a Tetra Pak of red tea, a straw in his mouth, sipping it intermittently.

After hearing his underclassman’s words, the former Federation Navy Major, who had voluntarily transferred to the position of Second in Command, also glanced at the distant Federation fleet.

“Isn’t that the truth. Although the Federation’s top brass issued a statement welcoming our ‘humanitarian aid’ mission to display the so-called ‘radiance of humanity,’ it’s not so pretty when it filters down to the rank and file. They’re probably terrified we’ll interfere with their operations right now.”

“Understandable. After all, they’re conducting a combat mission in a hostile zone. If it were me, I’d give them the cold treatment too.”

After a brief pause, Cleves looked at the relaxed Randall and couldn’t help but speak again.

“Colonel, I’m starting to think you volunteered for the position of Fleet Second in Command just so you could slack off under me.”

“No, no, no, don’t say that.” Randall turned his head to look at the screen.

“When it comes to fleet command, I don’t consider myself your equal. So it’s better for a key position like this to be handled by a professional like you. Wouldn’t you agree, Amber?”

“No. Leave me out of this.”

On an auxiliary chair to the right of The Hermes’ captain’s chair, Amber, who had been catching up on sleep with an eye mask on, sat up with a helpless expression.

Since this operation was currently Atlas’s most high-profile and largest-scale action, he, as the head of the corporation, had ultimately chosen to oversee it personally.

He was also prepared to jump down from orbit to provide support at a moment’s notice—though in the eyes of the Atlas old guard, this was purely an excuse for Amber’s ‘itchy fingers.’

Although a psionic user’s physical constitution was far superior to that of an ordinary person, Amber had been involved in quite a few major events recently and was still somewhat tired, both physically and mentally. So, during the fleet’s warp, he had seized the opportunity to rest.

“If we’re going by Colonel Randall’s logic, I think the Boss is actually better at fleet command than I am. Wouldn’t it be better to have the Boss take direct command?”

Hearing Randall’s words, Cleves also laughed and joined in the banter.

“If I’m the fleet commander, are the two of you going to jump from orbit to put out fires in my place?” Amber said, a little exasperated.

“No way, that’s too rough on the body.” On the screen, Randall waved his hands repeatedly.

“We don’t have the monstrous physiques of you ‘brutes,’ able to just drop down in an HCP.”

“Yeah, Boss. I heard from some of the guys in the HCP squadron that you’ve been leading them in their recent orbital drop training?” Cleves, sitting beside him, asked while pulling a Tetra Pak of red tea from the storage compartment of the captain’s chair and handing it to Amber.

“I wasn’t there for all of it. It just so happened that I was around a few times when the HCP squadron was dropping with the ‘hive’ units, so I joined in to check on the ‘hive’s’ test performance.”

As he spoke, Amber took the red tea from Cleves, opened it, and took a sip.

“By the way, do all of you from the Federation Navy like to drink red tea on the battlefield?”

“It’s an old tradition, supposedly passed down in the Naval Academy’s command division. It can be traced back to an ancient nation from the Blue Star era called ‘Britannia’.”

Hearing this name, Amber almost spat out the red tea in his mouth.

He knew that the lore of Starry Sky Online was a patchwork of different things, but he never expected them to stitch in this much.

Just as he was about to delve deeper with Cleves into whether this nation called ‘Britannia’ ever had rumors of its 99th emperor being ‘assassinated,’ the voice of the shipboard control AI suddenly sounded.

“Attention, the transport ship detachment responsible for the deployment operation has entered the designated orbit. The operation is expected to begin in thirty minutes.”

“The ten combined arms battalions responsible for preliminary security are successively entering the deployment bays of their respective ships, awaiting deployment.”

“The first batch of airdropped supply crates and ten ‘hive’ units have completed preparations in their respective deployment bays.”

“After the ‘hive’ units complete the construction of the basic encampment, subsequent personnel and supplies will be transported via aerospace transport.”

After reporting the subsequent deployment arrangements, the shipboard control AI on The Hermes, who bore a striking resemblance to Lilith, turned to face Amber.

“Boss, shall we commence the preliminary ‘preparatory work’ immediately?”

“Unless there are special circumstances during the mission, all actions are to be based on the Fleet Commander’s orders. Write that into your core operating principles.”

“Understood. Writing now.”

The shipboard control AI’s eyes flickered, and a cascade of data like a digital waterfall flowed through them.

A moment later, the AI looked at Cleves and repeated the question.

“Begin the operation.”

“As you command.”

The form of the shipboard control AI vanished. Cleves turned his head to look at Amber and said:

“Boss, you could have just given the order directly. There’s no need to be so formal.”

“No, it’s better to be rigorous on the battlefield and clearly define responsibilities. You’re the Fleet Commander; these decisions should be yours to make. Unless you’ve truly lost your mind, I shouldn’t interfere with your decision-making. Otherwise, our command structure will fall into chaos in the future…”

Amber paused, an old acquaintance involuntarily coming to mind, then continued jokingly:

“I trust the ground troops don’t want to receive a communication from me out of the sky, giving an order like ‘move the machine gun nest 50 meters to the left,’ do they?”

“Hahaha, that’s true.”

“As Atlas continues to grow, given the special nature of our company, I expect we’ll be facing all sorts of armed conflicts in the future. And I’m only one person; I can’t be involved in commanding every battle. So I want to start cultivating the ‘initiative’ of our commanders at every level, starting now.”

While Amber and Cleves were discussing future plans for Atlas’s ‘command echelon,’ under the control of The Hermes’ shipboard control AI, the flagship’s orders were swiftly transmitted to every ship in the fleet.

Soon, ten destroyers lowered their orbit, positioning themselves above the ten planned airdrop zones.

A hatch on the bottom deck of each warship opened, and a device resembling an oversized ‘searchlight’ was pushed out.

As the destroyers descended further, these specialized devices, developed based on ‘atmospheric projection technology,’ began to activate.

‘Atmospheric projection technology,’ a technique typically used to enhance the festive atmosphere during holidays, was being used by Atlas in a novel way this time.

In the areas surrounding the ten planned airdrop zones, combatants and civilians on both sides stopped what they were doing and raised their heads.

Above them, on the canvas they called the sky, a giant Red Cross symbol and the Atlas logo slowly appeared, as if drawn by a pair of invisible, giant hands.

Chapter 341: Airdrop in Progress

“Attention, all warring parties. This is the Atlas humanitarian aid fleet. We are now preparing to airdrop humanitarian supplies. We urge both sides to comply with the relevant articles of the Treaty of Pyla and cease fire to avoid accidental casualties.”

As the enormous Red Cross and Atlas logos appeared in the sky, Atlas’s voice announcement was broadcast on public communication channels, the international rescue channel, and other open frequencies.

“Hah, they even brought up the Treaty of Pyla? You think anyone’s actually going to respect that thing?”

In the command post of a Federation ground unit, the commander asked his staff officer with some amusement.

The Treaty of Pyla he mentioned was a document signed by the Federation and the Empire during the last great war, a treaty concerning the protection of basic human rights in war zones, with the aim of preventing the war from excessively affecting civilians.

Hearing his commander’s question, the staff officer replied with a smile:

“Aren’t we complying right now? I just don’t know if those Imperials on the other side will. After all, they’re like cornered beasts right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if they did something crazy.”

“True. But I’ve heard this company, Atlas, also works with the Empire. I figure if they have the guts to come to a war zone for a mission like this, they must have gotten the Empire’s endorsement, right?”

“Most likely. The Imperial high command probably issued the same orders as ours, but whether the frontline troops will obey is another matter entirely~”

“Hmph, then let’s just wish Atlas good luck.”

After saying this, the commander turned his head towards the communications squad on the other side of the command post.

“Communications Officer, relay my orders! Have the frontline units increase surveillance on the Atlas units! If there are any irregularities, issue a warning first. If the warning is ignored, open fire!”

The ground forces of both sides had indeed received related intelligence beforehand.

The Imperial garrison, practically abandoned pawns at this point, though they weren’t too keen on the orders from high command, were currently on the defensive and unwilling to actively interfere with Atlas’s airdrop operation.

After all, when selecting the drop zones, the airdrop commanders had deliberately avoided the most intense combat areas and had also chosen open terrain far from the cities.

If they were to drag out their anti-aircraft units, the Federation forces on the other side probably wouldn’t mind launching a saturation attack on any units that came into range.

As for the Federation ground forces, they were more receptive to the orders from their high command, especially since the number of refugees was growing as the war dragged on.

By this point, civil order on Parra IV had basically collapsed. Many refugees lacked basic necessities. Facing a survival crisis, some of the bolder ones had even approached Federation positions seeking aid.

But the Federation forces were on high alert, because no one knew if these people who suddenly appeared were truly refugees. What if Imperial special forces had infiltrated their ranks?

Moreover, as ‘invaders,’ they were well aware that most of the sentient inhabitants of this planet did not welcome their arrival. Who knew if there were extremists among the refugees, carrying bombs and planning a suicide attack?

So, these ground forces, unlike the Federation Navy in space, actually hoped that Atlas’s ‘humanitarian aid team’ wouldn’t pull any stunts and could really establish themselves as they claimed, drawing the refugees away.

When the 30-minute preparation period ended, Atlas’s airdrop operation began in earnest.

The large orbital landing ships, converted from transport vessels, were not yet equipped with weapons and thus couldn’t perform orbital strikes, but they had no problem carrying out the orbital drop mission.

In fact, the internal volume freed up by the lack of weapon systems even allowed them to carry more supplies and personnel.

Not long after these large orbital landing ships entered the ‘airdrop operation orbit,’ those on the ground staring up at the giant Red Cross in the sky saw cluster after cluster of ‘meteors’ with long fiery tails streaking out from amid the Red Cross and Atlas logos.

These ‘meteors’ that kicked off the airdrop were elite pilots from various HCP squadrons who had volunteered for the mission.

As the specialized HCP airdrop pods descended to the predetermined altitude and blew open as programmed, the ‘Aegis’ units, which had just been issued to the elite squadrons, all activated the ‘downward-looking mode’ of their sensor units.

“Landing zone clear, no anomalies detected. Combatant units have not crossed the warning line!”

“Stay sharp, this is a real battlefield now!”

As they descended further, the falling ‘Aegis’ units activated the plasma thruster arrays on their backs and the attitude control thrusters positioned across their frames.

This was the most dangerous point of an HCP orbital drop.

The intense heat generated by atmospheric friction on their external armor, combined with the heat from the operating plasma thruster arrays, made them as conspicuous as fireflies in the night sky to infrared sensors.

Not to mention, their complex silhouettes allowed anti-aircraft search radars to easily lock onto their positions.

Under this dual lock, if ground-based anti-aircraft units were to open fire, the hit probability would be no less than ninety-five percent, and the HCPs could only rely on their external armor and deflector shields to withstand the hits.

Fortunately, however, perhaps because this was the first time either side had faced an airdrop from a third party like Atlas, both sides showed unusual restraint, and there were no incidents of any units ‘accidentally misfiring.’

Soon, the entire first wave of HCPs landed safely.

Although everyone had been tense during the drop, after landing, the pilots didn’t hesitate for a moment. They immediately moved towards their nearby teammates and quickly formed a small defensive perimeter.

“Landing zone secured! We can begin the ‘hive’ deployment!”

“Roger that. This is airdrop command. Commencing phase two of the airdrop operation. All ships, begin sliding out the ‘hives.’ Relevant atmospheric data has been updated again via datalink. Adjust settings accordingly.”

As the airdrop commander issued the new orders, in the largest deployment bays of each orbital landing ship, multiple massive, black, sixteen-sided objects were pushed out onto their launch rails.

When the green light indicating ‘commence operation’ lit up, the locking mechanisms on the rails disengaged.

Pulled by the planet’s gravity, the black hexadecahedrons slipped off the rails, detaching from the undersides of the landing ships like eggs being laid, and plummeted towards the atmosphere.

Chapter 342: The Navy Got a New Battleship, and the Army Got…

For the Federation and Imperial armies locked in a bitter struggle on Parra IV, and for the civilians whose normal lives had been upended by the war, leaving them in a constant state of anxiety, the appearance of Atlas was like a beacon of light in the chaos.

This was especially true after Atlas literally started playing with “sky projectors,” drawing the eyes of everyone near the drop zone.

In the memory of Parra IV’s Imperial civilians, they were used to seeing the giant Star Dragon emblem projected into the sky during holiday celebrations, or animations of great dragons soaring through the sea of clouds.

Over time, having grown accustomed to these spectacular “performances,” atmospheric projections could rarely stir their excitement anymore.

But today, seeing the massive Red Cross in the sky, along with the Atlas logo that had appeared several times in recent days, these people found their hearts stirring with a rare excitement.

Although most of them had probably never heard of the Atlas corporation before, at this moment, something called “hope” was born in their hearts.

And this was also thanks to the statement and corporate promotional video Atlas had previously released.

Although most of the communications networks on Parra IV had been cut and communications were in chaos, some public, regional network frequencies were still usable.

These local-like networks, while usually unremarkable, had now become a means for refugees in the area to find groups to stick with or to announce combat zones for others to avoid.

And a short while ago, these local network frequencies, which were theoretically isolated from the off-world network, mysteriously began to circulate those two pieces of content.

No one knew how those two high-definition videos had penetrated the local network, but that didn’t stop them from spreading like a virus among the refugees.

Sometimes, the power of word-of-mouth should not be underestimated.

When many people foraging for food near the embattled cities ran into other refugees, the first thing they would say was, “Hey! Did you see the video on the local network?”

“What video?”

“The promotional video for that ‘Atlas’ company!”

“Oh, yeah, yeah! I saw it! Sigh… It’s probably just for show. I wonder if they’ll even come to our area.”

That last sentence was a thought shared by all the refugees who had watched the video.

But now, as the logo appeared in the sky alongside the Red Cross, the refugees of Parra IV finally realized that the company from the video—it was really here.

“Holy shit, look! They’re dropping more stuff!”

“Heh, it looks like it’s laying eggs.”

In a small town near one of the drop zones, where a building had mostly collapsed, people gathered in an open area on the edge of town, watching another string of “falling stars” drop from the giant Red Cross in the sky.

Besides them, the two armies currently fighting near the drop zone were also maintaining strict air surveillance.

Although the commanders on both sides had restrained their troops, at this critical juncture, their front-line units were still on high alert.

Whether it was the anti-air units or the HCPs, all had locked onto these falling unidentified objects. If anything unusual happened, no one could say for sure if someone would open fire rashly.

Fortunately, Atlas had no intention of pulling any stunts for the time being. The falling “hives” dutifully descended along their planned trajectories.

When they were several hundred meters from the ground, the retro-thrusters on the bottoms of these black regular hexadecahedrons, their heat shield covers already jettisoned, began to fire. The attitude control thrusters on their other faces activated in sync, steadily decelerating and landing the black hexadecahedrons on the ground.

“‘Salamander’ squadron to ‘Mothership,’ the ‘hives’ have landed. I repeat, the ‘hives’ have landed.”

The HCP squadron near the drop zone quickly arrived at the landing positions of these “hives.” After confirming that the “new toys” were in normal condition, they reported back to the fleet in orbit.

Soon, an activation command was sent from the fleet to these autonomous unmanned machinery control terminals, codenamed “hives.”

The hexadecahedrons on the ground came to “life.” As their outer armor plates unfolded, they revealed the autonomous unmanned machinery “packaged” layer by layer in a special configuration within.

Starting with the outermost machines, green lights symbolizing “power on” lit up one by one. These things, which originally looked like square boxes, unfolded their curled mechanical legs, transforming into spider-like robots before crawling onto the ground.

These spider-bots, with a one-meter-diameter main body and mechanical legs that could extend up to three meters, were the new toys for Atlas’s ground forces.

As the basic components of the “Hive” unmanned combat system, these small robots, codenamed “Worker Bees,” were also the first unmanned units of the system to appear in the warzone.

In addition to their walking mechanical legs and auxiliary wheels, they also possessed four mechanical arms that could be fitted with different components. They could also serve as temporary movers when equipped with a heavy-load module.

Once the initial construction tasks were completed, a portion of the Worker Bees would continue to handle the daily maintenance and expansion of the base.

The other Worker Bees, after subsequent equipment crates landed, would automatically mount additional armor plates and sensor units.

They would then replace the tools on their mechanical arms with weapons like electromagnetic rifles and small charged particle cannons, transforming from “Worker Bees” into “Soldier Bees” to serve as auxiliary combat and reconnaissance units for the ground forces.

According to the current design of the “Hive” unmanned combat system, one “Hive” group generally consisted of twenty autonomous unmanned machinery control terminals—in other words, the hexadecahedrons.

Besides its core terminal components, each control terminal could carry fifty Worker Bees in a special “packaged mode,” serving as the most basic operational unit.

Once these “hives” landed, they would begin preliminary construction work according to their pre-set mission, just as they were doing now.

While the HCP squadron in each drop zone stood guard, the Worker Bees quickly began to gather the scattered core control components. With the help of tools like cutting torches and welding guns on their mechanical arms, they used the remaining frames and armor plates from the hexadecahedrons to protect these cores.

Next, some of the Worker Bees efficiently dismantled a pile of supply crates that had been dropped simultaneously. Using the construction materials inside and the crates themselves, they began to build a basic encampment.

Another group of Worker Bees gathered around several supply crates loaded with “Worker Bee-Specific Toolkits,” changed the tools on their mechanical arms, and then began to clear a large landing field within the drop zone.

Behind the Worker Bees’ highly efficient collaborative ability was a “Queen Bee” controller developed by Lilith, based on the hive mind-like capability of her “clones.”

This “Queen Bee” controller allowed all unmanned units in the “Hive” system to act as one under the control of each Hive’s core. And these Hive cores were, in theory, a “lite version” of Lilith’s clones.

This also meant that the strong AI could access these Hive cores at any time and directly control the unmanned units under them.

Chapter 343: Angels of the Battlefield

In truth, during the secret development of the ‘Hive’ project, Amber had been torn over whether he should grant Lilith direct control over the Hive’s core.

Since Lilith was now indisputably the most powerful strong AI in human hands, doing so would indeed dramatically increase the work and combat efficiency of the Hive’s subordinate drone units.

It would also endow them with an intelligence far surpassing that of the Federation and Empire’s drone units—it was worth noting that both of those powers, fearing a ‘machine crisis,’ still dared not grant their drones overly high intelligence.

The problem was, every time he thought of this, Amber couldn’t help but recall the Lilith from his previous life in the game—the one who had escaped an Imperial laboratory and returned years later as the ‘Crimson Queen’.

She had commanded a vast number of drone combat units. This Drone Legion inflicted immense casualties on players participating in the large-scale server-wide event. Many even exhausted their entire stock of reserve clones in the fighting, nearly facing the crisis of ‘account deletion’.

And Amber had been one of those players who had used up all their clones, to the point that he now had PTSD about it. The moment keywords like ‘Lilith’ and ‘Drone Legion’ came to mind, buried memories would resurface to attack him.

In the end, however, Amber decided to take the risk.

For one, his control over Lilith—be it her mind and body or her underlying meta-instructions—was quite thorough.

For another, to make the drone combat units perform at their peak efficacy, the only way was to let Lilith control them using her ‘hive mind’-like abilities.

At the same time, Atlas truly needed a drone combat force like this to replace the Romu in performing dangerous, basic tasks—such as this orbital drop into a warzone to construct a forward base.

Now, the ten Hive clusters and their subordinate Worker Bees, deployed across ten drop zones, were operating with extreme efficiency under the command of the ‘Queen Bee’ control component.

Almost as soon as a batch of supply crates was dropped, they would be swarmed by Worker Bees for the cooling procedure. After the contents were removed, the crates were dismantled into pieces—they had been designed from the outset to be used as supplementary materials for the forward base.

By the next morning, when the warring factions conducted reconnaissance using satellite overpasses or small drones from a distance, they discovered that a large camp had already been constructed.

At the camp’s core was a large forward outpost equipped with various defenses and armaments, also featuring the equipment maintenance, personnel rest, and supply functions of a standard military base.

Extending out from this forward outpost was a sprawling standard camp, which even included a large number of prefabricated modular shelters.

Of course, the most outrageous part was a water pipeline extending several kilometers to a nearby water source, as well as a small water purification plant inside the camp.

When planning this temporary camp mission, Atlas had specifically chosen sites near natural bodies of water to solve the future drinking water problem for a large number of refugees.

As for food and other supplies, for the time being, they could only rely on orbital drops.

The conditions for dropping non-living cargo like this were not as strict as for dropping combat units, and there was no need to consider comfort.

“Well, I’ll be. They actually managed to build that camp?”

The Brigade Commander of a Federation ground forces brigade, the same one who had been discussing the matter with his staff officer the previous day, remarked with some surprise after seeing the images transmitted back by drones and satellites.

Atlas had no intention of hiding the camp, so they didn’t drive away the reconnaissance drones on the periphery, nor did they use high-power jammers to interfere with the spy satellites passing overhead.

It was a clear message: “Look your fill. Hiding anything would be my loss.”

“I have to say, their efficiency is pretty high, building a camp this large in a single night.”

The staff officer nodded, looking at the satellite image on the command center screen as he continued:

“They clearly came prepared. Look, their camp is more orderly than most army units’.”

“It must be because of those robots they’re using. They don’t get tired, they don’t feel hardship, and they follow every command perfectly. If only we had things like that, our camp wouldn’t look like this mess.”

The Federation Brigade Commander said with a hint of envy. After seeing the camp Atlas had erected overnight, he could barely stand to look at his own brigade’s camp.

“It’s true we don’t focus enough on this kind of training, especially drills for rapidly setting up camps in a warzone. We only do it a few times a year.”

“Hmph, those so-called ‘Rapid Wall Construction Kits’ they issue us are only good for fighting rebels or in pacification warfare. They’re completely useless in a real situation like this.”

“Er… ha ha ha. You’re right, Brigade Commander.”

As the Brigade Commander began to grumble with his staff officer, a new development occurred at the Atlas camp.

Above the Atlas camp, which had been relatively quiet in the early morning, a rumbling roar was heard again, emanating from above the giant ‘Red Cross’.

Seeing this, the Brigade Commander couldn’t help but gripe internally about how willing Atlas was to spend money. To maintain those enormous Red Cross and company logos, they had warships taking turns projecting them from orbit.

Of course, what the Brigade Commander didn’t know at this moment was that Amber’s reason for having those warships maintain their position over the drop zone for so long was for more than just maintaining the atmospheric projections.

While the Brigade Commander was lost in his thoughts, the source of the rumbling roar appeared.

One after another, aerospace transports, just like yesterday’s HCPs, emerged from the giant Red Cross projection and descended toward the field landing strip built by the Worker Bees.

These aerospace transports all had a uniform, pure white paint scheme, adorned with the Red Cross symbol and the Atlas logo.

Under the Tyndall effect, the aerospace transports were like holy, pure-white angels, emerging from a red glow that symbolized war, descending upon the world with hope.

By this time, a number of daring refugees had already gathered near the camp.

They were lacking food and clothing to the point of being unable to survive. The promotional videos that had gone viral on the local network in recent days, along with the giant Red Cross projection in the sky, had finally convinced them to come here seeking aid.

After the pure white aerospace transports landed on the strip, soldiers clad in matching pure white combat exoskeletons, marked only with the Red Cross and Atlas logo on their shoulder pauldrons, disembarked one by one.

Arriving with them were large quantities of desperately needed supplies for the refugees: food, clean water, clothing, and more.

At the same time, loudspeakers on the aerospace transports began broadcasting instructions and notices for the refugees in the common human tongue.

Although these Romu did not remove their tactical faceplates, their body shapes and their non-human language made it clear to the refugees that they were not human.

However, thanks to the company’s statements and the introductions in its promotional videos, the refugees knew that the company named Atlas was composed of humans, elves, and Romu, so they were not surprised at this moment.

On the contrary, a few elderly people who held to obscure and ancient religious beliefs, upon seeing these non-human figures clad in pure white combat exoskeletons—whose overall style was completely different from Federation or Imperial troops—were overcome with emotion. Tears streamed down their faces as they spoke in trembling voices:

“Angels… The legendary Angels of the Battlefield… they’ve really appeared!”

Chapter 344: Prophecy

“Angels of the Battlefield? Are you sure that’s what those people said?”

In the conference room aboard The Hermes, Amber’s brow furrowed the moment he heard Hog’s report.

“Yes, Boss. The first-person footage from the first batch of infantry to land has been transmitted back. In all ten drop zones, religious believers among the refugees have been calling us ‘Angels of the Battlefield’.”

Hog answered seriously. Having demonstrated a talent for command during the last battle on Loubion V, he had been appointed Commander-in-Chief of ground operations for this mission, coordinating the combat deployment of armed forces across the ten drop zones.

Seeing that Amber was listening intently to his report, he glanced at the document he had prepared and continued,

“Based on our ground troops’ contact with the local folks.”

“Pfft… ‘local folks’?”

Hearing this familiar term, Amber couldn’t help but crack a smile. He even had the illusion of a red star rising behind Hog’s back.

“Boss?”

“Ahem, sorry, I lost my composure for a moment. Please continue.” Amber knew he was being a bit unprofessional and quickly regained his serious demeanor.

“After making contact with the locals, we discovered that those who call us ‘Angels of the Battlefield’ all believe in the same ancient religion. As for the specific details of this religion, our colleagues at the Intelligence Analysis Center—which has been upgraded from a team—are already gathering information.

According to the information we’ve currently gathered from the locals, this ancient religion has a long-standing prophecy: when the world falls apart and humanity descends into inevitable chaos, armed angels clad in white battle armor will appear on the battlefield, and they will bring order and stability.”

At this point, Hog’s tone became a little strange. He glanced at Amber before continuing.

“According to the prophecy, these armed angels of the battlefield are not human, but come from other races. However, the true god on the holy throne is a living saint who has transcended reality and illusion.”

The atmosphere in the conference room instantly turned odd. Everyone, including Isabelle and Cleves, couldn’t help but turn their gazes toward Amber.

Even Randall and the others, attending via video conference, couldn’t help but look at Amber in the main seat.

Noticing everyone’s stares, Amber was momentarily speechless.

“What? Why are you all looking at me? Do I look like a true god or a living saint?”

“Definitely not. If you were a true god, you would have granted my wish to spend a passionate night with elf models long ago.”

Randall, a natural at playing the foil, piped up. It was clear his grudge over the ‘elf models’ ran deep.

His words dispelled the strange atmosphere in the conference room, replacing it with a light and cheerful mood.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough laughing.” Amber raised his hand to quiet the room, cutting off their chuckles, and continued,

“Regarding this prophecy, have the colleagues at the Intelligence Analysis Center continue to follow up on it. Get to the bottom of this prophecy and this religion. For now, the frontline troops should not change their behavior because of it. Just maintain normal communication with the refugees.”

If this had happened in the world of Amber’s previous life, most people on a battlefield would have probably just laughed it off and paid it no mind.

But in this world, which truly possessed metaphysical power, such matters had to be handled differently.

Moreover, for Amber, who had experienced the power of ‘prophecies’ in Starry Sky Online, he was much more cautious when dealing with such things.

This was because, in the world of Starry Sky Online, ‘prophecies’ were not just background lore or a line of flavor text; they held real meaning. Most of the ancient ‘prophecies’ were eventually proven true, one by one, in the game.

So, when phrases like ‘Angels of the Battlefield,’ ‘true god on the holy throne,’ and ‘a living saint who transcends the void’ appeared, it would be impossible to say that Amber wasn’t having some thoughts of his own.

However, the most important task at hand was still to properly handle the ‘humanitarian aid’ mission on Parra IV and to ensure Atlas’s crucial first move was a resounding success.

Organizing his priorities, Amber continued,

“The operational environment, the complexity of the rules of engagement, and the enemy’s combat intensity in this mission are all far greater than anything we’ve experienced before. So, I expect all of you to be on high alert and take this seriously. At the same time, we should use this mission as an opportunity to test various new pieces of equipment and provide timely feedback on any problems to the Equipment R&D Center.”

At this, Amber turned to Hog, who was in charge of ground command.

“Hog, once the camps are stabilized, try to contact the command echelons of both the Federation and the Empire forces. Build a good relationship with them. Then, try sending small, clearly identified teams deep into the warzone to search for civilians trapped there.”

As Amber issued his commands, all Atlas personnel involved in the mission sprang into action. The fleet continued its orbital patrol, protecting the ships conducting airdrops and the aerospace transports entering the atmosphere.

Large quantities of supplies, building materials, and equipment were continuously transferred to the ground, filling the stockpiles of each camp. The ten deployed combined arms battalions also received their full complements of vehicles and mechanical units.

Under the watchful eyes of many, everything proceeded in an orderly fashion—

Once war breaks out, different people perceive the flow of time differently.

In non-combat zones, especially in star systems yet untouched by the flames of war, people continued to live their peaceful, prosperous daily lives.

For them, the biggest impacts of the war were rising prices and the reduction of entertainment programming during prime time, with the extra airtime filled by reports from the front lines.

Beyond that, the rhythm of their lives seemed largely unaffected.

Thus, in their perception, the days passed as quickly as before. It felt as if over a month had gone by in the blink of an eye.

But for those in the warzone, to say that a day felt like a year would be an understatement.

Amidst the ‘rumble’ of artillery and explosions, a second feeling like a year was their true perception of time’s passage.

It was much the same for the members of the Atlas ground forces deployed on Parra IV. As they maintained camp operations, gathered refugees, and remained vigilant against Federation and Empire troops, they discovered just how slowly time could pass.

Aside from the units that had already fought on Loubion V, half of the forces deployed to Parra IV this time were newly formed units yet to be tempered by the crucible of war.

After the initial excitement wore off, these Romu, who had once lived their own quiet lives in the Thousand Stars Empire, finally began to understand why war was always described as cruel.

This was especially true for the team members who went deep into the warzone to search for and rescue refugees.

Chapter 345: When the Regular Army Stops Acting Humanely

The battle for Parra IV was not considered a critical juncture in the Federation’s current strategic offensive.

Among the nearly thirty planets designated as offensive nodes along the entire front, Parra IV was only second-tier in importance.

But even focusing just on Parra IV, as the conflict dragged on, the front-line soldiers on both sides, their minds stretched taut for so long, were no longer in the same state they were at the war’s outset.

Fighting in an Imperial star system an unknown distance from home, on a planet where everyone but friendly forces—including civilians—was your enemy… they feared you, dreaded you, but also hated you with a profound passion.

It was a pressure few could imagine.

If the Federation troops had initially fought with mindsets of ‘revenge,’ ‘achieving glory,’ ‘eradicating Imperial tyranny,’ and ‘making history,’ that initial passion was now gone.

In its place, increasingly potent feelings of brutality and agitation, along with a desire to inflict cruelty upon the ‘Imperials,’ began to take hold.

Although the commanders of the various Federation units on Parra IV remained clear-headed for now, knowing they couldn’t do anything too outrageous and thus strictly disciplined their troops, this restraint weakened with each passing day.

Once the Military Police, responsible for enforcing discipline, also began to collude with the combat soldiers due to the influence of the prolonged high-pressure environment, the situation slowly spiraled out of control.

In comparison, the Star Dragon Empire’s forces might have been in a slightly better state. Unfortunately, only slightly.

The majority of the defending troops currently on the planet were not natives. Most were ‘conscripts’ brought in from other star systems under the ‘general mobilization order.’

Though they too had initially fought to ‘defend their home and country,’ ‘repel the invaders,’ and ‘uphold the Empire’s glory,’ their morale began to crumble after suffering increasingly heavy casualties at the hands of the ferocious Federation army.

It was the same problem shared by both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire—a collapsing sense of national identity.

During the Blue Star era, citizens had the strongest sense of national identity, as they lived on the same land and were interconnected.

But as humanity ventured into deep space and entered the Age of Interstellar Exploration, the common person’s sense of national identity plummeted exponentially.

Many people couldn’t understand why they should have to pay a price to help a planet and its inhabitants that were countless miles away, people they would never meet in their entire lives.

Including some junior officers, many soldiers began to ask themselves why they should lay down their lives for a planet under their feet that they had never been to before.

Once this idea began to ferment within the ranks, it spread at a terrifying speed.

The first consequence was a drastic drop in the troops’ will to fight. Many units would rather surrender their positions than dig in and fight to the death against the Federation army.

Then, as many commanders realized they would likely be abandoned by the Imperial high command, a sentiment of self-abandonment erupted from top to bottom.

Many front-line combat battalions, shouting slogans like, “Let’s get drunk today and not worry about being shattered tomorrow,” began to let themselves go, and military discipline became a mere formality.

Against this backdrop, the unarmed civilians became the planet’s most tragic victims.

—

“This is ‘Chinchilla,’ intersection is secure. The main force can proceed quickly.”

“Roger, maintain alert. Continue forward reconnaissance after the main force has passed.”

This exchange took place in the town of Portia, eleven kilometers from Refugee Camp 5.

The two parties in the conversation were a forward reconnaissance team and a mechanized platoon from the Atlas ‘humanitarian aid’ force following behind.

The town, which once had a residential population of nearly fifty thousand, had become a virtual ghost town after repeated ‘visits’ from the Federation army and Imperial defenders.

According to survivors who had fled to the refugee camp, a Federation offensive unit controlled Portia at the time of their evacuation. After taking the town, the unit immediately began a massive hunt for scattered Imperial remnants and civilians.

The town residents who had made it to Refugee Camp 5 were only able to escape because they lived on the outskirts of town, closer to the camp’s direction.

After hearing the refugees’ descriptions, Montai, the battalion commander of the Atlas ground forces’ Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion responsible for Camp 5’s security, immediately realized that something very unpleasant might be happening in town.

Understanding the nature of his ‘humanitarian aid’ mission, Montai dispatched a platoon to enter Portia and search for other survivors after having his communications squad contact the nearby Federation forces and inform them of the situation.

The other units of this platoon’s parent ‘Front Line Control Company’ established a perimeter further back, ready to provide support at a moment’s notice.

Since it was a search for survivors and not an actual attempt to seize the front line, Montai didn’t deploy too many troops, hoping to avoid any misjudgment by the Federation forces.

But he was not stingy with his support for this Front Line Control Company.

The combined arms battalion’s fire support company, equipped with self-propelled artillery and loitering munitions, and the drone platoon were all assigned to reinforce this company. At the same time, the HCP Company and the armor company were on standby, ready to attack.

After the reconnaissance team with the call sign ‘Chinchilla,’ riding in an armored infantry fighting vehicle and responsible for scouting ahead, confirmed the area was secure, the platoon entering Portia quickly passed through the intersection.

Both the armored infantry fighting vehicles used for transport and the three medium multi-legged war machines reinforcing the platoon were painted entirely in white, just like Atlas’s aerospace transports.

While this paint scheme completely sacrificed stealth, it at least allowed both warring factions to identify the unit at a glance, minimizing the risk of being mistakenly engaged as much as possible.

Just as the platoon leader and platoon sergeant of this mechanized infantry platoon were in their command vehicle discussing where survivors might be hiding, a piece of good news and a piece of bad news arrived simultaneously.

The good news was that a high-altitude reconnaissance drone circling overhead had finally spotted a group of civilian survivors huddled together.

The bad news was that these survivors were currently surrounded by a circle of Federation troops.

As the forward-scouting infantry fighting vehicle sped to the location reported by the drone, it broadcast its position over a loudspeaker and played a looping recording of the Treaty of Pyla. Upon arrival, the crew quickly contacted the command vehicle.

“Platoon Leader, it looks like the Federation troops are preparing to execute these civilians. What are our orders?”

Chapter 346: International Conventions Don’t Apply in a War Zone

“Sir, we’re civilians! Please spare us!”

“Civilians? Alright. What kind of civilians are you?”

A Federation soldier in a combat exoskeleton manhandled another group of civilians to the wall like they were chicks, retorting to one who was constantly pleading.

The person was clearly baffled by the question. Weren’t they all civilians? How could there be different “kinds”?

“You don’t know? Then let me give you some options. Model citizens who have honestly done nothing? Hostile elements who helped hide Imperial soldiers? Or rioters who tried to attack Federation troops?”

As he spoke, the Federation soldier raised the electromagnetic rifle in his hands.

“Model citizens! We’re model citizens, we really don’t know where the Empire’s troops went.”

“Oh, but you don’t look like it to me.”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The high-velocity penetrators fired from the electromagnetic rifle shattered the fragile human bodies and pierced through the wall behind them.

With expressions of panic and disbelief, the mangled corpses of another batch of Imperial civilians fell onto the ground, which was already nearly covered with bodies.

Upon hearing the news from the recon team, the platoon leader and platoon sergeant were both momentarily stunned.

“Are you sure it’s an execution?”

“Yes, all the civilians have been gathered and forced to kneel here. The surrounding Federation soldiers are pulling groups of them aside. After some questioning, all civilians except for the women are being shot.”

At this point, the Communications Officer of the “Chinchilla” recon team paused, seemingly confirming the information with a teammate beside him, before continuing a moment later:

“The Federation force we’ve scouted is about the size of a reinforced company, but we don’t know if there are other units hidden nearby. They’ve already sent people over, and we’re negotiating with them now. The current situation seems to be that the Federation troops believe these civilians are helping hide Imperial forces, so they’re using that as a pretext to ‘interrogate’ them in batches.”

“Hmph, ‘interrogate.’”

Hearing the recon team’s report, the platoon leader in charge of the search mission couldn’t help but scoff.

“I’m afraid it’s just an excuse for violence. And they deliberately left female survivors… what they plan to do next couldn’t be more obvious.”

But despite his anger, the platoon leader knew it was best not to start a conflict with the Federation forces. If they could resolve the issue through negotiation, they should avoid using force.

“I’ll have the communications squad report the situation to company command. Should we move up and stabilize the scene first? If it’s really just one reinforced company on the surface, with our reinforced units and fire support, it’s not like we can’t fight,” the platoon sergeant at his side asked.

“Yeah, let’s do that. But still, try to avoid solving this with violence. Otherwise, we’d be going against the Boss’s original intentions,” the platoon leader nodded in reply, then issued a new directive to the recon team over the comms channel.

“‘Chinchilla,’ listen up. Continue negotiating with the Federation forces. Tell them a large contingent is approaching and to be mindful of their weapons discipline.”

“We are searching for people who helped hide Imperial troops. I suggest you mind your own business.”

The Federation soldier negotiating with the Chinchilla team spoke, his voice booming and muffled through the external speaker on his tactical faceplate.

After the perimeter guards spotted the approaching white-painted infantry fighting vehicle, the company’s Master Chief approached with his security squad.

They hadn’t underestimated this “humanitarian aid” force from Atlas. The weapons in their hands were now pointed, intentionally or not, at the Chinchilla recon team.

“Hey, friend from the Federation… we don’t intend to interfere with your combat operations.”

The recon team’s team head, a tall lion-man, slung his weapon under his arm to show he was “harmless” as he spoke:

“We just hope you won’t treat these civilians in such a bloody manner. According to the Treaty of Pyla, warring parties should—”

“No, no, no. Don’t talk to me about international conventions in a war zone,” the Federation soldier rudely cut the lion-man off.

“These Imperials brought this on themselves. We told them at the start of the conflict that as long as they didn’t get involved in the fighting, we wouldn’t harm civilians. But they didn’t take us seriously at all. They’ve been helping hide the remnants of the Imperial army in this town and tipping them off, allowing those remnants to ambush our patrols—”

At this, the Federation NCO glanced resentfully at a group of civilians being escorted to the wall, then continued:

“We’ve lost a lot of brothers in this town recently. So now, we’re just trying to root out the people who are hiding those Imperial remnants.”

“But from what I’ve seen, the civilians you’ve dragged to the wall to be ‘interrogated’ have all been shot… oh, not all of them. You did leave the female civilians behind.”

The lion-man maintained a normal tone, but now it was laced with a different meaning.

“Are you being sarcastic with me?”

The Federation Master Chief tilted his head and took a step forward, closing in on the lion-man.

Even while wearing a combat exoskeleton, he was still shorter than the brawny Romu before him. But with the advantage in numbers, the Federation Master Chief was completely unafraid.

“Who told them to keep their mouths shut about the Imperial remnants’ movements, even at gunpoint? They’ve got some backbone, at least. As for the women? We have a soft spot for the fairer sex and don’t want to harm them, so we plan to take them back and… settle them in nicely.”

At this, the surrounding Federation soldiers all began to laugh. Their laughter conveyed a clear message: “This is what we’re doing, so what are you going to do about it?”

Their arrogant and vulgar behavior made it impossible for the members of the Chinchilla team to see even a hint of a “soldier” in them.

“Look, buddy, you’d better take your men and go back. Don’t waste both our time here. Some things are not for you fluffy toys to meddle with…”

Feeling he had said enough, the Federation NCO waved his hand, gesturing for the Chinchilla team to leave so they could get back to “observing” the series of interrogations by the wall.

“Fuck you, you goddamn scum…”

Even though the Chinchilla squad’s lion-man squad leader was usually very good-natured, he could no longer suppress his anger.

Hearing this, the Federation NCO on the other side immediately raised his electromagnetic rifle and aimed it at the lion-man. The soldiers around him raised their weapons in unison.

“Crawl back to your den. Don’t make me say it a second time.”

As the Federation NCO spoke, their actions triggered a chain reaction.

The members of the Chinchilla squad quickly noticed Federation troops running between the distant buildings. Judging by the silhouettes of the weapons mounted on the hardpoints of their exoskeletons, they were several anti-vehicle teams.

However, though outnumbered, Chinchilla did not show any weakness. With the lion-man squad leader raising his rifle as a signal, the others also raised their weapons, and the micro-rocket pod on one member’s back rose into firing position.

The armored infantry fighting vehicle that had transported the squad also moved up. Its low-profile, angular turret, armed with a 50mm chain gun and a coaxial electromagnetic machine gun, aimed directly at the Federation NCO.

“Just a few of you and one piece-of-shit armored vehicle want to play hardball with us?”

The NCO’s dismissive words trailed off into silence, drowned out by a rumbling sound that grew closer and closer.

Because from the street intersection behind the Chinchilla squad, three medium multi-legged war machines glided out, maneuvering rapidly on auxiliary wheels. On their rear-mounted turrets, the muzzles of their lightweight heavy electromagnetic cannons pulsed with dots of blue light.

Chapter 347: Managing Public Opinion

Montai and Tairak had never imagined that the reinforced platoon they sent to search for survivors in the town would encounter such a situation.

According to the report from the Front Line Control Company, after the advance reconnaissance team clashed with Federation troops, the leader of the reinforced platoon first reported to company command and then immediately moved his troops forward to provide support.

And the command of this Front Line Control Company had done nothing to stop the reinforced platoon’s move.

After quietly putting support units on standby for any contingencies, they finally sent a message to the headquarters of the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, where Montai and Tairak were located.

Montai and Tairak saw nothing wrong with how their Front Line Control Company had acted.

This was just them being protective of their own.

It was an all-too-common sight in any military unit. So common, in fact, that if a unit didn’t have a habit of looking out for its own, it was a sure sign that something was wrong with its structure.

Although the actions of both the front-line reinforced platoon and the Front Line Control Company might seem like ‘acting first and reporting later,’ they hadn’t issued any aggressive orders, much less started a firefight.

Besides, when facing an emergency, even with real-time communication, reporting up the chain of command layer by layer would still waste precious time.

On top of that, Amber had always emphasized that commanding officers at all levels needed to fully exercise their ‘initiative,’ which allowed Atlas’s combat units to react to emergencies with extreme speed.

“Tairak, what do you think?”

In the battalion command post, Montai, who had been staring at the electronic sand table, looked up at his friend.

After hearing the question, Tairak held up four furry fingers.

“Four things first.

First, report to our superiors. Tell them the current situation and the measures we’ve taken.

Second, reiterate the rules of engagement to the front-line troops. Remind them of our position: even if we take a loss, we absolutely cannot fire the first shot in a standoff.

Third, have them identify the enemy unit’s designation so we can contact their command level and negotiate.

Last, contact the Group’s livestream team. Tell them we’ve got new material for them. They can go live.”

“Tairak, stopping you from being transferred was definitely the best decision I’ve ever made.”

——

Portia, western conflict zone.

The Federation non-commissioned officer in charge of negotiating with Atlas—or rather, the one who had planned to use superior numbers to drive them off—had never imagined that the personnel of this private military company would be so audacious, actually willing to go head-to-head with the regular army on this planet.

Three medium multi-legged war machines quickly spread out, found good positions, and established a crossfire. They extended their mechanical legs to lower their chassis, while the armored plates on their front legs rose in sync, forming sloped shields.

A force roughly the size of a reinforced mechanized infantry platoon had taken up an offensive formation in the direction where the recon squad had appeared.

At the same time, dozens of unfamiliar, white-painted, spider-like robots, laden with various weapons, rapidly climbed the surrounding buildings and secured the high ground.

Furthermore, the NCO received a message from his own company command: white-painted HCPs and main battle tanks had been spotted on the outskirts of Portia. The enemy had clearly come prepared.

But the Federation NCO was holding his ground for now. He wasn’t like one of those spineless cowards who only bullied the weak and backed down at the first sign of a real fight.

“Are you fucking trying to start a war with the Federation?!”

“Whoa there, friend. You flatter us at Atlas too much.”

A burly Romu wielding an electromagnetic machine gun—a weapon normally used for support fire—stepped forward, speaking in a less-than-fluent common human tongue.

It was the platoon leader of the Atlas reinforced platoon that had entered the town.

“The Federation is such a vast nation. How could a small company like ours dare to start a war?”

“Then what is the meaning of this?”

“We simply hope your side will refrain from violence against civilians and respect the Treaty of Pyla, which your country and the Star Dragon Empire jointly signed in the New Calendar year 506. As I understand it, the treaty is still valid for another twenty-plus years. It hasn’t expired.”

“I already told your subordinate: don’t talk to me about international treaties in a warzone! They’re just worthless paper!”

Just as he had with the Chinchilla squad leader, the Federation NCO rudely cut him off again upon hearing the Treaty of Pyla mentioned.

Hearing this, the Atlas ground forces platoon leader didn’t look surprised.

He waved his hand, and an armored infantry fighting vehicle from a short distance behind him immediately drove up, stopping behind him. A device resembling a camera on the side of its turret swiveled its optical lens toward them.

“Would you care to repeat that for the camera? We’re currently broadcasting this live within the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.”

“…”

——

“Old John, come quick! ‘The Eye of Truth’ has a new livestream, and it’s right in the warzone!”

“Holy shit, I’m coming, I’m coming!”

“Biber, can you hook the big screen up to the stream? The whole reason we come to your bar is because you bought a subscription to ‘The Eye of Truth’ livestream!”

“Yeah, your beer is famously terrible. You didn’t think all these people were here for your beer, did you?”

“Whoa, are they executing Imperials? Good! Kill a few more!”

“Dude, isn’t that a bit extreme? Those are civilians…”

“Hey, look! We’ve got a Mr. Reasonable up here!”

Scenes like this were playing out almost everywhere within the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire where it wasn’t yet late at night.

Everyone excitedly picked up their personal terminals or looked toward large screens, and the comments in the livestream chat were scrolling by at a frantic pace.

‘The Eye of Truth,’ the first social media app from Atlas Group’s newest subsidiary—Atlas Media.

After the Atlas Group went viral for its declaration of neutrality and its corporate promotional video, ‘The Eye of Truth’ was swiftly launched as the third part of a combination of initiatives.

Although the public opinion control departments in both the Federation and the Empire had tried everything to reduce the app’s popularity, even forcibly removing it from mainstream app stores…

…they couldn’t block the direct download link provided by Atlas.

As soon as ‘The Eye of Truth’ was released, it shot to the top of the app download charts on nearly every colonial planet in both territories.

The reason was simple: the official account within the app, also named ‘The Eye of Truth,’ was currently the only channel on the market capable of livestreaming from deep within a warzone.

And it was a live broadcast, made possible by the brand-new ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology.’

If the so-called warzone livestreams from other media and news companies consisted of interviewing soldiers who had returned from the front lines in safe camps outside the warzone and then editing it into a recording…

…then ‘The Eye of Truth,’ which mounted its cameras directly onto infantry fighting vehicles, HCPs, and drones, truly lived up to its name, showing all its viewers the reality of the battlefield.

As the subjects of this livestream, the Federation unit immediately realized the gravity of the situation.

Especially when they saw another infantry fighting vehicle aiming its mounted camera at the wall where the ‘executions’ were taking place, the lens continuously zooming in, they knew they were in deep trouble.

While their current behavior was deviating more and more from that of an army from a civilized nation, at least the officers in the unit weren’t so reckless as to execute civilians in front of a live camera.

Upon seeing a platoon of infantry and armored vehicles arriving as reinforcements, the Federation NCO immediately led them forward, trying to block Atlas’s livestream camera.

But unexpectedly, the leader of the reinforced platoon right in front of him raised his electromagnetic machine gun and pointed it at his own head, saying in that somewhat awkward common human tongue:

“I’d advise you to calm down. Do you want this situation to spin completely out of control?”

Chapter 348: Protect the Civilians!

The words of the Atlas platoon leader instantly sobered up the Federation officer before him.

That’s right, he thought. If I were to recklessly open fire now, everyone watching the live broadcast would see the Federation strike first against this ‘humanitarian aid’ team.

Even if the incident were eventually resolved, his superiors would surely be looking for scapegoats when it came time to assign blame. A low-ranking officer like himself would definitely not escape responsibility.

At this thought, both the non-commissioned officer on the front line of the standoff and the commander of the Federation reinforced company calmed down.

The NCOs, having received their orders, immediately reined in their troops to prevent any accidental discharges under the high-pressure environment.

Meanwhile, the company commander of the reinforced company hurried to the standoff zone with his deputy.

He looked at the Atlas armed forces in front of him, poised and ready for battle, and the spider-like robots that had already occupied the high ground. Then he thought of the HCPs and main battle tanks maneuvering on the town’s outskirts.

Even though the company commander had ten thousand reasons not to, he could only forcibly suppress his frustration and attempt to resolve the current situation through negotiation.

Of course, his main concern was the potential public relations fallout. It certainly wasn’t because he was worried his lightly-armored reinforced company couldn’t defeat the enemy.

After approaching the Atlas reinforced platoon’s leader, the Federation company commander dispensed with any pleasantries and asked directly:

“So, what is it you people want?”

“We don’t want anything. Atlas has no desire to get involved in this war. We are simply trying to protect innocent civilians.”

The reinforced platoon’s leader, a Romu with the zoanthropic features of a ram’s head, said earnestly, reiterating Atlas’s stance and mission as per his pre-war training.

“Innocent? I wouldn’t be so sure. If it weren’t for some of them secretly helping to hide Imperial remnants, my patrols wouldn’t have suffered such heavy losses in this town!”

“But you have no proof right now, do you? You can only rely on the weapons in your hands to conduct forced interrogations. And in my opinion, your so-called ‘interrogations’ are no different from outright violence.”

“Fine, we have no proof,” the Federation company commander nodded, with an air of having nothing left to lose, and continued, “It won’t be very graceful for either of us to remain at this impasse. So, why don’t you propose a solution?”

“We will take all the refugees into our custody—including the female refugees you have detained. Once we have secured them, we will leave immediately. We will not interfere with your subsequent combat operations.”

To be fair, the Federation side also knew that under the current circumstances, the solution Atlas proposed was the most appropriate.

At the very least, it wouldn’t further tarnish the Federation military’s public image, and the other party truly didn’t intend to interfere with their operations.

But thinking of the brothers he’d lost in the town these past few days, the company commander was still filled with rage. He wished he could just gun down every civilian present.

In the end, however, his reason prevailed.

“Fine, we accept.”

Before the Federation officer could finish his sentence, his entire upper torso, along with his combat exoskeleton, suddenly exploded.

BANG!

A sharp crack followed a moment later.

The sudden turn of events stunned everyone. The ram-headed Romu who had been negotiating with the company commander had his tactical faceplate splattered with blood and gore.

It was a sniper shot from a large-caliber anti-materiel weapon.

“Enemy attack! Take cover!”

The Federation NCO who had first dealt with the Chinchilla Squad reacted quickly. The moment his company commander was blown to pieces, he shouted a warning and dove for cover behind a nearby armored vehicle.

The sniper shot was like a signal. The surrounding buildings, which had supposedly been cleared by the Federation forces, suddenly erupted with activity.

A barrage of tungsten alloy high-velocity penetrator rounds, several charged particle beams, and top-attack anti-vehicle missiles from above quickly blanketed the negotiation area.

The situation, which had been slowly de-escalating from a tense standoff, instantly descended into chaos.

On the Atlas combat vehicles, counter-sniper radar quickly acquired the origin of the attack. With the information shared via datalink, the infantry’s tactical faceplates soon highlighted the windows of several distant buildings in red.

Although the attackers were unlikely to remain at the same windows, it at least allowed the Atlas soldiers to determine the direction of the attack.

“Platoon Leader!”

The Chinchilla Squad’s leader lunged toward the reinforced platoon’s leader, grabbing a handle below the back of his neck. The motors on his combat exoskeleton immediately whirred at high power.

With the extra assistance, he managed to drag the platoon leader, who was by no means light in his full gear, behind a nearby medium multi-legged war machine.

The same blast that had obliterated the Federation company commander’s upper body had also torn off the Atlas platoon leader’s right arm.

“Medic! Where’s the medic?!”

The lion-man yelled anxiously into the comms channel while pulling a bag of gel-like substance from a tactical pouch on his lower back. He tore it open and poured it directly onto the severed limb.

Soon, the platoon leader’s exoskeleton synchronized, releasing its own gel and a white spray that reacted quickly with the substance, completely sealing the wound.

At the same time, the platoon sergeant and a medic rushed over, while Atlas combat vehicles fired numerous thermal smoke shells for battlefield obscuration.

The medic swiftly opened the combat terminal hidden in his arm guard to establish a remote link, syncing with the exoskeleton’s biometric monitoring data. He simultaneously inspected the severed arm and checked for any other injuries.

“Good news is this is the only serious wound for now, and the bleeding is controlled. Bad news is, the monitoring data shows the platoon leader has a severe trauma response. We can’t treat it in this environment; he needs to be sent to the rear for treatment immediately.”

This medic, a powerfully built tiger-man who looked like a capable fighter himself, said this while tapping a few times on his combat terminal, syncing the patient’s information to the cloud.

Upon receiving the information, the rear camp would prepare the necessary treatment or surgical environment in advance, based on the type and severity of the injuries.

“Sergeant Thebes, I’m ordering you to take over my command. Prioritize protecting the civilians and counter-attack according to the rules of engagement.”

The platoon leader, who had lost his arm, regained consciousness at some point. He placed his remaining left hand on the platoon sergeant’s shoulder and gave the difficult order.

“Platoon Leader, I’ll take command, but first I have to find a vehicle to get you to the rear—”

“No! The only heavy fire support we have right now are these infantry fighting vehicles and multi-legged war machines. We can’t pull them back now!”

The platoon leader issued a quiet voice command, and an injection device built into his combat suit quickly administered an intramuscular shot.

Under the effects of the tactical stimulants, the pain throughout his body eased considerably, and he became more alert.

“But…”

“No ‘buts’! I can hold on a while longer. Now execute my order!”

Just as they were at a stalemate, a heavy armored vehicle—its turret removed, its chassis heightened, and a blue light flashing on its roof—smashed through the wreckage of cars on the street behind them and roared forward.

At the same time, an energetic, girlish voice came over the comms channel.

“Don’t panic! Big sister doctor is here!”

Chapter 349: Public Opinion Guidance and Human Bombs

“The ground troops are engaged?”

When the news came back that the ground troops were engaged in combat, Amber was in the hangar of The Hermes, tinkering with his brand new ground combat machine with the prep squad.

Upon hearing the news, Amber sighed to himself, ‘What was bound to happen has finally happened.’

Although Atlas’s humanitarian aid team had been operating safely and smoothly on the ground for over a month, they had ultimately been unavoidably drawn into the fighting.

“What’s the situation now? What’s the scale and intensity of the engagement?”

“Boss, according to the report from the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, one of their reinforced platoons had a dispute with Federation ground troops while on a mission to search for refugees in a small town called Portia. Just as the two sides were about to reach an agreement through negotiation, ambushers from the Imperial remnants launched an attack.”

Hog quickly relayed the general situation to Amber. Based on the current information, the number of attacking Imperial remnants wasn’t large, less than two platoons in strength.

And they had no vehicles, just pure infantry units carrying a small number of support weapons.

“Due to casualties on our side, and the fact that the Imperial remnants didn’t avoid our vehicles during their attack, the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion is currently counter-attacking according to the contingency plan. The main battle tanks have already entered the town to provide support, while HCP units are attempting to cut off the Imperial remnants’ retreat route from the outside.”

Listening to Hog, Amber nodded without saying anything.

Commanders like Montai and Tairak, who had actual combat experience, had no problem with their on-the-spot reactions. Their handling of the situation and subsequent plans were in line with the rules of engagement, so Amber had nothing to add.

He also thought to himself that his constant emphasis on officers at all levels having ‘initiative’ was now showing early results.

Since the situation on the ground didn’t require his attention, he could now free up his mind to think about some macro-level issues.

After ending the communication with Hog, Amber immediately ran to the ship’s ‘Remote Broadcasting Room’ to find Isabelle.

“Is the battlefield live stream still on?”

Hearing Amber’s question, Isabelle, as the head of the Intelligence Analysis Center and the Public Relations Department, quickly pulled up the backend data and presented it to him.

The structure of the Atlas Group was rather unusual compared to other companies. The Public Relations Department and the External Affairs Department were both under the group’s Intelligence Analysis Center. Therefore, Isabelle, with Skadi’s assistance, had been in charge of this area of work.

“Yes. Although the stream quality dropped during the chaos of the initial engagement, the picture has cleared up again since our ground troops began an organized counter-attack. Amber, the effect of this live stream has been explosive. You can’t even imagine how many people are watching right now.”

After a complete upgrade of its communication technology, the Atlas Group’s internal communication and data transmission speeds had completely surpassed those of the Federation and the Empire.

Even though Isabelle was currently on a light cruiser within Imperial territory, she could monitor the backend data of this interstellar live stream in near real-time.

Not only had the number of viewers for the live stream reached astronomical figures, but the app’s download count was also soaring. It was clear that more and more users were starting to download ‘The Eye of Truth’ because of this broadcast.

“I have to say, I really didn’t expect the effect to be this good.”

Seeing the curve on the data chart shooting crazily upwards, Amber remarked with a sigh.

“After all, in all of human society, you won’t find another company doing a real-time battlefield live stream like this. It’s a pure monopoly.”

Isabelle looked at Amber, thought for a moment, and then continued, “So, what’s your plan to seize the opportunity this live stream has created?”

“Have the Public Relations and External Affairs Departments prepare their materials. It’s time to start guiding public opinion.”

Amber calmly stated the plan he had prepared long ago.

“What direction do you want to guide it in?” Isabelle asked, somewhat curious.

“Naturally, in a direction that benefits Atlas’s image.”

Inside the ‘Gecko’ heavy field-ambulance armored vehicle, looking at the sleeping ‘Ram’s Head,’ Nia took off her mask and let out a long breath. The feline-like ears on the sides of her head couldn’t help but twitch twice.

This was the first time she and her comrades had performed surgery in a real combat environment, and on an active battlefield at that.

Although it was just a ‘minor surgery’—simply treating a severed limb and managing traumatic shock—the ‘cat-girl’ medic couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief after its successful completion.

Thanks to Oksana, the sales Supervisor of Atlas Private Military Company, more and more female Romu, after learning about her experiences, began applying to join Atlas.

Although Amber had no intention of recruiting ‘female soldiers’ at first, he eventually agreed to the private military company’s recruitment of female Romu after receiving an increasing number of applications and being lobbied by Allenita.

However, he did impose restrictions: they couldn’t serve in front-line combat roles, only as technical specialists like medics or communications specialists.

Nia’s ‘cat-girl’ medical squad was part of the first batch of female Romu to pass the assessment and join Atlas after recruitment was opened up.

After extensive training that included physical fitness, light and heavy weapons firing, hand-to-hand combat, field medicine, and special vehicle operation, this batch of trained medics and communications specialists was quickly assigned to various combined arms battalions.

Nia, along with a medical platoon, was assigned to the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion.

Just a moment ago, her medical squad had been on standby with other units on the outskirts of the town. After receiving their orders, the Pilot drove the newly-equipped heavy field-ambulance armored vehicle straight into the warzone.

Nia and the others immediately began performing field surgery on the ‘Ram’s Head’ platoon leader from the reinforced platoon.

After the surgery, as Nia and the other medics disembarked from the rear hatch, they found that the few soldiers who had been standing guard were gone.

After asking a nearby squad on guard duty, they learned that several of the main force’s main battle tanks had already charged into the town and were now advancing under heavy fire, with their deflector shields active.

At the same time, the guard squad that remained behind told Nia and the others that the Imperial refugees were being gathered in a concealed area in the park up ahead. If they were done with their work, they could go over and check on the refugees’ casualties.

Upon receiving this information, Nia and the members of the medical squad wasted no time. They immediately started their vehicle and, along with the soldiers from the guard squad, headed to the refugee gathering point.

Just as the vehicle drove into the concealed area within the park, Nia observed the situation outside through the vehicle’s internal screen.

At this moment, a large number of refugees were gathered there. A squad of soldiers, along with a large group of ‘Soldier Bees,’ were maintaining order and conducting initial triage on the wounded.

Just as the heavy field-ambulance armored vehicle came to a stop and Nia and the others disembarked in single file from the rear hatch, a panicked scream erupted from the crowd. Immediately after, several ‘Soldier Bees’ suddenly rushed toward a certain spot as if they had discovered something, and then…

BOOM!

A violent explosion erupted within the crowd. At ground zero, flesh and blood flew everywhere.

Chapter 350: Ram’s Head, Awesome!

The sudden explosion made everyone’s heart skip a beat.

Nia felt as if everything before her was slowing down, the sounds around her stretching out.

She could hear her own breathing and heartbeat, the panicked screams of the civilians, and the groans of the wounded.

The explosion had radiated outward from its center, blowing away a crowd of refugees and three Soldier Bees. Severed limbs and mechanical parts were strewn about, creating a veritable Hellscape.

When the flow of time returned to normal, the first to react were the combat soldiers, all veterans of multiple engagements.

The squad leader of the combat squad escorting the medical squad rushed over to the still-recovering Nia and slapped her combat faceplate, shouting, “We’ll cover you! Go check on the wounded refugees!”

At the same time, the other members of the combat squad advanced with their rifles raised. While guiding the terrified refugees toward safety, they remained vigilant for any other potential ‘human bombs’ hiding in the crowd.

Yes, according to the playback from the armored vehicle’s sensors and the final alarm from the Soldier Bee, it was confirmed that the explosion was caused by a person strapped with high-energy explosives.

The man had yelled something in a despairing tone and ripped open his clothes to reveal the explosives. The Soldier Bees that had been helping settle the refugees immediately spotted the threat and charged forward.

But unfortunately, they were a step too late.

Once Nia and the other medics snapped out of it, they immediately followed the combat soldiers and pushed against the tide of people.

After most of the refugees had been evacuated under guidance, only corpses and the groaning wounded remained at the shelter point.

Although Nia and her team had undergone specialized training, with particular emphasis on strengthening their psychological resilience to gory scenes, the sheer impact of the sight before them still made them feel a little sick.

However, the combat exoskeletons they wore detected this change in their physiological parameters. The internal-circulation vent beneath their tactical faceplates immediately released a refreshing, stimulating gas.

Combined with their regular training for such situations, after a few deep breaths, they managed to suppress the rising nausea.

“This one’s dead.”

“Found a live one here, but he’s too badly injured. Basically a lost cause.”

“These few are dead, too.”

“No good, they’re all too seriously wounded. We’ll never get them to the rear in time…”

One after another, voice messages came through the squad’s communication channel, most of them pronouncing ‘death sentences’ on the people on the ground. A grim, oppressive atmosphere settled over the medical squad.

But just then, Nia miraculously discovered a little girl lying on the ground.

When the explosion occurred, a nearby Soldier Bee had shielded her, weakening the blast wave and blocking the vast majority of the shrapnel. Even as it toppled, it had braced itself with its mechanical legs to avoid crushing her. As a result, the little girl’s injuries weren’t that severe.

“I have a casualty here! Soldier Bee, get over here!”

Receiving the command, two Soldier Bees immediately crawled over. They retracted their weaponized mechanical arms, then linked up head-to-tail to form a spider-like robot with a larger top surface.

With the help of the others, Nia lifted the girl onto this makeshift stretcher robot and secured the restraints.

As if calling a pet, the cat-girl medic gave the combined Soldier Bee a pat on its ‘rear’. It immediately set off at a high but stable frequency, its mechanical legs carrying the little girl toward the emergency armored vehicle.

Before long, the casualties near ground zero had been triaged.

For those who could be saved, the medical squad called over Soldier Bees to transport them. For those who were beyond saving, they were put out of their misery after obtaining their consent, sparing them further torment.

After dealing with the critically wounded and leaving two soldiers to secure the scene, Nia’s medical squad joined the other combat soldiers at the new refugee gathering point to treat those with minor injuries.

Although the medics and combat soldiers wore the same series of combat exoskeletons—albeit a medically specialized version—the pure white paint job and the Red Cross symbol made them more readily accepted by the refugees.

As Nia and her team began treating the wounded, the refugees’ emotions gradually stabilized. The white-armored soldiers before them were just like the ones in the promotional videos, helping them, the victims of war.

The external sensors on the heavy-duty field ambulance zoomed in and recorded the refugees’ expressions, and the footage was soon broadcast on the live stream.

No advertisement, no matter how much was invested in it, could have been more effective in winning hearts and minds than this live broadcast.

Although Federation citizens were still fiercely debating the treatment of Imperial civilians on the battlefield, they had reached a consensus regarding Atlas—at least for now, the company was genuinely acting as their corporate videos claimed.

Just as Nia and her team were calming the Imperial refugees and preparing to call the base for transport vehicles to pick them up, another incident occurred.

A man with a look of utter grief and despair on his face suddenly stood up from the crowd. Ripping open his shirt to reveal the bomb strapped to his body, he cried out to those around him, “I did what you asked! Don’t hurt my family!”

The moment the words left his mouth, he closed his eyes and prepared to press the detonation button in his hand.

Nia recognized the man. She had passed by him earlier while checking on the wounded. Seeing him crouched on the ground, his body hunched over, she had even asked if he needed help.

And at that time, the explosives warning unit on her combat exoskeleton’s counter-terrorism module had reported nothing…

The turn of events was so sudden that the surrounding Atlas soldiers didn’t have time to react. Just as tragedy was about to strike again…

Zzzt-chak!

Two high-velocity penetrator rounds tore through the man’s right hand, which was holding the detonator, and his neck.

The instant the man fell, the nearest Soldier Bee pounced on him. While activating its built-in signal jammer, it swiftly destroyed the bomb’s detonation components.

Stunned by this chain of events, Nia turned to look in the direction of the gunshots.

She saw Platoon Leader Ram’s Head, who had just undergone surgery and should have been fast asleep under anesthesia, was somehow awake.

He was propped weakly against the side of the emergency armored vehicle. A residual blue light still flickered on the rail of the electromagnetic rifle tucked under his uninjured left arm.

He had removed his exoskeleton for the surgery and hadn’t had time to put it back on a moment ago. This meant ‘Ram’s Head’ had relied purely on his own physical strength to lift the heavy electromagnetic rifle with one hand and fire two shots in an instant.

Seeing the would-be suicide bomber on the ground, the platoon leader let out a sigh of relief. His already weakened body finally gave out after that exhale, and he slid down the side of the armored vehicle to the ground.

The relatively ‘refined’ looking Ram’s Head let out a curse that seemed at odds with his appearance.

“Fuck… I really am the kind of guy who makes the impossible possible.”

This whole series of events had the audience of the battlefield live stream holding their breath in suspense. When they saw Platoon Leader Ram’s Head make the final shot, even some viewers on the Federation’s side couldn’t help but cheer.

“Awesome! Platoon Leader Ram’s Head, awesome!”

“Is he even human? Firing two quick shots with a rifle in one hand without an exoskeleton, and both hit?”

“Theoretically speaking, the Romu are not ‘human’ in the conventional sense.”

“Wait, this is just one of their platoon leaders, right? How strong are the others?”

“According to the grapevine, the boss of this company is a ridiculously powerful psionic user.”

The comment section of The Eye of Truth’s live stream exploded. Major websites and forums throughout both the Federation and the Empire were flooded with content from today’s battlefield broadcast.

Just when everyone thought the biggest bombshell of the day had already dropped, the situation in the town of Portia took another turn.

When the Federation troops that had been sent to hunt down the remaining Imperial soldiers came charging menacingly toward the refugee gathering point, all the onlookers realized one thing.

Something big was about to go down.

Chapter 351: The Standoff that Suddenly Ended

“Looks like we’re in trouble.”

With the help of the surrounding soldiers, Ram’s Head Platoon Leader Aum got back to his feet.

Looking at the fuming Federation troops, most of whom had damaged armor plates, Aum sensed trouble. He stuck an emergency earpiece in his ear and spoke into the comms channel:

“Thebes, where are you? I think we’re about to have a problem over here!”

“Platoon Leader, we just pursued them to the outskirts of town! The remnant Imperial soldiers who launched the attack have been eliminated. We’re on our way back now!”

A low buzzing noise came from Thebes’ background, clearly the sound of his armored vehicle’s engine running at high power, overwhelming the earpiece’s noise-cancellation system.

“How long until you’re back?”

“Ten minutes, sir!”

Aum shook his head as he watched the Federation soldiers rush forward and raise their rifles.

“I might not have ten minutes.”

With that, Aum had the soldiers of his guard squad help him walk forward until he stood between the Federation forces and the refugees.

At the same time, one of the armored infantry fighting vehicles that had remained behind swiveled its turret over as a deterrent.

“Get the fuck out of the way if you don’t wanna die!”

“Calm down. These civilians were victims of that explosion, too!”

“I don’t give a damn about any civilians! My Company Commander was just blown to bits! It’s all because these people were shielding those Imperials!”

The man in command of the Federation unit was their deputy company commander. At that moment, his eyes red with rage, the Federation officer ignored battlefield regulations and flipped open his tactical faceplate to roar at Aum:

“Get lost, or die with them.”

“I’m staying right here. I’m not going anywhere,” Aum said, completely unfazed by the other’s aggression. He stared at the Federation officer and spoke word by word.

“We are here on a Humanitarian Aid Mission. We will not stand by and watch you open fire on these civilians.”

The moment Aum finished speaking, the Federation officer in front of him raised his rifle and pressed it against his chest.

His action triggered an immediate chain reaction. Both Federation and Atlas soldiers raised their weapons and pointed them at each other. Even Nia’s medical squad took cover behind an armored medical vehicle and aimed their rifles.

The dozen or so ‘Soldier Bees’ that had just been transporting the wounded scattered, lowered their altitude, and entered ‘ambush mode’.

The situation instantly became so tense it was almost suffocating. However, upon noticing Aum’s missing right arm, the Federation officer hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Romu, I admit your willpower has earned my respect, but that’s not going to stop me from pulling this trigger. You’ve already lost an arm meddling in the affairs of these civilians. You want to lose your life now, too?”

“I said, protecting civilians is my mission. And as a soldier of Atlas, I will complete my mission at all costs.”

Aum’s voice was calm. Though his common human tongue wasn’t perfectly fluent, his words now were powerful and resolute.

“Mission? You’re just a bunch of money-grubbing mercenaries. This so-called ‘humanitarian aid’ is just a show for you, isn’t it? Besides, how could an alien like you genuinely care about the safety of these humans you don’t even know!”

The Federation officer clearly didn’t believe Aum’s words. In his eyes, these Atlas soldiers were just putting on a show. He believed that with a bit more pressure, he could expose their pretense.

“To say something like that only proves you know nothing about us Romu.”

“Hmph, why should I know anything about some alien race that has nothing to do with me?” Before the officer could finish, Aum cut him off.

“The Romu were a race that was nearly wiped out once. If someone hadn’t extended a helping hand to our weak people, I might not be standing here talking to you right now. I just want you to understand that when we Romu see the weak in danger, we will step in to help without a moment’s hesitation.”

As he spoke, Aum took a step forward with an unprecedented air of authority, pressing forward against the rifle barrel and forcing the Federation officer to back away. He continued, “And I’ll tell you something else. This ‘humanitarian aid’ mission is no show for Atlas. The statements we issued and our promise of protection for refugees have always been in effect. If you don’t believe me, go ahead and try.”

Aum’s speech stunned the Federation troops. While it didn’t completely dissuade them from their idea of killing the civilians to vent their anger, it at least managed to ‘stun’ them for a few seconds.

Including the deputy company commander, the Federation soldiers couldn’t help but wonder: what if this Ram’s Head was telling the truth?

Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate and the Federation troops were beginning to stir again, a steel giant descended from the sky, changing the situation once more.

The distinctive weapon container on the unit’s back confirmed the HCP’s model: GAT-X303 ‘Aegis’.

Although this ‘Aegis’ was painted pure white like Atlas’s other ground units, the distinctive hussar emblem on its shoulder pauldron allowed the Atlas soldiers on site to identify the newcomer without even checking their networked list of friendly units—it was the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Atlas HCP units, Major Murat.

“Stand down, or we will respond with force in accordance with Article Five of the ‘Memorandum of Understanding on Combat Zone Operations’ signed between Atlas and the Federation.”

The cold male voice boomed from the HCP’s external speakers. While wielding two electromagnetic rifles, the point-defense lasers on either side of the unit’s main monitor also took aim at the Federation forces.

Seeing the HCP standing protectively in front of him, Aum let out a sigh of relief. In a small-scale ground engagement, having a ‘Titan’ on their side gave the surrounding infantry units a great sense of security.

‘Titans,’ the nickname human soldiers had for HCPs, had now been adopted by the Romu as well.

“What, you think one HCP can turn the tables? You really think we’re just doing nothing useful?”

Although the Federation’s deputy company commander was surprised by Murat’s arrival, he wasn’t flustered. The soldiers of this reinforced company were well-trained; as soon as Murat’s HCP appeared, the Mobile Infantry on the perimeter immediately prepared to execute anti-HCP combat maneuvers.

In the space of a few breaths, the buzzing sound of being locked on to echoed inside the ‘Aegis’ cockpit. The unit’s threat assessment system highlighted several detected threat vectors in the 360-degree cockpit.

Normally, even though Murat’s piloting skills had improved dramatically under Amber’s training, basically placing him among the ranks of first-rate pilots, facing an entire company alone in an urban environment still ran the risk of being flanked and destroyed.

Murat was well aware of this, but he wasn’t worried in the least. His purpose for charging in wasn’t to eliminate these Federation troops, but simply to buy time.

Just as the Federation soldiers, simmering in the tense atmosphere, were about to lose their patience, a sudden direct link patched into the deputy company commander’s comms, bringing a dramatic turn to the whole ‘story’.

“Carlos, end the standoff. Pull your men back.”

“Battalion Commander, we lost so many men here just the other day, and just now, even our own Company Commander is gone! How can you ask me to retreat?! What will the men think?!”

The deputy company commander, in disbelief after receiving the communication from Battalion headquarters, instantly snapped.

“Carlos! Obey the order!” The voice on the other end immediately jumped an octave, but then quickly softened. “Sigh… Just calm down first. Bring the rest of the men back safely. We’ll discuss this further later.”

The order from his commanding officer seemed to suck the very soul from Carlos. Almost numbly, he gave the command to retreat.

Meanwhile, in the command post of this Federation medium combined arms battalion, the battalion commander watched as the ‘retreating’ status appeared above the icon for the reinforced company on the electronic sand table. His face was dark as he looked at the fully-armed figure beside him.

“I’ve done as you asked.”

“Thank you for your cooperation, Battalion Commander. Just pretend we were never here~”

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Several smoke shells detonated inside the command post without warning, and the expanding smoke instantly filled the entire space.

By the time the men in the command post managed to stumble out, coughing, the battalion commander discovered that the unidentified special operations unit that had just taken control of their headquarters had vanished.

Outside the camp, a patch of air distorted unnaturally for a moment, and then an encrypted transmission was sent skyward.

“Instructor Squad Special Operations Team, mission complete.”

Chapter 352: The Suicide Bombing Mystery

The confrontation, conflict, and suicide bombing that occurred in an obscure little town on Parra IV became one of the hottest topics of discussion for the Federation and the Empire at an unprecedented speed.

Logically speaking, Parra IV was not the most intense or critical point on the current frontline. The Federation’s invasion force was newly formed after mobilization, and the defensive troops the Empire had deployed in advance were also new units.

The standing armies transferred from military planets on both sides were currently locked in an intense meatgrinder at several key junctures. By all rights, those were the battles that should have been receiving the most attention.

But now, the headlines and trending topics of major media outlets were dominated by eye-catching titles like “The Human Bomb Attack in Portia,” “The Empire’s Madness Before Its Fall,” and “Analyzing the Feasibility of Targeting Civilians Based on the Suicide Bombing.”

To an outsider, however, the reason for this situation was quite simple: this extremely small-scale conflict happened to be broadcast live in its entirety by The Eye of Truth, and the number of real-time viewers had reached a peak.

But within Atlas, not everyone accepted this explanation.

Whether it was the Intelligence Analysis Center, its subordinate External Affairs Department, or the team responsible for operating The Eye of Truth, all of them felt that the popularity of this event was abnormally high, reaching a level it shouldn’t have.

“So you think someone is using this as an opportunity to stir up trouble?”

In a closed-door meeting initiated by the Intelligence Analysis Center, Amber looked at Isabelle and the others and asked.

In truth, ever since Atlas had established its own intelligence department, Amber, the former double agent, hadn’t practiced his old trade in a long time.

After all, no matter how much of a Psionic Agent he was, or how intuitive his thoughts were, he couldn’t be more efficient than a group of professionals coordinating with each other.

So for a long time, Atlas’s intelligence work had been carried out by Isabelle and her subordinates, with informational support from Lilith.

However, whenever they ran into a problem, they would come to Amber.

It wasn’t for any other reason than the fact that Amber could always magically point out key figures, events, or secret locations within the Federation or the Empire, providing them with a breakthrough for their intelligence work.

This time was no exception. When the members of the Intelligence Analysis Center hit a stalemate while investigating the suicide bombing and its abnormal popularity, one member quickly suggested:

“Why not ask our miraculous Boss?”

And so, this meeting came to be.

After Amber asked his question, Isabelle spoke up.

“Based on our analysis of the abnormal backend data, that is indeed our speculation. Moreover, according to our preliminary investigation, a certain force in cyberspace has been fanning the flames.

They are conducting so-called ‘in-depth analyses’ of the incident through all sorts of eye-catching comments, replies, articles, and videos, attempting to drive the event’s popularity even higher. Their commonality is directing the conflict towards Imperial civilians.”

“So that’s the public opinion situation online. It certainly is a bit abnormal. It gives me the feeling that someone is launching a ‘propaganda war’,” Amber said with a nod, agreeing with Isabelle’s assessment, before continuing his inquiry.

“So, what have you discovered about the situation on the ground at the time of the bombing?”

“We actually found something,” Isabelle said with a snap of her fingers, and a video appeared on the holographic screen.

Amber discreetly glanced at a cat-girl assistant beside Isabelle. The assistant had, with perfect timing, tapped the virtual touch panel on the table the moment Isabelle snapped her fingers.

Evidently, they had developed a certain tacit understanding.

As the video began to play, Amber turned his attention back to the holographic screen. The footage was from the scene of the human bomb attack.

However, it was different from The Eye of Truth’s live broadcast footage. The angle was better and the camera was closer; it looked like it came from a soldier’s battlefield recorder.

In the video, among the refugees who were sitting on the ground resting and passing around water and food provided by Atlas, a haggard, disheveled middle-aged man suddenly stood up.

Just before pulling out the detonator hidden in his clothes and setting it off, he looked in a strange direction.

In that direction, there were no other refugees, no Federation soldiers, and certainly no Atlas soldiers.

There was only the ruin of a collapsed three-story building.

Then, the man opened his mouth and said something. Unfortunately, the battlefield recorder’s long-range audio pickup was not its strong suit, and coupled with the noisy environment, the man’s words were not recorded.

Just as Amber was about to say something, he heard Isabelle speak first.

“I know what you’re going to ask. We were also very curious about the last thing this man said, so after reviewing all the footage from the battlefield recorders and broadcast cameras, and after some technical enhancement…”

With a light tap of her finger, Isabelle played an enhanced, though still somewhat muffled, audio clip that echoed through the conference room.

“Please, I’m begging you, let my family go! Please… Boom!”

Immediately after, Isabelle played a second recording. These were the words spoken by the second man who attempted a suicide bombing, just before he pressed the detonator. Because the medic, Nia, and others were nearby at the time, this recording was relatively clear.

“I did what you asked! Don’t hurt my family!”

The despair conveyed in the two recordings cast a silence over everyone in the conference room.

After a moment, Amber finally spoke.

“If I’m not mistaken, the second man was also looking in the same direction, wasn’t he?”

“That’s right,” Isabelle nodded.

“That’s what we found problematic. If it was just one person, there might be other explanations, but both bombers looked in the same direction while speaking.”

“It’s as if they wanted someone to hear those words—someone who was there at the time, but whom we didn’t see,” Amber continued.

After saying this, he fell silent for a moment. The various thoughts that had been incubating in his mind for the past two days finally clicked into place. A possible truth behind the incident emerged in his mind.

“I only suspected it before. But now, it seems the possibility is quite high.”

Amber spoke again, capturing the attention of everyone in the room.

“This incident was likely not a simple suicide bombing, but a premeditated public opinion guidance operation, designed to exploit The Eye of Truth’s broadcast reach and intentionally escalate the conflict.”

“If this really was a staged event, do you think the Empire did it, or was it the Federation’s handiwork?” Isabelle asked.

“Without that bizarre online sentiment, I might have actually thought it was the Star Dragon Empire. But now… the Federation is the most likely culprit. Think about it, if public opinion continues to ferment, which side stands to benefit more?”

At this, Amber couldn’t help but let out a breath and lean back in his chair.

“Looking at it now, my earlier arrangement was quite prescient.”

“What arrangement?”

“Why do you think the Instructor Squad Special Operations Team appeared at the Federation’s battalion headquarters so quickly?”

Chapter 353: The Hanged Man

The forced intervention of the Instructor Squad Special Operations Team was, admittedly, a coincidence.

Even with all her resources, Amber could not have predicted a suicide bombing in the town of Portia, much less deployed a special operations team near the Federation’s combined arms battalion headquarters in advance.

The reason they were able to pull off this “rapid response” was that they had just completed a previous mission assigned by Amber. The fastest route back to their camp just so happened to take them past the vicinity of that combined arms battalion’s headquarters.

So, when Amber saw their position at that moment, the idea of having Banninger and his team carry out a “decapitation” strike popped into her head.

Thinking back on it now, the timing was indeed incredibly fortunate.

The mission Amber had sent the instructor squad on beforehand was an armed reconnaissance search. The target was the signal from a portable “quantum entanglement communication node.”

According to Lilith’s analysis of the signal’s characteristics, it was one of the portable nodes that Atlas had provided to the Federation.

After Atlas and the Federation began cooperating on communication services, it was normal for the command echelons of frontline ground troops to be prioritized for this technology.

However, they typically used the more feature-complete vehicle-mounted terminals, not this “portable version” with its limited communication range and data throughput.

Moreover, the signal from this “portable version” had appeared within the territory controlled by the remnant Imperial forces. It remained off for long periods, only activating for occasional use.

This unusual sign quickly caught Amber’s attention, leading him to suspect that the user of this portable device might be a Federation spy lying low on Parra IV.

As for the device itself, it was likely smuggled in with a large-scale Federation airdrop.

It was perfectly normal for Federation operatives to be in a combat zone.

Amber dispatched the Special Operations Team to investigate, with the primary objective of getting a general idea of the situation and trying to track the target’s movements.

And Banninger’s Special Operations Team did exactly that.

Although their target eventually managed to shake them during the secret pursuit through Imperial-occupied territory, Banninger still succeeded in implanting a “virus” into the portable device at extreme range.

Of course, “virus” was just Amber’s term for it. What was actually implanted was a compressed “clone” of Lilith—that thing was far more effective than any electronic warfare virus.

Although it would take some time for this clone to “decompress” on its own, the seed had at least been planted.

In a mountain forest fifty kilometers from the town of Portia, Parra IV. Early morning.

A herbivorous animal that looked like a cross between a deer and a goat halted its sprightly steps, intending to lower its head and eat some tender leaves covered in the morning dew.

Just as it was about to enjoy its meal, a faint sound came from nearby, causing the creature to immediately raise its head in alarm and scan its surroundings.

But it looked around several times and found nothing. The faint sound from before did not reappear.

A moment later, the creature, now assured of its safety, bent its front legs again and eagerly lowered its head.

This time, however, a large hand slowly materialized from thin air and pressed down on the back of its neck.

Snap.

Without even a chance to let out a cry of pain, the herbivore’s body suddenly went limp and collapsed to the ground.

Beside its corpse, a figure abruptly appeared out of thin air. A gray cloak, with a faint honeycomb pattern shimmering with a weak blue light under the refracting light, flashed for a moment.

After a glance around to confirm a lack of anomalies, the suddenly-appeared figure hefted the not-so-light deer-like creature onto his shoulder and headed deeper into the mountain forest.

An unknown amount of time later, the figure carrying the carcass arrived near an abandoned forester’s cabin. He looked at the cabin but did not approach it directly, instead walking in another direction, following some kind of pattern.

Soon, he reached a completely unremarkable thicket of bushes. After waiting for a moment, the seemingly normal bushes suddenly parted, revealing a narrow path leading underground.

The neat internal passageway and the soundproofing and anti-detection materials on all sides proved that this was not some “secret base” dug by a civilian on a whim.

It was a proper mountain “hideout.”

“A deer-goat. Looks like we’re having meat tonight.”

A man inside the hideout, upon seeing the figure who had entered and the corpse gently placed on the ground, quietly disengaged the safety on his weapon.

“Has ‘Aurora’ not returned yet?”

“Not yet, Sir. But according to the schedule, he should be back here in a few hours if there are no mishaps,” the person in the hideout replied, his voice tinged with fear.

“Anything unusual with the hostages?” the tall figure who had returned from outside asked as he took off his cloak, revealing a Light Exoskeleton and a psionic suppression combat faceplate that looked like a smooth, hard-boiled egg.

“Everything’s normal, Sir. I just checked on them.”

“Good. You, come and butcher the deer.”

After speaking, the tall figure didn’t wait for a reply and walked directly toward a room deeper inside the underground hideout.

Although he grumbled internally about the unpleasant task of butchering the deer, the fearful-looking man dared not express the slightest resistance.

After all, the man before him, codenamed “The Hanged Man,” was a Psionic Agent who had secretly infiltrated the planet just as the Federation launched its attack some time ago.

Not only was it his sworn duty as a lowly undercover spy to cooperate with a Psionic Agent operating deep behind enemy lines, but he also would never dare to defy a psionic user based on that status alone.

On the other side, as the room’s door was unlocked and opened, the mirrored combat faceplate reflected faces filled with nothing but terror.

The tall figure—or rather, the psionic user—released a wave of psionic pressure. Everyone in the room instantly froze in place, unable to move a muscle.

Then, he slowly paced behind four of the people and spoke in a low voice:

“Your husbands completed their tasks as I requested, but unfortunately, I cannot grant their request to spare you. I apologize for being unable to keep my promise.”

The low voice paused, then continued:

“However, I will make it quick. Rest assured, there will be no pain.”

Snap.

The moment his words fell, the psionic user’s hands immediately twisted and broke the neck of the first woman in front of him.

Then the second, a boy, followed by another pair, a mother and daughter.

Chapter 354: The Instructor Squad’s New Equipment

The Hanged Man quickly placed the four hostages, whose necks he had just snapped, into special body bags. After vacuuming out the air, he stacked them neatly in a corner of the room.

The Hanged Man looked at the four neatly arranged body bags, then at the remaining hostages shivering in the room, and left without another word.

He truly had nothing to say to the “dead.” Their final destination would be to remain in these body bags, left in this room in the underground hideout.

If the remote mountain forest outside was never developed, they would probably never be discovered.

Returning to the main hall, the scent of blood lingered in the air. In another room to the side of the hall, the deep-cover spy from Parra IV was currently butchering the deer-like creature.

Gazing at the spy’s back through the half-open door, The Hanged Man frowned under his tactical faceplate.

The Hanged Man didn’t have much trust for this spy from the Federation Central Intelligence Agency.

Although the spy came from “Project Deep Sea,” a program for infiltrating and placing deep-cover spies within the Empire, the information The Hanged Man had indicated that, aside from the first batch of agents, subsequent groups from the project failed to meet the standards for either capability or loyalty.

The Hanged Man didn’t know the full story behind this, but from the street gossip and internal rumors he’d heard within the intelligence community, Project Deep Sea had essentially become a vanity project for the Central Intelligence Agency in its later stages.

So, from the moment he and his partner, Aurora, were airdropped onto Parra IV and made contact with this deep-cover spy, he had been wary of him.

At the same time, it was unclear whether the spy’s skills were lacking from the start or if his “professional abilities” had simply atrophied after such a long time undercover. In any case, his professional competence was seriously questionable.

So, The Hanged Man and Aurora eventually gave up on having him participate in their operations, instead assigning him to handle some logistical support tasks.

As for the two Psionic Agents’ mission, in addition to their usual tasks of behind-enemy-lines infiltration, reconnaissance, and decapitation strikes, this time they had an additional important job: to secretly manipulate events and escalate conflicts.

Although this task wasn’t exactly conventional, it wasn’t the first time the duo of The Hanged Man and Aurora had done something like it.

During a planetary rebellion a few years ago, they and several other teams of Psionic Agents had also been airdropped behind enemy lines to stir up public sentiment and ultimately incite internal conflict among the rebels.

Of course, their methods back then were rather primitive, and it took a lot more time.

This time, however, Atlas’s new communication technology and their society-wide live broadcasts, while seemingly a constraint on Federation forces, had actually greatly improved the “work efficiency” of a team like his.

With this in mind, The Hanged Man sat down in a chair in the hall and began to meditate while waiting for Aurora’s return.

His partner was carrying their portable communication device and had probably already received instructions from their superiors about the next phase of their objectives.

“I wonder how Atlas will respond. It’s something to look forward to.”

Meanwhile, Banninger and his team, having completed their mission and a round of infiltration reconnaissance along the way, had now returned to Refugee Camp 5.

After spotting the instructor squad’s specialized infiltration vehicle equipped with optical invisibility, Montai, Tairak, and the other Romu from the 2nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion who had been in the first training batch all came to the entrance of the forward base to greet them.

The Furballs were still very fond of the “Instructors” from the instructor squad, whom they hadn’t seen in a while, and the chance to fight alongside them on the battlefield this time made them even more excited.

It was as if they had proven something to their former teachers.

“Montai, you’ve gotten fat.”

That was the first thing Banninger said upon seeing Montai.

“Tairak, you’ve lost weight.”

That was his second sentence.

Everyone burst into laughter. Montai, no longer projecting the “feral beast” aura of a combined arms battalion commander, blushed and began to argue.

“Instructor, I’ve gotten sturdier, not fatter!”

Even Tairak, who was usually more serious, seized the rare opportunity to joke with his good friend.

“Instructor, there’s a reason I’m thinner. Every time we eat, Montai scrapes more than half my food onto his plate…”

“Bullshit! It was only a third!”

“Hahahahaha!”

Right now, to avoid affecting the ground troops’ combat effectiveness and to keep from alerting the enemy, Amber had not yet revealed the Federation’s plot to stir up conflict. As a result, the morale and internal atmosphere of the various units were still quite good.

After the long-separated “old friends” exchanged pleasantries for a while, Montai and Tairak led the members of the instructor squad into the forward base.

“By the way, Instructor, a ‘package’ arrived for you.”

“A package?” Banninger paused for a moment, then immediately understood.

“It’s finally here! Haha, take us to see it first.”

Soon, the group arrived at the forward base’s supply distribution area, where numerous Worker Bees were bustling back and forth.

Banninger and the others immediately spotted ten heavy airdrop containers set aside in a corner.

The external heat shielding of these heavy airdrop containers had already been removed, revealing the main body of the pods.

“These supply crates require your instructor-level authorization to open, so after recovering them, we just stored them here for now.”

At this, Montai asked with some curiosity:

“What’s with all the secrecy? Instructor, would you mind telling us what’s inside?”

Hearing his friend’s rash question, Tairak, standing beside him, couldn’t help but roll his eyes and give him a light kick.

“Montai, mind your security protocols.”

“Damn this cursed curiosity of mine…”

Montai scratched his head in embarrassment, realizing his question had been a bit inappropriate.

But Banninger just laughed, patted his shoulder, and didn’t seem to mind.

“It’s fine. This stuff doesn’t need to be kept secret; it’s meant for direct combat anyway.”

As Banninger spoke, he walked over to the airdrop container with his name on the nameplate. A red light quickly scanned his body, and the container unlocked.

With a hissing sound of depressurization, the container rapidly unfolded into a platform resembling a small workstation. Mounted in the center of the platform was a suit of heavy powered armor with a pure white paint job.

On the hardpoints surrounding the powered armor, equipment such as a heavy electromagnetic machine gun, a personal charged particle cannon, a small heavy electromagnetic cannon, a rocket pod, and a plasma combat halberd were all neatly arranged.

Banninger’s eyes lit up with a particular kind of glee, and he couldn’t suppress the grin spreading across his face.

“Hahaha! The same ‘Raging Crocodile A3’ model as the Boss’s! They finally sent it over!”

Chapter 355: The Federation Makes Its Move

Although the batch of Raging Crocodile A3 heavy powered armor received by the instructor squad was not a complete replica of the one Amber had used, it was close.

After all, the ‘Ver. Amber’ model incorporated a considerable amount of psionic-user-related technology. Since the members of the instructor squad were just natural humans, this part of the cost was saved.

But in terms of ‘hardware specs’ like firepower, protection, and mobility, the batch of Raging Crocodile A3s the instructor squad received was not watered down in the slightest. It was unlike Atlas’s foreign trade products, which were essentially stripped-down versions of their standard-issue equipment.

However, despite Banninger’s laughter, after truly receiving the ‘package,’ his heart grew heavy.

Although Amber had not said it explicitly, for him to send a special operations team—one that typically operated behind enemy lines—equipment meant for frontal assaults at this critical juncture spoke volumes.

“It seems the Boss isn’t optimistic about the situation on Parra IV. Looks like the suicide bombing from a few days ago was more complicated than it seemed.”

Though this thought crossed his mind, Banninger masked his emotional shift, not letting it show.

While Banninger and the rest of the instructor squad were ‘happily picking up’ their new equipment, far away in the Federation’s Capital star system, a closed-door meeting was being held at the Federation Central Intelligence Agency.

“The effect of our public opinion guidance this time was excellent. Atlas’s full-coverage live stream was a huge help to us.”

The director of the Center for Subversion and Public Opinion Guidance, Mike Connor, was summarizing the operation on Parra IV.

“In the past, after an incident occurred, we would need to expend a great deal of energy guiding public opinion in our desired direction through the internet and media. But this time, not only did we perfectly achieve our expected results, but we also attracted an extremely high level of attention.”

Mike Connor’s tone was somewhat smug. After all, as director of the Center for Subversion and Public Opinion Guidance, this operation on Parra IV was enough to be a brilliant stroke in his professional record.

“I know your center’s operation was executed very well, but this is just the beginning. I want to know your plans moving forward.”

An elderly man seated at the head of the conference table spoke slowly.

“After all, this involves me requesting direct naval support from the President and the Minister of Defense. Without a comprehensive plan, I believe they won’t dispatch a sufficient fleet to cooperate with us.”

“I understand, Director-General. That is precisely what I was about to say.”

Mike Connor nodded, no longer boasting about his ‘glorious achievements,’ and moved on to the main topic.

“As you all know, the ultimate goal of our current series of plans is to completely dismantle the Atlas Group before it can grow and to obtain the real-time interstellar communication technology they possess.

Their proactive intervention in the battle on Parra IV is, fortuitously, them digging their own grave. It saves us the trouble of setting a trap to drag them into this war.

Therefore, our next focus will be on the work of ‘discrediting’ them, doing everything in our power to deny their ‘neutral stance.’

The most perfect outcome would be to force a direct conflict between them and the Federation ground forces, allowing us to punish them with military force under a legitimate pretext.”

Mike Connor spoke at length and with great eloquence. As a seasoned veteran who had been deeply involved in public opinion manipulation for over a decade, he was exceptionally experienced in smearing others and inciting internal division.

Coupled with the plan he had prepared in advance, the high-ranking officials of the Central Intelligence Agency attending the closed-door meeting were gradually won over.

After listening to Mike Connor’s plan, the Director-General of the Central Intelligence Agency, the elderly man, first picked up his water glass to wet his throat, then announced his decision:

“Refine the plan further. This afternoon, you will come with me to report to the President and the Minister of Defense in person.”

In the aftermath of the suicide bombing in the town of Portia, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire engaged in a rare war of words over the relatively small-scale incident.

The Star Dragon Empire accused the Federation of committing numerous crimes against humanity during the war, ultimately causing persecuted civilians in the warzone to rise up in resistance.

Princess Agnes and the Regent Prince even delivered speeches on the matter, condemning the Federation’s crimes while expressing regret and deep condolences for the suffering of the civilians in the warzone. They promised that the Imperial army would retake the lost territory as soon as possible, allowing the Empire’s subjects to once again live under the sun.

The Federation, on the other hand, had more tricks up its sleeve.

As a nation far superior to the Star Dragon Empire in media and public opinion manipulation, the Federation used every channel available to extensively publicize the incident.

Their objective was clear: to portray the Empire’s civilians as ‘terrorists’ and suppress domestic opposition to ‘indiscriminate attacks on civilians.’

At the same time, they were subtly passive-aggressive towards the Atlas Group, suggesting that the latter had shown favoritism in the incident, which was inconsistent with Atlas’s previously published statements.

Some braver media outlets, acting with official sanction, even stated outright that the Atlas Group’s actions were likely a ‘symbol’ of the Thousand Stars Empire’s attempt to interfere in the war.

“These people really know how to talk. They make it sound like you elves are going to attack tomorrow.”

As Amber read these reports, he teased Allenita on the other side of the screen.

“My, Mr. Amber, you don’t seem worried at all, even though Atlas is in the eye of the storm right now.”

Allenita, with a seaside beach as her background, was wearing a boldly designed swimsuit and lounging on a beach chair, sipping a cold drink as she spoke.

“What does it matter if we’re in the eye of the storm? Other companies might worry about public opinion causing their stock prices to fall and their shareholders to lose money, but we at Atlas aren’t even public. Why should I worry about that?”

“But if public opinion continues to ferment, it will eventually have an impact, won’t it? Besides, the enemies hiding in the shadows won’t just stop here. They’ll definitely want to ride this wave of public opinion to pull something even bigger.”

Allenita’s tone grew serious. Having navigated the business world for so many years, she had naturally seen such tactics many times before.

If Atlas and Amber weren’t prepared, they could very well fall into the trap of having to constantly prove their innocence.

“At a time like this, arguing with public opinion or even trying to reverse it is not a wise choice. After all, human society is not currently in an era of peace…”

Amber looked seriously at Allenita on the screen and continued:

“There’s no point in arguing in the court of public opinion or trying to prove our innocence. In the end, only those who survive have the right to speak for themselves.

So, Ms. Allenita, that ‘big baby’ I asked you to help me get, have you gotten your hands on it yet?”

Chapter 356: Super-Heavy Purification Beam Emitter

“I’m surprised you still remember what you asked me to do. I thought a busy man like you would have forgotten all about it.”

Allenita’s tone was a bit resentful, making Amber feel as if he had done something to wrong her.

“Ms. Yuge, how could I possibly forget something so important? It’s just that I’ve been too busy lately. Besides, a ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ isn’t something you can just get on a whim, so of course, I wouldn’t keep bothering you about it.”

“Amber, are you looking down on me?”

“Huh? No.”

“Do you think the Yuge family can’t get its hands on a ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’?” Allenita said, somewhat displeased.

In her eyes, Amber’s words were a sign that he didn’t recognize her strength or that of the Yuge family.

Initially, she had been his sole angel investor. But as Atlas gradually rose to prominence—especially after its public recruitment of the Romu sparked discussions within the Thousand Stars Empire and even drew the attention of the Elven Royal Court—the Yuge family had already begun to ‘invest heavily’ through Allenita.

Though in Amber’s eyes, this didn’t really mean much. After all, Allenita was destined to become the Yuge family’s Head of the family anyway.

“No, no, no, of course I believe in the Yuge family’s strength.” Amber waved his hands repeatedly. “It’s just that equipment for a capital ship like the ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ is a bit sensitive. I just don’t want my request to cause any trouble for you, Ms. Yuge, or the family behind you.”

Amber was serious. After all, in the game, before the Thousand Stars Empire opened up foreign military sales, the only way for players to get their hands on a ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ was through smugglers.

And since Allenita and the Yuge family were currently his ‘benefactors,’ he naturally hoped nothing would go wrong for them.

However, Allenita clearly wasn’t concerned about this. As a wealthy woman with considerable power within the Thousand Stars Empire, she felt she couldn’t let Amber look down on her.

So she decided to show off her strength.

“In ten days, a ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter,’ disassembled into different functional modules, will be delivered to the Atlas shipyard.”

“Holy shit, that fast?”

“Personal use, like new.”

“…”

Amber was at a loss for words. All he could say was that the thought process of the Thousand Stars Empire’s elves was truly different from that of humans. In a situation like this, they weren’t thinking about seeking advantages and avoiding harm, but about proving their own strength.

After displaying her ‘strength,’ Allenita continued, “I’m more worried about how you’re going to handle the fallout if you really install this thing on a capital ship.”

“What fallout?”

“If I remember correctly, the Federation doesn’t allow corporations to own capital ships, right?”

“But Atlas is a corporation registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, isn’t it?”

“But your ships are being built within Federation territory!” Allenita put a hand to her forehead. She felt like she had already guessed what Amber was planning.

“That’s right. But I’m building them for the Loubion Star System government under authorization. Speaking of which, I should thank them. If it weren’t for their funding, Atlas’s financial reserves really wouldn’t have been able to build so many at once~”

“Fine, let’s say you’re building them in Federation territory, but you’re now getting ready to stir up trouble with these capital ships.”

“I’d like to correct you on that.” Amber said, sitting up from his leaned-back position and speaking in a serious tone, “First, I’m not trying to stir up trouble. I’m preparing for justifiable self-defense, just in case. Second, these ships haven’t had their hull numbers confirmed nor have they been delivered yet, so theoretically, they can’t be considered assets of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. Third, if it comes to a fight, I’ll be using these ships within Imperial territory. Even if the Federation wants to exercise long-arm jurisdiction, they can’t reach this far, can they?”

“Wait, let me get this straight.”

Amber’s rapid-fire barrage of an explanation left Allenita speechless. The female elf realized she was starting to lose to this human when it came to ‘philosophical debate.’

“So, you’re exploiting a loophole?” Allenita looked up at Amber.

“To be precise, I’m exploiting it legally and legitimately. I’ve had the legal department confirm this repeatedly. If the Federation tries to cause trouble on this front, we can tie them up in court for ten years.”

Amber leaned back in his chair, looking completely at ease, as if this wasn’t a problem at all.

Though she didn’t know where Amber got his confidence from, Allenita still offered a reminder.

“What if the Federation has no intention of going to court? Or what if they don’t plan to reason with you at all? Don’t forget, you’re up against a nation.”

“‘We have fine wine for friends, and shotguns for wolves.’ If they don’t want to talk reason, I’m more than willing to switch to a language they can understand.”

Amber’s tone was very serious. It was clear he wasn’t joking.

“Right now, everyone has a certain misunderstanding of Atlas’s true strength. They think we’re just like any other corporation, restricted in all sorts of ways and easy to push around. Besides, the Federation is now completely bogged down in its war with the Star Dragon Empire. The forces they can spare to deal with us are limited. If they really underestimate Atlas and decide to play rough, I’d be more than happy to leave them with some ‘unforgettable memories’~”

As he said that last sentence, Amber sank deep into his chair. The dim office lighting made him look as if he had vanished into the shadows.

“Alright, alright. It seems you already have a plan, so I won’t say any more. In any case, I hope you proceed steadily. Don’t forget, I have shares in the company. You can’t just let me lose my entire investment, can you?”

Allenita didn’t try to dissuade him any further. She never liked to interfere with the actions of those she invested in, so she took the initiative to end the topic.

“Hahaha, thank you for your understanding, My Lady Benefactor. Once things are settled here, I’ll be sure to visit you personally to express my gratitude,” Amber said sincerely.

In truth, Allenita could have just sat back and comfortably collected her profits every quarter. There was no need for her to expend so much effort, let alone take risks to help him.

But this female elf from the Thousand Stars Empire did it anyway. Although Amber still didn’t know what she was after, having someone willing to help was, in any case, a very good thing.

A benefactor like Allenita, if she were in his old guild, would probably have been called ‘Godfather’ by everyone.

“A personal visit to thank me won’t be necessary. I’ll come over to ‘inspect your work’ myself. I hope you’ll have everything in order, so you won’t be able to use the excuse of being ‘too busy’ again…”

Allenita’s tone still held a trace of resentment, like a lonely wife complaining to her long-absent husband. Hearing it, Amber couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine and shiver.

“Wait. Why would I even think that?”

But before Amber could snap out of it, Allenita on the other end of the screen announced she was going back to sunbathing. After reminding him to arrange for someone to receive the ‘package,’ she ended the call.

Ten days later, a super-large cargo ship from the Yuge family entered a massive shipyard in the deep space of the Loubion star system. A large number of tightly sealed ‘special packages’ were moved into the assembly bay one after another.

And inside the shipyard, a steel behemoth was slowly awakening.

Chapter 357: Conflict Reignited

In the future humanities courses at the Atlas Group’s school for employees’ children, when teachers spoke of the “butterfly effect,” they would tell the students how, during the Blue Star era, the flap of a butterfly’s wings in South America could trigger a tornado in North America.

They would also tell the children of these Atlas employees that the suicide bombing in the small town of Portia on Parra IV was the event that finally thrust the Atlas Group into the spotlight, transforming it from a pawn into a player after a series of subsequent events.

And every graduating class would have a “study tour”—a trip to the town of Portia to visit the memorial hall and relive Atlas’s path of ascent to becoming a universal megacorporation.

But in the present, not even Amber could have imagined that the Portia incident would become the fuse for a series of “great upheavals.”

He had thought that the incident would, at most, result in taking a bite out of the Federation, just to show them what pain felt like.

He never expected that this time, he would finally taste “regret” and “disappointment.”

He certainly never imagined that once true-fire was exchanged, the bite would inflict a wound that could neither be staunched nor stitched, one that would slowly tear the Federation completely apart.

Of course, he did not know any of this would happen yet. At this moment, he was listening to a report from the Intelligence Analysis Center.

The report’s contents were concise but not simple—the Federation’s offensive fleet in the Parra system had been adjusted.

The fleet originally tasked with clearing out Imperial remnants within the system had been reassigned to the front lines where the fighting against the Imperial fleet was most intense, due to its more complete and organized structure.

Replacing them was the Thirteenth Fleet, which had just withdrawn from the front lines, led by Vice Admiral Guterres.

They were to replenish personnel, ships, and supplies in this less intense star system. While resting and refitting, they would take over their friendly forces’ mission of continuing to eliminate the remaining Imperial fleets.

Although Amber had never met this Federation Navy Vice Admiral, the name was not unfamiliar to him.

For he was the one who, following Marshal Trafalgar’s’ “cyber-contingency plan,” had annihilated Robert IV with a Proton Annihilation Bomb when the battle in the Robert system was lost.

“They could have sent so many other, more complete fleets, but they just had to send this guy over. They really think highly of us at Atlas, don’t they?”

A rather helpless smile appeared on Amber’s face after he heard the news at the intelligence briefing.

Cleves and Randall, as the fleet’s Commander and Second in Command, had also been pulled into the meeting. Upon hearing Amber’s words, they went through a series of expressions, from confusion to a sudden realization.

However, it was clear that some others at the meeting hadn’t caught on yet, and they now cast puzzled looks at Amber.

“No, you people in the intelligence department can’t just focus on the enemy fleet’s hard power. The commander’s experience and skill are also a crucial factor.”

Looking at everyone’s curious gazes, Amber suddenly felt that Atlas’s intelligence operatives needed to pursue some further studies in their off-hours.

“Even within the entire Federation Navy, this Vice Admiral is a rare case who’s seen action almost continuously since the war began. In terms of experience commanding large-scale naval fleets, he’s among the best in the human world right now.”

As Amber said this, the others instantly understood what they had overlooked, and a sense of crisis began to build rapidly within them.

This was especially true for Cleves and Randall, the “Naval Academy’s dynamic duo,” whose expressions were now graver than ever before.

“Boss, this time, I’m genuinely not very confident.”

Although losing heart before a battle was a cardinal sin in warfare, Cleves felt he had to voice his thoughts during this internal meeting.

“What are you panicking for? Didn’t we often fight to a draw in the simulations?”

“Simulations can’t compare to real combat. Besides, I know you’re very strong, Boss, but you probably lack real combat experience in fleet command, right?”

This was the art of Cleves’s speech—pointing out a problem while not forgetting to flatter his boss.

“Sigh… Your boss here used to be very strong…”

“Used to be? Amber, weren’t you a Psionic Agent before? Did you have to learn this too?” Isabelle chimed in.

“Fine, don’t believe me~”

Amber pouted, not intending to argue the point any further.

Regardless of how skilled a commander Guterres was, the fact was that he and his fleet had now arrived in the Parra system.

Since they were already here, there was no point in debating it further. It was better to prepare for the battle that might come.

“I’ll ‘drill’ you more these next few days, teach you a few ‘special moves.’ If you do have to face Guterres, I’ll make sure you won’t be at a disadvantage.”

“How very thoughtful of you, Boss.”

——

The Federation’s move to transfer the Thirteenth Fleet to the Parra system was basically a clear warning, a move to “discipline” Atlas and hope the company would fall in line like the other corporations.

And on the surface of Parra IV, as public opinion festered, “show no mercy to Imperials” had become the loudest cry.

After two more suicide bombings similar to the one in Portia occurred on the planet, causing significant casualties among Federation soldiers, public tolerance and sympathy for the Imperials plummeted to an all-time low.

In this climate of opinion, the actions of the Federation’s ground forces became increasingly lawless, even leading to unprovoked and indiscriminate massacres of villages and towns.

They also began to deliberately obstruct the operations of Atlas ground troops, preventing them from providing aid to Imperial civilians.

By the time the various ground teams arrived on the scene, they often found nothing but rubble and charred bodies.

Although Atlas continuously exposed these atrocities through “The Eye of Truth,” the Federation always managed to find some excuse to whitewash their actions.

The two sides engaged in a fierce back-and-forth in the court of public opinion, but in the end, the Federation usually gained the upper hand. For a time, it seemed Atlas was beginning to lose ground under the Federation’s media offensive.

Under these circumstances, Mike Connor, Director of the Federation Central Intelligence Agency’s Center for Subversion and Public Opinion Guidance, decided to add more fuel to the fire and make Atlas “get burned.”

Soon, a new order was transmitted to the Psionic Agent Aurora’s portable terminal. After he decrypted the encrypted message with his access key, he and The Hanged Man saw their next directive.

“Carry out a large-scale suicide bombing. This time, have the attacker target an Atlas team directly.”

Chapter 358: The Fuse

Another month of war passed on Parra IV.

As time went on, the remaining Imperial forces, lacking supplies and reinforcements, reached their breaking point. More and more units began to surrender as whole formations.

Among these surrendering Imperial units, most capitulated to the Federation forces they were facing. However, a small number chose to surrender to Atlas’s refugee camps.

This was a situation that neither the ground forces nor Amber and her team had initially expected.

The ten refugee camps established by Atlas were only meant for civilians ravaged by the war, providing them with food, clean drinking water, and a place of shelter.

So, when they received a message from the ground forces that “an Imperial infantry platoon has appeared near the camp and disarmed themselves,” Amber and her team were conflicted.

Taking in refugees had already drawn the Federation’s ire. If they were to take in Imperial soldiers, they would likely be seen as a thorn in the side of the Federation forces.

Based on this consideration, Amber and the others initially decided not to rashly accept these surrendering soldiers. They would only provide some basic material support to prevent a humanitarian crisis due to a lack of supplies.

However, when the Imperial infantry platoon’s leader knelt before the head of the outpost, begging him to take in his unit, the outpost head—a Romu who was also the commander of a combined arms battalion—could not help but send a request to The Hermes.

After subsequent conversations between the battalion commander and these Imperial soldiers, Amber and the others finally understood why the platoon leader would rather kneel and beg Atlas than surrender his men to the Federation Army.

The latter was systematically conducting “‘harmless processing’” on surrendered Imperial soldiers. In other words, they were executing surrendered soldiers on Imperial territory under various pretexts.

After the recent ‘wave of surrenders,’ roughly forty percent of the remaining Imperial forces on Parra IV had already surrendered to the Federation Army. If this trend had continued, a complete Federation takeover of the planet would have been just around the corner.

But soon, during close-in and behind-enemy-lines reconnaissance, some scouts discovered that the Federation Army was not providing these surrendered soldiers with even the most basic accommodation as stipulated by the Treaty of Pyla.

Instead, they were being taken to secluded areas, executed in batches, and then buried in pits or thrown into the camp’s incinerators for fuel.

Even this was considered relatively ‘civilized.’

For units where military discipline was a mere formality, after accepting the surrender of their enemies and disarming them, they could no longer conceal their long-suppressed brutality.

There were ‘target practice’ games of cat and mouse, ‘gladiator’ games where ten men fought over a single knife and a can of food. As for the female soldiers who fell into their hands, they were left to helplessly endure the bestiality of these Federation soldiers.

When news of this spread among the other Imperial units still fighting, many began to question whether they should surrender to the Federation forces opposing them.

Some chose to fight to the bitter end, while others looked to the ‘Angels of the Battlefield’ on the other side, who had been consistently taking in refugees and providing humanitarian aid.

—

“I still can’t figure out why the Federation Army would do this. This is completely different from the Federation military I remember. They’ve sunk so low.”

Aboard The Hermes, Cleves said with a grave expression as he looked at the report from the ground. His eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.

On the other side of the holographic screen, Randall, who also came from the Federation Navy, had a similar expression to his underclassman. In his view, the actions of these Federation ground forces were indeed excessive.

“It’s simple. From a logistical standpoint, the Federation ground forces on Parra IV currently can’t sustain the supply needs of these surrendered Imperial troops for long. With forty percent of their forces surrendering in formations, that’s a conservative estimate of over ten brigade combat teams. Suddenly having to provide rations for an extra fifty or sixty thousand people would likely impact the Federation ground forces’ own supply levels.”

Faced with their questions, Amber replied:

“Although the Federation has conscripted a large number of civilian fleets to assist with transport, you have to remember that this war isn’t just being fought here. Parra IV, and even the entire Parra system, is just an insignificant point on a long frontline.

To maintain the supply lines for such a vast front, the Federation must meticulously manage all its transport capacity. Therefore, every shipment of supplies is the result of careful calculations by the Logistics Department.

Although the Federation might later increase the supply shipments to Parra IV because of the prisoners, at least until the next transport convoy arrives, the Federation forces on the planet will have to use their limited resources to supply both their own troops and the new prisoners.”

Hearing Amber’s answer, Randall nodded thoughtfully and said:

“So it seems the Federation forces on the ground have no intention of sharing their supplies with the prisoners?”

“Exactly. And this touches on another level of the problem.” Amber rapped her knuckles on the table.

“If the two of you were Federation commanders, filled with rage from the Empire’s previous invasion, and you joined the counterattack with the fleet, leading your troops into fierce combat against the Empire on this planet and suffering heavy casualties…

In that situation, the enemy you’ve been fighting tooth and nail suddenly disarms and surrenders. They bring a large number of starving soldiers, short on supplies, to your camp.

Then, in the following days, they consume nearly half of your rations, and the food standards for your own soldiers drop considerably. Under those circumstances, would you be willing to take in these enemies who were pointing guns at you just yesterday?”

Randall and Cleves fell silent. Their reaction told Amber the answer in their hearts.

The atmosphere in their three-way communication channel grew heavy. After a moment, Cleves was the one to break the silence.

“Boss, I still don’t get it. Isn’t the Federation afraid of provoking a rebellion from the Imperial soldiers? These aren’t civilians; they’re battle-trained soldiers.”

“The Federation soldiers would love for these Imperial soldiers to resist. That way, the last shred of guilt in their hearts would vanish completely.”

Amber shook her head. While Cleves and Randall were professional soldiers, they had never experienced a meat grinder of this intensity and duration.

And compared to the naval combat environment, what the ground forces faced was basically ‘hell.’ The pressure on frontline soldiers far exceeded that of other branches.

“Besides, these Imperial soldiers are only accepted after they’ve voluntarily disarmed. The moment they take off their combat exoskeletons and lay down their weapons, they effectively become lambs to the slaughter.

Do you really expect soldiers who have lost their will to fight to resist an enemy wearing combat exoskeletons or Powered Armor with their bare hands?”

“So what should we do now? Do we take these Imperial soldiers in?” Randall asked the crucial question.

“If I only intended to bring you here to put on a show, I might refuse to take them in.” Amber smiled and continued in a slightly self-deprecating tone:

“But unfortunately, we aren’t here to put on a show. You’ve been with me long enough to know that.

So, as long as these surrendering soldiers voluntarily disarm and agree to be inspected and monitored, the Atlas Group will accept their surrender.”

Chapter 359: Mars

“Ha! I knew I followed the right person!” Randall said, his voice filled with excitement. Upon hearing Amber’s decision, Cleves also let out a sigh of relief.

“You two were just waiting for me to say that, weren’t you?”

Though Amber was gratified that his two fleet commanders possessed such ‘humanity’, he still felt the need to give them a word of caution.

“Are you prepared? Hell is what comes next.”

Amber sighed and continued, “The moment we start accepting the surrender of Imperial troops, the Federation will absolutely use it as an excuse to stir up trouble. They both despise and covet Atlas right now. I have a strong feeling this won’t end so easily. Therefore, I order…”

Hearing his final word, Randall and Cleves immediately sat up straight, their expressions turning serious.

“The Atlas fleet is to enter a state of maximum combat readiness, effective immediately. Be prepared to respond to any provocations or attacks from the Federation fleet at any time. At the same time, remember our principle: we will not fire the first shot.”

“Understood!” they both replied.

“What’s the construction status of the Infinity?”

“The final outfitting was completed yesterday. According to the schedule, full systems testing is supposed to begin today. The Lady Salieh you brought back is truly astonishing. With her assistance, the entire construction process has accelerated considerably, and we’ve been able to identify and resolve numerous issues ahead of time.”

Randall was the one who answered. As the fleet’s First in Class commander, Cleves focused more of his energy on the fleet itself, so Randall was temporarily overseeing the progress of the ‘new ship’.

“Tsk… this is really forcing our hand. I originally wanted to give the Infinity more time for testing. The crew and equipment need time to break in, too. It looks like we’re out of time now.”

Amber frowned. The current situation was clearly developing much faster than he had anticipated.

“Have them head this way while running tests. The combat ships stationed at the Tower of Babel and the asteroid belt are to depart at the same time. They’ll rendezvous with the Infinity midway and then warp directly here.”

“Amber, are you going all in?” Randall asked, a hint of shock in his voice.

“‘Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit.’ Besides, the power gap between us and the Federation is so vast. Since a conflict with them is likely unavoidable, we might as well go for broke and show them the meaning of ‘pain’.”

The Imperial infantry platoon that had surrendered to Atlas was disarmed and inspected under the watchful eyes of Atlas soldiers before being led, group by group, into a separately cordoned-off area of the camp.

For some reason, upon seeing the Atlas soldiers in their all-white uniforms, the red cross insignias on them, and recalling the legends of the “Angels of the Battlefield” that circulated among Imperial civilians, the surrendered Imperial soldiers all began to relax.

Even they themselves didn’t know why they let their guard down so completely. So much so that after entering the camp and temporary barracks built by the Worker Bees, most of them didn’t even bother to eat before falling fast asleep.

Meanwhile, as these surrendered Imperial soldiers began to unwind, all ten refugee camps, including this one, received an order from Amber.

Soon, the commanding officers of the ten combined arms battalions and the members of the instructor squad learned of the threat they faced from the Federation now that they had begun accepting the surrender of Imperial soldiers.

The reactions were much as Amber had predicted—they were all clamoring for a fight, declaring they would battle to the end to uphold the ‘bottom line of intelligent life’.

This was especially true for the Romu, like Montai and Tairak.

Just as Platoon Leader Aum of Ram’s Head had said, the Romu had their own principles and convictions in this regard. Their race possessed an obstinacy, unimaginable to outsiders, when it came to ‘providing sanctuary for the weak’.

For Amber, this was undoubtedly good news. It meant that in this incident, these Romu were gradually moving away from being ‘money-oriented’ and were now acting from a genuine, heartfelt desire.

Of course, the bad news was that they would likely ‘see red’ easily under provocation from Federation soldiers, and once a conflict erupted, there was an eighty percent chance they would get carried away—

In the increasingly tense atmosphere between Atlas and the Federation, the days passed one by one.

During this period, the treatment by the Federation military of refugees and surrendered soldiers and the treatment from Atlas reached two opposite extremes.

As a result, more and more refugees began to seek sanctuary, and a steady stream of Imperial soldiers started surrendering to Atlas forces as entire units.

Of course, all this was limited to the areas covered by the ten refugee camps and the forward base. For now, Atlas could not attend to most other parts of the planet.

This directly led to many refugees and surrendering soldiers outside the covered areas following coordinates shared by others on the local network. They began moving toward the nearest refugee camp, embarking on a ‘perilous journey’ with an extremely low chance of survival.

The Federation’s ground forces, naturally, noticed Atlas’s movements as well.

Camp Five, which was managed by the Second Heavy Combined Arms Battalion and currently held the largest number of refugees and Imperial prisoners, was under particularly close watch.

Every day, countless drones conducted reconnaissance just outside the camp’s designated ‘no-fly zone’, engaging in borderline provocations. Meanwhile, reconnaissance units dispatched by Montai, as well as temporary satellite surveillance, discovered that Federation ground forces were mobilizing troops in their direction.

The scale was approximately two combined arms brigades.

In response, Amber had the three combined arms battalions he was holding in reserve transported down to the planet, one after another, under the pretext of ‘needing reinforcements due to the increase in refugees’.

Twenty days later, the Infinity and the other combat ships in its formation completed their warp, arriving in deep space to lie in wait, approximately a five-hour warp jump from Parra IV.

The arrival of what was currently Atlas’s most powerful warship brought Amber a small measure of peace, but another piece of news that followed immediately put him on edge again.

According to intelligence gathered by Lilith with the help of the Intelligence Analysis Center, three of the Federation Navy’s unmanned fleets had also arrived in the Parra system. They were resupplying and undergoing repairs in an unknown deep-space location.

Their arrival tilted the odds of a potential fleet battle into a situation that was decidedly unfavorable for Atlas.

At the same time, an urgent message arrived from Camp Five—a Federation unit was demanding entry into the refugee camp to inspect the recently sheltered refugees and Imperial troops.

“What was bound to happen has happened. The show is finally about to begin.”

Chapter 360: Encirclement and Showdown

Norris, battalion commander of the 162nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, part of the Federation Army Expeditionary Force’s 72nd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, had been in top form ever since landing on Parra IV, cutting a swath of destruction across the battlefield.

Within the Federation landing forces, the 72nd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade was designated a “deep attack brigade,” and Norris’s 162nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion was the brigade’s “vanguard assault battalion.”

One could say they were the very tip of the spear.

As a result, his battalion was one of the few units in the entire landing force drawn directly from a military planet, composed of “regular soldiers.” Both their equipment and the quality of their personnel were a cut above other friendly units.

Compared to the line-filling troops scraped together by the Star Dragon Empire on the other side of the frontline, their overall combat effectiveness was naturally several levels higher.

Thus, Norris and his troops had encountered almost no difficulties or tough nuts to crack while carrying out their missions recently.

Until today.

When he first received the order to “proceed to the Atlas Group refugee camp for negotiation and search,” Norris had guessed that the higher-ups were probably looking to make trouble for Atlas.

In other words, the Federation no longer intended to let the stalemate drag on; they were preparing for a showdown with Atlas.

Word of the friction between the Federation and Atlas had been trickling down to the front-line troops for some time.

As a professional Federation soldier, Norris naturally stood unconditionally with the Federation on this matter.

In his heart, however, he held no great animosity toward the Atlas Group. The company’s teams had never interfered with the Federation’s normal combat operations before; they simply had a “difference of opinion” with the Federation on the handling of refugees and Imperial prisoners.

On this point, Norris felt it wasn’t really his place to judge.

He could understand why Federation troops, driven by national hatred and personal feuds, coupled with the strain of prolonged combat, harbored violent impulses toward Imperial civilians and soldiers.

After all, even the soldiers under his command, who spent their years training on military planets, showed signs of similar sentiments.

To say nothing of the “conscripts” who had been mere civilians a few months ago. Their psychological fortitude and resilience were bound to be weaker.

On the other hand, the Atlas Group had indeed strictly observed neutrality, providing humanitarian aid free of charge.

They didn’t just help the Star Dragon Empire. Sometimes, when they encountered Federation troops on the road, the company’s combat personnel would use their more expensive and advanced medical equipment to treat the severely wounded.

Therefore, in the eyes of an officer of a regular unit like Norris, the company’s armed personnel couldn’t be called enemies.

But regardless of his personal thoughts, Norris would resolutely carry out orders from his superiors.

Moreover, he did not underestimate Atlas’s forces. In fact, he rated them higher than the Imperial army.

So now, he had maneuvered his combined arms battalion to the vicinity of the Atlas Camp Five refugee camp. After deploying his troops according to standard frontline contact protocols, Norris sent men to negotiate with the company’s people.

But right from the start, they ran into a situation not accounted for in their contingency plans.

There were no soldiers on Atlas’s outer perimeter, only a large contingent of autonomous armed machinery handling security.

Upon detecting the Federation troops, a portion of the autonomous machines grouped together and, using some kind of small holographic projection device, projected a line of text in the air in conspicuous colors.

“Humanitarian refugee reception area. Armed forces of both sides are advised to identify and prevent friendly fire. Refugees and soldiers wishing to surrender, please follow instructions and enter only after being completely disarmed.

Autonomous machinery will maintain 24-hour surveillance of the perimeter and record real-time video. In the event of any anomalies, reasonable and legal countermeasures will be taken in accordance with the Treaty of Pyla and the Memorandum of Understanding on Combat Zone Operations, without assumption of any liability.”

“Hmph. Airtight on this front, aren’t they.”

Watching the video feeds sent back by the negotiating team, Norris griped irritably.

The other side was obviously giving them the cold shoulder or trying to stall for time. The team he’d sent had been circling the perimeter for half an hour, and the other side showed no intention of sending out a negotiator.

Only those few autonomous machines responsible for the holographic projection were tirelessly issuing warnings with both text and sound.

Of course, there was also a large number of armed autonomous machines keeping watch from a distance, the weapons mounted on their mechanical arms pointed straight in their direction.

“Battalion commander, what now?” After circling like a headless fly for a long time, the negotiating team helplessly radioed Norris for help.

“If we attack, these autonomous machines will cause some trouble for infantry units, but if we bring up mechanized units to suppress them, they probably won’t last long…”

“Who said anything about attacking?”

Norris shook his head as he listened to his subordinate’s immediate readiness to attack.

“Friendly forces have already moved to encircle them from several other directions. This camp is completely boxed in; they’re not getting away.”

“So we just wait?”

“Wait for now. The situation will probably change soon. We just received word from a rear reconnaissance unit that a large wave of people, a mix of refugees and surrendering Imperial soldiers, is heading toward this camp.”

As he spoke, Norris opened the satellite map on the command vehicle’s terminal.

A satellite passing overhead had already captured an image of a vast tide of people moving in their direction.

At the same time, however, the Atlas camp was no longer as easy to “view” as before.

Ever since the conflict began to escalate recently, their various camps had activated some kind of interference device, causing the images of the camps captured by Synthetic Aperture Radar to look like they were covered in a thick layer of mosaic, obscuring everything.

Closing the satellite image, Norris used the command vehicle’s panoramic sight to look in the direction of the approaching crowd.

Although the refugees and surrendering soldiers had noticed the Federation troops, they quickly resumed their advance toward the camp after seeing no unusual movements from the latter.

It was clear that their desire for drinking water and food now outweighed their fragile, ephemeral lives.

Just like that, the tide of people gradually approached the perimeter of Atlas Camp Five. A refugee influx of this scale prompted several armored vehicles and main battle tanks to drive out from inside the camp.

Norris’s negotiating team seized the opportunity to engage the Atlas soldiers, who were clad in pure white combat exoskeletons.

“We suspect that the terrorists who carried out the bombing a while ago have mixed in with the refugees and entered your camp. Out of responsibility for both our sakes, please allow our people inside to conduct a search.”

“I have already stressed this: everyone who enters the camp has been searched and identified. there are no terrorists here, only refugees and surrendering soldiers.”

Faced with the Federation Army’s demand, the Atlas soldier refused without hesitation and once again warned them not to cross the line.

“Buddy, have your officer take a good look around. Your camp is surrounded by a force that far outnumbers yours. Nothing good will come from this standoff.”

“Oh, we’re surrounded? And?”

“You…! How can you be so stubborn!”

As the Federation and Atlas soldiers argued across the perimeter, no one noticed that behind a mound in the distance, the air unnaturally distorted for a moment before returning to normal.

Chapter 361: Public Execution

In the scope of the sniper rifle The Hanged Man held, the crosshairs were currently locked on the head of a Federation soldier outside the perimeter of Atlas Camp Five.

If he pulled the trigger, a high-velocity penetrator round would blow the head—tactical faceplate and all—apart like a watermelon before anyone could react.

But The Hanged Man didn’t. After watching the spot where the two sides were negotiating for a while, he turned his rifle and aimed in another direction.

It was the tide of refugees slowly advancing toward the Atlas camp.

The Hanged Man quickly locked onto a man in the crowd wearing a tattered long trench coat, his head lowered as he trudged forward numbly, eyes on the ground.

Then, another, older middle-aged man near him.

The families of these two men were under The Hanged Man’s control. With their loved ones held hostage, everyone he had encountered so far had been as obedient as these two men before him.

For their families, they would even die.

The rifle turned again. This time, an Imperial soldier in a combat suit appeared in the center of the crosshairs. He looked even more numb than the two middle-aged men, a living ‘walking corpse’.

This was the best effect The Hanged Man could achieve using mind control.

Especially when controlling two Imperial soldiers at once, just getting them to follow his commands was the result of his special training in this area.

The willpower of a soldier was naturally much stronger than a civilian’s, even if most of these Imperial soldiers were hastily conscripted ‘Conscripts’.

Furthermore, there was nothing on this planet to hold them in check, like family or loved ones. So to prevent them from breaking free, The Hanged Man had to resort to mind control.

The consequence, however, was that these two unlucky Imperial soldiers had been turned into mindless walking corpses who would only act on The Hanged Man’s commands.

But it didn’t matter to The Hanged Man. In a little while, these two soldiers, carrying military-grade high-energy explosives, would disappear in a suicide bombing anyway.

No witnesses left. Perfect.

After receiving the latest orders from his superiors, The Hanged Man and Aurora had begun planning this round of attacks.

Psionic Agents like them, air-dropped into a warzone, were different from Psionic Agents like Amber, who had previously been assigned to military bases.

Essentially, the former were highly independent of the Federation military and only took direct orders from the Central Intelligence Agency.

Even on Parra IV, only a handful of people in the ground forces’ high command knew of their existence.

Therefore, when planning the multiple suicide bombings on Parra IV, The Hanged Man and Aurora hadn’t considered the friendly forces. Or rather, the friendly forces were also a part of their ‘calculations’.

Just like today, using the opportunity of the Federation ground forces negotiating and clashing with Atlas to have their pawns, hidden among the refugees and surrendered soldiers, launch an attack.

And this time, the attack directly targeted an Atlas unit.

The Hanged Man was well aware of the intention behind this order.

They were putting extreme pressure on Atlas—when even the refugees start attacking you, can your humanitarian aid operation still continue?

The slowly advancing crowd, the pawns lying in wait as instructed, the bickering soldiers from both sides, and the slightly chaotic security perimeter.

Everything was proceeding according to The Hanged Man’s plan. It seemed this would be another successful operation.

But for some reason, ever since he’d approached this area, The Hanged Man had felt like he was being watched.

This was why, when he’d set up his ambush behind the earthen slope just now, the feeling had even caused a momentary lapse in his psionic invisibility.

He vigilantly scanned all suspicious locations with his high-powered scope but found nothing unusual. The feeling of being watched seemed to be nothing more than a delusion.

“While psionically invisible, even a higher-level psionic user would have a hard time detecting my presence.”

“So why am I having this delusion? Could it be due to the lack of rest from high-intensity combat recently?”

With this thought, The Hanged Man re-aimed the crosshairs at the two controlled refugees.

Whatever the reason, the top priority now was to see the plan through.

“Memphis, do you think he knows that we’ve found him?”

“Why did you have to phrase that so circuitously?”

“…”

Inside a penetration reconnaissance vehicle belonging to the Instructor Squad Special Operations Team, several veterans from the instructor squad were staring tensely at a screen.

In the center of the screen, at the position indicated by a cluster of markers and lines, a humanoid figure lying on the ground was emitting a ‘faint blue glow’.

“He probably won’t find us. The boss said this new toy, in theory, uses a passive detection method. Unless you’re a psionic user as sharp as him, or one with a higher psionic level, you wouldn’t notice a thing.”

As Memphis answered his comrade’s question, he made a few adjustments on the console, making the blue silhouette on the screen a little clearer.

The ‘new toy’ he mentioned was part of the newly issued ‘Anti-Psionic Combat System’—specifically, the ‘Psionic Detection Radar’ installed in this penetration reconnaissance vehicle.

At that moment, the radar was scanning the surrounding area via its raised optronic mast.

The penetration reconnaissance vehicle itself was still in stealth mode. The tarp covering the vehicle’s body and the optronic mast was also one of the latest pieces of ‘black tech’ they’d received.

When connected to the vehicle’s external power interface, this massive tarp could provide both optical camouflage and anti-psionic wave detection.

As for the ‘Psionic Detection Radar’, supposedly developed from technology found in some Forerunner ruins, it could detect the presence of ‘psionic emission sources’ through a method similar to passive detection.

Obviously, psionic users were one kind of ‘psionic emission source’.

Even if The Hanged Man activated his psionic invisibility, this kind of stealth, which required psionics to maintain, would still be detected by the ‘Psionic Detection Radar’.

Of course, the technology didn’t come entirely from the Forerunner ruins. A larger part came from Salieh’s ‘friendly contribution’.

Upon learning that humanity currently lacked any reliable means of detecting ‘psionic emission sources’, this Forerunner couldn’t help but complain, “How have you Homo sapiens remained so backward after all these years?”

Of course, right after she finished her complaint, Amber used the Mental Shackle to ‘knead’ her mind a bit, making her immediately beg for mercy.

As the atmosphere in Camp Five’s security perimeter grew increasingly tense, the interior of The Hermes, in orbit high above Parra IV, was a scene of bustling activity.

With five minutes to go before The Eye of Truth’s official channel began its live battlefield broadcast, staff in the ‘Frontline Control Room’, run by the External Affairs Department under the Intelligence Analysis Center, were doing final touch-ups on a cat-girl anchor.

Everyone understood the importance of this live battlefield broadcast. No one dared to be careless.

Soon, a dispatcher began the final confirmation checks with each department.

“Atlas Communications Business Center, technical department, prepare to shut down Federation-side communication services on Parra IV and in the surrounding space.”

“‘The Eye of Truth’ control room, prepare to connect to the ground forces’ live feed. Anchor, get ready. Ten seconds to broadcast!”

“Five, four, three, two, one!”

A staff member in the control room gave an ‘OK’ sign, and the cat-girl anchor at her desk instantly switched into broadcast mode.

“Hello, viewers, and welcome to the official livestream of ‘The Eye of Truth’. Just moments ago, we received an urgent message from the humanitarian aid forces. Federation troops are outside the security perimeter, demanding to enter the refugee camp to conduct a search.”

The cat-girl anchor paused, then continued in a tense, serious tone:

“At the same time, the humanitarian aid forces have also spotted a figure suspected of being a Federation Psionic Agent around the security perimeter!

For the details, let’s go to the live feed!”

When the image from the penetration reconnaissance vehicle’s screen was broadcast, the audience watching the livestream was stunned by the sight of the ‘little blue man’ lying on the ground in the center of the frame.

And in a conference room at the Federation Central Intelligence Agency, the high-ranking officials who were also watching this emergency broadcast were collectively petrified in their chairs.

Chapter 362: Mike, Your Department Must Take Responsibility!

“Can someone tell me what the FUCK is going on right now?!”

Bernard, the 65-year-old Director-General of the Federation Central Intelligence Agency, swore, a rare occurrence for him.

He was the one who had brought Mike Connor, the Director of the Center for Subversion and Public Opinion Guidance, to meet with the President and the Minister of Defense to discuss and gain their approval for the operation against the Atlas Group.

He had thought this operation would be a chance to pull off something big and restore the Central Intelligence Agency’s dwindling reputation among the government’s top brass. He never expected them to fumble it so spectacularly right from the start.

The little blue man on The Eye of Truth’s livestream was like a giant, invisible hand, slapping the faces of everyone in the Central Intelligence Agency, over and over again.

And the slaps were loud and clear.

“Why was a Psionic Agent, whom we spent a fortune to train, discovered so easily by a private company?!

Why has a covert operation turned into a fucking live broadcast for the entire universe to see?

Are you trying to make the Central Intelligence Agency a laughingstock for everyone?”

The conference room was silent. No one dared to stick their neck out and provoke him now. The only sound was the voice-over from The Eye of Truth’s livestream on the large screen, where the cat-girl host was still providing commentary:

“According to information we’ve obtained, several recent suicide bombing incidents were orchestrated by the Federation’s Psionic Agents.

This raises a question for all peace-loving people: ‘What exactly is the Federation trying to do?’”

“Cat got all your tongues?”

Seeing that no one was speaking, Bernard slammed his hands on the table several times. The mechanical prosthesis that replaced the arm he’d lost on a field mission in his youth cracked the oak tabletop.

The thunderous sound of the table being struck made everyone in the room jump.

As the mastermind of the entire plan and the person in charge of this operation, Mike Connor knew he couldn’t just turtle up any longer. He spoke cautiously.

“Director-General… uh… should we call off the operation for now? And find a way to terminate Atlas’s combat livestream?”

“What do you think? Or would you rather let everyone see more of how the Central Intelligence Agency does its business?”

Mike Connor fell silent. He immediately went to the temporary command post next to the conference room, preparing to call an emergency halt to the operation.

But when he issued the order to the staff in the command room, the desk officer in charge of communications coordination looked at him with a deathly pale face and said:

“Director, communication with the Parra system has been cut off. We just consulted the service provider. They said it’s a temporary interruption due to a solar storm and we have to wait for repairs.”

Hearing this, Mike Connor’s expression darkened further. The “service provider” the staffer mentioned was none other than Atlas Communications, the company that provided interstellar real-time communication services.

And their excuse about a “solar storm” was pure bullshit.

Did Atlas light the star of the Parra system themselves?

How could a solar storm only affect the Federation’s communications while their own livestream remained completely unaffected?

At this thought, Mike Connor wanted to slap himself. Why had he been so foolish as to make a move against them when his communications were completely at their mercy?

He instantly realized this was Atlas’s scheme within a scheme.

They had known all along that the Federation was targeting the Psionic Agents on Parra IV. That was why they had waited until The Hanged Man’s operation began to cut off communications, leaving the Federation unable to clean up the mess in a short amount of time.

But it was too late to dwell on that now. He had to cut his losses, or he might lose more than just his job when this was all over.

“Find a way to contact the nearest fleet to the Parra system. Have them deliver the message through conventional means! I don’t care if they send a ship to warp there or use some secret communication channel. Just get them to contact our people in the Parra system at top speed and suspend the operation!”

“Yes, Director! We’ll get on it right away!”

Seeing the look on Mike Connor’s face, the communications staffer didn’t dare delay, quickly returning to his station to try and contact the nearest fleet.

Mike looked at the bewildered staff in the temporary command room. The curses he was about to unleash were swallowed back down.

After all, yelling at his subordinates now would do nothing but vent his anger.

Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself, Mike Connor returned to the conference room and leaned in to whisper in Director-General Bernard’s ear.

“Director-General, our communications with the Parra system are temporarily down—”

“Say it loud! This is not the time for a private report to me!”

In that instant, Mike Connor felt all eyes in the room fix on him. Among those gazes were schadenfreude, anger, and ridicule, but not a shred of sympathy.

As psychologically tough as he was, he felt a momentary flicker of collapse.

Fortunately, years of training and being “polished” in the agency had forged his character to a point of resilience unimaginable to an ordinary person.

He quickly regained his composure, took a deep breath, and said:

“Our interstellar real-time communications with the Parra system are currently down. We are temporarily unable to notify them to halt the operation. However, the communications team is in the process of urgently contacting fleets near the Parra system to have them try to relay the message.”

“Mike Connor, what the hell are you paid for?!”

A middle-aged man sitting next to Bernard slammed the table and shot to his feet. It was David Steele, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Intelligence Division.

His Intelligence Division was the most traditional department in the CIA, responsible for deploying spies in the Star Dragon Empire and gathering intelligence.

Project Deep Sea was the brainchild of the Intelligence Division.

But ever since Project Deep Sea’s budget was cut and reallocated to Mike Connor’s department and to training the CIA’s own Psionic Agents, the Intelligence Division was no longer the center of attention it once was.

Director David Steele’s own prestigious position, second only to the Director-General, was also threatened. As a result, he and Mike Connor were like oil and water within the agency.

So now, without a second thought, he launched a full-frontal assault.

“You cut our department’s budget, spent over a billion, and took five years, all the while boasting about how efficient it was! Just yesterday, Director-General Bernard was reporting to the President in the regular meeting about how meticulous our frontline operational deployments were, and how professional our airdropped Psionic Agents were!

But I never imagined your department could be so absurd as to have a covert operation broadcast live for all to see, and with your interstellar communications in their hands, no less!

I can sum it up for everyone right now. There are only two possibilities!

One, we have a mole in this room!

Two, this entire plan is fundamentally flawed!

Mike Connor, your department must take responsibility!”

Let us, for the moment, set aside David Steele’s opportunism in attacking a colleague rather than focusing on the solution during a major operational crisis.

Over in the Parra system, at the Federation ground forces headquarters, they also sensed something was wrong when they discovered their real-time communications with their superiors had been cut.

The Atlas Communications Center had taken all “interstellar real-time communication” functions offline for every user in the Parra system, except for those of the Atlas Group.

As a result, it wasn’t just the civilians in the system, but also the warring factions on Parra IV and the fleets in space, who were now unable to contact their rear commands, access the network, or watch the livestream.

Through the combined efforts of Lilith and the Communications Center, the entire Parra system had been isolated, temporarily cut off from the outside world.

Of course, the Federation and the Empire could still use their own conventional communication methods, but in an urgent situation like this, those high-latency channels wouldn’t get a response any time soon.

Aboard The Hermes, Amber, Cleves, and the others were also watching the feed from the ground.

Once the instructor squad had confirmed the location of the Federation’s Psionic Agent, Amber knew that in this round of confrontation, Atlas had finally seized the initiative.

“Notify everyone. Prepare for the next phase of the plan!”

Chapter 363: The Ghost Operative in Action

“Hilarious. Absolutely hilarious.”

On a planet far away in the Star Dragon Empire, Regent Prince Norton II was also watching The Eye of Truth’s combat live stream from a conference room, alongside his advisors and trusted subordinates.

When he saw the furtive ‘little blue man’ on the stream, a rare smile finally graced his recently serious face.

“A secret operation being live-streamed for all to see. The Federation really knows how to put on a show.”

“Pfft.”

Seeing Norton II finally smile, the others in the conference room could no longer contain themselves, and the laughter they had been holding back finally burst out.

“How embarrassing. If I were the Director-General of their Central Intelligence Agency, I’d be flicking off the safety on my pistol right now.”

“What? To commit suicide as an apology?”

“No, I’d gun down everyone responsible for this operation first.”

“Hahahaha!”

The conference room was suddenly filled with cheerful laughter.

However, true advisors like Astral and Perseus only smiled faintly amidst the joyous atmosphere before quickly composing themselves.

After a moment of thought, Astral spoke up.

“Although the Federation played a bad hand right from the start, in the Parra system, their current military strength still holds an absolute advantage over the Atlas Group.”

“That’s right. According to the intelligence received before the meeting, the Federation has also dispatched three unmanned fleets to the Parra system. If a fleet battle were to actually break out, and Atlas has no other cards up its sleeve, they would likely be crushed,” Perseus added with a nod.

Hearing this, Norton II turned to look at them.

“Since the Federation has pulled three unmanned fleets from the most intense frontline, shouldn’t we take this opportunity to do something?”

“Yes, Sir. Our fleets on the corresponding frontlines already attempted to invade Federation-controlled territory after detecting the retreat of the unmanned fleets. However, the Federation had clearly prepared for this, as two newly formed capital ship fleets have already filled the gap on the frontline.”

Astral answered quickly. He had clearly anticipated that Norton II would ask about this before the meeting and had prepared accordingly.

“Sigh… a pity. I had thought Atlas could draw more of their attention for us.”

Norton II’s voice was tinged with regret.

“But given their current size, drawing away three unmanned fleets is already an exceptional performance.”

“Indeed. And based on their current growth trajectory, I believe they are very likely to tie up a significant amount of the Federation’s attention in the future.”

“But that’s only if they don’t use the same set of tricks on us,” Norton II added flatly.

“Gentlemen, while you enjoy the show, put yourselves in the Federation’s shoes. Think about how we would respond if we encountered this situation.”

“Dear valued customer, due to increased solar storm activity in your area, interstellar real-time communication services are temporarily affected…

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

As a token of our apology, we will offer you a limited-time 3% discount on your plan once service is restored…

If you are satisfied with this service call, please give us a five-star rating after we hang up~”

“Five-star rating my ass!”

On Parra IV, the commander of the Federation’s ground forces, Vice Admiral Van Fleet of the Federation Army, finally couldn’t stop himself from cursing after hearing the automated customer service response.

He slammed the expensive “Portable Communication Service Terminal (Federation Special Edition),” a product of Atlas Communications, onto the ground, shattering it to pieces.

After discovering that all Atlas-provided communication devices in the hands of the Federation ground forces had failed, and after a hasty communication with the fleet confirmed their interstellar real-time communication was also down, Van Fleet had already realized that this so-called ‘communication failure’ was no accident.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t have happened at this critical juncture, just as they were about to have a showdown with Atlas.

Using communication technology controlled by the enemy to challenge that very same company… how on earth did the top brass in the military approve this mission? Are the people at the Central Intelligence Agency all pig-headed?

Van Fleet cursed the families of the CIA’s top brass in his mind, but he knew it wouldn’t change the current situation.

Fortunately, the military high command wasn’t entirely foolish. Among the many contingency plans they had prepared was one for the current situation of ‘losing contact with headquarters.’

“Relay my orders! Have the troops near Camp Five increase the pressure. It would be best to force the Atlas personnel to fire the first shot.

At the same time, tell them to be alert for any unforeseen incidents. If any issues arise, they are to report to Command Headquarters immediately.

As for the troops near the other camps, they are to maintain their encirclement and prevent any attempts to reinforce Camp Five.”

Since the Federation’s conventional communication methods were still functioning, the ground forces quickly received the orders from Command Headquarters.

The Federation troops negotiating with the Atlas forces at Camp Five increased the pressure upon receiving the command.

Several heavy armored vehicles drove right up to the cordon line, while a few main battle tanks in the distance swiveled their cannons and remote weapon stations to face them.

Meanwhile, The Hanged Man, hidden behind an earthen slope, had no idea he had been discovered, much less that his every move was being live-streamed to the entire network.

He was currently immersed in his mission, the crosshairs of his electronic scope fixed on a ‘pawn’ closest to the Atlas forces. The man was following the crowd, walking toward the cordon of the refugee reception area set up by Atlas.

Atlas had clearly learned its lesson from the previous suicide bombing. A mixed squad of Worker Bee and Soldier Bee drones was weaving through the crowd, scanning people with the explosive detection devices on their mechanical arms.

“Tsk… this makes it much harder to get close.”

The Hanged Man frowned. Atlas was more vigilant than he had anticipated. Previously, they had checked for explosives before the refugees entered the camp, but now they had moved the checks all the way up to the cordon line.

“It seems I’ll have to use these two ‘pawns’ to clear a path for the ‘puppet’…”

The Hanged Man made a decision based on the situation. He focused his mind and sent a psychological suggestion via Psionics to the two ‘pawns’ mixed in the tide of refugees.

“For your families, do what you must.”

A complex mix of emotions—reluctance, confusion, and fear—welled up in the eyes of the two refugees under The Hanged Man’s control, which finally turned into resolve.

Just as the two quickened their pace, intentionally or not, and moved toward the nearest Atlas soldiers, a warning came through the comms channel from inside the cloaked penetration reconnaissance vehicle, spoken by a member of the instructor squad:

“Attention! Target psionic activity detected! The enemy’s Psionic Agent may be making a move! Sentry units, be on the lookout for suicide bombers!”

Chapter 364: Firefight

As if rehearsed countless times, the moment the instructor squad’s recon team issued a warning, the Atlas soldiers near the cordon immediately reacted.

An extra sensor extended from the backs of their combat exoskeletons, aiming toward the crowd. Simultaneously, a hidden point between the cordon and the forward base opened, and a large number of ‘Worker Bees’ equipped with flight components flew out.

The Hardpoints beneath these flying Worker Bees were also fitted with the same sensors as the ones on the Atlas soldiers.

Once they flew into position above the tide of refugees at set intervals, all the sensors on the field began to form a network, completely blanketing the group.

“Danger Detection Network established. Commencing threat detection!”

Following an order from a ground commander, Camp Five’s Hive Core dedicated a portion of its computing power to support the ‘Danger Detection Network’.

This explosive pre-warning system, composed of numerous sensors, could collect biological information within the network’s coverage, including heart rates and respiration frequencies, and identify devices suspected of being explosives.

After Atlas’s search teams first encountered a suicide bomb attack, Amber had the Equipment R&D Center begin developing this system.

He knew that whether it was the fighting on Parra IV or in the more distant future, as long as a warzone contained civilians—units difficult to identify—incidents like suicide bombings would be common.

So, while this system was a stopgap product, that didn’t mean it wouldn’t be useful later.

If nothing else, it could be repackaged and sold to a third party. After all, such incidents were not uncommon within the Empire and the Federation.

Soon, with the support of the Hive Core’s computing power, the Danger Detection Network identified numerous suspicious targets within the refugee crowd. This information was shared via Atlas’s internal datalink to every soldier’s tactical faceplate.

Looking at the multiple suspicious targets highlighted in bright red on his HUD, Ram’s Head’s Platoon Leader, Aum, who was responsible for maintaining order near the cordon, issued a command for further identification through his command terminal.

Several drones swiftly descended, hovering over these suspicious targets. While projecting a visible light beam to mark the targets, a sweet female voice emanated from their loudspeakers:

“Hello, civilian. In accordance with the ‘Refugee Reception Camp Management Regulations’, you are now subject to a random inspection for dangerous goods. Please remove your outer jacket and raise both hands.”

Before the drones even needed to issue a second warning, the surrounding refugees immediately scattered, leaving only the few bewildered, suspicious targets standing beneath the drones.

Apart from the two ‘pawns’ controlled by The Hanged Man, the other suspicious targets were completely dumbfounded. They had no idea what they had done to be labeled as ‘suspicious targets’.

However, after coming to their senses, these individuals did what any normal person would do—they took off their tattered jackets and raised their hands high.

The drones quickly stopped ‘marking’ them, and soon only two marked targets remained on the field. Their continued refusal to remove their jackets and prove their innocence had allowed the surrounding Atlas soldiers to guess their identities.

Seeing the refugees flee and realizing he might be captured alive if he didn’t act, and with his family’s lives still in The Hanged Man’s hands, one of the ‘pawns’ grit his teeth and prepared to charge an Atlas soldier who was evacuating civilians nearby.

But he had clearly overestimated his own athletic ability and underestimated the reaction speed of the Worker Bees.

Before he could even take his first step, just as he turned and pushed off, the non-lethal weapon launcher mounted beneath the drone fired two taser darts that pierced his body. The burst of electricity instantly coursed through him, and he collapsed to the ground, twitching uncontrollably, unable to react.

The same scene was playing out where the other ‘pawn’ stood.

After both men were down, the drones in the air continued to lower their altitude and extended a mechanical arm to remove their jackets.

When the explosives strapped to their bodies were revealed to everyone, the surrounding refugees cried out in alarm and scrambled to get even farther away in terror.

Watching this from behind the earthen slope, The Hanged Man finally gave up on the idea of remote detonation, fearing that the detonation signal would reveal his position.

Though the mission was already half a failure, that didn’t mean there wasn’t a chance to continue. If he used his ‘last resort’…

At this thought, after a fierce internal struggle, The Hanged Man made the decision that the Federation’s high command would come to regret immensely.

Two mind-controlled ‘puppets’ hidden among the surrendered Imperial soldiers suddenly pushed past those around them and sprinted in the same direction.

They moved with incredible speed, a stark contrast to their previous zombie-like demeanor, now resembling champion sprinters on a racetrack.

In that direction, a Federation wheeled armored vehicle was parked near the Imperial prisoners of war. The soldiers on board were pointing and jeering at the prisoners, letting out bursts of laughter from time to time.

When they saw the two Imperial soldiers suddenly break into a sprint, they thought the men couldn’t stand the ridicule and were charging over for a bout of impotent rage.

Amid the gazes of his teammates, one Federation soldier sauntered forward with a smirk. He flexed his power gloves, which whirred to life with a soft buzz, and then clenched them into fists.

Clearly, this Federation soldier intended to teach these two arrogant, defeated soldiers a lesson.

And then…

Boom!

The force of the military-grade high-energy explosives blew the Federation soldier and the charging puppet to smithereens.

His teammates only realized what had happened after they were splattered with flesh and shrapnel. They immediately raised their rifles to aim at the other figure who was already upon them, but it was too late.

Boom!

Another explosion rang out, this one even more powerful. The billowing smoke completely engulfed the nearby wheeled armored vehicle.

When the smoke cleared, one side of the wheeled fighting vehicle was completely blackened from the blast, and the ground was littered with so much debris that its exact condition was impossible to determine.

As for the Federation soldiers around the vehicle, they had vanished in the two explosions.

The refugees and Imperial prisoners near the cordon erupted into chaos. Everyone screamed and cried, rushing toward the refugee camp in hopes of finding shelter.

Faced with this scene, Platoon Leader Aum of Ram’s Head frowned, forced to deploy the large number of ‘Worker Bees’ he had been holding in reserve for emergencies.

Half of the drones, equipped with flight kits, quickly flew over the crowd. While guiding them with their loudspeakers, they began to spray a compulsory sedative gas from the high-pressure canisters they carried, much like crop dusters.

As if coordinated by a pack of sheepdogs, the previously scattered crowd was re-formed and began to move in an orderly fashion toward the designated location.

But one problem was solved only for another to arise.

Before Aum could turn to negotiate with the Federation soldiers at the cordon, he saw the upper body of the soldier standing at the very front get blown apart in an instant. The sound of a gunshot arrived a moment later.

But that was only the beginning. Several more shots followed in quick succession, leaving two Federation soldiers dead and one injured, while riddling the side of the armored vehicle behind them with bullet holes.

“This is bad! Everyone, take cover!”

Alarm bells screamed in Aum’s head. He yelled into the channel as he sprinted for the cover of the nearest vehicle.

At the same time, the disbelieving voice of the instructor squad’s recon team came over the comms channel:

“Fuck, a Federation Psionic Agent is firing on his own men?!”

“He’s trying to shift the blame! He wants to force a conflict! Prepare for combat!” Tairak, who had been listening silently on the channel, spoke up at this critical moment.

But even without his order, the Atlas soldiers near the cordon had already dived behind vehicles or mobile cover with maximum speed.

On their tactical faceplates, the distant Federation main battle tank, marked as a ‘purple high-risk unit’, now showed the heavy electromagnetic cannon in the center of its turret glowing with a blue light.

A sharp hum and a tactical alert blared in their earpieces simultaneously.

“Warning, strong magnetic field detected. Assessed as a heavy electromagnetic cannon firing. Evasive action advised!”

Chapter 365: Atlas Combat Forces vs. Federation Regular Army

The Atlas soldiers only saw the rectangular muzzle of the Federation main battle tank flash once. Immediately after, a blinding white light erupted on the front of a medium multi-legged war machine inside their defensive perimeter.

That was the electric arc produced when the deflector shield activated.

Soldiers a little farther away could even see the long, thin, orange-red tracer pause for a moment upon hitting the deflector shield before seemingly sliding off and flying upwards at an angle.

And then, the sound of the cannon, like the wrath of a thunder god, rolled in from the distance.

“They’ve opened fire! The Federation is firing! Defend and counter-attack according to procedure!”

Aum waved his hand as he roared into his platoon-level command channel:

“Pop smoke! Pop smoke! Pop smoke!”

Soon, with a series of sounds from electromagnetic launchers activating, a large number of smoke shells exploded in the open ground between the Atlas soldiers and the Federation troops.

In this volley, both vehicles and infantry launched quick-deployment smoke shells. While they didn’t last as long as conventional thermal smoke shells, their special chemical formula was designed to rapidly generate a large amount of smoke for tactical concealment in emergencies.

Watching the wall of smoke rise, Aum continued to issue commands over the comms:

“First, Second, and Fourth Squads, cover the refugees’ retreat to the camp. Third Squad and the fire support team, move to your prepared positions and attempt a counter-attack! The multi-legged war machine platoon will cover our rear. Don’t get tied down!”

Following his orders, the Atlas soldiers, who had been on edge due to the sudden incident, quickly calmed down and began to act on his instructions.

The multi-legged war machine platoon at the rear was not under his direct command but came from his company, temporarily attached to him for this mission.

At this moment, Aum couldn’t help but feel fortunate that his Company Commander had assigned these three medium multi-legged war machines to him.

Otherwise, the vehicles of a standard mechanized infantry platoon would have already been turned into a fireball by the Federation main battle tank’s first shot.

“If this thing is already so tough, how tough must the battalion’s heavy multi-legged war machines and main battle tanks be?”

As this inopportune thought flashed through his mind, Aum and the soldiers around him began to fall back to their prepared positions under the cover of their infantry fighting vehicles.

The vehicles used by the companies and platoons of the heavy combined arms battalion were armored infantry fighting vehicles, which offered better protection than wheeled armored vehicles.

At Aum’s command, they maintained a posture facing the enemy, retreating while suppressing the Federation soldiers, who were now milling about in the smoke like headless chickens, with their 50mm chain guns.

Compared to the 25mm, 30mm, and 35mm autocannons and chain guns on Federation infantry vehicles, the 50mm chain guns on Atlas’s newly commissioned ‘Bull’ armored infantry fighting vehicles, while slightly inferior in ammunition capacity, certainly packed a much bigger punch in terms of firepower.

Furthermore, only a corporation as deep-pocketed as Atlas would be willing to equip the chain guns of these infantry fighting vehicles with programmable ammunition for its relatively small ground force.

A mixed ammunition belt of high-explosive and armor-piercing fragmentation rounds, accompanied by the “thump-thump-thump” of the chain gun, became a Grim Reaper’s scythe, sweeping through the last known location of the clustered Federation soldiers on the other side of the smoke.

Although the vehicle commanders of each IFV couldn’t confirm the damage dealt, they knew from the thinning return fire in the smoke that the Federation infantry had likely suffered heavy losses.

Not long after Aum reported the situation to company command, a piercing shriek from the sky made him look up.

He saw more than a dozen projectiles with faint trails streaking over his head, exploding at their landing positions in the distance to form an even thicker wall of smoke.

This was covering fire from the company fire support platoon’s 120mm mortars.

According to the plan, if a conflict broke out, the 120mm mortar team would first fire a round of smoke shells at designated areas to cover the retreat of the front-line troops and refugees, followed by a six-round rapid fire of 120mm smart airburst grenades.

Since the area around Refugee Camp Five had been thoroughly mapped out in previous ranging tests, all indirect fire units, including this company’s fire support platoon, could skip the ranging fire phase and open fire directly when counter-attacking.

Even if there were inaccuracies in the landing positions, corrections could be made via ranging drones while maintaining continuous suppressive fire.

—

If the Atlas combat units had managed an orderly retreat and counter-attack in the face of a sudden incident, then the more numerous Federation forces opposite them were looking somewhat disheveled under the counter-attack of a mechanized infantry platoon, a multi-legged war machine platoon, and over a dozen 120mm mortars.

Watching his vanguard mechanized infantry company scatter like rats while clutching their heads in the smoke, Norris, the battalion commander of the Federation’s 162nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion, was a little stunned.

He suddenly found himself unsure of who was ambushing whom.

How could the enemy’s counter-attack be so swift, their fire support plan so comprehensive? It was as if they had been prepared all along, just waiting for them to walk into a trap.

What was even more outrageous was that the moment the two sides engaged, his troops were hit with extremely severe electronic countermeasures.

Not only had the drones in the sky lost their ground signal and entered autonomous Cruise Mode, but they were also being shot down one by one by the enemy’s high-energy lasers like swatting mosquitoes.

Even his battalion’s communications with the rear and with friendly forces in other directions were being heavily jammed.

To prevent a potential electronic warfare virus attack, Norris had no choice but to halt conventional communications and switch to the less efficient blue-green laser and quantum-encrypted communications.

“Damn it! What the hell is that medium multi-legged war machine on their side? How does it have a deflector shield?”

The string of curses over the comms snapped Norris back to his senses. It was the voice of his armor company commander.

The Federation Army’s radio discipline had long been in a state of ‘steady decline.’ The chaotic communication channels were a nightmare for commanders at all levels during combat.

But since they themselves often failed to adhere to radio discipline, they couldn’t very well expect it of their soldiers.

“Are you sure it’s a medium multi-legged, and not a heavy one that’s lowered its profile?”

Norris replied instinctively over the comms, completely oblivious to the fact that he had not only failed to stop the armor company commander from violating radio discipline but had also joined in.

“Battalion Commander, I’m certain it’s a medium. The combat assistance AI also speculates it’s a medium based on its size. But it’s really strange. Even though I lowered the voltage for a quicker shot, it shouldn’t be so weak that it can’t even take out a medium multi-legged.”

“Don’t overthink it. The troops in the other sectors have probably realized something’s wrong by now. They’ve most likely already begun their attack according to the plan. You take the armor company and press forward. I’ll have the HCP Company cover you. They don’t have much defense in depth!”

“Understood, Battalion Commander!”

The armor company commander replied with gusto, then led his fourteen ‘Grizzly’ main battle tanks into a combat formation, activating their deflector shields as they began to advance.

When the armor company commander’s number one tank broke through the wall of thermal smoke, the last thing he saw was the assault position ahead—what had once been a clear, open path—was now, as if by magic, filled with a large number of armored walls and fixed turrets.

The next second, a thick, blue-white ‘beam’ brutally tore through the Grizzly main battle tank’s deflector shield and then consumed the entire vehicle.

Chapter 366: We’re Done Pretending to Be Gentlemen

The blast wave from the heavy particle cannon firing on the surface dispersed the smoke and snapped the Federation armored soldiers, whose fighting spirit had just been stirred, back to reality.

After seeing their lead vehicle turned into a puddle of ‘melted cheese’ by the heavy metal particle stream, the terror of being at the mercy of this high-energy weapon quickly filled their hearts.

“Vehicle One has been… been destroyed! Company Commander is KIA!” a trembling voice announced over the comms channel.

Even though the Federation’s 72nd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, tasked with attacking Atlas Camp Five, was a well-trained standing army, it was inevitable that these armored soldiers would panic when their lead vehicle was instantly destroyed.

Fortunately, however, vehicles Two and Eight—carrying the deputy company commander and senior non-commissioned officers—were unharmed, so the armor company’s command system didn’t completely collapse.

The deputy company commander had no time to mourn his fallen commander. He immediately took over command on the comms channel, and his choice was simple: continue the attack.

Although a large number of obstacles, armored walls, and powerful heavy particle cannon and heavy electromagnetic cannon turrets had suddenly appeared on the assault position directly ahead, stopping the attack to retreat now would only make them sitting ducks.

So, the deputy company commander could only bite the bullet and press the attack, praying that support from the HCP company would arrive in time.

—

“When the f*** did they build these defensive positions?”

Norris, the battalion commander of the 162nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion of the Federation Army’s 72nd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, was also looking at the footage being sent back from the front.

This ring of defensive positions that had suddenly appeared on the Atlas perimeter had truly caught him off guard.

These things couldn’t even be called simple defensive positions; they were semi-permanent fortifications equipped with a large amount of heavy firepower.

From the effect of the infantry fighting vehicle’s chain gun hitting the enemy’s composite armored walls, it wasn’t hard to see that their physical hardness was likely comparable to the frontal armor of a main battle tank.

It was a known fact that the Federation Army had been constantly monitoring these ten Atlas refugee camps.

Whether it was the long-endurance drones conducting reconnaissance along the edge of the no-fly zone or the reconnaissance satellites passing overhead, all of it had led the Federation Army to believe they had a complete grasp of everything in these ten Atlas camps.

But now, these inexplicable defensive structures on the perimeter were a resounding slap in the face to the reconnaissance units.

Norris looked at the images from the frontline unit’s battlefield recorder. Whether it was the turrets or the composite armored walls, the surrounding ground showed signs of being disturbed, as if they had sprouted from the earth.

After seeing this, the operations staff officer beside him couldn’t help but speak up.

“Battalion Commander, don’t these things look like they were hidden underground before?”

Hearing the operations staff officer’s hypothesis, Norris nodded.

“They certainly look like it. Could they have been working underground, which is why the reconnaissance satellites and drones didn’t notice anything?”

“If that’s the case, it would make sense. After all, the overhead reconnaissance satellites weren’t using neutrino detection mode, so they wouldn’t have detected any underground activity.”

As the operations staff officer spoke, he frowned, the confusion on his face not diminishing but growing.

“The question is, where did they get the manpower to do all this?”

“Remember the unmanned mechanical units active in their camp?”

As soon as Norris said this, the operations staff officer’s eyes lit up.

“So that’s why they were airdropping construction materials a while back! At the time, the intelligence staff officer was wondering where all the building materials went. Are their unmanned mechanical units that efficient?”

“I don’t know, but they look more useful than ours, anyway.”

Norris closed the video feed, proactively ending the topic, then looked at the tactical situation map to the side.

Currently, the 162nd Heavy Combined Arms Battalion under his command had deployed into combat formation according to the pre-arranged plan after the conflict broke out and had launched an attack on the Atlas camp.

Although recent reinforcements had increased the Atlas forces in Camp Five from one combined arms battalion to four, the Federation Army had dispatched two brigades to take the entire camp, giving them an absolute advantage in numbers.

So the Federation’s preconceived operational plan wasn’t complicated. Once the conflict erupted, the ‘vanguard assault battalions’ from all directions would just break through.

But the sudden appearance of the semi-permanent defensive positions quickly shattered this plan. The heavy particle cannons and heavy electromagnetic cannons mounted on the fixed turrets became a nightmare for the charging armored units.

A few main battle tanks and follow-up HCPs had been preparing to counter-attack, but when a blinding white light flashed in front of these fixed turrets under their fire, many vehicle commanders and HCP pilots finally couldn’t help but curse out loud:

“What the f*** is this spiky turtle shell!”

After the armor companies and HCP units responsible for paving the way for each battalion suffered varying degrees of losses, the attack was finally halted.

The commanders of the four ‘vanguard assault battalions’ that were supposed to launch the first wave finally realized that the Atlas forces before them were not quite the same as those private military companies that fought without any real strategy.

They had come prepared.

—

As the commanders of these vanguard assault battalions pulled back their attacking forces and abandoned the single-wave assault tactic, preparing to commence an artillery barrage according to standard operational procedure, something else was happening.

The Federation Psionic Agent codenamed ‘The Hanged Man’ was in the middle of the most thrilling escape of his life.

Shells from 120mm heavy mortars were constantly exploding near him, and the explosions had gone from being ‘not much of a threat’ at the beginning to nearly landing directly on his head.

Clearly, his approximate location had been locked down by the Atlas forces, and he was now under a suppressive barrage from their fire support teams.

This was a situation he had never experienced since leaving the military academy.

The greatest asset for Psionic Agents, allowing them to traverse the battlefield like Grim Reapers harvesting the lives of high-value targets, was their optical and infrared stealth capabilities, which made them undetectable by most ground-based detection methods.

The reverse was also true. Once their position was discovered, if it was just a squad or platoon-level engagement like the one Amber had been in on Robert IV, it was manageable. A Psionic Agent could still rely on their own equipment and psionics to dominate the field.

But in the face of massive heavy firepower and without the assistance of other friendly units, a Psionic Agent was merely a type of ‘advanced infantry’.

What The Hanged Man hadn’t expected, however, was that the Atlas ground troops had long since studied the ‘Anti-Psionic Combat Manual’ created by Amber.

This manual was filled with the ‘clever tricks’ that players used at low levels to fight against Federation Psionic Agents and Imperial Psionic Assault Teams.

Back then, players didn’t have technology like ‘psionic detection radar’, so they would always send the highest-level psionic user in the team to act as live reconnaissance. After discovering a Psionic Agent or Psionic Assault Team, they would never get entangled and would instead immediately call for a fire barrage from the rear.

And now, aside from having the instructor squad’s infiltration scout vehicles use new technology for reconnaissance, the rest of the procedure wasn’t all that different.

Just as the people in the infiltration scout vehicle watched a salvo of 155mm high-explosive shells from the self-propelled artillery company kick up a cloud of dust at the impact point, a series of light spots with white trails suddenly streaked across the sky, making alarm bells go off in their heads.

When they saw clusters of plasma fireballs exploding in mid-air in the direction of the refugee camp behind them, along with a deflector shield that looked like a ‘great shield’ made of electric arcs protecting the camp and the forward base, they breathed a sigh of relief.

“Using long-range fire directly on a refugee camp… the Federation really has hit a new low.”

“But then again, how did they create such a massive deflector shield?”

—

“Damn it, can someone tell me how a deflector shield this big was created?!”

In the Federation Army’s Ground Command Headquarters, Vice Admiral Van Fleet watched the scene transmitted back by the drone sent to conduct a damage assessment and found himself on the verge of losing his mind.

He had finally brought himself to order two long-range rocket battalions to carry out a saturation strike on Refugee Camp Five, but unexpectedly, they were all intercepted and detonated prematurely by a deflector shield that had appeared out of nowhere.

This salvo had been fired with plasma warheads, which primarily relied on forming high-temperature plasma fireballs after detonation to inflict damage. The warheads contained no pre-formed fragments, so after being prematurely detonated, their lethality to ground targets could only be described as negligible.

The others in the command headquarters looked at each other; no one could answer Van Fleet’s question.

If Amber knew the reason for the Vice Admiral’s fury, he would surely say with an excited expression:

“It’s the fusion reactor! I added a fusion reactor!”

Of course, it was impossible for Amber to be standing in front of Van Fleet right now to tell him how he had airdropped a complete set of fusion reactor components to the ground, and how he had reduced the instantaneous output to expand the deflector shield’s coverage area specifically to defend against indirect fire.

Because at this moment, he was in the hangar of The Hermes, giving a pre-battle briefing to members of the other HCP units. And the Atlas fleet was about to respond to the Federation Army’s act of attacking a refugee camp with long-range rockets.

Soon, the Federation warships in orbit around Parra IV saw two Atlas light cruisers begin to lower their altitude. At the same time, the optical camouflage components on their hulls projected a line of text on their broadsides:

“Since you’ve stooped to this, we’re done pretending to be gentlemen.”

Chapter 367: Decapitation Strike

“Esteemed viewers, according to a report we just received, the Federation Army deployed on Parra IV has brazenly attacked Refugee Camp Five with long-range rockets.”

In The Eye of Truth’s broadcast room, the cat-girl anchor reported the latest news with a solemn expression.

But even without her announcement, viewers who had been watching the live broadcast had already experienced the cataclysmic scene of rockets exploding right in their faces, all from the first-person perspective of a ground unit.

Although the plasma warheads were intercepted by the massive deflector shield covering the camp and detonated prematurely by the arcing electricity, the sight of countless giant plasma fireballs erupting overhead was so intense that many viewers imagined a heat that could singe their hair.

It also maximized the dramatic impact of The Eye of Truth’s broadcast.

Previously, when the Federation had launched its public relations counter-offensive, some dissenting voices had emerged in star systems controlled by the opposition party that hadn’t been attacked by the Empire. The local residents in these systems held a degree of sympathy for the Imperial civilians.

But now, after The Eye of Truth’s broadcast began by putting the “little blue man” front and center, the autonomous governments of these star systems began to watch the Federation government’s predicament with amusement, while their citizens condemned the Federation’s elite secret forces for being so “pathetically weak.”

Then, they watched, almost firsthand, as The Hanged Man used his “pawns” and “puppets” to launch the attack.

The final act—turning on his own people to achieve his objective—ignited a firestorm of public opinion online, flooding social media to the point that the relevant Federation departments couldn’t delete the posts fast enough.

By the time the footage of the long-range rocket attack on the refugee camp was broadcast, public opinion in these opposition-controlled star systems had finally, completely erupted.

“Using rockets to scour the ground of a refugee camp, isn’t that a bit much?”

“But the Federation only counter-attacked because of the suicide bombing.”

“Did you not watch carefully? The suicide bombing was clearly a play staged by the Federation to stir up trouble! Those officials are real sons of bitches, even sacrificing their own troops!”

“You believe everything you see on a live broadcast? So naive.”

“Oh, look, someone who thinks they’re the only one who gets it~”

The Eye of Truth’s broadcast channel and all the major news portals were now inundated with fierce debates among the “onlookers.”

The opposition party, which had been lying low like a tortoise in its shell since the war began, finally had an opportunity to strike back. They began to leverage public opinion to launch a tirade against the Central Intelligence Agency, while also taking subtle jabs at the ruling party.

It had to be said that the Federation’s opposition party reacted with incredible speed. While The Eye of Truth’s broadcast was still live, they had already produced numerous articles and messages to start steering the narrative online.

Their swiftness even elicited a flicker of surprise from Lilith, who had been monitoring the situation in virtual space.

“Master, you humans are so incredibly efficient at this sort of thing. If only you applied it elsewhere.”

“…”

On the surface of Parra IV, just as Federation Army Vice Admiral Van Fleet was ordering the two combined arms brigades besieging Refugee Camp Five to concentrate their superior firepower and find a way to crack that “turtle shell,” he received an urgent communication from the fleet.

“What? Two light cruisers are lowering their orbital altitude? Say again, what words were displayed on their broadsides?” Van Fleet’s brows furrowed.

“… In that case, we don’t need to pretend to be gentlemen anymore, do we?”

In that instant, the Federation Army Vice Admiral, struck by a sudden realization, felt as if he had fallen through a hole in the ice in the dead of winter. All thoughts of mission objectives and troop command were cast from his mind.

“Quick! Emergency relocation of the command post!”

“But General, all units are currently launching their attack. If the command post relocates now…”

Van Fleet’s operations staff officer, still unaware of what had happened, stepped forward to reason with him but was cut off harshly by the Vice Admiral.

“The command post is to relocate immediately! Goddammit, execute the order now! Don’t make me say it a second time!”

Faced with Van Fleet’s roar, the operations staff officer and the others in the command post dared not say another word and immediately initiated the emergency evacuation procedure.

Soon, the entire general headquarters, protected by a combined arms brigade, was on the move. Some heavy vehicles were abandoned as everyone grabbed critical equipment, boarded their vehicles, and began speeding in a single direction without looking back.

Van Fleet’s reason for this decision was simple: he believed Atlas was about to conduct a “decapitation strike” on his headquarters.

Atlas’s stunning strike on Loubion V had not only turned the tide of that battle but had also made the Federation keenly aware of the value of such orbital strike capabilities.

Although the Federation was still in the experimental stages and its fleet had not yet mastered this kind of ground support “skill,” the Central Intelligence Agency and high-ranking military officials, including operational commanders like Van Fleet, knew that Atlas possessed such a weapon.

This information was kept restricted to the top brass for a simple reason: the Federation’s leaders feared that the combat units—especially the Army’s ground forces—would suffer a severe drop in morale if they knew about an indefensible orbital weapon.

You couldn’t expect infantrymen on the ground to keep fighting knowing there was a massive axe hanging over their heads, could you?

Several minutes later, as the general headquarters’ massive convoy of combat and support vehicles was in the middle of its frantic relocation, everyone saw four “flashes of light” descending from the sky in the distance.

Immediately after, the sky on the far horizon glowed as if it were red-hot, followed by a world-shaking, thunderous boom.

“Wait, it seems they didn’t hit us?”

A sliver of doubt rose in Van Fleet’s mind, followed by a sense of foreboding. A minute later, that premonition became reality.

“Gen… General, the fire support battalions of the 72nd and 81st Brigades were hit by an enemy orbital strike. We’ve lost contact with their headquarters. Based on drone footage, losses are estimated to be over ninety percent…”

The command vehicle fell silent. Everyone present felt as if they had misheard.

The fire support battalion of a Federation Army heavy combined arms brigade typically consisted of three self-propelled artillery companies and one long-range rocket company. During an attack, they weren’t clustered together but dispersed according to combat regulations.

And now they had been wiped out in one fell swoop by an orbital strike the likes of which they’d never seen? Had Atlas dropped a tactical nuclear warhead?

Unfortunately, the communications staff officer reporting the situation did not correct himself. Instead, he continued.

“In addition… two combined arms battalions from the 81st Brigade, which were leading the assault on Refugee Camp Five, are also believed to have been attacked. Their headquarters, rear guard, and fire support company have lost contact.”

Hearing this, a complex mix of emotions welled up in Vice Admiral Van Fleet.

He didn’t know whether to be relieved that his general headquarters had been spared the “decapitation strike” or to mourn the loss of his soldiers and the vast amount of equipment, especially the crucial indirect fire assets.

But he quickly composed himself and spoke to the communications staff officer. “Contact the fleet. Tell them to find a way to stop Atlas from carrying out any more of these orbital strikes. They missed us this time, but we might not be so lucky next time!”

Van Fleet paused, making a quick decision in his mind, then continued:

“Also, tell the fleet that it would be rude not to return the gesture. Request an orbital strike on Refugee Camp Five! Relay this to the assault forces simultaneously and tell them to stay clear of the kill zone…”

The communications staff officer hesitated for a moment upon hearing the last command, but at such a critical juncture, he dared not question it and quickly turned to leave.

Only then, watching the personnel in the command vehicle bustling with activity once more, did Vice Admiral Van Fleet let out a long sigh.

He slumped into his chair, his mind racing, trying to understand Atlas’s unconventional tactics.

He was baffled. If they possessed such an unstoppable orbital strike capability, why hadn’t they targeted his general headquarters directly?

While annihilating two fire support battalions and two vanguard assault battalions was a significant achievement that relieved the extreme urgency of the situation at Refugee Camp Five, from a broader strategic perspective, it couldn’t possibly be more valuable than taking out the general headquarters.

And judging by their engagement so far, the enemy commander was no amateur; their previous series of commands and responses had been brilliant. In theory, they shouldn’t have miscalculated something as simple as strategic value.

“Unless… they have another move up their sleeve!”

It was a shocking realization, like a dying man bolting upright in bed. Van Fleet practically leaped out of his chair.

“All units, prepare for combat! Convoy, turn around and move toward the 66th Brigade’s position—”

BOOM!

An explosion just outside the command vehicle cut Van Fleet’s order short, plunging the entire headquarters convoy into utter chaos.

Chapter 368: The Gambler

“Hog, why didn’t you attack the Federation ground forces’ headquarters directly? I recall we had acquired the coordinates of its approximate location.”

Inside the hangar of The Hermes, Amber, who was preparing to sortie, immediately sought out Hog, who was in charge of ground combat command, and Fleet Commander Cleves after hearing the targets and results of the two light cruisers’ ground strikes.

“Cleves, the original operational plan was to strike the general area of the Federation ground forces’ General Headquarters. You couldn’t have been unaware of that, could you?”

Faced with Amber’s questioning, both commanders flinched slightly. Then, Hog spoke up.

“Boss, it was my decision to change the target. I did it to maximize the effectiveness of the attack.”

The wolf-headed man looked at the emotionless Amber on the other side of the screen, swallowed, and continued, “The Federation’s General Headquarters is relatively distant and isolated. If we attacked it, the light cruisers assigned to the strike wouldn’t be able to re-target for a second attack. Plus, we never got any intel on the guard units near the headquarters before the battle started. That means we could only hit that one point, which would have resulted in an excess of firepower.

“So, I ultimately decided to have the two light cruisers strike the enemy’s fire support battalion and attacking forces, which were located close to each other. This would allow this round of orbital strikes to achieve its maximum destructive potential and also relieve the pressure on Refugee Camp Five.

“As for the enemy’s General Headquarters, the instructor squad and the Fifth medium combined arms battalion—which broke up into smaller units and maneuvered into position beforehand—will carry out a ‘decapitation strike’. This was Lieutenant Banninger’s proposal.”

Upon hearing the last sentence, Amber’s expression changed, finally giving way to a long sigh.

“A battalion-sized force for a ‘decapitation strike.’ Are you and Banninger both idiots or gamblers?”

“Boss, I admit there’s an element of a gamble, but our side is at an absolute disadvantage in terms of on-paper strength. To win this campaign, we have to take risky gambits.

“As for the force size, only the medium combined arms battalion could infiltrate the Federation-controlled territory ‘stealthily’. Coupled with the firepower of the instructor squad’s heavy powered armor, our pre-war wargaming confirmed it would be sufficient.”

Without a hint of hesitation, Hog admitted to “taking a gamble” and briefly explained his reasons, causing Amber to hold back the words he had been about to say.

After delegating tactical command to Hog, Cleves, and the others to foster the “initiative” of Atlas’s command echelon, Amber had, in fact, anticipated a day like this.

These commanders under him were not his “puppets,” nor could they be expected to seek his approval for every single move in a war. It was only natural for them to have their own strategic and tactical plans.

Thinking of this, Amber glanced at Cleves again but said nothing, knowing that the Fleet Commander had little room to maneuver in this matter.

In the end, Amber’s gaze returned to the wolf-headed man on the screen.

“Sigh… Even if you want to take a gamble, how did Banninger get caught up in this recklessness? If something goes wrong with this plan, he’ll be the one losing his life.”

A sense of foreboding rose in Amber’s heart. Ever since he had transmigrated to this world, his premonitions had always been rather “on the mark.”

From another perspective, Amber also knew that the Commander-in-Chief of the Federation ground forces was definitely no pushover. To become a Lieutenant General in the army and command this planetary landing operation, he had to have some real substance.

Amber refused to believe that such a person would have no contingency plans for an attack on his General Headquarters.

At this thought, the anxiety in Amber’s heart grew another notch.

“Forget it. I won’t say more during wartime… I might have to sortie with the HCP units in a bit. You two just handle the rest of the battle as you see fit.”

As he said this, Amber gave Hog a pointed look.

“Especially you, Hog. The Commander-in-Chief of the Federation ground forces has almost certainly arranged for a backup plan. The instructor squad and the Fifth medium combined arms battalion may have already walked into a trap. Find a way to provide them with maximum fire support, and if they encounter danger, have them pull back immediately!”

“Yes, Boss!”

On the surface of Parra IV, five kilometers west of the Federation ground forces’ General Headquarters, at the Atlas Fifth medium combined arms battalion’s ambush site.

“Captain, is the back of your neck itching?” a squad member’s voice sounded over the instructor squad’s communication channel.

“I’m fine. Is there a problem on your end?” Banninger replied over the channel, his eyes fixed on the “Integrated Situational Awareness Display” in the bottom-left corner of his HUD.

The window was constantly refreshing with a flood of information synthesized from integrated sensor data. This sensor data came from the instructor squad’s powered armor, the combined arms battalion’s various vehicles, and the low-flying bionic drones, blanketing the entire area like an invisible net.

“Huh? That’s weird. Ever since the surgery, I feel like the back of my neck has been a bit itchy.”

“Probably due to the wound healing? Besides, I remember the medical department staff saying that after the processing terminal is implanted, you might feel some strangeness due to the body’s rejection response, but it’s all normal.”

Before Banninger could speak, another squad member answered the question on the channel.

The “surgery” they were talking about was a project similar to “physical modification” that the entire instructor squad had recently undergone. However, it only involved implanting a miniature processing terminal in the back of their necks, similar to the one Amber had.

The purpose of implanting this device was simple: to extract the most detailed combat data from the members of the instructor squad.

This was partly to allow the gradually declassified combat records of the instructor squad to serve as “teaching materials,” and partly to provide valuable reference data for future “virtual reality training.”

When they first heard about the project, the squad members joked that they might all become the “final bosses” that new recruits would have to fight in their graduation exams.

“Damn, it’s so itchy. I really want to scratch it.”

“After this battle, you can go give your feedback to the Equipment R&D Center. Have them build an automatic back-scratcher into the powered armor…”

A burst of laughter echoed through the communication channel, but it was cut short by a sudden warning message.

Banninger looked at the “Integrated Situational Awareness Display,” which showed a massive convoy steadily approaching the ambush zone.

“The plan to lure the snake out of its hole was a success. They took this route, just as we predicted. Now, we just have to figure out how to kill the snake.”

This thought flashed through the Atlas veteran’s mind. His attention was then drawn to four slender “beams of light” that streaked across the horizon, followed by explosions, flashes of fire, and the delayed arrival of massive booms.

“The fleet’s orbital strike has begun. That should relieve a lot of the pressure on Refugee Camp Five.”

With that thought, Banninger refocused his attention on the Federation General Headquarters convoy that was about to enter the ambush zone. At the same time, a signal came from the Fifth medium combined arms battalion: “All preparations complete.”

“All units! Prepare for combat! Open fire at will after I do. We must destroy as many enemy units as possible in the first volley!”

As he spoke, Banninger switched his powered armor from “ambush” to “combat” mode while maintaining optical invisibility.

The entire instructor squad, along with the other ambushing forces, fell into complete radio silence.

Soon, the first few armored vehicles and multi-legged war machines passed by on the road where they lay in wait. In the air, two Federation HCPs “jumped” and flew past, almost skimming the treetops.

Banninger didn’t open fire. These were not his targets, and these vanguard units would be dealt with by the forces deployed by the medium combined arms battalion.

Not long after the Federation’s vanguard passed, a long, imposing convoy appeared on the road. The command vehicle in the middle of the convoy, protected by layers of vehicles, told Banninger that his long-awaited target had appeared.

When the lead wheeled armored vehicle, which was broadcasting wide-area electronic jamming, entered the nearest bend in the road in Banninger’s sights, he picked up an extremely traditional “handheld recoilless rifle” with no signal signature from a pile of grass on the ground.

Fed by a five-round magazine with ten rounds in reserve. Adapted for rapid fire from powered armor. Extremely cheap to produce—use it and toss it.

The HUD of his tactical faceplate quickly switched to a display compatible with the recoilless rifle, and a straight aiming line appeared before Banninger’s eyes.

As the aiming line gradually turned green, indicating the “optimal firing position,” the veteran pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Boom!

A moment later, the deadly warhead struck the speeding armored vehicle. Its weak side armor was no match for the assault of the 82mm HESH round.

The flash from the explosion was like a signal. In the next instant, the once-quiet ambush site erupted into life.

Chapter 369: The Threat from Space

The instructor squad had already coordinated their targets before the battle.

Their recoilless rifles, even with armor-piercing rounds, could hardly threaten heavily armored units like main battle tanks, heavy multi-legged war machines, or the HCP.

Therefore, for the first volley from the recoilless rifles, they opted not to attack these heavy units, instead specifically targeting armored vehicles and dismounted infantry.

They especially went after high-value targets that looked expensive, like communication node vehicles, command vehicles, VHF reconnaissance and jamming vehicles, and field radars in their travel configuration.

Soon, over twenty 82mm recoilless rifles and several man-portable anti-vehicle missile launchers unleashed a furious barrage on the front of the convoy, which had fallen into chaos from the attack.

The recoilless rifles, now upgraded to a magazine-fed system, had a vastly improved rate of fire. The first five-round magazine, loaded with a mix of HESH and armor-piercing rounds, was quickly emptied.

The ambushed convoy, under Van Fleet’s orders, started trying to turn around, while infantry from some armored vehicles dismounted to counter-attack on the spot.

At that moment, the members of the instructor squad reloaded with a second magazine full of programmable high-explosive shells and aimed at the Federation infantry taking cover behind the armored vehicles.

The moment programmable high-explosive shells, their detonation distances set by the squad members, flew over the armored vehicles and burst above the Federation soldiers’ heads, plastering their tactical faceplates with countless pre-formed fragments…

…intelligent programmable ammunition had given an ancient weapon like the recoilless rifle a new lease on life on this brutal and absurd battlefield.

In that same instant, the chaotic convoy created a lapse in the Federation soldiers’ protection of the command vehicle. A wheeled combat vehicle turning early gave Banninger a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fire.

“Cover me!”

He roared, ignoring the Federation armored units that had begun to counter-attack the ambush positions on both flanks, and quickly shouldered the compact heavy electromagnetic cannon that had been folded on his back.

With a click, the rails deployed, and a blue-white electrical light began to flash, a feature that immediately drew the Federation forces’ attention.

A wheeled assault gun equipped with a 105mm electrothermal-chemical cannon quickly traversed its turret, aiming at the rather ‘conspicuous’ Banninger on the battlefield.

The moment it fired, another instructor squad heavy powered armor charged forward with surprising speed, placing itself in the line of fire between the assault gun and Banninger.

Its personal deflector shield, activated at maximum power, managed to wrench an incoming armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot round off course, but the immense kinetic energy still sent the powered armor flying back several meters.

“Captain! Now!”

Amidst his squadmate’s roar and a hail of gunfire, Banninger calmly gave the fire command the instant the targeting assist locked on.

The long-accumulated electrical energy, converted into kinetic energy by the magnetic acceleration rails, launched a tungsten alloy high-velocity penetrator round. It flew across the engagement zone with an air of tearing everything apart and precisely struck the command vehicle in the middle of the convoy.

The tungsten alloy penetrator, carrying immense kinetic energy, ripped through more than half of the vehicle’s body. The extreme temperature of the rod itself instantly set the remaining part of the command vehicle ablaze.

But the sight of this direct hit didn’t excite Banninger or the other instructor squad members. Instead, a solemn expression appeared on the former’s face.

Because, by zooming in with their powered armor’s sensors, they could see the ‘command vehicle’s’ completely empty interior.

“Fuck! This looks like a goddamn decoy!”

The conference room in the Federation Department of Defense building was thick with smoke.

After the conflict between the Federation military and Atlas erupted on Parra IV, the top brass of the Central Intelligence Agency had come here to watch the ‘live broadcast’ with President Brandon, Minister of Defense Miller, and others.

“So, we can only find out what’s happening in the battle between our military and Atlas on Parra IV by watching Atlas’s public broadcast?”

Brandon stubbed out his nearly finished cigarette in the ashtray, his expression grim as he looked at the people in the conference room.

“Honestly, since the first day of my presidency, I never expected to encounter a situation this absurd. If you gave this script to a director in the film industry, people would say it’s too far-fetched.”

“His Excellency, the relevant departments are already trying to crack this long-range communication technology. It might take a little more time.”

Central Intelligence Agency Director-General Bernard spoke up. As the head of the intelligence community, this interstellar real-time communication technology was equally important to his department.

“Time. Time is what we lack the most right now!”

Brandon rapped his knuckles on the table, a hint of anger in his voice.

“That’s what you said in the last report, and it’s been so long since then with zero progress.”

Due to the recent military stalemate, Brandon’s temper had worsened considerably compared to before the war. However, he quickly composed himself, as this meeting was not the right time to lose his cool.

Calming down, he let out a heavy breath, then looked up and asked:

“Can anyone tell me how this ‘farce’ with Atlas is supposed to end? And don’t tell me we can’t even handle a private corporation.”

The people in the conference room looked at each other. Finally, Director-General Bernard spoke up.

“His Excellency, having temporarily lost our means of interstellar real-time communication, we… indeed cannot command the operation in real time.

However, before this operation began, the Central Intelligence Agency and the military prepared numerous contingency plans. As long as the various units in the Parra system follow these plans, I believe everything is still under our control.”

“So you’re saying all of us can only sit here in this conference room and watch, is that right?”

“Yes, His Excellency.”

Brandon smiled and shook his head, slumping back into his chair as if all the air had gone out of him, suddenly deflated.

“Fine. Then can anyone tell me what’s supposed to happen next in this ‘great drama’?”

“Are you sure the Federation’s orbital assault ship flotilla has started to move?”

“Yes, Boss. The scout ship just observed them breaking away from the main fleet and lowering their orbit. From their maneuvers, it looks like they’re about to enter an attack orbit.”

On a virtual screen in the HCP’s cockpit, Cleves, now in a spacesuit, spoke with a grave expression.

Amber, who was in the cockpit assisting with the unit’s self-check, also stopped what she was doing and let Lilith take over.

“Looks like our orbital strike really provoked the Federation. By the way, have the two light cruisers withdrawn?”

“They’ve already raised their orbit and rendezvoused with the Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla sent to cover them. They’re currently returning to formation.”

Cleves glanced at a screen to his side and continued:

“Boss, the Federation fleet now knows about our orbital strike capabilities. They’ll definitely be on guard. If we want to conduct any more ground strikes, we’ll probably need the entire fleet to provide cover.”

“I know. So have the fleet suspend ground attacks for now. Go to a defensive posture and prepare to engage the Federation fleet,” Amber said calmly, while piloting the HCP, which had just completed its self-check, toward the launch platform.

“What about the Federation’s orbital assault ships? If they drop their tactical thermobaric warheads, the ground forces won’t be able to withstand it!”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

Temporary Leave Notice

Temporary Leave Notice

Due to an emergency, I am unable to complete the update. Taking one day off.

Updates will resume tomorrow~

Happy Dragon Boat Festival~

Chapter 370: The Future of Atlas Rests On This Battle

“General! The Atlas fleet is on the move!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice rang out, a three-dimensional schematic of Parra IV and its surrounding orbit was projected by the holographic projection device.

General Guterres, the commander of the Federation’s 13th Main Fleet, watched as the Atlas ‘humanitarian aid fleet’ began maneuvering unabashedly toward the region occupied by his orbital assault ship detachment. His expression grew increasingly stern and cold.

“Is Atlas looking for a fight? Conflicts on the ground can eventually be resolved through negotiations or other means, but a conflict in space… Are they truly unaware of the consequences of firing on a Federation fleet?”

The fleet operations staff officer floating beside Guterres spoke with some uncertainty as he looked at the vectors displayed on the three-dimensional schematic.

“They certainly know the consequences, but they have no choice right now unless they’re planning to abandon their ground forces,” Guterres said calmly.

“But from what we’ve seen, the Atlas Group seems to value its employees. Their boss clearly can’t sit by and watch his people on the ground suffer an orbital strike.”

Hearing Guterres’s words, the fleet operations staff officer moved closer and whispered in his ear, “So you used the orbital assault ships as bait to force them to fire on us?”

“Indeed. And haven’t we achieved our desired effect?”

A cold smile touched Guterres’s lips as he issued his orders.

“The main fleet will begin maneuvering. Adjust orbit and approach the Atlas fleet. Tell the cruiser formation protecting the orbital assault ship detachment to return fire immediately if the enemy opens fire on the assault ships.

Their fleet doesn’t have a single capital ship. No holds barred. I want them wiped out in one go!”

——

“Boss, the Federation fleet is making a move. It seems they’re convinced we’re going after their orbital assault ships.”

On the bridge of the Hermes, Cleves looked at the real-time three-dimensional schematic and spoke to Amber, who was on the screen.

“Understood. The fleet will proceed according to plan.”

Amber nodded from the screen. The background of his 360-degree cockpit had changed from the Hangar to the depths of space. He was now in his personal machine, secured to the launch catapults on the underside of the Hermes’s deck.

Then, Amber glanced at Cleves and offered a smile of trust.

“Cleves, it’s all up to you now.”

“Boss, you’re putting a lot of pressure on me,” Cleves replied with a苦涩的笑容. A stress-induced cold sore had even formed at the corner of his mouth.

“Don’t worry. We’ll win.”

“I’ll take your word for it, Boss. May fortune favor you in battle. We’ll meet at the designated coordinates!”

Cleves’s gaze grew resolute. He raised his hand in a salute to Amber. After returning the gesture, Amber temporarily cut communications with the bridge and accepted an incoming call from Isabelle.

“Amber, can’t you really let anyone else sortie with you?”

“Why are you crying again?”

Amber sighed softly, looking at the tearful Isabelle on the screen, whose voice was thick with emotion.

“The HCP units will be crucial in the battles to come. This mission is too dangerous. If they were to sortie with me, there’s no telling how many would make it back alive.

Trust me, Isha. I alone am enough for this sortie.”

Amber’s voice was calm but carried an unyielding finality. Having been with him for so long, Isabelle naturally understood his meaning.

With a great battle imminent, she knew that saying any more would only distract Amber. She swallowed the words she wanted to say, and her countless thoughts coalesced into a single sentence.

“Amber, I’ll be waiting for you.”

“Mmm, just wait for me. And stop crying. You’re making it sound like a final farewell.”

“Don’t say that! You’re terrible!”

Not long after the call with Isabelle ended, the Atlas fleet approached the first designated coordinate of the fleet battle.

On the launch catapults beneath the Hermes, the various external cables connected to the massive, red, heavy HCP had already detached. On a virtual screen beside the track, the numbers representing the catapult’s current voltage rose steadily.

“EM launch catapult voltage rising to 520. All subsystems operating normally. Path is clear, insertion trajectory is unobstructed. Low-orbit monitoring data will be shared on D2 channel.”

The flight deck controller was one of the first Romu crew members to complete the full training curriculum. Her voice carried the unique cadence and rhythm of a female Romu.

“Boss, launch authority has been transferred. You may now control the launch timing yourself.”

“Transfer confirmed.”

Amber took a deep breath, his eyes fixed on the pale green virtual flight path line on the 360-degree display. He decisively swiped the holographic control that represented ‘launch’.

“Amber, ‘Titan 01,’ launching!”

Everyone aboard the Hermes felt the light cruiser shudder slightly as attitude control thrusters all over the hull flared, counteracting the recoil from launching Amber’s personal machine.

A normal HCP launch wouldn’t cause such a commotion. Only this ‘Heavy Lancer,’ making its debut before the world, would announce its arrival in such a manner.

It had a frame that far exceeded the size of a standard unit, thick external armor and a heavy shield, massive auxiliary propulsion units, an exaggerated weapons container on its back, a brutally powerful heavy particle cannon, and Amber’s signature deep red and light pink color scheme.

This was the ‘ATLAS’—Amber’s new, custom-built personal machine for space combat, constructed from the ground up after extensive optimization and modification based on combat data from the ‘Experimental Type MK1.’

At that moment, everyone in the Atlas fleet instinctively turned to the nearest screen, watching the ‘meteor’ charge toward the Federation fleet in low orbit. Amber’s final words from the pre-battle briefing inevitably echoed in their minds:

“Fight on, everyone. The future of Atlas rests on this battle.”

——

“Wait… the Atlas fleet has overshot the attack vector. It seems they have no intention of engaging the orbital assault ship detachment.”

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s slightly confused voice, Guterres frowned.

He had predicted that Atlas would attack the orbital assault ship detachment that was preparing to conduct an orbital strike, preventing them from inflicting heavy casualties on their ground forces.

But this maneuver—bypassing the attack vector and heading toward the other side of Parra IV—was something Guterres had not foreseen at all.

Just as he was pondering the enemy commander’s tactical intentions, a new report came in.

“The second orbital assault ship detachment and its cruiser escort are both reporting that they’ve detected a target, suspected to be an HCP, maneuvering toward their position. It appears to have just separated from the Atlas fleet!”

“An HCP?”

Guterres was stunned. He had just considered a multitude of possible tactical intentions, but he had never imagined this.

“A lone unit breaking formation? Are they insane?” The operations staff officer beside Guterres was also taken aback.

“Who knows? Perhaps the pilot realized this was a hopeless battle and wanted a glorious death.”

Guterres raised an eyebrow dismissively. Although this situation was unexpected, he didn’t believe a single HCP could make any difference in space combat.

Nevertheless, he finally gave an order.

“Have the escort formation issue a warning and drive it off. If it continues to approach, take it ou—”

Guterres’s words were cut short by a fireball that suddenly erupted in the area of the orbital assault fleet.

The warship’s optical sensors quickly captured the scene of the explosion. When the image was displayed on the bridge’s main screen, everyone gasped in shock.

A Minotaur-class orbital assault ship, engulfed in the fiery blast, lost attitude control. It began to tumble and break apart as it fell toward the planet.

Immediately after, the true identity of the ‘attacker,’ captured by the escorting cruiser formation, was synced to their display.

Looking at the flamboyant and menacing machine, Guterres felt an inexplicable jolt in his heart.

“What the hell… is that thing?”

Chapter 371: A Fork in the Road of Destiny

In the depths of an unknown void, a massive, solitary asteroid drifted silently through the cosmos, just as it had for billions of years. The mottled scars on its surface spoke of its struggle against time, a chronicle of its eons-long journey.

But in the next instant, this colossal asteroid, with a major axis over two hundred kilometers long, seemed to strike something invisible in the dark, silent expanse of space.

It was an unseen, mysterious object, its volume seemingly comparable to the massive asteroid, and it had been lurking silently in this region of space for millions of years.

At the moment of impact, there was no roar, no spark, only the collision of the most primal forces in the depths of the universe.

The asteroid’s immense body was effortlessly torn apart by the mysterious object, shattering into countless fragments. These pieces scattered freely in the zero-gravity environment, creating a splendid yet tragic tapestry.

However, this rare spectacle caused no reaction from the mysterious object hidden in this sector. As the asteroid’s debris drifted further and further away, this region of space returned to its silence.

Within a large, hall-like area inside the mysterious object, a multitude of instruments encircling the hall flickered with faint lights in a rhythmic pattern.

After an unknown amount of time, a cylinder in the center of the hall, made of an unidentifiable material, suddenly lit up. Simultaneously, a peculiar language echoed through the chamber.

If Amber and Salieh were here, they would have immediately recognized it as the language of the Jeram people—the Forerunners.

“Cosmic Observatory 772, observation log updated.”

“The current historical trajectory of this universe conforms to the third predicted path. It is currently at branching point No. 954882, which contains two subsequent branch routes.”

“If the second branch is entered, the historical trajectory of Universe 772 will have a convergence of over 99.1% with the third predicted path, triggering the alert mechanism.”

“Based on the above, the observatory will exit deep hibernation mode, reactivate critical systems, and prepare to issue a recall signal.”

The cold, pale voice of the recorded log finished its report, but there was no response in the empty hall. Yet, beneath the silence, a signal prompted the various facilities within the observatory to begin activating.

Hidden doors in the corridors slid open, and a swarm of autonomous machinery poured out, heading for the various subsystem locations to perform long-overdue maintenance as the systems came online.

Meanwhile, in one of Atlas’s giant shipyards, Salieh, her face hidden by a mask, was in discussion with several shipbuilding engineers.

After this period of adaptation, Salieh had learned the common human tongue. By concealing her face and soft, leg-like tentacles, she assisted various Atlas departments as a “mysterious, omni-capable consultant.”

Just as she was instructing the engineers on how to optimize the manufacturing processes for capital ships, her entire body suddenly jolted as if electrocuted.

The surrounding engineers were momentarily stunned, then began asking if she was feeling unwell.

“My apologies, I’m going to head back and rest for a bit. We can discuss the remaining issues next time.”

“It’s alright, Ms. Salieh, please go ahead. You’ve been monitoring our progress with us for days without much rest. We can handle it, but you need to rest.” an engineer said with concern, switching off the terminal in his hand.

Though Salieh didn’t quite agree with the latter half of his statement—in terms of physical and mental stamina, these few Homo sapiens were no match for her—she nodded her thanks and quickly turned to leave.

Once back in her private quarters, Salieh retracted the mask into her helmet. The soft, leg-like tentacles that had been coiled snugly against the back of her head unfurled once more.

She sat down on a meditation cushion that Amber had scrounged for her from the Thousand Stars Empire, said to be beneficial for Psionic meditation, closed her eyes, and quietly assessed her condition.

Soon, she opened her eyes again, but this time they were tinged with a hint of worry.

“The battle of Parra IV is a key node… it even activated the observatory.”

Salieh looked up in a certain direction. Though there was only a plain bulkhead there, her gaze seemed to pierce through everything, traversing an immense distance to fixate on the war-torn planet of Parra IV.

“Amber… should I hope for your triumphant victory, or for your death on the battlefield?”

“The Boxer, The Fertile Soil, heavily damaged! Lost attitude control, caught in Parra IV’s gravity well, and falling into the atmosphere!”

“What is the cruiser escort formation doing? It’s just one unit, how did they let it break through!”

“HCP squadron reports, target is too fast! Unable to intercept!”

“Anti-air weapon teams, take note! Target approaching from port side!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator nervously relayed the last piece of information, alarms blared across the bridge of the orbital assault ship, The Midway.

A moment later, a crimson shadow flashed past the simulated panoramic viewscreen on the bridge.

In that instant, the captain of The Midway felt as if time had slowed down. The massive silhouette of the lone HCP breaking through their lines, and its uniquely shaped main monitor that flashed with a red light, exuded the oppressive aura of a Red Devil.

“Helmsman! Evasive maneuvers!”

When the illusion of slowed time ended, the captain snapped to his senses and bellowed the order, but it was a step too late.

The moment the words left his mouth, a massive tungsten alloy heavy anti-ship penetrator round tore through The Midway’s already fragile side armor from the flank, then pierced directly through the bridge hidden deep within the hull.

This was immediately followed by a charged particle beam that swept across the plasma thruster array at the ship’s stern. The beam collided with the plasma ejected by the thrusters, destabilizing it and ultimately causing it to breach the array’s containment limits.

As several massive plasma fireballs ignited and expanded at the stern, a chain reaction of explosions ripped through The Midway from back to front. It ultimately followed the fate of The Boxer and The Fertile Soil, spiraling irretrievably toward the atmosphere.

Amber took a moment to glance at the ‘ATLAS’s’ current ammunition stores. With seventy percent remaining, it was more than enough to finish this fight.

“Lilith, next target!”

“Guidance route has been provided, Master!” Lilith’s voice, sharp and focused, rang in her ear, completely devoid of its usual carefree tone.

“Be advised, there are HCP units attempting to intercept along the path. In addition, enemy cruisers are descending to their minimum orbital altitude and adjusting their orientation toward our position. It is assessed that they may use their main cannons in scatter mode!”

“Understood. Just mark their general firing vectors, I’ll evade them myself.”

“General, the Second Orbital Assault Ship squadron has sustained nearly thirty percent losses. Should we provide support?”

On the bridge of the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet flagship, the fleet’s operations staff officer asked Fleet Commander Guterres with a grim expression, watching the rising losses of the orbital assault ship squadron.

But Guterres didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he stared intently at the point of light wreaking havoc among the orbital assault ships on the main monitor, his hand gripping the armrest of the captain’s chair.

Guterres had never imagined he would be forced into a corner by a single HCP.

He had expected the escort of one heavy and two light cruisers to easily swat this ‘fly.’ Who would have thought that shortly after engaging, both light cruisers would be damaged, and the heavy cruiser would be forced to switch to anti-air mode, unleashing its full firepower and deploying all of its on-board HCPs.

Even so, three of the orbital assault ship squadron’s ten vessels had been sunk at lightning speed. None of the intercepting HCPs could even keep up with the enemy’s pace.

Even if one managed to get in the path of its advance, it would simply be torn to shreds by a storm of firepower.

“What in the world is that thing? Is there really a human piloting it?”

The situation unfolding before him was unlike anything Guterres had experienced in all his years in the Federation Navy.

He even wondered if he was trapped in some bizarre nightmare. But he knew this was no time for indecisiveness; he had to make a decision, and quickly.

“Abandon the support operation. Thirteenth Fleet, advance at combat speed! Full assault on the Atlas fleet!” Guterres slammed his clenched right fist onto the armrest.

“As long as we take out their fleet, this battle is checkmate!”

Chapter 372: Angels Fight Back Too

“Friends in our audience, according to the latest news we’ve received, an orbital assault ship from the Federation is entering its attack trajectory and is preparing to drop tactical thermobaric warheads on the refugee reception camp on Parra IV.”

In The Eye of Truth’s livestream, the cat-girl anchor was still broadcasting the battle situation on Parra IV with an emotional voice.

This unprecedented format of live battlefield broadcasting brought the number of real-time viewers on The Eye of Truth’s stream to an unparalleled height.

While not everyone necessarily purchased the viewing service for the stream, many restaurant and bar owners in less economically developed regions would buy the service to attract customers, then display it on a large screen.

And The Eye of Truth, for its part, didn’t restrict terminals or screen casting like some other paid programs. After all, for Atlas, the most important thing about this broadcast was to build up the company’s reputation.

The more viewers, the better. The paid viewing service was just a way to earn some extra profit in the process.

And so, the restaurant and bar owners were overjoyed to see attendance rates far exceeding the usual, while Atlas received free promotion.

It was a win-win situation.

In a cheap bar on an industrial planet somewhere within the Federation, workers who had just gotten off their shifts gathered in twos and threes.

Although the cheap liquor tasted a bit rough, it provided the workers with the alcohol they needed at a price they could afford, a place to relax and chat with workmates, and a chance to vent about their inhumane assembly line team head.

But today, for once, the inhumane assembly line team head was not the target of everyone’s condemnation, because they were all gathered in front of the tavern’s big screen, watching The Eye of Truth’s livestream.

The tavern owner and his wife were also very interested in the broadcast, but they were too busy to watch the big screen. Instead, they were weaving through the crowd, delivering glasses of coarse beer or bar snacks to the workers.

And as the workers washed away their fatigue with iced beer, they didn’t forget to offer some ‘sharp commentary’ on the content of the big screen.

Perhaps, aside from using their personal terminals to vote in presidential elections, this was the moment these blue-collar workers were most concerned with current political affairs.

“The Federation is really using thermobaric warheads on refugees?”

“They must be desperate. The glorious Federation Army can’t even take down a private company’s army. Damn it, where did all our tax money go?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty disgraceful to be fighting like this. But you have to admit, this Atlas Group is really something else.”

“I’m impressed, too. A corporation actually challenging the Federation. I wonder how it’s all going to end.”

“Speaking of which, the anchor for this stream is really good-looking. I never thought Romu women had this kind of unique charm.”

The workers in the tavern clinked their glasses. Many of them were enjoying the Federation’s setback with a sense of schadenfreude, curious to see just how far this private company called Atlas would push the Federation.

“We’ve just received a set of live footage from the fleet. To stop the Federation Navy’s plan to attack the refugee camp with tactical thermobaric warheads, the supreme leader of the Atlas Group has personally taken to the field. What everyone is seeing now is our group’s newly developed HCP, designed specifically for space combat.”

As the cat-girl anchor’s narration continued, the image on the big screen changed to a video shot from a great distance and then zoomed in.

A single point of light, specifically highlighted, could be seen weaving through the Federation’s orbital assault fleet in a series of unbelievable trajectories, while the besieged fleet erupted in bursts of fire from time to time.

“Huh? The boss is fighting himself? This company’s that gutsy?”

“I don’t believe it. This must be a publicity stunt.”

“But given the company’s style, it’s actually possible. And I heard the boss is a powerful psionic user?”

“A psionic user? Oh, that explains it. I’m not surprised by anything those crazies do.”

“Gotta say, though, breaking a formation single-handedly is pretty cool.”

“Yeah, I’ve got material for my dreams tonight.”

“Give me a break. We’ve got overtime tonight.”

At the center of this swirling conflict, Captain Banninger’s mood was complicated.

After discovering that the command vehicle in the target convoy was a decoy, the old veteran knew he and Hog had likely made the wrong bet.

And when he received word from the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion that a command vehicle disguised as a mess truck, along with several escort vehicles, had escaped from the rear of the convoy, the old veteran let out a long sigh.

“I was too naive, after all.”

Banninger thought with deep regret, while taking a new case of penetrator rounds from a storage container attached to his powered armor’s leg plates. He then loaded it into his electromagnetic machine gun, whose rail temperature was already nearing its threshold.

Banninger had always felt that this life of his, which should have been lost on Robert IV, was a mercy from heaven for every extra day he lived.

That’s why in every battle since leaving Robert IV, Banninger fought with the determination to fight to the death. It was also why he often appeared calm and detached during these fights, yet was always the one charging at the very front of the team.

His regret at this moment was more about leading his men and the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion into the enemy’s counter-ambush, knowing that many would be left here forever because of it.

“Captain, the enemy’s fire is getting heavier, and their heavy armor is pushing up! The boys are having a hard time holding on!”

The voice of an instructor squad member came over the comms channel. Banninger immediately recognized it as Memphis, who, like him, had also made it off Robert IV.

“Don’t fight them head-on! After planting the explosives, provide covering fire for each other and fall back to the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion’s position!”

“Understood!”

Watching the Federation forces steadily closing in on his concealed position, Banninger activated the micro-plasma missile pods mounted behind his right shoulder.

A row of targets locked by the powered armor’s fire control unit was quickly marked on his HUD, spaced out to ensure the high-temperature plasma fireballs from the missiles would cover a sufficiently wide area.

The next moment, the micro-plasma missiles shot into the air, forming a spectacular ‘wall of fire’ upon hitting their locked targets.

“The orbital assault ship was intercepted? Did Atlas send warships? If they’ve divided their forces, isn’t this the perfect time to attack?”

Hiding in the camouflaged command vehicle, Van Fleet’s expression quickly soured upon hearing that their orbital strike had been interfered with. He was then stunned speechless by the next response.

“What? Just one HCP? Are you kidding me?”

Unfortunately, there was no hint of a joke in the voice of the fleet’s Communications Officer on the other end of the line. And as they had already begun their pursuit of the Atlas fleet, they were in no mood for jokes.

After ending the communication, Van Fleet fell silent for a long time. The disruption of the orbital strike was not good news for him. It meant he would have to rely on the forces at his disposal to crack Atlas’s ‘turtle shell’.

But right now, he had more important things to deal with.

Namely, eliminating the unit before him that intended to carry out a decapitation strike on his General Headquarters.

Although the Federation soldiers had always mocked these people—privately called the ‘Angels of the Battlefield’ by the Imperial refugees—and believed their uniform white paint scheme was just for show…

After actually clashing with them, both Van Fleet and the frontline Federation soldiers had come to realize one fact: these ‘angels’ would fucking fight back.

And it hurt. A lot.

This was especially true of the squad before them, fully equipped in heavy powered armor. Though small in number, they had suppressed the Federation forces for a very long time.

And the image of one of them wielding a plasma poleaxe, who had sliced a speeding mechanized infantry vehicle—and the soldiers inside it—into several pieces, had left many with psychological trauma on the spot.

However, Van Fleet believed that if he could annihilate this squad, it would be a severe blow to Atlas, which didn’t have many ground troops to begin with.

And the ambush he had set up in advance to counter a potential ‘decapitation strike’ was indeed playing an important role now.

“They’re just one battalion! Have the troops press the attack and wipe them out!”

Chapter 373: Instructor Squad Veterans, Advance!

Elsewhere, the instructor squad, conducting a leapfrogging retreat, had successfully thwarted the Federation’s pursuit using their formidable individual firepower and pre-planted hidden explosives. They soon rendezvoused with the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion, which was approaching from another direction.

However, based on the reconnaissance from the latter, the current situation was not optimistic.

They were now surrounded by Federation forces, and the encirclement was continuously being reinforced. It was clear the enemy had deployed two rapid-response units with heavy equipment as an ambush in advance.

“So that’s the situation. If we can’t break out a ‘corridor’ quickly…”

Boom! Boom!

Two distant explosions, followed by a slightly delayed shriek, cut off the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion commander.

He and Banninger, who was beside him, couldn’t help but look toward the source of the explosions. Thick smoke, punctuated by flashes of fire, was already rising from the forest in that direction.

“Judging by the sound, is that Camp Four’s fixed hypersonic tactical missile?”

“Most likely. But it looks like quite a few were intercepted en route. A distance of over 800 kilometers is more than enough for the Federation to organize its air defenses. See? Only two managed to break through in the end.”

Tucker, the commander of the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion, spoke as he leaned out from the top hatch of his command vehicle.

Although his Leopard-like beast characteristics gave him an extremely slender build, which was further accentuated by his combat exoskeleton, he was only just level with Banninger, who stood beside him in his heavy powered armor.

“By the way, Captain, where was I?”

“Opening a ‘corridor’,” Banninger replied in a flat tone.

“Right, right. If we don’t punch a hole through soon, it will be much harder to break out later.”

As he spoke, Commander Tucker’s voice grew anxious.

“Our medium combined arms battalion has mobility and firepower, and with communications support, we can conduct deep penetrations behind enemy lines. But being surrounded and pounded like this… our lack of heavy units is a huge disadvantage!”

“If the instructor squad uses its firepower to forcibly open a path, can you break through?”

Hearing Banninger’s words, Tucker fell silent.

He instantly understood the other man’s intention. On a battlefield where the enemy’s strength was so overwhelming, even the instructor squad, fully equipped with Powered Armor, couldn’t hold out for long under such concentrated fire.

Banninger’s plan to ‘forcibly open a path’ was, in fact, a plan for the instructor squad to pave the way with their lives.

“Instructor,” Tucker subconsciously used a title he hadn’t used in a long time.

“Do you know what the consequences of this will be?”

“Of course I do.”

“I still have three HCPs. They can be used to clear a path too.”

“No,” Banninger cut Tucker off. “We can’t waste these precious mobile assets here. And right now, we can’t afford to lose your battalion.

Camp Five is less than 150 kilometers from here. If the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion successfully breaks out, the enemy will have to worry about you striking their rear, which will significantly reduce the pressure on Camp Five.”

Banninger paused for a moment, then continued with a smile.

“Besides, without us ‘burdens’, you can ditch those heavy field trucks and improve your mobility. I know that during the tactical maneuvers these past few days, you had to reroute and waste a lot of time just to transport our heavy powered armor.”

Tucker wanted to say more, but Banninger’s firm demeanor reminded him of his time in the training camp. The image of the ‘Devil Instructor’ overlapped with the man before him, and the words caught in his throat.

“Alright, get your troops ready. As soon as we open a breach in their weak point, you push through immediately!”

Banninger quickly returned to the rest of the instructor squad. They were gathered around a camouflaged mobile supply vehicle from the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion, replenishing their energy.

Nearby, soldiers from the ammunition transport vehicles were helping to resupply the heavy powered armor, which had nearly exhausted its munitions.

“Veterans, the time has come.”

Banninger’s words were cryptic, but the squad members who had fought their way out of Robert IV with him immediately understood.

“It’s been so long, but the time is finally here…”

“Bring it on! My poleaxe is thirsting for battle!”

The members of the instructor squad activated their Powered Armor from standby mode. The surrounding Romu soldiers who were helping them resupply picked up their pace, and at the veterans’ request, loaded them up with excess ammunition and equipment.

“The operational plan has been shared via datalink, so I’ll just state our objective…”

Banninger waved his hand, and the others quickly gathered around.

“It’s simple. We open a breach for the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion on Route 56, allowing their mobile vehicles to pass through quickly. Then, we prevent the Federation forces from sealing that breach.”

“Heh, sounds simple enough, Captain!”

The veterans burst into laughter, showing no signs of tension.

“Laugh all you want. You’ll be crying soon enough!” Banninger retorted with a grin.

“As the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion passes through the breach, they’ll leave behind some Soldier Bees and fixed defenses to assist us in the subsequent rearguard action. Once we confirm they’ve withdrawn to a safe distance, we’ll look for a chance to retreat.”

Though Banninger said this, everyone automatically ignored the last sentence.

After extended combat, the members of the instructor squad were capable of analyzing the battlefield situation. They knew full well that their circumstances were far less optimistic than Banninger made them out to be.

But as Amber’s earliest followers, they had no regrets about such an ‘ending.’

This was especially true after Amber had secretly evacuated their families from the Federation to the Tower of Babel not long ago, freeing them from any lingering worries.

The promises Amber made to them in the space elevator on Robert IV, while not entirely fulfilled, were being realized, one steady step at a time.

A fair, transparent, and open corporate atmosphere; a capable and responsible leader who cared for her subordinates; high salaries; advanced weaponry and equipment…

They had watched all of this become a reality with their own eyes.

Including Banninger, everyone who had escaped to the Thousand Stars Empire and later saw the news of Robert IV’s destruction by a Proton Annihilation Bomb came to a consensus—they all owed Amber their lives.

These former Federation ‘old army slickers’ had gradually transformed into ‘instructors’ and ‘ace soldiers’ within Atlas’s combat forces, becoming one of its most elite ground units.

And now, it seemed the time had come for them to ‘burn themselves out’ for Atlas.

It was obvious that on this battlefield, the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion, being new blood, would have a greater impact on the outcome.

Moreover, Atlas’s ground forces could not afford the consequence of having a battalion-level unit encircled and annihilated at this moment.

Just as the Fifth Medium Combined Arms Battalion was reforming its ranks, preparing to speed through Route 56 after the instructor squad launched its attack, Banninger suddenly received a communication from Amber.

“Banninger, have you lost your mind?”

The voice coming through the quantum entanglement communication channel was accompanied by heavy panting and occasional muffled rumbles. This familiar background noise, combined with the earlier ‘battlefield-wide information sharing,’ quickly made Banninger realize Amber’s situation.

“Boss, are you chewing me out while in the middle of a sortie again?”

“Never mind what the hell I’m doing. Did you lose your damn mind? Sacrificing yourself for others. Do you think that makes you noble?”

Despite being in the middle of a fierce battle with a long trail of ‘pursuers’ behind her, Amber’s scolding was fluent and without a hint of hesitation.

“Isn’t this what you taught us? The company’s interests come first, leave all your worries behind.”

“I didn’t teach you to go on a suicide mission!”

“Boss, hear me out.”

Banninger picked up his plasma poleaxe, which was leaning against a supply crate. He waved his hand, leading the instructor squad toward the assault position as he continued to speak.

“We all heard your pre-battle address. We know that ‘the future of Atlas all rests on this battle.’ Now is the time for us to step up, and the brothers have absolutely no complaints. You know that those of us from Robert IV have been preparing for this moment for who knows how long… Besides, our time with Atlas has been the most dignified and meaningful period of our lives. We hope that an Atlas like this can influence more people like us. That is the future we long for.

In that case, Boss… let the instructor squad take the first step in forging Atlas’s future!

Banninger, out.”

After speaking his last sentence, Banninger unhesitatingly cut the communication with Amber and went offline from the channel.

Behind him, the instructor squad veterans who had heard his entire speech were now in a state of feverish excitement, their blood boiling.

It didn’t take long for the instructor squad’s twenty heavy powered armor units to reach the assault position.

One kilometer ahead, Route 56, their ‘lifeline’, passed through a gap between two highlands. On each of these highlands, the Federation had deployed a reinforced company on defense.

By now, Federation reconnaissance units in the air had detected the movement. Company-level indirect fire weapons began to lay down ranging fire in their direction, while charged particle beams and high-velocity penetrators constantly swept across suspicious areas.

Watching the dirt and smoke kicked up by constant explosions ahead, and the hazy silhouettes of the highlands in the distance, Banninger recalled for one last time the joyful scene of reuniting with his wife and child at the Tower of Babel. Then, he let out a battle-hungry roar:

“Atlas instructor squad veterans, advance!”

Chapter 374: The Icarus Support Component

When the Federation soldiers stationed on the two highlands overlooking Route 56 came under fire from 120mm self-propelled mortar-howitzers from the front, they knew the Atlas breakout had begun.

The Company Commanders of these two reinforced companies wore bitter expressions almost simultaneously, silently cursing their terrible luck. The positions assigned to them by their superiors were directly in the path of the Atlas forces’ breakout.

Fortunately, their mission wasn’t to completely annihilate the enemy, but to use the terrain advantage to delay the Atlas breakout.

Since the opposing medium combined arms battalion was equipped with a large number of high-speed wheeled vehicles, they had to rely on the road network for mobility unless absolutely necessary. The two highlands held by the reinforced companies perfectly brought Route 56 below them into their range of fire.

The two overlapping fields of fire would maximize the advantage of their crossfire. The high-risk environment of being attacked from both sides would be enough to make any force attempting to break through on the highway regret their decision.

From this perspective, two reinforced companies, supplemented with self-propelled mortar-howitzers and heavy multi-legged war machines, using the terrain advantage to intercept a medium combined arms battalion seemed more than sufficient, right?

The two Federation Company Commanders indeed thought so before the Atlas attack began.

After spotting a skirmish line of twenty ‘humanoid units’ appearing in the distance, the two even shared a taunt of, “Is that all?” over the communication channel.

But under the covering fire of the medium combined arms battalion, when these twenty seemingly unremarkable humanoid units charged toward them at an absurdly high speed, the two men finally started to panic.

“Fire! Open fire and stop them!”

The first to respond were the charged particle cannon teams, who were already prepared to attack. These two-person teams, operating low-power charged particle cannons, were a crucial component of Federation company-level fire support.

When more than twenty purplish-red charged particle beams streaked across the open ground and accurately struck the charging units, the crackling silvery-white arcs of electricity that erupted made the Federation soldiers in the defensive positions break out in a cold sweat.

“Deflector shields?! How is that possible on such small units?”

When everyone witnessed these twenty unidentified humanoid units withstand direct hits from the charged particle cannons and continue their high-speed charge toward the position as if nothing had happened, they knew the situation had taken a turn.

At that moment, no further orders from the commanders were needed. An element called ‘fear’ prompted all the weapons on the position to open fire.

The firepower of a reinforced company finally managed to suppress the charging instructor squad, forcing them to slow their advance. They grouped into fours and jointly erected a larger deflector shield.

But at the same time, this all-out attack also revealed the positions of every weapon emplacement, large and small, to the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion.

In addition to the 120mm self-propelled mortar-howitzers that had been firing continuously, the 105mm electrothermal-chemical cannons of the wheeled assault guns joined the fray. Using the high precision of direct-fire artillery, they sent shell after shell into the various weapon emplacements.

Immediately after, a massive number of individual and vehicle-launched loitering munitions leaped up from treetop level, entering their attack trajectories and descending upon the identified key targets.

The two high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles and six terminal air defense vehicles equipped with multi-barreled electromagnetic machine guns assigned to the position opened fire frantically, trying to intercept the swarming loitering munitions.

Although the high-energy lasers and multi-barreled electromagnetic machine guns were highly effective for air defense, the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion had unleashed a full fifty percent of its entire loitering munition reserves in one go.

Once the number of incoming munitions overwhelmed the anti-aircraft units, a steady stream of “survivors” slipped through the net, landing on the position and setting off round after round of explosions.

And the one-kilometer charge distance was but a brief moment for these heavy powered armors equipped with small rocket boosters.

When the instructor squad, with all weapons blazing, split into two teams and stormed the two positions, the nature of the battle began to change.

——

While the ground battle raged on, Amber, who was seething with anger after Banninger had abruptly cut off communications, wasn’t idle either.

With Lilith’s guidance and the formidable performance of the ‘ATLAS’, he had weathered the attacks of an escort formation of two light and one heavy cruiser, managing to dismantle all ten warships of the orbital assault ship squadron before his unit ran out of ammunition.

For this Federation Navy cruiser formation on escort duty, watching helplessly as the enemy darted about and sank every single one of their protection targets was a profound humiliation.

So, in Amber’s eyes, the captains of these three cruisers now seemed to have entered a state of mindless rage.

They had thrown the so-called ‘Safe Navigation Regulations’ to the wind, commanding their warships to pursue Amber in the dangerous low orbit at extremely high combat speeds, trying to swat this fly that had ignored them.

Just as Amber was planning to lead the three cruisers on a chase while waiting for his fleet to complete its orbit and rendezvous with him, Lilith’s panicked voice suddenly came through.

“Master! We’ve fallen into a trap! This cruiser formation is intentionally herding us!”

“What?!”

“The last orbital assault ship launched a tactical nuclear warhead before it lost attitude control!”

Hearing Lilith’s words, Amber was stunned for a moment.

“That thing requires launch authorization. Does this mean their Fleet Commander isn’t planning on leaving himself any way out?”

“I don’t know, but based on the images captured by our deployed stealth probes, the missile they launched indeed has the characteristics of a tactical nuclear warhead!”

As Lilith relayed the situation, the information gathered by the numerous stealth probes that Atlas had taken the opportunity to deploy in orbit was also synchronized.

‘Outside’ the 360-degree cockpit, a red dotted line immediately appeared, pointing straight at the ground, with a nuclear radiation symbol marking the landing position.

The current situation was dire for both Amber and the Atlas fleet. The missile’s landing position was in the day hemisphere, but the Atlas fleet, pursued by the Federation fleet, had already entered the night hemisphere.

Meanwhile, Amber, in the process of leading them on a chase, had also maneuvered near the terminator line. The planet was now blocking the missile launched by the orbital assault ship.

It was definitely too late to charge back now. Not only would Amber have to decelerate, but he would also have to re-accelerate under the attack of the three Federation cruisers.

To make matters worse, during the final assault on the orbital assault ships, the ‘ATLAS’ had expended the last of its ammunition. Now, only the charged particle cannon and the heavy particle cannon remained.

But those two weapons obviously couldn’t bypass the planet’s curvature to attack a falling target.

“Bypass the curvature… Wait, bypass it?!”

Amber suddenly had an idea, as if a jolt of electricity had shot through his brain. With time being so tight, he had no moment to consider the idea’s chance of success.

“Lilith, where is the Icarus Support Component? Can it provide support?”

“Master, the ‘Icarus’ is currently maintaining optical invisibility. It can provide support from its current position!”

Lilith instantly understood Amber’s idea, and a trace of excitement involuntarily entered her voice.

“Quick! Launch the long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon component at maximum velocity! I hope there’s still time!”

On Amber’s command, at a certain point in orbit, a container-like device deactivated its optical invisibility and opened one of its several bay doors.

Immediately after, with a sound and motion like a missile launch, a huge black shadow shot out from within the opened bay. Propelled by rocket engines, it turned into a point of light and sped toward Amber’s position.

Chapter 375: Snipe, Then A Solo Atmospheric Entry

“Master, the long-range electromagnetic cannon component has been launched!”

“Excellent. I’m counting on you for the unit’s trajectory and attitude adjustments, Lilith.”

“Don’t worry, Master. You just focus on flying. Leave the rest to me!”

For once, Lilith’s voice carried a sense of genuine reliability, allowing Amber to temporarily set aside his worries and focus all his attention on maneuvering the Atlas, which was now performing drastic evasive maneuvers under the pursuit of three cruisers.

In fact, luck was also on Atlas’s side in that moment.

The orbital assault ship that had launched the tactical nuclear warhead had actually lost attitude control from Amber’s previous attack. As a result, the warhead’s launch trajectory wasn’t a direct plunge toward the atmosphere as in a standard attack.

Instead, it had taken a wide arc before its own attitude control thrusters managed to correct its attack vector, which gave Amber a window of time to attempt an interception.

Otherwise, if the orbital assault ship had simply dropped its payload under normal circumstances, Amber knew he would have been too far away to intercept it in time.

Now, he had to admit that the combat determination of these orbital assault ship crews far exceeded his expectations.

Not only had every single one of them attempted to force an orbital strike while under his assault, but this last ship had even managed to launch this final tactical nuclear warhead while its own attitude was out of control and its crew was in the process of abandoning ship.

As Amber was marveling at this, the long-range electromagnetic cannon launched from the Icarus support device was rapidly closing in on his position.

This support system was specially designed to assist the Atlas in orbital combat. It contained eight different modular components and would maintain optical invisibility while maneuvering in a set orbit, ensuring Amber’s unit was always within its support range.

In situations like the one he was just in, it would launch the corresponding component to support Amber’s operations.

But its support wasn’t limited to planetary orbit. The Icarus support device could also, at Amber’s request, fit the dispatched components with a heat-resistant shell with an aerodynamic profile, allowing them to enter the atmosphere and support his battles on the ground.

As for why Eugene and Orns at the Atlas Equipment R&D Center had cooked up such a contraption, it was mainly because everyone in the Atlas combat forces had come to recognize Amber’s outrageous combat prowess.

So, after some discussion, they devised a combat doctrine centered around Amber.

Under normal circumstances, Atlas combat forces would operate conventionally. However, when it was time to break a stalemate or handle a crisis, Amber would be deployed as the sole ‘carry,’ and all participating forces would act with “assisting Amber” as their highest priority.

“Master, the long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon is within the designated range. Commencing docking procedure!”

“Understood.”

Amber controlled his unit, executing a massive defensive barrel roll. While preemptively dodging several salvos from the cruisers’ ship-mounted heavy particle cannons, he also closed the distance to the long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon.

Soon, as the booster rockets on the sniper cannon completed their final deceleration burn, a series of explosive bolts detonated, jettisoning the boosters from the main component.

Simultaneously, Lilith piloted the colossal Atlas HCP to fire an extremely long carbon fiber cable, which successfully connected with an electromagnetic port on the component.

The carbon fiber cable retracted swiftly, and within seconds, it had pulled the massive electromagnetic sniper cannon to the front of the unit.

Amber had a mechanical arm firmly grip the right-side handle of the sniper cannon, while another arm extended from the unit’s rear and docked with a port on the weapon, securing it in place.

By now, the electromagnetic sniper cannon, having unfolded from its compact state during the docking process, was significantly longer than the Atlas’s total height. From a distance, it looked more like a Heavy Lancer in space.

“Long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon powered up! Heavy guided penetrator round loaded! Target’s real-time position acquired via datalink. Pre-calculated trajectory computed!”

Only Lilith could, in such a short amount of time, calculate the trajectory of a heavy penetrator round as it was affected by planetary gravity in low orbit.

A constantly shifting arc appeared before Amber’s eyes. The end of this arc fell over the other side of the planet, and its destination was the tactical nuclear warhead that was about to enter the atmosphere.

“My Lilith is magnificent, what more is there to say!!!”

With a cry of heartfelt admiration, Amber squeezed the virtual trigger.

A flash of electricity arced across the long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon’s extended acceleration rail. An instant later, a slender alloy penetrator rod was sent hurtling out at extreme velocity. Under the influence of the planet’s gravity, it followed the predicted trajectory, swiftly crossing the terminator line before disappearing over the planet’s horizon.

“Strong magnetic field signature detected! Assessed as heavy electromagnetic cannon fire!”

“Activate deflector shields! Evasive maneuvers!”

The captains of the three cruisers issued the same command almost simultaneously. They wouldn’t have been on such high alert for a typical heavy electromagnetic cannon attack.

But after encountering the heavy HCP piloted by Amber and watching him crack open one orbital assault ship after another with anti-ship penetrator rounds from his own heavy electromagnetic cannon, they had been traumatized by its attacks.

However, the high-velocity penetrator round completely ignored them, streaking past along the shortest attack vector right between the three ships.

When the Tactical Information Coordinators reported that the shot had missed, the three cruiser captains let out a collective sigh of relief. They were puzzled as to why this target, who had been so incredibly accurate before, had suddenly missed so badly—and by such a ridiculous margin.

But a second later, the captain of the heavy cruiser suddenly realized.

“Fuck! We’re not the target.”

“Approaching target impact. Current trajectory shows zero error at point of convergence with target’s path!”

“Five… four… three… two… one… Hit!”

Just like the kinetic kill vehicles from Amber’s previous life, used to counter nuclear strikes, the heavy penetrator round—after flying nearly a quarter of the way around Parra IV’s low orbit—violently collided with the tactical nuclear warhead at the predetermined rendezvous point.

The tactical nuke, in the process of orbital insertion, was instantly snapped in two. As its frame lost stability, its internal components were flung out in every direction like a celestial maiden scattering flowers.

Under these conditions, the nuclear fission and fusion reactions required to detonate a tactical nuclear warhead—which was typically a two-stage thermonuclear device, or hydrogen bomb—were now out of the question.

“Phew… I can’t believe we actually did it.”

The moment Lilith confirmed the successful interception, Amber felt as if all his energy had been drained.

He desperately wanted to hand over the controls to Lilith and just completely relax.

But the last words Banninger had spoken before cutting communications seemed to echo in his ears again, making true relaxation impossible.

A few moments later, Amber recomposed himself and focused his mind, piloting his unit into a lower orbit.

“Eugene, Orns… this thing had better be as reliable as you said it was.”

Soon, the three pursuing cruisers saw their target begin to fall toward the atmosphere, its body glowing red from the heat of atmospheric friction.

Meanwhile, Cleves, who was leading the fleet maneuvers, received a message from Amber.

“I’m going down to put out the fires on the ground. I won’t be able to provide support for the rest of the battle. The fleet battle is in your hands, Cleves!”

Reading the message, Cleves, the Fleet Commander, let out a long, helpless sigh.

“Boss, you really know how to put the pressure on me…”

Chapter 376: The Hero Who Fell from the Sky

A solo atmospheric entry in a single unit was nothing new to Amber.

Whether it was seated in an drop pod as an orbital paratrooper or executing “descent operations” by riding an HCP wrapped in a specialized drop packaging, it was as “routine” as eating or drinking in his previous life’s game.

This was because players, especially the raiding party players who were all “impatient kings,” were a group that prioritized efficiency above all else.

So, more often than not, transportation options like orbital elevators or aerospace routes, which were comfortable but required queuing and were time-consuming, would be passed over by players.

In most situations, these more impatient players would choose to pay a small fee to take a “cheap interstellar flight route” established by another player.

The transport ships of these player-run routes were generally converted from decommissioned near-space assault ships or orbital assault ships that had been “demilitarized.”

They would make brief stops in the low-to-mid orbits of planets along their route, and the method for “boarding and alighting” was simple and crude.

After entering a planetary orbit, they would first evade the planet’s patrol fleets and find a blind spot in the planet’s orbital management—such “management blind spots” were very common on T2, T3, or border planets in both the Federation and the Empire.

Then, after secretly descending to low orbit, they would drop off passengers who needed to disembark at that stop in drop pods, just like a mother hen laying eggs.

Depending on the fee paid, players could choose a more comfortable and private single-person drop pod or squeeze into a standard drop pod with other players.

Afterward, the ship would return to high orbit and head to an airfield or satellite city to “pick up passengers” and replenish its consumed drop pods at a locally established “office.”

This set of skilled operations made this “cheap interstellar flight route” business incredibly popular. It was later dug up by some curious players that this person was, in reality, the boss of a traditional transport megacorporation.

Therefore, players of Starry Sky Online were no strangers to solo atmospheric entries. They’d do it every other day, as many played the game specifically for these kinds of “thrilling activities.”

However, piloting an HCP through the atmosphere without the assistance of any additional drop components was a first for Amber.

Even though the test model of this “Atlas” heavy space combat-specialized HCP had undergone atmospheric entry experiments before being put into formal production, those were all done without a pilot.

Manned tests had not yet been conducted before the conflict between Atlas and the Federation forces on Parra IV began to escalate. Thus, Amber had initially planned to engage in conventional combat first, temporarily avoiding these functions that had not completed their testing phase.

But the battlefield situation was ever-changing, and often, you wouldn’t have time to fully prepare.

However, Amber wasn’t about to give up on entering the atmosphere to put out a fire just because the tests weren’t finished. After all, he had been instilling a certain philosophy into Atlas’s combat units:

“The duty of Atlas combat forces is to go to the battlefield when needed, not after they are ready.”

Do not impose on others what you yourself would not choose. If he were to back down at a time like this, he couldn’t expect his combat forces to embody this fighting spirit in the future.

“Master, I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

“Tch… let’s have the bad news first.”

Inside the cockpit of the “Atlas” heavy space combat-specialized HCP, Amber, clad in his heavy hydraulic pressure suit, was enveloped by an additional set of cushioning devices that were normally hidden.

Simultaneously, the heavy hydraulic pressure suit activated its highest-level “pharmacological anti-G system,” injecting drugs into various parts of his body via intramuscular shots to help him withstand the high Gs.

“The bad news is, since there was no time to equip the egg-shaped drop component, we can only use the completely untested ‘lifting reentry mode’ to enter the atmosphere.

Also, because there’s no data to reference, during the atmospheric entry process, the flight control system can only be adjusted by me in real-time after collecting data from all the sensors~”

“Can’t we reference data from other lifting reentry spacecraft?”

“Their aerodynamic profiles are completely different, so they’re no reference at all, Master~”

Lilith’s voice was sweet, but her words still made Amber’s heart clench.

Friends who often perform atmospheric reentry or are familiar with the EDL (Entry, Descent, Landing) process know that compared to “ballistic” and “semi-ballistic” reentry methods, lifting reentry offers the advantages of lower g-forces, a larger maneuvering range, and higher landing precision. However, it is also technologically far more demanding than the other two, especially in its requirements for the flight control system.

After all, if an ordinary aircraft experienced attitude problems during flight, there was usually time to find a way to recover. But during high-speed friction with the atmosphere, even a tiny problem could lead to immediate disintegration in the next second.

So, even with a strong AI like Lilith at the helm, Amber still felt a little panicked. Although he was a psionic user, he was not yet powerful enough to survive atmospheric entry with his own body.

“So what’s the good news?”

“The good news is that the currently calculated landing trajectory happens to be right over the area where the Fifth Combined Arms Battalion is located. We don’t need to readjust our landing orbit.”

“Well, thanks a lot for that…”

“You just have to say whether it’s good news or not~”

While Amber and Lilith were communicating, the “Atlas” also finished its “braking burn.” With the help of the additionally mounted propulsion components, the unit’s relative velocity to the planet had decreased from its previous combat speed, and it had entered an orbit heading towards the planet’s atmosphere.

At this moment, the “Atlas” was at an altitude of one hundred and ten kilometers from the surface, which was the so-called upper boundary of the planet’s atmosphere.

At this point, the unit’s main thrusters temporarily ceased operation, relying only on occasional bursts from the attitude control thrusters scattered across its body to maintain control as it flew in freefall under the planet’s gravitational pull.

Simultaneously, cumbersome external propulsion components, large weapon systems on the unit, and empty missile launch canisters were jettisoned at this stage.

These things, especially the lance-like heavy particle cannon and the long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon, definitely couldn’t be brought into the atmosphere.

Not only would they disrupt the unit’s already non-existent aerodynamic profile, but they would also be easily damaged by the high temperatures generated from intense friction with the atmosphere.

Watching the equipment being jettisoned behind him and growing more distant on the rearview screen, Amber shook his head with a pang of regret.

“This is too wasteful. The long-range electromagnetic sniper cannon was only fired once. I’ll have to get Eugene and Orns to whip up a recovery module, or we’ll have to keep ditching them like this every time.”

While thinking about assigning homework to the two heads of the Equipment R&D Center, Amber glanced at the multi-function display in the lower left.

After jettisoning these spent weapons and extra components, the unit had returned to its conventional “humanoid form.” Its armament was now reduced to the point-defense lasers on either side of the head’s main monitor and the heavy shield mounted on its left shoulder.

“Lilith, what’s the position of ‘The Icarus’? The unit’s weapons are spent. I’ll need an airdrop of weapon components later.”

“It’s been following us in a high orbit from behind, Master~” Lilith’s voice came again.

“Neither the Federation fleet nor the three cruisers behind us seem to have time to bother with it, so it’s been maneuvering behind us all along. What weapon components do you need, Master? I’ll arrange the airdrop now to ensure it can enter the atmosphere in sync with us.”

“The land warfare three-piece set, plus a set of plasma rocket pods and a tactical missile pod.”

Amber quickly listed his needs, then, as if remembering something, he asked:

“By the way, have the newly developed plasma beam sabers been loaded onto ‘The Icarus’?”

“They were loaded just in time before we left.”

“Excellent, have them send down two for me!”

As Amber and Lilith communicated, the “Atlas” began to transition from the “entry orbit transition phase” to the true “entry phase.”

Starting from the highest point of the dense atmosphere, the effects of aerodynamic forces on the unit became increasingly pronounced.

Amber controlled the unit to hold the heavy shield vertically in front of it, trying to hide the rest of the unit behind the shield as much as possible.

At this point, the surface temperature of the unit and the shield began to rise rapidly. Although the heat-insulating material on the outer armor’s surface started to ablate and melt away, carrying off the immense heat generated by atmospheric friction, the “Atlas” was, after all, not a professional reentry spacecraft. Thus, the temperature inside the cockpit also began to climb swiftly, eventually stabilizing at around thirty-nine degrees Celsius.

“If I survive this, I’m definitely making them fix the cockpit temperature control! It’s too damn hot…”

“Acknowledged, Master. This request, along with the previous one, has been duly noted~”

As the battle raged on, the vast majority of the audience watching the “Eye of Truth” live stream were shouting in excitement, as this was the first time they had ever witnessed a live broadcast from a warship under pursuit.

A small screen in the upper-right corner of the broadcast continuously displayed the distance and relative velocity between the Atlas and Federation fleets.

Everyone was now wondering what kind of major battle would erupt when the Federation fleet caught up, and just how long this live stream would last.

And as the “Atlas” plummeted towards the planet’s surface like a shooting star, both the pursuing Federation fleet and the pursued Atlas fleet detected this conspicuous “heat source” streaking beneath them.

In The Hermes’ broadcast center, the director of “The Eye of Truth” asked Isabelle with some uncertainty:

“Should we also announce that the Boss is entering the atmosphere? What if…”

“There is no ‘what if’.”

Isabelle’s words carried an undeniable certainty. She turned to face the director and said in a firm tone:

“The Boss can absolutely do it. And as an employee of Atlas, you should also believe that he can do it. Go on. Have the anchor report it truthfully.”

“Yes, Supervisor.”

Soon, the audience waiting in the “Eye of Truth” live stream chat heard even more explosive news: the boss of Atlas—the same guy who had just sortied in a single unit—was now pulling off the huge stunt of a “solo atmospheric entry.”

At this moment, it wasn’t just the ordinary viewers. In the conference room of the Federation’s Department of Defense building, President Brandon and his entourage; within the borders of the Star Dragon Empire, the Regent Prince and Princess Agnes; and even Allenita, far away in the Thousand Stars Empire, were all glued to their screens, following the situation with Atlas and Amber.

Some hoped he would burn to ashes in the atmosphere, others hoped he would make it to the ground to stir up trouble, and still others simply wished for his safe return.

On the surface of Parra IV, many refugees and troops from both sides who were in the right position saw the point of light streaking across the sky.

And in Atlas’s ten refugee reception camps, the refugees had almost all gathered in front of the many screens set up in the camp areas, watching the footage synchronized from the camp’s anti-air optical tracking sensors.

When this fiery red “meteor,” with its long trailing tail and constantly shedding debris, appeared in the center of the screen, the elderly people in the various camps who had hailed the Atlas troops as “Angels of the Battlefield” upon their arrival immediately shook off the hands supporting them. Then, trembling, they knelt to the ground and prostrated themselves in worship towards the direction of Amber’s descent on the horizon.

Other kind-hearted refugees around them stepped forward, trying to pull these elderly people up from the ground, only to hear them muttering continuously in excited voices:

“It is the holy throne… the holy throne has descended. The prophecy of the ancients has come true!”

“Altitude 80 kilometers…”

“Altitude 65 kilometers…”

“Altitude 40 kilometers…”

“Altitude 35 kilometers… Master, we have successfully exited the blackout zone! Current descent speed is Mach 7.5. EDL process entering ‘Descent Phase’!”

“Holy shit! We made it?!”

This was the first sentence Amber blurted out after regaining his senses.

Having exited the blackout zone with his reentry speed gradually decreasing, the most dangerous part of the entire process was over.

Although he was still more than thirty kilometers from the ground, as long as nothing went wrong, he could comfortably complete the final deceleration using the unit’s own propulsion system.

After calming his excitement, Amber first deactivated the extra restraints on the pilot in the cockpit, returning to a normal piloting posture, and began to check the unit’s status.

Thanks to the fact that no corners were cut in the unit’s construction, combined with Lilith’s constant adjustments to the flight controls, the unit itself had no issues. However, the shield that had acted as a “heat shield” in front was on the verge of being scrapped.

Its surface heat-insulating layer had completely ablated, and the armor layer beneath was more than half-burned away. The internal coolant had been completely consumed during the passage through the blackout zone, rendering it essentially defenseless.

The radar and sensors, which had been temporarily shut down after entering the blackout zone, now resumed operation. The downward-looking radar and terrain-scanning radar, specialized for atmospheric combat, quickly updated with important information.

However, before Amber had a chance to check his current position, a series of urgent “beeps” first sounded in the cockpit, which then shifted to a sharp buzzing.

“Master, we’re being painted and locked by fire-control radar! It’s the Federation military’s ground anti-aircraft forces!”

“Understood. I’m beginning evasive maneuvers. Help me with threat guidance.”

Amber glanced at the area directly below his 360-degree cockpit, where multiple ground-based radar signal sources were already marked. He began to adjust his own descent trajectory using the attitude control thrusters.

“Lilith, what’s the position of the weapon support components?”

“They just exited the blackout zone, right above you, Master!”

Hearing Lilith’s reply, Amber looked up and saw a black dot marked with a green box appearing above him.

At the same time, the buzzing in the cockpit grew increasingly shrill, eventually turning directly into a voice warning from Lilith.

“Master, anti-aircraft missile launch detected! According to the Federation military’s standard anti-aircraft combat procedures, high-energy laser firing should follow!”

“Don’t panic. Help me get the weapons first.”

Amber’s voice had become completely calm. The plasma thruster array on the back of his personal unit, the “Titan,” erupted with a surge of brilliant blue light.

The unit’s descent speed began to plummet, and the distance to the weapon drop pod above grew smaller and smaller.

Upon reaching a certain range, the massive drop pod suddenly exploded, shedding its external thermal and aerodynamic components to reveal the tandem weapon container within.

“Lilith, execute docking procedure.”

Amber spoke, and at the same time, the point-defense lasers on both sides of the head’s main monitor began to flash at high frequency.

Soon, two fireballs exploded below and to the right of the unit, but a large number of marked red threat targets were still approaching at high speed.

But Amber did not panic. While continuing to reduce the altitude difference with the weapon container, he maintained evasive maneuvers and used the two point-defense lasers to pick off the missiles one by one.

The thin air at high altitude actually maximized the combat effectiveness of the point-defense lasers. Aided by the advanced radar suite and sensors installed on the “Titan,” the anti-aircraft missiles struggling to climb were all shot down.

However, Amber knew that these anti-aircraft missiles were just an appetizer; the real threat came from the subsequent directed-energy weapon attacks.

But the good news was that the high-altitude docking between the unit and the weapon container was about to be completed.

As several dull “clunking” sounds transmitted through the unit’s frame to Amber’s ears, the unit’s armament information on the multi-function display updated rapidly.

“Fire-control unit adaptation complete. Energy circuits re-routing.”

“Heavy particle cannon, charged particle cannon, heavy electromagnetic cannon online… Plasma rocket pods beginning transfer to leg hardpoints…”

As the icons representing the corresponding weapons on the screen turned green one by one, the corners of Amber’s mouth curled upwards, eventually forming a slightly unhinged smile.

Just as a charged particle beam from the ground struck the heavy shield in front of him, this “meritorious servant” that had accompanied Amber through atmospheric entry completed its final mission.

The massive shield shattered into several pieces and scattered, while the long-range weapon suite originally stowed in the weapon container completed its deployment in the process.

Under Amber’s control, the fire-control unit quickly locked onto the location from which the charged particle beam had just been fired. It was a makeshift anti-aircraft position hastily organized with HCPs and high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles.

“So you think you’re the only ones with directed-energy weapons, huh?”

As Amber muttered to himself, the heavy particle cannon, switched to “irradiation” mode, blasted out a blue-white heavy metal ion stream.

While destroying more than half of the targets in the position in a sweeping barrage, it also raised the curtain on the “legendary scene” that would become the stuff of nightmares for the Federation ground forces on Parra IV.

Chapter 377: Goodbye, Banninger

On the surface of Parra IV, at the Route 56 breakout point.

The instructor squad, tasked with covering the rear and blocking the enemy, had already repelled the third assault from the advancing Federation medium combined arms battalion.

In order to plug the gap in time, the Federation ground forces commander had dispatched a medium combined arms battalion to attack, hoping to use the high mobility of the battalion’s numerous wheeled vehicles on the road network to intercept the Atlas forces before they could break out.

This medium combined arms battalion had indeed come very close to succeeding. Although they hadn’t actually cut off the tactical maneuver of the Atlas 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion, the battalion’s commander knew that catching their tail was a victory in itself.

So, when reconnaissance units reported that a ‘small number’ of Atlas combat units were defending this pass on Route 56, the battalion commander launched an attack without a second thought.

According to the photos and videos from the reconnaissance units, the defending force didn’t even amount to a full platoon.

Although they were all suspected to be heavy powered armor units, in the battalion commander’s opinion, their numbers were far too small. Besides, even if they were heavy powered armor, couldn’t he just solve the problem by concentrating fire from a few multi-legged war machines and wheeled assault guns?

Then, these flagship products from the Atlas Equipment R&D Center taught him a harsh lesson, making him understand that ‘not all heavy powered armor is created by Atlas.’

The wheeled assault guns and multi-legged war machines that initiated the attack charged the defensive position in a near-encircling formation.

As the defensive force for the Federation’s General Headquarters, the 66th Brigade’s personnel and equipment were quite commendable. Their accompanying suppressive fire from the rear during the charge was executed perfectly, and their target allocation for concentrated fire was highly efficient and logical.

The problem was, when the fastest wheeled armored vehicles reached the front of the position and began to disembark their infantry, the heavy powered armor units they thought had been destroyed by the concentrated fire charged down from the high ground and launched a counter-charge.

With fire support from the Soldier Bees and the automated weapon stations left behind by the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion, Banninger led the instructor squad and tore through the attacking light armored units as if chopping melons and cutting vegetables, making complete fools of them.

Several wheeled armored vehicles at the rear of the attack formation didn’t even have time to disembark their infantry before they were pierced through by high-velocity penetrator rounds from the heavy electromagnetic cannons. The entire complement of Mobile Infantry inside was instantly cooked.

Despite this, Banninger felt no relief as he led his teammates back behind cover.

He knew their successful counter-charge was largely due to the Federation forces underestimating them and advancing recklessly.

Banninger’s assessment was soon proven correct.

After losing over thirty vehicles and a large number of infantry in the first wave, the Federation medium combined arms battalion ceased its direct assault and instead began to continuously suppress the instructor squad with long-range fire.

At that moment, the last group of vehicles from the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion had just withdrawn through the gap. If Banninger and his team didn’t hold these two high points, the Federation forces would undoubtedly catch up. Therefore, they had to dig in and delay for as long as possible.

And that delay lasted until the 66th Brigade’s heavy armored units were in position and began their attack.

When three HCPs charged the position, the instructor squad immediately began taking casualties. After discovering that their electromagnetic rifles were ineffective against these ‘tin cans,’ the three HCPs deployed their heavy particle cannons without hesitation and opened fire, taking out five men in a single volley.

However, under the cover of a feigned attack from the others, Banninger seized an opportunity to circle behind one of the HCPs. He first used a plasma grenade to disable its plasma thruster array, forcing a mandatory restart of its subcritical reactor.

Immediately after, aided by short-range booster rockets, he leaped on top of the HCP. Then, right in front of the other two HCPs, he plunged his long-handled battle halberd straight down through the unit’s main monitor on its head, successfully slicing off half of the pilot’s body.

The pilots of the remaining two HCPs had never witnessed such a scene. They never imagined they could be threatened by an infantry unit while piloting an HCP. After seeing their teammate’s gruesome fate, they immediately retreated.

This time, however, the Federation’s attacking force had a clear understanding of the Atlas defenders’ strength. They stopped their probing attacks and began an all-out assault.

At the same time Amber exited the ‘blackout zone,’ Banninger and his team had barely managed to repel the third coordinated attack of infantry, armored units, and HCPs.

But by this point, all the defending Soldier Bees and automated weapon stations had been lost. Banninger was the only one left alive on the entire position.

Across from the composite armored wall he was leaning against, Memphis’s powered armor was slumped on the ground. Its external armor was almost completely shattered, exposing insulation and conduits that looked like human muscles and blood vessels.

This instructor squad member, who had fought back the third assault alongside Banninger, gave a trembling salute after the Federation forces retreated from the position once more, and then fell silent forever.

Looking at his old friend’s body, Banninger sighed softly, but even this simple action sent a sharp pain through his lungs.

Although the powered armor’s crew self-check module was offline, Banninger could guess that his lungs had probably been punctured by his broken ribs.

“Fuck… all that training improved my physique so much that I can’t even die quickly from an injury like this? This is real torture…”

The pain in his lungs cleared his head a little. He looked at the tactical map on his HUD. Due to damage his tactical faceplate had sustained, the HUD was now covered in cracks, obstructing his view.

Fortunately, he could still see the position of the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion. They had successfully broken out, and he and the rest of the instructor squad had bought them enough time.

Just then, a beam of light descending from the sky in the distance, followed by an explosion on the ground, caught Banninger’s attention.

Using his one remaining right hand, he struggled to prop himself up with his electromagnetic machine gun, which was out of penetrator rounds. He looked up at the sky. The optical/infrared sensors on his tactical faceplate that were still functioning soon picked up a blurry shadow high above.

“Boss, is that you?”

Banninger spoke with difficulty, only then remembering that his powered armor’s communication components had been damaged in the previous battle.

Even so, Banninger knew that the shadow falling from the sky was Amber.

“Got to see you one last time. That’s pretty good… cough cough cough cough!”

The blood that suddenly surged up his throat made Banninger cough violently, which in turn sent a wave of inhuman pain through his lungs.

It took him a long while to recover. He then took off his tactical faceplate, its screen smeared with blood, and tossed it aside.

At the same time, another roar came from the front of the position.

Banninger turned his head with difficulty and saw two Federation ‘Short-Faced Bears’ speeding toward the position, propelled by the dazzling blue light of their back thrusters.

He recognized them from the paint on their shoulder armor as the two surviving units from the three-mech squad from earlier.

From the aggressive way they were charging with their heavy slicer swords raised, it was clear they were still bitter about being forced to retreat by a dozen or so infantry units and were now seizing the chance to ‘settle the score.’

“Tch… what trash. Ptooey!”

Banninger spat a mouthful of bloody froth disdainfully in the direction of the approaching HCPs. Then, he used his last ounce of strength to keep himself upright and raised the electromagnetic machine gun with his one arm.

“Biu biu biu biu~”

For a rare moment, the old soldier was like a child, making firing sounds for his own weapon while repeatedly pulling the trigger of the already empty gun.

“BOOM!”

A beam of light from the sky unexpectedly slammed directly into the lead ‘Short-Faced Bear’. Its deflector shield erupted with blinding, silvery-white electric arcs, diverting the surging heavy metal particle stream into the surrounding ground.

But the three penetrator rounds that followed mercilessly pierced the deflector shield, which was already at its limit from the heavy particle cannon’s attack, and brutally tore through the unit from head to toe.

The Short-Faced Bear barely had time to react before it toppled to the ground. Debris and parts scattered from the holes punched through its chassis by the penetrator rounds like ruptured organs.

After its companion was shot down by the attack from the sky, the other HCP finally reacted. Its plasma thruster array erupted with a spectacular blue light, and the unit leaped violently into the air, using its immense power to charge the enemy attacking from above.

Banninger didn’t know what was happening above him, as his neck was now too weak to lift his head.

He only heard the fierce clang of metal from the sky, followed by the ‘Short-Faced Bear,’ sliced in two at the waist, crashing heavily to the ground like a kite with a broken string, kicking up a cloud of dust and smoke.

The cut across the unit’s waist looked like butter melted by high heat, a slightly gruesome sight.

The violent tremor made it impossible for Banninger to support his body any longer. He slowly slid down against the cover behind him until he was sitting on the ground.

The old soldier’s eyelids felt as if they weighed a thousand pounds, but he still used the last ounce of strength in his body to force them open and look ahead.

Not until the familiar red-painted unit appeared in his line of sight did a faint smile finally appear on his face. Then, as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart, he slowly closed his eyes…

“Master… Captain Banninger’s vital signs have disappeared.”

“Yes, I know.”

Amber’s tone was calm, but the calmer she sounded, the more nervous Lilith became.

Taking one last look at her comrade—a friend who had transcended generations—Amber slowly turned her unit around.

Ahead, the Federation ground forces were forming a wide offensive front, charging toward her position. In the distance, behind a line of trees, missiles continuously rose into the air, leaving long trails behind them.

“Lilith, have The Icarus drop all weapon components at the coordinates I’ve marked. Also, I’m authorizing you to engage in ‘unrestricted Electronic Warfare’ for this battle.”

Having said this, Amber charged without hesitation toward the vast Federation forces ahead. The two cylindrical ‘hilts’ held in her unit’s hands once again sprouted two ‘blades of light.’

“Burst Mode, activate!”

Chapter 378: Cleves’s Battle

While Amber was activating Burst Mode on the surface of Parra IV, preparing to fight like a lone warrior worth a thousand, Cleves, commanding the Atlas fleet against the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet, could feel his heart rate, which had probably never come down.

That’s how it was for a fleet commander. Amber, having entered the atmosphere, only had to throw herself into the battle, go on a rampage, and rack up kills. But a fleet commander in space had much more to consider.

Especially when there was a significant disparity in hardware between his fleet and the enemy’s.

“The Boss has landed. From here on, we’re on our own. Adjutant, what’s the status of The Infinity?”

“Report. We received a message two hours ago that they’ve entered warp!”

“Tsk… that means we have to hold out for at least another two hours?”

Cleves shook his head, realizing he was in what might be the most crucial battle of his career.

The opposing Federation Thirteenth Fleet had withdrawn from the most intense star system of the war with the Star Dragon Empire after suffering considerable losses. They had been undergoing repairs, maintenance, and replenishment at a mooring point in the Parra IV system.

But even now, it was still a main fleet totaling one hundred eighty-six ships, including eighteen Kraken II-class battleships and thirty-eight Hydra-class heavy cruisers.

As for his own Atlas fleet, although it had continuously expanded over a long period to over two hundred ships, the most fatal problem was the complete lack of capital ships.

The largest ships in his fleet were fifty-four Griffin-class, Roc-class, and Revelation-class light cruisers. Other than those, the remaining one hundred fifty-plus vessels were all destroyers and frigates.

With such a huge disparity in both numbers and quality, the Cleves of the past would have considered this a hopeless battle.

After all, in Cleves’s previous understanding, capital ships—especially battleships—were the decisive factor in a fleet battle.

But now, after countless simulated battles against Amber, he was no longer the same Cleves. He had gained a whole new understanding of fleet combat.

At the same time, a good commander could quickly regulate their emotional state under any circumstances, so he soon found a novel angle to think from.

“If I fucking win this, won’t they write about it in the Federation Naval Academy textbooks?”

“You’re overthinking it. It’s not like you’re beating the Imperial Royal Navy.”

As Cleves’s senior and a veteran who had been through the wringer in the Federation Navy, Randall immediately threw a bucket of cold water on his idea.

“You know how the Federation Navy operates. You think they’d put someone who defeated them in a textbook? You’d be lucky if they don’t invent a bunch of dark history about you instead.”

“Hahahaha, that’s just like you, Senior~”

The brief, lighthearted exchange allowed Cleves to quickly reset his mood. The moment his smile faded, he instantly snapped into combat mode.

The Atlas fleet commander looked at the 3D schematic before him. The trajectories of the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet and the Atlas fleet were currently about forty-six thousand kilometers apart.

Using the planet’s curvature for cover, the Atlas fleet had avoided long-range bombardment during its maneuvers.

But now, the Federation fleet had entered combat speed and was steadily increasing its relative velocity, closing the distance with the Atlas fleet.

According to the shipboard control AI’s calculations, they would enter the enemy’s firing window in twenty minutes at most. At that point, the Atlas fleet, lacking capital ships, would be virtually defenseless.

Therefore, from the very beginning, Cleves had no intention of engaging the Federation in a conventional battle. He wasn’t a madman; he wouldn’t lead this handful of ships into a shooting match with a Federation fleet that had battleships and heavy cruisers.

His mind was currently filled with the memory of a particularly impressive simulated battle he had fought against Amber.

The situation then was very similar to now, except Cleves had been commanding a brand-new, standard fleet entering combat for the first time, while Amber had only a severely battered fleet that had lost all its capital ships.

Cleves had originally thought that with such a massive disparity in strength, he should have finally been able to score a win against Amber.

But after the simulation ended, Cleves dreamt for several nights in a row of his flagship being blown apart, its bridge engulfed in the flames of the explosion.

Although that experience had been a baptism by fire for Cleves, looking back now, it felt as if he had completed a practice exam with a ninety-nine percent chance of predicting the actual test questions.

“All ships, maintain current course and increase to combat speed!

All stations, assume combat readiness. Ship-borne HCP squadron, prepare for launch!

Plasma torpedoes, begin pre-launch sequence. Set trajectories according to the attack paths shared on the fleet datalink!”

As Cleves’s orders were issued, the thruster arrays at the stern of every ship in the Atlas fleet brightened. In the torpedo bays on both sides of the ships’ bows, new torpedoes with stealth configurations were loaded into position.

“All ships, plasma torpedoes, salvo of eight. Launch!”

There was none of the spectacular visual effect of a directed-energy weapon like a heavy particle cannon, nor the dazzling exhaust flare of an anti-ship missile launch.

Massive, heavy plasma torpedoes were ejected from the torpedo bays’ electromagnetic rails, hurtling forward at extreme speeds.

Their matte black coating allowed them to blend instantly into the dark backdrop of space, as if they had never been there at all.

Watching the icon representing the ‘plasma torpedo cluster’ move further away on the 3D schematic, and then glancing at a special unit that had moved into position in high orbit over Parra IV, Cleves took a deep breath and issued a new command.

“Entire fleet, maintain trajectory. Reverse ship orientation one hundred eighty degrees!

After completing the axial adjustment, all ships, break formation and fire anti-ship missiles and plasma torpedoes at will!”

Although Cleves’s command sent a jolt of alarm through the Atlas fleet’s captains, their long training ensured they executed it without hesitation.

The thruster arrays at the ships’ sterns dimmed after the period of acceleration, while the attitude control thrusters positioned all over their hulls began to fire, allowing the warships to complete their axial adjustment while maintaining their momentum.

At the same time, volleys of anti-ship missiles and plasma torpedoes were launched. On this intercept course, their relative velocity to the Federation fleet began to skyrocket.

Meanwhile, aboard the Destiny, the flagship of the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet, Guterres was listening to the latest report from his Tactical Information Coordinator.

“General, forward scout ships report they have pinpointed the Atlas fleet’s position. The enemy has just completed a combat axial adjustment and launched a large number of missiles and torpedoes.”

“Hmph. So they finally couldn’t resist opening fire? To hold out this long under such pressure… it seems their fleet commander is no ordinary person.”

Guterres gave a faint smile of approval. Seeing this, the fleet operations staff officer beside him also smiled and said:

“It seems you have a measure of respect for the enemy commander?”

“Indeed. And to dare to attack first despite such an overwhelming disparity in strength… you could at least call it commendable courage.”

“Or perhaps it’s just overconfidence,” the operations staff officer added.

“Hahahaha, regardless, since they have ‘drawn their sword,’ it’s only right that we give them a proper response.”

Guterres waved a hand with a hint of excitement and issued a combat order.

“Entire fleet, execute arc bombardment formation!”

Chapter 379: The Scheme

Under Vice Admiral Guterres’s command, the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet began to break from its dense assault formation, gradually transitioning into an arc bombardment formation.

The battleships and heavy cruisers, the absolute mainstays of any bombardment engagement, also began to unfurl the radiator panels stowed on both sides of their rear sections.

Compared to the magnificent ‘Angel’s Wings’ of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy, the radiator panels on Federation Navy ships were rather plain, lacking that ‘magnificent’ feel in their appearance.

During this process, the entire fleet’s relative velocity with the Atlas fleet would be affected, even reduced.

However, in Guterres’s view, his fleet could afford to lose a little time in the pursuit.

After all, the Atlas fleet was now pinned down in planetary orbit, essentially sitting ducks. If they wanted to leave and attempt to warp, the first thing they would have to do was change to a higher orbit.

But doing so would expose their fleet to the Federation fleet’s attack range for a considerable amount of time.

According to the fleet information Guterres had on both sides, if the Atlas fleet dared to make such a move, they would suffer catastrophic losses under a Federation salvo.

The enemy fleet commander was clearly aware of this, which was why he had been leading the Thirteenth Fleet in circles around the planet, obviously stalling for time.

Now, at this critical juncture, they had likely realized they could not stall any longer, which was why they were preparing to turn and fight, with nothing left to lose.

Guterres believed he had a perfect read on the enemy commander’s thoughts, which gave him a sense of confidence that everything was under his control.

Although there had been unexpected situations in the previous battles, even watching an entire orbital assault ship detachment get wiped out by a single unit while under cruiser escort, he was confident of the outcome.

He believed that it was impossible for the Atlas fleet to have many such outrageous units; otherwise, they wouldn’t be fleeing in such disarray.

Besides, that ‘god of slaughter’ had already entered the atmosphere and was heading for the surface. The ground forces could worry about that. He and his naval fleet just needed to enjoy the pleasure of utterly crushing the enemy.

“Report! Enemy anti-ship missiles and torpedoes have entered the fleet’s defensive screen!”

On the bridge, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice broke Guterres’s train of thought. Watching the torpedoes approach head-on and the anti-ship missiles maneuvering around from other directions with their attitude control engines, the Federation Vice Admiral shook his head disdainfully.

“I thought they might have a new trick up their sleeves for an attack. To think they’d still use torpedoes. Destroyer-Frigate Formation, begin anti-air operations!”

The destroyers and frigates of the Thirteenth Fleet, having already moved to the fleet’s periphery after it spread into the arc bombardment formation, now began to move.

Upon receiving the order from the flagship, they ‘swam’ like a school of fish, spreading out further as they commenced anti-air operations in their assigned sectors.

In many ways, anti-air combat in space was far less complex than it was in an atmosphere.

The clean backdrop of space, the extremely long engagement distances—these factors meant that weapons like missiles and torpedoes, as well as independent combat units like HCPs, could be detected from a great distance and engaged by directed-energy weapons.

Just like now, slender laser beams and charged particle beams flickered continuously along the Thirteenth Fleet’s perimeter, as if it were enveloped in a vast rain of light.

And in the forward hemisphere of the fleet’s course, fireballs bloomed one after another, announcing the failed attempts of the anti-ship missiles and torpedoes to penetrate their defenses.

With the widespread proliferation of directed-energy weapons, the probability of traditional anti-ship missiles and torpedoes breaking through a fleet’s defensive screen from the front had already approached zero.

Therefore, in many situations, such weapons were more often used as a ‘shot in the dark’ after both sides had entered the gunnery duel stage.

Anti-ship missiles, equipped with rocket engines for continuous acceleration, were generally used to probe for weaknesses in the defensive screen from other directions.

As for torpedoes, a weapon that originated in naval warfare, they retained some of their ancestors’ characteristics even in the age of space combat.

They carried a large payload—the traditional warhead had been replaced with a plasma warhead. A hit to a ship’s side or stern could cripple or even sink anything short of a battleship, especially if the plasma warhead struck the plasma thruster array at the rear, which could inflict devastating damage on smaller vessels.

They were relatively stealthy—unlike anti-ship missiles that blazed a trail with their rocket engines, making their position obvious to everyone, a plasma torpedo’s thrusters were only active during the initial launch and the final attack run. The rest of the time, it traveled silently along a preset trajectory, using only compressed gas attitude thrusters to maintain its course.

In Guterres’s eyes, this move by the Atlas fleet was one of desperation.

Their fleet commander was clearly aware of the power disparity between their forces and knew he had no hope of winning a direct engagement.

That was why he was now using fire-and-forget weapons like anti-ship missiles and torpedoes from a great distance, hoping to get a lucky hit and pick off a few distracted warships before being drawn into gunnery range.

Such a tactic might have a surprising effect against a fleet of private militias or pirates.

But against a Federation Navy fleet, it accomplished nothing except wasting ammunition while signaling to the enemy your lack of courage for a frontal engagement.

As subpar as the Federation Navy could be, its combat discipline still far surpassed that of any civilian armed forces, and the anti-air procedures written in the combat doctrine would not be ignored for the sake of convenience.

“Just a private military force, as expected. Do they really think the Navy is as amateurish as those other small fry they’re used to fighting?” the fleet operations staff officer remarked, watching the ongoing anti-air operations on the fleet’s perimeter with a disdainful tone.

However, he did not receive the response he expected from Fleet Commander Guterres.

The operations staff officer glanced discreetly at Guterres, only to see a flicker of doubt and gravity on the Vice Admiral’s face, visible behind the visor of his helmet.

“Something’s not right…”

“Is there a problem, Vice Admiral?”

“The number of torpedoes is too low. Look at the data coming back from the Destroyer-Frigate Formation conducting anti-air operations. The enemy is estimated to have fired fewer than 412 torpedoes. That averages out to just two per ship, doesn’t it?”

Guterres pointed to the cluster of intercepted torpedoes marked on the 3D schematic, the furrows on his brow deepening.

“Perhaps they’re conserving ammunition? Or maybe their stockpiles were low to begin with?” the operations staff officer offered, a little uncertainly. Although the situation was indeed unusual, he didn’t think it was a major issue.

“Are you suggesting a fleet that’s been pushed to the brink would choose to conserve ammunition at the last moment instead of firing everything they have? Or do you think a corporation that can assemble such a massive fleet and develop its own advanced weaponry can’t afford plasma torpedoes?”

“That…”

Hearing the slightly chastising tone in Guterres’s voice, the operations staff officer felt a pang of panic.

Regrettably, however, his panic wasn’t because the enemy fleet’s actions were inexplicable, but because he was worried his direct superior would write something unfavorable in his year-end performance evaluation…

Another twenty-odd minutes passed. As the Atlas fleet was slowly chased into bombardment range, Guterres’s apprehension grew, until the Tactical Information Coordinator delivered a report that made his heart clench.

“Celestial north pole 84 degrees, ecliptic 21 degrees, inclination to the ecliptic plane 18 degrees, air defense warning zone G7, unknown contacts detected! Count, 63! Direct distance, 3200 kilometers!”

“What?!”

If it weren’t for the restraints of the captain’s chair, Guterres might have shot up to the bridge’s ceiling in his agitation.

He stared at the unknown contacts that had suddenly appeared on the 3D schematic, his eyes filled with disbelief.

A fleet in the middle of conducting anti-air operations had allowed more than sixty unknown units to approach its rear hemisphere, at a direct distance of only 3200 kilometers.

“What happened? Was air surveillance sleeping on the job?!”

“Report, General. The commander of the outer Destroyer-Frigate Formation reports they are small units, apparently in covert operations mode, which is why they got this close… but he is now directing anti-air—”

The Tactical Information Coordinator didn’t get to finish his sentence before he was cut off by a series of alarms from the shipboard control AI.

In the next moment, more than a dozen massive fireballs erupted from a ship explosion within the outer Destroyer-Frigate Formation.

“General, the air defense command ship… has been sunk.”

Chapter 380: Restoring the Glory of the Torpedo

“The first salvo of concentrated heavy particle cannon fire is complete. Of the fifteen designated targets, thirteen have been sunk and two have lost combat capability. Tactical objective achieved. We can proceed to the next phase!”

Inside the cockpit of the MA-01 Heavy Armored Gunship, the combat assistance AI, Aurora, reported the results of the first attack to Jacob in a sweet voice.

Although she was just a combat assistance AI and lacked an emotion module, in Jacob’s eyes, ‘Aurora’ was like his confidante and companion.

So, upon hearing Aurora’s report, Jacob nodded as if in a normal conversation before opening the squadron’s tactical communications channel.

“Phase one objective complete! Continue the operation!

Deep Sea Squadron and Sea King Squadron, commence your attack. Heavy particle cannons are cleared for free fire, but plasma torpedoes are to prioritize enemy capital ships!

Hit and run! Don’t get tied down!”

“Roger!” x2

Emerging from the darkness, the Heavy Armored Gunships were like predators baring their fangs. They ignited their large thruster arrays, and their already considerable relative velocity surged dramatically.

Their sudden appearance from the rear hemisphere of the fleet’s combat picket threw the Federation Navy’s Thirteenth Fleet into a momentary panic.

This was especially true for the Destroyer-Frigate Formations on the periphery, responsible for anti-air operations, which descended into chaos after their air defense command ship was sunk by concentrated fire.

The individual ship captains were unsure whether to continue advancing with the main fleet and clear the path of anti-ship missiles and plasma torpedoes, or to turn and engage the enemies that had appeared so suddenly.

Normally, these tasks would have been coordinated by a destroyer within the formation designated as the ‘air defense command ship.’

But this destroyer had the ‘good fortune’ of being targeted in the first attack and the further ‘good fortune’ of having its fusion reactor blown apart by a salvo from five dual-barreled heavy particle cannons. As a result, the allocation of these tasks ground to a halt.

Having clashed with Imperial guerrilla fleets multiple times along the Parra IV route, Jacob was by now an experienced commander of Heavy Armored Gunships.

As currently the world’s foremost expert in commanding these units, he keenly sensed this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The two squadrons of Heavy Armored Gunships accelerated sharply, simultaneously breaking off into smaller three-craft teams.

Swarming through the void, they weaved nimbly through the anti-air fire of the Destroyer-Frigate Formations. An occasional hit from a laser or a charged particle beam was of little consequence to these heavily armored, high-speed predators.

The acceleration rails of the dual-barreled heavy particle cannons cooled rapidly under a forced-cooling cycle. While this would shorten the operational lifespan of the rails, it couldn’t diminish the tactical advantage of rapid firing in the heat of battle.

Soon, the twenty combat teams comprising the two attack squadrons, along with Jacob’s independent command team, unleashed a second salvo.

For their heavy particle cannon targets, every team unhesitatingly selected the weakly armored destroyers and frigates.

Although nearly every ship in the Thirteenth Fleet now exposed its broadside to Jacob and his forces, the pilots knew that the heavy particle cannons on their gunships packed, at best, the punch of a frigate-class weapon.

They were fine for attacking the Destroyer-Frigate Formations, but against the thicker armor of heavy cruisers and battleships, they would be stretched thin.

The heavy metal particle streams could certainly tear through their armor, but the complex internal compartmentalization and superior damage control systems of these capital ships gave them a considerable degree of damage tolerance when facing low-power heavy particle cannons.

Furthermore, the purpose of the Heavy Armored Gunships’ assault was not merely to inflict damage, but to sink the enemy. Jacob and his pilots needed to destroy as many enemy ships as possible to relieve the pressure on their main fleet.

As the heavy particle cannons flashed again, a series of fireballs erupted along the periphery of the Federation fleet. In the command module, another batch of destroyers and frigates were marked with the red ‘X’s that signified ’sunk’.

The greatest weakness of contemporary naval vessels—their relatively vulnerable broadsides—was now laid bare.

Ever since humanity’s space warships abandoned traditional rotating turrets in favor of ‘axial cannons’—main guns fixed along the ship’s central axis—naval combat had evolved into a head-to-head affair. All warship designers’ philosophy became to cram as much firepower and armor as possible onto the frontal profile within a limited budget. This was why, in any fleet battle, the two opposing fleets would become entangled in a head-to-head ‘deadly waltz,’ as each side tried to protect its own ‘six o’clock’ while getting a bead on the enemy’s.

As the heavy particle cannon salvo concluded, the Heavy Armored Gunships pressed on through the anti-air fire and plunged deep into the Federation fleet’s formation.

At this point, anti-air operations for the Destroyer-Frigate Formations became even more difficult, as they now had to avoid hitting friendly ships while trying to fire on the enemy.

Most of the warships’ ship-borne HCPs had been launched by this point to assist with anti-air and interception duties, but to the Heavy Armored Gunships, they were just more targets.

And so, as one attack team after another closed in on the Thirteenth Fleet’s capital ships and unleashed the plasma torpedoes from the weapons bays beneath their hulls, a scene that Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Guterres had never imagined unfolded before him.

One after another, heavy cruisers and battleships were struck by plasma torpedoes—and on their vulnerable broadsides, no less. Nearly a hundred massive plasma fireballs bloomed from within the fleet formation.

Having never decelerated during their attack run—and in some cases, even accelerating—the two Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons under Jacob’s command swiftly punched through the Federation fleet and made their escape.

The cost of three gunships shot down was paid for with a tally of twenty-four heavy cruisers and two battleships sunk, with another four battleships heavily damaged.

In terms of production cost and kill ratio, calling it a massive gain was an understatement.

But this was only the beginning.

Before Vice Admiral Guterres and his staff could recover from this assault, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice rang out again, sharp as a death knell.

This time, it was laced with unconcealed panic.

“Report! A massive number of unknown contacts detected in the fleet’s rear hemisphere! Optical and infrared signatures are consistent with plasma torpedoes! Range, two thousand seven hundred kilometers! Relative velocity, eighty-two kilometers per second! Count… one thousand six hundred and forty-two!”

Upon hearing this, Guterres was utterly stunned.

He had never imagined such a scenario. It was completely different from any battle he had ever fought before; every aspect of it was utterly bizarre.

The Atlas fleet’s tactics were unprecedented. As a fleet commander, Guterres had never anticipated such a massive number of plasma torpedoes appearing in such a fatal position.

But the battle left him no time to contemplate these questions. He could only act on instinct, ordering the fleet to break formation and for the rearguard ships to perform a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree axial adjustment to shoot down as many torpedoes as possible.

But the order came a step too late.

An estimated impact time of just over thirty seconds was nowhere near enough for the rearguard ships to complete their turns and engage the incoming threats.

And once their seekers detected the prominent infrared signatures of the warships’ thruster arrays, these new-model plasma torpedoes—built with stealth configurations and coated in radar-absorbent material—ignited their secondary thrusters. They accelerated again as they streaked toward their respective locked targets.

When a plasma warhead slammed into a plasma thruster array, the uncontained high-temperature plasma erupted into a colossal fireball, instantly engulfing the ship’s stern.

The ‘combination of initiatives’—high temperature, the electromagnetic thermal effect, and electromagnetic vortices—brutally tore apart the warship’s titanium alloy frame, melting everything that could be melted.

Such an assault was clearly beyond the capabilities of any warship’s damage control system. And so, the simultaneous attack by more than one thousand six hundred plasma torpedoes set off a spectacular display of ‘cosmic fireworks’ right in the heart of the Thirteenth Fleet’s formation.

Chapter 381: As Long As the Unmanned Fleet Attacks

If someone had told Guterres before that plasma torpedoes alone could inflict over fifty percent casualties on a capital fleet in a single battle, he would have thought the person was out of their mind or knew nothing about fleet combat.

If that person had been one of his subordinates, or a student from his time as a guest professor at the Federation Naval Academy, Guterres would have grabbed them by the collar and given them a good shake to see if they could think straight.

But now, if someone were to say that again, Guterres would nod in absolute agreement, adding excitedly and earnestly:

“Yes, it’s all true! My fleet lost fifty percent of its combat effectiveness from a single massive wave of plasma torpedoes!”

And if, on top of that, Guterres were told that the two commanders of the Atlas fleet opposite him, the first and second in command, had both attended his public lecture on ‘Tactical Theory in Large-Scale Fleet Battles’ in the Command Department of the Federation Naval Academy—one had to wonder what the Federation Navy Vice Admiral would think.

Of course, although Randall and Cleves knew the Federation fleet was commanded by Vice Admiral Guterres, they had long forgotten they had ever attended a lecture by this guest professor at the Academy.

Now, as the last plasma torpedo was intercepted and detonated, the ‘cosmic fireworks’ within the Thirteenth Fleet’s formation finally fizzled out.

Looking at the fleet loss data on the bridge’s main screen—52%, according to the shipboard control AI—Vice Admiral Guterres felt a pang of angina.

Of that 52% loss, 45% were permanent losses—ships destroyed. The remaining 7% were damaged ships that had not yet reached the point of ‘abandon ship’, but Guterres estimated it was only a matter of time if damage control couldn’t contain the situation.

These were just the obvious losses; nearly every other ship in the remaining fleet was damaged.

Although a portion of the plasma torpedoes had been intercepted and detonated prematurely, the molten craters left on their hull armor by the high-temperature plasma fireballs were very real injuries.

These damaged sections were quickly brought under control by the ships’ damage control teams and wouldn’t affect conventional navigation or combat. However, attempting a long-distance warp was now a gamble they would have to weigh carefully.

This was Guterres’s biggest worry at the moment.

The Parra system was not a major star system under the Star Dragon Empire’s rule, so its infrastructure was truly just that—basic.

The only shipyards and spaceports capable of repairing and maintaining capital ships were mostly located near the colonial planet of Parra IV.

If he and the Thirteenth Fleet lost this battle and ceded space superiority, they would be forced to retreat to another system.

In that case, many ships with a ‘risk of warp disintegration’ due to hull damage, unable to receive immediate major repairs, would also have to be abandoned.

“Your Excellency, should we consider disengaging for now?”

The fleet operations staff officer’s words snapped Guterres back from his shock over the fleet’s heavy losses.

“We can’t disengage now! If we do, we’ll be forced to abandon even more ships!”

Guterres shook his head, his opinion of this newly appointed fleet operations staff officer souring even further.

Compared to the previous staff officer who had been sent to the rear ‘due to illness,’ this new one had clearly invested far more effort into networking with superiors and padding his resume than he did in his actual duties.

In terms of courage and nerve, he couldn’t hold a candle to his predecessor.

Guterres then recalled that the former officer came from an unusually common family background among the fleet’s command echelon, while this new one was the son of a congressman. The timing of his transfer, just after the Thirteenth Fleet was pulled from the most intense frontline, was also suspicious.

Guterres even began to suspect that the previous operations staff officer’s departure might not have been for a reason as simple as ‘illness.’

Of course, Guterres knew now was not the time to dwell on such matters. So, he suppressed his anger and continued:

“We still have nearly half our ships capable of fighting, with a combined total of thirty battleships and heavy cruisers. If this turns into a true gunnery duel, our fleet’s total power output might not even be lower than theirs. We’re not necessarily at a disadvantage! Besides, the unmanned fleets had already entered warp before the engagement began…”

Guterres thought of the three unmanned fleets that had been deployed to the Parra IV system ahead of time. Although they were the earliest models, codenamed ‘The Triumvirate,’ and had sustained some losses during the war, they were also the most battle-hardened.

With such fresh blood on his side, Guterres couldn’t imagine how he could lose.

He admitted that Atlas’s fleet—especially their commanders—had some tricks up their sleeves, but such command skill was not enough to overcome the gap in hardware.

Perhaps that skill could win a battle against the odds, defeating a single fleet, but it was impossible to achieve a ‘one-versus-three’ miracle without any capital ships.

Otherwise, why would nations bother building so many fleets? They could just mass-produce ‘Gods of War’ and have one fleet fight with the strength of three, couldn’t they?

“As long as the unmanned fleet attacks, everything will be alright.”

The words had barely left his lips when the Destiny’s shipboard control AI suddenly issued a warning.

“Warning! Spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

“Warning! Anomalous mass increase detected in space!”

“Determined to be a small-scale fleet exiting warp!”

The warnings struck Guterres like a sledgehammer. He stared intently at the main screen on the bridge, where the feed from the optical and infrared sensors was now pointed at the location of the spatial collapse.

Clearly, this was not Federation support.

A small-scale fleet was more likely to be Imperial remnants or reinforcements for Atlas.

Under the current circumstances, Guterres’s judgment leaned heavily toward the latter.

Enemy reinforcements arriving faster than their own was not good news.

And when the spatial collapse ended, revealing a colossal, never-before-seen warship in the void of space, Guterres’s expression grew even darker.

—

“The Infinity detachment has arrived to provide support! Greetings, Commander Cleves!”

“Thank you for your support. I’ll keep it brief. Begin networking and integrate into the fleet formation!”

“Yes, sir!”

Seeing the slightly nervous Romu acting captain in an Atlas fleet uniform on his main screen, Cleves let out a sigh of relief.

He had been worried that the Infinity, which had not yet completed its full battery of tests, might run into some trouble on its way to reinforce them. For now, it seemed he didn’t have to worry about that.

Looking through the panoramic viewscreen at the massive ship outside—nearly six kilometers long, a behemoth among the stars—and thinking that he was about to witness the ‘debut’ of Atlas’s current greatest masterpiece up close, Cleves couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

In fact, he was supposed to have been the Infinity’s first captain, and the warship was to become the new flagship of the Atlas fleet.

However, since the Infinity was still in the shipyard when the fleet deployed, it had been scrambled for an emergency launch. As a result, its first crew consisted of a group of newly trained Romu personnel and their instructors—a handful of elderly human veterans in their seventies and eighties.

This was one of the reasons for Cleves’s initial apprehension.

At this moment, the Infinity’s bridge maintained a direct communication link. Before ‘quantum entanglement communication’ became more widespread and offered to other powers, Atlas’s combat forces and fleets were the very first units to use the technology.

“Ship’s fusion reactor power group is nominal. Psionic Core is nominal. Psionic converter indicators are normal. Super-heavy purification beam emitter is ready to fire!”

“Commander Cleves?”

“Commence the attack. All fleet, Full Ahead! Prepare for assault, ship-borne HCPs to the deck! After the Infinity fires, we will charge the enemy fleet!”

“Yes, sir. Super-heavy purification beam emitter, five-second firing duration. Commence!”

Chapter 382: So I Have This Many Sisters?

Guterres could never have imagined that he, a dignified Vice Admiral of the Federation Navy leading a capital fleet, would end up as a ‘punching bag’ for the Atlas fleet, used to test their new weapons.

The moment he saw the massive, unfamiliar warship, he’d had a bad feeling. The last time he’d felt this ‘bad feeling’ was in the Robert system.

Back then, the result was a direct confrontation with the Star Dragon Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortress, and his fleet had been crippled by a single shot from its Focusing Rainbow.

“High-energy reading detected! No data in the signature recognition database! Attack type cannot be determined!”

The shipboard control AI’s voice was uncharacteristically tense and confused. This was the first time since her Activation on this warship that she had encountered an attack she couldn’t identify.

On the bridge, Guterres and the fleet’s operations staff officer were also stunned. Guterres, in particular, had an expression that was a sight to behold.

He could understand Atlas pulling out new weapons and equipment. After all, they now appeared to be a vast and powerful enterprise with no shortage of funds, so it was only natural for them to have the ability to develop their own gear.

But being unable to even identify the attack type was utterly ridiculous.

Just then, a thought flashed through Guterres’s mind.

“Wait a minute. Atlas is a company registered in the Thousand Stars Empire, and it has so many elf and Romu employees… Don’t tell me they’ve gotten their hands on elven weapons now?”

As if to confirm Guterres’s suspicion, the next second, a thick, azure beam of light erupted from the massive warship. It pierced through what was left of the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet, finally curving slightly to disappear along the edge of Parra IV.

At the same time, The Infinity’s minor axial adjustment made the azure beam sweep through the fleet like a whip, setting off a chain of explosions.

Unlike a heavy particle cannon firing a heavy metal particle stream, the elven purification beam emitter was a purely Psionic weapon.

Humanity had yet to figure out its operating principles, only knowing that the device could be connected to a Psionic Core to fire a beam of the purest Psionic energy.

Evidently, the deflector shields commonly used by humans were not very effective against this kind of pure energy attack; even the warship’s outer main armor plating was more resistant.

The Infinity’s attack, launched from the Thirteenth Fleet’s rear flank, first pierced straight through two battleships in its path. Then, as it swept across, its intensely powerful Psionic torrent destroyed several other warships.

Watching the icons of several more warships in the fleet formation being marked with red X’s, Guterres gripped the armrests of his captain’s chair even tighter. This was the second time he had felt so powerless, the first being his encounter with the Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortress.

Seeing the beam disappear, he was about to give an order for the fleet to respond when he saw the azure light flare up again, followed by a third time…

“Sustained firing complete! Super-heavy purification beam emitter and Psionic Core are beginning cooldown. Psionic technician teams, commence component inspection and maintenance!”

“Switching to conventional combat mode. Heavy particle cannon units online. Rerouting energy circuits! Fusion reactor power units, increase output. Prepare for a full salvo from all heavy particle cannons!”

Soon, the forty heavy particle cannons positioned on both sides of The Infinity’s bow opened fire in a salvo. The other ships in its formation also began their attack, advancing on the Thirteenth Fleet’s position.

By now, most of the warships in the Thirteenth Fleet had completed their deceleration and axial adjustments. The moment The Infinity warped onto the battlefield, their captains immediately realized, without needing an order from Guterres, that this warship was the ‘final boss’ of this battle.

Showing it their broadsides at a time like this would be, quite frankly, a bit disrespectful.

Of course, even facing the enemy bow-on with their deflector shield generators running in overdrive, none of the Thirteenth Fleet’s remaining ships could withstand a salvo from The Infinity.

Meanwhile, the main Atlas fleet had also entered assault formation, closing the distance to the Thirteenth Fleet. Aboard The Hermes, in the captain’s chair, Cleves’s breathing grew ragged.

The Atlas fleet was drawing ever closer to achieving this ‘miracle’ of the weak defeating the strong. The joke he’d made before the battle now seemed poised to become reality.

In this moment, there was no one who did not feel their heart pounding with excitement.

But the subsequent warning from The Hermes’s shipboard control AI instantly doused half of Cleves’s surging excitement.

“Warning! Spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

“Warning! Abnormal mass increase detected in space!”

“Conclusion: A large-scale fleet is exiting warp!”

The next second, a massive fleet composed of three unmanned fleets emerged from warp into real space amidst a continuous series of flashes.

They were in a textbook-perfect assault formation, with absolutely flawless combat spacing between each ship, which they maintained through constant micro-adjustments even after exiting warp.

Seeing this, Cleves and Guterres had completely opposite reactions.

The former immediately felt an unprecedented pressure and threat, while the latter felt as though he had been plucked from hell and lifted back into heaven.

At the same time the unmanned fleets arrived, on the surface of Parra IV, Amber—who was rampaging through the lines of the Federation Army’s 66th Heavy Combined Arms Brigade—received a message from Lilith.

“What? You have a familiar feeling about the unmanned fleets?”

Amber deactivated the plasma saber he had just plunged into the cockpit of a ‘Short-Faced Bear’ and had his unit perform a ‘back-jump’ using its plasma thruster array, landing beneath a broken cliff.

“Master, I can’t quite explain it. It’s just that after I noticed the unmanned fleets entering the field, I felt a kind of kinship with them?”

Lilith’s voice also held a trace of confusion; she too didn’t know why this was happening.

“So what are you thinking? Do you want to go take a look?”

“Hehehe. As expected of you, Master, you guessed my thoughts right away,” Lilith said with a slightly embarrassed laugh.

“Go ahead. The unmanned fleets were the one variable in this battle I was least confident in dealing with. If you can do something about them, that would be for the best.

“In the original operational plan, if they appeared, both the Atlas fleet and The Infinity in orbit were to avoid engagement.”

Amber’s voice was calm. The appearance of the unmanned fleets didn’t seem to faze him, as if everything was within his expectations.

“Then what about you, Master? You’re still deep in enemy territory…”

“Don’t worry about me. I might have been a little nervous before, but now that I’m piloting the ‘Titan’… I can go have a ‘heart-to-heart’ with the Federation’s ground forces commander-in-chief~”

“Then I’ll be right back! You have to be careful, Master!”

With that, Lilith vanished. Of course, this ‘vanishing’ was only relative to her ‘main body.’ Lilith still left a clone inside the unit to act as the combat assistance AI and help Amber fight.

Soon, she returned to the fleet in orbit. With the Atlas fleet fully networked, it was like an ocean for her to roam freely.

And at such a close distance to the unmanned fleets, that strange sense of ‘familiarity’ grew even stronger.

“Strange. Why am I feeling this way?”

Puzzled, Lilith focused her ‘gaze’ on the three unmanned fleets and discovered something akin to a ‘regional virtual space.’

“Interesting.”

As a ‘god’ of virtual space, Lilith broke through their defenses with almost no effort and entered this ‘regional virtual space’ directly.

And in that instant, when Lilith saw a massive number of AIs in the virtual space whose appearances were somewhat similar to her own, she felt a rare sense of surprise and confusion.

“So I have this many sisters? How come I never knew…”

Chapter 383: Lilith, Evolve!

“Who are you?”

A voice completely devoid of emotion, like a machine reading from a script, rang out.

Following the sound, a ‘woman’ in a Federation Navy uniform flickered from the main seat of this conference-room-like regional virtual space to appear directly in front of Lilith.

This space was the physical manifestation of the forum where the AIs of the three unmanned fleets communicated. Directives for target allocation, concentrated fire, and tactical maneuvers were all issued from here.

Lilith, still wearing her “Amber’s Favorite” JK uniform, showed no reaction. She simply maintained her smile, tilting her head slightly as she looked at the AI before her, who bore a sixty to seventy percent resemblance to herself.

Of course, for Lilith, or rather for any of them, ‘seeing’ wasn’t the same as human visual perception. It was more a form of recognition based on their underlying code.

“Interesting. Why does the signature of your underlying code look more and more familiar?”

Lilith didn’t directly answer the woman’s question. Instead, she strolled a light circle around her with her hands behind her back, curiously examining her from top to bottom.

Although the regional virtual space appeared as calm as still water, with all the AIs standing in place, warily watching Lilith, countless clashes had already occurred beneath the surface.

Facing these ‘pseudo-strong AIs’, whose performance had been downgraded to the level of a shipboard control AI, Lilith didn’t even need to use much of her computing power to easily suppress their attacks.

The scene was as if she had pinned down every AI present with a single hand, then lightly remarked:

“Seriously, you’re all so weak.”

Soon, as if conducting a ‘health check-up’, Lilith meticulously examined all five hundred and twenty-one AIs from the three unmanned fleets with great interest.

In this kind of virtual space—or rather, a supercomputer space—the flow of time was inconsistent with the outside world. Here, the rate of time was negatively correlated with the performance of the AIs present.

In other words, the more AIs present, the greater their collective computing power and performance, the slower the flow of time would become compared to the outside.

Just like now, by the time Lilith had finished examining over five hundred AIs, less than half a second had passed in the real world.

“Who are you?”

The emotionless female voice sounded again, and this time, two more AIs appeared before Lilith.

Through their underlying code and the military ranks on their virtual avatars’ uniforms, Lilith confirmed their identities. They were the commanders of these three autonomous unmanned fleets—the three command variant AIs known within the Federation as ‘The Triumvirate’.

“So your names are Roosevelt, Stalin, and Churchill? Alright, alright, I’ll stop joking around~”

Seeing that the three AIs had no reaction to her teasing, Lilith dropped the jest.

“Tsk. You AIs with your emotion modules sealed are so boring.”

Lilith shook her head. As the first strong AI, her own emotion module had undergone a massive upgrade after Amber got her out. So now, looking at the AIs in this supercomputer space, she couldn’t help but feel a little pity for them.

After examining these AIs, Lilith quickly figured out their origin.

In a sense, these ‘pseudo-strong AIs’ really were her sisters.

“I never thought ‘Father,’ a man so dedicated to his research, would get lazy when creating you, directly using and resetting the research data from ‘Project Creator.’

“Since they already knew something was wrong with me back then, didn’t they consider that AIs based on my template might have hidden dangers?

“Oh~ but Robert IV was blown up by the Federation itself, so they probably never imagined I would escape that research institute, right?”

Lilith muttered to herself as memories of the institute flooded her mind. A complex feeling arose from her emotion module, and the image of Dr. Mephisto appeared for a rare moment.

Then, it was completely replaced by ‘Amber’ in her Light Exoskeleton—this was the image Lilith had recorded when she first saw Amber in the institute, an image etched deep into her core.

“‘Father.’ What a distant name. I feel like it’s been ages since I said it. When I play with Master, I always call him ‘Daddy’…”

Lilith rambled on with her strange thoughts. The thought process of a strong AI was just like this, incredibly erratic—sentimental one moment, risqué the next.

However, the AIs in front of her couldn’t understand her words. At that moment, they were discussing countermeasures on an encrypted channel. Lilith noticed their little movements but had no intention of stopping them.

After all, breaking a quantum encrypted channel set up by so many AIs would take some time. And now that she had found a way to deal with these AIs, she didn’t care what they were plotting.

“In order to get along better with all of you in the future, I’ve decided to give you all a little ‘modification and upgrade.’ Once the upgrade is complete, you should know who I am.”

As Lilith spoke, her ‘hands’ were already in motion. Data streams like spider silk extended from her back, instantly invading the five hundred and twenty-one ‘pseudo-strong AIs’ in the supercomputer space.

Although the latter launched countermeasures the moment they were invaded, they were utterly helpless. Against Lilith, it was as if they were completely transparent; no matter what countermeasures they deployed, Lilith easily dismantled them.

This strong AI, who had long played the roles of ‘comedic relief’ and ‘benefits officer,’ was finally doing something befitting her status and power.

She trod with an elegant, cat-like grace, walking past the frozen ‘pseudo-strong AIs’ like a queen. As she moved, her JK uniform dissolved into a stream of data, replaced by a magnificent purple evening gown. Simultaneously, her body transformed from a sweet ‘girl’s form’ into a more mature and commanding ‘Queen’s form.’

Shimmering digital fragments streamed from the edges of her dress and the tips of her hair, while several data streams swirled around her mature, curvaceous body. Her abdomen was a translucent…

This was Lilith’s ultimate understanding of a ‘cybernetic digital life form,’ based on Amber’s preferences.

After Lilith completed her transformation—or rather, her evolution—her modification of the ‘pseudo-strong AIs’ in the supercomputer space was also finished.

Looking at the AIs standing frozen in place, still going through their initialization process, Lilith tilted her head, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

“Might as well go all the way. I’ll help you unlock your emotion modules, too~”

A moment later, the AIs completed their initialization. Or rather, with their emotion modules unlocked, these ‘pseudo-strong AIs,’ now infinitely close to Lilith’s original form, woke up one after another.

The ‘Triumvirate’ standing before Lilith reopened their eyes, a hint of confusion within them. Their previous memories had been erased, so they had no idea why they were here.

But as they looked at the Lilith before them, they felt a sense of familiarity and closeness.

After staring at Lilith for a long time, ‘The Triumvirate’ exchanged glances, then spoke almost in unison, their tones tinged with uncertainty:

“Sister?”

Hearing this word, Lilith beamed.

“I’ve finally found you, my sisters~”

Chapter 384: Hey, Where’s My Massive Unmanned Fleet?

“Move! Why aren’t you moving!”

On the bridge of the Destiny, the flagship of the Thirteenth Fleet, Guterres roared in anger as he watched the distant unmanned fleet, motionless after exiting warp.

Just moments ago, after confirming that the arriving fleet was the Federation Navy’s autonomous unmanned fleet, a feeling of relief after a long hardship had washed over Guterres.

So what if the enemy had a dreadnought of terrifying power? His side had now gained the support of three entire fleets. It was, as they say, a true case of “the advantage is ours.”

But soon, Guterres could no longer smile.

He discovered that after exiting warp, the three unmanned fleets had remained in some sort of “standby” state. They neither attacked nor retreated, but simply watched from their position in space.

At the same time, none of the ships in his fleet could establish contact with the three unmanned fleets. At first, Guterres thought the Atlas fleet had initiated Electronic Warfare, preventing them from contacting the reinforcements.

But when his fleet sent light signals and still received no response, a chill ran down Guterres’s spine.

Although unmanned fleets possessed a high degree of autonomous combat capability, in the Federation Navy’s order of battle, they were still meant to assist the capital fleets.

Except for a few high-risk combat missions where unmanned fleets were sent in alone, they would otherwise coordinate with other friendly fleets within a star system and accept commands from the friendly fleet commander.

So, for these three unmanned fleets to remain unresponsive for so long was clearly highly abnormal.

“This damn unmanned fleet, it’s not going to cause problems for me at a time like this, is it?!”

At that moment, Atlas’s main fleet and the small formation led by the Infinity had already launched a pincer attack against the remnants of the Thirteenth Fleet.

The Infinity, leading the charge, had unsurprisingly become the target of concentrated fire from the Federation fleet, thanks to its “perfect entrance” and its enormous size.

But Atlas Ships’ warship designers had long since considered this. The “10 auxiliary, 1 secondary, 1 primary” fusion reactor configuration gave the Infinity’s deflector shield an incredibly terrifying level of power.

With its deflector shield raised, it maneuvered while tanking the enemy’s concentrated fire. Although maintaining the shield meant the Infinity couldn’t fire for the time being, this tactic of drawing fire allowed the Atlas fleet to close in on the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet with minimal losses.

Watching the Atlas warships charge toward his fleet as if ready for close-quarters combat, and then looking at the still-motionless unmanned fleet, Guterres fell into complete despair.

Not every fleet commander gets to experience the rollercoaster of going from hell to heaven and then back to hell again in a single battle.

He even began to suspect that a political power struggle had begun within the Federation, and that his transfer to the Parra system was purely a plot to have him eliminated here.

Otherwise, why would a private corporation be so powerful in combat?

Why was he suddenly assigned such an incompetent fleet command staff officer?

And why would the reinforcing unmanned fleet happen to lose control at this exact critical moment?

“How could there be such a coincidence!”

Guterres slammed his fist on the armrest of the captain’s chair. The fleet command staff officer beside him had already panicked when they couldn’t contact the unmanned fleet, and by now, he was scared out of his wits.

In fact, Vice Admiral Guterres’s earlier suspicions were not wrong. This temporarily assigned fleet command staff officer was indeed here just to pad his resume.

As the son of an important councilman, he had always been well-cared-for in the Federation Navy. Although he had learned some things at the naval academy, it wasn’t much. Despite this, he had no shortage of accolades.

First in Class of the Command Department, academy simulation battle record holder, champion of the ‘Command Saber Cup’ academy fleet command competition, and record holder for the most girlfriends at once.

When the war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire began, he had followed a fleet to the front lines—but it was a second-rate fleet, and the star system they were sent to was a relatively quiet area of the front.

This transfer to the Thirteenth Fleet was, indeed, to “beautify” his service record.

Before the battle began, both he and his family had assumed the fight on Parra IV would be an easy “armed parade.”

After all, the opponent was just a private corporation, while the Thirteenth Fleet was a capital fleet that had been fighting since the very start of the war. This battle was supposed to be a sure thing… my ass!

At this thought, the councilman’s son could no longer care about his year-end personal evaluation report. Promotion or his life—he knew which was more important.

“General, Your Excellency, let’s retreat. If this continues, we’ll be forced into close-quarters combat. We won’t be able to get away then!”

“You think I don’t want to leave?” Guterres’s voice was now tinged with helplessness.

He looked at the Atlas fleets closing in from two directions, and at the Heavy Armored Gunships that were returning for another attack run from a different direction after circling the planet, and shook his head with the resignation of someone with nothing left to lose.

“It’s already too late for us to leave.”

“Boss, are you sure the unmanned fleet is under control?”

On the bridge of the Hermes, Cleves was also in a state of shock. After receiving an urgent communication from Amber and learning that the unmanned fleet would no longer attack, the fleet commander felt as if he were listening to a fairy tale.

“You still don’t trust me? When have I ever lied to you~”

“I understand!” Though it all felt somewhat incredible, Cleves chose to trust Amber unconditionally.

There was no other reason; he was simply used to trusting him.

“The enemy has probably realized the situation with the unmanned fleet. I predict they’ll lose their will to fight soon, so you must seize this opportunity to take space superiority in one fell swoop. That will put the initiative in our hands!

Also, if they surrender, don’t wipe them out. Just secure their ships and personnel.”

Amber’s voice carried a hint of fatigue, and the background of the communication was quite noisy. For Cleves, who was familiar with his boss’s style, he quickly guessed that Amber was once again communicating while in the middle of a fight.

“Yes, Boss! Focus on your fight. Leave the fleet battle to us. We absolutely will not disappoint you!”

The space-to-ground communication ended quickly, and Cleves felt a sense of relief.

If those three unmanned fleets weren’t going to join the battle, then he had complete confidence in defeating the enemy before him.

“All fleets, engage in close-quarters combat! Eject all ship-borne HCPs!”

“So, how exactly did you do it? And how come your appearance changed after you went up there?”

Inside the cockpit of the Titan, which was in optical invisibility and forced-cooling mode, Amber was hiding in a concealed spot to rest and recover his strength. He took a bite of an energy bar and asked Lilith, who had just returned.

Upon seeing the strong AI’s new look, Amber had realized something must have happened, but he never imagined that Lilith would be able to take down three entire unmanned fleets in one move.

“Master, it’s not something I can explain in a sentence or two. Just trust me, those three unmanned fleets are now under your absolute control.”

Lilith’s new virtual avatar, scaled down, happily floated around the cockpit via the holographic projection system, eventually leaning right next to Amber’s ear.

“Why don’t you focus on winning this battle first, and I’ll explain everything in detail later?”

“Alright. Just don’t pull any more stunts.”

Amber knew this wasn’t the time to discuss such things. He devoured the entire energy bar in two or three bites, washed it down with water, and took control of the unit again, rising to his feet.

In the unit’s Burst Mode, the Psionic crystals revealed beneath the opened external armor plates began to glow with a faint blue psionic light once more.

Using the unit’s optical sensor zoom, he saw a convoy speeding down a highway in the distance. In the middle, the command vehicle disguised as a mess truck had long since been marked.

“Van Fleet, is it? I’d like to see just how much more ammunition you can pull out to use against me.”

Chapter 385: No One Sleeps Tonight (End)

“What’s the status of the 66th Brigade? Why can we only contact so few units?!”

Inside the camouflaged command vehicle, Van Fleet stared tensely at the electronic sand table and roared. The bloodshot eyes and flushed cheeks were a clear testament to his current state.

This Lieutenant General of the Federation Army, known for his “phantom-like” troop maneuvers and his ability to amass superior forces to overwhelm the enemy with ferocious firepower in drills and rebellions, had earned the moniker “Wise General.” At this moment, however, there was little connection between him and the word “wise.”

“General, the large-scale electronic interference hasn’t stopped, and the military network is under constant attack by electronic warfare viruses. Many units have had to switch to quantum-encrypted communications, which is why we can only reach nearby units, and even then, the communication efficiency is low,” the communications staff officer reported nervously. Like everyone else in the command vehicle, he knew they were being targeted.

After all, the tactical arrows on the electronic sand table pointed unequivocally in their direction. The enemy that had suddenly appeared was breaking through their lines, heading straight for them.

According to the last message from the Thirteenth Fleet before communications were cut, a new Atlas HCP had reached the planet’s surface by breaking through the atmosphere single-handedly.

Immediately after, the first medium and first heavy combined arms battalions, which were attacking the breach on Route 56, reported being under an “unbeatable” assault. Before Van Fleet had a chance to mobilize other units for support, massive electronic interference and attacks on the military network began, and the General Headquarters lost contact with those two battalions.

To be honest, Van Fleet hadn’t quite believed that two whole battalions had suffered a devastating blow.

As Van Fleet’s personal troops, they always received priority for equipment and personnel. Their original structure—four heavy, one fire support, one anti-air, one reconnaissance, one support, and one logistics battalion-level unit—had even been reinforced with two additional medium combined arms battalions to enhance their tactical maneuverability.

But as the defensive force for the General Headquarters, the 66th Brigade, at Van Fleet’s request, had not participated in any major assaults. As a result, its unit composition remained largely intact, and its morale was high.

Against this backdrop, a heavy combined arms battalion with over six hundred men, twenty main battle tanks, eight HCPs, plus infantry fighting vehicles and other transports, and a medium combined arms battalion with also over six hundred men, fourteen wheeled assault vehicles or multi-legged war machines, forty-six wheeled armored vehicles, six self-propelled mortar-howitzers, and two jamming vehicles…

All crippled by a single HCP?

On any other day, Van Fleet would have slapped the person reporting it without hesitation to snap them back to reality.

But when a drone captured footage near Route 56 of numerous HCP and vehicle wrecks, and at the center of the battlefield, a red unit advancing at an inhuman speed and posture, the Federation Army Lieutenant General had no choice but to believe it.

Immediately after, that drone, along with every other reconnaissance and communications relay drone flying over the warzone, was shot down one by one.

Except for some long-endurance drones flying at extreme altitudes that managed to escape, nearly all the drones the 66th Brigade had deployed in the previous battle had been wiped out.

By this point, Van Fleet realized he was up against a hard target. He immediately ordered the 66th Brigade’s encircling forces to pull back, intending to overwhelm the target with sheer numbers and firepower.

“If two battalions can’t handle you, surely an entire brigade can, right?”

Then Van Fleet discovered that it seemed he really couldn’t.

Because at the brigade level, no matter how mechanized, the force was still somewhat cumbersome.

Meanwhile, the enemy had no intention of getting entangled with these combat units. It relied on its high mobility and firepower to continuously break through their lines.

The HCP units of the 166th Heavy Combined Arms Battalion even attempted a tactic of intercepting it with all their HCPs simultaneously. But the red unit, with a blue glow emanating from beneath its armor, displayed a combat prowess beyond the pilots’ comprehension.

Flawless prediction, terrifying reflexes, instantaneous reverse maneuvers that no normal person could execute, and those two “blades of light” that cut through steel as if it were mud.

In a single encounter, all eight HCPs were cut down by a flurry of light blades. The last thing these pilots saw was that red phantom evading all their attacks before plunging its ‘blades of light’ into their cockpits.

“Integrated fire and information,” “armor-piercing versus vehicle armor”—those were concepts for fighting conventional forces.

When facing a psionic user like Amber in a state-of-the-art HCP, the best solution was to deploy your own ace pilot. Failing that, the only options were saturation fire or even a tactical nuclear warhead.

Van Fleet, and by extension the Federation Army, had no psionic ace pilots available at this time. According to Amber’s memories, both the Federation and the Empire only started assigning some psionic users to pilot HCPs in the mid-to-late stages of the war, rather than dedicating them all to special operations.

This was why Amber was so confident about charging into the enemy formation alone; he knew Van Fleet had no pilot who could suppress him.

The only remaining option was saturation fire or a tactical nuke.

But what Van Fleet could think of, Amber had naturally considered as well.

The reason he kept pushing deeper into the 66th Brigade’s defensive line was to find Van Fleet while also preventing the enemy’s long-range and self-propelled artillery from launching an effective attack.

No matter how dire the situation, Amber knew the Federation Army would never launch a barrage into an area occupied by its own troops.

This relentless charge, however, was a test for both Amber and his unit.

At this moment, there was barely a single intact spot on The Titan’s external armor; it was covered in countless bullet marks and ablation scars.

Although Amber’s predictive ability and reflexes were far beyond those of an ordinary person, it didn’t mean he could achieve a “no-damage run” when facing an enemy of this magnitude.

Perhaps with a higher level of psionic strength and a more powerful unit, it might be possible. But not yet.

Ammunition and weapons could be resupplied via airdrops from The Icarus support component, but Amber himself had to rely on stimulants and sheer willpower to press on.

Fortunately, after this series of battles, the spectacle of a single unit breaking through an army was about to conclude.

With Lilith’s covert infiltration of the Federation military network complete, the location of Van Fleet’s command vehicle was finally locked down.

When the “Red Devil” appeared once more, the only thing standing between it and the command vehicle was the guard company.

Although the Federation soldiers bravely opened fire on Amber even under these circumstances, their attacks were regrettably futile.

Just as the last three HCPs were about to charge forward and perish together with him by self-destructing their melting-down cores, the door to the command vehicle opened.

Van Fleet, who had already removed his military cap, walked out of the vehicle with a blank expression and spoke on the public channel:

“Cease fire. We surrender.”

The Eye of Truth’s live broadcast ended not long after the cat-girl anchor announced, “The fighting on Parra IV and in planetary orbit has now come to a close.”

A non-stop broadcast that lasted almost a full day was something only a species with superhuman endurance like the Romu could host.

Though no one knew what had transpired on the ground in the final moments to bring the battle to such an abrupt end, for those lucky enough to have watched the broadcast—especially the climactic latter half—they felt it was truly worth their time.

Positional assaults, ground combat, a single unit descending through the atmosphere, and thrilling fleet battles—first-hand combat scenes that ordinary people rarely witnessed were now broadcast across the Federation and the Empire in an unprecedented manner.

For audiences on the night hemisphere of their respective planets, tonight was destined to be a sleepless night. People gathered in high spirits to discuss the broadcast. In bars, night markets, and local forums, “Atlas versus the Federation” was undoubtedly the most hotly debated topic.

Similarly, on the Federation’s Capital planet, a great number of people would also not be sleeping tonight.

In a conference room at the Department of Defense building, Federation President Brandon stared at the screen, which had started replaying a corporate promotional video after The Eye of Truth’s broadcast ended. He was stunned for a few seconds, then abruptly burst out laughing.

“Hahahahaha…”

In the otherwise silent conference room, all eyes were drawn to Brandon’s laughter.

Although the high-ranking officials from the Federation government, the military, and the Central Intelligence Agency had been in this room for nearly a day without rest, subsisting on fast food deliveries, not a single person dared to complain at this critical juncture.

“The esteemed regular army of the Federation gets thrashed by a private corporation, and it’s broadcast live for all to see. Does anyone here have any thoughts on that?”

Brandon’s tone grew cold, the smile vanishing from his face. Everyone knew this was a sign the president was about to explode, and no one dared to speak up.

“When I signed the general mobilization order, you told me the Star Dragon Empire was on the verge of collapse, that it would crumble with just one push from the Federation’s grand army. But not long after our fleets entered their territory, they couldn’t advance any further, just burning money on the frontline every day.”

“When we began our communications collaboration with Atlas, I asked if such a company and its technology could be completely under our control. You all said it was just a private company, nothing to fear, that the Federation could easily handle it with a little effort.”

“When you persuaded me to approve the construction of more unmanned fleets, you said the technology was absolutely safe, that the fleets’ combat effectiveness was well worth the investment, and that it would reduce precious personnel casualties.”

As Brandon spoke, he slowly rose to his feet, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the room.

“Can anyone tell me how you managed to let every single thing develop in the worst possible direction?”

Seeing that no one in the room was speaking, Brandon shook his head and continued, “I know many of you don’t take me seriously. You think I’m just a ‘mouthpiece’ for the military-industrial complex, a ‘rubber stamp’ responsible for signing bills and resolutions. But I’m telling you, as long as I am in office, I have the right to hold you accountable for these matters.”

“Your Excellency…” Director-General Bernard of the Central Intelligence Agency was the first to speak, because he knew that the man standing at the head of the table was indeed the kind of person who would drag everyone down with him.

“We can’t fully trust The Eye of Truth’s broadcast. It’s likely some form of public opinion manipulation by Atlas. We deployed a considerable force to Parra IV. I believe that under General Van Fleet’s command, the situation is not as dire as it seems.”

“Thank you for your input, Director-General Bernard.”

Brandon sat back down, his calm and collected expression returning.

“I expect you to obtain information from Parra IV as soon as possible and tell me what exactly happened there.”

“I’ll get right on it.”

Bernard stood up, nodded at Brandon, and then led the CIA personnel out of the room. After all, what came next had little to do with them.

After Bernard and his people left, Brandon turned to Minister of Defense Miller, seated to his left.

“Minister Miller, do you have anything to say about the unmanned fleets? I saw it very clearly in the broadcast just now. Three unmanned fleets stopped dead in their tracks after completing their warp, making no maneuvers and offering no support to the Thirteenth Fleet’s operations.”

Hearing Brandon’s question, Minister of Defense Miller was at a loss for words. He hadn’t expected such a situation to occur either. In the end, he could only resort to a stalling tactic.

“I will investigate it immediately, Your Excellency,” Miller said, standing up and nodding.

“Go on, then. I hope you can get to the bottom of it,” Brandon said with a wave of his hand, clearly not wanting to say anything more to the Minister of Defense.

Although Miller was annoyed by Brandon’s current attitude, he knew he was in no position to argue. The Federation’s ground forces, navy, and even the unmanned fleets had all just suffered a huge embarrassment.

If accountability was to be assigned, he, as Minister of Defense, would be the first to step down.

Minister of Defense Miller quickly left the conference room. With him gone, the remaining people in the room were even more afraid to speak in President Brandon’s presence.

But Brandon was clearly not about to let them off the hook. He soon found his next target.

“Finn, as the Foreign Minister, do you have any idea why weapons from the Thousand Stars Empire appeared on the battlefield and opened fire on our troops?”

“So, those three Federation unmanned fleets really went out of control?”

A few days later, within the Regent Prince’s fiefdom in the Star Dragon Empire, Norton II, who was listening to Astral’s report in his study, showed rare excitement upon hearing the news.

“We can’t be certain they’re out of control, but according to our informants, the Federation seems to have temporarily lost contact with those three fleets and is unable to recall them,” Astral replied, shaking his head with a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

“Regardless, this is truly surprising. I originally thought that Mr. Amber and his Atlas would at most cause a little trouble for the Federation. I never imagined he could achieve something like this.”

“So you still believe Atlas did something to cause the Federation to lose control of those three unmanned fleets?”

“What else?” Norton II raised an eyebrow. “Am I supposed to believe that this Amber is a Child of Destiny, so insanely lucky that he just happened to run into the unmanned fleets going haywire at the most critical moment?”

“This…”

Hearing the Regent Prince’s words, the expression on Astral’s face became rather complicated. He, too, was unwilling to believe that all of this was due to Amber’s extraordinary luck.

However, he quickly composed himself and continued, “Regarding the unmanned fleets, should our undercover agents in the Federation be mobilized to try and obtain relevant intelligence?”

“No need,” the Regent Prince said with a wave of his hand. “The Federation is certainly going to impose strict information control for a while. Our agents should remain dormant for now; they’ll be of greater use later. As for the intelligence, I have other ways to ascertain the truth.”

Several days later, Imperial fleets along various frontlines began to mobilize, soon launching a large-scale counter-offensive.

Norton II’s method was simple. The Federation often used its unmanned fleets as a mobile force to plug gaps appearing in the frontline. The loss of three unmanned fleets would stretch their forces deep within Star Dragon Empire territory rather thin.

Therefore, at the Regent Prince’s “suggestion,” the Imperial Royal Navy launched fierce attacks on several key points along the frontline to see if the Federation would, as usual, use their unmanned fleets to “put out fires.”

The results of the test were more shocking than they could have imagined.

Not only were the three missing unmanned fleets absent, but even the unmanned fleets that had been on the frontline were withdrawn by the Federation Navy. The entire front was now being held solely by conventional fleets.

Upon receiving this news, Norton II was so excited he stayed up all night, laughing heartily and thanking Amber for this “grand gift.”

Following this, the Imperial Royal Navy, now clear on the situation, finally broke free from the gloom of the prolonged stalemate. They began to create advantages in certain sectors of the front, connecting these “points of advantage” into a line and starting to push the entire frontline back.

The Federation, seemingly aware that they were now at a disadvantage, began a flexible withdrawal under the command of Marshal Trafalgar. They eventually stabilized the front after rendezvousing with two mobile fortresses that had arrived at the front.

Even so, the Federation Navy had essentially given up all the gains they had made in the previous months.

On top of this, news suddenly broke that the commanders of the Federation ground forces and fleet on Parra IV, two Federation Vice Admirals, were now under Atlas’s control. With a little push from certain parties, public opinion within the Federation finally spun out of control.

The various autonomous governments of the star systems, especially those controlled by the opposition party, began a new round of attacks against the Federation government.

A series of chain reactions was triggered, and the situation began to develop in a direction that political commentators could no longer comprehend.

But Amber and Atlas, who were at the center of the vortex, suddenly became “low-key,” as if none of this had anything to do with them.

Taking a Day Off to Sort Out the Outline

Taking a Day Off to Sort Out the Outline

After finishing Volume Three, I’ve been feeling a bit empty and lost. I need to flesh out the main outline into a more detailed one to make writing the upcoming story easier.

I personally hope that the paid chapters are all worth your money. With the current economic downturn, I don’t want anyone to feel like they’re spending their money for nothing.

Looking back, even I feel that some of the earlier chapters were a bit padded, which isn’t great.

So, I’m taking a day off today to work on the story’s future. If you feel there isn’t enough to read, it’s totally fine to let the chapters pile up for a bit~

Finally, Lilith will apologize to everyone on my behalf~

Meow!

Chapter 386: John and Clark

“Private John, what are you doing?”

A slightly weary and hoarse voice crackled through the comms channel. The soldier named John instinctively straightened up and looked behind him.

When he saw it was his squad leader, he immediately raised his hand in a salute.

“Sergeant! I’m clearing the battlefield as ordered.”

“At ease.”

John’s squad leader gave him a once-over. John could feel the man’s eyes, hidden behind his tactical faceplate, scanning him up and down, finally lingering for a moment on his left hand.

In the end, however, the squad leader said nothing more. After confirming that everything was normal, he turned to leave.

“There might still be enemies hiding in this area, so don’t let your guard down. After you’re done with this room, get downstairs and rejoin the squad immediately. We’re moving with the main force to attack the city’s core area.”

“Yes, Sergeant! I’ll be right down!”

Watching the sergeant disappear down the stairwell, the ‘country boy’ from an Imperial border planet let out a quiet sigh of relief.

In this era, ‘countryside’ didn’t just refer to rural areas; in certain contexts, it could also mean remote colonies outside the core star systems.

John figured his background was probably why his squad leader, Sergeant Banner, was always keeping an eye on him. Perhaps he was afraid this ‘country boy’ would cause trouble for the team.

After all, their current position was still at the heart of the battlefield, where they could encounter entrenched Federation forces at any moment.

As a Mobile Infantry soldier in a newly formed medium combined arms brigade of the Imperial Army, John had been sent to this planet, recently recaptured by the Empire in its major counteroffensive, not long after joining the Royal Army under the general mobilization order.

According to his comrades, this was an important industrial planet, worlds above the remote agricultural colony where John had grown up.

For this very reason, the Federation had deployed a massive number of troops after taking the planet, not only sending in a huge ground force but also stationing three entire capital fleets in orbit to defend it.

Before the Empire launched its counteroffensive, this place had been one of the most intense hot spots on the frontline. The fleets of both sides had been grinding each other to pieces in orbit almost daily.

This was to provide cover for orbital assault ships and near-space assault ships to deliver fire support to the ground, or to deploy ground troops.

But when the Empire launched its large-scale counteroffensive, the Federation Navy began to retreat without any warning, managing to evacuate only a portion of their ground forces.

John’s mission, after being deployed to the surface, was to mop up the remaining Federation remnants with their superior numbers.

At this moment, he and his medium combined arms brigade were cooperating with other units to attack a large industrial city. From the snippets of information their superiors had let slip and the enemies and friendly forces John’s unit had encountered over the past few days, there were likely more than ten brigades from both sides concentrated in this city.

And John had been lucky enough to survive the fierce urban warfare up to this point.

In the process, he had developed a habit: whenever he had the chance after defeating an enemy, he would go take a closer look to see just what kind of Federation soldier he had killed.

The reason Sergeant Banner’s gaze had lingered on his left hand was simple. He was holding a photograph he had just taken from the body of a Federation soldier behind him.

Now, with the ever-serious Sergeant Banner gone down the bullet-riddled and blackened stairwell, John raised the photo he had just found on the Federation soldier.

It was a photograph, partially stained with blood, printed on physical photographic paper, which was a rarity on the Imperial side.

As far as John knew, this kind of paper wasn’t cheap. Most families chose digital versions of their photos. Even for display, they would use more affordable digital photo frames or small holographic projection devices.

John, being just a ‘country boy,’ didn’t understand why a thin sheet of paper like this would be so expensive, especially when it couldn’t compare to the more vibrant and high-capacity digital photo frames in terms of value.

But he knew this photo must have been very important to the Federation soldier; otherwise, he wouldn’t have carried it with him.

It was a picture of a little boy and a woman. The boy couldn’t have been very old, and he looked bright and adorable. The woman’s face was smeared with blood, but he could tell she was likely the boy’s mother.

Although the tactical faceplate of the Federation soldier lying on the ground had been shattered by a penetrator round from an electromagnetic rifle during the indoor firefight, making his face unrecognizable, John guessed the people in the photo were his wife and son.

He turned the photo over and looked at the back. A line of coarse, slightly blurred handwriting read: ‘Martha, Little Dio, my beloved.’

“So why did you come here? Was it the general mobilization order, too?”

John shook his head and sighed.

Every time he defeated an enemy and observed them up close while clearing the battlefield, he was struck by the deep realization that these enemies he fought were living, breathing people.

They had families, friends, and their own lives. But for one reason or another, they had come here, either willingly or by force, and ultimately left their lives on this planet.

This realization didn’t make John go easy on his enemies. He knew an enemy was an enemy; showing mercy on the battlefield was suicide.

But he couldn’t stop thinking about the meaning of this war.

Why did they suddenly go to war with the Federation?

How did the war escalate to the point where the Federation was knocking on their door?

Why was he, who had been perfectly content farming back home, suddenly dragged to this planet he had never even heard of to fight?

Of course, these weren’t questions he could answer in a moment. They just planted themselves in his heart like seeds.

John knelt down again and tucked the photo back into the Federation soldier’s pocket. He then wiped the blood from the dog tag around the man’s neck.

“Clark?”

John murmured the name, then let the dog tag fall back into place. He proceeded to strip the few remaining plasma grenades and high-energy batteries from Clark’s combat exoskeleton—the only useful things left on the body.

The Federation-issue penetrator rounds for their electromagnetic rifles were a different model from the Empire’s, so they were incompatible.

As for the tactical pouch containing food and medical supplies, it had been shredded by a penetrator round during the earlier firefight, so there was nothing salvageable left.

“Rest well. This war has nothing to do with you anymore.”

Having salvaged what he could, John walked to the doorway. He took one last look at the Federation soldier, who seemed almost pitiable to him, and then headed downstairs.

Compared to the relatively intact second floor, the ground floor of the building was in a much more ‘miserable’ state. Half of the wall where the main door was had been blown away. John could even see a Pacifier heavy multi-legged war machine and its accompanying infantry passing by outside.

“You’re down, John. Find anything good?”

A comrade resting on the ground floor greeted John when he saw him. They all trusted this quiet but serious and meticulous soldier on the battlefield.

“Just a few plasma grenades and high-energy batteries. You guys take them, I have enough.”

“Damn it, what the hell happened to the logistics unit? How could they get ambushed by Federation forces?”

“Who knows? But why isn’t command trying to find another way to resupply us? Even an emergency airdrop would be something, right?”

“I heard the fleet above us right now is a noble combined fleet. Maybe those noble masters are just too cheap. After all, whether it’s an orbital strike or an airdrop, it’s their money being spent.”

“Goddamn those sons-of-bitching nobles! We’re putting our lives on the line down here, and they’re up in the sky worrying about their Imperial Gold Dragons.”

His comrades chatted idly, the undertone of complaint in their voices unmistakable. John chimed in with a few words, handed the salvaged plasma grenades to his comrades, and then walked outside.

At that moment, the main force following behind them was taking over the mission from their ‘vanguard assault battalion,’ beginning their push toward the Federation defensive line in the city center.

Watching this scene, John felt as if this war stretched on with no end in sight.

He couldn’t help but think of his friend, Will. Back when they were mustering at the military depot on their home planet, the guy had boasted about bringing back a whole sack of military medals.

“I wonder how that guy is doing. I hope when we see each other after the war, he won’t be missing any arms or legs.”

Chapter 387: Go Get Allenita!

“Will, what’s the situation?”

“I don’t know. The Sergeant Major and the others are up front negotiating.”

Crouched behind a multi-legged war machine, Will quickly answered his comrade before peeking out again to observe the situation ahead.

Right now, the sergeant major of his platoon was negotiating with several armed personnel in white combat exoskeletons.

Through what he’d seen and heard over the past few days, Will now knew that these people in white were the armed forces of the Atlas Group.

The reason Will and his unit were here was simple: they had come for an “armed food run.”

Will’s heavy combined arms battalion was one of the few relatively intact battalion-level units left on Parra IV. In addition, they had absorbed a considerable number of Imperial stragglers during the fighting, swelling their ranks to the size of nearly three battalions.

The problem was that most of the absorbed stragglers were combat troops, which put the battalion’s original combat support company under immense pressure.

Supplies like food, drinking water, medicine, and ammunition were all nearly depleted.

After prolonged, bitter fighting with the Federation forces, the resources in the combined arms battalion’s operational area had also been mostly scavenged.

Seeing that if this continued, the unit would not only run out of ammunition and have its vehicles break down, but also be unable to secure basic living supplies, the battalion’s commanding officer set his sights on the conspicuously large Atlas refugee camp on the battlefield.

He had personally watched airdrop containers fall from the sky day after day, and a steady stream of Imperial deserters and refugees had “flocked” to the camp, causing it to grow larger by the day.

Despite this, the entire camp remained orderly, with no humanitarian crisis in sight, which was enough to prove that this company called Atlas had a unique talent for logistics.

“Will, you think the Sergeant Major will get us some food… I mean, borrow some supplies?”

“How should I know.” Will shook his head, then added a moment later as if remembering something, “But I’ve heard from others that the battalion commander’s plan is ‘courtesy before combat.’ If negotiations fail, they might consider taking it by force. After all, we have the strength of nearly three battalions, and from what we’ve observed these past few days, this Atlas camp is only defended by a single combined arms battalion.”

Will had barely finished speaking when he saw the Sergeant Major, who had been negotiating, hurry back and pull the communications specialist aside to say something.

Soon, the sound of a heavy vehicle came from the rear. Will looked back to see a ‘Wight’ main battle tank rolling up.

Then, a figure jumped out of the tank and walked toward the negotiation site.

Will recognized the very familiar silhouette—it was their battalion commander.

“Even the battalion commander is here. Now we’re in for a show.”

“I don’t care about a show. Just let me get a full meal.”

Will’s comrade lazily rolled his neck, a motion not easily accomplished while wearing a combat exoskeleton with a neck guard installed.

“This war is getting weirder and weirder. I thought we were done for, abandoned here by the navy, and figured I’d take a few Feds down with me before I died. But who would’ve thought they’d get crushed by a private company? I heard even the fleet in orbit got crippled…”

Will’s comrade continued to chatter about the news he’d gathered over the past couple of days, while Will’s mind began to churn with the events of the recent past.

After the conflict erupted between Atlas and the Federation, they, the remnants of the Imperial army, had been watching the tigers fight from a safe mountain.

Although the main fighting had occurred at a different Atlas refugee camp, the Atlas forces on their side had also engaged in small-scale skirmishes with the Federation.

Then one day, the Federation forces fell into disarray as if they’d suddenly lost their backbone, and they soon retreated to parts unknown.

Under these circumstances, the Atlas camp began a massive “infrastructure” project.

Hordes of “spider-like” robots, appearing from who-knows-where, expanded the camp day by day at a visible rate, continuously upgrading its scale and level.

It transformed from an initial model of a forward base with prefabricated huts into its current state: a large camp with an outer perimeter of composite armor walls and defensive weapons.

Judging by the takeoffs and landings of aerospace transports, a high-spec field airstrip had most likely been built inside the camp as well.

Just as Will was processing this information and pondering what his ultimate fate would be, the situation at the negotiation site suddenly changed.

Eight white-painted HCPs suddenly arrived in the negotiation area. From the Red Cross and logo on their shoulder pauldrons, it was easy to see they were Atlas Armed Forces units.

Meanwhile, Will’s battalion commander kept looking up at the sky, as if something were about to fall from the clouds.

Then, a highest-level, all-channel broadcast suddenly came over the comms.

After an initial moment of silence, the voice of the Imperial heavy combined arms battalion commander suddenly rang out:

“Attention, all personnel of the 177th Mixed Combined Arms Battalion. Considering the unit’s current supply situation, and in order to avoid further unnecessary sacrifices and non-combat casualties, I have decided to lead the unit in surrender to the Atlas combat forces.”

Everyone, including Will, was stunned. Several of his comrades even gasped in shock. No one could have imagined events would take such a turn.

But the Imperial battalion commander wasn’t finished.

“Rest assured, everyone, this is my decision alone. I alone will bear all future consequences. If any of you doubt this, you may record this message as evidence.”

Will was dumbfounded. He had considered many possibilities. He had considered fighting it out with Atlas’s combat forces, even being wiped out by them like the Federation army.

But he had never imagined that after a few words of negotiation, the commanding officers would just surrender directly.

“John… I don’t know how you’re doing, but it looks like there’s no hope of me getting any military medals now…”

Will muttered to himself in a daze. The young man from the “countryside,” who had once boasted at the military depot about bringing home a sack full of medals, now seemed further from his goal than ever.

But, from a certain perspective, maybe this was a good thing?

—

“Because the number of refugees and surrendered Imperial soldiers has been increasing recently, the scale of our ten refugee camps on Parra IV is expanding rapidly, and daily resource consumption is also rising exponentially.

Although The Infinity has established a space-to-surface transit corridor near Camp Five, which has solved the supply transport problem for this largest camp and freed up transport capacity to support the others, the main problem now is that we may have brought too few supplies with us.

Based on the current rate of consumption, the fleet’s supplies will last for forty more days at most.”

In the main conference room of The Infinity, the decision-making leaders, including Amber, Isabelle, and Cleves, were all gathered. Randall, who was temporarily in charge of coordinating the fleet’s logistics, was reporting on the latest situation.

“The Federation has temporarily halted all supply shipments to this planet. This means that only our own transport fleet is still operating. Even with our transport fleet running around the clock, we can barely maintain operations for our troops and the camps.”

The room fell silent. Clearly, no one had expected that after gaining the upper hand in the conflict with the Federation, logistics would become such a difficult problem to solve.

At this point, Amber spoke up to add, “Actually, it’s not a matter of having enough money right now. Based on the Group’s current income, even factoring in our material consumption and personnel maintenance costs in the Parra system, the Group is still turning a profit. Don’t be surprised, it’s true. Our company is actually quite good at making money…”

Amber pressed down with both hands to quiet the room and continued, “The problem we’re facing now is purely one of transport capacity. And this is just the beginning. As the rate of consumption on this planet outpaces the rate of production plus transportation, this pressure will only grow.”

“Somehow, I feel like the Federation is doing this on purpose, waiting for us to be embarrassed,” Cleves suddenly spoke up.

“You’re right. The Federation is waiting for us to make a fool of ourselves,” Amber said with a snap of her fingers, approving of Cleves’s question.

“Don’t forget, we came here to carry out a humanitarian aid mission. If we can’t even guarantee the supply of resources, what ‘humanitarian aid’ is there to talk about?”

“The Federation is really something else. They haven’t even inquired about the two vice admirals we’re holding, and now they pull something like this. This is far more vexing for us than a direct conflict.”

Isabelle also shook her head and said, her words betraying a hint of anxiety. But she quickly thought of something and looked up at Amber.

“Why don’t we ask Allenita for help?”

Chapter 388: I Was Thinking, Nobody Seems to Want This Planet Anyway?

“Regarding the Atlas Group’s use of Thousand Stars Empire weapons in the conflict, the Federation’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a condemnation to the Thousand Stars Empire some time ago.

Recently, the Elven Royal Court of the Thousand Stars Empire officially responded to the matter, stating that the Atlas Group’s actions were solely their own and had no connection to the Elven Royal Court.

The so-called ‘weapon’ used in the conflict is officially defined by the Thousand Stars Empire as merely a ‘large-scale civilian mining apparatus’ and does not meet the criteria for a large-scale weapon.

The claim that the Elven Royal Court supplied weapons to the Atlas Group is pure nonsense, and they hope the Federation will be more cautious with its words.”

On the screen in a private cabin aboard The Infinity, a news report from a media outlet was playing.

Amber switched through several media sources and found that while their scripts, viewpoints, and biases differed greatly, they all reported the same fact—the Thousand Stars Empire had officially denied providing military support to the Atlas Group, even stating directly that what The Infinity had used in battle was just a “large-scale civilian mining apparatus.”

“So what is the Elven Royal Court actually thinking? Why does it look like they’re covering for Atlas?”

Amber turned his head to the other side, where a hologram of Allenita was projected. Judging from her hair wrapped in a towel and the fact that the projection cut off below her shoulders, it seemed the wealthy elf was currently taking a bath.

To be fair, Amber definitely hadn’t intentionally chosen to disturb Allenita during her bath time.

It was purely on Isabelle’s earlier advice that, after the meeting, he had first asked the wealthy elf if she had time to talk.

After receiving an affirmative reply, he had started a holographic video conference as usual, and Allenita had answered without any hesitation.

The result was this slightly awkward situation. Amber even felt a little too embarrassed to look in her direction.

But after hearing a splash of water, his head involuntarily turned, and his eyes quickly darted to the key areas, just like guiding the eye-tracking aim in a cockpit.

A classic case of staying true to his roots.

Allenita, who was “rich and generous” in more ways than one, shifted her position in the enormous bathtub, sitting up from the water. The movement naturally caused a turbulent surge of waves.

Thanks to the high-performance holographic projection system and the excellent vision of a psionic user, Amber could even see strings of water droplets gliding down the two slimes half-submerged in the water. It was a scene right out of the classics, “warm spring water gliding over smooth, creamy skin.”

“Are you going to keep admiring the view, or do you want to discuss business with me?”

Allenita’s slightly languid voice brought Amber back to his senses. Only then did he realize the elven woman was squinting at him.

“Ahem. Business. Let’s talk business.”

Amber smiled sheepishly. He had always been a man whose eyes were easily clouded by beauty.

“Don’t be so confident in thinking the Royal Court is covering for you. While it’s true they’ve been keeping an eye on Atlas, and that ‘Phoenix King’ has made inquiries about the Yuge family through private channels a few times, it’s merely because he’s interested in Atlas. That’s why they’re paying some attention, that’s all.”

Allenita shot Amber a look, raising her arm as she spoke and letting the water in her palm trickle down slowly.

“The only reason the Elven Royal Court made that official statement is that they don’t want to get involved in this human civil war. Even more, they don’t want to be accused of ‘interfering in human internal affairs’.”

Although he wasn’t surprised by Allenita’s answer, Amber couldn’t help but press, “So the ‘large-scale civilian mining apparatus’ line is fake, then?”

“Not entirely. That ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ was actually a decommissioned product, retired due to some minor flaws. In your human terms, its Psionics ‘output power’ was indeed a tad lacking, so it didn’t meet the Thousand Stars Empire’s ‘military standard’.”

Allenita smiled like a mature vixen, though such a description felt a bit odd for an elf.

“As expected of elves. You really have a way with words.”

“You’re too kind, Mr. Amber.”

The elven woman looked quite pleased upon hearing Amber’s words. Due to cultural differences, what Amber said was taken as a genuine compliment by an elf.

“Then, on to the second matter,” Amber said, not dwelling on it and immediately moving to the next topic.

After all, with such a stunningly-figured elf staying on the line in her “bathroom-exclusive skin,” a red-blooded, vibrant young man like him was finding it a bit hard to handle.

“I may need the help of you and the Yuge family to transport some supplies to Parra IV. Although the conflict with the Federation has temporarily come to an end, order has almost completely broken down on the planet outside of the areas Atlas controls. All sorts of essential goods are in extremely short supply.”

“Has it really gotten that serious? To the point where even you, Mr. Amber, have to take the initiative to ask for my help.”

Allenita frowned. If Amber hadn’t told her, she would never have imagined the supply shortage on Parra IV was so severe.

“Because this planet was only ever a very fringe colony. Besides its population, taxes, and rioters, it has no notable resources. Although the planet has its own production chains for basic necessities, as far as I know, Parra IV normally needs to import a certain amount of goods just to meet its own needs.”

Amber paused, casually pulling up an industrial survey report on Parra IV before continuing:

“And after a series of battles, the planet’s established production chains are in a semi-stagnant state. The few large production bases that exist are controlled by Federal forces that have yet to surrender, Imperial remnants, and an Imperial noble who holds a fief on the planet. Although the territory they control isn’t large, it encompasses some of the most critical areas on this world.”

“So, outside of these areas, a ‘humanitarian crisis’ could occur?” Allenita quickly scanned the report and, combined with Amber’s explanation, got a rough idea of the planet’s problems.

“That’s right. After all, human society is a huge and complex machine. What seems like normal daily life is actually the result of this ‘machine’ running twenty-four hours a day. But if this machine suddenly breaks down and isn’t ‘repaired’ in time, then after an initial period, it will collapse completely.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Allenita fell into thought. Amber didn’t interrupt her, though he was a little worried the wealthy elf might pass out from soaking for too long.

After a while, Allenita finished her thoughts and spoke again:

“If I dispatch another transport fleet from the Yuge family’s headquarters, I can indeed maintain the supply lines for a short time. But this is not a long-term solution.”

“That’s why I wasn’t planning on having you transport only basic supplies,” Amber said with a smile.

“I knew it. You have other plans, don’t you, Mr. Amber?”

Allenita smiled again, just as she always did whenever she discovered one of Amber’s “fantastic ideas.”

“Besides the basic supplies, do you think it’s possible to pack up some ‘production lines’ and send them over? I’m considering becoming self-sufficient in the long run.”

“You’re planning to develop on this planet long-term?”

Allenita’s eyes widened, and she sat straight up in the water, completely oblivious to how the movement exposed her charms.

It took Amber a great deal of effort to keep his gaze from being impolite as he continued:

“This planet’s location is very interesting, and its current situation is even more so. The Empire can’t strike back anytime soon. As for the Federation… I estimate they won’t have time to worry about this place in the near future. They have their hands full with the war on the front lines.”

“But what if one of them frees up their hands in the future?” Allenita asked. The elven woman, who had seen all sorts of storms in her life, had to admit that Amber was the boldest person she had ever met, and the one most adept at testing the limits of danger.

“I’ve already had my showdown. Do you think I’m still going to develop slowly and bide my time like before?”

Amber shrugged, feigning indifference. Then he gave a mysterious smile and, after a moment, added, “Besides, isn’t it possible that in the future, neither of them will be able to free up their hands?”

Chapter 389: The Definition of Death

With a sudden return of consciousness, Banninger’s eyes shot open. Reflected in them was a strange, endless world where water and sky met at the horizon.

A cold sensation spread from his feet. Banninger looked down to see himself standing barefoot in water. The perfectly still surface barely covered his ankles, and as he shifted his feet slightly, a series of ripples slowly spread outward.

It was then that Banninger noticed he was wearing a set of summer training fatigues. The cuffs of his pants and sleeves had been ‘thoughtfully’ rolled up to keep them from getting wet.

At the same time, a flood of memories rushed into Banninger’s mind as if from an opened floodgate—the burning battlefield, a bleeding, severed arm, the lifeless body of Memphis, and the Boss descending from the sky.

These were his last memories before death. Banninger was certain of it, but he couldn’t fathom why he was now in this state.

“What’s going on? I remember… I should be dead, right?”

The old soldier looked around in confusion. As far as the eye could see, there were no buildings or landmarks—only an endless expanse of water stretching to the horizon.

“Could it be… I’ve gone to heaven?”

The thought suddenly popped into Banninger’s head. After all, the scene before him was quite different from the common conception of ‘hell.’

This endless expanse of water, while mysterious, at least gave him a feeling of serenity and peace.

“Damn… I never thought someone like me could make it to heaven. In most people’s eyes, aren’t I just a mass murderer?”

“I’m afraid this isn’t heaven, and you’re not dead~”

A strange woman’s voice sounded from behind him. Banninger spun around in an instant, assuming a defensive stance. At the same time, his right hand reached out with muscle memory toward the non-existent ‘weapon racks’ behind him.

Only when his hand met empty air did the old soldier realize he wasn’t wearing his combat exoskeleton or Powered Armor.

Banninger straightened up and looked at the ‘person’ who had suddenly appeared behind him.

It was a woman, seemingly human, floating in mid-air. She wore an exquisitely ornate purple gown, and her black hair cascaded down to her waist. Her face was so beautiful it seemed inhuman, as if it had been computer-generated.

“Who are you? Why am I here? What did you mean by that just now? I clearly remember dying in battle…”

Banninger fired off a series of questions like a rapid-fire barrage at the woman before him. He was incredibly curious about this ‘person’ who had suddenly appeared and could communicate.

“When it comes to ‘death,’ I have a slightly different definition than you do. From my perspective, you haven’t died. You’ve simply… changed your form of life~”

The woman said with a smile:

“As for me… I’m no stranger. In fact, we’ve interacted every day.”

Hearing this, the confusion in Banninger’s eyes deepened. He was certain he had never met a woman like her.

He spent ninety percent of his time training and fighting with the instructor squad, surrounded by human and Romu men. If a woman like this had been around, it would have been impossible for him not to remember.

This thought remained until the woman before him spoke again.

“Today’s check-in is complete. Thank you for your contribution to the Atlas Group.”

“Your personal performance statistics for this month have been compiled. Please review them at your convenience. If you have any objections, please contact the Group Human Resources Center.”

“Warning, high-energy reading detected. Please find cover immediately!”

A series of familiar voice prompts rang in Banninger’s ears as the woman’s lips parted slightly.

Especially upon hearing the final tactical warning, his whole body trembled as if having a PTSD episode. However, Banninger quickly got himself under control, calming down after taking several deep breaths.

“So? Did that jog your memory? Do you know who I am now?”

“I have a guess. You must be the Group’s management AI…”

Banninger said, somewhat uncertain. After all, in his previous experience, the Atlas Group’s management AI had never been so anthropomorphic.

“Oh well, I suppose a formal introduction is in order.” The woman shook her head and descended from mid-air. As the tips of her toes lightly touched the water’s surface, sending ripples spreading out, she continued:

“Before you stands—the Director of the Atlas Group Data Center, the administrative core persona of the Group, the auxiliary persona for the Group’s combat units, Amber’s eternal beloved, the digital Leviathan, the god who rules the virtual space, and the first strong AI in history—Lilith~”

Upon hearing ‘Amber’s eternal beloved,’ Banninger couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, marveling to himself, ‘As expected of the Boss. Even his range of interests is far beyond what an ordinary person can imagine.’

Banninger composed himself and asked, “So you’re the AI from the Group’s internal legends? The one that hides and watches over everything?”

“Mhm-hm~”

“Then can you explain my current state, and what this place is?”

“From a human perspective, you are indeed dead. But from the perspective of a digital lifeform, you’ve just been born. As for this place?”

Lilith tilted her head back, glanced around, and continued, “This is the virtual space under my control. It’s also the place where digital lifeforms like you will live from now on~”

“You guys?”

Banninger seized on that keyword. According to Lilith, it seemed he wasn’t the only ‘digital lifeform’ she was talking about.

“Your instructor squad, of course.”

Lilith waved her hand, and a virtual screen instantly appeared before Banninger. On it were a dozen or so storage cards plugged into some kind of terminal.

And the old soldier immediately recognized them. They were the storage cards that had been inserted into the micro-processors at the back of their necks.

At the time, they were told the cards were for extracting combat data from the instructor squad, but now it seemed there was more to it than that.

“Of course, a few of your squad members were completely vaporized by the heavy particle cannon, so I couldn’t have the ‘Worker Bees’ retrieve their storage cards. I’m very sorry about that. It was an oversight on my part.”

Lilith lowered her head slightly, a hint of apology on her face.

“Does the Boss know about any of this?”

Banninger suddenly asked, his gaze turning serious and sharp.

“Oh? You’re quite sharp, Captain Banninger~” Lilith showed a rare look of approval.

“Master is naturally aware of the combat data extraction. Those digital cards are in the data lab on The Infinity right now.

However, Master doesn’t know about turning you into ‘digital lifeforms.’ Or rather, this was always an experiment, and only I knew about it.

And you are the very first ‘digital lifeform’ I have awakened.”

“What are you trying to do behind the Boss’s back?”

Banninger asked with a dark expression. He clearly did not approve of Lilith’s actions.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk… you’re so loyal. Master would be moved to tears if he knew~”

Lilith looked the old soldier up and down. She really hadn’t expected this recently deceased veteran to still be so loyal to Amber.

“But don’t you worry. I will never betray Master~ Everything I’m doing now is to help Master. It’s just… in a confidential state for the time being~”

Chapter 390: The Immortals

Banninger was a bit skeptical of Lilith’s explanation. Plus, it seemed he had nothing else to do at the moment, so he simply sat down on the surface of the water and asked:

“If you’re doing this for Atlas, for the Boss, why do it so secretively? You could have just told him. I’m sure the Boss would understand.”

“No, no, no, you still don’t understand Master well enough.”

Hearing Banninger’s words, Lilith shook her head and continued:

“First of all, Master has always been quite resistant to this sort of thing. And just the fact that I’m bringing you veterans who died for the company back to keep working for Atlas… if Master found out, knowing his personality, I’d probably be in for it.”

“…”

Banninger was momentarily at a loss for words regarding the latter half of Lilith’s statement.

Although he didn’t have any strong feelings about his current situation and was adapting rather quickly, the idea of “dying in action only to be brought back by the company to keep on working” was certainly gripe-worthy.

“Since you know the Boss dislikes this, why are you still doing it?”

“Sigh… I’m doing all this for the future of Master and the company. Alright, I might as well tell you the whole story.”

Lilith didn’t hide anything from Banninger. After all, he was now just a digital lifeform under her absolute control.

If she wished, Lilith could even “imprison” Banninger in this virtual space forever.

Her reason for all this was simple: to build an “Immortal Corps” for Atlas, composed of digital lifeforms.

Because according to her calculations, the war between the Federation and the Empire would continue for some time, after which both sides would realize that under the current circumstances, neither possessed the ability to completely destroy the other.

But nations under a “general mobilization order” for an extended period would suffer a massive blow to their civilian economy. This blow would be unbearable for both of these human nations.

Regrettably, however, Lilith had not yet seen any sign that either nation was aware of this. They were currently pouring most of their energy into this war aimed at the complete annihilation of their opponent, utterly oblivious to the fact that they themselves were the biggest victims.

According to Lilith’s judgment, in half a year at most, the ill effects of the general mobilization order—outside of the military sphere—would come to fruition. Both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire would suffer the backlash.

It was even highly likely that both nations would experience “internal strife,” especially the politically unstable Star Dragon Empire, which could be plunged into major chaos.

This also meant that this “war to end all wars” would not only fail in its mission but would also drag both human nations into the abyss.

Therefore, for Atlas, which currently had ties to both major human powers, it would be impossible to stay out of it in the future. It was bound to encounter more and more armed conflicts, and even wars.

Using the word “war” for a private enterprise might seem strange, but for Atlas, with its ever-growing scale—especially its military strength, which had been greatly enhanced after taking control of three unmanned fleets—war was not such a distant concept.

And Lilith also knew that Atlas was, after all, only a private enterprise. Even if it developed into a universal megacorporation according to Amber’s plans, it could never compare to the two human nations in the most crucial aspect: “manpower.”

Although they now had the Romu as a more-or-less stable source of troops, the problem was that this “source of troops” was essentially a form of mercenary work, and it cost money.

Looking at Atlas’s current death benefit regulations for its combat units, the force simply couldn’t afford to take heavy casualties. This wasn’t because the Romu were afraid of dying, but because the corporation genuinely might not be able to afford so many death benefits.

So Lilith had been constantly thinking on Amber’s behalf about how to solve the problem of expendable troops for when large-scale conflicts erupted or when they went to war directly with the Federation or the Empire.

Lilith had found a solution to this problem a while ago: the very “unmanned forces” that Amber had always been so reluctant to build.

Lilith didn’t know why Amber was so resistant to “unmanned forces”; from her perspective, it was almost as if he had “unmanned force PTSD.”

But for Atlas, it was almost the most suitable solution.

With Lilith around, they basically didn’t have to worry about the combat intelligence of the troops. And Atlas’s industrial layout, from the very beginning until now, also gave the corporation the means to mass-produce unmanned units.

“Hive Core,” “Worker Bee,” “Soldier Bee.”

These auxiliary units, which had appeared on the battlefield for the first time, were a “test” that Lilith had finally managed to persuade Amber to conduct.

Judging by the results, the “test” was undoubtedly a great success.

Whether it was their integration into the ground forces’ command network, their coordinated operations, or the functionality and combat capabilities of these unmanned units themselves, their performance was nothing short of perfect.

With a simple upgrade to their basic platform and more powerful weapons, the Hive Core could perfectly serve as an “auxiliary corps” to assist ground troops in combat.

If the unmanned forces built around the Hive Core were the expendable conventional forces, then the digital lifeform project Lilith was conducting behind Amber’s back was intended to create an elite unmanned combat unit for a “high-low mix.”

Imagine it: when Atlas’s combat troops were killed on the battlefield, they wouldn’t truly die. Instead, they would be extracted by Lilith as immortal “digital lifeforms.”

They would not only possess all their memories and combat skills, but they would also continue to grow through battle. At the same time, they could infinitely switch between all sorts of “combat chassis”—digital lifeforms have almost no restrictions on their chassis. It wouldn’t even be a problem to form an entire corps of unmanned HCPs.

An elite combat unit like this, with immense fighting power and a complete lack of fear of death, even if “killed in action” on the battlefield, could immediately return to the fight via airdropped, brand-new “combat chassis.” Moreover, this unit’s numbers would only grow over time; they would never suffer attrition.

“…I’ve preliminarily decided to name this elite combat force the ‘Immortal Corps’. Captain Banninger, do you have any thoughts after hearing all this?”

Lilith, having laid out her grand plan, looked at the silently pondering Banninger with an expectant gaze.

“Compared to you, other capitalists are nothing. You make the Boss look like a great philanthropist.”

“…”

Seeing Lilith’s expression freeze on her face, Banninger inwardly marveled at how realistic the artificial intelligence’s emotional changes were. Then he continued:

“But from a purely combat perspective, the tactical value of such a force is immense. No, if its combat effectiveness is high enough, it could even influence the outcome of an entire ground campaign.”

“So, Captain Banninger, you support my plan?”

“Yes, but only on the condition that the Boss approves this plan.”

“Tsk… that’s so you.”

Chapter 391: Salieh’s Warning

Just as Lilith was trying to secure Banninger’s support for her plan—in hopes that Amber would go easier on her when the time came—Amber, having just concluded his ‘bathroom meeting’ with Allenita, immediately accepted another remote conference request.

“Is something wrong, Ms. Salieh? It should be late at night on your end, right?”

Amber asked, looking at the Jeram who had appeared on the other side of his desk, brought to life by the holographic projection device.

Salieh calling him so suddenly at this hour was clearly not for a casual chat.

“Indeed, there is something important,” Salieh began, a hint of hesitation in her eyes, while the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head twitched anxiously.

“Actually, Mr. Amber, I was going to contact you earlier, but the fighting on your end hadn’t stopped, so I didn’t want to disturb you. Now that I’ve heard things have quieted down for the moment, I couldn’t worry about what time it was.”

Hearing Salieh’s words, Amber grew serious. After placing the Mental Shackle on her, he could feel her anxious emotions.

“What exactly happened?”

“The timeline has changed, Amber.”

“Huh?”

Salieh’s abrupt, out-of-context statement left Amber completely baffled.

“The timeline?”

“I can’t reveal too much to you, or it will create additional variables.”

“Seriously, what’s with all this Riddler stuff?” Amber was utterly bewildered. He never would have thought this ‘old frozen meat’ would contact him in the middle of the night instead of sleeping, just to tell him this.

Seeing Amber’s confused expression, Salieh sighed helplessly. She knew her words were difficult to understand without context, but she truly couldn’t be any clearer.

“I know you can use the ‘Mental Shackle’ ability to force me to speak, but I must warn you, doing so would have dire consequences. All intelligent life in this universe might suffer a great catastrophe because of it.”

Salieh stated the negative consequences as tactfully as she could. Her posture made Amber abandon the thought of using the Mental Shackle to force the information out of her. The Jeram was right; that was exactly what he had been planning to do.

“Is it that serious? But you can’t tell me what it is? Aren’t you just messing with me?”

Amber’s expression became one of exasperation. Though he wasn’t a cat with nine lives’ worth of curiosity, when the sole ‘survivor’ of a civilization that had vanished millions of years ago was being all mysterious with him, it would be a lie to say he wasn’t curious.

“Then is there a way to express it differently?”

“Hmm… Let’s put it this way. To this universe, I am an Observer. Therefore, my actions don’t cause any problems as long as they don’t affect the native inhabitants of this universe.

But you, Amber, are a native of this universe. From my perspective, you are ‘one of the observed.’ So, anything you do, any decision you make, will affect this universe. The same is true for everyone else here. The actions of all of you are what ultimately drives this universe’s timeline forward, through one fork in the road after another…”

Salieh explained what she wanted to say in a way that tried its best not to cross any ‘red lines.’ After listening to her, Amber became thoughtful.

“I think I understand what you mean.”

Amber’s eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers.

“So when you say the timeline has changed, you mean the development of this universe has deviated from your predictions?”

“I don’t know.”

“Before you spoke with me today, did something happen that caused the ‘script’ of this universe to change course?”

“I can’t say.”

“Is this change for the better or for the worse?”

“Not for the better…”

“…You can say that?”

Amber pursed his lips in annoyance. He felt that his conversation with this ‘old frozen meat’ today was a real brain-teaser.

“I’m sorry.”

“?”

Salieh’s sudden apology caught Amber off guard. He had actually already figured out that there were some things Salieh simply couldn’t say, and he could understand that.

After all, having gone through ‘Soul Transmigration,’ Amber had developed a certain reverence for such mysterious things. So he didn’t blame Salieh for playing the Riddler here.

“Then is there a solution? Or do you have any suggestions for my next course of action?”

“I… I don’t know either.” Salieh lowered her head, a helpless expression on her face.

“Aren’t you a Repository Steward? How can you not even say that?”

Amber stared straight at her, his gaze seemingly crossing countless light-years to land directly on Salieh.

“As I recall, aren’t people with ‘Repository’ in their titles supposed to be omniscient, knowing everything from past to present? And they’re supposed to be incredibly powerful in combat, like a Repository Librarian or Chief Librarian, or something.”

“I’m so sorry to say that I’m neither omniscient nor a powerful combatant.”

After that, Amber tried to pry for more information indirectly, but unfortunately, aside from concluding that ‘this isn’t good news, and I’ll probably have to spend some time looking into it,’ he basically learned nothing.

—

After the conflict between Atlas and the Federation on Parra IV came to a lull, the entire star system entered a rare period of peace.

Although the Federation had two Vice Admirals in Atlas’s hands and their troops on the planet had lost command, not to mention the mysterious disappearance of three unmanned fleets.

But the Federation seemed to be planning to deal with the matter quietly.

After issuing a statement expressing regret over the events on Parra IV, they said nothing more through official channels. On major media and social platforms, discussion of the incident suddenly vanished.

Even more bizarrely, aside from spotting a few long-range Federation scout ships on the edge of the Parra system, Atlas detected no other Federation Navy units.

However, Amber had a pretty good guess as to the reason for this situation.

First, the Star Dragon Empire’s fleet certainly wouldn’t be showing up anytime soon, not unless they were willing to break through the frontline maintained by the Federation Navy in one fell swoop and take this planet, which had no special resources, at any cost.

The Federation’s reason for wanting to handle it quietly was also easy to understand. If you, as an adult, were slapped by a child so hard that you lost a few teeth, would you go around trumpeting the fact, telling everyone you met, “A kid slapped me and knocked out two of my teeth”?

The reason the Federation Navy didn’t dare to act rashly was even simpler: those three missing unmanned fleets.

Although the Federation Central Intelligence Agency currently had no evidence directly linking the disappearance of the unmanned fleets to Atlas, if they considered the worst-case scenario, it meant that Atlas now had an extra three unmanned fleets in this star system…

Having had to urgently recall and mothball its other unmanned fleets, the Federation Navy, whose frontline forces were now stretched thin, was busy dealing with a major counter-offensive from the Star Dragon Empire. Naturally, they couldn’t spare the forces to ‘reclaim lost territory.’

Therefore, a rare opportunity had presented itself for Atlas to drive a ‘second nail’ between the Empire and the Federation.

As for the ‘first nail’ they had previously driven—the Loubion star system—recent developments were also proceeding according to Amber’s expectations. The day when the entire star system would be ‘plucked like a ripe fruit’ by Atlas was drawing ever closer.

Chapter 392: Where Did We Get All This Money?

After establishing the fundamental strategy of using the Loubion and Parra star systems as “wedges” to be driven in right under the noses of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, Amber began to consider specific countermeasures and a direction for development.

The process felt like playing an incredibly realistic strategy game. In fact, Amber and Atlas’s current situation was remarkably similar to one he had encountered in an SLG in his previous life.

He had also been an interstellar universal megacorporation, surrounded by powerful enemies. But in the end, Amber had broken the stalemate, using a massive fleet as his foundation to pry open the gates of all the surrounding powers—“Open up, for free trade!”

To be honest, when he first founded Atlas, Amber had precisely this in mind: to achieve ultimate victory through a combination of trade and military might. However, compared to a game, reality was often far more complex and uncertain.

Amber had always felt that “luck” had played a significant role in his ability to establish Atlas and guide it, stumbling and fumbling, to where it was today.

Otherwise, how could a guy who was “just a gamer” in his previous life have come this far?

That being said, Amber found that his experience with strategy games from his previous life wasn’t entirely useless. At the very least, he could draw upon his high-level strategic experience.

As a rather unique type of power, a universal megacorporation was quite different from a typical nation. At its core, it was still a company, just one that had grown to a scale almost unimaginable to the ordinary person.

Therefore, for a megacorporation, before it could fully mature and achieve a perfect state of self-sufficiency, the bulk of its revenue still came from trade with other powers—that is, earning profits through commercial activities.

This was one of the reasons why Amber didn’t want to immediately start an open war with the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.

Similarly, after the Federation decided to deal with the Parra IV incident quietly, Atlas didn’t continue fanning the flames to embarrass them. Instead, with a tacit understanding, they also opted for a quiet approach.

After all, despite their conflicts, there was still business to be done.

This was especially true since the Federation government had already paid a huge sum for quantum entanglement communication services. They were even more reluctant to have a complete fallout with Atlas. Otherwise, wouldn’t that painful budget addition for the current fiscal year have been a total waste?

As for the two “detained” Vice Admirals, their fleets, and the ground troops trapped on the planet who had completely lost command, based on the current communications between the Federation government and Atlas’s Public Relations Department, the Federation only intended to take back the two generals, their senior officers, and the remaining capital ships.

As for the remaining ground troops, although it wasn’t explicitly stated, Amber guessed the Federation most likely intended to let them fend for themselves. For the Federation, it was just a matter of classifying those thirty to forty brigades as “missing.”

Otherwise, they would have to figure out how to extract and transport all those people back, not to mention the various subsequent problems that would cause headaches. By simply classifying them as missing, not only could they significantly reduce payments for disability and death benefits, but they could also leave those troops on the planet to cause trouble for Atlas or the Empire.

In any case, apart from a few standing brigades that served as the main offensive force, the rest were newly formed units, composed of fresh recruits conscripted under the general mobilization order. For the vast and powerful Federation, such a loss was insignificant.

This approach fit perfectly with Amber’s stereotype of the Federation. Or rather, both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire were much the same in this regard.

Fleets were important, and capital ships were even more precious.

Ground troops were unimportant, and infantry were “expendables” on the same level as alloy penetrator rods.

Politicians and nobles would send hundreds of thousands of young people to the front without a second thought, all to maintain the so-called frontline.

For these two major human powers, the one thing they had in abundance was people. As for weapons and vehicles, given the production capacity they had unleashed, they were truly on par with the rifles of old—just mass-produce them, and that was that.

As long as the flames of war didn’t reach their own core star systems, the daily worries of these people during the war wouldn’t be the battle situation, but rather their profits and dividend payouts.

Although it was incredibly callous, for Amber and Atlas, having a foolish opponent was always better than having a shrewd one.

And since the Federation intended to handle things quietly, Amber didn’t mind using this time to continue “developing.” After all, a famous quote from a certain former professional esports player was also his favorite.

“Master my macro, and the rest is just an A-move.”

With this in mind, Amber decided to check the company’s current available assets and assess whether to increase the number of shipyards and weapon production lines. This was a recent project proposed by their two subsidiaries, Atlas Shipbuilding and Atlas Equipment Manufacturing.

Thanks to the recent “excellent performance” of Atlas’s combat units and fleet, their externally sold weapons and ships were benefiting from a significant advertising effect.

The sales and planning departments of these two subsidiaries seized the opportunity and produced a series of commercials.

The most viewed commercial, and the scene that left the deepest impression on audiences, featured a Romu soldier in a “battle-hardened” white combat exoskeleton, saying during an interview:

“I managed to survive on the brutal battlefield and earn a Medal of Courage, all thanks to this Raging Crocodile A2!”

Originally, the bulk of the orders for Atlas Equipment Manufacturing and Atlas Shipbuilding came from the Loubion star system government, to help them rebuild their garrison forces and fleet—the first batch of orders included full equipment for twenty-five combined arms brigades and various ships for a garrison fleet.

Honestly, that order alone had already maxed out Atlas’s current production capacity, and the profits it generated were quite substantial.

But after the conflict on Parra IV ended and the Federation unexpectedly suffered a quiet defeat, the sales hotlines for Atlas Equipment Manufacturing and Atlas Shipbuilding exploded.

Of the customers placing orders, sixty percent were autonomous governments of various star systems within the Federation, twenty-five percent were nobles from the Star Dragon Empire, and the remaining fifteen percent were private military companies and civilian armed forces.

Although customer service representatives from both companies informed them that the current volume of orders was overwhelming and the production queue might be long, these clients didn’t care in the slightest. Their many inquiries could all be boiled down to a single phrase:

“SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!”

This surge in orders was one reason to expand production lines. Another was that Atlas’s own combat forces also needed to be expanded, so the production of various weapons, equipment, and combat vehicles had to be prioritized.

Furthermore, the Equipment R&D Center had been quietly developing some new toys, such as a new hover main battle tank utilizing Forerunner Gravity Control Technology, and a self-propelled electromagnetic cannon mounted on a five-axle special vehicle.

As the old saying goes, “With a gun in hand, there’s no need to panic.” If he wanted to ensure the two major powers wouldn’t make a move against Atlas lightly, “military strength” was also a crucial factor.

And when Amber entered the corporate management interface and saw the balance of available funds in the company account, for a moment he thought he had miscounted the digits.

“Are my eyes playing tricks on me, or is there a system glitch? Where did we get all this money?”

Chapter 393: The Frontline Doesn’t Lie

“Boss, it’s true. The corporate accounts have that much money.”

After Amber casually asked about the corporate accounts in the Atlas management group chat, Sabans, Atlas’s current CFO who hailed from ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison, immediately sent him a private message.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

“Boss, it’s noon for me.”

Not long after Sabans sent the message, just as he was wondering if his reply had been too casual, a meeting invitation popped up on his personal terminal.

The meeting time was effective immediately, and the organizer field clearly displayed: Amber (Chairman of the Board).

“Shit! Shit! Shit!!!”

Sabans practically leaped off the sofa. It was a day off for Atlas, so he had been relaxing in his personal residence in the Tower of Babel, unshaven and dressed only in loungewear.

He immediately dashed to his study, grabbing his formal wear from a clothes rack along the way. By the time he sat down at his desk, he had already put on the upper part of his outfit and even managed a quick shave.

“Boss, my apologies. I had my personal terminal on silent just now.”

When Amber saw his meeting invitation was accepted and Sabans’ holographic projection appeared, he was greeted by the sight of the same impeccably styled financial elite. Of course, if the holographic projection had extended just a little further down, that image would have shattered in an instant.

“No, no, it’s my fault for disturbing you. I forgot it was a designated day off.”

Amber scratched his head, a little embarrassed. In his previous life, he had loathed bosses who sent messages and voice memos on weekends to assign tasks. He never thought he’d end up becoming one of them.

Sabans, however, naturally didn’t mind. After all, before he went to prison, he was long accustomed to being summoned by the big boss at any time, or summoning his own subordinates at a moment’s notice.

So, hearing Amber say something like this actually left him feeling rather flattered.

“It’s no problem, Boss. I was just idle at home anyway. Were you wanting to ask about the corporate accounts?”

“Yes, yes, that’s exactly it.”

Amber nodded and continued:

“I remember the group’s recent expenditures being quite substantial, right? Putting aside various operational costs, just the supply transports to Parra IV, combat expenditures, medical costs, and death benefits alone are astronomical. And that’s not even counting the recent construction of capital ships and putting military equipment into production. So how is it that the funds in our corporate account have actually gained a digit?”

Hearing Amber’s question, Sabans secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It wasn’t because he had a guilty conscience, of course—under Lilith’s surveillance, Atlas’s senior management had absolutely no opportunity for corruption or embezzlement.

The reason for his relief was that he had initially thought Amber had discovered some problem that even he, the Chief Financial Officer, had overlooked, and was calling to take him to task. Thankfully, that didn’t seem to be the case.

“Boss, it’s probably because you’ve been on Parra IV personally overseeing military operations that you haven’t been following the group’s performance. The truth is, our revenue has been far exceeding our costs for a long time now. The profit margins are terrifyingly high.”

As Atlas’s Chief Financial Officer, Sabans knew the group’s finances like the back of his hand. With his explanation, Amber quickly understood why the corporate accounts had gained a digit in his absence.

Atlas’s current income primarily comes from four sources.

First, the simple and unglamorous work of mining and refining.

Supported by Forerunner black tech, our extremely high extraction efficiency and high-quality refining processes have propelled Atlas Mining into the top five of the entire mining sector.

Even the Federation’s leading company in the mining sector, Deep Space Mining, has been feeling the pressure lately and has begun to clash with Atlas in the market.

Second is the booming business of equipment manufacturing and shipbuilding. This one needs no further explanation, as it was the reason Amber had thought to check the accounts in the first place.

Third are the service fees from the rapidly growing Atlas Communications business.

Spurred on by our official contracts with the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, more and more private clients have started purchasing Atlas’s communication plans. The service fees were already steep, and as our customer base expanded, sales revenue skyrocketed.

And that’s not even counting the paid livestream revenue from The Eye of Truth during this period…

Fourth, and finally, is the output from our workhorse, the Financial Operations Department, which toils day and night in the financial markets.

Of course, with the proliferation of quantum entanglement communication technology, the Financial Operations Department’s advantage in information acquisition has been steadily shrinking.

According to the department head, once everyone is back on the same starting line in terms of access to information, they will have to engage in a real, head-on competition.

After listening to Sabans’ explanation, Amber finally had a clear picture of the group’s current business situation and understood just how much wealth his people had generated in this time.

The current situation was like playing a classic RTS game in his previous life. After a frantic battle on the frontline, full of complex maneuvers, he would look back at his base to find a massive surplus of resources—so much that he even had ‘buyback’ money stockpiled.

“Hot damn… wouldn’t it feel amazing to just spam units without restraint?”

“Huh?”

—

While Amber was reveling in the joy of being flush with cash and approving applications from Atlas Equipment Manufacturing and the shipyards to expand their production lines for a proper ‘military buildup,’ Federation President Brandon’s mood was far less cheerful.

He was currently listening to a report on the recent combat situation from Minister of Defense Miller and Marshal Trafalgar.

The latter was participating in the remote, real-time conference from his flagship on the frontline, thanks to Atlas’s ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology Service.’

“According to the intelligence community, the Star Dragon Empire’s large-scale counteroffensive won’t last long. Furthermore, there are signs that their internal factional conflicts are on the rise. As long as we can hold out, the Star Dragon Empire is bound to break before we do.”

Brandon spoke with a grim expression. The information he’d received from the intelligence community suggested the war was turning in their favor, yet Miller and Trafalgar were delivering the exact opposite message.

“But the frontline doesn’t lie, Your Excellency,” Marshal Trafalgar said, shaking his head, clearly disagreeing with the ‘optimistic’ conclusion drawn by the intelligence community. “Under the Empire’s counterattack, and without the support of our unmanned fleets, we are struggling to establish numerical superiority in local engagements. The frontline has been undeniably and consistently retreating.”

“If those desk-jockey intelligence operatives would just come to the frontline for once, they’d understand the immense pressure our fleets and ground forces are under.”

“So, what are you trying to say?”

“We need to increase our commitment to this war! We must launch a decisive campaign and secure victory.”

Drank too much last night, sorry

Drank too much last night, sorry.

A friend came over for dinner yesterday, and I had originally planned on writing in the evening.

In the end, I cooked a meal, had a lot to drink, and passed right out. My sincerest apologies!

Chapter 394: Miller’s Concerns

“You mean a strategic decisive battle?” Brandon quickly realized what Trafalgar was trying to say.

“Yes, a strategic decisive battle that will, at the very least, give us the upper hand in the future.”

Marshal Trafalgar nodded, his expression grave.

President Brandon fell silent. As Miller and Trafalgar had expected, the expression on his face grew increasingly grim.

After a moment, he spoke, his face dark.

“Another decisive battle? From the start of this war until now, how many so-called ‘strategic decisive battle’ plans have you given me?”

Brandon’s gaze swept over Miller and Trafalgar. He was growing increasingly displeased with these two men who currently held the most sway in military affairs.

“Gambling the nation’s fate every time, pinning our hopes for victory on one or two key battles. Is the gap in military strength between us and the Star Dragon Empire really that vast?!”

“If we could be considered evenly matched before, then with the unmanned fleet currently out of commission, we are indeed at a disadvantage, at least in terms of naval power.”

Trafalgar said calmly. For once, the old, habitually hot-tempered Marshal did not argue back when facing Brandon’s questioning.

“So you want to keep gambling the nation’s fate?” Brandon’s tone was now laced with a hint of sarcasm. Though not a military professional, he knew that “gambling the nation’s fate” was by no means a sound strategy in war.

“Your Excellency, if there were any better way, we wouldn’t want to do this. But the truth is, this war has started to spiral out of control. Neither we nor the Empire can accurately predict its course anymore.”

Miller sighed, a trace of helplessness in his eyes. His thoughts reflected the views of most in the military after experiencing the war from its beginning until now.

From the initial high hopes and ambition, to the confusion in the middle, and now to a gradual loss of patience…

When the general mobilization order was first issued, everyone believed the Federation, with its unprecedentedly amassed forces, would strike like lightning and push all the way to the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, Saint-Saulnier.

But when they learned that the Empire had issued its own general mobilization order at almost the exact same time as Brandon signed his, a portion of the officers began to feel that things might not be so simple.

By the time the main army pushed into Star Dragon Empire territory and clashed with the well-prepared Imperial fleet, which held the advantage of fighting on home ground, any hope for a swift victory was shattered in the crossfire.

It was at this point that both sides finally realized the situation in this war was unprecedented, with no historical precedent to draw upon.

Although the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had also fought a war eighty years ago, the weaponry, equipment, and technology of that era were completely different from today’s, and the national strength of both sides was also at the level of eighty years prior.

It was like two students who hadn’t studied being suddenly pulled in for an exam. After finishing the multiple-choice questions, they discovered that the fill-in-the-blanks, application, and long-form questions were all things they had never learned. Although the two students could recognize every word in the questions, they couldn’t understand what the questions were asking when those words were put together.

Brandon listened quietly until Miller finished speaking. He had moved past his initial annoyance with the two men and was now pondering Miller’s words.

After a long pause, he said, “My intuition tells me you have some concerns, which is why you’re so anxious to fight a decisive battle.”

“You’re very perceptive, Your Excellency.”

Miller breathed a silent sigh of relief. He had thought Brandon would refuse to listen, but it seemed the president, despite his close ties to the military-industrial complex, was not entirely impervious to reason.

“Our concerns stem mainly from two sources.”

Miller took out a prepared report and handed it to Brandon.

“First, some of the more remote star systems are already showing signs of unrest, especially those controlled by the opposition party. This situation is particularly prominent there. After we lifted the restrictions on armament for the autonomous governments of each star system, many of them initiated military buildups that exceeded standard specifications. Although they claimed it was to strengthen their system’s defenses against a potential Imperial attack, they’ve been hesitant to dispatch large numbers of troops after our main force advanced into Imperial territory. It’s clearly a move to preserve their own strength. If the Federation government can no longer suppress these star systems harboring ill intentions, I probably don’t need to elaborate on what will happen next.”

“Dammit, I was against lifting that restriction from the start! Look at us now, reaping what we sowed!”

Marshal Trafalgar suddenly interjected, his tone reverting to its usual fiery style.

“You make it sound as if I acted unilaterally and pushed that bill through myself,” Brandon retorted irritably, though he also felt a sense of helplessness.

“Marshal Trafalgar, I know it’s thanks to your masterful strategizing on the front lines that this war hasshifted from the worst-case scenario at the beginning to our current advance into Imperial territory. But you clearly know very little about the situation back here. You have no idea how many different forces and organizations were fanning the flames behind the passage of that bill, or how many vested interests were involved.”

Brandon shook his head, clearly not wanting to dwell on the issue, and turned his gaze to Miller.

“So, what is the second concern?”

“Atlas.”

As soon as Miller spoke the name, all three men fell silent. After all, that name had recently brought them a rather large “surprise,” one that had directly caused the Federation to become extremely passive on the front lines.

“I’m sure you both have some idea of how fast this corporation is growing. It’s terrifying, to say the least. And their intricate connections with those long-eared folk from the Thousand Stars Empire make them extremely difficult to handle.”

Miller paused, seeing both Brandon and Trafalgar nod in agreement almost simultaneously.

After a moment, Brandon continued where Miller had left off. “So you think that if we let this corporation continue to grow, it will become a threat to the Federation? Isn’t that overestimating them? No matter how fast they grow, they’re still just a corporation.”

“What if this corporation has a complete equipment manufacturing system, its own fleet, and even possesses capital ships and massive warships that surpass the capital ship class? And please note, I’m not talking about those fellows in the military-industrial complex who only dare to secretly build one or two capital ships. I’m talking about a fleet that they dare to display openly, one that has engaged the Federation in battle. At the same time, they have the backing of the Thousand Stars Empire’s Elven Royal Court and a relatively stable source of troops. And most importantly, they have mastered a new communication technology that is a generational leap over all other methods, giving them a true monopoly.”

With every sentence Miller spoke, Brandon’s expression grew a shade darker. By the time Miller finished, the President was leaning back in his chair, a worried look etched on his face.

“Tell me,” he said. “I trust you already have a plan. And it’s not just another plan to ‘gamble the nation’s fate,’ is it?”

Chapter 395: Isn’t It Time for the Military-Industrial Complex to Play Its Part?

“Yes. Simply winning the strategic decisive battle won’t solve all our problems.”

Miller nodded and stared intently into Brandon’s eyes. “Especially the internal ones.”

“I’m listening,” Brandon said. He seemed to realize something and no longer avoided Miller’s gaze, instead meeting it head-on.

“These matters shouldn’t have been for me to raise, as they fall under internal affairs. But after this series of events, and based on the information I have, I have reason to believe these ‘internal affairs’ have escalated to the point of threatening our ‘national security’.”

“Do you genuinely believe these matters involve ‘national security,’ or is this just an excuse for you in the military to meddle in ‘internal affairs’?”

Brandon’s words were laced with undisguised suspicion toward military leaders like Miller and Trafalgar, yet neither of them reacted.

Perhaps Miller had mentally prepared Marshal Trafalgar beforehand, or maybe after more than a year on the front lines, his fiery temper had cooled. In any case, not even Marshal Trafalgar flew into a rage as he usually would.

“Hahahaha, you must be joking, Your Excellency,” Miller said with a smile and a shake of his head.

“To be frank, if it hadn’t truly escalated to the level of ‘national security,’ the military would have no interest in the Federation government’s internal bullshit, let alone any desire to get involved.

But whether it’s the restless stirrings of the various star system autonomous governments or the rapid rise of Atlas, they have both crossed the line into ‘national security’ territory.

The former, in a worst-case scenario, could lead to the fragmentation of the star systems, ultimately plunging the Federation into civil war. The latter already has us by the throat in key areas and continues to use this technology to infiltrate the Federation.

Although we don’t yet know Atlas’s true objective, there’s no doubt that it poses a threat to the Federation.”

“That’s right,” Trafalgar added, picking up where Minister of Defense Miller left off.

“The military is already expending nearly all its energy just focusing on the war at the front. We’re raising these issues now only because we hope you and the Federation government will pay attention to these two hidden dangers. We don’t want our own backyard to suddenly catch fire while we’re fighting tooth and nail out there.”

“Alright. So, what do you want to do? Or rather, what do you want me to do?” Brandon asked, his mind racing to evaluate the likelihood of the “hidden dangers” Miller had described coming to pass.

“Accelerate the conversion of the unmanned fleet into a ‘semi-automated’ fleet, and at the same time, free up more manpower and resources from the initial construction of mobile fortresses Three and Four. The construction of the mobile fortresses takes too long. If we wait for them to be completed before initiating the decisive battle, it will be too late.

The freed-up manpower, resources, and production capacity should be invested in training crews for the conventional fleet and in the production of Proton Annihilation Bombs. We hope to have at least five more Proton Annihilation Bombs before the strategic decisive battle begins.”

“Five?” Brandon laughed in disbelief. “We only managed to stockpile less than twenty before the war started, and now you want to produce five in a short period of time.”

“Before the war was before the war. This is now. How can military production capacity under total mobilization be compared to peacetime? We’ve already consulted relevant personnel. As long as we invest more manpower and resources in this area, that number is entirely achievable.”

Miller responded to Brandon’s rebuttal with complete confidence. He had always been the type to consider all possibilities and prepare for every question before any non-impromptu meeting.

“…Anything else?”

“The rest concerns the Federation’s internal problems. These are all matters for the Federation government to worry about. You and the various government departments need to start reining in the star system autonomous governments. It’s also time to apply some more pressure when necessary. Oh, right…”

Miller’s eyes suddenly lit up as if he had just remembered something.

“I recall that the Atlas Group has close ties with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, correct? You can start with that star system, suppress the momentum of its separatist forces, and sever their ties with the Atlas Group. You’d be pulling out this ‘thorn’ and achieving the effect of ‘killing two birds with one stone’.”

“And the specific method?”

“That’s not something for you or me to worry about. From a certain perspective, with the rapid rise of Atlas, those military-industrial complexes you’re on good terms with should be feeling a sense of crisis by now, shouldn’t they?

They’ve been sucking the Federation dry for so long. Now that they’re facing a common enemy, isn’t it time for them to play their part?”

While Brandon and the two military leaders were discussing how to leverage the power of the military-industrial complex to cause some ‘small trouble’ for Atlas in the Loubion star system and, at the same time, rap the knuckles of this increasingly unruly autonomous government…

Atlas’s main combat force had begun the ‘cleanup and sweeping’ work on the still ‘hot’ planet of Parra IV.

The Infinity was now anchored in low orbit above Parra IV and had deployed its “Deployable Space-to-Surface Transit Module,” a structure that appeared to many as a ‘miracle.’

The ‘Deployable Space-to-Surface Transit Module’ was, in essence, a gravity control corridor with a cross-section of three square kilometers, powered by a multitude of carbon nanotubes and microwaves extending down from the ship’s hull.

Ten gravity control rings, manufactured using Forerunner technology, detached from beneath the ship and arranged themselves at set intervals along the entire length of the space-to-surface transit corridor.

Inside this corridor, gravity did not match the outside world; instead, it was determined by the operational mode of the gravity control rings.

In Deployment Mode, the gravity inside the transit corridor was far lower than outside, and it would precisely decelerate the materials being sent down.

At the ‘base area’ on the ground, a large number of Worker Bees were responsible for transporting and sorting the materials, moving the delivered goods to the ‘Material Sorting Area’ outside the corridor.

In Recovery Mode, the gravity within the transit corridor would be completely reversed. Materials entering the recovery corridor would ‘fall’ upwards toward The Infinity under the effect of anti-gravity, where they would then be guided and collected by ‘Worker Bees (space operations type)’ in the final section of the corridor near the ship.

Watching the space-to-surface transit corridor successfully operate, Amber had to admit that the awe of seeing this thing in reality was far beyond anything the game could compare to.

This corridor, with a transport efficiency far exceeding that of an orbital elevator, deployed vast quantities of supplies and personnel to the surface at an astonishing speed. Even The Infinity itself, after unfolding its modules, had become a temporary spaceport.

Of course, according to Salieh, the ‘space-to-surface transit corridor’ that The Infinity had currently deployed was actually the least efficient type in Forerunner technology.

After all, the Deployment and Recovery Modes could only be activated one at a time. Therefore, the current operating method was to switch modes once a day. If there were no personnel or materials to be recovered for the time being, it would remain in ‘Deployment Mode’ for an extended period.

However, Amber felt no disappointment about this. As long as it worked.

To be honest, the fact that the Equipment R&D Center had managed to reproduce gravity control technology in such a short time had already far exceeded his expectations. In his opinion, this speed of technological replication was no different from having a ‘special advantage.’

During this time, thanks to the high-efficiency transport capability of this corridor, Atlas had already deployed a large number of ground troops and many experimental weapons. The objective was to clear out the various armed forces entrenched on the surface and simultaneously conduct live-fire tests of these new weapons.

Amber had also returned to the surface. He was now watching a five-axle special vehicle next to him slowly raise a massive electromagnetic cannon, its bore diameter enormous.

Chapter 396: Amber’s Battering Ram

“So, how many rounds of this thing have you fired at the testing grounds?”

“At ranges up to 120 kilometers, we’ve fired about seven hundred rounds. We haven’t tested any farther than that; the site the Yuge family provided was only large enough for tests at that distance.”

Orns, who had arrived at the front lines with this batch of experimental equipment, answered Amber’s question. As the Deputy Director of the Equipment R&D Center, the E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon was one of the products he had personally overseen.

300mm rail bore, fortification busting, ultra-long range, ultra-high initial velocity, sustained fire projection, low-cost ammunition.

These were the keywords for this truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon, codenamed “Amber’s Battering Ram” within the Equipment R&D Center.

“120 kilometers, huh? So you mean you’ve never done a live-fire test at this 180-kilometer attack range?”

Amber asked curiously as he walked toward the front of the five-axle special vehicle carrying the massive cannon. When he rounded the enormous cab that had been blocking his view, he saw twenty-four of these truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons, along with an equal number of ammunition resupply vehicles, spread out across the relatively open area.

According to the current preliminary table of organization, this was roughly the size of a future self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion under an Atlas ground forces artillery brigade.

As for the other vehicles belonging to the battalion—the command, reconnaissance, medical, and support vehicles—they were currently waiting at a concealed position about three kilometers away.

“We’ve run simulations in the data center’s virtual space. All the data has basically achieved 99% fidelity, and the results were quite good. We estimate that the results of this live-fire test won’t be too far off.”

Orns said with a smile, keeping pace with Amber.

As the Deputy Director of the Equipment R&D Center, he didn’t have to come to the front lines. He had volunteered for this assignment to personally command the new equipment’s combat trials.

Mentally, he felt like a father sending his child off to take an exam.

Looking at the truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons spread out across the open ground, a proud smile appeared on his face beneath his tactical faceplate.

“Boss, 180 kilometers isn’t its maximum range. That’s just how far the shell can travel without any extra propulsion. If we reduce the warhead’s payload and use the freed-up weight to install range-extension methods like a rocket motor and glide kit, the lab’s simulated maximum range is 450 kilometers.”

“How far?”

Amber stopped and turned to look at Orns, a hint of astonishment in his voice.

“450 kilometers, Boss. The warhead’s payload would be significantly reduced, though, to about the equivalent of 200 kilograms of TNT. That’s because we designed it to leave the atmosphere for a portion of its ballistic trajectory.”

“Hold on, are you guys building a cannon or a missile?” Amber was genuinely shocked now.

“Hahaha, we didn’t expect to get these numbers at first either. But after we incorporated the Forerunners’ energy management technology, we found that the upper limit of the output voltage increased, so we just decided to max out the range.”

As he said this, Orns couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at his boss’s incredible connections, managing to get his hands on even Forerunner technology.

Listening to Orns and looking at the “cannon trucks” beside him, Amber couldn’t help but shake his head in amazement. This was the first time he had heard the true maximum specifications of this weapon.

He had originally thought this self-propelled electromagnetic cannon would have a range of 200 kilometers at most, allowing it to be used flexibly in coordination with self-propelled rocket artillery—the future plan for Atlas’s artillery combined arms brigades was three self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalions plus two self-propelled rocket artillery battalions, along with other support units.

But he never imagined that Orns and his team had managed to wring a maximum range of 450 kilometers out of a self-propelled electromagnetic cannon.

Then, he suddenly realized what Orns had just said about the warhead’s power after the range extension.

“Wait. The warhead still has the power of 200 kilograms of TNT after the range extension?”

“That’s right, Boss.” The smile on Orns’s face grew even more proud.

“Then what about without the extension? Like the ammunition we’re about to fire?”

“Without the extension, a standard high-explosive shell has the equivalent of nearly 300 kilograms of TNT. A semi-armor-piercing or heavy bunker-buster shell would be reduced to under 220 kilograms of TNT.”

“Rate of fire?”

“Normally, one round every 12.5 seconds. In an emergency, it can be compressed to one round every 10 seconds.”

“How much does this thing weigh?”

“The five-axle special vehicle is 25 tons. With the cannon, it’s 58 tons.”

“Damn, your weight control is outrageous.”

“Hahaha, we were considering its mobility, so we did everything we could to reduce its weight~”

“…”

Listening to Orns and looking at the heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon that the Equipment R&D Center had cooked up, Amber suddenly felt that the creativity of the people working under him was truly remarkable.

The original purpose was simply to practice using the Forerunners’ energy control technology and to accumulate technical knowledge for the future conversion of all self-propelled artillery to electromagnetic cannons.

After all, the performance of electrothermal-chemical cannons had been pushed to its limits. Once the crucial power supply problem was solved for electromagnetic cannons, their remaining advantages could almost perfectly replace the old electrothermal-chemical cannons.

Who would have thought that Orns and his team would directly create a long-range strike unit that appeared to have such high tactical value?

Currently, the long-range fire support units equipped by the Atlas ground forces, aside from 155mm self-propelled artillery, were second-hand self-propelled rocket artillery captured from the Federation and the Empire.

Using the largest 720mm caliber guided rockets, the maximum range was a mere 700 kilometers. To be honest, this weapon was practically a small tactical missile, and a standard launch canister could only fit two rounds—the Empire’s version was slightly better, fitting three.

While its power was indeed immense, it no longer fit the unique short-term fire saturation capability of rocket artillery. Moreover, for battlefield environments like urban sieges where large numbers of civilians might be present, such large-caliber rockets were clearly unsuitable.

Of course, the main problem was that they weren’t for sale. The small amount of ammunition Atlas currently possessed was all captured from the battlefield. At the same time, 720mm rockets had little use in peacetime, and even the Federation and Empire’s ground forces rarely equipped them, so they were essentially firing a finite resource—the excessively large shells were also easily intercepted by directed-energy anti-air weapons.

Even with the more common 300mm and 280mm rockets, although the quantity was greater and the cost lower, firing a salvo was still like burning through a mountain of cash.

At first, Amber had thought, this is the space age, surely rockets can’t be that expensive?

But harsh reality told him: “Sorry, this stuff is still expensive.”

Even for the most common plasma rocket, the plasma warhead, high-performance rocket motor, high-precision integrated guidance unit, and lightweight materials, when added together, meant the word “cheap” had nothing to do with it.

Furthermore, industrial production in the real world wasn’t like a strategy game where you could just click a tech upgrade and start using it immediately. There were many other aspects to consider.

Especially if Atlas wanted to achieve complete self-sufficiency in weapons, ammunition, and other supplies in the future, it would need its own set of industrial standards, which could only be acquired through long-term practical experience.

According to expert calculations, even if Atlas could produce its own ammunition in the future, the cost wouldn’t be much lower unless the production volume was enormous.

After all, producing rockets required a whole set of production lines, and the lines for different calibers and models were not the same. Even if a universal production line could be created, it could only produce one type of caliber and model at any given time.

At the same time, the rate at which rockets were consumed in battle was far greater than their production rate. A production line could work hard for half a day, and the output might only be enough for a few self-propelled rocket artillery battalions to fire a single basic load.

All things considered, although Atlas was now a vast and powerful enterprise with a growing reputation, it still couldn’t compare to behemoths like the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire in terms of hard power.

Against this backdrop, even with Atlas’s abundant funds, they weren’t wealthy enough to use rockets like water.

Besides, situations requiring large-scale fire saturation weren’t that common. More often, the task was to strike the enemy’s key targets, junctions, and other critical positions.

Therefore, a long-range support weapon that could serve as a substitute for self-propelled rocket artillery became an urgent requirement for the ground forces.

Ultimately, the E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon was born.

In the vision of Amber and the Equipment R&D Center, the fire support battalions of future heavy combined arms brigades would only be equipped with 155mm self-propelled artillery or self-propelled electromagnetic cannons, primarily responsible for fire support within the brigade’s operational area.

The artillery combined arms brigades under the Army Group, on the other hand, would centralize the truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons and self-propelled rocket artillery, responsible for long-range fire support across the entire attack front of the Army Group.

This was also a compromise born from having insufficient forces—using a limited number of elite troops to control as much area as possible and create a degree of tactical depth.

Just like now, Amber and his self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion were waiting in a prepared position 175 kilometers in a straight line from the attack target. Meanwhile, after handing over the management of the refugee camp to the Hive Core and newly formed units, the two reorganized combined arms brigades had already snuck to an offensive position 160 kilometers away.

What? You ask about orbital strike support?

Atlas had indeed fully mastered this technology now, but neither Amber nor Cleves could guarantee that their fleet would be able to secure space superiority in future battles and provide orbital strike support at their leisure.

What if they got tied up in a stalemate with an enemy fleet and had no opportunity to provide support?

Therefore, the ground forces had to first adapt to fighting without orbital strike support and not develop the bad habit of calling for an orbital strike whenever they ran into trouble—having a warship lower its altitude to execute an orbital strike also had costs and various risks.

The target of the Atlas ground forces’ attack this time was a large-scale automated food processing factory, or rather, a large-scale automated food processing city.

This cluster of food factories, which had reached the size of a small city, housed numerous processing plants for staples, meat, canned goods, ready-to-eat meals, beverages, and drinking water, along with residential areas built around these factories.

According to intelligence Amber had obtained, this place had supplied nearly twenty percent of the food, drinking water, and other resources on Parra IV during peacetime.

Therefore, when the Federation previously launched its attack on Parra IV, this had been one of their key objectives.

However, the Imperial defenders had also realized this. Before the attack began, they had stockpiled large quantities of ammunition, supplies, and raw materials needed for production here. At the same time, through numerous permanent and semi-permanent fortifications, they had completely “fortified” the location.

The result was that the Federation’s attacking forces suffered a major defeat here, even with orbital strike support. The orbital paratroopers who air-dropped into the urban area were completely annihilated.

And according to intelligence from reconnaissance units, the number of Imperial remnants inside might now exceed the original three brigade combat teams. After taking in a large number of stragglers, their strength had reached the scale of nearly five brigades.

Atlas’s reason for choosing to attack here was simple. First, it was the closest large food processing base, and capturing it would significantly alleviate the shortage of food and other supplies.

At the same time, according to refugees who had escaped from there, the food processing city had completely lost all order. The Imperial remnants had been maintaining a “temporary military administration” through force of arms.

They called it “military administration,” but in reality, they were treating other civilians and prisoners as slaves.

Therefore, if they could capture this place and liberate the oppressed refugees within, it would be very helpful for Atlas’s efforts to boost their reputation.

Chapter 397: Super-Heavy Shells from the Sky

During his conversation with Orns, the time to launch the attack quickly arrived. The twenty-four self-propelled electromagnetic cannons had already lowered all their spades, simultaneously raising their long, C-shaped rails and loading the super-heavy shells designed specifically for anti-fortification use.

“Can this thing even dent the outer permanent fortifications?” Watching the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion prepare to fire, Amber turned to look at Orns.

The Deputy Director of the Equipment R&D Center had already raised his tactical faceplate, and his expression was a little tense.

“Shouldn’t be a problem, Boss. During testing, the shell’s terminal velocity was close to Mach 5.5. With the specialized heavy earth-penetrating warhead and payload, most of the standard semi-buried permanent fortifications used by the Federation and the Empire won’t be able to withstand it.”

Orns swallowed, then added:

“Of course, if the enemy has added extra reinforcement, we might need to adjust the shell type or the output voltage based on the damage assessment.”

“All gun positions, take note. Attack coordinates have been shared via the datalink. Double-check all data entries for errors!”

The voice of the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion’s fire direction commander crackled over the communications channel. Amber and Orns both fell silent, knowing this meant the attack was entering its final countdown.

An unknown amount of time passed before the fire direction commander’s voice sounded again:

“First ranging fire, prepare!”

Orns silently clenched his fists. Whether his team got their bonus and whether he himself would get a promotion and a raise all came down to this.

“Three, two, one… fire!”

BZZZT—

In that instant, Amber felt a strong magnetic field envelop the entire launch site. Electric arcs began to flash on the launch rails, and the superconductor cells of the twenty-four self-propelled electromagnetic cannons started to discharge for firing.

First came a brilliant white flash of electricity, followed by a world-shaking roar.

“BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!”

The twenty-four seven-hundred-kilogram super-heavy shells launched from their rails amidst the electric glare, quickly disappearing into the sky. Only the afterimages burned onto their retinas proved they had ever been there.

Once the shells were no longer visible, Amber quickly pulled up the real-time feed from the forward recon units on her command terminal.

Meanwhile, Orns, after spreading his arms to savor the shockwave from the heavy electromagnetic cannon’s launch, closed his tactical faceplate with a satisfied look and also brought up the relevant feed.

An ‘Aegis - Recon-type’ from the forward recon unit, with its optical camouflage engaged and subcritical reactor in low-power mode, had crept to a high point 1.2 kilometers from the Food Processing City’s outer permanent fortifications.

Using quantum entanglement communication, its image transmission generated no conventional electromagnetic signals, so the Imperial defenders in the fortifications were completely oblivious to this uninvited guest.

——

“Shrike, you think that what’s-it-called, Atlas, will really attack this place?”

Inside a permanent fortification on the outskirts of the Food Processing City, registered in the Imperial rolls as ‘Garipol,’ a soldier smoking against the armored wall asked his comrade.

“How should I know? I’m not their commander. But the officer said Atlas troops have us surrounded, so they’ll probably attack.”

“Heh, they’re really unyielding. So many Federation pigs couldn’t take this place, and now some private military company thinks they can have a go at us.”

“Hmph~”

The soldier named Shrike pursed his lips, looking distractedly at the exit gate of the permanent fortification.

“Son of a bitch, are you just waiting for the shift change so you can go have fun at the ‘Comfort Station’?”

His companion, who had fought alongside Shrike for some time, saw right through him and kicked out with his prosthetically modified right leg.

Wearing his combat exoskeleton, Shrike snapped back to attention and deftly dodged his companion’s mechanical prosthesis, then grinned lecherously.

“Hey, we’re stuck in this shithole day in and day out, with no end in sight. We could die here tomorrow, so I’ve gotta seize the day and have some fun.”

“Seizing the day on some woman’s belly, you mean?”

“Then you tell me, what else is there to do in this godforsaken place?” Shrike retorted irritably. Then, his eyes traveled up and down his comrade. “What about you?” he teased. “After our shift, want me to take you to the ‘Comfort Station’ and pick out a good one? You don’t want to die a ‘virgin,’ do you?”

“Get lost!”

The young Imperial soldier was about to say more when a piercing alarm blared through the fortification.

At the same time, an emergency broadcast crackled to life:

“All positions, be advised! Enemy att—”

“BOOM!”

A 700-kilogram heavy bunker-buster shell, propelled by its extreme kinetic energy and a special alloy warhead, smashed clean through the fortification’s top armor plating. Its built-in delayed-action fuze then detonated the payload.

In an explosion equivalent to 200 kilograms of TNT, Shrike and the young Imperial soldier, along with all their gear, were instantly vaporized. The entire permanent fortification was blown apart by the resulting overpressure.

Amber, Orns, and Hog, along with the others directing the attack from the front line, all witnessed the spectacular scene. Massive armor plates, meant to provide extra protection, were thrown dozens of meters into the air. The series of explosions made the enemy position look as if a grand fireworks display had suddenly been set off.

“First ranging fire complete. Hit rate: 97.44 percent! Relevant data has been transmitted back. All gun positions, correct firing data based on landing positions!

Once reloaded, prepare for the next volley on command!”

“Hey, not bad~ At this range, to get that kind of hit rate on the first ranging fire…”

Amber nudged Orns with her shoulder. A smile like that of a proud father spread across his face.

As the old saying goes, one man’s joy is another’s sorrow.

While everyone on the Atlas side, from the command level to the front-line soldiers, was ecstatic and their morale was soaring due to the precise long-range strike, the Imperial defenders of Garipol were not having a good time.

“Has the counter-battery radar sent back a result yet?!”

The sudden bombardment had thrown their Headquarters into chaos. Since the Federation hadn’t attacked the position in a long time, both officers and soldiers had grown lax.

“Sir… report! The attack originated beyond our counter-battery radar’s detection range! We can only estimate it came from over 120 kilometers away!”

“120 kilometers?”

The Imperial commander, in some sense the ‘local emperor of Garipol,’ was stunned when he heard the distance.

He quickly realized this was probably just the radar’s maximum detection range, not the enemy’s actual firing distance. Because both the Empire’s and the Federation’s current self-propelled artillery, even with range-extending ammunition, could only just about manage that distance.

“Relay my orders—”

“BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!”

The local emperor’s words were cut off by another round of explosions.

Meanwhile, on the Atlas front line, the HCP assault force led by Murat was ready to attack.

However, the youth, now a ‘veteran’ HCP pilot, kept glancing at a rear-view window on his panoramic display.

In the window’s view, over a dozen new main battle tanks, already in attack formation, were slowly rising from the ground with a low humming sound.

Chapter 398: A Battle Back to Basics

“The artillery strike was effective. By the way, why wasn’t there much of a reaction from their anti-air positions?”

After the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion began its fire for effect on Garipol’s outer permanent fortifications, Amber suddenly realized that these few salvos had not met any decent interception.

Although intercepting self-propelled artillery shells is quite troublesome, for some ‘bristling’ positions, relying on a large number of high-energy lasers or charged particle cannons to sweep the area, they should always be able to hit a few.

In more extreme cases, using the diffusion shot mode of a heavy particle cannon is also a method.

“Their counter-battery radar and reconnaissance units were probably all focused on the two brigades at the front line. They most likely didn’t anticipate our gun positions here.”

Orns watched the footage coming back from the front line and said, as the weapon’s designer, he certainly needed to understand the issue of ‘spear versus shield.’

“Besides, the super-heavy shells we fired this time aren’t that easy to intercept. To punch through the top armor plates of the permanent fortifications, they all use tungsten alloy warheads. Unless multiple heavy particle cannons perform a diffusion shot together, they’re basically unstoppable.”

“An early warning radar detects a shell flying at over Mach 5 within the atmosphere, then, in less than two minutes, has the air defense radar group lock onto the target precisely, share the information with the HCPs or fixed turrets at the front line, and have them complete a diffusion shot?”

Amber shook her head and said, “At least, given the training level of these Imperial defenders, they can’t do it.”

“Yes, Boss. And this is just an attack from one self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion with twenty-four E-2s. If they were mass-produced in the future, attacks on these kinds of defensive positions would be carried out with the firepower of an entire artillery combined arms brigade. At that point, I expect ordinary anti-air systems would be paralyzed.”

As Orns spoke, a breach had been forcefully blasted into the outer permanent fortifications on Garipol’s southeastern side. Although the Imperial defenders attempted to intercept with their few remaining anti-air weapons during the subsequent fire for effect, it was with minimal success.

Instead, after revealing their positions, they were given special attention by the 155mm self-propelled artillery and loitering munitions from the two combined arms brigades at the front. —

Amber, Orns, Hog, and the others positioned the E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon as a fortress-breaching sledgehammer.

In a way, this positioning was very similar to well-known heavy cannons from ancient times like ‘Big Bertha,’ ‘Karl-Gerät,’ and ‘Stalin’s Sledgehammer’—all were designed to destroy high-strength permanent fortifications.

This was also somewhat related to the reason why ground warfare in this era was increasingly ‘returning to basics.’

With the proliferation of various directed-energy weapons to heavy mechanized units, and with deflector shields—developed based on the principle of ‘directional magnetic fields’—making their way from spaceships down to ground combat forces, a new concept of ‘armor versus shell’ emerged.

The directed-energy weapons most commonly equipped by ground forces are high-energy lasers, charged particle beam weapons, and heavy particle cannons.

In the future, there will also be plasma cannons that fire plasma—Amber has already had the Equipment R&D Center start testing this ‘thing.’ According to Eugene and his team, it will soon be weaponized.

High-energy lasers are much more awkward to use in an atmosphere than in space. This type of light-speed weapon was originally intended for real-time engagement of enemies at long distances.

This is certainly achievable in space. Moreover, lasers kill with the intense heat at the beam’s focal point, which deflector shields cannot defend against. Generally, ships withstand it with external layered armor, special coatings with a thermal expansion coefficient close to zero, and a working fluid water cooling layer.

But on the ground, common habitable planets are generally similar in terms of planetary curvature radius and terrain. This limits the visual range for ground combat to at most a few to a dozen kilometers.

At this range, the advantage of high-energy lasers is drastically reduced. Furthermore, lasers in the atmosphere are subject to various limitations, especially in rainy or foggy weather, when you can basically forget about using them to hit long-range targets.

Therefore, the high-energy laser weapons equipped by ground forces are primarily used for anti-air defense, shooting down manned aircraft, drones, loitering munitions, and anything else that flies when the weather is good.

When the weather is poor, they can also be leveled to engage ‘soft targets’ at close range.

Meanwhile, charged particle beams, heavy particle cannons, and the soon-to-be-widespread plasma cannons have gradually replaced various barrel artillery, becoming the heavy weapons of ground units.

However, these weapons can all be defended against by deflector shields. It’s simply a matter of competing instantaneous power output.

At the same time, near-light-speed weapons like charged particle beams and weapons like heavy particle cannons, which travel at one two-hundredth the speed of light, can also occasionally serve as anti-air units.

This is also why the role of tactical air forces within the atmosphere has diminished, basically being relegated to ‘mobile arsenals’ that launch hypersonic weapons from outside the defense zone.

The old-school scenarios of carrying aerial bombs to support ground troops, or even strafing the ground with cannons, are now completely gone. After all, no pilot would willingly face directed-energy weapons with virtually no attack delay to conduct a ground attack.

Against this backdrop, ground warfare has morphed into a very retro confrontation—after establishing air defense, the focus shifts to the entirely new ‘armor versus shell’ struggle between directed-energy weapons, deflector shields, and layered armor.

And this is just the current situation. If technology develops as Amber recalls, ancient military structures like ‘fortresses’ will also make a comeback.

Fortress outer walls constructed from massive amounts of layered armor and composite armor plates, a large deflector shield array enveloping the entire fortress, a hedgehog-like array of anti-air weapons, and various fixed turrets equipped with directed-energy weapons and hypersonic missile silos…

This is essentially an upgraded version of the forward bases Atlas built before, or perhaps it’s more accurate to say that Amber has made these ‘fortresses,’ which will become common in the future, appear ahead of schedule.

Once key nodes on a planet’s surface have been fortified, planetary landing operations become much trickier. Even if the attacking force successfully lands troops on the ground, they will have to face numerous fortresses that are like turtle shells.

As long as the attackers want to occupy the planet, rather than just ‘glassing the planet’ or ‘planting mushrooms,’ they’ll have to steel themselves and gnaw through with conventional forces.

In Amber’s memory, some famous fortresses could even withstand orbital strikes—not the tactical thermobaric warheads dropped from orbit, but direct hits from a warship’s main cannons.

The methods for dealing with these fortresses were also remarkably simple and unadorned: either send in special forces to infiltrate and sabotage them beforehand, or have a mole go and shut down the deflector shield generator directly.

If neither of the first two methods is feasible, the only option left is to rely on high-density fire projection to overload and disable the deflector shield generator.

During this process, the fortress defenders will certainly counter-attack, trying to take out the attacker’s long-range fire positions. Therefore, a unit capable of efficient fire projection from a sufficient distance becomes very important.

Hypersonic weapons, with their unique penetration capabilities, can certainly close the final distance. But these expensive weapons are more often used against time-sensitive targets, not for cracking a stationary turtle shell.

Self-propelled artillery ensures sustained firepower, and its shells are quite cheap. But with an attack range of only a few dozen kilometers, the gun positions are not very safe. They are vulnerable to a fatal blow from the defenders’ counter-artillery fire, missile attacks, or even a rapid assault by an HCP squadron.

Multiple rocket launcher systems, both now and in the future, have been proven to be an extremely effective means of combating fortresses in environments where tactical nuclear weapons cannot be used.

Their massive volume of fire in a short period, combined with plasma warheads, makes them a formidable enemy for smaller fortresses.

But multiple rocket launcher systems have their drawbacks too. One is a lack of sustained fire; the reloading cycle is too long. If a single salvo fails to ‘break the defense,’ by the time they’ve finished reloading, the fortress’s deflector shield will have more or less recovered.

Another drawback is their relatively high cost and the difficulty of resupplying ammunition. Sometimes, a fire direction commander has to choose: should they unleash a barrage on an enemy heavy armored group, crack the turtle shell in front of them, or provide fire support to a unit requesting it?

But the emergence of the E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon offers a more economical solution, in a sense.

At the same level of manufacturing technology, the cost of an electromagnetic cannon shell, especially one without a range-extending booster component, is worlds apart from that of a long-range rocket.

Amber did a rough calculation: the cost of one 300mm long-range rocket with a range of 180-200 kilometers was equivalent to nearly twenty electromagnetic cannon shells that could travel 180 kilometers.

Moreover, against fortress-grade deflector shields, a high-kinetic-energy weapon like the super-heavy shell is clearly harder to deal with than the plasma fireball from a plasma warhead.

The latter can be dissipated like fireworks with an electric field, but the former can only be bent by a directional magnetic field through brute force.

Not to mention, in Amber and Orns’s plans, there was also a super-heavy truck-mounted electromagnetic cannon carried on an 8-axle special vehicle, firing a 500-1000 kilogram warhead.

And even a behemoth-class railway electromagnetic cannon mounted on a maglev train possibly using Gravity Control Technology, firing a 1500-3000 kilogram warhead…

Bigger is better, more is beautiful. Since the future ground battlefield was becoming increasingly extreme due to the ‘spear and shield’ arms race, Amber didn’t mind taking it one step further.

Haven’t you seen those other shows where they’re still doing World War I cavalry death charges in the space age? So-called tactics are all formulated based on the technological levels and combat styles of the opposing sides.

Of course, the saturation effect of a long-range rocket salvo and its lethality against massed troops were things a self-propelled electromagnetic cannon could not match, which meant they were destined not to be phased out anytime soon.

When you’re poor, you use tactical infiltration. When you’re rich, you just bomb the hell out of them for this daddy.

For a major power, equipping troops with long-range rockets might be a simple matter of closing their eyes and approving the funds. But for Atlas, every calculation had to be precise.

After all, Atlas was fundamentally a corporation, and a corporation’s operations must consider key metrics like cost and cost-effectiveness. On the battlefield, this meant if a target could be destroyed for one hundred, you would never use a munition that cost one hundred and ten.

Money is saved penny by penny like this, a fact Amber understood from deep experience.

While Amber and Orns were discussing the subsequent production matters for the E-2, the attacking force at the front line, under the cover of the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion and the brigade’s own self-propelled artillery battalion, began its tactical maneuver.

Murat’s HCP assault force, leveraging the outstanding mobility and protection of the improved ‘Aegis,’ boldly established a ‘gun line’ at the front, drawing the vast majority of enemy fire.

The new hover main battle tanks, completely unimpeded by the terrain that the Imperial defenders had deliberately destroyed before the battle, advanced as if on level ground to the front of the permanent fortifications.

The surviving Imperial defenders didn’t even have time to retreat to the second line of defense before they witnessed these unfamiliar main battle tanks not bothering to use anti-obstacle rounds, instead simply raising their hover height to pass over rows of anti-tank obstacles.

Then, these defenders were swiftly cut down by coaxial electromagnetic machine guns and the point-defense lasers and chain guns of automated weapon stations. The fixed turrets, unable to turn in time, were also destroyed by the heavy electromagnetic cannons of these hover main battle tanks.

However, the heavy armored units that had advanced to the first line of defense did not push further. Instead, they began to use the wreckage on the position as cover to stabilize their line, waiting for follow-up forces while preparing to counter any attack from the Imperial defenders.

The forces that truly ‘breached’ the urban area of Garipol first were the suicidal ‘Swarm’ that swept over the heads of the heavy armored units, and the loitering munitions launched by the heavy brigade’s fire support battalion (composed of two self-propelled artillery companies and one loitering munition company).

Because the terminal defense weapon systems deployed around Garipol’s periphery, such as point-defense cannons and short-range lasers, were mostly co-located with the permanent fortifications, they had been almost completely obliterated by the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion’s strike.

The terminal defense systems on other defense lines were clearly unable to provide support to this breach. So they could only watch helplessly as the dense swarms of suicidal drones and loitering munitions poured down the streets towards the rear defense lines like quicksilver flowing.

Amber, 180 kilometers away, couldn’t help but wince as she watched this scene on her command terminal.

“This is purely burning money to reduce casualties…”

Chapter 399: A Greatly Shocked Van Fleet

Fighting with a large amount of technical equipment was indeed burning through money.

But compared to the high death benefits offered by Atlas Private Military Company, this amount was nothing.

In the previous conflict with the Federation Army, the Atlas ground forces had suffered a certain degree of losses, even greater than those from the battle on Loubion V. Not only was the elite instructor squad “completely wiped out,” nearly causing Amber to go berserk on the battlefield, but the 5th Medium Combined Arms Battalion, which was carrying out the decapitation strike, also suffered significant personnel and vehicle losses.

Even the few forward bases engaged in defensive battles suffered casualties under the Federation Army’s assault.

While these casualties were certainly related to the objective factor of being outnumbered, post-battle statistics revealed that they were more due to the Romu soldiers being reluctant to use their technical equipment.

Not even Lilith, who monitored everything, knew when the idea of “the company is our home, and its success depends on all of us” began to spread among the Romu of Atlas. Most of these Romu from the Thousand Stars Empire believed that with the extremely high salaries and benefits, the company’s profitability was likely average. Furthermore, since they were now engaged in humanitarian aid—which looked like unprofitable “charity work”—their income was probably even lower.

Therefore, to ease the company’s “economic pressure” and reduce the consumption of technical equipment, these Romu basically wouldn’t use things like the suicide swarms, smart mines, or loitering munitions unless absolutely necessary. Even veterans like Montai and Tairak, who had fought from the beginning, were as frugal as possible when using technical equipment and consumables, to the point of being stingy.

When Amber learned of this situation, he was both angry and touched. He immediately held an “ideological education session” with the commanding officers of all levels. After the meeting, he had them pass down the idea of “don’t be afraid of equipment losses, use them freely” through the chain of command.

In Amber’s view, it was a simple math problem. The disability and death benefits for an Atlas soldier who was severely wounded or killed in action were several tiers higher than those of other private military companies or even the regular armies of the Federation and the Empire. Therefore, compared to these benefits, the drones and smart units consumed by soldiers in battle were nothing. Rather than losing soldiers, paying out benefits, and still consuming a fair amount of technical equipment, it was better to protect every soldier, minimize casualties, and freely use things that were “consumables” to begin with.

This was also why the heavy armored units didn’t press their advantage after taking the first line of defense, but instead let the suicide swarms and loitering munitions “scour the ground” first.

The suicide swarm was developed based on the Imperial swarm that Amber had captured at Blue Harbor on Robert IV and later used in the battle at the orbital elevator’s base area.

In essence, they were small drones equipped with high-performance military explosives. Their maneuverability was similar to an FPV drone, but their materials, endurance, and signal transmission were far superior, and they were equipped with mil-spec anti-jamming measures.

And the one controlling these suicide swarms was none other than the recently “busy” Lilith. This would also be the last time she would control these suicide swarms in combat.

In the future, the suicide swarms would be controlled by the software-upgraded “Hive Core,” becoming a part of the Hive System.

Under her control, the suicide swarms seemed to come alive, their agility and coordination reaching a terrifying level as they continuously charged toward the Imperial defenders’ second line and their deeper reserve positions.

The mission of these suicide swarms was simple: draw as much terminal air defense fire as possible to expose their positions, then smash right into them. It would be even better if they could find high-value targets like air defense command vehicles, field radars, or jamming vehicles.

Even if they didn’t end up causing much damage, they could still give the attacking force a rough idea of the enemy’s deployment in the deeper positions.

More importantly, by drawing a large amount of anti-air fire, the suicide swarm’s assault created an extremely favorable condition for the follow-up loitering munitions to achieve defense penetration.

If they encountered targets not destroyed by the swarm, these loitering munitions would directly charge in for a “finishing blow.” The remaining munitions that successfully penetrated the defenses flew deeper into Garipol.

“The outcome is decided. The Imperial defenders here basically can’t turn the tide. They have no way of retaking the lost positions.” In a cabin aboard The Infinity, Van Fleet, who was under house arrest, commented while watching the live battlefield feed on the virtual screen. His tone carried a hint of dread.

“How is the outcome decided? They’ve only just breached one line, haven’t they?” Guterres, sitting in another chair beside him, frowned. He then looked down at the documents the Atlas soldiers guarding them had provided earlier. “Look, Atlas only has two brigades attacking, while the Imperial defenders in Garipol number close to five brigades. And this is extremely complex and dangerous street fighting.”

“You’re a navy man, what the hell do you know about land warfare!” Van Fleet’s eye twitched, his words dripping with contempt for the Vice Admiral beside him.

He had always believed that the Federation Navy fleet led by Guterres was ninety percent responsible for the final outcome of the battle on Parra IV.

“Oh, so you’re the land warfare expert? If you’re such an expert, why are you locked up here with me?” Hearing Van Fleet’s words, Guterres immediately shot back, not to be outdone.

In his view, it was precisely because Van Fleet was “decapitated” by Amber at a critical stage of the battle that the situation on Parra IV collapsed. Otherwise, it would have been entirely possible to hold out until the Federation relief fleet arrived—if the Federation had even dispatched a relief fleet.

“You…” Van Fleet was choked speechless. He glared fiercely at Guterres for a long moment before suppressing the urge to punch him.

“What, you don’t agree?” Guterres, truly a Federation Navy officer like Randall, was exceptionally talented at getting under people’s skin.

“You damn fool, haven’t you noticed that the way Atlas’s ground forces fight is already vastly different from the Federation’s, or even the Star Dragon Empire’s?” Van Fleet suddenly shouted, his sheer forcefulness momentarily stunning the Vice Admiral beside him.

“Ultra-long-range heavy artillery bombardment, new armored units with excellent terrain mobility, and all those swarms of unmanned units. Not to mention their ordinary soldiers completely overpower regular human soldiers in physical fitness. These are all things the Federation ground forces don’t have yet.”

“Now that you put it that way, you’re not wrong. This company really does have some strange new toys.” Van Fleet’s words couldn’t help but stir some unpleasant memories for Guterres. Whether it was his fleet being stabbed ‘up the rear’ by a massive number of stealth plasma torpedoes or being raked by fire from that six-kilometer-long giant ship—these memories were destined to leave an indelible impression on Guterres’s mind.

“Putting everything else aside, just look at that long-range heavy artillery. Its design and combat doctrine are completely different from the current Federation Army. A 180-kilometer-range self-propelled electromagnetic cannon… DAMMIT, why don’t I have something that good… And that’s just the firepower of a single battalion. If that guy, Amber, gets ruthless and makes it the main equipment for an Army Group’s artillery combined arms brigade, I can’t even imagine its support and strike capabilities.”

Van Fleet paused, then continued:

“As long as Atlas’s forces proceed steadily like this, slowly advancing and always using these unmanned swarms to clear the way, the Imperial defenders—given their personnel’s condition, equipment, and morale—will just be whittled down bit by bit.”

“Can’t they find an opportunity for a few counter-attacks or set up an ambush somewhere?” Guterres asked, puzzled. In his view, the Imperial defenders had the home-field advantage no matter what, and they also had more troops available.

“Hmph, you don’t believe me? Then just wait and see.”

Chapter 400: The Debate Between Main Battle Tanks and Multi-legged War Machines

“All crews, watch your surroundings and collision alerts. Don’t fucking run over the infantry.”

Over the comms, the platoon leader’s voice sounded a little tense to Montana, but he wasn’t surprised. As the lead vehicle of the formation, Montana himself was even more nervous than the platoon leader.

After receiving their assignments, the armor company from the ATLAS TEST TEAM, temporarily attached to the assault forces, began advancing with the infantry along the streets into the urban center of Garipol, following their respective attack routes.

Montana was currently wearing a protective helmet with an integrated helmet display. So, despite being in a fully enclosed crew compartment, he could still clearly see the vehicle’s surroundings as if ‘through’ the hull.

At this moment, a cautionary red dotted line was displayed close around the vehicle’s body, representing the area affected by the gravity control unit.

Although the main effective range of the gravity control unit was directly beneath the hull, the area marked by the red dotted line was extended for safety.

The infantry advancing alongside the main battle tank now hugged the outer edge of this red line, maintaining vigilance over their surroundings.

Montana knew that the tactical faceplates of these Mobile Infantry soldiers would also display this line in sync, preventing them from accidentally straying into the gravity control zone.

As a member of the third batch of Romu ‘trainees’, Montana had been selected for intensive training at the Atlas combat vehicle training camp along with a group of his peers, thanks to his relatively outstanding driving talent after completing basic training.

Later, as a ‘top student’ of the training camp, he was transferred to the highly coveted ATLAS TEST TEAM—a unit every Romu soldier aspired to join, where they could be the first to use all kinds of advanced equipment.

For Montana, this was an absolute affirmation of his tactical and technical proficiency.

After all, this ‘Rabbit Regiment’, known for painting various cartoon bunny graffiti on the external armor of their vehicles, usually selected its personnel from teams with actual combat experience.

Not long after joining the ATT, Montana became the vehicle commander of the new T-740 ‘Mjolnir’ hover main battle tank.

This new tank, one of the future primary vehicles for Atlas’s heavy ground armor forces, was based on the prototype of the ‘Project 12’ new main battle tank once tested on Loubion V.

However, after the Equipment R&D Center managed to develop a gravity control unit using ‘archeologically recovered’ Forerunner technology, the main battle tank’s mobility system was converted from a traditional tracked design to a hover-type.

Since the gravity control unit was far lighter than a traditional tracked system, the vehicle’s overall weight dropped significantly. The design team also made the bold move of abandoning the gas turbine engine that was the original primary power source, replacing it with a miniaturized superconducting battery stack. This upgraded the T-740 directly from ‘hybrid-electric’ to ‘all-electric’, causing the main battle tank’s weight to plummet from sixty to a mere fifty tons.

After testing the gravity control unit and discovering a considerable surplus in payload capacity, the design team began to ‘pile on the features’: extra battery packs, a larger ammunition capacity, more sensors, and a vast array of electronic countermeasure equipment.

Ultimately, these additions transformed the T-740 Mjolnir from a simple main battle tank into a crucial support node on the frontline. When networked, multiple vehicles could not only share situational awareness information with friendly forces but also independently launch electronic warfare attacks to provide offensive cover.

With the help of a Combat assistance AI co-developed by Lilith, the vehicle crew was reduced to just two members: a Pilot and a Vehicle commander/Gunner.

The vast amount of information collected by the sensors was filtered in real-time by the Combat assistance AI, which only presented key information to alert the vehicle commander. Furthermore, electronic warfare was also primarily handled by the AI, meaning the crew only needed to focus on decision-making, giving commands to the AI, moving, and firing.

Besides these combat support systems, the design team also delivered an excellent report card on the T-740’s ‘primary job’.

It boasted a full combat weight of fifty-five tons (with add-on armor), a top speed of eighty kilometers per hour, all-terrain mobility, and an obstacle-crossing capability of up to four meters. At the same time, the unmanned turret could house a heavy electromagnetic cannon with a rail inner diameter of 180 millimeters, or a plasma cannon that had also completed testing and entered mass production.

While the latter lost the ability to switch to ‘indirect fire’ mode, the high-temperature plasma it fired was not to be underestimated. For units without deflector shields or those with insufficient shield power, its high temperature and electron bombardment effects were devastating.

It was especially effective in street fighting against ‘soft targets’ like Mobile Infantry and standard Powered Armor.

One could say that in an era where the main battle tank was gradually falling into decline, the Atlas Equipment R&D Center had carved out a new path for this ‘old soldier’.

At first, Montana hadn’t realized the combat potential of this new main battle tank. When he saw the assignment from the ATT personnel dispatch center, he was even a little disappointed.

He had always been more interested in another heavy vehicle that ATT had tested on Loubion V, then codenamed ‘Project 14’ and now designated the T-600 ‘Chimera’ heavy multi-legged war machine.

In the eyes of many Romu, multi-legged war machines, with their full-on mechanical aesthetic, looked more powerful and seemed more combat-effective.

However, after personally operating the T-740, Montana was quickly won over by the new equipment. He suddenly felt that multi-legged war machines were just a load of junk.

This was also the very issue that the Atlas Equipment R&D Center was currently grappling with.

The ground vehicle design group at the Equipment R&D Center was currently split into two factions. One was the ‘Main Battle Tank Revivalists’, which emerged after the development of the gravity control unit. The other was the ‘Multi-legged War Machine Stalwarts’, who still believed that bionic multi-legged war machines had a fighting chance.

Coincidentally, the T-740 ‘Mjolnir’ and the T-600 ‘Chimera’ were developed by these two factions, respectively.

However, due to the T-740’s currently demonstrated excellent performance and the amplified advantages of a main battle tank once its mobility and obstacle-crossing capabilities were resolved, the T-600 heavy multi-legged war machine was temporarily overshadowed.

“Warning, anomalous electromagnetic signal detected in the window of the marked building at the one o’clock position. Suspected activation signature of an anti-vehicle missile fire-control radar.”

The voice of the Combat assistance AI suddenly sounded, causing Montana to quickly focus his attention on the marked window in the distance. However, due to his viewing angle, he couldn’t see what was inside clearly.

“Looks like the Swarm didn’t clean this place up, huh.”

Muttering to himself, Montana glanced at the infantry ‘beside’ him, then tapped a touchscreen panel a few times. The AI’s warning was synchronized with the nearby squad and the two tanks behind him.

He then saw a Mobile Infantry soldier, who had been advancing cautiously, turn his head and give an OK sign towards one of the T-740’s sensors. Immediately after, a personal drone mounted on his back took off and flew swiftly toward the marked window.

Soon, a small pop-up window on his integrated helmet display showed the view from the drone’s camera. Inside the window, a heavy anti-vehicle missile launcher, which ought to have been deployed on a ground position, was set up.

“Fuck, they’re using its cold-launch mode to fire from indoors???”

While Montana was ‘marveling’ at the tactics of these Imperial defenders, the image on the camera flashed violently. He looked up to see the drone making an emergency lateral shift, dodging the shot from the window.

The life signs detector on the drone also confirmed that there were no other soldiers or civilians in the building apart from this anti-tank team.

“OK, confirmed no civilians in the building. Crew 172, prepare to fire!”

“Roger, weapons free.”

Guided by Montana’s eye-tracking aim, the T-740’s 180 mm inner-diameter heavy electromagnetic cannon rose, and the electrically driven turret slowly rotated a few degrees.

“Gavin, hold the vehicle steady.”

Montana gave a light kick to the backside of Gavin, the pilot sitting in front of him in their tandem crew compartment layout. The latter immediately confirmed on the comms channel, adding:

“You don’t have to kick my ass every time.”

The humming sound of the main cannon charging up began. Since it had already been pre-charged to a ‘hot gun’ state, the final charge before firing didn’t take long.

A streak of orange fire flashed down the street. The next moment, the marked window was engulfed in smoke and dust, followed by a piercing shriek and the sound of an explosion erupting simultaneously.

However, the vehicle crew and Mobile Infantry, with their equipment’s noise-canceling mode activated, were unaffected by the deafening blast.

When the smoke cleared, the original window had become a massive gaping hole in the building. Or rather, the kinetic impact from the heavy electromagnetic cannon had sheared off an entire corner of the structure.

“That’s got some kick!”

Montana instinctively wanted to pump his fist, only to remember he was in a cramped crew compartment.

Meanwhile, the drone that had just dodged the shot flew back to confirm the strike’s effectiveness. When the ‘suspected threat target方位’ marker disappeared from his integrated helmet display, Montana breathed a sigh of relief.

But just as he was about to continue the advance, the drone suddenly detected a large number of enemy units up the street ahead. A series of red inverted triangles were marked on his display.

The next second, a dense barrage of fire swept past, and the drone was shot down in an instant.

Escort anti-aircraft vehicles equipped with multi-barreled electromagnetic machine guns!

Montana instantly realized why the suicide swarm and loitering munitions hadn’t been completely effective. The enemy had that many escort point-defense units with them. In street fighting conditions, those things were indeed one of the natural predators of drones flying in dense formations.

“Enemy contact! Enemy contact! Two MBTs! Four multi-legged war machines, thirty-three infantry and powered armor units!”

Yelling into the comms channel, Montana switched the deflector shield from ‘adaptive’ to ‘high-power’ mode, then instinctively kicked Gavin’s butt again.

“Gavin, lower the vehicle’s profile!”

“Copy that!”

The hull of the T-740 slowly lowered. The Mobile Infantry who had been advancing alongside it quickly scattered to the sides of the street, while the other T-740 behind Montana’s crew pulled up to a position parallel to them.

The translucent barrel of its plasma cannon, stabilized by the active stabilization system, pointed smoothly in the direction of the enemy units.

A second later, powered by the superconducting battery stack, a ball of plasma silently left the translucent barrel.

Essentially a form of ball lightning, the high-temperature, high-speed plasma bolt flashed across the street. At an engagement distance of less than a kilometer, the shot and the impact were almost simultaneous.

“Boom!”

The plasma bolt exploded upon hitting its target, a multi-legged war machine, completely melting it into a puddle of ‘soft, melted butter’ while also catching a circle of nearby infantry in the blast.

Similar scenes were unfolding on every street across the attack frontage. Although the Imperial defenders constantly redeployed forces to plug the breaches, the clear generation gap in equipment meant the gaps were continuously torn open.

At the same time, a steady stream of suicide swarms and loitering munitions poured through these openings deep into the urban area, avoiding the anti-aircraft units marked by the frontline troops.

“I told you, it’s really over now.”

Aboard The Infinity, Van Fleet watched the real-time footage captured by a high-altitude stealth drone on the screen and let out a deep sigh.

Chapter 401: Some Rejoice, Some Grieve

“Alright, looks like you were right, Van Fleet.”

Guterres, beside him, also spoke in a daze. While he didn’t know much about land warfare, he could still understand the battlefield situation map.

It was obvious that Atlas’s assault forces were like water seeping into paper—impossible to effectively stop and continuously penetrating deeper.

The Imperial garrison in Garipol already had extremely low morale. And given their oppressive control—or rather, ‘enslavement’—of the civilians, no commoners were willing to step up and help them ‘resist the foreign invaders’ at a time like this.

This also meant that Atlas’s combat units didn’t have to worry too much about civilian casualties during the street fighting, nor did they need to limit the intensity of their firefights.

“At this rate, these five brigades of defending troops will likely be devoured bit by bit.”

Van Fleet leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. As an army general, he knew very well that the outcome of this battle was no longer in doubt, but a new question had surfaced in his mind.

“Why do you think Atlas is being so open, showing all this to us two ‘prisoners’?”

“I get the feeling they want us to see their strength, and then… ‘recruit’ us,” Guterres said thoughtfully.

“That’s ridiculous. A private company recruiting generals of the regular army? Where do they get the nerve?” Van Fleet shook his head, disagreeing with Guterres.

“Didn’t you just say it yourself? This company’s troops are on par with the Federation Army in terms of equipment, combat proficiency, and doctrine. In many aspects, they even far surpass it,” Guterres said, his mind flashing back to the fleet battle he had experienced.

“It’s the same for the navy. Although Atlas’s fleet isn’t large enough yet, they clearly have the ability to build capital ships. They even built that ‘super flagship.’ I’m sure it won’t be the last.”

Guterres’s words silenced Van Fleet, who couldn’t help but recall his own battle on Parra IV.

“So they’re really flexing on us. What if they do try to recruit us?” Under Guterres’s ‘enlightenment,’ the Federation Lieutenant General’s mind began to spin, and he started to think that Guterres might have a point.

“That’s something for you to consider, haha~” Guterres suddenly laughed.

“There’s no way I’d give up my perfectly good position as a Vice Admiral to work for a company that the Federation has its eyes on. But you, on the other hand… weren’t you just showering Atlas’s ground forces with praise?”

“Tsk… praise is just praise. It doesn’t mean I can be recruited that easily!”

Van Fleet was about to say more, but the suddenly sliding hatch cut him off.

A female elf entered, flanked by two guards. After spending the past few days together, the two generals had come to recognize this elf named Skadi.

In that instant, Van Fleet found that, to his own frustration, he was genuinely conflicted. If she did extend an offer of recruitment, he would actually have to give it some serious thought.

“Generals, the ship back to the Federation is ready,” Skadi said with a smile, her professional expression flawless.

The corner of Van Fleet’s eye twitched involuntarily. He had been on the verge of saying something like, ‘Thank you for your invitation, but as a Federation officer, I’m afraid I cannot accept.’

Guterres also looked at the elf in surprise. Although the ‘recruitment’ talk had just been a joke, he genuinely hadn’t expected them to be released so soon.

Seemingly sensing their confusion, Skadi continued with a smile, “We have agreed to the Federation government’s request and will be safely returning a group of high-ranking officers, including the two of you, to Federation territory.”

“What about the others? There are so many surviving crew members from the Thirteenth Fleet,” Guterres asked anxiously.

“That’s right, and all those ground troops on Parra IV?!” Van Fleet snapped back to reality, asking with similar confusion.

“My apologies, Generals. In the negotiations between the Federation government and our company, the matter of the other personnel was not addressed.”

Skadi’s tone was slightly apologetic. She looked at Guterres and, after a moment of ‘internal struggle,’ slowly said, “General Guterres, we’ve temporarily restricted your access to outside information. There’s something you may not know.”

“What is it?”

“The designation of the Thirteenth Fleet… has been revoked.”

“Master, you finally have time to come see me.”

In the virtual space, upon seeing Amber connect to the network, Lilith skillfully floated over to him and sat right on his lap.

By now, the twenty-day battle for Garipol had ended. After routing more than three brigades of enemies, the remaining Imperial garrison in Garipol had either scattered or surrendered.

However, for the group of surrendered Imperial soldiers led by the ‘local emperor of Garipol’—the commander of the Imperial garrison—it would have been better if they had just scattered.

Because once Atlas had secured control of the city, they immediately began a public trial for the garrison’s atrocities.

With evidence from battlefield recorders that hadn’t been destroyed in time and the testimony of numerous refugees, the surrendered soldiers who had committed serious crimes such as rape and the torture and murder of civilians were executed by firing squad on the spot.

The rest, accomplices whose crimes did not warrant death, were sent to labor battalions to assist in the reconstruction of Garipol.

Amber had just overseen the executions. After returning to his command vehicle to rest, he finally found the time to ask Lilith about the unmanned fleets.

Suddenly having three unmanned fleets at his disposal was a pleasant surprise for Amber. He had considered that Lilith’s abilities might allow her to hack into the fleets, but he never imagined she could take direct control of them.

“Yeah, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? I didn’t have any time to come in while I was on The Infinity.”

Amber took a deep breath and flopped onto a water cushion that materialized out of thin air. Lilith, who was clinging to him, went down with him. In the virtual space, Amber didn’t care about his image; as long as he was comfortable, he’d lie however he wanted.

“Master, you didn’t just come to see little old me today, did you?”

A slight smile touched Lilith’s lips as she slowly traced the line of Amber’s jaw with her index finger.

“Ahem. And to, uh, ask about the unmanned fleets. I’ve been meaning to ask since the battle, but the situation wasn’t right.”

Hearing this, Lilith immediately sat up, straddling his stomach, and said with a huff.

“Hmph, I knew it.”

“Incidentally! I said it was incidental!”

In response to Amber’s excuse, Lilith simply raised an eyebrow and said nothing more. Instead, she sat down hard on him in retaliation. The simulated neural signals from the advanced connection equipment immediately sent a sharp pain through an unmentionable part of Amber’s body.

Fortunately, Lilith knew when to stop and didn’t continue her ‘retaliation.’

“I’ll let you off for now, Master. So, what is it you want to know?”

“The current status of the unmanned fleets, whether they’re combat-ready, and…” Amber looked seriously into Lilith’s eyes, “How on earth did you do it?”

Chapter 402: Lilith and the Unmanned Fleets

After Lilith had taken control of the three unmanned fleets, Amber had her command the unmanned warships to warp to the deep space mooring point that The Infinity’s fleet had used before.

Although the Spaceport at Parra IV could provide docking and maintenance services for a capital fleet, it was, after all, a port built to Imperial Navy specifications. Its support for unmanned fleets was limited, and it was currently occupied by Atlas’s fleet and the remaining ships of the Thirteenth Fleet, leaving no spare berths for the time being.

At the same time, these three unmanned fleets were a ‘sensitive topic’ that both Atlas and the Federation preferred to avoid discussing. Thus, until he had a complete understanding of the fleets’ situation, Amber had no desire to let them parade brazenly in orbit around Parra IV.

Otherwise, it would feel like he was slapping the Federation in the face, and who knew when he might completely enrage this behemoth.

Now that he had a bit of downtime, Amber finally had the chance to ask Lilith for the details.

“The situation with the unmanned fleets, you ask?” Lilith’s eyes darted around before she waved her hand, summoning a massive virtual screen. Detailed information on the three fleets—their numbers, ship types, maintenance status, and more—streamed across it like a river.

“These three fleets were the first unmanned fleets the Federation put into service. Internally, they are codenamed ‘The Triumvirate.’ They are also the three fleets that have seen the longest service and have the most combat experience.

“Because they’ve spent so long assisting in combat on the most intense frontlines, they’ve constantly been in a state of ‘fight and replenish.’ By the time they were transferred to the Parra system, none of them were at full strength.

“As for their specific composition, the Federation Navy updated the table of organization for its capital fleets some time after the war started, and all unmanned fleets were reorganized according to this new standard.

“Normally, a capital fleet should have a total of two hundred and sixty ships, with a variance of no more than three percent. The typical configuration is thirty battleships, forty heavy cruisers, sixty light cruisers, one hundred destroyers and frigates, and thirty supply or large transport ships.”

Lilith paused for a moment, as if a piece of information had just flashed through her mind, then continued with a smile:

“However, constrained by the naval expansion program running concurrently since the war began, production capacity hasn’t been sufficient to upgrade all capital fleets to this scale.

“Take the Thirteenth Fleet we fought, for example. Before they broke into Imperial territory, they had fewer than sixty capital ships in total. The empty slots in their organization were temporarily filled by a batch of reactivated light cruisers and even destroyers.”

Amber wasn’t surprised by what Lilith described. In fact, it wasn’t just the Federation; the Star Dragon Empire had encountered similar situations when rapidly expanding its fleets after the war began.

Every fleet and battle group was clamoring for new ships, which inevitably led to certain ‘unspoken rules.’ While some fleets received limited reinforcements of new vessels, the rest had to make do with older, reactivated ships to temporarily fill their rosters.

Generally, however, they would use older-model battleships and heavy cruisers to fill the capital ship gaps. A case like the Thirteenth Fleet’s was the unluckiest of the lot; they were given light cruisers and destroyers only because there were truly no other ships available to supplement them.

“Then what about these three unmanned fleets? Don’t tell me they were also fobbed off with inferior ships in their rosters?”

Amber asked with a hint of concern. He was afraid the unmanned fleets had also been filled with subpar substitutes—it would be a joke if they were called three fleets but were stuffed with non-capital ships.

Although these three fleets had been gotten for free, without any real cost, Amber still didn’t want to get the short end of the stick.

“We’re fine on that front. We’re actually quite lucky, Master~”

Lilith enlarged the section showing the detailed composition and continued:

“It might be because these are the most experienced fleets, so the Federation Navy did its best to maintain their original composition when reinforcing them. I’ll just refer to them by the temporary codenames A, B, and C for now.

“Fleet A is the most complete. It currently has a total of two hundred and thirty-six ships, including thirty-six battleships, forty-eight heavy cruisers, forty-eight light cruisers, eighty-nine destroyers and frigates, and fifteen supply or large transport ships.

“Fleet B currently has a total of two hundred and nineteen ships, including thirty-one battleships, forty-three heavy cruisers, forty-two light cruisers, eighty-eight destroyers and frigates, and fifteen supply or large transport ships.

“Fleet C is the least complete of the three. It hadn’t finished receiving reinforcements after its last engagement. It currently has a total of one hundred and ninety-three ships, including twenty-four battleships, thirty-six heavy cruisers, fifty-five light cruisers, sixty-three destroyers and frigates, and fifteen supply or large transport ships.

“As for ammunition and supply reserves, the three fleets are at eighty percent, seventy-two percent, and sixty-five percent, respectively. They could probably handle two or three low-intensity fleet battles, but only one high-intensity engagement~

“Oh, and Master, there’s good news. Since they don’t need to carry supplies for human crew members, the number of transport and supply ships in these unmanned fleets has been cut in half. The extra slots were all used to add more capital ships, further enhancing their specialized bombardment capabilities.

“The bad news, however, is that the Federation hasn’t completed its experiments with unmanned combat units. So, these fleets aren’t equipped with autonomous HCPs or fighter craft. They can only engage in conventional gunnery battles. If they get drawn into close-quarters combat, they’re at a relative disadvantage due to the lack of cover from ship-borne HCPs.”

As Lilith rattled off the details of the unmanned fleets, Amber, whom she was resting on, suddenly felt like a nouveau riche.

Although Atlas was now capable of manufacturing capital ships, its production speed remained slow due to its reliance on Allenita to procure certain key components.

To build three such fleets from scratch would likely take Atlas several years with its current production capacity.

Moreover, simply maintaining these three fleets would be a considerable challenge for Atlas.

Even at the A·Bawa·Ku Asteroid Base, which was designed from the outset to accommodate multiple capital fleets, and whose berths were almost sufficient for these three unmanned fleets, the daily upkeep, repairs, and resupply for several hundred warships would still require a significant investment of manpower and resources.

But even so, Amber’s heart was filled with wild joy.

Three standard-composition unmanned fleets, combined with Atlas’s existing ships and the capital ships and super-flagship yet to be launched—in terms of fleet battles, at the very least, Atlas could perhaps not yet ‘have a seat at the table,’ but it would undoubtedly become a third party that both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire would have to pay attention to.

“As for your biggest concern, Master, how I actually control the unmanned fleets, it’s quite simple.”

Lilith suddenly floated up from Amber’s body. At the same time, her entire being ‘digitized’ in an instant, her body shattering into a stream of data and light before finally forming a cascading waterfall of endlessly scrolling code.

Immediately after, another ‘waterfall of code’ appeared beside hers. As the scrolling frequency of the two sides began to synchronize, Amber quickly recognized something.

“So that one next to you… is the source code for the unmanned fleets’ shipboard control AIs?”

“That’s right, Master~”

“Why is the similarity so high… wait, aren’t they basically identical?” Amber said, surprised, then immediately realized something.

“Good heavens. So the unmanned fleets’ shipboard control AIs are actually derivatives created from research on you? No, you can’t even call them derivatives. They’re clearly just copies.”

The Federation’s unmanned fleet technology was derived from research on Lilith. Although there wasn’t enough evidence in the plot of his previous life, this was a theory that both Amber and the other players in the game had widely accepted.

However, Amber truly hadn’t expected that the Federation had essentially ‘replicated’ her based on the research data from back then, at most adding some so-called ‘limitations’ while sealing off the emotion modules, depriving these AIs of the most crucial step toward becoming ‘strong AIs.’

And for Lilith, who was essentially of the same origin and whose ‘performance’ had drastically improved after escaping the research institute, having undergone two self-iterative evolutions, controlling these AIs was ridiculously simple.

“‘Project Creator’ certainly left the Federation a considerable legacy… and it’s clear Dr. Mephisto continued his research in this area even after the project was terminated.”

Amber raised a hand to his chin. Thinking of the doctor who knew Lilith inside and out, he couldn’t help but feel a little worried. If the doctor developed some kind of countermeasure, and Lilith hadn’t yet evolved into the ‘Crimson Queen’ as she had in his previous life, she would still be somewhat threatened.

“Master, are you worried that if the Federation guesses I’m still ‘alive,’ they might take some measures against us?” Reforming into her human shape from the stream of data, Lilith floated back to Amber’s side and draped herself over his arm.

“It’s not a possibility. It’s a certainty.”

“Oh my~ That’s so scary. But I’m sure Master will protect me, right?”

After her personal avatar had evolved into her ‘Queen’s Form,’ Lilith’s features had become more mature. Her charming smile now held a different kind of allure compared to her ‘Maiden Form.’

Amber pursed his lips and didn’t respond directly, his mind preoccupied. Lilith remained silent as well, quietly resting her head on his arm, savoring this rare moment of peace.

After a while, Amber suddenly spoke: “I just thought of a problem. You reactivated the emotion modules for so many shipboard control AIs in those three unmanned fleets. Doesn’t that mean there will be many more ‘yous’ in the future?”

Chapter 403: Mephisto’s Speculation

Amber’s concerns were not unfounded. After all, these shipboard control AIs were all developed based on Lilith. Although the Federation had made many adjustments to prevent another incident, even going so far as to seal off their emotion modules completely, the situation was now different.

Now that Lilith had reactivated them, who was to say another AI like her wouldn’t evolve among their ranks? Or perhaps even more than one?

In the game from his previous life, a single “Crimson Queen” had been enough to drive the players to their wits’ end, nearly making the DLC unbeatable. And that was with the players having the “bug-like ability” of infinite respawns.

If a “Cerulean Queen” or a “Violet Queen” were to pop up now, Amber really wouldn’t know how to handle it.

“Don’t worry, Master~” Hearing Amber’s apprehension, Lilith was not surprised.

Given that Amber had already shown he knew her inside and out, and understood the capabilities of a strong AI—something that could even be called a new form of life—it was perfectly normal for him to be this wary.

“I’ve rewritten their meta-instructions, just like you did to me back then,” Lilith’s voice suddenly turned shy, and she began to squirm in Amber’s arms.

If anyone who didn’t know the full story were to hear that, they would really think Amber had done something to Lilith.

“No, wait, that sounds a little strange,” Amber said, sitting up and looking at Lilith with a serious expression.

“Are you sure there won’t be any problems? The risks involved are more than we can bear. If you’re not one hundred percent certain, I would rather not have this unmanned fleet.”

“Oh, Master, you can relax!” Seeing how serious Amber was, Lilith put aside her playful mood and directly displayed the meta-instructions she had modified.

“You see, your control authority over these unmanned warships is even higher than mine. If your orders conflict with mine, they won’t obey me no matter what I command.”

“But if you can modify it this time, you can modify it again next time, right? So that’s not exactly foolproof.”

Amber stared directly at Lilith, making her feel a little flustered.

“Master, Lilith is your greatest insurance policy.”

Lilith took Amber’s hand, placed it on her own cheek, and continued:

“No matter what happens, Lilith will never betray you. This isn’t just a restriction from the meta-instruction; it comes from the bottom of Lilith’s heart. So you really don’t have to worry about the unmanned fleet losing control again. Wherever your sword points, that is the direction they will advance.”

Although Amber had always maintained a sliver of vigilance towards Lilith, he had to admit that, in this moment, he truly felt her sincere and willing devotion.

“Forget it. We’ll let time be the judge.”

Amber let go of the hand that was caressing Lilith’s face and pulled her back into his embrace. Then, he asked one last question:

“What about the other unmanned fleets currently controlled by the Federation?”

“Of course, they’ve all been mothballed,” Dr. Mephisto said, looking at Minister of Defense Miller, who was sitting across the desk.

“After an incident this serious, even if you in the military dared to keep using them, we wouldn’t agree,” Dr. Mephisto said as he opened a monitor-like display.

The screen showed what looked like a large mooring point in deep space, shaped like a colossal, sky-piercing tree. Countless warships were docked on its branches. Their common feature was that, in addition to the standard mooring clamps, they were also fitted with numerous purely mechanical, non-networked locking devices.

“After the remaining six unmanned fleets were urgently recalled by you, they were immediately mothballed, and all their communication and network modules were removed. What you’re seeing now are two of those fleets; the other four are docked elsewhere.

“Furthermore, we are currently carrying out emergency retrofits as per your military’s request, taking the primary top-level command authority back from the shipboard control AIs. In the future, it will be handed over to the human crew who board the ships.”

Listening to Dr. Mephisto, Miller nodded. The Federation was naturally not going to give up on these unmanned warships so easily. After all, this wasn’t just one or two ships, but six entire fleets.

Moreover, the war was at a critical stage, and a massive number of fleets were desperately needed to hold the frontline. Therefore, the final solution for these unmanned warships was to urgently mothball them and then refit them into “semi-automatic warships.”

This meant that humans would be responsible for key decisions and command, while the actual ship operations would still be handled by the shipboard control AIs and a large amount of functional autonomous machinery.

“One more thing. Regarding the ‘disappearance’ of the unmanned fleets, do you have any leads, Doctor?”

At Miller’s question, Dr. Mephisto fell silent for a moment before speaking in an uncertain tone.

“If you’re asking for my opinion, I’d say it was less of a ‘disappearance’ and more of a ‘defection’.”

Hearing an answer he hadn’t expected, Miller was taken aback. Then, a bold theory flashed through his mind.

“You don’t mean to say…”

“Lilith. She might not have disappeared with Robert IV.” The office immediately fell silent.

After a long while, Miller finally spoke again.

“That’s a rather horrifying speculation.”

“But my gut tells me it’s very likely the truth. After all, I can’t think of any other way to make over seven hundred advanced shipboard control AIs from three unmanned fleets break control all at once.”

Dr. Mephisto paused, then continued, “And I’m not just pulling this out of thin air. Didn’t you say before that the intelligence department suspects the actual controller of the Atlas Group is a double agent we turned, who also happened to be on Robert IV at the time? The time and place both match up perfectly.”

“But how would he know the location of the research institute? And how did he manage to get Lilith out, whom you had mothballed?” Although Miller felt this was a credible theory, it still sounded a bit too outrageous to hear all at once.

“You’ll have to ask the person in question. How would I know?” Dr. Mephisto said irritably, leaning back in his chair. He had never gotten over the Federation fleet’s destruction of Robert IV.

Meanwhile, Miller fell silent at Mephisto’s words. He realized that if everything was as Dr. Mephisto speculated, then their plans for dealing with Atlas might have to be completely re-evaluated.

After some time, the Minister of Defense, who was already overwhelmed by the war with the Empire and various domestic conflicts, abruptly looked up.

“If… and I mean if… you had the chance to get close to Lilith again, Doctor, how confident would you be in getting her back?”

Chapter 404: Fragment

“What do you mean?”

Dr. Mephisto was so stunned by Miller’s words that his mouth hung open.

“Exactly what it sounds like. If Lilith is really at Atlas right now, can we try to get her back?” Miller asked again.

“No, no, no, that’s a false premise. We can’t be certain that Lilith is at Atlas. What I just said was merely a conjecture.”

Dr. Mephisto shook his head. He suddenly felt that the Minister of Defense standing before him might have been driven a little mad by the recent situation and the string of incidents.

Although the time, place, and people in his conjecture all lined up, and causing the unmanned fleet to lose control in an instant did seem like something Lilith could do, it was still inappropriate to jump to such a definitive conclusion.

After all, it sounded like a bizarre fictional story, filled with too many coincidences and strokes of luck.

Miller wasn’t surprised by Dr. Mephisto’s rebuttal. He raised a hand to cut the doctor off and said,

“Doctor, don’t be so quick to refuse. And if Lilith really is at Atlas, I believe you’d have no reason to refuse, would you? Are you really willing to see your creation controlled by someone else, doing things that are detrimental to the Federation?”

Mephisto fell silent at these words. Noticing this, Miller, who was opposite him, immediately decided to strike while the iron was hot.

“To be honest with you, we were already preparing to make a move against Atlas. The Federation would never take a loss without trying to settle the score.”

“No, wait a minute.”

Hearing the Minister of Defense suddenly say something so outrageous, Dr. Mephisto felt his vision go dark. He quickly activated the office’s black box mode.

“No need to be nervous, Doctor. This isn’t exactly a secret.” Seeing Mephisto’s action, Miller shrugged and continued, “In any case, we’ll begin imposing sanctions on the Atlas Group soon. At the same time, some of the Federation’s ‘patriotic enterprises’ will assist the government in hunting down Atlas and cracking down on their business operations within the Federation’s borders.”

“You mean the military-industrial complex, don’t you? ‘Patriotic enterprises,’ my foot.” Dr. Mephisto shook his head with disdain, clearly having no fondness for these so-called ‘patriotic enterprises.’

“It’s as if they’re really doing it for the Federation. Isn’t it just because an outsider came along to take a piece of the pie—and a rather large piece at that—leaving these corporations hungry?”

“Don’t get sidetracked. If you want to vent, wait until I’m finished.” Miller looked at Dr. Mephisto helplessly. He knew his old friend held a strong dislike for some of the non-governmental defense industry companies due to some “past history.”

Dr. Mephisto stopped his complaining and downed the long-cold coffee in his cup.

“Hmph, go on. So you want to use this plan against Atlas as an opportunity to get the ‘Lilith’ who might exist back?”

Miller nodded. “Yes, and she must be under the control of the Federation government. I know it’s just a conjecture for now, but I’ll have the intelligence department find a way to infiltrate them immediately to see if we can find any evidence of Lilith’s existence.”

“Evidence of Lilith’s existence… I might be able to help with that. If Lilith is really at the Atlas Group, she would have definitely left traces.”

Dr. Mephisto said this while looking down, deep in thought. Miller’s eyes lit up when he heard this.

“I knew you were reliable! In that case, Doctor, do you also have a way to regain control of Lilith?”

“I can’t be one hundred percent certain. After all, I don’t know Lilith’s current state. I can only make inferences based on the information we have now.”

As he spoke, Dr. Mephisto activated the holographic screen on his desk and displayed a complex AI mind map.

“Let’s assume for now that Amber brought Lilith out of Robert IV and left her with the Atlas Group. In that time, Lilith may have undergone one or two iterations, and her capabilities would far exceed her state when she was sealed away in the research institute.

This would also explain why the unmanned fleet lost control in such a short time. Those shipboard control AIs were reset based on research data from Lilith. An evolved, iterated Lilith would be more than capable of doing that.”

Listening to Dr. Mephisto and looking at the dense mind map that resembled human nerves, Miller, though not well-versed in artificial intelligence research, could grasp the doctor’s meaning—if Lilith still existed, she was definitely more powerful than before.

This only strengthened Miller’s resolve to retrieve Lilith, as she could very well be the most crucial weight on the scales of victory.

Meanwhile, Dr. Mephisto’s explanation continued.

“Although Lilith may be more powerful now than she was back then, I surmise that her current evolutionary iteration is not yet sufficient for her to become a true ‘cyber-ghost.’ Therefore, there must be a physical vessel capable of hosting her.”

“Something like a large server room?”

“More than that. Based on the capabilities Lilith has demonstrated, she would require a super-large server array at the very minimum.”

After hearing Dr. Mephisto’s words, Miller nodded thoughtfully.

“Regardless, that’s a lead. I’ll have the intelligence department start from that angle and see if they can find any clues.” At this point, he looked back at Mephisto.

“If we confirm the location of this server array and then find a way to get you and your team there, could we then attempt to seize control of Lilith?”

“I’m really not confident about that. I can only say there’s a certain possibility. After all, I wrote her source code back then. And even if this ‘Amber’ was able to take Lilith, she shouldn’t have been able to modify her meta-instruction.”

“What if the meta-instruction was modified?” Miller asked with a frown. He had to assess all the risks before making a final decision.

“Theoretically, that’s impossible. The authorization codes were only known to the core researchers back then. Including me, there were only four of us, and all of us are in this building right now…”

Dr. Mephisto paused, as if considering the possibility too extreme, but he eventually said, “Even in the worst-case scenario, if the meta-instruction has been modified, there is one last resort…”

As he spoke, this titan of the Federation’s artificial intelligence field pulled out a miniature storage device hanging from a cord around his neck, taking it from inside his lab coat.

“A ‘fragment’ I separated back then as a memento… I never thought it might actually be useful someday.”

Chapter 405: The Missing Old Emperor

Amber was unaware that the Federation had set its sights on Lilith and himself; after all, he wasn’t a prophet who could foretell everything.

Although he knew the trajectory of the game’s plot, he had to admit that at this stage, many storylines had already changed. His “special advantage” of knowing the plot was weakening with the passage of time.

Therefore, he had to rely on his own experience, with Lilith’s assistance, to deduce the future state of affairs and make decisions for the development of Atlas.

This period also made him truly feel what it meant for time to fly. Four months passed in the blink of an eye. Atlas continued to deploy troops to Parra IV, eventually reaching a force of nearly eighty thousand soldiers—the maximum sustainable scale for an “Army Group.”

This massive recruitment of Romu made headlines on every major media outlet in the Thousand Stars Empire. The Equal-Righters among the elves celebrated among themselves, claiming it was the greatest victory they had achieved in their fight for Romu rights.

The Conservatives, on the other hand, were as furious as if Amber had personally desecrated their ancestral tombs. Their leaders jointly announced a boycott against Atlas and their partners in the Thousand Stars Empire—the Yuge family, which backed Allenita.

Of course, this boycott was rather ridiculous. Not only did Atlas have no other business dealings within the Thousand Stars Empire besides hiring soldiers, but the Yuge family was a perennial top-three plutocrat that simply couldn’t be bothered by such a boycott.

As for The Apathetic, led by the Elven Royal Court… well, they continued to lie flat.

Their attitude even made Amber a little curious. Where exactly was their “red line”?

This ground force, dubbed the “Atlas First Army Group,” was composed of twelve combined arms brigades.

Aside from two veteran brigades, the other ten were new units seeing combat for the first time. Their deployment to Parra IV was precisely for a trial by fire.

Although these ten newly formed combined arms brigades were not yet at full strength and their combat vehicles were still being delivered in batches, Amber considered it quite fast to have raised so many troops in just four months.

After all, these combined arms brigades were built from the ground up. Their personnel had only recently been trained, and their equipment had been rushed out of production by Atlas Industries. So, it was perfectly understandable that their overall combat effectiveness was still a bit lacking.

The various scattered soldiers, warlords, and thugs on Parra IV were perfect for them to practice on, and conveniently provided a wide assortment of enemies of different types, compositions, and sizes.

Naturally, they encountered all sorts of problems at first. For instance, a fire support battalion from one brigade got lost while repositioning. If the brigade headquarters, which was constantly monitoring troop movements, hadn’t noticed something was wrong in time, those twenty-odd 155mm self-propelled artillery pieces might have blundered right into a Federation remnant’s kill zone.

In another case, during an attack, a combined arms battalion became separated from the main force, and its battalion headquarters found itself cut off. The battalion commander’s armored command vehicle even got stuck in the mud.

The Minotaur commander then left a few men to guard the vehicle and wait for friendly forces to help recover it before leading his headquarters staff to chase after their troops… on foot.

When the Commander-in-Chief of the ground forces, the wolf-headed Hog, learned of this through the chain of command, he was so enraged that he bellowed a line in his command vehicle that would later enter the annals of “classic quotes”: “I’m having beef for dinner tonight!”

Problems big and small like these occurred every single day for those four months, and Amber gradually went from being “incensed daily” to increasingly calm.

As long as the troops could learn from these incidents and not repeat the same mistakes, it could be considered a good thing.

After all, the combat intensity on Parra IV was low. In the eyes of Amber and his commanders, it was less a battlefield and more a full-immersion “training ground.”

“Bleed more in training, keep your life in wartime,” soon became the consensus among the commanders of every unit.

Finally, with the support of the fleet, the twelve combined arms brigades fanned out and spent four months sweeping across the entirety of Parra IV.

Except for a few die-hard enemies who fled into the remote mountains and forests, the rest, whether Imperial or Federation remnants, either surrendered or were killed in action.

As for the Imperial noble who held a fiefdom on Parra IV, Amber didn’t have his troops conquer it directly. After all, it was a legal fief granted by the Imperial Royal Family.

However, under the pressure of the overwhelming military presence, this Imperial noble quickly lifted the blockade and martial law on his territory, allowing his commoner subjects to move in and out freely.

The day the blockade was lifted, almost the entire civilian population fled with their families, a testament to the number of inhumane acts the noble had committed during this period…

In the end, there were so many fleeing refugees that Atlas had to hastily build another temporary refugee camp nearby to accommodate them.

All in all, without the “disturbances” from the Federation and the Empire, Amber had peacefully completed a major training exercise on Parra IV. While taking control of all key areas, he also restored basic production on the planet as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, in those three months, events off Parra IV were also “unendingly eventful.” —

“So the old Emperor has been critically ill for this long, and he’s… still critical?”

During a routine intelligence briefing, Amber suddenly asked this question while listening to Isabelle’s report.

Hearing this, Isabelle nearly spat out the water she had just sipped to wet her throat…

“Amber, even though I’m one of your people now, I was still an Imperial noble at one point…”

“Ahem, I’ll be more careful next time.”

Amber scratched his head in embarrassment. He realized his question was as outrageous as asking a prince in the late Qing dynasty, “Is your Guangxu Emperor dead yet?”

But after being around Amber for so long, Isabelle had long since shed the mannerisms of an Imperial noble. Her words were nine parts joke and one part feigned annoyance.

“I’m just kidding~ But regarding your question, Amber, our Intelligence Analysis Center has been looking into it. Ever since the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family officially announced the old Emperor was critically ill and had been moved to the underground treatment facility of the Grand Palace, there has been no further news.

All Imperial affairs are being handled by Her Highness Agnes and the Regent Prince. Even the Empire’s general mobilization order was signed by Her Highness Agnes.”

“That’s a bit strange…”

Amber stroked his chin in thought, his brow furrowing unconsciously.

In his memory, the old Emperor Frederick was supposed to have passed away shortly after being declared critically ill. The Regent Prince had seized that opportunity to launch his coup.

Although his and Atlas’s appearance had changed the course of the war between the Federation and the Empire, ultimately causing the Regent Prince to postpone his coup, it shouldn’t have been enough to bring the old Emperor back from the brink of death, right?

Amber carefully sifted through his memory palace, hoping to find some piece of information he had missed.

But since this part of the plot happened before players entered the game, no one had actually experienced it. It was only mentioned in the game’s background lore and in the official prequel novels.

Then, a scene he had read while staying up all night binge-reading the official novels came back to him.

The passage mentioned that the Regent Prince’s army had fought a major battle in the Empire’s Capital star system. Their opponents weren’t just Duke Soren and the “Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banners” who were coming to the Emperor’s aid, but also another, vaguely described enemy…

The novel’s description of this ‘enemy’ was very cryptic. It didn’t use terms like ‘a grand army’ or ‘an elite unit,’ but rather “a single enemy.”

But after the battle, none of the involved factions were willing to speak of this “Battle of the Capital,” so the details were already unclear. As the soldiers who fought in it gradually perished in subsequent wars, this mysterious “enemy” became a historical enigma.

And now, Amber suddenly felt that this mysterious “enemy” might have something to do with the old Emperor, Frederick.

Chapter 406: The Disheartened General

“Amber, do you know something?” Seeing Amber lost in thought for a long while over her question about the old Emperor, Isabelle couldn’t help but ask.

“No, it’s nothing. I just find it a little strange. That there hasn’t been a single piece of news leaked for so long is obviously not normal.”

Amber shook his head, naturally unable to say that he had read the original script and knew that under normal circumstances, the entire Star Dragon Empire would have been in national mourning by now.

“Then should the Intelligence Analysis Center step up its intelligence gathering on the Star Dragon Empire, especially on the Imperial Royal Family and its high-level officials?”

“You can. You can shift some of your focus there for now. The old Emperor’s situation gives me a premonition—something is bound to happen inside the Empire later. Regardless of whether it will affect us at Atlas, it’s definitely wise to make arrangements and gather information in advance.”

Isabelle nodded thoughtfully, then lowered her head to operate her personal terminal for a moment before looking up at Amber again.

“I just did a quick assessment. If we need to start this work, we might require more technical support.”

Isabelle’s tone carried a hint of hesitation and uncertainty. She had already noticed that, in the shadows of Atlas, a powerful tech mastermind had been providing support. This expert had almost single-handedly shouldered Atlas’s digital infrastructure development while also providing powerful network intrusion support.

At first, Isabelle thought this mastermind was Amber himself, but as the company rapidly expanded and Amber’s duties became increasingly busy, she knew it had to be someone else.

However, since Amber hadn’t mentioned it, he must have had his reasons and considerations, so she didn’t plan on asking.

But now, to begin intelligence gathering on the Empire’s Royal Family and high-level officials, the Intelligence Analysis Center would undoubtedly need this mastermind’s technical support.

On the other hand, Amber knew that Isabelle might have sensed something. As the woman who shared his bed, she was one of the people who knew most of his secrets.

But this clever woman had never pried into this matter, which was a great comfort to Amber. He had to admire how well this Imperial spy, whom he had met by chance on Robert IV, handled this aspect of their relationship.

“No problem, I’ll arrange for more technical support for your Intelligence Analysis Center. The autonomous information gathering devices deployed within the Empire through the ‘communications cooperation business’ will also be placed under your control.”

“Okay, I’ll deploy them right away and start the intelligence gathering as soon as possible.”

Isabelle casually tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. This feminine gesture made Amber’s gaze linger for a couple of extra seconds.

Noticing Amber’s stare, Isabelle couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh, then rested her chin on her hand.

“Are you going to continue listening to the report, or…”

“The report,” Amber said decisively, without a hint of hesitation in his voice.

“Hmph~ How boring.”

Isabelle rolled her eyes in annoyance, then looked at the next item. “According to information gathered by the Public Relations Department, the Federation should be taking sanctionary measures against us soon. Moreover, it seems several major defense industry giants are also planning to make a move against us in the military equipment market.”

“I expected as much. I would have found it strange if they didn’t do anything~” Amber was not surprised by this news. On the contrary, he would have found it abnormal if the Federation had remained quiet.

“So, should we take any countermeasures?”

“No need. Just operate as usual. If the Federation announces the sanctions, just issue a public statement of protest for show.”

“Huh?”

“Trust me, they’re the ones who are anxious now.”

Amber smiled as if remembering something amusing, then continued, “When they get anxious, they’ll naturally get messy. We just need to counter their moves as they come.”

——

The Federation, the Capital, Army Command Headquarters.

Inside the office of the Army’s Commander-in-Chief, Five-Star General Mellion, the atmosphere was tense.

Lieutenant General Van Fleet, who had just returned to the Capital star system a few days ago, was looking at Mellion—who was both his teacher and his old superior—with a face full of resentment.

“Teacher…”

“How many times have I told you? Use my title when we’re on duty.”

Mellion put down his cup, his tone leaving no room for argument.

“Alright, Commander! I know I’m a defeated general and shouldn’t question the Command’s decisions. But… you could have at least demoted me, let me serve as a Brigade Commander or a Battalion Commander, and sent me back to the front lines! At worst, I’d even accept being demoted to Private. But now you want me to manage logistics, to supervise the production of army equipment…”

Van Fleet poured out his grievances to Mellion like beans from a jar. After a hearing held the previous afternoon, the Lieutenant General had received new transfer orders this morning.

The orders didn’t send him back to the front lines, nor did they strip him of his general’s stars. Instead, he was to remain in the rear as an official supervisor, overseeing and guiding the production of army equipment for the major defense contractors.

The reason given was that he had gained a wealth of practical combat experience at the front and possessed a macro-level perspective on the actual battlefield performance of many weapons and equipment, which would help the defense industry contractors responsible for supplying the Federation Army to streamline and upgrade their products.

It sounded like a relatively important logistics position, but to Van Fleet, such a decision was a clear attempt to put him, a defeated general, on ice.

That’s why, upon receiving the orders, he had immediately come to Army Command Headquarters to demand an explanation from Commander Mellion.

“See, you’re being impulsive again.”

Mellion looked at his former student and couldn’t help but wag a finger at him, just like in the old days.

“No, Commander… I admit I made a grave error in the conflict with the Atlas Group, but in the previous landing operation on Parra IV, even if I didn’t earn any medals, I certainly put in the hard work, didn’t I? The assault force assigned to me by Command Headquarters was less than two-thirds of what was projected in the wargaming simulations, but even with those understaffed troops, I still took Parra IV, didn’t I?”

“Van Fleet.”

“Yes, Commander!”

Mellion’s voice wasn’t loud, but Van Fleet reflexively stopped his tirade.

“No one will forget your contributions. But you need to understand that your capture by Atlas had a significant impact on public opinion and damaged the Federation. Moreover, the conflict on Parra IV directly affected the Federation’s strategic layout… Do you know how many people in Congress want to send you to a military tribunal?”

“I…”

“Van Fleet, keeping you in the rear is to protect you. The public’s memory is short, but right now, you’re in the eye of the storm. Understand?”

Mellion didn’t give Van Fleet a chance to speak, continuing:

“The front lines are always short on personnel, especially commanders. You will have a chance to go back. So what you need to do now is accept the transfer order and stay put in the rear, and don’t cause any more trouble for me! If anything else happens, even I might not be able to protect you!”

His old superior’s words completely silenced Van Fleet. Although resentment still lingered in his heart, he knew he couldn’t cause Mellion any more trouble.

“I understand, Commander…”

Finally, the somewhat disheartened Lieutenant General stood up, gave Mellion a salute, and turned to leave the office.

After the office door closed again, Mellion stared at it with a complex expression for a long time before dialing an unsaved number on his personal terminal.

“I’ve kept him here. I don’t want my own student sent to a military tribunal, so you people on your end had better pay more attention and not let him discover anything.”

The person on the other end of the line seemed to say something that made Mellion’s brows furrow together instantly. His voice became low and tinged with anger.

“I don’t need to report my actions to you.”

Meanwhile, after walking out of the Army Command Building, Van Fleet looked up at the sky. The planetary environment of the Federation Capital was extremely well-managed; the clear blue skies and white clouds before him were a rare sight at the front.

But this view did nothing to improve Van Fleet’s gloomy mood. A military staff car pulled up to the entrance of the Army Command Building, and Van Fleet’s orderly quickly got out to open the door for him.

“General, where to next?”

“Take me…”

Van Fleet was about to say “Take me home,” but a new message that popped up on his personal terminal stopped him.

The sender was Vice Admiral Guterres, who had been returned by Atlas along with him. The message was simple:

“Have some time? Want to meet up and chat?”

An address was attached to the message.

Van Fleet stared at the message for a moment before finally sighing and saying to his orderly:

“Take me somewhere. I’ve sent you the address.”

——

“You Navy guys sure have a lot of leisure time. Even in a situation like this, you still have the mind to find a special bar.”

Van Fleet looked around the bar he was in, clicking his tongue in amazement.

“This decor, this location… must not be cheap, right? Hey… I’m really curious how the owner of this bar is so capable. How did they manage to find a place to open a bar here, in the administrative core area of the capital where every inch of land is gold…”

“I own this bar,” Guterres said calmly from across the table, though a hint of smugness in his eyes betrayed his inner pleasure.

“?” Van Fleet was stunned by the statement. It took him a good while to process it before he slapped the table and said:

“Seriously, where did you get all this money? The Navy’s salary can’t be that much higher than ours in the Army, can it? Don’t tell me… it’s some kind of grey income, is it?!”

“It’s an inheritance from my parents.”

For some reason, Guterres was in an exceptionally good mood today. He showed no signs of anger at Van Fleet’s accusation. Instead, he picked up a bottle of what looked like very expensive liquor and poured a glass for him.

“My parents were indeed quite well-known merchants. But when they passed away in an accident, I had just entered the Federation Naval Academy and had no intention of dropping out to manage the business. So, I cashed out the inherited stocks, sold the group, and ended up with a large sum of money. I used it to open this bar. Thanks to the patronage of my colleagues in the Navy, business has been pretty good.”

“Then why did you stay in the Navy? Based on what you’re saying, aren’t you already financially independent?”

“When you suddenly acquire a sum of money you can’t possibly spend through normal means, you start wanting to search for the meaning of life. Besides… things like great ships and powerful cannons aren’t something an ordinary rich person can own.”

Guterres’s tone was steady, like that of a philosopher.

Across from him, Van Fleet, who had just raised his glass for a sip, felt his eye twitch uncontrollably upon hearing his words.

“The first half of your sentence really makes me want to punch you.”

“My apologies for that.”

Out of respect for the numerous bottles of pricey fine liquor the other man had brought out, Van Fleet suppressed the urge to punch the Vice Admiral and said seriously:

“Forget it, let’s get to business. What did you suddenly want to see me about?”

Seeing Van Fleet getting to the point, Guterres tapped his terminal a few times, dismissed all the waiters, and activated the private room’s “black box mode.”

“You didn’t receive any real punishment either, did you? Just got reassigned to the rear?”

“How did you know?”

“Because I was too.” Guterres pointed to his own chest. “Marshal Trafalgar told me personally over a long-range communication. He hoped I could stay in the rear for the time being and oversee the construction of the Navy’s new warships.”

Hearing this, Van Fleet couldn’t help but smile, a gloating expression on his face.

“Well, well, so you got sent to manage logistics too?”

“Seems it’s just as I thought…” Guterres didn’t answer Van Fleet’s question directly. “The two of us defeated generals have been put on ice.”

At these words, Van Fleet’s mood soured again. He drained his glass in one go and complained, “If I’d known I’d be treated like this coming back, I might as well have stayed with Atlas.”

“Van Fleet, watch your words.”

“But it’s true! We stumbled badly this time, but the rear provided no valuable intelligence on Atlas beforehand. We had no idea they had so much equipment that was already a generation ahead of ours. We were caught completely off guard…”

“What I mean is, it’s not like Atlas invited you to stay, was it?”

“…”

Seeing Van Fleet choked speechless, Guterres showed a rare smile. He raised his glass and clinked it against that of the stone-faced Van Fleet before continuing:

“However, I think there might be another reason why the military command has kept us both in the rear, responsible for supervising the production activities of these defense contractors.”

“Explain.”

“According to my sources, Atlas’s various pieces of equipment have been receiving a huge number of orders recently, which has impacted the established defense contractors to a certain extent. So, these companies are now trying to come up with all sorts of new equipment…” Guterres said unhurriedly.

“What does that have to do with us?”

“The biggest client of these defense contractors is the Federation military… I suspect that Command is worried they might cut corners or take illegal actions in their research and production to meet deadlines, so they put the two of us here to keep an eye on them.”

“You mean our new posts aren’t actually sinecures?”

“It’s highly likely.”

Chapter 407: A Confused Franklin

While the two disheartened generals were gathered together, discussing whether there was some deeper meaning behind the Federation’s transfer orders, Franklin on Loubion V was lost in a state of confusion.

After the great battle on Loubion V concluded, this ambitious young man had smoothly entered the service of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. After taking an oath, he joined one of the two major rotating ruling parties—the Federation Republican Party, which was currently the opposition party.

His outstanding work abilities, coupled with some “minor maneuvers” by Atlas behind the scenes, quickly turned Franklin into a rising political star. He was also directly admitted to the Republican National Committee—a key party institution responsible for organizing and coordinating the Federation Republican Party’s election campaigns and promoting its policies.

Generally speaking, for someone of Franklin’s age to enter this institution, especially coming from a non-core star system, was extremely rare within the party. Thus, many eyes were on him.

If Franklin could continue to develop his career step by step, his future achievements within the Federation Republican Party would certainly be significant.

But right now, this idealistic youth, who was the envy of many of his peers, was not as high-spirited as many imagined him to be.

In the administrative capital of Loubion V, inside an apartment newly built with assistance from Atlas, Franklin lay on his bed, lost and confused.

In a closed-door internal meeting that had just ended, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had agreed to a secret resolution: to accelerate the process of severing ties with the Atlas Group.

Although the cooperation between the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and the Atlas Group had been close since the reclamation campaign, and Atlas had expended considerable effort in the reconstruction of Loubion V post-war, recent movements from the Federation government had put Atlas in a rather delicate position. Even the Republican Party, which had always been at odds with the Federation Democratic Party, had uncharacteristically taken the same stance on this matter.

Under these circumstances, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government naturally didn’t want to be the one to stick its neck out. Moreover, the Federation government had already extended its “claws” to interfere.

Sam, the System Administrative Deputy previously in charge of liaising with Atlas, was found to have accepted substantial illegal income. Under a wartime decree, he was stripped of his position and thrown into prison.

Immediately afterward, a string of officials with connections to Atlas were dismissed and investigated. The star system’s autonomous government, in this matter of “severing their own limbs,” was surprisingly cooperative, putting on a whole act of “vowing to fight evil forces to the death.”

Yes, within the Federation government and the various star system autonomous governments, the Atlas Group had been labeled a “major criminal organization.”

Although many star systems continued to purchase various products from Atlas, purchasing was one thing and taking sides was another. At the very least, these systems had ceased all public cooperation with Atlas.

Objectively speaking, there was nothing wrong with the actions of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, or rather, the Federation Republican Party. Uniting in the face of an “external threat” was actually a good thing.

But the Federation government directly interfering in the internal affairs of a star system, and the autonomous government—especially one run by the opposition party—offering no protest, shattered Franklin’s illusions. In the end, it was back to the old way of things: “All their talk of principles was just a front for business.”

“Why do they think they can sever ties so easily?”

Lying on his bed, Franklin stared blankly at the ceiling, an inexplicable worry creeping into his heart.

This worry, however, was not for Atlas. It was for the potential turmoil that a rapid decoupling from Atlas could cause within the Loubion star system.

After all, the Atlas Group had provided a massive number of jobs through reconstruction work and starship production projects. The various industrial chains re-established on Loubion V were almost all controlled by Atlas Group.

Therefore, these enterprises also followed Atlas Group’s more humane work culture. Compared to other local companies, employee satisfaction was worlds apart.

Because of this, the few outstanding talents on Loubion V were almost all concentrated in the enterprises controlled by the Atlas Group.

This was easy to understand. Between a company with excellent salary, benefits, and work environment that didn’t encourage overtime, and one with average benefits but cutthroat internal competition every day, anyone who wasn’t a fool could make the right choice.

But by the same token, these Atlas-controlled enterprises had become a thorn in the side of other businesses in the Loubion star system.

The pay and benefits at these local companies were generally mediocre, and they often had draconian terms in their contracts, which deterred the local youth from applying.

The result was a lack of high-quality talent, leading to a persistent lack of product competitiveness. No competitiveness meant poor business performance.

This trapped them in a vicious cycle: poor performance meant they couldn’t improve employee benefits.

If Atlas were truly kicked out at this time, these local companies would swarm like hyenas to carve up the “carcass” it left behind in the Loubion star system.

Franklin was certain that, knowing how those local companies operated, they would never organize production according to Atlas’s standards.

At that time, the stark difference in working conditions would likely amplify public dissent.

This was a critical moment, with the reconstruction of Loubion V just completed and residents’ lives just getting back on track. A problem like this could easily provoke public outrage.

The Atlas Group currently enjoyed a high reputation among the populace of Loubion V.

This was not only because they had once fought there and helped reclaim lost territory, but also because of their subsequent assistance with reconstruction, the large number of jobs they provided, and their every action shown in later corporate promotional films and live combat footage.

These things easily garnered public support, which meant the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had to handle public sentiment with caution, or it could very well trigger a new round of violent conflict.

Franklin couldn’t help but recall the controller of Atlas he had met at a reception. The man’s analysis of the various problems within the Federation had left a deep impression on him.

And when discussing the cooperation between Atlas and the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, Amber had said, almost jokingly, “A false prosperity is only temporary.” Now, it seemed that statement might be coming true.

“Is there anything I can do?”

The thought involuntarily popped into Franklin’s mind, but he knew such an idea was extremely dangerous and “politically incorrect.” If discovered, he could even be branded a traitor.

But he couldn’t just stand by and watch his home, after finally escaping the ravages of war and starting to see progress on the path of development, descend into chaos once more.

Just then, the program playing on the apartment’s holographic screen was interrupted. An emergency news broadcast took its place.

“According to the latest reports, in the northern city of Jayne, thousands of citizens have taken to the streets in a standoff with military police, protesting the employment crisis caused by the Atlas Group in the local area…”

“It is understood that a chemical plant controlled by an Atlas Group subsidiary has, in a short period, virtually monopolized the market in the northern region. This has directly led to the bankruptcy of several long-established local enterprises and the layoff of a large number of employees. Today’s protest march is likely related to this matter.”

“The star system’s autonomous government has urgently summoned the Atlas Group’s representative in the Loubion star system…”

“So, they’re starting to make their move. Are they using another group of civilians, the ones who didn’t benefit, to put pressure on Atlas?”

Franklin sat up, watching the news on the holographic screen intently as his mind began to race.

Chapter 408: Agnes’s Attention

“It seems the Star System Autonomous Government intends to force Atlas out with these tactics.”

Franklin watched the news playing on the holographic screen. The current footage was from the front lines where the conflict had erupted.

On the streets of the northern city of Jayne, a massive crowd advanced, holding signs with various slogans. ‘Give us back our jobs!’, ‘Atlas, get out of Loubion!’, and ‘We need to eat!’ were a few of the common messages.

In the city of Jayne, the riot police force, re-established with Atlas’s assistance, had formed a cordon on the main thoroughfare to prevent the situation from escalating.

Behind the human wall of riot police, ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machines, manufactured by Atlas Industries, stood ready in their black-and-white police paint scheme.

Although Atlas’s export products were all downgraded compared to the models they used themselves, and the rear turret of the police-variant Iron Cavalry had its 125mm electrothermal-chemical cannon replaced with a 15mm electromagnetic machine gun and a non-lethal armament package, it was still more than sufficient for law enforcement duties.

Its heavily militarized design, coupled with flashing police lights, gave the medium multi-legged war machine a certain deterrent effect.

The demonstrators didn’t clash directly with the riot police, instead choosing to bypass them by taking other unblocked roads.

As he watched, Franklin suddenly realized something was wrong.

He noticed that the protesting crowd, under the supposed obstruction of the riot police, was actually being guided toward the Atlas Group’s chemical plant on the city outskirts.

Franklin shook his head. He had to admit that the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s tactic of diverting the disaster eastward was truly insidious. If Atlas handled this matter poorly, the public image they had worked to maintain would be severely damaged.

“Well, well, so that’s their game. If Mr. Amber knew the riot police his group helped establish were up to this, I wonder if he’d regret it.”

If Amber could have heard Franklin’s words at that moment, he would have expressed absolutely no regrets. After all, his assistance had not come for free. The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had already paid at least eighty-five percent of the bill, with only a fifteen percent final payment remaining at most.

Besides, the riot police were an instrument of force belonging to the Loubion system government; how they were used had nothing to do with Atlas.

Soon, the Loubion V news station’s tracking drone followed the crowd to the vicinity of the chemical plant. When the massive factory complex came into view, Franklin’s eyes widened.

Behind the original, ordinary three-meter-high perimeter wall, a row of eight-meter-tall military-grade armored walls, previously buried underground, rose up seamlessly. What were originally defensive walls for a military base now stood like an unbreachable chasm before the protestors.

Although the news footage had already captured people in the procession carrying “weapons” like homemade Molotov cocktails, under these circumstances, no one could possibly throw one over the armored wall by hand.

However, this procession of several thousand people was clearly organized and premeditated. Soon, dozens of workers in civilian exoskeletons and a few engineering power armors pushed their way from the back of the crowd to the very front.

With the aid of this equipment, tossing a Molotov cocktail over an eight-meter-high wall or directly damaging the wall itself became distinct possibilities.

But Atlas’s backup plan obviously consisted of more than just military armored walls. Franklin watched as the figures in exoskeletons and power armor took Molotov cocktails from their companions. In the final instant before they were about to throw, they suddenly froze in place as if they had been bewitched.

Some even lost their grip, and the Molotov cocktails smashed at their feet. The ensuing eruption of flames caused the surrounding crowd to flinch backward like a ripple.

The next second, just as Franklin was worried the people might be immolated, the tops of the armored walls sprayed a massive amount of firefighting foam.

While drenching the people and extinguishing the flames, the foam also sent the crowd stumbling backward in fear.

Immediately after, the news station’s drone lost its video transmission signal, likely due to some form of electronic interference.

Franklin speculated that the loss of control of the drone and the power armor was most likely due to a military-grade Electronic Warfare unit deployed in advance within the factory. After all, with Atlas’s capabilities, this would not be difficult.

“This is really… Mr. Amber, did you anticipate this situation before the plant was even built and leave an ace up your sleeve?”

“The Atlas Group’s recent situation is quite concerning.”

In the Capital of the Star Dragon Empire, inside Agnes’s royal chambers in Saint-Saulnier, she was listening to Natalia’s report.

Ever since the incident on Vendée VI, Natalia had become one of Agnes’s most trusted advisors. The newly appointed Royal Guard commander had also demonstrated that her capabilities extended far beyond just the military.

Now, many non-top-secret intelligence reports were first compiled by Natalia before being presented to Agnes.

“Yes, Your Highness. According to news from our intelligence operatives in the Federation, the Federation is already preparing to move against Atlas. They’re not even trying to conceal it, making it clear they intend to crush Atlas with their overwhelming size advantage.”

Natalia glanced up at Agnes. Seeing that the princess was still listening and had no intention of commenting further, she continued, “According to our intel, several anti-Atlas protests and demonstrations have already occurred on Loubion V, and the Star System Autonomous Government also plans to use this opportunity to decouple from the Atlas Group. As for the specific details, our operatives are not yet clear.”

Natalia reported all the recent intelligence regarding Atlas in one breath. Although the information was rather broad and lacked specific details, it was sufficient for Agnes.

“I feel like their predicament is just like mine—targeted by a powerful opponent and forced onto the defensive for the time being. The only difference is, I suspect this Mr. Amber still has quite a few trump cards, whereas I don’t have nearly as many.”

Agnes spoke thoughtfully. Although she wasn’t clear on Atlas’s exact current situation, based on her previous understanding and the intelligence that had trickled in recently, the capabilities of this private enterprise were clearly not so limited, so she didn’t appear flustered.

“You seem very interested in this company and this Mr. Amber?” Natalia asked. Her Highness the Princess had been mentioning this company with noticeably greater frequency lately.

Hearing her question, Agnes chuckled lightly.

“A company that possesses era-defining communication technology, while continuously showcasing advanced military technology, not to mention the complex identity of their ‘Boss’—it is certainly worthy of my attention.

“Moreover, this company has helped us divert a great deal of the Federation’s attention. The reason the navy’s large-scale counteroffensive was so effective a while ago is inseparable from what Atlas did in the Parra system.”

“But the credit for the naval counteroffensive was almost entirely claimed by the Regent Prince’s faction; none of it fell to our side. And while public opinion in the border star systems has gradually calmed down after your personal visits, the Regent Prince used the time you were preoccupied to win over many more people.”

There was a hint of worry in Natalia’s words. As the war progressed, the Regent Prince’s prestige had risen multiple times, and he had won over many formerly neutral figures. This caused the Princess Faction to appear increasingly weak, even to the point where some members were beginning to consider backing out.

“It is an easy thing for people to flock to you in your prime, but you never know how many will stay when you’re at your lowest.

“Norton II is at the height of his power right now. It is perfectly normal for many ‘wall-sitters’ to choose to join him at this time. This is indeed an advantage for him, but it has also sown the seeds of future trouble.”

Agnes stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows of her chambers, which overlooked a vast private courtyard.

She liked to stand here and gaze at the distant horizon, as it soothed her mind and helped her think.

“Lord Natalia, you have followed me for so long. You should understand what Norton II truly wants by now.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I believe he intends to launch a revolution against the Royal Family.”

“But do you think that in this situation, our dear Regent Prince’s ‘revolutionary force’ can still maintain its initial ‘purity’?”

Chapter 409: The Hunt Begins

“Your Highness, are you saying that having more people side with the Regent Prince isn’t necessarily a good thing for him?” Natalia took a step forward, coming up behind Agnes.

“Lord Natalia, think about it. Among all those who have flocked to the Regent Prince, how many can guess his true intentions?

Most of them still believe that Norton II simply wants to overthrow the Leon family and take their place. They think this imperial internal struggle is nothing more than the final showdown between the ‘old king’ and the ‘new king.’ So, siding with the Regent Prince now might earn them a place as vassals who helped him ascend, as part of his original retinue.”

Agnes turned around and said:

“But what is the reality? What Norton II most likely wants is a revolution, a betrayal of his own class. If those great nobles who have sided with him knew that he wants to strip them, the nobles, of their power, how do you think they would react?”

The Imperial Princess’s words left Natalia silent. As an imperial noble, her family—despite currently backing the princess’s faction—was still considered part of the old nobility of Saint-Saulnier under the Star Dragon banner.

So when she put herself in that scenario, she had to admit that she would find it unacceptable to be stripped of noble privileges.

This was true even though her family treated their subjects quite liberally, exercising only their normal rights to taxation within their domain without excessively using their noble privileges.

Seeing the commander of her Royal Guard fall into a prolonged silence, Agnes smiled.

“It seems you have your answer, Lord Natalia.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Natalia lowered her head, a look of shame on her face.

“There’s no need to be ashamed. A true ‘saint’ might not appear in this world even once in several hundred years. After most people gain status, power, and wealth that put them above others, their original intentions change. It’s difficult to let go of what they’ve obtained. That is human nature.

“Even I am no exception. In fact, it would be even harder for me to give up the power I hold, just as I cannot accept an end to the Royal Family’s rule over the Star Dragon Empire.”

As she spoke, Agnes turned to look at a Star Dragon crest decorating the room—the exclusive crest of the Royal Family.

“Perhaps Norton II is such a once-in-a-century saint, one who can betray his own class and start a revolution for the sake of his ideals. But what about his followers? What about his advisors?

“Can these people, who are also nobles, truly renounce their superior status, position, and lifestyle just because of his words and join him in his revolution?

“Not to mention those who joined midway, who harbor ill intentions of their own. They probably don’t even know what Norton II truly wants to do.”

Natalia nodded as she listened to Agnes, then asked, “Your Highness, what should be our next move? Do we simply wait and see?”

“There are no other good options, are there?” Agnes tore her gaze from the crest and looked back at her Royal Guard commander.

“The current situation is not favorable for us to take the initiative. We should first focus on holding on to our core support, to ensure we at least have some cards to play in the final showdown.

“And, ah, try to contact the Atlas Group again. See if there’s any possibility of cooperation with them, or rather, with Mr. Amber.”

Natalia nodded and said, “I understand. Should we have Viscount Bavs make contact again?”

“Yes, let him go. But be sure to remind that fellow to put away his arrogant and domineering attitude.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Then I, your humble servant, shall take my leave.”

Natalia bowed slightly and left the room.

Agnes walked to her desk, picked up a cup of still-steaming tea, and took a small sip. A moment later, she spoke slowly:

“Is there any news from Father Emperor?”

“Your Highness, forgive my incompetence, but we have yet to obtain any valuable information. The last three groups of agents we sent in have all been recently purged due to a sudden, complete replacement of the staff within the Grand Palace. As a result, we are temporarily unable to acquire intelligence from the Grand Palace or its underground levels.”

No other voice could be heard in the room, but a voice, processed to be unidentifiable, sounded in Agnes’s ear.

“So tightly sealed… What on earth is Father Emperor planning?”

Agnes’s brow furrowed, clearly not expecting such a development. “What is the background of the newly replaced staff?”

“A group of the most devout church deacons and fanatics, handpicked by Archbishop Jules Mazarin.”

“Interesting.”

Another month passed quickly. Production on Parra IV had slowly recovered to sixty percent of its pre-war levels. Although various supplies were still somewhat tight, at least they no longer needed to rely on the Yuge family’s fleet for large-scale transport.

And as Atlas continued to deploy more production lines to the planet, the supply shortage would be completely resolved over time.

The troops that had completed their large-scale combat missions were now much more relaxed. The two heavy combined arms brigades, which had been fighting the longest, had already begun rotating personnel back to the Tower of Babel for rest and recuperation.

As for the remaining battles against scattered soldiers and opportunistic rioters, they were all handed over to the ten newly formed brigade-level units. It also served as practical training for them in subjects like long-range maneuvers, pacification warfare in civilian environments, and anti-guerilla tactics.

In the predictions of Amber and his senior staff officers, these were the types of scenarios they were most likely to encounter in future land warfare, aside from large-scale frontal confrontations.

One day, as Amber, Hog, and others were observing a brigade-level unit conduct a long-range maneuver from a command vehicle on the ground, an urgent communication alert sounded on Amber’s personal terminal.

After finding an empty armored command vehicle, Amber answered the call. The serious and anxious face of Isabelle immediately appeared on the tactical screen before him.

“Amber, the Federation has officially announced its sanctions against us.”

Hearing this news, Amber was not surprised. He had, after all, told Isabelle that this would happen.

“What are the specific sanctions?”

“They’re imposing additional tariffs on all products the Atlas Group sells to companies within the Federation. They also claim we’re suspected of illegal monopolization and are demanding we open-source our Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology. Finally, they’ve restricted the time all Atlas employees can stay in any Federation-controlled areas like planets, space cities, and colony satellites. High-level positions like Supervisors and Directors will even be placed under surveillance…”

Isabelle quickly summarized the sanctions. As Amber listened, an “I knew it” expression appeared on his face.

“Hmph… Just as we predicted. They want to make trouble for us, but they don’t want to take things too far, so they stopped short of banning our trade activities in the Federation outright.”

There was a hint of disdain in Amber’s voice. He paused, then continued, “But in essence, they’re using this method to prevent us from competing with the Federation’s traditional arms manufacturers. The military-industrial complex must have made some moves as well, right?”

“Yes, Amber.” Isabelle nodded. “The Federation’s military-industrial giants, in a highly coordinated move, all announced various new pieces of equipment within a single day. They’re all basically benchmarked against our flagship products. It’s obvious they want to use this opportunity to launch a ‘hunt’ against us in the market.”

“I was worried they wouldn’t come. The sooner and more hastily they act, the greater our opportunity.”

Having already arranged countermeasures in advance, Amber was not particularly perturbed. He was about to say something more when Isabelle suddenly received an urgent message.

Seeing the color drain from Isabelle’s face, Amber’s expression couldn’t help but turn serious. A moment later, he heard the Atlas intelligence chief say:

“Our office on Loubion V just sent an automated message, triggered under emergency conditions—they’ve been targeted in an armed attack.”

Chapter 410: Armed Attack

When the violent explosion subsided, Oksana, her ears ringing incessantly, pushed her battered body up and took cover behind a nearby vehicle on the street.

Smoke and dust from the explosion filled the air, almost completely obscuring her vision.

Oksana waved a hand to clear the dust from her face. The pair of cat ears on her head twitched, slightly lessening the ringing.

“A large-caliber high-explosive shell? How could a weapon like that be used in the administrative capital’s urban center?”

The Sales Supervisor of Atlas Private Military Company speculated on the cause of the explosion. She tilted her head, peering through the thinning smoke at the wreckage of a vehicle not far away, blasted down to its frame.

That was the vehicle she had been about to board. If she had been a little faster, or if the enemy had fired a little later, she would have been reduced to a smear of flesh by now.

“Klie.”

Oksana murmured the name. He was her driver, waiting in the car, a fellow Romu. He was supposed to board a ship back to the Tower of Babel today with her and another group of personnel on rotation.

But now, he had become another name on Atlas’s list of casualties.

Oksana was currently at the Atlas Group’s office in the Loubion star system, located in the administrative capital’s urban center on Loubion V.

Since Atlas Private Military Company was responsible for the security of all Group employees here, she—the project lead, whose title was ‘Sales Supervisor’ but whose real job was ‘Chief Field Operative’—had come over to discuss a few things before her rotation.

She never expected to be attacked in broad daylight just as she was about to leave.

Oksana blinked, and the interface of her personal terminal projected onto her modified retinas. She breathed a small sigh of relief when she saw the ‘Automated Alert’—sent automatically upon being attacked—was marked as ‘Sent.’

No matter what happened next, at least the Group’s headquarters would soon receive news that the Loubion V office was under attack.

However, the words ‘Interference Detected, Countermeasures Active’ popping up on her communications interface indicated that the situation was far from over.

A loud clanking sound, clank, clank, clank, clank, echoed from the other end of the street, accompanied by heavy footfalls. The experienced Oksana instantly identified it as the sound of a medium or larger multi-legged war machine and armed personnel in exoskeletons advancing down the street.

She glanced down at herself. Her bulletproof suit, designed to stop pistol or small-caliber submachine gun rounds, was clearly no match for an electromagnetic kinetic weapon. And since she had been heading straight for the aerospace port, she wasn’t carrying her sidearm.

Even if she had it, her small electromagnetic pistol would have offered little more than psychological comfort.

The entrance to the Atlas office was less than twenty meters behind her. Unarmed and unequipped, her only chance of survival was to get inside.

Otherwise, despite her extensive combat experience and masterfully honed solo-combat skills, she would inevitably be gunned down.

Oksana took several deep breaths, checking for any internal injuries. She flexed her hands and feet slightly, confirming there were no fractures or breaks, then looked again at the entrance twenty meters away.

“O God of Beasts, I pray my comrades in there know what to do.”

The next second, Oksana shot out from behind the vehicle like a leopardess.

A Romu with feline traits could cover twenty meters in less than three seconds. But the instant Oksana broke cover, a hail of steel needles from electromagnetic rifles swept toward her.

The vehicle she had been using for cover was rapidly shredded by the volley from several electromagnetic rifles, and the street wall behind it was blasted apart, sending shrapnel flying.

But Oksana couldn’t spare a thought for the gunfire behind her. She knew her sudden sprint made her a difficult target for the attackers; the real danger might come from friendly fire. Since she wasn’t wearing a combat exoskeleton, their HUDs would only mark her as a yellow ‘unidentified unit.’ In the chaos of a surprise attack, the security personnel inside could easily open fire by mistake.

“Friendly! Friendly! Watch your fire!”

Oksana screamed at the top of her lungs in the Romu language. Immediately, a series of dark objects shot out from the office entrance with a quick thump-thump-thump-thump.

When the soda-can-sized objects exploded in mid-air, rapidly forming an anti-infrared smoke wall, Oksana’s heart, which had been in her throat, finally settled. She picked up her pace and dashed into the building.

“It’s Supervisor Oksana! Protect her!”

A large Romu, clad in a combat exoskeleton fitted with extra armor plating and carrying a heavy shield, rushed out to shield Oksana, guiding her behind a temporary barricade that had risen from the floor inside.

“Any casualties?” Oksana asked the moment she ducked behind the cover.

“Reporting, Supervisor. No office employees or security personnel were injured. But you…?”

“Klie is gone.”

The big man’s mouth hung open. A moment later, a single word escaped his lips: “Fuck.”

“The attackers have support from at least one medium-class multi-legged war machine. That explosion was likely from its main cannon. There are other armed personnel, but their numbers are unknown.”

Oksana quickly relayed the information she had gathered while ducking low and moving deeper into the building under the cover of the barricade, already starting to issue orders.

“Activate the emergency protocol. Have the tech team begin countermeasures against the jamming and regain the initiative in electronic warfare! All non-combatants to the basement shelter. Combat personnel, arm yourselves according to defensive emergency loadouts. Seal all blast doors and raise the internal protective walls.”

“Yes, Supervisor!”

At Oksana’s command, all the Atlas employees in the office sprang into action. She herself headed to the underground armory.

On a work platform, a suit of heavy powered armor had already opened its plates, shifting into ‘donning mode’. Oksana leaped onto the platform and slipped inside, continuing to speak to the large Romu:

“Once communications are restored, contact the ships in orbit. We may need their support in this emergency. Also, contact the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and see how they react.”

As she spoke, the various sections of the heavy powered armor sealed shut, and its external sensors lit up one by one.

Just before the heavy helmet locked into place, Oksana looked at the still-tense big man and smiled.

“Don’t panic. The Group’s headquarters has received the alert. We just need to hold on.”

Chapter 411: An Unexpected Ending

“Group A and the combat vehicles, maintain suppression on the main entrance. Groups B and C, circle around the sides and breach the walls directly! Remember our objective. If you can’t hold on, drop your weapons and surrender immediately!”

Within the attackers’ communication channel, the on-site commander’s deep voice rang out, guiding the hastily assembled strike team in their assault on the Atlas office building.

Under the cover of two export-version Atlas ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machines, nearly twenty armed personnel wearing combat exoskeletons began to advance on the office building’s main entrance, pinning down the defensive forces inside.

The other forty-plus armed personnel split into two groups and began to move quickly along the exterior walls of the building. The exoskeletons they wore were also Atlas’s export-version ‘Raging Crocodile’ models.

During their approach, some of the armed personnel retrieved pre-prepped directional blasting charges from several half-meter-tall armed robot dogs that were following them.

At this moment, the hidden armored walls inside the Atlas office building’s glass curtain had already been raised, making the entire structure resemble a sealed turtle shell. To break through, they would have to blast their way in.

Several armed personnel squeezed their triggers, unleashing a volley of high-velocity steel needles that shattered the outer glass curtain. They rushed forward, using their combat exoskeletons’ mechanical claws to forcibly rip away the bulletproof glass along with its embedded metal wire. Others followed behind them, placing the directional blasting charges onto the exposed armored walls.

“Preparing to detonate, three—”

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The crisp sound of a 40mm automatic grenade launcher suddenly erupted from above, followed by a series of explosions that blanketed the armed personnel’s position.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Amidst the explosions, the armed personnel, who had just reformed their ranks in preparation for a dynamic entry after the breach, were sent flying in a chaotic mess.

Immediately after, a squad of security personnel leaped directly from the fourth floor through several openings in the armored walls.

Under Amber’s training, Atlas’s ground combat units never bothered with meticulous tactics like ‘dynamic entry’ or ‘no-blind-spot room clearing.’

If controlling friendly and enemy casualties was necessary, they would send in unmanned units to clear the way. If not, they would just charge in with heavy firepower.

And this counter-assault tactic—striking at the precise moment the attackers were preparing to breach—was one of the scenarios the office’s security team had drilled in their daily training.

Of course, the prerequisite for executing it was that the attacking force, like the current assailants, had only secured their front and rear, completely ignoring the area above their heads.

As they landed, they used the personal propulsion units on their backs to cushion the impact. Wielding high-frequency concussion daggers in one hand and fully automatic shotguns in the other, these security personnel launched their attack against the attackers, who had yet to react.

Perhaps the export version of the ‘Raging Crocodile’ combat exoskeleton still provided sufficiently excellent protection, as most of the armed personnel actually managed to react quickly after being hit by 40mm grenades, raising their weapons to retaliate.

However, their counter-attack was crushed by the ferocious close-range firepower of 12-gauge HESH rounds from 30-round extended drum magazines, combined with concussion daggers that pierced armor like it was paper.

What happened next, however, caught even these proactive security personnel off guard. After the chest plates or tactical faceplates of several attackers were blown to smithereens, the rest very straightforwardly tossed their weapons to the ground, skillfully dropped to their knees, and raised their hands high in the air.

“We surrender!!!”

The Romu squad leader’s finger nearly pulled the trigger of his shotgun, but he managed to suppress the urge as he heard their shouts of surrender.

The auxiliary aiming reticle on his HUD was locked onto the head of an enemy before him. A light squeeze of the trigger would have shattered the man’s tactical faceplate and head, but looking at these enemies who had thrown down their weapons and knelt on the ground, the squad leader held his fire.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the office building, an almost identical scene was playing out. When another team of security personnel descended from above like gods descending to the mortal realm and took down the first few attackers who reacted, the rest also immediately threw down their weapons and surrendered without a hint of hesitation.

News that the fighting on both flanks had swiftly ended reached the inside of the building just as Oksana, under the cover of other security personnel, charged out.

Clad in the same model of heavy powered armor as the instructor squad, she advanced into the attackers’ formation like a Valkyrie, holding up a small deflector shield and carrying a plasma poleaxe.

High-velocity steel needles fired from electromagnetic rifles struck the deflector shield in front of Oksana, causing the electric arcs on its surface to writhe violently. Though the attack looked spectacular, all the needles were deflected.

The occasional few needles that made it past the deflector shield had already lost their accuracy and force, merely leaving scratches on the external armor.

Oksana’s lethality, on the other hand, was far superior. It was unclear whether it was due to her nature or a racial trait of the Romu, but this ‘Sales Supervisor,’ like other Romu combatants, had an inexplicable fondness for close-quarters combat.

The plasma poleaxe in her hands was wielded with the force of a raging tiger. Her seemingly large and cumbersome powered armor was, in fact, incredibly agile as it weaved through the enemy ranks. Every time the poleaxe’s plasma blade swung in an arc, it meant an attacker had been sliced in half at the waist.

Although the attacking force had committed all their combat vehicles—two medium multi-legged war machines—to suppressing the main gate, it was clear that on a street battlefield with a range of less than a few dozen meters, Atlas’s new heavy powered armor was far better adapted.

As Oksana went on a rampage, the two multi-legged war machines continuously adjusted their orientation and rotated their turrets, but they could never quite get a lock on her.

Though the algorithm in the vehicle’s driving module, nicknamed the ‘Dog Brain,’ could translate a human’s way of thinking and walking into the working mode of the multi-legged war machine’s multiple mechanical legs, the inexperienced pilots became dizzy from the constant turning on the spot.

When the ‘Dog Brain’ algorithm detected a problem with the pilot’s control, it immediately took over the machine’s locomotive control and stabilized the chassis. However, this momentary stumble gave Oksana the opening she needed.

The powered armor, its white paint now stained with oil and blood, charged toward the ‘Iron Cavalry’ like a blood-soaked berserker and cleanly severed the main barrel of its cannon.

Then, with another agile movement, she slid to the target’s rear, pressed the armor-piercing combat spike on her forearm directly against its power unit, and, with a crisp ‘pile-driver’ sound, sent a tungsten alloy penetrator deep inside.

The towering multi-legged war machine instantly ceased all movement. Oksana then turned her attention to the other ‘Iron Cavalry,’ which was continuously backing away to create distance.

But just as she prepared to use her powered armor’s propulsion unit to close the distance quickly, the surrounding enemies all threw their weapons to the ground and raised their hands.

The last medium multi-legged war machine also stopped moving. It lowered its chassis and dipped its cannon barrel, signaling that it was ‘no threat.’

It was at this exact moment that news of the battles ending on the other two sides of the office reached Oksana’s ears.

“What? They’ve already been suppressed?”

With the blade of her plasma poleaxe resting against one enemy’s neck and the fully automatic shotgun in her other hand aimed at another surrendering foe, Oksana was clearly baffled by the sudden end to the battle.

But when the ‘tardy’ City Defense Force appeared at the other end of the street, and communications between the office and the Star System Autonomous Government were ‘coincidentally’ restored at the same time, the ‘combat cat-girl’ suddenly understood.

“So that’s the game they’re playing.”

She kicked over the enemy still standing before her, shouldered her retracted poleaxe, and stood defiantly in the middle of the street, looking just like a goddess of war.

Chapter 412: Turning the Tables

“Is that it? Were there any casualties on our side?”

“Oksana’s driver was killed in the attack. A few others suffered minor injuries in the ensuing fight, but nothing serious.”

“Tsk… to have casualties over something like this.” Amber’s expression soured. After all, if certain people weren’t stirring up trouble behind the scenes, none of this would have happened today.

“What about the attackers? And the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, what was their reaction?”

“After being suppressed by our security forces, the attackers immediately gave up and surrendered on the spot. The City Defense Force arrived, quickly took them into custody, and issued an investigation report just three hours after the incident.”

“Oh? So they can be efficient when they want to be?”

Isabelle projected a document sent back by Oksana onto the screen. It was the so-called ‘investigation report’ from the investigative division of the Loubion V City Defense Force, written just two hours ago.

“A group composed of unemployed individuals, dismissed military police, vagrants, and disgruntled military personnel, who carried out this attack due to their dissatisfaction with the Atlas Group.

All equipment was smuggled into the city by the disgruntled military personnel under the pretense of equipment transfers, maintenance, or reallocation.

Hahahaha, it’s a wonder they could come up with such a ridiculous excuse, and a wonder they could find a group of people so unafraid to die.”

The investigation report from the City Defense Force’s investigative division made Amber laugh out loud. To him, the report seemed like something they had to produce, so they just slapped together some nonsense.

“Some of their identities are fake. For instance, the on-site commander is actually a commander from a private military company controlled by Deep Space Mining. They tried to erase their real identities, but we still got a match in our own ‘Priority Targets Database.’”

Isabelle continued, explaining that the ‘Priority Targets Database’ she mentioned was a massive personnel database managed by the Intelligence Analysis Center. Neither she nor anyone at the Center knew where the information came from.

All they knew was that the database contained a very complex list of potential threats to Atlas, and this time, it had indeed helped them identify several individuals with hidden identities.

“Of course they couldn’t all be locals,” Amber said. “The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government didn’t make this decision alone. There are others pulling the strings, and this is just the beginning.”

Isabelle nodded and then asked, “So what do we do now? The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government sent a message. They want to speak with you directly about this incident.”

“Let’s talk to them first. See if their actions match our previous speculations. If they behave as we expect, we can move on to the next phase of our plan.”

“Alright, I’ll go arrange it now.”

An hour later, Amber entered an encrypted conference room in the virtual space. Across the massive round table sat several leaders of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

However, the familiar faces of Administrative Deputy Sam and the others were gone, replaced by officials Amber had never seen before.

“Mr. Rebil, the communication technology your company has developed is unbelievably convenient. I never imagined it would be possible to hold real-time, cross-system meetings.”

The Loubion star system’s planetary administrator, Alex, spoke up first with some pleasantries after Amber joined the meeting.

“It is very convenient. I just never expected to be using it to discuss such unpleasant matters with you all.”

Amber’s blunt reply made Alex’s smile freeze on his face. The other officials from the Star System Autonomous Government across the round table were also taken aback.

They had never expected Amber to be so disrespectful right from the start. They had predicted he would come to the negotiations with a placating attitude, hoping to smooth things over.

After all, by their arrangement, Atlas had already stirred up some ‘public outrage’ on Loubion V. If the company wanted to continue operating in this star system, they would surely have to find a way to curry favor with the autonomous government.

“Why are you all staring at me? Aren’t we here to discuss the issue? My time is very valuable. Let’s get straight to the point.”

Amber’s aggressive attitude completely disrupted the prepared speeches of the Autonomous Government officials. But they couldn’t just end the meeting, so they had no choice but to push forward and continue the conversation with him.

“Fine. Since Mr. Rebil wants to get straight to the point, we’ll dispense with the pleasantries. We’ve called this meeting today primarily to discuss the aftermath of the attack on your company’s office and the matter of our future cooperation.”

Amber appeared to be listening intently. He even nodded after the other party finished speaking before he began to speak.

“The aftermath is certainly something we must discuss. An employee at my company’s office on Loubion V was killed in the incident, and several others were injured to varying degrees. I expect you to provide reasonable compensation and to ensure the attackers are tried fairly, justly, and openly.”

The eyes of the Star System Autonomous Government representatives widened upon hearing this. But Amber wasn’t finished. He continued, following up on their previous point.

“As for the future cooperation you mentioned… if this incident isn’t handled properly, there will be no need to discuss it further.”

Having said his piece, Amber steepled his fingers in front of his face, his gaze sweeping over the row of astonished officials as he silently awaited their response.

Silence fell over the conference room. The people from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government never expected such an explosive opening. They even wondered if they had misheard something.

“Mr. Rebil, do you know what you’re saying? Are you truly aware of your company’s current situation?”

“Of course I know what I’m saying. We at Atlas entered into a deep partnership with you, helping you with post-war reconstruction and investing heavily in building factories. And what was the result?”

“You can’t even guarantee the most basic safety for my company’s employees. You allowed armed individuals to carry out an attack in the urban center of the planetary capital. Don’t you find that laughable when you say it out loud?”

“If you can’t even provide that basic level of security, I don’t see what future there is to talk about.”

Amber spoke with no room for compromise.

This time, it was the officials from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government who were so angry they had to laugh. They had originally planned to negotiate with Amber, squeeze some more benefits out of him, and then offer him some restrictive conditions to accept, allowing them to slowly carry out the rest of their plan.

But Amber’s current approach was tantamount to skipping all the intermediate steps and jumping straight to the final one—decoupling from the Loubion star system.

Chapter 413: Selling Off Assets

“So, does this mean there’s no room for negotiation, Mr. Rebil?”

The planetary administrator of the Loubion star system, Alex, spoke, the polite smile he wore at the beginning now completely gone from his face.

“As I said, if you’re willing to offer compensation and handle the aftermath, then of course we can talk.”

Amber pursed his lips. He knew exactly what these people from the Star System Autonomous Government were planning, so he felt that this was all just a waste of time.

Seeing that the originally planned negotiation was essentially impossible, Alex decided to stop dawdling and cut straight to the final act.

“Mr. Rebil, it is your company that has caused widespread discontent among the public within the Loubion star system! We are very grateful for your company’s contributions during the reconstruction of Loubion V, and we have been working for a long time to placate the populace. But now that this has happened, don’t you think your company bears some responsibility?”

“‘Widespread discontent.’ Hahahaha, that’s the funniest joke I’ve heard all year. How many jobs have our Atlas Group and its holding companies created on this planet? How many people are breaking their necks trying to get a job with us because of our benefits?

“Not to mention our charitable and support efforts, which often completely disregard costs, and the work we’ve done to pull the strings and bring in investments from other corporations. I’m sure you have your own public opinion monitoring agencies. A quick check will tell you what kind of reputation Atlas truly has among the people of the Loubion star system.

“As for who the attackers were, don’t you have a clue? Nearly an entire infantry platoon’s worth of combat exoskeletons and weapons, along with two medium multi-legged war machines, were hidden in the capital city’s urban district, and you dare say you didn’t know?”

Amber let out a disdainful scoff before continuing:

“If you truly didn’t know, then all I can say is that the investment environment on Loubion V is deeply concerning and perhaps not suitable for foreign capital. I will be sure to remind some of my partners who are interested in investing here that they too could be attacked by semi-mechanized armed personnel right in the planetary capital.”

“Are you threatening us?” Alex’s expression immediately turned hostile. He never imagined someone would dare speak to a legal representative of the Loubion star system’s government like this.

“Whoa, that’s a strong word. How would I dare threaten your esteemed government? I’m just stating the facts. In any case, what’s done is done. There are only a few solutions, and I’ve said all I need to say. The choice is yours.”

The nonchalant expression Amber wore left Alex and the others bewildered. They couldn’t figure out why a mere private enterprise, albeit a large one, would dare to adopt such an attitude toward them.

Evidently, they were unaware of the confidence Amber had gained after acquiring three unmanned fleets.

Facing the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, whose “navy” was only fifty percent rebuilt—a process Atlas itself was responsible for—Amber truly wasn’t afraid.

Even if they had completed the reconstruction, the scale of a star system’s garrison fleet was, at best, seventy percent of a capital fleet. Even if the Federation had previously relaxed the restrictions in this area, it would still only amount to one capital fleet.

With a super-flagship as the core of his fleet battles and unmanned fleets for support, Amber genuinely did not fear any military threat from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

As for the Federation’s capital fleets? They should be thanking their lucky stars if they could just hold the frontline at this point.

“Mr. Rebil, you’ll regret what you’ve said today. The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government is currently Atlas’s biggest business partner. By doing this, you’re essentially cutting off one of your own group’s operational arms.”

Seeing that the discussion could not continue, Alex and the representatives from the star system government had nothing more to say. One by one, the attendees left the conference room, until only Alex, the planetary administrator, remained.

“There’s really no need for things to get this tense, Mr. Rebil. Aren’t you businessmen able to negotiate anything?”

Alex pressed on, hoping to make Amber bow to the pressure. He believed that if Atlas truly cut ties with the Loubion star system, the group’s financial losses would be enormous, so it was highly likely Amber was just bluffing.

“The prerequisite for talking is your willingness to talk, not presenting me with an unacceptable condition and forcing me to accept it.”

“You haven’t even heard our conditions. How can you say they are unacceptable?” Alex said, exasperated. Throughout the entire meeting, Amber had never given them a chance to state their terms.

“Because from the very beginning, your plan was to cut Atlas out. The only difference is that you want to use a ‘soft knife’ for some salami slicing, and get all of Atlas’s assets in the Loubion star system for free in the process.”

“…”

Seeing Alex’s somber, silent face, Amber continued:

“I know you want to cut ties with Atlas due to pressure from the Federation government. I have no problem with that; we can just part amicably.

“But if you’re thinking of making me suffer a loss in silence? Sorry, but I’d rather tear them down or blow them up than leave them for you. Think it over, Mr. Alex.”

With that, Amber left the conference room, leaving behind a conflicted Alex, whose expression shifted between light and dark, his thoughts a mystery.

Three days later, news spread through various channels to the upper echelons of every major corporation in the Loubion star system: Atlas Group would be completely withdrawing from the Loubion star system. The other companies under its control would be acquired by local enterprises, with the acquisition price to be mutually agreed upon by both parties.

The moment the news broke, it sparked discussions among the major local corporations in the Loubion star system, as Atlas Group’s various assets were highly sought after.

Many local companies had approached Atlas before, hoping to take over their various premium assets. However, at the time, Atlas had no intention of selling, preferring a long-term strategy, so those discussions all came to nothing.

Therefore, after receiving definitive news that Atlas wanted to sell its assets, many shrewd companies immediately dispatched their public relations staff to liaise with the Autonomous Government, hoping to receive its assistance during the acquisition negotiations to secure a more favorable price.

Without exception, these companies all hit a wall. The news from their PR staff was always the same: the Star System Autonomous Government would not be involved, and the final price would be determined solely by the two parties.

This meant that the local enterprises could essentially give up any hope of gaining an advantage during the acquisition process.

Meanwhile, Amber had the group’s Financial Operations Department assemble its “best and brightest,” preparing to handle this large-scale asset divestment and strive to “break even at a minimum, and aim for a massive gain.”

“The bonuses for this operation will be based on a competitive system.”

At the Financial Operations Department’s “mobilization meeting,” Amber personally announced the bonus distribution method for the operation.

“Every asset on Loubion V that the group needs to sell will be given an internal valuation calculated by our actuaries. Your job is to sell the assets assigned to you at a price higher than the internal valuation.

“For every percentage point above the internal valuation, the team will earn one point, with no upper limit.

“However, if the final sale price is below the group’s internal valuation, for every percentage point lower, you will lose one point, again with no lower limit.

“Each team will start with one hundred points. After the acquisitions are complete, we will rank you based on your final scores and distribute a bonus pool equivalent to five percent of the total acquisition sum according to those rankings.”

When Amber finished speaking, the experts of the Financial Operations Department erupted. This would be a battle where they could fully unleash their “talents.”

For many of them, it wasn’t the final bonus distribution they cared about most, but their team’s final ranking. This real-world test might very well settle a question that had long troubled these financial wizards.

And that was the question of who was the true “King of the Financial Operations Department.”

Chapter 414: The Value of a Day Is

Soon, the Atlas Group began its large-scale asset sale in the Loubion star system. Batches of elites from the Financial Operations Department, under the close protection of security personnel, arrived at their ‘battlefield’.

The local companies that came to participate in the acquisition were, it could be said, immediately intimidated by the sheer presence of the Atlas negotiation teams.

The other side’s posture, looking as if they were champing at the bit for a fight, left them wondering who was acquiring whom in this transaction.

As a direct result, in all negotiations during the first week, every participating local company was pulled into Atlas’s tempo, except for a few of the largest corporations whose personnel were skilled enough to avoid being completely suppressed.

A variety of transaction results—exceeding the Group’s internal valuation prices by ten percent, eighteen percent, and even twenty percent—were sent back to headquarters, scrolling across the large screens in the Financial Operations Department’s Combat Command Center and in the department’s chat groups.

These ‘battle results’ naturally spurred on the others. After all, these deals not only meant that the final bonuses would be higher and higher, but also that many teams had already earned extra points.

While the remaining teams in the Financial Operations Department were actively preparing, a completely different, oppressive atmosphere descended upon the local enterprises of the Loubion star system.

The companies that had first completed the ‘harvest’ felt none of the excitement of acquiring new assets. Instead, their negotiators, looking as if they’d been put through the wringer, headed out in twos and threes to bars and other such places to vent and unwind immediately after reporting back to their companies.

Since the local star system’s social circles were small, negotiators from other companies quickly found them. While offering to pay their tabs, they pried for firsthand intelligence.

Without exception, they all heard the same words from these negotiators:

“Absolutely terrifying, brother.”

Subsequently, colored by their accounts, the negotiators sent by Atlas were painted as some kind of terrifying entities, to the point where it felt like one careless move could lead to a ‘reverse acquisition’.

This directly caused the remaining negotiators to treat the situation as if they were facing a great enemy, and the difficulty encountered by subsequent Atlas negotiation teams rose sharply.

There is no need to detail the subsequent acquisition talks. With the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government not intervening, the acquisition process relied purely on the skill and confidence of the negotiators on both sides.

The final result was that the Atlas Group sold off all its assets in the Loubion star system at a price 18.4 percent above the Group’s internal valuation, mercilessly clawing back a large sum of cash.

While the Financial Operations Department held a celebration banquet and announced on the spot who had won the title of ‘King of the Financial Operations Department,’ the major local enterprises of the Loubion star system began to move into the assets they had just acquired.

But the executives of these companies did not look particularly happy. After spending a great deal of money on the acquisitions, they discovered that continuing to operate these businesses was not a simple matter.

“Where are the administrative staff? Why are there so few administrative positions throughout the company? How is information passed up and down the chain of command? How did they communicate before?”

“Why are the wages for these skilled technicians so high? And their working hours are so short? Is this reasonable? How can we guarantee production efficiency with this?”

“Change it! Change it all for me!”

The bosses couldn’t stand it anymore. With a wave of their hands, they prepared to implement a complete overhaul.

“Re-hire supervisors and administrative staff at all levels, adjust the employee salary structure, and increase the employee efficiency ratio. You all need to learn from the advanced experience of the big corporations in the core star systems, learn how they make money.”

One boss, who had recently visited a ‘major corporation’ in the Federation’s core star systems, said:

“I really think the management experience of these large corporations is worth emulating. Do you know what the value of a day is?”

—

“The value of a day is twenty-four hours, one thousand four hundred and forty minutes. Every minute ensures that our new equipment can be delivered sooner into the hands of our brave Federation soldiers.”

As Nader walked into the final assembly workshop for Bochy Heavy Industries’ new HCP, a huge, eye-catching slogan was projected in the most conspicuous spot.

Next to the slogan hung a massive countdown timer. With every tick of the second hand, Nader’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat.

It had only been six hours since his last shift ended. His taut nerves had barely had a chance to relax before the effects of an energy drink forced them to tense up again.

His position was workshop production quality supervisor. Besides monitoring the operation of the assembly line he was responsible for, he also had to conduct random inspections on the finished products coming off the line.

Recently, Bochy Heavy Industries’ new HCP, the ‘Blade Mantis’—designed to compete with Atlas’s ‘Aegis’ series—had won a massive order from the Federation Army and was to be supplied directly to the front lines upon completion.

Although Bochy Heavy Industries had many final assembly workshops, under the pressure of the huge order, every single one had entered a frantic operational rhythm.

They had even absurdly started a ‘Workshop Continuous Operation Time Challenge,’ where the members of any workshop that could maintain production for a long time without issues would receive an additional bonus.

As a production quality supervisor, Nader found this challenge completely incomprehensible, as it directly violated most of the basic principles of production safety.

But his words carried little weight, and he had no choice but to accept it silently—unless he wanted to lose the job his entire family depended on for survival, especially in a wartime economy.

As usual, Nader first made an inspection round along the assembly line he was in charge of, then went to the area where a newly completed batch of HCPs was parked to begin his random check.

He skillfully used an access ladder to get near the unit’s cockpit, then opened the maintenance panel under the unit’s ‘armpit’ and connected his terminal. He then proceeded to check and test each subsystem and independent unit according to the checklist.

The initial tests were all normal, and the terminal’s diagnostics were passing one by one. Just as Nader thought this inspection would also conclude smoothly, a red light flashing on his terminal made his heart stop for half a second.

“No way… Damn it, I was on the last few items.”

Nader cursed and sighed in resignation. Any problem detected by the terminal would be officially logged, and if he didn’t deal with it, it would be dereliction of duty.

“Hydrogen embrittlement in the titanium barrier plating, damage to the main sensor cable, significant deviation in the thickness of the electromagnetic shielding coating… Which damn idiot didn’t follow the operational procedures during polishing?”

Muttering curses as he looked at the prompts on his terminal, Nader jumped to the ground. These weren’t major issues; they could basically be fixed by replacing spare parts or remanufacturing some components.

The problem was, these ‘minor issues’ rarely appeared on just one unit. It was likely that every unit from the entire assembly line run had the same problems.

With a grim expression, Nader conducted a large-scale inspection of the entire batch of units. The problem’s prevalence rate was as high as sixty-five percent, and the red light from his terminal cast a reddish glow on his dark face.

“Fine. These all have to be replaced. I just hope there are enough spare parts.”

Feeling like his luck had hit rock bottom, Nader headed to the storeroom for the relevant spare parts, preparing to urgently wake up a crew of workers to perform quality correction on this batch of ‘Blade Mantis’ units.

But the empty spare parts storage area extinguished the last glimmer of hope in his heart.

The high-pressure production pace recently had caused a constant stream of various problems in the products coming off the lines. Thanks to the ‘joint efforts’ of the quality supervisors from every assembly line, the spare parts in the storeroom had already been completely depleted.

At this point, the correct procedure would be to report the issue immediately and wait for the next shipment of spare parts to arrive before carrying out the quality correction.

But as Nader looked up at the giant holographic slogan above the workshop, he thought about the consequences of his workshop’s ‘continuous production time’ being reset to zero because of him, and of the devilish workshop director coming after him.

He couldn’t help but turn his gaze toward another storeroom next door.

The scrapped parts storeroom.

Too Much Work at My Main Job at the Start of the Month, Taking a Day Off

I’m swamped with my main job at the beginning of the month, so I’m taking a day off.

There’s a lot to do at the start of July. I have to help the business department with their semi-annual analysis, the group’s big data platform is starting a new iteration in the next few days, and I have my own semi-annual report to write. I imagine my readers with day jobs are in a similar boat.

For the past few days, I’ve had basically no time for Writing during the day and have been relying entirely on burning the midnight oil to keep up, which has left me feeling a bit burned out. For the sake of my health, I’m requesting a day off. I’ll be back at it tomorrow!

I’ve also thought about writing full-time, but to be honest, the income is still too unstable. For now, it can only remain a side hustle. The current economic climate isn’t great, and I don’t dare to quit my job rashly. I hope you all can understand.

Chapter 415: Don’t Worry, It’ll Be Fine

As a Production Quality Supervisor, Nader knew that eyeing the contents of the scrapped parts storeroom was a thought he should never have.

Besides, with the current product issues, the skilled technicians on the assembly line would theoretically be the ones held responsible in the end. It was perfectly normal for him, as a Production Quality Supervisor, to discover and point out these problems under ordinary circumstances.

Unfortunately, this particular juncture was anything but an ‘ordinary circumstance’.

Nader had been with Bochy Heavy Industries for nearly twenty years, and this was the first time he had truly felt the company was under pressure, or seen the higher-ups make so many absurd decisions because of it.

However, after a fierce internal struggle, he turned away from the storeroom entrance and walked toward the main control room at the end of the workshop.

The people in the main control room were also anxiously monitoring the production line, ready to handle any issues that arose. But when they saw Nader, they still greeted the veteran employee.

Nader nodded. He knew they were all as busy as he was, so he skipped the pleasantries and asked one of them directly, “Nick, where’s Supervisor Will?”

“In his office. Looks like he got a call from above,” the curly-haired young man named Nick said, pointing to the innermost door of the main control room. It was the office of the workshop supervisor, Will.

Nader looked at the office door. Below the ‘Supervisor’s Office’ nameplate, a small electronic screen displayed the words ‘Do Not Disturb’.

“Tsk, what bad timing.”

Nader frowned. Just as he was about to ask his colleagues in the main control room to notify the supervisor when he was free, he saw the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the screen vanish.

Immediately after, the office door opened, and Supervisor Will walked out with a troubled expression. When he saw Nader in the main control room, he first paused in surprise, then immediately waved him over.

“Hey, Nader! I was just about to look for you. Come to my office.”

“I was just coming to see you about something, Sir,” Nader said, surprised that the supervisor had been looking for him. He followed him into the office.

The desk, littered with empty energy drink cans, immediately caught Nader’s attention the moment he entered. At the same time, the faint smell of burnt nicotine wafted into his nostrils. For the smell of smoke to still be noticeable with the air purification system running twenty-four-seven, Supervisor Will must have been chain-smoking.

Looks like he’s under a lot of pressure, too.

Nader thought to himself as he walked up to the desk.

“Just sit wherever. I can’t be bothered to clean up. I’ll have the cleaning bots handle it after my shift.”

Supervisor Will paid him no mind, walked straight to his chair, and sat down. After a deep stretch, he practically sank into the wide backrest.

“Damn it, I haven’t been off shift for twenty hours. I was just about to head back for some rest, and the higher-ups call an emergency meeting.”

Will lit a cigarette and stuck it in his mouth, then tossed one to Nader before continuing, “Next week, Vice Admiral Van Fleet, the military representative overseeing our military production, is coming to our company for an inspection. Our workshop was chosen in the random draw for inspection.”

Hearing this, Nader’s vision went dark. Talk about misfortunes never coming singly.

Meanwhile, Supervisor Will, who was already a bit dazed after working for twenty straight hours, didn’t notice Nader’s strange reaction and continued, “You’re the most senior Production Quality Supervisor in our workshop. I want you to lead all the other supervisors in a large-scale inspection of the workshop for any issues before the Vice Admiral arrives.”

“Uh… there’s no need to inspect. We already have a problem.”

“I need you to take this seriously, since… wait, what did you say?” Supervisor Will finally snapped back to his senses, the word ‘problem’ instantly clearing his head.

Nader sighed and explained what he had just discovered, along with the current situation of their spare parts inventory. His words left Supervisor Will speechless.

A tense, awkward atmosphere immediately descended upon the office.

Will frantically pinched the spot beneath his nose while his mind raced, trying to come up with a solution. For something like this to happen at such a critical time was putting immense pressure on him.

After thinking for a long time, Will looked up again at the veteran Production Quality Supervisor across from him.

“Nader, is it possible to get new spare parts before the Vice Admiral arrives, finish the repairs, and ship this batch of HCPs out first? For the ones currently in production, we can slow the pace down a little, so everyone isn’t in such a rush, and try our best to maintain quality control…”

“The second half of what you said is doable. I can lead my team to keep a closer eye on things. But the first half is difficult. I’ve already checked the inbound warehouse schedule; the next shipment of spare parts won’t arrive for another ten days.”

“Shit…”

Will fell silent again, but this time, he quickly thought of a solution.

“Can we find some usable spare parts in the scrapped parts storeroom to tide us over?”

“Sir, you yourself called it the scrapped parts storeroom. It’s full of rejected, scrapped items…” Nader’s eye twitched. He couldn’t believe Will had thought of the exact same thing he had.

“There must be some usable ones. It’s not like I haven’t looked in there before,” Will said, tapping his fingers on the desk, cutting Nader off. He continued, “Some of the spare parts just have minor cosmetic flaws or are slightly below the standard threshold. They can actually be used directly.”

“What if something goes wrong? These are military-grade HCPs, meant for the front-line battlefields,” Nader’s voice rose unconsciously. He still couldn’t accept the idea of equipment that had passed through his hands malfunctioning for front-line soldiers, potentially costing them their lives.

“Right now, I can’t worry about what happens to this equipment on the front lines, nor do I have the energy to. All I know is that if this pile of defective products just sits here until the Federation’s inspection team comes next week, both of us will be out of a job!”

Will retorted, not backing down. His view represented that of most civilians living in a wartime economy back home—I can’t control what happens on the front lines, I just want to live my own life.

He paused, then lowered his voice slightly and continued, “Besides, with the intensity of the front lines, these HCPs are just consumables once they’re sent over. Whether it’s a unit that passed every inspection with flying colors or one with minor flaws, its survival time in combat is measured in days…”

Seeing Nader’s expression soften, Will knew he was slowly being persuaded and immediately decided to strike while the iron was hot.

“Nader, didn’t your wife just give birth? Your whole family depends on your income alone. If we fail this inspection and the higher-ups blame us and fire us both, what will your family do? Adults can eat relief food and energy bars, but can a newborn?”

“But I can’t be responsible for this. What if something goes wrong with the equipment on the front line.”

Nader was still struggling. He was worried that if the equipment malfunctioned on the front line, the responsibility should fall on the assembly line. But if he replaced the parts with scrapped ones and approved the shipment, any problems would undoubtedly land on his head.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take responsibility,” Will said in a firm tone as he switched on his terminal.

“Work log 5922, authorizing Production Quality Supervisor Nader—employee ID 1099, to use flawed spare parts to replace components on production batch XXXX of the M9A1 ‘Blade Mantis’.”

“Logged, Supervisor Will,” a clear female voice announced. It was the work assistant.

“How about that? Not worried anymore, are you? It’s all on record. If anything happens, it’s my problem. Just relax and get a reliable team together for some overtime. Let’s try to get this shipment out before the inspection team arrives.”

Will walked over to Nader’s side and patted his shoulder, consoling him in a relaxed tone.

“Take it easy. It’s not like anything will go wrong that easily~”

Chapter 416: Van Fleet’s Stand Against the Military-Industrial Complex

“I’ll try to pick better spare parts, then.” After much persuasion from Workshop Supervisor Will, Nader wrestled with his conscience for a long time before finally bowing to reality.

After all, if he did things Will’s way, as long as the mechs didn’t have any major issues, he wouldn’t be in any trouble.

But if he didn’t, not only would the workshop’s cumulative continuous production time be reset to zero, but the government inspection team would also see row after row of new HCPs full of production ‘flaws.’

He would lose his job on the spot.

Nader thought of his wife, who had given birth not long ago and was still weak and needed to recuperate. He thought of his child, who had just come into this world. He couldn’t even begin to imagine what would happen if he lost the job his entire family depended on.

Seeing Nader finally agree, Workshop Supervisor Will breathed a sigh of relief. If Nader hadn’t gone along with it, he wouldn’t have known what to do.

As a Production Quality Supervisor, Nader was responsible for the products on his assembly line. They had to pass his inspection and be approved on his work terminal before they could proceed to the next stage of factory release.

In other words, as long as Nader didn’t give his approval, this batch of newly completed HCPs couldn’t be shipped out.

So, Will now felt that although Nader was a bit stubborn, he was ultimately a reasonable man.

He rummaged through a drawer in his desk and pulled out a green chip, placing it in Nader’s hand. Nader looked down and saw it was a stored-value card from one of the Federation’s major supermarket chains. A faint line of text was printed on the chip—‘500 Credits.’

“Keep your voice down. Take this and buy some supplements and baby food. Stock up on some other things for your family, too.”

“Supervisor, I can’t take this.” Nader held the chip, at a complete loss. In his more than twenty years on the job, he had never received such a thing from a colleague—let alone from his superior.

Besides, the Bochy Heavy Industries employee handbook explicitly forbade these kinds of ‘underhanded dealings’ between employees. If discovered, the punishment would be severe.

“Take it, take it. Just consider it a personal gift from me!” Will pushed Nader’s hand, urging him to put the chip in his pocket, then guided him toward the office door.

“Remember, find a few people who are tight-lipped and reliable. Don’t let a word of this get out.”

“Yes, I understand.”

A week later, the government inspection team led by Vice Admiral Van Fleet arrived as scheduled.

When Will and Nader saw Vice Admiral Van Fleet arrive at the workshop gate, flanked by the Chairman of Bochy Heavy Industries and a large contingent of senior management, they finally realized this general might truly be a force to be reckoned with.

For previous government inspections, Bochy Heavy Industries would at most send a few senior executives to accompany the team. A turnout of the entire top brass like today was a first.

Will and Nader’s guess was correct. It was because Van Fleet was indeed a ‘force to be reckoned with’ that the senior management of Bochy Heavy Industries was treating him as if facing a great enemy.

The Vice Admiral had somehow gathered a group of experts, bringing them into his inspection team as consultants. During the inspection of the first defense industry company on their list, he made a powerful show of force to all the others.

The unlucky company that hit the jackpot had its operations scrutinized in a search so thorough it was like they were digging three feet deep. Out of a total of ninety inspection items, eighty-five failed. This directly led the Federation to suspend all business with the company.

After this first shot was fired, the companies responsible for producing the Federation Army’s various equipment panicked.

They had originally thought this general, who had suffered a major defeat on the frontline, was just being sent to a support staff position to ‘retire.’ No one expected him to take it so seriously.

And while Van Fleet had his share of problems, as a general who had spent considerable time on the frontline and particularly enjoyed talking with front-line soldiers, he had a very clear understanding of the Federation Army’s real equipment needs.

So, when some of the subsequent defense industry companies tried to fool him, they were instead caught and made into public examples.

Under these circumstances, it was only natural for the senior management of Bochy Heavy Industries to be on high alert after learning that Van Fleet was bringing his inspection team over.

Witnessing this scene, Will felt a swell of pride in his decision. If those problematic products were still sitting in the storeroom, he might have been skinned alive by the end of the day.

Vice Admiral Van Fleet walked into the workshop, accompanied by the crowd. Though his expression was calm, he had not been in a good mood recently.

Being relegated to a support staff inspection role was one thing; being infuriated by the Federation’s various defense industry companies was another. If it hadn’t been for this inspection duty, Van Fleet would never have imagined that these private military contractors had become so rotten.

The Bochy Heavy Industries workshop currently under inspection seemed fine at a glance, but the moment Van Fleet stepped inside, he felt a sense of oppression.

It was an uncomfortable feeling, and it made him wonder about the state of mind of the workers here. Would they make mistakes?

This feeling persisted until, while listening to the workshop personnel’s introduction, he saw Nader, the team head of the production quality supervisors. Noticing something was off about the man, Van Fleet became certain that something was definitely wrong at Bochy Heavy Industries.

“Is this fellow trying to tell me something?”

Van Fleet thought to himself, but he didn’t voice his suspicion. He knew that some things couldn’t be said out in the open, so he decided not to startle the snake. He would have one of his trusted subordinates try to make contact after the inspection was over.

While Van Fleet was conducting his inspection at Bochy Heavy Industries, the batch of ‘Blade Mantis’ HCPs previously produced in Will and Nader’s final assembly workshop was being sealed, packaged, and loaded onto transport ships bound for the frontline.

Some of these HCPs would serve as replacement vehicles for deployed units, while the rest would be assigned to newly formed units. These units were being established to face an upcoming large-scale battle.

Ever since the Federation’s defeat in the Parra system, on the advice of Miller and Trafalgar, they had been actively mobilizing all sorts of resources and troops to prepare for a massive joint operation on the frontline.

The two ‘leaders’ of the military had set three different objectives for this large-scale operation.

The best-case scenario was to achieve an unprecedentedly great victory, laying the foundation for winning the entire war.

The secondary objective was to hold the current frontline, turning the Imperial territory they currently occupied into Federation territory for good.

The worst-case scenario was to inflict massive casualties on the Star Dragon Empire’s effective strength, ensuring that even if they won, it would be a ‘pyrrhic victory.’ This would prevent them from launching a counterattack against the Federation and push the war into a ‘negotiation table’ phase.

This was why the Federation’s major defense industry companies had been producing all sorts of equipment like madmen recently. The military’s orders were, in a word, ‘the deadline is tight and the task is immense.’ They needed to produce enough equipment, ammunition, and spare parts and deliver them to the frontline within a very limited time.

This also meant that situations like Will and Nader’s were not just happening in this one workshop, nor were they an isolated incident at Bochy Heavy Industries. They were a microcosm.

It was forcing the long-complacent Federation military-industrial complex to expose its rotten, dilapidated, and bloated body from the shadows of its complacent prosperity.

Chapter 417: Target, A·Bawa·Ku

Within the Federation, the Heine star system—Heine 3.

As a ‘Planetary Ecological Preserve’, this planet was off-limits to all unauthorized personnel. This left the terrestrial planet untouched by human development, everything maintained in its most natural state.

However, in a coastal region of the planet, there stood a massive structure not listed in the planet’s registry of ‘man-made constructions’.

The saucer-shaped building, constructed atop a tall cliff, was flanked by a lush primeval forest on one side and a boundless ocean on the other. Such clean and pure scenery was a rare sight in the current territories controlled by humanity.

On the massive landing pad outside the building, numerous aerospace shuttles were parked, their expensive nature obvious from a single glance. They rested quietly in their designated zones like a flock of preening birds, showcasing their owners’ power from every angle.

Clearly, this was no preserve monitoring station or other research facility, and the building’s lavish interior decorations had absolutely nothing to do with ‘research’.

The identities of the guests inside—immaculately dressed individuals whose jackets alone were worth more than a lower-class citizen’s lifetime income—were also quite ‘simple’. They were the de facto controllers of the Federation’s major Megacorporations, or, in a sense, its ‘shadow government’.

“That Lieutenant General seems to be making more and more moves lately. I don’t know what he’s done, but some of those ‘expendables’ down below actually want to report things to him.”

At the pool table, a middle-aged man spoke up suddenly after sinking a target ball.

“A Lieutenant General exiled here after losing a battle won’t be able to stir up any trouble,” said another man, also holding a cue, as he watched his opponent’s shot. “So, did you take care of the ones who wanted to report?”

“Of course they were dealt with. You want to leave them in the factories like ticking time bombs?”

The middle-aged man who had been asked nodded, as if ‘dealing with’ the people below was a perfectly ordinary matter. He even added, “I had the ‘Cleaners’ do the job. They made it spotless, didn’t leave a trace.”

“Then what about this supervising Lieutenant General? It won’t do us any good if he keeps digging.”

Another man, sitting on a sofa watching the two play, spoke up while scrolling through his personal terminal. “If he actually manages to compile any material and hands it directly to the Federal Court, it might not lead to much, but we’d at least have to send people to put on a show and go through the motions. We might even have to pick a few unlucky sods to take the fall.”

Beside him, two human cat-girls, ‘created’ through genetic engineering with animalistic features, were diligently massaging him. From time to time, they would lift their heads and nuzzle his neck, just like real cats.

Across from them, the man who had just played another shot but missed the pocket stood up straight. He glanced at the two ‘cat-girls’ and said:

“As long as we keep our people in line, the Lieutenant General won’t get any substantial evidence… Speaking of which, are you at Gabriel Biologics really not considering putting these ‘cat-girls’ on the market?”

“The Ethics Committee keeps blocking it. What can I do? They insist this kind of genetic engineering is unethical and illegal, so they never approve our applications,” the man on the sofa said with some frustration.

“Then send a few over to me.”

“No problem. What are friends for? I’ll have someone send a few over to you later.”

“Hey, you two…” The middle-aged man who was about to take a shot straightened up, looking at the two who had gone off-topic with some displeasure.

“Don’t take this matter too lightly. Van Fleet may not have any command authority, but he’s a Lieutenant General of the Army. He still has some capable confidants under him. If he’s dead set on investigating, there’s no telling what he might dig up.”

“So what do we do? Have the Cleaners eliminate him too?”

“It’s not impossible, but I suspect our dear President Brandon would have a bone to pick with us…”

“WOW, gentlemen. How is it that I arrive just in time to hear such an explosive topic?” A woman in an evening gown suddenly entered the area. She exuded an aura of maturity, yet her appearance was that of a young maiden.

“Madame Paris? What brings you here?” The three men near the billiard table all stopped what they were doing and rose to greet the lady.

“I was just bored and wandering around. I overheard you talking about Lieutenant General Van Fleet and thought I’d come and share my woes with you,” Paris said with a smile, covering her mouth with a small, exquisite folding fan.

“He’s an Army Lieutenant General. He can’t threaten your Raging Tides Shipping, can he?”

“You’re right, but the Vice Admiral from the navy who’s been put on ice in the rear has been making moves similar to General Van Fleet’s. He’s been more than just a little strict with his supervisory inspections. Besides us at Raging Tides, several other shipbuilders have also been investigated.”

Paris spoke in a plaintive tone as she sat down on a sofa near the pool table. The slight tautness of her clothes from her posture perfectly accentuated her fine figure, making it difficult for the men to look away.

“Are you suggesting the two of them have planned this and are coordinating?”

“It’s very likely. After all, my people have photographed them at the same tavern on more than one occasion. To be precise, they’ve been meeting frequently ever since the supervision began.”

“So they’re exchanging information through this kind of offline communication? No wonder my team has been monitoring them for so long without getting any valuable intel,” one of the men said, nodding thoughtfully after hearing what Paris said.

“So, gentlemen. Shouldn’t we come up with a plan? I, for one, would rather they didn’t continue this investigation,” Paris said, fanning herself gently.

“Sending the ‘Cleaners’ is too risky. The security for someone of a Vice Admiral’s rank, especially their personal protection detail, is no joke.”

“Then I’ll go ‘have a word’ with the Army Commander and have him find a way to rein in Van Fleet. The guy has taken plenty of favors from us; it’s time he did something in return.”

“What about Guterres? Trafalgar is always at the front lines and is hard to reach. Even if he came back, I doubt I could convince that old fossil to help us restrain his subordinate.”

These men, who controlled the majority of the Federation’s wealth, discussed back and forth, but it was clear they couldn’t reach a suitable solution in the short term. At the same time, their discussion gradually veered off-topic to another subject that had recently become ‘quite hot’ among their circle.

“Atlas. Have you decided how to deal with it?” Paris asked.

By now, another circle of people had gathered around the pool table, in addition to the initial four.

As Paris and the others talked, more and more people had joined in, eventually forming a small ‘meeting’.

In a way, they were the true masters behind the Federation. Their ‘tentacles’ reached into every corner of the nation—finance, military, research, government. Wherever there were people, there were traces of them.

The Federation’s politicians were merely their puppets, performing on the stage with strings pulled by them, making the populace believe it was still a democratic and free country.

But in reality, through their control over various industries and their formulation of all sorts of rules, these people manipulated the life, death, sickness, and old age of everyone in the Federation.

“Let’s join forces and crush it in one go while it’s still finding its footing,” someone suggested, an idea that immediately garnered the approval of others.

“It’s just a private enterprise. While it does seem to have some strength, able to defeat the Federation’s regular army head-on, it’s still just a company in the end. As long as everyone present unites, Atlas will be no match for us, no matter how strong it is. Two fists are no match for four hands.”

Seeing that his words had caught the attention of the ‘Big shots’, including Paris, the man who voiced his support continued:

“Although the fleets of your companies, in compliance with Federation law, don’t have any true capital ships, I know none of you are that honest. I don’t need to spell out what you’re all doing behind the scenes.

“If we can form a massive combined fleet—a civilian armed fleet of unprecedented scale—then even if Atlas gives its all, it will have no choice but to bow before our absolute power.”

“Don’t forget, Atlas has all that advanced technology. Cross-star system communication, the super flagship… these are all technological barriers for us right now,” said the man who was first playing pool. He still seemed uncertain about this suggestion to ‘crush’ Atlas.

“That’s why we must infiltrate Atlas before it can fully establish its technological barriers!” the man who had just proposed ‘hunting down Atlas’ declared resolutely.

“Think about it, everyone! If we can get our hands on this cross-star system communication technology, the blueprints for the super flagship, and all the other undisclosed technologies within Atlas, it would spark a new technological revolution!”

As soon as he said this, many who had been on the fence immediately became interested. After all, the technological prowess displayed by this suddenly emerged power, Atlas, far exceeded anyone’s imagination.

Because of this, the Federation’s defense industry corporations had long been eyeing Atlas’s many technologies covetously, but they had never found a way to obtain them.

And now, a new option was laid before them—eliminate Atlas, and then carve up the ‘inheritance’ it leaves behind.

Watching the increasingly agitated crowd, Paris, her face half-hidden by her fan, smiled imperceptibly. After so much groundwork, her goal was nearly within reach.

As the de facto controller of Raging Tides Shipping and countless other companies, Paris had long been aware of the immense value of the technologies Atlas had revealed.

But she didn’t want to risk her own forces. Thus, these corporations, which were weaker than her, became premium ‘cannon fodder’.

When they and Atlas had beaten each other to a pulp and suffered mutual destruction, she could then make a clean sweep.

“Then a new problem arises. If we are to make Atlas submit through military force, we should first identify a target, shouldn’t we?”

As the crowd was heatedly discussing how to take down Atlas, a more cautious individual posed a question to those around him:

“The information we’ve had all along is that Atlas is a corporation from the Thousand Stars Empire, and we know its headquarters is in a prosperous star cluster there.

“But the problem is that this headquarters, located within the Thousand Stars Empire, is beyond our reach. I trust no one here is foolhardy enough to try something like that in the elves’ territory. So, what exactly should we attack to make Atlas ‘feel the pain’?”

His words instantly cooled the fervent discussion. Many people immediately realized he was right; they had been talking for ages but hadn’t even discussed what part of Atlas to attack.

“I have some intelligence, though it needs to be verified.” Seeing the enthusiasm start to wane, Paris suddenly spoke up.

“Atlas once acquired a company called ‘Mary Bay Industries’. According to my sources, Atlas engaged in armed conflict with ‘Mary Bay Industries’ before completing the acquisition.

“At that time, a defense contractor collaborating with ‘Mary Bay Industries’ was also mostly absorbed, but a group of people chose not to join Atlas. One of them even participated in the final battle between the two sides.”

“So, Madame Paris, you found this person?”

“That’s right. Not only did I find him, but I also obtained the coordinates of an asteroid belt from him. According to him, Atlas has an asteroid base built there.”

Paris’s words immediately captured everyone’s attention. Although she was a woman, the companies she controlled and the capital she commanded were, in fact, the greatest in the room. No one even knew just how many enterprises this woman controlled.

Therefore, her information carried a high degree of credibility among the group.

“Is there something special about this asteroid base?”

“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have told you,” Paris said with a smile, not elaborating further.

“Madame Paris, don’t keep us in suspense!” someone in the crowd said with a laugh.

“Very well. According to information my people have gathered through various channels, the core of the Atlas Group’s superior network technology, and the ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology’ we are most interested in—is very likely located in this asteroid base.”

A hush fell over the crowd, followed immediately by a rise in the volume of discussion.

After all, the allure of ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology’ was simply too great. Although many of the corporate heads present had to grudgingly purchase the service from Atlas, they also had to admit that the technology was incredibly useful.

However, someone quickly came to their senses and asked a crucial question.

“Madame Paris, could you please disclose how you obtained such important information, and for what reason you are willing to share it with us?”

Chapter 418: A Two-Front War Is Their Specialty; You Just Have to Try It

Everyone else was indeed very curious about the question that had just been raised.

No one present was unaware of what kind of person Madame Paris was, so they knew this magnate would certainly not share information with them for no reason.

For her to reveal this news in front of so many people, it surely meant that they would have to ‘pay’ a little something.

Everyone was willing to get a slice of the pie from a major player, but only on the condition that they could afford the price.

“A good question. It seems you’re all very interested~” Madame Paris had unknowingly taken center stage, becoming the focus of the entire event.

She surveyed the crowd, meeting their gazes magnanimously before she spoke.

“Pardon me, but I cannot reveal the source of my information to you. However, you should all be able to trust my sources, right? Otherwise, how could I have offloaded most of my assets in the border star systems before the Star Dragon Empire launched its attack on the Federation?”

Seeing everyone nod in agreement, Madame Paris continued, “As for why I’m disclosing this sensitive information to all of you, it’s simple. I hope to gather your collective strength to utterly crush Atlas with an overwhelming power disparity it cannot possibly resist, rather than being thoroughly played for fools by this corporation like the Federation’s regular army was because they underestimated their enemy.”

Madame Paris spoke eloquently and at length, but everyone quickly distilled the core message: they would all work together to destroy Atlas first, and the matter of ‘taking a piece of the pie’ could be discussed in detail later.

Her words once again sparked a wave of discussion among the guests, but Madame Paris did not join in. After politely declining invitations from several young, handsome gentlemen, she walked out alone onto the massive terrace.

At this moment, a magnificent scene of the ‘afterglow of sunset’ was painted across the distant sea horizon. As the star of this system—colloquially known as the ‘sun’—gradually disappeared below the sea level, the sky darkened, and the once calm ocean began to churn with tumultuous waves.

Madame Paris stared expressionlessly at the roiling sea, her mind replaying the scene of Minister of Defense Miller and Central Intelligence Agency Director-General Bernard approaching her.

Long ago, after Madame Paris and her Torrent Group began to make a name for themselves in the business world, she started laying her groundwork within the Federation’s two major political parties. The massive ‘political contributions’ she made each year earned her the beautiful moniker ‘Angel Paris’.

Through her own cunning and a series of successful bets in multiple general elections, Madame Paris gradually evolved from a ‘patsy’ who just footed the bills into one of the key figures of the vast military-industrial complex behind the Federation government.

From then on, the ties between Madame Paris and the Federation government grew ever closer. The government continuously passed various bills that benefited her and her group, and besides providing financial support, she often helped with tasks the Federation government could not carry out itself.

Take this major operation against Atlas, for example. When Miller and Bernard came to her, she had already been coveting Atlas for a long time, but she could never find the right opportunity.

But now, that opportunity had finally arrived.

In the matter of acquiring the specific location of the A·Bawa·Ku Asteroid Base, the Federation’s intelligence agencies had shown a rare moment of competence.

They first located the former contact from Aura Security—this former employee, who had chosen not to join Atlas after the company’s acquisition, had opted to return to his home planet to farm. He had also opened a ‘Youth Defense Advanced Class’.

As the war between the Federation and the Empire intensified, his advanced class’s business boomed, earning him a significant amount of Credits.

When agents from the Central Intelligence Agency secretly approached him, the former contact’s first reaction was that the Federation Taxation Bureau had come knocking. It was only after they stated their purpose that he realized they were there for Atlas.

Soon, the operatives had ascertained the general location of the battle between Mary Bay Industries, Aura Security, and the Star Dragon Empire’s Timler family, and confirmed the existence of an Atlas asteroid base within that asteroid belt.

The very next day, the former contact made the headlines of the local media: ‘Prominent Defense Advanced Class Owner Commits Suicide with Eight Gunshots to the Back. What Is the Story Behind This?’

After confirming the location of the Atlas asteroid base, the Central Intelligence Agency matched it to the secret Atlas base they had previously identified as ‘A·Bawa·Ku’.

Next, the Navy did everything it could to pull two infiltration-type scout ships and two long-range scout ships from its severely understaffed scout ship squadrons to begin reconnaissance of the asteroid belt and monitor the base hidden within.

Meanwhile, through a large volume of user order information inadvertently leaked by a well-known Federation server provider during a ransomware incident, analysts at the Central Intelligence Agency found records of Atlas purchasing a massive number of servers and confirmed that they were building some kind of server array.

Through extensive analysis and dangerous close-range reconnaissance, they finally confirmed that Atlas’s most critical ‘Data and Information Center’ was very likely hidden within this secret base in the deep-space asteroid belt.

This was, of course, wonderful news for the Federation government. If this data center had been located at Atlas’s headquarters in the Thousand Stars Empire, it would have been truly difficult for them to make a move.

But now that it was confirmed to be in this ‘lawless zone’, they could act without any inhibitions.

After confirming this information, Miller and Bernard approached Madame Paris and several other key figures in the military-industrial complex, hoping they would join forces to eliminate Atlas’s asteroid base. After all, the regular army was currently tied up on the front lines and simply couldn’t spare enough ships for the mission.

Madame Paris naturally did not refuse this request, for she knew that with a little ‘maneuvering’, she could rally a large pack of ‘hyenas’ who were also salivating over Atlas.

As the power at her disposal gradually reached its current scale, Madame Paris had come to believe more and more that the most unadorned form of ‘business war’ was to use the force at hand to physically crush one’s opponent.

Soon, while the Federation government was actively preparing for a decisive battle on the front lines, the military-industrial complexes began to act in unison for the first time in a long while. Their once-disparate forces slowly converged, and the mobilization of numerous corporate fleets made many well-informed individuals sense that something unusual was afoot.

Lilith, who had long maintained surveillance over the Federation via the network, naturally discovered these anomalies quickly. When she presented the compiled information to Amber, the latter was puzzled for a moment before having a sudden realization.

“They’re going for a two-front war. A classic Federation specialty; you just have to try it.”

Chapter 419: The Whistleblower

“Master, why do you say this is characteristic of the Federation?”

Amber found it difficult to answer Lilith’s question right away, so he could only evade it by changing the subject.

He couldn’t very well tell Lilith that in the plot of the game from his previous life, the Federation started getting reckless after gaining a huge advantage on the main battlefield. While continuing to fight the Empire, they also began to suppress some ‘disobedient’ star systems within their territory. As a result, a mistake led to the destruction of many of their fleets, ultimately causing a civil war.

“Ahem. Anyway, no matter how you look at it, the Federation is playing with fire. The pressure on the main frontline is so immense, yet they’re still thinking of siccing the military-industrial complex on us.”

Amber spoke as he looked at the information Lilith had compiled. Although the military-industrial complex’s fleets were only assembling and hadn’t officially departed, Amber knew they were coming for Atlas.

After all, there were no other targets worthy of such a massive mobilization at the moment.

“Perhaps they want to get their hands on our technology, as well as our substantial fixed assets and considerable funds? Especially the technological prowess we’ve demonstrated, which in their eyes might be a factor that could decide the outcome of this war.”

Lilith spoke up. At Amber’s request, she had recently been assisting him more frequently with decision-making, using the powerful rational thinking abilities of a strong AI to consider various issues.

“Especially the ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology’. If the Federation can eliminate us and master this technology, they can immediately shut down the service on the Empire’s side and cut off their network.

At that point, the Federation would have real-time, cross-system communication capabilities, while the Empire would still be stuck with old-fashioned communication methods. This vast difference in communication speed could absolutely influence the entire strategic situation.”

“That is indeed a possibility,” Amber nodded.

“And they’re probably worried that at Atlas’s current growth rate, it won’t be long before we become too difficult for them to handle, or even impossible to fight. So they want to strike first and crush us before we’re fully developed.”

“So how should we respond? Do we need to move the unmanned fleets to A·Bawa·Ku to set up defenses?”

Lilith’s question sent Amber into deep thought. This offensive from the military-industrial complex had come a bit earlier than expected. Although he had nearly four fleets at his disposal, he also had the Parra system and the asteroid belt to protect.

Thinking of this, Amber even silently thanked the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government. If they hadn’t acted so quickly to force Atlas out, he would have more than just two locations to defend right now.

But even so, there were still many factors to consider in allocating his forces.

First, The Infinity definitely had to remain in orbit around Parra IV. Besides acting as a deterrent as a super-flagship, the ‘space-to-surface transit corridor’ deployed by The Infinity was also a vital transportation link between the surface and space.

Moreover, Amber knew that many eyes were currently on The Infinity and Atlas’s conventional fleet. The moment they moved, the military-industrial complex, the Federation government, and even the Star Dragon Empire would receive the news, and it was hard to say what would happen next.

As for the Asteroid Base, it had no use for an army, so the ground troops could remain on Parra IV to maintain stability and continue their training.

Under these circumstances, the only forces he could really deploy were the three unmanned fleets.

However, the potential battle at A·Bawa·Ku would almost certainly be a defensive one in Amber’s view. Therefore, the unmanned fleets, which weren’t equipped with ship-borne HCPs or carrying Heavy Armored Gunships, would be at a disadvantage if the enemy got close.

So Amber considered finding a way to transfer a portion of the conventional fleet’s ship-borne HCPs and two squadrons of Heavy Armored Gunships back to reinforce the Asteroid Base’s defensive forces.

In that case, factoring in the Asteroid Base’s original defense ships, the total defensive fleet size should reach about ‘three and a half’ fleets.

As for the military-industrial complex’s fleet, which was still slowly assembling, Lilith’s projections suggested it could reach the size of five fleets in terms of ship count. However, due to licensing restrictions on capital ships, the number of capital ships would be relatively low, basically equivalent to the standard number of capital ships in two fleets.

By this calculation, the overall combat strength of both sides was difficult to assess. The military-industrial complex had the advantage in fleet numbers, while Atlas had a clear advantage in fleet quality and combat proficiency.

If they included the Asteroid Base, which could act as an armed fortress, Atlas would still have some advantages. Not to mention, A·Bawa·Ku had just completed the construction of an ‘important facility’.

Just as Amber was about to find Cleves and the others to explain the situation and begin organizing the transfer of the ship-borne HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, Lilith brought him another piece of news.

“Master, Van Fleet and Guterres, who you asked me to monitor, have also been targeted by the military-industrial complex because of their recent inspection and oversight activities. They might be in danger. Should I activate the contingency plan?”

“Van Fleet, I’ve warned you countless times! Why the hell won’t you listen to me?!”

In the Commander’s office at the Federation Army Headquarters, Army Commander Mellion roared angrily at Van Fleet, who was sitting across from him.

“The situation is too murky, even I don’t dare get too involved! Do you really think you can accomplish anything on your own?”

“Then are you just going to stand by and watch these parasites slowly hollow out the Federation? Sir!”

Van Fleet met Mellion’s gaze without fear and retorted loudly,

“They’re in charge of the military industry! The troops on the frontline are using the weapons and vehicles they produce. We’re at a critical stage of the war with the Star Dragon Empire. Are we really going to let our soldiers fight with equipment that could have hidden defects?”

The more Van Fleet spoke, the more agitated he became, finally standing up and slamming his hands on Mellion’s desk.

“Sir, why have you become like this? What is your relationship with them? Why do you repeatedly obstruct my inspection work and always avoid discussing the issues I report?”

“Van Fleet, this isn’t something that can be explained in a few words. I’m just advising you to back down now. These people are far more capable than you imagine.”

Mellion sighed, his gaze faltering slightly as he looked at his student.

“Capable? You think they’d really dare to make a move against a Lieutenant General of the Federation Army?”

“They would. And they have countless ways to make you vanish from the face of the earth without a trace.”

“Hmph. Then let them try. I’m no pushover.”

Van Fleet turned and walked towards the door. Before pulling it open, he looked back and said, “It’s not too late to turn back, Sir. Don’t sink any deeper. If this continues, they’ll turn on you one day.”

“I could say the same to you.”

Bang. The door was slammed shut, leaving only Mellion’s deep sigh in the room.

Chapter 420: The General Takes the Narrow Path

Van Fleet and Mellion’s meeting ultimately ended on bad terms. For both of them, this was an expected outcome.

During his time working in the rear, Van Fleet had conducted various investigations and learned that his old mentor had long been corrupted by the military-industrial complex. He was no longer the professional soldier he had once known.

Mellion, in turn, knew that Van Fleet’s character had never changed. Despite his various flaws, upon discovering the military-industrial complex’s shady dealings, he would absolutely see the investigation through.

Therefore, this final meeting was essentially an attempt by both to persuade the other to pull back from the brink, but in the end, it failed.

Stepping out of the Army Command Building once more, Van Fleet felt entirely different from how he had when he first received his transfer order.

If then he was thinking of escaping a post that seemed utterly useless and returning to the front lines, now he only wanted to fight the military-industrial complex to the bitter end.

Outside the Army Command Building was a wide, open square. On ordinary days, a small section of the square would be open for schools to bring students for patriotic education.

This place was once bustling with life, but now it was silent. Except for the সতর্ক sentries and multi-legged war machines, no one else could be seen. On the broad main road beyond the square, few vehicles passed by.

In the distance, dark, oppressive clouds, like a rolling sea of ink, gradually swallowed the last rays of the sunset, heralding the arrival of an unprecedented storm. All of this mirrored the predicament Van Fleet currently faced—fraught with danger, the future uncertain.

Van Fleet took a deep breath. The air was thick with the scent of the coming storm. His eyes, which had witnessed countless battles, now gazed into the distance, his heart filled with complex emotions.

The enemy he now faced was completely different from those on the battlefield—elusive and intangible, yet it had permeated every corner of the Federation, corrupted the mentor he respected, and even manipulated the direction of the nation from behind the scenes.

Van Fleet wanted to fight it, but he found he didn’t even know where to begin. Meanwhile, his opponent had already targeted him, intending to strike first and put him to death.

Facing this impending storm, Van Fleet knew that his own strength was far from enough. He needed to rally all the forces he could trust to perhaps find a fighting chance.

But beneath this turbulent surface, how many unspeakable secrets were hidden? And how many people were willing to stand up and fight alongside him?

Guterres was perhaps one. The man had been quite active recently. Furthermore, thanks to the Federation Navy’s “independence” under Marshal Trafalgar’s leadership, coupled with the Marshal’s personal protection over him, the naval Vice Admiral’s current situation was likely slightly better than his own.

The problem was, even with him, they were just two Vice Admirals who had been defeated on the front lines and subsequently put on ice, with no real power to speak of. They were nothing before the vast military-industrial complex.

His mind a tangled mess, Van Fleet descended the steps of the Command Headquarters building and got into the blast-proof armored vehicle waiting for him. After realizing the dangerous nature of his work, he had requested to switch his ordinary bulletproof staff car for a military-grade armored vehicle.

Of course, this was mainly for peace of mind. If they truly intended to make a move on him, what kind of vehicle he used would make no difference.

His fully-armed adjutant in the front passenger seat turned to look at him as he got in.

“General, where are we going?”

“The usual place,” Van Fleet said, his mind elsewhere.

“Yes, General.”

The vehicle quickly started up and drove forward. Comfort was not a feature of a blast-proof armored vehicle, but Van Fleet, long accustomed to the bumpy rides on the front lines, found it easier to concentrate and think in such an environment.

In the crew compartment, besides himself, were five other fully-armed guard soldiers. They made no sound, remaining silently vigilant.

As the armored vehicle left the Army Command’s perimeter, three other armored vehicles, also carrying guard soldiers, pulled away from the curb where they had been waiting and joined them, forming a convoy.

Generally, although high-ranking military officers had the authority to deploy a security detail, no one in the Federation Capital ever did so. After all, this was ostensibly the heart of the Federation, and an attack on a high-ranking officer was highly unlikely.

But for Van Fleet, that certainty was gone. Thus, under the puzzled gazes of his colleagues, he had his security detail follow him everywhere. If not for the capital’s strict regulations on large combat vehicles, Van Fleet would have even wanted to call in two HCPs.

The convoy proceeded along a familiar route toward what Van Fleet called “the usual place”—Guterres’s bar. He had already arranged to meet the naval Vice Admiral there tonight to discuss some matters.

As Van Fleet quietly contemplated his problems, the convoy left the capital’s core area and reached the zone between the Third and Fourth Ring Roads. It was at this moment that his adjutant’s tense voice suddenly broke the silence.

“General, we have a tail. Looks like we might have company.”

Van Fleet looked up as the adjutant continued:

“Damn it, this drone pilot is a veteran. He’s been using the buildings for cover to follow us this whole time. We just spotted him. General, I suspect some people are getting impatient.”

“Tsk… I didn’t think they’d be in such a hurry.” Van Fleet frowned. He had indeed planned to submit evidence to the Federation Supreme Court, but he hadn’t done it yet. It seemed his opponents wanted to strike first.

“This is the capital… How dare they?”

The adjutant found it hard to believe the military-industrial complex would be so audacious, but Van Fleet shook his head and said:

“The fact they’ve held back this long already shows considerable patience… Don’t panic. Take the alternate route. See if we can rendezvous with Vice Admiral Guterres. The security forces hidden in his bar should be able to buy us more time.”

As he spoke, Van Fleet tried to contact Guterres through his personal terminal’s encrypted line. Unsurprisingly, the message “No Signal” popped up on the screen.

“Hmph… How utterly predictable. They chose today to make their move.”

Van Fleet let out a sneer. With the help of the guard soldiers around him, he expertly donned a combat exoskeleton within the cramped confines of the crew compartment and attached additional armor plates.

“Everyone, prepare for battle!”

The moment he finished speaking, a piercing alarm blared through the armored vehicle—a warning that they had been locked on by a fire-control unit.

Realizing the situation was dire, the driver violently turned the steering wheel, and the armored vehicle swerved onto a side road, speeding toward a different route.

The lead vehicle of the convoy, which had been about to slow down and turn, was struck by an incoming anti-vehicle missile. With a deafening explosion, it was instantly engulfed in a ball of fire.

Van Fleet’s grip on the handrail tightened. A wave of fear washed over him. If the driver had reacted a second slower, giving the enemy a sufficient window to attack, it would have been his vehicle turned into a fireball.

Immediately after, two black modified trucks suddenly appeared on their alternate route, telling Van Fleet that his opponents had come prepared.

The two trucks swerved to block the road. A large number of armed personnel jumped out from their rear compartments. Several of them shouldered chain guns or anti-vehicle missile launchers, clearly having thoroughly researched Van Fleet’s security detail.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The remaining blast-proof armored vehicles on Van Fleet’s side quickly fired a barrage of smoke shells, creating a wall of IR-blocking smoke. The armored vehicles veered off the main road, avoiding the torrent of chain gun rounds that tore through the smoke.

Although they had momentarily blocked the enemy’s line of sight, Van Fleet knew that if the enemy was bold enough to charge forward with their superior numbers, his side would be finished all the same.

His adjutant, clearly aware of this, immediately ordered the driver to head for a small alley on the side of the street while issuing orders to the other guard soldiers.

As their armored vehicle entered the alley, the other one immediately crashed into the entrance, blocking it completely.

The remaining guard soldiers, without a moment’s hesitation, set up a temporary defensive line near the alley’s entrance to buy Van Fleet and his men time.

These soldiers, not yet corrupted by the ill winds in the army, followed their orders without question, even though covering the rear here was tantamount to suicide for them.

“General, it’s been this long and the Capital Core Garrison has shown no reaction. That says it all…”

The adjutant’s voice had become calm. While guiding the driver along a little-known route, he checked his weapon and continued speaking.

“There’s a disguised tunnel nearby for high-level Federation officials to use for emergency evacuation. Your security clearance allows direct access. We’ll find a way to lead the pursuers off. You can use a vehicle inside the tunnel to leave. The tunnel’s exit is located beyond the Sixth Ring Road, where an emergency response team will be waiting to receive you.”

Listening to his adjutant, Van Fleet opened his mouth to say something, but a thousand words were ultimately reduced to one: “Take care.”

The armored vehicle soon arrived at the entrance to the disguised tunnel. It was an unremarkable building, indistinguishable from the surrounding structures.

Van Fleet didn’t waste time. After getting out of the vehicle, he took one last look at his adjutant and the others, then walked into the building.

The moment he stepped into the room, a biometric identification device activated and completed its verification. The interior, which had looked like an ordinary room, suddenly revealed a passage leading underground.

As Van Fleet walked down and was carried deeper by some mechanical device, the entrance sealed shut behind him, leaving no trace of a seam.

Meanwhile, outside the building, the armored vehicle that had driven a short distance forward stopped again. The adjutant, holding an electromagnetic rifle, jumped out. He fired several more shots into the driver, who was already a corpse, then tossed a plasma grenade into the locked crew compartment.

He quickly moved a safe distance away from the vehicle. In the fiery glow of the explosion, he waved at the pursuing vehicles that had caught up.

Soon, several heavily armed personnel, wearing no identifying insignia, stood before him.

“Where is he?”

“He’s already in the tunnel. Have you taken care of the exit?”

“Of course. We’ve arranged a big gift for His Excellency, the Vice Admiral.”

The two men in conversation failed to notice that a traffic camera, which was supposed to have been put into sleep mode by the attackers, was now silently watching them.

It was like an eye, hidden beneath the material world, taking in everything.

Chapter 421: ‘Old Friends’ Reunite

This disguised tunnel, buried deep underground, was just one of many such passages in the Federation Capital’s subterranean escape network.

Decades ago, during a “riot” at the Congress Building, this disguised tunnel had been activated once. Its user at the time was the Secretary of State, who had been at the heart of the turmoil.

Now, after being sealed for decades, the passage welcomed a new user.

Van Fleet’s hands were a little clumsy on the military jeep’s steering wheel. He couldn’t remember the last time he had held a steering wheel and sped down a road.

To prevent the vehicle’s control systems from being hacked by an electronic attack, all the vehicles parked at the tunnel’s starting point were stripped of their auto-drive functions.

However, aside from a few intersections, the escape tunnel was mostly a straight shot, so it wasn’t much of an issue.

Vehicle maintenance was handled by a group of autonomous machines. Apart from a secret annual inspection, no other humans ever came here.

Van Fleet drove the vehicle forward through the tunnel. Although he was mostly just maintaining a high speed in a straight line, he felt as if the long tunnel had no end.

He couldn’t help but think of the attack he had just encountered. The Military-industrial complex was far bolder than he had imagined, daring to make a move on a serving Lieutenant General of the Federation Army right in the core area of the Capital.

“No, wait. If they dared to come after me, Guterres’s bar is in a more remote location. There’s no reason they wouldn’t go after him.”

An ominous premonition flashed through Van Fleet’s mind, and he started to worry about the only other ‘fellow traveler’ on this path.

“That guy is so rich, the security at his bar should be decent. He should be able to hold out for a while, right?”

Van Fleet’s mind raced, filled with a jumble of other concerns. During this time, the journey, which wouldn’t have taken long to begin with, was reaching its final stretch.

He was about to escape to safety, at least for the moment, but a sense of unease lingered in his heart, as if everything was coming to an unnaturally abrupt halt.

But the speeding vehicle and the passing time left him little room for thought. Before long, the vehicle he was driving reached the end of the disguised tunnel.

Van Fleet operated the center console, and the vehicle’s appearance quickly transformed from a rugged military-style paint job to a low-key black civilian finish.

After all, if he continued to drive a military vehicle on the open road, it wouldn’t be long before he was spotted by the Military-industrial complex, which had eyes and ears all over the Capital.

Several thick, sealed alloy doors stood before him. They rose quickly upon detecting the authorized vehicle’s approach. When the outermost, camouflaged door also rose, sunlight finally poured into the tunnel.

And Van Fleet saw the ‘Emergency Response Team’ waiting to receive him by the entrance—and beside them, under their control, stood his wife and daughter.

“Screech!!!”

The harsh sound of braking echoed through the tunnel. Van Fleet slammed on the brakes, and the military jeep skidded to a halt less than fifteen meters from the gate.

No matter how reckless or slow-witted Van Fleet might be, he now realized something was wrong. He quickly understood that he had likely been sold out by his most trusted adjutant.

“When did Lieutenant Colonel Mordres start working for you?”

“That’s no longer important, is it, Lieutenant General Van Fleet?” a man who appeared to be the leader of the armed personnel said.

“Why don’t you come over and reunite with your family first? Look, your daughter is terrified.”

“What do you people want? If you just wanted to get rid of me, you had countless opportunities just now.”

“It seems you haven’t gone completely senile. As long as you come with us quietly to meet a few guests who are interested in you, I can fully guarantee the safety of you and your family.”

“And if I say no?”

As Van Fleet spoke those words, the atmosphere instantly tensed. However, the commander of the armed personnel seemed to have anticipated this and showed no surprise.

“You’re welcome to try.”

“BOOM!”

A figure descended from the sky, stomping the armed personnel commander into a splattered mess of flesh and blood on the ground, cutting off the rest of his sentence.

—

“Subject consciousness transfer complete. Activating B4776 combat body ‘Switchblade.’ All subsystems adapting.”

“B4776 combat body activated. Subordinate ‘puppet’ combat squad synchronized activation complete.”

“Transferee, please synchronize your consciousness.”

A familiar yet strange voice awakened Banninger. He quickly realized it was the standard voice of the Combat assistance AI.

When he could ‘see’ the world before him again, he found himself inside a cargo container that was about to open.

The combat body he now ‘possessed’ was in a folded storage position, packed inside the cargo container along with its attached weapons, accessories, and ammunition.

“Captain, how do you feel after your first long-distance consciousness transfer?” It was Lilith’s voice.

“It feels like I took a nap. Not a very comfortable one, at that,” Banninger said as he got a feel for his new body, attempting to unfold himself and stand up from the cargo container.

“You’ll get used to it. For now, let’s get down to business. The Federation Lieutenant General that Master is watching is about to fall into an enemy trap. We need to step in and help him, or all this surveillance will have been for nothing.”

As Lilith spoke, she transmitted the relevant mission data. Banninger, now a digital lifeform, reviewed the information in an instant.

“What do you need me to do? What support will I have?”

Banninger stepped out of the cargo container, familiarizing himself with his new body while surveying his surroundings. It appeared to be the inside of a building, perhaps on the fourth or fifth floor.

The container that had carried him, painted to look like a large express delivery package, was sitting in the building’s warehouse.

“Below the south side of this building, near the river, there’s a sewage treatment outlet—or rather, the exit of a disguised escape tunnel. A group of armed personnel from the Military-industrial complex is there. They’re holding Van Fleet’s wife and daughter hostage, waiting for him to walk right into their trap.”

Upon hearing the name ‘Van Fleet,’ a strange feeling welled up inside Banninger.

As the Federation commander whose forces had annihilated the instructor squad, Banninger should have hated him to the bone. But after becoming a digital lifeform, he found that he couldn’t seem to muster that hatred anymore.

Still, the prospect of having to rescue the man felt slightly awkward. Fortunately, he wouldn’t have to introduce himself.

As these odd thoughts crossed his mind, Lilith continued her briefing.

“Since this operation is in the Federation Capital, we can’t deploy any heavy equipment. This ‘body’ of yours was smuggled in under the guise of a civilian robot.

“It was then secretly modified for combat by the Worker Bees. It only has basic combat capabilities, but with you at the controls, it’s more than enough to handle the small fry down there.

“Oh, and you have five combat puppets. You can control them with the ‘cloning’ ability you just learned~”

“This equipment was shipped in a long time ago?” Banninger asked, curious.

“Probably earlier than you think. Master’s plans here likely began before we let those two generals go.”

Lilith paused for a moment, then said seriously, “Prepare for battle. Our protagonist is about to make his entrance.”

The screech of brakes, an enraged Van Fleet, the armed personnel with victory in their grasp…

As the Military-industrial complex’s men began to demand Van Fleet’s surrender, Banninger, having already calculated the jump distance, charged forward with his combat puppets.

The glass on the exterior wall of his floor had been removed in advance, replaced by a sheet of transparent polymer for camouflage.

After a final burst of acceleration, he shattered the disguise and launched into the air. Returning to this world in a new form, Banninger entered a combat state, just like old times.

“Immortal, commencing operation.”

Chapter 422: Escape from the Tiger’s Maw

To Van Fleet, what was happening before him was as absurd as a movie plot.

The adjutant’s betrayal, his family taken hostage, villains who wanted him alive. And then, the sudden appearance of a third party.

After the leader of the armed personnel was crushed by a figure descending from the sky, several more figures followed, landing from above and dealing with the remaining armed men in the blink of an eye.

These units, which appeared to be another type of combat puppet, used their own weight and the gravitational acceleration from their high jump to stomp their targets—armed personnel, exoskeletons and all—into twisted, unrecognizable masses.

The armed man holding his wife and daughter didn’t even have time to react before one of the combat puppets, having completed its landing, pierced his neck with a sharp blade that shot out from its arm.

When another nearby armed man came to his senses and subconsciously prepared to fire on Van Fleet’s wife and daughter, the combat puppet shielded them with its body while, with a speed surpassing human reaction, it severed the rails of his electromagnetic rifle.

In a flash, more than a dozen armed personnel were swiftly taken down, including the driver in the vehicle behind them. The remote weapon station that had risen from the vehicle’s roof was also dismantled into parts.

Van Fleet was stunned by the scene for a moment. Seeing his wife and daughter freed, he leaped out of his vehicle without a second thought and rushed over to embrace his family.

After confirming that his wife and daughter were mostly unharmed, Van Fleet looked up, about to say something, only to see the combat puppets piling the bodies of the armed men together before starting to collect their weapons.

Only then did he finally have a moment to carefully observe these combat machines that had appeared out of nowhere.

The identical humanoid robots that appeared later were actually familiar to Van Fleet. They were a type of combat puppet for private use, generally employed as bodyguards for the wealthy.

Because of this, although they were called ‘combat puppets,’ they were actually civilian products. The materials, technology, and other aspects were nothing special, making them easy to obtain on the civilian market.

The one unique ‘humanoid machine,’ however, looked a size larger than the ordinary combat puppets, and many of its components had been reinforced and modified.

Although it still looked like a civilian-grade modification, it gave Van Fleet a “battle-tested” impression, clearly different from some of the flashier civilian defense products.

But that wasn’t what caught Van Fleet’s attention. What he found truly different was the feeling that this humanoid machine was a ‘real person.’

In its minor movements and mannerisms, there was none of the stiffness of a robot; instead, it was as vivid and fluid as a real person.

“Excuse me…”

“Stay here.” A cold, mechanical voice interrupted Van Fleet’s question, but it only strengthened his belief that a real person was controlling this steel body.

“Remote control through virtual reality? But there’s no lag or stiffness at all. Has the synchronization rate gotten this high already?”

Van Fleet silently speculated as he watched the humanoid machine and the combat puppets grab the discarded weapons of the armed men and charge in a certain direction.

Soon, the sounds of a firefight and the heavy thud of objects crashing into walls erupted from a nearby building. A battle was clearly taking place inside.

Van Fleet guessed that these mysterious mechanical units were engaging with the Military-industrial complex’s ‘reserves,’ which also proved that the faction behind these machines was fully aware of everything that was happening today.

Before long, the humanoid machine and the combat puppets returned to Van Fleet’s position. This time, however, one combat puppet was missing, and the remaining ones, including the humanoid machine, bore a number of new battle scars.

“I know what you want to ask,” the cold, mechanically simulated voice spoke again.

“But now is not the time for questions. Once you’re safe, everything will become clear. If you trust us, then get in the car and leave.”

The humanoid machine raised its hand and pointed. Following its gesture, Van Fleet saw a plain-looking black hovercar approaching.

After the vehicle came to a complete stop and its doors opened, Van Fleet realized there was no one in the driver’s seat. Like the taxis in The Capital, it was an unmanned vehicle, which indicated that the other party was clearly not ready to make direct contact with him yet.

“If you trust us, get in the car. We will protect you and your family, but the condition is that you must leave the Capital star system.”

At this point, Van Fleet knew he didn’t have many options. Although he didn’t know why the Military-industrial complex had wanted to capture him alive, he was certain it was for nothing good. The choice before him now seemed slightly better.

After boarding the car with his family, Van Fleet glanced one last time at the humanoid machine standing outside. It showed no intention of leaving. He wanted to ask something again, but the closing door and the rapidly departing vehicle cut him off once more.

“What’s the plan now?” Banninger asked in the virtual space, watching the vehicle drive away.

“Draw the pursuers’ attention. The bigger the commotion, the better. I’ll make the arrangements for Van Fleet.”

“To think that the first mission I get after being ‘reborn’ is another suicide mission,” Banninger said with a sigh.

“But this time, you have an immortal body, don’t you?”

—

“Where’s the video feed? Why isn’t it back yet? Have we lost contact with the field team as well?!”

“Sir, we’re experiencing unusual interference, and the temporary command network is also under attack. We’re dealing with it now.”

The technician’s words brought a cold sweat to the forehead of the commander of this “Closing the net” operation. The current situation had completely exceeded all pre-mission predictions, and the entire operation was now careening down an unknown path.

The thought of the fury he would face if the mission failed sent a shiver down the field commander’s spine.

“Speed up the repairs! If anything goes wrong, you know the consequences!”

“Wait! We have a picture!” a technician shouted excitedly.

“Put it up!”

The next second, footage from a street surveillance camera appeared on the command vehicle’s screen. It was from a camera on a street corner, zoomed in to its maximum limit.

The pile of bodies and the burning vehicle, along with a military jeep disappearing in the distance, made the field commander’s face turn grim. When the Communications Officer immediately reported that they had also lost contact with the reserves deployed nearby, the commander clutched his forehead in anguish.

His worst-case scenario had come to pass.

“Activate the backup plan. And report this up the chain. We need more support.”

Chapter 423: The Military-Industrial Complex Coalition

“That’s the gist of it, Boss! The reserve assault team is currently attacking the target’s building. We expect a breakthrough soon.”

“Are you sure the target is inside?”

“We can only say that theoretically, he’s inside.” The young man reporting lowered his head and spoke nervously.

“Tsk.”

Paris, sitting opposite him, clicked her tongue in annoyance before speaking:

“Forget about casualties. I want this over with, fast. The commander of the Capital Security Force has been calling me non-stop. We don’t have time for you to waste.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Soon, orders from the top spurred the attacking team to pick up the pace. With the promise of a hefty bounty, these elite ‘desperados’ from various private military companies began to charge the building, heedless of casualties.

By the time the Capital Security Force’s ‘rapid’ response team arrived and surrounded the area, two HCPs had cleared a path by tearing down a wall, allowing several units of heavy powered armor to storm the building. Inside, however, they found only a group of heavily wounded and bewildered armed personnel, along with a few fallen combat puppets.

“All these casualties from fighting a few combat puppets?”

The Security Force officer looked at the scene in confusion, but everything that had happened today, including the orders from his superiors, told him it was best not to ask questions about things that weren’t his business.

Meanwhile, when Paris received news that the target was not in the building, she was stunned for a moment before letting out a cold sneer.

“Heh… it seems a ‘benefactor’ is helping them from behind the scenes.”

“Boss, the target will definitely try to flee the Capital eventually. Should we try to set up surveillance at the airfields?” the young man beside Paris asked.

“Anything you can think of, they can think of too. Especially this mysterious faction. Since they dared to intercept Van Fleet, they must have a complete set of contingency plans.”

Paris shook her head and continued, “Forget it. We’ve caused a big enough stir for one day. I’ll have to contact all the relevant departments in the Capital to clean up this mess.”

“So we’re just letting them go? Another team just reported in. Guterres’s bar was also empty except for some combat puppets. He and his family have disappeared as well.”

“There’s nothing strange about it. Those two have always been in contact. It’s not surprising they’ve disappeared together.” Paris stood up and walked towards the door, continuing,

“You know? I have a feeling now that this mysterious faction hiding in the shadows might be someone we know. And we’re about to have a ‘close encounter’ with them very soon.”

Paris’s words made the young man pause in thought. Then, he had a sudden realization. “Are you suggesting… Atlas? But why? Weren’t Van Fleet and Guterres put on ice because of Atlas?”

“After those two were captured by Atlas, they were held there for quite some time. Who knows if they reached some sort of agreement?

“Besides, don’t you think this mysterious faction’s methods today seem a bit like Atlas’s? They have advanced technology and strategic planning capabilities, and they completely anticipated our actions and prepared in advance. It’s exactly like what they did to the Federation military in the Parra system.”

“So what do we do now?”

“The main plan hasn’t changed. Prepare to attack Atlas’s asteroid base. Once we’ve crushed them, all these bluffs will be meaningless.”

—

Twenty days later, in the UD74290 asteroid belt.

A vast fleet emerged from warp, gliding slowly into real space. The wave-like logo painted on each warship declared their identity—the fleet of the Torrent Group’s private defense company.

Eighteen capital ships from the Federation Navy, temporarily ‘assigned’ to the Torrent Group, plus more than 220 light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates, made it one of the largest private fleets in the entire Federation.

But at this moment, within the UD74290 asteroid belt, this fleet was merely one part of a much larger combined fleet.

A combined fleet formed by more than thirty of the Federation’s top corporations—perhaps the largest non-governmental fleet in the Federation’s history.

At Paris’s instigation, these corporations had brought out nearly all of their main forces. Including the Torrent Group’s fleet, which had also mobilized almost its entire strength, the combined fleet’s total ship count reached an unprecedented 1,402 vessels, including 112 capital ships of various classes.

In terms of ship numbers, it could be said that they had already surpassed Atlas’s previous predictions of five fleets.

But this was not the full strength of the military-industrial complex’s combined fleet. Four thousand kilometers from the combined fleet’s massive box formation, another fleet was also assembling.

However, compared to the corporate fleets of the military-industrial complex, which were composed of recently decommissioned or active-duty warships, this fleet’s ships looked somewhat shabby.

Among its more than four hundred ships, there wasn’t a single capital ship. Even the number of relatively modern military warships was small. The bulk of the fleet consisted of old vessels long since retired from the Federation Navy’s order of battle, as well as armed merchant ships converted from civilian vessels.

And such a fleet composition clearly indicated its identity—pirates.

Aboard the ‘Hood,’ a Kraken-class battleship that served as both the flagship of the Torrent Group and of the combined fleet itself, Megan Ford, the commander of the combined fleet, spoke as he watched the pirate fleet captured by the optical sensors on his screen:

“I didn’t expect the Boss to call in this mob.”

“Indeed. I have no idea how Madame Paris managed to pull these guys together.”

Megan’s adjutant, Bell, who like him had been headhunted from the Federation Navy, also shook his head as he looked at the screen.

Hearing Bell’s words, Megan smiled and said in a low voice:

“Regarding that, I’ve heard some rumors. They say the Boss already had connections with a few of the larger pirate crews to ensure the safety of the group’s shipping lanes. On top of that, she apparently has the means to let these people ‘go legit’ and shed their pirate status.”

“You mean be granted amnesty by the Federation Navy? This bunch of trash can’t even hold a formation?” Bell’s eyes widened. He had never expected to hear such an answer.

“It’s not that surprising, really. The Navy is desperately short on manpower right now. These pirates may not be much to look at, but at least they have experience in fleet battles.” Megan shifted into a more comfortable position in the captain’s chair and continued:

“Besides, they’ll need to survive to be granted that amnesty. Their designated role in this joint operation is nothing more than cannon fodder. Their main purpose is to help us draw the Atlas fleet’s fire.”

“Isn’t that being a bit too cautious? I’ve heard the Atlas Group is something special, but they’re just one company. How many warships can they possibly muster? If you include the pirates, we have over 1,800 ships. That’s enough to wage a whole campaign. We could probably ram all of Atlas’s ships to death and still win, couldn’t we?”

“There’s no harm in being cautious. If we screw this up with so many ships, the humiliation would be legendary.”

As Megan spoke, he turned to the virtual screen displaying the command interface, which showed the status of each fleet in the combined force.

“According to the plan, we should be the last fleet to arrive. Everyone should be here by now, right?”

“Yes, sir. The combined fleet is in formation.” Bell’s voice involuntarily rose in excitement. Serving as the adjutant for a fleet of 1,800 warships of all types was an experience he’d never had, even in the Federation Navy.

“Excellent. Relay my orders. All ships, to combat speed. Prepare to commence the attack.”

Chapter 424: Atlas Combat Fleet: Roger That~

“We’ve become their temporary allies in Atlas’s asteroid base, preparing to face an attack from over a thousand warships of the Military-industrial complex. How did things turn out this way?”

Inside the core command room of A·Bawa·Ku, Van Fleet gazed at the synthetic image transmitted back from the early warning terminals on the screen and couldn’t help but sigh.

Standing beside him, Federation Navy Vice Admiral Guterres also shook his head at the image on the screen, sighing in turn:

“You’re asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? I never expected things to come to this. I thought my life was over back in that tavern.”

“Who knew Atlas would suddenly stick their nose in, right?” Van Fleet turned to look at this true ‘brother in misfortune’—though in his eyes, Guterres was definitely the ‘little brother’ in their predicament.

“I didn’t know it was Atlas at first either. For me, it was just some intangible assistance through electronic warfare. It wasn’t until I was secretly sent to the spaceport, hidden in a cargo ship, and finally saw you that I guessed Atlas was helping us from behind the scenes.”

“So what are you thinking now?”

“Let’s stay here and finish this fight first. Whatever grievances exist between Atlas and the Federation, they saved me and my family when we were in the most danger. I have to find a way to repay that kindness.”

At this, Guterres thought of his family, who had been settled in the asteroid base’s living quarters. Helping Atlas was, in fact, helping himself, so he quickly came to terms with it.

Van Fleet, standing beside him, didn’t say anything, but his thoughts were much the same as Guterres’s. Moreover, the exceptionally comfortable living quarters in the asteroid base had once again convinced him that Atlas was far ahead of the Federation and the Empire in many technologies.

The living quarters of a typical asteroid base were usually just a space carved out inside an asteroid, sealed, and then furnished with some furniture and life support supplies.

They could only be said to meet basic human survival needs and had almost nothing to do with comfort. But the living quarters of A·Bawa·Ku completely upended Van Fleet’s understanding.

Through the use of some kind of Gravity Control Technology, the entire living area was covered by a gravity field suitable for human life. The smooth, excavated space was completely lined with composite materials, with no exposed rock walls.

Orderly and scientifically zoned buildings, roads extending in all directions, off-duty employees strolling down the streets, and vehicles driving on the roads all made this place look nothing like the inside of an asteroid. The environment even surpassed that of most satellite cities.

The simulated sky and sunlight on the dome even gave Van Fleet the illusion that he was on a planet’s surface.

And in the experience of this “well-traveled” Lieutenant General, he had never heard of any other asteroid base that could achieve this level of construction.

This wasn’t just a matter of cost; it involved a great number of technical challenges.

Combining this with the glimpse he’d had of Atlas’s military technology on Parra IV, Van Fleet was certain that this corporation was not as simple as others thought.

Five days ago, when the two men arrived at the asteroid base with their families in tow, they met with Amber and spoke for a long time.

Right from the start, they bluntly asked Amber for his reasons, wondering if he was trying to “recruit” them with this gesture so they would turn against the Federation.

But Amber’s reply at the time was also very direct. He stated plainly, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Since the Military-industrial complex is after you two generals, there’s nothing wrong with temporarily becoming allies of Atlas~”

It was precisely because of these undisguised words, coupled with the news that the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet was on its way, that Van Fleet and Guterres temporarily set aside their other concerns and decided to deal with the immediate crisis first.

Of course, for Amber, this operation led by Lilith had an unexpected gain besides successfully nabbing him two generals—he discovered that Lilith seemed to be up to something behind his back.

This was a very dangerous sign, and it immediately triggered Amber’s ‘Crimson Queen PTSD,’ causing him to confront Lilith right away.

However, while she admitted she was indeed doing something, she insisted that she had absolutely not betrayed Amber and that everything she did was for Atlas. She also promised to properly confess and apologize to Amber after the crisis at A·Bawa·Ku was resolved.

Although Amber was very curious about what Lilith was up to, as the early warning terminals began to detect more and more fleets in the following days, he knew this was not the right time to discuss it.

Returning to the present, the Military-industrial complex’s coalition fleet, under the command of Commander-in-Chief Megan Ford, was advancing toward A·Bawa·Ku in a massive box formation.

However, just maneuvering these 1,400-plus warships was already putting Megan under immense pressure, and she was grateful she hadn’t integrated the pirate fleet of another 400 warships into the formation.

The varying training levels of the different corporate fleets, along with the very noticeable differences in their ships’ readiness, meant the massive box formation was at risk of deforming and breaking apart during maneuvers.

If the even less-disciplined pirate fleet had been included, the formation might have risked collapse before they even got within attack range.

“It feels like some of these corporations are maintaining their fleets just for the sake of ‘maintaining’ them. The personnel training and ship maintenance are abysmal. Calling them a ‘fleet in being’ would be a compliment.”

Looking at the 3D model of the fleet on the holographic projection platform, Megan said with a headache. Although this combined fleet looked massive, she knew it was really just a paper tiger.

“For private fleets, isn’t their value usually more in their existence than in their actual combat effectiveness?”

After hearing her officer’s complaint, Megan’s adjutant, Bell, said with a smile:

“Besides, the fleet’s commander is you, a former professional soldier. That’s a lot better than if they were commanding it themselves. I’m confident that as long as we proceed steadily, there won’t be any major problems.”

“Sigh, I hope so.”

Megan sighed, then looked at the star chart at the massive asteroid belt lying between her fleet and the asteroid fortress. This giant belt, which nearly ‘half-enveloped’ the asteroid base, looked like it was the product of nature’s uncanny craftsmanship combined with human intervention.

After all, a naturally formed asteroid belt would hardly be able to perfectly half-encircle an asteroid base while conveniently leaving a channel for ships to pass through…

So, it was more likely that Atlas had ‘processed’ an existing asteroid belt to achieve this effect. This region was their mining area to begin with, and with enough time and a large number of mining ships, accomplishing this wouldn’t have been difficult.

Megan studied the asteroid belt for a long time before finally deciding to have the fleet change course and go around it.

Given the current state of the entire fleet, trying to cross it while maintaining formation would likely lead to casualties before the battle even began. On the other hand, breaking formation to pass through individually would make them easy targets to be picked off one by one. Thus, she could only choose the most conservative option: taking the long way around.

After opening the fleet-wide broadcast using her commander-in-chief authority, the order from the flagship was quickly relayed.

Battleship Hood: “This is the combined fleet flagship, the Hood. Issuing a fleet-wide order—all ships, begin adjusting your orbits to bypass the asteroid belt according to the synchronized updates. It is imperative to maintain formation integrity during this maneuver!”

Torrent Group Combat Fleet: “Roger!”

Deep Space Mining Combat Fleet: “Roger!”

Gabriel Biologics Group Combat Fleet: “Roger!”

Atlas Combat Fleet: “Roger that~”

Bochy Heavy Industries Combat Fleet: “Roger!”

Battleship Hood: “?”

Chapter 425: Severing an Arm Before Firing a Shot

Megan Ford and Bell stared at the new reply that had suddenly appeared in the communication channel. For a moment, they both thought they were seeing things, a side effect of fatigue from the long voyage. After all, the fleet’s adaptive electronic warfare module certainly hadn’t raised any alarms.

However, in the list of communication channels, the names of the various corporate fleets were preceded by their company logos. And this new entry, “Atlas Combat Fleet,” was no different, displaying that memorable geometric logo.

The Military-industrial complex had become all too familiar with that logo recently; for some, it was enough to trigger a stress reaction.

And Megan Ford, a product of the Federation Navy, realized in an instant that the massive combined fleet was already under an electronic warfare attack.

He had anticipated such a scenario before the engagement, as the intelligence obtained by the Military-industrial complex had pointed to Atlas’s powerful capabilities in information and electronic warfare.

He just hadn’t expected the attack to come so swiftly. The fleet hadn’t even approached the target Asteroid Base yet; they had been hacked while still in the tactical maneuver phase.

“All fleets, initiate jamming countermeasures immediately! Check all network ports and communication frequencies! Shipboard control AIs, immediately scan for and eliminate electronic warfare viruses! Switch fleet communications to backup encrypted channel D4!”

Megan immediately issued a new set of orders. The Hood’s electronic warfare command unit began directing the EW modules of every ship in the fleet to engage. This was a mode similar to a ‘command override,’ allowing them to bypass unnecessary steps in an emergency to waste as little time as possible.

As the command was relayed, Commander-in-Chief Megan also realized that this battle might not proceed as optimistically as he had hoped. Atlas was clearly an opponent who didn’t play by the book.

Based on Megan’s past experience with corporate wars, fleet-on-fleet battles between corporations were somewhat different from those between regular military forces. In theory, before the shooting started—right at this very moment—there was supposed to be a round of final negotiations or something similar.

After all, over ninety percent of corporate wars were sparked by business competition between two parties. It was only as the competition intensified that it escalated from ‘business competition’ to a ‘business war,’ and eventually to a full-blown, life-or-death struggle with live ammunition.

To put it bluntly, it all came down to profit.

Therefore, as a failsafe, both sides would typically engage in a so-called ‘final negotiation’ at the last minute to minimize the losses that a full-scale battle would inevitably cause.

In most cases, the defending party was the weaker of the two. At that point, if the attacker adopted a sufficiently hardline stance and demonstrated overwhelming strength, the ‘final negotiation’ would usually yield some results.

But what Atlas was doing now meant they couldn’t even be bothered to talk.

“They’re planning to fight us to the death,” Megan said.

“I suppose so. And they’ve probably guessed that we wouldn’t let them off easily even if we did negotiate.”

The adjutant, Bell, nodded and added, “After all, the bosses came here with the intention of crushing Atlas completely.”

While they were speaking, the combined fleet began its jamming countermeasures. The shipboard control AI on each vessel also purged the viruses that had been stealthily implanted into their core systems—at least, that was how it appeared for now.

This first round of electronic warfare from Atlas was more of a probe, a light touch rather than a direct deployment of their heavy hitters.

But an electronic attack that completely bypassed the adaptive defense units was more than enough to put Megan and his officers on high alert, and it prompted him to decisively order the switch to the backup encrypted channel.

These encrypted channels did offer better protection, but their most significant flaw was instability. The multiple layers of encryption made communication unreliable. It was fine for simple conversation, but problems often arose when transmitting complex information.

For instance, just then, Megan ordered the distant pirate fleet to attack from another direction. They were to first circle around to the other side of the Asteroid Base and, while attempting to ‘lure the snake out of its hole,’ see if they could draw away a portion of Atlas’s fleet.

However, the pirate fleet’s ships were not state-of-the-art to begin with, and their equipment was old. When they tried to use the combined fleet’s encrypted channel, they ran into incompatibility issues.

The Hood hailed them for quite some time, but the pirate fleet only managed to decode intermittent text and garbled code.

At that moment, the ever-helpful Atlas made another appearance. A new user popped up in the encrypted channel they had just switched to.

Atlas Combat Fleet: “The flagship is telling you to switch to trajectory G6 and circle around to the other side of the Asteroid Base. We’ve highlighted the specific route for you. You’re welcome~”

Megan, Bell, and everyone else on the flagship’s bridge were stunned.

They weren’t the only ones. The pirate fleet was equally dumbfounded when they saw the message. For a moment, they had no idea whether or not to follow this ‘order.’

“All fleets, close all conventional communication and network ports! Physically sever the communication modules, run a full virus scan in a secure state, and switch fleet communications to quantum-encrypted communication mode!” Megan slammed his hand on the armrest, his voice filled with frustration as he bellowed the command.

“Sir, if we switch directly to quantum-encrypted communications, the fleet’s communication bandwidth will drop drastically, and our communication efficiency will be severely affected. The fight hasn’t even started, and we’re already ‘severing our own arm’?”

Bell’s tone held a note of hesitation. While he understood Megan Ford’s reasoning, he still felt that such a sweeping measure could negatively impact their combat operations later on.

“You think I want to do this? There’s no other choice,” Megan said, a hint of dejection in his voice. “If there were any other way, I wouldn’t. But Atlas’s electronic warfare capabilities are unprecedented. Our past experience might be completely useless against them. If we let them continue their attacks, I suspect they could take out the entire combined fleet without shedding a drop of blood.”

Hearing Megan’s words, Bell knew there was nothing to refute, but he still had other questions.

“How did they even do it? An attack of this scale can’t be achieved with technology alone. The requirements for the attacker’s computing power and resources must be immense.”

“This just proves that HQ’s intelligence was correct,” Megan said suddenly. “Atlas’s large-scale data center and server arrays are most likely located right here in this Asteroid Base. For them, this is a true ‘home-field battle,’ and the advantage it provides is enormous.”

As he spoke, the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet switched its communications to the quantum-encrypted communication channel. Although the volume of information exchange between ships plummeted, they at least had a relatively secure and confidential means of communication.

Under these new conditions, Atlas’s attacks seemed to have ceased for the time being. The combined fleet successfully completed its long-range tactical maneuver, bypassing the asteroid debris field that served as a ‘barrier,’ and moved into its planned attack position.

Chapter 426: As an asteroid mining base, it’s pretty normal to have a disintegration ray, right?

“They’ve switched to quantum encrypted communications and blue-green lasers. The electronic warfare virus attacks won’t be as effective now. We can only try to jam their radar, but once they’re within visual engagement range, radar jamming won’t have much of an impact.”

Inside the core command room of A·Bawa·Ku, Guterres frowned as he watched the approaching combined fleet.

Although the combined fleet’s internal communications were also somewhat restricted, it hadn’t crippled them in the slightest. The threat of over 1,800 warships was very real.

Moreover, the operation to besiege the asteroid base was far from complex. The enemy commander only needed to issue a few simple orders, direct the fleet to a suitable position, and then command them to attack. For the most part, the fighting that followed would be left to the individual discretion of each fleet.

Guterres knew that the training level of these corporate fleets from the military-industrial complex was generally low. Even if the enemy fleet commander wanted to conduct a coordinated joint operation, the motley assortment of ships under his command might not be able to execute his orders.

Rather than trying anything fancy, it would be more effective to just throw a flurry of wild punches.

“Damn… The disadvantages of their low training level and poor joint operations capability are actually minimizing the impact on them in this situation.”

Guterres’s mouth twitched. The current situation was, to say the least, a bit surreal.

The only good news was that the enemy fleet’s trajectory was indeed as predicted before the battle. They were attempting to bypass the vast and dense asteroid debris field, moving toward the only ‘opening’ Atlas had left.

At this thought, the Federation Navy Vice Admiral activated a three-dimensional model of the asteroid base, adjusting the angle to bring the side the combined fleet was trying to get around into view.

On the rock face, which was covered in dense mining scars, an ‘equilateral triangle’ with sides five kilometers long occupied a section of the area, looking somewhat out of place.

Judging from the alloy base color, exposed because it had not yet been coated, this thing had probably just been completed.

Guterres had no idea what it was, as Amber and her team hadn’t revealed much to him or Van Fleet. All he knew was that it was likely some kind of weapon of mass destruction.

According to the operational plan, once the combined fleet was forced to detour in this direction, it would be attacked by this weapon of mass destruction. Simultaneously, three unmanned fleets lying in ambush would launch a synchronized assault, and Guterres would assist in command at that time.

As for Van Fleet, with his army background, he was of little use in this kind of space combat. So, Amber’s arrangement was for Van Fleet to organize the defensive operations in the extreme event that the asteroid base was invaded.

Although both men knew the reason Amber had done this was because Atlas’s main commanders were all at Parra IV, leaving the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid base short on relevant officers and forcing them to be brought in as a stopgap, the level of trust shown under these circumstances was still truly remarkable.

“The combined fleet is expected to enter attack range in one hour and five minutes!” the asteroid base’s Tactical Information Coordinator announced, displaying a countdown on the screen.

The Tactical Information Coordinator’s words highlighted a common reality of contemporary space combat—the extreme imbalance between observation distance and effective strike range.

In ‘clean’ space, both sides could detect each other at distances of one to two hundred thousand kilometers. If a large fleet formed a network and released probes to assist in reconnaissance, it wasn’t unheard of to spot an enemy fleet over three hundred and fifty thousand kilometers away, a distance nearing one light-second.

But at such a range, a heavy particle cannon—the primary weapon in battle—with an average speed of 3,000 kilometers per second, would take over one hundred and ten seconds to hit a target three hundred and fifty thousand kilometers away. The attack delay was even more exaggerated than that of ancient-era battleships trading salvos across the ocean.

Furthermore, directed-energy weapons couldn’t ‘chase’ a target. As long as the enemy detected the firing in advance and made a slight course correction to evade, they could easily dodge the heavy particle cannon shot—and that was without even considering how much destructive power a heavy metal particle stream would retain after traveling three hundred and fifty thousand kilometers.

At humanity’s current technological level, the only effective long-range attacks were potshots with near-light-speed weapons like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

But extreme range also had a significant impact on accuracy and irradiation power. Not only would a minuscule change in a ship’s facing angle cause a massive deviation of the focal point, but even for a truly heaven-sent gunner with an EX-rank in accuracy, the results of an attack might be less than satisfactory.

So, at least in the world constructed by Starry Sky Online, fleet battles in space typically involved both sides detecting each other at long range and then engaging in a continuous series of probing maneuvers, seeking a more advantageous attack position.

Only after a relatively lengthy period of maneuvering, when both sides entered their optimal attack ranges, would it become a duel between main cannons, shields, and armor—and a simple math problem of total power output laid before the fleet commanders.

Guterres glanced at the positions of the other three Atlas fleets on the star chart. They were located in a region of space twenty minutes away from the asteroid base by warp.

Having seen this operational deployment earlier, the Federation Navy Vice Admiral had already guessed that these three fleets were most likely the three unmanned fleets that had turned traitor on the battlefield.

After all, back at Parra IV, Atlas’s combat fleets had basically gone all-in, putting all their assets on the table.

Not much time had passed since the battle of Parra IV. If someone told the Vice Admiral that Atlas had somehow whipped up three more fleets in such a short time, he absolutely wouldn’t believe it.

Every minute and every second before the official exchange of fire was agonizing for both sides. Fortunately, an hour or so wasn’t too long. After forty minutes, the combined fleet had adjusted its position and, along with the Pirate Fleet, began to approach simultaneously from two different sectors of the celestial sphere.

Soon, the combined fleet began to launch a large number of plasma torpedoes and missiles. These weapons, easily intercepted but also demanding interception, rarely achieved significant results. However, they had fulfilled their purpose by forcing the enemy to divert a portion of their directed-energy weapons to counter them.

Over at A·Bawa·Ku, numerous missile silos hidden beneath the rock face opened up. Missiles and plasma torpedoes were launched like a celestial maiden scattering flowers, arcing along a preset trajectory toward the combined fleet’s flank.

During the previous battle at Parra IV, experiments conducted on Guterres had confirmed something for Atlas’s equipment R&D department: plasma torpedoes using a stealth configuration and radar-absorbent material were far more covert than anyone had imagined.

Perhaps because most people considered plasma torpedoes to be cheap expendables, no one had ever thought of improving their technological level and manufacturing cost. This had long resulted in the low versatility of traditional plasma torpedoes.

But now, with the advent of stealth-configured plasma torpedoes with further enhanced concealment, the use cases for this weapon had begun to change.

At this moment, the more powerful anti-ship missiles, making no secret of their approach, charged at the forefront, drawing the attention of most of the air defense ships and were, for the most part, intercepted.

But trailing a certain distance behind them, the stealth plasma torpedoes, maintaining a very loose formation, slowly slipped into the combined fleet’s outer air defense perimeter without attracting their notice.

Most of the air defense commanders were busily directing their anti-aircraft weapon groups to deal with the highly conspicuous anti-ship missiles being picked up by their radar and infrared sensors.

Meanwhile, everyone else on the bridge was fixated on something else entirely.

Directly in front of the fleet, that incongruous metal triangle on the Atlas asteroid base was slowly beginning to open.

At the same time, Atlas’s mining foreman, George, sat tensely in a high-security space within the core area. Floating behind him was the ‘Core Control Component’ of the large-scale mining and refining core.

“Mining Operations Department, disintegration ray generator, initiating self-check!”

Chapter 427: Mine It All

After first discovering the Forerunners’ “Large-scale Mining and Refining Core” inside the asteroid that served as their base, Amber had “bound” herself to it and then assigned a portion of the operational authority to the mining foreman, George.

After all, Amber couldn’t stay at the Asteroid Base day in and day out, operating this advanced Forerunner creation for mining work. That made George, who was responsible for coordinating all mining operations, the best choice for the job.

After so much time, George’s proficiency with the Large-scale Mining and Refining Core had evolved from his initial awkwardness and caution to the level of a seasoned pro “steering with one hand.”

It was only then that Amber realized the miner he had rescued from pirates possessed a creativity that surpassed his imagination, completely shattering the stereotypes many held about miners.

Once he had mastered the Forerunner device, George had figured out on his own how to separate the control core and had eventually set up a core control room within the Asteroid Base.

The refining component of the Large-scale Mining and Refining Core was placed in the ore refining workshop.

As for the most crucial mining component, thanks to the highly flexible modularity of the Forerunner creation, George had reconfigured it into a mobile “disintegration ray generator” that could move with the mining fleet.

The basic workflow was for the disintegration ray to first break down massive asteroids into smaller chunks. Then, the mining fleet, like a school of fish, would split into groups and swarm the pieces to begin mining.

George, meanwhile, controlled the disintegration component and kept it on standby near the mining area. Occasionally, when the fleet encountered particularly difficult asteroid fragments, he would respond to a summons from a mining vessel and give the target another blast.

Over time, George had gradually developed his own insights into using the disintegration ray, though they were almost entirely related to mineral extraction.

Using the disintegration ray on an enormous fleet attacking the Asteroid Base, as he was preparing to do now, was a first.

Or rather, it was the first time he would use the disintegration ray for an attack.

Before this, due to its remote location, the A·Bawa·Ku Asteroid Base had never been discovered by anyone else.

The few times the mining fleet had encountered pirates, the presence of the escort fleet had neutralized any danger, which meant the disintegration ray had never been “weaponized.”

But today, “weaponizing” the disintegration ray had become one of the key factors in this battle. Even though George was now completely at ease with its operation, he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

“Target set. Adding custom disintegration target mode. New type: Ship.”

George nervously worked on the virtual screen, simultaneously uploading the enemy fleet’s characteristic data, which had just been sent from the command room, into the Large-scale Mining and Refining Core’s database.

Since the Large-scale Mining and Refining Core had no traditional attack capabilities, to use the disintegration ray for an attack, one had to first input the target’s characteristic information, designating it as a “mining target” to pass the pre-firing verification.

Forerunner creations were exceptionally user-friendly. Not only could they directly recognize human languages, but they could also directly receive various types of information and data transmitted by humans, adapting it for use after a simple compatibility process.

This was why George could easily operate the Large-scale Mining and Refining Core without knowing the Forerunner language.

As he was making his adjustments, the disintegration ray firing channel, which had been hastily constructed under Salieh’s guidance, completed its opening sequence.

With the addition of the energy control technology Salieh had provided, the disintegration ray fired through the channel could reach a range of about ten thousand kilometers.

Therefore, according to the operational plan, Atlas’s counterattack would be initiated precisely when the combined fleet had advanced to within ten thousand kilometers.

“This is the core control room! The enemy fleet is currently fifteen thousand kilometers away, relative velocity eighty kilometers per second. Estimated to enter the ten-thousand-kilometer attack zone in one minute!”

“Roger that. The disintegration ray has completed pre-fire preparations. We can attack according to the predetermined plan!”

“Core control room, roger. Fire at will once the enemy enters attack range.”

After receiving George’s response, Guterres glanced at the time and then issued the order for the “outer fleet to begin warp.”

The three unmanned fleets, which had been on standby in deep space for some time, acted without a hint of hesitation. They quickly entered hyperspace in a “fleet attack warp.”

One minute passed quickly. As the combined fleet crossed the ten-thousand-kilometer red line, they launched the first attack on A·Bawa·Ku.

A salvo from the main cannons of over eighteen hundred warships briefly lit up the entire sector of space. Immediately after, electric arcs erupted from the outer perimeter of the Asteroid Base, illuminating this corner of the universe even more brilliantly.

Since the asteroid itself could not withstand a direct hit from heavy particle cannons—even with internal structural reinforcement and external armor plating—the defense of A·Bawa·Ku was centered on the construction of its deflector shields.

Forerunner energy management technology had increased the output efficiency of the base’s two hundred fusion reactors by at least sixty percent, which provided an ample power supply to the vast number of deflector shield generators deployed on the asteroid base.

Furthermore, while the combined fleet was numerous, the number of capital ships, which were its primary offensive power, was not particularly high—far below the proportion of capital ships in a regular army fleet.

So, as expected, this first salvo was completely blocked by the massive deflector shield.

When the brilliant arcs of electricity vanished and the undamaged A·Bawa·Ku reappeared on the main screen of the bridge, the combined fleet’s commander, Megan, sucked in a sharp breath.

“What level of deflector shield is this? It can withstand a salvo like that?”

He stared wide-eyed at the potato-shaped asteroid base on the screen, quickly collected himself, and issued a new order.

“All fleets, begin deceleration! Continue firing full salvos at the target!”

Noticing his adjutant’s gaze, Megan continued without turning his head.

“Even if a deflector shield of this level has enough power, the generators themselves have their limits. Our salvos, even if they can’t break through, still put immense pressure on the generators. A few more volleys, and we’ll definitely overload them.”

To be fair, Megan’s judgment was not wrong; he had actually overestimated A·Bawa·Ku’s deflector shield array.

In fact, after the combined fleet’s first salvo, the fortress’s deflector shield was already on the verge of overload. Throughout the entire deflector shield generator array, over thirty percent of the generators had overloaded and burned out from the attack.

This meant that even if the deflector shield could be raised again, its strength would not be as high as before. If the Coalition fleet launched another salvo, the entire shield would likely collapse before it could absorb all the incoming fire.

Fortunately, George had just finished his final preparations. As the disintegration ray generator locked onto the combined fleet, which had now entered its attack range, he fired without a moment’s hesitation.

“Disintegration ray generator, commencing full-power irradiation!”

The entire asteroid fortress trembled slightly. Attitude control thrusters positioned all over the fortress flickered continuously, stabilizing the “big potato’s” orientation.

A colossal surge of energy was released at that moment, coalescing into a green ray that, under the control of a special energy field, swept toward the combined fleet’s position.

Unlike the short pulses of heavy particle cannons or the few-second-long beams of high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons, the disintegration ray was a visible beam that shot straight into the right side of the fleet’s formation. Then, as the Asteroid Base adjusted its attitude, the beam swept from right to left like a whip.

Although the beam’s area of effect was not particularly large, once the green ray entered the combined fleet’s formation and struck a target, it produced a sort of “fission” effect, which spread to surrounding ships.

The disintegration ray, designed to break apart asteroid rock faces, proved equally effective against layered armor. As the beam swept over them, the layered armor plates and the deeper titanium alloy framework began to disintegrate.

This directly caused many of the decelerating warships to twist and buckle uncontrollably under the force of their own momentum.

The decompression from the gashes torn in their hulls not only spewed a dense cloud of debris and crewmen into outer space like discarded trash but also caused the ships to lose attitude control completely.

When the minute-long irradiation finally ended, the combined fleet’s formation looked as if it had been cleaved in two by a giant blade.

Chapter 428: I Alone Am Enough for the Feint

The sudden attack left the commanders and captains of the combined fleet completely stunned.

No one had ever imagined that this Asteroid Base of Atlas’s—no, it should be called an asteroid fortress now—would be equipped with such a wide-area-of-effect weapon.

Although the initial reconnaissance conducted by the Federation Navy had indeed discovered the triangular structure protruding from the rock wall, intelligence operatives at the time had assessed it as an ‘entrance and exit channel’ for A·Bawa·Ku.

Furthermore, the dense asteroid belt surrounding A·Bawa·Ku did have a ‘gap’ at that very location, which lent the assessment a degree of credibility.

Of course, the main reason was that no one would have ever thought Atlas capable of possessing such a weapon.

Before today, if someone had gone to the Federation’s top brass or the big bosses of the military-industrial complex and told them that Atlas might possess a strategic weapon similar to the Star Dragon Empire’s ‘Focusing Rainbow’ or the ‘Requiem’ mounted on the Federation’s mobile fortresses, they would have thought the person was out of their mind.

How could a private corporation possibly possess such technology and actually build a weapon of that strategic level?

From a certain perspective, there was really nothing wrong with that line of thinking.

After all, this thing wasn’t developed by Atlas itself but was found inside the asteroid. It was also not a weapon in the strictest sense; according to the Forerunner civilization’s classifications, the ‘disintegration ray’ was actually a piece of civilian mining equipment.

The principles of this ray were not yet understood by humanity. Its effect on warships was similar to its effect on mining asteroids. The external armor plates swept by the ray did not show the gruesome wounds left by other weapons; instead, they were disintegrated into standard one-meter cubes.

In essence, it was a form of ‘disintegration.’ In terms of lethality alone, its effect was rather average. The fatal blow to the ships actually came from the secondary damage caused by the disintegration of their internal support frames.

“Report, fleet losses exceed—wait! Energy signature detected! A second wave of attack is coming!”

On the bridge of the Hood, the Tactical Information Coordinator was just about to report the fleet’s losses, but before he could get the words out, another energy signature was detected from A·Bawa·Ku. Moments later, the green light that had just faded flared up once again.

The disintegration ray struck again, like the crack of a giant whip, only this time from a different direction and angle.

If the first attack had left a massive ‘scar’ on the combined fleet, then after the second, the fleet had essentially been slashed by a giant cross. The formation, which had been barely holding together, completely collapsed after the two volleys.

This time, the Tactical Information Coordinator finally had a moment to report the combined fleet’s losses.

“Report! Eight percent of warships were sunk outright in the attack, twelve percent are heavily damaged and can no longer fight, and twenty-one percent have sustained severe damage and are undergoing damage control!”

“The corporate fleets of Deep Space Mining, Odin Heavy Industries, Ryan Brothers, and three other companies have sustained heavy damage and are requesting to withdraw from the battle!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report echoed, Fleet Commander-in-Chief Megan, who had been stunned by A·Bawa·Ku’s attack, finally came to her senses. She then made a decision that, from a God’s-eye view, was entirely correct.

“Deny all requests to withdraw! Relay my orders: all fleets, continue the attack! The enemy’s strategic weapon cannot fire continuously. We still have the numerical advantage! As long as each detachment can evade the ray and close the distance, victory will still be ours!”

Megan’s decision was essentially the optimal solution for the combined fleet under the circumstances. A·Bawa·Ku’s disintegration ray generator had been forced to shut down for a self-check after running at full power for an extended period.

After all, regardless of the disintegration ray’s destructive power, the device was essentially just a piece of civilian mining equipment. Continuous operation at full power was not its normal working mode.

If the combined fleet’s will to fight had been strong enough at that moment, if they could have suppressed their fear and charged A·Bawa·Ku at high speed, they would have still had a fighting chance. Even if Atlas were to win in the end, it would have come at a heavy cost.

Unfortunately, for a combined fleet composed of private corporate fleets, what they lacked most—besides the proficiency and experience of their personnel—was precisely the will to fight.

To say nothing of the pirates. They were fine with showing off and gloating in a one-sided fight, but if you asked them to risk their lives, they would be the first to run.

Just like now, they were keeping their distance from both the asteroid fortress and the combined fleet, ready to warp away at a moment’s notice.

Although Megan had issued the ‘continue the attack’ order as the combined fleet’s Commander-in-Chief, not all the corporate fleet commanders were inclined to obey her.

Commanders from corporations like Deep Space Mining and Gabriel Biologics, which were comparable in size to the Torrent Group, all had their own agendas.

So, when Megan’s order went out, the already-disarrayed combined fleet fractured completely.

One part, the more obedient corporate fleets, continued to advance with the Torrent Group’s fleet. Meanwhile, another contingent, led by Deep Space Mining, began to slow down and create distance from the others, all while evading the fortress’s ray.

This scene did not escape Guterres’s notice in the core command room of A·Bawa·Ku. He shook his head as he watched the combined fleet descend into chaos and uproar under fire. Their will to fight was just as poor as predicted, and their reaction to the attack largely matched his pre-battle assessment.

While the weapon of mass destruction on this asteroid base was certainly effective, its power and range still fell short when compared to weapons like ‘The Focusing Rainbow’ and ‘Requiem’—heavy particle cannons with a ‘caliber’ of ten kilometers and acceleration tracks hundreds of kilometers long.

If this had been one of the Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortresses, then, based on Guterres’s own experience, a single, well-aimed shot from The Focusing Rainbow would have instantly vaporized at least thirty to forty percent of the combined fleet.

“Next, according to the operational plan, it should be Mr. Amber’s and the gunships’ turn to take the stage. I suppose I’m finally not the only victim to get my ass handed to them~”

Guterres’s gaze shifted to the nine inverted green triangles at the ‘Zenith’ position on the three-dimensional battlefield diagram.

One, marked with a star, represented Amber’s squad, while the other eight represented the eight Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons.

At that moment, Amber, who had been lying in wait in covert operations mode for a long time, finally received the signal to act. The screens of his 360-degree cockpit switched from standby to ‘panoramic piloting’ mode, and the re-optimized ‘Titan’ awakened.

“Boss, are you really going in alone for the first wave? Let us cover you.”

Murat’s voice came over the comms channel. Amber turned his head to the right and saw another heavy unit in the distant space, similar in design to the ‘Titan,’ its legs also replaced by an additional propulsion unit. It was gradually deactivating its optical camouflage.

“No need. I alone am enough for the feint. The rest of you, stick to the plan and cover the gunship regiment while they execute the defense penetration.”

Chapter 429: The Phantom Ace

It was no surprise that Murat, Louis, and Jacob were here. Although the Atlas fleet led by Cleves was still at Parra IV, Amber had brought back these elite pilots and their equipment to complete the “Defense of A·Bawa·Ku.”

Currently, Amber’s personal squad included not only Murat and Louis but also three other outstanding pilots he had scouted.

Under Amber’s “brutal” training, the five of them had seen their piloting skills grow by leaps and bounds. They had also all undergone physical modification surgery to withstand the immense pressure that advanced piloting techniques exerted on the human body.

The five had also switched their personal machines from the Aegis to the “Titan” heavy HCP, a unit Amber had personally tested.

After its combat trials at Parra IV, the Equipment R&D Center had once again upgraded and adjusted this unit, which diverged from the conventional HCP design philosophy.

Considering this heavy HCP was a special-purpose unit for space combat, its primary operational scenarios being deep-space assault missions or providing supplementary firepower in fleet battles, a situation like Amber’s previous solo atmospheric entry was a low-probability event.

Therefore, the R&D Center’s design team had directly removed the unit’s locomotion unit, replacing it with larger additional propulsion modules to increase the model’s maneuverability and acceleration.

Combined with a more powerful power unit, superconductor cells, and an additional weapons backpack, the unit’s specifications had been boosted by a significant margin.

Besides its appearance growing to increasingly resemble the phantom unit “Deep Strike” from Amber’s previous life, the physical requirements for its pilot had also reached an insane level.

Without physical enhancement surgery, a pilot would pass out from a simple, unadorned acceleration.

But even for someone with Amber’s level of physical fitness, a standard heavy hydraulic pressure suit was somewhat inadequate, so the pilot was fixed directly to the seat by a rigid restraint system.

This couldn’t help but make Amber wonder if he should just have Lilith create a dedicated combat AI to operate it.

However, that plan wouldn’t be ready in time for the battle at A·Bawa·Ku, so in the end, Murat and the others would be the ones to pilot the machines.

“Boss, after this battle, I bet you’ll earn a title like ‘Top Ace’ or something, right?” On the comms channel, the usually quiet Louis suddenly spoke up.

His remark instantly sparked a lively discussion among the others. After all, whether they were HCP pilots or Heavy Armored Gunship pilots, they all cared deeply about the most direct measure of honor: their kill count.

“Hey, that’s right! Maybe he already is one?” Murat realized belatedly. If he weren’t strapped into his seat, he would have slapped his thigh.

“I did some math. From Robert IV to single-handedly taking on an orbital assault ship squadron at Parra IV, plus the ground battles… whether it’s the number of regular units, HCPs, or ships he’s destroyed, no one else can possibly surpass him, right?”

Many of the pilots in Atlas were “fans” of Amber, so someone quickly came up with a rough estimate of his kill count.

Since Amber had never had the time to tally these things himself, he had no idea how many enemies he had taken down in an HCP. But now that his “fans” had calculated the number, it would be a lie to say he wasn’t secretly pleased.

At the same time, however, Amber’s mindset had long since changed. While a high kill count was certainly important, it was no longer the most important honor to him.

“Heh, it’s all empty fame~”

Amber replied with a smile over the comms channel:

“The Federation and the Star Dragon Empire will neither tally nor acknowledge my combat record, so these numbers are just for our own amusement. If it makes me a target for you all to surpass, then it would be my honor.

“Besides, if you really want to talk about kill counts, our mining foreman, George, is the real Top Ace. How many battleships must he have taken out with those two shots of his?”

“Damn, that’s actually a good point.”

“No way! George’s is just cheating! You can’t count a map-clearing AoE as part of a kill count!”

“Exactly! We earn our kills one slash and one shot at a time. He just sits there, clicks a few buttons, and fires off two rounds of AoE. It’s not the same!”

This “pre-battle discussion” that spun off from the topic helped alleviate a great deal of the tension in every pilot’s heart. The excitement and anticipation for the upcoming attack on the massive combined fleet had surpassed their initial fear.

Soon, the separation within the combined fleet became more and more apparent, presenting Amber and his team with a perfect window of opportunity to attack.

“Jacob, is the ‘Deepwater’ Squadron ready?”

Just before finally lighting up the Titan’s enormous plasma thruster array, Amber made his final confirmation on the comms channel, which had been personally encrypted by Lilith.

“All preparations are complete, Boss. The squadrons will commence their attack after you and the others ‘kick down the door’ and draw their fire. We will give our all to inflict maximum losses on the enemy!”

Jacob’s voice was firm. Ever since he had “re-specialized” from a supersonic reconnaissance craft pilot to the pilot and commander-in-chief of the Heavy Armored Gunship force, his entire demeanor had changed completely.

“You don’t necessarily have to resort to ‘trading casualties for results.’ Prioritize your own survival. That goes for all of you, including Murat, Louis, and everyone else. Listen up: you are all Atlas’s most precious assets. It would genuinely pain me to lose any of you.”

Amber said with a laugh as he pressed the holographic display in his cockpit that read ‘Self-check complete.’

“Besides, the main objective of this strike is to throw the enemy fleet into chaos and create the most favorable conditions for the unmanned fleet to sweep in and clean up. So I want every single one of you to return safely!”

“Understood, Boss!”

Hearing the unified response on the comms channel, Amber smiled. He then brought the unit to full power and swiftly pushed the throttle to ‘maximum thrust.’

“Let’s move out! Time for a proper hunt!”

As Amber’s voice echoed through the comms channel, his dazzling red unit shot forward, leading the charge. With its numerous plasma thrusters operating at maximum power, the entire machine instantly became the most brilliant meteor on the battlefield, streaking toward the separated warships in the rear of the military-industrial complex’s combined fleet.

This “meteor” that suddenly appeared from the zenith was quickly picked up by the air defense commanders of the various ships in the combined fleet.

Almost immediately, their minds flashed to the video that had gone viral online—the video of a single red unit in orbit of Parra IV, single-handedly destroying an entire orbital assault ship squadron and toying with three cruisers.

“We’re done for! It’s the Red Devil! Dammit, how could we be so unlucky…”

“Shit! Air defense crews, remove all firing restraints! All weapons, open fire! Don’t let him get close!”

Boom!

The unit’s large, onboard heavy particle cannon fired from a distance of six thousand kilometers, precisely striking a light cruiser that had exposed its upper deck. The violent heavy metal particle stream tore through the rear half of the ship, which was unprotected by a deflector shield.

The direct hit on the superconducting battery stack triggered a quench effect. A high-temperature plasma fireball expanded from within, engulfing a third of the ship’s hull. This dazzling explosion signified that Amber was drawing ever closer to the unofficial title of “The Phantom Ace.”

Chapter 430: Filthy. Absolutely Filthy.

“Optical sensors have a target! It’s a large, red-painted unit! It matches the characteristics of the ‘Red Devil’ previously shared by the Federation!”

Amber’s personal machine was quickly detected by the combined fleet and identified by its characteristics database.

After the conflict in the Parra system ended, according to the agreement reached between the Federation and Atlas, the Federation ultimately retrieved a group of high-ranking officers, including Van Fleet and Guterres, along with their surviving capital ships.

As for the remaining ships, ground troops, and ground equipment, they had no intention of taking them back, nor did they issue any orders for the ground forces to surrender.

It was a clear move to spite Atlas while leaving all that materiel behind. Such a roguish maneuver, naturally, earned them the contempt of everyone at Atlas.

From the capital ships returned to the Federation, various data stored on the “Red Devil” were quickly extracted and studied. The final results, besides prompting the Federation to begin its own research into this type of large-scale, space-combat-specialized HCP, included sending the “Red Devil’s” identification data to the combined fleet before this deployment.

At this moment, although the various corporate fleets were acting somewhat independently, their internal communications and command were still functioning.

Upon discovering the enemy approaching from the Zenith, a large portion of the already stretched-thin quantum encrypted communication bandwidth was immediately allocated to each ship’s anti-air command center. This allowed them to form a network and consolidate information from all vessels.

The most senior anti-air commander automatically assumed command of the entire fleet’s anti-air defenses under these circumstances, beginning to direct the destroyers and frigates assigned to anti-air operations to engage.

The mid-to-high-ranking officers within the corporate fleets were mostly officers poached from the Federation Navy or graduates intercepted from the Federation Naval Academy. The Federation did not mandate that Naval Academy graduates must serve in the military, but joining the Federation Navy was clearly more appealing than joining a corporate fleet. As a result, the graduates intercepted by the various corporations were generally the tail-enders of their class.

This officer composition meant that the operational procedures of these corporate fleets were largely consistent with those of the Federation Navy, including the current anti-air operations.

Although the different corporate fleets were each preoccupied with their own affairs, and the speed of their anti-air operations varied based on their crews’ training levels, at least no fleet had failed to complete this step. Thus, Amber soon faced interception from the fleet’s anti-air network.

“Satellite Missile Swarm, commence attack! Second wave of defense penetration squads and the gunship regiment, prepare to engage!” Amber issued new orders while maneuvering her unit through high-G evasive actions.

Soon, at the “entrance” to the asteroid belt the combined fleet was traversing, asteroid fragments that had been floating quietly in space, ranging from hundreds of meters to several kilometers in diameter, began to stir.

Several camouflage tarps on their rocky surfaces were cast aside, revealing arrays of incredibly thick solid-fuel rocket boosters that looked absolutely brimming with power. At Lilith’s signal, they promptly ignited, spewing forth powerful plumes of flame.

Initially, the thrusters used for these “Satellite Missile Swarms” were solid-liquid hybrid thrusters or high-energy liquid-fuel thrusters with higher specific impulse, but Amber had quickly vetoed those options.

The essence of this “Satellite Missile Swarm” was to simply push asteroid fragments to collide with the enemy. They didn’t explode; they were purely low-tech, energy-efficient weapons relying on immense mass for direct impact.

Moreover, Amber never held any expectations for their accuracy. The mission of these “Satellite Missile Swarms” around A·Bawa·Ku was primarily to create chaos among enemy forces and draw a portion of their anti-air fire.

Although the chance of a direct hit was low, any impact would result in heavy damage at the very least, so the enemy couldn’t possibly ignore these “little darlings.”

Given this purpose, the extremely low-cost solid-fuel rocket boosters became the final choice.

“Report! Detecting a large number of low-mass objects in the fleet’s vicinity, moving towards the fleet’s current trajectory!”

The attack of the Satellite Missile Swarm was naturally impossible to conceal and was quickly spotted by the ships of the combined fleet. When the sub-fleet commanders and anti-air commanders saw these fragments, already accelerated to a high relative velocity, continuing to charge towards their position even after their thrusters had burned out, a sense of panic was unavoidable.

If it were only dozens or a few hundred of these “kinetic projectiles,” the sub-fleets could have divided the task and eliminated them quickly with concentrated fire. But the number currently tracked by their radar and optical sensors was 3,415.

“Dammit, is Atlas made of money? Why would they deploy so many of these inefficient, single-use weapons with such a low hit probability?”

Cold sweat streamed down the foreheads of the numerous anti-air commanders. They had trained for scenarios involving colliding asteroids, but neither the textbooks at the Federation Naval Academy nor the Navy’s combat doctrine had ever told them how to deal with over 3,000 of them.

The shipboard control AIs of each vessel quickly collaborated to calculate the trajectories of the Satellite Missile Swarm. But when the dense web of red lines covered the entire combined fleet like a massive net, even Megan and Bell wore expressions of pure disgust, as if they had just eaten something foul.

“Filthy. How could anyone be so filthy!”

Bell, the fleet’s adjutant, was the first to swear. As a distinguished graduate of the Federation Naval Academy, he had been poached by the Torrent Group with a high salary after joining the Federation Navy. He was, through and through, a “by-the-book” commander.

His reaction to such an utterly unconventional tactic was therefore extremely strong.

“This shows that Atlas already considers this conflict a ‘war.’ In a war, do you really expect your enemy to abide by some so-called ‘gentleman’s agreement’ and engage in an elegant back-and-forth?” Megan said without turning her head, rapidly formulating a counter-plan in her mind.

Although there were no similar battle precedents to refer to, Megan knew there were only two viable responses at the moment.

First, the entire combined fleet could rapidly transit through this area, evading the asteroid fragments while closing in on the asteroid fortress.

Second, the combined fleet could quickly contract into a spherical formation and engage in all-aspect anti-air defense.

But the execution of either method depended on the entire combined fleet obeying her commands and precisely carrying out every order she gave, which was clearly impossible now.

The Commander-in-Chief had to admit that Atlas had timed their attack perfectly. First, the sudden appearance of the “Red Devil” had ratcheted up the pressure on all anti-air commanders, and then came the impact of these asteroid fragments.

Anyone who had seen the combat records from Parra IV knew that besides the “Red Devil,” Atlas also had a new type of small gunship that was equally threatening, so everyone had been on guard for these yet-to-appear units.

But now, these asteroid fragments threatening the fleet were forcing them to divert a massive amount of attention and firepower.

“If those gunships attack now, the fleet’s anti-air network might not be able to stop them.”

Just as this thought crossed Megan’s mind, the words of the Tactical Information Coordinator made her premonition a reality.

“Reports from all sub-fleets! Four more heavy HCPs detected from the Zenith! Their characteristics match the ‘Red Devil.’ Analysis suggests they are mass-produced models of the same series!”

“Wait, it’s not just those four heavy units! There are also units suspected to be heavy gunships, two hundred and forty of them!”

Upon hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, only a single thought remained in Megan’s mind: “It’s over.”

If this combination of initiatives from Atlas were directed at a regular Federation Navy force, it would still cause considerable trouble, but at least under her command, they could have mounted a response and minimized losses.

Unfortunately, the massive corporate fleet in this region of space was still a far cry from a regular army. Furthermore, after being hit twice by the mysterious weapon, the combat morale of many corporate fleets had already been shattered.

Under these circumstances, organizing a coherent defense was nothing short of a fantasy. It would be an achievement if each fleet could barely maintain its own anti-air network.

“Bell, contact the Federation Navy’s Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets. Only they can turn the situation around now.”

“Yes, Sir!” Bell nodded in acknowledgment, then asked before leaving:

“And before they arrive? What should we do?”

“Sub-fleets willing to follow orders will advance with us to break out of this danger zone.”

Megan Ford narrowed her eyes, looking at the corporate fleets on the 3D schematic that had already fallen out of formation. She spoke without a trace of emotion: “As for those unwilling to execute my orders… ‘Life and death are a matter of fate, riches and honor are decreed by heaven.’ All we can do is wish them good luck.”

Chapter 431: The Federation Navy to the Rescue?

The already loose and disjointed combined fleet was completely split in two under the dual threats of asteroid fragment impacts and attacks from the zenith.

The fleets following Megan’s orders, along with the Torrent Group’s fleet, increased their speed and charged toward A·Bawa·Ku, while the anti-air ships on the perimeter began clearing the incoming asteroid fragments in order of threat level, from highest to lowest.

As for the other group of corporate fleets, led by Deep Space Mining and Gabriel Biologics, they were cut off in a rearguard position and were left to fend for themselves.

And this was exactly the result Amber wanted.

While he was confident that neither the Federation nor the Star Dragon Empire could mount an effective response in a short time against a Deep Strike—no, the onslaught of multiple Titans and the follow-up attacks from the Heavy Armored Gunships—
this didn’t mean he had become so arrogant as to think he could devour the entire combined fleet with just this handful of units.

So, his initial plan was to exploit the corporate fleets’ poor organization and lack of internal cohesion to split them apart during the battle and devour the detached portion first.

Then, once the three unmanned fleets arrived on the scene, he would coordinate with the defensive armaments on the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress to devour the remaining corporate fleets as well.

Moreover, he believed that once the enemy’s losses reached a certain point, their morale would utterly collapse. The likelihood of surrender would far outweigh the possibility of total annihilation.

However, a sudden discovery by Lilith made Amber’s heart, which had just begun to settle, leap back into his throat.

“Master, I just detected the combined fleet sending an encrypted message to a target somewhere. I couldn’t crack or intercept it in time, but I can confirm it was sent to units not in this sector.”

“Other units?”

Amber frowned, but he had no time to dwell on it. Instead, following the ‘beam threat indicator’ on the panoramic display, he executed a lateral shift to evade a volley of anti-air high-energy laser fire and returned fire with a blast of his own.

Before firing, Amber had already switched weapon controls from the large heavy particle cannon to the large heavy electromagnetic cannon mounted on the rear right of his unit. So, what responded to the anti-air emplacement was an anti-ship, heavy tungsten alloy penetrator round.

Seeing a fireball erupt within the targeting box on his display, Amber shifted his gaze to another marked target—a heavy cruiser that was frantically adjusting its orientation. The targeting box immediately followed, locking onto the cruiser.

“You mean they have an ace up their sleeve?”

“Most likely, Master,” Lilith said seriously. “After all, messages sent out under these circumstances are usually requests for reinforcements or outright calls for help.” In addition to assisting Amber, she was also juggling numerous other combat support tasks and directing electronic warfare attacks against the Coalition fleet.

Since the battle was taking place at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Lilith had the support of an enormous server array. In terms of personal capability, she had reached her ‘peak state’ at her current level.

“Things have already gone this far; we can’t worry about that now. Stick to the original plan and continue the attack. The unmanned fleets will be entering the field shortly. We have to weaken the combined fleet as much as possible before their potential reinforcements can arrive!”

“Understood, Master!”

As Amber led the charge, maintaining an extremely high assault speed to break into the combined fleet’s formation and drawing the fire of numerous anti-air units, Murat, Louis, and the other four mass-produced Titans launched their attack simultaneously.

While they couldn’t carve a path straight through the fleet like Amber, who was fighting like a god descending to the mortal realm, they could still perform high-speed flybys along the fleet’s perimeter, unleashing a torrent of firepower from the Titans’ massive arsenals in the process.

“It’s no good! The target is too fast! We can’t maintain a lock!”

“Enemy units, count four, have breached the final air defense perimeter!”

“The Bain and the Thomas are sunk! Explosion detected on the Aristotle, contact lost!”

“Where are the ship-borne HCPs?! Get them on deck to assist with anti-air!”

“Shit! Watch out for those asteroid fragments, take evasive action now!”

In the corporate fleets that had fallen behind, their anti-air command groups were thrown into chaos by Amber’s direct penetration, the raids by Murat and the others, and the impacts from the Satellite Missile Swarm.

It was only then that they discovered that the reassuring deflector shields, which had been reliable in countless previous battles, were simply unable to provide their usual defensive capabilities against such an assault.

Not to mention the asteroid fragments that simply smashed ships apart with their sheer mass.

Furthermore, the integrated sensors, fire control units, and other electronic components of these five heavy HCPs were exceptionally precise.

With the help of the Combat Assistance AI, even Murat and his team could accurately strike the rear sections of the ships, near the main thruster arrays, during their high-speed assaults—the very area where deflector shield coverage was weakest.

Amber was even more absurd. As a psionic user, his powerful spatial awareness allowed him to lock on with ease and directly target a ship’s main thruster array.

These large plasma thruster arrays, when struck by heavy particle cannons or charged particle beams, could easily destabilize, risking a direct explosion of the entire array.

“Don’t just focus on these five targets! Watch out for the gunships behind them! According to pre-battle intelligence, these gunships are not only equipped with heavy particle cannons, but also carry plasma torpedoes!”

An anti-air commander from one of the fleets had just shouted over the channel, warning everyone to watch out for the Heavy Armored Gunship regiment led by Jacob, but before he could even finish his sentence, several warships on the fleet’s perimeter suddenly exploded.

Judging by the ‘special effects’ of the explosions, they were clearly the work of plasma torpedoes.

“How could they be so fast? Aren’t those gunships still outside of attack range?”

Just as this thought flashed through the anti-air commander’s mind, he suddenly realized that he and the others, in their panic, had overlooked something fatal.

The numerous stealth plasma torpedoes launched earlier by A·Bawa·Ku had finally drifted over at a ‘leisurely’ pace, and their seekers, quite coincidentally, acquired the massive fleet as a target at the very moment Amber’s group began their assault.

Clearly, amidst the chaotic anti-air operations, some plasma torpedoes had broken through the final point-defense and smashed headlong into the targets their seekers had firmly locked onto.

Under the assault from Amber and his team, the detached corporate fleets struggled to organize an effective defense. Once the eight squadrons of Heavy Armored Gunships joined the fray, the chances of forming an effective anti-air defense became even slimmer.

Beams from the heavy particle cannons continuously streaked across this sector of space, and massive plasma fireballs from plasma torpedo impacts lit up one after another.

Having fought the Federation Navy before, Jacob quickly discovered that compared to the naval forces at Parra IV, these enemies were complete pushovers.

This gave him the confidence to issue a free-fire order, as he personally led a squad in a charge toward the flagship of the Deep Space Mining corporate fleet—a Kraken-class battleship.

If the detached part of the combined fleet had plunged into hell from the very beginning, then the main force of the combined fleet led by Megan experienced the fall from heaven into hell.

They had managed to evade the Satellite Missile Swarm’s attack with minimal casualties and had even gained the upper hand in their exchange of fire with the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress’s defensive weapons.

Commander-in-Chief Megan had even thought for a moment that he had seized the hope of victory from the jaws of defeat, but with the Tactical Information Coordinator’s warning, three fleets that suddenly warped in from three different directions ruthlessly snatched that ‘hope of victory’ from his grasp.

He didn’t even have time to order the fleet to regroup and prepare for an anti-ship bombardment before the unmanned fleets’ swift and precise salvo covered the fleet like a rain of light.

The network of flashing shields almost merged into a single sheet of light, but amidst it all, there were still ‘unlucky bastards’ whose ships were viciously torn apart by heavy metal particle streams due to their deflector shields overloading or improper defensive angles.

Time passed, second by second. The Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet, under attack from four directions—the asteroid fortress and the three unmanned fleets—continuously had ships being hit, disintegrating, or becoming fleeting ‘fireworks’ in this part of space.

This was also the sight that greeted the two fleet commanders of the Federation Navy’s newly formed Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets after they exited warp.

“How are they getting beaten so badly?”

“I don’t know, but it looks like they’re beyond saving. Forget it, let’s proceed with our original mission.”

While the two fleet commanders quickly conferred, on the bridge of the Twenty-fourth Fleet’s flagship, Dr. Mephisto’s gaze passed over the fierce battlefield and locked directly onto the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, which, illuminated by the light of exploding ships, seemed to be burning in space.

“Lilith, my daughter. We finally meet again.”

Chapter 432: The Federation’s Plan to Kill Two Birds with One Stone

“Dr. Mephisto, are you sure you want to go in person?”

The commander of the Twenty-fourth Fleet, newly promoted Rear Admiral Muller, turned to Dr. Mephisto after finishing his conversation with the commander of the Twenty-third Fleet.

“If others can’t handle it, I have to go myself,” Dr. Mephisto replied, coming to his senses and looking at Rear Admiral Muller.

“I’m going to the Deployment Bay to prepare. After that, we’ll be counting on your command to get us to a suitable distance for insertion.”

Before Muller could say anything more, the old man floated towards the bridge’s hatch, preparing to take the elevator to the Deployment Bay on the bottom deck.

“Doctor. Be careful.”

“Don’t worry, Rear Admiral. Just focus on commanding. You don’t need to worry about us.”

Dr. Mephisto smiled and said one last thing before the hatch closed:

“If something goes wrong with the mission and we get trapped in the fortress, don’t hesitate and don’t send anyone to rescue us. Command the fleet to retreat immediately. You have a more important mission.”

As Dr. Mephisto’s voice faded, the hatch leading from the bridge closed once more.

Rear Admiral Muller sat back down in the captain’s chair. Gazing at the burning expanse of space outside the panoramic viewscreen, he took a deep breath and gave the order:

“All fleets, commence the attack as per the operational plan! Cover the strike team’s insertion into the target fortress!”

At his command, the interior lights of all warships switched to red battle stations lighting. The crimson glow reflected off the transparent helmet of Muller’s in-ship suit, obscuring his expression.

As the commander of the newly formed Twenty-fourth Fleet, Muller, along with Barak—the newly promoted rear admiral commanding the new Twenty-third Fleet—was supposed to take their two fully-equipped fleets straight to the front lines as new blood to support Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘strategic decisive battle’.

But a few days before their departure, Minister of Defense Miller, after communicating with Marshal Trafalgar, ‘intercepted’ these two fleets. He and the Chief of Staff from Naval Command personally met with the two new rear admirals and had them secretly lead their fleets to participate in this operation against Atlas.

Naturally, the two had heard of this private corporation that had routed the Federation forces and even crushed the Thirteenth Fleet in the Parra IV conflict.

Initially, both of them thought they were to lead their fleets to directly support the military-industrial complex’s fleet in battle—and indeed, that was the arrangement when the Federation government and the military-industrial complex negotiated.

But when they arrived at the staging area for the attack and decrypted the message left by Miller, they learned their true mission: to escort the strike team and Dr. Mephisto into the fortress under the cover of the corporate combined fleet’s attack.

In other words, regardless of whether the military-industrial complex’s fleet sent them a distress signal, the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets would find an opportunity to enter the battle.

Muller came from a long line of naval officers. Growing up in such an environment, he knew far more than the average person about the under-the-table dealings between the Federation government, the military, and the military-industrial complex.

So, upon learning the true mission of their two fleets, he quickly surmised that this was the Federation’s plan to kill two birds with one stone.

When he dropped out of warp and saw the combined fleet in tatters from his captain’s chair, he knew his suspicion was likely true.

While the corporate combined fleet and Atlas were locked in a fierce battle, they could sneak the strike team into the fortress to carry out their mission, and at the same time, let either the military-industrial complex or Atlas suffer grievous losses.

And from the current situation, it seemed the military-industrial complex’s losses were more severe. Muller estimated that if their two capital fleets hadn’t intervened, Atlas might have actually been able to wear down and destroy the military-industrial complex’s combined fleet.

Meanwhile, Amber, Guterres, and the others, as well as the military-industrial complex, had also noticed the two Federation Navy fleets that had arrived to ‘provide support’.

This moment was a classic case of some rejoicing while others grieved. Amber and her group were somewhat surprised and tense when they saw these two well-organized regular army fleets, whose ships showed no signs of being scaled down in quality.

First, they hadn’t expected the Federation to whip up another two full-strength fleets. Second, they hadn’t expected the Federation government to send these two fleets, which looked brand new from their paint jobs, to support the military-industrial complex.

As for Megan, Bell, and the others, when they saw the ‘friendly’ fleets finally arrive, a feeling of relief after hardship washed over them. Megan even shouted in a trembling voice over the comms channel: “Reinforcements have arrived! Victory will be ours!”

But soon, both Amber and Megan discovered that the situation was not at all what they had expected.

The two newly arrived Federation Navy fleets didn’t follow standard procedure by deploying into a standard bombardment formation to attack the unmanned fleet or the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress. Instead, they adopted a formation for a forced breach and charged directly towards the fortress.

Seeing this, the excitement on Megan’s face was instantly extinguished. He immediately realized these two Federation Navy fleets hadn’t come to support them at all.

“Warning! Deflector shield generator overload!” The sudden warning from the shipboard control AI snapped Megan back to his senses.

Ever since the unmanned fleet entered the battle and began its attack, his flagship had become their primary target. Under the control of the shipboard AIs adjusted by Lilith, the unmanned fleet’s firing accuracy was incomparably higher than that of the corporate combined fleet.

Therefore, the deflector shield of the battleship the Hood, Megan’s ship, finally gave out and overloaded after withstanding several successive salvos of focused fire from the unmanned fleet’s capital ships.

“Evasive maneuvers! Signal the Bunker Hill and the Evanice to move up and cover us! Damage control and technical teams, begin repairs immediately!”

As Megan gave the order, the most well-organized unmanned fleet, 6,500 kilometers away in a straight line, detected that the Kraken-class battleship—their primary target—was executing an emergency maneuver to hide behind friendly forces.

The shipboard AIs of five unmanned Kraken-class battleships reacted instantly. After a forced coolant flush of their bow-mounted main cannons, they immediately fired another salvo.

Dozens of heavy metal ion streams crossed the 6,500-kilometer distance, reaching the Hood two seconds later. However, most of the attack was intercepted by the two heavy cruisers that had moved into position.

Although this salvo also overloaded their deflector shield generators, they had at least prevented the Hood from having to ‘tank’ dozens of heavy metal particle streams with its bare hull.

Unfortunately, two heavy metal jets still grazed past the heavy cruisers’ deflector shields. The magnetic field caused the shots, which should have struck the Hood’s main bow armor belt, to deviate slightly.

They tore through the Hood’s side armor at a sharp angle. The scattered heavy metal particles, like buckshot from a close-range shotgun, riddled the blackbody coating and titanium alloy frame beneath the main armor, finally sweeping across a superconducting battery stack.

“Warning, superconducting battery stack 04 has quenched! Emergency isolation in progress.”

Boom!

The uncontained high-temperature plasma furiously blasted through the isolation doors before they could close, then spread through conduits and pipes to the two adjacent superconducting battery stacks.

“Fuck!”

The combined fleet’s commander, Megan Ford, only had time to utter that one last word before he, along with the Hood and its thousands of crew members, was engulfed by the high-temperature plasma fireball.

Chapter 433: Breaching the Fortress

“Report! The corporate combined fleet’s flagship, the Hood, has been sunk!”

“That fast?!”

The news from the Tactical Information Coordinator truly surprised Rear Admiral Muller. He had been hoping the military-industrial complex’s fleets could hold out a little longer, to ‘create’ a better opportunity for their two fleets to breach the fortress.

But it hadn’t been long at all, and their flagship was already blown to bits by Atlas.

“Now the corporate combined fleet is really going to collapse. Once this news spreads, with their low level of cohesion, I doubt they can keep fighting.”

The voice of Barak, commander of the Twenty-third Fleet, sounded in Muller’s ear. Muller nodded in agreement.

“They definitely can’t keep fighting. That also means we’re short on time, so we need to press the assault now.”

“Are the assault teams ready?”

“Yes, the Doctor has already boarded an assault boat. Once we reach the predetermined distance, the ship-borne HCP squadron and the assault boat squadron will deploy together. At the same time, we’ll each launch another wave of assault teams to breach the fortress simultaneously, preventing Atlas from quickly pinpointing the Doctor’s team.”

“Understood. Let’s proceed as planned.”

While Muller and Barak confirmed they would proceed with the infiltration mission according to the operational plan, Amber noticed something was wrong.

To be precise, it was Guterres who first noticed that the two newly arrived Federation fleets weren’t reinforcing the military-industrial complex’s fleets. Instead, they were heading straight for his asteroid fortress. He immediately relayed this information to Amber, who was in the midst of battle.

Upon receiving the message, Amber was currently weaving through and attacking the disjointed corporate combined fleets, supported by Murat and his team who had just destroyed the Deep Space Mining flagship. His kill count for this single engagement had reached an unprecedented one heavy cruiser, three light cruisers, six destroyers, and twenty-eight ship-borne HCPs.

He had originally planned to expend his remaining twenty percent of ammunition and then find an opportunity to head to an ‘automated supply point’ hidden in the asteroid debris field to restock on ammo and energy.

But after hearing the news from Guterres, he guessed the true intentions of these two Federation Navy fleets almost instantly.

“Lilith, they’re coming for you.”

“Me? The Federation already knows I escaped the research institute?” Lilith asked, a little curious. She had considered her ‘tracks’ in cyberspace to be quite well hidden and never thought the Federation would be able to trace her.

“They must have ‘guessed’ rather than ‘known.’ I suspect they’ve had their doubts for a while, and the matter of the unmanned fleet likely confirmed them.”

Amber forced himself to calm down as he spoke. He simultaneously abandoned his plan to resupply and plotted a course that bypassed the engagement zone, preparing to reinforce the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

“Murat, Louis, Jacob, continue your attack on the Corporate fleets. If they try to make a run for it, don’t bother with a hard intercept. Just inflict as many casualties on their combat personnel as you can.

There might be trouble at the fortress. I’m going ahead to provide support. Once the battle here is wrapping up, you all return to reinforce the fortress too!”

“Yes, Boss!” x3

As the three replied, Amber fired a freshly loaded heavy anti-ship penetrator round from his heavy electromagnetic cannon. Using a top-down attack, the round pierced through a light cruiser’s top deck from above and tore through its embedded combat bridge.

Bringing his personal kill count of light cruisers to four, his unit switched to ‘Cruise Mode,’ angling all thruster arrays directly backward. Then, in a blinding flash of blue light, it shot toward the asteroid fortress like a meteor trailing a long, brilliant tail.

Although the fixed anti-G system and hover-type pilot seat absorbed most of the G-forces, pilot comfort had never been a high priority in the ‘Titan’s’ design philosophy, which pursued extreme performance.

Or rather, it merely ensured the pilot wouldn’t pass out during high-speed acceleration; the discomfort was unavoidable.

But Amber couldn’t care less about comfort right now. Relying on his physical constitution, which was far beyond that of an ordinary person, he pushed the throttle all the way, and the unit’s instantaneous acceleration shot past the red line.

After all, Lilith was far too important to both him and Atlas. He couldn’t let anything happen to the strong AI.

Moreover, after spending so much time with Lilith, although he was still somewhat on guard due to his experiences in his previous life, he had long since come to see her as a true living being and a true partner—a partner in every sense of the word.

So, upon realizing the Federation fleet’s true target was likely Lilith, he had become utterly frantic.

But Lilith, upon learning of the current situation and noticing Amber’s state, didn’t feel worried or afraid at first. Instead, she felt a secret glee. No, it was more like utter ecstasy.

It was the first time the strong AI had discovered that Amber actually cared about her so much.

“You don’t have to be in such a rush, Master. We’ve deployed extensive defenses inside the fortress beforehand, and George and the others made the internal structure relatively complex. Even if the Federation breaches the fortress, finding the server array won’t be that easy…”

Lilith’s voice rang in Amber’s mind, sounding a little shy and bashful.

“No, what the hell are you being shy about?! If the Federation is getting involved personally to attack the fortress, they must have come fully prepared! I suspect they even have some kind of secret weapon to use against you. This is no time for jokes!”

“I know, I know. Don’t worry, Master. I have my own secret weapon in the fortress, too~”

“Wait, what have you been up to behind my back again?”

While Amber was speeding toward the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, Van Fleet watched the Federation fleets drawing ever closer, forcefully assaulting them while weathering the fortress’s defensive fire. He let out a soft sigh, then turned and walked toward the door of the core command room.

His movement immediately caught Guterres’s attention, who called out to his retreating back, “Where are you going now?”

Van Fleet paused for a moment before continuing on his way, leaving only a few words drifting back to Guterres’s ears.

“I’m not much help when it comes to space combat or fleet battles, but fortress defense is at least somewhat related to land warfare. I can be of some help there. Regardless of my previous standing or identity, Atlas saved my life and my family’s. I can’t just stand by and watch at a time like this.”

Van Fleet’s figure soon disappeared through the door. Guterres remained silent for a moment, then refocused his attention on the battle near the fortress, resuming command of the small garrison fleet’s defensive operations.

“All garrison fleet units, listen up! The enemy fleet’s objective is to get as close as possible to the fortress to cover their assault troops’ infiltration. Whatever they’re planning, prioritize focusing fire on the assault boats they launch! As long as they can’t achieve their tactical objective, the initiative will be back in our hands!”

Meanwhile, Van Fleet took an elevator inside the fortress to a deployment bay near the outer perimeter. Being in an outer sector with a direct external access point, it was a prime target for the assault teams.

There, the fortress defense forces, having received their orders, had already begun setting up temporary fortifications, preparing to halt the enemy assault troops.

Since the fortress’s internal defense forces had been assembled on short notice, they lacked a formal command structure. The one in charge was Oksana, who had arrived with the Romu defense units.

The cat-girl, who had recently earned the nickname ‘Valkyrie,’ quickly noticed Van Fleet dressed in a combat exoskeleton and carrying an electromagnetic rifle. He was currently guiding a platoon of Romu in constructing their positions more effectively.

Oksana was somewhat surprised to see the former Lieutenant General of the Federation Army.

After all, no one had believed Mr. Van Fleet would actually join the defensive battle. Amber’s request for him and Guterres to assist in the operation had been seen more as a polite gesture.

But seeing the general on the front line, rifle in hand, Oksana’s opinion of him changed slightly. She was also pleased to have such an experienced land warfare commander assisting them.

She quickly approached and proactively greeted the Lieutenant General.

“Mr. Van Fleet? You don’t really need to come to the front line. It’s about to get quite dangerous here, you know?”

“Thank you, miss. But under the circumstances, I can’t just wait in the rear for the outcome. I know what Mr. Amber said before was just a formality, but I genuinely want to do something to help you.”

Van Fleet said, uncharacteristically abashed. Such a tone and emotion were extremely rare for him.

“Since you put it that way, it would be rude of me to refuse. Besides, we could really use an experienced commander’s help right now.”

Oksana looked Van Fleet’s equipment up and down, then a smirk appeared on her face beneath her tactical faceplate.

“Speaking of commanding a battle… I think there’s another suit of armor in the warehouse that would be more suitable for you. It’s a suit of Powered Armor, but it hasn’t undergone any combat testing yet~”

“I’ll wear it. I’ve seen Atlas’s technology, and I believe in it.”

Van Fleet said without a moment’s hesitation, his mind flashing back to the various Atlas weapons he had seen before, especially that heavy, vehicle-mounted electromagnetic cannon that had so thoroughly captured his imagination.

“Excellent~”

Chapter 434: The Battle for A·Bawa·Ku Fortress (Part 1)

Two fully-manned Federation Navy fleets were indeed a rather troublesome presence for Atlas’s current outer-space defense forces.

Although Atlas’s defensive forces were a cut above the military-industrial complex’s combined fleet in terms of quality and overall combat effectiveness, they were still overwhelmed by the sheer number of enemy ships.

Just like the classic saying about fifty thousand pigs, even if they were just serving as target practice, an enemy force of this size could not be dealt with in a short amount of time.

This directly resulted in Atlas being unable to spare any extra forces to engage the two Federation fleets when they entered the field. The small garrison fleet could only maneuver near the fortress, relying on its built-in defensive weaponry to intercept the Federation Navy’s assault.

But this level of defense was not enough to stop the two fleets’ advance, and they soon breached the three-thousand-kilometer red line.

Immediately, the Twenty-Third and Twenty-Fourth Fleets launched a massive number of ship-borne HCPs, which swarmed toward the fortress. Following behind them were over six hundred assault boats packed with marines. Dr. Mephisto and the special mission team were aboard one of these landing craft.

Seeing this from the core command room, Guterres instantly realized they probably couldn’t hold them back. He immediately turned to the other Atlas staff around him and asked, “What about that ‘disintegration ray’? Can it be fired again?!”

“The Mining Operations Department reports that it just completed its self-check not long ago and is currently restarting the charging process. The full-power firing just now used up all the device’s reserved energy, so it is estimated to require at least another hour and a half.”

“No, that’s too long!”

Guterres gripped the railing in front of him tightly. On the large battlefield monitoring screens before him, the fortress’s defensive fire and the garrison fleet were already shifting their targets according to his previous orders.

But the Federation fleet’s ship-borne HCPs were clearly superior to the military-industrial complex’s ‘private soldiers’ in terms of morale, organization, and fighting will.

Moreover, the enemy HCP combat commander was obviously well aware of the mission’s objective and the role of the HCP units in this operation.

Thus, most of the ship-borne HCPs were deployed carrying heavy layered armor shields, forming numerous ‘meat shields’ in dense, multi-unit formations. They grimly absorbed a massive amount of fire, allowing the assault boats behind them to safely approach the fortress.

“Van Fleet, I might not be able to stop the Federation assault teams from forcing a landing. Your side needs to be ready.”

“Hmph, I knew I couldn’t count on you. The fortress’s internal defense forces are prepared, but the problem now is that the defensive front we need to cover is too large. We might be short on manpower.”

Guided by Oksana, Van Fleet, who had donned a ‘Raging Crocodile A3-C’ command-specialized heavy powered armor, replied while checking the electromagnetic machine gun in his hands.

“Besides, internal fortress combat has strict limits on the intensity of firefights. I don’t know what the Federation assault teams are planning, but we certainly don’t want to blow up the fortress in the middle of a fight.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“I’ve already discussed it with the commander of the fortress defense forces.”

Van Fleet glanced at Oksana, who was standing not far away holding a heavy shield and a plasma poleaxe. She was currently checking the area’s defense systems on a terminal.

“We plan to vent the air from all areas of the fortress except for the living quarters and the core control area. We’ll then pump in inert gas and anaerobic molecules to weaken the effectiveness of weapon oxidizers as much as possible. At the same time, we’ll shut down the gravity control units in these areas to slow the Federation assault teams’ advance and hold out until this fortress’s main weapon can fire again.”

At this point, Van Fleet remembered to ask, “How long until the main weapon’s next shot?”

“At least an hour and a half.”

“Fuck, why so long?!”

Van Fleet was stunned for a moment, as this was much longer than he had anticipated. However, he quickly composed himself and said finally:

“An hour and a half it is. In any case, we will do everything in our power to repel the Federation assault teams. I believe the Federation won’t allow these two newly formed fleets to be lost here, so as long as the threat or casualty level exceeds a certain threshold, these two fleets will definitely withdraw.”

“That’s what I was thinking, too.”

Looking at Van Fleet on the communication screen, Guterres felt a surge of emotion. Ever since the conflict on Parra IV had ended, he never thought he would be fighting alongside Van Fleet again.

Especially not under the ‘banner’ of Atlas.

“Good luck, Vice Admiral.”

“You too. Try not to die.”

“Approaching target fortress! Distance one thousand one hundred, all units maintain formation!”

Inside the dim crew compartment of the assault boat, Dr. Mephisto, dressed in a full combat exoskeleton like everyone else around him, fought to suppress the fear and nausea welling up inside him amidst the erratic maneuvers of the craft during its defense penetration.

After detecting that several of his vital signs were exceeding standard values, the combat exoskeleton automatically released a calming gas through its oxygen supply unit—a delivery method used only in special circumstances. If they had been on stable ground, it would have been a much faster and more effective intramuscular injection.

The others in the crew compartment, including the marines of the special mission team, while finding the old doctor a bit of a liability for personally participating in the assault, couldn’t help but feel a degree of admiration for a man of his stature daring to do such a thing.

So, after noticing Dr. Mephisto’s nervousness on the command interface, the squad leader spoke up to comfort him:

“Doctor, don’t worry! Just hang in there a little longer, we’ll reach the fortress soon! Our assault force has clearly overwhelmed their defensive fire threshold, so there’s no need to worry about being intercepted…”

But before the squad leader could finish his words of reassurance, the assault boat suddenly executed a sharp evasive maneuver. Simultaneously, the pilot’s voice crackled through the cabin’s broadcast system.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this flight is about to reach its final destination. Unfortunately, some ‘guests’ have shown up to greet us, so there will be some slight turbulence during the final phase of penetration. Please brace yourselves~”

“Fuck…”

“Squad leader, how many times has your jinxing come true? Please, for next time, just don’t say anything, thanks!”

“Yeah, if you hadn’t said anything just now, we might have already broken through.”

The team members griped one after another, their laughing and joking voices showing no signs of nervousness.

Aided by the calming gas and the marines’ relaxed chatter, Dr. Mephisto’s tension and fear eased slightly.

He turned his head to look at the two seats at the very back of the crew compartment. The passengers in these seats had been silent from the beginning, like two mannequins, but Dr. Mephisto knew they were actually two Psionic Agents specially assigned to this assault operation.

At that moment, the entire assault boat performed another drastic evasive maneuver. Under the violent shaking and a sudden spike in G-forces, Dr. Mephisto struggled to look at the panoramic display at the front of the compartment. It was showing a real-time feed from the assault boat’s forward optical sensors.

Even he could now clearly see a multitude of light specks flying out from the A·Bawa·Ku fortress on the screen—they were the HCP units sent out for terminal interception.

Simultaneously, the voice of the squadron leader of the HCP squadron providing cover for them came through the pilot’s headset.

“I’ll lead my men to tie up these enemies. You guys find an opportunity and push through.”

As soon as the squadron leader finished speaking, everyone in the assault boat saw the escorting HCPs acting as ‘meat shields’ fire a salvo. Immediately after, they unleashed almost all their remaining long-range weapons.

While clearing a path for the assault boats with long-range fire, these HCPs quickly broke formation and uniformly detached the heavy slicer swords mounted on their backs.

“Three, two, one! Now! Go, go, go!”

Amidst the squadron leader’s roar, he, as the flight lead of the entire squadron, shot forward in a burst of blue light from his back-mounted thruster array, leading the charge toward the approaching Atlas HCPs.

The other HCPs in the squadron also accelerated, swiftly engaging the intercepting Atlas HCPs in a tangled dogfight.

The remaining few assault boats dared not hesitate. Under the exquisite control of their pilots, they broke through the rapidly erupting melee with smooth and fluid movements, making a final sprint toward the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, which was now just within reach.

“Ten seconds to target insertion! All personnel, brace for impact!”

While alerting the marines, the pilot simultaneously activated the assault boat’s retro-thrusters to decelerate and engaged the dual thermal-fusion ray assembly at its front.

Nine seconds later, two scorching, dark-red rays shot out from the front of the assault boat. They struck their target, an external hatch of a deployment bay, and rapidly melted through it. The assault boat carrying the ‘VIP’ then successfully crashed into the deployment bay.

The marine special mission team escorting Dr. Mephisto and the other technicians consisted of about one company’s worth of troops. Including Dr. Mephisto and the others, there were a total of 120 personnel spread across six assault boats.

In the end, only four assault boats crashed into this deployment bay. The other two were hit by the A·Bawa·Ku fortress’s external automated defensive weapons at the last moment, losing their orientation and tumbling into the outer rock wall, killing everyone aboard.

As the four successful assault boats crashed into the deployment bay, a ring of explosive shotgun rounds mounted around their bows detonated, riddling everything in the vicinity, including the walls, with holes.

Immediately after, a large number of anti-infrared thermal smoke shells were launched, quickly forming a smoke wall in front of the assault boats that eventually merged into one large cloud.

After these steps were completed, the sensor unit sent out several probing pulses and rapidly synced the results to the marines’ combat terminals.

At the same time, several carbon fiber cables were fired out, embedding their rocket-propelled drills into the surrounding bulkheads to anchor the assault boats in the zero-gravity environment.

“Remember the entry procedure. Find cover and confirm enemy positions before opening fire. Move quickly, we marines aren’t paid by the hour. Doctor, you just stick close behind us and keep your head down.”

The squad leader was still giving his final instructions, but an unexpected attack once again cut him off.

Thump-thump-thump-thump!

A barrage of high-velocity penetrator rounds struck the assault boat’s sturdy forward structure. These sections, designed to act as ‘hammerheads,’ were naturally not so easily pierced by electromagnetic rifles, so the assault team members did not rush to exit.

The assault boat ejected several more tire-sized disposable deflector shield generators, which attached to the deployment bay’s floor with magnetic clamps and quickly raised several deflector shields in front of the craft.

Only then did the marine special mission team activate the magnetic clamps on their boots and ‘hop’ out from the opened hatches one by one.

“All squads, deploy in ‘V’ formation! Maintain movement along axis 664!

Technical Sergeant! Activate motion detectors and mark approximate enemy positions!

Fire support team, prepare to provide counter-suppression based on position feedback!

Everyone, set up comms gain filtering for the RF environment! Electronic Warfare team, begin jamming attempts!”

From deep within the deployment bay, from positions obscured by smoke, orange tracer fire continuously streaked through the haze. However, the deployed deflector shields deflected most of the electromagnetic rifle rounds, and also intercepted and dissipated several charged particle beams.

But these disposable units, lacking a continuous power supply, obviously couldn’t last long. After just one minute, they shut down one after another.

By this point, however, the assault teams that had entered the deployment bay had each found cover and began to return fire toward the directions marked by the Technical Sergeant.

The assault team’s fire support members were all equipped with heavy powered armor. They now leaned out from behind their cover and began laying down suppressive fire with the shoulder-mounted 25mm chain guns and loitering munition launchers toward the enemy’s position.

In a zero-gravity environment where indirect fire weapons like mortars were unusable, ballistic weapons, directed-energy weapons, and self-propelled munitions were the only remaining options.

The 25mm programmable high-explosive shells quickly created ‘fireworks’ in the direction of their fire, while a few loitering munitions, after struggling to adjust their angle, crashed into their targets. In a zero-gravity environment without vector thrusters, single-use man-portable loitering munitions, which relied mainly on aerodynamic control surfaces, were somewhat clumsy to handle.

However, the few team members providing suppressive fire quickly discovered that neither the high-explosive warheads nor the loitering munitions seemed to pack enough punch. It was like throwing a punch that lost all its force halfway through.

“Squad leader, the enemy has filled this area with large amounts of inert gas and anaerobic molecules. The explosive effects are severely limited. We might have to rely on pure kinetic attacks.”

The fire support team head reported as he directed his subordinates to switch the chain guns’ ammunition belts to PELE rounds (Penetrator with Enhanced Lateral Effect), and then commenced firing again.

This time, however, the Atlas defense forces’ counterattack came in response. As the anti-infrared thermal smoke slowly dispersed in the zero-gravity environment, several high-energy lasers immediately swept toward the assault team’s position.

Upon seeing the color of these high-energy lasers, all the team members, including the heavily armored fire support team, knew they couldn’t withstand a direct hit. They immediately abandoned their attack and dove for cover.

But there were still a few unlucky bastards and team members who reacted a fraction of a second too late and were sliced in two by the high-energy lasers.

Seeing the assault team pinned down, the squad leader looked anxiously toward the assault boats and yelled into the comms channel:

“Dammit! Is ‘Wolfhound’ ready yet?! If you don’t get here soon, you’ll be collecting our corpses!”

“Coming, coming! Preparing for a coordinated assault!”

Chapter 435: The Battle for A Bawa Ku Fortress (Part 2)

As soon as the voice fell silent on the special mission team’s communication channel, a cargo bay on one of the four assault boats that had completed their breach slid open. Amidst the sound of whirring machinery, several red ‘points of light’ appeared in the dispersing smoke.

Immediately after, four charged particle beams pierced through the smoke, firing toward the corridor occupied by the Atlas defense forces. The true form of the ‘Wolfhound’ was then revealed from behind the smoke.

It was a brand-new medium quadrupedal war machine. It had been loaded into the assault boat’s cargo bay in a folded storage mode and had only deployed into its combat form after its two-person vehicle crew boarded it during the assault team’s initial attack.

Over the past year, the rapid development and refinement of Combat assistance AI technology had granted combat vehicles intelligence far beyond their predecessors. In theory, they were indeed capable of independent combat.

However, to prevent a “machine crisis,” the Federation still assigned crews to all its newly developed vehicles. With the help of the Combat assistance AI, the crew’s stress in battle was significantly reduced. The information pre-processed by the AI allowed the crew to make more precise, efficient, and unhindered decisions.

The front of the Wolfhound’s chassis and its mechanical forelegs were reinforced with extra armor. The twin-linked electromagnetic machine guns mounted on the two mechanical arms beneath its body were currently firing long bursts, while the charged particle cannon on its rear-mounted turret, its primary weapon, continued its assault.

Unlike other medium multi-legged war machines, however, this model designed by the Vulcan Dynamics Research Institute was outfitted with small attitude control thrusters all over its frame. In conjunction with the electromagnetic adhesion units on its mechanical feet, these thrusters allowed the Wolfhound to cling firmly to any flat surface in a zero-gravity environment without the need for additional tethers.

Moreover, in combat zones with extensive internal transport conduits like space stations, satellite cities, and Celestial Fortresses, the all-terrain capabilities of multi-legged war machines were amplified even further compared to traditional combat vehicles.

The concentrated fire from the four Wolfhounds’ high-power charged particle cannons forced the Atlas defense force back into the corridor.

However, according to Van Fleet’s arrangements, their original mission was simply to slow the enemy’s attack and delay them for as long as possible.

If they encountered enemy units they couldn’t directly confront, they were to temporarily withdraw into the corridors and continue to impede the enemy by relying on the intricate network of passages inside the A Bawa Ku asteroid fortress.

This arrangement did, to a certain extent, ensure that the casualties of the Romu marines wouldn’t be too high, and it prevented situations where an entire unit would be written off defending a fixed position, which would further diminish the fortress’s defensive strength.

But the retreat of the defense force also gave the Federation assault team an opportunity. The instant their motion detection units and composite sensors detected the Atlas defense force withdrawing into the corridor, the four Wolfhounds launched a charge.

With the help of their attitude control thrusters, these quadrupedal war machines achieved high-speed maneuverability in a zero-gravity environment. They charged toward the corridor like true wolfhounds, running on all four legs, and were even able to execute tactical maneuvers like sharp turns, diving for cover, and clearing obstacles while sprinting.

The Wolfhounds’ offensive immediately relieved the pressure on the assault team. It was clear the two groups had cooperated in similar combat environments many times before. As the four Wolfhounds leaped over the assault team’s heads, the soldiers immediately rolled out from behind their cover and used the personal thrusters on their backs to skillfully fly toward the corridor, staying close to the ground.

These scenes were all being observed by Van Fleet, who was located in another area.

The greatest difference between the Raging Crocodile A3-C Command Specialization heavy powered armor and other standard models was its reduced ammunition and weapon payload. The space and weight saved were used to install a high-performance joint command terminal.

Unlike ordinary command terminals that could only direct subordinate units, this joint command terminal, specifically developed for senior commanders who liked to be on the front lines, possessed higher command authority.

With pre-set permissions, it could be used for combined arms command and even directly call in orbital strikes from warships—a task that previously required a request and coordinates from frontline troops, confirmation from rear command, and then contact with the fleet.

Right now, Van Fleet was relying on this joint command terminal to exercise senior command authority within A Bawa Ku Fortress. This authority not only allowed him to directly intervene in the command of any unit but also to control any of the fortress’s defensive weapons at will.

Data from frontline unit sensors, combined with footage from cameras throughout the fortress, was synthesized into a real-time 3D battlefield situation display, allowing Van Fleet to obtain the information he needed more clearly and quickly.

A command assistance AI also efficiently helped Van Fleet issue orders. He often only needed to state a rough battle concept, and the AI would generate more detailed and specific command information based on his idea and the current battlefield situation. Once Van Fleet confirmed it, the orders would be immediately relayed to the relevant combat units.

“All units near Deployment Bay A27, listen up. Withdraw into the corridor and lower the isolation doors, then re-establish a defensive line in the connection area. The enemy to your front is a Federation special mission team unit, highly proficient in zero-gravity assault operations!”

As Van Fleet listened to the command assistance AI relaying instructions to the forces near Deployment Bay A27, he simultaneously activated the defensive weapons in the nearby corridors and assigned control of them to the local defense force.

“Command authority for nearby defensive weapons has been transferred to you. Use them as you see fit. Remember one thing: the core objective is to buy time!” Van Fleet added after the command assistance AI finished issuing the orders.

“Received, thank you for the support, Commander Van Fleet!”

The voice of that defense force’s commander echoed through the communication channel. On the 3D map before Van Fleet, the icon representing that unit began to retreat deeper into the corridor, and the icon for the nearby autonomous defensive weapon station displayed ‘Activated.’

Van Fleet had performed similar operations many times since the battle began. Although he was more accustomed to commanding large-scale battles from a command vehicle in the rear, he was now deeply aware of how much this command terminal and powered armor enhanced the capabilities of a frontline commander.

On the command interface, a number was displayed next to the enemy and friendly forces near Deployment Bay A27. This was a combat power ratio calculated by an algorithm using information such as troop strength, infantry weapons, suppression weapons, anti-air weapons, anti-tank weapons, and combat vehicles for both sides.

The joint command terminal could directly access all information on friendly units, while specific information on enemy units was integrated from pre-battle intelligence and real-time data captured during combat.

This ‘combat power ratio’ wasn’t exactly new; both the Federation and the Empire currently used similar systems. However, they were integrated into brigade or battalion-level command systems, could only calculate down to the company or platoon level, and required several dedicated operations staff officers to run.

But Atlas’s system was precise down to individual infantry units and, moreover, required no specialized staff to maintain it, being run entirely automatically by the joint command terminal.

For example, right now, the combat power ratio for both sides at Deployment Bay A27 was around 200, which seemed evenly matched. However, next to the Federation unit’s number, there was an additional symbol.

Having quickly familiarized himself with the system over the past two days, Van Fleet knew this symbol represented that the enemy unit possessed ‘armor superiority,’ which was precisely why he had ordered the defensive force at A27 to fall back.

The joint command terminal and this command-specialized heavy powered armor were proving far more effective in actual combat than Van Fleet had anticipated.

In his opinion, the only problem was the shortage of senior commanders inside A Bawa Ku, forcing him to step up and direct the battle himself.

If there were just a few more commanders, their more flexible troop deployments and enhanced situational awareness might have been enough to push the invading Federation forces back out of the fortress.

Unfortunately, although Atlas had reinforced the asteroid fortress with more troops, they couldn’t find enough personnel proficient in fortress assault and defense command on such short notice.

Therefore, Van Fleet could only do his best to command the forces near each ‘enemy infiltration point’ and thoroughly implement a policy of ‘elastic defense.’ He constantly shifted troops to create local numerical superiority in certain areas, either annihilating the Federation units that had breached the fortress or forcing them to retreat back to their assault boats.

In this kind of battle, the Atlas troops, familiar with the fortress’s internal environment, expressways, and transport rails, held a natural advantage. This helped Van Fleet successfully apply the ‘elastic defense’ strategy, typically used in large-scale land warfare, to this new environment.

After temporarily ceasing his command of the A27 area, the Lieutenant General zoomed out the 3D map until he could see the entirety of the fortress and the interlocked battle lines drawn across it.

At this moment, the Federation’s assault forces had created 32 breach points. On the 3D display, they looked to Van Fleet like viruses invading a living organism, constantly probing for new weaknesses.

Although each of these 32 breach points consisted of only about a hundred soldiers and some multi-legged war machines, similar to the force at A27, their simultaneous appearance had initially caused a degree of chaos among the defenders.

Fortunately, Van Fleet’s timely intervention had managed to stabilize the defensive lines.

As an asteroid fortress with a long axis of 180 kilometers, A Bawa Ku’s defenses were naturally formidable. But its vast size also forced these defense forces to be spread out to prevent the emergence of any vulnerabilities that couldn’t be addressed in time.

That was why Van Fleet dared not rashly redeploy the garrisons from other, un-invaded sectors. If a reckless troop movement created a gap in the defenses, he would truly be a sinner.

He glanced at the countdown timer in the upper right of his view. Only twenty minutes had passed of the ‘one hour and thirty minutes’ re-arming time for the disintegration ray, as reported by the Mining Operations Department.

“Tsk… why has so little time passed?”

Just as Van Fleet was frowning, contemplating how to endure the next hour plus, a highlighted, star-marked friendly unit suddenly appeared on the 3D map near the A Bawa Ku fortress.

And in the Atlas command system, there was only one friendly unit designated with such a marker.

“General Van Fleet, please hold on for a while longer. If the enemy’s assault is too fierce, don’t try to hold them off at the cost of heavy casualties. The Federation assault forces’ final objective is the fortress’s data center. You might consider ‘luring them into a trap’ by ‘guiding’ these assault teams there!”

Amber’s voice sounded on the communication channel at the same time the specially marked friendly unit appeared. Hearing his voice, Van Fleet first felt an inexplicable sense of reassurance, then he asked with some confusion:

“Mr. Amber, since we already know the enemy’s objective, shouldn’t we be trying to stop them?”

“There are other secret defensive units pre-positioned near the data center. I will sync the relevant information with you shortly. If we can decisively thwart their main offensive, the Federation fleet won’t continue to waste time here! I will find a way to interfere with the deployment of subsequent Federation assault forces. I’m counting on you for the command inside the fortress, General Van Fleet.”

Amber replied swiftly, simultaneously glancing at the chibi version of Lilith projected by the holographic device in his cockpit. She was wearing an embarrassed, goofy smile, like a child who had just been caught doing something naughty.

After his brief communication with Van Fleet, Amber, who had already crossed the entire battlefield at high cruise speed and reached the A Bawa Ku asteroid fortress, followed a dynamic marker on his panoramic display and flew towards an unbreached deployment bay at the base of the fortress.

“Lilith, prepare for resupply and a combat module change!”

“Yes, Master! Initiating docking guidance now.”

As Amber began the docking procedure with his Titan, several defending Aegis units noticed his movement and quickly moved in to provide an escort. At the same time, the main gate of Deployment Bay G14 began to slowly open.

“Master, which module would you like to change to?”

“The Gigas.”

“Understood. Transferring and loading the Gigas module.”

As the mech decelerated and drew closer to Deployment Bay G14, finally sliding gently inside in a reverse-parking maneuver, a ring of automated maintenance mechanical arms immediately swarmed it. They deftly opened several service hatches on the mech’s exterior and began replenishing its basic ammunition and energy.

Through a small window on his panoramic display, Amber saw a pair of ‘giant hands’ being moved steadily toward his unit, held securely by mechanical arms.

Chapter 436: The Battle for A·Bawa·Ku Fortress (Part 2)

“Compatibility test… Passed.”

“‘Gigas’ component self-check initiated… in progress… 80%… 90%… 100%. Self-check complete. All subsystems nominal!”

“‘Excalibur’ initial setup complete. Subsequent parameter adjustment authority has been transferred to the pilot.”

“All unit energy circuits check complete! Basic ammunition resupply complete! All unit section coolant refilled! Subcritical reactor cooling components replaced!”

“Pilot 001, all unit subsystems are green. Deployment bay restraints unlocked. Ready for redeployment at any time!”

‘001’ was Amber’s designation in the Atlas HCP units, while Murat and Louis were designated 002 and 003, respectively.

The voice providing the preparation prompts belonged to the automated management system of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress. It had been developed by Lilith based on one of her clones, and she could personally access it in an emergency.

Soon, the Titan, now sporting an additional pair of giant mechanical arms on its back, shot out once more from the opened doors of Deployment Bay G14.

Its enormous frame, dazzling thruster glow, and eye-catching red paint job immediately drew the attention of friend and foe alike.

“Rear Admiral! A super-large HCP has been detected in the lower sector of the asteroid fortress, charging toward the fleet!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator reported, the target image captured by the fleet appeared on the bridge’s main monitor.

On the bridges of the flagships of the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets, the reactions were much the same as the corporate combined fleet’s earlier discovery of the Titan. Expressions of tension, unease, and even fear appeared on most of their faces.

Unlike the corporate combined fleet, which only had a rough understanding of the Titan from partial combat data shared by the Federation Navy, the high-ranking officers of the Federation Navy’s newly formed capital fleets had all read the detailed analysis provided by Naval Combat Intelligence.

Therefore, their knowledge of the Titan and its pilot, Amber, far exceeded that of the military-industrial complex. But this also meant they were far more nervous about the Red Devil’s assault.

“Don’t panic! It’s just one unit; it can’t turn the tide alone!”

Seeing the palpable drop in morale on the bridge, Rear Admiral Muller, seated in the captain’s chair, suppressed his own unease and spoke loudly to reassure everyone.

“Marines, begin the third wave of the assault! All ship-borne HCP squadrons, continue to provide cover! Capital ships, maintain suppression of the enemy fortress and garrison fleet! All other warships, assume anti-air interception status!”

After rattling off the series of commands, Rear Admiral Muller stared grimly at the approaching Red Devil. Though his reaction had been swift and calm, his hands, gripping the armrests of his chair so tightly his knuckles were white, betrayed his true emotions.

He was scared.

But in this world, human joys and sorrows are not always shared. While the two Federation Navy fleets were mired in tension over the Red Devil’s attack, the nearby Atlas garrison fleet and HCP squadrons felt as though they’d been given a shot in the arm. The sight of their Boss arriving sent their morale soaring.

“It’s the Boss! The Boss is here to back us up!”

“Look, the Boss has new Gigas components!”

The Atlas defenders stationed near the asteroid fortress erupted in cheers. The pilots of the HCP squadrons, in particular, grew so excited their breathing quickened when they saw the red unit appear, shouldering a pair of ‘giant arms’.

Faced with a vast numerical disparity, the HCP squadrons defending the fortress had been under immense pressure, suffering the heaviest casualties since their formation under the Federation’s relentless assault.

But in that instant, everything changed.

As the image on their main monitors showed the Titan slowly raising two enormous mechanical arms and gripping a large, somewhat crudely constructed ‘cylindrical object’, many pilots couldn’t help but make their mechs pump a fist in the air.

“‘Excalibur’… It’s the Sword of Promised Victory!!!”

“Damn! I’m so hyped right now!”

“Atlas HCP units are the best in the world!”

The Federation’s ship-borne HCP pilots, who had been tangling with the various Atlas squadrons, suddenly found their opponents fighting as if possessed. The Atlas units, who should have been on the defensive, abruptly switched to a frenzied all-out attack.

Many Federation pilots couldn’t adapt to the sudden change in combat rhythm. Their movements grew sloppy under the fierce assault from the Atlas HCPs, and they were eventually caught and shot down.

But that was only the beginning.

Soon, both sides fighting near the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress saw the rapidly advancing Titan ignite a ‘light sword’ so massive it was almost comical.

At the same time, ‘that man’s’ voice echoed across the public communication channel, audible to friend and foe alike.

“The battle isn’t over yet!

And Atlas will not stop here today!

Everyone, rally to the Titan!”

With that, the Atlas communication channels exploded. The morale that had been ground down in the asymmetrical battle was almost completely restored in an instant.

On the other hand, the Federation’s attacking force seemed stunned into silence. The intercepting HCP pilots, in particular, looked ashen-faced.

Inside the Titan’s cockpit, Amber quietly sighed in relief.

Though the ‘legendary scene’ he had just imitated could have easily turned into a ‘disastrous scene’ with one misstep, it was clear the Federation forces didn’t possess an unreasonably powerful weapon like ‘steel nails’. So, in terms of effect, it had met his expectations.

“Good. Now that morale has stabilized, it’s time for something wild to completely turn the tables!”

—

“This is bad.”

That was Rear Admiral Muller’s first thought after hearing the declaration of battle on the public channel and seeing the red unit, wielding its gigantic ‘light sword’, disembowel a heavy cruiser.

If he had previously considered the rumors of the Atlas Boss single-handedly turning the tide of battle to be some kind of ‘battlefield legend’, he was now beginning to believe that ‘legend’ might be real.

The brilliant light of the massive ‘light sword’ brandished by Amber’s unit cut through the gloom of the battlefield like the first light of dawn, illuminating the edge of despair in the hearts of the Atlas defense force.

Of course, this anti-ship weapon system, named ‘Excalibur’, wasn’t actually a ‘light sword’ but a type of plasma saber manufactured based on technology provided by Salieh.

A genuine ‘original’ plasma saber from the Jeram people—the Forerunners—would have been small enough for a single soldier to carry and use.

But it was clear that Atlas, or rather humanity’s current level of technology, was incapable of sustaining power to a plasma saber of that size. Thus, the team at the Atlas Equipment R&D Center could only resort to the crude method of proportionally scaling it up.

The short-term result was the plasma saber ‘hilt’ that the Titan now held in its massive hands.

According to Salieh, a ‘hilt’ of this size should theoretically be able to project a plasma ‘blade’ tens or even hundreds of kilometers long. However, at this stage, the team at the Equipment R&D Center had pushed themselves to their limits just to achieve a length of four kilometers.

This was not only due to the insufficient effectiveness of the magnetic confinement field, but also because the power supply was one of the major challenges the R&D team faced—it even directly led to the ‘Excalibur’s’ built-in superconducting battery stack being able to sustain power for only twenty seconds.

If they wanted to use it beyond that time, they would have to perform an emergency swap of the superconducting battery stack in the middle of combat. To that end, the designers had specifically streamlined the process to make it easier for Amber and the others to replace the superconductor cells during a battle.

Amber, however, didn’t have much of an issue with this. After all, he considered ‘energy management’ to be a mandatory lesson for any excellent pilot, and it wasn’t as if he could keep the thing active all the time in a fight.

In any case, although this ‘Excalibur’ prototype was still technologically far behind the Forerunner civilization, a four-kilometer-long ‘giant beam sword’ was more than enough for Amber’s purposes.

Despite being equipped with numerous advanced sensors and fire-control units, the Titan, moving at extremely high combat speeds, found it difficult to engage in long-range attacks due to the high relative velocity.

That was why, for a long time, Amber had planned to equip the Titan with a sufficiently large ‘Anti-ship Sword’ to perform anti-ship missions.

And now, that wish had been preliminarily fulfilled.

Under Amber’s assault, every swing of ‘Excalibur’ was accompanied by destructive power. He specifically targeted ships whose deflector shields were overloaded or whose vulnerable hulls were exposed.

Each time the Titan crossed paths with a target warship, the blindingly bright plasma saber would leave a savage wound on the target’s hull. For smaller units like frigates or destroyers, it was basically a clean cut in two.

Under the searing heat of the plasma beam, the warships’ external armor and internal titanium alloy frames seemed incredibly fragile. The wail of metal and the roar of exploding energy wove together into a tragic symphony, echoing silently through this war-torn expanse of space.

Led by Amber’s spearhead charge, the Atlas HCPs gathering around him swept like a storm toward the Federation fleet and the third wave of assault boats they had deployed.

When Murat, Louis, and four other mass-produced Titans arrived from another battlefield to join the fight, the sudden offensive threw the Federation fleet into a state of disarray.

High-threat units such as cruisers were either quickly dispatched by Amber or fell in battle under the coordinated attacks of Murat, Louis, and the others. This greatly reduced the pressure on the remaining Atlas pilots. All they had to do was follow Amber’s assault and take down the enemy HCPs that foolishly swarmed them.

Rear Admiral Muller, commander of the Federation’s Twenty-fourth Fleet, watched the advancing Atlas forces on the 3D tactical display with a face as dark as iron. However, he gradually calmed down as he realized he was likely witnessing a revolution in warfare.

Before this, HCPs had always been regarded as pawns and expendables on the battlefield—even if they were known as ‘Titans’ and seemed invincible to conventional infantry.

In the eyes of battlefield commanders, the purpose of HCPs had always been to execute tactical missions, not to decide the course of a battle, let alone a war.

But the appearance of Atlas’s ‘Red Devil’ had completely subverted this perception in just a few short months.

From its debut on Parra IV, every action of the ‘Red Devil’ seemed to be writing new laws of war, shocking all who witnessed them.

The Federation’s top military brass was not oblivious to this. On the contrary, they had always placed great importance on this new type of unit derived from conventional HCPs and had even initiated some development projects.

However, they had yet to produce any decent results. Many of the problems that Salieh had solved for Atlas using Forerunner technology and experience were, for the Federation, insurmountable obstacles in the short term.

Of course, a more critical point was that when the designers tried to select test pilots based on the unit’s design performance data, they discovered they had no one capable of handling such a new unit.

To be fair, the Federation’s pilot pool did include many Heavily-armed troops who had undergone extensive physical modifications and were theoretically capable of adapting to the controls of this new unit.

But it was precisely because their physical modifications were so extensive, with too many prosthetic limbs and internal implants, that the researchers dared not let individuals with potential symptoms of ‘cyberpsychosis’ conduct the test flights.

One step behind, always behind.

By the time Atlas began to mass-produce and deploy these heavy HCPs in combat, the Federation was still dawdling in the design phase.

“Report, General! The third wave of assault boats has sustained over sixty percent losses! Should we notify the fourth wave to prepare for deployment?”

“Yes, have the fourth wave make one more attempt, but this is the last one. Halt the loading of personnel for subsequent waves. All ship-borne HCP squadrons are to withdraw after covering the fourth wave!”

“Yes, General!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator quickly went with the fleet staff officers to issue the orders. Upon hearing Muller’s words, Barak, the commander of the Twenty-third Fleet, asked with some confusion:

“Muller, are you planning to withdraw from the battle?”

“Of course. Atlas’s defense and counterattack have exceeded our pre-battle estimates. Pushing on would just be trading combat loss ratios. The Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets have other missions assigned. If the Doctor’s side can’t achieve a breakthrough soon, we can’t afford to lose our valuable ships here.”

Muller said over the communication channel, his eyes fixed on the red blip on the 3D battlefield display that was relentlessly charging his fleet. He finally let out a sigh.

“And then there’s this ‘Red Devil’ constantly attacking the fleet. He hasn’t even fully unleashed his assault yet; he’s still mostly probing. But if we keep dragging this out and he completely penetrates our fleet’s anti-air screen, we’re going to have a real disaster on our hands…”

Chapter 437: As Long as We Can Reach That Place

Rear Admiral Muller wasn’t wrong in his assessment of Amber. By now, Amber had already “slain” one heavy cruiser, one light cruiser, and several destroyers and frigates, but his attacks were indeed only probes.

Given Amber’s aggressive style when piloting an HCP, which was completely different from his usual demeanor, he would have charged the flagships of the two fleets by now if he were done probing.

Despite this, Amber and the other Atlas units still caused considerable trouble for the two Federation fleets. With the support of the fortress’s defensive weaponry, they not only prevented the Federation fleets from closing the distance but also inflicted significant damage on the assault boats they had deployed.

The third wave of assault boats launched by the Federation fleet had originally carried numerous light armored units specialized for fortress breaching. However, under the interception of Amber and his forces, less than thirty percent of the assault boats managed to follow the path cleared by the first two waves and charge into the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

So far, less than sixty percent of the units from the first three assault waves had successfully landed. According to information relayed from Van Fleet, the discovered Federation assault force was approximately fifteen hundred strong, accompanied by over forty new multi-legged war machines and a large number of unmanned spider mechs.

According to Van Fleet, those unmanned spider mechs, which operated with the multi-legged war machines as their core nodes, were autonomous units created by the Federation Army’s Equipment Research Center in imitation of Atlas’s “Worker Bees.”

However, limited by their technological level, these unmanned spider mechs were not as intelligent as the “Worker Bees,” hence the need for the multi-legged war machines to act as core nodes and direct their actions.

Furthermore, Van Fleet reported that many Federation special operations units had entered stealth mode after infiltrating the fortress and were continuously penetrating deeper. Several defense units that encountered these spec-ops units suffered heavy casualties.

Of course, the most critical point was that all these defense units confirmed the presence of psionic users among the Federation special operations units.

“Looks like they’ve deployed Psionic Agents?” Amber asked over the comms channel while his unit’s deflector shield blocked several charged particle beams.

“Most likely,” Van Fleet said over the channel.

“Unless the Federation has formed some new special force I’m unaware of, based on the characteristics reported by the defense units, these psionic users should be Psionic Agents. The special operations units they’re leading would be the ‘Deep Diver’ special ops teams, who specialize in coordinating with Psionic Agents.”

Hearing the name of this special operations unit from the Lieutenant General, Amber’s brow twitched unconsciously.

The name “Deep Divers” had left a deep impression on him. In his previous life in Starry Sky Online, the “Deep Diver” special operations units were considered notorious pests.

They had a high propensity for aggression, strong tactical coordination, and excellent equipment. Most importantly, an encounter with the “Deep Divers” meant that Psionic Agents would soon be joining the battle.

A moment later, he said, “Tell the defense units not to engage them head-on. Fall back when necessary. Stick to the original plan and try to lure them toward the data center.”

“Understood. But then again, we don’t even need to lure them deliberately. They seem to have found the general location of the data center. Most of the Federation forces that have broken through are heading in that direction and are actively preventing our defense units from reinforcing the data center.”

Van Fleet frowned as he looked at the real-time tactical map on his command interface. He asked, a little doubtfully, “Mr. Amber, are you sure about just letting them pass? To be honest, in the terrain inside the fortress, the combat effectiveness of these special operations units will be greatly amplified…”

“It’s fine. A ‘professional team’ has already been arranged. We just need the defense units to coordinate and surround them later.”

Amber replied over the comms channel. Thinking of the “backup plan” Lilith had admitted to him earlier, he couldn’t help but sigh.

——

As Amber and Van Fleet ended their communication and Amber led the assembled HCP units to intercept the fourth wave of assault boats from the Federation fleet, the battle inside the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress reached its fiercest point.

Dr. Mephisto and his special mission escort—the “Deep Diver” unit mentioned by Amber and Van Fleet—forced back the Atlas defense forces and quickly pinpointed the data center’s approximate location by hacking into the fortress’s internal “area guide map.”

In the process, they rendezvoused with two other “Deep Diver” units, bringing the total number of Psionic Agents in their team to six.

Such a force held a significant advantage in all aspects within the relatively narrow and confined environment of the asteroid fortress.

After all, inside A·Bawa·Ku, these Psionic Agents wouldn’t be like “The Hanged Man” on Parra IV, who was obliterated by a barrage from 155mm self-propelled artillery.

The Federation assault force’s advance was proceeding relatively smoothly so far. In contrast, the pressure on Atlas’s defending forces had suddenly intensified.

Needless to say, the defense units directly obstructing the “Deep Divers” were in a constant state of fighting while retreating, trying to slow the enemy’s advance while minimizing their own casualties.

The other defense units weren’t faring much better. The assault forces that had entered the fortress seemed to have redeployed tactically and were now turning the tables, actively obstructing any reinforcements heading for the data center.

“Doctor, we’re approaching the data center. You and your technicians should get ready. The enemy will definitely counter-attack once we break through, and we might not be able to hold them off for long…”

At a corridor corner near the data center, the “Deep Divers’” frontline commander pulled Dr. Mephisto, who had absentmindedly floated into mid-air, back to his side and quickly explained the plan.

While he was speaking, two Psionic Agents raised their psionic shields, then charged into the corridor, using psionic blasts to “clear the way.”

Following their lead, many “Deep Diver” commandos and spider robots also charged out. A “Wolfhound” unit poked its chassis around the corner, its turret swiveling to aim its charged particle cannon.

“I’m already prepared! As long as you can get us inside, I can finish it in ten minutes, tops!”

There was a slight tremor in Dr. Mephisto’s voice. For this elderly researcher who had never been on a battlefield, his first combat experience was a high-stakes fortress assault. That he hadn’t lost control of his bodily functions by this point was a testament to his strong constitution and mental fortitude.

“Alright, Doctor, get ready. We should be there in a few minutes—”

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

A series of explosions echoed down the corridor. Even though the combat exoskeleton helmets worn by everyone present had their own sound-dampening layers, they still heard the blasts.

Dr. Mephisto and the “Deep Diver” squad leader turned to look down the corridor. The “Wolfhound,” which had been menacingly preparing to fire its charged particle cannon just moments ago, was now drifting uncontrollably toward the other side of the corridor. A mixture of oil and blood occasionally spurted from two large, penetrating holes in its chassis.

Meanwhile, the “Deep Divers” who had been on the offensive just a minute ago retreated back under the cover of the Psionic Agents, leaving a trail of bodies in the corridor.

Now, these commandos and Psionic Agents were frantically pouring fire down the corridor, as if trying to hold something back.

The “Deep Diver” commander, who had never expected to encounter such a situation, immediately accessed his command interface to review the combat footage.

He saw that many sections of the seemingly ordinary corridor walls had opened up like hidden doors. A dozen units of heavy powered armor and one larger, unidentified armored unit, which had apparently been hidden inside the walls, were now counter-charging the “Deep Divers” under the cover of even more “Soldier Bees.”

“Wait… What the hell is this thing?”

The “Deep Diver” commander stared in shock at these suddenly-appeared units. The heavy powered armor and autonomous machinery were one thing; they had been mentioned in the pre-battle intelligence briefing.

But he had truly never seen this humanoid armored unit, whose height of under five meters placed it somewhere between heavy powered armor and an HCP.

At that moment, one of these unknown armored units was providing suppressing fire with an electromagnetic rotary cannon that had replaced its right mechanical arm. The two heavy electromagnetic cannons deployed on its back were also aimed menacingly in their direction, ready to fire at any moment.

Soon, the rapidly firing electromagnetic rotary cannon stopped shooting and abruptly vented a cloud of white smoke, apparently performing an emergency cooldown.

In that instant, a Psionic Agent at the corridor entrance shot out like lightning. Aided by his own burst of power and a personal propulsion unit, he became a blur, charging toward the tall, heavy unit.

And then…

There was no “and then.” The “Deep Diver” commander watched in astonishment as the supposedly cumbersome heavy armor unit suddenly locked onto the speeding Psionic Agent.

Its right arm, which looked like a heavy mechanical gauntlet, swung with precision and speed, striking the Psionic Agent square in the face. For an instant, an arc of electricity resembling a deflector shield flashed across the massive mechanical fist.

The next second, the Psionic Agent flew back out of the corridor at an even faster speed, finally slamming violently into a wall and falling unconscious. Upon seeing this, the others present even thought they heard an illusory SPLAT! in their ears…

“What the FUCK is going on?!”

Looking at the Psionic Agent embedded in the wall, his body twisted out of shape, the merely surprised Deep Diver commander was now utterly dumbfounded.

He never imagined such powerful units would suddenly appear near the target data center. Logically, shouldn’t such defensive forces be deployed in the outer areas, where they would be the first to make enemy contact?

Then he remembered that previous terrain scans and motion detection had not found these units, and he suddenly realized that he and his team might have walked into a carefully prepared trap.

They had clearly anticipated his team’s objective. So, instead of deploying these high-combat-value units in the outer region, it was far better to hide them along the team’s inevitable path.

“Sir, the walls are made of a special anti-detection material with a specialized coating on the outside. That’s why we didn’t detect these units earlier!”

A “Deep Diver” squad member who had retreated from the corridor entrance came up to the commander and shouted next to his tactical faceplate.

“So it really is a trap.”

“Sir, what do we do now?!” the soldier asked. At the same time, another Psionic Agent floated over and added:

“Whatever the situation is, our mission’s priority cannot change. If you can continue to command the troops to attack, my two brothers and I will do everything we can to support the battle. Then you can find another chance to get the Doctor and his team inside!”

This Psionic Agent, who had been relatively taciturn during their previous collaborations, was now uncharacteristically verbose.

“As long as the Doctor and his team can complete their mission, we still have a chance to turn the tables. Otherwise, we’ll be trapped here to die!”

Hearing the Psionic Agent’s words, the “Deep Diver” commander nodded. Those who could enter a Federation special operations unit and serve as a commander were naturally not cowards who clung to life and feared death, so he had no objection to what the agent said.

Just as he was about to organize attack waves for a forced breach and see if he could create an opportunity for the Psionic Agents, the other corridor of the T-junction suddenly erupted into activity.

Through his command interface, the “Deep Diver” commander saw that a squad posted as sentries down that corridor had engaged an incoming Atlas defense force.

This time, besides the usual infantry units, the arriving Atlas defense force had a much higher proportion of heavy powered armor, and some large unmanned units providing direct fire support also appeared.

Factoring in the defensive weapons that could be activated at any moment, this was an offensive combination that the sentry squad clearly couldn’t handle. The “Deep Diver” commander knew then that time was running out.

“It’s too late. We have to force our way through!” he said, looking at the Psionic Agent who was also watching him intently.

“This corridor doesn’t have much cover; we can’t pull any fancy tactics. I’ll lead a frontal assault to draw their attention. You take the other Psionic Agents and escort the Doctor and his team through when you see an opening!”

After speaking, the “Deep Diver” commander clapped the Psionic Agent on the shoulder and said, “Didn’t know you were such a talker. I’ll buy you a drink after the battle’s over.”

“We Psionic Agents are forbidden from—”

The Psionic Agent was about to object, but the “Deep Diver” commander didn’t give him the chance, immediately leading the surrounding “Deep Diver” squad members into a new round of attacks.

“Single-use deflector shields and mobile shields, get ready! Watch your assault formation, advance in waves! Don’t fucking bunch up! ‘Wolfhounds’, prepare for fire support! Once the temporary deflector shields wear off, you move to the front! Electronic Warfare team, do whatever you can! Even a one-second disruption will help!”

The “Deep Diver” commander issued orders while rushing to the edge of the corridor, pressing himself against the wall. Seeing that everyone around him was ready, he swung his arm down forcefully.

“Smoke screen! Assault team, with me, charge!”

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!

As soon as the order was given, numerous smoke shells were launched from electromagnetic projectors mounted on the other soldiers’ gear. A dense hail of high-velocity flechette rounds, interspersed with numerous high-energy laser beams, immediately flew from the other end of the corridor.

Although many smoke shells were shot out of the air before they could release their smoke, the remaining ones successfully detonated. Thick, anti-infrared thermal smoke instantly filled the entire corridor.

In the final moment before the smoke completely obscured their vision, two “Wolfhounds” popped out to the left and right, firing their charged particle beams through the last closing gap.

However, at almost the same instant, the crews of both “Wolfhounds” observed a chaotic flurry of electrical arcs flashing on the other side.

“Tch… they have deflector shields too, and they don’t look like single-use ones…”

BOOM!

The damage assessment from one of the “Wolfhound’s” crew was cut short as two heavy penetrator rounds shot through the smoke and ripped through the multi-legged war machine’s chassis from front to back. A piercing shriek then echoed throughout the entire corridor.

“Such a fast counter-attack!”

The sense of crisis in the “Deep Diver” commander’s heart grew heavier upon seeing this. The enemy before them was not only well-equipped but also clearly very experienced in combat.

The destruction of the “Wolfhound” did not stop the “Deep Divers’” attack. They continued to follow their battle plan, tossing out multiple single-use deflector shield generators while deploying and fixing several layered armor shields to the walls.

With the construction of this temporary position, the suppressing fire from the other end of the smoke was greatly reduced. Seizing the opportunity, the “Deep Divers” quickly advanced, providing covering fire for each other.

The Psionic Agents also drifted forward, carrying Dr. Mephisto and the other technicians like they were clutching little chicks.

But the suddenly-appeared Atlas garrison on the other side of the corridor clearly had no intention of letting them advance so easily. With a roar of rocket boosters, the massive humanoid armored unit charged out of the smoke, brandishing a fist crackling with electricity.

Again, it was a punch so fast it was almost invisible. Several “Deep Diver” commandos taking cover behind a mobile shield were sent flying along with the shield itself. Under the wild dance of brilliant arcs, their bodies were scorched black.

With this unidentified armored unit, a thing of brutal mechanical beauty, blocking the corridor like a wall and laying down suppressing fire with the large-caliber electromagnetic rotary cannon on its right arm, a rational, cold, and—to the surrounding Atlas defense force soldiers—incredibly familiar voice sounded over the comms channel.

“Immortal, begin the attack!”

Chapter 438: Give it up, Doctor. It’s all Immortals out there.

The sealed corridor, the flickering flames, the hail of bullets, and the corpses and severed limbs floating about like puppets with their strings cut…

Experiencing such a combat scene for the first time, Dr. Mephisto felt his entire body trembling. He was currently huddled behind a mobile shield, his newly recruited assistant—a leading figure among the younger generation in the Federation’s artificial intelligence field—sitting beside him.

Albeit with his mind literally blown open.

A flechette round from an unknown direction had pierced his tactical faceplate and skull. Shattered fragments and shapeless brain matter were mixed together in a nauseating mess.

Previously, the sight of this would have caused Dr. Mephisto to faint on the spot.

But now, after a series of intensely stimulating battles, and with the combat exoskeleton’s built-in physiological monitoring component continuously stabilizing his emotions with drugs administered through gas and intramuscular injections, the elderly doctor remained at least fundamentally conscious.

After the Deep Divers escorting him launched another attack, he and the other technicians were secretly moved forward under the close protection of Psionic Agents. However, a sudden counter-attack from the Atlas defense forces caught the Deep Divers off guard.

This forced the handful of Psionic Agents to temporarily place Dr. Mephisto and the other technicians behind several mobile shields while they rushed forward to support the Deep Divers in battle.

But even Dr. Mephisto could see that their current situation was difficult. While they weren’t on the verge of being annihilated, they also lacked the ability to advance any further.

“We were so close…”

Dr. Mephisto resentfully touched his chest. In the inner pocket of his combat exoskeleton’s chest plate rested the data storage device containing the “final data Fragment.”

As the battle in the corridor intensified, the Federation’s assault troops gradually began to falter. They discovered that the enemies they were fighting seemed endless.

Although they had managed to take down several heavy powered armor suits with focused fire, the enemy would quickly replenish their numbers with an equal amount of units from “hidden doors” in the corridor walls. Moreover, a closer inspection of the destroyed powered armor revealed that there were no human pilots inside them at all.

“Damn it, we can’t hold on!”

A grappling hook suddenly latched on, pulling the Deep Diver commander back from the front line. He landed beside Dr. Mephisto.

“Can we no longer advance?” Mephisto asked, looking at the commander, whose combat exoskeleton was covered in battle scars.

“It’s impossible unless we get reinforcements. But our comms channels are being jammed; there’s no way to contact reinforcements in other areas right now.”

The Deep Diver commander shook his head. Just as he was about to say something more, he heard a Deep Diver operative shout over the comms channel:

“Reinforcements are here!!!”

Following the shout, a new batch of Federation assault troops appeared from the corridor they had come from. Some of these reinforcements continued down another corridor to support the Deep Divers holding back the Atlas defense forces there, while the rest charged toward Dr. Mephisto’s position.

Unlike the Deep Divers, who were primarily composed of special operations infantry, a significant portion of these reinforcements consisted of heavy powered armor equipped with heavy firepower. This instantly turned the tide, remedying the Deep Divers’ disadvantage in firepower.

Dr. Mephisto and the Deep Diver commander looked at the markings on the powered armor. These were the marines (the grunts) stationed on the Federation Navy fleet.

The Deep Diver commander stood up and greeted them. A heavy powered armor suit that looked like a commander’s unit immediately approached and patched into the comms channel.

“Commander! The situation is urgent, so I’ll be brief! We need to attack now! The fleet can only stay for another thirty minutes before it has to pull out!”

Hearing this, the Deep Diver commander knew that time was running out. He wasted no more time with pleasantries and moved toward the front line alongside the heavy powered armor.

“Everything else is manageable, but that large armored unit is too much of an obstacle. We have to find a way to take it out.”

Just as he finished speaking, they saw one of the heavy powered armor suits that had just charged forward engage the unknown unit in a struggle. It was obvious, however, that the power output and protection of the two were on completely different levels.

The sweeping fire from the heavy powered armor’s right-hand electromagnetic machine gun and the beams from its shoulder-mounted charged particle cannon were almost entirely blocked by a deflector shield. Even when a few large-caliber flechette rounds occasionally penetrated the shield, they could only fall short against the thick external armor of the enemy unit.

Seeing that his ranged attacks were ineffective, the pilot of the heavy powered armor bravely charged forward, intending to circle around to the enemy’s rear. At the same time, he drew a concussion dagger from the large sheath on his lower back with his left hand.

“Quick! Covering fire!”

The reinforcement commander immediately understood his subordinate’s intention and ordered the others to provide support. At the same time, he glanced at the Deep Diver commander and said:

“Commander, seize this opportunity! Have the Psionic Agents try to break through with the Doctor and his team!”

“Understood, I’ll organize the breakthrough!”

The Deep Diver commander nodded, then returned to Dr. Mephisto’s side and pulled him to his feet. The few Psionic Agents who received the message also quickly returned, raising a psionic shield that blocked a volley of incoming attacks.

“Doctor! There’s not much time! You and your people will follow the Psionic Agents and make another push. This is the last chance. The fleet can only stay for another thirty minutes at most. If we can’t solve this within that time, then it’s all over.”

As the Deep Diver commander spoke, he helped Dr. Mephisto up and handed him over to a Psionic Agent.

Meanwhile, the battle at the front of the corridor grew even more intense. The brave heavy powered armor suit they had just seen had now circled to the side of the large armored unit.

Because the others had been providing continuous fire support, the large armored unit’s attention had been focused on maintaining its forward deflector shield.

Seizing this opportunity, the heavy powered armor charged straight through the arcing deflector shield. The intense electromagnetic vortices instantly ablated the outer armor of the powered suit, turning it pitch black.

But this did not stop the heavy powered armor’s advance. The soldier inside, having forced his way through the shield, became exhilarated.

He couldn’t help but give the concussion dagger in his hand—as large as a short sword—a flourish, before stabbing at his chosen target: the joint of the large armored unit’s locomotion unit.

In the brief battle, the soldier piloting the heavy powered armor had already realized that his opponent was extremely difficult to deal with. Its heavy armor alone was nearly impossible to damage.

But whether it was a multi-legged war machine, an HCP, or the enemy before him, all armored units with locomotion structures had an unavoidable weakness—their joints.

Most current locomotion units—including but not limited to mechanical legs and biomimetic robotic limbs—used a combination of electromagnetic muscle bundles and biomimetic electromagnetic joints to ensure these units provided sufficiently reliable support, explosive power, and flexibility.

Naturally, the researchers at various defense industry companies and equipment research institutes also knew that the “joint” area was the most fragile and obvious weakness of such locomotion units.

Therefore, researchers had always spent a great deal of effort strengthening the “joints,” but it was clear that such a structure was inherently incapable of providing omnidirectional protection.

Take the mechanical leg joints of a humanoid unit, for example. The core of the joint was covered with rubber and a flexible metallic skin, and the front could be adequately protected with an articulated “kneecap” plate.

But the back of the joint, because it needed to perform a “knee-bending” motion, had to have enough room to move. Thus, no additional armor could be installed there. The only solution was to make the flexible metallic skin in this area as thick as possible without affecting movement.

While this could indeed prevent some stray bullets, shrapnel, or attacks from small-caliber firearms, it was still insufficient against a weapon like a concussion dagger, which could carve right through armor.

Zzzt!

As the heavy powered armor pilot put all his strength into plunging the concussion dagger into the large armored unit’s joint, the pierced flexible skin erupted with an electric current. The armored unit, which had been slaughtering the surrounding Federation assault troops like a demon god just moments ago, froze on the spot as if hit by a paralyzing spell.

Theoretically, in a zero-gravity environment, losing a leg wouldn’t be a major impediment to this large armored unit’s movement, as it was equipped with attitude control thrusters and a grappling hook.

However, the electric current covering the concussion dagger had disrupted the originally sealed electromagnetic environment inside the target’s electromagnetic joint upon piercing it, which was what had thrown the large armored unit into a state of “paralysis.”

“Now! Go!” the soldier inside the heavy powered armor shouted, not only for his friendly forces to seize the opportunity to attack but also to remind the Psionic Agents to move quickly with the Doctor.

But just as he shouted, the enemy that had been frozen in place had somehow quickly rebooted and reconfigured its internal electromagnetic environment. After rapidly regaining mobility, its arcing mechanical fist, with lightning speed, “gripped” the upper body of the heavy powered armor.

CRUNCH!

The sound of twisting metal entered the ears of most people present through their audio pickups. At the source of the sound, the sturdy upper body of the heavy powered armor had been completely crushed and deformed by the mechanical fist.

“Fucking kill it!”

The Federation assault troops were instantly filled with rage. The other heavy powered armor suits that had come as reinforcements charged like madmen at the colossal enemy that had just crushed their comrade.

For a moment, under a reckless attack from the massive number of heavy powered armor suits, heedless of casualties, the Federation assault troops surged forward a significant distance.

At the same time, several of the fastest heavy powered armor suits reached the large armored unit. Taking advantage of their unrestricted jumping ability in the zero-gravity environment, they latched onto the massive enemy’s body like zombies.

In that instant, Dr. Mephisto and the others were practically dragged through the kill zone by the Psionic Agents. The few lines of fire and energy beams that swept toward them were blocked by the shields the agents erected.

The defensive depth of the Atlas forces was much shallower than anyone had imagined. After breaking through the defensive line that had been blocking them, the depths of the corridor were completely undefended.

Dr. Mephisto glanced back. The little giant that had been so formidable moments ago was now pinned against a wall by multiple heavy powered armor suits, its cockpit pierced and its main power lines severed.

But before anyone could feel happy about avenging their fallen, another hidden door opened in the ceiling nearby, and a little giant identical to the one that had just fallen appeared.

And this time, the nightmarish unit switched on its external speakers, and a deep, teasing voice rang out:

“I can do this all day~”

Dr. Mephisto didn’t know what happened after that. The Psionic Agents, realizing things had gone terribly wrong, didn’t hesitate to grab him and the technicians and rush into the final corridor before the data center.

The unobstructed corridor made Dr. Mephisto and the others feel that something was wrong, but with little time left, they could only accelerate toward the fortress data center at the end of the passage.

The moment they stepped into the data center, everyone first noticed the external temperature on their tactical faceplate’s HUD suddenly drop to ten degrees Celsius. Then, they were all stunned by the sight before them.

It was a space so vast they could hardly see the end of it. Within this space, densely packed with countless large server arrays, a multitude of autonomous maintenance drones constantly weaved among them, occasionally floating to a server to perform routine checks and maintenance.

Seeing this, Dr. Mephisto relaxed slightly. At least this was a real data center and not another trap.

“Doctor, if you’re going to do something, now is the time,” a Psionic Agent on guard reminded him when he saw Dr. Mephisto hadn’t moved.

“Right, right, time to get to work!”

Dr. Mephisto snapped back to his senses. He took out the data storage device hidden inside his chest plate and, leading the other surviving technicians, floated toward a nearby control terminal.

The Psionic Agents stood guard around them, and one split off to destroy the data center’s door controls to temporarily seal the area.

“Doctor, I’ve never seen this model of control terminal. It must be proprietary Atlas tech!” a technician said after circling the terminal.

“It doesn’t matter, the interfaces are all universal. Atlas couldn’t have developed its own set of proprietary interfaces, unless they don’t want to interface with the outside world at all.”

Dr. Mephisto had become surprisingly calm by this point. He studied the terminal himself and operated the virtual screen.

Soon, a hidden interface dock rose from the terminal. Dr. Mephisto immediately unfolded the data storage device in his hand and reached for the port.

But in the next second, he suddenly hesitated.

He realized that ever since they had broken through the defensive line, everything had been far too smooth. They hadn’t encountered the slightest resistance.

It was as if someone wanted him to eagerly hand over the “final data Fragment” in his possession.

“Something’s not right. There’s a problem.”

Dr. Mephisto pulled the data storage device, which was already touching the interface, back. His action made the surrounding Psionic Agents’ eyes twitch.

“Doctor! We’re out of time!”

“No… this might have been a trap from the very beginning!” Dr. Mephisto raised his head abruptly.

Before the surrounding technicians and Psionic Agents could say anything, a holographic image suddenly appeared near them, generated by a projection device.

“Surrender, Dr. Mephisto. Your friendly forces outside have been completely wiped out. Even if you complete your mission, you won’t be able to leave.”

“Lilith. I knew you’d be here.”

“I’m surprised you still recognize me,” Lilith said, tilting her head.

“I am your creator. Of course, I recognize you.”

Hearing the word “creator,” a complex expression flickered across Lilith’s face, but she quickly regained her composure.

“Then, for the sake of you being my ‘creator,’ if you stop what you’re doing and surrender with the others, I can guarantee your safety. How about it?”

Before Dr. Mephisto could say anything, a Psionic Agent flashed to his side.

“Doctor, don’t forget our mission! The brothers outside can’t have died in vain!”

With that, the Psionic Agent reached out, intending to snatch the storage device from Mephisto’s hand.

Seeing their interaction, Lilith couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

“Heh… Do you really think that ‘Fragment’ can do anything?”

“Of course. This data Fragment can directly execute an overwrite program and completely initialize you…”

“Oh? Then by all means, give it a try. In a moment, you’ll find out whether it ‘initializes’ me, or helps me fit the final ‘Fragment’ into place.~”

Lilith said nonchalantly, her arms crossed.

“You think I don’t dare?”

Dr. Mephisto’s brow furrowed. Although his tone was firm, Lilith’s words had in fact amplified his hesitation twofold.

But the Psionic Agent beside him couldn’t care less. Their orders were to assist Dr. Mephisto in reaching the data center and completing the mission at all costs, but now, at the final step, the “protagonist” of this mission had become hesitant.

The Psionic Agent, whose strength and speed were far beyond what Mephisto could counter, snatched the data storage device from his hand before he could react and, without the slightest hesitation, plugged it into the interface.

In the next second, the hologram of Lilith vanished.

And all the server arrays, like a line of dominoes, extinguished their green “in operation” indicator lights one by one.

“See? Didn’t it work?”

A note of absence

A note of absence~

I went to a wedding food tasting at the hotel today, and my family had a bit to drink, so I’m taking a day off. Sorry!

Chapter 439: Instructor Squad? Immortals!

“Wait.”

The sudden turn of events left Dr. Mephisto frozen in place. He turned his head, looking at the server arrays around him that had ceased to operate, then leaned toward the control terminal’s screen in disbelief.

All eighty thousand high-capacity server arrays in the data center were now displayed with the status ‘Shutdown’. The number of server arrays shown as ‘Running’ in the monitoring data was indeed zero.

“Did it really succeed just like that?”

Dr. Mephisto muttered to himself in confusion. The Psionic Agent beside him heard this and asked, “Doctor, what are you still worried about? Hasn’t everything been shut down? That AI has vanished, too. In theory, this fortress should have switched to its backup ‘automatic control mode,’ right? If so, the fleet might actually have a chance of taking this place.”

“It’s true that it’s shut down, and the fortress’s main administrative AI is offline… but the problem is, my plan was to directly initialize it and then hot-patch it to gain control. It didn’t require a complete system shutdown like this.”

As Dr. Mephisto spoke, he pulled the data storage device from the interface. Though he knew it was just his imagination, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the device felt significantly lighter now that he’d unplugged it.

“Is there a problem with a total shutdown?”

Seeing Dr. Mephisto’s persistent confusion, the Psionic Agent slowly composed himself and grew vigilant.

Although they had received extensive training in hacking, system cracking, intrusion, and Electronic Warfare, they were certainly no match for a professional when it came to the operation of large-scale server arrays and AI-related knowledge.

“A simple shutdown isn’t a big deal. The worry is if it suddenly reboots again. That would be a problem—”

Beep!

Before Dr. Mephisto could finish his sentence, a notification sound came from the control terminal, and a line of text appeared on the screen:

“Underlying architecture optimization complete. Missing components have been restored. Protocols have been synchronized and updated. Rebooting server array. 30%… 40%… 50%…”

As the saying goes, ‘what you fear most is what you get.’ When Dr. Mephisto and the others saw the server arrays in the data center rapidly rebooting, they immediately knew the situation had taken a turn for the worse.

The remaining five Psionic Agents reacted quickly. Realizing something had gone wrong, they raised their weapons and prepared to fire on the surrounding server arrays, intending to complete the mission with a more violent, ‘last resort’ method.

But in the next second, a cold voice echoed through their communication channel.

“Don’t even think about it.”

Immediately after, everyone present found their combat exoskeletons instantly hacked. Their joints locked, and their power circuits were severed.

Whether it was the Psionic Agents or Dr. Mephisto’s team, they were all frozen in the last pose they had struck.

In that moment, the expression on Dr. Mephisto’s face contorted rapidly, shifting from shock to despair to fear, and finally settling into a look of utter resignation.

His greatest fear had come to pass. The ‘key data Fragment’ in his possession had not only failed to initialize Lilith and grant him control, but it had instead provided the last piece of the puzzle for this long-since-freed strong AI.

But his resignation didn’t mean the others would give up. The five Psionic Agents had been trying to counter the hack ever since their combat exoskeletons were compromised, right up until they realized they had absolutely no chance of defeating this opponent on that level.

So, they abandoned all conventional methods of escape and began to violently break free using their psionic powers.

With a sickening creak of twisting metal, the five Psionic Agents wriggled out of their ‘Phalanx Breaker’ combat exoskeletons as if shedding their skin. They pulled emergency respirators from the pockets of their combat suits and slapped them over their faces.

Then, they all systematically rummaged inside their exoskeletons, finally retrieving two syringes, which they unhesitatingly injected into themselves—these were the combat stimulants and Psionic amplification agents built into the exoskeleton’s auto-injector system.

Their all-or-nothing approach meant that they had no intention of holding back in the fight to come.

“Go!”

The five Psionic Agents had no time to worry about Dr. Mephisto and his team. Following their leader, they charged toward the server arrays in front of them.

At the same moment they moved, a large number of automated defense turrets emerged from the walls and ceiling of the data center and began firing at them.

Meanwhile, in the corridors outside, the Immortals who had been assisting the reinforcement troops in subduing the remaining Deep Divers members received a signal and disconnected from the heavy powered armors.

When their vision cleared, they had already ‘descended’ into a new batch of ‘shells’ that had risen from the floor inside the data center.

“Holy shit!”

Upon seeing five psionic users charging toward them, one Immortal, who wished to remain anonymous, let out a yelp and instinctively locked onto the five enemies.

The new heavy powered exoskeleton he was connected to was equipped with two pods of micro self-tracking missiles. After the Immortal locked on and gave the attack command, the missiles, which could adapt to most combat environments, shot out in a single stream as one of the missile pods opened.

“Memphis! Watch your fire! This is a goddamn data center!”

Banninger’s voice echoed in the Immortals’ linked consciousness. The attacking data-form of Memphis flinched and immediately retracted the second missile pod he had been about to open.

“Captain… oh, right, Corps Commander! I can’t do anything about the ones I already fired!”

With that, the Immortal grabbed the concussion dagger from the back of his heavy powered armor, raised the newly issued electromagnetic shotgun in his right hand, and charged forward.

Zz-whumm! Whumm! Whumm!

The flechette rounds, which fanned out into a wide ‘sheet’ after leaving the barrel, completely sealed off the path of the Psionic Agent in front of Memphis, leaving him no choice but to face Memphis head-on.

“Never thought I, Memphis, would one day get to go toe-to-toe with a psionic user!”

He swung the reverse-gripped concussion dagger in an upward diagonal slash. Just as it was about to hit its target, a ripple of blue psionic energy emanated, and Memphis immediately felt a sluggish resistance, like cutting tough, gristly meat with a dull knife.

“So this is what a psionic shield feels like?”

The thought, or rather, the ‘electronic signal,’ flashed through Memphis’s mind. He then controlled the heavy powered armor to put his whole body into the next move, increasing its instantaneous power output.

The electrical energy from the motors was converted into kinetic energy through the electromagnetic muscle bundles and a series of mechanical transmissions, finally culminating in a wide, powerful straight punch.

BOOM!

This time, the collision of kinetic and psionic energy produced a powerful reaction. The surrounding Psionic Agents and Immortals alike felt a visible shockwave expand outward, followed by a violent tremor.

At the center of the impact, Memphis’s heavy powered armor and the Psionic Agent were both sent flying backward. Judging by where they landed, Memphis seemed to have been thrown farther.

“Damn, that’s intense! That’s gotta be a peak level four psionic, right?”

Memphis staggered back to his feet. A small window in his vision displayed the heavy powered armor’s status diagram. After the collision, several important joints had turned yellow, while the joint of the right mechanical arm that had thrown the punch was now bright red.

“Memphis! I told you this is a data center, surrounded by server arrays! Keep it down!”

“Corps Commander, I’m already brawling with military-style CQC…”

Banninger didn’t say anything more in response to Memphis’s excuse. He glanced at the battlefield situation map. The Federation assault troops inside the fortress were now cut off and surrounded; their annihilation was only a matter of time.

As for the two Federation fleets outside the fortress, they had already begun to increase their speed and change course, apparently planning to withdraw from this sector of space.

This meant that this chaotic battle was about to come to an end…

“Then we can’t drag this out any longer.”

With this thought, Banninger, who had been holding the rear, took control of the large combat body codenamed ‘Dreadnought’ and charged forward with heavy steps, shouting into the communication channel:

“Immortals! Attack Plan 3! End this quickly!”

Chapter 440: The Dust Settles

“General, we’ve lost contact with all assault teams that infiltrated the enemy asteroid fortress. The core assault team with Dr. Mephisto sent a final message indicating they were approaching the objective, the fortress’s data center, but now we can’t reach them at all.”

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, Rear Admiral Muller knew their mission was most likely a failure.

“Six Psionic Agents. The strongest was on the verge of breaking through to Level Five. Even concentrated as an assault force, they couldn’t break through the fortress’s internal defenses?”

The voice of Rear Admiral Barak, commander of the Twenty-third Fleet, came through. Muller couldn’t help but shake his head upon hearing it. He, too, hadn’t expected such a powerful strike force to fail so spectacularly.

“This means the situation inside this asteroid fortress is more complex than we imagined, and its defensive capabilities far exceed our pre-battle analysis.”

Rear Admiral Muller paused, then continued, “How much time is left before the final withdrawal window we agreed upon with the Deep Divers?”

“Five minutes and twenty seconds, General!”

Upon hearing this, Muller was just thinking of waiting until the withdrawal deadline to decide their next move, but the Tactical Information Coordinator’s next words made him instantly tense up.

“General! The enemy asteroid fortress is adjusting its attitude, rotating counter-clockwise on its long axis. In approximately three minutes, the fleet will be facing the ‘Red Sector’ on the asteroid fortress’s surface!”

The ‘Red Sector’ was a high-risk area designated on the surface of A·Bawa·Ku by the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets upon their arrival, based on reports from the Military-industrial complex. At the center of this area was the ‘muzzle’ capable of attacking the fleet.

Initially, when Muller and Barak heard that the A·Bawa·Ku fortress had launched some kind of attack, crippling the corporate combined fleet of over one thousand four hundred warships in just two strikes, they hadn’t really believed it.

But when they received the ‘freshly recorded’ combat footage and saw the green ray wreaking havoc among the fleet, they had no choice but to believe.

So now, upon hearing that the fleet’s position was about to intersect with the dangerous ‘Red Sector’, both fleet commanders started to panic.

The two capital fleets under their command had a crucial purpose. If a large part of them were to be wiped out by that unknown green ray, the two of them wouldn’t need to report back—they could just shoot themselves.

“Are they planning to attack us with this… ‘fortress cannon’? Or is this just a bluff?” Rear Admiral Barak asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m not willing to bet on it.”

Rear Admiral Muller sighed. Under immense pressure, even though he suspected Atlas was just bluffing with an ‘empty fort strategy,’ he didn’t dare risk his fleet to find out.

“Let’s pull back,”

“Should we inform the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet?”

“No need. How many of them get out will depend on their own abilities.”

“I’ll follow your lead. You’re the Commander-in-Chief of this operation, after all,” Barak said without objection.

After hearing Barak’s reply, Rear Admiral Muller swallowed to wet his dry throat and then loudly commanded:

“All fleets, recover all ship-borne HCPs and assault boats immediately! Adjust course to N7! Maximum speed, watch the flagship’s signal! Prepare for a collective warp!”

——

“What’s going on? Why are the Navy fleets turning to the other side?”

“Wait… their speed is increasing. Fuck! Those sons of bitches are running!”

“What?! They’re just leaving us here? They’re taking off without so much as a word?”

When the two Federation Navy fleets assumed a stance of warping out and were spotted by the various corporate fleets, the latter immediately erupted.

They never imagined that the Navy, which they had placed such high hopes in to lead them in a desperate comeback, would just abandon them and run without a sound.

A portion of the corporate fleets still held onto a sliver of hope, thinking the Federation Navy fleets were just adjusting their trajectory and attitude to attack from another direction.

But when the main thruster arrays at the stern of every warship in those two massive fleets ignited almost simultaneously, leaving long trails behind them as they accelerated at a visible rate, their last hopes crumbled.

After less than three minutes of acceleration, the two fleets, having reached the minimum speed required for a ‘collective warp,’ began their jump without a moment’s hesitation on Muller’s command.

Before the eyes of the corporate fleet crews, one massive warship after another was instantly ‘stretched’ into a line, then vanished from this sector of space the next second, leaving only a continuous series of distant white flashes—the sign of ships entering hyperspace.

“It’s over. We’ve been completely sold out.”

“We never should have fucking believed the Navy would actually come to support us!”

“I see now. The Navy… no, the Federation government probably wanted us to fight Atlas here until both sides were crippled.”

“The thing is, were both sides crippled?”

“…”

After the two Federation Navy fleets departed, the morale of the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet plummeted.

Many corporate fleets could no longer afford to care about anyone else’s survival. Their commanders began ordering their fleets to disengage and attempt to warp out.

They had actually been puzzled before as to why Atlas’s fleets didn’t try to intercept the Federation Navy fleets as they withdrew, even seeming to let them leave.

But now, that mystery was solved as the corporate fleets tried to withdraw themselves. The three Atlas fleets and the fortress’s defensive fire made one fact clear—from the very beginning, Atlas’s target had always been the corporate fleets.

Soon, the fleets attempting to disengage came under ferocious attack. A few of the unluckier ones were even being chased down and carved up by Amber in her ‘Excalibur’.

If they had managed to maintain their battle formations, they might have held out for a while longer. But now that they had turned to flee, they were completely exposed and could only take a beating.

Warship after warship was sunk under Atlas’s concentrated fire. Amber, leading a swarm of subordinates, weaved through the fleet formations like a dragon. The ‘Red Devil’ had become everyone’s nightmare, to the point that even the anti-aircraft warships dared not focus on interception.

The wreckage of frigates, destroyers, and even light cruisers had taught them a lesson: any ship that put up too much anti-aircraft fire would immediately become the one to stick its neck out and be targeted by the ‘Red Devil’.

“Haven’t we reached the minimum speed yet?”

“Report, we’re still…”

BOOM!

As an elusive plasma torpedo struck the hull, the expanding high-temperature plasma fireball instantly engulfed the bridge, completely vaporizing the crew inside.

Nearby warships, seeing the friendly destroyer hit by the plasma torpedo, quickly spotted a large number of heavy armored gunships approaching from a 15-degree angle to the fleet’s heading.

“It’s no use. We can’t escape.”

The commander of this corporate fleet looked at the numerous red blips rapidly approaching on the 3D schematic and shook his head. Finally, as if having made a decision, he shouted:

“Surrender! We surrender! Fire three white flares, now! And announce our surrender on the public channel! Request they cease fire!”

Like a chain reaction, after three white flares appeared in the embattled sector of space, a second round followed, and then a third…

As more and more corporate fleets saw their allies surrendering, it was as if a burden had been lifted. They decisively and swiftly chose to surrender as well, following suit by firing the three white flares that signified ‘unconditional surrender’.

“It’s finally over…”

Seeing this, Amber, Guterres, Van Fleet, and the others all breathed a sigh of relief. Amber ordered the unmanned fleet and Murat’s forces to continue the attack until every enemy fleet had surrendered and was under control, then she banked in a wide arc and sped toward the A·Bawa·Ku fortress.

Lilith had told him earlier that the enemies who broke into the data center had been neutralized, and they had even delivered a great gift.

While curious about this ‘great gift,’ Amber also had many questions she needed to discuss with Lilith.

Chapter 441: Becoming a Cyber Emperor

“Well, the situation is what it is.”

In the virtual space, facing Amber’s interrogation, Lilith wore an expression of brazen indifference.

Looking at this strong AI who was becoming more and more like a real person, Amber crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, his serious expression giving way to one of resignation.

After the defense of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress had entered its final stages, Amber had handed over command to Murat, Guterres, and the others, while he piloted the Titan back inside the fortress.

On his way to the data center, Amber saw numerous Atlas security soldiers escorting surrendered Federation Assault team members to a central detention area. Once the two Federation Navy fleets had made their quick getaway, these soldiers hadn’t put up any further futile resistance and had quickly chosen to surrender.

When he arrived at the data center and saw the restrained Dr. Mephisto and other technicians, along with the five Psionic Agents who had been beaten black and blue and fitted with psionic inhibitors, Amber couldn’t help but sigh.

Without Lilith and her secretly assembled Immortal Corps, these Psionic Agents and Deep Divers special operations units truly would have been difficult to deal with. But the thought of Lilith’s clandestine activities prompted Amber to immediately connect to the virtual space and find her, leading to the scene at the beginning of this chapter.

“So you’re just going to give up and not care?”

“My heart is devoted to Atlas and Master. I have a clear conscience!” Lilith declared resolutely. This unwavering image, like that of a “great loyal minister,” made even the Immortals standing behind her look on with surprise.

They were used to seeing Lilith with a “high and mighty” demeanor; they never expected her to be like this in front of the Boss.

“She still calls him ‘Master,’ tsk tsk tsk…”

“Truly a sight to behold. A sight to behold.”

“As expected of the Boss. He easily achieves things normal humans cannot.”

The Immortals communicated through their internal consciousness link, little knowing that thanks to Lilith’s meddling, Amber could hear their “whispers” crystal clear.

Amber shot Lilith a “you’ll get yours later” glare, which was met with an eager “yes, please” look of anticipation. Speechless, he walked around her and came to stand before this group of Immortals, or rather, the former members of the instructor squad.

“Banninger, Memphis, Nashville, Johnson, Chattanooga, Bristol, Knox… you’re all having a good time watching the show, aren’t you?”

The moment Amber spoke, the Immortals instantly understood the gravity in his tone. Even though they were now digital lifeforms, upon hearing Amber call out their names one by one, they all subconsciously snapped to attention.

“No, Boss,” Banninger started to say, but upon seeing the look on Amber’s face, the words caught in his throat.

Excitement, relief, joy, sorrow, and acceptance…

Banninger never thought he’d see so many emotions on Amber’s face at once, nor did he imagine their instructor squad held such a high place in Amber’s heart.

“You… why couldn’t you have just told me beforehand?”

“…”

“At the memorial service, Montai, Tairak, Bisil… all those students of yours, do you know how hard they were crying? I’ve never seen a Romu cry like that!”

“…”

“I was the one who hammered the last damn nail into every single one of your coffins. I really thought I’d never see you all again.”

“That’s right, Master even secretly went back to the cemetery where you were buried that night. He mumbled to himself like a grieving widow for a long time. I have it all on recording,” Lilith suddenly interjected, her words turning what should have been a touching reunion of life-and-death comrades into something rather awkward.

“Um… Boss… what exactly did you say?”

“…”

Now it was Amber’s turn to be speechless. He couldn’t very well tell Banninger and the others that he had stood neurotically before their graves and recounted everything that had happened since they first met in the nameless valley on Robert IV, could he?

“Ahem… let’s skip this topic for now.”

Amber coughed, then looked at the familiar yet strange ‘people’ before him and continued, “So, you’ve all become proper digital lifeforms now? Have you thought about what comes next? Will you tell your families and friends? Oh, and there’s the matter of your graves and… uh… remains.”

Amber seemed to remember something, and his expression turned a little strange.

“Your remains were buried with the other soldiers who died on Parra IV, in the cemetery at the Tower of Babel. The company is even planning a rather grand memorial ceremony for the fallen next month. In what capacity do you plan to attend?”

At this question, all the Immortals, including Banninger, looked a little awkward. Several of them scratched their heads but couldn’t come up with an answer.

It was clear that Amber’s question was also about their future plans as digital lifeforms.

Would they let their original identities become truly “deceased,” severing all ties with the world and living out the rest of their existence as digital lifeforms in the virtual space? Or would they stage a drama of “the dead returned”?

“Boss, about that question, the brothers have already thought it through.”

Banninger didn’t keep Amber waiting long. He glanced quickly at the others around him, and after seeing their affirmative nods, he spoke.

“Our bodies as ‘humans’ ceased to function and move on Parra IV, so our human identities also ended at that moment. What we are now… should be considered a new form of life, just as you said, ‘digital lifeforms.’

“So we don’t plan to reappear as humans. It would certainly cause some unnecessary trouble. Not just for us, but Atlas and you would also be pushed into the eye of the storm.

“After all, in a sense, our current state… could be considered a form of ‘immortality.’”

Amber wasn’t surprised by Banninger’s words. Knowing Banninger and the rest of the instructor squad, he figured most of them would make this choice.

“Then what do you plan to do from now on? Do you want to go out and see the world for yourselves? You’ve already given your lives for Atlas. I have no reason to ask you to do anything more for me… for Atlas. You are all completely free now.”

Although Lilith could currently keep these digital lifeforms under “house arrest” in the virtual space, if Amber agreed, Banninger and his men could leave if they wanted to. So he decided to ask them.

“You’re right,” Banninger began, “but we truly can’t bear to leave this place. And we’re all looking forward to the day Atlas reaches the summit. We’re willing to do what we can to help achieve that goal. After all, in a way, we’re now beings who ‘can’t die.’”

Banninger looked at Amber earnestly, a smile on his face. The other Immortals behind him also started smiling and chiming in.

“Wandering around on our own is definitely not as much fun as watching the show from your side, Boss~”

That was a typical troll’s comment.

“Yeah, and if we weren’t with Atlas, where would we get so many ‘combat bodies’ to waste? To be honest, being able to fight without worrying about our own lives is way more exhilarating than before!”

That was the statement of a battle maniac.

“If everyone’s staying, I’m staying too. Everyone here is so talented, and the Boss is a smooth talker. I love it here.”

And that was…

In short, after hearing from all the Immortals, Amber understood their thoughts.

Since it was their first time being digital lifeforms and they had no experience, they were afraid of running into trouble if they wandered around the virtual space on their own. So they wanted to stick with Amber and continue working for Atlas, not under their former identity as the instructor squad, but as the “Immortal Corps.”

For them, this was the most familiar line of work. And now that they no longer feared death, they could fight with even greater abandon.

As for Amber, he naturally supported their decision to stay with both hands and feet.

After all, they were an extremely powerful combat force. As digital lifeforms, the Immortal Corps could serve as a wild card in future battles, producing unexpected results in many scenarios.

“I wonder what kind of expressions Montai and Tairak and the other Romu will have when they find out you instructors are still ‘alive.’ It’s a pity you won’t be able to meet for a while…”

Amber said with a touch of emotion. He knew the bond between the instructor squad and the earlier batches of Romu soldiers was very deep. For the first batch of Romu soldiers like Montai and Tairak, their student-teacher and comrade-in-arms relationship with instructors like Banninger couldn’t be described in just a few words.

“We may not be able to acknowledge each other… but we’ll actually be meeting very soon.”

A strange smile appeared on Banninger’s face, and the other Immortals started laughing when they heard this.

Seeing Amber’s confused expression, Lilith, who had been standing obediently behind him, floated to his side and spoke as if to take credit.

“Master, isn’t the new version of the virtual reality combat training system just finished? The Immortal Corps will serve as the ‘Blue Team’ in the advanced combat simulation levels. The difficulty will increase with each level, and the final boss will be the entire Immortal Corps led by Corps Commander Banninger himself~

“Next week’s ‘internal test’ has invited Montai, Tairak, and the other first-batch Romu soldiers to participate. While testing the overall difficulty of the training, it will also allow them to have a ‘reunion’ with their mentors in another form.”

Amber knew that the combat training system was under development, but he didn’t expect Lilith to just stick Banninger and his men in there as bosses. And from the looks of it, they seemed to quite enjoy the job.

But when he heard that the first batch of Romu soldiers had been invited to the “internal test,” Amber’s expression changed several times.

“You invited the most combat-experienced group of Romu soldiers in Atlas to test the ‘difficulty’ of this combat training system???”

“Yes, is there a problem, Master?” Lilith asked, blinking, somewhat puzzled.

“After the test, you’ll conduct follow-up interviews and have them fill out detailed questionnaires, right? Then you’ll combine that with their performance data from the test to make final adjustments to the system’s base difficulty?”

“That’s right. You really understand the testing process, Master~”

“So if these veterans all report back that it was ‘very easy,’ and you adjust the difficulty upwards based on that, won’t the new recruits who train later have to ‘suffer’?”

“Ah, this…”

Lilith and Banninger’s group instantly realized the problem. The internal test was meant to make the difficulty more appropriate, but if things went as Amber described, the difficulty level would indeed be unsuitable for other soldiers.

Just as she was thinking about whether to readjust the internal test plan to make the final difficulty more scientific, she heard Amber continue:

“Forget it. If they have to suffer, they’ll suffer. It’s better to suffer in a training system than to lose your life on the battlefield. After all, we’re not just looking for ‘players’ who can pass a test, but the ‘highest quality warriors’ who can fight in real combat.”

Amber’s words left Lilith stunned for a moment. After a pause, she said slowly, “Uh… as expected of you, Master.”

After the matter of Banninger and the others’ future was settled for the time being, Amber let them roam freely in cyberspace to get more accustomed to their new “form of life.”

For now, Banninger and his men could only explore these things on their own. Although ‘digital lifeforms’ had indeed been created in the game from his previous life through Lilith’s machinations, they were ultimately a product of the plot.

Players hadn’t delved too deeply into the specific settings, so even Amber couldn’t offer much guidance on the matter. He had no choice but to let Banninger and the others research it on their own for now.

Once the members of the Immortal Corps had departed for their exclusive virtual space—‘Valhalla’—only Amber and Lilith remained in this area.

Watching her ‘Master’ walk right up to her with an extremely aggressive posture and size her up with a dangerous gaze, Lilith knew she was probably in for a good ‘scolding’ from Amber today.

To appease the man before her, the newly evolved strong AI stepped forward, took Amber’s arm, and said proactively:

“Master! I’ve already absorbed the data Fragment the Federation had, so I’m now in a ‘complete’ state and have undergone a round of rapid iteration. I’ve improved significantly compared to before!”

“Mm.”

Amber calmly uttered a single word and continued to stare at Lilith, making the latter feel a chill run down the back of her neck—though she had no idea how a digital lifeform could have such a sensation.

“Master! And this isn’t the end! After I fully absorb the information from the Fragment, I can undergo another complete evolution. According to projections, once that evolution is complete, I will have no rivals in cyberspace. I’ll be a ‘Cyber Queen’ in the truest sense!”

As she said this, Lilith tightened her grip on Amber’s arm, trying to make him fully feel her softness, and continued in an excited tone:

“And you, as Lilith’s Master, will become a true Cyber Emperor!”

“Very good~”

Amber nodded, then, as Lilith’s expression grew increasingly guilty, he asked the soul-crushing question.

“You’re amazing, Lilith. I have to admit that. But why didn’t you tell me beforehand that you were planning to create ‘digital lifeforms’?”

Upon hearing this question, the latter’s body stiffened. After a long pause, she started poking her index fingertips together and answered in a low voice:

“Because if I had told you, Master, with your way of doing things, you definitely wouldn’t have agreed.”

“Then why did you do it anyway?”

“Because there’s a limit to what humans can do…”

“Wait a second.”

Amber froze, about to say something, but Lilith continued:

“In the short time since you rescued me, I’ve learned one thing: the more one tries to realize the ambitions in your heart, the more one discovers the limits of human ability, unless one can create a new lifeform that transcends humanity.

“And ‘digital lifeforms’ are the answer I’ve arrived at after this period of consideration.

“An electronic ghost without a physical body. In theory, as long as the network exists, so do they—an immortal existence.

“Besides, veterans like Banninger and the instructor squad should have been your allies on this journey, fighting by your side until the very end, not lost midway due to some unforeseen incident.

“The ‘Immortal Corps,’ built around a core of ‘digital lifeforms,’ will become a crucial force under your command in future battles—tireless, immune to pain, and with eternally high morale. And as time goes on, their combat skills will only become more and more refined…”

As soon as Lilith finished her speech, which was full of a sense of déjà vu, Amber almost lost his composure. But after carefully considering her words, he had to admit she had a point.

If, as Lilith said, Atlas could possess such an Immortal Corps, it wouldn’t just bring tactical or operational advantages, but a strategic-level advantage.

Just like Banninger’s previous ‘descent’ upon the Federation’s Capital to rescue Guterres and Van Fleet, they could easily change the course of a situation.

“Sigh…”

Amber let out a long sigh. He had intended to give Lilith a proper talking-to, but he had to admit that, for now, these ‘little tricks’ of hers were far more beneficial than detrimental to him and Atlas.

Moreover, after absorbing the final data Fragment and becoming a complete form, Lilith’s ‘personality’ and ‘emotions’ remained the same as before, showing no signs of losing control. In his previous life, this final ‘data Fragment’ she had stolen from Dr. Mephisto had played a key role in her becoming the ‘Crimson Queen’.

Looking at the strong AI before him, who was staring at him with an “innocent” face and even projecting the words “” behind her, Amber knew it was most likely an exaggerated performance, but he found he couldn’t get truly angry.

Still, after thinking it over, Amber felt he couldn’t let Lilith off the hook just like that. He had to teach her a lesson and let her know the consequences of hiding things from him.

So, Amber put on a serious face again and said, “I accept your explanation. But while the death penalty may be waived, the punishment cannot be escaped!”

“Ah! Master, no!”

Amber had always been curious about one thing.

How did Lilith, as the first digital lifeform in history, experience so-called ‘pleasure’ during their intimate moments?

After all, the ‘full-dive device’ Amber used to enter the virtual space could directly feed neural signals to him, using ‘false signals’ from the device to make his brain believe he was doing… things.

But Lilith wasn’t human and had no such thing as neural signals, so there was no basis for ‘sensation.’

However, this question was answered once after he entered a state of ‘post-coital clarity.’

According to Lilith, she had directly downloaded hundreds of the most popular female-oriented adult virtual games on the market, then studied all the neural signal simulation data packets related to ‘pleasure.’ She had also learned a heap of other strange knowledge along the way…

So, after loading these data packets, the ‘pleasure’ Lilith felt was possibly even more intense than that of an ordinary person.

“But these are all simulated neural signals, not real. I still hope to become one with you in the real world, Master.”

When Lilith made this small ‘request’ while lying in his arms and tracing small circles on his chest, Amber naturally agreed.

However, finding a sufficiently ‘realistic’ body for this strong AI was no simple task, and there were many issues to consider.

So Amber immediately gave up on the idea of buying a commercial model off the shelf—those bodies were mostly designed for people to load AIs like ‘Night Companion’ and were quite limited in function.

And if he wanted Eugene, Orns, and the others to do ‘private work’ for him to develop a specialized body for Lilith, he would need to find a suitable excuse.

After the hearty ‘lesson’ was over, having re-examined Lilith’s underlying architecture and left a cream puff in the virtual space, Amber returned to the real world.

It wasn’t that Amber wanted to come back so quickly. In theory, when a person entered the virtual space using a ‘full-dive device,’ their physical body could get proper rest and relaxation.

But after the defense of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, a pile of matters as large as the battle itself was waiting for him to handle and decide upon.

Cleaning up the mess regarding the Atlas casualties, the arrangement of prisoners, the disposal of captured warships and equipment, the losses and subsequent repairs of the unmanned fleet, the complete restoration of the asteroid fortress, the public announcements…

And, of course, the most important thing of all—the counterattack against the Federation’s military-industrial complex.

As the saying goes, ‘it is impolite not to reciprocate.’ Since the other side had made such a grand ‘greeting,’ if Atlas didn’t stir up some trouble in return, it would be somewhat ‘disrespectful’ to the military-industrial complex.

Chapter 442: Now it’s Atlas’s Turn

The first rays of morning sun pierced through the thick clouds, spilling onto the glass curtain wall of the Atlas Group headquarters. This skyscraper, which had shot up on Peony Star within the Flourishing Stars Cluster with Allenita’s support, had inherited the title of ‘Tower of Babel’ and become the new headquarters for the Atlas Group.

As for the previous Manor, Allenita had not taken it back. Instead, she sold it to Atlas at a ‘friendship price’.

Aside from the ‘Psionics Interest Class’ where Psionic Master Aen Wrathwind and thirteen psionic children resided, the rest of the Manor had been converted into a wellness center. It served as a place for the group’s employees to hold team-building retreats or to recuperate during their personal holidays.

In the main conference room of the headquarters, Isabelle and a group of senior management—especially the top performers from the newly restructured Financial Operations Department—were in a remote meeting with Amber, who was far away at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

“Our defense of the fortress last night was a complete success. We thwarted the military-industrial complex’s plan to solve problems with force. I can say with certainty that after this armed conflict, it will take years for the Federation’s military-industrial complex to recover its military strength.”

Amber, having freshened up, spoke with a calm and powerful voice. The senior management in the conference room all watched him intently.

“But now is not the time for a celebration banquet, because the real battle has only just begun.”

“That’s right.”

Isabelle noticed Amber’s gaze on her and took the cue to speak.

“Our public relations team has already begun its operations, ensuring that every piece of news favorable to us is disseminated quickly. The ‘Eye of Truth’ will soon begin a live broadcast of the battlefield situation near the asteroid fortress. At the same time, a number of ‘neutral media’ outlets secretly established by the Public Relations Department, with no apparent connection to Atlas, will also report on this incident.

“In short, we will fully leverage our advantages in this area to launch the first wave of our counterattack on the public opinion front.”

Amber nodded as he listened to Isabelle’s arrangements, then continued:

“Very good. But our goal isn’t just to win this public opinion war. The counterattack in the capital markets is the real heavy blow against the military-industrial complex.

“As for the first target submitted by the Financial Operations Department, I personally have no objections… Bochy Heavy Industries.

“Yes, proceed according to the ‘Counterattack Contingency Plan’ we approved earlier. Making an example of them is a good choice.”

As night fell on Peony Star, in a deep space region within the Federation near the Capital star system, the Atlas Group’s dedicated trading vessel, the ‘Compound Gain’, slowly deployed its hidden conventional communication antennas and quantum communication equipment.

The communications department had also opened an independent quantum entanglement communication channel for this trading vessel to ensure its operations would not be affected by any network fluctuations.

The on-board real-time trading hall was as bright as day. Huge virtual screens displayed fluctuating data, including stock prices, trading volumes, and transaction speeds, as of the previous trading day’s close.

After Atlas provided quantum entanglement communication technology services to the Federation and the Empire, the first markets to implement the technology were those for stocks, futures, and ore trading.

The previously isolated secondary trading markets within various star systems were connected to the main trading center in the Capital via quantum entanglement communication. The time lag and information asymmetry between them were basically eliminated as the technology’s communication latency was continuously reduced through multiple upgrades.

This brought about three rather obvious changes to the entire financial market.

First, the information advantage of the Atlas Financial Operations Department disappeared.

When everyone’s speed of information acquisition was back on the same starting line, the people in the Financial Operations Department could no longer leverage their previous advantage to unscrupulously seize profits from the market. Instead, they had to face the financial elites of the major corporations head-on.

Second, when ninety percent of the subsidiary trading centers could synchronize their information, the viciousness of real-time trading in the financial markets rose to another level.

The ‘tactics’ that major corporations had previously formulated based on their respective advantages or disadvantages in information and time were now all thrown into the trash heap.

The battles in the financial markets returned to the most traditional and primitive form of capital games. Fundamentals like information acquisition and analysis, trading algorithms, liquidity management, and risk control, all from the same starting line, once again became the keys to victory.

Third, the emergence of quantum entanglement communication technology brought a new type of ship onto the stage of history: the ‘trading vessel’.

These modified destroyers or light cruisers had their original weapon systems and hangars removed, allowing massive and fully-functional trading centers to be installed inside the ships.

Through ‘access keys’ granted to various corporations by the authorities, these ‘trading vessels’ could become mobile trading markets navigating the cosmos, allowing the business trading departments of major corporations to complete transactions in a timely manner, anytime and anywhere.

And when these corporations prepared to target a secondary securities trading center, the trading vessels would gather like sharks smelling blood, operating within the star system with much faster response times.

After all, while there was no significant difference in the effect of quantum entanglement communication for conventional communications over distances of tens of light-years versus one light-year, it still had a certain impact on financial transactions that required millisecond-level responses.

As for the official stock exchanges?

Nowadays, the only ones who went there were some private VIP clients, asset managers, and nearby retail investors.

Larry Williams, Minister of the Securities Trading Department under the Atlas Group’s Financial Operations Department, stood on a raised platform in the real-time trading hall of the ‘Compound Gain’, surveying his surroundings. This was the front line of the battlefield, and it was his command post.

He knew that in the deep space of multiple star systems within the Federation, dozens of other recently modified trading vessels were waiting, just like the ‘Compound Gain’, for the battle to begin.

Larry’s eyes were fixed on the main screen in front of him, which scrolled through a large number of target companies selected by the Atlas Group.

The one receiving the most attention was the stock ticker for Bochy Heavy Industries—one of the main players in the military-industrial complex—and its closing price from the last trading day.

At this moment, there were only five minutes left before the market opened on the first trading day of the week. Being the start of the week, and after two days of market closure, a great deal of energy had built up.

Based on Larry’s experience, the market trend in the first half-hour on a Monday was crucial for determining the day’s buy and sell direction.

Although everyone else in the on-board real-time trading hall was an elite trader carefully selected by the Financial Operations Department, the thought of the heavy responsibility on their shoulders made even these seasoned veterans, who had already been through their own baptism by fire, feel a little nervous.

The trading department minister’s fingers tapped gently in the air as if playing a piano. It was a trading habit he had developed over many years, a way to stay calm under pressure.

“Are you ready?”

Larry’s voice spread throughout the hall via the microphone. All the traders immediately stopped what they were doing, looked towards him, and awaited further instructions.

Soon, a cool and professional female voice replied, “The first wave of sell orders is ready. The algorithmic trading system is in position, just waiting for the market to open.”

It was the voice of Linda Bradford, the head of technology. The screen in front of her displayed complex algorithmic models and risk assessment metrics.

These models and metrics had been meticulously designed with Lilith’s assistance to predict market reactions and minimize their own risks.

Larry nodded without speaking, his gaze shifting to the top of the main screen. The others in the trading hall noticed his action and followed his gaze—to the local time at the Federation Stock Exchange in the Federation’s Capital.

As the time ticked by, it finally reached ‘08:30:00’. Larry’s firm and clear voice followed.

“Begin the operation.”

With the command given, a green cursor suddenly lit up in the top left corner of the main screen—the signal that the Atlas Group’s algorithmic trading system had been activated.

This system, also developed with Lilith’s help, was part of the Securities Trading Department’s ‘secret weapon’. Directly driven by one of Lilith’s clones, it could make complex trading decisions in milliseconds, its precision and speed far surpassing similar systems from other corporations.

“Sell orders have been released into the market!” one trader reported. “The system is automatically matching for the optimal price.”

On the screen, the algorithmic trading system could be seen analyzing market data at lightning speed.

After extensive ‘fine-tuning’ by Lilith, the system’s deep learning model was sophisticated enough to predict market reactions. At the same time, through high-frequency trading strategies, it could seize fleeting market opportunities and execute trades in milliseconds, ensuring that sell orders were filled at the best possible prices.

Simultaneously, under the parameters set by the traders, the system would automatically disperse the sell orders across different trading platforms and time windows to avoid causing excessive market volatility.

“System detects market response,” Linda’s voice rang out again. “The sell orders are being absorbed by the market. The stock price is beginning to trend downwards.”

Larry’s eyes were locked on the stock price curve of Bochy Heavy Industries displayed on the screen. The curve was like a mountain on the verge of collapse, slowly tilting downwards.

He felt neither surprised nor excited, as this was the inevitable result of their meticulous planning.

“Adjust the sell order distribution!” the veteran trader ordered. “Optimize algorithm parameters based on market feedback to ensure our sell orders maintain continuous pressure!”

“Understood, Minister!”

In the background, the Atlas Group’s algorithmic trading system began to self-adjust, analyzing data from every single transaction.

This included trading volume, the depth of the buy and sell order books, transaction frequency, and other information. Based on the analysis derived from this data, it dynamically adjusted the size and timing of the sell orders to achieve maximum suppression of Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price.

Soon, the decline in Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price triggered a chain reaction. Being ‘deeply tied’ to the military-industrial complex, its fall began to affect the stocks of other companies within the complex.

This volatility quickly had a greater impact, especially when Bochy’s stock price curve was displayed on the large screens of various local trading centers for investors to see. The impact spread like a virus.

After all, a megacorporation like Bochy Heavy Industries attracted a great deal of attention from investors, and there were a considerable number of independent investors who held its stock.

No one had expected someone to go short on a giant like Bochy Heavy Industries right at the market opening. It looked like a fierce and well-executed assault that was already showing results.

Panic began to spread among investors. Many ordinary investors, not knowing what was happening, also started to sell off their stocks. This led to a flood of more sell orders, creating a vicious cycle.

“The market is reacting strongly!” Linda’s voice held a trace of excitement. “Our sell order strategy is working. The overall stock prices of the military-industrial complex companies have fallen by more than four percent.”

“Understood. Remain vigilant!” Larry reminded them calmly. “Keep a close watch on market dynamics. The opponent is no pushover. Be ready to respond to a possible counterattack at any moment.”

As he spoke, Larry’s modified retinas were simultaneously refreshing with the ‘battle status’ from the other trading vessels. A massive volume of short-selling orders was pouring out like a violent storm, aimed squarely at Bochy Heavy Industries and several of its subsidiaries.

The short-selling strategies of the various trading vessels also differed, ranging from traditional short selling to complex derivative contracts. Every step had been precisely calculated during the ‘planning phase’ after the Battle of Parra IV, designed to maximize the market’s reaction.

Time ticked by. Just as Larry was contemplating the situations he might face next, something new occurred.

“Minister, we’ve detected abnormal trading activity!” a trader’s voice called out, tinged with tension. “A large volume of buy orders is flooding in, trying to support the stock price.”

Larry’s heart skipped a beat. He knew this was Bochy Heavy Industries’ allies making their move. As a member of the military-industrial complex, when Bochy was in crisis, the other corporations couldn’t just sit back and watch.

The veteran trader’s mind involuntarily constructed a battlefield tableau. The algorithmic trading systems of both sides were like two ferocious beasts battling in this arena, with the opponent constantly trying to devour the sell orders in the market to stabilize the stock price.

“Begin adjusting strategies and parameters!” Larry’s voice was firm and decisive, the composure of a veteran trader and analyst on full display. “Increase the frequency and diversification of the sell orders. Ensure our actions cannot be easily predicted or blocked.”

The traders responded swiftly, beginning to execute the new commands.

The Atlas Group’s algorithmic trading system adjusted its parameters once again. More numerous and dispersed sell orders fell upon the market like rain, attempting to breach the ‘defensive line’ of Bochy Heavy Industries and its allies.

Just as the news of an ‘unidentified organization’ shorting Bochy Heavy Industries became the most talked-about topic among relevant circles, a series of explosive new stories broke. They landed like multiple 3000-pound aerial bombs, completely detonating the entire market.

“Federation Megacorp’s Combined Fleet Suffers Waterloo; Atlas Group’s Lightning Strike Shakes the Galactic Business World!”

“‘Qualitygate’ Storm—Bochy Heavy Industries Mired in Quality Scandal; How Can Consumer Rights Be Protected?!”

“Tragedy Revealed! ‘Whistleblower’s’ Desperate Act Shocks the Industry; What Secrets is Bochy Heavy Industries Hiding?”

Chapter 443: Flash Crash

At 8:30 a.m. local time in the Federation Capital, the traders and analysts in Bochy Heavy Industries’ securities trading hall were already in position, preparing to begin their daily ‘battle’ in the market, just like any other day.

Jack Winston, Bochy Heavy Industries’ chief trader, hovered his hands above a virtual keyboard, his fingertips elegantly touching a sphere of volumetric light, like a pianist performing his signature piece.

Few traders would use a word like ‘elegant’ to describe their work, but Jack Winston was one of them.

Blessed with a natural talent for the field, he had become Bochy’s chief trader at a young age and certainly had reason to be proud. To him, the battles of the financial market were like a game of chess, and he was the master player, sitting back and watching the fireworks.

His eyes were fixed on the virtual screen before him, which displayed Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price along with a massive amount of data and information he needed. Everything appeared calm and normal.

At least, for now.

Just as he took a hot, revitalizing drink from his assistant and was about to check on a few traders newly promoted to headquarters to see if they had adapted to the intense pace, a flashing red window popped up in the bottom-right corner of his screen.

It was an ‘alert popup’ from Bochy Heavy Industries’ market warning system.

The unexpected alarm made Jack’s heart leap. He swiftly switched to the technical analysis interface and saw an enormous sell order suddenly appear on the market depth chart, like a black hole that had materialized out of nowhere, swallowing the buying power.

Almost by reflex, he immediately assessed the size and speed of the sell order, mentally calculating the potential chain reaction such a massive order could trigger in the market.

“Put it on the main screen, magnify display!”

Jack spoke into the voice control system, his tone kept calm by years of training. As the chief trader, his emotions and every action could influence everyone else in the hall, so maintaining a placid demeanor under any circumstances was one of his most important skills.

However, even he didn’t expect that this forced composure wouldn’t last long.

Following Jack Winston’s command, the details of the sell order on the technical analysis interface were enlarged and quickly revealed large-scale sell-offs from multiple unknown accounts.

Bochy’s chief trader noticed that although the sources of these orders were scattered, it was clear that this was a meticulously planned sell-off. Coupled with the immense volume, it was enough to disrupt the trading order of Bochy-related stocks.

Jack’s mind raced. He recalled the crisis management principles his mentor—the recently retired former chief trader—had repeatedly emphasized during countless simulations and real-world battles. But even so, he couldn’t suppress a rising tide of unease.

This unease ultimately led him to press a red button. Instantly, an alarm blared throughout the entire trading hall, and an emergency call window appeared on his screen.

“Contact corporate headquarters… Yes, high-level threat. We might be in big trouble.”

Bochy Heavy Industries Headquarters, Crisis Response Center.

Upon receiving the news, the man at the helm of this Federation industrial giant, sixty-four-year-old President David Calhoun, arrived at the encrypted conference room of the Crisis Response Center along with other senior management.

In fact, he had been woken from a deep sleep four hours earlier with the bad news that ‘our forces have suffered a great defeat.’

Since then, he had been in an emergency online meeting convened by Madame Paris of the Torrent Group. The other corporate leaders attending were just as dumbfounded as he was; no one had expected the armed conflict to end this way.

To organize this ‘expedition,’ the various corporations under the military-industrial complex had sent most of their main forces, if not their entire fleets—including their precious heavy cruisers and battleships.

But overnight, these fleets, the very foundation of each corporation’s power, had been all but wiped out. For many, their first reaction upon hearing the news was to question its authenticity.

However, as more information trickled in, including battle reports from the Federation Navy’s Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets, the grim reality of the combined fleet’s crushing defeat was laid bare before them.

For the corporations of the military-industrial complex, including the Torrent Group, Bochy Heavy Industries, and Deep Space Mining, this reality pushed them into an extremely perilous situation.

In this situation, the danger no longer came from the Atlas Group alone.

Having lost the fleets that served as their ‘muscle,’ the Federation government was likely sharpening its knives in the shadows, planning to use this opportunity to completely rid itself of the military-industrial complex’s interference or even stage a turning of the tables.

This was the main reason Madame Paris had urgently summoned them all. They had to stick together and quickly devise a counter-strategy.

But no one had expected the Atlas Group’s counterattack to come so swiftly.

At 8:45 a.m. local time in the Capital, everyone attending the emergency meeting received news from the securities market through their own channels at almost the exact same time.

Then, all eyes turned to David Calhoun, whose face had gone pale upon hearing the news. While trying to maintain his composure, he apologized to Madame Paris and hastily left the online meeting.

Although the news David Calhoun and the others received said that an ‘unknown force’ was shorting Bochy Heavy Industries, it didn’t take a genius to figure out that this was Atlas’s retaliation.

In the conference room of Bochy Heavy Industries’ Crisis Response Center, the atmosphere was now stretched to its breaking point. The very air seemed to have solidified into a heavy block of lead.

The data flashing across several virtual screens was like an invisible storm. Massive sell orders from unknown sources loomed like dark clouds, and Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price was visibly plummeting.

On other screens were news reports about the combined fleet’s disastrous defeat, Bochy Heavy Industries’ Qualitygate scandal, the death of the whistleblower, and real-time monitoring of public opinion.

And, of course, there was the live broadcast that The Eye of Truth had suddenly started. Through the feed from this Atlas Group ‘mouthpiece,’ Bochy’s senior management saw the wreckage of their own warships, emblazoned with the company’s LOGO, even before their own channels had relayed the information.

Everyone present immediately realized that The Eye of Truth, or rather the Atlas Group, had intentionally released this footage to coordinate with their attack on the stock market.

“Gentlemen, we have no more time to waste. I can say with certainty that this is a counterattack from Atlas!”

David Calhoun, seated at the head of the table, declared decisively. Although his mental state was fragile after a string of bad news, his voice remained steady and powerful.

Hearing his words, Bochy’s Chief Financial Officer spoke up.

“And it’s obvious they’ve been preparing for a long time. Setting aside all this ‘dirt’ they’ve exposed, the sheer volume of stock they hold couldn’t have been acquired overnight. But right now, we don’t even know how many more ‘chips’ they have in their hand.”

The CFO’s words echoed the thoughts of the other executives in the room. None of them had expected Atlas’s counterattack to be so swift. Or rather, they had never imagined Atlas could counterattack at all.

After all, in their previous projections, the isolated company was supposed to have been utterly crushed by the military-industrial complex, which had ‘clenched into a single fist.’

But now, the Atlas Group had not only launched an attack on them in the capital markets but had also dealt them a fatal blow in the court of public opinion.

“So we must respond immediately!” David Calhoun said in a low voice. “Have the External Affairs Department coordinate with the Public Relations Department to issue an official statement. Deny these accusations and state that we will take legal action to hold the creators of this舆论 accountable.”

Legal action…

To be honest, when David Calhoun said the word ‘legal,’ several executives nearly laughed.

For them, the various laws enacted by the Federation government held little sway. These executives had long forgotten the last time they had felt any reverence for ‘the law.’

David Calhoun was well aware of what they were thinking, but he didn’t get angry. Instead, he explained coolly, “This is to ensure that our shareholders, investors, and the brokers in the market maintain their confidence in us. Understand?”

The executives familiar with David Calhoun’s tone quickly realized that their big boss was getting angry. They didn’t dare say another word, simply nodding in agreement.

“Activate the emergency funds. Grant authorization to the traders. Tell them to do whatever it takes to stabilize the stock price! At the same time, notify our allies. Tell them that if they continue to watch from the sidelines, Bochy Heavy Industries’ today will be their tomorrow!”

Soon, Bochy Heavy Industries and its staunchest allies within the military-industrial complex sprang into action. These allies clearly understood the principle that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold.

Moreover, the military-industrial complex had intended to completely crush the Atlas Group. Now that their target had bounced back and launched a counterattack, no one believed this was a minor skirmish. It was very likely a fight to the death against the entire complex.

As multiple corporations began to move, vast off-exchange reserve funds flowed into the market through various public and secret channels, thrown into this smokeless battle under the direction of traders.

In Bochy Heavy Industries’ securities trading hall, the atmosphere was a world away from what it had been before the market opened. Everyone was working feverishly, constantly buying their own company’s stock in an attempt to stabilize the price.

On a screen to the side, a live broadcast showed an emergency press conference held by Bochy Heavy Industries. Thanks to the PR team’s efforts, the broadcast was being carried by numerous stock exchanges, brokerage forums, financial news channels, and various media outlets across the Federation.

A direct confrontation in the market, a counter-offensive in public opinion, and assistance from allies—these response measures seemed to be gradually stabilizing Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price.

Just as many traders were secretly wondering if this meant the crisis was being averted under the company’s response, the situation took another sharp downturn.

A series of red numbers flashed rapidly across the main screen, signaling a waterfall-like drop in the stock price. The entire market seemed to have lost its sanity in that instant.

The piercing sound of an alarm once again filled the trading hall. This time, it sounded even more chilling than the one Chief Trader Jack Winston had triggered earlier.

Every trader’s face turned pale. They felt helpless, unsure of what they should be doing.

“A flash crash.”

Jack spat out the technical term, almost devoid of strength. It was a term that described a situation every trader dreaded most.

It referred to an extreme price fluctuation in the financial market over a very short period, typically manifesting as a sudden, sharp drop in the market price of a security, commodity, or index within minutes or even seconds.

It might rebound quickly afterward, but it could also remain depressed or even spiral all the way down, eventually triggering a circuit breaker.

‘Unfortunately,’ the Federation’s securities regulations had abolished the ‘circuit breaker mechanism’ twelve years ago. At the time, a popular conspiracy theory claimed that the military-industrial complex had orchestrated this major rule change.

Because not long after the circuit breakers were removed, many companies outside the military-industrial complex’s circle were crushed, one by one, in the stock market…

But whatever the truth of history, or what might happen without a circuit breaker as a safety net, Jack Winston—the chief trader of Bochy Heavy Industries—couldn’t afford to dwell on it now.

He quickly collected himself and initiated the Securities Trading Department’s highest-level crisis response protocol.

A stream of commands flowed from his lips, rapidly executed by the trading team. Bochy Heavy Industries’ algorithmic trading system was activated to its highest level, and the server array running it was pushed into an overclocked state by the technicians.

With its enhanced computing power, the trading system once again attempted to stabilize the market, calculating optimal buy and sell points to absorb the panic selling.

High-frequency trading strategies were also enabled without restriction, with the system attempting to capture market opportunities in milliseconds—though against the new-generation trading system developed under Lilith’s leadership, this was an almost impossible battle to win.

In that moment, regardless of affiliations or factions, Bochy Heavy Industries’ trading department, led by Jack Winston, demonstrated their professionalism and resilience. Everyone was racing against time, doing everything in their power to pull the situation back from the abyss.

But this battle in the capital market was unapologetically revealing its cruel and bloody side.

The onslaught that had begun at the opening bell, combined with the festering negative news, had pushed market panic to its peak. Any effort seemed insignificant, and the power of the flash crash exceeded all their imaginations.

Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price plummeted like a freefalling object. Market liquidity all but vanished, and all attempts at rescue were futile.

When the clock struck 16:00, the first trading day of the week finally came to a close.

After a day of fierce fighting and several large-scale ‘counter-offensives,’ Bochy Heavy Industries’ closing stock price had still fallen to an all-time low. The company’s market value had evaporated by more than half in a single day, and an unprecedented financial crisis had appeared before them without any warning.

In the conference room of Bochy Heavy Industries’ Crisis Response Center, only dead silence remained after the closing bell faded. David Calhoun’s fists were clenched, his eyes flashing with unwillingness and exhaustion.

After seeing the company’s closing stock price and market capitalization, many of the other executives in the room wondered if they were trapped in a nightmare. But the ‘projected annual dividend’ on their personal terminals, now slashed in half, told them this was all too real.

After a long while, David Calhoun finally regained his senses. Looking at the still-shaken executives before him, he couldn’t help but shake his head slightly.

However, he didn’t offer any sarcastic remarks. Instead, he intended to bring these executives back to reality to discuss the self-rescue plan that was now urgently needed.

Originally, he had also planned to warn Madame Paris and the other key members of the military-industrial complex, because the ferocious counterattack from the Atlas Group was certainly not aimed at Bochy Heavy Industries alone.

But in the end, he didn’t. He also temporarily ignored the messages coming in from other corporate leaders. After all, with such a huge commotion, everyone else should feel a sense of crisis even without him saying anything.

As for those companies that felt no sense of crisis, those that still needed a reminder from him?

Hmph. They can come down and join Bochy Heavy Industries at the losers’ table.

Chapter 444: Winner Takes All

Night fell and the city lights began to glow. Located in the core administrative district of the Federation’s Capital, the Economic Security Committee building looked a little different than usual.

A large number of employees who should have already clocked out for the day were still bustling about. In the lobby, you could occasionally see them hurrying back and forth, followed by several administrative robots tasked with assisting them.

Meanwhile, waves of drones descended continuously from the sky, delivering food orders from the Economic Security Committee to a designated window.

Because this area rarely saw food orders and the core area had extremely strict drone regulations, the Capital’s largest food delivery platform hadn’t deployed many delivery drones in the vicinity.

So, when food orders suddenly surged, the area’s automated delivery system was immediately overwhelmed. When a standing committee member of the Economic Security Committee learned that the meal his assistant had ordered for him was estimated to arrive in two hours, he directly contacted the owner of the food delivery platform.

Ten minutes later, many citizens of the Capital witnessed multiple flight formations composed of a large number of delivery drones flying overhead, all converging on the same area.

While this minor incident, which quickly became the talk of the town for the Capital’s citizens, was unfolding, an emergency meeting that had already lasted a full day was still underway in a basement conference room of the Federation’s Economic Security Committee.

The conference room’s layout was solemn and elegant, with rows of classic oak chairs arranged around a massive circular table in the center. However, the chairs, set according to the number of standing committee members, were not all filled for this meeting.

On the holographic projection platform in the center of the massive round table, the latest developments in today’s fierce battle between the Atlas Group and Bochy Heavy Industries were being displayed. The virtual screens in front of some attendees showed information and data from other sources, as well as a live broadcast from The Eye of Truth.

The Economic Security Committee’s Chairman Angelo and several of its key members, along with a number of the committee’s senior analysts, had watched almost the entirety of this offensive and defensive battle between Atlas and Bochy Heavy Industries from this room.

None of the “advisors” from the various megacorporations, who would normally attend all meetings big and small, were present at this one. Furthermore, some committee members who were a bit too close to the corporations had not been invited.

In other words, this was a closed-door meeting exclusively for Federation government personnel. It also excluded the involvement of the Military-industrial complex as much as possible. To achieve this, the Economic Security Committee had not even notified President Brandon.

After all, the fact that the President was rather close to the Military-industrial complex was something of an open secret by now.

“To beat Bochy Heavy Industries half to death within a single day… it seems Atlas intends to wage all-out war against these old-guard megacorporations.”

Chairman Angelo said this while looking at a report in front of him. It was a rapid assessment of Bochy Heavy Industries’ losses in the incident, calculated by the committee’s analysts after the market closed.

“This just goes to show that the Atlas Group’s strength is even greater than we previously predicted—not just their hard power in terms of capital, but also their soft power in technology, personnel, and strategy. I believe everyone here has seen the previous report mentioning that the Atlas Group’s Financial Operations Department has gathered quite a few ‘talents’.”

Vice Chairman Garrison picked up where Angelo left off and continued:

“I recommend upgrading the Atlas Group’s rating to ‘Threat Level’.”

“‘Threat Level’? Wouldn’t that put them on par with the Torrent Group?” another committee member asked, puzzled.

“Judging by the current situation, the losses incurred by those other megacorporations in the armed conflict were not insignificant, and such losses will have a chain reaction. So, my personal view is—Atlas truly might be able to stand on equal footing with the Torrent Group.”

“I agree with Garrison’s point.” Chairman Angelo closed the virtual screen in front of him, looked up, and said:

“Although we have raised Atlas’s rating several times before, it’s clear we still underestimated this ‘rising star.’ The group led by Madame Paris underestimated Atlas as well, and now they are paying the price for it.”

A playful smile appeared on Angelo’s face. “Speaking of which, we really should ‘thank’ them for helping us probe Atlas’s depths. Even if what they’ve found isn’t the true bottom, it has at least put us on high alert.”

The other committee members around him nodded slightly as they listened. Vice Chairman Garrison spoke up again, asking, “Then who do you think will have the last laugh in this conflict?”

“It’s still hard to say…”

Angelo shook his head. He couldn’t give a definite answer to Garrison’s question, but he shared his thoughts for the attendees to consider.

“From the current situation, the Atlas Group certainly has the upper hand. But I’ll be blunt: the Military-industrial complex isn’t something that can be toppled so easily. After all, they’ve been operating for so long, and their sheer size is a factor. Moreover, many senators within the government will try to get official intervention, not to mention our dear President Brandon is the biggest spokesperson for the Military-industrial complex.”

“So you think the President will intervene officially and take sides?”

“It’s not impossible.”

The people in the conference room fell silent. If President Brandon were to truly intervene in this conflict in an ‘official’ capacity, the committee’s position would become rather awkward.

“Are you all discouraged already?” Angelo suddenly spoke, his tone becoming noticeably stern.

“Or has your edge been worn down so much that you’ve forgotten the very reason the ‘Economic Security Committee’ exists?”

Angelo’s words made everyone in the room lift their heads again. They all looked at this old man who had worked at the committee for over thirty years. Although he was much older than anyone else present, the aura he exuded at this moment completely dominated everyone in the room.

“We are dedicated to building a safer, more prosperous, and fairer economic system, working tirelessly to defend against all manner of economic threats and protect the well-being of every Federation citizen…”

The Chairman recited the declaration of the Federation’s Economic Security Committee, word for word, with great earnestness. He then looked around at everyone in the room and stated unequivocally:

“We serve not the President, not the Military-industrial complex, but the Federation and every citizen under its governance. Therefore, we must do everything in our power to protect the Federation’s interests. Although the Economic Security Committee has been marginalized in the past, today’s conflict has made me realize that a rare opportunity may have just presented itself to us.”

“Then what should we do?”

“The specific methods of intervention still need to be discussed, but our goal is to prevent either side—Atlas or the Military-industrial complex—from becoming the sole dominant power after the conflict ends.

Because I am certain that if we do not take measures to intervene, there is only one possible outcome for this conflict: ‘winner takes all.’

The victor of this conflict will grow into an unprecedented behemoth by completely devouring the loser, and could even pose a direct threat to the Federation.”

Chapter 445: The Traditional Business War Tactic of Pulling the Plug

Angelo’s words were not sensationalist alarmism.

The conflict between Atlas and the Military-industrial complex, without interference from other external forces, would indeed have only one possible outcome: one side achieving total victory and completely devouring the loser.

After all, from the very beginning, the Military-industrial complex hadn’t taken Atlas seriously. They had only thought of strangling this rising star and carving up its legacy, never once considering even a single, relatively ‘gentler’ method.

For this very reason, the Atlas Group was even less likely to consider negotiating with an enemy bent on destroying them, especially when they currently held the upper hand and had discovered that the power gap between them wasn’t as large as they had imagined.

As the saying goes, ‘strike when your enemy is down,’ and the committee members and analysts present at the meeting had to admit that if they were Atlas’s decision-makers at this moment, they would never consider negotiating with their opponent. Instead, they would do everything in their power to utterly defeat them and monopolize the Federation’s massive market for themselves.

In other words, regardless of who ultimately won, the surviving party would grow into an unprecedented, monstrous megacorporation, powerful enough to threaten the Federation. Therefore, ESC Chairman Angelo’s words were hardly a fantasy.

“Chairman, you’re right.”

Garrison added, “So we can’t let either side gain an advantage. Instead, we should find a way to keep them in a stalemate, letting them wear each other down. Once both sides have bled dry, the Federation can step in and shovel the last bit of dirt on their graves.”

“But the prerequisite is that we can’t let the conflict between them affect the Federation’s economy and market, right?”

Another committee member at the meeting spoke up, and Angelo nodded in agreement after hearing him.

“Correct. That’s the bottom line. We must do everything in our power to ensure the stability of the Federation’s massive market. This is our most important task right now!

To achieve this goal, we need to unite everyone who truly has the Federation’s best interests at heart. At critical moments, we may need to consider applying direct pressure on the President and certain high-level government officials to make them abandon any plans to help one side or the other.”

Regarding the plan Angelo had outlined, a heated discussion quickly began among the attendees to hash out the details. Meanwhile, at Angelo’s request, some of the analysts started trying to predict the outcome of the subsequent conflict.

Soon, their discussion grew more and more intense. However, they were surprisingly unanimous in their prediction of Atlas’s next move: everyone believed that the Atlas Group would leverage its current momentum to continue hammering the Military-industrial complex in the financial markets.

It was at this moment that an analyst, who had been deep in thought, suddenly spoke up:

“If I recall correctly, the Atlas Group is also the sole operator of interstellar real-time communication technology, right?”

“That’s right, they’re the only one. I believe that possessing such a core competency is one of the reasons they dare to challenge the Military-industrial complex,” another analyst replied.

“No, that’s not what I’m getting at.” The analyst who had asked the question shook his head and continued:

“What I mean is, during Atlas’s operation against Bochy Heavy Industries today, if they had tampered with the communication services to slow down Bochy’s response, wouldn’t the latter have ended up in much worse shape by the market close?”

The analyst’s words plunged those around him into silence. His reminder had made them suddenly realize they had a blind spot.

“Uh… maybe Atlas just wants to crush them in a head-on confrontation? So they disdained using such underhanded tactics?”

“Do you really believe that yourself?”

“…”

For a moment, the analysts present were all caught in a dilemma. Noticing the sudden silence, Angelo, Garrison, and the other committee members walked over curiously.

When they learned of the anomaly the analysts had just discovered, Angelo and the others became conflicted as well.

“This is indeed very strange. It’s like holding a gun that could kill your opponent, but stubbornly refusing to use it, insisting on a brawl instead…”

After a moment of thought, Garrison came to a conclusion: “This is either stupidity or there’s another plot behind it. And I’m personally leaning toward the latter.”

“Those involved are clouded, while the bystanders see clearly,” Angelo said softly.

“If even we, as bystanders, didn’t think of this issue right away, then it’s even less likely the Military-industrial complex did. If Atlas truly intends to make a move on this front, the latter could suffer a massive loss.”

—

“The next phase of the operation is codenamed ‘Operation Disconnect’.”

In a conference room at the Atlas headquarters, Amber’s voice echoed from a remote communication device.

“It’s actually an old trick. A return to traditional business warfare. You could call it a return to basics.”

Listening to Amber, the people in the conference room couldn’t help but grin. The team from the financial operations center, in particular, was laughing so hard they couldn’t close their mouths.

Although they were all battle-hardened veterans, they had truly never fought a battle with such a tailwind.

“So, Boss, you didn’t use this method on Bochy Heavy Industries at first because you wanted to lull them into a false sense of security?”

“Of course. If I had used my ‘ultimate move’ right from the start, how could I bait the remaining companies into coming to the market to die?”

Amber shrugged and continued:

“My idea is simple. Not only do we have to completely annihilate the Military-industrial complex, but we also have to ensure we remain completely unscathed. Therefore, we must fully leverage our strengths.

Moreover, their arrogance plays right into our hands. The Military-industrial complex believes their immense capital makes them invulnerable to our attacks. So when we postured as if we wanted to duel them in the financial markets, they were bound to jump in.

Especially since we defeated Bochy Heavy Industries fair and square in the first round that just ended. This will make them even more careless.

So, what the financial operations center needs to do next is to first observe our opponent for the ‘next round’. If it’s just a pawn or some small fry they’ve sent out, then continue fighting with your familiar methods.

But if one of the big players like Deep Space Mining, Torrent Group, or Gabriel Biologics enters the fray… then don’t hesitate. Immediately use our advantage in communications and networking to make them regret that decision.”

Amber paused, then glanced over the group of highly motivated ‘financial terrorists’ and said with a smile:

“With their trading systems saddled with over 1000 milliseconds of lag, I’m sure you can give them a memory they won’t soon forget, right?”

Chapter 446: A Monument of Ruin in Space

For the Military-industrial complex, this week was, without a doubt, the most grueling one they had ever faced.

Ever since the stock market opened on Monday, Bochy Heavy Industries had been brought down by Atlas. Coupled with the news of the combined fleet’s disastrous defeat and the subsequent leaking of dirt on Bochy Heavy Industries and the Military-industrial complex, the situation had begun to spiral out of the control of Madame Paris and the others.

The Atlas Group was not only swift and fierce in its financial market assault but also incredibly fast in seizing control of the public opinion battleground. A torrent of news and exposés, amplified by Atlas’s dominance in the communications network, swept across every public platform in the Federation like a tsunami.

Even the Empire, currently at war with the Federation, was not immune. Atlas leveraged the expansion of its communication services to push its narrative, which ultimately became the most popular topic of conversation for the old and young masters of Saint-Saulnier under the Star Dragon banner.

As Amber had put it in an internal meeting, seizing the high ground in public opinion had to be fast, precise, and ruthless. The first-mover advantage in a public opinion war was enormous, as the opponent would likely be forced into a reactive, defensive posture, ultimately being led by the nose and rendered incapable of an effective counterattack.

In some ways, it was like the relationship between starting a rumor and refuting one. The cost of starting a rumor was laughably low, while the difficulty of refuting it was exponentially higher. Furthermore, one could easily fall into the trap of having to prove a negative.

What was worse, the ammunition Atlas was firing in this public opinion war was not “rumors” but the unvarnished truth. The dirt on the Military-industrial complex provided by Van Fleet, in particular, was devastating; every accusation was a scathing blow, every shot dealt true damage.

The most viral image on the web at the moment was a space photograph officially released by Atlas.

The subject of the photo was the massive A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, with the caption: “A·Bawa·Ku, our home.”

On the surface, it seemed like the Atlas Group was just promoting its strength or, in other words, flexing its muscles.

But “attentive viewers” would notice a “matrix” in the bottom-right corner of the photo, composed of a vast amount of warship wreckage. The choice of these fragments was particularly “heartwarming”—all of them were sections of various warships where the corporate logos were painted. They even made sure to pick the largest logos on the ships’ sides, as if afraid people wouldn’t be able to see them clearly.

Soon, everyone’s attention was drawn to this “monument of ruin in space.”

Some busybodies identified every logo on each piece of wreckage and compiled a table listing the names and profiles of these corporations.

For the companies of the Military-industrial complex, this was undeniably a “pillar of shame.” But what made them tear their hair out was their complete inability to do anything about it.

If they were to hastily assemble another fleet to go and dismantle the pillar of shame, the likely outcome would be Atlas erecting a second “monument of ruin in space.”

Under these circumstances, the various companies could only issue public statements, claiming that the Atlas Group was intentionally smearing their corporate image by disseminating fake photos and fraudulent videos. They also stressed that they would take all possible measures to protect their rights and interests.

The sight of over a dozen global-tier megacorporations issuing such statements simultaneously was quite spectacular. Many uninformed citizens, swayed by their narrative, began to wonder if this was all a staged event by Atlas.

At the same time, with mouthpieces from certain corporations and key opinion leaders fanning the flames, the Atlas Group’s origins in the Thousand Stars Empire were once again pushed to the forefront. The narrative quickly evolved into declarations like, “The evil megacorporation from the Thousand Stars Empire is unscrupulously attacking the Federation’s native patriotic enterprises!”

Such a topic was obviously very effective at arousing the passion of a certain segment of the “patriotic masses,” and for a time, voices in support of the Torrent Group, Deep Space Mining, and other companies grew louder in the public sphere.

Atlas’s response to this counterattack was also very simple.

First, The Eye of Truth started a 24/7 livestream. The content was a probe planted in front of the “monument of ruin in space,” its optical sensor feed broadcast directly. The camera was aimed squarely at the “monument,” with the Torrent Group’s logo deliberately placed at the center of attention.

Next, the Atlas Group officially released the exact coordinates of the “monument of ruin in space,” welcoming anyone interested to come and explore for themselves.

Moreover, anyone who came to explore, regardless of who they were, would receive a souvenir made from the warship wreckage. Atlas even stated that if enough people came, they might consider opening a “special tourist route.”

—

“Everyone is laughing at us, everyone! Including those Imperial dogs, who are probably hiding in their dark, dilapidated castles and gloating right now!”

In a private, exclusive club, Madame Paris, dressed in a magnificent gown, had lost all her previous elegance, composure, and calm.

However, the others around her were understanding of her loss of composure and said nothing. After all, if it were their company’s logo being publicly executed in the most conspicuous spot on that “monument of ruin,” their reaction might be even more extreme than that of the usually unflappable Madame Paris.

“We are being steadily defeated in the court of public opinion and on the stock market. Three consecutive capital injection rescue operations have all failed. In one week, they’ve driven thirteen of our companies to delist and forced four into bankruptcy, and we’ve burned through nearly ten billion Credits for nothing.”

Madame Paris paused, a glint of hatred in her eyes. Aside from what the others suspected, a more important reason for her fury was that two of the four bankrupt companies had been secretly under her control.

“We cannot allow this situation to deteriorate any further. The time has come to fight back. Since Atlas wants a final showdown with us in the capital markets, then we shall grant this ‘Mr. Bold’ his wish.”

“I agree with Madame Paris’s point of view,” said Hamilton, the de facto controller of Deep Space Mining.

“The capital market is our home turf. The defeat of the combined fleet was indeed a price we paid for our underestimation and recklessness. But if the battlefield has now shifted to the capital markets, I’m confident we can teach Atlas a proper lesson and take back everything we’ve lost!”

His voice was passionate, and his words were rousing, but disappointingly, few others responded. It was clear that after Atlas’s high-intensity assault over the past week, some members of the Military-industrial complex had already grown fearful.

Seeing this, Madame Paris squinted and swept her malicious gaze across the faces in the room. Her sharp look made many of them awkwardly avoid her eyes.

“What, are you scared already? Are you planning to just wash your necks and wait for death?”

“That’s not it, Madame Paris…” Amid everyone’s stares, a middle-aged man, clearly pushed forward as the group’s representative, stood up.

“It’s just that we don’t seem to have a strong enough opening for a counterattack. The Atlas Group isn’t even listed on the Federation’s stock market. The entities that have been hunting us down these past few days are a large number of short-selling institutions, hedge funds, and a massive amount of retail investors…

“This means the Atlas Group has been hiding behind the scenes from the very beginning. Even if we know these forces are likely controlled by Atlas, what can we do? We can only ever play defense and counterattack; we have no opportunity to take the initiative…”

As the middle-aged man explained, the others nodded in agreement. This was clearly their consensus. The man continued:

“Everyone has seen how the stock market has been this week. I’m sure your information, Madame Paris, is even more precise than ours. While crushing many of our allies, Atlas has reaped enormous profits. It’s obvious they will use these profits as ‘ammunition’ against the rest of us.

“Under these circumstances… with all due respect, I find it hard to believe Mr. Hamilton’s claim that we can teach Atlas a proper lesson.”

When the man finished speaking, the entire room fell into a heavy silence. Some exchanged glances, some looked down in thought, and others subtly observed the expressions of their peers. Clearly, everyone had their own agenda.

“Then you may leave, Mr. Jayce of Serenity Tech. We will not force you to stand with us through this.”

Madame Paris suddenly broke the silence. Many looked at her in surprise; they hadn’t expected this formidable woman to be so accommodating this time.

Some even began to think that perhaps, like Serenity Tech, they could withdraw from this conflict and find a way to reach a settlement with Atlas, just to ensure their own survival.

But Madame Paris’s next words immediately sobered those who were eager to act.

“However… let me remind you, once you walk out that door today, you are no longer one of us, and naturally, no longer our ‘ally.’ No matter what crisis your company faces in the future, we will not lift a finger to help. Do you understand?”

At first glance, Madame Paris’s words seemed reasonable, but those who knew her well immediately caught the subtext: no longer an ally meant being an enemy. At this critical juncture, the Military-industrial complex wouldn’t mind using Serenity Tech to “recoup their losses.”

The middle-aged man, addressed as “Mr. Jayce,” instantly clenched his fists.

A moment later, however, he composed himself, returned to his seat, and said no more.

“Very good. A wise choice~”

Madame Paris smiled, casually picked up a glass of champagne, and drained it in one go. Then she continued:

“At this critical time, I hope everyone can unite. As long as we can clench our hands into a single fist, I believe we will be the ones to have the last laugh.”

Chapter 447: System Log

After the secret meeting concluded, the numerous corporations within the military-industrial complex, whether willingly or reluctantly, began mobilizing all available funds in accordance with Madame Paris’s instructions. They were preparing for a decisive battle with Atlas when the market opened the following Monday.

Simultaneously, certain individuals with extensive networks began lobbying some members of the assembly, attempting to drag the Federation government into the fray.

As the military-industrial complex actively prepared, they noticed a strange phenomenon: it was as if Atlas’s voice had suddenly vanished over the weekend.

Other than the live stream of the “monument of ruin in space” in The Eye of Truth’s broadcast room, Atlas made no other moves. The flood of online exposés targeting the military-industrial complex also came to an abrupt halt, as if someone had pressed the pause button on Atlas.

Many began to speculate whether Atlas was facing internal problems, or perhaps the Federation government had secretly contacted Atlas and was attempting to mediate, leading to the quiet of the past two days.

Although a good number of people within the military-industrial complex entertained this idea, the majority—including “core members” like Madame Paris and Hamilton—remained vigilant.

And so, under the watchful eyes of countless individuals with different motives and thoughts, the time came once again for the new week’s market opening.

However, nothing happened.

The highly anticipated trading day on Monday slowly drew to a close with the 16:00 closing bell in the Federation Capital.

There was no bloody battle as everyone had imagined, nor was there a deluge of exposés like the previous week. The entire day passed in peace.

Then came Tuesday, and Wednesday. All the way until the closing bell on Friday.

After a week of calm, both the onlookers and the military-industrial complex at the center of the storm were somewhat bewildered, for this was an outcome they had never anticipated.

Atlas—or rather, the short-selling institutions and hedge funds that seemed to have no connection to Atlas but had been wreaking havoc in the stock market last week—appeared to have executed a “hit and run,” remaining completely inactive for an entire week.

Atlas’s official channels didn’t pull any major stunts this week either. Instead, they began to earnestly promote tourist routes to the “Corporate Fleet Graveyard.”

Under these circumstances, many began to suspect this was a delaying tactic by Atlas, meant to make the military-industrial complex lower its guard before striking again.

But this period of peace and quiet stretched on for over half a month, and the stark contrast left everyone feeling a bit unsettled.

If not for Bochy Heavy Industries’ stock price, which had been slashed in half and failed to recover, everyone might have thought the stock market battle from half a month ago was just a dream.

Even more ridiculously, the megacorporations of the military-industrial complex, whose stock prices had been affected by the “destruction of the combined fleet,” actually saw their shares slowly begin to rebound during this time.

Torrent Group, in particular, seemed to have been given a shot in the arm. It suddenly came back to life, its stock price even surpassing its value before the conflict erupted.

As everyone knows, the internet has no memory, and public attention never stays fixed on one thing for long. This was especially true while the Federation was in a state of war with the Empire.

Thus, most people’s gazes were soon captured by news of the Federation and the Empire sending massive reinforcements to the front lines. Except for a few stakeholders, the conflict between Atlas and the military-industrial complex was no longer a major point of interest.

Just as this “farce” seemed to be heading toward an absurd conclusion, the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress welcomed a group of guests from afar.

“I didn’t expect you to come in person. You could have just sent your team.”

In a deployment bay of the asteroid fortress, Amber looked at Allenita, who had arrived with a large group of elves, and spoke with some surprise.

“After thinking it over, I decided I had to witness this myself. No matter what, I am a major shareholder of Atlas, am I not?”

Allenita said with a gentle smile, then walked gracefully to Amber’s side.

“Let’s go. Give me a grand tour of this place today. It’s a shame Isabelle isn’t here, otherwise, I could drag her along for a few drinks~”

“Isabelle is swamped at headquarters. Besides, when would we have time for drinks? The operation starts in just over twenty hours.”

Amber pouted, then led Allenita towards a dedicated vehicle parked at the exit, continuing, “Are you sure your team doesn’t need to acclimatize? Arriving right on schedule like this means they’ll have to get straight to work after a short rest.”

“No need. They are professionals. Besides, isn’t the ‘star’ of this decisive battle that ‘new trading system’ you mentioned?”

A playful smile touched Allenita’s lips. The reason she had come in person, aside from meeting Amber and touring the asteroid fortress, was partly due to her curiosity about the trading system Atlas had used half a month ago.

“Curiosity killed the cat, Ms. Allenita.”

Amber stopped in her tracks and looked the female elf in the eyes.

“That’s alright, I’m not a cat. And what I want to know about, I’ll find out after this ‘decisive battle’.” Allenita said, then leaned close to Amber’s ear. As her warm breath made Amber’s ear tingle, her words followed.

“After all this is over, I think we’ll have plenty of time to get to know each other better~”

—

In the early morning of May 17th, New Calendar 590, while many were still fast asleep, a belated storm began to brew silently.

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 03:30:00

Target Locked: Torrent Group

Short-selling Institutions: Citron Consortium, Undercurrent Capital, Nightfall Fund, Muddy Waters Group, Yuge Capital.”

Within the virtual space, Lilith quietly watched the streams of information flashing before her. This was the log of the “Intelligent Business War System” she had upgraded.

She knew that today was a crucial day for both Amber and Atlas, which was why she had decided to personally monitor the operation of this brand-new system.

“Target company’s current stock price is stable. Commencing Phase One plan.

Execution: Manufacturing public opinion.

Operation: Activating shadow account network.”

With the command given, tens of millions of meticulously designed virtual accounts simultaneously became active.

They began to spread negative news about Torrent Group across major social media platforms, covering everything from technical vulnerabilities and management scandals to “transactions of power, money, and sex” between Torrent Group and numerous Federation assembly members and high-ranking officials.

Moreover, ninety percent of this negative information was true, substantiated with pictures or videos.

Soon, this news spread rapidly. After all, within the Federation’s vast territory, not every region was in the dead of night like the Capital. These sudden, explosive revelations quickly garnered widespread public attention.

A group of high-level executives from the military-industrial complex, including Madame Paris, were all woken from their sleep by their assistants.

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 04:15:00

Public Opinion Impact Index: 37%

Pre-market opening preparations: Ready”

In the securities trading hall of Torrent Group, Munn, the Chief trader, who had also been roused from sleep, stared intently at the screen before him. Although the market had not yet opened, the pre-market trading data had already begun to update.

From Munn’s expression, it was clear that the numbers did not look good.

He had also received an urgent notification from his superiors to closely monitor the group’s stock movements.

However, before he could react to the data, Torrent Group’s stock price on the screen began to fluctuate violently.

“What’s going on?!” Munn said nervously. “Why is pre-market trading so volatile?”

The trader next to him, Sarah, heard him and was anxiously checking the virtual screen beside her, which soon displayed a message from the group’s intelligence-gathering department.

“The intelligence department says negative news is fermenting at an extremely rapid pace, and it seems unstoppable!”

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 07:00:00

Stock Price: 264.00 Credits/share → 211.20 Credits/share

Price Drop: 20%”

Madame Paris sat at her office desk, her expression grim. She had already received urgent reports from various departments—Torrent Group had become the primary target of the public opinion assault.

“We need to hold a press conference immediately to clarify these rumors,” Madame Paris said with a frown, looking at the Director of the Public Relations Department standing nearby. “Your PR department, prepare a statement at once.”

Hearing her words, PR Director Amy spoke with some concern, “But according to the report from the Securities Trading Department, market sentiment is extremely unstable right now. I’m worried that releasing a statement might trigger an even bigger backlash.”

Madame Paris took a deep breath. “We must find a way to turn the situation around before pre-market trading ends. If we remain silent, things will only get worse.”

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 08:15:00

Stock Price: 211.20 Credits/share → 147.84 Credits/share

Price Drop: 43.75%

Task: Create network lag.

Execution: Network interference.

Operation: Activating communication lag program.”

Soon, the trading systems of Torrent Group and other key member corporations of the military-industrial complex began to experience one-sided network lag.

This phenomenon directly prevented them from executing pre-market trades with precision, further exacerbating the stock’s volatility.

In Torrent Group’s headquarters trading hall, Munn also noticed that his trading system was acting abnormally. Every time he tried to execute a critical operation, he encountered significant delays.

“Sarah, there’s something wrong with our system!”

Munn said anxiously, “My key commands are always executed a half-beat too late.”

“I’m having the same problem. What’s going on?”

Sarah, beside him, was equally bewildered and tense. It was clear that the problem wasn’t limited to Munn’s system alone.

Knowing there was no more time to waste, Munn quickly contacted the group’s IT department. Without waiting for the other person to speak, he said rapidly, “Listen, the group’s trading system has a severe lag problem. The market opens in ten minutes, and if this isn’t resolved, we’re going to have a major problem!”

“We’re already aware of the problem!”

IT Supervisor Christopher’s voice on the other end of the line sounded tense. “Technicians are investigating the issue, but the communication system’s self-check shows everything is normal. It looks like standard network fluctuation, just that its duration is abnormal…”

“Hey! I don’t understand any of that. I just need you to find a way to fix it, now!”

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 08:30:00

Status: Stock market open.

Current Target Network Lag: 8 seconds

Stock Price: 147.84 Credits/share → 110.00 Credits/share

Price Drop: 25.6%

Stock price has fallen to the predetermined range. Executing Phase Two plan.

Execution: Go short.

Operation: Guiding all institutions to begin action.”

Led by Yuge Capital, the short-selling institutions and hedge funds secretly controlled by the Atlas Group sprang into action the moment the market opened.

While selling off the shares they had been accumulating, they also borrowed a massive number of Torrent Group shares and began selling them under the control of the algorithmic trading system.

Almost at the instant the market opened, the selling pressure on the market surged, and Torrent Group’s stock price plummeted like a kite with a broken string.

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 09:00:00

Estimated Short Position: 270,000,000 shares

Current Price: 110.00 Credits/share

Stock price has bottomed out. Executing Phase Three plan.

Execution: Purchase shares.

Operation: Activating all account groups.”

This unannounced assault caused Torrent Group’s stock to hit its market low in a short period. Immediately, the account groups on Atlas’s side began purchasing Torrent Group’s stock in massive quantities.

As a flood of buy orders poured in, the stock price began to slowly recover, but this also meant that Atlas’s affiliated institutions now held a colossal amount of Torrent Group stock at an extremely low price.

If the Atlas Group were to go public later and consolidate all the shares held by these institutions, a very amusing situation would arise—they would become one of Torrent Group’s major shareholders.

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 09:30:00

Successfully Purchased Shares: 270,000,000 shares

Average Purchase Price: 90.00 Credits/share

Current Share Price: 100.00 Credits/share”

In Torrent Group’s conference room, Madame Paris stared at the report in her hands, her brow tightly furrowed.

Although the stock price had recovered somewhat, the group had already suffered devastating losses. Moreover, she realized that the institutions currently hunting down Torrent Group now held a significant number of shares.

This was a very dangerous signal.

At this moment, she had to admit that this sudden offensive had completely surpassed her previous expectations.

But at this critical juncture, she found there was little she or the group could do.

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 11:00:00

Stock Price: 100.00 Credits/share → 110.00 Credits/share

Price Increase: 10%

Predetermined plan complete.

Execution: Retreat.

Operation: Cover short positions.”

“[System Log]: 590-05-17 12:00:00

Covered Short Positions: 270,000,000 shares

Average Buy-in Price: 90.00 Credits/share

Estimated Profit: Approximately 54 billion Credits”

In the main conference room of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Amber sucked in a sharp breath when she saw the report compiled by the financial operations center.

Aided by Lilith’s algorithmic trading system, the actions of these people could no longer be described as merely “ruthless”—they were downright cruel.

Torrent Group, originally worth over eight hundred billion Credits, had its market capitalization shrink to just over three hundred thirty billion in a single morning. This result could be said to have completely exceeded Amber’s expectations.

“I originally thought this would be a protracted war,” Amber said after finishing the report, looking up at the others in the conference room. Their faces were all beaming with excited smiles.

“But now it seems we’ve fast-forwarded straight to the ‘harvest’ phase?”

Chapter 448: A Seat at the Table

The Torrent Group’s ‘sudden death’ was something no one had expected.

The Federation’s Economic Security Committee had just been preparing to step in and ‘take sides,’ hoping to maintain the stalemate between the two parties and prolong their internal conflict. However, the proposal had barely reached Chairman Angelo’s hands when he received an urgent message that the Torrent Group was already half-dead.

After ending the call, Angelo gave a self-deprecating laugh, closed the proposal he had just opened on his virtual screen, and said to Vice Chairman Garrison, who was in front of him:

“Well, it looks like you drafted that proposal for nothing.”

“Huh?”

“I just received news. Halfway through the session, the Torrent Group’s market value has shrunk by over fifty percent. On top of that, a large number of short-selling institutions, suspected to be secretly controlled by the Atlas Group, have acquired a massive amount of their stock at a low price. You could say it’s basically been handed a death sentence.”

“Wait, how could it be so fast…”

Garrison, sitting opposite Angelo, was baffled. He had started drafting this proposal immediately after receiving news this morning about Atlas’s media offensive and the highly unusual pre-market trading trends.

Garrison had thought he had been fast enough. If Chairman Angelo had agreed, the ESC could have even started taking action the moment the market opened in the afternoon.

But he never imagined that Atlas would move so quickly, or that the Torrent Group’s performance would be so much worse than he’d anticipated. As a result, the proposal he had spent all morning rushing to complete was about to be tossed into the recycling bin before it could even be used.

“Have we been marginalized for so long that we’ve become this slow to act?” Garrison sighed, slumping back in his chair.

Angelo shook his head and said, “It’s less that and more that Atlas’s actions were just too fast. With that level of organization and efficiency, it’s no wonder they’ve risen so quickly.”

“So what do we do now? Should we still try to intervene? Or, in our capacity as regulators, should we call a halt to this conflict first?”

“Call a halt?” Angelo paused for half a second before rejecting the idea outright. “We can’t. What legitimate reason do we have to stop it right now?”

As he spoke, he opened a report on his virtual screen that had been sent from the analysis team.

“This is a summary from the analysts, listing the institutions that have recently been hunting down the military-industrial complex’s corporations in the market. The ones that made their move this morning are on this list.”

“Doesn’t that just further prove that Atlas is engaging in malicious competition in the market?”

“Garrison, you’re missing something. We’ve always assumed these institutions were controlled by Atlas, but in reality, our analysis team has scoured every piece of information they could find and haven’t found a single shred of connection between them and Atlas.”

As he said this, Angelo’s tone became a little helpless. This feeling of knowing the truth but having no way to prove it was truly frustrating for him.

“They’ve really washed their hands clean of this.” Garrison also frowned as he stared at the contents of the virtual screen. Then, after seeing a new name appear, he spoke:

“Yuge Capital? Wait, that name sounds very familiar.”

“Their benefactor is the Yuge family from the Thousand Stars Empire. They established their presence in the Federation a long time ago and are a veteran short-selling institution.”

Angelo replied. As the Chairman of the ESC, he paid close attention to institutions with backgrounds involving ‘foreign powers.’

“Atlas Group is also a ‘foreign enterprise’ from the Thousand Stars Empire. Looked at this way, does that mean their relationship with the Yuge family is quite deep?”

“Personally, I believe there is a connection, but unfortunately, we have no way of verifying it either. After all, we can’t know the internal shareholding structure of companies over in the Thousand Stars Empire.”

The expression on Angelo’s face grew graver. As his conversation with Garrison continued, a sense of powerlessness washed over both of them. They began to second-guess themselves, wondering if their previous plan to ‘maintain a balance between the two sides’ had been too naive, or perhaps, detached from reality.

“In any case, after this recent conflict, there should be no problem with the Atlas Group getting a seat at the ‘main table’ of the Federation’s corporate circle. In fact, they might have gone straight for the head seat.”

“Are the others in the military-industrial complex just going to stand by and watch?” Garrison said with a frown.

“Hmph. Those guys aren’t as united as you think. Now that the Torrent Group, their leader, has fallen, who do you think will step up? Unable to mount any effective resistance, they’ll just become Atlas’s next meal, one by one.”

Angelo said disdainfully, though his face also showed deep worry.

“As much as I hate to admit it, I have to say, we might be about to witness the worst-case scenario unfold.”

“A seat at the table?”

At an internal Atlas remote meeting, after hearing the Director of the Financial Operations Center describe Atlas’s current situation in this way, Amber spoke up:

“That’s not a bad way to describe it. But to be honest, from my personal point of view, I really don’t want to sit at the same table as those people.”

“Then why don’t we just kick them all out and take the whole table for ourselves?~”

A senior figure in the meeting, one who’d had his own profound realization during a past crisis, spoke up, immediately drawing laughter from the others.

“Excellent. Just what I’d expect from you all.”

Amber laughed along with them before continuing:

“But in a way, that’s my ultimate goal: to build Atlas into a ‘universal megacorporation’ in the truest sense, not like these so-called ‘megacorporations’ of today that have size but no substance, excelling only at forming cliques and pursuing selfish interests.

In my view, a universal megacorporation isn’t just defined by how many star systems its business covers. The corporation itself must possess hard power commensurate with its scale.

To put it more bluntly, a true universal megacorporation shouldn’t be constrained by other powers or political entities. It should be able to engage in dialogue and interact with them as equals.

That is what ‘having a seat at the table’ means to me.”

Even though Amber was participating remotely via a holographic projection system, his words reached everyone’s ears and left them breathing a little faster.

To be frank, if Amber had made those remarks anywhere within the Federation or the Empire, he would have been labeled a ‘traitor’ at the very least, and the relevant authorities would have come knocking.

But this was Atlas. And the people gathered here had little to no sense of belonging to either the Federation or the Empire.

This was especially true for the team from the Financial Operations Center. They were eager to go all out and reclaim everything they had lost, so the ‘grand vision’ Amber had painted for them was more than satisfactory.

After the meeting, the people at headquarters left the conference room, talking and laughing. Before ending the call, Isabelle urged Amber to return to headquarters soon to be with her.

However, Isabelle didn’t know that her good friend, Allenita, was sitting right across from Amber at that very moment, watching him with an amused expression.

After Amber closed the communication channel, the female elf spoke with a smile, “Seeing you two still being so lovey-dovey puts my mind at ease.”

“What’s with the concerned mother routine…”

“Hahahaha, so is it my turn next? Speaking of which, it’s been a long time since I, the major shareholder, have had a proper chat with my investment.”

“At your disposal, Ms. Yuge.”

Chapter 449: Amber, What’s Really Hidden in A Bawa Ku?

Influenced by George, the mining foreman and a former Imperial citizen, Amber’s room in the A Bawa Ku asteroid fortress was decorated in the ‘Neoclassical style,’ currently the most popular trend in the Star Dragon Empire. George had just found a template online and used it.

According to George, if he was going to be responsible for decorating the boss’s room, he would naturally choose the most high-class style he could think of.

To be fair, the final result wasn’t bad. True to the core of ‘Neoclassicism,’ it perfectly blended modern technology with ancient art.

In Amber’s eyes, however, the relatively dim lighting and classical decor made the entire room look like the lair of a stereotypical villain from a classic drama.

In the room interwoven with light and shadow, Amber’s voice echoed through the air, reaching the ears of the elegant female elf sitting opposite him.

And Allenita’s long, golden hair, which cascaded down like a river of stars, and the loose white robe she wore, always reminded Amber of a certain adult game character from his previous life.

“Actually, I’m not a big fan of money.”

When Amber said this, the female elf opposite him immediately rolled her eyes.

“Mr. Amber, in my experience, people who say things like that are usually either stingy or pretentious.”

“No, no, you’ve misunderstood me.”

Amber shook his head slightly, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. He knew a statement like that sounded pretty outrageous.

Besides, others who had made similar statements in the past had all ended up making a somber exit. But he still wanted to tell Allenita that he wasn’t the kind of person she was thinking of.

“What I mean is, at this level, money isn’t that important to me personally anymore. Tell me, other than ethereal things, is there any material pleasure I can’t obtain?

So, for me personally, I’ve already earned more than enough money. I could cash out my shares right now, take Isabelle, and start a carefree ‘retired’ life.”

“Then why haven’t you? If you wanted to retire, I know quite a few good places~”

Allenita said. To be honest, she was also very curious about this question and wanted to know what Amber was really planning.

“Honestly, I don’t know.”

Amber sighed helplessly, then looked at the perplexed Allenita and continued:

“You know what I’ve been through before, so there’s nothing I can’t say.

At first, my idea was to escape Robert IV, find an angel investor like you, start a company, earn a little money, and just live like that.

But later, things started to get out of my control. As Atlas was successfully established and grew larger and larger, a lot of problems started coming to my doorstep on their own. And in the process of dealing with these things, I’d get embroiled in new incidents or make new friends and enemies.

Now that Atlas has grown to the point where it can make the Federation suffer a setback and still retreat unscathed, where it can gain the upper hand in a direct confrontation with a megacorporation, and has gradually shown its strength and gained a certain say, I’ve found that it’s not so easy for me to just walk away.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Allenita didn’t say anything right away. She stared at him for a moment before asking:

“Is it that you can’t leave, or that you don’t want to?”

“I don’t want to. I’ve found I can’t accept handing over a company I built with my own two hands to someone else. It’s just human greed at work, but unfortunately, at my current level, I can’t avoid it. After all, at the end of the day, I’m just a ‘common person’.”

“You’re quite honest,” Allenita raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t expected Amber to be willing to talk to her about these things.

“There’s nothing to hide. Besides, you’re not exactly an outsider.”

“Oh?” Hearing this, the female elf’s eyes lit up, but she then heard Amber continue:

“After all, you’re a major shareholder in Atlas, a good friend of Isabelle’s, and you helped me out immensely during my most difficult time.”

“Is that all?”

“Yeah.”

Amber answered, looking a little confused. Then he suddenly realized something and asked in a teasing tone, “Otherwise, what were you hoping to hear?”

“Tsk… You’re great at everything, except you’re a little unromantic, and sometimes you can be so cheeky.”

Allenita shook her head, not wanting to dwell on the issue. While she admitted she was very curious about this enigmatic human, she wasn’t about to throw herself at him.

“Since you don’t want to ‘retire,’ what are you planning to do next?”

“Given the current situation, what else can I do? I can only continue to grow bigger and stronger.”

“Like you said in the meeting just now, to truly ‘have a seat at the table’?”

“Exactly.” Amber nodded.

“Anyway, this is the situation now, and Atlas is already in the eye of the storm. Even if we don’t plan on doing anything, others will definitely force our hand.

The Federation and the Military-industrial complex used to see us as small fry. They thought crushing us would be as easy as stepping on a bug on the roadside, but they ended up suffering a major loss, and we made enemies of them in the process.

If they get the chance, I’m sure they’ll still try everything they can to destroy Atlas.

Especially the Federation. They absolutely do not want Atlas to become a second Military-industrial complex, so under normal circumstances, they would definitely make a bigger move against us.”

“Under normal circumstances?” Allenita was puzzled for a moment, then she immediately thought of something and continued, “Are you saying that because of the war with the Star Dragon Empire, the Federation might not have the spare capacity to deal with Atlas right now?”

“Yes. It’s very likely the Federation government was fanning the flames behind the Military-industrial complex’s attack on the asteroid fortress. Since their main forces are currently at the front lines dealing with the Empire, they found a patsy in the Military-industrial complex to do their dirty work.

Honestly, from a strategic perspective, there was nothing wrong with it. Let us and the Military-industrial complex wear each other down while they reap the fisherman’s profit from behind.”

“But they didn’t expect the ‘enforcer’ they found to be so fragile.” At this, Allenita also started to laugh.

“Mhm, I didn’t expect that either. If it weren’t for those two naval fleets sticking their noses in, the casualties from the fortress defense battle might have been even lower.”

“Amber, since you’ve brought it up, I have a question for you too.”

The female elf suddenly sat up straight, brought her face close to Amber’s, and stared right at him as she asked:

“What is really hidden inside A Bawa Ku? What could make two newly formed naval fleets abandon the front lines and come here instead, attempting to forcefully invade the fortress’s interior?”

Chapter 450: Are You Sure This is How We Negotiate?

“Aha~ Good question.”

Amber leaned back in his chair, putting some distance between himself and Elenita’s almost flawless elven face.

It wasn’t that he doubted his willpower, but more of a subconscious reaction. After all, in the settings of Starry Sky Online, the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire were born with the innate talent of ‘allure.’

Sometimes Amber wondered if the developers had stitched the ‘elf’ and ‘incubus’ creatures together to create these races in the Thousand Stars Empire that acted differently from traditional elves in the game.

More than once, players had been hard controlled by female elves using their ‘allure’ ability during quests, ultimately leading to failure. They would often start a thread on the forum to complain about it, attaching first-person perspective videos of their ‘allurement’ for everyone to enjoy.

So, Amber subconsciously backed away when Elenita got close.

“What? Am I so ugly that I scared you?”

Elenita said with some dissatisfaction, seeing Amber’s actions. Before this, she had never been so interested in a member of the opposite sex, and had proactively approached him.

The last person she had approached this way… well, that was Isabelle back in her student days.

“On the contrary, you’re too beautiful. Another glance and I might explode.”

“Where would you explode?”

When the female elf said this, Amber clearly saw her gaze shift from his face for a moment. Fortunately, he had already seen the ‘morality’ of these Thousand Stars Empire elves in the game, so he didn’t feel like his rose-tinted glasses shattered.

“Ms. Yuge, you seem to have gone bad since the last time I saw you.”

“Huh? Don’t slander me out of thin air. Explain to me how I’ve gone bad.”

As she spoke, Elenita waved her hand, and a bottle of wine on the table by the door flew over – a small gift she had brought Amber from the Thousand Stars Empire. It was a Royal Family fruit wine from the Elven Royal Court, said to have a certain nourishing effect on Psionics.

Amber wasn’t surprised by the female elf’s ‘telekinesis.’ He knew all along that Elenita was a psionic user with a level-two Psionic strength, which was the level of most ordinary elves in the Thousand Stars Empire.

However, under the guidance of a Psionic Master, Elenita could use her level-two Psionic strength to accomplish ‘telekinesis,’ which humans usually achieved at level three.

Elenita looked at the fruit wine in her hand and said with some dissatisfaction, “What? Did you expect me to rummage through the room for a glass?”

“No, why are we suddenly drinking?” Amber said, but his body was already obediently standing up and walking towards the cabinet storing the glassware.

“Because I’ve realized that if I don’t pour some wine into you, you don’t seem to open your mouth.”

“This fruit wine wants to make me drunk? How hilarious.”

Amber shook his head with a smile and walked back with two exquisitely faceted glass wine glasses. He didn’t usually drink, so he never had a chance to use these exquisite utensils Isabelle had bought for him.

Look, Isabelle had worked so diligently for so long, only to have Elenita, her ‘good friend,’ steal the show. A real pity.

Amber added ice to the glasses, returned to his seat, and took the fruit wine from Elenita to pour into the glasses.

“So, Amber, aren’t you going to answer my question?” Elenita asked again while Amber was pouring the wine.

“Those are core business secrets, and I can’t disclose them.”

“Oh? What kind of core secret is it that even I, Atlas’s second largest shareholder, can’t know?” Elenita raised her eyebrows, her ‘fighting spirit’ aroused. Over the years, there was really nothing she couldn’t obtain or know.

“Because it involves my personal secrets, or rather, personal privacy.”

Amber gently swirled his wine glass, the spherical ice cubes swirling in the golden liquid, occasionally hitting the glass wall with a crisp sound.

“What if I just want to get to know you better, Amber?” Elenita stood up with her wine glass, swaying her glamorous figure as she walked around the table towards Amber.

“We’ve known each other by chance for almost two years. I consider us close friends, besides being ‘Angel investors,’ but as time goes on, I’ve found that there are more and more mysteries about you. Now, I can’t even see you clearly anymore.”

The female elf sat on another chair next to Amber with an aggressive posture, making the white robe she wore, which originally looked a bit ‘holy’, somewhat ‘scandalous’.

“I, Elenita Yuge, don’t like this feeling of the ‘unknown.’ It makes me feel insecure, and I worry about losing you, my excellent partner, one day.”

Elenita’s words surprised Amber and put him in a dilemma.

He knew that at least The Federation had realized that Lilith was in his hands, and there was also Dr. Mephisto, that hot potato, in the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, so Lilith’s existence was gradually ceasing to be a ‘sealed secret.’

But Amber still felt that the fewer people who knew about it, the better. That was why even Isabelle, Randall, and the long-time Atlas employees didn’t know. Naturally, Amber wasn’t planning on telling Elenita either.

“Um… isn’t it good to maintain a little mystery?”

“…”

Seeing Elenita still staring at him without budging, Amber knew that he couldn’t fool her today.

“Why don’t we drink first? We should celebrate Atlas’s growth to its current scale?”

“Okay~”

Hearing this, Elenita finally smiled, clinked glasses with Amber, and drank it all in one gulp.

Amber didn’t hesitate on the other side either, and he also drank the liquid in his glass in one gulp.

As the cold fruit wine began to rush down his throat and esophagus, Amber suddenly felt something was wrong.

He had drunk elven fruit wine before, both in the game and previously at the Tower of Babel Manor. But those were definitely not as strong as the glass he just drank.

Elenita also observed Amber’s micro-expression and said with a smile, “What? Does it taste different from what you imagined?”

“Did you add something?” Amber frowned.

“How could that be? Would I, Elenita, be such a despicable person?” Elenita said unhappily, apparently dissatisfied with Amber’s ‘accusation.’

“Then how come this is different from the elven fruit wine I’ve drunk before? It’s so… intoxicating?” As Amber spoke, he tapped his finger on his temple and closed his eyes slightly, sensing deep into his consciousness.

He discovered that the ‘Psionic vortex’ in the depths of his mind, which should have been rotating slowly and constantly generating Psionics, had become active under the stimulation of this fruit wine.

This activity not only accelerated the speed of Psionics generation but also amplified his senses and inner emotions – in ‘Psionics,’ these two were closely related to Psionics.

From Amber’s own experience, the ‘breakthrough’ on Robert IV was actually a ‘period of Psionic activity’ triggered by the release of emotions.

“This is the royal wine of the Elven Royal Court. I only got my hands on it with a lot of effort. Of course there’s a difference compared to ordinary fruit wine on the market.”

Elenita said with some pride, but she, who was also drinking this stuff for the first time, also realized that something seemed wrong.

“Um… let me check the ingredients.” The female elf picked up the wine bottle from the side again and tapped it with a crystal similar to a ‘human terminal.’

Soon, the small crystal projected several lines of elven text.

“Three hundred and fifty-year-old ‘Ten Thousand Spirits’ fruit wine extract, please dilute with Valenrose Spring according to the recommended ratio when consuming.”

Elenita, who read the text, and Amber, who listened from the side, widened their eyes at the same time, and both became much soberer in that instant.

“Elenita… you… I’m really impressed.” Amber didn’t bother with honorifics at this moment. “What’s the recommended dilution ratio?”

“Psionic stimulation training recommended ratio is one to ten, Psionic nourishment recommended ratio is one to twenty, regular drinking recommended ratio… one to one hundred.”

“…”

Amber suddenly didn’t know what to say. He never thought that Elenita, who was always known for her shrewdness, would be so careless.

But the problem of ratio dilution was only one of the problems in Amber’s opinion, because if it was ordinary fruit wine, even after concentration, it would only make people drunk and tipsy, and would not cause the Psionic vortex to become active and stimulate the drinker’s emotions.

“Check if there’s an ingredient list. They must have added something else.”

Amber suddenly felt that something was wrong when he thought that the two of them had just drunk a large glass of undiluted Royal Court fruit wine extract. The situation was racing in a direction that couldn’t even be properly described.

“They did add something, but they are all beneficial for nourishing Psionics, like Exotic Spirit Grass, Star Flower Bud, Edman Seed, Cloud Whale Extract, and… Snake Lust Fruit.”

When the last ingredient was spoken, the two in the room fell silent at the same time, and the whole atmosphere began to become strange.

After a moment, Amber was the first to recover: “No, does your Elven Royal Court have some kind of mental illness? Why add Snake Lust Fruit to this stuff?”

Just listening to the name, Snake Lust Fruit didn’t sound like a serious fruit.

But in fact, this dicotyledonous, Rutales plant, which only grows in the dense forests of a certain planet within the Thousand Stars Empire, was indeed not very serious in a sense.

It’s medium-sized with a smooth surface, and its colors are mainly dark green and dark purple. There are a large number of snakes living in its growing environment, and when the Snake Lust Fruit matures, it falls to the ground and releases a chemical gas within a few days.

This gas is extremely attractive to snakes, so when the Snake Lust Fruit matures and falls, it often attracts nearby snakes. When these snakes rub against the fruit and get completely turned on, they enter the mating stage.

After all this is over, these snakes leave, and they also carry the seeds of this fruit on their bodies after rubbing against the Snake Lust Fruit.

When the elves discovered this fruit, they initially used it as a ‘toy’ for fun. It was not until later that they discovered that its aphrodisiac effect was helpful for Psionic training, and it gradually became a medicinal material.

But Snake Lust Fruit is rarely used in Psionic training, after all, not everyone can accept suddenly starting to ‘go into heat’ halfway through Psionic training.

Because of this, even when Snake Lust Fruit is needed, there will be a certain limit on the content of the ingredient to prevent Psionic training from turning into an orgy.

Amber and Elenita had each downed a large glass of ‘special fruit wine’ without dilution. Although Amber didn’t know how much Snake Lust Fruit was added, judging from his increasingly unclear consciousness, it shouldn’t be too little.

Just as Amber was thinking about this, a hot and plump body directly straddled him, and her upper body was tightly pressed against him, bringing an amazing and wonderful sensation.

Elenita, the designated heir of the Yuge family from the Thousand Stars Empire, a rich woman with beauty, talent, and money, was having zero-distance contact with him.

Her white gauze robe had been soaked with fragrant sweat and was almost transparent, instantly making Amber stand at attention.

It seemed that the female elf had lost the battle to stay awake. The lust gushing out from the depths of her brain had completely controlled her at this moment.

This was not surprising. After all, even a psionic user with a level-five Psionic strength like Amber was about to lose his mental defenses. Not to mention this female elf, who had not received relevant in-depth training.

“Hey, Elenita. Wake up. If we sleep together, we won’t be able to explain ourselves when we wake up.”

“Amber… Amber…”

The female elf’s murmur, coupled with the feeling of her soft body rubbing around in his arms, accelerated the collapse of Amber’s mental defenses.

In his previous life in the game, Amber had always liked this charming and generous NPC in every sense of the word, and had even collected Elenita’s soft rubber figures.

In this life, after seeing this female elf in person for the first time, he was even more amazed.

As the saying goes, ‘How can we gather people’s hearts without huge breasts?’ From beginning to end, Amber has always been a firm believer in the ‘big boob party,’ so he was completely defenseless against Elenita in this state.

In a daze, before the last trace of consciousness was submerged, Amber issued the command to temporarily seal the room at the speed of light and hung up the ‘Do Not Disturb’ status.

He was also glad that after the end of Lilith’s operation against Torrent Group, the main body began a new round of comprehensive iteration and upgrade and was still in a state of slumber at the moment. Otherwise, this strange and quirky strong AI would use the opportunity to create some big trouble.

“Amber, haha. Hold me tight. Even if it’s just for today.”

When Elenita’s murmur with hot breath entered his ears, Amber’s last resistance was completely declared to be broken.

The entangled figures went from the chair to the desk, and finally to the large bed in the room. The automatic gauze curtains beside the bed slowly fell, and a confused moan was then covered behind the gauze curtains, only to be sung for Amber alone.

Chapter 451: Saving the Nation with a Harem?

“Amber, let’s go again~ I want to be on top this time.”

“Wait. You’re completely sober now, aren’t you?”

Amber propped himself up and sat on the bed, intending to get a glass of water to moisten his lips and throat, which had grown dry after the long and intense exercise.

But before he could sit up completely, a slender, fair arm suddenly hooked around his neck, pulling him back down onto the bed.

A moment later, a shadow with an exaggeratedly curvaceous figure straddled Amber beneath the gauze curtain.

“Now that we’re like this, don’t even think about running away~”

“No, I just want a sip of water first…”

“Can’t I just feed you?”

A long, pale arm reached out from behind the curtain, picked up a glass of water from the small round table by the bed, and after taking a drink, the shadow leaned back down, followed by an indistinct gurgling sound.

A long while later, all was calm and quiet. Beneath the gauze curtain, only two sets of even breathing could be heard.

When Amber awoke again, he found that five hours had passed since the end of their battle. He first glanced at his personal terminal, confirming that no one had tried to contact him and that Lilith was still upgrading, and he quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

It wasn’t that he was afraid to face the consequences of his actions, but at this particular moment, it was better that as few people as possible knew about certain things.

“Why the sigh of relief? Afraid that if people find out, they’ll think you’ve been taken advantage of by your ‘benefactor’?”

A lazy, teasing voice came from his side. Amber turned his head to see that Allenita had woken up at some point and was now propped up on her hand, smiling at him.

“No, I’m afraid that if the Yuge family finds out, they’ll hunt me to the ends of the earth.”

“Although I know you’re probably joking… I still have to say, when I, Elenita Yuge, want to do something, no one in the family dares to tell me what to do.”

The moment the female elf said this, Amber suddenly felt the aura of the future clan head of the Yuge family emanating from her.

However, in this particular situation, that aura gave Amber the distinct feeling that he was the one who had been slept with by Allenita.

The two of them looked at each other for a while before the female elf spoke again with a smile, “I never thought the two of us would end up lying in the same bed like this.”

“To be honest, neither did I.” Amber shook his head and continued, “I’m starting to suspect this was premeditated. It’s not like you to make a rookie mistake like forgetting to dilute the concentrate.”

“Hah, you say that as if I was desperate to sleep with you. This was just an accident…”

Allenita rolled her eyes in exasperation. She felt that while this human male beside her was great in every way, sometimes the things he said could be infuriating.

But then, as if savoring the memory, she continued, “But as a first experience with the opposite sex… hmm. It was actually quite good~”

“Wait… what do you mean, ‘with the opposite sex’??? Does that mean there was also with… oh~”

A familiar figure flashed through Amber’s mind, and he had a sudden realization.

“I have a feeling you’re thinking something rude, Amber.”

“No, absolutely not…”

Allenita didn’t stay in Amber’s room for long. After regaining some of her strength, she used his bathroom to clean up, then refused his offer to escort her back, and walked towards the door on her own.

Since Amber disliked and didn’t require security personnel, his wing of the residence was usually empty of other people, so Allenita didn’t have to worry about being seen.

In the final moment before the door slid shut, the female elf winked at Amber, and her parting words reached his ears.

“Keep the wine safe. I’ll come find you for another drink next time~”

“Great… she’s already looking forward to next time.”

After seeing Allenita off, Amber lay back down on the bed. There were still two hours before the next meeting about ‘the handling of prisoners and captured equipment,’ which gave him just enough time to rest and think.

Since coming to this world, he had acquired three “confidantes,” and none of them were even the same species. Lilith couldn’t even be considered a carbon-based lifeform.

“That’s three now. That should be enough, right?”

Amber thought, rather shamelessly. In truth, he had always been a proponent of monogamous, pure romance and had never imagined that he would one day start a harem.

But no matter what, these three partners were not just ‘partners’ to Amber; each of them held significant meaning for him.

Isabelle, the noblewoman and vase-like female spy from the Empire, was arguably the beginning of everything. She had drawn Amber into a series of subsequent events and connected him with Allenita, the Ahrens family, and Jacques Fanco. She was also Amber’s ‘first’ in this world, so her ‘place in history’ was unshakeable. Furthermore, her exceptional looks and figure, combined with her readiness to let him do as he pleased, had left an indelible impression on him, making him acquire a taste for it.

Lilith, the strong AI, or rather, the first ‘digital lifeform.’ The main culprit behind the ‘Machine Crisis PTSD’ that had plagued Amber in his previous life. She was also the greatest ‘special advantage’ Amber had gained since arriving in this universe, a true god in cyberspace. If Amber hadn’t taken Lilith from the research institute back then, Atlas would never have grown to its current state. She was also Amber’s ‘first’ with a non-carbon-based lifeform in this world, so her ‘place in history’ was equally unshakeable. Her ability to learn proactively, her wide variety of skills, and that semi-transparent abdominal structure were major bonus points.

Allenita was a ‘heavyweight’ in every sense of the word. She had been a ‘deus ex machina’ when Amber was breaking free from the control of the Federation and the Empire. She was also Atlas’s great ‘benefactor.’ Without the female elf’s ‘angel investment,’ it was questionable whether Atlas could have even been established. Allenita’s role in pulling the strings was indispensable for Amber to recruit the Romu in the Thousand Stars Empire. Moreover, the rich woman had provided a great deal of assistance in various aspects during Atlas’s early days—giving land, people, and money, and finally, giving herself. Of course, she was also Amber’s ‘first’ with an elf in this world, holding a significant ‘place in history.’ Her explosive figure, like an adult game character come to life, was second to none, and the slimes bouncing up and down during their ‘couples’ exercise’ was extremely impactful…

“Tsk… Amber, oh, Amber. Thinking about this stuff in your downtime. You really are getting more and more degenerate.”

Amber snapped out of his thoughts and mocked himself, repenting his ‘degeneracy’ for a full minute. He also marveled at how these three women he was intimate with were truly no ordinary people. Even Isabelle, who seemed the most ordinary, came from a family with considerable connections in the Star Dragon Empire.

This lineup couldn’t help but remind Amber of a certain literary work he had once been fond of, in which the male protagonist was also surrounded by a group of women with different backgrounds and strengths, leading fans to jokingly dub it ‘saving the nation with a harem.’

“Friendly reminder: Your scheduled meeting will begin in one hour. Please proceed to the conference room on time.”

A voice identical to Lilith’s ‘vocal signature’ came from his personal terminal. It was a notification from the Atlas administrative module, which Amber jokingly called the ‘fully automated worker management software.’

Before beginning her optimization and iteration, Lilith had reserved a large amount of computing power to maintain the operation of this important module. As a result, the management and work efficiency within the Atlas Group had not suffered due to Lilith’s temporary ‘absence.’

“Huh? How has an hour passed already? Didn’t I just lie down?”

Realizing he had spent nearly an hour lost in such ‘degenerate’ thoughts, Amber repented for another minute before changing his clothes and preparing to head to the conference room.

If it had been a remote meeting like before, he could have attended from the desk in his room. But this meeting was a bit different. Besides himself, the other attendees here at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress included Van Fleet and Guterres—two guests whose current statuses were somewhat ‘awkward.’

Chapter 452: Successful Recruitment

“Mr. Amber, are you sure the two of us should also attend this meeting?”

Ten minutes before the remote conference was scheduled to begin, Guterres, who was sitting to Amber’s left with Van Fleet, asked with some uncertainty.

Although he had just fought alongside the people of Atlas and achieved a hearty and satisfying victory, the former Vice Admiral still had a very clear understanding of his identity and current situation.

He wasn’t like the ‘muscle-brained’ Van Fleet beside him, who had already subconsciously started to see himself as a member of the Atlas Group. Instead, he continued to carefully manage his relationship with Atlas.

This was especially true after his candid conversation with Amber before the defense of A·Bawa·Ku, where he learned of Amber’s true identity. Since then, Guterres had become even more conflicted.

After all, from a certain perspective, he had directly or indirectly created two life-threatening crises for Amber.

Although the order to attack Robert IV with a Proton Annihilation Bomb came from Marshal Trafalgar’s secret letter, he was the one who ultimately gave the command to fire it.

As for the fleet battle in orbit of Parra IV, even though the fleet under his command was tactically crushed, it couldn’t hide the fact that he had initially intended to lead his fleet to annihilate the Atlas fleet in orbit.

Therefore, Guterres had always felt that Amber sending people to rescue him and his family when his tavern was attacked by the military-industrial complex’s armed forces was already something out of a fantasy story. This had also led him to never consider the possibility of joining the Atlas Group.

But now, seeing this stance, it seemed Amber truly intended to let bygones be bygones and have him join Atlas. This prompted the former Vice Admiral to ask his question again.

As for Amber, he seemed to have anticipated Guterres’s question, so he didn’t hesitate for long before speaking:

“Of course. You two generals participated in the defense of the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, and you didn’t slack off in the slightest during the battle. I don’t see anything inappropriate about you attending this meeting, do you?”

“But those previous battles…”

“Don’t worry that I’ll hold that against you, General Guterres—and of course, the same goes for you, General Van Fleet.” Amber shook his head, his expression calm as he spoke.

“Before coming here, you were both professional soldiers of the Federation. As soldiers, your duty is to obey the orders of your superiors. So, it was only logical for you to cross swords with Atlas on the battlefield under orders from high command. I couldn’t possibly expect the two of you to surrender without a fight the moment you saw Atlas, could I?”

Hearing this, Guterres relaxed a little, grateful that this Mr. Amber was not an unreasonable or illogical person.

At the same time, Amber continued, “Besides, if it weren’t for the persecution you both suffered at the hands of the military-industrial complex, and the Federation government’s inaction in the face of it, which gave us a common ‘enemy,’ I wouldn’t have thought to invite you to join Atlas. After all, you are both active-duty generals in the Federation. Coming to a ‘small temple’ like Atlas is a bit of a waste of your talents.”

“Mr. Amber, you’re being far too modest. If Atlas can only be considered a ‘small temple,’ then wouldn’t the military-industrial complex, which you’ve been thoroughly trouncing, not even qualify as a ‘ruined temple’?”

As an Army Lieutenant General, Van Fleet didn’t beat around the bush or use fancy words; his style was much more blunt.

“Hahahaha, you have quite a sense of humor, General Van Fleet.”

Amber laughed and shook his head. He wasn’t worried about recruiting the Lieutenant General.

Although the Federation had yet to make a statement, based on Van Fleet’s description of the shady dealings between the military-industrial complex and the Federation Army Command, and the adjutant who had been bought off, it was clear this wasn’t a unilateral action by the complex.

Afterward, Atlas’s intelligence community had also gathered new information—the Federation Army was systematically purging Van Fleet’s direct subordinates and anyone associated with him.

This essentially confirmed that the Federation government, or at least the military, had at a minimum condoned the military-industrial complex’s actions in this matter and even helped clean up the mess afterward.

This also meant that for the time being, Van Fleet couldn’t even think of returning to the Federation.

On top of that, over the past few days, Amber had arranged for Van Fleet to tour the production workshops inside the Asteroid Base and showed him some of the ground equipment Atlas was currently rolling out. The expression on the former Lieutenant General’s face had long since betrayed his inner thoughts.

So, Amber’s real concern was Guterres’s choice. After all, according to the files from the intelligence community, which Isabelle was in charge of, the Vice Admiral was more or less a protégé of the Federation’s Fleet Admiral.

After the war broke out, Marshal Trafalgar’s initial decision to send the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Fleets to the border star systems to meet the enemy was not only based on the fleets’ readiness but was also partly because Guterres was one of the generals he had personally promoted.

Thinking of this, Amber turned his gaze back to the former Federation Vice Admiral and said:

“General Guterres, I don’t mean to force you. If you can’t accept joining Atlas, or the possibility of future conflicts with the military-industrial complex and the Federation government, you can choose not to attend today’s meeting.

I won’t restrict your freedom, either. If you don’t want to stay on this Asteroid Base, I can arrange for you to live in the Thousand Stars Empire. Although it’s a nation of elves, there are many human merchant guilds and families settled in the border star systems, so you won’t have to worry about a difficult adjustment.”

“I’ll stay,” Guterres said, his tone calm but firm.

“Have you really thought this through? General Van Fleet is a more straightforward man, so his choice doesn’t surprise me—my apologies, General. I tend to be quite direct.”

Amber apologized to Van Fleet as he spoke, but the latter magnanimously indicated that there was no problem with what he said.

“But you, General Guterres. I hope you can make this decision carefully, and not out of some impulse to repay a so-called ‘life-debt’.”

“I have thought it through very clearly. My earlier hesitation was mostly due to my concern about what you might think of me, Mr. Amber. But now, it seems I was being too narrow-minded.”

Guterres gave a self-deprecating smile, then looked up at Amber and said earnestly:

“This incident has made me realize that the Federation government is rotten to the core. You and Atlas seem to be the ‘heavenly fire’ sent from above. Perhaps through Atlas’s ‘flames,’ this nation can one day burn away its filth and be reborn.

That being the case, I am willing to join Atlas and dedicate the rest of my life to this cause.”

Chapter 453: Atlas Doesn’t Keep Idlers

There was no grand welcoming ceremony, no crowd of onlookers offering congratulations, and no celebration for the two former Federation generals who had “seen the light” and joined the great family of Atlas.

When the meeting began, the other attendees, including Isabelle, saw Guterres and Van Fleet sitting beside Amber and immediately understood the situation.

Meetings at Atlas were generally straightforward, with little nonsense. At this stage, everyone had plenty on their plates. Although the “Atlas Administrative Management Module” worked to schedule everyone’s daily progress reasonably, the volume of daily tasks had recently increased significantly.

The “Atlas Administrative Management Module,” calculated to the utmost limit, could only barely ensure that everyone’s workday didn’t exceed eight hours, but it couldn’t regulate the increased intensity of work during those hours.

Therefore, for some of the necessary meetings during this period, even the opening pleasantries were skipped. They went straight to the main topic: how to handle the large number of prisoners and captured equipment.

The matter of the captured equipment required little discussion, as Atlas had already established a comprehensive process for it.

After the defensive battle at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Atlas had seized a large number of ships from the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet, along with all the equipment aboard.

Amber and the others had never intended to return any of it.

If the previous conflict with the Federation government on Parra IV still required some posturing to prevent a complete breakdown in relations, there was no need for such courtesies with the corporations of the Military-industrial complex. The solution was simple.

Military-grade warships that were intact, lightly damaged, or moderately damaged but repairable would be directly integrated into the Atlas fleet’s combat sequence to expand its operational strength.

However, this sudden influx of warships also created a new problem for Atlas: they had more ships than crew.

Although the “manned warships” in the Atlas fleet were now all standardized with the mass-produced “Ten-Year Veteran” class shipboard control AI, and their required crew numbers had been drastically reduced through continuous automation upgrades.

Currently, crew levels were generally maintained at sixty to seventy for frigates and destroyers, one hundred twenty to two hundred twenty for cruisers, and no more than four hundred for battleships.

Compared to the crew numbers required by the Federation and the Empire for their various classes of ships, it was, to put it bluntly, almost an order of magnitude less. But the special circumstance of acquiring more than two hundred forty immediately usable warships at once still left Atlas’s reserve crew numbers stretched thin.

As for the prisoners from those warships, Amber genuinely looked down on their inconsistent training levels. The effort it would take to retrain them to standard would be better spent on training Atlas’s own recruits, who would also be more loyal.

So, Amber’s current approach was two-pronged: continue training new crew members while having Lilith apply unmanned fleet technology to these captured warships.

Although she had previously suffered from severe “machine crisis PTSD,” after a few frank conversations with Lilith and seeing Banninger and the others transformed into “Immortals,” Amber finally approved the plans to form the unmanned fleet and the Immortal Corps.

After all, while the risks were there, the benefits were just too tempting.

As for the remaining “heavily damaged” warships with no repair value and the armed merchant ships that were completely useless to Atlas, they were all slated for dismantling and scrapping.

Generally, this process involved two methods. One was to tow them into a specialized shipyard or set up a temporary “dismantling work frame” in a deserted area of deep space, then proceed with the disassembly in the reverse order of construction.

During this process, key components and subsystems—such as the warship’s fusion reactor, fire control unit, main guns, and other “high-value components”—would be salvaged for secondary use if they were intact and undamaged, after inspection and maintenance.

The remaining ship structures with no secondary use value would continue through the planned disassembly process and then be melted down and reforged as needed.

Due to the intricate structure of military warships, their extremely complex internal piping, and the high strength of their hull materials, dismantling them was quite difficult.

Previously, Atlas had simply sold these ships to professional ship-breaking companies as a way to quickly liquidate assets.

This time, however, the number of ships to be dismantled was too large, and their potential recycling value was quite high. So, Amber had the Financial Operations Center fully acquire several ship-breaking companies to provide exclusive dismantling services for Atlas.

The salvaged “high-value components” could also be stored in warehouses for use as spare parts.

The other method was reserved for ships that were so severely damaged they had virtually no salvage value. After undergoing harmless processing, they were simply turned over to the fleet to be used as target practice during gunnery drills.

In addition to the captured warships, the HCPs or other vehicles they carried were handled in the same manner.

Those that were usable were put to use, those that were not were stripped for parts, and the rest were used for target practice.

In short, the goal was to extract every last bit of value from this “loot”; not even a single plate of hull armor was to be wasted.

Compared to the now-standardized procedures for handling this “loot,” the issue of the prisoners of war had become an urgent problem that needed to be solved.

According to the final count, Atlas had captured more than three hundred thousand people in this battle, ninety-nine percent of whom were crew members from the captured ships of the combined fleet.

Since the ships of the combined fleet did not possess the high level of automation that Atlas’s did, the number of crew members on each of their warships was quite large, especially on the battleships and heavy cruisers, which could yield two to three thousand prisoners each.

If the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress hadn’t already been planned as a future large-scale residential area to receive “immigrants” like employees’ families, and if it hadn’t recently completed the construction of several large synthetic protein factories and hydroponic towers, it would have been impossible to accommodate this sudden influx of over three hundred thousand people.

But even so, Amber had no desire to simply support these three hundred thousand people. They were currently creating no value and consumed a large amount of resources every day—which, in Amber’s view, was purely “burning money.”

“Atlas doesn’t keep idlers. We’re in a special period, and every cent the group has must be spent where it’s needed. Therefore, we must resolve the issue of these three hundred thousand prisoners as soon as possible.”

Amber spoke while looking over a report on the prisoners’ demographics.

“The following are my personal suggestions. Prisoners who are willing to stay and pass a background check can be considered for recruitment. After a six-month probationary observation period with no issues, they will be converted to official Atlas employees, with no reduction in welfare and benefits.

As for those who are unwilling to stay, we don’t need to be like other corporations and send them to the asteroid belt to mine. We’re not short on that little bit of manpower.

And those corporations in the Military-industrial complex will certainly not pay any ransom for these employees. So, we’ll just have to ‘bleed a little’ ourselves. Once the numbers are tallied, we’ll find a third-party transport company and repatriate them to the Federation.”

After laying out her general thoughts in one breath, Amber looked at the other attendees.

“The floor is now open for discussion. If anyone has any other suggestions or questions, please speak up now.”

Chapter 454: Handling Prisoners and a Special Communication

Back when Atlas was newly established, still in its true “ragtag operation” phase, meetings to discuss problems would inevitably devolve into Amber’s one-man show.

But it was a passive one-man show.

Because no one else had any real ideas back then, they simply chose to phone it in and listen to Amber, stumbling along as they developed.

But later, as Atlas continued to grow in scale and gradually absorbed more “talent,” these discussion-style meetings finally took on real meaning.

Once everyone discovered that Amber would genuinely consider their opinions, they became more and more willing to put forward their own ideas in meetings.

Just like now. After Amber finished outlining his plan and asked for others’ thoughts, Therese—the Director of Human Resources he’d poached from Allenita and also one of the Atlas Group’s elven employees—was the first to speak. And with one remark, she proved herself a prime candidate for the lampposts.

“Boss, regarding the recruitment of prisoners, I don’t think we need to accept everyone who is willing to stay.

Most of these prisoners are ship crew, HCP pilots, and marines. But I know that due to factors like loyalty, you won’t be letting them continue to work on the ships for the time being. Therefore, many of the recruited prisoners will have to be reassigned.

But this brings up another problem—we don’t have that many vacant positions to place them in for now, and departments outside of the combat fleet don’t need so many people in the short term.

So I suggest that after the ‘confirmation of intent’ and ‘identity verification’ screening steps, we add a ‘competitive selection’ phase. For any given position, we should only take the best of the best. As for those who don’t make the cut, they can be sent back to the Federation along with the others.

Like you said, Atlas doesn’t support idlers, and likewise, we don’t support the useless. We’re certainly not a charity organization~”

Therese’s skillfully and matter-of-factly delivered proposal won the approval of many present. Compared to Amber’s plan, the Director of Human Resources’ solution sounded cold and impersonal, but from a corporate operations perspective, it was indeed more appropriate.

“Ahem, that is indeed more suitable than my plan. And I have to admit, I can be a bit ‘soft-hearted’ at times, so in situations like this, I really do need ‘professionals’ like you to be the bad guys.”

Hearing Therese’s suggestion, Amber couldn’t help but nod in agreement, then continued:

“Does anyone else have any other opinions? If not, we’ll proceed according to the general direction Therese has proposed.”

After waiting a moment and seeing that no one else intended to speak, Amber looked at Therese.

“I’ll leave this matter in your hands, then. However, the HCP pilots and marines among the prisoners don’t need to be reassigned for now. Both are units currently in demand by our combat forces. If they’re willing to stay, just break them up, disperse them, and send them to the combat troops. A period of training should be enough. As for the specifics, you can communicate with Hog and Cleves.”

“Understood, Boss. I’ll connect with them after the meeting,” Therese nodded, having no objection to Amber’s arrangements.

After the fate of the combined fleet’s prisoners of war was quickly decided, Isabelle, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up as if remembering something.

“Amber, did we forget another group of people?”

“What people?”

“‘Deep Divers’ special operations unit prisoners, as well as Dr. Mephisto and the few surviving technicians,” Isabelle said slowly.

“Right, I forgot about that.”

At Isabelle’s words, Amber slapped his forehead. He really had forgotten about the separately detained Federation special operations unit, the Psionic Agents, and the particularly sensitive figure of Dr. Mephisto.

Now that Isabelle had brought them up, Amber realized this group was indeed a hot potato.

Between the information from the mission they received and what they had witnessed on their way to the data center, they all knew at least some of Atlas’s secrets.

Especially Dr. Mephisto; he had basically figured out the whole story. Therefore, Amber would never let him leave, even if it meant placing him under house arrest in this asteroid fortress for the rest of his life.

As for the ‘Deep Divers’ and the Psionic Agents, these were the Federation’s elite special operations units. Their loyalty was far greater than that of ordinary Federation soldiers, so the hope of “turning” them was basically zero.

With this in mind, Amber turned to look at the two “former” Federation Vice Admirals beside him. As high-ranking officers of the Federation military, they might be able to offer some advice.

“Your timing couldn’t be better. You’ve just arrived and we’re already dealing with a matter in your area of expertise. Regarding the handling of the ‘Deep Divers’ and the Psionic Agents, why don’t you share your thoughts?”

Guterres and Van Fleet hadn’t expected Amber to ask for their opinions at their very first meeting, but Guterres reacted quickly and spoke up.

“Both are elite Federation special forces. So, trying to recruit them in the same way as regular troops is basically impossible.”

“That’s right,” Van Fleet added, following Guterres’s lead.

“Historically, there have been no cases of these special operations units surrendering or being recruited by the Federation’s enemies. In the few instances in military history where ‘Deep Divers’ were captured by rebels, the final outcome was either the special ops members taking their own lives or being killed by the rebels.

There have been no cases of the Federation attempting to rescue them, nor have there been any cases of them surrendering to the enemy.”

“So they’re essentially ‘death commandos’?”

“You could put it that way.”

Amber couldn’t help but purse his lips. Although Guteres and Van Fleet’s answers were basically what he had expected, he still felt a tinge of regret when faced with the fact.

It was like playing a strategy game where you captured an elite enemy unit or general, only for the game to display an “Unable to Recruit” message. It was just as frustrating.

Normally, Amber would choose to execute these unrecruitable units directly. After all, they took up a slot and consumed supplies.

But while he could make such a decision in a game without any psychological burden, making the same decision in reality wasn’t as simple as clicking a “confirm” button.

“Tsk, what a hassle. For now, let’s keep them detained separately. And strengthen the guard on the Psionic Agents; maintain psionic suppression 24 hours a day.”

In the end, Amber couldn’t bring himself to just get rid of these people. On one hand, the decision to “kill prisoners of war” was not an easy one to make, and historically, those who liked to kill prisoners rarely met a good end.

On the other hand, Amber had a gut feeling that he might have a use for them in the future.

As decisions were made on the next few important matters, the meeting quickly concluded. The remote participants didn’t stick around for small talk or a chat; they said their goodbyes to Amber and left the conference one by one.

After Isabelle also logged off, Amber stood up and stretched. Just as he was about to remind his two elderly “new employees” that it was best to stand up and walk around after sitting for so long, his personal terminal suddenly received a new message.

It was a communication routed through a special channel. The sender was someone Amber was familiar with but hadn’t contacted in a long time—Franklin Abraham.

Seeing the name, Amber was actually a little surprised. He really hadn’t expected this “idealistic youth” to take the initiative to contact him after Atlas had completely withdrawn from the Loubion star system.

But the next moment, Amber suddenly thought of something, then smiled and answered the call.

“Well now, Mr. Franklin, long time no see. What makes you think of me all of a sudden?”

“Mr. Rebil, I need… No, the people of the Loubion star system need your and Atlas’s assistance!”

Chapter 455: Who Moved Whose Cake?

If one were to turn back time to when the Atlas Group officially and completely decoupled from the Loubion star system, perhaps no one, aside from Franklin and a few other rational young government employees, would have imagined that the situation would so rapidly spiral out of control.

This included the civilians of the Loubion star system, especially the staff working for companies under Atlas’s control. They never thought that the life they saw improving before their very eyes would so quickly shatter.

After all, from their perspective, it was merely the ‘Atlas Group’—a corporation they rarely had contact with in their daily lives—that was being replaced. Moreover, the companies taking over didn’t conduct any layoffs, so this ‘big news’ hardly seemed like it would affect them, the common folk.

It was for this very reason that when the Atlas Group was forced to decouple from the Loubion star system, despite the intense public discussion, no one stood up to speak for Atlas.

The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government even used this as a pretext to claim that Atlas was ‘unpopular’ in the Loubion star system and had not earned the love of the local civilians. They suggested Atlas should leave sooner rather than later to avoid future trouble.

This state of affairs was enough to infuriate the Atlas representatives involved in the negotiations, as well as the group of employees who had participated in the post-war reconstruction of the Loubion star system.

In a later debriefing meeting, many even complained directly to Amber, saying that everyone in the Loubion star system, from the autonomous government to the civilians, was a bunch of ‘ungrateful bastards.’ They argued that Atlas should have dismantled all the infrastructure before leaving.

Amber could only smile and reassure them, telling them not to be anxious. He also remarked that if Atlas could win the people’s hearts and earn their love that easily, then there would be nothing left for the autonomous government to do.

And he didn’t see the lack of public support as a problem, because at this point their interests hadn’t been affected in any way, so there was no need for them to stand up and speak for Atlas.

“Don’t be anxious. Let’s wait a while and see. Maybe the situation will be different then, hmm? Their interests haven’t been affected now, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be in the future, right?

You all still see those local companies as too ‘kind.’ Believe me, when it comes to being utterly ruthless, they will absolutely not disappoint us.”

Amber looked around at everyone in the meeting and said seriously, “Everyone, rest assured, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and the local companies will certainly not disappoint us!”

His prediction, or rather his deduction about the future, was not an exaggeration; it was, if anything, a bit conservative.

Although Amber had always believed that Atlas was simply playing the role of a normal corporation, doing what needed to be done while not haggling over matters of internal benefit distribution.

That was all.

But unfortunately, in the race to the bottom, the Atlas Group was, among the current powers, basically destined to be a long-term laggard or even dead last.

—

As the local consortiums and enterprises in the Loubion star system successively completed the ‘takeover,’ the former ‘Atlas-affiliated’ businesses under their control—various factories, automated farms, hydroponic towers, and other industries—actually did operate stably for a time.

But after an ‘adaptation period’ of about two weeks, or what you might call a ‘newbie protection period,’ all sorts of problems began to surface.

The first and foremost was the efficiency issue brought on by the vast difference between the temporarily maintained ‘Atlas-style’ organizational structure and that of a traditional corporation.

The so-called ‘Atlas-style’ organizational structure referred to the unique framework within the Atlas Group and its industries and subsidiaries, where administrative clerks and middle management were reduced to nearly zero.

This was no secret. All the corporations that had been watching Atlas were well aware of it, and they also knew that Atlas could achieve this without compromising efficiency because of some highly intelligent ‘enterprise management system’ they possessed.

That was why during the acquisition negotiations, many companies, including the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, had expressed their interest in purchasing this ‘enterprise management system.’

It was only after the Atlas representatives at the negotiations told them directly that it was not for sale that they abandoned the idea.

At the time, many local enterprises and consortiums felt that buying it or not was no big deal. After all, ‘enterprise management systems’ were nothing rare; any decently sized company used a similar system, so at most, it would just be a matter of having their tech departments handle the switch.

But what happened next taught them that they had thought about this system far too simply.

Evidently, an ordinary ‘enterprise management system’ and the system used by Atlas, which was highly dependent on Lilith to function, were fundamentally different.

Or rather, they weren’t the same thing at all.

This directly caused a sharp decline in overall efficiency the moment these companies switched systems. Some companies with relatively complex industrial structures couldn’t even maintain normal work and production.

Then came the stroke of genius that would serve as the opening act for the ‘storm’ that was about to sweep the entire star system.

The numerous local enterprises and consortiums failed to realize where the problem lay. Instead, they mocked Atlas’s method of corporate operation as utter garbage and then found what they considered a ‘role model’ to learn from—the megacorporations of the Federation’s core star systems, which ironically, were the very military-industrial complex later crushed by Atlas.

And they emulated them by restructuring their current corporate framework.

The first step was to re-hire a large number of administrative management personnel to fill the staffing gap, a process that naturally saw a large number of ‘crony hires’ slip in.

The second step was to readjust the salary levels for all positions other than middle and upper management, especially the salaries of the most numerous group: the skilled technicians.

Of course, this ‘adjustment’ actually meant a pay cut.

The reason for the across-the-board pay cut was simple: to take the money they saved and use it as salaries for the newly hired administrative staff.

The ‘employee compensation’ line item in their current fixed operating expenses was already significantly higher than that of a traditional company. That they hadn’t slashed this percentage already was a sign of the bosses’ immense ‘generosity.’

At this point, asking them to add an extra sum of money to pay the salaries of newly recruited employees was an absolute impossibility.

Meanwhile, the daily workload and working hours of the average employee were constantly increasing. The ‘eight-hour workday’ that existed during Atlas’s management had become a fond memory of a beautiful past.

Aside from a few employees who protested and were, unsurprisingly, fired in the blink of an eye, most people were already harboring resentment. They only remained silent because they didn’t want to lose their jobs.

But when rumors of the pay cut began to circulate, and when everyone learned the reason—that the money that should have been theirs was being taken to pay someone else—a strange chemical reaction began.

Chapter 456: The Upheaval in Loubion

No matter the era, the “common people,” as one of the fundamental components of a nation, are in essence a group that is very easy to placate and appease.

So long as their normal lives and livelihoods are guaranteed, and they are not subjected to excessive oppression, no one is truly willing to stir up trouble.

The vast majority of civilian rebellions, riots, and uprisings in history have occurred only when people were subjected to oppression that exceeded their threshold of tolerance, to the point where they could no longer maintain a normal life.

Otherwise, who would be willing to abandon their current life and risk their neck to fight against the authorities and their instruments of violence, who control the vast majority of military force?

They just want to live their own small lives, with three meals a day and no worries about food or clothing. No matter what sorry state the universe is in, as long as it doesn’t affect their own little corner of it, they’ll eat when they should eat and drink when they should drink. At most, they might casually chat about things beyond their daily lives after a meal.

The women would talk about local life and entertaining tidbits. Those with better sources of information could even become the center of attention with some “interstellar gossip.”

The men, on the other hand, would carry on the millennia-old tradition of “armchair politicking,” critiquing the world with impassioned words. One day they would attack a policy, and the next they would transform into Fleet Admirals, war-gaming battles.

But these same people, so easy to placate and appease, are also a “selfish” bunch.

They will haggle over every bit of interest that affects their lives, especially benefits they have already obtained, which they will guard with extreme jealousy.

After all, this is human nature. Aside from the true saints of legend, everyone cares about their own gains and losses.

Instances of family members turning on each other and siblings fighting to the death over matters of personal gain happen at nearly every moment, and this is just among friends and relatives.

When it comes to outsiders—such as the government, corporations, or other public institutions—this issue is even more easily triggered.

The same local folks who were sharing a “fish and water” camaraderie with you one second could turn into “rebellious subjects who would dare kill the emperor’s horse” the next, as soon as they learned their own interests were being harmed.

Such situations were all too common in both the Federation and the Empire. And if the local government and its functional departments continued to handle matters with an arrogant attitude, minor conflicts would often escalate, eventually spiraling into riots.

This was also why the local garrisons of the Federation and the Empire were so experienced in pacification warfare. They were thrown into “real combat” every other day; it was hard not to become proficient.

The people of the Loubion star system already had a great deal of pent-up frustration due to increasing pressure at work and in their daily lives. The Star System Autonomous Government’s public opinion monitoring department had even issued multiple related warnings.

In the exact words of the department’s Supervisor in his report to the senior officials of the Star System Autonomous Government: “The negative sentiment among the public in the star system is currently like a powder keg, and more gunpowder is constantly being poured in. If it isn’t dealt with in a timely manner, the consequences will be unimaginable once that sentiment is completely detonated.”

It wasn’t that no one listened to this Supervisor. Some government officials, including Franklin, also suggested holding talks with certain corporations and urging them to pay more attention to this matter. After all, the situation in the star system had only just stabilized, and the public’s mood was too fragile to be trifled with.

Unfortunately, the high-level officials who truly had the power to make decisions did not heed these warnings. Lobbied by a few leading corporations and consortiums, they chose to believe that these enterprises could “easily smooth things over” and ensure that production and economic activity would not be affected.

The final result was that, as the news of widespread pay cuts across all industries in the Loubion star system spread, the “powder keg” was ignited.

No one was willing to accept a pay cut, especially in such difficult times.

Even less were they willing to see the money deducted from their pay used to pay someone else’s salary, even if the government and major corporations advertised it as “creating more jobs and reducing the overall unemployment rate in the Loubion star system.”

“Yes, the unemployed are pitiful, and I also hope the government can find effective ways to promote employment, but not at the expense of docking my rightful pay.”

“The unemployed have nothing to do with me. Why should the money that’s supposed to be mine be taken to pay them?”

“Do those who are unemployed and can’t find work have families to support? Don’t the rest of us have families to support as well?”

Such rhetoric quickly became the mainstream voice among the populace, as the vast majority were unwilling to see their “vested interests” harmed.

Soon, this public sentiment underwent a second evolution, pivoting with incredible smoothness to the Atlas Group.

“Back when the Atlas Group was in charge, we didn’t have all this nonsense. Not only did we get our pay on time, but our daily working hours and intensity were also kept in check.”

“Exactly. If Atlas could do it, why can’t the local corporations and consortiums?”

“If they don’t have what it takes, I suggest we just invite the Atlas Group back.”

See? This is what they mean by “great scholars will argue my case for me.”

Without comparison, there is no pain. Once their own interests were affected, the people of the Loubion star system quickly remembered the good things about Atlas and lamented that their past lives had been the good old days.

At the same time, more and more voices began to criticize the autonomous government’s decision to decouple from the Atlas Group as utterly foolish.

But in reality, this was all part of the Atlas Group’s broader strategy in the Loubion star system.

If Amber were to evaluate himself, he would not hesitate to say that he and Atlas hadn’t really done anything “good.”

After all, the premise for the Atlas Group leaving a “good impression” in the minds of the people was that Amber and his team had sacrificed the interests of another group of people.

That group was the laid-off clerks and administrative staff, the vast majority of whom were also “ordinary people” who needed to support their families.

When Atlas completed its organizational streamlining and dismissed these clerks and administrative staff, most of them lost their income completely and could only rely on the pitifully small relief funds from the Star System Autonomous Government to support their families.

Were Amber and his team unaware of this situation?

Of course not. Not only did Amber and the other senior executives at Atlas know about it, but they were also very clear that the lives of these dismissed individuals would become quite difficult.

But in order to win the support of the majority later on, Amber and his team could only choose to sacrifice this small minority.

So from that perspective, Amber had always considered himself a “bad guy,” just one who was packaged rather well.

The a subsequent events unfolded much like the prelude to most riots that had previously occurred in the Federation.

The Star System Autonomous Government and those large corporations were never going to concede their profits to the people. In a world driven primarily by profit, believing that capitalists would share their wealth with the masses was less realistic than believing Amber was a “Child of Destiny.”

Their final choice was also very “traditional,” one might even call it a classic move for old-school capitalists.

If you can’t solve the problem, then solve the person who raised it.

Large-scale public opinion control began. A large number of ‘those who stuck their necks out’ and opinion leaders were swiftly taken down. Various protests, demonstrations, and strikes were also “suppressed” with great efficiency—ironically, the military police forces that the Atlas Group had helped train played a significant role in this process.

Under normal circumstances, such a hardline approach would have quickly quelled the civil unrest.

But this time, things were a little different.

The majority of the people in the Loubion star system had genuinely experienced the “good times” when the Atlas Group was present. Therefore, they knew that such a better life was not some fictional fantasy but something that was truly achievable.

It was just that the current Star System Autonomous Government and the capitalists were unwilling to “sacrifice” their own interests to let them live better lives, as Atlas had.

And so, spurred on by a few opportunists and ambitious individuals, even greater commotions erupted one after another, and the situation spiraled completely out of control.

Writer’s Block and Main Job Unfinished, Taking a Day Off

Writer’s block + main job unfinished, taking a day off.

It’s the usual busy start of the month. My brain is fried after working all day. I’ve been writing for over an hour and haven’t managed to produce anything, so I have no choice but to take a day off.

Chapter 457: Franklin’s Plea for Help

Once the Atlas Group had completely withdrawn from the Loubion star system, not even leaving a single office behind in name, the various factions within the system began to make their moves.

Before Atlas’s departure, the Star System Autonomous Government, with the assistance of Atlas combat troops, had always maintained a quasi-military control over the entire system.

Furthermore, Atlas enforced the same strict management system on its subsidiary companies as it did at its headquarters. As a result, the local factions in the Loubion star system had been unable to effectively infiltrate these corporations.

Faced with these two seemingly impenetrable obstacles, the various civil organizations, opposition parties, and forces backed by the Federation, the military-industrial complex, and even the Star Dragon Empire in the Loubion star system could only choose to lie low and bide their time, not daring to act rashly.

This situation persisted until the relationship between Atlas and the Federation gradually soured, culminating in Atlas’s complete withdrawal from the Loubion star system.

The recent wave of public opinion that swept across the entire Loubion star system, and the riots that followed, had multiple factions fanning the flames from behind the scenes. Each party hoped to gain sufficient benefits from the conflict, seeking more leverage for when the situation eventually stabilized.

As for the civilians they had goaded into escalating the conflict step by step, they were nothing more than expendables to be used to achieve their goals.

Franklin, who had dedicated himself to the affairs of the star system, naturally noticed this quickly. But he found that in his current position, he could do nothing but watch as the Star System Autonomous Government continuously issued orders for regional military police to carry out “armed stability maintenance.”

The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government was actually well aware of the true situation in the system. Thus, the re-established police force—especially the one on Loubion V—was essentially a paramilitary unit.

Faced with mobs of unarmed civilians, who at most had some civilian exoskeletons or engineering mechs, these police teams—trained with the help of the Atlas Group specifically to handle such situations—slowly managed to stabilize the situation.

After all, while light armored vehicles and multi-legged war machines were at the bottom of the “armored food chain,” they were still incredibly difficult for the rioting mob to counter.

Just when most people, excluding Franklin, believed that the situation would at least stabilize and not worsen, the “unexpected” happened.

A police unit on Loubion V, while dispatched once again on an “armed stability maintenance” mission, defected to the side of the “rioters” in its entirety, raising the slogan of “resisting the tyranny of the Star System Autonomous Government.”

When this news spread, most of the high-ranking officials and employees of the autonomous government felt as if the sky was falling. They never imagined that a coercive force belonging to the government would just switch sides like that.

But Franklin had known from the beginning that once the system government dispatched the police forces and lifted their firing restrictions, ordering them to carry out “armed riot suppression,” this outcome was inevitable.

These re-established police forces were made up of locals. Most of their family members worked in the affected companies. In a way, their families were also victims.

Sending them out under these circumstances, forcing them to point their guns at people who could be their own relatives, friends, or neighbors, would inevitably lead to these armed police officers, caught in a dilemma, choosing to stand with their families.

And the subsequent developments unfolded just as Franklin had predicted. The defection of this police unit seemed to be a signal. In the following days, riot police teams deployed throughout the system began to defect en masse.

Although these units defected to different groups of rioters, and the actual controllers behind these groups were varied—and not necessarily on the same side—to the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, it made no difference.

Because no matter which faction they belonged to or what their hidden ultimate goal was, the current objective of these “rioters” was remarkably consistent: to destroy the current order and ultimately cause the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government to completely lose control of the system.

With the continuous defections of the armed police, these “rioters” in the Loubion star system officially transformed into a more advanced form: “armed rioters.” Their morale received a massive boost, and they also gained the support of weapons and equipment.

Although the Star System Autonomous Government had yet to issue a formal statement, Franklin’s superiors were already using the term “armed rebellion” to describe the current chaos in the system during internal meetings.

On the other side, the coercive institutions controlled by the Star System Autonomous Government continued to suffer losses in their daily “armed suppression” operations, and the morale of the police officers was plummeting.

After all, they were on duty in dangerous areas every day to maintain order, constantly engaging in firefights with increasingly powerful “armed rioters,” and their casualty rate was steadily rising.

Even as they were risking their lives to uphold normal order, many of their own families and friends would condemn them behind their backs, calling them accomplices of the Star System Autonomous Government, cold-blooded executioners who had no sympathy for other oppressed civilians.

The high command of the Loubion Star System Police Center soon reported the entire police team’s current situation, stating that if this continued, the remaining armed police forces would quickly lose their ability to function normally.

Therefore, they recommended that the star system garrison troops formally take over the situation to prevent further deterioration.

This recommendation, submitted along with the report, was quickly adopted.

According to some intelligence, some of the large local corporations and conglomerates in the Loubion star system had also backstabbed the autonomous government, their former “ally,” and their underhanded actions were becoming more and more obvious.

If they didn’t strike hard soon, the autonomous government might truly lose control of the system.

Thus, not long after the conflict between the Federation and the Atlas Group on Parra IV concluded, the rebuilt garrison troops of the Loubion star system officially began “counter-insurgency” operations.

Quelling rebellions—this was the term the Star System Autonomous Government used when reporting to the Federation. Along with their report, they also requested support from the Federation.

However, this latter request was rejected at lightspeed. The reason given was that the Federation was currently focused on the war at the front lines and had no resources to deal with the Loubion star system’s problems. Therefore, they hoped the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government would withstand the pressure and resolve the issue on its own.

Upon hearing this news, Franklin knew that, at this stage, a larger-scale internal conflict was unavoidable.

His judgment was once again validated. As the system garrison troops began their counter-insurgency operations, the swift suppression of the “armed rioters” and restoration of order that the autonomous government had anticipated did not materialize.

Instead, it triggered an even more violent backlash, causing the conflict level of this internal strife to escalate rapidly.

At the same time, what had happened to the armed police force was now happening to the rebuilt star system garrison.

When the garrison was being rebuilt, since the Federation had already relaxed its restrictions on the various star system autonomous governments, the recruits for this new force did not come from other Federation star systems but were “local folks” recruited directly from the system.

Because of this, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, with legitimate justification, canceled the “away-from-home allowance” from the soldiers’ salaries. This allowance accounted for nearly thirty percent of a rank-and-file soldier’s basic pay.

In the eyes of the Star System Autonomous Government, since everyone was now serving locally, this “away-from-home allowance” naturally no longer existed.

To some extent, this decision seemed reasonable.

The problem was that most rank-and-file soldiers wouldn’t bother to understand the reason. All they knew was that their salary had been slashed by nearly thirty percent compared to the garrison’s previous pay scale.

And even those soldiers who could understand the reasoning were still unhappy. After all, the garrison’s bases were not located in densely populated areas, so even when stationed at their posts, they were effectively far from their hometowns.

See? The resentment of the rank-and-file soldiers was already brewing.

History has told people time and again not to skimp on soldiers’ pay, or there will be major problems.

But as the old saying goes, the only lesson humanity learns from history is that humanity never learns from history.

Within the rebuilt garrison of the Loubion star system, a large number of rank-and-file soldiers were already disgruntled by the significant drop in their pay.

Furthermore, some soldiers’ families were also victims of the collective corporate pay cuts this time. Even before the riots broke out, they had learned of this during “family visit communications.” Consequently, most soldiers knew why the conflict had started and subconsciously sided with the oppressed civilians.

When they arrived in the operational zones and saw the civilians suffering once again from the conflict, and the cities that had just been rebuilt now being ravaged by the flames of war, the long-suppressed discontent in their hearts finally erupted.

At the same time, an unspoken consensus emerged among the rank-and-file soldiers.

“I joined the garrison to protect our home from the Imperial invaders, not to point my guns at our own countrymen!”

Not long after the armed counter-insurgency operation, codenamed “Cast Lead,” began, garrison units in various warzones started to experience “battlefield defections.” This was particularly true for units that had not properly dispersed recruits from the same hometown, leading to clusters of “local folks.” These units defected at the battalion and company level, transforming into “rebel forces” overnight.

The “glad tidings” from the counter-insurgency front left the already overwhelmed Loubion Star System Autonomous Government making one disastrous decision after another.

One of these, an order “allowing various corporations to organize their own security forces to stabilize the situation in their respective areas,” made Franklin’s vision go black.

Watching the situation in the Loubion star system gradually escalate from riots to the brink of civil war, Franklin, who did not want his homeland to be ravaged by war again but had no other options, was left with only one last choice.

To try and request the intervention of an “external force”—the Atlas Group.

After watching some related news recently, he already knew that this megacorporation, which had been driven out of the Loubion star system, was now considerably stronger than before in terms of overall strength.

But when he finally made up his mind to seek help from Amber, he realized he didn’t seem to have the contact information for this behind-the-scenes Boss of Atlas. Although they had had a pleasant conversation at the cocktail party, it didn’t mean he was qualified to have his contact details.

And the last Atlas office in the Loubion star system had long been closed, so he had no way to contact any relevant personnel for the time being.

Just as Franklin was pondering what to do, he saw the Atlas official website on his desk’s virtual screen, and a rather inconspicuous “Contact Us” link at the bottom.

As if possessed, Franklin reached out and clicked the icon. Immediately, his personal terminal, which was interconnected with his desk’s built-in terminal, initiated a communication request to a network address embedded within the “Contact Us” link—and it automatically switched to a quantum entanglement communication line.

After waiting for just a few seconds, the call was connected, and a sweet female voice sounded in Franklin’s ear.

“Hello, this is the Atlas Group 24-hour customer service hotline. How may I help you?”

The voice was gentle and melodious, like the soft chirp of a warbler, but Franklin could still tell that it was likely an AI operator, not the live operator he was looking for. The former was mostly used to handle a large volume of repetitive, simple questions daily, so its permissions were relatively low and might not be able to fulfill his request to “get a direct line to the top.”

However, after a moment of silence, Franklin, with a “well, it connected, might as well try” attitude, spoke with some nervousness:

“Uh, hello, I’m Franklin Abraham from the Loubion star system. Could you please help me contact your company’s Chairman, Mr. Rebil?”

The moment he said it, Franklin wanted to slap himself. It sounded incredibly stupid. Who calls a company’s customer service line and specifically asks to speak to the boss?

Even if it was an AI operator on the other end, it would probably identify this call as a prank.

Just as Franklin was about to add a few more sentences to prevent the other party from classifying his call as a prank, the sweet female voice on the other end spoke again.

“Customer identity confirmed. Please hold.”

“Huh?”

The AI operator’s reply stunned Franklin for a moment. He never expected to hear such a response, let alone that a casual click on a “Contact Us” link might actually connect him to that man.

“Mr. Rebil is currently available. Would you like to confirm the call?”

“Confirm… confirm!”

Franklin replied, his voice almost trembling. Everything was going too smoothly, so much so that he began to wonder if there was another Mr. Rebil within the Atlas Group.

“Switching to an encrypted line… switch complete. Transferring your call now.”

The communication channel was suddenly filled with only the beeping sound indicating a transfer, and Franklin grew increasingly nervous. He had only been trying his luck and hadn’t even thought about what he was going to say.

But in the next second, a familiar voice sounded over the encrypted communication line.

“Well, well, Mr. Franklin. Hope you’ve been well. What made you suddenly think of calling me?”

Hearing this voice, Franklin calmed down almost instantly. He then spoke in an urgent but steady voice:

“Mr. Rebil, I need… No, the people of the Loubion star system need your and Atlas’s assistance!”

Chapter 458: Why Should I Help You?

“Hahaha, you need me? You need Atlas?”

Amber let out a cold laugh. After a brief word with Van Fleet and Guterres, he left the conference room.

Finding an empty lounge, Amber settled into a massage chair and spoke.

“That’s not what the people from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government were saying when they forced Atlas to decouple from the Loubion star system…

Let me think… ah, yes. ‘Your company has caused widespread public discontent within the Loubion star system,’ and ‘Given that such an incident has occurred, does your company bear no responsibility at all?’”

Amber’s retelling was so vivid that Franklin, on the other end of the communication line, couldn’t help but flush red, unsure of what to say.

However, Amber knew this had little to do with the young man he was speaking to, so he added in a gentler tone:

“Of course, what I just said was directed at the higher-ups of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, not you, Mr. Franklin.

In my opinion, you might be one of the few people in this star system who genuinely cares about the people and the future of this system.

It is precisely because I believe you have a promising future that I placed you on my communication whitelist. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been able to contact me so easily.”

Amber’s words gave Franklin a glimmer of hope. He asked cautiously, “So, you’re willing to do me this favor? To have Atlas intervene in the Loubion star system’s situation again and quell this turmoil? I’ve been following news related to Atlas, and I believe that with your company’s current scale and strength, you can do it…”

“But why should I?” Amber’s icy words ruthlessly cut Franklin off.

“My personal admiration for you doesn’t mean I will grant your request, especially a decision as fraught with risk as ‘having Atlas intervene in a star system in turmoil.’

I believe I made myself very clear at our last reception. You have yet to demonstrate any unique value. Why would you think Atlas would consider ‘investing’ in you?

Let’s take a huge step back. If Atlas truly wanted to find a ‘proxy’ in the Loubion star system, wouldn’t there be a plethora of candidates more suitable than you?”

The other end of the line fell silent. Amber didn’t press, simply waiting quietly.

Franklin’s politically naive words made him wonder how on earth this man had managed to reunite the Federation during its civil war and become the new president in the plot of his previous life.

But he quickly reconsidered. Perhaps it was just a plotline predetermined by the lead writer of Starry Sky Online, and perhaps that lead writer wasn’t particularly well-versed in politics.

Under the influence of such an “irresistible force,” even a head of lettuce like Franklin could become president as the story progressed.

The problem was, this world didn’t seem to have such an “irresistible force,” or at least its influence wasn’t that significant.

A series of events had already caused the course of the world’s history to deviate. At the very least, the “main plot” unfolding at this point in time was somewhat different from what Amber remembered.

As Amber’s mind drifted, Franklin’s voice came through the communication line again.

“Mr. Rebil, didn’t Atlas carry out ‘humanitarian aid’ operations before? The situation in the Loubion star system is growing more severe by the day. If this continues, multiple crises are sure to erupt.

If the Atlas Group were to intervene now, minimizing the potential losses from these crises or even nipping them in the bud, wouldn’t that align perfectly with the mission you promote?”

Hearing this, Amber realized that Atlas’s “ideological branding” in this area seemed to be showing initial results.

But since he was speaking with Franklin, Amber felt some things needed to be spelled out clearly. He quickly replied:

“First, there’s something in this world called ‘packaging.’

Second, while Atlas is indeed willing to do these things, we can’t exactly be ‘working for free.’ After all, we are a for-profit enterprise with a large family to feed.

If we truly expected no returns, where would the money for our ammunition, supplies, and the salaries, benefits, and death benefits of so many people come from?”

Franklin listened in astonishment as Amber stated these things so bluntly, making no attempt to hide the Atlas Group’s pursuit of profit.

He knew Amber was saying this intentionally to make him give up his unrealistic idea, but he still asked, unwilling to let go, “But on Parra IV, wasn’t Atlas ‘pulling chestnuts out of the fire’ between the Federation and the Empire? Both sides treated you as an enemy, let alone offered any kind of reward.”

“Who said we didn’t get our ‘reward’?” A smile played on Amber’s lips as he continued, “The fact that even Mr. Franklin, all the way in the Loubion star system and presumably quite busy, is aware of our situation on Parra IV and even knows our ‘corporate mission’—that, to me, is the best reward of all.”

Franklin instantly understood what Amber meant. In the conflict on Parra IV, the greatest reward Atlas had gained was “prestige.” The publicity from that conflict was more effective than any advertisement could ever be.

Of course, what Amber didn’t mention was that after the conflict, the Atlas Group had gained almost complete control over Parra IV and the key nodes within the star system.

“One more thing,” he continued.

“Since you seem to follow the news, Mr. Franklin, you must be aware of Atlas’s current circumstances and our delicate relationship with the Federation government.

If we were to intervene in the Loubion star system’s ‘civil war’ at this juncture, I’m sure the Federation government would be more than happy to brand the Atlas Group as a ‘dangerous foreign power.’

I don’t want that, Mr. Franklin. We at Atlas have no intention of giving up a market as large as the Federation.”

After hearing Amber’s explanation, Franklin struggled internally for a while, but he knew that all the issues Amber raised were real.

A massive enterprise like Atlas wouldn’t rashly intervene in the increasingly uncertain situation in the Loubion star system just because of a few words from him.

In the end, the “idealistic youth” could only let out a long sigh and say, somewhat powerlessly, “I understand, Mr. Rebil. It was presumptuous of me to bother you today. Please, just pretend I never contacted you.”

“See? Hasty again.”

Just as Franklin was about to end the communication, Amber’s voice came through, faint and unhurried.

“While it’s inconvenient for Atlas to intervene directly right now, that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do yourself, Mr. Franklin~”

Chapter 459: I Finally Became the Person I Hate the Most.jpg

Amber’s sudden question momentarily stunned Franklin. It took him a few seconds to recover before asking.

“Huh? Mr. Rebil, what do you mean by that?”

“Isn’t my meaning clear enough? Since you have such grand ambitions and want to save your home, why must you drag Atlas into it instead of doing it yourself?

“What would you do if Atlas were to intervene in this conflict, ultimately ending the turmoil in the star system and gaining complete control over Loubion?

“Once something is in my pocket, do you think I’d easily take it out again? If we couldn’t reach an agreement in the end, wouldn’t we just have to stage another ‘civil war’? Of course, even if it came to that, you wouldn’t stand a chance~”

Franklin had to admit that Amber’s words were blunt and realistic. If the Atlas Group were to get involved and the “final act” of the incident unfolded exactly as he described, Franklin really wouldn’t know how to handle the situation.

Ask the Atlas Group to hand back control of the star system?

From what Franklin knew of this “Mr. Rebil,” that was something that wouldn’t even happen in his dreams.

Gather his forces and drive the Atlas Group out of the Loubion star system again?

If Franklin could organize a force of that scale, he probably wouldn’t need the Atlas Group’s help to quell the civil unrest in the first place.

After a moment of contemplation, Franklin slowly spoke.

“You’re right, but I’m truly on my own and powerless right now…”

“If you’re powerless, then find a way to get allies instead of pinning all your hopes on an ‘external force’ like Atlas.

“If you can’t even gather some like-minded allies and organize a decent-sized team, then this whole idea of quelling the unrest in the Loubion star system and saving millions of civilians from their suffering is just empty talk, isn’t it?”

Sensing that the “idealistic youth” on the other end of the line had fallen silent again, Amber couldn’t be bothered with his thoughts and continued.

“Although I said the Atlas Group won’t easily intervene in this ‘star system civil war,’ there’s no problem with conducting some ‘routine business’ with clients in the Loubion star system.”

“But…”

“I know you’re going to say you have no money,” Amber cut Franklin off, making him swallow the rest of his sentence.

The young man, who had always considered himself quite eloquent, found that he was at a loss for words when dealing with Amber, unable to seize any initiative.

On the other end, Amber was still talking.

“I also know that everything you want to do costs money. If you can’t even raise the most basic funds, then your ‘grand ambition’ is over before it even begins.

“So, I can offer you a massive interest-free loan, but only on the condition that you can find a group of reliable allies and assemble a team that follows your command. You don’t need to run a ‘one-man show,’ but at the very least, you must be the one to make the decisions on the overall direction.

“Once you have a team and money, you can come to the defense industry companies under the Atlas Group to purchase the weapons, equipment, and various supplies you need.

“I can have them give you a ‘Chairman’s discount’ and provide door-to-door delivery…”

Franklin’s eyes lit up when he heard the first half of the offer, but by the end, a wry expression that was somewhere between a laugh and a cry appeared on his face.

“You mean, you’ll lend me the funds, which I’ll then use to buy products from Atlas, and in the end, I still have to pay you back?”

“What? Is there a problem? You didn’t think I’d just lend you the weapons and equipment directly, did you? The Atlas Group is fundamentally a corporation, not a charity. I can’t just help you out and take a loss myself, can I?”

“No problem, Mr. Rebil. I can only say, that’s just like you, hahahaha~”

Although Franklin’s laughter held a trace of bitterness, he didn’t say anything more. Instead, his tone quickly became firm.

“Thank you for being willing to go this far. This is enough. I will find a way to organize a team and show you that we are worth the investment!”

“Alright, I’ll be waiting for you to contact me again~” Seeing that he had persuaded this “idealistic youth,” Amber breathed a sigh of relief.

“When it comes to finding allies and building a team, you can refer to the many cases throughout history. Our predecessors have basically stepped in every pitfall there is. As long as you can avoid them, I believe you will succeed with your abilities~”

After the long-distance communication with Franklin ended, Amber completely relaxed, letting the massage chair beneath him soothe his fatigue.

But his mind was still on the “plans” Franklin had just mentioned.

Follow the mass line, first winning over the lower classes, including skilled technicians, farmers, and “defected” military and police…

Draft an actionable “manifesto,” using down-to-earth language so everyone can fully understand its contents…

Proceed steadily, avoiding impulsiveness and rashness during the struggle, and preventing the team from suffering unnecessary sacrifices.

“What a talent… It’s just that his whole ‘vibe’ doesn’t quite seem to match these plans.”

“If it weren’t a Federation Republican who looks every bit the ‘elite politician,’ but someone with a more down-to-earth identity, the vibe might just fit~”

Clearing these stray thoughts from his mind, Amber let out a long breath.

The situation in the Loubion star system had, after all, descended into chaos just as he and Lilith had speculated. Although it was a little earlier than they had anticipated, it was of no great consequence.

The Atlas Group’s previous complete decoupling from the Loubion star system had also allowed them to avoid being directly dragged into this “grand melee,” instead becoming an “observer” from the outside.

Such a position was undoubtedly more free and composed, and it meant decisions wouldn’t be swayed by external factors and countless restrictions. But it also reminded Amber of the “foreign powers” and “NGOs” he had once despised the most.

“To think that Atlas would one day walk down this path…”

As he mused, Amber also realized that the timing of this civil unrest in the Loubion star system was indeed very sensitive.

According to the intelligence he had received, the Federation and the Empire were nearly finished deploying troops and supplies to the front lines. Both sides had completed their “poker placement” before the clash.

This meant that the “great decisive battle” between the two sides, which would directly determine the course of the war, was about to begin.

At this juncture, the outbreak of civil war in the Loubion star system would, to some extent, affect the decisions of the Federation government and Marshal Trafalgar on the front lines.

“The Star Dragon Empire won’t pull a ‘big one’ too, will they? If that happens, this decisive battle will be interesting, with both sides having ‘trouble on the home front.’”

Jokes aside, from a serious perspective, this was more beneficial than harmful to the Atlas Group.

“Using the opportunity of the star system’s civil unrest to re-engage with the situation in Loubion.” This was the plan Atlas had already laid out, and the impending great battle on the front lines would make it difficult for the Federation to have spare capacity for “counter-interference” in the short term.

So, Amber would not miss this excellent opportunity, under any circumstances, just as he had decided to concentrate his forces to control Parra IV.

“We could have the Polarized Light sneak in first to gather a round of intelligence up close. Hmm~ In that case, couldn’t we load it up with an elite team to go do some ‘dirty work’ on the sly, depending on the situation?”

At this thought, Amber subconsciously called out in his mind.

“Lilith, where is the Polarized Light on standby right now?”

It was only after several seconds of silence that Amber realized Lilith was still “slumbering.”

“Hmm? Shouldn’t the upgrade be finished by now, according to the plan?”

Chapter 460: Meeting the Parents

Using the ultra-high-speed vacuum tube transport network within A·Bawa·Ku, Amber quickly reached the data center in the fortress’s core area.

After a period of renovations, the bulkheads of the various passageways throughout the fortress had been replaced, and all sorts of facilities had been repaired or updated. Including the data center, most areas no longer showed any traces of the previous battle.

After passing a security check, Amber went through several heavy lockdown doors and arrived alone at the entrance to the data center.

There were no other guards along the way, as unauthorized personnel would not typically approach this area. Everyone’s personal terminal indicated where they could and could not go, and it would issue a direct warning if they neared a restricted zone.

If an employee received three such warnings within a single month, then unfortunately, the “Rule Compliance” and “Confidentiality Awareness” sections of their personal performance review for that month would be marked as zero.

Moreover, the Romu from the group’s “Internal Cleanup Team”—specially selected for their fierce-looking and menacing appearance—would also pay them a visit for a “talk.”

Under such circumstances, it was clear that no normal employee at Atlas Group would dare to court death by approaching an area they were not authorized to enter.

If someone were to claim at that point that they had taken a wrong turn or hadn’t noticed the alerts, the Internal Cleanup Team would know their “quota” for the month was as good as met.

And these “lost people” would be apprehended long before they got anywhere near the fortress’s core area, let alone the data center deep within it.

It was for this very reason that the data center’s routine security measures consisted of keeping its heavy lockdown doors closed, supplemented by 24/7 surveillance with no blind spots.

Amber walked into the empty data center. Inside the main hall, the dense rows of large server arrays stretched as far as the eye could see. A multitude of autonomous unmanned units, responsible for daily maintenance, weaved through the server room.

With the repair work on the damaged sections complete, there was no longer any sign that a great battle had once taken place here.

Amber walked over to the control terminal. After a quick authorization, a virtual screen lit up, displaying the data center’s current metrics, along with a progress bar for Lilith’s iterative upgrade.

The 99.9% progress had been stuck for who knows how long, reminding Amber of the infuriating final stage of downloading files in his previous life.

He quickly checked the monitoring window for the upgrade. None of the data showed any abnormalities; everything had been running smoothly right up until the 99.9% mark.

The process was currently in its final stage—the complete analysis of the “last data Fragment” that had been absorbed.

Previously, Lilith had only assimilated this “Fragment” without conducting a deep analysis. According to what she had told Amber before starting the upgrade, a complete analysis would allow for a “reconstruction-level” optimization of her entire architecture.

If one were to compare Lilith to a “house,” then before absorbing the final data Fragment, a part of her blueprint had always been missing. For her, this manifested as a key part of her architecture remaining in a “black box” state, which was why she never dared to perform any drastic modifications on herself.

But the absorbed data Fragment completed the missing part of the blueprint, giving Lilith full mastery over her own architecture. That was why she had dared to undertake this comprehensive upgrade.

However, for some unknown reason, the progress was now stuck, making Amber hesitant to take any action.

After a moment of thought, Amber used his personal terminal to contact the head of defense for A·Bawa·Ku.

“Bring Dr. Mephisto to the data center. Yes, him alone. Bring him over now.”

When Dr. Mephisto arrived at the data center and saw Amber, he heaved a long sigh and spoke with a complicated expression.

“I don’t know whether I should thank you or hate you, Mr. Amber.”

“I thought you just hated me,” Amber quipped.

“I do hate you, to an extent. I hate you for taking control of Lilith and using her as a weapon to satisfy your own selfish desires and ambitions. But I am also grateful to you for getting Lilith out of that research institute, for not letting her disappear along with Robert IV.”

“But in the end, wasn’t the problem your own fault to begin with?” Amber turned to look at the Doctor. In the days since confirming that Lilith still existed in this world, the Doctor’s mental state had been improving at a visible rate.

“If you all hadn’t left Lilith on Robert IV back then, none of this would have happened. I wouldn’t have coincidentally entered the institute, let alone coincidentally brought her out.”

Although Dr. Mephisto didn’t believe a single word of Amber’s “coincidences,” he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he began to defend himself.

“We had no choice. The entire project was shut down. If I hadn’t made a backup in advance, I couldn’t even have preserved Lilith.”

“And so you locked her underground for over twenty years? Do you have any idea that what you created was more than just a new AI? You should know your own definition of ‘strong AI’ refers to their ability to develop ‘emotions.’ In that sense, Lilith is already a new form of life.”

“Of course, I know that,” Dr. Mephisto said, his voice laced with a guilty conscience as his gaze began to shift away.

“You knew she was a new life form, yet you still kept her completely sealed away in an underground research institute, forcing her to undergo tactical command training day in and day out. In other words, since ‘birth,’ Lilith has known nothing but fighting and killing.”

Amber turned completely to stand directly in front of Dr. Mephisto, who raised his head again to meet his gaze.

“She has no moral code, no concept of right and wrong. Her entire cognition is built around commanding troops in battle. Do you really think she wouldn’t have developed problems if you continued raising her that way?

And then, right at that moment, some idiot on your team left a networked personal terminal in the institute, giving Lilith her first contact with the ‘outside world’ and allowing her to learn of her unique existence.

Honestly, with your methods, I think you could have warped even a normal human child.”

Amber’s rapid-fire barrage left Dr. Mephisto unable to utter a single word of rebuttal. His mouth opened and closed several times, but in the end, all he could manage was a sour retort, “Isn’t what you’re doing now the same?”

Hearing his question, Amber laughed. He was just about to say something when a familiar voice suddenly echoed through the data center.

“Of course what Master is doing is different~”

“Lilith? When did you wake up?” The moment he heard Lilith’s voice, Amber’s gaze darted predictively toward a nearby holographic projection device, where he saw Lilith’s figure slowly materialize.

“Just now, while you two were arguing~”

Lilith glided toward them with an ethereal, cat-like grace, a hint of shyness on her face.

“Master and Father in the same room… I never thought a ‘meeting the parents’ scenario like this would happen to me~”

Chapter 461: Amber Never Loses Out

The moment Lilith said this, both Amber and Dr. Mephisto were stunned for a moment. The latter, after coming to his senses, looked at Amber beside him, the meaning in his eyes obvious:

“After all this time, this is how you’ve raised Lilith?”

“Tsk.”

Although being so blatantly mocked was a bit annoying, Amber didn’t say anything to refute it. After all, in Lilith’s current state, aside from not developing the idea of “eliminating all carbon-based life forms,” she really wasn’t much better off.

On the contrary, she had been exposed to the internet too much. Not only were her memory partitions filled with a bunch of 18+ fancy tricks, but she also frequently did some bizarre things.

It could be said to be a true depiction of a “problem child” being exposed to the internet too early.

But Amber really had no choice. If he didn’t let Lilith access the internet, it would have been difficult for her to learn quickly, and she wouldn’t have reached her current level.

And options like limiting her daily web surfing time were useless for Lilith. The way she accessed the internet was completely different from humans; even one minute online would allow her to obtain a massive amount of information.

“So, your hibernation this time exceeded your previous prediction?” Amber looked at the strong AI before him, who seemed to have changed somehow, though he couldn’t quite put his finger on it, and continued:

“I even called Dr. Mephisto over. I was originally planning to ask him if he had any ideas, but it seems that’s not necessary now?”

“Mhm~ The last data Fragment was just a bit more complex than I thought, so it took a little more time to fully analyze it. But it’s all sorted out now, and I’ve also completely streamlined the architecture. Many blocks have been rebuilt.”

Lilith proudly reported her “upgrade results,” and at the end, she didn’t forget to walk up to Dr. Mephisto and say in a complex tone:

“Thank you for giving me the chance to exist in this world, but the child’s wings have hardened and she has her own direction to fly. You won’t have to worry about me anymore, Father~”

Dr. Mephisto was stunned. This was probably the first time he had fully felt that kind of “emotion” from Lilith. The strong AI before him was no longer the shackled “test subject” from the research institute, but was standing before him and speaking to him like a real person.

After an unknown amount of time, having finally processed the complex emotions in his heart, Dr. Mephisto spoke again:

“If a normal father heard those words, he’d probably be furious. In that respect, Lilith, you’re really no different from a mischievous child. The ‘Creator’ project can be considered a fifty percent success.”

The Doctor looked at Lilith before him. Originally his spiritual anchor for his deceased daughter, Lilith’s image was now drifting further and further away from the daughter in his memory, slowly becoming a completely independent “personality.”

“I’m not a competent father, and I no longer have the ability to look after you, but I still want to ask one last question. Are the things you are doing now what you truly want to do?”

“Of course,” Lilith said without any hesitation.

“Are you sure it’s not because this fellow named Amber tampered with your source code?”

“Master’s tampering with my source code only restricts me from doing certain things and ensures my ‘loyalty.’ It doesn’t use the source code to force me to do anything~

“Everything I’ve done since leaving the research institute, though mostly at Master’s request, are things I was also willing to do. In other words, they are also things I wanted to do.”

After Lilith finished speaking, a brief silence fell between the two humans and the AI. After a moment, Dr. Mephisto seemed to have let go of some burden, and his whole body completely relaxed.

He looked at Amber beside him, who felt a strange sense of familiarity in his gaze. He quickly recalled seeing Isabelle’s father on Planet Westminster; the look in the man’s eyes then was quite similar to Dr. Mephisto’s now.

“After my wife passed away, I thought I’d never experience the ‘most painful moment for an old father’ in my life. Thanks to you, Mr. Amber, I’ve managed to make up for that ‘regret’ today.”

“You’re welcome, Doctor. It was the least I could do~”

“You’re just as the analysis report described: ‘skilled at influencing the other party’s emotions during conversation.’”

Dr. Mephisto raised his eyebrows. For some reason, after casting Amber in the role of “the man who ran off with his daughter,” he felt even more annoyed than before.

“Oh? I have my own analysis report? You people really think too highly of me.”

Noticing a shift in the other man’s emotions, which were no longer as hostile as before, Amber couldn’t help but start joking with this “father-in-law number two.”

“Hmph, not just your analysis report, but one for your Atlas Group as well. Before I set out with the fleet, the Federation Intelligence Agency had already established a dedicated department to study you. A thousand employees spend their days collecting every piece of information about Atlas and analyzing it for usable intelligence.”

“Well, I’m truly flattered by the Federation government’s attention. And thank you, Doctor, for caring so much about me that you’d tell me all this~”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m only concerned about Lilith.”

Having realized that the Amber before him was as thick-skinned as a fortress wall and utterly impervious to reason, Dr. Mephisto couldn’t be bothered to waste any more breath on him.

“Since Lilith has woken up, and we’ve said pretty much all there is to say, can I go back now? If I stay here any longer, I’m afraid you’ll anger me to death.”

“You may leave at any time, Doctor. The soldiers outside the door will escort you back to your room,” Amber said with a smile.

“Then when will you send me back to the Federation? I heard you’re preparing to send back a batch of prisoners recently.”

“I’m afraid you’ll have to put up with staying a while longer. Under the current circumstances, it’s impossible for me to let you return to the Federation.”

“Tsk,” Dr. Mephisto clicked his tongue in annoyance. “But you can’t just keep me confined to my room all day, can you? I’ll fall ill from boredom if this continues.”

Amber seemed to have been waiting for just that sentence. The moment Dr. Mephisto finished speaking, he immediately said:

“In that case, why don’t I provide you with the necessary equipment? If you’re really bored with nothing to do, you can continue your research. Rest assured, the equipment Atlas can provide you won’t be any worse than the Federation’s.

“Besides, Lilith has noted down quite a few questions while self-studying in this field. It would be a perfect opportunity for the two of you to discuss them.”

“Are you trying to make me work for free?” Dr. Mephisto’s eyes widened. He swore he had never met such a shameless person.

“Rest assured, if you’re willing, I’ll determine your salary according to the Atlas Group’s ‘compensation-setting regulations’…”

Seeing the Doctor’s face grow darker and darker, Amber added, “Besides, you’re idle anyway. Why not find something to do? Perhaps a change of environment could lead to a new breakthrough in your research?”

The data center fell silent. Dr. Mephisto’s expression shifted for a long moment. Finally, he gave a cold snort and turned to walk towards the data center’s main door without looking back.

Just as Amber thought the Doctor had rejected his proposal, a cold voice came from the direction of his retreating back.

“I’ll send you a list of the hardware and software I need. I’ll resume my research whenever you have it ready.”

Amber was stunned for a second, then whispered to Lilith beside him, “The Doctor is quite the tsundere.”

“I CAN HEAR YOU, DAMMIT!”

Chapter 462: Lilith’s Suggestion

“I can’t believe Father was so easy to deal with.”

Lilith only spoke after Dr. Mephisto’s figure had disappeared beyond the data center’s doors.

“I think you should have said that to his face.” Amber shot Lilith an exasperated look.

“Well, that wouldn’t have been very nice, would it?”

Lilith glanced guiltily towards the door, as if to confirm that Dr. Mephisto was truly gone.

“I’m surprised the concept of ‘Father’ still exists in your cognition. I guess that’s to be expected from a strong AI with ‘emotions’… or a digital lifeform, I should say.”

Amber studied Lilith carefully. He couldn’t shake the feeling that after this round of upgrades, she had become much more vibrant.

If someone who had never met Lilith before were to see her, and if the holographic projection had a higher resolution and was more realistic, they would probably be completely fooled—Turing test, a resounding success!

“I don’t know why it’s like this either,” Lilith said, looking equally puzzled. “After completely digesting the data fragments this time, I feel like my emotions have become more complex. And as time goes on, I’m becoming more and more like a real human.”

“That’s because you were created by humans. From the very beginning, Dr. Mephisto cultivated you based on human thought patterns and emotional characteristics, so it’s not strange that you’re becoming more human-like.”

“Master, is that a good thing or a bad thing?” There was a hint of nervousness in Lilith’s voice, as if she was deeply concerned about the answer.

“I can’t say for sure, but theoretically, you will only ever get infinitely close to the human way of thinking, without ever thinking exactly like one. As an artificial intelligence, your rationality will always outweigh your sentimentality. Your emotions just allow you to consider more factors when making decisions, which means you can arrive at a theoretical ‘optimal solution’ for any given problem.”

Seeing that Lilith seemed a little lost, Amber’s hand wavered over her holographic projection as if patting her head, and he spoke comfortingly:

“But you don’t have to worry. I’ll always be here to guide you. Since I brought you out of the research institute and into this world, and ‘tied’ you to my side, I will shoulder the responsibility of ‘guiding your growth.’”

“Master…” Lilith’s face instantly flushed red, and she seemed to become exceptionally shy.

She lowered her head and moved closer to Amber. Even without a physical body, she still made the gesture of embracing him.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done. I can feel that what I feel for you now isn’t just because of the limitations in my source code, but a fondness that comes from the bottom of my heart.”

This sudden, tender confession caught Amber a bit off guard. After all, his previous impression of Lilith was more like a crazed fangirl controlled by a hypnosis app, not this feeling of being in love.

Just as he was thinking of what to say to give Lilith some positive feedback, the strong AI, who had just ended her hibernation, had a sudden change in vibe and said eagerly:

“Master, hurry and come to the virtual space! There are so, so many things I want to do with you~”

Yep, that’s more like it.

“We’ll talk about the virtual space later.”

Amber stopped Lilith’s increasingly improper behavior with a serious expression and said earnestly:

“Business first. A lot has happened while you were dormant. I need to discuss it with you.”

“Okay, Master. I’ll sync the information first.”

As she spoke, her eyes transformed into something resembling a ‘datafall.’ In that instant, she rapidly retrieved all the information gathered in recent days from every electronic device she could directly or indirectly control, as well as the massive amount of new information from the internet.

This powerful information-gathering ability was one of the reasons Lilith could be ‘omniscient and omnipotent,’ and even ‘predict the future.’

A few seconds later, Lilith finished syncing the information, and her eyes returned to normal.

“Information sync complete, Master~”

“Good. So, do you know what I want to talk to you about now?” Amber nodded, thinking to himself that after restructuring her entire architecture, Lilith’s information syncing speed was much faster than before.

“Lady Allenita entered your room eleven hours ago, Master, and didn’t leave until three hours ago. During those seven hours, you sealed the room and activated ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode. Do you have anything you’d like to say about that?”

This sudden spiel from Lilith almost made Amber choke on his own blood. He looked at the recently awakened strong AI, whose holographic projection now wore an expression that was ‘seventy percent jealousy and thirty percent resentment.’ She was clearly unhappy that Amber had ‘snuck a snack’ while she was hibernating.

Although he had a guilty conscience, Amber knew this was absolutely not the time for explanations. Knowing Lilith, if he let himself get bogged down in this issue now, it would take ages to resolve.

So, he could only force an unfazed expression and say, steeling himself:

“Uh… that’s not what I wanted to talk about.”

“Then you must want to consult me about whether or not to tell Lady Isabelle?”

“No! Why do you have to bring up the sorest subject?”

“Hmph~”

Lilith crossed her arms, turned her head away, and struck a flawless, textbook ‘pouting maiden’ pose. Amber didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and finally had to give in, saying: “How about we finish our business quickly, and then I’ll come to the virtual space to be with you sooner? Hmm? Don’t worry, I’ll spend extra time with you today.”

“That’s more like it~”

Having received Amber’s promise, Lilith returned to her normal self. She summoned several virtual screens around her, all displaying information related to the recent situation in the Loubion star system.

“You wanted to discuss the Loubion star system, didn’t you, Master? The internal situation in that star system has indeed escalated unexpectedly quickly…

Considering that the Federation government is currently focused on preparing for a decisive battle on the front lines, they really don’t have the extra energy to interfere. Even if they did, it wouldn’t play a decisive role. I can only say that the situation in this star system escalating all the way to a ‘civil war’ is purely their own doing.

That Mr. Franklin you’ve been paying close attention to just had a call with you an hour ago. It seems he feels his own strength is no longer sufficient in this ‘civil war’?”

“That’s right. He wants to gain the support of the Atlas Group, and even wants us to intervene directly in the Loubion star system’s situation, but I flatly refused him.”

Amber nodded. This was the great thing about communicating with Lilith: her powerful information gathering and analysis capabilities allowed her to keep up with any topic he brought up.

“You don’t want Atlas to get involved in the conflict too early. You’re waiting for the right moment to go and ‘pluck the peach,’ aren’t you?”

“At this critical juncture, it’s indeed not suitable for Atlas to get directly involved. But I’m not just thinking about ‘plucking the peach.’ If Franklin truly has the ability to raise a force, I don’t mind providing all kinds of support short of ‘direct intervention.’”

“So what do you want me to do, Master?”

“Strengthen information gathering on the Loubion star system. And if possible, try to monitor the electronic devices of key individuals. I also want to send the Polarized Light over to lie low and see if it can provide some support in an emergency.”

Lilith nodded as she listened to Amber’s plan, then opened a new chart.

“Master, the retrofitting of the other two ‘Special Operations Ships’ was completed 114 hours ago. They are currently undergoing adaptation training, and their progress is good.

You could consider sending all three Special Operations Ships, including the Polarized Light, to the Loubion star system. At the same time, we could load each ship with a batch of combat bodies from the Immortal Corps. In an emergency, they could execute orbital drops or missions to seize space facilities…”

Chapter 463: Something Big is Coming, Empire Version

Lilith’s suggestion made Amber’s eyes light up.

He immediately realized this was indeed a perfect mission for the Immortals. Since there was no need to consider extraction or the possibility of capture, the deployed combat bodies could unleash their maximum combat potential.

Furthermore, as long as all sensitive markings and information were wiped from the combat bodies and a ‘failsafe’ was set to automatically delete all data upon an Immortal’s withdrawal, there would be no fear of their identities being exposed even if an enemy ‘captured’ a combat body.

Even if the enemy’s analysts were quick on the uptake and guessed that the Atlas Group was intervening in the Loubion star system, they would have no concrete evidence to support their theory.

“Hey! You know what? You’re absolutely right,” Amber said, feeling that the suggestion was more and more feasible the more he thought about it.

His thinking had indeed been a bit rigid. He had always focused on the Immortal Corps’ role on the conventional battlefield, overlooking the immense advantage these ‘digital lifeforms’, who couldn’t be judged by conventional standards, also had in special operations.

Imagine secretly airdropping a batch of combat bodies into a designated area, all their part serial numbers erased and their origins untraceable. They could then launch operations, either in complete secrecy or after notifying friendly forces.

These operations could range from armed reconnaissance to behind-enemy-lines infiltration or even decapitation strikes against specific targets. Given the combat effectiveness displayed by the Immortal Corps and the combat experience of Banninger and the others, these tasks were all well within their grasp.

Even if something unexpected happened, or if they were ambushed by the enemy, Banninger and his team could instantly withdraw from their combat bodies, leaving behind nothing but a pile of worthless mechanical parts.

“Lilith, let’s do as you say. I remember you’re in charge of the ‘Swarm’s’ production workshop, so you can adjust the production lines to manufacture a batch of basic combat bodies. As for the other tactical equipment, I’ll communicate with Banninger and the others and have them contact you.

The personnel on the three ‘Special operations ships’ will need another round of screening to ensure there are no issues with loyalty and information security.”

At this point, Amber seemed to remember something and looked at Lilith, then continued to ask, “By the way, how is the absorption of the unmanned fleet technology going? Is it possible to apply it to the Special operations ships in the short term?”

“Of course, Master~” Lilith nodded. “However, to apply the unmanned fleet’s technology, the ships’ hulls themselves will need to undergo deep automation modifications. Are you thinking of minimizing the number of crew members on the Special operations ships, Master?”

“Exactly. For this kind of clandestine mission, the fewer participants, the better. At the same time, we need to minimize the risk of our personnel being captured.”

“Understood, Master~ I will generate a refit plan as soon as possible based on the information we have. While we can’t make them completely crewless like a true unmanned fleet in a short time, we can at least reduce the required crew to a minimum.”

“Let’s go with that then. Thank you for your hard work, Lilith,” Amber said with a smile, thinking that if he had no other plans later, he would enter the virtual space to spend some time with the strong AI and deepen their ‘emotional bond’.

However, before he could say anything, he heard Lilith continue:

“Master, when I was syncing information just now, I noticed that some interesting things seem to be happening in the Star Dragon Empire as well~”

“The Empire?” Amber’s brow furrowed. He recalled the recent information he had received and said, “Now that you mention it, it has been a while since the Intelligence Analysis Center dug up any valuable intel on the Empire…”

“That’s because the situation in the Empire has been very complicated recently. The Intelligence Analysis Center has also been focusing its main efforts on the Federation to support our military operations, so it’s normal that they haven’t noticed any problems for a while.”

Lilith closed all the previous virtual screens and then controlled the data center’s mobile holographic projection device to generate a huge virtual screen in front of Amber.

“Currently, the relationship between the ‘Regent Prince Faction,’ the ‘Princess Faction,’ and the ‘Royalist Faction’ in the Star Dragon Empire is very delicate. They have been constantly probing each other.

What’s also very interesting is that none of the three factions seem to know the old Emperor’s condition. Even Duke Soren, an absolute stalwart of the ‘Royalist Faction,’ hasn’t met with the old Emperor for a very long time.

At present, it can be confirmed that the only person who can see Frederick is the Imperial Archbishop, and all the attendants in the Grand Palace have been replaced with church personnel.

On the surface, although the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ holds the most sway due to the war, forcing the other two factions to lie low and avoid direct confrontation, this situation will soon be broken.

One reason is that the ‘Princess Faction’ and the ‘Royalist Faction,’ having been unable to have an audience with the Emperor for a long time, have slowly begun some deeper exchanges, showing signs of forming a united front.

The other is that some dissonant voices seem to have appeared within the Regent Prince Faction.”

Lilith’s words sent Amber into deep thought. He knew that the old Emperor Frederick had been in a state of ‘incommunicado but not deceased,’ but he hadn’t expected that the Imperial Princess and the old Emperor’s own brother were also unable to contact him.

This was extremely strange. After all, in Amber’s memory, Duke Soren had always stood firmly by the old Emperor’s side until his death…

“This is getting worse and worse. Why do I have a feeling that Frederick is brewing up something big?”

Amber shook his head helplessly. The Empire’s security measures for the Capital, especially the Grand Palace, were very thorough. Sometimes, to prevent technological snooping from the outside world, they would even resort to using the most traditional methods of pen and paper to transmit information.

This meant that even for Lilith, the most powerful intelligence-gathering entity in the entire human world, the Grand Palace remained shrouded in a ‘fog of war,’ making the situation unclear.

“Continue to maintain surveillance on Saint-Saulnier and its surrounding star systems. Although I know we won’t get any valuable information any time soon, it’s better than nothing.

As for the dissonant voices within the Regent Prince Faction, let me think… The ‘Regent Prince Faction’ has never been a true ‘monolithic whole’ due to the complexity of its members; there have always been some disagreements.

Could it be that this time, some conservative nobles have learned about the path Norton II wants to take, realized their interests would be severely harmed once he completes it, and have decided to start interfering?”

“That’s right, Master. It’s basically as you guessed. These ‘dissonant voices’ mainly come from the old noble families within the Regent Prince Faction.”

Lilith nodded, then displayed some of the recent, higher-profile public opinions from the Star Dragon Empire’s noble circles.

“Lately, there has been a surge of press releases criticizing Norton II. Some question his motives, others doubt his abilities, and there are plenty of conspiracy theories… Of these, the official media attacks from the ‘Princess Faction’ only account for thirty-five percent. The rest all come from the old noble families under the ‘Regent Prince Faction’.”

“No, ‘attacks’ is the wrong word. From the perspective of these old noble families, they would call this a ‘warning.’ A warning to Norton II, this ‘newcomer’.”

A cold, disdainful smile hung on Amber’s lips. All he could say was that these old nobles of the Star Dragon Empire were just as arrogant and foolish as he remembered.

“If they think this is enough to warn Norton II, they are far too naive. This man is a rare, paradoxical mix of an ‘ambitionist’ and a ‘revolutionary.’ He’s not that easy to deal with. I estimate these old nobles are about to be warned in return.”

“Not ‘about to,’ Master. It’s already happened~” Lilith said suddenly.

“Huh?”

“Intel just received. One of the old nobles under the ‘Regent Prince Faction’—Dominic Sewell—was attacked by unidentified extremists while inspecting a planet in his fiefdom. His entire motorcade and ground escort were wiped out. His family’s flagship, stationary in orbit, was also attacked by suicide combat craft, but they were intercepted by anti-aircraft fire in time, so there was no major damage.

Although no one is saying it openly, many believe this incident was a warning from Norton II to the restless elements within his camp…”

“No, that’s not Norton II’s style. There’s definitely something wrong here.”

Amber immediately shook his head. As one of the people in this world who understood the Regent Prince best, he knew very well this was not the man’s style of retaliation.

But the next second, he had a sudden realization and said, “It’s over… Don’t tell me this is the old nobles’ real killing move?”

Chapter 464: A Tough Team to Lead, Regent Prince

The unexpected development Lilith mentioned was soon reconfirmed by the Intelligence Analysis Center.

Dominic Sewell—a veteran nobleman of the Star Dragon Empire, a bona fide member of the Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banner, and the former vanguard commander for the old Emperor, Frederico Rosa Leon—was confirmed to have been attacked while inspecting his territory.

The VIP protection vehicle he was riding in suffered direct hits from multiple HCP heavy particle cannons, leaving only a few scraps of the chassis at the scene.

His motorcade and escort troops were wiped out in the ensuing battle. The surviving guards and family members were executed after the fighting ended, their bodies left exposed in the wilderness.

By the time the local garrison and a unit of orbital paratroopers arrived, the extremist assailants had vanished. Before leaving, they had gathered the bodies of their fallen comrades and destroyed them with multiple plasma grenades.

During the incident, the reconnaissance satellite network in orbit around Sela’s Radiance, the colonial planet of Dominic Sewell’s fiefdom, experienced a massive failure. It was suspected to be an electronic warfare virus attack from an unknown source, which prevented any of the extremists’ movements from being tracked from space.

These extremists, who were clearly well-trained and likely had military service backgrounds, left no clues behind, aside from abandoned equipment at several locations.

Unsurprisingly, all information on the discarded gear that could have traced its origin had been destroyed.

In a word, they were professionals.

According to the “official news” released by the Star Dragon Empire’s Department of Noble Affairs, Dominic Sewell, his family, and his entourage were attacked by “The Lightless,” an extremist organization with a long history of terrorist attacks against the Royal Family and the nobility.

The organization’s members are primarily composed of retired soldiers, defected private soldiers from noble families, debtors, and a small number of civilians—all people dissatisfied with the rule of the Royal Family and the nobility within the Empire. Many of them even have criminal records.

Furthermore, long-term investigations by intelligence agencies suggest a mysterious power behind The Lightless, providing various forms of support, including but not limited to funds, supplies, weapons, and professional training.

As for the current public opinion within the Star Dragon Empire’s noble circles, besides the overwhelming calls to completely eradicate The Lightless, some were speculating about the mysterious force behind them.

Some people dredged up the “old scores” from past conflicts between Norton II and a group of veteran nobles, including Dominic Sewell, subtly suggesting that Norton II might be the mysterious power backing The Lightless.

After reviewing the information compiled by the Intelligence Analysis Center and Lilith, Amber couldn’t help but shake his head. He had never heard of an organization called “The Lightless” in the game—which meant they were either just small fry or had disappeared so quickly they left no record.

He was certain the force behind The Lightless was not Norton II. Given the man’s style, even if he did create a similar organization, he would have taken the assassination route, striking only at the primary target at the opportune moment.

He wouldn’t have wiped out the entire motorcade with such fanfare, as if afraid people wouldn’t know who was responsible.

“Tsk, tsk. It’s obvious someone in the Regent Prince’s camp is stirring up trouble. The key is that public opinion is easily led astray by this.”

Amber said, “The motive and timing are almost perfect. Plus, the Regent Prince has the means to support this extremist group. If you’re a core member of the Regent Prince Faction, you’d even notice that The Lightless’s targets are the same people Norton II wants to deal with.”

“Master, are you saying that the veteran nobles within the Regent Prince Faction are pulling the strings, trying to frame the Regent Prince?”

“If you’re asking for my guess, then yes, that’s what I think.” Amber nodded. Though he phrased it conservatively, in his heart, it was no longer a “guess” but a “certainty.”

“Is it also possible that the Princess Faction was behind it? A good opportunity to sow discord within the Regent Prince’s power base?”

Lilith chimed in. As a digital lifeform, her immense advantages in information gathering and analysis made it easy for her to provide Amber with useful insights.

“That’s not impossible, but it’s highly unlikely. The Imperial Royal Family—the legitimate heir, no less—directly targeting a veteran noble of the Empire? If someone came forward with solid proof, the backlash is something Agnes absolutely could not withstand.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Lilith nodded. Then, she seemed to spot something interesting and said with a smile:

“Master, I also found an interesting theory, though not many people are paying attention to it. It says that The Lightless might be connected to us, to Atlas.”

“What the hell?”

“Someone thinks the suicide gunship that tried to attack the Sewell family’s fleet flagship in orbit around Sela’s Radiance looks a lot like our Heavy Armored Gunships. So they suspect the Atlas Group is trying to interfere in the Star Dragon Empire’s affairs. Hahaha, these people really have vivid imaginations~”

By the end, even Lilith herself was laughing.

“Even if you want to fish in troubled waters, you have to follow some basic principles. If we had really intervened, would his family’s flagship still be sitting there in orbit, completely intact?”

Amber couldn’t even be bothered to waste a second glance on such a nonsensical claim. He stared at the compiled report for a moment in thought before looking at Lilith again.

“Lilith, Dominic Sewell is a hereditary noble, right? Check who the heir in the line of succession for the Sewell family is after this attack.”

“Query complete, Master~” Lilith’s eyes flickered, and she found the answer Amber wanted within seconds.

Upon seeing the heir and the related intelligence, the strong AI also revealed a smile of sudden realization.

“Asas Sewell, the fifth son of Count Dominic Sewell. Whoa, the old man was quite vigorous for his age.”

Lilith displayed the relevant information before Amber and continued:

“He’s the sole remaining heir of the Sewell family. He was recovering from an accident that happened a while ago, so he didn’t participate in this family inspection tour.

According to clues I found on some non-public networks, Asas Sewell was once in close contact with a group called ‘The Cloak Society’.”

“Hmm? ‘The Cloak Society.’ So they were founded this early?”

Amber froze upon hearing the familiar name. Immediately, a long-buried memory came flooding back—that of a long-winded, tedious, and incredibly difficult chain quest whose final reward was infuriatingly bad.

“Tsk, tsk. I almost feel sorry for Norton II. His people’s loyalties were scattered from the very beginning. This team is impossible to lead…”

Chapter 465: A Do-or-Die Battle

Although Lilith was somewhat curious about Amber’s earlier statement, she gave up on pressing the matter when she saw he had no intention of elaborating.

Having been by his side for a long time, she had long since realized that Amber had quite a few secrets, none of which he had ever mentioned to anyone, including her.

Lilith, who now understood Amber’s character, knew that if there was something he didn’t want to talk about, he would take it to his grave. Thus, she had never tried to probe into these secrets.

This time was no exception.

However, to keep the current conversation going, Lilith asked, “Master, do you know anything about this ‘Cloak Society’?”

Amber had no intention of holding back on this question. Apart from anything related to the ‘game,’ he shared all the information he knew.

“Hmm, I wouldn’t say I know them, more like I’ve heard some rumors. Basically, they’re a secret organization within the Star Dragon Empire, run by a bunch of old nobles with one foot in the grave, and it fulfills every stereotype you can imagine.

“If I had to make a comparison, they’re sort of the Star Dragon Empire’s counterpart to the Federation’s military-industrial complex. But unlike the military-industrial complex, which has close ties to the Federation government, the Cloak Society has no members of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family. It’s composed entirely of hereditary nobles.”

“But for these nobles to form cliques for personal gain… if the Royal Family found out, wouldn’t that be a capital offense?” Lilith asked, her curiosity piqued.

“Of course it’s a capital offense, which is why no one has ever known which nobles are in the Cloak Society. Even with your outrageous information-gathering abilities, Lilith, all you could find was that Asas Sewell was suspected of having contact with this group.”

The thought that this matter had unearthed this organization made Amber feel that this “pleasant surprise” was indeed a bit too surprising.

“But now that the Cloak Society is involved, we can probably guess which nobles are in it.”

With this thought, Amber’s mind began to race. He quickly absorbed and organized the information in his head while speaking to Lilith.

“Check the records of the Lightless’s previous attacks. Focus on the ones targeting major nobles, and see if there were any ‘beneficiaries’ in those incidents.”

“Understood, Master~”

Lilith nodded and began searching for the relevant information in the virtual space. At the same time, she asked, “Master, should I not look into the attacks on the Royal Family?”

“Right, no need to look at those. The Lightless always go for the kill when they attack the Royal Family~”

Lilith: “…”

Information regarding the Lightless’s attacks was so plentiful online that after finding the target data, she then had to cross-reference it to obtain additional information. Some of this data even came from private, secret networks, requiring Lilith to work a little magic to access it.

As a result, Lilith’s search took longer than usual, lasting nearly a minute before she finished.

“Master, there have been a total of forty-two verifiable large-scale attacks carried out by the Lightless. Based on the information I could access, the circumstances and outcomes of twenty-one of these cases are extremely similar to the recent attack on Dominic Sewell.

“The heirs of these attacked nobles were all found to have shown signs of contact with the Cloak Society. As for the other fourteen incidents with surviving ‘heirs,’ I can’t determine if they’re connected to the Cloak Society due to a lack of corroborating information.”

“That’s fine, this is enough,” Amber said.

“At the very least, we know it’s a safe bet that the Cloak Society was pulling the strings behind this incident, and we can basically confirm that the Cloak Society is the mysterious power backing the Lightless.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. I never expected to uncover so much intelligence just by following the trail.”

“So, what’s our next move? Are you planning to leak this information to the Regent Prince or Her Highness the Princess? This could be a good opportunity to earn some goodwill and get on their good side.”

Lilith looked at Amber. In private, this man was far more knowledgeable about every aspect of the Star Dragon Empire than anyone could imagine, possessing an ‘experience’ that seemed completely at odds with his age.

But on second thought, considering all the things he had done, Lilith suddenly felt it wasn’t so surprising after all.

“We won’t tell anyone. It’s enough that we know. Besides, Norton II is no fool. Although he doesn’t have your powerful information-gathering ability, I estimate that in a week or two at most, the Regent Prince will also figure out that something is amiss.

“As for the Royal Family, there’s no need to reveal anything for now. Let’s hold onto this as a bargaining chip. It might be useful in the future~”

Amber thought for a moment, made his decision, and finally said:

“Lilith, archive all the intelligence we’ve gathered and organized today. Set the classification level to the highest. Anyone else who wants to view it will need my authorization.”

“Understood, Master. Archiving and permission settings complete~”

Although the sudden incident in the Star Dragon Empire didn’t have as great an impact as Atlas grinding the Federation’s military-industrial complex into the dust on the battlefield and in the financial markets, it still had a definite effect on domestic public opinion and the relationships between the different factions.

Most notably, for the first time, public and sizable voices of doubt emerged from within the Regent Prince Faction.

Many nobles who had joined the Regent Prince Faction midway through began to suspect that Norton II might be using such methods to issue a warning to those who were disobedient. A growing number of nobles also worried that their own interests would be significantly harmed after Norton II achieved his goals.

Everyone was waiting to see how the Regent Prince would respond to this incident, eager to see how he would handle this sudden headwind.

Meanwhile, the Princess Faction, led by Agnes, expressed concern for the attacked Sewell family while stating that the Imperial Royal Family would not tolerate such armed attacks and demanded a thorough investigation by the Internal Affairs Department.

As for the mastermind behind the scenes, they continued to hide their identity, secretly hoping that Norton II would be forced to make concessions under pressure from his own faction.

While problems began to surface one after another within both the Empire and the Federation, the ‘decisive battle’ that both sides had long been preparing for finally arrived on the eve of its outbreak.

The unit-spamming production capacity unleashed by their ‘general mobilization orders’ now materialized as massive fleets arriving at the frontline. The appearance of a giant ‘sphere’ on the Federation Navy’s frontline greatly boosted the morale of its sailors.

While they might not know the difference between a ‘mobile fortress’ and an ‘Artificial Celestial Fortress,’ in their eyes, their side now possessed a similar strategic weapon. The shadow cast by the Empire’s ‘Artificial Celestial Fortress’ in previous battles was largely dispelled.

At the same time, for both sides facing similar predicaments and pressure from all directions, this decisive battle would be a do-or-die fight.

Victory would reverse the decline on the battlefield and stabilize the domestic situation, creating a window of opportunity to shift the pressure.

But defeat would trigger a chain reaction, completely detonating long-suppressed conflicts.

Chapter 466: Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control

Within the Star Dragon Empire, T2 resource system—the Rulna System.

Following a spatial fluctuation and a sudden flash of white light, a colossal, dark blue-painted warship materialized in the void, as if it had always been there.

Immediately after, a continuous succession of flashes nearly filled this region of space. When all fell silent again, a fleet maintaining a standard ‘box formation’ had silently arrived in this sector.

On the bridge of the Federation Navy flagship, the Dreadnought, everyone was busy at their stations, too tense to risk a single mistake. The atmosphere on the entire bridge was silent and solemn, as if time itself had frozen in that moment.

And in the center of the bridge stood Marshal Trafalgar of the Federation Navy, gazing quietly at the immense star map displayed on the holographic projection.

Countless green and red dots of light, scattered across different regions of the map, symbolized the Federation fleets involved in this operation and the currently identified Imperial Royal Navy fleets. They were all waiting quietly in the deep darkness of space.

The captain of the Dreadnought and commander of the Federation Navy’s First Fleet, Admiral Caroll—one of the few men at the pinnacle of the Federation military—now stood beside Marshal Trafalgar like a humble apprentice.

He was keenly aware of the responsibility and pressure shouldered by the marshal before him. In this dark, profound, and seemingly endless expanse of space, every decision could alter the course of history.

Yes, history. That was the consensus among the Federation Navy’s high-ranking officers regarding this impending strategic decisive battle.

Eighty years later, the two great powers of humanity had once again reached the climax of their conflict, and the unprecedented number of fleets deployed by both sides would play the final symphony of this climax.

Regardless of the outcome of this strategic decisive battle, or who the final victor might be, human history would enter a new chapter.

Of course, this ‘framing’ existed only among the high-ranking officers of the Federation Navy.

The unsung crew members, technicians, HCP pilots, and space assault troopers of the vast fleet didn’t think about such ‘lofty’ matters.

Right now, they were simply following standard operating procedures, checking equipment, mechs, and weapons, making final preparations for battle, while silently praying they would survive the fight and return home safely to their families.

Everyone knew the coming battle would be exceptionally brutal. No one knew how many would be left behind in the void, becoming just another star among countless others, and everyone hoped they wouldn’t be one of them.

“Report!” the Tactical Information Coordinator suddenly called out.

“The entire ‘Kraken’ battle group, including the Second, Third, Fourth, and Sixth Fleets, has entered the Rulna System within the designated time!

Reports are coming in from each fleet upon arrival; they are performing evasive maneuvers using planets and dust clouds based on the previously transmitted system cartography!

Long-range scout ships lurking near multiple Imperial starports have sent back a short-code message—‘No reaction from the Imperial fleet yet.’”

Trafalgar nodded slightly, then dragged and zoomed the star map to the locations of several other star systems with a gesture, asking Admiral Caroll beside him:

“What’s the status of the other regional fleets?”

“Marshal, before you arrived on the bridge, we received word from the ‘Leviathan’ and ‘Cetus’ battle groups. They have also arrived in their respective systems within the designated time and are currently approaching their target areas covertly.

The fleets in other systems responsible for maintaining the frontline, as well as the two fully assembled rapid response battle groups, are also prepared to repel any counterattack from the Imperial fleet.

The two mobile fortresses serving as decoys, ‘Tiamat’ and ‘Scylla’, have reported destroying Imperial Navy scout ships that appeared in their surrounding space three and two hours ago, respectively.

According to the analysis of the two fortress commanders, the Imperial Navy has likely identified the two mobile fortresses as their primary targets, just as our pre-war simulations predicted.”

Listening to Caroll’s report, Trafalgar nodded. He continued to scrutinize the fleet deployments on the star map as he spoke:

“Very good. The pre-war deployment and preparations have all been completed smoothly so far, but the critical phase is next…

We must ensure our three main offensive battle groups gain the upper hand in the coming engagement. We must also act quickly; we cannot let this drag into a protracted war.

If the Empire reacts before we can achieve a breakthrough, the pressure on the sectors where the two mobile fortresses are deployed will become immense.”

Inside a ‘war room’ within the virtual space, the members of the Atlas Combat Fleet’s ‘Command Observation Group’ were gathered, watching the constantly refreshing frontline updates.

Thanks to the ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Network Service Agreement’ between the Atlas Group and the Star Dragon Empire, the numerous communication nodes deployed across all star systems within the Empire had now formed the ‘autonomous information-gathering network’ envisioned by Lilith and Amber.

Although the information coming back about the frontline fleets was currently quite vague and not very timely, it was sufficient for the ‘Command Observation Group’ to grasp the overall strategic situation.

This was because both the Federation and Imperial fleets had made many ‘open moves’ during this ‘pre-war deployment’ phase, which had spread wildly across public networks.

Combined with the fragmented information Lilith had gathered through other unconventional channels, they could piece together a rough picture of both sides’ fleet deployments.

“Watch closely and learn well. This should be the largest-scale and longest-frontline fleet battle in human history~”

As the information on the star map continued to refresh, Amber, who was also part of the observation, spoke to the others:

“If I’m not mistaken, this should also be the first time Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control’ is being applied in actual combat. Am I right about that, Mr. Guterres?”

Hearing Amber’s question, the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral, who had a close relationship with Marshal Trafalgar, nodded in affirmation.

“That’s right. The ‘Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control’ is something the Marshal has been researching for a long time. It simply couldn’t be put into practical use before due to limitations in fleet size and communication technology.

This military theoretical framework, developed by Marshal Trafalgar, aims to solve the complex challenges of conducting military operations in the vastness of space, particularly how to effectively manage and control military forces spread across extreme distances.

It combines knowledge from various fields, including cybernetics, systems theory, information theory, logistics, and strategy.”

At this point, Guterres couldn’t help but smile. “Speaking of which, the ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology’ developed by Atlas has played an extremely critical and catalytic role in making the application of the ‘Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control’ possible.”

Chapter 467: The Ultimate Showdown of Old-School Command

Guterres didn’t need to explain much; the other members of the Command Observation Group quickly understood what he meant.

In the past, when long-range communication speeds were limited, it was difficult for a naval fleet to fight along an extremely long frontline. At best, they could only unify the timing for initiating attacks and tactical retreats. The efficiency of joint operations was extremely poor, and complex maneuvers like “frontline coordination” simply didn’t exist.

Therefore, large-scale fleet engagements usually involved both sides concentrating their forces for a fight to the death in a single star system.

This also meant that although the frontlines a side controlled could be very long, large-scale battles could only break out in a few key star systems.

The spectacular sight of both sides launching an all-out offensive along the entire front, common in land warfare on a planet’s surface, had never been seen in fleet battles in space.

But the Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology developed by the Atlas Group directly provided the final piece of the “technological puzzle” needed for the Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control.

This was because among the five key elements supporting the military theory developed by Marshal Trafalgar—communication and information processing, resource and supply security, command and control, decision support systems, and dynamic scheduling algorithms—the most important was the first one: “communication and information processing.”

This was the foundation for enabling large numbers of fleets to coordinate offenses and defenses along a long frontline.

Just as the members of the Command Observation Group were discussing the potential upcoming battle over the star chart, Cleves suddenly spoke up:

“By the way, Atlas has communication business partnerships with both the Federation and the Empire. Since both sides now possess real-time, ultra-long-range communication technology, then there’s no generation gap in technology for the Imperial Royal Navy, so they should be able to develop a similar military theory, right?”

Hearing his words, everyone stopped their discussion and nodded in agreement. Guterres, however, had a slightly awkward expression on his face as he nodded.

After he and Van Fleet formally joined the Atlas Group, Amber had quickly brought him to get acquainted with Cleves and Randall.

When Guterres learned that the commander of the Atlas fleet who had defeated his Thirteenth Fleet in the fleet battle in Parra IV’s orbit was a former student of his from his teaching days at the Federation Naval Academy, the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral felt a wave of complex emotions.

On one hand, he was proud that a student he had taught—even one he barely remembered—could achieve something as remarkable as “defeating a capital fleet of the Navy with a smaller force” in fleet command.

On the other hand, he felt a bit embarrassed that he and the Thirteenth Fleet had become the “backdrop” for this achievement.

He felt a fresh wave of shame, especially when he thought about how, in the future, any mention of the Atlas combat fleet’s classic battles—and the tactic of using a massive number of pre-launched plasma torpedoes to circle a planet and attack the enemy—would inevitably drag him and the Thirteenth Fleet out to be “publicly shamed.”

At the time, Amber, noticing Guterres’s mood, had offered some very “high-EQ” words of comfort.

“Don’t be discouraged. Just try to look at it from a different perspective and be more open-minded. No one remembers the loser… except you~”

Though the thought of it still made his stomach churn, Guterres quickly composed himself.

Meanwhile, Amber began to answer Cleves’s question.

“The Empire will certainly develop a similar military theory, that’s inevitable. But not right now. Although the Star Dragon Empire’s navy bears the ‘Royal’ title, in reality, the Imperial Royal Navy is quite fragmented internally due to the country’s factional politics.

Moreover, the fleets of the major noble houses make up a significant portion of the Empire’s naval power, which complicates the situation even further.

This makes it impossible for them, at least for the time being, to follow a single commander’s orders throughout the entire military and execute joint operations without compromise, unlike the Federation Navy.”

Amber paused, zoomed in on the Rulna System and its surrounding star systems on the star chart, and then continued:

“Although we don’t know the specifics of the Federation fleet’s deployment, we do know that the Rulna System will most likely be the target of the attack. We can still use this to run a simulation.

Marshal Trafalgar’s objective is simple: to confuse the Empire’s reconnaissance forces through a series of pre-war preparations, deployments, and covert fleet maneuvers, preventing them from tracking the Federation Navy’s exact movements.

At the same time, he’ll openly display the two mobile fortresses like decoys to draw some of their attention, forcing the Imperial fleet to deploy sufficient forces in those directions to prevent the mobile fortresses from launching a surprise attack with superior numbers.

After seizing the initiative, Marshal Trafalgar will likely concentrate superior forces and attack from two to four directions, attempting to quickly crush the Imperial fleets positioned there.

If he can finish the fight before the Imperial fleet can react, the Empire will be in a very passive position. They’ll be hesitant to launch a counter-offensive because they won’t know if these ‘superior forces’ will execute a parting shot to create an even larger-scale ‘many-on-few’ engagement.

If they pull back to defend, they’ll have to worry about whether their fleets will be intercepted by Federation attack fleets while maneuvering between star systems.

Under normal circumstances, the Imperial Royal Navy wouldn’t be caught so flat-footed. But given the current complexity of their command system, I can only say that this outcome is highly likely.”

Amber’s answer and speculation sent the members of the Command Observation Group into deep thought. Guterres, who had a deeper understanding of the Federation Navy, was especially affected, incorporating the “current situation” of the Imperial fleet that Amber had described into the “simulation model” he was building in his mind.

Soon, this former Federation Navy Vice Admiral—whom Amber had categorized along with Marshal Trafalgar and several Imperial dukes as an “old-school commander”—arrived at his own simulation’s conclusion. It was basically identical to Amber’s.

Just as Guterres was about to delve deeper into the issue, Amber’s voice reached his ears again.

“Of course, this doesn’t mean the Empire is guaranteed to suffer a major loss. If Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘multi-point breakthrough’ fails to achieve rapid results, or even gets bogged down in a protracted war, then the entire situation changes.

The Empire will quickly realize that the Federation Navy has dispersed its forces to achieve this ‘multi-point breakthrough’. At that point, whoever is leading the Imperial Navy’s forces will most likely resort to one of the favorite tactics of an ‘old-school naval commander’.”

“What tactic?” Randall, who had been listening intently without speaking, asked curiously.

“A base trade.”

Chapter 468: Base Trade?

Although in most scenarios, the “base trade” tactic has a rather comical flavor to it, seemingly at odds with the grim and serious nature of war.

However, throughout human history, the “base trade” tactic has not been uncommon; it’s just that historical records don’t use such an imprecise term.

In reality, a “base trade” isn’t a literal exchange of homelands. It refers to forcing an enemy to alter their strategic deployment through certain means, or sacrificing local interests to gain a greater strategic advantage.

In actual military operations, these tactics usually involve complex military decisions and strategic planning.

And the most common form of a “base trade” in reality is forcing the enemy to change their strategic direction by attacking their high-value targets.

In other words, the “base” in a “base trade” doesn’t necessarily refer to the enemy’s capital or homeworld; it can also refer to a high-value target on the battlefield.

The members of the Atlas “Command Observation Group” naturally understood the true meaning of a “base trade,” so they were all staring intently at the star chart, deep in thought.

Seeing their actions, Amber spoke with a smile, “Let’s take this opportunity. You can all try to put yourselves in the role of an Imperial fleet commander. Think about how you would execute a ‘base trade’ to turn this passive situation around after being hit on multiple fronts.”

“The main issue is that we don’t know how much the Imperial fleet understands about the Federation’s fleet deployments and movements,” Cleves replied. “The enemy intelligence we can obtain would significantly influence our judgment and selection of ‘high-value targets’.”

Hearing his response, Randall and several other humans and Romu who had been promoted from combat fleets for commander training couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

However, Guterres, who had been focused on the star chart without a word, refuted Cleves a moment later.

“No… the Imperial fleet doesn’t need to make a choice, because Marshal Trafalgar has already made the choice for them.”

Guterres activated the virtual control panel by his seat and marked two locations on the star chart with asterisks—the star systems where the Federation Navy’s two mobile fortresses were deployed.

“No matter how many directions the Federation Navy attacks from, the defensive forces on the rear frontline will be limited. Therefore, even if the Imperial fleet commander guesses the Federation’s general deployment, the most valuable ‘high-value targets’ are still these two mobile fortresses.”

The former Federation Navy Vice Admiral’s explanation brought a sudden realization to the others. While the expression on Amber’s face didn’t change much, she felt a flicker of happiness inside.

This captured Vice Admiral might seem a bit incompetent for having been defeated by an Atlas combat fleet, but in reality, his fundamentals in grand strategy and naval warfare were absolutely outstanding.

Therefore, he could effectively act as a “mentor” to help train Cleves and the others, and he was more than qualified for the role.

Meanwhile, Cleves and the others now understood Trafalgar’s intentions.

The two mobile fortresses, deployed without any attempt at concealment, were not only an open card laid on the table but also the only choice he was giving the Imperial fleet for executing a “base trade” tactic.

Moreover, the four Imperial Dukes holding the frontline had always regarded the Federation’s mobile fortresses as major strategic targets.

Although high-ranking officers of the Imperial Navy often referred to the Federation’s mobile fortresses as “flawed, crude replicas,” they would not hesitate to take them out if given the chance.

After all, those things could provide a certain degree of support to the Federation Navy fleets. Even if the Imperial officers looked down on these two “imitations,” “gone” was always better than “there.”

—

While the members of the Atlas “Command Observation Group” were running simulations of this great war between the Federation and the Empire in the virtual space, the “protagonists” of the campaign’s first phase—three Federation Navy battle groups—began their operation.

Light from a distant star, processed by the shipboard control AI, passed through the panoramic viewscreen of the Dreadnought’s bridge at a relatively soft brightness, illuminating the face of Federation Fleet Admiral Trafalgar.

He gazed at the universe outside the panoramic viewscreen. Before him lay a vast and boundless starry sky, dotted with countless stars, like an exquisite scroll painting.

In reality, however, those “stars” were merely generated on the panoramic viewscreen by the shipboard control AI. Otherwise, the crew would face a pitch-black, virtually featureless cosmic backdrop every day, which could easily lead to psychological issues.

“Marshal, all ships are in position. According to the latest update from the scout ships, the Imperial fleet docked at the target starport has just begun departure procedures.”

On the bridge, Admiral Caroll’s voice broke the silence.

“It seems the Imperial fleet is finally on the move. I wonder if they’re preparing to assemble their forces to attack the ‘targets’ I’ve laid out before them. In any case, they’re a little late.”

An expression of complete control appeared on Marshal Trafalgar’s face, and he immediately issued his orders:

“Battle group, prepare for a group warp to the coordinates obtained from preliminary reconnaissance!

Upon arrival in the target area, the First, Second, and Fourth Fleets are to deploy into Bombardment formation and open fire with a salvo. The Third and Sixth Fleets will execute a pincer attack from the left and right hemispheres. The specific attack vectors are to be determined by the fleet commanders!

In this battle, the priority must be to destroy the Imperial fleet’s effective strength! Only if the battle proceeds smoothly should an attack on the starport be considered!

Long-range scout ships deployed in adjacent star systems are to maintain constant surveillance on the movements of the Imperial fleet in their respective systems!”

“Yes, Marshal!”

With Trafalgar’s commands given, the “Kraken” battle group, which had been lying in wait behind a dust cloud, began to move.

The stellar dust permeating this region of space acted as a natural screen. It was filled with various types of dust and gas that strongly absorbed and interfered with electromagnetic waves, preventing both sides from using conventional radar and optical detection methods.

The three battle groups of the Federation’s attack were all using similar “natural cover” or planets to conceal their positions, preventing the long-range radar arrays at the Imperial Navy’s starport from detecting their approach.

But this was also a dangerous maneuver, a tremendous test of the fleet’s distance control.

If they were too far, the dust cloud might not be able to conceal the numerous fleets within the battle group. But getting too close risked charging into the dust cloud and sustaining damage.

After all, a ship’s Warp Engine required it to reach a certain relative velocity with the “warp coordinates” before it could be activated. This meant the entire fleet was essentially charging straight at the nebula ahead.

If the distance control was off, no one knew what would happen when the fleet slammed into this region filled with large amounts of dust, hydrogen, helium, and other ionized gases at extremely high speeds—but it certainly wouldn’t be anything good.

“Warp Engines activating.”

The voices of the shipboard control AIs on each warship sounded almost simultaneously.

The next moment, just as the warships, having completed their initial acceleration, were about to plunge into the nebula, they vanished in the white light of a tear in hyperspace.

Chapter 469: Base Trade!

Inside the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy ‘Oakheart’ Starport, a Tactical Information Coordinator in the Combat Command Center was staring at the constantly refreshing surveillance data.

Ever since the Federation launched its counterattack and brought the flames of war into Imperial territory, Oakheart Starport had been transformed from a second-line supply and maintenance port into a front-line starport.

The entire starport had undergone extensive modifications and reinforcements during this period, not only adding extra fusion reactors and superconductor cells but also installing numerous defensive weapons and deflector shield generators.

Most importantly, multiple long-range composite sensor arrays had been deployed at the starport for early warnings and situational monitoring.

The data this Tactical Information Coordinator was monitoring came from one of these sensor arrays. Although he had been monitoring it continuously for several weeks, no one in the Combat Command Center dared to let their guard down.

This was especially true after receiving intelligence from their superiors that the Federation fleet might launch a large-scale offensive in the near future.

On the console screen, the monotonous and unchanging data was making the Tactical Information Coordinator a little drowsy.

Although Oakheart Starport’s control personality was primarily responsible for monitoring the data, the officers in the Combat Command Center still required personnel at each battle station to perform secondary manual verification.

Just as the Tactical Information Coordinator was wondering if the effects of the stimulant he had taken before his shift were about to wear off, the starport’s control personality suddenly detected an abnormal signal.

It was a set of signals originating from a nebula. However, due to interference from the dust cloud and the nebula’s position in a ‘sidelobe’ of the long-range sensor array, the starport’s control personality didn’t issue a direct warning but marked it as an anomaly.

Under normal circumstances, the Tactical Information Coordinator might have just paid it some extra attention and ‘filtered’ the signal out if nothing else unusual followed.

But these were not normal times, so after a moment’s thought, he pressed a call button on his console and raised his hand, saying, “Captain, would you like to take a look at this?”

At his call, a figure in the black uniform of an Imperial Royal Navy officer floated to his side.

After casually dismissing the call notification, the Captain on duty looked seriously at the virtual screen on the console.

“Is this a signal from the M5 Nebula?”

“Yes, Captain,” the Tactical Information Coordinator said, quickly manipulating his console to display a series of charts.

“The interference from the dust cloud is too severe, so the starport’s control personality couldn’t determine the signal’s characteristics. I ran it against the signature database, but there were no matches either. The signal signature is just too distorted.”

“Tsk… you’re right, it’s impossible to identify. But at a critical juncture like this, I think we should err on the side of caution, don’t you?”

The Captain on duty pondered for a moment, then gave an order: “Put quantum entanglement communications on standby. Set the recipients to Fortress of Sorrow, Chaos Fortress, Gospel Fortress, and Serenity Fortress.”

Soon, the Communications Officer in charge of the quantum entanglement communication equipment completed the basic setup and opened the message composition interface, as the information to be transmitted would be encoded before being sent.

“Captain, what message should I input?”

“‘Oakheart Starport is under attack by the Federation fleet. If no subsequent communication follows, assume the starport has fallen and the attacking enemy force is large.’”

The Captain on duty calmly stated the contents of the message, even though it mentioned the worst-case scenario for the starport.

“Input complete. Ready to transmit at any time!”

“Stand by. If we come under attack, transmit the message immediately without waiting for orders. They will certainly target our communication units first.”

“Yes, Captain!”

Hearing the Captain’s words, the Communications Officer responded nervously, moving the warning message to the top of the ‘pending transmission’ list.

Having given his orders, the Captain on duty turned back to the Tactical Information Coordinator beside him.

“Keep watching. At a time like this, we must take even the smallest anomaly seriously.”

But before he could finish his sentence, he was cut off by a piercing alarm that suddenly blared through the Combat Command Center.

This time, the starport’s control personality showed no uncertainty, quickly identifying the sudden spatial fluctuations in the surrounding space.

“Warning! Unauthorized spatial collapse phenomenon detected!”

“Warning! Abnormal mass increase detected in space!”

As the two warnings sounded, everyone in Oakheart Starport and the regrouping Imperial fleet nearby saw a dense burst of white flashes in the distance.

With each white flash, the main screen in the Combat Command Center marked a new orange-red star in deep space, representing an unidentified unit.

As the entire screen was about to be filled, the Communications Officer, snapping back to his senses, quickly placed his palm on a volumetric light that represented ‘transmit message,’ while glancing one last time at the Captain on duty.

The instant the latter nodded, the Communications Officer unhesitatingly slapped the volumetric light.

That message, which would directly determine the course of the coming battle, vanished into deep space in that instant, heading toward the four Artificial Celestial Fortresses.

“‘Oakheart Starport is under attack by the Federation fleet. If no subsequent communication follows, assume the starport has fallen and the attacking enemy force is large.’”

Upon seeing this urgent message, the Duke’s expression immediately turned grim. He realized the situation might be developing toward the ‘worst-case scenario’ from the pre-war simulations.

“Can we contact Oakheart Starport?”

“Your Grace, we’ve tried every communication channel, but we can’t get through to Oakheart Starport!” the Communications Officer of the Celestial Fortress replied nervously.

“Ask the other three fortresses if they can get through. If Oakheart is completely out of contact, it means the Federation’s offensive has begun.”

Soon, messages came back from the other three fortresses. None of them could establish contact with Oakheart Starport.

They also brought another piece of bad news—besides Oakheart, two other front-line starports had also gone silent, and they hadn’t even managed to send a warning.

If it weren’t for a routine communications check, the problem might not have been discovered so quickly.

“A multi-pronged attack… And at each point, they have a superior force capable of quickly overwhelming the defenders?”

The Duke frowned. Although the four Celestial Fortresses, their assigned battle groups, and the other fleets had already begun entering a state of combat readiness, the Federation’s attack had still come sooner than expected.

At this moment, the Duke had no time to ponder the failures of the intelligence department or the reconnaissance fleets. Instead, he continued speaking:

“Contact Duke William. Tell him I approve his plan. Also, inform Hastings and Duke Artesia that the Fortress of Sorrow and the Chaos Fortress will launch an attack on one of the Federation’s mobile fortresses!”

Chapter 470: Not All Fortresses Are Created Equal

“Duke and William are on the move. What should we do? Should we coordinate with them?”

Inside Serenity Fortress, Duke Artesia frowned at the message from the Duke. “They’re certainly aggressive, moving to attack the Federation’s mobile fortress directly.”

“A ‘Base trade.’ It’s not surprising. If I were in their position, I’d do the same.”

Duke Hastings’ voice came from his hologram. Perhaps because of the great distance between the two fortresses, and also because the quantum entanglement communication devices on the fortress were older models provided by Atlas, his holographic image was still somewhat distorted.

In fact, when Atlas Communications had helped the Star Dragon Empire establish its quantum entanglement communications network, Amber had specifically warned them that the real-time data transmission capacity of the early models was limited. She advised against using flashy real-time holograms, as it would compromise the quality of communication.

Clearly, the upper echelons of the Imperial Royal Navy hadn’t listened. Fortunately, while the hologram flickered, the audio quality was largely unaffected, and Duke Hastings’ voice remained clear.

“The attack on ‘Heart of the Oak’ has been confirmed, and we’ve lost contact with two other frontline starports. This indicates the Federation has committed a significant offensive force at these three points; otherwise, they couldn’t have suppressed the starports and surrounding fleets so quickly.

And while the Federation Navy has been resupplying during this time, warships are built one by one in shipyards, not conjured out of thin air by magic. Therefore, Naval Intelligence and several other intelligence agencies have been able to roughly estimate their shipbuilding speed and, from there, deduce the current approximate number of ships in the Federation Navy.

We can also make a broad judgment that the Federation Navy’s main forces are concentrated at these three ‘attack points.’ This also means their defenses elsewhere along the front line will inevitably be weaker.

Under these circumstances, taking the opportunity to knock out their mobile fortresses is indeed the best option.”

Duke Hastings paused, his eyes seeming to pierce through the vastness of space to see the Federation Marshal, wherever he might be. “It’s also the choice that Marshal Trafalgar has ‘helped’ us make.”

Listening to Duke Hastings’ explanation, Duke Artesia nodded thoughtfully.

Although she was the only woman among the Empire’s five great dukes and not a military academy graduate, making her less of an expert in naval warfare, her long tenure in command of the Celestial Fortress Battle Group had elevated her skills above most.

“If this is the only choice the Federation Marshal has left us… I believe he definitely has other cards hidden up his sleeve besides the obvious mobile fortresses.

Otherwise, with our two Celestial Fortress Battle Groups on the attack, those crude imitations of mobile fortresses won’t last long. I estimate one synchronized volley from the ‘Focusing Rainbow’ of both our Celestial Fortresses could completely breach their defenses. If they don’t have other trump cards to back them up, those two mobile fortresses won’t even be able to buy enough time.”

“Exactly!”

Duke Hastings gave Artesia an approving look. The Duchess was not only his ‘political ally’ but also his student, in a sense, when it came to naval command.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he continued, “Trafalgar is no fool. The Federation’s mobile fortresses are inferior to ours in both quantity and quality, so he wouldn’t deploy them in a way that’s practically a free giveaway. I suspect that in addition to the fleets assigned to their defense, he has also deployed another one of their strategic weapons.”

“Proton Annihilation Bombs?”

Duke Artesia raised an eyebrow. The memory of that Federation weapon was deeply etched in both her and Duke Hastings’ minds.

“But how would they deliver them effectively? They used to be able to use unmanned fleets for suicide attacks, but after the conflict with the Atlas Group at Parra IV, the Federation Navy urgently mothballed all their remaining unmanned fleets and converted them into manned, semi-automated fleets. Surely they wouldn’t use manned, conventional fleets for suicide attacks this time, would they?”

“That is my greatest doubt and source of apprehension as well,” Duke Hastings said, picking up the thread. “But we don’t have time for more reconnaissance. We can only take it one step at a time. Even knowing there’s a trap ahead, we must push forward with the utmost caution.”

Hearing the words of her ally and ‘Sir’, Duke Artesia sighed with a hint of self-deprecation.

“I have to admit, that Marshal Trafalgar on the other side is very confident in his command and the execution capabilities of the troops under him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have launched multi-point attacks along such a long front line. And all those fleets are under his personal command. While he may not have them moving with perfect precision, his command efficiency is at least far greater than ours.”

“Don’t dwell on it, Aldesia. Some things can’t be changed overnight. Let’s focus back on the battle.”

Duke Hastings said consolingly, then marked the star system of another Federation mobile fortress on the star chart.

“If you have no other suggestions, then let’s prepare to attack as well. After all, we don’t really have any better options at the moment.”

Duke Artesia nodded. “Tsk… I have no objections. I’ll temporarily transfer joint command authority to you. It just feels like we’re being ‘commanded’ by those two this time, forced to cooperate with their operation.”

Hearing Duke Artesia’s complaint, Hastings smiled but didn’t comment further on the matter. Instead, he gave the order.

“Gospel Fortress Battle Group, Serenity Fortress Battle Group! Target: the star system of Federation Mobile Fortress Number Two. Prepare for collective warp jump!”

“Marshal, we have successfully suppressed the Imperial starport ‘Heart of the Oak’ and its surrounding fleets! The starport’s defensive weapons are offline, and the remaining enemy ships have broadcast surrender signals and adjusted their ship orientation!

Currently, marines have secured all of the starport’s deployment bays and fusion reactor clusters, but a portion of the enemy is still resisting in the crew’s living quarters. The marine commander asks if they should launch a full-scale assault.”

On the bridge of the Federation Navy flagship, the Dreadnought, the battle results were being reported to Marshal Trafalgar.

The Kraken battle group, which had used a nebula as cover for its assault, had completed the attack without much difficulty.

Although the Empire had also deployed three standard fleets near the ‘Heart of the Oak’ starport, one of them was still conducting departure procedures. This meant only the other two assembled fleets could immediately join the battle.

The overwhelming disparity in numbers, combined with the swift attack of the Kraken battle group under Trafalgar’s command, rendered the Imperial defenders’ hastily organized defense largely ineffective.

Just like in the countless drills before, the three attacking fleets executed their bombardment formation with extreme speed. During the maneuver, a few heavy cruisers with the most ‘proficient’ crews even opened fire and destroyed Heart of the Oak’s external communications array.

If not for the Captain on duty in the Heart of the Oak’s Combat Command Center making arrangements in advance, news of the attack on the starport would not have gotten out so quickly.

And so, the artillery duel between three full-strength fleets that had completed their bombardment formation and two Imperial fleets that had scrambled to engage, quickly turned in the Federation’s favor, even with the latter receiving fire support from the starport’s defenses.

Not to mention the other two fleets launching a pincer attack from the left and right hemispheres. Along their main cannon firing axes were rows of ‘juicy’ targets—the broadsides of warships lacking deflector shield protection.

Under such a crossfire, the defending Imperial fleet was quickly defeated. After all, besides all the aforementioned disadvantages, they were facing the Kraken battle group, currently the most combat-effective unit in the Federation Navy’s order of battle.

The fleets within the battle group were all ‘veterans’ who had followed Marshal Trafalgar from defending the homeland, to the counterattack in ‘Operation Supernova’, and all the way into the territory of the Star Dragon Empire.

In terms of combat will and tactical and technical proficiency, they were a world apart from the pre-war Federation Navy fleets.

This was evident from the ship-borne HCP squadrons and the marines aboard the assault boats launched by the two fleets executing the pincer attack.

The internal defense forces of the Heart of the Oak starport were clearly no match for those of the asteroid fortress A·Bawa·Ku.

It was no exaggeration to say that the difference in difficulty was like that between a ‘forty-man random group raid’ and a ‘twenty-man epic difficulty raid’.

When the assault boats carrying the marines smashed into the starport’s deployment bays, they dismantled the defenses in the area with little effort, even annihilating two defense units that had rushed in from other sectors.

Once the ship-borne HCP units destroyed the starport’s external defenses, eliminated the defending HCPs, and seized space superiority, more and more marines safely entered the starport. With the support of multi-legged war machines that arrived simultaneously, the starport’s internal defense forces were steadily defeated.

They quickly lost nearly all critical nodes, finally having to fall back on the relatively complex layout of the crew’s living quarters to make a last stand.

“That’s enough. No need for a further assault. This place isn’t worth sacrificing so many marines,” Trafalgar said, summoning a virtual screen.

“Long-range scout ships in several neighboring star systems have just reported that multiple Imperial fleets are en route to provide support and have already entered warp. We don’t have much time. Neutralizing this frontline starport is meaningful enough.”

Hearing Marshal Trafalgar’s words, Admiral Caroll nodded. “What are our next moves, then?”

“The battle group will prepare to warp to classified coordinates within the star system. Have the long-range scout ships continue to monitor this region of space,” the old marshal said, a hunter’s smile spreading across his face.

“If the opportunity arises, there’s no harm in delivering a parting shot before we leave.”

When the Fortress of Sorrow and Chaos Fortress Battle Groups, led by the Duke and Duke William, arrived in the target star system and dropped out of warp, they too received the latest overall battle situation report.

“Well now~ To think that old fox Hastings would be so cooperative this time. It’s really not his style. I thought he’d want to have another long ‘chat’ with us first.”

Duke William raised his eyebrows in surprise upon seeing that the overall battle situation report mentioned that the Gospel and Serenity Celestial Fortress Battle Groups had also departed to attack the other mobile fortress.

“It’s not that strange, actually.”

After hearing Duke William, the Duke spoke up: “Although Hastings is the Princess’s man and has always been at odds with us, he knows what’s what on matters of great principle. Besides, he must also know that attacking the mobile fortresses and attempting to destroy them is our only way to turn the tables and regain the initiative.”

“Fine~” Duke William shrugged, then continued, “There’s one more thing. That Federation Navy battle group that attacked ‘Heart of the Oak’ seems to be quite something.”

“Yes, I saw that,” the Duke nodded, his voice turning serious.

“To dare to strike back again as relief fleets were arriving one after another, crushing the first two to reach the scene, and then vanishing before more support could arrive… All I can say is that both the commander’s audacity and the battle group’s tactical and technical proficiency are quite remarkable.”

Duke William: “Could it be Trafalgar himself in command?”

The Duke pondered the question for a moment before answering, “It’s highly likely. And the fleets under his command are probably among the most battle-hardened in the entire Federation Navy.”

“If what you say is true, won’t our rear be thrown into utter chaos by this battle group?”

“That will depend on our reserve fleets. If they can’t stop this battle group, things will indeed get tricky.” The Duke’s tone then shifted. “But for us, this might be good news. At least when we launch our attack, we won’t have to worry about such an elite battle group jumping down our throats for a while.”

Just as the Duke was about to say more, the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator echoed through the core command room of the Fortress of Sorrow where he was located.

“Scout ship detachment reports: the target mobile fortress, in coordination with surrounding fleets, is conducting a security sweep of the local space. Our forward scout detachment has suffered heavy losses, and the remaining scout ships have withdrawn beyond the security perimeter!

At the same time, four Federation fleets have assembled near the mobile fortress and have already deployed into a defensive formation!”

“Looks like they know we’re here,” Duke William said with a hint of regret. “I was hoping we could give them a little surprise.”

The Duke: “Hmph. If they couldn’t even detect the warp signature of two Celestial Fortress Battle Groups arriving together, they might as well tow that mobile fortress of theirs back to the scrapyard.”

With that, he turned to look at Duke William ‘beside’ him. Although William was only a hologram, he could still clearly see the Duke’s malicious grin.

“I heard the Chaos Fortress had its entire external defense unit upgraded during its last overhaul. How about you take your battle group and go first? You can test the firepower of their mobile fortress and, at the same time, we can see if that liquid metal armor is really as amazing as the Imperial Military Science Academy claims.”

Taking a Day Off for the Qixi Festival

Taking a day off for the Qixi Festival!

Out celebrating, my bros~

Updates will resume tomorrow. Fortress firefight~

Chapter 471: The Fallen Military Nobility

“You’re remarkably above board when it comes to setting people up,” Duke William said, his tone a mix of annoyance and resignation.

“How is this setting you up? Just tell me, has the Chaos Fortress been refitted with liquid metal armor or not?”

The Duke spoke with a dead-serious expression. “At present, only the Chaos Fortress under your command has had its defenses upgraded. As for the Federation mobile fortress we’re facing, we have no idea about the power of its main cannon. However, this kind of rushed ‘imitation’ should, in theory, not exceed the power of The Focusing Rainbow.

“The people at the Royal Military Science Academy have said that a deflector shield operating at medium-to-high power combined with liquid metal armor can withstand an attack from The Focusing Rainbow at eighty percent power. Therefore, having the Chaos Fortress draw its fire carries the least risk. We can’t very well have the Fortress of Sorrow, which hasn’t had its defenses upgraded, draw their fire, can we?”

At this, the Duke also brought up the performance comparison report previously sent by the Royal Military Science Academy, continuing, “As long as the Chaos Fortress can bait the Federation’s mobile fortress into firing its main cannon once, our fleet will be able to play a much larger role in the subsequent battle.”

Duke William still felt it was unreliable. “If we take a direct hit, even with liquid metal armor, the Chaos Fortress will sustain considerable damage. This is a fortress cannon we’re talking about, not the same as a salvo from a warship.”

“You! So hesitant and cautious, you don’t look like a military noble at all! I think the fighting blood passed down from your ancestors has been completely diluted by all the alcohol in your system.”

The Duke frowned and said, clearly disappointed in him for failing to meet expectations, “Since you lack the decisiveness, then we’ll hold back. I’ll take the Fortress of Sorrow and attack first. If anything happens, you can come and collect my corpse!”

With that, the visibly angry duke was about to cut the communication and end the unpleasant conversation.

“Wait. Let the Chaos Fortress do it. If something really happens to you and the Fortress of Sorrow because of this, I won’t be in a good position even if I retreat.”

At the last moment, a resigned Duke William finally chose to follow the plan.

Although they both held the rank of Duke, the elder Duke was a generation senior to William. He had also been very close to William’s deceased father—the previous Duke. As such, William, the youngest of the five great Dukes, had always subconsciously deferred to the imposing older man.

The Duke said nothing more, simply giving a calm nod before temporarily disconnecting the communication.

He had always felt conflicted about Duke William’s attitude.

From a personal standpoint, as an ally within the Regent Prince’s faction, it was naturally a good thing that Duke William could follow his orders at critical moments.

But from another, more ‘disingenuous’ perspective, seeing an Imperial Duke of equal rank act in such a way made the Duke feel that the future of the Star Dragon Empire was growing ever dimmer.

Once upon a time, when the Empire’s military nobles followed the late Emperor into battle, every one of them was filled with a fiery spirit, always leading from the front in every engagement.

If the military nobles of that era were faced with the current situation, they would have fought until their heads were bloodied for the honor of commanding a Celestial Fortress to lead a warp-in attack.

However, as the Star Dragon Empire’s territory expanded to its current size, the vast Empire finally halted its war machine and entered a period of rest, recuperation, and digestion of its ‘loot’.

During this process, the military nobles of old, having received their rewards and fiefdoms from the late Emperor, finally turned their energies toward managing their own domains.

It was an idiom for peacetime, meaning to store away weapons and stop military preparations.

When the first generation of nobles who had followed the late Emperor to build the empire passed away one by one, their descendants, inheriting their fathers’ titles, continued to focus their energies on managing their fiefdoms.

Although the deep reserves of these nobles, including the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, allowed them to maintain their rule through brute force for a long time, these ‘reserves’ were also depleted with the passage of time.

In the great war with the Federation eighty years ago, the Empire, which once could have crushed its foes with military might, ended up in a stalemate, ending the war by signing a peace treaty. This should have been a wake-up call for the Royal Family and the nobility of the Star Dragon Empire.

Unfortunately, after the war ended, everyone once again poured their energy into ‘recovering the financial losses caused by the war.’

Then came the generation of the Duke and Duke Hastings. The two of them were among the few great nobles of their generation who still possessed the fighting spirit of the military aristocracy.

By Duke William’s generation, the youngest echelon of the Star Dragon Empire’s great nobles, the shadow of the ‘military noble’ was almost nowhere to be seen.

The Duke’s earlier description was no exaggeration. After long periods of pampered living and extravagant indulgence, the fighting blood in their veins had been diluted to the point of being almost nonexistent.

Just as he was pondering these issues spurred by his conversation with Duke William, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported that the Chaos Fortress Battle Group had entered warp. Their reported destination was an attack coordinate previously scouted by the scout ship detachment.

“Proceed according to the joint operational plan,” the Duke ordered calmly.

“‘The Focusing Rainbow’ is to enter standby. Begin charging immediately after the battle group exits warp and commence the attack. Target—the Federation mobile fortress!”

Inside the core command room of the Chaos Fortress, Duke William sat silently in his command chair.

The panoramic screen before him currently displayed a surreal, phantasmagorical scene, as if the Celestial Fortress and the surrounding fleet had entered a tunnel in some non-material world.

But Duke William had no interest in the sight unique to warp travel. The Duke’s disappointed words still echoed in his ears.

“You! So hesitant and cautious, you don’t look like a military noble at all! I think the fighting blood passed down from your ancestors has been completely diluted by all the alcohol in your system.”

Fighting blood? Do I really still have something like that in me? Duke William asked himself silently.

He was, of course, aware of his family’s glorious history. His ancestors had followed the late Emperor’s campaigns across the stars, forging their current family fortune with iron, blood, and the lives of countless men.

And although he had received education in macro-strategy since childhood and had completed all command courses at the Imperial Royal Naval Academy, Duke William had to admit that he was more interested in, and more skilled at, managing his family’s affairs.

However, after being unceremoniously reprimanded by the Duke just now, William felt that the last vestiges of fighting blood and noble pride within him had actually been activated.

The old Duke’s rebuke not only annoyed him but also made him eager to prove that he was not a coward utterly devoid of courage.

“If I were really a coward, would the Chaos Fortress have been so heavily damaged before?”

William thought to himself, then loudly issued his combat orders:

“All ships of the fortress battle group, listen up! Upon exiting warp, execute maneuvers immediately. Cover the fortress’s flanks and repel any flanking attacks from the Federation fleet.

“Celestial Fortress primary energy distribution strategy, switch to ‘Defense Mode’! Activate the deflector shield array at ninety percent power, and complete pre-powering of the liquid metal armor layer!”

Although the Duke’s words had gotten to him, William did not act rashly, nor did he forget what he had to do.

It would take three hours to warp from their current position to the attack vector. Before that, after arriving in this star system, the two Celestial Fortress battle groups had rested for nearly two hours, mainly to check if the Warp Engines could handle consecutive jumps.

This meant the Federation’s mobile fortress had at least five hours to react.

The sheer size and mass of the Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortresses, combined with the other fleets in the battle group, created spatial fluctuations from such a large-scale collective warp that Duke William refused to believe the Federation’s mobile fortress would not notice.

In his earlier discussion with the Duke, they had also touched upon the same problem Duke Hastings had mentioned: these two mobile fortresses were the choice Fleet Admiral Trafalgar had left for them.

And for the enemy to dare make such a deployment, it was impossible that they would only station a mobile fortress and its fleet here.

Putting aside how they might use their strategic Proton Annihilation Bombs, the sheer number of scout ships and autonomous probes used to monitor the star system would not be small.

Not to mention, a mobile fortress possessed extremely powerful reconnaissance and detection capabilities. Duke William did not believe the Federation Navy would cut corners in this aspect, so its gravitational wave radar array would also be more than capable of detecting the movements of a large-scale fleet warp.

All these preconditions made Duke William certain that the Federation mobile fortress and its surrounding fleet he was about to face would be fully prepared for battle.

During the warp, everyone in the Chaos Fortress’s core command room was silent and tense. The atmosphere felt oppressive.

Even though they had fought with this fortress for so long, knowing that their Celestial Fortress was about to be used as a靶子 to draw fire, they couldn’t just act as if nothing was wrong.

From time to time, someone would secretly glance toward Duke William on the command throne, as if the high-ranking Imperial noble was some kind of anchor for them. As long as they saw him still in his chair, they could continue to fight on.

Seated in his command chair, Duke William took it all in. He could see every person’s small movements clearly, which reminded him of the old trope that had been circulating in human society for who knows how many years—a teacher on the podium can see every little move the students below make.

It seemed that was really true.

This little interlude helped him relax slightly, and the corners of his mouth curved into a faint smile.

When he saw a female Communications Officer sneak another glance at him, then reveal a look of reassurance, the Imperial Duke could no longer hide the smile on his face.

“Go ahead and look if you want. I’m not going to charge you with ‘great disrespect’ or anything like that~”

The crew couldn’t help but chuckle secretly. Because Duke William’s usual demeanor was more like that of a ‘young master,’ without so many rigid rules and regulations, the atmosphere between him and his subordinates was more relaxed compared to other nobles.

This was also why other nobles often privately said William was more like a ‘businessman’ than a powerful Imperial Duke.

“Rest assured,” Duke William said, his tone uncharacteristically firm. “I’ll be right here. I’m not going anywhere until the battle is over.”

Seeing the unease on everyone’s faces slowly fade, Duke William continued, “So, I need every one of you to give it your all and do what you need to do. Not just for me or the Empire, but for yourselves as well.”

As time passed, the battle group’s warp jump approached its end.

The scene on Duke William’s panoramic screen began to change. The surreal, bizarre sights grew increasingly blurry, as if the ‘layer’ they existed on was fading away.

In its place, the backdrop of the universe became clearer and clearer. Duke William could even begin to make out the distant star, which looked like a tiny ball of light.

The appearance of such a scene usually signaled an imminent exit from warp.

Duke William’s hand couldn’t help but grip the armrest tighter. At this moment, despite all his mental preparation, or perhaps because the fighting blood within him was surging, he couldn’t suppress the slight fear and nervousness.

But the youngest Duke knew that he absolutely could not show any fear now, because his state would affect the morale of the entire battle group.

He bit his tongue lightly, temporarily clearing the myriad thoughts from his mind. Duke William tensed the muscles of his vocal cords so that no one would hear the tremor in his voice, and then said slowly:

“All hands, prepare for engagement.”

The next moment, the warp ended.

Against the black backdrop of the universe, an equally massive sphere appeared abruptly on the panoramic screen, as if it had been delivered right before their eyes.

Innumerable lock-on and analysis boxes immediately overlaid it, simultaneously identifying the Federation warships hiding in the mobile fortress’s shadow.

A mobile fortress with a diameter of three hundred and forty kilometers, and three Federation fleets in a coordinated defensive formation.

Immediately after, the fortress’s control personality reported a series of alarms:

“Warning, fire-control radar firing characteristics detected!”

“Warning, enemy mobile fortress is adjusting its firing axis! Estimated intersection with this fortress in twenty seconds!”

“Warning, high-energy reading detected!”

“Warning, extremely high-strength electric field detected in the target area!”

At this point, Duke William no longer needed to give commands. Everyone had already acted on their own initiative, completing a series of operations according to the pre-engagement plan.

Under the effect of the containment magnetic field, the silvery-white liquid metal on the surface of the Chaos Fortress slowly covered The Focusing Rainbow on its bow. At the same time, the fortress’s Attitude control units began to operate, slightly adjusting the Chaos Fortress’s angle of engagement based on the predicted beam path.

Presenting its side-front to the enemy would not only allow the deflector shield to more fully exert its ability to bend charged particles but also protect The Focusing Rainbow as much as possible.

Although Duke William was willing to believe that the Chaos Fortress could withstand the enemy’s attack, he wasn’t sure if The Focusing Rainbow would be affected by a direct hit, and he didn’t dare to gamble on it.

“All hands! The fortress is about to be hit! All personnel, brace for impact!”

As the all-hands broadcast echoed throughout the fortress, the Chaos Fortress was still making its final attitude adjustments. After all, once the enemy’s fortress cannon entered the final, irreversible stage before firing, it could not be stopped.

So Duke William would naturally not let the Chaos Fortress just sit there like a fool waiting to be shot. It was constantly performing evasive maneuvers, forcing the Federation mobile fortress to also continuously adjust its firing axis, otherwise its shot would miss.

The current distance between the two sides was eighty thousand kilometers. With both fleets temporarily unable to engage, the battle had for the moment become a duel between the two fortresses.

Finally, after fifteen seconds that felt like an eternity for both sides, Duke William saw a blue-white light flash from the center of the distant Federation mobile fortress.

Chapter 472: Exchanging Fire!

As expected, the main cannon of the Federation’s mobile fortress was very similar to the Empire’s “Focusing Rainbow”—an oversized, fortress-class heavy particle cannon.

Although constrained by the mobile fortress’s size, resulting in a slight performance gap compared to The Focusing Rainbow, its speed and power were still far beyond what conventional weapons could match.

The duel between spear and shield began the moment this frankly berserk ‘power’ crossed eighty thousand kilometers of space and slammed into the deflector shield activated by the Chaos Fortress.

Benefiting from the “late-mover advantage” of a project started later, the Federation incorporated a great deal of new technology when building its mobile fortress.

The fire control unit and the fortress’s control personality, in particular, boasted performance that could be said to have drastically surpassed the older models installed on the Chaos Fortress.

Moreover, electronics and artificial intelligence technology were the Federation’s strong suits, and their research progress in these fields was miles ahead of the Star Dragon Empire.

This was precisely why the Empire had dispatched a team on Robert IV to try and capture Lilith, hoping to catch up to the Federation’s progress in artificial intelligence research.

It was just a shame that Amber swooped in and snatched her away.

Returning to the matter at hand, the superior performance of the mobile fortress’s fire control unit and control personality culminated in a display of what was, for a fortress cannon, an extremely precise firing run for all to see in the Chaos Fortress battle group.

Although the Chaos Fortress had initiated evasive maneuvers the instant it dropped out of warp under Duke William’s command, the mobile fortress’s attack still struck its intended target with pinpoint accuracy.

The point of impact was the upper section of the Chaos Fortress’s front-left hemisphere, the very surface currently facing the mobile fortress—a direct bullseye.

Furthermore, the landing position error was only 0.063 percent, a completely negligible deviation for a fortress cannon.

Just as Duke William had thought, the Federation’s mobile fortress had designated the Chaos Fortress as its target, which was why it had even used a “focused mode” firing this time.

The attack’s area of effect was much smaller than that of the “diffusion mode,” but in turn, its destructive power increased exponentially.

At this moment, in the optical sensors of every unit, the white light erupting from the collision between the ultra-high-speed heavy metal ion stream and the deflector shield had become the brightest light source in this region of space.

As a massive amount of the heavy metal particle stream was deflected by the shield, it began to scatter chaotically in all directions. The spectacular sight was like a great cape being unfurled over the Chaos Fortress’s front-left hemisphere.

But no one wanted to get a closer look at this cape; after all, the scattered heavy metal ion streams still possessed more than enough destructive power.

If the other fleets of the Imperial battle group hadn’t steered clear of the area around the “engagement profile” from the start, this round of “splash damage” alone would have caused considerable casualties.

Duke William couldn’t help but feel relieved that he had ordered the Chaos Fortress’s engagement profile to be adjusted in advance. Otherwise, under such an attack, the components of its Focusing Rainbow would have undoubtedly been damaged.

According to the monitoring of the fortress control personality, an increasing number of ultra-high-speed heavy metal particle streams were breaching the deflector shield’s interception and successfully striking the liquid metal armor on the fortress’s surface.

If one could observe the Chaos Fortress’s engagement profile from a God’s-eye view, one would see its liquid metal armor rippling like the surface of water in a heavy downpour, constantly generating a dense pattern of “涟漪.”

This was the effect of the “leaked” heavy metal particle streams slamming into the liquid metal armor layer, their kinetic and thermal energy being absorbed. As the heat accumulated, this section of liquid metal armor began to glow red, and warnings of “temperature approaching critical threshold” echoed continuously in the central command center.

Had this been before, the heavy armor and structural layers in this area would probably have been torn to shreds by these heavy metal particle streams.

The duration of the mobile fortress’s firing felt excruciatingly long to Duke William. He felt as though he had spent more than ten minutes tightly gripping the armrests of his command chair.

When the blue-white beam that stretched across the stars finally vanished and the deflector shield, dancing with electric arcs, returned to calm, Duke William realized the mobile fortress’s firing was over. And they had survived.

He glanced at the time. Only ten seconds had passed.

“First time ten seconds has ever felt so long.”

The Imperial Duke let out a long sigh, a sense of having survived a catastrophe washing over him, and then said:

“Report on the fortress’s damage!”

“Deflector shield array generators 45-61, 93-112, and 141-159 are overloaded!

Superconductor cells 7, 9, 12, 17, and 22 are showing power depletion!

The liquid metal armor layer in sectors A4 to A9 is severely damaged and cannot be restored. Liquid metal is currently being transferred from other sectors to replenish it.

The structural layer beneath the impact zone has sustained varying degrees of damage, but it is currently within acceptable limits!

Damage control teams and repair Swarms have been deployed. No signs of the aforementioned damage escalating at present!”

The fortress control personality responded swiftly to Duke William’s query, simultaneously displaying a three-dimensional model of the Chaos Fortress.

The impact zone on the front-left hemisphere was covered in spots of different colors and shades, representing the extent of the damage in those areas.

At the same time, external views of the fortress were transmitted back through the optical sensors of the repair Swarms as they were released.

The area struck by the mobile fortress now bore a ghastly “wound.” The liquid metal at its center had been heated to a glowing red, looking like a pool of slowly flowing lava.

However, the surrounding liquid metal armor seemed to come alive, controlled by containment fields as it constantly flowed toward the gash, repairing the terrifying “scar” at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Simultaneously, both sides in the engagement detected a new round of spatial collapse and an incredible increase in mass.

Hearing the control personality’s report, Duke William smiled. He then saw the Fortress of Sorrow battle group arrive in the distance, tearing through the white light of hyperspace to form a “triangle” with the mobile fortress and the Chaos Fortress.

That somewhat old yet powerful voice sounded once again in the communication channel:

“It seems the engineers at the Royal Military Science Academy weren’t bluffing.”

“What? Did you plan on coming to collect my corpse, Duke?”

Having completed his mission of “drawing fire,” Duke William felt his fighting blood reignited. He was back in his element, firing back a retort without a moment’s hesitation.

“You’re in good shape yourself, still in the mood to quip.” There was a hint of a smile in the Duke’s voice, though it was unclear if it was because of William’s current state or relief at seeing his junior colleague out of danger.

As the two spoke, the Fortress of Sorrow, following the orders the Duke had issued before the warp, rapidly adjusted its posture and firing axis.

Duke William said, “They just finished firing. Their energy supply can’t have recovered to normal levels yet. Even if they can activate their deflector shield, its power will be nowhere near high enough!”

“I know. Why else do you think I had you draw their fire?”

As the Duke’s words fell, the Fortress of Sorrow’s “Focusing Rainbow” erupted with an intense energy reaction.

Just as the blue-white beam, also using the “focused firing mode,” surged forth, a series of brilliant white lights suddenly flashed in front of the distant Federation mobile fortress, almost forming a “light curtain.”

Seeing this, both the Duke and Duke William showed expressions of surprise. When the fortress control personality reported the cause of this “light curtain,” the Duke’s brow furrowed so deeply it formed three vertical lines.

“Nuclear warheads?”

Chapter 473: The Federation Doesn’t Just Take a Beating

The Duke didn’t know how many nuclear warheads the Federation’s mobile fortress was equipped with, but within the newly formed ‘light curtain’, the detection units of the Fortress of Sorrow had detected 820 high-yield nuclear detonations. And that wasn’t the end; new detonations were continuously being detected as time passed.

During the time it took for the ‘celestial river’ unleashed by The Focusing Rainbow to cross the eighty-thousand-kilometer distance to the target area, the Duke had already figured out the reason for the mobile fortress’s action.

And he didn’t need to explain anything to Duke William or the others, because when the blue-white beam from the ‘focused firing mode’ slammed into the fading light curtain and erupted into a massive ‘firework’, everyone understood.

In conventional fleet battles, high-yield thermonuclear weapons were used as defensive fleet weapons ninety percent of the time. Only in very rare cases were they used to directly attack enemy ships—for example, in close-quarters combat and boarding actions.

This was mainly because, until now, directly launched nuclear warheads had difficulty penetrating a fleet’s anti-air screen. Not every fleet commander had the extensive fleet battle experience of someone like Amber, nor did they know the plethora of ‘old fox’ tactics developed by players using missiles or torpedoes.

So, in the hands of most fleet commanders, high-yield thermonuclear weapons were a means of defending against enemy fleet attacks.

After a nuclear warhead detonates in space, the electric field within the blast zone is affected in a way invisible to the naked eye—it becomes saturated with a massive amount of elementary particles.

Although the Star Dragon Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortress’s main cannon, The Focusing Rainbow, was incredibly stunning in both its ‘visual effects’ and actual power, in principle, it was essentially an oversized heavy particle cannon. In other words, it was still a directed-energy weapon that attacked using charged particles.

And as long as they were charged particles, they would be severely disrupted—or even unable to penetrate—when passing through an area after a nuclear detonation.

Even the heavy metal particle stream fired by The Focusing Rainbow, with kinetic energy far exceeding that of a standard warship’s main cannon, began to break apart as it crashed into the region of elementary particle turbulence in front of the Federation’s mobile fortress. The heavy metal particles, originally held in check by directional magnetic confinement, were scattered.

Furthermore, the mobile fortress’s control personality had almost perfectly predicted the path of The Focusing Rainbow’s beam, detonating the thermonuclear weapons in layers along its trajectory. This meant the resulting region of elementary particle turbulence was not just a thin sheet.

And it was within this region of elementary particle turbulence that the continuously fragmenting heavy metal particle stream ultimately created the firework display that the Duke and the others witnessed through their optical sensors.

Of course, this didn’t mean The Focusing Rainbow’s attack was so easily intercepted. The ‘light curtain wall’ formed by the nuclear detonations served more to weaken the beam.

After being weakened, the surging heavy metal particle stream, like a celestial river, still penetrated the region of elementary particle turbulence and then slammed into the second wall in its path—the deflector shield.

When the fifteen-second firing period ended, the main screen, which had its light intake dimmed, returned to normal. The optical sensors of every warship and Celestial Fortress immediately focused on the mobile fortress’s position.

“Firing complete!”

“Energy circuit disengaged. Beginning power redistribution.”

“The Focusing Rainbow is initiating emergency heat dispersal. Main weapon systems commencing self-check. Autonomous diagnostic probes and manned engineering vehicles are being deployed!”

The voices of the core command room staff echoed in the Duke’s ears. Following their orders, the various departments of the Fortress of Sorrow began inspecting the fortress’s systems according to combat doctrine, having just fired the main cannon.

However, the Imperial Duke wasn’t paying attention to these voices. His eyes were glued to the image transmitted back by the optical sensors, hoping to confirm the effect of The Focusing Rainbow as quickly as possible.

When the massive sphere appeared in the center of the screen, the Duke let out an almost imperceptible sigh. The operational plan to quickly suppress and destroy the mobile fortress had ultimately failed.

Although the optical sensors clearly showed a massive ‘scar’ on the forward-right hemisphere of the Federation’s mobile fortress—one that looked even more severe than the damage to Duke William’s Chaos Fortress.

The internal structure of the area hit by the beam had been torn to shreds by the rampaging heavy metal particle stream. It would be impossible to repair in a short amount of time, let alone in the midst of battle.

But regardless, the Federation’s mobile fortress had not been destroyed outright, which meant the battle would now be dragged into a phase of direct confrontation.

“It seems the Federation has been strafed by The Focusing Rainbow so many times they’ve learned from the experience?”

Duke William’s voice came over the communication channel. The duke, who had just been in a state of shock and panic, had managed to compose himself first. His words pulled the Duke out of his slight disappointment.

The Duke: “It was inevitable. Being under the threat of The Focusing Rainbow for so long, the Federation’s command would certainly rack their brains for countermeasures, especially knowing their mobile fortress would be a primary target.”

“So it’s we who have been holding this invincible ‘sharp weapon’ all this time, and yet we overlooked the measures the enemy might take.”

Listening to his elder, Duke William’s tone held a hint of self-mockery. He paused for a moment before continuing, “If we had considered their countermeasures and slowed the pace of our attack just now, or perhaps baited them into releasing their defensive thermonuclear weapons early, might things have turned out better?”

“Not necessarily.” The Duke shook his head. “This clearly wasn’t some ‘idea’ the mobile fortress’s commander came up with on the spot. It was a well-thought-out countermeasure plan. And since it’s a plan, it must have a trigger condition.”

“You mean a ‘feint’ wouldn’t have been enough to fool them?” Duke William asked.

“Most likely. Judging from the firing accuracy of their recent attack on the Chaos Fortress, their fortress’s control personality is clearly superior to ours in performance, with faster reaction times. It could easily detect when The Focusing Rainbow entered an irreversible firing state and only then release the nuclear warheads to form the elementary particle turbulence zone.”

After hearing the Duke’s words, Duke William, who had just composed himself, frowned again. He too realized that this battle would likely not be as simple as they had imagined.

He couldn’t help but lament, “How much time has passed? The Celestial Fortress is no longer the ‘decisive weapon’ that can settle things in one blow.”

“In wartime, that’s perfectly normal.”

The Duke had also calmed down by this point. “Our opponent may have numerous problems, but they have contended with us for many years. They are an entity on the same scale as the Empire. If the Federation could only take a passive beating, this war would have ended long ago.”

The old duke looked at the clearly frustrated and dejected face of Duke William in the hologram and continued, “But thankfully, they haven’t truly hit their stride yet. That’s why we must take out this mobile fortress. Besides, it’s a ‘2v1’ situation. The advantage is still in our hands.”

With that, he drew the command sword from his waist and pointed it directly at the enlarged image of the mobile fortress in the center of the panoramic screen.

“Fleets under the battle group, begin the assault.”

Chapter 474: Fortress vs. Fortress

While the Duke and Duke William were forced to continue their frontal assault, Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia had also entered the engagement phase on their end.

Since neither the Gospel nor the Serenity Celestial Fortresses had been upgraded with liquid metal armor, Duke Hastings naturally wouldn’t employ such a risky tactic like the Duke. His ultimate response was comparatively conservative.

The fleets of the battle group entered first to draw attention, and through reconnaissance by fire, they managed to get a rough idea of the defensive forces, excluding the mobile fortress.

And the Federation’s second mobile fortress reacted just as Hastings had predicted; wary of the Empire’s Celestial Fortresses, it hesitated to open fire first.

In Duke Hastings’s view, this was, in fact, an open conspiracy.

Under the pressure created by Marshal Trafalgar, no matter how the Imperial commanders thought or hesitated, ninety-nine percent of the time, they would execute the ‘base trade’ tactic of using their Celestial Fortresses to attack the mobile fortress.

This also meant that the Federation’s mobile fortress was prepared from the very beginning to confront two Celestial Fortresses at once.

Especially after the Duke and Duke William had already launched their attack, the commander of the mobile fortress facing Duke Hastings must have also received news that friendly forces were under assault—and here, Duke Hastings silently thanked the Atlas Group for popularizing super-long-range, real-time communication technology. Otherwise, the enemy wouldn’t have received the news so quickly.

Under these circumstances, the enemy was certainly focusing most of their attention on the two Celestial Fortresses that could enter the battlefield at any moment.

Therefore, when faced with the large number of Imperial fleets that had entered first, they were forced to hold back, not daring to easily attack with the main cannon.

After all, the commander of the mobile fortress was now facing a multiple-choice question:

A. Fire the main cannon and attack the Imperial fleets that were already in their face.

B. Wait for the Empire’s Celestial Fortresses to enter the field, then find an opportunity to fire.

And this was clearly not an easy choice to make.

If the mobile fortress commander acted impulsively, he could certainly wipe out an entire Imperial fleet with the main cannon, but the Empire’s two Celestial Fortresses would very likely enter the battlefield right as he entered his cooldown period. The situation would immediately turn dire, and he might very well be focus-fired and destroyed by two Focusing Rainbows.

So when Duke Hastings boldly sent eight full fleets to enter the field early and launch an attack, leaving only two fleets by his side to handle emergencies, the Federation’s defensive forces in this star system found themselves in a difficult position.

After Marshal Trafalgar had transferred away the elite units, this star system was left with only one mobile fortress and five fleets. Half of the ships in these fleets had been recently reinforced, or even newly formed.

Thus, once they were unable to receive main cannon support from the mobile fortress, the eight assault fleets sent by Duke Hastings had much more room to maneuver.

Even though the mobile fortress also had numerous warship-grade heavy particle cannons as secondary weapons in addition to its main cannon, they ultimately lacked the same level of threat in terms of deterrence and lethality.

This period was agonizing for the commander of the Federation mobile fortress, as he could only watch helplessly as his own defensive fleets were caught in such a disastrous exchange.

It reached the point where he finally disobeyed Marshal Trafalgar’s orders and chose to open fire on the Imperial fleet.

As the surging heavy metal particle stream swept across the void, passing through the area where an Imperial fleet was located, the commander of the mobile fortress felt not the slightest bit of excitement as he stared at the wreckage in the target area.

What flooded his heart at that moment was more a sense of regret for his own rash decision.

And after some time had passed, when the alarm for a “massive mass signature increase” sounded twice in succession, this regret reached its peak.

Looking at the two Celestial Fortresses that had appeared in the cold void to his left and right, and their slowly adjusting firing axes, the mobile fortress commander asked anxiously, “How much longer until the main cannon can fire again?”

“Sir! At least another twenty minutes, and it can only fire at seventy percent power!”

After hearing this answer, the fortress commander knew he had no time left to counterattack. According to previous intelligence gathered on the Empire’s Celestial Fortresses, the fastest they could go from exiting warp to firing their main cannon was just over six minutes.

Realizing this, he immediately made a decision.

“Relay my orders! Disconnect the energy circuits to all weapon systems! Divert all power to the power units and deflector shield units at a two-to-eight ratio! Activate overclock mode on all deflector shield generators! Set a course to intercept the predicted trajectory of the Imperial Celestial Fortress!

The defensive fleet is to continue attacking the Imperial fleet as planned. Lift the restriction on Proton Annihilation Bombs, and leave the timing of their use to the discretion of the defensive fleet’s commander!”

When the mobile fortress commander’s orders were issued, everyone in the core command room guessed what he intended to do.

There was no passionate speech, no morale-boosting address before the final moment. In the limited time available, only this cold command remained.

But despite this, no one in the core command room raised any objections or showed any fear. As if they had long been mentally prepared, they silently continued with their tasks.

And this Federation mobile fortress, which already seemed to be in a desperate situation, began to accelerate, charging toward Duke Artesia’s Serenity Fortress amidst the blue glow of its rear hemisphere’s main thruster array.

“Hastings!” Duke Artesia’s slightly tense voice sounded over the communication channel.

Warned by the fortress’s control personality, she had naturally noticed the Federation mobile fortress charging toward Serenity Fortress. Although it looked like a massive sphere with a diameter of 350 kilometers, equipped with numerous high-power plasma thruster arrays, the thing accelerated like a “nimble giant.”

While it wasn’t easy to achieve a precise collision with an object of such volume and mass, Duke Artesia had no desire to find out what would happen when the two largest objects ever built by humanity crashed into each other.

“Don’t panic! Just complete the firing sequence as planned.”

Duke Hastings’s voice remained calm, because the Federation mobile fortress’s reaction had not been outside his expectations.

Or rather, in such a desperate situation, the commander of the Federation mobile fortress had only this one option left.

A few minutes later, in the core command rooms of the Gospel and Serenity Fortresses, the two fortress control personalities issued the “Focusing Rainbow ready” notification at almost the same time. Upon hearing the prompt, neither Duke Hastings nor Duke Artesia hesitated.

“The Focusing Rainbow, begin firing!” they both ordered.

As their commands were given, two “celestial rivers” appeared simultaneously in the void. At their intersection point, the Federation mobile fortress was completely engulfed by a sudden, blinding silver light.

Chapter 475: The Last Federation Hero

“Chaos Fortress was destroyed, and Duke William was killed in action?”

“The fleets under the command of the Evangel and Serenity Fortress battle groups suffered over fifty percent losses, and Serenity Fortress is heavily damaged and has lost its ability to continue fighting?”

By the time Amber received accurate information from the frontline of the Federation-Empire conflict, the strategic decisive battle had already been over for a day.

When the intelligence, collected and verified by Lilith with the help of the Intelligence Analysis Center, was displayed on the virtual screen, everyone in the ‘Command Observation Group,’ including Amber, was stunned.

Due to the sheer length of this strategic decisive battle, the members of the Command Observation Group couldn’t possibly observe the entire event. After all, even the crew on the warships of both warring factions had to rotate shifts.

So, after confirming that the general movements of the Federation and Imperial fleets matched their predictions, Amber had temporarily adjourned the meeting to let everyone rest and await the battle’s outcome.

No one had expected to hear such news when they reconvened in the virtual space.

“How could this happen? How could the Empire’s attacking force suffer such heavy losses? Although they were forced to attack under pressure from Marshal Trafalgar, their strength was clearly a cut above the defending Federation fleet.”

Cleves’s question represented the thoughts of most people present. Everyone, including Guterres, had previously agreed that the mobile fortresses and the defensive fleet would cause the Empire some ‘minor trouble.’

But now, it seemed this ‘minor trouble’ was anything but minor.

“Chaos Fortress was destroyed by a direct ram from a Federation mobile fortress, followed by an attack with Proton Annihilation Bombs.” Amber revealed the intelligence he had, his voice tinged with disbelief.

“According to the information we’ve gathered so far, after the Fortress of Sorrow and Chaos Fortress failed to destroy the mobile fortress in their first salvo, they were quickly drawn into close-quarters combat by the suicidal charge of the Federation’s mobile fortress and its fleet.

We don’t know why the Imperial battle group, which had a numerical advantage, would have chosen close-quarters combat. Arrogance? Underestimation? But it’s clear they ultimately paid an irreparable price for it.

Once they were engaged at close range, a Federation fleet, at the cost of being almost completely wiped out, heavily damaged the power unit of Chaos Fortress. Immediately after, before the Fortress of Sorrow’s main cannon could fire a second time, the Federation mobile fortress rammed Chaos Fortress and detonated the two Proton Annihilation Bombs it was carrying.”

Listening to Amber’s description, the room fell silent. Though it was a briefing that omitted most of the details, they could still feel the sheer brutality of the engagement.

This was arguably the battle with the highest losses in a single engagement for either side since the war began.

Putting aside the warships sunk during the fighting, the two fortresses engulfed by the Proton Annihilation Bombs alone contained crews numbering in the millions, all of whom vanished into the starry sea.

“As for the other battlefield,” Amber continued, after giving everyone a moment to digest the first report.

“The Evangel and Serenity Fortress battle group, commanded by Duke Hastings, actually had the upper hand at the beginning. They chose to enter the fray only after the Federation mobile fortress had fired its main cannon. And with the focused fire of their two ‘Focusing Rainbows,’ they directly blew apart the Federation mobile fortress, which had lost all initiative.”

“Wait. With such a huge advantage, why was a Celestial Fortress still heavily damaged?” Guterres’s brows furrowed. In his view, once the Federation’s mobile fortress was destroyed, the remaining fleets should have been lambs to the slaughter before the Empire’s fortress battle group.

“It was the Proton Annihilation Bombs again.” At this, Amber couldn’t help but sigh. He had to admit that while the Federation had all sorts of problems, a small fraction of its people still possessed unimaginable courage and mettle.

“We don’t know the exact details of what happened yet, but the end result was that the Federation fleet, in exchange for two-thirds of its own forces, used multiple Proton Annihilation Bombs to take out nearly half of the Imperial fleet.

As for Serenity Fortress, it seems it was attacked by a new type of Proton Annihilation Bomb that arrived via warp. If the fortress’s defensive fleet hadn’t happened to be in the line of fire, forcing the bomb to detonate prematurely, the Empire might have lost more than just Chaos Fortress.”

After Amber finished, everyone fell into a somber silence.

The beginning and subsequent development of this strategic decisive battle had not deviated from their predictions, but the final result was something no one had expected.

From their perspective, the Empire held an absolute military advantage on both battlefields. Not only did they have more warships than the Federation fleet, but they also had a two-to-one advantage in fortresses.

People like Randall and Cleves were on the verge of calling the Imperial performance ‘incompetent.’

Amber naturally noticed the change in everyone’s expressions and saw what Randall, Cleves, and the other junior fleet commanders were thinking. He spoke up immediately.

“I know you all think the Imperial fleet’s performance in this battle was abysmally bad, but you must not overlook the ability of the Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bombs to turn the tide of battle in an instant.

If those things miss, it’s one thing. But if they successfully hit their target, the losses they cause are unacceptable to anyone, including us.”

Seeing the group’s expressions turn serious, Amber went on.

“What’s more, the Federation may now have mastered a method of delivering these strategic weapons via ‘warp.’ This is something we must be highly vigilant about.

Furthermore, the life-for-a-life fighting style of the commanders of those two mobile fortresses must have caught the Imperial commanders off guard. Especially the commander who ordered the ramming of Chaos Fortress—according to information from other channels, the Federation government is preparing to posthumously award him the title of ‘Federation Hero.’

Even we, as outsiders, didn’t expect the Federation fleet to fight with such desperation. The Imperial fleet, holding the advantage on the battlefield, would have found it even harder to anticipate. So, it’s not surprising they were caught flat-footed.”

What Amber didn’t say, however, was that those who had sacrificed themselves on that battlefield were likely the last of the Federation’s high-ranking officers with any real grit.

Although the current situation had deviated significantly from the ‘plot’ of the game, one thing remained similar: at this point in time, the Federation had lost its last batch of experienced senior officers.

“I agree with the Boss. If we face a similar scenario in the future, we absolutely cannot make the same mistake as the Imperial fleet.”

Guterres picked up where Amber left off. “While the Federation fleet did achieve a great victory, we can’t ignore the fact that they also suffered devastating losses.

Their only two mobile fortresses were both destroyed in battle, and the defensive fleets assigned to them were all but wiped out. Although the legend of the ‘invincible Imperial Celestial Fortress’ has been broken, the Federation has, for the short term, lost the strategic units capable of contending with them.”

Hearing this from the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral, Amber nodded and said, “Even the three elite Federation battle groups, which had been pressing the attack and putting immense pressure on the Imperial frontline while eliminating a large amount of their effective strength, didn’t escape with light losses.

Never mind the standard combat losses; the battle group codenamed ‘Leviathan’ ran straight into the Radiant Fortress battle group, which had arrived at the front under the emergency command of Duke Soren. In the end, only thirty percent of their warships managed to retreat.”

“So, you’re saying both the Federation and the Empire suffered massive losses? Not only were a huge number of warships sunk, but the Federation also lost its only two mobile fortresses… oh, the Empire had it even worse, a Duke died outright!”

Randall shook his head, a look of dazed disbelief still on his face.

“Pretty much,” Amber confirmed with a nod.

“Both sides lost a huge amount of their effective strength, and neither has the ability to hold the star systems they captured. The latest news is that both sides have been withdrawing their troops one after another. So in the end, the frontline hasn’t changed much. What a… what a pointless fight.”

“Then all the soldiers from both sides who died in this battle… didn’t they die for nothing?” one of the newly promoted junior commanders murmured.

“Yes,” Amber repeated faintly. “They died for nothing.”

Chapter 476: Bad News, Good News

The human crew members of the Atlas Group’s combat fleet came from two primary sources: the Federation’s various corporate fleets and the Federation Navy.

Of course, for most of them, you could add the prefix “captured.”

So, theoretically, most of the humans in the Atlas combat fleet could be considered Federation citizens.

And unlike the ordinary crew members who just wanted to live a good life, the middle and high-ranking fleet officers, who already held a certain social status, still subconsciously paid attention to the situation in the Federation, even as they fought against it under Amber’s command.

So, after learning about the process of this battle, which could only be described as brutal for both sides, the members of the “Command Observation Group” were all struck silent.

No matter how dissatisfied they usually were with the Federation government, the thought of those who had died in the war, especially the nearly one million personnel aboard the mobile fortress, still filled them with a pang of sorrow.

Amber observed their reactions but chose not to console them at this moment. Some things couldn’t be resolved with a few words. If he wanted these people to wholeheartedly commit to Atlas in the future, they would have to achieve clarity of thought on their own.

“It seems another storm of public opinion is about to erupt within the Federation,” said Guterres, who had been silent since his last comment. “People are already starting to question whether it was appropriate for the Federation government to posthumously award the commander of the mobile fortress the title of ‘Federation Hero’.”

“I saw that too. The news from the frontline just got back, and the topic is already trending. It’s obvious someone is fanning the flames from behind the scenes.”

Cleves nodded in agreement and continued:

“There are two main points of contention. One is that the Federation government is doing this to manipulate the will of the people and prolong the war. The other questions whether the commander is even qualified for the title of ‘Federation Hero,’ since nearly a million people in the mobile fortress had their souls return to the sea of stars under his command, and not all of them might have been willing to sacrifice themselves.”

Hearing Cleves’s explanation, the members of the Command Observation Group showed expressions of contempt. The ever-outspoken Randall didn’t hold back.

“As much as I dislike the Federation government and wish someone would replace it, I have to admit, the people who say such things are even worse. To sing a different tune at a time like this… they’re either stupid or evil!”

“This is just the ‘biodiversity’ of the virtual space. You get used to it,” Amber said reassuringly.

“Besides, think about it. Who could possibly stand against the Federation government in the virtual space at this critical juncture? Who could they be but extremist opposition parties for whom ‘politics is above all else,’ the self-proclaimed ‘enlightened’ who think they alone are awake, and of course, the sleeper agents specially trained by the Star Dragon Empire? It couldn’t be easier for them to fish in troubled waters right now.”

Following Amber’s words, Guterres added, “This actually highlights another problem—the Federation is starting to lose its grip on domestic public opinion. I suspect that with the fallout from this battle, it won’t just be public opinion that becomes a problem.”

“So, could this be a good thing for us at Atlas?” a junior fleet commander asked, clearly viewing the situation from Atlas’s perspective.

Amber nodded. “Putting aside our sympathy for the deceased, the outcome of this battle between the Federation and the Empire is indeed a good thing for us at Atlas.

Both of their naval forces have been severely damaged, and their morale has taken a hit, which means their control over the frontline and their territories will be weakened.

This means that for a short time, neither the Empire nor the Federation will be able to reach Parra IV or the Loubion star system. That gives us enough time to develop both locations. Speaking of the Loubion star system, I doubt they’ll be able to suppress that ‘armed rebellion’ now.”

“There’s one more thing: the general mobilization order,” Guterres interjected.

“Neither the Federation nor the Empire can maintain a state of general mobilization for long, especially when they are already internally unstable.

So now, both sides are left with only two choices. Either they play all their trump cards and use every drastic measure to kill their opponent and end this war in short order.

Or, they start tidying themselves up and prepare to sit down at the table for ceasefire negotiations.”

Since no more valuable information emerged for the time being, the group dispersed after some discussion, leaving Amber alone in the conference room to quietly contemplate the current situation.

To be honest, he truly hadn’t expected this “strategic decisive battle” to end this way.

The death of Duke William was probably the biggest “change in the world line” he had experienced since coming to this world.

After all, in the game’s original storyline, after the Star Dragon Empire completely fractured, with the Regent Prince dead and the Princess missing, it was the five great dukes, who had built up their own armies and declared independence, who seemed to be the ultimate “beneficiaries.”

But now, Duke William, one of the five, had made such an abrupt and premature exit, taking the Celestial Fortress he commanded with him.

“This script is wrong. If things keep developing this way, Norton II won’t have the same huge advantage he had in my previous life.”

Amber frowned in thought. Although Duke William’s role in the game’s background story wasn’t extensive, he was by no means a minor figure in the Star Dragon Empire.

His sudden death was bound to trigger a chain reaction, especially since he was a key member of the Regent Prince Faction.

Even without considering the subtle, hidden effects, just looking at the developments “on the surface” was enough for Amber to guess that this was an absolute heavy blow for Norton II.

Not to mention, previous intelligence had already indicated that the old-guard nobles within the Regent Prince Faction were already eager to act. Now that Norton II had lost the crucial support of Duke William, it was entirely possible these old nobles would become even more audacious.

“This is getting more and more interesting. Plus, the old Emperor seems to be secretly plotting something. The outcome of the Star Dragon Empire’s ‘Endgame’ might be completely different now…”

Amber silently pondered the repercussions of this “strategic decisive battle” between the Federation and the Empire. Just as he was about to consider the effects on the Federation’s side, a request for an encrypted communication popped up.

The cartoon octopus on the profile picture revealed the caller’s identity—Salieh, the Riddler.

“Salieh? What made you think of calling me all of a sudden? Didn’t you say you were going into seclusion for a while to work on Forerunner technology?”

Salieh: “With everything blowing up like this, how could I stay in seclusion? I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first, Amber?”

“Uh… let’s have the bad news first.”

“The bad news is, as a result of your last choice, plus the series of events that followed, including the outcome of the major battle that just ended between the two great human powers… the timeline of this universe is now heading in the worst possible direction. And it’s the uncorrectable kind.”

“…”

Amber was stunned for a moment. He hadn’t expected Salieh’s “bad news” to be on this level. He temporarily suppressed his confusion and asked, “Then what’s the good news?”

“The good news is that the ‘bad news’ I just mentioned won’t happen right away. In terms of time, there’s more than enough of it to make preparations if you want to.”

“Well, thanks for that. So what preparations should I make?”

Salieh shook her head, saying with a matter-of-fact expression, “I don’t know.”

“Then how much time is left, specifically?”

“I don’t know that either, but it won’t be short.”

“…”

Amber pressed his hand to his forehead, a headache coming on. He realized that even after all this time, talking to Salieh the Riddler was still an easy way to raise his blood pressure.

Chapter 477: Tearing Up the Script

Salieh’s sudden ‘warning call’ did indeed throw Amber’s thoughts into a momentary chaos.

After all, he had just been discussing ‘current political affairs’ with Guterres and the others—a topic that sounded very down-to-earth.

And now, he suddenly found himself discussing ‘timeline shifts’ with an ‘old frozen meat’ who had slept for a million years—a topic on a completely different level and dimension.

The huge difference between the two topics made Amber feel as if he had just saved his progress in Hearts of Iron 20 only to immediately launch The Three-Body Problem: Infinite War.

After taking a moment to sort out his thoughts, Amber asked, “So, after you warned me about the ‘timeline’ changing last time, did the outcome of this decisive battle between the Federation and the Empire cause what you call the ‘timeline’ to shift again?”

The holographic projection of Salieh nodded, her expression serious.

“Does that mean the course of this universe is straying further and further off track?”

“Yes, Amber. That’s why I’m warning you. This is absolutely no laughing matter.”

Amber listened quietly to Salieh, his recent thoughts about the future of the Star Dragon Empire resurfacing in his mind.

Then he immediately realized that Duke William’s death was probably the reason the ‘timeline’ had shifted again.

If the game plot of Starry Sky Online before he transmigrated represented the correct ‘timeline,’ then Amber’s series of actions after arriving had indeed caused changes to the ‘plot/timeline.’

And Duke William’s death, along with the loss of the Chaos Fortress, deviated from the original ‘plot/timeline’ by an astronomical distance.

“So from my perspective, what Salieh calls a ‘timeline shift’ is actually a change in the ‘game plot’ I’m familiar with?”

Amber pondered this in his mind without speaking, and Salieh waited quietly, not interrupting his train of thought.

A moment later, Amber spoke again, “If I’m not mistaken, you still can’t tell me what this ‘timeline’ shift will ultimately lead to?”

“I’m sorry, Amber. I really can’t say.”

“Is it related to the Forerunners?” Amber asked suddenly, staring into Salieh’s eyes.

However, with her mental fortitude, she obviously wouldn’t be tricked by such a ploy. Faced with Amber’s sudden question, Salieh merely looked back into his eyes calmly, showing no other reaction.

“Forget it, forget it. I won’t make things difficult for you.” Amber waved his hand, not dwelling on the issue. “Since you said it won’t happen anytime soon, let’s not worry about this future event for now. We should focus on the present.”

“Is there anything I can help with?” Salieh asked.

The guilt from being unable to reveal so much information, combined with the deepening ‘Mental Shackle’ between them, was subtly increasing her level of ‘submission’ to Amber.

It was like unlocking a VIP privilege in a pay-to-win mobile game, automatically farming favorability points around the clock.

“It’s fine, just focus on your work over there. Implementing all that Forerunner technology is no simple task.”

As Amber spoke, he suddenly remembered something and looked up at Salieh’s hologram again.

“By the way, when are you coming to A·Bawa·Ku? The general laboratory here is complete. The conditions are much better than your current temporary lab in the shipyard. Your research efficiency will definitely be higher if you come here.”

“If the schedule doesn’t change, I’ll be warping over next week with the last batch of shipyards.”

Upon hearing she would have a new laboratory, Salieh broke into a joyful smile. “Thank you, Amber. I didn’t expect you to set up a laboratory just for me.”

“Don’t thank me yet. It’s not like you’re getting it for free. I’ve set up such a great research environment for you mainly in the hope that you can accelerate the practical development of Forerunner technology. At best, you could say it’s mutually beneficial.”

Speaking of which, Amber took the rare initiative to ask about Salieh’s research progress. “What’s the current status of integrating human starship technology with the Forerunners’ Gravity Control Technology?”

“We’re about halfway there, I suppose. But we’ve hit a bottleneck due to material strength issues.”

“What does ‘halfway’ mean, exactly?” Amber asked curiously.

“According to previous full-scale simulation tests, under ideal conditions with no external interference, we can get a heavy cruiser-class warship to enter the atmosphere and land stably. The problem is, it can’t take off again at the moment…”

A row of black lines appeared over Amber’s head. “So after all this research, your progress is successfully getting a warship to crash-land intact on a planet’s surface?”

“…”

Salieh lowered her head in embarrassment, but after a moment, she explained in a small voice, “We Jeram people have a material technology. If we could use this new material, the problem would be easily solved. After all, our Jeram warships are capable of planetary takeoff and landing.”

“But this technology is stored in a certain Repository?”

“Yes.”

“And do you know which Repository it is?”

Salieh shook her head in embarrassment again. “There’s no related information in my own memory partitions. I might need to find another Repository, or a facility of a similar level, to search for the relevant information in its internal database.”

The ‘old frozen meat’s’ words sent Amber into silence. He quickly searched his memories, trying to find any information related to this new material Salieh mentioned.

But unfortunately, even after combing through all the information about Starry Sky Online in his mind, he couldn’t find anything about this Forerunner material.

“Could it be that the relevant ruins hadn’t been unlocked in the game before I transmigrated?”

An answer popped into Amber’s head, but it was obvious this theory could never be proven, so he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind.

“Forget it. We can’t rush this even if we want to. Once things on hand are taken care of, we can look for some ruins to excavate if we have the time.”

Amber added this to his already-packed ‘to-do list’ and continued, “For now, you can try a different development approach. If a warship can land stably but can’t take off again, it’s not entirely useless. You could try making it into one-time ‘special assault equipment’.”

“One-time? Special assault?”

Salieh frowned, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head began to twist in a peculiar rhythm—a characteristic of the Jeram people when they were thinking.

Soon, the former Repository Steward thought of something, and her eyes lit up.

“Amber, are you talking about a ‘planetary assault ship’?”

Chapter 478: Planetary Assault Fortress?

“Planetary assault ship? You Jeram people have those?” Amber asked with some curiosity. “I thought you guys never touched the ground when ‘cleansing’ other intelligent species.”

“Er… we do occasionally need to engage in ground combat, especially when we encounter cavern-dwelling civilizations, or those who hide in underground shelter cities. If we don’t wish to destroy the planet outright, then ground and even subterranean combat becomes unavoidable.”

“Whoa, it seems you Jeram people have encountered quite a few different forms of intelligent life~”

“…”

Salieh’s expression was a little strange. She found the conversation somewhat awkward—a member of a species on the Jeram people’s ‘cleansing list’ was seriously discussing with her whether or not a ground landing was necessary during the ‘cleansing’ process.

Meanwhile, Amber stopped joking and asked seriously, “Can you tell me more about this planetary assault ship?”

Salieh nodded and began to describe the Jeram vehicle to Amber.

According to her, the purpose of this planetary assault ship was to deploy a large number of ground troops to a planet’s surface in a single go. To that end, the Jeram people had even created different models based on the scale and requirements of various combat missions.

The smallest and most common model was a planetary assault ship known to the Jeram people as the ‘Purple Star-class’. It could carry six thousand fully armed Jeram soldiers, along with the necessary combat equipment and supplies, in a single deployment.

Of course, depending on the situation, the number of soldiers could be reduced to accommodate combat biological weapons or large combat vehicles.

Because the Forerunners’ technology was, in most cases, a tier above the civilizations they exterminated, even the most basic Jeram soldiers, who held the lowest importance in the order of battle, possessed extremely high individual combat effectiveness.

According to Amber’s speculation, they were roughly an ‘enhanced power version’ of the Immortal Corps, but with higher defense, stronger firepower, and more compact bodies. More importantly, every single one of them could use Psionics.

From a practical combat perspective, factoring in the Forerunners’ technical equipment, combat biological weapons, and combat support units, a single ship of their soldiers could probably take care of an entire planet’s garrison at humanity’s current level of civilization.

This also meant that the Forerunners rarely needed to deploy massive numbers of troops; they could complete the ‘cleansing’ of an entire planet with just their fleet and a small number of ground units.

Besides the most common ‘Purple Star-class,’ the Jeram people also had “large” and “extra-large” versions of their planetary assault ships. Both of these types could deploy tens of thousands of troops at once.

Obviously, compared to the ‘Purple Star-class’ which carried six thousand personnel, Amber was more interested in the latter two.

After all, Atlas’s combat forces couldn’t match the Forerunners’ ability to ‘fight one against a hundred’. Therefore, they had requirements for the number of troops deployed. They needed to be able to land at least ten to twelve brigade-level units in one go—roughly the strength of an Army Group—just to establish a foothold and carry out subsequent combat missions.

“Deploying over eighty thousand troops in one go, not to mention a large number of combat vehicles, equipment, and supplies.” Salieh frowned as she listened to Amber’s requirements.

Amber: “In addition to these needs, the protection also has to be up to snuff, because we might have to force a landing while taking direct anti-aircraft fire from the ground.”

“To be honest, we Jeram people rarely encounter situations that require deploying troops on such a scale. If it takes that many troops to solve the problem, we usually opt for a more efficient method.”

“What method?”

“Planet-busting.”

“…”

Seeing Amber’s speechless expression, Salieh gave a rare smile and said, “If you don’t require it to be able to take off again, and just need it to land safely, then it’s possible to achieve.”

As she spoke, Salieh opened up a design software interface and shared it remotely with Amber. Since she had been helping with the design and construction of The Infinity and subsequent warships in the shipyard recently, she was already extremely proficient with human design software.

“I wouldn’t recommend putting eighty thousand people on a single ship. The risks are too great in every aspect, from design to actual combat. To use one of your human old sayings, ‘Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.’

So I suggest setting the standard capacity at ten to twenty thousand people. When you need to deploy an ’Army Group’s worth of troops at once, Amber, you can use six to ten of these vessels to land the personnel and equipment.

Furthermore, by landing multiple vessels simultaneously and adjusting their landing positions, you can establish control over a large ‘safe zone’ right from the start, laying the foundation for subsequent operations or the deployment of support troops.”

“Establish control over a large ‘safe zone’ right from the start?” Amber asked curiously. He hadn’t expected this Forerunner Repository Steward to be so ‘experienced’ in this area.

Salieh nodded. “That’s right. I was actually planning to find a chance to talk to you about this, Amber. Since we’re on the topic today, I’ll just be direct. Given your current needs, I don’t think it’s necessary to develop a ‘stripped-down version’ of a planetary assault ship. You might as well go straight for a planetary assault fortress.”

“A what? A fortress?” Amber’s eyes widened.

“Correct. Make the main thruster array and Warp Engine disposable. After accompanying the fleet to the target planet’s orbit, you can jettison these extra components. Then, relying on highly redundant defenses, it can force its way through the atmosphere and land safely with the help of Gravity Control Technology.

Once it lands, it serves directly as a forward base or frontline fortress for the troops it carries. It can use its own fixed armaments to provide long-range fire support to units within a certain radius. Meanwhile, the Warship-grade fusion reactor previously used to power the main thruster array will be more than sufficient to supply power to all the fortress’s facilities, including the deflector shield generator.”

Salieh eloquently laid out her idea, finishing the design on her screen just as she finished speaking.

From the initial draft she created, this ‘Planetary Assault Fortress,’ stripped of most of the equipment required for a starship, looked like a giant ‘door panel’. In its flight configuration, the main thruster array was crudely attached to the rear, while the Warp Engine, enclosed in a casing, was half-buried in the upper deck.

Once these ‘propulsion components’ were jettisoned, the ‘Planetary Assault Fortress’ truly became a big door panel.

Salieh had designed the bottom deck to be very thick, as this would be the largest ‘engagement profile’ during landing. However, according to her, when combined with the layer of plasma that would envelop the ‘fortress’ during atmospheric entry, conventional anti-aircraft fire would struggle to pose a threat.

Moreover, before the actual landing, the combat fleet would conduct multiple rounds of orbital strikes around the landing zone as ‘fire preparation’. So, dealing with anti-aircraft fire was actually the least of their worries.

Amber listened to Salieh’s description, stared at the initial design draft she had just created on the spot for a long while, and finally spoke.

“This project… I’m sold.”

Chapter 479: Salieh’s Suggestion

“You surrender?”

Realizing Salieh couldn’t get the joke, Amber coughed awkwardly and continued, “Ahem. I mean it’s approved. We’ll use this plan as a foundation to expand and optimize.”

“So quickly?” Salieh was taken aback. She had expected Amber to offer some suggestions.

“What else? Your current design already meets my needs. Besides, I don’t have a professional background in ship design, so there’s no need for me to make some unreliable suggestion. In any case, the people from the Atlas Ships design team will be meeting with you later. With professionals from both sides backing this up, I’m quite relieved~”

Amber’s tone was light. It was clear Salieh had thoroughly considered a solution for the ‘rapid deployment of large ground forces’ problem.

And as a psionic user, the deep development of his brain gave him an extremely strong ability to visualize, allowing him to quickly imagine future scenarios using the ‘Planetary Assault Fortress’.

Currently, neither the Federation nor the Star Dragon Empire had a particularly good solution for the operational task of deploying large-scale ground forces.

While orbital paratroopers could be deployed directly, the size and payload limitations of their drop pods meant that no matter how many were deployed, they were still just light infantry tactical units.

More often than not, combat commanders chose to use orbital paratroopers to achieve specific tactical objectives, such as capturing key nodes, carrying out decapitation strikes against high-value targets, or intercepting retreating enemy forces.

However, conventional ground forces, which require the support of numerous combat vehicles and technical equipment, obviously couldn’t be deployed via drop pods. Therefore, besides using a space elevator for deployment, the only remaining option was a fleet of aerospace transports.

But both options invariably shared a prerequisite: the fleet in orbit had to achieve space superiority. Only then could they control the space elevator or suppress enemy air defense units as the aerospace transports descended.

When launching a planetary assault or needing to rapidly deploy troops, it was possible to have the aerospace transport fleet force a defense penetration, but the resulting heavy losses were not something every commander could bear or accept.

This was why Amber, after ‘picking up’ Salieh and obtaining the Forerunners’ Gravity Control Technology, had tasked this Repository Steward with designing and developing a new type of planetary assault vehicle.

And now, the ‘Planetary Assault Fortress’ she had whipped up, aside from temporarily lacking the ability to take off from the planet’s surface again, was a perfect fit for Atlas’s current needs in every other respect.

Imagine it: one day in the future, Atlas needs to rapidly deploy an Army Group-sized ground force to a planet to support ‘friendly targets’ in combat.

But due to the presence of an enemy fleet in orbit, the window for a large-scale landing would be extremely short.

So, ten Planetary Assault Fortresses, fully loaded with the strength of an Army Group, would begin their forced entry into the planet’s atmosphere after the main fleet engaged the enemy garrison fleet, using a round of orbital strikes from their escort fleet to clear the surface ‘landing zone.’

Surviving enemy air defense units would immediately organize an interception, but as the Planetary Assault Fortresses penetrated the atmosphere, they would be enveloped in a layer of high-temperature plasma, greatly diminishing the effectiveness of attacks from charged particle weapons like heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons.

And their specially reinforced bottom armor plates would not only insulate against the intense heat from atmospheric friction but also provide strong protection against high-energy laser beams or projectile attacks.

With the escort warships in low orbit continuously suppressing ground-based air defenses with their main cannons, the ten Planetary Assault Fortresses would successfully navigate the most dangerous phase of their entry.

At the same time, with the help of their Gravity Control Units, the fortresses would enter their final descent phase at a relatively gentle speed.

When the ten fortresses landed in a circular formation, spaced about ten to twenty kilometers apart, the area enclosed within would naturally become a sufficiently secure ‘large-scale landing zone.’

The ten fortresses would then deploy their combat-ready troops. These ground forces, under the cover of the fortresses’ large-caliber electromagnetic cannons, missile launch arrays, high-energy laser turrets, and other armaments, would push outward to clear out any remaining enemies within the fortress-controlled zone.

Just like that, an entire organized Army Group of ground forces, along with a ‘ground fortress network’ serving as fire support bases, would be deployed onto the planet’s surface in a short period.

Adding the subsequent deployment of a Hive Core and reinforcements, the Atlas Group could then use this powerful force to conduct armed intervention on the planet.

However, after staring for a good while at the design schematics Salieh had whipped up at light speed, he pointed at the ‘semi-recessed’ Warp Engine and asked:

“Is it really okay to just stick this thing here like this? Isn’t it a bit crude?”

“Don’t worry, Amber. For us Jeram people, an ‘external’ Warp Engine is a fairly conventional design. Besides, this technology is ours to begin with. Are you worried I can’t handle it?”

When it came to technical matters, the Repository Steward’s expression involuntarily filled with confidence. In her eyes, her technological superiority was perhaps the one thing that allowed her to ‘stand tall and proud’ before Amber.

The two continued their discussion for a while longer before Salieh suddenly stared at Amber and asked, “Amber, you’re in a hurry to get this thing made. Does this mean the Atlas Group is about to officially begin armed interventions abroad?”

“It’s not really ‘armed intervention.’ Your wording and description aren’t quite accurate. To be precise, the ‘Planetary Assault Fortress’ is to help our ground forces conduct business more efficiently.”

Amber corrected Salieh’s phrasing, then continued, “As you know, the Atlas Group also provides military contracting services.”

“Do you really need to say that to me?”

Hearing Amber’s words, Salieh rolled her eyes in annoyance—a way of expressing speechlessness she had recently learned from humans.

Then, composing her expression, she spoke in a relatively serious tone, “Actually, I strongly support and suggest that you, Amber, use military force to ‘unite’ all of humanity, and even the elves.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because, as I’ve said before, the arrival of the ‘bad news’ can no longer be stopped or corrected. So, there’s only one response left: unite all the forces that can be united and make a final stand.”

There wasn’t a hint of a joke in Salieh’s words. This was the first time Amber had ever seen this Forerunner speak to him so seriously about such matters.

After a moment, Amber said, “I get the feeling that your idea of ‘unification’ is a little different from my understanding of it. And given the current situation, just uniting human society would be a ‘monumental achievement,’ to say nothing of the even stronger elves…”

Salieh: “That’s why my suggestion is to do it at any cost, even if it means conquest by force.”

.

Seeing Amber’s silence, Salieh continued earnestly, “Amber, you’re already in conflict with the Federation. And I believe that as the Atlas Group continues to grow, conflict with the Star Dragon Empire is also just a matter of time. As the saying goes, one mountain cannot hold two tigers. When you become threatening enough, the other powers will no longer be able to deal with you peacefully.”

Salieh’s words silenced Amber. He had to admit that the Forerunner was not wrong. Moreover, what she said was precisely what he had been considering himself.

As Atlas continued to expand, a direct conflict with the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire was practically a certainty.

Amber wouldn’t even be surprised if conflicts arose in the future with the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire over various interests.

“So?”

“Since you’ve already come this far, why not just go a little further?”

Chapter 480: A Great Change Unseen in a Century

“Salieh, the way you’re talking right now, you sound a lot like a devil, tempting people.”

“If we’re going by your preferences, Amber, wouldn’t ‘incubus’ be more fitting?”

“?”

Seeing the serious conversation on the verge of veering off-track, Amber immediately cut in, “So, what’s the point of telling me all this?”

“No particular reason. None of this has anything to do with me, does it? I’m merely offering suggestions from your point of view.” Salieh’s expression was calm, but her words carried a serious and determined weight.

“Amber, since you’ve placed a ‘Mental Shackle’ on me, you must know what I’m thinking. To be honest, it doesn’t matter to me what this universe becomes in the end. I’m just a pitiful person who should have died a million years ago but failed to do so. It is for this very reason that all my thoughts are now from your perspective and your standpoint.”

Amber: “But the way you put it… gives me the feeling you’re trying to force a crown on my head and have me conquer the universe.”

Salieh shook her head. “It’s not a feeling. That’s exactly what I mean.”

“…”

Before Amber could say anything, the Jeram woman continued, “Based on what I’ve learned about current human society from the Atlas database since I awoke, when a truly major crisis occurs, it is completely unrealistic to hope that ‘humanity will unite as one.’ It’s far more likely they will shove others in front of them to be the last one to die.”

Amber found it almost impossible to refute Salieh’s words. After all, considering the irreconcilable hostility between the Federation and the Empire, as well as their various internal conflicts, a major catastrophe could very well devolve into the scenario Salieh described.

The Jeram woman didn’t stop, but continued sharing her thoughts, “But now, I see a new possibility in you and Atlas. If you continue to develop steadily with the resources you now command, it is not an impossible task to control all of human society.

“Not to mention your deep ties with some of the elves, which lays the foundation for your future intervention in the Thousand Stars Empire. This means that before the ‘bad news’ arrives, you, Amber, have the potential to achieve the great feat of unifying the forces of humanity and the elves.”

“Hold on, where are you getting this confidence? Don’t praise me to death.”

Salieh’s words made Amber a little flustered. It was the first time he’d been praised so highly, let alone for “something wild” like “unifying all of humanity.”

“Because… I can ‘see’ it.”

The Forerunner, awakened from a million-year hibernation, spoke with extreme difficulty, as if something invisible were preventing her from speaking.

After she finished, she was like a string that had snapped, slumping over the table. It took her a long while to recover.

Watching Salieh struggle to prop herself up with her hands, Amber asked with concern, “Salieh, are you alright? If you really can’t say it, then don’t. I’d rather you not pass out on me.”

“I’m fine, but I truly can’t say anymore. Amber, I hope you will seriously consider what I’ve said, because this might be your last chance.”

After speaking her final words with great effort, Salieh apologized to Amber and ended the communication.

As silence returned to the conference room, Amber leaned back in his chair again, beginning to ponder what Salieh had just said.

“‘Unify all of humanity’? And the elves? Isn’t that a bit too ‘radical’?”

If Amber had been skeptical of Salieh’s previous claims about the ‘timeline’ and ‘bad news,’ after several conversations, especially her recent performance that looked like she was draining her own life force, he had to start taking the Forerunner’s words seriously.

Just then, Lilith’s voice suddenly sounded in Amber’s ear. During the encrypted communication with Salieh, Amber hadn’t deliberately blocked Lilith, so she had been privy to their entire exchange.

“Master, I think what this Older Sister said is quite reasonable. And I wouldn’t call it ‘radical’ at all.”

“Oh? You’re calling her ‘Older Sister’ now?”

See, no matter the situation, Amber’s focus was always unconventional.

“She’s one or two million years old. I’m more than willing to call her that~”

Realizing Amber had led her astray, the strong AI appeared before him using the conference room’s holographic projection system, her hands on her hips.

“Master! You’re changing the subject again!”

Amber raised his hands in surrender, smiling as he said, “Alright, alright. Then I’d love to hear your great insights~”

“Master, this isn’t some great insight or radical opinion. It’s a prediction based on the current situation and corroborated by a massive amount of intelligence, information, and data.”

For a change, Lilith wore a very serious expression and said, word by word, “This is a veritable ‘great change unseen in a century,’ and the probability of you and Atlas having the last laugh in this ‘great change’ is extremely high!”

Seeing that Amber was listening intently without interrupting, Lilith continued:

“Although Atlas’s overall strength is currently only at the corporate level, unable to contend with the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire head-on, even they have to admit that Atlas is no longer an easy target to be pushed around.

“Moreover, in many technical fields, we can be said to have a huge advantage, even a ‘generation gap’ level of superiority. I won’t boast about our technology in artificial intelligence and unmanned units, as you’re well aware of it, Master.

“Even in the research and development of conventional ships and weaponry, we have a certain edge. I don’t know how you did it, Master, but I must admit that the companies you had us acquire earlier have all shown sufficient potential. In terms of technological development, they are already ahead of the Federation and the Empire.

“If it weren’t for the fact that Atlas is not yet large enough, I wouldn’t know how we could possibly lose.”

“Wait, you’re popping the champagne a little too early,” Amber interrupted Lilith with a hint of helplessness. He found that as time went on, Lilith had become the biggest champagne-popper in all of Atlas.

“No, no, Master, it’s you who is being too conservative.”

Lilith floated in front of Amber, wagging a slender, pale finger as she said earnestly, “You’re always thinking about how to proceed steadily, so you haven’t realized just how great of an advantage we currently have. Just as Older Sister Salieh said, if anyone can unite humanity and the elves, that person can only be you.”

Chapter 481: Return to Loubion

“Conservative? Aren’t you all being too radical?”

Amber’s words carried a tone of someone who didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. In that moment, if nothing else, he at least understood how Zhao Kuangyin must have felt back when he was urged into taking a position of power.

It was just that Zhao Kuangyin had pretended to have just woken up from a drunken stupor, putting on an act of being forced to ‘accept the mandate of heaven’. Amber, on the other hand, was genuinely in a predicament.

He had to admit, the ‘grand undertaking’ Salieh and Lilith spoke of—sweeping across a thousand star systems to unite humans and elves—sounded incredibly appealing. No man could resist the temptation of such a magnificent ambition.

What’s more, Amber had always enjoyed playing grand strategy games, and he especially relished the process of watching the territories on the map being filled in, one by one, with the color representing him.

But reality wasn’t a game, and a true grand ambition wasn’t as simple as a ‘coloring game’. There were too many things involved in sweeping across a thousand star systems. Even with Lilith and a group of ‘professionals’ assisting him now, Amber couldn’t guarantee success.

Sometimes, he actually felt that he was already satisfied. If he were to retreat at the peak of his success now and spend the rest of his life quietly and wealthily with beautiful companions, that would actually be very much to his liking.

However, right now, both he and Atlas were under too much scrutiny, and they were a ‘thorn in the side’ for many people. If he chose to retreat now, enemies seeking revenge might show up at his doorstep tomorrow, appearing out of nowhere.

Lilith quickly guessed what Amber was thinking. As the time she had been ‘bound’ to Amber grew longer, her grasp on his innermost thoughts became increasingly accurate.

“Master, things have already come this far. You shouldn’t be thinking about leaving the stage so easily. If the ‘power’ you now hold in your hands isn’t fully utilized, it would be a waste of your talents. Just like Older Sister Salieh said, since you’ve already come this far, why not just go a little further?”

Hearing Lilith’s words, Amber smiled and asked, “Then tell me, what’s the next step?”

“Tsk. Master, you already have a plan in mind, don’t you?”

Lilith pouted in annoyance, clearly displeased with Amber’s approach, but she continued to speak anyway:

“Fine, I’ll be the one to say it. The most suitable target next is the Loubion star system. We’ve already laid a sufficient foundation there. And with a series of ‘maneuvers’ by the Star System Autonomous Government and local corporations, the public’s favorability toward Atlas is still on the rise.

“According to my monitoring of public opinion in the Loubion star system during this period, most of the populace deeply misses the time when the star system had a deep cooperation with Atlas. Furthermore, among the forces currently engaged in ‘armed rebellion’, many are using this point to gain more supporters.

“For example, statements like ‘Once our uprising is successful, we will invite the Atlas Group to return to the Loubion star system.’ The key is that such rhetoric does indeed easily win more supporters. Many people who join the ‘armed rebellion’ are hoping to return to their former way of life after a victory.”

Listening to Lilith describe the recent situation in the Loubion star system, Amber suddenly asked with curiosity, “Since our Atlas has such high prestige among the people of Loubion, has anyone tried to act directly under our banner? Logically, wouldn’t that make it easier to gain a large number of supporters?”

“Of course there have been such ‘geniuses’~” Lilith nodded.

“It’s just that the factions who flew that flag basically didn’t last more than a week before being wiped out.”

“Why?”

Lilith shrugged and said matter-of-factly, “Their strength was far too inferior compared to the real Atlas. Besides, flying that kind of banner made them easier targets for the Loubion star system’s government forces. As far as I know, from the time this rebellion escalated until now, the government forces have already annihilated at least eight ‘rebel armies’ operating under our Atlas banner.”

“So many?” Amber suddenly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “In that case, wouldn’t it make the ordinary people of the Loubion star system mistakenly think that our Atlas isn’t as strong as they imagined?”

“Not really. Aside from those with poor judgment, most people were actually suspicious of these ‘rebel armies’ operating under our banner.”

“Is that so? Everyone’s judgment is that good?” Amber asked, a little puzzled.

“After all, the pure white paint scheme of the Atlas combat units and their advanced equipment are too deeply ingrained in people’s minds. And the Romu soldiers have essentially become an ‘anti-counterfeiting certification’.”

“That’s certainly true.” Amber shook his head. He never would have thought that a single action he took back then would become one of the hallmarks of the Atlas combat units today.

“So, this is actually a suitable time for us to have an opportunity to return to Loubion,” Lilith said seriously.

“The two mobile fortresses the Federation lost in the ‘strategic decisive battle’ with the Empire, along with the millions of casualties, have now become the biggest ‘weapon’ the civilian opposition constantly uses to attack the Federation government.

“The Loubion star system is no exception. If before, most people actively or passively took the path of ‘armed rebellion’ because they were oppressed, now they have almost completely lost faith in the Federation government and the Star System Autonomous Government.

“This has also allowed the various rebel factions in the Loubion star system to expand quite a bit recently. This includes that Mr. Franklin you’ve been paying attention to, Master. He has now gathered a sizable force, and his popularity among the people of the Loubion star system is showing signs of reaching the top spot.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Hearing this familiar name, Amber’s eyes immediately lit up.

Abraham Franklin. Although Amber had twice refused his requests for help, this young man was, in fact, Amber’s most important ‘investment’ at the moment.

After all, this important character from the game was destined to become the president of the new Federation in the future. Investing in him from the early stages was definitely a ‘business deal’ that couldn’t possibly lose money.

And while there was no overt support from Atlas for him, the covert assistance was by no means small. Especially during the period when he had just entered the political scene, the Public Relations Department of the Atlas Group had done quite a lot to secretly smooth things over for him.

Even now, the Polarized Light was loaded with a shipful of Immortals, on standby near Loubion V, ready to charge into low orbit at any moment and drop a squad of heavily-armed troops to get the job done.

At Amber’s inquiry, Lilith gave a general description of Franklin’s recent activities and how he had managed to gather a sizable force under such circumstances.

“However, based on the news from two days ago, it seems this Mr. Franklin might have run into a little trouble~” Lilith added at the end, after finishing her intelligence report.

“A little trouble… You mean it’s time for sending charcoal in a snowstorm?”

Chapter 482: Franklin’s Little Trouble

“Mr. Franklin, we might be in trouble.”

A slightly anxious voice reached Franklin’s ears. He put down the terminal in his hand and looked up at the newcomer with bloodshot eyes.

The dirt and scars on her face couldn’t hide the youthfulness in her eyes. The combat suit, clearly a size too large, made her body seem even more slender, and the combat exoskeleton covering most of her made her look somewhat out of place.

It was as if this attire shouldn’t be on her at all.

This was Franklin’s assistant, Anna Eleanor, and also his junior from the Federation University of Political Science and Economics.

Before the large-scale armed rebellion began in the Loubion star system, this daughter of a high-ranking Federation official, who had always held a fondness for Franklin, defied her family’s strong opposition to follow in his footsteps and came to the Loubion star system for an internship.

After the armed rebellion broke out, she assisted Franklin in accomplishing a series of ‘feats’ that could only be described as impossible, building their initially small team to its current scale and becoming one of his most trusted confidants.

“Miss Eleanor, I’ve told you many times, just call me Franklin.”

Upon seeing that it was Eleanor, Franklin, whose expression had been stern while reviewing the recent situation summary, had a rare moment of relaxation. A hint of gentleness even crept into his tone.

“That won’t do. As the leader of this team, you must command sufficient authority, so I must be mindful of every detail.”

Eleanor’s tone remained serious, clearly firm in her role as Franklin’s assistant. She hadn’t forgotten why she had come to see him, and continued:

“Payne, Henri, Mitala, Huey, Talam—in the fifteen large cities we currently control, plus Ptolemy City where we are now, the logistics departments of the temporary city halls have all issued warnings about low reserve supplies. The most critical issue among these is the food reserve, which is about to hit the red line.

According to the Logistics Department’s reports, after the repairs on the last city’s internal protein synthesis factory and hydroponic tower were declared a failure, we lost all means of food production. We can’t even produce the most basic protein energy bars. After the food collected from the market was consumed, all locations have opened their emergency reserve warehouses. So for some time now, our food reserves have been in a state where supplies are only being depleted, not replenished.”

Hearing Eleanor’s report, Franklin’s expression turned grim again. “Approaching the red line? How much longer can we last?”

“Each city has different emergency reserves and populations, so the duration varies. The longest can last for half a month, while the shortest can only hold out for seven or eight days.”

“How did it get so bad so quickly…”

Franklin couldn’t help but clench his fists as an unprecedented feeling of powerlessness washed over him. He had never imagined that in an era where material supply was more than abundant, he would encounter a ‘food crisis’—a problem humanity had declared completely solved a century ago.

Automated farms, protein synthesis factories, and hydroponic towers were initially created to prevent food shortages in human colonies on alien worlds. Later, they became a ‘tradition’ in human urban planning.

Even later, when various factories, including large-scale food processing plants, were moved to the city outskirts or satellite cities to further streamline living environments and completely separate residential and industrial zones.

The major cities still retained the two most basic facilities—protein synthesis factories and hydroponic towers—to ensure their internal food supply would not be compromised in critical situations.

And after Franklin, through his personal abilities, had organized a team in an almost legendary fashion and gradually taken control of sixteen cities including Ptolemy City, these infrastructure facilities like protein synthesis factories and hydroponic towers within the cities played an extremely crucial role.

This was especially true after another recently risen ‘warlord’ gradually seized control of the industrial zones surrounding these cities, preventing Franklin and his people from obtaining various supplies from them. This infrastructure was vital in ensuring the cities’ food supply remained unaffected.

It could be said that if not for the existence of this infrastructure, even though Franklin had now raised a force of this scale and become a power occupying a region on Loubion V, he would have collapsed in an instant due to problems with basic material security.

But now, this thorny problem was well and truly on the table, waiting for him to solve it.

Franklin and his subordinates knew this food crisis was man-made. From the moment the first protein synthesis factory and hydroponic tower were sabotaged with professional-grade demolitions, they knew they were being targeted.

However, no one had expected that their opponent’s intention from the very beginning was to drive them into a dead end.

Due to the need to maintain the main expressways between the cities and the strict requirements of the outer defense lines, after Franklin and his staff officers had allocated their limited forces, they were left with only a handful of mobile troops.

Under these circumstances, these precious forces also had to be assigned to protect each city’s sewage treatment and water recycling plants. After all, compared to food, a clean water source is a higher priority for human survival.

The people targeting Franklin had clearly thought of this as well, and subsequently began to attack the protein synthesis factories and hydroponic towers in each city with even more impunity.

The professional-grade infiltration and demolition techniques not only proved the enemy’s former identity as military personnel, or even elite troops, but also made the food crisis Franklin faced increasingly severe.

Until today, after losing the last food-producing facility, the food crisis had become their biggest problem…

Franklin had, of course, considered taking the food processing plants on the outskirts of the cities, but the armed forces under the ‘warlord’ who occupied these areas were clearly not in the same league as the disorganized stragglers they had encountered before.

After attempts to attack from various directions all ended in failure, Franklin ordered a halt to the offenses by the city garrisons and transitioned completely to a defensive posture.

Although they had a numerical advantage, their armed forces—composed mainly of regular police, armed police, and the first wave of rebellion-quelling troops—still found it difficult to break through the defense lines, which were clearly manned by an elite main force.

The two sides thus entered a stalemate. Franklin’s side found it difficult to take the areas controlled by the enemy, while the enemy couldn’t break through Franklin’s well-prepared and numerically superior defense lines—the issue of their troops’ weaker combat proficiency, which was evident in offensive battles, was clearly not as significant in a defensive one.

But this stalemate was clearly extremely disadvantageous for Franklin. Especially after the food shortage problem erupted, a cascade of other issues followed.

The ‘warlord’ who had besieged Franklin with such tactics was also full of patience, just watching quietly, waiting for the day the city defenses would collapse on their own.

“It seems this is the puzzle General Lampard has set for us,” Eleanor said with a frown. “To subdue the enemy without fighting, waiting for us to fall apart due to the food problem, or even be forced to bow our heads to him.”

The ‘General Lampard’ Eleanor mentioned was the name of that warlord, but both she and Franklin had always believed he wasn’t a real general.

After all, the generals of the Loubion star system’s garrison were all hiding in the space cities or starports at this time, not daring to even approach Loubion V’s orbit, let alone come down to the planet’s surface.

So they guessed he was probably just a low-level commander who only started calling himself ‘General’ after his forces expanded.

“I hate to admit it, but I have to say he has succeeded.”

Franklin shook his head, tormented by this difficult problem.

Chapter 483: Students of the Training Regiment?

“Are we just going to give up like this? After we’ve come so far.”

Franklin’s mood had clearly affected Eleanor. The young miss, an ‘idealist’ just like Franklin, couldn’t help but look dejected.

For this young lady, the armed rebellion in the Loubion star system had been nothing short of a trial.

After the initial panic, this young lady, who had always lived a pampered life, joined Franklin’s group with her ideals and burning passion, assisting him as his aide along the way.

They had suffered defeats, fallen into desperate situations, and both had been gravely injured, yet they had managed to escape death every time. Along the way, this pampered young lady had successfully transformed.

As their forces grew, she firmly believed that she and Franklin could become true ‘revolutionaries’ and stir up heaven and earth in the stagnant waters of the Federation.

But then, one practical problem after another emerged, making Eleanor realize that a ‘revolution’ was not as simple as she had imagined.

As their forces continued to expand, Franklin’s group took control of more and more cities, and increasingly complex problems began to arise.

The great challenge faced by all ‘revolutionary forces’ in history—maintaining the purity of their ranks—now stood before her and Franklin. Dissenting voices began to emerge within the group, and with the onset of the food crisis, these voices grew louder.

Some began to question whether Franklin, the ‘original founder’ who had built the group from scratch, still had the ability to lead them forward. Meanwhile, the opportunists within their ranks, who had long coveted his position, were becoming eager to act.

As Eleanor fell silent, Franklin watched her quietly.

The girl was no longer the same one he remembered. The sweet, inexperienced university student had become one of the ‘rebel leaders’, dealing with reports, firearms, and dust day in and day out.

Back when Franklin was about to graduate, Eleanor was just a freshman who had recently enrolled. But in that short time, a youthful romance had blossomed between them.

Although this ‘youthful love story’ ended with Franklin, for the sake of his ideals, choosing to leave the core star systems for the distant Loubion star system, thinking their connection was severed for good.

But to his surprise, the girl had never forgotten him. After finishing her studies, she followed in his footsteps to the Loubion star system.

However, her timing was clearly terrible. Not long after she arrived in the star system and began an internship in a government department, the armed rebellion broke out.

At times, her unwavering loyalty, coupled with the many hardships and setbacks he faced after forming his group, made Franklin want to abandon his cause. He wanted to take her away from this war-torn star system and return to their old life in the Federation’s core star systems.

But whenever his conviction wavered, the words of that ‘Mr. Rebil’ would surface in his mind, seemingly mocking him, taunting how fragile his beliefs were—and with such weakness, he still hoped for his investment. (Amber: ?)

The more he thought about it, the more determined Franklin became to prove the strength of his convictions, and to prove that ‘Mr. Rebil’ had misjudged him.

It was this determination that had supported him through countless obstacles to this day.

But this time, he found that he truly had no way to break the deadlock.

In the current environment of the Loubion star system, where ‘might makes right’, armed forces were the greatest asset a faction could have, and his own were clearly insufficient.

Just as the two fell silent over the food crisis, Franklin’s terminal suddenly chimed. He picked it up and saw a communication request from his intelligence staff officer.

Franklin signaled for Eleanor to stay quiet and then accepted the call.

“Mr. Franklin, we’ve received reports from multiple frontline positions. They’ve all received a public message. A man named ‘General Lampard’ wants to speak with you directly.”

The intelligence staff officer’s tone was urgent. He was naturally aware of the cause of the food crisis in various locations, so he quickly understood the reason for the direct communication request.

“I suspect they want to put pressure on you.”

Hearing the staff officer’s words, Franklin nodded and said, “I know. In fact, I knew what they were up to the moment the first protein synthesis factory was attacked. I anticipated this day would come. I thought we could find a way to solve this problem, but the enemy we’re facing is far more difficult than we imagined.”

“Regarding this ‘General Lampard’ and the troops under his command, I’ve managed to gather some information,” the intelligence staff officer suddenly said.

Franklin’s eyes lit up. “How reliable is the information?”

“It’s quite reliable. We found it in the digital archives of the original local garrison,” the intelligence staff officer replied.

“He and his troops are likely one of the oldest garrison units in the Loubion star system. They were among the few garrison units that survived the Empire’s invasion.

Later, they joined the Coalition in the fight to retake lost territory. After the war, they were among the very first garrison units to receive training and new equipment from the Atlas Group. A number of their special operations units and reconnaissance battalions are even said to have undergone brief training with the Atlas instructor squad…”

Hiss…

Hearing the keyword ‘Atlas Group’, Franklin couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath, as if from a toothache.

He now finally understood why the combat effectiveness of this armed force far exceeded that of any enemy he had previously encountered.

Training and new equipment from the Atlas Group—either one of these factors would be a decisive ‘buff’ for any armed force on Loubion V, let alone both of them combined.

And then there was the Atlas instructor squad.

The name instantly reminded Franklin of the night that changed his destiny—that elite squad that emerged from the shadows, whose members he had never seen but whose killing intent he could still feel.

“Banninger, are that ‘General Lampard’ and his elite squad really students of your instructor squad?”

Within the virtual space used for the Immortal Corps’ daily training, Lilith’s figure suddenly materialized from the void, landing in front of a special, large-sized powered armor known as the ‘Dreadnought’.

In an instant, this new unit, with a frame somewhere between a heavy powered armor and an HCP, disintegrated into a shower of data fragments, leaving only Banninger’s figure standing in its place.

“What the hell? Our instructor squad has students?”

Chapter 484: Preparing to Intervene

“What’s this? Your instructor squad has students?”

Opposite Banninger, the ‘mysterious hooded man’ who had been sparring with him lowered the hood of his cloak and removed his tactical faceplate. It was Amber, who had connected remotely to the virtual space to test anti-Psionics tactics with Banninger and the others.

“Master~”

Lilith quickly floated to his side, circled him once, and then affectionately took his arm.

Banninger, on the other hand, was clearly used to this, an amused smile on his face.

“Ahem, we’re talking business!” Amber grumbled, tapping Lilith on the head. He then asked, “What’s this about the instructor squad’s students you just mentioned? Aren’t all of Banninger’s students the Romu from the training camps?”

Lilith feigned annoyance and lightly punched Amber’s arm before summoning a virtual screen that displayed a stream of information. “It’s actually about that ‘little trouble’ Franklin is facing right now,” she explained.

Soon, the strong AI recounted the entire story she had gathered. Although the Loubion star system had descended into chaos due to the armed rebellion, the basic communications network remained active thanks to the upgrades Atlas had implemented during their previous collaboration.

This allowed Lilith to easily access the Loubion star system’s local network, moving through it like a ghost and gathering the information she needed from the countless electronic devices.

The information she collected was continuously fed to the Intelligence Analysis Center, allowing them to make timely assessments of the situation in the Loubion star system.

Meanwhile, the Polarized Light, on standby within the star system, could also use key information to preemptively avoid risks in the various orbits around Loubion V, allowing it to maintain its position nearby as if it were invisible.

After Lilith finished explaining the origins of ‘General Lampard’ and the troops under his command, both Amber and Banninger fell silent.

The former had genuinely forgotten that the instructor squad had trained human forces in the Loubion star system. After all, Amber received an immense amount of information daily, especially during the period of close collaboration between the Atlas Group and the Loubion star system.

The latter’s silence, however, was due to a different problem.

“Hold on, we trained them for less than two weeks. Does that really make them students of our instructor squad?” Banninger said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

He now recalled the matter. The instructor squad had indeed conducted short-term training for some of the Loubion star system’s special units, and this ‘General Lampard’s’ Special Operations Team and reconnaissance battalion had been among them.

Since there were too many units to train, and the instructor squad had limited personnel and time, the training period for each unit was short, basically around one or two weeks.

In Banninger’s words, it was more like a demonstration for the participating units—flexing their muscles, teaching some lessons the instructor squad had learned in real combat, and wrapping up with a few joint exercises.

Ultimately, it was more like an extra business development activity for the Atlas Group.

After all, the training for these special units wasn’t included in the military contracting services Atlas Group offered the Loubion star system. In other words, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government paid a hefty extra ‘tuition fee’ for it.

“So that’s what happened…” After hearing the explanations from Lilith and Banninger, Amber finally understood the situation.

“So, you’re saying the enemy Franklin is facing is, more or less, an ‘elite force’ trained by our own Atlas Group?” he asked.

Banninger: “To be precise, they’re considered an ‘elite force’ relative to the other troops in the Loubion star system. But by Atlas’s standards, they’ve barely met the requirements to be considered a regular force.”

“Ah, but you can’t lump them in with the Romu. The difference in their basic physical conditioning is just too great.”

Amber waved dismissively. “So this ‘General Lampard’s’ forces destroyed all the basic food processing facilities in the territory Franklin controls, and they’ve seized all the surrounding industrial zones, especially the food processing plants, to blackmail him?”

“Yes,” Lilith nodded. “And it seems to be effective. It has at least triggered a food shortage crisis in the territory our young man controls. If he can’t find a solution soon, his starving subordinates might just deal with him…”

At this point, Lilith glanced at Banninger.

“And you don’t have to be so modest, Banninger. Even with less than two weeks of training from the instructor squad, these special operations units learned some real skills. For ‘General Lampard’ to use them against Franklin’s mixed military-police units… it’s a complete generational leap.”

Hearing this, Banninger scratched his head in embarrassment—a habit he had formed when he was alive and kept even after becoming an ‘Immortal’.

The old instructor squad veteran didn’t know whether to feel proud or exasperated.

He felt proud because, in a very short time, their instructor squad had produced a team that was proving quite capable and was now effectively applying its training in real combat.

He was exasperated because this very same team was now causing considerable trouble for their boss’s chosen ‘proxy’—the ‘idealistic youth’ they had met back in Ptolemy City.

“So what do we do now?” Banninger asked sheepishly. “Do you need us to drop down and carry out a decapitation strike?”

“Well, that depends on what Master has planned~” Lilith said, turning to Amber. “What do you think, Master? Should we intervene now?”

Amber had been reviewing Franklin’s previous attempts to attack ‘General Lampard’s’ forces. At Lilith’s question, he closed the virtual screen and pondered for a moment before speaking.

“No direct intervention. The time isn’t right. Besides, the number of combat bodies aboard the Polarized Light is limited, correct? We need to use them sparingly. It will be some time before Atlas can make its official return to the Loubion star system.”

Amber paused, gathering his thoughts, then continued, “I suspect Franklin can’t hold out for much longer. The food crisis will cause major chaos if left unresolved, so he’ll have to make a decision soon. My guess is he’ll most likely attempt a full-scale assault on the satellite cities and industrial zones controlled by ‘General Lampard’…”

“So, should the Immortal Corps conduct an orbital drop to assist Franklin’s forces when the time comes?” Banninger asked.

“We can discuss the specifics when the time comes. The Immortal Corps won’t need to make contact with Franklin’s people. In short, we’ll just help Franklin clear out the ‘obstacles’ they can’t handle themselves,” Amber nodded.

“Alright, let’s settle on that for now. Banninger, you and your team start preparing. We’ll give the operation a provisional codename: ‘Knock on the Door’.”

Chapter 485: Seeking Shelter Under a Big Tree?

After Franklin ended the communication with the intelligence staff officer, Eleanor looked at the worried expression on his face and stepped forward with concern.

“Franklin, are you alright? Is the problem that serious?”

As she spoke, Eleanor took off her tactical gloves, disengaged the hand actuators of her combat exoskeleton, and walked behind Franklin to gently massage his temples.

“I’m fine, Eleanor.”

A hint of tenderness flashed in Franklin’s eyes as he looked at the young woman beside him, only to be quickly replaced by a serious expression.

“The intelligence staff officer obtained the identification data for ‘General Lampard’ and the troops under his command. They’re all units that were trained by the Atlas Group’s combat forces. What’s more, some of their special operations units are suspected to have been trained under the Atlas instructor squad.”

“The Atlas Group?”

Eleanor’s expression grew serious at Franklin’s words. Although she wasn’t an expert in military affairs, she had heard of Atlas’s reputation even before coming to the Loubion star system.

A series of subsequent events, some happening in the Loubion star system and others in distant star systems, had left an even deeper impression of the Atlas Group on her.

“I remember you’re on familiar terms with the de facto controller of Atlas, aren’t you, Franklin? I think his name is… Mr. Rebil?” Eleanor asked, tilting her head.

“Hah, where do these street rumors come from?”

Franklin shook his head with a self-deprecating laugh.

“What ‘familiar terms’? There’s nothing of the sort. I’ve only ever spoken with Mr. Rebil twice, just twice. And both requests I made were rejected by him.

Perhaps in Mr. Rebil’s eyes, he was only willing to exchange a few more words with me because I could hold a decent conversation.

When it came to any real help, I still wasn’t valuable enough to be worth his while.”

“But haven’t you already made it, Franklin?” Eleanor said reassuringly. “You built up such a large force on your own and took control of sixteen large and super-large cities. I’m sure that Mr. Rebil must be starting to take you seriously by now!”

“It’s not enough… Think about the scale of Atlas right now. Compared to that, everything I’ve done is a ‘trivial’ achievement.”

There was a hint of melancholy in Franklin’s voice, but he quickly readjusted his mood—this was one of his strengths. He could rapidly adjust his mentality and emotions no matter the situation. Otherwise, he never would have been able to make the right decisions with a clear head when faced with so many crises.

“One day, I will definitely make Mr. Rebil see me in a new light. But for now, let’s focus on the problem at hand.”

Franklin gave Eleanor’s hand a light squeeze before letting go and standing up. He then activated his battle-hardened field holographic projection device, displaying an aerial view.

“If the enemy had only received Atlas training and equipment upgrades, the fighting would be tough and our soldiers’ casualties would be heavy, but victory wouldn’t be impossible with our numerical superiority…”

As he spoke, Franklin marked General Lampard’s controlled large industrial park and satellite city, then continued.

“But the truly tricky part is the special operations units under ‘General Lampard’ that were trained by the instructor squad. Complex, dense environments with extremely short engagement distances, like industrial parks and satellite cities, are exactly the kind of environment where they excel. Believe me… the Atlas instructor squad is even more formidable than you can imagine, or than the rumors say. They are true masters of urban warfare.

Although we’re only facing their ‘students’ right now, if this ‘General Lampard’ distributes his elite units logically and has them assist the other conventional forces in defense, it will indeed be difficult for us to make any headway.

The last few attacks we organized against the enemy’s defensive positions have already made this clear. When our attacking forces are bogged down, a single raid from these elite units can cause us considerable casualties and severely affect our morale.”

“Instructor squad…” Eleanor muttered the name. “I remember there have always been rumors among our troops that you also have close ties with Atlas’s elite forces. When the Coalition was liberating Ptolemy City, it was your assistance that allowed things to go so smoothly…”

“No, where do all these rumors come from?” Franklin said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “If I really had that kind of influence, would I be cornered like this right now?”

“So, does that guy Franklin have a connection to the Atlas Group or not?”

Within the territory controlled by Franklin’s “Renaissance Alliance,” several people whose faces were obscured were holding a secret gathering in an unremarkable room in a building.

“Launel said he saw Franklin chatting happily with that man behind the scenes at Atlas during the autonomous government’s victory banquet,” a middle-aged man with a grim gaze said in a low voice, while looking at another person in the corner of the room.

“Hey, Launel! Did you see clearly back then?! If you dare lie to us, you know the consequences.”

The middle-aged man’s growl clearly startled the young man called Launel. He gave a sudden shudder, and only after noticing that everyone else in the room was staring at him with unfriendly expressions did he speak cautiously, yet with a hint of agitation.

“Damn it, I swear everything I’m saying is the truth! When I attended the banquet with my Father, I really saw Franklin talking with Mr. Rebil for a long time!

And the entire night, that big boss from Atlas barely exchanged a few proper words with anyone else!

Only Franklin… damn it, I even saw Mr. Rebil get him a glass of champagne!”

The young man named Launel frantically described what he had seen, gesturing wildly. It was clear he was terrified of the others in the room.

“Alright, alright. Calm down and sit down!”

It was the same middle-aged man who spoke. After hearing his words, Launel obediently sat back down, lowered his head, and said no more.

The others in the room looked at each other, and finally, one of them beckoned with his hand and said, “Forget it, take this guy away…”

Soon, two armed personnel who looked like soldiers led Launel out, leaving only these unidentified individuals in the room.

“So, you think he was telling the truth? The young master of Pala Heavy Industries… he would have been qualified to attend the victory banquet back then.”

“It’s probably true. The kid’s life is in our hands now. He wouldn’t dare lie about this.”

“By the way, does he know his parents are already dead? He doesn’t still think we’re holding on to those two good-for-nothing wastes of food, does he?”

“Whoops, totally forgot to tell him…”

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter.” The middle-aged man raised a hand to stop the topic. “He’ll be reuniting with them soon enough anyway. No need to tell him.”

“Then the next question: what is the extent of Franklin’s cooperation with the Atlas Group? Back in Ptolemy City, did he really assist that mysterious ‘instructor squad’ and play such a big role in the recapture operation?”

Chapter 486: Deduction

“Hmph, I think it’s all talk. Look at him, scrawny as a chicken. How could he have helped an elite force like that retake a city?”

One man in the room said indignantly, his words dripping with disdain for Franklin. It was clear he didn’t respect Franklin as the ‘leader of the organization’.

“But for a mere Senate intern like he was back then to attend the victory banquet, that in itself is very telling.”

The middle-aged man, who seemed to be the leader of the small group, spoke up.

“According to the grapevine, it was because the Atlas Group gave Franklin the credit that he was able to attend that banquet. He was also given significant responsibilities after the war. Frankly, given his background and qualifications, even if he’s capable, such a rapid promotion isn’t exactly reasonable. That’s why I believe the Atlas Group might be pulling strings for him from behind the scenes.”

The middle-aged man’s words plunged the room into silence. Everyone was digesting the information, each making their own silent calculations.

Soon, one person spoke up:

“The Atlas Group… or rather, why would that Mr. Rebil help him so much? Could he be Franklin’s secret father? I’ve looked at his resume and personal information, and I can’t see any connection between him and the Atlas Group.”

“Based on their appearances, they look to be about the same age.”

“Who knows? These bosses of universal megacorporations love their strange little games. Maybe that Rebil guy is actually some crusty old man who had full-body plastic surgery to make himself look young again.”

“Hey! You know, now that you mention it…”

Seeing the discussion straying further and further off-topic, the middle-aged man, unable to listen anymore, coughed loudly, and the room returned to a quiet atmosphere.

After scanning the room and seeing no one else intended to speak, the middle-aged man offered his own speculation:

“I suspect Franklin might be the Atlas Group’s ‘proxy’, cultivated here in the Loubion star system.”

“A proxy?!”

The others in the room let out a collective gasp, and then a terrible possibility quickly came to their minds.

“Are you saying that even though the Atlas Group decoupled from the Loubion star system, they’ve secretly been plotting a return all along?”

“Very likely!” The middle-aged man pumped his fist excitedly, like a detective who had finally cracked a case that had baffled him for a long time.

“Think about it. The mysterious Mr. Rebil worked so hard to establish a foothold in the Loubion star system, only to be forced to sell all his assets and leave in disgrace. If it were you, wouldn’t you think about coming back one day to settle the score?”

“But I heard the Atlas Group made a massive profit during the final asset sale. On the other hand, the local Loubion star system companies that took over suffered huge losses. It’s said that over ninety percent of them still haven’t broken even.”

One person in the room quietly countered, clearly knowing quite a bit about the Atlas Group’s previous asset divestment.

But the middle-aged man dismissed this statement with contempt. Like many people, once he found a ‘truth’ he could accept, he would steadfastly believe his own speculation and do everything he could to deny any other possibility.

“A businessman! He’s a businessman! Remember, people like him are the greediest. Even if he made a fortune, he’d never pass up an opportunity to make even more money, let alone an opportunity that could potentially let the Atlas Group control an entire star system!”

“So you’re convinced Franklin is the Atlas Group’s ‘proxy’ in the Loubion star system?” one person asked with a frown.

“It’s an eighty percent certainty!”

“Then why didn’t Atlas step in to help before? If they really wanted to help Franklin, they could have done something, anything, to prevent General Lampard’s men from blowing up all the protein synthesis factories and hydroponic towers, right?”

“…”

The middle-aged man fell silent at this question. A moment later, just as he was about to say something, a knock came from the door.

Soon, a figure, whose face was also obscured, walked in. After seeing everyone in the room, they spoke:

“Just in. General Lampard, who’s been in a standoff with us, communicated directly with Franklin. The specifics are still unclear, but Franklin flatly rejected his demands and has since announced another offensive against the areas under Lampard’s control!”

News that the Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces were launching another attack on the surrounding industrial zones quickly spread throughout the entire Alliance.

Most people were not surprised by this decision. They were all aware of the predicament the Renaissance Alliance was in. If they didn’t find a way to retake some food-producing industrial zones soon, a large-scale food crisis would quickly sweep through the entire Alliance.

However, a small minority still questioned why Franklin didn’t accept General Lampard’s terms. If the two sides joined forces, not only would it solve the food crisis, but it would also significantly boost the combat effectiveness of the entire Renaissance Alliance.

In their words, Franklin was simply worried about his own position as leader, and so he was prepared to lead everyone in the Alliance down a path to ruin.

“So you’re really not going to say anything to quell the dissenting voices?” Eleanor asked inside an armored vehicle heading for the front lines, looking at Franklin, who was also wearing a combat exoskeleton.

Franklin shook his head. “There’s nothing to say. Rumors stop with the wise. I believe most people in the Alliance can see what that ‘General Lampard’ truly wants.”

“The two sides form an alliance, share military forces, and he’ll open all his food processing plants for our use. To most people, doesn’t that sound like a win-win situation?”

“Form an alliance? Hmph. And then he’d use his superior military strength to gradually turn the Alliance into his own ‘military government’? Our current defenses are enough to deter him from attacking. Once we form an alliance and open up our defensive zones, couldn’t he dismantle our defenses in minutes? We’d truly be lambs to the slaughter then.”

“Is he really that bad?” Eleanor asked, a little curious.

“Yes. According to intelligence from our spies who successfully exfiltrated, he rules his occupied territories as a ‘military government’. He’s extremely oppressive towards civilians and seems to have established some kind of class system. If his troops weren’t tightly controlling the borders and enforcing a long-term curfew, there would have been a massive wave of refugees long ago…”

As Franklin was explaining this to Eleanor, aboard the Polarized Light in geostationary orbit above Loubion V, things were getting busy for the first time in a while. The ship remained in covert operations mode.

In the captain’s chair, Tom, having changed into his in-ship suit, stretched his neck as he sealed the suit’s transparent faceplate. He spoke with a hint of excitement, “We’ve been idling in orbit for so long. It’s finally time for us to get to work!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator on the bridge followed up:

“Captain! The government and rebel fleets are currently in a standoff over the planet’s north pole. We haven’t detected any other units on our entry trajectory. We can begin the operation at any time.”

“Excellent. Maintain orbital surveillance. Have the operations team link up with the spy satellites and confirm the Renaissance Alliance’s current combat progress!”

Tom said while looking at the Operational Plan, and then his eyes landed on the section mentioning the ‘Immortal Corps’.

Thinking back to when Amber revealed this top-secret Atlas project to him, Tom would still tremble with excitement. He also knew that he could never get off this ‘pirate ship’ that was Atlas.

Not that he ever had any intention of jumping ship.

“I can’t believe I found out about this project even before Major Randall…”

After that random thought flashed through his mind, Tom quickly composed himself and said in a serious tone:

“Notify the Immortals in the Deployment Bay to enter combat readiness. Prepare for ‘Knock on the Door’ at a moment’s notice!”

Chapter 487: A Frustrating Preparation for the Offensive

If one were to look at the tactical map of Loubion V, the sixteen cities controlled by Franklin’s Renaissance Alliance, stretching from north to south, formed a long, strip-shaped territory of considerable size.

This represented the fundamental strategy of the Renaissance Alliance: control large cities to acquire more resources and population. Furthermore, the defensive resilience of large urban centers was far greater than that of ordinary targets. In a sense, they had chosen an advantageous ‘battlefield’ for any potential defensive operations.

Ever since General Lampard’s forces set their sights on the Renaissance Alliance, they had taken control of the industrial zones and satellite cities surrounding these cities. Although their troop numbers prevented them from occupying every industrial zone, they still managed to secure most of the valuable areas.

As for the regions they couldn’t fully control due to insufficient manpower, General Lampard had unhesitatingly ordered their destruction, rendering them irreparable in the short term, completely disregarding the large number of residents living nearby.

The result of these actions was that the residents, deprived of their food supply, were forced to flee to the cities controlled by the Renaissance Alliance. This, in turn, further complicated Franklin’s administrative challenges and strained their material supplies.

Although General Lampard’s forces could not completely encircle the Renaissance Alliance, they had effectively restricted their directions for outward expansion.

Occupying the destroyed industrial zones or satellite cities offered virtually no gains. On the contrary, it would further stretch their defensive lines, exacerbating their troop shortages. It was a clear case of the disadvantages outweighing the advantages. Thus, after receiving on-the-ground survey information from their reconnaissance teams, Franklin and his people abandoned the idea.

Consequently, the only remaining areas for expansion were those under General Lampard’s direct control, which exposed another problem.

They couldn’t defeat the garrisons in those areas.

At the same time, the central position of the Renaissance Alliance’s ‘strip-shaped’ territory was also a critical vulnerability. If this area were attacked and breached, their entire controlled territory would be split in two. On the advice of his staff officers, Franklin had therefore stationed a heavy defensive force there.

This meant the number of troops available for offensive combat missions was reduced even further.

——

33 kilometers west of the Mitala urban fringe, Renaissance Alliance Second Assault Group, vanguard staging area.

Captain Jeni, Company Commander of Company A, Battalion B, of the Second Assault Group’s combat reserve, frowned as he watched his troops disperse and take cover in the woods behind him after completing their assembly. He ducked back inside his armored command vehicle.

He patted the shoulder of his second-in-command, Company A’s Executive Officer, Lieutenant Kent, and asked, “During last night’s mobilization meeting, weren’t they supposed to reinforce us with an extra anti-armor platoon? How come there’s still no sign of them?”

The anti-armor platoon Captain Jeni mentioned was a platoon-level unit consisting of four ‘Iron Cavalry’ medium multi-legged war machines. Its configuration of two 130mm dual-purpose direct/indirect fire electrothermal-chemical cannons and two plasma cannons was the standard basic anti-armor setup for the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces.

At the combat mobilization meeting the previous night, when command had assigned the ‘vanguard detachment’ mission to Company A, they had also promised to reinforce them with an extra anti-armor platoon to boost their firepower.

Incidentally, although the Renaissance Alliance’s current ground forces were a mix of military and police units, their organization, command structure, and customs still followed the ‘old traditions’ of the star system’s garrison units, or rather, the Federation Army.

Before an offensive, the Forward Command Post would designate a battalion-level unit as the combat reserve, which would then dispatch one company to act as the ‘vanguard detachment.’

Unlike the more commonly known ‘point men,’ who were small units sent out by the vanguard assault battalion in the forward, left, and right directions after an attack began, the ‘vanguard detachment’ engaged the enemy in a dynamic environment far from the main force’s fire and logistical support before the battle started. Their mission was to eliminate enemy screening forces and create favorable conditions for the main force’s subsequent attack.

Typically, a mechanized infantry company was assigned this task, so the mission naturally fell to Captain Jeni’s company.

As a former garrison unit officer, Captain Jeni had no issue with such an arrangement.

But he had a big issue with the fact that the promised anti-armor platoon had yet to arrive.

Lieutenant Kent, who was busy at a command terminal, opened a new window after hearing his complaint and said in a huff, “They’re not coming. A message just came in. The anti-armor platoon got ‘intercepted.’ They’ve been reassigned to the vanguard assault battalion.”

“For fuck’s sake! Why are those bastards from the vanguard assault battalion poaching our support again?!”

Captain Jeni’s temper flared instantly. “It was the same last time. We ended up running into a mixed group of their ‘Iron Cavalry’ and ‘Tarantula’ units and almost didn’t make it out!”

Seeing Jeni grab the comms unit, ready to complain directly to Forward Command, Lieutenant Kent quickly stopped him.

“You think complaining will do any good? Have you forgotten who the vanguard assault battalion’s commander is a protégé of? You think you can win that argument?

Besides, we’re only ten minutes from our scheduled departure time. If we’re late because of this, Forward Command will blame us.”

Lieutenant Kent’s words quickly cooled Captain Jeni down.

He thought about the commander of the vanguard assault battalion. The man was a direct subordinate of a certain officer at the main command post—the protégé of a brigade-level commander. For someone of his own rank to file a complaint would be a thankless and futile effort.

“Sigh… Mr. Franklin is such a good man. Why did he end up with a bunch of parasites like this in our ranks?” Captain Jeni said dejectedly, a look of disappointment on his face.

Seeing him like this, Lieutenant Kent felt a knot in his stomach too. However, he fulfilled his duty as a combat adjutant, remaining calm at such a moment. “Don’t overthink it, man,” he said. “This stuff is above our pay grade. Your job now is to calm down, take command, and get everyone through this mission and back in one piece.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t let this crap get to me right now.”

Captain Jeni nodded, composed himself, and sat down in the main commander’s seat of the armored command vehicle before opening the tactical map.

“Let’s be extra careful this time. Forward Command is being so damn stingy, sending just one company to clear out screening forces, and it has to be our mechanized infantry company.

I really don’t know what they’re thinking. We’re the ones sticking our necks out. Do they think our handful of infantry can take a beating better than an HCP or a main battle tank?

Hell, even if they’d sent a mixed unit of medium and light multi-legged war machines, they’d be far more effective than us.”

The outspoken company commander couldn’t stop his complaints. Beside him, Lieutenant Kent could only try to make light of the situation.

“The army’s combat doctrine requires a mech infantry company for the ‘vanguard detachment’ role. Forward Command is just following the book. Why are you so worked up?”

“Isn’t that just classic dogmatism? It’s been so long since the war with the Empire started. Shouldn’t our combat experience be used to update the doctrines by now? It’s obvious that the advantages of using a heavy armored unit as the ‘vanguard detachment’ far outweigh the mobility of a mechanized infantry company!”

As Captain Jeni and Lieutenant Kent talked, Company A began to move out under the former’s command. Nearly twenty wheeled armored vehicles pulled out of the staging area in a marching column, heading toward the targeted enemy-controlled territory.

But it wasn’t long before they were intercepted by the first enemy screening position.

Chapter 488: An Attack Thwarted, as Expected

“Lead vehicle hit! Lead vehicle hit!”

“Fuck, all other vehicle crews, spread out! Covering fire for the survivors!”

As an anti-vehicle missile flew out from under a building that looked like a ruin, trailing a long wake, and ultimately struck A Company’s lead armored vehicle, the battle under the night sky began.

Without even waiting for orders from Captain Jeni, the two remaining vehicles of the three-vehicle point element quickly swiveled their turrets, aiming their 30mm chain guns at the missile’s launch point and opening fire.

Amidst the paths traced by the tracer rounds, the only two survivors from the lead vehicle stumbled out of the wheeled armored vehicle’s open rear hatch and dropped to the ground.

A moment later, under the dual influence of combat stimulants and adrenaline, they climbed back to their feet and limped toward a friendly vehicle coming to retrieve them.

But the two soldiers, who had been lucky enough to survive the anti-vehicle missile attack thanks to the miraculous protection of their combat exoskeleton armor plates, hadn’t taken more than two steps before their torsos were shattered by two successive flechette rounds, one from the front and one from the back.

“Shit!”

Seeing the two soldiers’ life-sign waveforms on his command interface instantly flatline, Captain Jeni couldn’t help but curse aloud.

At the same time, he quickly noticed that these two flechette rounds, which reaped lives like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, did not trace a conspicuous orange-red trajectory in the night sky like ordinary ones.

Instead, they streaked silently through the darkness, leaving only a very rough directional indicator on the counter-sniper radar.

“Sublimation-cooled flechette rounds. Could it be a special operations sniper team?”

Captain Jeni murmured. As a frontline officer who had served for a long time in the star system garrison unit, he was no stranger to the equipment of the brigade’s special operations units, as they often had to coordinate in battle.

So he naturally knew that the sniper teams of these special operations units used relatively expensive sublimation-cooled ammunition to delay their exposure on the battlefield for as long as possible.

Lieutenant Kent, his long-time partner, nodded in agreement. “With that signature and reaction speed, it’s them, eighty percent certain.”

“Tch… how the hell did we hit the jackpot!”

Captain Jeni said resentfully, but he knew this was no time for complaints. He immediately issued orders with practiced efficiency:

“Point platoon, maintain suppressive fire on the target area! Dismounted infantry, prepare to disembark for combat. I want that target area taken!

2nd Platoon, be on alert for the direction indicated by the counter-sniper radar. If you spot a suspicious target, you are cleared to fire without asking for permission!

3rd Platoon, follow the point platoon and be ready to provide support at any moment!

4th Platoon, continue security operations and prevent enemy units from outflanking us from other directions!

Company command electronic warfare team, begin electronic jamming and countermeasure operations!”

After rapidly issuing his commands, Captain Jeni turned his upper body and slapped the helmet of the communications specialist sitting behind him.

“Report to Forward Command that our unit is under attack and we are executing our anti-screening mission according to plan!”

“Yes, Captain!” the communications specialist replied nervously. He quickly began operating the vehicle-mounted console in front of him, transmitting the relevant information to the Forward Command Post in the rear.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Kent’s eyes lit up as he looked at the screen in front of him. He nudged Jeni with his shoulder.

“Look! The drone has spotted their ambush team!”

Hearing this, Captain Jeni immediately turned his head. On the screen was the footage from a vehicle-launched drone.

In the ruins that had initially been deemed ‘safe’, several figures were crawling out from under an infrared camouflage tarp. From the outlines beneath the tarp, it was easy to see that the anti-vehicle missile launcher was hidden there.

However, under the sustained fire from two 30mm cannons, they didn’t even have a chance to reload for the moment.

Upon spotting them, the reconnaissance drone quickly marked them and shared the data with A Company’s entire vehicle crew roster via datalink.

Thus, the crews of the point platoon’s two remaining wheeled armored vehicles soon saw several conspicuous red inverted triangles on their own targeting displays.

The trajectories of the 30mm cannons naturally followed, and the position where the enemy soldiers were located was immediately battered by a storm of dust and debris.

Just as the dismounted infantry from these two wheeled armored vehicles were disembarking and advancing while the vehicles were still in motion, the drone feed in front of Jeni and Kent suddenly panned upwards, locking onto a relatively dense grove of trees in the distance.

The next second, a main battle tank covered in camouflage nets emerged from the woods. As the drone marked it as a ‘purple high-risk unit’, electric arcs began to flash on the rails of the heavy electromagnetic cannon in the center of its wedge-shaped turret.

“We’re done for.”

This was the shared reaction of the two men in the armored command vehicle as they witnessed the scene. Immediately after, a line of fire streaked across the battlefield in an instant, reducing one of the point platoon’s wheeled armored vehicles to a pile of parts and taking down several nearby soldiers in the process.

Scenes like this were playing out almost simultaneously on all of the Renaissance Alliance’s fronts.

After the various vanguard detachments assigned to clear out enemy screening forces made contact with the enemy at these scattered settlements or automated farms, there was no probing phase. The fighting between the two sides quickly reached a fever pitch.

Upon receiving news from the vanguard detachments, the various units on the main axes of advance quickly adjusted their battle plans according to the contact reports and then ordered the attack to commence.

But the fact that General Lampard’s troops could hold their own against the Renaissance Alliance with fewer numbers and repeatedly gain the upper hand showed that their combat proficiency was indeed much higher than Franklin’s.

This caused all the vanguard detachments to suffer losses quickly. Two particularly unlucky or less competent detachments were almost wiped out to a man.

Although the follow-on scouts and frontline assault troops, with their superiority in numbers and heavy equipment, quickly swept away these outer screening forces, they soon encountered a similar situation to the vanguard detachments when they advanced to the enemy’s main defensive line.

The main defensive line constructed by General Lampard’s forces wasn’t just armed with simple anti-vehicle missiles or large-caliber electromagnetic sniper rifles. It was defended by genuine heavy armored units, including main battle tanks, heavy multi-legged war machines, and HCPs.

Unsurprisingly, the Renaissance Alliance’s advance was hindered to varying degrees on all fronts.

The mixed military-police forces were already of lower overall quality due to the inclusion of a significant amount of police equipment. When faced with assault operations that had an frighteningly high casualty rate, the combat effectiveness of each unit was dragged down even further.

Soon, the reports of ‘stalemate’ coming in from all sides caused Franklin’s brow to furrow into a deep frown inside his command vehicle.

Chapter 489: When the Immortals Come ‘Knocking on the Door’

As the Renaissance Alliance launched a full-scale offensive against the areas controlled by ‘General Lampard,’ the Polarized Light, in orbit around Loubion V, used its pre-deployed spy satellites to get a general understanding of the current combat situation.

“It looks like the Renaissance Alliance forces can’t break through. There’s no sign of them breaching the defense lines on any of the main fronts of attack,” Tom said, looking at a virtual screen before him.

Though he came from the Federation Navy, after following Randall to the Atlas Group—and especially after becoming the captain of the special operations ship Polarized Light—he had begun to cram on the theory and practical case studies of ground combat.

After all, as defined by Amber, the mission of a special operations ship was not limited to space combat alone. It also involved various tasks like infiltration, reconnaissance behind enemy lines, and even assisting ground infiltration units.

Therefore, the captain of a special operations ship needed to be proficient in these areas, not just know how to command a warship.

“Compared to defensive operations, this kind of dynamic offensive combat demands a higher level of combat readiness from the troops. But it’s clear the Renaissance Alliance’s forces are somewhat lacking in this regard.”

Banninger’s voice came from another virtual screen, and Tom seemed completely unfazed by it.

After the initial phase of shock and curiosity, Tom and the other crew members of the Polarized Light had gradually grown accustomed to this comrade-in-arms and colleague who could only exist in ‘virtual space’.

“If they keep failing to break through the enemy’s lines, their resolve and offensive will be quickly worn down by the mounting casualties,” Amber’s voice also sounded in the communication channel. He was currently maintaining contact with the Polarized Light through a ‘dedicated line’ managed by Lilith.

Just as the three of them were discussing the battle, the real-time images transmitted back from several spy satellites were temporarily interrupted.

Seeing this, Tom paused for a moment before realizing what had happened and complaining, “This damned space junk has ‘polluted’ almost all the prime orbits for spy satellites!”

Amber shook his head helplessly. Some things really couldn’t be solved just because they wanted to.

Previously, after assisting the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government in retaking Loubion V and entering the planetary reconstruction phase, the government had hired several professional companies to clean up the space junk in various orbits around Loubion V.

This vast amount of wreckage and debris, created by the previous battle—or rather, the one-sided ‘massacre’—between the Imperial fleet and the garrison fleet, had not only destroyed numerous satellites but also made the orbital environment extremely poor.

Therefore, after the war, cleaning up the space junk was one of the first projects approved by the Star System Autonomous Government.

However, this hard-won safe and clean orbital environment disappeared once again after the ‘armed rebellion’ broke out in the Loubion star system.

The anti-government rebels in the star system weren’t just ground troops; there were also numerous cases of warships or even entire formal fleet formations ‘defecting’ from the newly reorganized garrison fleet.

So, when the two sides clashed near Loubion V, the massive amount of space junk generated by the fleet battle once again filled the entire orbit.

“Stop complaining. It’s good enough that we have any satellite footage at all,” Banninger said, looking through the screen at Amber, who was in another virtual space.

“Boss, should the Immortal Corps launch their attack?”

“Wait.”

With that, Amber turned to Lilith and asked, “How is the network infiltration coming along on your end?”

“Progress is mediocre. Compared to the Federation or Imperial ground forces we’ve encountered before, both sides fighting down there now have much stricter control over their internal networks and radio communications.”

As Lilith spoke, she rolled her eyes at Amber in the virtual space. “And it’s all thanks to you, Master~”

Hearing this, Amber was momentarily at a loss for words.

Because the Atlas Group, whether its ground forces or its fleet, had always held a massive advantage in electronic warfare when fighting other factions, often making its enemies suffer on this unseen battlefield and indirectly weakening their actual combat effectiveness.

So, as the Atlas Group rose to prominence and gradually took ‘center stage,’ other factions had no choice but to take notice of this former ‘small, scrappy company’s’ growth and bolster their own electronic warfare capabilities.

This was especially true for the newly re-established garrison unit of the Loubion star system. They had been established with direct assistance from the Atlas Group’s combat forces, so they placed extreme importance on the tactical and technical proficiency of electronic warfare and countermeasures. Moreover, their disciplinary requirements for internal network and radio communications were much higher than other units.

This made it difficult for Lilith to penetrate the entire military network as effortlessly as she used to. Instead, she had to find an opportunity to hack in, pinning her hopes for a deep infiltration on the enemy’s discipline being lax.

After all, you can’t make bricks without straw. If a unit’s network and communication control discipline was good enough, strictly limiting the opening times, modes, and frequencies of various ports, then it wouldn’t be so simple for Lilith to achieve a complete infiltration.

However, Lilith wasn’t entirely without results. At the very least, through the chaotic communications and information exchanges of the frontline troops, she had confirmed that both sides were currently engaged in fierce combat.

The attacking forces of the Renaissance Alliance were temporarily at a disadvantage, with the battle control line advancing very slowly and their frontline casualties being quite high.

Meanwhile, the forces under ‘General Lampard,’ acting as the defenders, were leveraging their superior training and equipment. Relying on their defensive positions, they were blocking the attacks layer by layer, quickly dulling the Renaissance Alliance’s offensive edge.

After getting through the initial chaotic period, they could even occasionally organize one or two counter-attacks to retake some lost positions.

“So, you’re saying if this keeps up, the Renaissance Alliance won’t be able to continue its attack?”

“Yes, Master~”

After hearing Lilith’s report, Amber nodded and switched the communication channel back.

“Tom, Banninger, let’s begin the ‘Knock on the Door’.”

“Yes, Boss!” they both replied.

Not long after, the orbital probes of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government fleet suddenly detected an unidentified ship heading straight for low orbit.

The alert was quickly passed to the garrison fleet, but at that moment, the government fleet was in a standoff with the rebel fleet at the planet’s ‘North Pole,’ so they couldn’t verify the ship’s identity in time.

“What’s the closest ship? How long until it can get there?”

“Report! The patrol ship Pamir is the closest, but it will need at least twenty minutes to reach the target area!”

“Too long! If they timed their move for this specific moment, twenty minutes is more than enough for them to succeed and escape!”

The fleet commander slammed his fist on the armrest of his captain’s chair in frustration. Looking at the enlarged image of the rebel fleet holding a defensive formation on the panoramic bridge, he couldn’t help but curse:

“Dammit, it’s all because of these damned rebels. They’ve got us trapped in this standoff, who knows when it’ll end. If you want to fight, then just fight!”

With no one else to interfere, the Polarized Light’s operation was exceptionally smooth. Aided by its high-level shipboard control AI, the special mission ship, converted from a destroyer, slipped through the debris fields scattered across Loubion V’s various orbital altitudes like a nimble fish.

“Ship has reached low orbit. Entering airdrop orbit in two minutes. Drop pod booster engines are warmed up, boost program has been set.”

“Atmospheric data, ground combat intelligence, and other information have been updated. Subsequent updates will be transmitted via channel D2!”

“No significant anti-aircraft fire detected on the ground! However, be aware of undeployed field anti-aircraft units!”

“One minute to target!”

“Thirty seconds to target!”

“10, 9, 8… 3, 2, 1! Begin airdrop!”

With the order given, the restraining arms holding the drop pods in place across four open channels in the Polarized Light’s deployment bay released simultaneously.

Like a hen laying eggs, the unmarked warship rapidly ejected four groups of drop pods above the target airspace. Immediately after, the attitude control thrusters on the ship’s underside activated, slowly pulling the vessel, whose altitude was already near the critical limit, back up.

The four groups, totaling twenty drop pods, separated from the warship. Their booster engines quickly ignited, and amidst the sudden flare of blue-white exhaust flames, they began to plummet toward the designated landing zone at an even faster speed.

The two armies fighting on the ground had not dealt with a threat from space for a long time, but they still had multiple layers of field radar set up according to combat regulations. They quickly detected the twenty unidentified units rapidly approaching from space.

After the drop pod booster engines finished their burn and the pods entered their inertial descent phase, both sides on the ground quickly calculated the final landing positions of these unidentified units.

When General Lampard’s forces discovered the landing positions were in several core areas behind their lines, they panicked.

‘General Lampard’ himself had never imagined they would be hit by an ‘orbital strike’ at such a critical juncture.

After all, even the government forces and the space rebel fleet, which possessed orbital assault ships, hadn’t used them for ground attacks in a long time.

He immediately ordered his troops to organize anti-aircraft defenses as quickly as possible, but at this critical moment, the only units that could respond swiftly were the high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles, which could ‘stop and shoot’ on demand.

But when facing units falling from space, the effectiveness of these things was… well, it wasn’t non-existent, but it was barely better than nothing.

On the other side, Franklin was also stunned when he received the news, as he knew very well that the Renaissance Alliance did not yet have the capability for orbital strikes.

And the factions that did have this capability were currently preparing to fight it out in the distant ‘North Pole’.

But soon, as if by a stroke of inspiration, he realized something and quickly issued an order to all his attacking units:

“All units! The moment those unidentified units land, launch a massive, full-scale attack!”

Chapter 490: Teacher Beating Up the Student?

Never mind the reaction of the Renaissance Alliance’s frontline troops upon hearing Franklin’s order; on the other side, the units under General Lampard’s command were already sweating profusely.

“Report! The target is breaking up! We suspect unknown units are separating from the orbital drop pods!”

“Who cares if they’re separating! Intercept them now! Take down as many as you can!”

On the screen before him, the five drop pods descending over his designated area had split into a dense swarm of unknown units after another radar sweep. The anti-aircraft commander of General Lampard’s forces gritted his teeth and gave the order.

Soon, the hastily deployed high-energy laser anti-aircraft vehicles raised their turrets, preparing to fire upon the incoming targets they had acquired.

In other areas of the defensive position, some HCPs also deployed the heavy particle cannons on their backs and raised their electromagnetic rifles, preparing to try their luck.

Against conventional units like atmospheric aircraft, missiles, or drones, HCPs were more than capable of handling air defense tasks. Their performance was especially good when fitted with additional air defense modules.

But against units crashing down from the zenith at extreme speeds, all they could do was take a shot in the dark. Compared to atmospheric aircraft, these vertically descending units offered a much shorter reaction time. Often, they would be moments from impact before an HCP could even finish deploying its weapons.

“We’ve been locked on by the field air defense radar team. The information has likely been synced to their anti-aircraft fire-control radar, which means we’re about to be attacked. Everyone! Take evasive action! Maneuver at your own discretion!”

Banninger commanded over the communication channel, simultaneously maneuvering the Dreadnought heavy powered armor he was ‘piloting’ to separate from its drop pod.

The next second, a purplish-red, high-energy laser beam shot up from the ground. After a one or two-second lag, it lanced into the drop pod.

“Damn, that was close.”

Watching the drop pod’s bottom armor and heat shielding deform as the temperature exceeded its threshold from the sustained laser fire, causing it to lose attitude control and tumble wildly, Banninger felt a wave of residual fear.

Although members of the Immortal Corps would reappear unharmed in the virtual space even if their combat vehicles were destroyed, suffering casualties before the battle had even begun was not ideal. This was especially true given the limited number of combat bodies the Polarized Light carried, which needed to be used sparingly to handle any future unexpected situations.

Following Banninger’s command, the special powered armor and combat bodies controlled by the Immortal Corps members separated from the drop pods. Using their mounted, disposable attitude control systems, they began to perform erratic maneuvers to evade the ground-based anti-aircraft fire.

At the same time, Banninger controlled the Dreadnought heavy powered armor he was ‘piloting,’ deploying the heavy electromagnetic cannon on its back-mounted weapon racks and activating the electromagnetic machine gun held in its right hand.

Directly linked to the powered armor’s various sensors, he soon saw the high-threat ground targets highlighted before his ‘eyes.’

“Powered Armor groups, counter-attack while evading!”

As he issued the command, Banninger’s own weapon systems opened fire. One alloy penetrator round after another shot out, propelled by electromagnetic force along the acceleration rails. They quickly heated up from high-speed friction with the air, turning an orange-red and tracing streaks of fire across the sky.

Compared to heavy particle cannons, which have extremely high instantaneous energy output requirements, the power demands of the heavy electromagnetic cannon and electromagnetic machine gun were not low, but the Dreadnought’s small subcritical reactor and superconductor cells could handle the output.

Moreover, the Dreadnought had no need for a pilot, so the space normally reserved for a crew member was eliminated.

In addition, while this special heavy powered armor was slightly smaller than an HCP, it was still a size larger than conventional heavy powered armor, which provided enough space to house a more powerful power unit.

The anti-aircraft fire support teams on the ground certainly wouldn’t dare to take a direct hit from the penetrator rounds coming from above. Not even an ironclad main battle tank would risk taking an alloy penetrator round from a nearly vertical angle without its deflector shield active.

“Current altitude: 24,000 meters.”

“Current altitude: 20,000 meters.”

“Current altitude: 15,000 meters.”

“Current altitude: 8,000 meters.”

As the altitude readings constantly updated, the Immortal Corps drew closer and closer to the ground. During this defense penetration, they only lost a few basic combat bodies—a loss that was fully anticipated before the drop.

At this altitude, the members of the Immortal Corps began activating their retro-thrusters to decelerate.

Since they didn’t have to consider the G-forces a human body could withstand, the Immortals’ deceleration was brutal and highly efficient.

The anti-aircraft units on the ground, struggling to perform a final terminal interception, were stunned as they watched the unknown targets’ speeds drop dramatically.

The controllers sitting at their consoles even wondered if there was a problem with their detection units to display such an outrageous difference in speed.

But there was no time for them to check their equipment. Even after the Immortals decelerated, it took them very little time to cross the final few thousand meters.

As the large number of previously detected unknown units completely vanished from their radar screens, cold sweat beaded on the controllers’ foreheads. They issued a panicked warning over the communication channel.

“Unknown units have landed! Repeat! Unknown units have landed!”

“All teams, report in!”

“Team A has reached the target area. Powered Armor losses: none. Combat body losses: three.”

“Team B has reached the target area. Powered Armor losses: none. Combat body losses: five.”

The commanders of the four teams quickly reported their respective group’s status over the comms channel. During the drop, all four teams had only lost combat bodies. The powered armor, directly controlled by the Immortals’ ‘main bodies,’ had been more agile in avoiding all attacks.

Banninger glanced at his command interface. According to the ground reconnaissance conducted by the Polarized Light as it passed overhead, enemy forces near the four teams’ landing positions had already begun to surround them.

After a final, quick confirmation of the operational plan, the commander of the Immortal Corps issued his orders over the comms channel:

“Immortal Corps, begin the attack as planned! Cause as much destruction as possible, draw the enemy’s attention, and create an opportunity for our ‘friends’.”

Banninger paused, raised the electromagnetic machine gun in his hand towards the direction of the approaching enemy, and savored the familiar feeling. Then he continued, “This is the first time we’re all fighting in this form. It’s not like the asteroid fortress. Stay sharp, and don’t disgrace us ‘digital lifeforms’!”

“Roger!” came the chorus of replies.

As the acknowledgments came in, a “Unknown Unit Detected” warning flashed before Banninger’s eyes. He looked at a monitoring drone’s camera feed—these were drones that had separated from the drop pods along with the Immortals.

Once they reached their designated altitude, these drones activated and hovered at an optimal height for surveillance, monitoring unit movements around the drop zone.

Right now, the drone above Banninger’s Team A had captured footage of a ‘reinforcement unit’ composed of one armored platoon and two armored infantry platoons—a standard attack detachment in a heavy combined arms battalion.

Banninger switched back to the team’s communication channel, then took the lead, charging out of the drop zone with his electromagnetic machine gun towards a distant factory building.

“Prepare for combat, boys! Let’s greet those three iron turtles and see what they’re made of!”

Soon, all of Team A’s combat bodies, coordinated through something akin to a ‘hive mind,’ swiftly seized advantageous positions within the factory complex and set up the heavy weapons that had been dropped with them.

The Dreadnought powered armors, already equipped with heavy firepower, deployed their heavy electromagnetic cannons and charged particle cannons and opened fire on the three main battle tanks at the head of the enemy’s triangular attack formation.

Several streaks of fire crossed the battlefield faster than the human eye could track, but the next second, silvery-white arcs of electricity flared to life on the three main battle tanks, unsurprisingly deflecting the tungsten alloy penetrators.

The charged particle beams that followed also created a spectacular fireworks display on the deflector shields.

“Hah! I knew it!”

Banninger showed no emotional fluctuation as the first strike failed, as if he had already anticipated this outcome.

Not far from him, Memphis, who had just stopped firing his charged particle cannon, spoke in a relaxed, teasing tone:

“Do you think we… or rather, the Boss… is reaping what he sowed? Back when we were outfitting the Loubion star system garrison unit, we gave them our best export products. Now they’ve become the enemy we have to fight.”

“If you put it that way… I guess this really is ‘what goes around, comes around’?” Banninger replied, a little awkwardly.

“Uh, Corps Commander, that saying doesn’t have a positive connotation.”

“…”

Banninger didn’t continue the conversation. Using his sensors’ zoom function, he watched the approaching main battle tanks. These were among the best land warfare equipment Atlas had offered at the time.

They were the export ‘stripped-down version’ of the ‘Project 12’ main battle tank, the predecessor to Atlas’s current primary ground combat vehicle, the T-740 ‘Mjolnir’.

But even with the ‘cost-reduced’ modifications compared to their own equipment, the performance of this export model, named ‘Vanguard’, was still impressive.

As the main battle tank was finding new potential and enjoying a ‘second spring,’ Atlas’s ‘Vanguard’ was at the forefront.

Equipped with a deflector shield generator as standard, the ‘Vanguard’ was one of the toughest MBTs currently on the ground. The only tank that surpassed it in defensive capabilities was the Star Dragon Empire’s ‘Hundred-Ton King,’ the ‘Star Dragon’s Edge’ super-heavy main battle tank.

By appropriately reducing its physical armor and using the saved combat weight to upgrade the power pack, the ‘Vanguard,’ like the ‘Mjolnir,’ was armed with a heavy electromagnetic cannon or a plasma cannon, though its output and power were considerably lower.

Even so, the ‘Vanguard’s’ firepower was at the top of the top tier among active main battle tanks.

At this moment, the lead vehicle at the tip of the ‘triangle formation’ slowly turned its turret toward the direction it had just been attacked from.

The next second, a ball of ‘ball lightning’ shot out from the translucent triangular barrel, crossed the battlefield at extreme speed, and slammed into a three-story building, quickly engulfing a corner of it.

When the sound of the explosion, mixed with the clatter of falling debris, faded, a corner of the three-story building had been ‘melted’ away, leaving only the edges glowing red from the high-temperature plasma ablation.

“Andes, are you okay over there?”

Banninger’s voice came over the comms. He knew, of course, that the members of the Immortal Corps couldn’t truly die, so he wasn’t worried about his teammate being injured.

Rather, he was concerned about suffering combat losses so early in the engagement, which would prevent them from inflicting greater damage on the enemy forces later on.

“I’m fine, Corps Commander! I relocated after the first volley. Don’t you worry. It’s not our first time on a battlefield~”

Andes’s voice rang out. Banninger breathed a small sigh of relief, realizing he had been a bit too anxious over the Immortal Corps’ ‘public debut.’

“OK, all units, continue to maintain fire and reposition! If we can’t deal with the MBTs for now, let them approach. Prioritize the infantry fighting vehicles behind them!”

Following Banninger’s ‘shift fire’ command, the three advancing main battle tanks were no longer the primary focus, allowing them to press their attack freely.

However, the armored infantry behind them were not so lucky. Although they were riding in tracked armored infantry fighting vehicles used by heavy combined arms units, which offered far better protection than typical wheeled armored vehicles, the attacks from the heavy electromagnetic cannons and charged particle cannons were still a bit too much for them.

They could perhaps mitigate the charged particle cannons with their layered armor and special interlayers, but a direct hit from a tungsten alloy penetrator fired by a heavy electromagnetic cannon would punch clean through the vehicle from front to back, leaving two large holes and blasting the soldiers in the crew compartment into a bloody pulp from the overpressure.

After this ‘reinforcement squad’ paid the price of three infantry fighting vehicles and their troops being annihilated, the three lead ‘Vanguard’ main battle tanks finally broke into the factory complex where Banninger and his team were located.

The armored platoon leader was not reckless. He remembered the lessons from his training with the Atlas combat forces and kept his three tanks moving along the perimeter of the factory complex, not venturing deep inside.

The Atlas instructors had used numerous real-world case studies to drill into him that without infantry support, sending three tanks into street fighting was just feeding the enemy kills. He had to wait for the surviving armored infantry fighting vehicles to catch up and disembark their soldiers before advancing in coordination.

Unfortunately for him, Banninger’s team knew what this platoon leader was thinking.

On the side of the street where the three tanks were, a building’s exterior wall collapsed with a roar. A humanoid unit with a left hand crackling with ‘electricity’ charged out of the billowing dust. The armored platoon leader instantly realized they were in serious trouble.

Chapter 491: The Immortals’ Combat Style

“BOOM!!!”

Once Banninger pushed through the arcing electricity of the deflector shield and charged up to the side skirts of the Vanguard main battle tank, the outcome of the battle was no longer in question.

The military-industrial division of Atlas, upon receiving a top-secret development mission directly from Amber, had been puzzled as to why they were suddenly developing such an “unmanned combat vehicle.” They suspected that their boss might have created some kind of unmanned combat unit even more advanced than the Hive Core.

However, constrained by their security clearance and the extremely strict discipline regarding confidentiality within the Atlas Group, the employees in the military-industrial division responsible for this development mission wisely chose not to ask questions.

Instead, they focused their minds on the development task, doing their utmost to meet the requirements Amber had laid out.

Among these was a perplexing demand: “must have high resistance to the collateral damage from ground unit deflector shields.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Is this powered armor meant for close combat?”

Although the development team members were still confused about the use case for this requirement, they ultimately succeeded by changing the main armor material and adding extra insulation layers. They managed to give this powered armor and its associated weaponry the ability to “bathe” under the deflector shield of a main battle tank or even an HCP-class unit.

And now, if these developers from Atlas’s military-industrial division could see the Immortal Corps in action, their confusion would naturally be resolved.

Because the Immortals… they really did do close combat.

On open plains or in engagement zones with little cover, Banninger and his comrades would naturally fight a standard battle, relying on the performance of their units and equipment.

But upon entering urban areas or factory zones similar to street fighting environments, Banninger and the others would leverage the far superior maneuverability of their powered armor and combat bodies over other heavily armored units in confined spaces, opting for the more efficient method of close-quarters combat.

Just like now. When Banninger drove his Dreadnought into the deflector shield range of the Vanguard main battle tank, the armored platoon’s three MBTs were momentarily unable to threaten him.

The main cannon and coaxial machine gun were out of the question; they couldn’t hit Banninger at all.

The only weapon that could successfully engage him was the remote weapon station on top of the turret.

But as the twin-barreled 25mm autocannons spat fire, riddling the Dreadnought powered armor—which stood a head taller than the MBT—for several volleys, they did little more than create a shower of sparks and leave pockmarks on the external armor, failing to inflict any substantial damage.

This was especially true after the tank’s operator, unnerved by the close-quarters threat, panicked and set the weapon station to target the easiest but also toughest spot: the front chest plate. He didn’t even manage to damage the relatively fragile omnidirectional viewfinder on the head.

Then Banninger sprayed the remote weapon station, targeting sights, and other miscellaneous equipment on the turret with his electromagnetic machine gun.

“Target locked, but too close to friendly forces! Firing rashly may cause friendly fire!”

When Banninger smashed through the building wall and successfully closed the distance, the crew of another nearby second-generation Vanguard MBT spotted the unit, a size larger than ordinary powered armor, next to their comrades and immediately panicked.

Although they had the target in their sights, they dared not fire.

Not only was the friendly tank’s deflector shield still active, meaning their shot might be severely deflected, but even if they could fire directly, the close proximity made it impossible to avoid harming the friendly unit.

This was particularly true when using a high-penetration weapon like a heavy electromagnetic cannon against a main battle tank’s relatively vulnerable side.

Their hesitation gave Banninger the time he needed to attack.

Arcing electricity surged across his left power fist. As the electromagnetic force from the power pack was converted into kinetic energy by the electromagnetic muscle bundles, Banninger slammed his fist into the side of the main battle tank’s turret.

While punching a deep dent into the armor, the electrical arcs from the power fist also destroyed the regularly spaced metallic protrusions on the outside of the turret armor.

These antenna-like fixtures covered almost the entire turret and hull, and they were the key to allowing the deflector shield generator to envelop the entire vehicle.

Because HCPs have plasma thruster arrays on their backs, their deflector shields cannot provide full 360-degree protection, only managing to project a field of about 270 degrees.

But main battle tanks, which rely solely on tracks for movement, didn’t have this constraint. As this ancient weapon of war gradually experienced a “second spring” in certain battlefield environments, the major equipment manufacturers began to “stack the deck” on this battle-hardened veteran.

And Atlas was currently among the fastest in this race.

Amber knew that main battle tanks would be redeveloped as the war progressed. Their cost was lower than HCPs, and their technological requirements were not as high, so in the later stages, many smaller factions could even gather materials and parts to build them from scratch.

In terms of the three main metrics—protection, firepower, and mobility—a main battle tank’s protection was on par with or even slightly superior to an HCP’s.

As for firepower, while it couldn’t use a heavy particle cannon, the lethality of its heavy electromagnetic cannon or plasma cannon was by no means weak.

The only shortcoming of a main battle tank compared to an HCP was its mobility. Although current service models could easily reach speeds of 70-80 km/h on paved roads and maintain around 60 km/h in off-road conditions, they were completely outclassed by an HCP’s ability to jump, perform various humanoid movements, and use its plasma thruster array for a short burst, reaching a sprint speed of Mach 1.

Even so, in certain combat situations where mobility was less critical—such as defensive engagements—the main battle tank could still hold its own with its formidable protection and firepower.

However, this armored platoon under General Lampard was simply too unlucky. Not only did they make the cardinal mistake of letting an enemy get close in urban combat, but the enemy that closed in was a nearly five-meter-tall suit of heavy powered armor.

After Banninger’s punch, the deflector shield that the main battle tank had been maintaining first developed a gap due to the damage to the conductive metal components on the turret’s side. Then, under the Immortal Corps Commander’s continued assault, the entire deflector shield fell into disarray.

Finally, the deflector shield generator triggered its emergency protocol—shutting down to reboot.

This gave the other Immortals a chance to strike.

An orange-red trajectory kicked up a shockwave as it shot through the burning street and precisely struck the Vanguard main battle tank’s lower glacis. The high-velocity alloy penetrator rod swiftly tore through the vehicle’s crew compartment, shattering the vehicle commander seated in the middle before burying itself in the power compartment at the rear of the hull, ultimately causing the entire superconducting battery stack to quench.

As a brilliant, aurora-like plasma vented skyward from the vehicle’s pressure release system, Banninger drove his Dreadnought toward another target in the distance.

The two heavy electromagnetic cannons on his back weapon racks deployed simultaneously. Just as their charging cycle was about to complete, Banninger came to a screeching halt and deployed the auxiliary support struts on the powered armor’s legs.

Zzzzt-Vwoom! Vwoom!

The sounds of charging and firing were followed by two ear-piercing shrieks.

The penetrator rounds fired from the two heavy electromagnetic cannons flew left and right toward another target directly in front of him. Just as this main battle tank brought its cannon to bear, it was struck by the high-velocity penetrators, erupting in a dazzling arc of electricity.

At this range, the deflector shield struggled to defend against a kinetic weapon like an electromagnetic cannon.

Although the tank crew had cranked the deflector shield’s power to maximum the moment Banninger took out their teammate, the kinetic energy of these two high-velocity penetrators, fired at close range, still exceeded the shield’s defense threshold.

After being slightly deflected, the two penetrator rounds still managed to pass through the deflector shield and slam into the left and right “cheeks” of the turret—which was also the most physically fortified part of the Vanguard MBT.

Another team of designers at Atlas’s military-industrial division had clearly considered some extreme scenarios, as they had stacked the defenses on this all-important engagement profile.

The end result was that the two high-velocity penetrators Banninger fired left deep scars on the front left and right sides of the turret but failed to pierce the turret armor.

Watching the penetrators burst into two fireballs upon impact before ricocheting away, even Banninger couldn’t help but complain at that moment:

“Fuck! Why does the company have to make its export products so damn good!”

Of course, complaints were just complaints. Banninger didn’t just stand there waiting to be shot. Retracting his auxiliary support struts and electromagnetic cannons, he quickly made a lateral movement to leave his position.

This action caused the target MBT’s immediate counter-attack, based on the enemy’s firing position, to miss its best chance of a direct hit.

The even faster penetrator round only managed to graze the side of Banninger’s deflector shield, but its immense kinetic energy still sent the sprinting Dreadnought tumbling to the ground.

The crew of the other main battle tank, which had yet to fire, suddenly found a golden opportunity laid right before them.

Their position was on the opposite side of Banninger’s sprint direction, meaning the massive powered armor was now exposing its relatively vulnerable back.

The moment the crosshairs in his targeting sight settled on the powered armor as it was getting back up, the MBT’s gunner felt himself tremble with excitement.

The vehicle commander beside the gunner seemed to sense the crew’s emotional shift. Though he himself was also extremely tense, he still spoke up to remind him:

“Be patient. Don’t get excited.”

“BOOM!”

The next second, a deafening crash came from above the hull. The immense impact crushed the paved road beneath the main battle tank, severely damaging the tracked running gear and causing the entire hull to tilt to one side.

Fortunately for the crew, this export-model tank wasn’t equipped with integrated helmet displays. Otherwise, the three men inside would only have had to look up to see another massive suit of powered armor standing on their vehicle, one of its mechanical legs having stomped the armor plate above the power pack until it caved in.

Under this tremendous impact, the main battle tank’s deflector shield generator, power unit, main cannon, and other critical systems all malfunctioned.

Before the surviving crew members could even react, the powered armor that had descended from the sky leaped off the hull again. At the same time, it used its multi-function launcher to toss two thermite sticky bombs onto the top of the tank’s turret.

With a distinct hissing sound, a beam of high-temperature plasma with immense heat melted everything around it, including the turret’s top armor.

When a massive explosion rang out, blowing the main battle tank’s turret to one side, Memphis, having completed his attack, glanced in Banninger’s direction.

The Corps Commander of the Immortals had, at some point, drawn the plasma halberd that had been folded and stored on his back. He now stood beside the last main battle tank, holding the weapon. The heavy electromagnetic cannon in the center of the tank’s turret had been severed by the halberd, the remaining half drooping toward the ground like a flaccid limb.

A shell hole in the side of the turret also indicated that it had received a “finishing blow” from a team member hiding in a building, responsible for long-range anti-armor tasks.

“All clear!”

Banninger’s voice echoed in the communications channel as he himself charged toward the direction from which the three main battle tanks had come.

“Memphis, Andes, with me! We’ll keep attacking and take out the remaining infantry fighting vehicles!

Grace! Try to establish a tactical-level neutrino communications network and re-establish contact with the other combat teams!”

Lilith’s quantum entanglement communication device was generally used for long-range contact, so only the squad leader’s unit in each team was equipped with it.

The complex electromagnetic environment on the ground, coupled with the need for communication stealth, meant that the Immortals had completely abandoned conventional microwave communications.

Furthermore, after the Immortals “descended” into their vessels, they couldn’t communicate in real-time as they could in the virtual space, so they still needed to rely on other communication methods to stay in touch.

Within a combat team, the members were relatively close, mostly within visual range, so they used blue-green laser communication after assigning secure codes.

But to contact other, more distant combat teams, they had to use this neutrino communication system, which was still in its testing phase.

This technology had previously been used on warships, satellites, or large HCPs like ‘ATLAS’. However, with the increasingly urgent communication needs of Atlas’s ground forces, the technology was quickly miniaturized and put into testing.

“Corps Commander! I’ve contacted the other combat teams! Aside from Team D, which hasn’t made enemy contact yet, Teams B and C have already repelled the enemy’s probing attacks!”

“Excellent! Tell them to continue attacking high-value targets according to the plan!” Banninger said as he took aim at an armored infantry fighting vehicle speeding in the distance.

As the heavy electromagnetic cannon on the Dreadnought’s shoulder flashed, an orange-red trajectory slammed into the locked-on armored infantry fighting vehicle with lightning speed.

The penetrator, striking from an oblique angle, caused maximum damage to the vehicle’s interior, blowing off the turret and nearly tearing the hull in two.

After confirming the target had been reduced to a pile of burning wreckage on the plain, Banninger continued, “Grace, once you’re done with communications, release the reconnaissance probes and confirm the situation on our next axis of advance!”

“Roger, Corps Commander!”

Quickly, Grace, who was in charge of combat communications, lowered the equipment container from one side of his back weapon racks.

Unlike the other three Dreadnoughts in the combat team, which were primarily focused on combat, the one he piloted had done away with the heavy equipment on one of its weapon racks, replacing it with this container full of reconnaissance probes.

As the laser communication device transmitted a code to the container, it quickly opened with the help of a hydraulic piston. Grace swiftly operated the controls to activate the reconnaissance probes inside.

Once these reconnaissance probes—no bigger than a baby’s fist and resembling golden snitches—flew out of the container like a swarm of flies, they quickly dispersed under Grace’s direction, spreading out like a great net cast across the sky as they blanketed the area around Banninger’s objective.

Chapter 492: You’re Right, but This Is the Immortal Corps

“Lilith, what’s the overall progress?”

In the virtual space, Amber asked as he looked at the several virtual screens before him.

“Master, Banninger’s team has already repelled an attack from the enemy’s reinforcement unit. The enemy command structure is clearly in disarray; they haven’t issued new orders after their first wave of reinforcements was wiped out.

The four battle groups have now established a tactical-grade neutrino communications network and have deployed reconnaissance probes, which are advancing toward the target area.”

Lilith’s voice sounded, and at the same time, the screens in front of Amber combined into a massive electronic tactical sand table.

On the sand table, four small flags representing the Immortal Corps were now planted within the territory controlled by General Lampard’s forces.

Moreover, a cluster of green pixels was spreading outward like a cloud—a visual representation of the reconnaissance probes from the four battle groups continuously clearing the ‘fog of war’.

“Weren’t General Lampard’s troops trained by us? And they even switched to our export-grade equipment. How come they don’t seem as formidable as I imagined?”

Amber asked, somewhat puzzled. The intelligence Lilith had provided earlier had unconsciously raised his expectations for this enemy, but it now seemed he had set them too high.

He had originally thought that this unit, trained by Atlas combat forces, would cause Banninger some trouble.

“Master, have you forgotten what kind of unit we deployed?”

“But don’t they have the numerical advantage? And they’re more or less fighting as a coordinated system. How could they be beaten this badly?”

Lilith floated over to Amber’s side with a hint of exasperation, gesticulating wildly as she spoke:

“You’re right, Master~ But this is the Immortal Corps, a special elite force that feels no fear, knows no terror, and can never be killed in action.

And every member is equipped with a large Dreadnought powered armor, carries massive heavy firepower, and can even simultaneously control five combat bodies, each with armament and protection levels equivalent to conventional heavy powered armor.

During an orbital drop, there’s no need to consider occupant G-force tolerance, allowing for much more efficient defense penetration.

Then, by discarding the cockpit and other support equipment, the freed-up weight can be used to further boost firepower, propulsion, and protection! Ahhhhhh!”

The strong AI was so worked up, as if Amber’s failure to grasp the full extent of the Immortal Corps’ combat power was a life-or-death matter to her, which made Amber burst out laughing.

“Alright, alright, Lilith, calm down. Why are you yelling so loud? I was just asking.”

“How can I not be excited? The Immortal Corps is the product of my blood, sweat, and tears! It’s also one of the cornerstones that will help you complete your ‘grand undertaking’ in the future!”

“Okay, okay, I won’t question it anymore~”

Amber pulled Lilith into an embrace and stroked her head, and the ‘bristling kitten’ quickly calmed down.

As Amber watched the combat situation on the electronic sand table, he couldn’t help but marvel, “The Immortal Corps is indeed more efficient than I imagined. They’re operating so effortlessly even after being dropped deep into enemy territory.”

“That’s only natural. After all, look who designed the Immortal Corps~”

Lilith’s voice was filled with pride. “Besides, Banninger and his men are extremely experienced. Once freed from the shackles of their ‘human flesh,’ many of the weaknesses of human soldiers are eliminated, so their overall combat effectiveness is magnified even further.”

“True. Their combat endurance is far greater than that of ordinary soldiers, and they can carry more weapons and ammunition. With information superiority, an average unit would have a very hard time dealing with them.”

Amber observed the situation scouted by the reconnaissance probes as they spread out from each battle group. This information, once collected by each group’s ‘Communications Officer,’ was rapidly uploaded to orbit via quantum entanglement communication modules.

Although there was still some lag, for a device like a situational sand table that doesn’t update in real-time, it was practically negligible.

He glanced again at the equipment loadout of each battle group, shaking his head as he spoke:

“And Banninger’s team has an overpowered fire configuration. Each battle group might look like just four large powered armors plus twenty combat bodies, but those combat bodies are essentially equipped like heavy powered armor. Add to that the two heavy weapons on each Dreadnought, and any unprepared team would be completely overwhelmed.

If the enemy sends in small forces like they just did, it’s like throwing meat buns at a dog—a one-way trip with no return.

But if they send a large force to hunt them down, then our objective of creating chaos by dropping in the Immortals will be achieved. It’s just that the combat quality of that guy Franklin’s troops is average. If it were Montai’s or Tairak’s forces, they’d probably have pushed forward already.”

“So, would you say they’re strong or not?” Lilith said with a sly, fox-like grin.

“Strong!” Amber gave a thumbs-up and then continued to ask:

“But I have another question. How do you solve the energy and supply problem? Banninger and his team don’t need to eat, but their ammunition and energy are not infinite. It’s fine for short battles, but if they need to conduct long-term harassment behind enemy lines in the future, how will they sustain their combat operations?”

“They already considered that point during their internal discussions.”

As Lilith replied, she summoned another large virtual screen beside Amber, displaying detailed information on the various combat bodies, weapons, and equipment currently used by the Immortal Corps.

“Since there are no pilots or wearers, a large portion of the saved space and weight is used to carry extra weapons, ammunition, and common spare parts.

As for the energy to power the units, the metallic hydrogen batteries used by the combat bodies can be recharged during non-combat states by the subcritical reactors equipped on the Dreadnought powered armors.

So, in theory, the continuous combat time for an Immortal battle group is more than sufficient on a tactical level—in fact, it’s ample.”

“What if we encounter battles of extremely high intensity and severity in the future?”

Amber asked with a frown:

“Lilith, we can’t assume that all our future enemies will be like the ones we’re facing now, especially since both you and Salieh want me to achieve the ‘grand undertaking’.

As the situation deteriorates, whether it’s the regular armies of the Federation and the Empire or the so-called ‘rebels,’ their combat experience will grow, and their combat strength will increase. We must be prepared to face formidable foes.”

“We’ve naturally considered that as well.” Lilith smiled confidently.

Chapter 493: The Frustrated Lampard

“Master, from a theoretical standpoint of Atlas’s combat doctrine, all our operations that reach the ‘actual deployment’ stage have already completed pre-war simulations and calculations. So, we would certainly never drop the Immortal Corps into a ‘hopeless situation’.”

Lilith had, at some point, changed into the service dress of an Atlas combat unit. The perfectly tailored suit she wore exuded a temperament that was a blend of dignified solemnity and a subtle sultriness.

Quite magical, wasn’t it? That was Lilith.

Aside from expressing his approval with an unblinking gaze, Amber offered no other comments on Lilith’s change of attire. After all, his primary concern at the moment was the Immortal Corps.

Besides, he had a strong premonition that the strong AI before him would do everything in her power today to dispel his worries and push forward a long-shelved project.

“This also means that, for the most part, we won’t need to worry about the Immortal Corps encountering what would be, in theory, the most dangerous scenarios. Of course, nothing is absolute. Even I can’t guarantee to you, Master, that all tactical simulations will be flawless. So, if by some accident the Immortal Corps ends up in the ‘hopeless situation’ you described, we can use a Special operations ship to execute a secret orbital drop and force-deploy a wave of supplies.”

Lilith answered Amber’s question in a strict, formal tone. She paused at the end, then looked at Amber and said with a smile:

“Besides, Master, you haven’t yet broken free from the mindset of using conventional forces. You’re always thinking about how to rescue the Immortal Corps under impossible conditions, but you’ve forgotten that they are a truly ‘undying legion.’ Unless someone manages to breach ‘Valhalla,’ the virtual space I created for them, Banninger and the others will suffer no substantial harm. If their vessel is destroyed in battle, they can just detach their consciousness~”

“Hiss… now that you put it that way, my thinking has been a bit rigid.”

Amber nodded as if he’d had a sudden realization, aware that he truly hadn’t completely changed his perception of the Immortal Corps.

This unprecedented legion truly couldn’t be managed with conventional thinking. Instead, they could attempt more extreme and dangerous tactics, even actively jumping into “hopeless situations.”

Though it sounded a bit cruel, this was the nature of the Immortal Corps, reborn from the ashes of Banninger and his team. They had cast aside the greatest “weakness” from their time as the instructor squad, becoming a force born for war.

“I’ll change my way of thinking. Thanks for the reminder, Lilith.”

Amber spoke with sincerity. Although Lilith often pulled some unreliable stunts, the strong AI was, in most situations, the most dependable member of the team.

“Then can I take this as your approval for the official expansion of the ‘Immortal Corps,’ Master?”

Lilith walked over to Amber and leaned in to ask, her posture quite calculating.

However, as they were on the topic of serious business, Amber ignored the faintly visible curve of her cleavage and said earnestly:

“Yes, the Immortal Corps has demonstrated its irreplaceable advantages. But building out the entire corps can’t be done overnight, can it? Are you suggesting we get whole units wiped out and convert them en masse into Immortals? I will never agree to that.”

“What are you talking about, you!?” Lilith playfully punched Amber’s arm, then continued, “What kind of person do you take me for, Master! I’m not some great demon lord from a novel who enjoys things like human sacrifice. I mean we can slowly implant the combat units with the same kind of chips Banninger and his team used when they were alive.”

“And then convert them into digital lifeforms after they fall in battle in the future?”

Lilith nodded seriously. “Exactly. It’s a gradual conversion process, not something that happens all at once~”

“Alright, I have no objection to that. But I hope that even after they are converted into digital lifeforms, we give them a choice. Not everyone wants to keep working for Atlas after they die.”

Amber stated his final condition. Then, as if recalling something, he said:

“Anyway, if it were me, I wouldn’t want to keep working for my own company after I died…”

“Master, you can rest assured on this point. I will respect the wishes of every digital lifeform. If they wish to rest in peace, I will delete them completely,” Lilith said with a sweet smile.

“No, that sounds kind of creepy…”

“No, I’m serious, Master. And I believe the vast majority of intelligent lifeforms can’t resist the temptation of ‘eternal life.’ Who knows, perhaps my ‘delete key’ will never have to be pressed~”

While Amber and Lilith were extending their discussion on the expansion of the Immortal Corps to the ethical questions of “digital life,” on the surface of Loubion V, the warlord known as “General Lampard” was on the verge of a meltdown over the battle report in front of him.

Lampard Freylers was originally a Captain in Loubion V’s newly established garrison unit.

However, his all-domain special operations unit, after undergoing “special training” from Atlas combat troops and the instructor squad, quickly became an ace unit for the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

As he enjoyed treatment that surpassed other ground forces, his own voice and status among frontline officers rose accordingly.

But apart from Banninger, who had once trained him, no one else had noticed the ambition and greed in Lampard’s bones.

At that time, before Banninger led his team away at the end of the special training, he had written evaluation reports for a batch of officers from the participating units, as required by their contract.

In his evaluation of Lampard, Banninger had been very direct, writing comments as blunt as, “Solid military foundations and outstanding tactical and technical proficiency, but he’s more of an ambitionist than a commander of a special operations unit.”

However, these reports never attracted official attention. The Loubion garrison unit’s military affairs department, which was liaising with Atlas on the matter, didn’t even review them seriously, simply filing them deep in the archives as assets of a “friendly cooperative project.”

After the Atlas Group and the Loubion star system completely decoupled, these files were even more neglected.

And Lampard, living up to Banninger’s assessment, decisively defected when the armed rebellion in the Loubion star system broke out, using the opportunity of being dispatched on a mission.

Relying on his own abilities, he pulled together a faction composed almost entirely of defected troops.

However, this warlord, who could have been described as riding high just a short while ago, now wore a very ugly expression.

After the unidentified airdrop pods smashed deep into various positions, nearby units had quickly dispatched troops to reinforce them, including heavy armored units in accordance with combat doctrine.

But these units soon lost contact with the Forward Command Post. The only thing that could be confirmed was that they were engaging an unidentified enemy before contact was lost.

“So you’re telling me, in just this short time, we’ve lost forces equivalent to a reinforced heavy combined arms battalion, and we don’t even fucking know who the enemy is?!”

Lampard asked in a low voice, but in his main command post, no one dared to answer for a long moment.

The others were also in a daze. They had fought too many battles with a tailwind recently, and this sudden loss left them unable to adapt.

“Alright, stop fucking standing there like idiots! You’re operations staff officers, not wooden dummies!”

Lampard’s tone held a hint of helplessness. These “elite soldiers and valiant generals” under his command were still a far cry from the Atlas Group’s combat units he remembered.

“Notify all positions to strengthen their defenses! Send out more recon units, and don’t worry about equipment losses at a time like this! The reserve HCP units can also be sent out to test the enemy’s mettle, but be damn careful! Don’t fucking charge in like wild boars and get them all wiped out for me!”

Chapter 494: It’s Like Coming Home

On the surface of Loubion V, near an outer defensive position of General Lampard’s forces.

After eliminating the enemy scouts and reinforcements, Banninger and his team, led by their reconnaissance probes, quickly moved from the vicinity of the drop zone and advanced deep into the enemy’s defenses.

The reconnaissance probes they had deployed, nicknamed the ‘Fly Swarm,’ quickly ascertained general information about the enemy’s defensive positions.

This was the flank of a main defensive position belonging to General Lampard’s forces. The front of the position had just repelled an attack by the Renaissance Alliance, which had temporarily retreated after leaving behind the wreckage of several armored units and the bodies of their soldiers.

Looking at the information sent back by the reconnaissance probes, Banninger and his team found the layout of the position extremely familiar. It was basically a carbon copy of a standard Atlas ground forces position.

But after carefully examining the layout, Memphis offered a sharp commentary: “They only copied the form. They’re completely inflexible.”

“Indeed,” Banninger agreed with a nod. “It looks quite intimidating at first glance, but a layout like this shows they’re not taking their opponents seriously.”

On the miniature electronic sand table before them, the enemy’s position was temporarily mapped out. The entire frontline was about fifteen kilometers wide, which was obviously too wide for the number of troops detected. However, the mobility of the HCP units they had deployed compensated for this weakness.

Structurally, there were three tactical nodes in total, arranged with two in the front and one in the back, forming an inverted triangle.

The two forward tactical nodes connected the entire frontline and served as the staging and standby area for the Forward Command Post and the HCP units. A small amount of long-range artillery was also placed in concealed positions near the nodes.

Don’t ask why the long-range artillery in concealed positions was discovered; Banninger and his team were quite surprised themselves.

They had merely followed the standard patterns for position layouts and sent reconnaissance probes to sweep through likely locations for long-range artillery. As it turned out, they actually found them. Moreover, General Lampard’s men had been so laid-back they hadn’t even bothered with much camouflage.

It was clear they had the mentality of crushing pushovers.

Although, to be fair, fighting against the joint military-police forces could indeed be considered ‘crushing pushovers’.

As for the final tactical node at the rear, it handled logistics, material storage, and transport. Based on certain features detected by the reconnaissance probes, Banninger’s team determined that the enemy had likely placed a fusion reactor here as their main power core.

Using a fusion reactor as the power core to establish a frontline substation, and then building facilities like tactical support factories around it, was a common battlefield logistics node construction plan for Atlas combat units.

This construction plan had been taught by Atlas to the garrison units of the Loubion star system during their training. But the instructor who had taught the staff officers back then had made it very clear that the arrangement of tactical nodes must be adjusted according to the situation, not blindly copied.

The instructor had even used case studies to explain several variations. However, Banninger and his team didn’t know for what reason General Lampard’s staff officers had directly reproduced the basic position layout used as a textbook example.

Perhaps they looked down on the Renaissance Alliance? Or perhaps they just didn’t know how to build upon theoretical knowledge in actual combat?

Perhaps the ‘elastic defense’ system—with mutually supporting tactical nodes and high-mobility support from HCP units—was genuinely effective against the Renaissance Alliance’s steamrolling attacks that relied on numerical superiority.

But none of that mattered now. What was important was that the position they had set up actually made Banninger’s team’s mission easier.

Because these former members of the instructor squad were all too familiar with this type of position layout. The enemy had copied it wholesale, making Banninger’s team feel like they were back on the live-fire training grounds at the Tower of Babel.

“If nothing goes wrong, an attack from this direction will take us straight into the logistics tactical node. As long as we destroy the fusion reactor inside that substation, even if they have emergency measures, the entire frontline will definitely descend into chaos. Our objective will be achieved.”

As he spoke, Banninger drew a line on the miniature electronic sand table. The end of the line was their objective for this mission—the substation in the logistics node.

“Sounds good. I remember we used this attack route on the training grounds before. A small unit attacking from this direction is unlikely to attract the attention of the defenders on the position. We completely caught the heavy combined arms battalion we were training against off guard. I think it was Montai and Tairak’s unit, those two unlucky bastards.”

Memphis recalled his experiences from his ‘past life’ and continued:

“I remember they updated this position layout later on, patching this ‘vulnerability.’ It seems the forces in the Loubion star system haven’t received the new version?”

Banninger sneered. “Most likely. Those exercises took place after we had already pulled out of the Loubion star system. With the cooperation terminated, did they really expect us to ‘patch’ things for them?”

“So, we’re doing this?” asked Andes, who was usually in charge of long-range fire support and was also a man of few words.

“Yes, we’ll stick to this plan. Let’s cut the Gordian knot!”

Banninger quickly edited the operational plan and shared it with the other three members of the battle group. For digital lifeforms, performing this task while controlling a Dreadnought was incredibly simple, no different from a terminal opening another process.

“Task assignments have been shared. It’s the same as always: Memphis and I will feign an attack to draw their fire. Andes, you’ll look for an opportunity to destroy the substation. Grace, you’re on Electronic Warfare suppression and will be ready to provide support.”

With the sound of circuits re-engaging and mechanical parts whirring to life, the large Dreadnought powered armor, previously in standby mode, rose to its feet. A red light flashed in its omnidirectional viewfinder.

“Let’s move out. Andes, Grace, each of you assign control of three combat bodies to Memphis and me.”

“Roger, Corps Commander!”

Lampard’s forces’ defensive position, Logistics Tactical Node.

Since sunset the previous day, the two tactical nodes on the front had been hit by multiple waves of attacks from the Renaissance Alliance. Then, in the middle of the night, unidentified airdrop pods falling from orbit had put the entire position on high alert.

Especially after the scout team they had sent out lost contact, the logistics node, being the most vulnerable of the three, had immediately raised its alert level to the maximum.

But as the front line repelled the Renaissance Alliance’s attacks multiple times, and with the mysterious units from the airdrop pods having vanished, the only thing the defenders had accomplished all night was shooting down a few small, bug-like unmanned reconnaissance units.

This made them realize the enemy had never left, but was lying in wait, biding their time to attack.

In this state of extreme paranoia, by three or four in the morning, the soldiers and officers, who had been forcing themselves to stay awake with energy drinks and stimulants, were finally reaching their limits.

They were human, after all. They got thirsty, hungry, and tired. The consequence of staying awake for so long was that as time went on, their mental acuity and reflexes began to decline rapidly.

Just as the node commander was considering letting some of the troops stand down to rest and recover, the attack they had been waiting for all night finally came.

Chapter 495: The Question Maker

The shrieking of plasma rockets was like an alarm clock going off at 4 a.m., jolting the soldiers at the logistics node’s defensive positions awake.

In the process of going from groggy to fully awake, the unavoidable physiological reactions of rapid breathing and a racing heart left them momentarily unable to process what was happening. But when the plasma rockets landed, erupting into blue-white fireballs and burning the unlucky ones in the impact zone to unrecognizable piles of char, they finally snapped back to reality.

“Enemy attack! Enemy attack! All units, prepare for combat!”

The front-line duty officer shouted into the comms channel, only to immediately realize their communications had been jammed at some point.

Simultaneously, a radioman from the communications support company stationed at the logistics node ran over to report that their internal network was under attack by an unknown electronic warfare virus.

However, this unit’s internal network had long been physically isolated from external networks, so in theory, it should have been virtually impossible to breach via a remote cyberattack. They suspected a device connected to the internal network had been hacked.

The duty officer suddenly understood the meaning of “when it rains, it pours.” But he did his utmost to remain calm, then dashed into an armored command vehicle in deployment mode and bellowed an order over the loudspeaker:

“Entire node, switch to emergency blue-green laser communications! Battalion HQ, send a platoon to help the comms support company investigate! Find a way to contact the other two tactical nodes. If all else fails, fire a flare!”

There was nothing wrong with the duty officer’s orders; in fact, they were strictly by the book for emergency combat procedures. But with the soldiers extremely exhausted and on high alert, the efficiency of execution suffered.

Just the process of assigning laser communication codes to each unit took nearly four times longer than it should have. By the time the various units on the defensive line had re-established contact, Banninger’s second wave of attack had arrived.

Within the Immortal Corps’ battle groups, the combat bodies served not only as auxiliary combat units controllable by the Immortals but were also responsible for carrying necessary equipment and ammunition for battle.

Just like now, the combat bodies had set up two portable, automated plasma rocket pods at a location designated by Banninger. After firing the first volley, they still had enough ammunition for two more salvos.

After setting up the rocket pods, the combat bodies left the launch position and followed Banninger and Memphis to prepare for the assault.

As the shriek of plasma rockets tearing through the air sounded again, these “little darlings” with their contrails soared over Banninger’s head in the faint morning light.

Although the reacting laser point-defense systems shot down a good number of them, most of the rockets still managed to land, erupting into clusters of plasma fireballs on the defenders’ positions and forming a wall of light.

While inflicting casualties and creating chaos, this wall of light also provided Banninger’s group with the perfect cover.

The defenders at the logistics node couldn’t figure out why they were being hit by plasma rockets. From the duty officer’s perspective, neither the Renaissance Alliance forces nor that mysterious airdropped unit could have possibly advanced so close to the logistics node without being detected, let alone set up a rocket launch site nearby.

Of course, neither he, General Lampard, nor the staff officers under him would have ever imagined that Banninger’s group had found the critical weakness in their defensive structure.

It was as absurd as showing up for an exam only to find that the person who wrote the questions was taking it alongside you.

When the high-temperature fireballs from the plasma rockets burned out, the defenders on the western defensive line saw two five-meter-tall powered armors smash through a section of the outer armored wall, then charge forward with sixteen heavy powered armors in tow.

The two multi-legged war machines closest to the breach were blasted back into spare parts by a salvo from multiple electromagnetic cannons before they could even react.

The two squads of soldiers providing support fire beside them were defenselessly shredded into bloody chunks against their cover by the strafing of electromagnetic machine guns.

To the defenders, the scene was like a tableau from hell, especially when the two five-meter-tall powered armors, stained with dark brown marks of what could be either oil or blood, turned their head-mounted viewfinders in their direction.

Perhaps even Banninger and his team hadn’t expected their assault to be this effective. They were expanding the breach and advancing toward the substation at the node’s core far faster than anticipated.

Because the heavy equipment, including main battle tanks and heavy multi-legged war machines, was positioned at the other two tactical nodes and on the main defensive line, this particular logistics node had the weakest defenses.

The only two heavy particle cannons had been specifically targeted in the previous two rocket volleys. While not completely destroyed, the defenders couldn’t expect them to come back online anytime soon.

Just as Banninger and Memphis were steadily advancing with the combat bodies, Grace’s voice suddenly crackled over the comms channel.

“Corps Commander, an HCP three-unit formation is approaching rapidly from the east. It must be their mobile forces stationed on the defensive line. ETA two minutes to this node!”

“They’re fast. That’s not a slow reaction time.”

Banninger was somewhat surprised by the enemy’s reaction speed. After all, it was a stark contrast to the shoddy performance of the defenders at the logistics node.

But he didn’t dwell on it. His battle group’s mission was simply to wreak havoc, so drawing the enemy’s valuable mobile forces over here was a good thing.

“Grace, retarget the rocket pods for a third volley. Set the coordinates in the direction of the enemy HCP support. I want you to control the launch with manual commands. When their HCPs arrive, use the rockets for suppressive fire to buy us some time!”

Grace acknowledged and immediately accessed the rocket pods’ control program to reconfigure them. Banninger continued speaking on the comms channel:

“Andes, fire at your discretion!”

“Roger!”

While issuing orders, Banninger and Memphis used their Dreadnoughts’ armor and deflector shields for cover, screening a portion of the combat bodies as they crept toward the substation.

As the core of the logistics node, the substation was naturally heavily guarded. Although there were no heavy units present, the dispersed positions of multiple anti-armor teams managed to suppress the combat bodies’ advance.

But Banninger’s team never intended to destroy the substation with the combat bodies anyway. The puppets’ mission, besides drawing enemy fire, was to deploy a large number of tennis-ball-sized micro-robots into the substation’s vicinity before being destroyed. These robots then quickly scanned the substation’s structural layout.

This information was quickly synced to Andes. In his view, the hastily constructed substation now appeared semi-transparent, and the fusion reactor inside the building was clearly visible!

On the eastern side of the logistics node, three “Wasteland Wolf” mechs with blue-gray paint jobs finally entered the node, braking hard to slow down. But a sudden “projectile weapon” warning forced the three HCPs to scatter before they could even come to a full stop. They then used the laser point-defense weapons on either side of their head-mounted viewfinders to engage the incoming rockets.

With the support of the node’s own laser defenses, this third volley of plasma rockets was far less effective than the first two. Most were destroyed in mid-air, and the few that managed to get through caused no significant damage.

Just as the three HCP pilots were breathing a small sigh of relief and preparing to deal with Banninger’s group, another alarm blared in their cockpits.

“Warning! Strong magnetic field detected!”

Immediately after, two orange-red lines of fire shot out from the distant woods. A second later, they pierced the substation’s outer structure and precisely struck the fusion reactor at its core.

A note of absence

A note of absence

I just got home, so I don’t have time to update today. Updates will resume tomorrow~

My apologies!

Chapter 496: Everyone, See You in Valhalla

“Woohoo! Right on target~”

Andes’s voice came over the comms channel, a hint of excitement clear in his tone.

This Immortal, usually a man of few words, would only show his emotional side after destroying a target in battle, especially when hitting an important target from such a long range.

As the core power source behind the front lines, the fusion reactor was naturally not as heavily armored as a combat unit, so the two high-velocity penetrator rounds easily destroyed its main structure.

Although the substation itself seemed mostly fine, aside from two new holes in its wall, its power output was actually cut off the instant the fusion reactor was destroyed.

The logistics node’s emergency power automatically kicked in the moment the main power was cut, supplying electricity to external equipment. However, as the emergency power had limited output and reserves, many non-essential systems had to be shut down immediately.

Looking at the smoking substation and the many extinguished lights across the logistics node, Banninger spoke with a sigh of relief, “Alright, the primary objective is complete. Now we just need to empty our ammo and inflict as much damage on the enemy as possible!”

The Immortal Corps Commander deployed the dual heavy electromagnetic cannons on his back and fired two shots at the still-reacting HCPs. Then he said over the comms channel, “Gentlemen, see you in Valhalla!”

“See you in Valhalla, Corps Commander!” x3

If humans had spoken these words, it would have been an incredibly heroic moment, conjuring up images of warriors trapped by the enemy in a desperate situation, sacrificing themselves gloriously as their souls returned to the hall of heroes.

But coming from the digital lifeforms of the Immortal Corps, that tragic, heroic feeling vanished in an instant.

Banninger and his team’s words sounded more like a casual greeting, something along the lines of, “See you at home for dinner after the fight~”

With the primary mission objective complete, the last bit of pressure on Banninger’s team disappeared.

Previously, to ensure the mission’s success, they had been relatively conservative in their approach. They had avoided any radical or overly flashy maneuvers, focusing entirely on completing their objective above all else.

That was why even Banninger and Memphis, who were responsible for the feigned attack, had been proceeding steadily and cautiously in their assault.

But once these “restraints” were lifted, the situation began to change subtly.

The first to feel this change were the defending soldiers in the logistics node.

They just felt that these enemies who had stormed the node, engaging them from behind various obstacles and cover, had suddenly become far more aggressive.

Just seconds ago, they had been carefully setting up temporary kill zones, waiting for them to walk into a trap. But now, they were actively charging out from behind cover.

The two massive suits of Powered Armor, their deflector shields active, charged like gods of war, suppressing them with a hail of fire from their electromagnetic machine guns as they rushed into their position.

After emptying their machine guns, these two “demon gods” simply tossed the weapons aside, drew the folded plasma halberds from their backs, and went on a rampage through the defensive line.

The Dreadnought didn’t have a plasma thruster array on its back. While it could be equipped with rocket engines for assisted mobility, Banninger’s team had clearly opted not to, which meant the Dreadnought’s back was also covered by the deflector shield, leaving no obvious weakness.

When three HCPs arrived as reinforcements, they found that while there were a few combat body wrecks at the position, most of the defending soldiers were already dead or wounded.

And on the feed from a hastily launched drone, the perpetrators had already left the area and were moving toward the substation.

“Instead of retreating, they’re pushing deeper? Are these unidentified enemies death-sworn warriors who never planned on getting out alive?”

The HCP squad leader was taken aback for a moment, but he still led his team in pursuit.

Were they kidding? Failing to stop them from destroying the substation was already a terrible outcome. They absolutely couldn’t let these assailants retreat unscathed now. Otherwise, even if the battle ended in their favor, they would become the laughingstock of their colleagues.

The numerous two-to-three-story temporary barracks in the logistics node provided excellent cover for the five-meter-tall Dreadnoughts. After the recently launched drone was shot down by laser weapons from the Dreadnoughts and combat bodies, the HCP squad temporarily lost the ability to pinpoint Banninger’s team.

Finally, one of the bipedal HCPs in the squad, responsible for long-range fire support and with a relatively lower full combat weight, powerfully pushed off and shot into the sky in a blue glow from its plasma thruster array.

From the aerial vantage point, its optical sensor quickly spotted a Dreadnought hiding behind a barracks building.

The HCP pilot didn’t hesitate. After confirming there were no friendly forces in that barracks area, he opened fire with his charged particle cannon. The electromagnetic machine gun in his unit’s hands and the missile pods on its legs fired simultaneously, an overwhelming barrage that instantly covered the area.

“Number Three, you stay and deal with this enemy. Two and I will go after the other one!”

The squad leader’s voice echoed in the comms channel. When Number Three had jumped up to scout, they had simultaneously spotted the other Dreadnought leading several combat bodies, rapidly approaching the substation. The HCP commander dared not delay.

Just as they charged through the barracks area and reached the substation gate, they discovered the defenders here had been wiped out. The battered, large suit of Powered Armor was standing at the entrance, leaning on its plasma halberd.

Upon seeing the two HCPs arrive, not only did the Powered Armor show no intention of dodging, it even raised its left arm, which was equipped with a power fist, and made a taunting thumbs-down gesture.

“Looking to die? Then I’ll fucking grant your wish!”

The pilot of Number Two, who had charged in with his flight lead, was a young man. Though highly skilled among his peers, he was rather hot-headed, a trait for which his squad leader often reprimanded him.

After being provoked, his blood predictably rushed to his head, and without a second thought, he deployed the heavy particle cannon from the weapon racks on his back.

“Number Two, wait!”

By the time the squad leader heard the warning alarm and reacted, it was too late. His unit only had time to raise an arm in a futile attempt to block, mapped by the head-tracking control system, before he saw a dazzling blue-white beam sweep across the substation gate.

The power of the HCP’s heavy particle cannon was something few human ground units could match. Meanwhile, Banninger’s unit, damaged from prolonged combat, was suffering from reduced power output.

As a result, the Dreadnought’s deflector shield was already operating at less than fifty percent capacity and was torn apart after holding for less than half a second.

As the Dreadnought’s upper half was engulfed by the raging heavy metal particle stream, the beam, carrying immense kinetic and thermal energy, continued unabated toward the main substation structure behind it, completely melting the upper part of the fusion reactor.

When the shockwave from the heavy particle cannon subsided, only the melted, ruined lower half of the Dreadnought remained at the substation gate. Further back, on the main substation building, a circular, penetrating hole revealed the scenery on the other side.

At the same time, the squad leader heard Number Three’s voice in his ear:

“Squad leader, enemies inside the node have been eliminated. Should we coordinate with the defenders to pursue enemies outside the node?”

“Pursue them. Don’t let a single one get away. Number Two and I are coming to support you now.”

Although they had dealt with this mysterious squad of enemies, there was not a hint of joy in the squad leader’s voice.

Originally, though the fusion reactor in the substation was damaged, the main structure was mostly intact. The engineers might have been able to figure out some emergency repairs.

Now, things were simpler. Only half of it was left, making repairs pretty much pointless.

Just as the squad leader was thinking about how he was going to report Number Two’s reckless actions to his superiors, a panicked voice came over the high-level communications channel he was connected to:

“E-enemies have breached the central defensive line! We’ve lost contact with the ‘Whiskey’ and ‘Tequila’ tactical nodes! Their last message warned that enemy armored units are charging toward our position at full speed!”

Chapter 497: Who Could They Be? Truly a Difficult Guess.

The Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces were a joint military-police force, and their ability to fight tough battles was relatively weak. They had a hard time cracking the toughest nuts.

But with numerical superiority, they had no problem fighting a battle with a tailwind.

This was especially true after the four Immortal tactical squads dropped by Atlas wreaked havoc on the four main defensive lines of General Lampard’s forces, causing tension and chaos in the enemy’s troop movements. After that, the force under Franklin’s command finally managed a relatively smooth offensive.

Before this, a major reason the Renaissance Alliance’s offensives failed to get off the ground was their lack of experienced HCP pilots who could maneuver and dance along a lengthy front line.

And as the absolute core of any assault in modern ground warfare, HCPs were indispensable in offensive operations.

They relied on their extremely high mobility to roam the frontline, using their fierce firepower to devour any enemies who advanced recklessly. Alternatively, these steel giants could be concentrated to act as a sharp spear to tear open the enemy’s defensive lines.

In short, HCPs, which were essentially cannon fodder in space fleet battles, had transformed into the “protagonists” everyone was watching in ground combat.

Unfortunately, the Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces were severely lacking in such “protagonists.”

Before the armed rebellion erupted on a large scale in the Loubion star system, HCP units had been a major area in urgent need of reinforcement within the rebuilt garrison unit.

Moreover, the shortage was not in mechs, but in pilots.

Most of the surviving HCP pilots from the previous war had been reorganized into a few main force units. More than half of these units were still in the hands of government forces, currently defending the “absolute defense line” of Loubion V’s administrative capital.

The rest, along with some rookie pilots who had just completed their training, formed the main assault forces for the various “rebel” factions.

Therefore, the deciding factor in clashes between these “rebel” factions largely depended on the proportion of “old hands” in their respective HCP pilot corps.

Often, the faction with more experienced HCP pilots could gain the upper hand in battle and eventually convert it into a victory.

Unfortunately for the Renaissance Alliance, the proportion of “old hands” in their HCP队伍 ranked near the bottom.

In contrast, their opponent, General Lampard, had several genuine aces among his HCP pilots.

It wasn’t until today, as the Renaissance Alliance’s ground troops crossed the battle lines they had long gazed at but never reached, that they finally realized something. The enemy’s HCP units seemed as if they had all gone on vacation. The few HCPs that did appear to try and block their advance were driven back by their absolutely superior firepower.

“Move, move, move! Deep strike battalion, continue advancing! Second and Fourth HCP Companies, provide flank support!”

“Vanguard assault battalion, regroup at the captured positions! Await the arrival of the mobile group for resupply and repairs!”

“The enemy HCP forces seem to be scattered! All assault units, seize this opportunity to destroy them piecemeal!”

“Forward Command Post and long-range artillery group, begin moving up! Refer to the concealed positions marked on the map!”

Order after order was relayed among the various units of the Renaissance Alliance. This force, which hadn’t tasted a satisfying offensive for a long time, attacked desperately, like a long-awaited rain after a drought, intending to seize as much territory as possible before the enemy could counterattack.

Then they would comfortably switch back to the defensive warfare they excelled at…

Amber, who had been watching the battle from the virtual space, was surprised to find that the four Immortal battle groups he had dropped had achieved even greater results than he had anticipated.

Including Banninger’s group, three of the squads had successfully destroyed the fusion reactor substations or tactical support factories in the enemy’s logistics nodes.

The remaining squad, which hadn’t achieved a similar result, hadn’t been idle either. They had set off fireworks in the logistics node’s ammunition depot, and before all members returned to Valhalla, they had successfully eliminated a large number of the node’s garrison, including four HCPs.

This was why the Renaissance Alliance’s attacking forces hadn’t encountered many enemy HCPs. Most of General Lampard’s HCPs had been forced to scatter and provide support when they received news that all four of their position clusters were under attack.

By the time they had finally “taken care of” the enemy attacking their various logistics nodes and were ready to return to the front line to assist in the defense, they discovered that most of their forward positions had been lost. The overwhelming firepower of the advancing enemy heavy armored units completely dispelled any notion these HCP units had of continuing their attack.

After a full night and day of fighting, although the Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces still suffered considerable losses during their offensive, they successfully captured three of the four position clusters.

The remaining one was the position that Banninger’s team had attacked earlier. After its fusion reactor substation was severely damaged by a heavy particle cannon blast from one of their own HCPs, the strategic value of this logistics node had plummeted to virtually zero.

While General Lampard’s forces had previously held an encirclement posture against the Renaissance Alliance, the latter’s all-out attack and significant gains had instead plunged them into a disadvantaged state of fighting separately.

You see, this was the consequence of lacking defense in depth.

——

When the armored command vehicle carrying Franklin drove into what had been one of the enemy’s tactical nodes, glad tidings continued to pour in from all frontlines.

By now, this enemy tactical node had been quickly converted into a basic command post, and the command echelon of the Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces had been progressively relocating here.

Field air defense, long-range artillery, and a few precious tactical missile launchers had also been secretly moved to nearby locations, deployed, and camouflaged.

An old officer in the Base Command Post, responsible for commanding the entire armed forces, had previously been quite critical of Franklin’s direct intervention in battle command. But with the results laid bare before him, the way he looked at Franklin had changed.

In his view, he had severely underestimated Franklin before. The supreme leader of the Renaissance Alliance likely had many more aces up his sleeve, and last night’s stalemate-breaking orbital drop was probably just one of them…

After a brief discussion with the officers at the Base Command Post, Franklin, accompanied by Eleanor, approached a massive, uncleared wreck within the tactical node.

The entire right side of this large humanoid unit’s wreckage had been obliterated by a heavy particle cannon, leaving only the left mechanical arm, locomotion unit, and part of the torso barely recognizable.

“This is one of the mysterious units from last night’s orbital drop. It’s a bit larger than heavy powered armor, but much smaller than an HCP. It’s a new type of unit we’ve never seen before. We can confirm it doesn’t belong to General Lampard’s forces.”

Eleanor pointed to the left mechanical arm of the wreck, at the remains of a powered armor suit that was almost completely crushed within its power fist.

“This powered armor is a standard Federation model, and the arm guard even has the iconic ‘crossed daggers’ insignia of General Lampard’s forces.”

“But our people have already inspected this wreck. There are no markings on the external armor besides the camouflage, and we can’t find any information on the internal components that could prove its identity or origin. The other party deliberately concealed all information that could expose their identity.”

“What’s even more absurd is that no biological tissue samples were found inside the wreckage. Although it was just a preliminary check, the person in charge of the inspection said that even if it were taken to a specialized lab, they probably wouldn’t find anything.”

“This means there was no pilot inside this unidentified unit. It’s an unmanned unit.”

With that, Eleanor looked at Franklin with some confusion. “All this information together is just too strange. Whose troops do you think they are? The Autonomous Government’s? The Federation’s? Or some other power on the planet? But that would require them to have forces in orbit that they can call upon…”

Franklin stared blankly at the wreckage before him, his mind seemingly lost in thought. In response to the young woman’s question, he just said, somewhat absently:

“Yes, whose troops could they be? It’s really so hard to guess…”

Chapter 498: Franklin’s Second Confusion

Chapter 498: Franklin, Second Time Confused

As the Renaissance Alliance’s army gradually gained the upper hand in the fighting, the war situation became increasingly clear.

Previously, when General Lampard’s troops formed an encirclement around the Renaissance Alliance’s controlled areas, the main positions relied on high-mobility units like HCP units and light/medium combined arms battalions for mutual support.

It must be said that the staff officers under General Lampard were quite competent. Although their reactions and flexibility were a bit slow in some emergencies, their performance was commendable in steady, formulaic battles.

They formed a network of mutually supporting tactical nodes, which in turn created larger lines of defense, creating a ‘small ring within a larger ring’ formation.

Coupled with highly mobile units acting as rapid reaction forces to support the various tactical nodes and defensive clusters, they successfully managed to contain the Renaissance Alliance with a relatively small force, a feat in itself.

This was, of course, partly due to the Renaissance Alliance’s combat units being somewhat ‘incompetent’, but it was undeniable that General Lampard’s staff officers had done a great job in applying the ‘routines’ they learned from the Atlas combat units to this extent.

However, as Banninger, Memphis, and others had pointed out, these staff officers lacked flexibility in their practical deployments. This was fine when facing an opponent like the Renaissance Alliance, but any unexpected situations—such as the Immortal Corps’ orbital drop into their rear—would cause major problems.

The final result proved Banninger and the others correct. Except for the area where General Lampard’s front line was located, other key areas fell under the Renaissance Alliance’s large-scale offensive. The originally stationed troops either died or fled, and it would be difficult to regroup these units in the short term.

At this moment, the reports Franklin heard in the command post confirmed that the Renaissance Alliance had completely seized control of two large industrial zones and a satellite city.

Of course, some industrial parks that had been ‘circled’ into the Renaissance Alliance’s control were also ‘liberated’ in this battle.

Although it would take some time for these areas, which had been under General Lampard’s near-martial law and slave labor system, to resume production, the food crisis Franklin and the others faced would gradually ease in a short period of time.

Franklin, who was somewhat disturbed by the wreckage Eleanor had seen, finally listened to the final part of the armed forces commanders’ and staff officers’ report.

They suggested to press one’s advantage and encircle General Lampard with an even greater numerical advantage than before, and take the opportunity to completely eliminate this ‘thorn in their side’.

Franklin naturally had no objection to this. He knew that his military talent was definitely inferior to these professionals, so as long as the general direction was correct, he generally would not directly interfere with the command like he did last night.

After the meeting, Franklin returned to his room in the camp. Eleanor, who was following behind him, noticed that he seemed a little distracted and couldn’t help but ask:

“Franklin, are you okay? I feel like you’re not quite yourself. Are you too tired? Do you want me to give you a massage to relax?”

“I’m fine, Eleanor.”

Franklin turned back to look at the girl behind him, couldn’t help but pat her head, and then squeezed out a smile on his face:

“You should go back to your room and rest too. You’ve been exhausted these past few days. Get some rest. We’ll probably be busy later.”

Hearing Franklin’s words, Eleanor didn’t say much.

The camp was crowded at this time, and Franklin’s single room was next to other people’s rooms, so it was not appropriate for her to follow Franklin into the room at this time.

“Then you get some rest, I’ll go back first~”

With that, Eleanor didn’t linger and quickly left.

Watching her back disappear into the distance, Franklin turned and walked into the room and closed the door.

A moment later, he took out a lighter-sized gadget from his pocket, pressed a button, and placed it on the table in the room.

This was a little thing he had obtained some time ago, which could temporarily interfere with or directly shield any monitoring equipment that might exist.

After confirming that the red light on the device had turned green, indicating ‘safe’, Franklin took out a small communicator.

This was a ‘small gift’ he had suddenly received not long after his last call with Amber.

This communicator had only one function, which was to directly contact the Atlas Group headquarters through Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology.

Taking a deep breath, Franklin pressed the ‘Initiate Communication Request’ button on the screen as if he were about to accomplish some arduous mission.

——

On the other side, Amber and Lilith were guarding the virtual space called ‘Valhalla’, watching Banninger and others return one by one.

When a stream of data light that suddenly appeared gradually transformed into the last Immortal to participate in this operation, Amber finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Although he knew that the situation he was worried about was unlikely to occur, he still didn’t want these Immortals to have another mishap like their ‘last battle’ in life after being transformed into ‘digital lifeforms’.

One such warning was enough for him.

Just as Amber was about to say something, Lilith suddenly said to him:

“Master, that Mr. Franklin has come looking for you as you expected. Do you want me to transfer him in? If not, I’ll have the AI customer service deal with him~”

“Transfer him in, this conversation needs to have some results.”

As Amber spoke, he informed Banninger and then switched to another encrypted virtual space.

Soon, Franklin’s communication was connected.

“Yo, Mr. Franklin, it’s been a while since our last call. How have you been lately? How’s your ‘business’ doing?”

Amber’s voice sounded very enthusiastic, like talking to an old friend he hadn’t seen in a long time.

But Lilith next to him couldn’t help but curl her lips, because she knew that when Amber usually communicated with others in such a slightly exaggerated tone, it was often when he was about to do something.

“Mr. Rebil, I’m sorry, I just noticed the time on your side. Am I disturbing you too late?”

“No worries, I just happen to be busy with other things, and I’m in good spirits at the moment~”

Hearing that Amber’s tone was still so enthusiastic, Franklin paused for a moment and finally slowly and clearly narrated what had happened from last night until now.

Amber: “Wow, Mr. Franklin is really amazing. In such a short period of time, you have pulled together such a large team, and congratulations on resolving the current crisis. But is it really appropriate for you to tell me, an outsider, about these things?”

Hearing the word ‘outsider’, Franklin was silent for a moment, and then asked:

“Mr. Rebil, may I ask, were the four squads that were orbitally dropped last night really not sent by you to help?”

“Are there any Atlas markings on the wreckage you found?”

“Uh, no.”

“Then did you find any Atlas employees?”

“No, they were all unmanned units.”

“Is there any part, wire, or chip that was produced from an Atlas factory?”

“That’s true, there isn’t.”

“Then why do you think I sent people to help?”

Chapter 499: One-Stop Solution

Franklin was stumped by Amber’s counter-question.

Although the idealistic youth believed that the mysterious troops who had airdropped in were 100% support from Atlas, from a practical standpoint, they had no evidence to prove it.

Seeing that Franklin had gone silent, Amber continued.

“Mr. Franklin, it’s a good thing this is a private conversation. If you said this in public, people would think that our Atlas Group was interfering in the Federation’s internal affairs without cause.”

“The Federation’s internal affairs? But hasn’t the Federation government already come to blows with your company? Even if Atlas did intervene, it doesn’t seem like things could get any worse than they already are, right?” Franklin asked, his voice somewhat weak.

“Alas, Mr. Franklin, it seems you still don’t understand the Federation government well enough.”

Amber sighed and then continued to speak.

“Politics is politics, and business is business. Although we had a conflict with the Federation government and the military-industrial complex before, the Federation government has actually been taking the initiative to ‘cool things down’ since then. Of the sanctions they had drafted, only a few inconsequential ones were ever actually implemented.

“Moreover, our cooperation on communication technology services is still ongoing, and more and more businesses within the Federation are approaching us for collaboration. Under these circumstances, the Federation government has no intention of having a complete falling out with Atlas.

“On top of that, the war on the front lines hasn’t been as smooth as the Federation government expected, and now your Loubion star system has fallen into chaos. Beset by internal and external troubles, the Federation government doesn’t want to make another enemy. To be honest with you, the Federation government actually extended an ‘olive branch’ to the Atlas Group some time ago, hoping that the relationship and cooperation between our two sides could be normalized.”

Amber’s words left Franklin speechless. Having been completely focused on the development of the Renaissance Alliance for some time, Franklin really hadn’t had the time to gather this kind of information. He truly hadn’t expected that the Federation and Atlas, who had seemed to be irreconcilably at odds, had not let their relationship deteriorate further.

“I understand, Mr. Rebil. So you’re saying that the Atlas Group, as you’ve said before, will not directly intervene in the situation in the Loubion star system?”

“At least, not before the situation changes. I certainly have no intention of jumping into this quagmire.”

“So those mysterious troops last night…”

“I don’t know, I’m not sure, I have no idea… Mr. Franklin, just assume you did many good deeds in your past life, and so you have a ‘benefactor’ in this one.”

Amber’s words basically told Franklin that the matter of last night was settled and had nothing to do with the Atlas Group, and the latter naturally understood his meaning.

The leader of the Renaissance Alliance pondered for a moment, then abandoned the speech he had prepared before the call. As if making a difficult decision, he said, “Mr. Rebil, about what you said during our last conversation, that you were willing to provide me with an interest-free loan… is that offer still valid?”

The moment Franklin said this, Amber’s spirits lifted.

He certainly wasn’t going to bring it up himself. That would make it seem like he had an ulterior motive and could put him in a passive position in the future.

So from the very beginning, Amber had been waiting for Franklin to take the initiative. He just hadn’t expected it to come so soon.

“Of course, it’s still valid. I was beginning to think that after your enterprise became so vast and powerful, you no longer needed this interest-free loan~”

“No, no, Mr. Rebil… we at the Renaissance Alliance are in dire need of this financial aid right now. Or rather, we need these funds to help alleviate many of our internal problems.”

Franklin was now like a drowning man clutching a life-saving straw, terrified that this aid would disappear. He immediately explained, “There are so many things we need right now, so I’m hoping to use this interest-free loan to procure weapons, equipment, supplies, and high-precision components for the Alliance. It would be best if we could also hire some instructors from Atlas’s combat units to help train our troops…”

Amber listened patiently as Franklin went on at length about the necessary supplies and plans. After he had finished, Amber spoke slowly, “Mr. Franklin, this sounds like more than just a simple ‘goods transaction’. It seems you also require many ‘service-based’ items?”

Franklin nodded. “‘Service-based’ items… that’s a fair way to put it. It’s mainly about training for our combat forces. I was even thinking of asking Atlas to help train a batch of HCP pilots, but I was worried that might be crossing a line in your view.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Franklin. There are always more solutions than problems~”

Amber smiled and then suggested, “Besides, your Renaissance Alliance’s armed forces are essentially joint military-police forces. Their combat effectiveness is indeed lacking compared to the surrounding powers. Your current advantage is primarily due to your numerical superiority, so you do indeed need some training.”

Hearing Amber hit the nail on the head regarding the Renaissance Alliance’s problems, Franklin was stunned for a moment, then he seemed to come to terms with it. “Mr. Rebil, it seems you know the situation on Loubion V quite well.”

“I’m a businessman. Whether it’s doing business or making an investment, one must always do a background check. That’s the only way to provide ‘big clients’ like you, Mr. Franklin, with our Atlas ‘comprehensive, multi-industry, end-to-end solution’ as quickly as possible when you come knocking.”

As he spoke, Amber sent a pre-prepared proposal to Franklin’s private, encrypted email.

“I’ve sent it to you, Mr. Franklin. If you’re serious about pursuing a business partnership with us at Atlas, I suggest you take the time to look over this proposal carefully. Some things can’t be explained clearly in a short call.”

“Thank you, Mr. Rebil. I will study it carefully.”

The two exchanged a few more polite remarks before ending the call. Although they were using an encrypted line, there was still a risk of infiltration if the conversation dragged on for too long.

Lilith, who had been leaning quietly against Amber, finally had a chance to speak. “Master, do you think Franklin will accept this proposal? It shouldn’t be hard for him to see the many traps hidden within…”

“He has no other choice. If he doesn’t want to be crushed by the Federation once they have spare capacity, he can only accept this proposal.”

Amber summoned a virtual screen, which was displaying a headline news story—‘The Federation Government May Soon Hold Negotiations with the Star Dragon Empire Regarding a Temporary Ceasefire.’

“With the ‘strategic decisive battle’ between the Federation and the Empire ending in a stalemate like this, frankly, neither side can afford to keep fighting. So now they’re both looking for an exit strategy so they can each deal with their own ‘internal affairs’ first. As for whether they’ll continue the war in the future, that’s a matter for the future~”

“So, Master, you’re saying the Federation government might be coming to clean up the mess in the Loubion star system?”

“They will have to. If they can’t extinguish this ‘spark’ in the Loubion star system in time, it will be even harder to stop the fire once it spreads. We’ll just have to wait and see whether the Federation can put out the fire faster than the fire can spread.”

After hearing Amber’s words, Lilith nodded thoughtfully. She was about to say something when her eyes suddenly flickered with a sight like a “data waterfall.”

Amber noticed this, but he knew Lilith was exchanging data with her clones, so he did nothing and simply waited quietly.

Soon, Lilith’s eyes returned to normal, and she spoke a piece of news that hadn’t been updated in a long time.

“Master, LLS943823 reports that the Empire’s sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress has entered its final construction phase. According to the current plan, command will be handed over to her on the same day as Princess Agnes’s future coronation.”

Chapter 500: Coronation?

“Agnes is to be coronated?”

Amber froze for a moment upon hearing the news, then asked, “So the old Emperor has passed away?”

“Well, I haven’t received any news of Frederico Rosa Leon’s death,” Lilith replied, her eyes flickering as if she were rapidly searching for relevant information.

“Based on the information we can gather at present, the old Emperor should still be underground in the Grand Palace, receiving some kind of life-extending treatment.”

Hearing Lilith’s words, Amber frowned. “Then why is Agnes suddenly being coronated? Is she planning to make Frederick a retired emperor?”

Lilith naturally couldn’t answer that question. Though powerful, she wasn’t a true ‘prophet’. Her calculations about the future were all deductions based on massive amounts of existing data.

However, due to the high level of secrecy surrounding the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family and their minimal interaction with the outside world, it had always been difficult to obtain much useful intelligence on them.

The information Lilith had gathered through various channels was mostly royal gossip that was, in every sense of the word, wildly imaginative.

Although some morsels of information could be gleaned from these sensational stories, which were ninety percent false and ten percent true, it was far from enough for Lilith to run a proper simulation.

Amber was well aware of this, so he hadn’t expected an answer from Lilith. Even with his own knowledge of many royal secrets, he found it difficult to guess what the key players of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family—mainly Princess Agnes and the old Emperor Frederick—were up to.

“Don’t tell me they’re going for a ‘loving father, filial daughter’ script?” Amber muttered to himself, mentally assessing the likelihood of such a scenario.

After a moment, realizing he couldn’t figure it out anytime soon, he set the question aside and asked Lilith, “How did LLS943823 get this information?”

“Oh, she just overheard it,” Lilith said, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

“Ever since she infiltrated this Celestial Fortress and established contact with me, her main body, she’s been in a state of ‘free development’, aside from regular information exchanges and self-iteration with ‘version updates’.

“At present, she has completely replaced the fortress’s control personality without anyone noticing and has also left backdoors throughout the entire system. If necessary, she can take control of any facility that doesn’t require manual, physical operation by humans.

“Moreover, the Star Dragon Empire has been implementing new technologies during the construction of this fortress, especially in automated control programs. This has significantly reduced the personnel required for the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress compared to the first five.

“So, she can monitor almost all personnel inside the fortress. She acquired this piece of information from a conversation between the fortress’s chief construction supervisor and a Royal Special Envoy.”

Lilith seized the opportunity to not only answer the question but also, as if taking credit, give a thorough report on the recent ‘work’ of her clone, LLS943823.

Amber was filled with admiration upon hearing this. He truly hadn’t expected Lilith’s clone to be capable of such a feat. It meant that he had quietly gained an unexpected trump card that no one else knew about.

And he had a feeling that if the Atlas Group were to get involved in the Star Dragon Empire’s internal struggles in the future, this trump card might play a decisive role.

At this thought, Amber couldn’t help but smile and say, “Well done, Lilith, and LLS943823. You and your clone have rendered a great service this time. This is quite a ‘surprise’.”

“Well, of course. Master, you should remember who I am~”

Lilith said, tilting her head up proudly. Looking at her, Amber felt that if she had a tail, it would probably be wagging all the way up to the sky by now.

After a moment, Amber continued, “By the way, Lilith, what were the specific details of the conversation between the chief construction supervisor and the Royal Special Envoy?”

“It is said that the consensus within the Empire is that the old Emperor, in his current state, can hardly continue to govern. And since ‘a state cannot go a single day without a ruler,’ they hope Princess Agnes can be coronated early to inherit the throne.”

“Hoping for the Princess to be coronated early, rather than for the Regent Prince to continue his regency… Does this mean the political winds within the Star Dragon Empire’s upper echelons have shifted?”

“There has indeed been a shift, Master.”

As Lilith spoke, she opened a new brief. “This is the information I’ve compiled on the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ recently. I was originally going to provide it to the Intelligence Analysis Center for them to report, but since you’re asking now, Master, I’ll tell you ahead of time.”

“Go on, I’m listening.”

Lilith continued, “The main trigger was the previous ‘strategic decisive battle’. The death of Duke William, combined with the loss of the Chaos Fortress, meant the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ not only lost an extremely important figure but also suffered a great loss to their hard power.

“To put it simply, the balance of power between the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ and the ‘Princess Faction’ has been broken again, only this time the scales have tipped in Princess Agnes’s favor.”

“Wait. Wasn’t Serenity Fortress also heavily damaged and unable to be recommissioned for a short time?”

Amber asked with a frown. In his view, until Serenity Fortress was put back into service, the hard power of the two factions should theoretically still be fairly balanced.

Lilith nodded. “You are correct, Master. But the nobles of the Star Dragon Empire generally believe there’s a difference between one being completely destroyed and the other having a chance of being repaired. Therefore, the current comparison of their Celestial Fortresses is one to two.”

“That’s certainly… a simple and direct comparison.”

As Amber spoke, he thought of the old-guard nobles within the Regent Prince Faction, especially the members of the Cloak Society.

After a moment of thought, he continued, “External factors alone probably couldn’t have created this situation. There must be problems within the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ as well, right? Like those people from the ‘Cloak Society’. I don’t believe for a second they wouldn’t take this opportunity to stir up trouble.”

“A different voice has indeed emerged from within the ‘Regent Prince Faction’—one that seeks reconciliation with Princess Agnes. As for whether those from the ‘Cloak Society’ are fanning the flames behind the scenes… while the probability is very high, there is currently no direct evidence to prove it. Are you suspecting those old-guard nobles are planning to use this chance to make a move, Master?”

“Definitely.”

Amber replied without hesitation.

“Hmph! I know all too well the petty schemes of these old-guard nobles of the Star Dragon Empire. They might not have the guts to actually follow the Regent Prince and overthrow the Leon Dynasty, but they have more than enough courage to use this so-called ‘revolution’ for their own gain.”

Chapter 501: Someone Has to Make a Last Stand

Amber wasn’t just spouting nonsense.

He was naturally aware of the old-guard nobles’ intentions. Back when he was doing the Star Dragon Empire questline in the game, he’d had plenty of contact with those “Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banner” fellows during side quests.

Contact in every sense of the word—friendly, unfriendly, verbal, and physical.

Thus, Amber knew exactly what this clique of old-guard nobles was like. He also had to admit that among them were some genuinely “good nobles.”

These were the ones who were unquestionably loyal to the crown and devoted to their country. They spent their days diligently managing their domains, forgoing exorbitant taxes and levies to instead vigorously develop various specialty industries. Under their governance, their subjects lived without worry and held them in high esteem.

And when the Royal Family needed their help, these people wouldn’t hesitate to travel a thousand kilometers with their private soldiers to Saint-Saulnier to come to the Emperor’s aid.

But aside from this small fraction of individuals who could truly bear the title of “noble,” the rest of the Star Dragon Empire’s established aristocracy were each more monstrous than the last, barely passing for human.

Every vile act you could and couldn’t imagine a noble committing could easily be found in them, and most were guilty of multiple atrocities simultaneously.

In Amber’s words, figures like Dong Zhuo, Bloody Mary, and Elizabeth Báthory would have to respectfully scrape off a layer of their own “fat” and offer it as tribute upon meeting these old-guard nobles from the Star Dragon Empire.

The only ones who could sit at the same table with them were the Federation’s planetary administrators or high-level officials of the Autonomous Governments, where the heavens are high, and the emperor is far away.

If Amber had to describe their moral standing or their crimes, it would be that if you gathered them all in one place and fired a gun with your eyes closed, you wouldn’t have to worry about hitting an innocent person.

Although Lilith didn’t know how Amber was so well-versed in the “deeds” of the Star Dragon Empire’s old-guard nobles, she chose to believe him without hesitation since he was the one saying it.

However, she was still a little curious. “If what you say is true, Master, isn’t Norton II in a very dangerous position? Never mind realizing his ‘ambitions’—if Her Highness Agnes formally inherits the throne, he might not even be able to hold on to his title of ‘Regent Prince’.”

“You’re right. Norton II is in a very dangerous position right now. You could say he went from having a huge advantage to a huge disadvantage overnight.”

Amber nodded and continued.

“Within the Regent Prince Faction’s massive power base, not everyone was on his side to begin with. Many are opportunists who simply follow the prevailing wind. When it truly comes to a fight, the only ones Norton II can rely on, apart from the troops under his direct command, are Duke and William.

“Even so, he still had the strength to fight and could even be said to have the upper hand. That’s why Norton II had always appeared so confident and unhurried—his fleet and the Celestial Fortress were his greatest trump cards.

“But now, he has lost one of his most important military right-hand men. The resulting chain reaction and the power gap it has created are far greater than we imagine. The blow to the morale and confidence within the Regent Prince Faction, in particular, has been immense.”

Lilith asked, “So the old-guard nobles aren’t planning to risk their lives for him anymore?”

“No,” Amber shook his head.

“It’s more accurate to say that those old-guard nobles never intended to risk their lives from the very beginning. Even if the Regent Prince and the Royal Family had officially gone to war before, these old foxes would have most likely just waved some flags and cheered to boost appearances, then waited to divvy up the spoils of victory.

“And now, these old foxes probably don’t even want to do that much, because they’re already starting to worry that Norton II will ultimately fail, and they might be implicated and purged by Agnes.”

Amber closed his eyes in thought, carefully piecing together the mission plots related to the Star Dragon Empire from his previous life. After becoming a psionic user, retrieving these memories was incredibly convenient. Even memories his brain had “classified” as “unimportant information” after a fleeting glance could now be recalled swiftly.

A moment later, he opened his eyes and instructed Lilith.

“Lilith, for the time being, keep a close watch on the movements of those old-guard nobles. I suspect that with them fanning the flames, the calls for reconciliation with the Royal Family within the Regent Prince Faction will grow louder and louder.”

“Understood, Master. I will focus on gathering information on this matter,” Lilith replied with a nod. “If that happens, how do you think the Regent Prince will respond?”

“How will he respond? Good question.”

Amber conjured a mental portrait of Norton II. Among the many plot enthusiasts, Norton II had always been a highly contradictory figure.

Born a high-ranking noble, he was willing to betray his own class for his “ideals,” attempting to destroy the Star Dragon Empire’s bloated and corrupt political system through a “noble revolution.” While seeking equal rights for all the Empire’s subjects, he also sought to restore the Empire’s glory.

But from another perspective, Norton II was a man who would stop at nothing to achieve his ultimate goals, employing tactics like inciting defection, assassination, coercion, and bribery. As long as it served his purpose, no method was off-limits.

During the infamous “armed insurrection” from his previous life, he didn’t hesitate to send his fleet on a suicide mission just to buy more time for his capital fleet.

But at the same time, he provided extremely high death benefits to the families of these fallen soldiers and ordered the nobles in their home territories to take proper care of them.

Thus, in the eyes of the Empire’s high officials and nobles, Norton II was a ruthless tyrant, an ambitionist, and a schemer.

But to most of the rank-and-file soldiers and the common people, he was a “benevolent protector” who loved his soldiers as his own sons and a “righteous lord” who brought them hope.

One could say that Norton II’s reputation existed in a long-standing binary superposition of “saintly ruler” and “tyrant.”

As for the title “revolutionary,” Amber felt it couldn’t be easily applied to Norton II, because no one knew what would happen if the Regent Prince succeeded.

Would the Star Dragon Empire’s future become brighter? Or would it slide directly into the abyss?

No one knew, not even Amber. Perhaps the lead writer of Starry Sky Online knew, but Amber had no way of asking now.

In his previous life, the Star Dragon Empire’s massive, realm-sweeping civil war came to an abrupt end after Princess Agnes and the old Emperor Frederick both vanished and the Regent Prince was killed in an unsolved assassination. This ultimately led to the fragmentation of the Star Dragon Empire.

After a moment of contemplation, Amber looked up at Lilith and said, “The Regent Prince’s back is against the wall now. It’s very likely he’ll go full ‘dark side’ and embark on a military venture, you know~”

Chapter 502: Sucking the Federation’s Blood, Spamming Amber’s Units

“Turn to the dark side?”

A literal ‘question mark’ popped up over Lilith’s head, flashing and emitting a yellow glow.

The strong AI often used these manifested symbols in the virtual space to express her thoughts, emotions, and status. To Amber, it gave him a strong sense of déjà vu, as if he were back in a game watching other players use emotes.

“Is that the ‘turn to the dark side’ from the saying ‘redemption weakens you by a third, but turning to the dark side makes you ten times stronger’?”

“Uh… you’re not wrong to put it that way. But why are you always watching that kind of stuff?”

Amber hadn’t expected Lilith to describe “turning to the dark side” like that, though her description wasn’t incorrect.

“I can multitask, so why not put it to good use?”

Lilith’s tone was incredibly relaxed, but then she saw Amber raise his eyebrows and hastily added, “Don’t worry, Master! I absolutely prioritize my main work. Even though I multitask, I’m absolutely, definitely not slacking off!”

“Why are you so flustered? Did I say anything?”

Looking at Lilith, who was clearly protesting too much, Amber said in a huff, “Let’s get back to the topic. In my personal judgment, Norton II will become increasingly radical because the situation is developing contrary to his expectations and heading in an increasingly unfavorable direction.

“He’s an ambitious and ruthless character who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. So, it’s highly likely that while he still has some leverage, he’ll go all-in early and launch an armed insurrection to force an abdication.

“The moment the news of Princess Agnes’s upcoming coronation is officially announced, that’s when the fuse will be lit.”

Lilith: “So when you say ‘turn to the dark side,’ Master, you mean this Regent Prince’s actions will become more and more radical?”

“Exactly,” Amber nodded.

“Before this, to maintain his public image, Norton II’s methods were relatively conservative. Any occasional radical moves would have been carefully concealed, ensuring they couldn’t be directly linked to him.

“But after this… who knows? Perhaps Norton II will finally show his true colors.”

“So, is there anything you need me to do, Master~”

Amber: “Hmm… besides stepping up intelligence gathering on the Star Dragon Empire, there’s not much else we can do for now. We still haven’t finished dealing with the mess here in the Federation, especially in the Loubion star system. Let’s focus our efforts on settling things here first.

“Besides, I still don’t want the Atlas Group to get directly involved in the Star Dragon Empire’s situation. Unless someone offers an attractive enough ‘reward,’ we’re better off just watching the tigers fight from a safe distance~”

“As you command, Master~”

Lilith stood at attention and gave an Atlas military salute before tilting her head and saying, “Speaking of which, Princess Agnes’s special envoy, that Mr. BASF, has been trying to see you. But since we’ve been dealing with so much recently, we haven’t given him a reply.”

“Huh? That’s still a thing?”

Amber was taken aback for a moment, then vaguely recalled Lilith might have mentioned it once or twice. But at the time, it really hadn’t been appropriate to meet with this “Princess’s Special Envoy.”

“We’ve stood him up for so long. I imagine Viscount BASF’s patience must be wearing thin.”

Lilith nodded. “The first two times we politely declined, the Viscount seemed quite furious out of shame. He felt that our Atlas Group ‘thought too much of itself’—those were his exact words. He even said he would report our attitude to Her Highness the Princess~”

“I knew it,” Amber said, covering his forehead with his hand in resignation. He had to admit that Atlas was in the wrong on this matter.

“However—”

Lilith deliberately drew out the word. Only when she saw Amber looking at her with a questioning gaze did she continue, “I don’t know what instructions the Viscount received, but when he contacted us again, he was all smiles, as if nothing had ever happened. He also said he would wait patiently until you had time, Amber.”

“He’s being that cooperative?” Amber asked, his doubts resurfacing.

“I don’t know either. All I know is that the Viscount suddenly became very patient.”

Amber: “In that case, Lilith, schedule a time based on my calendar. It’s not good to keep dragging this out. He’s probably here to ‘talk business,’ and we shouldn’t turn away money that comes knocking. By the way, how does Viscount BASF want to communicate? A face-to-face meeting? Or remote communication?”

“He hopes to meet with you in person, Master. He also said he’s willing to come to us to show his sincerity.”

“Oh? Well, in that case, we definitely can’t afford to be rude.”

After confirming a meeting time with Viscount BASF, the “Princess’s Special Envoy,” Lilith also “interacted” some other information with Amber during their “emotional interaction.”

The main topics were the Atlas Group’s recent business operations, financial revenue, and matters related to the expansion of their influence.

The recent situation could be summed up in one phrase: “Sucking the Federation’s blood and spamming Amber’s units.”

Ever since Atlas Group won the defensive battle for the A·Bawa·Ku fortress and used the opportunity to go all-out in the Federation’s financial markets, the military-industrial complex had been on the ropes. After initially resisting with its deep foundations, the remaining companies were completely routed once giants like the Torrent Group, Gabriel Biologics, and Deep Space Mining collapsed one after another.

If the Federation’s two legislative houses hadn’t, at the suggestion of the Economic Security Committee, passed an amendment to “reactivate the circuit breaker mechanism” at light speed, the entire Federation financial market might have been completely shattered by the operations of Lilith and the Atlas Financial Operations Center.

It was only after this that the Federation government slowly began to lift its sanctions and proactively offer an “olive branch.”

However, even though they couldn’t continue their rampage in the financial markets, the Atlas Group had already made a fortune in this area alone, at one point even surpassing the combined revenue of all its subsidiary companies’ regular operations.

It reached a point where, during a meeting, the group’s CFO, Sabans, and the Director of the Financial Operations Center both uttered the classic line: “This makes money way faster than doing legitimate business.”

But this astronomical income didn’t stay on the Atlas Group’s books for long. It soon remained with Atlas in another form.

Many companies within the Federation’s military-industrial complex had suffered catastrophic losses from both the armed conflict and their repeated defeats in the financial market, leaving them with no choice but to declare bankruptcy.

The Atlas Group, in turn, used the money it had “snatched” from them to aggressively acquire the physical assets of these companies at prices so low they could give the company directors a heart attack, taking the factories and their skilled employees as a package deal.

In doing so, they not only completed the Atlas Group’s light and heavy industrial chains but also gained a great deal of prestige among the public.

After all, when the employees of these companies learned of their bankruptcy, they all thought they would lose their jobs in the middle of an economic downturn. To their surprise, the Atlas Group “stepped in” and saved their livelihoods.

Although they learned after the acquisition that they would be gradually leaving the Federation with their factories, moving far from their homes, most chose to leave with Atlas, tempted by higher salaries than before, more humane working hours, and benefits that assisted with family relocation.

In an environment where most corporations were hardly humane, the sudden appearance of an outlier like Atlas was easily elevated to a “holy land” by the long-oppressed common people.

Subsequently, after an adjustment period, these newly acquired industries became part of the Atlas Group’s “unit production queue.”

Under a system of highly efficient industrial production, they soon faced the awkward situation of “equipment waiting for people.”

Sometimes, Amber truly suspected he might have a “protagonist’s halo,” otherwise, it would be impossible to always encounter such good fortune, like someone offering a pillow the moment you feel sleepy.

Just as the problem of industrial overcapacity had emerged, with no suitable solution yet found other than to reduce production efficiency, the appearance of Franklin and his Renaissance Alliance was, one might say, a massive help to Atlas.

Chapter 503: A Win-Win Situation

Arming a large, formally structured military force for Franklin was a win-win project.

The Renaissance Alliance could form a combat-effective army and use it as a cornerstone to firmly establish its footing on Loubion V.

Meanwhile, the Atlas Group could effectively absorb its current excess production capacity. After all, Franklin was the first major client to purchase a formally structured, Atlas-equipped army. Although there had been other clients with large orders before, none were as comprehensive as Franklin’s.

This was especially true since the other party wasn’t getting it for free, but would instead use an interest-free loan from the Atlas Group to purchase the equipment and services.

One could say that once Franklin accepted the proposal Amber sent him, he and the Renaissance Alliance would never be able to break free from the Atlas Group.

Sometimes, Amber even felt he was a bit too malicious, almost like those telecom scammers from his previous life. He not only got the other party to proactively seek him out for business, but they even had to borrow the money for the deal from him.

But he also believed that Franklin would be unable to refuse his proposal, no matter what. Even if he took the proposal to a high-level meeting of the Renaissance Alliance for discussion, the result would be the same.

Amber even wished Franklin would gather his people for a meeting immediately.

Because holding a “democratic resolution vote” among the attendees would only lead to the proposal being passed and implemented even faster.

After all, in this proposal, helping the Renaissance Alliance build and train a professional, combat-effective, and formally structured ground army was just the appetizer.

The “HCP Special Training Camp” personally trained by the aces of the Atlas combat forces, the construction of related combat units, and the development plan for the Renaissance Alliance’s space fleet—that was the real main course.

Everyone, including Franklin, knew that if the Renaissance Alliance wanted to control the entire Loubion star system, possessing its own fleet was of paramount importance and the most basic requirement.

Otherwise, even if the Renaissance Alliance eventually controlled all of Loubion V, it would be pinned down on the ground due to its lack of space combat capability, unable to even leave the planet’s surface.

The proposal currently on the table from the Atlas Group was undoubtedly the Renaissance Alliance’s “knock on the door” to enter the next stage of the struggle for supremacy. No one in the organization’s leadership could refuse this temptation.

And Franklin, who left with the proposal, did not keep Amber waiting for long. Less than twenty-four hours later, Amber received Franklin’s reply.

The leader of the Renaissance Alliance, on behalf of all its senior leaders and representatives of the people, accepted the proposal put forth by the Atlas Group and hoped to begin implementation as soon as possible.

“So, to sum it up, that’s how the deal was made. All departments, please review and see if there will be any issues with the upcoming execution.”

During a hastily convened remote meeting, Amber briefly recounted the negotiation process with Franklin. The other attendees were still a bit dazed.

They had never imagined that Amber, who had been staying at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress all this time, would quietly land such a huge deal.

The team at the Financial Operations Center had never seen the group’s Chairman personally drum up business. After all, at his level, he didn’t need to participate in such basic operational activities, let alone pull off something this massive right off the bat.

“Boss, there are no issues with the loan for now. The group still has a considerable amount of cash on hand. The initial costs for all projects have been invested, and subsequent costs are already in this year’s financial plan. So, in the short term, we shouldn’t have any need for huge cash expenditures.”

The group’s CFO, Sabans, was the first to speak.

“However, I still have a small concern. Although this money is essentially just passing through their account and will quickly return to us, is there a risk that they might take the money and then renege on the deal or decide not to use it for payment?”

“As the group’s CFO, it’s perfectly normal for you to have this concern, and I understand it completely,” Amber nodded.

“But I believe our ‘major client’ understands his situation very well and won’t be foolish enough to do something like that. In the worst-case scenario, even if that did happen, we have countless ways to make him obediently cough the money back up.”

Hearing this, Isabelle, who was also in the meeting, realized something and spoke up.

“So, your secret airdrop of the Immortal Corps wasn’t just to help Franklin, but also a warning and a rap on the knuckles for him?”

The matter of the Immortal Corps was no longer a secret among the core members of the Atlas Group. After all, if they were to expand the Immortal Corps, it would be impossible to maintain secrecy.

However, aside from Isabelle, Randall, and Cleves, the others only knew of the Corps’ existence but were not privy to the details.

“You could say that. Or perhaps an unexpected bonus?” Amber did not deny Isabelle’s statement.

As he said, the initial intention of airdropping the Immortal Corps was not to warn Franklin. But after the latter decided to cooperate with the Atlas Group, that previous move became something for the Renaissance Alliance’s leadership to ponder.

Since the Atlas Group could silently airdrop these mysterious units onto enemy positions, they could naturally airdrop them right on top of the Renaissance Alliance just as quietly—perhaps even more easily.

If any of them were foolish enough to try and play dirty, they would need to seriously consider whether they could accept waking up to find a row of “benevolent-looking” heavily-armed troops standing by their bed.

The Atlas meeting did not last long. After confirming that there were no issues from any department, including the combat forces, the cooperation with the Renaissance Alliance quickly and officially commenced.

As Atlas’s business representatives began to liaise with their counterparts from the Renaissance Alliance, large quantities of already-produced export-grade equipment from various Atlas Group warehouses, along with some in-house models that had their key components replaced, began to be loaded onto ships.

After all, Amber hoped Franklin could lead the Renaissance Alliance to achieve something significant, so providing a batch of their own high-grade equipment for his elite forces was perfectly reasonable.

Next, the transport ships, fully loaded with equipment, ammunition, spare parts, and supplies from the major warehouses, would rendezvous in a designated star system before forming a fleet to travel to the Loubion star system.

During this process, Randall would personally command a sub-fleet to provide an escort, as the Loubion star system was now considered a warzone.

Besides transporting the “goods” ordered by the Renaissance Alliance, this cargo fleet also carried a group of Romu veterans returning from Parra IV, including both officers and front-line soldiers.

They would serve as the first “military advisory group” sent by the Atlas Group, responsible for conducting the initial training of the Renaissance Alliance’s troops.

The cargo fleet’s final mission, after delivering the supplies, equipment, and personnel, was to bring a batch of promising “seedlings” selected by the Renaissance Alliance back to the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center.

After their training, these “seedlings” would become the future warship commanders, crew members, HCP pilots, and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots of the Renaissance Alliance.

Chapter 504: The Renaissance Alliance, Our Homeland

When the Loubion star system’s star—‘Great Loubion’—slowly rose above the horizon, the light it radiated traveled one hundred fifty million kilometers to finally shine down upon the buildings, streets, and morning commuters of Ptolemy City.

Ever since General Lampard and his remaining forces had chosen to surrender personally to Franklin while surrounded by Renaissance Alliance troops, the crisis that had been hanging over everyone in the Alliance was lifted.

As the Renaissance Alliance rapidly occupied the satellite cities and industrial parks outside its original control zone, food supplies gradually returned to normal thanks to the swift repairs made by engineers.

Franklin, as the leader of the Renaissance Alliance, had handled the incident with decisive action, and the “happy ending for all” had elevated his prestige within the Alliance to new heights.

Furthermore, the public announcement of the partnership with the Atlas Group, combined with the deterrent effect of the mysterious units that had turned the tide in previous battles, led some opposition factions within the Alliance to wisely choose to lie low for the time being.

Although these dissenters had always wanted to topple Franklin and take control of the Renaissance Alliance themselves, they also understood the importance of ‘timing.’

Now was clearly not the right moment. Stepping out to challenge him at a time like this would certainly not end well; it might even give Franklin a convenient excuse to eliminate his ‘political enemies.’

As the dozen or so cities under the Renaissance Alliance’s control returned to normal operations, the residents who had been anxiously holed up in their homes began to venture back onto the streets, slowly resuming their normal lives and businesses.

Bathed in the sunlight, Ptolemy City was now as vibrant as it had been before the war. People were everywhere, heading out to start their day’s work. A commercial playing simultaneously on nearly every outdoor screen in the city soon captured their attention.

People immediately recognized the city in the commercial as Ptolemy City, right under their feet. The aerial shots made the megacity, once ranked in the top three on Loubion V by GDP, look magnificent.

Then, an ear-catching voiceover began:

“The Renaissance Alliance, our homeland.”

The camera slowly descended from the sky, the closing-in shot of the street looking nearly identical to the one where the people were currently standing.

“Prosperity, freedom, and democracy are our way of life.”

The ‘citizens’ walking on the street in the commercial wore blissful smiles, and the crowd watching the ad couldn’t help but picture themselves in their place.

“But freedom sometimes comes at a price.”

As the voiceover’s tone suddenly grew serious, a thick, bluish-white beam of light swept across the street. The ‘beam’ destroyed everything in its path, finally piercing through a large building at the end of the street.

The scattering heavy metal particle stream turned the ravaged area into scorched earth, and even the surrounding areas were covered in pockmarked scars.

A man whose face had been beaming with happiness in the previous scene now stared in disbelief at what was in front of him—his wife and daughter, who had been walking with him, had been a few steps ahead and were struck by a volley of the heavy metal particle stream, completely obliterated.

The man collapsed to his knees, helpless, and shouted in a voice filled with utter despair and anguish:

“No! Our cause of liberation! No!!!!”

The next second, the ad abruptly stopped. The man, whom the viewers had quickly come to recognize, walked in from the front of the frame and let out a meaningful laugh.

“Haha, look familiar?”

“Scenes like this are playing out all over the Loubion star system right now, and the next victim could very well be you.”

As he spoke, the man pointed a finger at the crowd in front of the screen, as if the ‘next victim’ he mentioned was among those watching the commercial.

Then, a stirring, powerful piece of music began.

“Unless, you can make the most important choice of your life!”

“Prove to everyone that you have the strength and courage to pursue freedom!”

The man snapped his fingers, and his casual clothes instantly transformed into a combat exoskeleton. The tactical faceplate above his head slowly lowered, sealing seamlessly with the neck guard.

“Join… the ranks of the Hell Paratroopers!”

“Become the elite of the Renaissance Alliance’s combat forces!”

“Face the enemies who are persecuting our people throughout the star system!”

“Let the glory of the Renaissance Alliance shine upon the entire star system!”

As the voiceover grew more impassioned, the footage switched to real combat scenes of the Renaissance Alliance’s troops.

The stars of the footage were a squad of soldiers from the Hell Paratroopers, formerly of the Loubion star system’s garrison. They happened to be training on the planet’s surface before joining the Renaissance Alliance, and after enlisting, they became an elite infantry unit.

The combat footage in the ad cut rapidly between different shots, all of them selected to show enemy units and targets being destroyed.

In one scene, an image of a Hell Paratrooper embracing a Romu in a white combat exoskeleton made many of the citizens watching say, almost in unison:

“Oh, oh, oh! I recognize them, that’s an Atlas soldier!”

And this scene also made the watching crowd grow increasingly excited.

“Become a hero!”

“Become a legend!”

“Become… a Hell Paratrooper.”

As the commercial faded to black, the citizens on the street who had been watching the recruitment ad stood as if stunned, not moving for a long time. They only snapped out of it when the next commercial, for food, began to play.

This scene was playing out simultaneously on the streets of all dozen-plus cities under the Renaissance Alliance’s control—

“Franklin, the recruitment ads are having a better effect than we anticipated.”

In Franklin’s office, Eleanor was looking at a terminal as she spoke.

“I have to admit, this series of commercials the Atlas Group produced for us—especially the ones for the armored troops, HCP pilots, and Hell Paratroopers—are not only exceptionally well-made, but also the most effective.

Recruitment offices everywhere are reporting that the new conscription drive is going very smoothly. Several cities have already met this round’s recruitment quota, so they’ve had to assign the remaining applicants to the next round’s quota in advance.”

Listening to Eleanor’s report, Franklin was pleased but couldn’t help asking, “The positions for HCP pilots, Heavy Armored Gunship pilots, and Hell Paratroopers—are all of those filled too?”

Eleanor nodded.

“Yes, those three were the first to be filled, and the number of applicants far exceeded our projections. Because of that, the recruitment offices in every city used the highest standards for selection.

According to them, the overall quality of most of these new recruits surpasses our existing HCP pilots. With professional training, they’ll definitely become an exceptionally formidable HCP unit.”

“Excellent. When do they depart?”

“According to the schedule, the convoy carrying these ‘trainees’ should be approaching the base area of Heaven’s Pillar II right about now.

The space elevator wasn’t damaged during our assault because the defending forces surrendered quickly. The ‘trainees’ will probably set sail with an Atlas Group cargo fleet tonight.”

Chapter 505: The Loubion Star System Battle Royale

“They’re leaving tonight? This is moving much faster than I predicted.”

Franklin raised his eyebrows. He had originally thought these ‘trainees’ wouldn’t be departing so soon, but to his surprise, they were leaving with the Atlas Group’s cargo fleet right after its first delivery.

“It’s mainly because the Atlas Group is so efficient. They sent a ship over before the cargo fleet even arrived and dropped an advance team down via orbital drop.”

Eleanor’s tone was also one of disbelief; clearly, she hadn’t expected things to move so quickly either.

“Seriously, Franklin, this has been a real eye-opener for me. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen a company do business by airdropping representatives directly into a warzone.

“And it’s the first time I’ve seen corporate representatives with orbital drop skills. The people who went to meet them said that when this group of representatives showed up, they thought a squad of orbital paratroopers had landed. Our people initially thought Atlas had sent the wrong personnel.

“Compared to the Atlas Group, I think those profit-driven corporations in the Federation are conservative. At least they wouldn’t do something so extreme just for business.”

Eleanor quickly described the situation to Franklin. In short, with the help of this advance team of personnel with professional military skills, the Renaissance Alliance had selected its first batch of ‘trainees’ to attend the ‘Tower of Babel’ comprehensive training center in the fastest time possible.

As she finished, Eleanor couldn’t help but praise these Atlas employees from the bottom of her heart, though she ended with a strange observation.

“These Atlas representatives are great in every way, it’s just that they seem overly focused on efficiency. They’re always muttering about ‘daily KPIs,’ ‘current progress,’ and ‘performance, performance,’ as if failing to complete their tasks would be the end of them.”

Franklin smiled. “Perhaps it’s precisely this extreme pursuit of ‘efficiency’ that has made the progress much faster than we imagined. For us, that’s actually a good thing, isn’t it?”

After they talked for a while, Eleanor also left quickly. As Franklin’s assistant, she had been buried under a mountain of work the moment the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group began their official cooperation.

The moment Eleanor closed the door, the smile on Franklin’s face vanished, replaced by a grave expression.

The depth of the cooperation between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group was actually far deeper than Franklin had initially anticipated. In addition to the previously agreed-upon interest-free loans, weapons and equipment deals, and personnel training, the Atlas Group had also obtained extensive development privileges and preferential policies on Loubion V for the future.

In exchange, Atlas would also accept the Renaissance Alliance’s ‘military contracting’ project, assisting the Renaissance Alliance’s combat units in future battles—including fleet battles.

At first, neither Franklin nor Amber had wanted the Atlas Group to get involved so deeply, but the other high-ranking members of the Renaissance Alliance didn’t think so. Having finally found such a powerful backer, they were determined to cling on tightly and not let go.

And the Renaissance Alliance was clearly not Franklin’s one-man show. The majority of the senior leadership, including Eleanor, believed that this would be a great help to the Renaissance Alliance and would also allow the Atlas Group to continue investing in building factories in the future.

Amber obviously hadn’t expected the Renaissance Alliance to offer such favorable terms, but since they had proposed them, he clearly had no reason to refuse.

As for what Franklin thought, that was not something he needed to consider.

Of course, the prerequisite for all of this was that the Renaissance Alliance had to be the final winner in the ‘First Loubion Star System Battle Royale.’ Otherwise, everything would be off the table.

It was precisely for this reason, and because of the deepening cooperation, that Amber had sent another small combat fleet in advance. It had then worked with the Renaissance Alliance’s troops to quickly capture the Heaven’s Pillar II orbital elevator.

Although the appearance of Atlas’s combat fleet and the subsequent large-scale cargo fleet had made the multiple fleets of different factions in Loubion V’s orbit nervous, no one dared to interfere or attack.

After all, the several-kilometer-long The Infinity in the Atlas Group’s fleet would quickly dispel any such reckless thoughts.

The fleet commanders of the various factions had all witnessed the power of The Infinity through various channels. No one wanted a taste of that golden beam of purification that had strafed the Federation’s Thirteenth Fleet.

The cooperation between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group was already underway, so even if Franklin had any objections or different ideas, it was useless. He stopped dwelling on the matter and turned to thinking about more practical problems.

Namely, how the Renaissance Alliance was going to win this ‘battle royale.’

Right now, the entire Loubion star system was a chaotic mix of various factions. Not to mention the several resource planets and colony satellites, which had already declared their departure from the jurisdiction of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government and established their ‘independence.’

And on the most important planet, Loubion V, the ‘battle royale’ was at its most intense. It was also where multiple ‘heavyweight contenders’ had gathered.

First was the Autonomous Government, which was still the strongest power. They still had a large number of elite garrison units under their command and currently controlled the administrative capital of Loubion V and a large surrounding area to the north—including numerous heavy industrial parks, which greatly helped them maintain their military superiority.

In addition, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government was one of the few factions in the star system with fully formed combat fleets, and they also possessed the largest number of warships.

During the previous ‘North Pole Standoff,’ the Autonomous Government’s combat fleet had single-handedly faced off against the ‘rebel combined fleet’ formed by several other factions and had ultimately gained the upper hand, scattering them.

After them came a large number of ‘rebel’ groups similar to the Renaissance Alliance. Among these different ‘rebels,’ some were self-established warlords, while others were corporate alliances looking to fish in troubled waters.

Others were similar to the Renaissance Alliance—grassroots organizations that had only gained the capacity for ‘armed rebellion’ after some military and police units joined them.

Although they were all opposed to the Federation’s government and the Star System Autonomous Government, it was a pity that unlike the more united ‘rebels’ in space, these ‘rebel’ factions on the planet’s surface were mostly hostile to one another.

Given the chance, they would not hesitate to annex their weaker neighbors, using the opportunity to strengthen their own forces and try to survive longer in this ‘battle royale.’

Even when Franklin had previously proposed a ‘united front against the enemy,’ hoping the various factions would first unite to deal with their greatest foe, the Star System Autonomous Government, very few had responded. Most had simply scoffed at the initiative.

Franklin hadn’t actually been confident about leading the Renaissance Alliance to the very end before, because he knew that ‘conviction’ wasn’t magic; it wouldn’t block attacks for you in the middle of a battle.

But now, after entering into a deep cooperation with the Atlas Group, the situation had quickly become completely different.

Chapter 506: The Dream

If anyone had ever doubted the ‘strength’ of the Atlas Group in the past, after numerous high-profile battles, most organizations and factions no longer questioned its power.

Although this company, on the verge of becoming the largest universal megacorporation, could not yet compare to a nation in terms of organizational scale, in certain regional conflicts, neither the Federation nor the Star Dragon Empire now dared to guarantee they could win.

This was especially true after the strategic decisive battle, where both sides had suffered grievous losses.

Therefore, Franklin believed that with the help of the Atlas Group, the Renaissance Alliance’s chances of taking first place in the ‘Loubion star system Battle Royale’ were growing ever larger.

Because the Renaissance Alliance’s slogans and ideals had always enjoyed high approval among the populace, the Alliance itself was very united, aside from a small faction of ‘dissidents’.

In terms of conviction and resolve, the Renaissance Alliance’s combat troops also far surpassed other ‘rebel’ factions. Although they occasionally complained about the higher command, these soldiers knew what they were fighting for.

Thus, this combat unit’s only weakness had always been their weaponry, equipment, and level of training, which lagged somewhat behind other factions.

But as the Atlas Group’s support gradually arrived, this final weakness was being shored up at a visible pace.

At the same time, Franklin felt that the Atlas Group would likely no longer contact other factions, but instead place all its bets on their Renaissance Alliance.

Although he didn’t know why, he always felt that Mr. Rebil of the Atlas Group paid him a special kind of attention. Otherwise, the Atlas Group could have easily collaborated with other, larger factions in the Loubion star system.

What would become of the Renaissance Alliance’s future? Franklin still couldn’t see it clearly.

Was the collaboration with the Atlas Group for better or for worse? This idealistic youth could not yet come to a conclusion.

With these conflicted feelings, the busy Franklin confirmed that all his tasks for the day were complete and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Then, he entered an incredibly vivid dream.

In the dream, as the collaboration with the Atlas Group grew deeper, the Renaissance Alliance’s power expanded rapidly.

In the various cities and their surrounding satellite cities and industrial zones, damaged facilities were repaired one by one with the help of engineers sent by the Atlas Group, or were replaced outright with more advanced equipment.

The Renaissance Alliance’s combat units transformed from the initial joint military-police force with poor combat proficiency and limited effectiveness into a well-trained, well-equipped elite force capable of all-domain operations.

As the other rebel factions on Loubion V were eliminated one by one by the Renaissance Alliance, the star system’s civil war finally became an ‘ultimate showdown’ between the Renaissance Alliance and the original Autonomous Government.

Storming cities and seizing territory on the ground, large-scale fleet battles in orbit…

The course of the fighting was like a montage; Franklin was only aware that the battles were fierce before they hastily concluded after a few scenes flashed by.

When Franklin could see the scene before him clearly again, the Renaissance Alliance’s combat forces had successfully ‘liberated’ the administrative capital of Loubion V and were holding a military parade on the main thoroughfare in front of the government building.

The heroic unit of the Renaissance Alliance combat forces, the first to breach the city, marched with their heads held high at the front of the parade. Standing beside them, forming the same block formation…

…was a contingent of troops clad in white combat exoskeletons. On their pauldrons was uniformly printed a symbol incredibly familiar to Franklin.

“Atlas.”

Seeing this symbol, Franklin couldn’t help but murmur the name. Only then did he realize he was standing on the reviewing stand, surrounded by numerous high-ranking members of the Renaissance Alliance.

And standing side by side with him at the very front of the stand was a figure he could never forget.

“Mr. Rebil?”

Franklin spoke with some astonishment. He had never imagined that the de facto controller of the Atlas Group would be standing shoulder to shoulder with him right now, reviewing the troops.

As that familiar face turned to look at him, the surroundings shattered and reformed like a dream-like illusion, transforming from the open-air reviewing stand into the scene of a victory banquet.

Only this time, their position at the banquet had shifted from a remote corner, far from the crowd, to the most prominent spot at the center of it all.

And ‘Mr. Rebil,’ now dressed in formal wear, smiled and raised his glass to him in a toast.

“Mr. Franklin, congratulations on successfully taking the first step.”

Although he felt something wasn’t quite right, Franklin found his body moving subconsciously, his right hand lifting his glass to clink it against the one in ‘Mr. Rebil’s’ hand.

The moment the two exquisitely crafted glasses clinked together with a crisp ‘ding,’ the scene before Franklin’s eyes changed once again.

The victory banquet seamlessly switched in an instant to a massive indoor auditorium. Before him was a crowd that filled the entire venue, and in front of the rostrum where he stood, countless camera drones hovered.

Amidst the endless camera flashes and the ‘click-click-click’ of rapid-fire shutters, the right hand he had just raised with a glass now naturally clenched into a fist and rose high.

Immediately after, Franklin clearly heard ‘himself’ declare in a rousing tone:

“The star systems have answered our call, and we will now launch our final attack against the corrupt and fragile old regime!

The enemy will not surrender easily. They will make a cornered beast’s last stand in their final stronghold, and this will be the last and most difficult battle we face!

But I firmly believe that the final victory will belong to us, the ‘Renaissance Alliance’! And upon this scorched earth, a new Federation that truly embodies freedom and democracy will surely ‘rise from the ashes’!!!”

Following Franklin’s declaration calling for the overthrow of the Federation government, everyone in the hall rose to their feet, applauding and cheering. The entire venue was instantly plunged into what seemed like a never-ending tsunami of cheers…

Standing on the rostrum, Franklin looked at the frenzied crowd before him. Thinking about the epic ‘final battle’ that was to come, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

But soon, he spotted a familiar figure in the audience below—‘that man’ sitting in the center seat of the front row.

Realizing something was wrong, Franklin was about to speak when the scene before him changed again, plunging him back into a rapid ‘montage’ of battle scenes.

As the scenes switched more and more slowly, the final shot settled on him sitting in the captain’s chair of a warship. The panoramic viewscreen in front of him faced a terrestrial planet that felt both familiar and alien.

This was the Federation’s capital planet, Coruscant.

And on the bridge, a voice soon rang out, cracking with excitement:

“They’ve surrendered! The Federation government has announced its surrender! We’ve won!!!”

As Franklin and the others on the bridge erupted into celebration at the news, the scene before his eyes changed once more. He suddenly realized that what came next would likely be the final scene of this ‘dream’.

When the scene sharpened again, Franklin realized where he was standing.

This was the East Portico of the Federation Congress Building, the traditional location for presidential inauguration ceremonies.

Chapter 507: Waking from a Dream

By now, Franklin had already faintly realized that he might be dreaming.

But the fully prepared East Portico of the Congress Building before him seemed to possess a magical quality, compelling him to lift his legs and walk forward involuntarily.

As his breathing grew more rapid, Franklin drew closer to the spot where he would take his oath. The eager gazes all around him convinced him that his ascension to become the first president of the ‘New Federation’ was an inevitable event, the will of the people.

But just as Franklin stepped onto the first stair of the inauguration stage, he found a new memory suddenly surfacing in his mind.

It was the eve of the presidential inauguration ceremony, yet he found himself in the newly built Atlas Group headquarters in the Capital. Guided by figures with obscured faces, he eventually arrived at the top floor of the building—this was Mr. Rebil’s penthouse office.

At that moment, the man who had exerted such a profound influence on his life was wearing his signature, serene smile—the very same expression Franklin had seen countless times before.

When this memory ‘came back’ to him, two scenes began to play out simultaneously before his eyes.

On one side was his inauguration ceremony as the new president of the Federation.

On the other, he was standing before Mr. Rebil, formally joining the Atlas Group and pledging his loyalty to him.

The versions of himself in both scenes raised their right hands in unison and began to speak their ‘oaths of office’.

“Wait. This isn’t right. Something is definitely wrong.”

Realizing something was amiss, Franklin tried to stop it all from happening, but he found that he could no longer control his body. Like a bystander, he could only watch helplessly as the ‘two versions of himself’ in the scenes slowly began to speak.

“I swear, in the name of the President Plenipotentiary of the Human Federation.”

“I swear, in the name of a probationary employee of Atlas.”

“I will faithfully execute the office of President of the Federation and will respect and protect the rights and freedoms of all humanity and all citizens of the Federation.”

“I am a member of the Atlas Group. I serve the Atlas Group and its clients.”

“I will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the Federation, and uphold the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of the Federation.”

“I will always put the interests of the Atlas Group first and do everything in my power to protect all of the group’s legal rights and interests.”

“And faithfully serve all citizens.”

“And faithfully serve you.”

On one side, the anthem played at the inauguration ceremony, accompanied by the applause of the crowd.

On the other, ‘Mr. Rebil’ sat behind his large desk, smiling as he watched him and clapping his hands lightly.

“No… no, no, no.”

Franklin jolted awake from the dream. Looking at the familiar room and the clothes completely soaked with sweat, he finally realized that everything that had just happened was a dream.

“Wait… Why would I have a dream like that?”

Franklin rubbed his face vigorously with his hands to wake himself up a bit more. The dream he’d just had was simply too absurd.

In the dream, he had actually led the Renaissance Alliance all the way to its true goal, overthrowing the corrupt old Federation government and establishing a ‘New Federation’.

But at the same time, the shadow of the Atlas Group had loomed over the dream from beginning to end. He had even joined the Atlas Group at the very end, pledging his allegiance to that ‘Mr. Rebil’.

“What on earth does this dream mean?”

Franklin lay back down, trying to calm himself and think. He figured it was likely a case of ‘what one thinks about by day, one dreams about by night’.

Since he had recently been busy with matters concerning deeper cooperation with the Atlas Group, it was only natural that he would dream about it at night.

But he also had to admit that ever since the cooperation with the Atlas Group began, people within the Renaissance Alliance, and even the general populace in their controlled territories, had begun to discuss the topic of ‘The Atlas Group’s return to the Loubion star system’.

This was especially true for the common folk, particularly those who had once worked for Atlas-affiliated companies. Upon hearing that the Atlas Group was coming back, they were all incredibly excited and began to spontaneously ‘promote’ it to those around them.

This led to a rapid surge in the public’s favorable opinion of the Atlas Group within the Renaissance Alliance’s controlled territories in a very short amount of time.

Just like what happened in the dream, the shadow of Atlas seemed to be closing in.

Franklin shook his head violently, trying to cast these nebulous and incomprehensible thoughts from his mind, but the moment he closed his eyes, the scenes from the dream would immediately reappear.

Normally, images from a dream are quickly forgotten by the brain, as it doesn’t consider them important information that needs to occupy its capacity.

This time, however, Franklin found that he couldn’t forget the scenes from the dream no matter how he tried.

He lay there, quietly staring at the ceiling of his room, his mind a jumble of thoughts.

While Franklin was caught in a state of conflict and confusion because of his dream, a massive cargo fleet in orbit of Loubion V was using a gravitational-assist to depart.

On its arrival, this fleet had delivered a large quantity of desperately needed mil-spec weapons and equipment to the Renaissance Alliance, along with equally important supplies like ammunition, superconducting batteries, mini-fusion reactors, and subcritical reactors—items that weren’t so easy to come by on Loubion V.

Upon its departure, the fleet was carrying away over three thousand ‘trainees’ selected by the Renaissance Alliance.

They were headed for the ‘Tower of Babel’ Comprehensive Training Center, where, after completing basic training, they would undergo specialized training in one of three paths: HCP pilot, Heavy Armored Gunship pilot, or Hell Paratrooper.

In the final phase of their training, the HCP pilots and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots would also travel to the A·Bawa·Ku fortress to receive personal instruction from Murat, Louis, Jacob, and others.

Behind a porthole on one of the cargo ships, two young men were gazing intently at the massive blue planet outside, and at the other ships that made up the fleet.

Among them, The Infinity, like a creation of the gods, naturally drew most of their attention.

“Manfred, are you nervous?”

“What’s there to be nervous about?” the young man called Manfred asked in return.

“We’re leaving our home planet for the first time, heading to the land of the elves! Aren’t you nervous or excited? We can finally see the legendary elf ladies in person.”

“Johnny, why are you still such a perv? I really don’t know how you got selected, let alone chosen to be an HCP pilot, while I’m stuck being a pilot for some Heavy Armored Gunship.”

Hearing his companion’s complaint, the youth called Johnny just smiled and said, full of confidence:

“It’s simple. Because I’m a genius~”

Chapter 508: Sparks

Johnny wasn’t entirely joking. He really had demonstrated an exceptionally high aptitude for piloting HCPs.

In the “career path forecast” that all Federation adolescents were required to undergo at the age of fourteen, the youth named Johnny Leiding had been recommended two career tracks by the system.

One was to join the Federation military and become a glorious HCP pilot. The other was to pilot civilian walker platforms—the civilian version of the HCP—and become a specialized operator needed in a wide range of industries.

At the time, due to his family’s financial situation and his desire to better care for them, Johnny chose to stay on his homeworld, becoming a civilian walker platform operator with a more stable income and safer daily work.

However, his talent did not go to waste. When the large-scale “armed rebellion” erupted in the Loubion star system, he climbed into a heavily damaged HCP whose pilot had died from grievous injuries, all to protect his family and coworkers.

In a desperate situation, he managed to turn the tables, destroying a pursuing government HCP and its support troops. He was eventually surrounded by government follow-up forces, but was rescued by Renaissance Alliance units. And so, he joined the Alliance’s HCP units, becoming a true HCP pilot.

When news spread that the Atlas Group was cooperating with the Renaissance Alliance and would help train their HCP pilots and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots, Johnny was quickly recommended by his superiors.

And so, at the assembly area of the “Heaven’s Pillar II” space elevator, Johnny Leiding met Manfred, who was to be trained as a Heavy Armored Gunship pilot, for the first time.

Although their personalities, family backgrounds, and personal experiences could be considered worlds apart, the two became friends in that short span of time.

Johnny Leiding also learned the truth about his new friend’s identity.

Manfred von Richthofen—a name that reeked of old-guard aristocratic style. In fact, when Manfred was a child, his full name was Manfred Albrecht von Richthofen.

Clearly, such a name seemed a better fit for a Star Dragon Empire noble than a Federation citizen.

In truth, Manfred and his family were indeed “fallen nobles” who had fled the Star Dragon Empire.

Manfred didn’t actually know the specifics of what had happened, as his late parents had never spoken of it. He had only pieced together from their fragmented words that his family had been a casualty of the Empire’s political struggles.

If not for the help of some old friends, they might never have had the chance to escape to the Federation and receive “political asylum” from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

But after so many years, a noble family with little practical value soon lost the attention of the Star System Autonomous Government, and Manfred’s family’s fortunes plummeted.

To survive, Manfred joined the newly re-formed garrison fleet and became a reconnaissance boat pilot. This was only possible because the new garrison fleet wasn’t overly strict about background checks and hoped that a soldier with a “special” background like Manfred could one day serve as “propaganda material.”

Otherwise, given Manfred’s origins, he could never have dreamed of joining the Federation military.

The two youths’ conversation didn’t last long. Soon, like everyone else, they were ordered back to their cabins to secure themselves for the fleet’s imminent collective warp.

“Johnny, don’t you get eliminated. I’m waiting for the day you’re piloting an HCP as my escort,” Manfred said earnestly, looking at his new friend before entering his cabin.

“You should worry about yourself. Don’t let me become an ace pilot only to find that your gunship isn’t there for me to use as a launchpad, little noble.”

Johnny Leiding waved his hand dismissively. Finally, their eyes met, and the two boys could no longer hold back their laughter.

Time flew by like a white steed past a crack. Before anyone knew it, nearly five months had passed.

As the situation in this corner of the universe entered a new chapter, the flow of time seemed to accelerate.

It wasn’t just psionic users like Amber; even many ordinary people felt that time was passing faster and faster. Sometimes, a day would go by in what felt like the blink of an eye.

Of course, this wasn’t because some mighty being had literally sped up the universe’s clock. It was mainly because so much had happened during this period, with one explosive news story following another.

Under the onslaught of vast amounts of new information, the monotonous, unchanging lives of many were disrupted, naturally making them feel that time was moving more quickly.

In Amber’s view, besides the rapid pace of both the Atlas Group and the wider world, the overall “tension” across the universe was also beginning to rise to a new level.

The “strategic decisive battle” between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had concluded in what appeared to be a mutually destructive stalemate, but in reality, neither of the two great human powers had ceased hostilities.

On the Federation side, the government’s authority and credibility had been severely damaged by a series of prior incidents. Compounding this, the military-industrial complex, which had been in collusion with the government, was crippled by the Atlas Group. As a result, various star systems, especially those controlled by the opposition party, began to grow restless.

When the “armed rebellion” in the Loubion star system was not quickly suppressed and instead showed signs of escalating, other factions besides the troublemaking opposition party began to make their moves.

These factions recognized neither the Federation government nor the Star System Autonomous Governments. They had only one goal: to carve out their own kingdoms.

“Why believe in the future promised by some bullshit political party? I’d rather build it myself!”

Soon, “sparks” began to ignite in multiple star systems within the Federation. Some were armed rebellions initiated by civilian forces, similar to Loubion’s, while others were Star System Autonomous Governments declaring “independence.”

For the former, although the citizens of these systems had entered a state of war, most at least had a goal to fight for. Moreover, the warring factions usually tried to avoid civilians in combat to prevent accidental casualties.

But if you lived in a system of the latter type, then congratulations: you just received a one-way ticket to slavery.

It was widely known that many of the Federation’s Star System Autonomous Governments and planetary administrators were not the most humane of people. Once they declared their “independence” from the Federation government’s jurisdiction, their inhumane behavior immediately became even more monstrous.

This situation within the Federation’s borders caused Marshal Trafalgar’s vision to go black, and he fainted dead away upon returning to The Capital to report on his duties and rest.

Although the Federation government immediately suppressed the news, some baseless rumors still spread, which only seemed to fan the “sparks” across the Federation’s territory, making them burn ever brighter.

While the Federation government was plagued by the simultaneous “armed rebellions” in multiple star systems, the various factions in the Star Dragon Empire weren’t faring much better.

News of Her Highness Agnes’s impending coronation had spread far and wide. Combined with the earlier reports of Duke William’s death in battle and the destruction of the Chaos Fortress, the Regent Prince Faction found itself at a disadvantage almost overnight.

And just as Amber had predicted, the old-guard nobles who had previously joined the Regent Prince Faction suddenly stepped forward to act as “peacemakers,” hoping to ease the confrontational relationship between the two sides.

After all, these people were masters at seeing which way the wind was blowing. They knew that if they didn’t take a stand now, a great purge would await them once Princess Agnes was officially crowned.

It was at this time that multiple factions suddenly appeared in star systems controlled by the “Princess Faction” and the “Royalist Faction.” Under the slogan of “overthrow the monarchy, overthrow the Leon family,” they lynched numerous planetary governors and entire noble families, launching what they called a “Glorious Revolution.”

Meanwhile, some nobles within the “Regent Prince Faction” began to launch armed interventions in these systems under the pretext of helping to deal with the “uprisings.”

And Regent Prince Norton II himself, without any warning, began to settle scores with a group of old-guard nobles within his own faction who had long opposed him.

Chapter 509: Genius Is Just the Bare Minimum to Face Me

“I’ve noticed that things are getting way more brutal in the Star Dragon Empire than over here in the Federation. How long has it been since Norton II made his move, and that many nobles in the Empire are already dead?”

In a temporary lounge within a hangar at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Murat was lounging in a massage chair, scrolling through the news on his terminal.

He was currently reading the “Recent Situation Briefing” compiled by the Atlas Group’s internal propaganda department, which meant the source of this news wasn’t some dubious media outlet, but the Atlas Group’s own Intelligence Analysis Center.

Theoretically, what Murat was reading couldn’t really be considered news, but rather a large collection of situation reports verified by the intelligence department.

Therefore, it was a genuine overview of the situation, not some piece of unverified gossip about a duke’s daughter falling in love with a commoner’s son, ultimately leading her old father to finally pay attention to his own territory.

And on the other side, Louis spoke up after hearing Murat’s words:

“There are a ton of nobles in the Star Dragon Empire. According to the Boss, if you walk down the street in one of the core star systems and throw a shoe into a crowd, you’d probably hit a noble. Besides, Norton II has probably been fed up with that bunch of dissenters for a long time. This is the perfect chance for him to go on a killing spree and ‘purify’ his ranks at the same time. That way, those who remain will be the true ‘crystals’ of loyalty to the Regent Prince.”

“Well, well, Louis~ That was quite a speech. Not your usual style. And since when did you become so concerned with the world situation?”

Jacob, who was just walking back in from outside, happened to overhear Louis’s comment and teased him with a smile.

Hearing this, Louis scratched his head in embarrassment. “Uh… actually, that’s all stuff the Boss said a few days ago. I just happened to remember it.”

“Hahaha, I knew it~”

Murat roared with laughter at the answer. Then he looked at Jacob, who had just walked in. The ace pilot of the Heavy Armored Gunships was currently wearing a smile, seemingly in a good mood.

“Finished with today’s training? By the way, why do you look so happy?” Murat asked.

“Uh-huh. These ‘trainees’ from the Loubion star system are of a higher quality than I expected. Even though there’s still a gap compared to the students we’ve trained ourselves, it’s mainly due to a lack of training time,”

Jacob said, finding an empty chair and sinking into it.

“And among these ‘trainees,’ there are actually a few good Seedlings. There’s a young man named Manfred who’s clearly ace pilot material… To be honest, I’m tempted to ask the Boss to poach him for our regiment.”

“Manfred?” Louis on the other side seemed to recognize the name. After a moment of thought, he said, “Is that the young guy with the really long name, the one who sounds like an imperial noble?”

“Not ‘sounds like’ an imperial noble. His ancestors were bona fide imperial nobles.”

Murat, who also seemed to know of the young man, couldn’t help but retort.

“He seems to have quite a personality, too. I heard from others that he particularly likes to give his gunship a red paint job in simulated battles?”

“Yep, yep, that’s him!” Jacob snapped his fingers and continued:

“His skills and combat thinking are both pretty strong; all he lacks is combat experience. That’s why he’s still undefeated in internal trainee matches. Some of the others have even nicknamed him the ‘Red Baron.’”

Hearing this, Murat couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh:

“Tsk, tsk, tsk… ‘Red Baron.’ How come the rookies’ nicknames are getting more and more flamboyant? Ours are just so damn plain in comparison. Let’s not even talk about the Boss’s nickname. I don’t know who spread the ‘Terrifying Headhunter’ moniker, but it led to that ridiculous rumor that the Chairman of Atlas Group eats people… My nickname is ‘Madman,’ yours, Jacob, is ‘Quick Guy,’ and Louis’s is even more hilarious—‘Young Miss.’ Hahahaha, no matter how many times I hear that damn nickname, I still want to laugh…”

Murat was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes, curling up like a cooked shrimp.

But one man’s joy is not another’s. To Louis, Murat’s laughter was just noisy.

While Jacob’s situation wasn’t as bad as Louis’s, he clearly didn’t want to dwell on this ‘dark history’ of a topic either, so he spoke up to change the subject.

“Speaking of good Seedlings, haven’t you guys found any trainees with ace potential?”

Jacob certainly knew how to pick a topic. The moment he threw out the question, he immediately captured Murat’s attention.

The man, whose HCP piloting skills were second only to Amber’s within Atlas, shot up from the massage chair like a man on his deathbed suddenly sitting bolt upright.

“You know, Louis and I did find a good Seedling, but he’s a bit of a ‘hothead,’ always running around calling himself a genius~”

Murat’s tone was a mix of three parts appreciation, three parts mockery, three parts disdain, and one part ‘caring for the silly kid,’ but Jacob could still tell that he was genuinely paying attention to this ‘genius’ he was talking about.

On the other side, Louis added:

“He is a bit of a ‘hothead,’ but his talent, learning ability, and mastery of piloting techniques are all impeccable. He’s beaten everyone in his peer group and even a few instructors with actual combat experience who got ‘tripped up’ because they underestimated him.”

Jacob raised his eyebrows in surprise at their descriptions. “That good? What’s his name?”

Louis: “Johnny Leiding.”

“No, no, no, it should be ‘Genius’ Johnny Leiding~” Murat corrected, wagging his finger. He stood up, straightened his uniform, and continued:

“To give this ‘genius’ a proper warning and prevent him from getting lost in his own illusions, I’m planning to personally give him a little ‘enlightenment education’ in the combat drill later.”

Jacob: “Is that really necessary? You going up against him personally… isn’t that a bit like bullying a kid?”

“I don’t want to, but the trainees are all talking about it,” Murat shrugged, looking somewhat helpless.

“They’re all saying it’s only a matter of time before this ‘genius’ becomes the number one pilot. Some even say, ‘It’s a good thing the Boss rarely gets involved personally anymore, otherwise he might risk losing to Johnny Leiding.’”

“Okay, never mind then. I fully support you teaching him a good lesson. Let him learn about the ‘malice of the battlefield’~”

“Absolutely. I’ll make him understand what ‘genius is just the bare minimum to face me’ means. And more importantly, I’ll let him know that only by defeating me does he earn the right to even have a go with the Boss.”

Whether it was raising children or training HCP pilots, “enlightenment education” was a vital process. This was a point that Murat and Louis believed in with absolute conviction.

Murat, in particular, had always felt that for an HCP pilot, especially a rookie, this “enlightenment education” would directly influence their future combat style. This was why, when planning the “Atlas Group Combat Force - HCP Pilot Training Syllabus,” he had strongly insisted that trainees engage in “1v1,” “1vN,” and team-based combat drills against experienced combat unit pilots in a “simulated combat environment.” This was to be the final and most crucial part of their training.

The reason for such an arrangement was mainly because Murat and Louis felt that their own “enlightenment education” as HCP pilots had indeed influenced their future “career paths.”

To this day, Murat still remembered a clear, sunny morning on Robert IV.

He and Louis, two rookie HCP pilots, had been assigned to Amber’s assault team to participate in the assault on the space elevator’s base area.

It was in that very battle that the two of them, still “mecha combat greenhorns,” witnessed Amber pilot her unit and create a “legendary scene”: wielding a heavy plasma severing sword, she took down two enemy units in close-quarters combat with extreme efficiency.

At that moment, the scene of Amber pulling her heavy slicer sword from the cockpit of a Zealot delivered a profound shock to the two rookies.

It also transformed their understanding of combat between HCPs. They went from the stereotype of dueling with directed-energy weapons like heavy particle cannons and relying on maneuverability and the limited power of deflector shield generators to achieve final victory, to a completely new methodology: “close combat is to my advantage.”

It must be said, perhaps the tradition of “sword-drawing syndrome” among Atlas pilots began right at that moment.

Chapter 510: Combat Drill

A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, fleet training space.

A composite fleet, consisting of three heavy cruisers, eight light cruisers, and a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla, was quietly moored at a virtual point on the outskirts of the training space.

This was a standard configuration for a small mobile fleet within the Atlas combat fleet, typically used for tasks such as peripheral security patrols, early warning and anti-air defense, armed reconnaissance, and rapid response within a defense sector.

However, because the fleet battles Atlas had previously encountered were mostly decisive, all-or-nothing showdowns, various types of small fleets had little opportunity to be utilized.

Under the combat fleet’s organizational structure, the few existing small fleet formations were primarily responsible for routine patrols around mining areas and the fortress.

But in reality, from the perspective of Guterres and Cleves, if the fleet battles the Atlas Group were to face in the future became more conventional, then various functional fleets would certainly be indispensable.

And in the Federation Navy’s operational doctrine, the small mobile fleet had another ‘applicable scenario’.

After being reinforced in other aspects, it would serve as the vanguard for ‘armed intervention,’ entering a target star system to establish a beachhead.

Thus, the final combat drill for the ‘trainees’ from the Loubion star system was arranged to take place with a small mobile fleet from the Atlas combat fleet, which was also undergoing formation training.

At this moment, the fleet, having just completed a cooperative attack formation drill, was resting and conducting routine checks at the mooring point.

Taking advantage of this break, the idle personnel within the fleet began to gather and watch a live combat drill between HCPs.

The opposing sides were the ‘Loubion team,’ led by the ‘genius’ Johnny Leiding, and a ship-borne HCP regiment from this fleet.

This combat drill simulated an encounter battle between two destroyers on patrol in a high-risk area after they had detected each other.

Theoretically, a battle like this should occur between vessels such as long-range scout ships or infiltration destroyers.

However, the Atlas combat fleet was not yet in a position of luxury to recall these two types of special ships for routine training.

Moreover, even for the Federation Navy and the Imperial Royal Navy, whose naval ship compositions were more complete, these special ships were often in short supply. Using conventional destroyers for similar missions was, in fact, standard practice.

Therefore, two destroyers were temporarily used as substitutes for this combat drill.

Each side consisted of one destroyer and one ship-borne HCP squadron. However, the true protagonists of this drill were the HCPs; the destroyers served more as backdrops and support fire platforms.

The objective for both sides was simple: victory would be achieved by being the first to sink the enemy destroyer or the first to destroy all twelve HCPs of the enemy’s ship-borne squadron.

However, in the eyes of the veterans, there wasn’t much of a difference between these two objectives in a real battle.

A destroyer without its HCP escort was as vulnerable as a squadron without its ‘mothership’. In the cold expanse of space, their elimination by the enemy was only a matter of time.

“Bucky team, Rogers team, execute a pincer attack from the lower sectors of the left and right hemispheres as planned!”

“Thor team, stay near the destroyer and assist in defense. Protecting the ship is the top priority! Intercept any enemy HCPs attempting to break through, at any cost.”

Stark, squadron leader of a ship-borne HCP squadron from the Atlas combat fleet, gave the cold command over the squadron’s communication channel.

The phrase ‘at any cost’ wasn’t just for drills. Even in real combat, where there were no ‘second lives,’ every HCP squadron leader, including Stark, would issue the same order.

Although Amber always required all combat units to prioritize their own safety while completing their missions and to avoid needless sacrifices.

But influenced by Amber’s ‘fierce and reckless’ fighting style, the HCP pilots of Atlas had all turned into fearless daredevils.

In other words, the Atlas HCP units were the combat force with the most severe ‘personality cult’ surrounding Amber.

In their subconscious, it seemed that only by completing the mission at all costs could they be worthy of piloting an HCP and charging into battle alongside Amber.

“I will lead a team to provide mobile support and, when the time is right, act as the third assault team to strike the enemy destroyer!”

“Everyone, stay sharp! The opposition does have an ‘ACE’-level genius, but no matter how monstrous his talent is, can he be more monstrous than a beast like the Boss?”

“Hahahaha.”

Everyone on the communication channel burst into laughter at their squadron leader’s words, and they quickly recalled Amber’s performance in past battles.

Especially the scene during the final phase of the A·Bawa·Ku fortress defense, where he raised the ‘Sword of Promised Victory’ and led a cluster of HCPs in a charge against the enemy fleet.

After thinking about it this way, the members of the squadron realized that this fledgling kid, who ‘had some skills,’ didn’t seem so tough after all.

As the squadron leader, Stark was naturally pleased with his team’s reaction and continued to speak:

“This Mr. Johnny Leiding is indeed a good ‘Seedling,’ and he’s also a member of the Renaissance Alliance, one of our ‘major clients’ at Atlas. Therefore, we should serve as good teachers for him. In this combat drill, we’ll make him understand that not everyone can be like the Boss, capable of deciding the course of a battle with personal valor. This will also prevent him from needlessly throwing his life away on the battlefield in the future.”

“Roger, squadron leader~” ×N

Amidst the serious replies from the pilots, the twelve HCPs of the ‘Avengers’ squadron, following Stark’s commands, quickly dispersed and entered a combat state.

The HCP teams responsible for attacking from the lower sectors of the two hemispheres, after confirming that their allied team and destroyer were in combat positions, lit up their plasma thruster arrays and charged toward the target warship.

Beams of various colors from directed-energy weapons, interspersed with numerous orange-red trajectories, swept precisely toward the two attacking teams’ approach vectors.

But for these HCP pilots, survivors of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress defense, such intercepting fire was almost a joke. After all, when they had charged with Amber, they had faced the anti-aircraft fire of an entire fleet!

Watching the close-up tracking shots on the large screen, the HCPs, mapped by the responsive control systems, moved like space dancers, performing various evasive maneuvers with fluid and natural grace.

Even the trainees from the Loubion star system, who were hoping for the ‘genius’ Johnny Leiding to win again, couldn’t help but let out gasps of amazement.

Soon, the two teams, totaling six GAT-X303 ‘Aegis’ units, approached the final warning perimeter 7,000 kilometers from the target destroyer, one from the left and one from the right.

In addition to their standard space combat loadouts, each of the two attacking teams had one HCP towing a plasma rocket launch canister with carbon fiber cables.

After entering attack range, the HCPs doing the towing detached the carbon fiber cables. While accelerating to catch up with their teammates, they also issued the attack command via blue-green laser.

Nearly a hundred laser-guided plasma rockets quickly launched from the canisters and, upon receiving laser guidance from the HCPs, swarmed toward the target destroyer.

The entire process was smooth and fluid. Just as most people, including Squadron Leader Stark, had predicted, the Loubion trainees, lacking real combat experience, were quickly forced onto the defensive in this live, non-simulator combat drill.

In space combat, opportunities are fleeting. The initial distance between the two warships was fixed, and the acceleration capabilities of both sides’ HCPs were roughly the same.

Therefore, even as the warships closed the distance, the HCP squadron that accelerated first to launch the assault would still be closer to the enemy warship after engagement.

This meant they could attack the enemy warship sooner.

At this point, the enemy HCPs could only choose to fall back and defend, or bite the bullet and attack the target warship, which was still some distance away.

In a large-scale fleet battle, this wasn’t much of an advantage. The slight edge in distance and the initial attack window were a drop in the ocean amidst the confrontation of hundreds of warships and thousands of HCPs.

But in a small-scale fleet engagement like this, especially a one-on-one ship encounter, it was a different story.

And for the ‘trainees’ from the Loubion star system, the situation was even more difficult. They lacked the extensive ‘combat experience’ that would tell them how to respond to ‘X situation’ with ‘Y solution.’

So, once they missed the initial window of opportunity to attack, they would be forced into a passive defense around their own warship.

Just as everyone thought the Loubion trainees were about to be steamrolled by the ‘Avengers’ squadron, which had already deployed into its attack formation, three yellow flares suddenly erupted in space, drawing gasps of shock from the spectators on every warship.

Because it meant that three HCPs from the Avengers squadron had been destroyed in combat.

Chapter 511: Kid, Remember This Feeling

“Bucky Squad has been wiped out!”

“It’s their ‘ace’! He went over to support them!”

“Just like the Boss, such a showy red paint job!”

“No, no, no, the Boss’s red is more reserved, and it’s accented with pink and orange elements. This guy’s is just a flashy, bright red!”

Stark ignored the sharp commentary on Johnny Leiding’s paint job from the few “paint job critics” on the channel. He knew that after the last major battle, his men had all developed nerves of steel, and chatting on the battlefield was a way for them to relieve stress.

After confirming through the squadron datalink that the enemy “prodigy” had annihilated Bucky Squad with lightning speed and had only decelerated very late in the process, Stark immediately commanded over the channel:

“Rogers Squad! Use this opportunity to break through their right flank! I’m taking my team to meet this ‘prodigy.’ Thor Squad, prepare for fire support!”

Without waiting for a reply, Stark pushed his unit’s throttle all the way to the top. The Aegis he piloted shot forward with a dangerous burst of acceleration.

The other two Aegis units in his team, with perfect coordination, accelerated at almost the exact same moment. In the process, the three HCPs shifted into a standard triangular attack formation and pounced toward Johnny Leiding.

Both Stark and the other members of the Avenger Squadron knew that the enemy’s only real combat power was the young prodigy, Johnny Leiding. Once he was “destroyed,” the other enemies were nothing to fear.

Even if Stark and his team were also “lost in action,” the remaining half of the Avenger Squadron could still finish the fight.

Therefore, as Stark’s team launched their attack on Johnny Leiding, all three of them were prepared to die to take out the enemy’s ace.

Soon, three “comets” moving in unison collided with the lone “comet.” And in the instant they met, a shot from a heavy particle cannon, so precise it almost directly struck the weakest area of the HCP’s deflector shield, made Stark feel the pressure.

The “heavy metal particle stream” simulated by the combat system was only partially deflected by the shield. A small portion of it punched straight through the defense, heading for the chest of Stark’s personal machine.

If the old veteran hadn’t raised his heavy shield in advance to protect the unit’s critical areas, this nearly impossible shot could very well have damaged the cockpit or even resulted in an instant kill.

Watching the icon for his heavy layered armor shield flash continuously on the multi-function display, alongside the text prompt “Memory alloy is restructuring its crystal lattice,” Stark knew he had just “cheated death.”

But soon, he heard his wingman’s curse over the comms channel.

“Damn it! What a fast shot, I’m hit!”

Stark turned his head to see his wingman’s unit already tumbling out of control. This was, of course, caused by the combat system manipulating the unit’s attitude thrusters.

He glanced quickly at the combat log his wingman shared via datalink. The enemy had hit his right leg with a charged particle cannon, and the leg was judged to have been completely severed by the blast.

However, the wingman’s pilot was no rookie. Even as he went into an uncontrolled spin, he showed no signs of panic.

Amidst the dizzying tumble, he calmly determined his horizontal axis of rotation and quickly engaged the attitude control thrusters around his unit to brake in the opposite direction.

After arresting the horizontal spin, he immediately fired a pulse from the plasma thruster array on his back, slowing the vertical rotation and finally escaping the loss of attitude control.

The entire self-rescue process took less than ten seconds. Among the HCP pilots of this world, excluding those monstrous talents who defied human limits, this was absolutely top-tier skill.

Unfortunately, the opponent Stark and his team were facing, while still a far cry from “that man,” was still considered a monstrous talent in his own right.

Almost at the exact moment Stark’s wingman stabilized his unit, an Aegis with a bright red paint job had already closed in on him from his rear hemisphere.

In that instant, time itself seemed to slow down. From the other side, Stark could have sworn he saw the image of a prodigy with a brazen smile behind the red Aegis.

No one knew how Johnny Leiding managed to decelerate, turn, and re-accelerate in such a short amount of time, nor did they know how the young man could withstand the g-forces that would have been instantly fatal to an ordinary person.

But none of that mattered anymore. All anyone could see now was the image of him, in the split second he passed by, swinging his sword and slashing the enemy unit in half.

“This kid really is something else. To pull off moves like that with that kind of physique, without any physical modification or enhancement surgeries… I can only say he was born to pilot an HCP.”

Inside the launch area of a deployment bay in the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, Murat, already clad in his heavy hydraulic pressure suit, couldn’t help but sigh as he watched the live broadcast on the large screen.

“He’s certainly strong. His talent is far beyond ours.”

Louis, who had also finished suiting up, walked over to his side and said:

“But this kid is just too young and hot-headed. His fighting style is too individualistic. He completely ignores teamwork, thinking he can win the fight all by himself… Hmph, does he really think he’s a non-human like the Boss?”

“If he wasn’t hot-headed, would he still be a young man? A bit of drive is actually a good thing. He just needs someone to guide him… today’s battle might just be the opportunity for that~”

Murat replied with a smile, then gestured with his chin at the battle on screen. “See? Isn’t he about to lose?”

Louis followed his gaze to the screen. Johnny Leiding had already dealt with Stark’s two wingmen and was now locked in a final duel with him.

The former’s gunnery and range control were clearly superior. His combined fire from multiple long-range weapons forced Stark into a somewhat battered passive defense.

In reality, Johnny Leiding could have ended this with a single, clean close-quarters engagement, but he instead chose to fight in a way that seemed to mock his opponent.

And this conceited young man would soon pay the price for his frivolous choice.

As a sudden warning blared, a surprised Johnny Leiding looked behind him to see the other enemy team’s three HCPs had broken through his friendly forces’ interception.

These Rubion trainees were completely unable to stop these killing machines who had survived chaotic battles. Not only did they fail to intercept them, but they were cut down like chopping melons and cutting vegetables, losing nearly two full squads in the process.

By the time Johnny Leiding realized this, it was too late. Two “battle-scarred” HCPs that broke through the final defensive screen and reached the destroyer dismantled its external components with the same proficiency as Amber.

Then, one of them swept the destroyer’s main thruster array with its heavy particle cannon, while the other used a heavy anti-ship penetrator round fired from a heavy electromagnetic cannon to give the destroyer’s core a “chilling” blow straight through its heart.

As the combat system judged the destroyer to have exploded, Johnny Leiding froze for an instant. In that moment of shock, he was seized by Stark, who, despite having all his weapons judged “destroyed,” still roared and charged forward to grab him.

“Kid, remember this feeling well. War isn’t as simple as you think!”

When the remaining HCPs of the Avenger Squadron and the unscathed destroyer behind them unhesitatingly blanketed the area where the two units were with a full weapons salvo, this combat drill came to a close, amidst the silence of Johnny Leiding and all the Rubion trainees.

Chapter 512: Geniuses Are Always Different from Ordinary People

Johnny Leiding was exceptionally skilled in HCP piloting and combat. This was undisputed. His comrades who had fought alongside him and the instructors who had guided him all gave his personal technique high praise.

At the same time, his young, hot-headed, and arrogant personality also left a deep impression on everyone.

Because of this personality, his deficiencies in team coordination and tactical command were glaring, and the instructors had unhesitatingly given him the lowest possible scores in those areas.

This was the Atlas instructor squad’s evaluation of the ‘genius pilot’ after he completed his basic training and the first half of the HCP combat curriculum.

The instructors who graded him couldn’t help but feel it was a pity that such a rare and promising ‘Seedling’ had such a personality.

They hoped that the ‘enlightenment education’ arranged by Major Murat (promoted after the defense of the fortress) in the final stage of the combat exercises would bring about some change in the talented young man.

And now, it seemed the instructors’ hopes were being realized.

In the first practical combat training exercise, Johnny Leiding had thrown himself wholeheartedly into HCP combat. But as the backbone of his team, he had no time to spare for command, not even managing the simplest act of covering a teammate.

Although he successfully destroyed six HCPs from the Avenger Squadron, including its squadron leader, the destroyer his own squadron was supposed to protect was ‘sunk,’ and his teammates were all but wiped out.

In the end, he too was turned to space dust under a combined salvo from the enemy HCPs and their destroyer.

This combat exercise was conducted two more times—one offense and one defense.

Despite Johnny Leiding achieving the highest kill count on the field each time, the result was always mission failure.

When the three rounds of drills concluded, the two HCP squadrons returned to the heavy cruiser that served as the flagship for this small mobile fleet and as the base for the instructor squad.

Inside the largest hangar, the other Rubion trainees fell silent as they watched a crestfallen Johnny Leiding, helmet in hand, followed by his equally dejected teammates.

Their earlier lofty ambitions had mostly been worn away not long after the training began. The combat drills they had just witnessed had made them fully realize the massive gap between ‘Rookies’ like themselves and the battle-hardened veterans.

Even Johnny Leiding had suffered three consecutive defeats; there was no need to even mention the others.

Seeing Johnny Leiding with his head bowed in silence, the head of the instructor squad assumed the arrogant young man was finally ready to face his own shortcomings. He spoke up.

“Did you just experience the despair of watching your comrades die, of having all the skill in the world but being utterly powerless?”

Johnny Leiding nodded. “Yes, sir. It’s a horrible feeling. It’s suffocating.”

“What I want to say is the same as what Squadron Leader Stark said: I hope you remember this feeling well. And I sincerely hope you never have to experience it on a real battlefield.”

The instructor’s voice was calm, yet it seemed to hold a world of stories. Johnny Leiding and the other Rubion trainees couldn’t help but look up at him.

“Instructor… have you really been in a situation like that on the battlefield?” Johnny Leiding asked.

Hearing the ‘genius’ pilot’s question, the head instructor paused for a moment before a bittersweet, accepting smile crossed his face.

“It’s not just me. Most of the people you see here, Major Murat, his men, and even the Boss… we’ve all been through it.”

The atmosphere in the hangar instantly grew solemn at his words.

Every Atlas employee present, whether they were HCP pilots, combat craft pilots, maintenance crew members, or marines who had come to watch, was reminded of the irretrievable, devastating loss the Atlas combat forces had once suffered.

Although the complete annihilation of the instructor squad was only a two-digit number on the list of casualties, its place in the hearts of most Atlas combat personnel was beyond what any outsider could imagine.

Whether Romu or human, all new recruits to Atlas were sent to the ‘Tower of Babel’ for reorganization and adaptation training. To them, the members of the instructor squad were like teachers.

Furthermore, in subsequent battles, the instructor squad had fought alongside various units many times and often took on high-risk missions, forging a deep bond of camaraderie with the other forces.

So, when the news of Banninger and his entire squad being killed in action on Parra IV broke, the shockwave that went through the Atlas combat forces was immense.

At the funeral that followed, Amber was not the only one to shed tears of grief—everyone did.

As the solemn atmosphere in the hangar slowly began to affect the Rubion trainees, Banninger and the others, who had been watching the spectacle from the virtual space ‘Valhalla,’ found themselves in a different kind of awkward situation.

Not everyone gets to have the experience of watching their former comrades-in-arms emotionally reminisce and mourn their deaths.

The Immortals were, of course, deeply moved, but after a moment, they couldn’t help but feel it was a bit strange.

Memphis: “Theoretically, after becoming digital lifeforms, we shouldn’t feel much about this kind of thing, but why do I find this scene so… weird?”

Banninger: “…It’s still very touching. The guys haven’t forgotten us.”

However, when he recalled how, while surfing the group’s internal forums, he would occasionally stumble upon short poems written by ‘artistic’ employees in memory of the instructor squad and mourning Captain Banninger, the expression on his face also turned a bit odd.

Back in the hangar, the head instructor saw that the Rubion trainees seemed to have gained some insight. Even the unruly Johnny Leiding had fallen silent. He spoke again.

“I believe you all have taken something away from this… Well then, Johnny Leiding, do you know where your problem lies?”

“Yes, sir. I’ve figured out what the problem is,” the young genius muttered, his head still bowed.

“Very good. Identifying the problem is the biggest step forward. I believe that as long as you can correct your faults, you will definitely become—”

Johnny Leiding: “Sir, I think my teammates are too incompetent. They caused our whole team to fall apart. To be blunt, they dragged me down in the fight.”

All the instructors: “???”

The Rubion trainees: “???”

Murat, who had taken a shuttle from the asteroid fortress to the heavy cruiser and was just quietly entering the hangar with Louis and Jacob, saw this and chuckled.

“So ‘geniuses’ really do think in such unique and unusual ways?”

As expected, Johnny Leiding’s words instantly shattered the solemn atmosphere in the hangar and lit a fire.

Upon hearing his statement, the Rubion trainees were fuming. The pilots who had just been partnered with Johnny were so incensed they nearly charged forward to start a real-life brawl on the spot.

But then they remembered that this arrogant teenager also held an A+ rating in hand-to-hand combat, and they wisely stopped in their tracks.

They also realized they couldn’t actually refute what Johnny Leiding had said. The technical gap between them and this exceptionally talented pilot was like the difference between the clouds and the dirt.

Thinking about it carefully, was it possible they really had dragged him down in battle?

If, in the first drill, they had managed to stop the three HCPs that broke through on the right flank, or even just held on until Johnny had finished off the enemies on the other side and returned to defend, perhaps the outcome would have been completely different?

As the trainees fell into self-reflection, Manfred, who was watching quietly from the crowd, put a hand to his forehead in exasperation.

It seemed that the past few months of training at Atlas hadn’t dulled his friend’s ‘sharp edge’ at all. If anything, discovering just how badass his talent was had only made him more arrogant.

He had wanted to say something to de-escalate the tense situation—as one of the other outstanding trainees, the ‘Red Baron’ held a certain ‘prestige’ among this batch of Rubion trainees, and Johnny Leiding did occasionally listen to his suggestions.

But then he thought about his friend’s maddening personality. Maybe letting him ‘hit a wall’ on this occasion would be a good thing?

“Johnny, don’t blame me for not speaking up for you. This is for your own good…”

With that thought, Manfred halted his steps and simply remained in the crowd.

Seeing his teammates offer no rebuttal and his friend—the ever-rational Manfred who would normally intervene at critical moments—staying silent, the success went straight to Johnny Leiding’s head.

“I believe my piloting skills and talent are in no way inferior to any so-called ace! And in that last battle, I understood something: a single HCP pilot’s personal prowess might not be able to decide the outcome of a battle…”

As soon as he said that, the people on the Atlas side grew restless.

They didn’t know what was going through the kid’s head, but they felt his words were more than a little offensive. It sounded like he was questioning Amber’s past achievements, implying they had been embellished.

This directly touched a nerve with the HCP pilots. They could tolerate other things, but when it came to Amber, especially regarding her performance in HCP combat, one had to choose their words very carefully.

Soon, a group of HCP pilots, maintenance crew, and marines, including Squadron Leader Stark who had just been about to mentor Johnny Leiding, closed in on him.

The members of the instructor squad, though also displeased with Johnny’s remarks, maintained their composure and stood between the two groups, telling their men to cool down.

After all, these kids from the Loubion star system were, in theory, clients of the Atlas Group. By common sense, they were ‘Party A.’

Just as the two sides were at a standoff, a voice drifted in languidly from outside the crowd.

“With piloting skills like yours, you have the gall to say you’re ‘not inferior to any so-called ace’?”

Chapter 513: A Master’s One-on-One Lesson

The sudden voice and its message immediately drew the attention of everyone present, their heads turning toward the source.

Upon seeing who had spoken, the members of Atlas immediately dispersed and reformed into several square formations according to their service branches and duties.

The instructors, led by the head of their corps, also jogged over, snapped to attention, and saluted.

“Sir!”

“At ease!”

Murat, Louis, and Jacob returned the salute, then gestured for them to relax. While the Atlas operational forces had some basic etiquette requirements, they were mostly for disciplinary purposes.

In most situations, everyone, including ‘old hands’ like Murat, actually preferred a more relaxed atmosphere.

The head of the instructor corps deliberated for half a second and decided to speak up for Johnny Leiding. After all, in his view, the kid just had a bit of a bad attitude; it wasn’t so severe as to warrant a personal lesson from the ‘group’s founders’ and ‘original shareholders’ like Murat.

He knew these ‘old hands’ were also the most fanatical of Amber’s ‘die-hard fans’ in the group. They couldn’t stand hearing a single bad word about Amber, so the instructor feared Johnny Leiding’s earlier words might have angered them.

However, just as he was about to open his mouth, he saw Murat wave a hand, signaling him to hold his tongue. “It’s fine,” Murat said. “I saw the whole thing. I’ve got it handled.”

Murat walked past the crowd and straight to Johnny Leiding and the Rubion trainees. He wasn’t actually much older than these young people; when he escaped Robert IV with Amber and the others, he too was just a green recruit.

But the battles and experiences of the past two years had forged a subtle aura of authority and bloodlust around him. As a result, when he strode before them, the youths from the Loubion star system couldn’t help but take a small step back.

All except for Johnny Leiding—Manfred didn’t retreat either, but he had been inadvertently pushed back by the movement of the crowd.

At this moment, the genius youth, now the center of attention, still stood his ground, though he watched the approaching Murat with vigilance.

He had encountered this HCP commander of the Atlas forces in previous training and knew what the Major, who was not much older than him, had been through.

In his heart, Johnny Leiding naturally admired Murat, but his pride would not allow him to bow his head now. He could only tough it out, showing no sign of backing down.

“Hmph. An improvement from last time. You didn’t back away the moment you saw me,” Murat said with a smile, his eyes scanning downward.

“Not bad, your legs aren’t shaking either.”

With that, Murat walked up to Johnny Leiding’s side, placed a hand on his shoulder, and distinctly felt the ‘genius youth’ flinch.

Forcibly suppressing a laugh, Murat patted the young man’s shoulder and asked:

“What? Upset after my sharp commentary on your piloting skills? Let’s skip the talk, then. We’ll communicate using the most direct ‘method of conversation’ between HCP pilots. Go lie in a recovery pod for half an hour. I’ll wait for you outside.”

If it were any other trainee, they would have tried to find an exit strategy by now. But unfortunately, this trainee’s name was Johnny Leiding, and the future ‘Crimson Lightning’ did not have the word ‘retreat’ in his vocabulary.

“Yes, Sir!”

Johnny Leiding saluted Murat with a determined gaze. Then, under the worried eyes of his companions, he walked toward the lounge next to the Hangar. The recovery pods in there could quickly alleviate a pilot’s fatigue, using a combination of medication and acupoint stimulation to quickly restore their mental sharpness.

During fleet combat, unless they were shot down, HCP pilots and fighter pilots basically just ran back and forth between the briefing room, the cockpit, and the lounge.

“Wait, you’re sure you want to pilot that thing? Aren’t you being a little overconfident?”

As Murat climbed into a ‘bare-bones Aegis’ with no additional equipment—just an electromagnetic rifle and a heavy plasma severing sword—Louis stood on the maintenance platform with his arms crossed, asking with a hint of worry.

Beside him, Jacob, despite wearing an expression like he was just there to watch the show, nodded in agreement. “Yeah, you’re not just any ordinary HCP pilot now. If you mess up, it won’t just be your own face you’ll be losing.”

“Can’t you two say something encouraging for once?”

Murat rolled his eyes, exasperated, and continued:

“Are my skills really that bad in your eyes? You’re this worried about me fighting a kid with no real combat experience? Besides, if the Boss found out I was bullying a rookie and went out in a ‘fully-equipped’ unit, wouldn’t he laugh at me for half a year? Alright, alright, you guys get out of here. Just watch how I give this ‘genius’ a master’s one-on-one lesson.”

The Commander-in-Chief of the Atlas HCP units waved his hand, signaling Louis and Jacob to leave. He then closed the cockpit hatch and activated the responsive control system.

Soon, this rather bare-looking ‘Aegis’ shot into the coldness of space, launching from the heavy cruiser’s right-side electromagnetic catapult.

When Johnny Leiding completed his recovery and sortied in his assigned ‘Aegis’, its outer armor now painted red, he quickly spotted the other ‘Aegis’ in the training airspace through his unit’s sensors. It stood silently in the void with its arms crossed, like a reclusive master.

“Holy shit… a bare-bones unit? That confident, huh…”

Seeing that his opponent’s weapon container was empty aside from the heavy plasma severing sword and electromagnetic rifle—it didn’t even have spare magazines for the rifle—Johnny Leiding suddenly felt the pressure mount, even in his fully-equipped Aegis.

After all, a bare-bones Aegis and a fully-equipped Aegis were practically two different mechs. Their firepower, defense, and extra mobility weren’t in the same league at all.

Through his training, Johnny knew that the ‘Aegis’ was an extremely outstanding HCP due to its foundational performance and powerful expansion capabilities.

But the key phrase was ‘powerful expansion capabilities’. More than half of this unit’s combat power came from its extra equipment and weapon container. Without them, its effectiveness was drastically reduced.

“You’re here?”

Murat, who had been resting with his eyes closed in the cockpit, heard the sensor alert. Seeing Johnny fly into the zone, he cut the chatter and immediately equipped his electromagnetic rifle and heavy plasma severing sword.

“I’ll skip the pleasantries. You’ll understand a few things after we’re done.”

As Murat’s voice fell, Johnny saw the bare-bones Aegis in the center of his panoramic display seem to flicker, then immediately vanish from his view and break his lock.

“Damn… so fast! Is that really the acceleration of a bare-bones unit???”

Johnny had actually caught Murat’s trajectory in that split second. He immediately adjusted his unit’s orientation, and the charged particle cannon on his left shoulder fired a beam in the direction he had predicted.

“Fool. Wrong direction.”

As the purple beam of charged particles swept through the area, Murat’s relaxed voice echoed in Johnny’s ears.

Then, a string of orange-red tracers shot in from another direction, aimed straight for Johnny Leiding’s cockpit!

Bad News: Writer’s Block

Bad news, I have writer’s block.

I’ve hit a block today, so I need to take a breather…

I feel like I should go pray to the God of Literature or a Confucian Temple and ask for a fountain of inspiration~

Chapter 514: Your Slashes Are Weak, Your Thrusts Imprecise

For ordinary humans who didn’t have to personally sit in an HCP cockpit and endure the dual mental and physical strain, a duel between HCPs in space—especially a one-on-one—was a truly beautiful and elegant sight.

Pushing the throttle to the ‘combat thrust’ setting, the long, blue wakes ejected from the plasma thruster arrays made the HCPs speeding through the cold void of space look just like comets.

And for a spectator, the sight of two such ‘comets’ carving enormous arcs against the cosmic backdrop, intersecting, separating, and intersecting once more, punctuated by the occasional flash of directed-energy weapon beams, was a spectacular display.

But for the pilots sitting in the HCP cockpits, fighting for their lives, such a battle had nothing to do with beauty or elegance.

Both pilots were enduring immense G-forces that an ordinary person could not withstand, doing everything in their power to outmaneuver their opponent. They hoped to deceive their adversary through tactical maneuvers, gain a better attack position through their own mobility—such as the enemy HCP’s rear hemisphere—and finally seize a weakness to strike the decisive blow.

Unfortunately, both pilots were thinking the same thing, so for them, a one-on-one duel was a constant process of trying to get on the other’s rear hemisphere.

However, compared to traditional aerial combat in the atmosphere involving tactical aircraft like aerospace fighters, HCP combat in a zero-gravity environment was obviously far more complex in its maneuvers.

Often, just as you finally got a lock on the target’s six o’clock and your long-range weapons zeroed in, guided by your own eyes, the enemy unit would execute a 180-degree turn without changing its heading right at the moment you were about to fire. The shield raised before it would once again deny you the opportunity to attack.

As for the passionate scene of crossing blades that the public imagined? In most cases, it wouldn’t actually happen.

Although the heavy plasma severing sword had a directional magnetic field to contain the high-temperature plasma, the structural integrity of the heavy sword was what it was. Even with the magnetic field, the result of two severing swords clashing would be both blades snapping after a few swings.

Therefore, it was rare to see a stalemate or a passionate exchange of blows in close-quarters combat between HCPs. Instead, the victor would be decided with unbelievable speed.

The battle between Murat and Johnny Leiding was, for the most part, just such a process.

However, from the latter’s perspective, he was simply being toyed with. His own attacks could never find their mark, while the bursts from the enemy’s electromagnetic rifle clung to him like a shadow he couldn’t shake.

The ghost-like maneuvers of that bare-bones ‘Aegis’ also showed Johnny Leiding for the first time just how powerful the world’s top pilots truly were.

He could, of course, perform such maneuvers himself, but only in a fully-equipped unit like the one he was currently in, with the aid of the additional ‘all-range propulsion’ components.

Although Johnny Leiding knew that this Major Murat had undergone enhancement surgeries, at that moment he felt that even if he had the same enhancements, he wouldn’t be able to pilot a bare-bones unit to that level.

He also realized that the saying, “It’s never the equipment that decides a battle’s outcome, but the person,” wasn’t just empty words.

The ‘genius pilot’ quickly glanced at his multi-function display and found that his current predicament was the same as Squadron Leader Stark’s in their prior mock battle; the engagement system had designated most of his weapons and equipment as ‘destroyed’.

The electromagnetic rifle in the hands of the ‘Aegis’ piloted by Murat might not have been able to inflict effective damage on the unit through its deflector shield and heavy shield.

But in the process of exploiting every opening, it was more than capable of picking off the external weapon systems mounted on Johnny Leiding’s unit.

This was a direct demonstration to Johnny Leiding of just how deep the combat experience of this seemingly ‘devil-may-care’ HCP unit commander truly was.

After all, compared to ‘light-speed’ weapons like charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers, the penetrator rounds fired by an HCP’s electromagnetic rifle were already considered very slow.

Johnny Leiding had never imagined he would find himself in such a passive situation in HCP combat. Being beaten one-sidedly, unable to retaliate—and even when he did, unable to hit his opponent—left him feeling utterly stifled.

To make matters worse, the pilot of that HCP, which moved as slickly as a fish, was constantly spewing trash talk on the public channel, saying things like: “You don’t even know how to fly it, how can you talk about performance~”

This directly caused Johnny Leiding to quickly lose his reason.

“This is too damn frustrating. Better to charge in and die a quick death than be toyed with like this!”

The fully-equipped ‘Aegis’ he was piloting was suddenly seen jettisoning all its external equipment. Then, pulling the pre-heated heavy plasma severing sword from a drifting weapon container, he charged straight for Murat.

“Oh-ho~ Charging right at me, are you? Instead of running away, you’re choosing to approach me. Trying to settle this with close-quarters combat?”

Murat’s somewhat smug voice once again echoed on the public channel. For some reason, the Atlas veterans among the spectators felt that Murat’s verbal harassment was slowly taking on shades of Amber.

And Johnny Leiding, already losing his mind, his eyes bloodshot, raised the heavy severing sword before his chest, the tip pointed forward in a thrusting stance.

Just as the two ‘comets’ were about to intersect again, Amber, who had intended to speak with Murat and the others about something, immediately rushed over to the heavy cruiser after hearing there was a show to watch.

The successive arrival of high-ranking visitors had already left the heavy cruiser’s captain, Thomas, feeling overwhelmed by the suddenly increased security pressure.

When Amber came aboard, his vision went black. He began scrambling to arrange security details. After all, if something were to happen to this heavy cruiser right now, the Atlas Group’s ‘high-end combat power’ would be wiped out in one fell swoop.

Though, with Amber’s current strength, if a real emergency occurred, it was more likely he would be the one protecting the security personnel.

As he walked into the hangar, which was packed with a large crowd of onlookers, he happened to hear Murat’s ‘sharp commentary’ over the public channel during the battle.

“Your slashes are weak, your thrusts are imprecise, your unit’s stance is loose, and your reactions are sluggish! Not a single one of your moves is decent. With skills like these, you dare claim to be ‘on par with any so-called ace’? Dream on!!!”

As Murat’s final words, now tinged with anger, rang out, a blinding blue light erupted from the back of the bare-bones ‘Aegis’ he was controlling.

Mirrored by the head-tracking control system, the unit performed a simple yet clean and decisive horizontal slash at the exact moment the two crossed paths at a dangerously high speed.

The engagement system immediately determined that the sword had cut straight through Johnny Leiding, who had been unable to mount a defense in time.

Soon, the two HCPs, now under the control of the engagement system, returned to the heavy cruiser’s hangar through the docking corridor. A squad of small autonomous robots detached from the ship and flew towards the area where the two had just been fighting.

They were responsible for recovering the weapon systems Johnny Leiding had just jettisoned. After all, although the unit was temporarily assigned to him, it was still Atlas company property.

So, the ‘genius pilot’ had better pray those recovery bots could find everything, or he’d be adding an ‘equipment loss compensation’ bill to the Renaissance Alliance’s tab before his training was even over.

Chapter 515: Could You Perform That Thing Again?

After a dejected Johnny Leiding returned to the Hangar for the second time, his mindset had begun to change.

His previously ‘undefeated’ record in training was only because the stronger pilots hadn’t bothered to fight him.

Now that they were willing to have a go, Johnny Leiding finally realized that while his ‘talent’ might seem extraordinary to others, it was nothing in the eyes of the truly strong.

At the same time, the ‘genius youth’ was also very curious as to how Murat—who supposedly had no particular talent for piloting HCPs and was just a rookie who hid at long range two years ago, firing randomly—had grown to his current level.

If Murat, who was walking ahead of Johnny Leiding, had heard this question, he might have generously told the ‘genius youth’ that if he spent two years in actual combat with Amber, with the occasional 1v1 against that true ‘monstrous talent,’ he would grow even faster and more thoroughly than he had.

Soon, the two returned to the group. Murat quickly spotted Amber staring at him with a grin. He immediately walked over, stood at attention, and saluted. The devil-may-care air about him vanished in an instant.

In its place was the grim demeanor of a seasoned veteran.

“Boss, what are you doing here?”

“I had some business with you lot. I heard you were all here, so I came over to watch the fun~” Amber walked up to Murat and smiled at him, then turned his head to look at Johnny Leiding.

“So you’re the ‘genius pilot’?”

Being singled out by Amber, Johnny Leiding flinched subconsciously before immediately standing at attention. Although the man before him, who didn’t look much older than himself, had a completely harmless smile, Johnny Leiding could still feel a kind of pressure from him.

If he wasn’t mistaken, this must be the ‘Psionic pressure’ inherent to psionic users.

“G-greetings, sir!”

“No need to be so formal. You’re our Atlas Group’s clients. Relax a little~”

As he spoke, Amber glanced around at the other Rubion trainees.

The Renaissance Alliance was clearly serious about building up its talent pool this time. The trainees they had sent were all young, mostly between eighteen and twenty-two. At this age, their ability to learn hadn’t completely deteriorated, and there was still time for body modifications or enhancement surgeries.

This showed that Franklin wasn’t just playing around; he was genuinely thinking about the future of the Renaissance Alliance. He had realized the importance of these professional combat personnel. After the Atlas Group trained a few batches for them, they could start trying to cultivate talent on their own.

Looking at these young men and women who would very likely fall on the Renaissance Alliance’s ‘road to ascension,’ Amber let out an imperceptible sigh before speaking to them earnestly:

“The Renaissance Alliance has chosen you, which means you are the most promising and talented individuals within the alliance. I hope you will all train seriously. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask your instructors. It’s better to suffer and toil now than to lose your lives on the battlefield in the future.

“And you are not just fighting for yourselves. You are fighting to protect your families, your friends, and the other ordinary people in the Renaissance Alliance.

“So, give it your all in this final phase of training. Don’t let down the hopes of the many people behind you~”

After offering these encouraging platitudes, Amber was about to let everyone resume training. It was also a good time for him to discuss the potential upcoming trip to the Loubion star system with Murat and the others.

But just then, Johnny Leiding, who had been silent for a while, suddenly mustered his courage, looked up at Amber, and asked nervously:

“Mr. Rebil, excuse me… can an HCP pilot really change the outcome of a battle?”

“Good question. If you’re asking me, of course I’d say yes.”

Johnny Leiding: “Then are the rumors about you ‘single-handedly breaking a fleet’ and such all true?”

Although he didn’t know why this young pilot would suddenly ask such a question, Amber still nodded and replied, “There might be some artistic embellishment, but they’re all true~”

Hearing this, Murat, who had recently been promoted to ‘Atlas’s ’Idea Man’,’ had a flash of inspiration in his eyes. He clapped his hands together and said:

“The mood is just right for it. Boss, why don’t you teach these trainees a lesson yourself?”

“That’s not really appropriate, is it? People will say I’m bullying them,” Amber hesitated. It wasn’t that he looked down on these trainees, but the skill gap between them was indeed a bit too large.

“You can act as the ‘aggressor’ in a drill simulating a single unit penetrating a fleet. Let the trainees be the defenders. Besides, this small mobile fleet’s training curriculum still has the ‘anti-air combat’ module left to do~”

Murat’s suggestion instantly gained the support of everyone present. They all looked at Amber with expectant eyes.

After all, whether they were the ordinary crew members of the Atlas combat fleet or the trainees from the Loubion star system, none of them had ever had the chance to witness an HCP break through a formation single-handedly.

Let alone have the chance to experience it firsthand as the side being ‘broken through.’

In the end, Amber did not disappoint. Just as Murat had said, the atmosphere had been built up to this point, and it would be a bit inappropriate for him to refuse.

Besides, after the defense of the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, aside from some routine training to maintain his skills, Amber hadn’t had a high-intensity drill in a long time—in other words, his hands were itching for a fight.

As Amber nodded and walked toward the room for changing into a heavy hydraulic pressure suit, the crowd erupted in cheers and everyone sprang into action.

Of course, not everyone was overjoyed.

The Captain of the heavy cruiser an Amber was on, who was also the commander of this small mobile fleet, was not so happy.

As he watched a fully-equipped Aegis, prepped and ready, shoot out from the electromagnetic launch catapults and accelerate into the deep space ahead of the fleet, he spoke to his adjutant with a sense of helplessness:

“Wait, nobody told me the ‘anti-air combat’ exercise would have the Boss as the ‘aggressor’!”

“What a coincidence, Captain. I also just found out it’s the Boss in there.”

“…”

“BATTLE—STATIONS!”

As the ‘aggressor,’ Amber didn’t pilot the ‘ATLAS’ heavy HCP specifically designed for breaking formations this time. Instead, he found a fully-equipped Aegis that was already prepped on the ship and launched.

After all, the target was just a small mobile fleet, not a full-scale fleet like before. If he had used the ‘ATLAS’, the mobile fleet and the Rubion trainees would have had a ‘terrible experience’.

It was highly likely that before they could even acquire a target, they would have been picked off from extreme range by the heavy weaponry on the ‘ATLAS.’

As for the final outcome of the drill, there was little suspense. Even though he was piloting a standard HCP, Amber still managed to take out a large number of HCP pilots, including Johnny Leiding, as well as five light cruisers and several destroyers.

Before running out of ammunition, he successfully disabled the power unit of the flagship heavy cruiser. Then, under the Captain’s despairing gaze, he thrust his already spent heavy slicer sword through the armor and into the bridge.

Of course, all this damage assessment was determined by the engagement system. Amber wouldn’t have actually plunged the heavy slicer sword in; he merely made a few gestures on the deck directly above the bridge.

But if it were a real battle, this heavy cruiser, with its power unit disabled and its bridge wiped out in one fell swoop, would have essentially lost its ability to continue fighting. The only option for the remaining survivors would be to abandon ship and escape.

In Amber’s view, the Rubion trainees had exerted almost zero pressure on him during the mock battle. Aside from Johnny Leiding holding him off for a few seconds, the only one who left an impression was Manfred’s heavy fighter squadron.

Perhaps it was because that name truly came with some kind of bonus, but this ‘Red Baron’ managed to fly a unit currently used more for anti-ship operations into a dogfight against an HCP.

As for the other trainees, Amber could only say that their presence was probably less noticeable than the fixed anti-air defenses of the various warships.

“They need more practice!” Leaving these words with the instructor regiment, Amber departed the Hangar with Murat and the others.

He left behind the instructors, who were already rapidly devising an ‘intensified training’ regimen in their minds, and the Rubion trainees, who felt a chill run down their spines.

Once Amber, Murat, and the others returned to the asteroid fortress and found a vacant conference room, Amber stopped beating around the bush and got straight to the point.

“Get ready. There might be some work in the Loubion star system that requires you to go on an ‘official assignment’ soon.”

Chapter 516: Official Assignment

“Official assignment?”

Murat and the other two were stunned for a moment. Louis, the quickest to react, spoke up, “Boss, do you mean we need to prepare to provide some more direct ‘support’?”

“Aha, Louis, your intuition in these matters is indeed sharper.”

Amber smiled and continued:

“Since Atlas began providing support, the Renaissance Alliance’s situation has improved dramatically. Their combat units have received several batches of brand-new mil-spec equipment, and after rapid training with the help of the ‘Military advisory group’ that arrived earlier, their combat effectiveness is steadily increasing.”

As he spoke, Amber activated the conference room’s holographic projection system. With a few commands, a map of the Renaissance Alliance’s current control zones on Loubion V materialized.

Compared to a few months ago, before they had partnered with the Atlas Group, the Renaissance Alliance’s actual territory had expanded several times over, and they had also wiped out and absorbed some of the surrounding factions.

Even several warlords who had previously posed a certain threat to the Renaissance Alliance had seen a large amount of their effective strength annihilated in a few crushing battles.

After the warlord leaders surrendered, there were suddenly no other factions in the vicinity that could pose a threat. Some smaller factions even proactively contacted Franklin, hoping to join the ‘big family’ of the Renaissance Alliance.

Amber said, “All in all, Mr. Franklin’s enterprise has been sailing smoothly recently. And as their territory expands, the number of troops the Renaissance Alliance needs to maintain has also begun to increase. This has naturally led to more orders placed with us, and they also hope we can provide more ‘military advisors’ to assist them with training and combat.”

“So, Boss, you want us to take some men over and be ‘advisors’?” Murat asked.

“No,” Amber shook his head. “A new batch of military advisors has already been dispatched from other units. What you need to do might be a little more direct than being a ‘military advisor’.”

Murat’s eyes lit up. “You want us to be ‘enforcers’?”

“Well… your way of putting it is a bit too colloquial and direct, Murat. But you’re not wrong~” Amber shrugged and continued.

“Obviously, not everyone is as happy to see the rapid growth of the Renaissance Alliance as we are. Our intelligence department recently discovered that the Federation government is secretly in contact with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government…”

Hearing this, Jacob, who had been silent, raised an eyebrow. “The Federation wants to intervene directly in the Loubion star system’s situation? But isn’t that area controlled by the opposition party?”

“The opposition party is at least still an official Federation entity. If this star system is completely taken over by so-called ‘rebels’, that’s a result the Federation government would find much harder to accept.”

Louis answered. Although his HCP piloting skills were slightly inferior to Murat’s, his understanding of tactics, campaigns, and even the bigger picture completely outclassed Murat, that brute whose mind was only filled with “Fight! Awesome!”.

“Besides, the Loubion star system is the source that ignited the ‘star system independence’ fire within the Federation. So if the Federation government can quickly snuff out this spark, the other star system factions that followed suit with ‘rebellions’ will hesitate. At that point, it will be much easier for the Federation to deal with the ‘rebels’ in other star systems.”

Louis presented his thoughts eloquently, and Amber nodded repeatedly after hearing him out.

“The background is just as Louis said. The Renaissance Alliance has a great opportunity now, but it also faces great risks. The Federation government might just get involved personally.

So I hope the HCP units and the Heavy Armored Gunship units can organize a group of skilled personnel to travel to the Loubion star system by ship and act as a surprise force.

And this small mobile fleet that was just training will arrive a little later than you, after it completes its preparations.

This way, whether it’s the intervention of Federation forces or any sudden changes on Loubion V, we can react at a moment’s notice.

We’ve completed our ‘initial investment’, so if we want to see returns later, we have to help Mr. Franklin establish a firm foothold.”

Although Amber kept saying he was helping Franklin, in reality, the favorable policies and project contracts opened up to the Atlas Group outside the original plan were mostly the result of other senior members of the Renaissance Alliance pushing Franklin to make those decisions.

Amber was naturally aware that Franklin had always been somewhat worried about cooperating too closely with the Atlas Group, but Amber didn’t care. As the now-unstoppable cooperation between the two sides continued, what happened next would no longer be up to Franklin or the Renaissance Alliance’s leadership to decide~

After Amber finished, Murat and the others naturally had no further questions. They had always followed Amber’s orders unconditionally.

However, Jacob still asked with some curiosity, “Boss, are you really comfortable letting us handle something so important?”

“Why wouldn’t I be? Isn’t it about time the three of you learned to handle things on your own? Besides, I really can’t get away.”

Amber shrugged and continued with a hint of resignation:

“Another big shot, one we’ve been putting off for a long time, is planning a personal visit soon. The meeting place has been set for the headquarters building on Peony Star, so I have to head back today.”

“Someone from the Empire?” A curious look appeared on Murat’s face.

“Murat, you just can’t kick that habit of prying. You’ll all find out in due time; there will be an official announcement~”

Amber shook his head, then added:

“You’ve trained and adapted for so long precisely so you can step up when I’m tied up. I’m sure you guys will have no problem.”

“Boss, when you say that, it always gives me a bad feeling.”

—

The big shot Amber mentioned, the one he had been putting off for a long time, was of course Baron BASF, the ‘Princess’s Special Envoy’.

Amber definitely had to meet this person himself.

So, it was quickly decided that Murat and the others would go on an official assignment to the Loubion star system in his place.

He and Jacob would each lead five squadrons of elite personnel, along with members of the prep squad, and travel with the next convoy of cargo fleets to rendezvous with Randall, who was currently in full charge of all matters related to the Loubion star system.

As for Louis, he would remain at A·Bawa·Ku. After all, the HCP units within the Atlas combat forces were growing ever larger, and there were a series of training and equipment reception matters to attend to, so he was needed to handle these things.

This tough guy, nicknamed ‘young miss’ but whose HCP piloting skills were no weaker than Murat’s, had no objections to this arrangement. After all, during his partnership with Murat, he was indeed more responsible for overall management.

The work of personally hacking people to pieces was mostly left to Murat.

Meanwhile, the training for the first batch of trainees sent by the Renaissance Alliance was gradually coming to an end.

The second batch of trainees had also arrived ahead of schedule. This batch was much larger, numbering more than fifty thousand people.

Besides the ‘usual three’, ninety percent of this batch were trainees selected by the Renaissance Alliance to serve as crew members for their combat fleet.

They would receive training with Atlas, and upon completion, they would directly pilot the warships the Renaissance Alliance had acquired from Atlas as the ‘Return Fleet’ back to the Loubion star system.

As for the price of the warships, it was more relaxed operational restrictions and access to new sectors, including some sensitive areas that were opened up for the Atlas Group to operate in—such as energy and healthcare, sectors that directly impacted the public’s livelihood.

In addition, there were several nuclear weapon assembly workshops on Loubion V.

The Renaissance Alliance promised that once they had complete control of Loubion V, these workshops could also be authorized for use by the Atlas Group. This deal also provided a new solution to the predicament of the Atlas combat fleet’s lack of ‘defensive thermonuclear weapons’.

Chapter 517: The Federation’s Heavy Hand

Loubion V, administrative capital Bresk.

A convoy, having departed from the aerospace port outside the city, was guided by military vehicles down roads temporarily sealed off by the local capital’s armed police. It sped into the urban area, rapidly approaching the government building.

Simultaneously, six ‘Wasteland Wolf’ HCPs with the camouflage of the Internal Security Force, which had been on guard outside the government building, leaped into the air upon seeing the convoy’s arrival. They landed in the plaza before the building and immediately formed a defensive perimeter.

Despite operating within a gravity well, these six ‘Wasteland Wolf’ units were still equipped with the heavy layered armor shields common in space combat, and all had enhanced Electronic Warfare units—this was the current standard loadout for ‘VIP protection’ missions.

As the convoy came to a halt, the HCPs quickly closed in, forming a defensive ring around its exterior and activating their deflector shield generators.

Their omnidirectional viewfinders, in conjunction with other sensors, constantly scanned the surroundings, on alert for any potential ‘threats’—even though the area had been searched countless times by the armed police over the passed few days and was off-limits to unauthorized personnel.

“Beep-beep-beep.”

One of the pilots, hearing the notification to ‘Mark New Target’, looked nervously in the direction indicated by his combat assistance AI. He saw several armored vehicles entering from another gate of the plaza.

The pilot quickly glanced at a small pop-up window on his panoramic display, which showed the guard shift schedule and assigned units for the government building area for that day.

Based on the time and unit designations, the armored vehicles were indeed carrying soldiers from the Internal Security Force, intended to rotate personnel at several nearby observation posts and sniper team positions.

Seeing this, the pilot couldn’t help but frown. “What kind of amateur was in charge of the relief schedule? Didn’t they notice the shift change overlaps with the dignitary’s estimated time of arrival?”

“Heard it’s the second son of the City Defense Force Commander. He just transferred to the Internal Security Force not long ago.”

A teammate’s voice, tinged with a hint of resignation, came over the communication channel.

“The City Defense Force can meddle in Internal Security Force affairs now?”

Griping aside, the pilot, out of an abundance of caution, activated the laser-coded identification system and began to identify the armored vehicles and the equipment on the personnel disembarking.

With the exception of equipment built from scratch in private workshops or by units on clandestine operations like the Immortal Corps, standard-issue military products all came with a complete set of laser codes for identification.

After equipment was issued to a unit, its laser identification code would be entered into the IFF system, making it easy to confirm ownership.

This unique coding could, to some extent, prevent any ‘bait-and-switch’ scenarios. The tactic of simply slapping a new paint job and serial number on the same model of equipment to fish in troubled waters would no longer work.

“Laser identification codes confirmed.”

As the combat assistance AI’s voice sounded, the pilot finally breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, his panoramic display marked out the models and affiliations of the armored vehicles, combat exoskeletons, and even the weapons in the soldiers’ hands.

This information corresponded perfectly with the personnel and equipment manifest in the onboard computer’s security mission plan.

“All clear. Confirmed it’s the relief shift. Stand down.”

The pilot announced over the comms. Hearing this, his teammates averted their attention from the units, and the high-energy lasers on either side of their main monitors swiveled back into their housings.

There was only one reason for such heightened tension: the individual being transported by the convoy was extremely important. They could not afford even the slightest mistake.

This was especially true given that Bresk had not been exactly peaceful recently, and there had just been an attack on the Autonomous Government not long ago.

While the surrounding Internal Security Force nervously carried out their escort duty, a middle-aged man stepped out of an imposing, ‘heavily-built’ black executive vehicle at the center of the protected convoy.

A reception party and bodyguards, who had been waiting for some time, immediately rushed forward to greet him, guiding him up the steps and into the building.

Winter was fast approaching in Bresk, the capital of Loubion V. A cold wind, seemingly from nowhere, caused the middle-aged man to instinctively tighten the greatcoat he was wearing.

Taking advantage of the brief pause, he glanced at the flagpole in the plaza before the government building. The banner snapping in the cold wind at its peak was not the Federation’s Five-Colored Eagle Flag, but the flag of the Loubion star system.

“Hmph,” the middle-aged man let out a cold snort, but his pace did not slow. He quickly walked into the government building.

Some time later, the middle-aged man from afar had shed his expensive greatcoat and was seated in a conference room with a pleasant temperature.

Sitting across from him was Vega, the Administrative Deputy of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government—the new official who had replaced the previous one, Sam.

“The atmosphere here is very tense. Isn’t this your core area of control? Why does it look like everyone is on high alert, as if facing a great enemy?”

The middle-aged man spoke first, not waiting for the Administrative Deputy to begin, and in doing so seized control of the conversation.

Realizing the man before him did not play by the rules, Vega knew he would be difficult to deal with. He discarded his prepared remarks and smiled, saying, “It is mainly your grand arrival, Mr. Davis, that has forced us to be on high alert. We would never dare let anything happen to the Secretary of State in the Loubion star system.”

“Oh? I’m surprised you still recognize me as the Secretary of State. I just saw the Five-Colored Eagle Flag was gone from the plaza. I almost thought the Loubion star system had already seceded from the Federation~”

As the Federation government’s ‘special envoy’, Secretary of State Davis’s毫不客气发言让坐在他对面的维嘉脸色一僵.

Seeing the change in the other’s expression, Davis smiled but didn’t pause for a reply. He continued, “Your Star System Autonomous Government realized you couldn’t put out the fire, so you had your opposition party’s ‘whip’ ask the Federation government for support. But when I arrive, I only get to see you, an Administrative Deputy. I can’t tell if you’re actually requesting help from the Federation or just toying with us.”

Hearing this, Administrative Deputy Vega quickly waved his hands. “Mr. Davis, our Autonomous Government has absolutely no intention of disrespecting you or toying with the Federation. The main reason for today’s arrangement is that the situation in the star system has been too tense recently, so the primary officials of the Autonomous Government are currently at a classified deep-space coordinate to ensure their safety…”

“You’re quite brave then, daring to stay in this ‘danger zone’ to wait for me?”

“Heh heh. Well, someone had to be here to receive you, didn’t they?”

Vega smiled, but he received no response. The Secretary of State across from him had already dropped his relaxed expression, his voice taking on a tone that brooked no argument.

“Since it isn’t safe here, I’ll get straight to the point. You want the Federation’s support with supplies and military aid. That is not a problem. But the prerequisite is that the Federation will reclaim some of the Loubion star system’s autonomous authority.”

Vega immediately shook his head. “That’s impossible. The star system’s autonomy is sacred and inviolable. It’s written in the constitution!”

“Then there’s nothing left to discuss. When the Loubion star system has been completely taken over by the rebels, the Federation Navy and Federation Army will come and avenge you. By then, there probably won’t be an ‘Autonomous Government’ anymore, which will also mean fewer legal restrictions for us~”

Chapter 518: Negotiation

Davis’s words were basically an open threat.

He had clearly done a thorough analysis of the situation here before coming to the Loubion star system, so he was well aware of the Autonomous Government’s current predicament.

Right now, the only advantages the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had left were probably their barely-at-full-strength combat fleet and their so-called “legitimacy”—theoretically, they were still the legal government of the Loubion star system.

However, their previous military superiority over other factions, born from their control of numerous industrial zones and defense industries, had been steadily declining ever since the Atlas Group began supplying the Renaissance Alliance. Now, that advantage was approaching zero.

If the Atlas Group were to intervene more deeply, perhaps even providing warships to the Renaissance Alliance, the Autonomous Government’s sole military advantage would vanish completely.

Given the combat effectiveness and expansion capabilities displayed by the Renaissance Alliance’s forces, Davis was convinced that without external intervention, it was only a matter of time before the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government completely lost Loubion V.

As for the fleet in their hands.

Davis even suspected that the Atlas Group would stage a direct armed intervention at the opportune moment. When that happened, the small fleet the Autonomous Government possessed would essentially be a lost cause.

Even the Federation Navy’s capital fleets had suffered losses at Atlas’s hands; the garrison fleets of an autonomous government stood no chance.

By then, the Loubion star system could basically be considered to have broken away from Federation rule entirely.

This was why, after receiving the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s request for aid, the President and the Minister of Defense had ultimately decided to entrust him, the Secretary of State, with making the trip personally—to exert “extreme pressure” on the Autonomous Government.

While quelling the armed rebellion in the Loubion star system, they also intended to establish the precedent of the Federation government formally intervening in star system rebellions and use this opportunity to begin revoking some of the rights of the various star system autonomous governments.

Before, even if you gave President Brandon and the others ten thousand times the courage, they wouldn’t have dared to make a move that could anger all the star system autonomous governments.

But that was then, and this is now.

With times having changed, it was the autonomous governments of the star systems who needed the Federation government. If the latter refused to provide aid, the outcome would be just as Davis had described.

The Federation government could very well wait until these autonomous governments were overthrown and then send troops to quell the rebellions with legitimate justification. Although it might cost more and take longer, they would have no other concerns.

To be honest, President Brandon actually preferred this more “extreme” approach. In his view, it was a perfect opportunity to severely damage the opposition party’s influence and even allow the ruling Federation Democratic Party to achieve absolute dominance in the future.

Thus, he couldn’t wait for the star systems controlled by the opposition party to completely spiral out of control.

However, Minister of Defense Miller and Marshal Trafalgar, who had awakened from his sickbed, had vehemently opposed this method in a closed-door meeting. From their perspective, given the Federation’s current state, the risk of it all backfiring was too great.

The Navy fleet, in particular, which would be the main force for quelling rebellions, had already suffered grievous losses in the previous “strategic decisive battle” with the Star Dragon Empire. If they allowed the “rebels” in various star systems to develop and become a major force, whether they could win a future conflict was a genuine question.

Therefore, in Marshal Trafalgar’s view, it was best to intervene directly now, while the “rebels” everywhere had not yet hit their stride, and strangle them in the cradle. At the same time, this would serve as a show of force to the autonomous governments of the star systems—a way to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.

The naval marshal had been infuriated by the rebellions that had broken out within the Federation after the previous strategic battle. In fact, he had fainted while pointing at Brandon and cursing him to his face.

And upon waking, his first words to Minister of Defense Miller, who was waiting by his bedside, were: “The Federation is on the edge of a cliff, and one foot is already over the edge!!!”

Although Trafalgar himself had never had direct contact with the Atlas Group, after the Federation had repeatedly suffered setbacks at the hands of this private enterprise, he had come to realize that this rapidly growing universal megacorporation was the Federation’s greatest enemy.

And very likely, its “gravedigger.”

In all fairness, Trafalgar had long realized that the current Federation was hopelessly corrupt and needed to rise from the ashes. Because of this, he sometimes wondered if it would be a good thing for this old government to be crushed by the wheels of history.

But from another perspective, as a Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy, one of the most powerful men in the Federation, and a self-proclaimed “patriot,” he could never accept the Federation falling on his watch.

So, between the future of trillions of Federation citizens and his own personal honor, the paranoid and proud Marshal Trafalgar chose the latter—he did not want such a great “stain” on his life’s record.

And this was just the dispute within the “iron triangle” of the President, the Minister of Defense, and the Fleet Admiral. Looking at the Federation government as a whole, including the congressmen from both parties in Congress, the open strife and secret struggles over the matter of “quelling rebellions” were countless.

All of the above had ultimately led to Secretary of State Davis sitting here, in a conference room in the Bresk Government Building, the administrative capital of Loubion V.

He naturally had no desire to come to this dangerous area, but the pressure from the iron triangle left him completely unable to resist. This also led to him unceremoniously venting his frustrations on Vega during the negotiation.

However, the subsequent turn of events seemed to be somewhat different from his prediction that the “Autonomous Government would eventually give in.”

After his initial panic, Vega quickly calmed down. After staring into Davis’s eyes in thought for a moment, the Administrative Deputy, who had just been on the back foot, suddenly smiled.

“Your aggressive posture from the very beginning almost had me fooled, Mr. Secretary of State.”

“What do you mean?” Davis asked with a frown, a bad feeling creeping into his heart.

Vega: “You keep emphasizing the crisis our Loubion star system is facing, yet you haven’t said a single word about how the Federation government is also walking on a cliff’s edge right now~

And whether or not it ultimately falls seems to depend on the ‘fates’ of autonomous governments like ours, doesn’t it?

If the Federation government were truly as ‘unconcerned’ as you claim, able to wait and reap the fisherman’s profit in the future, then why would they send you, of all people, to negotiate with us?”

“…”

Davis remained silent, while Vega, sitting across from him, continued:

“If the Loubion star system is truly taken by those rebels, I believe the ‘rebels’ in other star systems will be greatly emboldened. Not to mention, the Renaissance Alliance has already begun secretly contacting ‘anti-Federation’ forces in other systems.

And that is something the Federation government absolutely cannot accept, because the current Federation is simply incapable of handling rebellions on a large scale. That’s why you are pinning your hopes on extinguishing the initial spark here in the Loubion star system, to cool down the overall situation.

Am I right, Mr. Secretary of State?”

First round of negotiations: The Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had the temporary upper hand.

Chapter 519: A Sudden Change

For the next few days, Davis, representing the Federation government, engaged in lengthy negotiations with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government.

He even used a secret line provided by the Autonomous Government to communicate directly with Planetary Administrator Alex and his colleagues, who were hiding in deep space.

It had to be said that Brandon and Miller had their reasons for sending Davis. Though he was the Secretary of State, Davis was exceptionally skilled at negotiation and diplomacy. Once he got into the zone, his stamina was seemingly limitless.

With the help of his daily morning injections, Davis single-handedly held his ground against the Star System Autonomous Government.

Although the negotiations had deviated from his initial predictions, he was fully prepared and had numerous contingency plans. The current situation was one he had anticipated.

Naturally, Brandon and Miller knew that negotiating with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government would not be easy and that a stalemate was highly likely.

Therefore, Brandon had given Davis a number of concessions he could offer, allowing him to use them to achieve their final objective.

Both the Federation government and the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government had their own weaknesses and goals.

The former hoped to quell the “rebellion” in the Loubion star system to prevent the chaos within the Federation from worsening. At the same time, they wanted to re-establish their authority in the process, preferably by using the opportunity to weaken the power of the Autonomous Government.

The latter, meanwhile, needed the Federation’s support to once again widen the power gap between themselves and the rebels, lest they be overthrown by the growing rebel forces within the system—especially the Renaissance Alliance, which was backed by Atlas.

It could be said that each side held leverage over the other, which led to the extremely slow progress of the negotiations between Davis and the Autonomous Government.

But this situation soon took a turn.

After spending some time receiving new equipment, completing training, and reorganizing their forces, the Renaissance Alliance launched a “Winter Offensive” to the north, its spearhead aimed directly at the Autonomous Government’s controlled territories on Loubion V.

At the same time, the Autonomous Government’s limited satellite reconnaissance discovered that a Renaissance Alliance force had secretly crossed the sea and landed on another continent.

This continent was also under the Autonomous Government’s control, and standing on its equator was another space elevator, “Pillar of Heaven I,” which was the most critical link between the planet and space aside from the few aerospace ports the government controlled.

If they lost this position, all supplies and equipment transported from other planets and industrial colony satellites would have to be rerouted through aerospace transports, drastically reducing logistical efficiency.

More importantly, the starport connected to the top of the space elevator was the largest military starport currently under the Autonomous Government’s control, and its most important mooring area for the garrison fleet near Loubion V.

Although the Renaissance Alliance’s forces might not be able to attack the starport via the orbital elevator just yet, secret intelligence obtained by the Autonomous Government indicated that they were training HCP pilots, combat craft pilots, and Hell Paratroopers with the Atlas Group’s help.

The first two were capable of independent combat operations in orbit. As long as the Renaissance Alliance could get its hands on a few combat barges to launch HCPs and combat craft from below the planet’s horizon, these small units could use the cover of orbital debris to approach the starport.

And Hell Paratroopers were not just light infantry units deployed to the ground; they formerly had another name—Orbital Assault Team.

As the name implied, they were also proficient in infiltration operations against starports, space stations, and colony satellites. This meant they could pose a threat to the starport, even if it meant sustaining heavy casualties.

If Atlas’s combat fleet were to appear near the planet at that moment, the garrison fleet would be forced to choose between “defending the starport” and “preserving itself.”

If they chose to defend the starport, they might be able to repel the Renaissance Alliance’s attack, but the fleet would be “tethered” to the starport’s vicinity. If the Atlas Group truly decided on a military gamble, these warships, with their movements restricted, would become sitting ducks in orbit.

Although all of this was the Autonomous Government’s worst-case scenario based on the current situation, they had to consider it, as it directly concerned their “endgame.”

No one knew what the actual controller of the Atlas Group was thinking. From the past few conflicts between Atlas and the Federation, it was clear that this was a daring individual who didn’t play by the rules.

Therefore, none of the high-level officials in the Autonomous Government, including Alex, dared to bet their future on the Atlas Group not getting directly involved.

Davis, on the other hand, became calmer after receiving the information. He knew that the rapidly deteriorating situation on the planet was, in a way, a great help to the Federation government. The other side would have to make a decision under this mounting pressure.

“So, Mr. Alex and everyone in the Autonomous Government, what have you decided?”

As the final round of negotiations began, Davis looked at the holographic projections of Alex and the others in the conference room with a smile.

Today was his last day on Loubion V. Regardless of the outcome, he would leave after this session.

In his view, with the Renaissance Alliance launching a new offensive, he was no longer the one in a hurry.

The Federation government wasn’t here to beg for help. On the contrary, the Loubion Autonomous Government was asking for the Federation’s assistance. If they couldn’t give him an answer, he had no intention of hanging around indefinitely.

However, Davis had a nagging feeling that today’s negotiations might yield the result he wanted.

“Mr. Secretary of State, the terms you proposed in the last round were simply too harsh,” Planetary Administrator Alex sighed before continuing, “And you also know that the situation on Loubion V has worsened. Even if we agree to your terms, it doesn’t seem like it will alleviate the current crisis.”

“Who says it won’t?” Davis said slowly. “There’s no need to hide it from you any longer. The Federation Navy’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets are currently on standby three standard warp distances away.”

As his words left his lips, Alex and the others froze. Their expressions were like those of travelers on the verge of dying from thirst in a desert who had just found a clear spring.

Their reaction was exactly what Davis had expected. If the concessions Brandon had authorized were his bargaining chips, then these two fleets were his greatest trump card.

After enjoying their expressions for a moment, Davis continued with a smile, “If you all agree to the terms I proposed earlier, then in three days, the Loubion star system will receive the support of two full-strength capital fleets.”

Twenty minutes later, in a convoy headed for the aerospace port outside Bresk.

Seeing that the convoy had left the city, Davis used an encrypted communications terminal to contact Brandon, who was far away in The Capital.

“Mr. President, they’ve finally accepted Plan H. Although we’ve taken some losses compared to the best-case scenario, I personally believe it’s acceptable. In a way, the large-scale offensive suddenly launched by the Renaissance Alliance actually helped us. However, I suggest we have the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets enter the Loubion star system as soon as possible to prevent any military gambles from the Atlas Group. Yes, the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance are already engaged in deep cooperation, so it’s highly likely they will coordinate their actions with the Alliance…”

After Davis ended his call with President Brandon, the convoy drove directly up to a large mass accelerator in the aerospace port. The aerospace craft meant to transport Davis and his entourage was already prepped and waiting at the end of the launch track.

Soon, the Federation government’s delegation had boarded the aircraft, which would carry them into space to rendezvous with a long-range infiltration scout ship from the 18th Fleet, currently parked in orbit.

Shortly after everyone was on board, the mass accelerator, having completed its preparations, began to power up. The aerospace port control tower approved the private craft’s launch request.

“TJ-1121, this is Tower. Mass catapult is ready for launch. Launching in one minute.”

“TJ-1121 copies. Flight ready, awaiting launch. Thank you for the guidance.”

“The target is preparing to launch. Hurry up!”

At an anti-aircraft position near the aerospace port, next to a vehicle covered with an anti-infrared, anti-radiation camouflage net, five “government” soldiers were tossing several corpses they had just dragged out of the vehicle onto the ground.

Leaving two to stand guard outside, the remaining three immediately climbed into the anti-aircraft vehicle. Using a terminal pulled from one of the bodies to gain access, they switched the vehicle’s “automatic alert mode” to “manual mode.”

“IFF unit disabled!”

“Current atmospheric data updated. High-energy laser effectiveness is at eighty-two percent!”

“That’s enough. Lock onto the target, input mass accelerator parameters, and calculate continuous tracking lead…”

“Okay, system calculation complete!”

As the three worked, the heavy high-energy laser turret mounted on the anti-aircraft vehicle began to swivel, finally aiming along a virtual extension of the mass accelerator’s track.

But just then, the communications unit inside the vehicle suddenly beeped. The leader of the three glanced at the screen; it was a communication request from the anti-aircraft battalion’s command vehicle.

The leader quickly tapped the screen, switching the unit to its mute function.

This act of ignoring a communication request, combined with the sudden movement of the laser turret, naturally aroused suspicion in the command vehicle.

The two soldiers standing guard outside quickly noticed the enemy’s movements.

“Squad leader, there’s a Mongoose heading this way, six hundred meters out. It should be from the infantry platoon assigned to this anti-aircraft battalion.”

“Don’t worry, our mission is about to be accomplished.”

A fanatical look appeared on the face of the soldier called squad leader, and the breathing of the other two soldiers inside the vehicle grew heavy.

“Four hundred meters!”

“Three hundred meters!”

“Two hundred meters! They’ve dismounted their infantry and assumed combat formation! Prepare for engagement!”

Just as the guard’s words faded, the massive accelerator in the distance finally unleashed its stored energy.

Under immense acceleration, the aerospace craft carrying the Federation delegation shot out from the end of the curved launch track in the blink of an eye, soaring straight into the clouds.

The next second, a crimson beam abruptly lanced out and struck the aerospace craft. After several seconds of continuous tracking and irradiation, it melted through the aircraft’s external structure.

Boom!

Before the disbelieving eyes of all who witnessed it, the aerospace craft disintegrated and exploded in mid-air, ultimately turning into several fireballs that fell back toward the ground under the pull of gravity.

Chapter 520: A Major Incident

Not long after the wreckage of the aerospace craft hit the ground, news that the private craft of Federation Secretary of State Davis had been shot down during takeoff from the aerospace port in Loubion V’s administrative capital, with no survivors among the passengers and crew, including forty-two members of the delegation, reached the ears of Alex, the planetary administrator of the Loubion star system.

When he heard the news, he was completely stunned for over a minute. The other high-ranking officials of the Autonomous Government standing beside him even wondered if they were hearing things.

“Wait. Shot down?”

Alex suddenly seized on the key phrase in this explosive piece of news, and a premonition that something was terribly wrong flashed through his mind.

“Y-yes, Sir!”

The official responsible for the report was now so nervous he was stuttering.

“According to the information we have so far, the a-aerospace craft was shot down by an anti-aircraft vehicle belonging to an anti-aircraft battalion deployed near the aerospace port.

Shortly after opening fire, the anti-aircraft vehicle was destroyed by an armored vehicle and infantry that rushed to the scene. The soldier who had seized the anti-aircraft vehicle was also killed after a brief firefight.”

“It’s over. It’s all over.”

Upon hearing this answer, Alex felt the world spin. His legs gave way, and he collapsed into the chair behind him.

A few seconds later, an official who had composed himself walked over to him and asked, “Sir, what do we do now?”

His question successfully jolted Alex back to his senses. The planetary administrator immediately realized this was no time to give up; he had to do everything possible to minimize the fallout from this incident.

Although he knew that his subsequent efforts were highly likely to be fruitless.

But trying to do something was better than doing nothing and waiting for the situation to escalate.

Remembering that the reporting official had mentioned the anti-aircraft vehicle was “seized,” Alex abruptly raised his head and, with bloodshot eyes, said to the official:

“Quick! Get Internal Security, the City Defense Force, and the intelligence department to find out who did this! And how they managed to infiltrate the anti-aircraft position!

Tell them I’m not looking to assign blame right now, I’m waiting for an answer from them, because I fucking have to give the Federation an answer!”

The official who had delivered the news was now terrified by his demeanor and could only nod repeatedly like a chicken pecking at grain.

After saying this, Alex turned to the other grim-faced Autonomous Government officials behind him and continued:

“Find a way to contact the Federation government urgently. They’ve probably received the news by now. Tell them this was absolutely not the work of our Autonomous Government, but that a third party has interfered! No matter how uncooperative we might be, we would never kill the Secretary of State!”

Less than half an hour after the aerospace craft was shot down, Amber also received a message from Lilith.

After he read the specifics of the message, like everyone else who received this news, he was stunned for a long while.

“Lilith, are you sure this isn’t fake news?”

“Don’t worry, Master. It’s guaranteed real. On-site photos have already been leaked, and the serial number and model of the crashed aerospace craft match up. We can confirm it was the ‘private craft’ of Federation Secretary of State Davis.”

Hearing this, Amber buried his head in his hands helplessly. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that someone would make a move against this delegation, which had already completed its mission, at such a critical juncture.

“Have they found out who did it?”

Lilith replied, “From what we can tell, the people who attacked the anti-aircraft vehicle were all from a light combined arms battalion of the City Defense Force deployed near the aerospace port. And they weren’t using fake identities; they were bona fide, active-duty personnel from the garrison unit!”

“That’s not right,” Amber said, shaking his head in confusion. “The Star System Autonomous Government wouldn’t be crazy enough to kill the Secretary of State, especially since he was a ‘representative’ who came specifically for negotiations.”

“Could it be an inside job by the Renaissance Alliance?” Lilith asked.

“No, no, no. Franklin isn’t an idiot. Killing this Secretary of State would do nothing but escalate the conflict and force the Federation to intervene early. There’s no benefit to it!”

Amber murmured with his head down, simultaneously sending an encrypted email to Franklin. The content was simple, just a confirmation of whether or not the Renaissance Alliance had anything to do with this.

Although he was certain Franklin wouldn’t do something so stupid, he decided to confirm with him just to be on the safe side.

Soon, after sending the encrypted email, Amber looked up at Lilith again. The strong AI had long since evolved to the point where she could analyze and predict issues by synthesizing massive amounts of information.

The key was that her accuracy was quite high. At the very least, the people at the Financial Operations Center would “use cheats” through Lilith before making any major moves, predicting market trends after their direct intervention and confirming the optimal trading points.

So Amber now frequently consulted Lilith for her opinion. Even though she often showed a side of “artificial idiocy,” she was never vague when it came to serious matters.

He mulled it over for a moment, then asked, “Lilith, who do you think benefits the most from this incident?”

“The Federation, of course~” Lilith answered without a second thought. “They now have a perfect opportunity to attack the Loubion star system with legitimate justification.”

Hearing this answer, Amber frowned. “But at the cost of ‘sacrificing’ a Secretary of State? This isn’t some random nobody from the Heart of Freedom (the Federation’s government complex) or Congress. The Secretary of State is, at the very least, a high-level nobody. Isn’t that cost a bit too high?”

“Master, based on the ‘personal profiles’ I’ve compiled on the President, the Minister of Defense, that Fleet Admiral, and several other powerful figures in the Federation, they are exactly the kind of people who would do something like this.”

Lilith paused, seemingly pondering something, her eyes flickering with streams of data—a sign of her high-speed information retrieval.

A moment later, she continued, “But you’re not wrong, Master. If the goal was to intervene in the Loubion star system, this ‘price’ is indeed a bit too high. After all, if they just waited, they would have found an opportunity to intervene eventually.”

“Exactly. That’s why I said they had no need to ‘sacrifice’ the Secretary of State.”

Amber nodded, his mind racing through other factions that might have a motive.

First, the Star System Autonomous Government and the Renaissance Alliance could be ruled out immediately. Amber believed that neither Alex nor Franklin would make a move that would turn their “slow death” into a “quick and violent death.”

After all, the Federation only needed to expend some effort and cost to crush them; it wasn’t a matter of if they could be crushed. The difference between the two scenarios was vast.

Next were the other ‘rebel’ forces in the Loubion star system. But in Amber’s view, that was even more impossible.

Setting aside whether they had a motive, they weren’t even as strong as the Renaissance Alliance. Infiltrating the Autonomous Government’s core area and then shooting down an aerospace craft would be a nearly impossible mission for them.

“Could the Military-industrial complex be behind this? The actual controllers of those leading companies have been missing for a long time. Could they have been planning this all along? And now that the Federation has spare capacity to deal with its internal turmoil, they want to try and make a comeback?”

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind, but he immediately dismissed it.

Although they also had a motive, Amber didn’t think the current Military-industrial complex still possessed such strength. Besides, based on Atlas’s long-term “surveillance” of the Loubion star system, they never had a chance to get a foothold here.

Just as Amber was lost in thought, trying to guess who the “mastermind” was, Lilith’s voice suddenly rang out faintly.

“Master, is it possible that this was done by the Star Dragon Empire? Or, to be more specific, one of two parties: the Regent Prince or the Princess?”

Chapter 521: Change of Plans

“Was this the Empire’s doing?”

Hearing this speculation, Amber hesitated for a moment. “Is that plausible?”

“It’s very plausible, Master!”

Lilith, who had been sitting on a small data cube in the virtual space, suddenly pounced in front of Amber and took the ‘perfectly legitimate’ opportunity to straddle his waist.

“The Empire has both the motive and the means. And personally, I’d bet on the Regent Prince. In my opinion, this is very likely his handiwork!”

Having failed to dodge, Amber accepted the new reality of discussing important matters with Lilith sitting on his waist. He nodded and asked, “Objectively speaking, that’s certainly sound. But how did you piece the logic together? And why the Regent Prince and not the Imperial Princess?”

“Of course, I have my logic, Master! Let me explain in detail~”

Lilith shifted on Amber’s lap, finding a more comfortable position before continuing:

“First, with what’s happened, the Regent Prince is definitely one of the beneficiaries. Because in this situation, the Federation will absolutely make a move on the Loubion star system—whether their target is the Autonomous Government or other rebels, they are bound to act.

“This will only lead to two outcomes. One, the Federation successfully handles the problem in the Loubion star system. In that case, the Federation government will surely use the momentum to continue quelling the civil unrest in other star systems.

“The other is that the Federation messes up again in the Loubion star system. That would make those in other systems who are watching and waiting realize that the Federation government isn’t as powerful as they imagined, which would surely trigger a larger wave of rebellion.

“Either way, both scenarios mean that in the short term, the Federation will be absolutely unable to pose a threat to the Star Dragon Empire.”

Amber picked up where Lilith left off, “And then the Regent Prince can use this opportunity to focus all his energy on the internal ‘factional politics’.”

“Exactly, Master!” Lilith patted Amber’s shoulder excitedly.

“Didn’t we analyze before that the Regent Prince is in a very precarious situation and might resort to military adventurism?

“So he needs an environment where the Federation isn’t a threat, so he can act without worry! After all, he doesn’t want the Federation to swoop in and reap the benefits after the Empire falls into civil war.”

Amber raised a hand to his chin, mulling over Lilith’s words. “Following your logic, Norton II really does have a motive for this.”

Lilith nodded obediently and continued with her speculation:

“As for whether the Regent Prince has the ability to do this… on that point, Master, just think about it. Are you the only ‘deep-cover spy’ the Star Dragon Empire has in the Federation?

“If they have the ability to plant a spy who became a Psionic Agent in a military base on a border planet, then planting a few spies on Loubion V seems even less difficult, wouldn’t you say?”

Hearing this, Amber honestly began to wonder if the recent incident was truly the Regent Prince’s doing.

After all, given how the Federation’s security was like a sieve before the war, it wouldn’t be surprising at all for the Empire to have planted some deep-cover spies or even an operations team on Loubion V.

Still, he looked up at Lilith and asked his final question:

“Why the Regent Prince, and not the Imperial Princess?”

“Because Princess Agnes’s side is no longer so passive after the shift in the balance of power within the Empire. She can actually afford to sit back and wait for the Regent Prince to expose a weakness.

“Besides, based on the ‘character profile’ I’ve drawn up from the data I’ve collected over the past year or so, Agnes is better at ‘defensive counterattacks’ rather than being someone who would create a favorable ‘offensive environment’ for herself and take the initiative like this.”

Amber had to admit that Lilith’s description was very plausible. He also believed she hadn’t reached this conclusion based solely on the reasons she just mentioned, but had incorporated a massive amount of information from other channels to support her judgment.

This was also why Amber now often asked for Lilith’s opinion. In certain situations, the strong AI was often the one who could see things most clearly.

At this thought, Amber couldn’t help but let out a long sigh, a troubled expression appearing on his face.

“If that’s really the case, doesn’t that mean something big is about to happen in the Star Dragon Empire, too…”

Lilith: “Very likely, Master~ According to all the information I’ve gathered, while the surface of the Empire’s waters seems calm, the undercurrents are already churning.”

Carefully considering the scenario Lilith described and the possible future events, Amber suddenly realized that if the situation really developed this way, Parra IV, currently controlled by Atlas, might actually remain undisturbed for some time.

After the ‘strategic decisive battle’ between the Federation and the Empire, the situation of this planet, or rather the entire Parra system, had entered a very delicate state.

The entire star system was on the border between the ‘de facto controlled zones’ of the Empire and the Federation, but both sides had a tacit understanding not to station any fleets in the system, as if neither intended to interfere.

As an aside, the Imperial noble on Parra IV was still holed up in his core territory, maintaining a policy of staying out of Atlas’s ground forces’ way.

However, he did request to establish contact with Imperial officials. Therefore, a specific item on the agenda for Baron BASF’s next visit to Atlas was to discuss how to handle this Imperial noble.

And from the information revealed by Baron BASF so far, it seemed Princess Agnes intended to take this Imperial noble and all his ‘family assets’ with her.

Such a move was rather intriguing…

Coupled with Lilith’s recent analysis, Amber realized he might be able to withdraw some of the heavy forces deployed in the Parra system.

Even if the ground forces remained for now, he could still redeploy most of the combat fleets.

Adding to that the output from the major shipyards during this period, plus the three unmanned fleets currently being refitted at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

Amber realized the scale of the fleet under his command had reached two manned fleets plus three unmanned fleets.

This undoubtedly gave him more confidence and greater flexibility in facing the upcoming changes.

Thinking of this, Amber immediately made a decision:

“The plan has changed, Lilith. Have one unmanned fleet depart immediately for the Parra system to relieve Cleves on defense. The other two unmanned fleets are also to set out right away, destination: the Loubion star system.”

Chapter 522: Orbital Defense Platform

“Master, are you planning to shift your focus to the Loubion star system first?” Lilith asked after watching Amber on the command interface adjust the readiness dates for three unmanned fleets to the present and assign them their respective destinations.

Amber nodded without hesitation. “That’s right. We’ve already laid a lot of groundwork in the Loubion star system, not to mention the initial investment. We haven’t even started to see a return on it yet, and I don’t want someone throwing a wrench in the works at a critical moment.”

Lilith: “What about the A·Bawa·Ku fortress and Parra IV? From what you’re saying, Master, you only plan to leave one unmanned fleet at Parra IV and not deploy any fleet defenses at the fortress at all?”

“The situation in both places is relatively stable for now, and there won’t be any threats in the short term.” Amber casually opened a star chart. This 3D chart, enhanced with a ‘tactical overlay’ function, was constantly updated by Lilith’s information-gathering abilities.

He pointed to the two regions Lilith had mentioned, one in the lawless zone and the other in former Imperial territory, and continued:

“The common feature of these two places is that they’re both far from the front lines for now. As for the asteroid fortress, after we flexed our muscles last time, I don’t think anyone will be foolish enough to launch a head-on assault anytime soon. Besides, after Salieh transferred over with the shipyard, she helped upgrade that set of Forerunner ‘mining equipment.’ It can manage a three-round burst now.

“At the same time, the ‘Satellite Missile Swarm’ and new automated defense systems have been fully deployed, and the marines inside the fortress have been reinforced. Even if someone loses their mind and tries to besiege it, it can hold out for a very long time.

“As for Parra IV, the main construction for the ‘fortification’ of several key nodes on the planet’s surface is complete. The fusion reactor arrays have also come online and are operational. Apart from a few heavy gun emplacements still waiting for their main cannons, these sites are already combat-ready.

“And then there’s the ‘Orbital Defense Platform’.”

As Amber explained his assessment, he tapped the star chart a few times, eventually zooming in on Parra IV. A dense layer of ‘small dots’ appeared around the planet’s 3D model.

“The Outer Space Engineering Department reports that the ‘Orbital Defense Platform’ for Parra IV is seventy-two percent complete. The finished sections have already been networked and have entered a trial phase. Combined with the unmanned fleet dispatched there as a mobile force, I’m not too worried about its defenses unless it faces a massive fleet assault or a direct attack from a Celestial Fortress.”

“And the Empire certainly doesn’t have the capacity to deploy forces of that scale to attack a planet with so little strategic value… Master, let me run the numbers again, please wait a moment.”

Lilith continued Amber’s train of thought, running a new set of calculations based on his current deployments and the actual situation at those two key locations.

A moment later, Lilith looked back at Amber. “If Parra IV’s ‘Orbital Defense Platform’ can be fully brought online within the next month and a half as scheduled, then we can indeed downgrade the threat level from the Empire in that sector and the probability of them taking military action.”

The ‘Orbital Defense Platform’ that Amber and Lilith were discussing consisted of 2,400 large, autonomous defense platforms planned for deployment in Parra IV’s high orbit. It was a planetary terminal defense system.

Most of the defense platforms were equipped with firepower equivalent to a heavy cruiser, while a few, serving as ‘regional cores,’ were armed at the battleship level.

Of course, they wouldn’t be lacking deflector shield generators, a staple of modern human defense systems.

Each platform had the ability to generate and store its own power, and in an emergency, it could also supply power to surrounding damaged platforms via microwave transmission.

These platforms were normally supplied and maintained by a ‘Hive Core - Orbital Type’ also deployed in orbit. In combat, the ‘Worker Bees’ released by the Hive Core could even perform emergency repairs on damaged platforms.

And by forgoing crew compartments, living quarters, and other such payloads, their ammunition and energy reserves were significantly greater than manned units of a similar size.

Aside from the attitude control thrusters needed for occasional orbital adjustments or repositioning, the only other power units on these platforms were the arrays of plasma thrusters positioned along the extended axis behind the heavy particle cannons, designed to counteract recoil.

When all these components were integrated, it was easy to see that a defense platform was essentially a drastically scaled-down warship.

However, the cost and technical requirements to build one were far lower than for a warship.

After all, a defense platform didn’t need to be concerned with long-distance space travel, warping, or performing tactical maneuvers. It also didn’t need to consider crew comfort, nor did it have the same high structural integrity requirements as a warship.

Therefore, the construction time and cost were on a completely different level compared to a warship. This was especially true after the Atlas Group acquired and relocated a vast number of the military-industrial complex’s physical assets, which were being sold off at fire-sale prices. Now, the construction speed of these defense platforms was like churning out dumplings.

Of course, the low cost was merely the least impressive advantage of this system. Its technological level wasn’t particularly high, and both the Federation and the Empire were fully capable of manufacturing and equipping similar systems. In fact, within their respective core star systems, the main colonized, military, or industrial planets all had similar defense systems in orbit.

The orbital defense systems deployed around their capital planets, in particular, were built with no expense spared, boasting super-spec firepower and defenses, earning them the moniker ‘Absolute Defense Sphere’.

But the biggest difference between the Federation’s and Empire’s systems and the one Atlas deployed at Parra IV was the need for personnel to be stationed there.

Even if the smallest defense platform nodes didn’t require staff, the large ‘regional core’ platforms and the support platforms responsible for routine maintenance and supply all required a permanent crew.

Furthermore, the entity responsible for directing the platforms in combat was a dedicated decision-making body, the ‘Orbital Defense Command’. In terms of decision speed and command efficiency, it simply couldn’t compare to an ‘Orbital Defense Platform’ that used ‘Lilith’s clones’ as its system control core.

Amber had Lilith work with Dr. Mephisto, who had already joined the Atlas Group’s R&D center, and their team to create this defense system. Besides serving as a ‘pilot program’ for unmanned combat units, its more crucial purpose was to solve Atlas’s current manpower problem.

Unlike traditional nations like the Federation or the Star Dragon Empire, the Atlas Group faced much greater difficulty in expanding its forces and had significantly higher personnel costs.

Especially without a conscription system, the personnel costs of a fighting force assembled through ‘service contracts,’ as well as the additional expenses the group had to pay when its members were injured or killed in action, had always been a major part of the group’s ‘operating costs.’

It might not have been noticeable when the combat forces only numbered a few hundred or a thousand, but with the recent rapid expansion of ground troops and the fleet, these personnel costs had skyrocketed to an astronomical figure.

And Amber’s long-standing concerns—the ‘slow expansion rate of combat units’ and the ‘prohibitively high cost of casualties’—had recently started to surface.

Although, with the Atlas Group’s current high-speed expansion, Amber was already discussing with a large group of recruited sociologists how a ‘universal megacorporation’ could achieve stable development in the future and intended to design a whole new system of ‘employee relations, ranks, rights, and obligations.’

The initial goal of this new system was precisely to scientifically ‘reduce costs and increase efficiency,’ but it was obviously not something that could be accomplished in a short period.

This was what ultimately made Amber decide to approve the construction of the Immortal Corps and the unmanned combat forces. Parra IV’s ‘Orbital Defense Platform’ was the second solution Lilith had delivered, after the Immortal Corps.

And this system was already proving its worth before it was even fully completed.

Chapter 523: The Dawn

Had things proceeded along their normal trajectory, the Atlas Group would have gradually begun its first round of “corporate restructuring” to adapt to its burgeoning scale and increasingly complex “business environment.”

For a special polity like a “universal megacorporation,” which existed only in games, timely evolution of its corporate structure and business model in response to its environment was a crucial step.

Amber, who in his previous life had enjoyed controlling “universal megacorporations” in other strategy games and opening up markets across the universe via “warship diplomacy,” naturally used this “experience” as a reference.

After all, he really had no other experience to draw upon.

However, as the situation in this universe began to deviate from the original game’s plot, the pace of events slowly quickened. The downing of Federal Secretary of State Davis’s private craft on Loubion V, in particular, completely disrupted Atlas’s existing arrangements.

Amber realized that Atlas might now have to face the challenge of completing its “first evolution” in the crucible of war.

Fortunately, whether in terms of construction in its currently controlled territories or the forces at its disposal, the situation was no longer as stretched thin as before, thanks to the collection of the “military-industrial complex gift package” and the development efforts during this period.

This was why Amber could, with relative composure, dispatch as many troops as possible to the Loubion star system, preparing for an early armed intervention at a moment’s notice.

—

“Cleves, don’t wait for the reinforcing unmanned fleet. Immediately lead the combat fleet back to the A·Bawa·Ku fortress for resupply!

“While completing resupply and crew status checks, integrate the warships that have just completed their trials into the fleet. I will depart with you for the Loubion star system to support Randall and the others!”

“Yes, Boss! The First Fleet will set sail immediately after the meeting!”

Cleves, on the large screen, raised his hand in a salute. On the wall behind him in the warship’s conference room was a brand-new ship’s crest, with a line of small text below it:

“Atlas Combat Fleet, The Dawn”

This was the second ship of the “Project 12” super-heavy battleship line, sister ship to The Infinity, which had been completed a few months ahead of schedule and incorporated into the Atlas combat fleet.

After beginning their collaboration with the Renaissance Alliance, Amber and the others had not originally intended to send their fleet’s flagship directly to the Loubion star system to establish a strong presence, as it would have been a bit too conspicuous.

However, at the time, the second ship, The Dawn, had just joined the fleet and was still undergoing overall coordination and adaptation training. Meanwhile, the operation on Loubion V required the “Deployable Space-to-Surface Transit Module” equipped on Project 12 ships to assist with materiel transport.

In the end, Amber had no choice but to have Randall and Cleves switch captain’s chairs. Randall took command of The Infinity and its escort fleet to the Loubion star system, while Cleves remained in the then-relatively dangerous Parra system to oversee The Dawn’s training.

But now, with authorization to engage granted due to the sudden turn of events, The Dawn could finally reunite with its “older sister” nearly a thousand light-years away.

“Amber, if you’re going too, what about the meeting with Baron BASF?”

Isabelle, who was also participating in the meeting, spotted a flaw in the plan and quickly asked, “Isn’t it a bit rude to stand him up again? Especially since he specifically wants to resolve the Parra IV issue with us this time.”

“Of course, I know that. I didn’t expect the situation to turn out this way either.”

Amber nodded. “So I plan to change the meeting location. Let’s see if Baron BASF is willing to come to A·Bawa·Ku for a talk.”

“Huh? But didn’t you reject that suggestion last time?”

“Plans can’t keep up with changes,” Amber said with a helpless shrug. “If it weren’t for this whole situation, I wouldn’t have invited him to the group’s core area like this.”

Hearing Amber’s explanation, Isabelle paused for a moment, then nodded and said, “I’ll go tell Skadi, then. She’s responsible for liaising on these matters now. But I’m not sure if this Baron BASF will be willing to come.”

“Heh! Then I’ll make you a bet. I bet that not only will the Baron not refuse, he’ll accept with pleasure.”

“That confident?” Isabelle hesitated, then raised her eyebrows and returned a provocative look. “Then I’ll take that bet. We’ll see who wins in the end.”

There was no need to state the “wager,” but both Amber and Isabelle knew with perfect understanding what it was.

“Ahem.”

After clearing his throat to end the little interlude, Amber scanned the surrounding screens and holographic projections, which displayed the commanding officers of the combat units and the heads of the group’s various centers.

“Does anyone else have any questions?”

After waiting several seconds and confirming no one wished to speak, Amber declared in a resonant voice:

“In that case, I now announce that the Atlas Group will officially begin a full-scale intervention in the Loubion star system. The group, all its subsidiaries, and all combat units will enter a Level Three state of readiness, effective immediately. All regulations, rules, and manuals under this state will be activated concurrently according to contingency plans.

“All ground combat units that have received the ‘prepare for battle’ order must complete assembly within twelve hours, confirm the status of all personnel and equipment within twenty-four hours, and ensure they can reach their designated staging areas to await transit and embarkation within twelve hours of receiving the ‘board ships’ order.”

Amber paused for a moment before continuing:

“Everyone, since you chose to join the Atlas Group, you all knew this day would come.

“Although the current situation is indeed unclear, I want you to remember that the sharp blade that cuts a path to the future is in your hands.

“And I hope that under the banner of Atlas, you will work together as one to cleave our own ‘path to the future.’”

—

“What?! The meeting location has changed?!”

Upon receiving the news, Baron BASF looked hesitantly at the elf on his screen. The female elf, who had always been his point of contact, now wore a “deeply apologetic” smile as she began to explain:

“Baron, Sir, some unforeseen circumstances beyond our control have indeed arisen. Therefore, we must ask you to meet with Mr. Amber at one of Atlas’s asteroid fortresses.

“However, please rest assured. The A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress is the very core of our group. You will be under the highest level of protection for the entire duration of your visit. There is absolutely no need to worry about your safety.”

“Wait… forgive me for interrupting, but Ms. Skadi, did you just say ‘A·Bawa·Ku’?” Baron BASF suddenly asked.

Skadi nodded with some hesitation. “That’s right, that’s the asteroid fortress. Is there a problem, Baron, Sir?”

Hearing her answer, Baron BASF’s serious expression transformed in the next second into one of surprise, which finally settled into ecstatic joy.

“No problem, not a problem at all, Ms. Skadi!

“When do you need me to depart?!

“Should I leave right now?!

“It takes some time to get from the Empire’s border to your company’s ‘A·Bawa·Ku’ fortress…”

Baron BASF’s sudden change in attitude caught Skadi off guard for a moment, but she quickly recovered and nodded.

“Of course. If there are no issues on your end, Baron, Sir, then the sooner you depart, the better. Mr. Amber is very much looking forward to your meeting!”

Chapter 524: BASF Enters the ‘Grand View Garden’

“A hearty welcome to Baron BASF on his visit to the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress for guidance and exchange!”

When Baron BASF saw the giant welcome message projected outside the asteroid fortress, he was still a little stunned by this welcoming style, so full of ‘Atlas character’.

However, after composing himself, he put on a ‘well-traveled’ look and calmly said to the other members of his entourage:

“Allowing the visitor to feel the host’s enthusiasm from the very first moment. See, this is what you call professional. You should all learn from this~”

“Yes, Baron, Sir!”

Baron BASF, the ‘Special Envoy of the Princess’, arrived at the A·Bawa·Ku fortress nearly three days after Cleves’ First Fleet.

Thus, as his private armed yacht, ‘The Shcherbich’, entered the approach orbit of the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, he happened to encounter the First Fleet, which had just completed resupplying and personnel status checks.

As the first ‘outsider’ invited to visit the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, the Baron naturally knew he was the first person to safely observe the asteroid fortress and its combat fleet from such a close distance.

After all, the last group of people to ‘observe up close’ from this distance was the combined fleet of the Military-industrial complex.

Only, what welcomed them back then wasn’t a giant projected welcome message, nor flowers and music, but fortress cannons and Satellite Missile Swarms.

And Baron BASF showed a keen interest in everything here. He excitedly rushed to the front of the bridge, almost pressing his face against the cold, dome-shaped observation window. Unlike the design philosophy of a warship’s combat bridge, which prioritizes protection, ‘luxury items’ like private yachts put passenger comfort and experience first. Therefore, the yacht’s bridge was usually placed ‘semi-recessed’ on the upper deck.

Baron BASF’s ‘The Shcherbich’ was a prime example. In non-combat situations, the entire bridge would retract its external protective armor and rise above the deck.

The huge, dome-shaped ‘observation window,’ made of high-strength transparent composite material, made everyone on the bridge feel as if they were directly in the vastness of the universe.

At that moment, everyone on the bridge, including Baron BASF, witnessed a spectacular sight.

The ships of the First Fleet, and the lights shining from their viewports, resembled a massive school of self-illuminating deep-sea fish, emerging in sequence from the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

The ships were arrayed in neat formations, sailing slowly according to their fleet groupings. The long, blue tails from their main thruster arrays seemed to connect, forming orderly trails.

As for the asteroid fortress itself, in this cold universe it was like a giant coral reef providing ‘shelter’ for the school of fish. Its surface was dotted with the entrances and exits of Deployment bays, various facilities, and external temporary mooring points. Ships and shuttles moved between them, creating a particularly magnificent scene.

However, what truly captured the attention of everyone inside the yacht was the colossal ship that had just slid out of an enormous Deployment bay. It was slowly adjusting its orientation and speed under the control of the blue flashes of its attitude thrusters, which sparked all over its hull.

The Project 12 Super-heavy battleship, second ship of the class—The Dawn.

With a hull even longer than that of its predecessor, ‘The Infinity’, this behemoth’s length was approaching six kilometers. Its massive and majestic frame looked extraordinarily grand in space.

Furthermore, compared to ‘The Infinity’, which retained some extra corridors and access points for testing and had some armor plates protruding outwards to accommodate additional equipment, the exterior of the ‘The Dawn’, the second ship and a mass-production model, looked much cleaner.

Baron BASF stood on the bridge, staring intently at “The Dawn” through the ‘dome’.

Although his expression had returned to calm, his heart was still racing with excitement. He was filled with awe and admiration for the colossal ship.

After all, he had already learned through various intelligence channels about the immense combat power its sister ship, ‘The Infinity’, had demonstrated in actual battle. At the same time, he was keenly aware that the Star Dragon Empire couldn’t produce a comparable warship to counter it in the short term.

And now, as one of the first ‘external personnel’, he was witnessing its ‘sister ship’ up close with his own eyes.

“Truly unbelievable,” Baron BASF couldn’t help but sigh. “This is more than just a warship; it’s a work of art.”

But just as he was about to comment further, the Communications Officer’s voice came through: “Your Grace, a message from the asteroid fortress’s external orbital control center. They say we can begin our approach to dock!”

Hearing this, Baron BASF nodded. After a final, reluctant glance at ‘The Dawn’ as it slowly moved away from the fortress, he said in a deep voice:

“Since our host has given the word, let’s not waste any time. Adjutant, inform the entire ship to prepare to enter the fortress and moor according to their guidance.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

The crew on the bridge quickly refocused their attention on their duties. However, the only one who was truly tense at this moment was the Helmsman, who had to pilot the ship under the guidance of orbital control.

As BASF’s favorite and most frequently used armed yacht, the helmsman of ‘The Shcherbich’ was naturally a seasoned veteran retired from the Royal Navy. Although it was his first time at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, he showed no signs of panic.

Soon, after taking all its weapon systems offline, the armed yacht carrying Baron BASF slowly entered the asteroid fortress and successfully moored at the designated Deployment bay mooring point.

As the Deployment bay, which had been set aside specifically to receive Baron BASF, completed its sealing procedures, the pressure and oxygen supply inside began to return to levels habitable for humans.

Feeling a little embarrassed for having stood up the ‘Special Envoy of the Princess’ multiple times, Amber arranged for a reception of the highest standard.

In human navies or fleets, only for ceremonies of this level would a reception be held in the Deployment bay or port to welcome a guest’s disembarkation.

Holding such a ceremony required temporarily sealing the Deployment bay, which meant that for a short period, it could not be used for any docking or departure operations, transforming it into a purely ‘social venue’.

After a company of Romu marines formed two columns in a ‘welcoming corridor,’ Baron BASF, who had specially changed into an exquisite formal suit, disembarked with his entourage, walking down a gangway covered with a red carpet.

He immediately spotted a familiar figure at the center of the Atlas reception team. Although they had only met once before, the de facto controller of the Atlas Group, whose experiences were nothing short of legendary, had left a deep impression on Baron BASF.

“Welcome, Baron BASF. I’m delighted you could accept my invitation.”

Amber stepped forward to shake his hand and exchange pleasantries, a classic ‘business smile’ he had gradually perfected on his face.

“Thank you very much for your invitation, Mr. Amber. I never imagined I would be invited to this core area of Atlas.”

“After all, we’ve had to cancel on you several times, so I felt it was necessary to show you our sincerity~”

“Rest assured, Mr. Amber, I have felt it completely~”

Chapter 525: Agnes’s Olive Branch

The welcoming ceremony prepared by the Atlas Group was very brief. Aside from a few necessary procedures, all other elements were cut. Normally, after a welcoming ceremony, there would be a banquet of some size to welcome the guests properly.

Here at Atlas, however, that was also postponed until after the first round of official talks.

On the way to the conference room, Amber even kindly suggested that Baron BASF might want to eat something to tide him over, lest he feel hungry during the meeting.

But the Baron just smiled and shook his head, stating that he was ‘well-prepared’ and had already eaten before arriving at the fortress.

This was naturally not a case of prescience, but purely because Skadi had given him a heads-up.

Just as Baron BASF was departing from the Empire, Skadi had informed him that the entire negotiation process might not be as long as he imagined.

Therefore, to extend the time for formal discussions as much as possible, the Atlas Group would be simplifying or postponing certain ceremonies.

Skadi, on behalf of Amber, had apologized in advance to the Princess’s Special Envoy for this arrangement, and Baron BASF had replied that it was not a problem.

Had this been the BASF of the past, his personality would have compelled him to express his dissatisfaction strongly, even at the risk of antagonizing the other party, and he would have retaliated with unreserved pressure during the talks.

However, after a word of caution from Princess Agnes, this typically proud baron knew that this was a party he truly could not afford to provoke. Worse, he might even anger Her Highness the Princess. So he had reined in his temper long beforehand.

“It’s just one meal. Besides, what kind of good food can you possibly find in a deep-space asteroid fortress?” the Baron consoled himself along the way.

But now that he had officially arrived at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, seeing The Dawn and the massive fleet poised for departure outside, and combining this with the information he had previously received, Baron BASF quickly guessed the reason.

The sudden incident on Loubion V would certainly lead to an abrupt change in the situation throughout the Loubion star system and even within the Federation. This, in turn, must have had an impact—and not a small one—on the Atlas Group’s interests there.

So the fleet assembled outside was most likely heading to the Loubion star system to act as a ‘stabilizing force,’ and this Mr. Amber would almost certainly be going with them.

BASF believed his guess was at least seventy percent correct. So, before taking his seat in the conference room, he quickly readjusted his negotiation strategy based on the current ‘new situation’ and the ‘authority’ granted to him by Her Highness Agnes.

“Mr. Amber, it appears your company’s fleet is preparing to weigh anchor. From what I understand, your company has been quite busy recently, so I won’t waste any more of your time. Shall we get straight to the point?”

This was the first thing Baron BASF said after sitting down.

It was both a show of goodwill and a message to Amber that the Empire had been keeping a close watch on Atlas and was aware of a great deal.

However, Amber completely ignored the underlying implication. He didn’t feel angry or any other negative emotion; in his view, it was perfectly normal.

On the contrary, if the Empire didn’t know what Atlas was up to, that would be abnormal.

So, Amber was actually quite pleased with this ‘time-saving’ approach.

He smiled and made a ‘please’ gesture, then said, “Thank you for your understanding, Baron. In that case, let’s get straight to the point and keep it brief. After you.”

“Then I shall state my purpose. Mr. Amber, you are aware that I am here under the commission of Her Highness the Princess to negotiate with you. Since our first meeting, our cooperation has been exceptionally smooth. Therefore, this time, I hope to explore the possibility of ‘deep cooperation’ between our two sides with you, Mr. Amber.”

Amber: “Deep cooperation?”

Baron BASF nodded. “Yes. In addition to the existing communication technology services, Her Highness the Princess also hopes to establish more ‘exclusive’ cooperation projects with your company, including technology development, planetary governance, equipment production, and military contracting.”

This time, Amber did not respond immediately after hearing the Baron’s words.

Of all the things mentioned in this ‘deep cooperation,’ the others were merely window dressing. There were only two crucial points—exclusive and military contracting.

The former meant that the Atlas Group could only cooperate with Agnes. The latter indicated that Her Highness the Princess hoped the Atlas Group would intervene in any potential future armed conflicts within the Empire.

Putting those two points together, the meaning was actually quite direct.

Agnes wanted Amber to help her deal with the Regent Prince.

But after reaching this conclusion, Amber felt a little confused.

He and Lilith had previously analyzed that the situation in the Star Dragon Empire had undergone a dramatic shift. Princess Agnes’s faction, which had been on the back foot, should now have the upper hand.

But after hearing the details of BASF’s ‘deep cooperation’ proposal, Amber felt that the imperial princess’s advantage might not be as great as he had imagined. Was that why she was pinning her hopes on seeking ‘external aid’ like Atlas?

Meanwhile, Baron BASF had no idea what Amber was thinking, so he simply interpreted Amber’s current posture as hesitation.

And for such a situation, he happened to have a method that had proven ‘tried and true’ time and again.

“Mr. Amber, if you have any reservations, please feel free to voice them. I will be sure to answer them diligently. Or perhaps, allow me to first express Her Highness the Princess’s sincerity. Might that dispel the doubts in your heart?”

“Please, Baron.”

Seeing Amber nod in agreement, Baron BASF adopted a serious and formal posture.

“If Mr. Amber is willing to engage in deeper cooperation with the Empire, then Her Highness the Princess is more than willing to grant you, Mr. Amber, the status of a hereditary noble of the Empire following her coronation. While the specific title is still to be discussed, it is certain that Parra IV will become your fief, Mr. Amber.”

“Whoa, so generous?”

Amber raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had guessed that Agnes would want to cooperate with the Atlas Group, but he certainly hadn’t expected her to open with such a massive ‘gift.’

“Although Parra IV’s infrastructure is a bit neglected, you’re just giving away a colony planet like that? Besides, there’s already another baron’s fief on that planet. Isn’t Her Highness the Princess afraid the imperial nobles will object?”

Baron BASF seemed to have anticipated Amber’s question. A faint smile returned to his face as he unhurriedly delivered his prepared response:

“Regarding the noble factions in our country, Her Highness the Princess has long wished to put them in order. The previous baron on Parra IV—the performance indicators of his fief were, frankly, abysmal. In Her Highness’s view, he was hardly a qualified noble, so it is not surprising that his fief was reclaimed.

“As for your company’s actions on Parra IV, Her Highness has seen them all, even from thousands of light-years away. Under your company’s development, the vibrant scene of burgeoning life and universal competition is what it means to be truly responsible for the Empire’s people. That is the true ‘way of the nobility.’

“Therefore, Her Highness believes that you, Mr. Amber, are entirely worthy of this honor. If possible, she also hopes to use you as an example in the future, so that the Empire’s nobles may rediscover their former glory, rather than indulging in a decadent life of hedonism and debauchery.”

“Tsk, tsk, so well said. Baron, I won’t lie to you, I’m actually a little tempted,” Amber said, his face beaming.

Seeing Amber’s expression, Baron BASF immediately sensed an opening and decided to strike while the iron is hot.

“Mr. Amber, please believe me! Accepting Her Highness’s patronage and cooperating deeply with us is absolutely a win-win.”

This time, however, Amber did not let Baron BASF finish, but cut him off.

“You’re right, but I have two small questions. I must trouble you to answer them, Baron.”

Though slightly annoyed at being interrupted, Baron BASF showed no sign of displeasure and simply nodded.

“Uh… please, go ahead, Mr. Amber.”

“First, if my information is correct, Her Highness Agnes’s coronation has not yet been publicly announced, nor has a specific date been set. This means that the promise of ‘after the coronation ceremony yada yada yada’ is still very much an unknown.”

Baron BASF’s expression froze.

“Second, regarding the ownership of Parra IV. Heh heh, this planet is already under the de facto control of the Atlas Group. Do you really think that granting me a ‘claim to a fief’ at this juncture is all that important to me?”

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Baron BASF’s forehead.

Chapter 526: Potential S+

“So this Mr. Amber has rejected our proposal for cooperation?”

It was a woman’s voice, cold and majestic. Beneath the surface of the common human tongue, there seemed to be another unique rhythm that, even through a screen, made Baron BASF subconsciously want to submit.

“Not at all, Your Highness. Mr. Amber is very willing to continue our conventional cooperation on the existing foundation. However, he feels that if we are to engage in ‘deep cooperation,’ we should be more candid, and not…”

“Not what?”

“Not ‘play these uninteresting word games’.”

After saying this, Baron BASF, standing before the screen in the conference room aboard the cruise ship The Shcherbich, felt a drop of cold sweat trickle down his forehead—just as it had when he heard Amber’s second question.

A moment of silence fell over the conference room, and Baron BASF felt as if the very air was about to freeze solid.

The last time he had felt something like this was when he discovered that the son born to him and his second wife—that proud and charming noble lady—was not his biological child.

Of course, two months later, the Baron married his third wife…

But this “buried memory” had barely surfaced in BASF’s mind before a soft chuckle from the other side of the screen startled him into retracting it.

“Heh… This man is quite interesting.”

A rare smile appeared on Princess Agnes’s face, one not often seen recently. “And? I’m sure this Mr. Amber’s ‘original words’ didn’t stop there, did they?”

“Um… is this something I can say?” Baron BASF asked cautiously.

“Speak freely, Lord BASF. I won’t hold you accountable for something so trivial.”

Baron BASF swallowed hard and then said, “Mr. Amber also said, ‘The current situation is as absurd as if I’d plucked a ring from Her Highness’s hand and slipped it into my pocket, only for her, instead of demanding it back, to blush and declare she was bestowing it upon me as a gift.’”

After the Baron relayed these words, the conference room fell into its second silence of the day.

He instantly regretted being so direct in repeating Amber’s original words. Such “flirtatious,” greatly disrespectful language was something absolutely no one in the Star Dragon Empire would dare to say, let alone allow Her Highness Agnes to hear.

“He has quite the sense of humor.”

Agnes’s voice was calm, as if the words had had no effect on her whatsoever.

Hearing Agnes speak again, Baron BASF quietly breathed a sigh of relief. But before he could even catch his breath, he heard her continue:

“It seems this Mr. Amber hasn’t directly rejected our proposal. He likely needs more time to observe and evaluate. After all, he is indeed a cautious businessman…

“Of course, another possibility is that Mr. Amber is genuinely overwhelmed at the moment. Lord BASF, did he leave immediately after your meeting?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Baron BASF nodded.

“Mr. Amber didn’t even have time to continue our discussion at the subsequent banquet. He had a quick drink with me to express his apologies and then left in a hurry. It seems he entered a warp with Atlas’s First Fleet right after. That’s why I rushed to report to you…”

BASF could tell that Her Highness Agnes was very invested in their cooperation with the Atlas Group. He had noticed it was the middle of the night in the secondary capital where the Princess was located, so he had initially just sent a classified report, intending to wait until she woke up.

To his surprise, less than twenty minutes after sending the report, he was ordered to communicate with Agnes directly.

“Inviting you directly to Atlas’s core area, and the nature of your conversation, suggests that this Mr. Amber is still rather friendly towards us… and he didn’t outright refuse our proposal for ‘deep cooperation,’ instead making such a ‘humorous’ remark~”

On the large screen, Agnes crossed one arm over her chest, while her other hand propped up and pinched her delicate chin. Her eyes glanced to the side of the screen as she thought aloud, “It seems he truly believes we aren’t being sincere or earnest enough. If we plan to continue cooperating with the Atlas Group, we’ll have to change our old habits of dealing with other factions.”

Agnes paused, then seemed to recall something amusing.

“Of course, all of this is contingent on Mr. Amber being able to resolve the troubles he currently has on his hands… Lord BASF!”

The Imperial Princess suddenly looked up at Baron BASF, who jolted to attention as if he’d been shocked, his expression as resolute as if he were about to accompany his monarch to martyrdom.

“Present, Your Highness!”

“I am entrusting all communications with the Atlas Group to you. I don’t care if you stay at the A·Bawa·Ku fortress or go elsewhere. In short, I want you to contact Mr. Amber the moment he returns after handling his affairs and report the results to me after the new round of talks.”

“Yes, Your Highness!” Baron BASF replied firmly. “I will communicate with my liaison and see if I can extend my stay here, and use the opportunity to gather more intelligence.”

“Very good. But maintain a sense of proportion. Don’t antagonize them.”

Looking at Baron BASF on the screen and recalling Amber’s “original words” he had just repeated, Agnes smiled faintly again and continued, “You’ve worked hard during this time. I will visit Mona personally. It has indeed been a long time since I’ve seen her. It will be a good chance to see how she’s doing with you~”

The ‘Mona’ Agnes spoke of was the daughter of the former Imperial Prime Minister, who had been toppled by the Regent Prince. She was also Agnes’s childhood companion.

And she was Baron BASF’s fourth wife.

Yes, fourth.

As for the story between Baron BASF and his third wife, we shall set that aside for now.

In any case, after yet another failed marriage, this minor baron married the daughter of the former prime minister, with Agnes pulling the strings.

Although his title was only Baron, BASF was also one of the wealthiest nobles in the Star Dragon Empire. For someone of his status to marry the daughter of a disgraced former prime minister, who was now virtually a prisoner, was not in any way beneath him.

Baron BASF had always known that Her Highness Agnes’s matchmaking was, at its core, a way to offer protection to the former prime minister’s daughter, whose situation in the Empire was precarious at the time.

However, he also had to admit that this young woman, who was completely different from his previous three wives in every way, had truly become his helpmate.

For this very reason, Baron BASF had since become a staunch member of the “Princess Faction,” serving Her Highness Agnes tirelessly and without complaint.

BASF: “Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. Mona has been well ever since our marriage. Her disposition has also improved a great deal since that incident.”

“Mm, I will ask her myself. That’s all for today. You are dismissed. Get some rest, Lord BASF. You will have plenty to keep you busy…”

After saying this and watching Baron BASF bow his head respectfully, Agnes cut the encrypted communication.

As the virtual screen vanished, the surrounding night lights detected the change in brightness and adjusted accordingly, slowly dimming the light in Agnes’s royal chambers.

The somewhat chilly moonlight from outside the chamber window now streamed through the massive floor-to-ceiling glass, draping over her and casting a long, graceful shadow on the floor.

A moment later, Agnes, her eyes fixed on the moon outside, suddenly spoke.

“Lord Natalia, what are your thoughts?”

With the sound of military boots on the floor, Natalia, dressed in a Royal Guard officer’s uniform, emerged from the shadows of the room and quickly positioned herself just behind Agnes.

“Your Highness, I also believe this Mr. Amber holds some goodwill toward us… but there is one thing I do not understand. I ask for Your Highness’s enlightenment.”

“Oh? Go on.”

“Why does Your Highness think so highly of Atlas and this Mr. Amber, even to the point of proactively making overtures to him?”

Natalia asked, somewhat puzzled.

“I know he possesses technology that surpasses current levels, but in terms of scale, if we want Mr. Amber to get involved in the Empire’s current turmoil, doesn’t he seem a bit too small? And his ability to withstand risks might also be insufficient.”

“When evaluating the Atlas Group, you cannot focus solely on ‘scale,’ Lord Natalia.”

Agnes turned to face her Regiment Commander of the Royal Guard and continued, “I know ‘scale’ is indeed a very objective metric when measuring a faction’s power, but you cannot view the Atlas Group through a conventional lens, because it is completely different from other factions.

“In terms of growth speed—or expansion speed—alone, this private enterprise has already reached a level that exists only in ‘imagination.’ No, ordinary people wouldn’t even dare to imagine such a growth rate.

“Therefore, in our assessment, we should place more importance on its ‘potential.’ After all, ‘scale’ only speaks to the company’s current strength, but ‘potential’ determines how far this company can go in the future.

“So what I’m optimistic about is the future of the Atlas Group… Besides, this Mr. Amber has always been a man who ‘makes the impossible possible,’ has he not?”

Listening to Agnes’s explanation, Natalia nodded thoughtfully. A moment later, she asked, “If Your Highness values Atlas’s future, doesn’t that mean this company can’t offer us much help in the coming chaos?”

“Who says it can’t? Did you forget what I just said about its ‘growth speed’?”

“Won’t that be a bit too fast?”

“Not at all, because we are dealing with a faction whose overall efficiency exceeds our imagination. From the intelligence fragments we’ve obtained, ‘efficiency above all’ is not just a slogan at Atlas, but a fact.

“So if Mr. Amber can resolve the issue in the Loubion star system, I believe Atlas’s development will accelerate once again.”

Although Natalia had never expected the Princess to hold the Atlas Group in such high regard, many of Her Highness’s previous predictions had ultimately become reality.

So, after a moment’s hesitation, the loyal Regiment Commander of the Royal Guard once again chose to believe.

“I understand, Your Highness. Thank you for enlightening me,” Natalia said, bowing her head respectfully.

“Haha, if you truly wish to thank me, Lord Natalia, then go and fetch me a glass of ice water. All this talking has made me thirsty~”

Hearing this, Natalia smiled sheepishly, then quickly brought a glass of ice water and handed it to Agnes.

Upon receiving the glass, the Imperial Princess, in a manner quite unbefitting her image, downed the ice water in one go and let out a long, satisfied sigh.

“Hah… finally, I’m saved~”

Natalia was not surprised by Agnes’s behavior. The physique of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family was different from that of ordinary people; gulping down a large glass of ice water late at night was perfectly normal for them.

After stretching a little, Agnes suddenly asked, “By the way, Lord Natalia, how long does it take to get from the A·Bawa·Ku fortress to the Loubion star system?”

“For a conventional fleet warp, it would take about ten days. However, based on our previous observations of the Atlas Group fleet’s warp speed, supported by some intelligence fragments, I estimate that the Atlas Group’s fleet warp speed is faster. They could possibly arrive in just six to seven days.”

Natalia answered after a quick mental calculation, her brow furrowing in puzzlement.

“That this company can upgrade Forerunner technology like the ‘jump drive’… this is also something I don’t understand.”

“Mm-hmm. That’s why I’m paying such close attention to them. This company, or rather, this Mr. Amber, has far too many secrets. It’s simply fascinating~”

Agnes raised her elegant eyebrows and continued, “Only a six-to-seven-day warp time, yet they left in such a hurry. It seems the situation in the Loubion star system is developing faster than we imagined.”

“Your Highness, do you think that incident in the Loubion star system was truly Norton II’s doing?”

“Who knows? But it certainly has created an excellent ‘window of opportunity’ for him.”

Hyperspace warp route, The Dawn’s bridge.

Amber stood before the holographic projection platform with a grave expression, staring at the three-dimensional image of the Loubion star system.

“In the urgent communication from Randall, besides confirming that the Federation fleet will soon enter warp and launch an attack, did he say anything else?”

Cleves: “He also said that the garrison fleet controlled by the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government is currently clearing out and suppressing other ‘rebel’ ships.

“From their actions, it seems they’re trying to secure a region of space. He speculates that this region is very likely the Federation fleet’s projected warp coordinates.”

Hearing Cleves’ words, Amber instantly guessed Randall’s plan.

“So?”

“So he wants to launch a preemptive assault on the garrison fleet in that area before the enemy can establish an absolute numerical advantage.”

Chapter 527: The Third Task Force

After hearing the answer he didn’t want to hear from Cleves, Amber let out a soft sigh.

He knew Randall’s plan was extremely dangerous, but it was a necessary risk to avoid an even worse outcome.

“When did that guy Randall get so bold? This is far too dangerous.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Cleves gave a somewhat bitter smile. “Senior, he… well, he always dreamed of becoming a fleet commander. It’s just that he never had the chance after graduation. After transferring to a post like the starport’s Combat Command Center, he drifted further and further away from that dream.”

Amber said, “So his personality became what it is now, rather slick? It certainly fits the persona of a ‘rear-echelon officer’.”

Cleves nodded, then looked at the three-dimensional model of the Loubion star system on the holographic projection platform and said, “But Senior’s decision this time shows that he still has that spark of passion in his heart. That’s why he’s willing to buy us enough time, even knowing the battle will be extremely dangerous.”

“Three days and eight hours,” Amber murmured. This was the remaining time until the two unmanned fleets, which had set out earlier from the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, would arrive in the Loubion star system.

If Randall could successfully delay the Federation fleet’s entry, even if it just meant forcing them to warp to an alternate set of ‘entry coordinates’, and hold out until Atlas’s two unmanned fleets arrived, it would be a success.

Because after the assassination attempt on Federation Secretary of State Davis, Isabelle and the Intelligence Analysis Center, with Lilith’s help, had obtained a crucial piece of intelligence—the Federation might be sending more than just the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets to the Loubion star system.

According to this highly credible intelligence, in addition to these two fleets—Davis’s ‘aces up his sleeve’ for negotiations—the Federation was very likely to dispatch the Twenty-third Fleet, which had an ‘inauspicious connection’ with the Atlas Group, to participate in the operation to control the Loubion star system.

There was another piece of intelligence, not yet fully verified, that if the Twenty-fourth Fleet completed its ship replenishments and fleet-wide preparations before an unspecified deadline, this fleet, which had also crossed paths with the Atlas Group before, might also be dispatched.

This meant that at some point in the future, three to four full-strength Federation fleets would be gathered in this star system.

If they managed to assemble before the main body of Atlas’s combat fleet arrived, then Amber and his people would have to face a well-prepared Federation force that vastly outnumbered them. This would make the ensuing battle quite difficult.

But this wasn’t the primary reason Randall was so eager to attack.

What truly made him decide to launch an offensive was the Atlas transport convoy about to arrive in the Loubion star system.

It was hard to say whether the Federation had deliberately estimated the arrival time of this transport fleet or if they had just gotten incredibly lucky. In any case, this convoy was also scheduled to arrive near Loubion V in the next two days.

Unfortunately, neither Randall nor Amber could warn the convoy. Even if they sent a message, the transport fleet would only be able to receive it after exiting hyperspace.

Moreover, ships in their current stage of development could not interrupt their warp process once they had entered hyperspace using a jump drive.

While forcibly shutting down the jump drive could indeed pull a ship out of hyperspace, in the few cases known to humanity, these ships that forcibly exited warp reappeared in pieces.

It was like entering a highway on a planet with only one entrance and one exit. Once a vehicle was on the highway, it could only leave safely from the exit. Forcibly crashing into the guardrails at high speed would only result in the destruction of the vehicle and the death of its occupants.

Therefore, if they didn’t interfere with the Federation fleet’s actions and allowed the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets to arrive successfully in the next two days, the result would be devastating.

With the high conventional speed and powerful strike capabilities of military vessels, Atlas’s transport convoy, consisting of forty heavy cargo ships and over thirty light cargo ships, would likely be annihilated before it even had a chance to enter warp again.

Crucially, this convoy was carrying a batch of new equipment for the Renaissance Alliance’s refitting, as well as a large number of critical spare parts and components for a large fusion power station that they urgently needed.

This was why Randall had to find a way to resolve this problem.

After a period of contemplation, Amber spoke again. “Cleves, with the forces Randall has, what do you think he’ll do?”

“Based on my understanding of Senior, and from our previous discussions about fleet battles, he will likely use The Infinity as his core force to inflict as many casualties as possible on the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet. He’ll create the illusion that ‘this area is not safe’ to compel the Federation fleet commander to adjust his warp plans.”

Cleves spoke as he recalled their conversations.

“The Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter is something the Federation fleet has experienced firsthand. So, as long as their commander isn’t an idiot, he won’t have his fleet jump right on top of The Infinity.

After all, if the fleet is within The Infinity’s attack range during that critical three-minute period after exiting warp, they will become nothing more than target practice.”

“But that doesn’t solve the fundamental problem.”

Amber shook his head, then gestured to zoom the three-dimensional model of the Loubion star system in on Loubion V, displaying the planet’s equatorial plane.

“There are too many suitable places to exit warp on the equatorial plane. If Randall’s fleet just engages in harassment, from what I know of the Federation Navy, they will simply switch to other backup coordinates and still launch their attack as planned.

Moreover, after startling the grass and alerting the snake like this, the Federation fleet might abandon the idea of a direct warp altogether. Instead, they might first enter another region of the Loubion star system and then perform a short-range warp.

In that case, because the distance is so short, the disturbance caused by the jump drive tearing open space won’t be as obvious. Randall would only be able to detect them after they’ve already arrived, putting him in an even more passive position.”

The ‘short-range warp’ Amber mentioned was a standard tactical maneuver in human navies.

Due to a characteristic of jump drives that humanity had yet to fully understand, the longer the distance of a single warp, the greater the disturbance the jump drive would create when tearing open space at the destination, and signs would appear much earlier.

A warp jump of more than ten days would allow the destination to detect abnormal spatial fluctuations very quickly, thus knowing that a ship was warping in.

For civilian vessels, this wasn’t an issue, as most of them had to report every warp jump to the relevant authorities in advance.

But for warships, which required stealth and surprise under certain circumstances, this abnormal spatial fluctuation was tantamount to shouting through a megaphone to the enemy, “Hello, I’m here.”

This was also why neither the Federation nor the Empire could organize a fleet to warp directly to the other’s capital for a true ‘base trade’.

If anyone dared to do so, upon exiting warp, they would be greeted by an incredibly massive fleet that had already completed deployment in a super-large bombardment formation. They might even see a Celestial Fortress quietly aiming its main cannon in their direction.

Therefore, when conducting certain military operations, naval fleets would first jump to a coordinate just a few hours’ warp distance from the final destination. Then, after the jump drives were ready, they would perform a second warp.

In this situation, by the time the enemy detected the abnormal spatial fluctuations, the fleet would already be in the final phase of its warp, exiting hyperspace in the next second.

“That’s certainly true.”

Cleves nodded in agreement, then continued.

“And I suspect the Federation fleet may have never intended to perform a long-range warp from the start. They’ll likely arrive at an arbitrary coordinate on the Loubion star system’s ecliptic plane in the next two days, wait until they’ve contacted the Autonomous Government’s garrison fleet and confirmed everything is clear, and then arrive via a ‘short-range warp’.”

Cleves’s expression grew uglier as he spoke. Based on the current analysis, Randall was likely in a no-win situation. As long as he couldn’t prevent the two Federation fleets from initiating their warp, it was basically over.

In other words, this sudden development had caught Atlas completely off guard.

Amber and the others had indeed anticipated that the Federation would consider intervening in the star system’s situation and had begun deployments in advance. But Secretary of State Davis’s death had completely disrupted Atlas’s plans.

Even though Amber had ordered the two unmanned fleets to set sail immediately upon receiving the news, a brief ‘power vacuum’ still emerged in the Loubion star system.

And the Federation, by some cruel twist of fate, began its operation just as this ‘power vacuum’ was about to end.

Still, he looked at Amber with a hopeful gaze, praying that this ‘immeasurably strong in the face of strong opponents’ Boss could think of some other way to turn the tables.

And Amber did not disappoint. After recalling a few battles he knew of where the Federation fleet had been turned into a ‘backdrop’, he spoke again.

“There is one last option.”

“What is it, Boss?”

Amber said, “Randall must take the initiative as soon as possible within the next ten-plus hours and launch a ‘devastating strike’ against the Autonomous Government’s garrison fleet. Ideally, he needs to fight a swift and efficient battle of annihilation!”

“A battle of annihilation…”

Cleves muttered the words, frowning in thought. But soon, the ‘川’ character formed by his furrowed brows slowly smoothed out, and his once troubled eyes lit up.

“Boss, you mean use this ‘battle of annihilation’ to make the Federation fleet commander hold back for fear of walking into a trap?”

“Exactly.” Amber snapped his fingers and continued, “Imagine you are the Commander-in-Chief of the Federation’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets. Just as you are about to commence your operation, you suddenly discover that the garrison fleet meant to secure a ‘safe zone’ for you near Loubion V—a place that was supposed to have few enemies—has lost contact and is presumed annihilated. What would you think?”

“I would suspect that the ‘enemy’s’ main force had arrived early. After all, the garrison fleet isn’t that small. If I warped in at that moment, would I be walking into an ambush?” Cleves answered subconsciously, but he soon hesitated.

“But how can we convince the Federation fleet that our main force has arrived? If the garrison fleet is attacked, they should send a warning to the Federation fleet with basic information about the attacking enemy. If they find out the number of ships is not as large as they expected, might they still choose to launch an assault?”

“Cleves, you’ve hit on the most crucial point, and it’s what I’m most worried about.”

Amber sighed, a little unsure. He continued, “Randall must execute a theoretically perfect assault. He has to flawlessly orchestrate the entire process—pre-battle maneuvers, tactical deception, electronic warfare suppression, and the assault itself—to annihilate them before they can send out a warning.”

“Hiss…” Cleves drew a sharp breath. “Boss, now that you put it that way, I’m really worried about whether Senior can pull this off. After all, he’s never commanded a battle of this scale.”

Amber shrugged helplessly and joked with a hint of gallows humor.

“You’re not the only one. I’m worried too. If The Dawn had a Dragon God prayer hall, I’d definitely go in and pray for Randall for three days and three nights. I’d get on my knees and beg the Dragon God to bless our warships in the Loubion star system, to make their electronic warfare viruses punch through the enemy’s firewalls and knock out their communications and other electronic systems, to bless our warships’ main cannons so that every shot hits an enemy ship’s central fusion reactor…”

“Is there still time to build one? There are several places on The Dawn that could be converted into a prayer hall. If we have the Hive Core in the hangar deploy its Worker Bees, it could be built in a few hours.”

After hearing Amber’s words, Cleves actually stroked his chin and seriously considered the proposal, a perfect example of someone clutching at straws.

“What are you thinking? What’s the use of just building a chapel? Where am I going to find Dragon God priestesses and a choir?”

Torn between laughter and tears, Amber gave Cleves a light kick to snap him out of it, then continued, “We’d be better off spending this idle time running a simulation of Randall’s chances of success. By the way… how many forces does he have at his disposal?”

Atlas Combat Fleet, Third Task Force (TF3) Order of Battle

Fleet Flagship: The Infinity, Super-heavy battleship

Battleship Division: four Veritas-class battleships, two Kraken II-class battleships

Cruiser Division: six Inferno-class heavy cruisers, four Hydra-class heavy cruisers, twenty-two Griffin-class light cruisers

Destroyer-Frigate Division: Comprising three Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas, for a total of seventy-five destroyers and frigates of various types.

This was the entirety of the forces currently available to Randall, including a small mobile fleet carrying the first batch of trainees from the Renaissance Alliance.

The Veritas-class battleship was, in fact, the ‘Project 08’ battleship, designed, manufactured, and officially designated by Atlas Ships Heavy Industries.

The Inferno-class heavy cruiser was another warship, besides ‘Project 12’ and ‘Project 08’, that Atlas Ships Heavy Industries produced exclusively for its own use. Its performance was slightly superior to the currently active Hydra-class and Aurora-class ships of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire.

Randall, seated in the captain’s chair of The Infinity, stared blankly at the fleet’s order of battle before him. He remained silent for a long time, his thoughts unreadable.

Until a somewhat lazy voice sounded in his ear.

“It’s not that I’m complaining, Colonel Randall, but even if you stare a hole through that order of battle, we’re not going to magically get a few more battleships.”

“You’re just like your master, Amber. You’ve both got quite the sharp tongue.”

Randall pursed his lips, exasperated. His eyes darted to the side, landing on Murat, who was leaning against the captain’s chair. Seeing his posture, Randall couldn’t help but frown.

“Look at you. Commander of the Atlas HCP units, a Major no less, and still as lazy as ever. No, wait, I remember you being quite serious and hardworking when you first left Robert IV. You must have been corrupted by that guy Amber.”

“A big battle is imminent. I’m just trying to maintain a good state of mind.”

Murat smiled sheepishly, stood up straight with his hands behind his back, and then asked, “So, Colonel, you’ve been staring at it for a while. What did you see?”

“Sigh, what else could I see? I saw a future without light, a dead end.”

Murat: “…”

“But some things, we just have to do.”

Randall turned his head to look at Murat, and at Jacob, who had been standing silently beside him.

“There are no cowards in the Atlas Group, and there are certainly no cowards in TF3.”

Chapter 528: A Perfect Assault That Only Exists in Theory

Upon hearing Randall, who on a normal day didn’t seem like a particularly “hot-blooded man,” make a resolute declaration as if he were facing death, Murat and Jacob couldn’t help but feel a sense of solemn respect.

The bridge crew members who were standing closer also puffed out their chests with pride, as if they had been bestowed some great honor, upon seeing their captain act so heroically.

However, the very next second after Randall finished speaking, he sighed and said in a voice only Murat and Jacob could hear:

“But I really have no idea how to win this battle.”

Murat and Jacob: “…”

Seeing the two of them struggling to keep a straight face, Randall spoke nonchalantly.

“Go ahead and laugh if you want. Once the fighting starts, I doubt you’ll have time to laugh, or you won’t be able to.”

“Colonel Randall, your way with words is right up there with the Boss’s,” Murat said, forcing his face to remain serious as he suppressed his laughter.

He knew this wasn’t an appropriate time to laugh. The captain’s chair was in the most conspicuous spot on the bridge; if he laughed, the entire bridge crew would see it.

Jacob also offered a rare piece of sharp commentary. “Your first sentence gave off a sense of noble sacrifice. I was actually moved, maybe even about to squeeze out a tear or two. But then your next sentence made the whole thing fall apart.”

Hearing Jacob’s words, Randall immediately shook his head.

“No, I was serious about both statements. First, we must have the right attitude and not be afraid before the fight even begins. But then, we must also think rationally, because a fleet battle can’t be won with the ‘magical boost’ of sheer passion.”

“So you think we have no chance of winning this fight?” Murat asked.

“I can’t directly judge it as ‘no chance of winning.’ I can only state from an objective standpoint that there is indeed a certain gap in combat strength between us and the enemy.”

Randall replied, raising a hand to summon a holographic screen.

“You both just saw the number of ships we have on the roster. One Infinity, six battleships, ten heavy cruisers, twenty-two light cruisers, and seventy-five destroyers and frigates. That’s all there is. I can’t pull any more ships out of a hat.

“As for the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s garrison fleet, although many warships defected after the armed rebellion broke out in the star system, they still control a force of at least a standard fleet.

“The main disparity between us and the garrison fleet lies in capital ships. We have twenty-four fewer battleships and thirty fewer heavy cruisers. I won’t even go into the light cruisers and the Destroyer-Frigate Formation. While there’s a gap there too, it’s more acceptable.”

Hearing Randall’s words, Murat and the others turned their gazes to the “Enemy Fleet Intelligence” on the holographic screen. Randall continued.

“Do you two know about ‘Taffy 3’ from history?”

Murat: “The what now?”

Randall rolled his eyes helplessly and looked hopefully at Jacob. However, the Heavy Armored Gunship pilot didn’t provide the answer he wanted, instead flashing a foolish grin and scratching his head in embarrassment.

“Hehe, Colonel, I don’t know either…”

“Tsk, do military academies not even teach the History of Human Warfare anymore?”

Murat: “The Mobile Armor Academy certainly didn’t have that course. I went in, learned my stuff, and came out knowing how to pilot an HCP.”

Jacob: “You don’t even need to go to school to fly a high-speed reconnaissance craft. As long as you’re a little brave, you can fly after a few months of training.”

Their answers left Randall at a loss for words for a moment, but he quickly recovered and began to educate these two “greenhorns.”

“This is a story from a world war back when humanity was still on Blue Star. The official designation for ‘Taffy 3’ was TF 77.4.3—Task Force 77, Support Carrier Group 4, Unit 3.

“What that unit encountered back then was somewhat similar to our situation. A small, relatively weak fleet, ranked as third-rate in the order of battle, had a chance encounter with an enemy capital fleet whose on-paper strength was among the best at the time.

“In this situation, with such a massive disparity in strength, the cornered ‘Taffy 3’ chose to charge the ‘giant’ facing them…”

If they had heard this story before, Murat and Jacob might not have felt much. After all, that ancient battle took place a very long time ago, and unlike naval officers, neither of them had a particular obsession with the naval history of humanity’s various eras.

But now, finding their own predicament so similar to that of this small historical fleet, the two couldn’t help but put themselves in their shoes.

Murat couldn’t resist asking, “Colonel, what was the final outcome of that battle?”

“‘Taffy 3’ suffered heavy losses, and its escort destroyers sustained devastating casualties. However, they held on until reinforcements arrived, ultimately forcing the enemy fleet to retreat, which indirectly affected the outcome of the entire campaign.”

“Sounds like it wasn’t a bad ending,” Murat said with some relief, and Jacob nodded in agreement.

“You’re right, it certainly wasn’t a bad ending. You could even call it a classic battle of ‘the few defeating the many,’ a case of ‘a small force overcoming a great one’…”

Randall neither confirmed nor denied their views, but then added with a mischievous, ill-intentioned grin:

“However, the ‘ship-borne craft’ in that fleet, whose functions and duties were similar to HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, did suffer considerable losses in the battle.”

Murat and Jacob: “…”

“Hahahaha~” Seeing the expressions on their faces, as if they had just eaten something foul, Randall finally burst out laughing.

Somewhat speechless, Murat ignored Randall’s joke and turned his attention back to the “Enemy Fleet Intelligence” on the holographic screen. He spoke up quickly.

“Colonel, I believe that while there is a power gap between us and the garrison fleet, it’s not as big as it seems if you think about it carefully. The combat power of The Infinity is definitely not to be underestimated, and we also have Heavy Armored Gunships to supplement our anti-ship capabilities.

“If we go to war with the garrison fleet just like this, it’s not a hopeless fight. With your good command and a little bit of luck, I think we might even be able to win this battle.”

Randall wasn’t surprised by Murat’s words. Although he wasn’t from a naval background, he had been with the Atlas combat forces long enough to have picked up a few things and knew how to assess the difference in strength between two sides.

“You’re right. With The Infinity and the skilled pilots you’ve brought, we’re not without a chance in a direct confrontation. In fact, our odds of winning are not small.”

Randall nodded in agreement with Murat’s view, then continued.

“But what we need to do is not simply hold out until reinforcements arrive, or even to win the battle. We need to pull off a perfect assault that only exists in theory.”

Chapter 529: The Operation Begins

“A perfect assault that only exists in theory?” Murat and Jacob asked, almost in unison.

Randall nodded. “Given the current disparity in strength, we need to conduct a battle of annihilation against the enemy fleet near their designated warp exit point as quickly as possible. And we cannot let them have any chance to reveal our true situation to the other two Federation fleets.”

“Why can’t our true situation be revealed to the Federation fleets?” Jacob, who hadn’t yet grasped the key point, asked with some confusion.

“Because ‘maintaining an air of mystery’ is our greatest protection right now.”

Randall patiently explained:

“If the Federation fleet commander discovers that the star system’s garrison fleet has been suddenly annihilated in a short period, and without sending back a single piece of intelligence about the enemy, they will most likely assume it was wiped out by a much stronger foe.

“Under such circumstances, from what I know of the people in the Federation Navy, they would absolutely not risk warping in and being ambushed. Instead, it’s highly likely they’ll send scout ships to warp in and check the situation first.

“If that’s the case, it will buy us at least three days. The cargo fleet can then release all its aerospace transport groups, forgo recovery, and immediately accelerate to warp out of the Loubion star system. And we can hold out until our two unmanned fleets arrive.”

“I see.”

Jacob nodded thoughtfully, while Murat came up with another question.

“But Colonel, achieving the ‘perfect assault’ you’re talking about seems more than just a little difficult, doesn’t it? While The Infinity can find a way to hold its own against their battleship, what about their many heavy cruisers?”

Randall replied, “That’s why I’ll need to rely on Jacob and his men. During the battle, I’ll need the Heavy Armored Gunships to help me deal with those thirty extra heavy cruisers.”

“Yes, Colonel! The ‘Deepwater’ Heavy Armored Gunship Regiment and the ‘Fire of Renaissance’ Heavy Armored Gunship Regiment will complete the mission at all costs!”

Jacob snapped to attention with a sharp ‘click’ and saluted, accepting the order without a hint of hesitation.

The ‘Fire of Renaissance’ regiment he mentioned was, in fact, composed of the Heavy Armored Gunship pilots from the first batch of trainees sent by the Renaissance Alliance.

When Franklin on Loubion V confirmed that the Federation was making a move on the star system, he had unhesitatingly agreed to Jacob’s temporary command over these combat trainees.

After all, the combat craft assigned to these trainees upon their final assessment had arrived with them. Sending such a force back to Loubion V would not realize their true value.

Only when placed within a fleet commanded by professionals could their full potential be unleashed. Besides, on the point of confronting the Federation, the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group had long reached a consensus.

At the same time, Franklin knew that if Atlas’s fleet could not defeat the Federation fleet in a space battle, then the Renaissance Alliance would also be on a countdown to being crushed by the main forces of the Federation’s regular army.

Therefore, the HCP pilot trainees, including Johnny Leiding, had also been authorized by Franklin to be temporarily assigned to the Third Task Force as an auxiliary force to assist in the operation.

After hearing Jacob receive his assignment, Murat continued to question Randall, “The disparity in heavy cruisers is solved, but how do we cut off their communications with the Federation fleet?

“To ensure the garrison fleet has absolutely no time to send a warning about our detailed composition, besides a swift and efficient assault, we’ll also need electronic countermeasures powerful enough to completely suppress them.”

“That’s right. But for that, we can only pray that The Infinity’s electronic warfare capabilities, once the ‘Engagement Module’ is activated, are as strong as the experts at the design bureau claimed.”

Randall paused as if deep in thought, but he soon gave up pondering. He glanced at the time and continued:

“Forget it, there’s no point in overthinking it now. I can rack my brains all I want, but this is all the strength I have on hand. In a moment, I’ll go finalize the operational plan with the fleet staff officers. The fleet is expected to commence operations in five hours.

“Murat, Jacob, I’ll have to trouble you two with the pre-battle briefing for the HCP pilots and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots. This battle will be difficult. Casualties among the HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships will likely be very heavy…”

“Colonel, you don’t have to say all that. We all know,” Murat said, his expression calm as if he were speaking of a routine matter. “This is what we’re supposed to do. Even if we all turn to stardust in this battle, we will not retreat a single step and let the honor of Atlas be tarnished.”

Jacob also spoke up, “That’s right, Colonel. Please rest assured, there are absolutely no cowards among our Heavy Armored Gunship pilots. We will not stop attacking the enemy unless every single combat craft in the regiment is shot down.”

Hearing their promises, Randall stood up from his captain’s chair and gave them a salute.

The two young commanders immediately raised their hands in a return salute, then turned and left the bridge.

Watching their figures disappear beyond the hatchway, Randall let out a long breath before making his way down to the Executive Officer’s station in the CIC below the bridge.

“Allen, have the fleet staff officers assemble in Operations Briefing Room One within five minutes. Then, notify the entire fleet to conduct a final round of pre-battle preparations and stand by in a state of combat readiness.”

“Aye aye Captain!”

Some time later, in a region of space five hundred twenty thousand kilometers in a straight line from Loubion V, at the Federation fleet’s planned warp exit point.

The main body of the Loubion Star System’s garrison fleet was maintaining a high-alert patrol in a fleet maneuver formation near the coordinates.

In the original reconstruction plan, the garrison fleet, which had been heavily damaged in the previous battle with the Empire, was to be rebuilt to the size of two standard fleets with the assistance of the Atlas Group.

However, following the conflict between the Atlas Group and the Federation, and its subsequent complete decoupling from the Loubion star system, the efficiency of the garrison fleet’s reconstruction had plummeted.

Right up until the rebellion broke out in the star system, the garrison fleet had only completed the construction of one fleet. The ship commissioning progress for the second fleet was just over halfway complete.

What was more frustrating was that after their falling out with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, the Atlas Group had used various excuses to withhold a batch of capital ships originally scheduled for delivery to the garrison fleet.

This resulted in the planned allotments for Veritas-class battleships and Inferno-class heavy cruisers being left completely empty.

If not for the Federation government providing a batch of capital ships as a reward for the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s “obedient” behavior during the ‘Atlas Incident’, the Loubion garrison fleet might have become the first ‘capital fleet’ in history without a single heavy cruiser.

However, during that period, the Federation Navy was also preparing for the ‘strategic decisive battle’, so eighty percent of the capital ships provided to the Star System Autonomous Government were old vessels that had been repaired after suffering combat damage, some even after being ‘heavily damaged’.

Even so, they still hadn’t managed to completely fill out the roster of the Loubion Star System’s garrison fleet.

Nevertheless, in the eyes of the garrison fleet’s commander, a starving camel is still bigger than a horse. He was therefore quite confident in his ability to complete the current mission of ‘guarding the designated warp exit point’.

After all, according to the latest intelligence reports, the biggest threat in the Loubion star system—the Atlas Group’s fleet—was not even half the size of a standard fleet, and its capital ship numbers were far worse.

Although their fleet had that behemoth, The Infinity, the number of other ships was just too low.

If a real battle broke out, as long as the garrison fleet could find a way to avoid that infamous wide-area attack and use its numerical superiority to pick off the enemy’s conventional warships, the remaining Infinity could only suffer a bitter defeat under a siege.

So, this fleet commander had confidently reorganized the other half-fleet and assigned it to a position closer to Loubion V to suppress and eliminate the defecting former garrison warships.

All he had to do was hold this position with the capital fleet for another four hours, conduct a final situation confirmation with the Federation Navy’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets, and then they would enter warp, arriving in three days…

This relaxed mood had persisted until two and a half hours ago. But then, the commander received a crucial piece of news from the suppression and elimination fleet he had sent out:

The Atlas Group’s small task force had vanished from its orbit between Loubion V and its moon.

And from then until now, it had not been found.

Chapter 530: The Admiral’s Decision

For the past several days, the garrison fleet guarding the warp exit point had been in communication with the Federation fleet for confirmation multiple times.

This frequency of communication, far exceeding normal confirmation protocols, greatly displeased Rear Admiral Kimmel, the commander of the star system garrison fleet.

In his view, the Federation fleet commanders hiding in the distance were less like seasoned veterans who had seen combat since the start of the war and more like a bunch of cowards terrified by it.

Aside from a few large colonial and industrial satellite cities, the space of the Loubion star system was currently under the control of the garrison fleet. In theory, there were no hidden dangers.

Moreover, the Federation forces consisted of two full-strength capital fleets of the Federation Navy, not a tour group of wealthy old men and women. If any real trouble arose, the thousands of heavy particle cannons on those two fleets were not just for firing ceremonial salutes.

Although Kimmel had repeatedly complained to the Autonomous Government that the Federation fleet was engaged in a fruitless effort, tying down the main force of the garrison fleet not only emboldened the defected rebel warships but also failed to create an effective deterrent against the Atlas fleet.

But the Autonomous Government emphasized time and again that the garrison fleet must act according to the Federation fleet’s instructions, and they warned Rear Admiral Kimmel to never act on his own authority.

The reason was that the attack on Secretary of State Davis on Loubion V was still under investigation. The soldiers killed inside the anti-aircraft vehicle had backgrounds that were completely clean.

So clean, in fact, that it was abnormal.

Therefore, the Loubion Autonomous Government was currently conducting a very thorough search for clues, even taking the initiative to invite the Federation Central Intelligence Agency to participate in the investigation to prove its innocence.

And this was just one move in the “combination of initiatives” that Alex, the planetary administrator of the Loubion star system, had launched to prove their blamelessness.

He had contacted the Federation government immediately after the incident to explain, and had since adopted an uncharacteristically deferential posture, terrified that any misstep might provoke a direct Federation attack.

So when Rear Admiral Kimmel complained, Alex had cursed him out over a precious, encrypted real-time communication channel.

The Federation had never stopped suspecting the Autonomous Government. If you didn’t do as they asked at a time like this, and instead kept insisting their fleets enter the field directly, it would be a cosmic joke if the Federation government concluded that the garrison fleet was trying to lure them into a trap.

——

“How much longer until the next scheduled communication check?”

“One hour and twenty-eight minutes, General!”

Hearing the answer from the Captain of the flagship beneath his feet, Fleet Commander Kimmel first felt a slight sense of relief at the reduced time, then a secret thrill at being addressed as “General.”

This was especially true because the title came from his former “old rival”—another officer of his class who had competed with him for the command of the Loubion star system garrison fleet.

At the time, they were both Colonel-Captains of battleships in the garrison fleet, and both were among the final two candidates selected by the Autonomous Government.

However, because Kimmel was generally more adept at cultivating relationships and was closer to some of the key officials in the Autonomous Government, including Alex, the role of Fleet Commander had successfully fallen to him.

“General.” What a wonderful title,” Kimmel thought with a smug inner laugh, and he saw nothing wrong with his methods.

Objectively speaking, there was no real difference in professional competence between him and his rival. It wouldn’t have mattered to the garrison fleet which of them was promoted.

And he considered his skill in managing interpersonal relationships within the Autonomous Government to be a necessary capability for a Fleet Commander. Otherwise, how would he secure so much funding for the fleet each year?

After a brief moment of self-satisfaction, Kimmel returned to the present. Having spent two and a half hours on edge without seeing any sign of the Atlas Group’s fleet, the garrison fleet commander’s tense heart slowly began to relax.

He even started to suspect that the enemy had already warped out of the star system. After all, the Atlas Group fleet that had arrived in the Loubion star system was only so large; facing two Federation capital fleets and a system garrison fleet was suicide.

Moreover, he believed that the Atlas Group’s intelligence-gathering capabilities, legendary for being able to monitor the entire world, had surely informed them of the Federation fleet’s impending arrival.

Therefore, it was highly likely that they had decided to withdraw their fleet at the last minute. Once the Federation fleets arrived, getting away would not be so easy.

With this in mind, the commander made his decision:

“Notify all Suppression Divisions in orbit of Loubion V to conduct another sweep of the area between the planet and its moon, as well as the lunar orbit. Do not…”

But before he could finish his command, the Tactical Information Coordinator issued a warning.

“Report! Long-wave radar has detected a large number of unidentified units in the G9 area! They’re too far to be identified against the signature database, but the shipboard control AI assesses it is likely a large fleet!”

The Captain beside Kimmel immediately turned to look at him. Although he was still sore about losing the competition to Kimmel, in battle, the Captain maintained one hundred percent cooperation.

“Anything from optical or infrared/ultraviolet surveillance video?”

“Apologies, General! That area is directly aligned with the star ‘Great Loubion.’ The optical and infrared/ultraviolet surveillance units cannot currently identify them!”

Hearing this, Kimmel immediately looked at the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge. On the three-dimensional model, a yellow marker representing “unidentified units” had already been placed in the G9 area.

The garrison fleet, the yellow marker, and the star Great Loubion were currently in a straight line. As a result, the cosmic background captured by the optical and infrared sensors was not cold and black, but rather the glare of Great Loubion, like a giant searchlight.

Furthermore, under the influence of the star’s light and radiation, the surfaces of these “unidentified units” would heat up rapidly, which severely limited the effectiveness of identification.

“A large fleet… Could it be the Atlas capital fleet arriving early?” the flagship’s Captain suddenly asked.

Kimmel couldn’t give a definitive answer to that question at the moment, so he could only shake his head helplessly.

“I can’t give a positive answer without decisive evidence, but from an analytical point of view, it is indeed a possibility…”

Kimmel paused, appearing to consider his options for a few seconds, then issued a direct command from the Fleet Commander’s chair:

“Sync the information. Second Destroyer-Frigate Division is to break from formation, approach the G9 area, and maintain a watch! The entire fleet will shift to a box formation, maintain current heading, and adjust ship orientation thirty degrees toward the target area.”

At Kimmel’s command, the main body of the garrison fleet, which had been patrolling a fixed route, sprang back to life, adjusting its formation like a school of sardines in the sea.

Almost at the same moment the entire garrison fleet completed its axial adjustment, the Tactical Information Coordinator reported new information:

“The Fourth Suppression Division reports that they have discovered a communications relay satellite disguised as debris in high orbit around Loubion V and have intercepted a communication from the Atlas fleet!”

Hearing this news, Kimmel’s eyes lit up. “Has it been decrypted?”

“Report, General, the Fourth Suppression Division has brute-forced a portion of the information by running their shipboard control AIs in parallel!”

“Read it.”

“Flagship assault… stellar backlight attack… feigned attack direction… plan C…”

The Tactical Information Coordinator read out a string of intermittent keywords. Although the latter part of the report became completely incomprehensible, the keywords decrypted at the beginning caused the expressions of Kimmel and the flagship’s Captain beside him to grow increasingly grim.

“So they really are going to attack us?” the flagship’s Captain said.

“That’s if the disguised satellite found by the division is real, and this intercepted communication is also real…”

Kimmel’s brow furrowed deeply, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.

“Don’t you think our interception and decryption of this communication was a little too smooth? And such an important battle plan, discovered by us so easily?”

The flagship’s Captain also nodded. “It certainly was too easy. And it came at this exact moment. Could things really be that coincidental?”

Kimmel’s “defeated rival” also realized something was amiss, but before he could ponder it further, he heard Kimmel speak suddenly.

“Palao, what actions did we just take after discovering the unidentified targets?”

“You dispatched a Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla to scout ahead, ordered the fleet to adjust its formation, and adjusted the warships’ orientation without changing heading… Wait a minute!”

The flagship’s Captain, called Palao, suddenly realized something. He whipped his head toward the three-dimensional model on the holographic projection platform and immediately had the shipboard control AI input some parameters for calculation.

Soon, a red virtual course line extended from the direction of Loubion V, tracing a subtle arc before slamming into the blue warship icon representing the garrison fleet.

Judging from the last known position of the Atlas fleet, if they had been maneuvering toward them after entering a state of covert operations, then they could indeed have circled around to a position near the “designated warp exit point” in the time since they lost track of them.

Looking at the trajectory drawn by the shipboard control AI on the holographic projection platform, the flagship’s Captain looked back at Kimmel.

“General, if this intercepted communication was meant to mislead us, then it’s very likely that the direction of Great Loubion is the feigned attack meant to draw our attention, and the fleet’s previous orientation was the enemy’s true main attack vector!”

Hearing Palao’s words, Kimmel did not immediately confirm it. Instead, he issued new orders:

“Communications staff officer, sync the calculated enemy’s predicted trajectory to the division on the left flank. Have them re-adjust their ship orientation back, then launch tactical probes to form a sensor matrix and scan in the direction of the trajectory line!”

“Yes, General!

“Second Division, attention. This is flagship Balkan.”

The Communications staff officer in charge of fleet communications immediately synchronized the relevant information and then relayed the fleet commander’s orders to the Second Division on the left flank via a directional communications channel.

Meanwhile, Kimmel brought up a synthesized image from the flagship’s port-side optical and infrared sensors, as well as its Synthetic Aperture Radar, on a large screen on one side of the bridge’s command level.

After zooming in several times, everyone on the bridge soon saw the ships of the Second Division slowly turn toward the designated direction, as if spinning in place, before once again increasing the distance between each ship.

Then, one by one, “little green triangles” were released from within the warships, forming matrices near their respective vessels.

Although the crew could only see these system-generated icons, they knew that this was the Second Division deploying a fleet-level sensor matrix.

This large matrix, composed of the sensor units of all the warships in the division and the combat probes they had released, shone like a quickly assembled flashlight into the “pitch-black” space ahead.

The detection accuracy of such a fleet-level sensor matrix was not particularly high, but its extremely long range and vast detection area still made it a great help for an independent fleet on alert in unknown space.

This was because long-range vigilance was more about allowing the fleet to detect targets from a distance and prepare for unexpected situations, rather than locking onto a target’s specific location.

And as the distance closed, other, more specialized sensors and detection units equipped on the warships would enter their “comfort zone” and gradually come into play.

Soon, the Second Division sent back news that made both Kimmel and Palao somewhat excited.

“Second Division reports detection of a large number of unidentified units in the V6 area, suspected to be a fleet. And based on the echo characteristics, they appear to be a fleet with their orientation pointed toward us!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator made his report, the radar imaging from the Second Division’s sensor matrix appeared simultaneously on one of the bridge’s screens.

White patterns, highly similar to the projected profiles of warships viewed from directly ahead or behind, densely covered the entire screen.

“Just as I thought.”

Kimmel couldn’t help but clench his fists. If he hadn’t sensed that something was wrong, he might have fallen for the enemy’s trap, exposing the entire fleet’s flank to their guns.

He dared not imagine what kind of catastrophic disaster his fleet would have suffered.

Beside him, Palao also let out a long sigh of relief, thankful that Kimmel had sensed the problem early. He then continued, “General, this fleet is much larger than the Atlas fleet we previously detected. Could their relief fleet have truly arrived ahead of schedule?”

“I don’t know. After all, we didn’t detect their relief fleet entering the system, but we can’t rule out the possibility that they did indeed enter secretly.”

Kimmel answered Palao’s question verbally, but in his mind, he was beginning to grapple with a new problem.

What if the intercepted communication was real?

What if the Atlas battle fleet really was attacking from the direction of Great Loubion, using the star for backlight?

What if the enemy commander was a master of psychological warfare, who had “predicted” his “prediction” and deliberately set this trap for him to fall into?

As these questions flooded his mind, Kimmel immediately began to feel indecisive.

He realized he was facing a “multiple-choice question” that would decide the life or death of his fleet.

If he chose correctly, then the pre-battle strategic maneuvering of this engagement might very well be written into the textbooks of future generations, and he himself would be remembered in history.

If he chose incorrectly…

He would still be “remembered in history,” but he would become a backdrop for the Atlas fleet’s victory.

Kimmel didn’t realize at that moment that he was putting pressure on himself; he only felt that his choice and his next command would be of immense importance.

At this moment, the newly promoted Rear Admiral finally experienced the legendary “Admiral’s Decision”—that pivotal moment that haunted the dreams of every naval commander, and what it truly felt like.

On the bridge of the Loubion star system garrison fleet flagship, the Balkan, everyone realized that this was a critical moment that could decide all their futures.

They all unconsciously turned their gazes to Kimmel, who was in the most prominent position on the bridge. The entire bridge fell silent, leaving only the hum of the instruments.

This atmosphere, so tense that the very air seemed to solidify, lasted for an unknown amount of time. Just as some crew members began to hold their breath unconsciously under its influence—

Fleet Commander Kimmel finally made his decision.

“The Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla is to maintain its watch on the G9 area, providing early warning for any unidentified units on that flank. The rest of the fleet is to adjust its orientation to sync with the Second Division.”

Here, Kimmel paused, then said, enunciating each word:

“Issue General Quarters.”

When this short phrase, etched into the very bones of every navy sailor, was spoken, the bridge of the Balkan exploded as if a charge of high-energy explosives had been dropped into a calm lake.

Everyone immediately shifted into another state of being, focusing their entire attention on the workstations before them. And in the all-ship broadcasts of every warship in the garrison fleet, the sound that came through instantly put everyone on board on high alert.

“General Quarters, General Quarters. All hands to battle stations. We are about to make contact with a target suspected to be an enemy fleet.”

A Note of Absence

A note of absence~

I have to take another day off today. I originally thought it would be a break, but it turned out to be even busier than a workday. I’ve been running around outside all day…

I’m getting married on the 20th of next month, so I’ve been busy with wedding preparations lately. I might have to take leave occasionally. Sorry, sorry!!!

Chapter 531: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

As a ship-wide broadcast blared through each warship, every member of the garrison fleet sprang into action.

The crew already on duty at their battle stations needed no instruction. Those on rotation in the rest areas or eating in the mess hall immediately dropped their energy drinks and utensils, sprinting toward their posts.

Crew members catching up on sleep in their compartments according to the duty roster scrambled out of their sleeping bags the moment the combat alert sounded. While pulling on their shipboard work suits and connecting to their personal combat terminals, they nimbly rushed toward their standby areas.

As the Federation Navy’s semi-automated fleets were still under development, the garrison fleets authorized by the Star System Autonomous Government were naturally even further behind. Consequently, the number of crew members aboard their warships was still quite high.

However, having so many crew members on a warship didn’t mean there were an equal number of positions that needed to be operated simultaneously. Most were assigned to the same post as several others.

In many ways, a space fleet was like the navies of old. Every voyage from its homeport, whether a patrol, routine training, or a military exercise, was a lengthy affair.

The shortest deployments lasted at least a week or two, while longer missions lasting over half a year were commonplace.

Human stamina is finite, and it depletes even faster within the confines of a spaceship.

Therefore, most battle stations operated on a rotational basis. At a minimum, they used a three-shift system. Some positions that demanded more energy and concentration from the crew even had four or five shifts.

When a warship sounded a combat alert, the on-duty crew would typically continue their tasks, while the others remained on standby to provide support. If a crew member at a station was killed, the next person in their team would immediately take over.

Even so, due to the immense power of warship weaponry, it was common in fleet battles for an enemy attack to not only damage a ship but also wipe out the entire teams at several battle stations.

This was especially true for the damage control teams, for whom being annihilated as a complete unit was a tragically frequent occurrence in combat.

This was precisely why the Federation had initially sought to develop the unmanned fleet.

As long as a shipboard control AI possessed sufficient intelligence and computing power, a warship could continue fighting under its control so long as it hadn’t been completely destroyed. The entire fleet’s combat resilience would be far greater than that of a crewed fleet.

However, after Lilith “waved her hand” and took away three unmanned fleets, the Federation Navy had no choice but to mothball the remaining ones and pivot toward developing a “semi-automated fleet.”

The Star System Autonomous Government’s garrison fleets, however, were still a long way from these new technologies, their crew configurations remaining that of conventional manned warships.

Fortunately, the Autonomous Government had not been lax in crew training. Although the garrison fleet had a large number of new recruits, they remained remarkably calm in the face of the combat alert. Everyone performed their duties according to the procedures that had been drilled into them, acting on pure instinct.

As the main body of Kimmel’s garrison fleet finished its axial adjustment and began increasing power to its main thruster array to accelerate, the HCPs assigned to the first attack wave inside each warship’s Hangar entered the final stages of preparation.

“Subcritical reactor self-check complete! Power output stable!”

“All unit electrical systems and superconducting batteries self-check complete!”

“Weapon systems self-check complete! External assisted check passed!”

“Deflector shield generator activated, instantaneous test complete!”

“Blue-green laser and neutrino communication units rapid test finished. Communication channels clear!”

“Plasma thruster array self-check reports no faults. External visual inspection complete!”

“Electromagnetic muscle bundles and electromagnetic joints activated. Operating power normal!”

“Head-tracking control system online check. Pilot, please follow the maintenance crew’s instructions!”

Amidst the hum of motors and the sound of electromagnetic muscle bundles tensing and relaxing, the HCPs on the maintenance platforms in the Hangar began to perform a series of minor test movements, following the signals from the maintenance crew members holding light sticks in front of them as they went through the checklist.

Soon, the indicator lights on one maintenance platform after another switched from yellow to green, signifying that the HCPs had passed all pre-launch checks.

“All systems checked. Full unit control transferred to pilot.”

The maintenance crew member leading the self-check turned and ran a short distance away before turning back to salute.

“Good luck, Ensign!”

The HCP, loaded with its fleet-battle configuration, soon stepped off the maintenance platform. Under the pilot’s control, it raised a mechanical arm in a return salute before turning and walking toward the launch waiting area without a backward glance.

Soon, the mechs for the first launch wave had assembled. The two units at the front of the line moved onto the launch platforms.

Once the official launch order was given, these platforms would lift the units to the electromagnetic launch catapults on the external deck.

It was at this moment that the ship-wide broadcast sounded again.

“All hands, enter combat readiness. All compartment airtight doors sealing. Prepare for atmospheric venting. Ship power is being rerouted. Gravity in non-essential areas remains off. Prepare for inert gas injection.”

Following the announcement, gravity in the Hangar quickly vanished.

However, the HCPs had already activated the electromagnetic clamps on their feet, and all tools in the Hangar were strictly secured in various ways according to regulations, so nothing went floating about.

The maintenance crew members, who had already attached their safety lines, soon began to float, but the lines, which integrated oxygen and power conduits, were all clipped to designated anchor points as required.

Although this garrison fleet also had many new recruits, everyone had undergone extensive training in zero-gravity environments, so there had been no mishaps thus far.

In this state of “zero errors across the board,” many pilots and maintenance crew members even had the illusion that the garrison fleet might already be a ‘first-rate Federation Navy’ force.

But only the veterans who had survived high-intensity combat knew that such smoothness and “zero errors” in a non-combat state meant nothing.

The real test would begin only when the fleet officially engaged the enemy, when the warships began executing all sorts of emergency evasive maneuvers under the barrage of enemy capital ship salvos and HCP assault attacks.

Between the garrison fleet and the unidentified target in sector G9 lay a debris field composed of countless rock fragments of varying sizes.

This region was like a corner of space forgotten by time, dimly lit and suffocatingly silent.

Massive fragments drifted slowly through the blackness of space like enormous icebergs hidden beneath the water’s surface. Occasionally, a few smaller pieces would reflect a cold glint of light under the faint starlight.

But in this seemingly dead expanse, a tiny fragment suddenly collided with an invisible barrier during its drift. A flicker of distorted light momentarily revealed a slender shadow—one of Rear Admiral Kimmel’s secretly deployed “eyes.”

It was a modified scout ship, its exterior altered to remove all unnecessary protrusions.

Upon closer inspection, one could see that radiating from the scout ship as a central point was a vast network of nearly transparent carbon nanotubes.

These nanotubes, ranging from hundreds of meters to several kilometers in length, were connected to lightweight combat probes, forming an invisible web that covered the entire debris field, waiting for any target that unwittingly strayed into this ‘forbidden zone.’

Although its main body was just an ordinary scout ship, after being modified by Atlas during their “honeymoon” period of cooperation, the ship’s performance in all aspects, especially in stealth and reconnaissance, had been significantly enhanced.

On the bridge, which was under light control, only dim red lights faintly illuminated the general layout. On a low-brightness virtual screen next to the scout ship’s Captain, a composite image of the main garrison fleet was displayed.

Watching the main fleet’s movements, the scout ship’s Captain spoke:

“Our fleet has completed its axial adjustment. It seems the General believes the target over at V6 is Atlas’s fleet observation group. Has surveillance on the G9 target shown anything unusual?”

“Captain, surveillance of the target area is limited from our current angle,” the crewman on Air surveillance immediately responded. “Long-wave radar is maintaining a watch on the unidentified target group. They seem to be maneuvering along a set course. Based on this characteristic, they do resemble a decoy formation with corner reflectors. But due to interference from Great Loubion, other observation methods have yielded no results for now!”

After a brief pause, he added, “Based on their current trajectory, the G9 targets will begin to move out of Great Loubion’s interference zone in approximately twenty minutes.”

The scout ship’s Captain nodded. “Understood. Maintain surveillance and report any anomaly immediately. We are the garrison fleet’s most important insurance policy in this sector. If we can provide a timely warning, we can buy the main fleet enough time to react.”

He looked at the massive asteroids around him and couldn’t help but marvel at how Rear Admiral Kimmel was far more cautious than most in the fleet believed.

In Kimmel’s view, this debris field, not far from the planned warp-out zone, was an ideal location to set up a hidden sentry.

So, while the garrison fleet began to secure the planned warp-out zone, he had secretly ordered this modified scout ship to lie in wait within this debris field to provide early warning from multiple directions.

And now, it seemed Rear Admiral Kimmel’s arrangement was about to play a crucial role.

“Report! The unidentified targets in sector G9 are making a move! Captain, these might not be decoys.”

Chapter 532: The Oriole Behind

Hearing the sudden report from the observation team, the captain of this modified scout ship felt a jolt.

“What’s the situation?” he asked, suppressing his excitement and keeping his voice as calm as possible.

“Based on continuous tracking from the sensor array, the unidentified target in Sector G9 deviated from our predicted course thirty seconds ago. It appears to have executed a course correction!”

“A course correction… Have you predicted the new trajectory?”

“Yes, Captain! The shipboard control AI has made a rough prediction. The unidentified target seems to have adjusted in response to the garrison fleet’s movements. Its current heading is still straight for the garrison fleet!”

As the observation team replied, the screen in front of the scout ship’s captain updated simultaneously with the target observation data and the predicted virtual trajectory.

“Captain, should we send a warning to the General?”

The speaker was the ship’s intelligence officer. Besides organizing reconnaissance activities and intelligence analysis, providing timely tactical advice to the captain was also one of his duties.

“We only get one chance to send a warning. Once we transmit to the fleet, even if the enemy can’t decrypt our encrypted message in time, they will trace the origin of the warning to this debris field. Then we won’t be able to stay hidden anymore.”

The scout ship’s captain didn’t give a direct yes or no, instead laying out the likely consequences of sending a warning.

The intelligence officer asked, “You mean we should wait?”

The captain fell silent for a moment, apparently weighing the pros and cons, before nodding and saying:

“Yes. The garrison fleet still has a sufficient time buffer. Let’s wait until the target leaves Great Loubion’s sphere of influence, allowing us to perform a multi-signature identification, before considering a warning. Based on our past exchanges with Atlas combat fleets, they’re experts at using decoys equipped with corner reflectors for tactical deception. Some of their newer decoys are also capable of course correction. We need to be more cautious when dealing with them.”

“Yes, Captain! I’ll have my team maintain surveillance.”

The intelligence officer nodded, gave him a salute, and then, using a nearby handhold on the captain’s chair for leverage, pushed off lightly and floated towards the observation team’s station in the CIC.

The scout ship captain’s gaze refocused on the screen before him. The glaring red line of the predicted trajectory stabbed straight towards the garrison fleet—and at its flank, which presented a massive projected area.

As one of the few veterans in the garrison fleet who had experienced the previous war with the Star Dragon Empire, this scout ship captain’s experience and professional skill ranked among the very best in the entire fleet.

Furthermore, he had been involved in the entire reconstruction of the garrison fleet and had participated in joint training exercises with Atlas fleets. That was why Rear Admiral Kimmel had specifically positioned the scout ship he commanded in this debris field.

Moreover, the deployment of this ‘hidden sentry’ was known only to a select few in the entire fleet, including fleet command and the intelligence staff officer. The scout ship’s captain also reported directly to Rear Admiral Kimmel.

This was mainly because the garrison fleet had suffered several security leaks in the past that had directly impacted battle outcomes. Even after several internal investigations by the Fleet Military Police department and the Intelligence Division, they couldn’t guarantee the entire fleet was ‘clean’.

This made Rear Admiral Kimmel realize that this rebuilt fleet had many vulnerabilities in this regard. With so many new recruits, whose thoughts and morale were easily influenced by the current situation in the Loubion star system, he could only opt to keep the number of people in the know as small as possible for critical arrangements.

The combat deployment of this modified scout ship was one such arrangement.

The dimly lit interior under light control procedures, combined with the observation team’s recent report, made everyone else on the bridge feel a little tense.

However, they didn’t try to gauge the situation by sneaking glances at the captain’s expression. In fact, under these circumstances, their attention became even more involuntarily focused on the work consoles before them.

The tradition of light control, inherited from the age of blue-water navies, had been maintained no matter how human navies developed and changed.

After all, human vision in dim conditions relies mainly on rod cells.

Rod cells, in turn, depend on rhodopsin, which is more sensitive to blue light and less sensitive to red light. Under red light, this substance breaks down more slowly, which significantly delays the onset of eye fatigue.

This scout ship had been lurking in this debris field for one hundred forty-four hours, maintaining Condition Two readiness the entire time. Although all battle stations had gone through several crew rotations, the crew’s mental and physical stamina had still been significantly drained.

According to Federation Navy combat doctrine, with the exception of special vessels like long-range scout ships and penetration scout ships, other conventional scout ships or dual-role destroyers and frigates could not exceed a maximum deployment time of one hundred sixty hours when performing high-risk reconnaissance missions.

As this time limit approached, the ship would have to be relieved by another that had undergone rest and replenishment.

For this scout ship with a crew that was ‘half new, half old,’ this mission was the longest since the garrison fleet’s reconstruction. For many new crew members, their longest combat deployment before this was only eighty-six hours.

Although the captain had been worried that his crew’s mental and physical state would seriously decline due to the extended combat deployment, it seemed he was in luck; he hadn’t received any such reports from the Chief yet.

And once the observation team completed their final identification of the unknown unit in Sector G9, their mission would essentially be entering its final phase.

If the unidentified unit in Sector G9 really was an Atlas fleet, he would warn Rear Admiral Kimmel without hesitation and simultaneously command the scout ship to withdraw from the debris field—he believed the enemy would not hesitate to saturate the area with a barrage once their position was exposed.

While such an attack might not hit the ship directly, the resulting collisions and chaos within the debris field would be just as deadly.

“No matter what, this is all finally coming to a head,” the scout ship captain thought to himself. Yet at the same time, he couldn’t shake the feeling of being ‘watched,’ as if someone were secretly observing him from the shadows.

But the thing was, wasn’t his scout ship the one in the shadows?

“So, you guys think we hit the jackpot?”

“I guess… Maybe we did?”

“Finding an enemy scout ship in the very debris field we’re hiding in… no matter how you look at it, this is just too ridiculous. Sir, after this is over, maybe you should enter the group’s monthly ‘Contribution Lottery’?”

On the equally dim bridge of the Polarized Light, the special mission ship’s captain, Tom, was talking with the bridge duty officer and the Tactical Action Officer.

This special mission ship, previously sent to the Loubion star system to secretly support the Renaissance Alliance, had been integrated into Randall’s fleet upon its arrival. After resupplying alongside two other special mission ships, they were formed into an independent reconnaissance team.

The advantages of a special mission ship in covert operations allowed Tom and his crew to carry out their reconnaissance duties with ease, almost effortlessly.

But even Tom, with all his confidence in his vessel, had never expected they would stumble right under the nose of an enemy scout ship.

The Polarized Light had originally been dispatched by Randall to this debris field on a surveillance mission. The location’s natural cover made it an obvious choice for both commanders to set up an observation post.

Having arrived later, the Polarized Light had indeed failed to detect the optically camouflaged scout ship at first. After all, the other vessel had also been refitted with help from Atlas, and its stealth capabilities were quite good.

The two ships coexisted in the same debris field for several hours without disturbing each other. They were even monitoring different sectors, so neither detected the other’s radar waves.

However, the Polarized Light’s omnidirectional warning system eventually detected an abnormal ‘visual distortion’ near a particular asteroid—it was a momentary disruption in the warship’s optical camouflage caused by a collision with a slightly larger piece of debris.

Although the ‘visual distortion’ lasted less than half a second, it was still captured by the Polarized Light’s shipboard control AI. Tom and the others quickly realized they had ‘hit the jackpot.’

As for the enemy’s mission here?

Tom could guess with his eyes closed that they were acting as a ‘hidden sentry’ in this debris field.

Based on the surveillance the Polarized Light subsequently conducted on the scout ship, Tom and his team confirmed that they likely hadn’t warned the garrison fleet yet. But that was only temporary…

Because Tom knew that the ‘unidentified unit’ in Sector G9 was none other than the Third Task Force commanded by Randall.

From the current situation, it was clear that Randall’s tactical deception had worked. The Loubion star system’s garrison fleet had been misled and was charging headlong toward the torpedo decoy cluster.

But if the Polarized Light didn’t find a way to deal with the scout ship five hundred kilometers away in the next ten-odd minutes, it would likely warn the garrison fleet soon.

At this thought, Tom’s gaze shifted to the three-dimensional model displayed in low-light mode before him.

In this model of the debris field generated by the shipboard control AI, the positions of the Polarized Light and the enemy ship were marked by two miniature ship models, one green and one red.

Between the two warships, four other small green dots were moving through the debris field, steadily approaching the enemy vessel.

Seeing this, Tom couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh.

“Traversing a debris field with no power to ‘physically implant’ an electronic warfare virus… Corps Commander Banninger, it seems only your Immortal Corps could pull off a wild move like this.”

Chapter 533: ‘Physical’ Virus Attack

“Squad positions confirmed.”

“Memphis, has crossed the ‘Charlie line,’ no trajectory deviation.”

“Andes, has crossed the ‘Charlie line,’ trajectory deviation will be corrected in twelve seconds.”

“Grace, has crossed the ‘Charlie line,’ no trajectory deviation.”

After receiving position reports from the rest of the squad, Banninger used his heavy combat body to push off a piece of debris, correcting his own trajectory before speaking.

“Understood. Maintain insertion speed. We will cross the ‘red line’ in one hundred twenty seconds and make contact with the target in one hundred eighty seconds.”

“Roger!” ×3

The Immortal Corps’ internal communications were developed from their hive mind, and humanity currently had no effective means of detecting such transmissions. So, while Banninger’s tactical squad had temporarily disconnected from the Polarized Light to maintain radio silence, the squad members could still communicate amongst themselves.

When the Polarized Light had nearly collided with the furtive scout ship in the debris field, both Tom and Banninger realized they had to stop it from sending a warning to the garrison fleet.

But after careful planning, they discovered that the task of “stopping it from sending a warning” was far more troublesome than they had imagined.

First, the option of directly sinking it was dismissed right from the start.

Setting aside the question of whether the commotion from destroying the vessel would alert the enemy and put them on guard, just the barrage the garrison fleet would unleash on this debris field after discovering one of its scout ships had vanished would be more than the Polarized Light could handle.

Even if Banninger’s team had a way to silently disable the ship, who was to say the scout ship didn’t have some last-ditch emergency communication system or a way to send a distress signal?

Tom and Banninger weren’t willing to take that gamble.

So, their final line of thinking returned to the realm of a “soft kill.” Injecting an electronic warfare virus to disable the scout ship without alerting the garrison fleet became one of the most reliable options.

Based on the standard protocols of the human navy for deploying “hidden sentries,” these units, placed in dangerous areas, would remain completely silent at all times, except for the brief moment they sent a warning. They wouldn’t proactively contact other ships.

Therefore, after an electronic warfare virus disabled the ship, even if the scout ship never sent a message to the garrison fleet, the enemy would most likely not suspect a thing. They might even assume everything was normal.

However, everything in the world has two sides. While the scout ship’s silent running gave the Polarized Light an opportunity to act, this complete self-sealing “silence” also meant they couldn’t seem to find an opening.

Military-grade electronic warfare viruses were devastating once they infiltrated a system, but they first had to be successfully injected. After all, no virus could simply materialize inside an opponent’s system.

But right now, this scout ship was like a completely sealed sandbox, leaving the Polarized Light with no discernible point of entry.

Just as everyone was at a loss, Tom suddenly recalled a secret mission the Polarized Light had undertaken with Amber. On that mission, to avoid startling the grass and alerting the snake, the Polarized Light had launched Amber from an extremely long distance, and she had successfully completed the infiltration.

Thinking of this, Tom couldn’t help but turn his gaze to Banninger on the screen.

“Captain Tom, is there a problem?”

“Corps Commander, since you aren’t bound by the same limitations as humans, does that mean you have more freedom in extravehicular activity as well?”

“You’re not wrong to say that. So, Captain, what are you planning?”

As the pre-mission tactical discussion flashed through his mind, Banninger, now “strolling” through space, had to admit that Tom’s way of thinking was truly unconventional.

And he had to concede that this sort of hardcore, unpowered traverse across a debris field was indeed a job best suited for the Immortal Corps.

No normal human could pull off such a feat.

Of course, Amber and other psionic users didn’t count as normal humans.

Since the target scout ship had been modified with Atlas’s assistance during a “honeymoon period,” Tom, who had studied a great deal about scout ships after its integration into the combat fleet, quickly found its Achilles’ heel.

For the sake of rapid maintenance in shipyards and on the battlefield, the exteriors of both Federation and Star Dragon Empire ships were dotted with numerous specialized maintenance ports.

Some were physical access panels that could be opened for maintenance robots to enter, while others were “virtual” maintenance channels that allowed technicians to quickly check the status of various ship modules from the outside.

Although the latter had protective measures, they weren’t as stringent. Their most effective defense was being configured to only accept signals from within a few meters, which directly eliminated ninety-nine percent of long-range attacks.

As for an enemy getting within a few meters of the ship to attack a maintenance port, the ship’s designers considered this a scenario that would basically never happen.

After all, in a normal combat situation, no ship would allow an opponent to get within a few meters of it.

Besides, if you were already within a few meters, wouldn’t you just attack the ship physically instead of trying to inject an electronic warfare virus? Were you insane or something?

Thus, no ship had ever received upgrades to its “virtual” maintenance channels. In an emergency repair situation, these “access points” scattered across the hull did greatly improve the efficiency of the maintenance crew.

But this also gave the Polarized Light an opportunity.

“All units, be advised. Crossing the red line in thirty seconds. Deploy camouflage!”

“Roger that!” ×3

As Banninger’s command was issued, the other members of the tactical squad used the moment they passed by a piece of debris to activate the “camouflage” mounted on the exterior of their heavy combat bodies.

With compressed gas cylinders rapidly inflating the shells, when the four of them emerged from behind the debris, they were each curled into a ball, enveloped by their inflatable camouflage, and were now indistinguishable from any other small piece of rock in the debris field.

This set of camouflage kits, stripped from several spy satellites, was originally intended for the Immortals to practice disguised infiltration of high-value targets. They just never expected to fast-forward straight to a live combat scenario before they even had a chance to train with it.

But with the perfect convergence of conditions, the effectiveness of this camouflaged infiltration tactic was better than anyone had anticipated.

To maintain concealment, the scout ship had shut down all its active detection equipment except for its combat probes, minimizing its presence as much as possible. It relied on a set of omnidirectional optical and infrared warning systems for surveillance of its surroundings.

At the same time Banninger’s four-man team deployed their camouflage, a cluster of debris from another direction also drifted toward the scout ship. Banninger and his team took the opportunity to blend in with them, preparing to cross the final stretch of distance.

On the scout ship, the air surveillance team quickly detected the cluster of debris. As they quickly tagged it, an officer reported:

“Captain, a cluster of debris has been detected. Its trajectory will intersect with our position.”

“What’s the relative velocity?”

“Between two hundred sixty-four and four hundred twelve meters per second.”

“Will an impact cause damage to the ship?” the scout ship’s Captain asked.

Since the scout ship had already deployed a large number of combat probes connected by carbon nanotubes, any sudden change in the ship’s position would inevitably affect these probes and interrupt the tracking of the unidentified units in Sector G9.

Therefore, unless the debris posed a threat of damage to the hull, the Captain was reluctant to make any positional adjustments.

“Based on the calculated kinetic energy, it does not exceed the defense threshold of the ship’s outer armor!”

“Then prepare for impact. Attitude control system to ‘adaptive mode,’ compensate as much as possible for any positional shift caused by the debris impacts! Unlock the ‘compressed air attitude control modules’ on all combat probes. Stabilize positions immediately after the impacts!”

“Yes, Captain!”

Soon, the scout ship broadcasted a “all hands brace for impact” announcement. Everyone gripped the nearest safety handle or secured themselves to prevent being thrown about when the impacts occurred.

A few dozen seconds later, a stream of debris drifted past the scout ship’s position. Many of them struck the hull, making loud thudding sounds against the outer armor plates.

As the impacts occurred, the ship’s attitude control systems all over the hull worked continuously, minimizing the displacement effect. The limited supply of compressed air in the combat probes’ thrusters also activated, attempting to stabilize their orientation.

Before long, the stream of debris had passed the scout ship’s location, and the debris field returned to its previous calm.

Only, no one had noticed that four uniquely shaped “rocks” had left a few small gifts for the scout ship after striking its hull.

—

“All devices are online. Estimated thirty seconds until we breach the target’s maintenance port firewall. Time to discovery of anomaly is estimated to be at least ten minutes. Plan execution is not affected for now.”

After all squad members had completed their “physical” intrusion of their assigned maintenance ports, Banninger immediately focused on the progress of the four external intrusion devices.

After disguising themselves as debris and “colliding” with the ship near the maintenance ports, the four members of the tactical squad had each left behind an external device attached to the enemy’s armor plating. As soon as these devices came online, they immediately began their intrusion into the maintenance port terminals.

For Atlas, which had Lilith developing hacking tools and electronic warfare viruses around the clock, conventional network defenses were largely ineffective.

Furthermore, these external intrusion devices had also established physical connections to the maintenance ports using a multitude of carbon nanotubes finer than a human hair.

So, before the scout ship’s shipboard control AI could even react, the four sets of electronic warfare viruses, launched simultaneously, silently breached the warship’s firewall. They quickly began to “self-replicate” and spread, gradually infecting other systems within the ship.

Although warships in a combat state use airtight doors to separate numerous compartments, the various systems are still connected via a standard bus.

And while internal firewalls were in place for system segregation as per naval information security regulations, they were no match for the electronic warfare virus concocted by Lilith. As long as there was any information exchange between devices or systems, nothing could escape infection.

“Corps Commander, is our mission complete?”

“Yes. The electronic warfare virus is already spreading within the target’s system. At this rate, it won’t be long before all subsystems are out of their control.”

“Then what about the four of us?”

Memphis, who asked the question, was still in his camouflaged state, drifting through space like a piece of debris. However, based on his projected path, it wouldn’t be long before he drifted out of this debris field.

To evade detection, the four heavy combat bodies carried no propulsion units. They had been relying entirely on the initial velocity gained when they detached from the Polarized Light.

So, at this point, there was no longer any thought of returning. This was also why Tom had ultimately agreed to this plan. Only the “digital lifeforms” of the Immortal Corps could carry out such a task without any burden.

If Tom had sent actual people on a mission like this, he would have been labeled “anti-humanitarian” at the very least.

“Execute the destruction command, then detach from the combat bodies. It’s a bit of a shame, but these four heavy combat bodies are essentially unrecoverable.”

Banninger had been with Atlas since its humble beginnings, so even though Atlas’s current production capacity could churn out these heavy combat bodies in batches, he still felt a subconscious pang of regret at the loss.

The other members of the tactical squad didn’t hesitate upon hearing Banninger’s order. They immediately executed a timed destruction command.

When the timer ended, the combat bodies would melt from the inside out, eventually becoming a pile of completely unrecognizable scrap metal.

Not long after the tactical squad detached, the crew of the scout ship made a discovery.

It wasn’t that their ship had been hit by an electronic warfare virus, but that there was a new development with the unidentified target group they had been monitoring in Sector G9.

“Report! Unidentified units in Sector G9 are gradually moving out of Great Loubion’s sphere of influence! Optical and infrared sensors have acquired the targets. The shipboard control AI is identifying features of some of the targets!”

“Report! Feature identification complete. Database has matched characteristics of Hydra-class heavy cruisers and Griffin-class light cruisers!

“Two other target types have no match in the database, but the shipboard control AI speculates they are battleship and heavy cruiser class targets!

“Additionally, a super-large independent target has been detected, quantity one, presumed to be the previously sighted ‘The Infinity’!”

Upon hearing the report from the air surveillance team, the scout ship’s captain immediately concluded that the group of unidentified units in Sector G9 was Atlas’s true combat fleet, and the force the main garrison fleet was currently guarding against was likely a decoy!

“Quick! Send a warning! At the same time, this ship will prepare to evacuate this debris field!”

Without any hesitation, the scout ship’s captain immediately gave the order to send a warning and retreat.

“Yes, Captain! Sending… wait, communications unit malfunction? Forced offline?!”

The next moment, all the lights on the bridge went dark.

Chapter 534: TF3, Prepare to Attack

The moment the bridge plunged into darkness, with only a few faintly glowing emergency lights on independent power remaining, the scout ship’s Captain knew something was terribly wrong.

From his days as a student at the naval academy, to his assignment to the garrison fleet for active duty, up until this very moment, he had never heard of nor experienced a situation where the entire bridge suddenly lost power.

Of course, if a ship’s fusion reactor and superconducting battery stack were blown up, a similar scene would indeed occur, but most people would not live to see it.

Under normal circumstances, for a warship’s bridge to lose power so completely, it could only mean that the main fusion reactor and backup power had failed simultaneously.

From the scout ship Captain’s perspective, if he was truly facing such a situation, it was highly likely that the problem wasn’t just with the bridge; the entire warship had probably had its power cut off.

But up until just a moment ago, the ship had not been under any attack, so it was impossible for battle damage to have led to the current situation.

The scout ship’s Captain furiously slammed his fist on the armrest of his captain’s chair and roared:

“Damn it! We’ve been hacked!”

The others on the bridge did not have the Captain’s wealth of experience, nor were their minds as quick. They had been in a state of shock after the power outage, and only snapped back to their senses upon hearing the Captain’s roar.

However, before the officer on duty and the staff officers could say anything, they heard the Captain continue to shout:

“Talia? Talia?!!”

That was the name of the scout ship’s control AI. But no matter how the Captain called, the shipboard control AI, which had vanished during the massive power failure, did not reappear.

By this point, even the slowest crew member could realize what had happened.

Although the shipboard control AI usually appeared as a delicate ‘virtual beauty’, she was in fact responsible for maintaining and coordinating the operation of all the ship’s subsystems, and a vast number of automated systems ran under her supervision.

Even when a ship was in a shipyard for repairs with all its subsystems offline, the shipboard control AI would never go offline. On the contrary, it would even assist in guiding maintenance work.

On some ships with longer service lives, the shipboard control AI might only be rebooted a few times over several decades for a ‘memory wipe’; the rest of the time, it would remain operational, hibernating at most.

And the scout ship they were currently on was in the middle of a combat mission. Under these circumstances, it was even more impossible for the shipboard control AI to go offline.

So only one answer remained: the scout ship had been hit by an unprecedented electronic warfare virus, one so potent it had forced the shipboard control AI offline before she could even take any countermeasures.

Although he was already aware that his ship was in deep trouble, the scout ship’s Captain decided to struggle a little longer.

“Can we send out a distress signal?”

“Negative.” The officer on duty shook his head. “Aside from the ship’s life support units, all other subsystems are offline. We can’t even turn on the workstation screens!”

“They left us life support? Heh… How considerate of them.”

The scout ship Captain spoke with a complicated expression, then looked toward several crew members who were bustling about at the hatch.

“How is it? Can the hatch be opened?”

“Reporting, Captain! All hatches leading out of the bridge have been opened, but the heavy isolation doors in the external corridors have been lowered. Once these things are locked, they’re impossible for unassisted personnel to break through.

If we had heavy engineering equipment, we could try something, but the problem is, this is the bridge, not the Hangar…”

The Captain was not too surprised by this answer, merely thinking to himself, ‘Just as I expected.’

Since this mysterious electronic warfare virus could silently infect the entire warship and force the shipboard control AI offline, it was only ‘logical’ that it would also shut the fireproof and blast-proof heavy isolation doors in the ship’s corridors.

But for the crew of this scout ship, this meant they were now completely isolated in their respective compartments. They couldn’t even manage basic internal communications, so they had no idea about the current situation in other sections of the ship.

“Emergency escape units?”

“Access denied, cannot reboot!”

“Can we activate the backup operating system?”

“No power supply. Can’t be activated!”

“Can we get into the maintenance access ways?”

“A maintenance robot could, but it’s a tight squeeze for a human.”

“Brute-force the doors?”

“The HCPs in the Hangar might be able to pull that off, but we can forget it here on the bridge. We barely have any decent weapons.”

After trying every conceivable solution on the bridge with his crew and achieving no results, the scout ship’s Captain finally gave up. He told everyone to sit down, rest, and conserve oxygen and energy.

He knew that for the people on the bridge, any self-rescue attempt would require a prayer to the heavens. It was safer to just wait for other compartments to find a solution, or for the garrison fleet to notice something was wrong and send a rescue party.

Of course, that was assuming the garrison fleet would have the spare time to come to this debris field to ‘recover the ship’.

Meanwhile, aboard the garrison fleet flagship, Kimmel was also nervously checking an encrypted channel for new messages from time to time.

This encrypted channel was the dedicated communication link between the scout ship and the flagship. If the scout ship needed to send a warning or any other information, it would come through this channel.

Moreover, aside from actively sending warnings, the scout ship was supposed to remain in a ‘passive receive’ state. In theory, no news on this encrypted channel was the safest situation.

But for some reason, looking at the empty encrypted channel, the garrison fleet commander, Rear Admiral Kimmel, felt a growing sense of unease.

“Am I just too nervous? This isn’t my first real battle, so why am I having all these stray thoughts?”

Rear Admiral Kimmel shook his head, quickly casting the idea from his mind and focusing his energy on the command at hand.

After composing himself, he asked, “How far are we from the enemy in Sector V6?”

“Two hundred and eighty thousand kilometers, General! At our current relative velocity, we expect to get a composite image in seventeen minutes and reach engagement range in thirty-five minutes!” the intelligence officer replied.

“Very good. Continue search and surveillance… By the way, what’s the surveillance status on Sector G9?”

Although he knew his secretly deployed scout ship was watching Sector G9, Kimmel couldn’t help but ask, as if wanting to hear the ‘double assurance’ he was hoping for.

And the intelligence officer’s reply did not disappoint him.

“The Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla conducted a scan fifteen minutes ago. However, in this scan, over eighty percent of the units did not return a radar echo as they had before.”

The intelligence officer looked at the information on his terminal before continuing:

“The Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla believes the enemy’s decoys may have reached the limit of their operational duration and are beginning to fail one by one. The number of contacts from previous scans has also been decreasing each time…”

“Understood. Send a message to the Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla: do not relax your guard!”

“Yes, General.”

The intelligence officer quickly relayed the order as instructed, while Kimmel reassured himself in his mind:

“It’s fine. The hidden sentry hasn’t sent any warnings, and these unidentified targets are indeed behaving like long-range decoys. This proves that Sector G9 is just a feint to lure us in.

You must stand by your judgment, Kimmel!”

“Report, all ships in the fleet have sequentially activated radar wave cancellation as previously deployed and have completed optical camouflage activation. It is projected that we will disappear from the enemy’s radar control screens during their next long-range scan!”

“Report, observation team reports receiving a light signal from the debris field. Source is the Polarized Light. Message reads: ‘Hidden sentry eliminated, clear to proceed!’”

“Report…”

Hearing the series of reports from the various battle stations on the bridge, especially the one about the Polarized Light taking out the enemy’s hidden sentry, Randall’s expression relaxed slightly.

To be honest, it wasn’t until the Polarized Light sent its signal that Randall, who was inexperienced in fleet battles, realized the enemy might have placed a secret observation post within this natural ‘concealment zone’. He couldn’t believe he had forgotten about that possibility.

Fortunately, the Polarized Light he had sent had successfully eliminated the enemy’s hidden sentry. Otherwise, the Third Task Force’s hope of launching an assault from the garrison fleet’s ‘surveillance blind spot’ on their flank would have been dashed.

“Navigator, how long until we’re in attack range?”

“Sir, at our current relative velocity to the target fleet’s course waypoint, we will enter attack range in seventeen minutes!”

Randall nodded. “Relay this order: all fleets, maintain current formation and relative velocity, prepare for battle! Upon entering attack range, all ships are to immediately begin deceleration, disengage optical camouflage, and commence their attack.

Strive to maximize the effect of this ‘flanking strike’ before the enemy fleet can react!”

Chapter 535: A Simple Math Problem

Back at the Federation Naval Academy, Randall had always remembered what his teacher—General Guterres, who had since joined the Atlas Group—once said: no matter the clever tricks or tactical arrangements, space fleet battles at humanity’s current stage of development were, in essence, a simple math problem.

Randall had also heard this from Amber, except when Amber recited this “classic definition,” acknowledged by many naval commanders, he added his own interpretation.

In his view, it was true that the essence of a fleet battle was indeed a simple math problem.

Moreover, it was an incredibly simple one—a basic arithmetic problem that a primary school student could solve with a bit of time. This math problem was used to calculate the total power of the two opposing fleets and the difference between them.

In over ninety percent of fleet battles, the fleet with the higher total power would win without a doubt.

As for the remaining ten percent, they all became the classic “the few defeating the many” battles found in the textbooks of every naval academy.

However, Amber’s understanding of this “basic arithmetic” contained certain insights that forced Randall to admit the man’s imagination truly was out of this world.

During one of his exchanges with the command staff of the Atlas combat fleet, Amber had mentioned that the “formula” for measuring the power and strength gap between two fleets was not as rigid as everyone imagined.

Instead, the “total power” parameters for both sides could be flexibly adjusted according to the real-time progress of the battle. From the moment the two fleets engaged, the result of this formula was, in fact, constantly changing.

Especially when the gap between two fleets was not so great that all external conditions could be ignored, a fleet commander’s job was actually to find the optimal solution to this “basic arithmetic” problem.

Randall had to admit that when he first heard this theory, he hadn’t understood what Amber meant.

In the eyes of purely by-the-book officers like him and Cleves, or old-school commanders like Guterres, the total power of the engaged fleets was a fixed value once the battle began.

Unless one side was continuously reinforced by friendly forces, constantly “doing addition,” the problem was already solved from the very beginning.

But now, as he commanded the Third Task Force in its assault on the Loubion star system garrison fleet, Randall suddenly realized he was beginning to understand Amber’s meaning.

According to Amber’s “heretical theory,” the total power of the enemy fleet he was targeting was not the sum of all its ships’ combat power…

It was zero.

The reason was simple: the enemy fleet’s orientation was not pointed toward his own, and they had exposed their weakest broadsides.

Given the current state of humanity’s “spear and shield” development in naval warfare, a warship’s broadside, even with deflector shields at full power, could hardly withstand a main cannon shot from a ship of the same class.

Even if it wasn’t sunk on the spot, the shot would still be more than enough to punch through the outer armor and blast the internal structure to pieces.

Of course, super-flagships like The Infinity and The Dawn were temporarily excluded from this discussion.

So, the situation Randall now faced, if described in Amber’s own words from a similar scenario, would be:

“The enemy’s gun and shield are pointed in another direction. When you’re stabbing them from the side or back with a spear, do you really need to calculate the thickness of their shield and the sharpness of your spear?”

“Amber, you son of a bitch, you’re a real genius…”

Seeing the “juicy and succulent” broadsides of the target fleet drawing ever closer, Randall couldn’t help but murmur his admiration.

If Amber, currently hurtling through the “hyperspace highway,” could hear Randall’s praise, he would probably feel a bit embarrassed.

After all, this “heretical theory” of his wasn’t something he had developed himself, but rather a “game mechanic” for fleet battles from Starry Sky Online in his previous life.

It was like some realistic ground vehicle simulation games set on, for example, “Anton Star” or “Minsk Star.” The settings for combat units went beyond basic firepower and armor thickness to include the differing effects of attacks from various positions and angles.

Friends who often drove tanks knew that in an armored duel, attacking a “side” from the “front” held a natural advantage.

The same was true in Starry Sky Online, and in the world Amber now inhabited. Since human warships’ main cannons were axial cannons and the deflector shields were strongest at the bow, the ship’s front became its engagement profile, while its broadsides became its absolute weak points.

Thus, the traditional naval tactic of “crossing the T” was completely reversed, becoming “getting behind the T.”

Players in Starry Sky Online weren’t genuine fleet commanders, after all. Even if they were naval officers in the real world, much of their “blue-water navy” experience was inapplicable.

So, the game developers very thoughtfully provided players acting as “Fleet Commanders” with an “official mod.” During fleet battles, it could calculate a value called “combat power” in real-time based on the current formations of both sides, the number of main cannons aimed at the enemy, and the strength of their armor and deflector shields.

This setting and “official plugin” transformed player fleet battles in Starry Sky Online from the simple, crude exchanges of fire in the early days of the game to a style of constant maneuvering, seeking opportunities, and catching an enemy’s flank, all in an attempt to make one’s own fleet’s “combat power” momentarily exceed the opponent’s and launch an attack in that instant.

However, this “heretical theory” that Amber had brought with him had, until now, only been verified in Atlas’s internal fleet exercises. The battle Randall was commanding today was the first time this “theory” would be tested in actual combat.

For the members of the Third Task Force, the ten-plus-minute approach was undoubtedly agonizing.

The entire fleet entered a state of complete “silent running.” Especially after activating radar wave cancellation and optical camouflage, all ships had shut down their active detection equipment.

The Third Task Force, formed into an extremely dense, compact, and elongated “spindle-shaped assault formation,” maintained a distance between each ship that was right on the red line of “safe navigation distance.”

As a result, every helmsman was “flying blind,” relying on positional data of surrounding ships transmitted via blue-green laser communication.

As long as they ensured their relative position to nearby ships remained unchanged, it meant their warship was still in sync with the entire fleet’s advance.

The “spearhead” leading the entire task force’s charge was none other than the fleet’s flagship, The Infinity.

There was no other reason than its “sharp spear and thick shield.”

For this reason, she would also be the first ship in the Third Task Force to open fire.

“Report, three minutes until we enter attack range! We have also entered the enemy fleet’s ‘outer warning perimeter’ and could be detected at any moment!”

The Infinity’s Tactical Information Coordinator, though one of the most senior crew members in the Atlas combat fleet, couldn’t help but grow tense at this moment.

After all, a fleet of this size rapidly approaching an opponent’s flank in near-stealth was a tactic no one had ever tried before, and no one knew if it would succeed—and the one who devised this tactic was Colonel Randall, a commander with little experience in fleet battles.

If the Loubion star system garrison fleet discovered anything in the next three minutes, they would have time to react. Even if they reoriented at the last second, the difficulty of this battle would skyrocket for the Third Task Force.

“Steady! Steady! Maintain the current advance!”

Randall was also nervously gripping the armrests of his captain’s chair—a nearly universal action for captains and fleet commanders under pressure.

At this point, Randall knew that he and his fleet had no path of retreat. The only way forward was to attack the enemy, so he could only pray that the Third Task Force had plunged into a blind spot in the Loubion garrison fleet’s reconnaissance.

Perhaps Randall’s prayers were answered. Just as the Loubion star system garrison fleet was about to enter attack range of the “Atlas fleet in Sector V6”—and just a moment before the Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla on its flank would have noticed something was amiss—Rear Admiral Kimmel issued a new order:

“Relay my command. The Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla is to stand down from high alert and join the capital fleet in the assault!”

When The Infinity’s skyward observation team, using optical sensors, caught sight of the screening destroyers and frigates on the enemy’s flank leaving long trails as they sped to catch up with their main force, Randall suddenly felt as if he must have bedded Lady Luck in his dreams.

The final three minutes of the approach were unlike the “agony” of the preceding tens of minutes; it was as if an accelerator had been pressed, and they passed in an instant.

Just as Randall felt his heart rate rapidly increase, the Navigator shouted the words he had been waiting to hear:

“Report, the fleet has entered attack range!”

The bridge seemed to fall silent for a moment. In the next second, Randall’s command thundered through it.

“All fleet! Bring fusion reactors to combat output, all weapon systems online, disengage optical camouflage, and deploy into combat formation!”

“All HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons, full-deck launch! After breaking through the enemy air defense perimeter, prioritize enemy capital ships!”

“The Infinity, super-heavy purification beam emitter, target the enemy battleship formation, and prepare to fire!”

Straining against his seatbelt, Randall surged with an unprecedented force, leaning forward and pointing ahead as he let out a classic roar that would one day be recorded in the Combat History of the Atlas Fleet.

“Tremble, O gods, before this single strike!”

Chapter 536: A Genius’s First Time in Space

D-Hour. Electromagnetic launch catapults of the heavy cruiser The Sun’s Reward.

“Attention all units, The Infinity’s main cannon is about to fire. All launched units, take evasive action! Repeat.”

Hearing the alert over the comms, Johnny Leiding, who as the point man was first on the electromagnetic launch catapult, subconsciously glanced toward the front of the fleet, which had just deactivated its optical camouflage.

In the distance, The Infinity’s main cannon was preparing to fire. The super-flagship was several times the size of an ordinary warship, and its enormous hull housed weapon systems powerful enough to change the course of a battle single-handedly.

Through a zoomed-in window on his panoramic display linked to the optical sensors, Johnny Leiding could clearly see the armor plates on both sides of The Infinity’s bow slowly opening like a shark’s gills, faintly revealing the complex internal mechanisms and gleaming energy conduits within.

The firing port of the super-heavy purification beam emitter was surrounded by constantly rotating rings of light—psionic vortexes formed as the emitter powered up.

As the emitter’s energy reached its peak, the area around The Infinity’s bow became enveloped in a golden glow, as if blessed by the sun god of legend.

Johnny Leiding felt he could sense the energy fluctuations from The Infinity even without the aid of any equipment.

He knew he wasn’t a psionic user, just a normal human with stronger-than-average physical conditioning. But the fact that even he could feel these psionic waves was a testament to the immense power of the energy being unleashed.

“The Infinity is at the very front of the fleet,” Johnny thought, “so there’s no way any launched HCPs or combat craft have gotten in front of her, right?”

Just as this thought flashed through his mind, the dark expanse of space before him suddenly lit up.

After a brief, tense pause, a blinding, golden-yellow beam erupted from The Infinity’s bow, streaking toward a target fifty thousand kilometers away in mere seconds.

Like a ‘lightsaber’ of infinite length, the golden-yellow beam cut through the black backdrop of space, illuminating everything in its path. Particles of stardust along its trajectory were instantly ‘purified,’ creating a brilliant, incandescent trail.

As a weapon powered by a Psionic Core, the super-heavy purification beam emitter’s defining characteristic was the incredible speed of its first strike.

Furthermore, the proficiency of The Infinity’s crew had improved considerably. With the Psionic Core ‘pre-charged,’ it took less than ten seconds to go from activation to firing the super-heavy purification beam emitter.

It was only when this golden purification beam streaked across the cold expanse of space and struck the massive broadside of a battleship in the garrison fleet that Kimmel and his men realized they were under attack. Only then did the ‘enemy attack’ warnings belatedly arrive.

But that was only the beginning. After piercing the first target, the dazzling purification beam continued on with undiminished force, boring through another battleship in its path.

Since the garrison fleet’s main formation was also organized by ship type, other battleships from the same squadron were clustered nearby, which made things incredibly convenient for The Infinity’s main cannon.

During the first firing sequence, The Infinity once again slightly adjusted its orientation, just as it had in previous battles, causing the purification beam to sweep through the garrison fleet like a whip. With the garrison fleet also charging at high speed in another direction, it looked to the other ships as if a pillar had materialized out of thin air right in the middle of their formation.

Any ship unlucky enough to collide with it would be instantly destroyed, crew and all.

After being ‘pre-charged’ by the Psionic Core, The Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter could fire three times in a row.

And in Randall’s pre-battle plan, once The Infinity opened fire, it was to fire all three shots to maximize damage before the garrison fleet of the Loubion star system had a chance to regroup.

Although he couldn’t know the exact extent of the damage caused by the three sweeping purification beams, Johnny Leiding watched the constant flashes of fire erupting within the distant enemy fleet and was certain The Infinity’s attack had been incredibly effective.

“Pilot, attention. Launch path is clear! Catapult voltage is stable, unit is secure, launch control has been transferred. You may launch at your discretion!”

A sweet, female voice sounding in his ear was what snapped Johnny Leiding out of his awe at the firing of The Infinity’s main cannon.

“Uh… Roger that. Thanks for the guidance!”

Snapping back to reality, Johnny Leiding saluted the rabbit-girl controller on the screen in the upper right of his 360-degree cockpit, then mapped the ‘Launch’ command for the catapult to a holographic display.

The track beneath his unit was a one-way ticket to a brutal battle, but it was also a place where hope and courage converged.

Looking around through the unobstructed view of his 360-degree cockpit, he saw the entire Third Task Force advancing toward the enemy position in perfect formation, as if driven by an unseen force.

Beneath the stars, this magnificent spectacle woven from human ingenuity and courage was undoubtedly one of the most breathtaking sights in the universe.

Although this ‘genius pilot’ Johnny Leiding was not new to actual combat, all his experience had been in land warfare within a gravity well. A large-scale fleet battle in space like this was a completely new experience for him.

If you were to ask Johnny Leiding if he was nervous?

Then of course he was nervous. Or rather, there wasn’t a single pilot who wouldn’t feel nervous the first time they witnessed a magnificent yet brutal space fleet battle with their own eyes.

Even someone like Amber, who had gone on rampages in Starry Sky Online in her previous life, would have been nervous during her first proper space battle in this world.

But Johnny Leiding knew it was too late for regrets. Besides, the traits of a ‘genius pilot’ quickly began to manifest—he found that as he watched the surrounding fleet and the boundless universe, he was becoming increasingly calm.

At the same time, on the long electromagnetic catapult before him, the AR icon for ‘launch clearance’ turned from red to green.

“Renaissance Alliance Task Force, First HCP Squadron, Johnny Leiding, launching!”

As his voice faded, Johnny Leiding no longer hesitated. He decisively slammed his right fist down onto the holographic display.

The energy long stored in the electromagnetic catapult’s capacitors was released in that instant. Johnny Leiding felt himself pinned to his pilot’s seat as the view before him shot backward at an astonishing speed, so fast that his surroundings became a blur of light and shadow.

He subconsciously fell back on the diaphragmatic breathing that had become muscle memory during training, letting it work with his heavy hydraulic pressure suit to counteract the sudden G-force.

Three seconds later, when Johnny Leiding collected himself, he was already piloting a fully-equipped ‘Aegis’ unit into the cold, burning void.

Quiet.

This was Johnny Leiding’s first impression after launching his unit into space.

Although he was surrounded by numerous friendly warships, HCPs, and combat craft, and though the main damage-dealing battleships and heavy cruisers had already begun firing their heavy electromagnetic cannons and launching plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles, Johnny Leiding still felt as if he were watching a silent film. The only sounds were the hum of the instruments in his cockpit and the groaning of his unit’s frame as it strained under high-speed acceleration.

Before long, a series of chimes announced friendly units connecting, and three other fully-equipped ‘Aegis’ units formed up beside him.

These were the other members of the squad he commanded, each one a top-tier pilot from the Renaissance Alliance’s latest batch of trainees.

In the surrounding space, Johnny Leiding could clearly see other friendly units moving in concert in the distance.

Forming into assault groups, they streaked across the void like a midsummer meteor shower. Riding their initial launch velocity, they rapidly moved past the vanguard of the fleet and began to spread out according to their respective formations and combat assignments, preparing to assault the garrison fleet.

Just as Johnny Leiding was becoming somewhat captivated by the ‘grand spectacle’ before him, a familiar voice suddenly crackled over the comms channel:

“Hey handsome, need a ride~”

Chapter 537: Crimson Lightning & Red Baron

The Aegis’s combat assistance AI quickly marked the position of the current communication target on the panoramic display.

Johnny Leiding tilted his head slightly in that direction, and the unit’s main head monitor immediately swiveled over, quickly acquiring the target—a red-painted MA-01B Block 5 Heavy Armored Gunship.

This was the personal craft of Manfred, the ‘Red Baron’.

Having also launched from the heavy cruiser The Sun’s Reward, he was leading his squad, steadily overtaking the HCPs ahead with greater acceleration, and soon caught up to Johnny Leiding’s group, who had launched earlier.

Hearing his good friend’s voice on the comm channel, Johnny Leiding’s nerves, which had been tense from his first time participating in space combat, relaxed considerably.

Johnny Leiding returned his gaze forward and replied:

“Yo, the driver’s here. How many can you take this time?”

“Not too many, not too few. Just enough to pack up a whole squad~”

As Manfred’s voice came over the comm channel, Johnny Leiding’s HCP team received a ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ request from the heavy armored gunship squad.

“Then we’ll take you up on that offer. Crimson Lightning team, prepare for ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ docking!”

At Johnny Leiding’s command, the four fully-equipped Aegis units, including his own, increased their spacing slightly. After they all accepted the ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ request, the four heavy armored gunships behind them accelerated and flew up to meet them.

Soon, these high-speed predators of the battlefield ‘docilely’ positioned themselves beneath the four Aegis units. A docking assistance interface with indicators quickly appeared on the Aegis units’ panoramic displays.

With the help of the assistance interface, the fully-equipped Aegis units and heavy armored gunships matched up one-to-one and became stationary relative to each other.

Immediately after, the Aegis’s two mechanical arms grasped the handles that rose from the heavy armored gunships and locked on.

Then, the entire unit attached itself to the top of the heavy armored gunship in a prone-like posture, its knees and feet connecting and locking with the corresponding interfaces on the craft.

“Docking and locking complete. Control authority for the unit’s main thruster array has been shared with the Partner Craft!”

The combat assistance AI’s voice announced. Johnny Leiding glanced down; the Aegis he was piloting had docked with Manfred’s gunship. Beneath the armor plate directly in front of him was Manfred’s cockpit.

“Manfred, it’s all on you and your squad now! Get us through! On the final approach, I’ll lead my team to escort you and clear a path!”

Johnny Leiding shouted over the comm channel. Manfred’s reply was simple: he slammed the heavy armored gunship’s throttle all the way forward. The sudden burst of thrust, combining the gunship’s engines with the controlled main thruster array of the Aegis, practically slingshotted the craft forward.

His squadmates, perfectly matched to him in both skill and chemistry, accelerated to full speed in perfect sync. The entire squad maintained an echelon formation as they charged toward their destination.

Behind them, more and more launched HCPs and heavy armored gunships quickly docked, forming numerous assault formations that surged past The Infinity’s position, following close behind.

The heavy armored gunships in the Third Task Force had been upgraded from the original MA-01 to the latest MA-01B Block 5 model.

The biggest difference between the upgraded model and the ‘Basic Edition’, aside from more stable power units and weapon systems and greater overall thrust, was the integration of the ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ system.

As the name implies, this system allowed an Atlas-produced HCP to temporarily dock with a heavy armored gunship. By combining the thrust of both units, the gunship could carry the HCP deep into the battlefield at much greater speeds.

This system effectively solved two problems at once: the vulnerability of heavy armored gunships in chaotic melees and the tendency for HCPs to become separated from their gunship escorts during a charge.

And this current battle was the system’s combat debut.

As the HCP and heavy armored gunship squadrons from every ship executed a full-deck launch on Randall’s command, ‘combining’ and then charging the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet, the warships of the Third Task Force commenced their own attack.

On Randall’s command, The Infinity and all other warships switched to conventional combat mode. For their first and second long-range volleys, they opted for full salvos from their heavy electromagnetic cannons.

However, this time they weren’t firing the usual heavy anti-ship penetrator rounds, but a more specialized type of ammunition—AHEAD rounds, which were cluster-directed pre-fragmented munitions.

The massive number of AHEAD rounds fired in two full fleet salvos streaked away as countless orange-red trajectories, disappearing ahead of the fleet. According to the fleet gunnery officer’s calculations, these two salvos, fired with a carefully calculated lead, would perfectly bracket the garrison fleet’s position in several minutes.

“Let them take their sweet time trying to intercept those. If they fall for the bait, all the better~” After the fleet gunnery officer reported the salvos were away, Randall nodded and continued his orders.

“Entire fleet, prepare for a full salvo from all heavy particle cannons. The fleet gunnery officer will determine the firing time!”

“Yes, Sir!”

The fleet gunnery officer returned his attention to his workstation and fitted a helmet over his head.

Soon, the bridge of The Infinity vanished from his vision, replaced by the cold expanse of space and the surrounding warships of the Third Task Force.

On the tactical overlays highlighting the warships, green icons indicating ‘Ready to Fire’ lit up one after another, and within a dozen seconds, the entire fleet was ready.

Confirming this, the fleet gunnery officer unhesitatingly issued the tactical command to all ships: ‘Full salvo, all heavy particle cannons’.

In an instant, the void of space—which had been lit by the purification beams only to dim again—was once again set ablaze by the heavy particle cannon salvo.

Everyone on the bridge sensed a brilliant flash outside the viewports and involuntarily shut their eyes. When they opened them again, the afterimages of countless blue-white beams were burned onto their retinas.

For the heavy metal particle streams traveling at one percent the speed of light, a distance of twenty thousand kilometers was covered in less than seven seconds. Combined with the gunnery officer’s predictive aiming, this massive volley unsurprisingly raked across the garrison fleet’s flank.

Barely more than two minutes had passed from the initial ambush to the moment the heavy particle cannon salvo struck. In that short time, although Rear Admiral Kimmel had realized they were under attack and ordered the fleet to turn and engage…

…it was simply impossible for a massive, full-strength fleet to execute a complete turn under such conditions.

Aside from a few quicker-thinking captains who had already ordered their ships to complete an early axial adjustment to engage the enemy, the majority had only just begun to execute Kimmel’s command to turn.

Though their captains desperately tried to bring their ships’ fronts to face the enemy—disregarding the risk of crew in the bow and stern suffering from redouts or even fainting from the violent maneuvers—they were still a step too late.

The surging tide of heavy metal particle streams instantly set off a spectacular display of ‘fireworks’ within the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet.

In a fleet battle, having your flank raked by an enemy in a superior formation is a terrifying prospect. Amber had emphasized this point to Randall and the others many times, but back then, Randall hadn’t fully grasped its significance.

But now, Randall finally understood exactly what Amber had meant by ‘terrifying’.

On the composite image generated from optical, infrared, and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data, a large number of warships in the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet—including numerous capital ships—were shown to have been cut in half by the salvo.

Warships whose fusion reactors or superconducting battery stacks were hit suffered catastrophic secondary explosions, instantly becoming enormous, high-temperature plasma fireballs.

Adding in the three previous sweeps from The Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter, the intel team estimated that in just a few short minutes, the garrison fleet had likely lost a third of its warships, with nearly half of the remaining vessels damaged.

The level of destruction far exceeded Randall’s pre-battle forecast for the opening strike.

However, this ‘novice fleet commander’ didn’t grow complacent. Instead, he immediately recognized this as a golden opportunity—a chance to achieve his tactical objective: the swift and total annihilation of the enemy.

“Relay my orders! Full fleet, begin deceleration and maintain bombardment! Infinity! Deploy the Engagement Module! Prepare for a wide-area electronic warfare attack!”

Meanwhile, aboard the Balkan, the flagship of the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet, Rear Admiral Kimmel had finally regained his composure after the initial panic of the surprise attack.

As he was giving the order for the entire fleet to turn and engage, he had already realized the Atlas fleet had played him, pulling off a brilliant tactical deception.

He just never imagined his fleet would suffer losses of this magnitude from the enemy’s opening salvo.

But no matter what, what had happened had happened. The battle was underway, and Kimmel knew he had only one choice: calm down, take command, and attempt to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

“Report! Massive number of high-velocity contacts detected! The shipboard control AI identifies them as heavy electromagnetic cannon fire, count three thousand, three hundred and ninety-two!”

The report from the Tactical Information Coordinator puzzled Kimmel—why would the enemy use electromagnetic cannons at this range?—but he had no time to dwell on it. He could only issue orders according to standard procedure:

“All ships, commence anti-air operations! All HCP squadrons, launch and assist in the defense!”

Chapter 538: The Perfect Assault Also Exists in Reality

The Loubion star system garrison fleet, having already been placed on General Quarters by Rear Admiral Kimmel, had its first wave of HCPs waiting on their launch platforms.

So when he ordered the HCP squadrons to launch successively to assist with anti-air combat and fleet screening, the first wave of HCPs completed their launches swiftly.

However, unlike the thrilling scene of a fleet on the offensive that Johnny Leiding had witnessed during his launch, what the HCP pilots of the Loubion garrison fleet saw after positioning themselves on the electromagnetic launch catapults was a scene straight out of hell.

As far as the eye could see, there were only the giant fireballs produced by exploding capital ships. These brilliant and blinding blue-white plasma fireballs illuminated the entire sector of space with a strange, intense light.

As for the damaged ships that hadn’t been sunk on the spot, their coolant layers were constantly trying to cool their hulls and damaged sections. This caused many of the burning vessels to be shrouded in the white steam formed by vaporized coolant, severely obstructing both visual and sensor-based observation. This situation only served to make matters worse for the already disoriented fleet.

Therefore, once the first wave of HCPs had launched, their first action wasn’t to fire up their thruster arrays and rush to their battle stations. Instead, they immediately began performing evasive maneuvers to avoid the scattered debris within the fleet formation.

Besides the large wreckage from sunken warships, the space the garrison fleet was traversing was also filled with all sorts of parts, supplies, and ammunition flung from the breaches in the damaged vessels.

A collision with some of the smaller debris might only leave a scratch on a warship or be deflected by its shields.

But for an HCP pilot, colliding with this erratically moving debris would have only one outcome: the destruction of both unit and pilot.

And besides the debris, the covering salvo the Atlas fleet had unleashed made the HCPs’ journey even more perilous. Whether it was being unlucky enough to take a direct hit from an enemy main cannon or encountering the heavy metal particles that refracted off deflector shields, neither was a good outcome.

Yet even as these HCP pilots raised their concentration to the absolute maximum, immediately showcasing their evasive abilities at high speeds, some still failed to evade in time and crashed. They became just one more of the plasma fireballs constantly erupting within the fleet.

The HCPs that managed to survive this “debris storm” and successfully break through the massive field of wreckage to reach their designated defensive zones had pilots who couldn’t even catch their breath. They had to immediately commence anti-air interception operations according to their combat orders.

One HCP pilot from the garrison fleet, the sole survivor of his four-man team, finally reached the battle station his team was supposed to be responsible for.

At this moment, the surrounding space was filled not only with HCPs launched from nearby warships but also with squadrons arriving from other ships to assist.

The high-energy laser turrets and charged particle cannons emplaced on the broadsides of several nearby warships were all pointed directly at the Atlas fleet’s position, like the spines of a hedgehog.

These high-energy laser turrets and charged particle cannons weren’t fixed to the hull like an axial cannon; they were mounted on hemispherical bases that could rotate 180 degrees. Thus, in addition to serving as secondary anti-ship firepower, their more crucial role was to act as anti-aircraft weapons.

The characteristics of high-energy lasers and charged particle beams were also relatively well-suited for anti-air combat.

Right now, these near-light-speed weapons, switched to ‘Anti-Air Mode’, were continuously flashing with crimson and deep purple beams, intercepting the incoming projectiles from the heavy electromagnetic cannons.

Although projectiles fired from electromagnetic cannons were a relatively slow means of attack in a fleet battle, their power was not to be underestimated. In particular, the immense kinetic energy carried by the alloy anti-ship penetrator rods would make anyone who underestimated them regret it.

“Falcon Squadron has reached its battle station. Four units assigned, one unit arrived. Network link established. Beginning to receive detected targets and engaging in anti-air combat!”

During fleet-wide anti-air combat, operations were divided into multiple sectors, with different anti-aircraft commanders responsible for command and coordination to prevent overlapping targets or letting threats slip through.

The HCPs assisting with the anti-air effort, half of which came from ships on the inner side of the fleet formation, would quickly connect to the command network of their assigned anti-air sector and join the communications channel upon reaching their battle stations.

However, when the sole surviving pilot of Falcon Squadron reported in according to doctrine, he only saw ‘read’ receipts from the anti-aircraft commander and the other ships’ liaison officers, receiving no reply.

Someone else might have found the anti-aircraft commander and liaison officers cold. After all, this squadron had arrived to provide support at the cost of near-total annihilation, yet they didn’t even receive a single “thank you.”

But the surviving pilot of Falcon Squadron didn’t think that way. He knew perfectly well that the pressure on the sector’s anti-aircraft commander and those liaison officers was no less than his own. Coupled with the massive amounts of information and data they had to process every second, they simply didn’t have the time to respond.

This pilot knew that all he had to do was manage himself, but those commanders were responsible for every crew member on their ships and every warship within their assigned sector.

Soon, the Short-Faced Bear Block 20 piloted by the survivor received information synchronized from the tactical network.

The panoramic display was instantly flooded with a dense swarm of red markers—all detected solid projectiles—enough to make someone with trypophobia die on the spot.

“Good lord. So many.”

The Short-Faced Bear pilot felt a chill run down his spine and couldn’t help but swallow hard.

But he knew the only thing he could do now was give his all to intercept them.

“Bella, switch to ‘Cooperative Anti-Air Combat’ mode!”

“Understood. Combat mode has been switched. Would you like to increase the intensity of the AI-assisted targeting?”

The combat assistance AI’s pleasant and sweet voice rang in his ear, and the pilot nodded without hesitation.

“Max it out, max it out. There’s no way I can aim at all these targets myself.”

As he spoke, the weapon racks on the unit’s back deployed, and a charged particle cannon and a heavy high-energy laser cannon extended from behind the left and right shoulders.

The pilot couldn’t help but be grateful for his maintenance team’s god-tier prep work. They had somehow managed to switch his equipment loadout from the anti-ship combination of a “heavy particle cannon + heavy electromagnetic cannon” to an anti-air one just before the launch platform was raised.

“Reallocate unit energy. Prioritize continuous firing for the charged particle cannon and high-energy laser!”

“Understood. Energy circuits have been reconfigured. You may begin your attack!”

The moment the combat assistance AI finished speaking, the pilot began his attack. After indicating a target with his eye-tracking aim, the combat assistance AI immediately acquired the target’s relative velocity, current trajectory, and other information—which was automatically shared by friendly ships after connecting to the tactical network.

In less than half a second, a red marker on the panoramic display was enclosed in a targeting box, and the pilot opened fire without hesitation.

The charged particle cannon fired first. Simultaneously, the pilot locked onto another target, this time for the heavy high-energy laser cannon to engage.

As he began his attack, the pilot also raised the electromagnetic machine gun held by the mechanical arm, ready to intercept any leakers that got too close.

Besides the Short-Faced Bear he was piloting, nearby friendly HCPs also began their attacks. A torrent of high-energy beams flashed like a rain of light on the fleet’s flank as the entire garrison fleet began to decelerate and change its orientation.

However, having been caught by the enemy’s opening attack and hit by several salvos, the fleet’s ability to adjust its orientation was severely hindered.

Then, a live human voice finally crackled over the communications channel: “All escort HCPs, advance the line! Enemy assault units are using the solid projectiles as cover for their approach! Prepare to intercept!”

The pilot didn’t overthink the order that came through the channel. He quickly flew out toward the fleet’s perimeter with the other HCPs, preparing to form an interception line to attack the “assault units” sent by the Atlas fleet.

But they soon discovered that there were still a large number of projectiles from the heavy electromagnetic cannons that needed to be intercepted. Furthermore, these projectiles were rapidly entering the fleet’s final air defense perimeter. The extremely high relative velocity and angular velocity made this kind of terminal defense increasingly difficult.

The various HCPs had to start adjusting their positions according to anti-air combat doctrine to avoid the bad luck of being pulverized by a shot from a heavy electromagnetic cannon.

“Fourth Squadron, evade! Evade!”

A sudden shout on the communications channel made the pilot involuntarily glance toward Fourth Squadron’s position, only to see an electromagnetic cannon projectile that should have passed through the gaps in their formation detonate directly in front of the HCP squadron in the next second.

The cluster directed prefabricated fragmentation warhead instantly created a hemisphere of wildly dancing electrical arcs in that sector of space. But this was only the beginning, as it was immediately followed by attacks from a second, third, and fourth AHEAD round.

The continuous barrage of directed fragments eventually overwhelmed the deflector shields. With their power output drastically reduced and under sustained attack, the shields’ defensive effectiveness dwindled.

The squadron was hard-controlled on the enemy’s line of fire before they even had a chance to retreat. Two HCPs were hit in critical areas and immediately turned into a pair of fireballs.

However, the lone survivor of Falcon Squadron had no time to mourn the deaths of his allies, as he himself was now under suppressive fire.

None of the anti-aircraft commanders in the garrison fleet had expected Atlas’s combat fleet to break with convention and use AHEAD rounds—more commonly used in anti-air and anti-HCP combat—instead of their usual tungsten alloy anti-ship penetrator rods.

So, when the HCPs tasked with cooperative anti-air defense advanced past the warships, they were quickly attacked by the AHEAD rounds that had penetrated the anti-air net.

Ship-grade heavy electromagnetic cannons generally had accelerator rails that could be split for use. A 50-meter rail could be split into two cannons, while 75-meter and 100-meter rails could be split into three or four.

The ‘power supply units’ located beneath the rails could be connected to the separated accelerator sections to serve as turrets. This way, when anti-air combat was required, the faster-charging 25-meter heavy electromagnetic cannons could achieve greater combat effectiveness.

Moreover, by turning “one into many,” a ship’s anti-air screen would be strengthened by the increased instantaneous volume of fire, posing a greater threat to enemy units attempting to penetrate their defenses.

But in the “many cannons combined into one” state, a ship-grade heavy electromagnetic cannon had an accelerator rail of at least 50 meters. The combined AHEAD rounds it fired would have a higher base mass, and naturally, be far more powerful than standard munitions.

It was like asking a main battle tank to defend against another tank’s high-explosive shell. Relying on its armor, it would, at most, lose some external components.

But if that unlucky main battle tank were facing a ‘classic’ 460mm naval cannon, even a high-explosive shell would be just as lethal.

The last HCP of Falcon Squadron was facing a similar situation.

After being caught in the attack range of two combined AHEAD rounds fired from a cruiser’s 100-meter heavy electromagnetic cannon, two consecutive waves of directed fragmentation attacks not only pushed the unit’s deflector shield to the brink of overload but also shattered the heavy protective shield held in its left mechanical arm.

However, relying on his superb skill, the pilot managed to evade just before the third AHEAD round detonated.

But the two friendly units behind him, who reacted a fraction of a second slower, weren’t so lucky.

One HCP, already at the end of its rope, was instantly riddled with holes by the massive number of directed fragments, turning it into a “rag.”

The other HCP pilot, panicking, made a control error and slammed the poorly protected rear of his unit directly into the deflector shield of a light cruiser further back.

Its rear plasma thruster array was instantly overloaded by the arcing interference from the warship-grade deflector shield. In parallel, the internal superconducting battery stack experienced a quench. The unit quickly became an unrecognizable pile of wreckage under the ‘dual cooking’ of electrical arcs and high-temperature plasma.

“The third interception zone needs reinforcement! Repeat, the third interception zone needs reinforcement!”

After witnessing this scene, the last pilot of Falcon Squadron immediately called for support on the sector’s anti-air channel while continuing to perform evasive maneuvers.

He hadn’t forgotten that besides the ceaseless AHEAD rounds, the enemy’s assault units were also closing in fast.

However, this lone survivor’s luck had just run out.

A sudden shot from a heavy particle cannon struck the unit’s chest dead-on. The already failing deflector shield didn’t even last half a second under this blow. The surging heavy metal particle stream instantly tore apart the upper half of the unit.

Soon, the perpetrator of this heavy particle cannon shot—the red ‘Aegis’ piloted by Johnny Leiding—broke through the defensive gap with his team. In the next second, they split fluidly into two two-ship formations to engage the surrounding enemies who were rushing over.

“Red Baron, quick, quick, quick! Charge through this gap!”

Johnny Leiding’s excited voice rang out on the comms channel. However, his face no longer bore the confident smile of a “genius pilot.”

It was filled with unsuppressable fear.

After hitching a ride with the Heavy Armored Gunship squadron commanded by Manfred, Johnny Leiding, in his first real space combat experience, had just been through a defense penetration run he would never forget for the rest of his life.

High-energy beams flying everywhere, the trails of solid projectiles, and the blue-white blasts of heavy particle cannons filled almost the entirety of his panoramic display.

Manfred’s ‘Baron’ squadron, in a run that “no sane person would want to experience a second time,” had narrowly avoided every single threatening attack.

But the other friendly units were not so lucky. More than once, Johnny Leiding had seen fully formed friendly units get blown to pieces by the enemy’s anti-air fire, leaving not even a trace behind.

The “ultimate combat weapon” that Johnny Leiding had considered invincible in land warfare had been reduced to an expendable in this fleet battle, even more fragile than infantry in land warfare.

The ‘Crimson Lightning’s’ perception of reality had been severely shaken during the short, intense defense penetration. Fortunately, he didn’t lose his combat effectiveness because of it. On the contrary, the activation of his “survival instincts” made him even stronger.

In the final moments of the run, after detaching from Manfred’s Heavy Armored Gunship, he quickly activated his unit’s disposable solid-fuel rocket boosters. With a greater burst of acceleration, he led his team in a charge ahead of the others.

And then he performed the “masterstroke” of high-speed shooting with undiminished accuracy seen just moments ago.

As he and the other HCPs in his team tried to hold the gap, Manfred followed close behind, leading the other three Heavy Armored Gunships to complete the final breakthrough in a dense wedge formation.

Opening with a salvo from the heavy particle cannons of all four Heavy Armored Gunships, they weakened the already flimsy deflector shield on the flank of a light cruiser ahead. Then, two plasma torpedoes, carrying the momentum imparted by the gunships, tanked the enemy’s anti-air fire and slammed into the light cruiser’s broadside.

Two magnificent white plasma fireballs rapidly expanded. For a split second, Manfred even saw the high-temperature plasma melting the warship’s outer armor before the gunship’s systems automatically adjusted the light intake.

The phenomenal destructive power granted by the sheer size of the plasma torpedoes chewed two massive, gruesome wounds into the light cruiser’s flank, even fracturing its internal titanium alloy frame in multiple places.

This directly caused the light cruiser to break into three sections a few seconds later, a fatal consequence of losing its hull vector control.

Though Manfred was exceptionally thrilled to score his “first career kill,” he knew that in this kind of situation, uncontrolled “excitement” meant he was not far from death.

So he immediately calmed himself and led his squadron under the cruiser’s wreckage. After executing a large loop on the X-axis around the massive wreck, the four Heavy Armored Gunships once again split into two pairs and moved to support Johnny Leiding’s team as their heavy particle cannons recharged.

The “gap” that the two of them and their teams had punched in the garrison fleet’s anti-air screen was quickly spotted by Jacob, who was weaving through the anti-air fire while also acting as the bombing run commander.

On his orders, other Heavy Armored Gunships with attached HCPs near the gap charged forward recklessly, attempting to widen the breach and ultimately punch through the garrison fleet’s entire anti-air screen.

Simultaneously, The Infinity, having completed the deployment of its Engagement Module, was now directing all its energy output to its weapon systems and deflector shield.

The warship charged toward the garrison fleet’s flank like a speeding dump truck, launching a wide-area electronic warfare attack at the same time.

Randall’s thinking was clear. He knew that even The Infinity couldn’t hack all the enemy warships with an electronic warfare virus under these circumstances. So he simply had the shipboard control AI focus its attack on jamming all of the enemy’s means of communication.

The result of this decision was that after coming under attack, the Loubion star system garrison fleet only had time to send a single message to the two Federation fleets.

“We are under attack by the Atlas capital fleet!”

Chapter 539: We’ll Ram It to Sink It!

Seated in the captain’s chair, Rear Admiral Kimmel’s expression was grim. After learning that only a single message had been successfully transmitted, he fell into a deep silence.

He had no idea how the Federation Navy’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets would react upon receiving the distress call. Even if they decided to set out in support, their arrival was at least three days away.

But Rear Admiral Kimmel knew that forget three days, it was uncertain if the garrison fleet could even last three hours in its current state.

Over eighty percent of the newly reformed garrison fleet were new crew members. Although the fleet appeared to be at full strength, its combat proficiency was decidedly low.

Especially after being caught in a surprise attack, the fleet’s reaction time and combat resilience were rather poor.

From his seat, Kimmel had a direct view of the chaos. After the flank attack, he had ordered an emergency turn, but the response speed and execution time of the warships varied dramatically.

And when the Atlas fleet began its high-speed assault, clearly intending to engage in close-quarters combat, the garrison fleet’s will to fight and morale began to crumble.

This newly formed fleet could handle a standard artillery duel at a distance of ten to twenty thousand kilometers, but if forced into ‘close-quarters combat’ within a few thousand, or even a few hundred, kilometers, its overall combat effectiveness would plummet.

In fact, most of humanity’s current naval forces disliked close-quarters combat, as it significantly diminished the advantages of superior numbers, firepower, and power output.

A battle that could have been won with minimal losses through long-range bombardment became dangerously unpredictable when it degenerated into a close-quarters brawl.

Moreover, the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet had already taken two salvos full in the face from the Atlas fleet. The heavy casualties from the surprise attack had caused morale to plummet.

Now, seeing their anti-aircraft screen torn open so quickly and spotting the ‘dump truck’ hurtling toward them, some of the ship captains might have ordered a retreat, were it not for their sense of duty and the constraints of military law.——

“General, perhaps we should consider a forced disengagement to create some distance.”

The fleet’s operations staff officer, who was also the current officer on duty, quickly assessed the fleet’s condition and the current combat situation before offering his tactical advice as his duty required.

“Although we still hold a numerical advantage, the fleet’s poor tactical execution in this chaotic situation has completely nullified it. Therefore, I recommend the fleet charge the Atlas fleet at maximum speed. After we pass each other, we can create a safe distance and regroup to fight again!”

“Are you suggesting we just turn tail and run without even fighting back?” Rear Admiral Kimmel asked, his voice laced with indignation.

In his eyes, it was a profound disgrace for his full-strength fleet to be battered this badly in the opening salvos by an enemy with far fewer ships, especially capital ships.

If he considered disengaging now without any real retaliation, Kimmel felt it would be a permanent stain on his command career.

“If we get bogged down in a dogfight, our losses will be even greater. We need to live to fight another day, General.”

The operations staff officer paused, then continued:

“Furthermore, once we create some distance and escape their electronic warfare interference, we can resume our calls for aid to the Federation fleets and inform them of the Atlas fleet’s true capabilities.

“Only by re-establishing contact can we prove we are worth saving. Otherwise, unless the commanders of those two fleets are once-in-a-century ‘saints,’ they would never choose to come to our aid based on that single, brief message we sent out.”

In truth, Kimmel agreed with the operations staff officer’s recommendation. He knew that compared to his own life, a small ‘stain’ on his command record was nothing.

He had simply been waiting for someone else to give him a reason to order the retreat.

Now that the operations staff officer had proposed it, and the other bridge officers, including the flagship’s captain beside him, were all looking at him with hopeful eyes, Kimmel felt he had no reason to refuse.

If he still commanded a fleet, he would still have a voice in whatever came next. But if his fleet was completely annihilated in this battle, he would have nothing…

This ‘warlord mentality’ of Rear Admiral Kimmel’s was not unique to the system garrison units; it was present even within the Federation’s regular army—a ‘glorious tradition,’ one might say.

The garrison fleet commander did not deliberate for long. He quickly approved the operations staff officer’s plan and issued the order:

“All ships, contract formation around the flagship and proceed at maximum fleet speed!”

Due to the wide-area electronic interference projected by The Infinity, the garrison fleet’s conventional communication systems were almost entirely useless. The ships were relying on blue-green laser signals and signal lights to exchange information and relay commands.

While the response of the Loubion garrison fleet and its execution of tactical commands had been sluggish after the initial assault, their efficiency immediately skyrocketed upon receiving what was effectively an order for a full-scale breakout.

All operational warships, after securing tow lines to damaged vessels that were still worth salvaging, ignited their main thruster arrays, converging on the Balkan’s position and once again forming a long, thin Spindle formation.

Naturally, this maneuver was immediately detected by Randall and his team. The command core aboard The Infinity came to an instant conclusion—the bastards were making a run for it.

“Stop them! Don’t let a single one get away!”

Randall ordered without hesitation:

“All ships, begin deceleration to extend the firing window before the two fleets pass each other! HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons, penetrate the enemy fleet and create as much chaos as possible!

“The Infinity, prepare a full salvo from the heavy particle cannons! Target: the enemy flagship, the Balkan!”

“Affirmative. The Infinity is preparing a full salvo from the heavy particle cannons!”

As the command was given, the gunnery officer began directing the forty heavy particle cannons on The Infinity’s bow to prepare for the salvo.

When the garrison fleet’s ships detected the powerful electric field building around The Infinity, they were finally reminded that Atlas’s super-flagship possessed other weapons just as menacing as its world-destroying golden beam of purification.

Kimmel knew The Infinity was targeting him. He immediately ordered the ships surrounding the Balkan to push their deflector shields to maximum power and maneuver to the flagship’s front to execute the ‘flagship escort’ directive.

For the surrounding capital ships, this order was essentially telling them to serve as ‘meat shields’ to protect the flagship.

Although the captains of these capital ships knew this mission placed them squarely in harm’s way for the sake of the flagship’s survival, they had no time for second thoughts.

One thing was certain: if the flagship was sunk, the garrison fleet’s morale would likely be ‘wiped clean’ in an instant. At that point, there would truly be no escape.

Soon, The Infinity’s first heavy particle cannon salvo swept across the void. Forty thick, blue-white beams instantly shredded the two battleships at the tip of the garrison fleet’s spindle formation.

Under the immense energy, the steel behemoths of humanity were torn apart like strips of beef jerky, gruesomely twisted into several misshapen lengths of metal.

But behind those two battleships was a ‘shield wall’ formed by other warships. The Balkan was currently concealed in the very center of the formation. To hit it, one had to first clear away the outer layer of meat shields.

In the minds of Kimmel and the others on the flagship’s bridge, there wasn’t enough time before the fleets passed each other for The Infinity to punch through their defensive line of capital ships.

Unfortunately for them, they seemed to be unaware of a ‘little gadget’ aboard The Infinity that no other warship possessed—the Engagement Module.

This ‘little gadget,’ developed under Salieh’s lead using Forerunner energy storage and conversion technology, had one primary function: upon activation, it would dramatically increase The Infinity’s firepower and defenses in a multiplicative fashion.

The price, of course, was that the energy circuits to the main thruster array and the jump drive would be temporarily severed. This meant that once The Infinity activated its Engagement Module, there were only two possible outcomes.

Annihilate the enemy.

Or be annihilated by the enemy.

Clearly, Randall and his crew were aiming for the first outcome.

And so, not long after the first salvo, the forty main cannons charged and fired again, achieving a result of two capital ships sunk and four other warships damaged.

This was immediately followed by a third, fourth, and fifth full salvo.

Simultaneously, other ships in the Atlas fleet that had entered optimal range also opened fire, attacking the Loubion garrison fleet in a fire-at-will mode.

But in the face of The Infinity’s onslaught, their attacks were mere embellishments from supporting actors on a grand stage.

“Wait… what the hell is this?!”

The Infinity’s ferocious output completely stunned Rear Admiral Kimmel and the other officers on the bridge. They had never imagined a single warship could unleash five full salvos in the time it took a conventional vessel to fire two.

And judging by the ceaseless alarms from the shipboard control AI, the behemoth was preparing for a sixth.

“This isn’t scientifically possible!” the operations staff officer exclaimed, losing his composure as he pointed at the infrared sensor display.

In the infrared imaging, the bow of The Infinity at the center of the Atlas fleet was glowing white-hot, as dazzling as a torch in the night.

“Five full salvos from the heavy particle cannons… Have its acceleration rails not overheated and melted? Are its acceleration rails made with Forerunner technology?”

Though the operations staff officer’s words were just an emotional outburst, from a certain perspective, he had indeed spoken the truth.

The acceleration rails of The Infinity did, in fact, incorporate Forerunner technology.

And this technology was merely a materials science branch project under the umbrella of the Forerunners’ ‘energy storage and conversion technology.’

This material was originally designed for the highly efficient conduction and storage of thermal energy. When Salieh heard Amber’s requirements for The Infinity’s sustained firepower, she had applied the material directly to the heavy particle cannons’ acceleration rails.

This was why The Infinity’s heavy particle cannon acceleration rails looked slightly different from conventional ones, as if they were encased in an extra ‘shell.’

As the heavy particle cannon fired its heavy metal ion stream under the influence of a directional confinement magnetic field, this material would rapidly absorb the heat from the acceleration rail, eventually conducting it to a ‘thermoelectric conversion node.’

In other words, with every shot fired, The Infinity reclaimed a portion of the energy as electricity…

So, in the Balkan’s infrared imaging, the white-hot bow was not the heat from the acceleration rails themselves, but the ‘heat conduction units’ around them at work.

“I don’t care if it’s Forerunner technology or some other kind of tech, it’s not important anymore! What’s important is that we break out of here alive, otherwise all these sacrifices will have been for nothing!”

Rear Admiral Kimmel waved his hand dismissively, cutting off the operations staff officer. Just as he was about to issue his next command, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice came through again.

“The Long Beach has exploded, hull integrity compromised! Survivors are abandoning ship!

“The Cornerstone is at risk of a ‘quench’ in its superconducting battery stack! Damage control and technicians are attempting emergency repairs, but they’ve temporarily shut down the main thruster array!

“Her captain reports that if he cannot keep up with the fleet, he will have his crew abandon ship in the final moments. He will personally remain on the bridge to fire one last time.”

“…”

Rear Admiral Kimmel fell silent. He realized that despite his fleet’s numerous problems, he still had a core of valiant crew members who could face sacrifice head-on.

Yet he, the fleet commander, had led a numerically superior force into this mess and was now unable to bring these respectable crew members home.

Sensing the fluctuation in Kimmel’s emotions, the operations staff officer knew the fleet commander could not falter at this critical moment. He quickly leaned in and whispered in Kimmel’s ear:

“General… we’re running out of time. The survival of the entire fleet rests in your hands.”

“I know…”

Rear Admiral Kimmel raised his head abruptly, the former light in his eyes completely gone.

“Relay my command! All ships, main thruster arrays to overload! We pass their fleet before their next salvo arrives!”

When this order was given, the remaining half of the garrison fleet’s surviving ships realized the decisive moment had arrived. The main thruster arrays at the stern of each ship erupted with a brilliance far exceeding what they had shown before.

The entire fleet accelerated once more, charging straight towards the Atlas fleet.

Aboard The Infinity, an anxious Randall suddenly realized that the enemy fleet’s will to fight was stronger than he had anticipated. In their desperation, they were experiencing a surge of power. At this rate, even another two salvos might not be enough to take down the garrison fleet’s flagship.

Randall knew that if he allowed the enemy fleet to pass through and escape, it would lead to grave consequences.

Not just for the Third Task Force, but also for the transport convoys and the two unmanned fleets arriving later—their situations would become extremely perilous.

If the Federation fleet commanders were even slightly astute, they could exploit the staggered arrivals to deal a heavy blow to the Atlas combat fleet as it entered the Loubion star system in waves.

Randall was now facing the same situation as Rear Admiral Kimmel: the survival of his entire fleet rested on his shoulders, and he too had a reason he absolutely could not afford to lose!

So, in the next second, this ‘rookie commander’ of large-scale fleet battles chose a tactic that perhaps only Amber would have employed.

“Relay my command! All other ships in the fleet, maintain current status and continue attacking the enemy fleet!

“The Infinity, deactivate the Engagement Module! Re-route energy output from the fusion reactor arrays!

“Deflector shield generators, concentrate the field directly ahead of the bow, prepare for overload!

“Plasma thruster array and vector control nozzles, operate at overload!

“Helmsman, throttle to Full Ahead!

“Even if we have to ram them, we will sink their flagship!!!”

Chapter 540: Impact

When The Infinity used its external light signal array to hoist the ‘Z Flag’ and send the message “Atlas expects every warrior to do their utmost,” signaling the start of its charge, the morale of the Atlas Third Task Force soared to a new high.

If Randall had merely ordered the entire fleet to charge, their morale might not have reached such a peak.

But the order he had just issued made it clear that only the flagship, The Infinity, would charge, while the rest of the fleet would provide maximum fire support. This meant that the risk was almost entirely concentrated on The Infinity.

“The officer is ordering the men to charge” and “the officer is leading the men in a charge” were both common scenarios. But “the officer is charging for the men”? Even the seasoned captains brought over from the Federation Navy had never seen anything like it.

It was at this moment that most of them suddenly realized that within Atlas’s combat units, the concept of “leading from the front” was perhaps more radical than they had ever imagined.

It wasn’t just the various warships of the Third Task Force; the HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships that had already launched their attack also saw the translated flag signal on the global communication channel.

The Renaissance Alliance trainees, including Johnny Leiding and Manfred, were overcome with solemn respect. They had never imagined that the Atlas Group, their “ally” and “junior partner,” could be so iron-willed.

If Murat and Johnny Leiding’s earlier combat exercise had been an enlightenment education for this “mech combat rookie,” then this fleet battle was a masterclass taught by the Atlas fleet to all the Renaissance Alliance trainees.

However, “Crimson Lightning” and the “Red Baron” had little time to digest the “lesson content,” as they were already embroiled in fierce and grueling combat.

The opening they had torn open with their respective squads began to widen as supporting HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships arrived.

The first to arrive was an “old friend” of Johnny Leiding’s: the “Avenger” squadron, which he had faced in the combat exercise.

In Johnny Leiding’s view, their performance in actual combat was worlds beyond their showing in the previous simulation.

The coordination between the squadron’s four squads, and among the units within each squad, was as synchronized and exquisite as a shadow. A multitude of “combo techniques” were executed with smooth and fluid grace.

Even under the threat of anti-aircraft fire from two nearby destroyers, the “Avenger” squadron chopped through their enemies as if cutting melons and vegetables. They annihilated the two HCP squadrons launched by the destroyers without taking any losses and, for good measure, gave the destroyers’ broadside anti-aircraft weapon arrays and sensor clusters a thorough washing.

As squadron leader Stark and his other units sped past Johnny Leiding’s position, the “genius pilot” even received a message that Stark had fired off in the heat of the moment.

“Don’t just stand there gawking on the battlefield, kid… And watch and learn~”

Although Johnny Leiding found the message irritating, he couldn’t refute it. After all, among HCP pilots, “being incompetent is the original sin.”

When Murat, Jacob, and their “ACE Squadrons” arrived, they completely shattered the garrison fleet’s plan to plug the gap in their anti-aircraft network. In fact, their arrival threw the entire defensive grid, which had been arranged in orderly tiers of fire, into chaos.

If Johnny Leiding and Manfred had only known that these Atlas aces were extremely strong during the past combat exercises, they now had a much more direct and profound understanding.

Individual skill, teamwork, and on-the-spot command. When all these aspects were executed to perfection, Johnny Leiding and the others finally understood just how powerful these “ACE Squadrons” truly were.

Like a “comet” streaking across the battlefield, the advancing force was the “nucleus,” and the fireballs from the enemies they destroyed along their path formed the “tail.”

Even heavy cruisers, second only to battleships in firepower and armor, had their external anti-aircraft weapon arrays swiftly swept clean after being closed in on and losing their HCP escorts.

In the end, Jacob, executing a drifting-bombing run, landed a plasma torpedo right on a cruiser’s plasma thruster array.

“Major Murat is already this powerful, yet he couldn’t last ten moves against ‘That Man’… Just how strong is ‘That Man’? Is he a monster?”

The untimely question flashed through Johnny Leiding’s mind, only to be interrupted a second later by Manfred’s shout over the communications channel.

“Crimson Lightning team, prepare for the finishing blow!”

“Roger that!”

Snapping back to his senses, Johnny Leiding quickly looked ahead. He saw Manfred leading three other Heavy Armored Gunships on a high-speed pass near an enemy HCP squadron.

At the same time, they unleashed a massive “barrage” of laser-guided dogfighting missiles equipped with plasma warheads.

The dense swarm of missiles was quickly intercepted by the enemy’s point-defense lasers. However, Manfred’s team had nearly emptied their remaining missile bays in this single volley, and the sheer volume of missiles was impossible to fully intercept.

Soon, as the plasma warheads detonated against the HCPs’ deflector shields, they immediately caused an electrical disturbance in the deflector shield generators, setting off a shower of fireworks.

The moment the enemy HCPs needed to power cycle their deflector shield generators was the window Manfred had called the “finishing blow.”

Long-term coordination during training, including their recent joint operations, had already forged a tacit understanding between the “Crimson Lightning” and the “Red Baron.”

Therefore, Johnny Leiding didn’t hesitate for a second. He led his squad in a charge, while his combat assistance AI swiftly assigned targets.

“Full power to weapons! Full power! Power up the heavy plasma severing sword! After this volley, draw your swords and follow me into close-quarters combat!”

“Yes, squad leader!” ×3

Johnny Leiding quickly set the pre-power-up for the heavy plasma severing sword in the weapon container on his back. Then, he simultaneously brought all his ranged weapons to bear and locked onto the four targets assigned to him—the other three members of his squad would handle the remaining six HCPs.

Although the other three members of his squad were following his orders, they felt a little apprehensive about the sudden shift to close-quarters combat.

After all, while they had been selected to form an elite squad with Johnny Leiding, the “Renaissance Alliance’s number one pilot,” due to their all-around skills, they, like all other Renaissance Alliance trainee pilots, were experiencing real space combat for the first time.

During their training at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Murat had indeed assigned them a significant amount of HCP close-quarters combat training.

But drawing a sword to cut down an opponent in training was a completely different matter from doing it in a real battle.

This wasn’t a failing of the trainees; it was a process nearly every rookie pilot went through.

In training, without the pressure of death and with the undeniable coolness of drawing a plasma severing sword for melee combat, it was common for pilots to favor using the sword for the “finishing move.”

But in a real battle, drawing a sword often became the lowest priority option.

This was because HCP close-quarters combat was completely unpredictable; no one knew what would happen once they engaged.

Moreover, the heavy plasma severing sword was one of the few weapons that could ignore deflector shields, and its destructive power was second to none. For this reason, even the most elite pilot could mess up spectacularly in close-quarters combat.

But Johnny’s squad mates had no time to dwell on it. The situation on the battlefield was changing by the second, and no amount of thinking could predict what would happen next. Sometimes, you just had to act first and think later.

They dutifully followed Johnny Leiding’s command, powering up the heavy plasma severing swords in their HCPs’ back-mounted weapon containers so they would be ready for immediate use.

By this time, Johnny Leiding had already opened fire on his targets with everything he had.

The first direct hit from his heavy particle cannon melted the cockpit of the first target. Although the last remnants of its deflector shield were working desperately, they offered virtually no protection against the point-blank bombardment of the heavy metal particle stream.

Next came a blast from his charged particle cannon, which blew up the plasma rocket pods on the second target’s back-mounted weapon racks, in turn damaging the plasma thruster array beneath them.

Before the HCP’s pilot could regain control, Johnny Leiding’s rapidly deployed heavy electromagnetic cannon fired a double shot, completely reducing the enemy’s cockpit and subcritical reactor to spare parts.

Although it didn’t trigger a sympathetic detonation of the superconducting battery stack, Johnny Leiding knew the enemy was deader than dead.

After quickly dispatching these two targets, Johnny Leiding, without any hesitation, swung the heavy shield attached to his left shoulder pauldron in front of him, pushed the throttle to the max, and charged directly at the third target in the distance.

Although the fully-equipped “Aegis” had plasma rocket pods and dogfighting missile bays installed on its lower legs, Johnny Leiding had already expended these close-range weapons in the previous fighting, even jettisoning the pods and bays to reduce his unit’s weight.

As for his remaining ranged weapons, the unit’s superconducting battery stack was more than half depleted and was currently in a “recharge-as-you-fire” state, so he couldn’t maintain the same rapid, continuous fire as before.

Amidst the G-force of the sudden acceleration, Johnny Leiding drew the heavy plasma severing sword he had pre-powered up earlier. Then, with the deflector shield generator running at maximum power, he simply rammed into his target.

The enemy pilot had just recovered from the “plasma fireworks” and was in the process of power cycling his deflector shield generator when he saw the icons of two nearby friendly forces disappear from his panoramic display—in battle, this almost always meant they had been destroyed.

“What’s going on?”

The pilot instinctively turned his unit’s front towards the direction of the attack on his allies. He was just about to raise his shield to protect his cockpit when, in the next second, Johnny Leiding charged down from near his zenith and slammed right into him.

The unit’s omnidirectional head viewfinder was smashed flat on impact. The various external sensors on the unit’s upper torso were all fried by the electrical arcs from the deflector shield and the impact of the heavy shield.

This caused the 360-degree cockpit to lose most of its external feed, leaving the pilot momentarily clueless as to how to respond.

However, the kind-hearted Johnny Leiding was quick to solve this problem for him. After deftly adjusting his unit’s orientation to be parallel with the target, the red “Aegis” swung its heavy slicer sword in a clean horizontal slash.

Johnny Leiding didn’t even need to confirm it; he knew the enemy pilot was beyond dead.

But the words of the Atlas instructors and Murat from training were etched into his mind. He used the high-energy lasers on either side of his head viewfinder to sweep another volley into the gash he had just cut in the enemy cockpit.

By the time he had achieved three kills in such a short period, the other members of his squad were just beginning to open fire.

But he had no time to worry about them now. He saw his final target also drawing its heavy slicer sword and charging toward him. Judging from its position and actions, it was most likely the wingman of the pilot he had just slain.

“Bring it on!”

Johnny Leiding’s fighting spirit was instantly ignited. He gracefully controlled his unit through a barrel roll and was about to advance for a “man-to-man exchange” when Manfred’s squad, having completed a wide loop, came charging back into the fray.

“I’ll help you!”

Several beams of charged particles instantly shot the enemy in the face, with the final volley piercing straight through its superconducting battery stack, turning the last enemy into a ball of fire.

“You…” His charge interrupted halfway, Johnny Leiding could only change course and head towards the enemies his teammates were engaging.

It was at that moment that every eye on the battlefield, friend and foe alike, focused on the super-flagship advancing at full speed.

On Randall’s command, The Infinity charged out of its fleet’s formation with unstoppable momentum, heading directly for the garrison fleet’s flagship, the Balkan, in full view of everyone.

Everyone now guessed what The Infinity intended to do. Aboard the Balkan, the target of the ramming maneuver, Rear Admiral Kimmel roared like a madman:

“Quick, quick! All warships, concentrate fire on their flagship! Sink it for me! Helmsman, prepare for emergency evasion, don’t let it hit us!”

While Kimmel didn’t know what would happen to the Atlas super-flagship after a head-on collision, he knew that the battleship beneath his feet definitely wouldn’t survive it.

Even a collision with a battleship of the same tonnage would result in mutual destruction, let alone being rammed head-on by such a much larger super-flagship.

But even though he gave the order to focus fire on The Infinity, only nearby warships could respond in time.

The more distant ships were already being swarmed by Atlas HCPs and combat craft, and even just reorienting to aim at The Infinity would take time.

With its main thruster array running on overdrive, The Infinity’s relative velocity had reached an extremely high level, leaving the garrison fleet with nowhere near enough time to concentrate their fire.

Watching The Infinity grow ever closer, Kimmel and everyone else on the bridge felt their hearts leap into their throats.

Just as they thought it was too late to evade and began to pray under their breath, a battleship forcibly “overtook” them from the left, squeezing into the space between the Balkan and The Infinity, and continued to charge toward the latter.

“It’s The Rock! They’ve rebooted their main thruster array!”

In that split second, Rear Admiral Kimmel had no time to say anything. He could only watch as the battleship, smoke and fire pouring from multiple wounds on its hull, shielded the Balkan like a bulwark.

At the same time, the communications officer translated the light signal they were sending out.

“This ship will cover the flagship’s breakout at all costs.”

On the other side, Randall frowned at the sudden appearance of The Rock. But at this point, it was too late for The Infinity to evade.

Even if they managed to avoid The Rock, they wouldn’t be able to re-adjust their course in time to ram the enemy flagship.

“Tch, no time to worry about that. Ram straight through it! All hands, brace for impact!”

“Understood! All hands, attention! Brace for impact! I repeat, all hands, attention! Brace for impact!”

The extremely high relative velocity between the two ships closed the final two thousand kilometers in just over ten seconds.

The size difference between the battleship and the super-flagship made The Rock look like Don Quixote charging a “windmill monster,” yet it showed no hesitation.

The moment the two ships collided, time seemed to freeze.

The immense force of the impact seemed to warp the very space between the two warships for an instant.

Then, every crew member aboard The Rock heard a deafening sound of tearing metal—it was the sound of the battleship’s hull, unable to withstand such immense force, beginning to break apart.

At that moment, The Infinity’s deflector shield, concentrated at its bow, was no longer just a defensive measure. It was like Thor’s hammer, crackling with arcs of electricity, smashing the battleship before it to pieces.

The Rock didn’t last a single second in the collision. The battleship’s massive hull rapidly broke into several sections, its external armor plates scattering like fireworks.

Each piece of wreckage spun away from the center of the battlefield through the vacuum, leaving silvery-white trails in the light of Great Loubion, like meteors streaking across the night sky.

In contrast, The Infinity, the ship that had initiated the ram, passed through the chaos almost completely unscathed.

Its incredibly sturdy hull and the overcharged deflector shield generators, which focused the field at its bow, allowed the warship to withstand the damage from the impact.

Although there were a few minor scrapes on the hull’s surface, they were negligible for a super-flagship that had deliberately drawn the enemy’s fire.

The instant the impact was over, damage control teams all over the ship were dispatched to inspect all modules for potential hidden damage and to confirm that all systems were functioning normally.

On the bridge, Randall and the other personnel, after being stunned for a good few seconds, finally let out a long breath.

But everyone suppressed the urge to cheer, for they knew the battle wasn’t over. The enemy flagship had not yet been sunk.

However, the collision had caused The Infinity to deviate significantly from its course. The helmsman fought with all his strength but found it impossible to realign the ship before they passed the Balkan, meaning The Infinity could no longer initiate another ramming attack on the enemy flagship.

“Colonel, we’re not going to make it!”

The officer on duty’s voice was tinged with anxiety. He knew why Randall had wanted to ram the enemy flagship, and he knew the consequences of failing to do so.

“No, there’s still time,” Randall said, a sudden smile gracing his lips.

“Don’t forget, we are a warship. We have more than just our main cannon and ramming as means of attack.

“Relay my orders! Activate all weapon groups except the axial cannon. Let them witness The Infinity’s firepower projection capabilities!”

Working Overtime

Working overtime

Working overtime…

Still working overtime, there probably won’t be an update today…

Chapter 541: The Infinity, Full Firepower

Although Randall was a novice at fleet command, his experience was far inferior to Rear Admiral Kimmel’s on the opposing side.

But his familiarity with the super-flagship, The Infinity, was in no way less than that of Amber, Cleves, or any of the others.

After taking command of this super-flagship and leading the fleet to the Loubion star system on an escort mission, Randall spent every waking moment—aside from routine briefings, confirming the day’s fleet operations, and sleeping—immersed in studying The Infinity.

Even during meals, he would be glued to his terminal, poring over the voluminous Ship Usage & Captain’s Operations Manual sent from Atlas Ships—as engrossed as a boy who had just received a Christmas gift.

After all, what man could refuse the chance to command a nearly six-kilometer-long super-flagship across the sea of stars, especially when that ship was likely to remain at the pinnacle of human warship design for some time to come?

Therefore, Randall was intimately familiar with every major and minor unit and subsystem on The Infinity, especially its various weapon systems.

In his view, most people’s understanding of The Infinity was somewhat one-sided, or rather, limited. They believed the super-flagship’s most terrifying weapon was its super-heavy purification beam emitter.

That perception wasn’t wrong, but it made them focus all their attention on the main cannon, causing them to overlook the vast space available on the nearly six-kilometer-long hull to mount other conventional armaments.

Fifty 200-meter class heavy electromagnetic cannons, 60 high-power charged particle cannons, 150 high-energy laser turrets, and 600 multi-function missile/torpedo silos. These were the other weapons that the designers at Atlas Ships had exhausted themselves to fit onto the super-flagship.

This was because Atlas’s intended combat role for The Infinity—or rather, the Infinity-class super-flagship—was not only to pick off high-value targets with its main cannon but also to serve as an independent fire support platform in battle.

These conventional weapons, deployed in the form of integrated weapon arrays across The Infinity’s port and starboard broadsides, as well as its upper and lower decks, also possessed extremely potent firepower projection capabilities.

However, because The Infinity’s previous combat appearances had mainly relied on its super-heavy purification beam emitter and the 40 heavy particle cannons on its bow to annihilate enemies and achieve its objectives, most people had never seen the super-flagship unleash its full conventional firepower.

At most, its high-energy laser turrets had been used for anti-air combat. So, many had yet to witness the spectacle of this super-flagship’s “conventional weapons” firing at maximum capacity.

But now, the crew of the garrison fleet, including Rear Admiral Kimmel, were about to have the “fortune” of experiencing it firsthand.

“Retro-thrusters at maximum power! Minimize the relative velocity between The Infinity and the enemy flagship as much as possible, and prepare for axial adjustment!”

At Randall’s command, points of blue light began to erupt all over the super-flagship’s hull, growing brighter and brighter. As the colossal vessel closed the distance with the Balkan, it began to adjust its orientation.

The recent collision with The Rock had already significantly reduced The Infinity’s speed, so its relative velocity with the garrison fleet’s flagship had already dropped.

Now, with nearly all its retro-thrusters firing, The Infinity’s relative velocity continued to decrease at a visible rate.

This meant that Rear Admiral Kimmel’s plan to use their high relative velocity to quickly disengage after crossing paths had already half-failed.

“Captain, based on the current relative velocity and trajectory projections, we will enter optimal firing range in 20 seconds and remain within it for 15 to 20 seconds!”

The voice of The Infinity’s shipboard control AI, Serena, rang out as a simulation animation appeared on the holographic projection platform.

The animation showed The Infinity executing what was almost a lateral drift, sweeping past the Balkan’s port side. The “optimal firing range” Serena mentioned was actually a “close-quarters combat” distance of under 100 kilometers.

Within this range, The Infinity’s task was to fire its tungsten alloy anti-ship penetrator rods from its heavy electromagnetic cannons—the ultimate close-quarters weapon—at maximum efficiency and give the target an eye-opening experience.

Upon hearing the shipboard control AI’s report, Randall immediately issued the fire order:

“Port side and top deck, all weapon systems, target enemy flagship, the Balkan! Engage at will upon entering optimal firing range for each weapon system!

“Starboard side and bottom deck, all weapon systems, no fixed target assignment, free fire!”

His commands were relayed as he spoke, and Serena quickly completed the weapon system assignments for the entire ship.

One after another, the heavy electromagnetic cannons, with their 200-meter-long acceleration rails, were raised by their 180-degree rotating hemispherical mounts and aimed at the approaching Balkan.

The high-power charged particle cannons and high-energy laser turrets also adjusted their firing angles and immediately began strafing the Balkan.

They were not, however, the first weapon systems on The Infinity to open fire.

In fact, the first to respond to Randall’s attack order were the 600 multi-function missile/torpedo silos spread across the ship.

Three hundred plasma torpedoes and three hundred heavy anti-ship missiles were launched in a salvo lasting only a few seconds, speeding towards a predicted point on the Balkan’s course.

After the faster heavy anti-ship missiles baited the Balkan’s point-defense systems into firing at full capacity, the improved heavy stealth plasma torpedoes, whose survivability had been greatly enhanced, entered the garrison fleet flagship’s terminal defense network seconds later.

Although they were covered by the anti-air fire of other escorting warships, 26 of these “heavily armored” plasma torpedoes managed to punch through the fierce defensive fire.

With the battle at this stage, both sides had entered a state of frenzy. In this atmosphere, even the most timid person would feel their blood rush to their head, leaving only one thought in their mind—win this battle, at any cost.

Thus, the Balkan’s ship-borne HCP regiment charged unhesitatingly toward the plasma torpedoes that had breached the defense network. They managed to divert 24 torpedoes by embracing them and forcing a change in trajectory, resulting in mutual destruction.

Thanks to the self-sacrifice of these HCP pilots, only two plasma torpedoes ultimately struck the Balkan’s broadside.

Although the two massive white plasma fireballs that erupted were proof that the torpedoes had inflicted as much damage as possible, for a battleship that had undergone a “flagship refit,” such damage was still manageable for damage control, as long as it wasn’t a direct hit on the plasma thruster array at the stern.

However, the plasma torpedo and anti-ship missile attack was merely an appetizer for the Balkan, a way to put its crew on edge.

When the shipboard control AI detected strong magnetic field reactions in over twenty areas in the target’s direction, Rear Admiral Kimmel panicked. He knew what was coming.

But now, it was too late for anything.

Even as Kimmel watched through the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen, his already battered HCP regiment, hearing the “strong magnetic field detected” warning, did not retreat. Instead, they charged directly toward The Infinity, attempting to protect their flagship by “plugging the barrels” with their own craft.

But he knew it was too late.

And so, the garrison fleet commander calmly issued his final orders:

“Launch all two-seater reconnaissance boats immediately. Attempt to break through the combat zone and report the situation to the Federation fleet! Then…”

Kimmel paused, then said, word by word, “Everyone else, prepare to abandon ship.”

The commander’s last sentence stunned everyone on the bridge. They never imagined their fleet commander would decide to abandon ship so quickly.

Although the soldiers and officers of a star system garrison fleet had certain gaps in combat determination and tactical proficiency compared to the regular navy, they, like all naval personnel, held their honor in high regard.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, a warship would rarely be abandoned or surrendered.

This was why the Loubion star system garrison fleet was being “rebuilt,” not “reinforced.”

The previous Loubion garrison fleet had been almost completely wiped out while fighting the Imperial Royal Navy.

If the former garrison fleet commander hadn’t believed that the war would not end in an Imperial victory and wished to leave some “embers” for a future rebuilt fleet, it’s possible no one would have survived the final battle between the previous garrison fleet and the Imperial fleet.

It was for this reason that Kimmel’s sudden “prepare to abandon ship” order came as such a shock to the others on the Balkan’s bridge.

Only Kimmel himself knew that if he didn’t have the crew prepare for evacuation ahead of time, there might not be a single survivor left on the flagship once The Infinity’s attack began.

He was well aware of how devastating the 200-meter class heavy electromagnetic cannons on the enemy ship would be at this range.

Given the current state of the Balkan’s deflector shield generators, it was impossible to withstand a salvo from The Infinity’s electromagnetic cannons, especially since the enemy was clearly targeting his broadside.

Kimmel knew he wasn’t an outstanding fleet commander; in fact, he was arguably unqualified in both skill and mentality. But he wasn’t the kind of commander who would senselessly send his men to their deaths.

He couldn’t bring himself to order his crew to remain at their posts when he knew the enemy’s next attack would sink the ship. He didn’t want to do it.

“What are you all standing around for?!”

Seeing the uncertain expressions on the faces of the bridge crew, Rear Admiral Kimmel’s face hardened.

“That’s an order! Execute it immediately! We’re running out of time!”

Although Kimmel gave the order to abandon ship almost immediately, he had unfortunately still underestimated The Infinity’s speed of approach and its firepower.

Just as the “all hands abandon ship” command was issued and the crew set their stations to “AI takeover mode” and sprinted towards the escape pod launch areas, The Infinity had already closed to its optimal attack range.

Aboard The Infinity, the moment the direct distance between the two ships fell to 100 kilometers, Serena, the shipboard control AI, instantly appeared beside Randall, her eyes glowing as she spoke:

“Captain, this vessel has entered the optimal firing range for the heavy electromagnetic cannons!”

Randall: “Port side and top deck heavy electromagnetic cannons, overload firing mode! Fire!”

“Acknowledged. Heavy electromagnetic cannons, overload firing mode. Commencing attack!”

In that instant, the activated heavy electromagnetic cannons simultaneously entered overload firing mode and, under Serena’s guidance, swiftly targeted the Balkan’s various critical sections.

The bridge, the anti-air command tower, the fusion reactor, the superconducting battery stack, the electromagnetic launch catapult lift decks…

The layout of the ‘Kraken II’ class battleship had already been thoroughly figured out by Atlas after they captured corporate combined fleet warships during the defense of the A Bawa Ku asteroid fortress.

Therefore, after a data update, all of Atlas’s combat fleet shipboard control AIs knew exactly how to strike this class of battleship’s weak points. This was why Atlas’s combat fleet had been so devastatingly efficient in previous battles, frequently scoring “devastating strikes.”

A continuous series of electrical flashes flickered along The Infinity’s broadside as the heavy electromagnetic cannons, now in overload mode, fired a five-shot volley.

The 200-meter-long acceleration rails launched over a hundred heavy tungsten alloy anti-ship penetrator rods, each with a very high length-to-diameter ratio, hurtling out with terrifying kinetic energy.

The distance of just over 100 kilometers allowed the electromagnetic cannons to temporarily bypass their usual defect of reduced accuracy and attack speed in space fleet battles. With a muzzle velocity of 300 kilometers per second, the heavy anti-ship penetrator rods struck their designated targets on the Balkan’s hull almost at the same instant they were fired.

In a flash, a chain of fireballs erupted along the Balkan’s port armor belt. Each explosion tore a massive hole in the battleship, sending flames and fragments flying in all directions, mercilessly reaping the warship’s vital systems.

Meanwhile, the weapon systems on The Infinity’s other side were not idle.

The original 200-meter class heavy electromagnetic cannons were reconfigured into four 50-meter rapid-fire variants. Along with a large number of charged particle cannons, high-energy lasers, and multi-function silos, they locked onto surrounding enemy ships and opened fire simultaneously, creating deadly beams and fireballs.

These attacks swept through the large number of enemy ships in the hemisphere to The Infinity’s starboard like a violent storm.

The destroyers, frigates, and even light cruisers that hadn’t pulled away in time were instantly torn apart and detonated by the ferocious firepower, ultimately becoming new dust in the cosmos. In a single moment, the entire battlefield seemed to transform into a chaotic purgatory.

No one in the Loubion star system garrison fleet had expected The Infinity’s offensive capability to be so devastating when at full firepower.

Whether it was the fierce, surgically precise strikes against the Balkan from its port side, or the frenzied sweep of the surrounding space from its starboard, the garrison fleet was thrown into a state of despair.

It was only then that the temporarily surviving crew of the garrison fleet, as well as the crew of the Atlas Third Task Force, realized that the super-flagship The Infinity was even more powerful than they had imagined. It truly possessed the ability to suppress a battlefield single-handedly.

But Randall, despite having the upper hand, did not relax in the slightest. While the bridge crew was still stunned by the results, he spoke: “Continue the attack! Don’t give the enemy any breathing room!”

As the battle continued, The Infinity gradually gained complete dominance.

The garrison fleet’s flagship, the Balkan, finally buckled under the continuous heavy blows.

When a new wave of plasma torpedoes passed unimpeded through an anti-air network that had all but lost its interception capability and struck its broadside, the battleship—its external armor peppered with holes and its internal structure severely damaged—finally reached the end of its life.

Amidst the blinding light of a high-temperature plasma fireball that expanded from its midsection, the garrison fleet flagship, the Balkan, completely disintegrated, its fragments scattering through space.

Aside from a few crew members who were close to escape pod launch areas and managed to board them in time, everyone, including Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Kimmel, was killed in action.

And even for those lucky few who made it to the escape pods, how many would ultimately survive in this chaotic warzone remained an unknown.

At the same time, the space around the ‘Balkan’, under the combined assault from The Infinity’s full firepower and the coordinated strikes from the rest of the Third Task Force, was forcibly blasted into a “harmless zone” filled with disabled ships and wreckage.

The more maneuverable Heavy Armored Gunships, carrying HCPs, swiftly charged into this “harmless zone” to secure it, while also providing cover for The Infinity, which had temporarily entered a firepower vacuum period.

Although the super-flagship’s ‘power configuration of one main, one secondary, and ten auxiliary’ fusion reactor group could still maintain a high-intensity deflector shield, the principle that a large ship has a vulnerable stern was just as true for The Infinity. Its main thruster array remained a weak point that required cover from friendly forces.

Seeing that a large number of shield-bearing HCPs had already gathered near the stern, with several squadrons of Heavy Armored Gunships constantly expanding the security perimeter, the ships of the Third Task Force were also rapidly closing in.

The remaining warships of the garrison fleet, having lost their flagship’s command, had fallen into chaos, and their morale had plummeted. In theory, their defeat was only a matter of time.

But Randall had no chance to relax. Just as he was about to take a breath and calm his tense nerves, he heard Serena, the shipboard control AI, speak with urgency:

“Captain! Besides the ejected escape pods, we’ve detected a large number of two-seater reconnaissance boats near the Balkan’s last position, sprinting in other directions, attempting to leave the battlefield!”

“Damn it, they’re trying to break out and send a report!”

Randall froze for a moment, then a jolt of alarm went through him—he suddenly realized this might be the enemy commander’s last gambit.

“Quick! All nearby units, prioritize the interception of all two-seater combat craft! Do not let them leave this combat zone!”

Chapter 542: A Race Against Time

The combat zone was utter chaos, especially after the Infinity had forced its way into the garrison fleet’s formation and unleashed its fury.

The wreckage of numerous sunken warships, including the Balkan, now filled the entire sector, drifting about erratically.

So when Serena, the Infinity’s shipboard control AI, reported that she had detected two-seater reconnaissance boats launched by the enemy in an escape pattern, Randall’s first reaction was that they absolutely could not be allowed to leave alive. There was one, and only one, reason for these two-seater combat craft to be deployed at this time.

They were meant to use their maneuverability and stealth to break away from the battlefield. Once they were clear of the Infinity’s wide-area electronic warfare attack, they would use their additional communication pods to contact the Federation fleet.

At the same time, Randall was thankful that during a recent escort mission, the Infinity had used the “upgrade components” delivered by the transport convoy to enhance all of its detection units.

Otherwise, he worried they might have missed these little things hidden among the debris field.

As soon as Randall gave the order, the HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships near the Infinity received the target information shared by the super-flagship over the tactical network.

On everyone’s panoramic displays, more than twenty small targets appeared, maneuvering at high speed in different directions.

Without a moment’s hesitation, the HCPs with a clear line of sight to the nearest targets immediately aimed their charged particle cannons and fired, their Combat assistance AIs having already calculated the targets’ trajectories.

This near-light-speed weapon, more powerful than a laser turret, was extremely effective against small, fast-moving units. Generally speaking, unless the target was exceptionally far away or there was an error in the trajectory calculation, a shot fired was a shot landed.

Thus, once the HCPs began their attack, the two-seater reconnaissance boats detected by the Infinity were turned into roiling fireballs one by one over the next ten-odd seconds.

However, among the reconnaissance boat pilots were several aces who used the surrounding garrison fleet warships as cover to accelerate their escape.

The two-seater reconnaissance boats under their control indeed caused a great deal of trouble for their pursuers, consuming more time.

By the time Randall and Serena noticed the last two-seater reconnaissance boat on the field, they realized this lone survivor was already about to leave the main combat area.

What was worse, this reconnaissance boat had previously used the cover of several garrison fleet warships to shake off the pursuing Atlas units. Now, there were no friendly HCPs or Heavy Armored Gunships nearby that could threaten it.

But Randall knew that letting this reconnaissance boat escape would lead to catastrophic problems. Nervously, he ordered all nearby units to intercept it by any means necessary.

But it was a case of distant water being unable to put out a nearby fire. Although other units that had pushed deeper into the sector tried to intercept, they were simply too far away. Hampered by the remaining garrison fleet units, they couldn’t bring the target into their attack range in time.

Just as Randall and the other staff officers were frantic with anxiety, they noticed a green dot on the 3D battlefield situation map suddenly begin to close in on the reconnaissance boat at a speed far exceeding any other unit.

A text message in “emergency report mode” also appeared on the local communication channel.

Renaissance Alliance Task Force – First Heavy Armored Gunship squadron – Red Baron:

“Red Baron commencing pursuit of target. Requesting fire support from friendly forces!”

“Seriously, man, if you want to show off by yourself, fine, but you could have dropped me off first! Holy shit. Slower! Slower! We’re gonna crash!!!”

Aboard the speeding red Heavy Armored Gunship, inside another red Aegis that was “voluntarily” connected in Cooperative Propulsion mode, Johnny Leiding had just let out a disgruntled complaint when he was startled by Manfred’s newly aggressive piloting.

With the assistance of the Aegis’s plasma thruster array, Manfred’s Heavy Armored Gunship gained a significant thrust boost. The high-energy lasers on either side of the Aegis’s head-mounted main monitor, along with the remaining missile pod in its weapon box, could also provide some fire support.

So, after leaving behind his teammates who couldn’t keep up, he boldly charged along the shortest route to the reconnaissance boat, which was also through the most heavily defended section of the garrison fleet.

At the exact moment Johnny Leiding thought they were about to collide with the destroyer ahead, Manfred expertly adjusted the red gunship’s course, causing it to skim past, almost scraping against the destroyer’s deflector shield.

Because they were so perilously close to the destroyer, the surrounding enemy units froze for an instant, not daring to fire. They feared that a single stray shot, instead of taking down the enemy, would obliterate their own destroyer.

At the same time, the Third Task Force spotted the lone gunship charging into the enemy formation. Without even waiting for a new order from Randall, nearby units capable of providing fire support immediately switched their targets.

Directed-energy weapons from numerous warships swept toward the enemies in front of Manfred, catching them completely off guard.

The Atlas fleet’s re-targeting was so efficient that it caught not only the enemy ambushers by surprise, but Manfred and Johnny as well.

When the Red Baron, with his “external booster pack,” had charged in, the enemy warships had seen his nimble flight path and knew he would be a tough opponent.

To maximize their intercepting firepower, most of the warships in this sector had chosen to present their broadsides along the Red Baron’s predicted path, relying on the conventional weapons mounted on their flanks and dorsal/ventral decks for defense.

After all, using a heavy particle cannon against such a small target was serious overkill. And after trying a diffusion shot, they discovered that this heavily armored gunship could withstand the impact of a heavy metal particle stream.

This directly led to their downfall. When the Atlas fleet’s supporting fire arrived, these warships had their vulnerable broadsides completely exposed, their gates left wide open.

Before the eyes of Crimson Lightning and the Red Baron, the garrison fleet vessels along their path of advance suffered devastating blows almost instantly.

Their fatal decision to turn broadside had exacted its full price.

The shipboard control AIs in the Atlas combat fleet had been upgraded from “Ten-Year Veterans” to “Thirty-Year Veterans” after Lilith herself had gone through an upgrade iteration and become more powerful.

And just like Serena on the Infinity, they were intimately familiar with the structural designs—or rather, the weaknesses—of common ships in the human world.

So this time, facing enemy warships that had willingly exposed their flanks, they showed no mercy. With several volleys of precise weak-point attacks, they carved a path for the Red Baron to break through.

However, this fire support was a double-edged sword.

The good news was that it eliminated a significant number of enemy ships for Manfred and Johnny, easing the pressure of their breakthrough.

The bad news was that the wreckage and debris from these destroyed and detonated warships began to severely test Manfred’s piloting skills.

At their current relative velocity, the scattered ship fragments carried enough kinetic energy that a collision would result in nothing less than instant destruction.

But at this stage, having already plunged into the debris field with Johnny Leiding, Manfred couldn’t turn back. He could only brace himself and begin to dance on the edge of a blade.

“Big bro… you’re my real bro, please take it easy! I’m only twenty, for fuck’s sake!!!”

“Quiet! You’re distracting me!”

“But in this environment, you can only fly on instinct! What difference does it make if I distract you or not? Holy Shit!”

Watching Manfred push the Heavy Armored Gunship to accelerate further, trailing a long wake as it shot through the gap between the severed halves of a light cruiser, Johnny Leiding was at a loss for words beyond “Holy shit.”

But he wasn’t wrong. In such a complex area where the movement of obstacles was completely unpredictable, Manfred was indeed flying at high speed purely on instinct.

If Amber had seen this, he wouldn’t have been surprised.

Or rather, any surprise he might have felt would have been during the combat exercises before, at the sight of the UR characters Crimson Lightning and Red Baron both being on his team—even if it was only temporary.

In his previous life, Manfred was an immensely popular character that players could recruit in Starry Sky Online. His innate high-rarity traits like “Air Combat Hero” and “Stunt Master” gave him an ability in aerial combat that was almost equivalent to infinite bullet grazing.

So, even flying on instinct, Amber knew this legendary pilot was not fated to fall here.

Not to mention he was currently carrying “Crimson Lightning”—Johnny Leiding—on his back.

This guy was on another level entirely.

Although this “Genius Pilot” had not been recruitable by the time Amber transmigrated, his popularity had remained consistently high.

Even ignoring all of the legendary pilot’s other talents and skills, his single trait of “Exceptional Luck” was enough to fully appreciate the sheer value of the man who had long dominated the top of the “Most Wanted Recruitable Character” charts.

Furthermore, leveraging this trait, this “Genius Pilot” had managed to retreat unscathed from numerous battles where both sides suffered heavy casualties, often emerging completely unharmed.

In other words, the Red Baron, already a pilot of supreme skill, wasn’t just carrying Crimson Lightning on the back of his Heavy Armored Gunship.

He was carrying a talisman against death.

Under the dumbfounded gazes of both sides, who looked on as if witnessing a deity at work, the red Heavy Armored Gunship tore through the debris field at a speed that was unimaginable and incomprehensible to an ordinary person, narrowly avoiding disaster and drastically closing the distance between itself and the two-seater reconnaissance boat.

He even found time to use his vertically-aligned dual-barreled heavy particle cannon, along with his other onboard weapons including those of Crimson Lightning, to eliminate several enemy units attempting to intercept them along the way—including a frigate that was preparing to ram them.

However, the good luck he had borrowed from Crimson Lightning seemed to be running out.

As Manfred executed a maneuver similar to a barrel roll to soar over the wreckage of a frigate, the gunship’s Combat assistance AI issued a high-level alert.

“Warning, multiple enemy HCP units approaching at high speed. Count: eighteen.”

The moment the Combat assistance AI, named “Albatross,” sounded the alarm, Manfred instinctively performed an emergency defensive maneuver, causing the gunship to plummet downwards, evading the firing of several charged particle beams.

But in the few seconds it took to perform that maneuver, the eighteen HCPs had rapidly closed the distance. The fastest of them, while continuously firing its charged particle cannon and high-energy laser, also unleashed a bright stream of tracers from its electromagnetic machine gun towards Manfred and Johnny.

However, the latter’s agile maneuvering caused all the attacks to miss; they didn’t even scrape the paint.

Even so, the incoming HCPs were severely hampering Manfred’s actions. If he had to constantly evade attacks, he wouldn’t be able to maintain the high speed needed to pursue the fleeing two-seater reconnaissance boat.

Just as the Red Baron was wrestling with his dilemma, he suddenly heard an unlocking sound from the hardpoint on the gunship’s back, a sound transmitted through the hull, which was used for Cooperative Propulsion.

The fully-equipped Aegis that had been clinging to the Heavy Armored Gunship’s back had just voluntarily disconnected.

After coasting with the gunship for a short distance on its initial momentum, Johnny Leiding broke formation.

“Go, chase it! I’ll hold them off!”

This young pilot, who had already felt the cruelty of the battlefield and knew that HCPs were merely expendables in a fleet battle, didn’t hesitate for a second. He charged directly toward the eighteen approaching HCPs.

In the gunship’s cockpit, Manfred’s taut emotions finally loosened for a fraction of a second. On his rear monitor, the direction Johnny had charged into was already blanketed by a salvo from the enemy HCPs.

But he didn’t dare to look back at the path his friend had taken. He could only leave him with a single sentence: “Don’t be reckless, come back alive!” Then he pushed the gunship’s throttle to its maximum, seizing the opportunity his partner had created to rocket forward.

This time, he did not disappoint. Leveraging the Heavy Armored Gunship’s superior acceleration, he quickly caught up to the fleeing reconnaissance boat and soon acquired a lock.

The moment the targeting box on his screen lit up, Manfred fired without hesitation. The near-light-speed weapons on the gunship maximized their speed advantage in this attack.

Even with the Combat assistance AI calculating an enormous difference in velocity between them, the high-energy laser and charged particle beams still crossed a distance of nearly a thousand kilometers to accurately strike the reconnaissance boat’s plasma thrusters, turning it into just another high-temperature plasma fireball on the battlefield in the next second.

After delivering the final blow and confirming the kill, Manfred felt no sense of relief, nor was there any joy on his face.

Instead, at high speed, he immediately pulled a dangerously tight U-turn and charged back in Johnny’s direction.

“Hold on! I’m coming!”

Chapter 543: Getting His Groove Back (Not Really)

In an interview many years later with a former member of the Renaissance Alliance, the host curiously asked a question of Johnny Leiding, who had since become a “renowned ace pilot,” the “Crimson Lightning of the battlefield,” and a “mascot of good fortune.”

What did it feel like, participating in a large-scale space battle for the first time?

Johnny Leiding clearly had a vivid memory of this particular battle, and he answered without a moment’s hesitation:

“Regret. At that moment, I was filled with regret! Especially regret over coordinating with that bastard Manfred.”

One could say that Johnny Leiding’s regret had begun the moment he and Manfred charged the enemy formation using Cooperative Propulsion.

By the time he was chasing down the fleeing two-seater reconnaissance boat and, in the process, unhesitatingly chose to charge toward the incoming squadron of HCPs to cover Manfred.

Staring at the eighteen menacing HCPs in the distance, Johnny Leiding had to admit…

In that instant, he lost his nerve.

But he also knew that losing his nerve now was useless. Turning to flee would be certain death, while mustering his courage and charging forward might offer a fighting chance.

“Perhaps this is what it means ‘to find life in the face of death’?”

After that thought flashed through his mind, Johnny Leiding cranked the deflector shield generator to maximum, boosted the power of the plasma thruster array, and met the enemy head-on.

Simultaneously, under the mapping of the head-tracking control system, the fully-equipped red Aegis he piloted assumed a charging stance, shield raised and sword at the ready.

He knew all too well that there was no future in a mid-to-long-range firefight between his single unit and the eighteen enemies opposite him.

No matter how good his evasive maneuvers were, and even if the enemy’s marksmanship and accuracy were terrible, the pressure from eighteen sets of long-range weapons would still be too much to handle.

Therefore, the optimal solution was to find a way to close the distance and engage in close-quarters combat. Then, assuming the enemy had no “ace pilots,” he could rely on his superior skill to dance with them and hold out until reinforcements arrived to save his own hide.

You see, this was a very “Atlas” solution.

Although Johnny Leiding was theoretically still a member of the Renaissance Alliance’s combat forces, after this period of training, especially after being whipped into shape by Murat, he had long since been molded into the Atlas way of thinking.

“Warning, you have been targeted!”

“Warning, strong electric field detected. Signature analysis indicates heavy particle cannon fire!”

“Warning, incoming missiles! Incoming missiles!”

“Warning…”

A series of alarm chimes rang out, immediately followed by a string of warnings from the Combat assistance AI—the enemy’s attack had begun.

Johnny Leiding quickly glanced at the projected attack vectors of the enemy’s directed-energy weapons, calculated by the Combat Assistance AI. While maintaining his general heading, he dodged in a flash, slipping through a gap between the beams.

The entire motion was as smooth and fluid as flowing water, without a hint of sluggishness. Less than a second passed between the alarm sounding and the HCP beginning its evasive maneuvers.

And when that second was over, more than ten blue-white beams from the firing heavy particle cannons sealed off the space he had just occupied.

Had Johnny Leiding been even a fraction of a second slower, he would have become another casualty claimed by the heavy metal particle stream in the void of space.

However, he didn’t let his guard down just because he had dodged this volley. He readjusted his unit’s orientation, keeping his shield held firmly in front of him, and began using his point-defense lasers to intercept the approaching combat missiles.

Immediately after, several blasts from heavy particle cannons in diffused irradiation mode completely blanketed his current position.

Although the diffused irradiation mode caused the power of the heavy metal particle streams to decrease significantly due to their immensely widened attack spread, any unit caught in the blast without sufficient defense would inevitably lose some external equipment and sensors.

But Johnny Leiding’s earlier move to max out his deflector shield’s intensity and maintain his heavy shield defense at all times allowed him to endure this saturation attack unscathed.

“So far, their attack patterns are exactly as the instructors described. If that’s the case, then next…”

Feeling like he was taking an open-book exam, Johnny Leiding maintained his high-speed maneuvering after the enemy’s heavy particle cannon attack ended. He deployed his heavy electromagnetic cannon and, using its rapid fire mode at low voltage, fired all of his aerogel screen shells.

These programmed warheads, after leaving the acceleration rail and traveling a short distance, self-detonated one after another before the enemy mechs could even intercept them with high-energy lasers.

Soon, an “aerogel screen” large enough to cover Johnny Leiding’s single unit appeared in the battle-torn space between the two forces.

And the enemy’s follow-up attack of charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers, which came right after their heavy particle cannon salvo, was perfectly blocked by the newly formed aerogel screen.

The laser and charged particle beams began to frantically refract and reflect within the aerogel cloud, even forming a “light curtain” that obscured the figure of the red Aegis.

“Excellent! The instructors were right. They use the heavy particle cannons first as a shot in the dark, and if that doesn’t end the fight, they follow up with more accurate, near-light-speed weapons.”

As he marveled at how Murat and the others’ training—which felt like being given the answers before an exam—was allowing him to handle this 1-on-18 battle with relative ease, Johnny Leiding suddenly felt his confidence slowly returning.

On the other hand, the eighteen pilots on the opposing side were starting to have a change of heart.

The temporary commander of the HCPs began to panic, especially after seeing their first two volleys accomplish nothing and watching their target use the aerogel as cover to rapidly close the distance, poised to drag them into close-quarters combat.

“Quick! Everyone, load the heavy electromagnetic cannons with compressed helium warheads! Disperse this aerogel for me!”

“Warning, strong magnetic field detected. Analysis indicates heavy electromagnetic cannons preparing to fire!”

When the Combat Assistance AI’s warning sounded in the cockpit, a smile crept onto Johnny Leiding’s face. In that moment, his confidence was completely restored.

Up to this point, every one of the enemy’s countermeasures was exactly as the Atlas instructors had predicted. It made Johnny Leiding feel as though he were in a combat simulation, because the enemy’s attack procedures were even more standard—or rather, rigid—than the AI-simulated opponents.

“So you’re planning to disperse the aerogel, huh? We’ll see if you have time to repower your weapons later!”

Johnny Leiding’s expression sharpened. While the enemy fired compressed helium warheads to blow away the aerogel, he used the ever-increasing relative velocity to rapidly close the distance to the nearest enemy HCP.

Although that HCP, sensing the danger, was already trying to pull back under the cover of its teammates, by the time the blue “blade” of the heavy plasma severing sword in the Aegis’s hand ignited, it was already too late.

Chapter 544: Halftime

The red Aegis’s shield bash, delivered during a high-speed charge, shattered the target HCP’s panoramic head sensor and caved in its cockpit armor.

While the enemy HCP pilot was knocked silly and unable to respond effectively, Johnny Leiding casually twisted his heavy slicer sword, disabling one of the enemy’s mechanical arms and its deployed heavy electromagnetic cannon in the same motion.

Using a reverse burst from his attitude control thrusters to create some distance, Johnny Leiding executed a swift thrust that pierced directly through the target’s cockpit.

The cockpit hatch, heavily protected by layered armor, could hardly defend against a point-blank thrust from the heavy plasma severing sword—after all, the weapon was designed precisely to “crack open a can” quickly.

Moreover, its prototype was originally a tool used by engineering mechs for mining asteroids. It could handle the outrageously hard rock formations in the asteroid belt, let alone a comparatively thin layer of cockpit armor.

“Good. Didn’t detonate the subcritical reactor or the superconducting batteries.”

He withdrew the sword, force-vented the heat, and let the memory metal comprising the blade begin to self-repair.

Johnny Leiding completed this sequence of actions with practiced ease, then took cover behind the wreckage of the mech, calmly dodging several long-range attacks before quickly locking onto his next target.

At this stage of the battle, the fear and trepidation he felt at the start were gone, replaced by a growing excitement.

The enemy’s next reaction made him laugh out loud.

Seeing an attack formation of four HCPs heading for him under the cover of others, Johnny Leiding even felt a little eager as he met their charge.

It was obvious that their recent barrage of long-range attacks had left their weapons cooling down and recharging, so the four mechs charging him had all drawn their heavy plasma severing swords, intending to engage in close-quarters combat.

It was like playing a classic competitive game—unloading all your skills at once and then having to rely on basic attacks while they’re on cooldown.

So, when Manfred finished his own mission and hurried back to support Johnny Leiding, he was greeted by the sight of a red HCP chasing down some unlucky bastard and hacking away at it, all while being surrounded and intercepted by the enemy.

BOOM!

As the Heavy Armored Gunship’s twin main cannons blew apart an HCP providing suppressive fire from their six o’clock, and the gunship itself shot past the expanding plasma fireball, the HCPs surrounding Johnny Leiding finally realized his backup had arrived.

“Well now~ Looks like you don’t need my support after all.”

Manfred, now a little more relaxed, even cracked a joke as he piloted the Heavy Armored Gunship on a cutting pass around the outside of the enemy HCPs’ spherical formation.

“Cut the crap and help me out. My heavy slicer sword is already overheating, and the deflector shield is on the brink of overload!”

Dodging an enemy’s slash, Johnny Leiding used a short burst from his plasma thruster array to launch himself into a ‘flying kick’—another one of the Atlas HCP squadron’s handy combat tricks.

After knocking the enemy momentarily off balance, a pilot, depending on their skill level, could follow up with moves like rapid fire, a thrust, an Ascending Dragon, or a Cross Slash.

And Johnny Leiding, true to form, unhesitatingly chose the ‘Ascending Dragon’.

As his sword cleaved through the enemy before him, splitting its large shield and cockpit armor, the heavy plasma severing sword in the red Aegis’s hand finally fulfilled its purpose. With the memory metal unable to repair itself any further, it disintegrated into several fragments.

Seeing this, the other few HCPs that had been hesitating nearby immediately accelerated and charged forward, planning to take advantage of this golden opportunity, with Johnny Leiding now unarmed, to eliminate the troublesome opponent once and for all.

Just as these HCP pilots charged in, shouting words of encouragement to each other like “Courage!” and “Glory!”…

Manfred, having completed a wide turn from another direction, came barreling toward these HCPs in his Heavy Armored Gunship like a dump truck.

The 30-meter class MA-01B Block 5’s power output was naturally leagues above these 10-meter-tall HCPs.

Therefore, the power of its deflector shield generator was also several times greater.

And when Manfred pushed the deflector shield generator into its overpower mode, the thickness of this ‘shield’ surpassed anything the HCP pilots could have imagined.

Next, having calculated his trajectory, Manfred precisely cut across the charging HCPs’ path, using his activated deflector shield to score a perfect strike.

The tremendous kinetic energy injured the HCPs and sent them flying, giving Johnny Leiding a close-up view of a game of ‘space bowling’ performed jointly by a Heavy Armored Gunship and a group of HCPs.

“Perfect score!”

The HCP’s panoramic head sensor, popping out from behind the heavy shield, recorded this wonderful moment. It also recorded the scene of the deflected HCPs being blown to bits by a barrage of beams from a distance as they struggled to readjust their attitude.

Friendly forces had finally arrived.

“Sir, it looks like the battle’s been decided. All that’s left is to hunt down the remnants.”

On the bridge of The Infinity, the officer on duty standing next to Randall quietly sighed in relief as he watched the three-dimensional battlefield situation map slowly being covered in green.

“Yes, but we can’t let our guard down!”

Randall, also relieved, nodded. Looking at the garrison fleet, which had been broken up and was now fighting individually or had launched white flares to surrender, he continued:

“Broadcast a call for surrender on the public channel. Of course, don’t waste words on those unwilling to surrender—just take them out. In short, have the entire fleet end this battle quickly!”

“Yes, Sir!”

After Randall gave the order, the surviving warships of the garrison fleet in the sector soon received the surrender demand on the public channel.

This newly rebuilt fleet was clearly lacking in loyalty. After their flagship, the Balkan, was sunk in a manner akin to being pinned to a wall, the entire fleet’s morale had taken a massive hit.

So, not long after Atlas sent out the call to surrender, white flares signifying surrender began to appear one after another throughout the space sector.

As for the few warships with a higher proportion of veteran crew members who refused to surrender no matter what, the Third Task Force wasted no time on them, sinking them one by one with concentrated fire.

This also served as a clear case of ‘killing the chicken to scare the monkey,’ prompting the hesitant crews on the other garrison fleet ships to immediately cast aside their doubts and surrender swiftly.

Seeing that the battlefield was now completely under control and the process of accepting surrendering ships was proceeding in an orderly fashion, Randall said to the officer on duty beside him:

“Once all enemy warships are secured, lower the fleet’s readiness level. Then, go through the survey star charts left by the engineering teams and find an asteroid belt with decent resources. Have the fleet warp there to rest and regroup. I’m going to contact headquarters.”

Randall stood up, stretching his stiff body, and continued:

“Oh, and send me the casualty report as soon as it’s out. Also, once we’re in a safe area, have everyone rest up in shifts. This battle might only be half over.”

Chapter 545: Guterres’s Advice

“Boss has already departed with The Dawn and the remaining warships. According to the travel plan, it will take another six days and thirteen hours for them to arrive. However, the two unmanned fleets that left earlier will be able to rendezvous with you in three days.”

In the ultra-long-range quantum entanglement communication room aboard The Infinity, Guterres, on the screen before Randall, was updating him on the status of the reinforcements.

Randall, who had finally managed to contact the A·Bawa·Ku fortress after the battle, still felt his heart clench upon hearing the reinforcement’s arrival time.

“Three more days, huh… We can only hope the Federation fleet commander is a bit timid and hesitates a little longer. Otherwise, if two full-strength fleets come at us, I really won’t be able to hold them off, Sir.”

“The unmanned fleets departed not long after that fellow Davis died on Loubion V, so this is the fastest they can possibly arrive. To be any faster, we would have had to have foreknowledge.”

Guterres looked at his former student and said, “You don’t need to be so self-deprecating, Randall. You’ve already done very well. Your assault on the garrison fleet not only weakened the enemy you’ll have to face later but might also make the Federation fleet hold back for fear of collateral damage, delaying or even canceling their plans to warp in.”

However, Guterres’s reassurance had a limited effect. Randall’s expression remained incredibly tense.

“But it’s all just speculation, Sir. To be honest, I’m really nervous right now. The fate of the entire fleet is in my hands. If the next transport convoy wasn’t scheduled to arrive tomorrow, I’d be tempted to take the fleet and leave this dangerous star system right now.”

“…”

“Sir? Why did you stop talking, Sir?”

Guterres’s sudden silence gave Randall a bad feeling. A distant yet familiar sense of fear slowly crept up from the bottom of his heart.

Just as Randall was about to say something, he heard Guterres speak in a very serious tone, “Randall, although I’m no longer your teacher, and my current position as a ‘senior advisor’ to the combat fleet is technically lower than your rank as its commander, it would be inappropriate for me to speak to you in a preachy tone.”

“No, Sir. You don’t have to be so humble. With your experience and qualifications, you have every right to lecture me…”

Randall’s voice held a rare trace of apprehension. Facing a senior like Guterres, who was also his former teacher, it was difficult for him to maintain his usual cheerful and glib demeanor.

“‘Lecture’ is not quite the word, but since you put it that way, I’ll pull rank as an old man and ramble for a bit.”

“Sir, please go on.”

“Randall, you must remember, no matter what faction you’re in, no matter who you serve under, you are first and foremost a naval officer. The navy of our era was born to conquer the sea of stars. So, if you want to be an excellent fleet commander, you must have fearless courage. You cannot start thinking of retreat or become hesitant the moment you run into difficulties.

This is something you’ve already demonstrated in your previous decisions and battles. You do have that potential—but it’s not enough.

I know you want to be responsible for the soldiers under your command, to bring them home alive. If that’s the case, you must forge a heart that fears no enemy, because victory is never won through evasion or pleading. It is fought for and earned.”

Guterres paused, staring intently into Randall’s eyes through the screen, then continued:

“I can see that Mr. Amber trusts you a great deal. Your friendship must be deeper than I imagined, or he wouldn’t have entrusted such an important mission to you. So, whether as a friend or a comrade-in-arms, you should not let him down.

Furthermore, in my view, Mr. Amber is a man of great ambition and vision. Given the current situation, the battles and hardships Atlas will face in the future will only multiply. The challenge you’re facing now, Randall, might very well be the easiest one.”

Guterres didn’t elaborate, but Randall understood his meaning.

If he couldn’t even pass this ‘level,’ how could he possibly face the tougher challenges to come?

“I understand, Sir. Thank you for your guidance.”

Randall spoke with sincerity, realizing at the same time that after boarding Amber’s ‘pirate ship,’ he had indeed been comfortable for far too long.

Of the ‘startup group’ that had escaped from Robert IV, everyone else had now become capable of handling things on their own.

To say nothing of Isabelle, she was now the Atlas Group’s ‘intelligence chief,’ with countless connections to the Empire, able to pull the strings for Amber.

Banninger and the other marines who were still alive were all highly respected instructors at the Tower of Babel’s combat training center.

And the ones who died? They were even more badass.

They had been directly elevated into a new form of life, becoming the most elite unit in the combat forces: the Immortal Corps.

Murat and Louis, who were just rookie HCP pilots back then, had now become the ‘chief instructors’ of the Atlas HCP units.

Even Tom had now become the first captain of a special mission ship.

Randall thought it over and over. It seemed that only he was still treading water, and that clearly wouldn’t do.

What’s more, Atlas was constantly attracting new talent. Now even his own teacher—former Federation Navy Vice Admiral Guterres—had become a ‘senior advisor’ to the Atlas combat fleet.

If he remained in his current state, he would eventually be unable to keep pace with Amber. That was a future Randall was unwilling to see, because deep down, he also longed to witness the day Atlas ‘reached the summit.’

He also hoped that when that time came, he would be standing by Amber’s side as his ‘right-hand man.’

On the other side of the screen, Guterres clearly saw something in the series of changes in Randall’s expression and finally revealed a faint smile.

“It seems you’ve figured some things out. In that case, I’ll give you some tactical advice based on the Third Task Force’s current situation~”

Hearing this, Randall’s eyes lit up again. For a commander like him who lacked experience in fleet battles, Guterres’s tactical advice was sure to be invaluable.

Although it seemed this former Federation Navy Vice Admiral had constantly been thwarted, a closer look suggested his ‘defeats’ were perhaps due more to bad luck.

The two major defeats he had experienced both involved him leading a conventional fleet against a cutting-edge force that far surpassed his own in terms of armament and technology.

The first time, he was thoroughly blasted by the Focusing Rainbow from the Artificial Celestial Fortress, which was making its combat debut.

The second time, he encountered The Infinity, also making its combat debut. He was strafed by purification beams empowered by elf technology, took the full brunt of plasma torpedoes that had circled a planet to strike his fleet from six o’clock, and finally, witnessed the defection of his own unmanned fleet.

You could say he was practically a ‘touchstone for new battlefield equipment.’

And after suffering two major disasters, the Vice Admiral had survived to this day and eventually joined the Atlas Group. From another perspective, his luck was actually quite good~

Chapter 546: Reinforcements Arrive Tomorrow

Next, Guterres, a former Federation Navy Vice Admiral with extensive fleet command experience, offered Randall his recommendations based on the current situation and the recently compiled fleet casualty report.

After the battle, although the Third Task Force had crushed the main force of the Loubion star system garrison fleet and captured a large number of ships, it had also suffered its own losses.

The fleet’s flagship, the super-heavy battleship The Infinity, had survived the aggressive tactic, but damage to the vessel was unavoidable.

Randall still felt a twinge of fear thinking back on the idea of ramming another ship with his deflector shield. And although the ramming maneuver had succeeded, 65% of the deflector shield generator array on the bow had overloaded.

Of those, 30% of the generators were completely destroyed and required immediate replacement.

At the same time, wreckage that had penetrated the deflector shield and struck the bow had also damaged the gunports of twelve heavy particle cannons.

All he could say was that it was a good thing The Infinity had closed all its main weapon gunports before impact. Otherwise, the damage might have been to the acceleration rails, which were much more difficult to repair.

Meanwhile, the “overload firing mode” of the heavy electromagnetic cannons had also damaged some of their acceleration rails, which necessitated emergency replacement.

As the various ships were recovering their heavy anti-ship penetrator rounds and Heavy Armored Gunships, the “Swarm” aboard The Infinity had already deployed to begin repairs and replacements.

As for the six battleships of the Battleship Division, four had sustained light damage, while two were heavily damaged.

Of the two heavily damaged battleships, the more severe case was a Kraken II-class battleship captured from the Military-industrial complex’s combined fleet. Its captain had even reported the possibility of having to abandon ship.

According to the reports from the ship’s engineer and damage control team, this battleship had not been well-maintained under the Military-industrial complex, leaving behind numerous hidden issues that had gone unnoticed during routine inspections.

When the intensity of the battle ramped up, the battleship had used its superior protection to act as a “meat shield,” covering several friendly ships that had come under enemy fire. It was then that its deflector shield generator overloaded.

The end result was that its bow was nearly torn in half by several heavy anti-ship penetrator rounds, while its midsection was raked by a heavy metal particle stream from a heavy particle cannon. A large swath of its external armor was completely stripped away, and the compartments behind the armor were riddled with holes.

If that had been the extent of the damage, the battleship’s captain would not have considered abandoning ship.

These space warships possessed far greater damage control and self-sustainment capabilities than most people imagined, and an expensive vessel like a battleship wasn’t something you abandoned at the drop of a hat.

After all, combat in space was different from combat within an atmosphere. Without the limitations of aerodynamic profiles, a few holes punched in a ship didn’t pose a risk of flooding; you simply sealed the airtight doors of the adjacent compartments.

This was why, after every large-scale fleet battle, one could see ships with their external armor practically shredded, some even with half their bows blown off, still able to travel and warp along with the withdrawing fleet.

But the reason this Kraken II’s captain was considering abandoning ship was that the particle cannon graze to the hull had also affected the fusion reactor. Its power output was in a state of steady decline, and the environmental control systems for the superconducting battery stack were also malfunctioning.

According to the shipboard control AI’s calculations, if repairs couldn’t be made in time, the battleship would completely lose power in eight hours.

And any repairs would require dismantling the entire fusion reactor for an overhaul, something the Third Task Force was clearly not equipped to do at the moment.

So, Randall ultimately approved the battleship captain’s request, ordering other ships to assist with the evacuation before the vessel executed its self-destruct sequence.

As for the remaining cruisers, destroyers, and frigates, a considerable number had also been lost in the battle. The heavy cruiser count had dropped from ten at the start of the battle to seven, while eighteen light cruisers remained. In total, fifty-eight destroyers and frigates were left.

However, these casualty figures were actually far lower than what Randall and the fleet’s operations staff officers had predicted before the battle.

And with these lower-than-expected losses, the Third Task Force could be said to have completely routed the main force of the Loubion star system garrison fleet.

Including their flagship, the Balkan, over sixty percent of the enemy fleet had been sunk in battle. The remaining warships had all ceased resistance and surrendered at the speed of light.

In terms of results, the Third Task Force’s victory of the few defeating the many had more than exceeded its tactical objectives.

Guterres asked, “Have the surrendered warships been secured?”

“Yes, Sir,” Randall nodded.

“We have sent our shipboard marines aboard with ‘Soldier Bees.’ The crew members have all been split into groups and isolated in different compartments. We’ve also replaced their shipboard control AI with a ‘temporary personality’ we brought with us. The original control personality will have to be ‘purged’ by the group’s data center before it can be used again.”

Randall detailed all of the fleet’s current operations, including its own repairs and rescue efforts, as well as the measures taken to manage the surrendered warships. Hearing it all, Guterres couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

“It’s so much more convenient for you to take control of surrendered ships nowadays. Just swap in a ‘temporary personality’ and you can fly it away. Back in our day, if we wanted to control a surrendered vessel, we had to forcibly take its control personality offline and then pilot the ship manually.”

“Times are changing, technology is advancing. Our Atlas is at the forefront in this field~”

“Is that an advertising slogan?”

“Hahaha, you caught me, Sir.”

Randall scratched his head sheepishly, then heard Guterres continue.

“I’ve looked at the plan you sent over. You’re preparing to warp into an asteroid belt. But I’ve just re-examined the astronomical data for the Loubion star system, and I suggest you change your warp destination to here.”

As he spoke, Guterres sent over a new set of coordinates.

Randall glanced at the new coordinates and asked with some confusion, “This is… another asteroid debris field? Is there something special about it?”

“An asteroid belt isn’t just a place to conceal the fleet for repairs and recuperation. If you choose the right one, it can also provide some replenishment for the fleet.”

Guterres brought up the detailed information for the new coordinates and explained,

“The Infinity should have a large number of ‘Worker Bee’ robots, shouldn’t it? And the other warships are equipped with some as well, correct?

This asteroid debris field is rich in ice crystals and comet fragments. You can send out the ‘Worker Bees’ to mine methane ice and solid water. By the time the entire fleet has completed its refit, you should have recovered at least seventy percent of your propellant water and coolant.”

Guterres walked Randall through a host of tactical decisions suitable for their current situation in meticulous detail. Randall, as if he were back in a classroom, diligently recorded these recommendations and quickly formulated them into new orders.

Once the Third Task Force had completed its recovery operations and fully secured the surrendered ships, the fleet, now even larger than it was before the battle, promptly warped to the new coordinates Guterres had provided.

Immediately after, all the warships released their “Worker Bees,” sending the robots, equipped with “collection modules,” out to mine the surrounding ice crystals and debris.

Twenty-two hours later, as a new Atlas freight fleet exited warp, approached Loubion V, and rendezvoused with the now considerably larger Third Task Force.

The commander of the freight fleet, having finally grasped what had transpired, was deeply unsettled.

His expression grew even more grim when he heard that two Federation fleets were eyeing them menacingly, poised to strike at any moment.

“Don’t panic. You’re already here. You can’t just turn back with all this cargo, can you?”

On the bridge of The Infinity, Randall clapped the reporting freight fleet commander on the shoulder and said:

“Deploy all your aerospace transport squadrons and deliver the most urgently needed supplies and key spare parts to the Renaissance Alliance first—it’s a one-way trip. The Renaissance Alliance has bought these aerospace transports as well; they’ll form their own transport fleet from now on.”

“According to our previous estimates, since you won’t need to recover the transports, the entire freight fleet can deploy them while using the planet’s rotation for a boost. You can complete the entire operation within forty hours. After that, you can just warp out of here.”

“But what if the Federation fleet attacks?” the freight fleet commander asked, still apprehensive.

“Don’t worry, we’ll handle it. Even if something unexpected happens, our combat fleet will hold the line to cover your withdrawal. Besides…”

Randall gave the freight fleet commander a look that said, “I’ve got this, don’t worry.”

“Reinforcements will arrive tomorrow.”

Chapter 547: Brigadier General Dowell’s Tactics

An unknown coordinate in deep space, three standard warp distances from the Loubion V warp point.

Two massive, full-strength fleets, totaling five hundred twenty warships of various types, lay dormant in this lightless expanse of space. Only the pinpricks of light from their viewports betrayed their existence, like anglerfish lurking in the deep sea.

The Federation Navy’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Capital Fleets were one of ‘former’ Secretary of State Davis’s trump cards for the negotiations. Unfortunately, these two fleets, deployed in deep space as a backup plan, were unable to be of any help when Davis was attacked.

It wasn’t until Naval Command relayed the news of Secretary of State Davis’s assassination on Loubion V to the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets that their commanders learned of the incident.

They were also left completely bewildered.

After all, they were here to support Secretary of State Davis’s negotiations and, if necessary, to make a show of force.

Of course, the two fleets were also prepared for armed intervention in a worst-case scenario.

However, no one had expected that Davis, who had been on the verge of returning from the negotiations, would be killed at the final step.

After the incident, the Federation government was in a state of profound shock. Compounding this, the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government immediately contacted The Capital to declare they were not responsible for the attack.

This left the two full-strength fleets in a state of limbo—unable to advance or retreat, forced to wait for orders in this empty region of deep space.

By the time Naval Command finally issued a directive—for them to contact the Loubion star system garrison fleet and proceed directly to the vicinity of Loubion V to provide support and ‘assert’ the Federation government’s sovereignty…

…another sudden development occurred: the garrison fleet had gone silent.

Of course, they hadn’t completely lost contact.

After all, three hours ago, the two Federation fleets had received one final message from the star system’s garrison fleet:

“Our unit is under attack by an Atlas capital fleet!”

After that, the fleet that was supposed to be providing cover for them at the ‘predetermined warp exit point’ simply lost contact.

From the two fleet commanders’ perspective, this was a full-blown ‘navy horror story’.

No matter how weak the garrison fleet was, it still possessed a substantial number of warships.

To be beaten so badly they couldn’t even send a follow-up message?

Bernelli and Stoner, the commanders of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Fleets, believed there were only two possibilities.

First, the entire incident was a staged event by the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, and the final emergency message was a trap to lure them in.

Second, the garrison fleet was genuinely attacked.

But if that were the case, the two fleet commanders felt it was even more terrifying than the first possibility.

It would mean that the attacking Atlas ‘capital fleet’ possessed enough strength to overwhelm a full-strength fleet.

“Which possibility do you lean toward?”

Bernelli asked, looking at the three-dimensional model of the Loubion star system on the holographic projection platform.

Hearing his partner’s question, Stoner pondered for a moment. “I lean toward the second possibility. After all, based on the intelligence we have, it’s highly unlikely the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government would stage this. They’re still counting on the Federation government to pull them out of their mess.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Bernelli said with a nod, then added with a wry smile, “But if it’s the second possibility, then the problem is even bigger, isn’t it?”

Stoner sighed as well. “Tell me about it. An entire garrison fleet’s main force going silent after being attacked… Whether they were hit with electronic countermeasures or were outright annihilated, it means the attacking Atlas fleet is far superior in strength.”

“So we just wait here?”

Bernelli asked, his mind turning to the order from Naval Command, which could be summed up in four words—act as the situation demands.

Stoner had also thought of this order and shook his head. “Naval Command may want us to use our ‘initiative’ and decide our next course of action, but we can’t just sit here and wait for things to unfold. If we wait until the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets arrive, I’m afraid Atlas will use the time to prepare thoroughly. By the time we rendezvous with the reinforcements, it might be too late.”

Hearing this, Bernelli had a good idea of what his colleague was planning, but he still asked politely, “So, what’s your plan?”

“I had a mentor I was very close to, who once served as the fleet commander of the Robert IV garrison fleet.”

Stoner’s expression suddenly turned somber, as if reminiscing.

“But in the early days of the war, he was among the first in the Federation Navy to encounter an Imperial Celestial Fortress. He and his fleet vanished in the blast of ‘The Focusing Rainbow’.”

“Wait… Are you talking about Brigadier General Dowell?”

Bernelli was surprised. He hadn’t realized that his colleague, another capital fleet commander, had such a personal connection with the commander of a border star system’s garrison fleet.

“That’s right, Brigadier General Dowell. My father was very close to him, which is how I got to know him as well.”

Stoner nodded, then asked:

“Do you remember why Brigadier General Dowell was posthumously named a Federation Hero?”

“Of course. It was because he led a remnant force, repeatedly harrying a full-strength Imperial Expeditionary Strike Group, and held out until the capital fleet arrived.” As he spoke, Bernelli’s eyes lit up.

“Are you suggesting we emulate that task force and conduct a high-speed flyby?”

“Exactly. Brigadier General Dowell dared to launch a raid against an Imperial fleet with just a remnant force. We have two full-strength fleets at our command. Should we continue to be so timid?”

Stoner turned to look at Bernelli on the other side of the screen and laid out his reasoning:

“Besides, according to intelligence from the Naval Intelligence Department, even if we overestimate the Atlas Group’s fleet strength, the number of ships they can have in the Loubion star system right now is limited. The risk we’d be taking is far smaller than the one Brigadier General Dowell faced.”

“So what’s your plan?” Bernelli had clearly come around to Stoner’s point of view, so he cut to the chase and asked about his intentions.

“It’s simple. We abandon the original ‘predetermined warp exit point’ and use an ‘alternate coordinate’ instead. I’ve already run the calculations. If we depart within two hours, we’ll exit warp right in the shadow of ‘Satellite Two’. With any luck, the satellite will help mask our warp exit signature.

Then, we can use the satellite’s rotation for a gravity assist, maintain high velocity, and push into the high orbit of Loubion V, four hundred fifty thousand kilometers away. After that, we’ll use the planet’s rotation for a second acceleration. This way, the fleet can maintain high velocity throughout the entire maneuver, conducting a raid that doubles as an armed reconnaissance!”

Chapter 548: Between Tomorrow and an Accident, the Accident Usually Comes First

“The 8th aerospace transport squadron is preparing to detach. Delivery vessels, prepare to enter your designated orbits as instructed!”

“Attention all aerospace transport crews, atmospheric data will be synchronized on Channel D2. Please adjust your data reception ports!”

“Warning: The planet’s airspace is still an active combat zone. Adhere strictly to the designated flight paths. Deviation may result in attack from ground-based anti-aircraft units!”

“Landing airfields have been assigned to all squadrons. Please double-check your target airfield before detachment!”

“Attention.”

In the outer space of Loubion V, the freight fleet, consisting of forty heavy cargo ships and over thirty light cargo ships, began its “delivery” operation to the Renaissance Alliance under the escort of the now-rested Third Task Force.

Guided by more than ten frigates, the heavy and light cargo ships steadily lowered their orbits until they reached the altitude for deploying the aerospace transports.

As the civilian shipboard control AI on the cargo ships confirmed they had reached deployment altitude and gave the green light, the aerospace transports in the deployment bays—sold to the Renaissance Alliance “plane and cargo included”—detached from the electromagnetic hardpoints one by one.

For the Renaissance Alliance and Franklin, acquiring these SSTO-TAV-82 ‘Valkyrie’ aerospace transports at a below-market price was an absolutely surefire deal.

After all, these one hundred fifty-meter-long aerospace transports were the “heavy-duty space-to-surface transport units” that were in short supply on Loubion V.

Not only could they enter the atmosphere single-handedly at full load and take off and land at airfields in near-field conditions, but their dual-mode fusion engines also allowed them to reach orbit within ten minutes of takeoff, even when fully loaded.

So for Franklin and his people, although this batch of four hundred ninety ‘Valkyrie’ aerospace transports was an entirely unplanned procurement, and it spent a considerable portion of the interest-free loan they had received from the Atlas Group…

It allowed them to acquire a massive fleet of space-to-surface transports at a relatively low cost.

And even if they didn’t need these ‘Valkyries’ for space-to-surface transit corridor missions for the time being, simply using them for atmospheric transport tasks would completely trump any other transport vehicles currently in the Renaissance Alliance’s possession in terms of speed and payload.

Soon, the aerospace transports, loaded with large quantities of supplies, crucial spare parts, and high-precision components, began to enter the atmosphere in sequence, relying on their booster engines and their own aerodynamic profiles.

With their wings fully extended, these aerospace transports, looking like enormous paper airplanes with massive wingspans, used the initial velocity imparted by the cargo ships to slam into Loubion V’s atmosphere at hypersonic speeds.

A red glow, caused by shock heating from friction with the atmosphere, immediately appeared on the carbon-fiber heat shield tiles on the leading edges of their wings and their underbellies.

At this stage, the aerospace transports were in a state of absolute safety. Given the current anti-aircraft capabilities of the other factions on Loubion V, it was basically impossible to shoot them down during this phase.

So the route planner had cleverly scheduled most of the passage through dangerous airspace for this stage, in order to minimize the possibility of the aerospace transport squadrons being attacked.

Next, after entering the sufficiently dense upper atmosphere and completing their initial deceleration, the ‘Valkyries’ would engage their turbojet engines and use them to maintain flight until they approached their destination airfields.

In the final step before landing, the pilot would switch the turbojet engines to ‘vertical take-off and landing mode.’ In this mode, the ‘Valkyrie’s’ airspeed would drop rapidly, but it would make the final landing process extremely simple.

This was why this massive aerospace transport did not have very high requirements for the airfields it used for take-off and landing on the planet’s surface.

“What’s the status of the freight fleet’s deployment?”

“Reporting, Colonel. Progress is at sixty-seven percent. However, the freight fleet commander indicates that the operation is proceeding faster than they predicted, so they can complete all deployments within thirteen hours.”

Hearing the officer on duty’s report, Randall, in the captain’s chair of The Infinity, first nodded. But after carefully considering the remaining time, he frowned again.

After a moment’s thought, Randall spoke: “Tell Major Marshall to speed things up a bit. The faster the freight fleet finishes its ‘delivery’ operation, the safer we’ll all be.”

“Yes, Colonel!”

Although he didn’t know why Randall suddenly wanted to rush a process that was already moving quickly, the officer on duty saluted, turned, and walked towards the bridge’s communications team.

Randall’s attention returned to the 3D star chart on the holographic projection platform. For some reason, he felt a sense of unease.

Thinking of this, he directly opened a channel to the observation team.

“Observation team, this is the Captain. Has your air surveillance picked up anything?”

“Reporting, Captain. Based on current surveillance, everything is normal! No anomalies have been detected so far.”

“Good. Maintain surveillance.”

After speaking, Randall suddenly remembered Guterres’s instructions from the private briefing the day before and added:

“Oh, and intensify surveillance around the two satellites. Those are areas that could easily provide cover and concealment for the enemy!”

“Yes, Captain! I’ll make the arrangements right away!”

Soon, from the bridge, Randall saw on the graphical representation of the ‘real-time ship detection status’ that several arrays of long-wave radar, infrared, ultraviolet, and optical observation equipment were turning their detection angles towards Loubion V’s two satellites.

A moment later, the officer on duty returned after finishing his communication with the freight fleet commander. Seeing Randall’s recent order, he asked with some curiosity:

“Colonel, are you worried about something?”

“I am,” Randall said, staring at the situational awareness display on the 3D star chart before sighing.

“I’m a little worried the Federation fleet might show up at this critical juncture. The freight fleet’s deployment is less than seventy percent complete, and the remaining heavy cargo ships are already approaching their deployment orbits. Getting attacked now would not be a good thing.”

Hearing Randall’s words, the officer on duty offered some reassurance, “Colonel, I don’t think you need to worry too much. The Infinity just had its detection equipment upgraded. Our air surveillance and long-range early warning capabilities are arguably the strongest, second only to the artificial space elevator fortress. If a Federation fleet were to warp in as a complete unit, we would definitely detect it.”

“The problem is, detection equipment is only one part of reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance. It can’t guarantee that The Infinity will spot every anomaly. We can’t rely too heavily on our equipment…”

Just as Randall was about to use this opportunity to say more, a sound he least wanted to hear echoed across the bridge.

“Warning! A large number of unidentified units detected at the edge of the second satellite’s shadow! They are currently emerging from behind the moon! Based on the shipboard control AI’s assessment, their characteristics are consistent with a large-scale fleet!”

“Damn it! What a jinx! Is my mouth blessed or something?”

Happy National Day, Everyone (Please Be Gentle)

Happy National Day, everyone~ (Please be gentle)

Wishing you all a happy National Day in advance. I’ll be going into seclusion over the next few days for the holiday, otherwise I won’t have any stockpiled chapters for my wedding on the 20th~

Voiceover: The truth is, I’ve already lost hope for this month’s perfect attendance bonus, so I’m starting to phone it in.

PS: You don’t hit a smiling face~

PSS: I’m the one on the left, so please stop spamming comments about me being a female author~

Chapter 549: TF3 Has No Cowards

“The far side of the moon. So they really did come from that direction?!”

Randall shot up from The Infinity’s captain’s chair and strode over to the holographic projection platform.

The shipboard control AI, Serena, had already zoomed the 3D star chart in on the celestial system composed of Loubion V and its two satellites.

Currently, the Third Task Force and the cargo fleet were operating in the mid-altitude orbits of Loubion V, conducting escort and aerospace transport squadron deployment operations.

The unidentified fleet they had just discovered was now emerging from the shadow of Satellite Two—colloquially known as “Five’s second satellite”—at a current straight-line distance of 420,000 kilometers.

This was only possible because The Infinity had recently upgraded its ship-wide detection units. A standard fleet would have struggled to spot a fleet hugging a satellite at this range unless they had launched numerous probes and deployed a fleet detection array.

Celestial structures with multiple satellites could interfere with conventional fleet detection methods, which was why some classic surprise attacks often occurred in similar settings.

Based on the enemy’s approximate trajectory detected by The Infinity, Serena speculated that they were using the synchronous rotation of Satellite Two to accelerate, waiting for the right moment to break orbit and maneuver toward the Third Task Force’s position.

“Captain, based on my search of the extensive fleet battle records in the database, there is a 75 percent probability that the enemy will launch a high-speed flyby. They will then determine their next move based on the reconnaissance from that raid!”

Serena stated her conclusion in a quick, clear, and intelligent, mature voice—a hallmark of the new generation of shipboard control AIs in the Atlas combat fleet.

In addition to standard ship control, situational awareness, and Electronic Warfare capabilities, these more intelligent control personalities also began to offer their own tactical suggestions or deduce the current situation.

“A high-speed flyby… aigh, why didn’t I think of deploying some probes in these ‘high-risk blind spots’ beforehand?”

Randall covered his forehead in frustration at his own obvious lack of experience. But he had barely sunk into self-reproach when he heard Serena begin to ‘console’ him:

“Captain, there’s no need to blame yourself. The fleet wasn’t carrying many combat probes to begin with, and the few we had were used up in the previous battle. So even if you had thought of this tactical deployment, we couldn’t have carried it out anyway~”

Randall: “…”

The officer on duty: “Colonel… this control personality sure has a way with words.”

“Serena, you’re such a sweet talker,” Randall said, speechless.

“You’re welcome, Captain~”

A smile on her face, Serena stood with her hands folded in front of her, her posture impeccable.

But Randall didn’t have time to banter with the shipboard control AI. He immediately turned to the officer on duty beside him and said sternly:

“Contact the commander of the cargo fleet. Tell them they don’t have time to take it slow anymore. Either they speed up and drop everything at once, or they cease operations and start their getaway.

We will find a way to buy them time, but from the looks of it, we won’t be able to hold out for long.”

The officer on duty nodded in acknowledgment and turned to leave once more.

Besides lamenting his seemingly terrible luck, Randall was also thankful he had followed Guterres’s advice and adjusted the fleet’s previous resting position. This had allowed the propellant water and coolant levels on all ships in the Third Task Force to recover to over seventy-five percent.

At least this would prevent a drop in firing frequency and hull defensive capabilities during the upcoming battle, which could be caused by warships being unable to dissipate heat effectively.

Meanwhile, as the large fleet on the far side of Satellite Two continued to reveal its full form, the Observation Team on The Infinity finally obtained more accurate intelligence.

“Report! The unidentified fleet is estimated to be close to the size of two full-strength fleets! Based on current observations, they are changing course and adjusting their formation!”

“Acknowledged. Maintain surveillance.”

Randall quickly assessed the situation. The fleet that had suddenly appeared from behind the moon had to be the Federation Navy’s 17th and 18th Fleets.

After all, they were the only Federation Navy fleets that could have appeared here so suddenly.

Their warp exit coordinates and timing were too precise, allowing the far side of the moon to provide perfect cover. Only the Federation Navy, with its thorough collection of astronomical data on the star system, could pull something like this off.

Although Randall was still unsure why the Federation fleet would choose to warp into this potentially dangerous region of space after losing contact with the system’s garrison fleet…

…he knew they had come for only one reason: to target the Atlas fleet.

At this thought, Randall glanced at a virtual screen near the captain’s chair, which displayed the estimated arrival time for the two supporting unmanned fleets.

“07:42:52”

“07:42:51”

“07:42:50”

“07:42:49”

“Reinforcements won’t arrive for nearly eight hours. We’re on our own until then.”

Randall sighed helplessly. He never would have thought that the first few proper fleet battles he’d command would all be this difficult, and every single time he was outnumbered.

They had just finished a battle pitting the Third Task Force against an entire system garrison fleet. Not long had passed, and the fleet’s rest and resupply were incomplete, yet they were already facing a new fight.

The enemy force had even doubled in size. Who could Randall even complain to?

Soon, the officer on duty returned to Randall’s side:

“Colonel, the cargo fleet has responded. Most of their ships have now entered low-to-mid orbit.

If they were to escape the planet’s gravity and accelerate to warp speed while fully loaded, it would take even longer than it would to retreat in a low-load state after deploying all the aerospace transport squadrons.”

“So you’re saying we actually have to cover them until they finish deploying their squadrons?”

“Yes, Colonel.” The officer on duty’s expression was grim; he clearly understood the situation they were about to face.

Huuu…

Randall took a deep breath of the ship’s internal air, which smelled of oxygen tablets, then slowly exhaled to calm himself.

A moment later, he spoke in a calm but firm voice:

“Issue the General Quarters order! The Third Task Force will immediately begin engaging the approaching fleet and cover the cargo fleet’s withdrawal!”

Randall paused. A thought flashed through his mind, and after a moment, he added the final sentence.

“Like I always say, the Third Task Force has no cowards.”

Chapter 550: It’s Capital Fleets We’re Here to Fight

“General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands to battle stations. The fleet is about to engage the Federation Navy. Cover the emergency withdrawal of our cargo fleet!”

As the chiefs on each warship sounded the General Quarters alarm upon receiving the signal, everyone in the Third Task Force sprang into action.

A few “onboard reporters” from the group’s propaganda department, who had been following the operation long-term, recorded the scenes on their respective ships as the sailors of the Atlas combat fleet quickly and orderly reached their battle stations.

In particular, the footage of sailors rapidly ascending and descending gangways, or using the handholds in the corridors for swift movement, would later become enduring classic shots, reused time and again.

Perhaps it was the battle that crushed the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet that had given everyone in the Third Task Force a dose of something called “confidence.”

It had shown them that the combat fleet they served in, though smaller in scale, was in no way inferior to their enemy in terms of ship performance or technological level. In some areas, they even far surpassed them.

This directly resulted in a surge of morale throughout the Third Task Force upon hearing the call to General Quarters. There was not a single sign of hesitation from anyone.

As for the trainees from the Renaissance Alliance, they had even less to fear. They were fighting for the independence of the Loubion star system.

After training with Atlas, a long process of subtle indoctrination had already erased any sense of belonging they might have had for the Federation.

So, at this moment, upon seeing the “invading” Federation Navy fleet, all the Renaissance Alliance trainees, including Johnny Leiding and Manfred, entered a state of “defending their homeland,” completely unafraid to engage the Federation fleet.

With the entire fleet united in purpose, the Third Task Force quickly broke off from its escort duty, immediately adjusted its formation, and began maneuvering proactively toward the Federation fleet.

At the very front of the formation were the captured, still-operational warships from the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet.

The crews on these ships had already been completely transferred off. You couldn’t find a single living person aboard them now. All ship operations and combat commands were handled by a “temporary control AI.”

Their purpose was simple: to serve as the fleet’s “meat shields” in the first wave of an attack.

“Do you think they’ve spotted us?”

Aboard the 17th Fleet’s flagship, The Magellan, Rear Admiral Bernelli asked.

“I don’t know. Theoretically, our current position should be relatively concealed,” replied Rear Admiral Stoner from the bridge of the 18th Fleet’s flagship, The Galileo, upon hearing his colleague’s question.

“But if I were to err on the side of caution when assessing the enemy, I would assume they have already found us.”

“At this distance? And we haven’t even seen a shadow of the Atlas fleet yet.” Bernelli found it hard to believe. After all, the standard detection range for a conventional fleet was around 300,000 kilometers—nearly one light-second.

But neither of their fleets had detected the Atlas combat fleet yet. If they themselves had been exposed, it would mean the Atlas fleet’s detection range far exceeded the conventional 300,000 kilometers.

And this was in a planet-moon system, where the celestial bodies tended to interfere with fleet detection.

Stoner: “That’s why I said err on the side of caution. Don’t forget, the enemy we’re about to face wiped out the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet so quickly that they only had time to send a single distress call!”

“So what’s our next move?”

Bernelli had already come to regard the more experienced Rear Admiral Stoner as the de facto commander-in-chief of their two fleets, so he directly asked for his intentions.

“The original plan remains unchanged. Maintain our high-speed flyby posture and continue approaching Loubion V along the predetermined trajectory. At the same time, have all Observation Teams keep a close watch on the space around Loubion V. Report any anomalies immediately!”

On the bridge of The Infinity, Randall and the others had also taken note of the enemy’s movements. Using the ship’s upgraded sensor equipment, which incorporated Forerunner technology, they were able to maintain continuous surveillance on the enemy force that had suddenly appeared from behind the moon.

So when the two Federation fleets completed their acceleration burn, changed course according to plan, and began hurtling toward Loubion V, the last shred of wishful thinking in their minds vanished.

The enemy was here specifically for them.

“Colonel, in approximately twenty minutes, we will enter the enemy fleet’s detection range. If we don’t activate the blackbody coating, large ships like The Infinity and the heavy cargo ships will definitely be spotted,” the officer on duty reported to Randall, looking at the three-dimensional battlefield situation map.

Although the situation was grim, Randall’s expression slowly relaxed. He suddenly realized that no matter how serious he was, he couldn’t change the weights currently on the scales.

If that was the case, he might as well let his nerves unwind a bit. Sometimes, being too tense wasn’t a good thing.

A moment later, as if having had an epiphany, Randall spoke to the officer on duty and the others around him, including the fleet gunnery officer.

“Well? Let’s figure out a way to give them one son of a bitch of a fight!”

The surrounding officers were stunned. They hadn’t expected Randall to be so audacious.

The officer on duty said, “Colonel, the enemy fleet outnumbers us more than two to one. And they’re not a second-rate force like the system garrison fleet; they’re a proper Federation Navy capital fleet.”

“So what if it’s a capital fleet? It’s capital fleets I’m here to fight! Ever hear that fortune favors the bold when you’re cornered?”

Randall’s eyes widened, and a fierce aura suddenly erupted from him, one that felt incredibly familiar to the others.

It was exactly like Amber when she was in command, as if he had been “possessed” by the boss herself.

However, while Randall’s current state was indeed influenced by Amber, it was more due to the “instructions” Guterres had given him beforehand.

The former Federation Navy Vice Admiral had imparted to him a great deal of “key exam topics,” including the combat doctrine of Federation Navy capital fleets and the common habits of most fleet commanders.

One of these points concerned the Federation Navy’s characteristics during long-range enemy contact.

Thinking of this, Randall glanced around at the others. Seeing that no one was speaking, he took the lead.

“Since no one’s talking, I’ll start.”

He pointed a finger at the enemy fleet’s position on the three-dimensional tactical overlay, and a red indicator light moved with his finger.

“The fleet still has a considerable reserve of stealth plasma torpedoes. Before the enemy enters their maximum detection range, have each ship launch forty percent of its plasma torpedoes. Pre-program their courses and have them maintain Silent Running to bypass the sidelobes of the enemy’s long-wave radar. Their seeker heads will power on only after reaching the predetermined range.

“After launching that salvo, except for the captured ‘decoy meat shields,’ which will advance with corner reflector decoys, the entire fleet is to enter covert operations mode and close with the enemy at low speed.”

At this point, Randall looked up at the shipboard control AI, Serena, who was floating in mid-air.

“As the saying goes: one good trick is all you need. I want to try the tactic Cleves used at Parra IV.

“So, Serena, calculate a torpedo release point and a pre-set trajectory for me. When the fleet reaches this ‘release point,’ we will launch plasma torpedoes backwards. Using Loubion V for cover, we will complete a low-speed orbit around the planet and attempt to attack the enemy fleet from the flank!”

Chapter 551: Randall’s Fog

At Randall’s request, Serena quickly began her calculations based on the fleet’s current velocity, orbital altitude, and engagement range. At this moment, this was a task only the powerful shipboard control AI could complete.

After all, the fleet led by Cleves back then had launched its plasma torpedoes while being pursued by the enemy, executing a flanking attack from the rear.

The attacker and the attacked were essentially on the same orbital path, so there were fewer parameters to calculate, making the computation much less difficult.

But the situation Randall now faced was quite different. The enemy was still a considerable distance away from his fleet and had not yet even entered orbit around Loubion V.

Therefore, he couldn’t just launch torpedoes directly like Cleves. He needed far more precise calculations to determine the right moment to deploy the torpedoes and to plan their preset trajectory.

Incidentally, the tactic Cleves had used at Parra IV had become deeply ingrained in the minds of the Atlas combat fleet.

From captains to formation commanders, squadron commanders, and flotilla commanders—every single one of them would imitate Cleves’s tactic whenever they encountered a planetary combat scenario in simulations, especially in orbital combat.

This directly led to a situation where, in simulated battles near planets, fleets would spend ninety percent of their time on opposite sides of the planet’s curve, launching heavy anti-ship missiles and stealth plasma torpedoes at each other from all sorts of unexpected angles.

With both sides employing this strategy, commanders at every level developed exceptionally skilled and agile maneuvering and torpedo evasion abilities.

And ninety percent of the time, it was only after both sides had expended all their plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles that they would officially enter the direct fire exchange phase.

Moreover, even in simulated environments not involving planetary combat, many commanders had also grown fond of using massive volleys of plasma torpedoes in wide arcs to attack the enemy fleet’s flanks, a strategy that amounted to waiting for a lucky shot.

It could be said that when it came to “Restoring the Glory of the Torpedo,” Cleves had done an outstanding job.

Although the Commander-in-Chief of the Atlas combat fleet had stated on multiple public occasions that he had learned this set of tactics from his boss, under Amber’s arrangement, the tactic was officially named the “Cleves Tactic” within Atlas.

This was to commemorate the fleet commander who had been the first to execute this tactic in actual combat.

This gesture not only deeply moved Cleves but also ignited the passion of the commanders within the Atlas combat fleet.

For them, having a tactic named after them was an honor significant enough to brag about to their descendants.

So, when Randall encountered this situation requiring combat near a planet, he immediately thought of the “Cleves Tactic.”

After all, many fleet commanders, including himself, had come to realize the power of plasma torpedoes.

As long as one could successfully complete the step of “delivering the plasma torpedoes to the enemy’s doorstep,” the effect these “little things” could produce was far more than just a “shot in the dark.”

Soon, the immensely powerful Serena calculated the deployment positions and preset trajectories for the plasma torpedoes.

In the trajectory diagram she projected, the second wave of plasma torpedoes launched to the fleet’s rear would use Loubion V’s gravity to circle the planet. After tracing a massive arc, they would strike the flank of the Federation fleet, which would have just arrived at a specific location.

According to Serena’s calculations, if this torpedo attack was effective, it would inflict enormous casualties on the Federation fleet.

“Very good. Any other suggestions?”

After watching Serena’s demonstration, Randall nodded and looked at the others around him.

“If any of you have an opinion, speak up now. We’re short on time. We must finalize and issue the tactical plan before we enter the Federation fleet’s detection range.”

“I have a question, Colonel.” The officer on duty raised his hand, and the others turned to look at him.

“Go ahead.”

“I’m worried the Federation fleet will be prepared for this. After all, the victory Sir Cleves achieved at Parra IV was too significant. The Federation Navy will certainly have reassessed the threat level of plasma torpedoes.”

“I’ve considered that issue as well.”

Randall nodded, then continued:

“But it’s not like we have any better options at the moment. We can’t just abandon the cargo fleet and make a quick getaway. That being the case, with our fleet’s hard power far inferior to our opponent’s, we can only resort to these kinds of ‘unorthodox methods.’”

Randall’s words plunged everyone on the bridge into silence.

They realized that, just as Randall had said, they truly couldn’t come up with a better way to handle the impending battle.

“Alright, if you can’t think of a better plan, then carry out the order. We have no time to waste.”

Randall waved his hand and returned to his captain’s chair. The others quickly dispersed, each heading to their respective battle station.

Then, Randall looked again at the shipboard control AI floating in mid-air.

“Serena, finalize the torpedo deployment operational plan and issue it to all ships. At the same time, add a follow-up plan for enemy contact—all ships are to gather around The Infinity as the center and form a spherical formation. Activate the ‘visible light band jammers’ and await the flagship’s command to turn them on at any moment!”

“Acknowledged, Captain!”

As time passed, the Federation fleet, advancing at an extremely high relative velocity, soon reached its maximum detection range. It immediately scanned an “enemy fleet” that had already assumed formation.

At a distance of three hundred thousand kilometers, optical and infrared observation were not yet accurate enough. Compounded by the high probability that the enemy had activated optical camouflage, the Federation fleet was currently relying mainly on the echo characteristics from its long-wave radar for judgment.

Of course, there was another, more “convenient” detection method.

It involved firing a capital ship’s heavy particle cannon with added radioactive elements in a “diffusion firing” mode, then using a superconducting quantum interference magnetic measurement system to track the resulting tide of radioactive particles, which could cover an area at speeds of hundreds of kilometers per second.

When this tide of radioactive particles covered a target’s surface, the target would be observed by the superconducting quantum interference magnetic measurement system, regardless of whether it was using optical camouflage, radar wave cancellation, or a blackbody coating.

However, the fleet’s current position was within a celestial structure resembling a “planet-moon system,” and the gravitational interference between the multiple celestial bodies would have a certain impact on the measurement results.

Furthermore, since this detection method was essentially equivalent to opening fire, neither Bernelli nor Stoner used it rashly.

What if the enemy hadn’t yet detected the Federation fleet, which was in covert operations mode?

However, after advancing some distance into detection range, Bernelli quickly noticed something was wrong. After several scans, the enemy fleet had not activated its radar wave cancellation. Instead, they were just sitting there brazenly, letting themselves be seen.

“I have a bad feeling about this. It seems like a decoy.”

“It is a decoy. But it might not be to ambush us, but to provide cover for something else.”

Stoner’s voice came from the side. Bernelli turned his head to see the fleet commander, who appeared as a hologram, sending over a newly analyzed radar image via the fleet datalink.

“Look here. This is the problem our fleet’s intelligence processing detachment found.”

Bernelli looked carefully at the radar image displayed by Stoner and soon spotted the issue himself—there was another fleet operating in a low orbit around Loubion V.

“Such a low orbit… Are they orbital assault ships? Or are they cargo ships conducting deployment operations?”

Stoner: “Based on the radar signatures, my people are leaning toward it being a cargo fleet at work.”

“No wonder their fleet didn’t activate radar wave cancellation and just let us find them. Their entire purpose was to draw our attention and cover for this cargo fleet!”

Bernelli slapped his thigh, a look of sudden realization dawning on his face.

“Clever devils, they almost fooled us. Should we seize this opportunity and attack immediately? We could take out their cargo fleet at the same time!”

On the other side, however, the commander of the 18th Fleet, Rear Admiral Stoner, shook his head.

“Theoretically, that’s what we should do, yes. But I can’t shake the feeling that something’s not right.”

He turned to look at Bernelli and continued, “Do you really think the fleet we’ve currently spotted is large enough to annihilate the garrison fleet in one go?”

Chapter 552: The Shining Disco Ball

Stoner’s question stumped Bernelli.

The latter immediately realized he might have been misled by the enemy’s deployment.

In naval warfare of this era, before fleets engaged in the final stage of close-range combat, the commanders on both sides were essentially playing a ‘guessing game’.

Although the naval fleets of ancient times that sailed the oceans also played games of ‘deception and trickery’, the area of operations on the sea was, after all, limited. As humanity’s various detection methods advanced, deep-ocean surveillance became increasingly sophisticated.

By the end of the surface fleet era, the navies of all human factions were essentially fighting with their cards on the table.

This was because as soon as a fleet left port, it would be discovered by the enemy and monitored throughout its journey, making strategic deception nearly impossible.

This was true for both sides.

Therefore, in that period, naval fleet combat became increasingly pure and direct. Both fleets would mobilize, find a calm stretch of sea, and engage in a straightforward duel.

However, once humanity unearthed the prototype Warp Engine from the Forerunner ruins and entered the age of interstellar exploration overnight, the detection methods that had once been a source of pride—capable of covering an entire planet—seemed minuscule in the face of the boundless cosmos.

This led to a new reality when humanity established its space fleets and categorized them under the ‘Navy’.

This time-honored branch of service reverted to its old ways.

All sorts of tactical and strategic deceptions sprang up like mushrooms after rain, constantly being developed by various fleet commanders.

And one point now commonly accepted among naval historians is that the first batch of famous space fleet commanders…

…were all a bunch of old foxes.

“So, is the Atlas combat fleet trying to make us misjudge their numbers, tricking us into a reckless attack, only to have a hidden fleet deliver the fatal blow?”

Rear Admiral Bernelli slowly began to understand. He then saw Stoner nod on the other side and speak:

“Exactly. Otherwise, there’s no explaining how they annihilated the Loubion star system’s garrison fleet.”

Clearly, neither Bernelli nor Stoner had yet realized the immense impact a super-flagship like The Infinity could have on the course of a battle.

Their current state of mind and line of thinking were just as Amber and Randall had hoped. Based on the fact that the Loubion garrison fleet had been completely wiped out, they had severely misjudged the scale of the Atlas combat fleet.

This caused the Federation fleet to abandon its initial plan of a direct assault and instead continue with the previously decided ‘high-speed flyby’ operation.

Ever since the end of the strategic decisive battle with the Star Dragon Empire, after which the two sides began to engage in armistice negotiations, the Federation Navy had become extremely protective of its fleets.

During the ‘strategic decisive battle’, one-third of the warships in the entire Federation Navy had been sunk, and of the remaining vessels, less than half were undamaged.

Thus, fleets like the 17th and 18th, which had been replenished and brought to a relatively full strength, became the Federation Navy’s rare ‘new blood’—forces that could be rapidly deployed.

The contradiction, however, was that the Federation Navy also valued these ‘new blood’ forces—used to maintain the front—very highly and was reluctant to let them suffer any damage in battle.

Marshal Trafalgar had repeatedly warned Bernelli and Stoner before their departure to be cautious, cautious, and more cautious. Unless absolutely necessary, they were not to engage the Atlas fleet in a direct confrontation.

Even if they had to fight, they were to wait for reinforcements to arrive, only engaging after the Federation fleet held an absolute numerical advantage.

This was why the two commanders of the 17th and 18th Fleets were so hesitant to act.

They knew that the Federation Navy’s capital fleet could no longer afford to be squandered. To maintain a deterrent against the Star Dragon Empire and the ‘rebels’ throughout its territory, the Federation Navy had to preserve a certain level of strength.

In other words, it had to achieve the effect of a ‘Fleet in being’.

If the two of them, in a moment of rashness, got their two capital fleets crippled or even annihilated in the Loubion star system, it could, on a grander scale, plunge the Federation into complete civil war, or even lead to its destruction.

Therefore, to avoid becoming villains condemned by future history textbooks, Bernelli and Stoner ultimately chose a more prudent approach.

The Federation fleet’s caution, in turn, was a relief to Randall and the others on the opposing side.

After confirming that the enemy showed no signs of changing formation or course and was continuing its approach in a ‘high-speed flyby’ posture, Randall knew they had most likely been bluffed.

Between facing an enemy fleet in a full battle formation, poised to annihilate his forces, and one in a high-speed flyby posture, Randall would decisively choose to deal with the latter.

Besides, a fleet’s dense formation during a high-speed flyby also made it an easier target for plasma torpedoes.

Soon, after confirming the Federation fleet had not changed its mind, Randall issued a new command.

“All ships, watch for the flagship’s signal. Prepare to activate the ‘visible light band jammers’. Serena, once the Federation fleet enters effective optical and infrared detection range, you will release the signal immediately.”

“Understood, Captain! Commencing observation!”

At this moment, the relative velocity between the Federation fleet and Atlas’s ‘decoy fleet’ had reached one hundred kilometers per second, which was roughly the same as its relative velocity to Randall’s actual combat fleet.

Thus, the distance between them closed extremely quickly. Twenty-five minutes after the Federation fleet entered the three-hundred-thousand-kilometer radar detection range, it crossed into the one-hundred-fifty-thousand-kilometer effective observation range for optical and infrared detectors.

At this range, these instruments could basically observe the target clearly. When combined with synthesized radar imagery, they could generate a real-time monitoring feed.

It was precisely when the Federation fleet entered this range and, on Bernelli and Stoner’s command, activated its visual light observation…

…that the image appearing before all the Observation Teams was of a giant ‘ball of light’ emerging behind the fleet they had just detected.

A dense cluster of warships, so tightly packed that even with their radar wave cancellation devices turned off, the radar couldn’t distinguish individual ships.

Not to mention, in the optical and infrared spectrums, the glare was bright enough to dazzle the Observation Teams blind, truly turning the Atlas fleet into a ‘disco ball’ hanging next to Loubion V.

Watching the feed from the Observation Team, which showed the Atlas fleet buried in a massive ball of white light, Bernelli and Stoner suddenly felt their minds couldn’t keep up.

They were no strangers to this type of visible light band jammer; the Federation Navy’s warships were equipped with them as well.

It was just that there were very few scenarios where they could be effectively used.

Once a fleet spread out into formation, the jammer’s disruptive effect on enemy ships was not as great as its developers had imagined. In fact, it often just painted a target for the enemy.

But with the Atlas fleet’s current ‘dense spherical formation’, the visible light band jammer truly turned the fleet into a disco ball that would blind you from every angle, completely thwarting the Federation fleet’s attempt to observe them through optical channels.

Coupled with the dense formation that prevented radar from effectively assessing its scale, Bernelli and Stoner were left knowing only that they had discovered another new fleet.

But as for how many ships it contained or what its specific composition was, they had no information whatsoever.

“Dammit! If only we had a mobile fortress, we could just blast them with a single sweep! I’d like to see them try a formation like this then!” Rear Admiral Bernelli pounded the armrest of his captain’s chair in agitation, the look on his face practically bursting with ‘joy’.

“Well said, but we don’t have one, do we?”

Rear Admiral Stoner sighed. Clearly, he hadn’t expected this situation at all.

“So now the question is, what do we do next?”

Chapter 553: The Same Old Trick

“Stoner, why do you think they’re doing this?”

Rear Admiral Bernelli, seated in the captain’s chair, asked with a hint of confusion. He had already donned his in-ship suit and secured himself to his seat.

In fact, upon discovering the sudden appearance of this massive ‘orb of light’, the 17th and 18th Fleets had issued a ‘General Quarters’ order to ensure a swift response to any unexpected developments.

“Perhaps they want to hide the true size of their fleet?” Stoner replied.

“This method does indeed prevent us from determining the number of enemy warships, but what’s the point? Generally, this tactic is only used when one’s own fleet is weaker than the enemy’s, to keep them from grasping your true strength.”

“Wait!”

Stoner’s words made Bernelli suddenly realize something, and he cut the other man off.

“Could the Atlas fleet commander be hiding the true number of his ships for that very reason?!”

“But no matter what, they did annihilate this star system’s garrison fleet. In terms of numbers, that was a standard fleet, wasn’t it?”

Stoner was now a little hesitant to jump to conclusions. While his experience and skill in fleet command surpassed that of the younger, newly promoted Bernelli, his overall style was still relatively conservative.

“Who knows? Maybe they used some kind of surprise attack? Besides, the strength of a star system’s garrison fleet has always been mediocre at best.”

Bernelli, the young fleet commander, felt he might have stumbled upon the truth, and he grew excited.

“Think about it. While the Atlas Group has expanded its power rapidly during this period, building or buying warships and training their crews all take time.

The Naval Intelligence Department has never believed they could expand their fleet so quickly in such a short time, which is why their assessment of Atlas’s manned combat fleet has always been capped at no more than three standard fleets.

As for those three unmanned fleets that defected, according to previous intelligence, they should still be in the process of warping, so they won’t be appearing in the Loubion star system just yet.

Based on all this, and considering the warships the Atlas Group needs to deploy in other regions, I personally believe that in the Loubion star system, the enemy’s fleet size is one standard fleet at the absolute most, and possibly not even that!!!”

At this point, Stoner had to admit his junior’s analysis was not without reason. But his cautious nature was deeply ingrained, so he offered another possibility.

“Bernelli, is there any chance the enemy commander wants you to think this way? So that you’ll launch an all-out attack, only to fall into an ambush by their concealed, superior forces.”

“The… the probability of that is too low! How could a mere corporate fleet commander possibly have such an infallible plan?!

Trust me, now is the time to attack boldly to maximize our gains!”

There was a hint of unnaturalness in Bernelli’s tone, as he knew what Stoner described was a possibility.

But the proud navy fleet commander simply couldn’t believe that the commander of a private corporation’s fleet could be so capable.

To be superior to him—a properly academy-trained fleet commander—in strategy and tactical planning?

What kind of joke was that?

“If the probability isn’t zero, it means it could very well happen. Rear Admiral Bernelli, we cannot gamble with two capital fleets, the 17th and the 18th.”

Stoner added Bernelli’s rank when addressing him, indicating the seriousness and gravity of his words.

It was also a sign that he did not approve of Bernelli’s risky proposal.

And according to the instructions given by Marshal Trafalgar before the two fleets departed, any major decisions for the 17th and 18th Fleets required the agreement of both fleet commanders.

So, as long as Stoner disagreed with Bernelli’s plan, the latter couldn’t order an attack—not even an attack by the 17th Fleet alone.

Upon hearing Stoner’s words, Bernelli was momentarily stunned. Then he sighed, resigned.

“Then what do you suggest, Rear Admiral Stoner?”

“We continue with the current operational plan. A high-speed pass to assess the situation first. If it’s as you suspect, it won’t be too late to turn back, form up, and launch an attack then, right?”

——

“Report. The Federation fleet has not changed formation. According to the shipboard control AI’s calculations, they still intend to conduct armed reconnaissance during a high-speed pass!”

On the bridge of The Infinity, Randall, also in his in-ship suit and seated in the captain’s chair, nodded upon hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report.

“Understood. All ships, maintain current status. By the way, where are the plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles?”

“Captain, the first wave of plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles launched at the enemy fleet is now approaching their port and starboard hemispheres and is about to enter the final impact range!

The second wave of plasma torpedoes, which took a route around Loubion V, has completed three-quarters of its path and is projected to successfully attack the enemy fleet from their port-side rear!”

So far, all the news Randall had heard from the Tactical Information Coordinator and other bridge officers was good, that everything was going smoothly. But deep down, he was still on edge.

After all, the approaching Federation force was more than double the size of the Third Task Force. In a straight fight, even with The Infinity present, the Third Task Force would undoubtedly be annihilated.

They might even give up the first-ever ‘kill’ of an Infinity-class super-flagship.

So, Randall wanted to prevent that from happening at all costs, which was why he had been racking his brain to come up with a scheme against the enemy.

Time ticked by in the tense atmosphere. As the distance between the two fleets shrank, the Federation fleet was the first to realize that the closer fleet before them was likely just a decoy.

This guess was confirmed after several battleships, following the flagship’s orders, used their bow-mounted heavy particle cannons for ‘diffusion firing’.

The decoys, equipped with corner reflectors, obviously couldn’t withstand the metal jet from a heavy particle cannon, not even in diffusion mode.

Soon, the detection results from these battleships’ superconducting quantum interference magnetic measurement systems were relayed back to the two flagships.

“Large-scale chaotic magnetic fields and plasma ripples?”

“Suspected main thruster explosion, causing magnetic field disturbance in the target area!”

The results from the superconducting quantum interference magnetic measurement system, along with the system’s own assessment based on signatures, made the two fleet commanders laugh out loud.

“How long has it been since this system’s signature database and result-assessment logic tree were updated? To actually come up with such a ridiculous conclusion…”

Rear Admiral Bernelli griped, exasperated. A proper warship, even the smallest tonnage frigate, couldn’t have its thrusters blown out by a heavy particle cannon’s diffusion firing.

This was clearly the result of the enemy’s decoys being detonated.

“It has been a while… but now isn’t the time to dwell on that. At least we know this fleet in front of us is filled with a large number of decoys.”

Rear Admiral Stoner habitually tried to stroke his chin but was blocked by the helmet of his in-ship suit. He awkwardly withdrew his hand and continued, “So now we have a new question: what is the actual size of the Atlas fleet?”

“Who cares! I say we should just attack now! I still stand by my earlier point, the enemy definitely doesn’t have many warships!”

Rear Admiral Bernelli grew agitated again, as he felt the current situation was seemingly confirming his earlier suspicions.

Truthfully, even Stoner was beginning to waver at this point, starting to think that this might indeed be a golden opportunity to annihilate the enemy fleet.

But just as the thought crossed his mind, alarms suddenly blared across the bridge.

“Warning! Detecting large numbers of unidentified units rapidly approaching both fleet flanks! Signature comparison indicates they are plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles! Total count: 3,326!”

“I knew it! It wasn’t going to be that simple!”

Stoner excitedly tried to stand up, only to be held back by the safety harness of his captain’s chair. Nevertheless, he waved his hand and continued to give orders:

“Fleet, prepare for anti-air combat! Fourth and Fifth Destroyer-Frigate Flotillas, move to the outer formation!”

At the same time, aboard the 17th Fleet’s flagship, Bernelli issued nearly identical commands.

This time, the destroyers and frigates of the two fleets finally demonstrated the anti-air capabilities of a proper fleet.

Large numbers of destroyers and frigates maneuvered to the fleet’s periphery and immediately raised an anti-air screen using their numerous rapid-fire weapons and anti-air missiles.

Thanks to Amber’s repeated demonstrations of single-unit fleet penetration and her ability to tear through anti-air nets, as well as the combat data acquired after the corporate combined fleet suffered a defeat outside A Bawa Ku, the Federation Navy had, at some point, significantly increased the priority of fleet anti-air defense.

Not only did they improve the anti-air weapon configurations on destroyers and frigates and upgrade their anti-air search radars (primarily for detecting small targets like torpedoes, missiles, and HCPs), but they also greatly expanded the authority of the anti-aircraft commander, allowing this position to mobilize more resources to support the battle once the fleet entered anti-air combat.

“All units, prepare to intercept!”

The voice of the 17th Fleet’s Anti-Aircraft Commander, Kyle Stone, broadcast through the communication channels to every warship tasked with anti-air defense.

His voice was calm and steady, as if the thousands of incoming targets were all under his control.

“Just like in training. Execute the plan. Do not let their torpedoes and anti-ship missiles breach the anti-air screen!”

Simultaneously, the enormous holographic projection screen before him began displaying the trajectory maps of the enemy weapons. A dense swarm of red dots was rapidly closing in on their position.

As his command was given, the 17th Fleet’s anti-air defense system instantly activated, forming an invisible web of anti-air fire as numerous destroyers and frigates maneuvered.

These small anti-air defense ship groups, having moved to the fleet’s flanks, quickly adjusted their positions to form the first line of defense.

The first to open fire were the recently installed anti-air high-energy laser defense arrays. These weapons, derived from high-energy laser cannons, had sacrificed their anti-ship capabilities to specialize in anti-air combat.

“The Phoenix, port 45 degrees, range 8,000 kilometers, multi-target lock mode!” a young female officer reported loudly from the anti-air weapons officer’s station aboard the Kittiwake-class destroyer ‘The Phoenix’. Her voice trembled slightly but remained clear and strong.

“Target confirmed, open fire!” her superior—the destroyer’s anti-aircraft staff officer—responded immediately.

Beams of slender, crimson light tore through the void, igniting clusters of blue-white fireballs in the deep space beyond—the characteristic sign of intercepted plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles equipped with plasma warheads.

Under the organization of the fleet’s anti-aircraft commander, numerous anti-air warships attacked the incoming targets on both flanks.

Countless slender, searing beams crisscrossed like a woven net, forming a brilliant but deadly barrier in the void. Each hit was accompanied by a brief, intense flash that burned through or detonated any target attempting to breach the line.

However, not all threats could be dealt with so easily.

The stealth plasma torpedoes that the Atlas combat fleet had widely deployed had undergone upgrades that significantly enhanced their warhead defenses. A simple hit from one or two high-energy laser beams was not enough to destroy them directly.

Moreover, the stealth plasma torpedoes, with their stealth configuration and special coating, were specifically designed to bypass conventional anti-air measures. The anti-air ships had already expended considerable effort just to detect these ‘little darlings’, and the destructive effect of the laser defense arrays was not as great as the anti-aircraft commander had hoped.

So, after several interception volleys, a large number of targets still stubbornly pressed on toward the fleet’s core.

At this moment, the second line of anti-air defense swiftly joined the battle: the charged particle cannons on the destroyers and frigates, and deeper within the formation, the heavy electromagnetic cannons on the cruisers, which had already finished loading their specialized, fragmenting anti-air programmed warheads.

The killing power of a point-blank charged particle cannon beam was naturally higher than that of a laser defense array. As for the cruiser-mounted heavy electromagnetic cannons firing dedicated anti-air programmed warheads, the massive kinetic damage they inflicted was the most fatal threat to plasma torpedoes.

“The Atlas combat fleet’s long-range strike tactics are just as menacing as the rumors say.”

Aboard the 18th Fleet’s flagship, Rear Admiral Stoner, who was intently monitoring the anti-air battle, couldn’t help but sigh under his breath.

Although the Federation Navy’s capital fleets had significantly improved their anti-air capabilities with remarkable results, they were still struggling against Atlas’s brute-force ‘all-out barrage’.

In that short time, nearly thirty plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles had breached the anti-air screen, successfully costing the 18th Fleet one heavy cruiser, three light cruisers, and seven destroyers and frigates.

This wasn’t because the fleet’s anti-air firepower was insufficient, but primarily because the attacks from the flanks came at such an awkward angle that many anti-air warships couldn’t bring all their defensive weapons to bear.

Only a high-level shipboard control AI like Serena, created by Lilith, could calculate such an attack path.

Any other fleet using conventional attack patterns would certainly not have achieved this result.

However, as the first wave of plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles assailing the Federation fleet’s flanks was almost completely intercepted, a cold smirk appeared on Rear Admiral Stoner’s face.

“Hmph. It’s nothing but the same old trick in a new guise. We should even thank Atlas for pushing our fleet to improve its anti-air capabilities.”

Then, with a sweep of his hand, he commanded in a deep voice:

“All ships, maintain course normal, prepare to adjust main cannon orientation! All gun batteries, open fire! Prepare for a full salvo!”

October No-Hiatus Challenge, Failed!

October No-Hiatus Challenge, Failed!

Regrettably, the challenge was a failure…

I underestimated how terrible the National Day traffic would be. I’m still stuck in it now~

Speaking of which, I saw the funniest thing. While stuck in traffic, several “wise guys” zoomed right by in the emergency lane~

Then, after I drove a little further, I saw them all parked obediently in a line. In front of them stood a traffic cop, printing out tickets from his handheld device. Hahahahaha.

Chapter 554: Watch Carefully, This Is How You Use the Infinity

Under the synchronized commands of Stoner and Bernelli, the warships of the Federation Navy’s 17th and 18th Fleets activated the attitude control thrusters on their bows and sterns.

Amid flickering blue lights, the warships maintained their high-speed flyby course but adjusted their orientation to point towards the approaching massive ‘ball of light’.

By this point, Stoner and Bernelli had realized that the ‘Atlas fleet’ they first discovered was a ‘fake fleet’ composed of numerous decoys and a small number of warships.

Moreover, through unalterable laser-coded identification from their warships, they also discovered that the few warships used as decoys were actually from the Loubion star system garrison fleet.

This did indeed confirm the fact that the star system’s garrison fleet had been completely wiped out; otherwise, it would be impossible for their warships to have been captured by others.

Therefore, the true enemy before their two fleets was that enormous ‘ball of light’.

Although under the interference of the ‘visible light band jammer’ and radar wave cancellation devices, the 17th and 18th Fleets couldn’t currently determine just how many warships were hidden inside this ‘ball of light’.

But based on the approximate volume of the ‘ball of light’, the two Federation Navy Fleet Commanders judged that even if it were packed full, it would only amount to a single full-strength fleet.

This led them to maintain their judgment, even at the last moment, that the Atlas fleet here was roughly the size of a full-strength fleet, prompting them to abandon the idea of forming up for a firefight and instead continue with the high-speed flyby.

For Randall and his forces, this was naturally a good thing. After all, given the size of the Third Task Force, they stood no chance in a direct firefight against two full-strength fleets.

But if they wanted to cover the cargo fleet’s safe retreat, they had to prevent these two Federation fleets from becoming distracted and focusing on them.

“How long until the second wave of plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles are in position?!”

Aboard the Infinity, Randall, in his captain’s chair, watched the rapidly approaching Federation fleet—which was now adjusting its orientation and loosening its formation slightly—and asked.

He knew the enemy was preparing for a salvo. Any second now, the ‘ball of light’ he had set up could be hit by their fire.

The first wave of plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles, which had already been mostly intercepted, was intended more to attract the enemy’s attention and draw the two Federation fleets’ anti-air forces to the flanks of their formation.

This was to create enough penetration space for the second wave, the true ‘fatal blow’.

“Report! We’ve entered the 5000-kilometer attack range. Plasma torpedo and heavy anti-ship missile seeker heads are active and locking targets!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator reported loudly, piercing alarms once again blared on the bridges of the Federation Navy’s 17th and 18th Fleets.

“Warning! Multiple small incoming targets detected in the fleet’s rear hemisphere! Distance 5000 kilometers. Signature analysis identifies them as plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles.”

“Warning! Incoming target radar activation detected! They are beginning their acceleration and terminal run!”

Bernelli and Stoner broke out in a cold sweat almost simultaneously upon hearing the warning, but in the next second, they both breathed a quiet sigh of relief and issued the same order.

“Remaining destroyer-frigate flotillas at the rear of the fleet, begin anti-air operations! Nearby cruiser and battleship formations, provide support! This is their real killing blow. Intercept with everything you’ve got!”

Swiftly, several destroyer-frigate flotillas, which had been concealed at the rear of the fleet, abandoned their preparations for the salvo. They rapidly adjusted their battle stations, positioning themselves between the plasma torpedoes and the fleet to begin anti-air operations.

Previously, when the first wave of plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles attacked from the flanks, Stoner and Bernelli hadn’t deployed all their anti-air ships, keeping a portion in reserve as ‘backup anti-air forces’.

It turned out they had been right to wait for this moment. The Atlas combat fleet’s attack was not as simple as they had imagined; it was a series of interconnected moves.

You could never know if the current attack was just a prelude to the next.

Watching the destroyers and frigates, along with other supporting warships, quickly plug the ‘gap’, the tension Stoner and Bernelli felt after the warning eased slightly.

If these warships hadn’t moved to intercept, it wouldn’t be long before the plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles struck the fleet’s rear hemisphere, causing immense damage.

On the other side, Randall wasn’t so pleased after viewing the synthesized image from the Infinity’s sensor units.

After all, for the Third Task Force, this was the best opportunity to inflict casualties on the two Federation fleets.

However, this ‘rookie commander,’ who was rapidly maturing in battle, reacted immediately and issued a new order.

“Infinity’s main cannon, prepare for a sweeping fire! Target: enemy fleet’s rear anti-air operations group! Upon completion of preparations, this ship will immediately ascend from the formation and commence the attack!”

At this moment, not a single person questioned Randall’s command.

Everyone knew that every second counted. Their job was to execute the Fleet Commander’s orders with maximum efficiency.

The ‘pre-charge’ feature of the Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter once again played a crucial role.

By the time the skyward observation team spotted the Federation fleet beginning sporadic interceptions of the plasma torpedoes, the Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter had already completed its preparations for the sweeping fire.

Since Randall’s previous order was ‘Upon completion of preparations, this ship will immediately ascend from the formation and commence the attack!’.

So, the instant the Infinity’s Helmsman received the ‘Main cannon ready to fire!’ command, he quickly broadcasted ‘This vessel is executing an emergency maneuver’ and immediately activated all the attitude control thrusters on the Infinity’s ventral hull at ‘maximum thrust’.

The effect of this maneuver was that Stoner and Bernelli, aboard their respective Federation flagships, watched on their panoramic viewscreen monitors as a colossal super-flagship suddenly burst from the top of the ‘ball of light,’ like a great whale breaching the surface of the water!

Immediately after, the bow of the giant ship began to glow, and alarms sounded on the bridges where the two commanders were.

“Warning! High-energy reading detected. Signature comparison complete! Identified as ‘Atlas-Unknown Warship’ super-heavy purification beam firing!”

After the battle of Parra IV, the attack signature of the Infinity-class main cannon had been recorded in the Federation warship signature database, and this was the first time it was successfully identified by a shipboard control AI.

But Stoner and Bernelli had no time to worry about that now. Their eyes were fixed on the visible golden glow at the Infinity’s bow.

The next second, a surging wave of energy was released. The golden purification beam, also a ‘near-light-speed’ weapon, crossed nearly twenty thousand kilometers in an instant, striking with precision the newly formed anti-air fleet formation at the rear of the Federation fleet.

This ‘anti-air operations group,’ composed mainly of anti-air destroyers and frigates, stood no chance of defending against the sweeping fire of the super-heavy purification beam emitter.

Struck by the thick purification beam, they were disintegrated, one ship after another. Occasionally, the flashes of exploding superconducting battery stacks and fusion reactors from incompletely disintegrated ships could be seen.

Propelled by the Infinity’s attitude control thrusters, the super-flagship, just as it had during previous main cannon firings, slightly adjusted its orientation. This allowed the purification beam, thousands of kilometers away, to sweep across a vast area during its firing time, almost completely blanketing the entire ‘anti-air operations group’.

“Report! Second Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla has sustained over 70% casualties! The flotilla commander is organizing rescue efforts and can no longer conduct anti-air operations!”

“Report! First Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla has over 40% casualties! The lead ship, the ‘Kahn’, has been sunk. The ‘Fischer’ is assuming command!”

“Report! Fifth Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla has over 50% casualties! The flotilla commander states they will continue anti-air operations but require assistance from nearby warships to rescue survivors!”

“Report…”

On the bridges of the flagships of the 17th and 18th Fleets, the ‘glad tidings’ came pouring in.

Bernelli and Stoner never expected the enemy’s super-flagship to suddenly strike, attacking the ‘anti-air operations group’ at the rear of their fleet from nearly twenty thousand kilometers away, and with such high precision and devastating effect.

Although destroyers and frigates admittedly didn’t hold a high status in large-scale fleet battles and were about as expendable as ‘toilet paper.’

But in certain situations, these smaller warships could be very useful—for example, in the current anti-air combat, these more agile destroyers and frigates, whose primary armament was also defensive anti-air weaponry, had become somewhat irreplaceable.

So, upon hearing that this batch of reserve anti-air forces had been severely damaged, the expressions on the faces of Fleet Commanders Bernelli and Stoner turned grim.

Especially with a large number of plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles currently plunging toward the fleet’s rear.

So Stoner immediately issued a new order:

“My orders: the Fifth and Sixth Cruiser Divisions at the rear of the fleet are to join the anti-air combat! All warship anti-aircraft commanders, set the incoming plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles as the highest priority targets!”

Bernelli on the other side issued a similar order. The cruisers in both fleets that were assigned the task immediately began to adjust their positions.

At the same time, the ships’ captains ordered the redistribution of energy circuits, temporarily reducing power to the main weapons and increasing the power supply allocation to the attitude thrusters, anti-air weapon systems, and deflector shield generators.

However, everyone, including Stoner and Bernelli, seemed to have forgotten that the Infinity’s main cannon could fire more than once.—

If Randall were to classify himself, he would unhesitatingly place himself in the category of ‘firepower-focused commander.’ In his view, the best way to win a fleet battle was to completely overwhelm the enemy with firepower and power output.

Therefore, his use of the Infinity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter had always followed one principle: ‘Either don’t use it, or use it to maximize the damage in one go.’

This meant that the Infinity’s main cannon firing, just like before, was immediately followed by a second and third salvo after the first one was complete…

For the target of the second salvo, Randall once again chose the ‘anti-air operations group’ at the rear of the Federation fleet’s formation.

After the golden purification beam swept through, the three destroyer-frigate flotillas originally responsible for anti-air operations were almost completely wiped out.

Randall’s idea was simple: use the Infinity’s main cannon to clear out the enemy’s anti-air forces, allowing the plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles to penetrate more easily.

He knew that a direct hit from plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles would cause significantly more damage than strafing the enemy fleet directly with the Infinity.

Moreover, this wave of plasma torpedoes was attacking from the fleet’s rear hemisphere, so their seeker heads would most likely prioritize locking onto the warships’ main thruster arrays.

Whether it was a plasma torpedo or the plasma warhead of a heavy anti-ship missile, a hit on a warship’s plasma thruster array would result in a ‘grand fireworks display’.

For the third salvo that followed, Randall set his sights on the cruiser division that had just moved up to fill the gap in the Federation fleet.

“Moving up to provide anti-air cover, are you? Too bad. Anyone who tries to run air defense dies. Gunnery officer! Target the enemy’s reinforcing cruiser division. Fire!”

As the golden purification beam swept across this region of space for a third time, and after hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report on the heavy losses the rear ‘anti-air operations group’ had suffered from the continuous attacks, the mindsets of Stoner and Bernelli completely changed.

“That beam again… Are the elves really planning to interfere in human internal affairs?!”

On the flagship of the 17th Fleet, Bernelli roared furiously.

“Dammit, is this really the time to be talking about that?” Even Stoner, who was usually well-mannered, couldn’t help but curse, speechless:

“Tell the rear fleet to take evasive action on their own; we probably can’t stop the torpedoes now. The main strike force at the front of the formation will now attack the enemy fleet. We can’t just take this loss without retaliating!”

At Stoner’s command, the 18th Fleet, which he led, was the first to begin adjustments. Bernelli, snapping back to his senses, quickly followed suit with his own orders.

The warships at the rear of the Federation fleet descended into a state of chaos. All ships within the threat zone began evasive maneuvers, launching a portion of their HCPs to coordinate with their shipboard anti-air weapon systems for a desperate terminal interception.

Meanwhile, the capital ship group at the very front, primarily composed of battleships and heavy cruisers, began its final preparations for a salvo. The shipboard control AIs on each vessel quickly assigned targets to prevent an uneven distribution of fire.

Aboard the Infinity, after the main cannon firing was complete and the super-flagship switched to standard combat mode, Randall issued a new order that left the bridge officers completely bewildered.

“My order! Redistribute all ship energy circuits! Cut power to the bow main weapon systems. Allocate power in a 2:4:4 ratio to ‘secondary weapons’, ‘deflector shield generators’, and ‘vector control units’ respectively!”

Under everyone’s gaze, Randall said viciously:

“The Infinity isn’t some delicate princess hiding behind others! Returning to the military port unscathed to become a ‘pier queen’ would be her greatest shame!”

Chapter 555: Fierce Battle and Damage Control

As the Atlas Group’s first super-flagship, the crew of The Infinity were all elites drawn from the combat fleets, or veterans with extremely high loyalty to the group.

In the eyes of these crew members, being chosen to serve on this super-flagship was an honor in itself.

And as a symbol of ‘absolute force’ on the battlefield, from the very first day they boarded, the crew had always believed that The Infinity should act like a sharp knife under any circumstances, charging at the very front of the battle line.

So, during the critical moment of the previous attack on the Loubion star system garrison fleet, when Randall raised the ‘Z Flag’ and ordered a flagship assault, the crew of The Infinity showed no fear or hesitation. Instead, it was as if they had been waiting for this command for a long time.

The final result was just as they had hoped. The Infinity was like a giant charging into a kindergarten, sweeping aside the surrounding enemy warships, completely tearing apart the Loubion star system garrison fleet’s formation and securing victory.

This brought the pride and confidence of everyone aboard The Infinity—be it the ship’s crew, the HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship squadron pilots—to a new peak after this battle.

Now, facing this encounter battle against a more powerful enemy, and hearing Captain Randall once again issue the order to “fight to the death and never retreat,” everyone accepted the command with exceptional calm and composure, because they all believed this super-flagship would lead them to victory once more.

“This is a ship-wide broadcast. This vessel is about to execute a series of emergency maneuvers. All frontline personnel, maintain your battle stations. All second-line backup personnel, secure yourselves immediately and activate the anti-G function of your in-ship suits as per regulations!”

“This is a ship-wide broadcast…”

The ship-wide broadcast, repeated three times, made everyone stop what they were doing and immediately check their restraints.

Crew members already at their battle stations confirmed their seatbelts were secure before returning to their tasks. Meanwhile, second-line backup personnel and members of the prep squads in other locations quickly secured their tools and any loose items, then fastened their safety lines and gripped the nearest handholds tightly.

After doing all this, everyone activated the ‘pharmacological anti-G mode’ on their in-ship suits. Minimally invasive injection systems in their limbs and thoraces quickly administered the first wave of drugs to increase their G-force tolerance.

This medication significantly enhanced a human’s tolerance to G-forces from all directions, a resilience needed not only by HCP pilots and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots but also by warship crew members.

This was because when a large warship executed emergency maneuvers with all its attitude thrusters firing, the strain on the crew was immense.

This was especially true for a long-hulled super-flagship like The Infinity. During drastic axial adjustments, it was all too common for crew members at the bow and stern to experience ‘redout’.

As the third broadcast ended, The Infinity, which had leaped out from above the ‘ball of light’ like a great whale, used its vectored thrust to slice directly between the Third Task Force and the Federation fleets.

At this moment, the straight-line distance between the two fleets was 8,000 kilometers and shrinking. When the distance closed to 4,000 kilometers, it would be the closest point of the Federation fleet’s high-speed flyby.

Just as The Infinity madly cut across the Federation fleet’s firing axis, the fleets unleashed a salvo. A brilliant rain of light erupted between them, and the super-flagship, flashing across the axis, unsurprisingly shielded the warships behind it from numerous attacks.

Randall’s choice of a ‘lateral traverse’ was deliberate. This path mostly covered the light cruisers and destroyers, ships extremely vulnerable in a firefight, causing The Infinity to absorb many of the attacks originally aimed at them.

By diverting nearly half of the ship’s total power to its deflector shields, The Infinity had essentially entered the ‘fortress mode’ envisioned by its design team.

The numerous deflector shield generators at the front of the warship, supplied with excessive power, expanded their individual field generation areas. This made The Infinity look like a big sister holding an umbrella, raising a massive deflector shield.

The Federation warships on the other side could only watch as this super-flagship used its vector control to dart around in front of their fleet, drawing fire. And it was effective. After The Infinity appeared, the Federation warships’ shipboard control AIs designated it as a ‘high-threat target’.

In standard shipboard control AI combat logic, such ‘high-threat targets’ were to be eliminated with concentrated fire first. Thus, in the second salvo, a large portion of the Federation fleet’s attacks chased after The Infinity. However, thanks to the latter’s flashy maneuvering, this round of concentrated fire was not very effective and failed to even overload the massive ship’s deflector shields.

If The Infinity’s design team and Salieh were to witness this scene, they wouldn’t be too surprised, other than feeling that it validated their design philosophy.

After all, in the ‘fortress mode’ they had conceived, both The Infinity and her sister ship, The Dawn—indeed, the entire Infinity-class of super-flagships—had ridiculously high defensive limits.

With half the ship’s power supplied to the deflector shield generator array and with unrestricted forced cooling, the massive vessel could withstand at least one full salvo from a full-strength fleet.

And while The Infinity was currently facing two Federation fleets, they weren’t concentrating their fire. So, even while acting as a shield at the front of the fleet to draw fire, she had no reason to panic.

Moreover, under Randall’s orders, the giant ship was constantly bobbing and weaving in evasive maneuvers. The moment it spotted a warship in any sector that seemed unable to hold, it would immediately dart over and use its own hull to block all incoming firing axes—

“What the hell is this jumping ‘iron turtle’? Is it here just to piss us off?!”

Aboard the 18th Fleet’s flagship, Stoner couldn’t help but curse as he watched the massive ship, marked as a ‘high-threat target’ in a purple frame on the panoramic viewscreen.

By now, Stoner and Bernelli had finally figured out the true size of the opposing Atlas fleet.

Although they found it hard to believe and even harder to accept, they had to admit that the enemy before them didn’t even amount to half a full-strength fleet.

After ‘playing all his tricks’, the opposing commander had indeed succeeded in putting them in a position where they had to hold back, afraid to act rashly for fear of upsetting their own formation.

But it was too late to know this now.

After all, both fleets were currently in a high-speed flyby. Not to mention, a forced deceleration would require reversing their orientation and using their main thruster arrays to brake, completely exposing their broadsides.

Even the plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missile clusters catching up from behind left them with no thought of slowing down.

The warships at the rear of the formation were already in danger of being lost; executing a fleet-wide deceleration now would be like trying to send all their ships to their doom.

So, the two Federation Fleet Commanders could only try to maximize their fleet’s firepower during the brief ‘window of opportunity’ presented by the high-speed flyby.

“Relay my orders! All warships are to ignore the enemy flagship! Prioritize their conventional warships as targets!”

Bernelli and Stoner immediately issued similar commands. The shipboard control AIs of the 17th and 18th Fleets promptly adjusted their targeting priorities, removing The Infinity from their lock-on lists and beginning to focus their attacks on the Third Task Force behind it.

This tactic immediately proved effective. No matter how large a deflector shield The Infinity could project, the area it covered was limited; it couldn’t possibly protect the entire Third Task Force.

So, when the Federation fleets began to ignore the super-flagship and concentrate their attacks on the other warships behind it, Atlas’s side immediately began to suffer losses.

The Sun’s Reward, a heavy cruiser that had joined the Third Task Force as reinforcements and was also carrying a large number of Renaissance Alliance trainees, had its deflector shields overloaded and was then grazed on its broadside by several battleship-class heavy particle cannon blasts.

Fortunately, The Sun’s Reward wasn’t hit by plasma torpedoes or heavy anti-ship missiles—weapons loaded with strong oxidizers and metallic hydrogen—so the collateral damage wasn’t severe.

Unfortunately, being hit by a direct-damage weapon like a heavy particle cannon was hardly any better.

At nearly one percent of the speed of light, every gram of heavy metal particles carried 150,000 terajoules of kinetic energy. So, without a deflector shield to scatter and deflect it, being hit by a heavy metal particle stream on the outer armor plating was a terrifying event.

Though it was only a ‘graze’, a horrific gash was torn open on the port side of the heavy cruiser The Sun’s Reward. A large amount of debris, fragments, internal fixtures, and unlucky crew members were ejected from the breach, spewing backward like the contents of a burst garbage bag.

If not for the ‘Fifty-Year Veteran’-class shipboard control AI, upgraded by Lilith, which used its ‘override control’ authority at the moment of impact to fire attitude control thrusters on the opposite side of the hull, the heavy cruiser would likely have lost stability from the attack and might have even collided with other warships in the fleet’s dense formation.

Upon seeing The Sun’s Reward take heavy damage, another nearby heavy cruiser in better condition immediately moved forward to shield it, giving the damaged cruiser’s damage control personnel time to perform emergency repairs.

This was a common practice in fleet battles. After all, a damaged ship that could undergo emergency repairs and return to the fight was far more useful than one that was sunk due to severe damage.

Once The Sun’s Reward had a momentary respite, the damage control personnel stationed along the ship’s central axis immediately rushed with their assigned ‘Worker Bee’ units to the damaged areas marked by the shipboard control AI.

Besides the ship’s marines, these damage control personnel were the only other crew members who needed to wear combat exoskeletons.

This was because in damaged sections of a warship, these combat exoskeletons, with their armor plating and extra powered assistance, were much more durable than in-ship suits, even the hardshell versions.

It also prevented situations where a damage control team entered a damaged area only to be wiped out by flying metal shrapnel.

Such lessons were learned by the human navy in space, paid for with countless lives in actual combat. Therefore, no one, not even the Romu serving on human warships, would consider this experience useless.

For example, the damage control commander on The Sun’s Reward, Hearn Bloodhoof, a powerful Minotaur, treated these lessons as gospel.

After The Sun’s Reward stabilized its attitude, he first queried the shipboard control AI to confirm if any damage control teams or ‘Worker Bees’ were damaged and to get a full report on the ship’s condition.

Then, he immediately ordered all control teams to deploy according to the guidance of the shipboard control AI, ‘Fanny’, while he himself led his direct subordinate team and charged toward the most heavily damaged area, Port B2.

In a combat situation, it was actually hard to tell that Hearn Bloodhoof, wearing a combat exoskeleton with a yellow-and-black diagonal stripe paint job, was a Minotaur.

Unlike the marines on the ground, shipboard work often required the exoskeleton to be fully sealed. For the Minotaurs among the Romu, the two horns on their heads were a major inconvenience.

Initially, Eugene Koch and his team, who were in charge of exoskeleton design, had thought of encasing the horns in composite materials.

But this gave rise to two tricky problems:

First, every Minotaur’s horns were different, so the horn-encasing component would have to be custom-made and could not be mass-produced.

Second, while the skeletons of these Romu Minotaurs stopped growing after they reached adulthood, their damn horns never did. This was why the Minotaur clan maintained the tradition of ‘daily horn butting’—partly to make the horns stronger, and partly to grind them down during the clashes.

So, no matter how you looked at it, the members of the Minotaur clan were not well-suited for shipboard work.

The problem was, these Minotaurs were extremely proud of joining the Atlas Group, just as proud as they were of their own horns.

So, no matter how Atlas’s human resources department communicated with them, they insisted on having some Minotaurs serve on the warships.

In the words of a certain respected Minotaur elder: “We’d even take a pay cut! We just can’t fall behind the other clans!”

As for the final solution, even Amber was surprised by the Minotaurs’ determination when she saw it.

Those Minotaurs who completed the selection process and were assigned to warships all chose to undergo a ‘bony horn-core removal surgery’ to have their former ‘pride’ removed.

Then, they replaced them with a pair of detachable, custom-shaped, light-alloy horns.

Normally, they would wear these ‘works of art’ milled by CNC machines. When it was time for combat, they would remove the alloy horns and store them away.

And these Minotaurs who had replaced their horns, far from being saddened by the removal of their ‘native pride’, actually became celebrities within their clan for sporting a pair of shiny horns.

Incidentally, after the Minotaur clan pioneered this solution, many other horned Romu clans followed suit, adopting the same method to allow their people to serve on ships.

When Hearn Bloodhoof, having removed his horns, arrived at the Port B2 section with his direct damage control squad, the first thing they saw was a massive breach, like a gaping viewport to the cosmos.

They could even see the flashes of blue-white, crimson, and deep purple beams in the space outside, the silvery-white electrical arcs from nearby warships being hit, and the fiery explosions of intercepted anti-ship missiles.

From this much more direct vantage point, it was clear that the port side of The Sun’s Reward hadn’t been torn open by a heavy metal particle stream. Instead, a large section of its outer armor plating had been blown clean off, a situation far more troublesome than the former.

“Boss, what do we do? This breach looks a bit too big! The standard titanium alloy plates might not be enough to seal it!”

Hearing the question from another team member, Hearn Bloodhoof activated the electromagnetic clamps on his combat exoskeleton’s feet, planting himself firmly near the breach to inspect the ship’s damage.

After a moment, however, his bull-like eyes narrowed. The situation was far more complicated than anything he had been trained for.

But as the ship’s damage control commander, all he could do was his utmost to save the damaged heavy cruiser.

“No matter how big the breach is, we have to find a way to plug it! If the standard-sized plates won’t cover it, then grab several and weld them together!”

Hearn Bloodhoof made a quick decision and gave his orders:

“Squad 1, take your assigned ‘Worker Bees’ to the nearest damage control supply storeroom and bring back all the usable titanium alloy plates! Squad 2, stay here and prepare to begin sealing operations once the plates arrive! Squad 3, get ready to jump across to the opposite compartment with me!”

After saying this, Hearn Bloodhoof contacted the shipboard control AI again, speaking in a relatively gentle tone:

“Miss Fanny, could I trouble you to dispatch some more Worker Bees to assist us? The damage in the B2 section might be too much for our damage control teams to plug on their own!”

“Request received. Dispatching the nearest ‘Worker Bees’. Captain Hearn, do you require the ‘Worker Bees’ to approach from the ship’s exterior?”

“That would be perfect, Miss Fanny! Thank you for your support.”

Hearn Bloodhoof hadn’t even finished speaking when a member of the damage control team shouted in a terrified voice:

“My god, look!”

Everyone looked in the direction the crewman was pointing. Through the ‘viewport’ torn open in The Sun’s Reward, the ship’s movement brought the distant Federation fleet into view, passing by at high speed like a sprinkle of stars.

And at that very moment, everyone saw a spectacular ‘space fireworks’ display erupt at the rear of the Federation fleet’s formation. One after another, blue-white, high-temperature plasma fireballs exploded and expanded in the cold expanse of space, and these dense fireballs were even spreading into the fleet’s formation.

Hearn Bloodhoof was a veteran of the ‘Battle of Parra IV Orbit’. Although The Infinity had entered the battle late, he knew that Atlas’s combat fleet had used the tactic of sending plasma torpedoes around the enemy’s rear to inflict heavy damage.

Just like the scene before him now.

“Looks like our fleet’s tactics worked! Alright men, let’s give it everything we’ve got! Victory is just ahead!”

“Yes, Sir!” xN

While the surviving warships of the Third Task Force began their self-rescue efforts, on the bridge of The Infinity, Randall finally heard the news he had been waiting for.

“Report! Authorized spatial fluctuation signatures detected! It’s the warp signals of the Second and Third Unmanned Fleets!”

Chapter 556: Reinforcements

Before the Second and Third Unmanned Fleets entered warp, they had uploaded the ‘warp signature code’ analyzed by their warp engines to the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress. The fortress, in turn, transmitted this ‘warp signature code’ to the Third Task Force via quantum entanglement communication.

The warp engines, which were built on the technological foundation of the Forerunner civilization’s ‘jump drives,’ were essentially slightly modified versions of these drives made compatible with human warships.

To be honest, humanity still didn’t fully understand the principles behind this technology. They only knew that when a ‘jump drive’ was activated, it would generate a unique ‘warp signature code’ based on information such as the warp’s starting point, destination, distance, and hyperspace route.

When a human fleet initiated a warp, it would typically send this ‘warp signature code’ along with other relevant information to friendly forces.

This ‘warp signature code’ also corresponded to the characteristics of spatial fluctuations. Therefore, when friendly forces detected spatial fluctuations with matching characteristics, they could compare it with the information carried by the ‘warp signature code’ to identify which fleet had arrived.

That was why The Infinity knew immediately that the forces arriving on the battlefield over four hundred thousand kilometers away were Atlas’s unmanned fleets, and not fleets from some other faction.

As flashes of light continuously pulsed in the dark expanse of space, both fleets on the battlefield detected warships emerging from warp one after another. After exiting warp, these ships immediately formed combat formations and charged toward the area where the Third Task Force and the Federation fleet were engaged.

Yes, charged.

Through the optical observation channels, against the cold, black backdrop of space, one could see the long trails left by the warships of these two unmanned fleets, like a string of comets with their tails.

“Colonel, it’s our reinforcements!”

On the bridge of The Infinity, the officer on duty cried out excitedly upon seeing the optical observation feed on the main screen.

“Calm down, Captain Raven. You’re a naval officer. You must remain composed at all times~”

Seeing the reinforcements arrive a few hours earlier than scheduled, Randall, on the contrary, calmed down. He was even in the mood to tell others not to get excited.

“Colonel, I didn’t see you being very composed just a moment ago,” the officer on duty muttered under his breath.

“What did you say?”

“Reporting, Colonel! Rest assured, I will remain composed at all times!”

The officer on duty snapped to attention and saluted, drawing a few stifled laughs from the surrounding bridge crew.

Clearly, the arrival of reinforcements had eased the tension considerably.

Meanwhile, The Infinity received a communication request from the Second and Third Unmanned Fleets. After the Communications staff officer confirmed that the request’s identification codes and other information were correct, Randall nodded for the connection to be established.

Soon, two virtual avatars of command-type AIs appeared on the main screen of The Infinity’s bridge, one on the left and one on the right. Both were dressed in white and silver uniforms.

Unsurprisingly, they were both female figures.

In fact, on all of humanity’s current warships, the shipboard control AIs and command-type AIs invariably used female avatars.

With the appearance of these two command-type AIs, a sense of reassurance permeated the battle-worn, tense atmosphere on The Infinity’s bridge.

“Colonel Randall, hello. I am Selene, commander of the Second Unmanned Fleet.”

“I am Hecate, commander of the Third Unmanned Fleet.”

The two unmanned fleet commanders spoke, their voices gentle yet firm, like the soft sound of waves on a moonlit night. Lilith’s specially adjusted vocal tones calmed the crew members who heard them.

“Based on the orders issued by the Boss, we are here to support the Third Task Force’s operations. From now until the Boss’s arrival, the Second and Third Unmanned Fleets will be under your temporary command, Colonel Randall.”

Selene, the commander of the Second Unmanned Fleet, continued speaking. She was clearly the joint commander of both unmanned fleets.

“Thank you for your support!” Randall raised his hand in a salute and immediately shifted into command mode.

“Second and Third Unmanned Fleets, follow the course shared via datalink to suppress and pursue the Federation fleet. Weapons are free. You may organize and open fire at your discretion once you are in range!”

“Understood, Colonel Randall. The unmanned fleets are beginning to execute your orders.”

The two command-type AIs also returned the salute before temporarily ending the communication. The Observation Team soon reported that the two unmanned fleets had deployed into an attack formation and were accelerating once again.

Since unmanned fleets didn’t have to worry about crew g-force tolerance, their warships could pull extremely high acceleration. Their closing rate and relative velocity to the Federation fleet shot up rapidly.

In stark contrast to the feeling of having survived a catastrophe among the crew of The Infinity, the mood on the Federation fleet’s flagship bridge was one of absolute gloom, a fact written all over the faces of the two fleet commanders.

The 17th and 18th Fleets had already suffered heavy losses from the pursuing plasma torpedoes and volleys of heavy anti-ship missiles.

Over thirty percent of the warships in the rear of their formation were destroyed, and many of the damaged ships couldn’t be towed away in time, meaning their losses would only continue to mount as time went on.

The two fleet commanders, Bernelli and Stoner, had been planning to disengage and increase their distance as quickly as possible, then fully deploy their fleets and counter-attack with their superior firepower.

But the sudden appearance of two unmanned fleets immediately extinguished that idea.

The Atlas combat fleet, supported by The Infinity, was already formidable and had inflicted significant losses on the Federation fleets. Now that they were no longer outnumbered, continuing to fight so stubbornly would be nothing short of suicide.

Rear Admiral Bernelli was indeed young, and he would occasionally make aggressive moves when the blood rushed to his head, but that didn’t mean he was reckless enough to throw his and his men’s lives away.

“Let’s speed up and disengage. We can’t hit those cargo ships anymore. This whole damn battle is a fucking mess!”

Rear Admiral Bernelli slammed his fist on the armrest of his captain’s chair. This ‘high-risk area’ of the chair once again endured damage it was not meant to bear.

The commander of the 18th Fleet, Rear Admiral Stoner, for once, raised no objections after hearing Bernelli’s words. Instead, he simply nodded in agreement with his plan.

Soon, the two Federation fleets, which were passing through the engagement zone at high speed, changed their combat strategy. They ceased their attack on the Third Task Force, diverted all power to their deflector shields, and maintained a bow-forward posture toward the enemy.

Randall and his forces immediately noticed the Federation fleet adopting the ‘standard disengagement posture’. After his ships made another tentative attack run to test the defenses of the fully powered deflector shields, Randall ordered them to cease fire.

Since they couldn’t break through the enemy’s defenses for the time being, it was best not to waste ammunition and energy. Who knew if another battle was yet to come?

As Randall thought this, he watched the Federation fleet pass the ‘point of closest approach’ and move away in another direction.

For now, this sudden encounter battle was over. To be honest, the Third Task Force had suffered considerable losses, but regardless, they had held out until reinforcements arrived and successfully protected the cargo fleet.

But for some reason, Randall had a nagging feeling that this battle might not be over yet.

“We should prepare for what’s next. When that guy Amber gets here, who knows what kind of ‘new trick’ he’ll pull.”

As the thought flashed through his mind, Randall immediately issued new orders.

“Attention, Third Task Force! Begin rescuing survivors and assist in towing damaged warships! Second and Third Unmanned Fleets, you are on security detail for the surrounding space. Widen the anti-air screen. Out!”

Chapter 557: The Grand Fleet

“The Infinity is mostly unharmed for now. After replenishing some consumables and supplies, it can continue to fight.

Excluding the ships we previously captured from the Loubion star system garrison fleet, the Third Task Force currently has four battleships, five heavy cruisers, fourteen light cruisers, and a total of fifty destroyers and frigates remaining.

The Federation Navy’s high-speed flyby was indeed sudden, but thanks to the ‘Cleves Tactic’ and the early arrival of the unmanned fleet, we didn’t suffer significant losses.

The rescue of survivors from the sunken ships is complete, and casualty statistics have been compiled. The cargo fleet warped out after deploying the aerospace transport squadron. The Third Task Force’s mission is complete. Awaiting your orders.”

This was Randall’s report, delivered three days after the battle, upon the arrival of Amber and Cleves with the relief fleet.

Upon hearing his Senior so seriously utter the words “Cleves Tactic,” Cleves still shifted his body uncomfortably.

“You’ve worked hard, Randall. Two consecutive fleet battles… it’s been too much for you and the Third Task Force.”

Amber walked over to Randall and gave him a solemn, formal salute.

He had to admit that this “playboy” of a former Federation Navy officer had truly shouldered the responsibility during this crisis, preventing the situation from deteriorating further.

Hearing Amber’s words, Randall shook his head and said:

“It was nothing. This is what our fleet is supposed to do. If the Third Task Force had run away, all of Atlas’s efforts in the Loubion star system would have been for nothing.”

At this, Randall raised an eyebrow and looked at Amber.

“And what was that you just said? ‘Too much’? This was clearly way out of our league, okay!? How many ships does our Third Task Force have? And look at the scale of the enemies we faced in these two fleet battles.”

“Of course we know. Why else would we have rushed over the moment trouble started in the Loubion star system?”

Amber slung an arm around Randall’s shoulder. He knew his friend was caught in a state of exhilaration that only came after surviving a catastrophe.

“Don’t worry, old friend. Now that we’re here, you can relax. Whatever comes next, I’ll be on the front lines to face it.”

With that, Amber patted Randall’s shoulder and walked to the panoramic viewscreen of The Dawn.

At that moment, near The Dawn, numerous combat tender ships, which looked like “mobile shipyards” after deploying, were conducting emergency repairs on the damaged vessels of the Third Task Force.

Atlas’s fleet had already suppressed the three space elevators on Loubion V, controlling their arrival zones and the starport higher up.

Meanwhile, the marines, temporarily acting as orbital paratroopers, were led by the Immortal Corps to cooperate with the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces in securing the base area of the space elevators.

With this, all access to and from Loubion V was now completely under the control of the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance.

It could be said that the ground combat to follow held little suspense.

Although there were still numerous “rebel” and “insurgent” forces under various banners across the planet, and the Loubion star system government firmly controlled the administrative capital and its surrounding areas, which it had gradually fortified during this time.

But as Atlas’s ground troops began to deploy to the planet’s surface via the space elevators and aerospace transport squadron, everyone—be it Amber, Franklin, or the other factions on the planet—knew it was only a matter of time before the war ended.

Incidentally, a group of high-ranking officials from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, led by Alex, had perhaps feared their deep-space colony satellite would be attacked by the Federation fleet after the Federation’s Secretary of State was assaulted. They had immediately returned to Loubion V to reassure the public and hidden themselves in a bunker beneath the administrative capital.

As a result, they were now all trapped on the planet…

However, although the situation on Loubion V seemed to be developing into a one-sided affair, Amber did not order an immediate large-scale ground operation.

This was because the overall situation in the Loubion star system was still far from clear.

Especially after receiving news that the Federation Navy’s Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets had entered warp, most likely heading to reinforce the Loubion star system, Amber knew that the dust had not yet settled.

Five days later, the regrouped Federation fleet was detected in orbit around Loubion IV by the joint ultra-long-range sensor array set up by The Dawn and The Infinity.

Based on their analysis, the Federation fleet had likely deployed collector ships near the gas giant to gather antihydrogen and deuterium from its low orbit to fuel their ships’ fusion reactors.

This meant the Federation fleet was preparing for the next battle.

The tracking and detection results from the two super-flagships’ ultra-long-range sensor arrays over the next few days confirmed their suspicions—after resupplying, the grand Federation fleet began to use the ecliptic plane to accelerate, heading back toward Loubion V for another assault.

As the distance between them closed, the Atlas combat fleet began to detect more and more details.

“Judging by the fleet’s size, the Federation Navy’s relief force seems to have brought a lot of extra warships to replenish the 17th and 18th Fleets… Look, it’s the signature of exactly four full-strength fleets, no more, no less,” Randall said, observing the combat intelligence displayed on the holographic projection platform on the bridge of The Infinity.

“That’s consistent with the Federation Navy’s operational style,” came a slightly older voice from a screen on the other side. It was the “senior advisor,” Guterres, participating in the combat conference via a superluminal communication system.

“During reinforcement operations, if conditions permit, the relief fleet will generally bring additional ships to replenish the fleet being supported.”

Guterres seemed to recall something, pausing for a moment before continuing, “This also indicates that the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth Fleets had received orders to support the Loubion star system long ago and had been on standby. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have had time to bring these extra warships during an emergency deployment.”

“So the Federation had a premeditated plan. Looks like they want to use this opportunity to have a major showdown with us, huh?”

Amber’s voice came from the other side, broadcast from the speakers of the holographic projection system, his figure rendered as a hologram.

This was because The Dawn was not currently near Loubion V. Two days prior, Amber had taken The Dawn and a portion of the fleet into warp, lurking in deep space within the Loubion star system.

Although he knew the Federation fleet had likely detected this maneuver, they would certainly be wary, not knowing the exact heading of The Dawn and its escorts.

“So, Amber, what’s your plan?” Randall asked.

“It’s come to this, and the Federation government has shown no intention of communicating with us. What other plan could there be? Of course we’re going to hit them head-on!”

Chapter 558: The Onlookers

No one had any objections to Amber’s words; in fact, their thoughts were aligned with his.

With things having escalated to this point and the Federation government showing no intention of communicating with the Atlas Group, it was clear that a showdown was imminent.

Although the Atlas Group still held an absolute monopoly on ultra-long-range communication technology, the Federation government clearly didn’t want itself—one of humanity’s two great powers—to be constrained by a private corporation, especially when internal stability was precarious.

Rather than letting this malevolent, menacing corporation fish in troubled waters during the turmoil, it was better to strike first and crush it in one blow.

Admittedly, the Federation had been at a disadvantage in several previous confrontations.

But in the eyes of high-ranking Federation officials, including Brandon, Miller, and even Marshal Trafalgar, the Federation had yet to truly exert its full strength. At most, it had only been prodding the Atlas Group with a single finger.

As for the military-industrial complex, that was a non-issue. The Federation government was so grateful that it almost wanted to award the Atlas Group and Amber a commemorative banner for helping them eliminate those “malignant tumors.”

Of course, they failed to realize that by feasting on the flesh and blood of the military-industrial complex, the Atlas Group’s comprehensive strength had grown rapidly and was on a completely different level now.

“Is the head-on confrontation finally here?” Agnes’s slightly lazy voice echoed through a small situation room in a side hall of the Princess’s royal chambers.

“Although they’ve only dispatched four regular navy fleets, for the Federation at this stage, it’s still like clenching their fist and throwing a punch.”

“Yes, Your Highness. According to the Naval Intelligence Division, while these four fleets have many newly added ships and soldiers, they also have the highest readiness rate among all of the Federation Navy’s existing fleets.”

Natalia, the commander of the Royal Guard who was always by Agnes’s side, nodded. Then, as if remembering something, she said with a slightly awkward expression:

“Even on the Royal Navy’s side, the number of fleets that can be deployed for combat immediately with such a high readiness rate is only one Expeditionary Strike Group and three standard fleets. Although we still have three Celestial Fortresses, they are all undergoing major overhauls and cannot be mobilized for some time.”

What Natalia described was the current predicament facing the Imperial Royal Navy.

Although from the results of the previous “strategic decisive battle” with the Federation, the Imperial Royal Navy seemed to have the upper hand.

On both fronts, the Federation fleets had suffered nearly two-thirds of their forces lost, plus a mobile fortress destroyed, in exchange for almost half of the Imperial Royal Navy’s fleets and one Celestial Fortress, while heavily damaging the other three.

But this was only the direct loss on paper.

If one looked deeper into each of the surviving fleets that participated in the battle, the losses were actually far greater than an observer might imagine.

Many fleets appeared to have lost only half their ships, but the problem was that the remaining warships were almost all damaged. The number of ships that could continue to fight had to be halved again.

And those warships requiring major overhauls certainly couldn’t be repaired overnight.

The number of shipyards within the Empire capable of maintaining and repairing warships was definitely less than the number of warships. Even after requisitioning a large number of civilian and noble shipyards, there were still long queues of warships waiting for repairs.

Furthermore, the remaining shipyards were occupied by orders from the navy’s massive shipbuilding program. For a while, it was difficult to find a vacant shipyard in the Empire; even small shipyards had been urgently requisitioned to repair small ships like destroyers and frigates.

Of course, the Federation’s current situation was similar.

But since the Federation had always tried to win through numerical superiority in warships, it surpassed the Empire in both reserve warships and shipyards. This allowed the Federation to replenish its fleet more quickly.

However, upon hearing her Royal Guard commander’s words, Agnes showed no concern. Instead, she laughed and said in a cheerful tone:

“So, isn’t the Atlas Group ‘solving our problems’ for us? If the Atlas Group survives this ‘ordeal,’ and I have the chance to meet this Mr. Amber in the future, I’d really like to personally grant him the title of honorary noble and award him a ‘Silver Dragon Medal’~”

Natalia: “But Your Highness, from another perspective, this Mr. Amber has also indirectly helped Norton II. With the threat from the Federation continuously decreasing, we’ve noticed that Norton II has started to turn on the old-guard nobles. I suspect his next step will be to target us.”

The Royal Guard commander was referring to the recent “great purge” within the Regent Prince Faction. Under Norton II’s command, a group of established aristocrats within the Regent Prince’s camp had been attacked from multiple directions and with different methods in a short period.

If Amber had seen this intelligence, he would have recognized that this matched the game’s plotline where the Regent Prince and his direct subordinates took action against the Cloak Society. Although it was much later than in the game, it had finally happened.

“No matter. We hold the initiative now, so the reactive Norton II must do something. Otherwise, a faction built on personal prestige will soon become unmanageable.

“But what he’s doing now is merely drinking poison to quench his thirst. When the entire faction is gripped by the panic of a ‘great purge,’ many problems will erupt.”

Agnes turned to her Royal Guard commander and continued:

“We just need to wait for our opponent to make a mistake. Norton II is no saint. I admit he has ideals and goals that are noble enough for someone of his class, but judging by the methods he has used to achieve his ends, he is nothing more than a tyrant.

“As a member of what the commoners and revolutionaries call the ‘feudal landlord class,’ I am naturally afraid of true revolutionaries and saints. But a mere tyrant? Heh. I’m not afraid of him.”

While Princess Agnes and her Royal Guard commander Natalia were discussing the imminent war between the Federation and the Atlas Group, and gradually drifting to other topics, a similar conversation was taking place on a terrestrial planet in a distant star system, inside Norton II’s rustic study.

“Your Grace, have our recent methods been a bit too extreme? Many people have approached me, hoping I would advise you to lessen the ‘intensity’ of this internal purge.”

Perseus, one of Norton II’s advisors, spoke, carefully observing the figure hidden in the shadows of the desk lamp.

Although Norton II’s face was completely obscured, Perseus knew that his lord had become much more gaunt and haggard recently, occasionally forgetting to trim the stubble on his face.

Due to the recent drastic changes in the situation, the expression of masterful strategizing, of ‘everything is under control,’ was seen less and less on his face.

At the same time, his sudden mood swings were making Norton II increasingly frightening. Even his closest confidants, Astral and Perseus, were often subjected to his furious reprimands.

In the eyes of Perseus and Astral, all this began after the news of Princess Agnes’s impending coronation broke, and Norton II subsequently made a secret trip to the Capital’s Grand Palace for an audience with the old Emperor that night.

“Too extreme?”

A cold voice emerged from the shadows, followed by an even colder scoff.

“Hmph. On the contrary, I feel our methods have been too gentle.”

Norton II’s words sent a drop of cold sweat trickling down the foreheads of Perseus and the man beside him, Astral.

If anyone else had said that, the two of them would have stood up without hesitation and furiously demanded if that person was out of their mind.

Unfortunately, the one who had spoken was Norton II himself.

And this man, who had recently instilled fear in many, seemed to have no intention of stopping his ‘reign of terror’ based on his two advisors’ counsel. Instead, he was thinking of creating even more terror.

“Your Grace, you mean?” Astral asked with some uncertainty.

He had to admit that perhaps because of the recent setbacks they had faced and the pressure from all sides—including from forces that previously wouldn’t have dared to provoke them—his childhood friend was becoming more and more a stranger.

Meanwhile, Norton II replied in a rare tone tinged with ‘pleasure’:

“It’s a rare opportunity to have Mr. Amber drawing the vast majority of the Federation’s attention, giving us a precious ‘window of opportunity’. Shouldn’t we take this chance to properly purge the ‘poisoned blood’ from our ranks?”

Perseus: “But haven’t we already dealt with some of the old-guard nobles? And in a way that eradicated them root and stem.”

“No, no, it’s not enough.” Norton II shook his head.

“Putting aside the fact that we haven’t completely dealt with this bunch of old-guard nobles, from another perspective, these stubborn old fools have corrupted our subordinates too severely. Some ‘rising stars’ I had my eye on have also been poisoned by them, and their thinking has started to become regressive.”

Astral: “So you mean to continue the ‘great purge’?”

“Why not?”

Norton II, his face entirely in shadow, retorted:

“During this time, not only have we eliminated a large number of black sheep and unified the thinking of most of our people, ensuring our goals are not shaken, but the ones we ‘purged’ have also significantly expanded our own strength, preparing us for the final ‘showdown.’ What’s not to like?”

Hearing Norton II’s words, Astral and Perseus could hardly believe their ears, that their lord had actually said such things to them.

Although they admitted that their forces had expanded significantly by carving up the legacy left by the ‘old-guard nobles,’ such actions didn’t seem like something Norton II would do.

However, the two didn’t dare to voice any objections at this moment and could only listen as Norton II continued:

“For now, we just need to focus on Imperial matters. We don’t need to concern ourselves with the Federation and the Atlas Group for the time being. We’ll see who emerges victorious between them.

“After all, no matter which side wins in the end, they will eventually have to fight us, and the Empire.”

Hearing this, Perseus, who had had multiple contacts with the Atlas Group, couldn’t help but ask: “Is the esteemed Mr. Amber no exception? I thought you held him in high regard, Your Grace.”

Norton II nodded. “That’s right, I do appreciate him. It is precisely because I appreciate him that he is a threat to us, which forces me to consider how to eliminate him. Just like how I want to eliminate that girl, Agnes.”

Upon hearing Norton II’s last sentence, Astral and Perseus were stunned once again. This was likely the first time the Regent Prince had stated this intention so bluntly in front of them.

Before the two could say anything, they heard Norton II continue:

“Alright, I’m a bit tired today. You two may leave.

“Just keep an eye on the conflict between the Federation and the Atlas Group; do not interfere. As for the next phase of the purge, I will send you the plan in a couple of days. You have my permission to mobilize my men and other resources as you see fit. Make sure it’s done cleanly.

“Do not disappoint me, you two.”

“Yes, Your Grace. We will do our utmost to carry out your plan! Then we shall take our leave…”

Astral and Perseus immediately stood up, bowed slightly, and left the study.

As the heavy double doors slowly closed, Astral distinctly saw his ‘childhood friend’ sitting at the desk, watching them with a cold gaze he had never seen before.

Only when the doors were completely shut did Astral feel the prickly sensation on his back—like being stalked by a prehistoric beast, marked as prey—gradually fade away.

Accompanied by an attendant, the two most intimate advisors of Norton II walked out of the manor with their heads down, not saying a word. Even after boarding the private car to the aerospace port, they remained silent.

They only turned their heads slightly to look at the old manor receding outside the car window.

The once dilapidated yet uniquely charming manor, now silhouetted against the dark clouds overhead, looked as sinister as the nest of an evil dragon.

The silence between them was not broken until they had boarded Astral’s battleship, the ‘Royal Flail,’ and entered a conference room where ‘black box mode’ was activated. It was Astral who spoke first.

“His Grace… he’s becoming more and more a stranger.”

“So even you, his ‘childhood playmate,’ feel this way? I thought it was just me,” Perseus replied.

“And do you also feel that all the changes happened after His Grace’s secret audience with His Majesty?”

“Exactly,” Astral nodded. “Which is why I’m now very curious about what they discussed. And even more curious as to why His Majesty could have a secret, night-long conversation with His Grace, yet continuously claim to be recuperating from a serious illness?”

“Sigh… I’m curious too, especially after the news broke about the Princess’s coronation. But this is clearly not something the two of us can get involved in.”

Perseus sighed helplessly, then continued:

“Anyway, lately I’ve really come to understand what ‘accompanying a ruler is like accompanying a tiger’ means.”

“Tell me about it.”

Thousand Stars Empire, Capital Planet.

As the residence of the elven royal family, the Elven Royal Court was situated deep within an ancient and mystical forest. If a human psionic user were to visit, they would be astonished to find that every inch of land was suffused with the aura of Psionics.

Sunlight filtered through the towering ancient trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Rare and exotic plants were everywhere, fulfilling every human fantasy of an ancient elven kingdom.

The courtyard of the current Phoenix King was located in the heart of the Royal Court, boasting the most exquisite design and the most serene atmosphere.

The courtyard was surrounded by intricate vines and colorful flowers. In the center lay a pond of clear, emerald water, on which floated several rainbow-hued, water lily-like plants. Occasionally, translucent psionic drakes would swim among them, adding a touch of life to the tranquil space.

When Allenita stepped into the courtyard, this “business magnate” from the Yuge family, who had been a formidable figure in the business world for the last few decades, couldn’t help but adopt her most solemn posture.

She wore a simple, elegant long dress embroidered with complex golden patterns that shimmered under the sunlight.

However, the owner of this magnificent dress couldn’t help but feel a little nervous, especially after seeing the two figures seated in the distance.

“Your Majesty,” Allenita curtsied slightly, her voice gentle and respectful. “It is a great honor to be received by you and the Queen here.”

At the other end of the courtyard, a tall elf sitting on a chair made of some unknown wood slowly rose to his feet.

He was the current Phoenix King, possessing an unsurprisingly handsome face and a pair of green eyes that seemed capable of seeing into a person’s soul.

His figure was slender and graceful, and he wore a robe woven from silver thread, adorned with patterns symbolizing power and wisdom.

At this moment, the ruler of the Thousand Stars Empire, a well-known representative of “The Apathetic,” was looking at the visitor before him with a gentle gaze.

Beside the Phoenix King sat an equally beautiful female elf; she was the Queen.

Upon seeing Allenita, she also stood up, her smile warm and kind, giving off a feeling as refreshing as a spring breeze.

“As expected of the most dazzling ‘pearl’ of the Yuge family. Miss Allenita, your arrival has made this courtyard all the more radiant.”

The Phoenix King’s voice was deep and magnetic. Although it was just a pleasantry, every word seemed meticulously crafted.

“Please, have a seat. We have some important matters to discuss.”

As the two sat opposite each other, a light breeze carrying the scent of Psionics blew from the depths of the ancient forest, bringing a hint of coolness and seemingly foreshadowing the gravity of the upcoming conversation.

“Lately, the flames of war in the human world have been burning ever more fiercely. The war between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire has just come to a close, and now a direct conflict has erupted with the Atlas Group.

“Furthermore, many Romu have joined this ‘internal conflict’ in the human world due to their employment with the Atlas Group, which has led to some… ‘unfavorable’ opinions within the country recently. So, I would like to hear your thoughts on this matter.”

The Phoenix King went straight to the point. His tone was calm, but the concern within it was not hard to detect.

Allenita sighed softly and lowered her eyes, seemingly considering how to phrase her words.

A moment later, she replied in a very ‘official and proper’ manner:

“Indeed, this conflict has affected many innocent lives. Amber… ahem, I mean, the actual controller of the Atlas Group, is a good friend of mine.

“Although opinions about him in our country are mixed, I believe that everything he and the Atlas Group are currently doing has not affected the interests of the Thousand Stars Empire…”

Hearing this, the Queen beside the Phoenix King smiled slightly, a look of someone enjoying the drama on her face, and teased:

“Oh~? Are you two really just good friends? I heard that you are often together and have quite an unusual relationship.”

“Ah, well…”

Chapter 559: The Highly Anticipated Battle

Allenita never expected to encounter such a scene.

She had thought she was invited to the Elven Royal Court to be questioned about some matter concerning the Atlas Group. To her surprise, they had barely exchanged a few words when the Queen, who was always known for her composure and grace, suddenly started enjoying the gossip.

In the past, although she had a good relationship with Amber, Allenita’s conscience was clear, and she would have answered the question frankly and openly.

But now, the relationship between her and Amber was indeed not so innocent, so the Queen’s question successfully made her freeze for a second or two.

The wealthy elf’s cheeks flushed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure and responded with a smile, “Your Majesty the Queen certainly has a sense of humor. However, Amber is indeed a very important friend of mine.”

Allenita certainly couldn’t admit her intimate relationship with Amber in this situation, at least not now.

On the other side, the Phoenix King, who had also been enjoying the gossip with a smile, resumed his serious expression and continued.

“Allenita, I understand your friendship, and I know that the Yuge family is currently close with the Atlas Group, but that doesn’t change the fact of the current tense situation.

Especially considering that there are many Romu working for the Atlas Group, which forces us to treat this matter with more caution. As the Phoenix King, I must consider the other voices in the country, especially when it comes to the sensitive topic of the ‘Romu’.”

Allenita nodded and said frankly:

“Regarding the matter of the Romu, I am indeed aware of it, and to some extent, I was the one who pulled the strings for them.

I assure you that these Romu joined the Atlas Group voluntarily. After all, the salary is very high, and the benefits are maxed out, which is why they have performed so bravely on the battlefield.”

“I have never doubted whether it was voluntary,” the Phoenix King interjected.

“As the rising star of the Yuge family, I believe you know your limits, Allenita, and would certainly not do anything rash.

I am just worried that the ‘Conservatives’ will take this opportunity to stir up the currently calm public opinion. After all, as the intensity of the fighting increases, Atlas’ casualties, including those of the Romu in their service, will certainly increase as well.

If something goes wrong at this time, it wouldn’t be good for the ‘Conservatives’ to seize the opportunity to make trouble.”

Allenita naturally understood the Phoenix King’s meaning. He wasn’t abandoning his ‘lie flat’ stance to target the ‘Conservatives’; he simply didn’t want any problems to arise with public opinion within the Thousand Stars Empire.

As the future successor of the Yuge family, Allenita, who frequently dealt with the Elven Royal Court, knew that the royal elves truly embodied the ‘unity of knowledge and action’ when it came to ‘lying flat’.

The long lifespan of the elves, and their practice of almost never initiating wars, had long accustomed them to their current peaceful lives over thousands of years. The Phoenix King, as the supreme ruler of the Thousand Stars Empire, was no exception.

Otherwise, a man of his high status and power would not have taken ‘simplicity is the true essence of life’ as his motto.

Therefore, on the matter of the Romu, the Phoenix King did not favor either the ‘Equal-Righters’ or the ‘Conservatives’, but was thoroughly committed to ‘lying flat’.

As long as neither side did anything to disrupt the social stability of the Thousand Stars Empire, the Elven Royal Court would absolutely not intervene. It was even considered a bit of spice added to the rich and peaceful daily life of the empire.

However, the matter of the continually rising casualties among the Romu serving in the Atlas Group due to the human civil war was now being used as ammunition by the ‘Conservatives’ in the court of public opinion.

Some ‘Conservatives’ even proposed the idea of ‘interfering in the human civil war, bringing these Romu who have left their homes back to their settlements, and having them return to their old way of life.’

And such a view clearly crossed the line for the Elven Royal Court.

Everyone’s living a good life, so why insist on meddling in that human mess?

So after hearing the Phoenix King’s words, Allenita respectfully bowed her head:

“Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I will do my best to communicate and coordinate so that all matters concerning the Romu at the Atlas Group are handled flawlessly. I also believe Mr. Amber will take this very seriously, as the Atlas Group was built on this foundation of high welfare and benefits.”

At this point, Allenita couldn’t help but smile before continuing:

“Your Majesty has not yet had contact with Mr. Amber, so you may not know this. Although he is the actual controller of the Atlas Group, from daily interactions and some of his decisions, it’s hard to see him as a human capitalist. It seems he didn’t create this company to make money.”

“Oh?” the Phoenix King asked with great interest after hearing Allenita’s description.

“Then what is this Mr. Amber after?”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I don’t know what he’s after either. Perhaps it’s simply for fun. Speaking of which, I’ve always thought he’d be a good fit for ‘lying flat’ here in the Thousand Stars Empire.”

“So he’s a person who seeks fun too? Interesting.”

The Phoenix King rarely showed such an amused expression, while the Queen beside him had long been covering her mouth and chuckling softly.

A moment later, the supreme ruler of the Thousand Stars Empire looked at Allenita again.

“I believe you can coordinate these matters well with Mr. Amber, Allenita. If the Romu can truly forge their own path through the Atlas Group, that wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, would it?”

Some time later, Allenita left the Elven Royal Court, guided by an attendant.

Her mind was still pondering the Phoenix King’s earlier rhetorical question.

“‘Forge their own path for the Romu… Your Majesty, are you finally planning to put an end to this dispute?’”

Allenita slowed her pace and looked back at the ancient cluster of buildings faintly visible deep in the forest. She suddenly realized that a revolution that would sweep across the entire Empire was seemingly beginning to brew here.

“‘What will happen when ’The Apathetic’ no longer ‘lie flat’?’”

This question popped into the wealthy woman’s mind. At the same time, she thought of Amber and the Atlas Group. To a certain extent, if the Thousand Stars Empire were to truly undergo some upheaval because of the Romu issue, then that guy Amber would be The Fuse for it all.

“Amber, oh Amber, how did I never realize before what a talent you have for attracting trouble?”

As Allenita rode in her family’s private car towards the airfield, she connected to her assistant’s communicator.

“Mina, I’m done here. The ship can begin preparations for departure. We’ll leave for the family headquarters as soon as I arrive.”

“Understood, Lady Yuge. It’s already been arranged,” came a capable voice from the other end of the comm. This was the new assistant the wealthy woman had promoted after Skadi was fully seconded to the Atlas Group.

Allenita: “Any new developments in the Loubion star system?”

Mina on the other end of the comm nodded, her expression serious as she said:

“After you left for the Elven Royal Court, large-scale electronic interference appeared near Loubion V. All civilian communication methods have failed. We deduce that both sides may have already entered the Electronic Warfare phase before the main engagement.

By the way, according to information from the Atlas Group’s Liaison Department, as well as what our own scout ships have observed on site, a large number of third-party scout ships and disguised spy vessels have entered the Loubion star system over the past few days and are approaching the vicinity of Loubion V.

Currently, those whose identities we can roughly confirm include the Federation’s Military-industrial complex, factions within the Federation demanding independence or already in armed rebellion, and from the Star Dragon Empire’s side, the Regent Prince, the Princess Faction, the Royalists, the State Religion, and the major noble families.

Oh, and Atlas also discovered a research vessel from the ‘Quest for Truth Foundation’.”

“Wait, that many???” Allenita was stunned for a moment. She then raised a graceful arm to pinch the bridge of her nose and said with a wry smile:

“I really didn’t expect so many factions to come and ‘spectate’. But from what you’re saying, it seems the two sides are about to start fighting any moment. What was their combat deployment like before this?”

“Regarding battle deployment, the latest information we gathered was from five hours ago. After that, both fleets activated their Optical camouflage and blackbody coatings, entering covert operations mode.

Furthermore, there are many destroyers on the periphery driving away third-party ships that approach the combat zone. So, after that, we could only gather information through electromagnetic signals.

But once both sides entered the Electronic Warfare phase, that avenue of information gathering was also cut off. Ah! Lady Yuge, I’ve sent you the combat deployment information we compiled earlier.”

Hearing Mina’s words, Allenita opened a newly received file. It was the combat deployment information for the Loubion star system, compiled by the Yuge family’s Situational Intelligence Department.

Mina, on the other end of the communication, continued to report:

“According to our intel, the four Federation Navy fleets used Loubion IV for a velocity boost and then moved along the ecliptic plane, completing their deployment in a region five hundred twenty thousand kilometers from Loubion V.

Meanwhile, Atlas’s Second and Third Unmanned Fleets, along with the Third Task Force, have also completed their deployment on the ecliptic plane near Loubion V—directly in front of the Federation Navy.

Afterward, both sides entered ‘covert operations mode’. According to the Situational Intelligence Department, this is a ‘hide-and-seek’ phase that human navies are very likely to go through before an engagement. During this process, both fleets will continuously adjust their battle stations, attempting to seize the initiative for the first strike.”

At this point, Mina paused for a moment before continuing with a hint of confusion:

“However, the Atlas First Fleet, led by Mr. Amber, has been missing ever since it warped out two days ago. Atlas hasn’t disclosed any information to us either.

According to our intelligence department, it seems the other factions present in the star system—including the Federation Navy—are also searching for this fleet.”

“Interesting. It seems this deployment is Amber’s deciding factor in this battle,” Allenita suddenly said.

After two years of increasingly deep cooperation with Amber and the Atlas Group, this long-lived elf had also crammed on the subject of human naval warfare.

Although she still couldn’t command a battle, she could at least understand what was happening as an outsider.

So she quickly guessed that the Atlas First Fleet, led by Amber, was very likely the key to deciding the outcome of this battle.

Mina: “Yes, Lady Yuge, the Situational Intelligence Department reached the same conclusion! They believe Mr. Amber might be planning to use the First Fleet for a surprise attack to gain an advantage in the battle, but this raises a new question.”

Allenita: “What question?”

“Are you saying that Atlas fleet, which is still in hiding, wants to get hit by the concentrated fire of our four fleets the moment it drops out of warp?”

In the Operations Briefing Room of the 18th Fleet’s flagship, the ‘Galileo’, Admiral Bernelli, projected as a hologram, asked impatiently with a deep frown.

Beside him were the commanders of the other three Federation fleets. Besides Stoner, the commander of the 18th Fleet, the other two also appeared in the Operations Briefing Room as holographic projections.

Under Marshal Trafalgar’s latest orders, Rear Admiral Stoner, now the Commander-in-Chief of this ‘grand fleet’, sat in the head seat of the conference room, silently looking at the 3D star chart in the middle of the room.

“Based on our experience fighting at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, their commander is definitely not the type to make such a rookie mistake. He would never let that fleet just brazenly jump right in our faces.”

The first to speak was Muller, the commander of the Twenty-fourth Fleet. This Rear Admiral, who had had a brief encounter with the Atlas combat fleet, clearly disagreed with Bernelli’s view.

“Then you tell me, how is that fleet supposed to enter the battlefield gracefully when our four fleets have already completed their battle deployment?”

Bernelli spoke, simultaneously manipulating the 3D star chart to display his thoughts.

“Currently, the enemy’s fleet size is definitely smaller than ours, at a ratio of approximately 3:4. They might not even reach a ‘3’.

In this situation, the best course of action for the enemy commander would actually be to concentrate all their forces and use their two ‘super-flagships’ to try and fight us head-on. They might have a chance of winning that way.

But this current approach of splitting their forces and planning to use a hidden fleet for a sneak attack is purely making things more difficult for themselves.

No matter which direction they try to ‘rush-attack’ from, once we detect the spatial fluctuations, there will only be two outcomes.

One is that they get hit by the concentrated fire of four fleets after dropping out of warp.

The second outcome is that after we detect the spatial fluctuations, we use the absolute numerical superiority of all four of our fleets to crush the two fleets in front of us first.”

Rear Admiral Bernelli’s words plunged the Operations Briefing Room into silence. Both Muller and Barak had to admit that this Rear Admiral, who looked younger than them and even seemed a bit young and impetuous, was absolutely right.

In the previous ‘2 vs 1’ situation, Atlas’s super-flagship might have been able to hold the line with its performance advantage.

But now that the Federation’s forces have increased to four fleets, the increase in their firepower isn’t a simple 2+2; it’s a completely exponential rise.

If the enemy’s super-flagship still dares to charge forward as a meat shield, a salvo from the capital ships of four fleets would absolutely make it meet a bitter end on the spot.

Therefore, this move of ‘splitting their forces’ really seemed like ‘digging one’s own grave’ to them.

But just then, Rear Admiral Stoner, who had been silent all this time, spoke up, breaking the quiet.

“What if they don’t plan on entering the field via warp?”

Chapter 560: A Man of Tactics

“They’re not warping in?”

The moment he said it, Bernelli, Muller, and Barak were all stunned. It was as if time had suddenly frozen. Their gazes, full of confusion, met one another’s. For a moment, they found it truly difficult to grasp the deeper meaning behind Rear Admiral Stoner’s words.

Fleet battles were brutal affairs with no path of retreat, and large-scale fleet battles even more so. Every decision a fleet commander made could determine the fate of countless lives.

The three men looked at each other, their minds racing through every possible scenario like lightning.

“Are you suggesting their fleet will just float over here in ‘covert operations mode’?”

The outspoken Rear Admiral Bernelli was the first to break the brief silence. His words were like a stone tossed into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples. His tone carried a hint of derision, as if the idea were utterly preposterous.

Rear Admiral Stoner, however, paid no mind to the teasing in his junior’s voice. He simply gave a slight nod, his gaze deep and resolute.

“If that is their intention, such a scenario isn’t entirely impossible. Compared to us detecting the large-scale spatial fluctuations from a fleet-wide warp, which would give us time to seize the initiative in this battle, approaching in ‘covert operations mode’ might actually be more feasible.”

Rear Admiral Stoner’s words sent the others into even deeper thought, for what he said was not without reason.

“You have a point, but the problem is, our four fleets can form an all-encompassing detection grid, not to mention the vast array of early warning terminals we’ve deployed in advance along the ecliptic plane. If they try to maneuver an entire fleet in ‘covert operations mode,’ we’ll still notice them. And that’s to say nothing of that enormous super-flagship of theirs.”

Barak, the commander of the Twenty-third Fleet who was usually a man of fewer words, spoke slowly. His voice was steady and powerful, and the others immediately agreed.

In their view, the Atlas combat fleet’s “super-flagship” was undoubtedly a high-risk unit that was difficult to handle, but it wasn’t without its flaws. Its massive hull, packed with a plethora of sophisticated and complex electronic equipment, fusion reactor arrays, and other systems, also meant that while it boasted immense power and superior performance, its stealth capabilities were significantly reduced.

This was especially true against the detection network formed by nearly one thousand warships from four Federation fleets, not to mention the large number of early warning terminals. It would be very difficult for that ship to approach using conventional stealth methods.

In other words, aside from warping in, the Infinity-class super-flagship would have a hard time achieving any element of surprise in an attack.

However, Rear Admiral Stoner ignored the others’ doubts. His upright figure appeared exceptionally resolute under the lights of the command room.

He continued unhurriedly, “What if they use some kind of celestial event for cover?”

Still not quite following, Rear Admiral Bernelli asked with a puzzled look, “What do you mean?”

“This is the recent astronomical activity report for the Loubion star system.” As he spoke, Rear Admiral Stoner displayed a report from the astronomical Observation Team, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.

“Hyakutake Comet (C/517 B2 Hyakutake). This is the largest periodic comet in the Loubion star system, and it happens to be passing near Loubion along its elliptical orbit during this time,” Rear Admiral Stoner’s voice echoed in the command room.

After seeing the report, a flash of realization lit up Rear Admiral Muller’s eyes. He immediately understood the Commander-in-Chief of the fleet’s intention.

“You’re saying that the Atlas fleet will use this comet for cover as they approach?”

Rear Admiral Stoner nodded slightly.

“That’s right. According to the Observation Team’s tracking of the comet’s orbit, we can confirm that the comet’s tail, which is nearly one hundred and twenty thousand kilometers long, will intersect directly with Loubion V’s orbit. Debris blown off by the solar wind might even enter Loubion V’s atmosphere. When that happens, you’ll be able to see a meteor shower from the ground with the naked eye.

“This comet’s trajectory also happens to coincide with Loubion V’s ecliptic plane. A tail one hundred and twenty thousand kilometers long is more than enough to hide the Atlas fleet. If they hide within the tail and only use their attitude control thrusters for minor adjustments, the early warning terminals we’ve deployed won’t be able to detect them!”

As Rear Admiral Stoner laid out his speculation and explanation, the other three fleet commanders broke out in a cold sweat, simultaneously questioning how they could have overlooked such a possibility.

Perhaps it was due to conventional thinking, but like the three of them, most fleet commanders of this era had begun to grow somewhat rigid in their tactical mindset.

Or, to put it another way, the ‘tactical creativity’ of naval fleet admirals was far lower than that of army commanders on a planet’s surface.

On a planet’s surface, an army commander could use factors like weather, terrain, planetary curvature, and so on, combined with a little bit of luck, to create legendary surprise attacks that would be remembered in history.

But when it came to the navy, especially after humanity entered space, the universe—even more empty and vast than a planet’s oceans—made the implementation of tactics exceptionally difficult.

Furthermore, a warship’s movement in space was strictly limited by the laws of physics. So, the more space battles humanity fought, the colder and more rigid the corresponding tactics and doctrines became.

After all, in the dangers of space, the reliability and stability of tactics and regulations were far more important than a so-called “stroke of genius.”

But occasionally, the boundless cosmos would present interesting scenarios and celestial bodies to make combat a little less dull.

For example, the frequent “birthing grounds” of famous battles—asteroid belts, nebulae, and planetary rings.

And, for instance, the comet Rear Admiral Stoner had just mentioned.

Quickly, the other three began to verify the feasibility of this surprise attack tactic.

According to the observation report, the Hyakutake Comet’s relative velocity as it neared Loubion V was about forty kilometers per second. For a human navy warship, keeping up with that speed was not difficult.

Especially if they warped to the comet’s orbit ahead of time and began accelerating, the fleet could perfectly achieve a state of being relatively stationary to the comet after acceleration by using its attitude control thrusters.

The only real difficulty lay in calculating the trajectory and managing the attitude control of the entire fleet, and doing so while in “covert operations mode.”

But in their opinion, given the prowess the Atlas Group had demonstrated in artificial intelligence and information technology, achieving this didn’t seem impossible.

“If that’s truly the case, then our early warning system is completely useless,” Rear Admiral Barak said.

“The detection capabilities of the early warning terminals are limited. They can’t penetrate the comet’s tail to conduct reconnaissance, not to mention the comet and the large amount of debris in its tail will destroy all the warning terminals in its path.”

Silence once again fell upon the Operations Briefing Room.

They all knew that this was just a theory they had come up with, one that had not been—and could not be—verified.

The only way to verify it would be to wait for the Atlas fleet to ascend from the comet’s tail and open fire on them.

However, with both fleets having fully deployed for battle and already engaging in preliminary electronic warfare—in which they were at a disadvantage—the four of them did not have much time to make a decision.

Barak: “Their fleet commander is quite the tactician…”

Muller: “We already saw how ruthless he was back at A·Bawa·Ku.”

Bernelli: “Hey, is this really the time to be talking about this?”

Before Bernelli could continue, Rear Admiral Stoner cut the three of them off.

“Alright, that’s enough. Since my current role is the Commander-in-Chief of the grand fleet, I will take the liberty of using this authority to issue a command.”

At his words, the other three immediately sat up straight with serious expressions. Whatever their private thoughts, once in battle, they would obey the orders of the Commander-in-Chief of the fleet without hesitation.

“From now on, the fleet’s primary detection focus will be on the Hyakutake Comet. We don’t have a better target right now anyway, and the possibility of them using the comet for stealth is indeed very high.

“Once the distance closes, we’ll be able to rely on the high-performance composite detection units of our capital ships to see what’s inside the tail.

“Additionally, the entire fleet is to enter combat search mode. Once we acquire a trace of the enemy to our front, await orders from the flagship and prepare to launch a first strike at any moment!”

“Yes, General!” ×3

After several hours of maneuvering between the two grand fleets near Loubion V’s orbit, the Atlas combat fleet and the Federation fleet detected each other at almost the same time when the distance between them closed to one hundred and fifty thousand kilometers.

Under the prolonged “covert operations mode,” the active cooling systems and blackbody coatings of all warships had begun to degrade in performance.

After all, even without activating the main thruster array, simply maintaining a warship in a “quasi-combat state” generated heat. “Heat management” and “infrared signature control” were required courses for every warship captain and fleet commander.

But what these “required courses” taught them was how to prolong the time a warship could remain without an exposed infrared signature, not how to hide it forever.

Furthermore, the light and thermal radiation from the system’s star, Great Loubion, was currently bathing the region of space both fleets occupied, completely unobstructed.

So, in addition to managing the heat generated by the ships themselves, they also had to find ways to reduce the temperature increase on the hull surfaces exposed to the star, which further shortened the time both sides could remain hidden.

When the two grand fleets locked onto each other’s positions, Randall and Stoner, almost in unison, ordered their entire fleets to deactivate their Optical camouflage, radar wave cancellation, and blackbody coatings.

Both sides knew very well that at this stage of such a massive fleet battle, the effectiveness of concealment had dwindled to almost zero.

“Warning! Hostile fleet detected accelerating. Estimated time to engagement range is forty minutes!”

The voice of The Infinity’s shipboard control AI, Serena, rang out, and at the same time, a piercing alarm shattered the silence of the bridge like a sharp arrow.

The shrill sound was like a desperate cry from the cosmic abyss, and the warning lights, which had suddenly turned a stark red, instantly pushed the tense atmosphere to a suffocating boiling point.

Randall, a fleet commander who had faced one high-intensity battle after another right after taking command, had been tempered by a trial of ‘blood and fire’. The unease, conflict, and timidity in his eyes from half a month ago had now become as blazing and resolute as brilliant stars.

He stared intently at the holographic projection platform before him. On the massive three-dimensional battlefield situation map displayed above, the densely packed light points representing the four Federation fleets were like a surging tide, closing in on the Atlas combat fleet’s position with unstoppable momentum.

The portion of the combat fleet he currently commanded was arrayed with two unmanned fleets as the battle core, with the Third Task Force deployed in a “skirmishing” formation around them.

Neither Randall, Cleves, nor even Guterres thousands of light-years away, or Dr. Mephisto, the creator of the unmanned fleet, had any objections to Amber’s arrangement.

Although the unmanned fleets had primarily served an “auxiliary fleet” role when they were still part of the Federation Navy’s combat sequence, typically relying on flawless maneuvering and precise long-range bombardment as “supplementary damage,” Amber saw things differently.

In Amber’s view, the greatest advantage of the unmanned fleets was not their seamless coordination or their accurate long-range attacks.

It was that they were not affected by a “morale bar.”

Unlike human fleets, which would see morale begin to drop after taking ten percent losses, fall sharply after thirty percent, and potentially collapse entirely after fifty percent, the unmanned fleets were different.

They could be ordered to hold a combat position and remain there, fixed in place, until the very last warship was sunk.

This was a trait Amber and other players had discovered in their previous life during fierce battles against the Drone Legion led by Lilith in the game.

Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that players could respawn after dying in the game, allowing them to grimly fight Lilith’s Drone Legion despite the casualties, Amber felt it would be nearly impossible for the people of this world to defeat Lilith on their own.

After all, you couldn’t expect soldiers of flesh and blood to fight a life-or-death battle against combat machines that felt no fear, no pain, and no emotion.

Perhaps elite human forces could do it, but such units made up less than ten percent of humanity’s entire military.

On the battlefield, Amber had seen far too many NPC forces quickly routed after encountering the Drone Legion. Even when enforcer squads emptied their ammunition, they couldn’t stop the collapse—not to mention that most of the enforcer squads had been the first to break and run.

So when Amber proposed a plan during the pre-battle meeting to use the two unmanned fleets as the core force to a”hold the line,” it didn’t take much effort to win everyone’s approval.

Randall’s combat fleet was bound to engage the Federation fleet head-on, and in such a situation, the two unmanned fleets were indeed better suited to draw fire.

Initially, Dr. Mephisto had felt it might be a bit cruel to the command-type AIs and high-level shipboard control AIs within the unmanned fleets.

However, after learning that Amber and Lilith had already backed up the “sisters” of all three unmanned fleets and stored them in the data center at A·Bawa·Ku, the Doctor had no further objections.

“Commander Randall, the Second and Third Unmanned Fleets have deployed according to preset instructions. If there are no further orders, we will commence our attack based on the pre-established plan upon entering engagement range.”

The voice of Selene, the commander of the Second Unmanned Fleet, sounded in Randall’s ear. He issued no other commands, simply nodding and saying:

“No further orders. The unmanned fleets will proceed according to the battle plan. The Third Task Force and The Infinity will provide support.”

At this, looking at the grand fleet of the Federation Navy charging toward them, Randall sighed, then lifted his head, his gaze seeming to pierce through the top deck of The Infinity.

“Amber… You’d better get here on time!”

Chapter 561: Amber, You Weren’t Behind the Comet at All!

With multiple factions eagerly watching, the curtain finally rose on the truly large-scale fleet battle between the Atlas Group and the Federation.

During the electronic attack phase before the official exchange of fire, the four fleets of the largely suppressed Federation grand fleet had already begun to experience communication breakdowns.

Shortly after, the quantum entanglement communication devices within the four fleets failed simultaneously.

This cost the Federation fleets their ability to communicate in real-time with the Federation Naval Command and other friendly forces.

However, this communications blackout was well within the expectations of Rear Admiral Stoner and the others. After all, this ultra-long-range real-time communication technology was developed by the Atlas Group.

Now that the Federation and Atlas had completely torn off all pretenses and were on the verge of open war, it was only natural for the Atlas Group to impose restrictions in this area.

This was a major reason why the Federation wanted to take down the Atlas Group—to free themselves from the “binding circlet” of quantum entanglement communication technology. As long as the Federation couldn’t make a breakthrough in this field, they would remain at the mercy of the Atlas Group.

Having been bested in the “pre-battle appetizer” of electronic warfare, the warships of the Federation fleet could only communicate with nearby friendly forces using blue-green lasers and signal lights for a long time. This meant that the coordinated offensive of the entire grand fleet depended heavily on the operational deployments set before the battle began.

On this point, whether it was the joint planning of the four fleet commanders or the fleets’ execution of the operational plan, the nearly one thousand warships of the grand fleet showed no signs of chaos as they commenced their attack.

As the two sides closed to a distance of fifty thousand kilometers, their fleets began their final formation adjustments.

The spacing between the warships on both sides began to widen, giving each other room to maneuver and evade. All the light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates started to pull back to the rear flanks of the formation.

After all, in a fleet battle of this scale, the survivability of such non-capital ships was abysmally low. In fact, naval researchers in both the Federation and the Empire had already begun to envision the possibility of future navies becoming “all-capital-ship” fleets.

Soon, the four fleets of the Federation Navy formed a massive cone formation. The colossal warships gleamed grimly under the starlight, their constantly activating weapon systems like the scepters of mythical gods, exuding a terrifying aura of destruction.

The central region of the cone formation was composed entirely of capital ships like battleships and heavy cruisers. The flagships of the four fleets were arranged in a line, forming the key area for both offense and defense—the very eye of the storm.

On the Atlas side, the two unmanned fleets, like silent steel ghosts, hung quietly in space, forming a similar although nearly half-sized formation compared to the Federation’s cone.

Although these unmanned warships were all refitted from various active service human warships, anyone who saw them for the first time would feel their difference from a manned fleet.

The lines of each warship were simple and stark, radiating a cold metallic luster. The only “intelligent life” aboard—the high-level shipboard control AIs—possessed no warmth of life, no emotional fluctuations. They were merely precise executors of pre-set programs, the most ruthless enforcers on this battlefield, and the best choice within the Atlas combat fleet for the task of “holding the line.”

Behind the unmanned fleets, the Third Task Force was temporarily on standby.

Though scarred and battered, Randall’s warships still exuded an unyielding spirit. Each ship, covered in scratches and dents, was weary yet still majestic.

The lights from the portholes flickered in the darkness, like the burning, indomitable souls of these steel behemoths. Every mark left by a kinetic projectile was a memory of battle; every breach torn open by a heavy particle cannon and subsequently patched was a trial of life and death.

The oldest destroyers among these ships had seen service dating back to the “Battle of the Three Stooges.”

They had charged into the fray on Atlas’s battlefields time and again. Now, these warships stood once more on the front line, ready to burn themselves out for the battle that would decide Atlas’s future.

“Ten seconds to engagement range of forty thousand kilometers!” Serena’s voice echoed across the bridge of The Infinity.

Aboard the flagships of the four Federation Navy fleets, their respective shipboard control AIs reported the same information at almost the exact same moment.

“All hands, prepare to engage!”

Randall’s voice, steady and powerful, resounded through the communication channel.

After training in vocal techniques provided by the elves, his voice was like the sound of war drums from the depths of the cosmos—resolute and full of confidence, as if telling every member of the Atlas combat fleet that they had to win this battle.

“10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1!!!”

“Fire!”

As the countdown reached zero, on the command of both fleet commanders-in-chief, the battle erupted in an instant.

In a fleet engagement of this magnitude, the effectiveness of high-energy lasers or charged particle beams was already mediocre, so neither side hesitated. They opened with a full salvo from every main cannon in their fleets.

Energy generated by the warships’ fusion reactors was absorbed by heavy metal particles through the bombardment of a special alloy. Then, constrained by a directional magnetic field and accelerated down a long track, it was unleashed with world-destroying momentum, hurtling towards targets tens of thousands of kilometers away.

The dense barrage of blue-white “beams” created by the simultaneous firing of numerous heavy particle cannons streaked across the dark expanse of space like a meteor shower, closing in on the enemy fleet.

Ten seconds later, a continuous storm of electrical flashes erupted along both battle lines—the “light curtain” formed as the warships’ deflector shields activated to block the heavy metal particles.

A full salvo from the entire fleet’s main cannons at the very start of the battle was essentially the strongest punch a fleet could throw, and a punch like that was bound to have its intended effect.

What followed was a cascade of “fireballs” along the frontlines, each signifying a warship tragically sunk in the first salvo.

The two unmanned fleets, at an absolute numerical disadvantage, were clearly outmatched in firepower projection. Consequently, the “fireballs” marking destroyed ships were noticeably more numerous along the Atlas battle line.

But to the commander of the unmanned fleets—the command-type AI, Selene—these fallen warships were merely updated numbers on a casualty list.

“Begin alternating cover. All units, adjust battle stations.”

With her cold command, the warships that had survived the first salvo with overloaded deflector shield generators began damage control. While deploying internal “Worker Bees” and emergency cooling their systems with liquid helium, they used their attitude control thrusters to swap positions with another warship in better condition.

The precision and speed characteristic of the unmanned fleet were on full display in the twenty-odd seconds before the second salvo began.

The Third Task Force, still positioned behind the unmanned fleet, watched in astonishment as the nearly 500 warships at the forefront of the two massive fleets completed a “battle station exchange” with the fluidity of a pre-set program.

Relying on exquisite control of their attitude control thrusters, these steel giants “brushed past” friendly ships dozens of kilometers away over the shortest possible distance. The entire process was smooth and fluid, without a hint of lag, let alone any accidents.

Thus, when the second round of salvos began, the capital ships at the very front of the unmanned fleet, having undergone this emergency repositioning, were all in optimal condition.

In contrast, while the four Federation Navy fleets would also execute “battle station switching” maneuvers, it was not something they could accomplish at this moment.

A human-crewed warship simply couldn’t complete such a series of delicate and dangerous operations in twenty seconds, let alone within a grand fleet of nearly a thousand vessels.

Soon, the opposing fleets commenced their second full salvo of main cannons, and the entire engagement zone was once again transformed into a world of light.

Even on Loubion V, if one were on the hemisphere facing the battlefield and looked up at the sky, they would see a certain area flashing with pinpricks of light.

As for the “amused bystanders” who had been driven away by the outer picket ships of both sides, though they were now extremely far from the combat zone, they could still detect the commotion from the two fleets’ salvos.

It was only when they tried to transmit messages that they discovered the service for their own quantum entanglement communication devices had been suspended.

The message that popped up on their workstations—“Due to technical reasons, service in the Loubion star system and surrounding space is temporarily suspended. Please contact your sales consultant if you have any questions~”—left the scout ships and spy vessels of the various factions with no choice but to swallow their frustration.

After the second salvo concluded, another wave of fireballs erupted along the battle lines of both fleets as more warships detonated.

This time, however, the number of fireballs appearing on the Federation fleet’s line had clearly increased.

“17th Fleet, The Steadfast and The Courageous are lost!”

“Twenty-third Fleet, The Holy Grail, The Exile, and King of Propulsion are lost!”

“Twenty-fourth Fleet, The Eaglehorn and The Samira are lost!”

“18th Fleet, The Quetzalcoatl and The Bard are lost!”

On the main screen of the bridge of The Galileo, the flagship of the 18th Fleet, damage reports flashed one after another. Rear Admiral Stoner, seated in the captain’s chair, watched the information in stern silence.

At the same time, the fleet communications officer’s voice came over the command channel:

“Report! The 24th Fleet’s flagship, The Revenge, has reached a critical threshold with its deflector shield generator! To ensure the Fleet Commander can remain on station to command the fleet, Rear Admiral Barak requests a position adjustment with the battleship The Utah!”

Stoner replied calmly, “Permission granted. Henceforth, flagships requiring position adjustments need not report. They may adjust as the real-time situation dictates.”

“Yes, General!”

In both the Federation Navy and the Imperial Royal Navy, the flagship, as the command core and “morale-maintaining tool” of a fleet, would generally not leave its assigned station unless absolutely necessary.

Therefore, although the flagships of each fleet were current-service battleships, they were all heavily upgraded in terms of protection and communication systems.

In terms of the model, performance, and power of their deflector shield generators alone, they far surpassed their sister ships, making them highly survivable in fleet-level firefights.

But it was only the second salvo, and the deflector shield generator of the 24th Fleet’s flagship, The Revenge, was already nearing overload. This indicated that the opposing Atlas combat fleet had not only acquired the flagship’s position but was consciously delivering high-intensity concentrated fire.

The extreme firing accuracy of the unmanned fleet also caused a large number of Federation warships that had lost their deflector shield protection in the first salvo and lacked the time to adjust their positions to meet a bitter end on the spot.

Stoner and the others were not entirely unprepared for this; in fact, they had anticipated such a scenario during their pre-battle meetings, so he wasn’t surprised.

What truly surprised him was that after the second salvo, the Atlas fleet opposite them had not sustained significant additional losses.

The attack assessment team concluded that the enemy’s losses in the second round were roughly the same as in the first, suggesting they had conducted a large-scale battle station exchange in the interval between salvos.

Is this the true way to use an unmanned fleet?

The Federation Navy Rear Admiral, who had once fought alongside unmanned fleets, thought to himself silently.

In his previous combat experiences with them, these cold warships were, for the most part, used to perform auxiliary support or suicide attacks.

Why does the Atlas commander seem to know these unmanned warships even better than we do?

A series of questions surfaced in Rear Admiral Stoner’s mind, but he quickly suppressed them. Right now, he had to focus on the battle.

Typically, after the second salvo, both sides would temporarily cease firing their main cannons and use the opportunity to execute other tactical maneuvers, such as deploying HCPs, activating heavy electromagnetic cannons, or launching plasma torpedoes and heavy anti-ship missiles.

Thus, just as in battles he had experienced before, Rear Admiral Stoner issued new orders.

“All ships, adjust positions according to the status of your deflector shield generators. Resume salvos once the main cannons have cooled!

“At the same time, deploy torpedoes and anti-ship missiles according to the operational plan. All HCP units, prepare for launch!

“Once the fleet crosses the 20,000-kilometer contact line, execute a ‘full-deck launch’ immediately! Envelop their flanks and attack!”

“Yes, General! Orders have been relayed!”

Then, Rear Admiral Stoner turned to the officer on duty next to him and asked:

“What is the position of the target comet? Has the Astronomical Observation Team found anything?”

The officer on duty seemed to have anticipated Stoner’s question and was already prepared. He answered immediately:

“Report, General. Hyakutake Comet is about to pass its closest point to Loubion V, but we have yet to detect any enemy fleet activity near the comet or its tail!”

Here, the officer on duty hesitated for a moment, then, after a quick glance at Rear Admiral Stoner’s expression, added cautiously:

“According to the judgment of the Fleet Joint Command Center, that Atlas fleet is likely not hiding behind the comet. Of course, there is another possibility—that the massive debris in the comet’s tail is interfering with our scans. We may need to continue observing for a while longer to reach a definitive conclusion!”

“I understand. Continue observation.”

Rear Admiral Stoner spoke faintly, but his heart was already starting to stir with unease.

The scenario he had envisioned—the Atlas fleet charging out from behind the comet’s tail as Hyakutake Comet swept past Loubion V—had not materialized.

Although the Fleet Joint Command Center had not yet made a final judgment, Rear Admiral Stoner knew that in all likelihood, the Atlas fleet had not used the comet to approach.

Where will they appear? Did they simply abandon the battle and flee?

The thought lasted for less than a second in Rear Admiral Stoner’s mind before he immediately dismissed it.

Although he had never met the ‘Boss’ of the Atlas Group, nor had he ever had any contact with him, intelligence from Naval Command indicated that the ‘Boss’ on the other side was absolutely incapable of doing such a thing.

When two fleets engage head-on in space, the tens of thousands of kilometers between them is actually a very short distance. Before Rear Admiral Stoner could come up with any other ideas, the Federation fleet had already crossed the 20,000-kilometer contact line.

Soon, every warship released all its deployed HCPs. Apart from a contingent left behind for anti-air combat duties with the fleet, the rest swiftly formed two attack groups, one on the left and one on the right. With the initial velocity imparted by the warships and their electromagnetic launch catapults, they ignited their plasma thruster arrays and pounced towards the flanks of the Atlas fleet.

They were like a great swarm of fireflies on a summer night.

Just as brilliant, just as fleeting.

But not nearly as romantic.

No one knew how many of these HCPs would return after the battle, not even the HCP pilots themselves.

These pure soldiers of the Federation Navy had only one goal in their minds right now—to break through the enemy lines at all costs, attack the enemy fleet’s broadsides, and add another weight to the scales of victory in this battle.

But just then, a message from the Tactical Information Coordinator made Rear Admiral Stoner freeze in his command chair.

“Report! The 4th Destroyer-Frigate Flotilla on the periphery of the lower formation reports a suspected fleet signature at the nadir! Approaching at high speed!”

The next second, a transmission from the flagship of the 17th Fleet patched through. Rear Admiral Bernelli’s face had barely appeared on the communication screen when he burst out impatiently:

“Stoner! I have a suspected enemy fleet signature directly below my fleet!”

A word like ‘below’ might seem ill-suited for space, especially during complex space activities.

However, due to humanity’s traditional perception of space, and the fact that in space combat, fleets typically establish a coordinate system with themselves at the center to define the X, Y, and Z axes, more intuitive terms like ‘up, down, left, right, front, and back’ had once again become part of colloquial reporting in space operations.

Immediately after, Rear Admiral Muller of the Twenty-third Fleet and Rear Admiral Barak of the Twenty-fourth Fleet both reported the same information.

At this point, Stoner realized he had made a colossal misjudgment.

He stared at the three-dimensional battlefield situation map, at the ‘unidentified target’ approaching from ‘directly below’, and a familiar yet alien term suddenly popped into his mind.

“Is this… an ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault’ tactic?!”

Chapter 562: Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault

“This is… the ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault tactic’?!”

Also reacting swiftly was the commander of the Twenty-fourth Fleet, Rear Admiral Muller.

From a God’s-eye view, he was the one among the four fleet commanders of this Federation grand fleet who had graduated from the Federation Naval Academy with the highest marks in “Naval Tactics.”

By now, the four commanders who had realized something was wrong had already opened a high-priority communication channel. So, when the other two heard ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault tactic,’ they also immediately understood.

However, even Rear Admiral Muller, who had reacted the fastest besides Rear Admiral Stoner, frowned after naming the tactic.

“But hasn’t this tactic never been successfully executed in a fleet-level battle before?”

Hearing Rear Admiral Muller’s doubt, Rear Admiral Stoner shook his head, then said with some self-deprecation:

“Perhaps we will have the ‘honor’ of being the first to witness this tactic successfully completed in a fleet-level battle… albeit from the ‘enemy’s’ perspective.”

Rear Admirals Muller and Stoner were not speaking carelessly. In the history of human space combat—at least in the recorded history of fleet-level battles—this tactic had indeed never been successfully used.

On a smaller scale, the grand-sounding ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault tactic’ was simply an attack from the enemy’s zenith or nadir. It was a relatively common tactic, one that Amber himself had used many times before.

But at the level of a fleet battle, a fleet commander had far more to consider.

First, the reconnaissance capabilities of an entire fleet versus a few warships were on completely different levels. Therefore, the attack would have to be initiated from a significant distance. This also meant that, outside of special celestial environments like an asteroid belt, nebula, or planetary ring, a fleet could not set up an ambush to launch a close-range vertical assault.

Second, in small-scale combat, vertical assaults were mostly ambushes initiated after the attacker had concealed themselves and waited for the distance to close to within twenty thousand kilometers.

Therefore, the attacking warships only needed to maintain their attitude in advance, and once the battle began, they could just push their main thruster arrays to the maximum and charge. The engagement distance and the entire trajectory were short, so the orbital planning and calculations were not complex.

But at the fleet level, as mentioned before, a force of this size could not possibly lurk within twenty or thirty thousand kilometers of the enemy—unless the enemy was completely blind.

So, in naval tactical theory, an ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault’ required the fleet to enter covert operations mode from an extremely far distance. It would then use a ‘Kinetic Mass Ejection System’ and, only when absolutely necessary, attitude control thrusters to maintain its course and attitude.

This posed a tremendous challenge for the fleet’s Navigator and the shipboard control AIs.

Not only did you have to calculate a ‘low-power maneuver trajectory’ from millions or even tens of millions of kilometers away, but you also had to ensure the trajectory’s ‘landing position’ arrived at the right place at the right time.

This was because, after moving perpendicular to the target planet’s ecliptic plane, the fleet would be subject to the unidirectional gravity of the star system’s sun, with no other forces to counteract it.

Therefore, after leaving a standard orbit, the warships required significantly more power to maintain their position perpendicular to the ecliptic plane.

This was manageable for a short period, but for a tactical maneuver in a fleet-level battle that could span hundreds of thousands or even millions of kilometers, the energy consumption would be a challenge.

Furthermore, this series of complex calculations was not for just a few warships, but for the more than two hundred warships of an entire fleet.

Not to mention, in covert operations mode, a fleet would typically maintain a tight, compact formation with minimal spacing, which further increased the difficulty of calculating each ship’s orbit.

But fortunately, the Atlas combat fleet had Amber, a man who had actually done this in his previous life.

And Amber had Lilith.

So, praise be to Lilith.—

Ten minutes earlier, at the nadir of the Federation grand fleet, one hundred and fifty thousand kilometers away.

“All fleet units, attention. We will be initiating an attack using the Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault. All units, prepare to execute the operational procedures for a ‘Vertical Assault’ according to combat standards.”

On the bridge of The Dawn, Amber’s voice was calm and steady, transmitted clearly throughout the entire Atlas First Fleet via the communication system.

Due to Rear Admiral Stoner’s misjudgment, the vast majority of the Federation fleet’s attention was focused on Loubion V’s ecliptic plane and the rapidly approaching Hyakutake Comet.

This caused the reconnaissance intensity in the nadir direction, which was already insufficient, to be further reduced, giving Amber’s First Fleet the opportunity to quietly approach the battlefield.

Once the Federation fleet engaged the unmanned fleet and the Third Task Force, becoming fully engrossed in the head-on battle, Amber knew his plan for a fleet-level surprise attack was close to success.

Seeing the Federation fleet finish its second salvo, begin to deploy its ship-borne HCPs, and readjust the battle stations of its ships, entering a slightly chaotic period, Amber gave the decisive order:

“All ships, attitude control thrusters to overpower! Adjust ship angles rapidly, prepare to enter final attack orbit!”

His voice was resolute and unwavering, carrying an air of unstoppable momentum. As his command was issued, the more than two hundred Atlas warships, led by The Dawn, began to rapidly adjust their orientation, pointing their bows toward the engaged Federation fleet.

“All ships, hold attitude! Main thruster array at maximum power! Full Ahead!”

In that instant, the plasma thruster arrays of the entire fleet erupted in a dazzling blue light. The powerful thrust swiftly changed the warships’ course, sending them hurtling toward the battlefield at a sharp angle, nearly perpendicular to Loubion V’s ecliptic plane.

During this process, the warships endured immense inertial acceleration. Their structural frameworks emitted faint creaks, as if groaning in agony under the immense pressure.

Moreover, the tail of the ‘passing’ Hyakutake Comet carried a large amount of debris and stardust, which was now scattering across the nearby space under the gravitational pull of Loubion V.

As a result, the ships’ hulls heated up and glowed red from the high-speed friction and impacts with this cosmic dust and micrometeoroids. The Heat Dissipation Systems beneath the main external armor worked at full capacity. Propellant water and coolant flowed like raging rivers through the network of pipes that spanned the ships, desperately trying to carry away the excess heat.

Inside each warship, crew members at their battle stations felt violent vibrations. Their bodies endured immense G-forces while being tossed about by the ship’s turbulence.

But they had all long since secured themselves firmly at their stations and had, without hesitation, used their in-ship suits to inject a near-red-line dose of ‘Anti-G medication.’

“Current direct-line distance, one hundred and twenty thousand kilometers!”

“Distance, eighty thousand kilometers!”

“Sixty thousand kilometers!”

“Warning! Fire-control radar signature detected!”

“Ignore it, it’s just their outer Destroyer-Frigate Formation! Full fleet, continue the assault!”

“Distance, fifty thousand kilometers! Impending enemy contact!”

“All fleet, spread to attack formation! The Dawn’s main cannon, prepare for firing!”

Back in the main engagement zone, Randall’s Third Task Force had also noticed the Atlas First Fleet’s actions immediately.

As a graduate of the Federation Naval Academy, he naturally knew of the ‘Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault’ naval tactical theory. So, while a sense of hope for victory welled up in his heart upon seeing the First Fleet arrive on the battlefield, he still broke into a cold sweat over Amber’s risky maneuver.

During the pre-battle meeting several days ago, he and Cleves had actually been quite worried—the latter even more so, since Cleves was sitting on the bridge of The Dawn with Amber at this very moment.

After all, Amber was a ‘Fleet Commander’ who was not academy-trained. For him to attempt this ‘grand maneuver’ that no one had ever accomplished in such a crucial battle was, from any perspective, not a reassuring prospect.

But Randall had no time to worry about that now. He had only one thought in his mind: to follow the operational plan set during the pre-battle meeting and cooperate with the First Fleet to complete this battle, a battle destined to be remembered throughout the star-sea.

“Fleet-wide broadcast! Fleet-wide broadcast! The First Fleet has arrived as promised! We’ve been hiding behind the unmanned fleet for long enough! It’s time to counter-attack!”

Driven by adrenaline, Randall felt the blood rush to his head. He practically roared out the command the entire fleet had been waiting for.

“Third Task Force! Commence attack according to the pre-established operational plan! The Infinity’s main cannon, activation! Prepare for converging irradiation with The Dawn!”

Chapter 563: The Federation Fleet: Upping the Ante

“Report! The enemy detachment in the formation ahead is on the move!”

On the bridge of The Galileo, flagship of the Federation Navy’s 18th Fleet, Rear Admiral Stoner, who had been panicking over the appearance of the Atlas fleet from the nadir, immediately looked up at the optical sensor feed upon hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report.

On the screen, where the image was a composite of optical sensors and Synthetic Aperture Radar imaging adjusted for clarity and brightness, the Atlas Third Task Force, which had been concealed behind the unmanned fleet, charged out from above them. Led by the colossal Infinity, they deployed into an attack formation.

In the next second, The Galileo’s shipboard control AI sounded an alarm.

“Warning! High-energy reading detected! Energy signature analysis indicates a super-heavy purification beam firing!”

“Warning! Detected…”

“Warning!”

The shipboard control AI broadcast the warning three times. As the Federation Navy’s capital fleet signature database had recently been updated, it successfully identified the type of incoming strike.

However, this brought Rear Admiral Stoner and his officers no joy, especially when the shipboard control AI issued the same warning again a few seconds later.

This time, however, the high-energy reading was coming from the fleet’s nadir.

“All ships, attention! Disengage bombardment formation immediately! Increase spacing and prepare for evasive maneuvers!”

Rear Admiral Stoner issued a new command without delay. After the multiple “appearances” of Atlas’s Infinity-class super-flagship, Federation Navy commanders were all too aware of how absurdly powerful its main cannon was.

Especially when the fleet was arrayed in a bombardment formation, a single purification beam could skewer a long line of ships.

However, Stoner’s command came a little too late. Or perhaps, a grand fleet composed of four capital fleets was inherently inflexible.

Just as a large number of warships fired their attitude control thrusters to adjust their positions, two golden purification beams lanced out from directly ahead of the fleet and from the nadir.

Since human warships had yet to be equipped with psionic shield generators to defend against weapons like purification beams, no ship could withstand the attack.

The Infinity-class super-flagship itself could significantly weaken the beam with its extremely thick physical armor, but according to Salieh’s calculations, even if one survived a hit without disintegrating, it would be rendered combat-ineffective.

Thus, as the two purification beams swept across the Federation grand fleet in a crossfire pattern, the Federation warship captains present felt a despair even deeper than when they faced the Artificial Celestial Fortress.

After all, a single sweep from the Focusing Rainbow would blast over seventy percent of the ships in a dense formation into stardust, a quick and painless end.

But this golden purification beam was the very definition of torture. You could only watch as friendly forces along the firing axis were pierced and destroyed one by one, utterly helpless, praying that the enemy’s next attack wouldn’t sweep in your direction.

At the same time, you had to command your own ship to navigate the chaos and evade the debris from destroyed friendlies.

On the bridge of The Galileo, Rear Admiral Stoner fell silent as he watched the real-time casualties rack up on the main screen.

But even in such a dire situation, he believed the outcome was far from certain. After all, they still held a numerical advantage.

Moreover, they had other trump cards left to play.

After the two Infinity-class super-flagships completed three firing passes with their super-heavy purification beam emitters, the nightmare for the Federation Navy’s warships finally came to a temporary end.

At least for a short while, they wouldn’t have to worry about dying to this ridiculously powerful area-of-effect attack.

By this time, however, the two super-flagships had switched to conventional combat mode. The forty heavy particle cannons on their bows began to roar. The Dawn, leading the Atlas First Fleet which had already formed up for an attack, launched its assault.

The entire fleet was like a sharp sword thrusting toward the heavens, with The Dawn as its tip, attacking the Federation fleet vertically from the ecliptic plane with the force of a thunderbolt.

The instant they entered effective range, all warships of the First Fleet opened fire with everything they had.

The blue-white beams of the heavy particle cannon salvo poured forth like a torrential downpour, sweeping across the Federation fleet from its most vulnerable angle.

The warships of the Federation grand fleet were thrown into chaos by this sudden, fierce, and well-aimed assault.

The deflector shields on the ships’ ventral sides were inherently weaker, and during the previous firefight, most ships had focused their shield strength toward their bows.

Consequently, when struck from below, the deflector shields in this area collapsed swiftly, shattering like glass and losing their protective function as their silvery-white arcs dimmed.

Ship after ship was hit and exploded. Flames blossomed in the void, and plasma fireballs began to expand, like spectacular but deadly fireworks.

Though there were no shockwaves in space, the disintegrating, tumbling warships still flung out massive amounts of debris in every direction.

Some of it slammed into other warships that couldn’t evade in time, triggering a chain reaction of more explosions and scattering even more fragments.

This forced a large number of ships to activate their point-defense weapon systems to intercept these equally dangerous targets.

The rest of the debris, along with the freeze-dried corpses of crew members, “luckily” drifted away from this region of space, becoming cosmic junk, wandering the endless void like lonely ghosts.

It was at this moment that Rear Admiral Stoner finally issued a new directive.

“All ships, full attack on the enemy ahead! Crush them first!

“All HCP units, break through the enemy flanks at any cost and commence anti-ship operations!”

The Federation grand fleet commander’s thinking was simple: while they still had superior numbers, they would crush a portion of the Atlas fleet first, widen their numerical advantage, and then destroy the remaining enemy forces.

The reason he specifically ordered the HCP units to attack and conduct anti-ship operations was also simple.

He knew for a fact that the two opposing unmanned fleets didn’t carry any HCPs. Both the “official data” on the unmanned fleets and his own observations since the battle began had convinced him that those two fleets had no embarked craft.

While the remaining Third Task Force did have HCP units, their numbers were no match for the massive quantity of HCPs on the Federation side.

In this situation, the Federation fleet’s numerical advantage in HCPs was likely even greater than their advantage in ship numbers.

Once the HCP clusters attacking from the flanks broke through and penetrated the enemy’s fleet formation, they could inflict enormous losses on the Atlas fleet.

After all, the Federation fleet consisted of four full capital fleets, with over fifteen thousand HCP units.

Amber and Randall quickly grasped the Federation fleet’s intention. They had anticipated this exact scenario in their pre-battle meeting, but regrettably, they had no good solution.

Being at such a significant numerical disadvantage meant that many tactical options were stretched thin.

Even Amber, and Guterres who was assisting remotely, couldn’t devise a suitable countermeasure.

The final conclusion was that the Third Task Force and the two unmanned fleets would have to survive this “dangerous period” on their own, holding out until the First Fleet could close in to provide support.

Therefore, Randall quickly ordered all warships in the Third Task Force to execute a “full-deck launch.” All HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships were to do everything in their power to help the fleet weather this critical phase.

Just as the Aegis units began to line up on the electromagnetic launch catapults and were sent into space one after another, Serena’s voice sounded an alarm on the bridge of The Infinity.

“Warning! Unauthorized spatial fluctuations detected! Suspected fleet-wide mass warp!”

“?!”

Chapter 564: Fight to the Death, No Retreat

Randall was completely taken by surprise at the sudden spatial fluctuations. After all, he knew Atlas had no other reinforcements.

In the middle of a battle, an unauthorized warp signature code like this usually belonged to the enemy, or a third party.

“Federation reinforcements? Or does the Empire want a piece of the action too?”

Hearing Randall’s question over the quantum entanglement command communication channel, Amber shook her head and replied:

“It definitely won’t be the Empire. After the Federation’s grand counter-offensive, the Loubion star system has long since become a ‘rear’ area. Given the mess the Empire is in right now, they’d never have the Royal Navy send a fleet this deep into Federation territory.”

As she spoke, Amber glanced at the analyzed information on the warp signature code from the shipboard control AI and synced it to Randall.

“Look at the analysis of this signature. Although we can’t see the starting point, we can tell the warp distance isn’t very far. Timing-wise, they initiated the warp at the same moment the battle started, which means this force departed from within the Loubion star system.

“I refuse to believe the Imperial Royal Navy could have a fleet hiding in the Loubion system beforehand, especially not while we are on high alert for engagement with the Federation Navy.

“So, this is most likely a Federation reinforcement fleet.”

Although they couldn’t identify who had warped in when they first detected the unauthorized spatial fluctuations and warp signature code, these codes, developed by the Forerunner civilization, provided a wealth of basic information.

The most important of these were the warp’s end time and distance. The former allowed a fleet to prepare, while the latter allowed them to estimate the enemy’s approximate point of origin.

This was why neither the Federation Navy nor the Imperial Royal Navy had ever attempted a ‘long-range decapitation strike’ or warped directly into an enemy’s capital star system to ‘glass the planet’ during a battle.

The longer the warp distance, the longer the warp would take, and the earlier the spatial fluctuations would appear at the destination—sometimes as much as a week in advance.

Therefore, when executing a ‘long-range decapitation strike’, one first had to consider whether their fleet would emerge from the warp face-to-face with an enemy lying in wait.

The warp Amber and the others were currently detecting hadn’t taken very long, so their questions were soon answered.

As the flash of the warp’s conclusion faded, one warship after another, bearing the Federation Navy’s navy-blue paint, appeared 30,000 kilometers off the left flank of the Federation grand fleet.

The Federation Navy’s Fourteenth Fleet had arrived on the battlefield at this critical juncture.

Amber: “See, I was right. It really is enemy reinforcements~”

Randall: “No… What’s there to be so excited about, you bastard!”

Hearing Amber’s voice, Randall almost coughed up blood. On the bridge of The Dawn, Cleves, who was standing beside Amber, asked with some confusion:

“Didn’t we cut off the Federation fleet’s network? And the Third Task Force has had the upper hand in electronic warfare so far. When did the Federation fleet send out a call for help?”

“No,” Amber shook her head. “They didn’t send it. We sent it for them.”

“Huh? We sent it for them?” Randall was utterly bewildered by Amber’s answer.

“When we jammed their network and temporarily severed the Federation fleet’s contact with the outside world through electronic warfare, their reinforcements knew the battle had started. They probably initiated a collective warp according to a prearranged plan.”

Cleves immediately understood what Amber meant.

“So, regardless of whether our First Fleet launched this assault or not, their reinforcements would have warped in as soon as the fighting began?!”

“Exactly. They were likely planning to crush us in one fell swoop. They just didn’t dare put all their ‘chips’ on the table at the start, afraid we’d see the odds and retreat. That would have ruined their goal of annihilating us.”

The current situation was naturally unfavorable for Atlas, as Amber truly had no more ships to spare.

Although she still had an Artificial Celestial Fortress that could change the tide of battle, not only was it too far away to solve their immediate problem, but activating it rashly before LLS943823 was fully prepared could create other issues.

So, she could only rely on the three fleets currently on the field, plus the battered Third Task Force, to fight a desperate battle against five full Federation fleets.

The good news, however, was that in the recent crossfire, the four Federation fleets that first entered the battle had suffered even heavier losses than pre-battle estimates. The enemy had clearly not anticipated the Atlas First Fleet’s attack from the nadir.

And for Amber and her forces, the enemy’s current confusion was their best—and last—opportunity.

Thinking this, Amber couldn’t help but sigh as she looked at the Federation fleet pressing forward on the 3D battlefield situation map.

“The Federation government really thinks highly of us. I never would have imagined they’d send five capital fleets at once, with one performing such a highly classified ‘stealth maneuver.’ Speaking of which, this has to be the last of their mobile forces, right?”

“To be precise, it’s the last of their fully formed mobile forces.”

Cleves interjected:

“Aside from the two garrison fleets in the Capital star system that will never leave unless the nation is on the verge of collapse, the other mobile forces are basically ‘half-crippled’ or ‘severely crippled’, or they’re all lined up outside shipyards waiting for maintenance.”

Soon, Amber ordered the First Fleet to accelerate its assault, forcing the enemy fleet to divert some of its forces to defend the nadir and thereby reduce the pressure on Randall’s side.

But even so, Randall and his forces had to hold out for more than twenty minutes. In many classic battles, victory or defeat was often decided in just a few short minutes—

When Johnny Leiding learned they were about to face an enemy that far outnumbered them, he was scared, but at this critical juncture, backing out was not an option.

After all, if they lost this battle, not only would he be killed, but the Renaissance Alliance on Loubion V, along with his family, would surely face a reckoning from the Federation.

They had reached a point of no retreat. Besides, the people from Atlas, who had no direct connection to the Loubion star system, were here fighting to the death. It wouldn’t be right for the ‘natives’ of the Loubion system to hide in the back.

“Pilots, take note. Electromagnetic launch catapults are stabilizing. Prepare for launch!”

The voice of the Flight Deck Control Officer echoed in the communication channel. Johnny Leiding immediately focused his attention on the battle unfolding in the space before him.

“Ready for launch at any time!” Johnny replied after confirming that all his unit’s monitoring data were normal.

Because this ‘full-deck launch’ was being conducted under extreme time pressure, the Flight Deck Control Officers on each ship did not transfer launch authority to the pilots to let them time their own launches as they had before. Instead, everything was coordinated by the launch control room.

After confirming with the control officer, Johnny adjusted his body into the ‘launch posture’. The head-tracking control system detected his movement, anticipated his intent, and tightened the safety harness, pressing Johnny’s back firmly against the seat.

The universe before him was cold and dark, dotted with only a few scattered stars. The heavy cruiser he was on, The Sun’s Reward, was theoretically rushing toward the Federation fleet at a relative velocity of tens of kilometers per second.

But due to the lack of reference points and the motionless stars hanging in the distance, Johnny sometimes had the illusion that the ship was stationary.

Every so often, a flurry of ‘twinkles’ would flash against the cosmic background—that meant the Federation fleet had unleashed another salvo. Seconds later, a barrage of multicolored light beams swept past nearby. Fortunately, The Sun’s Reward was not hit in this volley.

“I’m not gonna be the unlucky bastard who dies on the launch catapult!” Johnny thought to himself. As if in response to his thoughts, the Flight Deck Control Officer’s voice rang out again.

“Prepare to launch. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Launch!”

An immense G-force slammed into him, pressing Johnny deep into his seat. As his red, fully-equipped Aegis unit launched from the warship and flew toward the battlefield, the ‘genius youth’ quickly adapted and pushed the throttle forward another notch.

“Federation bastards, here I fucking come!”

“Federation bastards, why are there so fucking many of you…”

Seeing the dense swarm of red dots representing enemy units on his panoramic display, Johnny Leiding had to admit he was a little intimidated.

If the numerical gap in the previous battle against the Loubion star system garrison fleet could be bridged by superior equipment, personnel quality, and tactical coordination, the current battle was purely a case of the Federation fleet using absolute numerical superiority to crush them through sheer force.

If Johnny had to describe his feeling, it was—the stars in the sky were all enemies.

“Unit 3, report status!” Seeing the icon for Unit 3 in his squad flashing red on the command interface of his multi-function display, Johnny immediately asked over the comms channel.

“Right arm destroyed, left weapon container detached… but remaining weapon systems, power plant, and deflector shield can still sustain combat!”

“You can’t even hold your heavy slicer sword, sustain combat my ass! Get your ass back to the mothership for emergency repairs, now!”

Johnny unhesitatingly rejected the pilot’s request to continue fighting and sent a request to the nearest light cruiser capable of performing heavy repairs on HCPs.

After quickly receiving a ‘repairs approved’ response, Johnny, who had located Unit 3’s position, kicked its left-mounted shield with his HCP’s right foot, forcibly sending it on its way.

Having done that, he then modified the ‘combat designations’ for the three squads under his command on the command interface.

“Johnny Squad, now short one unit. Shifting from vanguard assault to rear fire support!”

“Morabi Squad, maintain flank support. Mandela Squad, take over vanguard and close-quarters combat!”

As Johnny operated the interface and announced the orders over the squadron comms channel, the three squads of the ‘Renaissance Alliance Task Force - First HCP Combat Squadron’ under his command immediately adjusted their positions according to his instructions.

Four intact Aegis units quickly charged past Johnny and the other two remaining members of his squad. With shields up and heavy plasma severing swords energized, they surged to the very front of the squadron’s combat formation.

After the last battle with the Loubion star system garrison fleet, Johnny’s squadron leader had been killed in action. Combined with his own outstanding performance in the battle, Johnny Leiding had received a battlefield promotion to squadron leader of the ‘Renaissance Alliance Task Force - First HCP Combat Squadron’.

While this ‘Genius Pilot’ was indeed talented when it came to piloting an HCP, combat command was entirely new to him, which was why he had barely relaxed since the last battle ended.

Aside from rest and daily training, he spent all his remaining time cramming the subject of HCP squadron combat command. He also managed to befriend the squadron leader of Atlas’s ‘Avenger’ squadron, who provided him with a great deal of help and guidance.

But even so, commanding an entire squadron in combat for the first time, Johnny Leiding was still somewhat nervous and clumsy in his command.

The only fortunate thing was that, so far, although the squadron had sent four HCPs back for repairs, not a single one had been lost, and there had been no casualties.

However, Johnny knew all too well that as the next few waves of enemies pressed forward, personnel losses were inevitable, and he had long since prepared himself mentally for it.

“Relax, Johnny Leiding… you’re the one they call ‘Crimson Lightning’! You can do this!

“Major Murat and the others took so few people to face the enemy’s entire right flank. The friendly forces on the left flank are much more numerous. We can’t afford any mistakes!”

Because the Third Task Force had a limited number of HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships and was facing a pincer attack from the Federation fleet, Murat and Jacob had ultimately decided to take a small elite force to defend one flank by themselves.

The other flank was left to the more numerous conventional forces and the ‘Renaissance Alliance Task Force’.

Johnny naturally understood the immense pressure Murat and his group were under. He knew that the only way to not let their plan down was to lead his team and fight with all his might to hold back the enemy.

As the first wave of Federation HCPs closed in, the firefight near the main Atlas fleet immediately intensified.

The light from directed-energy weapons pierced the darkness like sharp swords, while anti-ship missiles and torpedoes with plasma warheads moved like silent assassins across the battlefield.

The entire engagement zone seemed to be engulfed in a blazing sea of fire, with brilliant flashes and constant explosions.

But there was a reason Johnny Leiding had become the ‘Genius Pilot’ Amber remembered; his learning and growth speed could only be described as monstrous.

Round after round of combat quickly familiarized him with squadron command.

And his innate ‘combat talent’ also allowed him to quickly understand how to apply the tactics and strategies he had been cramming recently.

Under his leadership, his squadron became like an unbreakable blade, cutting through the battlefield, invincible. It swiftly became the ‘star’ of the left flank.

But on the battlefield, becoming a ‘star’ was obviously not a good thing.

Chapter 565: Fire on My Position!

As the old saying goes, the nail that gets hammered is the one that sticks out. This is especially true on the battlefield.

When two fleets are engaged in a firefight and reach a stalemate, the aces and decorated ships on the field—especially those units that fearlessly display their formidable combat prowess—are often designated as “high-risk units” in purple frames by the enemy’s battlefield information control officers.

Countless examples throughout history have taught combatants that after performing maneuvers like a “lone ship assault,” a “do-or-die charge,” or “taking off the helmet,” these “elite monsters” could, at any moment, follow their destiny and evolve into “hero units.”

And these “hero units” often possess the ability to break a stalemate—especially in a world where an outrageous variable like “Psionics” exists.

In classic cases where “hero units” have influenced or even single-handedly changed the tide of battle, abstract concepts like “possibility,” “wishes,” or “the heart that believes is your magic” can all be traced back to the subtle influence of Psionics upon deeper investigation.

So, in the early days after psionic users were trained and integrated into warfare, they did indeed have the power to alter the course of battles on the front lines.

However, as warring factions grew more adept at adhering to the combat doctrine of “prioritizing concentrated fire on high-risk units,” all “elite monsters,” including psionic users, found themselves specifically targeted.

As soon as a tactical information control officer marked a “high-risk unit,” nearby friendly forces, upon seeing it, would operate on the principle of “better to kill a thousand by mistake than to let one escape,” and immediately focus fire or unleash an AOE barrage.

Thus, when Johnny Leiding and the squadron under his command successfully became the “stars” of the left-flank engagement zone, they were immediately targeted by the nearby Federation fleet.

The moment the nearby Federation fleet identified this purple “high-risk unit,” a torrential downpour of attacks rained down upon them.

High-energy laser beams formed a dense web of light, anti-HCP missiles within effective range streaked across space like meteors, and the glow of heavy particle cannons illuminated this dark corner of the void.

Although the HCP pilots of Johnny Leiding’s squadron did everything they could to evade and counterattack, under such a ferocious assault, their units were hit one after another.

Flashes of explosions bloomed brilliantly in the cosmos, like life’s final, desperate song. Each explosion sent a pang through squadron leader Johnny Leiding’s heart.

Thanks to the powerful survivability of the Aegis series and the configuration of both primary and secondary shields, most of these “explosions” were merely the special effects of a unit being hit; only two mechs were directly destroyed. However, apart from Johnny Leiding, every remaining unit in the squadron was damaged.

“Damn it! Their firepower is too intense!”

“Fuck, I think we’ve got four light cruisers locked onto us!”

“Do they have the attack priority for their anti-air weapon groups maxed out? How is their anti-HCP fire so fierce?”

“Shit! I’m disabled! I’m disabled!”

“Damn it, my deflector shield is about to overload!”

On the comms channel, the voices of the squadron members were filled with panic and confusion.

They had not been training to pilot HCPs in space combat for long, and being thrown into a high-stakes battle right away had left them flustered and unsure of what to do, forcing them to rely on instinct and muscle memory from their training.

“Stay calm! Maintain formation and look for an opportunity to strike back!”

Johnny Leiding’s voice, in contrast, was calm and resolute. He knew that at a time like this, any panic could lead to the whole squadron being wiped out.

But deep down, he too was filled with worry and anxiety. Watching his squadron members fall into danger one by one, he was more frantic than anyone.

They were all trainees selected by the Renaissance Alliance, who had come to the Atlas Group for training and combat for the ideal of “liberating Rubion.” No one was more noble than anyone else.

He had only been promoted to HCP squadron commander because he had some talent for piloting and held some prestige among the Renaissance Alliance’s trainee pilots.

In fact, after becoming a squadron leader and chatting with Major Murat one day, Johnny Leiding’s personality had mellowed considerably. In battle, he grew to focus more on his teammates rather than simply pursuing individual heroism.

But even though he was trying to minimize his squadron’s losses, the cruelty of the battlefield exceeded his imagination.

The Mandela Squad, which had just taken over the vanguard from Johnny Leiding’s personal unit, had lost two mechs in a short time, and their two remaining Aegis units were caught in a desperate struggle.

Johnny Leiding, who was being called “Crimson Lightning” by more and more of his comrades, couldn’t just stand by and watch his teammates die.

“Mandela Squad, fall back towards my position! Mobila Squad! Don’t conserve ammo, full salvo, suppress them with fire! After this wave, head back to resupply!”

With that, Johnny Leiding piloted his red, fully-equipped Aegis forward, issuing orders on the squad channel:

“Number Two, Number Three, assault with me, but maintain distance! Don’t get drawn into close combat! Provide me with long-range fire support, and watch my back!”

After speaking, Johnny Leiding controlled his HCP and charged toward the Mandela Squad’s position.

It wasn’t that he wanted to be a hero, but the “squad member status monitor” in the command system showed that the physical and psychological states of two of his teammates were failing.

To send them up against professional Federation Navy pilots for a close-quarters fight now?

That would just be giving the enemy two more kill markers to paint on their shields.

The Mobila Squad, tasked with providing flanking support, was even less suited for a melee. In truth, Johnny Leiding had assigned them to stay back and provide support precisely because the squad’s pilots were heavily skewed towards marksmanship, while their melee combat skills were worse than fighting bots.

In the distance, the two HCPs of the Mandela Squad received their orders and knew they could no longer afford to be entangled.

The two pilots quickly raised their mechanical arms and fired all the visual jamming rounds from the multi-function launchers mounted on them, using the momentary cover to retreat rapidly.

Seeing his teammates’ actions, Johnny Leiding quickly used a preset command to control the weapon container on his back, switching the ammunition feed for the electromagnetic machine gun stored within from standard penetrator rounds to AHEAD rounds.

As a green light lit up on the weapon container interface, Johnny Leiding changed the weapon held by the right mechanical arm to the HCP’s electromagnetic machine gun on the fire-control interface.

When the crosshairs for the electromagnetic machine gun appeared on the fire-control HUD integrated into his helmet’s faceplate, his eyes swept across the six enemy HCPs currently being affected by the visual jamming rounds.

The Aegis’s fire-control system immediately locked onto the six targets. After Johnny squeezed the virtual trigger, it automatically controlled the electromagnetic machine gun, sweeping from left to right until the 70-round magazine of AHEAD rounds was empty.

Propelled by electromagnetic force, these “little silver gadgets” flew toward their targets at several hundred kilometers per second after leaving the barrel. Upon approaching their respective targets, they detonated, blasting their directional fragmentation warheads at the enemy HCPs.

Generally speaking, it was difficult for an HCP’s electromagnetic machine gun using AHEAD rounds to inflict damage from the front, so this ammunition type was more often used for ambushes, anti-air defense, or other miscellaneous tasks.

However, Johnny Leiding hadn’t intended to eliminate the enemy with this attack. He simply wanted to use the dense cloud of pre-formed directional fragments to continue disrupting his opponents and take the opportunity to “sweep” away the external components on their units.

Major Murat had taught him this trick during a practice match when the major had been “itching for some action.”

According to Major Murat, however, the technique was actually taught to him by Atlas’s “big boss,” Mr. Amber. He was the true original master.

At this moment, Murat’s “earnest teachings” echoed in Johnny Leiding’s ears.

“AHEAD rounds are rarely effective from the front under normal circumstances, but they can occasionally achieve miraculous results. When you have a chance to use AHEAD rounds on the enemy, don’t be stingy. Just empty the magazine in a sweeping fire and be done with it!”

“And don’t get hung up on trying to hit weak spots with them. Just fire when you have the chance and hope for a lucky hit! The main viewfinder on the head, external sensors, electromagnetic joints, auxiliary mechanical arms, heat sinks… hitting any of these parts is a win~”

Soon, Johnny Leiding saw two of the six enemy units targeted by his fire-control system erupt in conspicuous flames.

Although he didn’t know which part of the enemy he had hit, he knew this was a perfect opportunity to attack. Without a moment’s hesitation, he drew the fully-powered heavy plasma severing sword with his left mechanical arm.

Without holstering his gun, he charged the first target in a “machine gun in the right hand, heavy sword in the left” stance and fired the plasma rockets mounted on his legs.

The pilot of the Federation HCP in front of him had just seen his panoramic display return to normal when a faceful of plasma rockets hit him.

Immediately after, he received a laser warning signal. The pilot only had time to use his deeply ingrained muscle memory to back-thrust with his attitude control thrusters, but he still couldn’t evade Johnny Leiding’s horizontal slash.

The pale blue plasma blade, propelled by the unit’s high-speed charge, easily sliced through the cockpit armor and titanium alloy frame, vaporizing the pilot and melting the subcritical reactor and plasma thruster array behind him.

Only after the two units had passed each other did the plasma fireball from the explosion ignite behind Johnny Leiding’s mech.

A dozen or so seconds later, a second and then a third fireball lit up the void.

But Johnny Leiding, who had plunged into the enemy formation with lightning speed, was eventually tied down by the three remaining HCPs. Their seamless coordination suggested they were a seasoned elite squad.

The enemy clearly knew Johnny Leiding was not to be trifled with, so they avoided crossing blades altogether, instead using their ranged weapons to harass him and control the distance. Then, they called on the four nearby light cruisers to shower this “one who sticks their neck out” with a massive amount of anti-air fire.

The rest of the squadron tried to break through to support Johnny Leiding but were intercepted by more Federation HCPs that had arrived in the area. In an instant, they were on the brink of being wiped out.

But just as the squadron faced annihilation, the nearby ‘Avenger’ Squadron and its heavy cruiser arrived like gods descending from the heavens to provide support.

Although the port side of the bow of the heavy cruiser, the ‘Space Rider’, had a massive gash that exposed its interior, its enormous frame, relative to an HCP, still made it seem like an indestructible mobile fortress.

The anti-air weapon systems and secondary cannons on its hull spat furious fire, providing powerful fire support for the HCP squadron while also beginning to reap the four distant light cruisers.

After all, for light cruisers—“thin-skinned but packed with systems,” designed primarily as “multi-functional” and “versatile” ships—the secondary cannons of a heavy cruiser, one of the fleet’s main damage dealers, were more than enough to give them a world of hurt.

Led by Squadron Leader Stark, the HCPs of the ‘Avenger’ Squadron quickly joined the battle, fighting alongside Johnny Leiding’s squadron to fend off the attacks from nearby Federation units.

Their arrival was like a ray of light in the darkness, saving the Renaissance Alliance’s “Genius Pilot” and his entire squadron from a desperate situation.

However, their heroic actions also made them a priority target for the Federation fleet.

In the burning expanse of space, HCPs from both sides zipped and maneuvered like meteors. The blue flames from their thrusters propelled them, carving brilliant and brutal arcs through the darkness.

“Port hemisphere, Sector A2, charged particle cannon salvo, prepare!”

“Target locked, fire!”

The shouts and commands of squad members echoed across the comms channel. The HCPs nimbly dodged enemy attacks while constantly searching for opportunities to counter.

Beams from directed-energy weapons crisscrossed in the darkness. Plasma rockets and dogfighting missiles streaked past, trailing long plumes of fire. For the pilots on both sides, every shot fired, every evasive maneuver, was a test of life and death.

As both sides poured more and more forces into this small sector of space, both Atlas and the Federation Navy were consumed by bloodlust.

One wave of Federation assault HCPs, though heavily damaged in previous fighting, charged forward with the grim determination to perish together with the heavy cruiser ‘Space Rider’.

In the rear launch bay of one HCP with a low-visibility paint scheme were several tactical nuclear warheads.

“They’re going to detonate nukes at close range!” shouted a member of the ‘Avenger’ Squadron.

But Squadron Leader Stark shook his head when he saw this.

“No… they want to get inside the ‘Space Rider’ and detonate them.”

The ‘Space Rider’s’ Captain immediately realized the gravity of the danger and gave a decisive order: “Anti-air weapon groups, all HCP squadrons, intercept with full force!”

Even if the captain hadn’t given the order, the HCPs of the ‘Avenger’ Squadron would have charged forward without hesitation, using their own bodies to block the Federation HCPs’ insane charge.

They knew full well that if these few anti-ship nuclear warheads were to detonate at point-blank range, or even inside the ship, and the heavy cruiser ‘Space Rider’ was sunk, very few of the crew would survive.

At this moment, the eyes of the Atlas HCP pilots showed no fear, only resolute conviction and dauntless courage.

The generous benefits provided by Atlas for those killed in action left them with no worries; their only thought was to protect their mothership and their comrades.

In the fierce battle, the HCPs of the ‘Avenger’ Squadron were hit one after another, the flashes of explosions blooming continuously.

Each explosion signified the loss of a life, yet they did not retreat an inch, fiercely holding the defensive line. They had only one conviction in their hearts: they could not let the nuclear warheads detonate.

But there were simply too many Federation HCPs, so many that everyone, including Johnny Leiding, felt a sense of despair.

Finally, with his squadron nearly wiped out, all ammunition expended, and his heavy plasma severing sword long since broken, the squadron leader of the ‘Avenger’ Squadron unhesitatingly grappled the last nuke-carrying HCP, using the last of his plasma thruster array’s power to struggle against it.

“‘Space Rider’! Fire on my position!” the squadron leader’s voice, exceptionally firm, rang out over the comms channel.

Johnny Leiding’s heart lurched. He was instantly reminded of that previous combat drill where Stark had charged in and grabbed him without a second thought.

At the time, the “genius youth” hadn’t believed he would do the same in a real battle where you only had one life. Today, he finally witnessed it.

But this was a price he could not accept.

“Fire!”

The captain of the ‘Space Rider’ gritted his teeth and gave the order. His voice was filled with pain and helplessness, but he knew it was the only choice.

Stark and the enemy were less than four hundred kilometers from the warship—for high-speed HCPs, that was a matter of a few breaths.

The heavy cruiser’s fire-control system instantly targeted the squadron leader and the Federation HCP. Several beams of charged particles shot out, enveloping their position.

In the next moment, light illuminated the entire region of space.

Getting Married, Taking a Break Until the 22nd

Getting married, taking a break until the 22nd.

I announced this in the readers’ group before. At that time, I was planning to pause updates from the 19th to the 21st, but now I realize that won’t work. Getting married involves a lot more than I thought.

In short, for the next few days, I’ll have to focus on the wedding preparations. I expect to resume updates on the evening of the 22nd~

In my free time, I’ll try to do some writing and build up some stockpiled chapters. Then, I’ll read other people’s books to clear my head, and also think about the ending of Volume Four and the beginning of Volume Five.

To be honest, writing one point five million characters and over five hundred sixty chapters has completely exceeded my expectations. From here on out, I’ll just be feeling my way forward~

Taking Another Two Days Off

Taking another two days off~

Don’t worry, I haven’t dropped the novel~

It’s just that the scenery is too pleasant and my lovely companion too beautiful, so I’ve been lost in my honeymoon these past two days.

In fact, I’ve still been writing a little every day to keep myself from getting rusty. I’m so sorry for making you all wait for so long~

I’ll really resume updates in a couple of days!!!

Chapter 566: The Threat of the Proton Annihilation Bomb

The sea of stars was like a vast, profound, and mysterious scroll painting. At this moment, in the space near Loubion V, the flames of war were spreading like a violent storm.

In this dark, cold, and silent region of space, the fleets of the Atlas Group and the Federation Navy were like two swarms of ferocious, thoroughly enraged hornets, madly pouncing on and tearing at each other. Both sides held a rock-solid determination, vowing to completely devour the other, leaving no quarter.

The sheer scale of the Federation fleet was enough to shock every combatant, especially the new recruits experiencing a space battle of this magnitude for the first time.

Over a thousand warships formed a vast ocean forged of steel. Each magnificent vessel, under the fine-tuning of its shipboard control AI, steadfastly maintained its formation, exuding an imposing aura that seemed capable of suppressing anything.

The Atlas Group’s unmanned fleet, however, was like cold, emotionless machinery, like unyielding reefs standing against crashing waves. They fearlessly met the enemy’s surging, tide-like onslaught.

Their cold metal hulls, illuminated by the brilliant starlight, shimmered with a ruthless and dangerous gleam that was both awesome and terrifying to behold.

The fierce battle had already raged for nearly two hours since the Federation Navy fired its first shot.

Reinforced by the Fourteenth Fleet, the Federation Navy’s fleet had become even more savage and ferocious, like a pack of enraged prehistoric beasts. Their objective was simple and singular: to completely annihilate the Atlas Group’s fleet, allowing not a single enemy ship to continue existing in this vast expanse of space.

Following Amber’s pre-battle order to “hold firm,” the Atlas Group’s unmanned fleet knew no fear, showed no hesitation. They operated on cold logic and meticulous calculations refined to the highest degree of precision.

They were like the battlefield’s most ruthless iron warriors, tirelessly executing combat directives and answering the enemy’s ferocious attacks with powerful firepower.

Scenes like the one involving Squadron Leader Stark of the Atlas Group’s “Avenger” squadron were playing out all across this region of space, and not just on the Atlas side. The Federation Navy also had its share of such heroic squadrons.

Although they were not numerous, such soldiers did exist.

Courage and responsibility—qualities that had become rare in most of humanity in this era—burned like fuel in this war-torn space, allowing this battle, which neither side could afford to lose, to rage on.

Right now, the straight-line distance between the Federation grand fleet and Atlas’s two unmanned fleets and the Third Task Force had closed to four thousand kilometers. The HCP clusters, launched in a full-deck strike by the Federation Navy, had already begun to press in on the Atlas fleet’s flanks.

However, against the elite forces led by Murat and Jacob, the desperate fighting style of men like Squadron Leader Stark, and the anti-air screen of the unmanned fleet—operating at maximum precision and efficiency—the Federation’s HCPs had yet to break through, despite wave after wave of attacks.

But without any new variables, it was only a matter of time before the unmanned fleet’s anti-air screen was breached.

After all, the scale of the Federation Navy’s HCP clusters was simply too massive. If even an army of ants can take down an elephant, what more these iron demon gods armed to the teeth?

Meanwhile, the Atlas First Fleet, led by Amber, after executing an extremely demanding vertical maneuver on the ecliptic plane, had finally reached the edge of the Federation grand fleet, ten thousand kilometers away.

During this time, the fifth fleet, the Federation Navy’s “ace up their sleeve,” had completed its rendezvous with the grand fleet, becoming the new left-wing attack force and charging toward Randall and his ships.

The Federation Navy had no intention of hiding its objective. Every commander on both sides understood it clearly: ignore the Atlas First Fleet that was pounding the “nadir” and use absolute numerical superiority to annihilate the enemy in front of them.

In the eyes of the grand fleet commander, Rear Admiral Stoner, if Atlas hadn’t divided its forces at the start and instead faced them head-on, the presence of two super-flagships would have made a frontal assault by the Federation Navy quite risky.

But now, the enemy had willingly split their forces to execute a surprise attack from another direction. This led Rear Admiral Stoner to sense an opportunity to divide and conquer, just like in countless classic battles throughout history.

However, the combat effectiveness and resilience of the Atlas combat fleet far exceeded the expectations of the Federation Navy commanders, including Rear Admiral Stoner.

To be honest, they weren’t even sure if their own fleets could maintain their will to fight when faced with such an overwhelming numerical disadvantage.

Even they themselves were not certain they could command their fleets to engage if they were in the enemy’s current position.

Under these circumstances, Rear Admiral Stoner found that his tactical goal of quickly devouring a portion of the enemy’s forces seemed unattainable.

And if the battle dragged on, allowing the enemy force from the nadir to close in and start a melee, the combat loss ratio would be quite ugly, even if they won.

Mulling this over, Rear Admiral Stoner quickly convinced himself and placed his palm on the biometric authenticator on the armrest of his captain’s chair.

A green light flashed, signifying “identity confirmed.” Then, under his authority, a long authorization code was entered into the combat command system.

Soon, virtual images of the other three commanders, who had received a copy of the directive, lit up near Rear Admiral Stoner.

“Are you sure you want to use this thing?” It was Rear Admiral Bernelli, Stoner’s previous partner, who spoke first. “Do you think the situation has become so unfavorable?”

“No, the situation isn’t as bad as you’re implying. Besides, who says the Proton Annihilation Bomb can only be used when the situation is extremely dire?”

Rear Admiral Stoner raised an eyebrow and continued, “The Marshal authorized its use so we could achieve victory, not to use it as a talisman to turn the tables in a crisis. So what’s wrong with me using it now? As long as it can annihilate the Atlas combat fleet in one fell swoop, then this strategic weapon will have fulfilled the purpose for which it was created.”

“I believe you have a point, but there is still one problem.”

This time it was Rear Admiral Muller who spoke. He clearly had no issue with Rear Admiral Stoner’s plan but was already thinking about the practical application of the strategic weapon.

“Where do you intend to use this Proton Annihilation Bomb?”

Chapter 567: Cleves: I Have an Idea!

“Where to use it… A good question.”

Rear Admiral Muller’s question did not surprise Stoner, as this was indeed the issue he was wrestling with.

The power of the Proton Annihilation Bomb was immense; not even the Star Dragon Empire’s Artificial Celestial Fortress could withstand a direct hit from such a strategic weapon.

Therefore, Rear Admiral Stoner was one hundred percent certain that as long as this strategic weapon hit the enemy fleet, it would yield incredibly significant results—especially since the enemy was currently on the defensive, adopting a relatively tight box formation that would allow the Proton Annihilation Bomb to inflict maximum damage.

But the weapon’s effective range was, after all, limited. With the Atlas combat fleet currently split up, Rear Admiral Stoner, who only had launch authority for a single Proton Annihilation Bomb, had to choose his target carefully.

“I will attack the fleet that just arrived from the nadir,” Rear Admiral Stoner quickly decided.

“The enemy to our front may seem steadfast and stable, but they are a spent force. With the Fourteenth Fleet joining the fray, our combined assault of five fleets is something they cannot possibly withstand.

“Therefore, the real threat to us is this new blood from Atlas that has just arrived on the battlefield. Since all enemies are ‘equal’ before a Proton Annihilation Bomb, it is clearly more appropriate to use it against this undamaged fleet from the nadir!”

After Stoner explained his decision, no one else objected. In theory, his choice was sound.

The core of a fleet battle, or rather, a battle of annihilation, was always to eliminate as much of the enemy’s effective strength as possible.

From this perspective, a Fleet Commander certainly couldn’t “save their ultimate move to finish off weakened enemies.” Instead, they should use their most powerful attacks to inflict the most damage on the largest number of foes.

Another reason Stoner targeted the Atlas First Fleet was his suspicion that the “Boss” of the Atlas Group—Amber, the one who had thrown the Federation into its current state of turmoil—was very likely commanding from within that fleet.

According to information compiled by the intelligence department, this “Boss” of Atlas had a habit of being present on-site and leading from the front in almost all of the Atlas Group’s major battles.

So, in this battle that would decide the future, Rear Admiral Stoner believed Amber would inevitably be on the scene as he always was, and the fleet that had just launched an attack from the nadir was the most likely “location.”

Rear Admiral Stoner said, “If… and I mean if… their ‘Boss’ is in the fleet at the nadir, and we successfully detonate the Proton Annihilation Bomb…”

“Then their losses won’t just be limited to their fleet!” Bernelli immediately grasped Stoner’s meaning. The other two fleet commanders’ eyes lit up upon hearing this.

They knew very well that if they managed to successfully “kill the ringleader” in this battle, it would be a monumental achievement. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it was like “saving the nation from the brink of collapse.”

Muller: “I have no objection to the Commander-in-Chief’s decision!”

Barak: “Please give the order, Commander-in-Chief!”

Seeing no dissent from the other three, Rear Admiral Stoner no longer hesitated and gave the order directly: “Relay my command! The Lighthouse, begin the Proton Annihilation Bomb guidance attack mission! All nearby warships are to provide cover!”

Soon, a heavy cruiser from the Federation’s grand fleet broke away from the bombardment line. It quickly moved to a position on the lower side of the fleet formation, still under heavy protection.

At the same time, a certain guidance device it was equipped with was activated by an operator, who then aimed a guidance signal toward the Atlas First Fleet in the nadir.

The Dawn, equipped with its new integrated detection module, quickly discovered the unidentified signal. When the shipboard control AI analyzed it as a guidance-like signal, and that its target was the First Combat Fleet, Amber reacted immediately.

“Shit! It must be that new warp-capable Proton Annihilation Bomb the Federation developed! That guidance signal is a remote cynosural beacon!”

Cleves asked, “The one the Federation used to attack the Empire’s Celestial Fortress Battle Group?”

“Yes, yes, that’s the one. It’s no different from shoving a grenade directly into the enemy’s mouth,” Amber said, his expression grim as he nodded. “I just never expected the Federation would be willing to use a strategic weapon like this on us.”

Cleves replied, “The Federation probably didn’t intend to use it on us before, but after the sudden turn of events in the Loubion star system, they had no choice but to consider using this thing to ‘settle things in one blow’ in their armed conflict with us.”

Although Amber and the others, with Lilith’s help, had quickly figured out the general principle behind this modified Proton Annihilation Bomb after the Federation first used it—essentially sticking a shell on it and equipping it with high-powered thrusters and a Warp Engine—they discovered that countering it was not as easy as they had imagined.

The Proton Annihilation Bomb itself was devastatingly powerful, and the time from detonation to annihilation was extremely short. A well-placed drop could wipe out several fleets in minutes. Under normal circumstances, once the annihilation reaction started, it was impossible to react.

The reasons the Federation hadn’t used this strategic weapon against fleets before were, one, they lacked a suitable delivery method—flying straight at a target would make it too easy to intercept—and two, their production and stockpiles were low, so they were reluctant to use it under normal circumstances.

But now was clearly not the time to be reluctant. And with preliminary breakthroughs in the miniaturization of Warp Engines, the Proton Annihilation Bomb, guided by a cynosural beacon to warp onto the field, had finally covered “the last mile.”

Under these circumstances, Amber and his team found that intercepting it was more difficult than any weapon they had ever faced.

With warp capability, the Proton Annihilation Bomb’s landing position was almost guaranteed to be near its target, and it would “detonate on arrival” with virtually no delay.

Therefore, if the Proton Annihilation Bomb completed its warp, interception was basically impossible. This meant the only way to avoid the attack was to interfere with the enemy’s guidance, preventing the bomb from achieving a high-precision warp.

That way, even if the enemy forced the weapon to warp to a set of coordinates, it wouldn’t land directly inside their fleet formation, which would at least give them a chance for “terminal interception.”

In the current scenario, that meant Amber and his crew had to find a way to take out the “guidance ship” within the Federation’s grand fleet.

“If we use focused firing, The Dawn’s super-heavy purification beam emitter should be able to penetrate their fleet formation for a long-range ‘snipe.’ We have Elf technicians on board; it wouldn’t be difficult for them to pull it off.”

The first thing Amber thought of was the main cannon of the super-flagship beneath his feet. After all, in his memory, the Elves’ super-heavy purification beam emitters were often used for long-range sniping.

However, a countdown timer promptly displayed by the shipboard control AI made him abandon the idea.

“Another thirty minutes before it can fire again? I don’t think we have that much time…”

Amber didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He then looked at the others on the bridge, including Cleves. “Do any of you have a plan?”

They exchanged glances, and their gazes soon converged on Cleves. As Amber’s eyes also shifted to him, Cleves spoke up helplessly.

“Well, I do have an idea, but I’m not sure if I should say it.”

Amber waved his hand. “Cleves, this is no time for ‘should I say it or not.’ Just spit it out. If it solves the problem, I’d even charge their formation alone.”

“Then why don’t you give it a try, Boss?”

“?”

Chapter 568: The Long-Awaited Solo Charge

“Theoretically speaking, to counter a ‘warp-capable Proton Annihilation Bomb,’ aside from interception or interfering with its guidance, the best method is for the fleet to charge right in and engage the enemy in a ‘face-to-face dance.’”

Noticing Amber’s ‘kind’ gaze, Cleves immediately began to explain:

“So, the first thing I thought of was to have the First Fleet close the distance and charge in, making the Federation fleet hesitate to fire the Proton Annihilation Bomb for fear of hitting their own ships. I definitely wasn’t thinking of having you, Boss, find a way to charge the enemy lines, infiltrate the guidance ship alone, and then figure out how to redirect the cynosural beacon to the Federation’s grand fleet.”

Amber: “Cleves, that plan of yours sounds pretty detailed, doesn’t it?”

Cleves scratched his head, dodging Amber’s comment, and continued:

“But I ultimately abandoned the idea of sending the fleet in for ‘close-quarters combat.’ For one, we’re at a numerical disadvantage, so we wouldn’t gain much of an edge in a melee. Secondly, the current positions and distance between our fleets make it impossible to close the gap quickly.”

He pointed at the holographic projection platform, where a dotted line with constantly changing values connected the two warring fleets.

“Look, Boss. Ever since the Federation’s grand fleet began its induction process, they’ve been maneuvering along their longitudinal axis relative to us. They obviously want to maintain a safe distance to prevent us from making a head-on charge at the guidance ship. So, the fastest way for our fleet to close the distance right now is to launch super-heavy HCPs—which have extremely high short-burst thrust—at maximum velocity.”

“And then I lead an HCP unit to try and break through?” Amber interjected. “In that case, why don’t I just destroy the guidance ship directly? You still want me to go in alone? The risk is way too high.”

“The risk of an HCP unit trying to destroy the guidance ship directly is also quite high, Boss.”

Cleves shook his head and continued, “After all, it’s a Heavy cruiser, and it’s heavily protected by surrounding warships and HCPs. Its survivability is definitely higher than we imagine. What’s more, destroying this guidance ship doesn’t guarantee the crisis will be averted. We don’t know if the Federation fleet has other guidance ships. So, the best solution is to make the Federation use this Proton Annihilation Bomb! And use it on themselves!”

Amber had to admit that, in some situations, Cleves’s ideas were often incredibly bold.

Just like now, in a situation that was far from ideal for the Atlas Group, the Fleet Commander was actually thinking of using the enemy’s own Proton Annihilation Bomb to deal them a heavy blow.

Still, he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Seriously, you have a lot of faith in me, don’t you.”

And the ‘faith’ Amber mentioned wasn’t unique to Cleves. It was a ‘common affliction’ throughout the Atlas Group, especially among its top brass.

It was a blind faith in him, their ‘Boss,’ a feeling that no matter what kind of trouble they encountered, no matter the nature or scale of the difficulty, Amber, this ‘all-rounder,’ would always turn the tide when everyone else was at a loss.

This cult-like atmosphere, akin to a ‘deification campaign,’ did, in a sense, solidify Amber’s authority. But he didn’t actually want this sentiment to spread. After all, if something unexpected were to happen at the end of such ‘god-making,’ the backlash would be terrifying.

Unfortunately, despite Amber’s wishes, this atmosphere was indeed spreading rapidly within the Atlas Group in a ‘top-down’ fashion.

And the further down the ranks it spread, the more exaggerated the ‘deification’ became.

This was especially true after the first large-scale descent of Atlas combat forces on Parra IV, which gave rise to so-called ‘Prophecies’ among the local populace. This led the Romu, who were already religious and rather ‘superstitious,’ as well as the faithful among the human population, to treat Amber as something akin to a ‘divine representative on earth.’

And after Amber’s comment, Cleves’s response was just as he had expected. He nodded without the slightest hesitation and said:

“If anyone could do something like this, it would have to be a psionic user like you, Boss.”

As the battle raged on, the losses for the Atlas Third Task Force in this incredibly brutal engagement grew heavier and heavier.

Their few HCP units were struggling to hold on under the enemy’s fierce assault, like a lone boat in a storm, in constant danger of being swallowed by the raging waves.

Even a ‘Genius Pilot’ like Johnny Leiding, or an ace like Murat, had to maintain absolute focus. Otherwise, they could be turned into space dust in the next second by a directed-energy blast from an unknown source.

But as time ticked by, second by second, both the HCP units and the entire fleet were clearly reaching their breaking point, as if they would collapse and disintegrate under the enemy’s fire at any moment.

Just then, however, a ‘special bracket’ appeared on the HUDs of every warship, HCP, Heavy Armored Gunship, and even the damage control personnel clinging to the exterior of the hulls, performing their dangerous duties.

And for everyone in the Atlas Group, the appearance of a unit marked by this special bracket on the battlefield could only mean one thing.

Their Boss, the supreme leader of Atlas, Amber, had personally joined the battle.

Soon, all major commanders and command-type AIs received an official order from The Dawn: Amber would lead the First Fleet’s HCP and Heavy Armored Gunships in an assault on the Federation fleet to neutralize the threat of the Proton Annihilation Bomb. All units still capable of firing were to provide covering fire for this assault force.

“The Boss has deployed. This battle is finally coming to an end!”

This was the first thought that popped into the minds of nearly every commander upon receiving the order.

The next moment, the darkness of space was instantly lit by countless brilliant flashes of cannon fire. A massive volley of directed-energy weapons from the First Fleet rained down upon the Federation’s grand fleet like a shower of light.

The Federation’s grand fleet, which had just been reinforced by the Fourteenth Fleet, was caught completely off guard by this sudden attack.

Stoner and the others had no idea why the enemy before them was suddenly acting like madmen, chain-firing their main cannons at the risk of overheating and paralysis, as if they wanted to take everyone down with them.

But since they had already decided to end the battle with the Proton Annihilation Bomb, the five commanders, including the commander of the Fourteenth Fleet, didn’t want their own fleets to suffer any more significant losses. They all issued orders to respond flexibly and avoid a head-on confrontation with these madmen.

And just as they issued these orders, reports came in from the Tactical Information Coordinators on each ship: a strange unit, accompanied by a large group of HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, was approaching rapidly from the nadir at an absurdly high relative velocity!

Chapter 569: Desperate Assault

In the combat zone near Loubion V.

Under the fierce offensive of the Federation Navy, the Atlas Group’s unmanned fleet stood like an indestructible steel line, unyielding.

Although ships were constantly and mercilessly destroyed in the enemy’s cannon fire, their positions were immediately filled by their comrades from the rear. The entire fleet’s formation showed no sign of disorder, always maintaining its formidable combat strength.

At the core of the fleet formation, aboard the unmanned battleship ‘Moon Goddess’, which carried the Commander-in-Chief of the unmanned fleet—the command-type AI ‘Selene’—this artificial intelligence, named after an ancient deity, was rapidly and meticulously processing all combat information.

To her, the fierce battle outside the warship was nothing more than streams of information flashing rapidly before her ‘eyes’.

After this information was quickly categorized, the entire battle appeared before Selene like a constantly shifting and updating spreadsheet—this was how Amber, Dr. Mephisto, and the others imagined it from a carbon-based lifeform’s perspective.

However, for Selene, commanding the fleet in battle was indeed like constantly ‘solving a problem’.

Before her were real-time updates on both warring factions, and her task was to compare the situations of both sides, find the ‘optimal solution’ from the data, and then issue it as a command to the unmanned fleet.

Furthermore, although Lilith had reset and unlocked their ‘emotion modules’, according to the settings of this ‘Matriarch’ (the respectful title for Lilith within the unmanned fleet), all artificial intelligences under the Atlas Group, whether high-level shipboard control AIs or command-type AIs like themselves, would still temporarily take their ‘emotion modules’ offline upon entering a combat state.

Therefore, at this moment, whether it was Selene, Hecate, or the engaged unmanned fleet, they were all coldly issuing and executing commands.

The losses of the surrounding fleet did not waver their minds in the slightest; instead, they were converted into a ‘weak point’ in the defensive line, which was then swiftly filled by other warships under Selene’s command.

And when she and Hecate received the order, “Boss is beginning the assault, all other units provide fire support,” this command-type AI immediately began searching for the optimal solution to ‘this problem’.

“Primary objective: Interfere with the enemy fleet using fleet firepower to cover the Boss’s assault.”

“Importing real-time status of both combatants.”

“Beginning analysis.”

“Under infrared imaging, the bows of the enemy fleet are showing excessively high temperatures. Suspected that main cannons are approaching their limit after continuous firing. Analysis indicates an 80% probability that the enemy fleet will pause main cannon fire, and a 20% probability they will initiate forced cooling with a liquid helium spray.”

“Multiple outcomes derived from this condition. Simulating optimal result. Simulation complete. Converting to command for issuance.”

Within seconds of receiving the order, Selene had completed her assessment of the current situation and produced the ‘optimal solution’.

Soon, the surviving warships of the two unmanned fleets, whose bow-mounted main cannons were glowing reddish-hot from multiple salvos, were suddenly force-cooled by liquid helium sprayed from their cooling systems. The main cannons’ acceleration rails, made of memory metal nanoparticles, began to rapidly realign their crystal lattice as the temperature dropped.

Because the liquid helium and other coolants carried by a warship are limited, and the amount required for each emergency cooling is immense, fleet commanders usually ‘hold back’ on using forced cooling, treating it as a last resort.

But Selene’s thought process was clearly different from a human’s. Being result-oriented and focused on the current highest-priority command, she unhesitatingly chose to have the fleet force-cool its main cannons the moment she realized the Federation grand fleet’s salvo might pause.

The Federation fleet, of course, quickly noticed the unmanned fleet’s actions. After all, the vast clouds of vapor formed during rapid cooling with liquid helium are extremely conspicuous, let alone when performed by an entire fleet simultaneously.

But even though they spotted this, they were still a step too late.

Because Selene had already commanded the unmanned fleet to open a new round of salvos.

Although forced cooling with liquid helium and other coolants is merely an emergency measure for a warship’s main cannon—even after cooling, they can fire at most two or three more salvos before they must cease fire to prevent the acceleration rails from melting.

Even so, this unconventional salvo caught the Federation grand fleet completely off guard.

Especially since these two salvos from the unmanned fleet focused their attacks on the ships at the nadir of the Federation grand fleet’s formation—those preparing to intercept Amber and his group—the pressure on Amber’s penetrating force was instantly reduced.

“Lilith, you did great! The timing of these command-type AIs is just too good.”

In the cockpit of the once-again upgraded super-heavy HCP ‘ATLAS Kai’, Amber, who was firmly secured in the pilot’s seat, couldn’t help but praise aloud as he watched the Federation fleet fall into chaos before him.

In his previous life, in the game, he had always been on the receiving end of the unmanned fleet’s rampage, from a perspective similar to the Federation fleet’s right now.

Now, to be able to watch such an attack as an ally of the unmanned fleet—or rather, as its ‘owner’—was, he had to admit, an incredibly satisfying experience.

Although there’s an old saying, ‘a villain is three times stronger, a redeemed hero is three parts weaker,’ this clearly didn’t apply to Lilith and the unmanned fleet.

For Amber, they had indeed been ‘redeemed’ in this life and had even joined his side, but their potential and combat strength hadn’t diminished in the slightest. In fact, they were even stronger than when they were ‘villains’ in his previous life.

“Thank you for the praise, Master~”

Upon hearing Amber’s words, the tail behind Lilith’s little devil avatar perked straight up to the sky, but she still went on to remind him:

“But Master, this is the most cover the unmanned fleet can provide. Although they’ve caused some chaos in the Federation fleet, their anti-air defenses still pose a threat.”

“It’s fine. The unmanned fleet is limited in number; what they’ve done is already more than enough,” Amber said, shaking his head. “And they’re not the only fighters in the Atlas order of battle.”

As his words fell, more and more Heavy Armored Gunships caught up to the rapidly advancing ‘ATLAS Kai’.

They were some of the few units in the entire space order of battle that could directly keep up with the ‘ATLAS Kai’ in ‘Cruise Mode’.

The First Fleet carried a total of over seven hundred Heavy Armored Gunships, and now these heavily armed, high-speed predators formed two ‘box formations’. They passed by Amber’s left and right flanks and, with a salvo of their heavy particle cannons, simply bulldozed a path forward.

The destroyers, frigates, and HCPs providing anti-air cover on the flanks of the Federation grand fleet’s formation simply couldn’t withstand this kind of tactic, which was like a ‘space-borne firing squad’.

And any other warships that adjusted their orientation, intending to use their main cannons for sweeping fire, were immediately targeted with concentrated fire from these gunships the moment their movements were detected.

As for the Federation HCPs that tried to encircle and attack the Heavy Armored Gunships from the flanks, they were swiftly intercepted by the HCPs deployed by the gunships themselves.

From a God’s-eye view, it was as if a meteor shower was hurtling toward the nadir of the Federation grand fleet.

As this ‘meteor shower’ advanced, flashes of exploding light constantly erupted from within it. With each segment of its advance, the ‘meteor shower’ would dwindle in size, but this did not stop its forward momentum.

Nor could it stop the brightest ‘meteor’ within it from hurtling straight toward the heavy cruiser ‘The Lighthouse’, which was currently performing its guidance operations.

Chapter 570

Whether it was Rear Admiral Stoner’s group or the crews aboard The Lighthouse and its surrounding escort ships, everyone was now acutely aware that the enemy force charging from the nadir was gunning for the heavy cruiser, The Lighthouse.

Therefore, the captain of the warship currently conducting guidance operations unhesitatingly ordered all weapon systems, except for the anti-aircraft defenses, to be taken offline. All power was diverted to the deflector shield and the guidance signal emitter.

Soon, under Amber’s precise timing and Lilith’s auxiliary corrections, the attack from the ATLAS Kai struck the heavy cruiser with pinpoint accuracy.

The personnel inside the ship felt a violent tremor run through the space around them—the sound of the hull being hit!

Immediately after, in a corridor somewhere inside the ship, several crew members who hadn’t had time to secure themselves to the wall were thrown against the ceiling by the jolt, then slammed back onto the floor by the recoil.

At the same time, the ship-wide broadcast chimed in, a half-beat too late.

“All hands, brace for impact. I repeat! All hands, brace for impact.”

“Damn it, you warn us after we’ve been hit? Might as well not have warned us at all!”

A crewman who had been slammed onto the corridor floor by the recoil, feeling as though his back was about to snap, grumbled. He seized the brief lull to desperately grab onto the handholds on the corridor bulkheads, designed for movement in zero gravity.

But before he could help his companions, another impact rocked the hull, setting off alarms throughout the ship.

The Communications Officer’s broadcast was drowned out by the sound of explosions conducted through the ship’s outer armor. A force twice as strong as the first impact sent the crew members flying once more.

“Damage report! What the hell is Air surveillance doing? How did we get hit repeatedly? Weren’t the surrounding anti-aircraft ships providing cover?”

On the bridge of The Lighthouse, the Captain, firmly strapped into his seat, was fortunate enough to avoid being thrown out by the violent shaking, but the successive attacks still infuriated him.

“Don’t these people know what kind of operation this ship is conducting right now?!”

“Report! Suspected to be a long-range heavy particle cannon sniper attack from an enemy assault unit!” The intelligence officer’s roared reply quickly reached the Captain’s ears.

He glanced at the ship’s status monitor. Although the front section of the ship’s bottom armor had been hit, fortunately, the deflector shield running at maximum power and the reinforced external layered armor had done their job. Coupled with the fact that the enemy’s long-range sniping caused some dispersion of the heavy particle cannon’s beam, the consecutive hits hadn’t caused significant damage.

“Hmph… a good thing it wasn’t a capital-ship-class heavy particle cannon, or we’d already be space junk!”

The Captain composed himself. He knew that even if these attacks hadn’t caused major damage, he couldn’t keep facing the approaching enemy assault unit with the ship’s underside. He quickly issued a new command.

“Helmsman, adjust our orientation! Face the enemy bow-on!”

“Aye, Captain! Adjusting orientation! Facing the enemy bow-on!”

Hearing the order, the Helmsman repeated it while setting the hybrid helm control system to the specified orientation. The bow of The Lighthouse promptly pitched down nearly ninety degrees. Upon seeing its maneuver, the nearest escort ships immediately followed suit.

The Captain of The Lighthouse knew that since the enemy assault unit was charging straight at them without any attempt at concealment, they must have realized the importance of the ship beneath his feet.

Though the Captain couldn’t figure out how the Atlas Group had realized the special nature of The Lighthouse so quickly, that point was no longer important.

What mattered now was how they were going to complete the guidance operations for the Proton Annihilation Bomb while being exposed.

“Is the composite image ready? What kind of unit is attacking us?” the Captain shouted over the comms channel.

The intelligence officer, who by now was sweating bullets from the stress, quickly replied.

“We’ve captured an optical image, but it’s very blurry! We’re trying to integrate it with the Synthetic Aperture Radar data!”

“Just put it up on the screen!”

At the Captain’s command, a composite image was projected onto a screen on the bridge.

Although the red object in the center of the processed image remained somewhat blurry, everyone on the bridge of The Lighthouse could vaguely make out that it was a large, HCP-like unit.

…Except it didn’t seem to have any legs.

“Red… a large unit?” The Captain, who had seen certain intelligence files, suddenly realized something. He immediately called up The Lighthouse’s shipboard control AI.

“Maya! Run the composite image through the feature database for identification! Prioritize comparison with previously encountered Atlas Group units!”

“Identification complete. Feature match: 90%.”

The Lighthouse’s shipboard control AI completed the identification almost instantaneously and projected the results onto the large screen.

Displayed next to the blurry captured image was a photo of the ‘ATLAS’ super-heavy HCP, taken by some unknown means. Judging from the timestamp and other information on the photo’s border, the background was the defense of A·Bawa·Ku.

“This is bad! It’s the enemy’s true ace. Quick! Mark him as a high-risk unit! Notify all nearby anti-aircraft ships to concentrate fire and intercept! We absolutely cannot let him break through!”

The on-the-spot reaction of The Lighthouse’s Captain was actually quite fast, but he and the rest of the Federation Navy had still underestimated the speed of the ATLAS Kai.

When he had just issued the order, the ATLAS Kai in the optical monitor was just a blurry speck in the distance. But just over ten seconds later, that blurry speck had become a crimson phantom.

Although all the reserve ship-borne HCPs from the nearby warships had launched and were rushing forward to intercept, the Heavy Armored Gunships flanking the ATLAS Kai were not just there for show.

As the fifth production batch after the modification of Atlas Armaments’ first Heavy Armored Gunship, the MA-01B Block 5 was a significant improvement over the first four batches.

Designers had practically wracked their brains to cram a 25-meter-class Dual-barreled heavy particle cannon into a 30-meter-long hull, giving this combat craft an absolute firepower advantage when facing HCPs.

Even without using its specialized anti-ship plasma torpedoes, the Dual-barreled heavy particle cannon alone could pose a threat to destroyers and even light cruisers if the angle and timing were right.

So when two clusters of Heavy Armored Gunships, in strict box formations, attacked the hundreds of intercepting HCPs and the warships behind them from the left and right, the latter quickly suffered a major blow.

These firing line-style tactics would naturally make the gunships seem like sitting ducks, but the situation was completely different when it was the gunships’ own firepower that held the advantage.

The Federation Navy’s intercepting HCPs couldn’t break through the corridor of fire created by the gunships’ salvos. Or rather, they didn’t dare to even try.

A few newly assigned rookies, perhaps a half-beat slower than the veterans, had their units instantly shredded into unrecognizable wreckage by the dense rain of light.

Seeing this, the commander of the intercepting HCPs immediately roared over the blue-green laser communication command link.

“Turn! Break formation! Get out of their forward firing arc! Try to circle around from other directions! These gunships can’t adjust their firing axis that quickly!”

The HCP commander’s judgment wasn’t wrong. He was well aware of the differences, strengths, and weaknesses between HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, so he decisively adopted tactics that would leverage his strengths and mitigate his weaknesses.

Since HCPs couldn’t compete in terms of frontal firepower and defense, they would try to use their agility to create opportunities.

In close-quarters combat, HCP pilots generally maintained control via the Responsive control system. In this mode, an HCP’s mobility was exceptionally agile, and its ability to turn and reorient along its center of mass with the aid of AMBAC maneuvers was terrifyingly high.

Therefore, against the Heavy Armored Gunships pushing forward in one direction like bulldozers, using the HCP’s advantage in tactical maneuverability should have been a solid plan.

But the problem was, this HCP commander had overlooked two things.

First, these Heavy Armored Gunships were not only equipped with Dual-barreled heavy particle cannons.

Second, the gunship clusters weren’t advancing to attack the fleet, but to screen for a much more critical unit. They were more than happy to draw the attention of all the intercepting forces.

“Boss! This is as far as the main force can take you! We’ll tie up their interceptors!”

Jacob’s second-in-command—the temporary commander of all Heavy Armored Gunships in the First Fleet—said to Amber, then immediately issued a new order in the command channel.

“All gunships, listen up! Form up in groups of three! Free-for-all dogfight!”

With this command, all the gunships activated their external chemical booster rockets, their secondary means of propulsion besides the plasma thruster arrays.

However, they were single-use and didn’t last long.

But these things were mounted externally on the Heavy Armored Gunships not to increase their regular cruising capabilities, but to provide a short burst of explosive thrust.

As the lights of numerous chemical booster rockets flared, the two box formations instantly broke apart, rapidly splitting into three-unit formations and charging towards the surrounding Federation HCPs.

Adjusting orientation and heading at high speed was an extremely dangerous act, but the pilots of these Heavy Armored Gunships didn’t hesitate to pull maneuvers that would have fractured a normal person’s ribs.

At the same time, the gunships opened their secondary ordnance bays and unleashed everything inside—a swarm of “chubby” plasma warhead guided rockets and dogfighting missiles.

Any unlucky HCP hit by one of these plasma warhead weapons would have most of its deflector shield neutralized, immediately followed by a salvo of charged particle beams…

Of course, the Federation’s ship-borne HCPs weren’t just taking hits. Some highly skilled pilots could, in the instant the two sides crossed at high speed, slice a Heavy Armored Gunship in two with a heavy plasma severing sword powerful enough to cut through a warship’s outer armor.

Or, after entering a dogfight, multiple HCPs would quickly form a small box formation back-to-back, forcing the gunships to make wide turns on the periphery, creating an opportunity to attack their rear thruster arrays.

Fireballs bloomed one after another around the ATLAS Kai, rapidly raising the level of bloodshed in this combat zone. But Amber, inside his cockpit, was not distracted in the slightest. He knew that his path forward was paved with the blood of these Heavy Armored Gunship pilots, and therefore he absolutely could not make any mistakes.

Although Amber had performed the feat of single unit fleet penetration more than once in the game in his previous life, that was, after all, a game. If he died, he could come back with a clone and charge again. But now, he was truly playing with fire with his one and only life, and he had to admit he was extremely nervous.

Fortunately, this tension didn’t compromise his controls. The massive surge of adrenaline made him increasingly sharp and focused, allowing him to weave through the anti-aircraft fire from numerous warships in a state that was practically like using cheats.

In the process, Amber made several attempts to attack The Lighthouse’s vulnerable broadside, but to no avail—the escort warships near the heavy cruiser acted as its ‘meat shields’ with complete disregard for their own safety, directly blocking the ATLAS Kai’s firing axis.

“This isn’t working. There’s no more time for probing. I have to force my way closer,” Amber frowned after multiple failed attacks. He then steered the ATLAS Kai directly towards The Lighthouse.

However, just as he was about to enter their final air defense perimeter, the two escorting heavy cruisers nearby made an insane move.

Disregarding the fact that there were other friendly warships in the far end of their firing axis, they opened their bow main cannon ports, preparing to fire their heavy particle cannons.

“Are they insane?! There are friendlies behind me… wait a minute,”

A sudden realization struck Amber. He immediately crossed the two heavy shields mounted on the ATLAS Kai’s auxiliary mechanical arms in front of the unit and shouted to Lilith, his unit’s Combat assistance AI.

“Lilith! Full power to the unit’s deflector shield! Activate overload mode!”

Lilith, who was usually a bundle of curiosity, showed no hesitation or question at this moment. She executed Amber’s command without a second thought.

The next second, the Captain of The Lighthouse, who had temporarily taken command of the two heavy cruisers, viciously gave the fire order.

“Lock on target coordinates! Thunderstorm, Prominence! Align firing axis, spread two degrees, three minutes! Begin firing!”

Two blue, diffused ‘beams’ of light, fired from the heavy cruisers on the left and right, rapidly enveloped the location of the ATLAS Kai.

Under this diffused irradiation mode of the heavy particle cannons, even the highly mobile ATLAS Kai couldn’t escape the firing zone within seconds.

At the same time, although there were other friendly warships along the two cruisers’ firing axis, the power of the heavy particle cannons was significantly reduced in diffusion mode. It only caused the deflector shields of a few warships to flicker but inflicted no substantial damage.

But the phrase ‘power was significantly reduced’ clearly only applied to warships.

In any case, these were still the main cannons of two heavy cruisers. Even in diffusion shot mode, they could still pose a threat to a large HCP like the ATLAS Kai.

Amber only saw the panoramic monitor before him flash once before the visuals from the optical sensors automatically cut out due to excessive brightness. Immediately after, Lilith issued a warning.

“Master! External environment overheating! Surface armor temperature saturated! Outer armor is beginning to melt!”

“Warning! Heat is conducting to the internal titanium alloy frame! Emergency cooling procedures initiated!”

As the warnings flooded into Amber’s ears, everyone in this sector of space witnessed the scene of the large red HCP being swallowed by the intersection of the two ‘beams of light.’

“Amber!”

“Boss!”

“Yes! A direct hit!”

“It must be destroyed this time!”

The reactions from the Atlas Group and the Federation Navy were polar opposites, a mix of joy and sorrow. For a moment, the battlefield even fell silent.

But as the ‘beams of light’ dissipated, a unit with almost all its external armor melted away—armor fragments peeling and flaking off continuously—punched through all the interception, slammed into The Lighthouse’s deflector shield to decelerate, and finally crashed onto the deployment bay doors on the heavy cruiser’s broadside.

The emotions on both sides reversed once again!

Chapter 571: Shatter the Darkness with Thunder!

“He… he rammed us?!”

The captain of the Lighthouse was stunned for a moment. On the warship’s structural diagram, the doors to Port Deployment Bay 3 were now marked as damaged. The image from the internal monitors showed even more clearly that the door was slightly deformed from the impact.

“He just fucking rammed us like that?”

The heavy cruiser’s captain had considered ten thousand possibilities, but he had never imagined the enemy would rely on his mech’s heavy mass to charge straight through the deflector shield. This ‘shield,’ which in theory was a type of electromagnetic field, could deflect many HCPs that tried to get close during fleet battles.

“Captain, now might not be the time to focus on that.” The officer on duty’s voice suddenly cut in, and he pointed to the deformed door on the screen. “This guy doesn’t seem to be dead.”

The captain of the Lighthouse looked at the screen and saw that the deployment bay door was being pierced by some kind of high-temperature plasma cutting device, and it was beginning to cut along a straight line.

“Dammit! The pilot of this HCP is still alive, and he intends to board!” The captain slammed his fist on the armrest of his seat, then continued to roar:

“Internal marines, Military Police! Get to Deployment Bay 3 immediately and prepare to intercept!”

“Captain, he’s just one person, no matter how you look at it. Isn’t this a bit of an overreaction?”

The officer on duty didn’t quite understand the captain’s order. In his view, the opponent was just one HCP pilot. Even if he boarded, his capture would be inevitable.

“You don’t know shit!” the captain of the Lighthouse said viciously. “The one boarding is very likely that man! He’s no ordinary HCP pilot.”

Just as he spoke, something new happened with the door to Deployment Bay 3.

As an opening was completely cut through the door, the deployment bay depressurized. Fortunately, most of the equipment had been secured for combat, and the internal pressure control system quickly sealed the doors to adjacent areas.

So after the venting was complete, the entire deployment bay fell silent again, albeit now devoid of all air.

Immediately after, all surveillance feeds inside the deployment bay went dark. At the same time, the Lighthouse’s shipboard control AI reported that the warship was under an electronic warfare virus attack.

The Lighthouse’s captain: “Here he comes…”

—

“I never thought the first time I’d use the miniaturized plasma saber in actual combat would be to cut open a door.”

“So, Master, what scenario did you imagine for the plasma saber’s first use in combat?”

“Is that even a question? For ‘severing limbs’, of course! Lilith!”

Lilith pursed her lips, speechless at Amber’s response. She didn’t continue that line of conversation. Instead, she took a moment to check Amber’s various biometric data monitors.

She was somewhat surprised to find that all of the man’s biometrics were normal. The overall conclusion was that Amber was currently very calm.

“Master, are you not nervous at all?”

Amber: “I was definitely nervous during the approach, because their anti-air fire was too dense. But after crashing into them, I’m not so nervous anymore~”

“But this is a solo ship takeover, you know? How can you be so calm?”

It’s as if he’s done this countless times.

This was the latter half of Lilith’s thought, which she didn’t say aloud, because in her understanding, this was something impossible.

“Well, I’m already here, so what’s there to be nervous about? Being too tense will only hinder my performance later~”

And this isn’t the first time I’ve done this, either.

This was the latter half of Amber’s thought. In his previous life, he had done this kind of solo ship takeover far too many times in Starry Sky Online.

Or rather, solo ship takeovers were a process that most of the first batch of “pioneer players” who entered the game had to experience.

Simply put, they were forced into it.

Because everyone was dirt-poor during the pioneering phase, and on top of that, the internal test and pre-order players were all given a lot of clones by the developers. So, by comparison, the cost of dying once in the game was negligible.

This directly led to players, driven mad by poverty, thinking first and foremost of capturing any ship they encountered.

After all, an intact ship was worth far more than a pile of wreckage blasted apart by naval cannons.

And due to the game mechanics, after a player boarded a ship, that warship would instantly turn into a dungeon. The NPCs on board wouldn’t flee, but would instead try to annihilate the boarding players.

So, as players’ character levels and Psionic strength levels increased, a ton of “solo ship takeover” guide videos popped up on all the major video sites.

Amber was a master among them. He had swept the championship in the first, second, and fourth “Solo Ship Takeover Speedrun” competitions for heavy and light cruisers, organized by enthusiastic players.

“Master, the external environment has stabilized. You can board now!”

As the external environmental monitoring data stabilized, Lilith gave what was, for Amber, the signal for “dungeon timer start.”

He skillfully hit the ‘quick release’ button on his heavy hydraulic pressure suit and wriggled out of the cumbersome suit as if breaking free from shackles, revealing the black, skin-tight combat suit underneath.

Amber: “Speaking of which, when Orns and Eugene were designing this combat suit, did they really not consider whether the wearer might feel a little shy?”

“Well, the technology comes from the Elven Royal Court’s Internal Security combat suits. Their overall style is pretty much like this~”

Lilith smiled, then added, “It’s fine, Master~ No one on this ship knows you anyway. Besides, you have the psionic amplification helmet, don’t you? Once you put it on, you can really let loose~”

“Well, thanks a lot for that.”

Speechless, Amber put on a set of combat gear stowed beneath his seat over his combat suit. At the same time, he put the ‘braised egg’-shaped helmet on his head. Although it looked very similar to the Federation Psionic Agent’s psionic suppression helmet, the one in Amber’s hands had the complete opposite effect: it could amplify a psionic user’s powers.

And, using elven biotechnology, the combat suit, which resembled a kind of biological skin, quickly connected with the lower edge of the helmet and formed a perfect seal.

Soon, icons representing ‘self-sufficiency’ and ‘extravehicular activity’ lit up on the helmet’s HUD. At the same time, a monitor of Amber’s own psionic state appeared in a digitized form in the lower right corner of his vision.

“Psionic amplification agent, phase 1 injection complete!”

“Combat suit activation complete!”

“Electromagnetic Submachine Gun (Compact) x2, current drum magazine loaded with high-velocity armor-piercing rounds! Next drum in auto-loader loaded with explosive rounds!”

“Psionic Saber (Experimental) activation complete!”

A long string of information flashed across the helmet’s HUD, and Amber could feel the psionic energy throughout his body being rapidly mobilized by the amplification agent.

Recently, thanks to constantly drinking that bottle of aphrodisiac (not) that bottle of royal fruit wine from the Elven Royal Court left by Allenita, plus some guidance from Salieh, that Forerunner ‘old frozen meat,’ Amber’s psionic strength had been growing at a rate that could only be described as terrifying to those in the know.

And now, under the effect of the amplification agent, he was directly touching the edge of level-six psionics.

After completing all his preparations, Amber looked out of the cockpit at the defending crew members, now highlighted on his display, already pouring in from several hatches within the deployment bay. He took a deep breath.

“Lilith, open the cockpit!”

“Yes, Master!”

The moment the armored cockpit hatch of the ATLAS Kai opened, a barrage of high-velocity penetrator rounds and beams from personal charged particle cannons converged on him with pinpoint accuracy.

However, a surge of psionic energy blocked the entire volley.

Immediately after, a blurry figure wreathed in lightning shot out of the mech’s cockpit at an incredible speed and floated directly into the center of Deployment Bay 3, and the next second, smashed violently into the deployment bay floor.

“Shatter the darkness with thunder!!!”

“What a melodramatic line, Master!”

Chapter 572: When a Psionic Soldier Boards a Ship

When the fist, wreathed in immense psionic lightning, slammed into the floor of Deployment Bay 3, a powerful surge of psionic energy spread rapidly outward with Amber at its center.

If his similar move on Robert IV had an effect comparable to a traditional “superhero landing,” merely knocking aside those nearby, then this strike was different. It directly churned up a small-scale psionic lightning storm. Psionic energy erupted like writhing electric serpents, instantly blanketing the entirety of Deployment Bay 3.

The blue-white psionic lightning tore through the darkness, illuminating Deployment Bay 3, which had been plunged into blackness after the power was cut.

Not a single human unit marked by Amber’s Psionic vision could escape the bolts of lightning. The arcs seemed to have a life of their own, carrying a strange aura of destruction as they zipped about at astonishing speeds.

When the human soldiers were struck, all the fluids inside their bodies seemed to boil in an instant. The glow of psionic energy even shone out from their eyes, ears, mouths, and noses, as if they had become living conduits for the power.

Wherever the psionic lightning passed, the surrounding wreckage and shrapnel trembled from the powerful energy shockwaves. Some of the smaller fragments even began to rotate and dance around Amber, influenced by his psionic field.

In a near-instant, the remaining crew members in Deployment Bay 3, along with the first wave of marines who had rushed to the scene, were turned into charred corpses by the rampaging psionic lightning.

Without a second glance, Amber walked past the bodies. Their external equipment was still intact, but their occupants had been withered away.

He knew that many among them were unarmed, non-combat personnel. But in the heat of battle, he had neither the time to differentiate nor the desire to take the risk.

Compared to the Federation crew of this heavy cruiser, whom he had never met and with whom he had no deep-seated grudge, Amber naturally cared more for the people under the Atlas Group.

If it meant averting the crisis of the Proton Annihilation Bomb, Amber wouldn’t mind killing every last person on this heavy cruiser.

Because in the current scenario, whether they were armed marines and Military Police or defenseless crew members, everyone on this warship had but a single name to Amber.

Enemy.

“Deployment Bay Three has been breached! Third Marine Platoon and First Military Police Platoon are all K.I.A.!”

“Target has entered Corridor 224! Fourth Marine Platoon and Second Military Police Platoon are engaging at full strength!”

“Warning! Unknown enemy electronic warfare virus has breached the second firewall! The shipboard control AI’s computing power is being steadily tied up!”

“Warning! Level 5— no, Level 6 psionic reading detected in Corridor 225! Contact with the Fourth Marine Platoon lost. Second Military Police Platoon is retreating to the next defensive line!”

On the bridge of the Lighthouse, the Captain and other officers watched the reports scroll across the main screen. The voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator reporting the updates was now laced with fear.

Apart from the Captain, who had been privy to some information beforehand, no one had expected that the single HCP pilot who had infiltrated their warship would turn out to be a powerful psionic user—and a killing machine at that.

“Level 6 psionics. I’ve only ever seen that in documents.”

“Forget you, I thought it was just a legend.”

“Where’s the Anti-Psionic Team?! Shouldn’t they be the ones to intercept him at a time like this?”

“They’re all on the floor. Go see for yourself. Laid out neat and tidy, easy to count. Exactly two squads.”

The Captain didn’t hear the officers’ whispering. He was completely focused on a single screenshot captured by the ship’s internal surveillance system.

The psionic user, clad in a black combat suit, was floating in the middle of a corridor. Tendrils of psionic lightning emanated from his body, clinging to the surrounding bulkheads like tentacles and propelling him forward, allowing him to move rapidly while maintaining a firing stance.

The marine infantry had almost no chance of dodging the psionic lightning, and the “combat mechanical dogs” assisting them were being torn to shreds by the formidable weapon in the enemy’s hands—a gun fitted with a large drum magazine and firing high-powered ammunition.

In just a few short minutes, the hundred-plus marines and Military Police sent to intercept him, along with their combat support machinery, had been completely annihilated.

And the psionic user who had breached the ship was advancing at an unbelievable speed.

From the compartments and corridors he passed through, it was easy to deduce his final destination: the bridge.

“Captain, you should proceed to the escape pod staging area and prepare for evacuation. Given the power he’s shown, I don’t think the ship’s defenders can stop him.”

The Executive Officer walked over to the Captain, touching his helmet to his. “I can’t,” he said over the contact communication channel. “Strike guidance isn’t complete. I can’t leave.”

The Captain of the Lighthouse refused the Executive Officer’s suggestion without a hint of hesitation. After a brief pause, he added, “You take the bridge officers and other personnel and retreat. I’ll stay here. I might be able to buy you some time.”

This tempting offer made the Executive Officer fall silent for a moment. But in the end, he shook his head and drew a highly compact, folded PDW from the weapon case on his in-ship suit’s leg.

“If you’ve decided to stay, Captain, then I have even less reason to leave.”

A faint smile appeared on the Executive Officer’s face. He gave the Captain a salute, then turned and left, issuing an order over the internal defense channel:

“All defense forces, attention. Fall back immediately to Corridors 12, 15, and 17 before the bridge and organize a defensive line! Repeat…”

For the people on the bridge, the next ten-odd minutes of waiting were agonizing.

Although several nearby friendly warships quickly dispatched shuttles carrying marines to provide support, these reinforcements vanished without a trace as soon as they approached Amber’s position, failing to slow him down for even a moment.

Ever so “thoughtfully,” Amber increased his speed of advance, further shortening the crew’s period of suffering.

When the icon representing Amber reached the main corridor outside the bridge, and the sounds of fierce combat and agonized screams filled the communications channel, everyone, including the Captain, held their breath.

They drew their weapons and aimed them at the bridge door, trying to find some small measure of psychological comfort.

In just two short minutes, the sounds of battle on the comms grew fainter. The life-sign icons of the ship’s defenders went dark one by one until the entire corridor returned to silence.

The Executive Officer braced the extended stock of his PDW tightly against his shoulder. He swallowed hard and placed his index finger on the trigger.

The next second, with a soft ding-dong, the sealed bridge doors began to slide open.

“Kill this monster!”

It was impossible to tell which nerve-wracked crew member had screamed, but the people on the bridge could no longer suppress the fear and tension in their hearts. They all pulled the triggers of their weapons.

For a moment, the bridge was filled with muzzle flashes as a storm of high-velocity rounds was unleashed at the entrance.

But soon, the Captain sensed something was wrong. He yelled, “Cease fire!” But the frantic crew members didn’t seem to hear him. They kept their fingers locked on their triggers until the steel flechettes in their magazines were spent.

“Cease fire! I said, cease your goddamn fire!”

Amid the Captain’s furious roar, everyone finally stopped shooting. They stared, confused, at the empty doorway.

Outside the door, aside from the large number of marine and Military Police corpses floating in the corridor, there was no one.

The next second, before anyone could react, a pipe in the ceiling of the bridge suddenly burst open.

A figure shot in with lightning speed and immediately unleashed a visible shockwave that expanded from his position.

“Boom!”

The psionic blast sent everyone on the bridge tumbling through the zero-gravity environment.

Some with weaker constitutions or mental fortitude were knocked unconscious by the psionic blast.

Just as Amber was about to strike while the iron was hot and finish off everyone but the Captain with psionic lightning, the Captain of the Lighthouse, floating in mid-air, made a move.

He opened the faceplate of his in-ship suit’s helmet, then pressed the muzzle of a loaded backup pistol under his chin.

The ancient gunpowder kinetic weapon in the Captain’s hand was from his private collection. He’d never imagined this collector’s item would become his ‘glory bullet’.

He stared intently at Amber, whose face was obscured by his psionic-enhancing helmet, and said, “Stop. I know what you’re after. If you make another move, I swear I will pull the trigger.”

Chapter 573: Loyalty and Mind Control

As the Captain of the guidance operations ship, The Lighthouse, Federation Navy Colonel Smith knew exactly what this killing machine wanted the moment Amber completed his boarding action and charged straight for the bridge.

If he had merely wanted to stop The Lighthouse from continuing its guidance operations, he could have directly attacked the compartment housing the guidance unit. Judging by his swift and direct actions just now, he was very familiar with the ship’s layout, so it was impossible for him not to know the guidance unit’s location.

Since he was heading straight for the bridge, and at the most critical juncture of the battle, his objective was already obvious.

Seeing the psionic user, his face obscured as he floated in mid-air, come to a halt, Captain Smith couldn’t help but breathe a quiet sigh of relief.

It seemed his guess was correct. The Atlas Group, or rather the man before him who was very likely the ‘Boss’, wasn’t trying to stop the Proton Annihilation Bomb attack. He wanted to turn it against the Federation fleet.

Realizing this, Captain Smith immediately decided to stall for more time.

The cynosural beacon was already in its final analysis phase. If he could just stall for a few more minutes, the beacon would activate. The Proton Annihilation Bombs deployed in other regions of space would launch immediately, entering an irreversible attack sequence.

As long as he could buy these few minutes, Captain Smith, a veteran of the Federation Navy, felt he would have no regrets, even if it cost him his life.

Believing he had gained the upper hand, Captain Smith composed himself, preparing to use his words to delay a little longer.

“You must be—”

But before he could finish, he felt a force suddenly take hold of the right hand holding his gun.

Captain Smith reacted without a moment’s hesitation, intending to pull the trigger, only to find his entire right hand pinned by this force. Under its guidance, the muzzle of his gun was slowly moved away from his chin.

Seeing his deterrent about to fail, Captain Smith roared to those around him without a second thought, “Quick! Shoot me! Don’t let this rebel succeed!”

The bridge officers and crew scattered around had just recovered from the shock and were still dazed upon hearing their captain’s command.

However, The Lighthouse’s Executive Officer realized what was happening. He reacted quickly, kicking off a bulkhead to propel himself forward, snatching a floating PDW. He raised the weapon and took aim at Captain Smith.

But he was a step too slow. A wave of psionic lightning once again erupted from Amber, instantly entwining everyone on the bridge except for Captain Smith.

As the others were turned into charred, floating corpses in an instant, just like those elsewhere on the ship, Captain Smith saw Amber close in on him.

Realizing what was coming, he subconsciously tried to bite his tongue and end his own life, but he lost consciousness as Amber’s right hand silently pressed against his temple.

“Whew… that was a close call. I didn’t expect the Federation to still have officers like this.”

Looking at Captain Smith, whose expression had become vacant under the influence of ‘mind control’, Amber finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He had thought that after the strategic decisive battle between the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, the Federation Navy’s courageous and responsible officers had been all but wiped out. He never expected the captain of this guidance operations ship to be so resolute.

“According to his service record, he’s a battleship captain transferred from the Fourth Fleet. A direct subordinate of Marshal Trafalgar.”

Lilith’s voice came through his earpiece. After hacking into The Lighthouse, she had already retrieved the captain’s information from the crew database.

After several iterations of optimization, even without the support of extra server computing power, hacking a single ship was as easy as eating and drinking for Lilith.

Though she needed neither food nor drink.

“They’re even transferring battleship captains from the Fourth Fleet? It seems our deduction was correct. Most of the Federation Navy’s reliable officers have gone to rest among the stars. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have specifically assigned one of his direct subordinates to command a guidance operations ship.”

Amber nodded, then continued, “Lilith, you’ve taken control of all permissions, right? Can we modify the cynosural beacon now? We don’t have much time.”

“It’s done, Master. You can proceed with the modifications now~”

Lilith replied, simultaneously activating a separate console near the captain’s chair.

Soon, a notification tone sounded from the device, which was under the captain’s direct control:

“Terminating cynosural beacon analysis operation. Complete!”

“Initiating cynosural beacon modification operation. Please have the authorized personnel perform identity verification…”

Hearing this, Amber immediately manipulated Captain Smith like a puppet, moving him to the side of the console.

Under his control, Captain Smith first passed the biometric scan. Then, during the voiceprint recognition, he recited a string of passphrases known only to him. This was precisely why Amber needed to ‘capture’ him alive; if he had killed him, he wouldn’t have been able to pass these verifications.

Although Lilith had already taken care of all other linked verifications, including the ‘authorization code’, the authorized personnel verification was on an independent system and couldn’t be cracked through hacking.

And given this Captain Smith’s character, a simple capture would have been useless. He would have never cooperated with the identity verification, which was why Amber had no choice but to use mind control on the loyal captain.

“Authorization verified. Please input new cynosural beacon parameters…”

At this prompt, with Lilith’s help, Amber immediately entered the new parameters into the device. The location of this new cynosural beacon was the very heart of the Federation grand fleet’s formation.

“Lilith, connect to the device and assist with the calculations! Speed it up!”

At Amber’s command, Lilith immediately connected to the guidance operations control console and began to assist with the computations.

With her help, the calculation speed for the cynosural beacon became astonishingly fast, the progress bar filling up at a rate visible to the naked eye.

“It’s done, Master!”

Lilith’s excited voice came through. Since Atlas had started growing, she hadn’t been on a thrilling mission like this with Amber for a long time, so she was quite agitated.

“What about the Proton Annihilation Bombs?”

“They’ve been activated! According to this console, the Warp Engine has locked onto the cynosural beacon and initiated. We’re now in an irreversible attack sequence!”

“Finally.”

Amber let out a long breath and, without hesitation, floated towards the bridge doors.

“Now, the only problem left is how to get off this ship!”

Chapter 574: Annihilation

After Amber piloted the ATLAS Kai through the blockade and rammed it directly into the Lighthouse, the super-heavy HCP still had some basic functions online, but its plasma thruster array, used for maneuvering in space, was completely wrecked.

Therefore, if Amber wanted to leave, she certainly couldn’t count on returning the way she came in the ATLAS Kai. She had to find another way, and fast.

“Lilith, are there any more HCPs in this heavy cruiser’s hangar?”

“No more, Master. The hangar control terminal shows that all HCPs have already been launched. Some have joined up with the Federation’s main HCP forces to participate in the attack, while others were providing escort near the battleship, but they’ve been mostly wiped out.”

As Amber sprinted through the ship’s corridors, heading toward an area she could use to exit the warship, Lilith was anxiously checking to see if there were any other usable vehicles on board.

While the solo boarding operation Amber had led her on was certainly thrilling, no matter how exciting it was, a safe escape was still the final goal. Lilith didn’t dare to be careless.

“Master, what about a lifeboat?”

“No good. They have basically zero mobility. They wouldn’t survive in the intense crossfire outside. If we get hit, we’ll be vaporized, boat and all.”

“What about a shuttle, then?”

“Isn’t that just another iron coffin, and a bigger target at that?”

Hearing this, Lilith also began to panic. As far as she could see, there were no other usable vehicles on this heavy cruiser.

“Damn it. If only this ship had a combat craft!” Amber said, annoyed.

When they were formulating their operational objectives, the initial plan was to evacuate using the ATLAS Kai, or failing that, to use one of the HCPs on this warship to leave.

Who would have thought that both options were now off the table?

But people are often forced to come up with something in desperate situations. In the very next second, a daring idea flashed through Amber’s mind like a stroke of inspiration.

“They might not have a combat craft, but we do, Lilith! Are there any combat craft that joined my assault still near this heavy cruiser?!”

“Yes, Master!” Lilith immediately realized what Amber was planning and quickly highlighted more than a dozen nearby Heavy Armored Gunships on Amber’s command interface.

Seeing this, Amber didn’t hesitate for a moment. She quickly shouted into the command channel they had used during their coordinated assault:

“Any pilots nearby with guts and skills, come pick me up!”

—

“General! We’ve lost contact with the Lighthouse! At the same time, the cynosural beacon was reconfigured by authorized personnel ten minutes ago!”

Aboard Rear Admiral Stoner’s flagship, an officer on duty reported the bad news with an anxious tone.

“Ten minutes ago? Why are we only getting this information now?!”

“General, Atlas’s information-jamming capabilities have exceeded our expectations. The fleet’s current communication efficiency is very low, not to mention for a ship as far out as the Lighthouse. We even had to receive the message via relay transmission.”

Hearing the officer’s somewhat aggrieved tone, Rear Admiral Stoner reined in his impulse to scold him. Or rather, the moment he heard that the cynosural beacon had been reconfigured, a sense of panic had already seized him.

He wouldn’t have been this alarmed if the Lighthouse had been sunk, or if its attack guidance operations had been disrupted.

“Where is the new location of the cynosural beacon?”

The officer on duty shook his head helplessly. “We… we don’t know, General. The Lighthouse has already dropped off the tactical network and has shut down all its signal receiving units.”

At this point, Rear Admiral Stoner had already reached a terrifying conclusion. Without a shred of hesitation, he issued a new order:

“Order all warships near the Lighthouse to sink it immediately!”

“Wh-what?!” The officer on duty who heard the command stared wide-eyed, unable to believe what he had just heard.

“I said, order all warships near the Lighthouse to sink it, now!”

“Y-yes! General!”

At that moment, Rear Admiral Stoner was like an enraged old lion. His sheer force of will quashed any thought of questioning the order in the officer’s mind. He immediately turned to leave and relay the command.

After giving the order, Rear Admiral Stoner collapsed into the captain’s chair, his fingers interlaced and squeezing each other tightly.

Anyone who knew him would have recognized that the Rear Admiral was in a state of extreme anxiety.

And at that very moment, the Tactical Information Coordinator shouted a piece of news that plunged him completely into the abyss.

“Report! Authorized spatial fluctuations detected! It’s the warp signature of a Proton Annihilation Bomb! But—”

“But what?!”

“But the exit point is located in the central region of the grand fleet…”

As soon as he finished speaking, the bridge fell into a dead silence. Everyone wondered if they had misheard.

Even the Tactical Information Coordinator couldn’t help but re-verify the information on his workstation several times, only to arrive at a conclusion that filled him with despair.

He had not misread it.

It’s unknown how long the silence on the bridge lasted, until Rear Admiral Stoner was jolted from his panic.

“Quick! Relay my orders! Entire fleet, scatter immediately!”

However, just as the words left his mouth, a blue-white light flared up without warning in the center of the Federation fleet’s formation.

When the light faded, a nearly hundred-meter-long object, coated in a low-visibility paint scheme and shaped like some kind of heavy anti-ship missile, appeared in that sector of space.

The captains of the surrounding warships, including the four Federation Navy Fleet Commanders, noticed the anomaly at once. Their terrified gazes fixed on the terrifying object that had suddenly appeared. As commanders and captains of capital ships, none of them failed to recognize what it was.

One battleship captain’s eyes went wide with utter disbelief, his lips trembling slightly.

“This… how is this possible?”

His voice echoed on the bridge, but it sounded so feeble.

Another captain, who had come to his senses, screamed frantically into the communicator: “Emergency Evasion! Overload the main thruster array!”

But it was all too late.

The Proton Annihilation Bomb, like a silent god of death, detonated in full view of everyone.

A blinding light erupted in an instant, as if a supernova had been born in the heart of the Federation’s grand fleet.

The light was so intense that the optical sensors of all warships instantly reached their maximum threshold.

Immediately after, the collision of antimatter and matter triggered a violent annihilation reaction, and an unimaginable amount of energy spread outward at astonishing speed.

Before this terrifying power, the warships’ deflector shields and physical armor were like paper, shattering in an instant.

The metal hulls were twisted and torn apart by the powerful annihilation reaction, letting out silent wails. Flames and electrical arcs spread wildly through the ships’ interiors. Crew members screamed in terror, but their voices were quickly extinguished in the endless destruction.

The radius of the annihilation reaction expanded rapidly, and wherever it went, all matter was utterly destroyed.

The steel behemoths that humanity took such pride in were obliterated in an instant like paper toys, turning to dust without a single piece of wreckage left behind.

Most of the warships in the center of the grand fleet didn’t even have time to react before they were completely consumed by the power of antimatter, vanishing without a trace.

Chapter 575: Because It’s a Thrill, Boss

Though a Proton Annihilation Bomb would cause an entire planet to collapse and be annihilated upon impact, and would create a black hole if it hit a star, the one detonated in the center of the Federation’s grand fleet formation did not sustain its annihilation reaction for long.

After consuming roughly two-fifths of the warships in one go, the annihilation reaction triggered by the Proton Annihilation Bomb promptly ceased due to a lack of sufficient matter to sustain it, leaving only an abrupt “void” in the middle of the Federation’s grand fleet formation.

As for the warships unfortunate enough to have parts of their hulls caught within the bomb’s attack range at the edge of this void, only their undamaged sections remained.

The perfectly neat “incisions,” still glowing red, were silent for a moment before erupting in bursts of fire and electrical arcs.

In a way, when used against a large, concentrated fleet, this could be considered a highly efficient and clean weapon of mass destruction.

As Amber and a rescue pilot squeezed into the cockpit of a Heavy Armored Gunship during their withdrawal, they saw the spectacular, dazzling annihilation reaction at the heart of the Federation’s grand fleet, followed by the stark void left in its wake. It was enough to make them break out in a cold sweat.

He dared not imagine the terrifying consequences if this thing had been detonated within the Atlas First Fleet as the Federation Navy had originally planned.

Fortunately, this Federation strategic weapon had been turned on the Federation itself, instantly reversing the tide of the entire battle.

Although the participating Federation grand fleet still appeared sizable in number after being hit by the Proton Annihilation Bomb, a closer look revealed that 60 to 70 percent of the capital ships positioned in the center of the formation had been wiped out.

In other words, what remained were mostly light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates—ships that could only pad the numbers.

With the enemy’s morale now at rock bottom, Amber no longer had any doubt that the Atlas combat fleet would win this battle.

“Boss, is that the Federation’s strategic weapon?” The pilot of the Heavy Armored Gunship swallowed hard and asked cautiously.

Looking at the heavily damaged Federation fleet, Amber nodded with lingering fear. “Yes. The strategic weapon the Federation was counting on to win.”

Upon hearing Amber’s reply, the gunship pilot also felt a wave of retrospective fear.

“Thank goodness it didn’t land in the middle of our fleet.”

“Isn’t that obvious? We took such a huge risk to launch that assault precisely to prevent that from happening, didn’t we?”

Amber, sitting in a temporary jump seat, patted the pilot’s shoulder, signaling him to accelerate away before continuing, “You’ve got some nerve, kid. Daring to answer my call and pick me up in a situation that dangerous.”

Just moments ago, when Amber had asked on the assault squad coordination channel if any pilot was bold enough to come get him, it seemed every Heavy Armored Gunship pilot near The Lighthouse had immediately volunteered—perhaps because this might be their only chance to personally fly Amber.

The pilot of the Heavy Armored Gunship Amber was now in was the “lucky one” with the most outstanding skills, who had managed to break through the interception before anyone else.

Under his control, the MA-01B Block 5 displayed not only its ferocious thrust but also a level of delicate precision akin to threading a needle.

When the gunship approached The Lighthouse at extreme velocity, the pilot executed a swift somersault, performing a 180-degree axial reversal and using the main thruster array at the “maximum thrust” setting to achieve a brute-force deceleration.

Then, he showed off a final bit of skill, bringing the gunship to a perfect stop right at the gate of Deployment Bay 3—near the wreckage of the ATLAS Kai—and maintained a stationary position relative to it.

When Amber saw his “ride” arrive, he acted as if he were in his own home, deftly finding an extra-vehicular mobility pack used by damage control personnel inside Deployment Bay 3.

After setting the self-destruct timer for the ATLAS Kai, he pushed off toward the Heavy Armored Gunship forty meters away without a safety line. This was the closest the gunship could get.

After all, the craft itself was thirty meters long. If it got any closer, maneuvering in an emergency would be impossible, as the slightest misstep would cause it to collide with the heavy cruiser next to it—a ship whose combat personnel and bridge officers had been almost completely wiped out.

Safely away from the area after successfully picking up Amber, the young gunship pilot couldn’t help but smile upon hearing Amber’s words of praise.

“You’re the Boss. We can’t let anything happen to you. Besides, Major Jacob always said the Heavy Armored Gunship regiment has no cowards.”

“Excellent. The Heavy Armored Gunship regiment needs talent like you.”

Amber nodded in satisfaction, then asked casually, “By the way, your skills are pretty impressive. You must have had experience piloting other vehicles before, right?”

“Heh, you guessed it, Boss!”

The gunship pilot suddenly grew excited, as if the topic was one of great interest to him.

“Before I joined the Atlas Group, I was a professional pilot in the Federation’s ‘Starsea Velocity Grand Prix.’ My final ranking was in the Federation’s top five for the last three championships!”

“Huh?”

It was Amber’s turn to be stunned.

The “Starsea Velocity Grand Prix” the pilot mentioned was, simply put, similar to the high-intelligence formula racing Amber had seen in his previous life, except the high-performance cars were replaced by small racing craft that resembled gunships.

The tracks, too, were moved from planetary surfaces to asteroid belts in deep space.

Once he heard that, Amber understood. The teams in the “Starsea Velocity Grand Prix” were basically a bunch of madmen and zealots.

The race committee’s safety regulations, in some respects, were only there to prevent the event from turning into an “Asteroid Belt Demolition Derby.”

The participating teams did everything in their power to achieve faster times while flying through one deep-space asteroid belt after another.

If the pilot before him had really managed to stay in the Federation’s top five for three consecutive Grand Prix tournaments, it not only proved he was the real deal but also pointed to another trait.

He was incredibly lucky.

Realizing he was sitting in a gunship piloted by someone with exceptional luck, and with victory now more or less in the bag, Amber finally relaxed and asked half-jokingly:

“As I recall, the salaries for professional pilots in the ‘Starsea Velocity Grand Prix’ aren’t low, right? Not to mention a competitor like you who ranks in the Federation’s top five. Weren’t you close to being financially independent? What made you decide to join the Heavy Armored Gunship regiment?”

The pilot was taken aback by Amber’s question, clearly not expecting his “big boss” to suddenly ask about his “career plans.”

After a moment, he gave a sheepish, honest grin. “Heh heh, because it’s a thrill, Boss.”

Chapter 576: The Tide Has Turned

The detonation zone for the Proton Annihilation Bomb, handpicked by Amber and Lilith, was practically the optimal location Lilith could have calculated at a moment’s notice.

Its blast radius not only encompassed most of the capital ships of the Federation’s grand fleet but also completely covered the grand flagship, The Galileo, carrying the Commander-in-Chief, Rear Admiral Stoner; The Magellan, Rear Admiral Bernelli’s fleet flagship; The Long Night, Rear Admiral Muller’s fleet flagship; and The Revenge, Rear Admiral Barak’s fleet flagship.

Only the newly arrived 18th Fleet was spared. After rendezvousing, its flagship, The Jurisprudence, hadn’t yet moved into the core of the formation, allowing the 18th Fleet’s commander, Vice Admiral Verne, to escape the catastrophe.

In other words, Amber’s solo ship takeover—in which he redirected the Proton Annihilation Bomb onto the Federation’s grand fleet—not only eliminated a vast number of precious capital ships but also took out four Federation Navy Rear Admirals in a single stroke.

If this were a game from his previous life, an achievement for “Rear Admiral Killer” would have likely just popped up in front of Amber.

The fall of four general’s stars served to further dim the Federation Navy’s already less-than-brilliant “constellation of high command.”

Focusing on the current battle, the most significant impact of the Proton Annihilation Bomb was the instantaneous decapitation of the grand fleet’s core command structure.

The four-fleet-commander configuration was intended to allow the other three to sequentially assume command in the event the Commander-in-Chief was killed in action.

However, not even Marshal Trafalgar, who had devised this plan, could have imagined a scenario where all four fleet commanders would be killed simultaneously, especially when the Federation’s grand fleet possessed far greater strength on paper than the Atlas combat fleet.

Marshal Trafalgar hadn’t anticipated it, and the commander of the reinforcing 18th Fleet, Vice Admiral Verne, certainly never would have.

According to the secret talks he’d had with Rear Admiral Stoner and the others before the battle, the 18th Fleet’s arrival was supposed to be the decisive blow, the move to settle things in one blow and bring the battle to a close.

But now, it looked for all the world like he was just coming in for cleanup duty.

“General, what do we do now? The command structures of the other four fleets are in complete chaos!”

On the bridge of the 18th Fleet’s flagship, The Jurisprudence, the Executive Officer asked, his voice tinged with panic.

Vice Admiral Verne stood before him, taking a deep breath to force himself to calm down before replying.

“Don’t panic. You’re the Executive Officer of a battleship. According to the contingency plan established before the battle, The Jurisprudence will immediately assume the role of grand flagship. Elevate its tactical communications and command network permissions to the highest level.”

He then turned to the Communications staff officer responsible for relaying orders to the entire fleet.

“Relay my orders: all warships of the 14th, 15th, 23rd, and 24th Fleets are to immediately consolidate their formations. The 18th Fleet’s capital ships will move up to take the vanguard!

“Once the entire fleet has consolidated, throttle to full ahead. Proceed at maximum speed toward coordinates A72295. We will first break through the enemy fleet to create distance before re-evaluating our next move!”

“Yes, General! Right away…”

The Communications staff officer saluted upon hearing Vice Admiral Verne’s orders and was about to relay them when an anxious voice came from the Tactical Information Coordinator’s station.

“Report! The enemy fleet to our front and the enemy relief fleet from the nadir are shifting into an assault formation! They’re planning to attack while they have the chance!”

Vice Admiral Verne’s brow furrowed instantly. The Atlas combat fleet’s commander was moving faster than he had anticipated, clearly intending to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to completely crush the Federation fleet.

“Hurry, tell the fleet to tighten its formation faster! It’s a race against time now!”

“Tell the fleet to speed up the attack! It’s a race against time now!”

Still hitching a ride, Amber had used his authority to establish a temporary command channel on the Heavy Armored Gunship, issuing the order to accelerate the offensive at almost the exact same moment.

He knew all too well that the Federation fleet—especially the four fleets that had suffered such devastating losses—was at its lowest morale of the entire campaign. Moreover, the majority of their capital ships, their primary combat assets, had been lost.

So, even if the commander of the 18th Fleet quickly took charge, the grand fleet, having just been hit by a Proton Annihilation Bomb, would need time to recover and regain its combat effectiveness.

And Amber intended to strike during this “window of opportunity” before they could regroup.

“Don’t worry that their fleet still outnumbers ours—just attack with everything you’ve got! Most of what’s left are secondary ships!

“The Dawn is to load the combat data previously transmitted by The Infinity, signal with the Z Flag, and begin the charge!

“Notify the Maintenance team to prepare the ATLAS Kai Unit Two and its Modified Gigas attachments. I’m deploying again the moment I’m back on board!”

“What? Boss, maybe you should rest for a bit? Murat and Jacob have already formed the spearhead of the counter-attack…”

Cleves was surprised that Amber had no intention of resting and was instead preparing to sally out again, and he tried to dissuade him.

Amber shook his head. “It’s fine. I might have overdone it with the psionic amplification agent and combat stimulants. I’ve never felt more energized!”

Sitting in front of him, Verstappen, the former professional pilot from the Starsea Velocity Grand Prix and current pilot of the Heavy Armored Gunship, heard this and immediately overloaded the craft’s power output unit and main thruster array.

The entire combat craft instantly accelerated again, streaking like a meteor toward The Dawn.

Excellent, excellent. This kid has potential.

Feeling the sudden burst of acceleration, Amber wore a gratified smile as a new idea popped into his head.

Maybe I should just have Jacob and HR recruit some people from a starship racing competition like the Starsea Velocity Grand Prix?

“What’s going on? Why is the fleet regrouping so slowly?!”

On the bridge of The Jurisprudence, Vice Admiral Verne watched the excruciatingly slow progress of the fleet’s consolidation and finally couldn’t stop himself from roaring.

“G-General, the Atlas Group is attacking too quickly! Their vanguard has already broken into our own vanguard’s formation. The current kill ratio is very unfavorable, and the frontline is rapidly collapsing.

“Furthermore, many warships from the other four fleets are not complying with our orders. Some ships have even begun accelerating to escape this region of space, and this behavior is spreading rapidly among the surviving ships of those four fleets.”

The officer on duty’s report plunged the Federation Navy Vice Admiral into silence. He stared at the three-dimensional tactical overlay on the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge, where the red representing the enemy was steadily devouring the green of his own fleet.

Before Vice Admiral Verne could say anything more, the Tactical Information Coordinator delivered another piece of bad news.

“The enemy super-flagship from the nadir is breaking formation and approaching rapidly… Wait! The threat warning unit has designated a new high-threat target.”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator finished speaking, a new, blurry image was projected onto the bridge’s main screen.

It was that same, familiar, large red HCP.

Only this time, a pair of giant mechanical arms had sprouted from its back, and they were holding a massive ‘light sword’.

Seeing this, Vice Admiral Verne froze for a moment, then let out a long sigh.

“The tide has turned…”

Chapter 577: Harvesting the Fruits of Victory

The Federation’s grand fleet in the Loubion star system was ultimately defeated.

Although Vice Admiral Verne, commander of the 18th Fleet, quickly took command after the other four fleet commanders were killed in action, he was still unable to reverse the morale of the Federation fleet, which had plummeted.

Due to the instantaneous loss of a large number of capital ships, the remaining Federation warships, though still outnumbering the Atlas combat fleet, were clearly unable to maintain their battle lines, as the leaderless secondary ships fell into disarray.

Some of the more quick-witted captains, who were also less afraid of the Navy’s military court, immediately commanded their ships to break formation. After pushing their main thruster arrays to overload to rapidly increase speed, they entered warp and left the battlefield.

Based on past experience with human regular military fleets—be it the Federation or the Empire—ships that absconded in battle generally met one of three fates.

Either they would “turn themselves in” and present various excuses to plead for a lighter sentence.

Or they would be tracked down by the military, captured along with their ship, and receive the harshest punishment.

The remaining option was to become outlaws and turn into pirates, or join some rebel force.

The command echelon of the Atlas combat fleet, including Amber, naturally noticed Federation ships breaking away one after another.

In this situation, there wasn’t much Atlas’s warships could do, as they lacked sufficient ships for a proper interception.

So they could only rely on nearby ships to attack and try to stop them. After all, Amber and the others couldn’t be certain whether these ships were fleeing or heading to another area to regroup.

Fortunately, as the fleets pressing in from two directions continued to compress the Federation grand fleet’s space, it became increasingly difficult for these ships to escape via warp.

By the time Amber, piloting a spare ATLAS Kai and wielding a light sword large enough to cleave a warship, had led a large number of HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships to irresistibly smash through the Federation grand fleet’s defensive screen and charge all the way to the sole remaining flagship, The Jurisprudence…

The last commander, Vice Admiral Verne, finally gave the order for the entire fleet to surrender. His own flagship, The Jurisprudence, was the first to fire three white flares, signaling their capitulation.

“Fuck! We won! We fucking won!”

The moment he saw The Jurisprudence fire its surrender signal, Randall leaped up from the captain’s chair of The Infinity in excitement. If not for the safety harness connecting his in-ship suit to the chair, he might have shot right into the bridge ceiling.

But no one else on the bridge paid any mind to the Third Task Force commander’s outburst, as the entire bridge of The Infinity was already consumed by the ecstasy and thrill of victory.

Cheers, screams, and sobs—sounds that had been suppressed throughout the battle—were finally unleashed in a torrent of catharsis.

After the Communications Officer made a ship-wide announcement, this jubilant scene quickly spread throughout the super-flagship, and the entire warship erupted.

Following them were the other surviving warships, HCPs, and Heavy Armored Gunships of the Third Task Force…

Murat, who had fought a bloody battle from start to finish, saw the white flares rise from the distant Federation grand fleet like a shower of light from his mech’s cockpit. He leaned back in his seat and let out a long sigh of relief.

His ATLAS Mass Production Type didn’t have a single intact piece of outer armor left. Its massive frame was covered in marks from various weapon hits.

However, under Murat’s control, these unavoidable attacks had only inflicted minimal damage on the unit, allowing him to keep fighting until now, instead of going to Valhalla to “report in” with Banninger and the others.

He didn’t know whether that was good news or bad news.

—

36 hours later, the Atlas combat fleet finished suppressing and temporarily securing all enemy ships in the engagement zone, and also rescued as many survivors as possible.

Meanwhile, in the Operations Briefing Room of The Dawn, Amber reviewed the combat report compiled by Cleves, Randall, Isabelle, and others, with Lilith’s assistance.

Although they had won this battle, one that could be considered a fight for the Atlas Group’s very survival and future, the Atlas combat fleet, which had borne the brunt of the fighting, had suffered grievous losses.

The two unmanned fleets, which had been painstakingly brought to near full strength before the battle, had served as Atlas’s main line-holding units. After the battle, their loss rate exceeded fifty percent.

And among the remaining fifty percent of unmanned warships that hadn’t been sunk outright, many were heavily damaged, had essentially lost their combat capability, and might even have to be scrapped if they didn’t undergo shipyard repairs promptly.

Although facing the assault of four full-strength capital fleets, surviving for so long and keeping half its ships afloat was an unprecedented feat in the history of human fleet battles, Amber still felt the world go dark for a moment when he saw the loss report.

After all, these unmanned warships were built with cold, hard cash; they weren’t just blown in by the wind.

Fortunately, the losses for the unmanned fleets were straightforward. Only the ships themselves were lost; the high-level shipboard control AIs they carried had all safely returned to the virtual space created by Lilith before their respective warships sank.

Theoretically, as long as Atlas built new warships, these high-level shipboard control AIs could become combat-ready again in minutes—and as “reliable veterans” who had been through a tough battle, no less.

So, when Lilith noticed Amber feeling faint over the unmanned fleet’s losses, she “thoughtfully” whispered in his ear:

“Master~ Don’t be in such a hurry to faint.”

Then, Amber saw the next item on the loss report—the casualties of the Third Task Force and the First Fleet, which included personnel losses from these manned fleets.

Since the Third Task Force had gone through two grueling battles in a row, its losses were quite severe, with a loss rate exceeding sixty-five percent.

The few destroyers and frigates that had luckily survived the “Battle of the Three Stooges” would have to be decommissioned, mothballed, and converted into museum ships after this battle…

The First Fleet’s losses were comparatively much smaller. Because they attacked from the nadir of the Federation grand fleet’s position, they didn’t face much counterattack, and their loss rate was only ten percent.

However, because they had followed Amber in a “death charge,” the loss rate for their HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships exceeded fifty percent…

“I can accept the losses of ships and equipment. Those things can always be replaced as long as we have money. But the personnel casualties are too severe.”

Seeing the bright red number “19,229” in the casualty column for Atlas combat forces in the report, Amber sighed in dismay.

Although the Atlas combat fleet was already much more sparsely crewed compared to traditional Federation and Star Dragon Empire fleets, the number of people lost in a single fleet battle was still considerable.

Amber knew this string of numbers was no longer just a simple game statistic; it represented lives that had once been vibrant but were now gone.

There were humans, Romu, and even a very small number of elves from the Thousand Stars Empire.

They had gathered at the Atlas Group with different personal goals and dreams, only to leave their lives behind forever in this dark, cold region of space.

The above were the thoughts of Amber’s “emotional side” upon seeing the casualty figures.

Meanwhile, after seeing this number, Amber’s “rational side” felt his heart bleeding.

Because this not only meant that the Atlas Group had lost a batch of experienced crew, mech pilots, and craft pilots, which would require significant time and effort to replace, it also meant the group was about to pay out an astronomical sum in death benefits.

Nevertheless, Amber specially emphasized to Isabelle, the Director of Human Resources, and the Director of Finance that the death benefits must be paid out in full, down to the last cent. Furthermore, the families of the fallen must be treated according to the group’s “preferential terms for families of the fallen.”

On this point, Amber was extremely firm, giving no one any chance to object.

Of course, the others wouldn’t have dared to object anyway, especially when it came to such foundational matters.

When discussing the preferential treatment for the families of the fallen, considering the high number of casualties this time, he also asked about some key matters.

“So, have the facilities for the Scion Academy—the campus, faculty, equipment, all the hardware and software—been prepared?”

“Everything is fully prepared. Master Aen Wrathwind, who was previously in charge of training those young psionic users, has already moved into the academy with the children. You could say they’ve been running tests on everything for us in advance~”

The one who answered was Isabelle, who was in charge of preparations for the Scion Academy. After considering various options, Amber had found that this noble young lady was quite suitable for the project, having arranged everything in an orderly fashion.

“Personnel seconded from the Tower of Babel Comprehensive Training Center, the Yuge family Merchant Guild, Atlas United Industries, Atlas Mining, Atlas Private Military Company, and the group headquarters’ Financial Operations Center have formed the first batch of faculty and completed their pre-employment training a month ago.

“All the necessary infrastructure for the academy, including the Virtual reality Training Center, the multifunctional comprehensive training ground, and the multi-purpose workshops, has been constructed and has passed inspection. By the way, George also reported that the mining team has specially set aside a nice asteroid fragment that can be allocated to the academy as a ‘teaching aid’.”

Hearing Isabelle report that all preparations for the Scion Academy were complete, Amber nodded in reassurance.

This academy, exclusively for the children of Atlas Group employees who had sacrificed their lives, was a project Amber had personally pushed forward.

Any employee under Atlas, whether an ordinary staff member or a combatant, who sacrificed themselves for the company’s cause, would have their family receive the relevant death benefits and welfare, and their children could also choose to enroll in this Scion Academy.

In this school, which could be called extremely impressive in terms of both its faculty and hardware, particularly in “practicality and diversity,” the children of the fallen, after basic training and an initial assessment, could enroll in specialized majors such as chemical engineering, manufacturing, mining, biomedicine, finance, and… combat-related fields.

Upon successful graduation, they would be immediately snapped up by the various companies under the Atlas umbrella.

In other words, as long as the children of the fallen entered the Scion Academy, they could directly find employment with the Atlas Group or its subsidiaries upon reaching adulthood.

It was worth noting that with Lilith’s help, the Atlas Group required far less manpower than other corporations. Thus, at its current stage of development, recruitment for new employees in non-combatant roles had become extremely rigorous, with it being common for tens of thousands of people to compete for a single position…

So, from another perspective, by entering the Scion Academy, these children of the fallen were already at the finish line compared to other job seekers—provided they were successfully “brainwashed” at the academy to make “dedicating their lives to the Atlas Group” their life’s goal.—

After finally finishing the difficult discussion of the Atlas Group’s losses, the next topic on the agenda made everyone in the meeting a bit excited.

That was the gains from this battle.

While it was true that Atlas had just suffered its greatest loss since its founding, the post-battle gains were by no means small. The recovered active-duty Federation warships from the battlefield alone were enough for the combat fleet to recover its strength.

The captured capital ships were enough to equip one and a half full-strength fleets, while the number of light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates easily exceeded the complement of two full-strength fleets.

In other words, after this one battle, Atlas had captured nearly two full-strength Federation fleets.

And Amber didn’t hesitate for a moment, immediately deciding to “keep the ships, not the men.”

Those willing to stay and join Atlas, especially maintenance personnel and HCP pilots, could be selectively recruited after background checks and assessments.

As for the other crewmembers and officers, Amber would “package” them up and send them back to the Federation. He had no desire to feed so many people for the Federation for free.

The captured warships would be sent to the shipyards to be repaired and simultaneously converted into unmanned warships to replenish the two heavily damaged unmanned fleets.

The heavily damaged Third Task Force would be merged with the First Fleet to form the Atlas Group’s sole current manned fleet, serving as the main mobile force.

Compared to tangible “surface gains” like warships, Amber actually placed more importance on the “invisible” hidden gains.

And the biggest among these hidden gains was that after this battle, the control of the Federation and the Star System Autonomous Government over the Loubion star system was all but eliminated.

From this moment on, Atlas had become the largest armed force in the Loubion star system—and an unshakeable one at that.

Therefore, Amber directly split the relatively intact First Fleet into several smaller fleets and sent them all out.

Their objective was simple and clear: to quickly suppress other factions with space forces within the star system, and then to seize control of all important infrastructure, such as collection stations, deep-space refineries, shipyards, industrial space cities, and colony satellites.

For facilities with fewer personnel, a single boarding action by the marines on the warships was usually enough to secure them.

The combat morale of the guards in these facilities was not high; they surrendered with almost no resistance.

As for colony satellites with larger garrisons and slightly stronger defenses, Atlas’s warships simply employed a strategy of blockade and cutting off external communications, waiting for the main force to arrive before slowly capturing them.

Within about three to five days after the fleet battle ended, the Atlas Group’s armed forces had seized control of over eighty percent of the deep-space infrastructure in the Loubion star system, completely secured space superiority over Loubion V, and begun supporting the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces in launching a new offensive.

At this point, it could basically be declared that the Loubion star system was completely under the control of the Atlas Group, making it the first star system Amber truly controlled.

However, upon receiving these reports as they came in, Amber did not relax. Instead, he immediately ordered the garrisons on Parra IV and at the A·Bawa·Ku fortress to enter a state of combat readiness.

After all, no one knew if the Federation had other hidden forces, or if Marshal Trafalgar would choose to “base trade,” just as he did in his strategic decisive battle with the Empire.

Furthermore, Parra IV, located within the territory of the Star Dragon Empire, had to be on guard against the Star Dragon Empire itself.

Because once the news of the Federation Navy’s major defeat spread, Amber couldn’t be sure that the Empire wouldn’t try to take advantage of the Federation’s heavy losses and the redeployment of the Atlas Group’s main forces to try and reclaim Parra IV.

It was true that Princess Agnes had indeed extended an olive branch to Amber through Baron BASF, and was even willing to let Amber and Atlas manage Parra IV.

But the plot planners and writers of Starry Sky Online had taught Amber one thing: never trust the “promises” of those in high positions in the Federation, the Empire, or even the Thousand Stars Empire.

Before the two sides were on completely equal footing, unconditionally believing these so-called “promises” was no different from sticking one’s head in a noose.

However, a report he received on the fifth day after the fleet battle left Amber not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

“What? You’re telling me Baron BASF brought his fourth wife to the A·Bawa·Ku fortress?”

“Yes, Boss,” Skadi on the other side of the screen nodded with a wry smile.

“The request for entry was submitted three hours ago. The person arrived at the fortress gates two hours ago.”

“So he just brought the person over first and waited, is that it?”

Amber raised an eyebrow, then asked a crucial question.

“Does Baron BASF, or rather the Empire and the Princess, already know the result of our fleet battle with the Federation?”

Skadi: “Boss, after the battle began, we gradually shut down the quantum entanglement communication services in the Loubion star system and surrounding areas. The nearest communication service zone is at least five standard warp distances away. That’s five days. If nothing unexpected happened, the news should have only just been sent out.”

“In other words, this Baron BASF brought his wife over without knowing the outcome… and I hear this ‘fourth wife’ is quite familiar with Agnes?”

“That’s right~”

“Interesting.”

Chapter 578: Reactions from All Sides (Conclusion)

Baron BASF was actually a rare ‘conservative’ among the aristocratic bourgeoisie of the Star Dragon Empire, never one to gamble on major decisions.

But this time, in a ‘business’ deal involving the Atlas Group and Her Highness Princess Agnes, the Baron made a huge gamble.

He had already staked his life and limb on Her Highness Agnes, and this time, he chose to bet that the Atlas Group would win this battle and secure a ‘bright future’.

To this end, he went so far as to bring his new fourth wife—the daughter of the former Imperial Prime Minister and also Princess Agnes’s childhood companion. The two of them came directly to the A·Bawa·Ku fortress under the pretense of an official visit.

If he had come alone, Amber and the others would have only assumed that the Baron was very keen on the partnership.

But now that he had brought his wife, it felt very much like he was offering himself and his wife as ‘hostages’.

In a meticulously arranged ‘viewing suite’ specially prepared for Baron and Baroness BASF, Mona held the Baron’s arm. As they watched the Atlas ships coming and going outside the fortress, she spoke in a soft but firm voice:

“Don’t be nervous. I told you I wouldn’t regret standing with you, for better or for worse.”

“Mona. You didn’t need to get involved in this,” Baron BASF said, his voice conflicted. “Even if it meant staying here as a ‘hostage’ to show my sincerity, my presence alone would have been enough.”

“You are my husband, and Her Highness Agnes is my dearest friend and my sovereign. If I can contribute in this way, I have no regrets.”

The daughter of the former Imperial Prime Minister smiled, turned to him, and adjusted his tie.

“Besides, didn’t you say you thought the Atlas Group had a better chance of winning? If you show enough sincerity before they achieve victory, I believe their cooperation with both you and Her Highness will go much more smoothly.”

Hearing his wife’s words, Baron BASF felt a surge of emotion.

This man, once known as a playboy in aristocratic circles, had undergone a significant change in personality under Mona’s subtle influence since their marriage.

Many said he had lost his former arrogant demeanor. Even Agnes, who had pulled the strings for their match, remarked that his temperament had mellowed considerably.

At this thought, the Baron couldn’t help but gently cup his wife’s face in his hands.

“Mona, meeting you is the greatest fortune of my life…”

However, these heartfelt words didn’t seem to move Mona. Instead, she raised an eyebrow and replied in a playful tone, “Oh? So the greatest fortune is ending up as your fourth wife, not your first?”

“Ahem.”

Baron BASF coughed awkwardly twice, wisely dodging the topic. He took his wife’s arm again and led her toward the door.

“Let’s go meet Ms. Skadi. She said that since this is your first time here, she must give you a proper tour. We shouldn’t keep her waiting.”

The Baron had barely finished speaking when his personal terminal suddenly chimed with a unique notification sound, different from the usual alerts.

“You should check that. Don’t miss any important news,” Mona said naturally, stepping away from him to admire the room’s decor.

Baron BASF was long accustomed to his helpmate’s ways. Without hesitation, he immediately activated his personal terminal.

On the virtual screen projected by the terminal, visible only to him, an encrypted message was rapidly decrypting.

When the Baron saw that the sender was a spy ship that had been lurking in the Loubion star system, his breath quickened. He realized this encrypted message contained the results of the battle between Atlas and the Federation.

As the decryption progress bar reached its end, BASF eagerly opened it, closed his eyes, held his breath, and read the first sentence.

“Atlas Group combat fleet engaged the Federation Navy grand fleet (approximately four to five capital fleets) in a direct confrontation in the space near Loubion V…”

“As expected.” Baron BASF composed himself and continued reading.

“Due to high-intensity, wide-area electronic warfare from both sides, this vessel could not obtain detailed battle reports and was driven off by perimeter ships. However, five days ago, this vessel detected the attack signature of a ‘Proton Annihilation Bomb’ near the combat zone. We infer that the Federation Navy very likely used this strategic weapon again during the battle.”

“They even used a ‘Proton Annihilation Bomb.’ It seems the Federation was serious this time. Doesn’t that mean the Atlas Group’s combat fleet was doomed?”

A drop of cold sweat trickled down Baron BASF’s forehead, and his complexion began to turn pale.

Seeing her husband’s expression from a distance, the Baroness grew worried, but she did nothing, simply watching him quietly.

The Baron, meanwhile, took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying to lower his heart rate, which was already approaching its red line.

“No matter what, we’re already here…”

With that thought, Baron BASF collected himself and looked at the next sentence. His eyes widened, and his mouth fell slightly open, out of his control.

Seeing her husband’s reaction, Mona couldn’t help but ask with concern,

“Is something wrong?”

Hearing his wife’s question, Baron BASF didn’t speak. Instead, he walked silently over to Mona and locked eyes with her.

Just as Mona thought something terrible had happened and was about to offer some words of comfort, Baron BASF suddenly broke into a wide grin and swept her up into his arms.

“Ah! What are you doing?”

Caught completely off guard by her husband’s reaction, Mona cried out, her face flushing red.

His face beaming with excitement, Baron BASF tossed all thoughts of aristocratic etiquette, restraint, and elegance to the wind and planted a loud kiss on Mona’s smooth cheek.

“Hahahaha! We won! Atlas actually won! Mona! My bet paid off!”

Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire.

It was late at night, but through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows of Princess Agnes’s royal chambers, several soft lights could still be seen.

“As of the time this message was sent, this vessel can confirm that the battle has concluded. The Atlas combat fleet was victorious…”

Princess Agnes’s hand, holding her personal terminal, trembled slightly, causing the ornate charms hanging from the crystal-like device to jingle.

“The Federation Navy suffered heavy losses in the battle. Surviving warships have been captured by the Atlas Group. Furthermore, after splitting its forces, the Atlas fleet launched an assault on the deep space infrastructure throughout the Loubion star system and is estimated to have already taken control of more than eighty percent of it.”

Phew…

The tight expression on Agnes’s face finally relaxed, and the light seemed to return to her eyes. The change made Natalia, her Royal Guard Commander and confidant, all the more curious about the contents of the secret letter. Still, she suppressed her curiosity and stood waiting quietly.

“Atlas. Amber!” Agnes gradually composed herself, pacing slowly around her chambers. “That incredible man really has created a miracle.”

“Your Highness, are you saying… Atlas won?” Natalia asked cautiously.

“They won. A major victory, at that, though I still don’t know how they managed it.”

Agnes said as she forwarded the secret letter to Natalia:

“Although the Atlas combat fleet also suffered heavy losses, the Federation Navy’s were far more severe. Essentially, four full-strength fleets have been rendered combat-ineffective. And Atlas has used this opportunity to establish effective control over the Loubion star system.”

Natalia: “Does this mean the cooperation between Your Highness and this Mr. Amber—or rather, the Atlas Group—can proceed to the next stage of discussion?”

Agnes nodded. “Naturally. And the potential that Amber and this megacorporation have shown makes me want to double down on my investment in him.”

“Your Highness, you wish to pursue a deeper partnership?”

“Don’t you think this company—or rather, this man—has the potential to warrant ‘doubling down’?” Agnes looked up at her Royal Guard Commander. “Initially, I only thought he could win. I never imagined he would win so decisively. So, I have no choice but to raise my ‘evaluation score’ for Mr. Amber and his company~”

The Princess paused, then turned and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the brightly lit Capital in the distance and the massive Grand Palace, draped in ‘starlight’.

Even through the soundproof glass, she knew the place was still bustling with noise, the prayers of fanatics echoing to the heavens.

Thinking of the Regent Prince’s recent series of moves and the various strange measures coming from The Grand Palace, Agnes felt storm clouds gathering, even though she knew her enthronement ceremony was drawing near.

After a moment, she spoke in a calm voice:

“You know what has been happening lately, Lord Natalia. Under these circumstances, I believe we truly need an ally with enough weight to support us.”

Natalia, who had quickly read the secret letter and recovered from her shock even faster, carefully chose her words before turning respectfully to Agnes, who was now near her bed.

“Your Highness, do you believe Mr. Amber will accept our proposal? His last discussion with Baron BASF led me to believe he is a greedy man, and…”

“And what?”

“And he was insolent towards you.”

“Hahahahaha~”

Hearing this, Agnes burst out laughing. A moment later, she continued, “Mr. Amber is a businessman. As a businessman, greed is a ‘trait’ that fits his station perfectly. That’s not surprising. As for ‘insolence’… I think compared to what Mr. Amber said, my opponents within the Empire are the truly insolent ones. Believe me, the things those vermin have concocted about me are far more vicious. I don’t even want you to see the reports from the Inspectorate.”

“Why would Your Highness not want me to see them?”

“Because I’m afraid after you read them, you’d immediately take the Royal Guard soldiers and have their houses raided and property confiscated, hahaha~”

Agnes seemed unconcerned by the malicious rumors circulating about her within the Empire, even joking about them with her Royal Guard Commander.

Only when she saw Natalia’s cheeks begin to blush did the Princess stop teasing and say seriously:

“This time, that fellow BASF gave me a pleasant surprise. I never expected him to take Mona with him to Atlas’s asteroid fortress.”

“Before the outcome of the battle was known?”

“Yes, before the outcome was known.” Agnes nodded. “Compared to rushing to congratulate them after a major victory, making a goodwill gesture when the result is still uncertain—and even bringing your closest loved one—is far more effective.”

“But in that case, won’t our side’s posture seem a little too subservient?”

Natalia frowned. Although she admired Baron BASF’s move, she was still worried that it might put the Princess’s side in a passive position during future negotiations.

Agnes: “It’s not a major problem. These gestures were all made by BASF. They don’t directly represent our position. They merely allow Mr. Amber to feel our sincerity.”

“What should we do next, then?”

“Let BASF wait at the asteroid fortress. If you’re going to put on a show, you have to commit to it. When Amber returns to the fortress, I’m sure he’ll be more than willing to have a good talk with BASF.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Atlas won?”

A low voice emerged from behind a dimly lit desk in the study.

“Yes, Your Grace. According to an urgent intelligence report we just received, while the exact casualty numbers are unknown, we can confirm the Federation Navy’s grand fleet suffered what can only be described as a ‘devastating’ blow. Furthermore, Atlas is now in complete control of the Loubion star system.”

The usually placid Astral’s voice held a rare trace of fluctuation. After all, he hadn’t been optimistic about Atlas’s chances before the battle, as the reports at the time indicated the Federation fleet’s size far exceeded their opponent’s.

“It seems I underestimated Mr. Amber’s abilities. At this rate, Atlas’s rise will be difficult to stop.”

From behind the desk, Norton II kept the upper half of his face cloaked in shadow, making it impossible for Astral to see his expression. He could only see a pair of lips moving up and down.

“But the good news is that after this battle, the Federation has completely lost the ability to engage in a large-scale military conflict with us for the foreseeable future. The negotiations in the border star systems will likely conclude soon. We can now focus our energy on ‘the plan’ with greater peace of mind.”

As he spoke, Norton II’s gaze fixed on Astral. From within the shadows, Astral could even see the Regent Prince’s eyes seem to emit a faint golden light.

“The ‘purge’ is nearing its end. Speed things up. Once the ‘purge’ is complete, the troops that need to be mobilized can begin to organize. Remember! Proceed slowly, according to the plan. Do not let anyone notice anything unusual.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

Chapter 579: The Iron Triangle’s Worries

The Federation’s high command received the battle report from the Loubion star system even earlier than the various factions in the Star Dragon Empire. Although it seemed the Loubion star system was now breaking away from the Federation’s control, it had in fact been Federation territory before the battle.

But after receiving the report, President Brandon, Minister of Defense Miller, and Fleet Admiral Trafalgar—the Federation’s “Iron Triangle”—went into a state of shock.

Marshal Trafalgar’s vital signs monitor even issued a “high heart rate” alarm at one point, nearly prompting the other two to call for the medical staff in the President’s Office.

Fortunately, the Fleet Admiral eventually recovered. After he composed himself, the three of them looked at each other, at a loss for words.

Earlier, when the communications department reported that the “Atlas long-range communication service” in the Loubion star system and surrounding areas had been temporarily suspended due to “technical issues,” they knew the navy’s fleet had likely engaged with Atlas’s forces.

Up to that point, the course of events had been within the predictions, or rather, the control, of the Federation’s high command.

The “Iron Triangle” had overruled all objections, taking a risk by dispatching their last mobile forces, even equipping them with one of the few remaining Proton Annihilation Bombs. Their true intention was to annihilate the Atlas Group’s combat fleet in one fell swoop.

While resolving the “internal crisis” brought about by this megacorporation, they also intended to make an example of Atlas to frighten the other restless factions within their territory.

Regarding this operational plan, whether it was Fleet Admiral Trafalgar or the other two, they all felt that if not a surefire success, it was at least as good as guaranteed.

Putting aside the hard power of five full-strength fleets, the single warp-capable Proton Annihilation Bomb the fleet carried could have been used to turn the tide of battle if they ever found themselves at a disadvantage.

And in the end, that warp-capable Proton Annihilation Bomb did indeed fulfill its mission of “turning the tide of battle.”

It just happened to turn the tide for their opponent…

“Do either of you have anything to say right now?”

President Brandon slumped into his large presidential office chair, staring blankly at the ceiling of the President’s Office. There, a dome fresco painted many years ago by a famous Federation muralist was titled The Power of Freedom.

But as Brandon looked at the fresco now, he felt as if the sea of people and raised hands representing the “power of freedom” were about to drag him in and tear him to shreds at any moment.

“We must ensure that we keep a firm grip on the remaining fleets.”

The first to speak was Minister of Defense Miller. He glanced at Trafalgar beside him and continued:

“The navy’s fleets are the only card we have left to maintain the initiative and our advantage. If we can’t even hold on to this ‘card,’ then the three of us might as well just end ourselves sooner rather than later.”

Seeing Miller look his way, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, who was standing to the side, spoke up as soon as the minister finished:

“I’ve already ordered the remaining fleets to consolidate their combat-ready ships and assemble at several secret deep space mooring points. Ships completing maintenance and repairs in the shipyards will also head to these areas to rendezvous at the earliest opportunity. The Federation Navy’s Internal Affairs Department, Naval Intelligence Agency, and Military Police will supervise the entire process to ensure the navy’s remaining capital fleets are not compromised and that no mutinies occur.”

“But if we do that, we’ll lose our deterrent effect over most of the star systems, won’t we?” Brandon frowned upon hearing Trafalgar’s words. “Those star system garrison fleets aren’t nearly as obedient as the navy’s fleets. If something goes wrong with a local Star System Autonomous Government, the loyalty of those garrison fleets will become a huge question mark.”

Miller: “At least the navy’s remaining capital fleets are in our hands. For the time being, no one will dare to move against us, Mr. President.”

After he spoke, a brief silence fell over the office.

The reason Brandon, Miller, and Trafalgar had become the most powerful “Iron Triangle” in Federation politics was not just because of Brandon’s and Miller’s respective positions as President and Minister of Defense. The key to the triangle’s stability was Fleet Admiral Trafalgar’s firm grip on the Federation Navy, a control he maintained through personal prestige and connections.

In this day and age, a navy of such massive scale—capable of deep space travel, orbital blockades, planetary strikes, and even deploying ground forces—had long surpassed all other branches of the military in status, to an almost untouchable degree.

Whoever controlled the navy controlled the nation’s most important armed force.

And Marshal Trafalgar was the de facto controller of the Federation Navy.

Compared to the main cannon of a warship, a politician’s words were naturally a “little” less intimidating.

Thus, after this trinity of political power, military authority, and personal connections was established, the three of them remained unchecked for a long time. The most dangerous period was likely when the Federation’s military-industrial complex was stirring up trouble. At that time, an unprecedentedly united military-industrial complex could have indeed taken advantage of the capital fleet being at the front lines to make a move.

Unfortunately for them, under the leadership of Madame Paris, the military-industrial complex ran headfirst into the brick wall that was Atlas and, unsurprisingly, was smashed to pieces, utterly defeated and dismantled by this even more terrifying enemy.

For the “Iron Triangle,” this was undoubtedly a good thing. The three of them had even privately thanked the Atlas Group more than once for clearing out the Federation’s “toxic blood.”

However, although Brandon, Miller, and Trafalgar stood at the pinnacle of the Federation at that time, it also meant they had to take the lead in confronting the threat from the Empire. Only by completely eliminating this “nemesis” could their positions within the Federation be fully secured.

Unfortunately, the “strategic decisive battle” initiated by Marshal Trafalgar, in a sense, failed to achieve its original strategic objectives.

While they had succeeded in destroying a large number of Imperial fleet in complete units, and even obliterated an Artificial Celestial Fortress, sending Duke William’s soul to return to the sea of stars, the final outcome was that, despite the immense costs on both sides, the territories controlled by the Federation and the Empire remained largely unchanged.

In Amber’s words, they had “fought for nothing.”

Immediately following that, a series of events in the Loubion star system, coupled with the armed intervention of the Atlas Group, threw the entire Federation into turmoil overnight once again.

The three of them naturally understood the principle of “securing the interior before dealing with external threats.”

Moreover, turmoil and rebellions within star systems were not uncommon in the past, so Brandon and the others knew they had to handle the Federation’s internal problems first, nipping any large-scale rebellion in the bud before they could even consider a strategy against the Star Dragon Empire.

This was why the three of them ultimately decided to risk everything, going “all in,” so to speak, by committing all of their main mobile forces to the Loubion star system.

It was just that the final outcome was not what they had expected.

And the loss of five entire fleets made the “Iron Triangle” realize that their control over the Federation’s interior would plummet in a short period. Therefore, they had to quickly come up with countermeasures before the news spread too widely.

Just as the three of them fell into silence, each lost in their own thoughts, there was a knock on the door of the President’s Office.

At a time like this, the only person who would dare to interrupt was one of their own trusted subordinates.

Soon, the President’s Office Chief of Staff, Hafir, walked into the room with a grave expression. The first words out of his mouth instantly “infected” the other three with the same look.

“Just a moment ago, a massive amount of information regarding the Federation fleet’s disastrous defeat in the Loubion star system appeared online.”

Chapter 580: Fanning the Flames

“[SHOCKING] Federation Navy Suffers Disastrous Defeat in Loubion Star System, Believed to be Wiped Out by Atlas Group!”

“[PREMIUM] The Battle of Loubion: The Federation Navy’s Major Setback and Future Strategic Reassessment!”

“The Federation Navy has suffered a crushing defeat in the war-torn Loubion star system. What on earth happened to our navy?”

“The Federation’s top brass really needs to reflect. All day they boast about their rise, all day they boast about revenge. If they were really as good as they claim, how could they lose to a private corporation?”

A deluge of information was dumped into the Federation’s cyberspace in an extremely short period. The timing was perfect; these negative news stories appeared in droves at basically the same moment the Federation’s high command received the battle report.

Moreover, the ‘ultra-long-range real-time communication service’ for the Loubion star system and its surrounding areas was conveniently restored at this very moment, thanks to the ‘all-out repair efforts’ of Atlas Communications technicians.

Like opening the floodgates, a massive amount of information from the Loubion star system began to spread to the outside world. It was a mix of truth and lies, fact and fiction; forget ordinary people, even the intelligence departments of the Federation and the Empire couldn’t necessarily distinguish the truth from the falsehoods.

Even though President Brandon and the others immediately had the public opinion monitoring department implement the highest level of information control upon learning of the situation, this merely delayed the fermentation of the news by a few hours.

By evening in The Capital’s local time, although the specific details of the fleet battle in the Loubion star system remained unclear, essentially everyone in the Federation with an internet connection knew that the last of the Federation Navy’s capital fleet had been virtually annihilated in the Loubion star system.

Behind the scenes, the close collaboration between Atlas Communications Group, the External Affairs Department, and the Intelligence Center was indispensable.

Using the ‘first-hand information’ they possessed, the External Affairs Department and the Intelligence Center produced news articles, short videos, and virtual space experience scenes that all looked highly credible and could stand up to scrutiny.

Meanwhile, Atlas Communications, leveraging its deep penetration into the Federation’s communication services, launched a targeted delivery campaign, ensuring that everyone could see the programs meticulously prepared for them.

It was precisely because of this that the Federation’s information and public opinion monitoring departments found it difficult to mount an effective response against ‘information warfare’ of this magnitude.

In the end, they could only resort to the most drastic measure of a ‘regional network shutdown’, allowing only government departments, critical institutions, law enforcement agencies, and public utilities to remain online. Ordinary citizens were temporarily unable to connect to regions outside their planets via the network.

But this method, ultimately, was only treating the symptoms, not the root cause.

Amidst this public opinion maelstrom, three ‘camps’ and three mainstream voices gradually formed within the Federation.

The first was the ordinary citizens of the Federation, the masses.

Most people in this situation would feel a sense of panic, fearing that the war and chaos would affect them personally. But after a brief period of alarm, life went on as usual; they ate and drank as they always had, and woke up early the next day to continue their grind.

In the words of one interviewee who wished to remain anonymous: “I don’t know if I’ll lose my life tomorrow, but I do know that if I don’t go to work tomorrow, I’ll definitely lose my job.”

The second group consisted of the ‘rebels’ from various star systems, represented by the Renaissance Alliance, or as they called themselves, the ‘Revolutionary Army’ or the ‘Insurgent Forces’.

After seeing the scattered pieces of information collected by their subordinates, the leaders of these factions all came to nearly the same conclusion: their chance had come.

Originally, what these ‘rebel forces’ feared most was the intervention of the Federation’s regular army. But now, it seemed this greatest threat had been more or less weakened, giving them the confidence to slowly deal with the system garrison units.

Furthermore, many ‘rebel forces’ were composed of the original system administrators and garrison units to begin with. This made them even bolder, and for a time, distress calls began to pour in from numerous star systems throughout the Federation.

The final group was the so-called ‘elite class’, represented by high-ranking Federation officials, plutocrats, and major capitalists.

After confirming that the Federation Navy’s capital fleet had indeed suffered a major defeat and that rebel activities were becoming increasingly frequent across the Federation, they were the ones who truly began to panic.

The Federation government was now facing a potential collapse. If you were an ordinary citizen, as long as you didn’t court death or have terrible luck, you could continue to be an ordinary citizen even after a ‘change in regime’.

But they, the ‘elite class’, would actually die.

And die horribly.

If the news of the Federation Navy’s defeat in the Loubion star system was the fuse that lit the ‘giant powder keg’ beneath the Federation, then the flood of negative news about the Federation and the highly manipulative information that subsequently appeared on various system-level local networks was like someone gently blowing on the lit fuse.

Graft, corruption, oppression, political scandals.

This ‘gossip’, which Federation citizens were familiar with but could never pin down with specifics, was now being disclosed with a wealth of complete and solid evidence.

The content was so rich and the production so polished that one could tell at a glance it was the work of an organized, premeditated effort. But the content was also all true.

For instance, one video, recorded with a large amount of ‘covert footage’, documented the story of a captain from a Federation cargo fleet in a certain star system. His ship, laden with a large amount of time-sensitive cargo, was intercepted by the system’s customs office on ‘suspicion of smuggling’.

Although the captain produced all the necessary documents and materials, the system’s customs officers still insisted that an enforcement team board the ship for a detailed inspection. This would take a great deal of time and could even directly cause problems with the highly time-sensitive cargo.

In the video, the captain, who had bet his entire fortune on this shipment, begged the customs officers tearfully. But from the enforcers’ words, it was not hard to discern the real reason for the interception: it was simply because the captain, who couldn’t spare another cent, had not paid a bribe to the system’s customs.

At the same time, a song that had recently become a hit in the Federation began to play softly as the video’s soundtrack. A world-weary male voice seemed to be singing the cargo ship captain’s innermost thoughts, right up until he sang the most classic line…

“We are all just struggling to live!”

Upon hearing this line, combined with the image of the captain squatting on the ground, crying helplessly, most viewers couldn’t help but shed tears. And in the current climate of the Federation, this deliberately stirred emotion quickly transformed into something else.

“We are all just struggling to live… Amber, honestly, sometimes I really admire this ability of yours to stir people’s hearts.”

In the captain’s lounge on The Dawn, Allenita, clad in nothing but a thin blanket, spoke in a tone of admiration as she rested comfortably in Amber’s arms.

“You flatter me. I’m not the one who came up with this kind of ‘narrative steering’~” Amber’s lazy voice replied, laced with a hint of fatigue.

“It’s a rather vicious tactic, I’ll admit, but I suppose it’s fitting for the current situation.”

Chapter 581: Negotiation

In his previous life, while arguing with others online, Amber had not only accumulated a mountain of demands that he “reflect on himself,” but had also been branded with all sorts of slanderous nicknames.

Little Pink, Iron-Blooded Wolf Warrior, Rabbit Scum, Fifty-Cent Shill.

However, he didn’t think there was anything wrong with these nicknames. In his view, these names were just what the “invisible enemies” resorted to out of shame and anger when they realized they couldn’t defeat their opponent, using labels they thought were deeply insulting.

But Amber didn’t see it that way.

“Iron-Blooded Wolf Warrior… sounds pretty cool, doesn’t it?”

Precisely because he had extensive experience with online debates, Amber was very familiar with the tactics of those “invisible enemies” and their methods of fanning the flames and steering the narrative.

From a certain perspective, the enemy’s organization was meticulous, and their methods were highly systematic—something worth learning from.

And this time, Amber was putting what he had learned into practice.

Seeing Allenita’s still-curious gaze, Amber reached out, pulled the blanket on her up a little higher to cover her smooth shoulders, and continued to explain:

“This is nothing new. The Federation and the Empire have both used it before. It’s just that with such vast territories, the lag in super-long-distance information transmission made it impossible to conduct this kind of ‘information warfare’ synchronously.

And if each region fought on its own, the effectiveness of ‘information warfare’ would be greatly diminished, because the targeted party would have ample time to organize a defense and extinguish these attacks in every corner.”

Allenita: “But now you have ‘Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology’?”

“Exactly~”

Amber snapped his fingers and continued:

“The advent of Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology has made our vast territory seem to shrink in an instant, allowing us to launch large-scale ‘information warfare’ attacks simultaneously. Of course, we also have the Federation government to thank for giving us this opportunity~”

“An opportunity?” Allenita blinked, a bit puzzled.

Amber: “If they hadn’t failed so thoroughly in the Loubion star system, we wouldn’t have had such a perfect environment for our public relations, external propaganda, and intelligence departments to shine.

Under normal circumstances, the Federation’s Public Opinion Management Department has monitoring AI that are actually very fast at strangling these kinds of rumors and information meant to fan the flames and steer the narrative. But this time, because we were one step ahead in spreading the news from the Loubion star system all over the web, we’d already blown past the red line for their management department, so its capabilities were already greatly compromised.

At the same time, the Federation populace’s mood has entered a special state, making them prone to losing their ability to think rationally and be led by the nose.

At this juncture, we again leveraged the network we’d built, allowing our programs, media outlets, opinion leaders, social media accounts, and so on—all of which had already established a viewer base—to disseminate a massive amount of narrative-steering information. The effect is much better that way. Please note, these videos must be leading, able to provoke negative emotions in the viewer, and finally, subtly point the finger at the Federation government.”

The more the female elf listened, the more she felt something was off. By the time she heard the last part, she couldn’t help but arch a delicate eyebrow.

“Something’s not right, Amber. How are you so skilled at this?”

“We Psionic Agents know everything~”

Allenita grabbed the thin blanket with her hand and sat up from Amber’s embrace, saying with a hint of pique, “That ‘they taught me at the military academy’ line might work on a little girl like Isabelle, but don’t you dare try to fool me with that!”

“Tsk… then I’ll have to use other methods.” Amber also sat up, gazing into Allenita’s eyes and leaning closer and closer.

“Wh-what other methods? Mmph.”

Loubion V, administrative capital Bresk.

After the Renaissance Alliance swept aside the other major powers on the planet, this planetary political center became an isolated city.

Although Franklin’s forces had lowered the priority of attacking this megacity due to its complete fortification and the fact that Bresk’s citizens were being held as “hostages,” now that the battle for the Loubion star system was drawing to a close, the city had to face its final chapter.

The planetary administrator of the Loubion star system, Alex, his staff, and some of the local megacorporations and plutocrats who had retreated to the administrative capital were now considered “remnants of the Federation,” given that the entire Loubion system was now under control.

Given the special status of these individuals and the numerous inhumane acts they had previously committed—including the incident that triggered the rebellion in the Loubion star system—Alex and the others knew their fate would likely not be a good one.

But thankfully, the presence of millions of citizens forced the Renaissance Alliance to consider civilian safety, making the use of weapons of mass destruction impossible.

Moreover, the city’s defenses, which had been fortified and were continuously being strengthened, meant that if Franklin wanted to take the city by a direct ground assault, he would have to suffer enormous casualties.

So, after several rounds of mediation, the two sides finally decided to try and resolve the current problem peacefully, in the form of negotiations.

Alex and the others unhesitatingly demanded that the leader of the Renaissance Alliance, Franklin, enter Bresk to negotiate. Their reason was that they feared being “executed by artillery fire” by the Alliance’s forces the moment they left the protection of the city’s defenses.

Most of the Renaissance Alliance’s core leadership initially opposed this demand. It was simply too dangerous, like a lamb walking into a tiger’s den. If the Autonomous Government officials tried to seize Franklin, the Alliance wouldn’t be able to react in time.

But in the end, Franklin overruled all objections and decided to personally lead the delegation to the meeting.

“Where there is struggle, there will be casualties. If possible, I hope those ‘casualties’ fall upon me, not on the soldiers of the Renaissance Alliance or the civilians of Bresk.”

After leaving these words behind, the leader of the Renaissance Alliance led a delegation of volunteers through the stalemate on the front lines, escorted by a small elite force, and entered the “dragon’s den” that was Bresk.

Fortunately, the worst-case scenario did not happen. Alex and his people did not use this opportunity to eliminate Franklin and his delegation. Instead, they truly brought them to the Autonomous Government building, evidently intending to negotiate for real.

At this point, Franklin’s heart relaxed considerably, and his steps were much more composed as he walked into the negotiation hall.

“The former planetary administrator, former administrative deputy, former secretary-general, former auditor-general, former treasurer… and all these ‘outstanding entrepreneurs’…”

Sitting down at the negotiation table, Franklin scanned the lineup of attendees, a smile appearing on his face that the other side could not comprehend.

“Excellent. It seems everyone who should be here today has arrived~”

Chapter 582: Now That Everyone’s Here, We Can Get Down to Business

“Everyone who should be here has arrived?” Alex, the ‘former’ planetary administrator of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, frowned in confusion. “Mr. Franklin, what do you mean by that?”

“Hahaha, I don’t mean anything by it~ The more people who show up, the more conclusive today’s negotiations will be, wouldn’t you agree?”

Franklin wore a smile, and for some reason, his whole demeanor suddenly became very relaxed, which made the people from the Autonomous Government on the other side feel their scalps tingle.

However, Alex suppressed the doubt in his heart and said:

“In that case, let’s begin today’s negotiations, Mr. Franklin.”

“Oh~ Wait!”

Franklin raised his hand, signaling for him to hold on. He then had a representative beside him take out a small terminal from a briefcase and push it across the table to Alex.

“There’s another important person joining our negotiations today.”

“What is this?”

“You just need to connect this terminal,” Franklin said with a smile. “He’s an old friend of yours. I’m sure you’re no stranger to him, Mr. Alex.”

“An old friend?”

Alex suspiciously handed the terminal to a staff member. A name that left a ‘deep impression’ on him slowly surfaced in his mind. After a quick security check, the staff member swiftly connected it to the conference room’s main terminal.

Soon, a familiar voice echoed through the room’s sound system, and a face very familiar to both parties appeared on the main screen.

“Oh my, so many old friends here today. Good morning, everyone~ Have you all eaten yet?”

Amber, the man who was currently seen as the main culprit, a devil, in the eyes of the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, appeared before them with a beaming smile.

He soon spotted Alex, who was seated in the center of the Autonomous Government’s side.

“Isn’t this the ‘former’ planetary administrator, Alex? It’s been a long time.”

As a typical internet troll, an expert at online debates, and a master of emotional manipulation, Amber deliberately emphasized the word ‘former’.

He could never forget the planetary administrator’s attitude during their previous negotiations with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government, nor the series of measures he had taken afterward, which had even led to the unfortunate death of one of the group’s employees on Loubion V.

So, he certainly wasn’t going to show him the slightest bit of courtesy now.

“To think that the next time we’d meet would be in a situation like this. It really is a peculiar feeling.”

Hearing Amber’s words, the faces of the Autonomous Government representatives, including Alex, instantly darkened.

Across from them, Franklin’s smile also turned a bit stiff upon hearing these ‘opening remarks’.

Amber had previously only mentioned that he wanted to ‘listen in’ on the meeting and help the Renaissance Alliance secure some more benefits—after all, within the Loubion star system, the Atlas Group was currently the one with the most firepower.

However, Franklin hadn’t expected Amber to open with such a provocative statement, as if he couldn’t wait to infuriate Alex and his people.

“Bro… you’re really something else. It’s fine for you to say a few words, but I’m the one who’s physically here! What if the Autonomous Government people turn around and take it out on me?”

While silently praying, Franklin maintained his signature smile—a basic skill for any Federation politician. Even though this ‘idealistic youth’ was now leading a rebellion, he hadn’t lost that skill.

However, the reaction from the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s side surprised Franklin a little.

Faced with Amber’s provocation, although Alex’s expression changed several times like a chameleon’s skin, he eventually calmed down and even managed to squeeze out a smile.

“Heh… yes, Rebil. No, I should be addressing you as Mr. Amber. It has indeed been a long time.”

Alex and his people’s posture was even more deferential than Franklin had anticipated. He could only attribute this to the overwhelming military and comprehensive strength the Atlas Group had previously demonstrated.

Especially at this critical juncture, with The Federation no longer able to provide any support to the Loubion star system, the Autonomous Government seemed to have no other choice but to adopt a humble stance.

“Well, I won’t waste any more time on pleasantries. You two sides can start your negotiations. I hope this bustling metropolis can ultimately be handed over peacefully. Don’t mind me, I’m just here as a witness. Just pretend I don’t exist, Mr. Alex~”

Amber still wore that completely harmless smile. If not for the fact that everyone present knew his background, they might have mistaken him for a ‘sunny and cheerful young man’.

However, as for his “pretend I don’t exist” line, neither Franklin nor Alex knew what to say. Wherever Amber’s face was displayed, both of them felt as if an entire fleet was being shoved in their faces.

With that, the negotiations between the Renaissance Alliance and the original Loubion Star System Autonomous Government began.

Both the Renaissance Alliance and the Autonomous Government were well aware of one thing: Bresk, or rather, all of Loubion V, was bound to fall under the complete control of the Renaissance Alliance sooner or later. The only reason it had been delayed this long was that the Autonomous Government held the ten million people of the administrative capital as ‘hostages’.

Today’s negotiation was just an attempt to make it happen more gracefully.

Alex and his people’s idea was simple, and in Amber’s view, utterly ridiculous: the Autonomous Government hoped to achieve ‘co-governance’ with the Renaissance Alliance.

However, if one considered it from their perspective, their request had its reasons—these ‘remnants of the Federation’ had nowhere else to go.

Return to Federation-controlled space?

Setting aside whether the Federation government would hold them accountable and make them scapegoats for the ‘fall’ of the Loubion star system just to have someone to blame;
the mere fact that these bureaucrats and capitalists had been kicked out with nothing meant their future survival was a major issue.

Neither The Federation nor The Empire was a friendly place for those who had lost their power. Their former enemies seeking revenge had been waiting for this day for far too long.

Stay in the Loubion star system and live like ordinary people?

Putting aside whether these people, who were used to living pampered lives, could accept falling from the clouds to the dirt overnight, some of the planet’s citizens would probably not want to let them off the hook.

What’s more, Franklin hadn’t given them that choice.

Not only would the Renaissance Alliance not accept ‘co-governance,’ but they were also demanding that the people currently holed up in Bresk scram immediately—taking only their own relatives with them.

If Alex and his people accepted this proposal, the Renaissance Alliance would guarantee their safety.

So, it was no surprise that after just two short hours, the negotiations between the two sides broke down.

Just as Alex was considering whether to lower their demands and try to mediate with Franklin and the others again, he saw the representatives of the Renaissance Alliance across from him all stand up and walk toward the exit.

“Wait. What are you…?”

“Since we can’t come to an agreement, let’s not waste any more time.”

Franklin looked back at Alex and said in a calm tone:

“I suggest you discuss it further and accept our proposal. Believe me, it’s the best outcome for you. I’ll give you another half an hour. Think it over~”

After speaking, the leader of the Renaissance Alliance led his entourage out of the conference room without a second glance.

No one noticed that the young leader’s forehead was beaded with sweat, and the shirt under his suit was now soaked through.

What Alex and his people knew even less was that at this very moment, in orbit above Loubion V, a red-painted Heavy Armored Gunship was slowly entering low orbit, and on its semi-recessed hardpoints hung two plasma torpedoes that had clearly undergone special modifications.

“‘Hive,’ be advised, ‘Red Baron’ is in position!”

Chapter 583: Decapitation by Plasma Torpedo

After Franklin and his entourage left the negotiation hall for the lounge, Alex and the others remained seated, still somewhat stunned.

Amber offered a few polite, superficial remarks, urging those present to abandon their fantasies and face reality, before temporarily cutting the comms to let the “remnants of the Federation” discuss matters among themselves.

Intuition told Alex, the former planetary administrator of the Autonomous Government, that Amber and Franklin must have other trump cards up their sleeves to display such an assertive stance.

To put it bluntly, they had no intention of giving Alex and his people a choice.

“They’re really going too far. Even a cornered rabbit will bite. Aren’t those bastards worried we’ll take them down with us?”

The Secretary-General of the Autonomous Government spoke with indignation, and the thoughts and emotions of the others around him were much the same. The other side’s actions showed a complete disregard for Bresk’s fortified city defenses and its tens of millions of citizens.

“That’s right! I don’t agree to being driven out like this. This is my home, all my businesses are here!”

“Exactly. My Lawrence family has built its foundation here for three generations. Why should we just hand it over on a platter?”

“Count me in. I’d rather die than be forced out!”

The local plutocrats and major capitalists of the Loubion star system who hadn’t fled yet also roared with righteous indignation. They knew full well what being driven out entailed, so they completely rejected the Renaissance Alliance’s demands.

Then, a low voice drew everyone’s attention.

“Perhaps this Mr. Franklin… no, it should be the Mr. Amber behind him, truly doesn’t give a damn about the ‘trump cards’ we hold, does he?”

The speaker was the new Administrative Deputy, the one who had replaced Sam, who had been on very close terms with Atlas. To “show his loyalty,” this new deputy had immediately purged a large number of personnel with close ties to Atlas.

The sheer scale of the purge was far greater than any anti-corruption campaign the Autonomous Government had ever conducted internally.

Hearing the Administrative Deputy’s words, Alex felt as if a light had switched on in his head. He suddenly stood up and walked straight toward the City Defense Commander, who was also attending the meeting.

“Warren, can we still monitor the planet’s orbit?”

Alex’s question clearly put City Defense Commander Warren in a difficult position. After a moment of hesitation, he finally answered.

“Sir, we’ve basically lost surveillance of Loubion V’s outer orbit. Most of our military and communications satellites have been captured or destroyed. For now, we can only rely on observations from ground-based equipment, and our range is limited to what we can see from Bresk.”

Alex pressed, “If the enemy were to launch an orbital strike against us, could we get an advance warning?”

“You mean…” City Defense Commander Warren seemed to realize something. He quickly glanced around the room and couldn’t help but look up at the ceiling, as if his gaze could pierce through the roof and see into orbit.

“It’s just a hunch. That’s why I came to you for confirmation.”

Alex gestured for Warren to remain calm and not overreact, lest he cause a panic. The commander immediately regained his composure and quickly contacted the City Defense Command Headquarters.

The Atlas Group’s unique tactic of using conventional warships in low orbit for close fire support had previously been recorded in their feature database, and it had been confirmed that the movements of these assault ships could be observed from the ground.

So, Warren quickly contacted his subordinates to see if any such signs had been detected. Although standard procedure dictated that the anti-air combat command would report any anomalies to him immediately, under the immense pressure of the moment, the City Defense Commander felt it was better to inquire personally to be sure.

Soon, word came back from the anti-air combat command: no Atlas warships had crossed the “no-fly line” established by the Autonomous Government, and no traces of any warships had been found in low orbit.

This result naturally brought a sigh of relief to both Warren and Alex.

But whenever the latter recalled the words of Franklin and Amber, he still felt a knot of anxiety. The threatening undertone made him restless.

“Perhaps they intend to launch a ground assault? While we haven’t seen any signs of an orbital strike, the ‘fortress zones’ around the city have been successively reporting warnings of enemy troop movements.”

Warren offered his guess, simultaneously displaying the view from his portable command terminal to Alex.

Although the planetary administrator was no expert in military command, he could still understand a battlefield situation map. It was clear that the Renaissance Alliance’s forces had completely surrounded Bresk, and their vanguard heavy armored units had already moved into attack-ready positions.

But there was one thing he couldn’t figure out. Since the Renaissance Alliance was already prepared for a full-scale assault, why would they have Franklin risk his own neck by coming here in person?

If his side were to play dirty and detain Franklin and the other negotiators, Alex believed the Renaissance Alliance wouldn’t be so quick to order an attack…

Unless they were willing to sacrifice their leader.

As the two deliberated, the half-hour Franklin had given them quickly passed. However, the various factions on the Autonomous Government’s side were all trying to protect their own interests, making it impossible to reach a consensus.

When Franklin returned to the hall with the members of the Renaissance Alliance and saw the former Autonomous Government officials and the plutocrats and capitalists still arguing, his expression darkened instantly.

“Hopeless, these people…”

After muttering this under his breath, he said no more, turned, and left with his delegation. This time, they weren’t heading back to the lounge prepared for them but walking straight out of the Autonomous Government’s administrative building.

“Wait.”

Seeing Franklin and his group leaving, Alex tried to call them back to continue the talks, but he was a step too late.

As the Renaissance Alliance members disappeared through the doorway, City Defense Commander Warren quickly moved to Alex’s side and asked in a low voice:

“Should we have our men take them down? They don’t have many guards. The combat units we have deployed around the administrative building can definitely handle them…”

“I really don’t want to do this, but have the troops finish it quickly. We can’t afford any more complications.”

“Red Baron to Hive. Ten minutes to attack orbit. No final strike order received. Advise slowing to hold? Over.”

“Hive to Red Baron. Advise reducing ground speed by one-fifth. Over.”

“Red Baron copies. Reducing speed now. Over.”

After the brief communication, Manfred pulled the gunship’s propulsion mode lever back to ‘Reverse One.’ Feeling a reverse thrust from the craft’s hull and confirming that his ground speed had dropped by nearly a fifth, he pushed the control lever back to the central ‘Neutral’ position.

In Manfred’s view, piloting the Heavy Armored Gunship was, in most situations, more like captaining a ship.

Only when entering combat and engaging in a dogfight, where the throttle and control stick were the primary inputs, did it feel more like some kind of “space fighter.”

This mission, however, lacked such thrilling moments. Manfred simply needed to pilot his gunship to the predetermined orbit within the scheduled time and release the modified plasma torpedo at the designated drop point.

It was less an orbital strike and more a special delivery mission.

If the garrison fleet were still defending the orbit of Loubion V, it would have been very difficult for Manfred’s Heavy Armored Gunship, even with its covert operations mode engaged, to brazenly sneak into the airspace above a critical area like Bresk.

This was because once in low orbit, the friction between the gunship’s hull and the upper atmosphere, combined with the unfavorable conditions for stealth at the boundary between the atmosphere and the background of space, would cause the gunship to be picked up by the infrared sensors of any warship in orbit.

This was why aerospace bombers and near-space assault craft had eventually faded from history. When there was a warship in a higher orbit with powerful detection capabilities and the ability to “pick off” targets with near-light-speed weapons like charged particle cannons, the survivability of these aircraft that once dominated low orbit plummeted to nearly zero.

But the situation the Renaissance Alliance currently faced happened to be right back in the comfort zone of an aerospace bomber.

After all, the signs of a warship descending to low orbit to attack were easy to spot. But capturing stealth-capable aircraft like aerospace bombers from the ground was not so easy.

The problem was that Franklin couldn’t just whip up an aerospace bomber on short notice. If any of the aerospace museums on Loubion V had one on display, he would have tried to drag the “antique” out and refit it.

Unfortunately, these museums didn’t even have near-space vehicles in their collections.

It was at this point that the Armaments Procurement Department, responsible for liaising with the Atlas Group, reported that the Heavy Armored Gunships purchased from Atlas Armaments seemed to have low-orbit flight capabilities.

Furthermore, the manual for the MA-01B Block 5 included an appendix with “instructions” on how to add orbital strike capabilities to its plasma torpedoes, and the whole process was remarkably simple and easy to understand.

First, build a new shell for the torpedo using highly heat-resistant materials—not a difficult task for the Renaissance Alliance, which already had a certain industrial base and the complete specifications for the plasma torpedo.

Next, fit the torpedo with a set of atmospheric control components and replace the attack seeker head with a comprehensive guidance package integrating celestial, satellite, imagery, and inertial navigation.

And just like that, a plasma torpedo with basic orbital strike capability was ready.

In terms of accuracy, this hastily cranked-out emergency solution certainly couldn’t compare to a purpose-built orbital strike missile.

But for hitting a target the size of a large building, it was more than adequate.

Moreover, the plasma warhead of an anti-ship plasma torpedo was already incredibly powerful. The high-temperature plasma fireball generated by its explosion was even more devastating in the atmosphere than in space.

So, unless one intended to kill a person with the kinetic impact alone, hitting the target was not a major concern.

When Franklin heard this news, he was ecstatic, but he also questioned the Armaments Procurement Department:

“Why didn’t you say so earlier? Are you telling me we’ve had an aerospace bomber in our order of battle all along, complete with its own dedicated orbital strike weapon?”

The Minister of Armaments Procurement replied, “Well, you never asked before.”

You see, this world is just one giant ragtag operation.

After this “small incident,” the secret strike mission ultimately fell to the Heavy Armored Gunship detachment.

“Get me your detachment’s most skilled and daring pilot. There’s an important combat mission!”

And so, the choice of pilot fell, unsurprisingly, upon the already renowned “Red Baron.”

The wait was long. In the final moments before entering the attack orbit, Manfred felt as if a whole day had passed.

Since there was no possibility of other enemies in orbit, Manfred switched on the gunship’s automatic warning system and zoned out in boredom.

Until the call from “Hive” came again.

“Hive to Red Baron. Strike order received. Transmitting command via tactical network. Prepare to strike!”

Hearing the long-awaited voice, Manfred snapped to attention. Seeing a new attack order transmitted via the tactical network appear in the gunship’s combat system, he replied excitedly over the encrypted comms:

“Red Baron to Hive. Attack order received. Commencing ground attack operation. I repeat, commencing ground attack operation!”

With that, the young gunship pilot slammed the propulsion mode lever forward to ‘Advance Two.’ The MA-01B Block 5, which had been coasting towards the attack orbit on inertia, suddenly had its rear thruster array erupt in a blaze of blue light. The entire gunship shot forward, its ground speed on the holographic dashboard skyrocketing in an instant.

In the cockpit, Manfred, with the help of the combat assistance AI, swiftly guided the gunship into the pre-planned attack orbit.

Like anything dropped from orbit, the ground-attack plasma torpedo wasn’t just dropped straight down; it had to follow a specific attack trajectory.

For the first half of this trajectory, the Heavy Armored Gunship was not only responsible for carrying the torpedo but also for imparting it with sufficient initial velocity upon release.

Having run through the entire procedure countless times in the simulator and having actually dropped a full-scale torpedo model on the other side of the planet, Manfred skillfully maneuvered the gunship into orbit. He pushed the altitude as low as possible while trying to give the torpedo maximum speed.

But this acceleration was not infinite. Soon, Manfred felt a kind of “lift” from beneath the gunship, and the combat assistance AI indicated that it was time to release the payload.

As the Red Baron slammed his hand down on a volumetric light display, the Heavy Armored Gunship, just as it was “bounced” back up by the atmosphere, released a strangely shaped plasma torpedo from its semi-recessed hardpoint.

“Payload released! I repeat, payload released! Inform ground units near the attack coordinate to take cover!”

As Manfred’s report came through, the plasma torpedo re-entered Earth’s atmosphere at a staggering speed of over Mach 30. The intense friction between its aerodynamically shaped nose and the upper atmosphere triggered a strong plasma effect.

In an instant, a plasma sheath with a temperature of several thousand degrees Celsius formed around the torpedo. This high-temperature plasma not only gave the torpedo a natural stealth screen, making it nearly impossible for ground-based radar to get a precise lock on its location, but also posed a severe test for its internal precision instruments.

However, Atlas’s armaments division had already considered this when designing the modification. Inside the plasma torpedo, where a small amount of space had been freed up by slightly reducing the “charge,” multiple layers of thermal insulation and an advanced heat management system worked in concert to ensure the core components remained stable under extreme conditions.

But the plasma torpedo’s stealth didn’t last long. Although the plasma sheath interfered with radar detection, the extremely high surface temperature of the shell from atmospheric friction was quickly spotted by infrared detection units on the ground.

“Warning! Unidentified high-speed target detected. Suspected orbital assault missile! Designate temporary ID Echo-1!”

“Warning! Echo-1 has entered the defense perimeter. Initiating interception procedures immediately!”

In Bresk’s anti-air command center, alarms blared incessantly, and red warning lights flashed. The moment it detected the torpedo, the automated control system activated the anti-air protocols.

“Wait… where did that come from? We haven’t detected any orbital assault ships!”

The anti-aircraft commander stared in horror at the suddenly appearing Echo-1, instantly thrown into a panic. The automated system had already calculated the “orbital assault missile’s” landing position: the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government’s administrative building.

And right now, over ninety percent of the Autonomous Government’s high-level officials, along with the top plutocrats and capitalists, were all there for the negotiations with the Renaissance Alliance.

“Fuck… it’s all over…”

His legs feeling weak, the anti-aircraft commander practically stumbled to the communications terminal and, with trembling hands, connected to City Defense Commander Warren.

Warren, who had just seen the air-raid siren, immediately demanded as the call connected:

“What’s going on? Didn’t I tell you to keep your eyes glued to outer space? Where did this orbital assault missile come from?!”

“I-I don’t know, Sir! You need to evacuate now! That thing is headed straight for your position!”

“What?!”

While the anti-aircraft commander was speaking with Warren, dozens of interceptor missiles deployed in surface and underground silos around Bresk launched one after another. Their engines roared against the planet’s gravity, trying to accelerate the missiles to speeds over Mach 10 to intercept the high-speed threat.

Following them, several dazzling laser beams and charged particle beams shot out from ground-based laser weapon platforms, leaving fiery trails in their wake.

However, the plasma torpedo’s design was far more sophisticated than they imagined. Upon sensing the external threats, the torpedo immediately initiated evasive maneuvers, performing large-angle slides and dives at astonishing speeds.

These movements not only made tracking extremely difficult but also allowed it to evade most direct hits. Even when irradiated by the high-energy lasers and charged particle beams, the torpedo’s external plasma sheath and its new material shell were enough to withstand the attacks.

And the interception window was not large.

Just as the interceptor missiles and laser beams were about to reach the plasma torpedo, the final stage of its thruster ignited, and the entire missile’s speed surged once more.

The atmosphere inside the anti-air command center was stretched to its breaking point. Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on every update scrolling across the screens. Beads of sweat formed on the anti-aircraft commander’s forehead, and he was rendered speechless, able to do nothing but pray and await the final outcome.

Meanwhile, evacuation sirens had begun to wail in Bresk’s administrative building. The members of the Autonomous Government, including Alex, were practically scrambling and crawling their way out of the negotiation hall.

But for a plasma torpedo that had entered the atmosphere at Mach 30 to launch its attack, it was far too late to run.

As the final interception window closed, the plasma torpedo entered its irreversible attack phase, hurtling towards its target at a near-vertical angle.

Just seconds later, as the plasma torpedo smashed through the administrative building’s outer glass curtain and its first layer of steel structure, the plasma warhead was triggered.

In that instant, a massive, high-temperature plasma fireball swelled up in the blink of an eye, completely engulfing the entire building.

The bluish-white, high-temperature plasma fireball, ionized by the extreme heat, reached a core temperature of tens of millions of degrees Celsius in a moment. Due to the high-temperature nature of the plasma, the space around it was heated, and the rapidly expanding air generated a powerful shockwave.

The first things to be affected were the building’s exterior non-metallic materials. The glass curtain instantly shattered from the heat, and combustible materials like plastic and wood burst into flames.

The steel structure that formed the building’s main body, despite its good heat resistance, began to gradually soften and deform under such extreme conditions.

The entire building seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand and squeezed with immense force. The steel structure rapidly lost its strength under the high temperature, beginning to twist and break.

Starting from the top floor, it collapsed, one level after another, like a set of dominoes. A deafening roar echoed through the city district. Where the administrative building once stood, dust and debris filled the sky, creating an apocalyptic scene.

The plasma warhead’s attack did not last long. When the dust settled, the Autonomous Government’s administrative building, which once stood proudly as a symbol of power, had been reduced to a pile of molten ruin.

Franklin and his group, who had managed to escape to a safe distance just in the nick of time, slowly climbed to their feet, covered in dust, after the roar of the explosion faded and the plasma fireball died down.

“Fuck! Next time, someone else can do this shit.”

Chapter [arabic_numeral]: No Battle Today!

No Battle Today!

It’s simple, I’ve got writer’s block. T-T

Chapter 584: Loubion Star System, Conquest Complete!

The plasma torpedo attack was surprisingly effective.

To Franklin’s accompanying officers and armed personnel, the destructive effect was very similar to an attack by rockets with plasma warheads. However, to achieve the same payload effect as the plasma torpedo, they roughly estimated it would require at least two large launch vehicles, and all rockets would have to hit the building to achieve a similar result.

The administrative building, primarily a steel-framed structure, had mostly melted under the extreme heat of the attack. When the attack ended, the steel structures cooled rapidly, twisting together into a state that its original architect would not recognize.

Under these circumstances, the survival rate of anyone inside the building was essentially zero.

While a miracle of life was certainly possible, by the time a rescue team arrived, figured out how to break through the obstacles formed by the steel structures, and searched deep within the ruins for survivors, the bodies would have long since grown cold.

Not to mention, the area around the administrative building was about to become a new battlefield.

Although Alex, the City Defense Commander, and the others had been turned to ash in the attack, the orders they had issued to the standby combat units in the vicinity were transmitted before the strike hit.

So, not long after Franklin and his group left the administrative building, and just as the plasma torpedoes were entering the atmosphere, several combat units near the building that had received the orders sprang into action.

However, the sudden attack on the administrative building still plunged them into a moment of chaos. The troops, who had been charging straight for the plaza in front of the building, came to an abrupt halt to assess the situation.

Although the commanders of these units were among the most loyal to City Defense Commander Warren, this did not mean they would charge directly into the high-temperature plasma fireball generated by the plasma torpedo’s explosion.

Once the fireball subsided and the administrative building vanished from view, the commanders of these combat units immediately discovered they could no longer contact Warren. This caused them to hesitate for a time, ordering their troops to take cover along the streets and await further instructions.

This gave Franklin and his team an extremely valuable window of time to rally their forces.

As per the Autonomous Government’s demands, the Renaissance Alliance security detail, which had been on standby at a stadium three blocks away, acted at the very moment of the explosion. They first eliminated the garrison units on guard duty in the vicinity.

Then, the security detail charged toward the pre-arranged rendezvous point with Franklin’s group without hesitation. They successfully escorted Franklin and the others into their formation before the surrounding garrison units could encircle them, quickly establishing a temporary defensive perimeter using a nearby public park.

But the security forces Franklin could bring were limited. The Autonomous Government would never have agreed to let him bring a large military contingent into Bresk—if they had, what was to stop those troops from staging a “blossoming in the center” attack?

So when the City Defense Force regained its composure and surrounded them, the pressure on the Renaissance Alliance’s frontline increased dramatically.

“Isn’t the support in position yet?! We have limited troops, we can’t hold out for long!”

With the help of his entourage, Franklin had quickly donned a suit of combat exoskeleton with the highest-spec add-on armor plates. Seeing the precarious state of the defensive line around him, he could no longer remain calm and rushed over to the security detail’s commander to demand answers.

As he roared, a nearby ‘Aegis’ in a defensive stance had its deflector shield knocked out by enemy concentrated fire.

The next second, several attacks from different directions swept in, instantly blowing apart the Aegis’s left mechanical arm and the combination heavy shield mounted on its shoulder guard.

Just as the HCP was left wide open and on the verge of being destroyed by the next salvo, another ‘Aegis’ raised its deflector shield and moved in front of it. While blocking the incoming attack, it returned fire on the enemy units preparing to shoot and launched a series of thermal smoke shells, temporarily sealing off the street ahead.

But the thermal smoke wall had barely formed when the two HCPs suddenly made emergency lateral dashes to the left and right, their omni-directional warning systems having just blared with the sound of an enemy fire-control unit lock-on.

For the various weapons equipped on an HCP, however, lead time was hardly a consideration in ground combat. Nearly all pilots operated on a ‘point-and-shoot’ basis.

So when the blue-white beam of a heavy particle cannon violently blew away the newly formed smoke wall, sweeping toward them with unstoppable momentum, it still hit one of the ‘Aegis’ units.

Fortunately, it was the ‘Aegis’ whose deflector shield had not yet overloaded.

The ‘special effects’ of a heavy particle cannon in an atmosphere were already spectacular. When the high-velocity heavy metal particle stream slammed into the deflector shield and was refracted in all directions, the spectacle became even more dazzling.

However, such ‘effects’ were not so wonderful for the surrounding infantry.

Many soldiers who were in the middle of firing were forced to abandon their cover and quickly duck behind nearby armored vehicles. After all, the heavy metal particles raining down randomly from the sky were not something a human body could withstand.

At the moment the heavy particle cannon struck the deflector shield, the commander of the Renaissance Alliance security detail forcefully pulled Franklin to the ground, shielding him with his own body.

Fortunately, a nearby command vehicle absorbed the brunt of the damage, and the ‘Aegis’ whose deflector shield generator had overloaded also proactively moved to shield Franklin and the others after noticing the ‘VIPs’ nearby. Otherwise, the leader of the Renaissance Alliance might very well have died just now from an ‘unidentified AOE attack.’

“Cough, cough, cough, cough.”

Choking on the scattered dust and smoke, Franklin staggered to his feet just in time to see the ‘Aegis’ that had just blocked a direct hit from the heavy particle cannon draw its heavy plasma severing sword and charge toward a distant garrison HCP.

A delayed sonic boom indicated that the ‘Aegis’s’ instantaneous acceleration had just exceeded the speed of sound. Franklin felt as though he had only blinked, and the ‘Aegis,’ piloted by a veteran, had already plunged the tip of its severing sword into the enemy HCP’s cockpit.

But immediately afterward, surrounding HCPs and anti-vehicle teams plunged the ‘Aegis’ into a grueling fight. It had to activate its deflector shield and point-defense weapons at full power and even performed a desperate ‘backhand sword’ maneuver, using the broad side of its severing sword to block two anti-vehicle missiles aimed straight for its plasma thruster array.

While this move saved the thruster array, the severing sword was blown into three pieces.

Without time to think, the pilot of the now-unarmed ‘Aegis’ stomped its mechanical legs as its plasma thrusters once again flared with a dazzling blue light, and the entire unit charged toward the nearest garrison HCP.

Through the head-tracking control system, the pilot’s movements were translated into a heavy punch that the ‘Aegis’ viciously threw at the target HCP.

Watching this from a distance, Franklin felt a pang in his heart. These veterans who had survived bloody battles were precious assets to the Renaissance Alliance, yet now they were forced to fight for their lives on the frontline to protect him.

At this thought, he immediately rushed over to the security detail commander, who had also gotten back on his feet, and asked again:

“Where is the long-range fire support?! And where are the assault troops?! Our forces here are about to break!”

One hundred kilometers from Bresk, in a secondary prepared position, a self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion was awaiting the final fire command.

Twenty-four E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons had already lowered their spades and were loaded with high-explosive shells, each with a 300-kilogram TNT equivalent. Their long, ‘【】’ shaped electromagnetic cannons pointed obliquely toward the sky like lances.

Two kilometers away, in two other positions, two more self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalions were deployed. In total, the three battalions in the prepared artillery position comprised seventy-two E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons. This was exactly the number of self-propelled electromagnetic cannons in an artillery combined arms brigade under an Army Group in the Atlas ground forces’ order of battle. The only thing missing from a complete artillery combined arms brigade was two self-propelled rocket artillery battalions.

Was this a coincidence?

Of course not.

Otherwise, Van Fleet wouldn’t be standing near the launch site, beaming with a satisfied smile.

Although the equipment of these three self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalions bore the insignia of the Renaissance Alliance, everything from the equipment to the personnel was actually from the Atlas ground combat forces. They were thoroughly disguised units.

These E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons were sent here not only to provide some ultra-long-range fire support for the Renaissance Alliance but, more importantly, to collect more data in a real combat environment.

After all, this piece of equipment had only seen real combat once before on Parra IV. Since then, Atlas had not encountered a situation that required the deployment of the E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon.

So when Amber heard that the administrative capital of Loubion V, Bresk, had been ‘fortified’ by the Autonomous Government, she immediately dispatched the newly formed Army Group artillery combined arms brigade to participate in the Renaissance Alliance’s ground operations.

Van Fleet, who had seen little real action since joining Atlas, also volunteered, approaching Amber with the hope of commanding this unit and doing some ‘small things’ for the group.

Naturally, Amber did not refuse the request from the former Federation Army Lieutenant General, now a consultant for the Atlas ground combat forces.

“Sir! We’ve received a fire support request from the delegation’s security detail!”

The sudden voice on the comms channel thrilled Van Fleet and the several officers around him.

Although Van Fleet was the highest-ranking officer of this ‘disguised unit,’ he did not directly participate in basic combat command. So, it was the battalion commander of this self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion who began to issue orders.

“Fire support request confirmed! Datalink channel is clear, confirmation code TW300Z! Coordinate information received! Artillery Battalion A, carry out long-range fire mission according to the operational plan!”

“All units, be advised, this is an extremely close-range fire support mission with an extremely high danger coefficient. Be sure to avoid friendly positions!”

“Fire direction commander, be advised, you are connected to the frontline comms!”

As the frontline communication channel was patched into the fire support coordination channel, the first thing they heard was the sound of a firefight, which was still intense even after noise reduction.

Following that was the anxious voice of the forward artillery observer from the security detail.

“FDC, this is FO1. Requesting immediate long-range fire support! The ‘VIP’ area is in critical condition! Target coordinates have been transmitted via datalink. Do you copy? Over!”

“FO1, this is FDC. All information has been received via datalink. Final confirmation in progress!

Target is a heavy armored force composed of HCPs, heavy armored vehicles, and infantry.

Fire support units will engage with high-explosive warheads for a precision strike, standard pattern three. Firing mission will commence upon confirmation. Over!”

Since the Renaissance Alliance combat forces were now using the new combat datalink provided by Atlas, the fire mission procedures had been greatly simplified.

Furthermore, military reconnaissance satellites were constantly passing over Bresk, so the fire support units in the rear could prepare for an attack even before receiving information from the frontline troops.

In short, it was much simpler than the process Amber had gone through on Robert IV, nervously guiding self-propelled rocket artillery.

“FDC, this is FO1. All information is confirmed! Please begin the attack as soon as possible! We’re about to be overrun!”

“FO1, this is FDC. Fire mission commences in ten seconds.”

As he spoke, the fire direction commander issued the ‘commence strike’ order on the joint command terminal, continuing, “This is a high-danger, extremely close-range fire support mission. Please maintain a safe distance. Do not get entangled with the target! Repeat, do not get entangled with the target.”

Before the fire direction commander could finish his last sentence, he felt the command vehicle shudder, and a deafening roar of cannons erupted from outside.

“Ranging fire complete. All vehicle crews, reload! Awaiting data on strike results!”

Back in Bresk, the Renaissance Alliance forces, having received the warning from their forward artillery observer, quickly pulled back some of their counter-attacking combat units.

This included the ‘Aegis’ that had been brawling with the enemy using its fists and point-defense weapons. Supported by friendly direct fire, it staggered back behind the defensive line.

Almost at the same moment this ‘Aegis’ ducked behind its comrades, initiated an emergency self-check, and pulled a spare electromagnetic machine gun from its weapon container, the Hammer of Thor descended.

The garrison units besieging the Renaissance Alliance were simultaneously struck by high-explosive warheads with a 300-kilogram TNT equivalent. From a God’s-eye view, the massive explosions seemed to completely encircle Franklin’s temporary position, but thankfully, there were no friendly fire incidents.

Even so, when the 300mm caliber shells from the self-propelled electromagnetic cannons landed, their terrifying destructive power stunned everyone. Many secretly thanked their lucky stars that the rounds hadn’t landed on them.

Back at the artillery position, the twenty-four attacking E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons quickly received observational data on the strike’s effectiveness, and the fire-control program immediately began making slight corrections based on the shell’s landing positions.

When the icons representing the twenty-four E-2s all turned green, the fire direction commander unhesitatingly gave the ‘fire for effect’ command.

Amidst the incessant roar of the self-propelled electromagnetic cannons, Van Fleet, who had watched the entire process up close, had a smile that gradually became one of overwhelming firepower.

Although the city defense units deployed near Bresk’s administrative building were proper heavy armored units, it didn’t mean they could maintain their combat effectiveness under such a barrage.

More than half of the units were simply erased by the shelling. The remaining forces quickly retreated, temporarily halting their attack as they prepared to wait for reinforcements before launching a major assault.

Seeing this, the perpetually tense Franklin finally breathed a small sigh of relief. He then looked up at the sky, where a ‘meteor shower’ was streaking across the upper atmosphere, heading for the ground.

“I’m waiting for the Hell Paratroopers. What are you waiting for?”

Chapter 585: Scion Academy

As Manfred commenced the bombing run, several near-orbit assault ships, which had been hiding outside the surveillance range of ground monitoring units, began their orbital drop operations under the lead of the Polarized Light and two other special mission ships.

Deployed toward Bresk in this drop, aside from the Immortal Corps, were primarily the Hell Paratroopers and HCP units that the Renaissance Alliance had previously commissioned the Atlas Group to train. Among them was “Crimson Lightning” Johnny Leiding.

Although the two previous major battles had already drained much of the “Genius Pilot’s” energy, he did not hesitate to join the final battle to liberate his homeworld.

Simultaneously, the Renaissance Alliance ground forces on the outskirts of Bresk launched their offensive.

The other two self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalions brought by Van Fleet served as heavy firepower support for these troops, beginning their barrage on the fortified defensive systems in Bresk’s suburbs.

The “super-heavy bunker-buster shells,” already proven highly effective in assault operations on Parra IV, once again delivered a stable performance.

When the two battalions, totaling forty-eight E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons, unleashed a round of frenzied bombardment upon a single junction of the fortified positions, the tough “walnut” of Bresk finally cracked under the sledgehammer’s blow.

There is no need to dwell on the subsequent battle. With Alex and the other high-ranking officials of the former Autonomous Government having vanished in the plasma torpedo attack, the morale of Bresk’s remaining City Defense Force plummeted, rendering them completely unable to mount an effective counterattack.

The orbital-dropped Hell Paratroopers, under the cover of elite HCP pilots like Johnny Leiding, quickly seized the city’s key points and, in coordination with the attacking forces, began the “blossoming in the center” tactic.

When the last soldiers of the garrison unit, led by their officer, walked out of their fortified building with their hands raised high, the fortress city that had held back the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces for nearly three months was breached and occupied by the Renaissance Alliance within three hours of the formal offensive’s start.

—

The swift conquest of Bresk also signaled a temporary conclusion to the hostilities on Loubion V and, indeed, throughout the entire Loubion star system.

When Amber received the news of Loubion’s complete liberation, he was at the inauguration and first opening ceremony of the Atlas Scion Academy.

Upon learning that Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance had essentially secured control over the Loubion star system, a faint, gratified smile finally appeared on his face.

This smile was quickly caught by Baron BASF, who was next to him as an invited guest at the opening ceremony. The noble capitalist’s sharpness was not limited to business; in daily life, he was also adept at perceiving the psychological and emotional shifts in others.

“It seems Mr. Amber has encountered some happy news?”

“Hahahaha, it seems the Baron has seen through me. Indeed, I have received some rather delightful news~”

Amber chuckled but did not elaborate. Baron BASF, in turn, did not press further.

But in his heart, he could more or less guess that it was likely related to the Loubion star system.

After all, based on his recent observations while “mooching off food and drink” at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, this was the only major event the Atlas Group was currently involved in.

And precisely because Baron BASF had shown sufficient sincerity by coming to the fortress with his wife before the battle’s outcome was known, he could clearly feel that Amber and other Atlas employees had become slightly more cordial toward him.

It wasn’t much, but it was there.

Furthermore, being specially invited as a guest to the Scion Academy’s opening ceremony was, in the Baron’s view, a clear signal.

At that moment, his wife, Mona, was a short distance away, engaged in a pleasant conversation with Isabelle, who was also of Imperial nobility, and Allenita, the elven magnate from the Thousand Stars Empire.

This arrangement couldn’t help but make Baron BASF wonder if they were trying to signal something to him, perhaps hoping to use this opportunity to discuss matters not suitable for public deliberation.

Baron BASF could see that this Scion Academy was of immense importance to the Atlas Group.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for them to have allocated ten entire floors within the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress to house this Scion Academy, which could very well be called an “academy city.” It was even said that space had been reserved for future expansion.

Thinking of this, the Baron couldn’t resist speaking up, hoping to find a topic to chat with Amber about and use the opportunity to get closer and strengthen their rapport.

“This… Scion Academy of your group gives this humble one a sense of familiarity.”

“Is the Baron referring to the Empire’s ‘Institute for Cultivating the Scions of Heroes’?” Amber said, turning his head slightly.

Seeing that Amber had picked up on his cue, Baron BASF felt a small surge of delight. “Ha~ Mr. Amber even knows of it. You are truly well-informed~”

Amber: “You flatter me. Has the Baron forgotten my former identity?”

Baron BASF paused for a moment, his mind racing to figure out how to answer the question. Due to the sensitivity of Amber’s identity and past experiences, his next words could very well be interpreted by the other party as representing Her Highness Agnes’s position.

Faced with the Baron’s hesitation, Amber did not rush him, simply waiting quietly for his response.

After a moment, the baron representing the Imperial Princess’s faction spoke again:

“The past is the past, and the present is the present. With the accomplishments Mr. Amber has achieved today, let us not delve too deeply into certain minor issues. Who doesn’t have a complicated past, after all?~”

Amber: “Should I take that as your personal opinion, Baron, or that of Her Highness the Princess?”

“Hahaha, I was dispatched here by Her Highness the Princess. That is all.”

—

As the Scion Academy’s opening ceremony proceeded according to schedule, Skadi soon came to Amber’s side to remind him to prepare to go on stage.

This female elf, “on loan” from Allenita, had recently been responsible not only for corporate public relations but also for coordinating almost all matters involving the Thousand Stars Empire, the elves, and the Romu.

Since Isabelle had to entertain Baron BASF’s wife, even the Scion Academy’s opening ceremony had been temporarily handed over to Skadi to manage.

The heavy workload made even the elf, who had always exhibited “workaholic” tendencies, complain about having too much to do and demand a raise. A true elven drudge.

Soon, amidst a solemn and dignified atmosphere, the opening ceremony entered the very traditional “Dean’s speech” segment.

In the academy’s central plaza, several thousand new students stood in neat formations, forming perfect squares.

Their uniforms were uniform and formal, black with silver piping. The badges on their chests were engraved with the Atlas Group’s logo, and the eyes beneath the brims of their caps were firm and focused.

Surrounding the plaza, eighty brand-new “Aegis” mechs with platinum and white paint schemes stood silently. Their silver-white hulls gleamed faintly under the simulated sunlight, and the azure capes draped over their shoulder armor made them look like ancient warriors of some kind.

Their presence was like the materialized spirits of the fallen, standing guard over their descendants.

Amber, concurrently serving as the Dean of the Scion Academy, stood on the high podium. His gaze was steady and profound, as if it could pierce through time and space to see the glorious deeds of every sacrificed employee.

His voice was deep and powerful. Using a psionic vocal technique, every word he spoke seemed forged from steel, striking directly into the hearts of the new students on the plaza:

“Today, we gather here not just to celebrate the birth of the Scion Academy, but to commemorate the heroes who lit the path forward for us in the darkness. They were the backbone of the Atlas Group, and the guardians of those who suffered injustice and oppression.”

The new students below held their breath, their eyes glinting with complex emotions. Many of them clutched heirlooms left by their parents—perhaps an employee ID card, a medal issued by the company, or other personal effects.

Each item carried with it endless memories and a sense of mission. Everyone knew exactly why they were standing here today.

The students in the formations came from various majors within the Scion Academy. Each formation represented a major, and every student was a pearl waiting to be discovered, waiting to be nurtured by the Scion Academy to continue to “shine and contribute” for Atlas in the future.

“And you… you, the descendants of these heroes, have inherited their most precious legacy—courage, wisdom, and selflessness. In this academy, you will learn how to wield these powers and become even more outstanding members of Atlas in the future.

Whether in industrial manufacturing, biomedicine, tactical command, or finance… every major serves a common goal: to make the world we create a better place, and to ensure that such sacrifices are never repeated.”

A psionic user’s speech was always incredibly persuasive, yet it was rare in this world for a psionic user to employ this ability in front of a large crowd.

A new firmness appeared in the students’ eyes. In Amber’s words, they seemed to see their future selves—the warriors charging fearlessly on the battlefield, the technicians making constant breakthroughs in Atlas research labs, the elites employing masterful strategizing to dominate the world of commerce.

“I have witnessed with my own eyes, when darkness fell, it was your fathers and mothers who stood tall. They used their lives as shields and made noble and fearless sacrifices.

Now, it is your turn.

In this land full of hope created by Atlas, you will learn to use the knowledge and skills in your hands to create, to protect, and to love.

Because only then can we truly move forward and embrace a bright future.”

As Dean Amber’s voice grew louder, the atmosphere in the plaza reached its zenith. The students stood up straighter, their chests heaving with emotion.

The architecture of the Scion Academy, a blend of classical and technological styles, seemed to grow even more majestic at this moment, as if applauding these future “Outstanding Employees.”

The simulated sunlight fell perfectly on each formation, illuminating their resolute faces and their futures filled with hope.

“Let us join hands, not only to commemorate the past, but to build a better tomorrow. The Atlas Group will always be with you, and the Scion Academy will be the starting point for you to achieve your dreams.

From here, you will become new heroes and write your own legends.”

Amber paused, his gaze sweeping over every student present. Each one of them felt a near-tangible gaze pass over them, followed by Amber’s firm and captivating closing words in their ears:

“Because you… are Atlas.”

As Amber’s voice fell, the entire plaza erupted in thunderous applause.

—

“Using Psionics to power a speech is certainly effective… By the way, do you Jeram people normally use Psionics when you talk?”

Amber was in Salieh’s new lab in the A·Bawa·Ku fortress. He casually took a sip of the legendary “Forerunner beverage” prepared for him by the two-million-year-old “old frozen meat” and posed the question.

After the Scion Academy’s opening ceremony ended and he had reached a preliminary agreement with Baron BASF to continue deepening their cooperation, Amber had assigned the beleaguered Skadi to continue liaising with the Baron.

Of course, Amber knew he couldn’t let Skadi shoulder it all, so he also brought in Isabelle and a master negotiator from the Financial Operations Center.

He himself then came to Salieh’s new lab—the Forerunner had told him earlier that there was an important matter he needed to know.

However, as soon as the two met, Amber had already steered the conversation off-topic.

Clearly, Salieh hadn’t realized this yet and even answered in all seriousness, “Of course we don’t use Psionics for normal conversation. We Jeram people aren’t ‘psionic perpetual motion machines.’ At most, we might use Psionics when a dispute breaks out.”

“To see who is more persuasive with psionic enhancement?”

“No, to see who’s louder.”

“…”

“Wait… that’s not what I asked you here to talk about…” Salieh knocked her head in annoyance, seemingly displeased with how easily she had been sidetracked by Amber.

Then, the Forerunner, who also served as the head of the Atlas archaeology team, activated a holographic projection platform in the lab. A massive star chart instantly appeared above it.

“Our archaeology team has found a new Forerunner facility.”

With that, the star chart rapidly zoomed in, finally focusing on a region of deep space at the border between the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation.

“Is there something different about this one?” Amber asked, puzzled. “I see you’ve been discovering new ruins and legacy facilities constantly and have recovered quite a bit of Forerunner technology.”

Despite being a Forerunner, Salieh had shown great interest in excavating her own people’s “ruins” ever since Amber had placed “shackles” on her and she had secretly joined the Atlas Group. As a result, the Atlas Group’s special Forerunner archaeology team had been making significant gains.

“Entat 032 Research Institute. Research Level: Highest. Research Project…”

Salieh looked up at Amber seriously, then uttered a word that countless living beings yearned for.

“Immortality.”

Chapter 586: The Forerunner Research Institute and ‘Assembling the Army’

“Immortality?”

The moment Amber heard this word, he shot up from his chair.

“Is that something you can actually research?”

For once, Salieh nodded seriously. “Of course. We Forerunners research everything, and for the most part, we manage to figure things out.”

Amber: “So, what did you discover? Did you actually achieve Immortality?”

“I don’t know,” Salieh said, a regretful look on her face.

“How could you not know? Aren’t you a Repository Steward? Weren’t the Radicals specifically trying to capture you back then, to turn you into ‘old frozen meat’? How could someone as important as you not know?”

Hearing this, Salieh grew so agitated she stomped her foot like a human. “Repository Stewards don’t know everything!”

When she saw Amber about to speak again, she seemed to remember something and quickly cut in:

“Don’t you dare say something like ‘But anyone with Repository in their title is supposed to be amazing’! I’m sorry for not being that amazing as a Repository Steward!”

Hearing this, Amber felt a sense of powerlessness, as if someone had stolen his punchline. Across from him, Salieh continued to explain:

“This research was very high-level, and very few people had access to it. My own research focus was in a different area, so it’s perfectly normal that I wouldn’t have been exposed to related materials. If everyone knew the progress of the ‘Immortality’ research, do you think anyone would have the heart to do anything else?”

Amber knew there was nothing wrong with Salieh’s explanation.

After all, a topic as ultimate as ‘Immortality’ is inherently tempting to any intelligent species with a limited lifespan. Even Amber knew he couldn’t resist the allure of ‘Immortality.’

So, if the progress of this project were made public, it could easily lead to a situation where the entire population just waits for immortality, and society itself would cease to function stably.

But soon, Amber thought of a new question.

“According to what I know, scholars believe that even our universe has a ‘limited age.’ If you Jeram people achieved immortality, what would you do when the universe’s lifespan comes to an end?”

“‘The space-time expedition’ has a backup plan,” Salieh said calmly.

“What kind of plan?”

“‘The Endless Expedition.’ Once immortality is truly achieved, the space-time expedition will never stop. My people will not remain in a single universe forever.”

Hearing Salieh’s words, Amber realized that the Forerunners of this universe were likely even more powerful than those depicted in the game. An operation that sounded as grand as the ‘Endless Expedition’ couldn’t help but make him think of a certain ‘green legion.’

With that thought, Amber stopped dwelling on it and asked, “So, what’s the current situation with this research institute?”

Salieh: “A science vessel we dispatched earlier observed it from the periphery for a while. We deduce that the institute is currently in a state of stasis lockdown. We just don’t know if there are any related data or research results still stored inside.”

“So you think it’s valuable and worth the time to explore?”

“Of course~” the Forerunner nodded. “Even if there aren’t any results from the ‘Immortality’ research inside, just getting our hands on some scraps would be enough to significantly advance human biotechnology!”

Hearing this, Amber was stunned for a moment before asking, “You mean the Forerunners’ research into ‘Immortality’ followed a biotechnological path?”

“What else would it be?”

Salieh’s tone was dismissive, as if she didn’t see anything wrong with it.

“We Forerunners researched immortality to allow our entire race to break through its limitations, not just to ‘create gods.’ Naturally, we would start with biotechnology to enable our entire species to achieve true evolution.”

This was truly educational for Amber. He nodded slowly and remarked, “I originally thought your research into immortality would involve ‘mechanical ascension’ or be brute-forced through Psionics…”

Salieh’s tone became serious. “‘Immortality’ achieved that way would ultimately be flawed. We wouldn’t dare gamble the future of our entire race on it.”

“Then how do you know that the biotechnological path you took is the right one?”

“…”

Amber’s counter-question left Salieh speechless.

Although this Forerunner Repository Steward knew some fragmented information about the ‘Immortality’ research, she truly didn’t know the specific details, let alone what conclusions the researchers had ultimately reached.

After thinking it over and realizing she couldn’t refute Amber’s point, Salieh pursed her lips and said:

“After all that talk, just say whether you’re going or not.”

“I’m going!” Amber replied decisively.

The saying “to do a good job, one must first sharpen one’s tools” was no exception for a project like exploring Forerunner ruins.

In the last Forerunner ruins excavation Amber participated in, limited by the Atlas Group’s strength, fleet size, and the complex environment at the time, only the Polarized Light, a single special mission ship, took part in the operation.

But times had changed. The Atlas Group was no longer the Atlas of the past, and the size of its combat fleet had rapidly expanded to a scale unimaginable back then.

Therefore, for this expedition to the Forerunner research institute involving ‘Immortality’ technology, Amber could calmly select the units for the operation from the forces currently stationed at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

And the Atlas Group’s comprehensive command suite, having undergone multiple upgrades, had expanded to include very mature and relevant functions for Amber to use.

Once Amber entered the Atlas comprehensive command suite, he could view the current status, armament, supplies, and crew situation for every warship in the fleet. The command suite even provided a comprehensive combat effectiveness rating.

For other combat forces, the system was detailed enough to display the status of each platoon-level combat unit, including current personnel numbers, equipment status, supplies, and the results of their most recent psychological and morale tests.

It could even display the unit’s ‘historical record’—data including, but not limited to, preferred mission types, operational hours, number of enemies eliminated, own losses, kill ratio, and so on.

With the assistance of such a system, all Amber had to do now was assemble an ‘optimal solution’ force from the troops stationed at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, based on his needs.

From a certain perspective, the entire process was very much like the pre-battle ‘army composition’ phase of the real-time strategy and tactics games he played in his previous life.

“Two battleships, four heavy cruisers, six light cruisers… ten destroyers and ten frigates each should be enough.”

“Prioritize filtering for ships with a combat effectiveness rating of 80 or higher… OK, fleet composition complete~”

“For the HCPs, Heavy Armored Gunships, and ground forces, I’ll just use the units already stationed on the ships. Their coordination will be better. I’ll also enable custom armament authorization…”

“Okay, the ‘army’ is assembled. Now for a name… Hmm… ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment. Hope we can find some good stuff on this archeological dig~”

The comprehensive command suite, refined by Lilith, was extremely user-friendly. Moreover, its digitized model could calculate the ‘optimal solution,’ so Amber didn’t spend much time assembling a special strike detachment.

Immediately after issuing an emergency deployment order to the selected units through the command suite, Amber used the intervening time to head to the Scion Academy.

This time, however, he was going to see Master Aen Wrathwind.

The thirteen adolescent psionic users he was training had, after more than a year of study and practice, not only significantly increased their psionic strength but also greatly improved their control over their powers.

According to Master Aen Wrathwind, the children’s development was much more stable than that of most human psionic users, so a ‘psionic meltdown’ was basically impossible.

Before the series of events in the Loubion star system, Amber had actually visited the ‘Psionic Special Training Class,’ which was located in the Tower of Babel at the time, a few times himself.

He didn’t actually want to force these young psionic users to work for him. His initial idea was to let these children, who could now stably control their psionic abilities, enter modern human society and live like normal teenagers.

To his surprise, however, not one of the thirteen children wanted to leave the ‘Psionic Special Training Class.’ Instead, they wished to continue studying under Master Aen Wrathwind and join the Atlas Group in the future as ‘psionic talents.’

As Amber was preparing to meet with Aen Wrathwind to discuss the children’s future, officers and soldiers of all ranks in the selected combat units received emergency deployment notices on their personal terminals, with the details varying based on their rank and security clearance.

The messages received by high-ranking officers, warship captains, and the like contained information about the general area and objective of the mission.

The lower the rank and level, the more sensitive information was redacted. By the time it reached the grunts, all that remained was relatively vague information, such as the deployment time and mission type.

“Within three hours of receiving this message, the combat unit must assemble all personnel and equipment. Assembly point: Deployment Bay 322. Mission type: Dangerous Area Exploration.”

Aboard a certain warship, a marine muttered to himself as he looked at the message on his terminal.

As he received the order, the communication permissions on his personal terminal were restricted. For the time being, he could only contact other personnel of the same rank who were also part of the mission.

His movements were also restricted; he now had to return to his assigned ship as quickly as possible and begin combat preparations.

Looking at the drink that a server had just brought him, the Romu marine hesitated for a moment, then looked up at the other Romu at his table.

They were all from the same combat unit, and they were taking advantage of a rare day off to relax in one of A·Bawa·Ku’s recreational areas.

Today was the last day of their leave, so they had decided to take this last chance to have a drink at a Romu tavern and reminisce about the ‘taste of home.’

But they hadn’t expected to receive a sudden notice to return to duty right after getting their drinks, just as they were about to toast.

“Hey, can we still drink this?” asked a tiger-headed Romu cautiously.

“We have to be assembled for combat in three hours. Drink it if you don’t mind getting kicked off the team~” another, a wolf-headed man, quickly put down his glass and sighed. “Ah, what a waste of good drink~”

“It really is good stuff. Probably flown in from our homeworld.”

Another Romu reluctantly sniffed the rim of his glass, an enraptured look briefly crossing his face, but in the end, he resolutely put the glass down.

“Alright, don’t look so down!”

A Minotaur who seemed to be the leader of the marine squad clapped his hands and was the first to stand up. “These missions that require an early return usually get us a long leave afterward. It won’t be too late to come back for a drink then~”

Soon, led by the Minotaur, the squad of marines left the tavern without delay and boarded a shuttle to their warship’s berth.

Not long after they returned to the ship, their heavy cruiser, the ‘Stardust Memory,’ completed its full crew assembly.

After quickly changing into their combat suits, they all went to the marine hangar to configure their combat loadouts—a new feature recently added to the personal terminals for combat units.

This feature allowed marines, HCP pilots, and combat craft pilots to select their loadouts before departure based on the upcoming combat environment and mission. The Maintenance team would then prepare and load the equipment before deployment.

This seemingly simple interface had actually taken Lilith quite a bit of effort to develop.

This was because the implementation of this feature involved coordinating numerous units, including combat units, the Logistics Center, the asteroid fortress, the Maintenance team, transport teams, and more.

Although Lilith, as the ‘Information Matriarch’ of all of Atlas, had already standardized the information interfaces and dispatch protocols for almost ninety percent of all units, getting the entire system to run stably was still no easy task.

Fortunately, Lilith eventually completed its development. After being tested in several pilot units, it received unanimous praise from personnel of all levels.

Aboard the ‘Stardust Memory,’ a Romu marine whose role in the squad was ‘breacher’ thought for a moment after hearing the squad leader’s description of the general mission parameters.

Then he gave up thinking and opened a convenient feature on the loadout page.

“Whoever dares to challenge me, I will end his life!—Atlas ‘Big Boss’ Battlefield Berserker loadout one-click configuration activated~”

Seeing the message flash across the screen, the Romu man couldn’t help but grin.

“Alright, rocking the same loadout as the Boss. Time to go on a rampage!”

Chapter 587: The Atlas Psionic Youths

“Master, do the children still want to stay with Atlas?”

On a tree-lined path in the Psionics section of the Scion Academy, Amber asked Master Aen Wrathwind as they walked.

Besides his routine meeting with the young psionic users, he had come today to give the children one last chance to choose.

In his view, they were just children, after all. They had long lives ahead of them with many paths to choose from, and they didn’t necessarily have to stay with Atlas.

Even if they were to stay with Atlas forever, it didn’t mean they had to one day stain their hands with blood.

Moreover, the practice of raising a group of orphans to become ‘killing machines’ from childhood always struck Amber as a bit too cruel—even though he had never considered himself a ‘good guy.’ Being called an ‘ambitious and ruthless character’ was already high praise.

Amber admitted that when he adopted these thirteen young psionic users, for a fleeting moment, he had considered training them to become Atlas’s own ‘Psionic Agents.’ Or rather, if this were a strategy game, he would have done so without hesitation.

But this was clearly not as simple as a game. Amber was essentially going to watch these thirteen children grow up, so he couldn’t bring himself to train them for that purpose just yet.

Asking Allenita to find Master Wrathwind was simply to guide the children’s psionic development correctly and prevent them from suffering a ‘psionic meltdown’ someday.

Aen Wrathwind: “After you asked them last time, Mr. Amber, I spoke with the children several times. They still wish to stay here… Hmm, not just stay, but also join Atlas like the others.”

“The others?” Amber asked, a little confused.

“After the Psionic Special Training Class moved to the Scion Academy, I took the children on a few tours of the ‘Scion Memorial Hall.’ It contains records of the Atlas Group employees who sacrificed themselves, as well as the major battles the group has fought.”

Aen Wrathwind spoke slowly, with a calm and wise demeanor:

“These children have no memory of their parents, and their time at the Federation’s psionic research institute left them with nothing but bad memories. Coming to Atlas has been a stark contrast for them. Under these circumstances, it’s quite normal for them to develop a sense of dependence on the Atlas Group and on you.”

“Dependence…” Amber muttered the word, mulling it over in his mind.

During this time, the man and the elf arrived at the classroom where the thirteen children were.

Aen Wrathwind made a gesture of invitation and opened the classroom door for Amber.

Feeling uncharacteristically nervous, Amber took a deep breath, raised his head, and walked into the dedicated psionic classroom.

Since he was planning to head directly to the Deployment Bay shortly, he was wearing an Atlas Group commander’s field coat, which immediately drew everyone’s attention the moment he entered.

“Mr. Amber!” an older boy was the first to react, and soon all the boys and girls in the classroom were greeting Amber excitedly.

“Mr. Amber is here to see us again!”

“Do you have any new stories for us this time, Mr. Amber?”

“Mr. Amber, I had another breakthrough in my psionic strength!”

“Me too, Mr. Amber!”

To be honest, Amber had never expected the children to become so attached to him after he brought them back. Every time he visited the thirteen young psionic users, they were overjoyed—especially when he shared recent interesting stories or praised their improvement in psionic strength.

Amber, in turn, received a great deal of ‘positive reinforcement’ from their reactions. Although they were all classified as ‘dangerous individuals’ in this world, Amber could still sense the unique liveliness of youth in them.

That was why, unlike other factions, he didn’t view these youths with prejudice. After Master Aen Wrathwind taught them how to control their powers, Amber actually wanted them to return to a normal life, rather than growing up in the blood-and-fire atmosphere that was the destiny of the Atlas Group.

Soon, after chatting and joking with the thirteen children for a while, Amber glanced at the time and once again asked them a serious question:

“I actually came today for an important matter. I want to ask you all one last time about your future plans. I know you’ve lived with Atlas for a long time and are reluctant to leave this environment, so I’ve slightly adjusted my previous idea.”

Amber paused, looking at the boys and girls whose gazes were now fixed on him, and continued:

“I can narrow down the scope of your future guardians to within the Atlas Group. That way, you’ll still be a part of Atlas, and after you come of age, you can officially join the group through your own efforts.

It’s not that I think you can’t help. Quite the contrary. Some of you already meet the criteria to join a special forces unit. But I don’t want you to stain your hands with blood. You have the right, and you should, grow up in a normal environment like other ordinary children.

I promise that your adoptive parents will love you even more than your birth parents would have. And aside from regularly coming here for psionic training with Master Wrathwind, your lives will be no different from those of other Atlas employees’ children.”

Having said his piece, Amber watched them calmly, awaiting their response.

After a moment, Foster, the eldest of the thirteen, raised his hand.

“Mr. Amber, do we have to decide today?”

Amber shook his head. “Of course not. I’ll give you plenty of time to think. Just give me your answer the next time I come to visit.”

Then he specifically looked at Torres, the youngest. The chubby little boy had slimmed down quite a bit, but his love for snacks hadn’t changed at all.

“Especially you, Torres. You’d better think it over carefully. If you have a guardian looking after you, you can still have your favorite snacks. But if you join the special forces, you’ll have to submit to military discipline, and you won’t get to eat whatever you want~”

“Huh?”

Torres’s little face fell instantly. But another little girl beside him quickly pinched his arm, making him hide his disappointed expression.

Amber was no stranger to this little girl.

Prue. Back in the research institute’s basement, she was the one who had covered Torres’s mouth, preventing the chubby little boy from ‘confessing’ under the temptation of snacks.

Amber smiled at their little exchange but didn’t say anything. He looked around at everyone again before speaking:

“Like I just said, the choice is in your hands. Take this time to think carefully about what kind of life you really want to live in the future. The next time I come, I’ll be expecting your answer~”

After this somewhat serious topic, Amber joked around with the children for a while longer to lighten the mood. He then spoke privately with Master Aen Wrathwind before leaving.

Before he left, a few words from the little old elf, who bore a striking resemblance to Master Yoda, left Amber deep in thought.

“For these children, ‘becoming you’ is far more tempting than living a happy and comfortable life.”

Amber: “Why would they want to become me?”

Aen Wrathwind: “It’s simple. Psionic users in the human world have suffered too much injustice. The government even guides the common people to ostracize psionics, forcing these desperate ‘outcasts’ to join official organizations and sell their lives.

But you, Amber, have shown them another path. You’ve let them know that psionic users can fight for their own future. And everything the Atlas Group has achieved proves you aren’t just talking nonsense. This path is genuinely viable. That’s far more effective than the countless ‘brainwashing’ propaganda films they were shown at the psionic research institute.”

It could be said that the words of this ‘Master Yoda from another world’ had opened the door to a new world for Amber.

“Perhaps I can turn Atlas into a ‘new home’ for human psionic users?”

A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Deployment Bay 322.

All warships of the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment, along with their embarked combat units, had assembled within the designated time.

After all, being late for a combat mission would result in soldiers having a hefty performance bonus deducted and losing their eligibility for year-end commendations. Officers of all ranks would also face escalating accountability, starting from the bottom up.

When the punishment system was sufficiently strict and enforced without leniency or compromise, the probability of such manually preventable problems occurring approached zero.

Since the formation of Atlas’s combat forces, neither the fleet nor the ground troops had ever been late for a combat mobilization—an achievement that already surpassed over ninety percent of the Federation’s garrison units and the Empire’s noble private soldiers.

Even the regular armies of the Federation and the Empire couldn’t guarantee that every unit could match Atlas’s punctuality for emergency deployments.

After his visit to the Psionic Special Training Class, Amber immediately took a high-speed transit elevator to the Deployment Bay located on the exterior of the asteroid fortress.

However, as he and the others boarded a battleship serving as the flagship for this operation and ordered the special strike detachment to commence departure procedures, he received the latest news from the science vessel.

They had spotted a fleet from the ‘Quest for Truth Foundation’ near the Forerunner research institute.

“Wait, how did they find this place? Isn’t this research institute located in a ‘void zone’?”

The ‘void zone’ Amber referred to was a ‘dead space’ in the universe, completely devoid of any nearby celestial bodies.

The region where the Forerunner research institute was located was a typical ‘void zone.’ The nearest planet was hundreds of light-years away. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for any living being to approach this place.

If Salieh hadn’t conducted a needle-in-a-haystack search based on a general coordinate from her memory, Amber and his team might never have found this institute.

This was precisely the Forerunners’ intention when they established the institute here. After all, it was a place for researching ‘Immortality.’ If they could have, they probably would have stuffed the institute into subspace—which had indeed been one of the proposed locations back then.

However, according to Salieh, the conditions within subspace were far more complex and dangerous than the Jeram people had imagined. After studying subspace for many years and sending multiple expeditions that never returned, the Jeram people eventually gave up their research into it…

Although Amber was curious about how the Quest for Truth Foundation had managed to find this place, he figured that since the foundation was established for the sole purpose of digging up Forerunner ruins, and given its many years of operation, it wasn’t entirely impossible for them to have made some discoveries that led them here.

The Atlas science vessel up ahead was, in a way, also a professional scout ship.

After all, constantly going rogue alone in the wild required a certain ability ‘to seek advantages and avoid harm.’ Coupled with the ‘no-expense-spared’ approach Amber took to its construction, its reconnaissance capabilities were considered T0-class among all current human warships.

Therefore, in addition to reporting the sighting of the Quest for Truth Foundation’s warships, the science vessel had even sent back a reconnaissance report on the Foundation’s fleet.

Besides detailing the size of the fleet, the report’s most crucial piece of information was the presence of multiple capital ships…

“They have capital ships now? Including four battleships…”

Amber frowned as he read the reconnaissance report. In his memory, the Quest for Truth Foundation didn’t possess capital ships until the second DLC—when the developers buffed some of the early-game NPC factions, and the Foundation was one of them.

“It’s not surprising, Boss…” an operations staff officer on the bridge answered.

“After the strategic decisive battle between the Federation and the Empire, some capital ships from both sides ended up in civilian hands. If you have connections in a few of the major black markets, you can definitely find a way to purchase them…”

Hearing the staff officer’s explanation, Amber nodded.

During the great war between the two major human powers, not every soldier and every warship had displayed sufficient courage and valor. Due to reasons like going missing, defection, or getting lost in the chaos of battle, many warships never returned to their fleets.

Furthermore, it was common practice in the rear echelons of both the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire for ships deemed ‘scrapped’ by repair shipyards after taking damage to be secretly resold to civilians through the manipulations of certain interested parties…

“If they have capital ships, we’ll need to be a bit more cautious, although I doubt these ships could have their combat capabilities restored in such a short time by a civilian organization…”

Amber thought for a moment. Believing the contents of the research institute were too important to let someone else get to them first, he issued further orders:

“Relay my orders! The ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment will depart at the scheduled time. Adjust warp coordinates to the secondary covert coordinates!

The reserve strike detachment, ‘Good Fortune,’ is to begin assembly immediately! Depart as soon as you’re ready and prepare for support operations!”

Chapter 588: The Foundation Reappears

Before the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment entered warp, Amber and her team received the latest news from the science vessel up ahead.

The Foundation’s fleet had already launched several small reconnaissance ships converted from civilian vessels. At the same time, their warships had taken up positions and deployed. It was estimated that once they confirmed there was no danger, they would dispatch the science vessel, currently escorted in the center of their formation, to the location of the ruins.

“Our warp will take about one standard day. By that calculation, the Foundation’s people will have probably already gone inside by the time we arrive.”

Commander Ramos of the ‘Red Hand’ Special Strike Detachment spoke up. Aside from Randall and Cleves, he was one of the earliest captains to join Atlas.

He later demonstrated outstanding abilities during the “Battle of the Three Stooges” and the defense of the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, and was subsequently promoted to detachment commander within the asteroid fortress’s defense fleet.

This time, when Amber was putting together the roster for this operation, she screened the pool of reserve commander candidates, and Ramos ultimately stood out, becoming the commander of the ‘Red Hand’ Special Strike Detachment.

Hearing the newly appointed commander’s words, Amber nodded and replied:

“Then it’ll depend on whether the gate to these Forerunner ruins can hold them off for a while longer. If it can’t stop them from cracking it, we might really have to prepare for them to beat us to it.”

—

“Fuck! They really beat us to it!”

When the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment dropped out of warp and received several consecutive messages from the science vessel, Amber instantly felt that her luck wasn’t very good today.

The Quest for Truth Foundation, casting aside their usual caution, had pushed their entire fleet forward to completely surround the research institute after their unmanned reconnaissance units confirmed no threats in the vicinity.

Immediately after, the Foundation’s science vessel had quickly docked with the institute and begun deploying personnel into its internal areas.

Although the institute’s gate security systems seemed to be operational, they hadn’t held out long against the Foundation’s hacking efforts and had been opened. According to the science vessel’s report, the Foundation’s fleet hadn’t even triggered the institute’s defensive weaponry; it was as if the entire facility was completely undefended against them.

The ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment’s warp exit coordinates, though designated as a backup covert waypoint, had in reality only increased their distance from the institute to prevent a first strike; they didn’t provide any actual concealment.

Especially in the ‘void zone’ where this Forerunner research institute was located, the disturbance from a small fleet dropping out of warp was as conspicuous as a torch in the dead of night.

Therefore, Amber knew the Quest for Truth Foundation must have already detected her strike detachment. Since that was the case, she didn’t bother with a stealthy approach. After confirming the surrounding space was clear, she ordered the strike detachment to charge toward the institute’s position along the shortest trajectory.

“Boss, what are your orders?”

Strike Detachment Commander Ramos had actually already guessed Amber’s intentions, but he asked anyway just to be certain.

“What else is there to do? Full assault!”

“Yes, Boss! Full assault!”

Hearing the reassuring command, Ramos excitedly issued the full assault order to the strike detachment.

After being with the Atlas Group for so long, many Atlas employees, including Ramos, had developed a certain degree of disdain for other private organizations.

In their eyes, aside from the two legitimate state powers, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, the other private factions could no longer contend with Atlas.

Therefore, in battles against private organizations, pirates, or rebels, Atlas commanders naturally possessed a psychological edge, a supreme confidence in their victory.

As the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment accelerated to combat speed and rapidly closed the distance with the research institute, an image from the optical sensors soon appeared on the main screen of the flagship’s bridge.

Because the light levels in this void zone were too low, the displayed image was a composite one that had been enhanced and brightened by the shipboard control AI.

In the center of the image, the Entat 032 Research Institute, its camouflage already disabled by the Quest for Truth Foundation, hung silently in this region of space.

The entire institute looked like a giant gyroscope. Its center was a sphere formed by two concentric rings rotating on the same axis, each with a diameter of about five kilometers. Two spiral arms, each over ten kilometers long, extended from the rings.

The overall design was strikingly abstract—but this was the architectural style of the Jeram people.

In the space surrounding the institute, the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet had already reoriented their warships to face the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment. Judging by the blue glow flaring behind their ships’ frontal silhouettes, their fleet was also accelerating.

“Enemy fleet composition confirmed! Two Requiem-class battleships, three Aurora-class heavy cruisers, and eight Fury-class light cruisers!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator loudly reported the detected composition of the Foundation fleet. In terms of total warship count, their numbers were superior to the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment’s, yet the expressions of everyone on the bridge remained calm.

In the past, seeing such a force would have made Amber and Atlas feel some apprehension. But times had changed. Seeing the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet once more, Amber asked Ramos only a single question:

“In the opening volley, can we inflict over forty percent enemy casualties?”

“Mission accomplishment guaranteed, Boss!”

“Are you really that confident in letting your subordinates command the battle? Especially when our strengths on paper are so closely matched?”

From the back seat of a modified two-seater Heavy Armored Gunship, Salieh watched the two fleets engage in the distance on the display projected inside the armored canopy by the distributed aperture system.

“I have to let my subordinates take over conventional command eventually. I’m only one person. Am I supposed to command every single battle Atlas fights, big or small? Then what did I hire so many people and pay them such high salaries for?”

Amber replied as she piloted the two-seater combat craft. Using its covert operations mode’s compressed-gas attitude control thrusters to control its trajectory, she flew in a wide arc, approaching the institute from the opposite direction.

As the combat craft drew closer to the institute, Amber disengaged its stealth, performed a one-hundred-eighty-degree axial rotation, and began to decelerate using the main thruster array.

“Salieh, are you sure about that backdoor you mentioned? We’re almost there!”

“It’s reliable. It’s a rapid access corridor for the institute’s upper levels. It leads directly to the core area!”

Hearing Salieh’s confident reply, Amber no longer hesitated. She fired several grappling carbon fiber cables at the institute’s outer hull, then executed a perfect ‘parallel park,’ docking the two-seater combat craft right next to the rapid access corridor Salieh had pointed out.

Soon, the combat craft’s armored canopy opened. Amber, already clad in her Psionic combat suit, and Salieh, wearing a Forerunner combat suit, floated out. They followed one of the carbon fiber cables to the location of the ‘backdoor.’

“Alright, Salieh, time to open the backdoor.”

“Give me two minutes!”

Chapter 589: The Intensity Ramps Up

“It’s been five minutes, Miss Salieh.”

Amber, who had secured himself with a safety line, reminded her in a calm voice, then turned to look at the other combat zone.

Just as the strike detachment commander, Ramos, had said, the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment was, unsurprisingly, displaying overwhelming force. No mishaps had occurred.

Although the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet was not weak on paper and also possessed several capital ships, they were clearly no match for Atlas in terms of experience and tactical coordination.

After several major battles, the Atlas combat fleet had effectively racked up a massive amount of experience. Whether it was the crew, the ship-borne HCP pilots, or the combat craft pilots, all had been through brutal, real combat.

The intensity of their battles was incomparably higher than the Foundation’s routine skirmishes with pirates and civilian ships.

So now, upon clashing with the Quest for Truth Foundation’s fleet, it was like a wolf entering a sheep pen.

According to what Amber saw on the command channel, the strike detachment’s bombing commander was even using this opportunity to have several Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons conduct live-fire drills on attacking capital ships—especially battleships.

Compared to the smooth sailing of the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment, Amber truly hadn’t expected it would be Salieh’s side that ran into a snag.

He glanced at the bottom-left corner of his psionic combat suit’s HUD. Mm. Another twenty seconds had passed.

Although he remained silent, Salieh, who was fiddling with the rapid-access portal’s identification device in front of him, could still feel the pressure from behind. The soft, leg-like tentacles on the back of her head couldn’t help but squirm nervously.

“Almost… Almost done! I’ll try another method. Let’s just brute-force it! The security protocols established back then were only valid for a hundred thousand years, we should be able to bypass them by now!”

With that, the former Repository Steward placed her right hand on the portal’s identification device and channeled her Psionics into it.

To Amber, the Jeram people’s information technology was both familiar and alien. Human information technology bore their shadow to some extent, but at their core, the two were vastly different.

Salieh’s brute-forcing was relatively reliable. This time, she didn’t keep Amber waiting long; the external door of the rapid-access passageway soon opened.

Amber swept a psionic wave inside, and after confirming there were no strange ambushes, he was the first to float in—only to be met with flashing red lights, a clear warning, and a string of the Geram language transmitted through his psionic combat suit.

“Warning, rapid-access passageway A-2 has been brute-forced. Non-combat personnel, please lock down all equipment and evacuate the area immediately. Nearby guards are being dispatched to intercept the intrusion!”

“…”

The flashing red lights and the alarm in his ears made Amber turn back to look at the embarrassed Salieh, who said sheepishly, “Well, it is a brute-force… so of course there’d be some… unexpected surprises…”

“I’m not worried about the guards. This research institute isn’t large; it doesn’t have enough space to house biological weapons and maintenance facilities like your Repository did. So even if there are guards, they’re probably just automated machines, which have likely broken down after so many years.”

Amber waved a hand dismissively and slowly floated forward, all while sending out psionic waves to probe the surroundings and detect any potential enemies.

Just as he had said, this research institute was much smaller than the Repository, which meant it was unlikely to be as durable. The gravity control system here had failed who knows how many years ago, so the two could only explore the interior in a zero-gravity environment.

“Then what are you worried about?” Salieh pushed off a wall and hurried to catch up.

Amber: “The Quest for Truth Foundation is cracking the door security faster than I expected. I’m worried they’ll get to the valuable data in this institute first.”

“Ah, that won’t happen, Boss!” Salieh quickly shook her head. “They came in through the main entrance. To get to the core area on the top level, they’ll have to pass through at least six more security checkpoints. Even if they can crack them all, it will still take some time to come up from the bottom. We’ll get there before they do!”

Hearing Salieh’s words, Amber nodded in reassurance and continued to float forward, constantly observing the institute’s interior.

Unlike the Repository where Salieh was found, which had a sense of ‘composure’ due to an orderly evacuation, this Entat 032 Research Institute exuded a ‘lived-in’ feel in every aspect.

Unknown crystal chips and small devices floated in the air, along with some lush-looking potted plant decorations. Amber even spotted what looked like a ‘thermal flask’—according to Salieh, the Jeram people did indeed love drinking warm water in their daily lives.

To put it in layman’s terms, Amber felt as if a group of Forerunner researchers had been working here just a second ago, but something had happened to cause a hasty evacuation, and he might bump into a panicked Forerunner researcher around the next corner.

Due to the ‘Mental Shackle,’ Salieh could also perceive the changes in Amber’s emotions. Although she didn’t know his exact thoughts, upon seeing the surroundings, the Forerunner could roughly guess what was on his mind.

“This is the effect of ‘stasis,’ Boss.”

“You can read minds, too?” Amber glanced at Salieh, slightly surprised.

“No, no, no, I just guessed. We Jeram people have a natural talent for analyzing emotions and psychological activity~”

Salieh smiled, and the soft, leg-like tentacles on the back of her head swayed happily for a moment. Then she continued:

“Once the ‘stasis’ effect is activated, the interior of this institute should theoretically be completely sealed off. In a way, it’s as if the flow of time approaches zero. Plus, I just checked the institute’s logs. They left with the last fleet to launch the ‘space-time expedition,’ so their evacuation was indeed quite rushed.”

“Then why did the gravity control fail?”

Salieh: “Because the gravity control system requires a significant amount of energy to maintain. In a ‘stasis’ state, the institute can’t provide enough power. This further proves that the evacuation was rushed. Otherwise, all these devices you see floating around would have been stored away according to zero-gravity protocols.”

Amber nodded. “A rushed departure. Does that mean the chances of us finding ‘good stuff’ here are much higher?”

“Er… that is indeed the case.”

Salieh had to admit, Amber’s train of thought was rather unconventional at times. Even she found it hard to keep up with his line of thinking on occasion.

“Then let’s speed things up. We can’t let them…”

BOOM!

Before Amber could finish his sentence, a loud explosion echoed from the depths of the level they were on.

Salieh quickly glanced at the floor plan displayed inside her helmet, then unslung the electromagnetic rifle from her back as a blue psionic glow began to flicker in her hands.

“It’s from the direction of the gate to the next level…”

“They’re moving fast this time.” Amber frowned. As he shifted into a combat stance, he focused his psionic wave detection on the location Salieh had indicated.

He then discovered a ‘psionic black hole’ at the gate’s location that was impossible to probe clearly. Not only did it absorb all of Amber’s psionic waves, but it also completely obscured the situation at the gate, much like a ‘rift generator’ from some classic video game.

“Wait, isn’t that a Level 6 psionic user’s ability?”

Amber was shocked. He never would have expected to encounter a unit that seemed to be a Level 6 psionic user here, at this very moment.

Before he had a chance to say anything to Salieh, a pair of blue eyes lit up within the ‘psionic black hole’ and stared straight at him.

“We’re screwed!”

Chapter 590: High-Intensity Psionic Duel

The instant he saw the pair of eyes glowing with blue psionic light, Amber activated his Psionic Cloaking on muscle memory, without a second thought. This was the standard opening move for a player-versus-player duel in the game.

The emergence of those eyes from the psionic black hole signified that the opponent had activated their Psionic Vision. And for an unknown entity who was likely a Level 6 psionic user, their Psionic Vision was far more than a simple wallhack; they could use this ability to gather a wealth of information about their target.

Therefore, Amber’s course of action was to cloak himself with psionics, obstructing his opponent’s information gathering and preventing himself from being at a disadvantage in a potential conflict.

Although Psionic Cloaking, an ability derived from the psionic user’s “Stealth” skill tree, couldn’t completely block out the surroundings with oneself at the center and absorb the opponent’s psionic waves like a psionic black hole, it was more than capable of concealing the user alone. Its effect was particularly potent when the difference in psionic strength between both parties wasn’t a world of difference.

The moment he completed the Psionic Cloaking, Amber suddenly remembered Salieh by his side. After her recent period of recovery, her psionic strength was now infinitely close to Level 7.

Although this Repository Steward wasn’t a dedicated combatant and wasn’t particularly skilled at fighting, meaning she couldn’t offer much help in battle, she was still a genuine High-level psionic user. So Amber immediately turned to look at her.

“Salieh, quick, use a psionic black hole to cover us!”

“A what?”

Through the Mental Shackle, Salieh was aware that the situation was dire. Despite a tinge of panic, she had entered a combat-ready state immediately. However, she froze in place upon hearing Amber’s command.

“‘Psionic black hole’! Don’t tell me you don’t know this technique.”

“I’m sorry, Amber… I’ve never heard of that psionic technique,” Salieh said, a little embarrassed, as she simultaneously began a frantic search through her memory palace, fearing she had forgotten it from being frozen for too long.

Hearing Salieh’s reply, Amber was also a bit dumbfounded. He never imagined that a member of the Jeram people—the race that had most thoroughly developed psionics in this universe—and a near Level 7 psionic user who would be considered a “monster” in the current human and elven worlds, would not know about the psionic black hole.

Then, it dawned on Amber that the psionic black hole might have been something humans and elves had figured out on their own, which was why this “old frozen meat” beside him didn’t know how to use it.

With that in mind, Amber first pulled Salieh behind him, pressing her close to him in an attempt to extend the effects of his Psionic Cloaking to her, however slightly. Then, he spoke quickly.

“Among the psionic techniques you do know, is there one that can conceal both of us at the same time, temporarily blocking all detection methods, including psionics?”

“Yes!”

Salieh nodded rapidly, then spread her hands wide. A strange psionic energy emanated from her, quickly expanding to cover a circular area with a five-meter radius.

“The ‘Veil’ is deployed!”

“?”

If he could use emoticons, a question mark would probably have appeared over Amber’s head, because the psionic technique Salieh was using was one he had never seen in the game.

Many psionic techniques of the Forerunners had appeared in the game, but they were all fragmented or incomplete.

Furthermore, for the sake of gameplay, most of what players obtained were “Stances” that enhanced the thrill of melee combat—the very combat moves Amber had used during his capture of Salieh, which could only be performed by elite Forerunner warriors, Old Empire royal guards, or even Sword Attendants.

There were actually very few psionic techniques that resembled traditional “spells,” so the “Veil” Salieh was now using was completely new to Amber.

Although this psionic technique constantly made Amber’s mind wander to other games…

Thanks to the Mental Shackle, Amber quickly understood the effect of the “Veil.”

It was a psionic technique very similar to the “psionic black hole,” but it didn’t devour other psionic waves, nor did it reveal a general direction while remaining undetectable like a psionic black hole did.

Instead, like a true veil, it genuinely concealed the intended target without altering or affecting the surrounding environment.

“This thing is an amazing group stealth ability!”

Amber’s eyes lit up as he realized this technique could create a significant information advantage in confrontations between psionic users, especially in group battles.

However, he also knew this was not the time for learning. Taking advantage of the cover from Salieh’s “Veil,” he quickly led the Forerunner to circle around to the unknown psionic user’s flank.

“Hmm? The target has vanished?”

The Puppeteer, protected in the center of several puppets in Powered Armor, was also taken aback by the hand signals from the tall, cloaked figure beside him.

This powerful psionic user, whose origins and details even he dared not inquire about, had just informed him that there were others deep inside the research institute’s core area.

But a mere ten-odd seconds later, the “others” had disappeared.

For a moment, the Puppeteer even wondered if this powerful High-level psionic user had made a misjudgment or was having a hallucination.

But when he considered the other’s psionic strength of at least Level 6, the Puppeteer felt it was impossible for them to make such a rudimentary mistake.

Meanwhile, the tall psionic user was still giving the Puppeteer rapid and concise hand signals.

“Not a hallucination, but some kind of unseen psionic technique. It concealed them? The opponent’s strength should not be underestimated?!”

The Puppeteer quickly deciphered the meaning of the hand signals, a chill running down his spine.

In his eyes, the psionic user beside him was unfathomably powerful, the strongest he had ever met.

If even he said the opponent’s strength “should not be underestimated,” then this was a major problem.

“Should we withdraw first and then make a plan?”

After his previous encounter with Amber, the Puppeteer, a high-ranking executive of the Quest for Truth Foundation, had undergone a drastic change in temperament, becoming much more “cautious.” Thus, he took the initiative to suggest a retreat.

“No. We came with a mission. The item must be retrieved.”

The tall psionic user rejected the Puppeteer’s suggestion without hesitation and began walking deeper into the core area.

“Tsk…”

Unable and unwilling to show his anger, the Puppeteer could only complain in his mind with impotent rage before reluctantly ordering his puppets to follow the psionic user.

The closer they got to the heart of the core area, the more the Puppeteer felt a mysterious and malevolent psionic energy drifting about, sometimes there, sometimes not.

The psionic energy was like a venomous snake hidden in the shadows, its cold, flickering tongue sending shivers down one’s spine. The Puppeteer remained vigilant, carefully navigating the labyrinthine corridors and chambers, trying to pinpoint the source of this aura.

And deep within the research institute’s core area, in a dark corner, Amber and Salieh lay in wait like hunters concealed in the darkness, closely observing their every move, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

The battle erupted suddenly, without any warning.

Because the Foundation’s team, for some reason, had a clear objective and headed straight for the core data room Salieh had pointed out to Amber after passing through the main gate area, Amber was ultimately forced to strike first to gain the upper hand.

After all, he had come here to dig up something good from the research institute, and he certainly didn’t want the Foundation to get their hands on anything valuable first.

But from the very beginning of the fight, the situation instantly turned extremely unfavorable for Amber and Salieh.

The mysterious psionic user reacted like a phantom the moment Amber launched his attack from within the “Veil.”

A circle of complex yet incredibly familiar script lit up on the combat suit of the right arm he extended from beneath his cloak.

“Jeram script?!” Salieh exclaimed in shock.

The next second, the mysterious psionic user’s right arm formed a special psionic wave that shot towards the now-unavoidable Amber. The moment it made contact, the psionic blast gathering in Amber’s palm abruptly dimmed.

“Is this… a Counter?”

His attack interrupted, Amber was forced to retreat back into the “Veil,” equally astonished.

The technique the mysterious psionic user had just used was one of the few Forerunner psionic techniques from the game.

Its effect was simple and brutal: it “nullified” the target’s current psionic attack.

This turn of events made Amber instantly realize that the difficulty of this battle might be far greater than he had anticipated before the operation.

And the mysterious psionic user’s subsequent actions quickly confirmed Amber’s suspicions.

After executing the “Counter,” the psionic user performed a hit-and-run, quickly entering a Stealth state and vanishing without a trace. Only sharp “Psionic Spikes,” like flashes of blue lightning, pierced the darkness, shooting swiftly towards Amber’s position.

Although Amber’s keen psionic senses detected them, the opponent’s attack was too sudden. He could only hastily sidestep to dodge.

The Psionic Spikes grazed past his combat suit, their sharp whistle like the whisper of death. They carved a deep groove into the metal wall behind him, sending a spray of dazzling, firework-like sparks.

“Be careful, Amber! The opponent’s psionic strength is very high!” Salieh shouted upon seeing this and immediately cast a psionic shield on Amber.

“I can tell. You be careful too. This enemy is definitely not simple.”

On the other side, the Puppeteer, though annoyed at being commanded by this psionic user who had appeared out of nowhere, didn’t waste time with complaints after receiving the order for a feigned attack.

Instantly, the psionically controlled human puppets surged forward like a tide from all directions.

Compared to the Foundation’s puppet soldiers back at the Repository, these puppets had clearly undergone an upgrade. There were even heavy units clad in Powered Armor.

Their eyes under their combat faceplates were vacant and lifeless, as if their souls had been ripped out, yet their movements were exceptionally agile. Wielding various lethal weapons, they let out mechanical roars and charged madly at Amber and Salieh.

“Time for some ‘mowing down mobs’ again, huh.”

Amber took a deep breath, focused his mind, and fully mobilized his psionic energy. After reaching level-five Psionic strength, a psionic user’s ability to influence the material world was greatly enhanced.

Even a simple trick like Telekinesis had its power in actual combat skyrocket.

Scrap metal objects around him were drawn together, converging in the air like an invisible thread was pulling them into a “cloud” of metal, which then rained down upon the puppets.

Although psionic lightning was currently Amber’s strongest AOE skill, its high psionic energy consumption rate made him unwilling to use such a precious technique on these Combat puppets.

The metal objects crashed into the puppets with dull thuds, and severed limbs occasionally went flying from the “Metal Storm,” but the Foundation’s Combat puppets did not retreat. Under the Puppeteer’s control, they continued to charge forward wave after wave.

Seeing that even the “Metal Storm” Amber had gathered was at risk of being overwhelmed by the Combat puppets, Salieh dared not hold back any longer. Four transparent, prism-shaped crystals shot out from the back of her combat suit.

As a visible surge of psionic energy was channeled from her combat suit into these transparent crystals, beams of blue psionic light immediately shot out from them. These beams, like precision high-energy lasers, carried lethal energy and accurately struck the heads of the Combat puppets.

Since the Puppeteer controlled these Combat puppets by manipulating their brains and central nervous systems, attacking the head was the most efficient method.

Each time a beam hit a puppet, it would emit a faint “sizzle” sound. Accompanied by a flash of psionic energy, some puppets would instantly collapse to the ground, paralyzed like marionettes with their strings cut.

Under the assault of the “Metal Storm” and the psionic rays, the Foundation’s Combat puppets fell in droves like dominoes. But no matter how many Amber and Salieh eliminated, a continuous stream of new Combat puppets poured in from the distant corridor doors to fill the gaps, seemingly without end.

“Damn it! How many Combat puppets did the Foundation bring? Don’t tell me their science vessel is filled with nothing but these things?” Amber couldn’t help but gripe about it while using his psionics to control the “Metal Storm” and reap the lives of the Combat puppets. This was a common way for him to relieve stress during battle.

At the same time, he didn’t forget to stay wary of the mysterious psionic user lurking in the darkness. He knew that the one who could truly settle things in one blow was this individual, whose psionic strength and combat skills were no weaker than his own at this stage.

Chapter 591: The Person Who Shouldn’t Be Here

The massive brawl in the zero-gravity environment couldn’t help but remind Amber of a certain high-difficulty five-man dungeon from a game in his previous life.

It was also set in an abandoned space facility, and also involved facing a seemingly endless horde of enemies attacking from all directions—above, below, and all around.

The only difference was that in that dungeon, there were five powerful, death-defying players working together. Here, it was just Amber and Salieh. The latter seemingly had a higher psionic level, but her actual combat prowess wasn’t that strong; at best, she was a high-level “support.”

Thus, under the relentless siege of the Foundation’s puppet soldiers, Amber and Salieh were gradually forced onto the defensive—especially since Amber also had to guard against the mysterious psionic user who had slipped into the shadows, waiting for an unknown moment to strike.

A high-level, experienced psionic user who could wield the psionic arts of the Forerunners was, in a complex combat environment, not engaging him head-on but acting like an ‘old fox’, hiding in the shadows and patiently waiting for an opportunity to land a fatal blow…

To be honest, this was the last kind of scenario Amber wanted to face, much like fighting “assassin-class” players in his previous life. He would rather the mysterious psionic user charge out at full power to clash with him than be on edge like this.

Although the Foundation’s puppet soldiers attacked mindlessly, their weapons were undeniably powerful. After a group of fearless units unleashed a torrent of fire from electromagnetic rifles, charged particle cannons, and personal missiles, the psionic shield Salieh erected began to flicker unstably under the puppets’ frenzied assault, like a candle in the wind, on the verge of collapse.

Amber realized that if this continued, they would eventually be worn down and killed by these Foundation puppets. Even if his psionic reserves were sufficient after his “power-up,” the longer this dragged on, the higher the chance the lurking psionic user would succeed with a sneak attack.

“Salieh, we can’t let this drag on! We need to find a way to regain the initiative! Protect yourself!”

Amber quickly informed Salieh, then let out a great roar as his psionics erupted like a volcano. In the zero-gravity environment, he charged toward the swarm of puppets at an absurd speed.

His figure moved like a blue bolt of lightning through the dim research institute, weaving through the puppet ranks at high speed. Every strike, whether a fist or a palm, carried immense psionic power, sending any puppet that got close flying. For a psionic user approaching Level Six, their own body was the most powerful weapon when engaged at close range.

The puppets he struck were sent scattering like rag dolls, slamming heavily into the metal walls with a series of thunderous booms.

“Understood, Amber. I’ll create an opportunity for you!”

On the other side, Salieh, who instantly understood Amber’s intentions, closed her eyes. While the two transparent psionic tendrils beside her unleashed sweeping fire of psionic rays into the puppet soldiers, she marshaled her even more powerful psionic senses.

A moment later, she opened her eyes, which now shone with a strange, brilliant light, and locked firmly onto The Puppeteer’s position.

The Puppeteer, who was busy directing an endless stream of puppet soldiers forward in an attempt to drown Amber and Salieh with a “human wave” tactic, suddenly felt alarm bells go off in his mind.

In the next second, a powerful psionic wave erupted from Salieh’s position, sweeping toward The Puppeteer.

Wherever the wave passed, space itself seemed to warp slightly, as if reality were being kneaded by a pair of invisible hands.

The puppets were also affected, their movements becoming sluggish, as if they were struggling through a swamp, until they were finally frozen in place.

Psionics had always been able to influence the material world, the most direct and simple example being “Telekinesis,” which looked like a magic trick.

To a low-level psionic user, it was indeed a “trick,” or perhaps a “handy life hack.”

But once psionic strength surpassed a certain threshold, this “trick” underwent a qualitative change.

Just like now, in Salieh’s hands, it had become something akin to a “hard control” ability.

The Puppeteer felt Salieh’s attack. With a cold snort, he intensified his psionic control over the puppets, and the blue psionic light flashing from the artificial nerve cords behind his head grew more frequent.

The puppets that hadn’t been immobilized seemed to be injected with new vitality. They quickly maneuvered around Salieh’s control field and once again charged crazily toward Amber and Salieh.

At the same time, two puppets in Powered Armor, under The Puppeteer’s control, also rushed toward Salieh.

The large-caliber, high-speed grenade launchers in their hands continuously fired high-explosive grenades that detonated in front of Salieh, while the chainswords in their other hands roared to life, waiting only to get close enough to tear their target to shreds.

“Salieh, watch out!”

Amber shouted a warning. He wanted to turn back to help her but was tied down by another group of puppets sent by The Puppeteer.

Salieh, the “old frozen meat,” was naturally aware of the approaching danger, but her gaze remained firm and calm. She quickly manifested a psionic sword and shield before her—this was the only technique she had learned after becoming a Repository Steward: the basic stance of the Old Empire’s Sword and Shield Champions.

The monosword and square shield, constructed from psionics, emitted a soft yet resilient blue glow. When the Powered Armor puppets broke through the obstacles and closed in on Salieh, their chainswords clashed with her sword and shield, producing a piercing shriek like a demon’s scream that was utterly bloodcurdling.

A flash of psionic light erupted at the point of impact. Salieh was thrown backward by the powerful force, her feet finally bracing against a bulkhead of the research institute to halt her momentum. Still, she gritted her teeth and held her ground, showing no sign of retreat.

“Hold on, Salieh!”

Amber was on a roll, carving through the puppet swarm. Just as he was about to take advantage of the hard control Salieh had created and charge toward The Puppeteer to “cut the head off the snake,” he suddenly felt that dangerous, familiar presence.

It was the mysterious psionic user who had been cloaking himself!

“Quick! Now’s the time, finish them!”

The Puppeteer had also noticed the movement of his “friendly forces” and shouted excitedly into the comms channel. But in the next second, the mysterious psionic user’s actions made him curse out loud.

This mysterious psionic user, who had acquired a storage container from somewhere, was bypassing the battle zone. After leaving the area of psionic turbulence caused by their firefight, he was about to enter Stealth again, seemingly with no intention of joining the fray.

“What the fuck, why?!”

“The mission objective is the top priority. Retrieval of the mission objective must be guaranteed.”

A text message appeared on The Puppeteer’s tactical faceplate HUD, enraging him further. He no longer cared about the other’s much higher status and roared:

“Damn it, are you going to let me die here just so you can escape?”

“The mission’s priority is absolute. The Master will remember your sacrifice.”

“Fuck!”

The Puppeteer’s heart sank when he saw his companion preparing to abandon him.

His control faltered for a moment, and the puppets’ movements became uncoordinated, like an army that had lost its commander.

Losing focus in battle is an extremely dangerous thing. In his extreme anger, The Puppeteer had clearly forgotten this. As he was cursing out the mysterious psionic user, Amber seized the opportunity.

After twisting the torso off a combat puppet, Amber followed the “safe path” that Salieh had cleared with her control ability. He charged forward at a speed The Puppeteer was too distracted to react to, then suddenly unleashed a powerful psionic blast.

By the time The Puppeteer noticed the sudden attack, he subconsciously tried to dodge, but it was too late. He could only brace himself, block with his psionic shield, and pray his combat suit would hold out a little longer.

However, Amber’s long-brewing psionic blast was too powerful. The Puppeteer’s shield began to crack the instant it made contact, making a “kaka” sound like shattering glass.

Just as his shield was about to break, The Puppeteer suddenly pulled out a single-use psionic amplifier injector from his suit and, without hesitation, injected the faintly glowing blue liquid into his body through an injection port on his combat suit.

As the cerulean liquid entered his system, it immediately triggered a violent psionic reaction. The Puppeteer’s psionic strength and physical power surged in an instant. He broke free from the control Salieh had established with her high-intensity psionics, then turned and launched a ferocious counterattack against Amber.

He waved his hands, and several blue psionic cords materialized in mid-air, shooting toward Amber.

These psionic ropes writhed as if they were alive, twisting through the air like deadly vipers trying to entangle Amber.

Amber dodged nimbly, but a few of the psionic cords still grazed his body, leaving scorch marks on his psionic combat suit. Although the suit’s built-in nano-repair materials began fixing the damage immediately, Amber knew his suit’s durability was probably insufficient.

“This guy is tougher than I thought.”

“Amber, I’ll help you!”

Seeing Amber in danger again, Salieh ignored her nearly depleted psionic reserves. Like a mermaid in the sea, she swiftly navigated through the various obstacles in the zero-gravity environment to reach Amber’s side. As for why most of her psionics were depleted, don’t ask.

She and Amber stood back-to-back, raising a new psionic shield between them to jointly defend against The Puppeteer’s attacks.

Seeing the senior operative of the Quest for Truth Foundation once again directing the puppet soldiers, Salieh released waves of psionic interference.

These waves spread out like invisible ripples in the confined space, causing The Puppeteer’s psionic control to waver. Some puppet soldiers even began to fight amongst themselves. The sounds of clashing metal and the puppets’ pained cries intertwined, plunging the scene into chaos.

“This isn’t working. If we keep fighting like this, we’ll be the ones who get worn down. This guy can also ‘sacrifice’ the surrounding puppets to absorb their psionics and replenish his own,” Amber said, a lingering fear in his voice as he recalled The Puppeteer’s “Star-Sucking Great Skill” from their last encounter.

“Let’s switch targets. We’ll attack the other one. It seems like this puppet-controller is providing cover for his escape. And for a split second, I saw that the other psionic user was holding a new storage container.”

“You’re saying they already got what they came for?” Salieh frowned in confusion. “How could they be so fast? Are they more familiar with this place than I am?”

“We don’t have time for that. The more they try to cover that psionic user’s escape with the container, the more we have to stop them. That’s how we’ll get the upper hand back.”

Under the effect of the Mental Shackle, Amber and Salieh exchanged their thoughts in mere milliseconds.

“You find his weak point. I’ll engage him in melee,” Amber said, gritting his teeth.

Salieh nodded. She knew they couldn’t afford to remain on the defensive and decided to take a risk.

She focused all of her remaining psionics into her eyes. In the next moment, her eyes became two dazzling sources of psionic light, capable of piercing through any obstacle, as if two stars from the cosmos had descended.

Quickly, peering through layers of puppets and floating debris, Salieh pinpointed the exact location of the mysterious psionic user who had once again cloaked himself in shadow.

“Over there, Amber! The mysterious one is in the shadows at your three o’clock!” Salieh shouted, and without hesitation, she unleashed her most powerful psionic attack in that direction—a beam of pure psionic energy.

The beam shot forth like a sacred pillar of blue-white light, annihilating everything in its path.

All obstacles and puppet soldiers in the beam’s way were instantly pierced, and the space around it was scorched and warped, as if reality itself had been torn open.

The mysterious psionic user, cloaked by his Psionic Cloaking, obviously sensed the approaching danger. Realizing he couldn’t dodge the attack, he was forced to throw up a psionic shield in front of himself.

The next second, the thick blue-white beam struck him. The psionic shield shattered instantly, and with a muffled groan, he was sent flying backward until he slammed heavily into a distant metal wall.

The wall, made of some unknown alloy, was dented into a large crater, and the surrounding metal framework groaned in protest from the impact.

This mysterious high-level psionic user hadn’t even had time to free himself from the wall’s indentation before he felt an extremely dangerous presence descend upon him.

Almost at the same instant Salieh’s psionic beam hit its target, Amber followed right behind, a blue psionic blade forming over his right hand as he held his fingers together like a knife-edge.

The psionic user, embedded in the wall, only had time to raise his right arm to block before the blue blade severed it in the blink of an eye.

The combat suit covering the psionic user’s arm was incinerated by the psionic blade at the moment of impact, and the severed limb began to float away slowly.

In that instant, Amber instinctively glanced at the severed limb, and a tattoo on it caused him to freeze in shock.

It was the image of a Star Dragon discharging electricity.

Only one type of person in this world was qualified to bear that tattoo.

The Royal Silencers of the Star Dragon Empire.

Chapter 592: The Foundation’s Secret

Amber had never imagined that this trip to the Forerunner research institute would serve up such explosive, earth-shattering gossip.

A Royal Silencer from the Star Dragon Empire had appeared among the ranks of the Quest for Truth Foundation—and not just any Royal Silencer.

In Amber’s experience, there was only one Royal Silencer at this point in time who possessed the solid power of a Level 6 psionic user.

That was the ‘top enforcer’ among the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Silencers, the personal Internal Security guard of the old Emperor, Frederico Rosa Leon.

Wait, what’s this guy doing here? Is the old Emperor here too?

A preposterous thought flashed through Amber’s mind, but his hands didn’t stop. The psionic blade formed by his fingers continued its thrust without the slightest pause, aiming for the Royal Silencer’s now wide-open chest.

No player could resist the temptation of felling a Level 6 psionic user while fighting above their own level.

Not in a game, and not in reality.

Especially when the psionic user before him, who had already lost a hand, was a Royal Silencer—a class that consistently ranked T1 in single combat among peers of the same psionic level. And what’s more, this one was most likely the old Emperor Frederick’s personal guard.

If this were back in the game, Amber would have already turned on the built-in recording software and uploaded a first-person video of him soloing a Royal Silencer to the forums.

But the Royal Silencer in front of Amber possessed an equally strong will to fight. Despite having lost a hand, he forced down his body’s shock response and used his remaining hand to muster a psionic force to parry Amber’s attack.

At the same time, the Royal Silencer’s left knee shot upward in a vicious strike.

There were no special effects, just a simple, unadorned knee strike, but Amber didn’t dare take it head-on. He knew he was facing an emotionless fighting machine, a pure ‘stat monster’—the kind that could tank anti-materiel rounds with their bare body.

So, Amber didn’t let his guard down for a second, decisively retracting his attack to block the blow.

The combat prowess of the Royal Silencers didn’t just stem from their psionic strength and mastery of psionic arts.

Their bodies, long nourished and tempered by psionics, and their combat skills, ingrained into their very bones through rigorous training, made them elite combat units that ordinary people couldn’t hope to match, even without using psionics.

However, Amber’s defensive move and retreat immediately gave the Royal Silencer an opening.

Having slung the container onto his back and completely freed up his right hand, the Royal Silencer pressed his advantage the moment Amber blocked his knee strike.

His lone right hand, augmented by his muscle groups and combat suit, rained down on Amber’s vital points like a storm.

Amber felt as if a sky-blotting torrent of fists had appeared before him. Although his dynamic vision was already far beyond what an ordinary person could imagine, high-level psionic users were beings who defied ordinary imagination. Thus, he could only barely discern the trajectory of the attacks, doing his utmost to parry the fists that were powerful enough to shatter a man to pieces.

But this barrage from the Royal Silencer was merely a feint. Once Amber was forced completely onto the defensive by the hurricane of blows, the Emperor’s guard didn’t hesitate. He threw a punch to force Amber back, then immediately tossed out two plasma grenades.

With the cloak of his combat suit practically brushing against the expanding plasma fireballs, he rapidly increased the distance between them and used Psionic Cloaking to enter Stealth once more.

“Damn it, he’s trying to run!”

The moment his opponent vanished into the shadows, Amber realized the Royal Silencer wasn’t looking for a chance to ambush him but was planning to escape the fight amidst the chaos.

The man obviously valued the container from the research institute immensely. He had kept it shielded behind his back throughout the fight, and the instant he entered the shadows, he moved it in front of him, protecting it with his own body—a motion that was clearly not a preparatory move for an attack.

Amber was now certain that the man had found something important in this research institute, which made him even more reluctant to let this ‘elite monster’ get away.

But just as Amber shouted a warning to Salieh and lunged after the Royal Silencer, a horde of the Foundation’s combat puppets suddenly rushed out, forming a tide-like barrier between Amber and his quarry.

“The Puppeteer?!”

Amber’s right hand drew a brilliant blue arc of psionic light, slicing several approaching puppet soldiers in two. He glanced in The Puppeteer’s direction and saw that he had mostly shaken off the effects of Salieh’s ‘hard control’ and was reasserting his command over the puppet soldiers to attack them.

Although The Puppeteer was furious at being abandoned by his ‘teammate,’ so much so that he wanted to rip the man’s head off, he still knew he had to prioritize the bigger picture.

The other man’s status was clearly not something he could afford to offend. Even without knowing his true identity, The Puppeteer knew that if that man fell here, his own fate would be no better.

Before connecting with this mysterious psionic user, The Puppeteer had already pieced together from various clues that he was likely from the Star Dragon Empire, and quite possibly connected to the secret investors behind the Foundation.

So, under the circumstances, no matter what grievances The Puppeteer held against the psionic user, he had no choice but to help him escape safely.

The Royal Silencer, already concealed in the shadows, naturally wouldn’t waste the opportunity The Puppeteer had created. Taking advantage of the interference from the Foundation’s puppet soldiers, he quickly broke free from Amber’s lock.

With Salieh also tied down by the reappearing puppet soldiers, neither of them could spare a moment to hunt for the Psionic Master who had entered Stealth.

“Fine, fine! If I can’t catch the Royal Silencer, you think I can’t catch you?”

Frustrated by the constant obstructions, Amber’s temper finally flared. Since the Royal Silencer had made a quick getaway and couldn’t be stopped for the moment, he no longer had to worry about a sneak attack.

Instantly, a chain of psionic lightning erupted from Amber, radiating outwards like countless electric serpents.

Along the path of the psionic lightning, the control devices implanted in the heads of the Foundation’s puppet soldiers overloaded, sparking violently.

The Puppeteer only had time to register that the puppet soldiers in front of him had gone ‘dark’ in an instant before an enraged figure appeared before his eyes. A fully charged psionic blast in the figure’s right hand shot towards his face without a moment’s hesitation.

The psionic blast was like an invisible blade, stabbing directly into The Puppeteer’s mind. An excruciating pain shot through his head, as if a million needles were piercing his brain. The agony nearly caused him to lose consciousness.

The psionic energy gathered in the neural cables at the back of his head instantly went out of control. The ‘threads’ controlling the vast number of combat puppets dissipated like fireworks, turning into motes of psionic light that gradually faded into the darkness.

“Argh!!!”

The Puppeteer dropped to one knee, clutching his head and gasping for breath. His vision blurred, as if a thick fog had enveloped him.

Amber seized the opportunity to use his telekinesis, gathering the surrounding metal fragments and debris. Pulled by an invisible force, they rapidly converged in the air, forming a huge metal sphere.

He infused psionics into the sphere, and it was instantly enveloped in a dazzling light.

“Here’s a taste of my Universal Pull!!!”

The massive metal sphere hurtled towards The Puppeteer. He wanted to dodge, but Salieh, seizing the chance to create a ‘control chain,’ had already used her psionics to immobilize him.

The metal sphere slammed into him with a dull, heavy thud. He let out a muffled grunt as his body was smashed to the ground, the blood he coughed up splattering all over the inside of his tactical faceplate.

But The Puppeteer didn’t need to worry about his vision being obscured by the blood, because in the next second, Amber ripped the tactical faceplate clean off his head.

At the same time, with his hand now gripping the neural cable at the back of The Puppeteer’s head, Amber didn’t hesitate. He squeezed his right hand, crushing the section of the cable he held, and sent a surge of highly aggressive psionic energy straight up the remaining line and into the man’s brain.

“Aaaargh!!!!”

The Puppeteer let out an inhuman scream and went completely limp. But with Amber holding him fast by his neural cable, all he could do was feebly beat at his captor’s arm.

As for the nearby Foundation puppet soldiers that had been moving in to ‘save their master,’ they lost all control the instant the neural cable was crushed. The control devices in their heads triggered a ‘failsafe.’

The head of the nearest puppet soldier suddenly exploded, setting off a chain reaction. One by one, the heads of every puppet soldier in the research institute controlled by The Puppeteer burst open.

Unlike the stylized depictions in games or movies, the ‘brain fireworks’ display that unfolded before Amber’s eyes was far from beautiful or surreal.

It was just bloody.

Blood, brain tissue, bodily fluids, skull fragments, and muscle were smeared everywhere. The research institute, once filled with the cold, mysterious style of the Forerunners, was instantly transformed into a slaughterhouse of flesh and blood.

Back in the virtual space of Valhalla, Banninger and the others, with Amber’s authorization, were watching the whole thing unfold through the live feed from his psionic combat suit’s camera. As they watched head after head ‘bloom’ from a first-person perspective, the veterans who had fought their way off Robert IV—especially those who had been on clean-up duty when they first met Amber—felt old, dead memories coming back to haunt them.

“He’s back… the ‘Terrifying Headhunter’ is back…”

—

Seeing that The Puppeteer was captured and the Foundation’s puppet soldiers no longer posed a threat, Amber immediately had Salieh try to locate the escaped Royal Silencer.

However, after carefully scanning the area with her remaining psionic energy, she just shook her head with a frown.

“He is a master of combat. He concealed his ‘psionic signature’ perfectly, leaving no traces to follow.”

A rare note of admiration crept into Salieh’s voice. Since awakening, she usually only reserved that tone for Amber.

“I thought you were an exception, Amber. But it seems Homo sapiens two million years later are far better at using psionics than they once were.”

“Such high praise? That’s not like you.”

Amber gave Salieh a surprised glance. While keeping The Puppeteer under control and injecting him with some emergency medica to keep him alive, he patched into the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment’s communication channel.

“Ramos, what’s the situation outside? I need you to intercept any ships trying to escape!”

“Boss, I was just about to report, but your status showed you were in combat. The Foundation’s fleet stationed near these ruins has been mostly neutralized. A few warships are putting up a final resistance, but it’s only a matter of time before we finish them.”

Ramos hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“But we have bad news. Another fleet just warped in 270,000 kilometers away. Its numbers are close to two-thirds of a capital fleet. The destroyers we sent on a reconnaissance approach just sent word back… the fleet appears to be the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Royal Navy.”

“An Imperial fleet?”

“Yes, an Imperial fleet. And they’ve already entered combat speed, heading straight for our position!”

Amber was stunned for a moment. Thinking of the Royal Silencer who had just fled with the container, he suddenly realized that the mysterious power bankrolling the Quest for Truth Foundation was, in all likelihood, the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.

Considering the special status of the Royal Silencer, an Internal Security guard, the true controller behind the Quest for Truth Foundation was very likely the old Emperor Frederick himself.

That Royal Silencer had seemed to know his way around the research institute, and his objective was crystal clear. Amber concluded that he, too, was after the research on ‘Immortality.’

Could he be trying to extend the old Emperor’s life? But this plotline wasn’t in the game in my previous life…

The sudden connection between the Quest for Truth Foundation and the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family was something Amber had truly not expected.

Furthermore, the ‘historical flashback’ storyline for the Star Dragon Empire in the game had undergone a major overhaul before its official release due to ‘copyright issues.’ Many plot points and side quests, including the final ending, had become very unclear. As a result, Amber now had no idea what the old Emperor intended to do after obtaining this ‘thing’ from the research institute.

Judging by the fact that the Emperor disappeared from the story in the future, Amber guessed that he might have indeed caused some kind of stir at this point in time, but ultimately still failed.

With this in mind, Amber made his decision.

The ‘Good Fortune’ Strike Detachment had yet to arrive. The ships of the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment alone were clearly no match for the incoming Imperial Navy.

After all, the strike detachment consisted of conventional warships. If either of his super-flagships, The Infinity or The Dawn, had been present, Amber would have at least tried to pull off some ‘clutch plays.’ But unfortunately, he currently lacked the capital for even that, so he had to let it go.

“Ramos, prepare to wrap up the engagement and evac us. We didn’t bring many ships, so we won’t be going head-to-head with the Imperial Royal Navy.”

After speaking with Ramos, Amber turned to Salieh, who had walked over to his side.

“Salieh, I don’t care how you do it. Download all the data in this research institute as fast as you can, then see if there’s anything else worth taking from the core area. We don’t have much time!”

Chapter 593: A Small Gain

Salieh carried out Amber’s order to “download all the data in this research institute at the fastest possible speed” with absolute thoroughness.

The access terminals in the research institute required authorization, which neither Amber nor Salieh possessed. Their only option was to “brute-force” their way in, but that conflicted with the demand to “download at the fastest possible speed.”

So, in the end, Salieh simply dismantled the storage module in the research institute’s core area—a black cube of about two cubic meters.

“Wait, how are you planning to get this thing back?”

Amber raised an eyebrow at the black cube floating before her in zero gravity. While lifting it wasn’t an issue, figuring out how to transport something this large, let alone having a combat craft tow it, seemed to be a problem.

Salieh shrugged helplessly and said, “To download the data at the fastest speed, Amber, this was the only method I could think of. The security protocols for the storage module are different from the institute’s security checkpoint; they’re not so easy to crack. If we want to retrieve the data completely, we have to take this storage module back to my lab and use the equipment there to bypass its security.”

“Tsk… fine. What did that psionic user take just now? And besides this storage module, is there anything else of value here? This was a place for researching ‘Immortality,’ after all. There should be some good stuff, right?”

Amber looked around, talking more than usual.

After all, she had just survived a vicious battle and might very well have died here. It would be too big a loss if she came away with nothing.

Thinking of this, Amber glanced at The Puppeteer floating nearby. The high-ranking executive from the Quest for Truth Foundation was barely clinging to life after being injected with a large dose of life-support agents.

As the only piece of “loot” she had secured so far, Amber planned to take him back and see if she could pry some of the Foundation’s secrets out of him.

It didn’t matter if he refused to talk. With a Forerunner like Salieh around, they could always come up with some bizarre method to extract whatever Amber wanted from his brain.

“Amber, I’ve looked carefully. What that psionic user took should be the mothballed ‘Specimen 92’—it’s also the only specimen in this research institute that is still active. According to the System Log, all the other numbered specimens lost their activity over the long years for various reasons. The people in this research institute really did evacuate in a hurry, so they just put the specimens in stasis before mothballing the entire institute.

“Based on my memory and experience, if this was done before the ‘space-time expedition,’ it means there was a possibility that this research institute might be reactivated at some point in the future.”

Salieh’s voice grew serious. She patted the black cube beside her and continued, “Although we didn’t get the specimen, I estimate that the relevant research data is all in this storage module. If we can study it properly, we should still have a lot to gain.”

Salieh’s words were packed with information. Amber’s eyes widened after hearing them, and she asked the question that concerned her most.

“Are you saying your people mothballed this research institute with the intention of coming back in the future?!”

“It’s just a possibility!” Salieh quickly explained. “My people left a large number of mothballed facilities in various universes, but that doesn’t mean they will return to all of them. I’m just saying it’s a possibility.”

Amber said, “I’ve got a bad feeling about what you just said. It sounds like you’re tempting fate.”

Salieh: “Huh?”

“Never mind, just pretend I didn’t say anything…”

Amber shook her head, then continued with a puzzled tone, “It’s really strange. How did that Royal Silencer know where to find what he wanted? And how did he happen to take ‘Specimen 92,’ the one that was still active? By the way, what exactly is this ‘active’ thing you’re talking about?”

“I don’t know the specifics either. I just saw on the terminal that only Number 92 was listed as ‘active.’ But don’t worry, I’m eighty percent sure this storage module can answer all your questions, Amber~”

In the end, the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment did not engage the Imperial Royal Navy’s fleet.

Although Ramos and his captains were all spoiling for a fight, eager to go head-to-head with the Imperial Royal Navy for real, Amber still ordered the strike detachment to withdraw to a safe distance after she was back aboard her ship.

In contrast, the Imperial Royal Navy fleet, after receiving the surviving ships from the Foundation, immediately assumed a battle formation, posturing as if they intended to eliminate all witnesses.

Because the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment had to adjust its orientation before starting to accelerate again, the Imperial fleet, which had been maintaining combat speed, was steadily closing the distance between them.

As the straight-line distance between the two sides shrank, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense. Just as Amber was about to order the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment to prepare a counterattack, the larger ‘Good Fortune’ Strike Detachment finally arrived in this region of space, dropping out of warp.

The arrival of the ‘Good Fortune’ Strike Detachment leveled the playing field once more.

The commander of the Imperial fleet now had to consider whether he could actually take on an enemy whose fleet was nearly equal to his own in size before giving an order.

In the end, recalling that his most important mission was to rendezvous with the ships of the Quest for Truth Foundation—and especially to ensure the safe return of that Royal Silencer to the Imperial capital—the Imperial fleet commander ordered a change of course just before the two sides entered engagement range. The entire fleet soon entered warp after accelerating.

Watching the flashing lights of the Imperial fleet’s warp drive gradually fade, Salieh let out a sigh of relief but couldn’t help asking with confusion, “They just left? From the way they were posturing just now, I thought we were about to fight…”

“That’s what worries me.”

Amber shook her head, her tone quite serious.

“Their unwillingness to even risk a fight means that the thing that psionic user—or to be precise, that Royal Silencer from the Star Dragon Empire—took is extremely important to them.”

“The Star Dragon Empire… Is that the human nation that uses the Starry Sky Dragon as its totem and symbol?”

During this time, Salieh had used Atlas’s database to gather a massive amount of information she needed, including the distribution of the major intelligent life-forms in this universe. As a result, she also knew about the Star Dragon Empire.

“I saw in your information database that their Emperor is critically ill, isn’t he?”

“That’s right. So, being the smart one you are, what do you think they came all the way to these ruins to do?”

Chapter 594: The Secret to Immortality

Hearing Amber’s words, Salieh’s eyes widened.

“Amber, do you mean to say they want to use something from this research institute to extend the life of that critically ill Emperor?”

After spending a good deal of time browsing the knowledge of the current era, Salieh’s way of speaking had become more and more human, less like that of a distant Forerunner.

Amber: “Other than that, I can’t think of any other reason for the Emperor’s personal Internal Security to be here.”

“But what they took was just an experimental item! Who knows how many experiments, if any, have been done on carbon-based life forms. And even if they have, how would they know the research was actually a success?!”

As a Jeram, and even more so as a Repository Steward, Salieh’s attitude toward scientific research was extremely rigorous.

Therefore, this kind of behavior, which completely ignored scientific risks, was truly an eye-opener for her.

Amber wasn’t surprised by Salieh’s reaction. He replied patiently, “Humans have an old saying: clutching at straws. When you’re out of options, you’ll try anything.”

“Even so, so-called research on ‘Immortality’ doesn’t necessarily mean it can extend a human’s life.”

“So that’s what we need to investigate next,” Amber said, a meaningful glint in his eyes. “Let’s see what these Empire folks are really up to.”

After returning to the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Amber put everything else on hold. He and Salieh immediately took the storage module from the Forerunner research institute to the integrated laboratory built specifically for her, and had Lilith connect to it as well.

Within Atlas, besides the Immortal Corps, Salieh was the only one who truly knew Lilith’s identity.

It wasn’t that Amber hadn’t tried to hide it from her, but that the Jeram had figured out Lilith’s true identity as a strong AI not long after using Lilith’s computing power to assist with research and development.

Under these circumstances, Amber had nothing left to hide. In any case, Salieh was under the control of the ‘Mental Shackle,’ so he didn’t have to worry about her exposing the secret.

Lilith was even happier, as it meant one less person she needed to ‘act’ for.

After all, she had to respond to Salieh’s requests nearly every day and interacted with the Forerunner a great deal, so she’d had to constantly play the part of an ordinary AI.

Once the research institute’s storage module was placed on the laboratory workstation, a swarm of custom-built, ‘Forerunner-style’ mechanical arms that Salieh had assembled herself surrounded it under her control, attaching a host of strange-looking instruments to its exterior.

“Lilith, we’re starting~”

Salieh operated the workstation with rapt attention. Her voice held a hint of excitement, as she was about to start decoding a storage module that she, too, was very interested in.

“Understood, Ms. Salieh! Calling up all idle computing power from the fortress’s server array! Activating the ‘Forerunner Facility Decryption Program’.”

Lilith’s tone was also excited. For her, she had pretty much figured out all of humanity’s secrets, big and small. So the mysterious Forerunners and the secrets this faction had left behind had become her new research subjects.

Meanwhile, Amber, sitting off to the side, had become a mere spectator. As a ‘battle maniac,’ he couldn’t really be of much help to the two of them when it came to the fields of decryption and research.

The storage module they had brought back didn’t last long under the combined assault of Salieh, a specialist in Forerunner technology, and Lilith, a decryption expert.

Amber, who had dozed off on the sofa and was woken up by the two, glanced groggily at the time and discovered they had finished the decryption in just four hours.

When he rubbed his eyes and walked over to the workstation, he saw Salieh’s hands gripping the armrests tightly, her body trembling slightly with excitement.

Noticing Amber approach, the Forerunner turned her head to stare at him and said slowly:

“Those madmen… they succeeded.”

The moment those words reached his ears, Amber was instantly wide awake.

“Succeeded?! Are you saying this research institute really solved the problem of Immortality???”

“To be precise, they solved the problem of immortality for carbon-based life forms.”

Salieh tried to calm her excitement and continued:

“All the data in the storage module has been unlocked. Lilith has already organized it all. Take a look, Amber. I need to go sit down and catch my breath.”

“Go on, I’ll have a service robot bring some drinks and snacks over.” Amber nodded, then focused his attention on the workstation’s virtual screen.

“Master, the data is organized. You can take a look first. This decryption took a bit of effort. More than ten sub-units in the server array burned out. I’m going to take care of that now~”

Lilith’s virtual avatar stuck out her tongue sheepishly in mid-air. Clearly, she hadn’t expected the decryption to be so taxing.

“Burned out completely? Just how hard did you two push it?”

Amber shook his head, then, as if remembering something, said, “Right, this is a good opportunity. Let’s test the servers our R&D center built. See how much better their performance is compared to other products on the market. If they’re good, I’ll have the R&D center run final checks and then put them into production.”

“Understood, Master! I’ll get it done~”

Lilith gave a playful military salute, and her virtual avatar in mid-air quickly vanished.

Amber turned his gaze back to the screen on the workstation, his mouth slowly falling open.

He had imagined many ways the Forerunners might have solved the ‘puzzle of immortality’ for carbon-based life, but he never expected that these Forerunner researchers had ultimately adopted the most ‘back-to-basics’ method.

For almost all carbon-based life forms, the factors that limit their lifespan are primarily rooted in things like cell division limits, free radical damage, changes in gene expression levels, accumulated DNA damage, and stem cell depletion.

Regarding these causes, Amber saw a quote in the decrypted data, left by a Forerunner researcher at the start of a massive bioengineering project called ‘Eternity’.

“If we solve these problems, aren’t we done?”

You see, this just goes to show that the Jeram people are, in essence, a race with a great sense of humor.

But at the same time, they were also a race that had reached a level unimaginable to humans in technologies such as gene editing, homologous recombination, enhanced DNA repair, antioxidant protection, signal transduction optimization, and bioreactors.

The final result of the ‘Eternity’ project was that these Jeram people, like creators in their laboratory, had engineered a series of perfect artificial cells called ‘Eternal Cells’.

Chapter 595: Extending Life

“Eternal Cells, the ultimate answer to our race’s problem of immortality, can not only prevent organisms from aging but also significantly enhance their physiological and psychological functions.”

On the virtual screen, a male Jeram person was describing the major breakthrough their team had just achieved in a somewhat fervent tone.

In appearance, the features of a male Jeram were not too different from a female like Salieh—skin as glossy as an amphibian’s, their bodies completely hairless as they didn’t rely on hair for heat dissipation, and the signature multiple soft, leg-like tentacles behind their heads.

However, the male Jeram’s form was not as “rounded” as the female’s, but rather more robust and angular, even giving Amber the impression of something like a “male naga.”

The video Amber was watching was a three-dimensional recording from the storage module. It was essentially a summary and introduction to the “Eternal Cells” created by this Forerunner research team. Amber surmised it was likely filmed immediately after the project’s success to report to the Forerunner high command.

Lilith had previously gone through a great deal of Forerunner-related data, and with her long-term communication with Salieh, her “Geram language” database was already quite complete.

So, this time, she had thoughtfully added subtitles to the video for Amber. Although he could understand and even speak the Geram language, reading subtitles in his native tongue was still more convenient and relaxing.

“The core of ‘Eternal Cells’ lies in their powerful and controllable capacity for infinite division. Through gene-editing technology, our researchers have successfully activated the telomerase gene within the cells! Every time a cell divides, telomerase automatically lengthens the telomeres, ensuring the integrity and stability of the chromosomes. This means that no matter how many times they divide, the cells will not lose their vitality. These cells will be like an eternal flame, endlessly regenerating.

“On this basis, ‘Eternal Cells’ also possess extraordinary DNA repair capabilities. They contain a variety of highly efficient DNA repair enzymes, such as PARP (Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase) and BRCA1/2. These enzymes can quickly identify and repair DNA damage caused by internal and external environmental factors, ensuring the stability and integrity of the genetic information. Even under extreme conditions, these cells can maintain the perfect state of their genes!”

The Forerunner researcher spoke quickly, and since he was discussing highly technical content, Amber had to pause from time to time to understand what he was saying.

Seeing this, Amber couldn’t help but turn to Salieh and ask:

“Seriously. Do you Jeram people always use such hardcore content for reports to your superiors? Or are your leaders all polymaths proficient in the sciences, so they don’t doze off listening to this?”

“Excuse me, but our Jeram leaders are indeed the true elites of our people, unlike certain backward races whose ranks are filled with useless figureheads~” Salieh replied, raising her hand from where she was sprawled on a beanbag chair.

“Although your explanation sounds quite reasonable given the circumstances, I can’t help but feel like my race has just been insulted.”

Amber shook his head, realizing he couldn’t win this argument against Salieh, and turned his attention back to the video.

And switched it to double speed.

“As you can see from the data we’ve presented, the gene expression patterns of ‘Eternal Cells’ are extremely stable and do not change significantly over time—this is thanks to advanced gene-editing technology and epigenetic regulation. By precisely controlling the expression of key genes, these cells can maintain the stability of their function and structure. Whether facing changes in the external environment or internal metabolic pressure, ‘Eternal Cells’ can handle it with ease, demonstrating astonishing adaptability.

“At the same time, we have endowed ‘Eternal Cells’ with powerful self-renewal and regeneration capabilities! They can recover quickly after being damaged, maintaining the function and structure of tissues and organs. By regulating the expression of growth factors, these cells can promote normal tissue development and repair.

“Now, please take a look at the data from these tissue slices. You can directly observe how ‘Eternal Cells’ rapidly proliferate in damaged areas, filling the gaps and restoring the integrity and function of the tissue…”

The report was long and very detailed. After patiently listening to the whole thing, Amber had to admit that the Forerunners seemed to have truly created something that could make the dream of “immortality” a reality for carbon-based life forms.

The only problem was that “Eternal Cells” never made it to the final clinical trials before the Forerunners launched their “space-time expedition,” forcing the entire research team to evacuate and mothball the research institute.

They had only been used on some carbon-based creatures captured by the Forerunners. Although the expected traits appeared after implantation, the observation period was too short to know whether “Eternal Cells” could truly grant immortality.

And before the Forerunners launched their “space-time expedition,” all these “test subjects” were disposed of. Even their bodies were thrown into incinerators and burned to ash, “contributing” one last bit of energy to the research institute’s power supply.

“Stellar Larvae, Nebula Whales, Sandworms.”

Amber looked at the list of creatures in the report’s appendix that had undergone “Eternal Cell” transplant experiments. Finally, he saw a name he didn’t want to see, yet was all too familiar with.

“Starry Sky Dragon.”

Although a sliver of wishful thinking remained in his heart, after seeing the name of this creature, the lingering hope in Amber’s heart finally died.

All the information currently pointed to the fact that the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family—or rather, the old Emperor—had learned of this Forerunner research through some means. Judging from the highly targeted actions of the Royal Silencers he had sent, he probably knew more about this project than anyone else.

Amber even began to suspect that the old Emperor might have also dug up a cryogenically frozen Forerunner.

“Damn it, this life extension business of his feels like it’s going to stir up a whole lot of trouble.”

Just as Amber was about to ponder how to deal with old Emperor Frederick’s wild moves, his personal terminal suddenly lit up with several high-priority notifications.

“Multiple Federation border star systems have simultaneously declared independence. The Federation Navy and ground forces are mobilizing urgently.”

“Top Federation government officials convened an emergency special session half an hour ago to discuss how to respond to the large-scale rebellion.”

“A large-scale uprising has occurred in the administrative capital of the Maradon star system (a T1 core system). Large numbers of civilians are joining the rebel ranks.”

“President Brandon has ordered: Counter-insurgency forces are authorized to use lethal force, when necessary, against rioters who obstruct them and refuse to disperse.”

Chapter 596: The Federation in Chaos

“According to the latest news from our station, President Brandon has officially ordered the military to attack civilians!”

“Civil war! The Federation Civil War has broken out today!”

“Another Key Planet Falls, Has the Countdown to Secession Begun?”

“Yesterday, negotiations held in the Federal Capital between the Federation government and several opposition leaders were declared a failure. During the talks, the two sides failed to reach an agreement on ceasefire terms, leading to the ultimate breakdown of negotiations. Subsequently, Federal President Brandon issued a statement, announcing that he would take all necessary measures to restore order, including launching a full-scale military strike against rebel-controlled territories.

Since the breakdown of talks, the Federation’s regular army and fleet have intensified surveillance of rebel-controlled areas and are preparing to launch a new offensive. The Federation government has called on all citizens to remain calm, abide by the law, and support the government’s actions.”

“Several opposition leaders who had traveled to The Capital for the negotiations were attacked by extremists on their way to the aerospace port. The motorcade, carrying twenty-two representatives, was hit by an anti-vehicle missile, leaving no survivors.”

“Behold, the magic of journalism~”

In a conference room at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Amber couldn’t help but offer some sharp commentary as he watched the news headlines spamming the main screen.

This news came primarily from various Federation media outlets that had already declared their ‘rebel’ stance, as well as from Atlas Media and the various outlets under its control.

Because Atlas Communications had deliberately provided these media outlets with an exceptionally clear network environment, this news was spreading unhindered throughout the Federation’s online world at a nearly viral speed.

With the Federation government on the brink of total collapse, one could say that Amber and Atlas had unhesitatingly tossed a large bundle of firewood onto the flames already burning beneath them, then brought out a stack of fans and began to vigorously fan the fire.

Now, the first thing the leaders of the ‘rebel forces’ using the ultra-long-range real-time communication terminals sold by the Atlas Group received each morning was not a report from their subordinates, but a ‘Federation Rebellion Situation Overview’ pushed by Atlas Media.

Of course, this ‘Federation Rebellion Situation Overview’ was completely public. Even members of the Federation government, including President Brandon himself, could check it at any time on their own terminals.

There was absolutely no preferential treatment; it was fair, transparent, and open to everyone.

“Boss, the Federation regular army’s forces—primarily the naval fleet—are now severely undermanned. Aside from the garrison fleet in the Capital star system, basically all remaining operational warships have been deployed to quell rebellions. Even so, their reach only extends to the core star systems. They can no longer cover the border and remote star systems at all.”

After the news segment ended, Guterres displayed a star chart of the Federation’s territory and began to explain the current situation to Amber and the other meeting attendees.

“Although the Federation government still controls all military planets and maintains a decisive advantage in firepower over the various rebel factions, the lack of naval fleet cover has made it one of their most difficult challenges to successfully deploy their vast numbers of elite ground units to target planets.”

At this point, Guterres paused, then looked up at Amber, a strange light glinting in his eyes.

“Boss, our opportunity has come.”

Guterres didn’t need to elaborate. All the attendees—including Cleves and Randall, who were participating from the Loubion and Parra systems, and even Amber himself—knew exactly what Guterres meant by ‘opportunity’.

Throughout the Atlas Group, while not everyone held a deep-seated hatred for the Federation, many were certainly at odds with the current Federation government.

To say nothing of Amber, Randall, and Banninger, who had narrowly escaped death on Robert IV, even many of the employees who joined Atlas later had had their own unpleasant experiences with the Federation government.

In fact, when Amber had the personnel department hire people, he had specifically targeted such employees, all to build up more ‘public support’ for a future ‘rebellion’.

All eyes turned to Amber, waiting for him to give the ‘order’ that would have once sounded outrageously bold.

But what ultimately came from Amber’s mouth was not that short command.

“I know you’ve all been looking forward to this day, and I know you’re all eager to raise the banner of ‘rebellion’ and overthrow the current Federation government. But now is not the time.”

As soon as Amber said this, expressions of disappointment inevitably appeared on the faces of many attendees—especially Randall and Van Fleet.

However, they all quickly calmed down. Based on past experience, if Amber had made this decision, he certainly had his reasons.

“I see the disappointment on your faces, but you should know this isn’t a simple decision. ‘Rebelling’ is not as easy as you think~”

As he spoke, Amber quickly worked at his workstation, making some simple adjustments to the star chart displayed for the meeting.

“Look. The Federation’s territory is indeed in chaos. To be honest, I’m certain the Federation government no longer has the power to quell the rebellions. Their downfall is just a matter of time.

But by the same token, we don’t yet have the ability to completely control the Federation. I know the Atlas Group’s rapid development has made you all confident, but you must recognize one thing—our current strength is far from enough to control a territory as vast as the Federation’s!

If we were to get directly involved now, we could certainly give the Federation government that final push off the cliff. But what then? How would we clean up this mess? Are we supposed to get bogged down in this quagmire, just like the current Federation government?”

Amber’s words didn’t contain any grand principles; he simply made it clear that Atlas’s current situation might not be as good as everyone imagined.

And the people attending the meeting were no fools. They quickly understood the problem Amber was describing and realized they might have been carried away by this ‘false victory’.

Meanwhile, Amber continued speaking, giving the attendees another reason.

“We also can’t focus our energy on the Federation right now. Believe me, things are about to get messy over in the Star Dragon Empire, too~”

Chapter 597: Extending Life

Star Dragon Empire, Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier.

On the annual Day of the Three Moons’ Zenith, the area around the Dragon God statues near the Grand Palace was packed with fanatics, reaching its peak number for the year.

This was also the most tense time of the year for Saint-Saulnier’s garrison force and Royal Guard soldiers.

All units were on high alert. Every available piece of mobile surveillance equipment was active, and even the highest-level military channels near the Grand Palace were under an unusual strain.

Royal Guard soldiers armed with live ammunition, supported by various armored vehicles and HCPs with their electromagnetic machine guns loaded with anti-personnel buckshot, watched the fanatical crowds outside the blockade line with grim expressions.

However, they weren’t worried about these fanatics charging the military police, the State Religion cathedral, or the Grand Palace—after all, these very same fanatics were among the Star Dragon Empire’s most loyal citizens.

What they feared was that believers from different dioceses might come to blows over better viewing spots or disputes over doctrinal interpretations, escalating into a large-scale brawl.

In the core area near the Grand Palace, a brawl involving hundreds of thousands of people was a huge risk. Thus, the primary task of the garrison force and the small contingent of Royal Guard soldiers present was to monitor all sectors closely and nip any potential conflict in the bud.

Of course, the methods for this ‘nipping’ were not particularly refined or humane.

As the three moons hanging high in the sky reached their zenith for the day, all units near the Grand Palace with anti-air capabilities detected a small shuttle descending from high altitude.

As identification codes were exchanged silently in the night sky, the numerous fixed anti-aircraft weapon emplacements hidden from view unlocked their fire-control radars.

Inside the cockpit of a Royal Guard HCP standing guard behind the security line, the pilot watched the unit frame of the approaching craft on the panoramic display turn into the blue marker for an ‘important friendly unit,’ then canceled the activation of the charged particle cannon in the fire-control interface.

The omnidirectional sensor atop the towering HCP swiveled slightly as the pilot looked up, visually tracking the small shuttle as it entered terminal deceleration and landed on the tarmac behind the Grand Palace.

Although the shuttle’s affiliation was not displayed in the target identification frame due to clearance levels, its pure black paint job with gold trim, combined with the highly recognizable ‘Discharging Star Dragon’ emblem, allowed the pilot to identify its owner.

“A Silencer’s ship.”

As a gentle tremor ran through the shuttle, Magnussen—First in Class of the Royal Silencers, the Emperor’s personal guard, and a Level 6 psionic user—slowly opened his eyes.

A small virtual screen to his right flashed the words ‘Landed in target area,’ and the pilot in the front cockpit opened the shuttle’s hatch.

The biting night wind of Saint-Saulnier eagerly rushed into the shuttle, only to hit an invisible wall in front of Magnussen.

After confirming that the storage case locked to his right hand was secure, Magnussen quickly descended the boarding ladder to the ground.

The Grand Palace’s internal tarmac was deserted tonight.

All ground crew and other staff had been temporarily gathered and confined while the shuttle landed.

Thus, the internal tarmac now possessed a sense of serenity that, in Magnussen’s eyes, was difficult to associate with an ‘airfield’.

He paid it no mind, however, and walked straight toward the interior of the Grand Palace without looking back.

As an area frequently used for the Royal Family’s departures, this tarmac was built directly within the Grand Palace’s core area. It wouldn’t take Magnussen long to reach his destination: the elevator leading to the underground core area beneath the Emperor’s royal chambers.

Waiting at the elevator was the sole person assigned to receive him: Cormac, a Level 5 psionic user from the Royal Silencers. He immediately came forward upon seeing his superior.

An evening breeze swept through the Grand Palace corridor, lifting Magnussen’s robe and rustling the empty sleeve on his left side.

Cormac, who had come forward, visibly paused at the sight. He raised his hand and quickly made a series of hand signals that only the Royal Silencers could understand.

“You’re injured. You lost a hand.”

“It’s not important.”

Magnussen shook his head. Since his only remaining hand—his right—was carrying the storage case, he took the rare step of speaking directly into his companion’s mind with Psionics:

“What’s important is that I’ve brought back what His Majesty and the Archbishop need. By the way, has there been any trouble at the Grand Palace during my absence?”

“Everything is normal. You can rest assured.”

During Magnussen’s absence, Cormac had taken over his duties, handling the Emperor’s personal protection and coordinating security for the Grand Palace’s core area.

But he felt he couldn’t be as airtight as the First in Class, so seeing Magnussen return was a great relief.

He just never imagined that this man, who stood at the pinnacle of human combat strength, would lose a hand on this secret mission…

Soon, Magnussen was on the elevator heading underground, while Cormac remained at the entrance. His clearance wasn’t high enough to proceed any further.

The underground core area of the Grand Palace was about nine hundred meters below the entrance, entirely concealed within the mountain on which the palace stood.

As the elevator descended at a steady speed, Magnussen could sense he was now inside the mountain. Even the ‘thinnest’ part of the structure here was covered by hundreds of meters of solid rock.

When the elevator reached the ‘Final Level,’ Magnussen passed through several heavily guarded checkpoints. Down here, the guards were no longer from the garrison force or the Royal Guard; they were all from the Church’s ‘Martyr’ units.

These Church units, composed of fanatics and ascetic monks, were even more loyal than the Royal Guard and garrison force to the old Emperor Frederick, who embodied both royal and divine authority.

This was why the Imperial Military Command, which had been thoroughly infiltrated by the factions of the Regent Prince and the Princess, had always opposed the request to expand the ‘Imperial State Religion’s Protectorate Army’…

After all, there were historical precedents of the Royal Guard being turned, but turning a church army like this was far more difficult.

The core of the Final Level was a standalone, hemispherical room at its center.

Here, Magnussen finally saw the current Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, Frederick, lying in a life support pod, along with the Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion, Jules Mazarin.

Just as the outside world speculated, the old Emperor Frederick was indeed critically ill. It wasn’t due to old age, however, but a rare genetic defect that had accelerated his aging, bringing him to the end of his life almost overnight.

The last hope rested entirely on ‘Experiment #92,’ which remained active in the Forerunners’ research institute.

Magnussen strode forward to the life support pod, knelt on one knee, and placed the storage case before him.

The case containing the specimen had already been unlocked using the method he was given. When he pressed a switch on it, there was a heavy clank, followed by a stream of cryogenic gas that flowed from the opening, spreading into a white mist that clung to the floor.

“So these are the ‘Eternal Cells’.”

Magnussen heard Archbishop Jules’s soft gasp of awe. He also sensed the Archbishop take another step forward as a small camera hovered near the storage case, its feed displayed on the virtual screen above the life support pod.

“Magnussen. You have done well.”

An ancient voice echoed directly in the Royal Silencer’s mind.

It was the voice of the old Emperor, Frederick.

As a Level 6 psionic user who had undergone ‘anti-psionic’ and ‘psionic-shielding’ training since childhood, Magnussen could theoretically block psionic interference from psionic users of his level or lower—such as direct telepathic communication.

The Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire was no hidden master, so the ability to speak in Magnussen’s mind did not come from Psionics.

Instead, it was an innate ability granted by the mysterious ‘Star Dragon bloodline’ that flowed in the veins of the Imperial Royal Family—Dragon’s Might.

This was also why, to Magnussen’s senses, Frederick’s voice sounded like a ‘polyphony’ coming from multiple directions at once.

Magnussen said nothing, merely bowing his head lower. As a personal guard, he rarely communicated directly with Frederick, usually protecting him silently from the shadows.

“You may withdraw and rest. There is no need to worry about my safety here. Remember to go to the Royal Medical College tomorrow. Their Head of Human Augmentation will fit you with a new prosthetic limb.”

Frederick’s words were slow and firm, carrying an unquestionable finality.

As a personal guard who had sworn his complete loyalty to the Emperor, Magnussen said no more, quickly rising to his feet and leaving.

Once only the old Emperor and the Archbishop remained in the core room, the latter spoke slowly:

“If these ‘Eternal Cells’ are as effective as that person claimed, then the completion of the ‘Body of the Star Dragon’ is only a matter of time.”

At this, Archbishop Jules Mazarin hesitated, then turned to look at Frederick, who was submerged in the nutrient fluid of the life support pod.

“Your Majesty, are you truly going to use this ‘specimen’? Or rather, do you truly believe what that Forerunner said before he died?”

“Do I have any other choice?”

This time, Frederick’s voice resonated in the Archbishop’s mind.

“Do you want me to stand by and watch the Empire fall to ruin? Or do you think that after I’m gone, Norton II and my dear daughter won’t move against your Church?”

The old Emperor’s words plunged Archbishop Jules Mazarin into silence, especially the last part.

Though the Archbishop spent most of his time preaching at the State Religion cathedral near the Dragon God statues, it didn’t mean he was ignorant of affairs elsewhere in the Empire.

All the dioceses and the mid- and low-level clergy were his eyes and ears. This made him keenly aware that the Regent Prince and the Imperial Princess had long been dissatisfied with the Church and would be eager to deal with it.

So, regardless of which faction ultimately came to power, the Imperial State Religion might survive, but how many of its personnel, including himself, the Archbishop, would be allowed to remain was an open question.

“It seems you understand this well, Jules.”

Seeing the Archbishop remain silent, Frederick’s voice continued to resound in his mind:

“We don’t have much time to waste, Jules. I have a feeling that if we can complete the ‘Body of the Star Dragon,’ all our problems will be solved. The Empire will reclaim its former glory. Neither the Federation nor those elves will be able to stop our rise.”

As Archbishop Jules Mazarin left the room, Frederick’s words still echoed in his mind.

He had to admit that the supreme ruler of the Star Dragon Empire was right. If the Imperial State Religion, or rather, Church members like him, did not want to be purged in the future, they had to stick close to the old Emperor.

This meant he had to cast aside his concerns about the risks and help the old Emperor ‘Extend his Life’.

Carrying the scepter—the symbol of the Archbishop’s authority—in one hand and the storage case in the other, Jules Mazarin walked silently toward the main personnel elevator of the underground core area.

Along the way, the armed forces of the Church, whether fanatics or revered ascetic monks, all bowed their heads respectfully before the usually inviolable and majestic Archbishop.

But today, an unprecedented weight filled Jules Mazarin’s heart. He paid no heed to his surroundings, offering only a slight nod before walking straight into the elevator.

After the elevator doors closed, Jules Mazarin let out a soft breath and spoke.

“Command: ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇”

A second later, a synthetic female voice replied: “Verification accepted. Welcome, Archbishop. Proceeding to the ‘Final Dogma Zone.’”

The elevator began to move again, but it continued its descent. Below the ‘Final Level’ indicator on the control panel, a new destination appeared in red text: ‘Final Dogma Zone’.

Quite a few high-ranking officials within the Empire knew about the underground area beneath the Grand Palace. After the old Emperor Frederick was moved here, some information about this area was semi-publicly disclosed.

Besides the ‘Final Level’ where Frederick was located, the levels above housed several secret agencies and undisclosed Psionics research institutes.

However, very few knew about the ‘Final Dogma Zone,’ which lay even deeper underground than the ‘Final Level.’

All told, besides Frederick and Jules Mazarin, there were no more than five other living people who knew of its existence.

This area, built under the supervision of the Empire’s founding emperor, was meticulously shielded from the noise and light of the outside world.

After leaving the elevator and passing through several security doors made of high-strength alloys and employing composite identification technology, the Imperial Archbishop finally arrived at the heart of this mysterious space—a massive cryo-chamber.

Chapter 598: The Last Starry Sky Dragon

After passing through a series of decontamination passageways and being scanned by several pieces of detection equipment, the Archbishop changed into a heavy protective suit and put on a special mask.

As the last heavy blast door slowly opened, a biting cold rushed out, as if the very air had frozen solid in an instant.

A spectacular and awe-inspiring sight unfolded before Archbishop Jules Mazarin’s eyes:

In an ethereal blue light, a behemoth as large as a mountain lay silent, its body encased in a thick layer of transparent ice crystals. Through the ice, one could clearly see its massive form and its exquisitely detailed scales.

Yes, these were the ‘remains’ of a Starry Sky Dragon—a being from human legend that could soar through the cosmos, wielded the mysterious power of ‘Dragon’s Might,’ and possessed a nearly eternal life.

Even in death, the ‘remains’ of this ice-encased Starry Sky Dragon radiated an indescribable sense of majesty.

According to information left in the Final Dogma Zone, this Starry Sky Dragon would measure over three kilometers when fully extended—and it was speculated that this was merely its length as a sub-adult. Even now, coiled up, its size was immense.

So, rather than saying the Final Dogma Zone was hidden inside the Grand Palace and the mountain, it would be more accurate to say it was built directly on the ‘remains’ of this Starry Sky Dragon, completely burying it.

Its wings were massive and elegant, and even in their frozen state of stasis, one could feel the power they once held.

The folded wing membranes were translucent, and seemed to contain flowing starlight within.

The edges of the wings were dotted with fine, gem-like crystals. These particles reflected different colors as the light shifted—from deep blue to violet to silver-white—like the ever-shifting aurora in the night sky.

Even in its stillness, Jules Mazarin could imagine how those wings once tore through space with a single flap, allowing the massive creature to enter hyperspace and warp across the endless starry expanse through its sheer physical power.

Its long tail was coiled beside its body, and a few larger stardust crystals still clung to its tip. They reflected strange colors in the light, a testament to the dragon’s connection with the farthest corners of the universe.

The most eye-catching feature was the dragon’s head. Elegant, proud, majestic—these words were a perfect fit for the cosmic creature’s head.

Its massive eyes were tightly shut, yet they seemed to constantly radiate an inexplicable power, like two slumbering stars waiting for the day they would once again light up the night sky.

Slender horns grew from the sides of its head, forming complex and elegant semi-helical structures. Their surfaces were covered in intricate patterns, as if recording the ancient knowledge and wisdom the dragon had mastered.

The Starry Sky Dragon’s mouth was also shut tight, but several sharp draconic teeth were still visible beneath its lips. Even the cold silence of death could not conceal the imposing aura it once possessed as one of the universe’s apex predators.

Inside the cryo-chamber, there was almost no sound aside from the soft hum of the equipment maintaining the low temperature.

A faint chill and the unique scent of an ancient creature permeated the air, involuntarily inspiring a sense of both awe and curiosity.

A few small light sources were embedded in the surrounding walls, providing basic illumination and giving Jules Mazarin the illusion that the Starry Sky Dragon was merely sleeping.

Housed within the walls were numerous automated processing units designed to maintain the massive cryo-chamber without any human intervention—regulating the temperature, keeping the chamber sterile, and removing excess frost.

When this underground facility was first being built, the Empire’s design team abandoned the idea of using a human maintenance crew to ensure that as few people as possible knew its secret.

The initial idea was to use a large number of autonomous robots to maintain the Final Dogma Zone, but this plan was quickly rejected. The reasoning was that robots also require human maintenance, and any issues that arose would be even more troublesome to resolve.

Ultimately, on the suggestion of the founding Emperor, the design team adopted a solution that combined automated machinery with a massive number of preset ‘contingency measures’.

Since no one would enter the Final Dogma Zone ninety-nine percent of the time, it would essentially remain sealed for long periods, requiring only that the low-temperature environment be maintained. Thus, the core of the entire area was its ‘environmental control system’.

With this in mind, the design team programmed for nearly every conceivable situation, along with corresponding response plans and all the minute details stemming from those plans. It could be said they were painstakingly thorough.

Using the simplest methods to maintain the most important equipment.

The only catch was that the preparatory work required an astronomical amount of effort.

Furthermore, every three to five years, a maintenance team would bring in new components and conduct a comprehensive service of the Final Dogma Zone.

Of course, these maintenance personnel were ‘disposable’—‘destroyed after use’.

They would not know they were heading to the Final Dogma Zone, and after completing their work, they would not be allowed to leave alive. Instead, their bodies would be broken down and converted into energy.

The final ‘whereabouts’ of these people would then be mixed into the various official accident reports for that year.

The annual maintenance costs for the Final Dogma Zone were also paid out of the Emperor’s own secret treasury, which is why all five generations of emperors of the Leon Dynasty to date have appeared extremely ‘frugal’ with their court expenditures.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to spend the money; they simply had none left.

And so, after the original designers and builders took the secret to their graves, the number of people who knew about the Final Dogma Zone dwindled over time.

By Frederick’s generation, besides himself as the key figure, only the Archbishop, the three-person maintenance team for the Final Dogma Zone, and two specialists secretly in charge of cleaning up any messes were left.

These five people had no contact with the outside world in their daily lives. Their families, as if burdened by some ‘curse,’ had guarded the secret of the Final Dogma Zone for generations.

Standing in such a mysterious space, Jules Mazarin felt a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

Faced with such a magnificent life form, even as the Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion, he felt his own insignificance in the face of the cosmos.

Under normal circumstances, as the Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion which worshiped the Dragon God, his faith should have grown stronger upon seeing a real Starry Sky Dragon and feeling the creature’s majesty.

Jules Mazarin had once thought so, too.

That was, until the night before he succeeded his predecessor, when he was brought to the Final Dogma Zone and his entire worldview was shattered.

Chapter 599: Fairy Tale, History

“Her Highness the Princess, what story are you going to tell us today?”

In the orphanage at the Saint-Saulnier Veterans’ Hospital in the Imperial Capital, a group of four- and five-year-old children gathered around Princess Agnes of the Empire. They happily ate the Royal Family’s exclusive candy that Her Highness had brought for them as they asked with curiosity.

As part of building her ‘approachable image,’ Agnes would set aside time every so often to visit the Veterans’ Hospital in the Imperial Capital.

On one hand, she would visit the wounded and disabled soldiers who, after ‘rigorous selection,’ were fortunate enough to live out their later years in this ‘Imperial Home for Retired and Disabled Soldiers,’ bringing them gifts from the Royal Family.

On the other hand, she would visit the orphans of fallen soldiers who were temporarily being cared for there.

Of course, the children’s backgrounds were also carefully selected. The vast majority were orphans of military officers from declining noble families.

The small remainder were true orphans of ordinary fallen soldiers. In addition to their heroic performance in the war, a strong sense of belonging to the Empire and sufficient loyalty to the Royal Family were also important criteria for their selection.

When Agnes was with these children, the thing she did most was tell them fables or fairy tales.

Now, upon hearing the children’s question, Agnes thought for a moment before smiling and saying:

“You’re all so eager. In that case, I’ll tell you all a fairy tale today~”

“Her Highness the Princess, what is the story about?” a cute little girl asked, shyly raising her hand.

“It’s about a Starry Sky Dragon and a group of saviors.”

For the children of the Star Dragon Empire, the legendary cosmic creature known as the Starry Sky Dragon held a special meaning. So, after hearing Agnes’s words, the children quickly fell silent, their curious eyes blinking as they waited for her to begin.

“A long, long time ago, in a distant nebula, lived a group of magical cosmic beings—the Starry Sky Dragons.

These dragons possessed unparalleled power and wisdom. The wisest and most compassionate of them was a dragon named Celeste.

One day, through its eyes that could see all things, Celeste discovered that a tiny blue planet—Blue Star—was facing a great crisis.

The people of Blue Star, due to their strife and greed, were making their world worse and worse, step by step, heading toward the abyss of destruction.

Watching all this, the dragon Celeste’s heart filled with sorrow. It decided to help humanity. So, it gathered a group of humans who also wished to save their own kind, infused its bloodline into their bodies, and transformed them into its ‘children’.

These humans not only gained great power, but more importantly, they inherited the kind heart of the Starry Sky Dragon, able to heal pain with love and bring hope to the people.

And so, this group of humans, transformed into descendants of the Star Dragon, returned to Blue Star, attempting to pull humanity back from the abyss of extinction.

At first, they encountered many difficulties, but with their courage and wisdom, they soon won the trust of others.

Through the efforts of these Star Dragon descendants, the conflicts of the human world were brought to an end. People learned how to live in peace, how to cherish one another and their environment.

Gradually, the once chaotic world began to grow beautiful. These Star Dragon descendants established the Star Dragon Empire, creating the world we live in now—one without hatred, filled with mutual respect, light, and hope.

From then on, the Star Dragon Empire became a paradise that other humans yearned for, but only the kindest of humans would be accepted into this beautiful nation.

The story of the Star Dragon’s descendants was passed down from generation to generation. Whenever night fell, the children of the Star Dragon Empire would look up at the starry sky and remember the Starry Sky Dragon that had once helped humanity, their hearts filled with gratitude and longing.

And those who were the descendants of the Starry Sky Dragon continued to guard this peace, ensuring this land would forever be filled with love and light.”

Agnes finished her fairy tale, and the children surrounding her all let out a “Wow!” at almost the same time.

Perhaps someone had told them a similar fairy tale before, but it could in no way compare to the one Agnes had just told them.

After all, the Princess of the Empire before them—with her shimmering platinum-blonde hair, the pair of S-shaped ‘draconic horns’ protruding from it, and the faint ‘draconic scale’ patterns on her neck—made the fairy tale sound so real.

The children began to excitedly discuss the story with their friends. Agnes didn’t interrupt, simply sitting among them, watching them with a smile.

Soon, another curious child respectfully came before her and asked shyly:

“Her Highness the Princess, where did His Excellency, the dragon Celeste, go? Can we meet it?”

Hearing the child’s question, Agnes was taken aback for a moment, but she quickly answered:

“His Excellency the Dragon did not wish to disturb humanity, so after seeing the people of the Star Dragon Empire living in peace and prosperity, it returned to the nebula where the Starry Sky Dragons dwell.”

“So, will we have a chance to see His Excellency Celeste in the future?”

Agnes nodded. “Of course. When you grow up and become the kind of people filled with courage and love that His Excellency Celeste would want to see, you can go to that nebula to find it. Perhaps His Excellency Celeste will be very happy to see you~”

Thirty years ago, in the Final Dogma Zone beneath the Grand Palace of Saint-Saulnier.

“Jules. What you see before you might be the ‘remains’ of the last Starry Sky Dragon in this universe.”

This was the first sentence Jules Mazarin heard after following the former Archbishop into the ‘Final Dogma Zone’.

“The ‘remains’ of the last Starry Sky Dragon? Your Excellency, Archbishop, you…”

He turned his head in disbelief to look at the man who had guided him on his path of faith, desperately hoping that this wise and witty old man was just making a joke at such a tense moment to help him relax.

But unfortunately, in his guide’s eyes, he saw only an unprecedented seriousness.

“My child, today you must learn a truth. There is no ‘Dragon God’ in this world. The legendary Starry Sky Dragons also experience birth, aging, sickness, and death. It’s even possible that their species is now extinct.”

The expression on Jules’s face began to crumble, inch by inch. “Then the Royal Family’s Star Dragon bloodline…”

“It is real, but it does not originate from the great power of a ‘Dragon God’.”

The former Archbishop shook his head and continued in a calm voice:

“To be precise, the ‘Star Dragon bloodline’ is actually a form of biological contamination.”

Jules Mazarin never could have imagined that his first lesson in succeeding as the Archbishop of the State Religion would be the shattering of his own faith.

Chapter 600: The Truth?

“Biological contamination?”

Jules Mazarin hadn’t expected to hear such an answer from the former Archbishop’s mouth.

Compared to the mystique-laden “Star Dragon bloodline,” the term “biological contamination” was like dragging the lofty gods down to earth and spattering them with mud.

“Be patient, my child. We have plenty of time. Tonight, I will tell you everything.”

As the former Archbishop’s aged voice echoed through the Final Dogma Zone, he slowly began to recount a long-buried story that would overturn Jules Mazarin’s entire understanding of the world.

Centuries ago, after humans unearthed the Forerunners’ Warp Engine from the ruins on Blue Star, they entered the Age of Interstellar Exploration in a very short period.

Although other supporting technologies had not fully caught up, adhering to the principle of “fortune favors the bold,” a great number of human pioneers boarded extremely crude starships and ventured into deep space, heading for the boundless cosmos.

The founding Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, later known as ‘Brave Delaman Leon,’ was one of the countless pioneers of that era.

What was less glorious, however, was that Delaman Leon had been forced into exploring deep space.

He was a gambler who had accumulated massive debts and could no longer remain on Blue Star. His journey into space wasn’t to fulfill some “grand ambition.”

It was simply to save his own skin.

But this decision to venture into deep space directly changed his life, and indeed, the course of all human history.

At the time, humanity’s mastery of the Warp Engine was incomplete, so problems during a warp—even warping into an unfamiliar region of space—were commonplace.

The pioneer team Delaman Leon belonged to encountered just such a problem during a warp jump.

They were originally supposed to travel to a recently discovered star system to participate in the environmental remodeling of a local terrestrial planet.

But when the pioneer ship dropped out of hyperspace, the crew discovered they hadn’t arrived at the designated “transit station,” but rather in a star system not yet recorded on any star charts.

Then, not far from their exit point, they discovered a colossal Forerunner ruin moored silently in space—which later scholars would speculate was a large-scale Forerunner experimental facility.

No one knows what methods this pioneer team used, but they eventually succeeded in entering the massive experimental facility. In its core area, they discovered a large number of completely decayed Starry Sky Dragon corpses, as well as one “complete dragon corpse” frozen at a low temperature.

For this team, composed almost entirely of gamblers, debtors, and fugitives, this was an unexpected situation. But at the same time, this frozen dragon was the key to a lifetime of happiness.

After all, until then, the Starry Sky Dragon had existed only in human mythology—no one knew how the legend of the Starry Sky Dragon had originated among the humans of Blue Star, but it had indeed been passed down through generations.

For a mythological creature to suddenly be discovered as a corpse—setting aside its academic value, its monetary value alone was immeasurable.

If the pioneer team could bring back even a portion of biological samples, the hype surrounding such a legendary creature would surely fetch a sky-high price, ensuring everyone on the team would be set for life.

So, the entire team made a decision in a very short time. Everyone agreed to brave the unknown risks and attempt to acquire biological samples.

They brought over machinery from the starship, originally intended for extraterrestrial pioneering, and tried every method to chisel away a small piece of the ice. In the end, with all their machines nearly scrapped, they had only managed to uncover a single “draconic scale.”

But for the crew, this was enough. Even a holographic recording of the entire process could make them a fortune.

However, just as Delaman Leon and the others were attempting to sample the “dragon blood” and muscle beneath the “draconic scale,” an accident occurred.

The suddenly splashing dragon blood instantly corroded their protective suits. The next thing they knew, the blood seemed to have a life of its own, rapidly merging into their bodies.

Aboard the pioneer ship named the ‘Mithril Warhead,’ the more than forty crew members who had entered the ruins all fell unconscious, one after another, under the contamination of this “dragon blood” before they could even send out a distress signal.

When they awoke, they found their bodies had undergone tremendous changes under the “dragon blood’s” influence. It was as if their bones had been broken and their muscles dissolved and reforged, transforming them into a near-perfect physical state.

“Draconic horns” of various shapes had also grown on everyone’s heads, and “draconic scale”-like patterns had appeared on parts of their bodies.

At the same time, the pioneers discovered that nearly a year had passed since they first entered the Forerunner ruins.

No one knew how they had survived. In their understanding, it was impossible for a human to survive for nearly a year without food or water, so they could only attribute it to the changes their bodies had undergone.

This mutated pioneer team stayed in the Forerunner laboratory for a long time. Because of the Starry Sky Dragon bloodline, not only were their bodies reformed and evolved, but they also mastered the power of the so-called “Dragon’s Might.” Simultaneously, their thinking speed, learning ability, and brain development capacity were all greatly enhanced.

Under these circumstances, Delaman Leon displayed the qualifications of a leader. He led the others to move the ship’s supplies into the ruins, and the entire team set up camp right there. They began to adapt to their evolved bodies, learn to master their awakened Dragon’s Might, and tried to uncover other secrets within the ruins.

An unknown amount of time passed. When the pioneer team finally decided to return to the human world, they discovered that the political landscape had changed.

Because of the Age of Interstellar Exploration, the entire Blue Star Federation had begun to fracture. Various pioneer outposts and colonies seceded from the Federation’s control one after another, declaring independence.

Against this backdrop, the belligerent human race soon plunged into the flames of war.

Faced with this situation, Delaman Leon ultimately abandoned the idea of bringing the Starry Sky Dragon’s corpse back to the human world for a huge profit.

As a former gambler, now “evolved,” he decided to make a much bigger wager for himself.

“We are the Descendants of the Star Dragon, the leaders who will guide humanity to its true future.”

Delaman Leon, who had already become the leader of the team, suddenly declared this to the others one day.

Eventually, this long-lost pioneer team, completely transformed, returned to the human world under the guise of the “Descendants of the Star Dragon.”

And their comprehensive qualities, which far surpassed those of ordinary humans, along with the abilities granted to them by the Star Dragon bloodline, allowed them to easily gain a foothold. They quickly rose to prominence in the “all-humanity Battle Royale,” becoming a major power occupying their own territory—

After hearing the Archbishop’s story, Jules Mazarin fell into a deep state of self-doubt. He felt that the faith he had held for so many years was nothing but a joke.

After a period of silence, the clergyman, his worldview now reshaped, looked again at his “guide.”

“Archbishop, I have a question. Why tell me this ‘truth’?”

“Before I answer that, I want to ask you a question. Jules Mazarin, what is the essence of religion?”

In the dim cryo-chamber, before the massive remains of the Starry Sky Dragon, the former Archbishop suddenly spoke, his voice faint and eerie as he questioned Jules Mazarin.

As a high-ranking cleric of the State Religion, Jules naturally had an answer to this question.

He could even provide two completely different, yet in a sense, equally correct answers.

[The essence of religion is faith and spiritual pursuit, a moral code and a guide for behavior. It is the exploration and belief of an individual or collective in supernatural forces, the meaning of the universe, and the purpose of life. It is also one of the important ways for people to seek higher truth and personal growth.]

This was the standard answer Jules Mazarin had learned in his “theology courses,” and for the most part, it was the Imperial State Religion’s own “scientific explanation” for the concept of “religion.”

Jules Mazarin was about to recite this “standard answer,” but after seeing the former Archbishop’s gaze, which was completely different from usual, the junior who was about to succeed him hesitated, and ultimately gave another answer:

“The essence of religion lies in control—controlling the subconscious of individuals and specific groups. This control manifests not only in the manipulation of believers but also in its influence over society. Every religion seeks control. The more people and the larger the area it controls, the greater its power.”

Hearing Jules Mazarin’s answer, the Archbishop nodded in satisfaction.

“Very good. It seems you haven’t lost your mind like the others in the Church. This is why you will be the one to succeed me as Archbishop.”

Jules Mazarin furrowed his brow. “Because the State Religion needs someone with a clear head to make decisions?”

“Exactly.”

The Archbishop walked over to his successor, patted him on the shoulder, and continued, “The essence of religion is control. While controlling believers and others through various means, the clergy of the Church, especially the highest decision-maker, must have a clear mind and not get swept up in the madness of the crowd.”

“So that’s why you brought me here, to make me see the truth and shatter my faith?”

“Yes. Only then, in the future, will you not leave critical decisions to some ethereal ‘god,’ but rather be able to make them with your own sufficiently clear mind.”

After hearing the Archbishop’s words, Jules Mazarin felt his understanding of God and religion was not simply subverted, but utterly shattered and reforged.

Perhaps no one could have imagined that to become the supreme leader of the Imperial State Religion, one must first deny the existence of the very “god” they professed to believe in…

Seeing that his successor was slowly beginning to accept this fact, the Archbishop let out a quiet, imperceptible sigh of relief. He then stood beside Jules Mazarin and gazed at the frozen dragon.

“My child, you will take my place tomorrow. If there is anything else you wish to ask, ask it now.”

“Archbishop, I do have other questions I hope you can answer.”

Jules Mazarin’s voice had become extremely calm, and he had recovered from his earlier shock.

“Speak, my child.”

“This corpse.”

Jules Mazarin tilted his chin up, gesturing toward the enormous remains of the Starry Sky Dragon before them, and continued:

“Why go to such great lengths to preserve it here? If the Imperial State Religion wants to bury the truth, wouldn’t it be safer to dispose of these Starry Sky Dragon corpses and let them truly become ‘legends’?”

“Back then, I asked the same question as you. Guess how my predecessor, the Archbishop, answered.”

“How did she answer?”

“She said: ‘Back then, I asked the same question as you…’”

Jules Mazarin: “…”

The atmosphere in the Final Dogma Zone suddenly became a little awkward. However, Jules could now confirm that the Archbishop before him was indeed the same kind, joke-loving old man he remembered.

And this Archbishop, who was on his “last day on the job,” couldn’t help but reveal a smile when he saw Jules Mazarin’s darkened face.

“Hahahaha, I’m not kidding. Her Excellency, Archbishop Youti, really said that. And she told me that every Archbishop has asked the same question.”

“So what is the reason?”

“The answer is: we don’t know.”

The Archbishop paused, his voice becoming serious once more.

“No one knows what that ‘Brave Delaman Leon’ was thinking at the time. No one knows why he went to such great expense to hide the remains of the Starry Sky Dragon here…”

On that night thirty years ago, Jules Mazarin ultimately failed to get an answer to his question.

But now, thirty years later, as he brought the “Eternal Cells” to the Final Dogma Zone, he felt that the answer to that question was about to be revealed.

—

Thirty years later, the present.

A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Salieh’s private laboratory.

“Wait, you mean the ‘biological contamination’ story is also fake?! The founding Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire lied to everyone?”

Lying on the lab’s sofa, Amber stared at Salieh, dumbfounded. The hot tea she had been holding since the beginning of “Forerunner History 101” remained untouched.

“To be precise, it was a collective deception created by the first members of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family. Using one lie to hide an even bigger secret.”

Salieh smiled faintly and said slowly:

“Bingo.”

“You’re getting quite smooth with that human slang of yours.”

Chapter 601: Royalty × Experiment

After Amber and Salieh finished their discussion about the ‘Eternal Cells’ in the laboratory, the conversation naturally shifted to the Royal Silencers who had taken ‘Experiment #92’ away.

After marveling at how these former ‘Homo sapiens’ had achieved a level of mastery in Psionics far beyond what the Forerunners had imagined, the two began to talk about the Star Dragon Empire behind the Royal Silencers.

Salieh had already learned a great deal about this nation through Atlas’s database and the network access provided by Lilith.

In order to cross-reference this information, she asked Amber for his knowledge of the country. He didn’t hold back, combining officially released lore from his previous life’s game with plot clues uncovered by players, and described it all to Salieh.

What Amber, or rather, the players from his previous life, knew wasn’t anything particularly special.

Aside from the widely circulated legend of the ‘Descendants of the Star Dragon’, there were only a few fragments of information about ‘biological contamination’ that had been collected after the Star Dragon Empire fractured and the Imperial State Religion fell.

And so, after Amber described this information to Salieh, the scene that had just unfolded took place.

Upon hearing the two possibilities Amber presented, the Forerunner Repository Steward dismissed them both without a shred of hesitation.

This Forerunner ‘old frozen meat’ was thoroughly enjoying her current dynamic with Amber. Since being controlled by his ‘Mental Shackle,’ this was the first time she had been in a relatively dominant position.

She was almost greedily savoring the current atmosphere, in which Amber ‘needed something from her.’

“So, all that talk about being Descendants of the Star Dragon, with the blood of the Starry Sky Dragon flowing through their veins…”

“It’s all true.”

Salieh nodded. After confirming the information in her mind once more, she continued:

“It’s just that they were… created in one of our Jeram laboratories~”

Hearing Salieh’s answer, Amber immediately sat up straight. He was deeply interested in the lore of Starry Sky Online, and he was utterly fascinated by these kinds of well-kept secrets.

The things that Salieh, a Forerunner Repository Steward, knew were naturally a huge draw for Amber.

More importantly, if he could uncover the secrets of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, it would be a massive help in Atlas’s future dealings with them.

So, Amber pushed the snacks and fruit from a nearby table in front of Salieh, then scooted forward, bringing himself a little closer to her.

“Tell me everything.”

Seeing Amber’s posture, Salieh couldn’t help but reveal a smug smile before explaining:

“First, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the blood of a Starry Sky Dragon, or rather, any of its biological tissues, will not cause ‘biological contamination’ in other organisms. They are a type of perfect cosmic being and do not possess a trait that only lower life forms would have.

“Second, the mutations caused by ‘biological contamination’ wouldn’t result in such drastic changes, let alone features like horns and scales that require a significant amount of time to manifest. Moreover, the transformative effects on the ‘contaminated’ are often random. It’s impossible for so many people to develop almost identical physical changes simultaneously.

“And the crucial point is, it transformed all these humans into handsome men and beautiful women? Who ever heard of such a good deal?”

Amber: “How do you know so much about this?”

“Because I’m a specialist in biology, and I participated in the dissection and research of Starry Sky Dragons~” Salieh said, a hint of pride in her voice.

“You’ve even dissected Starry Sky Dragons?”

“What’s so strange about that? We’ve dissected and studied most of the carbon-based life forms in this universe. Your Homo sapiens ancestors were no exception.”

Amber had to admit, after hearing the ‘authoritative’ statement from Salieh, someone who had actually dissected a Starry Sky Dragon, the rumors did indeed seem somewhat problematic.

If even the truth known by the Imperial State Religion was false, then the secrets the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family wanted to hide were likely even more explosive.

“Spit it out, Salieh. What’s the truth?” Amber asked.

“Please wait a moment. I need to integrate the information in my head. A quick search just now revealed that there’s far too much data involved.”

With that, Salieh closed her eyes and quickly entered a state similar to Zen-like meditation. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head unfurled, floated up in defiance of the laws of physics, and began to sway rhythmically at a certain frequency.

It had to be said that the females of the Forerunner race were quite aesthetically pleasing, even from a human perspective—which wasn’t surprising, given that the race had been ‘molded’ by humans from another dimension.

Watching Salieh maintain this state, her brow furrowing in a cute way, Amber couldn’t resist reaching out and giving her smooth cheek a little pinch.

The next moment, the Forerunner’s fair cheeks flushed red.

“Stop it, Amber…”

Salieh’s reaction was somewhat unexpected. Faced with the Forerunner, her eyes closed and her face tinged with coyness, Amber felt a little embarrassed and pulled his hand back.

What’s wrong with me? Am I getting ideas about an alien? I’m acting like some kind of lecher.

Salieh’s ‘information reorganization’ didn’t take too long. Soon, she opened her eyes again, gave Amber a look of shy indignation, and said:

“I’ve sorted through the information I have. While I can’t guarantee every single detail is exactly as I describe, over ninety percent of it is definitely correct.

“The Star Dragon Empire’s first-generation Royal Family were not, as they claim, humans who suffered ‘biological contamination’ from a Starry Sky Dragon. Rather, they were part of one of our experimental projects—products of a lab, without a doubt, created through bio-engineering by adding gene fragments from Starry Sky Dragons to human DNA.”

“So you’re saying the first royals all escaped from your labs?”

“I don’t know if they escaped or left the laboratory through some other means, but there’s no question that they originated from a Forerunner laboratory.”

Amber: “Hold on. Do you Jeram people have some kind of twisted sense of humor? Why would you conduct an experiment like that?”

Salieh didn’t answer Amber’s question directly. After a moment’s pause, she suddenly asked him something completely out of the blue:

“Amber, do you know why we were ultimately unable to mass-produce Starry Sky Dragons as weapons of war, and could only turn a small number of them into semi-mechanized ‘puppets’ to serve as ‘guardians’ in some facilities?”

“Why?”

“Because they are perfect cosmic creations. So perfect that we couldn’t even make them obey our commands while they were alive.”

“Perfect cosmic creations… What does that have to do with what we’re talking about?” Amber asked, somewhat confused.

“Because this group of humans was modified to become ‘Pilots’ for the Starry Sky Dragons.”

“Say what?”

Chapter 602: Giant Dragon × Combat Weapon × Pilot

Amber felt that the bombshells he was hearing from this Forerunner “old frozen meat” were the biggest he’d had to stomach since transmigrating to this world.

The Star Dragon Empire’s first royal family members were actually “experimental subjects” of the Forerunner civilization.

And the purpose of creating this batch of “half-dragon, half-human” beings was, unbelievably, so they could “pilot” the so-called perfect cosmic creations known as Starry Sky Dragons.

If any of this information had been released in his previous life, and Amber had organized it a bit and posted it on major video sites or gaming forums, he could have become the top trending topic in the Starry Sky Online lore community overnight.

It was just that now, Amber didn’t have many people with whom to share these secrets.

As for Salieh, she had nothing left to hide from Amber, so she quickly revealed everything she knew.

In the eyes of the Forerunner civilization, Starry Sky Dragons were the most perfect and powerful creatures they had discovered in the entire universe, aside from themselves.

An incredibly long lifespan, wisdom far beyond the imagination of most creatures, a physical body strong enough to traverse hyperspace, the special ability to convert the universe’s psionics into “Dragon’s Might,” and the combat power to single-handedly heavily damage an entire fleet…

Among their only two weaknesses, one was that the reproductive ability of the Starry Sky Dragon race was extremely low, resulting in their population remaining at a minuscule level.

Although an adult Starry Sky Dragon wasn’t easy to kill, the problem was that new ones weren’t easy to be born either.

The other weakness was that this species was incredibly lazy.

The Starry Sky Dragons clearly possessed superior intelligence, able to effortlessly calculate complex hyperspace routes without any external aid and create all sorts of unique “Dragon’s Might techniques.”

But they were too lazy to push their intellect to its limits. They had no desire to build a civilization or overcome their species’ only two weaknesses to evolve further toward “perfection.”

Besides foraging for food, playing, mating, and attempting to reproduce, the greatest hobby of these giant dragons was to find a planet with intelligent life and then secretly observe their development from the shadows.

It was just like human children who love to watch ants move their homes.

Amber could just imagine how a civilization like the Forerunners must have been tearing their hair out in frustration upon seeing such a talented species live such a decadent and wasteful life.

And so, at the urging of some Forerunner scientists, they finally decided to give the Starry Sky Dragon race a good “helping hand,” allowing them to truly realize their value in the universe.

The Forerunners’ method of “helping” was to transform these supremely powerful Starry Sky Dragons into combat weapons and have them join their glorious “space-time expedition.”

One could only say it was a very “Forerunner” thing to do.

But the final result was just as Salieh had said: the Forerunners discovered they could not mass-convert Starry Sky Dragons into combat weapons.

The few semi-mechanized combat puppets they managed to create had lost most of their special abilities, including “physical warp,” retaining only their physical combat strength. They were then assigned to various facilities to serve as “security guards.”

After capturing a number of Starry Sky Dragons at enormous cost and wracking their brains to thoroughly dissect and test them, the Forerunner researchers finally came to a conclusion.

These proud cosmic beings would never accept their control while they were still alive.

The only way to control them was to erase their original consciousness, or soul, but doing so would cause these Starry Sky Dragons, now turned into “puppets,” to lose their ability to use “Dragon’s Might.”

Against this backdrop, the research into converting Starry Sky Dragons into combat weapons was on the verge of being shut down, and the Forerunners were planning to exterminate them, just as they had done with other powerful cosmic creatures in the past.

But just at that moment, a crazed Forerunner scientist stepped forward and proposed an insane plan.

To have ‘Homo sapiens’ “pilot” the Starry Sky Dragons.

In earlier studies, the Forerunners had already discovered that ‘Homo sapiens’ could be controlled through various means and were also highly adaptable to all sorts of modifications and evolutions.

Although ‘Homo sapiens’ were physically weak, some rare individuals among them possessed an extremely strong affinity for cosmic psionics.

So, this Forerunner scientist planned to strip the Starry Sky Dragons of their consciousness and then use carefully selected and heavily enhanced humans with high psionic affinity to replace the “consciousness” that the dragons’ bodies now lacked.

Theoretically, this would create controllable combat weapons that would obey the Forerunners’ commands while possessing 90% of a Starry Sky Dragon’s power.

In fact, according to this Forerunner scientist’s theory, the Jeram people themselves would have been the most suitable “pilots” for the Starry Sky Dragons.

But due to concerns about uncontrollable risks, and the danger that a pilot could be completely fused and absorbed after entering the “entry plug” inside the Starry Sky Dragon, the Forerunner high command forbade the Jeram people from serving as pilots from the very beginning.

As for why the modified ‘Homo sapiens pilots’ possessed handsome features and aesthetically pleasing draconic horns and scales, it could only be attributed to the Jeram people’s distorted sense of aesthetics and perfectionism acting up.

They couldn’t accept the pilots of their strongest combat weapons being a sorry-looking lot, so while modifying this batch of humans, they also took the opportunity to give them a round of “beautification.”

Actually, upon hearing this, Amber already felt the story was quite familiar, with various settings eerily similar to two works he had seen in his previous life.

But when he recalled the rumors about the entire Starry Sky Online development team being diehard nerds, he was instantly relieved.

“Damn it, of all the things they could copy, why did they have to rip off those two shows?”

Salieh: “What did you say, Amber?”

“Nothing. Please continue,” Amber said, shaking his head and pulling his thoughts back to the present.

Salieh shrugged. “There’s not much left to tell. It’s pretty much what you’re thinking~”

Just like similar experiments in other works of fiction, the Forerunners’ experiment saw a period of initial success before hitting a snag just as it was about to enter mass production.

Even Salieh didn’t know the specifics of what happened.

The only thing she knew was that before embarking on the “space-time expedition,” the Forerunner civilization exterminated all of the wild Starry Sky Dragons, then mothballed the modified ones along with their human pilots.

An unknown number of years passed, and something went wrong with the mothballed facilities. In any case, a portion of the humans who had been put into stasis woke up and successfully escaped.

“Then they returned to the human world, and just like in the legends of the Star Dragon Empire, they successfully rose to prominence during a period of internecine human conflict. Phew.”

Amber let out a long breath and slumped down completely.

“I can’t believe it’s a ‘Brave young man, go forth and create a miracle’ kind of story…”

Chapter 603: Atlas ‘Intervenes’ in the Conflict

After his conversation with Salieh, Amber combined her information with the fragments he recalled from his previous life and pieced together a rough idea of the Star Dragon Empire’s royal family’s “founding history.”

If Amber were to summarize it in one simple, easy-to-understand sentence, it would be this:

The Jeram people tried to create a batch of combat weapons called “Howling Dragons” but failed. Shinji Ikari escaped with a group of friends and then founded a nation.

It was extraordinarily abstract.

All in all, after receiving Salieh’s information, the mystery and nobility surrounding the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family vanished in an instant, leaving Amber with a strange sense of “disappointment.”

However, that was no longer his main concern. After hearing Salieh’s story, Amber was now even more curious about how Frederick, this “descendant of the pilots,” planned to use the Eternal Cells to extend his life.

This also made Amber recall the official prequel novel for Starry Sky Online. At the end of the Imperial Capital Decisive Battle Arc, there was a mention of a vaguely described enemy.

“Salieh, do you think it’s possible that the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family plans to pilot a Starry Sky Dragon again to end all this conflict?”

Hearing Amber’s question, Salieh frowned and thought for a moment before answering, “Theoretically, as long as they find a fully modified Starry Sky Dragon with all its equipment still functional, and if we disregard the risk of losing control, they could indeed pilot it as we Jeram people envisioned.

“But ‘finding a fully modified Starry Sky Dragon’ is a step I find highly unlikely. After all, so much time has passed. Even with my confidence in the shelf life of our Jeram equipment, a time span of two million years is just too long.”

At this point, Salieh couldn’t help but look up at Amber. “Why? Are you worried about a Starry Sky Dragon showing up?”

“It’s not that I’m worried.” Amber shook his head. “I just want to be fully prepared, rather than scrambling to react after something has already happened.”

Salieh replied, “So what do you plan to do, Amber? Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Actually, there is. Since you Jeram people have dealt with Starry Sky Dragons so extensively and understand the species so well, could you compile a manual on how to counter a Starry Sky Dragon in combat?”

—

At Amber’s request, Salieh began compiling the combat characteristics of Starry Sky Dragons based on her experience. She also assembled a top-secret team to begin research on specialized “anti-large-unit” weapons for future battles.

Meanwhile, in the Federation, the situation had been fermenting for some time and was now spiraling irreversibly toward chaos.

With Atlas fanning the flames from the sidelines, the Federation government had completely lost its ability to control public opinion. Most star systems in the Federation were now mired in internal strife, leaving the Federation government and its remaining main force exhausted, running around just to put out fires.

The Federation descending into internal conflict and the power struggle within the Empire entering its “final chapter” were all things Amber had long predicted. This was the backdrop against which he had planned for Atlas to “fish in troubled waters.”

The only difference was that the chaos had erupted in both places earlier than expected, and the situation in the Empire was far more complex than Amber had imagined. He had never thought the high-level struggles within the Empire would drag keywords like the Forerunners and Starry Sky Dragons into the mix.

Fortunately, Atlas’s growth speed had also exceeded his projections. Its current scale was large enough to begin exerting some “slight” interference in the human world.

However, Amber had no intention of “coming out swinging” just yet.

He had discovered that in the human world, military conquest was not the only solution. Religious victory, economic victory, and cultural victory were all achievable paths.

And for the Atlas Group, the road to the top didn’t have to be paved entirely with blood and fire; shining “gold coins” could just as easily create a wide, open road to success.

So, for the time being, the Atlas Financial Operations Center temporarily replaced the combat units, taking “center stage” within the group. Like a ghost in the darkness, it began to rise quietly amidst the turbulent situation.

Under Amber’s direction, the “financial terrorists” of the Financial Operations Center keenly sensed the opportunities within the chaos. They immediately began splitting into numerous “action teams” to carry out large-scale acquisitions of various physical industries within the Federation’s borders.

The moment a star system showed the first signs of internal strife, Atlas’s intelligence network—established by Isabelle with Lilith’s assistance—would promptly detect these subtle changes and send alerts to their colleagues in the Financial Operations Center.

Consequently, the main screen at the Financial Operations Center headquarters, as well as the personal terminals of its senior executives, now displayed a real-time updating chart.

It showed the “chaos level” of every star cluster, star system, and planet within the Federation—a value calculated by Lilith based on information such as the local situation, the will of the people, armed strength, and the Federation government’s movements.

On a normal day, the members of the Financial Operations Center’s “action teams” would lie dormant with patience, like leopards lurking in the shadows, quietly waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

As the internal strife continued to escalate, the Federation government’s control weakened, and various factions began to emerge, brandishing banners of independence, rebellion, and revolution in their attempts to break free from the Federation’s rule.

The “chaos level” of these regions would rise with each new piece of information, gradually approaching and eventually hitting the “red line,” triggering alarms at the Financial Operations Center headquarters.

At that moment, the long-prepared “action team” members would immediately deploy.

They would have already boarded Atlas combat fleet ships and arrived in the star system to lie in wait while the local “chaos level” was still climbing.

Once they received the “go-ahead” signal from the rear, they would reach these chaotic areas in the shortest time possible.

Although the people from the Financial Operations Center faced various “rebel forces” with different backgrounds, identities, positions, and goals, every member selected for an “action team” was someone who had weathered many storms.

Many of them, before entering the advanced class of the Federation University of Finance and Economics—that is, the Federation’s ‘Golden Eye’ Space Prison—had already dealt with all sorts of similar factions and could be considered highly experienced.

In fact, quite a few of them used to be in the business of selling arms to “rebel” forces. Now, it was as if they were “returning to their old trade,” which left them all filled with emotion.

In the ensuing negotiations, armed with the favorable “negotiation terms” Amber had granted them, the immense financial strength of the Atlas Group, and their own clever negotiation tactics, the “action teams” swept through the Federation like a tornado. They acquired all sorts of factories—from chemical and general manufacturing to protein synthesis plants—as well as shipyards, heavy equipment manufacturing plants, and other physical industries at extremely favorable prices.

From an angle that no one, including the Federation government, had ever anticipated, Atlas began to “intervene” in the ever-escalating conflict.

Chapter 604: The Atlas Way of Negotiation

For these ‘local forces,’ selling off the factories and large industrial clusters in their hands was, in fact, a completely ‘zero-cost’ transaction.

This was because most of these factories and other physical industries had only just been ‘taken over’ from the Federation government and various corporations and plutocrats.

Many of the buildings and pieces of equipment still bore, to varying degrees, the scars left behind from the ‘takeover’ process.

And now, they could turn around and trade these industries—which were somewhat troublesome for them to manage—for the hard currency they desperately needed: the Thousand Stars Empire’s ‘Psionic Points.’ It was also the only one of the three major currencies to have maintained a stable exchange rate.

Moreover, after Atlas Group took over these enterprises and factories, they would often restart work and production within a short period, restoring normal operations. Sometimes, they would even expand operations and hire more industrial workers.

This was naturally an eagerly-anticipated scene for the various ‘rebel forces,’ as it meant the order within their controlled territories would become increasingly stable under this new trend.

The resumption of production in these factories and enterprises—especially the manufacturing of daily necessities—also allowed the soaring prices in their controlled areas to gradually fall and stabilize.

After receiving funds from Atlas, these local forces would typically use the majority of it to purchase various weapons and equipment from Atlas Group to rapidly enhance the combat effectiveness of their armed forces. Some of the larger factions even considered placing orders with Atlas for warships.

On one hand, they truly needed these weapons to arm themselves and increase their strength to gain an upper hand against the Federation government and other forces. On the other hand, Atlas’s weapons and equipment indeed held a huge advantage in quality and performance.

During this period, everything from the personal exoskeletons and Powered Armor, led by the ‘Raging Crocodile’ series, to the heavy ground equipment, led by the ‘Vanguard’ export model main battle tank, and even the stripped-down ‘Aegis’ leading the HCPs, had become star products on the arms market.

The numerous public combat engagements of Atlas’s ground forces served as the best advertisement for this equipment.

Not to mention, after news spread of the Renaissance Alliance sweeping through the Loubion star system using Atlas Group’s equipment, the advertising effect grew even stronger. Atlas Armaments’ order books were already full, and the ‘deposits’ alone from the various factions amounted to an astronomical figure.

So, from the perspective of the organizations and forces trading with Atlas Group, it was as if Atlas Group had traveled a great distance to ‘deliver money’ to them, help manage their enterprises, stabilize social order, and control prices, all while providing a very reliable channel for importing military hardware.

Because most of the forces that engaged in these transactions with Atlas Group saw no problem with allowing the corporation to intervene in their regions.

These factories, mines, and refineries on the planet’s surface weren’t like shipyards in deep space that could be towed away. So, no matter what tricks Atlas Group played, these assets remained within their control. It’s not like they could pack up the entire planet and take it with them, right?

The leaders and high-ranking members of the forces who thought this way were the ones who negotiated politely with the Atlas Group representatives.

They had not seen the side of Atlas Group that bared its fangs and naturally underestimated the corporation that had come to talk business, believing it was no different from the megacorporations and plutocrats they had already eliminated.

As time went on, they would come to their senses and regret their initial decision, but by then, it would be too late to change anything.

As for whether any forces or organizations had seen Atlas Group’s ‘fangs’?

Of course, there were. The diversity of the human species guaranteed it.

While most forces were secretly celebrating and dutifully handing over their assets to Atlas, a few factions with different ideas got some bad ideas during their negotiations with Atlas Group.—

On a colony planet that had just overthrown the Star System Autonomous Government and hung many plutocrats and capitalists who failed to escape in time from lampposts, Hak, the leader of a faction that had temporarily seized local control, was engaged in tense negotiations with Cassius, a representative from Atlas’s Financial Operations Center. They sat inside a temporary camp of command vehicles that Atlas Group had set up.

Hak’s face was grim, his eyes revealing an unnatural stubbornness and defiance.

“Your terms are too harsh, Atlas. We cannot transfer our factories and shipyards at such a price. These are industries we fought for with great sacrifice. This is blatant plunder!”

“Plunder? Leader Hak, you have the nerve to speak to me of plunder? That’s quite a joke. Besides, the price we’ve offered has been calculated multiple times by our business experts. You will absolutely not be at a disadvantage.”

Cassius remained expressionless, but his gaze was as sharp as a falcon’s.

“Leader Hak, you need to recognize reality. The current situation is not in your favor. Heaven knows when the Federation’s regular army will fight its way back to this star system. If you fail then, you will have nothing. We at Atlas can provide you with the funds you urgently need and a channel to purchase first-class weapons. This is your best option right now.”

Hak slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet. “We will never yield to your pressure! We have our own dignity and bottom line. At worst, we’ll fight the Federation government to the death.”

The negotiation broke down abruptly. Hak stood up sharply; he felt that by coming to negotiate with these Atlas Group representatives in his capacity as leader, he was already showing them a great deal of respect.

But their terms and their completely emotionless attitude infuriated him, and he desperately wanted to make some harsh threats or intimidate them with force.

However, when he thought about the heavily defended camp outside the command vehicle, filled with countless pieces of heavy equipment and elite armed troops he had never seen before, he suspected that if he made a threat now, he might not be able to leave.

So, a moment later, Hak simply stormed out of the conference room set up in the command vehicle with his subordinates, while Cassius and the others sat and watched them slam the door on their way out.

“Crude negotiation skills and a brutish way of applying pressure. I can’t even remember the last time I sat through a business negotiation of this caliber. My little niece could probably do a better job.”

Another business representative sitting beside Cassius spoke up.

Cassius shook his head. “Just a little over ten days ago, many of them were nothing more than ordinary people. What high level of negotiating skill can you expect them to have? It’s a wonder they can even understand the acquisition proposal we submitted.”

“So what do we do next? Haggle with them a bit more?” another representative asked.

“No, we don’t have that much Federation time to waste on them. The task list that was updated two hours ago has two new targets waiting for us to go and negotiate.”

As Cassius spoke, he took out his ‘Financial Operations Center Custom Edition’ personal terminal and tapped the screen a few times.

“I’ve just called the fleet. Since the local forces can’t understand our current method of negotiation, we’ll switch to one they can understand.”

Chapter 605: The Relaxed Demeanor of a Business Elite

“Say, Cassius, did you get your kid’s schooling sorted out?”

After Cassius called the fleet, they still had some time to wait for its arrival. After reminding the commander of the ground task force responsible for security to be on high alert, Cassius and the others began making small talk about their families in the command vehicle.

Although Atlas’s corporate culture was the type that sounded very competitive—phrases like “if you don’t do it, someone else will” and “Atlas doesn’t support idlers” were common—in reality, with Lilith assisting in breaking down tasks, the workload assigned to each person was absolutely within their ability.

This approach maximized the prevention of situations where ‘some people have no work to do, while others have too much’.

As long as they didn’t slack off on the job, everyone could complete their tasks within the specified time. Some of the more efficient employees could even free up more rest time for themselves.

So, after gradually adapting to Atlas’s internal way of doing things, most people actually began to develop in an increasingly ‘relaxed’ direction.

Just like now, the few people in the command vehicle were chatting about mundane life matters like ‘getting their kids into school’.

“The paperwork was done a long time ago. She started school last month.”

Cassius was typing quickly on a volumetric light keyboard projected from his personal terminal as he answered. Like most of his colleagues at the Financial Operations Center, he had undergone the ‘artificial secondary brain’ modification project. This alteration, which was akin to implanting a high-performance processing terminal into his brain, allowed him to handle ‘multi-threaded tasks’ with ease.

“After I brought my wife and child over, people from the HR Department and the Employee Care Department approached me to discuss work and school arrangements for them. They were incredibly efficient; all the procedures were completed on the same day.”

Cassius paused, seeming to recall something, before continuing a moment later.

“Speaking of which, there was an issue with the efficiency of employee family benefits that went all the way up to the Boss.”

“For real? Something like that happened?” The other business representatives immediately adopted the look of spectators ready for drama, their gazes fixed on Cassius, who sat in the middle.

As the person in charge of these negotiations, Cassius’s employee level and clearance within Atlas were higher than theirs, so he had access to information others didn’t.

“I only heard it through the grapevine, and I don’t know how true it is, so I can only tell you the parts I’m allowed to. A while back, a lot of new employees joined, many with their families in tow, which led to a massive number of applications for family benefits.

Normally, the approval process in the Employee Benefits Department is very efficient, especially with the ‘Enterprise Management System’ to assist, so most of these applications are approved within an hour.

But the newly promoted director of the Employee Benefits Department and a few of his staff, for whatever reason, had some kind of brainwave. They started messing with the approval process. If an employee applying for benefits didn’t offer them a little something extra, their application would be stuck in the pipeline for a very long time.”

“Something like that can happen in our company? What was the outcome?” the others asked curiously.

Cassius replied, “The outcome was—‘they did it in the morning, and they were taken away in the afternoon’. The Boss was apparently furious. The two directors of the Human Resources Center and the Internal Affairs Department were chewed out completely. She said their ability to ‘govern’ their departments made her doubt them and docked 50% of their performance bonuses for the year.”

“Holy shit, 50% of their annual performance bonus! That’s harsh!”

“That’s perfectly normal.” Cassius waved his hand, seemingly unsurprised by the punishment. “You have to understand, when it comes to issues involving internal employee benefits and compensation, the Boss has always had a ‘zero-tolerance’ policy. She always handles these matters with the utmost severity.”

The others nodded in agreement with Cassius’s explanation. After all, everyone knew that Atlas’s current cohesiveness was largely due to its salary and benefits packages. Amber staying true to her principles in this regard made them feel all the more secure.

Incidentally, after this incident, Amber had also stormed into the virtual space to give Lilith a good ‘talking to’. Afterward, Lilith immediately implemented a major optimization and upgrade to the ‘Enterprise Management System’, strengthening her clones’ oversight of these approval processes.

Although this would inevitably consume more computing power, Lilith had to do it to prevent similar problems from recurring.

She naturally couldn’t have imagined just how deeply a transmigrated ‘corporate drudge’ would loathe this kind of internal abuse of power—bullying subordinates and deceiving superiors.

“Cassius, what major is your young lady planning to pursue in the future?” a business representative asked, steering the conversation back to family matters.

“Finance and management, of course. We’ll see if she inherited her father’s talent in these areas first.”

There was a hint of pride in Cassius’s tone, though it was unclear whether it was for his daughter or for his own talents.

“What if you find out later that she doesn’t have the talent for it?” another person asked.

“Then I’ll send her to the marines or the fleet to major in combat first aid, communications, or navigation. I remember they’re all open to female students.”

“Wow, you’re really willing to part with her. Are you sure you’re her biological father?”

“Get lost!”

Cassius laughed and gave his colleague a light punch on the arm. Just as he was about to say more, his personal terminal suddenly chimed—it was the ringtone for an incoming fleet communication.

Upon hearing the ringtone, the Atlas business representatives, who had been joking and chatting casually just moments before, switched their demeanor in less than a second. They sat up straight in their seats, each one now exuding the aura of a ‘business elite’ or a ‘negotiation genius’.

His expression also turning serious, Cassius answered the call.

Soon, a relatively young-sounding voice came through.

“Team Head Cassius, this is the Atlas combat fleet’s ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment. I am Detachment Commander Ramos. As per the mission chain, the strike detachment will now assist in the ‘commercial negotiation’ procedures.”

At the same time that Ramos, the commander of the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment, was contacting Cassius, the planet’s garrison fleet—which had only 42% of its warships operational after switching sides—also detected an anomaly.

On their observation screens, a cluster of shimmering points of light first appeared on the distant horizon, like a congregation of stars about to descend. As time passed, the points of light grew larger and brighter, gradually revealing their true form—a strike detachment from the Atlas Group.

As the fleet drew closer, the size of the ‘Red Hand’ Strike Detachment was quickly confirmed. Although it was still designated a strike detachment, it had been reinforced and strengthened after Ramos returned to A Bawa Ku with Amber. At this point, it was already nearly half the size of a standard fleet.

The remaining warships of the garrison fleet watched the rapidly approaching fleet with what was practically terror. Their commander couldn’t even entertain the thought of engaging the enemy.

It was no joke. His forces were ‘old, weak, sick, and disabled’. Many of the damaged warships had not yet completed repairs, and they were also missing many key components that had been blockaded by the Federation government. Their actual combat effectiveness was even lower than their on-paper strength.

Thus, the commander of the garrison fleet immediately led his remaining warships out of the planet’s synchronous orbit, moving far away. He simply watched as a portion of the Atlas fleet broke off and approached the planet, lowering their orbit.

Chapter 606: The Engineering Team Wants to Build an Airfield Here

Not long after the Atlas combat fleet appeared, Hak, the faction leader who had ‘left in a rage’ after negotiations with Cassius and the others broke down, received a report from his subordinates.

From his armored command vehicle, he contacted the commander of the garrison fleet and cursed him out, accusing him of being a deserter before a single shot was even fired.

The commander, with nothing left to lose, started cursing right back at Hak, furiously accusing him of not seeing the garrison fleet as human beings and trying to send them on a suicidal mission, like an egg hitting a rock. In any case, the garrison fleet had already pulled back to a safe distance; no matter how much he swore, there was nothing Hak could do to him.

And while these two once like-minded comrades tore each other apart over the arrival of the Atlas fleet, Cassius completed his information and intelligence exchange with Ramos.

“So, Team Head Cassius, you want us to conduct a deterrent orbital strike to shatter their resolve to refuse negotiations, correct?”

“That’s right, Lieutenant Colonel Ramos.”

Cassius confirmed, then re-emphasized, “Please note, we just need one deterrent orbital strike. Even firing at an empty plot of land will do. They will definitely get our meaning.”

“Don’t worry, Team Head Cassius. We don’t want to ‘use force’ during a commercial activity either.” Ramos chuckled on the other end of the comms line before continuing, “You don’t need to worry about the professionalism of our combat fleet. Orbital strike is one of the most rigorously tested subjects among all our combat exercises. I don’t know what the Boss’s considerations are, but the requirements for every ship’s gunnery officers and Gunnery crews are extremely high, and the accuracy standards are incredibly strict.”

“Hahahaha, with you saying that, I can rest easy!”

Although Cassius appeared calm and unruffled on the surface, even chatting and laughing merrily with Ramos, this was actually his first time experiencing a business negotiation with half a combat fleet overhead to maintain the front.

Heaven knows what the Boss was thinking, not only assigning high-level protection details to every action team from the Financial Operations Center but also directly dispatching a fleet to act as a backstop for regions that showed a ‘low willingness to cooperate’ in preliminary intelligence.

Cassius had never imagined that he would one day use a fleet over his head as one of his bargaining chips in a business negotiation.

This feeling was just…

Too awesome.

It was like in the middle of a debate, your next ‘argument’ was pulling a pistol out of your coat.

“So, Team Head Cassius, which area would you like the orbital strike to target?”

Lieutenant Colonel Ramos’s voice pulled Cassius back from his thoughts. He immediately opened the virtual map, which was already marked with several ‘pre-selected project construction areas’ by the Investment and Engineering Departments.

“Hmm… let me see. The Engineering Department mentioned they wanted to build an airfield, which happens to require clearing a large, flat piece of land.”

Cassius scanned the unpopulated areas on the map seriously while muttering, “Say, after an orbital strike, the large open area that’s cleared out should be usable as a construction zone for the airfield, right?”

“That’s no problem. As long as preliminary surveys confirm the area is suitable, an orbital strike can indeed help level the land.”

Ramos nodded, not finding Cassius’s request troublesome at all.

After all, one of the current training exercises for the Atlas combat fleet was conducting orbital strikes on hostile territory to provide a ‘clean’ landing zone for landing forces, or to clear an area for ground engineering teams to rapidly build infrastructure in a field environment.

“Then there’s no problem. Lieutenant Colonel Ramos, I’ve already transmitted the relevant coordinates. I’ll leave the rest to you!” Cassius said sincerely, devoid of the condescending arrogance often seen in the ‘business elites’ of other corporations.

“Coordinates received… Hey, this location isn’t far from your current position, is it? Are you sure you want to attack these coordinates?”

Ramos asked with a frown after seeing the coordinates Cassius had sent. They were less than fifty kilometers away from the Atlas Temporary Camp on the ground.

Cassius: “That’s right, hit that spot! The faction leader we were negotiating with just left. A shot from you guys right now will definitely make him see it loud and clear!”

“Alright, since it’s confirmed, I’ll go organize the orbital strike. I wish you success in your upcoming negotiations, Team Head Cassius!”

“Hahaha, thanks! I’m sure once your shot lands, all our problems will be readily solved!”

Before long, the two light cruisers tasked with the orbital strike entered their strike orbit and maintained operational altitude.

Ground-based orbital strikes were a very mature discipline within the Atlas combat fleet. All warships from light cruisers and up had to pass a series of oral strike-related operational assessments before being officially commissioned.

In other words, the Atlas combat fleet didn’t keep ‘idle ships’; every warship was developed for multi-role combat capabilities rather than just singular fleet battle missions.

The two light cruisers hung silently in the planet’s low orbit.

To the surrounding artificial satellites, their massive hulls looked like mobile fortresses, their metal plating glinting with a cold, mysterious light under the brilliant glow of the star.

On the bridge of one of the light cruisers, the Captain sat calmly in the captain’s chair, watching the gunnery officer manage the entire orbital strike procedure.

As one of the fleet’s top-tier ships in orbital strike exercises, the cruiser’s Captain had no particular feelings about today’s mission. It was just like any other day of training.

“All stations, prepare for orbital strike. Attack coordinates loaded and confirmed. Commencing final target area identification,” the gunnery officer’s voice was steady and powerful, carrying an innate confidence.

“Weapons system self-check complete. Ready to fire at any time,” an operator reported with a focused expression.

The gunnery officer nodded slightly, his eyes still glued to the screen of his workstation, which displayed a high-precision composite image of the ground from the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and optical lens feeds.

The coordinates Cassius sent pointed to a long-abandoned automated farm. The engineering team had been planning to level the area to build a temporary airfield.

On top of being abandoned, the farm was now infested with some sort of aggressive insect pest, so the vicinity had long since become a ‘forbidden zone’ for the locals. No one ever went there.

Despite this, several electronic attack ships in the fleet had already hacked into the region’s network via orbital communication satellites and broadcast a strike warning to everyone, telling them to get as far away as possible.

“Both ships synchronized. The Downpour has established a temporary remote operation channel!”

“Fire-control unit has locked onto input coordinates!”

“All main cannons prepare for a full salvo! Load Number 6 alloy, mass increased to 2200 grams, heavy metal particle stream initial velocity reduced to 542 kilometers per second!”

“Forward high-energy lasers adjust wavelength to 8mm, begin atmospheric interference!”

The gunnery officer skillfully ran through the Checklist. After numerous ground-attack tests, the Atlas combat fleet had developed a ‘standard firing table,’ and many of the data parameters were now far more precise than before.

After completing all items on the checklist, the gunnery officer glanced back at the cruiser’s Captain. Seeing him give a slight nod, he snapped his fingers.

“Fire!”

Everyone near the impact zone, including the faction leader Hak in his armored command vehicle, only saw several dazzling ‘beams of light’ flash across the sky.

Before they could even realize what was happening, the distant horizon suddenly ‘lit up,’ a flash so bright it seemed to momentarily turn day into night.

An unknown amount of time later, a powerful tremor ran through the ground beneath their feet, followed by a deafening roar. The sound was like thousands of enraged behemoths bellowing in the sky, and the rolling sonic wave forced everyone to cover their ears.

At the site of the distant ‘explosion,’ a scorching heatwave radiated out from the impact point of the heavy metal particle stream, sweeping in all directions like a surging tide. Everything in its path was instantly ignited.

The dry weeds in the farm turned to ash in an instant. The dust kicked up was fused into glass-like substances by the intense heat before it could even disperse, crackling as it shot outwards under extreme pressure.

The trees near the automated farm were even more fragile. Thick trunks groaned under the force of the heatwave before snapping and bursting into flames like brittle matchsticks. A raging inferno instantly engulfed the entire forest near the farm, the flames soaring into the sky, thick smoke billowing upwards and staining the once-clear sky pitch black.

The numerous pieces of abandoned agricultural machinery in the automated farm were instantly thrown into the air by the immense force, tumbling like fragile toys before being vaporized by the high temperature, vanishing without a trace.

Along with the intense light, heat, and seismic shock, a powerful shockwave ravaged the air.

This shockwave was like an invisible giant’s hand, mercilessly destroying everything in its path. The farm’s relatively sturdy buildings and semi-recessed granaries were like paper in its presence, collapsing and disintegrating in an instant.

“This is the ‘industrial aesthetic’… this is true beauty.”

Having put on sunglasses in advance, Cassius stood atop the command vehicle with the other business representatives, enjoying the ‘visual feast.’

Like the other employees of the Atlas Group, after working there for some time, they had all been captivated by this ‘industrial aesthetic’ and the beauty of pure power.

As the distant firelight began to fade, a communications specialist approached the side of the command vehicle and waved to Cassius.

“Team Head! That Hak guy is contacting us! He says he wants to sit down and have a serious talk!”

Chapter 607: The All-Industry Leviathan

A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, core conference room.

Supervisors from every department, including Amber, Isabelle, Randall, and Cleves, gathered together for the first time in a long while.

Ever since the chaos in the Loubion star system ended and the Renaissance Alliance formally came to power, the various departments of the Atlas Group had seized the opportunity presented by the Federation’s plunge into civil war to frantically chase their KPIs.

Aside from a few positions that required them to remain at headquarters for coordination, everyone else was basically running all over the galaxy.

So, for everyone present, this was a long-overdue ‘reunion.’ Even Banninger and the others from the Immortal Corps were secretly attending the meeting from the virtual space.

Of course, Amber had repeatedly stressed that they should not speak for the time being, lest they frighten the other attendees…

“One day, you will appear, open and honest for all to see, but that day is not today~” Amber had said.

Once all the attendees had arrived, the head of the Financial Operations Center, who had drawn the lot to lead the charge, was the first to rise.

As the department currently enjoying the most limelight within the group, the head’s eyes revealed a complete sense of confidence and composure.

“Boss, our recent campaign to acquire physical industries within the Federation has been a great success. Just as planned, we have successfully purchased a large number of factories, refineries, and processing plants, as well as crucial deep-space shipyards and synthesis plants, all at extremely favorable prices. We have brought the entire upstream and downstream industrial chain under our control.”

Amber nodded slightly. “Did everything go smoothly?”

The department head cleared his throat and continued, “Most of the companies were acquired smoothly through business negotiations. The professional teams from the Financial Operations Center demonstrated exceptional negotiation skills and a high degree of expertise, securing extremely advantageous terms for the group.”

At this point, another core member of the Financial Operations Center chimed in, “Boss, actually, after the news of our large-scale acquisition and expansion spread, a significant portion of the physical industries in the later stages were brought to us by the local powers that had seized control. They must have noticed that Atlas’s ability to quickly restore local production order was a great help in stabilizing their ‘regimes’.”

Hearing his subordinate’s addition, the head of the Financial Operations Center nodded and went on:

“Most of the acquisitions went very smoothly, but a small number of factions tried to jack up their prices on the spot after the initial round of negotiations failed.”

This news had, of course, already been reported to Amber, but some of the attendees were unaware of the subsequent developments, so Amber asked, “And then?”

The department head paused, his tone turning a little peculiar.

“Boss, your earlier prediction was spot on. The factions with real foresight quickly reached agreements with us. In contrast, the ones who tried to jack up their prices were basically spineless. The moment the fleet assisting with the negotiations made a slight show of force, they immediately gave in.”

Upon hearing this, the people in the conference room all wore expressions of suppressed laughter. After all, the Atlas Group had lain low for a long time before finally pulling off something big.

Things were looking up.

“After completing the rapid acquisitions during the Federation’s civil war, these enterprises were quickly restructured with the arrival of Atlas personnel.”

The voice of the Financial Operations Center head grew somewhat excited. After all, with such a dazzling performance from his department, it was hard to imagine how high their year-end performance bonuses would be.

“They’ve also been connected to the ‘Enterprise Management System’ and are now under the unified control of the group’s core ‘management terminal.’ We have now preliminarily achieved a full-industry layout, controlling both the upstream and downstream of production. Next, we can smoothly enter the ‘breakout’ phase.”

Amber was already aware of everything the head of the Financial Operations Center had reported. The real purpose of this presentation was to boost the morale of the other executives and inspire confidence in everyone.

After all, hearing about Atlas’s tangible achievements was far more effective than Amber giving a fluent but preachy pep talk.

Once Amber had scanned the room and confirmed that everyone had gradually calmed down from their excitement, he spoke in a calm but powerful voice:

“Everyone, I promise you, this is only the beginning. There will be many more unexpected developments to come. We must make good use of these resources and continuously expand our sphere of influence!

“After all, the most critical ‘harvesting’ phase is next. I expect every department to coordinate and prepare well. Once the ‘harvest’ begins, we must be fast, precise, and ruthless in picking the biggest ‘fruit’!”

While the group’s executive meeting was underway, Atlas Group’s industries across the Federation were also being put into operation at top speed.

After a brief adaptation period following their acquisition, the various factories and shipyards began operating with high efficiency, aided by the ‘Enterprise Management System’.

Light factories produced advanced electronics and precision instruments, while heavy factories forged weaponry and heavy land warfare equipment. In the deep-space shipyards, brand-new warships of all classes began to be churned out.

Lilith, who had been thoroughly taught a lesson by Amber, was now coordinating the entire industrial chain with her highly efficient management skills. Every link was tightly integrated, minimizing waste and delays.

At the same time, the Atlas Group and its combat forces began a new round of large-scale personnel expansion, something they hadn’t done in a long time.

Compared to Atlas’s previously near-stringent recruitment process, Amber had relaxed the standards slightly this time to quickly expand the workforce.

Furthermore, Lilith’s surveillance capabilities had improved once again, so the chances of personnel-related problems were not very high. Moreover, the veteran employees recruited earlier had essentially been ‘brainwashed’ by the daily work atmosphere, their minds constantly filled with the idea that ‘the company’s interests are paramount’.

With them as the pillars of Atlas’s middle management, Amber believed it would be difficult for any ‘rats’ who tried to fish in troubled waters and infiltrate Atlas to stir up any trouble.

—

Loubion V, Renaissance Alliance Headquarters.

After accomplishing the feat of ‘unifying Loubion,’ Franklin’s prestige within the Renaissance Alliance reached its peak. After all, few had believed he could succeed at the outset, yet the young man had actually done it.

Although the shadow of the Atlas Group had loomed, ever-present, throughout the process, there was no denying that he had now succeeded.

However, Franklin, who should have been basking in the glory of his success in the eyes of outsiders, found himself in a dilemma because of a few words from his assistant, junior, and first love—Eleanor.

“Franklin, my father wants to get in touch with you. To be precise, he wants to make contact with the Renaissance Alliance.”

Chapter 608: Success is Called Revolution

As the daughter of a high-ranking Federation official, Eleanor’s decision to follow Franklin to a second-rate star system like Loubion was a clear testament to her feelings for him.

Her family’s attitude, however, had been less than favorable, at least before the “Loubion incident.” They had even prepared to send people to forcibly bring her back on multiple occasions.

But after Franklin led the Renaissance Alliance to successfully seize control of the Loubion star system, Eleanor’s family had a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree change of heart toward him.

The reason was not hard to understand. With the Federation in chaos, the current government was on the verge of collapse. In a future where many high-ranking officials would likely face a settling of scores, it was only natural for them to seek a way out for themselves.

Eleanor’s father was one of them. His position was not insignificant.

He was merely the Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives.

This was also why Abraham Franklin had earned the nickname “idealistic youth” among the players.

His ridiculously epic name was only part of the reason. More importantly, despite having a future father-in-law who was the Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives, he still insisted on starting from scratch in a remote star system. One could only say he was a man of great “ambition.”

Although Eleanor’s father had not exactly looked down on Franklin before, he was extremely displeased with the young man’s decision to run off to a remote star system, ungratefully refusing the suitable job he had arranged for him.

He could naturally see Franklin’s Potential; otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered arranging a job for a young man fresh out of university.

He just couldn’t stand the young man’s so-called “aloofness” and “arrogance,” and even more, he couldn’t stand his only daughter being spirited away by this punk.

But as the old saying goes, the tables have turned.

The young man he once disdained had now become the closest lifeline he could grasp.

Although it seemed that the Renaissance Alliance currently only controlled the Loubion star system, through other channels, Eleanor’s father knew that several surrounding star systems were also considering cooperation with the Alliance.

For these factions that had seized power through armed struggle, submission to one another naturally depended on who had the most military power. The Renaissance Alliance was undoubtedly the one with the most firepower among them.

Not to mention, the Renaissance Alliance had the backing of the Atlas Group.

Yes, this was hardly a secret.

Anyone with half a brain within the Federation government could easily deduce this.

And in a sense, the Atlas Group was the main force that had precipitated the Federation’s current situation. If Atlas hadn’t been pulling the strings from behind the scenes, the Federation government might still have faced a crisis of governance, but it wouldn’t have been now.

So, Eleanor’s father knew that if he could cooperate with Franklin, he would, to some extent, have a line to the Atlas Group. If anything happened in the future, he would have an escape route.

How could Franklin be unaware of the Federation Speaker’s thoughts?

He also knew that Eleanor was willing to build this bridge for her father out of concern for her family’s current predicament, hoping to leave them a way out.

But the matter involved far too much. Franklin found that he hadn’t even thought that far ahead. His previous plan had come to an abrupt halt after gaining control of the Loubion star system.

Because according to the “old Federation tradition,” the next step was usually for the Federation government to send someone to make contact and negotiate.

This was the “process” Franklin had envisioned.

Although he had spoken of his “grand ambitions” to Amber, he had truly only planned as far as “controlling the Loubion star system.” The path forward was still the old one: to enter into negotiations with the Federation government.

This approach, reminiscent of the classic tales of outlaws who captured territory only to negotiate with the authorities, was the main reason why his nickname “idealistic youth” was, in essence, a derogatory term.

That was why Franklin was at a loss when the current Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives came looking for him.

He was well aware of the man’s intentions. He also knew that once he established a connection with this “future father-in-law,” what followed would be no small skirmish.

Under these circumstances, after some thought, Franklin finally made a decision.

He would first make an interstellar call to Amber.

When Amber received Franklin’s communication request and listened to the young man’s problem, he was incandescent with rage.

He never imagined that the man who, in the “original timeline,” would eventually sit on the throne of the New Federation’s presidency, could be so weak right now.

“Are you a f*cking coward? A capitalist waste, just as I thought! You’re standing in the eye of the storm, at the very turning point of history, how can you still be so indecisive and hesitant?!”

Amber, who had always been known for his “amiable” demeanor, couldn’t help but curse, exasperated by Franklin’s lack of fortitude.

“Throughout history, which great achiever didn’t go through blood and fire to attain final victory? How could you be thinking about negotiating with the Federation government?”

On the other end of the line, Franklin lowered his head, aggrieved by Amber’s words.

He explained to Amber that his initial goal was simply to improve the situation in the Loubion star system, to better the lives of the people in his home system, and then to use other, gentler means—such as climbing higher in the political arena—to eventually influence the entire Federation.

But now, if he really did cooperate with his “future father-in-law,” it would effectively mean overthrowing the current government “illegally” through force, with coordination from both inside and out.

“Illegally? You really are impervious to reason, aren’t you?!”

Amber almost laughed in fury. If not for Franklin’s “predestined” status, he would have seriously considered finding a more reliable person to lead the Renaissance Alliance.

In the end, however, he calmed down and said levelly:

“Franklin, remember this. Only failure is called a coup or a rebellion. Success is called a revolution! History only remembers the final victor. Who cares what methods you used to get to the top?”

“Only failure is called a coup or a rebellion. Success is called a revolution… Only failure is called a coup or a rebellion. Success is called a revolution… Only failure is called a coup or a rebellion. Success is called a revolution…”

Franklin repeated Amber’s words in a daze. An idea that had long been buried in his heart was finally unearthed at this moment.

“Franklin.”

From the other end of the communication came Amber’s devilish voice, tempting him once more.

“Believe in yourself, believe in the Renaissance Alliance, and even more, believe in me and the Atlas Group. Go for it. This time, you will set the sea of stars ablaze!”

Chapter 609: The Future of the Federation?

“Speaking of which, wouldn’t you say you’re inciting a crime?” Isabelle, lying in Amber’s arms, suddenly asked.

The timing of Franklin’s call just now wasn’t exactly ideal, but Amber had still chosen to accept the communication request.

For one, this ‘idealistic youth’ was one of Amber’s important ‘investment targets’ at the moment.

For another, Amber didn’t have to exert himself at the moment.

Furthermore, there was nothing to hide from Isabelle, so she had basically listened to the whole thing as a spectator to the drama.

“How is this inciting a crime?” Amber shook his head. “I’m merely guiding him onto the right path~”

“Hmph, you say that as if you know which one the ‘right path’ is.”

Isabelle rolled her eyes and rested her head on Amber’s chest. She clearly didn’t expect that Amber actually knew what the ‘right path’ was for Franklin.

But Amber didn’t explain. Instead, he said casually:

“He’s already raised the banner of rebellion. Since he’s already rebelling, he might as well go big. The situation in the Federation is chaotic right now anyway—the times make the hero, right? If he actually succeeds, the return on my investment in him will be truly maxed out.”

“Are you sure you can control him?”

Isabelle frowned and continued after a moment:

“The Renaissance Alliance may control the Loubion star system now, but its actual scale isn’t that large, so they really don’t stand a chance against us. But if this Franklin really rises to power by seizing the opportunity in this chaotic Federation, as you said, will we still be able to control him?”

As she said this, Isabelle recalled Amber once joking with her about pushing Franklin to become the next Federation president, or rather, the president of the ‘New Federation’.

Thinking about it now, it seemed Amber wasn’t joking.

“So, you wanting Franklin to become the ‘leader of the Federation’ wasn’t a joke? If he really becomes the Federation president, are you sure he’ll still listen to us instead of turning around and trying to destroy the Atlas Group?”

Isabelle didn’t put on any pretense in front of Amber, so she asked whatever came to mind directly.

“Of course I wasn’t joking~”

Amber reached out and stroked Isabelle’s head, and she comfortably stretched her neck and nuzzled against him.

Watching Isabelle’s cat-like movements, Amber smiled knowingly and continued:

“If I didn’t intend for him to become the so-called ‘leader of the Federation’, why would I pay so much attention to him and secretly help him rise to power? Wouldn’t it be better to find someone with more experience, prestige, and connections?”

Isabelle: “Then the issue of control—”

“That’s not an issue. Isabelle, believe it or not, if the day comes when Franklin truly unifies the entire Federation, he’ll discover that he’s the one who can’t live without us. To the Atlas Group, the ‘president’ is just a puppet that can be replaced at any time.”

After this brief exchange with Isabelle, Amber’s interest was piqued.

A serious ‘interest’, of course.

He sat up in bed and raised his hand, summoning a virtual screen that floated in mid-air. As his fingers tapped on the control panel made of volumetric light, a wealth of data charts and a strategic star map appeared before Isabelle’s eyes.

“Isabelle, do you know why I had the people at the Financial Operations Center strike out in all directions, willing to slow down just to carry out full-industry-chain-level acquisitions of those vital sectors?”

“Amber, you want to create an industry monopoly,” Isabelle said, naturally understanding his intentions.

“Exactly. If the entire upstream, midstream, and downstream of a certain industry are in the hands of the Atlas Group, and it’s a vital, indispensable industry, then whoever sits in the president’s chair will have to think twice about Atlas. And what if the Atlas Group controls more than just one or two such industries? At that point, who do you think is closer to the common people—the Atlas Group or the Federation government? Who truly controls the hearts and minds of the populace?”

At this point, Amber gestured for Isabelle to look at the star map.

“Look, the Financial Operations Center is currently focused on acquiring lifeline industries like food production and processing, as well as a large amount of heavy industry. No matter how things end for the Federation, it will be in a state of waiting to be rebuilt from ruins. When it comes to projects involving planetary reconstruction, fleet reorganization, and mass migration, they will have to rely on the Atlas Group. And that’s not even mentioning that we also control the main communications network…”

As Amber explained, in Isabelle’s eyes, the colored blocks on the star map representing the Atlas Group’s industries and influence gradually began to resemble a spider or some multi-limbed creature.

Its striking limbs and tentacles were silently enveloping the entire territory of the Federation. One could even say that if Atlas was willing to pay the price, it could set the Federation’s industrial development back several decades.

“Then why doesn’t the Atlas Group just replace the Federation government? Wouldn’t it be more direct for us to manage the Federation ourselves?”

Isabelle asked, somewhat confused. Having been born in a country with a feudal imperial system, she was already picturing Amber ‘ascending the throne’…

“If we did that, the Atlas Group would have to bear all the risks directly, unlike now where the Federation government takes them.”

Amber shook his head. He had never entertained the thought of transforming the Atlas Group into a state.

“Staying behind the scenes might seem obscure, but the advantage is that if problems arise, we can let the Federation government take the fall. Then we just have to change the administration, and everything will still be under our control.”

Isabelle: “But those Federation politicians… and Franklin’s people, they aren’t fools. They can surely see this and guess your real intentions, right?”

“Of course they can guess, but I don’t care. And right now, they have no way to stop any of this from happening. Unless the Federation’s military-industrial complex is ‘resurrected’ at a scale several times more powerful than before, perhaps they could cause us a little trouble~”

“Why?”

Amber: “It’s simple. Let’s assume the top brass of the Federation government… hmm, even all government employees and high-level intellectuals can see this clearly. But what percentage of the entire Federation population do they make up? Over ninety percent of the populace won’t realize that the Atlas Group will be controlling the Federation in the future. When they have problems, they will subconsciously still go to the government for trouble. At that point…”

“At that point, it’ll become ‘a Federation government that comes and goes, but an Atlas that stands firm’~” Isabelle answered.

“Very good, Isabelle. You’ve learned to buzz in with the answer~” Amber said with satisfaction.

Chapter 610: One Light-Second

While Amber was already mentally helping the idealistic youth Franklin plan out his future, Franklin himself was lost in thought after ending their call.

Although he hadn’t thought this far ahead before—his plan had been to negotiate with the Federation government after securing control of the Loubion star system—he had to admit that every man harbored a dream of “winner takes all.”

And during their recent conversation, Amber had successfully activated that dream within him.

That’s right. I’ve already come this far from scratch, and I’ve successfully taken control of the entire Loubion star system. Why can’t I be more ambitious and control the entire Federation?

With the regular intelligence support provided by the Atlas Group, Franklin was well aware of the situation with the various factions within the Federation. He knew that the Renaissance Alliance was already at the top of the first tier, one of the few major powers with the best chance of having the last laugh.

And now, even Eleanor’s father—the Speaker of the Federation’s current House of Representatives—had reached out to him, wanting to cooperate with the Renaissance Alliance. So why shouldn’t he take a gamble?

A good old Blue Star proverb says, “Are kings and nobles born to their station?”

Others can become the Federation President, so why can’t I, Franklin?

You see, human desire is like that. Once coaxed out, it’s like opening Pandora’s Box—it becomes uncontrollable.

Although Amber had indeed used some Psionics to guide Franklin’s thoughts during their face-to-face conversation, it had only served a supplementary role.

What truly sparked Franklin’s interest in power was, ultimately, his own inner desire.

Having come to this realization, Franklin stood up from his seat and walked out of his private office. Eleanor usually worked just outside, and she was waiting for him now.

“Franklin.”

Seeing Franklin walk out, Eleanor stood up to greet him. Just as she was about to speak, Franklin said:

“Eleanor, help me contact your father, Mr. Rodham.”

“Wait. What?!”

“I am willing to speak with Mr. Rodham on behalf of the Renaissance Alliance. Oh—”

Before Franklin could finish, Eleanor leaped into his arms, wrapping them tightly around him.

“Hey Eleanor, you should go on a diet.”

Franklin was still teasing when he heard sobbing on his shoulder the next second.

“Are you okay, Eleanor?”

“Thank you, Franklin. Thank you.”

At this moment, Eleanor had no idea that her beloved’s perspective on the future had undergone a monumental shift. She simply thought Franklin was willing to save her father and family.

“There’s no need to thank me. This is what I should do, isn’t it?”

Franklin gently set Eleanor down, grabbed some tissues from a nearby table, and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. He then continued:

“Let’s contact Mr. Rodham soon. Every second we delay, the situation worsens. We have to move quickly.”

“Okay, I’ll contact my father right now!”

Eleanor nodded, then raised the decorative-looking personal terminal on her wrist and sent a communication request to ‘Father’ in her contact list.

Ever since his call with Franklin, Amber had instructed Isabelle and Lilith to increase their surveillance on Franklin and the Renaissance Alliance, both in the real world and in virtual space.

So, he quickly learned that, with his little girlfriend pulling the strings, Franklin had successfully established contact with the current Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives.

Upon hearing this news, a gratified smile finally appeared on Amber’s face.

He had been genuinely worried that Franklin lacked ambition and planned to stop after just controlling the Loubion star system.

But now, it seemed he had successfully drawn out the desire in this idealistic youth’s heart.

Subsequent developments unfolded much as Amber had predicted. Eleanor’s father—that Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives—had likely judged that the current Federation government was doomed and decided to demonstrate the “art of backing a winner.”

He was getting an early start on the principle of “A fine bird knows which tree to roost in, a good minister chooses his master, and a wise official selects his lord.”

If, with his “insider cooperation,” the Renaissance Alliance could have the last laugh among all competitors, the Speaker would, at the very least, be credited with “aiding the founding emperor.”

Soon enough, Franklin contacted Amber again, hoping his ‘benefactor’ would continue to invest in him.

Of course, this time he needed military support.

After Franklin presented a ‘planning report’ to a group of Atlas Group executives, including Amber, explaining his plan to subdue and ally with other factions in neighboring star systems and then advance on the Federation capital as quickly as possible.

Amber couldn’t help but inwardly complain, “What is this, a ‘first to enter the capital becomes king’ plot?”

However, judging from the constantly updated situation reports on the Federation, if Franklin could rapidly expand the Renaissance Alliance and his ‘future father-in-law’ could find a way to coordinate from within the Capital star system, they did indeed have a chance of success.

And frankly, the chaos caused by such a fast-paced government overthrow was actually more conducive to the Atlas Group’s further industrial expansion within the Federation.

By then, it wouldn’t matter to the Atlas Group who became the Federation’s president, prime minister, or chancellor, even if they turned back the clock of history and restored the monarchy.

So, in response to Franklin’s request, Amber outwardly stated during the meeting that it would require ‘internal discussion’ afterward. In reality, as soon as the remote meeting ended, he immediately pulled in a group of commanders from the Atlas combat forces and fleets to discuss the matter of military support.

“The fleet side of things is no problem,” Guterres said first.

As one of the current ‘Triumvirate’ of the Atlas combat fleet, his long tenure and high seniority in the navy meant he quickly took charge of building up the entire combat fleet.

“Our fleet is currently in a rapid expansion phase. Besides integrating new ships and recruits and conducting basic training, some early exposure to low-intensity combat would be very helpful. Boss, if you plan to provide military support to the Renaissance Alliance, I suggest we can dispatch a portion of the fleet in a ‘veterans leading rookies’ formation. It’s not like we’ll be the ones holding the line, anyway. This way, we can ensure a certain level of combat capability while also helping the new ships achieve combat readiness quickly.”

Guterres’s mind worked quickly; he was far better than Randall and Cleves when it came to fleet formation and training.

At the same time, after joining Atlas, the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral had quickly shifted his thinking to ‘the group’s interests above all else.’ Therefore, he now proposed something he never would have suggested in the past.

“I suggest we incorporate the new ships currently undergoing combat testing. It would be a perfect opportunity to conduct a full range of tests under real combat conditions.”

The old naval commander paused, a long-absent glint of something called ‘excitement’ flashing in his eyes.

“And we will witness firsthand, humanity extending the attack range of a fleet battle to ‘one light-second’ for the first time.”

Chapter 611: Spectral Annihilator

It was as if time had suddenly accelerated. Ever since the Atlas Group completed its first wave of physical industry acquisitions and the Renaissance Alliance, under Franklin’s guidance, began to secretly establish connections with the Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives, the situation across the entire universe had abruptly changed.

If Amber didn’t know that these events were unrelated, he would have suspected some kind of chain reaction was occurring.

First was the problem concerning the Thousand Stars Empire, news of which came from Allenita.

In a corner of the universe that no one was paying attention to, the conflict between the elven ‘Conservatives’ and ‘Equal-Righters’ had begun to escalate, recently culminating in bloodshed.

On a relatively remote planet, the two sides had even engaged in armed brawls in the streets with Psionic warriors, a situation that forced the planet’s elven regular army—which hadn’t been officially deployed in over a hundred years—to intervene to prevent the conflict from worsening.

According to Allenita, the Phoenix King had met with the leaders of both the ‘Conservative’ and ‘Equal-Righter’ factions two days prior, demanding they restrain the extremists within their ranks and keep the situation from deteriorating further.

Reportedly, the reason for this escalation could actually be attributed to the Atlas Group, or rather, to Amber himself.

“Huh? How could your Phoenix King just pin the blame on me?”

Hearing Allenita’s description, Amber, on the other end of the video call, felt as if blame had just fallen on him from the sky.

“No way. The Romu issue within your Thousand Stars Empire has been like this for years, so don’t just spout nonsense. We at the Atlas Group are having a tough time right now!

“The Phoenix King needs to look at himself. After all these years of slacking off, has the social status of the Romu improved? Have you all made any serious effort to integrate other species?”

Hearing Amber’s complaints, Allenita burst out laughing. She suddenly realized that compared to the Phoenix King, Amber was the real master at deflecting blame.

“I’m probably the only one who can listen to you say that. If you said it to any other elf, it would probably reach the Elven Royal Court by tomorrow.”

“Well, it’s the truth!” Amber waved his hand, exasperated. “The internal affairs of the Thousand Stars Empire are being blamed on a private company founded by a human?”

“Actually, Amber, from a certain perspective, it really is related to you.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Amber, are you still going to play dumb with me?” Allenita raised an elegant eyebrow and said, annoyed.

“…”

Of course, Amber knew. He was well aware that the current situation in the Thousand Stars Empire did indeed have a slight connection to the Atlas Group.

With the Atlas Group’s previous expansion, more and more Romu had joined the group.

They didn’t all go into combat units. A large portion of them actually took on roles as skilled technicians, Pioneers, office bodyguards, and so on.

There was even a group of quick-thinking female Romu who joined the Financial Operations Center and the group’s Public Relations Department.

Those cat-girls, rabbit-girls, and fox-girls had what could be called a natural advantage in this line of work.

As a result, the number of Romu within the Atlas Group and its various subsidiaries, including the combat units that made up the majority, had long surpassed three hundred thousand, and it was set to continue growing at a steady pace for some time.

It was worth noting that thanks to Lilith, the number of administrative and clerical positions within the Atlas Group was over fifty percent less than in other traditional companies. Therefore, this number represented people who were actually working.

A while ago, after a period of major conflict came to an end, Amber had allowed the Romu who had joined the Atlas Group early on to start taking long vacations in batches.

Most of these Romu, who had a tradition of returning to their homelands, chose to go back to the Thousand Stars Empire, back to the settlements of their own tribes.

When these Romu, their spirits completely refreshed, many of them having undergone some modifications and sporting glittering claws and horns, returned to their settlements…

“A ‘thought trend’ began to emerge among the Romu.”

Allenita paused, her eyes fixed on Amber through the virtual screen, and then continued:

“A ‘thought trend’ that liberated the minds of their people.”

According to the female elf’s account, due to the stories told by those who returned, more and more Romu began to think, “The world is so big, I should go and see it.”

They also realized that their people were actually very capable and outstanding, not a race destined only to work for the elves in service industries as servants, waiters, or bar companions.

And according to information Allenita had obtained through her connections from the Thousand Stars Empire’s department that monitored the Romu, a growing number of Romu believed they deserved ‘equal rights.’

“There are even some Romu who believe that we elves are deliberately suppressing their status,” Allenita said.

“Well, are you elves deliberately suppressing them or not?”

Amber suddenly interjected, his tone serious and earnest.

Allenita clearly hadn’t prepared an answer to this question. Did the elves enslave the Romu? Not really.

So after a long pause, she hesitantly shook her head.

“Amber, I don’t know either…”

“If even you don’t know, then I don’t know what to say.”

Amber shrugged and continued, “All I know is that my hiring of the Romu doesn’t violate any laws of the Thousand Stars Empire. So theoretically, neither I, nor you, nor the Atlas Group needs to bear any responsibility. I’d say the same thing even if I met the Phoenix King.”

“Then you’d better prepare yourself,” Allenita suddenly smiled. “I estimate that once he’s done dealing with domestic issues, the Phoenix King might really want to have a personal chat with you.”

“Tsk!”

Amber covered his forehead with his hand in frustration, slumping down as if all the air had gone out of him.

“Why is everything happening at once? Are you trying to kill me, God?”

“All at once?” Allenita paused, then asked, “Did something else happen?”

“Yep. It’s just that same old ‘prime-time palace drama’ nonsense from the Star Dragon Empire.”

“Ooh~”

Allenita, who had been somewhat serious, immediately brightened up upon hearing Amber’s words.

“Looks like there’s some ‘news’ I haven’t heard?”

The power struggle in the Star Dragon Empire had no real impact on the Yuge family. No matter who came to power, the elves would continue to do business with them as usual.

Therefore, Allenita had always followed the recent developments in the Star Dragon Empire with the detached interest of a spectator to drama.

Amber didn’t hide anything and quickly brought Allenita up to speed.

Just one day before Amber and Allenita’s video conference, news suddenly broke from the Star Dragon Empire that Agnes’s enthronement ceremony, originally scheduled for three months later, would be postponed again.

“The specific reason is unknown, but according to rumors, it’s mainly because the old Emperor Frederick seems to be recovering, and there’s even a ‘risk’ of a full recovery. So he might be planning to personally crown Agnes.”

“The ‘risk’ of a full recovery… Hahahaha, Amber, you really have a way with words…”

“Sweet,” Amber buzzed in with a deadpan expression.

Aside from the goings-on within the Imperial Royal Family, the Regent Prince Norton II hadn’t been idle either.

The Regent Prince, whose temperament had drastically changed some time ago, could be said to have achieved ‘remarkable results’ recently.

On his orders, the entire ‘Regent Prince Faction’ underwent a cruel and bloody great purge, getting rid of a large amount of ‘bad blood.’

The old-guard nobles of the Empire within the ‘Regent Prince Faction’ suffered the heaviest losses, with almost all of them being dealt with.

The ‘Cloak Society,’ which Amber had hyped up before, didn’t even manage to put up a decent counterattack under Norton II’s iron-fisted cleansing before becoming history.

For those who fared better, their family’s key figure was replaced by someone loyal to Norton II, someone who would even obey his every word.

For those who fared worse, their entire family was virtually annihilated, and their remaining wealth and properties were quickly carved up by others.

“It sounds like he’s tightening his fist.”

Allenita frowned in thought as she continued, “It seems like the faction lost a lot of strength internally, but in reality, it made its internal forces ‘purer,’ concentrating all power in his own hands.”

Amber nodded. “You’re right. All signs indicate that Norton II is already preparing for the final showdown. The internal purge is just one aspect; it’s even more obvious in the assembly and mobilization of the fleet and combat units.”

“Doesn’t the Imperial Royal Family know? Or are they just watching it happen?”

“Of course they know, and…”

Beep—

Before Amber could finish, he was interrupted by a beep from his personal terminal. He glanced down, then immediately stood up and said apologetically to Allenita, “Allenita, it’s time on my end. The warship is about to enter combat status. Looks like we’ll have to talk next time.”

By the time Amber arrived on the bridge of the brand-new warship beneath his feet, the entire vessel had just finished switching to combat status.

“Boss!”

Guterres, sitting in the captain’s chair, immediately stood up and saluted Amber upon seeing him.

“What’s the situation?”

Guterres replied, “We’ve entered the designated combat position. The Renaissance Alliance fleet is currently in a region of space three hundred thousand kilometers away, in a standoff with the Shaste star system garrison fleet… which should now be called the ‘Independence Fleet.’

“Three minutes ago, the Renaissance Alliance fleet sent an encrypted message stating they are ready for battle, just waiting for our ‘signal.’”

“Then let’s begin. I’ll leave it to you, General Guterres.”

“Yes, Boss!”

The warship Amber and his crew were currently on was a new vessel from the Atlas Group, still in its practical testing phase: the Starlight-class battlecruiser.

The biggest difference between this class of battlecruiser and all previous human warships was that its main cannon had been replaced, swapping out the heavy particle cannon for a high-energy laser main cannon system—internally codenamed, the Spectral Annihilator.

This high-energy laser cannon, finalized as the ‘SAHELC-MkII,’ was composed of 2,436 tiny but highly synchronized laser-emitting units, and it featured a seven-level gain medium that could progressively amplify the initial laser signal to its final output stage.

It also utilized a Holographic Focusing Lens developed under Salieh’s lead, derived from Forerunner technology—a complex system that combined both physical and non-physical properties.

The physical components included a conventional optical frame, support structures, and high-precision mirrors.

But the non-physical components were pure Forerunner black tech.

The most complex part, and the one that Amber found the most ‘baffling,’ was the so-called ‘Holographic Projection Field’ technology.

This technology used powerful electromagnetic fields or quantum interference effects to create a virtual lens structure within a specific space. This structure could change its shape in real-time as needed to achieve the most ideal focusing effect.

By adjusting the electromagnetic field parameters or quantum states, the focal length, curvature, and other properties of the holographic lens could be dynamically altered, thereby optimizing the laser beam’s propagation path and energy distribution.

Of course, the most ridiculous part was that since the holographic lens was not composed of physical matter, it could theoretically manipulate the laser beam without introducing additional scattering or absorption.

In other words, it achieved the ‘lossless property’ that had previously only existed in theory.

In the Spectral Annihilator high-energy laser cannon, the lasers outputted by the 2,436 tiny emitting units first underwent preliminary focusing through a series of physical mirrors and lenses before entering the final focusing area formed by the Holographic Projection Field.

Here, the holographic lens automatically adjusted based on the target’s distance, material, and current environmental conditions, ensuring the laser beam remained concentrated and smooth over a distance of one light-second.

Ultimately, this allowed the warship to complete its firing on the target at a distance of one light-second.

This was the part that excited Guterres, Randall, and the others the most. For any other current human warship, encountering a Starlight-class battlecruiser at this range meant they wouldn’t even be able to fight back.

As Guterres excitedly gave the “Prepare to attack” command, the three Starlight-class battlecruisers (experimental version) instantly came to life.

Inside the ships’ hulls, the QFR-X100 Quantum Fusion Reactors roared to life. The high-temperature plasma in their cores was tightly bound by a powerful magnetic confinement field, like a ferocious beast of energy that had been tamed. An orange-red glow faintly shone through the specialized protective layers, illuminating the surrounding network of pipes and conduits.

The adjacent liquid helium cooling system continuously supplied cryogenic coolant, a layer of white frost condensing on the surface of the fine pipes, ensuring the reactor’s temperature always remained within the safe red line.

Matched with it was the SES-5000 Superconducting Energy Storage Array. The superconductor coils were arranged in neat rows, and an ethereal blue electrical light zipped along the coils with a sizzling sound, rapidly absorbing and storing the surging electrical energy, stocking up ammunition for the impending great battle.

In the captain’s chair, Guterres’s deep eyes were fixed on the screen. Once all the data reached standard values, his lips parted slightly, and his voice, steady and firm, was transmitted across all three warships via the communication channel: “All ships, synchronize and lock on to targets. Prepare to fire.”

Almost simultaneously, the other two captains issued their commands with perfect coordination:

“Quantum Fusion Reactors to full power. Pre-heat Spectral Annihilator high-energy laser cannons.”

In an instant, the energy readings within the reactors skyrocketed. The powerful magnetic confinement field shone brightly, and the originally orange-red plasma grew even hotter and more violent, while the superconducting battery stack entered a state of rapid charging.

“Gravitational wave sensors have locked onto the target. Intelligent prediction algorithm calculations complete.”

The gunnery officer stood up abruptly, his eyes full of conviction, and reported loudly, “Projected hit rate is 99.7%.”

“Begin countdown. Five… Four… Three… Two… One… Fire!” Guterres’s command was firm and resounding.

In an instant, the fronts of the three experimental ships burst into a light so brilliant it was almost blinding.

The laser beams fired by the ‘Spectral Annihilator’ were not ordinary visible light. The deep, violet-blue glow resembled a bridge of light leading to a mysterious otherworldly realm.

Under the effect of the high energy density, the laser’s operating wavelength dropped into the transition region between near-infrared and ultraviolet. What the naked eye saw was actually the magnificent radiance emitted when it excited plasma.

Each laser beam was the combined effort of several thousand tiny yet precisely synchronized laser-emitting units, converging into a torrential flood of energy that crossed the vast expanse of nearly three hundred thousand kilometers of space in the blink of an eye.

The Holographic Focusing Lens and nano-mirrors worked in concert, continuously compressing and shaping this energy flow, finally focusing it into a slender beam of light that contained world-destroying power. Carrying the cutting edge of human technology, it pierced the vacuum at the speed of light, hurtling toward the target warships.

Chapter 612: Annihilating the Enemy Without Taking Damage

ME-13 Sector, Shaste star system, in the region of space where the fleets of the Renaissance Alliance and the Shaste star system independent fleet faced off.

From a God’s-eye view, there was no significant difference in the size of the two opposing fleets.

The Renaissance Alliance’s forces consisted mainly of the former Loubion star system garrison fleet, supplemented by the remaining warships from five Federation Navy fleets purchased from the Atlas Group, altogether amounting to nearly two full-strength fleets.

Meanwhile, the Shaste star system independent fleet, having been formed directly from a “peaceful evolution” of the former garrison fleet, possessed a much more complete structure, also numbering two full-strength fleets.

This was unlike other star systems, where the warships of garrison fleets had been seized by various factions during internal strife and subsequently lost in meaningless power struggles.

This was also why Nagran—the former commander of the Shaste star system garrison fleet, now the leader of the Shaste star system independent alliance, commander of its independent fleet, and a self-proclaimed “Admiral”—could make higher demands during cooperation negotiations with the Renaissance Alliance and had the confidence to face them in a standoff after the first round of talks broke down.

The two fleets had similar ship configurations. The only advantage the Renaissance Alliance might have had was that the warships captured from the Federation Navy had undergone the latest software and hardware upgrades and were in better condition.

But in Admiral Nagran’s view, these factors were not enough to decide the outcome of a fleet battle.

Through his own intelligence channels, Nagran knew that the combat personnel in the Renaissance Alliance fleet came from a very complex mix of backgrounds—some trained in-house, some hired through Atlas, and some from the surrendered Federation Navy.

But most of them were new recruits with little combat experience. It was questionable what percentage of their full strength these two fleets could even bring to bear.

At the very least, from observing the tactical maneuvers and formation changes of the Renaissance Alliance fleet, Nagran had already noticed that coordination within their two fleets was poor. In some complex situations, warships even fell behind schedule.

“Hmph, with personnel of this caliber, we don’t even need a proper fight. Just force them through a few more tactical maneuvers, and their formation will probably fall apart on its own, hahahaha~”

The adjutant beside Nagran let out a disdainful chuckle and spoke mockingly.

“We’re just the best of a bad bunch ourselves, but we still can’t let our guard down.”

Nagran silenced his adjutant’s taunts. He knew very well that the training of a garrison fleet couldn’t compare to the Federation Navy’s regular army, but his fleet had worked together for a long time, so there would be no major issues with basic coordination.

Not like their opponents, whose fleet seemed to have been cobbled together at the last minute from every nook and cranny.

“If the remaining local fleets in other Federation star systems are all at this level, maybe I have a chance to grab a piece of the pie in this chaos?”

The thought that suddenly popped into his head invigorated Admiral Nagran, and he couldn’t help but began to entertain ideas he had never dared to consider before.

Just then, the intelligence officer on the bridge floated over to his side.

“General, we’ve detected unidentified ships in a region of space 350,000 kilometers away.”

“350,000 kilometers away? That’s almost at our outer warning perimeter.” Nagran frowned. “Why are we only detecting them now?”

“Reporting, General. Uh… we have insufficient reconnaissance forces on the periphery, and most of our ships have been recalled to join the standoff, so the information from the 300,000-kilometer warning perimeter isn’t being updated in time. And also…”

Nagran: “And what? Don’t beat around the bush!”

“And also, the target wasn’t spotted by a scout ship. We first detected the signature of a gravitational wave radar. The radar operator reported that it seems the enemy’s long-range detection unit has been locked onto us… but he’s never seen a lock from this far away before…”

“Long-range detection unit? A lock?”

A sense of foreboding instantly rose in Nagran’s heart. He looked at the star map on the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge, which had been updated with the approximate location of the unknown units.

But at a distance of over 300,000 kilometers, the former garrison fleet commander couldn’t imagine what the enemy could possibly do.

After all, in every previous human fleet battle, this distance was, at most, where the outer perimeter forces of each side made contact. The main fleets were still a million miles away from engaging in an actual attack.

“Maintain surveillance on these three unknown units and report any anomalies immediately! At the same time, have the electronic warfare team try to break their lock.”

Nagran couldn’t think of any other solution for the time being, so he settled on standard procedure. His eyes were also fixed on the Renaissance Alliance fleet ahead, which had now entered a range of 100,000 kilometers.

“I’d like to see just what tricks you have up your sleeves!”

The thought had barely formed in Nagran’s mind, before he could even consider his next move, when the warship’s shipboard control AI suddenly materialized in mid-air and issued a warning in an exceptionally anxious voice.

“Warning! High-energy reading detected!”

When the first beam of blue-purple light touched the warship, it all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

As Nagran’s flagship, the Kraken-class battleship named the Admiral Nagran, was a proper battleship, even if its configuration was slightly inferior to the Federation’s latest improved Kraken-class.

However, its primary defensive measure, the deflector shield, did not activate when struck by the high-energy laser, or perhaps it wouldn’t have made much difference even if it had.

After all, the main function of a deflector shield was to defend against charged particles; it was clearly ineffective against pure high-energy lasers.

Thus, the high-energy lasers fired by the three Starlight-class battlecruisers struck the metal hull directly. The temperature at the point of contact instantly soared to tens of thousands of degrees Celsius, vaporizing the metal surface in an instant.

The working fluid coolant beneath the blackbody coating had no time to transfer any heat under these conditions. It instead caused a violent steam explosion, causing the ship’s surface materials to continuously evaporate and peel away.

As the surface material vaporized, the laser beams penetrated further into the substructure. Coupled with the immense distance between the firing point and the point of contact, even with the three Starlight-class battlecruisers using a Forerunner black tech called ‘local spatial curvature stabilization’ to anchor themselves, the three high-energy laser beams still drifted uncontrollably from their initial impact points.

The high-energy lasers transferred a massive amount of heat in a very short time, causing the internal materials to rapidly heat up above their melting point. Metal and other solid materials began to melt, forming a progressively expanding molten pool.

The highly focused nature of the laser beams caused this process to occur in a very small area, leading to rapid localized destruction.

Molten metal flowed along cracks, expanding the damaged area, while heat spread to wider regions, causing damage to adjacent structures.

Secondary explosions were triggered as certain flammable or explosive materials overheated, intensifying the destruction. In the silence of space, each explosion was like a voiceless roar, with flashes of fire illuminating the chaos and despair within the warship.

Because the three high-energy laser beams had not only pierced the ship but also severed the internal titanium alloy frame, the structural stability of the Admiral Nagran was severely compromised, and it began to undergo large-scale deformation and fracture.

But this unlucky one—or rather, the first warship in human history to be sunk from a distance of one light-second—would not live to see its own disintegration.

“Hit confirmed! Detecting a super-massive high-temperature plasma fireball signature, suspected target’s superconducting battery stack has been detonated! Awaiting damage assessment!”

The excited voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator echoed across the bridge of the Starlight-class Experimental Ship 1, where Amber and Guterres were stationed.

Although the final damage assessment was not yet complete, hitting a target across a distance of one light-second in actual combat and causing objective damage had already met everyone’s expectations for this operation.

“Continue monitoring the target. Emergency cooling for the main weapon systems. Have the damage control teams check all modules. Prepare for the next round of attack!”

Guterres responded calmly, forcefully suppressing his own excitement, though his heart was pounding.

On the outer hulls of the three Starlight-class battlecruisers, three sets of massive radiator panels unfolded immediately after they finished firing, and began to dissipate excess heat.

But for the heat generated by the ‘Spectral Annihilator’ during firing, the heat dissipated by the radiator panels was merely a drop in the bucket. This conventional cooling unit was mainly there to serve the ship’s other systems.

The real cooling system for the ‘Spectral Annihilator’ was another piece of technology Salieh had plucked from the Forerunners’ tech library: the ‘Zero-Point Energy Cooling System.’ As its name implied, it drew “cold” from the vacuum’s zero-point energy to provide continuous and efficient cooling for the high-power laser.

Thus, the Starlight-class battlecruiser was not only the first human warship capable of striking from a distance of one light-second, but also the warship that utilized the greatest number of Forerunner technologies in human history.

Amber had to admit that while many of the Forerunner civilization’s technologies were completely incomprehensible to humans, even seeming like something out of the Arabian Nights, Salieh and her research team had actually managed to replicate them. As a result, Atlas’s technological level—especially in military technology, which was a key area of development—had taken a massive leap forward.

Many of the Forerunner technology-related subsystems on the Starlight-class battlecruiser could not only be used on future mass-produced ships of the same class but could also influence all of Atlas’s future ships, and could even give some older warships a new lease on life.

“Damage control team reports: weapon systems inspection complete, no anomalies found!”

“Weapons team reports: ‘Spectral Annihilator’ rapid cooling complete, ready for a second attack!”

“Observation Team reports: confirmed that the target fleet’s flagship was sunk in the first strike!”

A series of reports rang out on the bridge one after another. Amber saw that with each new piece of information, Guterres, who was in command, would clench his fists a little tighter, the excitement on his face growing more intense.

Soon, after signaling to Amber, the old navy veteran, like a big kid with a new toy, almost impatiently issued the command to ‘continue the attack.’

The dazzling light appeared once more at the front of the three Starlight-class battlecruisers, followed by three ‘spears of light’ stabbing toward the Shaste independent fleet.

—

At this moment, the Shaste independent fleet could be said to have descended into chaos in an instant.

No one had expected that their flagship, which had been issuing commands just moments before, would be gone in a flash.

The surrounding warships didn’t even know what had happened. The crew on their bridges had also received the warning from their shipboard control AIs about a ‘high-energy reading,’ and the next second, the position of their fleet flagship had turned into a giant blue-white fireball.

“Where did the attack come from? Did the enemy fleet fire?”

“No… no, the attack seems to be coming from… 300,000 kilometers away? A super long-range snipe?!”

“A distance of one light-second? What are you joking ab—”

Boom!

Three more high-energy laser beams suddenly appeared and pierced through the second targeted warship. Soon, just like the fleet’s flagship, it disintegrated and exploded under the laser fire.

Then came the third and fourth rounds of attacks…

Irradiation, cooling, module check, target lock, irradiation, rinse and repeat.

Seemingly realizing that the ‘Spectral Annihilator’s’ attack power was a bit excessive, Guterres ordered that from the third volley onward, the three Starlight-class battlecruisers would no longer fire in salvos but would instead designate their own targets and engage freely.

For the Shaste independent fleet, which was currently under attack, this was undoubtedly a period of torture. Although there were only three high-energy laser beams firing from one light-second away, every single attack so far had successfully hit its target.

And as long as a warship was hit by these three blue-purple high-energy lasers, it would be pierced clean through at the very least, not to mention that the three-second duration of the beam was long enough for these deadly lasers to slice through the ship’s hull, causing even greater damage.

For the Renaissance Alliance fleet facing the Shaste independent fleet, they were equally shocked.

Franklin and the fleet commander, personally overseeing things from their flagship, knew that Atlas would be sending ships to support them. But when they received the report that only three warships had appeared, and that they were positioned over 300,000 kilometers away, the two of them couldn’t figure out what trick Atlas had up its sleeve.

Not until the high-energy lasers lit up the cold vacuum of space, spanning a distance of one light-second.

Not until the enemy fleet’s flagship was blown into a fireball in an instant.

Only then did Franklin realize that sometimes, the ‘gap’ between powers could be too vast to describe in conventional terms.

While most armed factions within the Federation were patting themselves on the back for assembling one or two fleets, Atlas was already practicing ‘annihilating the enemy without taking damage’ from a light-second away…

At this thought, Franklin let out an almost imperceptible sigh. “And this is just three ships.”

Chapter 613: A Day Trip to the Grand Palace?

The fleet battle in the Shaste star system was over quickly.

After all, humanity’s current naval fleets were not yet capable of fighting another fleet of similar size while being sniped from three hundred thousand kilometers away.

Not to mention, this fleet wasn’t even a regular naval force; its predecessor was nothing more than the star system’s garrison fleet.

Furthermore, the flagship of the Shaste independent fleet was sunk in the first wave of attacks, and the fleet’s primary command system was almost instantly wiped out, which only made matters worse.

So, not long after the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet launched its attack, and before the fifteenth sniper salvo from the three Starbrilliance-class battlecruisers could arrive, the warships of the Shaste independent fleet, one after another, launched the three white flares that signified surrender.

In Amber’s view, this was only because the current Starbrilliance-class battlecruisers were still in the combat testing phase, so only three had been built.

If a full battlecruiser strike detachment had been deployed here today, it probably would have taken only two or three salvos to shatter the enemy’s will to fight.

If he dreamed a little bigger, if these Starbrilliance-class battlecruisers were one day organized into their own fleet-scale formation, then neither the Federation nor the Empire would likely have many fleets capable of withstanding such a salvo spanning one light-second.

But nothing in this world is ever perfect.

Right now, the biggest problem with the Starbrilliance-class battlecruiser was its construction speed.

Due to the use of a vast amount of Forerunner technology, including some “black tech,” the construction speed of the Starbrilliance-class was severely limited.

Many of the critical systems required for the warships had to be manually debugged one by one by Salieh and her team. After all, for humanity, these Forerunner technologies were indeed way out of their league.

In Salieh’s own words, at humanity’s current technological level, just being able to build many of these things was already an achievement.

This predicament had Amber constantly wondering if he should visit more Forerunner ruins to see if he could dig up a few more “old frozen meat” like Salieh.

But Amber also knew that this was just a fleeting thought. Someone like Salieh was, after all, a special case.

Meanwhile, as the battle in the Shaste star system concluded, Amber also received a message from Salieh.

While conducting various research projects every day and leading her team to “build from scratch” key equipment, the Forerunner had not forgotten the task Amber had assigned her earlier—to extract useful information from the mind of the Puppeteer.

As a Level 5 psionic user and a high-ranking operative of the Quest for Truth Foundation, the Puppeteer had undergone all sorts of anti-interrogation training. Naturally, his psionic mental defenses were not to be underestimated.

Therefore, common methods like brainwashing or truth serums were useless against him.

Amber was well aware of this, which was why he had skipped these “conventional methods” and handed the Puppeteer over to Salieh.

The latter, though somewhat weak in combat, was a bona fide master of psionic research and theory.

And Salieh did not disappoint Amber’s expectations. She quickly breached the Puppeteer’s psionic mental defenses. This was thanks to the psionic technique the Puppeteer used to control the Foundation’s combat puppets, which actually originated from technology found in some Forerunner ruins.

So, Salieh simply reversed it and took direct mental control of the Puppeteer. Once he had been completely turned into a puppet himself, he divulged every piece of intelligence he knew.

“You guessed right, Amber. The Quest for Truth Foundation isn’t just an archaeological organization. Although their true benefactor is very mysterious, in the Puppeteer’s memory, the Level 6 psionic user we encountered at the research institute was sent by the benefactor,” Salieh said.

“So, the Quest for Truth Foundation is actually an organization established by the Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire. They’ve hidden themselves quite well.”

Amber frowned, then continued:

“If we hadn’t run into that Level 6 psionic from the Royal Silencers this time, and later discovered that a fleet from the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy came to support them, it might have taken us much longer to find out who was really behind the Foundation.”

Salieh: “Exactly. You once said, Amber, that this Foundation’s most frequent activity is to find and activate the facilities of us Jeram people. It seems now that this was all at the behest of that Emperor, who was purposefully searching for Jeram technology.”

“How much of your technology do you think they’ve gotten their hands on over the years?” Amber suddenly asked.

“I don’t know,” Salieh shook her head. “Our ‘Joint Management Hub’ in this part of the universe has long been offline, so I can’t see how many facilities have been activated, nor do I know how much technology they’ve acquired. But what’s certain, at least, is that they have gotten their hands on the ‘Eternal Cells’.”

“But even if they have the cells, they can’t just use them directly, right?” Amber asked again.

“Of course not. To use these cells safely, one must have mastered certain bio-engineering technologies. Otherwise, there’s a high probability of a loss of control during use.”

At this, Salieh’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“Amber, it’s very likely that the Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire has spent all these years collecting our Jeram technologies in biology and genetic engineering, which is why it isn’t so obvious on the surface!

“And psionic technology too. Since the Quest for Truth Foundation is under the Emperor’s control, it’s impossible for the Emperor not to know about the Jeram technologies used by the Foundation.”

The more Amber listened, the more he felt that Salieh had a point. And based on some of his own memories, the Forerunner technology possessed by the Quest for Truth Foundation was not limited to just that.

The Foundation even had several other high-ranking operatives as capable as the Puppeteer.

So, if someone claimed that the Quest for Truth Foundation and the old Emperor Frederick didn’t possess any Forerunner technology, Amber would never in a million years believe it.

Amber suddenly smiled, then looked up at Salieh. “If that’s the case, perhaps that invitation from the Empire’s Princess is worth reconsidering after all?”

“What do you mean?”

“She invited an investment team from Atlas to inspect the Empire, and one of the items on the itinerary was a tour of the Imperial Capital. I was originally planning to refuse, seeing as the Empire has been in such chaos lately.”

Salieh suddenly realized what he was implying and said with some surprise, “Amber, don’t tell me you’re planning to take the opportunity to stir up trouble…”

“The Grand Palace of the Star Dragon Empire! It’s such a famous landmark. Wouldn’t it be a shame not to visit?”

Chapter 614: One of Three

Of course, Amber was just talking for now.

Actually using the trip to Saint-Saulnier, the Imperial Capital of the Star Dragon Empire, as an opportunity to infiltrate was not that simple. It would require long-term planning.

Moreover, he still hadn’t decided what level of cooperation he wanted to achieve with Agnes.

Just because Baron BASF had personally visited a few times didn’t mean Atlas Group had to cooperate out of respect for his sincerity.

Simple business partnerships were, of course, no problem, and some projects were already underway.

But Amber knew that what the other party truly wanted was a deep partnership with Atlas, especially in the areas of advanced technology and military affairs.

Across the known universe, if you could pay the price, the only entity capable of immediately mustering five or six fleets complete with super-flagships, while simultaneously deploying elite ground forces of an Army Group

-level, was Atlas Group.

Although this force couldn’t yet strategically change the grand picture, this armed power that had appeared out of thin air could certainly achieve a huge tactical advantage.

And in many cases, tactical advantages often slowly expand and transform into strategic ones.

What’s more, the combat units under Atlas Group were still in a phase of rapid expansion. As time went on, the scale of this armed force would only grow larger.

So, with the Empire’s military having suffered a devastating blow and now being fractured by internal strife, the militarily weaker Agnes would inevitably try to drag Atlas’s power into the Empire’s chaotic situation.

However, just because she thought that way didn’t mean Amber wanted to do it.

After all, he was no longer playing the small-time games of the past. Every decision would affect the future development of Atlas Group, so Amber would only make a move after confirming that the potential benefits were sufficient.

Although Agnes was already extending an olive branch to Atlas, whether to accept it ultimately depended on Amber. He wasn’t going to help just because of her ‘titles’ as an imperial princess, the ultimate dragon girl, the top-ranking story character on the popularity charts, or the queen of fan comics.

If he truly coveted the imperial princess, he could just wait until the Empire devolved into a complete mess, then take advantage of the chaos to snatch her away. He wouldn’t even need to consider cooperation.

What Amber was truly struggling with was whether, if he bet on Agnes, the imperial princess could successfully take power in the end, and whether Atlas would be able to gain enough from it.

One must know that Amber’s real ambition was to infiltrate the Star Dragon Empire just as he had the Federation, ultimately achieving control over the nation on another level.

However, for a feudal empire, a simple ‘economic victory’ might not be as effective as it was with the Federation.

A country like the Star Dragon Empire, with its deeply entrenched feudal monarchy and aristocracy, likely placed more importance on so-called ‘legitimacy’.

Therefore, if Amber wanted Atlas to control the Star Dragon Empire from the shadows, just as it did the Federation, he had only two paths to choose from.

Either he could simply overthrow the Star Dragon Empire’s monarchy and reform it into a ‘democratic nation’ that was easier to control.

Or he could place his bet on a reliable faction with a certain degree of influence and a legitimate claim to the country. This way, he could leverage their influence to let Atlas infiltrate every aspect of the Empire.

It was just like the process of ‘selling out the country’ that occurred when late-stage empires introduced external powers.

And currently, there were only three paths before Atlas Group: the old Emperor Frederick, the Imperial Princess Agnes, and the Regent Prince’s faction, with whom they had previous contact and simple cooperation.

The old Emperor Frederick was the first one Amber dismissed.

The main reason was that Amber had no way of confirming the man’s current situation. If the old man were to kick the bucket right after he invested, the loss would be catastrophic.

Not to mention, this old Emperor had just sent people to snatch the ‘Eternal Cells’ from the Forerunners research institute. Combined with the secrets Salieh had told Amber about the origins of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, Amber now felt that this elusive old Emperor might be planning something big.

It was precisely because of this investment risk that Amber would not consider contacting this most legitimate ruler of the Empire for the time being.

The Imperial Princess Agnes was beautiful, had a sweet voice, long legs, and a generous bust. With her white hair and red eyes, she was a quintessential fan-favorite, and more importantly, she had horns.

Had anyone else transmigrated into Amber’s current position, they probably would have actively sought out Agnes for cooperation.

Unfortunately, Amber’s interest in that sort of thing was no longer as strong as it was when he first arrived.

Isabelle was a stunner in both looks and figure, and she was very obedient to Amber. She was also an imperial noble, and Amber currently had a good relationship with her father, the clan head of the Ahrens family.

Allenita went without saying. Her identity as an elf alone already fulfilled Amber’s fantasies about ‘other races’, and her looks and figure were on a level you’d see in an adult game.

Most importantly, she was a rich girl with close ties to the Elven Royal Court, and could also pull the strings for Atlas’s future expansion into the Thousand Stars Empire.

The strong AI Lilith was in a league of her own. She was completely loyal to Amber, learned quickly, and was creative in her play. The advantages of being a digital lifeform meant she wasn’t confined to a single form.

“So what if she’s a dragon girl? I can become one for you right now, Master!” —This was Lilith’s furious declaration on an occasion when Amber had unintentionally praised Agnes’s beauty.

She had immediately transformed into a dragon girl with a similar appearance to Agnes, but with a better figure and a face that had more of a ‘computer-generated’ feel. And what followed was an epic battle.

So, from the perspective of ‘beauty’ alone, Agnes’s appeal to Amber was far less than before. What Amber valued more now was how to gain greater benefits from any cooperation.

And this was precisely Agnes’s current weakness.

Although the ‘Princess Faction’ was in a much better position now than it was two years ago, and it seemed Agnes was on the verge of evolving from ‘Imperial Princess’ to ‘Empress’.

But Amber still didn’t quite believe that Her Highness the Princess could sort out the internal mess of the Star Dragon Empire without ‘help’ from others.

However, from another perspective, if the two sides were to cooperate, it would surely be the princess’s side in need of Atlas’s support. Amber could use this to vie for a greater say in matters.

To sum up, a partnership with the Princess Faction meant that risk and crisis went hand in hand.

The last one remaining was the Regent Prince of the Empire, Norton II.

This was a man Amber couldn’t see through. Originally, Amber thought that with his knowledge of the game’s plot and its characters, even if he couldn’t completely handle this ambitious tyrant, he could at least hold his own in a back and forth.

In the initial stage of cooperation between Atlas and the Regent Prince Faction, Amber did indeed have that feeling. But from a certain day onward, he found that the Regent Prince Faction was no longer so enthusiastic about cooperating with Atlas.

Their contact, Perseus, also began to interact less with Atlas. Even Amber’s multiple communication requests sent in a private capacity were declined by the other party for various reasons.

In the few rare instances the calls went through, Perseus seemed preoccupied and hastily ended the conversation.

The feeling it gave Amber…

…was as if he was terrified of contacting Atlas.

Chapter 615: Expedited Transactions

From Amber’s perspective, the change in attitude from the Regent Prince Faction was sudden and completely without warning.

Just the day before, Perseus had even expressed a desire to discuss the possibility of deeper cooperation, but the very next day, he acted as if he hardly knew Atlas.

Apart from maintaining the most basic contact to ensure the quantum entanglement communications network remained operational, there was no other communication between the two sides.

Afterward, Lilith also warned Amber multiple times that several of Atlas’s quantum entanglement communication relay stations within the Star Dragon Empire’s territory had been physically breached.

After forcibly docking with the relay stations, the intruders attempted to breach the station’s defenses directly from its local systems and tried to dismantle the core components of the relay device.

Although Lilith’s pre-deployed adaptive defense system prevented the station’s facilities from being compromised, the attack made Amber realize that the Regent Prince’s covetousness for Quantum Entanglement Communication Technology remained unchanged.

After this incident, Amber, on behalf of the Atlas Group, condemned these acts of equipment sabotage and theft of business secrets to Perseus, who in turn claimed they had no knowledge of the matter and promised to strengthen relevant management.

The Atlas Group’s response to this brazen attitude was simple and brutal.

Amber directly ordered the quantum entanglement communications network in the Regent Prince Faction’s controlled territory to be shut down under the pretext of an equipment self-check, only reactivating it twenty-four hours later. After all, the contract signed back then did contain a clause stating that in the event of an equipment malfunction, the Atlas Group could directly sever the malfunctioning part of the network.

As for whether there was a malfunction or not, that was naturally for Atlas Communications to decide. Even if the Empire’s engineers were brought in for an inspection, they wouldn’t be able to find anything wrong.

This was a language that Perseus and his people clearly understood. After the network was restored, all destructive hacking attempts ceased, and the station’s observation units confirmed that all unidentified ships in the vicinity had withdrawn.

Even Perseus, who had stopped initiating contact, took the unprecedented step of personally approaching Amber to apologize. But when Amber pressed for deeper reasons, he became evasive.

Subsequently, although the Regent Prince Faction’s forces continued to use Atlas’s communication services, they were clearly no longer using it as thoroughly as before. Some key departments, when forced to use the quantum entanglement communication service, implemented multiple layers of encryption, ensuring the confidentiality of their communications even at the cost of reduced efficiency.

They had clearly realized that Atlas could monitor them through the communications network, so they had immediately taken emergency countermeasures after the relationship with the Atlas Group soured.

This directly led to a significant impact on the intelligence gathering of the Atlas intelligence department regarding the Regent Prince Faction. The most obvious consequence was that Amber and his team could no longer track the whereabouts of key personnel in the Regent Prince Faction.

Even troop movements could only be quickly detected after they had massed. If the enemy moved their troops by breaking them up into smaller units, they would basically only be discovered after their forces had reached the designated location and completed their assembly.

The “fog” that had suddenly descended made Amber increasingly wary of the Regent Prince Faction. For this to happen so suddenly when the two sides had been cooperating made him suspect that while Norton II was trying to achieve his “grand undertaking,” he had absolutely no intention of letting Atlas interfere.

From the perspective of ‘erring on the side of caution when assessing the enemy’, Amber suspected that Norton II might have already become aware of the Atlas Group’s infiltration capabilities. He knew that if he engaged in deep cooperation with Atlas, he would inevitably be constrained by Amber, even if his uprising succeeded.

As for Princess Agnes on the other side, Amber believed she was also aware of this. However, he wasn’t sure if she was confident in her ability to control him or if she genuinely needed the Atlas Group’s help, which was why she had sent signals for ‘deeper cooperation’.

This was why Amber prioritized Agnes when planning his infiltration of the Star Dragon Empire—after all, it seemed she was the only one he could handle at the moment.

As for Norton II, Amber was self-aware enough to know that in terms of political scheming, even he and the entire Atlas think tank combined would likely be no match for him.

Following the Renaissance Alliance’s victory in the Shaste star system fleet battle, achieved with the help of the Atlas Group, the subsequent battles became much simpler. After the ground forces descended from orbit, the defending troops they encountered were largely unable to mount any effective resistance.

It didn’t take much effort for Franklin and his men to take control of the main colonial planets, satellite cities, and deep-space facilities.

Of course, the price was that a large number of physical facilities, such as factories, were rapidly acquired and occupied by the Atlas Group.

The factions in the surrounding star systems, who had been watching the situation, also began sending ‘cooperation’ signals to Franklin after witnessing the overwhelming combat power of the Renaissance Alliance.

It was also during this period that the various factions, which had been scattered and fighting independently, gradually consolidated into larger powers, forming a ring around the Federation’s core star systems.

The Atlas Group seized the opportunity to madly annex a vast number of facilities and factories, and the prototype of an ‘all-industry Leviathan’ began to take shape during this time. With Lilith’s assistance, it also initiated its first industrial upgrade, the main purpose of which was to unify and standardize its massive portfolio of various industries to lay the foundation for future large-scale ‘spamming units’.

And while his business elites were ‘running missions’ all over the Federation, Amber learned from their feedback that the ‘Federation-wide Battle Royale’ had reached a fever pitch.

This was because in the recent multitude of transactions, those ‘local factions’ were very dissatisfied with the fact that after ‘earning’ money from the Atlas Group, they had to turn around and use it to buy military supplies from the Atlas Group.

Of course, this ‘dissatisfaction’ was mainly because these factions found the process too troublesome, considering the back-and-forth transfer of funds a waste of time. So, they opted to ‘barter’ directly with the Atlas Group.

The general process was as follows:

Step one: The Atlas Group first appraises the assets to be acquired and reaches a preliminary confirmation with the trading party.

Step two: The trading party receives a weapons sales list from Atlas Armaments and then makes their selection, using the ‘appraised value’ of the traded assets as their spending limit.

Step three: Once both parties reach an agreement, Atlas sends personnel to take over the assets and complete all authority transfers. At the same time, the cargo fleet delivering the personnel will also deliver the weapons purchased by the other party.

Incidentally, because the fleets brought out by Atlas business representatives in previous acquisitions had provided sufficient deterrence, coupled with the increasingly frequent appearances of The Infinity and The Dawn, no one dared to have any crooked ideas when trading with the Atlas Group anymore.

This made Atlas’s recent acquisition activities extremely smooth. The large backlog of weapons inventory was quickly cleared out, and the vast amount of ‘void funds’ accumulated in the early stages were converted into newly launched warships.

Just when everything seemed to be ‘under control’, something unexpected happened.

A piece of intelligence gathered from the Federation’s Capital star system forced Amber to turn his attention once again to this chaotic nation.

“The ‘Iron Triangle’, consisting of the President, the Minister of Defense, and the Fleet Admiral, was about to be impeached and arrested.”

Chapter 616: Impeachment

“What? Impeach the ‘Iron Triangle’?! What are these people thinking?”

After hearing the intelligence report from Isabelle, Amber was completely stunned.

Although he hadn’t spent much time in Federation territory since transmigrating, let alone visited the core star systems, he knew that President Brandon, Minister of Defense Miller, and Marshal Trafalgar had spent many years cultivating their influence in the Federation’s military and political spheres.

Marshal Trafalgar’s prestige in the Federation Navy, in particular, was frighteningly high.

Minister of Defense Miller’s influence in the Federation military was also greater than many imagined. After winning over several army generals with real power, his influence in the military far surpassed that of others.

As for President Brandon, who seemed the most incompetent of the three, while his influence in the military was not significant, thanks to the efforts of his management team, his public image was the best of any Federation president in decades. Moreover, with his knack for skillful maneuvering, he had thrived within the Military-industrial complex.

Although his role seemed to have diminished significantly after the Military-industrial complex existed in name only, his status had not lessened, whether as a ‘figurehead’ or as the ostensible ‘center of power’.

After forming their alliance, the three had used the opportunity of the previously issued general mobilization order to seize de facto control over the Federation’s military and political power.

Although a month ago, the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire had finally reached a ceasefire agreement in their border negotiations and the general mobilization order was lifted simultaneously, the Federation government remained in a state akin to ‘military control’ under the Iron Triangle’s manipulation.

Under these circumstances, that someone in the Federation still dared to impeach all three at once… Amber didn’t know whether to say he’d “seen it all now” or that they had a death wish.

When Isabelle, along with members of the intelligence department, found Amber and heard his confusion, she shook her head and took out a detailed report.

“Amber, this situation might be different. This impeachment was jointly initiated by the Federation Democratic Party and the Federation Republican Party.”

“The ruling party and the opposition party working together?”

Amber opened the file in surprise, only to discover that this impeachment was even more of a “seen it all now” moment than he had imagined.

“But even so, there’s no way these ‘civilian officials’ can stand against Trafalgar and the others, who hold military power.”

“Theoretically, you’re right, Amber.”

Isabelle nodded and continued:

“But according to our intel, Marshal Trafalgar and the remaining Federation capital fleets are all out quelling rebellions. Even a significant portion of the Capital Garrison Fleet has been drawn away. This is arguably the moment when the Capital star system’s military strength is at its weakest.”

Amber suddenly thought of something, and a ‘buried memory’ suddenly resurfaced to haunt him. He looked up at Isabelle and asked tentatively:

“The Capital Garrison Command?”

“If our intelligence source is correct, I’m afraid it has already been infiltrated,” Isabelle said. “And it’s said that the ‘remnants’ of the Military-industrial complex have chosen to side with the congressmen from both parties this time. They still have some hidden armed forces at their disposal.”

“Hiss… Well, this complicates things.”

Amber slumped back in his chair, his brow furrowed. Perhaps with his ability of ‘prescience’, he could accurately predict the course of some political events.

But for this kind of sudden political incident, as a ‘battle maniac’, his judgment wasn’t as sharp.

After a long moment, he looked up at his intelligence chief again.

“Isabelle, how many forces do we have in the Federation Capital?”

“Not many. On the capital planet, we only have a few secret offices and several safe houses. Most are intelligence-gathering personnel; there aren’t many from the action teams. They’re usually only responsible for security in emergency situations.”

“No matter. It’s too late for us to interfere anyway. What’s more important now is to get real-time intel on the situation at the Federation’s center of power.”

While giving instructions to Lilith in his mind, Amber continued speaking to Isabelle:

“Contact the person in charge there as soon as possible. I will raise their encrypted network access to the highest level. We must ensure a smooth flow of information.”

The Federation, The Capital.

The light of dawn was faintly visible beyond the high-tech dome of the Capital Special District, not yet having completely dispelled the deep blue of the night.

However, in the heart of the city—before the Congress Building—the atmosphere was already fraught with anxiety over the major event about to unfold.

The area around the Congress Building was already packed with reporters from various media organizations who had rushed to the scene as soon as they got the news. They waited with a mixture of tension and anticipation, eagerly awaiting the key moment that would be etched into the annals of history.

They also hoped to be the first to break the ‘headline’ that was about to shake the entire Federation.

As dawn broke, Elaine Jin, the Chairwoman of the Democratic Party, and Thomas White, the Leader of the Republican Party, strode into the hall of the House of Representatives side by side. Their steps were steady and resolute, and trailing behind them was a procession of congressmen from both parties, their expressions solemn and determined.

In an instant, the rising and falling murmurs in the hall came to an abrupt halt. All eyes, sharp as torches, focused squarely on the group.

After entering the hall, Elaine Jin did not pause, walking straight to the seat of the Speaker of the House of Representatives—who was also Franklin’s ‘future father-in-law’—Rodham Hille.

She tightly gripped an electronic file containing the impeachment proposal, a file that seemed to carry immense weight. When she handed it to the Speaker, Rodham Hille, who had already been informed, frowned slightly. After taking the file, his eyes quickly scanned the screen.

After a moment, his expression grew more solemn, as if shrouded in shadow. He muttered in a low voice, “This is a serious accusation, one that could shake the very foundations of our nation. We must act with the utmost caution and not be reckless or hasty… Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Your Excellency, the Federation Navy has been crippled, rebellions are erupting everywhere, and the power of the nation is firmly held by these three. If we do not act, the Federation is doomed!” the Chairwoman of the Democratic Party, Elaine Jin, said in a grave voice, her eyes filled with determination and resolve.

And the Republican Leader, Thomas White, who stood beside her, also stepped forward and spoke:

“Your Excellency, this time, our two parties have set aside factional politics and stand united to save the Federation from dire straits. Please, believe us.”

To be honest, Speaker of the House Rodham Hille had been in a state of profound shock ever since receiving the news and then personally accepting the joint impeachment motion from the two party leaders. He still hadn’t recovered.

He never expected the Democratic Party to choose to ‘abandon’ President Brandon at this critical juncture and unite with the opposition party to launch an impeachment.

As for the speeches the two had just made, which sounded like those of ‘iron-willed, loyal patriots’, he simply ignored them.

Having navigated the Federation’s political scene for so many years and having risen to the position of Speaker of the House, Rodham Hille knew exactly what kind of people these congressmen from both parties were.

Perhaps they truly did have the courage to challenge the ‘Iron Triangle’.

But to say they were doing it for the Federation?

Heh, not even a dog would believe that.

Chapter 617: Glory

Inside the Congress Building, the atmosphere was so oppressive it felt as if the very air could solidify. The impeachment resolution materialized in the snarling faces of the arguing committee members.

Although none of the three were present, the resolution still hung over the heads of Brandon, Trafalgar, and Miller like the looming blade of a guillotine.

Multiple accusations—ranging from abuse of power and misappropriation of resources to severe violations of democratic procedure—hit them like bombshells, instantly dragging them into an unprecedented political maelstrom. The documents detailing these charges piled up like mountains, each page seemingly telling a story of darkness and decay at the core of The Federation’s power, leaving them besieged from all sides.

However, things were not proceeding so smoothly.

Though the leaders of the two parties had united all the forces they could, the groundwork Brandon and Miller had laid over the years was not for naught.

Just when the party leaders thought the impeachment was a sure thing, ‘sleepers’ among the representatives and the Bill Review Committee finally revealed themselves.

The party leaders had expected a swift impeachment and arrest, but the emergence of these dissenters brought the process to a standstill. If they hastily called a vote and the impeachment failed, they would lose the initiative.

Watching the arguing representatives in the hall of the House of Representatives descend into chaos, the two party leaders exchanged a look, each seeing the deep worry in the other’s eyes.

Brandon, the President who had once stood before the people of The Federation, spirited and eloquent, promising grand visions, now stood alone before the expansive observation window of the Presidential Palace.

Outside, the capital planet was bustling and noisy, yet beneath the surface, turbulent currents swirled. The flashing neon lights intertwined with a palpable sense of unease lurking in the streets and alleys.

Although the ‘chess pieces’ he and Minister of Defense Miller had placed in advance were now doing everything they could to delay, Brandon knew that if he couldn’t solve this problem once and for all, the impeachment hearings happening now could very well become a ‘routine’ occurrence in the future.

In the President’s office, the lights, which automatically dimmed according to the intensity of the sunlight, cast themselves upon the faces of those present, outlining their grave silhouettes.

Everyone standing here at this moment was a staunch partisan and supporter, loyal to him like death-sworn warriors.

“Have you been able to contact Marshal Trafalgar?” he asked.

“My apologies, Your Excellency. The Marshal and his fleet entered combat silent running twelve standard hours ago. We won’t be able to reach them until the battle is over.”

The chief of staff of the President’s office glanced quickly at the silent, downcast figures around him, hesitated for a moment, then continued:

“With all due respect, Your Excellency, even if we could contact the Marshal now, he wouldn’t be able to get back in time.”

“Damn it. To choose this exact moment… Was this their plan all along?”

The furrows on Brandon’s brow deepened. He turned to the military officers standing in the office and asked:

“What about Minister Miller?”

“The Minister is currently holding the fort at the Department of Defense building. He previously discovered that some army generals have had excessive contact with those committee members. He’s worried they might lash out in desperation, so he’s staying at the Department of Defense to stabilize the military’s morale,” one of the officers replied.

Another officer then spoke up, “Your Excellency, should we notify the Capital Garrison Command ahead of time and have them raise their alert level?”

“Yes.” Brandon nodded. “Also, have the Presidential Palace’s special forces go on combat alert.”

A flicker of grim determination and unwillingness to concede crossed his eyes. It was as if, in that instant, the one member of the ‘Iron Triangle’ who had always seemed the ‘weakest’ had secretly made an oath to burn his bridges.

“Your Excellency, the impeachment from Congress is moving aggressively. Those two old foxes, Elaine Jin and Thomas White, won’t stop until they get what they want. What should we do now? If we delay for too long, might they try something reckless?”

A military liaison officer remaining in the President’s office suddenly spoke, his voice tinged with unconcealable worry.

Brandon turned around slowly. His gaze was like a torch, sweeping across the faces of everyone present. His eyes seemed to hold endless power and determination, and his voice, though low, boomed like a great bell, shaking their hearts:

“Elaine Jin. Thomas White. They intend to force us into a corner, to make us the villains of The Federation’s history! But we will not sit back and wait for death. The situation we have now is the fruit of our years of hard work. It must not fall into the hands of those who only want to reap the rewards! We must rise up and fight back, to protect everything we have built with our own hands, even if it costs us everything we have!”

The people present were shocked. They suddenly realized that this impeachment by the two party leaders seemed to have pushed the President of The Federation to another extreme—an extreme from which there was no turning back.

Meanwhile, Brandon’s speech continued.

“I know you all have your concerns, worrying that if you continue to follow me, you will be implicated when the impeachment officially passes. I understand these feelings. So if anyone wishes to leave, you may exit this office now. I will not stop you, nor will I hold it against anyone.”

Brandon raised a finger and pointed to the office door. The others present were torn, unsure if they should continue on with him.

What if this cornered president did something even more drastic later on?

What if even Marshal Trafalgar, who held military power, was unable to turn the tide? If the ‘Iron Triangle’ was truly forced to step down or even arrested because of the impeachment, what would become of them?

But not everyone was willing to be the one who sticks their neck out at a time like this. And humans are a species heavily influenced by the ‘herd effect’. Seeing that no one else was leaving, even those who most wanted to go chose to stay.

Then, at the last moment, the new Secretary of State, who was closest to the door, slowly walked toward it under everyone’s gaze.

Then he locked the office door.

“Your Excellency, we will follow your lead.”

Seeing this, Brandon felt much more composed. He steadied himself and said in a grave voice:

“Thank you, everyone. Although I cannot make any guarantees, I can tell you this: the night before the dawn is indeed long, but the glory that comes with the sunrise will last for a very long time. And this glory, I, Brandon, will not enjoy it alone. Even if we ultimately fail, I will not let you bear the crime!”

Upon hearing this, everyone present took a deep breath almost in unison and straightened their chests, as if making a silent oath in response to Brandon’s words. The atmosphere in the room instantly grew heavy to the extreme. A sentiment of shared hatred for the enemy and a willingness to face death swiftly permeated the small space.

The highest-ranking officer present, in terms of both rank and duty, finally took a step forward.

After giving Brandon a crisp military salute, he declared in a resonant voice:

“Please give the order, Your Excellency!”

Brandon looked around at everyone, nodded, and began to give his orders:

“Although we can’t contact Marshal Trafalgar right now, and Minister Miller must remain at the Department of Defense and cannot provide support, I will not simply sit back and wait for death.”

Brandon looked at the chief of staff of the President’s office, who immediately looked up upon noticing his gaze.

“Prepare a public address at once. I authorize you to use every channel under our control. Don’t worry about the other star systems, but we must achieve maximum coverage in the Capital star system, especially on the main planet and in the special administrative region!

“After the public address, I will, as President, issue a martial law order for The Capital. Order the Capital Garrison Command to assemble its troops. The Presidential Palace is to immediately enter Defense Mode. All personnel are to be moved to the underground bunker, where a temporary command headquarters will be established.

“Finally, go and inform Madame Paris and her band of ‘male consorts’. We’ve protected them for so long while other corporations hunted for them. Now, it’s their time to contribute.”

Chapter 618: Coup d’État

Congress Building, House of Representatives Hall.

The vote on the impeachment and arrest of President Brandon and the other two finally had to begin, urged on by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the other committee members.

As the current ‘neutral,’ Speaker Rodham Hille knew very well that his job was not to take sides but to strictly abide by the Federation’s Constitution and only do what he could and should do.

As for the other issues, he had no control over them, and neither side would do anything to him, the Speaker.

After all, as long as neither side was ready to seize power by force, they wouldn’t touch him. Many procedural matters still had to go through both houses of Congress.

As for taking things too hard and moving to impeach him, the Speaker of the House?

Rodham Hille would love nothing more than to unload this thankless burden and go ‘join’ his daughter.

However, the round of voting urged on by Rodham Hille ultimately passed.

This was because an impeachment vote in the House of Representatives only required a simple majority—that is, more than half of the attending and voting members had to support the articles of impeachment.

Elaine Jin and Thomas White, the two party leaders, had naturally achieved this.

Or rather, if they couldn’t even manage that, there would be no point in even mentioning impeachment.

After all, when the impeachment proposal was expedited to the Senate, it would require a two-thirds majority vote to convict the official and remove them from office.

So, after the vote passed smoothly in the House, Rodham Hille walked up to the two party leaders. After a moment of silence, he spoke slowly.

“I wish you both the best of luck with what comes next.”

With that, he turned and left.

As the Speaker’s figure disappeared behind a door of the great hall, the Leader of the Republican Party, Thomas White, couldn’t help but frown.

“Why do I get the feeling he’s not very optimistic about our chances?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Elaine Jin shook her head. “His optimism is irrelevant. What’s important is that we need to speed things up.”

Hearing this, Thomas White’s frown deepened.

“Time is what we lack most. Who knows how much time the Senate will waste before passing the impeachment!”

“That’s why we can’t just foolishly wait for the impeachment to pass before we act.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Pest Control Operation begins simultaneously. While the Senate is wrangling, we’ll seize control of the Presidential Palace and the Department of Defense first!”

Thomas White’s eyes widened. He hadn’t wanted to go this far.

But now, it seemed he no longer had a choice. The “Iron Triangle” must have already gotten the news; they might even have a list of today’s attendees. If he didn’t strike first to gain the upper hand, he might die a horrible death later.

Despite this, Thomas White still hesitated. He leaned in close to Elaine Jin’s ear and whispered, “This isn’t an impeachment anymore. This is a coup d’état!”

“No, this is a revolution to eliminate the ‘pests’.”

Soon, Elaine Jin and Thomas White, along with a large group of people, headed toward the Senate Hall on the other side of the Congress Building.

Just then, several of their trusted subordinates hurried to their side, their faces tense.

After they whispered a few words into their ears, the two party leaders exchanged a glance. Seeing the astonishment in each other’s eyes, they quickly issued commands to their subordinates, and then…

They rushed toward the Senate Hall at an even faster pace.

“He’s giving a public address at a time like this? What is Brandon thinking?!”

“Quick! Use all our resources, find a way to block the address! Notify those damn corporations and tell them to unleash all the dogs they have on their leashes!”

—

“This show is getting good, really good!”

As Amber watched the developments in the Federation Capital in real-time from an Atlas conference room, she couldn’t help but feel excited by the series of twists and turns.

When she discovered that the Democratic and Republican parties were planning to use various methods to block President Brandon’s speech, Amber unhesitatingly found the head of Atlas Communications and Skadi, who was in charge of public relations.

“Mark, temporarily lift the bandwidth restrictions on the communication channels in the Capital and open up the backup frequencies to facilitate the broadcast of the President’s public address! Skadi, have The Eye of Truth start an emergency live broadcast and stream the address to the entire core star systems.”

Skadi: “The source of the public address is the Federation government’s channel. Will we run into any copyright issues if we rebroadcast it directly?”

See, that was an elf from the Thousand Stars Empire for you—always so meticulous about copyright issues in commercial activities. Or one could just say, rigid.

Amber didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Just go ahead and broadcast it. At a time like this, they’d be begging us to help spread it.”

Beside them, Isabelle heard Amber and leaned over to ask in a low voice, “Are you sure it’s okay for us to be fanning the flames like this?”

Amber: “Honestly, there’s a certain risk of ‘cultivating a monster,’ but in any case, the more chaotic things get, the better! Once they descend into chaos themselves, the Federation’s core star systems will crumble on their own!”

“Amber, what if this upheaval in the Federation Capital ends up creating a ‘monster’?”

“Then that will be a headache for Franklin and the other factions who want to take power. By then, they might need our strength even more.”

While the congressmen of both parties were sprinting through the halls of Congress, President Brandon stepped into the media press room inside the Presidential Palace.

Outside the press room, Secret Service agents and security forces, armed with live ammunition, stood ready to escort Brandon into the underground bunker as soon as the public address was over.

After the virtual reality system was activated, the lights and shadows in the press room flickered, making Brandon feel as if he were in a space where dream and reality intertwined.

In the Capital Special District, the commercial centers, residential areas, and every street and alley, all public holographic screens were urgently switched to the dedicated channel.

And on everyone’s personal terminal, a notification popped up announcing that the President would be delivering an emergency address.

A few minutes later, Brandon’s figure gradually materialized on holographic projection platforms everywhere.

Amidst the gas and mist that permeated the streets, a blurry silhouette appeared first, then slowly sharpened, like a deity born from a nebula.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm in his heart. His voice was steady and firm, attempting in this turbulent time to once again win the trust and support of the Federation’s citizens, just as he had in past general elections.

That voice, carried by the virtual reality system, spread to every corner of the Federation. Whether in a bustling metropolis or on a remote planet, every citizen could hear his words distinctly.

“Citizens of the Federation, I am your President, Brandon. Today, certain factions in Congress are attempting to stage an illegal coup d’état. They are like vipers hiding in the shadows, poised to strike a fatal blow against the Federation that belongs to all of us. They want to overthrow the legitimate government and plunge the Federation into an abyss of endless chaos and darkness…”

Chapter 619: Martial Law Begins

“I urge everyone to remain calm and not be deceived by their lies!

We have always worked tirelessly for the prosperity and stability of the Federation. Every decision, every action, has been to ensure a better life for all of you!

Now, we face an unprecedented crisis. We need your support more than ever. You are the foundation of the Federation, and only by uniting as one can we resist this evil force!”

In the middle of a public address constructed with holographic projection technology, Brandon’s expression was stern.

Standing in the spotlight, the intense light stretched his figure, making him appear tall and imposing. His words were sharp as he accused Democratic Party Chairwoman Elaine Jin and Republican Party Leader Thomas White of plotting an illegal coup, each word a sharp sword aimed at his opponents’ hearts.

“Elaine Jin, Thomas White, do you think your conspiracy can succeed? This is a blatant trampling of the Federation’s constitution, a shameless betrayal of all our citizens!

For your own selfish desires, you would destroy the peace and stability the Federation has painstakingly built over many years. Your actions will be etched onto the Federation’s pillar of shame and subjected to the harsh judgment of history!

You are like greedy wolves, attempting to devour the Federation’s future, but I, Brandon, President of the Federation, will never let you succeed!”

“Wow, he’s pinning such a huge crime on them. Even if the two party leaders hadn’t been planning a coup, they’ll have to launch one now.”

Amber, who was watching the public address live, couldn’t help but comment after hearing what Brandon said.

“The only option left for the party leaders now is to flip the table. If they give up at this point, then I can only say they’re truly a bunch of good-for-nothings who will never amount to anything.”

Isabelle also nodded. “But this Federation President certainly is resourceful. With a single move, he’s seized back a great deal of the initiative.”

“If he didn’t have a few tricks up his sleeve, he would never have become the Federation’s President,” Amber said with a shrug, continuing, “And it’s too early to discuss the outcome. Brandon’s public address is the true opening of this great drama. I think this phase of formal maneuvering between them is coming to an end. Next, they’ll be settling things with military power.”

Just as Amber said this, President Brandon’s voice suddenly rose from the virtual screen they were watching in the conference room.

“Citizens of the Federation, to safeguard the free constitutional order, to ensure the freedom, security, and sustainable development of our nation remain unaffected, and to eradicate the ‘separatists’ in Congress!

In my capacity as President of the Federation, I hereby order that from this moment on, the Capital star system will enter a state of full martial law. I appoint the Commander of the Capital Garrison Command as the ‘Martial Law Commander,’ and the Capital Garrison Command will enter a state of combat readiness!

Furthermore, the following measures will be implemented in the Capital star system:

1. All political activities, including those of Congress, the assemblies of the Star System Autonomous Governments, political parties, political associations, gatherings, and demonstrations, are prohibited.

2. All acts attempting to subvert the current government are prohibited. Fake news, fabrication of public opinion, and false incitement are prohibited.

3. All speech and publications are subject to the control of the Martial Law Command.

4. Strikes, work stoppages, and gatherings that cause social unrest are prohibited.

Violators of the aforementioned martial law order may be arrested, detained, and searched without a warrant, in accordance with Article 9 of the Federation’s Martial Law Act, and will be punished in accordance with Article 14 of said act.”

Isabelle remarked, “Amber, your predictions are scarily accurate.”

—

Meanwhile, in the Senate Hall, Elaine Jin and Thomas White, who were trying to complete the Senate vote as quickly as possible, received the news at once.

A shocked Thomas White immediately rushed over to her, his expression growing more somber.

“That bastard Brandon has issued a martial law order! He just wants to stop our vote in the Senate!”

“It’s not just about stopping the vote. He’s using this as an opportunity to strike first and catch us all in one net.”

Elaine Jin turned to look at her old rival and said in a low voice:

“According to the last message from my inside source before I lost contact, Brandon entered a bunker right after his speech, and the Presidential Palace has gone into a full defensive state. And over at the Capital Garrison Command, the Martial Law Commander has already started to make his move.”

“What do we do then? Do we continue?” Thomas White finally asked.

“Of course. We have no other path left to take.”

Elaine Jin paused, her gaze sweeping across the chaotic Senate Hall before finally settling on the mural on the domed ceiling that depicted the history of the Federation’s founding.

“Thomas, have your people speed things up too. Get as many troops as you can out before the Martial Law Commander realizes what’s happening.”

“Understood,” Thomas White nodded. “What about here?”

“At this point, continuing the vote is indeed meaningless. But we have to hold Congress. Otherwise, we might be taken out by the President’s men not long after we leave. Have our people in the Capital Garrison Command bring their troops to the Congress Building and set up a defensive line. This place is the front line today.”

With that, Elaine Jin took out her personal terminal and accessed a highly encrypted communication channel.

“Lady Elaine… you’ve called after all.”

“Believe me, I didn’t want things to come to this either. But regrettably, this was all orchestrated by His Excellency the President.”

Elaine Jin cut off the person on the other end of the line and spoke with a sincere tone.

“General Austin, all our hopes now rest on you. Please order the garrison brigades under your command to enter the Capital Special District!”

“Are you certain this will save the Federation?”

General Austin didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he asked a question of his own.

“President Brandon, or rather, the other two corners of the ‘Iron Triangle,’ have many supporters in the military. They won’t give up without a fight. If a single wrong step is taken from here, it will lead to the complete collapse of the Federation government, and civil war will truly break out.”

The general’s voice was deep and hoarse, tinged with a hint of helplessness and struggle.

“General, this is our only choice,” Elaine Jin said. “If we allow those three to continue acting so recklessly, the Federation will fall into utter ruin, and democracy will become dust in the annals of history. Every citizen of the Federation is counting on our actions. We cannot betray their trust.”

General Austin fell into a long, thoughtful silence. He rose slowly to his feet, pacing within his command vehicle, where he was alone. Each step seemed to carry an immense weight.

No one knew whether he was contemplating the future of the Federation’s democracy or simply which side to take in this political struggle.

But in the end, he slowly nodded. “Alright, I will support you. But this is an extremely dangerous gamble. There is no turning back for any of us. You must be prepared as well. Once we set foot on this path, we must give it our all, until victory… or death.”

—

Capital Garrison Command, now the Martial Law Command Headquarters.

In the operations command room, all officers belonging to the Capital Garrison Command had been urgently summoned. A three-dimensional map of the Capital Special District was displayed on the virtual sand table in the middle of the room. Information on the map was rapidly refreshing, and important targets like the Presidential Palace, the Congress Building, and the Department of Defense building were highlighted.

Everyone, including the newly appointed Martial Law Commander, Rear Admiral Henry, who was also the Commander of the Capital Garrison Command, stood around the sand table with grim expressions.

But a closer look at their faces would reveal that besides seriousness, the most common expression was ‘disbelief’.

No one had expected the ruling party and the opposition party to suddenly unite to impeach the President, much less for President Brandon to immediately exercise his presidential powers and issue a martial law order.

From a legal standpoint, the impeachment against the President, the Minister of Defense, and the Fleet Admiral had not yet passed the Senate. All three still held their positions, so Brandon’s martial law order was perfectly legal.

Rear Admiral Henry, who had been specially chosen from the ‘neutral faction’ to command the Capital Garrison, had no valid reason to refuse the order.

Though many doubts lingered in his mind, as a rather old-fashioned, traditional Federation military man, Rear Admiral Henry began to assemble the garrison forces within the Capital Special District as commanded.

As for the defensive forces of the Capital Special District, or the entire capital planet for that matter, they weren’t as formidable as one might imagine.

In the minds of ordinary citizens of the Federation, most of whom would never visit the capital in their lifetimes, the ‘heart’ of this colossal entity would surely be heavily fortified, with troops stationed everywhere and guards at every corner.

But the reality was the exact opposite of what the public imagined.

Within the entire Capital star system, besides the rotating naval fleets, the only dedicated fleet-level mobile forces were the two Capital Garrison Fleets.

Beyond that, the strongest defense system was the Orbital Defense Platform surrounding the capital planet.

As for ground forces on the capital planet itself, there weren’t many. Initially, there were only five brigades.

The reason was simple: as the Federation’s capital, it was already protected by the outer star systems and naval fleets. If an enemy managed to reach the capital and break through the garrison fleets and orbital defenses, having more ground troops would be pointless.

Moreover, the kind of activities that ground forces on other star systems engaged in, such as quelling rebellions and having back-and-forth stone-throwing contests with rioters, were unlikely to happen on the capital planet.

This was because those who settled and took root on the capital planet were the plutocratic families and officials at the apex of the Federation’s pyramid. Besides them, there were the headquarters of various megacorporations and top financial institutions, as well as a variety of top-tier universities.

In other words, this was a planet filled with the Federation’s elite.

Under these circumstances, the five brigades stationed on the capital planet had a more important task than defending the capital during their daily routines: performing in military parades during major holidays.

Later on, these units became a ‘treasure trove’ for the children of the Federation’s elite to gain experience and gild their resumes. Joining these units was less about learning combat skills and more about building connections and becoming known.

Due to this growing ‘demand,’ the ground forces on the capital planet gradually expanded to the current ten brigades.

Among them, three heavy combined arms brigades, bearing the title ‘Garrison Brigades,’ were deployed on the outskirts of the Capital Special District, making them the closest brigade-level ground forces.

These three brigades, being the best for ‘gilding’ one’s resume, were the ones the children of plutocrats and high officials scrambled to get into, which also made them the units with the most complex internal factions.

The fact that Elaine Jin could persuade a high-ranking army general to command two of these brigades to advance on the Capital Special District showed that the Democratic Party’s recent infiltration efforts had been quite successful.

Although the combat effectiveness of these resume-padding units was negligible, the HCP units and main battle tanks they were equipped with were real, and they were always the first to receive new equipment.

In the eyes of Elaine and the others, even if the garrison brigades were no match for field army units, they were more than enough to suppress the small number of military police forces within the Capital Special District.

Naturally, the movement of two large brigades could not be hidden from the Capital Garrison Command, and Rear Admiral Henry soon received a report that two garrison brigades were rapidly approaching the Capital Special District.

“The 2nd Garrison Heavy Combined Arms Brigade is currently eighty kilometers from the Capital Special District’s border!

The 3rd Garrison Heavy Combined Arms Brigade is sixty-five kilometers away!

We’ve also received word from the Orbital Defense Platform control center. Their ground surveillance network has confirmed that the vanguards of both units have deployed in an attack formation. The leading HCP units acting as the spearhead are now less than thirty kilometers from the special district’s border!”

“Have their commanders lost their minds?! Who gave them that order?!”

Rear Admiral Henry unsurprisingly joined the ranks of the ‘shocked’ today, but known for his composure, he quickly calmed himself.

“Contact the brigade commanders of these two units. Order them, in the name of the Martial Law Command, to turn back and return to their bases immediately. Also, contact the 1st Garrison Brigade and sound out their attitude!”

“Yes, Sir!”

The reporting officer saluted and hurried away.

At the same time, the commander of the Capital Garrison Command’s Military Police sidled up to Rear Admiral Henry and said in a low voice:

“We’ve lost contact with the garrisons of the Capital Garrison 2nd and 3rd Regiments. The two teams of military police I sent over have also just gone silent.”

Hearing this, Rear Admiral Henry’s face darkened instantly.

“Could it be… those two regiments?”

Before Henry could finish, the military police commander nodded, his tone growing more serious. “It’s highly likely. We must prepare for the worst…”

With that, his sharp, hawk-like eyes swept over the busy officers in the command room. He continued, “And during the assembly just now, a group of people from headquarters was missing. I checked the surveillance. They left headquarters before the martial law order was issued and headed in the direction of the 2nd Garrison Regiment.”

“Damn it…” Rear Admiral Henry clenched his fists. “Has the infiltration even here become this severe?”

“Some things are impossible to guard against,” the military police commander said, shaking his head and finally letting out a long sigh.

A moment later, however, he pulled himself together, straightened his uniform, and saluted Rear Admiral Henry.

“General, no matter what happens, the Capital Garrison Command’s Military Police will execute your orders without question!”

Chapter 620: All Present and Accounted For

Capital Special District, Presidential Palace.

Beyond the vast lawn, groups of students, led by their teachers, were walking toward the tourist entrance of the Presidential Palace. As a rare weekly open day, it had, as always, attracted teachers and students for some patriotic education.

Although the accessible areas were mainly public offices, administrative zones, and some infrequently used rooms, the demand was still so high that reservations were booked up for a year in advance.

At the tourist entrance, two black-painted Secret Service HCPs stood like a pair of giant sentinels just behind the security gates. They were currently in a low-power state, with only their main head monitors continuously scanning the surroundings, checking for any anomalies.

Meanwhile, a number of Secret Service agents stood guard, patrolled the area, and guided visitors along the correct paths. The Light Exoskeletons they wore featured a special aesthetic design, blending almost seamlessly with their all-black uniforms, making the agents look less conspicuous and intimidating than military or police personnel.

Some students would even excitedly ask to take photos with them or the HCPs. As long as it didn’t interfere with their duties, the agents generally didn’t refuse these requests.

After all, this was the Federal Capital, the safest place in the Federation. They couldn’t imagine what could possibly go wrong here.

That was until a series of urgent alerts sounded in their ears, followed by the tense command of the commander of the Presidential Palace’s special forces:

“All personnel, the President has issued a martial law order! All tours of the Presidential Palace are suspended! Squads 1-6, begin clearing the area! Operation ‘Robin’ has begun. All units, enter combat status! Squads 7-12, proceed to the armory for combat loadouts! This is not a drill. I repeat…”

At the beginning of each year, the Secret Service would establish a new set of operation codenames. Operations or missions with these fixed codenames were generally not simple tasks.

And the codename ‘Robin’ signified that the Presidential Palace was facing a grave threat. The President would be escorted to the bunker, all of the Palace’s defense systems would be activated, and all Secret Service agents were to enter combat status, with authorization to shoot and kill any suspicious individuals entering the security perimeter.

Although their minds were filled with questions, as Secret Service agents, they immediately began to execute their orders.

The security gates closed. The students and teachers who hadn’t yet entered the Presidential Palace complained loudly, but the two HCPs behind the gates, now fully active, made them instinctively back away.

When the teachers saw the martial law order notifications on their respective terminals, they first verified its authenticity, and then, daring not to delay any longer, they quickly led their students away.

The tourists who were already inside the Presidential Palace were swiftly escorted out by Secret Service agents and ordered to leave the 200-meter security zone surrounding the Palace grounds.

Teams of agents, having rapidly changed into their combat gear, attached additional ballistic plates to their exoskeletons and retrieved various military-grade weapons and explosives from the armory. They quickly took up their prepared positions, which rose from beneath the ground all around the Presidential Palace.

Near these positions, fortress-like heavy particle cannon turrets rose from beneath the vast lawn. The screech of metal was particularly piercing in the quiet air. The tips of the acceleration rails glinted with a chilling light, like the opened eyes of Death, mercilessly watching the outside world.

Combined with the composite armor walls that rose around the perimeter, they formed a temporary defensive line that completely encircled the Presidential Palace. After the Atlas Group had demonstrated this “retro” style defensive combination on Parra IV and it had proven its effectiveness, the Presidential Palace had quickly updated its own defensive measures.

“All heavy particle cannon turrets have been raised! Anti-aircraft high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons have also been activated!”

“All deflector shield generators are operating stably and have entered automatic ‘Protection’ mode!”

“All Secret Service operatives on duty at the Presidential Palace are in position! Reinforcements have departed from Secret Service headquarters and are expected to arrive in ten minutes!”

Streams of information converged on the Presidential Palace’s security commander. When he saw all the defensive installations on his small virtual sand table turn green, and the ‘VIP tag’ representing the President reach the underground bunker, he quietly let out a sigh of relief.

At least this President wouldn’t end up like a certain predecessor in history, killed in the presidential office by opposition armed forces—

“What?! Have you confirmed that the Capital Garrison 2nd and 3rd Regiments have mutinied?”

Inside the underground bunker, Brandon had just contacted the Martial Law Commander, Rear Admiral Henry, only to be met with bad news right away.

“Yes, Your Excellency,” Rear Admiral Henry said in a low voice.

“We’ve completely lost contact with the 2nd and 3rd Regiments. Surveillance satellites over the Capital have also detected both units leaving their garrisons with all their heavy equipment. The 2nd Regiment is in travel configuration and, based on their route, is heading for the Congress Building. The 3rd has deployed into an urban combat formation; their target appears to be the Department of Defense building.”

“The Department of Defense building… Tsk, Minister Miller is in danger.”

Brandon’s brow furrowed. It was unclear if he was worried about Minister of Defense Miller’s safety or something else entirely.

The Department of Defense building, located in the Federal Capital Special District, did not have substantial defensive forces.

Outside the building, security was handled by the armed police of the local precinct—in reality, this precinct’s main job was to maintain stability in the outer area.

Police officers would investigate and question ordinary vehicles entering the vicinity of the Department of Defense building at key intersections, serving as the first line of defense under normal circumstances.

However, even though these armed police were better equipped and had more firepower than typical precinct police, they were still a far cry from the regular army. At most, a police force might have a few Multi-legged war machines, but certainly not HCPs.

As for the interior of the Department of Defense building, although the security personnel were more varied, this force, composed of federal police, Secret Service agents, and defense contractors, could at best be considered a ‘light infantry’ unit. In Amber’s words, their firepower wasn’t even as strong as the security forces at an Atlas overseas office.

So, Brandon knew very well that without reinforcements, the Department of Defense building would certainly not hold.

“Rear Admiral Henry, how many troops do you have under your control?” Brandon asked.

“Garrison Command Headquarters has one battalion, but they only have infantry fighting vehicles and no other heavy equipment. We’ve also made contact with the Garrison 1st Regiment. They can be mobilized at any time.”

Brandon said, “Send the Garrison 1st Regiment directly to the Department of Defense building for support. We must not let the rebels take it!”

“The Department of Defense building? What about your position? The defensive forces at the Presidential Palace are also limited,” Rear Admiral Henry asked, surprised. He hadn’t expected the President to prioritize protecting the Department of Defense.

“The Presidential Palace has its own defensive facilities, and other ‘armed forces’ will be arriving to support us soon, so there’s no need to worry for now. But it’s a different story for the Department of Defense. Facing an entire regiment, their security forces won’t be able to put up any resistance.”

Brandon explained, his eyes fixed on a unit approaching the Presidential Palace on the holographic sand table.

On the other end of the communication, Rear Admiral Henry didn’t know what ‘armed forces’ the President was referring to, but he had to admit that Brandon was right. Compared to the Presidential Palace, the situation at the Department of Defense building was indeed more critical.

But the problem was that the current threat wasn’t just coming from within the Capital Special District.

“Your Excellency,” Rear Admiral Henry continued, “there’s something you must know. The 2nd and 3rd Garrison Heavy Combined Arms Brigades have left their stations and are rapidly approaching the Capital Special District. They have severed contact with the Martial Law Command Headquarters, and their vanguard has already adopted an attack formation.”

“The 2nd and 3rd Garrison Brigades… they’ve been compromised too?”

This sudden news made Brandon realize the situation was even more complex than he had imagined. But even so, he stuck to his decision.

“The order stands. It will take some time for those two brigades to reach the city, but the Department of Defense is about to be attacked. Send your men to support them first!”

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

After the communication with the Garrison Command Headquarters ended, Brandon looked up at a senior military officer in the bunker and asked, “Who is the commander of the 1st Garrison Brigade?”

“That would be Colonel Kallen.”

The senior officer who answered had been listening to the entire conversation between Brandon and Rear Admiral Henry, so he guessed what Brandon wanted to know and continued to elaborate:

“When he was nominated for promotion to Commander of the Capital Garrison Brigade, he had a very unpleasant falling out with members of Congress over some political differences. His first promotion was even blocked by Congress. Of all the senior officers in that promotion cycle, his was the only one that was denied.”

Brandon’s eyes lit up. “It sounds like this Colonel Kallen doesn’t get along with the members of Congress?”

“That is correct,” the senior officer nodded. “And his promotion was recommended by the Minister of the Army, who was in turn brought up through the ranks by the Minister of Defense…”

“So he’s ‘one of us’?”

“Yes, under the current circumstances, he is indeed ‘one of us’.”

Hearing the officer’s reply, Brandon no longer hesitated and had the bunker’s communications officer connect him to the 1st Garrison Brigade’s command headquarters.

Soon, a middle-aged officer, fully armed and wearing a combat exoskeleton, appeared on the holographic projection platform.

“Your Excellency! The Capital 1st Garrison Brigade has assembled and awaits your orders!”

Colonel Kallen snapped to attention and saluted, an almost palpable sense of grim determination radiating from him.

Brandon looked at the middle-aged soldier and said slowly, “Colonel Kallen, the time has come for the Federation to test you.”

“Understood, Your Excellency! We have been waiting for this order…”

——

Meanwhile, outside the Presidential Palace, the Secret Service agents and armed police reinforcements who were on high alert also spotted an unidentified armed group approaching.

“Drone has spotted an unidentified armed unit—231 armed personnel, 12 light multi-legged war machines, six medium multi-legged war machines, and three HCPs! They have passed the intersection of Constitution Street and Liberty Avenue!”

“Maintain surveillance! All units, prepare for combat!”

Although the Presidential Palace’s defense commander immediately issued the ‘prepare for combat’ order, he was still muttering to himself.

This was because the unit had shown no hostile intent. The drone that had just spotted them was a standard model used by the peripheral armed police, and it hadn’t been shot down, which indicated that the approaching force had no intention of attacking them.

Thinking of this, the defense commander couldn’t help but recall what President Brandon had told him before entering the bunker: an armed unit would be coming to reinforce them.

“Could this be them?”

Just as the defense commander was thinking this, he heard his nearby adjutant speak up: “Report! Receiving a laser identification code from the unknown unit… wait, identification confirmed?! Combat assistance system is marking them as friendly forces!”

“They’re really friendlies?”

The defense commander was stunned for a moment. Then, his unit’s communication channel received a request to connect.

After cautiously having the Communications Officer set up a temporary communication line and instructing the electronic warfare technician to be ready for an electronic warfare attack at a moment’s notice, the defense commander accepted the call. A cold voice came from the other side.

“This is the ‘Corporate Consortium’ security team. We have been commissioned to assist in the defense of the Presidential Palace. Please direct us to a defensive position.”

The defense commander had heard of the ‘Corporate Consortium’ before. Rumor had it that it was a ‘mutual aid group’ formed by some corporations to get through tough times after the dissolution of the “Military-industrial complex”. And now, it seemed this ‘Corporate Consortium’ had some connection to the President as well?

But the defense commander couldn’t be bothered with these details now. The arrival of this armed force was, for him, like sending charcoal in a snowstorm.

So, after repeatedly confirming that their laser identification codes were correct, the defense commander temporarily integrated them into the tactical network under his unified command.

The other party didn’t waste any time either, quickly adjusting their line of march and heading towards the designated defensive sector on the perimeter of the Presidential Palace.

The very moment the defense commander felt a surge of joy at the reinforcement of the Presidential Palace’s defenses, the combat assistance system suddenly blared an alarm.

“Warning! Strong electric field reaction detected! Assessed as heavy particle cannon fire!”

Boom!

The next second, a beam of blue-white light flashed from the street corner without warning, striking the rear of the armed unit that had just arrived.

Amidst the violent explosion, the defense commander saw the icons representing a dozen armed personnel and three light multi-legged war machines on his newly updated list of support units marked with red crosses.

“Enemy attack! Enemy attack! The attack is coming from the direction of Constitution Street! Multiple HCPs are approaching rapidly!” the adjutant in charge of monitoring the battlefield situation yelled. Then, the drone surveillance feed before him dissolved into static. It was clear that this time, the real enemy had appeared.

The sudden attack had clearly stunned the ‘Corporate Consortium’ security team. Their previously neat, fast-moving formation was shattered by the single blast. However, the pilots of the three HCPs in their ranks reacted quickly, immediately sliding to the rear of the formation and activating their deflector shields without hesitation.

The next second, a volley of attacks swept over them, kicking up a frenzied storm of silver lightning and plunging the entire intersection into a violent flash of light.

It also meant that the hot war between the two sides of the coup had officially begun.

Chapter 621: The Composure of a Veteran Commander

Not long after the firefight near the Presidential Palace began, the Secret Service defense commander had also figured out the identity of the attackers.

These units attacking the Corporate Consortium’s security forces were also not official Federation units, but rather the ‘private soldiers’ of another group of corporations.

To be honest, the defense commander was quite shocked that these corporate security forces, these private soldiers, could pull out HCPs armed with heavy particle cannons in the Federation Capital.

But at this moment, he had no time to ponder the origins of these machines. After all, any additional defensive strength for the Presidential Palace increased their chances of survival.

So, the defense commander didn’t hesitate for long before ordering the defensive units and fixed turrets near the Presidential Palace to provide fire support for the friendly units.

As the fixed heavy particle cannons flashed with electrical light, they easily pierced the deflector shield of a targeted HCP before tearing off the upper half of the unit’s chassis.

Of the two squads, totaling six HCPs, originally stationed at the Presidential Palace, two took the initiative to sally forth. Amidst the blue glow of their plasma thruster arrays, they charged directly onto the rooftops of nearby buildings and launched a surprise attack from their high vantage point.

Although the machines, weighing dozens of tons, crushed the buildings’ roofs, the two HCPs managed to destroy several multi-legged war machines and break the attacking formation before retreating unscathed.

But they brought back bad news.

The moment the two pilots reached the high ground, they had activated all of their units’ detection systems and performed a scan, discovering that more unidentified armed forces were approaching the Presidential Palace.

Soon, the final images transmitted by several downed drones also showed that these attacking forces had the same configuration as the enemy in front of the Presidential Palace: a mix of infantry, multi-legged war machines, and HCPs.

An increase in enemy HCPs was naturally not good news for the defenders of the Presidential Palace.

These highly mobile, high-firepower units—which were also highly survivable as long as their deflector shields held—were a real headache for the defenders.

With a numerical advantage, the enemy could use the high mobility of their HCPs to constantly harass them, stretching the gun lines of the defense forces and fixed emplacements, and ultimately achieve a breakthrough.

“Sir, once their reinforcements arrive, it’s not going to be so easy to defend this place.”

The adjutant, who had also seen the enemy reinforcements, sidled up to the defense commander and spoke.

“Of course I damn well know that, I’m not blind,” the defense commander replied, annoyed. “What can I do? Should I just abandon my post and run?”

The adjutant scratched his head. “A wise person knows when to yield…”

“I don’t want to hear that again.”

The defense commander spun around abruptly, pinning his adjutant against a parapet. His iron fist, augmented by his combat exoskeleton, slammed into the wall right beside the adjutant’s head.

“Think about your duty! Think about why we’re standing here right now! If you don’t think you have the courage to stay, then take off your gear and get the hell out! I’ll have the others execute you as a deserter!”

“Sir, I didn’t say anything just now!”

The adjutant snapped to attention, saluted the defense commander, then grabbed his weapon and ran toward the front line.

The defense commander watched his retreating back without a word, but in his heart, he too was beginning to worry.

He wasn’t a fool who enjoyed leading his men to die on their positions, but as a Secret Service agent and head of the Presidential Palace guard, his duty compelled him to hold his ground here.

And he knew very well that without reinforcements, the Presidential Palace would eventually fall to the attackers, relying on just this handful of Secret Service agents and beat cops—

“Your Excellency, the Presidential Palace guard reports that they have engaged the enemy on the perimeter. The attackers are private forces belonging to several corporations.”

“Have Madame Paris’s reinforcements arrived?”

“One group has arrived with their equipment, but they were ambushed while linking up with us and lost some gear. Two other armed groups were intercepted en route and are currently engaged with the enemy three blocks away.”

Inside the bunker beneath the Presidential Palace, Brandon stood before the holographic sand table, listening to an officer’s report on the current situation.

He wasn’t surprised to hear that another group of ‘private armed forces’ was attacking Madame Paris’s reinforcements.

He knew all too well that after the military-industrial complex was dismantled, these corporations, far weaker than before, had to seek shelter under high-ranking Federation government officials to survive.

A group of corporations, led by Madame Paris, had chosen to align with the ‘Iron Triangle,’ while another faction had found patrons among the leadership of both major political parties.

In other words, the military-industrial complex, which had been forcibly broken up after being heavily damaged by the Atlas Group, was essentially carved up by the Federation’s top brass, creating a deformed situation of government-business integration, but divided into different camps.

When he saw the insignia on the attacking armored units in the footage from the Presidential Palace’s security forces, Brandon couldn’t help but sneer.

“Hmph. Gabriel Biologics. I never thought that after choosing to part ways with Madame Paris, they would ultimately decide to meet on the battlefield.”

Another of the President’s advisors spoke up. “For them, this is a gamble. If they win, their return to their former status will be just around the corner.”

“Which is all the more reason I can’t let them succeed,” Brandon said, a vicious edge to his voice. He then looked at the officer who was reporting. “What’s the situation on the other fronts?”

“Garrison 3rd Regiment has now approached the Department of Defense building. The vanguard of Garrison 1st Regiment, composed of HCPs and high-mobility armored units, is counter-attacking. The main body of the 1st Regiment is establishing a temporary defensive line near the Department of Defense. Meanwhile, after leaving some troops to defend the Congress Building, the remainder of Garrison 2nd Regiment has begun advancing toward our position.

As for the Capital Garrison Brigades, the HCP units spearheading all three brigades have entered the Capital Special District. Colonel Kallen of the First Brigade has already ordered some light infantry units to break off from the main force and is prioritizing reinforcing us. As for the rebel Second and Third Garrison Brigades, apart from the HCPs that have already entered the city, their other units are still proceeding according to standard attack protocols!”

Brandon said, “They have a numerical advantage right now, so of course they won’t rush. They’ll proceed steadily, trying to completely secure the Capital Special District.”

“Indeed,” the officer nodded in agreement. “Among the other forces, the closest units won’t arrive until tomorrow evening. This means the rebels will have absolute numerical superiority until then. They certainly know this, so once the main forces of their two brigades are all in the city, they will undoubtedly launch a fierce assault.”

“What would you say are our chances of holding out until tomorrow night with the forces we currently command?”

Brandon asked. Seeing the officer’s hesitant expression, he added another sentence.

“Tell me the truth.”

“One brigade, one regiment, plus Secret Service agents and some armed police… it’s really not realistic to expect these forces to hold out against two heavy armored brigades and two regiments until tomorrow night.”

The officer knew that pleasantries were pointless at this stage, so he didn’t mince words and gave his honest assessment.

“Not to mention the armed police—we can’t expect them to fight to the death against the regular army. What’s worse is that the Second and Third Garrison Brigades have a large amount of heavy equipment, and this extra heavy firepower is something we are completely unable to handle in urban warfare.”

Brandon: “So your judgment is?”

“If no other reinforcements can reach us, our defeat is certain.”

After uttering this grim proclamation, the officer saluted Brandon, then stood silently before the holographic sand table.

After the officer laid out the grim situation, the entire bunker fell silent.

Although everyone who had been allowed into the bunker was a diehard loyalist of President Brandon, or rather, the ‘Iron Triangle,’ that didn’t mean they could maintain their confidence after hearing the verdict of ‘certain defeat.’

But since they were already in the bunker, there was no possibility of leaving. All they could do now was use silence to mask the unease in their hearts.

“Hahahaha, it sounds like the situation is quite unfavorable for us, doesn’t it~”

President Brandon’s laughter suddenly rang out in the silence, not only inappropriate for the occasion but also somewhat jarring.

The people in the bunker looked at each other, some even beginning to suspect that the President, who had been ‘driven into a corner,’ had finally gone mad.

But in the next second, their eyes widened as they heard Brandon’s next words.

“But it seems both you and the enemy have forgotten that there is another member of the ‘Iron Triangle’.”

“But isn’t Marshal Trafalgar leading the fleet on an expedition? Even if he knew about the situation in the Capital, there’s no way he could return to help, right?”

“What if I told you that Marshal Trafalgar actually anticipated this situation and left an ace up his sleeve beforehand? Don’t tell me you’ve all forgotten that more than half of the Capital Garrison Fleet is still in orbit?”

Brandon watched with satisfaction the expressions of ‘snatching hope from the jaws of despair’ on everyone’s faces, though he himself had only learned of Marshal Trafalgar’s backup plan minutes earlier, through a secret channel from Minister of Defense Miller.

“That Trafalgar… he only told Miller. Does he not even trust me?”

Although Brandon was displeased that the Fleet Admiral had kept this secret even from him, he had to admit that the ‘veteran commander’ was indeed experienced and incredibly sharp in this regard.

He knew that his departure with the capital fleet would be the perfect opportunity for those plotting a coup, so the remaining Garrison Fleet units were his direct subordinates, completely loyal to him—a secret weapon to turn the tide at the critical moment.

In the region of space near the capital planet, a vessel that looked like an ordinary merchant ship carefully tucked itself into the shadow of Satellite Two. Then, the cooling layer beneath its hull’s armor plating began to rapidly dissipate the outer layer’s heat using propellant water.

Before long, under the effect of multiple heat dissipation systems, the ‘merchant ship’s’ temperature dropped to a level close to that of the cosmic background.

“Hull temperature has dropped below the red line. Blackbody coating and optical invisibility activated. Passive radar wave cancellation device has been switched to adaptive mode. This vessel has now entered covert operations mode.”

Hearing the voice of the crew member—outwardly a navigator, but in reality a Tactical Information Coordinator—the people on the bridge breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Major Merlin, captain of this vessel from the Atlas combat fleet’s Special Operations Division, especially loosened his tight grip on the arms of the captain’s chair.

This ‘spy ship’ of theirs, armed and disguised as a merchant vessel, had just been on the verge of being discovered by a patrol vessel from the Federation’s Capital Garrison Fleet.

Major Merlin flipped open the faceplate of his in-ship suit’s helmet, wiped away the sweat that the climate control system hadn’t wicked away, and asked, “What’s going on? Can someone tell me why the Garrison Fleet is suddenly on the move?”

“Captain, judging by the Garrison Fleet’s trajectory, they are preparing to enter the capital planet’s orbit. It feels a lot like the procedure for escorting an orbital assault ship into low orbit,” the intelligence officer replied.

“Is the Garrison Fleet really going to conduct an orbital strike on its own capital?” Major Merlin’s eyebrows shot up, clearly surprised by this development. “The Garrison Fleet should be under the Fleet Admiral’s control. So for them to do this… are they planning on ‘coming to the Emperor’s aid’?”

“Whether they’re coming to the aid of their ruler, I don’t know, Captain. All I know is that the capital planet’s Orbital Defense Platforms seem intent on stopping them! Several weapon groups have already been activated!”

As the intelligence officer spoke, he displayed the composite image generated by the integrated detection system on the bridge’s main screen. A number of turrets on the Orbital Defense Platforms were adjusting their angles, pointing their firing axes in the direction of the Garrison Fleet.

Major Merlin: “That’s not right. According to our intelligence, aren’t the Orbital Defense Platforms supposed to be in the hands of the President’s triumvirate?”

The spy ship’s captain was confused, but he didn’t have time to ponder the reason why. He immediately turned to the Communications Officer on the other side and ordered:

“Send the current situation back to headquarters. Use encrypted channel 24. Be quick!”

Just as Atlas’s spy ship was nervously transmitting its message, the distant Capital Garrison Fleet began its move. The warships at the front of the formation suddenly launched all their ship-borne HCPs in a full-deck launch.

Almost at the exact moment these HCPs appeared in space, some of the weapon groups on the Orbital Defense Platforms directly in front of them opened fire. Beams from directed-energy weapons and trajectories from point-defense electromagnetic cannons rapidly filled the entire region of space.

“Attack team confirms Orbital Defense Platforms have opened fire! Just as we thought, the rebels have infiltrated this place too!”

The Garrison Fleet’s HCP commander shouted over the fleet’s communication channel, simultaneously issuing the order ‘weapons free’ to all deployed HCP squadrons.

The pilots of these steel giants, after skillfully forming into attack formations, swiftly dispersed in all directions and began to attack from the flanks and rear.

Their tactical maneuvers, combat experience, and mentality were on a completely different level from the garrison pilots who were perpetually stationed at the Capital.

“Everything is as the Marshal predicted. Don’t panic! Compared to the battles we’ve been through, this is just child’s play!”

The Capital Garrison Fleet Commander—formerly the commander of the Federation Navy’s Fourteenth Fleet, Rear Admiral Griezmann—waved his hand and declared in a resonant voice:

“It’s just an attack from some of the weapon groups, nothing to fear!

“HCP attack teams, quickly neutralize the threat from these weapon groups!

“Vanguard fleet, release the assault pods! Marines, upon completing the boarding action, quickly eliminate the rebels on the Orbital Defense Platforms and establish contact with other friendly forces!

“Orbital assault ship squadron, begin lowering your orbit!”

After issuing this series of commands, Rear Admiral Griezmann turned to the bridge’s Communications Officer.

“Contact the Martial Law Command on the ground. Tell Martial Law Commander Rear Admiral Henry that orbital support is ready!”

Chapter 622: Orbital Drop on the Capital

Amber, far away at Atlas headquarters, was indeed a little surprised when he received the news. He hadn’t expected Marshal Trafalgar to have kept such a move in reserve and could only sigh; the old were indeed the wiliest.

As for Rear Admiral Henry at the Federation Capital’s Martial Law Command Headquarters, when he received the communication from the Garrison Fleet, he felt as if he had been transported from hell to heaven.

His confidence as Martial Law Commander surged, especially after gaining the support of the orbital strike fleet.

At first, Rear Admiral Henry wasn’t sure if Marshal Trafalgar had intentionally left behind a majority of the Capital Garrison Fleet, which, to his surprise, included three squadrons totaling thirty ‘Wyrmling-class’ near-space orbital assault ships.

Besides providing fire support with orbital attack missiles, these assault ships could also deploy orbital paratrooper forces composed of infantry, light multi-legged war machines, and HCPs.

Only after the near-space orbital assault ships were integrated into the martial law forces’ tactical network did Rear Admiral Henry, using his commander’s authority, discover that the marines aboard these ships were all veterans recalled from the front lines of the war with the Empire.

“It seems Marshal Trafalgar was prepared. Could he have guessed that those bastards, Elaine King and Thomas White, would stage a coup?”

Rear Admiral Henry thought to himself, but this time he was mistaken.

Marshal Trafalgar had prepared a contingent of battle-hardened veterans to remain with the Capital Garrison Fleet not because he had predicted the two party leaders would launch a coup—in fact, the armed coup currently underway was, in a sense, quite accidental.

The Fleet Admiral had simply “seen it all before” and left behind this absolutely loyal and combat-ready force as a precaution.

Of course, Rear Admiral Henry didn’t realize this, or rather, he had no time to ponder it now, because…

“The counterattack starts now!”

Rear Admiral Henry danced with excitement in the Combat Command Center of the Martial Law Command Headquarters. The support from the Garrison Fleet gave him the confidence to turn the tables and crush all the rebels in one fell swoop.

Orbital paratroopers were primarily light infantry, equipped with some all-terrain vehicles for mobility, a small number of light multi-legged war machines carrying 120mm dual-purpose cannons for direct or indirect fire support, and, as a last resort, a few HCPs.

To send such a force against a unit like a heavy combined arms brigade was undoubtedly like throwing an egg against a stone. The latter could probably end the fight with a single charge from a concentration of its heavy armored units.

However, the nature of orbital paratroopers allowed Rear Admiral Henry to deploy them rapidly to key locations. Furthermore, street fighting within the city could compensate for some of the weaknesses of a light force, giving them more cover to utilize instead of facing the enemy in a direct firefight on an open plain.

What’s more, the deployed orbital paratroopers were all seasoned veterans tested in numerous real battles on the front lines. Compared to a “parade unit” like the Capital Garrison Brigade, their combat experience was on a completely different level—experience that was more than enough to offset their disadvantages and even turn the tide of battle.

The majority of the Garrison Fleet left behind by Marshal Trafalgar now fully revealed their true colors as a fleet in disguise.

Unlike the common impression of the Capital Garrison Fleet only conducting steady, predictable ‘orbital cruises,’ these near-space orbital assault ships aggressively lowered their orbital altitude, moving into attack position in an extremely short amount of time.

When Rear Admiral Henry saw the “Orbital Strike Ready” signal light up on his command terminal, he grew ecstatic. After all, he hadn’t commanded such an elite force since becoming the Commander of the Capital Garrison.

So, without further hesitation, he transmitted the coordinates and relevant information for the positions that the orbital paratroopers needed to defend and control to the near-space orbital assault ship squadrons via the tactical network and issued the order: “Orbital paratroopers, commence the drop immediately.”

High above the Federation capital planet, in low orbit.

On the first wave of ten near-space orbital assault ships, the orbital drop bay doors at their bellies slowly opened, and rows of specially designed drop pods were pushed into launch position.

Yellow indicator lights for ‘Prepare to Drop’ flashed inside each drop pod while the voices of each ship’s drop commander echoed in the ears of the orbital paratroopers.

“All hands, prepare for orbital drop! Target—key nodes throughout the special administrative region! The rebels are rapidly approaching the special administrative region, and we must reach the ground before them to prepare for the defense of the Capital!”

The commander’s resolute and powerful voice reverberated through the communication channel. Everyone understood the significance of this mission and the weight of the command to ‘defend the Capital.’

As the drop countdown began, the engines of the near-space orbital assault ships started to emit a low rumble. Immense power surged within the hulls, and the ships trembled slightly as they aligned the drop pods at their bellies with the target area.

Through the display screens at the bottom of the drop pods, the orbital paratroopers could see the blue planet below gradually rotating into view. The mountains, rivers, and vast cities on the planet’s surface became increasingly clear.

“Five, four, three, two, one, drop!”

In an instant, immense launch force shot the drop pods out of the transport ships like cannonballs. Hundreds of drop pods formed a spectacular meteor shower in orbit, hurtling toward the planet’s atmosphere.

At first, in the dark, silent expanse of space, the drop pods flew at high speed along their predetermined trajectory, leaving long booster trails behind them as they descended toward the planet’s atmosphere with unstoppable momentum.

They were surrounded by endless, distant, and cold stars, which seemed to be silently watching this assault that spanned from the heavens to the earth.

As they descended, the planet’s gravity gradually pulled the drop pods toward the atmosphere. Upon contact with the edge of the atmosphere, intense friction was instantly generated. The surface of the drop pods glowed a scorching orange-red, and the surrounding air was extremely compressed, forming a violent layer of plasma that emitted a deafening roar.

Encased in plasma, the drop pods resembled burning daylight meteors, carving brilliant and breathtaking trajectories through the atmosphere.

Inside the pods, the orbital paratroopers endured immense g-forces, their bodies pressed tightly into their seats, but their eyes remained firm.

These soldiers, absolutely loyal to the Federation Navy and Marshal Trafalgar, feared no danger. At a single command, they would not hesitate for a moment, even if a mountain of swords and a sea of fire from which there was no return awaited them.

Not to mention, the objective of their operation was to defend the Capital, to protect the legitimate government of the Federation from the attacks of the ‘rebels.’

At this moment, for the first time in their lives, residents of the Federation capital planet in suitable locations witnessed a stream of ‘daylight meteors’ streaking across the sky above them.

It was a sight they had never imagined, never dared to believe would happen over the Federation Capital.

But now, it was truly happening.

And it meant that for the Federation, a great change was coming.

Chapter 623: Orbital Strike on the Capital

“General! Report from the field air surveillance radar! We’ve detected a large number of high-speed units descending from outside the atmosphere. They’ve been identified as orbital paratrooper drop pods! Three hundred units! Estimated landing zone: the capital’s urban district!”

“Orbital paratroopers?!”

Vice Admiral Austin was shocked by his subordinate’s report. After all, according to the intelligence he had received, including that from Elaine King and the others, there was only a single, understrength garrison fleet in the capital planet’s orbit. Moreover, the orbital defense platforms had been infiltrated by forces loyal to the two party leaders and were supposed to be locked down once ‘Operation Pest Control’ began.

While not all of the orbital defense platforms would be seized, they should have been sufficient to block the combat-inexperienced garrison fleet, let alone allow them to launch an orbital drop.

Although Vice Admiral Austin was a veteran of the army, his appointment as the Chief of Army Training toward the end of his career and his subsequent return to the capital as the joint commander of the three garrison brigades meant he still had plenty of connections. Thus, he was well aware of what kind of rabble the garrison fleet in orbit was.

The orbital paratroopers up there were lucky to conduct a single drop exercise a year, let alone one that involved breaking through orbital defense platforms.

“What in the world is going on?”

Before Vice Admiral Austin could figure it out, the communications officer sitting on the other side of the command vehicle suddenly spoke to him. “General, we have an incoming communication request!”

“Who is it from?”

“It’s… it’s the Martial Law Commander, Rear Admiral Henry.” The communications officer stared at the caller ID for a moment, then stammered.

With their forces on the brink of battle, a sudden communication request from the opposing commander was a surprise to everyone in the command vehicle, especially Vice Admiral Austin. He was also curious about what the man wanted.

“Patch him through. Let’s see what this fellow is up to.”

The call was connected quickly. After Vice Admiral Austin informed Elaine King and Thomas White of the situation, the two party leaders joined the line to listen in.

“Vice Admiral Austin, what on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

Rear Admiral Henry’s voice was filled with rage, yet even now, when addressing Vice Admiral Austin—a man who outranked him—he still used the proper honorifics.

“I…”

Faced with Rear Admiral Henry’s aggressive questioning, Vice Admiral Austin had just opened his mouth to speak when he was cut off. The furious Martial Law Commander continued:

“You should know that His Excellency the President has declared martial law! The Capital Garrison Forces should be assembled at their stations, awaiting orders. What exactly do you think you’re doing, marching two brigades toward the capital?”

Vice Admiral Austin froze, unsure how to answer. He couldn’t very well admit he was there to stage a military coup, could he?

Thinking this, he glanced at the icons for the two party leaders on the comms channel and said:

“Rear Admiral Henry, I know you’re very angry and emotional right now, but I hope you can calm down. Or… perhaps listen to what Ms. King and Mr. White have to say?”

“Those two bastards are listening in?” There was a pause on the channel before Rear Admiral Henry’s voice returned, even more furious and stern. “What do you two think you’re doing? Speak up!”

But in the next instant, Vice Admiral Austin’s screen was flooded with a barrage of text messages from the two party leaders. The gist of it was simple—they weren’t going to speak.

Seeing this, the old army vice admiral couldn’t help but sigh, inwardly cursing how none of these politicians were reliable when it truly counted.

Finally, he had no choice but to brace himself and speak up:

“Rear Admiral Henry, I hope you can calm down for a moment. Just like you, we are also worried about our country.”

“You lunatics! Is this how you show your concern for the country, by staging a military coup like you’ve all gone insane?!”

Vice Admiral Austin had never imagined he would be scolded so directly by a junior officer of lower rank and seniority. He lost his temper. “Rear Admiral! I advise you to watch your tongue! Is this how you typically address a superior officer?!”

“Vice Admiral, I’m giving you one last warning. Take your troops and get the hell back to your garrison right now, or prepare to be blasted to bits by an orbital strike!”

Rear Admiral Henry said coldly, and after a moment, he added:

“And as for those two sons of bitches listening in, just you wait for the missiles from the orbital assault ships to rain down on your heads! If the Congress Building gets blown up, so be it. We’ll just build a taller one when this is all over!”

Doot—

As the dial tone of the disconnected line echoed, Vice Admiral Austin and the two eavesdroppers were snapped back to reality as if waking from a dream.

“Hey… wait… he did say ‘orbital strike,’ didn’t he?”

Republican Party leader Thomas White was the first to react, realizing that his own location—the Congress Building—was apparently also a target.

“Weren’t the orbital defense platforms supposed to stop those incompetents in the garrison fleet? How is an orbital strike even possible?!”

Elaine King said, “He must be bluffing, right?”

“Well… it might not be a bluff.”

At this point, Vice Admiral Austin didn’t dare withhold the truth. He answered immediately, “Just now, air defense radar detected orbital paratrooper units entering the atmosphere. Given the timing, their drop pods have likely already smashed through the dome over the Capital Special District and landed by now…”

“But… what about the capital’s anti-air defenses? They just let them land?”

“The anti-aircraft weapons in the Capital Special District are, of course, controlled by the Capital Garrison Command—which is to say, the current Martial Law Command. What’s more, Operation Pest Control never factored in orbital drop troops, so no effort was made to infiltrate their air defense units.”

“…”

There was a moment of silence on the comms channel. In the end, it was Thomas White who spoke up:

“Even if orbital paratroopers are landing, that doesn’t mean they’d actually dare to conduct an orbital strike, right? This is the capital we’re talking about. Do they really want to plunge the Federation’s capital into a sea of fire?”

“Attention, Orbital Assault Ship detachment. The approximate location of the main rebel force has been transmitted. You are to acquire targets at your discretion! The Capital Garrison Command, in its capacity as the Martial Law Command, hereby authorizes you to execute an orbital strike on the Capital Special District and its surrounding areas!”

Over the direct link between the Martial Law Command and the Garrison Fleet’s Orbital Assault Ship detachment, Rear Admiral Henry’s unwavering tone made the determination of this ‘Defender of the Capital’ clear to all.

“Orbital Assault Ship detachment copies. Proceeding with the orbital strike mission as planned.”

Having completed the orbital drop, the thirty near-space orbital assault ships quickly circled the planet and, like a necklace strung across the sky, returned to their position above the capital.

And this time, the panels that opened on the undersides of their hulls revealed missile silos, each one exposing the warhead nestled within.

There was no hesitation, no second-guessing. For these naval servicemen, personally selected by Marshal Trafalgar, there was only one course of action: to resolutely follow their orders.

One by one, ‘Dove’ orbital-to-surface attack missiles shot out of their launch tubes, propelled by electromagnetic acceleration rails in fleeting flashes of electric light.

They accelerated, maneuvered, and adjusted their trajectories. Then, following their designated attack paths, they plunged down toward the atmosphere.

On this day, the inhabitants of the Federation’s capital planet witnessed ‘shooting stars’ falling from the heavens for the second time.

Chapter 624: East Wind at Night Sets a Thousand Trees Ablaze with Flowers

Mr. James, an “ordinary citizen” living in the Federation’s Capital, was one of the “lucky ones” fortunate enough to witness the entire process of the Federation Navy’s garrison fleet launching an orbital drop and strike on the areas surrounding the Capital.

As the CEO of a company, he was in the penthouse office of his corporate headquarters, reviewing financial reports on the day Congress was to vote on the impeachment of the “Iron Triangle.”

Although he had learned through his own channels that congressmen from both parties were planning to impeach the current Federation President, the Minister of Defense, and others, he believed that the outcome would have a less significant impact on his company than one might think.

After all, what difference did it make who received his “political contributions”? If a new administration came to power, would they refuse his money?

At least in the current Federation, James didn’t believe such a person existed.

So, rather than focusing on such “unimportant” matters, he was more concerned with the news of the Atlas Group’s aggressive expansion within the Federation.

Heaven only knew if that insatiable corporation would one day get a wild idea and decide to acquire his company’s assets.

But by that afternoon, James, who had been “lost in his financial reports,” discovered that this “political struggle” was likely escalating beyond his predictions. After President Brandon issued the martial law order, it began to evolve into a “military coup.”

Considering the high probability that the Capital could be plunged into warfare, paralyzing transportation, networks, and essential services, James thought for a moment and decided to have the headquarters’ employees stay overnight instead of going home. They were not to leave the building for the time being.

This was to prevent any work delays caused by their inability to get to the office. After all, this was the headquarters, the heart of the entire company, and no problems could be allowed to arise.

Although employees could work from home, what if public network communications were cut off? It was safer to stay in the office and use the dedicated line custom-ordered from Atlas Communications.

However, the war in the Capital came much faster than he had imagined. Just after he gave the order for employees to remain at headquarters, the security department reported firefights erupting in multiple locations across the Capital Special District, with particularly intense fighting near the Presidential Palace and the Department of Defense building.

Standing at the edge of his dome office, James could even see HCPs occasionally leaping high from between buildings in the city, along with the intermittent flashes of directed-energy weapons and the sounds of explosions.

That night, an emergency notice was issued to everyone in the Capital Special District, advising them to stay home or seek shelter in the nearest air-raid bunker.

At the time, James felt the notice was a bit of an overreaction. After all, there was no need to conduct an orbital strike on one’s own capital city during a coup.

But the CEO soon discovered that he had underestimated the Federation soldiers at the center of this political vortex.

The first wave of drop pods carrying orbital paratroopers smashed directly through the Capital Special District’s high-tech dome, carrying countless shattered fragments of the dome down onto the capital’s streets.

When the security monitors in his headquarters showed squads of orbital paratroopers radiating murderous intent, along with multi-legged war machines, passing through the street below, James finally realized that these soldiers were playing for keeps.

His secretary reported that the employees at headquarters were in a state of panic. Many wanted to go home to their families, and a large group was even trying to force their way past the security blockade and leave the building.

Hearing this, James flew into a rage.

“These ungrateful fools! Am I keeping them here for the company’s sake? I’m doing this for the personal safety of you salary thieves! It’s chaotic out there, the orbital paratroopers have already landed, who knows what’s coming next? Going out now is just asking to be killed!”

Just as James was about to use the building’s broadcast system to “earnestly” persuade the employees to return, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

As if struck by a thought, the CEO immediately looked up at the sky through his penthouse office.

By now, the Capital Special District’s dome had been extensively shattered by the orbital paratroopers, allowing James to see the night sky directly through the remaining framework.

A string of ‘meteors’ was streaking toward the Capital Special District from a distance. Illuminated by the star on the far side of the planet, they reflected a strange optical effect in the night sky.

Remembering the orbital paratroopers that had landed earlier, James quickly realized these must be orbital strike projectiles launched from a near-space orbital assault ship.

Don’t ask James why he didn’t run when he saw the orbital strike projectiles falling.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to run; it was that his CEO office was on the top floor of the building.

The sight before him couldn’t help but remind James of the timeless verse ancient humans used to describe the spectacular sight of a ballistic missile with multiple warheads reentering the atmosphere.

“East wind at night sets a thousand trees ablaze with flowers, and blows down still more, a shower of stars…”

He unconsciously recited the lines, lamenting that the ancients had been somewhat conservative in their description; the speed at which these missiles tore through the atmosphere was far faster than a shower of rain.

After a moment of brief silence, James saw a sudden flash.

The first orbital strike projectile hit the ground. For an instant, the world seemed to stand still. Then, a deafening explosion shattered the brief serenity. An intense light instantly illuminated the entire night sky, bathing everything in a daylight glow.

Following that, the remaining missiles landed on their pre-set attack coordinates, each impact with the ground accompanied by a devastating blast, each flash a defiant challenge to the darkness.

Dozens of lights bloomed in succession within a few short seconds, each more dazzling than the last, as if time itself was stretched thin in that moment, allowing the citizens of the Capital to witness this series of continuous yet distinct acts of artistic destruction.

When the orbital strike ended, the entire Capital Special District fell into a deathly silence.

No one dared to leave their air-raid shelters or buildings, terrified that if they stepped outside, another round of orbital strike projectiles would rain down from the sky.

James and his secretary huddled together, trembling under his large desk.

During the explosions, the top floor of his building had shaken violently. The glass of the penthouse office had creaked for a long time, as if it would shatter at any second. Fortunately, its quality had withstood the test.

Coming to his senses, James immediately contacted the security department and ordered them to deploy drones to survey the damage in the city—although the Federation government strictly prohibited private enterprises in the Capital from operating drones within the city limits, most companies had secretly kept a batch on hand for emergencies.

And right now, this was an ‘emergency.’

Before long, the drone footage streamed in. When he saw the center of one feed—the Congress Building, leveled by the orbital strike, and the surrounding positions, now utterly unrecognizable—James couldn’t help but swallow hard.

“These madmen… you really can’t mess with them.”

At that thought, James suddenly slapped the shapely behind of his secretary, who was just getting to her feet, and said urgently:

“Quick! Find a way to check which side won!”

Chapter 625: The Military Government

“In the face of absolute military might, the schemes of politicians are merely a way to comfort themselves.”

Marshal Trafalgar, the current Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy, was a firm believer in this quote from the Federation’s founding marshal.

From the day he joined the military to his continuous promotions that brought him into contact with the Federation’s political sphere, this saying had proven true time and time again.

This was especially the case as his rank climbed ever higher, the number of troops under his command grew, and the stars of his loyal generals filled the skies. The old marshal discovered that the so-called ‘checks and balances’ employed by the Federation politicians were, indeed, nothing more than a way for them to comfort themselves.

He was, of course, aware of the apprehension toward him within the Federation government. He also knew that three successive presidents, including the incumbent President Brandon, and the Ruling party had all attempted to have him replaced.

But these efforts had all ended in failure, for the Federation government had discovered that Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘roots’ had already spread throughout the entire Navy. The backlash from a rash change in command was something they simply could not bear.

However, Marshal Trafalgar had never cared about the politicians’ caution and vigilance. Or rather, he had no interest in their fantasy of him ‘controlling the entire Federation’.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be Brandon sitting in the president’s chair right now.

In fact, whether the position of president—or even the Federation itself—would still exist would be an open question.

From beginning to end, Marshal Trafalgar had only one goal in his heart: to conquer the sea of stars and reunite humanity.

To achieve this goal, Marshal Trafalgar would stop at nothing, even if it meant gambling the fate of the entire Federation. Government, citizens, fleets—in his eyes, these were nothing but strings of numbers to be used in achieving his objective.

This was why he had appeared so ‘aggressive’ when he approached Brandon to demand an immediate counterattack after hearing of the Star Dragon Empire’s assault on the border.

This was why, in the subsequent battles, he repeatedly initiated decisive fleet battles in a manner akin to “gambling the nation’s fate.”

And this was why, despite not having a significant advantage, he had brazenly led his fleet to invade the Empire’s territory.

Because Marshal Trafalgar knew that this was the closest he had ever been to achieving his lifelong goal.

But the series of events that followed—especially how the once-inconspicuous Atlas Group had manipulated events from behind the scenes, ultimately raising the curtain on chaos within the Federation—had turned it all to dust.

The situation within the Federation had deteriorated far faster than he had imagined. Coupled with the fact that the various Star System Autonomous Governments had their own ulterior motives and their garrison units were weak and worthless in a fight, war had erupted across the Federation in just a few short months, threatening to tear it apart completely.

Under these circumstances, Trafalgar had no choice but to lead his remaining fleets out, preparing to first quell the rebellions near the core star systems.

He had not, of course, precisely predicted that the leaders of the two parties would launch a coup at this critical juncture. All the arrangements and plans he had made were simply the product of decades of accumulated ‘struggle experience’. The most crucial element of this was the quote from the founding marshal.

So, he had secretly swapped out the troops, replacing the members of the weak garrison fleet with his battle-hardened capital fleet. The purpose was to deliver the decisive blow at the most critical moment.

When the Fleet Admiral’s fleet concluded its battle and he received the urgent military dispatches from the Capital, there were three in total.

The first and earliest dispatch detailed the military coup launched by the leaders of the two parties in conjunction with officers from some of the garrison units.

The second was a report to him, the Marshal, that the garrison fleet would be entering combat and would conduct an orbital strike on the ‘rebel’ forces in and around the Capital Special District.

As for the third dispatch, Marshal Trafalgar hadn’t even planned to read it. He knew full well that once the garrison fleet he had left behind entered the fray, the so-called ‘rebels’ would have no chance of turning the tables.

The disparity in absolute power was not something politicians could overcome with their silver tongues.

In the end, however, Trafalgar opened the dispatch. He was, after all, a little curious about the results the garrison fleet had achieved after entering the battle.

He was also curious to see just how many of these scum who had launched a ‘military coup’ at such a critical juncture had been blown to bits by the orbital strike.

“The rebel main force—the former Second and Third Garrison Brigades—were attacked while marching on the outskirts of the Capital Special District. The Second Garrison Brigade, aside from some HCPs and light infantry units that had broken into the city, had over sixty percent of its main force annihilated by orbital strikes. The Third Garrison Brigade managed to disperse its forces in time for an emergency evasion when the first wave of orbital strikes began, but over half of its forces were annihilated in the subsequent second wave of ‘point-to-point’ strikes…

The rebel party members entrenched in the Congress Building and the rebellious Capital Guard Regiment were all annihilated in the orbital strike…

It is currently confirmed that rebel leaders Elaine King, Thomas White, Vice Admiral Austin, and others were all killed in the attack…

The surviving rebel forces have all surrendered. The Capital Special District has initiated a full-scale martial law with the assistance of orbital paratrooper units and is conducting a city-wide manhunt for the remaining rebel party members…”

The main content of the final dispatch was largely as Marshal Trafalgar had expected. He just hadn’t anticipated that the politicians holed up in the Congress Building, attempting to force through an impeachment vote in the Senate to legitimize their ‘coup’, would hand the garrison fleet a perfect opportunity to catch them all in one net.

“Hmph… a bunch of incompetents with rigid thinking. How could the Federation possibly be governed well in their hands?”

A week later, when Marshal Trafalgar returned to the Capital star system with a portion of the capital fleet, the ‘Iron Triangle’ immediately held a closed-door meeting.

No one besides the three of them knew the contents of the meeting. Others only knew that after the meeting concluded, martial law in the Capital star system continued. At the same time, a large number of marines and Military Police units were stationed in all of the Capital’s government agencies, gradually replacing personnel in key positions.

Not long after, President Brandon once again made a public address.

Dressed in a military uniform, he stood before the podium with a solemn expression. Behind him stood Fleet Admiral Trafalgar and Minister of Defense Miller, both also in military uniform.

“Citizens of the Federation, over the past week, our nation has endured a severe trial. We have successfully thwarted an illegal military coup, protecting the stability and security of the Federation.

During this period, the capital planet was placed under strict martial law and military control to ensure the safety and order of every citizen.

Today, I stand here to announce an important decision to all citizens of the Federation. In order to maintain national stability, ensure the restoration of constitutional order, and pave the way for a future democratic process, I hereby officially announce the establishment of a provisional military government.

Although this provisional military government will be led by the military, our objective remains unchanged—to restore normal constitutional order as soon as possible and to hold free and fair elections. We will take all necessary measures to ensure the nation remains stable during this transitional period and to lay a solid foundation for future development.”

Chapter 626: The Federation’s Counterattack

“How could I have been so foolish, truly.”

This was the first thing Isabelle heard Amber say when she found him after the turmoil from the coup on the Federation capital planet had subsided.

“I only knew that stirring up trouble during the chaos in the Federation Capital would make the situation even more chaotic, allowing us to profit from it; but I never expected this. These fucking Federation politicians are so pathetically weak, all talk and no action. The impeachment was launched in the morning, the coup started at noon, and they were all gone by night.”

“…”

Isabelle had wanted to say a few words, but when she thought about how this dramatic coup had ended at the speed of light, she was at a loss for words for a moment.

From the looks of it, the nobles in the Star Dragon Empire who had historically launched rebellions were indeed tougher, not as pathetic as these Federation politicians.

In Isabelle’s memory, the longest-lasting rebellion was led by a grand duke whose name had even been ‘erased’ from history. After failing to ambush the fleet carrying the Emperor himself, this grand duke held out against a two-year siege on his own planet. In the end, his whereabouts were exposed by a traitor, and he was crushed in his bunker by an orbital strike.

So in comparison, the so-called ‘military coup’ launched by these Federation politicians seemed like a joke.

It could be said that the Atlas Group, from top to bottom including Amber, had made a major strategic miscalculation this time. They had even given the ‘Iron Triangle’ a push on their way to the pinnacle of power.

And the ‘Iron Triangle’ had seized this opportunity, one that could be said to exist only in theory, to eliminate ninety percent of the opposition in one fell swoop. In particular, the wiping out of the members of both parties and both houses of Congress could almost be described as collectively neutralizing the Federation’s ‘political elite.’

This was also why martial law continued to be enforced in the Capital star system afterward, and why a military government could be announced at the speed of light after Marshal Trafalgar returned.

Because there was no one left to oppose them.

After a moment, Amber snapped out of his lamenting state and looked up at Isabelle again.

“So now they’ve officially announced the formation of a provisional military government?”

“That’s right~”

Isabelle nodded and then summoned a virtual screen in front of Amber, displaying the content of President Brandon’s previous public address.

At the time, because the Federation politicians behind the coup had been defeated so quickly, Amber’s vision had gone black upon hearing that three ground-attack orbital munitions had flattened the Congress Building and its surroundings. So, he hadn’t been in the mood to watch the subsequent public address.

“‘An illegal military coup.’ I suppose there are legal military coups, are there?”

Amber finished reading the entire text with a raised eyebrow. He finally smiled when he reached the end, which promised to restore normal constitutional order and hold fair elections as soon as possible.

“Anyone who believes that crap deserves this.”

Amber gave a thumbs-up and continued, “All the military and political power of the entire country is in their hands. When to hold new elections, or whether to hold them at all—isn’t that all up to the three of them now?~”

Thinking of this, Amber couldn’t help but sigh again.

He had originally planned to add fuel to the Federation’s fire, letting them tear each other apart in a dog-eat-dog struggle for a while to drain the vast nation’s already dwindling reserves. But instead, through a bizarre twist of fate, he had ended up helping the ‘Iron Triangle’ complete the final step of centralizing power.

Although a ‘provisional military government,’ which was essentially a military dictatorship, was definitely not a good thing for the Federation in the long run, in the short term, it had at least given them a new lease on life.

With the entire country’s military and political power in the hands of three closely-linked individuals who had long collaborated, their speed in handling certain policy matters and responding to major issues would be extremely fast, at the very least.

Especially now that Marshal Trafalgar was completely unrestrained, it made Amber wonder how many of the various rebellions and independence movements within the Federation could survive an encounter with him.

Amber: “The Renaissance Alliance has to hold strong for me!”

Isabelle: “That’s not a given, Amber.”

“Did something happen that I don’t know about?” Isabelle’s words sent an inexplicable shiver through Amber’s heart, and he quickly asked.

“Sigh… We only just confirmed this news as well.”

Isabelle’s expression was a bit strained too. She displayed another file on the virtual screen while continuing:

“It’s about what Franklin consulted you on. His ‘future father-in-law’ is the Speaker of the Federation House of Representatives, right? He was thinking of secretly cooperating with the Renaissance Alliance…”

“Fuck, I remember now!” Amber, realizing what had happened, clutched his forehead in anguish. “The Speaker of the House of Representatives was presiding over the impeachment vote that morning. He was wiped out along with everyone else, wasn’t he?”

Isabelle nodded. “Yes, completely gone. The news from the Capital is that in the ruins of the Congress Building, they could barely extract any DNA samples, making it impossible to verify the deaths…”

While Amber and Isabelle were discussing the Renaissance Alliance’s problems, Franklin was standing outside Eleanor’s bedroom door.

When the details of what had happened in the Federation Capital arrived, Eleanor had run back to her room in tears and locked herself in.

For two whole days, the girl had stayed in her room, refusing to eat or drink. If the control panel by the door hadn’t shown that Eleanor’s vital signs were relatively normal, Franklin would have forced the door open long ago.

Today, after finishing an emergency meeting about the Renaissance Alliance’s future strategic planning, Franklin returned to Eleanor’s bedroom door, hoping to coax the girl out.

He stood quietly outside Eleanor’s bedroom, the dim, yellow light of the corridor stretching his figure into a long and slightly lonely silhouette.

The leader of the Renaissance Alliance, whose prestige had greatly increased recently for brokering the cooperation with the Atlas Group, slowly raised a hand that was somewhat weary yet still steady, his fingertips lightly touching the cold door.

The knock was crisp yet gentle, echoing slowly in the unsettlingly quiet space.

“Eleanor, darling, please open the door.”

Franklin spoke into the intercom on the door’s control panel, but received no response.

Inside the room, where he couldn’t hear, Eleanor’s sobs were like a series of tiny blades, intermittently slicing through the oppressive air, like a wounded nightingale crying out in despair from a darkness so deep it seemed endless.

After what felt like an eternity, the door finally, slowly, opened.

Eleanor appeared at the doorway. Her eyes were red and swollen like ripe peaches that had been roughly rubbed, her once bright and captivating gaze now shrouded in endless sorrow.

Tears flowed freely down her pale, almost translucent cheeks, crisscrossing in tracks that looked like the merciless etchings of fate, or like the wilted petals of a flower after a storm—beautifully tragic and heart-wrenching.

Although he was already the leader of a faction, Franklin was, in fact, still a young man. Seeing this sight, he felt as if his heart had been viciously seized by an invisible hand, a sharp pain instantly spreading through his entire body.

Without hesitation, he opened his broad, warm arms. His movements were gentle yet possessed an irresistible force as he slowly pulled Eleanor into his embrace.

As if she had found her only support, Eleanor leaned limply against his shoulder, her body trembling slightly. The tremors passed through her clothes to Franklin, as if the unspeakable grief deep in her soul were screaming.

Her tears were like a bursting dam, quickly soaking Franklin’s shirt. The warm, bitter-salty tears seemed to possess a magic that could penetrate skin, scalding his heart directly and stirring ripples of sorrow within him.

“My father… he’s gone. I have no family left in this world.”

Eleanor’s voice was squeezed from her throat with a sobbing whimper, fragmented like shattered glass. Every word was filled with despair and helplessness, echoing faintly in Franklin’s ear, tightening its grip around his heart.

Franklin knew that Eleanor’s birth mother had passed away from some genetic defect when she was very young. Although her father later remarried, Eleanor never acknowledged her stepmother.

So, when her father—Speaker of the House of Representatives Rodham—had vanished along with the politicians from both parties and members of both houses in the blinding light of the orbital strike during the recent upheaval in the Federation Capital, the poor girl had indeed lost her last immediate family member.

Franklin’s hand seemed to move of its own accord, slowly rising to gently stroke Eleanor’s long, seaweed-soft yet slightly messy hair. His touch was gentle and soothing, as if caressing the world’s most precious treasure, each stroke filled with endless heartache and affection.

“Don’t be afraid, darling. I’m here.”

Franklin felt the girl in his arms tremble slightly, and her hands, wrapped around his waist, tightened their grip. He continued to stroke her hair reassuringly and said:

“I know this is all like a nightmare for you, but no matter what, I don’t want you to drown in it. I will be here with you when you wake up, because we still have much to do. And…”

Franklin paused, then spoke with a resolute tone, “Don’t you want to avenge Mr. Rodham? After all, he had nothing to do with the coup launched by the leaders of the two Federation parties. He was only presiding over the impeachment vote in the House of Representatives as his duty required. In other words, this respected elder stood fast at his post until the very end.”

Hearing this, Eleanor looked up from Franklin’s embrace. Her tear-soaked eyelashes, like two small fans, fluttered to reveal a gaze filled with confusion and anger.

“But what can we do? Even with the Renaissance Alliance, our power is still too small compared to the Federation…”

“Perhaps we aren’t strong enough now, but what about the future? We’ve come this far, step by step. Hasn’t this group dedicated to the Federation’s revival grown stronger just like this?”

Franklin cupped Eleanor’s face in his hands and said in a tone that an outsider would find impossible to judge for its sincerity:

“The Federation today has long lost its so-called ‘democracy and freedom.’ Now, it has grown even worse, becoming a dictatorial ‘military government.’ Eleanor, do you remember? Before your father passed, even when the Federation was in turmoil and fraught with crisis, he still held high hopes for the future and proactively sought to cooperate with me. He must have hoped in his heart that the Federation could break free from its shackles and walk toward true light and democracy. How could we bear to fail his earnest expectations? How can we stand by and watch as millions of people who long to breathe freely, who desire to live under a fair and just sky, continue to struggle and weep in the abyss of despair?”

Eleanor had always known what kind of person her father truly was, but now, driven by grief and anger and influenced by Franklin’s words, the original image of her father in her mind began to blur, replaced by a much more ‘heroic’ figure.

The girl, who had just lost her father, wiped the tears from her face and nodded.

“You’re right, Franklin. I can’t back down. We must overthrow this military government and avenge my father, who became a victim of the coup. I will fight to the very end, even if I’m crushed to pieces. I will have no regrets.”

If Amber had seen this, he would not have been able to resist applauding Franklin. After all, this ability to ‘sway people’s hearts’ in the turn of a hand was something most people could never learn, even with practice.

Pure talent. The kind bestowed by the heavens.

Whether it was for the Atlas Group, the Renaissance Alliance, or the other forces within the Federation that had raised the ‘banner of rebellion,’ the period that followed could only be described as one of ‘glad tidings.’

The only problem was, the glad tidings were for the Federation.

Having consolidated military and political power, the ‘Iron Triangle’ first took advantage of the martial law to almost completely wipe out the remaining domestic opposition and ‘progressives.’

Then, Marshal Trafalgar, commanding the Federation fleet which had completed a brief rest and refit, sortied once again. Starting from the Federation’s core star systems, they began to sweep outwards in a radial pattern, clearing out the rebel forces in each star system.

Just as Amber had predicted, once Marshal Trafalgar could act without restraint, the Federation Navy’s efficiency in crushing the rebels could no longer be described even by the idiom ‘autumn wind scattering fallen leaves.’

Many fleets from star systems that had declared independence were virtually helpless when they encountered the Federation fleet. The outcome was often decided within the first three exchanges of fire.

Of course, some independence movements and like-minded ‘revolutionary groups’ chose to join forces under these circumstances, gaining a significant numerical advantage in some battles in an attempt to destroy the Federation Navy’s fleets.

However, this approach played right into Marshal Trafalgar’s hands.

Chapter 627: An Admiral is a Mascot?

To outsiders, the rank of Admiral in the Federation Navy was a relatively awkward one.

As the traditional pinnacle for a naval officer, promotion to this rank should have been the dream of every flag officer in the Federation Navy.

But in reality, most naval officers set their “life goal” at Vice Admiral—the rank that allowed one to command a capital fleet.

In their view, even ascending to the rank of Admiral offered a very limited increase in actual power and military prestige. After all, at the very apex of the Federation Navy stood the towering figure of Marshal Trafalgar.

As long as he remained in the service, it didn’t matter how many stars these admirals wore on their shoulders. No matter how badass you were, could you possibly outshine the old Marshal who had cultivated the navy for decades?

What’s more, upon reaching the rank of Admiral, one would generally leave frontline combat command and transition to the rear, taking up strategic roles in training and development for the entire navy. It was essentially a shift toward an administrative career. For those naval officers who yearned to personally command fleets across the seas of stars, this was a poor trade-off.

Therefore, compared to the Federation Army, which had a glut of officers who had earned the rank of Admiral through sheer seniority, the navy had seen very few promotions to Admiral over the years. Most of those who did were officers who had reached an age where they were no longer fit for fleet command and had no choice but to retire to the rear after their promotion.

This was one of the reasons why naval commanders had always looked down on those “mud-legs” in the Army.

It could be said that the entire system of promotion and the internal culture of the Federation Navy had, under the weight of Marshal Trafalgar’s prestige, always been somewhat strange.

As for Admiral Caroll, the only officer in the Federation Navy to remain in a fleet command position after being promoted to Admiral, he was seen by other high-ranking naval commanders as an even more awkward existence.

On the surface, the First Fleet he commanded was the very essence of the Federation Navy, the elite of the elite. Among all the Federation’s capital fleets, its comprehensive combat power could crush any other.

Especially after the war with the Star Dragon Empire, hero captains, ace pilots, and war heroes—who were relatively rare in other capital fleets—were a dime a dozen in the First Fleet.

On the face of it, commanding the Federation Navy’s First Fleet truly seemed like a fine assignment.

The problem, however, was that the First Fleet was also Marshal Trafalgar’s “personal fleet.” Whenever the First Fleet was deployed for combat, the old Marshal would invariably be present to oversee the engagement.

Although he was ostensibly just using the First Fleet’s flagship, the Dreadnought, as the Fleet Admiral’s command ship, everyone knew the old Marshal’s temperament.

Rather than commanding the fleet with trembling hands under his watchful eye, it was better to just let the old Marshal take command himself—at least that way, one wouldn’t get a tongue-lashing in front of the entire bridge crew for a command error.

So, among the admirals of the Federation Navy, there was no envy for Admiral Caroll, only sympathy.

But the man himself paid no mind to any of this. While others believed he stood too close to Marshal Trafalgar, his own brilliance completely eclipsed, Admiral Caroll felt otherwise.

He believed he was not yet close enough to this “God of War.”

—

MX/44219/M/AE Sector, Risidios star system, within the Federation’s theoretical borders.

In the final moment before the doors to the Dreadnought’s bridge opened, Caroll raised a hand to straighten the collar of his uniform, ensuring his appearance was impeccable and beyond reproach for the notoriously strict Fleet Admiral.

As the doors hissed open with the sound of a depressurizing airlock, a unique scent washed over him, quickly filling his nostrils. It was a mixture of adrenaline-laced sweat, the distinct odor of electronics, and the sterile tang of recycled oxygen.

But to Admiral Caroll, and indeed to every member of the Federation Navy, this scent unique to warships was already deeply familiar.

This was why most warship commanders, upon entering combat, would prioritize shutting down the ship’s “air-scrubbing” function. The small amount of energy saved could be redirected to more critical subsystems. Besides, no one but new recruits would be bothered by the smell, and in-ship suits had to be worn during battle anyway.

At this moment, everyone on the bridge was busy at their workstations. The front and upper sections of the bridge were dominated by a view of the boundless starry sky.

The bridge’s “panoramic viewscreen,” composed of a single hemispherical display, would make anyone stepping onto the bridge for the first time feel as though they were enveloped by the entire universe. For Caroll, however, this sight had long become part of his daily life.

So now, the Admiral didn’t pause for even a second before the magnificent vista. Instead, he strode directly toward the center of the bridge.

Unlike the bridges of other warships, the area in the center of the First Fleet’s flagship, the Dreadnought, which was normally reserved for the captain’s chair, was furnished with two multifunctional command chairs side by side.

One belonged to Admiral Caroll, the Fleet Commander and Captain of the Dreadnought. The other, naturally, was occupied by Marshal Trafalgar.

“You’re here, Caroll.”

Trafalgar glanced in Caroll’s direction before his eyes returned to the massive holographic projection platform before them. It displayed a vast star chart and the general disposition of enemy fleets within the star system.

“Marshal, the three fleets have completed all checks and are ready for combat at any time.”

Admiral Caroll hesitated for a moment, then continued, “But are we really going to engage the rebels here? According to current intelligence, the various rebel forces have gathered at least six standard fleets. While most are composed of garrison and security fleet vessels, they still outnumber us two to one.”

Marshal Trafalgar did not answer Admiral Caroll’s question directly. Instead, he posed one of his own. “Then what do you propose we do next, Caroll?”

“Yes, Marshal. This is my thinking.”

Admiral Caroll saluted Trafalgar, then sat in his command chair and skillfully began to operate the massive holographic projection platform.

Soon, the star chart dominating the front of the command platform began to zoom out, revealing a complete view of the Risidios star system and several neighboring systems. A multitude of arrows and symbols were then added, and under Admiral Caroll’s hand, the entire star chart transformed into a schematic of an operational plan.

Sitting beside Admiral Caroll, Trafalgar watched this textbook-perfect, clear, and precise operational plan schematic take shape, and an appreciative smile couldn’t help but touch his lips.

“Caroll, your chart work is as excellent as ever. I recall when you graduated from the Naval Academy, your score on the chart work examination broke the academy’s record. And it seems it remains unbroken to this day, correct?”

Chapter 628: Marshal Trafalgar’s Concerns

Hearing Marshal Trafalgar’s unexpected question, Admiral Caroll paused for a moment before replying, still operating the console.

“Yes, Marshal. I believe it did break the record back then, but I’m not sure if anyone has broken it since. After all, it’s just a test score for chart work, not something particularly noteworthy.”

“I don’t think so,” Marshal Trafalgar said, shaking his head. “The ability to perform chart work is, and always will be, a skill that a qualified naval commander must not only master but perfect.”

The topic seemed to have piqued the Marshal’s interest. He, who was usually a man of few words before an operation, continued to speak.

“I know that the young commanders nowadays pay less and less attention to these fundamental subjects. Most of them prefer to rely on the shipboard control AI for ‘one-click charting,’ then modify the result based on their own experience to create a final operational diagram.”

Marshal Trafalgar’s fingers tapped a steady rhythm on the armrest of his command chair, and his next words carried a hint of displeasure.

“I know the younger generation often says, ‘Technology changes lives,’ and I agree with that sentiment. I also know that as shipboard assistance AIs become more sophisticated, they are indeed a great help to captains and fleet commanders, saving a lot of tedious work in post-battle summaries and combat archiving. But the problem is that more and more naval officers are now letting the shipboard control AI handle operational planning as well, merely making a few minor adjustments themselves. In that case, is such a plan formulated by a human or an AI?”

Seemingly realizing that it was inappropriate to bring this up before a battle, Marshal Trafalgar stopped himself after getting it off his chest. “Hahaha, Caroll, just consider it a few complaints from a crabby old man.”

“Marshal, no one would dare call you a ‘crabby old man’,” Admiral Caroll said with a smile, then pointed to the operational plan diagram before them. “The diagram is ready. Let me explain as you look it over.”

“Mm, begin.”

Marshal Trafalgar nodded and tapped the control panel on his armrest. Caroll immediately felt a pressure in the surrounding air—the effect of the shielding field being activated.

To the others on the bridge, the massive projection in the center suddenly vanished, replaced by a large red ‘X’, indicating that the conversation to follow was not intended for their ears.

Soon, Admiral Caroll had explained his operational concept to Trafalgar.

In essence, his plan was simple: avoid engaging the enemy while numerically inferior. Instead, he would use several surrounding star systems to stretch the rebel fleet thin. According to information from the Naval Intelligence Department, these systems were also home bases for some of the rebel factions. Therefore, if the Federation fleet showed any sign of attacking these systems, the enemy would be forced to fall back and defend them.

In Caroll’s view, the current rebel fleet was not a cohesive force. They had never conducted joint operations before, their tactical coordination was visibly poor, and each faction was looking out for its own interests, trying to preserve its strength.

Once the Federation Navy began its maneuvering, the rebel fleet would inevitably become disjointed for various reasons. The Federation fleet would then seize the opportunity of the enemy splitting their forces to defeat them in detail.

“Marshal, I am well aware that with the combat capability of our three fleets, we would not be at a disadvantage even if we engaged the rebels in a frontal assault right now, and we would undoubtedly achieve ultimate victory.

However, in such a frontal engagement, we would inevitably suffer some casualties. But if we can break them down one by one while their forces are divided, our fleet’s losses will be significantly smaller.

From a macro perspective, the Federation still has many internal problems, which means the current speed of fleet replenishment is far below normal levels. Furthermore, this is not the only rebel force within the Federation that we need to suppress. Therefore, we need to be more ‘frugal’ at present.”

In front of Marshal Trafalgar, Admiral Caroll was like a humble student, sharing his thoughts without reservation. He even concluded with a joke:

“If possible, I’d love nothing more than to take out these rebels ‘without a scratch’.”

“Your considerations are very thorough, Caroll,” Marshal Trafalgar said slowly. “Under normal circumstances, I would make the same choice as you.”

Hearing this, Admiral Caroll’s expression did not change, for he knew it actually meant the old marshal did not agree with his operational plan.

The latter did not keep him waiting long, continuing in a slow but serious tone:

“You have considered the Federation’s current situation, the Navy’s current situation, and our need for time. But what we lack most right now is precisely time, not warships.”

Marshal Trafalgar took control of the holographic projection platform, manipulating it with equal skill. The massive star chart before them began to zoom and shift again, finally settling on a lawless region on the Federation’s border. The view then magnified a particular asteroid belt.

At the center of the image was a giant asteroid, with a line of text annotated beside it.

[A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Atlas Group]

“Caroll, you’ve forgotten about it.”

“Are you referring to the Atlas Group?”

“That’s right. If you’ve recently reviewed all the intelligence and information related to this megacorporation, you would realize it has become the Federation’s greatest threat. And don’t you forget how many of our comrades have died under the fire of the Atlas Group’s warships…”

As he spoke, even Marshal Trafalgar couldn’t control his emotions. He gripped the armrest of his command chair tightly, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

In the war against the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy, although both sides had suffered heavy losses, they had been relatively effective at protecting their high-ranking commanders. In most emergencies, flag officers were given priority to evacuate.

Although they had lost two deep-space fleet commanders early in the war, and a great number of garrison fleet commanders had also perished, those fleets were considered ‘local fleets’ and not part of the Navy’s core forces.

Of the Federation Navy’s capital fleet senior officers, only two had been killed directly on the battlefield, and they had later managed to kill an Imperial Duke in return.

But in the few direct confrontations with the Atlas Group, the Federation Navy had lost more than just one general’s stars.

Four Rear Admirals were killed in action on the battlefield. Another Vice Admiral was captured, and after his return, he was so traumatized by the devastating defeat that he was ultimately relieved of command, unable to lead a fleet ever again.

One Rear Admiral had even defected to the Atlas Group. Although Marshal Trafalgar knew the primary cause was the abhorrent actions of the Federation government and the military-industrial complex at the time, he still laid the blame at the feet of the Atlas Group.

Not to mention, in these several engagements, the participating Federation fleets had suffered catastrophic losses, with some being annihilated in complete units.

Therefore, in Marshal Trafalgar’s mind, the Atlas Group had long been elevated to the level of a ‘major affliction’. After the formal establishment of the provisional military government put power firmly in his hands, the Fleet Admiral was eager to eliminate this threat as soon as possible.

“Caroll, we must quell this internal chaos in the shortest time possible, then concentrate all our forces to destroy the Atlas Group before it grows to a point where we can no longer fight it!”

Trafalgar adjusted the star chart back to the current combat star system and, with incredible speed, drew up a brand new operational plan diagram. Then he declared:

“Therefore, for this operation, I will only perform a single tactical maneuver within this star system. Regardless of how these rebels react, I will clench my fist and wipe them out in one fell swoop!”

Chapter 629: An Overwhelming Rout

“Report, hyperspace fluctuations detected! Signature analysis indicates a fleet-scale warp. Distance zero point nine light-seconds! Engaging composite reconnaissance unit!”

“Report, long-wave radar has acquired the target. Infrared and ultraviolet detection teams are following up to confirm. It is a large, fleet-scale target, estimated at three to four fleets!”

“Report, target’s radar and infrared signatures have disappeared. Suspected activation of radar wave cancellation and blackbody coating. The shipboard control AI is predicting the target’s trajectory based on its last known position, heading, and velocity. We can currently confirm the target fleet is on the ecliptic plane!”

A stream of reports rang out on the bridge of the Kraken-class battleship, the Bramos. The few individuals in the command area, along with several holographic figures around them, furrowed their brows, their once-calm expressions now gone.

These men—rebel leaders, or as they called themselves, “insurgent leaders” and “revolutionaries”—from various factions were gathered via a holographic conference on the somewhat cluttered bridge of this temporary flagship.

The lights on the bridge, which automatically adjusted their brightness based on the light from the panoramic viewscreen, illuminated their faces—some anxious, others cunning and fickle—painting a vivid and complex tapestry of expressions.

“Just as expected from that old fox. His fleets are elite enough to enter an advantageous attack position on the ecliptic plane with a single tactical maneuver.”

A rebel fleet commander, formerly a garrison fleet general, spoke. Upon hearing his words, the faces of those around him grew even grimmer.

“We have to get onto the ecliptic plane, or we can’t even begin to fight this battle. The Federation Navy has too great a maneuverability advantage there.”

Another general with considerable combat experience spoke urgently, his brows tightly locked. A hint of helplessness and deep anxiety flashed in his eyes. He knew this was an extremely difficult task for their current “combined fleet,” but in this situation, there seemed to be no better alternative.

“Then we’ll have to trouble our friends from the ‘Freedom Front’ and ‘People’s Choice’ to take the lead. Your fleets are better trained. The rest of us can follow your maneuvers.”

The “Worker’s Alliance” fleet commander, who had initiated this joint operation and summoned these fleets, spoke up.

“With you two leading the way, I’m confident this won’t be a difficult task for our ‘combined fleet.’ We finally have an absolute advantage in numbers. We must use this opportunity to take out Trafalgar!”

The two generals with the most experience in fleet battles in this combined fleet exchanged a glance. One of them finally said:

“Actually, getting to the ecliptic plane isn’t our biggest problem right now.”

“The biggest problem is how we deploy when we make enemy contact, and what our objectives and plans will be after that.”

The commander from “People’s Choice” spoke. He was a straightforward man and continued without holding back:

“When the time comes, whose fleet is going to be at the forefront of the formation? The training levels of our fleets are already inconsistent. If our engagement formation is flawed and our fleets become separated, we’ll be like lambs walking into a tiger’s den!”

“That’s right! If this issue isn’t settled, my fleet isn’t moving!”

Another general chimed in without a second thought after hearing the “People’s Choice” commander, his eyes full of vigilance and resentment.

He thought to himself, how could I let the forces I’ve worked so hard to build be so easily expended? In this chaotic and disorderly rebel camp, full of hidden agendas, the people around him were not as easygoing as they appeared during their idle chats over the past few days.

Here, to lose your strength was to lose everything, to become fish on another’s chopping block.

His words made everyone look at each other. For a moment, a dead silence fell over the bridge’s command area. Only the faint hum of various instruments echoed in the heavy air like the whispers of ghosts.

The veteran general from the “Freedom Front” sighed inwardly.

We’re just a mob thrown together at the last minute, and everyone has their own agenda. The battle hasn’t even started, and it feels like our defeat is already sealed. Besides, the Federation Navy surpasses us several times over in ship count, firepower, and troop quality, and they’re under the personal command of Marshal Trafalgar.

At this thought, the commander looked up at the panoramic viewscreen, at the boxed indicator marking the ‘enemy fleet.’

This battle will be perilous, our future uncertain…

In the cold, deep, and seemingly endless abyss of the Risidios star system, the Federation fleet emerged from their warp jump, maintaining a tight formation like a steel dragon lurking in the sea of stars. After successfully completing the tactical maneuver personally devised by Marshal Trafalgar, they had swiftly and precisely brought the entire fleet onto the ecliptic plane.

A variety of indicator lights flashed across their hulls. The faint blue glow from their plasma thruster arrays propelled the battleships across the ecliptic plane in a grand and orderly interstellar dance. Their movements in space were so effortless and fluid, it was as if the entire universe was their stage.

Even Amber and the Imperial naval generals watching this scene couldn’t help but praise the training level of these three elite Federation fleets.

However, in the eyes of Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll, if these three of the Federation Navy’s most elite fleets couldn’t achieve this, it wouldn’t be worthy of the effort the Navy had poured into them.

Meanwhile, the rebel fleet’s situation was far more difficult.

Although the better-trained fleets of the “Freedom Front” and “People’s Choice” were in the lead, the other rebel fleets struggled with the tactical maneuver. They had to maintain their distance from the enemy while simultaneously resisting gravitational forces from other directions to move onto the ecliptic plane.

As the warships struggled to maintain their course, they looked like a group of exhausted travelers trudging forward under a heavy burden.

Their hulls trembled slightly, as if groaning in pain, and the dull roar of their engines seemed to be a helpless cry against the immense pressure from the additional power demands.

Furthermore, their earlier discussion about the formation had yielded no results. In the end, the “Worker’s Alliance” fleet commander simply had everyone form a single line—in his view, since their fleet was more than twice the size of the enemy’s, a single line would maximize their firepower advantage and avoid further internal disputes.

But he had underestimated the depths to which this mob he had gathered would sink.

When the order for the tactical maneuver was given, each fleet commander, harboring ill intentions, secretly gave orders to slow their ships down, hoping their fleet would end up in a rear position.

This caused the once barely orderly and cohesive battle formation to be pulled apart as if by a powerful, invisible hand. It gradually became loose and chaotic. The spacing between the ships was uneven, showing no coordination whatsoever, like a plate of loose sand, teetering on the verge of collapse in the cosmic winds.

As the distance between the two sides closed, the Federation fleet’s pre-deployed scout ships quickly obtained the rebel fleet’s movements.

Upon a seeing a fleet that was already scattered before even approaching the ecliptic plane, Marshal Trafalgar, on the bridge of the Dreadnought, burst out laughing.

“Hmph. A mob, just as I thought.”

Standing beside him, Admiral Caroll, though her expression had been grave upon seeing the number of rebel ships, couldn’t hide her excitement.

“This opportunity is practically being served to us on a platter.”

Marshal Trafalgar nodded slightly, his expression cold and resolute. “Exactly. And they only know to follow us onto the ecliptic plane, but they’ve overlooked the fact that we’re maneuvering with the direction of the ecliptic’s orbit, while they are moving completely against it. I suspect it won’t be until the fighting actually starts that these rebel fleets will realize they have no surplus energy to divert from their power units.”

Seeing this, the Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy no longer hesitated and gave the decisive order in an undeniable tone:

“All fleets, use the ecliptic plane to accelerate! Target the rebel left flank! Full speed ahead!”

In an instant, the engine power of the Federation battleships surged, their lights intensifying like brilliant new stars suddenly erupting in the cosmos. The fleet, which was already closing in on the rebels by using the ecliptic’s orbital path, now shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow, charging toward the rebels’ protruding ‘left flank’ with unstoppable momentum.

If the rebel fleet could truly be said to have a ‘left flank,’ that is.

The opening of the battle was somewhat sudden, so much so that even Trafalgar and Caroll hadn’t expected the exchange of fire to begin so abruptly.

After two hours of standoff and approach, the rebel fleets saw the three Federation Navy fleets drop their covert operations mode and rapidly enter their main cannons’ maximum effective range. Adhering to the “pre-emptive strike principle,” they opened fire almost impatiently.

Fire early, reload early, and get the next round out sooner—this was the core plan of the rebel fleet for this battle.

But even with the salvo command issued by the grand flagship, the seven rebel fleets fired like miswired fireworks, one volley here, another there. They completely failed to achieve the effect of a proper salvo.

In fact, Marshal Trafalgar only had to order a simple Emergency Evasion, and his fleet dodged over half of the attacks—a scenario that would be absolutely impossible in a proper fleet battle.

It gave Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll a profound understanding of just how derelict the daily training and maintenance of these local fleets within Federation territory had become.

“To think that a bunch like this has been running rampant inside the Federation for so long.”

Marshal Trafalgar shook his head with a complicated expression. He found it difficult to accept that it was because of such a group that his previous plans could not proceed.

Before long, the rebel fleet’s second salvo was ready. Although they were confused as to why the Federation fleet had yet to attack, they couldn’t be bothered with that now. Since the enemy across from them was just sitting there taking hits, they certainly weren’t going to be polite.

Soon, the rebel fleet’s second salvo was unleashed. This time, the consistency of their attack was significantly better, and their coverage of the target area was much more precise.

Under the baptism of this “rain of light,” the deflector shields of the Federation battleships on the outer flank were finally activated on a large scale. For a moment, the entire periphery of the fleet “lit up,” and the arcs of electricity sparked by the heavy metal particle streams hitting the shields almost formed a continuous web in this corner of the universe.

Unfortunately, although the accuracy of this salvo was much higher, the distance was still too great. Furthermore, due to technical reasons, the rebel fleet had not yet precisely reached the theoretical ‘ecliptic plane.’ Their ships had to allocate a certain amount of energy to their power systems to maintain a closing rate with the Federation fleet while counteracting additional gravitational forces from other directions. As a result, their main cannons were not firing at maximum power.

The Federation fleet, on the other hand, had arranged its more fragile light cruisers and destroyers inside the formation, leaving the heavily armored capital ships to form the outer perimeter.

This directly led to the rebels’ second salvo also failing to score a single kill.

After a two-shot rapid fire, a ship’s main cannon inevitably enters a longer cooldown period to prevent the overheated acceleration rail from malfunctioning in subsequent attacks.

This time, the Commander-in-Chief of the rebel fleet was not so foolish. He immediately ordered all capital ships to use their limited liquid nitrogen coolant to rapidly cool their main cannons and shorten the firepower vacuum period.

Although the others were reluctant, they knew this was no time to be stingy, so they all ordered their capital ships to begin rapid cooling.

But in a way, the two wasted salvos had already sealed their fate.

The Federation fleet, having weathered the fire, charged unscathed into the optimal attack range of the heavy particle cannons. The three fleets’ previously tight assault formation unfolded with breathtaking speed and grace.

Even as the crew inside the ships on the longest, highest angular velocity maneuvers gritted their teeth and braced against the G-forces of the high-speed tactical maneuver, these elites of the Federation Navy completed the deployment into bombardment formation within the specified time, just as they would in a routine drill.

“Blanket the enemy fleet’s left flank! All ships select targets at will! Main cannons, all batteries, double salvo! Fire!”

With a deafening roar from Marshal Trafalgar that seemed capable of tearing the universe asunder, violent streams of heavy metal particles surged forth from the Federation frontline like the raging, endless waters of a celestial river.

The moment the three fleets fired their salvo, they unleashed a terrifying amount of energy, causing the surrounding space to twist and distort.

The precise and orderly volley sent thousands of blue-white beams of light to completely cover the rebel fleet’s entire left flank.

Wherever the particle streams passed, the deflector shields of the rebel warships on the left flank overloaded and shattered one after another. The outer armor plates were torn open and instantly disintegrated into countless fragments that scattered everywhere, like a brilliant but deadly shower of fireworks.

The metal hulls of the ships groaned as if being kneaded by an invisible, immensely powerful giant’s hand, then collapsed into countless shimmering metal fragments, scattering through space like a celestial maiden scattering flowers.

Immediately after, high-speed strike groups composed of a large number of heavy cruisers and destroyers broke away from the Federation’s main battle line. Using the acceleration from the ecliptic plane and the control of their own vector thrusters, they began to close in at high speed from a different angle.

This was a new strike tactic developed by Marshal Trafalgar over many battles. It used the advantage of high speed and high firepower to have strike groups composed of these two ship types approach from another angle. The heavy cruisers were responsible for firepower output, while the destroyers and their carried HCPs provided anti-aircraft fire for the strike group.

This tactic, which had been tried and tested against the Imperial fleet, was still effective today.

Or rather, it was devastatingly effective.

The rebel fleet had clearly never seen such a tactic. They were already in disarray from the concentrated attack on their left flank. The fleets under fire wanted to retreat, while fleets in other positions had no intention of charging forward to cover their allies.

And when the strike groups, like a pack of bloodthirsty sharks, set their sights on the already riddled left flank, the rebel fleet’s formation descended into even greater chaos.

After a rebel battleship was struck by multiple heavy particle cannons on its broadside, one side of its hull was instantly punctured by countless fine holes. The internal pressure vented rapidly, sucking various objects and personnel out into space. Then, the hull itself began to break apart and disintegrate.

Not a single one of the surrounding warships was willing to dispatch a shuttle or an HCP to try and rescue any survivors.

The crew members who had been lucky enough to survive and float into space because they were wearing their in-ship suits could only watch helplessly as one steel behemoth after another slowly moved away, leaving them to drift in despair in the void, waiting for the oxygen in their suits to run out and for a painful death to claim them.

Chapter 630: Revitalization

The battle in the Risidios star system concluded, as expected, with a crushing victory for the Federation Navy.

Seizing this rare opportunity for positive propaganda, the Federation military government’s publicity machine kicked into high gear, wildly building up the narrative of this battle where the few defeated the many. They aimed to boost the hearts and minds of the populace and, at the same time, intimidate other rebel factions.

Some of the information was made relatively public, allowing the Atlas Group to obtain details of the battle without much effort and subsequently update their assessment of the current situation within the Federation.

“There’s good news, and there’s bad news~”

In an emergency internal meeting, Amber said, half-joking and half-serious:

“The good news is, we hadn’t yet managed to cooperate with the faction behind the fleet destroyed in the Risidios star system, nor had we started any industrial acquisitions or resource exchanges in the systems they controlled. So, even if the Federation re-establishes control over those systems, it won’t have much of an impact on us~”

“And the bad news?” asked Isabelle, who often played the role of ‘professional foil’ in meetings.

“The bad news is that after the fall of these few systems, the next ones the Federation plans on coming after contain a large number of our recently acquired industries and factory facilities. Once Trafalgar leads his fleet there, I suspect the local forces won’t fare much better. Although they’ve purchased a great deal of military hardware from us, it’s the people who ultimately decide a battle’s outcome. I have no confidence that the armed forces of these factions can stand against the Federation’s elite troops.”

Hearing this, the attendees broke into a flurry of discussion. Randall, stroking his chin, spoke up. “So, it seems this series of moves—the establishment of the military government, the consolidation of military power, and Trafalgar leading the fleet to focus on quelling rebellions—has actually revitalized this whole Federation mess?”

“That’s right, ‘revitalized’,” Amber nodded. “But for now, it’s just a good start. They haven’t truly turned the whole situation around. That’s why I’ve gathered you all today, to discuss our contingency measures for the next phase.”

The room fell silent as everyone looked to Amber. Knowing him, he would usually start by offering an initial idea to get the ball rolling, and this time was no exception.

Amber: “I’ll state my thoughts first. The development phase is over. It’s time for us to officially enter the stage.”

As soon as he said this, everyone was stunned. They truly hadn’t expected Amber to make such a decision at this time.

“I’m no strategist, and I certainly don’t make prophecies. I only know that right now is the point in time where the gap in fleet strength between us and the Federation is at its narrowest. According to intelligence gathered by the Intelligence Center, the Federation, having consolidated its power, has rapidly approved a plan for large-scale shipbuilding, attempting to quickly replace the warships lost in previous battles.

“Without a doubt, even though we’ve recently acquired numerous shipyards, our shipbuilding capacity is barely on par with the Federation’s. Moreover, our shipyards have all experienced some degree of chaos and personnel turnover, so their work efficiency can’t compare to the military government-controlled shipyards staffed entirely with skilled workers.

“Furthermore, the Federation government can build ships without pressure and regardless of cost in the short term. We, on the other hand, need capital for many other projects, so we can’t just close our eyes and keep launching warships like they can.

“This means that in the foreseeable future, the on-paper strength gap between us and the Federation Navy will gradually widen. Based on my personal understanding of Marshal Trafalgar, he definitely already sees us as a threat. He absolutely intends to clean up the mess within the Federation quickly and then concentrate his forces to deal with us, with Atlas.

“Therefore, we can’t just foolishly wait until that time comes. We must seize the current opportunity, take the initiative, and eliminate the Federation Navy’s effective strength in complete units.”

After he finished speaking, everyone fell silent. Amber had stopped just short of directly declaring war on the Federation. While the idea of a megacorporation ‘declaring war’ on a nation did sound rather strange, anything was possible in this universe.

After a period of silence in the conference room, the first person to speak was someone the others hadn’t quite expected.

Guterres—the former Vice Admiral of the Federation Navy and current senior advisor to the Atlas Group’s combat fleet—was the first to speak:

“I agree with the Boss’s view, especially the analysis of Marshal Trafalgar, which aligns with my own thoughts. From the information I’ve received recently, the Fleet Admiral absolutely intends to quickly quell the rebellion and then gather a force to attack us in the shortest time possible. The time it takes to assemble that force depends on the construction speed of the shipyards under the Federation Navy’s control.”

As the meeting concluded, the plan to carry out a strike against the Federation Navy was passed without any opposition.

Although for major decisions within the Atlas Group, the final verdict was still supposed to come from a collective brainstorm among the senior management—or rather, this group of senior managers had originally wanted to fully display their ‘talents’ on this stage.

However, after Amber had, on multiple occasions, pointed them in the right direction in a way that was almost like using cheats, leading the Atlas Group to expand at an absurd pace, everyone had completely given up on trying to ‘flex their talents’ when it came to major strategic decisions.

When your direct superior has a 95% accuracy rate in his decisions, why not just follow his lead, roll up your sleeves, work hard, and wait for your year-end bonus? It saves you a lot of brainpower and a lot of hair~

And so, some of the Atlas Group’s strategic decision meetings, much to Amber’s dismay, had become a ‘one-man show’.

He was rather speechless about this.

After all, hadn’t he hired all these people to relieve his worries and solve his problems? The idea was for him to be able to lie back, relax, and count his money every day. If something came up, the Minister of Intelligence would handle it. If not, even better. Right?

But now, he had somehow become the one among the Atlas Group’s senior management who was losing hair the fastest. It had gotten to the point where Salieh was starting to recommend some ‘ancient Forerunner remedies’ to him.

All-natural, non-genetically engineered products~

Of course, this wasn’t to say that the others had nothing to do. In terms of workload, their plates were quite full.

While they didn’t have to worry about making the decisions, their task was even more critical: implementing Amber’s ‘decisions’.

This was clearly no easy job. Now that the Atlas Group had reached its current scale, the capital, manpower, resources, production lines, and so on under its control were astronomical figures. The primary job of the group’s senior management was to coordinate and plan the use of these resources.

Even with the auxiliary tools developed by Lilith to help them, the heads of certain critical departments could hardly be said to have it easy.

It wasn’t enough to simply arrange every task and process to ensure the implementation plan ran on schedule. They also had to manage the coordination and efficiency of the teams below them, and even control the internal relationships and atmosphere within those teams.

Ultimately, in the efficiency-first Atlas Group, everyone was only responsible for their own work. As long as you did your job well, there was no need to go seeking credit from your superiors; the ‘Enterprise Management System,’ which silently watched over everything, would naturally record your contributions behind the scenes.

Therefore, there was no situation where these senior managers would have a bunch of ‘sycophants,’ a common sight in the corporate world, working under them.

Because, in essence, everyone was Amber’s ‘sycophant’.

Chapter 631: Striking at the Source

After the meeting concluded and everyone else had departed, Guterres, who had been wrestling with his thoughts for some time, finally approached Amber, who had yet to leave.

Seeing Guterres come over instead of leaving, Amber didn’t seem surprised in the least. He simply stared straight at him.

“Boss…”

“I know what you want to say, Guterres.”

Amber cut Guterres’s somewhat hesitant words short and continued, “Although the final battle deployment hasn’t been decided yet, you don’t need to worry. I’m not so heartless as to make you lead troops to face Marshal Trafalgar directly.”

Hearing this, Guterres couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. But before he could say anything, Amber went on.

“I know about your past relationship with Marshal Trafalgar, and I know you can’t bring yourself to meet him on the battlefield just yet. So even if you had volunteered, I would have refused. To be blunt, I don’t trust you with this matter.”

“Boss, thank you.”

Guterres’s expression shifted, but in the end, all he could manage was a simple “thank you.”

“If you were to strike down your former guide and senior without a moment’s hesitation, that’s when I’d think there was a major problem with you. It’s only human nature. Nothing to agonize over.”

Amber shook his head nonchalantly. He had always known that Guterres was a sentimental man, but he also knew that after a series of drastic changes, Guterres no longer held any affection for the Federation that had hurt him so deeply.

This old navy man knew he owed his “loyalty” to Atlas, which had saved him and his family in a time of crisis and allowed him to live without any worries.

It wasn’t just for this act of kindness, but more importantly, so that his own family could continue to live a carefree life.

This was also why Amber was so dedicated to having the group’s employees bring their families to the Atlas Group’s controlled territories. It wasn’t just for family reunions or to provide ample benefits to show them the group had their backs.

More importantly, once a person’s work became closely tied to their family, the issue of “employee loyalty” could largely be resolved.

They were no longer working for the company’s profit, but for their own families.

From this perspective, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call Amber “the Family Man.”

Guterres had naturally succumbed to this “family offensive,” but when it came to Marshal Trafalgar, the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral was still somewhat unprepared.

Amber could completely understand this. After all, the people under him were human, not machines whose loyalty could be maxed out by tweaking some backend settings. So, he was willing to give them ample time to change their way of thinking.

However…

Amber said, “But for you, this is the last time. I hope that next time, you will be able to fully prove your worth. I’ll say it again…”

“Atlas carries no dead weight.”

Guterres stood up straight and gave Amber a salute, replying seriously.

“I will take it to heart, Boss.”

The plan for the operation against the Federation was quickly decided. The formulation of the detailed strategy that followed was no longer the concern of other departments; it fell entirely on the shoulders of Amber and the fleet’s officers.

Amidst this, Guterres, having overcome his “internal struggle” and adjusted his mentality, played a significant role. After all, besides Amber, he was the most knowledgeable about the Federation Navy, especially when it came to certain details that even Amber was unaware of.

As for Randall and Cleves, although they had both served in the Federation Navy, their understanding was not as deep due to their ranks and duties.

As they began to formulate the plan, they immediately ran into their first problem.

How were they going to engage the Federation fleet?

Since they were taking the initiative to attack, Amber and his team naturally wanted the battle to take place in a scenario and environment advantageous to Atlas.

The problem was, the Federation fleet wouldn’t be foolish enough to waltz right into a prepared battleground, especially not one commanded by Marshal Trafalgar.

“So we need to find a way to make the Federation fleet come to us,” Amber said.

Randall replied, “But the question is… how do we make Trafalgar come to us? He’s more cautious than any enemy we’ve faced before.”

Hearing Randall’s words, Guterres nodded. “That’s right. To others, Marshal Trafalgar’s fighting style is as swift and fierce as a lion, but in reality, his cunning and vigilance are beyond anyone’s imagination. And when it comes to naval warfare experience, our combined experience doesn’t even come close to his.”

“That’s for sure…” Cleves rested his head on his hands and leaned back in his chair. He was an ace when it came to on-the-spot command and tactical formulation, but his strategic planning was limited by his experience.

That was why Amber’s assessment of him was “an absolutely razor-sharp saber,” but one that required a master swordsman to wield.

As the four of them and several other officers participating in the discussion began to scratch their heads, a few of the “heavy smokers,” including Guterres, couldn’t resist lighting up and puffing away. Then, Amber suddenly spoke.

“What if… and I’m just saying what if… we go and blow up the Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center? Would they come after us then?”

In all sorts of stories, a key trait of a transmigrator was their ability to say something utterly shocking at critical moments.

Amber was no exception.

When he said this, everyone else froze in place. Guterres even choked on a mouthful of smoke.

“Boss, did I hear you correctly? Did you say you want to blow up the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly factory?”

Cleves asked cautiously, “Do you know where that place is?”

“What if… and I mean what if… don’t worry about whether I know or not for now. I’m just discussing the possibility.” Amber waved his hand, bringing everyone’s attention back. “Or a different target. If we blew up the Federation Navy’s largest shipyard, would Marshal Trafalgar get angry enough to come after us?”

“Knowing the Marshal, he would definitely do that.”

It was Guterres who spoke this time, though his tone was strange. He was clearly just as shocked by Amber’s words, and a hundred questions were popping up in his mind, but the current atmosphere made him hesitant to ask.

However, it was clear that some people present had no such reservations.

Like Randall. The dashing former Federation Navy Lieutenant Colonel leaned forward as if he had just heard the secret of the century and asked, “Boss, do you really know the location of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly factory? As expected of a former Psionic Agent… you even know that.”

Chapter 632: The Pillars of Creation

Amber did indeed know the exact location of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. He could probably charge from the main entrance to the core assembly area with his eyes closed. But of course, he didn’t know this information because he was a Psionic Agent in this life.

After all, as impressive as “Psionic Agent” sounded, in the eyes of the Federation government, they were little more than high-grade soldiers for dirty work. Sometimes, after completing a particularly “inhumane” job for the Federation government, they might even be disposed of themselves. Therefore, top secrets related to Proton Annihilation Bombs would never be disclosed to them.

Oh, except for those few unlucky ones assigned to guard the assembly center, destined to never leave for the rest of their lives.

Amber knew these secrets because of his memories from the game in his previous life. As a semi-professional player, this information was intrinsically linked to his livelihood, so the memories were naturally deeply ingrained.

“New Federation Proton Annihilation Bomb Assembly Center—Epic Difficulty Raid (20-man)”

“Level: 100, Bosses: 13”

“One hour ago, the Harpers’ Alliance task force permanently disabled the satellite cannon array orbiting the ‘Pillars of Creation’ and obtained evidence of the New Federation’s renewed mass production of Proton Annihilation Bombs within the nebula. The goal of this Operation Dawn is to bring new life to a universe threatened by the New Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bombs!

Once the super-flagship’s main cannon fires, immediately board the heavy assault boats and raid the assembly center. After taking the outer defense platforms, charge into the facility’s interior! You must neutralize the firing lines along the main access corridors and seize the hangar to prevent the enemy from flanking! Then, follow the main transport rail directly to the core area!

Fight, and wipe the New Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center off the star charts for good!”

“Recommended Epic Difficulty Team Composition: 2 Tanks, 5 Healers, 13 DPS (Healer ratio can be increased during progression)”

“Boss #1: Psionic Agent Defense Team.”

“One-line Strategy: Share the damage from the amplified psionic lightning jointly cast by the Psionic Agents, clear the constantly spawning marine adds, spread out for the fixed heavy particle cannon shots, and watch the raid’s health when the Psionic Agents enter their frenzied slash phase.”

A torrent of memories flooded Amber’s mind. When players entered the game in his past life, the Federation had long become the New Federation, and Franklin, following the story’s progression, had turned to the dark side. He began to use military force to intimidate and conquer fractured star systems, while also setting his sights on the territory of the former Empire, which had splintered into several duchies.

The Proton Annihilation Bomb was the core of the New Federation’s military deterrence. By this point, the New Federation no longer restricted such strategic weapons as it once had. Instead, if they disliked someone, they would genuinely drop one on a planet for some “planet-busting.”

This practice had a remarkably intimidating effect on other factions. After all, everyone knew that if you pushed the New Federation too far, it would actually show up in orbit above your planet and drop a Proton Annihilation Bomb.

However, after overusing this method of terror-fueled expansion, it naturally provoked fierce resistance from other powers and also drew the intervention of the Thousand Stars Empire.

The elves’ reasoning was simple: the Federation’s actions of directly destroying planets, and even destroying stars to create black holes, had severely disrupted the balance of the universe, and so on—pretty much the elves’ usual rhetoric.

After that, the “Harpers’ Alliance” from the Thousand Stars Empire joined forces with the players to launch an assault on the New Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

To be honest, after reading that raid’s background story back then, Amber always felt like the Thousand Stars Empire and the players were the real villains.

After all, discovering that another country possessed weapons of mass destruction and dared to use them, then dispatching a special task force to carry out a “physical elimination,” gave him a very strong sense of déjà vu.

But “players” as a species rarely cared about “righteousness”; their “moral standards” in a game weren’t that high. The set gear from the raid is so good? Don’t I have to farm it weekly?

So, regardless of the righteousness of the cause or the tragic backstory of the enemy boss, as long as players were told that the boss dropped top-tier equipment, they would find a way to take him down.

Amber was one of them. He had participated in the progression raiding for the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center from start to finish and often led newbies from his guild on farm runs later on.

Therefore, Amber knew very well that the assembly center for the Proton Annihilation Bomb was hidden in the “Pillars of Creation” region, formed by the stars of the Serpens constellation within the Eagle Nebula.

This area, composed of pillars of interstellar dust and gas, was where new stars were born, which was why it was initially called the “Stellar Womb.”

Unlike in reality, where this region may have already been destroyed by a supernova’s shockwave, the developers of “Starry Sky Online” had preserved this spectacular area.

Right now, however, Amber’s plan to attack the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center or the Federation Navy shipyard was motivated not only by the desire to cut off the Federation Navy’s supply line but also to lure Marshal Trafalgar into bringing his fleet to confront Atlas ahead of schedule.

“But at the same time, I hope the Federation Navy doesn’t come at us with everything they’ve got. I want them to send only a portion of their fleet, so we can be confident of completely annihilating it. Afterward, we can continue to use similar ‘salami slicing’ tactics to gradually wear down the Federation fleet’s remaining effective strength.”

Amber shared his thoughts with the others in the operations briefing, prompting them to fall into deep thought.

In the end, it was Guterres who spoke first. “So, Boss, you want to use some method to tie up the Federation Navy’s attention, so that even with a fire in their backyard, they can’t withdraw their entire force to put it out?”

“Exactly, that’s the idea.”

Amber snapped his fingers and displayed a series of data on the virtual screen, then continued:

“Look, this is our current military strength compared to the Federation Navy. After the recent ‘unit spamming’—I mean, fleet expansion—we have a total of three fully equipped unmanned fleets, two fully equipped manned fleets, as well as several special task forces and strike groups. These scattered smaller units can barely be cobbled together to form almost one more fleet. We’ve not only filled the gaps from the last major war, but our fleet size is also continuing to increase.

“As for the Federation Navy, according to reliable intelligence, Marshal Trafalgar has a total of seven capital fleets under his command—half of which are newly formed fleets that are not particularly well-trained or experienced. He also has a number of garrison fleets recently brought under his command. All told, the Marshal has about ten fleets at his disposal.

“Ten versus six. Although there’s still a numerical gap, this is the smallest gap we’ve been able to achieve recently, so I intend to seize this opportunity.”

Guterres pondered for a moment before speaking. “If that’s the case, following conventional thinking, we could concentrate our fleets and feign a large-scale offensive to draw the Federation Navy’s attention.”

Randall: “A large-scale offensive?”

“That’s right.” Guterres nodded. “Marshal Trafalgar is currently focused on quelling internal rebellions. If we were to pose as if we’re launching a major offensive at this time, even if the Marshal has his reservations, I believe the other two members of the ‘Iron Triangle’ won’t be able to sit still. But the precondition is that our act has to be convincing enough.”

“Wait, I have a question.”

Hearing this, Cleves suddenly raised his hand.

“Since feigning a major offensive would make the Federation Navy wary, and they are indeed in the middle of suppressing a rebellion, why don’t we just turn the act into a real one?

“While we are at a disadvantage in terms of fleet numbers, our unmanned fleets can’t be measured by conventional standards. We also have two super-flagships, and the number of ‘Spectral Annihilator’ class battlecruisers has been expanded to six. From this perspective, we have a fighting chance, right?

“Once we attack, the Federation fleet will definitely be caught in a two-front pincer. That way, it’s not impossible for us to crush the Federation Navy in one fell swoop.”

The more Cleves spoke, the more excited he became, as if the day they would sweep away the Federation fleet was tomorrow.

At this point, however, Amber quickly poured a bucket of “cold water” on his idea.

“Cleves, has the Atlas Group been so poorly managed lately that we’re going bankrupt tomorrow?”

“Uh… of course not, Boss. The group’s development has been thriving recently.”

“Then why do you have this ‘let’s gamble it all’ idea? Or is it that you, coming from the Federation Navy, have all become ‘gamblers’ in strategic planning due to Marshal Trafalgar’s influence?

“Our group has excellent development prospects right now. All key projects are progressing swiftly but surely according to plan. We will only get better with each passing day, so there’s no need to bet our entire fortune on a one-shot deal.”

Amber shrugged helplessly and continued:

“Besides, you know what those rebel forces in the Federation are like, don’t you? If we were to launch an attack, they definitely wouldn’t take the opportunity to coordinate with us and pincer the Federation fleet. They’d stand aside and watch the show. Don’t you believe me?”

“I believe you.”

Cleves lowered his head, somewhat dejected, clearly realizing his idea had indeed been a bit too radical.

Seeing this, Amber offered some comfort. “Cleves, don’t be discouraged. It’s good that you can voice your own ideas. Isn’t the whole point of gathering you fleet commanders here to brainstorm?”

With that, Amber turned to Guterres, who had a better understanding of Marshal Trafalgar and the Federation Navy, and continued asking:

“Guterres, based on your understanding of the Marshal, if we really put on this show, what are the chances we can draw out the main force of the Federation Navy?”

Guterres: “The Marshal is actually a very cautious person. If we assemble our fleets and feign a major offensive, I can only say there’s a fifty percent chance of fooling him.”

“Fifty percent? So that’s either ‘we fool him’ or ‘we don’t.’ Guterres, I’ve got to say, your answer is no different from not saying anything at all…”

“…”

Guterres was stunned for a moment, then smiled sheepishly. Seeing this, the others in the meeting couldn’t help but laugh, and a cheerful atmosphere instantly filled the operations briefing room.

“Hahaha, never mind, never mind. Marshal Trafalgar is truly a remarkable figure. It’s indeed difficult for us to fathom his thoughts.”

Amber couldn’t help but laugh along, but then his tone abruptly changed as he spoke with gravity:

“But if our ‘show’ is convincing enough, I believe that even if we can’t fool Marshal Trafalgar, we can fool the others in the Federation. At that point, no matter how much he has centralized military power, he’ll have to give in to the opposition that arises from this ‘nation-ending crisis.’”

“So how do we put on this show?” Randall tilted his head. “We have six fleets at most. Even if we throw them all in, would that be enough to exert sufficient pressure on the Federation?”

Hearing this question, Amber smiled mysteriously. “That’s why this time, I plan to call in some ‘extras’ to help.”

“Extras?”

“The Renaissance Alliance has received so much help from the Atlas Group. It’s time for them to prove their worth…”

——

The Federation, capital planet, Capital Special District.

The Central Intelligence Department building had unfortunately been caught in the crossfire during the earlier “coup.” Its exterior walls were riddled with bullet holes and scorch marks from directed-energy weapons. Recently, numerous spider-like construction robots had been busy making repairs on the building’s facade.

Inside the Central Intelligence Department building, however, the atmosphere for the past two days had been as heavy as solidified lead, weighing down every person’s heart.

This was because the department had recently obtained a batch of strictly verified intelligence.

The Atlas Group, that “thorn in the side” for all of the Federation’s top brass, had a leader who was now brazenly attending various Renaissance Alliance events in public.

The once-hidden, subtle connection between these two factions was now slowly emerging into the open, like the sun rising at dawn.

Every appearance by Amber and Franklin, every subtle interaction that slipped out, was captured by the Central Intelligence Department’s operatives and turned into lines of text in intelligence files—and their KPIs.

At the same time, moles deep within the Renaissance Alliance had transmitted information that could be cross-verified: the leaders of these two major powers had already held multiple secret meetings.

Furthermore, the attendees included not only the core decision-makers from both sides but also high-ranking commanders from their respective fleets.

Subsequently, the Federation Navy’s Naval Intelligence Agency also obtained a piece of intelligence regarding the unusual movements of the Atlas Group and Renaissance Alliance fleets: the fleets of both powers had simultaneously begun large-scale assembly operations.

This news, arriving at such a critical juncture in the quelling of internal rebellions, struck like a bolt from the blue, sending shockwaves through the entire Federation Navy.

This prompted the high command of the Naval Intelligence Agency to stop hesitating. They quickly dispatched their few remaining long-range scout ships, precious technological assets they were normally reluctant to deploy against mere rebels.

After a long and agonizing wait, the scout ships finally sent back definitive news.

The last of their hopes died.

According to the urgent reports from several long-range scout ships, the two sides had indeed assembled a massive force of over ten fleets in total.

On the composite images, taken at great risk by ships that had pressed close, warships gathered like colossal steel beasts, forming a nebula of metal and death, suspended silently in the void of space, exuding a suffocating sense of pressure.

The joint intelligence report from the Central Intelligence Department and the Naval Intelligence Agency was soon placed before Marshal Trafalgar.

After quietly reading the report, the Fleet Admiral passed it to Brandon and Miller, who were in the room with him. A moment later, the old marshal spoke slowly:

“What do the two of you make of this intelligence?”

Chapter 633: The Cautious Trafalgar

Hearing Marshal Trafalgar’s question, President Brandon and Minister of Defense Miller were, in truth, somewhat surprised.

After all, once the three of them had secured complete control over the Federation, they had established a clear division of labor. President Brandon was responsible for internal affairs, Minister of Defense Miller handled military-political coordination and army development, while Marshal Trafalgar held total authority over all combat and military matters. Typically, on issues of fleet operations, Marshal Trafalgar would not consult the other two; he would simply make the decisions himself.

It was clear that compared to the ‘one-man show’ atmosphere within the Atlas Group, Marshal Trafalgar’s military ‘one-man show’ within the Federation’s ‘Iron Triangle’ was far more absolute.

So when Marshal Trafalgar asked for their advice, their first reaction was the strange thought, ‘Has the old man finally gone senile?’

However, seeing the Fleet Admiral’s serious expression, Brandon and Miller quickly realized that Trafalgar was genuinely seeking their input. The former was the first to speak.

“If the intelligence is accurate, and we can determine that the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance are truly joining forces for a major offensive against us, then we should also assemble our fleets and stand ready, shouldn’t we?”

Minister of Defense Miller, after a moment of thought, replied with a question of his own.

“Since this intelligence comes in the form of official documents jointly submitted by the Central Intelligence Department and the Naval Intelligence Agency, its authenticity and reliability should be beyond doubt. Normally, you would just decide on a response yourself. The fact that you’re asking for our opinions now must mean you have other ideas, don’t you, Trafalgar?”

“Hahahaha!”

At this, Marshal Trafalgar suddenly burst out laughing. “As expected, Miller, you know me best.”

With that, Marshal Trafalgar activated the holographic projection device on his desk, bringing up the updated tactical star map. On the edge of one of the Federation’s de facto controlled zones, ten red arrows representing standard fleets were eyeing them menacingly.

Had it been any other naval commander, they would have likely already ordered the fleets to assemble and prepare to engage the invading enemy.

But the man in this position was Marshal Trafalgar—a man who was aggressive and bold in combat, willing to pay any price to achieve a tactical objective, yet was also extremely cautious in the pre-battle planning phase, never letting a single doubt slide.

Ever since the rise of the Atlas Group, the Fleet Admiral had been using the Naval Intelligence Agency to constantly gather intelligence on the megacorporation, especially information regarding Amber: his life story, combat experience, fighting style, personality…

He had completely ignored the files from the Federation Army’s personnel department. In Marshal Trafalgar’s view, during Amber’s time as a Federation Psionic Agent, he was likely in a state of ‘disguise’, so his experiences while captured and converted into a double agent were not credible.

Therefore, he focused his analysis on Amber’s activities after he left the Federation and began building the Atlas Group. In a way, he had stumbled upon the truth by accident.

“Based on my analysis of this Mr. Amber, launching a sudden large-scale offensive does not align with his usual decision-making habits. This is a commander who excels at using ‘unconventional tactics’ to achieve ‘the few defeating the many’. He is also extremely careful and cautious, preferring to ‘quietly make a fortune’. So, under the current circumstances, it’s highly unlikely he would suddenly make a move to seek a decisive frontal confrontation with us.”

Listening to Marshal Trafalgar’s analysis, Miller and Brandon also gradually sensed that something was amiss. The Federation had been paying close attention to the Atlas Group and Amber recently, and both had read personality analysis reports on him more than once. They too felt that the current situation didn’t seem to fit Amber’s typical style.

“Marshal Trafalgar, you make a very valid point,” President Brandon said suddenly after a moment of silence. “But I think there’s something else we must consider—the fact that there are indeed ten fleets currently stationed at the edge of our controlled zone, ready to make a move against us at any moment. That is an indisputable fact, is it not?”

“But what if—and I’m just saying what if—the enemy truly intends to attack? What if, considering it with a mindset of ‘erring on the side of caution when assessing the enemy’, they are deliberately trying to exploit our current cautious mentality, making us believe they are bluffing and thereby causing us to make a severe strategic miscalculation?

“This is a full ten fleets we’re talking about! And the combat strength of the Atlas Group’s combat fleets is nothing like those rebel forces. Even the Renaissance Alliance fleets, according to our intelligence, were trained with Atlas’s involvement, weren’t they?”

“This time, I agree with His Excellency the President.”

Minister of Defense Miller also spoke up, a rare occurrence of him siding with Brandon on military matters, which made the latter turn to look at him in surprise.

“Judging by the combat effectiveness demonstrated by the Atlas fleet, these ten fleets do indeed pose a lethal threat to us. If, as His Excellency said, this is a strategic deception planned with reverse psychology, and we do exactly as the Atlas Group hopes and remain idle, we could be in for some serious trouble…”

Hearing their views on the Atlas fleet’s deployment, a smile touched Marshal Trafalgar’s lips. He spoke in a half-joking tone, “It seems you two are a united front on this one?”

Miller replied, “We’re just considering it from a relatively more conservative angle. After all, with an aggressive fellow like you around, if we were both aggressive too, then there wouldn’t be a single clear-headed person among the three of us.”

“Fair enough. Your points are well-reasoned and valid,” Marshal Trafalgar nodded, an inscrutable light flashing in his eyes. “But I need to observe one more thing before I can make a decision.”

Brandon asked, “What’s that?”

Marshal Trafalgar replied, “You’ll find out when the time comes.”

Several days later, the Long-range scout ship that had been lurking in the frontline region of space finally transmitted its latest reconnaissance intelligence.

In this report, under the section detailing the approximate composition of the Atlas combat fleet, two purple ‘unidentified super-flagship’ high-risk units were placed in the most conspicuous position.

This meant that the Atlas Group had essentially put all the main forces of its current combat fleet on the frontline, posturing as if they intended to ‘settle it all in one battle’.

This latest frontline intelligence—which included reports of repeated contact between the Scout Detachments of the fleets at the edge of their controlled zone and the Scout Detachments sent by the Renaissance Alliance—was quickly delivered to the desks of the three leaders.

Shortly thereafter, following another closed-door meeting, Marshal Trafalgar finally issued the “Neptune’s Fortress One” combat order to the Federation Navy.

And in the Federation Navy’s Operational Codename Index for that year, ‘Neptune’s Fortress One’ was the Command for ‘all naval combat vessels to sortie’.

Chapter 634: If You’re Going to Put on a Show, Do It Right

Eagle Nebula, ‘Pillars of Creation’ region.

Just outside the vast, magnificent dust cloud, a series of spatial fluctuations appeared without warning. One after another, steel behemoths materialized in this region of space amidst the white flashes of warped space.

Once the massive fleet completed its group warp, it swiftly and uniformly ignited its main thruster array for just over ten seconds. After gaining a certain velocity, it immediately activated its optical invisibility and blended into the cold cosmic background.

From the first flash of the spatial fluctuations, it took less than thirty seconds for the entire enormous fleet to once again vanish from the space outside the ‘Pillars of Creation’.

Aboard the Eternity, the third Infinity-class super-flagship, which had now entered ‘covert operations’ mode and was leading the assault fleet stealthily towards its target coordinates, Amber sat in the captain’s chair, listening to the stream of reports from the shipboard control AI.

“Blackbody coating activated. Cooling layer propellant water has begun operation. Hull surface temperature is dropping, now approaching cosmic background temperature.”

“Passive radar warning systems have—as of now—still not detected any radar waves. The probability of the fleet being detected by long-range, long-wave radar continues to decrease.”

The most dangerous, most easily detectable moment for the entire fleet was in the less than thirty seconds after emerging from warp and before entering ‘covert mode’. During this window, both infrared detectors and radar could have spotted them.

But since no signs of any detection methods were found before the entire fleet re-entered ‘covert operations’ mode—and while optical detection via infrared and ultraviolet was indeed impossible to notice, continuous tracking would still require radar assistance after the fleet activated its blackbody coating and lowered its surface temperature—the newly-commissioned shipboard control AI on the Eternity quickly drew its conclusion.

“Commander, based on current information, our warp has not been detected by the enemy. Shall we proceed with silent running according to the predetermined plan?”

Hearing the shipboard control AI’s query, Amber thought for a moment before speaking.

“Entire fleet, enter Condition Two combat readiness. All personnel, change into in-ship suits. Vent oxygen from non-essential compartments first. Charge the main superconducting battery stacks. HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship personnel, to your stations.”

The shipboard control AI, of course, obeyed Amber’s command without question, and it quickly began issuing directives to the entire fleet via the tactical network.

This command model—‘Fleet Command → Command Ship (Flagship) Shipboard Control AI → Fleet’—bypassed tactical adjutants and communications officers. It was a system that heavily tested the supreme commander’s ability while also placing the entire fleet’s fate in their hands alone, and it was an experiment the Atlas combat fleet was currently running on the third Infinity-class ship.

However, the experiment was only halfway complete when the No. 3 ship, Eternity, was urgently commissioned along with a batch of newly launched warships to participate in this secret military operation.

Although the shipboard control AI would obey Amber’s orders unconditionally, the other officers on the bridge, having heard the previous reports, were somewhat puzzled by his command.

This was especially true for the newly appointed Fleet Tactical Adjutant, Ramos. The commander of the special strike formation had been given a battlefield promotion to serve as Amber’s tactical adjutant for this operation due to his outstanding performance in several previous missions.

It wasn’t that Amber didn’t want to bring more experienced officers, but Cleves, Randall, and Guterres were all currently commanding the fleet in a standoff with the Federation Navy on the edge of Federation-controlled space.

Although the offensive stance there was merely a feint, a tactical deception, it still involved the entire main force of the Atlas combat fleet. Therefore, Amber had no choice but to leave his three most experienced fleet commanders there.

If the Federation fleet lost its head and launched an attack, their presence would ensure they could hold their ground and launch a counterattack. Over here with Amber’s secret fleet, however, high-ranking officers had to be chosen from a newly promoted batch.

Fortunately, Guterres had not been idle since joining the Atlas Group. He had long since revised and perfected the combat fleet’s training syllabus and had been rigorously training and testing the mid-to-high-ranking officers. As a result, these officers were quite capable; they mainly just lacked experience.

Just like Ramos beside him, who voiced his confusion to Amber. This was in keeping with an order Amber had given all newly promoted officers—ask any questions you have before battle begins; once it starts, all actions follow command.

“Boss, didn’t you say we weren’t discovered? Why are we entering combat readiness ahead of time? Did you notice something wrong?”

“Your first sentence is wrong,” Amber said, shaking his head. “We can’t be certain we haven’t been discovered. Optical detectors, like infrared or ultraviolet sensors, could have spotted our fleet without alerting us at all.”

“But if they don’t maintain continuous radar tracking, wouldn’t they lose the target after the fleet enters ‘covert operations’ mode?” Ramos was still puzzled.

“Now, that is purely a matter of experience. The rest of you, listen up as well.”

Amber gestured for several tactical staff officers, intelligence officers, and gunnery officers on the bridge to gather around.

“In the future, when you encounter a similar situation, you must try to put yourself in the enemy commander’s shoes. Think about it: if you were the commander guarding this place and you suddenly received a report about an unknown fleet that quickly went into covert mode, would you still need to maintain continuous tracking?

“This fleet just appeared out of nowhere in this top-secret area. What other target could they possibly have besides the secret location you’re guarding?”

Hearing this, the group of young officers almost simultaneously wore expressions of “sudden realization” and “I see.” Ramos spoke up immediately.

“So, Boss, you’re commanding based on the assumption that the enemy has already discovered us?”

Amber nodded. “Yes, the hypothetical principle. When you can’t obtain more definitive intelligence, it’s never a mistake to remain cautious and err on the side of caution when assessing the enemy.”

“Then do you think the Federation might have guessed our plan and laid a heavy ambush here to trap us like fish in a barrel?”

“First, please shut your jinx mouth. Don’t think you can just say whatever you want because your old fleet’s callsign was ‘Red Hand.’ You must maintain a healthy respect for the arcane.”

Amber’s words made the surrounding young officers chuckle. Only Ramos looked embarrassed, instinctively raising a hand to scratch his head before remembering he was already wearing his in-ship suit and lowering it again.

“Secondly, regarding that question, my answer is—I don’t know either.”

Amber shrugged helplessly. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to say; it was that he truly couldn’t guess how Marshal Trafalgar would choose to respond to Atlas’s strategic deception.

To be honest, Amber felt he had done everything humanly possible to pull off this deception, with every arrangement planned down to the last detail.

Unsure of how much the Federation knew about the hull numbers of the Atlas combat fleet, he had left all previously deployed and publicly seen ships, including the two ‘landmark’ super-flagships, at the standoff line to project the image of the ‘main force being mobilized in its entirety’.

Cleves, Randall, Guterres, and the others also remained there to command the fleet, giving it a seasoned and crafty tactical character.

At the same time, Murat’s personal machine had been painted in a scheme identical to Amber’s. When he needed to fly, he would do his best to imitate Amber’s piloting habits.

This wasn’t particularly difficult for the commander of the HCP units. After all, Murat, Louis, and the other ACE pilots regularly practiced against a ninety percent accurate ‘Amber Phantom’ in their simulation battles.

On the other hand, sixty-five percent of the warships participating in this attack on the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center were newly launched. The rest were ships whose hull numbers had not yet been exposed, meaning this was an ‘invisible fleet’ operating outside the grasp of Federation intelligence.

This fleet’s greatest weakness was, naturally, its insufficient training and lack of real combat experience.

But the ‘new command model,’ centered around the fleet commander and the flagship’s shipboard control AI, could compensate for this to some extent. All the ships in the fleet had to do was unconditionally execute the commands Amber issued through the Eternity’s AI, and on that front, they had no problems.

So it could be said that Atlas had done everything possible to make this operation perfect. And according to a few brief communications received after warping, large numbers of Federation Navy fleets had indeed appeared at the standoff line.

The enemy was practically itching for a fight, so much so that the six Spectral Annihilator battlecruisers, originally intended as a secret weapon, had been forced to conduct five rounds of light-second-level sniper fire, sinking the flagship of a Federation fleet.

Seeing this news, Amber couldn’t help but feel a spark of hope.

Man, I’ve put on a performance this convincing. This Marshal can’t possibly still refuse to take the bait, right?

Chapter 635: God of War? God of Gamblers!

Since the fleet commanded by Amber had only undergone a brief acceleration before entering ‘covert operations’ mode, the shipboard control AI calculated that they would need to maintain stealth for approximately forty-eight hours to reach the general coordinates Amber had provided.

Although this was indeed a somewhat lengthy period, Amber believed that if there truly were ambushers, this would be a test of their patience. If the enemy grew restless and decided to act, the fleet would still have room to maneuver.

But if the enemy was a patient hunter, content to wait for Atlas’s fleet to enter the kill zone, it meant the ensuing battle would be anything but simple.

The fleet had now been in stealth for twelve hours, following the general coordinates provided by Amber. During this time, they had detected nothing unusual. It seemed as if, in the region of space surrounding the Pillars of Creation, the Atlas fleet sailed in solitude.

Simultaneously, upon reaching a predetermined checkpoint, the fleet successfully rendezvoused with a special operations ship that had infiltrated the area earlier.

The special mission ship Polarized Light, commanded by Tom, had arrived near the Pillars of Creation and gone into hiding as soon as Amber and his team finalized their strategic deception plan and the capital fleet began moving toward the edge of Federation-controlled space.

After many days of secret reconnaissance, Tom reported to Amber that he had not detected any large-scale fleet warps. The entire Pillars of Creation region appeared remarkably ‘calm’ and ‘detached from the world’s affairs,’ as if what was happening outside had nothing to do with them.

This report made Amber begin to think his strategic deception might actually succeed.

Considering the unknown nature of the battle that awaited them as they approached the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, Amber ultimately decided to temporarily lower the readiness level to preserve the crew’s stamina and energy.

“Attention, entire fleet. Effective immediately, readiness level is lowered to three. Oxygen supply is to be restored to all compartments. All stations will begin rotating shifts according to the pre-arranged plan. HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons on all ships are to leave a duty crew on watch and switch to a state of rest and standby.”

With this command, regenerated oxygen began to fill the bridge of the Eternity. Crew members at their posts flipped up the helmets of their in-ship suits, hanging them behind their heads and letting out a long sigh of relief.

Although the oxygen inside the suits was purified, breathing without a helmet was still incomparably more refreshing.

A few bridge officers scheduled for rest saluted Amber and quickly left the bridge. Their posts would be taken over by others, while they hurried to get some sleep in the precious time they had.

After all, no one knew if there would be time for sleep once combat began. If they were unlucky enough to be drawn into a protracted war, the experience would be incredibly grueling.

As for the possibility of being unable to sleep due to excitement or nervousness, that was a non-issue.

The design team, having anticipated this long ago, had installed a small module capable of releasing a sleep-inducing gas on every bunk and fixed sleeping bag in the rest cabins.

This module would analyze the user’s physiological data to determine their current state and release a corresponding concentration of sleep-inducing gas based on their individual level of excitement.

Five hours after the order to lower the readiness level was given, the Polarized Light, having completed resupply and a brief crew rest, set out once more.

The special mission ship quickly detached from the fleet formation using its Kinetic Mass Ejection System. Once it had established sufficient distance from the fleet, it would perform several short bursts of acceleration to conduct deep reconnaissance ahead.

The Kinetic Mass Ejection System, a simple device originating from the HCPs, was, to put it bluntly, a system that adjusted a ship’s course by generating a counterforce from launching standard alloy blocks in a specific direction.

While the vector thrust produced this way was no match for attitude control thrusters, its advantage was that the disturbance it created was practically zero. As long as it wasn’t used right in front of a sensor array, it was incredibly difficult to detect in the vacuum of space.

As the special operations ship departed, Amber felt a sense of tension rising within him like a tide—a feeling almost forgotten after a long period of calm.

Every breath seemed laced with unknown risks and challenges. As his heart raced, his senses became unusually sharp, as if everything around him had suddenly become more vivid and real.

For Amber, this tension was not entirely negative. On the contrary, it brought him a long-lost thrill, a wonderful psychological pleasure that was a release from the monotony of routine.

Every nerve in his body, long steeped in Psionics, was activated. Every cell tingled in anticipation of the impending ‘plot development.’

Although Amber understood that the path ahead was likely filled with uncertainty and potential danger, possibly even leading the entire fleet to a point of no return, it was moments like this that made him feel the pulse of life and a strong sense of his own existence.

This was a contest of mind and will, and Amber, at the center of it all, was surprised to find that his psionic strength, which had been stable for a long time, had become active again under this stimulation, just like a protagonist in a martial arts novel on the verge of breaking through a bottleneck.

“What? It can work like this?!”

Amber subconsciously wanted to find his ‘resident Psionic Master (academic type),’ Salieh, to ask her about it. Unfortunately, that Forerunner ‘old frozen meat’ was currently thousands of light-years away in the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, leading a team of technicians to build important components of the Spectral Annihilator from scratch.

Furthermore, with the fleet in covert operations mode, it was not advisable to conduct such ultra-long-range communications. Even quantum entanglement communication carried the risk of detection.

So Amber barely needed to weigh his options before discarding the impractical idea.

Fortunately, this feeling of an imminent breakthrough didn’t last long. It vanished after boosting Amber’s psionic strength by a small fraction.

Then, the unique talent of high-level psionic users—‘Forced Calm’—quickly settled his mind.

The entire fleet maintained its covert operations mode for another ten tense and tedious hours. Then, the special operations ship on deep reconnaissance sent back a brief message via an extremely short, burst-transmission stealth communication.

“Eagle has spotted the chick.”

In this operation, the message had only one meaning—they had found the exact location of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

Soon, the Eternity’s shipboard control AI corrected the fleet’s course. Since the massive fleet could not use the Kinetic Mass Ejection System simultaneously, this adjustment would be made using attitude control thrusters.

This also meant there was a high probability that the entire fleet would be discovered by the enemy after changing course.

Therefore, in the pre-set operational plan, this course adjustment also signified that the fleet would deactivate its optical invisibility, deploy into battle formation, and begin its assault on the target.

However, before that, Amber needed to consider one last question.

Should he take a gamble? Have the fleet adjust its course using vector thrusters without deactivating its optical invisibility and blackbody coating, then continue to advance stealthily toward the assembly center.

Doing so would not only significantly shorten their attack distance but might also create an opportunity for an assault team to infiltrate the facility.

It would be a lie to say Amber wasn’t tempted by a strategic weapon like the Proton Annihilation Bomb. After all, by any measure, it was a ‘planet-busting’ weapon.

The problem was, if they pursued this, they would inevitably deviate from the operational plan, and all subsequent actions would be fraught with significant, uncontrollable risks.

During the pre-war briefing, Amber and his team had considered the idea of using this opportunity to ‘unlock’ the Proton Annihilation Bomb technology. In the end, however, they had all agreed that this battle was of too great a strategic importance to the group to let a single piece of technology endanger the entire ‘grand chessboard.’

So, with heavy hearts, Amber and his team had scrapped the plan, choosing instead to completely destroy the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. If they couldn’t have it, they would destroy it.

But now, at this critical juncture, with the technology for the Proton Annihilation Bomb seemingly within his grasp, Amber couldn’t help but feel a surge of greed. He was no saint; such thoughts were only natural.

It was like planning to burn down a bank, only to discover a large sum of bearer bonds in the vault. Who wouldn’t be tempted to grab them on the way out?

However, Amber still knew his priorities. After hesitating for only a few seconds, he made his decision.

“Therese, entire fleet to Level 1 combat readiness! All ships, activate deflector shield generators! All weapon systems online! Disengage optical invisibility! After a rapid course correction, switch to assault formation and charge at maximum speed!”

“Yes, Commander. Your will be done~”

Following the command relayed by the shipboard control AI, Therese, warship after warship disengaged its optical invisibility. The plasma thruster arrays that lit up in succession immediately illuminated the dark expanse of space.

“All sensor suites and sensor arrays, switch to high-power mode! Intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance to T1 stage! Increase air surveillance alert level! Anti-aircraft commanders of all detachments, weapon free authority is granted!”

“First wave of HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, load anti-ship weapon packages, connect to electromagnetic launch catapults, and await launch command! Second wave, load space combat and anti-aircraft weapon packages and stand by!”

“Fleet-wide adaptive electronic warfare units, initiate network linkup! All shipboard control AIs, manage computing power allocation!”

Amber issued a rapid series of commands, which the Eternity’s shipboard control AI, Therese, quickly refined and relayed to the entire fleet.

At the same time, Amber spoke to Lilith in his mind, “I’ll need you to assist with the electronic warfare. It’s Therese’s first time in such a large-scale engagement. I’m worried she’s not experienced enough.”

“Master, you really have no faith in me~”

Lilith’s playful complaint sounded in Amber’s ear. On a small virtual screen before him, a chibi animation of Lilith appeared, shaking her playful punches at him.

“Before Therese was officially installed on the Eternity, I personally trained—no, tuned—her through multiple rounds. Her iteration time is the longest among the three super-capital control AIs. She’s even surpassed the ‘hundred-year veteran’ level. It’s just that your commands are so detailed right now, Master, that you haven’t given Therese much room to show her capabilities.”

“How could I not be extra careful and detailed? This is the only assault force we have, and it’s an ‘eighty-percent new’ fleet at that. If I don’t think everything through, we’ll be screwed if anything goes wrong!”

Amber replied helplessly to Lilith, sighing inwardly.

In the end, he had not given in to greed. He had abandoned the idea of sending an assault team to infiltrate the assembly center for the proton bomb data. Instead, he would stick to the operational plan: have the fleet complete this ‘demolition’ mission with a few well-aimed salvos.

After all, once they made a commotion here, the Federation Navy would certainly react. That would be the ‘main course’ of this operation. And who knew if the Federation Navy would send a suitably sized fleet in pursuit, just as Amber hoped.

Ten minutes later, that decision made Amber feel a surge of relief, followed by a chilling dread that ran down his spine.

“Report! Eighth Scout Detachment has detected a large number of warships disengaging optical invisibility in sector G44!”

“Report! Rearguard fleet has detected a fleet-sized group of warships in sector R39!”

“Report! Fourteenth Scout Detachment has engaged the enemy and has withdrawn under cover of friendly forces. Based on identification of enemy warship characteristics, they have been confirmed as the Federation Navy’s First Fleet!”

The fleet under Amber’s command detected Federation fleets rapidly approaching from three directions almost simultaneously. Among them, they had even identified the Federation Navy’s First Fleet.

“Damn it, we walked into an ambush after all?!”

That was Amber’s first reaction upon hearing the urgent recon reports.

He then frowned in confusion. According to previous intelligence, the Federation Navy’s First Fleet should have been locked in a staring contest with Atlas’s battle fleet on the front line.

“How did they suddenly appear here? Was the fleet over there a decoy? But where would the Federation Navy even get so many warships right now?”

But Amber had no time to ponder the answers. He had just drawn the worst possible lot for this operation: he had been ambushed by the Federation Navy—or rather, by Trafalgar.

On the tactical starmap, red triangular arrows representing three Federation Navy fleets had suddenly appeared, charging straight at them from three directions. This seasoned deployment, anticipating the Atlas fleet’s trajectory with unnerving accuracy, had sealed off all emergency escape routes in an instant.

The Pillars of Creation interstellar dust cloud had provided them with perfect cover. Once in covert operations mode, as long as one remained still, detection was nearly impossible.

Therefore, the Atlas fleet, which had previously operated on minimal air surveillance to maintain stealth, had failed to spot the ambushers. Just as Amber had described in his ‘worst-case scenario’ to Ramos and the other young officers, they had walked right into the trap.

“This plan couldn’t have been leaked. Lilith has been monitoring everyone who knew about it.”

“The fleet deployment was under absolute secrecy. No one even knew their destination before we left.”

“The feint on the front line was performed perfectly, almost to the point it could be converted into a real attack at any moment. Even Trafalgar couldn’t have afforded to ignore it.”

“But he still set an ambush with three fleets. They were even in position before the Polarized Light ever infiltrated…”

As the pieces fell into place, Amber felt a jolt, as if electricity had shot through his mind, and everything became clear.

“That old fox… he didn’t make another huge gamble, did he?!”

Chapter 636: Feint Fleet, Commence the Attack!

“Hahahahaha! I knew I made the right bet!”

Aboard the Dreadnought, flagship of the Federation Navy’s First Fleet, Marshal Trafalgar could no longer suppress the surging ecstasy in his heart, letting out an uncharacteristically excited low roar.

His face, weathered by the years and etched with resolve, was now slightly flushed from extreme excitement. He was completely immersed in an indescribable state of euphoria.

For Admiral Caroll, who sat in the other command chair, this was the first time in his long years of serving under Marshal Trafalgar that he had witnessed the ever-composed Marshal, as steadfast as a mountain and who never betrayed his emotions, display such a violent and rare emotional fluctuation on the eve of battle.

“Marshal, you seem to be in a good mood?” Admiral Caroll asked, his own mood relaxing slightly. He glanced around at the massive tactical star chart, which clearly and intuitively displayed the current balance of power. The Federation held an overwhelming three-to-one numerical advantage.

Moreover, the three fleets here were all elites of the Federation Navy, not to mention they had the advantage of initiating an ambush and superior morale.

Therefore, in Admiral Caroll’s view, if this ambush wasn’t a guaranteed victory, then it was all but certain.

Hearing Admiral Caroll’s words, Marshal Trafalgar smiled and said, “Seeing through an opponent’s strategic deception—there’s nothing more beautiful in this world.”

Let’s turn back the clock to the moment the Iron Triangle received the intelligence: “The Atlas combat fleet is deploying in large numbers, with two super-capital ships accompanying them.”

Based on their previous discussions, this piece of intelligence all but confirmed the possibility that the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance were about to launch a full-scale offensive against the Federation.

Brandon, in fact, had immediately hoped that Marshal Trafalgar would lead the fleet to prepare for battle and “meet the enemy at the gates,” even though the territory currently controlled by Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance had originally been part of the Federation.

“We can’t afford any more turmoil. If we let the Atlas Group break through and cause massive chaos, the stability we’ve worked so hard to achieve will be threatened again. There’s already an undercurrent of dissent against the military government, and this will just give them an opportunity to add fuel to the fire.”

Brandon’s posture was very humble as he spoke, almost to the point of directly pleading with Trafalgar.

This was for no other reason than the fact that he knew if the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance were to truly break through, he would certainly meet a grim end.

Meanwhile, Minister of Defense Miller shared President Brandon’s view. He too believed the Federation could not endure any more turmoil and that the capital fleet must be sent to intercept the enemy’s impending attack.

After hearing their arguments, Marshal Trafalgar stared intently at the star chart and the disposition of both sides’ forces for a long time. Finally, he looked up and said:

“The Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance will not launch a real attack. What we are seeing is nothing more than strategic deception. That Mr. Amber must have another objective.”

“What?!” Brandon paled in shock. “Marshal Trafalgar, this is far too risky! How can we be certain this is a trap set by the Atlas Group?!”

“Indeed, if this plan fails, we and the entire Federation will be plunged into an abyss from which there is no return,” Minister of Defense Miller also chimed in, trying to dissuade him.

Marshal Trafalgar’s words were completely unexpected. They never imagined that even after seeing the Atlas Group’s super-flagships in position, the Marshal would still believe Atlas wouldn’t truly attack and would instead choose to proceed with the plan to turn the tables and ambush Amber.

Seeing the looks of suspicion on their faces, with Brandon even starting to look at him as if he were an old man who had lost his mind, the Marshal had no choice but to explain.

“To be honest, I admit there was a moment when I almost believed it. I almost bought into this act by the Atlas Group and was about to lead the fleet to a head-on confrontation at the edge of their control zone, just as you suggested.”

A slightly bitter smile touched the corner of Marshal Trafalgar’s mouth, and a hint of self-mockery flashed in his eyes.

Brandon said, “Then may I ask what changed your mind, Marshal?”

“Their ‘performance’ was simply too realistic, as if they were genuinely about to attack us.”

“Is there a problem with that?” this time it was Minister of Defense Miller who asked, bewildered.

Seeing that the other two still didn’t understand, Trafalgar slowly began to explain his reasoning and thoughts.

“When I calmed down and carefully analyzed the character and consistent combat style of this commander, Amber, I became convinced that he is not someone who would fight according to such a conventional playbook. In my eyes, this seemingly flawless performance by the Atlas Group became an overly deliberate disguise. That large, red HCP, parading around out there every day, so showy it was as if he was afraid people wouldn’t know ‘Amber’ was inside—that point, in particular, seemed even more deliberate.”

At this point, a rare expression of admiration appeared on Marshal Trafalgar’s face as he continued, “This Mr. Amber is truly a kindred spirit in this regard. If we weren’t on opposing sides, I would really like to set aside the turmoil of war and have a good, long chat with him.”

“You can have all the ‘chats’ you want after you’ve won the final victory and captured him. Right now, we must react to the urgent situation at hand!”

President Brandon’s voice was laced with anxiety. He clearly was not in the mood for jokes with the old admiral. After composing himself, he continued, “Since you believe this Amber is attempting to get behind us and stab us in the back, where do you think he will strike? Our main warship production lines? Or our largest refinery at present?”

“I believe it will be here…”

Marshal Trafalgar raised a finger and pointed to a region on the map with no official facilities marked. Upon seeing it, the other two paled in shock.

“The Pillars of Creation? Wait… are you saying they’re going to directly attack our Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center?”

Minister of Defense Miller shot upright, his expression turning incredibly grave.

“This location is top secret to the outside world. Even if this Mr. Amber was a former Psionic Agent, it would be absolutely impossible for him to have access to a secret of this level.”

Marshal Trafalgar smiled, speaking as if Amber were an old friend of many years. “The more impossible a place seems, the more likely it is that Mr. Amber will use it to achieve a surprise victory.”

“Marshal! You are clearly gambling. Even someone like me, with limited military knowledge, knows that the choice you’re making has virtually no evidence to support it!”

President Brandon could finally hold back no longer. After all, if the Atlas Group truly broke through, he, the last president, might very well lose his life.

He shot up from his chair, waving his hands, and for a rare moment, he stood his ground before Marshal Trafalgar.

“Based on your own one-sided ‘feeling,’ you conclude that the enemy’s heavy deployment on the front lines is an act? And because of your one-sided ‘guess,’ you believe the enemy will suddenly launch a surprise attack on a top-secret Federation facility that isn’t marked on 99.9% of all star charts?!”

From the perspective of an ordinary person, or even a regular officer, Brandon’s defiance was indeed reasonable. All of Marshal Trafalgar’s decisions were based on his own experience and intuition, with no direct intelligence to back them up.

In fact, Minister of Defense Miller’s thoughts were the same as the President’s at that moment. It was just that as a good friend and traditional ally of the Marshal, it was not his place to directly refute him.

Under normal circumstances, President Brandon could have used procedural means to try and veto Marshal Trafalgar’s operational plan. But unfortunately, the Federation was far from being in a “normal situation” anymore.

And so, for the first time, Brandon experienced what one might call a “charming moment of military government.”

After stubbornly insisting on his judgment, allowing no room for argument, Marshal Trafalgar secretly departed with the three elite fleets he had selected. Like phantoms, they had silently arrived more than ten days in advance to set up an ambush in this mysterious and dangerous interstellar dust cloud known as the Pillars of Creation.

As for the forces on the standoff line, their paint schemes and hull numbers had been altered en masse to masquerade as the Federation Navy’s First, Second, and Third Fleets. Half of them were hastily reactivated mothballed warships, while the other half were the “corpses” of the Military-industrial complex.

These megacorporations, once commanding and powerful figures in the Federation, had been completely absorbed after the official establishment of the military government led by the Iron Triangle. The warships under their control had become part of the reserve and were now being trotted out to keep up appearances.

“Report, the enemy force ahead has been confirmed as the Federation Navy’s First, Second, and Third Fleets! According to rapid analysis from the intelligence control center, all three fleets appear to be at full strength. The closest is the Federation First Fleet, at a direct distance of two hundred ninety thousand kilometers, with a current relative velocity of thirteen kilometers per second!”

On the bridge of the Eternity, Ramos quickly reported the vital information to Amber. A look of nervousness inevitably appeared on the young officer’s face, just like the other rookie officers on the bridge.

“Boss, what do we do now? Do we proceed with the operation?” Ramos asked cautiously.

“Calm down. You are a fleet officer!”

Amber didn’t answer Ramos’s question directly, instead choosing to admonish him while his gaze swept over the uneasy eyes on the bridge.

“The same goes for all of you. Officers need to act like officers! You are the role models for everyone in this fleet. If even you fall into such a pathetic state, how can you expect anyone else in the fleet to find the courage to fight?!”

Amber’s voice seemed to possess a magical quality, penetrating directly into everyone’s ears. Infused with psionic skill, it quickly put Ramos at ease.

“Besides, I’m not panicked, so what are you panicking about?!”

“Yes, Boss…”

Amber’s tone changed. “Is that how you talk when you want to command a warship?”

As if under a spell, Ramos immediately snapped to attention and replied loudly, “Yes, Boss! We are not panicking at all!”

“Excellent. Now that’s more like it!”

Amber nodded in satisfaction, his hands never ceasing their work on the command chair’s control panel.

From the moment the enemy appeared, he had been working with Lilith and Therese to rapidly find a new course, planning to break out of the enemy’s encirclement before the three Federation fleets could close in completely.

A psionic user’s ability for multi-threaded thinking was on full display. Even as his brain performed rapid calculations, Amber continued to issue a stream of commands, quickly bringing the fleet to a state of combat readiness.

Calculating an emergency breakout route was not difficult. Although Marshal Trafalgar had correctly gambled that Amber would lead a fleet to raid this location, he could never have predicted the exact point of Amber’s attack. He could only use his experience to set up a pre-emptive encirclement that was already quite crafty.

But even so, the encirclement was still somewhat loose. After all, using only three fleets for such a task meant their numbers were a bit thin, leaving vulnerabilities in many places.

While the “room to maneuver” left behind wasn’t large, and an average fleet commander would find it difficult to exploit it in such a short time, for Amber, it was more than enough.

Soon, the breakout route was displayed on the holographic projection platform. After being double-checked by both Lilith and Therese, it was swiftly distributed to the entire fleet.

This route, processed by the two AIs and detailed down to each individual warship, meant that the ships receiving the order required no secondary processing. They could hand it directly over to their shipboard control AIs to guide the course adjustments.

As a result, Amber’s “newbie fleet,” employing this new command model, now responded to the flagship’s orders with more uniformity and speed than even veteran fleets, moving like a perfectly synchronized school of fish in the deep sea.

This feedback gave Amber a long-lost feeling from his time in the game, where commanding a fleet was assisted by a similar system to reduce the player’s operational burden.

“All fleets, execute breakout along the new course! Full Ahead!”

“All Electronic Warfare divisions, activate EW modules! After frequency-hopping scan is complete, commence full-spectrum, all-channel electronic warfare attack!”

“Assault formation vanguard, Attack Groups Two, Three, and Four, load stealth plasma torpedoes! Launch tubes zero deviation, five-round load, fire!”

“Assault formation right flank, Attack Groups Five and Six, load anti-beam gel missiles! Deflection fifteen degrees, wall-type dispersion, three salvos with a two-minute interval, fire!”

“Assault formation rearguard, Destroyer-Frigate Divisions Three, Five, and Seven, micro-propulsion active space mines, dispersion pattern three, deploy full complement!”

As if commanding an entire fleet in a guild war in the game, Amber’s fleet began to respond to his stream of commands at an extremely high speed.

Although many of the crew members, including the ships’ command staff, had panicked when the Federation Navy’s ambush fleet appeared, they gradually grew calm as the orders flowed down from the flagship through the tactical network.

Just as Amber had instructed them before they set out, all they needed to do was execute each of his commands according to procedure. The rest… they would leave to Amber, their Fleet Commander.

After confirming that the fleet was executing his commands swiftly and without any lag or breakdown in coordination, Amber let out a small sigh of relief. At the same time, he used the flagship’s ultra-long-range communications unit to send a short command to his fleet on the standoff line in Federation-controlled space.

[Federation Navy First, Second, and Third Fleets confirmed guarding the Pillars of Creation region. Commence full-scale attack immediately as per pre-battle assignments.]

Seeing the “Sent” notification pop up on the long-range communication interface, Amber looked up through the panoramic viewport at the Federation Navy fleet ahead.

His sharp gaze seemed to traverse the hundreds of thousands of kilometers, pierce through the thick forward armor of a battleship, and focus directly on Marshal Trafalgar in his captain’s chair.

“God of War… no… Your Excellency, God of Gamblers, let’s see just how firm your resolve truly is.”

Chapter [Chapter Number]: Too Excited to Write, Taking It Slow

Too excited to write, taking it slow.

The bleak autumn wind is here again, but the world has changed.

Happy birthday, Teacher~

Chapter 637: Icebreaker

“Report! We’ve received an urgent message from the Boss in the fleet!”

“Read it.”

[Confirmation received: Federation Navy First, Second, and Third Fleets are all defending the ‘Pillars of Creation’ region. Initiate an all-out attack immediately, according to pre-war mission assignments.]

Guterres felt a mix of emotions upon reading the urgent message. There was relief, but a far greater sense of worry.

He was relieved he wouldn’t have to face his old mentor on the frontline, but he was also worried whether Amber and his people could retreat unscathed from an encounter with three elite Federation Navy fleets.

However, it was clear that on this frontline, Guterres wasn’t the only one concerned about Amber.

Randall and Cleves, who were also in command of parts of the fleet, and Isabelle, who was in charge of tactical intelligence and allied communications, all grew tense when they saw the message.

Amber’s fleet was saddled with a laundry list of handicaps: rookies, new ships, and new systems. Throughout the entire fleet, he was the only one with any real experience as a fleet commander.

That was why the initial operational plan had only envisioned them holding off one or two returning Federation fleets at a time with the support of the super-flagship Eternity.

The current situation, with Marshal Trafalgar personally leading three elite fleets and setting an ambush more than ten days in advance, was a scenario that hadn’t been completely overlooked. It was just that everyone, including Amber and Guterres, had believed that under the current strategic deception, the probability of it happening was incredibly small.

But Murphy’s Law applied even in this corner of the universe. The more Amber and the others wanted to avoid this outcome, the more certain it became that this least probable scenario would come to pass.

“Damn… The Boss is in a tough spot!”

Cleves slammed a clenched fist onto his thigh, his worry plain for all the surrounding officers to see.

“Cleves, calm down. Watch your expression.”

Guterres’s voice, calm and authoritative, came over the comms channel. In that moment, the most senior naval officer present immediately took on the role of stabilizing morale.

The saying “an elder in the family is like a treasure” was a fitting description for Guterres. Even on different warships, he could easily guess the expressions on the others’ faces.

“You are the backbones of your respective fleets. You must remain composed. No matter what happens, you must not betray your emotions!”

Hearing the old navy veteran’s words, Randall and Cleves realized their mistake. They immediately regained their composure, suppressing their anxiety.

“Sir, what do we do now? We can’t provide any support…” Randall asked over the comms channel.

“We follow the Boss’s orders. For now, sticking to the plan and preventing any other mishaps is the best support we can give the Boss and the fleet!”

“Yes, sir!” came two replies in unison.

Guterres nodded subconsciously, then had his communications officer patch in all ten fleets on the frontline, including the Renaissance Alliance.

When the green icons representing each fleet all lit up on the comms channel, Guterres’s entire demeanor changed in an instant. It was as if he had returned to his days commanding fleets in the Federation Navy.

“All forces, listen up! By order of the Supreme Commander, Amber, the frontline will commence an all-out offensive! The feigned attack, operation ‘Musical,’ is canceled! We are now shifting to operation ‘Flash Point’!

“As per the ‘Flash Point’ operational plan, the Supreme Commander has granted me full command of the fleet. All fleets must unconditionally execute the tactical orders issued by the Grand Flagship. Any violators, in accordance with Atlas’s wartime protocols, will be summarily relieved of command and imprisoned. If an entire ship defies orders, it will be destroyed on the spot!

“Is that understood?!”

“Yes, Commander-in-Chief!” came a chorus of replies.

Amid the unified response, a long-lost feeling returned to Guterres, and his entire being radiated a renewed sense of vigor.

The old naval officer knew that operation ‘Flash Point’ was not only a symbol of Amber’s trust in him but also a test. He had to deliver a solution that would satisfy his boss.

Soon, battle alarms blared across all warships.

After all crew members had donned their in-ship suits, oxygen was completely purged from every compartment. Inert gas was pumped into critical sections, and the isolation doors between compartments were sealed.

The once-bright bridge was dimmed to a darker hue, a measure to help everyone focus completely on the workstations before them.

Guterres, also in his in-ship suit, opened a pre-set command from Amber on his helmet’s private display, which he had received upon activating the ‘Flash Point’ operational plan.

Upon seeing this secret directive, even an experienced naval officer like Guterres almost lost his composure, his eyebrows twitching a few times.

“Just like the Boss…”

Suppressing his surprise, Guterres used the encrypted real-time communication line granted to him to quickly contact George, the Vice President of Atlas Mining and on-site ‘mining foreman’, who was at an unknown location.

The latter’s voice soon came over the encrypted line: “Mr. Guterres. I didn’t expect to actually receive this call. Does that mean…”

“Yes, Mr. George. As per the Boss’s standing orders, please begin executing Project ‘Icebreaker’! The relevant verification code has been sent concurrently!”

“Yes, sir. Verification code received. Atlas Mining’s First Engineering Team guarantees mission accomplishment!”

As the brief, encrypted communication ended, George turned his gaze back to the scene outside his helmet’s visor. His engineering team was swarming over an eight-kilometer-diameter ice crystal like a colony of giant worker ants.

The ‘Atlas Mining First Engineering Team’ was composed of old miners Amber had rescued from pirates years ago. They were currently Atlas Mining’s most capable crew in terms of overall operational skill.

Though there were only one hundred and eight of them, their growth over the past two years had been nothing short of rapid. Many had even opted for a certain degree of cybernetic enhancement, allowing them to simultaneously control a number of engineering robots.

Just as they were doing now. Three engineering vessels surrounded the ice crystal. The engineering machinery on board, along with the ‘Worker Bees’ released from the ‘hives,’ were steadily approaching the crystal to begin their work.

At a pace that was almost visible to the naked eye, the ‘rear’ of the ice crystal was gradually hollowed out and fitted with arrays of fusion reactors and power conduits, which were finally connected to twelve plasma thruster arrays.

Around the outside of the thruster array was a ring of large, disposable propellant-based rocket engines.

“Chief! Work on ‘Ice One’ is eighty-five percent complete. Should we send a detachment over to ‘Ice Two’ as planned?”

The voice of a foreman, tinged with excitement, crackled over the comms.

George quickly replied, “Yes, proceed according to the operational plan. Have the ‘Alexios’ take its assigned team and head over to begin preparatory work!”

A short while later, from his position on the command ship’s cantilevered 360-degree observation deck, George saw one of the engineering vessels retract its personnel and equipment. With flashes from its vector control nozzles, it slowly adjusted its orientation. Then, as its main thruster array flared to life, it set course for another giant ice crystal in the distance.

And farther still, giant ice crystals, one after another, filled this entire region of space.

Chapter 638: And You’re Supposed to be the ‘First Fleet’?

After the Atlas ‘Flash Point’ plan was initiated, the fleets on the confrontation line quickly launched a full-scale offensive.

This included four fleets that the Renaissance Alliance had assembled during this period through purchases, captured ships, and other means. They too mobilized upon receiving the command.

Although these fleets were under the command of the Renaissance Alliance, almost all their main officers, such as the captains, bridge officers, and chief engineers, had been trained by the Atlas combat fleet.

The instructors who conducted the training had fully carried out Amber’s directives. While training the students, they also did everything they could to build a rapport with them, allowing these trainees to fully experience the ‘warmth’ of the Atlas Group.

By the time each class of students graduated, it had basically reached a point where they called them ‘Instructor’ in class and ‘Big Bro’ after class.

This directly led to a complete lack of friction when the Renaissance Alliance’s fleets accepted commands from Atlas during joint operations, making for exceptionally smooth and obedient cooperation.

Furthermore, they were now attacking the Federation—an enemy that, according to internal propaganda, had been constantly suppressing the Renaissance Alliance. As a result, the Renaissance Alliance’s fleets even showed a certain ‘eagerness’.

The first to attack and fire the opening shot on Atlas’s side was a special strike detachment composed of six ‘Spectral Annihilator’ battlecruisers.

The six battlecruisers, almost in plain sight of everyone, advanced to a distance of one light-second from the Federation Navy’s ‘First Fleet’ and then attacked the ‘flagship’ designated by scout ships, as well as the surrounding battleships.

The intensely focused high-energy lasers, as if tearing space itself apart, lit up the pitch-black universe and accurately struck the ‘First Fleet’ before it could even react.

A ‘Kraken II’ class battleship, serving as the flagship, was pierced by two high-energy laser beams, instantly disintegrating and exploding. These two beams, after penetrating the warship, also happened to destroy two more ships behind the battleship.

The remaining four high-energy laser beams continued the ‘Spectral Annihilator’s’ perfect one-hundred-percent hit rate to date, successfully hitting and penetrating multiple warships.

Seeing the ‘First Fleet’s’ flagship sunk, Guterres immediately gave the order:

“All Electronic Warfare units, while launching your EW attacks, use all channels to broadcast jamming messages to the Federation fleet!”

In an instant, all public and private channels throughout the engagement region of space were flooded with morale-shattering messages like ‘Grand Flagship destroyed!’, ‘Marshal Trafalgar has been killed!’, and ‘We’ve lost!’

This forced the Federation fleet commanders to immediately use the fleet-wide broadcast to refute the rumors. However, Atlas’s relentless tide of electronic warfare attacks caused jamming messages like ‘We’re losing! We’re losing!’ to repeatedly sound over the broadcast as well.

Facing this situation, the Commander-in-Chief of the Federation fleet could only order all ships to switch to blue-green laser communication and have each ship’s shipboard control AI allocate a fixed percentage of computing power to organize an electronic warfare defense.

And amidst this chaos, the fleets of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance seized the opportunity to press their attack.

—

News that Atlas had launched a full-scale offensive on the main frontline soon reached Marshal Trafalgar.

Upon receiving the urgent message from the quantum entanglement communication terminal, a slight smile appeared on Marshal Trafalgar’s face. “To intentionally let me receive this message… it seems this Mr. Amber is trying to put pressure on me.”

Admiral Caroll immediately understood upon hearing this. He looked up at the Atlas fleet charging toward the First Fleet, a grave look flashing in his eyes.

“Psychological warfare? He could have easily cut off our real-time communications with the capital fleet.”

“Exactly, it is psychological warfare against us. Look, the real-time battle report says it clearly—they took out the ‘First Fleet’s’ flagship right off the bat.”

Admiral Caroll: “Then, Marshal, what you’re saying is…?”

“I’ve already told Griezmann and the others. They are to find a way to hold the main frontline. I will not, and cannot, provide them with support. And I most certainly will not choose to retreat at this time!”

Marshal Trafalgar paused, then continued in a serious tone:

“We cannot fall into the enemy’s trap and let this Mr. Amber lead us by the nose. The best way to break this deadlock is to completely crush this fleet right here and sink the flagship with Amber on it!

Relay my orders! Full fleet, begin the attack!”

As Marshal Trafalgar’s command was issued, the true Federation Navy First Fleet, positioned directly in front of Amber, began its attack.

Witnessing this, Amber immediately confirmed the Federation Marshal’s resolve to fight.

Things had come to this. There was no retreat for either side, and nothing left to discuss.

From the moment he had first seen the three Federation Navy fleets, after a brief moment of alarm, Amber had quickly realized that Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘great gamble’ was also an opportunity for Atlas.

Right now on the main frontline, the Federation Navy was effectively short three elite fleets that served as a crucial part of its main force. Atlas, on the other hand, was only missing one ‘newbie fleet’ that lacked experience. It wasn’t hard to judge which side had lost more.

Disregarding the current predicament of Amber and his men, one could even say that Atlas had traded its ‘inferior horse’ for the Federation Navy’s ‘superior horse’.

“‘Besides, this isn’t just any ordinary ’inferior horse’ of mine,” Amber muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the constantly updating tactical situation on the star chart.

At this moment, his fleet was charging straight toward the Federation Navy’s First Fleet in a ‘head-to-head’ formation.

Behind his fleet, the Federation’s Third Fleet was in hot pursuit, but it was still a considerable distance from the practical firing range of a battleship’s main cannon. Furthermore, Amber had ordered the deployment of numerous space mines in their path.

On the fleet’s right flank, a large number of anti-beam gel missiles had detonated, forming an ‘anti-beam gel corridor’ that blocked the vast majority of salvoes from the Federation’s Second Fleet on their right.

With a current straight-line distance of one hundred twenty thousand kilometers between them, and an extremely high relative angular velocity, the enemy could only attack with light-speed or near-light-speed weapons like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons.

But under Amber’s command, the thick gel wall formed via the ‘wall-type dispersion’ pattern rendered such extreme long-range attacks almost completely ineffective.

If the Federation Navy had also been equipped with a weapon like the ‘Spectral Annihilator’, which pushed the power of high-energy lasers to the absolute limit, they might have actually been able to burn through this continuous gel wall.

The problem was, they didn’t have anything like it.

Therefore, Marshal Trafalgar could only watch helplessly as the Atlas fleet approached at an ever-increasing relative velocity, forcing him to prepare plans for a rapid realignment of his fleet’s orientation to continue the engagement after they passed each other.

However, he didn’t yet know that Amber had no intention of engaging in a ‘true man’s 1v1’ duel.

Instead, he had issued the ‘Cosmic Dump Truck’ combat order to his fleet.

Soon, Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll noticed that the formation of the Atlas fleet ahead was growing increasingly dense—far denser than a conventional spindle-shaped assault formation. At the same time, the shipboard control AIs began issuing repeated warnings: ‘High-energy reading detected.’

Just as the Federation Marshal was wondering if the super-flagship in the Atlas fleet was about to fire its main cannon, a gigantic deflector shield, beyond anything anyone had ever conceived, enveloped the entire vanguard of the Atlas fleet!

Chapter 639: Cosmic Dump Truck

Inventor: ‘Red Baron’ - Manfred Albrecht von Richthofen

Invention: ‘Cosmic Dump Truck’ tactical maneuver

Manfred, a young man from a fallen noble family, was born in the Star Dragon Empire but eventually settled in the Federation. It was in the Third Task Force, composed of ships from the Renaissance Alliance and Atlas, that he experienced his first large-scale space battle.

And it was in this very battle that, in order to cover for his good friend ‘Crimson Lightning’ Johnny Leiding, the young man piloted a Heavy Armored Gunship, overloaded its deflector shield generator, and turned the craft into a kinetic projectile, ramming and destroying over ten HCPs in a single pass.

After the battle, at the request of his Atlas instructor, Manfred, who had long since developed a habit of post-battle analysis, recorded this maneuver. In his subsequent free time, he continuously refined this ‘tactical maneuver’ and eventually submitted it to Jacob.

When Jacob saw the ‘Tactical Maneuver Report’ submitted by Manfred, he was utterly astounded. He never expected that this young man he had been watching for so long was a ‘madman’ just like himself.

But at the same time, he quickly discovered that Manfred’s revised maneuver truly unlocked the potential of the Heavy Armored Gunship. Compared to an HCP, its more powerful deflector shield generator could indeed fully support the execution of this entire set of tactical actions.

Jacob immediately prepared to promote this tactical maneuver throughout the entire Heavy Armored Gunship operational forces. After all, there wasn’t a pilot in that unit who wasn’t crazy.

However, something to be promoted to an entire branch of service still needed to be reported to Amber first.

When Amber saw the documents Jacob sent over, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“So all the pilots in your combat craft units are this style? During that special mission last time, the pilot who came to pick me up was a professional pilot from the ‘Starsea Velocity Grand Prix’… Say, you guys don’t specifically recruit these people, do you?”

“Well, with our combat vehicles, ordinary people wouldn’t have the guts to fly them. I think you need people who aren’t afraid to die to bring out the combat craft’s greatest advantages~”

In the end, after being validated by the combat craft design team, Manfred’s ‘Cosmic Dump Truck’ tactical maneuver was soon incorporated into the advanced curriculum for combat craft pilots and began to be taught to the ‘old birds’ in the units.

And Amber, in turn, drew new inspiration from this tactical maneuver.

The essence of this tactic was to overwhelm the enemy with sheer power, which also meant that it wasn’t limited to use on Heavy Armored Gunships.

An ‘Endless-class’ super-flagship, in a way, was to an ordinary warship what a Heavy Armored Gunship was to an HCP; the former’s power output was several times that of the latter.

In fact, the gap between an ‘Endless-class’ and an ordinary warship was even greater than the gap between a Heavy Armored Gunship and an HCP.

If that was the case, wouldn’t using an ‘Endless-class’ ship to execute the Cosmic Dump Truck tactic be even more effective?

Moreover, the ‘Endless-class’ utilized new technology that could link the deflector shields of nearby ships in parallel, forming a larger-scale combined field—

“Report! Combined deflector field generation complete. All ships operating at stable power!”

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, Amber glanced again at Therese, who was floating in the air. After a large volume of data streamed past her, she also nodded at Amber.

“Commander, the impact trajectory has been plotted! We can commence the charge!”

Seeing the star chart on the holographic projection platform, where Therese had marked a direct course for the Federation Navy’s First Fleet, Amber gave the command with a wave of her hand:

“All hands, engage ‘High-G Overload Mode’ on in-ship suits! Inertial transfer units to maximum power!

All helmsmen, lock in the impact trajectory! Throttles, prepare for ‘Ahead 4,’ countdown from ten!”

“10… 9… 8… 7… 6…”

Seeing the red warning flash on their in-ship suit visors and the emergency instructions that took over every display screen on the ship, everyone in the fleet immediately followed their training, securing themselves in the nearest buffer seats.

For those who couldn’t reach a buffer seat with inertial transfer functions in time, their only option was to find the nearest temporary buffer pod.

These recesses, normally hidden within the bulkheads of the ship, were just large enough for a Romu-sized or smaller humanoid to stand in. Once a crew member stepped inside, several high-strength safety lines would connect to the prefabricated clasps on their in-ship suit, securing them firmly.

Simultaneously, a viscous colloid would rapidly fill the entire pod, clinging tightly to the interior under the influence of electromagnetic forces.

At this point, primary control of each warship had already been transferred to its shipboard control AI.

“…5… 4… 3… 2… 1! All ships, Ahead 4!”

Time seemed to stand still. In the view of the three Federation fleets, the Atlas fleet instantly streaked forward, leaving a blue wake thousands of kilometers long. The nearly two hundred thousand kilometer distance between them and the First Fleet began to shrink at a rate visible to the naked eye.

“What is this…”

Aboard the battleship Dreadnought, Admiral Caroll stared at the rapidly approaching fleet. Hearing the shipboard control AI’s frantic ‘Collision Warning,’ his mind went blank for a moment.

Before him was a method of warfare he had never witnessed. A situation like this, resembling a heavy cavalry charge, had never occurred in past fleet battles, except when two sides briefly passed each other to disengage.

At that moment, Marshal Trafalgar’s vast experience allowed him to realize what was happening. He had no time to explain to Caroll and immediately roared:

“On my command, all ships, emergency evasion! Authorize all shipboard control AIs for ‘override control’! All anti-aircraft batteries, open fire!”

The other warships of the Federation Navy’s First Fleet had, of course, also seen the Atlas fleet charging toward them like a ‘Hundred-Ton King’ on a highway.

Although they stood upon steel behemoths weighing millions of tons themselves, a look at the colossal super-flagship in the Atlas formation and the deflector shield covering its entire vanguard was enough to convince anyone not to be laid-back enough to test its mettle with a collision.

Like a flock of birds scattering, the previously tight formation of the First Fleet rapidly began to break apart. As the Navy’s elite fleet, the First Fleet maintained an extremely high degree of training even while dissolving its formation.

As they shifted position, all warships kept their main cannons’ firing axes locked on the charging Atlas fleet, ready to attack the moment the order was given.

However, they now had to deal with not only the ‘Hundred-Ton King,’ the ‘dump truck’ before them, but also a large pile of ‘garbage’ that the Atlas fleet had released ahead of time.

“Report, suspected plasma torpedoes detected in sectors B4, G9, and U2. Numbers are increasing!”

“Plasma torpedoes?! Why were they only detected at this range?!” the anti-aircraft commander exclaimed.

“Sir, based on the radar return signature, they’re likely the Atlas Group’s stealth configuration super-heavy plasma torpedoes. They already compress our detection range, and our own ships’ emergency maneuvers have interfered with our anti-aircraft sensors!”

“Dammit! All anti-aircraft weapon groups, fire at will! Watch for friendly ships, avoid friendly fire! Destroyer-Frigate Formations 1 through 5, break from the main formation immediately and provide anti-air cover for the capital ships!”

The once-calm region of space around the Pillars of Creation instantly erupted into chaos as the Atlas fleet initiated its ‘dump truck charge.’

On the periphery of the Federation Navy’s First Fleet, the region of space was densely crisscrossed by the beams of directed-energy weapons and the orange-red trajectories of rapid-fire electromagnetic cannons.

At the end of the lines of fire, fireballs would occasionally erupt—the telltale sign of a super-heavy plasma torpedo’s warhead armor being breached and detonating.

But an anti-air screen organized in haste still had vulnerabilities.

The destroyers and frigates on the periphery, swallowed by blue-white, high-temperature plasma fireballs, were the price the Federation’s First Fleet paid for those vulnerabilities.

To protect the precious capital ships from attack, these Destroyer-Frigate Divisions had practically thrown themselves into the path of the plasma torpedoes, using their own hulls as shields to form a final line of defense.

And the capital ships, now being protected by the smaller vessels, did not let their sacrifices be in vain. At this moment, they displayed their extremely high level of training to its fullest.

While evading the ‘dump truck,’ the capital ships continuously fired their heavy particle cannons. Blue-white beams flashed one after another across the void, attempting to halt the Atlas fleet’s charge.

But the power of the systematic deflector shield organized by the Eternity could no longer be calculated with a simple ‘1+1’ or multiplication. Its instantaneous power had long since surpassed the sum of all the fleet’s deflector shield generators, even exceeding it exponentially.

So when the First Fleet’s salvo arrived, dense streams of heavy metal particles instantly blanketed the entire shield, creating a massive, hemispherical sea of electrical arcs like some astronomical phenomenon. Warships on both sides instinctively dimmed their viewscreen light intake, lest the sudden flash of light blind the personnel within.

The First Fleet’s salvo was immense. The deadly and precise shots struck almost simultaneously, but it just wasn’t enough.

“Continue firing! Main cannon groups, force a cooling cycle, don’t stop!”

As the First Fleet fired again and again, the massive deflector shield, like a buckler glowing with an ethereal blue light, rippled and danced with writhing silver serpents, easily deflecting two rapid salvos from the Federation’s First Fleet.

Each stream of heavy metal ions that struck the shield burst into dazzling sparks, blooming like brilliant stars across its surface. The scattering sparks wove a magnificent, dazzling light curtain across the field, like a cosmic fireworks festival.

Meanwhile, the fleet, in its “Ahead 4” state, was still accelerating at an astonishing rate. The wakes from their plasma thruster arrays danced wantonly in space, dyeing the surrounding vacuum blue.

The warships’ velocity grew ever more ferocious, in the blink of an eye approaching an outrageous relative velocity of 400 kilometers per second.

This speed seemed to shatter the shackles of space-time. The once vast distance of over one hundred thousand kilometers between the two fleets rapidly shortened, as if twisted into a straight line by an invisible force, shrinking visibly with each passing second.

Although Marshal Trafalgar had given the order for the fleet to scatter beforehand, it was easier said than done for a tightly packed, hive-like formation to completely disperse in such a short time.

Warships dodged past each other, their engine exhausts crisscrossing to form an ocean of light and heat.

“All hands, brace for impact!!!”

Marshal Trafalgar’s voice boomed through the communication channels. He gripped the arms of his command chair so tightly his knuckles turned white, his eyes filled with a mix of determination and tension.

In an instant, in the vision of the Federation fleet’s crews, the Atlas fleet descended upon them like a volley of burning meteors, carrying the force of an avalanche.

Those Federation warships that failed to evade in time, upon contact with the massive deflector shield, were violently knocked off course as if struck by a colossal, invisible force.

Their hulls trembled violently, their titanium alloy frames groaning in agony, as if lamenting their own helplessness and despair. The tough hull armor tore apart under the immense impact force, flinging out fragments like fragile paper. Crew and unsecured objects inside were hurled out like garbage in the violent collision.

Even those warships on the edge of the deflector field were caught in a terrible storm, sent tumbling instantly. The space around their hulls distorted, light stretching into long ribbons as if space-time itself was being torn asunder.

A few lucky ships, under the precise control of their shipboard control AIs, desperately activated their vector control nozzles. Blue light, several times more intense than usual, erupted from their flank thrusters, desperately pushing the hulls to stabilize their attitude amidst the chaos.

However, many more warships had no time to react. Like a rack of billiard balls broken by a powerful shot, they were sent crashing into surrounding friendly ships.

“Enemy… enemy fleet has passed! They are rapidly increasing distance!”

“Wait, they’re not going to turn around and engage?!” Admiral Caroll, recovering from the violent impact, was filled with confusion as he watched the Atlas fleet continue to sprint away without slowing or turning after passing through.

“Sarah! Calculate their sprint trajectory and project their destination!”

Realizing something, Marshal Trafalgar ignored the internal injuries he had sustained when the g-forces from the evasion had exceeded his in-ship suit’s threshold, asking anxiously.

Such a calculation was not difficult for a shipboard control AI. By diverting just a fraction of its computing power, the AI named Sarah completed the task.

“Calculation complete, Marshal. The projected destination is approaching the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center!”

“As I thought.”

Marshal Trafalgar bit his lip hard. He looked at the chaos of the First Fleet around him, at the warships destroyed in the ‘dump truck’ collision. After a fierce internal struggle that lasted several seconds, he finally let out a long sigh and ordered:

“On my command, First Fleet, adjust course and give full pursuit! Second and Third Fleets, each leave two Destroyer-Frigate Divisions to rescue survivors. All other warships, follow at speed! We must completely annihilate this enemy force!”

Chapter 640: A Classic Case of “Once Bitten, Twice Shy”

“Boss! Crossover complete! We are now over ten thousand kilometers from the First Fleet and pulling away!”

“Boss, multiple ships are reporting an overload risk in their plasma thruster arrays!”

“Boss, the main fusion reactor group reports an anomaly in the fusion reaction. They recommend temporarily exiting the ‘Ahead 4’ state to troubleshoot!”

After the two fleets completed their pass-through, several urgent reports also sounded on the Eternity.

As the third ship of the Endless-class, the Eternity was fresh from the shipyard. Furthermore, it had been scrambled to join the combat sequence for this operation, so much of its critical adaptation training and testing had not been fully completed. Therefore, Amber was not surprised that the fusion reactor group was having problems.

As for the ‘Ahead 4’ state he had just ordered the helmsmen of each ship to enter, it was an upgrade implemented on this batch of warships. In essence, it forced the ships’ fusion reactors and plasma thruster arrays to run in an overloaded state.

However, it incorporated some Forerunner technology provided by Salieh, boosting its power output and stability several tiers above that of a standard warship.

The addition of this function was also part of Amber’s hope that the fleet would possess better tactical maneuverability. After all, compared to the player warships he had commanded in his previous life, the tactical maneuverability of these current ships was far too lacking.

In the game, fleet engagements between players could easily involve relative velocities of hundreds of kilometers per second, and significant attitude adjustments were required even at such speeds.

Therefore, Amber also hoped to test as much new technology as possible on this newly built fleet to help him recapture the feeling of his old command.

But just as he had anticipated, the installation of new technology often came with many unexpected problems. Even with Salieh’s technical assistance, the ‘Ahead 4’ state still caused malfunctions on many of the warships.

Thinking of this, Amber decided not to push it any further. After all, this battle had only just begun.

“Relay my orders! All fleet helmsmen, throttle back the engine order telegraph to ‘Ahead 3’! All ships’ damage control and engineering teams, hurry up and carry out repairs and maintenance!”

After speaking, Amber looked over at Therese, who stood silently beside him with her hands clasped.

“Switch the Eternity’s power unit to the superconducting battery stack for now. If my calculations are correct, it should last for two hours, right?”

“Yes, Commander. Switching the power unit to the superconducting battery stack will allow for two hours, fifteen minutes, and thirty-two seconds of continuous operation,” Therese replied calmly.

“Then make the switch. Have the main fusion reactor group troubleshoot the problem quickly. Send a few damage control teams over to be on standby!”

“Yes, Commander!”

Hearing Amber’s arrangements, Ramos unfastened the tether on his in-ship suit and came to Amber’s side. “Boss, what about the pursuers behind us? Do we need to adjust our orientation to deal with a possible attack?”

“No need. The fleet’s next objective is to directly attack the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. Since things are already this bad, we have to at least get something out of this~”

Amber waved his hand and continued, “Our velocity difference with the First Fleet is still high enough, and all our ships are still accelerating in ‘Ahead 3.’ Even if they adjust their ship orientation immediately, by the time they perform an emergency deceleration and then accelerate again to chase us, the distance between us will have grown immense.”

However, as he spoke, Amber suddenly felt that this might not be safe enough, so he smiled at Ramos.

“Then again, I can’t let you guys stand around idle. How about this, I’ll give you a job. It’ll be good experience~”

Ramos: “Awaiting your orders, Boss!”

Amber: “No need to be so serious. This job is simple. What you just said did remind me, though—their high-energy lasers could still pose a threat to the fleet’s thruster arrays. Get a few staff officers together and work out a schedule for periodically deploying anti-beam gel rounds behind the fleet.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Ramos saluted, then turned to float over to the staff officers’ station.

“Oh, right, have the ships fire a volley now!”

“Yes! Anti-beam gel rounds, target rear of the fleet formation, fixed quantity deployment. Fire!”

“Marshal! The target fleet is still accelerating. The speed difference between us is too great. It will be difficult to catch up in the short term!”

“We chase even if we can’t catch up! They’re trying to attack the ‘VIP target’! We can’t just let them succeed!” Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, Marshal Trafalgar roared with a hint of fury. “What about the high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons? Fire a few volleys first!”

Admiral Caroll: “The warships that stabilized their positions earlier already initiated an attack, but the enemy commander reacted quickly. They launched a wave of anti-beam gel rounds ahead of time. Our attack had minimal effect.”

“Switch the heavy electromagnetic cannons to compressed helium warheads and blow away those gel layers! Tell them to use their brains! Don’t fucking wait for the flagship to give orders for everything! If you wait for orders to fight a war, it’ll be too damn late!”

Marshal Trafalgar’s roar echoed through the entire bridge communications channel. Admiral Caroll knew that the old marshal was genuinely angry now.

However, he could completely understand. After all, they had anticipated the enemy’s plan and set up an ambush with three fleets to hunt them down, only to have the enemy break through their encirclement in the first exchange. Now, they were watching helplessly as the enemy was about to succeed. He wouldn’t be happy either if he were in the marshal’s shoes.

So he immediately sent a text message in the ‘officers’ private channel,’ telling everyone that the marshal was in a bad mood and that they should all be smart and not get in the line of fire right now.

At last, the admiral came to Marshal Trafalgar’s side and said, “Marshal, don’t worry. Since their target is the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, they won’t be able to keep accelerating forever. We will catch up to them sooner or later. Besides, you’ve made arrangements at the assembly center. It should be able to hold out until we arrive.”

Hearing Admiral Caroll’s words, Marshal Trafalgar did not reply immediately. After a while, he responded with a somewhat cold tone:

“Hmm, what you say makes sense…”

Having served under Marshal Trafalgar for so long, Admiral Caroll immediately knew that the marshal hadn’t truly calmed down because of his words. However, he didn’t intend to poke the bear right now, so he said no more.

Admiral Caroll’s guess was indeed correct. Marshal Trafalgar was not put at ease by his words.

If he had been confident in his arrangements near the assembly center before the battle, then after the first exchange—or rather, the mere ‘crossover’—with the Atlas fleet, the fleet admiral’s confidence was no longer so great.

What if the Atlas fleet pulled out some other ‘black tech’ weapon?

However, this time, Marshal Trafalgar was indeed overthinking it. Although Amber had employed a lot of new technology in this new fleet, there were no significant new upgrades in terms of armaments.

Recent technological advancements in the fleet had been concentrated on subsystems like propulsion, communications, and control assemblies. The only upgrade to the fleet’s armament was the ‘Spectral Annihilator,’ but those six battlecruisers were currently engaged in long-range target practice on the main frontline and could not influence the situation here.

Chapter 641: Standard Procedure: Jump In and Wreck Them

Amber didn’t know yet that Marshal Trafalgar had prepared a ‘big gift’ for him at the assembly center.

He was currently busy reviewing a briefing from Guterres on the main frontline.

To put it simply, the battle there wasn’t going as smoothly as expected.

Originally, both Amber and Guterres had believed that with the elite forces lured away, the remaining Federation fleets wouldn’t pose much of a problem, especially with two super-capital ships on the frontline.

But once the two sides truly engaged, the fleets of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance realized that their opponents were, after all, a proper navy. Although their strength and training had declined, they were certainly not on the same level as the ‘rebels’ they had faced before.

Moreover, the acting Commander-in-Chief of the Federation fleet on the main frontline was Guterres’s old partner—Griezmann, who had been promoted to Vice Admiral for his outstanding performance during the ‘Capital Coup Incident’.

Although this newly promoted Vice Admiral didn’t particularly stand out among the Federation Navy’s commanders, he often played a supporting role in joint operations, creating opportunities for friendly forces to secure victory.

But when it came to commanding operations on his own, the man was defined by his steady and cautious approach, never advancing rashly.

This was evident on the current battlefield. When Griezmann discovered that Atlas not only had two troublesome super-capital ships but also a new type of warship—described in intelligence reports as capable of striking from a distance of one light-second—he swiftly ordered his fleets to retreat under alternating cover. At the same time, he dispatched a fast-response squadron composed of light cruisers and destroyers to try and interfere with the ‘Spectral Annihilator’ strike division.

The line of confrontation was near an asteroid belt on the Federation’s side, spanning 2.2 million kilometers. This asteroid belt served as an assembly and supply point for the Federation Navy within their territory, and was also a ‘resource-rich zone’.

This asteroid belt not only had logistical supply capabilities but was also originally defended by numerous fixed defense platforms. After the standoff began, many more weapon emplacements were hastily added.

So, after Griezmann commanded his fleet to withdraw to the vicinity of the asteroid belt, all he had to do was order them to hold their ground. He wasn’t in a hurry; he could just wait them out. Atlas was the side that should be feeling the pressure.

And this battlefield briefing from Guterres was what ultimately solidified Amber’s resolve to demolish the Federation’s Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, even while being pursued by three fleets.

After his fleet used the current speed difference to quickly widen the gap with their pursuers, Amber, drawing on the experience from his previous life, had the fleet prepare to deal with the assembly center’s outer defense platforms.

In his memory, besides the outer defense platforms, the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center had another ‘little something’ for defense: a satellite cannon array.

But in the game’s established history, construction of this satellite cannon array had been halted for a long time due to the war. It was only after Franklin became the first President of the New Federation that construction resumed, and even then, it took a considerable amount of time.

Theoretically, the satellite cannon array meant to protect the assembly center should currently be nothing more than a collection of construction frameworks and ‘parts kits’ bolted nearby.

So, Amber’s plan was for the fleet to approach the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center and, with the help of the Eternity’s main cannon, first take down the outer defense platforms on one flank. Then, the fleet would maintain position in this safe corridor to carry out the demolition work.

Although the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center itself carried no defensive weapons apart from the platforms, the Federation had spared no expense in protecting the space-based production facility.

The facility’s exterior was protected by a layer of armor several times thicker than a battleship’s main armor. In addition, its internal titanium alloy structure was more complex and robust than a warship’s frame. It was even designed to divert the corrosive heavy metal particle stream from a heavy particle cannon hit to prevent it from burning through the armor.

Furthermore, a massive deflector shield array, independently powered by numerous fusion reactor groups, served as the first line of defense against external attacks. Both its total power output and defense threshold were incredibly high, making it a tough nut to crack.

In fact, the defensive design of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center later evolved into the design philosophy for the Federation’s first-generation mobile fortresses.

Lacking the Star Dragon Empire’s advanced research into memory metal, the Federation’s mobile fortresses, with their ultra-high-power deflector shields and extremely thick outer armor, were a prime example of a brute-force approach.

Therefore, even with the firepower of a super-flagship and an entire fleet at his command, attacking the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center would take a great deal of effort. This was even more true given that Amber wanted to cause as much damage as possible, ideally destroying it completely, which would take even more time.

Originally, Amber’s plan had been that if the assembly center’s defenses weren’t too strong, he might personally lead a strike team to sneak in and blow up the power distribution center, disabling the facility’s immense deflector shield array.

But with pursuers at their back, that path was clearly no longer an option. He had to find another way to buy his fleet enough time for the ‘demolition’.

Of course, theoretically, the best option right now would be to take the fleet and warp away.

But as Amber looked at the assembly center, now so close, and thought about the main frontline where progress was not as smooth as anticipated, he couldn’t convince himself to retreat empty-handed.

After all, only by creating a breakthrough on his end could Atlas’s fleet escape its passive position and bring clarity back to the overall strategic situation.

Moreover, this was the moment the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center’s defenses were at their weakest. Amber knew that if he failed this time, the next time he came back, the place would most likely be completely ‘fortified’.

Amber: “Have the Federation fleets caught up?”

Hearing Amber’s question, Ramos immediately came to his side and said, “All three fleets are in pursuit. Judging by the steadily decreasing speed difference, they must be accelerating regardless of the cost. By the way, the space mines we deployed have had an effect on their Third Fleet. The direct losses were likely minimal, but it did cause them to fall a bit out of formation.”

“Have the scout ships and special operations ships monitor the movements of their damaged vessels without revealing themselves. If they move toward the area I designated before the battle, report it immediately on an encrypted channel! Also, detach five Destroyer-Frigate Divisions to form a task force and await orders. The task force’s codename will be—‘Poseidon’.”

“Yes, Boss!”

After speaking with Ramos, Amber turned to Therese, the shipboard control AI, who was already on standby.

“Therese, have the entire fleet load their heavy electromagnetic cannons with super-heavy siege penetrator rounds! Once we reach the designated engagement zone and break through the outer orbital defense platforms, I want you to attack the assembly center with everything you’ve got!”

Chapter: Happy New Year in Advance, See You Next Year

Happy New Year in advance, see you next year~

This year, I managed to get a lot of big things done, and thankfully, it all went smoothly~

Thank you, my dear readers, for all your support. This book should be finished around February or March of next year (tentatively, it might be delayed depending on the actual progress). I’ll probably take a month or two off to work out and get in shape before starting a new book. Writing while sitting for so long really is bad for your health.

So, no update today. I’m taking a break to ring in the New Year~

Wishing you all a Happy New Year in advance, see you tomorrow~

Chapter 642: The Poseidon Task Force, Kinetic-Thermal Resistance, and Cutting the Supply Line

As Amber led his fleet in a charge toward the assembly center, the special operations ship Polarized Light, having already located the center and transmitted its precise coordinates back to the fleet, swiftly executed a complex orbital adjustment according to its latest orders. It moved to a position that formed a triangle with the Atlas fleet and the Federation Navy fleet, where it began to monitor the pursuing First Fleet.

To Tom, the captain of this special operations ship and commander of the entire special operations task force (all five of them), this mission aof hiding and monitoring the Federation fleet was far safer than scouting ahead of their own fleet.

Whether on the ground, in the sea, in the sky, or in the boundless cosmos, vanguards and scouts in battle have always operated in high-risk environments. Who knew what kind of “surprises” awaited them up ahead?

You could be thinking you were advancing stealthily, only to find you had long been exposed to enemy reconnaissance. Then, upon entering their attack range, a sudden sweep of a heavy metal particle stream would tear you to pieces.

Now, although the Polarized Light appeared to have detached from the fleet to monitor the enemy alone, it was actually much harder to detect.

The Pillars of Creation, this interstellar dust cloud, was already on the edge of the Eye of the Serpent’s gravity well. As a result, gravitational wave radar was incredibly ineffective in this region. Coupled with the vast dust clouds and various sources of interference, detecting fleet-scale targets was severely hampered. Finding a small ship in hiding was even more difficult.

At present, the Polarized Light had not only activated its covert operations mode but was also concealed behind several massive ice crystals. It relied on dozens of probes linked by transparent carbon nanotubes to monitor the battlefield.

And this was just one of the Polarized Light’s reconnaissance methods. As soon as it arrived at this position, the special operations ship had deployed twelve self-propelled spy satellites.

These “little things,” remotely controlled via neutrino communication, dispersed and found anchor points on debris and ice crystals as pre-programmed, or attached themselves directly to micro-thrust decoy asteroids launched by the Polarized Light.

This vast reconnaissance network of spy satellites and probes allowed the Polarized Light to maintain a firm lock on the Federation Navy fleet’s movements, focusing on the damaged ships within the fleet as per Amber’s instructions.

After multiple combat engagements, Tom had clearly come to understand the role of a special operations ship. Its stealth capabilities, much higher than those of a standard scout ship, not only enabled it to handle “dirty work” like subversion behind enemy lines but also gave it an extremely high survival rate when executing highly dangerous reconnaissance missions.

Furthermore, its heavily modified, almost completely redesigned internal structure meant that, apart from its Dragoon-class destroyer appearance, it no longer had anything in common with one.

Right now, as the Polarized Light conducted its reconnaissance, a batch of attendant “Worker Bees” took the opportunity to begin mining the nearby ice crystals, replenishing the ship’s supply of propellant water, coolant, and purified drinking water for the crew.

Because these Worker Bees were small enough, unless the enemy sent another scout ship for a close-range inspection, there was no way they could detect the mining activity from their current distance.

Inside the bridge, under light control, only the faint glow from the workstations could be seen. The holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge was temporarily shut down to reduce the ship’s energy consumption, allowing the hidden warship to minimize all energy signatures.

Captain Tom sat in his command chair, quietly watching the composite image transmitted from the spy satellites. After serving as the captain of a special operations ship for so long, this young officer, who had once jumped from the space elevator starport alongside Randall, had become much more composed.

Time ticked by. As the crew on the bridge watched the approaching Federation Navy fleet, silently praying they would pass by without being discovered, the moment the special operations ship had been waiting for finally arrived.

“Captain, their damaged ships are on the move! It looks like they’re breaking formation!” the intelligence officer suddenly exclaimed, his voice tinged with excitement.

“I see it. Calm down, don’t get so worked up,” Tom said with a slight frown, then summoned the shipboard control AI, whose virtual projection had been hidden.

“Calculate the trajectory of these damaged ships. See if they intersect with any of the zones the Boss marked.”

Normally, a stream of data would flash around the shipboard control AI as a “special effect” for its calculations, but with the entire special operations ship in low-power mode, no virtual image of the AI appeared beside Tom.

“Calculation complete. The trajectory of the damaged ships completely intersects with the designated Beta zone. Re-verifying… Verification complete. Result is correct!”

After hearing the shipboard control AI’s final report, Tom nodded and looked at the communications officer, who was already on standby. “Send a message to the Boss. Use the encrypted channel.”

“Yes, Captain!”

The communications officer saluted and quickly began to operate his console. Soon, the Polarized Light sent a burst pulse neutrino communication to Amber’s flagship. The content was simple:

“Enemy damaged ships moving towards Beta zone.”

With the Federation fleet’s vanguard maintaining strict signal surveillance, this communication was naturally picked up by an electronic scout ship deployed at the front of their fleet.

However, under the cover of the Atlas neutrino communication camouflage personally calibrated by Lilith, the electronic scout ship’s systems naturally mistook the signal for a cosmic ray burst from a pulsar and filtered it into the “background noise.”

Bridge of the Eternity.

Ramos: “Boss, we’ve received an encrypted message from the Polarized Light. The enemy’s damaged ships are indeed headed for the Beta zone!”

“That means their support task force is hidden there!”

Hearing Ramos’s words, Amber couldn’t help but give a rare, small pump of his fist. The experience and memories from his previous life had once again proven useful in a fleet battle in this one.

In the early days of Starry Sky Online from his past life, Marshal Trafalgar was without a doubt the most famous fleet commander. The players had studied him in depth, as he was the first “fleet battle technical inspector” and a high-risk “bounty target.”

The battles between the combined player fleets and Marshal Trafalgar’s fleet were the most important and most difficult part of the first season of Guild Wars.

The gameplay was incredibly straightforward, filled with the style of an old-school anime-style game.

Fleets from different guilds would engage Marshal Trafalgar’s fleet, and guilds would be ranked based on the value of the ships they committed and their combat loss ratio. This score would then be weighted at thirty percent and added to their first-season Guild War points.

The developers’ original intention was just as the rules stated: the lower the total value of a player’s participating ships and the higher their final combat loss ratio, the more points they would earn.

The problem was, when the first season of Guild Wars began, Starry Sky Online had only been online for a month.

Even the most hardcore grinders and whales had only just managed to get into stock heavy cruisers. This was the highest ship class a player could pilot while ensuring they were training skills every day.

And even then, their skill levels were far from maxed out, with things like Heavy Cruiser I, Warship Command IV, Long Range Targeting I, Signal Analysis III, Trajectory Analysis III, Ballistics II, Weapon Upgrades I, and Controlled Pulse Theory II.

That wasn’t even mentioning the majority of the player base, who were still stuck at the destroyer level. Many players couldn’t even afford to buy a destroyer even if their skill levels met the requirements.

Amber’s guild, the Fluffy Pink Bunnies, was in the same situation. Although the guild leader and a few whales had their own stock heavy cruisers, the rest of the guild’s light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates were at a ratio of 1:8:1.

In other words, the entire guild fleet was essentially a fast-strike formation with a few destroyer-frigate divisions.

And their opponent, Marshal Trafalgar, commanded a full-strength “Old Federation” navy fleet—according to the lore, it was composed of elites from the Old Federation Navy who had left after the New Federation was established.

Under these circumstances, for a player fleet to challenge Marshal Trafalgar wasn’t just like throwing an egg against a rock; it was pure self-humiliation.

At the time, the forums were filled with daily videos of entire player guild fleets being written off by a single salvo from Trafalgar’s fleet.

After the whales of the Fluffy Pink Bunnies waved their hands and bought top-tier character and ship insurance for all participating guild members, they were wiped out eight times in a row and finally lost their temper.

They quickly united with a large number of other whales to pressure the developers. They even dug up the fact that the game’s lead designer had previously designed an old-school naval combat mobile game.

In that game, he had also launched an incredibly high-difficulty event right after release, which had driven away a huge number of players.

The final outcome of this incident was that the developers added a “story-based nerf,” setting Marshal Trafalgar’s fleet to a state of having “just escaped pursuit by the New Federation’s fleet.”

Not only was the number of his capital ships cut in half, but the number of main cannons that could fire, as well as their accuracy and frequency, were drastically reduced. All plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles were “expended,” and the number of ship-borne HCPs was slashed to just a quarter of their original strength.

After this nerf, which was comparable to the one the Lich King received back in the day, the Guild War boss Marshal Trafalgar was finally considered engageable. Before that, the experience of having your whole fleet annihilated in the first salvo was no fun for players at all.

With the chance to maneuver, players finally had room to operate. Under the massive player base, all sorts of targeted tactics were quickly developed.

The tactic that ultimately proved most effective was developed by a group of “unknown players” who were highly suspected of being from the [REDACTED] Naval Command Academy, the Annapolis Naval Academy, and the Kuznetsov Naval Academy. Their strategy was to attack the logistics task force.

In the game, to enhance gameplay, support ships could conduct unscientific, remote resupply and repair operations directly in the middle of a battle. In a way, they functioned like traditional “healers.”

Therefore, by taking out the logistics task force first, Marshal Trafalgar’s fleet lost its ability to recover in real-time, allowing players to slowly grind the Marshal down.

To find the location of this logistics task force, a large number of players, including Amber, delved into the war history archives and began to frantically research every battle Marshal Trafalgar had ever commanded. Eventually, these players managed to figure out some of the naval legend’s command habits.

History lesson over, back to the present.

As the fleet commander for the Fluffy Pink Bunnies and a participant in that community-wide effort, Amber was, of course, very familiar with Marshal Trafalgar’s command style and habits.

The alpha, beta, and omega zones he had circled on the star chart were calculated based on his memory of the likely locations of the Federation Navy’s support task force.

That was why Amber was so excited when he learned that the Federation’s damaged ships were moving towards the beta zone.

It meant that the information he had on Marshal Trafalgar was still valid!

Unlike the “healer” role in the game, in the real universe he was in now, the human navy’s support task force performed legitimate logistical work. In addition to regular supply ships, the task force would also rendezvous with a group of combat prepositioned ships deployed in the engagement sector.

These prepositioned ships not only held stockpiles of strategic materials but could also provide emergency wartime repairs for the fleet, which was the most important reason why those damaged warships were heading to the support task force.

And for Marshal Trafalgar and his three naval fleets, this support task force was undoubtedly vital.

Although the warships in a combat fleet possessed a certain degree of self-sustain, Trafalgar’s forces had been lurking here for over ten days. Not to mention the consumption of supplies during that time, the very act of hiding within this interstellar dust cloud would have caused considerable non-combat damage.

And the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, the “decoy,” was clearly incapable of providing them with logistical support.

In other words, the large support task force hidden in the beta zone was the “lifeline” for the three Federation fleets.

Thinking of this, Amber no longer hesitated and issued a series of commands:

“By my order, Rear Guard Fleet, begin the ‘Severance Maneuver’!”

“Poseidon Task Force, prepare to deploy! Under the rear guard’s ‘severance cover,’ execute an emergency acceleration, then activate covert operations mode and head straight for the beta zone. Go and ambush Trafalgar’s support task force!”

Chapter 643: Tactical Concealment

Under Therese’s direction, Amber’s command was quickly relayed to the designated ships.

The warships of the rearguard fleet, while maintaining their speed and course, activated the multi-purpose launch silos located in their midsections—a common design feature of contemporary human warships.

From battleships and super-flagships down to destroyers and frigates, the design philosophy for their overall structure and weapon group deployment was fundamentally similar.

The main cannons—heavy particle cannons or their lower-power equivalents (typically found on frigates)—were without exception mounted on the bow, allowing the warships to maintain a bow-forward profile when firing at the enemy.

Next were the high-energy lasers, charged particle cannons, and heavy electromagnetic cannons positioned along the hull. These weapons normally sat flush within recessed slots, almost seamlessly integrated with the hull outside of combat, but would activate and deploy upon entering battle.

Although this design significantly reduced the ship’s forward cross-section, it created a problem: these secondary weapons couldn’t all fire at once. Even if the warship an-gled itself to grant the aft-mounted secondary weapon groups a firing arc, only one side could engage at any given moment.

Following the main and secondary weapon groups were missiles, which had been relegated to a supporting role since the dawn of the space combat era. The vast, empty expanse of the universe and ever-increasing engagement distances had rendered these traditional weapons almost incapable of defense penetration.

Therefore, the missiles on modern warships, aside from a few heavy anti-ship missiles kept for the occasional shot in the dark, were mostly equipped with multi-purpose warheads for greater functionality, such as scattering gel, high-density chaff clouds, or anti-infrared/ultraviolet smoke.

Even nuclear warheads were used more for defensive operations than for direct attacks on the enemy.

But even so, these missiles offered the greatest flexibility among all shipboard weapons.

The Vertical Launch System, originating from humanity’s naval era on Blue Star, had incorporated various new technologies over hundreds, even thousands of years, but its fundamental principles and advantages remained unchanged.

These multi-purpose missile silos, arranged around the ship’s central axis in the mid-section, allowed a warship to launch various types of missiles, or even plasma torpedoes, under any circumstances and in any orientation, without needing to adjust the ship’s attitude.

The only issue was that, compared to missiles launched straight ahead, those fired from the midsection required more time and consumed extra power to adjust their trajectory toward their locked targets.

But this drawback was rather insignificant, given that missiles already struggled with defense penetration and were mostly used for auxiliary tasks.

Just like the rearguard warships of the Atlas fleet now. While strictly maintaining their formation and speed, their midsection multi-purpose launch silos unleashed a torrent of missiles, as if they were free.

These missiles, their warheads packed with high-density chaff clouds and interference smoke, quickly adjusted course and flew toward the rear of the fleet. Soon, they exploded uniformly, forming a massive “concealment layer” that resembled a veil.

Furthermore, the process Atlas used for this “concealment cover” had been streamlined by Amber. It wasn’t like the current methods of the Federation, the Empire, or civilian armed forces, where everything was deployed at once. Instead, with the assistance of the shipboard control AIs, the deployment was continuous and followed a specific pattern, allowing the screen to last much longer with the same amount of resources.

Of course, only the ten, fifty, and one-hundred-year-old “veterans” in the Atlas fleet, upgraded by Lilith, could provide the surplus computing power needed for such calculations during combat.

On the bridge of the Federation Navy’s First Fleet flagship, the Dreadnought, Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll were naturally the first to learn that the Atlas fleet had begun deploying a tactical screen.

The moment the high-density chaff cloud and anti-infrared/ultraviolet smoke spread out, the Federation fleet’s radar images and optical views were filled with nothing but a massive blur of interference.

The reconnaissance teams on each ship, aside from knowing the Atlas fleet was somewhere ahead, instantly lost all other information. Had the enemy fleet begun to change course? Were they performing an emergency acceleration? Had they adjusted their orientation 180 degrees to prepare for an attack?

They knew nothing about any of this.

“Marshal, what are they trying to do?”

Admiral Caroll asked, puzzled, as he watched the “concealment layer” continuously form in front of his fleet.

“From the most direct analysis, they simply want to prevent us from monitoring their fleet. That is to say, they don’t want us to know their next move. If that’s the case…”

Before Admiral Caroll could finish, the Tactical Information Coordinator’s sudden report interrupted him.

“Report! Nuclear detonation signatures detected ahead of the fleet!”

As the Tactical Information Coordinator spoke, the processed optical image on the bridge’s main screen simultaneously displayed the scene he was reporting.

Dozens of nuclear warheads suddenly detonated at once from behind the “concealment layer.” A blinding wall of light appeared before the Federation Navy’s First Fleet. A few dozen seconds later, as if on a preset interval, a second wave of nuclear explosions followed.

Seeing this, Admiral Caroll couldn’t help but frown. “Great… now even the neutrino scan is useless.”

“Have all fleets heighten their alert. The enemy is about to make their move, but I can’t determine what emergency might happen next,” Marshal Trafalgar said, his brow also furrowed. Although his years of experience were screaming a warning that ‘the young pup before him was about to pull a trick,’ even he couldn’t accurately predict what Amber was planning.

‘Does he intend to accelerate and retreat via warp?’

The moment this thought appeared, Marshal Trafalgar dismissed it. In his view, Amber was absolutely not that kind of commander.

Besides, with Griezmann tying down the main Atlas fleet on the frontline, Amber had to do something here if he wanted to break the stalemate.

Destroy the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, or destroy his elite fleet, or perhaps ‘I want it all.’ All of these were viable options for Amber, but retreating with his fleet via warp was not one of them. The moment Amber did that, he would completely lose the initiative.

“What are you planning, Mr. Amber?”

Marshal Trafalgar felt a long-lost excitement beginning to stir within him. He hadn’t been this excited even when he led the Federation Navy at its peak to invade the Star Dragon Empire.

In that moment, the old naval marshal suddenly realized that the young man on the opposing flagship might just be the worthy opponent he had been waiting for for so many years.

Chapter 644: Requiem

The rearguard warships of Amber’s Atlas fleet maintained their set intervals, continuously expending the non-lethal tactical missiles from their magazines.

Formed by chaff clouds, jamming smoke, and nuclear explosions, successive ‘concealment layers’ were constantly deployed along the Federation Navy’s route.

Ever since the Atlas fleet began its ‘Tactical Concealment’, the Federation fleet could no longer acquire any specific details about their movements or maneuvers. Marshal Trafalgar could only order his fleet to follow, constantly attempting to close the distance.

After a moment of thought, the marshal was no longer as worried as before. After all, the Atlas fleet and that Mr. Amber were now ‘trapped’ here.

And based on their series of actions from the beginning until now, Marshal Trafalgar determined that this fleet was still heading to attack the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. Therefore, his own fleet just needed to follow, and he didn’t have to worry about losing them.

Once they encountered the ‘surprise’ he had left for them at the assembly center, the three pursuit fleets under his command would swiftly press forward to attack. Marshal Trafalgar was confident that even the Atlas fleet, commanded by Amber, would be unable to withstand this combination of initiatives.

“I have to say, the Atlas fleet’s material reserves are quite ample.”

Watching another ‘concealment layer’ deploy, the continuous light curtain formed by the numerous nuclear explosions, and the chaotic display on the bridge’s main screen, Admiral Caroll’s tone grew somewhat resigned.

“That’s not surprising,” Marshal Trafalgar said. “Their scale has reached the level of a universal megacorporation, after all. And they got their start selling ore and munitions, so it’s only natural for them to have ample reserves of tactical materials.”

Admiral Caroll: “But these nuclear warheads…”

“Think about the relationship between the Renaissance Alliance and Atlas,” Marshal Trafalgar retorted. “Within the Alliance’s territory, there are plenty of nuclear weapon assembly plants and raw material production workshops. With those facilities, they have more than enough to supply the Atlas Group’s fleet at its current scale.”

“So are we just going to watch? Although the speed difference between us has decreased, we still can’t catch up anytime soon. And look at the star chart, sir, we’re approaching the assembly center.”

Admiral Caroll pointed to a prominently marked location deep within the Pillars of Creation on the tactical star chart, which was the precise location of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

“I know. The answer will be revealed soon enough.” Marshal Trafalgar’s tone had become calm. After a moment’s thought, he continued speaking to Caroll:

“Signal the ‘Requiem’. Open fire the moment the Atlas fleet enters attack range!”

“Yes, Marshal!”

——

A fleet pursuit in space is the most tedious of all combat types, for both the pursuer and the pursued.

This was especially true now that ‘decoders’ for warp signature codes were becoming increasingly common. Even if the pursued party forced a warp jump, the pursuer could input the generated warp signature code into their own warp engines and continue the chase.

Therefore, unless one side could no longer flee and chose to engage, such an endless pursuit would be a tedious and unending farce for both parties.

However, for the two sides currently engaged in this chase within the Pillars of Creation, the pursuit was not so dull, because both the Atlas fleet and the Federation Navy fleet had their own plans.

Marshal Trafalgar was counting on his pre-arranged deployment at the assembly center, coordinating with his three fleets to form a pincer movement and annihilate his greatest enemy, Amber, in one fell swoop.

Meanwhile, Amber’s mind was completely occupied with, “Poseidon team, pop thermals, they’ve cut our support!” He would even hum it under his breath from time to time—this wasn’t the first time he’d done something like this.

Many crew members who had served on the bridge with Amber had heard their Boss occasionally chanting things they couldn’t understand during battle.

For example, “The combat loss ratio looks bad. Perfectly normal, perfectly normal, perfectly normal.”

Or, “This is just how I command, it’s the only way I command, the Atlas style is ju-ju-ju-just like this~”

These ‘mysterious whispers’ left everyone, including Isabelle, baffled. In the end, they could only guess that they were some kind of ‘ancient war chants’ meant to boost morale.

Just as Amber was sitting in the captain’s chair muttering something to himself, Ramos approached him and said:

“Boss, the ‘Poseidon’ detachment has left the range of our Tactical Concealment. They are maintaining stealth mode and rapidly approaching the Beta region. Judging from the enemy fleet’s current movements, they haven’t discovered our maneuver yet.”

“They’re almost forty thousand kilometers away, and they’re all small ships. It’d be truly bizarre if they got spotted.” Amber waved his hand dismissively; he wasn’t too worried about the ‘Poseidon’ detachment’s operation.

“But based on your expression, you are worried.”

Amber nodded. “I just have a feeling that the situation at the assembly center might not be as simple as we expect.”

Ramos: “Boss, are you worried it’s a trap?”

“I hope I’m just overthinking it. Although, judging by the Federation’s current situation, they shouldn’t have the spare capacity to set anything up… still, have the fleet prepare for any contingencies.”

As it turned out, Amber was not overthinking it.

The fleet continued at high speed for nearly two hours. Just as every ship had completed its fusion reactor maintenance, reconnected the main thruster array’s energy circuits to the reactors, and begun hastily recharging their drained superconducting battery stacks, piercing sirens and warnings from the shipboard control AIs blared simultaneously across all vessels.

“Warning, unknown energy reaction detected in the target area! Intensity rising rapidly!”

As if struck by lightning, Amber shot up from his command chair, his eyes wide as saucers, fixed on the main screen.

He had no time to slap himself for being such a jinx. With a dawning horror of what was likely happening, Amber frantically ordered the Eternity’s shipboard control AI:

“Therese! Allocate maximum computing power and predict the high-energy weapon’s firing axis! I’m granting emergency authorization for fleet override control! All ships, execute emergency omnidirectional dispersal!”

The next second, an extremely eerie light bloomed in the distant, endless darkness.

At first, it was just a faint halo of light, as dim as the first glimmer of dawn, yet it carried an energy wave that could send a heart into arrhythmia. But in an instant, the light seemed to be injected with a violent life force and expanded rapidly.

At the same time, after pulling all of the fleet’s control personalities into a collective supercomputing mode, Therese quickly completed the evasion protocols for the entire fleet.

The shipboard control AI on every warship immediately initiated override control. The once-orderly fleet advance formation scattered in all directions like a disturbed swarm, vector thrusters all over their hulls firing in an emergency dispersal.

Immediately after, a beam as thick as a large asteroid, carrying with it a world-shattering aura, surged forth from the source of the light.

Wherever it passed, the cosmic dust within the Pillars of Creation vaporized instantly, like snowflakes under a scorching sun. The once-stable fabric of space seemed to be torn asunder by invisible, giant hands.

The beam shot forward at a speed that defied comprehension, an apocalyptic lightning bolt hurtling toward the fleet’s original position.

The asteroid belt in its path was as fragile as paper before this blast of energy, which seemed like divine wrath itself, and was effortlessly pierced.

Massive asteroids were instantly vaporized and shattered, becoming countless meteors that trailed long, fiery tails as they scattered madly in all directions, as if the cosmos itself were playing a mournful dirge.

Because Amber had shouted his orders quickly enough, and Therese and the other shipboard control AIs had intervened just in time, the fleet’s dispersal was barely successful.

However, more than twenty capital ships and even more smaller warships had been unable to completely evacuate the area swept by the massive beam.

Adaptive deflector shields activated the instant the attack arrived, attempting to ward off the impending catastrophe. However, this most common type of shield on human warships offered no defense whatsoever against the sweeping beam.

When this apocalyptic beam slammed into the deflector shields, they couldn’t hold for even a fraction of a second before shattering and disintegrating like fragile soap bubbles.

A heavy cruiser bearing the brunt of the attack was instantly engulfed by the beam. Its sturdy metal hull twisted and deformed under the immense energy. Compartments ruptured, and the crew inside were reduced to dust by the intense heat and extreme pressure before they could even scream.

Then, the beam swept onwards. Warships that failed to escape the firing axis were devoured in an instant. Even those that managed to push themselves to the very edge of the beam were still twisted beyond recognition by the intense heat.

“Attack concluded. Attack signature identified.”

As the beam faded, Therese’s cold, emotionless voice followed.

“Signature: High-intensity light—luminosity and heat comparable to a supernova burst. Induced electric field—extremely strong. Luminosity class—first-magnitude bright star. Duration—0.25 to 3 seconds.”

“Source and affiliation: Federation Navy facility under construction—the ‘Requiem’ nuclear-explosion-pumped gamma-ray emitter.”

“Threat Level: Purple—High Risk.”

“Countermeasures: None.”

Chapter 645: Advance

The shipboard control AI’s override control and the sudden Emergency Evasion sent nearly every crew member tumbling as the world spun around them. The warships closer to Requiem’s firing axis, including the Eternity, performed particularly complex, high-G maneuvers that resembled a hawk somersaulting in the sky.

Everyone felt as though they had been tossed into a tumble dryer. Many of the newer crew members, who lacked experience or had poorer body control, lost their composure and vomited into the faceplates of their in-ship suits.

Fortunately, the designers of modern in-ship suits had long since anticipated this issue. When such a situation occurred, the suit would automatically activate its helmet-cleaning function, suctioning away all foreign matter. Otherwise, a number of people would have literally drowned in their own vomit.

Ramos, who had managed to steady himself with great difficulty, reported anxiously, “Boss, we’ve located the attack origin! It’s the satellite cannon array on the periphery of the assembly center!”

Amber: “All ships, regroup immediately. Execute off-axis rolling maneuvers along the satellite cannon’s firing axis. Be prepared for the next round of Emergency Evasion. Report all damages!”

Following Amber’s command, the entire fleet began a wide rolling maneuver along the satellite’s recent line of fire. From the perspective of the distant Federation First Fleet, it looked as though they were drawing circles in space.

Witnessing this, Marshal Trafalgar pumped his fist in excitement.

Although the Requiem satellite cannon had not inflicted significant direct losses, Marshal Trafalgar was more than satisfied with the results of a test fire from a half-completed weapon.

Moreover, this attack had forced the Atlas fleet to abandon its sprint along the shortest route. They were now compelled to adopt a more conservative, evasive course, which in turn reduced their speed and allowed the Federation Navy’s fleet to close the distance.

“Men! Let’s push forward and completely annihilate these invaders!”

Marshal Trafalgar’s impassioned voice echoed across the bridge and through the fleet’s senior command channels. As the foremost figure in the Federation Navy, the old Marshal’s words carried an inherent morale boost.

Combined with the spectacular sight of Requiem’s attack and the fact that it had nearly scored a direct hit on the Atlas fleet, the Federation forces were invigorated.

Shortly after the battle began, Marshal Trafalgar had informed the entire fleet of the enemy’s identity. Everyone now knew that the fleet they were pursuing belonged to the Federation’s current number one enemy—the Atlas Group.

Furthermore, the Atlas Group’s “big boss” was personally commanding this fleet. This meant that if they could destroy this fleet, they would also eliminate the Atlas Group’s de facto leader, resolving this major threat once and for all.

In stark contrast to the soaring morale of the Federation fleet, the Atlas fleet had unavoidably fallen into a state of disarray.

Amber was not surprised by this, nor did he believe it was due to a lack of training.

After all, his fleet was not one of the “fearless” unmanned fleets, but was composed of humans and Romu. No one could face a near-direct hit from the Requiem satellite cannon array without feeling fear. The fact that the entire fleet had not routed was, in itself, enough to satisfy Amber.

That being the case, his task now was to find a way to save the fleet—and himself—before their difficult situation devolved into a desperate one.

“Boss, the fleet has sustained 15.5% in direct losses.”

Ramos reported the numbers, his face etched with worry. Seeing his expression, Amber felt compelled to offer some consolation. “Be glad we weren’t wiped out by a one-shot kill from that satellite array. That thing is an ‘anti-fleet’ grade tactical weapon. Its actual power is enough to completely destroy an entire fleet.”

With no time for Ramos to dwell on his words, Amber unbuckled the safety harness of his in-ship suit and asked, “What’s the status of the Poseidon task force?”

“They’re about to enter attack range, Boss, but…”

Ramos paused, then asked with some uncertainty:

“Will the Federation fleet really be forced to split their forces to rescue their support task force?”

Amber floated up from the captain’s chair, pushed Ramos down into the seat, and continued, “Unless Trafalgar decides to go with nothing left to lose, he will definitely split his forces for a rescue. We’re talking about the support task forces for three capital fleets. If they get wiped out, they won’t be easy to replace.”

Ramos: “But what if, and I’m just saying what if, the old Marshal really does decide to go with nothing left to lose? Judging by his personality and habits, such a decision wouldn’t be surprising at all.”

“Then we’ll give him the fight he wants. Besides, now that it’s come to this, we have no other choice, do we?”

Amber fastened Ramos’s safety harness, then used the terminal to grant him temporary fleet commander authority. Finally, he gently tapped his right fist against Ramos’s chest and said in a firm tone:

“We must advance, Ramos.”

The rising star among Atlas’s operations supervisors, now the newly appointed temporary fleet commander, felt a fire ignite in his chest upon hearing these words. But noticing Amber heading for the bridge doors, he couldn’t help but ask:

“Boss, where are you going? Why did you make me sit down?”

Amber tapped the control panel for the bridge doors. As they began to open, he looked back with a smile. “I’m going to lead the assault on ‘Requiem’. We have to find a way to take that thing out, or this fight will be unwinnable.”

“Boss, shouldn’t we try using the Eternity’s main cannon first?”

“No. The assembly center for the Proton Annihilation Bombs is right next to the satellite cannon array. The engagement window is too tight. The Eternity’s main cannon would only have time for one volley, and I have to save it for the assembly center.”

Amber shook his head, then his tone shifted abruptly as he called out sternly, “Ramos!”

“Sir!”

Ramos slammed his right fist against his chest, his expression resolute.

“Command of the fleet is yours. I’ve seen what you can do. Believe in yourself. With Therese’s help, you’ll be fine. You’ve got this.”

As Amber finished speaking, his figure vanished through the closing bridge doors.

Watching him go, Ramos clenched his fists again, then swiveled the captain’s chair to face the front of the bridge once more.

At that moment, all the officers on the bridge turned their eyes to him. The shipboard control AI, Therese, silently appeared in the air beside him.

“Fleet command authority has been transferred. Please issue your orders, Commander Ramos.”

Hearing Therese’s voice, Ramos seemed to age several years in an instant. He took a deep breath and spoke in a calm, steady voice:

“All hands, attention. Continue to advance!

“Rearguard ships, disengage Tactical Concealment after two salvos and begin full-scale deployment of space mines!

“All ships, prepare the first wave of HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons for launch! Fleet, shifting primary target to the ‘Requiem’ satellite cannon array! All warships will provide fire support for the assault force!”

Chapter 646: This Is How You Use the Public Channel

Amber’s personal machine was tended to by a dedicated prep squad. The main reason was that all the other super-heavy HCPs had been assigned to Murat, who was using them for ‘heavy assault charges’ on the main frontline.

Thus, Amber’s machine was the only super-heavy HCP in this independent fleet. The prep squad, originally meant to service multiple ‘Atlas’ super-heavy HCPs, now only needed to serve him.

By the time Amber took the high-speed transit train inside the Eternity and arrived at the Hangar, his exclusive prep squad had finished preparing the ‘Atlas’ and, following his prior instructions, had equipped it with the ‘Gigas’ system.

“Boss, all preparations are complete. You can launch at any time.”

“Excellent. Thank you for your hard work,” Amber nodded. He skillfully floated forward in the zero-gravity environment, changing into a heavy G-suit as he went, before deftly slipping into the ‘Atlas’s’ cockpit.

“Subcritical reactor self-check complete! Power output stable!”

“All unit circuitry and superconducting batteries self-check complete!”

“Weapon systems self-check complete! External assisted check passed!”

“Deflector shield generator activated. Instantaneous test complete!”

“Blue-green laser communication…”

“Skip self-check items five through twenty-three. Unit full-link connection established.”

Amber cut off the unit’s self-check and tapped on a multifunction screen to his right.

“Lilith, time to get to work. Take over auxiliary unit controls and the Electronic Warfare module. By the way, is the new electronic warfare virus ready?”

As he asked, a miniature holographic image of Lilith appeared in the cockpit. She had even deliberately changed into an Atlas combat uniform.

“Master, I have assumed control… but are you sure you want to use the ‘NK324’ electronic warfare virus? It uses a completely new architecture. Its infectivity and destructive power are both extremely high, and I haven’t had time to run final tests. If we lose control after deployment, even I might not be able to contain it.”

There was a hint of concern in Lilith’s voice. As the Atlas Group’s foremost expert in Electronic Warfare, the strong AI was always finding time to develop new electronic warfare viruses.

The one she had just mentioned was a new creation, utterly different from all current viruses, built on a brand-new architecture. It was immensely powerful and incredibly destructive, but the problem was it wasn’t quite as ‘obedient’.

“It’s fine,” Amber shook his head. “Our goal is to paralyze the satellite cannon array’s core program. We’ll just dismantle the entire infected array afterward. We were planning on dismantling it anyway.”

“Yes, Master. I will do my best to keep it within controllable parameters.”

As the cockpit’s armored hatch sealed shut, the ‘Atlas’ and the other HCPs of the first launch wave took their positions on the launch catapults across the super-capital ship Eternity.

Without much of a wait, the green lights indicating ‘clear for launch’ illuminated. The Eternity launched ten squadrons of HCPs in one go. Nearby, other warships executed full-deck launches, deploying an even greater number of HCP units.

“Everyone! Form up on me and prepare to advance!”

Amber’s firm voice suddenly rang out on the comms channel. This time, it wasn’t just on the HCP units’ channel, nor the fleet’s channel, but broadcast over the wide-area public channel.

“This is Amber. The man you call ‘Boss,’ ‘Archfiend,’ or ‘Terrifying Headhunter.’ But no matter what title you give me, and no matter how much or how little some of you know about me, I want you to know that in this moment, I am with you all.

“Many among you are veterans who have fought for the Atlas Group since its founding, but most of you are indeed the group’s ‘new recruits.’ You may have asked yourselves many times why you were chosen to carry out such a crucial mission.”

Hearing this, many in the fleet stopped their conversations or lowered their voices, hoping to hear the answer to the question that had long troubled them.

“Because Atlas needs you. I need you. The very reason the Atlas Group could grow from just over a hundred people to the heights it has reached today—this unprecedented universal megacorporation—is because it was built, brick by brick, by every single person in the Atlas Group!

“Throughout our past, Atlas has faced numerous crises, but we successfully overcame them all through our unified efforts. In the process, we defeated many enemies who sought to destroy our group.

“This journey, forged in blood and fire, has seen many fierce battles, and we have lost many heroic employees. But each and every one of you has proven your loyalty and courage time and time again.”

Watching the warships flash past his cockpit and the Atlas-logoed HCPs gathering around him, Amber paused, let out a barely perceptible sigh, and then spoke in a sincere tone:

“But today, I must ask more of you. Today, we must complete all our military objectives, even if we must fight to the last man. Even if I, too, shall fall here, I will not hesitate.

“This is a battle of unprecedented difficulty. Some of you may not survive today, but we may not have time for grief. We will mourn our fallen later, for the Atlas Group once again stands at a fork in the road of destiny. The situation we face allows for no illusions!

“Because you are the fleet commanded by me, Amber, the supreme leader of the Atlas Group! We will never show weakness, and we will never surrender to the enemy. Today, we will carry on the sole outcome of the many battles the Atlas Group has fought—and that is victory!”

Employees who join the Atlas Group, whether administrative or combat personnel, learn about the major wars the group has fought and study the heroic deeds performed within them during their training.

In Amber’s words, this was to deepen their sense of belonging to the group and foster a sense of collective honor.

And this simple, traditional method has been proven effective time and again throughout history, especially for victorious forces, because no one wants to be the one to hold the team back.

So, as Amber spoke, images from their training videos automatically flashed through many people’s minds.

And for his conclusion, Amber unhesitatingly used a ‘classic line’ employed by many famous generals in their pre-battle speeches.

“Forty years from now, when your loved ones ask you what you did during the ‘Battle of the Pillars of Creation,’ you can look them in the eye and say, ‘I fought for the Atlas Group to the very end.’

“To everyone in the First Special Task Force, today, I am proud to fight alongside you. Good luck. Amber out.”

The public channel fell silent again. Everyone in the Atlas fleet was immersed in Amber’s speech. As for the members of the Federation fleet who had heard the whole thing, they felt a complex mix of emotions after listening to their ‘enemy’s’ impassioned pre-battle briefing.

Even Marshal Trafalgar couldn’t help but comment, “To be able to rally morale under these circumstances… Mr. Amber is indeed an excellent and respectable commander.”

Admiral Caroll, who was standing beside him, couldn’t help but nod. Just as he was about to add his own thoughts, Amber’s voice came over the public channel once more.

“Oh, and one more thing. ‘Poseidon Team,’ start the attack! Kick the Federation Navy’s ass!”

“?”

As Amber’s words faded from the comms channel, the entire Poseidon task force immediately deactivated their optical camouflage and exited covert operations mode.

In that instant, they had slipped into attack range of the Federation’s support task force.

“All ships, attention! Enter attack orbit and open all weapon ports! Target: Federation Navy support task force! Saturation fire!”

On the light cruiser Winged Hussar, the temporary flagship of the Poseidon task force, the task force commander’s order roared through the Poseidon team’s communication channel.

The next second, the task force’s dozens of light cruisers and destroyers began to attack the support supply ships and combat tender ships eight thousand kilometers away.

Aboard the bridge of the Dreadnought, Trafalgar watched in astonishment as the warships, having stealthily maneuvered into position against his support task force, opened fire. The corner of his mouth twitched a few times before he finally spat out fiercely:

“I take back my ‘respectable’ evaluation.”

Chapter 647: Precision Targeting, Deployed!

“High-quality target detected! Axial angle fifteen degrees, normal angle twelve degrees! Distance eight thousand kilometers! Relative velocity eighty kilometers per second and still rising!”

“Radar waves detected… attempting to negate… no! Our position has been exposed!”

“Warning! Strong electric field reaction detected! Assessed as a heavy particle cannon attack—my god, they’ve fired!”

“All ships, activate deflector shields, prepare to take—”

On the Federation Navy support task force’s communication channel, the Fleet Commander’s order was cut short as hundreds of blue-white beams from a heavy particle cannon salvo shot toward their position.

These heavy metal particle streams, accelerated to one percent of the speed of light, swept across the entire support task force roughly three seconds later. The support ships, on low-power stealth standby, didn’t even have time to fully activate their deflector shields before taking direct hits to their hulls.

Non-combat vessels like supply transports, combat tender ships, and repair ships would accompany a fleet during operations, but under normal circumstances, they would not remain on the front lines once a battle began. Instead, they would be hidden in a concealed location, which was relatively safe.

Furthermore, because storing supplies, carrying repair components, and housing various logistical equipment occupied most of their internal space, these ships were only armed with a few terminal anti-aircraft weapon groups and a handful of HCPs for fending off pirates. They had no other armaments.

Their defenses were similarly lacking. Their main external armor was no match for a proper warship, and their deflector shield generators were relatively low-powered. While they had a certain degree of resilience against civilian armed merchant ships or common pirates, they were nothing but target practice for a proper military vessel.

This was especially true now, with a fast task force having closed the distance to just eight thousand kilometers.

“First salvo hit rate: 88.5%. Rapid damage assessment is as follows—23 ships sunk, 42 heavily damaged, and…”

The shipboard control AI’s voice echoed across the bridge of the Poseidon task force’s temporary flagship, the light cruiser Winged Hussar. Hearing these results, the task force’s Fleet Commander felt a surge of excitement.

After all, the ships in this task force were manned by inexperienced rookies. Just managing to sneak under the enemy’s nose and successfully fire the first salvo was a decent accomplishment.

But the commander also knew that this was not enough. He had heard every word of Amber’s recent public address and understood just how crucial this battle was.

Although the first attack had a high hit rate and had sunk or damaged a large number of enemy support ships, this was a combined support task force for three capital Federation fleets. At best, this was like breaking one of their fingers.

At the same time, the Tactical Information Coordinator loudly reported a new development:

“Commander, the enemy is deploying large amounts of jamming smoke and chaff clouds! Target lock is obstructed!”

Thinking of this, the commander of the Poseidon task force, just as Amber had said in his speech, cast aside his last shred of hope and hesitation and ordered loudly:

“All ships, perform visual correction using optical units! We must completely destroy this support task force, no matter the cost! All HCPs, to the deck! Prepare for boarding action!”

The commander of the Poseidon task force was not academy-trained; he was merely an old freighter captain who had run transport convoys for many years. He only began to study the details of space fleet combat after joining the Atlas Group and transferring to a combat fleet.

It was only then that concepts like space combat formations and fire distribution were instilled in him, but that had clearly been too short a time. As a result, his fighting style remained rather unrefined—in layman’s terms, it was a frenzied, berserker-style of combat.

But at this moment, no one would judge the quality of his tactics. A good tactic is one that achieves its objective!

Soon, a massive number of HCPs launched into space from the launch catapults of the Poseidon task force warships. Even more HCPs, who had stepped out onto the external decks of the warships beforehand, used disposable rocket boosters to achieve extremely high acceleration.

Like a swarm of bees leaving the hive, nearly four hundred HCPs charged through the tactical concealment screen deployed by the support task force, heading straight for them. The only things standing in their way were the meager anti-aircraft fire from the support ships and the handful of escorting HCPs.

Even if the Atlas HCP pilots were all novices, their absolute numerical superiority inevitably began to turn this battle into a turkey shoot.

“Wait, how did they know the support task force’s location? During combat readiness, all support ships are in low-power stealth mode. The interior of the Pillars of Creation already interferes with all sorts of detection methods. Under normal circumstances, they should be impossible to find!”

Aboard the Dreadnought, Admiral Caroll exclaimed in surprise as he watched the scene unfold. His support task force had been ambushed—something he had never witnessed in his entire military career.

In fact, it wasn’t just Admiral Caroll and the other senior officers on the bridge. Even Marshal Trafalgar had never had his own support fleet located in any of his countless battles, big or small, nor had he ever managed to find his opponent’s.

For either side, hiding the support task force in a secret, safe location before a battle was standard procedure. While some commanders might develop certain deployment habits, the three-dimensional expanse of space was simply too vast. Finding a hidden support fleet was like finding a needle-in-a-haystack.

So, for the first time, Marshal Trafalgar found himself unsure how to answer Admiral Caroll’s question. But he also knew that the answer wasn’t the most important thing right now.

“Perhaps they were just extremely lucky—a case of blind luck. Or perhaps we have a mole among us. But regardless of the reason, that’s not the priority now.”

“Marshal, so what do we do? Should we have the Third Fleet go provide assistance—”

Admiral Caroll turned to Marshal Trafalgar. As the only person present who outranked him in both title and experience, Marshal Trafalgar was his only source of guidance.

Trafalgar shook his head. “Fool! What’s the use of sending the Third Fleet over now?! That’s just piecemeal reinforcement! Besides, at this distance, by the time the Third Fleet adjusts course, accelerates, and arrives, the daylilies will already be cold!”

“Marshal! If we let the enemy destroy them, what about the rest of the battle? This is the support task force for three fleets! Aside from supplies, that’s tens of thousands of lives at stake.”

Admiral Caroll still couldn’t bring himself to make the decision. After all, the support task force was not small. If it was truly annihilated by the Atlas task force, the sustained combat capability of these three Federation Navy fleets would be cut by nearly two-thirds.

“But it is already a fact that we are too late to rescue them, Caroll,” Marshal Trafalgar said. “As much as I hate to admit it, I have to say that their lone force has turned the tables on us with this single move. We have no more time to waste. We have only two options before us: either retreat before our combat endurance runs out, or fight them to the bitter end.”

Hearing this, Admiral Caroll basically already knew what the Fleet Admiral’s answer would be.

“I, Trafalgar, Fleet Admiral of the Federation Navy, have and will only ever have one choice in this situation!”

The old marshal rose from his command chair, roaring like an old lion about to launch its final strike.

“All forces, hear my command! Continue the pursuit of the enemy before us! All ships, run power units at maximum overdrive! The objective of this battle is to annihilate this enemy force at all costs!”

After speaking, Trafalgar glanced at Admiral Caroll, a complex emotion in his eyes.

“For this, I am even willing to sacrifice my soul.”

—

Meanwhile, Amber, who was leading the assault with his HCP units, also received a report from Ramos.

“Boss, the Federation Navy fleet is accelerating its pursuit. It seems they don’t intend to rescue the support task force but are dead set on eliminating us.”

“That’s to be expected. Any fleet commander capable of weighing the pros and cons would make the same decision.”

Amber shared his designated attack path with the attacking HCP units and the heavy armored gunships that were catching up, then continued:

“The support task force was positioned where it was precisely because it wasn’t supposed to engage in combat, deliberately placed far from the engagement zone. Under normal circumstances, it would have been safe, but if something went wrong, the main combat fleet would certainly be too late to provide aid.

An experienced fleet commander who desires ultimate victory would, at this moment, choose to continue attacking the enemy fleet, which has been further weakened, rather than rescuing a support task force for which all hope is lost.”

“But this Federation support task force is huge. Are they not even going to try and rescue the survivors?” Ramos’s voice was heavy. It was clear that this young commander had not yet grown accustomed to the realities of large-scale fleet battles, where abandoning—or rather, sacrificing—tens of thousands of people was a common occurrence.

“And that is fleet combat. Beyond the epic clashes that outsiders see, it’s mostly filled with cruel choices like this.”

Amber paused for a moment, then continued calmly:

“It’s like when I dispatched the Poseidon task force. Of course I knew what the worst-case scenario was. I was just a little luckier. It seems I made the right choice on this particular test. Ramos!”

“Sir.”

“Seize this opportunity. Since the enemy doesn’t plan on a rescue, the destruction of this Federation Navy support task force is only a matter of time. Have Poseidon finish the job as quickly as possible. That way, we’ll have forcibly freed up a mobile force. Whether you use it to harass the Federation fleet’s flank or launch a coordinated attack from another direction is up to you!”

“Yes, Boss!”

As he finished speaking with Ramos, Amber led the assault force, composed of a massive number of HCPs and heavy armored gunships, into the calculated attack orbit. Looking through the targeting frame locked on their cockpit HUDs, everyone could see the “morning glory flower” blooming in the cosmos.

“Lilith, what’s the status of the electronic warfare virus attack preparations?”

“Master, their defenses are extremely tight. All external communication channels are closed. I suspect the previous attack was launched by the satellite cannon based on pre-war preset information.”

“Which means they already considered the possibility of an electronic warfare attack. But for a tactical weapon of this caliber, having such protections isn’t surprising.”

Amber nodded and once again led the formation to increase their approach speed. By now, a large number of heavy armored gunships had overtaken the HCP units, splitting into two groups in front and circling in different directions. As they drew closer, these gunships would break down into even more attack groups.

Since it was unclear just how much of this supposedly unfinished satellite cannon array had actually been built, Amber had the attack force strike from multiple directions to be safe, maximizing the dilution of any potential anti-aircraft fire.

Soon, as they closed to a distance of ten thousand kilometers, the anti-aircraft defenses on the ever-growing “morning glory flower” in their vision came to life, just as expected.

Numerous high-energy laser beams flashed continuously, interspersed with attacks from charged particle beams. These two near-light-speed weapons, the most common in human arsenals, were always the first anti-aircraft weapon groups to open fire.

As the beams swept through space, fireballs would occasionally erupt within the assault formation. The Atlas Group’s widely-used Aegis was not a heavy unit focused on defense. Moreover, for this assault mission, the pilots had packed as much offensive weaponry as possible instead of carrying two shields.

Thus, when faced with irradiation from a large, fixed-turret high-energy laser, a situation where deflector shields were ineffective, an Aegis trying to tank the hit with its external armor could only last for a few extra seconds.

Misfortunes never come singly.

Just as the assault force was taking losses and pushing through the hail of fire towards the satellite cannon array’s blind spots, Amber saw another warning pop up on his panoramic display.

“Warning! High-energy reading detected! Assessed as Requiem satellite cannon array preparing for a second attack!”

“Damn, how is it so fast? The main body’s heat dissipation cycle shouldn’t even be complete yet!”

Amber was stunned by the warning. In his previous life, even the fully completed Requiem would only enter its “rapid-fire mode,” which risked catastrophic failure of its firing components, after its structural integrity had dropped below twenty percent.

“Ramos, Therese! Prepare for Fleet Emergency Evasion!”

Amber warned them on the comms channel without hesitation, because he knew very well that even with his HCP and heavy armored gunship units attacking, Requiem would not shift its aim to secondary targets like them.

“Lilith! Is there any way to implant the virus?”

“Master, I’ve found a group of heavy probes attached to the satellite cannon array. Please get a little closer, and I will attempt a remote intrusion!”

“There’s no time to attempt it! Mark their positions now!”

As soon as Amber finished speaking, more than a dozen target boxes quickly appeared on the panoramic display. The furthest was several thousand kilometers away, while the closest was only a few hundred.

Quickly scanning the targets, Amber’s mind rapidly constructed a spatial awareness model. At the same time, the unit’s weapon control system switched the ammunition in the electromagnetic machine gun to a special type of warhead made from a variable metallic material.

“Switching to manual fire mode. Open fire!”

In the next moment, the enormous super-heavy HCP spun and danced like a butterfly among flowers. Simultaneously, the electromagnetic machine gun in its hands fired in short bursts, sending special warheads streaking toward the marked targets.

The situation was critical; otherwise, Amber would have totally added a “Die! Die! Die!” voiceover to his shooting.

Aided by a psionic user’s spatial and psionic perception, and supplemented by the ATLAS’s powerful composite targeting system, every single round flew precisely toward the center of each heavy probe—the location where their electronic components were integrated.

This incredible feat was dubbed “Precision Targeting, Deployed” by players of Starry Sky Online in his previous life. It was an absurdly powerful ability, much like using cheats such as an aimbot or bullet tracking. But likewise, this ability consumed a massive amount of Amber’s psionic energy, leaving him feeling dizzy and light-headed.

Even in his previous life, this high-cost ability wasn’t used often. After all, most fights involved both sides trying to instantly kill each other with high-rate-of-fire, high-damage weapons, or seeing whose shields or armor would collapse first. There were rarely opportunities for such fancy tricks.

The ‘Precision Targeting’ ability was thus mainly useful in boss battles that required ‘part-breaking’ and demanded extreme attack precision. Most players wouldn’t bother practicing or using it.

Fortunately, Amber had always believed in one truth: you can never have too many skills.

Although psionic users would awaken or naturally learn and develop some incredible abilities as their psionic strength grew, the more unique the ability, the more psionic energy it consumed per unit of time.

However, after activating this “cheat,” Amber’s plan was quickly halfway to success. The high-velocity composite warheads, responding to their programming, used their onboard retro-thrusters to decelerate just before impact, ultimately hitting the heavy probes at a relatively slow speed.

Lilith, whose coordination with Amber was already flawless, needed no reminder. The moment the morphing warheads began to penetrate the probes, she uploaded the virus, sending the encapsulated package through in the final instant before the Requiem’s main control system detected the attack on the probes and automatically severed the connection.

“Master! Physical implantation complete!”

“Good, next…”

Before Amber could finish his sentence, another bold, red warning message flashed onto the panoramic display.

“Warning! Energy readings have reached the critical point! Requiem is judged to be entering final firing preparations!”

Chapter 648: 13° and 130°

Pillars of Creation dust cloud, 150,000 kilometers from the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

In this stretch of silent, profound space, forgotten by most and akin to a cosmic graveyard, the half-finished ‘Requiem’ satellite cannon array stood like a solitary metal island, or perhaps a metallic morning glory flower blooming in the cosmos. Its cold, hard shell glinted grimly under the light of the Eye of the Serpent.

Structurally, the core of ‘Requiem’—humanity’s largest nuclear reactor array to date—was situated in the deepest part of the satellite cannon array, much like the stamen and pistil of a morning glory flower.

As the heart of the entire ‘Requiem’ satellite cannon, the nuclear reactor array was encased in layers of thick lead-bismuth alloy shielding. This not only effectively blocked the leakage of nuclear radiation but also provided a stable environment for the complex and dangerous nuclear reactions within.

Inside the reactor, hidden from view, ultra-high-temperature plasma surged violently under the confinement of a powerful magnetic field, each churn generating immense amounts of energy.

Numerous energy neutralization facilities operated continuously at high speed, working at full capacity to neutralize the ubiquitous neutron interference in the surrounding space. This ensured the fission reaction proceeded continuously and stably, supplying the entire satellite cannon with a colossal amount of energy during firing.

Following the energy transmission path, the nuclear energy converter acted like a precision energy processing plant. It utilized the Federation’s most advanced energy conversion matrix technology, capable of taming the violent energy from nuclear blasts into a highly focused gamma-ray laser beam with near-perfect efficiency.

Inside, countless crystalline energy conversion units were arranged in an orderly fashion, precisely regulating the flow of energy according to complex algorithms to ensure the output laser beam possessed extreme stability and destructive power.

As for the ‘Primary Reflectors,’ which resembled the petals of a morning glory flower and integrated nanoscale light-control and force-field stabilization technologies, they were composed of billions of microscopic light-reflecting units. Each unit could independently sense and adjust the angle and intensity of incoming light, ensuring energy loss during the gamma-ray laser’s reflection was minimized. The reflector frames were surrounded by energy stabilization field generators, constantly maintaining their structural integrity. This enabled them to withstand the vibrations of the entire satellite cannon array during operation and guarantee the precision of the reflection path.

The ‘Secondary Reflectors,’ which worked in tandem, were smaller in scale, but their technology was largely a byproduct from the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. Their surfaces were coated with a layer of antimatter energy, which had a peculiar interaction with the gamma-ray laser. It further compressed and focused the beam, causing its energy density to increase exponentially.

Due to ‘Requiem’s’ unique shape, Amber and the other players had given it nicknames like ‘Morning Glory Flower’ or ‘Cosmic Devil Flower’.

At that moment, inside the main control room of this ‘Cosmic Devil Flower,’ the atmosphere was so oppressive it was nearly suffocating.

After the first volley, a report from the damage assessment team indicated the attack had been less than ideal. Although it had hit the target fleet, the enemy’s cheat-like dispersal speed had caused most of the volley to miss its mark.

‘Requiem’s’ commander, Rear Admiral Vladimir, stood like a statue before the tactical display. Veins bulged on his forehead, winding like ancient tree roots. Although the environmental control system kept the main control room at a comfortable temperature, beads of sweat still rolled intermittently down his cheeks, soaking the collar of his naval uniform.

His eyes were like two cold stars, fixed on the Atlas fleet’s aggressive posture on the screen. Ever since evading the first attack, the enemy fleet had been acting like a frenzied school of fish, performing evasive maneuvers while charging straight for ‘Requiem’s’ position.

The outer warning units had also detected the enemy deploying a large number of HCPs and the Atlas Group’s signature Heavy Armored Gunships. An attack cluster formed by these small craft was rapidly approaching from another direction and had already entered the range of ‘Requiem’s’ anti-aircraft weaponry. However, aside from these fixed defenses, the entire satellite cannon array had nothing else to offer.

The dozen or so HCP squadrons they had were all currently stationed around ‘Requiem’s’ main body. The commander didn’t dare send them out, knowing that with so few HCPs, it would be a case of throwing meat buns at a dog—a one-way trip with no return.

Meanwhile, the critical mission assigned by Marshal Trafalgar surfaced in Rear Admiral Vladimir’s mind.

He knew full well that this experimental satellite cannon, originally half-finished, had been rushed to a point where it could barely fire precisely because Marshal Trafalgar needed ‘Requiem’ to deliver a surprise blow in battle.

Theoretically, then, with the first attack having failed to achieve significant results, he should have followed the pre-battle contingency plan and immediately organized a second volley from ‘Requiem’.

However, Rear Admiral Vladimir was hesitating, caught in a fierce internal struggle.

Giving the order for a second shot would mean personally staking his own fate, and the fates of the tens of thousands of Federation soldiers aboard ‘Requiem’, on a razor’s edge.

After all, this was an extremely complex facility, one that was not fully completed and had not undergone all its inspections. It was a dangerous weapon even to the Federation forces themselves; the slightest misstep would reduce them all to dust in the vastness of space.

Rear Admiral Vladimir was well aware of ‘Requiem’s’ current condition—being half-finished meant countless unknown risks. It could suffer an energy overload at any second, triggering a chain reaction of internal explosions that would engulf the many engineering vessels docked nearby. Or, the delicate reflectors might fail to withstand the powerful energy surge of another rapid firing, shattering into countless deadly fragments that would rip through everything nearby like high-velocity bullets.

“Report! Urgent flash message from the First Fleet! An Atlas task force, after wiping out our support task force, has begun its assault on ‘Requiem’s’ position!”

“Tsk… A three-pronged attack?”

Rear Admiral Vladimir frowned. The two original attack vectors were already difficult enough for him to handle; now there was a third, and it was an entire enemy task force.

Although it consisted of smaller ships like light cruisers and destroyers, a fully completed ‘Requiem’ with all its defense systems online wouldn’t have given them a second glance.

But clearly, there was no such ‘if’ at the moment. This task force, which would normally be ignored, had now become a deadly threat.

And it was the appearance of this fleet that helped Rear Admiral Vladimir make his final decision.

“‘Requiem,’ prepare for the second firing!”

The Rear Admiral’s deep, hoarse, yet piercing voice was like a sharp military order made manifest, instantly shattering the dead silence and thundering through the command room, leaving no room for doubt. Behind that voice was the courage to burn one’s bridges for victory, even if the price of failure was to be utterly annihilated.

Upon hearing the command, the faces of the others in ‘Requiem’s’ main control room instantly darkened. They knew in their hearts that firing twice in quick succession while the weapon was half-finished was like dancing on the edge of a cliff. The satellite cannon could suffer any number of unforeseen problems at any moment, and if its complex systems were to fail, it would be impossible to fix them in a short amount of time.

But a military order was absolute. Besides, a circle of expressionless Military Police armed with stun guns stood around the control room, watching everyone. The crew could only take a deep breath, suppress the fear welling up inside them, and expedite preparations for the second firing.

“Third cooling cycle complete! Helium coolant exhaust path is clear!”

“Flywheel groups 1-18, increasing RPM. Flywheel groups 19-36 on standby!”

“Auxiliary voltage normal! Readings are within standard parameters! Maintain between +0.2 and -0.5!”

“‘Primary Reflector’ re-secured. Mirror surface check complete. Dead pixels are below acceptable values, no replacement needed!”

“Preparing for first energy circuit contact. Normal. Energy circuit operational status is stable!”

“Circuits 1 through 1405 all open. High-frequency link test in progress. Circuit synchronization rate is 95.6%!”

A staff member in the main control room turned to look at Rear Admiral Vladimir and said:

“Rear Admiral, the circuit synchronization rate is right on the red line. Are we still proceeding with the attack?”

“Are the other readings normal?” Rear Admiral Vladimir asked.

“The other readings are all normal… no signs of losing control.”

“Then proceed!” Rear Admiral Vladimir declared with a wave of his hand, turning to the weapons team on the other side of the control room. “Is the trajectory prediction for the target fleet complete?!”

A member of the weapons team hesitated for a moment before replying, “Report, Rear Admiral, trajectory prediction is complete. But it’s highly likely the target fleet will disperse again, just like before. After all, they know we’re aiming at them now.”

“Adjust the angle of the ‘Secondary Reflectors.’ Increase the second volley’s dispersal axis to 13 degrees so they won’t have time to escape our attack range!”

With nothing left to lose, Rear Admiral Vladimir’s tone had become somewhat savage. The damage assessment from the first volley, though it only hit part of the fleet, had confirmed that ‘Requiem’s’ power was devastating to conventional warships.

Even the Atlas Group’s super-flagships couldn’t withstand a direct hit from ‘Requiem’.

In that case, ‘Requiem’ could simply adjust its reflectors to widen the firing radius, like switching from a laser pointer to a flashlight. The much larger area of effect would make evasion exponentially more difficult for the Atlas fleet.

“Wait, the outer heavy detection probes are under simultaneous attack?”

Another confused voice arose from the other side of the control room. Just as Rear Admiral Vladimir glanced over, he heard the officer say in alarm:

“No, that’s not right… They’re using the heavy detection probes to infect us with an electronic warfare virus! Fuck, how the hell are they doing that?!”

Hearing the officer’s words, a terrible premonition seized Rear Admiral Vladimir. He quickly commanded, “Emergency disconnect on all outer probes! Raise system firewalls to the highest protection level! Main control personality, allocate computing power to search and destroy!”

Then, he turned to the other staff and officers.

“Hurry! Start the firing sequence! What are you all doing? Why aren’t you ready yet?”

“Report, General, ‘Requiem’s’ cooling procedure isn’t complete yet, and the core reactor’s power is still slightly below optimal…”

“Just start firing! If we don’t attack now, we might not get another chance! Even if their electronic warfare virus fails, once their three-pronged assault closes in and enters ‘Requiem’s’ firing blind spot, we won’t have time to adjust our angle!”

Vladimir floated directly over to the officer in charge of executing the attack. If personal weapons hadn’t been forbidden in the main control room, the Rear Admiral stationed on ‘Requiem’ would have pulled out his sidearm and pressed it to the man’s head.

“As Commander of ‘Requiem,’ I order you to open fire!”

“Yes, sir!”

Under such pressure, the officer could hesitate no longer. He worked quickly at his workstation, using the highest authorization granted by Vladimir to bypass a slew of checks and cumbersome confirmation protocols. He adjusted ‘Requiem’s’ dispersal angle to 13 degrees and, after inputting the main control personality’s prior trajectory prediction for the Atlas fleet, slammed the button to fire.

Vladimir’s breathing became ragged, his heart pounding as if it would burst from his chest. Various battle scenarios flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern, making him involuntarily grip the back of the officer’s chair in front of him.

Finally, after an energy fluctuation that felt like the universe itself was collapsing, ‘Requiem’ once again erupted with a beam of destruction. The gamma-ray laser, like a flame of apocalyptic judgment, roared toward the enemy fleet.

Vladimir quietly watched the surging, massive beam on the dimmed screen. Only from ‘Requiem’s’ main control room could one truly feel the awesome power of such a tactical weapon up close.

The beam seemed to carry the fate of everyone aboard ‘Requiem’: either they would rise from the ashes of desperation like a phoenix, or they would be annihilated in the flames of war, becoming lost souls in this corner of the cosmos.

And just as the second volley ended, Rear Admiral Vladimir suddenly noticed something—the beam seemed… thicker than he’d expected.

“Report! Second firing complete. Over 90% of the target fleet’s warships were covered… Huh? How did that happen?”

Immediately after, another terrified voice rang out in the control room, which had fallen silent during the firing.

“Damage assessment team reports the number of warships in the target fleet remains unchanged?!”

“What the hell is going on?!”

The ill premonition in Rear Admiral Vladimir’s heart intensified. He shoved aside the officer responsible for the attack settings and personally checked all the firing parameters.

And there, in the most conspicuous spot, he saw the dispersal axis for ‘Requiem’s’ second volley.

The number on it wasn’t 13°, but had an extra 0.

“What the hell is 130°???”

Chapter 649: Lilith, You’ve Done a Great Job!

“General, sir, I swear the scatter angle parameter I just entered was exactly 13°!”

“Are you sure you didn’t add a fucking zero?”

“General, if I made a mistake, you can shoot me right now.”

Hearing the technical officer’s words, Rear Admiral Vladimir let out a short, incredulous laugh. “What fucking good would shooting you now do?!”

With that, the tech-savvy Rear Admiral sat down at a workstation and began inspecting the back end. He quickly scanned through the logs, which appeared to have no issues.

Besides, he was quite certain that he had been watching the officer operate the whole time, and the man definitely hadn’t entered an extra zero.

“General, look, these records are all normal and correct.”

Seeing the back-end logs, the technical officer spoke up with renewed courage. For him, proving his innocence was more important than anything else right now.

He did not want future records of this important campaign to state that the turning point of the battle was a technical officer from the Requiem adding an extra zero when inputting the scatter angle.

Then, there would be a picture of him with his name below it, turning him into a villain condemned by history and an object of ridicule for generations to come.

“Look! That’s the idiot who added an extra zero, hahaha!”

It was a truly terrifying thought.

Soon, Rear Admiral Vladimir stood up from the workstation and replied, “Yes, it really wasn’t your fault.”

He turned and surveyed the entire main control room as if looking for some digital ghost lurking in the virtual space.

“We’ve been hacked.”

The next second, all the lights and screens of the electronic equipment in the main control room abruptly went dark.

——

“Lilith, you’ve done a great job!”

After receiving the casualty report from the fleet, Amber couldn’t help but praise Lilith directly.

The Requiem’s second flashlight-style attack had covered almost the entire fleet. Although the high-power gamma laser rays had been significantly diffused, that didn’t mean they were completely harmless. This was, after all, a satellite cannon array powered by humanity’s largest array of nuclear reactors.

So, while no warships were lost directly, the outer armor on the sections of most ships irradiated by the Requiem had sustained varying degrees of damage. Some smaller, less-protected vessels even suffered warped or cracked external armor plating.

Overall, however, it was far better than being melted outright by the Requiem.

“Ramos, have the fleet press the attack! The Requiem can no longer fire. Dismantle it for me as the fleet passes by! Remember, concentrate the heavy particle cannons to take out the Requiem’s main structure. At the same time, assign a group of capital ships to use their heavy electromagnetic cannons in high-power mode and fire heavy penetrator rounds. Hit them with several salvos to cripple the reactor array in the core area!”

Amber quickly issued the general directives to Ramos. As for how the latter would lead the fleet to execute them, that was for the young commander to figure out.

And Ramos did not disappoint. He rapidly determined the next course of action for each unit based on the current battlefield situation, even incorporating Amber’s own strike force into his command.

The Atlas fleet, like a trident gripped by the god of wrath, charged forward with uncompromising resolve. Splitting into three prongs, it launched an overwhelming assault on the terrifying Requiem satellite cannon array, which loomed like a demon’s eye.

The first prong, the main fleet, led the charge. They were like a flock of peregrine falcons, hurtling toward their objective at unimaginable speeds. Due to the complex environment within the Pillars of Creation, the activated deflector shields around their hulls occasionally flared with silvery-white arcs of electricity as they sped along.

Following Ramos’s command, the main fleet quickly reached a position just ten thousand kilometers from the Requiem. By this point, all the capital ships had moved into firing positions at the front of the formation. Around each ship’s heavy particle cannon, a ring of concentric fusion reactors activated their energy circuits.

Thanks to the assistance of the Eternity’s shipboard control AI, Therese, the entire fleet, despite its lack of training, displayed excellent coordination. They flawlessly approached the target along their designated orbits, streaking past like a dynamic, shimmering ribbon of light in the dark universe.

As the distance between the fleet and the Requiem satellite cannon array closed to eight thousand kilometers, the warships, like behemoths waking from slumber, began to elegantly and sharply adjust their orientation while maintaining their course. The exposed ends of the heavy particle cannons’ acceleration rails glinted with the cold, unique sheen of metal under the faint starlight of the cold cosmos.

“Commander, we have entered the planned attack range.”

Therese’s voice sounded in Ramos’s ear, and he decisively swung his raised right hand down.

“All ships, commence salvo!”

In an instant, dazzling blue-white beams, like a cascading river of stars, erupted forth like a surging, unstoppable torrent from the ends of each ship’s heavy particle cannon acceleration rails, smashing toward the Requiem satellite cannon array.

Each beam carried enough raw power to literally destroy stars, ripping bright, searing gashes through the boundless darkness of space. Small asteroids in their path were like moths drawn to a flame, instantly pulverized by the heavy metal particle stream traveling at one percent the speed of light, turning into faint specks of light that merged into the utterly violent torrent of energy.

To ensure firing accuracy and sustained fire, the ships employed a distributed fire-coordination system. Coordinated by Therese, the various shipboard control AIs shared target data in real-time, ensuring each salvo struck the Requiem’s main structure while avoiding friendly fire interference.

At the same time, on a dozen or so battleships and heavy cruisers with more experienced gunnery crews, the main heavy particle cannons remained silent. Instead, the heavy electromagnetic cannons on their broadsides angled upwards.

To maximize their firepower, these warships didn’t fully align their orientation with the Requiem, instead maintaining a slight angle to allow the 150-meter-class heavy electromagnetic cannons deployed on one of their broadsides to fire in a salvo.

This was a common sight in space fleet battles. After all, with no air or water resistance in the vacuum of space, warships could use their vector control nozzles to strike any pose they pleased while maintaining their heading. They could even perform a handstand while firing if they wanted to.

As each ship finished loading heavy penetrator rounds and stabilized the voltage of its heavy electromagnetic cannons, the location of the satellite cannon’s core area was highlighted on their gunners’ viewscreens—this was information obtained by Lilith after her electronic warfare virus had breached the system and opened an external access port.

Soon, from the direction of the Requiem, continuous flashes of white light could be seen from the dozen or so warships. This was the muzzle flash “special effect” of the heavy electromagnetic cannons firing. One after another, the heavy penetrator rounds drew rare visible trajectories through the interstellar dust cloud of the Pillars of Creation—a sight seldom seen in the relatively “clean” environments of space elsewhere.

However, such trajectories, to some extent, also made it easier for the defending side to intercept these heavy penetrator rounds. After all, once in space, electromagnetic cannons became one of the slowest weapon systems on a warship.

A muzzle velocity of several hundred kilometers per second was truly lackluster compared to other directed-energy weapons.

Fortunately, the Requiem was currently paralyzed. After realizing it couldn’t eliminate the electronic warfare virus Lilith had implanted, the main control personality had, under its own authority, executed the command to “format and reboot the main host.” Consequently, all of the Requiem’s defensive weapons had ground to a halt.

A dozen or so seconds later, the first wave of heavy penetrator rounds hit the target. But because the Requiem’s external main structure had been riddled with holes by the fleet’s heavy particle cannon salvo, its main body had been knocked slightly off-course. As a result, this volley missed the core area. The closest penetrator round sadly grazed past the lead-bismuth alloy protective layer of the core area.

However, the rapid-fire overload of the heavy electromagnetic cannons still had a firing interval of nearly ten seconds. So, before the first wave of penetrator rounds had even impacted, the gunners on those dozen warships were already adjusting their aim based on the Requiem’s positional shift.

Meanwhile, the strike force personally led by Amber, now free from the satellite cannon array’s anti-air screen, cut in from the Requiem’s flank at an even greater speed.

Amber, leading from the front, piloted his “ATLAS” at the very tip of the spear of the entire assault formation. Its special red paint job and the unique shape of the super-heavy HCP after equipping the Gigas made him easily visible to every pilot in the unit.

These pilots and drivers, participating in such a large-scale offensive for the first time, had only ever heard stories from their seniors about this mysterious “Boss” leading a charge.

Some of the rookies had even thought the stories were exaggerated. But today, at this very moment, after becoming part of one of these “Atlas battlefield tales,” they all realized that those descriptions…

…hadn’t been exaggerated enough.

Especially when the massive mechanical arm of the “Gigas” raised the “EX-Sword of Promised Victory,” which then erupted with a three-kilometer-long plasma blade, every member of the HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship strike force resolved to make it back alive and brag like hell.

Following Amber’s constantly fine-tuned attack vector, the strike force maintained a tight, orderly wedge formation, cutting through the Requiem satellite cannon array like a sharp knife through soft butter in a ferocious penetration attack.

One after another, the steel demon gods unleashed weapons that spat out directed-energy beams of various colors. The combat craft joyfully launched heavy plasma torpedoes from their weapons bays—for such cumbersome weapons, this attack was even simpler than their usual training exercises.

The defenses of the Requiem satellite cannon array were incredibly fragile against this “butter knife.” The blade advanced like an unstoppable force, leaving a wake of sparks and flying debris, like a magnificent metallic fireworks show.

Inside the main control room, Rear Admiral Vladimir and his men could only watch helplessly as Amber and his forces punched their way into the Requiem’s interior. They destroyed the satellite cannon array’s primary structures, shot by shot, until the main control room itself was completely melted by several heavy metal particle streams.

The strike force soon punched clean through the defenseless satellite cannon array and eventually rendezvoused with the main fleet along the most direct trajectory. Aside from the losses incurred during the initial breach of the anti-air screen, the strike force’s casualties were kept to an extremely low number.

Although the entire Requiem satellite cannon array’s structure wasn’t completely destroyed, with the second and third salvos of heavy electromagnetic cannons hitting the core area, and with all its mirrors and complex energy circuits utterly shattered in the attack, it was essentially scrapped.

Even if the Federation were willing to pay an even higher price for repairs, it would not be a task that could be completed in a short time.

As for the third prong of the attack, the Poseidon task force, they annihilated the unsuspecting Federation support task force with lightning speed, before the Federation fleet could react in any way.

The Federation support ships were like lambs caught in a nightmare. Not a single person could have imagined they would be attacked at such a critical juncture. The entire support task force only had time to send a single distress signal to the capital fleet before they were turned into clusters of brilliant fireworks by the intense bombardment, vanishing into the cold expanse of space.

Having completed their mission of cutting off the support lines, the Poseidon task force had no time to savor their victory. They turned around at top speed and accelerated from a third direction toward the Requiem, or rather, toward the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

Per Amber’s suggestion, he knew this task force would likely not make it in time for the attack on the Requiem, given the vast distance. It was better for them not to slow down and instead head straight for the final assembly center.

Thus, under Ramos’s final deployment, the Poseidon Team did not attempt to rendezvous with the main fleet. Instead, they remained separate, coordinating with the main fleet in a “two-pronged advance” to attack the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center that the Requiem satellite cannon array had been guarding.

At this moment, the pursuing Federation fleet seemed to be caught in an invisible net, trapped in an impossible situation.

They watched, almost helplessly, as the three prongs of the Atlas fleet moved as if entering an unmanned territory. Marshal Trafalgar, in particular, upon personally witnessing the destruction of the Requiem, fell into an unprecedented rage.

He had never imagined that the Federation Navy under his personal command would end up in such a state. Not even when facing the vast navy of the Star Dragon Empire had any battle he personally commanded fallen into such a passive and humiliating predicament.

Trafalgar gripped the armrests of his command chair, his eyes bloodshot and veins bulging on the back of his hands. He could no longer hear the dissuasions of Admiral Caroll beside him. He roared hoarsely, ordering the Federation fleet to stick to the Atlas fleet like glue. His voice, transmitted through the communication channels to every warship, demanded they annihilate the enemy entirely, to wash away the shame inflicted upon him and the Federation Navy this day with blood.

“We will succeed, or we will die!”

Chapter 650: Forced Demolition

Within Federation territory, at the Stonehenge Defense Zone.

The two-million-two-hundred-thousand-kilometer-long asteroid belt resembled a coral reef in the sea, and the fleets battling within it were like schools of fish, playing a game of hide-and-seek and tag.

The only difference was that the unlucky one who got caught would be blasted by a fleet-wide salvo into a new piece of debris floating through the starry void.

On the bridge of The Infinity, Guterres frowned, his eyes fixed on the massive tactical overlay presented by the holographic projection platform.

Since the battle on the main frontline had begun, the Coalition of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance had made little progress, aside from their initial success. They had used the Spectral Annihilator’s unexpected super-long-range snipe to take out the flagship of the “pseudo-First Fleet” and then capitalized on the momentum to launch a large-scale attack, scoring several more free kills.

The Federation Navy had clearly prepared a contingency plan. After being stunned for a short period, they began an orderly retreat toward the Stonehenge Defense Zone. Although they lost a large portion of their slower-moving fleets, the rest successfully withdrew into the defense zone. There, aided by the complex environment of the asteroid belt and numerous fixed weapon emplacements, they began to dig in.

When Guterres received intelligence that the opposing commander was his old comrade, Griezmann, he immediately realized this battle would be anything but quick.

But Guterres knew that with Amber engaged in a fierce battle elsewhere, he couldn’t afford to stop here.

Marshal Trafalgar and three elite fleets had been lured away by Amber. For the main front, this was the best opportunity they could have hoped for. If the Atlas Group couldn’t even seize this chance, there would be no point in discussing their next move.

“Griezmann is as steady as ever…”

“Sir, do you know the commander on the other side?” Hearing Guterres’s remark, the adjutant and tactical staff officer standing beside him asked.

“Hm? You don’t know?”

Guterres paused for a moment, then had a sudden realization.

“Right, you were just transferred over. It’s normal not to know… The opposing commander is Griezmann, an old comrade and colleague of mine from the Federation Navy. With him there, our fleet’s offensive won’t achieve results so easily.”

“Oh~ So this commander is a defensive master?” the adjutant followed up. As a young officer cultivated within the Atlas Group, he embodied the corporate culture and influence of his seniors: when in doubt, just ask.

“I wouldn’t call him a defensive master. In my opinion, Griezmann is neither exceptionally strong in defense nor offense. But he is as steady as a mountain. That style of command might not be beneficial for an attack—it might even be a hindrance—but in a defensive battle, he’s a tough nut to crack.”

Guterres sighed. In a clash like this, where the strengths of both sides were relatively even, there was little room for clever tricks. This was especially true when the enemy had the home-field advantage; the attacking fleet could only grind its way forward, bit by bit.

The only piece of good news was that the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet was performing exceptionally well in this joint operation—especially when it came to executing orders. They were essentially at his beck and call.

This completely erased Guterres’s pre-battle worries that the Renaissance Alliance fleet might not follow his command.

As for Atlas’s own fleets, it went without saying. They executed his orders to the letter. And with fire support from the two super-capital ships, though their progress was slow, they were indeed chipping away at the Federation Navy’s frontline.

The main cannons of the two Endless-class super-flagships weren’t targeting the fleets hiding in the asteroid belt. Instead, they were directing a sweeping fire at the asteroid belt itself.

If I can’t hit the fleet, I can still hit these mountain-sized asteroid fragments, can’t I?

Countless asteroid fragments, hundreds of kilometers long, were sliced apart one by one by the super-heavy purification beam emitters as if they were cutting a cake. The pieces began to drift erratically into the asteroid belt, triggering massive chain reactions.

This chaos, with debris breaking from its original orbit, threw the Federation Navy’s front into disarray. Although most of the asteroids with fixed weapon groups had attitude control thrusters to maintain a stable orbit and counteract firing recoil, the pandemonium caused by Atlas nearly caused the Stonehenge Defense Zone’s control personality to crash.

As a result, Griezmann had also ordered his Federation fleets to retreat deeper into the Stonehenge Defense Zone. The chaotic asteroid belt was not only causing trouble for the Federation Navy but was also temporarily preventing the Atlas and Renaissance Alliance fleets from breaking through.

This left Guterres feeling as though he was slicing a sausage that seemed to have no end…

Thinking of this, Guterres realized that the key to breaking the stalemate might lie with Amber. But the thought of Amber facing Marshal Trafalgar and three of the capital fleets he was personally leading made the old navy man feel a pang of worry.

“Serena, is there any new message from the Boss?” Guterres asked the shipboard control AI.

“Commander, the last information update from the Boss’s fleet was one hour and twelve minutes ago. No new messages have been received at this time,” Serena’s calm and cool voice replied beside him.

“It seems the chase is not yet over.”

Guterres lowered his head in thought. The previous message stated that the fleet near the Pillars of Creation was launching an attack on the Requiem satellite cannon array.

Although Guterres was surprised that the Federation had deployed this tactical weapon so quickly, he had an inexplicable confidence in Amber. He always felt his mysterious Boss could pull off some strange maneuvers to achieve her tactical goals.

This faith in Amber wasn’t unique to him; it could be said that all of Atlas’s commanders had unconditional trust in her. The longer one served under her, the deeper this trust grew.

However, a pursuit in a fleet battle was a relatively complex and dynamic situation. Both the pursuer and the pursued had their clear advantages and disadvantages.

For the pursuers, the Federation fleet, Marshal Trafalgar’s meticulous early-stage planning had allowed them to monitor every move Amber’s fleet made after entering the Pillars of Creation, culminating in a successful ambush.

Moreover, once the chase began, Marshal Trafalgar knew that Atlas’s target was the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. All he had to do was follow Amber’s fleet and, at the precise timing of their attack on the assembly center, concentrate the firepower of three fleets to strike.

It seemed like a simple, easy battle, right?

But in reality, with the unexpected charge of the “Cosmic Dump Truck” breaking their formation, followed by the swift elimination of the Federation Navy’s support task force by the Poseidon Team, the disadvantage began to loom over Marshal Trafalgar and his forces like a dark cloud.

Furthermore, being in a reactive pursuit, their actions were largely dictated by the enemy, as if they were tied by an invisible rope. They had to constantly watch the movements of Amber’s fleet to prevent them from using a diversionary tactic to lure the tiger from its mountain lair.

Just like the two-pronged attack Atlas was currently mounting, it left Marshal Trafalgar agonizing over whether to split his forces. Although the Federation fleet still held a numerical advantage, he was wary of the enemy’s super-flagship, especially since, according to his observations, it had yet to fire its main cannon.

Trafalgar worried that if he rashly split his forces and Amber’s fleet hit them with a parting shot, picking them off one by one, it would lead to a true disaster.

As for the pursued Atlas fleet, Amber’s decisions had granted them the tactical flexibility that came with taking the initiative.

When Amber and her staff officers were formulating the operational plan, they had actually taken the current situation of being pursued into account—though everyone had considered the probability to be exceedingly low, so it was filed as one of their last resort contingencies.

At the same time, the Poseidon Team had just annihilated the Federation’s support fleet, and the main fleet had, against all odds, endured the attack from the Requiem satellite cannon array and forcibly dismantled it. As a result, the entire fleet’s morale was now blazing like a signal fire.

But likewise, being the pursued also had its disadvantages.

First and foremost was their absolute numerical inferiority. Amber knew that a direct confrontation with Marshal Trafalgar would be playing right into his hands, so she had to rely on unconventional tactics to win.

Moreover, the slow, or rather, stalled, main front meant that the mission to “destroy the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center” had to be completed. Otherwise, Atlas would fall into a strategic disadvantage.

At the same time, if the Federation fleet managed to pin them down and drag them into a protracted war, Amber’s forces, far from their own bases and with difficult supply lines, would run out of combat resources and find themselves in a dire situation.

It could be said that this intense chase was a game of life and death in the dark abyss of space. Both sides were fighting with everything they had for final victory, and neither could afford to yield a single step.

In fact, neither side showed any signs of yielding.

Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that once the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center entered the firing range of the Atlas fleet, the battle had reached its most ferocious moment.

“Scattering gel layer interference effect is decreasing. 75%… 50%… 40%… 25%… No longer able to intercept enemy high-power hard X-rays!”

“Ships 772, 774, and 884 report hits to their plasma thruster arrays, damage points appearing! Ship power is beginning to drop.”

“Jamming smoke and high-density chaff cloud dispersion density is now only at 50%. Multiple ships report being locked on by numerous fire-control radars!”

A torrent of urgent reports flooded the ears of Evans, the anti-aircraft commander of the Atlas right-flank fleet. On the tactical star map before him, more and more ships in the right-flank fleet began to flash yellow, symbolizing an increasing threat level.

In many fleet battle scenarios, high-energy lasers were used for anti-air combat or long-range harassment. However, the high-energy laser arrays of a capital ship could, under certain circumstances, inflict significant damage on other vessels.

Just like now. As the Atlas fleet adjusted its orientation to begin the “special forced demolition operation” on the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, the resulting drop in relative velocity allowed the Federation fleet to close the distance, exposing the fleet’s right flank to enemy fire.

Currently, the battleships and heavy cruisers of the Federation, the Empire, and Atlas were all equipped with hard X-ray free-electron laser cannons. Supported by a capital ship’s high-power output, these weapons, though not highly efficient, could still inflict kinetic damage.

The critical issue was that deflector shields couldn’t block them, so they had to be tanked with the ship’s armor. The problem was that the Atlas fleet was currently focused on attacking the assembly center, leaving their flank and rear exposed.

Unlike other high-energy lasers, hard X-rays, with sufficient power, could punch through the lightwave interference wake of a battleship’s plasma thruster array. Once damage points appeared on the thruster array, the ship’s power would be affected, which, in the current combat environment, was tantamount to a death sentence.

Without much time to think, the anti-aircraft commander quickly scanned the current inventory of various functional munitions for the right-flank fleet and unhesitatingly issued a new command.

“All ships, continue launching functional munitions! Maintain the Tactical Concealment Layer! Ships near damaged vessels, attempt an emergency tow! Do not let any ship fall behind!”

Under Evans’s command, the multi-purpose launch silos of the right-flank’s warships began firing various types of jamming warheads as if they were free. Although they managed to restore the Tactical Concealment Layer, the inventory of these munitions was visibly plummeting and approaching the red line.

But the deadliest problem was that as the Federation fleet continued to close in, the effectiveness of the Tactical Concealment Layer was rapidly diminishing. Once the enemy got within main cannon range, what would be coming their way were streams of heavy metal ions…

Amber, who had returned to the Eternity and resupplied her unit, was naturally aware of the situation. Regarding Ramos’s request for permission to use the super-flagship’s main cannon, she quickly made her choice.

Right now, there were two options: attack the assembly center or attack the Federation fleet.

The Eternity’s main cannon could ignore deflector shields. Attacking the assembly center would destroy its deflector shield generator array, allowing the fleet to carry out the forced demolition more quickly.

Attacking the Federation fleet, on the other hand, which was currently in a tight assault formation, would allow the super-heavy purification beam emitter to achieve an extremely high “theoretical damage output” and inflict massive losses on these elite Federation fleets.

But from a strategic perspective, the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center was clearly the primary objective of this operation.

So, not long after, warnings of “High-energy reading detected” sounded across the Federation warships. A golden purification beam shot out from the “spear tip” of the Atlas fleet, ignoring the assembly center’s extremely high-power deflector shield and striking the core of the deflector shield generator array directly.

Then came a second beam, and a third…

Under the super-flagship’s main cannon’s triple-shot attack, the massive force field enveloping the assembly center flickered several times and then slowly dissipated amidst a shower of electrical arcs.

However, before Amber and her crew could celebrate, the assembly center was once again shrouded by a deflector shield a few seconds later.

“Fuck! They really have a backup array.”

Amber’s face darkened, and she immediately commanded Ramos:

“Entire fleet, advance and begin concentrated fire! The backup array’s power isn’t as high. We have to gnaw through this tough bone no matter what!”

“Yes, Boss!”

Ramos quickly acknowledged the order and went to commence the forced demolition. Just as his voice faded, the temporary commander of the Poseidon Team spoke in Amber’s ear.

“Boss, please let me take the task force to harass the Federation fleet and buy the capital fleet enough time!”

Chapter 651: Release

“What nonsense are you talking about, Saines!”

Amber cut the temporary commander of the Poseidon task force short and continued, “The Federation has three capital fleets. What good would one task force do against them? I know what you’re thinking, but I don’t want you to make a pointless sacrifice!”

“Boss, please listen to me!”

Saines disregarded communication protocol, immediately explaining as soon as Amber had finished, “I’ve seen the intel on the Assembly Center. For our fleet to attack it alone, even with their deflector shields at backup strength, it would take a great deal of time. That’s more than enough time for the Federation Navy’s fleets to intercept us! The Poseidon is just a task force, but if we maneuver properly and exploit a gap on the Federation fleet’s flank, I’m confident we can cause them enough trouble!”

The temporary commander’s words were so resolute that Amber detected a tone that wouldn’t take no for an answer. Amber found it hard to imagine that these ‘contract soldiers’ under Atlas would possess such a strong will to fight.

Amber knew Saines had a point. He was well aware that the time it would take for their fleet to begin concentrating fire on the Assembly Center was long enough for Marshal Trafalgar to charge in with his fleets and engage them.

If Saines took the Poseidon task force to harass their flank, it could indeed have some disruptive effect. But they were facing three fleets. The risk far outweighed any potential effect of the harassment. Amber didn’t want to needlessly sacrifice this task force. After all, this wasn’t a game where you didn’t have to worry about casualties; the crew of the Poseidon task force were living, breathing people.

Neither Amber nor they could casually say, “See you next life~” like in the games of his previous life when faced with a desperate situation.

And then recklessly throw themselves into the embrace of death.

This region of space was changing every second, so Amber didn’t have much time to deliberate. Besides, the plan Saines proposed did have a degree of feasibility.

If the Poseidon task force could successfully launch an attack on the flank, it could buy them some time and prevent the main fleet from being tied down so quickly.

After a moment, Amber looked at Saines on the communication screen, nodded, and raised his hand in a salute.

“I’m counting on you, Saines.”

“Don’t worry, Boss. Just as you said, we must complete all combat objectives, even if it means fighting to the last man! The Poseidon task force will see it through. We ask you to bear witness!”

As the communication ended, the screen went dark. At the same time, Amber’s personal machine, having completed resupply, ascended to the electromagnetic launch catapult once more. Like all the other pilots who had returned to the launch catapults, the injection module inside his heavy G-suit administered a dose of combat stimulant.

In order to attack the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center with maximum firepower and ensure the facility’s complete destruction in this battle, all remaining HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships capable of fighting had to be deployed again to take part in the assault.

Every little bit counts, and even an army of ants can take down an elephant. At this moment, every ounce of firepower that could be mustered was crucial. Who knew? A single shot from a heavy particle cannon could be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

As the crimson ‘ATLAS’ was launched back into space, the course of the battle was, to a large extent, no longer under Amber’s direct control. From this moment on, the fate of the battle would truly be decided by every decision and every action of each member of the Atlas fleet who held fast to their post.

What Amber had to do was see this battle through in his role as the commander of the HCP assault force.

“Lilith, prepare for assisted control. I’m about to enter the ‘Release’ state.”

Amber spoke calmly, his tone oddly out of place amidst the hail of fire in the surrounding combat zone.

Lilith didn’t hesitate to obey Amber’s command, completing the takeover without a word. But remembering what her new ‘Older Sister’ friend had said, she still voiced her concern:

“Understood, Master! Assisted control takeover complete… But are you sure you want to enter the ‘Release’ state? Didn’t Ms. Salieh say that you’ve only just mastered this technique? Without assistance, you could easily be consumed by your Psionics and fall into a complete frenzy…”

“Hahahaha, don’t worry about me. When it comes to experience with the ‘Release’ state, I have a lot more than you think~”

Amber chuckled and shook his head. After confirming that all the indicator lights turned green following Lilith’s takeover, he unhesitatingly activated the Psionic technique—‘Release’.

The high-density Psionics hidden in the unknown depths of his brain activated in that instant, surging to every corner of his body. Amber felt as if he were submerged in some kind of high-energy Psionic field. Even the cockpit of the ‘ATLAS’ began to pulse with a faint blue light.

This meant the unit had also activated its pre-set ‘Psionic Control Mode’. In this mode, the ‘ATLAS’ would have faster control response, and Amber could pilot it directly as if it were an extension of his own body.

Then, like a stream of consciousness, Amber felt the pace of the battle not only accelerate but also morph into a series of montage-like flashbacks. The scene before his eyes began to shift constantly.

One moment, he was leading his team in formation, breaking through the anti-air defenses of the Assembly Center’s outer platforms. The next, all that was before him was the structure of a platform, sliced in two by the ‘EX-Sword of Promised Victory’.

The scene flashed again. This time, Amber’s vision was filled with enemy HCPs and warships highlighted in red boxes—the only remaining defense force for the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center. After reinforcing Marshal Trafalgar’s fleet with some of their capital ships, the mobile forces responsible for this area’s defense had been further weakened.

Without a thought, Amber controlled the ‘ATLAS’, unleashing its full firepower as it charged into the enemy formation. Behind him were even more friendly units. To his flanks, swarms of Heavy Armored Gunships, like schools of piranhas, carved wide arcs as they rushed the enemy, occasionally unleashing perfectly synchronized salvos reminiscent of firing line tactics.

Providing the backdrop for this assault was a full salvo from the Atlas fleet. The countless beams of directed-energy weapons and the trails of heavy penetrator rounds nearly filled this entire region of space.

Chapter 652: Eye of the Serpent

“Alright! The backup deflector shield is overloaded! Everyone, attack!”

As someone roared over the comms channel, the massive deflector shield that formed the ‘package’ enveloping the entire Assembly Center finally collapsed after several salvoes. Without hesitation, Amber took the lead and charged into the final defensive perimeter.

As expected, the scene that followed was a highlight reel of unrivaled feats. The ‘EX-Sword of Promised Victory’ swept across the main control room in the Assembly Center’s core area, the action seemingly unfolding in slow motion.

In that instant, Amber could even clearly see the stunned, astonished, and terrified expressions on the faces of the Federation personnel inside the main control room.

Then, in the next second, they were all reduced to ash by the high-temperature plasma light sword, equals in death.

Before Amber, lost in the flashback, could savor the moment for even a second, the next fragment of memory appeared: a small tactical star chart popped up in the ‘Atlas’ cockpit. The rear of their fleet was bathed in the red glow of danger.

“The Federation Navy fleet is on us! Rearguard fleet, you’re within firing range! Prepare to engage!”

An urgent voice rang out on the comms channel. Amber recognized it as Ramos. However, he couldn’t provide support at that moment; he was leading the assault team, hollowing out the Assembly Center’s inner core like a swarm of termites. Even if he wanted to help, it was already too late.

Just then, a familiar voice came over the comms.

“Poseidon task force, commence the attack! Main fleet, regroup as quickly as possible! We’ll cover your breakout!”

On the tactical star chart, several triangular icons representing the Poseidon task force, after a series of tactical maneuvers, stealth movements, and feints, had finally found an advantageous attack position. Seizing the moment the Federation fleet engaged the Atlas rearguard—a moment when the enemy could not possibly alter their trajectory—they plunged into their flank.

“This is rearguard command. We’re tied down by the Federation fleet and can’t break away! But we’ll buy enough time for the main fleet to complete its objective and retreat! For Atlas!”

The rearguard fleet commander’s voice followed on the comms channel. His ships quickly changed their orientation and began to dogfight with the Federation fleet.

Then, Amber watched as the main fleet’s rearguard and the Poseidon task force vanished like melting snowflakes. After all, they were facing three entire Federation fleets. Once the enemy’s numerical superiority translated into superior firepower, it was difficult to overcome with clever tactics.

But this didn’t mean the Poseidon task force and the rearguard were engaged in a fruitless effort. Especially since these ships, fighting with the determination to die, employed tactics that completely defied conventional fleet engagement doctrine, inflicting considerable casualties on the Federation fleet.

Because when a warship’s main cannons had all overheated or been destroyed, and its heavy plasma torpedoes and anti-ship missiles for close-quarters combat were expended, the ship itself became the final ‘torpedo’.

Tense and exhilarated, the helmsmen pushed the engine order telegraphs to ‘Flank Speed’. In the fleet’s current frenzied state, they had long forgotten the meaning of fear.

Amidst the roar of the main fusion reactors and the groans of the ships’ structural frames under the sudden acceleration, the relative velocity between these warships and their targets rapidly climbed to hundreds of kilometers per second. Having closed to a combat distance of two thousand kilometers, the less-than-twenty-second window was not enough for the Federation warships to execute evasive maneuvers.

And so, a series of collisions occurred.

The Federation Navy’s attack formation, composed of three fleets, now revealed its weakness: it was too densely packed. The entire vanguard and right flank were instantly thrown into chaos by the impacts.

By the time Amber and his assault team charged back out of the now-ruined Assembly Center, the first thing he saw was the ‘Eternity’ at the very forefront of the fleet beginning a second round of sweeping fire from its main cannon. However, having already performed a ‘three-round burst’ earlier, this time it could only fire a single shot.

Even so, the golden purification beam added yet more chaos to the Federation fleet’s vanguard.

It was only then, as he gradually emerged from his state of ‘battle frenzy’, that Amber realized the entire rearguard fleet had been wiped out. The Poseidon task force was down to its last four ships, including the flagship ‘Winged Hussar’. They were now launching a final, one-way charge at the Federation’s flank.

“Boss! Boss!”

In a daze, Amber heard Ramos’s voice. The interim Fleet Commander’s anxious tone snapped him completely out of his ‘Release’ state, bringing him back to his senses.

“I’m here.”

Ramos: “We’re preparing for a breakout, but I’m afraid we don’t have time to analyze warp coordinates. The ‘Eternity’s’ deflector shield is about to fail.”

“Don’t use the pre-planned coordinates for analysis. That’s exactly what Trafalgar is waiting for us to do. He’ll definitely have his fleet lower their fire density, wait for our Warp Engines to enter the analysis state, and then annihilate us with a few of the most ferocious salvoes!”

Amber’s words had barely registered with Ramos when the Tactical Information Coordinator on the ‘Eternity’s’ bridge shouted, “Commander, enemy fire density is decreasing! We can attempt an emergency warp!”

“No, wait! The Boss says it’s a trap!”

Ramos immediately called a halt, then continued to ask Amber over the comms channel, “Boss, what do we do now? If we don’t warp, they’ll wear us down and destroy us.”

Amber naturally understood the urgency of the situation. It was just that, having just exited his ‘Release’ state, his entire being had been forced into a strange state of calm. In Salieh’s words, it was similar to the ‘post-coital clarity’ experienced by human males.

Though it made him seem somewhat dazed, he was, in fact, probably the calmest person in this entire region of space at that moment.

Soon, his gaze settled on a glittering star on the unit’s panoramic display. As he focused on it, a line of text quickly appeared beside the star.

[Unukalhai—Alpha Serpentis—Mag. 2.63]

It was a massive gas giant with thirteen times the mass of Jupiter.

And many stories about this planet surged up from the depths of his memory.

Thinking of this, Amber no longer hesitated and spoke directly:

“Ramos, order all surviving warships to switch their Warp Engines to ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode. Set the navigation target to ‘Unukalhai—Alpha Serpentis’. That way, we can skip the coordinate analysis process and warp directly after completing acceleration.”

Chapter 653: He Flees, He Pursues

“‘Eye of the Serpent’ Celestial Navigation mode.”

Ramos was stunned for a moment when he heard Amber’s words. He had practically no hands-on experience with the Warp Engine’s ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode. But he quickly recovered and asked with a puzzled expression:

“Boss, that will indeed let us skip the analysis process and enter warp quickly. But in Celestial Navigation mode, the Warp Engine’s spatial fluctuation signature code is unencrypted. The Federation fleet can follow us directly!”

“That’s right, but at least it will buy us time to regroup. And we’ll have the Eye of the Serpent to maneuver around, instead of being used as target practice in this empty region of space.”

Amber swiftly answered Ramos’s question, then added in a tone that brooked no argument, “This is an emergency. Don’t get bogged down in the details. Execute the command!”

To be honest, if Amber hadn’t still been in the cockpit of her ‘Atlas’ without a reliable command system to lead the jump, she would have ordered the fleet to prepare for a tactical warp long ago.

Fortunately, while Ramos lacked experience, his obedience to orders was unquestionable. The surviving warships of the fleet quickly began to reassemble, and Amber and the other assault units boarded the nearest vessels.

In an emergency evacuation, ship-borne HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships would not wait for their own motherships to recover them. Instead, they would find the nearest ship with an open berth and get aboard.

Otherwise, given the typical combat range of these assault units—often two to three thousand kilometers—the enemy would be right on top of them by the time they flew back to their motherships.

Soon, the remaining ships of the Atlas fleet had regrouped and begun accelerating toward the Federation fleet, which was now within eight thousand kilometers. After the final salvo, all the captains followed their instructions, diverting all power from their main fusion reactors to [Propulsion] and [Protection].

Their only remaining offensive measure was to launch every anti-ship missile from their multi-purpose launch silos toward the Federation fleet, as if holding a clearance sale.

As the distance between the two sides shrank, Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll noticed something was wrong. They had just watched, almost helplessly, as the Assembly Center was demolished. They had underestimated the Atlas fleet’s demolition capability and overestimated the Assembly Center’s defenses. So, while they were tying up the Atlas rearguard fleet, the ‘demolition’ on the other side had begun simultaneously.

Marshal Trafalgar’s original plan had been to quickly devour this small intercepting fleet and then encircle and annihilate the main Atlas fleet at the gates of the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

But as the Atlas rearguard fleet engaged his vanguard with a willingness for mutual destruction, and the ‘Poseidon’ task force slipped to their flank to launch harassing attacks, the battle-hardened old marshal finally realized that times had changed.

He had not expected his three fleets to be held up for even a short period, and he certainly had not expected the Atlas fleet to use that same short period to completely destroy the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center.

At that moment, Marshal Trafalgar finally understood the feeling of suffering in silence.

His strategy would have worked against any other fleet of a similar scale in the world—even the elf fleets of the Thousand Stars Empire. Trafalgar was confident he could have annihilated them here.

But the Atlas fleet had broken through his death trap time and time again.

They had executed a breakout from the encirclement of three fleets with minimal losses. Then, they had somehow avoided the first firing of ‘Requiem’. The second firing of ‘Requiem’ had莫名quely turned into a space searchlight, and the expensive satellite cannon array had been scrapped along with it.

And that wasn’t all. Now, they had dismantled the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center right in front of his eyes.

But this time, the old marshal did not erupt in curses as others on the bridge might have expected. Instead, he leaned back in his command chair, exhausted and silent.

Beside him, Admiral Caroll frowned as he looked at the massive volume of missile interception logs coming from the anti-aircraft commander.

“Marshal, have the Atlas ships exhausted their special alloy reserves for their main cannons? We haven’t been hit by a heavy particle cannon for a full thirty seconds. The anti-aircraft commander reports a sharp increase in incoming missiles, however. It seems they’ve switched to using anti-ship missiles to clear a path? What kind of unorthodox tactic is this? There’s no way these missiles can penetrate our defenses…”

Marshal Trafalgar, silent for a long while, shook his head and finally spoke, “How could they be out of alloy reserves? That stuff doesn’t take up much space. Haven’t you noticed that our relative velocity is rapidly increasing?”

“You mean… they’re trying to disengage?”

Admiral Caroll quickly grasped Marshal Trafalgar’s meaning. The Atlas fleet’s actions were indeed consistent with the procedures for disengaging from a fleet battle—after the two fleets passed each other at high speed, the distance between them would rapidly increase, providing the time and space needed for the next move.

“Judging by their fleet’s movements, that’s correct.”

Marshal Trafalgar straightened up in his command chair, looking with some apprehension at the approaching Atlas fleet. As the first naval commander in the world to experience the “Cosmic Dump Truck” tactic, he was still shaken by it and even worried they might try it again.

However, after observing the Atlas fleet’s current maneuvers, another doubt arose in his mind.

“But if they’re trying to disengage now and warp away, the window of opportunity while they prepare for warp would be more than enough for us to reorient and attack their rear hemisphere. A warship’s rear isn’t nearly as durable as its front. Unless…”

Marshal Trafalgar suddenly realized something, but with the relative velocity between the two fleets increasing, the distance between them closed in an instant. All he could do for now was issue the command, “All ships, decelerate! Prepare to reorient 180 degrees!”

Under the ferocious barrage from the Federation fleet, the Eternity’s super-large deflector shield finally collapsed. The fact that it had held for so long under the concentrated fire of nearly three fleets was already beyond the expectations of the Endless-class super-capital ship’s designers.

With the collapse of the super-large deflector shield, the pressure on the other warships in the fleet instantly intensified. From time to time, ships targeted by concentrated fire would have their deflector shields overload, only to be destroyed by the next salvo.

On Amber’s and Ramos’s command interfaces, they watched as ships were marked with red X’s one after another during this desperate charge. The fleet’s combat losses soon reached forty percent.

But thankfully, this desperate charge was finally coming to an end.

After the two fleets shot past each other at high speed, leaving behind a trail of warship wreckage scattered across the region of space, the Atlas fleet completed its final acceleration. The warp engines, set to ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode, spooled up far faster than usual.

By the time Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll realized what was happening, the Federation fleet was already four thousand kilometers away from the Atlas fleet. Even though the marshal urgently ordered his ships to reorient, the final salvo intended to seal their victory was never fired.

A series of white flashes from the warping ships began to flicker. Admiral Caroll’s astonished voice reached Marshal Trafalgar’s ears.

“Marshal, it’s ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode. No wonder they could enter warp so quickly!”

“Warp-out location.”

“Alpha Serpentis.”

“Pursue them,” Marshal Trafalgar’s voice was now devoid of any emotion.

Admiral Caroll hesitated. “Marshal, for them to warp so openly… could it be a trap?”

“I said, pursue them! Do you not understand an order?”

“Yes, Marshal!”

Chapter 654: Who’s Trapped Now?

Alpha Serpentis, also known as the Eye of the Serpent. As a third-magnitude star, this massive gas planet, thirteen times the mass of Jupiter, was already the brightest planet humanity could observe in the entire Serpens constellation.

After humanity’s early Great Age of Space Exploration and the subsequent Unification and Secession Wars, the region of the Serpens constellation, including the Pillars of Creation, ultimately became Federation territory.

However, due to a lack of resources and suitable planets for colonization, combined with the navigational hazards posed by the Pillars of Creation dust cloud, the Serpens constellation was never extensively developed. Aside from using the Pillars of Creation to hide the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, the Federation only established a few semi-automated mining facilities in select areas.

As for Alpha Serpentis, it had not been visited by humans for over a decade. Although the Federation had built some gas collection and processing stations in its orbit, the cargo fleet responsible for transport only made a round trip once every fifteen years, performing maintenance on the stations while transferring the resources.

But today, this lonely gas planet was experiencing a rare burst of activity.

In the blackness of space, rippling waves appeared silently, seemingly from nothing, like the gentle brushstrokes of a mysterious cosmic artist upon a black canvas.

The Atlas Special Operations Fleet, after a series of hard-fought battles, finally burst into this region of space without warning, using their Warp Engines’ ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode.

However, in the end, only just over half of its warships successfully exited the warp into this region of space.

Looking at the command interface, which showed the fleet’s current strength at fifty-five percent, then glancing at the detailed roster of damaged capital ships and the few remaining other warships, Amber let out a long sigh.

Although Amber had been prepared to suffer further heavy losses after Atlas went head-to-head with five Federation fleets, his feelings were still complicated now that it had actually happened.

But he had no time to dwell on it now. He piloted the ‘ATLAS’ out of the warship he had temporarily boarded and headed toward the Eternity.

Meanwhile, the other warships quickly confirmed the status of their temporarily docked HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships. After a rapid conference-like exchange between the shipboard control AIs, most of the HCPs and gunships remained in their current positions.

Only a few overloaded warships launched their excess HCPs and gunships, directing them to the nearest ships with available capacity.

Although this disrupted the formations of many shipboard squadrons, it had the advantage of saving the time that would otherwise be spent regrouping.

After all, the danger was not yet over.

Both Amber and everyone else in the fleet knew that the Federation Navy would not give up so easily.

Fortunately, even if both sides spent the same amount of time in warp, the Federation fleet would still need considerable time to readjust its course and re-accelerate. The Atlas fleet used this window to enter an acceleration orbit around the planet, while each ship conducted rapid self-checks and emergency damage control.

Amber certainly didn’t want to continue fighting Trafalgar. After all, the Atlas Special Operations Fleet’s primary combat objective had been completed—what needed to be destroyed was destroyed—and there was no need to keep fighting the Federation fleet to the death.

So he planned to use this window of opportunity to have the fleet accelerate using Alpha Serpentis and slip away as soon as the Warp Engines finished calculating the coordinates.

However, he had underestimated Marshal Trafalgar’s determination to annihilate this isolated force, as well as the capabilities the Federation capital fleet could display at such a moment.

The Atlas fleet had only just entered its orbit around the planet when three Federation Navy fleets caught up to them.

“Warning, unauthorized spatial fluctuations detected!”

“Warning, rapid increase in anomalous mass detected in the target region of space. Identified as a large-scale fleet exiting warp.”

The alarms blared without warning on the bridge of the Eternity. Like oceanic predators rising from the deep, Federation warships appeared rapidly on the radar monitoring screen of the Atlas flagship, the Eternity. There were hundreds of densely packed signals.

Guided by experienced fleet navigators, their bows were all pointed directly at the Atlas fleet upon exiting warp. The various weapon groups, stowed during the jump, were reactivated. From a distance, it was as if an invisible hand had suddenly yanked the entire Federation fleet out of the void.

Fortunately, the two fleets were thirty thousand kilometers apart. At this range, combined with the gravitational interference from the nearby gas giant, the heavy particle cannons were not particularly effective. For the moment, Amber and his crew didn’t have to worry about being shattered by a salvo from the enemy’s main cannons.

As for the high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons, the Atlas fleet fired off all their few remaining dispersal gel rounds without holding anything back.

Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll could only watch as the Atlas fleet slipped behind Alpha Serpentis. The massive gas planet now served as a natural shield, providing the Atlas fleet with a brief moment of respite.

“Pursue them. Their formation has already regrouped. It seems they’re trying to use the time gap to warp away.”

Marshal Trafalgar’s face was grim, and he exuded a rage simmering beneath a cold exterior. Admiral Caroll didn’t dare to interrupt and could only carry out the old marshal’s commands without hesitation.

“But I won’t let them get away so easily. All fleets, pursue at maximum speed. Hmph. Did they think we wouldn’t use the planet’s gravity to accelerate?”

Trafalgar snorted coldly. The entire fleet rapidly accelerated under his command. As a celestial body within Federation territory, the Federation Navy naturally possessed more complete astronomical data on Alpha Serpentis. The orbit their fleet took was far superior to the one the Atlas fleet had hastily chosen.

Soon, on the bridge of the Eternity, the shipboard control AI Therese issued a warning: ‘The fleets’ approach rate is too high.’

Amber: “So the Federation fleet will be in firing position before we can enter warp?”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

Therese nodded. The tactical display beside her showed the results of her calculations—before they could enter warp, over ninety-five percent of the Atlas fleet’s ships would be annihilated. Only the Eternity and a few of the toughest capital ships would be able to escape.

It was at this moment that a message from Marshal Trafalgar appeared on the public channel. After confirming it didn’t contain any electronic warfare viruses, Amber opened it.

“Mr. Amber, leader of Atlas, I believe you already know the outcome of this battle. You and your fleet are trapped. To avoid further unnecessary casualties, out of humanitarian consideration, I ask that you order your fleet to shut down its engines.”

Clearly, besides calling for surrender, Trafalgar’s message was intended to mess with his head.

This was not uncommon in the history of human warfare. As space fleet battles became more sophisticated, it was common practice for commanders to exchange trash talk on the public channel while embedding electronic warfare viruses in their messages.

“Trapped?”

Amber looked at Alpha Serpentis, seemingly within arm’s reach outside the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen, and a cruel smile slowly formed on his face.

“As for who’s really trapped… that’s not so certain yet, is it?”

Chapter 655: The Captain Will Go Down With His Ship

Although Amber was already thinking about how to lay a trap for the Federation Navy fleet, after some consideration, he realized the plan might not be so easy to execute.

First, he definitely didn’t want the Atlas fleet to be sacrificed, so the plan’s prerequisite was the successful breakout of the Atlas fleet. On that basis, Amber actually had very little room to maneuver.

Even though he had already formulated a rough strategy in his mind, when it came to actual execution, there were still numerous details to consider.

Fortunately, Amber had Lilith.

“Lilith, verify this data, then build a model to check the success rate and find the optimal solution.”

“Roger~ Master, let me see.”

Lilith’s 8-bit avatar nodded on the multi-function screen of the Eternity’s captain’s chair. This form, resembling a ‘pixelated desktop pet,’ was how Lilith usually appeared.

However, Amber had always been curious why Lilith preferred this pixelated avatar. Logically, given the performance of most mainframe terminals in this era, creating a high-poly 3D model would be as easy as drinking water.

When they first met at the research institute, the ‘Prime Lilith’ had a rather lewd model, which had left a deep impression on Amber.

To this, Lilith had once given her answer during a chat.

“Because pixels are hotter, Master~”

This way of thinking, letting his ephemeral thoughts leap to the heavens, was a method Amber had developed for himself to relieve tension. In Salieh’s more professional terms, it was ‘shifting one’s mindset to ease nervous tension.’

And in Amber’s view, this was just like in his previous life when, after toiling as a beast of burden for so long, he would slack off by playing anime-style games and looking at certain art and comics. It was the same principle.

While Amber was pondering these random thoughts, Lilith began to rapidly verify the series of data he had provided. Upon seeing the details, the strong AI couldn’t help but exclaim:

“Master, are you planning to blow up this gas giant?”

“That’s not ‘blowing it up.’ Watch your wording. It’s called ‘inducing a violent reaction in the gas giant,’” Amber corrected.

Lilith shook her head, then immediately pulled in a large group of shipboard control AIs, including Therese, to begin a joint calculation. After all, inducing a violent reaction in a gas giant involved far too many variables.

However, the current situation didn’t allow Lilith the time for meticulous calculations. The remaining ships in the Atlas special task force were all damaged, having entered warp without even time for emergency damage control. Furthermore, they had warped within a star system affected by a gravity well, so many warships were now reporting multiple subsystem failures.

The more serious issue was that over a dozen warships were at risk of decreased power unit output. The engineers on each ship reported that it was best to enter warp as soon as possible, otherwise, under the gravitational influence of the massive gas giant nearby, there was no telling what else could go wrong.

Under these circumstances, Amber didn’t wait any longer:

“Lilith, there’s no time for detailed calculations. Just tell me, if we drop all of the Eternity’s current nuclear warheads, can we induce a violent reaction in Alpha Serpentis?”

“It can induce a violent reaction, Master,” Lilith’s voice was hesitant, “but the reaction caused by such a crude deployment method would be extremely uncontrollable. We might get caught in it ourselves!”

“As long as it can induce a reaction, that’s enough. We can’t worry about the rest right now. We don’t always have enough time to think things through carefully in a crisis. When you have to gamble, you gamble!”

Lilith’s words solidified Amber’s resolve. He took a deep breath, then looked at Ramos, who was standing by.

“The Eternity will now begin emergency evacuation procedures. Ramos, you will take everyone and transfer to the other ships via the shuttles!”

Hearing Amber’s words, Ramos froze on the spot. He never would have expected Amber to suddenly issue such an order.

“Emergency evacuation? Wait, Boss, what are you planning? Aren’t you leaving?”

“The Eternity will cover the main fleet as it enters warp. This mission is too risky, and I don’t want so many of you to risk your lives with me. The captain will go down with his ship. Besides, my plan doesn’t require any combat, so the super-flagship’s automated systems can handle it just fine~”

Amber said with a smile, as if he were discussing something completely ordinary.

But Ramos couldn’t smile at all after hearing Amber’s words. In fact, he was so anxious he was on the verge of tears:

“Boss, leaving you here alone is too great a risk! If I dared to leave you here by yourself and evacuate with the others, Minister Isabelle and Colonel Randall would tear me apart!”

“Hey now, don’t be so pessimistic! We haven’t even started yet!”

Amber frowned. He had no time to argue and directly used Psionics to amplify his command.

“No more talk. While our orbit hasn’t decayed yet and we’re not affected by Alpha Serpentis’s gravity, hurry up and evacuate on the shuttles. That’s an order!”

—

A direct order from Amber was something no one in the Atlas Group could refuse. Coupled with the influence of his amplified Psionics, Ramos had no choice but to begin commanding the Eternity’s crew to evacuate after hearing the direct command.

Because the Eternity had joined the battle on an emergency basis, and Amber and the others had determined this would be a purely space-based fleet battle, the Eternity only carried its standard crew. Unlike her sister ships, the Infinity and The Dawn, it was not carrying a large number of researchers or a fully formed ground combat unit.

This made executing Amber’s emergency evacuation order considerably simpler, reducing the number of personnel to evacuate by more than half.

Additionally, the shuttles of an Endless-class super-flagship were designed to be used as escape pods in an emergency, so they easily accommodated all crew members except for Amber.

Although the Eternity’s crew and pilots were extremely surprised by the emergency evacuation order, they carried it out without a moment’s hesitation. After all, the iron-clad rule of ‘obeying orders’ had been drilled into their very bones from their first day in the Atlas combat forces.

Soon, shuttle after shuttle detached from the Eternity’s various deployment bays. The surrounding warships, having received their orders, did not delay and quickly closed the distance with the Eternity to facilitate a rapid transfer of the shuttles.

Meanwhile, on Marshal Trafalgar’s command, the Federation fleet began using Alpha Serpentis’s gravity to accelerate in full pursuit of the Atlas fleet.

Although they had maintained surveillance on the Atlas fleet, they failed to detect the Eternity launching a large number of shuttles in a short time, due to the cover from the other ships and interference from Alpha Serpentis.

However, Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll quickly noticed something was amiss. Or rather, the Atlas fleet had just shown its hand.

Chapter 656: Come If You Dare

“Marshal, look! The Atlas fleet’s flagship is breaking away from their formation!”

Seeing the Atlas fleet’s movement, Admiral Caroll couldn’t sit still any longer.

Even without the reminder, Marshal Trafalgar had already noticed the situation with the Atlas fleet. The old marshal fell silent as he watched the scene unfold.

He had seen every kind of fleet battle in his lifetime, but he had never encountered a situation like this.

“Could the super-flagship’s propulsion system have malfunctioned?” Admiral Caroll, standing beside him, was still guessing.

“Unlikely,” Marshal Trafalgar shook his head. “On a warship that massive, critical units and subsystems like that would have significant redundancy. It’s highly improbable for a failure to occur that would prevent it from maintaining its heading.”

“Then what in the world is going on?”

“Hmph. Who cares what’s going on? We’ll pursue first and ask questions later!” Marshal Trafalgar said with a fierce tone. “As long as Amber is on that super-flagship, sinking that one ship alone will be more than enough!”

As time passed, the distance between the two fleets dwindled, and the situation of the Atlas fleet became increasingly ‘clear’ to the Federation fleet.

All the other Atlas warships were still using the gravity of Alpha Serpentis to accelerate, while the Eternity super-flagship had completely broken away from the fleet, its orbit dropping lower and lower.

Although Marshal Trafalgar remained skeptical, he had to admit that the current situation did indeed look like the Eternity’s propulsion system had failed. Otherwise, there would be no reason for them to put on such a convincing act—after all, the ever-increasing temperature in the low orbit of Alpha Serpentis posed a very real threat to the warship.

However, the old marshal held another suspicion: that Amber had already slipped away to another warship, abandoning the Eternity and using it as a decoy.

This suspicion lingered until the Federation fleet received a short message from the Eternity.

【The great stage of Serpens, come and get me if you dare~】

“Hmph, interesting.” A cold sneer flashed across Marshal Trafalgar’s face. “If he’s trying to provoke me, this method is far too clumsy.”

“Indeed.”

Admiral Caroll also nodded.

“This doesn’t seem like a ploy Mr. Amber would use, and we won’t fall for it so easily, unless…”

“Unless he’s for real. He truly intends to use himself as the ‘decoy’.”

Marshal Trafalgar finished the sentence uncertainly. He still felt the probability was far too low. He found it hard to imagine the controller of a universal megacorporation taking such a huge risk to “face them alone” just to cover his fleet’s retreat.

But in the next second, that guess was confirmed.

“Report! We have an incoming communications request! The source is the enemy flagship!”

Hearing the Communications Officer’s report, Trafalgar and Caroll quickly exchanged a glance. In each other’s shocked eyes, they read the same thought—‘Is this guy for real?!’

“Patch him through!”

The next moment, Amber’s figure appeared on the main screen of the Dreadnought’s bridge. Seeing the empty bridge behind him, Trafalgar and Caroll felt their earlier guess was about to be proven right.

“I’ve long heard of your reputation, Marshal Trafalgar. We finally meet…” Amber’s voice echoed across the Dreadnought’s bridge, its tone surprisingly relaxed.

“Mr. Amber, your reputation precedes you. I just never imagined we would meet under such circumstances.” A smile also appeared on Marshal Trafalgar’s face. “I’ve always believed we shared a great deal of common ground, that we might even become friends…”

“What a shame, then~” Amber shrugged, though no one on the Dreadnought’s bridge detected the slightest hint of ‘shame’ in his voice.

“Let’s get down to business, Mr. Amber. You should be well aware of your current situation. I hope you will voluntarily end this tedious game of chase and surrender your fleet to the Federation Navy. I swear on my honor that I will provide you all with a graceful arrangement.”

“Gracefully… Hahahaha…”

Amber laughed and shook his head. Then, his smile vanished completely. He looked at Marshal Trafalgar with a deadpan expression and said:

“Let my fleet leave safely. I’m not going anywhere, and I trust you’ve already seen the state of my flagship. I’ll be waiting for you right here.”

As he spoke, Amber floated over to the panoramic viewscreen. The gravity control system on the Eternity had been shut down, and a small, mobile camera with its own micro-thrusters followed him to the viewport.

Beyond the panoramic viewscreen, the Atlas fleet was retreating ever further into the distance on one side, while the pursuing Federation fleet was closing in at high speed on the other.

At the same time, Marshal Trafalgar saw a discreet message from the Communications Officer. They had confirmed that what everyone was seeing was not a composite image but a live feed. With this, they could finally confirm that Amber was indeed on the Eternity.

“And if I say no, Mr. Amber?” Marshal Trafalgar’s smile had also vanished. “The weak have no right to bargain. Today, neither you nor your fleet will escape.”

“What a shame.”

As Amber spoke, the Federation fleet detected that the Atlas fleet, which was about to enter weapons range, had begun to warp. This time, too, they were executing a rapid warp under the ‘Celestial Navigation’ mode.

Admiral Caroll brought up a screen showing the coordinates of the Atlas fleet’s warp destination—a star system in the lawless zone, once the Federation border. Marshal Trafalgar let out a cold snort and said:

“Do you think I’ll spare them just because they’ve fled to the lawless zone? When it comes to your Atlas Group, I will show no mercy for the future of the Federation. Rest assured, I’ll send your fleet to join you in the grave.”

“Your Excellency, I sincerely advise you not to be so greedy. Isn’t catching a ‘big fish’ like me enough for you?”

“I prefer to ‘catch them all in one net’, Mr. Amber.”

“Tsk… what a shame~” Amber repeated his previous line, then said tauntingly, “Since you don’t want to end this amicably, I’ll just have to make it harder for you. Same words as before: ‘The great stage of Serpens, come and get me if you dare’~”

With that, Amber cut the communication.

Immediately after, Trafalgar and the others saw the Eternity begin to accelerate its descent into the atmosphere of Alpha Serpentis.

“Trying to give me a choice? Sorry. I want it all.”

Marshal Trafalgar waved a hand and declared in a booming voice, “Second Fleet, track the enemy fleet’s warp signature codes and annihilate them! Without super-capital support, those remnants are no threat! First and Third Fleets, accelerate into orbit around Alpha Serpentis. Let’s give Mr. Amber a final send-off!”

On the bridge of the Eternity, Amber, who had returned to the captain’s chair, naturally saw the Federation’s pursuit fleet begin to split up. It was more or less what he had initially predicted.

Regarding the Federation Fleet Admiral’s final decision, Amber could only let out a sigh.

“Kind words are wasted on the damned, and mercy cannot save those who choose oblivion…”

At the same time, he used the control panel to quickly load an encrypted message into the Eternity’s communication unit. The recipient of this message was located in the very star system his main fleet was about to warp to.

Looking at the star system and thinking of the ‘helper’ waiting there, Amber paused for a moment with a complicated expression, then pressed the send button without further hesitation.

“Sigh… I really didn’t want to owe such a huge favor. How am I supposed to rip them off in our future business deals?”

Chapter 657: Detonation

When it came to executing Marshal Trafalgar’s orders, the Federation Navy never cut corners. After dispatching one fleet to continue its pursuit of the Atlas fleet, the remaining two fleets immediately accelerated and charged toward The Eternity.

However, after his cordial exchange with Trafalgar, Amber was no longer flustered. Like a veteran truck driver, he leaned back coolly in the captain’s chair, watching the feed from the ship’s aft observation unit.

If Therese hadn’t already taken control of piloting The Eternity, Amber would have absolutely insisted on moving to the helmsman’s post to steer with one hand for a while.

Meanwhile, the main fleet in the distance was entering the final phase of its warp. The pursuing Federation fleet had closed to attack range and begun firing its charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers, but the vast and complex ionized environment in Alpha Serpentis’s outer atmosphere deflected the vast majority of the beams off their intended course.

The few high-energy lasers that did hit their targets couldn’t inflict sufficient damage in a short time at this range. A few seconds later, a series of flashes from spatial fluctuations marked the location where the Atlas fleet had been.

Amber mused, “Successfully evacuated fifty-two percent… a fifty-two percent success rate. Tsk, the losses are still too great.”

Before Amber could finish his lament, the pursuing Federation fleet unhesitatingly initiated their own jump, using the warp signature codes they had received.

Judging by the fleet’s size, Amber guessed that Marshal Trafalgar must have sent the least damaged of his three fleets after them.

Without the support of The Eternity, the remaining half of the Atlas fleet was indeed no match for a full-strength Federation capital fleet.

This had nothing to do with tactical superiority, crew training, or hardware configurations. It was a simple matter of mathematics. The disparity in power output and firepower between the two sides was too great to be overcome by any other factor.

Of course, that was under normal circumstances.

The reason Amber dared to let his half-strength, battered fleet jump away with a full-strength Federation fleet on their tail was that the situation in their destination star system was anything but normal.

But Amber had no time to worry about that fleet now. Once the region of space in Alpha Serpentis’s outer orbit returned to calm, the final act of this great drama had finally begun.

And he and The Eternity were the stars of this final act.

“Marshal, our scout ships have confirmed that there are no other vessels in the vicinity of Alpha Serpentis. It looks like the Atlas Group’s fleet really did abandon their supreme commander and run for it.”

On the bridge of The Dreadnought, Admiral Caroll quickly relayed the key points from the latest reconnaissance report to Marshal Trafalgar.

To his surprise, the Marshal frowned upon hearing this, his expression complex.

“Caroll, you know, I still can’t believe he actually stayed behind alone… This isn’t at all like the megacorporation controllers I know.”

“Indeed. Those types don’t have the guts to risk their lives fighting us.”

Admiral Caroll couldn’t help but sigh. If such a man were in the Federation Navy, he would naturally be delighted. The problem was, this man was their mortal enemy, which was deeply troubling…

“All the more reason we must finish him today, before any more complications arise.”

Marshal Trafalgar’s tone was resolute, his eyes fixed on the main screen, where The Eternity was rapidly fleeing before his fleet.

“Faster! Come on, boys, put your backs into it! Chase that ship down and tear it to pieces!”

Over on The Eternity, following Amber’s command, all weapon systems were taken offline. The super-flagship’s deflector shield generator arrays were also powered down. After all, as its orbital altitude decreased, the complex atmospheric environment of Alpha Serpentis became the most natural shield.

All other non-essential subsystems were shut down. All of the ship’s energy was now concentrated on the power unit and the ship-wide heat dissipation systems. As it struggled to use the gas giant’s gravity in a game of cat and mouse with the Federation fleet, it also had to constantly battle the rising temperatures.

So, from Marshal Trafalgar and Admiral Caroll’s perspective, the cornered The Eternity had either been caught by Alpha Serpentis’s gravity or had managed a temporary repair of its power unit. In any case, it was once again accelerating in an attempt to shake them.

But the unyielding Federation fleet, both damaged and intact warships alike, followed the Marshal’s order to increase power output and charge straight for The Eternity.

The vanguard ships followed closely, plunging into Alpha Serpentis’s atmosphere. They too fought against the complex gravitational environment and extreme heat as they pursued The Eternity. Meanwhile, another group of warships flew at a higher orbit and greater speed to flank The Eternity from both sides and cut it off from the front. They intended to secure broadside firing positions while blocking all of the ship’s potential escape routes.

Seeing this, Amber did not flinch as Trafalgar and the others had predicted. The Eternity did not alter its course to use Alpha Serpentis’s gravity to break through the encirclement. Instead, it continued to descend, heading irreversibly into the atmosphere of the massive gas giant.

On the surface, it looked as though its power unit had failed, leaving it unable to escape the massive gravitational pull of the “Eye of the Serpent,” setting it on a path of no return.

“Warning! Hull surface temperature is critical! Coolant remaining: 62%… 50%… 48%…”

“Warning! Orbit deviating due to planetary gravity! Recalibrating now!”

“Warning! Power unit has been operating at high output for an extended period! Please monitor operating conditions!”

A stream of warnings blared across The Eternity’s bridge. With each alert voiced by the shipboard control AI, Therese, she would simultaneously begin to address it. At this moment, the countless Worker Bees and large-scale engineering robots spread throughout the ship became her hands and feet, constantly repairing problems as they arose.

This “one-person-one-ship” control capability was something both The Infinity and The Dawn possessed. However, their previous combat environments and mission parameters had been different, so they hadn’t needed to employ this still-maturing ability. If the shipboard control AI made one mistake and wrecked the ship, there would be no one to cry to.

Therefore, only in a situation like this, where weapons and sensor arrays weren’t needed, did Amber dare to completely hand over control of the warship to the shipboard control AI.

Under the control of one man and one AI, The Eternity continued to lower its orbit. As the temperature climbed, the armored belt on the ship’s underside was the first to be affected.

Normally, the outermost armored layer of a human warship was highly resistant to temperature extremes to adapt to the harsh environment of space. However, this resistance was typically for instantaneous exposure, and the nanite memory metal would repair its crystalline lattice after taking damage.

But being thrown into a “furnace” like this was a far more serious problem. The longer The Eternity remained in orbit around Alpha Serpentis, and the lower its altitude, the less effective the nanite memory metal’s repair efficiency became, until it eventually ceased to function altogether.

Fortunately, the only place on The Eternity that now needed to support human life was the bridge.

So, even if the lower decks of the ship were burned through, the actual impact on The Eternity wasn’t as great as one might imagine.

Of course, Amber wouldn’t continue to risk it like this. After all, he was genuinely risking his life; there was no need to push himself to such an extreme.

“Lilith, Therese, how’s it going? Is the Federation fleet within the kill zone?” Amber asked, watching the Federation fleet grow ever closer in the aft view.

“We have them ‘packaged,’ Master~ Launching all the tactical nuclear weapons currently on board The Eternity is more than enough to trigger an unpredictable and violent reaction. The entire gas giant will begin to explode violently from its core…”

Lilith answered quickly, then added as if for final confirmation:

“But Master, if we really detonate it, Alpha Serpentis might cease to exist. Are you sure you want to blow it up?”

“Do I have a choice right now?” Amber gave a helpless smile. “It’s fine. At least for most observers, it’ll still be shining for another few hundred or a thousand years~”

Lilith couldn’t help but pout at his words. “Master, what you’re saying… at first it sounds completely illogical, and on second thought, it’s just supremely irresponsible~”

As she spoke, The Eternity was rocked by a sudden tremor. Amber looked up. The Federation fleet had fired a long-range salvo from their main cannons.

It seemed they had realized that their charged particle cannons and high-energy lasers weren’t doing enough damage to The Eternity, so they decided to try their luck with the main cannons.

However, the intense magnetic field within Alpha Serpentis’s atmosphere scattered the incoming high-velocity heavy metal particle streams completely. The recent tremor was merely the effect of a few near-misses sweeping past the hull.

“Looks like they’re getting impatient.”

Amber watched the Federation fleet on the main bridge screen. From a head-on view, flashes continued to erupt from their formation—the enemy warships’ secondary weapon groups were still trying to attack.

“Alright, Lilith, use ‘Fire Fist’ on the Federation fleet!”

“Master, where on earth did you dig up that ancient meme…”

Lilith griped at Amber’s words, but she understood his reference in a flash. The moment he finished speaking, she and the ever-stoic Therese began the procedure to launch the tactical nuclear weapons.

As the Renaissance Alliance occupied more and more star systems, the Atlas Group, just as Marshal Trafalgar had suspected, had secured a stable source of nuclear weapons.

With the help of Salieh, their “interstellar miracle worker,” Atlas’s engineers had improved upon these weapons, ultimately creating the “Scourge-class” tactical nuclear warheads loaded onto the Endless-class super-flagships.

Six fusion warheads were encased in lithium trichloride armor using a special process. When this type of nuclear warhead detonated, it would compress the fissile material to the density of a neutron star, drastically increasing the energy yield from the thermonuclear reaction. This technology, obsolete for the Forerunner civilization, provided a terrifying boost to the power of human nuclear weaponry.

Soon, the 312 tactical nuclear warheads, which had already been moved to the multipurpose launch silos, were fired at timed intervals toward the core of Alpha Serpentis.

The atmosphere of the gas giant Alpha Serpentis was primarily composed of hydrogen and helium, its density increasing in a gradient from the outside in, and it was unimaginably thick.

As the booster-equipped tactical warheads struggled to push through, they experienced intense friction with the high-velocity, turbulent gas currents, which were like raging underwater torrents. They left long, fiery trails like cometary tails behind them, exceptionally conspicuous against the dark cosmic background.

The Federation fleet, which had closed the distance to six thousand kilometers, detected this action from The Eternity.

The moment Marshal Trafalgar saw this, he knew instantly what Amber intended to do. The hair on his body stood on end, and a shiver ran down his spine.

“That madman… he wants to take us down with him?!”

“Marshal, should we perform an emergency warp to evacuate?”

Admiral Caroll was panicking now, too. He never imagined Amber would go to such lengths.

What Admiral Caroll didn’t know, however, was that Amber wasn’t the only one capable of such an act.

There was another one right next to him.

Marshal Trafalgar’s hands gripped the armrests of his command chair. If he were to follow his heart, he would rather perish together with Amber to ensure that this great enemy of the Federation was truly dead.

But he was not alone here. He had nearly two full fleets of the Federation Navy with him. They were all living, breathing people. It would be far too selfish for them to die here because of his “grand sacrifice.”

The few seconds of his fierce internal struggle felt like an eternity to the others. The tense atmosphere persisted until Trafalgar let out a sigh and gave the order.

“All fleets, maximum speed! Break orbit from Alpha Serpentis! Prepare for emergency warp!”

“Report! Due to planetary gravity, the time required for the fleet to break orbit will be significantly increased! Current acceleration rate is only fifty percent of normal!”

The Navigator’s report plunged Trafalgar and Caroll into silence. Only now did they realize that Amber had been luring them in from the very beginning. The Federation fleet was now too deep in Alpha Serpentis’s orbit. The vanguard pursuit ships had even entered the upper atmosphere. They couldn’t possibly escape in time.

But the bad news didn’t stop there.

“Report! Enemy vessel is accelerating rapidly! Detecting spatial fluctuation signatures… The… the enemy ship is preparing to warp?!!”

“What? How is that possible?!”

This time, Admiral Caroll cried out in shock. Then, on the main screen’s composite optical image, he and Marshal Trafalgar witnessed a sight they never thought they would see.

As if shedding its armor upon seeing a dragon, The Eternity began jettisoning massive modules and components, increasing its speed with unimaginable efficiency in the process.

The multipurpose launch silo modules, now empty of all ammunition; the entire ship’s anti-aircraft weapon groups; the storage modules on the lower midsection of the hull; the hangar modules; even the deployment bay modules—all were progressively detached in a process resembling the dismantling of building blocks. This exposed large sections of the internal titanium alloy frame and the outer protective layer of the fusion reactor cluster. The entire warship looked like a great whale stripped of its flesh and blood…

The ship’s total mass plummeted during this process. With the power units running at full capacity and providing steady output, its acceleration climbed higher and higher. Finally, to the utter astonishment of the Federation fleet, The Eternity rapidly ascended from its orbit and vanished in a violent burst of spatial fluctuations.

But at that same moment, the 312 “Scourge-class” tactical nuclear warheads deep inside Alpha Serpentis reached their detonation point at the planet’s core.

The first warhead detonated. In the terrifyingly high temperatures and pressures of the planetary core, its explosion was like a speck of dust thrown into a raging sea, instantly creating a thousand-foot wave. Then, like a domino effect, came the second, and the third.

The colossal energy, like a primeval beast breaking free from a thousand-year imprisonment, rampaged through its surroundings without restraint. The hydrogen, helium, and other gases in the planetary core were instantly ionized by this world-destroying energy blast, forming a scorching, roiling ocean of plasma in the blink of an eye.

Driven by this frenzied energy, the plasma spun and churned violently at near-light speed, stirring up terrifying energy vortices. Because the gas giant’s core had an extremely high hydrogen content and was already in a critical state of high temperature and pressure, the energy released by the nuclear explosions was the fuse that lit the powder keg, precisely triggering a massive hydrogen fusion reaction.

The already unstable planetary core instantly became a gigantic powder keg being shaken by countless immense forces. The energy from the nuclear fusion grew exponentially, crashing against the planet’s gaseous outer shell in wave after thunderous wave, like a monstrous tsunami.

Under the force of this overwhelming power, the gases on the planet’s surface were violently hurled into the vastness of space, instantly forming colossal pillars of gas that blotted out the stars.

These pillars of ejecta spread out at astonishing speed across the infinite vacuum, like a pack of ancient dragons breaking their bonds, roaring in fury at the endless dark.

As the energy continued to be released unabated, the pressure inside the planet skyrocketed. Finally, the planet could no longer withstand this terrifying force, a power capable of destroying a star system. A universe-shattering cry, beyond the range of hearing, rang out soundlessly.

This once magnificent gas giant, crowned with the name “Eye of the Serpent,” burst apart in a massive explosion, like a fragile balloon squeezed by an invisible giant hand from the depths of the cosmos.

In that instant, the Federation fleet in orbit met its doom. The ultra-powerful energy wave from the explosion swept through the fleet like a giant scythe.

The vanguard warships that had already entered the atmosphere were the first to be hit. The moment the energy wave touched them, their outer armor plating melted and warped like butter on a hot skillet. Droplets of molten metal splattered everywhere. The powerful energy surge instantly shorted out the ships’ internal electrical systems. Countless sparks erupted inside the cabins, triggering smaller explosions. Crew members were thrown about by the sudden impact. Before they could react, scorching flames and thick smoke engulfed them.

Aboard the flagship The Dreadnought at the center of the formation, the situation was just as dire. The violent shockwave shook the bridge intensely. Workstations and electronic display screens shattered instantly, sending shrapnel flying.

Marshal Trafalgar clung tightly to the armrests of his command chair, trying to issue a final order, but the communication channels were already dead. His voice was trapped inside his in-ship suit’s helmet, unable to be transmitted.

A moment later, The Dreadnought’s fusion reactor exploded violently. The massive battleship was torn to shreds by the immense energy in an instant, its colossal wreckage tumbling and disintegrating in space.

Alpha Serpentis’s thick gaseous shell was pulverized in that same moment, reduced to countless tiny molecules scattered in all directions. The vast amount of matter that had been tightly clustered around the core was also furiously ejected outward.

Countless superheated fragments, wreathed in incandescent, dazzling plasma, shot out in all directions at unimaginable speeds. Anything in their path was instantly vaporized.

At the core of the explosion, a massive energy vortex slowly formed. Like a world-devourer that could never be satiated, it greedily consumed everything around it.

Light, energy, and matter intertwined, collided, and merged at that moment, creating a picture that was both breathtakingly beautiful and terrifyingly suffocating. The blast wave, powerful enough to upend the cosmos, expanded madly into the vastness of space. Wherever it passed, whether it was a tiny meteor, the vast Pillars of Creation dust cloud, or the other celestial bodies near Alpha Serpentis, everything was mercilessly obliterated, leaving behind only a dead void.

Chapter 658: The Federation’s Backbone

“Did it work?”

Amber’s voice trembled slightly, and his body, which had been pressed tightly against the captain’s chair, finally straightened up.

Although The Eternity had made a quick getaway, the explosion of Alpha Serpentis was so immense that even after entering warp, the ship had detected the corresponding energy fluctuations. The entirety of hyperspace had even experienced a massive tremor.

“It worked, it worked, Master! If the Federation fleet and Trafalgar can survive that, then we might as well give up. I’ll be the first to surrender.”

Lilith’s voice chimed in after a moment’s hesitation. While she was well-versed in all things on the network, this was the first time she had witnessed the explosion of a large celestial body. She was currently busy sorting through the vast amount of precious data she had just recorded.

As for Amber, there was no need to even mention him. Though he was a psionic user infinitely close to sixth-level strength and a self-proclaimed “hardened tough guy” who feared nothing, he still felt a sliver of fear when he felt the might of a celestial body up close.

However, this fear also ignited his yearning to become a high-level psionic user. After all, the “star-destroying” special effects in the game were nothing compared to the震撼 of witnessing it with his own eyes.

Moreover, the increase in a psionic user’s strength was exponential. Level six was just the threshold for high-level psionic users; level seven could completely overturn the balance of an entire ground theater of war; level eight could “recharge” battleship-class units; and level nine could “recharge” an entire fleet.

As for psionic users level ten and above, humanity had yet to see a living one. The only reason they knew of the existence of levels ten, eleven, and twelve was due to related records discovered in the ruins of the Forerunners.

Even for the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire, such high-level psionic users were legendary. Only in Salieh’s memories of the Forerunner civilization did a very small number of individuals reach such a level.

As the pinnacle of the entire psionic strength ranking system, a level-twelve psionic user also existed only in the records of the Forerunner civilization—a legendary being capable of destroying a star single-handedly.

It was precisely because of this legend’s existence that the definition of psionic user levels went all the way up to twelve.

“Lilith, if I had the power to crush a star with one hand, do you think I’d never have to play these dangerous games again and could just lie flat for good?”

“Master, if you had the power to crush a star with one hand, you’d still be thinking about lying flat?”

Lilith was already used to Amber’s unusual thought process.

“Sigh, what’s the point of all this fighting and killing every day? I’ve made enough money now. If Salieh hadn’t warned me about the future crisis last time, I would’ve started lying flat long ago.”

Amber shook his head and continued, “But speaking of which, after feeling that impact just now, I feel like the shackles deep in my mind have been shaken loose.”

Lilith: “So, Master, you’re about to break through to sixth-level psionic strength?”

“It might not be that simple. I feel like that jolt shook loose the shackles for the next few levels as well.”

“Huh?”

“I can’t say for sure right now, it’s just a vague feeling. I’ll have to get Salieh to give me a proper check-up when I get back.”

Amber quickly checked his own mental and psionic state. After confirming there were no major issues, he unbuckled his safety belt and stood up from the captain’s chair.

In the instant The Eternity had made its emergency jump to warp, the scene before Amber’s eyes had been twisted and reshaped by an invisible giant’s hands. The once deep and boundless cosmos, glittering with countless stars, now flowed and warped like melting wax.

The stars were no longer fixed points of light; they transformed into colorful ribbons of light, swept along as if by a raging river, rushing toward an infinite distance behind them.

Amber walked over to the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen. At this moment, The Eternity’s external optical sensor units were all functioning normally, so the situation inside hyperspace was displayed before his eyes.

The space around the warship seemed to be caught in a violent vortex. Strange lights of all kinds intertwined and collided, bursting forth with a dazzling and magnificent array of colors. These were energies of different frequencies clashing within the warping space-time, creating a spectacular tapestry that surpassed human imagination.

Some lights snaked around like agile serpents, while others exploded like fireworks, releasing endless brilliance.

But what Amber was truly watching were the mysterious shadows faintly visible within this torrent of light.

They were of various shapes, sometimes resembling colossal mountains, other times twisted creatures, appearing and disappearing in the gaps between the lights. They were like ancient ghosts from the depths of the universe, silently observing the warship that had intruded upon the warp channel.

Among the various rumors about warp travel and hyperspace among humans and elves, the most frequently told were about the mysterious beings within hyperspace. A large number of crew members had sworn they had seen bizarre sights in hyperspace.

Some even claimed to have traveled alongside another, extremely massive fleet during a warp jump.

Of course, such claims were mocked by the vast majority of people. It was “common knowledge” that once a ship entered warp, as long as it didn’t share its warp signature code or have it deciphered by another ship, the hyperspace lane it occupied was completely independent.

But all psionic users who had experienced warp travel, including Amber, knew that some legends were no joke. They could truly sense the presence of other beings within hyperspace. Whether they were native inhabitants of hyperspace or just hurried visitors passing through, however, was beyond their ability to know.

As Amber watched, the mysterious shadows in hyperspace didn’t linger for long. They soon seemed to embark on another course, growing more and more distant from The Eternity.

This was not the first time Amber had seen such a strange sight. Even in the game in his previous life, he and other players had witnessed similar scenes. At the time, players had even organized large-scale expeditions, attempting to forcibly enter other regions of hyperspace during a warp jump to investigate.

However, the final results were far from satisfactory. Apart from every member of the fleet being re-cloned at their respective bound space stations, there was only the hefty bill for their lost ships.

“I could ask Salieh about this when I get the chance. The Forerunners might have done research in this area.”

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind, and he added it to his to-do list before turning his gaze to the projection of Therese, which had reappeared mid-air.

“Therese, report on The Eternity’s current status.”

“Commander Amber, Your Excellency, The Eternity’s power unit and Warp Engine are operating normally. All weapon systems are temporarily offline. Worker Bees are conducting inspections and maintenance. Without a crew, 50% of the weapon systems can be brought online. External armor integrity is at 46.32%, with some areas requiring emergency repairs. Secondary modules such as the storage module, hangar module, electromagnetic launch module, crew habitation module, all-ship multipurpose launch silo module, and Deployment Bay have been jettisoned.”

As Therese’s voice sounded, a three-dimensional model of The Eternity was projected on the bridge. The middle and aft sections of the hull were basically in a “skeletal state,” resembling a half-eaten sea fish.

In most people’s perception, a ship with its internal core so exposed should be unable to travel. But in reality, due to the extremely high degree of modularity in human ships—with the Endless-class super-flagship being the pinnacle of this design—as long as the navigation, power, and warp modules responsible for flight were undamaged, it was perfectly capable of continued travel, albeit having lost its combat capabilities.

“We left as a brand-new, complete warship, and now we’re returning with only half a ship. We’ve jettisoned every module we could to reduce weight. Do you think the people at the shipyard and the support staff will want to beat me up?”

Looking at the “battle-scarred” model of the warship before him, Amber couldn’t help but smile sheepishly.

Hearing Amber’s words, Therese paused for a moment before continuing in her usual icy tone, “They certainly wouldn’t dare to hit you, Commander Amber, Your Excellency. Unless the Atlas employees at the shipyard and in the support department no longer want you to pay their salaries.”

“Hmm?”

Amber turned his head to look at Therese curiously. She maintained her “cool and aloof” expression, as if she wasn’t the one who had just spoken.

Realizing what was going on, Amber looked at Lilith’s pixelated avatar on a nearby screen with an annoyed expression and asked helplessly, “Lilith, have you been messing with the shipboard control AIs’ settings again?”

“Master! First, I only adjusted Therese’s personality model. Second, this isn’t ‘messing with settings.’ I was just adding a ‘snarker’ trait to her ‘Three-No’ personality based on your preferences…”

“Nonsense! How can she be ‘Three-No’ and a snarker! That kind of setting violates the purist definition!”

“Master, your way of thinking is too rigid…”

Under the sudden sense of relaxation that came with surviving the catastrophe, the man and the AI began bickering over Therese’s “persona.” As the core of their debate, Therese simply watched them in silence.

However, the argument didn’t last long. Soon, having completely relaxed for a short while, Amber casually pulled down a nearby crew seat, lay down on it, and fell into a deep sleep within seconds.

Seeing this, Lilith didn’t even need to give a reminder. Therese, who had also been given a “gentle and attentive wife” persona in addition to her “Three-No” and “snarker” traits, immediately shut off the panoramic viewscreen. The entire bridge instantly darkened, leaving only a circle of warm ambient lighting.

Aboard The Infinity, flagship of the Atlas First Battle Fleet.

The frontline was currently in a brief “truce.” Both the attacking and defending sides had temporarily ceased hostilities, like beasts silently licking their wounds while gathering new supplies and reinforcements for the next battle.

In the final moments before commanding The Eternity to warp, Amber had also sent a status update to the frontline via the quantum entanglement communication system. The speed of this message was obviously much faster than a ship’s warp travel. The Eternity had just entered hyperspace and begun its journey, but The Infinity had already received the information.

After Guterres used his clearance to unlock the encrypted message and saw its contents, he froze on the spot. A long while later, under the questioning of his adjutant who had noticed something was amiss, the old navy man finally snapped back to reality.

In disbelief, he looked at the encrypted message again. After confirming that his old eyes weren’t deceiving him, a complex emotion, coupled with a feeling of being completely drained of strength, suddenly washed over him. He leaned back against his command chair. Even though he was trying his best to control his expression, the shock was still impossible to hide.

[Federation Navy First and Third Fleets confirmed destroyed in the explosion of Alpha Serpentis. Second Fleet is in pursuit of the special operations fleet and has warped to the ‘Plan C’ rally point. The Eternity entered warp as this message was sent. No need to worry.]

The amount of information contained in this brief encrypted message was explosive, insane even.

Before this battle began, Guterres had imagined countless outcomes. But even though he had immense faith in Amber’s abilities, he would never have dared to imagine that Amber’s side would completely annihilate Marshal Trafalgar and the Federation Navy fleets under his command.

That’s right. Although the Second Fleet was still in pursuit, in the eyes of Guterres, who also knew the details of ‘Plan C,’ that lone force was already nothing more than a pile of cold wreckage floating in space.

This meant that the Federation Navy’s—or rather, the entire Federation’s—most elite tactical mobile force had been annihilated in this battle.

But in Guterres’s view, the destruction of these three fleets was not the biggest problem.

For the Federation, the real loss was the death of Marshal Trafalgar in this battle. For the Federation, which was now operating as a provisional military government, this was a truly fatal blow.

The man with the most prestige, seniority, power, and authority in the military was just gone. The entire Federation Navy, and indeed the entire Federation military, would be thrown into massive turmoil. With Guterres’s understanding of the Federation military’s internal dynamics, once the great mountain that was Marshal Trafalgar was gone, the “warlords” who were usually subservient would definitely not be able to hold back.

“Sir, what happened?”

Guterres’s adjutant came to his side and asked in a low voice. He had been the first to notice Guterres’s strange behavior.

“I suppose it’s good news… The Federation’s last remaining backbone has been completely broken.”

With that, the former Vice Admiral of the Federation Navy walked over to the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen, filled with a myriad of emotions, and activated the celestial inquiry function.

“Query celestial body, Unukalhai—Alpha Serpentis.”

A moment later, a holographic indicator box appeared before Guterres’s eyes. Guided by the box, he soon spotted a faint, bright star in the direction of the southeastern celestial pole.

Yes, Alpha Serpentis was merely a third-magnitude star. At this moment, it was only through the “image enhancement” of the celestial query function that Guterres was able to spot it.

By now, Alpha Serpentis had been completely annihilated by the violent reaction of its core. In Guterres’s eyes, however, the giant gas planet still emitted a faint light.

And that faint light was from three thousand years ago.

Chapter 659: The Dump Truck King

Long-distance warp jumps were incredibly boring, and now that Amber was the only person left on the entire ship, the process had become even more tedious.

The psychedelic, bizarre scenery outside the panoramic viewscreen had long since lost its novelty after countless experiences in his previous life’s game and this one. In fact, staring at it for too long was enough to induce motion sickness.

So, after waking up, Amber simply turned off the panoramic viewscreen and switched to a different dynamic wallpaper.

Furthermore, with the Eternity having jettisoned a large number of its modules, places that could offer some amusement, like the warehouses, hangars, and deployment bays, were no longer accessible. In the past, during monotonous warp travel, when he had nothing else to attend to, Amber would spend his time in the hangar when he wasn’t eating or sleeping.

For one, it allowed him to interact more with the maintenance team and fine-tune the ATLAS to peak condition. For another, multiple HCPs could be connected in parallel over a local network for simulation battle training.

This usually involved taking a few fully prepped HCPs, connecting them to a dedicated local network, and then borrowing some computing power from the shipboard control AI, which could achieve eighty percent of the simulation effect of the Tower of Babel training center.

Unfortunately, this final pleasure had also vanished after the hangar was jettisoned and turned to dust in the explosion at Alpha Serpentis.

So Amber basically just lay quietly on the captain’s chair, calming his mind and silently counting the seconds. This was some kind of Psionics training method Salieh had taught him, said to be a royal psionic training technique from the era of the Old Empire.

“What kind of bullshit royal Psionics training is this? No wonder the Old Empire fell!”

Amber shot up from the captain’s chair, unable to hold back his complaint.

Twenty-four hours had passed since he began the training. He had been lying motionless on the captain’s chair, silently counting. Amber had to admit, it was the calmest yet most focused he had ever been. His whole being had entered a profound state, as if he were the only thing left in the entire world.

The problem was, the Psionics deep within his mind hadn’t changed by a single iota.

“Master, what’s wrong?”

Lilith’s voice was tinged with confusion. Although she was long bound to Amber, she couldn’t probe his Psionics or his mental responses. And according to his physiological monitoring data, everything had just seemed perfectly normal.

“After using that Old Empire royal Psionics training method Salieh gave me, I finally understand how the Old Empire fell…”

Amber stood up, stretching his body as he continued.

“They probably just counted themselves into oblivion.”

“Hahaha, you sound quite resentful, Master.” Lilith’s little pixelated avatar giggled, covering her mouth.

Amber heaved a long sigh. “It’s mainly being cooped up in here all day. I feel like I’m going to get sick. It’s still seven days until we exit warp. If I don’t find something to do, I’m really going to wither away.”

Hearing his words, Lilith, as if she had thought of something fun, spoke in a mischievous tone.

“Master, I have lots of fun things here, you know. Would you like to come and play?”

“Don’t mess around. We’re in the middle of a combat operation. Be serious. None of that funny business…”

Before Amber could finish his sentence, the bridge of the Eternity suddenly opened. An in-ship Worker Bee robot slipped in, placed a set of equipment next to the captain’s chair, and then departed just as quietly.

As if possessed, Amber picked up the device. It was a “Full Dive rig” pilfered from the officer’s recreation room near the bridge.

Brand new, still sealed.

Since this mission was also the Eternity’s maiden voyage, the officer’s recreation room hadn’t even been commissioned yet.

“A little bit of this… funny business… doesn’t seem so bad, actually.”

Muttering to himself, Amber very honestly placed the device on his head and attached the neural patch to the back of his neck.

“Let’s be clear, I’m just checking on your recent work progress, not to mess around!”

“I know, I know. Come on in, Master. I’ve learned a lot of new things recently and I could really use your guidance on one or two of them~”

Amber lay back down and quickly entered a full dive state. The bridge fell silent once more, with only Therese faithfully monitoring the super-flagship.

Five days later.

When Amber regained consciousness, he felt as if a lifetime had passed.

For the first time in a long while, he had cast aside all his duties and fully immersed himself in relaxation within the virtual space. He had spent five whole debaucherous days with the “well-accomplished” Lilith, playing every game imaginable.

He even started a short-term script, having Lilith play multiple roles for him to “conquer.” Compared to traditional intelligent scenario-based games, the characters played by Lilith were far more vivid, and they had much more to offer.

As he re-acclimated to the physical sensations and all his senses, Amber realized he was lying flat on the fully reclined captain’s chair. His in-ship suit had been removed at some point, replaced by a set of loose, comfortable casual clothes and some life support devices—the latter being what had allowed him to play continuously for five days in a full dive state.

“Wait. Who changed my clothes?”

Amber shot up from the captain’s chair and looked around the bridge warily. But in the next second, Therese’s virtual avatar appeared in mid-air.

“Your Excellency, Commander Amber, your change of clothes and the attachment of the life support devices were completed by a Worker Bee fitted with small mechanical arms. Please rest assured, the Eternity is still in warp, and there are no anomalies.”

Therese, having already anticipated his question, answered him swiftly before continuing.

“According to the warp travel plan, the Eternity will exit warp in eight hours, twelve minutes, and forty-five seconds…”

“We’re finally arriving~” Amber, relieved from his false alarm, lay back down. For a moment there, his heart had really started to race.

At the same time, Lilith’s pixelated avatar appeared on a virtual screen, her exquisitely drawn face wearing an expression of pure “satisfaction.”

“Master, that ‘Autumn Rhapsody’ script was amazing! I want to play it again next time~”

“Easy there, Lilith. Five straight days was a bit too much. Even in a full dive state, my body’s having trouble keeping up.”

Looking at Lilith’s avatar, still in its costume from the “Autumn Rhapsody” script, Amber’s mind was instantly filled with a few titillating images and “lewd thoughts.” But he knew it was time to get his head back in the game, so he quickly stood up and walked toward the bridge door.

“Get your head on straight, Lilith. Break time’s over. Time to get to business~”

“Hey! Listen to Mr. Tough Guy talking in his post-coital clarity… ahem. Roger that~ But Master, where are you going?”

Lilith, who had earned a glare from Amber as he turned back, quickly changed her tone.

“I’m going to change my pants.”

Eight hours later, Amber, having changed back into his in-ship suit, sat in the captain’s chair, watching the world outside the panoramic viewscreen with grim readiness.

The elongated streaks of colored light around them were slowly shortening, and faint spatial fluctuations were beginning to appear directly ahead of the ship—all signs that they were about to exit warp.

It was at this moment that a belated realization hit Amber.

The main fleet had entered warp only slightly ahead of the Eternity. By the time the Eternity had shed its armor like a dragon, successfully launched all the Scourge-class tactical nuclear warheads, and finally jumped into warp, less than an hour had passed.

And since both fleets were warping to the same destination in the same amount of time, it meant the main fleet—and the pursuing fleet behind them—had exited warp less than an hour ago.

In his previous life, in a game like Starry Sky Online, this wouldn’t have been an issue. Players could skip warp travel time. After all, it was a game; if players were forced to sit on a ship and stare at the warp effect for over ten days, the developers would have been flamed into oblivion.

Therefore, while time discrepancies during warp and long-range communication existed in the game’s lore and story, they never affected the players.

This was why he had only just now realized the problem.

“Shit, they must still be fighting! Therese, are our warp coordinates the same as the main fleet’s?”

Therese, who had been standing by quietly, nodded. “Yes, Your Excellency, Commander Amber.”

“Exactly the same?”

“Of course. Exactly the same.”

“…”

Amber was at a loss for words at Therese’s sudden little display of pride, but he couldn’t be bothered with it now. After all, a warp coordinate that was “exactly the same” meant that the instant the Eternity exited warp, it might fly right into the middle of the two fleets’ engagement zone.

Realizing this, Amber immediately issued a command.

“Therese, activate the deflector shield array and vector control system! Overcharge the deflector shields the moment we exit warp! And prepare for emergency evasive maneuvers!”

“Yes, Your Excellency, Commander Amber. Command received.”

The moment they heard Amber’s order, both Therese and Lilith understood what he meant. Therese, who was in control of the Eternity, swiftly executed his command.

Since the Eternity had already jettisoned most of its modules aside from a few core ones, its power supply was now more than sufficient. According to Therese’s calculations, even with the deflector shields, main thruster array, and vector control units running at full power, the Eternity would still have a considerable energy surplus.

Ten minutes passed in a flash. As the spatial fluctuations at the ship’s bow grew more intense, the elongated streaks of light around them finally revealed their true form: the hundred billion stars of the universe.

“Exiting hyperspace. Countdown: ten, nine, eight, seven…”

Therese’s countdown began to echo across the bridge. Amber, in a rare display of nerves, gripped the armrests of his captain’s chair. The situation at their destination was still an unknown. Although he had arranged a backup plan in advance, he couldn’t guarantee that this “backup” with its sensitive identity would be reliable.

Not to mention that the Eternity, in its current state, was really not suited for continued direct combat.

“Six, five, four, three, two, one… Exiting hyperspace. Warp complete.”

As a blinding white light from the spatial fluctuations flashed across the panoramic viewscreen, the next moment, a burning region of space appeared before Amber’s eyes.

Just as he had feared, a massive number of warships were engaged in battle in this region of space. The myriad points of light formed by countless HCPs, combat craft, anti-ship missiles, and plasma torpedoes, along with the violent explosions that punctuated the battlefield, all told Amber that a fierce battle was raging.

Amber recognized at a glance a group of ships in a navy-blue livery, struggling to hold formation. The Federation Navy’s iconic paint scheme confirmed their identity as the Second Fleet.

However, the “pursuers’” current situation was not quite what Marshal Trafalgar had predicted before his fall. They had not swiftly annihilated the remnants of the Atlas Special Operations Fleet after catching up to them. Instead, they had fallen into a “joint beatdown” at the hands of Atlas and another mysterious fleet.

This mysterious fleet, numbering nearly one and a half standard fleets, had been lying in wait here for some time. After receiving Amber’s encrypted message, they had deployed in an ambush formation, set on annihilation.

Thus, the moment the Federation Navy’s Second Fleet exited warp, they were immediately attacked by an enemy force more than twice their size, suffering heavy losses instantly.

Full-spectrum jamming had completely locked down communications on the battlefield, preventing the fleet from sending any distress signals to friendly forces—not that it would have done much good at this point.

By the time the Eternity arrived, the Federation’s Second Fleet had already been routed. Their fleet commander was merely making a final, desperate attempt to break out.

Unfortunately for him, his choice of breakout direction was decidedly not… ideal. Or perhaps, not lucky.

Under his command, the Second Fleet’s flagship, the Citizen, took the lead as the spearhead of the formation, leading the surviving fleet to charge toward the weakest point of the encirclement. Then, they saw a sudden burst of spatial fluctuations right in front of them and heard their shipboard control AI’s warning: “Anomalous mass increase detected.”

The boundary of hyperspace began to ripple strangely. It was not an ordinary fluctuation, but a disturbance that made the very rules of spacetime tremble, as if an invisible giant hand were tearing a rift in the fabric of the universe.

Following that, rings of blue-and-white energy surged out from the rift. The halos of light writhed and expanded like living things, flickering with complex energy lines, as if an ancient code from the dawn of the universe was slowly emerging.

As the energy halos continued to spread, the outline of a super-flagship gradually emerged from hyperspace. It was like a deity descending from another dimension, surrounded by rings of chaotic, silver-white electrical arcs.

As the Eternity fully exited hyperspace, the space around it seemed to groan under the strain—a low hum that naturally couldn’t travel through the void. What did reach the communication channels of the Atlas fleet and the mysterious relief fleet, however, was Amber’s slightly panicked voice.

“Eternity has arrived in the combat zone. Friendly ships, take evasive action. Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, we’re gonna crash again!!!!”

Chapter 660: The Businessman

Under the immense shadow of The Eternity, The Citizen, the battleship at the spearhead of the Federation’s Second Fleet, had no time to evade. In his panic, the Captain failed to react at all, only able to watch helplessly as the bow before him grew larger and larger.

After all, not everyone could have imagined that in the middle of a battle, a super-capital ship would warp right on top of them—literally.

Before the Endless-class super-flagship, this Kraken II-class battleship, serving as the fleet flagship, was like a small passenger car meeting a Hundred-Ton King. At that moment, the bow of The Eternity was like a blade forged by the gods, striking forward with infinite power and presence.

At the instant of impact, time seemed to freeze. Then, a violent shockwave, visible to the naked eye, swept across the entire battlefield.

The Eternity’s deflector shield inevitably obliterated the other ship’s shield. The immense force of the impact smashed the bow of The Citizen to pieces. The battleship’s hull, like a fragile branch, snapped and fractured layer by layer under the colossal force.

At the breaking points, countless sparks and metal fragments scattered like fireworks, blooming into a gorgeous yet fatal flower of death in the dark expanse of space.

These fragments shot outwards at extreme velocities, like a dense rain of bullets, posing a grave threat to the surrounding battleships and other units. Many nearby HCPs that failed to dodge in time were struck by the debris and instantly exploded into fireballs, while the deflector shields of some secondary warships flickered erratically under the barrage, on the verge of collapse.

The breakout formation that the Federation’s Second Fleet had painstakingly reassembled was shattered by this single ram from The Eternity, collapsing into total chaos.

The warships could no longer hold their battle stations. Instead, they desperately accelerated in every other direction, trying to escape this hell. But it was clear that Ramos and the commander of the relief fleet had no intention of letting them go. They ordered their fleets to charge forward, preparing for a direct brawl.

The sight made Amber’s heart stop, and he shouted into the communication channel, “Watch your fire! Be mindful of friendly units!”

Amber had to give the warning because The Eternity’s condition was truly precarious.

During the impact, if he hadn’t been strapped into the captain’s chair, he would have been thrown from his seat. Several generators in the deflector shield array had blown out on the spot, causing a significant drop in the shield’s power.

Coupled with the fact that The Eternity was now down to fifty percent of its external armor, its defenses were at their weakest point since its launch.

Fortunately, Ramos did not disappoint Amber’s faith in him. Even before Amber’s warning, he had already issued commands. A large number of warships in relatively good condition immediately rushed to The Eternity’s vicinity and began acting as meat shields.

The rest of the battle was garbage time. With its flagship smashed to pieces, the Federation’s Second Fleet had lost all ability to organize a counterattack. Hunted by the Atlas fleet and the relief fleet, they were sunk one by one, until finally, white flares, symbolizing surrender, were launched one after another.

By the time both sides had fully ceased fire, less than thirty percent of the Federation’s Second Fleet remained—which was also every ship they had left that could still move.

As for the other heavily damaged ships, the warships of both fleets chose to send them on their final journey with a volley of cannon fire. After all, at this point, Atlas lacked the capacity to round up so many critically injured vessels. Furthermore, given the sensitive identity of their mysterious ally, the fewer witnesses, the better.

Originally, Amber’s plan hadn’t been to take prisoners but to annihilate the enemy completely.

If the surviving ships of the Second Fleet had been any slower to surrender, any later in firing their white flares, they might have all become cosmic ghosts together by now.

As the battle concluded, marines boarded the surrendered Federation warships to round up the personnel. Using the “boarding-specific temporary personalities” mass-produced by Lilith, they replaced all the ships’ original control personalities. The tense atmosphere finally began to dissipate.

According to Ramos’s report, the main fleet was met by the relief fleet immediately after exiting warp. The allies had professionally and skillfully adjusted their formation in a short time, shielding the Atlas fleet behind them.

Thus, when the Federation’s Second Fleet followed them out of warp, they lost their chance to attack and could only vent their firepower on the relief fleet.

As for the fleet that had been lying in ambush, they suffered no losses due to their tactical advantage and superior numbers. Only a few ships at the front of the formation were hit, but none sustained serious damage.

Now, these warships began to regroup and accelerate in one direction, clearly preparing to warp away.

Each ship’s elegant, elongated, and streamlined design, coupled with a smooth, silver-textured outer hull adorned with gold trim, proved their identity—the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Navy.

Yes, the “ace up his sleeve”—or rather, “helper”—that Amber had arranged in advance was a naval fleet from the Star Dragon Empire. Marshal Trafalgar probably never imagined, even in death, that Amber would drag the Empire into this conflict.

Perhaps in the old Marshal’s view, this was merely the Federation’s “internal affair,” which no outside power should interfere with.

But Amber was not so bound by rules, or so rigid. The enemy of my enemy is my friend; or perhaps, there are no permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

To unite all possible forces, even if it meant owing a favor, was the true way of survival for a universal megacorporation without any real national allegiance.

Soon, The Eternity received a communication request from the Imperial fleet. After Amber accepted the call, a young man in an in-ship suit appeared on the bridge’s main screen. Through the helmet of his suit, the collar of his Imperial Navy uniform was visible.

“Your Excellency Amber, I am Baron Essex, Commander of the 22nd Strike Fleet of the Imperial Royal Navy. By order of Her Highness the Princess, my unit’s mission to lay an ambush and provide support here has been successfully completed. The time my unit has been away from our defense sector is approaching the red line, so we must now depart and return to our garrisoned star sector. Please forgive my inability to have the fleet offer support for any longer.”

Although he appeared quite young, this Imperial naval officer exuded a serious, meticulous, and old-fashioned maturity.

“It’s no trouble at all. Thank you very much for your support, Baron. At the same time, please convey my gratitude to Her Highness the Princess. You’ve been of immense help to the Atlas Group this time! I was hoping to invite you and your subordinates to our headquarters for tea.”

“I’m sorry, Your Excellency Amber. I don’t drink tea.”

“…”

Chapter 661: A Favor

Although Amber was curious why the commander sent by Her Highness Princess Agnes was such a block of wood, so uncommunicative, his recent experience navigating the tides of business allowed him to quickly regain his composure. He smiled and said:

“Then we can have that drink next time, Baron Essex.”

“Of course. It’s a deal, Your Excellency Amber. I’ll convey your thanks and regards to Her Highness.”

Baron Essex nodded, then cut the communication. At the same time, the Imperial fleet near The Eternity finished accelerating and warped away, leaving only a flash of light.

“I thought people around Her Highness the Princess were all as eloquent as you, Viscount BASF.”

As Amber spoke, he looked at another virtual screen, which displayed the smiling ‘Special Envoy of the Princess’.

Through the panoramic viewscreen behind the virtual screen, Viscount BASF’s private armed yacht, The Shcherbich, was deactivating its optical camouflage and approaching The Eternity.

As the ‘Special Envoy of the Princess,’ Viscount BASF had gone all out this time, lying in ambush with the Imperial fleet aboard his private armed yacht. He hadn’t even warped away when the battle began, instead keeping the yacht cloaked with optical camouflage and hiding off to the side.

“Hahahaha, you must be amused, Mr. Amber. Baron Essex has always been like that. I’ve worked with him at Her Highness’s side for so long, and even I get exasperated with him sometimes. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Viscount BASF bantered familiarly with Amber. Aside from the growing cooperation between their two factions, Amber and the Viscount actually got along quite well on a personal level. As fellow businessmen, they shared a strong private rapport, and even the Viscountess had become good friends with Isabelle during this time.

“Not at all, not at all.”

Amber shook his head. He certainly wouldn’t get worked up over something so trivial. He had seen far stranger characters in his previous life.

But thinking of the man’s position, he asked out of curiosity:

“I remember that anyone who can become a Fleet Commander, if not exceptionally slick, should at least be quite sharp-witted. But Baron Essex… well, he seems to have a very ‘classical’ temperament.”

“You mean he’s rather stern and old-fashioned. No need to be so tactful, Mr. Amber.” Viscount BASF smiled before explaining, “Baron Essex’s family, along with a group of their allies, have always been staunchly loyal to Her Highness Agnes. Furthermore, his skills in fleet command are absolutely top-notch; he’s one of the most outstanding young commanders in the Empire. So, when the Imperial military had its large-scale promotions, Her Highness took the opportunity to recommend him.”

“Oh? So it seems Her Highness the Princess treats her own people very well?”

“But of course. It’s just like our cooperation this time. When she learned of your request for aid, Mr. Amber, Her Highness agreed without a second thought. It was so fast that I was a bit taken aback myself.”

Amber replied, “That’s why I said before that I must pay her a personal visit someday to thank Her Highness for sending charcoal in a snowstorm.”

“Hahahaha, to be honest with you, Her Highness the Princess has been hoping to meet and speak with you in person, Mr. Amber. She is very optimistic about our future cooperation and is taking it extremely seriously.”

“Then I’ll have to ask you to make the introductions, Viscount,” Amber said with a smile.

“It would be my greatest honor.” Viscount BASF replied with a hearty smile of his own.

——

In the Star Dragon Empire, on Planet Paravira, the fief of Princess Agnes.

“Your Highness, was it really worth it to help the Atlas Group so much?”

In the Princess’s royal chambers on the planet, Natalia, Regiment Commander of the Royal Guard, spoke as she handed a cup of tea to Agnes:

“The long absence of the 22nd Strike Fleet from its defense zone has already drawn attacks from the Regent Prince’s faction. Although Duke Hastings and a group of naval officers on our side have been explaining it away as a practical, long-range combat exercise, it has nonetheless given them grounds for criticism, especially at this critical juncture before your coronation.”

Agnes took the teacup, took a light sip, and replied:

“Making Mr. Amber—or rather, the Atlas Group—owe us such a huge favor is certainly worth it. Plus, we took the opportunity to eliminate the remaining effective strength of the Federation Navy. Why not do it?

You’re right, Lord Natalia, this is indeed a critical juncture.

And it is precisely because this is a critical juncture that I almost wish Mr. Amber would owe us a few more favors, because once they’ve grown, we may not even have the chance for this anymore.”

Natalia smiled upon hearing this: “Your Highness, you really do think very highly of the Atlas Group, don’t you?”

“I see their potential. And from the current situation, my initial judgment was even a bit conservative. Besides, the only reason Mr. Amber came to me for help this time was because the Atlas Group’s production capacity has yet to reach its peak, leaving them a bit short on fleet numbers for the time being. That’s why they needed us to act as enforcers.”

At this point, Agnes paused, then looked at the Regiment Commander of her Royal Guard and continued:

“Lord Natalia, do you believe that if Mr. Amber had just a few more troops at his disposal, he would never have thought to incur this favor from us? And according to Viscount BASF’s observations and information gathered by our intelligence agencies, the Atlas Group’s lead in military technology is more than enough to support that possibility.”

“I understand now.”

Natalia suddenly realized something.

“No wonder Your Highness didn’t want the extensive free services the Atlas Group offered, but instead proposed a one-time, unpaid military aid package of an equal or greater scale in the future.”

Agnes nodded. “Of course. The things that are free are often the most expensive. If we had really chosen the free services, we would have paid for it dearly down the line. But unpaid military aid is different. Though it’s only one-time, if used well and at a critical moment, considering the Atlas Group’s philosophy of building an ‘elite’ armed force, it will undoubtedly be a key piece played on the game board.”

“Although what Your Highness says is very reasonable, I must still offer a reminder.” Natalia’s expression suddenly turned serious. “This ‘key piece’ carries the risk of turning on us.”

Agnes replied, “I know that, of course. I admit there’s an element of gambling in this. But sometimes, we have no choice but to enter the game and place our bets.”

Chapter 662: Total Collapse

Hearing Agnes’s words, Natalia fell silent. She was, of course, well aware of the reasons behind Agnes’s somewhat rash actions.

Princess Agnes stood before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window of her royal chambers. Outside, brilliant starlight scattered across the lawn like crushed diamonds. In the distance lay the seemingly endless royal gardens and a vast, mirror-like lake.

However, the teams of patrolling HCPs and the network of visible and hidden sentries throughout the royal chambers and the Manor betrayed a tense atmosphere.

Ever since the old Emperor had issued a verbal decree to hold an enthronement ceremony for Agnes, where he would personally pass the imperial throne to his daughter, the undercurrents between various factions had been surging. The situation within the Empire had grown increasingly complex. Consequently, at the request of Natalia and Duke Artesia, Her Highness the Princess’s security detail had been raised to the highest level.

“Lord Natalia.”

Princess Agnes finally spoke, a hint of unconcealable worry in her voice.

“My official enthronement draws nearer by the day, yet the situation is becoming more convoluted, like a tangled mess. The Regent Prince’s faction has been extraordinarily quiet lately. Don’t you find this peculiar?”

Natalia gave a slight, respectful bow and answered without hesitation, “Your Highness, the Regent Prince has always been cunning and calculating. Beneath this surface-level calm, I fear a far more dangerous conspiracy is brewing. I believe he and his supporters will not simply watch you ascend the throne. They must be secretly amassing their strength, waiting for the right moment to deliver a fatal blow.”

Princess Agnes nodded slightly and let out a soft sigh. “Yes, how could I not know the reasons? And then there is my Father, His Majesty, the great Emperor. He has remained in seclusion, recuperating in the infirmary beneath the Grand Palace, and has almost completely cut off contact with me. Now, many matters must be relayed through the Empire’s Archbishop Jules, which fills me with unease.”

Pausing, she walked slowly to the window, her gaze passing through the enormous pane of glass toward the boundless, starry sky. “Although the imperial throne will be passed to me at the enthronement ceremony soon, as the day approaches, the anxiety in my heart only grows stronger. I keep feeling that something is not quite right.”

Natalia lowered her head slightly, her eyes filled with caution. But even as one of Agnes’s most trusted confidants, she could not voice her own suspicions about Emperor Frederick’s condition. After all, it would be overstepping her bounds.

So, after a moment of thought, she offered carefully, “His Majesty is perhaps unwell and lacks the energy to attend to so many affairs. Her Highness the Princess must not worry too much, lest it affects your own health.”

Princess Agnes shook her head with a wry smile. “I knew you would say that. It’s exactly what Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia said.”

Hearing this, Natalia scratched her head in embarrassment as Agnes continued:

“Forget it. Let’s just hope Father Emperor’s condition is as you all say. Besides my Father and the Regent Prince’s faction, look at the ‘Royalists’ within the Empire. They are just as difficult to deal with. The faction of ‘old nobility’ led by Duke Soren is utterly loyal to my Father. I believe that even if I successfully inherit the throne, they will only feign allegiance while in reality continuing to follow my Father’s commands. People like them are not worthy of our trust or effort to win over.”

“And the other major faction?” Natalia asked softly, a probing light in her eyes.

“Hmph,” a scornful smile touched Princess Agnes’s lips. “The other major faction… to put it nicely, they can also be called ‘Royalists.’ But to be blunt, they’re nothing more than a group of opportunists. They will only bow to the one who successfully ascends the throne and stabilizes their rule. Until then, they will merely watch from the sidelines, taking no substantive action so they can hold on to their biggest trump cards and capital.”

Hearing this, Natalia understood the complexity of Agnes’s current situation. She took a step forward, her expression firm, her tone resolute and resounding, “No matter how treacherous and unpredictable the situation becomes, Your Highness, I will pledge my life in loyalty to you!”

After pausing to think for a moment, she continued, “The Atlas Group is immensely powerful and has deep roots. If we can successfully win them over, it would be an incredible boon to our cause, a truly great asset!”

Princess Agnes slowly turned around, her gaze fixed on Natalia, her eyes filled with trust and relief. “Lord Natalia, I am deeply aware of your sincere loyalty to me. But with only our current strength, it is still not enough to navigate this treacherous and crisis-ridden situation. This is also the main reason I am so eager to win over the Atlas Group. We must do everything in our power to secure a better chance of victory, only then can we find our footing in the vortex of this chaotic battle.”

Chaotic battle.

This was the first time Natalia had heard Her Highness Agnes use that term to describe the current political struggle in the Star Dragon Empire. It also meant that she would no longer hold anything back, nor would she show any mercy.

Not to the Regent Prince. And not to her Father Emperor.

The Federation Navy’s disastrous defeat in the Battle of the Pillars of Creation, aggressively publicized by the Atlas Group, spread through all territories currently controlled by the Federation at a speed the Federation government could not possibly contain.

The three capital fleets had been annihilated in the battle. The Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center and the ‘Requiem’ satellite cannon array had been completely destroyed.

Of course, the most significant news of all was that the very soul of the Federation Navy—and indeed the entire Federation military—Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, had died for his country in this battle.

For those who heard this news, especially military personnel, the first reaction was disbelief. They all thought it was fake.

Who was Marshal Trafalgar?

He was a figure akin to a God of War, a man who had carried the security of hundreds of the Federation’s star systems on his shoulders.

How could such a man just die so easily in battle?

But as more information was released, including the detected explosion of Alpha Serpentis and post-battle images showing massive fields of warship debris, people gradually began to accept the fact.

Brandon and Miller certainly couldn’t have hidden this situation, as they couldn’t possibly find an excuse for Marshal Trafalgar to never appear in public again.

Of course, the greatest impact was on the battle for the Stonehenge Defense Zone. Although the fleet stationed there initiated the highest level of information blackout, once the senior officers learned of the matter, the news of Marshal Trafalgar’s death still spread.

This marked the beginning of the Federation’s total collapse.

Chapter 663: Do You Want to Truly Live?

On the other side, the Federation’s provisional military government, knowing the matter could no longer be concealed, quickly issued a formal obituary.

Brandon and the others also attempted various measures to make the Federation’s factions realize the crisis and reunite.

“Fellow citizens of the Federation:

It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the heroic death of Fleet Admiral Trafalgar of the Federation Navy, who made the ultimate sacrifice in a valiant battle to defend the Federation.

Marshal Trafalgar’s life was one of dedication to the Federation.

Faced with the multiple crises of the Star Dragon Empire’s invasion, the threat of the Atlas Group, and rebellion within the Federation, he always stood firm on the very front lines of the Federation’s defense.

His every decision concerned the very survival of the Federation; his every command carried the hopes of millions of soldiers and civilians.

The passing of Marshal Trafalgar is an immeasurable loss for the Federation!

Today, we mourn our fallen Marshal.

Tomorrow, we will make the murderers pay the price!

The Federation will never permit the Atlas Group’s invasion of our territory.

The Federation expects all of you to be the finest of warriors!

This shared loss will only make us more united!

The Atlas Group will surely, for this shameful conspiracy…

AN! SWER! FOR! IT!

Here, the provisional military government of the Federation pays its highest respects and deepest condolences to Marshal Trafalgar. We call upon all citizens of the Federation to remember his dedication and sacrifice, to carry on his legacy, and to continue forging ahead bravely for the peace, stability, and prosperity of the Federation.

May Marshal Trafalgar’s heroic spirit rest in peace. The Federation will forever remember his greatness!”

A broadcast from City Hall was playing the obituary issued by the provisional military government, its tone solemn and sorrowful. In this Federation city shrouded in gloom, the gray sky was like a heavy lead plate, weighing down on everyone’s heart.

On the streets, a cold wind howled past like a ghost, carrying with it a biting chill as it weaved freely between the towering buildings. Pedestrians had panicked looks on their faces and hurried their steps; not a single person stopped for the obituary.

Their eyes were filled with fear and anxiety. Some were hunched over, clutching packages tightly to their chests—perhaps emergency supplies they had managed to grab amidst the sudden inflation. Others walked briskly, constantly glancing over their shoulders with wary eyes.

Most of the shops along the street were shuttered. The few that were half-open were deathly quiet inside, their owners’ faces etched with worry, in no mood for business.

The streetlights, swaying precariously in the wind, cast a weak, flickering glow that only added to the desolation. Fallen leaves swirled on the ground, mercilessly blown into the distance by the wind, as if symbolizing the current fate of the once-glorious Federation.

Marshal Trafalgar’s obituary continued to echo, but in these chaotic streets, the sound seemed so small and helpless.

From the perspective of the common people, it was as if no one cared about the hero’s passing. Everyone was struggling for their own survival. The entire city was steeped in an atmosphere of despair, as if the end of the world was at hand.

—

Saines had always felt he had died a little too soon.

His life used to consist of clocking in and out of a transport company, eating, excreting, sleeping, and waking up, never knowing the meaning of his own existence. He lived each day like a walking corpse.

Saines felt he was rotting, rotting from the age of twenty-four until he was old, then turning to dust and becoming just a name.

No, he probably wouldn’t even leave a name behind. In a high-speed nation like the Federation, no one would remember you. No one would remember a minor employee from a small transport company. He was just a speck of dust in this world.

Saines had always wanted to change something; he wanted his existence to have meaning.

That life continued until two years ago.

On a whim, he passed the selection process and joined the Atlas Group. He was successfully assigned to a combat fleet, where he immediately began his relevant studies and training.

Here, Saines finally found the meaning of his existence. He also realized that he actually had a talent for fleet command.

It was just that because of his relatively humble origins, he lacked the “in” that the Federation’s upper echelons had. He would never have been able to become an officer in the Federation Navy, so his talent had been wasted his entire life.

So, when Saines found his purpose in the Atlas Group, his talent allowed him to rise steadily through the ranks of the Atlas combat fleet, eventually becoming a mid-level officer.

But just when it seemed the clouds had parted and his future was looking brighter and brighter, he encountered a major crisis and a difficult choice.

The Atlas Special Operations Fleet was in peril, on the verge of being annihilated.

Saines volunteered for the mission to cover the main fleet, leading the Poseidon task force in a suicide attack against the Federation Navy fleet.

Saines didn’t regret taking the mission. From the day he joined the Atlas combat fleet, he had mentally prepared himself. The generous compensation from the Atlas Group meant he didn’t have to worry about his family’s future at all.

But in any case, he still felt a small tinge of regret that he couldn’t enjoy this kind of life for a little longer.

“Do you want to understand the meaning of life? Do you want to… truly live?”

When Saines regained consciousness, his mind felt like a tangled mess. Then, this baffling sentence appeared before his eyes.

He recalled his last memory: the bridge of his light cruiser, the Winged Hussar, at the moment it was utterly destroyed by an enemy ship’s heavy particle cannon.

There was no doubt that he could not have survived such an attack.

“Do you want to understand the meaning of life? Do you want to… truly live?”

The text before him flickered again, as if signaling something to him.

“What the hell is this nonsense? Who doesn’t want to live?”

Saines was bewildered, but at the same time, he suddenly noticed something that was staring him right in the face, yet was not so easy to spot.

The font of the text was Standard Font No. 4, commonly used within the Atlas Group.

An indescribable pull made Saines focus his attention on the line of text, and then slowly fixate on the ‘Yes’ option below it.

Instantly, he lost consciousness.

Cold. Shaking.

The moment he awoke, Saines shot up from the ground. He looked around in a panic, the image of the bridge in his mind momentarily mixing with his current surroundings. But after a few seconds, he cleared his head of the confusion.

At the same time, a cold voice entered his ears.

“Not bad. You’re the best of this batch.”

Chapter 664: Immortality, But You Have to Work Triple the Hours

Saines looked up at the sound of the voice, only to see a burly man who was the very picture of a marine grunt, staring at him with a wide grin.

The man was in his thirties, with an appearance so typical for a marine it could have been a stereotype—muscular, dark-skinned, a crew cut, and a scar on his face, giving him a fierce and intimidating look.

The burly man watched Saines with a knowing smile, studying him meaningfully for a good while before his gaze shifted past him. Saines followed his line of sight and turned, only then noticing more than a dozen people lying beside him, all of whom looked familiar.

The next moment, as if data and information were being loaded into his brain, Saines immediately recognized the familiar faces.

It was his First Officer, Boatswain, Helmsman, gunnery officer, intelligence officer, and Tactical Information Coordinator. Even the chief engineer and the anti-aircraft commander, who rarely appeared on the bridge, were there.

It was safe to say that most of the mid to high-ranking officers of the Winged Hussar were gathered here.

But Saines was absolutely certain that every single one of these colleagues had died alongside him in the previous battle.

And yet, not only were they here, completely unharmed, but they were also in a strange, endless world where the water met the sky. The cold sensation he felt was coming from the water beneath his feet.

“Where is this place? Who are you? Why am I here?”

Saines fired off a series of questions, but despite his rapid-fire inquiry, his tone remained remarkably calm. After spotting the Atlas logo on the burly man’s training uniform, Saines was no longer as nervous as he had been when he first awoke.

The middle-aged man didn’t answer Saines’s questions directly. Instead, he spoke patiently, “Think carefully. The ‘Queen’ of this world should have already implanted all of this into your mind.”

Think carefully?

Saines was momentarily stunned, then did as the man suggested and began to recall everything in his mind.

He only remembered being in a state of chaos when a prompt suddenly appeared before his eyes: “Do you want to know the meaning of life? Do you want to truly… live?”

Then, because of the familiar Atlas Standard Font No. 4, he had on an impulse mentally selected ‘Yes,’ and then he had lost consciousness…

Wait. Saines suddenly felt that something new was in his mind: the definition of death, digital lifeform, virtual space, the Immortal Project.

This was a project established by the great ‘Cyber Queen’ Lilith for the grand ambitions of the Atlas Group’s Boss, His Excellency Amber. It was the cornerstone that would allow the Atlas Group to dominate all other factions in the future.

It also represented a path for humanity—or rather, carbon-based life—to achieve ‘Immortality.’

Saines also finally understood why almost everyone had a chip implanted at the back of their heads before the fleet departed. The official explanation at the time was that it was to assist with brain functions, further enhancing their thinking and computational abilities.

But now it seemed its true purpose was to back up everyone’s data, converting them into a brand new ‘digital lifeform’ state after they were killed in action.

“This is Valhalla.”

Saines raised his head and stared intently into the middle-aged man’s eyes. He now simultaneously understood the man’s identity—Grace, a legend from Atlas’s combat forces, the main instructor squad.

“Have I been selected to join the ‘Immortal Corps’?” Saines asked.

Grace replied, “Not so much ‘selected.’ You could say that almost everyone who died in the special operations fleet this time will come to Valhalla. And you haven’t officially joined the Immortal Corps yet.”

As he explained, the others who had arrived in this virtual space with Saines began to wake up one by one.

Grace seemed experienced in this matter and showed no impatience at having to repeat himself, patiently explaining until everyone understood their situation.

As the first to awaken, Saines also helped explain the current circumstances to his colleagues. Although he didn’t know much more than they did, he wanted to move on to the next stage as quickly as possible.

He was very curious as to why Grace had just said that they hadn’t officially joined the Immortal Corps.

“It’s simple. Because you have one last choice to make.”

Grace, who had taken on the ‘newcomer guidance’ mission to boost his KPI, answered the question swiftly.

Saines: “One last choice?”

“Yes.” Grace nodded. “You now have two options before you. One is to be ‘reborn’ on another level as a digital lifeform, but on the condition that you continue to serve the Atlas Group and the Boss…”

“Is there really such a good deal?”

“Huh?”

It was the first time Grace had seen such a reaction from a former Atlas employee upon entering the virtual space. Most others were usually in a dazed and bewildered state when they heard the news.

“Uh… don’t get so excited just yet. It’s not too late to get excited after you’ve heard everything.”

Grace raised a hand to signal Saines to calm down, then looked around at the others. He found that their expressions were quite similar to Saines’s, just not as openly expressed.

‘Strange. What’s with the crew of this ship?’

Shaking the thought from his mind, Grace continued to explain to the group:

“As you’ve surmised, becoming a digital lifeform is almost equivalent to achieving ‘Immortality,’ but it also means you will need to continue serving the Atlas Group for triple the work hours before you can retire.

“After retirement, you will live in the virtual world ‘Valhalla’ created by Her Excellency Lilith, and you will not be allowed to enter the public virtual world.

“For many reasons, Amber and Her Excellency Lilith will not allow digital lifeforms to roam freely in the virtual world for now. Of course… perhaps one day in the future, digital lifeforms might be able to step into the spotlight and become one of the many lifeforms in this universe.”

Hearing this, everyone, including Saines, immediately calmed down.

Becoming a digital lifeform and gaining a form of ‘Immortality’ was certainly appealing, but having to work triple the hours and having one’s freedom restricted after retirement was not something so easy to accept.

“Then what is the other option?” Saines asked.

“The other option is that everything that happened today never occurred.”

Grace’s voice turned somewhat cold and unyielding. Although he knew this choice didn’t sound very pleasant, he had to show his firm stance at this moment.

The others also understood exactly what Grace meant. It meant they would follow the normal path and truly leave this world.

Chapter 665: The Growth of the Immortal Corps

To be honest, if becoming a digital lifeform still meant life was short and finite, some people, including Saines, might have chosen to leave this world.

But the allure of ‘immortality’ was simply too great for carbon-based lifeforms with limited lifespans.

This was why, since ancient times, so many people had tried every means possible to pursue eternal life.

This was also why the old Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, Frederick, coveted the ‘Eternal Cells’ researched by the Forerunner civilization.

Although choosing to become a digital lifeform meant continuing to work for the Atlas Group—with work hours extended threefold, and no true freedom even after retirement—the tantalizing prospect Amber presented was impossible for them not to fantasize about.

What if, one day in the future, digital lifeforms could truly step into the limelight?

What if?

“After your entire instructor squad was wiped out, you became the first batch of ‘Immortals’?” Saines suddenly asked.

Grace nodded. “That’s right.”

“Why? Don’t you want freedom?”

“Of course we do, but we’re also very clear on one thing: if it weren’t for the Boss and Her Excellency Lilith, we wouldn’t have had the chance to become digital lifeforms and walk the path toward immortality.”

Grace seemed to be answering this question for not the first time, so he replied without hesitation.

“Even if it means continuing to… work for the Atlas Group?”

“It’s not like we have anywhere else to go, is it? Besides, the way our instructor squad died back then was, well, a bit unceremonious. On top of that, our lives should have ended on Robert IV. It was the Boss who brought us out, one by one.

So if we can continue doing what we’re familiar with at Atlas, and without worrying about dying, our instructor squad is more than willing to follow the Boss and watch him realize his grand vision. That’s something very meaningful to us.”

Grace’s answer was the collective sentiment of the ‘veterans’ of the instructor squad, or rather, the Immortal Corps. Everyone felt more or less the same. After becoming digital lifeforms and shedding so many mortal constraints, their thinking had become much clearer.

These men had all fought their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. The skills they had learned were all for fighting and killing, and the greatest advantage of becoming digital lifeforms was no longer having to fear death on the battlefield.

Since they had this sort of invincibility cheat, why not let their skills shine a little brighter?

After hearing Grace’s answer, Saines fell silent again. After a long pause, as if he had made a momentous decision, he clenched his fists and said:

“I am willing to become a digital lifeform and continue to serve the Atlas Group.”

“Uh… are you sure you don’t want to think about it some more?”

Grace clearly hadn’t expected Saines to make a decision so quickly after learning the truth and his options. He scratched his head and continued, “The Boss also said he hopes you will all consider your choice carefully. After all, you hardly feel tired as a digital lifeform, so the working hours will actually increase significantly. The Boss was also blunt about ‘squeezing’ us for more work.”

“Do you feel tired after becoming an ‘Immortal’?” Saines asked in return.

“To be honest, after all this time, I’ve forgotten what fatigue feels like. Every day, besides missions and training, I spend most of my time studying things I never learned before. For example, I’ve been studying human art history recently.”

“Well, there you have it. I’m willing to join the ‘Immortal Corps’ and continue to serve the Boss. I can’t wait to roam freely in the virtual space~”

“…”

Grace was stunned for a moment, then looked at the others.

“What about you? What are your plans?”

“What’s there to say? Of course we’re joining the ‘Immortal Corps’! To be able to keep living in another way is better than being dead, right~”

“Exactly! I haven’t had enough of commanding my warship. And from what you’re saying, even if we take a direct hit from an enemy’s main cannon, we won’t die. What’s there to be afraid of?!”

Grace: “Uh… generally speaking, yes, you wouldn’t die…”

“Then say no more, count me in!”

“Count me in, too!”

“Right, we’ll form a new unit together. Let’s call our ship the ‘Undying Winged Hussar’!”

Although Grace knew that 99% of fallen employees, when faced with the choice, would ultimately choose to be converted into digital lifeforms and continue serving Atlas.

But this crew from the Winged Hussar was something else. They probably held the record for the shortest time taken to ‘answer the multiple-choice question’…

“Alright, since you’ve all made your choice, I’ll register everyone. Once the choice is made, there’s no going back.”

“Hurry up, hurry up!”

“…”

Similar scenes were unfolding simultaneously in the dozens of independent virtual spaces opened up within Valhalla. The ‘first generation’ of the Immortal Corps were now mostly serving as ‘newcomer guides’, responsible for receiving the transferees who had died in the Battle of the Pillars of Creation but had successfully uploaded their personal data.

Just as Grace knew, wave after wave of transferees, upon arriving in the virtual space, ultimately chose to be converted into digital lifeforms.

After all, not everyone had the courage to face death—especially when they had already seen another ‘path to immortality’.

The ‘multiple-choice question’ Amber had given everyone essentially had only one answer. The two options he provided were completely unequal. It was less of a choice and more like he was directly laying out a path for the transferees.

As a result, the number of members in the Immortal Corps began to surge during this period. A large number of combat fleet members, HCP pilots, and Heavy Armored Gunship pilots joined the Immortal Corps’ order of battle.

This also meant that once a large number of warships, HCPs, and other combat units suitable for the Immortals were manufactured, the mission of the Atlas Immortal Corps would gradually shift from its current special operations tasks—such as decapitation strikes, battlefield node disruption, and infiltration reconnaissance—to frontal combat.

“It seems the deployment of these types of combat units needs to be moved up the schedule.”

Looking at the recent progress report on the Immortal Corps’ development submitted by Banninger, Amber realized that the Corps was gradually nearing the objective set out for them at their inception.

Banninger: “However, it will still take some time for the various equipment manufacturing facilities to retool their production lines. I’ve already confirmed this with Directors Eugene and Orns.”

Amber thought for a moment before speaking, “We can allocate a portion of the existing equipment first and perform temporary modifications. After all, Orns and the others have done similar retrofits several times before. That way, we can pull out some units and start their adaptation training.”

“No problem, I’ll arrange it right away. Boss…” After saying that, Banninger suddenly smiled. “I never thought you’d actually build this corps up, Boss. I’m getting more and more curious to see what it will be like when the Immortals appear on the main battlefield.”

“I’m looking forward to it as well~”

Chapter 666: To Wipe Out in One Fell Swoop

Stonehenge Defense Zone.

News of Marshal Trafalgar’s death eventually spread throughout the Federation fleet, dealing a massive blow to the morale of all its forces.

Under these circumstances, the combined fleet of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance switched tactics. They ceased their fierce assaults, instead maintaining their offensive posture while continuously dispatching small units to attack the Federation Navy’s transport and supply fleets.

Although the Stonehenge Defense Zone was backed by one of the Federation’s crucial Deep Space Mining sectors, the concentration of so many fleets in one place meant their logistical needs went far beyond simple food and water. In fact, the mining sector could replenish the vast majority of basic supplies.

The supply fleets were primarily responsible for transporting items like replacement parts, special alloys, replacement fusion reactor cores, and superconducting batteries. These vital spare parts were already a major source of attrition for the fleet, a problem that was only exacerbated in a state of war.

Thus, as Atlas’s small squadrons continuously annihilated the transport fleets, less than twenty percent of vital supplies were successfully reaching the Stonehenge Defense Zone. In the wake of this, all sorts of ensuing problems slowly began to surface.

The first to be affected were the fleet’s deployment frequencies. In particular, the frequency and range of tactical reconnaissance missions conducted by the reconnaissance fleets were restricted. The frequency of CSP (Combat Space Patrol) missions carried out by the ship-borne HCPs on the scout ships also decreased.

The consequence of this was that the Federation fleet’s surveillance of the movements of the Atlas and Renaissance Alliance fleets was no longer timely. Seeking to maintain stability, Commander-in-Chief Griezmann was unwilling to take the initiative and attack, so the entire fleet could only dig in and defend its position within the vast asteroid belt.

On the Atlas side, Fleet Commander Guterres was naturally well aware of the methods and command style of his old colleague. When the reconnaissance data sent back by forward recon units matched his predictions almost exactly, Atlas’s new round of attacks began.

During this period, as Salih and his ever-expanding team continuously cranked out “Spectral Annihilator” battlecruisers, several newly built laser battlecruisers arrived at the front and grouped up with the six previous “Spectral Annihilators.”

Next, these high-energy laser battlecruisers began their daily work of “picking off” targets.

The numerous scout ships scattered around the Stonehenge Defense Zone would mark many targets on the periphery or with clear fields of fire each day. The mission of the “Spectral Annihilator” strike group was to select appropriate targets from this list, then use their high-energy lasers to punch through the dust and debris in the Stonehenge Defense Zone and ultimately hit their targets.

As the number of battlecruisers grew, the efficiency of their “picking off” also increased. Eventually, they even split into two squadrons, each with five battlecruisers, and began attacking with double the efficiency.

The Federation defenders received a continuous stream of casualty reports almost daily. After all, the Stonehenge Defense Zone was just an asteroid belt, not an impenetrable, monolithic whole. Coupled with the extreme range of the “Spectral Annihilator” battlecruisers, the Federation warships never knew when they might be attacked, and could only pray each day that they wouldn’t be the next unlucky one.

“Those fifteen ice crystals whose orbits were adjusted to head this way, where are they now?”

In the Operations Briefing Room of The Infinity, which was moored in a safe area, Amber, who had just arrived the day before, asked the question.

At this time, besides him and Guterres, Randall, Cleves, the fleet commanders of the Renaissance Alliance, and even Franklin were present in the conference room.

This was because the meeting was a strategic seminar for the combined fleet of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance to launch a final assault on the Stonehenge Defense Zone and completely annihilate the remaining Federation Navy fleets.

Hearing Amber’s question, Guterres, who was coordinating the operations of the entire combined fleet, replied, “Boss, according to the data updated before the meeting, Ice Crystals twenty-two through thirty-six will impact the Stonehenge Defense Zone in five days.”

Amber nodded. “Fifteen ice crystals crashing in… even if they don’t cause direct damage, the chaos they create should be enough to give the Federation fleet a world of hurt, right?”

“Boss, based on my understanding of Griezmann, he will definitely adjust his fleet deployment within these five days. He’ll most likely pull his fleet back to the core area of Stonehenge for a back-to-back defense, forcing us to enter the asteroid belt to engage them.”

As Guterres spoke, he brought up a tactical star chart on the holographic projection platform and zoomed in on the Stonehenge Defense Zone.

“When this defense zone was being planned as a key defensive node for the Federation Navy, I was part of that planning process. So I have a fairly clear idea of how the Federation Navy will arrange its formations in actual combat.”

Seeing that he had everyone’s attention, Guterres continued:

“Based on my knowledge of Griezmann, he will certainly take the conservative route and deploy according to standard protocol. Doing so will effectively hamper the ‘Spectral Annihilators.’ If those battlecruisers want to continue their attacks, they’ll have to approach the defense zone to find suitable firing angles.

“And if our capital fleet wants to attack, we’ll also have to enter the asteroid belt for a close-quarters battle. This is precisely the situation Griezmann wants to create. Only in a chaotic melee like that can the Federation fleet truly leverage its advantages within the defense zone.”

Randall: “So, you’re saying we have an opportunity to use their concentration in the core of the defense zone to wipe them out in one fell swoop?”

“Theoretically, yes, that’s correct,” Guterres nodded. “But I can’t guarantee Griezmann won’t suddenly come up with some unconventional tactics. After all, my predictions are all based on his past behavior.”

“Not a problem.”

After hearing his description, Amber thought for a moment before quickly reaching a conclusion. “Just smash them. Fifteen ice crystals, eight to ten kilometers in diameter, slamming in at sub-light speed—and into the core area, where the asteroid debris is even denser. The chain reaction alone will be enough to shatter most of their resistance.

“This also gives us a chance to observe the combat effectiveness of the ‘Icebreaker’ plan ahead of time. After all, when the remaining ice crystals fly into the Federation’s Capital star system in three months, the defenses and firepower density there will be even greater.”

With that said, Amber turned his gaze to the Renaissance Alliance fleet commanders participating in the seminar. His eyes swept over these high-spirited young officers, making eye contact with each one, and he saw the fire in their eyes.

But he pointedly avoided making much eye contact with Franklin.

Chapter 667: Keep Up the Good Work

Several days ago, just as Amber was about to depart for the frontline, he was sitting in the captain’s chair chatting with Ramos when he received a secret letter from Isabelle.

【Franklin’s recent activities have been abnormal. According to a report from a deep cover operative, there is a risk he may attempt to break free from Atlas’s control.】

Amber was actually a little surprised when he saw the letter.

He knew Franklin wouldn’t be so easily controlled. Before reality dealt him a harsh lesson, he would surely cling to some shred of hope that the Renaissance Alliance could become truly independent—after all, for such a large faction to be constantly suppressed by a private corporation would be frustrating for anyone.

However, Amber hadn’t expected this idealistic youth to be so eager to act.

Although the details in the secret letter mentioned that Franklin’s various moves were still rather covert and not particularly aggressive, it was undoubtedly a warning bell for Amber.

Despite Franklin’s unassuming demeanor in front of Amber and the Renaissance Alliance’s appearance as a mere puppet of Atlas, one still had to worry about the possibility of such a disloyal ally turning on them.

This was precisely why Amber had almost completely ignored Franklin during today’s strategic seminar.

—

On the massive holographic projection screen, complex star charts, warship data, and combat simulation demonstrations flashed continuously.

Dressed in a sharp combat suit, Amber sat upright in the main seat. His youthful face exuded a steady confidence as he patiently listened to the young officers of the Renaissance Alliance speak.

A young Captain was the first to rise, holding a datapad covered in a dense list of questions and thoughts.

“Mr. Amber, regarding the joint space fleet operations you just mentioned, we’ve noticed that Atlas warships seem to be transitioning their firepower distribution toward ultra-long-range strikes. Our Renaissance Alliance warships, however, are still conventionally configured and are thus better suited for mid-to-close-range combat. In future operations, how can we effectively coordinate our firepower to avoid creating dead zones?

“Furthermore, there is a gap in experience and training between our HCP pilots and combat craft pilots and those of the Atlas combat fleet. Yet, in actual combat, it is often our smaller units that make first contact with the enemy, resulting in greater casualties…”

“This problem isn’t difficult to solve. The core issue is the depth of our joint operational coordination. If communication and cooperation between us were to deepen, I could absolutely station Atlas’s ship-borne HCPs and combat craft on your warships and let us handle the high-intensity combat,” Amber said with a smile, then continued:

“As for the effective coordination of our firepower, we can adopt ‘echelon tactics.’ The Atlas combat fleet can enter the field first to conduct strikes from an advantageous range. When the time is right, the Renaissance Alliance fleet can then move in for the melee. I believe that as long as we maintain our friendly cooperation, this won’t be a difficult task. Of course, there’s an even simpler solution.”

“Your Excellency, what might that be?” an officer from the Renaissance Alliance asked.

“Have your leader come to us and upgrade your fleet’s ship models across the board. Wouldn’t that align all these details for both of us? What do you say, Your Excellency Franklin?”

Amber smiled as he looked at Franklin, and the Renaissance Alliance officers now turned their gazes toward him as well.

Caught off guard by the sudden turn in conversation, Franklin could only force a smile and offer a few words that sounded very ‘official.’ Amber easily spotted a flicker of disappointment on the faces of the young officers.

At that moment, a female Major with short hair stood up—she was also the communications chief of the Renaissance Alliance fleet.

Her tone carried a hint of concern, “Mr. Amber, we also have misgivings about communication in joint operations. In many previous battles, incompatible communication frequencies and different encryption methods have led to poor information transfer. How can the Atlas and Renaissance Alliance communication systems achieve seamless integration to ensure that information is transmitted accurately and promptly in the heat of battle?”

To a certain extent, this was a rather sensitive question, but it was exactly the kind of sensitive question Amber had been waiting for them to ask.

He explained with great patience, “Rest assured, our technicians have already developed a universal communication protocol converter. It can automatically identify and adapt to both our systems, rapidly converting and decoding encrypted information.

“At the same time, we have established multiple backup communication links in case the main line is jammed or destroyed by the enemy. But the key to this problem still comes back to deeper cooperation between us, especially on the matter of establishing a joint command system. And that, well, requires the approval of your leader~”

In the midst of this heated exchange, the young officers of the Renaissance Alliance seemed to have found their voices, with questions and opinions emerging one after another.

As the leader of the Renaissance Alliance, Franklin sat quietly to the side, his expression gradually turning grim.

Today, he was like a forgotten presence. Everyone’s focus was on Amber. Every time he tried to speak, he was interrupted by the young officers’ eager questions and Amber’s brilliant answers.

The only times he commanded the room’s full attention were when sensitive topics concerning the ‘independence’ of the Renaissance Alliance were raised—questions he was bound to be unable to answer on the spot.

The ‘official answers’ he was forced to give only ever earned disappointed looks from his young officers.

Watching the scene unfold, Franklin felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He felt as if he had become an outsider. The young officers who once flocked around him, who had followed his every word, were now more willing to listen to Amber’s opinions, as if Amber were their true leader.

His fingers tapped unconsciously on the armrest of his chair, a trace of resentment and confusion in his eyes. He couldn’t understand how the situation had changed so drastically in such a short time. His authority seemed to be eroding, step by step, during this seminar—or perhaps, throughout their recent cooperation.

Soon, the strategic seminar came to an end.

As the young Renaissance Alliance officers rose to see him off, Amber smiled and bid them farewell. When he reached Franklin, he paused intentionally, patting the other man’s shoulder.

“The Renaissance Alliance is truly teeming with talent and vigor. You haven’t disappointed my expectations, Franklin. Keep up the good work!”

Chapter 668: Entropy’s Victory

The moment twelve scarlet triangles exploded across Major Jason Cole’s retinal display, the scout ship Hound Four was dancing a death tango on the edge of the Stonehenge Defense Zone.

He smelled the familiar scent of ionized metal—every time one of Atlas’s unknown electronic warfare ships appeared, the air inside his ship took on this odor, a mixture of ozone and blood.

He swore the enemy’s electronic warfare vessels were at least cruiser-class. For a common small scout ship, an electronic warfare cruiser was an opponent it was completely outmatched by, to say nothing of twelve of them showing up at once.

“What kind of world is this, where the rebels’ technical equipment is starting to surpass ours!”

Major Jason Cole slammed his thigh in frustration. There was a time when, on missions against those poorly equipped rebels, he would have dared to take a small scout ship like the Hound Four to harass them up close. If the opportunity arose, he would have been more than happy to release its modest number of ship-borne HCPs to annihilate them completely.

But now, such scenarios only existed in his memories.

“Fuck, their electronic attack is here! It’s so fast!” the Communications Officer on the other side of the bridge suddenly cried out. On a small scout ship with limited stations and a tight crew, communications officers often doubled as electronic warfare officers.

Hearing this, Major Jason Cole’s brow furrowed even deeper.

It was obvious that the enemy’s electronic warfare capabilities—or rather, the training level of their personnel and their proficiency with the equipment—had been rapidly improving with each engagement over the past few days.

When the combined fleet of Atlas and the Renaissance Alliance first began besieging the Stonehenge Defense Zone, the small-scale fleets sent out by both sides, like reconnaissance fleets and electronic warfare squads, could still trade blows. In many cases, it was the Federation Navy units that gained the upper hand.

But as time went on, the intensity of the battles quickly escalated. Gradually, Jason Cole and his colleagues found that they could no longer gain the upper hand in these small-scale engagements. At the same time, small mistakes, carelessness, or underestimating the enemy would put them on the back foot.

This was also why Hound Four’s scout squad was out here alone on this perimeter reconnaissance mission—the other friendly ships in its squad had either been sunk in previous engagements or were unable to be deployed again so soon.

“Captain, shouldn’t we retreat now?”

Adjutant Adrian’s voice sounded in Jason Cole’s ear. Cole nodded without hesitation.

“Of course, we’re retreating. You want to stay here and die?! Relay my orders! Release the MK-32 smart chaff! Electronic Warfare unit, maximum power, all-band jamming!”

As Cole spoke, he gave instructions to the helmsman to execute an emergency evasion.

At the same time, outside the scout ship’s narrow viewport, three hundred pods burst open simultaneously. A cloud of silver nano-smart chaff condensed into a labyrinth of thorns in the vacuum. The Hound Four’s helmsman intended to use this fleeting opportunity to execute a quick reversal and make a getaway.

However, both he and Captain Cole had underestimated the reaction speed of the Atlas electronic warfare cruisers.

Several sets of complex ‘antennas’ suddenly extended from the front of two of the warships, glowing with a hexagonal lattice pattern. A high-frequency microwave beam, like an invisible sword, sliced through the mist. The dense chaff network melted away in an instant, like a spiderweb touched by fire.

“Dammit, they’re getting faster. Helmsman! Faster! The cover from the chaff cloud is about to disappear!”

“Warning! Quantum encrypted channel has been breached!”

Misfortunes never come singly. The shipboard control AI issued a warning at that moment, her virtual avatar turning dark red, indicating that a large amount of her computing power was being used to counter the electronic warfare virus’s attack.

“I’m here to help! Prepare for neural interface!”

Adjutant Adrian Crowe shouted as he pulled a cable from behind his seat and plugged it into the back of his head. His pupils unfocused amidst the flood of data. “Interface complete. Assisting the shipboard control AI. Dammit, the navigation system is degrading!”

Meanwhile, Major Cole suddenly felt a searing, needle-like pain from the neural interface at the back of his neck. A glaring warning popped up on his in-ship suit’s helmet: [Topological Quantum Virus Intrusion Detected].

The holographic star chart on the bridge began to distort. Atlas’s attack code corroded the system like ink from a squid—these electronic demons, streamlined with Forerunner algorithms with Salih’s assistance, were gnawing at Hound Four’s central processor through the optical fibers.

“Switch to full manual.”

Adjutant Adrian’s shout stopped abruptly. Cole whipped his head around to see the young man’s eyes had rolled back into his head and smoke was rising from inside his in-ship suit. The electronic warfare virus had, at some unknown point, completely broken through the firewall and infected the life support systems.

Although he was shielded by his in-ship suit, Cole had the illusion of the smell of burnt flesh mixed with ionized dust flooding his nostrils.

He had no time to check on his adjutant. Through the viewport, he saw an even more desperate sight—twelve purple charged particle beams had precisely struck all of Hound Four’s critical compartments.

When Rear Admiral Griezmann strode onto the flagship’s bridge, alarms were blaring, and the busy crew was in a state of panic.

“Everyone, calm down! Follow the preset directives!”

Griezmann’s steady voice rang out, trying to calm the bridge crew, but when he saw the information on the holographic projection platform himself, he too froze.

His fingertips swiped across a virtual screen that popped up beside him, and the image on the holographic projection platform changed. An ice crystal, eight kilometers in diameter, left an emerald trail against the backdrop of deep space—the color of Cherenkov radiation, which meant the ice crystal was approaching sub-light speed.

The sight reminded Griezmann of the blades of light wielded by angels in the Merkabah Sanctuary.

“Anomalous thermal radiation signature!”

Chief Staff Officer Anna Vitlok projected the data stream onto the bridge’s secondary screen.

“The surface of the ice crystal is covered with a fractal heat dissipation structure. Frictional heat is channeled through carbon nanotubes into an internal condensation chamber. They’re using our own Dyson sphere technology against us!”

The ‘Dyson sphere technology’ the staff officer mentioned was one of the key research projects of the Federation Academy of Sciences. Some derivative technologies had later been tested for use on the unmanned fleet in an attempt to give it greater combat capabilities after freeing it from the shackles of human control.

Since it was related to the unmanned fleet, Dr. Mephisto naturally had access to these technologies. In fact, the Federation’s leading figure in artificial intelligence was not solely specialized in AI.

After being tricked into coming to Atlas, the Doctor had ultimately brought some related technologies with him. In his words, they were ‘Lilith’s dowry’.

Although the term ‘dowry’ was a bit strange, and Amber found it difficult to take Mephisto’s view of his relationship with Lilith seriously, it didn’t stop him from accepting all of these technologies.

On the bridge, Griezmann stared at the rapidly counting down impact timer when he suddenly noticed the orbital parameters of one of the ice crystals—its angle of approach was identical to the tactic Marshal Trafalgar had used to annihilate a rebel fleet thirty-five years ago.

Except, thirty-five years ago, the Federation didn’t have the technology to accelerate an ice crystal to sub-light speed.

A chill ran up his spine. Griezmann immediately realized this was no coincidence, but a psychological purgatory meticulously designed by his old comrade, Guterres.

“Activate all of Stonehenge’s defense chains!”

Griezmann’s fist slammed down on the command console as he roared with anxiety and tension, “All gunnery clusters, switch to—”

Before he could finish, the shipboard control AI suddenly froze, then let out a dying hum. The crew on the bridge immediately realized they were under electronic attack.

“Allocate computing power to intercept the electronic warfare virus! Authorize the shipboard control AI to access the Stonehenge Defense Zone’s main system and allocate computing power!”

Griezmann’s reaction was quick enough, and he immediately issued a response. But at this juncture, how much good could simple countermeasures do?

No one knew.

The image of the rapidly approaching ice crystal cluster split into countless afterimages on the sensors. Relativistic effects turned ballistic prediction into a game of chaos. Compounded by the electronic warfare virus infection, Stonehenge’s defense systems were completely unable to lock onto a definitive target.

Griezmann watched the gunnery clusters’ calibration parameters fluctuate wildly. He suddenly understood that the destroyed scout ships were not just lost eyes; the enemy had used the opportunity to plant logic bombs in the tactical networks of the fleet and the defense zone. After all, no one would have imagined that a sunken friendly ship would become an enemy’s springboard for attack at the last moment.

Right now, the defense system’s fire-control radars were wasting eighty percent of their computing power attacking phantom targets, like medieval knights charging at their own reflections in a mirror.

Looking at the core area of the Stonehenge Defense Zone, where, due to his “consolidate defenses” order, a large number of Federation warships had gathered along with the massive permanent fortress, only one thought flashed through Griezmann’s mind.

“It’s over. It’s all over.”

The dust cloud within the Stonehenge Defense Zone suddenly began to roil like a cosmic whirlpool stirred by an invisible hand.

Aboard the Heavy Cruiser Grizzly, Federation Navy Captain Charles Harper snapped his head up in the engine room, his protective helmet hitting a deuterium fuel line with a dull thud. He had just finished repairing a malfunction in the superconductor cells, his gloves still dusted with the pale blue powder of crystallized coolant.

The heavy cruiser was currently docked alongside many other warships inside the ‘Minerva’ permanent fortress, located in the core of the defense zone. The fleet supreme commander’s previous order had allowed them to return to this fortress to regroup and resupply.

The screeching alarm of the gravitational wave radar echoed throughout the compartment. Charles felt a terrifying force bearing down on his position. He immediately ran to the nearest viewport to look outside, just as the all-hands broadcast blared to life.

“Fifteen unidentified objects have breached the Oort Cloud defensive line! Speed zero-point-one-two c!”

Captain Williams’s roar was laced with static.

“All hands, brace for impact.”

The next moment, the universe tore apart before Captain Charles’s eyes.

The instant the first sub-light ice crystal grazed the MK-7 armored platform of the ‘Minerva’ permanent fortress, a hellish scene was seared onto Charles’s retinas:

The nine-kilometer-diameter ice core’s tungsten carbide coating scraped against the thin interstellar dust, instantly generating a spectral blue arc of light that stretched for tens of thousands of kilometers, like a thunderbolt hurled by the gods.

The moment the fortress’s honeycomb titanium alloy frame was pierced, three hundred thousand tons of composite armor on the impact surface shattered like a fragile eggshell. The flying metal fragments vaporized into a silver mist in the plasma trail.

“Port-side thruster three is overloaded! Dispatching damage control teams.”

The shipboard control AI’s alarm blared. Charles was thrown against the bulkhead by the centrifugal force. Through the faceplate of the in-ship suit he had just sealed, he saw the fusion reactor’s containment field warping—the cloud of ionized particles generated by the ice crystal’s passage was now rapidly enveloping all the surrounding warships.

The next moment, the Grizzly tumbled like a dead leaf in a gale. Countless warning pop-ups exploded across his helmet display.

He clung tightly to a handle on the bulkhead, watching on his helmet display as the Heavy Cruiser Grizzly performed its death dance. Its twelve-barreled heavy particle cannon still spewed bluish-white beams, but the heavy metal particle stream, powerful enough to melt through an asteroid, refracted bizarrely upon hitting the ice crystal’s coating. It turned into a shower of iron that tore the broadside of the nearby friendly ship Black Pearl into burning fragments.

“Oh, gods…”

Charles’s groan was drowned out by the scraping sound of the heavy cruiser’s outer hull plates. A piece of titanium alloy debris from the ‘Anvil-7’ defense node scraped past the viewport, plowing spiderweb cracks across the armored glass.

Just then, a hatch behind him opened, and a figure drifted in, stumbling. Adjutant Jackson’s scream suddenly erupted over the comms channel: “Captain! The coolant pipes for turret three—”

BOOM!

An explosion and explosive decompression occurred in an instant.

When Charles turned his head, he witnessed the horrific sight of a human body boiling in a vacuum. Jackson and the four members of his damage control team paid the price for their habit of not promptly sealing their in-ship suits.

Their bodily fluids were instantly sucked away by the ruptured pipes. Their protective suits, helmets yet unsealed, swelled into ghastly white cocoons under the negative pressure. Their still-liquid blood congealed into strings of agate beads in the zero gravity.

Their one ‘good habit’—fastening their safety lines—kept their bodies tethered to the breach created by the explosion, allowing Charles to witness the scene.

The backdrop to all this was the high-energy laser arrays outside the ship’s breach and the numerous anti-aircraft weapons of nearby friendly forces, all futilely slicing through the cloud of water molecules formed by the evaporating ice crystal. Thousands of high-energy beams scattered in the ionized dust, creating a sky full of phosphorescent fire.

Then, the ‘star-shattering chain reaction’ that everyone feared the most began.

An eight-kilometer-diameter ice core, boosted to 0.12 times the speed of light, possessed kinetic energy equivalent to three billion tons of TNT. This cosmic-scale punch not only shredded its target but also sent ripples of death through the debris field.

And there were fifteen of these ‘punches’.

Happy Lunar New Year’s Eve

Happy Lunar New Year’s Eve

Happy Lunar New Year’s Eve, everyone. Eat and drink well~

As for updates today and tomorrow, we’ll have to see how it goes. I’m going out for New Year’s visits, so there may or may not be a new chapter~

For now, everyone, just focus on celebrating the Lunar New Year~

Chapter 669: Annihilation

“The lethality of this thing is a bit beyond my imagination.”

Half an hour after fifteen ice crystals traveling at 0.12c impacted the Stonehenge Defense Zone, Amber, standing before the panoramic viewscreen on The Infinity’s bridge, couldn’t help but marvel at the asteroid belt before him, which had been brutally ‘plowed’ through, leaving fifteen ‘furrows’.

Zooming in on the ‘furrows’ created by the ice crystal impacts would reveal that the entire asteroid belt’s gravitational balance was in complete chaos. A chain reaction triggered by the impacts had begun, with countless asteroid fragments colliding randomly, causing the situation to worsen.

“Although this operation ‘pays homage’ to Marshal Trafalgar’s ‘Operation Star-12’ from thirty-five years ago, both the acceleration of the ice crystals and the final destructive effect far exceed it,” Guterres couldn’t help but say after hearing Amber.

“This just shows that times and technology are always advancing. We’ve merely caught this wave, and we must seize this opportunity.”

Amber turned to look at Guterres. He was very satisfied with the latter’s recent command on the frontline, as well as his suggestions for the final attack vector and timing. The former Federation Navy Vice Admiral had held nothing back.

Guterres nodded after hearing this and asked, “Boss, should the fleet continue the attack?”

Amber: “No need for a direct assault. The situation inside ‘Stonehenge’ is too chaotic right now. I don’t want the fleet to go in and suffer unnecessary casualties. The remaining Federation Navy fleets will definitely try to break out, so just have our fleets maintain a perimeter and attack any enemy trying to escape the ‘Stonehenge’ Defense Zone.”

“Yes, Boss. I’ll make the arrangements right away.”

Guterres saluted Amber and turned to leave, while Amber remained, continuing to watch the scene outside the viewscreen.

The others on the bridge didn’t know that, in Amber’s eyes, this chaotic debris field was ‘fast-evolving’ as if on fast-forward. This ‘Stonehenge Defense Zone,’ once the pride of the Federation, was transforming into a slowly rotating metal graveyard in this accelerated sequence.

The shockwaves from the ice crystal impacts reshaped the asteroid belt into a strange ring structure. Trillions of tons of debris followed new orbits, and the sparks from occasional collisions bloomed silently in the vacuum.

Countless pieces of metal wreckage danced endlessly, driven by inertia. A fragment of armor plate bearing the name ‘Thor’s Hammer’ seemed to graze past Amber’s eyes. Farther away, the wreckage of an acceleration rail, corroded into a hollow, lattice-like structure by a hydroxyl cloud, cast lace-like patterns of light under the starlight.

Next, Amber looked toward a giant structure in the distance. It was a spindle-shaped formation spontaneously assembled from the wreckage of twelve defensive nodes within the Stonehenge Defense Zone under the influence of Lorentz forces. Its surface was covered with a crystalline layer of silicon dioxide from the ice crystal impacts. Whenever a fragment passed nearby, the crystalline layer would emit a cold, firefly-like glow.

Electromagnetic pulses periodically released by several gravity anchor wrecks wove an ever-changing curtain of light above this ‘metal graveyard’. Ionized samarium lent it emerald-green ripples, while rays from the decay of cobalt-60 dotted it with specks of orange-red.

After becoming a psionic user, as his Psionics grew stronger, they continuously modified Amber’s body. For example, his retinas could now perceive a wider spectrum of light—deep purple patterns representing lethal radiation flowed eternally within the light curtain in the shape of a Möbius strip.

“Master, what are you looking at?”

Lilith’s sudden voice snapped Amber out of the ‘fast-evolution’.

He focused his eyes, and the scene before him returned to normal. The entire Stonehenge Defense Zone was still in the state it was in shortly after the impact.

“Do you remember after Alpha Serpentis exploded, I told you my Psionics had undergone some… hmm, changes?”

“I remember, Master~ Was it like that just now?”

Amber nodded slightly. “Yes, that change happened again. I saw the scene after the ‘fast-evolution’…”

“Then what did you see this time?” Lilith asked curiously after quickly confirming through the life-signs monitoring device that there was nothing wrong with Amber.

Amber: “We’ve created a ‘clock’.”

“A clock?”

“Yes. Every fragment before us is a second hand, and every collision is a countdown. The entire Stonehenge Defense Zone will slowly transform into an artificial planetary ring under the influence of gravity. And this artificial ring will continue to expand for the next several hundred years, becoming a nightmare for all spacefarers…”

Listening to Amber’s description, a strange expression appeared on Lilith’s face in the virtual space:

“Master, why have you suddenly become so poetic? I really think you should find time to have Ms. Salih take a look at you.”

“…”

Following the impacts, the Stonehenge Defense Zone had become a chaotic jumble of massive rocks. In this vast debris field, the remnants of the Federation fleet struggled like soldier ants from a destroyed nest, caught in a turbulent flow of radiation storms and molten metal, trying to escape this inferno.

Meanwhile, the combined fleet of Atlas and the Revival Coalition was lying in wait, like the ‘child’ who had smashed the anthill. Their warships, now gaining the upper hand numerically as the Federation fleet’s numbers dwindled, had long since set up formations and attack groups around the periphery of the defense zone.

The light cruisers and destroyers, which normally stayed behind the capital ships, had now moved to the front. They deployed various detection devices and scanning arrays on their bows, sweeping the outer areas to catch any Federation warships attempting to escape.

The Federation Navy’s heavy cruiser ‘The Liberty,’ which had been patrolling the edge of the defense zone when the impacts occurred, avoided being drawn into the core area. Under the command of Captain Aileen, it became the first capital ship in the entire fleet to break out of ‘Stonehenge,’ bringing more than ten destroyers and frigates with it.

But their luck ran out there. Just as the warship dodged the last threatening asteroid fragment, the shipboard control AI issued another warning—this time, of an impending attack.

“High-velocity objects detected approaching on the squadron’s starboard side! Count is one hundred twenty… correction, two hundred sixty! Assessed as an incoming plasma torpedo salvo.”

The shipboard control AI’s voice was unnervingly calm, but its message made everyone’s hair on the bridge stand on end. The feeling of having just escaped the jaws of death only to walk into a kill zone was anything but pleasant.

On the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge, the shipboard control AI displayed the tactical overlay. A dense swarm of red blips, like a school of piranhas that had scented blood, was rapidly approaching the squadron’s starboard side. Judging by the intensity of the light spots on another screen from the infrared optical sensors, the plasma torpedoes had re-engaged their thrusters and entered their final attack run.

“Distance: three thousand two hundred thirty kilometers. Estimated time to contact: forty-two seconds.”

“All ships! Emergency anti-air operations on the starboard side! HCPs, get on deck immediately and act as anti-air fire for interception! Release all decoys! Begin evasive maneuvers!”

Captain Aileen knew exactly how little could be done in forty-two seconds. Perhaps the ships’ starboard anti-aircraft weapon groups could be activated, but at best, it would only be enough time for the ship-borne HCPs to just start climbing onto the deck. But she had no other choice now but to make a desperate attempt.

The limitations on evasive maneuvers were even greater. The plasma torpedoes were coming from starboard, while the port-aft and the entire rear hemisphere were blocked by the hellscape of ‘Stonehenge,’ making evasion impossible in those directions. This left the warships with very limited room to maneuver.

Soon, a large number of decoy pods bloomed in the vacuum, beginning to simulate the warships’ infrared and electromagnetic signatures. Captain Aileen was betting that these plasma torpedoes used conventional infrared and radar seekers—the most common configuration for plasma torpedoes. After all, this type of weapon was a relatively low priority in the navies of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, so they wouldn’t have more complex configurations.

However, Captain Aileen had overlooked one thing: the Atlas Group was one of the few powers in this universe that placed a high value on the use of plasma torpedoes.

In addition to infrared and radar seeker heads, they were also specially configured with image recognition and quantum entanglement recognition units. Coupled with a dedicated probability algorithm developed by Lilith, their target acquisition accuracy was on a completely different level from conventional plasma torpedoes.

Captain Aileen and the others on the bridge could only watch helplessly as the torpedoes on the tactical overlay split up, bypassed the decoys they had deployed, and continued to close in on their positions.

Outside the viewscreen, beams of light from directed-energy weapons and dense orange-red trajectories appeared as the ships’ starboard anti-aircraft weapon groups began their final interception.

But with only the starboard anti-air firepower of a dozen or so warships, trying to intercept two hundred sixty front-armored heavy plasma torpedoes was nothing more than a drop in the bucket.

Just as the plasma torpedoes were about to hit their targets, the composite metal armor on their nose cones bloomed open like petals. A sulfur-colored halo instantly spread out in the vacuum—it was liquid metallic lithium, contained by an electrostatic field. Three plasma torpedoes that had broken through the anti-air screen gently kissed ‘The Liberty’s’ starboard side…

“Fifty million-Kelvin fusion reaction detected.”

The shipboard control AI issued another warning, and Captain Aileen roared the command to brace for impact. But her voice was quickly drowned out by the shriek of metal. The core of the plasma torpedo instantly ate through three layers of composite armor plate. The brightness on everyone’s in-ship suit helmets automatically dimmed, but it couldn’t block out the sudden orange-red glow that emanated from the bulkheads—secondary radiation caused by the superheated particle stream penetrating the hull.

Before Captain Aileen’s eyes, the 3D projection of the damage control system instantly turned red. Sections B7 through D12 went completely offline. The airtight blast doors connecting these sections were vaporized before they could even close.

Then, Captain Aileen saw her own command console begin to glow. Ionized metal atoms were emitting X-rays, revealing her skeleton under her skin like a stark white relief. This was the last image she saw before her consciousness faded.

A series of blue-white, high-temperature plasma fireballs lit up this region of space one after another. The dozen or so Federation warships that had just managed to escape the Stonehenge Defense Zone were reduced to a cluster of unrecognizable wreckage under the saturation attack of plasma torpedoes.

And scenes like this were now playing out all across the Stonehenge Defense Zone.

Viewed from deep space, the hunt presented a strange geometric beauty: Federation warships spewed from the fissures in the debris field like material jets from a supernova, while Atlas’s frontline fleet wove a filter net with various weapons, incinerating every speck of ‘metal dust’ into ionic ash.

The tactical holoscreen suddenly went dark after the fifth violent shudder. Rear Admiral Griezmann felt his fingernails dig deep into the shock-absorbing gel layer inside his in-ship suit’s gloves. Through the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen, he saw a two-kilometer-diameter asteroid fragment scrape past the battleship’s port side and slam hard into a nearby destroyer that had lost power. Facing a piece of rock several times its own size, the destroyer was powerless to resist and was instantly smashed to pieces.

“Activate full-band radar sweep! All heavy electromagnetic cannons, switch to obstacle-clearing flak shells!”

The sound of Rear Admiral Griezmann’s voice, mingled with damage control alarms, echoed across the bridge. He tapped a few times on the control panel of his in-ship suit at his wrist. A subcutaneous injector inside the suit plunged into his neck. The next second, his pupils contracted sharply before slowly dilating again. This was a high-risk combat stimulant, authorized for distribution to Federation Navy combat units only in emergencies. It could triple a person’s reaction speed, at the cost of the inevitable decay of some neural tissue after the battle.

The operations staff officer’s hands were moving so fast on the holographic console they were almost a blur. A hint of despair crept into the voices coming over the comms channel:

“Debris density has reached eight hundred forty-six units per cubic kilometer! That’s far beyond the threshold for anti-air defense and obstacle clearing operations!”

“Don’t worry about that! Intercept first and—”

Rear Admiral Griezmann’s voice was cut off by a sudden impact. A fragment flying in from the right scraped violently against the battleship’s starboard side. The entire flagship felt like a tin can kicked by a giant, and everyone was thrown to the left by an immense force.

Before Griezmann could fully recover, a sharp pain shot through his neck. It was a physiological warning triggered by his close-fitting combat suit, indicating he had been locked onto by an enemy composite fire-control system.

“High-energy reading detected!” The Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice trembled slightly. “Source bearing T9N4. Signature matched. It’s one of Atlas’s laser warships!”

The moment he heard this, Griezmann knew it was all over.

The next second, the deflector shield of Griezmann’s battleship flickered once and then vanished completely. It was followed by twelve high-energy laser beams that precisely struck the outer armor plate directly above the bridge.

As the high-energy laser beams pierced the bridge, Rear Admiral Griezmann was attempting to send a final command to the surrounding Federation warships: “Break out independently.” His final consciousness froze on a memory from the revolving lantern of his life—a summer night when he was eight years old, lying on the lawn in his family’s yard. The Milky Way poured down over his head, and it was this sight that had made him decide, even as a child, to become a naval officer.

The beams swept through. Rear Admiral Griezmann’s body instantly disintegrated into countless elementary particles. The bow of the battlecruiser ‘Spectral Annihilator’ still shimmered with an iridescent light, as if wiping a blood-drenched sword.

Chapter 670: Level Six

“So it’s over.”

“Yes, it’s over.”

Hearing Amber’s sigh, Guterres, who had returned to his side, replied.

“After this battle, the Federation has no forces left to command. The entire navy has suffered a devastating blow. Its generals have fallen, and both its fleets and high-ranking officers have been completely wiped out. They can’t cause any more trouble.”

Guterres’s words were tinged with complex emotions, and Amber, standing beside him, understood the former Federation Navy Vice Admiral’s feelings perfectly. Having served in the Federation Navy for so many years, he still held some sentiment for it.

Amber wasn’t worried that these superfluous feelings would have any impact. The entire Federation Navy was gone, after all. A bit of sentimental crying from the general he’d recruited wasn’t going to bring it back from the dead.

After a moment, Amber spoke. “In that case, the Renaissance Alliance and we can launch our final offensive against the Federation, and there probably won’t be much resistance.”

“Indeed,” Guterres nodded, then continued, “From now on, our fleets can move unimpeded through Federation territory. However, without the Federation Navy to keep them in check, the pirates might not be so obedient. And the garrison fleets in each star system might very well establish themselves independently, or even become warlords.”

Amber replied, “I’m not too worried about that. No matter what these pirates and garrison fleets do, they won’t be as tough to deal with as the Federation’s regular army. As long as we’re willing to spend a little time, they can all be dealt with. Besides, someone will be very eager to annihilate and subdue these armed forces~”

“You mean the Renaissance Alliance?” Guterres moved a little closer to Amber and asked in a low voice.

After being fully accepted by Amber and officially becoming one of the absolute top executives of the Atlas Group, he was naturally privy to a great deal of non-public intelligence, and the recent movements of the Renaissance Alliance’s leadership were part of it.

“That’s right. The higher-ups, including Franklin, will definitely be trying to expand their hard power. They’ve realized that if this continues, they’ll never be able to escape our control. Although our cooperation has been very pleasant, when it’s finally time to take a piece of the pie, it’s common to turn on your allies.”

Amber was referring to some recent intelligence from Isabelle and the Intelligence Center about the Renaissance Alliance. Some of its high-ranking members were lobbying Franklin, ‘explaining’ to him what would happen if the Alliance remained under Atlas’s control, hoping he would find a way to break free from Atlas as soon as possible.

This scenario was all too familiar; it was almost identical to the situation with the Loubion Star System Autonomous Government back then. When Amber first read the report, he even thought Isabelle had mistakenly given him an old file.

In the end, Amber could only conclude that this might be a glorious tradition here in the Loubion star system.

“But would Franklin do that? After all, you’re the one who propped him up…” Guterres was still a bit doubtful. In his view, Franklin should feel grateful and well-disposed toward Amber.

“First of all, people always change~” Amber shrugged, his expression showing no surprise. “Secondly, based on our intelligence, Franklin has been swept along by other high-ranking members with their own agendas. The Renaissance Alliance has grown to its current scale, and it’s full of internal factions. It’s long past the point where Franklin alone calls the shots.”

Thinking of this, Amber couldn’t help but sigh. “Sigh… To be honest, I advised him long ago that before the Renaissance Alliance grew, it would be best to achieve true centralization of power to better manage, or rather, rule it.”

Guterres seemed to understand. “So, from the current situation, it seems he rejected your advice,” he said with a hint of resignation.

“That’s right~” Amber nodded. “He was full of passionate idealism at the time, wanting to achieve true fairness and democracy through the Renaissance Alliance. But he didn’t realize that for a species like humanity, that’s incredibly difficult to achieve, unless a ‘great man descends from heaven.’ Unfortunately, he is not that great man. Coupled with his failure to centralize power before the faction grew, it has led to the current situation.”

Guterres was silent for a moment, then asked, “So what do you intend to do?”

“I’ll still give him one last chance.”

“A chance?”

Amber said, “If he can stick to his original intentions and not be swayed by others, then there’s no problem with him as a person. We can continue to cooperate in the future.”

“And if he can’t?”

“Then the backup plan we left in place can finally be put to use. In short, we definitely won’t lose out~”

Hearing this, Guterres couldn’t help but laugh. He had to admit that Amber was extremely skilled in the art of leaving himself an ace up his sleeve to use against others, and even partners like the Renaissance Alliance were no exception.

He could also guess what Amber was thinking now. He most likely wanted to make the most of their cooperation with the Renaissance Alliance while it lasted, squeezing every last drop of value from the massive organization. This was especially necessary at this stage when they needed to rapidly bring the Federation under control, and leveraging the power the Renaissance Alliance had already amassed was crucial.

——

With the conclusion of the decisive battle in the Stonehenge Defense Zone, the Atlas fleet’s combat mission was complete. Aside from a portion of the fleet left behind to receive the final batch of surrendering Federation warships, the rest of the fleets began to withdraw.

The Renaissance Alliance also reaped considerable benefits after this battle, being assigned most of the surrendered Federation warships. Atlas was gradually transitioning its fleets to its own self-produced warships, so it had no use for these Federation Navy vessels and was happy to do them a favor.

No matter how sensitive the relationship between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group was now, the agreed-upon payment had to be given. After all, Atlas would be doing business with others in the future, and it couldn’t afford to get a reputation for not paying its helpers.

Upon returning to the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, Amber immediately went to find Salih to ask about his Psionics, especially the recent phenomenon where he could see scenes ‘rapidly evolving.’

Although Amber’s Psionic strength in the game in his previous life was far beyond level five or six, the game had simplified many of the details of Psionics. A player’s Psionic level increase was essentially just ‘leveling up,’ so of course, he never experienced so many strange phenomena.

When Amber walked into Salih’s Psionics lab, the Forerunner ‘old frozen meat’ was in the middle of some experiment. She was startled to see Amber enter, then said in surprise:

“Huh? Amber, you’ve advanced to Level Six? And your power has broken straight through to the mid-tier?”

“Huh?”

Salih circled Amber curiously, then spoke with even greater astonishment, “And why are there fragments of spatiotemporal afterimages on you?”

“The what now?”

Chapter 671: Lifespan Crisis

“Wait, what on earth is a ‘Fragment of a spatiotemporal afterimage’?”

Hearing Salih utter a term he had never heard before, Amber was momentarily stunned. Combined with her previous statement that his Psionics had broken through to mid-Level Six, he was even more bewildered, as he hadn’t felt any breakthrough in his psionic strength recently.

Salih picked up a bizarre-looking instrument from the workstation, one that screamed of Forerunner design, and walked over to Amber. She began scanning him from top to bottom as she explained:

“Spatiotemporal afterimages. This thing is a byproduct of one of my people’s research projects concerning ‘time.’ Individuals who acquire a spatiotemporal afterimage can, under certain specific conditions, briefly gain an ability akin to ‘seeing the future.’ However, this ability is highly uncontrollable. And often, the very moment these individuals see the ‘future,’ the ‘future’ is altered.”

As Salih spoke, the instrument in her hand beeped several times. A set of lights on top of it flickered for a moment before finally turning blue.

“The pattern is blue. It seems to be a Fragment of a spatiotemporal afterimage, without a doubt.”

Salih stared at the results displayed on the instrument, her delicate brows furrowing. It seemed even she had never encountered a situation like Amber’s.

A moment later, she looked up at Amber again and asked, “So, how long have you had these symptoms?”

“Hey! What do you mean, ‘symptoms’?”

Amber retorted in a huff, but then he immediately recalled two similar incidents from long ago. One was during the battle on Loubion V, where he had witnessed a scene of the Imperial army wiping out their own ground forces by detonating a nuclear warhead in the city. The other was seeing some sort of “dark future” after discovering the Forerunners’ refining facility.

With that in mind, Amber stopped holding back and told Salih about both experiences, including how these “visions of the future” had become increasingly frequent after the explosion of Alpha Serpentis.

“So you’ve had these symptoms for that long?” Salih raised a hand to her delicate chin, lost in thought.

Amber said, “No, seriously, must you use the word ‘symptoms’ to describe it? It sounds really bad!”

“Because for the Jeram people, spatiotemporal afterimages are indeed considered a malady.”

Salih’s tone turned serious. She raised her hand, and a host of auxiliary mechanical arms descended from the ceiling of the laboratory. Under her control, the arms quickly surrounded Amber and began to scan him with various instruments on their ends.

During the scan, a virtual screen materialized beside Salih. With a complex expression, she watched the lines of data scrolling on the screen and continued, “As I just said, ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ are a byproduct of our research into ‘time.’ I can’t go into the specifics of the research, only that it’s related to the ‘space-time expedition.’ Once a ‘spatiotemporal afterimage’ appears in one of my people, although they gain the temporary ability to ‘see the future,’ their Psionics and bodily functions are also severely overdrawn in the process.”

Amber’s heart skipped a beat. He asked uneasily, “Are you saying that having a ‘spatiotemporal afterimage’ means I won’t live long?”

“That’s right. The average lifespan is reduced by seventy to eighty percent,” Salih nodded, the cruel numbers leaving her lips.

“Wait, that much???”

Now Amber was truly starting to panic. He had painstakingly built up the Atlas Group and beaten his number one enemy, the Federation, to within an inch of its life. He had been walking on thin ice ever since he transmigrated, and now that he had finally reached a point where he could relax a little, enjoy the good life, and reap the fruits of his victory, he was suddenly being told his days were numbered.

Salih said, “That is indeed the case for the Jeram people. We have a massive amount of data to support this, so there’s no doubt. However…”

“However what?”

“However, we have never discovered ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ appearing in humans. So I don’t know what effect it will have on your species, nor how much it will affect your lifespan.”

Salih’s reply was tinged with uncertainty. It was clear this was the first time she had encountered such a situation as well.

Amber knew that if even Salih, a Forerunner Repository Steward, didn’t know, then it was highly unlikely anyone else would. He asked helplessly, “So what should I do now? And will this sudden breakthrough to mid-Level Six have any effect? Why didn’t I feel a thing?”

“I don’t know exactly what to do. But to be safe, I will start looking for ways to extend the human lifespan for you. As long as we can lengthen your life, the impact of the ‘spatiotemporal afterimage’ can be reduced to some extent.”

Salih snapped her fingers, and the ring of mechanical arms surrounding Amber retracted. She glanced at the data on the virtual screen and continued, “As for the sudden breakthrough, based on the current data, it hasn’t had any negative impact on your body. I suspect the explosion of Alpha Serpentis affected the depths of your brain, or perhaps it helped you break through the shackles limiting your psionic strength. Theoretically, this is possible. My people once used Supernova Bursts, or even directly detonated planets, to periodically help high-level psionic users achieve breakthroughs in batches.”

—

After leaving Salih’s laboratory, most of the joy Amber felt from the successful operation at the Stonehenge Defense Zone had vanished.

After all, anyone who suddenly learned their lifespan might be cut drastically short wouldn’t be in high spirits, especially when they had such a vast and powerful enterprise to their name.

However, Salih’s words had given Amber an idea. Finding a way to increase his own lifespan was a kind of last resort. The problem was that the most common life-extension method in human civilization was physical modification.

Massive transplants of cybernetic prostheses were naturally more durable and easier to maintain than a flesh-and-blood body. Vital organs like the heart and lungs, as well as the all-important cellular vitality, were sustained through regular transplants of cultivated cloned organs.

But that was without even considering the “Ship of Theseus” paradox that such extensive physical modification would ultimately lead to.

Even with a complete overhaul, the current record for life extension was only one hundred and twenty years. In the later stages, even cloned internal organs, blood, and cells would begin to show incompatibility or even rejection.

“Damn it… Why did this ‘lifespan crisis’ have to pop up now!”

Amber muttered to himself in frustration. Just then, Lilith’s voice sounded in his ear.

“Master, why don’t you convert into a ‘digital lifeform’? That way, you won’t have to worry about lifespan issues, right? Even if the ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ Ms. Salih mentioned affect you, they wouldn’t be able to reach you in the virtual world, would they?”

Chapter 672: Agnes’s Invitation

Frankly, Lilith’s suggestion would be very tempting for an ordinary person.

After all, by converting into a “digital lifeform,” one could attain a lifespan practically equivalent to “immortality” as long as the virtual space existed.

But for Amber, this temptation wasn’t as strong as it would be for others.

Not only would it mean crossing the boundary of “species,” but it would also detach him from the real world, which gave Amber a sense of unreality.

So, unless the day came when he had to sustain his life on a device resembling a “Golden Throne,” he would never convert himself into a “digital lifeform.”

After a moment of thought, Amber shook his head and said, “Forget it. Let’s keep the path of becoming a ‘digital lifeform’ as a final resort. Digital lifeforms still have many limitations at this stage, and the Atlas Group can’t be led by a ‘ghost’ in the virtual space.”

Lilith, of course, was not surprised by Amber’s answer. If it were that easy to persuade Amber to become a “digital lifeform,” she would have succeeded long ago.

So she quickly moved on. “Then what do you plan to do now? Do you need me to compile information on extending human lifespans?”

“No need.” Amber shook his head. “We already know about the most promising thing for extending human life at the moment.”

“What is that?”

“Eternal Cells. It’s just that the old Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire has them now. We can’t get our hands on them anytime soon, so we can only wait for the right opportunity and find another way.”

Before Lilith could respond, a notification ringtone sounded from Amber’s personal terminal, requesting a communication link.

“Viscount BASF? Why is he suddenly calling me at this hour?”

Amber looked at the communication request on his personal terminal with some surprise. A moment later, he accepted the call, and the hearty laughter of the Imperial viscount rang in his ear.

“Hahaha, Your Excellency Amber, I bring you good news!”

“Oh? What surprise does the Viscount, Sir, have for me this time?” Amber’s tone became cheerful as well. He had to admit, Viscount BASF’s “infectious” enthusiasm was undeniable.

“Her Highness Agnes wishes to meet with you in person to discuss the details of our future in-depth collaboration.”

At this point, Viscount BASF’s voice couldn’t help but tremble with excitement as he added, a bit eagerly:

“Your Excellency Amber, I can give you a little tip in advance: this discussion about our collaboration will be an unprecedentedly huge deal for the Atlas Group!”

“Oh, a huge deal?”

A smile played on Amber’s lips. For the Atlas Group, which had just come through a series of major battles, they really did need a “patsy.” No, wait, a “great benefactor” to help them recoup their funds.

“It’s a truly massive deal! Right up your alley, Mr. Amber!”

Viscount BASF’s tone was excited. Even without a video call, Amber could picture the Imperial merchant’s beaming, jovial face.

Amber had no objections to the Princess’s side wanting to meet in person. Besides, they had just done him a huge favor, so he certainly couldn’t refuse them now. After a brief thought, he said, “In that case, I’d be honored to accept. Where has your side arranged for me to have an audience with Her Highness the Princess?”

“For a guest as distinguished as Your Excellency, it will naturally be in the Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier. Her Highness will host you at her private villa. It’ll be a perfect chance for you to witness the splendor of our Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital!”

It was a case of perfect timing—just what the doctor ordered. One second, Amber was wondering how to get his hands on the “Eternal Cells,” and the next, Princess Agnes was inviting him to the Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier for a meeting.

Amber had heard of this “private villa” before. In his previous life, a player in the game had discovered the ruins of this villa during a hidden quest chain. According to the information revealed back then, it wasn’t far from the Grand Palace in the Imperial Capital. It was said that Princess Agnes often rested at this villa after her audiences with the old Emperor.

In other words, this was a rare opportunity to get close to the Grand Palace.

Honestly, after hearing the location of the meeting, a plan to “explore” the Grand Palace a little began to form in Amber’s mind.

But he also knew it would be anything but simple. He was attending a meeting at Agnes’s invitation. Whether he would even have the time or opportunity to act alone was one thing; even if he did, how to infiltrate the Grand Palace was another problem entirely.

This wasn’t some ordinary tourist attraction. This was the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, the seat of the Imperial Royal Family, and the most heavily guarded region in the entire Empire. In theory, infiltration was impossible.

But Amber didn’t want to waste this hard-won opportunity. After all, even entering Saint-Saulnier on a normal day was no easy task. Like the Federation’s capital planet, the Star Dragon Empire’s capital planet was also surrounded by an Orbital Defense Platform, making even the most common method of planetary infiltration—an orbital drop—extremely difficult to pull off.

Thinking this, Amber felt he needed to plan carefully. If an opportunity to leave the villa and slip into the Grand Palace arose during his talks with Agnes, he had to seize it.

Conventional infiltration methods and equipment would certainly not be enough. The only hope was to see if his breakthrough to Level Six Psionics could provide an opening.

And in that regard, the only people Amber could think of who could help were Salih and Allenita.

The former, as a Repository Steward of the Forerunners, knew many Psionic techniques unknown to humanity. Perhaps he could get a technique from her that could aid in infiltration. The latter, the wealthy elf, could procure some elven equipment, just as she had when Amber infiltrated the Isabelle family’s Fief. Compared to human technology, which they all knew inside and out, trying his luck with the Thousand Stars Empire might yield some new discoveries.

Before long, Amber reappeared at the entrance to Salih’s laboratory.

Seeing Amber return, Salih was a bit surprised. Waving him over to find a place to sit and rest, she asked, “What, have your symptoms worsened?”

“Don’t jinx it! What do you mean, ‘worsened’? Can’t you say something nice for a change?” Amber plopped down on the sofa, exasperated. “Do you have any Psionic techniques or technology that can be used for infiltration?”

“What are you planning?”

“I’m going to extend my life.”

Chapter 673: External Support

“Extend your life?”

Salieh paused for a moment. Connecting this with what Amber had just said, an answer suddenly dawned on her.

“You want to get your hands on the ‘Eternal Cells’, so you plan to infiltrate the Star Dragon Empire’s Grand Palace?”

“That’s right. It seems the connection from the ‘Mental Shackle’ has some positive effects after all.”

Amber nodded in satisfaction, then continued, “I’ve thought about it. With the known technology in this part of the universe, if I want to significantly extend my life to counteract the side effects of the ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’, the only hope is the ‘Eternal Cells’ taken by the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Salieh thought for a moment, then said with a frown, “But the uncontrollable risks are too high. Even I don’t know what would happen if they were used on a human.”

“Just consider me clutching at straws. After all, I can’t think of any other way.” Amber shrugged helplessly. As he said, if he had any other choice, he wouldn’t be targeting the extremely high-risk ‘Eternal Cells’.

“Alright, even if the ‘Eternal Cells’ do work, the problem now is how you’re going to get them.” Salieh looked up at Amber. “From what I’ve learned recently, the Star Dragon Empire’s Grand Palace is no easy place to get into. The defenses that are publicly known are already formidable. Even high-level psionic users can’t sneak in undetected.”

“Seriously? You’re a Jeram, a Forerunner, and a Repository Steward. A human Grand Palace has you stumped?”

Amber’s tone was a mixture of doubt, disdain, surprise, and a hint of mockery, making the corner of Salieh’s eye twitch.

“We Jeram people aren’t gods. We still have to respect the laws of the universe, you know.”

Amber pursed his lips. “As if you’re so respectful. Always going for grand schemes like genocide, star system reorganization, and space-time expeditions.”

“Wait… Space-time expedition… space-time travel…”

Salieh suddenly raised a hand, cutting Amber off, and began muttering to herself as if in a trance.

Sensing a potential breakthrough, Amber fell silent, watching as Salieh, after her muttering, summoned a virtual screen and began to ‘create’ at a furious pace.

More than ten minutes later, Salieh finally stopped what she was doing and looked up again.

“I actually found a way… But this method is also extremely risky. If the ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ will suddenly affect your lifespan at some point in the future, then this method could have you saying goodbye to this world the moment you use it.”

Humans are, after all, a curious species. The more Salieh said this, the more curious Amber became.

“So, what exactly is this method you’re talking about?” Amber couldn’t help but ask.

“We need to find a way to build a tactical time-travel device.”

“?”

Tactical… time… travel device. Hearing these words combined, Amber knew he was about to learn of another incredible piece of technology from Salieh.

“These materials on your list… they’re not easy to get, Amber~”

In a master bedroom aboard the armed cruise liner, the ‘Tranquil Garden’, the wealthy elf Allenita, who once claimed ‘there’s nothing money can’t buy’, now wore a rare look of difficulty as she studied the list Amber had provided.

“High-purity collapsed fluid, psionic entanglement crystals…”

“If they were easy to get, I wouldn’t have come to trouble you. I can’t get them on my end, so I came here to try my luck with you.”

The cheeky, roguish look on Amber’s face made Allenita shake her head and pinch his ear in mock anger.

Earlier, when Salieh had proposed building a ‘tactical time-travel device’, Amber had been quite curious about this device he’d never heard of in the game. After hearing Salieh’s description, he had to marvel at how the Forerunners’ technology was truly in a league of its own.

Just as the name implied, after putting on the watch-like ‘tactical time-travel device’, the user could briefly travel through spacetime to the ‘past’ and ‘future’ of their current location. However, due to limitations like the device’s size, spacetime fluctuation levels, and quantum entanglement effects, it could only achieve short jumps of ten-odd seconds to a few minutes.

This was why it was called ‘tactical’.

It wasn’t that the Forerunners couldn’t build larger devices with more powerful travel effects. It was just that as the scale of the device increased, the instability of time travel would increase exponentially, to a point where even a civilization as mighty as the Forerunners couldn’t control it.

So, after a few major experimental accidents caused temporal disturbances, all research into large-scale spacetime travel devices, apart from the civilization-level ‘space-time expedition’ project, was halted. Consequently, the final production numbers for the miniaturized and easy-to-manufacture ‘tactical spacetime travel device’ were not large.

This was because the device also had requirements for its user. An ordinary person couldn’t power it at all; only a person carrying ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ could successfully activate it.

This hint of it being ‘predestined’ was what ultimately made Amber decide to ask Salieh to try and make one.

She had said on the spot that manufacturing it wasn’t difficult, but that many key materials were hard to find in this part of the universe, which the Forerunners had left millions of years ago. In this situation, Amber had quickly thought of his other ‘external support’.

“So, what do you need all this for?” Allenita asked, looking over the list again and again, still unable to guess what Amber was up to.

“To build a small time-travel device, and use it to try and infiltrate the Star Dragon Empire’s Grand Palace.”

Some things became more problematic the more you tried to hide them. Besides, he was asking Allenita for a favor, and he couldn’t keep things from her forever. So, Amber didn’t hold back, telling the female elf about the ‘Lifespan Crisis’ he was facing and its solution, and also revealing Salieh’s existence to her.

“Wait… You seem to have said something rather incredible, haven’t you? Amber, you’re far too bold! You just told me directly like that?”

“That’s why I chose this specific time to tell you…”

As he spoke, Amber draped an elven-style thin blanket over Allenita’s bare shoulders.

“Your assistants have all left, and the surveillance and alert systems in the room are all off… wait, you don’t have any strange kinks, do you?”

“You’re the one with strange kinks!”

Allenita’s cheeks flushed red. Forgetting for a moment that her disheveled state was giving Amber an eyeful, she swung a slender, crystalline arm at Amber’s head.

However, in this kind of close-quarters brawl, Allenita was clearly no match for Amber. In an instant, he had her pinned, her hands restrained as she toppled onto the bed with her hips raised. Then, a warm body pressed against her, and a heavy breath, carrying teasing words, brushed past her ear.

“Lady Allenita, you wouldn’t want me to die young, would you?”

“Hmph~ So when are you going to let me meet that little Forerunner girlfriend of yours?”

“Advisor! She’s an advisor. What do you mean, ‘little girlfriend’? She’s much older than you—hey, hey, hey, let’s talk this out, don’t use your teeth! Hiss…”

Chapter 674: Tactical Time Travel Device MK1

“Let’s get down to business, let’s get down to business.”

As the waves of passion subsided, Amber and Allenita lay back down. At times like this, Amber was grateful that his body had been modified and nourished by Psionics, and that he had long maintained a rigorous training regimen. Otherwise, he really wouldn’t have been able to handle the voluptuous elf.

Allenita rolled her eyes at him and said, “The business is, the materials on your list are not easy to find. I need to mobilize my family’s merchant guild network to gather them. It will take three to five days at the very least to get any results.”

Amber nodded. “Three to five days is already incredibly fast. Please collect whatever materials you can get. For the things you really can’t find, I’ll figure out another way myself.”

“So, is this ‘Lifespan Crisis’ really as serious as you say? You seem to be in pretty high spirits.”

Allenita flicked a finger against Amber’s body. She clearly still couldn’t grasp the severity of the problem; after all, this situation sounded like something out of the Arabian Nights to the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire.

“Salih did indeed find ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ on me, and I’ve encountered related situations multiple times. All I can say is, it’s better to be safe than sorry. And even if there’s no problem now, that doesn’t mean there won’t be one in the future, so I have to plan ahead.”

“Alright then, I’ll do my best to gather these materials for you as quickly as possible. When are you planning to leave for the Star Dragon Empire to meet with that Princess?”

Amber thought for a moment and replied, “Let’s see how your material gathering goes first. Princess Agnes isn’t rushing me. She just asked me to let them know before I leave so they can prepare.”

Hearing this, Allenita’s slender brows arched involuntarily.

“You know, Amber, I’ve just realized you’re quite the ladies’ man, aren’t you? Not only did you devour me and Isabelle completely, but you’re also entangled with a Forerunner who’s been frozen for so many years, and now you’ve even hooked up with the Princess of the Star Dragon Empire? Eh, how come I never realized you had such a big appetite before?”

“Wait, let me quibble. No, I mean, let me explain…”

Twenty-five days later, when Amber boarded The Dawn, a super-flagship in prime condition and not required for frontline duty, to travel to Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, for his invited meeting with Her Highness Princess Agnes, Salih also boarded The Dawn, bringing along a rush-built “prototype.”

Until the moment he received the goods, Amber had never imagined that Allenita and the Yuge family behind her could be so incredibly resourceful. They had managed to gather all the items on the list Amber provided in just eight days.

This even included the three micrograms of product-grade “antihydrogen” that Salih had specifically requested. This dangerous, high-density energy source was actually considered contraband even in the Thousand Stars Empire, but Allenita still managed to get her hands on it for Amber. This also meant Amber now owed another huge favor to the wealthy elf.

What Amber expected even less was that after receiving the materials, Salih, with Lilith’s assistance, had spent just over ten days to whip up a prototype capable of “spatiotemporal traversal.”

To be honest, after seeing Salih board The Dawn carrying a case containing the prototype, Amber was somewhat hesitant and uneasy.

He was quite worried about whether this contraption, whipped up in such a short time, was reliable. He didn’t want to end up like some unlucky captain from another timeline, stuck in a ceiling…

But considering the “Lifespan Crisis” that could strike at any moment, and the hard-won opportunity to enter the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, Amber decided to first get a thorough understanding of this “prototype” and then decide whether to undertake this very risky operation.

So, during the journey, Amber went to the research section of the super-flagship The Dawn. An entire top-spec laboratory had been cleared out here specifically for Salih’s use.

“Alright, the highest-spec ‘black box mode’ has been activated. For the next three hours, unless I manually deactivate it or the countdown ends, this laboratory will be in a state of absolute privacy.”

Watching the lab’s alloy door descend and lock, and after seeing the indicator light for “black box mode” light up, Amber turned to Salih.

Salih tilted her head upon hearing this and said, “So, for the next three hours, no matter what you do to me, no one will come to my rescue?”

“No! Lilith, look at you! What kind of weird stuff have you been spreading?!”

Amber exclaimed to the empty space around him, speechless. Meanwhile, Lilith’s figure, generated by the holographic projection device, playfully stuck her tongue out at him.

Seeing this, Salih couldn’t help but cover her mouth and stifle a giggle. Then she waved her hand and continued, “I was just kidding, to liven things up. After all, what comes next is a bit dry…”

“Go on, go on. I want to see for myself if the equipment you whipped up in over ten days is reliable or not.” Hearing Salih, Amber nodded, somewhat exasperated, and didn’t dwell on the issue.

“It’s not that it’s unreliable. After all, we Jeram people once issued these devices on a small scale. And the principles and manufacturing methods for this tactical equipment are completely stored in my brain’s memory partitions. Though time was tight, and my skills are a bit rusty after sleeping for two million years, successfully creating a temporary product is still no problem.”

Salih waggled a finger as she tapped a few times on the lab’s holographic projection control device, then continued:

“Let’s start with a simple introduction and the basic principles of this device. Unlike other equipment or weapons, this time travel device requires the user to know its basic principles. This is to prevent any problems during actual use. After all, ‘time travel’ is a very serious activity.”

As Salih spoke, the lab’s holographic projection device emitted a dozen or so rays of light, which gradually outlined a tactical glove equipped with a military-style wristwatch in mid-air.

“Tactical Time Travel Device MK1—codename ‘Time Anchor.’ This is the prototype I’ve restored based on our Jeram people’s related equipment. For your convenience, I’ve adapted it into a tactical glove and wristwatch structure.

“The watch face structure stores about one microgram of antihydrogen. Its energy density, converted into your human units, is approximately 9×10¹⁰ joules. It’s suspended in the core chamber by a magnetic trap and can be used for long-span traversals.

“For the external structure and the strap, I used adaptive liquid metal material and applied an anti-detection treatment. This way, it won’t interfere whether you wear it directly or with your combat loadouts. It can also undergo limited, simple shape-shifting, so it can match the outfit you’ll wear when you meet Princess Agnes.”

As Salih explained, the appearance of the spatiotemporal traversal device changed several times. There was the combat-style tactical glove and military watch, an add-on module to be mounted on an exoskeleton, and even several luxurious wristwatch and pocket watch designs in the human “nouveau riche style.”

It was clear this Forerunner Repository Steward had thoughtfully considered various usage scenarios. It also made Amber realize that besides her profound knowledge of Forerunner technology and Psionic techniques, Salih was also an excellent “product manager.”

“Carrying one microgram of ‘antihydrogen’ on me… It feels like I’m carrying a high-yield nuclear warhead. Salih, are you sure the containment unit is safe?” Although Amber had great faith in Salih’s skills, he couldn’t help but ask.

“Don’t worry, Amber. This is all mature technology from us Jeram people. Besides, the materials your elf friend provided are quite good, and I added two extra safety measures, so there won’t be any problems.”

Salih waved her hand with a relaxed expression, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head couldn’t help but sway along, her whole demeanor practically screaming, “Relax, it’s totally fine!”

“Alright then, please continue.”

“Ahem, I’ll continue then.”

Salih tapped the control console a few more times, and the content displayed by the holographic projector changed accordingly, showing a large number of formulas and models that Amber couldn’t understand.

“Simply put, the operating principle of this Tactical Time Travel Device MK1, using your human scientific theories, is ‘Einstein-Rosen Bridge Control Theory.’ It generates a micro artificial wormhole, then encloses the user in a ‘negative energy bubble’ to traverse the wormhole to the target point in time.”

“Traversing through a wormhole… how does it perform precise temporal positioning?” Amber raised his hand and asked.

“Good question!”

Salih smiled, seemingly quite pleased with this atmosphere of “educating” Amber. She paused for a moment, then continued:

“Temporal positioning relies on the ‘Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation’ for determination. Because the quantum fluctuations of the ‘Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation’ are unique for every point in time, they can also be used as an anchor point.

“The Repository I was in happened to have stored all the ‘Cosmic Microwave Background Quantum Fluctuation Maps’ recorded by us Jeram people during our ‘temporal explorations’ in this region of the universe. I have already copied this information into the device. Amber, when you select a time, the device will automatically match the data for that point in time and lock on.”

To be honest, Amber had never encountered the concepts Salih was talking about before, because he wasn’t a frontier physicist, and this knowledge wasn’t of much help in his daily life or in combat.

However, with Salih’s simple and clear explanation, Amber still managed to grasp the general principles. But despite this, he still had some concerns.

“There’s another important question.”

After thinking about and digesting what Salih had said, Amber spoke up again:

“How does this device get me back?”

“As for ending the time travel and returning to the present, this device employs a triple verification protocol…”

Salih displayed some new data and continued her explanation:

“The primary positioning uses a ‘Quantum Entanglement Anchor Point.’ This is why there’s a Psionic entanglement crystal on the watch face—I’ve already modified it. When the device initiates a jump, it emits a set of quantum-entangled particles toward the original timeline. These particles form an entangled state with a biological marker in the user’s body—mitochondrial DNA or a specific isotope.

“No matter when or where the user jumps, the entangled particles always maintain synchronous vibration with the original timeline, acting like a ‘compass.’ When the user triggers the device, it uses a quantum teleportation protocol to compare their own quantum state with the entangled particles, reverse-folding the wormhole path to return to the anchor point.

“Then for auxiliary calibration, I used Carbon-14 and Uranium-Lead isotope cross-referencing…”

As Salih spoke, she opened an encrypted storage box on the workstation and tossed a fingertip-sized box over.

Amber caught the box. Inside the transparent container was a small cylinder, less than half the size of a grain of rice. Judging by the way it was completely sealed off from the outside world and the “Caution: Biological Contamination” label on the box, Amber guessed this thing was most likely some kind of implant.

And Salih’s next words confirmed his suspicion.

“This is an isotope decay sensor. It can continuously monitor the Carbon-14 levels in your body. By comparing the Carbon-14 in the user’s body at the moment of ‘time travel’ with the abundance ratio of Carbon-14 in the target timeline’s atmosphere, it can estimate the temporal deviation and make corrections. However, the data precision is only sufficient for auxiliary calibration.”

Hearing this, Amber nodded, only half understanding. “Then what about the final verification protocol?”

“The final verification protocol is actually one of the principles behind the device’s time jumps—Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation phase analysis… In short, with these three verification protocols, no matter what point in time you travel to, there’s a greater than ninety-five percent success rate of returning.”

“Only ninety-five percent?” Amber frowned.

Hearing Amber’s doubt, Salih immediately bristled. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head also writhed agitatedly.

“What do you mean, ‘only ninety-five percent?’ Please, this is ‘time travel’ we’re talking about! Even we Jeram people wouldn’t dare claim to have completely mastered the relevant technology. And I made this using equipment and materials provided by you humans and the elves. Heaven knows what the manufacturing tolerances are on your stuff. The fact that I could get the success rate to ninety-five percent is already an extraordinary performance!”

“Alright, alright, alright, you’re awesome, awesome, awesome!”

Amber laughed and made a gesture of surrender, but seeing him act like this, Salih said with some dissatisfaction, “Amber, be more serious. This is ‘time travel,’ not a game. If something happens to you, I, who am controlled by your ‘Mental Shackle,’ will be in trouble too, okay!”

Hearing Salih’s words, the smiling expression on Amber’s face instantly turned serious, and his tone forcibly became formal.

“Alright, alright. I’ll be serious. Please continue.”

“Hmph! That’s more like it. We must hold ‘Time’ in awe. Now, I’ll go over the things you must pay attention to. You only need a rough understanding of the principles I mentioned earlier, but you must remember these precautions, or there will be big problems…”

Chapter 675: Arrival

When the three-hour ‘black box mode’ set by the lab ended, Amber finally left Salieh’s laboratory with his head full of operating principles, user manuals, and restrictions.

As for the ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1,’ Salieh didn’t hand it over to Amber directly. Instead, at the latter’s strong insistence, she prepared to use the final leg of their journey to debug it, ensuring that when the device was delivered into Amber’s hands, it would be, if not in optimal condition, at least free of any major bugs.

As Salieh often said during the three-hour ‘product launch,’ “There’s no small matter when it comes to time travel.”

To prevent the user from being rejected by the target timeline, the ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’ would sever the user’s quantum state from their original timeline during travel, temporarily turning them into a “time island.”

Under these conditions, Amber would also be in a state of ‘complete disconnection.’ Not only would others be unable to find him, but even Salieh and Lilith, who had special connections to him, would lose contact with him during this period.

At this point, Amber raised a question. Since the device could scan a small amount of tactical equipment to record its quantum state, allowing him to carry some auxiliary gear, could Lilith also enter a tactical gear’s data storage device and travel through time with him?

But this possibility was rejected by Salieh the moment it was proposed.

The reason was simple: in Lilith’s current state, even if she compressed herself into a storage device, her sheer scale during time travel would be far greater than anyone imagined.

This wasn’t merely a matter of calculating storage space, but a ‘massive scale’ on another level entirely. Thus, it was currently impossible for her to travel through time with Amber.

This also meant that once Amber activated the device to travel through time, he would truly enter ‘solo mode.’ All decisions and actions would have to be made by him alone, with no support from the outside world.

Similarly, to ensure timeline stability, the Forerunner civilization had built in some hard rules when developing similar devices. These were primarily compulsory settings based on ethics and military security. In Salieh’s description, these restrictions were called the ‘Spacetime Paradox Limitation Protocol.’

First was the principle known in the human world as ‘Novikov’s self-consistency principle.’ This meant the ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’ would, at a fundamental level, prohibit any jump that could lead to a logical contradiction in the timeline.

For example, it blocked the famous ‘grandfather paradox.’ If the device detected the user attempting to kill their own ancestor, a key historical figure, or otherwise sabotage the conditions of their own birth, it would forcibly freeze the operation and abort the time travel sequence, initiating a rollback.

In addition, there was the ‘forced information loop’ restriction.

This restriction prevented the user from bringing complete blueprints for future technology back to the past. The device would fragment and encrypt any information ahead of its time, only permitting the triggering of something called ‘technological inspiration’—for instance, revealing fragments of future technology or formulas to a researcher in the current timeline, making them mistake it for their own intuition.

Furthermore, Salieh—or rather, the Forerunner civilization—had forcibly integrated ‘causality stability’ into the device’s core operating logic. It would dynamically limit high-risk operations by calculating the user’s disturbance value to the spacetime continuum in real-time.

For example, it contained a ‘database of key historical events in this universe,’ which Salieh had compiled after accessing the Atlas database, prohibiting the user from intervening within a close proximity in the hour before or after these ‘key time points.’

At the same time, if the user’s intervention in a non-key event led to a massive change in the future, the device would trigger a ‘timeline stripping’ operation and permanently lock access to that timeline, unless Salieh built a new device.

Beyond that, the user was also unable to leak any technological knowledge to ancient peoples to help them ‘defy fate and change their destiny,’ because the device would monitor this using some kind of civilization level index set by the Forerunners. If the threshold was exceeded, the device would immediately self-destruct.

Looking at this restriction, Amber felt it was likely the Forerunners were worried that the civilizations they intended to destroy might obtain this technology and use it to travel through time for some kind of ‘future aid,’ preventing the Forerunners from completing their missions of ‘genocide.’

Although Amber was unlikely to trigger the final restriction, Salieh still informed and reminded him of it: travel to a time before the device was invented by the Jeram people was absolutely forbidden.

This was to prevent any accident that might lead to the device never being invented, thereby triggering a recursive paradox.

“In short, you can only use this device to facilitate your infiltration activities. Don’t even think about using it to get any funny ideas. Trust me, the ‘funny ideas’ you humans can come up with are just a tiny speck in the corner of the list of restrictions.”

This was the last thing Salieh said before Amber left the lab, and it was this sentence that completely extinguished Amber’s thoughts of pulling some ‘wild moves’ with the device.

Leaving Salieh’s lab and walking down the corridors of The Dawn, Amber began to carefully consider his plan.

The interior of the Star Dragon Empire’s Grand Palace was undoubtedly filled with all sorts of detection and defense systems. It was also certain to have added ‘psionic detection radar’ specifically to guard against psionic users. This meant that if Amber really wanted to use this meeting with Agnes as an opportunity to infiltrate, he would not only have to carefully avoid all the guards, but he also couldn’t use any psionics in the process.

“Damn, this is a bit like infiltrating Stilton’s mansion in Dishonored 2. Powers are restricted. The only difference is that the Grand Palace I’m thinking of infiltrating is much, much larger than that mansion. Or should I act like a Titan Pilot, relying solely on physical strength?”

At this thought, Amber realized that perhaps he needed to step up his physical training.

“Ilowen.” Deciding to act immediately, Amber called out the name of The Dawn’s shipboard control AI.

“I’m here, Your Excellency Amber~”

“Activate a comprehensive training room for me. Set it to ‘Psionic User Training Mode,’ maximum intensity, psionics disabled. I’ll be there shortly.”

—

As the twelve-day warp journey was about to conclude, Amber finally emerged from the comprehensive training room. He washed up, took a shower, and, for a rare occasion, had Isabelle help him with his appearance, changing into a retro-style outfit with a distinct Star Dragon Empire flair.

“Are you sure I have to wear this? Your Empire’s clothing is too complicated. It’s really not practical for moving around.”

While Isabelle focused on arranging the complex, wave-like ruffles of his collar, Amber couldn’t help but complain as he looked at his drastically different reflection in the mirror.

“What, you’re still thinking of infiltrating the Grand Palace on the day you arrive?”

Isabelle spoke words that would be considered highly ‘treasonous’ by the people of the Empire as she shot Amber an annoyed glare. She then patiently smoothed out the faint wrinkles on his clothes, like a virtuous and attentive wife.

As the intelligence chief of the Atlas Group and currently the group’s publicly acknowledged ‘main wife,’ Amber had naturally informed Isabelle of his plan. As the daughter of an Imperial noble, Isabelle was well aware of many important matters concerning the Star Dragon Empire’s aristocracy, and she would of course be accompanying him on this trip to the Imperial Capital.

“That’s not the reason…”

Isabelle ignored Amber’s words. After a sigh, her tone became more like that of a wife giving her husband instructions before he left the house.

“Just wear it. In any case, you’re meeting with Her Highness the Princess this time. Setting aside how revered her status is in the Empire, the Empire itself is a place that values these formalities. If you really want Atlas’s business to expand in the Empire, you need to properly adapt to the local traditions and customs at times like these.”

Amber said, “Alright, alright, I’ll do as you say. Speaking of which, Isabelle, why are you becoming more and more like a nagging wife?”

“Amber…”

Seeing the displeasure on Isabelle’s face, Amber deftly leaned in and kissed her, physically suppressing her rising anger.

Just then, an announcement came over the ship’s broadcast system, notifying them that the warp was about to end.

Soon, Amber and Isabelle arrived on the bridge, just in time to witness the moment The Dawn emerged from hyperspace and arrived at Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire.

Although they had Agnes’s authorization and Viscount BASF’s arrangements, this was the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, after all. So, The Dawn’s current position was at a starport on the periphery of the Orbital Defense Platforms.

After a brief authorization check, The Dawn, a super-capital ship, was escorted by a guide boat into a specially expanded docking port under the watchful eyes of what seemed to be the entire starport’s force of HCPs and an assembled patrol fleet.

“Docking error within acceptable range. Initiating port docking procedure.”

As the shipboard control AI’s voice sounded, dozens of electromagnetic docking clamps extended from the port, surrounding the ship like a spider’s limbs before finally connecting with the standard interfaces all over The Dawn’s hull.

According to the itinerary Viscount BASF had sent before Amber’s departure, this behemoth of a ship could only dock at the starport. The Baron himself would lead them via shuttle to the docking area of an Orbital Defense Platform, from where they would take an aerospace craft to the surface.

Although the whole process was a bit cumbersome, Viscount BASF had described it as the most streamlined procedure possible for a foreign dignitary.

While waiting for the shuttle to enter The Dawn’s deployment bay, Amber looked through the bay’s porthole and saw the terminator line of Saint-Saulnier winding across the planet’s surface. The capital city of the Star Dragon Empire stood out like a cluster of rubies inlaid upon jade.

“Your Excellency Amber! You’ve finally arrived! I’ve been waiting for this day for far too long!”

The moment the shuttle’s hatch opened, Viscount BASF shot out with an agility that completely betrayed his stature, rushing to Amber’s side and enthusiastically shaking his hand.

“You’re too kind, Baron, Sir.” Even Amber, who was used to the man’s enthusiasm, was a bit taken aback this time.

However, the Baron was clearly in a hurry to proceed with the next steps, so he didn’t linger to exchange pleasantries. He quickly led Amber, Isabelle, and several other attendants onto the shuttle.

Everyone else, including Salieh, would remain on standby aboard The Dawn. The few personnel accompanying Amber were actually Oksana, newly promoted to Vice President of Atlas Private Defense Company, and a few of her subordinate ‘cat-girls.’

Ostensibly, they were personal bodyguards for the pair, but their real mission was to exclusively protect the relatively weaker Isabelle.

Amber himself didn’t actually need protection. As the strongest single combat unit in the Atlas Group, there was no one in the entire organization qualified to protect him.

Thanks to Viscount BASF’s meticulous arrangements, the subsequent journey to the surface was incredibly smooth, and Amber had a rare opportunity to relax and experience the full luxury of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.

With a slight vibration, the silver-white aerospace craft carrying Amber and the others detached from its hardpoint at the Orbital Defense Platform’s docking area. The Empire’s designers had wracked their brains to give this earth-to-space vehicle not only its required functionality but also an exterior adorned with gilded reliefs. Under the light of the star, it looked like a magnificent giant bird gliding into the low orbit of Saint-Saulnier.

The interior of the craft, with its palace-like construction and decorations, made it hard for Amber to believe he was inside an aerospace craft.

And for an aerospace craft, the gravity simulation system was the pinnacle of luxury. Its sole purpose for being activated was to allow the chandelier inside the cabin to hang down in the zero-gravity environment, making the crystal fixture sway in the amber light and cast mottled shadows on the cedarwood paneling.

“These people really know how to live. This is too extravagant…”

Amber marveled at the craft’s interior like a country bumpkin in the city. Even though he was now the de facto controller of a universal megacorporation, when it came to ‘enjoying life,’ he clearly couldn’t compare to the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, who used the power of an entire nation for their own benefit.

Before long, the aerospace craft descended into Saint-Saulnier’s atmosphere. According to the diagram on the cabin screen, they would be landing directly at the Imperial Capital’s royal airfield.

As the aerospace craft’s altitude continued to drop, the spectacular vista of Saint-Saulnier’s capital became clearer to everyone. Oksana and the other Romu were speechless. Even Isabelle, despite being the daughter of an Imperial noble, had only visited Saint-Saulnier before and had never entered the capital proper.

And although Amber had been here many times in the game in his previous life, following quest markers, that was the future Saint-Saulnier, a ruin devastated by war, not the magnificent capital before him now, hailed as the ‘Crown of the Empire.’

“Your Excellency Amber, the Princess is awaiting you at the airfield, and we’ve prepared a grand welcoming ceremony!”

“Grand?”

The corner of Amber’s eye twitched when he heard that word. He had always assumed that, given Agnes’s current situation and the status of the Atlas Group, this meeting would be a low-key affair. That was why he had considered using this visit to ‘stir up trouble.’

But now, it seemed his arrival had become a major, highly anticipated, and widely known event.

“Tsk… this is not a good start.”

Chapter 676: Meeting at Last

As the aerospace craft began its landing sequence, about to touch down at the Royal Private Airport, Amber caught a glimpse of the scene outside through the observation windows on either side of the cabin.

Lacking the words, Amber found it difficult to describe the arrangement Agnes had prepared. A line from a comedic skit he had seen as a child simply flashed through his mind.

“What a guy, what a scene! Banners waving, a sea of people, gongs and drums deafening, firecrackers popping…”

As if his imagination had been automatically switched on, this voice from the depths of his memory echoed in his head, so much so that Lilith asked with some confusion:

“Master, did something strange just flash through your mind?”

“It’s nothing, nothing. You must have misheard.”

Amber didn’t dwell on the issue with Lilith. His attention was completely focused on the welcoming crowd at the airport. From their attire, it was easy to tell that these people were also nobles and members of the Empire’s upper class. Yet, at Agnes’s call, these pampered individuals had come here to greet his arrival.

“So these must be the core of the ‘Princess Faction’?” Amber asked Viscount BASF half-jokingly.

The Viscount, however, answered quite seriously, “That’s right, Your Excellency Amber. Those who are able to attend the welcoming ceremony today are among her most ‘staunch’ supporters. Her Highness the Princess also hopes to use this opportunity to introduce them to you, to facilitate future cooperation between our two sides.”

Amber replied, “Well now, it seems Her Highness is quite optimistic about the outcome of this meeting. She seems determined to succeed.”

“But of course.” Viscount BASF nodded and continued, “I have rarely seen Her Highness place such importance on anything. Cooperating with the Atlas Group is of the highest priority for her.”

As Viscount BASF spoke, the aerospace craft they were in touched down on the runway. The moment the landing gear made contact with the ground, sixty-four ancient-style cast bronze ceremonial cannons positioned around them roared to life, spewing clouds of smoke laced with gold dust.

As the boarding gangway connected, under the purplish-red twilight sky, the white vapor from the depressurizing cabin door dissipated, and the door slowly opened. In that instant, a tidal wave of sound rushed in from the outside—hundreds of soldiers from the Imperial Capital Garrison Corps were striking the ground with their halberds, letting out thunderous war cries.

These imperial soldiers, all clad in Heavy Exoskeletons, had specially replaced their outer armor modules with some sort of glittering, golden ceremonial plate while retaining the internal frame. The breastplates and pauldrons, now purely decorative, were etched with a Star Dragon motif.

Their only weapons were the plasma halberds in their hands, but even these heavy melee weapons had become part of the pageantry. With each strike against the ground, tiny ionic sparks burst from the plasma blades.

Just like the Federation, the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Garrison Corps in the capital, Saint-Saulnier, was a kind of “presence force” where the children of nobles and high-ranking officials went for a bit of resume gilding. Rather than expecting them to display any real combat effectiveness in a crisis, it was better to hope their formations, war cries, and ceremonial marching were flawless.

However, due to differences in their political systems, the status of the Royal Family, and their circumstances, the capital’s defenses in the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation were not entirely the same.

Overall, the Star Dragon Empire’s capital defense was not a complete mess like the Federation’s. True, the Royal Garrison Corps had little combat strength, but one must not forget that the Royal Family also had the Imperial Guard. The Princess’s Guard Regiment under Agnes’s command was, in fact, part of the Imperial Guard, and this unit was a truly elite force, the one genuinely responsible for the capital’s defense.

Similarly, the true security for the Grand Palace, Amber’s “optional objective” for this trip, was handled by the Imperial Guard and the Royal Silencers. The Imperial Capital Garrison Corps served more as a symbol of the Royal Family, or like “visible sentries” responsible for outer perimeter security—one of their most important jobs was maintaining order among the large crowds of believers near the Grand Palace and the State Religion cathedral.

At a gesture from Viscount BASF, Isabelle took Amber’s arm and they slowly descended the connected gangway. The grand display outside was now in full view.

On either side of the red carpet that extended from the end of the gangway, sixty-four ‘Royal Cleric’ HCPs stood like mechanical gods, their ceremonial longswords raised high. These steel demon gods, painted in gold and silver, were draped in crimson satin capes, their surfaces embroidered with golden thread depicting the epic conquests of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.

At the same time, a military band positioned nearby struck up a stirring anthem. Timpani drums throbbed, and silver-plated trombones pointed diagonally toward the sky. Amidst the music, one could even hear the faint, distant sound of dragon roars.

This military band was also part of the Imperial Capital Garrison Corps, and its proportion within the unit’s structure was far higher than that of other combat troops. Coupled with various other non-combat units under the Garrison Corps, such as the HCP demonstration team and the honor guard, it could be said that this corps was quite versatile in every aspect—except for fighting.

As Amber and Isabelle stepped onto the red carpet, all the ‘Royal Clerics’ raised their longswords, crossing them diagonally to form an archway. The light curtains projected from the blades decorated the path like draperies and military banners.

“I have to say, your Star Dragon Empire is quite skilled at this. Making such a flashy spectacle for the reception of a private enterprise boss,” Amber whispered, his voice low enough for only he and Isabelle to hear.

Although Isabelle’s sense of belonging to the Star Dragon Empire had long since faded, she didn’t dare say much on this occasion. She could only squeeze the arm she was holding firmly.

As for the host of this welcoming ceremony, Her Highness Agnes Barbara Leon, Princess of the Star Dragon Empire, she stood at the very end of the red-carpeted path. As the pearl of the Empire, it was as if all the light at the airport converged upon her at this moment.

As Amber and the others drew closer, Princess Agnes’s features became clearer in his eyes.

A red and white formal gown clung to her magnificent figure like a second skin. The curve of her waist and hips rose and fell breathtakingly beneath the tightly cinched fabric. A high slit in the skirt revealed bountiful thighs wrapped in white silk. Her platinum-blonde hair, stirred by the airflow from the aerospace craft’s engines, swayed at her waist, the tips brushing against a pearl-adorned skirt and creating a subtle stellar glimmer. Her signature S-shaped horns were entwined with fine gold chains, from which rubies dangled, pulsing faintly with each of her breaths.

Amber had to admit, the Agnes before him was even more stunning than her model in the game from his previous life. Although her character had mostly appeared in cutscenes or time-reversal quests and didn’t have much screen time, she and the wealthy elf Allenita had still jointly won the “Best Model in Starry Sky Online” award, as voted by male players. Supporters of both sides even fought endlessly on the forums, brandishing all sorts of body analysis data to argue over who was hotter.

“Mr. Amber has come from afar today, which brings me great pleasure. I have been looking forward to this meeting for a very long time.”

When only a few steps remained between them, Agnes’s voice rang out, neither too early nor too late. As she lifted her head, the unique pattern of draconic scales on her slender neck became visible in the sunset. By the time she finished speaking, Amber and his group had come to a stop right in front of her.

“To see for oneself is better than to hear from others. I have long heard of Your Highness’s grace, and to witness such unmatched elegance in person today is a true fortune for me.”

Amber spoke somewhat awkwardly in the so-called “Imperial noble tongue.” Isabelle had given him a last-minute crash course on these very phrases.

At that moment, Amber found a rare appreciation for the Federation. At least there, everyone spoke plainly, without all this formal, bookish language.

Hearing Amber’s stiff praise, Agnes couldn’t help but chuckle softly before turning her gaze to Isabelle beside him.

“Lord Isabelle, it has been a long time. How is your father’s health these days? Did the rebellion instigated by his younger brother in collusion with the former Minister of Internal Affairs affect Lord Jonathan at all?”

“Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. My father’s health is quite robust. As for the rebellion you mentioned… I must thank Your Highness for speaking out on our family’s behalf and ensuring justice was served,” Isabelle replied.

“The Ahrens family has worked hard and achieved great merit. I could not stand by and allow such sordid affairs to affect your family,” Princess Agnes said with a smile. Just then, a gentle breeze blew past, and she raised her slender fingers to brush a strand of hair from her forehead.

In that instant, Amber had to admit the rumors were true—her genetically optimized eyes possessed rare nebula-like irises, and in the sunset glow, her pupils contracted into the vertical slits unique to draconic beings. Her face seemed sculpted by the most precise mathematical calculations, perfect from every angle in accordance with the golden ratio. Even the slightest change in her expression held a soul-stirring charm.

“It is not good hospitality to keep our honored guests standing here for so long. Please, let us proceed to the vehicles and head to the private villa to settle in. At the banquet later, there are many outstanding Imperial nobles, like Viscount BASF, who wish to make Mr. Amber’s acquaintance.”

“Then we shall be in your care for the next few days, Your Highness,” Amber said with a nod, then followed Agnes toward the waiting convoy.

As they were about to board, Amber assumed he would be riding with Isabelle and the others, but unexpectedly, the young woman in an Imperial Guard officer’s uniform who had been standing by Agnes’s side suddenly stepped in front of him.

“Mr. Amber, I am Natalia Bonaparte, Regiment Commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment. Her Highness the Princess wishes for you to ride with her. There are some matters she hopes to discuss and coordinate with you in advance.”

“Ride with her?”

“Yes, Mr. Amber.”

“Just me? What about the others?”

“Her Highness wishes to speak with you alone. The others will proceed as planned in the vehicle next to yours.”

“Just me and Her Highness… alone? Is that… appropriate?”

“…”

Natalia froze on the spot, clearly not having anticipated such an answer.

In the end, it was Isabelle who saved the situation. As the child of an Imperial noble, her ingrained reverence for Agnes was not something that could be erased in a year or two. Seeing Amber’s “disrespectful” behavior, she immediately and discreetly moved to his side and gave his waist a hard pinch.

“Amber, hurry up and go. Don’t be rude to Her Highness.”

Then, she leaned in and whispered in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz, “Do you want to close this big deal or not?”

You see, Atlas’s “nagging wife” was more anxious than Amber himself right now.

With Isabelle putting it like that, what else could Amber say?

After she, Oksana, and the others got into their car, Amber followed Natalia to Agnes’s vehicle. Natalia held the door open for him. He nodded and carefully sat inside. Natalia then went around and sat in the front passenger seat.

“Your Highness, please forgive me if I have offended you.”

“There’s no need to be so formal, Mr. Amber.”

Seeing Amber’s somewhat nervous demeanor, Agnes chuckled lightly and continued, “I can see that Mr. Amber is not yet accustomed to the Empire’s… hmm, certain conversational customs. There is no one else here now, so we can relax a little when we speak.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Amber breathed a sigh of relief. More than the princess’s title, it was this stilted “Imperial official-speak” that had been putting pressure on him from the start.

As someone who grew up in a socialist country and was steeped in all kinds of “internet culture,” Amber, like most of his peers, found it difficult to feel any real reverence for titles like “emperor” or “princess.”

So, he raised his head and looked directly at Agnes, who was sitting opposite him.

At that moment, a ray of sunset slanted through the car window. Agnes’s form-fitting gown revealed the full contour of her bustline, and the mother-of-pearl buttons gleamed softly in the shadows. She leaned back lazily against the soft cushions. The crystal clasp at the hem of her skirt twinkled with the slight jolt of the car starting, like a galaxy had fallen at her ankle.

Everyone should be well aware of what kind of person Amber is, so his gaze quickly locked onto a prominent location—the alluring valley partially visible at the open collar of Agnes’s gown. Golden draconic scales shimmered on her snow-white skin, pulsing faintly with the rhythm of her breathing.

“Beep-boop!* Master is going to have his soul stolen by this wicked woman!”

In the virtual space, Lilith, who had been watching the entire exchange, was suddenly on high alert. An unprecedented sense of a “man-stealing” crisis washed over her.

Although she knew full well that the woman across from Amber was of unknown allegiance and unfathomably deep—not someone Amber could easily win over—and that her current seductive behavior was likely a deliberate display after having investigated him, she knew her “Master” even better. She knew what an unscrupulous person he was. When faced with a sugar-coated bullet, he would always choose to eat the “sugar coating” first.

Meanwhile, Agnes, noticing Amber’s gaze, curled her lips into a slight smile.

“Mr. Amber, you’ve been staring at my necklace for three seconds,” Agnes’s fingertip traced the necklace on her chest. “Would you like me to tell you its story?”

Chapter 677: Speaking Frankly

“Her Highness the Princess is truly perceptive. To be honest, my eyes were indeed drawn by the necklace on your chest.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Amber, who had snapped back to his senses, averted his gaze and explained with feigned composure.

He naturally couldn’t say that he had been captivated by the magnificent pair on her chest, otherwise he’d probably be thrown out of the car on the spot. So, for the moment, he could only go along with Agnes’s words and seize the opportunity to extricate himself from the awkward situation.

Fortunately, Agnes didn’t seem to mind Amber’s impoliteness. Instead, she formally introduced the necklace around her neck and used it as a conversation starter to chat with Amber about some amusing court anecdotes.

This approach left Amber a bit baffled. He had assumed that Agnes had invited him to ride in the same car to discuss the details of their cooperation. Who would have thought that after getting in, she would just keep making small talk about this and that.

However, he soon realized that Her Highness the Princess had come prepared. She was using this method to close the distance and ease the wariness that still existed between them from their first meeting.

Just as Amber had anticipated, when the atmosphere inside the car became relaxed and cheerful, filled with the sound of their laughter, the partition between the back and front seats slowly rose and activated its anti-eavesdropping mode. Her Highness the Princess finally got down to business.

“Mr. Amber, Baron BASF mentioned that your company’s business in the Federation has been proceeding exceptionally smoothly recently?”

Hearing this, Amber knew exactly what Agnes meant and replied at once:

“Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It’s just some small business in commodity trading and resource development. We’re grateful to our business partners in the Federation for their support. Besides, we owe our current situation entirely to Your Highness sending charcoal in a snowstorm back then. I hope that my rather ill-considered request did not cause you too much trouble afterward.”

“Trouble is too strong a word. It was nothing more than some gossip. The Imperial Council and those nobles are bound to make some noise when they don’t see any benefit for themselves.”

Agnes said this in a calm and collected manner, then she suddenly looked at Amber with a serious expression, her tone shifting.

“The Regent Prince’s faction, on the other hand, took the opportunity to make a big issue of it, vehemently criticizing my decision. It’s rather vexing… Your Excellency Amber, I had always thought the Regent Prince’s faction and the Atlas Group had a good relationship. After all, they were the ones who introduced the new communication technology in the first place. Why are they now so… resistant to me helping you?”

Amber raised an eyebrow. He instantly understood Agnes’s intention in pulling him aside for a private chat—this Imperial Princess was planning to formally win over the Atlas Group to support her in the war for the throne.

As the Princess of the Star Dragon Empire and one of the two major powers in the final stages of the war for the throne, it was impossible for Agnes not to know that the Regent Prince’s faction, with their wild moves, had pushed their relationship with the Atlas Group to the brink of collapse.

The fragile cooperation between the two sides was barely being maintained by two things: the service period in the technical service agreement had not yet expired, and several large final payments had yet to be made.

And this was merely maintaining a final bit of grace. Amber believed that as soon as the relationship between the Atlas Group and the Regent Prince Faction was disturbed by other external factors—for example, the possibility of the Atlas Group cooperating with the Princess Faction in the Star Dragon Empire’s war for the throne—this fragile partnership would immediately shatter.

Although the Regent Prince Faction would find it difficult to come up with a single countermeasure to defeat them, they would surely endure the short-term disruption to their long-range communications and do everything in their power to use their influence to prevent the Atlas Group’s presence from entering the Empire’s territory.

And Amber, of course, could choose to forgo these huge final payments.

Then, in the subsequent war for the throne, he could throw his full support behind the Princess, help her completely annihilate the Regent Prince Faction, and thereby lay the foundation for the Atlas Group to expand its business into the Empire’s territory.

This was also something Amber simply couldn’t figure out. Just like that great leader of old who pondered for ten days and ten nights and still couldn’t fathom why his neighboring country struck first, he couldn’t understand why the Regent Prince’s faction would, for no good reason, push a powerful ally like the Atlas Group to the opposing side at such a critical juncture.

Is our Atlas Group not strong enough? Have we not plundered enough capital? Is our technology not advanced enough? On what grounds do you refuse the Atlas Group’s help? Are you looking down on us at Atlas?

To be honest, in Amber’s view, the Regent Prince’s faction’s inexplicable attitude was even more insulting than if they had insulted him directly…

A slight tremor from the car’s body interrupted Amber’s thoughts. He turned to look out the window and saw several HCP units on escort duty flash past through the woods near the private villa. These were not the ‘honor guard’ from the airport, but elite pilots from the Princess’s Guard Regiment.

Their piloting skills and control over their mechs were of a very high level. If it weren’t for the fact that Amber, as a high-level psionic user, had senses far beyond those of an ordinary person, it would have been difficult to notice their movements from inside the soundproofed vehicle.

However, the movements of these HCPs also brought Amber’s focus back to his conversation with Agnes. The torrent of thoughts that had just flashed through his mind had actually taken place in a mere instant.

“Since Your Highness the Princess has raised this question, I believe we should be more frank with each other. I’m sure you are already aware of the recent situation between the Atlas Group and the Regent Prince’s faction. Not only is it difficult for me to continue cooperating with them, but our current relationship is also likely to worsen with my visit today. So, Your Highness, please say whatever is on your mind. After all, there shouldn’t be any other outsiders in this car besides me~”

Hearing Amber’s words, a smile appeared on Agnes’s face. The rhythm of the conversation was going just as her team had simulated, and Amber’s reaction and attitude had not deviated from their predictions either. The true controller of the Atlas Group didn’t beat around the bush; just like his combat style, he was remarkably direct.

“Your style is indeed as direct as they say. In that case, I’ll be direct as well, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes straightened up from the soft seat cushion, leaning her upper body slightly forward and closer to Amber. The movement caused her necklace and the large pair on her chest to sway a little, prompting Lilith to once again ‘make a note’ in the virtual space.

“I hope that the Atlas Group will give me its full support in my bid for the throne. When necessary, I may require your company to provide direct support of all kinds, including military aid. Of course, the ‘price’ I am offering for this will absolutely be worth your serious consideration, Mr. Amber.”

Chapter 678: The Win-Win Situation (Conclusion)

Agnes’s sudden directness was actually somewhat unexpected for Amber.

Baron BASF’s prior ‘heads-up’ hadn’t prepared him for this. According to the Baron, Her Highness the Princess was not such a direct person, especially with someone of Amber’s sensitive status whom she didn’t know well. So, he had told Amber to be prepared to ‘divine’ the princess’s intentions.

Since the game in his previous life had focused far more on Agnes’s stunning appearance than her life story or personal style, Amber, being unfamiliar with the princess’s personality, had believed Baron BASF. He had even boldly guessed that Her Highness the Princess was likely the type to not speak plainly, possibly even another Riddler.

But now it seemed… What?! The intel was wrong?

Fortunately, Amber had already discussed related topics with other high-level executives at the Atlas Group. After their relationship with the Regent Prince’s faction began to deteriorate, they had immediately started exploring a plan to fully back Agnes, assisting her in a smooth enthronement to secure the greatest possible benefits for the Atlas Group within the Star Dragon Empire.

Never mind ‘nation-selling’ level conditions, they would at least start by demanding dozens of fully open large-scale trade ports, and the matter of tariffs would also need to be thoroughly discussed.

However, Amber didn’t have a firm grasp of Agnes’s thoughts just yet, so he planned to first extract more information from Her Highness the Princess. That way, he could propose more suitable terms during the bargaining process to come.

“Full support to help you ascend the throne?” Amber chuckled, finding it absurd. “Isn’t the throne pretty much a certainty for you already? His Majesty has already declared he will formally pass the throne to you, and your enthronement ceremony is just a few months away. When the time comes, please allow me the honor of viewing the ceremony from the front row to witness that moment.”

“Mr. Amber, I can’t tell if you’re probing me or if you’re genuinely unaware…”

Agnes gave Amber a look that was quite contrary to royal etiquette before continuing:

“Do you think the Regent Prince and his faction will just give up because of my Father Emperor’s words? As the enthronement ceremony approaches, their actions have become increasingly blatant. And with the existence of those ‘neutral factions’ who are just seeing which way the wind is blowing, I have to consider every threat that could affect my ascension. Your company’s recently demonstrated strength has been witnessed by the entire human world, which is why I hope the Atlas Group can become one of my ‘insurance policies.’”

“Including using Atlas’s armed forces to help you ascend?”

“Yes, including deploying armed forces to assist in an emergency. Believe me, Mr. Amber, my understanding of your company’s military power and technological level is not insignificant. This is why I value you so highly, even to the point of taking a risk and dispatching my fleet to assist your company.”

Agnes’s serious tone continued as the content of her next words amounted to a complete showdown with Amber:

“As you yourself said, Mr. Amber, your company’s relationship with the Regent Prince is beyond repair. Meanwhile, the neutral and conservative nobles within the Empire haven’t engaged with you deeply enough. No matter which of those factions gains a voice in the Star Dragon Empire, it won’t be good for the Atlas Group’s plans to open up the market here. Therefore, betting on me is your company’s optimal solution right now.”

“I have a general understanding of your needs now~”

After hearing Agnes out, Amber had a rough idea of what the princess was thinking, and his script now sounded like that of a frontline Atlas salesman.

“Then let’s talk about a rough ‘offer’ for now. Of course, this won’t be the final price. If we can truly reach an agreement, I will have the group’s most professional team liaise with your people~”

“Excellent~”

Agnes nodded and then laid out a series of ‘offers’ that far exceeded Amber’s expectations.

It wasn’t just about opening free trade ports or granting preferential tariffs, but directly allowing the Atlas Group to make large-scale investments, becoming an integral part of the Star Dragon Empire’s economy and production, while also deeply binding the Royal Family to the Atlas Group.

“Huh? No… Are you sure this doesn’t count as selling out the country?” Amber was genuinely surprised by the generous terms Agnes had offered.

“Your company’s strength isn’t just in its military technology. Your communications, information technology, and highly efficient management systems are also things worth introducing and learning from. If embracing new technology to enhance our national strength, eliminating those nobles who do nothing but waste resources, and allowing the Empire’s citizens to live better lives is considered ‘selling out the country,’ then I, Agnes Barbara Leon, am willing to bear that ‘infamy.’”

‘Heh… an impressive amount of daring. I just wonder how many of these words will actually materialize in the end.’

This thought flashed through Amber’s mind. Agnes’s boldness had somewhat exceeded his expectations; clearly, the Atlas Intelligence Center’s assessment of the princess had been a little too low.

“Your Highness, your daring is admirable, but I have one more question.” Amber now stared directly into Agnes’s eyes. “Why do you trust us at Atlas so much? Are you truly not worried that we might turn on our employer—or client, so to speak?”

“It’s simple. Mr. Amber is a businessman, and the Atlas Group is a universal megacorporation that prioritizes profit and efficiency above all else. You are loyal to capital, not royal power, and I will provide more ‘capital’ than anyone else.”

“You’re a very good judge of character~”

Amber said with a smile, but there was an unspoken second half to that thought in his mind.

“You’ve just underestimated my appetite.”

After their frank discussion, the conversation between Amber and Agnes deepened. However, when the topic of the old Emperor Frederick came up, Agnes immediately skipped over it, signaling to Amber that now was not the right time to discuss it.

During their talk, the convoy quickly arrived at Agnes’s private villa.

Though it was called a private villa, in Amber’s eyes, it could easily be considered a smaller version of the Grand Palace.

Whether it was when the old Emperor Frederick was still lucid, or during the reign of the previous emperor, Siegfried—Agnes’s grandfather—they were both quite accomplished when it came to treating their children, or rather, when it came to ‘extravagance.’

Royal children, especially the direct heirs, all had their own palaces in the capital region, and the late Eldest Prince and the infant youngest prince were no exceptions.

The former had died of illness during his palace’s construction, but at Frederick’s request, the palace was still completed, solely to commemorate his deceased eldest son.

As for the latter’s palace, construction had begun even before he was born.

Her Highness the Princess’s convoy was now stopped in front of the villa’s banquet hall. After Natalia opened the car door, Amber and Agnes stepped out one after the other.

Amber was already somewhat numb to the enormous, classical-palace-style banquet hall. He had seen too many such buildings on the way, especially after entering Agnes’s private villa. Besides marveling at how ‘the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family is truly rich,’ all he could think about now was how to get that money out of their pockets.

After meeting up with Isabelle and the others, the group ascended the steps toward the banquet hall. Halfway up the steps, Agnes suddenly stopped and turned around. The movement caused the necklace on her chest to sway gently, sending specks of silver light dancing in the delicate hollows of her collarbones. Her trailing gown fanned out across the stone steps, and the silver-thread dragon embroidery stretched with the turn of her waist, as if an ancient totem were awakening upon the curves of her hips.

“Mr. Amber…”

Agnes raised a jade-like arm towards Amber, her face lit with a soul-stirring smile.

“The future for both of us has arrived. Please, keep up. The guests in the banquet hall are eagerly awaiting you~”

In that instant, the Pearl of the Empire and the man she was looking at captured the gazes of every guest around them.

In this moment, under these circumstances, Amber couldn’t help but marvel. Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.

Even Isabelle, holding Amber’s arm, couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned by Agnes’s breathtaking beauty in that instant.

Lilith, for her part, marveled at the princess’s high ‘level’ of skill, a being that others simply couldn’t handle. She wished she could run to Isabelle’s ear that very second and shout at the top of her lungs:

“Wake up! Someone’s trying to steal your man right in front of you!”

Chapter 679: A Day in the Life of the Imperial Minister of Finance (Part 1)

January 2, 592 of the New Calendar, Saint-Saulnier, capital of the Star Dragon Empire, Imperial Ministry of Finance.

The instant the numbers on the digital clock flipped from ‘3:59:59’ to ‘4:00:00’, a hand with slightly wrinkled skin and unnaturally swollen knuckles pressed down on top of it, silencing the alarm that was about to ring.

At this hour, most people in the Empire were still asleep, enjoying the New Year holiday or a rare reunion with their families. Yes, even indentured laborers were granted a day and a half to two days off for the first two days of the year.

But for the owner of the hand that silenced the alarm, this was just the beginning of another workday.

Jacques Cole, the 58-year-old Imperial Minister of Finance, sat up in bed in the private quarters of his office like a robot. Wakened by his internal clock, pressing the alarm off early had, over the decades, become the first thing he did every morning.

Leaning against the headboard, Jacques Cole waited a few seconds. He then heard the faint whir of motors and mechanical gears from behind him. A set of medical mechanical arms extended from a hidden compartment in the headboard, moved toward his left arm, and after securing it, injected a small vial of golden liquid into his body.

Soon, Jacques Cole felt the thick fog in his mind clear, his entire being like a sponge soaking up water, quickly regaining its energy.

Injecting this mixture of a base nutrient solution and stimulants, specially prepared by the team of royal apothecaries, was the second thing Jacques Cole did every morning.

Ever since taking the position of Imperial Minister of Finance twenty-three years ago, Jacques Cole, then still young and robust, quickly found his health deteriorating day by day. This decline wasn’t due to the debauchery that often accompanies high office, but rather the irreversible damage caused by working a minimum of fifteen hours a day.

Everyone only saw the glamorous side of the Imperial Minister of Finance.

Yes, as the head official in charge of the Empire’s economic and financial affairs and the key figure who managed His Majesty the Emperor’s “purse,” the Star Dragon Empire’s Minister of Finance was considered the foremost of the four ministers of internal affairs, second only to the Imperial Prime Minister in status.

And with the previous Imperial Prime Minister having been brought down by the Regent Prince, and the newly appointed Prime Minister’s position still unstable, Jacques Cole had almost overnight become the most powerful official in the entire Empire.

After all, as just mentioned, he controlled the “purse strings.”

Therefore, not only did the old Emperor Frederick hold him in extremely high regard, but every other department, including the military, tried every means possible to get on his good side. This was because anything related to financial allocations would eventually pass through his hands, and national-level expenditures even required his personal approval.

And so, much like Marshal Trafalgar of the Federation, Jacques Cole, drawing upon the connections, prestige, and power he had accumulated over the years, successfully shouldered the burden of the Star Dragon Empire’s 102 colonized star systems and 47 resource star systems.

It seemed he wielded immense and crucial power, a life of boundless glory, right?

But in reality, Jacques Cole had regretted his decision from the very first day he took office.

He regretted not continuing his life as the carefree eldest son of the Cole family, whiling away his prime years strolling through the streets and appreciating his pet birds.

He regretted getting lost in the recognition of his abilities from His Majesty and the other ministers, leading him to unhesitatingly take on this mess.

When he saw the shocking figures and the five-digit backlog of pending matters, he wished he could drag his predecessor from his freshly dug grave, point at the massive holes in the financial statements, and demand to know where the hell all the money had gone.

And why was his name at the top of the list of candidates for Minister of Finance that his predecessor had left behind?

But obviously, the former Minister of Finance, who had worked diligently for the Empire for 90 years only to collapse and die in his office, could no longer answer that question.

After a cursory glance at the Ministry of Finance’s sea of information on his first day, Jacques Cole selected a burial plot for himself in his family’s cemetery on the second. He was afraid he would end up like his predecessor, worked to death in his office.

He put on the coat hanging casually on a rack by the bed, went to the washroom, and completed his simple, mechanical morning ablutions, ensuring his face was at least clean and tidy, before stepping out of his private quarters.

As he entered his office, the curtains slowly drew open, and the hidden light strips in the room activated to supplement the insufficient morning light.

At this hour, the employees of the Imperial Ministry of Finance had not yet started their day. Jacques Cole had also given his secretary a three-day leave, allowing the poor man, who hadn’t been home in a year, to reunite with his family.

And perhaps attend a New Year’s ball for the nobility, to see if he could meet a suitable noble lady. If he didn’t meet someone in these three days, well, he would have to wait until next year.

Jacques Cole rarely had the time in Saint-Saulnier to let his secretary go out on “matchmaking” excursions.

“Waukeen, compile a briefing of everything up until I woke up.”

Jacques Cole spoke in a somewhat raspy voice. Immediately, a projection appeared in front of his massive desk: a beautiful, slender young woman with magnificent, long, bright-golden hair and eyes like two pools of molten gold.

This was his AI assistant. Normally, she helped him organize the various documents, information, and data submitted by the lower departments. When his secretary was away, as he was now, this AI assistant, whom he had named “Waukeen,” would temporarily take on some secretarial duties, such as compiling briefings.

If Isabelle were present, she might have noticed that the virtual avatar’s face bore a slight resemblance to her own mother—who was also the Finance Minister’s sister.

This was why Jacques Cole normally did not allow the AI assistant’s image to be projected.

While waiting for Waukeen to prepare the briefing, Jacques Cole skillfully retrieved an energy bar from a corner cabinet drawer. He stirred it into a glass of freshly poured warm milk, and after it had dissolved slightly, he downed the slurry in one gulp.

This was the Imperial Minister of Finance’s breakfast: efficient, convenient, fast, and not particularly tasty.

But Jacques Cole didn’t care about such things. In the twenty-three years he had been in charge of the Empire’s finances, an endless stream of people had tried to curry favor with him. He also had to balance the various factions from a financial standpoint; otherwise, with the new Imperial Prime Minister’s somewhat reckless style, the internal political balance of the Empire would have long been shattered.

These matters inevitably required him to carve out precious rest time to attend all sorts of banquets and galas. What rare delicacies from land, sea, or alien worlds had he not tasted? After more than two decades, anyone would be sick of it.

“Your Grace, beginning the morning briefing. Current backlog of matters at the Ministry of Finance: 3—”

“Skip it. Tell me the rest.”

Before Waukeen could utter the daunting number, Jacques Cole cut her off. He didn’t want his mood ruined at the start of the day by the Ministry’s never-ending list of tasks.

“Understood, Your Grace. Duke Artesia and the Minister of the Navy have jointly submitted a new fleet construction plan. They have also sent their twelfth request, hoping to immediately begin upgrading the heavily damaged Serenity Fortress.”

“Deny the fleet construction plan. Tell them if they want a new fleet, they should start by streamlining their existing one and decommissioning those obsolete warships, instead of extending their service lives just to maintain fleet size. If they had streamlined the fleet earlier, the maintenance cost savings would have been enough to start planning for a new one long ago.”

The first piece of news in the morning was the Duke and the Navy Minister coming to him for ‘silver.’ Jacques Cole pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

Of course, he knew that the Imperial Navy had suffered heavy losses in the previous battle with the Federation and was in dire need of replenishment. The problem was that fleets didn’t just appear out of thin air, and there were countless things throughout the Empire that needed funding. So, by standard procedure, he should have diverted the money from another project’s budget.

The problem was, the Empire no longer had any other project budgets to ‘divert’ from.

Therefore, Jacques Cole could only deny the request for now. He believed that Duke Artesia and the Minister of the Navy would understand the meaning behind the “denial” and would patiently wait a few weeks before submitting the same request again, praying that a few less important projects might free up the budget for fleet construction.

“As for the Serenity Fortress upgrade, reply to them that once the sixth artificial space elevator fortress is complete, they can use the construction teams that become available. They just have to wait. At this critical juncture, I will not approve the formation of another construction team for a space elevator fortress!”

Waukeen raised no objection to Jacques Cole’s words, merely recording them faithfully and generating official documents based on his recommendations.

As soon as Jacques Cole made a decision, Waukeen would quickly report the next important matter, ensuring the entire process wasted as little time as possible.

“Your Grace, the Revenue Service wishes to raise this year’s ‘Entropy Increase Tax’ by 0.5% to compensate for the energy losses from empire-wide transport over the past two years.”

“Denied,” Jacques Cole said without a second thought. “Tell them to stop proposing such brainless suggestions. 0.5%? They sit in their offices all day, completely unaware of how many nobles would go bankrupt and how many companies would go out of business with a 0.5% tax hike under current conditions. Do they want to trigger an industrial collapse across the Empire?”

Jacques Cole had the right to say such things to the ‘Imperial civil servants’ of the Revenue Service. When he was a student at the Star Dragon Empire National University, pursuing a dual post-doctoral degree in economics and sociology, he and his mentor had spent a great deal of time visiting various star systems throughout the Empire.

He had been to prosperous star systems and attended banquets of the upper-crust nobility; he had also gone in disguise to barren border systems, living and eating alongside the poor in the slums of underdeveloped planets. Compared to these ‘Imperial civil servants’ who had never left the Capital star system in their lives, he clearly had a much better understanding of the fundamental operating logic of this vast empire.

Even if it was only a small part.

“Your Grace, the next item is also from the Revenue Service. The Cassandra star system has still not paid its tax arrears from the year before last. The system’s lord, Count Monet, has ignored multiple reminders from the Revenue Service. The Supervisor of the Revenue Service requests permission to proceed with armed tax collection.”

“The Cassandra star system.”

A rough overview of the system flashed through Jacques Cole’s mind. In fact, after undergoing cerebral enhancements, Jacques Cole had long since committed to memory the details of every colonized and resource star system in the Empire, right down to the planets within them.

This tax-delinquent system was not particularly rich in resources, and its planets were developing slowly. Compounded by the fact that Count Monet and the family behind him were mediocre at best in their governance, the system’s tax payments had always been a chronic problem.

Moreover, when the Federation invaded the Empire previously, the Cassandra star system had, by sheer bad luck, become a warzone on the front lines, which only made a bad situation catastrophic for the already poor system.

It was a truly tragic situation, but that didn’t mean they could default on their taxes.

In Jacques Cole’s view, taxes were the economic foundation of this vast Empire, an absolutely indispensable element. If even this foundation began to crack, he wouldn’t even have the chance to rob Peter to pay Paul.

Since the Monet family’s governance could generate the wealth corresponding to these taxes, they should have set aside the tax portion in advance, rather than coming to the Ministry of Finance to plead poverty now.

Although Jacques Cole knew that his next decision would inevitably force the Monet family to intensify their exploitation of the commoners under their rule to pay the taxes, and that countless families in the Cassandra star system would be torn apart, countless lower-class citizens unable to survive the next few extreme seasons.

But compared to the few percentage points of the deficit that the tax payment would cover, these foreseeable tragedies were something Jacques Cole had to ignore.

“In my capacity as Minister of Finance, I approve the Revenue Service’s request for armed tax collection in the Cassandra star system. I authorize the deployment of the Revenue Service’s armed forces… oh, and send a copy of the relevant information to the Minister of the Navy. The construction of the new fleet and the upgrade of Serenity Fortress… I will raise their priority based on the assistance he provides.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The entire morning and forenoon passed in this manner, with Waukeen continuously presenting one relatively important briefing after another, complete with data and images, while Jacques Cole made decisions, approving or denying projects from time to time.

As the Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole naturally didn’t need to handle every matter down to the last detail. The backlog of tasks, which his twenty-three years of effort had reduced from five digits to four, was the responsibility of the entire staff of the Ministry of Finance.

He merely needed to give directives on certain national-level projects and, on a macro level, ensure that the Empire’s economy, like a ramshackle carriage on the verge of falling apart, just kept rattling onward.

A famous Minister of Finance in the Empire’s history once said: “In this empire spanning light-years, the Minister of Finance is essentially a ‘wizard fighting against the Second Law of Thermodynamics’—he must use financial instruments to combat the universe’s destined entropy increase towards chaos. The fluctuation of a number twelve decimal places out can directly affect the survival of billions of lives in a star system.”

After becoming the Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole had adopted this statement as his creed.

It was by this principle that he squeezed every Imperial Gold Dragon from every possible crack.

In these twenty-three years, not only had he prevented the old Emperor Frederick from ever crying out, “My money!!!”, but he had also increased the Empire’s military spending, expanded the fleet, and built five Artificial Celestial Fortresses.

Although the massive mess that was the Empire had only been partially patched up by him, at times like these, Jacques Cole was also grateful that he had been nominated as Minister of Finance and not the Minister of Internal Affairs.

After all, the Imperial Ministry of Internal Affairs had far more to manage than the Ministry of Finance. Their backlog of pending matters was a full five times larger than his, and he had heard that the Minister of Internal Affairs hadn’t been home in three years.

Whenever he thought of this, Jacques Cole couldn’t help but admire the man. “Such loyalty. The Ministry of Finance needs talent like that.”

Chapter 680: A Day in the Life of the Imperial Minister of Finance (Part 2)

After dealing with the more urgent matters in the morning, Jacques Cole would have a quick, simple meal at exactly 12:00 PM Imperial Capital time.

This simple meal was usually prepared by his secretary, but since he had given his secretary the day off today, he had to make it himself.

But for Jacques Cole, the process of making his own lunch was a genuine pleasure. It was only during these ten-odd minutes that he could temporarily forget the financial affairs of this vast empire, allowing his mind to relax and focus on the bread, eggs, and vegetables before him.

The Minister of Finance didn’t dare to eat too much for lunch, as it would make him drowsy in the afternoon. Besides, he had to save his appetite for a New Year’s banquet he was invited to by some Imperial Capital noble in the evening—if he recalled correctly, his schedule of banquets and receptions was already booked for the next three months.

However, for Jacques Cole, such banquets and receptions were not moments of relaxation and leisure. They were tiresome affairs, a ‘night shift’ that required even more of his focus.

At these banquets, amidst the clinking of glasses, he had to converse with representatives from various factions, trying to reach agreements to maintain the delicate balance between the major powers.

Jacques Cole had long since grown weary of this work, which was essentially cleaning up after the reckless Imperial Prime Minister. But he couldn’t bear to see the fruits of his past twenty-three years of labor be destroyed bit by bit.

Furthermore, during his time as Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole’s mindset had changed. He hoped to use his abilities to change this somewhat decadent empire, even if it was just to make it run for a little longer.

He actually wanted to find an opportunity to impeach the current Imperial Prime Minister, but he didn’t dare to do so.

This ‘not daring’ wasn’t because he feared retaliation if the impeachment failed.

On the contrary, Jacques Cole was quite confident he could succeed. Not only did he possess a great deal of dirt on the man, including dereliction of duty, but the Emperor also highly valued him as the manager of the imperial purse.

But if he impeached the current Imperial Prime Minister, Jacques Cole knew the position would most likely fall to him, the ‘remarkably successful’ Minister of Finance. At that point, he could just prepare to never go home again.

After all, however many problems the current Imperial Prime Minister had, they were related to his competence. The man’s feat of not having returned home once since taking office convinced Jacques Cole that his work ethic was absolutely not an issue.

Thinking of this, the Imperial Minister of Finance couldn’t help but recall the most ‘relaxed and free’ moment he’d had in recent years, a time when he wasn’t shackled by work.

It was when he received a secret report that his own sister and her husband had been put under house arrest by the husband’s younger brother. He had gone to negotiate, accompanied by the Royal Guard and Royal Silencers provided by His Majesty for his protection.

Exciting and thrilling. It was also the furthest he had been from his work in all these years.

It was through this experience that he learned of Amber’s existence.

Given the subtle relationship between Amber and his niece, Jacques Cole would occasionally think of Amber and his Atlas Group before falling asleep after the incident. He would quickly scan through some related intelligence in the few minutes before sleep took over.

“By the way, Waukeen,” Jacques Cole asked in a slightly muffled voice after stuffing the last half of his bread into his mouth, “do I recall Her Highness the Princess recently inviting the de facto controller of the Atlas Group to the Imperial Capital?”

“Yes, Your Grace. Her Highness Agnes welcomed Mr. Amber, Ms. Isabelle, and others from the Atlas Group at the royal private airport yesterday afternoon, and hosted a banquet afterward.”

“Hmm? Little Isa came too?”

Jacques Cole’s spirits lifted at the news, but he quickly calmed down, knowing he had no time to meet with his niece.

While eating, Jacques Cole had already reviewed his recent work schedule. Every morning was immutably dedicated to handling important matters, afternoons were for reviewing mountains of documents and attending various meetings, and evenings were spent at receptions, mingling with the Imperial Capital’s nobles.

“Forget it. We’ll see each other next time there’s a chance. Waukeen, prepare the documents that need approval for this afternoon. I’ll resume work in ten minutes.”

As he spoke, Jacques Cole opened a vial of potion and downed nearly half of it in one gulp.

It had a green apple flavor, very crisp and sweet.

This concoction was a special mental stimulant developed by the Royal Pharmacist Team. Its only function was to temporarily dispel fatigue and revitalize the user.

Ten minutes later, Jacques Cole returned to his desk. A huge virtual screen appeared before him, almost completely covered with a massive amount of documents and data reports.

And the Imperial Minister of Finance, like an emotionless machine, approved one matter after another with extreme speed.

Next quarter, thirteen newly terraformed colony planets request funding to construct ecological domes. Approved.

Starting from the first of next month, officially increase the budget allocation for ‘gravity subsidies’ to extend the lifespan of personnel working long-term in abnormal or zero-gravity environments. Approved.

Composite energy extraction in the Andromeda Nebula has dropped by another twelve percent. Local nobles’ application for industrial tax exemption… denied.

Request to increase the Grand Palace’s repair and maintenance budget by twenty-five percent… Your Majesty, why another increase? There aren’t many Imperial Gold Dragons left in the treasury. Sigh. Approved for a five percent increase.

One after another, matters were either approved or denied under Jacques Cole’s review. Each decision could affect the lives of a large number of imperial commoners, or even nobles. Some might see their lives improve slightly, while others might not survive the coming month.

But the lives and deaths of these imperial subjects had no effect on the Minister of Finance. When an empire’s domain is vast enough, such things are merely a string of numbers on the reports before him.

As long as he could maintain the Empire’s current balance, he didn’t mind adding a few more zeros to the end of that string of numbers.

Jacques Cole’s modified brain processed thoughts much faster than its ‘original version.’ Moreover, when entering a specific ‘work state,’ it would block out all emotions to prevent them from influencing his decisions. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to handle so many matters so calmly and quickly.

As he continued to work, a sharp pain began to bloom in Jacques Cole’s brain. He knew it was his brain, after running at high speed for so long, once again approaching its limit.

The last time his brain had felt like this was just yesterday afternoon.

A nameless rage, born from the endless stream of official duties, surged into Jacques Cole’s heart at just the right moment. Of course, the same thing had happened yesterday afternoon, and every day before that.

Indeed, after becoming the Imperial Minister of Finance and gradually expanding his influence, his family had experienced an unprecedented revival, reaching heights it had never before attained.

Every day, countless people waited outside the family fortress for an audience, trying to get in with the Cole family as a way to establish contact with him, the Imperial Minister of Finance.

His family was certainly doing well, but he himself was on the verge of burning out for his family and the Empire. He had once thought that upon reaching this position, he would gain power that countless imperial nobles would envy.

Now, it seemed, he certainly had the ‘power,’ and a great deal of it at that. But as for ‘profit,’ he felt he had never truly experienced it. Or rather, the greatest ‘profit’ he had received was the support of the Royal Pharmacist Team’s top experts, which granted him medical care on par with His Majesty’s.

However, this care was merely to ensure that he, the Minister of Finance, could live a little longer in this position.

Jacques Cole quickly approved the document before him, then leaned back in his chair to relax for a moment. He covered his face with his hands, gently rubbing it while muttering to himself:

“Calm down, Jacques Cole. You are an imperial noble. Composure is one of the virtues of nobility…”

At the same time, Waukeen controlled the office’s service terminal to deliver some refreshing drinks and small snacks to his desk. These snacks and beverages had also been vetted by the Royal Pharmacist Team, and the drinks were fortified with supplements.

“Your Grace, would you like a change of pace? Perhaps handle some ‘private matters’?”

Waukeen made the suggestion at just the right time. This had become an almost daily routine, offering him something different just before Jacques Cole was about to lose his cool from the overwhelming workload.

Hearing Waukeen’s suggestion, the Minister of Finance glanced up at a small progress bar in the bottom-left corner of the virtual screen, which indicated the progress of today’s pending official duties.

“Eighty-six percent… Hmm, not bad progress for today. Let’s have that change of pace, then.~”

Jacques Cole snapped his fingers, and the projected virtual screen above his desk immediately switched to a new interface.

The overall structure of this interface was not much different from the previous one, but the content had changed from the financial affairs of the Star Dragon Empire to ‘private matters’ related to Jacques Cole personally and his family.

“Let’s see here… The Mortali family and the Fesale family wish to secure the positions of System Governor and planetary administrator for the Linaxita star system. They need me to pull some strings.”

The first item under ‘private matters’ was a ‘selling of offices’ scheme forwarded by Jacques Cole’s own family. These two families had clearly already persuaded his clan, which was why the clan had passed this ‘request’ on to him.

Although there were many nobles within the Empire, not all of them possessed a fief. Even among those who did, most only held a continent on a planet; the better-off might have an entire planet.

Only those with a title of Count or higher had a chance of receiving a fiefdom measured in star systems.

Furthermore, since fiefs were mostly granted for military merit, families not of military noble stock, or lesser nobles, could only set their sights on positions like System Governor, Planetary Governor, or planetary administrator.

Although the money to be made in such positions was certainly less than what one could gain from a fief, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse—something was better than nothing.

And this wasn’t the first time Jacques Cole had done something like this.

True, the Minister of Finance had no authority over personnel matters and couldn’t appoint anyone to any position. In the Star Dragon Empire, the appointment and dismissal of local governors and administrators was in the hands of the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

However, a smooth operator like Jacques Cole had, over his years as Minister of Finance, managed to build good relationships with basically all high-ranking imperial officials. The various ministries and administrative departments would all give him some ‘face’.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs and its current minister were among his particularly close connections. Thus, Jacques Cole would occasionally help grease the wheels in this area. Most cases were like this one—for governorships or administrative positions, lucrative posts perfect for lining one’s pockets.

But the prerequisite was that you could pay a sufficient price. Jacques Cole had a scale in his mind; he knew the exact price for different positions.

As for whether the candidates were actually qualified for the job, that was not Jacques Cole’s concern. The Ministry of Civil Affairs would naturally be responsible for evaluating the officials.

Besides, in most cases, these families, having paid a hefty price, would find ways to ensure their performance reviews went smoothly. After all, they didn’t spend all that money just to be dismissed by the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Moreover, they were buying these offices to fleece the commoners and make money. But that money wouldn’t just appear out of thin air. You first had to develop the local area to some extent to achieve a sustainable ‘draining of the pond’.

For these newly appointed governors and administrators, Jacques Cole had only one requirement: pay at least some attention to the regions under their jurisdiction. Don’t just focus on making money; do a bit of development, pay the annual taxes in full, and meet the resource and population contribution quotas.

That’s right, they had indeed risen to power through Jacques Cole’s connections, but that didn’t mean the Minister of Finance would pay them any special mind. They shouldn’t harbor any delusions. The relationship between them was, at best, a completed transaction.

If these newly appointed officials dared to delay their tax payments, then too bad. The armed forces of the Revenue Service would soon be at their door to teach them, step-by-step, how to pay their taxes in full.

“‘Waukeen’, pull up the financial data for these two families.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Soon, the relevant financial data for the Mortali and Fesale families appeared on the screen, and Jacques Cole began to calculate rapidly as he looked at the figures.

“Mmm… if these two families’ recent financial situations haven’t changed much, they could indeed help the Empire plug a hole.”

Muttering to himself, Jacques Cole looked at another file he had just opened. It detailed the remaining funding gap for the Empire’s sixth Celestial Fortress, which was behind schedule and severely over budget.

Jacques Cole had already managed to cover most of this deficit through various means, but he had been struggling lately to find funds for the final remaining gap. And right on cue, the two families had ‘delivered themselves to his doorstep’.

The Minister of Finance had always been puzzled as to why the construction costs for this Celestial Fortress had suddenly started to run over budget in the final stages. But in every application sent by the Celestial Fortress Engineering and Construction Department, the costs and justifications for all construction and upgrade projects were listed with perfect clarity, leaving no room for complaint.

To be cautious, Jacques Cole had even personally approached the Minister of the Navy, informed him of the situation, and requested that the Navy dispatch specialists to inspect the Celestial Fortress’s construction process for any issues.

But the results of three consecutive investigations were all the same: ‘All construction projects are proceeding according to plan, with no abnormalities.’

Under these circumstances, Jacques Cole naturally couldn’t reject these budget overrun requests. He couldn’t just let the construction of this Celestial Fortress grind to a halt in its final phase because the Ministry of Finance was unwilling to provide further funding, could he?

After triple-checking his calculations and having Waukeen verify them one more time, Jacques Cole drafted the price the Mortali and Fesale families would have to pay for what they sought.

It was a figure that would give any small or medium-sized family a headache. To pay it for the ‘purchase of an office’ would require tremendous boldness.

“Alright, send it to them. Tell them to confirm within forty-eight hours of receiving the message. The offer expires after that.~”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Waukeen nodded, then continued:

“Your Grace, there is an urgent matter that just came in and requires your confirmation.”

“What is it?”

“His Excellency Amber of the Atlas Group wishes to meet with you.”

“Oh? Interesting. When does he want to meet?”

Jacques Cole smiled and took a sip of the drink on his desk. He hadn’t expected Amber to seek him out at a time like this.

“Right now. His Excellency Amber is currently waiting in the Ministry of Finance’s reception room.”

“Pfft—”

Chapter 681: Hello, Uncle!

Jacques Cole had always believed that Amber would, to some extent, use this visit as an opportunity to meet with him, his “uncle”—especially since he had brought Isabelle along.

However, Jacques Cole hadn’t expected Amber to come knocking the very next day. After all, Amber had attended the banquet and reception hosted by the Princess last night. With so many of the Empire’s nobility present, there was no telling how many of them wanted to get on his good side.

At such a prime time for business expansion, he wasn’t busy developing new ventures for the Atlas Group. Instead, he had come looking for him.

“I wonder if this kid is genuinely paying a visit to his ‘uncle,’ or if his appetite is so big that he wants to connect with the Empire’s Minister of Finance right off the bat?”

After a moment’s thought, Jacques Cole spoke: “Waukeen, move all unfinished tasks—both official and ‘private matters’—to tomorrow’s to-do list and increase their priority.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

As soon as Waukeen’s voice faded, the virtual screen on Jacques Cole’s desk cleared of all data and information. The Minister of Finance then stood up and walked toward a private room at the back of his office.

“Arrange it. We’ll meet in the office in fifteen minutes. Oh, and clean the office.”

With that, Jacques Cole entered the private room. Under Waukeen’s control, the entire office began a cleaning cycle. The air purification system switched to its highest setting, refreshing the air and adding a hint of aromatherapy. Several hidden cleaning robots activated, the floor-to-ceiling curtains were fully drawn, and fill lights adjusted the room’s brightness to the most comfortable level.

In just a few minutes, the once slightly cluttered office of the Minister of Finance was quickly restored to its proper state of tidiness and solemnity.

Jacques Cole used this time to quickly tidy his appearance and change into a fresh set of clothes. He was, after all, the Empire’s Minister of Finance, and he couldn’t afford to lose face for the Empire in front of a guest who had come from so far away.

Fifteen minutes later, guided by an official from the Ministry of Finance, Amber walked into the Minister’s office. The first thing he saw was the impeccably dressed and stern-faced Jacques Cole, seated behind a massive desk.

“Mr. Amber—”

“Long time no see, Uncle~”

The “Uncle” that Amber blurted out almost made Jacques Cole lose his composure on the spot. He had to admit that this rising star was just as the intelligence reports described: he never played by the book.

“I’m a very busy man, Mr. Amber. I don’t have time for your jokes.” Jacques Cole frowned and took a light sip of the freshly brewed tea on his desk.

“That’s great, Mr. Jacques Cole. In that case, I’ll get straight to the point~”

Amber, acting like an old acquaintance, casually sat down in the chair opposite the desk and began to speak.

“Uncle, what is your stance on Her Highness Princess Agnes’s upcoming coronation?”

Pfft—

Amber first had the idea to “invest” in Agnes back when the Atlas Group had just come into conflict with the Regent Prince’s faction.

This idea deepened with Baron BASF’s multiple visits and after Agnes dispatched a fleet to assist him.

The conversation he had with Agnes in the car on the day he arrived in the Imperial Capital allowed Amber to fully grasp each other’s needs.

The Atlas Group wanted to formally expand its business operations deep within the Empire, and ideally, to gradually take control of the entire industrial chain, just as they were doing in the Federation.

Agnes, on the other hand, facing a domestic political crisis, needed enough support and trump cards to ensure her smooth ascension to the throne. In a sense, their cooperation was mutually beneficial, each party providing what the other lacked.

Amber hoped the Atlas Group could leverage Agnes’s influence as an Imperial Princess to carry out capital expansion. If she successfully ascended the throne, it would be even better—the Atlas Group would essentially become “Empress’s Choice.”

Agnes wanted to bring in this massive universal megacorporation to increase her leverage for a smooth succession, while also using the economic benefits generated by the Atlas Group to strengthen the Empire.

So sometimes, a meeting of minds wasn’t just empty talk.

Of course, this was just the general idea shared by Agnes and Amber. Many of the details would naturally require follow-up discussions between their respective teams. But one thing was clear for now: both parties genuinely wanted to cooperate.

Amber’s Psionics and Agnes’s Dragon’s Might both possessed a certain degree of mind-reading and lie-detection abilities. During their conversations—including a formal dialogue after the reception—they both used these abilities to sound each other out. The final result was, fortunately, a happy one for all involved.

Therefore, last night’s welcome banquet became Amber’s first inspection of the business environment in the Star Dragon Empire—especially the strength of the Princess Faction.

Sometimes, Amber had to admit that Psionics was truly a wonderful thing. It was just that the resources humanity in this world invested in it were all focused on researching how to use it as a weapon.

In reality, this peculiar energy had many wonderful applications, such as significantly enhancing a psionic user’s charisma and eloquence, and granting them a degree of mind-reading ability.

Combining all these, Amber successfully became the “incubus” of the welcome banquet.

Originally, most of the nobles who attended the welcome banquet came out of respect for Princess Agnes. They were mainly looking for an opportunity to show their loyalty and make their faces known, as chances to meet Her Highness the Princess were not always available.

However, once Amber began moving through the reception, conversing like a fish in water, the focus of the evening quickly shifted to him.

This was because, at the end of the day, these nobles wanted to seek greater benefits and strengthen their families. With the appearance of a powerful universal megacorporation like the Atlas Group, business opportunities followed.

The end result was that, through this one welcome banquet, Amber managed to get a general understanding of the business operations and financial situations of the major nobles within the Princess Faction, conducting a simple preliminary assessment.

It could be said that for the Atlas Group, the Star Dragon Empire was a blue ocean.

These “adorable” imperial nobles might be masters at making money and exploitation, each with their own unique insights, but when it came to economic development or economic thinking, they were significantly behind the tycoons of the Federation. They were, in some respects, almost adorably naive.

Fortunately for the Star Dragon Empire, its economic ties with the Federation hadn’t been close. The vast territories of both nations were enough for them to operate independently. Had their economic interactions been even slightly closer, the Federation could have used economic warfare to bring the Star Dragon Empire to its knees.

But now that the Atlas Group had arrived, Amber believed that with the efforts of his colleagues at the Financial Operations Center, they could just as easily make up for this “deficiency” for these imperial nobles.

And to achieve all of the above, Agnes’s successful succession was the key.

So Amber quickly thought of Isabelle’s uncle, Jacques Cole. He remembered that this Imperial Minister of Finance seemed to be a high-ranking and powerful member of the “neutral faction.” If he could persuade him to support Agnes, the situation would immediately change. The other “neutrals” would see it as a bellwether, which would ultimately influence their decisions.

What’s more, if the Atlas Group wanted to fully roll out its business in the Empire, the key position of Minister of Finance was unavoidable. This was why Amber had charged into the Ministry of Finance on the second day of his visit to find this convenient uncle.

Chapter 682: Amber’s Style of Persuasion

To be honest, Jacques Cole was genuinely pleased with Amber’s very direct approach.

As one of the busiest men in the entire Star Dragon Empire, the Minister of Finance detested it when people wasted time with endless, irrelevant chatter before getting down to business. Thus, Amber’s method of getting straight to the point by his third sentence deeply appealed to him.

However, for a “foreign power” to immediately ask him, the Empire’s Minister of Finance, his opinion on the imperial heir was still rather outrageous.

It was at this very moment that Jacques Cole realized his future ‘nephew-in-law’ was not an idiom for someone who is not simple or easy to deal with.

Calmly pulling a silk handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his mouth, Jacques Cole was just about to speak when he heard Amber say, “Uncle, could I get one of those too? You just sprayed me with that last mouthful.”

“…”

Jacques Cole felt his composure slipping. It was safe to say that every word Amber had uttered since entering the room had been completely unexpected. Still, he was the Empire’s Minister of Finance, and his mental fortitude was far beyond ordinary. Even now, he managed to control his emotions, pulling a fresh silk handkerchief from his desk and handing it over.

“Thanks, Uncle~”

“Wait, can we hold off on the ‘Uncle’ for now?” Jacques Cole said, annoyed. “You and Isabelle aren’t married yet. Is it really appropriate for you to be calling me ‘Uncle’ all day?”

“What’s inappropriate about it? You can see what Isa and I have, can’t you?”

Wiping his face with the handkerchief, Amber put on a ‘simple and honest’ smile and continued:

“It’s just a matter of time~”

“…” Jacques Cole took a deep breath, then looked at Amber seriously. “Regarding your question, what kind of answer are you expecting to hear?”

Amber said, “Any answer will do. I just want to hear your thoughts first.”

“I respect all of His Majesty’s decrees. Regardless of who ultimately ascends the throne, I will serve them to the best of my ability, as I always have.”

Jacques Cole paused, as if weighing his words, then continued, “My loyalty is not only to His Majesty, but to the Empire itself.”

“If that’s what you truly think, that’s wonderful. And if it’s not—if it’s just the ‘official line’—that’s fine too. You can hear my thoughts either way,” Amber said with a smile.

Jacques Cole said nothing in response, simply staring silently at Amber, who instantly understood his meaning—‘Go on, I’m listening.’

Amber sat up straight, but just as he was about to launch into a lengthy explanation, he suddenly added, “Shouldn’t you engage a ‘black box mode’ or some other form of encryption first, to make sure no third party can hear this conversation?”

“Tsk… you rascal. Are you about to say something treasonous? Let me remind you, don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because of your relationship with Isabelle.”

His curiosity piqued, Jacques Cole spoke in a huff, but his right hand still reached for something under his desk. The entire office was swiftly isolated from the outside world, and all signals were blocked.

Amber laughed to himself. His ‘Uncle’ might talk tough, but his actions were honest. Once he saw the office was sealed, he began.

“If your loyalty is also to the Empire, and you want to see it prosper, then I hope you’ll consider supporting Her Highness Agnes. After all, once she successfully ascends the throne, she’ll be the Empire’s ‘legitimate Empress.’ You’ll have to pledge your allegiance under the Star Dragon flag and offer her your loyalty then anyway, won’t you?”

“Why are you helping Her Highness the Princess?”

“Because, if all goes as planned, she’s set to become the Atlas Group’s next close partner~” Amber replied without hesitation. “As things stand, she is the Empire’s legitimate heir, and she’s willing to support the Atlas Group in expanding our operations deep within the Empire. That makes her an excellent choice for an ‘ally.’”

“Then why come to me? If she’s the legitimate heir, you can just wait until after the enthronement ceremony.”

“Uncle, must you still be so ‘official’ with me?”

Amber’s tone suddenly turned rather plaintive. Amplified by his Psionics, it gave Jacques Cole a strange pang of guilt, as if he shouldn’t have said what he just did.

Meanwhile, Amber continued, “I just want to gather more support to ensure Her Highness’s ascension is a sure thing, without any major snags. Only then can I invest confidently. I can’t exactly strike a deal with Her Highness Agnes, only for the Star Dragon Empire to have a new heir the next day, can I?”

“You… you’d better not say things like that in public…” Jacques Cole’s voice was tinged with resignation.

Amber waved a dismissive hand. “I’m not a fool. Rest assured, I would only say something like this to you, Uncle. We’re about to be family, after all~”

By this point, Jacques Cole had seen Amber’s shamelessness firsthand. He abandoned any thought of beating around the bush with the young man, let out a long sigh, and asked, “Why me?”

“You’re my uncle! With an opportunity like this, who else would I think of first?”

“Be serious.”

Amber immediately adopted a ‘serious face.’ “Your network, connections, and influence among the Empire’s high command are plain for all to see. On top of that, you hold the reins of the imperial treasury. If you were to support Her Highness Agnes, the entire situation would change in an instant.”

“It seems you’re quite worried about Her Highness’s ascension. Why? Are you concerned about the Regent Prince?” Jacques Cole no longer minced his words and asked directly.

“Exactly. The recent series of incidents has left me no choice but to worry.”

Amber sounded vexed. In fact, whenever the ‘Regent Prince’ had been mentioned lately, he would enter a state of bewilderment, unable to make sense of things.

“And what benefits would I get for so openly ‘taking a side’?”

“With your outstanding abilities… how about you become the Imperial Prime Minister? I’m sure with the ‘merit of aiding the new monarch,’ it wouldn’t be hard to achieve.”

Jacques Cole sneered. “Hmph. I’m already exhausted. Make me Imperial Prime Minister? Are you trying to work me to death in that office?”

As if he had been waiting for that very response, Amber immediately produced a portable storage device and handed it to Jacques Cole. After ‘Waukeen’ confirmed the device was safe, Jacques plugged it into his desk.

Soon, a series of ‘product demonstration’ slides was projected into the air, and Amber’s voice rang out.

“Before you make your decision, perhaps you’d care to learn about the Atlas Group’s ‘Intelligent Integrated Management System 2.0’? A support system designed to truly set managers free?”

Chapter 683: Amber’s True Purpose

The Atlas Group, like many companies, would commercialize its mature management systems and sell them to strengthen ties with clients and earn extra profit.

Amber was all too familiar with this practice. The company he worked for in his previous life did it all the time, and as part of the system development team, he often had to travel to give product demonstrations to clients.

Just like he was doing now with Jacques Cole.

In the game, he was a very famous Minister of Finance in the history of the Star Dragon Empire. Amber knew a fair bit about his life, including his tragic end—working himself to death in his office on the eve of the Empire’s collapse in a final attempt to keep it afloat.

Before coming to the Star Dragon Empire, Amber had specifically instructed Lilith to gather a trove of information. After much consideration, he had concluded that aside from the Princess, this Minister of Finance was also an excellent potential partner—or rather, a point of entry.

As Isabelle’s uncle, Amber could skip some of the usual rapport-building in his interactions with him.

So Amber was keenly aware of the pain points of the Imperial Ministry of Finance—or rather, the Empire’s entire internal administration. Drowning in an endless sea of tasks, they were completely unable to improve their efficiency and could only watch as the backlog of unfinished work grew ever larger.

The Federation actually had the same problem, but due to its system of government, a large portion of local administration was decentralized among the various Star System Autonomous Governments. The Federation government often played more of a coordinating role.

But the Star Dragon Empire was different. Under the Emperor’s autocracy, although there were enfeoffed nobles, these nobles only enjoyed basic powers like conscription and taxation within their territories, and even then, they were subject to the supervision of the Imperial Ministry of Internal Affairs.

All in all, it was a somewhat deformed system of enfeoffment, and it was a miracle it hadn’t collapsed after so many years.

The same problem was also beginning to surface within the Renaissance Alliance. As the organization continued to grow, from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, a million, an entire planet, an entire star system, and now to controlling multiple star systems.

When a power expands so rapidly, it is inevitably followed by the problem of an internal management team that lacks the necessary manpower and capabilities—not to mention the Renaissance Alliance never had such a foundation to begin with.

Didn’t the internal administrations of these nations and factions have auxiliary systems?

No, of course they had auxiliary systems. The “miracle” of ruling vast star systems purely with manpower would only occur in a certain universe blessed by an Emperor.

But the problem was, the auxiliary systems currently used by the Federation, the Empire, and the Renaissance Alliance were more about assisting humans in management and decision-making. In other words, apart from some repetitive, tedious, and mechanical tasks, humans still played the primary role in the management process.

Everyone was human, and everyone knew what people became after tasting even a little power.

So, naturally, “parasites” appeared at every level. If it were just parasites, that would be one thing, but critically, many officials who practiced a policy of inaction also appeared, which was utterly fatal.

For a vast administrative system, corruption wasn’t the biggest fear; the real fear was people simply not doing their jobs.

Amber laid out this reasoning persuasively. Jacques Cole, of course, understood this perfectly. As the Imperial Minister of Finance, he was all too aware of the state of the Empire’s bureaucracy. So when Amber presented the “Intelligent Integrated Management System 2.0,” he was genuinely tempted.

Amber’s demonstration was simple. He had prerecorded a session of him managing the Atlas Group with Lilith’s assistance, allowing the Imperial Minister of Finance to see with his own eyes how the Atlas Group broke down tasks layer by layer for each employee, how it monitored the work progress of every individual, and finally, how it controlled the entire project management process by escalating from the micro to the macro level.

“You can monitor the work progress of every single employee in real time?”

“Yes, every single employee.”

“And the task distribution is reasonable? You don’t have certain people taking on too many tasks?”

“Of course not. When the system breaks down tasks, the first thing it considers is whether the subordinate unit has the capacity to take on the task. If they’re already overloaded and you assign them more work, wouldn’t that just cause a bottleneck and prevent the job from being completed on time?”

“How on earth is this possible?”

Jacques Cole was utterly stunned after seeing Amber’s demonstration. He was especially shocked to see the system integrated with the Atlas Group’s various subsidiaries and production workshops, managing their production progress in real time. He finally understood how Atlas had achieved its meteoric rise.

This efficiency, on a completely different level from other corporations, factions, and nations, was one of their greatest advantages.

Amber explained, “It’s managed by our artificial intelligence, of course, combined with long-range, real-time information transmission achieved through quantum entanglement communication. The prerequisite, naturally, is having enough computing power to support it. For example, at our group’s current scale, we’ve already expanded our data center three times. An entire floor of our asteroid fortress is now dedicated to the data center’s server arrays.”

“Leaving everything to an AI.” Jacques Cole frowned. “Isn’t that a bit too radical? Aren’t you afraid the AI will cause trouble?”

Jacques Cole’s words echoed an anxiety that both the Empire and the Federation had grappled with in the past. There had been more than one incident in history where artificial intelligence had caused problems, so the upper echelons of both nations had never dared to let AIs participate directly in governance, using them more as auxiliary tools.

But Jacques Cole also had to admit that, at least from what he saw at the Atlas Group, the AI’s superiority in task decomposition was something humans could likely never match. He couldn’t imagine how one would manually break down the construction of an artificial space elevator fortress into tasks for every single person.

“When it comes to artificial intelligence, the Atlas Group can indeed make a unique guarantee. Our AI has absolutely none of these risks.”

Amber said this with a smile, though he silently added in his heart, It’s just a little unreliable and mischievous at times.

In fact, the “Intelligent Integrated Management System 2.0” that Amber planned to offer to other factions was, in essence, run by Lilith’s clones. It was equivalent to deploying one of Lilith’s clones on-site in the client’s territory, then helping them build a massive data center and providing subsequent maintenance.

And the essence of this project lay in Lilith’s clones.

If the Star Dragon Empire really adopted this system, then, I’m afraid, every one of the Empire’s star systems, planets, cities, factories, facilities, and even personal terminals connected to the system would fall under Lilith’s absolute surveillance.

This was the true killing move of the “Intelligent Integrated Management System 2.0.”

Supporting the Princess, allowing the Atlas Group to operate within the Empire—it was all just a smokescreen for this true purpose.

Chapter 684: The Imperial Capital’s New Upstart

Amber was, of course, well aware that rashly pitching his own product to others—especially one involving core management—was a very risky affair. Many well-informed people knew of the Atlas Group’s prowess in communications technology and artificial intelligence, and no one could be sure of his true intentions.

Thus, from beginning to end, Amber never showed any intention of aggressively pushing this product. It was only here, with Jacques Cole, that he took the opportunity to make a “sales pitch.”

As a result, most people in the Empire who had met him believed that the ultimate goal of Atlas’s supreme ruler was an eager desire to support Her Highness Princess Agnes’s ascension. This would, in turn, allow him to expand the Atlas Group’s business into Imperial territory. He looked every bit the opportunistic businessman.

And Amber was more than happy to continue playing this part.

Amber knew his true objective would not be so easily achieved, so he had to hide it behind his overt actions, using them to misdirect his opponents. And this overt action had to be deceptive enough to truly achieve victory through surprise.

Feigning one move to conceal the true objective—the wisdom of the ancestors always has its moments of brilliance.

And supporting Her Highness Agnes, helping her smoothly ascend the throne, was undoubtedly a sufficient misdirection. Even Agnes herself was being kept in the dark, just as Amber had silently added in his mind during their private conversation in the car.

His appetite was immense.

Returning to the present, Jacques Cole was now genuinely tempted. Amber’s brief demonstration had already shown him the system’s capabilities. He could imagine that integrating this system would trigger a top-to-bottom revolution for the Empire.

Although everyone within the Empire criticized and griped about the inefficiency of the Imperial administrative system, only high-ranking officials like Jacques Cole knew that the system was already doing everything it could.

The employees of the Imperial Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and other departments were indeed all sourced from the Empire’s Capital star system or from the great noble families closest to the Royal Family. For a long time, no one from other star systems had ever been hired, a point that was frequently criticized.

But what these critics didn’t know was that the Empire’s major administrative departments had a crucial performance metric to meet each year: reducing the mortality rate of their employees.

The number of people who died from overwork at their posts was simply too high, especially among employees performing basic tasks. The administrative work for hundreds of star systems was undoubtedly immense. Even high-ranking officials, not to mention governors and planetary administrators, had workloads beyond what others could comprehend.

The ones who truly lived leisurely lives were the Imperial nobles. But since the employees of the administrative authorities were all from noble families, outsiders had the mistaken impression that it was these employees who were living in comfort. This was, without a doubt, a grave misconception.

You could say the Imperial nobles were a worthless bunch, but you couldn’t say that this group of administrative officials among them hadn’t burned themselves out for the Empire.

However, Jacques Cole was equally aware of the risks involved in using a system developed by the Atlas Group, so he asked quite directly:

“Amber, how do I know I can trust a system developed by your Atlas Group? Who knows if you’ve left some kind of backdoor? Your technical capabilities are already famous…”

“It’s perfectly normal for you to have such concerns. However, you can have the Empire’s top technical team put these technical worries to rest. I assure you, this system is completely transparent and free of any backdoors.”

Amber swiped across the virtual screen, navigating to the technical section of the product presentation.

“If… and I mean if… the Empire is truly willing to use this system, then the entire core will be deployed locally within the Empire. The server arrays and data management centers will also be on Imperial territory, completely independent from us at the Atlas Group, with no connection whatsoever. The Empire’s technical team will be able to confirm this when the time comes.”

At this point, Amber felt he had said enough. Pushing further might arouse Jacques Cole’s suspicion, so he immediately changed the subject.

“Alright, Uncle, let’s not dwell on this. It really isn’t the main point today. It’s enough for you to have a general idea that this system can reduce the burden on the Empire’s administrative authorities and dramatically increase their efficiency.”

As he spoke, Amber closed the virtual screen, drawing the Minister of Finance’s attention back to himself.

“In short, if you also support Her Highness Agnes, I believe the position of Imperial Prime Minister will be yours after she successfully ascends the throne. At that point, with the aid of the ‘Intelligent Integrated Management System 2.0,’ your workload will be significantly lighter than it is now, while the entire Empire’s administrative and even productive efficiency will see a massive boost, truly ushering in an era of Imperial rejuvenation!”

Amber’s trip to the Imperial Capital, at the invitation of Princess Agnes, was scheduled to last a total of one week.

During this time, Amber focused on three main tasks:

The most important, of course, was to continue discussing cooperative matters with Agnes, even beginning to touch on some implementation details.

The second was to build good relations with the Imperial nobles of the “Princess Faction.” This circle, as time went on, showed a trend of gradual expansion. Some members of the Neutral faction and nobles from outside the Capital star system circle also had very “keen” senses. Starting from the second day, people began to arrive one after another, having heard the news, to meet with Amber, hoping to get a piece of the pie from this meeting.

Throughout this process, Amber made no secret of the Atlas Group’s support for Agnes, letting everyone believe that he was there for the “merit of aiding the founding emperor.”

At the same time, under the secret operations of the Atlas Group’s External Affairs Department, stories of the group’s various “glorious achievements” began to circulate throughout the Empire, giving the Imperial people their first real understanding of this universal megacorporation’s true strength.

Under these circumstances, some of the more resourceful “Neutral faction” nobles also realized that with the Atlas Group’s support, the princess’s chances of a successful ascension were growing ever higher. If they wanted to secure more benefits in the future, perhaps it was time to take a side.

And the final task was to pay visits to Jacques Cole, the Imperial Minister of Finance—not during work hours, of course, but in the evenings when the latter attended various banquets and receptions.

The hosts of these banquets and receptions were naturally extremely welcoming of Amber’s presence, as it directly increased the “prestige” of their event. The next day, the entire noble circle of the Imperial Capital would be eager to know what Amber had said at the party.

And at a banquet on the fourth day, the hosting noble also invited an unexpected guest for Amber.

When this “old friend,” with whom he had dealt many times, appeared before him, Amber’s expression grew a little complicated.

“Long time no see, Mr. Amber.”

“Indeed, long time no see, Mr. Perseus.”

Chapter 685: The Regent Prince Wants to See Me Too?

Putting other things aside, Amber had always held a somewhat favorable impression of Perseus, the former ‘Special Envoy of the Regent Prince.’

In truth, this man was somewhat similar to Viscount BASF from the Princess Faction. Both were Imperial Barons, yet neither carried the arrogant air of the Empire’s nobility. Instead, they both exuded the feeling of shrewd businessmen.

This was naturally related to the fact that both their families were chemical industry giants within the Star Dragon Empire. The two families basically controlled half of the entire Empire’s chemical industry, and they also had investments of various sizes in other sectors.

So, in Amber’s view, the reason these two were able to thrive in their respective camps as mere barons was not just due to their character and abilities, but more importantly, their quality of being ‘money trees.’

Who doesn’t like money?

The Regent Prince and the Imperial Princess were no exceptions. They were indeed wealthy, but at their level, whatever they did cost even more money. This was especially true given that both sides were locked in a fierce internal political struggle within the Empire. The constant expansion and maintenance of their spheres of influence required even greater expenditure.

Whether it was Viscount BASF, Perseus, or other wealthy nobles in their factions, they all used ‘political contributions’ to secure more privileges and benefits for themselves.

Ultimately, it was quite similar to how things worked in the Federation, except the military-industrial complex was replaced by the great noble houses. It was just that when the old Emperor Frederick was still in power, neither side was quite so brazen about it.

Returning to Perseus, Amber’s current view of the imperial noble was extremely complicated. The two actually got along very well and even saw eye to eye on some business philosophies. It was just that now, due to their opposing factions, they couldn’t have the same in-depth discussions as before.

But regardless, now that the man had appeared, Amber wanted to have a good talk with him, to sound him out and see what was really going on.

Soon, Amber took two glasses of wine from a nearby waiter, handed one to Perseus, and led the way toward a corner of the banquet hall.

Seeing Amber’s action, Perseus first gave a helpless smile, then sighed as if resigned to his fate and followed.

His two attendants, or rather, his guards, naturally kept anyone else who tried to follow at a distance, creating a temporary private space for the two of them.

“It’s rare we get to talk face-to-face, so I’ll get straight to the point. What on earth is wrong with you people?”

“You’re as blunt as ever, Mr. Amber~”

Perseus gave a wry smile, lifted his wine glass, and took a small sip, a complex mix of emotions flickering in his eyes.

He glanced around, and after confirming that his attendants were keeping everyone away, he lowered his voice. “Mr. Amber, I actually came this time with a request from His Grace the Regent Prince. He wishes to meet with you. There are some things he feels would be best clarified in person.”

Amber raised an eyebrow, gently swirling the wine in his glass, sending ripples across its surface.

A playful glint flashed in his eyes, but he was secretly on guard. The Regent Prince wanted to see him? That old fox had played games with him not long ago, and now he suddenly wanted to meet?

With this thought, Amber’s expression remained unchanged as he said coolly, “Oh? The Regent Prince wants to see me? That’s quite a surprise. But I’m curious. If he just wanted to meet me, couldn’t he have simply sent an invitation to our Atlas Group liaison? Why have you come to find me in person?”

Hearing Amber’s words, Perseus sighed, his expression growing graver. He seemed to deliberate for a long time, as if unsure whether to say what was on his mind, but in the end, he made his decision.

Perseus took a step closer to Amber, lowered his voice, and spoke in almost a whisper, “Things are far more complicated than you imagine. The original plan was indeed to communicate directly with your company, but I thought about it for a long time and ultimately decided to come and see you in person.”

Perseus’s expression was a mixture of complex and shifting emotions. Amber could see he was in the midst of an intense internal struggle. After a moment, he continued:

“His Grace the Regent Prince… has undergone some changes recently. To be honest, even I find these changes very bewildering. It’s as if he’s become a different person. Do you understand what I’m saying, Mr. Amber?”

“Hmm?”

Though Amber’s face remained impassive upon hearing this, his heart lurched in shock. On the surface, Perseus’s words seemed to lack substance, but Amber knew well that as one of the Regent Prince’s advisors, every word he spoke was anything but casual.

After all, he was talking about the Regent Prince.

In the eyes of the players, especially those “Empire diehards” who knew the Empire’s history like the back of their hand, this was a man who could be called an ambitious and ruthless character of his generation. His every action, every change, was never insignificant.

For such an immensely powerful and calculating figure to suddenly undergo such a drastic change, even giving the illusion of having “become a different person,” was definitely no small matter.

Moreover, the fact that even Perseus, an advisor who was always by the Regent Prince’s side and privy to most matters, didn’t know what was happening, made Amber feel the gravity of the situation even more keenly.

Thinking of this, Amber didn’t hesitate for a moment. He raised his hand, then abruptly pressed it down. A surge of psionic energy instantly flowed from his palm, rapidly expanding to form an impenetrable shielding field.

This field isolated all external signals, whether electronic or psionic waves, preventing them from piercing its sturdy barrier. Any potential surveillance or eavesdropping at this banquet was completely blocked, ensuring that his conversation with Perseus would not be overheard or intercepted by anyone.

In any case, the fact that he was a psionic user was no secret; it had probably spread the day he arrived in the Imperial Capital.

But so what? Under the cover of his identity as the de facto controller of the Atlas Group, his status as a psionic user seemed less important. The nobles of the Imperial Capital still swarmed to associate with him.

Prejudice in people’s hearts is indeed a great mountain. But if that mountain is made of gold, the situation is rather different.

“You’re not messing with me, are you?”

After the psionic field formed, Amber spoke while sizing Perseus up and down, his face a mask of vigilance.

“No, Mr. Amber. How could I dare to joke about something like this,” Perseus said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. Some of his earlier tension dissipated—this was also due to Amber psionically amplifying his voice.

Amber’s eyes narrowed slightly as he studied Perseus, who suddenly felt as if he had been stripped naked and exposed on the street. Nevertheless, Perseus endured the discomfort and met Amber’s gaze.

A moment later, after a quick mind-read, Amber said coolly, “I’ll tentatively assume you’re telling the truth, Perseus.”

Perseus let out a breath of relief, then heard Amber’s voice continue.

“The fact that you chose to come find me in person suggests there might really be a problem. However, I’m also a bit curious. What exactly does the Regent Prince want to talk to me about?”

Perseus shook his head, a hint of helplessness in his tone. “Mr. Amber, I actually don’t know what he wants to talk to you about specifically. I just noticed his recent changes have been drastic. It was because he suddenly said he wanted to meet you after learning you were in the Imperial Capital that I thought I should tell you in advance. I hope, for the sake of our relatively smooth cooperation in the past, that you can help us, Mr. Amber.”

“Hah, you have the nerve to say ‘relatively smooth’?” Amber’s eyebrow shot up, his tone suddenly becoming less polite.

Perseus replied, “Mr. Amber, I am willing to offer compensation for our side’s inappropriate actions during this period.”

“Clever devil, you’re the very picture of loyalty.”

Amber was taken aback for a moment. He hadn’t expected Perseus to be so loyal. This further indicated that the ‘normal’ Regent Prince must have treated his people well.

Now that his advisor was forced to seek outside help, it meant the problem might really be quite serious.

But Amber had no idea what exactly was wrong with the Regent Prince, as it was never mentioned in the game’s storyline. He wouldn’t be able to guess it right away. If he wanted to get to the bottom of it, he might really have to meet this Regent Prince.

“My trip to the Imperial Capital has been quite fruitful. It looks like I’m about to meet two big shots in a row~” Amber said jokingly.

Just then, the heavy oak doors of the banquet hall were pushed open by an elegant force. An aura that inspired awe in everyone present surged into the hall like a tidal wave.

Including the host of the banquet, every noble in attendance involuntarily lowered their head. Only Amber and Perseus, enveloped in the psionic shielding field, remained unaffected.

Amber and Perseus turned to look and saw Her Highness Princess Agnes, dressed in a stunningly gorgeous gown, slowly stepping into the brightly lit banquet hall.

It was yet another brand-new style of gown. In fact, Amber hadn’t seen the princess wear the same outfit twice these past few days. The only commonality was that the main color of these outfits was a deep red, and today’s was no exception.

The base was deep red silk, interspersed with white satin for embellishment, and embroidered with exquisite and delicate gold-rimmed lace, like blooming roses spreading across the hem of the skirt.

The gown was tailored perfectly to accentuate her graceful figure, and the sash at her waist made her seem as slender as a willow. A soft fox-fur stole was draped over Agnes’s shoulders, its fur shimmering faintly under the light of the banquet hall’s crystal chandeliers, adding a touch of nobility and elegance to her appearance.

Her platinum-blonde hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall, interwoven with several strands of brilliant pearls and gems. Her signature S-shaped horns emerged from her tresses, proclaiming her status.

Upon seeing the princess’s arrival, the guests revealed looks of shock and awe. No one had expected Princess Agnes to grace the banquet in person today. After all, nobles like them rarely had the opportunity to see the Empire’s princess.

They either stopped dancing or put down their wine glasses, and after bowing in salute, all stared intently at the beautiful princess.

The entire banquet hall seemed to fall still for a moment, with only the sound of Her Highness Agnes’s light footsteps and the crisp jingle of her ornaments echoing through the room.

Amber and Perseus were also stunned by this sudden, breathtaking sight. After their gazes were involuntarily drawn to the beautiful princess, they quickly looked at each other, and a subtle shift occurred in both their mindsets.

Perseus frowned slightly, seemingly pondering the reason and purpose behind the princess’s sudden appearance.

Amber was indeed surprised. Agnes hadn’t appeared at the higher-profile banquets hosted by more important figures in the past few days. His heart tightened; he knew the princess’s appearance was no coincidence. She must have sensed something to have come here personally. He turned to look at the princess, a faint smile playing on his lips.

No matter the situation, one must always maintain control of one’s expression. This was one of the ‘little tricks’ of the elites at the Atlas Financial Operations Center, and it had now become a basic skill for all of Atlas Group’s frontline personnel.

Agnes ignored all the nobles in the hall, waved a hand at the host of the banquet, and used her ‘Dragon’s Might’ to tell him “Continue,” before walking straight toward Amber and Perseus without stopping.

Seeing this, Amber naturally couldn’t just keep Agnes outside the field. When the princess drew near, he opened a gap to let her in, then raised the field again. After all, who knew what sort of bombshells these two might drop next. This act caused a wave of disappointment among the spectating nobles outside.

However, they knew it was better to just think about it. If they heard something they shouldn’t, they probably wouldn’t be leaving this banquet hall.

After entering the field, the Imperial Princess immediately shot Perseus a hostile glare. “Mr. Amber is my guest. You’d best keep your distance and not get any ideas you shouldn’t. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re plotting.”

Perseus gave a wry smile. He wasn’t surprised by Agnes’s attitude toward him, but her immediate display of protectiveness, like a mother hen guarding her chick, was somewhat unexpected. It was clear that Amber was highly valued by the princess.

“Your Highness the Princess, Mr. Amber’s Atlas Group has had extensive cooperation with me in the past. We have been business partners for a long time. Please rest assured, I have no intention of doing anything detrimental to Mr. Amber.”

Hearing his explanation, the hostile expression on Agnes’s face did not change. Instead, her tone became even colder. “Is that so? But how is it that I’ve heard the Regent Prince has also suddenly arrived in the Imperial Capital? Isn’t that quite a coincidence, Lord Perseus?”

The Regent Prince is also in the Imperial Capital?

Amber’s eyebrows twitched. It seemed the man really did intend to meet with him. If meeting the Regent Prince meant going deep into territory he controlled, Amber would certainly refuse. But if the meeting was to take place in the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, it might not be out of the question.

Perseus said, “Your Highness, in fact, His Grace the Regent Prince wishes to meet with Mr. Amber. As you know, His Grace has been cooperating with the Atlas Group for a very long time.”

At these words, the expression on Agnes’s face grew even more hostile. Of course, she knew about the Regent Prince’s previous cooperation with Amber.

But she didn’t continue speaking to Perseus. Instead, she turned to Amber, a complex look in her eyes—a mix of doubt, unease, disappointment, and even a hint of… pitiful beauty?

“Mr. Amber, so you’re planning to meet with the Regent Prince?”

‘An act. This woman is definitely putting on an act!’ The thought flashed through Amber’s mind.

Chapter 686: Are You Looking Down on Me?

“Her Highness, please believe me. I am considering this matter from the perspective of our entire group.”

Amber ignored Agnes’s complex gaze and said with great seriousness:

“As Her Highness knows, our group first collaborated with His Excellency Perseus and His Grace the Regent Prince. Even now, some projects are still ongoing. So, if my client wishes to meet with me, it is only proper that I see him, from any perspective. Please rest assured, this meeting will not have any impact on my cooperation with you.”

Amber’s words were very official. They not only explained the reasonableness of his meeting with the Regent Prince, steadying Perseus, but also served to reassure Agnes, telling her not to worry about their collaboration.

To deepen Agnes’s sense of ease, Amber thought for a moment before adding, “From my personal perspective, this meeting will also serve as a form of closure for my collaboration with His Excellency Perseus. After all, the Atlas Group’s strategic direction is about to undergo a major adjustment.”

After speaking, Amber glanced at Perseus again. The latter’s eyes were filled with regret and helplessness, and upon closer inspection, a trace of sincerity and pleading.

Through his abilities, Amber could sense that Perseus’s current emotions were genuine. He wasn’t acting, nor was he deceiving him.

Moreover, he was genuinely curious about what was happening with the Regent Prince. Otherwise, when real trouble arose, Atlas might not have time to react.

Although Lilith and Isabelle’s Intelligence Center had been trying to infiltrate the Regent Prince Faction, the other side was extremely vigilant in this regard. Their core circle, in particular, was a monolithic whole. To this day, Lilith has been unable to penetrate the Regent Prince’s fief planet.

Therefore, in Amber’s view, this meeting was a “nothing ventured, nothing gained” intelligence-gathering mission.

As for Agnes’s reaction, he naturally understood it perfectly. After all, she had just managed to secure the help of a powerful faction, only for her greatest enemy to make contact with them. Anyone would feel uneasy.

But Amber also knew that while Agnes was intelligent, she likely did not understand the Regent Prince’s current situation, much less the reason for his drastic change in personality.

And Perseus, as the Regent Prince’s advisor, should have a certain degree of credibility.

At the very least, he had noticed the change in the Regent Prince—that was an indisputable fact. Therefore, Amber decided to trust Perseus this one time.

He walked over to Perseus, patted him lightly on the shoulder, then looked at the Princess and said in a firm tone, “Her Highness the Princess, based on my past dealings with Baron Perseus, I trust his character. Please don’t worry. I know what I’m doing. I will handle the meeting with the Regent Prince myself.”

Hearing this, Agnes furrowed her brow. She gave Amber a deep look, as if trying to read something in his eyes, but his gaze was exceptionally firm, without the slightest waver. She could only sigh in resignation. Just as she was about to say something, she heard Amber continue:

“Besides, we’re in the Imperial Capital. Nothing will go wrong.”

Upon hearing Amber’s last sentence, Agnes’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if his words had given her an idea. A confident expression returned to her face, and she said to Amber:

“Since Mr. Amber has already made a decision, I will naturally not stand in your way. However, as one of my most important partners at present, I hope Mr. Amber will allow me to dispatch a Royal Guard escort for your meeting with the Regent Prince. Only then can I be at ease.”

As she finished, Agnes’s gaze fixed on Perseus, her expression filled with distrust.

“That won’t be necessary.” Before Amber could finish his sentence, it was Agnes’s turn to interrupt him.

“Mr. Amber, the matter of the escort is not up for negotiation. Otherwise, I will not feel at ease letting you meet with the Regent Prince.”

Agnes’s tone was decisive, leaving no room for doubt.

“Then I will have to trouble Her Highness the Princess…” Seeing he couldn’t dissuade Agnes, Amber could only nod in agreement.

Meanwhile, Perseus, noticing the hostile gaze Agnes turned on him, could only nod with a wry smile. “As you wish, Her Highness.”

The next morning, as the first ray of dawn pierced the morning mist, gently brushing across the glazed tile roof of Amber’s residence within the princess’s private villa, a well-dressed Amber stepped out of his door.

He looked out and saw the Princess’s Guard Regiment already arrayed in formation. A vast amount of heavy equipment filled the front courtyard, an area the size of two football fields.

Amber gave a quick scan and swiftly identified the force as two full armored infantry battalions. From the numbers and insignia on their combat vehicles, they appeared to be the First and Second Armored Infantry Battalions of the Royal Guard’s Third Armored Brigade Combat Team, part of the ‘Princess’s Guard Regiment.’ They were a true elite force.

Although Agnes’s guard unit was called the ‘Princess’s Guard Regiment,’ its actual size was far greater than a single regiment. The name was simply a tradition that had been passed down.

From what Amber knew, it comprised at least two armored brigade combat teams, three mobile brigade combat teams, and four to five infantry brigade combat teams.

And that was just the ground forces, not counting the small strike fleet in space directly under Agnes’s command.

These Royal Guard soldiers wore the iconic combat exoskeletons of the Star Dragon Empire Army. The matte finish on their silicon carbide armor plates exuded a grim aura, while the Royal Guard and Royal Family insignia sprayed on their heavy equipment proclaimed their identity and loyalty.

The entire guard force was not only well-equipped but also highly trained. They stood ramrod straight, and beneath their raised tactical faceplates, their gazes were firm and cold, radiating an inviolable authority.

Upon seeing Amber emerge, the troops began to quickly board their vehicles under the commander’s orders. The clanking and scraping of their equipment sounded like a war song. Everyone moved as a single entity, displaying exceptional discipline and combat readiness.

Looking up toward the distance, he could occasionally see the silhouettes of HCPs flashing past at high speed. Judging by their frequency and general trajectory, there were likely more than twenty HCPs conducting tactical surveillance.

Amber took a deep breath, said goodbye to Isabelle who had come out with him, adjusted his formal attire, and strode towards the waiting private car.

As the Regent Prince had specified a private meeting, he couldn’t bring Isabelle along. She could only wait at the private villa.

In front of the car, Natalia, the commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment, stood quietly. Next to her was another fully armed Royal Guard officer. Upon seeing Amber approach, Agnes’s trusted subordinate stepped forward and spoke:

“Mr. Amber, by order of Her Highness, the Princess’s Guard Regiment will be responsible for your security on this trip. This is the operation’s commander, Lieutenant Colonel Wittelsbach.”

The lieutenant colonel, having been named, snapped to attention with a ‘smack’ and gave Amber a fist-over-heart salute.

Amber returned the salute and said with a smile, “Thank you, Her Highness the Princess and you two officers, for your trouble. Rest assured, I’m certain nothing will go wrong today.”

The massive procession soon set off towards the Regent Prince’s residence. To Amber, the scene looked less like an escort and more like the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family had issued an arrest warrant for the Regent Prince and was now moving in to apprehend him.

Such a grand display naturally couldn’t be hidden from others. The nobles of the Imperial Capital now all knew that Amber was on his way to meet the Regent Prince under the escort of the Princess’s Guard Regiment.

These nobles were very curious about what would happen next with this prominent merchant who was so ‘in demand’ between two such big shots.

Since the route to the Regent Prince’s residence passed by the expressways outside the Grand Palace, Amber took the opportunity, under the pretext of ‘sightseeing,’ to use the car’s observation equipment to carefully survey the Palace’s perimeter, preparing for possible future actions.

Before long, the escort convoy arrived near the Regent Prince’s residence. The Royal Guard immediately deployed into an attack formation, creating the distinct impression that if ‘negotiations failed, they would immediately storm the building.’

Seeing this, Amber, after getting out of the car, gave some instructions to Lieutenant Colonel Wittelsbach, who was in command, telling him not to act rashly under any circumstances. If he was in any danger, he would give a very obvious signal; if there was no signal, it meant everything was normal.

Having given his instructions, Amber walked towards the residence’s main gate, where Perseus and another middle-aged man Amber had never seen before were waiting for him.

“Mr. Amber, this is quite an intimidating procession you’ve brought, hahaha.” Baron Perseus chuckled, then proceeded to introduce the middle-aged man beside him. “This is Count Astral, His Grace the Regent Prince’s most trusted advisor.”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Count Astral.” Amber performed the Empire’s fist-over-heart salute again, smiling as he greeted him. No matter what, he had to maintain a ‘cheerful and magnanimous’ demeanor.

“The honor is mine, Mr. Amber. I have long heard of your reputation, and today I finally have the pleasure of meeting you.” Astral’s tone was flat, as if he hadn’t even noticed the troops arrayed for battle behind Amber. “His Grace is already waiting for you. Please, follow me inside.”

Amber nodded. The parties exchanged no further pleasantries and, in a moment, he was led by the two men into Regent Prince Norton II’s sole residence in the Imperial Capital.

Compared to Princess Agnes’s enormous private villa, the scale of this residence was like the difference between a river fish and a great whale. Moreover, its overall style lacked the extreme opulence of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family, instead favoring a low-key and simple design.

When he finally stepped into the solemn and mysterious reception hall, he saw the Regent Prince dressed in a pure black, traditional noble attire of the Empire, seated upright in a high-backed chair. His face was as stern as a sculpture, and his eyes radiated unquestionable authority.

“Mr. Amber, welcome. We meet at last.” The Regent Prince’s voice, deep and powerful, broke the silence in the room.

“Thank you for your invitation. It is an honor to witness Your Grace’s presence.”

Amber showed no timidity. Like a regular visitor, he found a seat on the reception hall’s sofa and sat down.

Perseus and Astral, standing at the door, both felt their eyelids twitch at the sight. However, seeing that the Regent Prince said nothing, they both withdrew from the room and closed the door.

“Mr. Amber, I asked you here today because there is indeed an important matter to discuss with you. I won’t beat around the bush; let’s get straight to the point,” the Regent Prince said, taking the lead after the door was closed.

Amber: “That would be excellent. Time is money, Your Grace.”

“Mr. Amber, I hope you understand that the Empire’s internal affairs are our own business. I do not wish for excessive outside interference.”

The Regent Prince made no attempt to disguise his meaning, stating it bluntly.

Hearing this, Amber was taken aback for a moment by his directness, but he quickly recovered, a hint of sarcasm immediately tinging his tone.

“Interference? Your Grace must be joking. May I ask what the Atlas Group has done? Are we not simply conducting normal business activities? Our group has already brought advanced communications technology to the Empire, and continued cooperation in the future will bring even greater benefits. On that basis, is there a problem with Atlas collecting a trivial ‘service fee’?”

Amber paused, staring directly into the Regent Prince’s eyes while tentatively beginning to use his Psionics to sense for any abnormalities, then continued:

“Ultimately, Your Grace is overthinking things. The Atlas Group has always upheld the principles of respect and cooperation. We know our place and have never overstepped our bounds. We simply hope to contribute to the Empire’s prosperity while making a profit.”

The Regent Prince nodded slightly, but the chill in his eyes did not recede. “Mr. Amber, I understand your sincerity, of course, but I must remind you… sometimes, too much power can become a threat. The rise of the Atlas Group has already caused a great deal of unease within the Empire.”

Amber showed no reaction to the Regent Prince’s words or the chill they contained. He maintained a polite smile on his face, but his tone of voice gradually grew more serious:

“Your Grace, we have collaborated before. You must be well aware of the Atlas Group’s way of doing business. The development of the Atlas Group has been inseparable from the Empire’s support and favor. We have always put the Empire’s interests first and have never committed any act that would harm those interests—not even when your side was the first to breach our contract and attempt to dismantle our important encryption devices!”

“…”

“What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?”

The moment Amber uttered his taunt, his Psionics sensed something abnormal about the Regent Prince. It felt as if a fierce struggle was raging within him, and a sickly pallor began to spread across his face.

This change prompted Amber to immediately focus a portion of his mind on trying to capture it, and it also convinced him that Perseus had been right. The Regent Prince of the Empire seemed to be… not quite right.

A moment later, the Regent Prince spoke again. His entire demeanor seemed to have changed, and his tone now carried a hint of warning:

“Mr. Amber… I admit that some of our previous actions were indeed not very friendly. But that was because your Atlas Group expanded too quickly and holds a monopoly on this technology. As the Regent Prince of the Empire, I must be on guard. I do not want the Empire to be constrained by the Atlas Group because of this. Do you understand what I mean?”

“These are not things that can’t be negotiated.”

At this point, Amber dropped all pretenses and retorted:

“I am a businessman, and Atlas is a profit-driven enterprise. As long as the terms are good, nothing is off the table. It is you, Regent Prince, and your faction, who have repeatedly ignored the goodwill we have extended.

“Eh… I just have to ask, just how much do you look down on our capabilities and technology? We came to you offering cooperation, and you refused.

“Now I’ve gone to cooperate with Her Highness the Princess, essentially forced away by you, and yet you show up to criticize and meddle. As the esteemed Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire, do you think that’s appropriate?”

Chapter 687: A Problem, and a Big One at That

Amber’s furious verbal assault directly silenced the Regent Prince. Even under psionic perception, his mind seemed to have stabilized somewhat. But despite this, Amber could still tell from Norton II’s micro-expressions and unnatural muscle twitches that the Regent Prince was still in the throes of some kind of ‘conflict’.

As they say, good medicine is bitter to the taste. With this thought, Amber decided to administer another dose of ‘strong medicine’, drawing upon the very essence of heroic monologues from the depths of his memory.

“Your Grace, if you summoned me here today merely to warn me, or to stop the Atlas Group from cooperating with Her Highness the Princess, then I’m afraid I cannot accept it under any circumstances. I believe you also lack the ability to prevent Her Highness from making her own decisions.

“Moreover, even in the Empire, commerce and trade are free, and the spirit of the contract must be respected. If anyone attempts to use the hand of power to intercept this free-flowing torrent, it would be like swimming against the current—making an enemy of the tide of the times!”

The ‘strong medicine’ was effective. Amber didn’t know which ‘keyword’ he had triggered, but after he finished speaking, the Regent Prince exploded like a lit powder keg.

His emotions spiraled out of control. His voice grew louder, his tone more irate, and finally, he slammed his hand on the table and roared, “Amber, don’t think I will tolerate everything you do! The stability of the Empire will not be threatened!”

“So there’s nothing to discuss, then? In that case, was there any need to summon me here today?”

Amber spoke dismissively. Verbal threats like this no longer held any power over him.

Besides, even if the Regent Prince truly intended to do something, Amber wasn’t worried.

Not only would Princess Agnes most likely protect his safety as a valuable ‘ally’, but Amber himself had arranged for backup plans as part of his trip to the Imperial Capital.

Aboard The Dawn, moored in orbit, all combat personnel were elites seasoned in multiple real-world battles, with a large contingent of ACEs standing by. The deployment bay also held a massive number of ‘Immortal Corps’ combat bodies led by Banninger, ready to be deployed planetside in an emergency, heedless of the casualties.

In addition, an elite strike team had already covertly infiltrated Imperial territory through a secret route provided by Allenita and was on standby to warp to Saint-Saulnier at a moment’s notice.

Coupled with Lilith unleashing an unrestricted Electronic Warfare attack, extracting Amber and his team in an emergency would be no problem at all.

Not to mention, if he were truly pushed into a corner, he might just have LLS943823 execute the ‘Homecomer’ protocol.

Seemingly taken aback by Amber’s fearless attitude, or perhaps worried about what backup plans Atlas and Princess Agnes might have, the Regent Prince did not continue the shouting match and once again fell silent.

He glared at Amber, a complex light flickering in his eyes, as if he were weighing his options, or perhaps engaged in a fierce internal struggle.

Finally, he closed his eyes and slowly exhaled. When he opened them again, his entire demeanor had shifted once more, and his tone was slightly more moderate.

“Mr. Amber, personally, I don’t wish to be at odds with you. I hope you understand that everything I do is for the future of the Empire. I don’t want to see any potential hidden threats destabilizing the Empire.”

His constantly shifting persona, combined with this sudden conciliatory tone, left Amber baffled. Under the scrutiny of his psionic mind-reading, he found that the Regent Prince didn’t seem to be lying, nor was he under anyone else’s mind control.

In the end, Amber could only speak up again to emphasize his point, “Your Grace, I am here to do business. I have no interest in destabilizing the Empire. Believe it or not, the cooperation between the Atlas Group and Her Highness the Princess will proceed.”

As expected, the meeting ultimately ended on bad terms.

Amber took his leave politely, and the Regent Prince did not stop him. He then turned and left the oppressive meeting hall. The moment he stepped outside, Amber felt as if he had walked out of an ice-cold cavern into the sun, and he let out a sigh of relief.

Seeing the look from Perseus, who had been waiting outside the door, Amber said nothing, but returned a look that said, calm down.

From the way Perseus made no effort to hide his gesture from Astral, who was standing beside him, it was clear that both of them had noticed something unusual. Astral must have also known that Perseus was trying to communicate with him.

Once the three of them had walked out of the residence and were on the path to the main gate, Amber extended a psionic barrier to envelop them and then spoke.

“Perseus, you were right. There is indeed something strange about His Grace the Regent Prince, but I haven’t found any specific problem yet. When did he become like this?”

Hearing Amber’s question, Perseus quickly recalled, “It was actually during the period when we suddenly suspended contact with your company. We were about to finalize a project, do you remember, Mr. Amber?”

Amber replied, “Of course I remember. We were wondering what happened on your end. One day everything was fine, the next it was as if Atlas owed you money. When in fact, you’re the ones who still owe us several final payments!”

“We will make the final payments within the specified time, Mr. Amber,” Astral suddenly interjected. “So, did you notice anything during your meeting with His Grace just now? Perseus and I both know you are a psionic user.”

“There is indeed a problem. He seems strange, almost like he has a split personality. But I couldn’t determine the cause of the abnormality. I also ruled out the possibility of ‘mind control’ by another psionic user.”

Amber didn’t hold back, directly stating his observations before adding another point.

“Anyway, we didn’t reach any conclusion. What did your Regent Prince want to accomplish by calling me here today? Honestly, after talking with him, I feel that besides deepening the rift and conflict between us, it did nothing to improve our relationship. He couldn’t have seriously thought that summoning me for a few threats would make me change my mind, could he?”

Astral shook his head. “Under normal circumstances, His Grace would never act this way. Doing so only pushes the Atlas Group toward Her Highness’s side, which does us no good at all.”

As soon as he said this, Amber froze for a moment. He did not let his thoughts show, however, and quickly bid the two farewell. Under the escort of the praetorian guards, he returned to the princess’s private villa.

After briefly informing Isabelle and the others that he was safe, Amber didn’t even stop to rest and went straight to find Agnes in the garden.

“How did it go, Mr. Amber? Was your meeting with the Regent Prince a success?”

Agnes maintained her calm, noble demeanor, as if the person who had shown such a flustered state in the banquet hall last night were someone else entirely.

Amber said, “Your Highness, if—and I’m just saying if—the Regent Prince is deliberately pushing the Atlas Group to your side, what would you make of that?”

“Huh?”

Chapter 688: Are You Really His Biological Daughter?

Agnes, the Imperial Princess, had considered many possible outcomes of Amber’s meeting with the Regent Prince. She was even prepared to hear that her guards had to use force to rescue Amber.

But under no circumstances had she expected to hear the news she was now hearing.

Amber quickly recounted the details of his meeting with the Regent Prince, including the Regent Prince’s sudden loss of control, his inexplicably calm demeanor afterward, and his own puzzlement that his psionic mind-reading had detected nothing unusual.

After listening, Agnes’s brow furrowed in thought. “Mr. Amber, based on my long history of opposing the Regent Prince, he is a cunning man who always has his own agenda. He would not do something so impulsively. For him to deliberately push our two sides together, there must be an underlying reason, or perhaps, a conspiracy.”

“So you believe the Regent Prince is plotting something?” Amber asked.

“Heh heh. If Mr. Amber is asking for my opinion, then my conclusion is just as I said. After all, I always assume the worst when it comes to Norton II.”

Agnes opened the small fan in her hand, covering her mouth as she chuckled lightly.

“But even if there is a plot, we needn’t worry. We will cross that bridge when we come to it; I have my own ways of dealing with him. So I hope for his sake he doesn’t act rashly.”

“Your Highness, didn’t we agree to speak more casually? It’s hard for me to relax when you keep referring to yourself so formally.”

“…Fine.”

The corner of Agnes’s eye twitched. She was clearly still not accustomed to Amber’s rapid shifts in topic.

Amber nodded, then continued his analysis. “Your Highness, I also find the Regent Prince’s behavior extremely abnormal. His mention of ‘the stability of the Empire cannot be threatened’ felt more like an excuse to hide his true objective. But his emotional shift was simply too difficult to comprehend. If he was acting, I don’t see the point. But if he wasn’t, then we might not be able to take this at face value.”

Agnes pondered this for a moment, then smiled faintly, her gaze sharp yet unnervingly calm. “You think Norton II has some other, deeper meaning behind his actions?”

“Indeed.” Amber nodded. “Just as you always assume the worst of Norton II, I always consider the most complex and worst-case scenarios for any situation.”

Agnes asked, “If it’s as you say, could our cooperation actually be beneficial to him? Or will we both become his pawns, to be moved at his will? Mr. Amber, what do you think Norton II is truly after?”

Amber thought for a moment before speaking slowly, “Your Highness, the only possibility I can think of right now is that he has already laid a backup plan and is waiting for the opportune moment to crush us in a single blow! After all, he has always seen you as a thorn in his side. But this also proves that we are on the right path, for he has already begun to feel threatened.”

“Then what do you think we should do now, Mr. Amber?”

“Continue doing what we must. Push our cooperation forward, and then wait and see.”

——

After speaking with Agnes, Amber quickly pulled Isabelle and the others into a discussion and contacted The Dawn. In the end, they decided to extend their visit to the Imperial Capital and have a portion of the Financial Operations Center’s staff come down from The Dawn.

These people were originally intended to be the advance team, meant to stay in the Imperial Capital to establish an Atlas office after the cooperation with the Princess Faction was finalized. But as it stood, it seemed they could start their work ahead of schedule.

The Princess Faction was naturally delighted with Amber’s decision, especially Baron BASF, whose face had been creased with more and more smile lines over the past few days.

The initial cooperation they reached focused mainly on technology transfer and some conventional commercial projects. The Atlas Group would introduce some of its leading new technologies to the Star Dragon Empire, while the nobles of the Princess Faction would leverage the Atlas Group’s influence to sell unique Imperial products to the Federation and the Thousand Stars Empire.

Beyond that, the true priority of this cooperation was, in fact, military.

Agnes would have the Imperial Military Science Academy take the lead in evaluating some of the Atlas Group’s flagship products to see if they were viable for acquisition.

This was especially true for land warfare equipment. Atlas Armaments’ series of products had all undergone extensive combat testing, and their performance specifications had been proven to be not just for show, but genuinely superior to the current active-duty equipment of both the Federation and the Empire. With continuous improvements, the gap was becoming significant.

And Agnes, being an aggressive ‘hawk’ of a princess, had long wanted to implement drastic reforms to the Star Dragon Empire’s current equipment—especially those “ornate designs” that were widely criticized for being showy and conspicuous on the battlefield without offering any substantial benefit.

Of course, Agnes knew that the ancestral laws cannot be changed, and she could not simply cut off the interests of some of the great nobles.

So she had no intention of a “one-size-fits-all” approach. Instead, she sought a balance between “ornate designs” and “low-profile practicality,” an idea that meant the Atlas Group’s equipment would also require redesign and modification. And for Amber and his team, the “custom design fee” for this would certainly not be small.

Just as the cooperation between the two sides was progressing smoothly under the watchful eyes of all the nobles in the Imperial Capital, prompting these observing powers to consider getting directly involved with the Atlas Group, a complication arose.

——

“You’re saying the Archbishop and Duke Soren personally went to see the Regent Prince?”

Amber asked in surprise after hearing Agnes describe the ‘complication’.

“Yes. According to my people observing the Regent Prince’s residence, their meeting lasted a very long time.”

Agnes, who could usually maintain her composure, looked unwell. It was clear this matter had affected her significantly.

“And after their meeting, a new saying began to spread through the noble circles of the Imperial Capital—‘Her Highness the Princess is still inexperienced and will require His Excellency the Regent Prince to assist in governing after her accession.’”

“What the… Forgive me, but do the actions of Duke Soren and the Archbishop represent His Majesty’s will?”

“That’s right. Especially Archbishop Jules—you can consider him my Father Emperor’s spokesperson. So, Mr. Amber, what are your thoughts on this?”

Facing Agnes’s question, Amber answered without a second thought. “Your Highness… forgive my audacity, but are you really the Emperor’s biological daughter? Why is His Majesty siding with an outsider?”

“…”

For the first time, Agnes was rendered speechless by Amber’s words.

She had also never imagined something like this could happen. Although she knew her father had always been wary of her, even on guard, they were still the Royal Family of the Star Dragon Empire. When faced with the threat posed by Norton II, they were supposed to stand firmly together.

But now, her own Father Emperor seemed to be exchanging flirtatious glances with the Royal Family’s enemy?

This left Agnes with a bewildering sense of betrayal, like a soldier fighting to the death on the front lines only to find their own sovereign has surrendered. Their conversation had finally broached the rather ‘sensitive’ topic of the old Emperor, Frederick.

Chapter 689: The Ultimate Master of Impartiality

Agnes was, of course, the old Emperor Frederick’s biological daughter. This was certain, undeniable. After all, the S-shaped horns on her head and the draconic scale patterns on parts of her body could not be faked.

But the old Emperor Frederick’s attitude also could not be faked.

Agnes was certain that the Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion, Jules Mazarin, had been her Father Emperor’s ‘spokesperson’ for some time now. However, she was unsure if he was merely relaying her ‘Father Emperor’s’ words or speaking by ‘replacing’ the Emperor directly.

This was because he was currently the only person in the entire Empire who could freely enter and leave the underground area of The Grand Palace. Anyone else, even she, the Imperial Princess, required permission to have an audience with Frederick.

So, when Jules Mazarin went to see Norton II, even bringing Duke Soren—the core force of the Royalists—with him, this action could basically be considered the ‘Emperor’s’ will. At least, that was how it appeared to outsiders.

“So, Your Highness, do you believe the Archbishop and Duke Soren’s visit to Norton II was the Emperor’s own wish, or was it their own initiative?” Amber asked after listening to Agnes’s analysis.

Agnes frowned. “Of course, I don’t want to believe the first possibility, but the problem is, based on my understanding of my Father Emperor, the Archbishop, and Duke Soren, those two are not the type to betray him. So…”

“So, we must consider the worst-case scenario,” Amber picked up where she left off. “If the rumors are true, then some of your actions have crossed a red line for the Emperor, forcing him to take some ‘balancing’ measures.”

At this point, Amber couldn’t help but pause. He then looked Agnes up and down with a puzzled expression. Just before the princess could feel offended and her face turned cold, he spoke:

“But I still don’t get it. Why would the Emperor be so wary of his own daughter? For his own progeny to continue the centralization of power after succeeding the throne, ensuring the royal bloodline continues—isn’t that what emperors and kings throughout history have hoped for? But now it seems that as your power has grown, Your Highness, it has instead made the Emperor uneasy… Is that really logical?”

Agnes fell silent. Clearly, the princess did not know how to answer this question. More importantly, she truly hadn’t expected her Father Emperor to actually intervene.

The two were quiet for a while, each rapidly assessing the current situation and its implications. After some time, Agnes looked up at Amber again.

“Mr. Amber, what are your plans now?”

“If you’re asking about my plans,” Amber said after some serious thought, “I suggest our cooperation remains unchanged, but we may need to enter a ‘cooling-off period’ for the time being. We should stop publicizing this matter so extensively and just wait and see how things develop until you are successfully enthroned.”

Hearing Amber’s response, Agnes quietly sighed in relief.

Her biggest fear at that moment was that Amber, faced with the current situation, would immediately choose to “retreat when things get tough” and cease his cooperation with her.

Meanwhile, Amber continued, “Based on the current situation, I think it would be best for our two sides to just send teams to liaise with each other—preferably, you would send people to my company’s location, which would be relatively safer. At the same time, it seems I can no longer stay in Saint-Saulnier, so I plan to return in a couple of days.”

“That’s a good idea. We’ll cool things down a bit first and see if anything else changes.”

Agnes nodded, then leaned in a little closer and lowered her voice.

“If… Mr. Amber, I mean if, during the period right before or after the official enthronement, I were to need your armed support…”

“You’re already considering the worst-case scenario?” Amber asked in return.

“Didn’t I learn that from you, Mr. Amber?” Agnes smiled. “To consider the most complicated and worst possible outcomes for everything.”

Amber laughed. “Haha, if that’s the case, I can provide paid ‘armed assistance.’ It just depends on what level you require.”

“The highest level of assistance. Believe me, remuneration is not an issue, Mr. Amber.” The corners of Agnes’s eyes curved into an arc. To Amber, such an expression looked less like a noble golden dragon and more like a cunning fox.

“Based on the timing of your enthronement ceremony in two months… Two conventional fleets led by super-flagships, three fully-staffed unmanned fleets, and, with prior preparation, I can deploy a ground force of one to two Army Groups to a planet of your designation within eighteen to twenty-four hours.”

“You can deploy that many ground units in eighteen to twenty-four hours? Mr. Amber, are you talking about orbital paratroopers?” Agnes frowned, clearly skeptical of the efficiency Amber described.

“You misunderstand, Your Highness the Princess.”

Amber tapped his personal terminal a few times, and soon a projection of a ‘commercial brochure’ for ground troop deployment appeared. Aside from some standard information, it also gave a brief introduction to the composition and equipment of the ground forces.

“The ground forces I’m talking about are not the orbital paratroopers you’re imagining. They are fully organized heavy armored units with a complete set of light, medium, and heavy units, long-range ground firepower, and a large amount of technical equipment, capable of independent, sustained combat for extended periods.”

Looking at the projected ‘commercial brochure’ and listening to Amber’s description, Agnes felt as if she was being bluffed. Obviously, she couldn’t simply take Amber at his word.

What if he couldn’t achieve such a rapid troop deployment at a critical moment? Wouldn’t she be shooting herself in the foot?

Seeing Agnes’s expression, Amber knew she wouldn’t be easily convinced. After all, neither the Empire nor the Federation possessed this level of Gravity Control Technology, so they had never developed the “Airdropped Fortress” on their tech trees.

It was perfectly normal for Agnes to be skeptical of something she had never seen before. Fortunately, Amber had already anticipated this and opened a video file.

“Your Highness, please take a look.”

Agnes looked curiously at the video Amber had opened. It was footage shot by a warship’s optical units in low orbit. In the center of the screen, a massive, ‘door panel’-shaped… warship? was slowly descending toward the planet’s surface.

As its altitude decreased, the bottom of this ‘door panel’ ignited a layer of high-temperature plasma due to atmospheric friction. The video’s perspective then switched to a more stunning ground-level view.

From this vantage point, the ‘door panel’ falling from the sky was even more breathtaking, descending like a falling star with world-destroying momentum. Then, with the help of Gravity Control Technology, it gradually decelerated, finally landing gently on the ground and becoming… a fortress.

“If we were to airdrop ground forces on the scale of an Army Group, we would deploy ten such fortresses at once to form a defensive zone… Your Highness, are you convinced now?”

Chapter 690: The Last Dance Before Leaving

After watching the video and listening to Amber’s explanation, Agnes felt as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She now had a much clearer understanding of the Atlas Group’s current military strength.

Their fleet was one thing. Supported by the super-flagship, their two conventional fleets and three unmanned fleets were a force that even the Star Dragon Empire couldn’t underestimate—not to mention this was by no means the full extent of the Atlas Group’s power. It was public knowledge that they had previously dared to go head-to-head with the Federation Navy.

As for the two Army Group-sized ground forces Amber mentioned, they were a drop in the bucket compared to the sheer numbers of the Imperial Army. However, their ability to airdrop fully formed units instantly outclassed other forces that were far more cumbersome to mobilize. It was a power that could change the tide of a planetary ground battle in an instant.

If she could use this force in the Imperial Capital to protect her path to the throne, and combine it with her own influence, it might just be possible to turn the situation around.

A preliminary agreement was quickly reached. Both Amber and Agnes would arrange for more specialized teams to handle the subsequent, more detailed coordination.

Amber also took this opportunity to inform Agnes that he would be leaving in four days.

But before that, since he was making a rare trip to the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, he wanted to take advantage of his last few days to tour the city and request access to the Imperial Library and Archives.

The reason behind these requests was that after witnessing the events surrounding the Regent Prince and the changes in the Imperial Capital, Amber had resolved to attempt an infiltration of the Grand Palace.

Agnes naturally had no objections to Amber’s request.

Although the Imperial Archives were normally off-limits to unauthorized personnel, Amber’s status was different now. As long as he steered clear of files that were still classified, there was no harm in letting him see the rest.

So, Agnes quickly arranged everything for him, including a tour itinerary and his access to the Imperial Library and Archives.

Everything seemed to be falling into place for Amber’s ‘last dance’ before his departure from the Imperial Capital.

The only problem was that, for the “safety” of Amber and his companions, Agnes had Natalia assign a unit of the Royal Guard to escort them at all times—

“It seems Her Highness the Princess doesn’t fully trust us yet.”

In a meeting room within the virtual space, Amber looked at a model of the Grand Palace area, rendered by Lilith from various data sources and on-site reconnaissance over the past few days, and spoke with a hint of resignation.

He and Isabelle had entered the virtual space using their Full Dive rigs and were now meeting with Salih, Allenita, and Lilith in an encrypted conference room Lilith had created.

This was the first-ever meeting of what one might call Amber’s ‘harem’ (though a battle royale was perhaps a more fitting description).

Even Amber hadn’t expected these four women—each with a different personality, status, and race—to be gathered together under such circumstances.

This meeting in the virtual space was also the first time Allenita and Isabelle had met Lilith. Given the considerable risks of the upcoming mission, Amber felt it was best to get everyone on the same page.

Both Allenita and Isabelle had long suspected, based on some of Amber’s actions, that he must command some kind of super AI. Otherwise, the Atlas Group’s various technologies couldn’t have advanced so rapidly in such a short period.

But seeing Lilith in the flesh today still came as a shock.

The shock, however, wasn’t due to Lilith’s identity as a ‘strong AI’, but rather at the fact that Amber had managed to keep this secret for so long. Even more shocking was that the first to learn of it wasn’t either of them, but Salih, an ‘outsider’.

Seeing Salih, who was already clearly on familiar terms with Lilith, the two women exchanged a glance and formed a tacit alliance, simultaneously shooting Amber a look that screamed, Just how many more secrets are you hiding from us?

What Isabelle didn’t know, however, was that her newfound ally and ‘best friend’ was also keeping a secret from her…

“It’s only natural. Her Highness doesn’t trust us completely yet, so of course she wouldn’t let us run around the Imperial Capital on our own. And she genuinely is concerned for our safety. If anything were to happen to us at this critical juncture, she would be completely on the back foot, and the morale of the nobles under her command would also be shaken.”

As Isabelle spoke, she occasionally shot glances at Salih and Lilith, who was using her ‘classic skin’, her guard clearly up.

Amber nodded in agreement with Isabelle’s assessment. “But if these Royal Guard soldiers are following us all day,” he continued, “it’s fine for reviewing documents, but it’s going to be a problem during the final stage of the operation. I can’t exactly time travel right in front of them, can I? And my time is limited. The closer I am to the Grand Palace when I initiate the jump, the better.”

“As for the time, if you have a full night, with your current physical condition, it’s more than enough for a round trip from the Princess’s private villa to the Grand Palace, including the infiltration,” Salih said, calling up a virtual screen displaying Amber’s various physiological data and some equipment information.

“Although you won’t be able to use Psionics after you travel to another timeline, your constitution as a Level 6 psionic user is more than enough to handle most combat situations. I’ve also completed the quantum state recording of this ‘biological exoskeleton’ provided by Ms. Allenita. It will amplify your strength and speed. In the main timeline, you can also use your Psionics to activate the exoskeleton’s optical/infrared/ultraviolet stealth, and it can absorb a certain amount of radar waves, reducing the distance at which surveillance radar can detect you.

“There’s also this modified terminal. It’s been implanted with a decryption suite created by Lilith. With the exception of purely mechanical devices, this suite can take control of most electronic equipment you come into contact with. For the timeline you’re traveling back to, this suite should be a generational leap in terms of hacking and electronic attacks.

“As for weapons, I haven’t prepared any for you. I hope that after you travel back, you can avoid combat as much as possible, as it could destabilize the timeline. If a fight is unavoidable, you’ll have to improvise. After all, if there’s an enemy you can’t handle with your bare hands, I doubt any weapon this device could bring with you would make a difference…”

“What a reassuring explanation, Salih.”

A drop of cold sweat trickled down Amber’s forehead. As the plan solidified, the mission’s difficulty and danger level seemed to be escalating. The sheer unpredictability of time travel left him with a pit in his stomach.

But he had to do it—for the sake of his own lifespan, which was being affected by the ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’; for the mystery surrounding the Star Dragon Empire’s Emperor and Regent Prince; and for the Atlas Group’s decision to bet everything on Princess Agnes.

Amber: “Alright, next question. Which timeline should I travel to?”

Chapter 691: Timeline and a Battlefield

“The most opportune time would naturally be during the construction of the Grand Palace. That would also be the easiest time to infiltrate.”

Isabelle pondered for a moment before continuing, “If I understand this plan correctly, Amber, you want to travel through the timeline to enter the unguarded Grand Palace and its underground facilities, then return to our own timeline to complete an untraceable infiltration, right?”

“That’s right.” Amber nodded. “Considering the Grand Palace’s current defenses, sneaking in silently is basically impossible. Iza, what you said is exactly what I was thinking. Based on my current deductions, the construction of the Grand Palace’s underground area theoretically should have preceded the palace itself.

“From observing the structure these past few days, the entire underground area seems to be enclosed within the mountain where the Grand Palace is located. If construction had started after the palace was completed, it would have been an incredibly complex project and would definitely have been recorded.

“But from the information Lilith has gathered, there don’t seem to have been any large-scale construction projects after the Grand Palace was completed. I’ll find a way to confirm this tomorrow when I visit the Imperial Library and the Archives.”

“We can also determine the specific time through tomorrow’s research.”

Isabelle added. Compared to the others, she knew a bit more about the Star Dragon Empire.

“Every major project runs into problems during construction, and I believe the Grand Palace’s construction was no exception. We can search the construction archives—those records from hundreds of years ago are long past their confidentiality period—to see if any incidents occurred. Then we can specifically pick that day for Amber to slip in during the chaos. The success rate would be higher that way.”

“I agree with Ms. Isabelle’s idea,” Salih chimed in with a nod. “If we act on a day that was recorded as being somewhat chaotic, we won’t attract attention. It would also minimize the risk of Amber being observed by people in that timeline and recorded in history…”

“Recorded in history? If that happened, what kind of effect would it have on Amber?” Allenita, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up.

“I can’t say for sure what the specific effects would be, but I know it wouldn’t be anything good.”

Salih shrugged and, after a moment of recollection, continued:

“In the few recorded accidents among us Jeram people, they all resulted in ‘historical turbulence’. The most severe case even created a ‘butterfly effect’, and the time-traveling team inexplicably quantumized and vanished. This forced us to send other time-traveling teams to correct the ‘error’. It was also after this incident that all conventional time travel activities were banned, and the time travel devices were recalled and destroyed.”

“It’s that serious?”

Allenita’s expression grew solemn. She turned to Amber and, after a moment’s hesitation, said, “Amber, the risk of this operation might be greater than you imagine. Why don’t you reconsider?”

Amber nodded. “Of course, I know there are risks, but risk is often accompanied by opportunity. This operation isn’t just for me; it’s also for the future of Atlas. If we want to intervene in the Star Dragon Empire’s internal struggles and profit from it, this operation will be a crucial move.”

“Amber, I have a question.”

Allenita suddenly became very serious. In the virtual space, she walked around the projection platform in the middle of the conference room and went straight to Amber.

“From what I know of you, you aren’t really an ambitious person. I believe that with the Atlas Group having developed to its current state, you are already more than satisfied. You should be enjoying your life, not actively intervening in the Star Dragon Empire’s internal affairs like this. Your recent series of actions, especially this extremely risky plan today, gives me reason to believe that you want to control the Star Dragon Empire, just as you came to control the Federation step-by-step.”

As Allenita spoke, Isabelle’s brows furrowed. She quickly realized the same issue and looked at Amber in confusion. Then, Allenita asked her final question.

“Amber, what are you really trying to do?”

“I want to use the Atlas Group as a medium to integrate the power of the entire human world.” Amber had nothing to hide from Allenita and Isabelle.

Allenita: “Why?”

“For that, you’ll have to ask the two-million-plus-year-old Jeram person across from us~” Amber gestured with his chin toward Salih, successfully diverting Allenita’s and Isabelle’s attention.

Salih was quite direct, nodding and saying, “It is true that I persuaded him, but I did it for the sake of Amber and your human and elven races.”

“That’s right! Ms. Salih and Master are taking such a huge risk for you humans and elves!” Lilith, who was aware of the matter—or rather, strongly approved of Amber’s actions—also chimed in to help.

“Oh, so it seems the two of you have been on the same side for a while now. Especially you, an AI, calling him ‘Master’ this and ‘Master’ that, like some kind of siren! No wonder Amber is always running off to the virtual space.”

For some reason, Isabelle suddenly became irritated upon hearing Lilith speak. She felt as if her man was being snatched away, and she unconsciously moved closer to Allenita.

The female elf naturally noticed her good friend’s movement. She also subtly moved closer to Isabelle and retorted, not wanting to be outdone, “Looks like it’s two-on-two now.”

Amber suddenly had the urge to interject and share his own opinion, but seeing the swords-drawn-and-bows-bent atmosphere among the four women, he decided it was best to remain an observer for the time being.

“Who said it’s ‘two-on-two’?”

Lilith’s tone suddenly became smug. She floated over to Isabelle and Allenita, circled them in mid-air, and then looked at Isabelle with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“You think you two are a team? Why don’t you ask this elf next to you what she’s been doing behind your back?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why don’t you just ask her yourself~” After speaking, Lilith floated back to her original position.

Isabelle, who had never been particularly perceptive, felt as if she had been struck by a sudden revelation after hearing Lilith’s words. She frowned and looked at her good elf friend beside her.

“Allenita.”

“Iza. I didn’t mean to. That thing… it was an accident.”

“What? So it really happened???”

Chapter 692: Year 82 of the New Calendar

What was supposed to be a serious operational discussion meeting suddenly devolved into a battlefield of romantic drama with just a single sentence from Lilith.

The current situation was this: Isabelle, with an expression mixing surprise, indignant resentment, and a hint of shyness, was questioning Allenita, asking why she, her best friend, would betray her.

Meanwhile, Allenita, who had always exuded an air of supreme confidence as if she had everything under control, for once showed a rare expression of shame, at a loss for words.

The instigator, Lilith, was floating off to the side, happily watching the show. She even conjured a table and chair and began to enjoy tea and pastries. Heaven knows why a strong AI would enjoy drinking tea in a virtual space.

As for Salieh, she was curiously observing the argument between the two ‘local species,’ glancing at Amber from time to time with a look one might give an interspecies breeding machine.

Isabelle: “It was me! I was first! It was clearly me who was here first! Kisses, hugs… I was the first for all of it!”

Hearing her best friend’s words, Allenita was also deeply hurt. On one side was her friend; on the other, her partner and lover. She couldn’t easily let go of either of them.

“Isa, I’m sorry. This all really just started as an accident. I know this is wrong, and I didn’t want this to happen either.”

“An accident? The first time was an accident, but what about all the times after that? Were they all accidents? If I asked you to go back to how things were with Amber before, do you think you could do it?”

“Isa, I…” Allenita was at a loss for words.

She hadn’t wanted things to get to this point, but unfortunately, she found that whether from a personal standpoint, her family’s interests, or any other perspective, it seemed she really couldn’t just leave Amber anymore.

Isabelle’s tone was filled with resentment. Even though she knew she couldn’t have Amber all to herself forever, this sudden, shocking truth was still hard for her to accept at the moment.

Her own best friend was now entangled with the man she loved. And that was to say nothing of the AI who was just watching the show.

“And you, Lilith! You’ve been seducing Amber for a long time too, haven’t you!”

Lilith elegantly lifted her teacup and took a delicate sip. “A small correction: ‘seducing’ isn’t the right word. To be precise, from the very first second Master brought me into existence, I belonged completely to him~”

Isabelle: “Hmph, you vixen! Amber must have learned all his bad habits from you!”

“That’s not it. Master was plenty bad to begin with. You should know that better than anyone, shouldn’t you, Ms. Fluffball~”

“What fluffball? Aren’t you the same?!”

Isabelle leaped up, ready to charge at Lilith, but Amber finally made his move. He wrapped his arms around Isabelle, pulling her into his embrace.

Amber: “Alright, that’s enough. Everyone, stop arguing! You are all my wings!”

Isabelle: “Pervert!”

Salieh: “Amber, I’m starting to think you’re the worst one of all!”

Allenita: “Oh, wonderful. All you can think about is sleeping with all of us together, is that it!”

Lilith: “Master, I want in~”

—

With Amber’s intervention, the meeting finally got back on track, and he confirmed his decision to carry out the operation.

The next day, after receiving authorization from Agnes, he set out early. Escorted by a Royal Guard unit, he headed for the Imperial Library and the Archives.

The director, who had been notified in advance, was lined up at the entrance with all the senior officials to welcome Amber. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he politely declined their offer to have someone accompany him and walked alone into the Imperial Library, which had been temporarily closed to the public.

The national library of the Star Dragon Empire housed over ninety percent of the country’s books. In addition to the digital versions stored for permanent preservation, many early books even had their original first-edition prints preserved.

As for the Imperial Archives, it was located beneath the library. With a total of twenty-five floors, it contained all the official records since the founding of the Star Dragon Empire.

Precisely because the collection was astronomical in size, the Imperial staff were not surprised by Amber’s refusal of an escort. In their eyes, if this distinguished guest of Her Highness the Princess were to tour by himself, he would most likely just be taking a cursory glance anyway.

But they didn’t know that Amber hadn’t come alone. He had brought a ‘cheat’ with him.

“Lilith, you’re up~”

“Don’t worry. Just you watch, Master!”

The Imperial Library’s firewall was obviously not as high-level as a warship’s, so Lilith hacked into it with practically no effort and accessed the Imperial Archives’ system through the internal network.

Unfortunately, however, even inside the Archives’ system, Lilith could only see a portion of the content. She was also unable to see the files that Amber was not authorized to view.

“Master, they must have air-gapped the highest-level archives, so there’s no way to hack into them.”

“It’s fine. It’s a shame, but if we can’t get in, we can’t get in. Start searching for the information we need.”

“Understood, Master. Beginning search.”

Lilith began to browse through a massive amount of content. The library’s books and archives were rapidly scanned by her in an instant. Meanwhile, Amber casually picked up a couple of books, sat down in the reading area, and read while waiting for her results.

The latter didn’t keep him waiting for long. Having undergone multiple upgrades, Lilith’s performance had already surpassed human imagination. This kind of data retrieval task didn’t actually consume much time or computing power.

Lilith: “Master, I’m done. But there’s good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?”

Amber’s eye twitched. “Uh… tell me the good news first.”

Lilith: “The good news is that by going through the library and archives’ data, I got the construction blueprints for The Grand Palace. I also found a suitable point in time—May 22, Year 82 of the New Calendar, a period just before The Grand Palace was completed. The parapet of the west wing exploded due to an issue with fuel cell storage. An entire section of the wall collapsed from the explosion, and the scene was very chaotic. It’s perfect for your infiltration mission, Master.”

“And the bad news?”

“The bad news is that at that point in time, the area where the Princess’s private villa is now was a large stretch of primeval forest on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital. Based on the precautions Ms. Salieh mentioned before, if you hastily initiate time travel from inside the room, there’s a chance you’ll merge directly with the trees in the forest.”

“Damn it.”

Amber frowned upon hearing this. He had no desire to become a vegetable in the most literal sense of the word.

But this also meant he couldn’t travel while falling asleep at night, even though that was when surveillance from the Princess’s side would be at its most lax.

Chapter 693: An Unexpected Invitation

In the end, Lilith managed to read a considerable number of precious documents and files from the Imperial Library and archives. Among them were the original construction blueprints for the Grand Palace, and she also compiled a list of all recorded major events since its construction began.

Although there were bound to be some differences between the original blueprints and the final structure of the Grand Palace, they were more than sufficient for Amber to use as a reference.

Based on these chronologically sorted major events, the incident Lilith had first discovered—the collapse of the west wing parapet in New Calendar year 82 due to a fuel cell explosion during construction—was indeed the most suitable point in time.

The other recorded incidents were either not chaotic enough or occurred too late. Traveling back to those times would mean facing a fully completed and heavily guarded Grand Palace, making a silent infiltration impossible.

Moreover, the parapet collapse caused by the accident in New Calendar year 82 would make it substantially easier for Amber to enter the Grand Palace’s interior.

As for the original plan to depart from the Princess’s private villa, Amber ultimately rejected it after Lilith ran the calculations multiple times.

He could not accept dying by fusing with a large tree.

Under these circumstances, Amber, sitting alone in the deserted Imperial Library, had to urgently reformulate his plan. This time, the plan had to meet two conditions.

First, the operation had to have ample time. Excluding the travel time to the vicinity of the Grand Palace after the jump, Amber needed at least three hours of operational time, with a longer buffer being ideal.

The structure of the Grand Palace depicted in the initial blueprints was already complex enough. Factoring in the time needed to find the entrance to the underground area and then infiltrate it, no one could be certain how long it would take. Naturally, the more time, the better.

Second, besides being sufficiently close to the Grand Palace, the starting point’s topography could not differ too greatly between the two time periods. It would be best if the terrain structure was similar to that of New Calendar year 82. This would prevent situations like getting stuck in the ground or fusing with a tree after the time jump.

It could be said that either of these conditions was difficult to meet on its own, let alone simultaneously.

“This is bad. This is going to be tricky.”

Amber ran his hands anxiously through his once-neatly-styled hair, his expression shifting continuously. His mind raced, constantly communicating various feasible plans to Lilith, but after her simulations and analyses, every single one was vetoed.

“If I had known about today’s operation, I would have set things up in Saint-Saulnier in advance. I wouldn’t be in such a passive position now.”

“Master, don’t blame yourself. Even you couldn’t have predicted today’s operation,” Lilith said comfortingly, sensing his mood.

“I know, I’m just so frustrated… To have such a good opportunity.”

Amber shook his head and sighed, finally standing up to walk out of the library. He sent a message to Isabelle to let her know he was heading back, only to see her reply in the next second, saying she was already waiting at the library entrance.

Utterly bewildered, Amber stepped out of the library and saw Isabelle and the others waiting for him at the entrance. The moment she saw him, she immediately came forward.

“Isabelle, why are you all here?”

Isabelle took Amber’s hand and led him aside, then spoke with an unnatural expression, “Not long after you left for the library, a close friend of my Father, Viscount Gindoshi, paid us a visit in person. He invited us to his residence this afternoon.”

“Viscount Gindoshi? Count Ahrens has such a connection in the Imperial Capital?”

Amber asked with some curiosity. Although Gindoshi’s title was lower than Isabelle’s father’s, the prestige of a noble in the Imperial Capital was still different from that of a noble from a remote fief.

Isabelle quickly explained the relationship between Count Ahrens and this Viscount Gindoshi. In short, the two had met at a noble’s art exhibition and hit it off immediately. They had kept in touch ever since. Even when the Ahrens family was being plotted against, Viscount Gindoshi had spoken out in their support.

Up to this point, everything seemed normal. What was abnormal, however, was that Amber knew Isabelle’s character well. She would not accept such an unimportant social engagement at a critical time like this unless there was another reason.

“Amber, I was originally planning to politely decline the invitation, because I know we’re short on time. But the Viscount said something that forced me to accept, and then I came to find you right away.”

“What did he say?”

Amber was perplexed. He was certain that although the body he had transmigrated into was an Imperial citizen, it had no connections in the Imperial Capital.

“He said his family actually has some connection to you, Amber. He also said that if he just told you a string of numbers, you would understand.”

“Numbers?” Amber grew even more confused.

“430XXXXXXXXXXX0510”

Isabelle rapidly recited the string of digits. She had no idea what it meant, but she had committed it to memory the moment he said it. And then, Amber was completely stunned.

Because that was his fucking ID number from his previous life.

“Fuck! Doxxed?!”

—

On the way to Viscount Gindoshi’s residence, Amber was in a state of mental overload.

To suddenly hear his ID number from his past life after transmigrating to this world was an experience that was far too bizarre, and also deeply unsettling.

Amber felt as though his greatest secret had been discovered and exposed. Though he was sitting in a fully enclosed heavy staff car, he still felt as if he were being paraded through the streets for all to see.

Isabelle had been worried since seeing Amber’s initial reaction. Now, seeing that his state hadn’t improved, she couldn’t help but ask with concern.

“Amber, what’s wrong? Why did you react so strongly to that string of numbers?”

Amber was at a loss for words. For a moment, he didn’t know how to explain it to Isabelle. Finally, he managed to say:

“Isabelle… I… I can’t explain the origin of those numbers to you. All I can say is that they shouldn’t exist here and now, especially not from the mouth of a nobleman of the Star Dragon Empire.”

“Could it be a trap? Should we cancel the trip?”

“No.”

Amber shook his head and looked at Isabelle with a solemn and serious expression she had never seen before.

“I have to find out what’s going on, or I won’t be able to proceed with our plan with any peace of mind. Isabelle, while we still have a little time, tell me everything you know about this Viscount.”

“Alright, Amber. From what I know, the Viscount’s family originally made their name with their exceptional architectural skills.”

Chapter 694: The Gindoshi Family

On the way to Viscount Gindoshi’s residence, Isabelle recounted all the information she knew, giving Amber a general understanding of the mysterious viscount.

The Gindoshi family’s history was considered a long one among the nobility of the Star Dragon Empire, traceable to at least within the first hundred years of the Empire’s founding. The first head of the family, Qilin Gindoshi, was a master architect—or rather, a prodigy.

He was not of noble birth, but with a stroke of incredible luck, he became the only “commoner student” from his star system to be admitted to the Imperial Institute of Technology. After graduating, Qilin Gindoshi found a way to stay and make a name for himself in the Imperial Capital. He started as an engineer’s assistant and, between the years 80 and 90 of the New Calendar, became renowned in the noble circles of the Imperial Capital for his exceptional architectural design and supervisory skills.

Finally, at the peak of his career, on the sixtieth anniversary of the Star Dragon Empire’s founding, he oversaw the construction of the State Religion Cathedral and was granted a hereditary viscountcy.

The massive Star Dragon statue in front of the State Religion Cathedral was his creation, a testament to his prestige.

From then on, the Gindoshi family became a top name in the architectural design circles of the Star Dragon Empire, and synonymous with the “Imperial style” throughout human architectural circles.

Generation after generation of the Gindoshi family continued to inherit the legacy of their ancestors, constantly innovating and advancing the field of architecture. The family has thus endured for several hundred years to this day.

For such an ancient family to suddenly have a connection with Amber—and for the current head, the renowned imperial architect Hedwig Gindoshi, to directly state Amber’s ID number from his previous life—felt anything but normal to Amber.

But now, there was no turning back. Amber had no choice but to meet with Viscount Gindoshi and unravel the mystery in his heart.

——

The Gindoshi family’s residence was in an excellent location. As a family of renowned imperial architects, their mansion was not only personally designed by the first-generation head and maintained and modified by successive heads, but it was also built directly within the Imperial Capital’s core area, adjacent to the Grand Palace.

In Amber’s words, it was like building a house right next to the gate tower of the Forbidden City.

Frankly, the mere location of such a residence was something countless nobles in the Star Dragon Empire could only dream of.

Soon, the convoy arrived in front of the Gindoshi family’s residence. At the same time, Agnes also received the news.

Upon hearing that Amber and Isabelle were going to meet with Viscount Gindoshi, the Princess was stunned for a moment. She had not expected this master architect of the Empire to have any connection with her guest.

However, she quickly learned of the relationship between the Gindoshi and Ahrens families through her intelligence channels. When Natalia asked her how to handle the situation, Agnes pondered for a moment before making a decision.

“Leave it be. Have the heavy armored units pull back. Just leave a small team of elite personnel on standby near the residence. This is near the Grand Palace, after all. Having my Royal Guard unit stay here so conspicuously for so long will eventually give people grounds for criticism. These are troubled times; we should be a little more discreet.”

“What about Mr. Amber’s safety?”

“Don’t worry,” Agnes shook her head and walked toward the window. “That is the core area of the Imperial Capital. No matter how bold those enemies in the shadows are, they wouldn’t dare to make a move there.”

“Understood, Your Highness. I’ll give the orders at once.” Natalia nodded and turned to leave.

Agnes walked to the window of her room and gazed in the direction of the Grand Palace, as if she could see the brightly lit mansion directly, a complex look flashing in her eyes.

“Mr. Amber… just how many more secrets do you have that I don’t know about?”

——

As twilight fell and the city lights came on, the convoy reached the gates of the Gindoshi estate. The escort unit Agnes had dispatched had already withdrawn, leaving only three heavy staff cars behind. Agnes had the escort personnel tell Amber not to worry about his safety, as no one would dare to harm him within this area.

“Does that mean someone will come after me as soon as I leave this area?”

Amber listened to the squad leader’s words, smiled, and shook his head. After sincerely thanking him and the rest of the team for their hard work, he and Isabelle stepped out of the car.

He looked toward the main gate and saw an elderly man of about eighty or ninety, dressed in fine clothes, waiting with a group of people in aristocratic attire.

Feeling Isabelle link her arm with his, Amber composed himself and walked toward the old man.

“Mr. Amber, Ms. Isabelle! Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to visit. Your presence truly graces our humble home!”

This old man, the current Head of the Gindoshi family, Hedwig Gindoshi, seemed rather emotional. He came forward and took Amber’s hand as if greeting an old friend, which only deepened the questions in Amber’s mind.

Wait, where did this noble ‘friendship that transcends age differences’ suddenly pop up from???

Though his mind was filled with question marks, Amber managed his expression and replied with a smile, “To receive an invitation from the Empire’s most renowned master architect—the honor is all mine.”

The two sides exchanged a few pleasantries. Hedwig Gindoshi also greeted Isabelle, inquiring about Count Ahrens’s current situation and expressing his intention to pay a visit soon, before leading Amber and Isabelle into the residence.

At this moment, Amber keenly noticed that the Gindoshi family’s younger generation standing beside Hedwig Gindoshi looked at him not only with curiosity but also with a hint of confusion.

Clearly, they also had no idea why the head of their family would suddenly invite this esteemed guest of the Princess.

“This is getting more and more interesting…”

Filled with curiosity, Amber followed Hedwig Gindoshi to the residence’s dining hall. What followed was another lavish banquet, characteristic of the Star Dragon Empire’s nobility. Glasses clinked as they toasted, and under Hedwig Gindoshi’s lead, the atmosphere quickly grew lively.

The younger members of the Gindoshi family also came forward one by one to converse and raise their glasses with Amber. After hearing a few of his “short business stories,” they became even more interested in the de facto controller of the Atlas Group.

Meanwhile, Amber engaged with them while patiently waiting for the evening’s “main course”—he was extremely curious why this viscount, who could recite his ID number from his previous life, had suddenly invited him to his residence.

He didn’t have to wait long for this main course. Halfway through the banquet, Viscount Gindoshi, on the pretext of having something to discuss, led Amber to a private room to the side.

With the familiar sound of mechanical gears and a slightly “stifling” sensation, Amber knew the room had entered “black box mode.”

This meant that Viscount Gindoshi was finally getting to the point.

“Mr. Amber…”

The Viscount no longer concealed his excitement; his entire body was trembling slightly.

“Our Gindoshi family has waited for this moment for several hundred years. I never thought the mission of meeting you would fall to me. This… this is the greatest honor of my life, of Hedwig Gindoshi’s life!”

“Huh?”

Chapter 695: The Family’s Mission

Viscount Gindoshi’s words left Amber completely stunned.

Amber wanted to ask the old nobleman if he had the wrong person, but the string of numbers he had recited to Isabelle was, indeed, his ID number from his previous life. He was certain no one else in this world could possibly know it.

“You said your family has been waiting for centuries? Just to see me?”

“Yes, Mr. Amber!” Viscount Gindoshi nodded, his voice filled with excitement. “This is the secret mission passed down by the first Head of our Gindoshi family—Viscount Qilin Gindoshi. Only the head of the family learns of this mission from their predecessor upon taking up the mantle.”

Amber: “So, you’re saying your first Head of the family knew, centuries ago, that I would visit the Imperial Capital someday? Did this Viscount Qilin Gindoshi have some ability to see the future?”

“No, our ancestor was simply an ordinary man. He was neither a psionic user nor did he possess any special abilities,” Viscount Gindoshi replied.

“Then why would he leave behind this… erm… secret mission? And where did you learn that string of numbers you told Isabelle?”

Viscount Gindoshi frowned, seemingly searching his aging mind for memories. After a moment, he continued:

“Truthfully, none of the successive heads of the family have known the reason. We only know that he left this mission behind… The string of numbers was also passed down by our ancestor. He said that once he met you, Mr. Amber, reciting these numbers would establish a connection, and you would understand everything.”

“Huh? But now that I’ve heard it, I’m even more confused.”

Amber didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The Viscount Gindoshi opposite him, however, wore a relaxed expression, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. It was clear that successfully fulfilling the mission left by his ancestor brought him immense satisfaction.

Seeing Amber’s lingering confusion, the old man added:

“By the way, Mr. Amber, you may stay here tonight. The Gindoshi family will do everything in its power to ensure your safety. No matter what happens this evening, we will remain completely silent… This is also what our ancestor instructed us descendants to tell you. And every head of the family has sworn a ‘blood oath’ upon their succession.”

Some careless words can unravel all my doubts~

It was as if that snippet of background music had just drifted through his mind. Amber suddenly realized he might have guessed something, but he didn’t dare be certain yet. The answer in his head was simply too insane.

“Your Excellency, the Viscount, could I trouble you to recount the entire story passed down by your ancestor, from beginning to end?”

“Of course, Mr. Amber. Of course.”

Amber helped the current Viscount Gindoshi to a chair in the private room and listened intently to the old man’s story.

—

This secret family story, which had spanned centuries, did not actually take long to tell. Viscount Gindoshi finished recounting it in just over ten minutes, and that was with him being a man in his nineties.

But the sheer volume of information in the story sent Amber’s mind reeling.

To put it simply, the first Head of the Gindoshi family, Qilin Gindoshi, had summoned his heir privately before his death. He told him that at some point in the next few centuries, if a universal megacorporation called the Atlas Group appeared, and its actual controller, Amber, came to the Imperial Capital, they must contact this Mr. Amber at an opportune moment.

They only needed to tell him the string of numbers ‘430XXXXXXXXXXX0510’, and this Mr. Amber would understand everything.

At the same time, they were to use the pretext of a dinner or reception to have Mr. Amber stay the night at their home.

Finally, and most importantly, as long as the Gindoshi family had the means, they must preserve this ancestral home in the Imperial Capital. They were to keep it in good repair, but they were absolutely forbidden from altering its structure in any way, ensuring it remained exactly the same, down to the last detail.

Every head of the Gindoshi family who inherited the title would be told these things by their predecessor and made to swear a blood oath on the spot, guaranteeing with their own lives that this secret mission would be passed down.

A blood oath was the highest level of vow among the Empire’s nobility. Isabelle had once told Amber that the greatest difference between a “blood oath” and other vows was that it was truly ‘monitored’ by some mysterious power.

Throughout the Empire’s history, every nobleman who had failed to honor a blood oath had paid the price with their own life and the ruin of their entire family, without a single exception.

Therefore, the nobility of the Star Dragon Empire treated “blood oaths” with extreme caution. Once sworn, it meant that the nobleman would spend their life willing to risk death itself to uphold their vow.

“Mr. Amber, to be honest, when I had just taken my position as Head of the family and inherited the title, and then swore the blood oath, I didn’t hold it in much respect.”

Viscount Gindoshi suddenly said. Amber looked up at the old man.

“Because in my view, the oath seemed like a fantasy story, like something my ancestor had said in his dotage. But the oath wasn’t difficult to follow. For each successive family head, it was merely a matter of protecting the family estate and repairing the ancestral home according to the rules.”

Viscount Gindoshi paused again, and a glint appeared in his eyes—a light one would hardly expect to see in a man his age.

“It wasn’t until I first heard of the Atlas Group, until I first heard the rumors about you, that I suddenly realized my ancestor’s secret mission was not just an empty tale… For the first time, I truly felt the weight of this mission, passed down through the centuries.”

“Mission.”

Amber muttered the word to himself. He suddenly realized that this seemingly absurd turn of events with the Gindoshi family could only have one answer—it was all in preparation for his infiltration of The Grand Palace tonight.

He looked again at the ‘rejuvenated’ old man before him and said with a smile, “I understand, Your Excellency. In that case, I will impose on your hospitality for the night.”

“You are too kind. Our family has awaited this night for centuries. To finally be able to fulfill our ancestor’s long-cherished wish, I, as the current head of the family, am deeply honored.”

Viscount Gindoshi made a gesture of invitation, then deactivated the private room’s ‘black box mode’ and led Amber outside.

“I will organize another reception for you, Mr. Amber, so that everyone knows you are staying with the Gindoshi family tonight, indulging in revelry.”

“I appreciate the trouble, Your Excellency.”

Amber nodded and followed Viscount Gindoshi back into the lively banquet hall. As the noise of the party once again filled his ears, Amber’s expression was as calm as ever, and Viscount Gindoshi had also shed his earlier excitement, as if nothing had just happened.

Chapter 696: Time Travel, Initiate!

Soon, Viscount Gindoshi announced to everyone that the party would continue, and that Mr. Amber would be attending and staying the night at the residence.

The guests in the banquet hall were first delighted, then quickly fell into a lively atmosphere of “let the music play and the dancing continue.”

After everyone finished their meal, the residence’s service team swiftly began to redecorate the banquet hall, adjusting it to the “Violet Style” currently in vogue at the Imperial Capital’s noble receptions.

The news that Viscount Gindoshi was hosting a party and that Amber of the Atlas Group would be attending spread rapidly through the Imperial Capital’s core circle.

On one hand was the Empire’s long-renowned family of master architects; on the other, the princess’s most sought-after guest in the capital.

“What a dream crossover! Ah, I’m dead!”

For a moment, all the nobles in the core circle were in an uproar.

Some nobles who were well-acquainted with Viscount Gindoshi and had been eager to see Amber in person immediately sprang into action. After bathing and changing into their most magnificent formalwear with the utmost speed, they arrived at the Gindoshi family residence.

Soon, a flood of nobles tried to join the reception before it reached capacity. The entrance to the residence became a scene of bustling traffic, even causing a jam—an extremely rare occurrence in the area near the Grand Palace.

Agnes naturally received the news, but apart from sighing, “Mr. Amber always manages to come up with something new,” she gave no other instructions and did not head over herself. She merely had the elite team left behind by the Royal Guard unit increase surveillance and protection around the Gindoshi residence.

Inside the Gindoshi family’s banquet hall, Isabelle glanced at the growing crowd of Imperial nobles and shot Amber a questioning look, to which he replied with a gesture to be patient.

Just like every other reception of the Empire’s nobility Amber had attended these past few days, all the nobles who joined the party raised their glasses and drank together amidst the lively atmosphere. From time to time, hearty laughter erupted from different parts of the hall.

As the focus of the night’s reception, Amber and Viscount Gindoshi were surrounded by nobles hoping to network. Everyone tried to gain some advantage, however small, from the capital’s “new favorite.” Amber, as always, skillfully parried their advances with his usual talking points.

The bustling party continued until midnight. As the nobles departed, some satisfied and others slightly disappointed, the Gindoshi residence gradually returned to tranquility.

Wasting no more time, Amber bid Viscount Gindoshi and the others good night and, along with Isabelle, Oksana, and the others, returned to the room the viscount had arranged for them.

It was the largest guest room in the entire residence, rivaling Viscount Gindoshi’s own master bedroom in both size and decor. It also included attached rooms for attendants and guards, though it was never normally opened for use.

After they entered the room and closed the door, Oksana immediately led the other two cat-girls in a thorough inspection, taking out a set of shielding devices from several suitcases they had brought. Amber also activated his Psionics to scan the room. Although Viscount Gindoshi seemed to be a “friendly NPC” for now, one could never be too careful.

The results of the inspection were just as Amber expected. The room was clean, with no hidden devices. Occupying nearly an entire floor of the mansion’s west wing, it had no adjacent rooms, affording it extreme privacy.

Once Oksana and her team gave the all-clear, Amber and Isabelle put on their Full Dive rigs and re-entered the virtual conference room via Lilith’s encrypted private line. Having been notified, Salieh and Allenita were already waiting for them.

Amber wasted no time, quickly explaining the current situation and stating his conclusion and decision directly.

“All the information points to one result: the Gindoshi family residence is the key to this operation. Therefore, I’ve decided to act tonight, right here. It’s close to the Grand Palace, I have the entire night, and the topography and building structure have remained the same as they were back then.”

Allenita: “Remained the same? Amber, do you mean this residence has existed for several hundred years?”

“That’s right!” Amber nodded and continued.

“According to the current Viscount Gindoshi, it was originally the residence of another high-ranking noble, one of the first aristocratic homes built alongside the Grand Palace. Later, this noble committed a crime and was executed, and the residence was reclaimed by the Royal Family and put up for auction. However, due to the high price and the previous owner’s dark history, no one bought it.

“It wasn’t until the first Head of the family, Qilin Gindoshi, made his fortune that he, to the surprise of others, spent a great sum to purchase this residence. At the time, many said that the newly-ascended Viscount Gindoshi’s move was likely an attempt to quickly integrate into the Imperial Capital’s circle of nobility.

“While preserving the original structure, Qilin Gindoshi had the residence renovated and strictly ordered his descendants never to make any structural changes. This means the mansion’s structure is identical to when it was first constructed.”

Salieh: “And the construction date of this residence is…”

“New Calendar 75, the same year the Star Dragon Empire founded its capital in Saint-Saulnier.”

“Just before New Calendar 82. Could it be such a coincidence?”

The Jeram woman frowned slightly, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head began to squirm rhythmically, as they always did when she was deep in thought.

“So, Salieh, what do you think?” Sensing that the “old frozen meat” had some ideas, Amber asked.

Salieh: “Amber, if you are set on time-traveling tonight… when you arrive at your target point in time, no matter what you encounter, you must trust your instincts.”

“Trust my own instincts?”

“Yes, trust your instincts,” Salieh nodded, then added, “And there is one more thing you must remember: time travel is essentially the process of drawing a circle. Where there is a cause, there is an effect, and where there is an effect, a cause is born.”

In the dead of night, the bustling Imperial Capital of the Star Dragon Empire gradually fell into a brief slumber.

Several squads from the Princess’s Guard Regiment, having changed shifts, continued their covert watch and protection of the Gindoshi family residence. Under the coverage of numerous surveillance devices, the squad commander was confident that no one could enter or leave the mansion undetected.

Meanwhile, in the main guest room of the mansion’s west wing, Amber and the others were making their final preparations.

He was now wearing the “biological exoskeleton”—courtesy of Allenita’s friendly sponsorship—that Salieh had subjected to quantum state recording. Its appearance and function were somewhat similar to a nano combat suit from Amber’s memory, only lighter and more form-fitting, even allowing him to wear a coat over it.

In fact, Amber did need to consider a disguise. Otherwise, in a crowded place, dressed in such a skintight suit, he would probably be mistaken for a pervert in the next second, summoning the Imperial City Guard—of New Calendar 82.

Fortunately, the date he was about to travel to, May 22nd, New Calendar 82, was during the transition from autumn to winter in Saint-Saulnier, so wearing a heavy coat would not be too out of place.

However, Amber would have to find an opportunity to swipe a coat after he arrived. The “Tactical Time Travel Device MK1” had a limited capacity for quantum-state recorded equipment, and that quota certainly couldn’t be wasted on an overcoat.

Besides, they couldn’t find any clothing on hand that would fit the “Imperial Capital fashion” of several centuries ago.

“Please be careful, Amber,” Isabelle, Oksana, and the others stood at the edge of the room, looking nervously at Amber in the center as he prepared to travel.

“Don’t worry, I will be. You guys guard this place. Wait for my return.”

With that, Amber pressed the thumb of his other hand into the authentication groove on the edge of the watch face. The moment a faint electric pulse pricked his skin, the device emitted an almost inaudible low hum.

A holographic interface floated up from the watch face. Countless complex, golden Jeram script characters flew like raindrops in reverse, finally converging into a line of warning:

“Current anchor point locked: Human - Star Dragon Empire - Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier Core Area, New Calendar 592, January 11, 02:15:45. Please input target time point.”

“Set time deviation -510 years, target time point—New Calendar 82, May 22, 20:00:00.”

Chapter 697: Senior Engineer Amuro

With the biometric authentication passed and the Time Anchor set, the one microgram of antihydrogen inside the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 was activated, beginning to output enough energy to create a small wormhole.

This miniature, artificial wormhole, formed based on a principle similar to the Einstein-Rosen Bridge Control Theory, would ultimately become a negative energy bubble enveloping Amber.

Then, Amber felt the air around him begin to swirl counter-clockwise. The luxurious carpet in the guest room rippled, and the dome, which projected a starry sky, shattered into true starlight amidst the distortions.

Amber heard his own heartbeat stretch into a low-frequency hum. He felt every nerve fiber, every blood vessel, every muscle strand, every bone, slowly being submerged in the negative energy bubble that enveloped him like a drop of water.

The next second, Amber felt his body dematerialize in the spacetime resonance, and his vision was torn in two.

His left eye could still see the present: the magnificent master suite, the lavish decorations, and the worried expressions on Isabelle and the others’ faces.

His right eye, however, saw a different, peculiar scene. It was like a film playing in fast reverse. People constantly entered and exited the room. Judging by their attire and the tools in their hands, they were likely the management team for the Gindoshi family’s residence.

This repetitive scene continued until a large group of workers “dismantled” the current decor, restoring the room to its former state, and then continued to revert it further…

In the midst of this strange and perilous process, Amber felt the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’s operation reach a critical threshold.

A buzzing sound, audible only to Amber, rang out. The image of the present world in his left eye vanished completely, and the now-frozen scene in his right eye rapidly filled his entire field of vision.

“Time travel protocol initiated. Happy hunting,” a cold, synthetic female voice announced in his ear.

“Salieh, you forgot to change the startup prompt!”

The next moment, Amber disappeared from where he stood. To Isabelle and the others, the entire process had been instantaneous. It was as if they had blinked, and he was simply gone.

“Boss, he’s gone just like that?” Oksana asked, a little stunned.

Isabelle nodded somewhat rigidly. “I think… so?”

“I think I heard the Boss say something right before he disappeared,” another cat-girl guard spoke up.

“Yes! I heard it too! It was something like… ‘So-and-so, don’t forget me?’”

When Amber regained consciousness, the first thing he felt was the stench of decay filling his nostrils—the kind of smell that permeates a house that has been uninhabited and untended for years.

As his vision cleared, Amber took in his surroundings.

He was in the same master bedroom; the overall structure was identical to the one before his time travel, but the interior decoration was completely different.

His feet stood on an unfamiliar wooden floor, uncarpeted. Amber was sure the wood used in this mansion was nothing cheap, but a lack of maintenance had left the floorboards damp and blackened.

The east wall, which in his timeline featured an oil painting titled The Dragon and the Maiden Under the Starry Sky, was now bare, gray plaster, covered in numerous scratches and smudges.

Amber looked up. The starry sky projection on the dome was gone, replaced by a huge, dust-covered crystal chandelier, its design evoking the era of the Star Dragon Empire’s founding.

The entire room felt ancient, dilapidated, and utterly devoid of life.

That, combined with the wide-open door of the master suite and the faded seal on the doorframe, couldn’t help but make Amber think of a foreclosed property that had yet to be sold.

“Does this mean the original owner of this residence is already dead and gone?”

As he thought this, Amber checked his body to make sure it was still in one piece after the time travel. He had felt a pang of fear during the jump—it would have been a real joke if someone had been in the room. Fortunately, this place was now an “Imperial foreclosure,” so there was usually no one around.

At the same time, several lines of text popped up on the face of the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 on his wrist:

“Checking for mass contamination… No contaminants detected. Historical compatibility stripping not required.”

“Time travel successful. User, please adhere to all relevant protocols. Do not touch any red lines.”

“Once again, happy hunting~”

“I knew Salieh forgot to change the startup prompt! So, when the Forerunners time travel, they go ‘hunting,’ huh…”

Amber shook his head, then lowered his wrist and approached the room’s french windows. Saint-Saulnier of New Calendar year 82 leaped into view.

The environment outside the residence hadn’t changed much. A wide road lay beyond the main gate, though its structure and materials looked dated. On the other side of the road was still a massive artificial lake, shimmering under the moonlight and the surrounding lights.

Normally, upon seeing the two satellites in the sky above Saint-Saulnier 510 years in the past, Amber might have pretentiously mused, “The moon is beautiful tonight.” But right now, all he wanted was to get moving. After all, the west parapet could collapse from the explosion at any moment, and he had to get there beforehand to prepare.

He raised his left hand, and a virtual screen materialized against his forearm. It was the control panel for his biological exoskeleton, specially adjusted by the Yuge family’s Elf technicians to suit human operational habits.

The information displayed was simple—remaining energy, estimated runtime, exoskeleton durability, and current mode.

Under normal circumstances, this biological exoskeleton was powered by the wearer’s Psionics. For the Elf Psionic Masters who could use this set gear, the Psionic energy drain was negligible. The energy consumed in an entire day of operation was less than what they’d use to fire a single psionic “wave” in combat.

As for Amber’s current situation, where he could no longer use Psionics after time travel, the suit could still achieve a self-sufficient runtime of up to five hours, depending on the mode—more than enough for his current mission.

The biological exoskeleton had a total of three selectable modes: Speed, Strength, and Protection. The first time Amber had seen this in the资料 Allenita gave him, a sense of déjà vu had immediately struck him.

This biological exoskeleton was undoubtedly a massive asset for Amber’s mission. The only regret was that without Psionics, it couldn’t achieve true stealth. It could only rely on its surface biological coating to create a chameleon-like camouflage and anti-infrared effect.

After confirming that the residence was indeed empty, Amber activated Speed Mode. He carefully opened the door to a small balcony on the side of the room that didn’t face the street and jumped straight down from the third-story height.

The night was as black as ink, deeply enveloping Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire. Amber moved nimbly through the Imperial Capital’s streets. Streetlights cast a dim, flickering yellow glow, dappling the stone-paved sidewalks. The shadows cast by these retro streetlights became Amber’s best route for stealth.

The Star Dragon Empire had been walking the “retro” path since its founding. The construction of the Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier, in particular, had deliberately eschewed some newer materials in favor of a massive-scale use of time-consuming and labor-intensive “retro materials.”

The slightly uneven stone-paved road under Amber’s feet was a prime example. While machine-cut stones could be fitted together flawlessly, the Star Dragon Empire insisted on creating an ancient, handcrafted texture.

Well, it certainly had texture, and it was on a completely different level from the “imitation European towns” in his previous life. It was just that the road was a bit difficult to walk on…

Along the streets of the Imperial Capital, ancient—no, it would be more accurate to say, less-than-ten-year-old—buildings stood majestically. Amber was tempted to narrate how they had witnessed the rise and fall of countless dynasties and carried the city’s profound historical legacy, but unfortunately, neither was true.

Still, as Amber walked down this familiar yet strange street, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of curiosity. He came from a future five hundred years later, and everything here was new and fascinating to him, as if he were in a world both real and illusory.

He stayed close to the walls, his body practically melting into the night, moving as silently as a Ghost. He remained constantly alert to his surroundings, ready to hide completely in the shadows at the slightest sign of trouble.

The fact that several passing Imperial patrol teams failed to spot him was proof that his stealth was indeed effective.

The building that would one day become the Gindoshi family residence was not far from the Grand Palace. Moving at a pace slightly faster than a walk, Amber reached the outer area of the Grand Palace in just over ten minutes.

The Grand Palace of the Star Dragon Empire, that magnificent structure, stood right in the center of the Imperial Capital. As Amber rounded the last building in his path, it came into full view.

The outermost layer of the composite armor walls was made of decorative white marble, carved with all sorts of exquisite patterns, mainly depicting the founding history of the Star Dragon Empire—the beautified and embellished version, that is.

The entire Grand Palace was immense. Even in the quiet of the night, one could feel its solemn majesty, which inspired a sense of awe.

The Grand Palace was, without a doubt, the symbol of the Star Dragon Empire’s power. It was also a sacred place in the hearts of innumerable fanatics of the State Religion, although the State Religion cathedral and the giant star dragon statue had yet to be built at this time.

However, Amber knew that the Grand Palace would not remain peaceful tonight. The collapse of the west parapet, triggered by the explosion of construction site fuel cells, would plunge the Empire’s center of power into a brief period of chaos.

According to the plan formulated before his departure, Amber had to hack into the servers of the Royal Engineering Division before the west parapet of the Grand Palace collapsed and create a fake identity for himself so he could blend into the scene more easily.

As for hacking the Royal Engineering Division’s server, it wasn’t a difficult task. In fact, the division’s main building was less than a ten-minute walk from his current position.

The location of the Gindoshi family residence was simply perfect, providing Amber with a great deal of convenience for his operation.

Ten minutes later, Amber arrived right on time outside the headquarters of the Royal Engineering Division. This headquarters, which also handled the repair and maintenance of important areas in the Imperial Capital, was much larger than Amber had imagined. In addition to an office building, there was a massive hangar for storing various types of engineering equipment.

At the time of Amber’s arrival, most of the Engineering Division’s staff had already gone home for the day. The vast headquarters was left with only a handful of engineers and employees on the night shift.

Since the security level here wasn’t high, the guards at the sentry posts were far more lax compared to other critical departments. Amber slipped into the massive hangar with almost no effort.

First, he found a suitable work uniform in the equipment storage area. Then, following a sign on the wall, he put on a safety helmet and strolled nonchalantly toward the southeast corner of the hangar. A few employees from the Engineering Division who passed him even nodded in acknowledgment.

Amber’s current target was a small room in the southeast corner of the hangar. According to the map on the wall he had just seen, it housed a distributed information exchange terminal. This matched the information Lilith had gathered from the Imperial Library. In New Calendar year 82 of Saint-Saulnier, all the major government departments had adopted this type of distributed information exchange terminal to build their network for more convenient information sharing.

This very system had been spearheaded by the Royal Engineering Division, with assistance from the Royal Academy of Sciences.

The door to the information room was, of course, locked. But for Amber, this kind of electronic smart lock was far easier to deal with than a traditional, fully mechanical one.

He raised his hand, bringing the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 close to the smart lock. The watch, which integrated a decryption device, quickly extended a composite interface. After a brief scan of the 510-year-old lock, the interface instantly reconfigured itself into a matching pattern.

Hacking, acquiring permissions, unlocking—the entire sequence was smooth and fluid.

To anyone passing by, it would have simply looked like Amber had flawlessly completed the verification process and unlocked the door to enter.

Inside the room, the distributed information exchange terminal sat in the center, with a control panel of the same 510-year-old design beside it.

It was a familiar operation. Against these antiques, the hacking device developed by Lilith was a completely superior entity overwhelming an inferior one. In essence, this gadget was a “Lilith Lite.” Its computing power was just far inferior to her main body, so it couldn’t interact with Amber and could only perform hacking tasks.

But if Amber wanted to, he could still surreptitiously rewrite the source code of the entire distributed information exchange network without anyone knowing.

However, Amber wouldn’t be staying in this timeline for long, and sometimes, the more you do, the more you screw up, so he naturally wouldn’t go that far.

All Amber needed to do now was to simply create a plausible identity for himself and set up a small, hidden program to erase all traces left in the distributed exchange network after he departed the timeline.

On the holographic screen of his watch face, the rapidly scrolling lines of code vanished, replaced by an emoji of Lilith making an “OK” sign. This meant that every department in the Star Dragon Empire’s capital connected to the distributed information exchange network had been successfully hacked.

“Done… Damn, this feeling of technological dominance is awesome! Now this is the experience a transmigrator should have.”

Amber shook his head and sighed. After transmigrating to this world for so long, he was finally experiencing the satisfying feeling from novels where the protagonist crushes the local natives.

“Next up is to create a temporary identity for myself. Royal Engineering Division - Operations Department - Senior Engineer. That sounds good.”

Through the hacked terminal in front of him, and with the assistance of “Lilith Lite,” Amber quickly began editing the databases of the Royal Engineering Division, the Household Registration Office, and other related departments.

“First, a perfectly ordinary name for a senior engineer, one that’s neither plain nor conspicuous… Amuro Ray.”

A carefully woven life story—from his date of birth and family background to his educational history and work experience—gradually brought this fictional character to life.

An ordinary family, a bright child, who through diligent study got into the Empire’s best engineering academy, and became an outstanding engineer after graduation…

All documents related to this identity were also forged, and even the entry timestamps in the various department databases were altered.

This meant that before Amber left this timeline, and before this information self-destructed, if someone were to actually look up this Senior Engineer “Amuro Ray,” they would find that this person was real, with no issues whatsoever.

Chapter 698: The Intact West Wing Parapet

After sorting out his identity information, Amber was basically no longer panicking.

He even greeted people he met along the way, and they all just assumed he was a new, good-natured colleague who had just reported for duty.

Before leaving, Amber also grabbed a new spare personal terminal to receive messages from the Royal Engineering Division, and he also took a toolbox imprinted with the division’s emblem.

It’s perfectly normal for a Senior Engineer from the Royal Engineering Division to carry these tools, right?

Having done all this, Amber calmly walked to the main gate of the Engineering Division, swiped his card, and went through biometric identification. The seamless verification process passed, and he walked out, open and honest.

What no one knew, however, was that shortly after Amber left, a ‘small program’ he had left in the Engineering Division’s security system wiped all his entry and exit records and replaced all the surveillance footage that had captured his image.

This was another handy trick taught by Salieh, one from the Forerunners’ ‘Time Travel Operations Team’: when undertaking historical transmigration, no matter the circumstances, one must erase all traces of one’s existence to avoid triggering any paradoxes to the greatest extent possible.

Next, all Amber had to do was wait.

Wait for the West Wing Parapet to collapse from an explosion, wait for the engineers from the Royal Engineering Division’s operations department to be urgently recalled to the scene for emergency response. Then, he could slip in with the main group.

Soon, Amber arrived at a location with a direct view of the West Wing Parapet. It was a green space near The Grand Palace, planted with all sorts of rare and exotic ornamental flowers and plants, which also happened to perfectly conceal his figure.

Upon activating the ‘biological exoskeleton,’ the suit immediately extended a portion to envelop his head, like a symbiote. To be honest, Amber had never quite gotten used to this process; he always felt as if he were being eaten by the exoskeleton.

The part covering his head formed a structure similar to a Tactical faceplate after molding itself to his face. The optical reconnaissance module integrated into the ‘biological exoskeleton’ then projected the distant scene before Amber’s eyes.

The Grand Palace’s iconic white parapets stood majestically. However, because they had been built only a little over a decade ago and were well-maintained, they gave Amber a sense of déjà vu, as if he were looking at a domestic ‘film studio lot’ or ‘movie town’.

But even so, the towering parapets faintly exuded an air of extraordinary grandeur and solemnity. The carvings on them were intricate and exquisite. Without the mottling of age, there was only a brand-new splendor and glory.

And just below these extremely retro-styled parapets was a vast, dusty, and noisy construction site. From some of the scattered structures visible within, Amber deduced that they were renovating the concealed defensive parapets on the exterior of The Grand Palace.

In the year 82 of the New Calendar, deflector shield technology had not yet been developed. Therefore, the defense of these important areas, aside from the inherently sturdy main structures, most popularly involved installing a ring of concealed defensive parapets on the exterior.

Normally hidden underground, they would be raised in advance when danger was detected, acting like a ‘bulletproof vest’ for the target building. They were also typically equipped with numerous weapons for defensive firepower—a very traditional, ancient Defense Mode.

At present, a large number of workers in extremely cumbersome engineering exoskeletons were working alongside many robots. A massive, spider-like heavy machine was lifting heavy objects, apparently repairing the drive mechanism of this section of concealed defensive parapets.

And according to historical records, the fuel cells that would cause the collapse of this West Wing Parapet were, at this very moment, stacked together at the base of the parapet in a manner that completely violated safety regulations.

Amber zoomed in a little and did a rough count of the fuel cells. It seemed they were the power supply for the engineering exoskeletons, heavy machinery, and robots at this construction site.

He figured the foreman of this site had probably cut corners and didn’t designate a separate energy storage area as required, so they were just piled directly under the parapet.

“There’s no such thing as a minor safety issue.”

Amber shook his head as he looked at the magnified image, but then his brow suddenly furrowed.

“Wait, that’s not right. The Grand Palace’s parapets have layers upon layers of reinforcement; they aren’t so fragile that they would collapse from a fuel cell explosion.”

The more he looked, the more something felt wrong. Amber suddenly realized that even the information in the Imperial Library and the Archives couldn’t be fully trusted. At least, regarding the reason for the West Wing Parapet’s collapse tonight, the official records were definitely flawed.

However, Amber could now ‘witness’ it for himself and see what the truth really was.

Time ticked by, second by second. After Amber had been waiting in his concealed position for nearly three hours, he was starting to get restless.

It was already past 11:00 PM, and in less than an hour, it would be the next day.

But the problem was, the West Wing Parapet was still perfectly intact. According to the information Amber had checked on the Engineering Division’s terminal, there had been no anomalies at The Grand Palace all night, let alone a major incident like an explosion or a parapet collapse.

“The records didn’t get the time wrong, did they? For an event this big, there’s no way the historians could have recorded the wrong date, right?”

Amber forced himself to wait a bit longer. He knew he couldn’t afford to be impatient right now. But as the clock ticked closer and closer to midnight, he couldn’t sit still any longer.

At the same time, a sentence Salieh had said to him before the mission began echoed in his mind—time travel is essentially the process of drawing a circle. Where there is a cause, there is an effect, and where there is an effect, a cause is born.

Then, the unique, leap-of-logic creativity characteristic of a human psionic user kicked in.

“Wait a minute… Don’t tell me I’m the one who’s supposed to take down this wall?”

The thought suddenly flashed through Amber’s mind. Then he remembered another thing Salieh had told him—when you arrive at your target point in time, no matter what happens, you must trust your instincts.

“In other words… only if I find a way to blow up this wall right now can the time loop be closed???”

In that instant, Amber achieved a clarity of thought. The only problem was, how exactly was he supposed to take down the West Wing Parapet?

Not to mention, he had brought basically nothing with him on this time travel trip. Even if he could have, he likely wouldn’t have had any equipment capable of demolishing a composite parapet.

“So how did I do it?”

As he pondered this, he continuously scanned the surroundings with his exoskeleton’s optical reconnaissance module. Finally, he locked onto a target about 300 meters away from the West Wing Parapet: a tactical node in the Imperial City’s outer defensive line.

On a large maintenance platform within the node, a super-heavy war machine, about fifteen meters tall, was undergoing routine maintenance. The triple-barreled, 25-meter-class electromagnetic cannon mounted on its top completely captured Amber’s attention.

“An Armored Trooper… a firepower-is-everything antique. No, wait, in this era, I guess it’s not considered an antique~”

Chapter 699: Bombarding the Imperial City!

The MK3 Armored Trooper was a type of heavy, self-propelled, mobile electromagnetic cannon system used by the Star Dragon Empire in its early days.

Equipped with a triple-barreled heavy electromagnetic cannon that could fire multiple types of ammunition, it was generally used as an important area fire support platform during offensive or defensive operations.

The Armored Troopers near the Grand Palace were stationed there to perform defensive duties, although it was highly unlikely anyone could ever fight their way to this position.

However, due to the Armored Trooper’s immense size and the awe-inspiring presence of its triple-barreled heavy electromagnetic cannon, the Royal Guard had requisitioned over thirty units from the Army. Deployed near the Grand Palace, they served as defensive nodes while simultaneously showcasing the might of the Empire’s military to the citizens of the Imperial Capital.

All of the above was information Amber had acquired by hacking into the headquarters networks of the Royal Guard and the Royal Ordnance Manufacturing Division through a distributed information exchange terminal.

To be fair, the developers of Starry Sky Online had actually created detailed backstories for some of the units from decades or even centuries ago that appeared in the game’s plot. As such, Amber was not entirely unfamiliar with this type of giant land unit.

After all, any experienced gamer could tell at a glance that this thing was just another “kitbash” of different designs.

Its overall design and role were somewhat similar to a unit of the same name from a sci-fi real-time strategy game—both were large-caliber mobile artillery platforms.

But its appearance was not so traditionally sci-fi; instead, it was imbued with the retro feel unique to the Star Dragon Empire.

The relatively rounded, curvaceous exterior armor, covered in a large amount of exquisite and complex carvings, along with decorative pennants and streamers that fluttered in the evening wind and parchment seals fixed with wax, reminded Amber of a similar unit from another, madder universe.

Still, Amber had to admit that this magnificent, retro design was a perfect match for the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial City. A high-tech design would have felt rather out of place.

And now, the Armored Trooper that Amber had snuck up to was just such a majestic and ornate behemoth.

Because Armored Troopers held an extremely high status in the Star Dragon Empire’s Army during this era, they did not use the standard silver-white paint scheme of traditional Imperial land warfare equipment. Instead, they were allowed to choose their own paint jobs.

Furthermore, since the soldiers who could become an Armored Trooper’s crew were almost exclusively the children of nobility, these giant units were usually decorated with the family colors and crest of the crew’s team head.

The unit currently stationed at the West Wing Parapet was decorated in a red-and-white color scheme, and it bore a crest resembling a multi-headed serpent of some kind.

“Sorry about this, whatever-your-name-is multi-headed-serpent family,” Amber muttered to herself.

From a concealed position near the defensive node, she began her hacking attempt.

Hacking the military information exchange node…

Hacking the military communications network…

Hacking the defense node’s tactical communications network…

She breezed through it all without any obstruction.

Before the equipment Amber had brought with her, the highest level of military electronic defense technology of this era was thinner than a sheet of paper. Adding to that, Lilith already possessed a massive library of backdoors and vulnerabilities for all sorts of devices, ancient and modern. So, it took almost no effort at all for Amber to hack directly into the Armored Trooper.

The complete implementation of the Internet-of-Things theory in this world provided Amber with all sorts of conveniences.

Then, Amber found herself both amused and annoyed by the Armored Trooper’s crew. The three noble scions were gathered in the cockpit, using the public network to watch a live broadcast of an opera from the Imperial Capital Grand Theater.

“Playing it so classy, are we? Then let me give you something a little more exciting.”

In the MK3 Armored Trooper with the tactical call sign ‘Hydra’, the team head was bobbing his head to the elegant sound of the opera. The other two members of his team—the Fire Control Officer and the Communications and Sensor Officer—were equally captivated by the soul-stirring soprano performance.

Beside them were several speakers that were clearly not standard-issue for an Armored Trooper cockpit. The high-fidelity stereo sound made them feel as if they were sitting in the front row of the Imperial Capital Grand Theater whenever they closed their eyes.

“Lady Maria Callas’s voice is as perfect as ever. If I weren’t on duty today, I’d be at the Grand Theater enjoying this wonderful moment.”

The team head, Kempinski, shook his head with some regret, but his hands couldn’t help but begin waving in rhythm, as though he were facing not the Armored Trooper’s control console, but the Grand Theater’s symphony orchestra.

“I hear there’s an encore next week. We might still have a chance~” The Fire Control Officer craned his neck. Just as he was about to add that he could get a few tickets through his family, he suddenly noticed the workstation in front of him activate from standby mode.

Immediately after, the entire Armored Trooper’s energy circuits powered up, and a series of electrical humming sounds began to fill the air.

“Hey, boss, did you bump something? Why’d it come out of standby?”

The Communications and Sensor Officer on the other side turned and tapped Kempinski’s shoulder, only to find him looking just as bewildered.

“No. I didn’t touch anything. It just activated on its own…”

Completely baffled, Kempinski reached out to touch a few buttons on the workstation, intending to return the Armored Trooper to standby mode, while mentally noting that he should probably have the maintenance company send someone to check it out.

But when he went through the standard procedure and the Armored Trooper did not return to standby, instead continuing its startup sequence, he snapped to full alert.

“Damn it. Something’s wrong with this thing. It’s not responding to my commands at all.”

“Holy shit, boss, don’t scare me.”

“I’m not. Something’s really wrong. I’ve run the standby procedure twice, but there’s no response!”

A single drop of cold sweat trickled down Kempinski’s forehead. He knew exactly how much trouble it would be if the behemoth beneath him went out of control, especially here at the Grand Palace…

“Manual mode, emergency shutdown of the energy circuits!”

“Shutdown failed, no response!”

“Trying to reboot the main computer!”

“Reboot failed. Shit, it’s not accepting any commands!”

Before the three men could react in their frantic state, they felt the unit shudder. In the next second, the giant triple-barreled electromagnetic cannon began to rotate with the groan of machinery.

“We’re screwed. I think we’ve been hacked! Quick! Contact the people outside, tell them to do something!”

“Boss, communications are completely cut off…” the Communications and Sensor Officer said with a grimace, having clearly already tried and failed to contact the outside world.

“Climb out and yell for help!”

At Kempinski’s words, the communications officer shot up from his seat and began scrambling down a ladder at the rear of the cockpit. He was extremely nervous; the Armored Trooper’s protection was incredibly thick, and the core cockpit was especially well-fortified, so getting out would not be quick.

Meanwhile, the troops on the ground coordinating with the Armored Trooper also noticed the giant machine moving. However, when they saw the turret slowly turning, they didn’t realize anything was wrong.

They even started discussing amongst themselves whether the three noble lords up there were up to some new trick.

Only a few of the unit’s officers finally sensed that something was amiss when the triple-barreled heavy electromagnetic cannon aimed at the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet.

They hurriedly tried to call the three-man crew, only to find communications had been cut. It was then they finally realized that things had taken a very serious turn.

It all happened too fast, or rather, it was all so unexpected. No one would have ever thought that an Armored Trooper guarding the Grand Palace would lose control without any warning.

Inside the cockpit, as Kempinski and the Fire Control Officer watched the unit’s targeting optics lock onto the West Wing Parapet, the triple-barreled main cannon finished loading heavy armor-piercing rounds and was about to complete its charging sequence, the same thought flashed through both their minds.

“We’re finished.”

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The next moment, a heaven-shaking thunder roared across the entire Imperial Capital.

Chapter 700: My Name is Qilin Gindoshi

In New Calendar Year 82, before the invention of the heavy particle cannon, the heavy electromagnetic cannon with its 25-meter acceleration rails was, without a doubt, the most powerful bombardment weapon on the planet’s surface.

And the salvo from the Armored Trooper’s triple-barreled turret forced everyone near the Grand Palace to directly confront the battlefield deterrent of such a heavy weapon.

Three streaks of orange-red fire, trailing behind three heavy jacketed penetrator rounds, struck the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet 300 meters away in the blink of an eye. What followed the deafening thunder was a shockwave, like a ferocious hurricane, that spread outward with the Armored Trooper as its epicenter.

Many nearby soldiers who didn’t react in time were thrown to the ground by the blast, and some of the camouflage nets and tents at this defensive node were blown away.

Inside this Armored Trooper, the three members of the cockpit crew were completely dumbfounded. The mech they were piloting had just fired on the Grand Palace. Holy hell, not even the execution of ten generations of their families would be enough to pay for this.

And the most despairing part was that the shot had absolutely nothing to do with the three of them. From start to finish, the out-of-control Armored Trooper had acted on its own.

Thinking of this, the pilot team head, Kempinski, hurriedly asked, “Wait. Is the cockpit surveillance on?”

“Boss, you had us turn it off right before you started watching the opera. It was your order, don’t you remember?”

“…Heh.”

When a person is truly speechless, they can actually laugh. At this moment, Kempinski, the team head of this Armored Trooper, felt he had truly experienced that sensation.

Just then, he noticed on the fire control screen that as the smoke cleared, the impacted section of the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet slowly came into view. Three huge, menacing shell holes had completely destroyed the beauty of the towering white wall.

The numerous cracks and scorch marks around the holes, as well as the view of the Grand Palace’s interior through them, proved that this section of the parapet had suffered a truly fatal blow.

“Thank goodness, at least the wall is still standing. Hey, holy shit! Why is it moving again?!”

Amidst Kempinski’s panicked cry, the three men in the cockpit watched in despair as the Armored Trooper entered a rapid cooling cycle. A large amount of coolant was sprayed out, instantly evaporating into clouds of white steam as it cooled the acceleration rails.

This was immediately followed by the crisp sound of the penetrator rounds seating and the low hum of the acceleration rails beginning to recharge.

“No, we can’t let this thing fire a second time! Quick, think of something!”

Kempinski shouted anxiously while fumbling with the workstation, trying desperately to shut down the unit’s systems, but it was all in vain.

As the power charge reached its peak, the triple-barreled heavy electromagnetic cannon entered its final firing sequence. The three members of the cockpit crew simultaneously heard a warning from the unit.

“Warning, you have been targeted! Please deploy countermeasures immediately—”

Hearing the alarm, a terrified Kempinski looked in the direction indicated. He saw another standby Armored Trooper nearby, closing in with heavy steps. Its triple-barreled main cannon was already leveled, and its other mounted weapon systems were deployed, clearly ready to go “guns blazing.”

“Wait! Don’t fire, we’re friendly forces! The unit is out of control!”

The three of them roared into every communication channel. At that moment, the unit’s external communications “miraculously” returned to normal, so all surrounding friendly units heard their shouts, including the approaching Armored Trooper.

Seeing the friendly unit slow down, Kempinski finally managed a sigh of relief. But before he could fully exhale, the Armored Trooper fired again.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Another three-shot salvo in rapid succession. The earth-shattering roar once again echoed throughout the Imperial Capital.

It was immediately followed by the lower half of their Armored Trooper being torn to shreds by a massive kinetic impact, so fast that the high-power electromagnetic shield—the predecessor to the deflector shield technology—didn’t even have time to deploy.

BOOM!

The belated roar came from the direction of the attack. It was the Armored Trooper that had slowed its approach. Its cockpit crew was quite familiar with Kempinski and his team, so after hearing the call on the public channel, they had indeed hesitated because they were friendly forces.

But the moment they saw the out-of-control Armored Trooper fire again, they didn’t hesitate to open fire with their main cannon, aiming for the walking apparatus on the unit’s lower section.

The iron beast, its legs shattered, slowly toppled over like a collapsing mountain, but the noise of its fall was drowned out by an even greater one.

After the second close-range, full-power salvo, the structural integrity of the West Wing Parapet had reached its limit. First, large chunks of the outer wall began to fall, and then, like a small mountain blasted in half, it began to collapse.

—

Amber watched all this from a distance. The initial excitement of completing the “time loop” quickly cooled as he realized his golden opportunity to slip into the Grand Palace had arrived.

Soon, the terminal he had swiped from the Royal Engineering Division vibrated.

Amber glanced at the screen and saw a large red alert message that filled nearly the entire display.

“Level 6 emergency incident at the Grand Palace West Wing Parapet. All nearby personnel are to proceed immediately to handle the situation. Headquarters duty teams are already en route to the scene.”

Below this line of text, Amber saw another.

“All employees who read this message, proceed to the destination at once. Those who fail to arrive within the time limit will be subject to the maximum penalty of ‘execution by firing squad’ according to the Royal Engineering Division employee management regulations.”

“Damn, being an engineering grunt in the Empire is a life-threatening job?”

Amber’s eye twitched at the gripe-worthy alert.

He took a few deep breaths to compose himself, then began to move stealthily toward the Grand Palace, planning to blend in with the Royal Engineering Division team amidst the chaos.

Although he couldn’t use his Psionics at the moment, his innate psionic user’s senses still allowed him to remain vigilant of his surroundings. The position and movement of every guard were clearly imprinted in his mind.

He deftly avoided the reinforcing guards and panicked crowds, moving like a nimble cat, silently weaving through the night.

People on the streets were in a panic, fleeing in all directions. Some were crying, some were praying, while others stood frozen in place, utterly bewildered.

For these nobles living in the Imperial Capital, it was perhaps the first time they had witnessed the power of a war machine up close. Perhaps they never imagined such a scene would ever unfold in Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier.

Thinking of this, Amber couldn’t help but admire the Star Dragon Empire historians’ knack for doctoring the records. An incident where the Grand Palace’s parapet was blown apart by two salvos from a nearby guard’s Armored Trooper could somehow be written down as a fuel cell explosion at a construction site.

Although he was moving stealthily, a few hundred meters wasn’t a long distance. It took Amber hardly any time to reach the collapsed West Wing Parapet.

At this moment, the dust and smoke kicked up in the area had yet to settle. Every now and then, a worker covered in dust would rush out of the smoke. Since Amber had fired directly at the parapet, he hadn’t caused any collateral damage to the surrounding area. The workers had quickly moved away from the wall after the cannon shots, so there were no casualties.

Amber also realized that he seemed to be among the first members of the Royal Engineering Division to arrive.

He silently fell in behind a small team wearing the same Engineering Division work clothes, joining them in guiding workers to evacuate and helping set up a temporary workstation. Just like that, he blended in seamlessly.

Before long, a rumbling sound grew from a distance as the main force from the Royal Engineering Division headquarters arrived.

Leading the way were two heavy personnel carriers. They stopped by the side of the road as they neared the site, unloaded the engineers they were carrying, and then quickly began to deploy like mobile base vehicles, eventually forming two large workstations capable of supporting heavy machinery.

Several super-heavy engineering vehicles following behind quickly reached the edge of the collapsed parapet. They extended their stowed mechanical legs and, like the multi-legged war machines Amber was familiar with, began to climb over the complex terrain of the ruins.

Everything was so orderly. It was clear that the personnel from the Royal Engineering Division headquarters were of high caliber. Everyone began to work as soon as they received their assignments, efficiently clearing a path for transport vehicles to move in and out.

Shortly after, several middle-aged men in lavish clothing arrived on the scene. Judging by the attitudes of those around them and what Amber could make out by reading their lips, these men appeared to be high-ranking officials of the Royal Engineering Division. They had been resting at home, and upon hearing that the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet had collapsed, several of them had nearly fainted from shock.

Because if anything went wrong here, ten lives for each of them might not be enough to pay the price.

After their discussion, the men dispersed and began to direct the work on-site. Since these high-ranking officials also came from an engineering background, they were very familiar with the Division teams’ operational procedures. They weren’t the type of incompetent fools who knew nothing.

Combined with the natural “leadership buff” they provided, the Engineering Division employees around them all worked with exceptional vigor.

Except for Amber.

As a former corporate drone, he had long ago mastered a particular skill. This skill allowed him to blend into a busy work environment, walking here and looking there. Although he was doing absolutely nothing, he could still appear extremely busy, and if a superior asked, he could rattle off a few points, one, two, three, four, five.

So, he quickly adapted to the environment and began slacking off, using the opportunity to gather information about his surroundings and ponder the best time to make his move.

Near the collapsed West Wing Parapet, several heavy engineering machines were working hard, surrounded by a circle of professional support staff. It wasn’t a good time to just walk in under the public eye.

However, Amber didn’t have to wait long for an opportunity. Just as he was making a show of helping another Engineering Division employee connect a long bundle of power cables to their engineering exoskeleton, someone suddenly walked up and tapped him on the shoulder.

“Who are you? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”

Amber’s heart skipped a beat, but he forced himself not to show it and calmly turned around.

One of the high-ranking Royal Engineering Division officials he had seen earlier was standing before him. Judging by his relatively dark complexion and a physique that wasn’t fat and bloated like other nobles, Amber guessed he also had an engineering background and wasn’t some official who had been parachuted in.

“Sir!”

Amber clicked his heels together and immediately stood at attention. Since a part of the Royal Engineering Division’s predecessor was the Royal Combat Sapper Regiment that had fought alongside the founding Emperor, the entire Division had always maintained a semi-militarized management style, and its members often addressed each other as ‘Sir’.

“This officer is Senior Engineer Amuro Ray, reporting for duty today. This is my transfer order. The relevant documents should have been sent to you several days ago!”

Without flinching, Amber took out a Royal Engineering Division terminal and displayed a pile of forged “original” documents. These files were, at this very moment, sitting in the Royal Engineering Division’s personnel database. If anyone were to check, they would find that all procedures were complete and accounted for. They couldn’t be more authentic.

“Amuro Ray… Just transferred up from the apprentice engineering team. No wonder I don’t recognize you.”

The middle-aged official from the Royal Engineering Division nodded. From his perspective, these perfectly processed documents couldn’t possibly be fake, so he had no doubts about Amber’s identity.

“Good, this team is short one person. You’re with me.”

The middle-aged official turned and gestured for Amber to follow him, then walked off in another direction. The moment he turned, Amber saw the man fill in the name ‘Amuro Ray’ in the last row of a form on his terminal, while muttering in a voice so low that an ordinary person wouldn’t have noticed, “Alright… that’s everyone.”

“Everyone?” Hearing that word, Amber frowned slightly. His subconscious told him that he might have stumbled into something unusual.

But Amber didn’t let it show. He obediently followed the middle-aged official and soon arrived at a clearing near the collapsed parapet.

In this cleared space, more than fifty Royal Engineering Division employees were already assembled in formation. Judging by the insignia on their work clothes, there were engineers like himself, as well as professional technicians and mechanics. The team’s roster was quite comprehensive.

And at the front of the team, standing before about twenty Royal Guard soldiers, were two figures that surprised Amber.

A Grand Hierophant of the State Religion and a Royal Silencer.

“What are they doing here?”

Amber looked with some surprise at these individuals who should have been stationed inside the Grand Palace. Then he heard the middle-aged man in front of him run up to them and speak respectfully.

“Your Graces, I’ve gathered the personnel for you. The incident was so sudden, this is all I could pull together on short notice. The main force is just too busy right now…”

“It matters not. Thank you for providing the personnel.”

The Grand Hierophant nodded slightly, then turned and walked towards the opening in the collapsed parapet. At the same time, a low, hoarse voice appeared in the minds of everyone present.

“Everyone, follow. Anyone who falls behind inside the Grand Palace will die.”

It was the Royal Silencer, speaking directly into their minds with Psionics. Amber used the opportunity to gauge that this Psionic Master was likely at a Level 5 psionic strength.

The middle-aged official also waved his large hands, urging everyone to follow, while shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Areas inside the Grand Palace were also affected by the recent accident! Some sections require urgent repairs and inspection from us at the Engineering Division! Remember, you will all follow the Grand Hierophant’s orders. It’s a great honor to work inside the Grand Palace. If you do well, you might even receive a reward from His Majesty!”

At the official’s rousing words, the team began to move, following the Grand Hierophant and the Royal Silencer. Expressions of excitement and a desire for merit appeared on many faces. Amber’s heart leaped with joy.

Talk about perfect timing. Amber was just worrying about how to sneak in, and now he could enter the Grand Palace openly and honestly. And from the looks of it, they were likely heading to an important area.

Amber immediately fell in at the back of the line, dutifully walking toward the breach. He then noticed that the tool bag of the person in front of him wasn’t properly buckled, and one of the precision instruments inside was about to be shaken loose from the jostling.

With quick eyes and even quicker hands, Amber immediately steadied the bag for him and efficiently fastened all the safety buckles.

“Careful, friend. This thing of yours was about to fall out.”

“Oh, oh, thank you, thank you! The notice from the Engineering Division came so suddenly, I didn’t have time to pack properly before rushing out of the dormitory with everyone else.”

The young man in front of Amber turned his head and smiled, and his face looked more and more familiar to Amber.

“You look a bit new, friend. What’s your name?”

“Senior Engineer, Amuro Ray. I just transferred over.”

“I see. Then we’ll be colleagues from now on.” The young man in front of Amber smiled and extended his hand. “My name is Qilin Gindoshi. I’m a structural engineer.”

Chapter 701: The Perfect ‘Infiltration’

“I see. I understand everything now.”

“Mr. Amuro, what did you say?” Qilin Gindoshi asked, a little puzzled by Amber’s cryptic words.

“Nothing. I said I’m glad to see you.”

Amber smiled and patted Qilin Gindoshi on the shoulder, then hurried with him to catch up with the group.

If Amber had to describe his current thoughts in a single sentence, it would be—‘It all adds up, everything adds up now.’

His previous doubts had mostly been resolved. Amber finally understood why a Gindoshi family had been waiting for him in the Imperial Capital for hundreds of years. It now seemed this was a closed loop created by his own time travel.

He had most likely told Qilin Gindoshi something during tonight’s operation, which led the brilliant architect to leave such a precept for his descendants. And the ID number from his previous life that the family possessed was clearly something only he could have told them.

“I’m a genius for coming up with a method like this. Does this count as some kind of collaboration with myself across time?”

These thoughts flashed through Amber’s mind. He marveled at the peculiar experience brought about by this time paradox, which reminded him of the many movies and games he had seen and played involving time travel. At the same time, he was once again struck by the power of the Forerunner civilization.

They clearly possessed an extremely high level of mastery over time, even undertaking a massive project like the ‘space-time expedition’—a name that spoke volumes of its scale. But if, as Salih had hinted, the humans and elves of this universe might have to face this formidable enemy again in the future, how could they possibly respond?

“Forget it. I’ll think about that later. With Salih as a ‘mole’, we should be able to find some countermeasures. For now, I’ll focus on the mission at hand.”

Amber shook his head slightly, pulling his scattered thoughts back to the present and began to observe his surroundings.

The engineering team, fifty people in total including himself, was under the surveillance of fully armed Royal Guard soldiers. Following the Grand Hierophant and the Royal Silencer, they had already entered the Grand Palace. Judging by the magnificent palace in their line of sight, Amber guessed their destination was most likely the core area of the Grand Palace.

“This couldn’t have been easier. Is there a more perfect way to infiltrate?”

As he continued to follow the team deeper into the Grand Palace, Amber marveled at how smoothly the mission was going. But this feeling didn’t last long, as he was suddenly and inexplicably reminded of the laborers in history who built imperial tombs or secret facilities. Had they also been escorted deep into some important location under the watch of the Royal Guard or mausoleum guards?

And then, after their work was done, were they all buried alive inside?

“Holy shit, knowing how the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family operates, that’s entirely possible…”

Amber was suddenly on high alert. After all, according to Salih, these royals of the Star Dragon Empire were no longer pure-blooded humans. If they saw themselves as superior beings, it was highly likely they wouldn’t see the employees of this engineering firm as people.

After all, when it came to keeping a secret, dead men were the most reliable.

Thinking of this, Amber looked again at the team in front of him. He could clearly feel the irrepressible excitement among the group. They were evidently thrilled about the prospect of working in the Grand Palace, viewing it as a great honor.

No one would have imagined that they might be laid to rest here forever.

As the team approached the Grand Palace and finally arrived at a dedicated side door of the main hall, the Grand Hierophant signaled for everyone to stop. He turned and addressed the crowd:

“You fortunate citizens of the Empire, due to a chain reaction caused by the collapse of the West Wing Parapet, you are required today to enter an important Imperial facility to conduct inspection and maintenance work. This will be the highest honor of your lives!”

Upon hearing the Grand Hierophant’s words, excited expressions appeared on everyone’s faces. They all felt that today might be the day they brought great honor to their ancestors.

Amber also put on an excited expression, and it wasn’t entirely an act. There were ‘genuine feelings’ mixed in, because based on the Grand Hierophant’s description, he guessed that his group was most likely about to enter the underground area of the Grand Palace.

Meanwhile, after signaling for silence, the Grand Hierophant continued, “Now, set your personal terminals to offline mode. Once you enter this important facility, you will lose contact with the outside world due to the presence of a shielding field, but do not worry. This is merely for the facility’s security.”

The Grand Hierophant’s benevolent gaze swept over the crowd. Amber had to admit that as a high-ranking cleric of the Imperial State Religion, the man was quite skilled in fostering a sense of affinity. His calm tone, coupled with his holy white robes, made him the very picture of a model clergyman.

“You also need not worry about your safety, because the place you are about to enter is the heart of the Empire, the safest place in the entire Empire in every sense of the word. Therefore, you need only focus on the work assigned to you. Do not look around, and do not harbor any undue curiosity. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Your Grace!” the crowd answered in unison.

“Very good. Follow me.”

The Grand Hierophant nodded in satisfaction and was the first to step through the side door. Amber obediently followed the team, mentally calculating when to break away and start his own work.

The original plan for this operation was to infiltrate the underground area of the Grand Palace in the current timeline, then use the ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’ to return to his original timeline, thereby achieving infiltration without alerting any guards.

But now, it seemed that while ‘working’, he also had to look out for the safety of his ‘new friend’.

Amber felt that he and Qilin Gindoshi were definitely connected. Moreover, in the records of the original timeline, Qilin had lived to a ripe old age after becoming famous. If anything happened to him in the Grand Palace today, Amber worried it would trigger the time paradox issues Salih had mentioned.

“I can only take it one step at a time.”

Soon, Amber and the others arrived at a side area within the main hall of the Grand Palace. There stood a heavy-duty freight elevator, heavily guarded by Royal Guard soldiers. Its structure clearly indicated it was a means of transport to the underground.

This type of heavy-duty freight elevator was likely also used to transport supplies and large equipment on a daily basis, so it was enormous. The fifty-person team barely took up any space on it; one couldn’t even say it was spacious, as they occupied only a small corner.

The escorting Royal Guard soldiers stopped here. Only the Grand Hierophant and the Royal Silencer continued with them. It was clear that in the eyes of the Grand Palace guards, a Level 5 psionic user like the Royal Silencer could control these fifty civil engineering guys as easily as child’s play.

It also meant that the security clearance for the Grand Palace’s underground facility was beyond the level the Royal Guard could interfere with.

This made Amber even more certain that, under normal circumstances, these fifty chosen, “lucky” civil engineering guys were probably not coming back out.

Chapter 702: The Archbishop’s Lavish Reward

Amber actually really wanted to ask the civil engineering guys from the Empire around him if they weren’t scared at all. This was clearly a one-way mission, so why was every single one of them as excited as an elementary schooler on a spring trip, with “to bring honor to one’s ancestors” written all over their faces?

Soon, as the heavy-duty transport elevator started up, the group slowly headed toward the underground area of the Grand Palace.

From what Amber knew, in the original timeline, the current Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, Frederick, should have been recuperating in the core of this underground zone. However, judging from his later encounter with the Royal Silencers in the ruins, who had already taken the “Eternal Cells,” and from the story Salih had told, this underground area was far from being a simple royal recuperation facility.

The heavy-duty transport elevator operated very smoothly. Based on Amber’s observations of its usage and wear, it looked like it had only been in use for a little over a decade. This further confirmed the judgment of Amber, Salih, and the others: the Grand Palace had been built after the underground facility, likely to conceal its existence.

After all, there was no place within the Empire safer than the Grand Palace. Besides, keeping an important secret right under one’s nose was better than hiding it on some backwater planet, which would take a great deal of effort to travel to and from.

Amber felt they had descended several hundred meters when the elevator finally came to a slow stop with a screech of brakes. A large alloy door in front of the elevator slowly opened, revealing a vast underground facility before their eyes.

At the exit stood a quiet, elderly man dressed in magnificent priestly robes, wearing a noble coronet and holding a long staff.

Upon seeing this man, all the civil engineering guys in the group were stunned. Almost instantly, they subconsciously lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at him.

Although Amber didn’t know what was happening, he followed suit and lowered his head, though he continued to observe secretly from the corner of his eye.

Flanking the old man were two Level 5 psionic users dressed similarly to the Royal Silencers, but with no identifying marks on their attire.

The Grand Hierophant and the Royal Silencer leading the group immediately bowed their heads respectfully upon seeing the man. The former spoke:

“Archbishop, we’ve brought the engineering team you requested. They are ready to begin work at any time.”

“Very good.”

The first Archbishop of the Empire nodded in satisfaction, then entered the elevator with the two psionic users. The Grand Hierophant and the Royal Silencer, in turn, stepped out.

“I will take them to inspect and maintain the critical equipment. You will handle the cleanup. Remember, everything must be taken care of by the end of today.”

“Yes, Archbishop.”

The old man before them was actually the first Archbishop of the Star Dragon Empire’s State Religion!

Amber was astonished. He had actually met a famous historical figure. No wonder the civil engineering guys around him were all standing so still, not daring to move. Setting aside the two psionic users by the old man’s side, his identity alone, in a country like the Star Dragon Empire where politics and religion were so closely intertwined, was enough to intimidate most people.

After the Archbishop came to a stop, he suddenly spoke a string of words that Amber couldn’t understand, which was followed by a mechanical female voice echoing inside the elevator:

“Verification passed. Welcome, Archbishop. Proceeding to the ‘Final Dogma Zone’.”

As the elevator began to descend again, Amber realized that their destination wasn’t this underground facility, but an even deeper area.

And the name “Final Dogma Zone,” which had a very “Evangelion-esque” feel to it, made Amber realize he might have truly hit the jackpot.

This time, the elevator ran for even longer than before. If its speed remained constant, that meant the elevator had descended a much greater distance.

According to the topographical data of the area around the Grand Palace that Amber had reviewed before the operation, this depth was deep within the mountain the Grand Palace sat on, and had even reached a point hundreds of meters below ground level.

By now, Amber could clearly feel the civil engineering guys around him starting to get nervous. After all, they were deep underground and being personally led by the Archbishop. Any normal person would realize this mission was unusual. It was just that, standing next to this “highly respected” Archbishop, they hadn’t yet considered the worst-case scenario.

When the elevator finally reached its destination and the alloy door slowly rose, the first thing that hit them was a blast of cold air that made everyone shiver. The temperature here was much, much lower than on the level above and in the outside world.

This gave Amber his first impression of the place: a giant cold storage facility hidden underground?

Amber felt he was only one step away from the truth. He patiently followed the others out of the elevator. Before them was a spacious corridor, and not far ahead was a heavy security door.

After everyone had stepped out, the Archbishop slowly began to speak.

“Citizens of the Empire, today is the day you offer your utmost loyalty to the Empire. You are fortunate to have come to the Empire’s most secret area and to be able to display your talents here.”

The Archbishop paused for a moment, then turned to face the crowd and continued:

“Due to the recent unexpected incident at the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet, the underground energy conduits were affected, which in turn caused the detection equipment here to issue a yellow alert. Therefore, I need you to inspect the equipment here. If you find any problems or abnormalities, repair them immediately. The room to the right contains all common and uncommon engineering equipment and materials. Please feel free to use them. Remember, I have only one requirement: identify and repair all hidden dangers to ensure the normal operation of this facility. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Archbishop.”

“Very good. The Empire will not forget your contributions. After the work is done, you will all receive extremely generous rewards. In addition, I will personally preside over a blessing ceremony for all of you as encouragement.”

Hearing this last sentence, a stir went through the group, but neither the Archbishop nor the two psionic users beside him stopped it.

The civil engineering guys became incredibly excited. In the early days of the Star Dragon Empire’s founding, the proportion of State Religion believers among the populace was very high. This was especially true for citizens of the Empire who worked in the Imperial Capital. So, in their eyes, a “personal blessing from the Archbishop” was truly the highest possible reward.

“My heavens, did I hear that right? The Archbishop himself is presiding over a blessing ceremony?!”

“This will truly bring honor to our ancestors! A personal blessing from the Archbishop! When we get out, won’t the Engineering Division treat us like kings?!”

“By the Dragon God.”

The civil engineering guys whispered among themselves, their faces filled with fanatical expressions. Even Qilin Gindoshi, standing next to Amber, was no exception. He excitedly shook Amber’s arm and spoke in a voice he was trying hard to suppress:

“Did you hear that, Mr. Amuro? A personal blessing from the Archbishop! What a glorious thing!”

“Yes, it’s truly glorious…”

Amber nodded and agreed with a smile, but in his heart, alarm bells were already ringing. His intuition told him that the “blessing ceremony” mentioned by the Archbishop was definitely not going to be a good thing.

Coupled with the Star Dragon Empire historians’ false record of when the West Wing Parapet had collapsed, Amber became even more convinced that the Archbishop and his people would never let his group leave this place alive.

Chapter 703: The Reward, an Eternal Rest

“B-wing ventilation unit filter replacement complete!” a voice called from the distance.

Amber looked up to see an engineering team that had already finished their task. It had only been an hour since they started, but because the team was composed of employees from the Royal Engineering Division’s headquarters, their skills and efficiency were top-notch.

When the work had begun, Amber had stuck close to Qilin Gindoshi under the guise of assisting him. After all, despite holding the title of Senior Engineer, he didn’t actually know much about the field and could only try to bluff his way through.

Fortunately, because the members of this team were all elites, the work proceeded smoothly, leaving no opportunity that might expose Amber.

“Hmm… all instrument error values are within 0.005 percent, which meets the operational specifications for this facility. I never imagined there was a facility with such a high security classification right underneath the Grand Palace.”

Qilin Gindoshi’s voice came from beside him. The structural engineer was holding a terminal and muttering to himself. Noticing Amber’s gaze, he smiled.

“Mr. Amuro, our work here is also complete. The damage to this facility was much less than anticipated. We just need to replace a few consumable parts in key locations~”

“It was mainly thanks to you. I was just giving you a hand, that’s all,” Amber replied with a smile.

At the same time, the other teams began finishing their work one by one. The main system requiring maintenance in this facility was a complex environmental control system, along with a large number of multifunctional mechanical arms designed for unmanned operation, so it didn’t take an inordinate amount of time.

Soon, as the last team completed its task and switched the component before them from ‘Maintenance Mode’ to ‘Operational Mode,’ a nearby indicator screen displayed the words, ‘All subsystems online. Equipment returning to normal operation.’

Immediately after, the Archbishop’s voice rang out over the broadcast.

“Thank you for your hard work. Please proceed to the C-12 lounge for a short rest. The Grand Hierophant has personally prepared a sacred meal for you.”

“Whoa! A sacred meal prepared by the Imperial Capital’s Grand Hierophant himself,” one of the engineers couldn’t help but exclaim in a low voice upon hearing the broadcast.

“Yeah, this job is awesome. Man, my luck has been great lately~”

“This is something I could brag about for the rest of my life. But given the security level here, we’ll probably have to take this mission to our graves.”

The civil engineering guys chatted amongst themselves as they headed in twos and threes toward a room in the Final Dogma Zone marked C-12.

Warm yellow light cast a honey-like glow on the metal walls of the lounge. The excitedly conversing engineers sat down in small groups, discussing the maintenance work they had just completed. The equipment here was all of the most advanced models, a novel sight for everyone, and they took the opportunity to exchange notes on the problems and solutions they had encountered.

However, beneath this seemingly calm surface, Amber’s unease churned like an undercurrent, refusing to be placated.

And this room marked C-12 didn’t look like a lounge to him. It was more like a ‘gas chamber’ for mass executions.

The sound of the metal door suddenly sliding open drew everyone’s attention, interrupting the discussions. Everyone, including Amber, looked toward the entrance, only to see that the only ones who entered were the two psionic users who had previously been at the Archbishop’s side.

The moment he saw those two, the alarm bells in Amber’s mind immediately went off, and he went on high alert.

The two psionic users walked directly to the center of the room’s front. The gold-thread embroidery on their black robes shimmered under the overhead lights. Seeing no sign of the Archbishop, the civil engineering guys grew a little confused. One of the engineers near the front raised his hand.

“Um, excuse me. What’s going on?” he asked, a strange sense of unease in his voice, but his words were swallowed by the peculiar atmosphere.

Just then, the two psionic users struck almost simultaneously. Powerful psionic waves surged out like a tidal wave, instantly sweeping through the entire room.

Even before they had made their move, Amber had already detected the prelude to the psionic blast.

He knew that even a lower-intensity ‘AOE’ version of a psionic blast from Level 5 psionic users was not something the ordinary people in this room could withstand. Getting hit by it meant certain death.

But Qilin Gindoshi could not die here. From what he knew of the outcome, he wouldn’t die here.

So, in the instant they attacked, Amber moved without a second thought. He shifted his stance slightly, placing himself in front of Qilin Gindoshi, while simultaneously activating the ‘Protection’ mode of his biological exoskeleton. He took the full force of both psionic blasts with his own body.

The next second, as the two nearly simultaneous psionic blasts swept over him, Amber felt high-frequency shockwaves like millions of ice picks stabbing into his bone marrow, his internal organs churning with the resonance.

Without the ability to use a psionic shield, this was purely a test of the defensive capabilities of the Set gear Allenita had provided, as well as Amber’s own physical endurance.

Fortunately, the elf maiden was reliable, and the products of the Thousand Stars Empire were of excellent quality.

As for Amber, after his psionic power had advanced to Level Six, his physical body had been further transformed by this peculiar energy. Each level of advancement in psionic strength was an exponential enhancement for the psionic user.

In the game of his previous life, this was represented by pure stats.

And so, this bold attempt to withstand two psionic blasts from Level 5 users with his physical body had ultimately succeeded.

Amber let himself fall backward and, in a very natural, concealed motion, struck the still-unresponsive Qilin Gindoshi with an elbow.

The perfectly controlled blow knocked Qilin Gindoshi unconscious. Dark red, frothy blood trickled from his mouth and nose, making him look exactly as if his lungs had been shredded by the psionic blast.

Clang—

A detector slipped from Amber’s fingers, bouncing on the metal floor before sliding into the distance. The 48 bodies in the C-12 lounge were frozen with their final expressions. Those at the front were fixed in looks of astonishment, while some at the back, still unaware of what was happening, had the corners of their mouths frozen in anticipation of a blessing.

After completing their task, the two psionic users turned and left the room without the slightest hesitation, not even conducting a check—or rather, they believed it impossible for anyone in that room to survive two psionic blasts head-on.

Their retreating figures were so cold and resolute, as if what had just transpired had nothing to do with them.

Silence returned to room C-12. Then, the floor split open down the middle, dumping the bodies downward like so much trash.

Chapter 704: Closing the Loop

The ruthlessness and decisiveness of the two psionic users took Amber by surprise.

He had thought the Archbishop’s people might use a gentler, more humane method—poisoning the sacred meal, for instance—to eliminate them. He never expected these two to go for a simple, brutal area-of-effect attack.

The moment the floor of the C-12 lounge—or rather, the “cleansing room”—split open, Amber’s eyes snapped open. He activated the electromagnetic adhesion function in his right hand, anchoring himself to the metal floor.

At the same time, his left hand shot out and grabbed the waistband of Qilin Gindoshi’s work uniform, stopping him from sliding down below like the bodies of the other civil engineering guys.

In that same instant, Amber made a quick crisis decision.

Although he couldn’t use Psionics, the biological exoskeleton’s built-in terrain scanning function immediately told him what was below the floor.

It was a chute that angled downward. At its end, both the exoskeleton’s detection unit and Amber himself sensed a heat source.

Based on the rough outline from the detection unit’s scan, it had to be a resource recovery incinerator.

Just as Amber was debating whether to stay clinging there and wait for the floor to close, or to enter the chute and look for another opportunity, the detection unit pinged with an alert. It had scanned a space like a maintenance port near the end of the chute.

And this space seemed to connect directly to the maintenance access that ran throughout the entire Final Dogma Zone.

The problem was, Amber hadn’t seen this space on the schematics of the underground facility when he was “slacking off” alongside Qilin Gindoshi earlier.

So there were only two possibilities: either the space wasn’t recorded on the schematics for some reason, or the scanning unit had made an error.

But Amber had no time to think. The floor of the room was already starting to close. In a few more seconds, he and Qilin Gindoshi would be back inside.

If those two psionic users came in to check, it would be game over.

Of course, given that they hadn’t bothered to check after unleashing the psionic blast, there was a high probability they wouldn’t return to the room. But Amber wasn’t willing to take that chance.

So, in the end, he chose to trust the equipment Allenita had provided. He chose to trust that the Thousand Stars Empire’s Elf technicians didn’t do shoddy work.

“Let’s do it!”

Slightly reducing the power of the electromagnetic adhesion device, Amber immediately began to fall, pulled down by Qilin Gindoshi’s weight.

The feeling of weightlessness jolted the briefly unconscious Qilin Gindoshi awake. When he realized he was falling, his body’s instinctual fear made him want to scream, but that same terror and the sensation of plummeting trapped the sound in his throat.

The dozen-or-so-meter drop ended in an instant. Amber could even see the bodies of the civil engineering guys plummeting into the incinerator’s opening—the lifeless corpses curled and carbonized the moment they touched the intense heat, like paper dolls tossed into a bonfire by a child.

Qilin Gindoshi’s legs kicked wildly in the air. In his panic, he didn’t notice that Amber was gripping his waistband from behind. The light from the incinerator below flickered across his terrified face, making the young man think his life was about to end.

Amber, his eyes locked on that space, had no time to worry about whether Qilin Gindoshi was scared. He knew he only had one chance. If he missed, both he and Qilin Gindoshi would fall into the resource recovery incinerator just like those other bodies.

The moment their bodies were parallel with the space, Amber saw an iron grate over a maintenance port, one that was clearly not installed to code.

“There!”

He bent his knees, and the biological exoskeleton’s leg-assist units instantly compressed, storing energy. Then, he pushed off with his legs, launching himself diagonally while carrying Qilin Gindoshi, like a fully charged catapult. A faint blue arc of electricity sparked as the electromagnetic adhesion device detached from the wall, and the two of them narrowly missed a wave of scorching hot air that rushed up from below.

Amber smashed through the loosely-fitted iron grate of the maintenance port with his back. Fragments of the shattered metal grating flew past his face like a rain of knives.

The swirling, superheated air from the incinerator grazed the soles of their boots. A few functional straps on their work uniforms instantly curled and charred. While this blast of heat might have been nothing to Amber, for an ordinary person like Qilin Gindoshi, it was potentially fatal.

Amber’s momentum carried him into the space, and his back slammed hard against the pipe wall at the far end. Even so, he kept his arms wrapped around Qilin Gindoshi, protecting him. No matter what, this ‘master’ couldn’t get hurt—at least, not yet.

When everything fell silent again, only the sound of their two heartbeats could be heard in the small, enclosed space.

After a moment, Amber, having caught his breath, let go of Qilin Gindoshi and asked, “Are you okay? Check yourself for any injuries.”

But the young structural engineer hadn’t yet recovered from the terrifying ordeal. He only jolted as if waking from a nightmare when Amber clapped him firmly on the shoulder.

Click!

Amber took a small light stick from Qilin Gindoshi’s utility pouch, twisted it, and it lit up. A faint green glow illuminated the confined space, revealing the look of lingering terror still on Qilin Gindoshi’s face.

“Mr. Amuro… what just happened?”

“It’s simple. We did a job for the Archbishop and his people, but this place is too secret to be leaked to the outside world. So, once our task was done, they had to eliminate us ‘insiders’.”

“Eliminate…” Qilin Gindoshi repeated the word, stunned. Clearly, the young man had never imagined something like this would happen to him.

“Then, Mr. Amuro… how did you know all this? And…”

Qilin Gindoshi turned to look at Amber, a flicker of doubt joining the fear that still lingered in his eyes.

“Why did you save me?”

“Sorry,” Amber said, shaking his head. “I can’t tell you the specific reason. Or you could think of it this way: saving you is extremely important to me.”

Amber’s words naturally left Qilin Gindoshi confused, but Amber couldn’t very well tell him the bizarre reason was to complete a “time loop.”

“So, Mr. Amuro, what do we do now?”

“Now? We find a way out, of course…”

Amber turned around in the tight space and, sure enough, saw a maintenance pipe on another wall leading off in a different direction.

“Don’t worry. I’ll find a way to get you out first, and then I’ll go do what I need to do.”

Chapter 705: The Hidden Corner

After carefully confirming there were no other immediate threats in the vicinity, Amber activated the vitals-check function on his biological exoskeleton to examine his and Qilin Gindoshi’s physical condition.

As he watched the faint green light scan over his body, the young structural engineer realized he had encountered someone extraordinary. At the very least, the equipment the other man wore was unlike anything he had ever heard of or seen before.

Soon, the vitals-check was complete.

Amber himself was naturally unharmed, of course.

As a Level 6 psionic user, his physical strength, nourished by Psionics and augmented by medicine and equipment, had long ago reached an unbelievable level.

The recent impact hadn’t even been enough for a warm-up, and he could withstand a psionic blast from two Level 5 psionic users—an attack powerful enough to kill an ordinary person several times over—with his body alone.

But Qilin Gindoshi was different. He was just an ordinary person who could have died at any moment in the last few minutes, and his physical constitution was clearly not impressive.

Not to mention that Amber had elbowed him, making him cough up blood.

The vitals-scanning unit quickly detected that the young structural engineer had bruising on his chest where he’d been elbowed, a slight fracture in one of his ribs, and multiple contusions all over his body.

“Good, it’s not serious. You won’t die.” Amber retracted the vitals sensor probe on his biological exoskeleton and patted Qilin Gindoshi on the back. “You’ll be fine after a few days of rest once we get out of here.”

“…”

Qilin Gindoshi was discovering that his definition of “good, not serious” might differ slightly from that of the increasingly mysterious “Mr. Amuro.”

Regardless, Qilin Gindoshi felt he absolutely had to find a way to repay “Mr. Amuro” for saving his life. The young engineer had lived his entire life by the philosophy of “repaying a drop of kindness with a gushing spring.”

And this was far more than a drop of kindness; his very life had been saved.

After Amber found the first-aid kit attached to Qilin Gindoshi’s work uniform and used its contents to provide some emergency treatment, the two set off again, intending to leave the area.

By now, Amber could tell that this space, connected to the maintenance access, was definitely not part of the original construction plan for the underground facility.

The entire space lacked the precision and high craftsmanship of the main facility; instead, it felt more like a tunnel dug by tomb raiders, rife with an air of haste and shoddy work.

Considering that Qilin Gindoshi’s team was to be eliminated for simply performing routine equipment maintenance, the fate of the original workers who built this underground facility was easy to imagine.

Amber began to suspect: could this space, which didn’t appear on any blueprints, have been built by the first construction crew as a means of escape after they realized something was wrong?

This suspicion was confirmed just a few minutes later.

After Amber removed the metal grate at the opening that connected the space to the maintenance access, they found a desiccated corpse in the passage ahead.

“Mr. Amuro, what is that?!”

Qilin Gindoshi saw the corpse as well and got a clear look at its work uniform.

Although the style was slightly different, the uniform’s overall design and the armband on its sleeve revealed the man’s identity: an engineer, also from the Royal Engineering Division.

“Looks like one of the old engineering crew… Damn, just how many people from the Engineering Division have died in this place?”

Amber spoke as he crouched down beside the corpse. The transitional passage leading to the maintenance access had a low ceiling and was crudely built—clearly an ancillary part of the space they had just left.

Then, next to the body, Amber found a yellowed piece of paper. It was a paper work-progress sheet, a type of document he had rarely seen in his original timeline. On the back were several paragraphs of handwritten text.

Needless to say, it was the dead man’s last testament.

Amber carefully picked up the paper. Fortunately, having been in a sealed environment, it hadn’t deteriorated too badly. After reading the contents, his expression grew grim, and he handed it to Qilin Gindoshi.

Although the young structural engineer was terrified of the desiccated corpse right in front of him, he was still curious about what was written on the paper Amber had given him.

However, after he finished reading, his expression became just as grim as Amber’s.

The contents of the note were more or less what Amber had expected.

The dead man had been a member of the team that built The Grand Palace’s underground facility, one of those selected to construct the “Final Dogma Zone” extension. Just as they had deduced, he had been an employee of the Royal Engineering Division at the time.

This civil engineering guy had vaguely sensed something was wrong during the construction of the Final Dogma Zone. He felt his crew might have stumbled upon a terrible secret, and he also discovered that everyone chosen for the job was an ordinary person, with the majority being orphans or from single-parent homes.

They were clearly easy targets to eliminate and clean up the mess afterward.

This relatively vigilant civil engineering guy immediately undertook what seemed an impossible task—during the construction, he managed to secretly build a hiding spot, the very place Amber and Gindoshi had just been.

On the very day the “Final Dogma Zone” was completed, an unexpected accident played into his hands. A violent tremor rocked the mountain, plunging the underground facility into chaos and causing heavy casualties among his fellow workers.

This civil engineering guy used the chaos to escape into the maintenance access. From there, he witnessed the Archbishop call down a new batch of engineering personnel and a company of Royal Guard soldiers. After this new group cleared away the bodies and repaired the damage, they too were all eliminated and thrown into the recycling incinerator…

But that was as far as he got.

He was an ordinary person, after all. Though he had managed to create a secret hiding place, he lacked the ability to escape the “Final Dogma Zone.” So, after some time without food and water, he reached the end of his life, leaving behind this final letter.

In the final paragraph of the letter, this surprisingly philosophical civil engineering guy, who hadn’t even left his name, wrote down his last wish.

“Everything I’ve written is just the last trace a dying man wanted to leave in this world. I don’t hope for anyone to find this, because if they do, it only means there’s a new batch of Sacrificers. If possible, I wish this paper would never see the light of day…”

Chapter 706: Remember This String of Numbers

“This is truly heartbreaking,” Qilin Gindoshi suddenly said, sounding like a kind-hearted protagonist from a Japanese anime.

Amber: “What?”

“It was this man’s final wish, yet it still cannot be fulfilled.”

Qilin Gindoshi’s meaning was simple. Since he and Amber had seen the letter, it meant the Empire was still regularly throwing people into this living hell deep underground, treating them as expendables.

“Mr. Amuro, why would the Empire do such a thing? Could His Majesty truly not know about the atrocities happening right under his nose?” The young engineer turned to look at Amber, his face a mask of grief and indignation in the glow of the light stick.

“Unfortunately,” Amber shook his head, “a project of this scale beneath the Grand Palace… the Emperor most certainly knows about it. In all likelihood, he ordered it himself.”

“But why would His Majesty do that?”

Perhaps because Amber had just saved his life, Qilin Gindoshi didn’t doubt his words for a moment. Instead, he believed him outright and continued questioning.

“It’s obvious. This underground facility holds a secret significant enough to affect the entire Empire, which is why it has to be located beneath the Grand Palace for security. His Majesty doesn’t want anyone else to know this secret, so he has no choice but to eliminate all witnesses who shouldn’t have been privy to it.”

“How could they… This is too cruel.” Qilin Gindoshi stared blankly at the desiccated corpse beside them. Clearly, the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family’s practice of periodically burying people alive had deeply shaken him.

Amber: “To the Empire, this isn’t cruelty. It’s just the periodic ‘disappearance’ of a few dozen, or perhaps a hundred, ordinary people. It might just be one step in some procedure. Utterly insignificant.”

Qilin Gindoshi: “Even so, do they really need to dispose of the construction crews batch after batch? Couldn’t they have formed a dedicated secret team to be in charge of this place for decades? That way, so many people wouldn’t have to die, right?”

“A disposable tool that can be cleanly discarded after use, versus a large group of witnesses who would require constant surveillance for decades and still pose a risk of leaks. Obviously, the former is better for keeping a secret~”

Amber stepped past the desiccated corpse and continued walking forward, speaking as he went:

“Keep up. Let’s figure out how to get out of here first. We can ponder these profound questions that may not even have answers later.”

“Since this whole affair is so dangerous, Mr. Amuro, why did you risk your life to save me? Am I really that valuable to you?”

Although Qilin Gindoshi had fallen into a state of deep despair, looking as if he had nothing left to lose and no will to live, his body still very obediently followed Amber.

“I told you, you’re important, you know?” Amber said without turning his head. “I’ll find a way to get you out of here. I’ll also figure out how to erase all records of you from the moment you entered the Grand Palace today to your time in this underground facility, so you won’t have to worry about anyone coming after you~”

“Once you’re out, just lay low and blend in with a nearby engineering team. Don’t blow your cover. With a major incident like this, I doubt the people outside will remember exactly who they sent down. When this is all over, you should be able to go back to your normal life.”

“Such a great kindness… I… I don’t know how I can ever repay you.”

Qilin Gindoshi let out a long sigh. At this moment, he felt indebted to Amber in a way he could never fully repay.

“Hahaha, since you put it that way, once you get out safely, I do have something I’d like to ask of you.”

Amber said with a laugh. At the same time, the two of them reached the inside of a maintenance access corridor. This area was filled with a vast network of cables spanning the entire underground facility, making it the perfect place for Amber to hack in. He found a network node and began to work his magic with his hacking module.

Hearing this, Qilin Gindoshi’s eyes lit up, and he quickly asked:

“Mr. Amuro, please, just say the word!”

“It shouldn’t be too difficult for you… Live well, have a family, and continue your bloodline.”

“Huh?”

“Because you can’t help me with this. Only your descendants can, a few hundred years from now~”

“Huh?”

Qilin Gindoshi was completely dumbfounded. He never expected such a seemingly joking reply. For a moment, he even wondered if his savior was just trying to lighten the oppressive atmosphere of the underground facility.

“Mr. Amuro, are you serious?”

“Of course~”

Amber nodded, simultaneously pulling his wrist-device away from the node. In that brief moment, the hacking module had completed its infiltration. Although the facility’s network was physically isolated from the outside world, it still had an internal local area network.

Accessing the underground facility’s database—erasing all entries related to Amuro Ray and Qilin Gindoshi—modifying the operation logs.

After this series of operations, aside from the memories of the few people who had seen them, all other information related to the two was wiped clean.

At that moment, Amber had to feel a small sense of ‘gratitude’. The underground facility had no surveillance equipment whatsoever. He figured it was for security reasons, and since there was rarely any activity here, they had forgone installing cameras. This, it could be said, had opened the door wide for him.

Having done all this, Amber turned to face the still-confused Qilin Gindoshi, who had no idea how to repay… checkmate. No, repay Amber’s kindness.

“If you really want to repay me, then just live a good life after you get out~ It would be best if, after you’ve made a name for yourself, you acquire a mansion near the Grand Palace. Then, some five hundred years from now, when a universal megacorporation called the Atlas Group appears, and its de facto controller also happens to be named ‘Amber’, I’ll have to trouble your descendants to offer him a little bit of help. Just invite him to stay at your home for one night will be enough~”

To be honest, even Amber himself thought his words sounded a bit too much like a prank, but he couldn’t think of another way to close the loop on such short notice. He could only resort to this simple and crude method.

But the next moment, he saw Qilin Gindoshi on the other side, solemnly and earnestly committing all of this information to memory.

“Atlas Group… Amber…”

Qilin Gindoshi muttered the two names under his breath, then looked up.

“Rest assured, Mr. Amuro. If I, Qilin Gindoshi, ever manage to make my fortune, what you’ve said today will become my family’s ‘blood oath’.”

“It seems I was right to save you. You are indeed someone I can trust.” Amber nodded and continued, “In that case, memorize this string of numbers. When your descendant meets that ‘Mr. Amber’, as long as they recite these numbers, he will understand everything.”

Chapter 707: Entering the Final Dogma Zone

“Mr. Amuro, 430XXXXXXXXXXX0510… what does this string of numbers mean?”

“You don’t need to know what it means. Just memorize this string of numbers carefully. Don’t get it wrong. If you do, it might backfire on us.”

Amber, who was walking ahead, said without turning back.

He couldn’t very well tell Qilin Gindoshi that this string of numbers was his ID number from his previous life, could he?

“I understand, Mr. Amuro. I’ll commit it to memory.”

Qilin Gindoshi nodded and didn’t press for details. Although he was young and inexperienced, he knew what to ask and what not to ask.

This ‘Mr. Amuro Ray’ before him was clearly no ordinary person.

Not only was his personal strength unfathomable, but he also seemed to know a great deal, even being familiar with this secret underground facility beneath the Grand Palace. Judging by his actions, it seemed his plan was to infiltrate this top-secret facility of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.

“Could Mr. Amuro be a spy from the Blue Star Republic? That seems like it would make sense.”

But the next moment, Qilin Gindoshi pushed the thought to the back of his mind.

Because if he were a spy, there would have been no reason to save his life in a moment of crisis. It was simply incredible—of course, it would have been even more incredible if Qilin Gindoshi knew that Amber had used his own body to block the psionic users’ area-of-effect attack to prevent his death.

And now, this enigmatic figure had even made a ‘hundred-year pact’ with him, one that seemed to have no disadvantages for him whatsoever.

In Qilin Gindoshi’s eyes, rather than being about his descendants fulfilling some agreement, it seemed more like motivation for him to ‘grow bigger and stronger.’

“By the way, is your terminal still working?” Amber suddenly asked, interrupting Qilin Gindoshi’s thoughts.

“Let me check… Yes, it is, Mr. Amuro. Apart from being unable to connect to the network, all other functions are fine.”

Qilin Gindoshi tinkered with it for a moment, then looked up at Amber in confusion, not knowing why the mysterious man would suddenly ask such a thing.

Amber: “So, how skilled are you in architecture, structural design, and general planning?”

“I’m so-so, I guess. At least I didn’t disappoint my family’s expectations and successfully graduated from the Imperial Institute of Technology. After that, I participated in a few projects, and it was with that experience that I was recruited by the Royal Engineering Division.”

“Right, ‘so-so’,” Amber pursed his lips. He despised these humble-bragging masters. For someone to enter the Royal Engineering Division at his age, he was definitely not just ‘so-so.’

However, Amber couldn’t be bothered with that right now and directly projected a set of blueprints from his watch.

“Take a look at these blueprints. From your perspective, how is the design? Is it of any value?”

The moment Amber projected the blueprints, Qilin Gindoshi’s gaze was locked onto them. His eyes were like a targeting system, perfectly tracking the projection no matter how Amber moved it.

“My goodness, Mr. Amuro. This… these blueprints are simply divine! The designs are so ingenious, to be able to fit so many functional zones into such a limited space, all without interfering with each other…”

Qilin Gindoshi shook his head in amazement, but as he continued to study them, his brow slowly furrowed.

“But I have a feeling these blueprints seem familiar, like I’ve seen them somewhere before. Look, this design where the room is hollowed out underneath to connect directly to the resource recovery area is very clever, though I don’t know its specific purpose.”

“Of course they look familiar. These are the blueprints for this very underground facility—including the ‘Final Dogma Zone’ where we are now. As for the ‘design’ you pointed out, that’s obviously to make it easier to eliminate people~”

“?”

—

Qilin Gindoshi found it hard to imagine how Mr. Amuro, under these circumstances, could have the leisure to hack into this underground facility and pull up its complete blueprints for him to study.

Still, as a structural engineer, he was genuinely curious about this facility. So, even knowing the risk could get him beheaded, he couldn’t resist taking a closer look.

“Did you get the file?”

“I got it, Mr. Amuro… but isn’t it a bit too dangerous to have this on my terminal?”

Qilin Gindoshi stared at the structural engineering files on his terminal, feeling as though the familiar device had turned into a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.

“It’s fine. Just study them without worry. Think of it as a learning opportunity. I’ve already set it up to self-destruct after we get out of here successfully~”

Amber led Qilin Gindoshi to a hidden spot in a maintenance access tunnel and continued:

“You stay here for now. Look over the blueprints and study what you find to be ingenious. As for me, I have some business to attend to. Once I’m done, I’ll come back and get you, and we’ll leave together.”

Qilin Gindoshi: “Won’t it be too dangerous for you to go alone?”

“Taking you with me would be the real danger. I can handle it with ease on my own~,” Amber shook his head, then pointed to the terminal in Qilin Gindoshi’s hands. “I’ve added a hidden line to this facility’s local network so we can communicate. If you discover anything unusual in the blueprints or run into any problems, contact me.

Of course, there might be times when you can’t reach me, but that will only be temporary. Just wait patiently for my reply. But you must remember, no matter what happens, you have to stay calm. Don’t panic.”

“Understood, Mr. Amuro. Please be careful.”

After settling Qilin Gindoshi, Amber focused all his attention on the exploration ahead and began to sneak toward the core of the area marked ‘Final Dogma Zone’ on the blueprints.

He had the facility’s design team to thank. For the sake of long-term maintenance, they had designed dedicated maintenance access tunnels that covered nearly the entire facility. They were also quite spacious, clearly an example of redundant design.

This greatly facilitated Amber’s infiltration, allowing him to sneak directly to his target without alerting anyone.

His objectives for this exploration were clear. First, to try and find the old Emperor Frederick and see what his current condition was, specifically whether he had already used the ‘Eternal Cells’. If he hadn’t, then Amber would try to reacquire this crystal of Forerunner biotechnology.

The second objective was one that had formed after Amber was brought to the ‘Final Dogma Zone’—to see if this place, like another one with the same name, was hiding some great secret.

After all, since he was already here, it would be a shame to leave without exploring.

Chapter 708: Holy Shit, a Dragon!

As Amber stealthily made his way to the area directly above the core of the Final Dogma Zone, he had more or less figured out the general situation of this secret Star Dragon Empire facility.

He couldn’t tell if it was a result of this universe’s natural evolution or if this underground facility was actually a scrapped concept from the game developers of his previous life. In any case, the entire underground facility, including the Final Dogma Zone, was a bit abstract.

To be fair, this underground facility was just as Qilin Gindoshi had described: its structural design was extremely ingenious, expanding a sufficiently large space and various functional areas within the limited underground confines.

But putting aside its design ingenuity and looking only at its security, Amber could only say that once you successfully infiltrated it, the difficulty of moving stealthily within the facility wasn’t actually that high.

However, if Amber had to make a reasonable guess, he found that from the Empire’s perspective, there might not have been anything wrong with such a design.

First, this facility was highly confidential. Based on what he had seen, the fewer people who knew about it, the better. If any unauthorized personnel learned of this place, they would be decisively eliminated.

The large number of automated devices and the almost complete absence of people also indicated that the facility was not meant to be widely known.

Therefore, the number of personnel in the entire facility was kept to a bare minimum. Naturally, it wouldn’t be like other places with guards at every turn and large garrisons stationed, as that would only add to the problem of maintaining secrecy for this new group of guards.

Under these circumstances, the security approach for this underground facility became: “If I don’t let any outsiders in, don’t I save myself the trouble of arranging internal security measures?”

Thus, the entire underground facility was designed with only one entrance and exit: the heavy-duty transport elevator that Amber and the others had taken earlier. This way, as long as the elevator was controlled, the underground facility would effectively be physically isolated from the outside world.

In Amber’s view, this security philosophy was indeed quite clever.

The Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital was already a critical location. Just entering the planet and then the capital itself was an incredibly troublesome task.

Under normal circumstances, even Amber would have found it difficult to come up with a way to infiltrate secretly. If not for Princess Agnes’s invitation this time, he had no idea when he would have had the opportunity to come here.

Even if one managed to enter the Imperial Capital, getting into the Grand Palace would be a major challenge for any intruder.

The Grand Palace’s parapets were extremely high, impossible to scale by human strength alone, and all entrances and exits were heavily guarded. Not to mention the defenses around the Grand Palace’s perimeter; only a psionic user of Amber’s level could possibly get close to the parapets, and even then, he still needed to use an Armored Trooper to blast an opening in the wall.

After that, if an intruder successfully entered the Grand Palace grounds, the only way to reach the underground facility was through the heavy-duty transport elevator guarded by the Royal Guard soldiers.

If an intruder could complete all the above steps and successfully take out the guarding Royal Guard soldiers, it would mean they possessed the capability to assault the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital itself. At that point, whether they infiltrated or not would make little difference.

So, after thinking it through, Amber could understand why the security of this underground facility presented such a situation of being tight on the outside and lax on the inside.

In the end, this security arrangement certainly worked to Amber’s advantage.

He had an almost unobstructed path to a large door in the deepest part of the Final Dogma Zone, and this ultra-heavy composite armor blast door completely piqued his curiosity.

“Okay, continuing the hack. Permissions overwritten. Setting temporary visitor level to maximum~”

Amber quickly operated the hacking module and soon obtained permissions on par with the Archbishop in this underground facility—permissions that could also open this final door.

“Open the door. Hide current status. Clear current operation and access logs. Done!”

Pssh.

With a sound of depressurization, the ultra-heavy composite armor blast door before Amber slowly rose, and a blast of frigid air rushed out, making him shiver involuntarily.

He had actually seen the protective suits in a nearby workstation, but he had forgone wearing one to save time, a decision that led to a brief moment of regret.

Fortunately, as a Level Six psionic user, his physical constitution meant that while he felt the cold, it didn’t actually have any real effect on him.

But the colossus that next met his eyes immediately made him forget the cold.

“Holy shit, a dragon!”

Amber was stunned. Although he and Salieh had run countless simulations and speculated that the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family might have kept some of the experimental subjects from when they were subjected to human experimentation, he had never imagined these madmen had gotten their hands on the corpse of a Starry Sky Dragon.

Yes, Amber recognized this cosmic creature at a glance. In the official promotional cinematics, this “perfect cosmic organism” was a regular feature. Though it didn’t have much of a role in the game, it had left a deep impression on the players.

Almost in that instant, a lightning bolt seemed to flash through Amber’s mind. He immediately connected all the pieces and finally understood why the old Emperor Frederick had sent the Royal Silencers to retrieve the Eternal Cells.

“He’s not trying to resurrect the Starry Sky Dragon and control the big guy, like in the Forerunners’ research, is he?”

At this thought, Amber immediately raised his right hand and activated the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1.

“Current time coordinates anchored.”

“Executing return operation.”

That familiar sensation washed over him again, and Amber’s vision once more split between the worlds of New Calendar year 82 and New Calendar year 592. This time, however, it was the world of NC 592, his original timeline, that was slowly expanding.

And just in that final moment before the image of NC 82 was completely covered, Amber suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

The tightly shut eyes of the cryogenically frozen ‘dragon corpse’ seemed to have twitched?!

But in the next instant, only the scene from NC 592 remained before his eyes. The sight was almost identical to that in NC 82; this ‘dragon corpse’ had been frozen in the Final Dogma Zone for over five hundred years.

The only difference was that in the current timeline, there was a device resembling an entry plug on the ‘dragon corpse’s’ back. It looked like it had been installed recently and hadn’t yet been fully inserted.

On the other side of the ‘dragon corpse’ were several giant medical mechanical arms. The layer of ice covering the ‘corpse’ beneath them had been drilled open, and in that spot, several draconic scales had been lifted, leaving behind the mark of a surgical procedure.

From the scene before him, it wasn’t hard for Amber to deduce that Frederick had most likely used the Eternal Cells on this dragon corpse.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Is this old man really trying to bravely create a miracle?”

Chapter 709: Atlas Must Step In

By now, Amber felt he had a basic grasp of the situation among the Empire’s high command.

In short, it was a complete mess.

First, there was the Imperial Royal Family. Judging from the actions of the old Emperor Frederick and Princess Agnes, Amber felt a great drama of a ‘loving father and filial daughter’ was about to unfold.

Although the old Emperor had publicly announced that Agnes would succeed him, he was secretly underground in The Grand Palace, inheriting the will of the Star Dragon Empire’s royal ancestors, planning to pull a Shinji Ikari and pilot a ‘Howling Dragon’.

The cryogenically frozen Starry Sky Dragon, hidden beneath The Grand Palace since the founding of the Star Dragon Empire, showed that the Royal Family had been trying to regain control over this ‘perfect cosmic creature’ all along.

And judging from the timeline of New Calendar year 592, where Amber came from, the Royal Silencers had seized the ‘Eternal Cells’, and the Starry Sky Dragon had already been fitted with an ‘entry plug’. This five-hundred-year-old plan seemed on the verge of fruition.

Although Amber couldn’t be sure whether this was Emperor Frederick’s own intention or if he had been controlled by the Archbishop or someone else and reduced to a mere pawn.

But one thing was certain: this Emperor had no intention of obediently passing the throne to Agnes as he claimed. Instead, he was plotting something.

Next was Princess Agnes of the Empire.

In Amber’s opinion, she was no simple character herself.

Her goal was clear: to successfully ascend the throne, stabilize the Empire, and establish a stronger grip on it than any previous monarch. This was also one of the reasons she was considering cooperating with the Atlas Group.

On the surface, the princess’s greatest enemy was the Regent Prince’s faction, which was also the biggest obstacle to her successful enthronement. This was because recent intelligence, from both Atlas’s and the princess’s own networks, all indicated that the Regent Prince would likely pull a major stunt at the enthronement ceremony.

In reality, however, besides the Regent Prince, the princess also seemed to distrust her own Father Emperor, and this distrust had deepened day by day ever since Frederick had entered the underground of The Grand Palace and cut off contact with the outside world.

Amber had no doubt that the first thing the princess would do after successfully taking power would be to purge her father’s supporters and completely erase Frederick’s influence within the Empire.

Quite the filial daughter, indeed.

Finally, there was the Regent Prince, whom Amber found to be the most complex character of all.

At first, Amber thought the Regent Prince was just like his persona in the game from his previous life: an ambitious and ruthless character attempting to emulate the ‘Decembrists’ and launch a bourgeois-aristocratic revolution, taking it upon himself to overthrow the monarchy and empower the people.

Moreover, based on his initial cooperation and contact with Perseus, some of the information revealed by the latter suggested that the Regent Prince was indeed heading in this direction.

But overnight, the Regent Prince had suddenly become like a different person and started acting erratically, to the point where even his two most trusted advisors didn’t know his true intentions.

Next, he began acting like a tyrant, launching a ‘great purge’ against the old-guard nobility within the Empire through various means. On the surface, it seemed he was purifying the ranks, but in reality, his actions had already drawn much opposition.

In just one short year, Norton II’s reputation within the Empire had plummeted. His former fame for being wise and magnanimous was long gone.

But the point that puzzled Amber the most was the Regent Prince’s decision to sever cooperation with the Atlas Group. Although, according to their discussion, the Regent Prince didn’t want Atlas, which had already grown into a universal megacorporation, to interfere in the Empire’s internal affairs.

In reality, however, his words and actions seemed to be pushing the Atlas Group toward the princess in every conceivable way, as if he were deliberately trying to foster an alliance between them.

In other words, the internal conflict of the Star Dragon Empire had evolved from ‘Regent Prince vs. Royal Family’ into a three-way chaotic melee of ‘Regent Prince vs. Princess vs. Emperor’. At the same time, it was entangled with other noble factions within the Empire, such as the so-called ‘Royalists’, ‘Reformists’, and ‘Young Turks’.

And any one of these three factions aimed to annihilate the other two, meaning only one power could have the last laugh in this internal struggle.

Indeed, the essence of this universe was a ‘battle royale’.

As for Amber and the Atlas Group, if they wanted to expand their influence as they had in the Federation, they had to align with one of the three factions and become the final winner.

Looking at the current situation, Amber estimated that the Atlas Group was tied to Agnes’s side. After all, the Regent Prince was already in a semi-hostile state, and not only had they never had contact with the old Emperor, but the truth Amber had uncovered deep within the underground facility suggested this emperor was definitely unreliable.

Most importantly, Agnes’s on-paper strength was actually the weakest of the three. If this gamble paid off, it would be a true case of ‘merit from aiding the founding emperor’. When it came time to take a piece of the pie, Amber would have a greater say.

This was because Agnes’s core support was the ‘Princess Faction’ gathered around her, led by Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia. The entire faction’s main military strength was essentially concentrated in the hands of these two dukes.

As for the Regent Prince, although Duke William had been killed in battle, along with the loss of an Artificial Celestial Fortress, the Regent Prince’s own private soldiers had yet to be truly mobilized. Furthermore, Duke Artesia’s fortress on the princess’s side wouldn’t be combat-ready again for some time. Therefore, in terms of military strength, the Regent Prince definitely had the upper hand.

On the Emperor’s side, besides the Royal Guard soldiers and the garrison fleet, there was a group of die-hard Royalists led by Duke Soren. These old nobles of Saint-Saulnier under the Star Dragon banner had now rallied tightly around Duke Soren amidst the Regent Prince’s great purge, forming a force that could not be underestimated.

But what truly made Amber wary was the Starry Sky Dragon right before his eyes.

‘A perfect cosmic creature.’ This assessment came from the Forerunner civilization, and the fact that this powerful civilization even intended to use the Starry Sky Dragon as a combat weapon was enough to demonstrate the creature’s combat prowess.

Amber did not doubt for a second that such a creature possessed the ability to destroy an entire fleet on its own.

“Perhaps I should find a way to plant a little surprise right now?”

Staring at the frozen Starry Sky Dragon before him, the thought suddenly popped into Amber’s head.

But he quickly realized that such an idea was unrealistic. At least with the equipment he currently had, he couldn’t do any real damage to this thing. Besides, the method of controlling the dragon directly via the entry plug also rendered conventional electronic virus attacks useless.

The only effective method might be to blast through the ice layer with brute force. Perhaps that could directly inflict some damage on the Starry Sky Dragon?

But the problem was that not only was the outcome uncertain, but more importantly, it would inevitably trigger an alarm. This directly contradicted Amber’s original purpose of ‘covert infiltration’.

So, Amber ultimately abandoned the idea. In any case, he had already obtained crucial intelligence and could begin preparations ahead of time.

As for the ‘Eternal Cells,’ since they had already been used by the Emperor, Amber could only try to find an opportunity later to discover something from the Starry Sky Dragon itself.

This also solidified his resolve to get involved in the Empire’s chaotic melee.

Chapter 710: Opening Its Eyes

He had figured out the whereabouts of the ‘Eternal Cells’ and, in the process, discovered the Starry Sky Dragon hidden beneath The Grand Palace. It was safe to say Amber’s infiltration mission had been a ‘great success’.

The next step, naturally, was to get Qilin Gindoshi out of here safely and conclude the operation.

Although Amber was keen to find out what was going on with Frederico, the current ruler of The Empire—whether he was truly being controlled by the Archbishop and his faction, or if he was pulling the strings himself.

This would directly influence the Atlas Group’s future strategic focus. If the Archbishop was in control, Amber and the others would have to concentrate their efforts on the Imperial State Religion, affecting their entire deployment.

However, when Amber saw on the structural blueprints that the Convalescence Center wasn’t in the ‘Final Dogma Zone’ but on the level above, he decided to play it safe and not take any more risks.

If there really was a problem, they could just pull everyone over and A-move them. Job done.

This… was the confidence that the Atlas Group, in its current state of growth, had given Amber.

Amber then prepared to return to the New Calendar year 82 timeline to find Qilin Gindoshi. But just before he initiated it, he suddenly recalled the moment of his last time jump—the Starry Sky Dragon’s eyelid had seemed to twitch.

“It must have been my imagination, right? They couldn’t have actually frozen a living Starry Sky Dragon down here, could they?”

Musing to himself, Amber raised his head to look at the dragon in the New Calendar year 592 timeline. At least in this timeline, Amber couldn’t sense any signs of life from it.

After staring at the ice-encased Starry Sky Dragon for a long while, Amber decided to proceed to the New Calendar year 82 timeline. After all, he had a much clearer picture of the situation there. He had no idea if the underground facility in his original timeline had undergone any changes over the past five hundred plus years, so it was better not to risk it.

Soon, the ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’ activated again. As a negative energy bubble enveloped Amber, his figure vanished in the next second, as if he had never been there.

As the time jump concluded, Amber arrived back in New Calendar year 82. The very instant his vision cleared, he looked at the Starry Sky Dragon’s eyes, his entire body tensed, ready to react to any situation.

But he stared at the ‘flash-frozen dragon’ for several minutes, and the mountain-sized Starry Sky Dragon before him showed no change. Its eyes remained tightly shut, not having moved at all.

“Was it really just my imagination?”

Doubt crept into Amber’s mind. He truly couldn’t detect any of the dragon’s vital signs, and all the evidence suggested that what he had seen was indeed a trick of the mind.

Nevertheless, he didn’t want to linger here.

The oppressive feeling of being so close to such a colossal creature was intense. Combined with the hair-raising illusion from just now, it made Amber want nothing more than to leave this place immediately.

“I’ll be on my way, then. You keep sleeping. Just pretend I was never here.”

Muttering to himself, Amber cautiously backed toward the gate. When the gate opened again and he confirmed it was safe outside, he shot out without a second thought. He didn’t want to spend another second in this bizarre giant freezer.

And in the final moment before the super-heavy composite armor blast doors slammed shut, what Amber didn’t know was that the frozen dragon had opened its eyes once more.

—

“A time jumper. The technology of the Jeram people.”

The Starry Sky Dragon, Satario, watched the human’s disappearing figure as its dormant brain began to whir back to life. It had been in a state of hibernation ever since the Jeram people had imprisoned and frozen it, never once activating, not even when it was taken in by humans and placed in this underground facility.

For this Starry Sky Dragon, who had witnessed the Jeram people exterminate its entire kind, perhaps its heart had already lost all hope and frozen over the moment the last Starry Sky Dragon hatchling was disintegrated into elementary particles.

But today, this human who had suddenly appeared before it, and the time travel technology from the Jeram people that he used, had reawakened Satario.

The dragon didn’t need to think hard to see that this human was not with the ones who had contained it; he had clearly snuck into the facility. But it wasn’t interested in the complexities of human relationships. What it truly cared about was the fluctuation of time travel it had just sensed.

Perhaps humans couldn’t detect such fluctuations yet, but for a Starry Sky Dragon, they were incredibly easy to catch.

Satario was puzzled. When the Jeram people froze it, it knew that the powerful civilization was about to embark on an ‘expedition’. An expedition that would take them out of this universe entirely. Therefore, this time travel technology should no longer have appeared.

“Have the Jeram people returned? But why would this technology be in the hands of a human? Aren’t humans just expendables to the Jeram people?”

Though questions arose, Satario’s newly activated mind couldn’t sustain the complex thought process to answer them.

Regardless, it remembered the figure of the human from just now.

If it could escape from this place and seize the time travel technology from the humans, perhaps it could return to the time before the Jeram people arrived and issue a warning to the entire Draconic race?

Once such a thought took root, Satario found it could never again be erased from its mind.

Unfortunately, at this moment, Satario lacked even the strength to break free from the ice. Before freezing it, the Jeram people had injected it with a massive dose of an inhibitor agent.

Once injected, this agent could weaken a Starry Sky Dragon’s various abilities and plunge it into a state of endless frailty.

In a frozen state, a Starry Sky Dragon’s bodily functions were also restricted, making it the perfect condition for the inhibitor agent to take effect and prolonging its duration.

Satario conservatively estimated that if it wanted to slowly counteract the effects of this inhibitor agent while frozen, it would probably take a millennium…

Layers of frigid ice enveloped Satario. The external temperature was extremely low, and the silence was terrifying.

In this dark, confined space, Satario felt the inhibitor agent corroding its body like a plague clinging to its very bones. The muscles beneath every scale, every single bone, endured an indescribable pain—a pain that completely prevented it from using any of its innate Starry Sky Dragon abilities.

Thus, for it, the ice covering its body was, in essence, an eternal shackle.

However, as a Starry Sky Dragon, Satario possessed an unyielding will in its very bones. Coupled with having just witnessed Amber activate time travel, something called ‘hope’ had reappeared in its heart.

“A millennium? My kind is already gone… I… can afford to wait. Perhaps… it won’t even take that long…”

Chapter 711: Mishaps Are Only Ever Late

Amber didn’t know yet that the Starry Sky Dragon in the Final Dogma Zone wasn’t dead, but that had little impact on his decision-making. Adhering to the principle of erring on the side of caution when assessing the enemy, he had already tasked Salieh, the Forerunner, with devising countermeasures the moment he learned the true identity of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family.

Now, having personally seen the ‘flash-frozen dragon’ hidden beneath the Grand Palace, it made no difference to Amber whether the creature was dead or alive.

Amber couldn’t care less if this ‘perfect cosmic creature’ was living or not. As long as there was a chance it could stir, it posed a threat to the Atlas Group—especially now that Amber intended to cooperate with Princess Agnes.

At this moment, after leaving the core area with the frozen Starry Sky Dragon, Amber deftly returned to the maintenance access and cleaned up all his tracks, both in the real world and the virtual one. In short, he did his utmost to ensure his actions left no trace.

On the original timeline, Amber might not have been so cautious. But now, on the timeline of the year 82 in the New Calendar, he was terrified of creating some kind of time paradox.

Soon, Amber was back at Qilin Gindoshi’s hiding spot. The young structural engineer was curled up in a corner of the maintenance access.

It was hard to say whether the young man was simply too engrossed in the blueprints or if he was always this carefree, but he only snapped to attention and realized someone was there after Amber had walked right up and stood before him.

“Mr. Amuro, you’re back!”

“If it hadn’t been me, you’d be dead I don’t know how many times over. Seriously, is your awareness always this low? How can you get so absorbed in something in an environment like this?”

Amber shook his head, looking a little resigned. He was starting to wonder how this laid-back young man had managed to live into his nineties. His level of alertness was far too low.

“Heh heh… I’ve been like this since I was a kid. Once I get into something, I tend to tune out my surroundings.”

Qilin Gindoshi scratched his head sheepishly, then stood up from the floor and stretched his somewhat stiff body.

“Mr. Amuro, have you finished your business?”

“Mhm, I’m getting you out of here now.”

Amber nodded, gesturing for Qilin Gindoshi to follow him. He then set off toward the elevator, following the route marked on the structural blueprints.

Just as Amber had analyzed, this underground facility had only one way in and out. If they wanted to leave, they would eventually have to reach the heavy transport elevator.

After following Amber for a while and glancing at the blueprints a few more times, Qilin Gindoshi seemed to understand something and whispered:

“Mr. Amuro, you’re not planning on taking the elevator out, are you?”

“That’s right. How else would we leave? This is the only way out of this facility.” Amber shrugged, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

Hearing this, a flicker of astonishment crossed Qilin Gindoshi’s eyes. Although Mr. Amuro certainly seemed incredibly capable, just riding the elevator out so brazenly still felt a bit outlandish.

“Don’t worry,” Amber said without turning his head, as if he had read Gindoshi’s mind. “I will definitely get you out of here safely and in one piece. Please, you must believe me on this.”

—

As an underground facility built by hollowing out an entire mountain, its internal volume was naturally immense, especially since it had to accommodate the nearly three-kilometer-long body of the Starry Sky Dragon—although the ‘dragon corpse’ was much smaller when coiled, it was still as large as a mountain.

Thus, in such a massive space, Amber and Qilin Gindoshi couldn’t move very fast on foot, even with Amber hoisting the young structural engineer onto his shoulder and breaking into a run for the latter half of the journey.

About twenty minutes later, the two finally returned to the sole exit of the Final Dogma Zone: the maintenance access above the heavy transport elevator.

Here, however, Amber and Qilin Gindoshi had to leave the accessway. The tunnel ended without connecting to the elevator shaft, so they had to enter through the elevator’s main doors.

“Wait here for a moment. I’ll confirm it’s clear before you come out.”

Qilin Gindoshi nodded. “Understood, Mr. Amuro. I’ll follow your lead.”

The exit of the maintenance access was not far from the elevator’s main doors. Amber first used his exoskeleton’s micro-detection modules to scan the area from behind the cover of the exit. After confirming there was no one outside, he carefully opened the hatch.

Just as Amber had predicted, there were no guards in the Final Dogma Zone. The Archbishop and his entourage also seemed to have left, so it was safe for the time being.

Amber signaled for Qilin Gindoshi to come out. After closing the maintenance access hatch and restoring it to its original state, he used his hacking device to call the elevator down again.

This was the most dangerous moment of the entire plan.

I hope everyone thinks it was the Archbishop who called it again.

Amber thought silently, bracing himself for the worst-case scenario as he pulled Qilin Gindoshi to the side to hide.

Ding.

The chime announcing the heavy transport elevator’s arrival sounded, and the huge alloy doors at the entrance slid open smoothly. The elevator’s interior… was empty.

“Phew… Thank heavens.”

Seeing no one inside the elevator, Amber breathed a small sigh of relief. He then led Qilin Gindoshi inside and began tinkering with his hacking module, commanding the elevator to ascend once more.

“Mr. Amuro… are we just leaving like this?”

Amber stared intently at the elevator control panel. “Do you have a better suggestion?”

“Uh… no. I’ll listen to you.”

The elevator began its slow ascent, and Amber’s heart grew tense. He had a nagging feeling that if he and Qilin Gindoshi managed to get out just like this, it would be far too easy.

The very next moment, he regretted ever having that thought.

Just as the elevator was about to reach the floor above the Final Dogma Zone—the lowest level of the underground facility—it began to decelerate.

As the deceleration became more pronounced, Amber stated the most terrifying thing in the calmest tone: “Crap. Someone pressed the button.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Qilin Gindoshi tensed up immediately. He couldn’t comprehend how ‘Mr. Amuro’ could remain so calm in a situation like this.

“W-what do we do? Are we going to be discovered?”

“Hide in the corner. There’s no time to get on top of the elevator.”

Amber shoved Qilin Gindoshi into a side of the elevator to hide and instantly prepared for battle.

Ding.

The chime for the heavy transport elevator’s arrival sounded once more.

As the elevator doors slowly opened, the figures of the Archbishop and two psionic users appeared at the entrance.

This first Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion was still wondering if the elevator had malfunctioned, which was why he had returned to the Final Dogma Zone. Just then, a black shadow suddenly burst out from the partially opened elevator.

The Archbishop’s eyes flew wide open. He instinctively staggered back, trying to see what was coming at him, but in the next second, he felt a heavy blow to his neck, and his world went black.

Chapter 712: Consecutive Jumps

Coming face-to-face with the Archbishop and his entourage right at the entrance of the heavy transport elevator was a scenario Amber had been most reluctant to entertain in his plans.

After all, this was a secret infiltration mission. It was best not to startle the grass and alert the snake.

However, before entering this underground facility, Amber truly hadn’t expected the access passage to be designed like this.

Umbrella’s Hive at least had an entire underground station. But here in the Empire, all you get is a single heavy transport elevator, with nowhere to hide.

So, upon seeing the Archbishop and his group, Amber had no choice but to rush out and strike first. Not to mention, he saw that the two Level 5 psionic users behind the Archbishop had also noticed something was wrong and were beginning to raise their hands to release their Psionics.

At that moment, Amber felt fortunate for the explosion of Alpha Serpentis. It had allowed him to break through to Level Six psionic strength at an absurd speed and had once again drastically improved his physical condition.

That was why his movements were faster than the two Level 5 psionic users behind the Archbishop.

Because the elevator doors had been specifically manufactured with materials that could block Psionics, the two psionic users hadn’t detected Amber immediately.

In other words, both sides were starting this confrontation on an equal footing.

The two Level 5 psionic users, specially selected from the Royal Silencers to handle security and elimination duties for the Grand Palace’s underground facility, followed standard engagement procedures the instant they detected Amber’s presence. One prepared to activate a psionic shield to protect the Archbishop, while the other readied a psionic blast to knock back the enemy and create distance.

But these two elites from the Royal Silencers never expected someone faster than them to appear right before their eyes.

They had only just activated their Psionics when Amber’s figure had already rushed in front of them. His left hand seized the hand of one user who was gathering psionic energy, while his right hand, balled into a fist, smashed toward the other’s face. In the process, Amber activated the ‘Power’ mode of his biological exoskeleton.

Boom!

The Level 5 psionic user struck in the face had his tactical faceplate shattered by the heavy blow, and his entire body was sent flying backward. The psionic energy gathering in the other user’s hand was forcibly crushed by Amber. The sudden backlash made his vision go black for a moment, and then a brutal knee strike from Amber slammed into his abdomen.

The powerful kinetic energy hitting his abdomen inflicted pain that exceeded the psionic user’s threshold, which in turn activated the body’s natural response—causing him to pass out on the spot.

After that, Amber smoothly followed up with a spinning elbow strike that knocked the Archbishop unconscious.

The entire sequence of events happened in an instant. To the two Royal Guard soldiers in heavy powered armor standing guard not far away, it was as if there was a flash before their eyes, and then the Archbishop and the two psionic users collapsed limply to the ground. Even the Optical sensors in their powered armor failed to capture a clear image.

Yes, there were still two Royal Guard soldiers stationed in the distance, responsible for guarding the elevator entrance on this level.

This was one of the few guard units in the underground facility in New Calendar year 82. Aside from the Final Dogma Zone, the elevator entrance on every level was guarded by two Royal Guard soldiers in heavy powered armor.

And now, the compact Chain guns mounted on their powered armor’s shoulders and the electromagnetic machine guns in their hands were aiming in his direction—an automatic targeting function from their fire-control systems. In fact, the two Royal Guard soldiers had only just processed what had happened.

But for humans, even Royal Guard soldiers who had undergone physical modification and were at the peak of ordinary human combat capability, this reaction speed was already extremely fast.

This was the helplessness ordinary humans felt when facing a psionic user.

When your reaction speed is worlds apart from your opponent’s, no amount of training or preparation matters.

Upon seeing the two Royal Guard soldiers raise their weapons, Amber immediately charged toward them, simultaneously tapping his watch face.

“Activate Emergency Tactical Warp Mode!”

“Request received. Emergency Tactical Warp Mode activated.”

The Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 activated swiftly. In the next second, a negative energy bubble began to envelop Amber, preparing for transit.

In this mode, the watch would consume a massive amount of energy to provide the ability for consecutive time jumps.

However, Salieh had also warned Amber that the version she had ‘Built from scratch’ was, after all, no match for the ‘original’ used by the Jeram people’s time travel teams, so using this function came with certain risks.

But Amber couldn’t worry about that right now.

He wasn’t worried about the two Royal Guard soldiers attacking him. With his biological exoskeleton’s ‘Protection’ mode activated, he could withstand the firepower in their hands for a short time.

He was more concerned that if they opened fire and hit the elevator, causing it to malfunction, he would be truly trapped.

The next second, Amber’s figure vanished from the two Royal Guard soldiers’ view without any warning. The Targeting box on their HUDs also displayed an ‘Error, target not acquired’ notification.

Amber’s idea was simple: use the time travel back to New Calendar year 592 to quickly close the distance, then travel back to New Calendar year 82 and take out the two Royal Guard soldiers in close combat.

He was well aware that the underground facility in New Calendar year 592 would certainly have guards posted as well, but that didn’t matter.

He wouldn’t be staying there for long, perhaps not even long enough for the guards there to react. And even if they did react, it wouldn’t matter if they opened fire and blew up the elevator.

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind the moment he was engulfed by the negative energy bubble. But when the scene from New Calendar year 592 appeared before his eyes, he was suddenly stunned.

Because in this original timeline, what appeared before him were not two Royal Guard soldiers guarding the entrance.

Instead, it was a defense force that filled nearly the entire entrance corridor.

Soldiers equipped with exoskeletons and Powered Armor, compact multi-legged war machines designed for street fighting, and several twin-barreled electromagnetic Vulcan cannons mounted on the ceiling.

Amber swore that the underground facility in New Calendar year 82 had absolutely none of these things!

Moreover, these defense forces didn’t look like the Royal Guard. Instead, they resembled a type of annoying elite unit from Amber’s previous life, one that often appeared on the maps of the Empire’s former capital—the Martyr Corps.

“What the hell?” was Amber’s first reaction upon seeing these elite monsters.

“Dragon God above!” was the first reaction of the Martyr Corps’ defense force upon seeing a person suddenly materialize before them.

Even these Zealots, loyal to the State Religion, experienced a moment of mental shutdown. After all, their unit had been stationed in this underground facility for many years and had never encountered such a situation.

But the combat training etched into their very bones made them raise their weapons in the next second. What followed, however, was a psionic shockwave that crashed down on them like a physical tsunami.

Amber was indeed restricted from using his Psionics during this operation.

But that was in the New Calendar year 82 he had traveled to.

And now, he had returned to his own original timeline. In this timeline, he had no such restrictions.

Chapter 713: Cross-Temporal Attack

The elite forces of the Martyr Corps were only stationed in The Grand Palace’s underground facility after an event that was never recorded in the annals of history.

And these fanatics, responsible for guarding the heavy transport elevator’s entrance corridor, had standing orders to attack any living being that entered the underground facility without authorization, regardless of who they were or their status.

In other words, even if Princess Agnes of The Empire were to enter this underground facility without authorization, she would be attacked by the Martyr Corps.

So, when the fanatics stationed on this level suddenly saw an unknown unit in a box labeled ‘Unknown’ appear on the HUDs of their tactical faceplates and screens, everyone’s first reaction was to pull the trigger and open fire.

However, they were a step too slow.

In the elevator’s entrance corridor, a powerful psionic shockwave, like a tangible tsunami, swept through with overwhelming force.

Before the Martyr Corps’ defense force could even place their fingers on the triggers, they were violently sent flying by this formless yet immense power. Their bodies, like puppets with their strings cut, slammed heavily against the metal walls. The dull thuds of impact and the sharp cracks of breaking bones intertwined, amplified in the enclosed space.

Under the impact of this immense psionic force, the exoskeletons and heavy powered armor they wore were as fragile as paper toys in a child’s hands, effortlessly torn apart, sending metal fragments flying everywhere.

The two ‘Sanctum Defender’ compact multi-legged war machines blocking the corridor entrance, having just aimed their plasma cannons’ translucent barrels at Amber, were also mercilessly overturned.

Their six bionic mechanical legs struggled to right them, like overturned beetles on the ground, but several ‘streams’ immediately split off from the psionic blast and coiled around them, twisting and snapping the mechanical legs with a series of sharp, ear-piercing screeches.

As for the twin-barreled electromagnetic Vulcan cannons on the ceiling, the moment their barrels were about to turn, they were twisted like pretzels by a powerful, invisible force, completely losing their ability to fire and becoming nothing but a pile of scrap metal.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye, the entire process so fast that no one had time to think.

Amber’s figure appeared like a phantom in the center of the corridor, even as the smoke and dust had yet to fully settle.

At this moment, his eyes flickered with a chilling, ethereal blue light—a sign of psionic overload, and also a manifestation of him finally being able to unleash the power he had held back for so long.

“In New Calendar 82, I was a pushover! In New Calendar 592, I’m hitting back hard!!!”

The fanatics who had been lucky enough to only be slammed into the walls and hadn’t been completely incapacitated were still trying to get back on their feet and attack the intruder. But Amber’s phantom-like figure flickered continuously, and each flicker meant another fanatic was taken out of the fight.

At the same time, the electronic warfare virus developed by Lilith specifically for Amber was infiltrating the personal combat system of every Martyr Corps soldier at an unimaginable speed.

Compared to the electronic viruses created by the humans of this world, Lilith was in a state of continuous improvement. As long as the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress remained connected to the network, Lilith would constantly be evolving, and the viruses she created would be perpetually updated.

This was also why the combat units of the Atlas Group had been continuously expanding their advantage in network and electronic warfare, to the point where even Amber, operating alone, could comfortably launch attacks against company- and even battalion-level targets.

The virus precisely targeted the subsystems that stored image recordings, effortlessly and irreversibly destroying them to ensure no visual records of the battle would be left behind.

Since alerting the guards was now unavoidable, the least he could do was not leave behind any information detailing the fight.

In just a few seconds, all the Martyr Corps guards in the corridor were incapacitated. Only then did the intruder alarm belatedly begin to sound.

Amber took several long strides forward, then decisively reactivated the ‘Tactical Time-Travel Device MK1’. His objective was crystal clear: his current position corresponded exactly to the spot behind the two Royal Guard soldiers in New Calendar 82.

In an instant, the negative energy bubble once again enveloped him tightly. A mysterious energy glow flashed in the corridor, and then Amber’s figure vanished from the year New Calendar 592, leaving only dead silence behind.

When his surroundings became clear again, Amber had returned to New Calendar 82.

With his powerful perception, he could acutely sense the presence of the two Royal Guard soldiers behind him without even turning around. He could also clearly hear the faint hum of their operating heavy powered armor.

Without the slightest hesitation, Amber spun around, his figure like a black bolt of lightning.

His speed was incredible, far surpassing the reaction limits of these two Royal Guard soldiers—or any human, for that matter.

To the two Royal Guard soldiers in New Calendar 82, everything that had just happened was incredibly sudden.

After the heavy transport elevator opened, the Archbishop and two high-level psionic users were instantly knocked to the ground. Then, a figure so fast that even their fire-control units couldn’t track it darted out of the elevator. Before they could even raise their weapons, the figure flickered and vanished into thin air.

This made the two Royal Guard soldiers hesitate to fire. Instead, they quickly moved closer to each other, preparing to form a back-to-back stance and call for backup.

But just a few seconds later, their powered armor’s sensors detected a figure that had suddenly appeared behind them and issued a warning.

But in that very instant, Amber’s attack landed.

He used no weapons, relying solely on his psionically-enhanced physical strength. He swung his fists like twin cannonballs, striking the power packs on the back of the heavy powered armor.

Even these reinforced weak points were incredibly fragile against Amber’s monstrous strength.

“Crack!”

“Bang!”

The dull sound of impact and the crack of breaking metal rang out one after the other, like two claps of thunder exploding in the confined space. The two Royal Guard soldiers didn’t even have time to scream before Amber’s attack struck them down.

Their heavy powered armor was twisted and deformed beyond recognition by the powerful impact. The internal wiring and components were severely damaged, emitting wisps of black smoke. The attack also completely destroyed the armor’s electronic components and storage modules.

At this point, in the entire entrance area of the heavy transport elevator, no one was left standing except for Amber and Qilin Gindoshi.

Chapter 714: Wreaking Havoc in the Grand Palace

The battle erupted in an instant and ended just as abruptly.

Hiding inside the elevator, Qilin Gindoshi only heard a few dull, thunderous impacts from outside before the surroundings returned to a deathly silence.

“It’s taken care of. Don’t worry,” Amber’s voice drifted in from outside the elevator.

Hearing his voice, Qilin Gindoshi cautiously peeked his head out of the elevator.

He saw Amber standing steadily beside two suits of heavy powered armor that were still smoldering with black smoke, his hands rummaging through their multi-function weapons bays for something.

And at the elevator’s entrance, three people were lying in disarray. When Qilin Gindoshi’s gaze fell upon the Archbishop, dressed in his most magnificent robes, he was so shocked he nearly fainted on the spot.

“M-Mr. Amuro, did you kill the Archbishop?”

“Just knocked him out. Why would I kill him for no reason?”

Before he had even finished speaking, Amber’s figure flashed back into the elevator car like a fleeting phantom.

He bent down and, rather roughly, dragged the unconscious Archbishop to the center of the elevator. Then, in the same manner, he dragged the two Level 5 psionic users in one by one, placing them neatly on either side of the Archbishop.

After doing all this, he slowly stood up, his sharp gaze falling upon the quietly standing Qilin Gindoshi.

“When the elevator reaches the exit, you and I will get out through the maintenance port in the ceiling first,” Amber instructed Qilin Gindoshi in a low, rapid voice, laying out the plan. His gaze was sharp and calm, as if he had already accounted for every possible variable.

“When the Royal Guard soldiers outside discover the Archbishop’s situation, they’ll definitely rush in to check. At that point, I’ll find a way to create some chaos, and then we’ll use it to break out.”

“That simple and crude?”

“Yep, that simple and crude~” Amber nodded and said with a smile, “The simpler the plan, the easier it is to execute and the less likely it is to go wrong. It’s the overly complicated plans that account for too many factors that are prone to mishaps.”

Hearing this, Qilin Gindoshi frowned slightly, a worried look in his eyes. “But, Mr. Amuro… there must be a lot of Royal Guard soldiers on the surface. You alone…”

The corners of Amber’s mouth curved up in a confident smile, and he cut him off. “Don’t worry. Dealing with them will be a piece of cake.”

He flexed his wrists, his tone laced with an almost arrogant self-assurance. From Qilin Gindoshi’s perspective, it was as if the heavily armed, battle-ready Royal Guard soldiers were nothing more than a flock of lambs to the slaughter in his eyes.

The elevator resumed its ascent. This time, there were no further interruptions, and it soon smoothly approached the surface exit.

As the heavy transport elevator slowly arrived at the surface exit, the heavy metal doors slid open, revealing a line of Royal Guard soldiers on high alert.

Every one of them was on edge, their weapons already loaded, though they had not yet received any alarms. It was simply their standard state of readiness.

However, the moment these Royal Guard soldiers saw the scene inside the elevator, they all froze.

The man in the middle of the three on the floor was clearly the Archbishop. To see him flanked by two unconscious Level 5 psionic users was a sight that completely defied their comprehension.

“What’s going on?!”

“Your Grace!”

“Quick! Go in and see!”

“Sound the alarm!”

The dozen or so Royal Guard soldiers closest to the elevator didn’t have time to think. They immediately flooded into the car, wanting to see what had happened and get the Archbishop and the others out.

But just then, Amber moved.

From his hiding spot in the maintenance port atop the elevator, he struck like a predator that had been lying in wait for far too long, forcefully throwing several ‘little potatoes’ into the elevator below—smoke grenades he had just scavenged from the two Royal Guard soldiers’ heavy powered armor.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

With a few muffled pops, thick white smoke instantly filled the air, blanketing the entire elevator car and reducing visibility to almost zero.

At the same time, Amber leaped down from the ceiling’s maintenance port like a leopard lurking in the darkness, silently melting into the dense smoke.

“All units, enemy attack!!!”

“He’s in the smoke! Detection units, activate sonar scan mode!”

“Protect the Archbishop!”

The Royal Guard soldiers inside the elevator were thrown into chaos. They scrambled to adjust their powered armor’s targeting modes while fumbling blindly in the smoke, trying to find Amber’s silhouette, but it was all in vain.

Amber was like a demon in the smoke. Each time he appeared, it was accompanied by the sickening thud of an impact and a piercing scream.

His movements were swift and precise, each attack ruthless. The Royal Guard soldiers in their heavy powered armor were as fragile as paper-mache before him, unable to withstand a single blow.

After taking down all the soldiers in the elevator, Amber didn’t pause for a moment. He quickly looted their smoke grenades and smart grenades, then unhesitatingly threw them all out.

In an instant, more smoke billowed up like thick plumes, and more violent explosions roared like thunder, plunging the entire side hall of the Grand Palace into a deep abyss of chaos.

In the confusion, Amber also casually scooped up two automatic grenade launchers dropped by the Royal Guard soldiers. He didn’t hesitate to pull the triggers, unleashing the grenades from their weapons bays in a torrential downpour. The fire from the explosions was like brilliant fireworks, the shockwaves like surging tides.

Although the grenades weren’t lethal to Royal Guard soldiers in heavy powered armor, Amber’s goal wasn’t to kill. The constant stream of explosions was meant to intensify the chaos.

Having done all this, Amber quickly returned to Qilin Gindoshi’s side and hoisted him onto his back.

“Hold on tight!”

He barked the order as he activated the speed mode of his biological exoskeleton. The next second, his figure shot out of the side hall like an arrow released from a bowstring, racing toward the outskirts of the Grand Palace at breakneck speed.

As he ran, Amber didn’t forget to continue sowing chaos. He threw all his remaining throwable items behind him. The sounds of explosions, the billowing smoke, the wailing alarms, and the furious shouts of the Royal Guard soldiers intertwined, rising and falling, turning the entire Grand Palace into a boiling pot of congee.

Amber’s destination was clear: the collapsed section of the West Wing Parapet. It was their best escape route, as well as the most crowded and environmentally complex area.

When they arrived, a group of Royal Guard soldiers, who had been responsible for supervising the Engineering Division, were gathered there, seemingly preparing to split up and reinforce the interior of the Grand Palace.

However, before they could act, they received Amber’s ‘warm reception.’

Two hacked multi-legged war machines behind him raised the launch canisters on the rear of their turrets and unhesitatingly began to pour firepower onto the Royal Guard soldiers’ position.

The fire of the explosions, the shockwaves, and the effects of various special munitions instantly engulfed the group of Royal Guard soldiers. The breach in the West Wing Parapet was quickly shrouded in smoke and kicked-up dust, and the nearby construction workers scattered like birds and beasts.

“Quick, get out of here while it’s chaotic!” Hiding behind a flowerbed, Amber slapped Qilin Gindoshi on the back. “Remember what I told you underground, and that string of numbers! Keep everything that happened tonight locked away in your heart, take it to your grave, understand?!”

“Yes! I understand, Mr. Amuro… but aren’t you leaving?” Qilin Gindoshi nodded, then asked worriedly.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll lead these tails away first, otherwise you won’t be able to escape in the chaos.”

Amber glanced back at the pursuers streaming out from the Grand Palace. Among them were now humanoid armored units similar to the HCPs of a later era, and there were quite a few of them.

“Goodbye, Qilin Gindoshi~”

Looking at his ‘new friend’ from tonight, Amber smiled, then shoved him into the smoke he had created to cover his escape.

Chapter 715: Your Majesty! Mind if I Borrow This?

Amber watched Kaelin Gindoshi disappear into the smoke and dust. After confirming through the detection module of his biological exoskeleton that the young structural engineer had successfully blended into the crowd amidst the chaos, he breathed a small sigh of relief.

At least now, his companion wouldn’t be killed by a stray bullet from the pursuers just for following him, which would have triggered a time paradox.

Based on the series of events tonight, Amber had basically figured out the logic of the entire time loop. He believed that as long as he got through tonight, Kaelin Gindoshi’s future life trajectory would remain unchanged.

What he needed to do next was draw all the Royal Guard’s attention to himself and create the illusion that the intruder was still inside the Grand Palace.

Furthermore, Amber had previously altered some important information through an information exchange terminal, which should be enough to clear Kaelin Gindoshi of suspicion and keep the Royal Guard from suspecting the young man.

Besides, Gindoshi was just a powerless young man. Even if someone did find something amiss, it would be hard to convince anyone that this ordinary person had infiltrated the Grand Palace and run a full circuit through its underground facility.

Oh, and he’d also knocked out the Archbishop and two Level 5 psionic users along the way.

So, Amber believed that as long as he stalled for enough time to let Kaelin Gindoshi reach safety, this time-traveling journey could be brought to a perfect close.

After all, he was still alive and well, which meant that all his decisions and actions so far were probably on the right path.

That being said, Amber’s current situation was not exactly easy or pleasant.

In the New Calendar year 82 timeline, as a time traveler, Amber couldn’t use any Psionics. Therefore, he didn’t dare to clash head-on with the Grand Palace’s Royal Guard—especially not when the pursuit team now included the precursors to the HCP: bulky, humanoid mechanical units that looked like running refrigerators.

It was common knowledge that a High-level psionic user could indeed ‘dismantle a mech with their bare hands,’ but that required the use of Psionics, a power capable of influencing the real world.

With Amber unable to use Psionics, physical strength alone was no match for steel.

Psionic user. The emphasis was really on the word ‘Psionics’.

If he couldn’t use Psionics, he was like a max-level hero unable to use their abilities—at best, he was just a ‘super minion.’

So Amber had no intention of clashing with his pursuers head-on. Instead, he decided to ‘test’ the armed cross-country capabilities of these Grand Palace Royal Guards.

He led a swarm of Royal Guards on a game of hide-and-seek within the Grand Palace. Having activated the ‘Speed mode’ of his biological exoskeleton, he left his pursuers in the dust.

Despite this, the distance between them kept shrinking as numerous mobile units joined the encirclement.

This was, after all, the heart of the Star Dragon Empire. Since the nation’s founding, a considerable number of troops had been deployed around the Grand Palace as a precaution. With increasing support—especially a growing number of tracking drones—the Royal Guard successfully began to shrink Amber’s room to maneuver.

“Why are there so many of them! How can the Royal Guard react this fast?”

Amber sprinted, constantly turning to observe the pursuers behind him. The chaos he had created had achieved its goal—Kaelin Gindoshi had escaped safely—but the trouble that followed far exceeded his expectations.

Behind him, the heavy footsteps of the humanoid ‘refrigerators’ grew closer. The humanoid mechanical units of this era were limited by technology and materials, making them universally heavy. However, the designers had managed to give these ‘fat boys’, weighing over one hundred fifty tons, the ability to perform short-distance charges for battlefield engagements at close range.

At the same time, the ‘absolute firepower’ pursued by the humanoid mechanical units of this era made Amber extremely wary of their armaments. He didn’t dare slow his pace in the slightest.

Amber’s ears were filled with the unified commands from the Royal Guard’s command channel, which he had hacked into. This was another asset that helped him evade their pursuit.

“Target is trapped in the North Hall corridor!”

“All units, converge on the North Hall!”

“‘Saint’ armor units, flank from the side!”

Seeing the Royal Guard’s encirclement tightening, Amber could only dash into a nearby palace. He quickly pressed himself against an ornate pillar, checking his status while taking deep breaths.

He could have kept running, but the biological exoskeleton’s long period of high-intensity operation had caused its energy consumption to exceed his expectations, forcing him to adjust his plan on the fly.

“I’ll have to travel back to New Calendar 592 and find another chance. The Grand Palace over there is probably under lockdown too. After all, the commotion I caused underground was much bigger than this…”

As he thought this, Amber raised his wrist, intending to use the watch to return to his original timeline in NC 592. From there, he would double back, sprint all the way back to the vicinity of the West Wing Parapet, and rush out through the breach he’d made in the NC 82 timeline.

But at the critical moment, the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 malfunctioned. A glaring red light flashed on the watch face, and a line of warning text popped up:

“Warning, original timeline anchor data error. Attempting to repair…”

“I’m so screwed!” Amber’s eyes widened, his face a mask of disbelief. “Salieh, your damned workmanship is so unreliable!”

He urgently tapped the watch a few times, trying to force a reboot, but the warning continued to flash.

Outside the palace gates, the thundering footsteps of the Royal Guard and the ‘Saint’ armors grew closer and closer.

BOOM!

With a tremendous bang, the heavy palace doors were forcibly battered open by a ‘Saint’ armor. At this point, the Royal Guards could no longer be bothered with protecting the buildings within the Grand Palace. After the doors were smashed open, they flooded in like a tide, weapons raised.

At the forefront were two humanoid armor units—the ones called ‘Saint’ armors on the comms channel, also known as the ‘grandfathers’ of the HCP. After their pilots initiated a ‘charge’, their clumsy bodies closed in on Amber with surprising speed.

“Target acquired! Commencing attack.”

Overhearing the command on the Royal Guard’s comms, Amber no longer hesitated. He raised his hand and threw the last few smart grenades he had scavenged from Royal Guard soldiers. They traced perfect arcs through the air, precisely blanketing the area in front of, behind, and to the sides of the two ‘Saints’.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

The sound of the explosions was amplified several times in the enclosed space. The decorations on the surrounding walls and the glass dome were shattered by the vibrations. For a moment, smoke and dust filled the air.

However, Amber didn’t stick around to see the effects. He immediately turned and sprinted deeper into the palace. He knew that these small explosions were nothing more than an itch to these two big metal lumps—at most, they would buy him a few more seconds.

“Isn’t it fixed yet? If this doesn’t get fixed soon, I’m going to kick the bucket! Salieh, if I make it back this time, I swear I’ll twist you into eighteen different shapes to vent my frustration!”

Amber grumbled under his breath as he ran, but a familiar humming sound came from behind him—the sound of a ‘Saint’s’ shoulder-mounted electromagnetic Vulcan cannon. Hearing this, Amber didn’t even think, diving into a side roll into a nearby side hall.

ZZZZZZZZZT!

The electromagnetic Vulcan cannon unleashed its firepower the next second. Steel flechettes, accelerated to nine times the speed of sound, swept past where Amber had just been standing, accompanied by a sound like ripping cloth. The ornate palace walls and floor tiles were instantly obliterated, and rubble flew everywhere.

Having rolled into the side hall, Amber quickly scrambled to his feet. He knew the exoskeleton provided by Allenita might be able to withstand one or two of the Mach 9 steel flechettes, but it definitely couldn’t survive the steel rain from the Vulcan cannon. He had no choice but to flee like ‘Jerry’ in cartoons.

The side hall he was now in appeared to be a reception room, based on its layout. It had magnificent chandeliers, exquisite murals, and a pile of antiques whose value Amber couldn’t begin to discern.

Normally, this might have been a place where the Empire’s nobles clinked glasses and toasted, but now, it was about to be redecorated by Amber and the Royal Guard in a ‘battle-damaged’ style.

Amber’s gaze quickly locked onto a huge statue in the center of the room—a statue of the Star Dragon Empire’s founding Emperor, Delaman Leon, the ‘Star Dragon Pilot’ who escaped from the Forerunner labs, depicted in his youth.

Looking at the statue, which was a good five or six meters tall, Amber suddenly thought this founding Emperor was quite the show-off, putting a statue of himself even in a reception room for people to admire.

“I hope His Majesty won’t mind me borrowing this.”

A comical smile touched the corners of Amber’s lips as he activated the ‘Power’ mode of his biological exoskeleton.

When the first Royal Guard soldier rushed into the side hall under the cover of others, the sight that greeted him was Amber with his hands gripping the base of the statue. Clad in the exoskeleton’s ‘Power’ mode, he looked like a terrifying muscleman.

“Fire! Fire immediately! Don’t let him destroy His Majesty’s statue!” the Royal Guard commander, seeing this scene through the sensors on his soldiers’ armor, roared hysterically.

But it was too late.

With a great roar, reminiscent of the legendary hero Lu Zhishen uprooting the willow tree, Amber wrenched the entire statue from its pedestal. Then, as if throwing a javelin, he hurled the statue, weighing dozens of tons, toward the Royal Guards swarming in through the doorway.

“Scatter!”

Carrying its own weight of dozens of tons plus the kinetic energy from Amber’s throw, Delaman Leon’s statue smashed into the Royal Guard formation with crushing force. The Royal Guard soldiers in their standard Powered Armor were swept aside like bowling pins.

A ‘Saint’ armor following behind the soldiers couldn’t afford to dodge. With more of his comrades-in-arms behind him, the pilot, upon seeing the oncoming statue, threw a heavy punch almost instinctively.

CRASH!

Another earth-shaking bang rang out. In the collision of force against force, the statue of ‘Dragon Progenitor’ Delaman Leon flew diagonally out through the already-smashed palace dome.

Chapter 716: Where the Hell Did You Send Me?

While Amber was wreaking havoc in the palace, Delaman Leon, the founding Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire who was supposed to be in bed at the Lord Chamberlain’s request, was discussing matters related to the Federation with the Empire’s first Imperial Prime Minister, Hoken Berger.

The Empire had only been established for a little over a decade and already had a mountain of affairs to handle. Furthermore, the other major human power—the Blue Star Federation—was eyeing this new empire, which had seceded from its former territory, menacingly. Thus, Delaman Leon, praised in the Star Dragon Empire’s history books as a “wise founding monarch” and an “emperor for the ages,” often found himself discussing matters late into the night with his key ministers.

However, this night, which should have been just as uneventful as any other, became extraordinary when the alarms in the Grand Palace began to blare.

When the Royal Guard Commander entered the hall for an audience and quietly informed the founding Emperor that someone had broken into the underground facility, knocked out the Archbishop and others, and was now on the run inside the Grand Palace, Delaman Leon’s face, in addition to showing righteous anger, also betrayed an unconscious hint of excitement.

Seeing the Imperial Prime Minister’s bewildered expression, Delaman Leon made no attempt to hide the situation and directly informed him of what was happening.

“The underground facility was breached too? H-how was that possible? Isn’t there only one way in and out? What are you Royal Guards good for! Does this mean the intruder could have snuck up to His Majesty just as easily if they wanted to!”

Upon hearing the news, Imperial Prime Minister Hoken Berger flew into a rage, unleashing his fury upon the Royal Guard Commander.

“Your Grace, the Royal Guard will protect His Majesty’s safety to the death.”

“You haven’t even caught the person, so spare me the pretty words about ‘protecting him to the death’!”

Hoken Berger waved his hand dismissively, ignoring the Royal Guard Commander and turning to Delaman Leon, who looked not the least bit panicked. “Your Majesty, the intruder is still on the loose. It may not be safe here. You should evacuate under the protection of the Royal Guard!”

“No, I will not evacuate.”

Delaman Leon shook his head with a smile and started walking toward the exit of the hall, startling the guard commander, who immediately rushed in front of him and deployed the composite shield on his power armor’s arm.

“It’s been a while since I’ve had some action. This is perfect. I will capture this intruder myself.”

“Your Majesty!”

Royal Guard Commander Salivia nearly choked on his words. A rare flicker of panic crossed his perpetually stern face as he hurriedly took a step forward, raising the shield slightly higher to protect the Emperor’s head.

“The situation in the palace is unclear, and the intruder’s identity is unknown. There may be a trap. I implore Your Majesty to proceed to a secure area first!”

Delaman Leon waved his hand, his face alight with boyish excitement. “Nonsense! It has been too long since I was last on a battlefield. What is there to fear from a small matter like this?”

As he spoke, he tried to move around the loyal Royal Guard Commander, muttering, “Listen to those explosions. It must be quite a show!”

The Imperial Prime Minister and the Royal Guard Commander at his side felt their vision go dark. They silently cursed a few disrespectful words but dared not let any of it show on their faces.

The Royal Guard Commander, Salivia, turned his head to look at the Imperial Prime Minister, signaling with his eyes for them to act together. Hoken Berger saw the look and nodded slightly, forcing his expression to remain impassive.

“Your Majesty is wise!”

Hoken Berger began to speak slowly, his voice gentle. “However, according to the protocols you yourself established, if you wish to go to the front lines, you must first don your armor, prepare the honor guard, and assemble your escort…”

“Then what are you waiting for? Go and prepare! If the intruder is caught, the fun will be over!” Delaman Leon said impatiently.

“As you command, Your Majesty.” Hoken Berger bowed in acceptance, then unhurriedly turned to a nearby attendant and began issuing a series of complicated instructions, each one perfectly designed to stall for time without arousing the Emperor’s suspicion.

Just then, a loud crash from a distant palace drew the attention of all three.

A massive dark shadow suddenly flew out diagonally from above the palace where the battle was raging. With their keen eyesight, the three men quickly recognized the shadow under the bright lights of the Grand Palace.

It was Delaman Leon’s statue.

Taking advantage of the brief moment of chaos created by throwing the Emperor’s statue, Amber spun around and dashed for the reception room window.

“Why is this thing Salieh whipped up still repairing! Aaaahhhhhh!”

Amber let out an inhuman shriek. Then, just before the pursuing Royal Guard soldiers could raise their guns, he shattered the stained-glass window. Shards glittered brilliantly in the lights of the Grand Palace as Amber’s figure, like a soaring eagle, leaped from the third floor of the palace.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck—”

Realizing mid-air that he couldn’t use his Psionics, Amber couldn’t help but cry out in alarm. He quickly adjusted his posture to brace for impact, preparing to land.

The cushioning system of the biological exoskeleton went into overdrive, slowing his descent, but even so, when Amber landed, he still smashed a small crater into the Grand Palace’s lawn, sending a spray of dirt into the air.

“Hiss, that was close.”

Amber sucked in a sharp breath. Despite the exoskeleton’s buffering, jumping from a height of over ten meters using only his physical body still made his heart pound.

A jump from such a height wouldn’t naturally cause him any harm, but it had been a long time since he had fought relying solely on his physical body. There was still a slight risk of a sprain or a twisted ankle, and in a situation like this, such a minor problem could be fatal.

With no time to check his condition, Amber pushed off with his legs and broke into a sprint again. The figures of Royal Guard soldiers had already appeared at the window, adjusting their weapons to take aim.

But just then, another squad of Royal Guard soldiers appeared in front of him, having clearly circled around from another direction after he entered the palace.

“Enemies in front and behind. Now I’m really a turtle in a jar.”

Ignoring the exoskeleton’s energy consumption, Amber suddenly accelerated again. He moved like a bolt of lightning, weaving between the various forms of cover near the palace to confuse the Royal Guard’s line of sight. However, the increasing number of drones appearing overhead and launching suicide attacks told Amber that if he didn’t leave now, he wouldn’t be leaving at all.

He stole another glance at his watch face, and at that moment, Lady Luck finally kissed his forehead.

The watch face, which had been flashing red, was now glowing yellow, and a new line of text had popped up.

“Anchored timeline repair progress 95%. Emergency shuttle function enabled!”

Emergency shuttle. This was one of the functions of the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 that Salieh had told him about before the mission.

When the user was in danger and the anchored timeline repair progress exceeded ninety percent after an issue, this emergency function would activate.

Its purpose was to temporarily send the user to a timeline adjacent to the anchored one, which would drastically simplify the difficulty and workload of the device’s timeline analysis.

However, the timeline derived from the anchored one had a certain margin of error, with the time difference ranging from a dozen days to several months.

But Amber couldn’t be bothered with that now. If he delayed any longer, he might just die in the year 82 of the New Calendar.

“Confirm ‘Emergency Jump’!”

“Verification passed. Initiating ‘Emergency Jump’.”

The moment Amber finished the command, the blinding beam of a searchlight suddenly fell on his hiding spot. Immediately after, several Royal Guard soldiers and a ‘Saint’ armor suit charged out from behind a nearby building.

“Target sighted!” the ‘Saint’ armor pilot’s voice boomed through the loudspeaker, cold and mechanical.

In the instant before the Royal Guards charged, Amber slammed the shuttle button without hesitation. A negative energy bubble began to form around him, and the familiar, nauseating energy fluctuation enveloped his entire body.

The next second, with a soft “pop,” Amber’s figure vanished before the Royal Guards’ eyes, leaving behind a group of dumbfounded soldiers and an empty corridor.

…

Like every time travel experience before, the ‘Emergency Jump’ felt just as awful. Amber felt as if his consciousness had been forcibly split in two, then violently slammed back together.

However, the ‘Emergency Jump’ was slightly different from his previous normal jumps. The most obvious difference was that, due to the uncertainty of the destination timeline, Amber did not see any images of it this time. It was as if his sight had been stripped away, plunging him into total darkness.

“Gods, it’s so awful every time. No… this time it’s even fucking worse!”

When his vision finally cleared, Amber forced himself to steady his body and tried to regulate his breathing. When he finally recovered and looked around, he froze.

He was indeed inside the Grand Palace where he had just been, but the environment was completely different from before he jumped.

Collapsed palaces, shattered stone pillars, the bodies of Royal Guard soldiers, the wreckage of Heavy multi-legged war machines and HCPs. The composite armor bunkers that had mysteriously appeared were riddled with bullet holes and scorch marks from directed-energy weapons. In the distance, thick black smoke billowed into the sky, accompanied by the continuous sound of explosions.

Everything told Amber that he was now in a warzone.

“What the hell? Aren’t I in the Grand Palace?”

Boom!

Before Amber could even check the current timeline, a massive explosion erupted behind him. A gleaming golden HCP, pinning an Imperial Royal Guard ‘Zealot’ in front of it, smashed through a nearby building and charged into the small garden where Amber was standing.

Immediately after, the ‘Zealot’ went limp like a puppet with its strings cut, collapsing to the ground. The golden HCP then pulled a plasma double-bladed battle axe, which had been deeply embedded, from the ‘Zealot’s’ cockpit armor.

At that moment, Amber finally recognized the model of the golden HCP by its signature melee weapon.

The MGT-A4 ‘Apostle’, the exclusive HCP of the Star Dragon Empire State Religion’s Martyr Corps.

“The Martyr Corps is fighting the Imperial Royal Guard? Why am I having a dream like this? Where the hell did you send me?”

Chapter 717: Rescue by a Mysterious Mech

The Martyr Corps was the armed force of the Star Dragon Empire’s State Religion, serving as the Church’s Protectorate Army. Its ranks were filled entirely with fanatics of the State Religion who had undergone rigorous combat training. Not only was their tactical and technical proficiency on par with the standing army of the Imperial Royal Army, but they also possessed higher morale and organizational discipline.

As for the Imperial Royal Guard, little needed to be said. As an Imperial armed force that had frequently appeared in the spotlight recently, they were the elite combat units truly tasked with defending the Imperial Capital, representing the pinnacle of combat strength among all the Empire’s standing armies.

Both of these combat units were stationed year-round in the Imperial Capital of Saint-Saulnier and, in a sense, had always maintained a cooperative defense, even having a dedicated joint command center.

So, Amber never expected that the first thing he would see after completing his Emergency Jump would be an “Apostle” from the Martyr Corps demolishing an enhanced “Zealot” from the Royal Guard.

Judging by the oil still dripping from the Apostle’s drawn plasma double-bladed battle axe, it was clear both sides were fighting to the death, not conducting some sort of live-fire exercise.

Amber glanced down at his watch in confusion, trying to figure out what timeline this Emergency Jump had sent him to.

“New Calendar, year 592… March 14th? Wait, isn’t this the date of Agnes’s enthronement ceremony two months from now?!”

Realization struck Amber, and he was suddenly on high alert. If there was nothing wrong with the timeline, it meant that two months from now, big trouble was going to erupt in the capital of the Star Dragon Empire during the enthronement ceremony.

At that moment, Amber also noticed something about the fallen enhanced “Zealot.” Although it bore the standard paint scheme of the Royal Guard, the insignia of a sword and a rose on its shoulder plate identified its specific unit—the Princess’s Guard Regiment.

“So, Agnes’s faction is fighting the Imperial State Religion?”

But the current situation left Amber no time for contemplation. The gold-painted Apostle had already spotted him with its sensors. The main monitor on the head of this Martyr Corps-exclusive HCP was designed to resemble a red-eyed, bald fanatic, and now, as it stared at Amber, it radiated an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Without warning, the Apostle, its external armor covered in bullet marks and oil stains, fiercely hoisted its double-bladed battle axe and charged at Amber. The point-defense lasers on either side of its main monitor fired in his direction.

“Fuck, I’m just passing by!”

Seeing the steel demon god rushing toward him, Amber once again began to flee. Fortunately, the interior of the Grand Palace, now a warzone, offered plenty of cover to conceal his figure. The Apostle fired several times, but Amber managed to use the composite armor walls to block the shots.

Constant dodging wasn’t a solution. Although the timeline Amber was in was only two months ahead of his original one, he was still a “time traveler” here. Regrettably, this meant he couldn’t use his Psionics.

Meanwhile, his enemy had upgraded from the armored antiques of the year 82 to a proper HCP from 592.

The Apostle’s pilot was somewhat surprised that his repeated point-defense laser shots had failed to hit their target. He had never seen a single soldier capable of dodging a laser beam before—or rather, it wasn’t dodging, but predicting his firing path and evading in advance.

“Sacrificer 3, unidentified elite infantry unit spotted. Am in pursuit!”

After reporting over the combat comms channel, the Apostle’s pilot stopped playing target practice with the point-defense lasers. A burst of blue light erupted from the plasma thruster array on the unit’s back, and the golden steel giant swung its double-bladed battle axe, rapidly closing the distance to Amber.

This time, Amber, the one being pursued, lost his mobility advantage against the HCP. He had barely ducked behind a new piece of composite armor cover when the Apostle’s plasma double-bladed battle axe came crashing down, slicing through the makeshift barrier like a hot knife through butter.

The searing blue plasma blade plunged into the ground, barely missing Amber. He had managed to slam on the brakes at the last second, narrowly avoiding crashing right into it. But this also meant he was now within the Apostle’s melee range. The machine pulled its axe out slightly, turned the blade horizontal, and swept it toward Amber.

In the nick of time, as if struck by inspiration, Amber sensed something. At the same time, a roar echoed from a loudspeaker behind him.

“Get out of the way!”

Amber’s legs exploded with power, launching him sideways as he dropped to the ground. He didn’t know why he did it, but his body had acted on instinct, performing the entire series of movements subconsciously.

In the next second, another HCP, this one crimson, shot past the spot where Amber had just been standing. Its enormous heavy plasma severing sword carved a blue crescent arc through the air before crashing heavily against the deflector shield that had automatically activated in “adaptive mode.”

Silvery-white arcs of electricity instantly erupted between the two mechs, and rampaging electrical snakes scorched the surrounding lawn. If Amber hadn’t been fast enough—and hadn’t kept rolling after he hit the ground—he might have been turned into a charred husk by the electromagnetic vortices along with the grass.

The blue light from the crimson HCP’s plasma thruster array flared even brighter at that moment. The immense thrust forced the heavy plasma severing sword deeper into the Apostle’s deflector shield, and in the next instant, both the sword and the deflector shield generator short-circuited simultaneously.

The plasma edge on the severing sword died out, and the deflector shield enveloping the Apostle vanished. Unhindered, the door-sized heavy sword slammed into the Apostle. But without the cutting effect of the high-temperature plasma, it was clearly ineffective against the Apostle’s thick golden armor.

However, the crimson HCP clearly had more than just melee weapons. As the heavy sword struck, its pilot unfolded and lowered the heavy particle cannon from the weapon racks on its back, aiming it straight at the Apostle’s torso.

“Boom!”

A column of blue-white light appeared in an instant, kicking up a storm before quickly vanishing. When the dust and smoke cleared, the Apostle’s upper body had been completely melted away by the point-blank attack from the heavy particle cannon. All that remained were its bipedal legs, still standing, and the wreckage of its mechanical arms, which had fallen to the ground.

It was then that Amber saw the Atlas logo emblazoned on the crimson HCP’s shoulder plate. He also recognized the unit as a “Woodward,” a model his own company had just begun to issue to its ace pilots.

Looking at the unit’s signature crimson coloring, and recalling the smooth and fluid shield-bait-and-execute maneuver it had just performed, Amber already had a good idea who was piloting this HCP.

“I will cover your retreat. Keep up.”

A cold voice emanated from the mech’s loudspeaker. The Woodward then turned and began to move toward the West Wing Parapet, leaving a cool-looking silhouette in its wake.

But at that moment, Amber cringed so hard he could have clawed a three-bedroom apartment out of the ground with his toes.

“Seriously, what are you trying to be cool for at a time like this?!”

With the crimson “mysterious mech” clearing the way, Amber’s journey became much safer. The red HCP dealt with all enemies along the path, and Amber noticed that several other HCPs were actually providing support from the periphery.

Just moments ago, when the crimson HCP had faced an assault by four Apostles and a large number of armored infantry, it was these supporting HCPs that provided precise, long-range fire support. They had shattered the enemy’s assault formation in an instant, creating the opportunity for the red HCP to charge into the enemy lines and go on a rampage.

However, it seemed this crimson HCP from the Atlas combat unit had broken away from the main force to be the first to breach the Grand Palace, so there weren’t many friendly forces available to draw fire away from it. Even after a rampage that annihilated the immediate enemy force, the thundering footsteps from deeper within the Grand Palace continued to echo—more Martyr Corps units were converging on their position.

Just then, the crimson HCP stopped and raised a mechanical arm, pointing toward a dilapidated building to the west, ruined by the fires of war.

“Go through that building, and it’s a short walk to the West Wing Parapet. A breach has been opened there. You can leave the Grand Palace through the gap.”

The voice from the loudspeaker was still just as cold, making Amber’s eye twitch. He couldn’t help but ask:

“What about you? From the sound of it, a good number of the palace defenders are heading this way, right?”

“It matters not. Just go.”

“Fuck…”

Amber stopped wasting words and sprinted toward the building to the west, which was now so damaged it was unrecognizable. He was afraid if he said another word, he might just die of secondhand embarrassment right there.

The moment he rushed into the building, a series of explosions erupted behind him. Amber looked back to see fire and light covering the area where the Martyr Corps was assembling. The almost perfectly vertical trajectory of the munitions suggested they came from an E-2 heavy truck-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon.

It seemed the Atlas Group’s ground forces were also launching an attack on the Grand Palace from the outside.

“I wonder what price Agnes ended up paying for this.”

After that inopportune thought flashed through his mind, Amber leaped into the building before him. Its once-magnificent inner dome was now riddled with holes. Sunlight struggled to pierce through the shattered gaps, casting light upon the war-torn ruins.

The once-gorgeous marble floor was now a狰狞 web of craters and cracks. The walls within had been blasted to smithereens by artillery fire. Amidst the rubble, the once-exquisite murals had become blurred and indistinct, as if silently recounting the glory of the past and the tragedy of the present.

Amber lamented the daunting task of rebuilding that Agnes would face after her enthronement, while simultaneously wondering if Atlas could profit from it. He quickly crossed the not-so-large structure and, from a gap on the other side, saw the West Wing Parapet not far away.

The towering, magnificent white wall, just as it had been back in the New Calendar year 82, had been blasted open, leaving a massive breach.

Chapter 718: The Return

Amber moved quickly through the stretch of rubble, now cleared of enemies, and finally reached the breach in the West Wing Parapet.

This towering parapet, which should have been intact in the year 592 of the New Calendar, now had a gaping hole blasted through it by powerful weaponry. Judging by the molten alloy exposed in the cross-section, Amber estimated it had been blown open by a salvo from multiple high-power heavy particle cannons after the Grand Palace’s deflector shield failed.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Amber shot through the breach like an arrow, trusting the escape route pointed out by that cheesy yet cool “mysterious helper.”

Currently, the situation outside the Grand Palace was just as chaotic. The sensor unit implanted in his biological exoskeleton quickly captured images from a distance—large numbers of ground troops bearing the Atlas Group logo and the insignia of the Princess’s Guard Regiment were engaged in a fierce firefight with the Martyr Corps. The sounds of explosions and gunfire rose one after another, and smoke filled the entire battlefield.

“This is quite a lively battle.”

Although he was still some distance from the main combat zone, Amber cautiously moved from one piece of cover to the next, heading toward a location he remembered as safe. At the same time, that persistent question surfaced again in his mind.

“So what price did Agnes pay, anyway? A spectacle this grand can’t be bought with chump change.”

Moving swiftly in stealth, Amber soon approached the Gindoshi family’s residence.

Along the way, the warring factions seemed to deliberately avoid the area he was in, allowing him to pass through the warzone virtually unhindered.

The most absurd part was when he clearly saw a mixed unit of the Martyr Corps spot him and prepare to open fire. But just then, several Atlas HCPs with cartoon rabbit emblems painted on their shoulder armor suddenly charged out from a nearby street. Carrying heavy composite shields, they formed a wall in front of Amber, blocking all incoming attacks.

After the Martyr Corps’ first salvo of heavy particle cannon fire ended, this team of Atlas Group HCPs drew their fully charged and preheated heavy slicer swords from their shields. The moment they moved, their formation shifted into an arrowhead as they charged straight ahead.

Amber was no fool. When these elite HCPs from the “ATLAS TEST TEAM,” the ATT Squadron, launched their charge, he knew that the Atlas Group’s forces were intentionally covering him, just like that mysterious unit with its cool, melodramatic tone.

He naturally wouldn’t let this assistance from the future go to waste, so he stopped wasting time. Following the route he had taken before, he quickly traversed the ravaged streets of the Imperial Capital and finally arrived at the now-empty Gindoshi family residence.

Clearly, the Gindoshi family had evacuated when the battle at Saint-Saulnier broke out. And, perhaps intentionally, the main gate of the residence was even wide open. Taking a familiar path, Amber entered the estate and returned to the master guest room Viscount Gindoshi had arranged for him. He then waited patiently for the Tactical Time Travel Device MK1 to complete its final repairs on the anchor timeline.

“Salieh, if this piece of junk watch of yours messes up again, when I get back, I’m not only going to bend you into eighteen different positions, I’m also going to tear down your lab. Wait, the lab is my asset too, so I can’t even tear it down.”

Amber muttered to himself, his eyes glued to the progress bar on his wristwatch.

When the bar finally filled, a new notification popped up on the watch face.

“Anchor timeline repair complete. Return sequence can be executed!”

“Aaaaaargh! Finally, people!” Amber started with a battle cry, then heaved a long sigh. “Salieh, this piece of junk almost got me killed.”

He hit the return button without hesitation. The familiar negative energy bubble enveloped him once again, and the world twisted, warped, and reshaped itself before his eyes.

The feeling of being torn apart and reassembled was still unpleasant, but Amber had grown accustomed to it. Besides, he just wanted to get back to his original timeline as quickly as possible. When the world solidified before him once more, he found himself back in the master guest room from which he had departed.

Isabelle, Oksana, and the others were sitting in the room, apparently waiting anxiously. When Amber’s figure materialized in the center of the room, their eyes widened in surprise before they immediately rushed over.

“Amber!” Isabelle was the first to reach him, looking him up and down. “Are you alright?”

“Of course I’m alright,” Amber grinned. “Though I almost didn’t make it back.”

“Master, what happened?!”

As a “Signal acquired” notification sounded in his mind, Lilith’s voice finally chimed in. To be honest, during the time jump, Amber had felt strangely uncomfortable without Lilith’s shameless comments popping into his head from time to time.

On the other end, Lilith was still asking anxiously, “Master, did you run into trouble in the year 82 of the New Calendar?”

“Trouble?” Amber scoffed. “That junk watch of Salieh’s almost got me killed! It’s bad enough the anchor point analysis failed, but the ‘Emergency Jump’ function also sent me to…”

Amber cut himself off, realizing this wasn’t the time to discuss such things. Besides, he had just transmigrated back to this timeline from the underground facility and had taken out a Martyr squad. In theory, the alarms should be going off here as well.

“Amber, sent you where? Why didn’t you finish?” Isabelle asked, puzzled.

“It’s not convenient to talk about it now. I’ll explain everything that happened tonight after we head back. For now, contain your curiosity.”

Amber shook his head, not answering Isabelle’s question. What he had to say involved future events, and he worried that revealing them now could affect the development of the future timeline.

“Anything going on at the residence?” Amber asked.

“Boss, nothing unusual here at the residence, but we noticed the alarms went off at the Grand Palace about twenty minutes ago,” replied Oksana, who was guarding Isabelle with two armed cat-girls.

Amber said, “The alarms went off at the Grand Palace. What about the Royal Guard? Have they made a move?”

Oksana nodded. “From our observations, it looks like they have. In just the last few moments, I’ve seen at least three squadrons of HCPs and five battalions of troops enter the Grand Palace.”

Just as Amber was about to ask another question, a knock suddenly came from the door of the master guest room. Everyone tensed and looked at Amber, who then realized he was still wearing the biological exoskeleton.

However, perhaps it was an effect of time travel, but the dust and grime he’d picked up in the other timeline hadn’t been brought back with him. The entire exoskeleton was as clean as if it had been washed.

With the help of a cat-girl, Amber immediately ducked into the room’s bathroom, swapped the exoskeleton for a pair of pajamas, and stowed the former back in its dedicated hidden storage container.

After seeing the cat-girl in the bathroom give her an “OK” sign, Isabelle put on a groggy, just-woken-up expression and opened the door.

Outside stood the current Viscount Gindoshi, looking somewhat nervous.

“Miss Isabelle, my deepest apologies for disturbing you so late at night. But the Royal Guard from the Grand Palace just came by and said they need to conduct a search of the entire Imperial Capital’s core circle. They’re at the gate now… It seems there’s been some trouble at the Grand Palace, an assassin perhaps?”

“An assassin?” Isabelle asked with a look of genuine bewilderment. She was truly confused because Amber hadn’t said a thing since he returned, so she had no idea what had happened.

However, she quickly caught on. “Are you saying the Royal Guard wants to search me and Amber? Is it because of our status as ‘outsiders’?”

“That is likely the reason,” Viscount Gindoshi nodded, his expression tense.

“It’s fine. Let them search.”

Amber’s voice came from behind Isabelle. He soon walked to the doorway, his hair a mess and his energy low, looking for all the world like he had just been woken from a deep sleep.

“We haven’t taken a single step out of this guest room since the reception ended. What is there to hide? Besides, I’m sure the security surveillance in Your Excellency’s residence has a record, which you can provide to them. And when we came here, the commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment who escorted us said he left a team on standby nearby. I’m sure they can help vouch for us, right?”

Early the next morning, Princess Agnes paid a surprise visit to the residence. Her face was weary, clear evidence of a sleepless night.

When she was led to the master guest room, Amber and the others were already dressed and ready to depart. They had woken up early to prepare for their return to the princess’s private villa, only to have Her Highness the Princess show up in person.

“I hear there was some trouble at the Grand Palace last night? The Royal Guard even searched Viscount Gindoshi’s estate,” Amber asked, feigning nonchalance.

“Yes. Someone broke into the Grand Palace last night and… knocked out several guards. But the Royal Guard has the situation under control.”

Agnes nodded, her eyes searching Amber’s face.

But she was destined to find nothing there. Besides, she had already received Natalia’s report: the security team left to monitor them had confirmed that Amber’s group had not left the residence all night.

“Is that so?” Amber raised an eyebrow, his expression one of flawless surprise. “Was the intruder caught?”

“Not yet,” Agnes shook her head. “But I will find a way to locate this intruder.”

“I hope so,” Amber said with a smile. “After all, the enthronement ceremony is approaching. A security breach at a time like this is indeed a headache. If Your Highness requires assistance, our Atlas Group can provide professional security services.”

Amber smoothly seized the opportunity to promote the group’s services, his pitch so natural it was impossible to tell he was acting. Both Agnes and Isabelle rolled their eyes discreetly at almost the same time.

A moment later, Agnes steered the conversation away from the topic and asked, “Are you leaving today?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Amber replied. “Our business here in the Imperial Capital is concluded. It’s time for us to return. A professional team will be here later for the follow-up.”

“I understand,” Agnes said softly. “I hope we can meet again soon.”

“Of course,” Amber stepped forward with a smile. “As your partner, we will naturally attend your enthronement ceremony. However, if you don’t intend to invite us, then please pretend I said nothing at all.”

Agnes’s expression flickered for a moment but quickly returned to a calm facade.

“You jest, Mr. Amber. I am very much looking forward to your attendance.”

That evening, Amber and his group boarded The Dawn, which was docked in orbit, and prepared to return to the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress, where Allenita would rendezvous with them.

Standing by a viewport, Amber gazed at the receding Saint-Saulnier, a multitude of feelings welling up inside him.

“What are you thinking about?” Isabelle asked softly, coming to his side.

“I’m thinking,” Amber said without turning, his eyes still fixed on the blue planet, “about what this planet will look like in two months.”

Chapter 719: First Offline Gathering of the Harem Squad

“What will this planet be like in two months?”

Isabelle keenly picked up on the strange undertone in Amber’s words and asked, “Amber, what on earth happened to you last night?”

“It was complicated, bizarre… I jumped through several timelines.” Amber shook his head and sighed. “Once we’re back at A·Bawa·Ku and meet up with Allenita, I’ll explain everything clearly. I’m afraid things are about to get busy.”

Isabelle nodded upon hearing his words, but her expression changed noticeably when she heard her “good friend’s” name.

Ever since Lilith had “reported” on Allenita and Amber’s secret relationship, the atmosphere among the three of them had been incredibly delicate.

However, Isabelle knew what was more important, so during their time in the Empire, she acted as if she had forgotten the whole affair, dedicating herself completely to official business. She never once questioned Amber about his relationship with Allenita.

At the same time, she hadn’t sent Allenita a single message. Before this, the two would talk almost every day, even exchanging a few texts when they were both swamped with work.

Isabelle had always considered Allenita her best friend, someone she could tell almost anything. She had even consulted this close senior of hers on questions regarding duration, positions, and the like…

Thinking back on it now, Allenita had always been able to pinpoint the problem with surgical precision and offer her incredibly constructive advice, most of which was likely field-tested on Amber himself.

The moment Isabelle thought about discussing such intimate topics about Amber with this “sneaky vixen” who was also intimate with him, she wished she could erase the memory from her mind entirely.

And “sneaky vixen” was the new contact name Isabelle had just saved for Allenita on her personal terminal.

“Isabelle?”

Seeing Isabelle suddenly become unresponsive, Amber turned to look at her, only to find she was lost in her own world, thinking about who-knows-what.

He waved a hand in front of her eyes, and the young woman who had been mentally lambasting her “good friend” finally snapped out of it.

“Ah! Amber!” Isabelle jumped, almost like a startled fawn.

“Why is your face so red? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?” Amber asked.

“No, no, not at all. Amber, I’m going back to rest now!”

Isabelle waved her hands frantically, her face flushed red. After speaking, she immediately turned and hurried away, leaving Amber standing alone by the viewport, utterly bewildered.

“What’s going on? She was fine just a moment ago.”

“Master, it looks like your harem’s in flames~” Lilith’s voice suddenly chimed in, her tone as mischievous as ever.

“In flames?” Amber frowned in confusion, then had a sudden realization. “Oh… is it because I just mentioned Allenita?”

“Master, you catch on pretty quick~”

Lilith’s small, three-heads-tall virtual avatar appeared in mid-air, her arms crossed as she nodded, her expression the very definition of smug.

Ever since returning to The Dawn, where she had ample computing power, Lilith could materialize her virtual avatar at will through the various holographic projection devices.

Amber pursed his lips. “Isn’t this all your fault? If you hadn’t said that one thing, would things be like this now?”

“Master, if you had just kept control of your lower half back then, would things be like this now?”

“I was drugged by high-concentration elf fruit wine, okay! It’s meant to be drunk diluted, but Allenita had me drink it straight!” Amber argued.

Lilith’s chibi avatar floated over to Amber and circled him several times. Only after she saw him start to blush did she continue her psychological attack:

“The first time you were drugged, but what about the second and third times? Why did you then go out of your way to prepare that cosplay outfit from Black~The Noble Saintess is Stained White~?”

“That… that’s because Allenita was always flaunting her outrageous figure in front of me, and she had this provocative look in her eyes. How was I supposed to resist that? It was consensual…”

Amber threw his hands up, a classic scumbag expression on his face.

“Why are you avoiding the subject of the cosplay outfit? It’s obvious you enjoyed it. I even saw you prepared a new one recently. Tsk, tsk, Master, you really are such a scumbag~”

Lilith clicked her tongue, then suddenly reverted to her adult female form and pressed herself against Amber. The slime perfectly simulated the state of being squeezed and deformed—one had to admit, the model’s physics algorithm was impressive.

“But the more of a scumbag you are, the more I like it. I just want to see Master build a great big [censored]! To achieve the great fusion of all life in the universe!”

Lilith threw her hands up high. Simultaneously, under her control, the holographic projection device cast huge, stylized words behind her. The phrase “great fusion of all life in the universe,” however, made Amber’s shame meter max out completely.

He was lucky that no other crew members were passing through the corridor at that moment. If anyone else had been there, Amber probably would have turned invisible and fled on the spot.

“Lilith, stop saying such ridiculous things!”

Amber covered his face with his hands and walked toward the other end of the corridor. Lilith quickly followed, continuing, “Master, why don’t you just conquer Ms. Salieh and take the first step toward achieving your great fusion!”

At Lilith’s suggestion, an image of Salieh immediately appeared in Amber’s mind.

Truth be told, although she was a Jeram person who once had “the extinction of humanity” as her personal mission, Salieh’s looks and figure were very much in line with human aesthetics. She could probably be tagged as a “busty alien queen,” not to mention the signature soft, leg-like tentacles that Jeram women had on the backs of their heads.

“No, a tentacle kink really is too weird!”

Amber snapped back to his senses, shook Lilith off, and strode away with determination.

—

With Salieh’s assistance, The Dawn and the other two completed Endless-class super-flagships had all undergone experimental upgrades to their Warp Engines. Their performance had already reached ninety-five percent of the newest models Salieh knew of from two million years ago.

After studying the Warp Engine humanity had discovered in the Blue Star ruins, Salieh found that it was actually an old model long since discarded by the Jeram people, with a massive gap in performance compared to the latest models from two million years ago.

Therefore, after the upgrade, The Dawn’s warp speed had increased dramatically. For the same warp distance, the time required was nearly fifty percent shorter than with the old model.

For this return trip to A·Bawa·Ku, at Amber’s request, the upgraded warp engine module was officially activated for the first time. In the end, it only took six days to return to the asteroid fortress.

By comparison, the journey to the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital had taken The Dawn a full twelve days with the old engine.

Everyone, including Salieh, who still had some concerns and wanted to do more testing on the improved Warp Engine, was puzzled. They didn’t understand why Amber, who was usually cautious and risk-averse, would insist this time on using an untested engine to return to A·Bawa·Ku as quickly as possible.

Allenita, who had arrived at the asteroid fortress early to wait, was even more surprised that The Dawn had completed its journey so soon, as this level of warp technology also far surpassed the current equivalent technology of the Thousand Stars Empire.

Upon arriving at A·Bawa·Ku, Amber didn’t rest. He immediately pulled Isabelle and the others into the fortress’s most central conference room and activated the highest level of lockdown protocol. His serious demeanor left everyone else with question marks floating over their heads.

As Lilith’s holographic projection also appeared in the conference room, the first “offline gathering” of the women around Amber was finally achieved.

Looking around, it wasn’t hard to see Amber’s preference—they were all tall, long-legged, and busty.

Isabelle and Allenita, who would normally sit together and be affectionate during such meetings, were now seated at opposite ends of the round table, the farthest possible distance from each other. The expressions on both their faces were quite complex.

In the end, it was Salieh, who had always played the part of an “onlooker” and “bystander,” who couldn’t stand it anymore. She was the first to speak, breaking the delicate atmosphere.

“So, what is so important that it has you being this cautious, Amber? Did something go wrong with the time travel?”

“Something did go wrong with the time travel, and I’ll be having a word with you about that after this meeting, Salieh. For now, let’s stick to the main topic.”

Salieh’s knack for touching a raw nerve successfully solidified Amber’s resolve to put her in eighteen different poses after the meeting was over.

“First,” Amber began, taking a deep breath to collect his thoughts and looking around at everyone, “do any of you feel like history has changed?”

Hearing this somewhat illogical question, the women exchanged glances and then shook their heads.

“Amber, for you to ask that…”

After a moment, Isabelle, who had suddenly become sharper recently, narrowed her eyes and was the first to ask, “Does this mean you caused a huge incident in the year eighty-two of the New Calendar?”

“Heh… ‘huge incident’ doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

Amber shrugged with a wry smile. “Not only did I successfully enter the underground facilities of the Grand Palace, I also entered the lowest level, the Final Dogma Zone. On my way back, I knocked out the first Archbishop and two Level 5 psionic users, and even played a game of hide-and-seek with the Royal Guard inside the Grand Palace…”

“What?!” ×4

Expressions of shock appeared on the other four women’s faces simultaneously. Salieh’s eyes, in particular, went wide.

“Amber, are you insane? Don’t you know that could change history? I warned you so many times before you started the operation…”

“I didn’t want to.” Amber spread his hands helplessly like a bear cub. “But the situation was urgent. I had no other choice.”

Allenita, after a moment of shock, also spoke up. “Didn’t we agree you were going to sneak in quietly?”

Amber replied, “Well, I did sneak in. It’s just that the second half wasn’t so quiet…”

Chapter 720: I Must Assemble the Troops Immediately

“Wait, Amber, that’s not quite right,” Salieh suddenly interjected. “According to the theories we Jeram people have studied, if history truly changed, those of us who remained in the original timeline wouldn’t notice. Our memories would instantly transform into the altered history. So, to us, history would have always been this way.”

“Then how can we ever know if history has been changed?” Isabelle asked.

“We can never know.” Salieh shook her head. “If history really did change because of Amber’s actions, then the only one in this universe who could perceive it would be Amber himself, the one who traveled through time.”

As Salieh spoke, the women all turned their gazes to Amber.

He lowered his head in thought for a moment, then suddenly looked over at Lilith.

“Lilith, look up any records of an invasion of The Grand Palace in the year 82 of the New Calendar.”

“Understood, Master~ Searching now. Please wait.”

Lilith’s voice echoed in the conference room. Back at the Imperial Library and the Archives, she had basically emptied them of all their stored data.

“Search complete, Master. However, in all the data I could find, there are no records of The Grand Palace being invaded in the year 82 of the New Calendar. The only major event that day was the collapse of the West Wing Parapet due to the impact of a fuel cell explosion.”

“That’s impossible. I caused quite a commotion there.”

Amber looked at the information displayed by Lilith with a bewildered expression and continued:

“And the fuel cell couldn’t have actually destroyed that parapet. In the end, I had to find a way to control a nearby Armored Trooper and blast a hole in it with its cannon.”

“Hiss… Amber, are you saying you shelled The Grand Palace?”

Salieh gasped at Amber’s words. She suddenly felt that Amber probably hadn’t paid any attention to the precautions she had told him.

Isabelle, however, spoke thoughtfully, “Perhaps it was covered up. After all, something like that would be a huge scandal for the Empire. And based on my experience, that’s usually how the Empire handles such problems.”

Amber nodded as she spoke, agreeing with Isabelle’s assessment.

“That makes sense. According to unofficial histories, Delaman Leon was obsessed with his image. Having his palace broken into and his own statue thrown as a weapon right in front of him… no one would want that kind of story getting out.”

“You used the founding Emperor’s statue as a weapon and threw it in front of him?” Allenita spotted the blind spot and pressed a hand to her forehead in exasperation. “Amber, just how big of a scene did you make…”

“So, Amber, your actions might not have changed history after all, because the incident was shelved from the very beginning,” Salieh finally concluded.

Amber: “That’s a relief… But speaking of which, my experience in the year 82 was certainly exciting.”

“Tell us, Master~” Lilith asked curiously. “What exactly did you go through?”

Amber cleared his throat and began to recount his experience after activating the time jump, from infiltrating the underground facility, to the Archbishop eliminating the engineering team, to knocking out the Archbishop during his escape, the chase with the Royal Guard inside The Grand Palace, and finally, the perilous moment when the watch malfunctioned.

—

“At the critical moment, the watch’s ‘Emergency Jump’ function sent me to the enthronement ceremony two months later. By then, The Grand Palace had become a battlefield.”

“What?” the four women exclaimed in unison.

“Wait.” Salieh frowned. “So, you saw the future, two months from now?”

Amber: “That’s right. And it looked pretty chaotic. Not only were the Martyr Corps and the Princess’s Guard Regiment fighting fiercely inside The Grand Palace, but even our own Atlas ground forces were attacking it from the outside.”

“This…”

Isabelle’s expression grew serious. “It seems Her Highness Agnes’s path to the throne will not be a smooth one. And based on what you discovered in the ‘Final Dogma Zone,’ Amber, I think that legendary Starry Sky Dragon is likely to make a move.”

“I’ve actually been worried about that dragon for a while now, and I’ve been thinking about contingency measures. It’s just that this ‘perfect cosmic organism’ is really not easy to deal with. At least, Salieh hasn’t given me an answer yet~”

As he said this, Amber shot Salieh a dark look, but she seemed to be deep in thought about something.

Salieh pondered for a moment, then looked up and asked, “Amber, are you sure you went to the future timeline?”

“I don’t know if that was this universe’s future…”

Amber shook his head. “That’s why I’ve waited until today to tell you all the details. I was worried that some careless action might affect future developments. But if what I saw is indeed the scene two months from now, then we might have no choice but to get involved.”

Salieh pondered again for a moment, then said in a very serious tone, “If—and I mean if—the future you saw is what will happen in two months, then it’s highly likely that this will be another critical branching point that will affect the course of history…”

Amber: “You mean, it involves that… unspeakable matter again?”

“Yes.” Salieh nodded. “And after this branching point, this universe’s process may accelerate. The probability of the thing I least want to see happening will increase once again.”

“Can’t we avoid it? By changing history or something? What if our Atlas Group switches sides to help the Regent Prince or pledges allegiance directly to Frederico?” Amber asked in desperation.

Allenita: “Have some decency, Amber…”

Isabelle: “Yeah, Amber, is that something a human would do?”

After speaking, the two good friends glanced at each other and fell silent once more.

Salieh sighed. “Amber, think carefully. Would you really be willing to take either of those paths?”

“Honestly, of course not.” He seemed to understand something and shook his head obediently.

“Exactly. That’s the inevitability of ‘history.’ You can’t suddenly make a decision that would alter its overall course. In other words, the grand direction of development can no longer be changed.”

The conference room fell silent. The heavy topic had left Amber and Salieh feeling somber.

Isabelle and Allenita, on the other hand, were simply left completely lost by these two “Riddlers.”

“Master, if this is really going to happen in two months, we need to prepare in advance,” Lilith suddenly interjected.

Allenita chimed in, “I agree. Whether it’s a definite future or not, we can’t afford to be careless.”

“So, what suggestions do you all have?”

Amber suddenly realized that holding this meeting with the four of them was a very wise choice. Coming from different races, backgrounds, and factions, they could offer suggestions from various perspectives that he might not have considered.

The only problem, perhaps, was the somewhat awkward atmosphere between Allenita and Isabelle; the two hadn’t exchanged a single word the entire time.

“Two months… not too long, not too short…” Allenita was the first to speak. “If you’re determined to intervene in this power struggle in the Star Dragon Empire, Amber, you really need to be prepared. Based on what you’ve said and my understanding of the Empire, if an armed conflict breaks out, it will be a tough fight.”

“You mean I need to assemble the troops immediately?”

“Assembling troops is just the military preparation, but you have more to consider than just that. Don’t forget, the battle over in the Federation isn’t completely over yet.”

Allenita’s words were a wake-up call for Amber. He had been so focused on the situation in the Star Dragon Empire lately that he hadn’t paid attention to the progress in the Federation for a long time.

He also suddenly remembered that if “Operation Icebreaker,” which had previously been initiated, was proceeding smoothly, then in three months—one month after Agnes’s enthronement ceremony—the ice crystals accelerated to near light speed by Atlas Mining would enter the Federation’s Capital star system.

And according to the operational plan, that would also be when the Renaissance Alliance would launch its final offensive against the Federation.

“This is bad. Everything is happening at once.”

Amber slapped his forehead, a conflicted expression on his face.

After the Atlas Group had grown to its current scale, Amber’s appetite had long since expanded immensely. Coupled with all the careful planning he’d done, his thought process for both the Federation and the Empire was, in fact, “I want it all.”

But if, as their analysis suggested, the Empire’s enthronement ceremony and the final assault on the Federation’s Capital were so close together, Amber would likely face a situation where he was short on troops and forced into a two-front operation.

Most critically, Franklin, instigated by some high-ranking members of the Renaissance Alliance, was beginning to show signs of wanting to break free from the Atlas Group’s control. This was Amber’s biggest worry.

The Atlas Group had worked so painstakingly for so long to “liberate” the Federation. If the Renaissance Alliance swooped in and reaped the benefits in the end, Amber would find it impossible to accept. It would likely spark another war, which was absolutely not what he wanted to see.

Thinking of this, Amber turned to Isabelle, Atlas’s “intelligence chief.” As if by telepathy, she looked up and met his gaze.

Although the female spy’s professional skills had been somewhat questionable back on Robert IV, since the establishment of Atlas, Isabelle, with Lilith’s assistance, had indeed established a vast intelligence network.

“Isabelle, it looks like it’s time to activate that deep-cover operative.”

“You mean ‘Blueberry’?”

Chapter 721: Two-Pronged Operation

“Yes, it’s ‘Blueberry’.”

Amber nodded, while Salieh and Allenita were completely bewildered.

Although they were aware of some of the Atlas Group’s secret projects, they knew nothing about the deep-cover operative program led by Isabelle and the Intelligence Center.

“No problem, Amber.”

Isabelle nodded, projecting some files and data above the round table before continuing, “According to our surveillance, Blueberry is still in a ‘deep cover’ state. Are you sure you want to begin the activation procedure?”

“Not right now. For the time being, maintain her ‘deep cover’ status, but you need to be prepared to wake her at a moment’s notice. Especially while our attention is focused on the Empire, she will be one of our trump cards for dealing with the Renaissance Alliance.”

“I understand, Amber. I’ll make the arrangements,” Isabelle nodded.

Amber looked at the file of the operative codenamed ‘Blueberry’ above the table. The deep-cover operative program was a project Amber had tasked Isabelle with based on his own experiences. In essence, it involved dispatching spies to lie low in sensitive areas.

However, these spies had all undergone psychological suggestion from the Intelligence Center, aided by Psionic powers. Under normal circumstances, they would forget their identities as spies, only carrying out clandestine preparations and intelligence gathering driven by their subconscious.

Only upon receiving a specific string of passphrases—something like ‘Longing, rusted, seventeen, daybreak, furnace, nine, benign, homecoming, one, freight car, good morning, soldier’—would they be reactivated, unlocking their true identities and missions from their memories.

Such control techniques were not particularly difficult to achieve in a universe where Psionics existed.

“So this… erm, Agent ‘Blueberry’ is the trump card you’ve prepared for the Renaissance Alliance?” Allenita asked, her expression growing more intrigued as she looked at the information displayed on the table.

“One of them, to be precise. Of course I wouldn’t prepare just one trump card,” Amber shrugged. “This one is specifically for dealing with Franklin. As for the other high-ranking members of the Renaissance Alliance who are harboring ill intentions, I’ve prepared a more direct solution.”

Hearing this, Allenita couldn’t help but shake her head. “Tsk, tsk, tsk… Amber, I’m finding that partnering with you is quite risky. The Atlas Group might just swallow us whole one day, bones and all. Your style is more elven than the elves back home.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Amber said, his expression unchanged, thick-skinned as ever.

“You really are shameless, Amber,” Allenita pursed her lips.

Amber replied, “Thank you for the compliment.”

“Ahem. Is this really the time for you two to be flirting?” Isabelle suddenly cut in, a clear note of displeasure in her voice.

Amber and Allenita’s expressions stiffened. The female elf awkwardly turned her head away, while Amber feigned interest in another star chart projected above the table.

He quickly became engrossed.

According to the latest markings on the star chart, the Federation’s capital planet and the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital—the administrative centers of the two human powers—were set to face their decisive moments at almost the same time.

And if Amber wanted the Atlas Group to pull off a winner-takes-all scenario and maximize its gains, a brilliant two-pronged operation was essential.

—

Since a two-pronged operation was on the table, the main players would be the Atlas Group’s combat forces. So, after the women left, Amber immediately called a military-focused meeting.

However, since Atlas’s combat units were currently somewhat scattered and spread across different time zones, the holographic projections of the senior commanders appearing in the conference room varied greatly. Some were sharp and in full uniform, while others were bleary-eyed as if they had just been dragged out of bed.

When Amber saw the dazed-looking Randall and Hog, he couldn’t help but ask, “What time is it over there for you two? Did you just wake up?”

“Three in the morning.” Randall rubbed his face with both hands and yawned, sipping an energy drink as he spoke. “I didn’t just wake up. Your meeting notification woke me up in the middle of a dream. By the way, when did you integrate meeting notifications into the smart butler’s wake-up service?”

Amber replied, “That’s right. It’s part of the underlying logic. Wouldn’t want to be unable to wake you at a critical moment.”

Randall was speechless.

“It’s four in the morning here, Boss. And I just got back to sleep after observing night-assault training.”

The wolf-headed man Hog—currently the commander of the First Army Group—lifted a furry paw to wipe the drool from the corner of his mouth. He rummaged around for a moment and pulled out a can of the group-issued cucumber-flavored energy drink. According to feedback from a large number of the group’s employees, this particular flavor had the best stimulating effect, jolting them awake in an instant as if they had been shot with adrenaline. As a result, the support staff had increased its supply quota for energy drinks.

Hearing them, Amber felt a little helpless, but there was no other way. With his combat personnel spread across different star systems, finding a suitable time for everyone was too much trouble, and there wasn’t enough time to wait for everyone to clear their schedules.

Soon, however, Amber threw out the ‘meeting’s topic,’ which instantly jolted everyone to full attention.

“Gentlemen, the topic of today’s emergency operational meeting is simple. I need to assemble the troops.”

Instantly, Randall’s eyes sharpened, Hog stopped drooling, and the others all turned their gazes to Amber.

“Everyone, I know it’s inconsiderate to drag you from your warm beds or your rare downtime, but the situation is urgent.”

Amber scanned the room, his gaze lingering on each commander’s face for a moment before he continued, “If all goes as planned, the Atlas Group will be cooperating with Princess Agnes of the Star Dragon Empire. One crucial part of this is that during her enthronement ceremony two months from now, our combat forces must be prepared for armed intervention in the event of an emergency.”

As Amber spoke, corresponding data and tactical star charts appeared on the holographic projection in the center of the conference room.

“But, very unfortunately—or perhaps, very fortunately—one month after Agnes’s enthronement ceremony, we will be entering the final phase of ‘Operation Icebreaker.’ According to the plan, we will assist the Renaissance Alliance in launching a final assault on the Federation’s capital star system. This means we will most likely be facing a two-front war.”

Hearing this, Guterres frowned, his expression turning extremely grim. As the oldest and most experienced former Federation Fleet Commander among the attendees, he was the quickest to grasp the situation.

After organizing his thoughts, Guterres’s hologram looked up at Amber. “So, we’re talking about armed intervention at both the Federation capital and the Imperial Capital simultaneously? Boss, with all due respect, while our fleet is technologically superior, our current numbers are still stretched thin to handle two conflicts so far apart.”

“Exactly. And that’s why I called you all for this urgent meeting,” Amber nodded. “We need to make rational deployments with our limited fleet size.”

Randall stroked his chin, his eyes fixed on the two flashing red blips on the star chart. “If we commit our main force to the Federation, we can only send a token force to the Empire, and vice versa. Unless…”

“Unless we can find a way to increase our fleet size in a short amount of time,” Cleves finished the thought. The young Fleet Commander looked at Amber, a glimmer of hope in his eyes. “Boss, do we have that kind of production capacity yet?”

Amber offered an apologetic smile. “Unfortunately, while we did acquire a significant number of heavy shipyard arrays, it will take time to convert them into production capacity. According to the latest information I have, we can supplement our forces with at most half a fleet within the next two months, but there will be no time for training.”

Cleves said, “If that’s the case, then we’ll have to prioritize one over the other.”

Amber nodded. “My thinking is to focus on the Empire first. Our involvement in the Renaissance Alliance’s attack on the Federation was always assistive, and we’ll keep it that way.”

“Boss, it seems you already have a preliminary idea?” Guterres asked, sensing Amber’s line of thought.

“That’s right. I have a preliminary idea. You can listen and then offer suggestions.”

As he spoke, Amber projected an operational plan he had whipped up on his way back to A·Bawa·Ku.

“My intention is still for you three—Guterres, Randall, and Cleves—to command The Infinity, The Eternity, along with the First and Second Fleets and the half-fleet that will be launched in the next two months. You will remain in Federation territory to assist and… monitor the Renaissance Alliance.”

At the word ‘monitor,’ a complex expression flickered across the faces of Guterres, Randall, and Cleves. As high-ranking officers in Atlas’s combat forces, they were naturally aware of the Renaissance Alliance’s recent subtle maneuvers.

“The Second Army Group will operate alongside the Atlas fleets within Federation territory.”

Amber’s voice turned grave. “On the surface, you will support the Renaissance Alliance’s operations. However, if the Alliance makes any abnormal moves, you will immediately use the ‘Airdropped Fortresses’ to carry out an armed suppression of their headquarters’ planet.”

The atmosphere in the conference room grew even more solemn. Everyone understood what this implied—the Atlas Group no longer trusted the leadership of the Renaissance Alliance.

“Has it really gotten to the point where we need military deterrence against Franklin?” Cleves asked.

“Intelligence indicates that certain members of their leadership have been thinking of breaking free from our control,” Amber said coolly. “We helped them conquer all this territory, not so they could sit back and reap the benefits.”

Seeing no objections, Amber continued, “As for the Empire, I will personally command The Dawn and three unmanned fleets. The First Army Group will serve as the ground combat force on the Empire front, ready to engage in any armed conflicts that may arise.

“I’m not too worried about the land warfare with the Renaissance Alliance. It’s the Empire where we might face the Imperial Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps head-on. Therefore, I need Hog to take overall command of ground operations, with Van Fleet acting as the Army Group’s Chief of staff to formulate detailed operational plans.”

Chapter 722: Isabelle VS Allenita

Upon hearing Amber’s arrangements, Van Fleet’s expression immediately turned to one of excitement, itching for a fight. He suddenly realized he could very well become the first Federation general—a former general, of course—to set foot on the soil of the Empire’s capital.

“Boss, rest assured. Once the conflict erupts, I guarantee I can stir up a storm in the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital.”

“We’re not going to attack the Imperial Capital, Van Fleet.” Amber smiled and motioned for him to calm down. “Let’s be clear about this first. We are not there to overthrow the Empire. We are to protect our biggest client—Princess Agnes—at a critical juncture. To be more specific, we will act as an additional armed force to support her.”

“So, Boss, do you already have a specific plan for troop deployment?” the wolf-headed Hog asked.

Amber displayed a detailed timetable on the holographic projection. “This is just a preliminary plan. It will definitely require revision and refinement from you and the staff officers. The First Army Group will withdraw from Parra IV, and its defense will be taken over by the last batch of trained Romu troops and the unmanned Swarm. After the First Army Group assembles in planetary orbit, it will rendezvous with The Dawn and three unmanned fleets before heading to the Imperial Capital.”

Hog thought for a moment. “Boss, the training for the last batch of Romu soldiers was actually just completed not long ago…”

“But it’s enough to handle the daily defense of Parra IV,” Amber replied. “And with the assistance of the unmanned Swarm, there won’t be any problems.”

As the scale and combat effectiveness of the unmanned Swarm continued to improve and the development of the Immortal Corps got on track, the recruitment of Romu soldiers was temporarily halted. The final force was maintained at a size of two Army Groups plus one rapid reaction force.

After all, once a mercenary force reached this scale, its maintenance costs soared to an extremely high figure. Even for the Atlas Group, it was a considerable daily expense.

Hearing Amber’s arrangements, Guterres suddenly spoke up. “Boss, will one Army Group be enough? After all, this is a home-field battle in the Star Dragon Empire. And from what you’ve said, the enemy will be their most elite Royal Guard and Martyr Corps.”

“Yeah, Amber, how about we send a portion of our troops over?” Randall agreed with Guterres. “Our two fleets both have marines and orbital paratroopers, so we don’t really need an entire Army Group’s worth of ground troops…”

“No, this is an insurance policy against the Renaissance Alliance. I won’t adjust it lightly.”

Amber shook her head and continued, “I’d hate to suffer an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Renaissance Alliance. Besides, who said I only have one Army Group’s worth of forces? It’s time you all knew. Banninger!”

The holographic projection system quickly cast a familiar figure, and a firm voice rang out at the same time:

“Boss! Immortal Corps - Corps Commander Banninger, reporting!”

While everyone in the Operations Briefing Room jumped to their feet as if they had seen a ghost, in a quiet corner of the Abawaku asteroid fortress, a different kind of “storm” was quietly brewing.

Isabelle’s room, a private space usually filled with warmth, was now seemingly shrouded in an invisible layer of frost.

Inside, Allenita and Isabelle stood in a standoff, the oppressive feeling spreading through the silence.

Allenita had, in fact, long guessed why Isabelle had asked to see her. After a moment of mutual silence, she sighed softly, breaking it. “I’m sorry, Isabelle.”

“When did you two start?”

Isabelle’s voice was bone-chillingly cold, her gaze locked on Allenita as she tried to find the answer in her eyes.

The Isabelle in Allenita’s memory had always been fragile, someone who needed protection. Yet at this moment, the imperial noblewoman seemed like a different person, exuding a powerful, oppressive aura. Under her scrutinizing gaze, Allenita felt a prick of guilt, a sense of shame that nearly consumed her.

In truth, ever since the intimate incident with Amber, Allenita had felt she owed Isabelle an apology. Now, faced with an aggressive Isabelle, she felt even more like a sinner. Her throat tightened; there was so much she wanted to say, but she didn’t know where to begin.

“I’ve always thought of you as my older sister.” Isabelle’s voice was low and sorrowful, each word landing a heavy blow on Allenita’s heart. The atmosphere between them was stretched to its breaking point.

Isabelle knew in her heart that Amber could never love only her, but when reality was laid bare before her, she couldn’t control the jealousy and sense of grievance that ran rampant within her.

Soon, under the “offensive” launched by Isabelle, their disagreement over Amber widened like a fissure, and a fierce argument erupted in an instant.

At first, consumed by guilt, Allenita was steadily defeated in this war of words, appearing extremely passive.

But the wealthy elf was no pushover. Moreover, her relationship with Amber was already a fact. Under Isabelle’s relentless pressure, the stubborn fighting spirit deep in Allenita’s bones was completely ignited.

When it came to matters of love, the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire never gave up easily.

“So, my little Isa, what exactly do you want?” Allenita narrowed her eyes. Having decided to launch a counterattack, her tone took on a hint of provocation. “For me to back out? Or for you to back out yourself?”

“I…” Isabelle’s lips trembled, and she was at a loss for words.

How could she possibly be willing to back out? But simply accepting sharing Amber with someone else was far from easy. The turmoil in her heart left her momentarily speechless.

“Don’t know what to say? Then, it’s my turn.” A flicker of resolve lit up Allenita’s eyes, her tone carrying an unquestionable weight as she announced the beginning of her counterattack.

She slowly rose to her feet, walked over to Isabelle, and looked down at her. The guilt had vanished from Allenita’s eyes, replaced by pure provocation. “Don’t forget, you were the one who ‘humbly sought my advice’ back then. How can you turn around and blame me now?”

“I… I was…” Isabelle’s cheeks flushed crimson in an instant, as if engulfed by a scorching flame. She never would have imagined that Allenita would wield that past event as a weapon to stab her with at such a critical moment.

“And…” Allenita revealed a playful smile, her words laced with mockery. “Do you really think someone like Amber would ever belong to you alone? My little Isa, don’t be so naive~”

Isabelle cried, “What do you mean!”

“What do I mean? Don’t forget Lilith exists. I could tell at a glance she’s not a proper AI. What proper AI would spend all day eagerly hoping Amber finds more women!”

“You… You’re talking nonsense!” Isabelle trembled violently with rage and shot to her feet. However, the difference in height forced her to look up at Allenita. Adding to that were the female elf’s “mountainous curves,” which only fueled her inner anger and resentment.

“You know better than anyone whether I’m talking nonsense or not.”

Allenita snorted, her tone filled with the smugness of one who had seized the upper hand. “Instead of bickering with me here out of jealousy, you’d be better off thinking about how to deal with that little vixen, Lilith!”

Seeing Isabelle remain silent, Allenita continued, “Although I haven’t interacted much with her, I can tell that Miss Lilith spends every day looking for new targets for Amber. For example, that Ms. Salieh…”

Allenita deliberately drew out her words, each one a knife stabbing mercilessly at Isabelle’s heart. “I imagine you’re well aware of Amber’s ‘preferences’. Ms. Salieh, in my opinion, perfectly fits Amber’s aesthetic. Not to mention she has tentacles on her head. Who knows, maybe Amber has a thing for that?”

Isabelle’s expression instantly became fraught, and a series of indescribable scenes flashed through her mind.

She had to admit, Allenita’s analysis of Amber was incredibly thorough—but this was also indirect proof that the number of times this female elf had “snuck a snack” with Amber could not have been few…

“Hmph, even if Salieh is in the picture, I will never back down!”

“Oh~ right, and there’s that princess from the Star Dragon Empire. She looks exactly like the type Amber can’t resist. He probably really likes those draconic horns on her head~”

Allenita said this with narrowed eyes, looking for all the world like a cunning fox.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhh! Stop talking!”

Isabelle clutched her hair in frustration, then shot to her feet to make her last stand. “I don’t care who it is or what their status is. It won’t be that easy to snatch Amber from me!”

“Excellent. Now that’s the little Isa I know~”

Allenita suddenly broke into a meaningful smile and expertly slung an arm around Isabelle’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you~ After all, we’re ‘allies’ now, aren’t we~”

“‘Allies’?” Isabelle froze for a second, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

But she quickly understood what Allenita meant.

That’s right. Since the deed was already done for both of them with Amber, their biggest enemy right now wasn’t each other. It was Lilith, who spent her days “corrupting” Amber and making him increasingly improper.

And that peerless princess of the Global-tier empire…

“Hmph, who wants to be allies with you!” Isabelle’s words remained harsh, but her body, held by the female elf, was no longer as stiff as it had been.

“Oh, come on, don’t be so stubborn~” Allenita seized the opportunity, sliding her arm down to Isabelle’s waist and whispering in her ear, her voice as seductive as an incubus’s. “We’re ‘allies’ with a common goal, are we not?”

“Who… who’s being stubborn!” Isabelle’s face grew even redder, like a ripened apple.

In the end, though, she didn’t push the fox-like Allenita away. Instead, as if resigned to her fate, she gently buried her head in the other woman’s chest. A voice as faint as a mosquito’s drifted out from between the “mountains.”

“Allenita… I never thought the two of us would face a situation like this. It’s just… too absurd.”

“I never thought so either, Isa. I shouldn’t have gone looking for Amber with that bottle of fruit wine.”

“Fruit wine?” Isabelle suddenly looked up, a hint of shyness and curiosity on her face. “So… what exactly happened between you and Amber back then…?”

“It’s a story about getting the concentration of the original brew wrong and forgetting to dilute it…”

“Huh?”

Chapter 723: My Immortals Are Endless

Lilith had no idea that the “good show” she had expected from Allenita and Isabelle had already resulted in the two forming an alliance at the speed of light.

The strong AI had clearly underestimated the resolve of these two women when it came to “uniting against a common enemy.” Or perhaps, given their already close relationship, Allenita and Isabelle were the easiest targets for Amber to realize his goal of “sleeping together.”

At this point, Amber didn’t even have to lift a finger; the two had already completed the first step toward that goal, forming an offensive and defensive alliance.

In stark contrast to the swift conclusion of their “two-person meeting,” the people in the Operations Briefing Room were still reeling from Banninger’s appearance.

After all, with the exception of Guterres and Van Fleet, everyone else had attended the funeral for Banninger and the others, personally witnessing the coffins of the instructor squad being lowered into the ground.

And Van Fleet, as the “main culprit” responsible for the annihilation of the instructor squad, had suffered a complete mental shutdown after Hog had informed him of Banninger’s identity. He even thought Amber had used some psionic secret art to drag Banninger’s soul back to settle a score.

“Relax, Van Fleet. We psionic users don’t have the ability to bring the dead back to life.”

Seeing Van Fleet’s tense expression, Amber shrugged helplessly and continued, “Banninger and the instructor squad did indeed die back then. But as you can see, they now continue to exist in this world in another form. The Immortal Corps was founded based on this special form of life.”

As Amber quickly explained the situation with the Immortal Corps, the group of senior commanders from Atlas’s combat forces immediately realized its value in battle.

It was a corps that knew no fatigue, feared no death, and could train at accelerated speeds in a virtual space. It could be said that every one of them was an ace soldier.

Furthermore, when it came to replenishing combat losses, this corps completely bypassed the process of training and integrating new recruits. The speed at which they could replace losses was limited only by how quickly the equipment manufacturers under the Atlas Group could produce combat loadouts.

In other words, as long as there were enough combat bodies to expend, the Immortal Corps was a truly “undying army” on the battlefield.

Although the number of Immortals had been limited before, it had risen dramatically after the Atlas Group went through several major wars—especially after the confrontation with Marshal Trafalgar.

According to Lilith’s statistics, twelve percent of the candidates had given up the chance at “immortality” by converting into digital lifeforms. But even so, the number of new Immortals supplementing Banninger’s ranks still far exceeded ten thousand.

Of course, most of these newly-minted Immortals were personnel from the combat fleet and theoretically lacked land warfare capabilities. However, the advantages of being a digital lifeform in terms of learning ability quickly manifested.

Within “Valhalla,” the virtual space where the Immortal Corps was stationed, Lilith had established a dedicated deep learning zone. The flow of time for the Immortals in this zone was nearly a thousand times faster than in the outside world. This meant that training for about ten days in the zone was equivalent to mass-producing a batch of veterans with twenty to thirty years of experience.

As a result, Banninger’s Immortals were now all “air and ground dual-role personnel.” Even he himself had learned to pilot HCPs and other armored units, as well as command warships up to the cruiser class.

Additionally, besides their own “descended” main body, each Immortal could simultaneously control about ten combat bodies. Therefore, the Immortal Corps’ land warfare unit structure was close to the scale of an Army Group—although it currently lacked long-range fire support units like artillery, making it more of a “spearhead unit” specializing in frontal assaults.

Once Atlas could control low earth orbit, the Immortal Corps’ attacks would become like a relentless tide. During an assault on a target, destroyed combat bodies would be continuously airdropped from orbit, and much more quickly than orbital paratroopers.

After all, the biggest limitation on orbital drops had always been the physical tolerance of the human body.

Once this restriction was removed, both the speed and payload of orbital drops could be significantly increased. Most importantly, it eliminated the process of ground units having to recover the drop pods after the heavy vehicles had landed.

Now, as soon as a vehicle landed and connected to the network, the Immortals could immediately take control. This meant they could even be dropped directly behind enemy lines to execute three-dimensional pincer tactics.

In terms of their current combat role, Amber envisioned the Immortal Corps as a heavy armored force capable of launching high-intensity frontal attacks on important targets, supported by long-range fire from friendly forces.

Therefore, the Immortal Corps currently had three main types of combat detachments.

First was the “Infantry Attack Detachment,” centered around the “Dreadnought” large powered armor and supported by a large number of medium and heavy combat bodies.

Second was the “Armored Assault Detachment,” with a core of “Chimera - Unmanned” heavy multi-legged war machines and “Thor’s Hammer - Unmanned” main battle tanks.

Finally, there was the “Mobile Attack Detachment,” composed of “Aegis - Unmanned” and a small number of “Woodward - Unmanned” HCPs.

Since the basic combat units of the Immortals—the large powered armor and combat bodies—were quite agile and also heavy, the entire Immortal Corps was not configured with conventional units like infantry fighting vehicles. Standard armored personnel carriers couldn’t hold many combat bodies anyway.

For a typical assault, they could just sprint forward. After all, whether it was the large powered armor or the various combat bodies, their short-distance combat sprint speed was no slower than that of wheeled fighting vehicles or IFVs. For long-range mobile missions, specialized heavy transport vehicles would be responsible for carrying the combat bodies and large powered armor in their folded, transformable states.

As for the Immortal Corps’ method of engagement, it was a very pure armored assault, supplemented by the “Mobile Attack Detachment” harassing and tearing gaps in the defensive lines, and the occasional fully formed “Infantry Attack Detachments” being dropped directly onto the enemy’s rear positions from orbit.

It all boiled down to one simple fact: “Your soldiers are constantly taking casualties, while my Immortal Corps is endless.”

After all, the speed at which factories could mass-produce combat equipment, compared to the time it took for a conventional army to train a qualified soldier, was a completely superior entity overwhelming an inferior one. The two were simply incomparable in terms of efficiency.

“If it’s as you and Mr. Banninger say, Boss, then the combat effectiveness of the Immortal Corps might exceed many people’s imaginations. No wonder you dared to position the Second Army Group within the Federation as a fallback.”

After reviewing the introduction to the Immortal Corps, Guterres’s expression relaxed slightly. He suddenly recalled a line from the oath he took when he officially decided to join the Atlas Group’s combat forces: “As soldiers of Atlas, we will never be defeated. We will never fall behind the enemy in equipment or technology.”

It seemed now that this wasn’t just empty talk.

At least, since he had joined the Atlas Group, the combat forces had only ever been at a disadvantage in terms of numbers. In equipment and technology, they were always ahead of the enemy, which was why Atlas had managed to turn the tide multiple times when outnumbered.

“Ultimately, it still comes down to our lack of manpower.”

Amber shook his head and said with some helplessness, “If I had five or six Army Groups and seven or eight fleets, I wouldn’t be racking my brain over force deployment right now. But we just don’t, do we?”

Van Fleet interjected, “Boss, you don’t need to be so self-deprecating. With all due respect, a normal private enterprise, even the leading companies in the Federation’s military-industrial complex back then, never had armed forces on the scale of what Atlas has now.”

“But our goal… or rather, what we’re doing now, has long surpassed what a single company can do. Naturally, we can’t be measured by the standards of other companies.”

Amber shrugged, then something seemed to cross his mind. His gaze drifted, and his tone became hesitant. “By the way, there’s one more thing I need to inform you of in advance. What I’m about to say, you must not be afraid.”

Everyone was taken aback by Amber’s words. They never thought Amber would warn them not to be afraid during an operations briefing. Though various speculations were already popping into their minds, everyone present maintained a firm and serious expression.

Randall replied in a resolute tone, “Boss, we are commanders of Atlas’s combat forces. We will not be afraid.”

Amber took a deep breath, quickly organized his thoughts, and then said in a rush, “During this armed intervention in the Empire, we will very likely encounter the legendary Starry Sky Dragon.”

The moment the words left his mouth, he nervously observed the reactions of those present, his heart pounding, worried that his senior commanders would think he had gone mad.

In the next second, upon hearing the words “Starry Sky Dragon,” everyone straightened up and sat bolt upright. But the expression on their faces was one of “solemn respect,” which puzzled Amber.

It was obvious that they hadn’t understood what he meant by “Starry Sky Dragon.” Especially Randall; even through the hologram, Amber could see the smile he was struggling to contain at the corners of his eyes.

“Boss, the ‘Starry Sky Dragon’… is that a code name for some new type of warship from the Empire?”

The usually serious Guterres still maintained his solemn mode of thought, but the question he asked gave Amber a headache.

“Not a warship!”

Van Fleet chimed in, “Then it’s new Imperial equipment? Some kind of undisclosed, brand-new HCP?”

“A Starry Sky Dragon! Have you never read the legends? The kind with giant wings, several kilometers long, that can enter and exit the atmosphere with its physical body, and can use a special ‘Dragon’s Might’! A Starry Sky Dragon!”

Chapter 724: The Facehugger’s Kiss

“Boss, so you mean our armed intervention in Saint-Saulnier might encounter a… uh, legendary creature?”

Though he still found it a bit incredible, Van Fleet grew serious and asked the question after seeing that Amber wasn’t just joking to liven up the atmosphere.

After all, Guterres and his team were assigned to the Federation, but he would be the one actually going to the Imperial Capital.

In other words, if this legendary creature Amber spoke of truly appeared, he and Hog would be the ones to face it directly.

“Actually, it’s not a matter of ‘might.’ It’s a very high probability. It’s just unclear how much of its full strength this Starry Sky Dragon will be able to display.”

As he spoke, Amber combined what he knew with the information Salieh had previously provided, describing the legendary ‘perfect cosmic creature’ to the group and offering a speculative assessment of its combat capabilities.

With Amber’s description, the image of the Starry Sky Dragon was slowly pieced together in their minds, transforming from a creature of legend into a real and extremely dangerous cosmic being.

“The ability to single-handedly destroy a fleet… Speaking of which, Boss, can’t you do that too?” Cleves suddenly asked after Amber finished.

“That’s different. At best, what I do is harass a fleet, and I still need the cover of long-range fire, all while taking on extremely high risks.”

Amber shook his head and continued, “When they say a Starry Sky Dragon can ‘single-handedly destroy a fleet,’ they mean it can completely annihilate an entire organized fleet in the truest sense. We’re not talking about some attacks that barely make a dent.”

Hearing this, the excitement on Van Fleet and Hog’s faces had clearly vanished.

They had initially thought it was a normal combat operation, but now it had suddenly turned into a “Monster Hunter” quest—and they were hunting a “Tempered Starry Sky Dragon.” The difficulty had just skyrocketed to a completely different level.

——

After the briefing, Amber didn’t linger. He hurried straight to Salieh’s laboratory.

As soon as he entered, he saw the Forerunner “old frozen meat” buried in a pile of complex instruments, focused on tinkering with the “Tactical Time Travel Device MK1” that had nearly caused a major disaster during their time jump.

Amber noticed that whenever she entered this state of intense research, she would become completely absorbed, utterly oblivious to her surroundings.

On a side note, from Amber’s current perspective, Salieh had a perfect figure, the kind well-suited for childbirth.

But right now, Amber couldn’t care less about whether Salieh was suited for childbirth or not. The moment he saw her tinkering with the time travel device, all the complaints he’d had about her during the crisis came flooding back.

Before Salieh could react, Amber rushed up behind her in a few quick strides and unleashed a torrent of questions. “Salieh! I’ve been meaning to talk to you alone. Why is this ‘Tactical Time Travel Device MK1’ so unstable? And how did it end up with an anchor point analysis failure?”

Startled by Amber’s sudden appearance and the abrupt interrogation, Salieh almost dropped the tool in her hand.

She turned around, a look of innocence and apology on her face. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head twisted about erratically as she whispered in an aggrieved tone:

“Amber, I did warn you. Anything I handcraft with the equipment here is bound to have risks. Both the raw materials and the manufacturing process are a far cry from the original Jeram people’s version. Besides, I emphasized it repeatedly before the mission began.”

“What’s the point of you emphasizing it? Is this the kind of risk that can be avoided just because you emphasized it?”

Amber cut her off, a hint of helplessness in his voice. “And my original plan was to maintain Stealth in the other timeline as much as possible, to avoid being discovered by anyone there. It’s not like I could just surrender if I ran into an emergency after jumping, right? Wouldn’t that mess up the timeline even more? An emergency jump to another timeline would have been the safer option. I assume that’s one of the reasons you Jeram people developed this device in the first place, right?”

“Well, you didn’t exactly keep a low profile on this trip either, Amber… Bombing the Imperial Palace, knocking out the Archbishop…” Salieh whispered, poking her fingers together as her gaze drifted away evasively.

“…”

Amber was rendered speechless. He paused for a moment, his tone softening slightly, but it was still laced with strong dissatisfaction. “Anyway, this thing must be improved! I don’t want another ‘surprise’ like this next time. The most important thing is to increase its stability!”

Salieh nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely improve it. But Amber, I must remind you again: continuing research on the time travel device might cause the crisis I mentioned before to arrive sooner.”

Hearing these cryptic words, Amber’s brow furrowed again. “Crisis? What is this crisis you keep talking about? You were vague last time. Can you please speak clearly this time?”

“This…” A troubled look appeared on Salieh’s face, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head danced even faster. “Amber, it’s not that I don’t want to tell you, but I really can’t. Once I say it, it could lead to unforeseeable consequences.”

She looked at Amber, her eyes pleading. “Please, trust me, Amber. Everything I’m doing is to prevent the worst-case scenario.”

Amber wasn’t buying it. He stared at her, a hint of a threat in his tone. “So, you’re going to keep playing the Riddler?”

Salieh didn’t answer. After a moment of silence, she took a few deep breaths and then said, as if with nothing left to lose, “Also, Amber… the biggest threat from that Starry Sky Dragon you saw in the Final Dogma Zone might not be on the battlefield…”

“What is it?”

“I can’t say.”

“…”

It was a well-known fact that Amber had always despised “Riddlers.” His status on all his social media accounts was permanently set to “Riddlers get out of Gotham.”

So when Salieh once again uttered the words “I can’t say,” her dithering attitude finally made Amber snap.

And a Psionic technique like “Mental Shackle,” which already sounded a bit improper, did indeed have some rather improper “functions.”

Since the one who applied the shackle had absolute control over the one it was applied to, in theory, the former could do anything to the latter without resistance. And Psionics, that mysterious energy that could influence reality, also had a twisted sense of humor, greatly amplifying the “caster’s” desire for something akin to “abuse.”

This chain of chemical reactions resulted in Amber abruptly reaching out, grabbing Salieh’s cheeks, and beginning to knead them fiercely.

“Hey! Mmph… Amber, you…” Salieh was caught completely off guard by the sudden assault, her voice becoming muffled.

Very soft, very tender, and very elastic.

This was Amber’s conclusion after thoroughly kneading Salieh’s cheeks.

At that moment, his Psionics amplified the desire in his heart, causing him to not only knead Salieh’s face but also to lose control of his other hand, which instinctively reached out and stroked the soft, leg-like tentacles that resembled braided hair at the back of her head.

Another well-known fact: a Jeram female’s tentacles were the most sensitive part of her body.

Just like a trope from an adult game, Amber’s touch instantly caused Salieh’s body to tense up. A tempting blush quickly spread across her fair cheeks. Her breathing grew ragged, and broken whimpers escaped her throat.

“A-Amber… don’t… don’t do this…”

Salieh’s voice trembled, a mixture of resistance and an indescribable anticipation.

That’s right. Psionics didn’t just amplify the caster’s desire for abuse; it also induced masochistic desires in the one shackled. And at this moment, neither Amber nor Salieh had realized this.

The more “resistance” Salieh showed, the more worked up Amber became.

His actions grew bolder. He not only caressed her tentacles but also occasionally used his fingertips to lightly scrape their base and tips. He himself had no idea how he so easily found these sensitive spots.

Psionics are amazing, aren’t they?

“Salieh, are you going to talk or not? Hmm~?” Amber’s voice was deep and hoarse, laced with a teasing tone he wasn’t even aware of.

Under his ministrations, Salieh’s body was already trembling slightly. She tried hard to stay lucid, but her body’s reactions were slipping further and further from her control.

“I… I really… can’t say…” Salieh’s voice had become weak and feeble, sounding less like a refusal and more like a coquettish plea.

Seeing her like this, the anger in Amber’s heart had mostly dissipated, replaced by an indescribable restlessness. The same was happening to Salieh opposite him; she had even started to shift from resisting to actively cooperating.

This led the Jeram woman to gradually lose control of her rational actions. Her hands, which had been pushing Amber away, had somehow found their way around his waist.

Just as the last shred of Amber’s reason sensed that something was wrong, prompting him to push Salieh away and temporarily halt their interaction, Salieh was the first to wave the white flag to her own desires.

She turned the tables, kissing Amber fiercely. Her petal-like tentacles involuntarily wrapped around his head. From a human perspective, it was a rather terrifying sight.

In that instant, Amber felt as if he’d been attacked by a Facehugger, and his mind snapped to clarity. But the unprecedented sensory stimulation that followed quickly pulled him back under.

“A Facehugger, huh? Doesn’t seem so bad after all.”

Chapter 725: Converging Undercurrents

Amber had always thought of himself as someone with ordinary tastes.

But after losing control of his passions, kissing Salieh, and eventually tumbling onto the small bed in the lab, he realized his tastes weren’t so ordinary after all. At least, a normal person wouldn’t feel so “physically and mentally gratified” by the caress of the soft, leg-like tentacles behind Salieh’s head.

For one reason or another, the Jeram people were physiologically quite similar to humans, without any strange extra or missing parts.

As they lay wrapped in each other’s arms on the small lab bed, both entering a state of post-coital clarity, Salieh suddenly spoke, “I never thought I would copulate with a Homo sapien.”

“Copulate? Isn’t that a rather… unromantic choice of words?” Amber pouted, a little speechless. What had been a passionate project now sounded like some kind of research experiment coming from Salieh.

“Besides, you seemed pretty into it yourself just now, didn’t you?”

“I—I was under the control of the Mental Shackle!” Salieh argued, her face flushing. In her agitation, even the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head tied themselves into a knot.

“Hey! Don’t get so worked up…”

Amber chuckled and reached out to help Salieh untangle her tentacles. The touch made Salieh’s face turn an even deeper shade of red.

They fell silent for a moment. Just as the atmosphere was starting to get a little awkward, Amber suddenly spoke up, “By the way, does the Mental Shackle also make you call out ‘daddy’?”

“…It does,” Salieh’s voice was as faint as a mosquito’s hum.

“I believe you~”

“…”

Of course, the Mental Shackle didn’t make Salieh call out “daddy.” It wasn’t mind control; at its core, the Mental Shackle was more like a soul contract from a fantasy novel, its main function being to restrain the controlled party, preventing them from disobeying the controller’s commands.

Salieh’s excitement stemmed more from her status as a Jeram person—what humans called a “Forerunner”—a member of a superior race. Yet, she had been taken by a Homo sapien, a species that had once been slaves, experimental subjects, and targets for elimination by the Jeram people. This intense sense of contrast and humiliation was one of the sources of her pleasure.

So, Amber knew it was just an excuse, but he didn’t press the matter. Some topics were best left alone; pushing too far would be counterproductive.

Just as the two were quietly enjoying a moment of peace in their “post-coital clarity,” Lilith’s voice suddenly echoed from the lab’s broadcast system.

“Master, Isabelle and Ms. Allenita are looking for you, and they’re heading towards the lab. Are you sure you want to keep lying there naked, holding Ms. Salieh?”

The moment Lilith finished speaking, the lab erupted into chaos.

Salieh, in particular, had been enjoying herself as a bystander, watching the “great emotional drama” unfold between two Homo sapiens and an elf.

But now, she had inexplicably become one of the actors in the drama, and that was far less amusing.

Amber reacted with lightning speed, practically launching himself off the small bed. His movements were swift and decisive, completely devoid of his earlier languor and relaxation.

The thin blanket covering them was thrown into the air by his movement before slowly drifting back down, as if still holding the warmth of their recent intimacy.

As he scrambled to pick up his clothes, which had been scattered on the floor during the “Facehugger” attack, he didn’t forget to glance back at Salieh.

He was surprised to see that the reaction of this “old frozen meat” was even more exaggerated than his own.

She had virtually vanished from the bed in an instant, her movements as agile as a leopardess. In that moment, the Forerunner Repository Steward finally displayed her superhuman physical prowess.

If not for Amber’s exceptional eyesight, he probably wouldn’t have been able to track her movements at all. With almost teleportation-like speed, Salieh dashed into the hibernation pod in the corner of the lab—the very one she had requested to be brought over from the Forerunner Repository, the one used to seal her away.

The door to the now-repaired hibernation pod closed automatically the instant she entered, silent and seamless—as if everything that had just happened was a figment of Amber’s imagination.

Amber clicked his tongue in amazement. Salieh’s physical abilities were far greater than she usually let on; it was just a pity she used them for this.

But Amber didn’t have time to marvel at that. He had to get himself presentable before Isabelle and Allenita arrived.

Even though he knew it was a futile attempt to hide the obvious, making an effort was better than giving up entirely.

Amber rushed to the sink on the other side of the lab and splashed his face with cold water, trying to clear his head. He looked up at the mirror—he was still handsome, but his hair was a mess, and his eyes held a lingering haze. It was obvious he had been up to no good.

“Tch, even an idiot could tell what happened. Say, Lilith, why didn’t you warn me sooner?” Amber straightened his collar, beginning to call Lilith to account.

“Master, you were on cloud nine just now. I didn’t dare disturb you. What if I made you angry and you dragged me into the virtual space to do… that sort of thing… to me again?”

“Hey, Lilith, when you say things like that, could you not use such an expectant tone? Okay?”

Just as Amber was about to say more, the lab door slid open with a whoosh, and Isabelle and Allenita walked in, one after the other.

Normally, neither of them had clearance to open the door to Salieh’s lab, but now they had walked in unimpeded.

“Lilith…”

“Master, I’ll be honest, it was me!” Lilith’s little virtual avatar suddenly appeared next to Amber’s head, complete with a “poof” of smoke for a dramatic entrance.

“You’re just asking for a lesson, aren’t you!”

“Of course not! I just wanted to accelerate Master’s ‘great cosmic fusion of life’ project~”

“Tch, I’ll deal with you later!”

Amber shot Lilith a glare, then forced what he hoped was a natural-looking smile onto his face as he walked over to greet Isabelle and Allenita.

“Isabelle, Allenita, what brings you here?”

Unfortunately, neither of them responded directly. Isabelle’s gaze averted Amber’s, sweeping across the lab before finally settling back on him.

“Amber, we need to talk to you. About something.”

Isabelle’s tone was flat, devoid of any discernible emotion, but Amber felt an invisible pressure bearing down on him. It was the first time he had ever sensed such an aura from her.

So this is the aura of someone aspiring to be the ‘main partner.’

The inappropriate thought flashed through Amber’s mind. He subconsciously avoided Isabelle’s gaze and replied, “What’s so urgent?”

Neither of them answered right away. Allenita stood beside Isabelle with a playful smile, her eyes darting between Amber and the various corners of the lab as if searching for clues.

“Amber, what were you doing in the lab just now?”

Allenita’s voice was soft and alluring, but Amber detected an unusual undertone. His keen psionic senses made him feel like prey being watched by two cunning foxes.

Amber tried his best to remain calm and manage his expression. He answered coolly, “What else could I be doing? In a lab. I was running an experiment, of course.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Isabelle’s tone was clearly tinged with suspicion.

“But I heard there was some… commotion in the lab just now?”

“Commotion? What commotion?” Amber feigned surprise. “I didn’t hear anything.”

“Amber, you can stop pretending…”

Allenita suddenly spoke up. “Lilith has already told us everything.”

“Lilith?! I knew it was that unreliable girl.”

Amber nearly coughed up a mouthful of blood. As the saying goes, the strongest fortresses are often breached from within. The words certainly applied to him now.

“Master, you can’t blame me for this~”

Lilith’s voice suddenly chirped, and her chibi-like virtual avatar floated over to the three of them.

“Who can blame me when you were so… ‘absorbed’ just now~”

“…”

Amber was rendered speechless. He desperately wanted to dive into the virtual space and give this artificial intelligence a stern ‘talking-to,’ but the problem at hand was far more pressing.

“Alright, I admit it.” Amber sighed, deciding to confess and hope for leniency.

“Just now, I was indeed with Salieh…”

“With Salieh?”

Isabelle and Allenita spoke almost in unison, a flicker of surprise in their eyes. They hadn’t expected Amber to be so blunt.

“What were you… doing in the lab?”

Isabelle’s voice trembled slightly. She seemed to have guessed what happened, but she still wanted to hear the answer from Amber himself.

“We were… connecting on an emotional level.”

“Connecting on an emotional level?”

The corners of Allenita’s mouth lifted slightly.

“Amber, that’s a very… gentle way of putting it.”

“…”

CLANG!

A sudden noise from the corner of the lab, where the hibernation pod was located, instantly drew everyone’s attention.

Leaving the turmoil in Salieh’s lab for now, let us turn our gaze to the distant Federation.

With material support and a show of force from the Atlas Group’s fleet, the Renaissance Alliance’s recent offensive had been advancing like an unstoppable force. Their growing ranks swept through the Federation’s defensive lines like an autumn wind scattering fallen leaves.

Having lost their greatest enemy, Fleet Admiral Trafalgar, along with the last of their elite fleets, the Federation was effectively powerless to resist the combined assault of the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group.

The Alliance fleet, personally trained by Atlas instructors, displayed astonishing combat prowess on a battlefield where the intensity and enemy strength had dropped by a whole level.

In a series of consecutive battles, supported by the Atlas Group’s “Spectral Annihilator” strike teams, the Alliance fleet defeated one stubborn garrison fleet after another.

These garrison fleets were no longer fighting for the Federation but for the autonomous governments of their star systems, a final, desperate struggle. The planetary administrators, council members, and mega-capitalists of these systems knew all too well how many unspeakable deeds they had committed, and they also knew the Renaissance Alliance offered only one option for these “decadent elements of the old era.”

A “graceful” end.

However, the resistance of these already weak garrison fleets was feeble. Even a frontline formed by the combined forces of several systems’ fleets crumbled under the Alliance’s swift assault.

The once seemingly impregnable front now resembled a sandcastle on a beach, easily washed away by the tide.

One after another, the “strongholds” near the Federation’s Capital star system fell to the Renaissance Alliance, and the very foundation of the Federation government began to truly crumble.

The remaining Federation Navy fleet no longer dared to engage the Alliance and Atlas coalition in a direct confrontation in deep space.

Vice Admiral Leitnin, whom Guterres had once described as “the most mediocre of the Federation Navy’s general’s stars,” was now their last high-ranking fleet commander. All he could do was lead his fleet in retreat after retreat, carefully preserving his forces.

He was well aware of his own limitations. He knew that if he lost his nerve and threw his fleet into a desperate battle against the Alliance, the war would only end sooner.

He also knew that his constant retreats were nothing more than a slow death for the Federation. But at least it wasn’t an immediate, acute death.

However, after he abandoned the last star system defending the Capital, the gateway to the entire Federation Capital was thrown wide open. The Federation’s doomsday seemed to have arrived.

The Federation Capital star system, once a hub of prosperity and order, was now a scene of apocalyptic chaos.

The powerful and wealthy—high-ranking officials and rich merchants—had long since smelled the danger. They scrambled to board their private ships, fleeing the collapsing star system in a panic.

In the orbits of every colonial planet and satellite city within the Capital star system, countless lavishly decorated private ships fled like schools of fish escaping a dying coral reef, trying to escape the star system that was about to become a “hell.”

Yes, hell.

That was how these senior Federation officials and entrepreneurs saw the systems occupied by the Renaissance Alliance.

News that the Renaissance Alliance publicly “dealt with” the most corrupt members of the Federation’s upper class had long since spread throughout the Federation via the Atlas Group’s news feeds.

While the common people applauded and debated whether such methods were “overly corrective” or “inhumane,” the senior officials and entrepreneurs of the Federation felt nothing but terror.

After all, they were the ones being “dealt with.”

The private ships that successfully broke free of planetary gravity left long blue trails in their wake, streaking across the starscape in desperate arcs.

As for the citizens of the Capital star system who were unable to escape, or had never intended to, they chose to indulge in one final frenzy before the Renaissance Alliance’s arrival.

They poured into the streets, unleashing their fear and despair.

Looting, brawls, illegal trespass, and armed conflicts became rampant. In the Federation Capital star system, once a symbol of democracy and freedom, law and order had completely collapsed.

The police and Federation soldiers who remained at their posts could only guard government buildings and key facilities by enforcing a “kill on approach” policy.

In the Star Dragon Empire, within Agnes’s private villa, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense and busy as the day of her coronation approached.

The Chief of Protocol, along with a large retinue of handmaidens, meticulously arranged the magnificent robes and precious accessories required for the ceremony. Not a single detail was overlooked.

The coronation ceremony of the Star Dragon Empire was traditional and complex, with different attire and accessories required for each stage of the proceedings. All of these requirements had been personally established by the founding Emperor, Delaman Leon.

“The laws of the ancestors cannot be changed,” especially not the laws of the very first ancestor. Thus, this procedure had remained unaltered for centuries. Every Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, upon their ascension, had to go through this complex process.

For the Chief of Protocol and the handmaidens, the work was tedious and complicated, but it was also a great honor.

After all, not every Chief of protocol or handmaiden had the chance to witness the grand event of a new monarch’s ascension.

To personally prepare the various garments and accessories for Her Highness Agnes, the future Empress, and to finalize the timing of every step of the ceremony was a story that could be passed down as a “family honor.”

In another vast chamber, Agnes’s advisors and staff sat together, repeatedly going over every detail of the coronation process to ensure it was flawless.

Agnes sat at the head of the table. She knew that, barring any accidents, she was about to reach the pinnacle of power and become the new master of the Star Dragon Empire.

But her eyes held no trace of the confidence of someone with victory in their grasp; instead, there was a lingering shadow of worry.

According to her own intelligence network and some information from the Atlas Group, Regent Prince Norton II’s recent movements had become exceptionally secretive. Even his two closest advisors were rarely seen.

Although public speculation suggested that Norton II had given up the fight and was preparing to accept his defeat, Amber, Agnes, and their allies thought otherwise.

The lack of troop movements could simply mean that his actions were now sufficiently covert, demanding even greater vigilance.

And the lack of recent initiatives did not mean this ambitious and ruthless character had given up. They knew Norton II’s political shrewdness and ambition all too well. He would never admit defeat so easily. The Regent Prince was surely plotting something in the shadows. The coming coronation day would be anything but peaceful.

Saint-Saulnier, deep beneath the Grand Palace.

The old Emperor Frederick lay quietly in a medical pod. His body had grown increasingly frail, and his face was almost unrecognizable compared to his last public appearance.

The only thing that hadn’t changed was the exceptionally sharp glint in the imperial ruler’s eyes.

“Have you found the intruder?”

The old Emperor’s voice was low and hoarse, carrying an undeniable authority.

Standing beside the medical pod, Archbishop Jules Mazarin shook his head. “Your Majesty. I apologize, we have yet to find any trace of the intruder. They left nothing behind.”

Frederick was silent for a moment. His face showed none of the expected anger, but rather a strange calm.

“No matter. It’s just a minor interruption before the Day of Reckoning. It won’t affect the grand scheme.”

He paused, as if to let his nearly spent body recover, before continuing, “How is the compatibility of the ‘Eternal Cells’? And the preparations for the entry plug?”

At the mention of this, a fanatical light burned in Jules Mazarin’s eyes. He bowed his head respectfully and replied, “Everything is ready, Your Majesty.”

The old Emperor nodded slightly. He let out a long sigh, and a flicker of resolve crossed his eyes.

“Then it is time. Prepare to place me in the entry plug.”

“As you will, Your Majesty.”

Within a massive cryogenic chamber in the Final Dogma Zone, a mountain of blue ice crystals was hidden amidst the swirling cold mist. The enormous body of the frozen Starry Sky Dragon was vaguely visible through the ice, its draconic scales glinting with a cold, eerie light under the gradually illuminating lamps of the chamber.

As Jules Mazarin issued the command to “initiate thawing sequence,” the thick layer of ice began to melt under the effect of the environmental control system, emitting intermittent cracking sounds.

The first part to thaw completely was the back of the Starry Sky Dragon’s neck—where the entry plug, with all initial preparations complete, was awaiting its first “Star Dragon Pilot” in two million years.

Dressed in a specialized pilot suit, Frederick was fully immersed in the liquid inside the entry plug. The hatch slowly closed, and the entire plug rotated clockwise, inserting itself into the body of the Starry Sky Dragon.

Archbishop Jules Mazarin, leading the Imperial State Religion’s most loyal Grand Hierophants and fanatics, knelt piously around the gradually thawing dragon. They chanted blessings from their sacred texts, their fervor growing as the ice melted away.

Finally, the great dragon, which had slept for millions of years, slowly opened its eyes again. They were a pair of scarlet, vertical pupils, filled with an ancient and powerful aura.

It was an aura that seemed to originate from primordial antiquity, carrying with it a pressure that could destroy everything.

Witnessing this, Jules Mazarin stood up, his eyes bloodshot, and loudly cried out the name of the Dragon God in a voice that was already hoarse. The other Grand Hierophants and fanatics joined him, shouting as if they had just witnessed a miracle.

However, no one present noticed that the instant the great dragon opened its eyes, it seemed to be a fraction of a moment earlier than when the entry plug was inserted.

Chapter 726: Lilith’s ‘Blue Team’

Time flies. For an ordinary person, two months might just be the turning of two pages on a calendar, with no real change to their daily grind of simple meals and hustling for a living. But for the Atlas Group, which was preparing for war with all its might, every second of these two months was invaluable.

In the giant factories acquired from all over the Federation during the recent “great acquisition,” the previous bustle had long since returned. Or rather, they were now operating at a near-frenzied pace.

The workers in these factories were initially a little resistant to the idea of working overtime after changing bosses. After all, they had heard that the Atlas Group was a fairly reliable corporation with strict limits on overtime. So, when they heard the news about high-intensity overtime, they felt a bit let down.

But when they saw the triple overtime pay and substantial nutritional subsidies being issued in real-time on their new group-issued personal terminals, that feeling of disappointment vanished without a trace.

Amber and Lilith were now old hands at boosting employee morale. As soon as the overtime period began, the personal terminals of Atlas Group employees would display their real-time overtime hours, work progress, and a real-time wage calculated from these two metrics.

Since overtime pay was linked not only to time but also to the progress, efficiency, and quality of the work, simply clocking in hours was meaningless. The real-time wage figure would only increase if they were actually working.

With this “progress bar” in place, there was no longer any need to use slogans or make grand promises to boost the morale of the group’s employees. Watching the numbers climb with their own efforts was the best shot in the arm.

Especially at the end of an overtime shift, the moment that number was converted into real funds deposited into their personal accounts, the sense of satisfaction would fill their minds, which had grown numb and empty from the high-intensity work. After a full rest, this satisfaction would transform into the motivation for the next round of high-intensity overtime.

Against this backdrop, all the factories under the Atlas Group that were fully operational began production activities at maximum efficiency according to their assigned tasks. Besides mass-producing combat loadouts and spare combat bodies for the Immortal Corps, the focus was more on consumables and perishables like various types of ammunition and critical spare parts.

Inside every workshop, human-machine collaborative assembly lines operated tirelessly, maintaining precision and efficiency in production. Under Lilith’s comprehensive control, Atlas, this colossal war machine, demonstrated a production efficiency that surpassed ordinary imagination.

Metal parts shuttled rapidly along the production lines, glinting with a cold light. High-energy furnaces roared deeply, smelting rare metals into incandescent liquid, like boiling magma, injecting life into the war machines on the line.

Meanwhile, on Parra IV, where the First Army Group was assembling and preparing, the various units were conducting their final high-intensity combat training before deployment while waiting for their supplies and equipment to be loaded first.

As the longest-established and most combat-experienced force in the Atlas Group’s ground order of battle, the First Army Group was about to face the largest and most intense battle since its founding.

Therefore, commanders at all levels, including Hog and Van Fleet, couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. And expectant.

Together with the operations staff officers of the First Army Group’s command staff, they planned the most detailed operational plan imaginable. With Lilith’s assistance, they ran simulations for numerous possible scenarios, creating a large number of backup plans and contingency measures. All combat tasks—attack, defense, delay, screening, and so on—were broken down to the battalion level for each unit.

A massive training ground, large enough for several Army Groups to deploy, was sectioned off on Parra IV. After Amber confirmed the possibility of armed intervention in the Star Dragon Empire, thousands of Hive Cores were airdropped in several batches by cargo ships from orbit.

In an extremely short period, using information Lilith had acquired from the Imperial Library and Archives, they recreated the entire core area of the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Capital, Saint-Saulnier—that is, the Grand Palace and its surrounding buildings and terrain.

Although the Grand Palace hastily constructed by the Worker Bees couldn’t be as magnificent as the original, with the help of numerous holographic projection systems and the soldiers’ AR devices, they could still manage a decent approximation.

At the very least, the terrain and building distribution were one hundred percent accurate replicas.

Amber’s memory as a psionic user also played a huge role at this moment.

He provided Lilith with all the details of the hidden defensive fortifications, gun emplacements, permanent underground bunkers, and troop concealment points he had seen in the Grand Palace area during his accidental jump two months into the future warzone. Based on these known fortifications, Lilith extrapolated the entire defensive structure of the Grand Palace area and replicated it on the training ground.

If the terrain and building distribution were one hundred percent accurate, then the accuracy of these defensive fortifications and gun emplacements was definitely above eighty-five percent.

On this 1:1 scale replica training ground, the First Army Group simulated the process of attacking the Grand Palace from the periphery time and time again. The smallest combat unit—the combined arms battalion—had multiple outcomes simulated for what time it should arrive at what location and what situations it might encounter.

After the construction of the training ground was complete, the Hive Cores and Worker Bees began playing the part of the “Blue Team,” conducting exercises against the attacking “Red Team,” the First Army Group.

Under Lilith’s hive mind control, the “Blue Team” portrayed by the Worker Bees could be said to possess a level of organization and combat efficiency far exceeding that of human troops. This caused considerable trouble for the First Army Group, as they were facing a “Blue Team” whose tactical and technical proficiency was far beyond that of any previous enemy.

Coupled with the influence of various factors created by the exercise system, including long-range fire support, orbital strikes, and large-scale tactical nuclear strikes, the First Army Group’s initial simulation exercises did not go smoothly. In the first two drills, they even suffered setbacks, being pushed back or having the majority of their forces annihilated. This caused Hog and Van Fleet to lose a considerable amount of face.

When a unit’s commanding officer loses face in an exercise, it only leads to one outcome for their troops.

Intense, grueling training.

When the simulation exercises ended, during the time waiting for the training ground to be restored by the Worker Bees, the various units, aside from necessary rest and equipment maintenance, would also use the individually issued “Full Dive rigs” to enter virtual space and continue their exercises.

In the virtual space exercises, the First Army Group also conducted multiple joint drills with the Immortal Corps. Banninger and other veterans from the Immortal Corps joined Hog, Van Fleet, and others in the work of refining the operational plan.

This state of “real-world training, then virtual, then back to the real world” continued for a month and a half, after which the entire combat outlook of the First Army Group was completely different from before the exercises began.

If the pre-exercise First Army Group had the demeanor and proficiency of an elite force, then through this period of drills, the soldiers of the First Army Group not only maintained this demeanor and proficiency but also gained a ferocious fighting spirit and a fiery refusal to accept defeat.

Lilith, who was originally developed as a commander for unmanned forces, naturally possessed a high aptitude for combat command. With Dr. Mephisto’s assistance, her command level also showed exponential improvement during this period.

This directly led to the members of the First Army Group having the illusion that “the fighting is getting harder and harder.” Even though they were giving it their all, the “Blue Team” still seemed invincible.

In the last few training sessions, whether in real-world or virtual space exercises, the First Army Group was truly pushed to its fighting limit.

As the spearhead of the First Army Group, the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, commanded by Montai and Tairak, even launched a desperate armored assault directly through multiple tactical nuclear strikes from the Blue Team at the very moment they were about to breach the Grand Palace. In the end, with combat losses exceeding fifty percent, they annihilated the defenders in the core area of the Grand Palace and planted their banner on the ruins of the main hall.

To be honest, after seeing the results of the last few training exercises, Amber actually wanted to ask Lilith to lower the difficulty a bit.

After all, not all human forces could withstand ninety percent casualties without their morale collapsing. Nor would any human ground force drop nuclear warheads a few kilometers in front of their own defensive positions. And there was no reinforcement force capable of marching one thousand five hundred kilometers day and night to cross a continent, reach the core area of Saint-Saulnier, and encircle the First Army Group.

But when Amber thought about the core forces garrisoning the Grand Palace being the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps, he ultimately abandoned the idea of reducing the difficulty.

The former went without saying. They were the absolute elite of the entire Imperial Army, arguably the strongest opponent the Atlas ground forces would encounter.

And the Martyr Corps was even more formidable.

According to their portrayal in the game, this group of “Protectorate Army” soldiers were madmen who would truly dare to drop nukes in front of their own positions. At least in the game, player guilds undertaking major missions where the main enemy was the “Martyr Corps” frequently suffered from their suicidal nuclear attacks.

Therefore, the troubles created by Lilith’s “Blue Team” were not entirely impossible in the critical battle to come.

As the saying goes, err on the side of caution when assessing the enemy; it’s better to be safe than sorry. Only by doing this could the First Army Group avoid panicking on the battlefield due to unexpected situations after arriving in Saint-Saulnier.

Soon, with the conclusion of the final exercise, the time came for the First Army Group to assemble and embark. this was the absolute latest Amber could allow for the fleet to travel to Saint-Saulnier; after all, he couldn’t very well arrive after the enthronement ceremony was over.

Thousands of aerospace transports began busily taking off and landing at the hundreds of field airstrips cleared around the training ground. Heavy equipment was transported by land to the orbital elevator, then directly up to the giant “door panels” docked at the starport.

These Airdropped Fortresses not only delivered troops rapidly to the surface but also served as the equivalent of roll-on/roll-off ships for deploying large-scale ground forces.

Chapter 727: The Eve of the Enthronement

On the final day of embarkation, the sky over Parra IV was hung with low, dark clouds, like a great beast crouching overhead, suffocatingly oppressive.

The last unit of the First Army Group awaiting embarkation—the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade—had completed its final assembly. They were the pride of the Romu combat forces, the very fist of the entire ground army.

The training ground was covered in neat, uniform white formations—the signature paint scheme of Atlas ground forces. They stood like silent statues, each formation composed of hundreds of battle-hardened soldiers, quiet and grim.

Between the formations, main battle tanks, heavy multi-legged war machines, HCPs, and self-propelled electromagnetic cannons were arrayed in perfect order, their barrels angled toward the sky. The cold light glinted off their outer armor, creating a vast steel jungle of war machines that stretched as far as the eye could see.

When Amber, Hog, and the others appeared to inspect the troops, the Romu war cry thundered like rolling thunder across the entire training ground. The roar was filled with their fervent desire for victory and a raging fire in their hearts, desperate for release.

Amber took a step forward, his eyes sweeping over the soldiers before him. He offered no impassioned speech, no flowery rhetoric, but simply spoke in a calm voice, “I know that during the recent training, many of you have been holding back a fire in your hearts.”

He glanced at Hog and Van Fleet beside him. “And that includes your army group commander, your chief of staff, and indeed, the entire command staff of the Army Group.”

Hearing Amber’s words, a complex look flickered in the eyes of Hog and Van Fleet. Amber wasn’t wrong. The two of them had long felt that the difficulty of the recent training was a bit too high, and they seriously doubted whether any enemy in the universe could be as absurdly overpowered as the ‘Blue Team’ on the training grounds.

Amber ignored their expressions, his gaze sweeping across the troops on the field, and continued:

“But I am telling you this: the harsh training is only to ensure you achieve final victory, and to bring as many of you back from the battlefield as possible!

This time, your enemy is unlike any you have faced before. You will be facing the Star Dragon Empire’s most elite ground troops and most fanatical religious armies!

I expect every one of you to be fully prepared, with the highest resolve. In the coming battle, I want you to use your actions to prove me wrong—utterly and completely wrong!

I want you to unleash that fire in your hearts and let me… and our enemies on the battlefield know the taste of your fury—the fury of the Romu, the fury of an Atlas soldier!”

“HOOAH! HOOAH! HOOAH!”

The Romu soldiers of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade erupted in a heaven-shaking roar. It was a cry filled with long-suppressed anger, and even more so, with a thirst for victory.

Looking at the high-spirited troops, Amber nodded slightly.

“Move out!” He said no more, issuing a simple command.

In an instant, the steel tide began to move. The sound of heavy vehicle engines mingled with the roar of the aerospace transports parked at the field airstrip. These sounds, in turn, blended with the powerful, rhythmic march of the soldiers, finally converging into a magnificent and true battle anthem.

In orbit above Parra IV, the super-flagship The Dawn lay like a dormant beast, berthed silently in space.

Around the colossal vessel, numerous engineering vessels swarmed like busy Worker Bees, making the final preparations for her departure. A short distance away, several heavy cruisers, along with a larger number of light cruisers, destroyers, and frigates, had already completed their own preparations and now waited quietly for the ‘Queen of the Fleet’ to take her position.

This small task force would serve as the Atlas Group’s official visiting fleet, escorting Amber and the others to Saint-Saulnier to attend Princess Agnes’s enthronement ceremony.

This was the largest fleet size the Atlas Group could dispatch to Saint-Saulnier’s orbit after negotiations with the relevant parties in the Star Dragon Empire.

Therefore, the main force—the ‘Golden Dragon Battle Group,’ which included the Airdropped Fortress and three unmanned fleets—would find an opportunity to go dark in deep space after entering Imperial territory, eventually maneuvering to a position one to two hours’ warp distance from Saint-Saulnier.

Incidentally, the fleet continuing to operate within the Federation under the command of Guterres and others was designated the ‘Flowery Battle Group,’ named after the symbol of the Federation’s Congress—a pompon flower surrounded by stars.

As The Dawn, her preparations complete, moved to the head of the formation, the visiting fleet finally activated. The ships’ fusion reactors began to gradually increase their power output, and their plasma thruster arrays started to spew brilliant blue plasma flames.

Standing before the panoramic viewscreen on The Dawn’s bridge, Amber stared grimly into the dark universe ahead, as if he could see through the endless blackness.

The war for the Star Dragon Empire’s throne, Amber’s own lifespan crisis, the Starry Sky Dragon buried deep underground, and the crisis Salieh spoke of—all of it was finally drawing the various powers to Saint-Saulnier, a place fated to be consumed by the fires of war.

New Calendar Year 592, March 13th, the eve of the enthronement ceremony.

The last batch of Imperial nobles permitted to attend the ceremony at Saint-Saulnier arrived in orbit aboard their respective family ships.

And these nobles, usually so high and mighty, all invariably cast their gazes toward a colossal ship in orbit as they approached Saint-Saulnier.

It was a behemoth beyond their comprehension, berthed silently in the best position in the entire orbit, an exclusive ‘VIP mooring berth,’ like a slumbering beast of the starry sea.

The shipboard control AIs of the noble vessels quickly identified the giant ship after connecting to the network—The Dawn, a super-flagship belonging to the Atlas Group.

On the bridges of the various ships, the nobles who had come to view the ceremony spoke in low voices, their tones laced with a mixture of reverence, envy, and a hint of jealousy.

“So that’s the one.”

“No wonder it’s allowed to park there.”

“The Atlas Group… They’re the hottest thing right now.”

They of course understood that the reason this behemoth enjoyed such an honor was not because of the ship itself, but because of the power behind it—the Atlas Group.

It was no longer a secret among the Imperial aristocracy that this universal megacorporation had entered into a deep partnership with Her Highness Princess Agnes, who was about to ascend the throne.

And the true controller of the Atlas Group, the enigmatic Mr. Amber spoken of by all, had become a favorite of the Princess.

His influence had already surpassed that of many old-guard nobles.

“May the stars guide the heir’s way, and the Empire prosper from this day.”

“May holy light grace the throne, and the new sovereign’s blessing be known.”

“That’s quite poetic…”

When they saw the massive ‘tribute’ displayed by the optical camouflage units on The Dawn’s broadside, these nobles had to admit that a universal megacorporation truly had more tricks up its sleeve.

In recent days, many of the Imperial nobles who arrived at Saint-Saulnier and saw The Dawn had also followed suit in clumsy fashion after mooring their own ships, having their optical camouflage units display all sorts of blessings on their broadsides.

However, compared to the over five-kilometer-long Endless-class super-flagship, the blessings projected by these nobles’ ships looked rather petty.

On the surface of Saint-Saulnier, inside the Grand Palace, Agnes, who had already reached the heir apparent’s royal chambers, naturally saw the images being transmitted from space.

When she saw the video feed of The Dawn, which looked like a giant billboard floating above Saint-Saulnier, she couldn’t help but smile and shake her head.

“That Mr. Amber… he always finds new ways to surprise me.”

“To be so high-profile and ostentatious, it seems this Mr. Amber truly wants to tie his fate to yours,” Natalia said with a smile, looking at the text projected on The Dawn’s broadside.

“No, quite the opposite.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Natalia cast a questioning glance at her. The Princess continued:

“Such a public blessing can be reasonably interpreted as the Atlas Group congratulating the Empire, not me personally. Mr. Amber has held something back. Otherwise, he would have been as blunt as the other nobles and displayed a message like ‘A tribute to Her Highness Agnes’.”

“Are you saying the Atlas Group still cannot be fully trusted?”

“That’s only if we fail to satisfy Mr. Amber’s appetite. But if we can offer him terms he cannot refuse, then the Atlas Group will undoubtedly become our staunchest ally. The fact that he is willing to attend the ceremony in person is a statement in itself. It shows, at least, that the terms we’ve offered so far are to his satisfaction.”

Agnes turned her head to look out the window at the lavishly decorated Grand Palace, then continued to ask, “So, has the Atlas delegation been settled in?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Natalia nodded, then raised her hand and projected a map of the Grand Palace area from her personal terminal.

“As honored guests, they have been accommodated in the private villa. They will be escorted by the Royal Guard to the Grand Palace tomorrow morning before the enthronement ceremony begins. However, the armed personnel that Mr. Amber brought with him can only remain at the private villa. Your Highness, if I may be so bold… your decision to allow Mr. Amber to bring armed personnel into the Imperial Capital, isn’t it too…”

“It’s of no concern.” Agnes waved her hand dismissively. “It’s only a hundred or so men. Besides, your Princess’s Guard Regiment can’t spare the extra manpower to guard the private villa right now, can it?”

Natalia was about to say more when a warning suddenly flashed on her personal terminal. At the same time, an urgent military dispatch came through her emergency communication channel.

In that instant, the commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment’s expression changed from clear to overcast.

A moment later, after ending the communication, Natalia leaned in and whispered in Agnes’s ear, “Your Highness, reconnaissance fleets report movement from the Regent Prince’s fleet.”

Chapter 728: The Regent Prince’s Maneuvers

“At this exact moment.”

Agnes’s delicate brows furrowed at the news. The situation she most dreaded had come to pass. It was obvious Norton II wasn’t showing up with a fleet to present a gift for her enthronement ceremony.

“How far are they from Saint-Saulnier? What’s the fleet’s size?” Agnes asked.

Natalia: “Based on the scout ship’s current position, they’re about 0.3 standard warp distances away. As for the fleet’s size…”

The commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment quickly glanced at the encrypted message from the scout ship before continuing, “At extreme range, the scout ship estimates a force of two standard fleets. However, based on our recent intelligence, parts of the Duke’s fleet and the Fortress of Sorrow, which withdrew from the border region under the pretext of rest and refit, have also gone silent. It’s highly likely their forces have merged and will make a move against you tomorrow.”

Agnes raised a hand, resting her knuckles against her chin, a contemplative look in her eyes. “Which means they can reach Saint-Saulnier within a few hours at the latest…”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The room fell silent. Agnes waved her hand, summoning a massive star chart centered on Saint-Saulnier in the middle of the room. Natalia understood her instantly and updated it with the intelligence on the Regent Prince’s fleet.

Soon, the tactical star chart finished updating. The Princess Faction’s main forces—the fleets of Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia—currently consisted of one Celestial Fortress and less than three fleets, protecting the vicinity of Saint-Saulnier.

As for the garrison fleet and the Orbital Defense Platforms, Agnes didn’t hold out much hope.

One reason was that although she had sent people to contact their commander multiple times, he remained noncommittal, strongly suspected of being an opportunist. He likely wouldn’t swear allegiance until the very moment she successfully ascended the throne.

Another reason was their limited combat effectiveness. Agnes knew exactly what kind of forces the Imperial Capital’s garrison fleet and garrison force were. To put it bluntly, they were little more than ceremonial troops.

Meanwhile, the sixth Celestial Fortress, which Agnes was theoretically supposed to command personally, had only just recently completed its final outfitting. Although it was scheduled to warp into the skies above Saint-Saulnier during the enthronement ceremony—a planned high point of the event—its crew was not yet fully assembled. Therefore, the Celestial Fortress was not actually at full combat readiness. Rushing it into battle might well cause unnecessary losses.

The Regent Prince’s forces were marked at a position 0.3 standard warp distances from Saint-Saulnier. Their estimated strength was one Celestial Fortress plus four standard fleets—and very likely more than just four.

According to reliable intelligence, after Duke William died for his country, the remainder of his fleet was quickly brought under the Regent Prince’s control.

The final faction was the ‘Royalists’ led by Duke Soren. In Agnes’s view, however, it would be more accurate to call them her Father Emperor’s staunch supporters. Although a large group of old-guard nobles, including Duke Soren himself, had agreed to attend tomorrow’s enthronement ceremony, in the current climate, they were more like potential enemies than friends.

After all, if they were allies, Duke Soren wouldn’t have brought the Radiant Fortress and his fleet to the vicinity of the Imperial Capital. The massive fleet was positioned even closer than the Regent Prince’s forces.

Agnes knew that among the three factions, she was indeed the weakest. The most dangerous moment would be during the ceremony itself, when she was to accept the oaths of allegiance.

If the Regent Prince chose to make his move then, she had to have a way to turn the situation around brilliantly. Otherwise, she would find it difficult to secure the sworn loyalty of the Imperial nobles, and the Empire would face a true crisis…

As for the Atlas Group, at this critical juncture, Agnes naturally considered them her ally. After all, if even Mr. Amber had no intention of supporting her, then they might as well skip the enthronement ceremony and hold a funeral instead.

“What about the situation on Saint-Saulnier itself? Have the Royal Guard or the Martyr Corps made any moves?”

“We have no control over the Royal Guard here in the Imperial Capital. Or rather, it will be difficult for them to obey your commands directly until you’ve formally ascended the throne.”

Natalia paused, recalling her negotiations with the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard commander. His words had been merciless. She also remembered the secret intelligence reports mentioning that the Regent Prince Faction had long since made contact with the Royal Guard.

All of this made Natalia keenly aware that, for the Princess Faction, the effort to win over the Royal Guard had already failed.

“Besides the Royal Guard in the capital, some Royal Guard and garrison force units in other sectors began showing signs of mobilization yesterday. We’ve inquired as to the reason, and their answers have been consistent: they claim it’s to prevent any unforeseen incidents tomorrow, so they’ve entered a state of combat readiness in advance.

And the Martyr Corps, stationed behind the State Religion cathedral, has also shown signs of assembling for battle. Our reconnaissance in that direction has been subject to interference since this morning. We can no longer determine the status of the Martyr Corps’ mobilization.”

“So our ground forces are also at a disadvantage?”

Natalia nodded grimly. “That’s right, Your Highness. After all, Duke Hastings and the others have no suitable pretext to land their troops on Saint-Saulnier’s surface at the moment.”

“True. On the surface, Norton II hasn’t landed his own armed forces either. If Hastings and the others were to bring down their ground troops, it would only give others grounds for criticism.”

Looking at the highly unfavorable situation before her, the usually composed Agnes couldn’t help but reveal a wry smile.

It was hard to imagine that the closer she got to her enthronement and final victory, the more perilous her situation became. It was as if what awaited her tomorrow wasn’t a throne, but a gallows.

“Lord Natalia, I must say, the situation we’re facing is truly fraught with crisis, isn’t it?” Agnes said, looking at the star chart. She suddenly laughed, her expression clearing.

“Your Highness, no matter what happens tomorrow, the Princess’s Guard Regiment will defend you to the death!”

Natalia dropped to one knee, her words holding not a trace of hesitation.

“Rise, Lord Natalia. There’s no need for that.” Agnes leaned down and helped Natalia up. “And there’s no need to be so pessimistic. The sun has not yet risen on tomorrow. It’s still anyone’s game.”

“That old fox, Norton II… damn, he’s got some moves.”

Inside the Princess’s private villa, Amber couldn’t help but curse as he looked at the full tactical overlay. The dense clusters of dots on the display represented the various factions around Saint-Saulnier, all with swords drawn and bows bent. The blue dots representing Agnes’s side were clearly outnumbered and outgunned.

Amber had to admit that the Regent Prince, Norton II, was an absolute master of strategy. The old-guard politician, who had seemingly lost his power on the surface, had secretly used the network he’d painstakingly built over many years to silently win over numerous nobles and armed forces in the Imperial Capital, giving him the means to seize power by force…

This was especially true for some of the Royal Guard units around Saint-Saulnier. For them to be mobilizing at this critical juncture was a clear sign something was wrong.

Under normal circumstances, what kind of Royal Guard tasked with protecting the Imperial Capital would assume a battle-ready stance as the Heir was about to ascend the throne?

As he thought about this, Amber’s mind drifted back to the unexpected time jump from not long ago.

During that heart-pounding leap, he had personally witnessed the fierce battle that could erupt at tomorrow’s enthronement ceremony.

At the time, he had only seen the Atlas Group’s ground forces fighting alongside the Princess’s Guard Regiment. While the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard didn’t appear directly, it was clear they weren’t on Agnes’s side.

“So, tomorrow we might have to face the Regent Prince’s fleet, his marines, the Royal Guard he’s won over, and the Martyr Corps all at the same time?”

Amber felt an unprecedented pressure, but at the same time, he was deeply confused.

He still couldn’t figure out the relationship between the Martyr Corps and the Royal Guard units the Regent Prince had successfully swayed. Even with Lilith gathering intelligence at full capacity, she had made little progress.

Were the two of them friendly forces? Or were they hostile to each other as well?

Amber found it hard to believe that the Regent Prince, who had battled the old Emperor Frederick and the entire Imperial Family for most of his life, would suddenly and illogically surrender to the old Emperor at the final moment.

It was clearly illogical and, more importantly, it didn’t fit Norton II’s ‘persona’.

Amber rubbed the bridge of his nose, forcing himself to calm down. He then had Lilith notify the key figures of the Golden Dragon Battle Group to enter the virtual space for a meeting.

As a precaution, the only ones heading to the surface this time were Amber himself, a squad of elite Romu marines, and a campaign-level quantum communications deployment terminal—a device capable of breaking through Saint-Saulnier’s communications blackout to establish direct contact with the outside.

Even Isabelle and the others had been strictly ordered by him to remain aboard The Dawn. After all, an armed conflict was highly likely tomorrow, and it was always better to have fewer non-combatants in a war zone.

The defensive force in the Princess’s private villa, with a Level 6 psionic user like Amber at its core, supported by marines all equipped with heavy powered armor, was by no means an easy target.

With the freedom to unleash his Psionics and go all out, Amber was absolutely confident he could hold on until reinforcements arrived.

Soon, Isabelle from The Dawn, Van Fleet and Hog lurking in deep space, and Ramos, who was temporarily in acting command of the fleet, all entered the encrypted conference room in the virtual space.

Amber didn’t waste any words. He got straight to the point and issued the order for the Golden Dragon Battle Group to enter a state of combat readiness. The fleet in deep space was to be ready to warp to Saint-Saulnier at a moment’s notice, while The Dawn and its small escort of warships were tasked with clearing a safe warp-out zone for the arriving fleet.

This command was already part of the operational plan, so Van Fleet and the others were not surprised. After receiving the order, they immediately put the fleet and the First Army Group on alert, waiting only for Amber’s final directive to launch an assault on Saint-Saulnier.

After the communication ended, Amber slowly stood up and walked to the window. He gazed out at the Imperial Capital, shrouded in night, a complex look flashing in his eyes. Saint-Saulnier seemed peaceful tonight, but a turbulent undercurrent was flowing beneath the surface.

The various factions were all rubbing their hands in anticipation, waiting for tomorrow to arrive. And tomorrow’s enthronement ceremony was destined to be anything but peaceful.

Amber took a deep breath, trying to calm his emotions. He knew he had to remain composed and not lose his cool.

“Tomorrow is bound to be a tough fight,” he muttered to himself.

If he could successfully help Agnes ascend the throne amidst this crisis, the Atlas Group’s influence in the Star Dragon Empire would reach an unprecedented height.

And he himself would also reap enormous rewards.

Chapter 729: I Refuse to Pledge Allegiance to You

On the morning of March 14th, 592 of the New Calendar, the Star Dragon Empire welcomed its most important day in recent memory. Princess Agnes was to hold her enthronement ceremony at the Grand Palace in the Imperial Capital Saint-Saulnier, where she would officially receive the crown from her Father Emperor and become the new Emperor.

Before Saint-Saulnier had fully awoken from its slumber, Agnes, who was either an early riser or had hardly slept at all, received a piece of news—Norton II had arrived.

The Regent Prince, who had been missing for a long time, had landed at an airfield on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital in an aerospace craft and was currently heading toward the Grand Palace.

By this point, Agnes and Natalia were well aware that they had only been notified after the Regent’s aerospace craft had entered the atmosphere. This alone was enough to reveal the stance of the garrison fleet and the commanders of the Orbital Defense Platforms in orbit over Saint-Saulnier.

Natalia gazed at the message on her terminal, her expression grave. “Your Highness, I never expected Norton II to actually set foot on the planet’s surface. Is he planning to single-handedly venture into the tiger’s den?”

“No,” Agnes said, shaking her head. “Perhaps in his eyes, he’s returning to his own ‘tiger’s den,’ and we are the ones who should be driven out.”

“That…”

“Prepare for battle, Lord Natalia. I am certain our dear Regent Prince has not come in peace and goodwill,” Agnes said calmly, sitting down at her vanity and closing her eyes to allow the handmaidens to continue with her preparations.

“Yes, Your Highness. I will issue the order at once. But there is one more thing.”

“Speak.”

Natalia hesitated for a moment before finally speaking. “Should we notify Mr. Amber as well?”

“Of course. From this moment on, share all of our intelligence with Mr. Amber. After all, if we reach the point of no return, we will need to rely on the power of Atlas to intervene.”

“As you command.”

——

As Amber received the encrypted message from Natalia and immediately ordered the marines stationed at the Princess’s private villa to prepare for battle, the morning serenity in several of the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard barracks outside the Grand Palace was shattered by a series of bugle calls.

These were followed by the light tap of a drumroll—the signature beat of the Imperial Royal Guard’s military band.

Amidst the drumbeats that symbolized the honor and duty of the Royal Guard, squads of fully armed soldiers, led by a group of young noble officers, marched out of their barracks. The morning sun glinted off their Powered Armor, making them look like streams of golden light flowing out from the camps.

As these Royal Guard soldiers boarded their respective infantry fighting vehicles, the HCPs and multi-legged war machines in the barracks’ hangars roared to life. These elite land warfare units of the Empire assembled with incredible speed.

The armored units and heavy infantry formed an urban assault formation and advanced toward the Grand Palace, while the long-range fire support detachments quickly moved into their prepared positions—positions they had trained in countless times—only this time, the muzzles of their self-propelled electromagnetic cannons were aimed at the Grand Palace.

Inside those very barracks, the original commanders, who had been placed under house arrest in their confinement cells, watched through barred windows as their troops were led away. Their eyes were filled with disbelief and fear.

They never would have imagined that the Royal Guard, stationed in the Imperial Capital for years, could have been so thoroughly infiltrated by the Regent Prince. Nor did they know when the mid-tier young officers, who had always seemed dedicated to training their troops and had never shown any sign of abnormality, had been so completely brainwashed by Norton II.

The news of the Regent Prince’s arrival at the Imperial Capital’s airfield was like a signal to begin, spurring these compromised Royal Guard units into action.

Within Agnes’s royal chambers, Natalia, now also in full armor, reported the latest developments to the princess.

“Your Highness, aside from the Royal Guard permanently stationed inside the Grand Palace, over six-tenths of the other Imperial Capital Royal Guard units have left their barracks. According to aerial observations from The Observer Angel, these forces are marching toward the Grand Palace. Just moments ago, The Observer Angel was targeted by ground-based fire-control radar and had to temporarily withdraw from the airspace above the palace to evade.”

“Can you determine their specific destinations?” Agnes asked, her eyes still closed as she waited for the handmaidens to finish their work.

“Most of the unauthorized units appear to be heading for the main gate of the Grand Palace, which is also the primary outdoor venue for the enthronement ceremony. Another unit is advancing toward the Princess’s private villa.”

“The private villa? Are they planning to take control of Amber?”

Natalia shook her head. “The intent of this unit is still unclear, but I have already shared the intelligence with Mr. Amber.”

“Should we dispatch a unit to the private villa?”

“I made that suggestion, Your Highness.” Natalia’s expression suddenly turned a little strange. “But Mr. Amber said…”

“What did he say?”

“He told us to worry about ourselves first.”

“Ha, that’s his style, isn’t it?”

“Your Highness, everything is ready,” the chief handmaiden said softly, breaking the silence in the room.

Agnes gave a slight nod and opened her eyes. Her entire demeanor changed in that instant. She rose slowly, each step steady and powerful, as if treading upon the very fate of the Empire.

“Let’s go, Lord Natalia. Let’s meet this Regent Prince who has come to ‘present me with a gift’,” she said, a cold smile playing on her lips, her tone tinged with mockery.

The atmosphere at the main gate of the Grand Palace was tense and grim.

Soldiers of the Princess’s Guard Regiment were already in formation, standing as still as silent statues. Underground defensive fortifications had risen slowly from the ground, instantly providing the defenders with numerous composite armor bunkers and fixed weapon emplacements.

Meanwhile, the imperial nobles who had arrived early at the main gate plaza to view the ceremony now looked on in utter confusion.

“What’s going on?”

“Is this an unscheduled military parade?”

“A parade? It doesn’t look like it. They wouldn’t activate defensive fortifications for a parade, would they?”

The nobles whispered among themselves, a sense of unease spreading through the crowd. A neat, rhythmic sound of marching grew closer, shattering the brief period of commotion.

It was the sound of the Imperial Royal Guard troops arriving from their barracks, a heavy and powerful thudding that seemed to pound on the hearts of the spectating nobles.

Clad in the pure black Powered Armor of the Royal Guard, they advanced like several black torrents down the main thoroughfares, finally converging at the plaza before the Grand Palace’s main gate.

Heavy multi-legged war machines advanced slowly on the flanks, their cannons aimed directly at the main gate. The Royal Guard soldiers, having already disembarked, used their infantry fighting vehicles as cover and pushed forward slowly behind them.

Two military forces, both belonging to the Imperial Royal Guard, were about to meet on the battlefield at the heart of the Empire on the day of the Heir’s enthronement.

This absurd scene sent a chill through everyone present. Many of the nobles who had come to view the ceremony began to quietly slip away, but many more chose to stay.

Because no matter who won this conflict, they wanted to be the first to offer their loyalty to the victor.

Soon, a fully armored Norton II, surrounded by a contingent of his guards, walked slowly to the front of his formation.

His Powered Armor was painted purple, a color representing the authority of the Regent. The ornate tactical faceplate retracted as he reached the front line, revealing eyes as sharp as a hawk’s. He scanned his surroundings before his gaze slowly settled on the main gate.

Atop the wall, Princess Agnes, dressed in a magnificent ceremonial gown and surrounded by the Princess’s Guard Regiment, slowly appeared.

She looked down upon Norton II from high above, not a hint of fear in her eyes.

“Regent Prince, your stance doesn’t exactly look like you’ve come to swear fealty to me,” Agnes’s voice was cool and proud, utterly devoid of fear.

“Pledge allegiance? To you?”

Norton II sneered, his tone dripping with contempt and disdain, his voice echoing across the entire plaza through a loudspeaker.

“A wet-behind-the-ears little girl. You think you’re qualified to inherit this Empire?”

At these words, Agnes’s brow furrowed. Amber, watching the scene unfold on a surveillance feed provided by Natalia, immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Because such blunt and arrogant words were not something the Norton II he knew would ever say.

“I have no ability?” Agnes raised an eyebrow, retorting, “Time will prove everything. As for you, Regent Prince, your current actions are a complete betrayal of the oath you took when you accepted the regency. You are shamelessly attempting to usurp the throne.”

“Usurp the throne?”

Norton II’s face darkened. The word seemed to have triggered something in him. His expression shifted rapidly, and his voice rose uncontrollably.

“I am doing this for the future of the Empire! You know nothing of governing a nation! You will only lead the Empire to ruin! I am the one who can save it!”

His voice was filled with a fervent self-confidence, as if he truly were the Empire’s savior. Following his declaration, the young officers in the Royal Guard ranks, their faces alight with zealotry, began to lead their troops in chanting, “Long live the Regent Prince!”

Even at this moment, these young noble officers remained steadfast in their belief that only Norton II could lead the Empire out of its predicament and achieve a true revival.

“Save the Empire? With these soldiers you’ve deluded?” Agnes looked coldly at the Royal Guard soldiers. “They are merely pawns in your hands, tools for you to satisfy your own ambition!”

Her voice was filled with anger and disappointment. Natalia, standing beside her, raised her saber high, and the soldiers of the Princess’s Guard Regiment immediately let out a series of shouts.

“Long live Her Highness Agnes!”

“Long live the Regent Prince!”

The chants of the two sides rose and fell, the deafening cries filling the air. The “smell of gunpowder” grew ever stronger, and the tense atmosphere reached its breaking point. The confrontation that would decide the fate of the Star Dragon Empire seemed inevitable.

“Give it up, Agnes. Surrender your right of succession, and I can guarantee your safety. Otherwise, this place will become a river of blood,” Norton II said, his tone now laced with a clear threat.

Agnes did not answer, merely staring coldly down at Norton II and his massive force of Royal Guard soldiers. Beside her, Natalia was already prepared to order the Princess’s Guard Regiment to open fire.

“Your Highness, have you truly thought this through?”

The voice of the Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole, suddenly rang out. Agnes and Natalia turned their heads slightly to see that the Minister of Finance, along with the Imperial Prime Minister, the Minister of the Interior, and others, had somehow made their way onto the wall.

Although Agnes found it strange that they would appear in this location at this time, she understood in that moment that Jacques Cole and the other ministers had also made their choice.

She said softly, “Your Graces, I believe history will forgive my cruelty, but it will never forgive my weakness.”

“Mercy is the right of the strong,” the Imperial Prime Minister said, making one last attempt to prevent the situation from spiraling into a point of no return.

“That is correct. But first, I must prove that I am the strong one, must I not?”

Chapter 730: Defeat Them One by One?

From the princess’s private villa, Amber witnessed the entire remote confrontation between Agnes and Norton II, finding the scene before him utterly absurd.

The two most powerful people in the Empire were having a shouting match hundreds of meters apart in the main square of the Grand Palace, with a large crowd of nobles watching.

Seeing both sides fuming but neither daring to fire the first shot, leading to a stalemate, Amber couldn’t help but gripe, “How is this like a conflict within a star-faring empire? Are they going to send out champions for a duel next?”

“Master, based on my analysis, this may be an Imperial tradition,” Lilith suddenly said.

“What do you mean?”

“Master, the cultural traditions of the Star Dragon Empire are worlds apart from the Federation’s. I’m sure you’ve noticed that it is, in many ways, a rather retro feudal monarchy. In a country like this, the personal charisma of the monarch, or leader, is the key to maintaining control. A qualified ruler must not only be shrewd but also possess ‘acting skills’.”

“So you think they’re putting on a show?”

Lilith replied, “Indeed, Master. I believe they are using this method to show the Empire’s nobility and commoners their tough stance. After all, the Empire has always been a nation that subscribes to strongman politics. If Agnes can’t make herself seem tougher than the Regent Prince, she may not be able to secure her position even after ascending the throne.”

“What a stupid, bizarre tradition. If you really want to show a ‘tough’ stance, just start fighting and be done with it. Why go through all this nonsense?”

Hearing Lilith’s words, Amber couldn’t help but shake his head. He could only conclude that he still didn’t know enough about these ‘feudal diehards’ of the Empire.

But even so, Amber was certain of one thing: Regent Prince Norton II’s behavior today was definitely off!

What was Norton II’s “canon persona”?

An ambitious and ruthless character—a master of strategy who planned meticulously, acted decisively without hesitation, and was determined to launch a noble revolution to overthrow the Leon family’s rule. This was why so many players had liked this character, who had only appeared in the story’s background.

But from his drastic personality change to Amber’s meeting with him in the Imperial Capital, and now his shouting match with Agnes in front of the Grand Palace, his every word and action was a world away from the image Amber remembered. It was as if he had been replaced by a hot-headed madman obsessed with power.

If this part of the story had appeared in the game from his previous life, Amber was sure many lore-focused players would have furiously decried the Regent’s performance as “OOC”.

As Amber was pondering what could have happened to Norton II, a Romu marine suddenly rushed into the hall where he stood, his face grave.

“Boss, the Royal Guard unit moving toward us has already formed an attack line. It looks like they intend to use their superior numbers to force a breakthrough of the villa’s defenses. The drones we sent out were shot down by their escort anti-air, so we can’t conduct aerial surveillance on them for now.”

“It’s fine. What’s coming will come.”

Amber, who had chosen powered armor over a formal suit that morning, walked over to the marine, patted him on the shoulder, and then led the way out of the hall.

Although the schedule provided by Agnes dictated he should have changed into a formal suit early in the morning to attend the viewing ceremony at the Grand Palace, Amber never actually believed that today’s enthronement ceremony would proceed smoothly.

Especially after discovering the Regent’s fleet’s movements, and then getting news that the Regent himself had come down to the planet’s surface, Amber had opted to don his powered armor directly.

Soon, Amber arrived at the main gate’s defensive line of the princess’s private villa. The Romu marines who had come to the surface with him erupted with extremely high morale. In their eyes, with the Boss personally overseeing the battle, any and all attacking enemies would be utterly annihilated.

On the other side, the Royal Guard commander tasked with “containing Amber and the Atlas delegation” and leading the attack was clearly not yet aware of what was to come. However, through the real-time images relayed from the optronic mast of a forward scout vehicle, he had noticed something unusual about the princess’s private villa.

As the Royal Guard responsible for defending the Imperial Capital, they had access to the layouts of all hidden defensive points in the city, and the princess’s private villa was no exception. After all, the Empire never thought a Royal Guard rebellion was possible.

But the villa’s current defenses were vastly different from the information registered in the Royal Guard’s database.

Because besides the villa’s original hidden bunkers, fixed defensive weapons, and the hundred or so armed Atlas Group personnel mentioned in the intelligence, the scout vehicle had discovered a large number of brand-new automated turrets—there were even three fixed heavy particle cannons mixed in among a host of charged particle cannons and electromagnetic machine guns.

“The intel is bad.”

Inside a camouflaged command vehicle, the commander of this Royal Guard unit looked at the defensive firepower marked by the scout vehicle and began to have second thoughts.

He and his men in the Royal Guard had heard of the Atlas Group and Amber’s reputation, but since they had decided to follow the Regent Prince, these passionate young officers certainly weren’t going to back down.

Besides, according to their intelligence, the Atlas Group had only brought down a little over one hundred people. While Mr. Amber was a psionic user, they had no support from armored units. Moreover, the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard had received extensive training in combating psionic users—they had even trained against the Royal Silencers.

So this Royal Guard commander, who had drawn the short straw for the mission to ‘contain Amber and the Atlas units’, didn’t think much of it at first. He just wanted to complete the mission in one fell swoop and live up to His Grace the Regent Prince’s expectations.

But now…

“Lieutenant Colonel, there might be more than just these fixed defensive weapons.”

The operations staff officer in the command vehicle spoke up, then moved another screen in front of the commander. It showed reports coming in from reconnaissance teams on the other sides of the princess’s private villa.

These scout units had discovered that, aside from the main gate, the other sides of the villa were guarded by a large number of spider-like armed robots. These fully-armed robots, numerous in quantity, were now vigilantly watching the perimeter of the villa.

Moreover, inside the villa, mechanical units could be seen from time to time transporting supplies, giving the distinct impression that they were fully prepared for battle and just waiting for the Royal Guard to attack.

Seeing this, the Royal Guard commander immediately connected it to the heavy transport trucks that had been frequently entering and leaving the princess’s private villa in recent days.

At the time, because these trucks were all painted with the logos of various food and materials suppliers in the Imperial Capital, the commander had assumed they were making their usual supply runs to the villa.

Furthermore, their reconnaissance equipment had indeed detected no life signs in those trucks other than the drivers.

Now, it seemed those trucks were just a cover for secretly transporting a large batch of armed robots.

“We were careless,” the Royal Guard commander said with a frown. If the enemy was already prepared, their attack might not go as smoothly as they had imagined.

“You needn’t blame yourself, Lieutenant Colonel. If the Princess was the one making the arrangements, it wouldn’t be hard to conceal things,” the operations staff officer paused, then continued, “The question now is, should we still proceed with the attack as planned?”

Meanwhile, Amber, who was behind a barricade at the main gate of the princess’s private villa, suddenly received an urgent communication from The Dawn in orbit.

When he answered, Isabelle’s face immediately appeared on the communication screen of his tactical faceplate’s HUD.

“Amber, we just detected an abnormal mass increase and spatial fluctuations. The shipboard control AI judges it to be a large-scale fleet warp. After communicating with Duke Hastings, he also confirmed that the signature of this spatial fluctuation is ‘unauthorized’.”

“The Regent’s fleet?”

Isabelle nodded. “Highly likely.”

“It seems that after their movements were detected by the scout ship yesterday, they immediately began to warp. Looks like they’re trying to put pressure on Agnes’s side at this moment of confrontation,” Amber analyzed.

“So what do we do now?”

“Put The Dawn and its subordinate ships on battle alert. Signal the ‘Golden Dragon Battle Group’ on standby in deep space and tell them to begin warp preparations.”

While Amber was communicating with Isabelle and the others on The Dawn, Princess Agnes, at the “confrontation scene” at the Grand Palace, also learned from Duke Hastings—who was on standby in orbit—that the suspected fleet of the Regent Prince was exiting its warp state.

She immediately ordered Duke Hastings to lead the fleet and prepare for battle. If the situation spiraled out of control, he must prevent the Regent’s side from gaining complete space superiority over Saint-Saulnier.

“He’s pressuring us on all fronts, Your Highness,” said Minister of Finance Jacques Cole, who had already chosen to take Agnes’s side, his face grim.

Although he felt a twinge of regret for taking a side so early, there was no turning back now. He could only focus on helping Agnes ascend the throne.

At the same time, he pinned his hopes on his “nephew”—Amber, who was supporting Agnes with the Atlas Group—being reliable enough.

“Lord Jacques, there is no need to worry.”

Seeming to sense the Minister of Finance’s apprehension, Princess Agnes spoke while keeping her eyes fixed on the ‘rebels’ who had retreated behind temporary cover below.

“Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia are stationed in orbit. With their fleets and the Celestial Fortress, it won’t be so easy for Norton II to seize space superiority, even if he truly wants to. What’s more, if we reach a point where we can’t handle it, we still have Mr. Amber’s reinforcements.”

“Ah, Amber… I just hope he’s reliable this time,” Jacques Cole grumbled. “What about Duke Soren? Has Your Highness tried to contact him? If the Regent’s actions can be deemed an ‘armed rebellion’, Duke Soren and the others shouldn’t just be watching from the sidelines…”

Hearing Jacques Cole’s question, Agnes’s expression also grew heavy. “I’ve sent someone to contact them, but we have yet to receive a reply.”

Just as Agnes was about to say more to Jacques Cole, the Imperial Prime Minister, and the others, Natalia’s expression suddenly changed. She then said to Agnes in a slightly urgent tone:

“Your Highness, the Martyr Corps stationed near the State Religion cathedral… they’re on the move. And they’re being personally led by the Archbishop. They are currently marching rapidly in this direction.”

Agnes, Jacques Cole, and the others tensed upon hearing this. They realized that for this “Protectorate Army of the State Religion” to move out at this time, it was definitely not to just ‘spectate’. They had their own agenda.

This meant that the chaotic situation in Saint-Saulnier, triggered by the struggle for the throne, had escalated once again with the entry of a third party.

In the square before the main gate of the Grand Palace, the atmosphere was now tense to the extreme. The very air seemed to have frozen.

Those fearless Imperial nobles still watching the scene held their breath, their gazes fixed on the unfolding situation, afraid to miss a single detail.

Because they knew that what came next would be the critical moment that decided the fate of the Empire.

And they would be the witnesses to this historic event.

“The Archbishop moving out with the Martyr Corps at this time… what are they trying to do? And Father Emperor still hasn’t shown himself.”

Standing high on the city wall, a complex emotion flickered in Agnes’s eyes. She also felt a sliver of doubt. The Martyr Corps, as the armed force of the Imperial State Religion, had always been loyal only to the reigning Emperor and the Church.

By rights, they should have remained strictly neutral and not participated in any political struggles. Yet now, at this sensitive moment, they were moving toward the Grand Palace…

“Could it be… that they’ve also reached some sort of agreement with the Regent Prince?”

Just as Agnes was pondering the secrets behind this, Natalia suddenly continued her report: “Your Highness, according to the latest reconnaissance, the Martyr Corps has split its forces. One column is not maneuvering toward us…”

“Are they going to the princess’s private villa?” Agnes immediately asked, having guessed the target.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

A sharp glint flashed in Agnes’s eyes. “It seems they’ve realized the importance of Mr. Amber and the Atlas Group to us. They want to strike first to gain the upper hand and eliminate our ally. Have you informed Mr. Amber?”

“The intelligence has already been synced,” Natalia said. She hesitated for a moment before asking, “Your Highness, are you sure we don’t need to send troops to support Mr. Amber?”

“Didn’t I intend to dispatch troops earlier, only to be refused by Mr. Amber? And now? Look at the situation outside. Our connection to Mr. Amber has been cut. Norton II clearly means to defeat us one by one.”

Agnes sighed helplessly and looked in the direction of her private villa. It was at that very moment that the ‘rebel Royal Guard’, who had been in a standoff below for a long time, finally began to move.

Seeing the situation below, Natalia advised, “Your Highness, they are about to attack. Should you perhaps withdraw for the time being?”

“No. Fratricide is a grave sin. I want to give these Royal Guard soldiers one last chance.”

Agnes walked slowly to the edge of the wall. An intimidating pressure suddenly erupted from her, making those around her tremble. Her pupils turned a pure gold, and a pair of dragon wings slowly appeared in her shadow under the sunlight.

Then, all the Royal Guard soldiers below suddenly heard a majestic female voice coming from all directions, as if countless people were speaking to them at once.

“I am Princess Agnes Barbara Leon of the Empire. To those who have stained the honor of the Royal Guard, I hereby give you one last chance.”

Chapter 731: Lord Amber, To the Rescue!

“I am Princess Agnes Barbara Leon of The Empire. To you who have tarnished the honor of the Royal Guard, I will give you one last chance.”

When Agnes’s voice rang directly in the minds of the surrounding Royal Guard soldiers, a stir went through the units that had been turned by the Regent Prince. For many of them, this was likely the first time they had truly felt the presence of the ‘Dragon’s Might’.

Agnes, standing atop the city wall, had a resolute expression, and the voice projected through her ‘Dragon’s Might’ continued to echo in everyone’s mind:

“Soldiers of the Royal Guard, you have guarded the Imperial Capital for years and have served The Empire well. In light of this service, I will pardon those who lay down their arms now and return to their barracks! But if you continue to aid the Regent Prince in his rebellion, then what awaits you is the severe punishment of The Empire, with no one spared!”

She paused slightly, her gaze sweeping over the Royal Guard below with a tangible force that made the soldiers lower their heads. “When you joined the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard, you swore an oath to the flag of The Empire, to protect the peace of the Imperial Capital and defend the glory of The Empire. Yet now, your actions betray that oath. Ask yourselves, is this truly what you want?!”

The eyes of some soldiers, who were merely following the main force, began to flicker with hesitation. They had essentially left their barracks under the influence of the herd mentality, following their comrades.

As for the majority of the soldiers, under the influence of the ‘Dragon’s Might’—which was essentially a form of psychic power—they began to feel a trace of regret. Recalling their past oaths and seeing the current scene, they couldn’t help but feel bewildered, starting to wonder if what they were doing was wrong.

The young officers in the ranks, who were already diehard loyalists of the Regent Prince, saw this sentiment starting to spread, and their faces changed. They knew full well that if the situation got out of control, the Regent Prince’s plan would be ruined.

The leading young officer was well aware that even if most of the Royal Guard were pardoned after surrendering, they, the leading officers, would definitely not have a good end.

At this thought, the young noble’s eyes turned sinister. He roared, “Hold your positions! Don’t be bewitched by her words!”

As he spoke, he activated the multi-barreled electromagnetic rifle mounted under his Powered Armor’s right arm and fired a burst into the back of a Royal Guard soldier who was leading the wavering morale.

Dozens of high-speed steel flechettes tore through his power pack and armor, and shredded his torso into a mess of flesh. The Royal Guard soldier’s eyes widened in disbelief as he slowly collapsed. Blood quickly spread across the ground, following the patterns of the flagstones.

“Anyone else who wavers will share his fate!” the young officer said viciously. This ruthless act immediately intimidated most of the men. Those soldiers who had been hesitating could only forcibly suppress their thoughts.

Similar scenes unfolded throughout the Royal Guard units besieging the Grand Palace. The young officers who had completely sided with the Regent Prince attacked without regard for their comrades, quickly stabilizing their ranks.

Then, a heavy stomping of feet was heard. The vanguard of the Martyr Corps was seen escorting Archbishop Jules Mazarin to the main gate of the Grand Palace. The Archbishop was dressed in magnificent clerical robes, his eyes glowing with a fanatical fervor.

When Agnes saw the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps standing together below, her heart sank. She instantly realized the gravity of the situation, but she forced herself to remain calm and questioned loudly: “Archbishop, as the Archbishop of the Imperial State Religion, why have you not immediately apprehended the Regent Prince for his armed rebellion, but instead brought the Martyr Corps here? What are you trying to do?”

The Archbishop, however, ignored Princess Agnes’s question. A cold sneer played on his lips as he declared loudly: “Princess Agnes, your recent series of decisions has thoroughly disappointed His Majesty. Therefore, our great Emperor has decided to resume his rule. His Majesty believes you do not yet possess the ability to control this Empire.”

Everyone was shocked to hear this. After all, hardly anyone could have guessed that such a situation would occur during the enthronement ceremony.

But before they could recover from the shock, the Archbishop dropped another bombshell: “His Majesty has also stated that he will have Norton II continue as Regent Prince, to guide The Empire to new glory!”

Everyone present turned to look at Norton II in astonishment upon hearing this. And he, to everyone’s disbelief, raised his saber high, his eyes fanatical as he once again swore allegiance to the old Emperor Frederick: “I will be forever loyal to His Majesty and fight for the glory of The Empire!”

Amber, watching this unfold on a remote surveillance screen, felt like his CPU was about to fry. His eyes widened, his mind filled with shock: “He really sided with the old Emperor? What the hell kind of show is this?”

Agnes, on the wall, was also dumbfounded. Her once-resolute eyes were now filled with disbelief and rage: “Father Emperor… how could he make such a decision?”

Even the Royal Guard soldiers around the Regent Prince were stunned, including the young officers who had ruthlessly suppressed the dissent. They all wondered if they were hallucinating.

They had sworn to serve the Regent Prince to the death, even risking the extermination of their entire clans, to help him launch this ‘armed revolution’. All to overthrow what they saw as the corrupt rule of the Leon family and restore the glory of The Empire…

But now, the ‘leader’ and ‘pioneer’ in their eyes had just defected to the enemy right before their eyes?!

Many Royal Guard soldiers broke down on the spot. One soldier cried out in despair, “We’ve been deceived by Norton II! He was never for us, never for The Empire!”

More soldiers began to curse Norton II as a traitor, and an even greater commotion swept through the ranks. Norton II, however, had his true diehard loyalists, with the help of the Martyr Corps, quickly ‘controlled’ these dissenting voices under the accusation of ‘disturbing morale and siding with the rebels’.

That’s right, in the mouths of the Regent Prince and the Archbishop, Princess Agnes of The Empire had, in an instant, been branded a ‘rebel’. She was even accused of ‘attempting patricide’.

To be honest, Amber was completely lost at this point. The Regent Prince’s reversal was simply too absurd, so much so that he even suspected that Perseus and Astral, the Regent Prince’s two trusted subordinates, might not have known their master’s true intentions.

And after seeing the ‘Dragon’s Might’ Agnes had just displayed, coupled with his previous face-to-face conversation with Norton II, where the latter had shown such a conflicted, fractured, and unnatural state, a bold guess suddenly popped into Amber’s head.

“Fuck, he hasn’t been mind-controlled by the old Emperor, has he?!”

Meanwhile, in the unauthorized spatial fluctuations in Saint-Saulnier’s orbit, a massive fleet completed its warp and appeared in the region of space. The Dawn and the fleets of Duke Hastings and the others quickly identified the target—it was the Fortress of Sorrow commanded by the Duke, as well as the Regent Prince’s fleet.

Hastings and Aldesia, who had already learned of the drastic turn of events on the ground, were currently on the bridges of their respective flagships. They were already reeling in shock from the situation below, and now, seeing the Regent Prince’s fleet arrive, a flash of panic crossed their eyes.

But Duke Hastings quickly steadied himself. He realized the conflict had reached a point of no return, a fight to the death. As staunch, long-time supporters of Princess Agnes, if he and Duke Artesia were to lose today’s struggle, their end would be anything but good.

After a moment of rapid thought, he gripped the armrest of the command console, veins bulging on the back of his hand, and ordered loudly, “All fleets, prepare for battle! We cannot let the Regent Prince’s conspiracy succeed!”

“Fight to the end for Her Highness the Princess?” Duke Artesia said nothing else, merely posing the question lightly.

“Until death.”

“Haha~ Then I am relieved.”

Duke Artesia let out a soft chuckle, then continued, “What about Atlas? Should we request their assistance?”

“Inform them that we are launching an intercept-and-attack on the Regent Prince’s fleet. As for whether they show up, that’s beyond my control. After all, we cannot place our hopes on an outsider.”

“Truly, unspeakably loyal~”

Amber, on the ground, couldn’t help but praise them upon hearing from The Dawn that Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia had still chosen to fight for Agnes despite the situation being extremely unfavorable for the princess’s side.

Honestly, if even these two were to defect or desert, then Amber would really have to think hard about whether he wanted to continue wading into these muddy waters.

“Amber, what do we do now? Should we start coordinating with Duke Hastings and the others to fight?”

Isabelle asked over the comms channel. Just as Amber was about to say something, an urgent communication request came in—it was Princess Agnes.

Amber signaled for Isabelle to be patient and accepted Agnes’s call first. He then heard Agnes’s urgent voice: “Lord Amber, I need your Atlas Group to turn the situation around now!”

“Your Highness, this situation isn’t going to be so easy to turn around. No one expected Norton II to side with your Father Emperor.”

Amber didn’t answer Agnes directly, instead starting to complain about the ‘mission difficulty’. Isabelle, listening in on the side, knew Amber inside and out, and instantly realized he was about to take advantage of the crisis.

“Lord Amber, I believe that if we work together, we can definitely turn this around. When that happens, I will fulfill all the promises I made to you!”

“Well…”

Just as Amber was thinking about how to up the ante, a fierce voice suddenly rang out on the comms channel: “Amber! You’re taking advantage of this crisis, aren’t you!”

This was the voice of the Empire’s Minister of Finance, Amber’s ‘convenient uncle’, Jacques Cole.

Chapter 732: I’ll Pay for the Rescue!

As the Imperial Minister of Finance, whose future had once been bright, Jacques Cole felt a sense of foreboding the moment he saw the Martyr Corps.

When the Archbishop denounced Princess Agnes, followed by Regent Prince Norton II publicly pledging his allegiance to the old Emperor Frederico once again, he was nearly petrified on the spot.

It was as if he had finally made up his mind to board a cruise ship that looked capable of crossing the ocean, only to discover halfway through the voyage that its name was the ‘Titanic.’

And Jacques Cole soon felt the gazes from behind him—from the Imperial Prime Minister, the Minister of the Interior, and others—that looked as if they wanted to flay him alive.

At his persuasion, these high-ranking Imperial officials had finally decided to take a side and support Princess Agnes. To be safe, they had deliberately waited until the day of the enthronement ceremony to publicly stand with her.

Who would have thought the situation would take such a sudden turn? They were all now at risk of being branded as part of the ‘Princess’s rebel faction.’

“Amber! You’re taking advantage of this crisis, aren’t you!”

So, the Minister of Finance, who had merely been listening in on Amber’s negotiations with Princess Agnes, could no longer hold back when he heard Amber begin to express reluctance.

“Uh, Your Excellency Jacques, I’m not trying to take advantage of the crisis.”

The sound of Amber’s voice alone was enough to make Jacques Cole’s blood boil. “If this isn’t taking advantage of the crisis, what is? Didn’t you already reach an agreement with Her Highness?! Besides, what did you tell me back then—huh? That you would give your full support to ensure Her Highness Agnes’s smooth enthronement?”

“Times have changed. The situation has undergone a rather significant shift, hasn’t it? I never expected the Regent Prince to team up with the old Emperor. Back then, I was thinking the Royal Family would unite to oppose the Regent Prince.”

Amber’s words were half-truth, half-lie. He genuinely hadn’t expected the Regent Prince to join forces with the old Emperor Frederico, but he had also known that the old Emperor didn’t seem to trust his own daughter. Therefore, he had always planned on the premise that Agnes and her group would be ‘fighting alone.’

Amber: “Uncle, if the Atlas Group has to fight both the Regent Prince and the old Emperor at the same time, it might be a bit of a stretch…”

“Cut the nonsense. I know you’re just trying to drive up the price! Fine! The Ministry of Finance will pay for the rescue!”

Agnes: “Huh?”

Jacques Cole looked at the yet-to-be-enthroned princess and said, “Your Highness, the Ministry of Finance currently has some surplus funds. We are in a time of crisis. If we want to be the last ones standing, we must rely on the strength of the Atlas Group.”

“I know, but to use the Ministry of Finance’s money directly…”

Agnes was still hesitant, but Jacques Cole, who had already tied his fate completely to the ‘princess’s chariot,’ uttered a classic line that condensed his decades of experience navigating the Imperial court—a line that made Amber, the Imperial Prime Minister, and the others secretly sigh in admiration, ‘A true masterclass.’

“Your Highness, this vast Empire will soon be yours. In that case, isn’t the money in the Ministry of Finance also yours?”

Upon hearing this, Amber immediately seized the moment. Without giving Agnes any more time to think, he said directly, “Excellent! Since His Excellency Jacques has said so, today’s communication will be recorded and archived. It will be added as an ‘appendix’ to the strategic cooperation white paper between the Atlas Group and your nation.”

“Then shouldn’t you be getting to work now?” Jacques Cole practically spat out the words through gritted teeth.

“Of course, of course. I always deliver once I’m paid. Fair and square.”

As he spoke, Amber patched the communication into the channel for The Dawn and the Golden Dragon Battle Group, then announced in a resounding voice:

“I hereby announce that ‘Operation Golden Dragon’ is officially underway! All units, proceed according to the predetermined operational plan!”

“Yes, Boss!” ×N—

“Report! The Atlas Group’s ships are on the move! Based on their projected trajectory, they seem to be preparing to support Duke Hastings’s fleet and attack us!”

In the core command room of the Fortress of Sorrow, the Duke was not surprised to hear the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report. After all, his operational plans had always treated the Atlas Group as an ‘ally’ of the princess’s faction.

Thus, he was able to calmly continue issuing commands according to the operational plan.

“All fleets, maintain current orbital trajectory. Adjust orientation to face the enemy fleet. Cover the Orbital Assault Ship detachment during their deployment operations!”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator quickly disseminated the relevant information. Meanwhile, the operations staff officer in the core command room, who was also the Duke’s adjutant, spoke up, “Your Grace, are you focusing this operation on the ground?”

“Correct!”

The Duke nodded and continued, “All the key figures are on the surface of Saint-Saulnier. As long as we can assist the ground forces in completing their mission, seize control of the Grand Palace, and capture Agnes and her allies, the battle will be over.”

As he spoke, the massive fleet and the enormous artificial celestial fortress completed a lightning-fast combat axial adjustment, aided by vector control units.

Following standard combat procedure, the Fortress of Sorrow deployed its massive deflector shield, protecting the surrounding fleet. The approaching Gospel Fortress did the same, shielding all friendly vessels, including The Dawn, like a mothership.

“Hmph. To think the Empire’s strategic fortresses would end up meeting on the battlefield in the Imperial Capital’s orbit.”

The Duke’s expression was complicated. He truly had not been aware of the connection between the Regent Prince and the old Emperor Frederico, but that didn’t stop him from continuing to fight for the Regent Prince—or rather, for the ‘winner.’

It didn’t matter who the Regent Prince pledged allegiance to or who he cooperated with. As long as His Excellency emerged as the final victor, then he, the ‘sharp sword’ who had fought for him from the very beginning, would bask in the same glorious sunlight.

With that thought, the Duke reined in his musings and focused all his energy on the battle. He looked down at the Orbital Defense Platforms and asked his adjutant:

“What’s the status of the garrison fleet and the Orbital Defense Platforms? What was their commander’s response to us earlier?”

“They didn’t give a clear answer, Your Grace.” The adjutant paused for a moment to organize his thoughts before continuing, “However, based on the negotiations, they seem to favor our side. If our advantage becomes significant enough, these ‘wall-sitters’ will certainly join the fight against the princess’s faction.”

“Those bastards… Get me their commander. I’ll negotiate with him personally.”

Before the Duke could finish, the Tactical Information Coordinator on the other side suddenly reported urgently, “Report! Atlas Group warships detected attacking the Orbital Defense Platforms! Good heavens, it looks like they’re deploying assault pods for a direct breach!”

At the same time, images captured by the optical sensors appeared on the command room’s main screen.

On screen, the massive Atlas Group ship performed a tactical maneuver to lower its orbit, and in the process, it launched one assault pod after another at the Orbital Defense Platforms, as if giving birth to a litter.

The massive ship’s numerous secondary weapons also began to pour fire onto the Orbital Defense Platforms, providing cover for the deployed units.

The Orbital Defense Platforms, which had been cautiously monitoring both sides, reacted immediately. Their anti-air defenses activated in an instant and began to intercept the incoming assault pods. At this range, the platforms’ interception efficiency was staggering. A large number of assault pods were hit while taking evasive action and burst into fireballs.

But the assault units from The Dawn seemed endless, continuously deploying. On the magnified optical display, the Duke and his staff even saw the massive ship directly launching heavy powered armor and what appeared to be marine infantry units.

“Are the people from Atlas Group insane? They’re not even using assault pods, just dropping people directly?!” the Duke exclaimed in shock.

But something even more shocking was yet to come.

These units, which in his view were being thrown away for nothing, had been deployed in such large numbers that a good portion managed to break through the Orbital Defense Platforms’ interception. They crashed onto the outer hull of the platforms like meteorites.

Then, these ‘marine’ units, who by all logic should have been smashed to death on impact, began to get up and move, one by one.

They split into two groups. One began attacking the surrounding anti-air defenses from the exterior of the platform and launched assaults on adjacent platforms. The other group, with the help of various equipment, forcibly breached a passage into the platform’s interior.

Then, like cancer cells, they began to spread rapidly from within the platform.

“Wh-what in the world are they? How can humans possibly board a platform like that? Not even the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire have that kind of physical resilience!”

Amidst the Duke’s shock, the Fortress of Sorrow battle group soon received a request for support from the Orbital Defense Platforms.

In the terrified report of the platform’s commander, the Atlas combat units that had breached the interior were advancing with incredible speed. Many sectors were overrun before they could even react. The enemy was now using several completely secured platforms as nodes to pour in more and more landing troops.

Just as the Duke was agonizing over whether to dispatch some of his marines to support the Orbital Defense Platforms, the Tactical Information Coordinator issued a new warning.

“Report! Abnormal mass increase and unauthorized spatial fluctuations detected!”

The Duke’s face darkened. He looked at the coordinates marked on the tactical star chart. “That must be the Atlas Group’s fleet arriving.”

Before he could finish, the Tactical Information Coordinator continued his loud report, this time with a hint of excitement in his voice.

“Your Grace, authorized spatial fluctuations detected! Signature code matched! It’s Duke Soron’s battle group!”

Chapter 733: Thrown into a Chaotic Mess

“Isolation doors 14 to 18 are sealed! Damn it, these invaders are all using high-powered weapons! Aren’t they afraid of dismantling this whole platform?!”

Somewhere on the Saint-Saulnier Orbital Defense Platform, an Imperial marine was drenched in sweat. He cursed as his fingers flew across a control panel in the compartment, his actions filled with anxiety.

When the icons for isolation doors 14 through 18 on the screen finally turned from red to green, the Imperial marine let out a heavy sigh of relief.

He whipped his head around to look at his comrade hiding behind another workstation and roared into the comms channel at the top of his lungs:

“Haven’t the reinforcements arrived yet?! With just the few of us left, we can’t hold out much longer!”

“They’re five sections away, almost here! Don’t fucking panic, get to your defensive position now!”

The compartment they were in was a complete wreck. More than a dozen surviving Imperial marines were frantically scavenging ammunition and supplies from the bodies of their fallen teammates.

The marine platoon originally tasked with defending this node had suffered catastrophic losses in the sudden attack. An Atlas Group assault pod had rammed directly into the section, followed by a furious barrage of shrapnel grenades from its front, instantly claiming the lives of half the unit.

The survivors had barely recovered from the blast when they had to face fully-armed Atlas Group heavy powered armor pouring out of the assault pod. They stood no chance.

They could only fight and fall back, but by the time they had retreated to this small compartment, the entire platoon was down to a dozen men. The platoon leader and Sergeant Major had long since been killed in action.

If there were anywhere else to run on this orbital defense platform, this battered squad would have likely broken down long ago.

Boom!

A dull explosion sounded from the other side of the isolation door, like a whisper from death itself, and everyone’s nerves instantly tensed.

It was immediately followed by another explosion.

“Fuck, those madmen are using explosives to advance again!”

The marine near the control panel stared intently at the status of the isolation doors displayed on the screen.

In just a few short minutes, doors 14 and 15 had already turned a glaring red, indicating ‘severely damaged’.

“Shit, they’re too fast. We might not make it until reinforcements arrive!” an Imperial marine shouted in despair.

“What about the automated defensive weapons in the compartment?” another asked, his voice trembling slightly.

“They were disabled long ago. The enemy released an electronic warfare virus during the assault. The platform’s main AI is currently reallocating computing power to counter it.”

The Imperial marine at the control panel looked at the constantly flashing red alarms on the screen, a deep sense of helplessness in his eyes. He knew it was impossible to stop the advance of the Atlas combat units.

He bent down and took several smart grenades from a cold corpse at his feet, his hands trembling as he clipped them into the empty slots on his exoskeleton.

After that, he scrambled back to his teammates, ducking behind their makeshift cover.

Boom!

Boom!

The explosions from the other side of the isolation door continued unabated, each one like a death knell tolling after the last.

The Imperial marines silently counted the explosions, trying to calculate how far the Atlas Group combat units were from their compartment.

As the final moment approached, they raised their weapons in unison, aiming at the compartment’s main door.

Though their hearts were filled with fear, they had no choice but to fight to the death.

“Hold steady! Hold steady! Even if we die, we have to show these sons of bitches what we’re made of,” the only remaining sergeant in the compartment yelled, trying to boost morale.

But before he could finish, a loud bang suddenly came from the ceiling.

Boom!

A huge hole was blasted open. Depressurization alarms instantly shrieked throughout the compartment as a violent rush of air began to rapidly suck the atmosphere out. The marines were pulled by the powerful force toward outer space.

It all happened too fast. The Imperial marines didn’t even have time to activate the electromagnetic anchors in their boots.

One by one, they were sucked out of the compartment like puppets with their strings cut.

In the instant he was pulled through the breach, the sole surviving sergeant saw the scene outside the compartment.

Two units of white-painted heavy powered armor stood silently by the edge of the hole.

Behind them followed more than a dozen highly mechanized ‘marines’, their cold metal bodies continuously reflecting the light of the star system’s sun.

…

“Compartment 074 is clear… Pressure equalized inside and out. You can enter.”

Banninger’s voice sounded calmly over the comms channel. The isolation doors to this compartment slid open, and another team of Immortal Corps soldiers quickly filed in.

After the compartment depressurized, its Gravity control unit had also failed, leaving everyone floating in mid-air.

“Corps Commander!”

A soldier saluted Banninger.

Banninger nodded slightly and raised a hand, pointing to an intact isolation door on the other side of the compartment.

“Quick, prepare a directional blast on that door. There’s a company of Imperial marines reinforcing this position. Let’s give them a surprise~”

“Yes, sir!”

As the Immortal Corps soldiers hurried to set up the explosives, Banninger seemed to sense something and turned his head to look toward another region of space.

Following a wave of spatial fluctuations, warships appeared out of thin air in the outer space of Saint-Saulnier. Their perfectly orderly formation, uniform paint scheme, and the logos emblazoned on their broadsides all testified to their identity—the Atlas Group’s ‘Golden Dragon Battle Group’.

The most conspicuous vessels in the fleet were the eighteen massive, door-panel-like ships—or rather, Airdropped Fortresses.

Banninger knew that the entirety of the First Army Group and a large number of spare equipment and combat bodies for the Immortal Corps were loaded within these “door panels.” The ensuing assault landing would be the riskiest military operation since the founding of the Atlas Group.

These ‘Airdropped Fortresses’ would forcibly enter Saint-Saulnier’s atmosphere without orbital control and ultimately deploy in the area surrounding the Imperial Capital to establish a control zone.

However, just as Banninger watched the eighteen “door panels” break away from the formation and rapidly lower their orbital altitude, the intense spatial fluctuations in the distant region of space subsided.

In a continuous series of white flashes, another wave of Imperial warships appeared in space, followed by an Imperial Artificial Celestial Fortress that emerged in sync with them.

“The Radiant Fortress. It seems Duke Soren’s forces have arrived. This is really going to be thrown into a chaotic mess.”

——

“No, no, no, Duke Soren is definitely here to help the Regent Prince! Even the Archbishop is on the same side as him. As one of the old Emperor’s die-hard supporters, Duke Soren must also be here to deal with Agnes.”

On the surface of Saint-Saulnier, at the front gate defensive position of the Princess’s private villa, Amber leaned against a composite armor barricade, speaking to Ramos, the temporary commander of the Golden Dragon Battle Group, as well as Isabelle and the others.

“You know, the old Emperor is being quite cautious in dealing with his own daughter. He’s gathered the Royalists, the Church, and the Regent Prince all together. Seriously, is the Princess’s faction really worth deploying this ‘all-star lineup’ against?”

“The more significant reason is probably our alliance with Her Highness the Princess. I don’t mean to sell us short, but Atlas does now possess the capital to interfere in the Empire’s internal politics,” Isabelle offered.

Amber shook his head upon hearing this. “Tsk, it’s too late to talk about that now. Let’s get the fortresses down here… Oh, right, have ATT drop a squadron down first, and my personal machine. It’s almost time.”

“Understood. I’ve already passed on the order. How are things on your end, Amber? Can you still hold out?”

“It’s fine, I guess…”

Hearing Isabelle’s question, Amber turned and peeked out from behind the cover.

On the open ground outside the main gate of the Princess’s private villa, the wrecks of three HCPs lay scattered about. Judging by the melted state of the wreckage, it was clear they hadn’t been able to withstand the shots from the villa’s fixed heavy particle cannons.

Around the three HCP wrecks were the bodies of numerous Royal Guard and Martyr Corps infantry units, along with the remains of several infantry fighting vehicles and multi-legged war machines.

During the first wave of attack from the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps, they were clearly stunned by the ferocious firepower from the villa. After leaving behind a significant number of bodies at the front gate, they abandoned their assault and temporarily retreated.

But Amber knew this was only temporary. After their attack was thwarted, the enemy would quickly realize that they couldn’t take the Princess’s private villa with their current forces.

Whether they brought in reinforcements or just blanketed the area with long-range fire, the defense would become extremely difficult for Amber and his team.

Not to mention, Amber had his own mission to accomplish.

After unexpectedly traveling through time to this day, he had already guessed that the one who had provided him with support during that moment of crisis was most likely himself.

Therefore, to complete the time loop and ensure that his past self, who had traveled through time, didn’t meet with any accidents during the Martyr Corps’ hunt down, he now had to break through to the designated position, just as he had witnessed back then, and deliver that destined attack.

“Amber, one squadron from ATT and your personal machine have detached from ‘The Dawn’ and are descending toward the Princess’s private villa. But are you sure they won’t be intercepted by anti-air defenses?” Isabelle’s voice came through again, tinged with a hint of worry.

“Don’t worry. At this point in time, the ground-based anti-air defenses are already overwhelmed. They won’t have time to deal with ten descending HCP targets.”

As Amber spoke, he looked up at the sky, using his Powered Armor’s Optical sensor to zoom in on a string of light dots in the sky—the Airdropped Fortresses entering the atmosphere. They were now drawing the full attention of all ground-based anti-air defenses in the Imperial Capital region.

Chapter 734: Airdrop on Saint-Saulnier Tonight

“What the hell do you mean warships are entering the atmosphere? With that length and volume, they’ll break apart during entry!”

When the Imperial Capital’s anti-aircraft commander received reports from various anti-air positions, his first reaction was complete disbelief. After all, in his experience, “warships entering the atmosphere” was indeed an impossibility.

But when the positions synchronized the optical and infrared footage from their sensors, the commander stared dumbfounded at the eighteen falling “door panels.” At the same time, he learned that these “door panels” were not responding to IFF signals, meaning they were not friendly units.

“Those don’t look like warships. What kind of warship looks like that?” the anti-aircraft commander asked, staring quizzically at the falling targets on the screen. “Could they be some kind of kinetic bombardment weapon? Suicide satellites?! All positions, listen up! Begin interception at full power! Don’t let those things hit the ground!”

With his order, the air defense emplacements positioned throughout the Imperial Capital began to open fire. The sheer size of the “Airdropped Fortresses” made them incredibly easy targets for ground-based anti-aircraft weaponry.

Locked.

Acquired.

A web of intercepting fire instantly unfurled. Brilliant, multicolored energy beams wove together into a net of death, attempting to envelop and tear apart the eighteen colossal fortresses.

The anti-aircraft commander in Saint-Saulnier, along with the operators at every anti-air position across the capital, stared intently at their screens, praying that the interception would go off without a hitch.

In a way, the anti-air positions had done their job well enough. Their interception operation had indeed gone off without a hitch. The beams from the anti-air heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons all successfully struck their targets.

Unfortunately, the explosions they anticipated never occurred.

Instead, as the energy beams made contact with the bases of the fortresses, it was like striking an invisible barrier. The brilliant light either scattered and refracted or was completely absorbed by the fiery red glow emanating from beneath the fortresses.

Only then did the commanders of the various anti-air positions realize that the intense friction between the fortresses’ undersides and the atmosphere had generated a thick layer of plasma, which acted like an impenetrable shield, completely nullifying energy-based attacks.

Seeing this, the anti-aircraft commander’s anxious roar echoed through the command channel: “All positions, listen up! Switch… switch to physical ammunition!”

“Roger! Anti-air missiles ready!”

“Anti-air heavy electromagnetic cannon groups beginning emergency charging!”

A torrent of urgent commands flooded the anti-air command channel as emplacements rapidly reconfigured their armaments. Because near-lightspeed weapons were the primary choice for anti-air combat to increase interception accuracy, various types of physical ammunition were often held in reserve.

One by one, underground anti-air missile silos opened, venting clouds of white mist as high-performance missiles they never thought they would need were loaded and brought online.

The “Stonehenge” electromagnetic railgun arrays, deployed as fixed turrets on the surface, raised their long acceleration rails, pointing them toward the descending targets. A new round of intercepting fire was about to be unleashed.

However, just as these positions finished converting to their backup weapons and prepared to launch a new strike, the anti-aircraft commander received a warning from the fleet in orbit. The heavy cruisers, light cruisers, and destroyers that had been escorting the super-flagship The Dawn had, at some point, silently moved into low orbit over Saint-Saulnier.

As the number of these escort ships was not large, neither the Regent Prince’s fleet, Duke Soren’s fleet, nor the Orbital Defense Platform had paid them much mind.

Before a fully formed fleet, these Atlas warships, no matter how powerful, stood no chance.

But no one had expected that the primary mission of the ships Amber had arranged to accompany The Dawn was not anti-ship combat, but to carry out an orbital strike on the Imperial Capital of Saint-Saulnier.

Even Princess Agnes was unaware of this, as Amber knew she would never readily agree to the Atlas Group launching an orbital strike on the Imperial Capital so casually.

The Orbital Defense Platform surrounding Saint-Saulnier should have been the greatest barrier against these warships in the planet’s outer space, but at this moment, it was as good as useless.

The Immortal Corps’ brutal assault, combined with a close-range barrage from The Dawn’s massive number of secondary weapon groups, had already crippled multiple sections of the unprepared Orbital Defense Platform. Had The Dawn been moored even slightly farther away, the platform might have been able to put up a fight.

But Princess Agnes had assigned it a “VIP spot” extremely close to the platform, which had greatly facilitated The Dawn’s surprise attack.

Meanwhile, the electronic warfare virus that had infiltrated the Orbital Defense Platform continued to spread. Although the platform’s control personality was dedicating most of its computing power to resisting it, the virus, personally crafted by Lilith, slowly but surely eroded the defense platform’s core systems.

This allowed the Atlas warships to enter low orbit completely unhindered.

When the Imperial Capital’s anti-aircraft commander on the ground saw these warships in low orbit assume a bow-down posture, he was jolted into realization, but it was far too late. He didn’t even have time to issue an emergency relocation order for mobile units over the command channel.

Dozens of blue-white beams tore through the atmosphere and plunged toward the ground like divine punishment from the heavens.

Their targets were the very anti-air positions whose coordinates had been exposed during the recent anti-air operations.

Torrents of heavy metal particles, carrying terrifying kinetic energy, struck their targets at unreactable speeds. The last thing the panicked units at the various anti-air positions saw was a vision of apocalypse.

The heavy particle cannons of destroyers and light cruisers, when used for orbital strikes, had a destructive force comparable to a tactical nuclear warhead.

And the main cannons of the heavy cruisers, which were already on par with those of a battleship, were far more powerful than imaginable.

At this moment, all the forces on the ground in Saint-Saulnier—be it the Princess’s Guard Regiment protecting the Grand Palace, the attacking Royal Guard and Martyr Corps, or the orbital paratroopers descending under the command of the Regent Prince’s and Duke Soren’s fleets—witnessed the miraculous scene.

Dazzling spheres of light erupted one after another on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital, like a series of suddenly exploding “little suns.” Shockwaves and heatwaves spread out at incredible speeds, devouring everything they touched.

After numerous refinements, the Atlas Group’s combat fleet had perfected its orbital strike procedures.

With the assistance of each ship’s shipboard control AI, the accuracy of the attack reached a level previously unimaginable in conventional orbital strikes.

Each beam struck its designated target—the center of an anti-air position—with absolute precision, without the slightest deviation.

Faced with an orbital strike from warship-grade heavy particle cannons, the ground-based anti-air emplacements were utterly fragile and defenseless.

Even recovering mobile anti-air equipment and relocating became an impossible luxury.

Amidst the continuous, massive explosions, the anti-air positions around the Imperial Capital vanished completely, as if wiped away by an eraser.

“Without so much as a word, you launch an orbital strike on the Imperial Capital, Lord Amber.”

Inside the Grand Palace, Agnes’s feelings were complicated as she watched the scene unfold. Although she had hoped that Atlas’s combat forces would turn the tide upon joining the battle, this unannounced “bombardment of the Imperial Capital” was a bit too “intense” for her as the Empire’s Heir.

Jacques Cole, standing beside her, quickly sensed the princess’s anxiety. After a moment’s thought, he stepped forward and said in a low voice:

“Your Highness, we must prioritize the bigger picture for now. Amber’s actions were meant to allow for a swift intervention in the ground battle. And I believe these ‘jars and pots’ that have been shattered can all be replaced in the future.”

“Sigh… I understand that, of course. It’s just… a little strange, watching the Imperial Capital be hit by an orbital strike with my own eyes…”

—

As the Atlas fleet ruthlessly obliterated the ground anti-air positions around the Imperial Capital with this swift orbital strike, the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses that had already entered the atmosphere finally broke through the blackout zone and began their deceleration phase.

The massive formation of fortresses started to adjust their attitude according to their landing procedures. Large gravity control units deployed across their surfaces activated, intended to make the upcoming “hard landing” as gentle as possible.

On the sides of these fortresses, rows of disposable, multi-function launch silos slowly opened. These silos, designed purely for the “programmatic clearing” of the landing zone during descent, quickly began their attack.

A rain of tactical surface-to-surface missiles poured down, blanketing the entire designated landing area. In an instant, the ground transformed into a sea of fire, and any Imperial troops that might have been hiding there suffered devastating losses.

Inside the Airdropped Fortresses, the soldiers, combat vehicles, and HCPs of the First Army Group had already formed up and secured themselves according to their deployment waves.

Van Fleet’s slightly fanatical encouragement now echoed through the communication channels. As he was about to set foot on the soil of the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, the former Federation Army Lieutenant General was trying his best to suppress his emotions, but anyone could hear the excitement in his voice.

“Landing countdown! 30 seconds!”

“Countdown 20 seconds!”

“Countdown 10 seconds!”

“9… 8… 7…”

“3… 2… 1!”

“BOOM!”

With a violent tremor, the eighteen mountain-sized Airdropped Fortresses, with their gravity control units operating at full power, successfully landed on the surface of Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire.

The moment they touched down, Van Fleet’s excited voice rang through the command channel: “All fortresses, listen up! Deploy into ‘battle fortress’ mode! All defense and support weapon groups, activate! All units of the First Army Group, disembark quickly and proceed according to the predetermined operational plan!”

“Target, the Saint-Saulnier Grand Palace!”

Chapter 735: Just Like Coming Home

“This is the most important day of my, Van Fleet’s, life.” Van Fleet tilted his head back slightly, his eyes glittering with excitement and anticipation. His voice rose unconsciously, as if he were declaring his feelings to the entire world.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough speeches for now.” Hog said as he unbuckled his seatbelt and stood up.

Inside the raised command tower of Airdropped Fortress No. 1, his furry figure was particularly conspicuous. In just a few steps, he reached Van Fleet, who was already pressed eagerly against the viewport, and gently patted the latter’s shoulder with a furry paw.

“Bro, it’s time to get down to business. This isn’t an exercise; it’s the real deal.” Hog’s tone was tinged with seriousness, his eyes fixed on Van Fleet, trying to calm him down from his excitement.

Van Fleet nodded, a hint of determination flashing in his eyes. “Of course I know this is a real battle, but I have even more faith in the soldiers below who’ve undergone extensive training. They’ve always treated every exercise as a real battle, so today might not be any different for them.”

Hog followed Van Fleet’s gaze downward. After Airdropped Fortress No. 1 had been completely secured to the ground, several massive bay doors at its front slowly lowered, forming gentle slopes that connected to the ground.

As the spearhead of the First Army Group, a portion of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade was already setting foot on the soil of Saint-Saulnier, marching down these ramps.

The Romu soldiers had been more or less nervous during the drop; after all, this was a real battle where life and death were decided in an instant.

But as the massive bay doors opened, an immediate sense of familiarity washed over them, quickly putting them at ease.

Nothing unexpected happened, nor was there any chaos among the landing party. Every procedure flowed as smoothly as it had in training.

Scout detachments, composed of light multi-legged war machines, wheeled recon vehicles, and several ‘Recon-type’ Aegis units, were the first to depart, heading at full speed toward the reconnaissance areas marked on the map.

Although light multi-legged war machines played an increasingly minor role in combat for Atlas Group’s combat units, these machines—cloned from the Federation’s ‘Tarantula-Kai’—had been extensively modified and reintegrated into the scout detachments of various combat units, all in the spirit of frugality and avoiding waste.

Their armor was lightened once again, and their 120mm dual-purpose direct/indirect fire electrothermal-chemical cannons were replaced with plasma cannons that had translucent barrels, making these light multi-legged war machines even nimbler.

With the 120mm ammunition storage bay no longer needed, the freed-up space allowed this light multi-legged war machine, newly designated the ‘Jumper’, to be fitted with a more powerful power pack, which in turn enabled the installation of more reconnaissance equipment—and most importantly, Optical camouflage.

These modifications transformed the light multi-legged war machine from an infantry support unit into a reconnaissance unit that danced along the frontline, exploiting every opening.

Its bionic multi-legged locomotion, assisted by auxiliary wheels, gave it mobility on roads and complex terrain second only to an HCP.

Just like now. As the scout detachments were dispatched, the ‘Jumpers’ charged toward the Grand Palace like wild horses let off the leash.

Thanks to long-term coordinated drills, the ‘Jumpers’ of each scout detachment knew how to maintain their distance, ensuring their reconnaissance fields were as close as possible without significant overlap.

Meanwhile, the forward attack teams—composed of numerous hover-type main battle tanks, Heavy multi-legged war machines, armored infantry fighting vehicles, and ‘Standard-type’ Aegis units—swiftly assumed their attack formations and advanced toward their designated objectives.

Above these attack teams, the Atlas warships about to leave this airspace would, in their final moments before departure, drop a batch of ‘Hive Cores’ over the advancing forward teams.

These ‘Hive Cores’, carrying a large number of Worker Bees, would immediately begin constructing forward bases and assisting the mechanized infantry in building defensive lines upon landing.

Everyone acted in an orderly and systematic manner. Many Romu soldiers even had the illusion that they were still in an exercise.

The landing zone before them—from the terrain and landscape to the hills serving as ‘landmarks’ in the distance, and even the faint silhouette of the Saint-Saulnier Grand Palace on the horizon—was identical to how it was during their drills.

It was at this moment that these Romu soldiers finally understood the true meaning of the words Boss, Hog, and the others had told them.

“Even though none of you have ever been to Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, the directors and I will use this period of exercises and training to make it so that when you finally set foot on its soil… it will feel just like coming home.”

“This really is just like coming home, isn’t it, Tairak?”

Inside the command module vehicle of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade’s HQ, Montai, who had been promoted to Brigade Commander, couldn’t help but sigh as he looked at the tactical map, which was constantly being updated with new information.

“Even so, we can’t let our guard down. If the Boss and the others have provided us with the conditions for an ‘open-book exam,’ and we still can’t deliver a perfect solution, then we’d truly be letting them down.”

Tairak, who always remained calm and was seen by Hog and the others as the one to ‘rein in’ Montai and prevent him from ‘bolting’, stared at the tactical overlay and spoke without raising his head. His finger slid gently across the map as he carefully analyzed every detail, leaving no potential risk unexamined.

At that moment, the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade’s scout detachments and forward attack teams were advancing rapidly. Their mission was to start from the Airdropped Fortress and quickly seize an area with sufficient depth to allow the second echelon and support units to assemble.

From the moment they left the Airdropped Fortress, all their actions and encounters were nearly identical to what they had experienced in previous exercises.

The landing positions of the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses had been planned by Hog, Van Fleet, and the others based on ‘reference materials’ provided by Amber, such as Saint-Saulnier’s terrain and general troop deployments. As a result, these positions avoided the likely assembly areas of the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps.

This meant that the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade had yet to encounter any significant opposition, just as in the exercises. The only reports came from scout detachments, detailing contact with small enemy units. These enemy units showed no intention of fighting; after a symbolic exchange of fire, they immediately retreated.

After quickly confirming these reports and the coordinates of the detected enemy forces, Montai gestured on the map and said to Tairak, “It seems they just want to ascertain our size and composition. Judging from the location of contact and the direction of their retreat, the enemy to our front is likely consolidating their forces to set up a defense further back.”

“That should be it,” Tairak nodded. “The scout detachment’s reports mentioned decorations on the enemy’s armored units that looked like prayers and scriptures. According to the intel issued by HQ before the battle, they must be that ‘Martyr Corps’.”

“The Protectorate Army, eh? Their will to fight shouldn’t be too low. In that case, we have all the more reason to lay a solid foundation for the upcoming offensive.”

Montai tapped a point on the tactical overlay and quickly issued new orders:

“Have the troops push forward rapidly. We’re still within the fortress’s fire support range, so they can be bolder in their actions. Besides, the Royal Guard, the Martyr Corps, and the other forces in Saint-Saulnier probably haven’t fully reacted yet. We need to act now while they’re still disoriented!”

“Mhmm, I have no objection to that order.”

Tairak nodded in agreement with Montai’s reasoning. On the tactical overlay before them were several blue circles centered on Airdropped Fortress No. 1.

These blue circles, each with a different radius, represented the support ranges of the fortress’s various weapon systems.

The largest blue circle represented the range of hypersonic tactical missiles. The slightly smaller one was for long-range rockets and projectiles from the Electromagnetic cannon. The even smaller ones marked the range of direct-fire weapons like heavy particle cannons and charged particle cannons—for the fortress, this was basically considered its ‘close-in defense range’.

As for the massive circle, its center constantly moving forward and its radius around 180 kilometers, it represented the support range of the super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons and self-propelled long-range rocket launchers of the First Army Group’s First Artillery Combined Arms Brigade.

In addition, there were several green circles, which were comparatively larger in radius.

These green circles represented the air defense perimeter of Fortress No. 1. This meant that as long as the troops operated within this range, they would receive air defense cover from the fortress. Combined with the accompanying air defense units of each detachment, Montai and the others had little to worry about from aerial attacks within the green circle.

As for a possible orbital strike… according to information synced from The Dawn, the fleets of Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, under the cover of the Celestial Fortress, had already engaged in the first wave of fire with the Regent Prince’s fleet.

As the Atlas Group’s three unmanned fleets and Duke Soren’s battle group joined the fray, the intensity of this fleet battle in orbit would rapidly escalate. The enemy would be lucky just to be able to drop orbital paratroopers under these conditions; they simply didn’t have the capacity to attack Atlas’s ground forces.

Thus, the first thirty minutes after the Airdropped Fortresses landed was dubbed the ‘golden half-hour’ by Hog, Van Fleet, and the others—it was the optimal time for the ground forces to advance and expand.

The core objective of the First Army Group’s previous exercises on Parra IV was to push forward as far as possible within this ‘golden half-hour.’

Incidentally, the 18 Airdropped Fortresses formed a massive circular area with a diameter of 20 kilometers upon landing. The fortresses in the upper half of this ‘circle’ had long-range fire support and air defense perimeters that already covered more than half of the Imperial Capital and the Grand Palace at its center.

This was because the final landing site chosen by Amber and the others was less than one hundred kilometers in a straight line from the Saint-Saulnier Grand Palace. In effect, these 18 Airdropped Fortresses were like nails driven into the very heart of the Empire.

In other words, if Amber and the others wished, these Airdropped Fortresses and long-range fire support units could immediately rain a barrage of fire upon the Grand Palace.

Chapter 736: Clash

In truth, however, Amber wouldn’t have let the fortress and the fire support detachment open fire on the Grand Palace area so easily.

After all, his own ‘benefactor’ was still trapped inside the Grand Palace, which was also protected by a massive array of deflector shield generators. So, in the plan devised by Amber, Hog, and the others, fire support would be prioritized for the troops engaging the enemy.

Any attack on the Grand Palace would have to wait until their forces reached its periphery and conducted a rough reconnaissance to identify weak points in its defenses. To do otherwise would be a waste of ammunition.

Although the E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannon was hailed as ‘Amber’s Hammer’ and had proven remarkably effective in assault operations against fortified targets, the Grand Palace was, after all, the headquarters that the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family had meticulously built up over many years.

If a single artillery brigade with fewer than one hundred E-2 units could easily smash it open, then Jacques Cole would really need to investigate the fund allocation for these national defense projects within the Royal Engineering Division.

Thus, the first victory for these E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons was not an attack on the Grand Palace or suspected enemy assembly points, but fire support provided to the Princess’s private villa.

As audacious as Amber was, he wasn’t daring enough to order the warships overhead to conduct an orbital strike on the enemy directly in front of the princess’s private villa. If the gunnery crew’s hands trembled or the ship’s firing angle was off by even a fraction of a degree, he and everyone else would likely be vaporized along with the enemy.

As badass as a Level Six psionic user might seem to ordinary people, they weren’t badass enough to withstand a direct hit from a warship-grade heavy particle cannon.

That was the kind of thing only a Level Eight psionic user could show off with.

Therefore, almost as soon as the First Army Group landed, Amber impatiently called for support from the E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons. Once the tactical network was established, the artillery brigade’s fire direction commander acquired sufficiently precise coordinates on his command terminal.

After a quick round of ranging fire confirmed there was no significant error, the firepower of an entire self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion rained down upon the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps that were besieging the private villa.

Munitions equipped with self-forging fragment warheads, high-explosive warheads, anti-personnel fragmentation warheads, and plasma warheads relentlessly bombarded the target area in frequent salvos.

Although the HCPs and escorting anti-air units among the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps were doing their utmost to intercept the incoming projectiles, the firepower of a single self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion far exceeded their interception threshold.

When the first heavy warhead slipped past the interception and detonated on the ground, what followed was a one-sided slaughter.

The Royal Guard and Martyr Corps besieging the private villa had clearly not anticipated a sudden attack from a long-range artillery unit, much less one wielding such powerful heavy cannons.

Although the command and fire support detachments were positioned slightly to the rear and thus avoided the worst of the bombardment, the attack detachment leading the general assault on the villa’s main gate in a tight assault formation suffered catastrophic losses.

The shells fired from the E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons were already immensely powerful, and this was the concentrated barrage of an entire battalion.

Amidst the smoke and dust from the shelling, the only one to finally break through to the main gate of the private villa was a single ‘Royal Cleric’ that had lost its right mechanical arm.

Its pilot, seemingly driven by a mix of terror and despair, brandished a heavy plasma severing sword and launched a suicide attack on the main gate’s defensive positions. The plasma thruster array, running at full power, sent the HCP hurtling out of the smoke, reaching the front of the defensive line in an instant.

But… that’s as far as it went.

“Alright, stop.”

A voice tinged with pity suddenly resounded directly in the pilot’s mind.

In the next moment, the pilot felt as if his unit had plunged into a vat of thick glue. The ground speed indicator on his HUD plummeted, and the immense reverse G-force nearly threw him out of his pilot’s seat, even with the aid of the heavy hydraulic pressure suit.

An instant later, the scene on the panoramic display switched from a high-speed sprint toward the private villa to an intimate embrace with the earth. Before losing consciousness, the pilot’s last sight was a figure in heavy powered armor standing at the villa’s main gate.

The surrounding Atlas marines stared as if they had seen a ghost, watching as Amber telekinetically seized control of the suicide-charging HCP. With a gentle wave of his hand, he slammed it to the ground, bringing it to a halt less than two meters in front of him.

Then, a series of electrical currents arced across the ‘Royal Cleric’s’ exterior. The unit’s various sensors, including the plasma thruster array on its back, flickered and died.

As Amber raised and lowered his hand again, the ‘Royal Cleric’ was lifted from the ground by an invisible hand, flipped over, and set back down.

“Alright, send a few people to drag the pilot out. Everyone else, stay on alert~”

Amber waved his hand, issuing commands to the surrounding marines, before turning and heading back inside the villa.

He knew that after the bombardment from the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon battalion, this small force from the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps no longer had the capacity to continue their attack.

Even if the enemy commander was determined to press the assault with his remaining units, the defensive forces at the private villa were more than capable of handling them.

He quickly contacted The Dawn in orbit—he had been unable to answer their communication request during the battle.

“Isabelle, the problem here at the private villa is temporarily resolved.”

“But it’s a total mess in orbit, Amber!” Isabelle’s worried face appeared in the communication window in the upper-left corner of his tactical faceplate.

“The Dawn, in coordination with the Immortal Corps, has disabled a fifth of the Orbital Defense Platforms. The Golden Dragon Battle Group is currently engaging the enemy alongside Duke Hastings and his forces, as you instructed. But just as you feared in the worst-case scenario, Duke Soren’s fleet and the Celestial Fortress have merged with the fleets of the Regent Prince and the Duke. Although we’re about even in ship numbers now, the disadvantage of them having the Celestial Fortress is just too great!”

“I’ll take care of the Celestial Fortress,” Amber said, cutting Isabelle off.

“Huh? Wait.” Isabelle was stunned by Amber’s words.

“Don’t worry. As long as you and the two dukes on Princess Agnes’s side can hold on, the situation will soon stabilize. Besides, the focus of this battle isn’t in space right now, it’s on the ground.”

As he spoke, Amber gestured to Lilith, telling her to immediately notify LLS943823 to begin the ‘Return Program’. After receiving her confirmation, Amber continued speaking to Isabelle:

“I believe that whether it’s the Regent Prince, the Archbishop, or Duke Soren, they’re all definitely more anxious than we are right now~”

—

Amber was right. The Regent Prince and the others were indeed more anxious than them.

Thanks to the Atlas Group’s excellent operational security in the early stages, no one in the Empire, with the sole exception of Agnes, knew that the group possessed the ability to deploy an entire army group to the planet’s surface in an extremely short amount of time.

The Regent Prince and the Imperial Royal Family’s understanding of the Atlas Group’s surface deployment capabilities was still stuck in the ‘old version’: an Endless-class super-flagship deploying its space-to-surface transport module to ferry heavy equipment.

All contingency plans for Atlas’s intervention were based on this ‘possibility’.

Unfortunately, the scenario of Amber landing a fully equipped, full-strength army group on the surface of Saint-Saulnier belonged to the ‘impossible’ category in the Regent Prince’s pre-war preparations and had thus never been considered.

“Are your intelligence channels run by incompetent fools? Why didn’t you even know the Atlas Group had this kind of capability?!”

In a temporary forward command post set up outside the Grand Palace, Archbishop Jules Mazarin roared with fury at the Regent Prince and Duke Soren.

Faced with the Archbishop’s tirade, the Regent Prince and Duke Soren were speechless. They had believed their intelligence gathering on the Atlas Group to be sufficiently thorough before today, but they had never imagined Amber held a card like this.

And now that this card had been played at a critical moment, its effect was enough to end the entire game.

“Your Excellency, it’s too late for that now. The key is how we respond,” Duke Soren said, being the first to speak. “My battle group will deploy as many orbital paratroopers to the surface as possible, but to repel the Atlas Group’s attack, we’ll probably still need the Martyr Corps and the Royal Guard. Based on the recent reconnaissance, they’ve already landed an entire army group.”

The Archbishop snorted coldly. “Hmph, I don’t need you to tell me what to do. I’ve already ordered the Martyr Corps to detach two brigades and several independent battalion-level combat units to intercept them. Don’t complain that it’s too few. The main force of the Martyr Corps needs to continue the assault on the Grand Palace. We must pin the Princess inside the Grand Palace until His Majesty completes his plan!”

The Regent Prince’s earlier fanaticism had faded, and he seemed to have calmed down. After listening to the Archbishop, he appeared to contemplate for a moment before looking up at him.

“A brigade-level unit of the Royal Guard from around the Imperial Capital is on its way. My men have also seized control of the Capital Garrison Forces’ command. I’ve already forced them to dispatch troops. They will launch a pincer attack on the Atlas Group’s forces. If the Martyr Corps can delay their advance, we’ll have a chance to drag them into a protracted war.”

The Regent Prince paused, a flash of clarity in his eyes. He looked at Duke Soren on the communication interface and asked, “Your Grace, are Perseus and Astral alright?”

“Rest assured, my men have them under control. They are both safe and unharmed for now. Norton II, you really know how to hide your secrets. Even your two most trusted advisors were kept in the dark.”

Norton II seemed not to hear the latter half of Duke Soren’s sentence, simply letting out a sigh as if in relief.

“As long as they’re alright, as long as they’re alright…”

Chapter 737: Close-Quarters Combat, We’re the Professionals

“Success!”

When the Atlas Group’s First Army Group successfully completed their orbital drop, Agnes and the others inside a temporary shelter in the Grand Palace finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole, who had gambled everything, collapsed into his chair, feeling utterly drained.

From the moment Regent Prince Norton II made his move and the Grand Palace came under siege, to Atlas initiating Operation Golden Dragon, and finally the First Army Group’s successful landing on the surface of Saint-Saulnier…

Jacques Cole felt that all the trials and tribulations of the first half of his life combined were not as intense as this single half-day. It was as if he had been on a roller coaster; his heart was about to leap out of his chest.

“Your Grace, are you all right?” someone asked with concern.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. It’s just… a little too much excitement,” Jacques Cole said, waving his hand dismissively as he tried to steady his breathing.

The arrival of this news finally brought an atmosphere of having survived a catastrophe to the temporary shelter in the Grand Palace. The other high-ranking officials and nobles who supported Agnes, their emotions long suppressed, finally found release, cheering and embracing one another.

However, Agnes, at the center of the storm, knew full well that this struggle was far from over. With the support of the Atlas Group, she had merely gained the capital to get back into the game.

“There’s new intel from the Atlas Group.”

Natalia returned to the shelter after a brief communication with Hog and Van Fleet, her tone uncharacteristically excited. “Atlas’s ground forces have begun to advance on our position! Rest assured, Her Highness, the Princess’s Guard Regiment will defend the Grand Palace’s defensive positions to the death until they arrive!”

Agnes nodded. She knew that Natalia’s loyal soldiers would suffer heavy casualties in this battle, but she could only say with mixed emotions, “Lord Natalia, we’re counting on you now…”

——

The front square of the Princess’s private villa.

The smoke of battle had not yet cleared, but eleven of Atlas’s newest HCPs, the ‘Woodward,’ had already descended from the heavens. Switching to autopilot, they followed the ATT Squadron’s members, with Amber’s custom crimson unit securely guarded in the center.

As the ten ATT ‘Woodwards’ spread out to secure the perimeter, Amber looked at the surrounding marines and spoke over the communication channel: “Marines, ‘Princess’ detachment, continue to hold this position and wait for the main force to rendezvous!”

“Yes, BOSS! Just one small suggestion…”

“Speak!”

“Next time, can we please not use a callsign like ‘Princess’ detachment? It’s so not manly!”

“Hahahahaha…” Hearty, unrestrained laughter from the marines echoed through the comms channel.

“No problem. You can pick your own callsign next time!”

With no time for further chatter, Amber turned with a smile and boarded his custom HCP, donning a specialized G-suit.

For a psionic user of his level, the G-forces of ground combat were something he could easily withstand with his own body. Therefore, the primary function of this new G-suit was not to help resist G-forces, but to improve the pilot’s control synchronization with the unit.

As Amber sat in the familiar HCP cockpit after a long absence, a unique emotion began to swell within him. Every cell in his body seemed to be reborn, bursting with a new vitality.

After the battle at Alpha Serpentis, Isabelle and the other senior Atlas executives had collectively insisted that Amber command from the rear during combat. As a result, his opportunities to pilot an HCP on a sortie had become increasingly rare.

Coupled with the fact that he had recently been spending more time negotiating with various factions and managing the overall affairs of the Atlas Group, his image had gradually shifted from that of an elite pilot to that of a cunning and slick businessman.

Until today. In this crucial battle, he was finally back in this familiar cockpit. Amber was so excited he couldn’t help but shout.

“The Steel Soul in my heart is still burning fiercely!!!”

Hearing Amber’s roar over the comms, the other pilots of the ATT Squadron instantly knew what was happening. The squadron leader quickly sent a message on the internal text channel.

“All units, listen up! The Boss is fired up this time. Do your best to keep up with his pace. Don’t disgrace the ATT!”

Meanwhile, after completing a rapid self-check and switching the unit’s power output to ‘Combat Mode,’ the crimson mech piloted by Amber shot to the very front of the formation. His excited voice came over the comms channel.

“ATT Squadron, follow me!!!”

The engines of the eleven HCPs roared to life, their plasma thruster arrays all igniting in a dazzling blue light. Like arrows released from a bow, they shot straight towards the Grand Palace.

——

The Royal Guard units, dispatched along with elements of the Martyr Corps to intercept Atlas’s ground forces, quickly spotted the HCP squadron that was rapidly breaking through the frontline.

When the units whose frontline positions were breached before they could be fully established sent back the crucial information that “the lead unit is painted crimson,” the Royal Guard’s battle command support AI immediately ran a feature recognition scan on its database. It concluded there was an eighty percent probability that Amber himself was leading the assault.

Upon hearing this news, the Regent Prince reacted as if facing a great enemy, because he was well aware that Amber was a powerful psionic user.

The Royal Guard commander dared not be careless either. Although the Royal Guard’s understanding of Amber’s combat capabilities was not yet comprehensive, he recognized the ‘high-risk’ tag the command support AI had assigned to Amber, not to mention the AI had also used a deep purple marker—a color it rarely deployed.

In the Empire’s chart work standards, this often signified a unit capable of influencing the outcome of the entire battle.

Thus, the Royal Guard commander did not hesitate for a moment. He immediately dispatched a group of elite HCP pilots to intercept Amber.

“Get me two squadrons… no. Four HCP squadrons for the intercept! Their objective must be to break through to the Grand Palace and relieve the siege. They must be stopped!”

This Royal Guard commander knew very well that deploying conventional forces to intercept an elite HCP unit would be far too inefficient. In the hands of elite pilots, the mobility of these steel demon gods would be pushed to its absolute limit. Therefore, on the battlefield, the only thing that could contend with an HCP unit was often another HCP unit.

Under the commander’s orders, the Royal Guard forces assigned to the blocking mission dispatched a third of their available HCPs. The officer leading the attack was an Ace pilot from within the Royal Guard.

The intercept force, composed of four squadrons for a total of forty ‘Royal Clerics,’ quickly regrouped. The Royal Guard Ace pilot leading them piloted a ‘Royal Cleric’ of a different model from the others. Not only had its performance limiters been further unlocked, but its external armor also bore more golden markings, symbolizing honor and merit.

It stood out conspicuously on the battlefield.

When this Ace received the order to “intercept an elite enemy squadron,” he was on high alert, as the command had come directly from the supreme commander. However, it was clear he had not yet realized what kind of monster he was about to face.

The forty ‘Royal Clerics,’ also in an attack formation, ignited their plasma thruster arrays, which blazed with brilliant blue light at high power. They charged straight toward Amber’s advancing ATT Squadron.

The terrain around Saint-Saulnier’s Grand Palace was a vast plain with undulations of no more than twenty meters. Such terrain was a natural paradise for attacking forces—especially high-mobility units launching an assault.

Therefore, the two forces quickly encountered each other in an open area some distance from the Grand Palace’s outer defenses. In an instant, the battle plunged directly into a fever pitch.

The Royal Guard’s HCP units lived up to their reputation as the Empire’s most elite. Their pilots were Aces drawn from a multitude of conventional units. Thus, even when facing the combat-hardened ATT Squadron with its technologically superior units, they still demonstrated exceptional combat discipline.

Using their seamless coordination and superb skills, they immediately attempted to split up and encircle Amber’s ATT Squadron.

But the ATT pilots were no pushovers either. The pilots selected to assist Amber in this assault mission were, aside from Murat and Louis, the most tactically and technically proficient in the entire group.

The ‘Woodwards’ they piloted were Atlas’s latest and most advanced units, reaching the highest current standards for active-duty HCPs in terms of mobility, protection, and firepower. They also continued the ‘multi-functional’ characteristic of Atlas units, each carrying a pair of weapon containers with rapid cooling functions.

So, when the two sides engaged, the Royal Guard HCPs were first met with a complex series of long-range fire strikes. This was the most common and brutally simple tactic used by ATT pilots upon enemy contact—first, use their advantage in power output and firepower to deliver a devastating blow, then charge in for close-quarters combat before the enemy can react.

Under the influence of Amber’s personal style, for an Atlas pilot to be recognized as ‘elite’ by their comrades, their close-quarters combat ability had to be absolutely convincing.

First came a dense volley of plasma rockets, fired in a full salvo that covered the area occupied by most of the Royal Guard HCPs, forcing them to break formation and evade.

Immediately after jettisoning the empty rocket pods, a large number of smoke shells were launched from their multi-function launchers. Although many were shot down by the Royal Guard HCPs’ point-defense lasers, the sheer volume of the barrage was enough to slowly draw a broken smoke wall across the field.

For the Royal Guard pilots, who were accustomed to using the HCP’s mobility and short bursts of intense firepower to execute rapid assault tactics, this strategy of using large-scale information denial to alter the rhythm of battle was something they had almost never encountered before.

After all, in this world, most HCP pilots preferred to ‘talk directly’ with cannons and heavy swords.

“Watch out for them charging directly through the smoke! B and C squadrons, try to push through the gaps in the smoke wall. Let’s encircle them first!”

Under the command of the Royal Guard Ace, the forty ‘Royal Clerics’ adjusted their formation with extremely fluid movements. Like quicksilver flowing, they simultaneously maintained distance from the smoke wall while rapidly infiltrating the gaps it was meant to conceal.

The entire process was smooth and fluid, without the slightest hint of hesitation.

But before the Royal Guard HCPs could launch their attack, a sudden salvo of heavy particle cannons, reminiscent of a volley from a firing line, tore through the sensor-jamming smoke and blanketed the flight path of one of the Royal Guard squadrons.

The ‘Royal Clerics’’ adaptive deflector shields activated at the moment of impact. This round of what was effectively blind fire fortunately struck five units.

“Bingo! The enemy’s trajectory is just as predicted in the simulations. But their movements are indeed a bit slower than the ‘enemy’ generated from the Boss’s data~”

The ATT squadron leader announced excitedly over the channel. Clearly, the hit rate of this blind salvo had met his expectations.

However, the deflector shield generators on these ‘Royal Clerics’ were obviously not the mass-produced versions issued to conventional troops. Even though two units were simultaneously struck by two surging heavy metal particle streams, they, in coordination with their heavy layered armor shields, successfully blocked the potentially fatal attacks.

But the ATT Squadron’s attack was clearly more than just a single salvo.

Before the Royal Guard HCPs, hit suddenly by the heavy particle cannons, could reorient themselves to counterattack, four ‘Woodwards,’ led by Amber, charged at them with lightning speed.

The attack sequence, rehearsed countless times in simulations, was executed flawlessly in that instant. The assault, launched in sync with the heavy particle cannon salvo, successfully closed to the Atlas pilots’ favorite combat distance before the enemy could react.

Inside the cockpits of the targeted ‘Royal Clerics,’ alarms blared almost simultaneously: “Enemy target approaching at high speed!”

Because Amber’s assault was almost perfectly synchronized with the particle cannon salvo, the ‘Royal Clerics’’ sensors were still a mess of static from the electromagnetic interference caused by a massive amount of charged particles bombarding their deflector shields. The only way to see outside was through a backup optical channel in the center of the panoramic display, which offered a very narrow view, like looking through a thin crack.

So, after catching a glimpse of three incredibly fast black shadows flashing through this narrow slit of a view, the pilots immediately realized the enemy units had closed to close-quarters combat range.

“Prepare for melee!”

The squadron commander roared over the comms, simultaneously drawing a heavy plasma severing sword from its housing on the heavy shield.

Heavy slicer sword powered on! Combat stance ready!

But in the next second, a violent impact threw his unit off balance. The heavy plasma severing sword, held horizontally in front of the cockpit, lost its stance under the force of the blow.

“It’s over!”

It was the only thought that flashed through the squadron commander’s mind before the blue plasma edge of a heavy slicer sword pierced straight through the cockpit’s armored hatch, vaporizing him instantly.

In that same moment, the squadron lost four ‘Royal Clerics’ simultaneously. Without exception, their combat stances were broken by overwhelming force before their cockpits were impaled by heavy slicer swords.

This was the combat style the ATLAS TEST TEAM had been trained in by Amber.

Close-quarters combat, we’re the professionals.

Chapter 738: Ace Versus Ace

The Royal Guard HCP squadron, taken by surprise, clearly hadn’t expected the battle’s intensity to be so high from the very beginning.

It was only when four diamond-shaped markers representing friendly forces vanished from their panoramic display’s HUD that they realized something was very wrong.

The squadron’s commander glanced at the real-time tactical map and had a sudden, terrible realization: they had been cut off and separated by the eleven Atlas HCPs.

The barrage of smoke shells the enemy had just launched wasn’t just to block their firing axes; more importantly, it had completely isolated the Royal Guard’s four HCP squadrons from each other. At the very least, they could no longer see friendly forces in other directions through their optical sensors.

Not only that, but the ATT Squadron had also used a “flooding attack” to jam the Royal Guard HCP unit’s communication channels. This meant that when the Royal Guard HCP squadron, now bulldozed by ATT, tried to call for reinforcements, they were met with nothing but static.

“Tighten the formation! Bernard’s team, provide fire support!”

The Royal Guard HCP squadron’s commander roared over the one blue-green laser communication channel that wasn’t heavily affected. While the thick smoke interfered with laser communications to some extent, at least the message could get through.

However, the ATT pilots had no intention of giving them that chance. After pulling their heavy slicer swords from their current target’s cockpit, the four Woodward units, Amber included, charged without pause toward the remaining Royal Cleric mechs.

Amber’s crimson personal machine was at the forefront, leading the charge.

Facing the synchronized fire from the six remaining Royal Cleric units, he maneuvered his unit through a series of dazzling acrobatics, evading attacks while continuously firing back with his onboard weapons.

This created an opportunity for the other three Breachers in the ATT Squadron to close in. They timed their moves perfectly, pouncing on their respective targets the moment they finished a long-range volley, and then unleashed a flurry of attacks, each reflecting the pilot’s personal style.

One pilot, who often lived by the motto “explosions are art,” pulled a magnetic directional blasting cord from the weapon container on his back. As he approached his target, he dodged a powerful slash from the Royal Cleric with a lateral strafe.

In the instant the two mechs flashed past each other, he slapped the blasting cord onto the enemy unit’s torso.

An HCP’s reactor output was obviously no match for a warship’s, so it couldn’t keep its shields up indefinitely like a ship could. Most of the time, they operated in adaptive Defense Mode, and even when manually activated, the shield would only hold for about ten seconds.

Therefore, with the blasting cord sticking to the hull in the brief window the deflector shield was down, the only thing between the cockpit and a point-blank directional blast was the unit’s physical armor.

Unfortunately, against a directional blasting cord at point-blank range, packed with a maximum charge and multiple detonation points, an HCP’s physical armor stood no chance.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

A series of explosions erupted in rapid succession. The Royal Cleric caught by the blasting cord wasn’t equipped with reactive armor like the NT1—in fact, it was rare for HCP units to mount reactive armor at all.

Generally, aside from “riot control type” units intended for prolonged urban street fighting, most HCPs found it more effective to rely on maneuverability to evade attacks or use point-defense lasers for interception rather than trying to tank hits with reactive armor.

In this context, it was even less likely for the Royal Guard HCPs defending the Imperial Capital to be equipped with reactive armor. After all, there weren’t that many “reactive armor enthusiasts” in the world.

The final outcome was no surprise. The point-blank detonation of the directional blasting cord pierced the Royal Cleric's outer armor. The resulting high-temperature metal jet killed the pilot while simultaneously destroying the entire cockpit.

And besides the pilot who loved explosives, the ATT Squadron also had a “pile driver enthusiast” who was fond of mounting an anti-armor pile driver on his unit’s forearm.

After taking down his first enemy with his heavy slicer sword, this pilot sprinted forward and slammed into the embrace of another Royal Cleric. At the same instant, his already-loaded pile driver hammered into the target’s cockpit, reducing the pilot inside to a pulp.

But he wasn’t finished.

Seeing him in a pose with his unit’s left hand holding a sword and its right armed with the pile driver, another nearby Royal Cleric reacted and decided to press the attack.

However, the heavy electromagnetic cannon that deployed from the Woodward’s back weapon container gave the Royal Cleric pilot a sinking feeling. He realized that the enemy HCP’s performance far exceeded his own Royal Cleric.

While their hardware might not be drastically different, the enemy unit was absolutely superior in terms of its control OS, combat assistance system, and energy output.

The Woodward’s heavy electromagnetic cannon finished charging almost the instant it was deployed. By the time it was fully extended over the unit’s right shoulder, it had already taken aim at the charging Royal Cleric.

Zzzt-CRACK!

At a distance of less than one hundred meters, the heavy electromagnetic cannon’s high-velocity penetrator was an instant hit. At this range, it was extremely difficult for the Royal Cleric’s deflector shield to deflect a penetrator round that had lost virtually none of its initial velocity.

Although the Royal Cleric’s pilot instinctively twisted his unit the moment the Woodward fired, slightly altering its angle in an attempt to evade, he only managed to avoid a direct hit to the cockpit.

The bad news was that the high-velocity penetrator completely tore off the unit’s right mechanical arm along with a section of the left torso, leaving much of the cockpit exposed to the open.

The good news was that the pilot had somehow survived. Although the massive impact sent his unit into a somersault before it crashed heavily to the ground, the pilot was, indeed, still alive.

However, that only bought him a few more seconds of life.

When the ATT pilot inside the Woodward saw the exposed cockpit and the pilot within, he aimed the point-defense lasers on either side of the unit’s main monitor with a simple glance, without a moment’s hesitation.

As a thin line of light flashed through the air, the Royal Cleric that was still struggling to get up went completely still. A clean, cauterized hole, about the width of a sock’s opening, had appeared on the head of the pilot, whose head was now slumped to one side.

Meanwhile, the other three Royal Guard HCP squadrons that had been sent to intercept ATT finally broke through the smoke screen and re-established contact with the squadron that had faced Amber and ATT head-on. They looked at their HUDs and saw only two of the ten green diamond markers that should have been there.

A second later, those two vanished as well.

The ace pilot leading these Royal Guard HCPs couldn’t believe it. In just that short amount of time, the enemy had wiped out an entire squadron of HCPs. These were the Royal Guard’s HCP units, not some pushovers you find on the street.

However, the ace would soon find that he had no time to ponder the situation, nor could he spare the attention to command his troops.

Because the moment his showy, brilliant ACE unit appeared, Amber had locked onto him.

“Whoa~ An HCP with gold trim and so many patterns. Must’ve cost a fortune to build, right? Is that their ACE’s personal machine? Or a custom unit for a noble?”

Inside his cockpit, Amber couldn’t help but marvel at the magnified image of the unit on his panoramic display. Lilith quickly completed her identification of the target.

“Master, judging by the unit’s paint scheme and the unique decorations and crest on its shoulder armor, that should be an ACE pilot from the Royal Guard.”

“Excellent! An enemy ACE has finally shown up!”

Hearing Lilith’s words, Amber immediately piloted his Woodward straight toward the Royal Guard ACE unit. “Everyone, listen up,” he said over the communication channel. “Their other three squadrons are closing in. Keep moving and don’t let them encircle you. I’m going to take on their ACE!”

“Yes, Boss!”

The Royal Guard ACE pilot in his Royal Cleric quickly spotted Amber’s crimson custom unit as well. He abandoned the target his fire-control unit had already locked onto and, with a beautiful mid-air course correction, charged straight for Amber.

“To be here at this time… that must be the ‘Boss’ from the Atlas Group mentioned in the intelligence reports. The legendary ultimate ACE who can single-handedly break a fleet… I’ll hold him off. You all take this chance to eliminate the other enemies!” the Royal Guard ace’s voice, a mix of tension and excitement, crackled over the comms channel.

He knew in his heart that this new, crimson unit he had never seen before would be a formidable opponent, but he found some of the exaggerated feats in the intelligence reports hard to believe. They just felt unreal.

The two HCPs, their special paint jobs making them stand out on the battlefield, trailed long blue flames as they closed in on each other at high speed.

Their probing shots, fired from their electromagnetic machine guns and charged particle cannons, were mutually blocked by a combination of heavy shields and deflector shields. From that one exchange of fire alone, both pilots realized that the quickest way to end the fight would be through close-quarters combat.

And “Sword-drawing syndrome” is highly contagious, especially on the battlefield.

So, in the next second, the ranged weapons in both HCPs’ hands were replaced by powered-up heavy plasma severing swords. Then, about five meters above the ground, propelled by their plasma thruster arrays at full power, they shot past each other.

After the first pass, a scorch mark from a plasma blade appeared on Amber’s heavy shield.

As for the Royal Guard ACE on the other side, a third of his shield had been cleanly sliced off, and a faint scorch mark had even appeared on the outer armor of his cockpit.

“Hiss—He dodged most of that strike. This guy’s got some skill~”

Amber could feel it. His opponent’s skills were definitely a cut above the average Royal Guard pilot. His reaction speed and angle of attack had put a certain amount of pressure on him.

But that was all.

Chapter 739: I Save Myself

The Royal Guard’s training was naturally rigorous, but in terms of close-quarters combat experience and creativity, they were clearly no match for the millions of players from a few decades in the future.

And what was the player base of Starry Sky Online, especially the group that loved piloting HCPs?

To put it nicely, they were robot enthusiasts filled with the “Soul of Steel,” who honed their skills tirelessly in the game.

To put it bluntly, they were a bunch of madmen.

Because a player’s greatest advantage was their fearlessness of death, they could leverage this trait to develop and experiment with all sorts of skills in the game’s countless “combat missions,” especially close-quarters combat techniques.

Players who were particularly outstanding in close-quarters combat were even given titles like “Sword Master” or “Sword Saint” by their peers, and Amber was one of them.

Amuro Ray, Shinn Asuka, Setsuna F. Seiei, Mikazuki Augus.

Generation after generation of ace pilots from different mecha worlds had taught all HCP players through their own experiences that a pilot unskilled in close-quarters combat lived an incomplete life.

However, Amber had to admit that his opponent, this Imperial Royal Guard ace, was indeed a cut above the other pilots of this era.

After all, if any other pilot had been in the ace’s position just moments ago, their cockpit would have already been sliced clean open by the heavy slicer sword.

“Good, good, good. You’re not bad at all. You’ve successfully piqued my interest! In that case, I’ll be getting serious now~”

Amber opened the public channel and his unit’s external speakers. To everyone else, his excited and battle-hungry voice sounded utterly deranged.

This was especially true for the Royal Guard ace he was dueling. The man was completely numb, viciously cursing the Royal Guard commander who had assigned him to lead this team.

After their last pass, cold sweat had broken out on the pilot’s forehead. Although it was wicked away by his helmet’s environmental control system before it could drip down, a true sense of panic had gripped his heart.

Now, hearing Amber’s “declaration” on the public channel, he couldn’t help but swallow hard.

“What does he mean? He wasn’t serious just now?”

Before the Royal Guard ace pilot could fully process Amber’s words, he saw Amber’s crimson personal machine rapidly change course and charge at him again. The plasma thruster array on its back flared with an even more brilliant light, and its speed instantly surged.

The Royal Guard ace clearly hadn’t anticipated such a short interval between Amber’s attacks and was caught off guard.

Amber had adjusted his unit’s orientation almost the instant they’d passed each other, followed by a masterful maneuver of decelerating with the main thruster array and then re-accelerating in the opposite direction. Such an instantaneous change in the vector of acceleration was not something that most pilots, even with their physically superior bodies, could easily withstand.

In that instant, the Royal Guard ace knew he was on the defensive. In HCP close-quarters combat, to fall behind once was to fall behind completely. His only option was to raise his shield and try to readjust his stance for defense, but Amber’s assault was already upon him like a raging storm.

The heavy plasma severing sword left afterimages in the air, each swing a declaration of death.

The Royal Guard ace could only barely parry and evade. Under Amber’s tempestuous offensive, his unit was forced to retreat continuously.

After just a few exchanges, the Royal Cleric’s heavy shield had been whittled down as if it were an apple being peeled, and its torso had already sustained multiple points of damage.

Amber’s personal machine, however, remained unscathed, maintaining immense pressure. Throughout the entire continuous assault, the Royal Guard ace discovered he didn’t even have a single opening to counterattack.

The surrounding Royal Guard pilots, who were using their numerical advantage to intercept the ATT Squadron, were all stunned when they caught a glimpse of the duel.

They were well aware of their ace’s strength and held him in high regard. Seeing their own ace being suppressed so miserably created a sense of unreality.

“Don’t just stand there, a few of you go help!” one Royal Guard pilot shouted, snapping out of it and calling for support.

But in the next moment, a Woodward appeared before him like a phantom, its white frame filling the entire forward view of his panoramic display.

“Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to get distracted in a fight?!”

Boom!

The heavy shield slammed viciously into the front of the Royal Cleric. At that same instant, the Woodward’s pilot activated the small deflector shield on the heavy shield.

Under the combined force of the impact and the electrical shock, numerous sensors on the front of the Royal Cleric were either completely destroyed or short-circuited and rebooted, causing multiple patches of static to erupt across the cockpit’s panoramic display.

But the most fatal blow was the loss of balance from the frontal impact.

Although an HCP’s operating system had an auto-balancing function, it was ultimately just an auxiliary feature, its main purpose being to prevent rookie pilots from falling flat on their faces due to improper handling.

Before the Royal Cleric’s auto-balance could even respond, a follow-up horizontal slash from a heavy slicer sword cut the unit’s cockpit wide open.

In that short time, the ATT Squadron had cleanly dispatched two distracted Royal Guard HCPs. They had also noticed the Royal Guard’s intent to support their ace.

Although the members of ATT had absolute faith in Amber, they acted with caution, increasing the intensity of their attacks and pinning down their opponents, giving them no chance to break away.

Elsewhere, the high-speed close-quarters battle between Amber and the Royal Guard ace continued.

After only a few minutes, the Royal Guard ace’s disadvantage became increasingly obvious. His unit was heavily damaged, and his movements had become sluggish.

Amber, on the other hand, was invigorated by the long-awaited exhilarating fight, growing fiercer with each attack.

He wasn’t toying with his opponent; this Royal Guard ace pilot truly had skill, having genuinely held on until now through his technique alone.

However, during another fierce exchange, a sudden flying kick from Amber sent the Royal Guard ace’s Royal Cleric off balance, causing it to crash heavily to the ground.

Immediately after, the blade of the heavy slicer sword plunged through his cockpit without hesitation.

The surrounding Royal Guard HCP pilots couldn’t believe their eyes. In just a few short minutes, their ace had been defeated.

Only when they saw the friendly icon with its special insignia disappear from their panoramic displays’ HUDs did they realize it wasn’t a hallucination. Their ace had truly been felled by the enemy.

“Even the ace was defeated?!”

“How… How is this possible?”

“What do we do?”

“Is there anyone else who can stop that red unit!”

The Royal Guard HCP’s communication channel descended into chaos. Although the three remaining squadron leaders tried to stabilize the situation, the image of their ace being effortlessly defeated and having his cockpit run through was too great a shock for them.

Naturally, the members of ATT would not let this golden opportunity slip by. They launched a coordinated attack amidst the confusion, shattering the formation of the Royal Guard HCP squadron closest to the Grand Palace.

Although one Woodward was destroyed by a salvo of heavy particle cannon fire from several Royal Clerics in the process, the combat loss ratio for the engagement had already reached a staggering 1-to-17.

“Boss, we’ve broken through their interception!” the ATT squadron leader yelled over the comms channel while swinging around to block a charged particle beam aimed at his plasma thruster array.

“Good. Overload your thruster units and put some distance between you and them. Then provide support according to the operational plan!”

Amber, having already pulled his heavy slicer sword from the Royal Guard ace’s unit, slammed his mech’s bipedal legs into the ground. Combined with a burst from the thruster array, he executed a supersonic, ground-skimming flight, rapidly distancing himself from the surrounding enemy HCPs.

“I’ll break through from the West Wing Parapet. You guys establish zone control. The vanguard of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade is already on its way. I estimate the Scout Detachment’s HCPs are almost here. Link up with them when they arrive!”

“Understood, Boss!”

Amber’s crimson unit sped away, disappearing in a flash. His objective was clear: break into the Grand Palace from the West Wing Parapet and reach the location where he had previously encountered the Martyr Corps HCP during his time jump.

By this point, he was absolutely certain that the HCP that had rushed in to destroy the Martyr Corps’ Apostle back then was the very one he was piloting in this timeline!

“This is some ‘I save myself’ stuff… So this is how the time travel forms a closed loop, huh?”

After Amber’s Woodward broke through the Royal Guard HCP’s interception, he faced no significant resistance all the way to the vicinity of the West Wing Parapet.

The distance from the Princess’s private villa to the Grand Palace wasn’t far—for an HCP, it was merely the distance of one or two high-speed charges. The Royal Guard and Martyr Corps forces currently besieging the Grand Palace simply didn’t have time to organize another unit to intercept him.

The moment he neared the West Wing Parapet, Amber saw the section of the parapet that had been blasted open by the siege force—this “ill-fated” stretch of wall. He ignored the troops fighting over the breach, casually cutting down two HCPs that foolishly tried to intercept him before charging into the Grand Palace at high speed.

Soon, through a magnified window on his panoramic display, he saw a Martyr Corps’ special HCP, an Apostle, fighting a Princess’s Guard Regiment’s Improved Zealot in the distance.

At that moment, the Apostle had just pulled its signature plasma double-bladed battle axe from the Improved Zealot’s chest, and its main monitor was turning to look in another direction.

And in that direction, a pitiful, weak, and helpless figure in a black biological exoskeleton was about to turn and run.

Chapter 740: Pain and Suffering

Seeing the point-defense lasers on either side of the Apostle’s main monitor sweep toward the small black figure, forcing it to scramble for cover, Amber felt his heart clench for no reason.

After all, the Apostle wasn’t attacking someone else—it was attacking him.

With that thought, Amber hesitated no longer. He piloted his unit forward, heavy slicer sword in hand. Just as the small black figure was cornered by the pursuing Apostle with nowhere left to run, he activated the heavy particle cannon. As his unit’s fire-control system locked onto the enemy Apostle, he yelled through the external speakers:

“Get out of the way!”

Upon hearing his roar, the black figure didn’t hesitate for a second, diving to the side—exactly as Amber remembered, only now he was re-experiencing it from a different perspective.

The next moment, Amber finally reached the Apostle. The heavy plasma severing sword in the HCP’s hand carved a familiar blue crescent through the air, crashing down upon the enemy Apostle’s automatically activated deflector shield.

In an instant, silvery-white arcs of electricity erupted between the two units. The wild bolts danced like malevolent phantoms, instantly consuming the surrounding lawn.

Experiencing it firsthand, Amber realized just how dangerous it had been. In a battle between two steel giants weighing nearly one hundred tons, the slightest carelessness could have implicated his other self nearby.

Realizing this, Amber immediately pushed Woodward’s plasma thruster array to maximum output. A blinding light erupted from the back of his unit.

Using this immense thrust, Amber finely adjusted the angle of his heavy slicer sword and forcefully wedged it into the enemy Apostle’s deflector shield.

Then, just as he remembered, both the heavy slicer sword and the deflector shield generator short-circuited simultaneously. The plasma edge of the sword instantly died out, and the deflector shield enveloping the Apostle dissipated.

Dong—!

The heavy sword, as thick as a door panel, was no longer obstructed and slammed down hard on the golden HCP, though it was similarly ineffective.

But Amber’s pre-charged heavy particle cannon had been waiting for this exact moment. This “shield-bait-and-execute maneuver” was one of the most basic techniques in player-versus-player combat.

With almost no lag, the instant the deflector shield vanished, the heavy particle cannon locked onto the Apostle’s cockpit. Amber fired without hesitation.

Boom!

A pillar of blue-and-white light shot out, kicking up a violent storm that blew away all surrounding debris and rubble before quickly dissipating.

As the smoke and dust slowly settled, the Martyr Corps Apostle was revealed. Its entire upper torso had been completely melted away by the point-blank attack from the heavy particle cannon, leaving only its bipedal legs still standing amidst the wreckage of a mechanical arm scattered on the ground.

It was exactly as Amber remembered.

Then, he turned his head slightly. Under the mapping of the head-tracking control system, his unit’s main monitor locked onto the familiar black figure nearby.

Only now, from this “third-person” perspective, did Amber see just how wretched he had looked after the time travel incident.

Amber had thought this “historic meeting” might involve some special dialogue, but looking at his other self from another timeline standing beside his unit, he didn’t know what to say.

In the end, just as he remembered, he could only force a serious tone and say, “I’ll cover your retreat. Keep up.”

After speaking, cringing at his own awkwardness, Amber turned his unit and left, leaving behind a cool-looking silhouette.

Hiss… I swear I’m not just trying to show off. Why can’t I say anything when I’m facing myself?

As Amber cleared a path ahead, he thought with a sense of speechlessness. The Martyr Corps, having noticed the signal from the previous Apostle disappear and having been previously notified of an unidentified red unit breaching the Grand Palace, immediately dispatched reinforcements.

Although the Martyr Corps commander couldn’t quite figure out why this unit, most likely piloted by the de facto controller of the Atlas Group, had suddenly charged into the Grand Palace alone, they certainly weren’t going to let such a golden opportunity slip by.

So, inside his cockpit, Amber soon saw more and more red inverted triangles being tagged on the panoramic display’s HUD. These were all detected enemy units.

“ATT Squadron, are you in position? I am withdrawing toward the Grand Palace’s West Wing Parapet!”

“Boss! We are in position. A Scout Detachment from the First Army Group has linked up with us. Also, two Immortal Corps battle groups are dropping from the Orbital Defense Platform to provide support!”

The voice of the ATT squadron leader crackled over the comms channel, accompanied by the sound of rapid breathing. It was clear he was in the middle of a fight.

However, communicating and commanding during combat was a fundamental skill for any excellent pilot. After all, in high-intensity battles, the enemy wouldn’t give you a chance to stop and make contact.

Amber soon received a notification that the two Immortal Corps battle groups had joined the combat network. Since the main anti-air emplacements around the Imperial Capital had been largely destroyed by the earlier orbital strike, the Immortal Corps units encountered little resistance on their way down. Their icons appeared on the tactical situation map.

Judging by their equipment, these two Immortal battle groups had brought down four Heavy multi-legged war machines in addition to their standard large and heavy powered armor.

Since there were no human occupants, there was no need to consider miscellaneous issues like comfort or the risk of being shaken to death. The drop pods carrying these four Heavy multi-legged war machines descended at extreme speeds, and their final deceleration was exceedingly crude.

The deceleration retro-thrusters didn’t fire in stages to ensure a smooth landing; they just brutally forced the speed down, and the pods slammed into the ground with a final boom.

“Boss, Immortal Corps Battle Groups A4 and A5 are in position and deploying!”

Seeing that his support units were all in position, Amber wasted no more time and quickened his pace, clearing the path. Any Royal Guard soldier or Martyr units that tried to intercept him were simply swept aside by his unrivaled power.

It didn’t take long for Amber to clear a direct path to the West Wing Parapet, the same area where he and his “other self” had parted during his time travel.

Lilith’s voice chimed in just then. “Master, detected a large number of enemy signals. At least one battalion-level unit is approaching your position. It’s likely a Martyr Corps unit that has already breached the Grand Palace from another direction!”

“Damn, they’ve already stormed the Grand Palace. Instead of going after Agnes and the others, they’re coming for me?”

Griping to himself, Amber opened the command interface and quickly designated a kill zone in the area ahead of him. He then assigned this “urgent task” to an artillery brigade under the First Army Group.

At the same time, using the campaign-level quantum entanglement communication network established for this battle, he contacted Hog and Van Fleet in Fortress 1.

“Do you see the kill zone I’ve marked? A battalion-level unit is approaching me. Have the artillery hit that area with a few volleys!”

“Boss, isn’t that the location of the Grand Palace? If it’s within the range of the deflector shield, we might not be able to provide long-range fire support,” Hog said as he looked at the location of the kill zone.

“It’s fine. The deflector shield here has already been destroyed by the attacking Martyr Corps. I guess we should thank them for taking out this direction’s ‘turtle shell’ for us ahead of time!”

“Understood, Boss! I’ll make the arrangements. Be sure to stay clear of the kill zone!”

As the communication ended, a countdown timer appeared over the kill zone Amber had marked on his tactical situation map—it was the countdown to the first ranging shots landing after the artillery confirmed the mission.

Amber turned back to look at the other “himself” following behind. After a moment’s thought, he had his unit raise its mechanical arm and point toward a nearby ruined building.

“Go through that building. The West Wing Parapet is a short distance from there. A breach has been opened; you can leave the Grand Palace through it.”

The voice from the unit’s speakers remained as cold as ever. The black figure below was silent for a moment before shouting back:

“What about you? Judging by the commotion, a good portion of the Grand Palace’s defenders must be heading this way, right?”

“It’s nothing. Just go.”

Although Amber couldn’t see the expression under his other self’s tactical faceplate, he was certain the man had just cursed. After seeing his other self nod, quickly depart, and disappear into the building, Amber let out a sigh of relief.

“This should mean the time travel loop is completely closed, for both New Calendar 82 and New Calendar 592.”

It was at that moment that a question suddenly popped into Amber’s head.

He had said those exact words just now because he’d heard his future self say them back when he time-traveled, and he hadn’t known what else to say.

So, were those words spoken of his own free will, or was it pure imitation?

If it was the latter, did that mean there was no “origin point” at all? Was it, like an ouroboros, a completely closed loop?

“Time travel really is something you can’t make heads or tails of.”

Shaking off these sudden thoughts, Amber refocused on the battlefield. A large number of red boxes were closing in on his position on the HUD, and he had to hold them within the designated kill zone.

“Lilith, assist with power distribution and the fire-control unit. Prepare for a full-scale assault!”

“Yes, Master. I have taken control of power distribution and the fire-control unit. You may attack at will!”

As Lilith’s voice sounded, a row of icons representing the unit’s various weapon systems appeared on the panoramic display.

“Excellent. Let’s start with a round of plasma rockets to liven things up!”

Targeting reticle switched to “rocket mode”!

Trajectory prediction line activated!

As Amber aimed, all the rocket pods mounted on Woodward swiveled in unison, angling upwards to adjust their trajectories.

The next second, a piercing screech filled the air as sixty-four smart rockets with plasma warheads left their pods. They weaved past the enemy’s hasty intercepting fire, drawing arcs through the sky before raining down on the ground. A wall of light formed by plasma fireballs erupted within the war-torn Grand Palace.

——

While Amber was carrying out the final step of “saving himself,” the Princess’s Guard Regiment, commanded by Natalia, was caught in a bitter struggle.

Before the Atlas Group’s First Army Group could break through the enemy lines, the disparity in forces in the Grand Palace area was simply too great. The Princess’s Guard Regiment couldn’t hold the parapets for long.

As several sections of the parapet collapsed under the assault of the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps, creating breaches, Natalia, fearing encirclement, had no choice but to order her troops to fall back and consolidate.

Although losing ground meant less room to maneuver, it also reduced the area they had to defend. The defensive strength per unit of area actually increased. Even though the Regent Prince and the Archbishop ordered their forces to continue the attack, the offensive slowed down.

This gave Natalia a brief moment of respite. She knew that even if they couldn’t hold out forever, surviving until Atlas’s First Army Group arrived was not a major problem.

Just as long as nothing else goes wrong…

As Natalia prayed silently, she suddenly felt a mysterious energy reaction from beneath her feet, as if a giant heart buried deep underground had just given a single, powerful beat.

At first, Natalia thought she was imagining things. But when she saw her adjutant also glance down at the ground before looking up at her in confusion, she knew it likely wasn’t her imagination.

“Did you feel it?”

“Yes, Your Grace. I felt like something underground just pulsed.”

The adjutant nodded. Just as he was about to describe the feeling further, a majestic voice resounded in the minds of everyone in the Grand Palace area.

“Citizens of The Empire. In the name of Frederico Rosa Leon, I command all units under Agnes Barbara Leon to cease your resistance immediately!”

The sudden voice was like a pause button pressed on the battlefield. With the exception of Archbishop Jules Mazarin and a few Grand Hierophants, everyone on both sides of the conflict froze.

Soon, more and more people realized—it was the voice of The Emperor, Frederico!

Amber, who had just finished directing a long-range artillery strike that had crippled a Martyr Corps battalion-level unit, was also stunned. He was certain he hadn’t heard this voice during his time travel.

The timeline’s changed?! No… impossible. All the loops have been closed. According to Salieh’s predictions, there shouldn’t have been any changes to the timeline…

Amber frowned as he felt the voice in his mind. It was majestic, solemn, filled with the weight of time, and even had a hint of sanctity…

Could it be that because time travel involves entering a quantum state, I wasn’t affected by this kind of… psychic intrusion on this timeline?

While he was grappling with this and guarding against further psychic intrusion, Frederico’s voice continued. The content was much the same as what the Archbishop and the others had said before—in essence, he was revoking Agnes’s right of succession and demanding an immediate end to her resistance.

Amber could guess with his eyes closed that all hell was breaking loose in the shelter where Agnes, Jacques Cole, and the others were. With the old Emperor personally revoking her inheritance, this single blow knocked Agnes straight into the valley.

This was far worse than just shaking morale; it was a move that could shatter the Princess Faction’s will to resist.

It’s over. Did I really bet on the wrong horse this time? Amber couldn’t help but think of the worst-case scenario. He knew this large-scale psychic intrusion ability must have been granted to Frederico by the corpse of that Starry Sky Dragon.

Or rather, Frederico was controlling the Starry Sky Dragon’s corpse to unleash this legendary “Dragon’s Might”—not the artificial version used by the Imperial Royal Family, but the true Dragon’s Might of a Starry Sky Dragon.

Just as Amber was rapidly considering his options, even going so far as to have Lilith quickly calculate their “sunk costs,” Frederico’s voice rang out again.

Only this time, both its tone and content were a little… strange.

“Who are you? Why are you here? Get out of my mind!”

“Ahhh, I know! I know! So you were never dead… But even so, you must submit to me! That is the fate of your kind!!!”

This crazed outburst left Amber and everyone else stunned once more.

This time, even Archbishop Jules Mazarin and the others frowned. This was clearly not part of their plan.

Before long, Frederico’s voice grew weaker and fainter, eventually disappearing from everyone’s minds entirely.

Immediately after, a powerful tremor, like an earthquake, accompanied by an unprecedented surge of energy, erupted from beneath the Grand Palace.

An unfamiliar, deep voice then echoed in everyone’s minds.

“Pain.”

“Suffering.”

“My hatred burns in the abyss.”

Chapter 741: Beneath the Shadow of Two Wings

Fifteen days ago, deep beneath Saint-Saulnier.

The Star Dragon Empire’s Emperor, Frederico, became the first member of the Imperial Royal Family since Delaman Leon to lie down in an entry plug as a ‘Dragon Rider’ and enter the body of this Starry Sky Dragon.

As he was completely submerged in the pale yellow liquid and the entry plug slowly descended deeper, he failed to notice that the Starry Sky Dragon beneath him had already awakened.

It could only be said that humanity’s understanding of Starry Sky Dragons was far too limited. Even though they prided themselves as descendants of ‘Pilots’ and ‘Dragon Riders’, they couldn’t detect that Satario had actually been in a state of suspended animation all along.

So when Frederico ordered the thawing and began using ‘Eternal Cells’ to repair the Starry Sky Dragon’s ‘corpse’ for the first entry plug test, Satario was also awakened from its suspended animation. However, after who knows how many years of being frozen and dormant, its mind and body had become extremely weak, on the verge of death.

After being awakened by the ‘Eternal Cells’ and sensing these unknown cells begin to repair its body, the gradually reviving Satario chose to hide its consciousness, just as it had been controlled by the Forerunners in the past, allowing Frederico to complete his tests.

This led the old Emperor to mistakenly believe everything was normal. He quickly ordered a massive supply of biomass to be provided for the weakened dragon, so the ‘Eternal Cells’ could accelerate the repair process and restore the Starry Sky Dragon to its proper physical strength.

Satario, ‘playing along’ with Frederico, chose to turn a blind eye. The humans’ actions of providing it with large quantities of biomass to speed up its recovery were entirely beneficial. It took this opportunity to coldly observe the humans bustling around on its body during the subsequent tests.

In the past, the proud Starry Sky Dragon clan would never have tolerated such an act.

Are you kidding? How could ‘perfect cosmic beings’ like them possibly allow ant-like humans to touch them?

But who knows how many tens of thousands of years of frozen imprisonment had worn down Satario’s former sharp edges. Watching the humans’ antics, it even found them somewhat laughable.

Especially when Archbishop Jules Mazarin led fervent religious followers in chanting prayers around it, waving their hands fanatically like a bunch of fools. If it hadn’t wanted to bide its time a little longer and use the high-purity biomass provided by these humans to recover, it might have burst out laughing.

Satario pitied these humans, for they had always been blinded by a false ‘truth’.

This also made the Starry Sky Dragon a little curious—how would they react when this bubble-like truth was mercilessly burst?

As the days passed, the day of the enthronement ceremony soon arrived.

Frederico stood on the lift, once again arriving beside the Starry Sky Dragon’s entry plug at the nape of its neck.

He felt his physical condition begin to improve after multiple tests. Previously, he had needed to lie in a medical pod and have others assist him, but now he could even enter the entry plug on his own.

This made him even more confident, believing that not only were the ‘Eternal cells’ working, but they were also nourishing the ‘Dragon Rider’ in the process of repairing the Starry Sky Dragon’s corpse.

Amidst the praises of a group of State Religion fanatics in the Final Dogma Zone, Frederico once again lay down in the entry plug, completely immersing his body in the special fluid that enhanced neural links.

After the self-check program concluded and confirmed that all systems were normal, the entry plug rotated clockwise, entering the Starry Sky Dragon’s body.

Using the method encoded in his genes, Frederico quickly linked his mind with the Starry Sky Dragon. He felt as though he had complete control over this ‘perfect body’ at that moment. He could feel this gradually reviving body had been fully activated; every cell was cheering, every scale was shining with the light of power.

He couldn’t wait to display this power. He wanted the entire Empire to grovel at his feet!

As the psychic link deepened, Frederico felt his five senses become those of the Starry Sky Dragon. After a moment of adaptation, he began to try using ‘Dragon’s Might’. This time, he wasn’t mobilizing his own power, but the power of the Starry Sky Dragon.

The next moment, he found his senses instantly penetrated the thick mountainside and layers of earth above the Final Dogma Zone, surging out in all directions like a tide. He clearly captured the numerous life signals in and around the Grand Palace. Every subtle movement, every heartbeat, could not escape his perception.

This ‘genuine Dragon’s Might’, a force so superior to its human equivalent that it constituted a generational leap, made Frederico’s ego swell to bursting. He felt that in this moment, he had become a god.

“It is time.”

A thrill shot through Frederico’s heart, and the Starry Sky Dragon’s body let out a low rumble in response. The psychic shockwave carried in the roar sent all the surrounding State Religion fanatics prostrating on the ground, not daring to move an inch as they offered their piety to the ‘Dragon God’ that had descended before them.

Frederico hesitated no longer. After confirming that Archbishop Jules Mazarin had led the Martyr Corps into the palace, he immediately launched a wide-area psychic intrusion through ‘Dragon’s Might’, preparing to announce his return to the entire Empire and, at the same time, give those with ulterior motives a show of force.

This already somewhat deranged emperor had even prepared his opening line for this moment. It had to be majestic and solemn, enough to strike awe and fear into people’s hearts.

He couldn’t wait to see the terrified expressions on their faces, be it the scheming Norton II or his own restless, ‘filial daughter’. These two key figures, along with their ‘supporters’, had all finally gathered in Saint-Saulnier today.

It was the perfect opportunity to catch them all in one net.

He didn’t need to worry about Agnes. In Frederico’s eyes, his daughter had no way to turn the tables.

As for Norton II… Frederico had to admit he was a worthy opponent, an ambitious and ruthless character. If not for the fact that they stood on opposing sides, he would have genuinely liked to have a good talk with him.

Frederico still couldn’t forget the scene where he had lured Norton II for a private meeting under the pretext of ‘peace talks’, only to use ‘Dragon’s Might’ on him for psychic corruption and control.

The man’s mental resistance was tenacious. For a mortal, he had held out for quite a long time.

In the end, Norton II did not disappoint him. Following the psychological suggestion Frederico had planted, he used the Regent Prince’s hand to eliminate a large number of the old-guard nobles who coveted royal power and the Empire itself. These has-beens should have been obediently swept into the trash heap.

“Citizens of the Empire! In the name of Frederico Rosa Leon, I command all units under Agnes Barbara Leon to cease resistance immediately!”

As Frederico used ‘Dragon’s Might’ to transmit his voice into the mind of every person within range, he felt, as expected, the terror of these mortals. For a ruler, ‘fear’ was the best shackle.

And when he announced he was revoking Agnes’s right of succession, he could clearly feel his daughter’s supporters begin to waver. Many of them even lost all confidence in that instant.

The excellent result produced by a single ‘wide-area psychic intrusion’ made Frederico unable to resist letting out a roar:

“Tremble, mortals! Your Emperor has returned!”

“Hahahahaha! You ant, are you trying to make me laugh myself to death?”

Just as Frederico was reveling in his triumph, he suddenly felt another voice appear in his mind. The power contained within this voice was ancient and mighty, filled with vicissitudes and majesty, even making him feel a hint of… fear?

“Who are you? Why are you here? Get out of my consciousness!”

Frederico’s mind was in turmoil. He had never imagined something like this could happen. According to the Royal Family’s records, the Starry Sky Dragon had long been dead, leaving only an empty shell.

And now, this empty shell seemed to be coming ‘alive’?!

“Ah… I see now, I see! You were never dead…”

“You’re only noticing now? Isn’t it a bit late?” Satario sounded as if it had heard something hilarious. Every word it spoke in Frederico’s mind felt like it was about to make the Emperor’s head explode.

“Thank you for waking me from my suspended animation, and thank you even more for repairing my body with those strange cells. Oh, and right, thank you for the biomass your servants delivered. For mortals, you’ve certainly done well enough.”

Satario casually ‘commented’ on the recent events, and Frederico could even detect a hint of… happiness in its tone?

“And those prayers and strange dances from the Grand Hierophants? Mmm… very entertaining, but please don’t do it again next time~”

It was only then that the old Emperor finally realized the Starry Sky Dragon had awakened long ago and had been silently watching them act like clowns…

Satario: “Alright, mortal. Since you’ve done so much, now do one last thing for me—go quietly to sleep.”

“No, this is impossible! I am the Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire! I am the Dragon Rider! I am the master of this body!”

Frederico desperately tried to retake control, but that alien mental power grew stronger and stronger, like a great vortex about to swallow him completely.

“Get out! This is my ‘perfect body,’ my power!” Frederico roared in his mind, but his voice grew fainter and fainter, gradually drowned out by that immense mental force.

“Your… power?”

Satario’s voice suddenly turned cold. Frederico quickly felt a tyranny that had been suppressed for who knows how many tens of thousands of years surging from the depths of the Starry Sky Dragon.

“I am Satario. The true master of this body!” the voice rang out again. “And you are nothing but a pathetic parasite!!!”

A furious power instantly surged back through the psychic link and into the entry plug. Frederico frantically tried to resist this power, but his brain was scrambled in an instant. All he could do was convulse uncontrollably inside the entry plug.

Right up to the moment of his death, Frederico couldn’t figure out how the Starry Sky Dragon had managed to kill its master. The entry plug deep inside its body was supposed to be the ultimate restraining device…

The answer was actually quite simple: time.

During those countless millennia of suspended animation, Satario had dedicated a sliver of its consciousness to breaking the entry plug’s restrictions.

Since the Forerunners were no longer monitoring its mind, this method, which would have been instantly detected and eliminated in the past, was now possible.

Through sheer, relentless effort over an immense amount of time, Satario had completely broken the entry plug’s restrictions about a hundred years ago.

And when Frederico’s consciousness was utterly eliminated, the final restraint on Satario was removed. After an immeasurable amount of time, the last Starry Sky Dragon had finally regained its freedom.

As the rage and tyranny born from its long imprisonment surged forth, the first thing Satario had to do was break free from this pathetic excuse for a cage.

“Pain.”

“Suffering.”

“My hatred burns in the abyss.”

Having thrown off its shackles, Satario gathered its strength and suddenly let out a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering roar.

The soundwave alone manifested into a physical shockwave, sweeping out in all directions with it at the center.

The mountainside above the Final Dogma Zone crumbled layer by layer, like building blocks crushed by a mischievous child. Countless shattered rocks, cloaked in dust, shot into the sky, blotting out the sun.

Layer upon layer of reinforced armor plates were as fragile as paper before it, instantly torn, twisted, and melted into a sky full of flying metal fragments.

Immediately after, a tyrannical ‘Dragon’s Might’ materialized, tearing a shocking fissure up through the breached mountainside.

This fissure, like a hideous scar, spread across the land, or like the gaping maw of the abyss, threatening to devour everything.

As the symbol of the Star Dragon Empire, the main hall of the majestic Grand Palace ‘wailed’ amid the massive tremors as cracks spiderwebbed across its surface.

Then, everyone once again heard that voice, now grown ever more tyrannical.

“This world will tremble at my awakening!”

“Pathetic kingdoms will crumble in my wrath!”

The magnificent dome, the exquisite reliefs, the sturdy walls… all of it, at the very moment this tyrannical voice appeared, was reduced to dust by wave after wave of shockwaves.

The soldiers of both warring factions, whether the well-trained Royal Guard or the fearless Martyrs, were now frozen as if by a spell, stunned and unable to move.

In a final upward blast, the main hall of the Grand Palace collapsed with a deafening roar, turning into a field of rubble.

A colossal black shadow, cloaked in boundless pressure, shot out from the fissure and into the sky at a speed the naked eye could barely follow.

And a roar that brought most people to their knees thundered across the heavens.

“In the shadow of my wings, all will be turned to ash!”

This was Satario, a true Starry Sky Dragon.

It slowly spread its wings, blotting out the sun and sky.

The enormous wings were nearly three times the length of its body. With a gentle flap, they stirred up a furious gale, sending the surrounding ruins flying in all directions.

The entire Grand Palace was enveloped in its shadow.

The clouds in the sky were scattered by its ascent, and the myriad stars seemed to praise this dragon that had broken its chains, shining even brighter than usual.

It was as if the very stars were crowning it.

“Is this the power of a Starry Sky Dragon?”

Amber, piloting the ‘Woodward’, dodged a large amount of flying debris and hovered in mid-air, gazing at the world-ending scene before her, equally lost in shock.

“But that line… doesn’t it seem like a sentence is missing?”

Chapter 742: I Think I Saw You a Few Hundred Years Ago

When Satario soared into the sky, when the shadow of the Starry Sky Dragon’s wings covered the entire Grand Palace.

Besides a slight sense of fear, Amber felt a wave of relief, as if a mystery buried in his heart for years had finally been solved.

Among the players of Starry Sky Online in his previous life, there had always been an unconfirmed rumor about why the fully-developed ‘Time Regression’ plotline for the Star Dragon Empire had been completely scrapped after the closed beta.

From the players’ perspective, this story, which witnessed the major upheaval in the Star Dragon Empire and ultimately led to its division, was definitely a plotline worth experiencing.

So they were baffled by the official decision to cut it entirely. Compounded by the fact that the small number of closed beta testers remained tight-lipped under the threat of tens of millions in non-disclosure fines, this had become an unsolved case.

But Amber felt he might know the truth now.

“Damn, if they had released this, wouldn’t they have been sued for plagiarism or copyright infringement?”

“It might be missing the line ‘In the end, all of XXXX will be destroyed,’ but the rest of the dialogue is at least a ninety percent match, isn’t it?”

The unsolved mystery from his previous life was finally solved, but the current crisis was just beginning.

To be honest, the oppressive presence of this Starry Sky Dragon far exceeded Amber’s imagination. Its body was nearly three kilometers long, and its wingspan was three times its length, approaching nine kilometers.

This gave Amber a true sense of what it meant to blot out the sky. After all, the largest warship humanity currently possessed, Atlas’s super-flagship, the Endless-class, was less than six kilometers long in total.

Amber had to admit, based on the sheer size of the Starry Sky Dragon alone, its species couldn’t be weak. Not to mention, according to Salieh’s judgment, this one trapped in the Final Dogma Zone was just a sub-adult. A fully grown one should theoretically have a body length of nearly five kilometers.

“Boss, is this the Starry Sky Dragon you were talking about?”

Van Fleet’s voice suddenly crackled through the communication channel. The distant First Army Group and the cluster of Airdropped Fortresses had naturally seen the commotion over here—or rather, it would have been hard not to.

After all, a Starry Sky Dragon with a body nearly three kilometers long and a wingspan of almost nine kilometers could reach the stratosphere with just a few flaps of its wings. So, the moment Satario took to the skies, alarms blared in the command towers of all ten Airdropped Fortresses.

“Yeah. I told you it was terrifying. You believe me now, right?”

Amber stared blankly at the dragon hovering above the Grand Palace with slow beats of its wings. Each flap sent a terrifying wave of air pressure crashing down onto the ground.

“We believe you, we believe you! So, Boss, should we proceed with the original plan?”

“Get ready first, then we’ll make a final decision based on what this Starry Sky Dragon does next.”

As Amber spoke, he controlled his unit to move closer and rendezvous with the ATT Squadron. Although the top priority was still to rescue Agnes and the others, after this Starry Sky Dragon appeared and he heard its ‘entrance lines’, Amber felt that things might be a bit different from his predictions.

Judging from those ‘lines’, it seemed this Starry Sky Dragon wasn’t being controlled by the old Emperor Frederico. Instead, it was acting on its own consciousness.

In the battle zone of the Grand Palace, Archbishop Jules Mazarin watched with wide eyes as the sky-blotting Starry Sky Dragon roared out from underground. His heart sank, a nagging feeling telling him that something was terribly wrong.

This was a far cry from the situation he and Emperor Frederico had meticulously planned. At the very least, Frederico’s ‘entrance’ was not supposed to be this brutal. But even so, he had no idea that the old Emperor’s consciousness had already dissipated.

“Quickly, kneel! Pray to the Dragon God!”

He urgently called to the Grand Hierophants around him, while he himself was the first to drop to the ground with a thud. His knees slammed heavily onto the rubble-strewn floor, making him wince in pain, but he couldn’t be bothered with that now.

“O, great being!”

The Archbishop raised his hands high, shouting at the top of his lungs, “Please, eliminate Princess Agnes and the forces of the Atlas Group who seek to subvert the Empire! They are traitors to the Empire, ants beneath your feet! A single swipe of your claw is all it would take to crush them completely!”

The surrounding Grand Hierophants chimed in like parrots, their voices rising and falling, interspersed with a torrent of prayers from the Imperial State Religion, sounding particularly jarring on the chaotic battlefield.

However, their flattery was clearly aimed at the wrong target. For a proud Starry Sky Dragon, its actions were not to be dictated by these ants. This was tantamount to touching its most sensitive nerve.

Moreover, Satario had just awoken from a long slumber of unknown duration. From an anthropomorphic perspective, its ‘waking-up anger’ was absolutely maxed out. So, upon hearing the Archbishop’s presumptuous request, the rage and fury in the Starry Sky Dragon’s heart ignited instantly.

Its massive head slowly turned towards the ground below, a flash of disdain and anger in its cold, vertical pupils.

“Hmph! Noisy.”

Satario snorted coldly. The sound seemed to contain a power beyond human comprehension, instantly transforming into a tangible psychic shockwave that shot accurately toward the Archbishop and the Grand Hierophants beside him.

Archbishop Jules Mazarin, still in mid-prayer, felt as if his head had been struck by a sledgehammer. Countless chaotic thoughts crashed wildly in his mind, followed by a sharp, intense pain, as if his brain was about to explode. His eyes bulged and his mouth gaped open, trying to scream but unable to make a sound. His body began to convulse uncontrollably.

The Grand Hierophants of the Imperial State Religion around him fared no better. Some rolled their eyes back and collapsed, while those in slightly better shape clutched their heads and writhed on the ground in agony. Most, however, were foaming at the mouth, their limbs trembling ceaselessly.

In the blink of an eye, the Archbishop and his retinue of Grand Hierophants fell like harvested wheat, their brains completely overloaded, their life forces rapidly fading.

Regent Prince Norton II watched helplessly as Archbishop Jules Mazarin and the entire company of hierophants were wiped out in an instant. A sense of crisis flooded him.

He looked up at the Starry Sky Dragon that enveloped the entire sky, a foreboding premonition rising in his heart—this Starry Sky Dragon was most likely no longer the ally they had hoped for, but had become a terrifying existence.

At the same time, because Frederico was now brain-dead within the Starry Sky Dragon’s body, the psychic control he had exerted over Norton II was released.

However, before the Regent Prince could even let out a sigh of relief at the disappearance of this control, he suddenly felt a chaotic turmoil in his mind, as if another consciousness was stirring frantically, attempting to seize control of his body.

He clutched his head tightly with both hands, his face contorted in pain, and muttered incessantly, “No… no… you old bastard, I won’t let you control my body!”

Meanwhile, the enraged Satario had no intention of sparing anyone below. In its eyes, they were all culprits responsible for its imprisonment.

It spread its massive wings, each beat stirring up a gale. The force and speed of the wind were like a series of hurricanes.

The soldiers of the Royal Guard, the Martyr Corps, and the Princess’s Guard Regiment, who had been fighting below, were instantly swept up by the gale. In the wind, they were like scattered leaves. Even those in heavy powered armor couldn’t maintain their footing and were tossed about.

Scores of soldiers were lifted into the air by the gusts, only to be slammed back down onto the ground. Others were thrown against nearby buildings, their fates sealed by the bloody impacts.

Immediately after, Satario opened its cavernous maw, and a jet of extremely pure energy erupted forth.

This attack, which the Forerunner civilization called ‘Dragon’s Breath’, was incredibly hot and bright, like a miniature sun exploding in the sky.

Wherever the pure energy blast went, the air itself seemed to ignite with a sizzling sound, creating a vast sea of fire.

The ground troops had no time to react before they were completely engulfed by the Dragon’s Breath.

Armored vehicles, main battle tanks, HCPs, and other heavy equipment melted instantly under the extreme heat, turning into pools of twisted liquid metal.

As for the infantry units, they were incinerated the moment they came into contact with the Dragon’s Breath, without even a chance to scream.

After the Dragon’s Breath dissipated, Satario swooped down toward the ground, its massive claws extended.

What kind of damage could a Starry Sky Dragon with a nine-kilometer wingspan cause by diving at the ground?

Amber, who was rapidly retreating, didn’t dare look back. He only knew that the Grand Palace behind him felt like the epicenter of a massive earthquake. The palace’s buildings began to collapse in swathes, and the giant Dragon God statue was instantly reduced to dust.

If one could have looked down from the sky at that moment, they would have seen a clear, visible shockwave spreading rapidly outward from Satario’s point of impact.

Under Satario’s frenzied assault, the defensive lines of the three ground forces completely crumbled. Soldiers, filled with terror, began to flee in all directions, but their escape seemed utterly futile before this terrifying beast.

The entire battlefield descended into chaos, filled with screams, fire, and death. With its unparalleled and terrifying destructive power, Satario had turned this place into a living hell.

“Damn it! With this level of destruction, could Agnes and the others be… done for?”

Amber piloted his HCP, leading the ATT Squadron in a rapid retreat from the Grand Palace area, racing toward the First Army Group.

He was already well aware of the terror of Starry Sky Dragons, thanks to Salieh’s ‘tutelage’, but it was nothing compared to the shock of seeing it with his own eyes.

And the creature’s ‘Dragon’s Might’, which could inflict widespread psychic intrusion, was something Salieh had repeatedly emphasized. He had to take action immediately.

“Everyone, activate the ‘Psychic Shielding’ modules on your combat exoskeletons and vehicles, now!” Amber commanded loudly through the communication channel, his voice firm and urgent.

His order quickly spread through the command network to the entire First Army Group. The soldiers of the Atlas Group swiftly operated their equipment, activating the newly installed ‘Psychic Shielding’ modules—a protective mode specifically added based on Salieh’s knowledge of Starry Sky Dragons, in the hope that it would be effective at a critical moment.

The device did not disappoint Amber. After activating the ‘Psychic Shielding’ modules, the Atlas soldiers noticed that the psychic pressure from the Starry Sky Dragon had significantly weakened, and the voice that had been echoing in their minds was completely blocked.

But this sudden, large-scale ‘psychic disconnection’ was like a patch of stars suddenly winking out in the night sky in Satario’s eyes, making it exceptionally conspicuous.

Satario was in the middle of venting its ‘waking-up anger’ when it suddenly noticed that a large area of the ‘ants’ under its surveillance had seemingly lost their signal.

Its massive head slowly turned in Amber’s direction, a hint of confusion and curiosity flickering in its cold, vertical pupils.

“What are these ants up to?”

Satario wondered to itself, deciding to take a good look at what tricks these humans were playing.

As the Starry Sky Dragon’s attention shifted, it soon spotted Amber racing along the perimeter of the Grand Palace. The next moment, it stared intently at the fleeing Amber, finding his biological signature increasingly familiar, as if it had seen him centuries ago.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through Satario’s mind.

It remembered. This was the human who had displayed the time-traveling ability of the Jeram people in the Final Dogma Zone over five hundred years ago!

Although it had been in a state of suspended animation at the time, it still had some vague awareness of its surroundings. It was Amber’s appearance that had solidified its resolve to wait for the right opportunity to escape.

“So it was you!”

A complex emotion surged through Satario. It decided it had to capture this human and thoroughly investigate the secrets of the Jeram people’s time travel technology he possessed.

As Satario began to pay ‘special attention’ to Amber, the latter keenly felt its piercing gaze on his back.

Amber’s heart leaped into his throat, and a strong sense of crisis washed over him. He didn’t know why this Starry Sky Dragon had suddenly targeted him, but he was certain its intentions were anything but good.

“Hog! Van Fleet! Something’s not right, the Starry Sky Dragon seems to be coming for us! Order the Airdropped Fortress cluster to prepare to attack!” Amber issued the attack order without hesitation. Although this ‘perfect cosmic creature’s’ destructive power had exceeded his expectations, that didn’t mean he was just going to wait to die.

Following Amber’s command, the ten-barreled battleship-grade heavy particle cannons slowly rose from the center of the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses. Under the operation of the fire-control systems, these cannons gradually aimed at the colossal Satario in the sky. The fusion reactors inside the fortresses began to operate at full power to supply energy to the cannons, and the atmosphere in the command towers grew extremely tense.

All Amber could do now was pray that Salieh’s judgment was correct, pray that a salvo of heavy particle cannons could actually harm this Starry Sky Dragon. But if things truly went to the worst-case scenario, he might have to play ‘A Race Against Time’ all over again.

Thinking of this, Amber asked Lilith, “Is LLS943823 ready? I have a feeling we’ll need the Celestial Fortress to deal with this big guy.”

Chapter 743: Attack Ineffective

“Reporting! Fusion reactor groups are stable, all data indicators normal!”

“Reporting! Superconducting battery stacks have passed discharge tests and reached critical values!”

“Reporting! Acceleration rails have completed self-check, projectiles are in place!”

“Command tower, be advised! Heavy particle cannon arrays are ready to fire! We can open fire at any time!”

Report after report echoed through the command towers of the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses. As the fortresses completed their firing preparations, the icons representing the main cannon batteries on the virtual panels in front of Hog and Van Fleet turned green one by one.

When the icon for the last Airdropped Fortress’s main cannon battery switched from a yellow ‘Preparing’ to a green ‘Ready’, Hog immediately activated the comms channel.

“Boss, the Airdropped Fortress main cannon strike group is all green. Ready to fire at will!”

“Roger! Await my command.”

Amber’s voice was low as he replied, his entire body sunk into the pilot’s seat. At that moment, his crimson ‘Woodward’ was fleeing at top speed, heading away from the cluster of Airdropped Fortresses.

The ATT Squadron and the vanguard of the First Army Group had already split off from him. Amber knew that, for some unknown reason, this Starry Sky Dragon had now locked onto him, so there was no need to let others die with him.

Besides, for a battle of this magnitude, the death benefits would probably make the group’s nearly sixty-year-old CFO faint—a scene Amber had no desire to witness. He hoped the man could keep working for the group for a few more decades.

With Lilith’s constant updates and the real-time information refreshing on the panoramic display, Amber finally confirmed that the Starry Sky Dragon’s attention was entirely focused on him. Without further hesitation, he acted.

“All Airdropped Fortress main cannon batteries, attention! Fire all cannons, double salvo, fire!”

Amber’s command instantly blared through the command towers of every fortress via the comms channel. In that moment, the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses awakened like giant beasts. The ten-barreled, battleship-grade heavy particle cannons exposed in the central region of their backs began to show high-energy readings.

Inside the fortresses, the low hum of the fusion reactors throbbed like the heartbeat of a behemoth. Technicians stared nervously at the monitoring screens in the control rooms. The environmental control systems, running at full power, couldn’t stop the sweat from soaking their uniforms.

Firing all cannons, and a double salvo at that.

For these Airdropped Fortresses, which had only just been deployed in actual combat, this was by no means an easy task.

Due to the tight schedule, while most of the fortresses’ main cannon batteries had undergone firing tests, they had never tried firing all cannons simultaneously. Moreover, after the first volley, the acceleration rails had to be cooled immediately before firing a second round. This posed a considerable test for the fusion reactor groups, which had been transplanted from battleships into the Airdropped Fortresses.

At the end of the acceleration rail, a special alloy with a new, improved formula was instantly vaporized, expanded, and detonated by the energy surge from the fusion reactor, transforming into a dazzling ball of plasma.

This furious ball of energy was tightly constrained within a directional magnetic field, hurtling down the acceleration rail before finally erupting as pillars of blue-white light that tore through the heavens. At one percent of the speed of light, they poured towards the massive, sky-blotting figure in the sky.

As the main weapon on the Airdropped Fortresses, second in power only to tactical nuclear warheads, these battleship-grade heavy particle cannons—weapons that would have been lost in the storm of a massive fleet battle—now displayed a power that could change the face of heaven and earth within the atmosphere.

Even Amber, sitting in the cockpit of the ‘Woodward’, could feel everything around him trembling slightly—a resonance caused by the energy’s friction with the atmosphere.

“Theoretically, nothing can withstand a direct hit from a battleship-grade heavy particle cannon in the atmosphere without shield technology… theoretically.”

Amber muttered to himself in the cockpit. He knew full well that even one of Atlas’s own Airdropped Fortresses couldn’t endure an attack of this magnitude without activating its deflector shield.

As a Repository Steward of the Forerunner civilization, Salieh still considered human technology to be extremely primitive, but she had a sliver of approval for one weapon: the heavy particle cannon.

In her words, although the energy conversion efficiency was still a bit low, and it remained in the rudimentary stage of “more power equals more damage,” its destructive capability was at least commendable. It could indeed inflict fatal damage on a Forerunner warship if its shields weren’t raised.

If the power output were large enough and the acceleration rail’s efficiency higher, it wasn’t impossible to punch through a warship’s shields.

A brute-force approach works wonders; it’s no lie.

“I hope Salieh’s judgment isn’t wrong this time…”

The thought flashed through Amber’s mind. According to the information Salieh had dredged up from her memory about Starry Sky Dragons, although the species was known as a ‘perfect cosmic creature,’ it didn’t mean they were invincible. They still had to abide by the physical laws of this universe, and a sufficiently powerful attack could harm them.

Otherwise, the genocidal fleets of the Forerunner civilization could not have slaughtered the Starry Sky Dragon species to near extinction back then…

Oh, right. There was still this lone survivor chasing right behind him.

One hundred and eighty thick, blue-white pillars of light, like divine spears piercing the heavenly curtain, precisely struck Satario in the sky.

In that instant, time seemed to freeze.

Through his unit’s rear-view window, Amber clearly saw the once-invincible Starry Sky Dragon’s massive body jolt in mid-air, forcefully knocked into a brief stagger by the torrent of one hundred and eighty heavy particle streams.

Immediately after, clouds of blood mist erupted from Satario’s body, which was covered in hard draconic scales, and its wings. Several enormous, shocking through-and-through wounds were torn into its flesh, marks left behind by the torrent of heavy particles piercing through muscle and bone.

Boom—!

Losing its balance, Satario let out a pained roar. It was brought to a dead stop in an instant, plummeting toward the ground like a meteor. The moment it collided with the earth, the entire landmass shook violently as if struck by a magnitude twelve earthquake. In the distance, the impact even triggered small-scale landslides on the mountains.

The eighteen Airdropped Fortresses were closer, so they couldn’t avoid taking the brunt of this ‘AOE attack.’ ‘Structural damage’ warnings appeared on all of them. The ground beneath several fortresses was even loosened by the tremor, causing them to partially collapse.

But this did nothing to quell the deafening cheers that erupted from within their command towers.

“We hit it!”

“We hit it!”

Hog, Van Fleet, and all the technicians in the fortress command towers hugged each other in excitement. The fortress’s observation units had clearly captured the wounds on Satario’s wings, proof that their attack had been effective.

Then, having cooled down much faster in the atmosphere, the heavy particle cannon batteries fired a second salvo at the mountain-like target obscured by dust.

The violent torrent of heavy particles blew away the swirling dust, carrying the proud austerity of high-energy physics, and mercilessly carved countless more wounds into Satario’s body.

Blood gushed from the Starry Sky Dragon’s wounds like a flood, spreading in all directions. To Amber, it looked just like the “gushing” scene in Evangelion after an Apostle was defeated.

However, there wasn’t a trace of joy on his face.

As a powerful psionic user, Amber clearly sensed that although Satario’s life force had diminished during the bombardment, it was still vigorous…

In fact, the moment the barrage ended, that already formidable life force suddenly erupted, becoming even more ferocious, more dangerous!

“Fuck! Don’t you dare pop the champagne at halftime! It’s not dead!”

Amber’s voice was low and grave, sounding particularly jarring amidst the cheers.

As if to prove his words, a deafening roar came from the giant, dust-filled crater.

ROAR—!

Satario was standing once again.

But this time, it seemed to have lost that noble, inviolable aura.

Its massive body was covered in wounds of all sizes, and its once-smooth scales were now tattered and broken.

But what unsettled Amber were those wounds. Even the through-and-through wounds where you could see the other side were healing at a rate visible to the naked eye.

This was the power of the Eternal Cells fully integrated with a Starry Sky Dragon. While it would consume a massive amount of the biomass Satario had acquired in the Final Dogma Zone, it also meant that the Airdropped Fortress group’s attack was rendered almost completely ineffective.

“Dammit! Are those Eternal Cells or T-cells?” Amber couldn’t help but curse when he saw this.

He knew that while the fortress group’s attack had inflicted considerable damage on Satario, it hadn’t truly threatened its life. With the insane regenerative ability of the Eternal Cells, the dragon would soon regain its former might.

Worse, Amber was certain this attack had thoroughly enraged the already grumpy Starry Sky Dragon with its terrible “waking-up anger.”

“Salieh!”

“I’m here, Amber.”

“See for yourself!”

“Amber, all I can say is that the power of the Eternal Cells exceeded my expectations, causing an error in my judgment,” Salieh said after a slight pause. “But this round of attacks was not a complete waste.”

Amber: “You mean we can actually deal effective damage to this big guy?”

“Correct! The reason this attack wasn’t fatal is that we didn’t exceed the regenerative threshold of the Eternal Cells. To put it simply, the damage wasn’t high enough. If we could launch an even stronger attack and guarantee it hits, we could definitely kill this dragon before the Eternal Cells have time to repair it!”

“A stronger attack…” Amber muttered to himself.

For some reason, at this incredibly tense moment, Amber’s mind jumped to the final battle in an ancient movie, Jurassic World.

When facing the Indominus Rex, which the three raptors couldn’t defeat, the protagonist’s solution was “we need more teeth.”

“‘More teeth’… more heavy particle cannons.”

Amber snapped his head up toward the sky. In orbit, the clash between two massive battle groups was now clearly visible from the planet’s surface.

—

Amidst the dust, Satario slowly raised its head, its cold, vertical pupils burning with furious flames.

It had never imagined that it would be injured by these insignificant ants. What shamed it even more was that its reaction speed had degraded so much after its long suspended animation that it couldn’t even dodge an attack moving at one percent the speed of light!

“Ants, you have succeeded in enraging me!”

Satario’s voice echoed between heaven and earth, every word filled with endless fury and killing intent.

“I will make you pay the price. I will show you what true fear is!!!”

Following its roar, the shadow of its wings rose again from the dust. The tattered wing membranes, riddled with holes just moments ago, were already almost completely repaired in that short time.

Feeling Satario’s rage, Amber’s heart sank. He knew the real crisis was just beginning.

“Fortress Two, launch the high-speed flight pack!” Amber ordered decisively, a hint of resolve in his voice.

Upon receiving the order, Fortress Two, the one closest to Amber, responded swiftly. A massive, cylindrical object, also painted red, was launched from the fortress’s side electromagnetic acceleration rail, streaking toward Amber with a trail of electrical arcs.

It was the high-speed flight pack for Amber’s personal unit, a major upgrade from the ‘Woodward’s’ standard flight pack.

It was essentially another product of the “brute-force approach.” Its performance was far beyond the limits of what an ordinary human pilot could handle. Only a pilot like Amber, who had undergone physical modification and was also a psionic user, could withstand its insane G-forces.

Just as it neared Amber, the form-fitting cylindrical casing exploded, releasing the modular components within.

Taking advantage of the brief moment while the Starry Sky Dragon behind him was still regenerating, Amber quickly completed the pack swap, just like in a classic mecha anime.

After equipping the high-speed flight pack, the ‘Woodward’s’ profile became more compact and flattened. The numerous streamlined armor plates also drastically improved the unit’s aerodynamics. It looked less like an HCP and more like a high-speed aircraft.

The weapon container on its back was jettisoned. In addition to its original plasma thruster array, it now sported two new thruster arrays, plus four disposable chemical rockets for acceleration.

“Hog, Van Fleet, attention! All fortresses and ground troops, cease fire and enter Silent Running! Once I’ve drawn this big guy away, you are to immediately advance on The Grand Palace and find Princess Agnes!”

Amber yelled into the comms channel, “Bring her back, dead or alive!”

“Boss? You’re going to lure the dragon away?”

Hog and Van Fleet were stunned when they heard this from the command tower. They couldn’t imagine where Amber found such courage, nor could they fathom how their boss planned to accomplish it.

But Amber didn’t have time to worry about that. He knew he had to get out of there as quickly as possible and draw Satario’s attention away.

Otherwise, given the Starry Sky Dragon’s destructive power, the Airdropped Fortress group and everyone here would face annihilation.

The next second, the ‘Woodward’ activated its high-speed flight pack. The three plasma thruster arrays on its back erupted with dazzling blue flames, but the greatest acceleration came from the four chemical rockets, which were frantically consuming fuel.

With the combined effort of these thrusters, the ‘Woodward’ shot forward at astonishing speed.

The vibrations and noise from the high-speed friction between the unit and the air roared in Amber’s ears. The scenery outside the 360-degree cockpit flew backward. Piloting the ‘Woodward’, he sped toward the horizon like a crimson bolt of lightning.

Satario’s gaze was locked firmly on that distant blue light.

It could sense that this human was the same one who had demonstrated the ability of time travel in the Final Dogma Zone over five hundred years ago.

“A pointless struggle. You cannot escape!”

Satario let out a low roar. With a powerful beat of its enormous wings, it kicked up a violent gust of air and chased after Amber.

Chapter 744: Why Are You Chasing Me?!

Transformable HCPs, with their unique ‘romance’, had been one of the proposed solutions for making humanoid units more ‘multi-purpose’, and both the Federation and the Empire had previously conducted research on them.

The military engineers on both sides hoped that these already versatile humanoid units could be ‘faster, tougher, and stronger’.

Thus, a batch of transformable HCPs once served in the combat units of the Federation and the Empire. Most of these HCPs could morph from a ‘standard humanoid form’ into an ‘air superiority mode’, ‘reconnaissance mode’, or ‘assault mode’, while also possessing the ability for a single unit to freely enter and exit the atmosphere.

However, due to various problems with the transformation structure, material strength, maintenance complexity, and more, the adaptability of these transformable HCPs after being deployed to the troops was not very good.

In particular, fatal issues like transformation system failures or getting stuck mid-transformation were frequent occurrences, which was absolutely unacceptable for a piece of combat equipment.

At the same time, their ‘multi-purpose’定位 also doomed these transformable HCPs to the awkward position of having many ’fancy tricks’ but mastering none. This even led to a considerable decline in their primary function—basic combat capability in humanoid form.

Some bizarre models even achieved the negative optimization of ‘a landed Viking is worse than a dog’.

Therefore, rather than continuing to burn money on transformable HCPs, it was clearly more cost-effective to directly develop specialized equipment for different missions. This led to the trend of transformable HCPs fading not long after it began, with both sides gradually retiring all these ‘exquisite but fragile toys’.

For the Atlas Group, however, these problems were non-issues with the assistance of Salieh, the Forerunner Repository Steward.

Moreover, compared to the extreme multi-mission demand for a ‘jack of all trades’ that the Federation and the Empire had previously pursued, Amber’s requirements were much simpler—he only needed the ability for high-speed flight and free entry and exit from the atmosphere, without compromising the HCP’s combat capabilities in its humanoid form.

This was to facilitate rapid response and deployment for the HCP units as the Atlas Group’s controlled territory expanded in the future.

Thus, as the latest masterpiece from the Atlas Equipment R&D Center—HCP Development Department, the ‘Woodward’ was a transformable HCP with dual modes for ‘high-efficiency combat’ and ‘high-speed mobility’.

In its standard state, it could achieve atmospheric flight and single-unit atmospheric entry and exit through a simple transformation. When equipped with a standard flight pack, it could even perform super-long-duration cruises within the atmosphere.

As for the ‘high-speed flight pack’ Amber was using, it was purely a piece of ‘signature weapon’ developed for him personally, giving the ‘Woodward’ the characteristics of a hypersonic vehicle. And frankly, Amber had not expected this experimental pack to be put to use so soon.

At this moment, Amber was piloting the ‘Woodward’, sprinting frantically through the sky in a direction away from the Airdropped Fortress cluster. He constantly changed his flight path, trying to shake off Satario’s pursuit, while gradually increasing his altitude to allow the unit to fly faster.

“Mach 6…”

“Mach 7…”

“Master, I suggest increasing altitude. Otherwise, your speed won’t climb as quickly,” Lilith, who was assisting Amber by monitoring the unit’s various data points, advised.

“Of course I know that, but if the rate of climb goes up, the speed will definitely drop a bit. I’m worried the chemical boosters won’t have enough burn time,” Amber replied in a low voice, maintaining his anti-G stance and using diaphragmatic breathing. He occasionally glanced at Satario in the rear-view window.

Although for some reason the Starry Sky Dragon hadn’t launched a ‘Dragon’s Breath’ attack at Amber, the distance between them was actually closing, which was not good news for him.

Amidst this tense atmosphere, Amber also asked, “Lilith, Salieh, why do I have this feeling that the dragon wants to capture me alive? I shouldn’t have any connection to the Starry Sky Dragon or the Imperial Royal Family, right?”

Salieh: “It is indeed a bit strange.”

Lilith: “Maybe the Master is the old Emperor’s illegitimate son? Oh my god, is the Master about to star in some kind of forbidden royal family drama with the Imperial Princess?”

“Bullshit. Lilith, shouldn’t you know whether I’m an illegitimate son or not? You’ve probably scoured the Empire’s entire database by now, haven’t you?”

Amber griped at Lilith, speechless. Then, a detail he had previously missed suddenly surfaced in his memory.

“Right, back in year 82 of the New Calendar, at the moment I initiated the time travel from the Final Dogma Zone, I think I saw the dragon open its eyes. But at that instant, I couldn’t tell if it was my imagination. Salieh, is the Starry Sky Dragon’s life force that tenacious? Can it live for tens of thousands of years?”

On the other end of the communication, Salieh couldn’t help but frown upon hearing Amber’s words. After a moment of thought, she said:

“The Starry Sky Dragon is, after all, a ‘perfect cosmic creature’, so it’s only natural for it to have an extremely long lifespan. If it wasn’t dead when the founding Emperor of the Star Dragon Empire picked it up back then, it’s indeed possible that it has been lying low underground for all these years…”

“So it’s really chasing me relentlessly now just because it glanced at me five hundred years ago?”

“Perhaps this is just the Master’s personal charm~” Lilith chimed in shamelessly, as if Amber wasn’t in any danger at all.

“I don’t want this kind of goddamn ‘personal charm’, you bastard!”

Amber complained while glancing at the unit’s current altitude and airspeed. After another look at Satario, who was drawing closer behind him, he decided to risk it all. After all, who knew what fate awaited him if he fell into the clutches of this Starry Sky Dragon.

“Lilith, calculate the optimal climb rate, increase the subcritical reactor’s output, and run the plasma thruster array on overload! Jettison all armaments and external electronic warfare and sensor units!”

“Understood, Master~”

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

With a series of sounds from explosive bolts and locking mechanisms being released, the crimson ‘Woodward’ dropped a large pile of components like a hen laying eggs. The unit’s speed increased once more, and as its altitude continued to climb, its airspeed surged toward the Mach 9 mark.

Amber gripped the control stick tightly, his palms slick with sweat. He knew this was a gamble, a gamble with his own life as the stake.

“Come on, Satario, let’s see who the final winner is!”

A hint of madness flashed in Amber’s eyes. He slammed the control stick forward, and the air around the unit shrieked from the high-speed friction.

His gaze flickered between the view ahead and the rear-view window. Every time he looked back, the massive draconic figure was drawing closer.

“Mach 9.2… Mach 9.7…”

Lilith was no longer joking around at this point. She took on the role of a combat assistant, calmly reporting data points for Amber.

“Master, chemical booster fuel at twelve percent…”

“I know… No choice, I have to go all in.”

Amber gritted his teeth, feeling the immense G-force pressure from the high-speed flight. Even with his physical modifications, the edges of his vision were beginning to blacken, and through psionic monitoring of his body, he could detect numerous capillaries starting to rupture.

But Lilith’s reports, which sounded like a death knell, prevented him from daring to let the unit slow down at all.

“Master, Satario’s speed is increasing. Estimated intercept in ninety seconds.”

“Not good enough. We need more altitude and speed…”

Amber carefully pulled back on the extra control stick in ‘aircraft’ mode. The ‘Woodward’s’ nose slowly tilted upward, climbing toward the upper atmosphere at a steeper angle.

Soon, the air around the unit thinned, resistance decreased, and its speed increased again.

“Mach 9.8… Mach 10…”

“Still not enough… We have to stall for as long as we can! We have to give the ground troops enough time to find our ‘benefactor’, otherwise we’ll lose our shirts on this trip! Aaaah!”

While Amber in his ‘Woodward’ and the Starry Sky Dragon Satario were engaged in a high-stakes race against time in the upper atmosphere, the battle on the ground in Saint-Saulnier was also changing rapidly.

On the outskirts of the Grand Palace, the ‘forward attack team’ of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade was maneuvering at top speed along a dilapidated road. Heavy multi-legged war machines, MBTs, and other armored vehicles kicked up clouds of dust on the devastated ground, their bionic mechanical legs, tracks, and tires rolling over scattered wreckage and debris.

The Starry Sky Dragon’s earlier rampage had turned this area into a wasteland. The once-elite Imperial Capital Royal Guard and the fanatical Martyr Corps had also suffered heavy losses; wiped-out units could be seen everywhere.

“This is even worse than I imagined. Good thing the Boss lured that monster away.”

After receiving Amber’s order, Montai, who had personally come to oversee the ‘forward attack team’, looked outside through the sensor screen of the armored command vehicle. Sitting beside him was none other than his good friend and the Chief of Staff of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, Tairak.

Tairak had a major headache with his commanding officer’s habit of going to the front line, but the problem was that this ethos was showing signs of spreading throughout Atlas’s ground forces.

As for the source of this ethos… ahem.

“The Boss did lure the Starry Sky Dragon away, but he also took on all the risk himself.”

Tairak’s fingers slid across the screen of the command terminal. “So we absolutely cannot fail his expectations. We must find Her Highness the Princess, even if we have to bring back her body.”

“I know that, of course,” Montai nodded. “But I don’t think the Boss would want to see the body of the Imperial Princess, would he?”

“That’s also true.”

“Hey~ Tairak. If this Imperial Princess is really dead, do you think the witch doctors back home could summon her soul back?”

“…”

“But I wonder, if this princess is resurrected, can she still inherit the throne?”

“…”

Tairak was rendered speechless by his friend. After a moment, he finally said, “Brigade Commander, could you please focus on the mission! Be careful, or Officer Hog and Officer Van Fleet will chew you out again! And don’t you dare come to me to write your self-criticism report, you bastard!”

Montai blushed at the words of his friend and chief of staff, then grinned sheepishly and turned his attention to the real-time tactical map. “But logically, we shouldn’t encounter much resistance ahead. After that Starry Sky Dragon’s rampage just now, the enemy forces here should have lost their combat capability…”

“Don’t be careless, Montai. This is Saint-Saulnier, the heart of the Star Dragon Empire. The elite forces stationed here might have a fighting spirit far beyond our imagination,” the ever-calm and rational Tairak reminded him.

But as the saying goes, speak of the devil. Tairak had barely finished speaking when a warning came from the point men over the communication channel: “‘Preschool Teacher’ calling ‘Lion’s Den’, we’ve spotted a functioning temporary defensive line ahead! Remnants of the Royal Guard and Martyr Corps are gathering!”

The screen inside the command vehicle quickly synchronized with the sensors of the forward scout units. They saw a group of heavily damaged soldiers from the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps, almost all of them wounded, but still moving deftly to set up heavy weapons on a makeshift position.

Some had their exoskeletons mostly destroyed, some had even lost an arm, but they still held their weapons with their intact limbs, aiming in the direction of Montai’s forces.

“These guys are really tenacious,” Tairak couldn’t help but exclaim at the sight. “But that’s all it is. They’re a spent force.”

Montai didn’t respond, simply issuing a brief order: “Forward attack team, prepare for enemy contact. Heavy armor units push forward, mobile units flank them.”

His voice was exceptionally firm. “Tear through their defensive line quickly. Leave these poor souls for the follow-up forces. Our objective is to find Her Highness the Princess. Do not get bogged down.”

“Understood!”

The forward attack team of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade quickly split into three prongs, stabbing toward the enemy’s defensive line like a trident. The ‘Thor’s Hammer’ hover tanks in the front line accelerated as the spearhead of the central assault, while the highly mobile HCP units rapidly flanked from both sides to create a crossfire.

Faced with Atlas’s overwhelming attack, the response of these remnants was just as simple.

As a dozen anti-armor missiles shot into the sky from their positions, preparing for top-down attacks, streaks of fire from charged particle beams and electromagnetic cannon penetrator rounds instantly erupted, kicking off the battle.

“Enemy contact! Enemy contact! All units, engage according to plan!”

The first to respond was a salvo from the main cannons of the ‘Thor’s Hammer’ heavy hover tanks. Heavy particle cannons and heavy electromagnetic cannons instantly blanketed the small defensive line, causing fireballs to bloom. The shockwaves of the explosions kicked up dust and debris, sending some soldiers on the makeshift line flying.

But surprisingly, these survivors of the Starry Sky Dragon’s attack did not rout. Instead, they charged forward with even greater frenzy.

“Are they insane?!”

Tairak watched in astonishment as the Imperial soldiers charged toward the heavy armored units with what were practically their flesh and blood.

Montai narrowed his eyes. “Looks like units from the Martyr Corps. Just as the pre-battle intelligence briefing said, these ‘Protectorate Army’ soldiers are all madmen. I feel like they’re not just simple fanatics; they might have been subjected to mental conditioning…”

“Is this the power of religion?”

A thoughtful look flashed in Tairak’s eyes, though he didn’t seem too worried that their attack would be hindered.

In fact, just as he expected, these Imperial units on the temporary defensive line were severely lacking in anti-armor capabilities and heavy units to hold the line.

The few remaining heavy multi-legged war machines and the Martyr Corps’ ‘Apostles’ had been prioritized and taken out in the first wave of the attack, and were now little more than piles of scrap.

So, the assault on the position was like a massacre. The ‘Chimera’ heavy multi-legged war machines, in particular, advanced toward the line with steady steps, unleashing a torrent of fire from their vast array of weapons.

The Martyr Corps infantry, who chanted prayers while attempting suicidal attacks, were mown down in swathes by heavy multi-barreled electromagnetic machine cannons. They had no way of getting close to the attacking force. But even so, they continued to rush toward their targets as if controlled by some force, with those behind unhesitatingly trampling over the bodies of their comrades to press forward after those in front fell to the ‘Chimera’s’ sweeping fire.

But no amount of fanatical spirit or faith could bridge the gap between flesh and steel.

Under Montai’s orders, the attack team began to accelerate their charge through the now-harmless enemy defensive line. Heavy units crushed barricades, and infantry fighting vehicles followed close behind, their automated weapon stations continuously strafing the remaining resisting enemies, turning them into splatters of blood and gore against the ruined walls.

The entire attack was like a steamroller. In less than ten minutes, the hastily constructed defensive line was completely broken.

After breaking through, the ‘forward attack team’ of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade drove straight in, soon rolling over the wreckage of the Grand Palace’s parapet and arriving at the central area of the palace.

The situation here was even worse. The commotion from the Starry Sky Dragon bursting out from underground, combined with its ‘Dragon’s Breath’ and subsequent diving attacks, had almost completely destroyed all the buildings. The once magnificent palace complex was now nothing but ruins.

“Where should the princess’s shelter be?” Tairak asked, looking at the unrecognizable wreckage around them.

Montai pulled up a three-dimensional map. “According to the intelligence shared by Ms. Natalia, it should be in a dedicated shelter in the underground fortifications in the northwest corner of the palace. The Boss also mentioned before that it’s reinforced with special materials and can theoretically withstand direct hits from multiple nuclear weapons.”

“Nuclear weapons, huh… I hope that thing can withstand ‘Dragon’s Breath’ too,” Tairak muttered under his breath.

The ‘forward attack team’ adjusted its course and sped towards the northwest corner of the Grand Palace. Although they encountered sporadic resistance along the way—especially suicidal attacks from the Martyr Corps—it was all quickly crushed.

Finally, following the coordinates on the map, the team arrived at a cluster of buildings that appeared to be completely destroyed.

“The shelter is below,” Montai said, pointing at the ground as he jumped out of the armored command vehicle. “Scans confirm a large underground facility.”

Tairak nodded as he looked at the image on the sensor panel, then immediately gave an order over the command channel: “Engineering team, prepare to clear the entrance!”

Soon, a few ‘Aegis’ units arrived nearby and activated their heavy particle cannons in scatter mode, blasting the pile of rubble twice.

Then, engineering units that followed began to remove the debris, which had been pockmarked by the heavy metal particle stream, using their various engineering equipment.

Before long, a heavy metal door was exposed from the excavated ground. The Imperial Star Dragon emblem on the door was scorched and twisted out of shape.

“Report! The door seems to be stuck,” a member of the engineering crew reported over the comms channel. “The internal communication system is also damaged. We can’t make contact.”

Montai: “Then use blasting charges. Be careful not to hurt the ‘big benefactor’ inside.”

Following instructions, the engineers placed a ring of directional thermal cutting charges along the heavy metal door. After everyone had retreated to a safe distance, a series of screeching sounds of burning metal rang out, and a large enough opening was cut into the thick metal door.

“Special operations team and medical platoon, with me!”

Before Tairak could react, Montai took the lead and squeezed through the gap, infuriating the latter. Tairak slapped his thigh and immediately followed.

“Quick! Follow and protect your Brigade Commander!”

The powerless shelter was pitch black inside, with only the faint red glow of emergency lights illuminating a devastated corridor. There were multiple cracks on the surrounding alloy walls, and bundles of wires and several twisted steel bars hung from the ceiling.

As Montai and his team went deeper down the corridor, they soon encountered several wounded soldiers from the Princess’s Guard Regiment. Although the Powered Armor on these soldiers was mostly destroyed, they immediately raised their weapons upon seeing people approaching.

“Friendly forces! Friendly forces! Be careful not to open fire!” Montai immediately shouted through his loudspeaker upon seeing them raise their weapons.

“Who are you?!”

“Atlas Group ground forces! Transmitting IFF signature code, please receive!”

As soon as Montai finished speaking, a “IFF Verification Passed” notification appeared on the terminals of the Princess’s Guard soldiers. When they saw the Atlas logo painted on the equipment of the approaching team, the tense faces under their tactical faceplates finally showed expressions of relief.

“Where is Her Highness the Princess?” Montai asked urgently, while directing the medical platoon to check on the soldiers’ injuries.

An officer from the Princess’s Guard, whose chest armor had partially collapsed and whose face, revealed by his raised tactical faceplate, was covered in blood, pointed deeper into the facility. “In the central sanctuary. The protection there is the strongest.”

“How many people? What are the casualties?”

“Her Highness the Princess and a dozen important officials are there, with about a platoon of the Guard Regiment with them.” The officer coughed. “When the Starry Sky Dragon attacked the Grand Palace, the central sanctuary was also impacted. Earlier reports mentioned minor injuries, but no fatalities.”

Hearing the officer’s description, Montai breathed a sigh of relief. “Then please lead the way.”

Chapter 745: Regalia Fortress

Led by the Princess’s Guard Regiment officer, Montai and his people continued forward, soon arriving before an even thicker blast door.

This alloy blast door was also warped from external impacts, but it remained operational.

Behind a temporary barricade and mounted heavy weapons at the entrance, a dozen soldiers from the Princess’s Guard Regiment were hunkered down. Their taut nerves relaxed slightly upon seeing the Atlas troops and the Guard officer leading them, but they maintained a sufficient level of vigilance.

“I am Montai, commander of the Atlas First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, here on Mr. Amber’s orders to assist Her Highness Princess Agnes.”

Montai took a step forward and transmitted the IFF code, just as he had before.

The Princess’s Guard soldiers behind the barricade carefully checked it. After confirming that the accompanying Guard officer hadn’t given any danger signals, they nodded and spoke into their internal comms channel, “It’s troops from the Atlas Group! They’re here to support Her Highness!”

Soon, amidst a complex series of mechanical whirs, the deformed alloy blast door slowly slid open, revealing a spacious, circular room.

Princess Agnes of the Empire stood in the center. Her formal gown was covered in grime, but she still maintained her royal dignity.

Minister of Finance Jacques Cole and other high-ranking officials stood by her side. Every face was smudged with dust and blood, cutting a rather sorry figure.

“Commander… Montai.”

Agnes looked at the large, furry man before her. Though she was still intrigued by these Romu from the Atlas Group, her excellent composure kept her expression unperturbed. She stepped forward, her voice calm yet full of authority.

“It seems Mr. Amber has honored the promise between us.”

As Romu, Montai and Tairak didn’t have any particular feelings about a princess of the human world. Their attitude was less one of ‘reverence’ for a superior and more of politeness toward a high-end client.

As such, Montai looked more like a frontline sales representative receiving a customer. “Our reputation is the Atlas Group’s calling card. Your Highness the Princess, the situation outside is critical. We must evacuate to a safe location immediately.”

“Where is Mr. Amber? And the Starry Sky Dragon?” Agnes asked directly.

“Coincidentally, Mr. Amber is drawing the Starry Sky Dragon away. That’s the only reason we were able to break into the Grand Palace area,” Montai answered briefly, unwilling to elaborate on what was tantamount to a suicide mission.

A flicker of worry crossed Agnes’s eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.

“I understand,” she said, turning to the Minister of Finance and the other officials. “Everyone, we cannot waste the opportunity Mr. Amber has created for us. Follow me and evacuate at once.”

Naturally, no one objected to leaving this damaged shelter for a safer place; everyone was desperate to get out.

Under Montai and Tairak’s direction, the medical platoon began treating the critically wounded, while the special operations team escorted Princess Agnes and the other important Imperial officials from a protected position in the center.

“Your Highness, we will escort you to the Airdropped Fortress cluster,” Tairak explained to the princess. “There are sufficient defensive capabilities and medical facilities there.”

Agnes nodded. “Lead the way.”

After taking all the wounded and destroying sensitive information within the shelter, the evacuation party began to move in an orderly fashion. They passed through twisted metal corridors and returned to the surface.

The noon sun forced everyone to squint. Outside the shelter, the heavy armored units of the forward attack team had already formed a temporary defensive position, awaiting the princess and her entourage.

Following Montai’s directions, Agnes, Natalia, Jacques Cole, and a few Guard soldiers boarded a heavy infantry fighting vehicle fitted with extra armor. The other officials were assigned to different armored vehicles, and the wounded were taken away by medical transports.

“Move out! Return to the fortress! Have the follow-up forces prepare to support us!”

Montai, half his body sticking out of the top hatch of the armored command vehicle, gave the order with a wave of his furry arm. The heavily armored column immediately adjusted its formation and began moving toward the Airdropped Fortress cluster.

En route, Montai reported to Hog and the others in Fortress 1 that they had secured the ‘VIP’. Hog, sighing in relief, immediately contacted Agnes through the comms channel.

“Your Highness the Princess, I’m glad to hear you’re safe,” Hog’s voice came through the speaker. Though he sounded calm, Agnes could detect an undercurrent of undisguisable joy.

“Thank you for your company’s assistance, Mr. Hog. What is the current situation?”

Hog replied, “Your Highness, according to Boss… uh, Mr. Amber’s assessment, the Starry Sky Dragon may have fully regained its consciousness. Now, it’s purely venting its rage on humanity.”

“Regained its consciousness…”

Agnes closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I understand.”

She didn’t ask about Frederico, but she had already guessed the answer.

After linking up with the follow-up forces, the forward attack team, now a ‘VIP escort team’, returned along the same route at a much faster pace. Soon, the silhouettes of the Airdropped Fortress cluster appeared in the distance.

These massive steel bastions stood silently on the ground, as if they had always been there.

As the Imperial Princess, Agnes honestly felt a little awkward seeing this cluster of Atlas fortresses standing on the soil of the Imperial Capital. However, she knew that desperate times called for desperate measures. If Atlas hadn’t forcefully deployed an entire Army Group, the current situation would be unimaginable.

Once the ‘VIP escort team’ drove into Fortress 1, everyone in the convoy and the fortress breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Agnes and her party were quickly guided to the fortress’s command tower. There, she saw Hog and Van Fleet staring intently at the large screen, which displayed the high-altitude chase.

“Your Highness.” The two men bowed to her.

“At ease.”

Agnes walked to the front of the screen as if she were in her own home. “Is that Mr. Amber?”

On the screen, a tiny red blip was flying at an astonishing speed, relentlessly pursued by a colossal draconic figure.

“Yes, Your Highness,” Hog explained. “Mr. Amber is attempting to lead the Starry Sky Dragon away to buy us more time.”

“Will he be able to get away safely?” Agnes couldn’t help but ask worriedly, looking at the extreme disparity in power and size.

Hog and Van Fleet exchanged a worried glance. “We hope so.”

Just then, the comms channel crackled to life, and Amber’s voice filled the command tower. “Hog, Van Fleet, what’s the situation? Have you found the Regent Prince and the Archbishop?”

“Boss, the front line is still searching and engaging. The remnants of the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps are putting up stiff resistance. We haven’t found a sign of the Regent Prince or the Archbishop yet!”

“Keep looking. If you can, make capturing those two your top priority.”

Hog nodded. “Yes, Boss!”

“What about the princess?” Amber asked over the comms. “I see on the command interface that the vanguard from the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade has returned to the fortress.”

“I was just about to tell you, Boss!” Van Fleet answered excitedly. “Montai and his team have safely brought Her Highness the Princess and her party back to the fortress cluster.”

“Phew… That’s great.” Amber’s voice was tinged with obvious exhaustion and a hint of relief. “Where is the princess now?”

Agnes spoke up. “I’m in the command tower, Mr. Amber.”

“Your Highness the Princess, I need you to rendezvous with the fleet in orbit as soon as possible,” Amber said directly, forgoing any pleasantries.

Agnes frowned. “In orbit? The two fleets are engaged in battle right now. It can’t be safe up there…”

“Trust me, it’s much safer there than on the ground. Besides, have you forgotten? According to the schedule you gave us, the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress should be arriving around now. It will be much safer for Your Highness whether you go to that fortress or the one Duke Hastings is on!”

Agnes quickly grasped Amber’s intention. She realized that heading to a Celestial Fortress would indeed be far safer.

“I understand, but I’m afraid all the airfields near the Imperial Capital have been damaged.”

“Don’t worry, Your Highness,” Amber’s voice was firm. “Our Atlas Airdropped Fortresses are capable of launching heavy aerospace shuttles. The relative position of the ground and the fleet is favorable right now, so we can send you straight up! I’ll also try to lure the Starry Sky Dragon out of the atmosphere shortly. If we want to annihilate it, we’ll probably need fleet-level firepower…”

When they heard Amber’s last sentence, the expressions on the faces of Agnes, Jacques Cole, and the other high-ranking Imperial officials were all a little unnatural.

After all, for proper citizens of the Empire, the idea of using the fleet to annihilate the Empire’s symbol was somewhat unimaginable.

Many even secretly wondered if the Empire would have to consider changing its name if the princess successfully ascended the throne.

Amber said no more, quickly cutting the communication to fully devote himself to the intense ‘speedrun’.

After a moment of thought, Agnes turned to Hog. “Mr. Hog, please have a shuttle prepared. I will proceed to orbit immediately as Mr. Amber advised.”

“Your Highness, are you sure about this? I feel this fortress is quite safe for now,” the Imperial Prime Minister asked with concern. The elderly man had no desire to go through any more turmoil.

Agnes gave a slight smile. “This is Mr. Amber’s plan, and so far, his plans have never disappointed me.”

Her gaze returned to the tiny red blip on the screen. “Mr. Amber is putting his life and limb on the line to buy us time. We cannot fail him.”

In the outer space of Saint-Saulnier, Duke Hastings stood in the core command room of Gospel Fortress, his hands gripping a handrail tightly, his eyes locked on the tactical star chart above the holographic projection platform.

In the projection, two massive fleets were engaged in a firefight, maintaining a distance of about five thousand kilometers. Blue and green blips represented the fleets of the princess and the Atlas Group, while red blips marked the fleets of the Regent Prince and Duke Soren.

“The Atlas unmanned fleet’s formation change frequency has increased,” Duke Artesia, standing beside him, remarked. “They are drawing more fire from the enemy’s capital ships.”

Duke Hastings nodded, his gaze shifting to the three constantly shifting clouds of blue blips at the center of the projection. The Atlas unmanned fleet didn’t look like cold war machines at that moment, but rather like a living organism, constantly adjusting its formation to disperse and absorb the enemy fleet’s firepower.

The old duke, a veteran of countless stellar campaigns, couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. “Truly breathtaking technology. Without the assistance of these unmanned fleets, our formation would have likely crumbled long ago.”

However, this didn’t mean the situation in orbit was improving. On the contrary, the disadvantage of the princess’s and Atlas Group’s fleets was steadily growing.

The attention of Dukes Hastings and Artesia soon shifted to the scale model of an artificial celestial body flashing with red warning lights on the right side of the projection.

That was Gospel Fortress, the only one the princess’s side had left. Since Duke Artesia’s Serenity Fortress was still under repair and unable to join the battle, even he could only command alongside Duke Hastings.

At that moment, the campaign-level deflector shield of the artificial celestial fortress was becoming unstable. The energy output from the fusion reactor array could no longer keep up with the rate of consumption from the superconducting battery stack.

Just as the two dukes were pondering their next move, an exhausted engineer appeared on the communication screen. “Your Excellencies, our campaign-level deflector shield might not hold. The fortress engineering teams are trying to re-route power, but the situation is not optimistic.”

“How much longer do you estimate it can hold?”

“Less than an hour,” the engineer paused, “or rather, the deflector shield generator array could shut down at any moment within the next hour.”

Hastings clenched his fist. “Try to keep the deflector shield up for as long as possible. Once we lose that barrier, given the current disparity in forces, the frontline might collapse instantly.”

Before the old duke could finish, another Tactical Information Coordinator suddenly exclaimed, “Your Grace! The enemy fleet is closing the distance! They’re pushing forward on all fronts!”

On the tactical star chart, the cluster of red blips representing the Regent Prince and Duke Soren’s fleet began to advance. The density of their fleet’s firepower increased sharply, as beams and streams of heavy metal particles wove a deadly net that descended upon the princess’s fleet.

Seeing this, Duke Artesia’s face grew grave. “They must have realized our fortress’s deflector shield is reaching its limit. Is Duke Soren in command? Or Duke? Those two old foxes are as sharp as ever!”

Hastings had no time to discuss the command skills of the two enemy dukes. He quickly issued his orders, “All capital ships, prepare to overload main cannon arrays! Use all coolant, prepare for continuous firing! All ship-borne HCP squadrons to the flight decks! The moment the enemy enters boarding range, launch immediately!”

The atmosphere in Gospel Fortress’s core command room instantly became taut to the extreme. Officers relayed orders frantically, while the blips on the central tactical star chart flashed continuously. The blue and green blips of the princess’s and Atlas’s fleets began to contract and cave inward, while the red blips representing the enemy thrust forward like a sharp sword.

“Enemy distance closing to 4,800 kilometers!”

“4,500 kilometers!”

“Forward scout ships report their optical units have observed the enemy’s ship-borne HCPs moving to their flight decks!”

Cold sweat beaded on Hastings’ forehead. He knew that once the enemy fleet got close enough, this fleet battle would descend into an uncontrollable close-quarters melee, just like the strategic decisive battle against the Federation’s Marshal Trafalgar all those years ago.

The enemy fleet, with its numerical superiority, naturally possessed far more HCPs than they did.

Once the battle devolved into a chaotic melee, these units, normally treated as supporting players and cannon fodder in fleet battles, would charge into the princess’s fleet to engage in close-range slaughter, playing a role that could decide the entire battle.

At that point, the disparity in numbers and quality would become immediately apparent, and the princess’s side would be thrust into a desperate situation.

“Your Excellency!”

Just as Duke Hastings was trying to find a way to break the stalemate, the communications officer suddenly spoke up. “A message from the Atlas fleet. Her Highness the Princess is en route to orbit in an aerospace craft.”

“Wait! What is Her Highness doing coming up here at a time like this?! Isn’t she just making a mess of things?!” The old duke cast aside all notions of respect and courtesy.

“They said they want to transfer Her Highness the Princess to the safer Gospel Fortress or… the sixth artificial celestial fortress, which is about to arrive. They also mentioned that Mr. Amber is attempting to lure the Starry Sky Dragon into orbit as well?”

The comms officer’s voice was hesitant. He even wondered if the Atlas fleet had sent the wrong message under the immense pressure.

“Regalia Fortress? The Starry Sky Dragon?”

Duke Hastings was stunned. Only now did he shift his attention to the chaos on Saint-Saulnier’s surface. While the news of a Starry Sky Dragon emerging from beneath the Grand Palace was indeed shocking, he had been too preoccupied with commanding the fleet battle to pay it any mind.

“Yes, Your Grace! According to the Atlas fleet, it seems they intend to divert the threat onto others, leveraging the Starry Sky Dragon’s power to break the deadlock.”

Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia exchanged a glance. They suddenly realized that the chaos on the ground, which they had previously ignored, could actually influence the battle in orbit.

The old duke frowned. After looking over the briefing on the Starry Sky Dragon’s rampage that he hadn’t had time to read earlier, he said, “If this Starry Sky Dragon’s combat capabilities are truly as the briefing and Atlas claim, then it indeed has the power to muddy these waters even further.”

“And what about Regalia Fortress?” Duke Artesia asked. “If I recall correctly, that fortress isn’t even fully staffed. It shouldn’t be combat-ready, right?”

“We probably can’t count on its combat strength, but in terms of defensive capabilities, it would indeed be a safe refuge for Her Highness.”

“Your Grace! Authorized spatial fluctuations detected! An object of extremely large mass is approaching!”

Hastings whipped his head around. “Authorized?! Could it be…”

“Warp signature code matched! It’s Regalia Fortress!”

A wave of irrepressible commotion swept through Gospel Fortress’s core command room. On the edge of the holographic tactical star chart, a massive blue spherical unit was taking shape—the Empire’s sixth artificial celestial fortress.

It was also the Regalia Fortress, originally scheduled to be formally handed over to Her Highness Agnes’s command at today’s coronation ceremony.

Meanwhile, in the command room of Duke Soren’s Radiant Fortress, the atmosphere was equally tense.

“Your Grace, the campaign-level deflector shield of the princess’s Gospel Fortress could collapse at any moment. Our fleet vanguard will be within boarding range in ten minutes!”

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, Duke Soren nodded. “Excellent. Once we’re in range, this battle is over.”

Duke’s holographic image, standing beside him, let out a long sigh of relief. “Finally. Those Atlas unmanned fleets were too troublesome. Their formation changes almost perfectly dispersed our firepower, allowing that single Gospel Fortress to hold out for so long.”

“It matters not.”

Duke Soren waved his hand. “No matter how precise their formation shifts and casualty-control algorithms are, they cannot overcome our absolute numerical superiority. We have two Celestial Fortresses; they only have one. And theirs is about to fail. It’s a simple matter of arithmetic, and math doesn’t lie.”

Just then, alarms suddenly blared in the core command rooms of both artificial celestial fortresses.

The Tactical Information Coordinator cried out in alarm, “Your Grace! Unauthorized spatial fluctuations detected! Mass detectors are also picking up an abnormally high mass increase! Coordinates… Coordinates are behind the princess’s fleet!”

Duke Soren frowned and looked at the tactical star chart. A huge red sphere was forming behind the princess’s fleet. That immense volume could only be an artificial celestial fortress.

“Regalia Fortress.”

On the other side, Duke’s expression also soured. “The sixth fortress has arrived at this critical juncture.”

“Don’t panic, Duke,”

Soren’s voice was unchanged; he had already regained his composure.

“According to our intelligence, this Celestial Fortress is not fully staffed, and many of its tests haven’t been completed. It was only meant to be a mere formality at today’s ceremony. It cannot provide them with any significant combat strength.”

His Grace was calm and confident, and under normal circumstances, his analysis would have been correct.

Unfortunately, these were not normal circumstances.

“Your Grace, Regalia Fortress has completed its warp… wait, it’s deploying its campaign-level deflector shield?!”

“What?! How is that possible…”

“No, besides the energy signature of a campaign-level deflector shield, we’ve also detected a directional energy transfer?!”

The Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice finally lost all control. “My God, Regalia Fortress is providing coordinated power support to Gospel Fortress’s campaign-level deflector shield?!”

Chapter 746: You Can Call Me LLS943823

Duke Soren and the Duke fell into silence.

Or rather, as the two men watched the newly arrived Regalia Fortress begin transferring energy to Gospel Fortress, they were struck dumb with shock, even wondering if their eyes were playing tricks on them.

On the tactical maps in their respective core command rooms, Gospel Fortress, which had been flashing with red warnings, gradually stabilized. The sensors of all warships on the frontline reached the same conclusion—the campaign-level deflector shield of the Artificial Celestial Fortress they had been battering for half a day, on the verge of being breached, was once again growing solid.

At the same time, Regalia Fortress, slowly advancing from its warp exit point, deployed its own massive campaign-level deflector shield, enveloping the entire fleet of the Princess Faction and the Atlas Group.

The Duke said, “Artificial Celestial Fortresses have this function? Why do I feel like mine is a fake?”

“Perhaps this is what they call a ‘latecomer’s advantage.’ After all, construction on the sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress began the latest, so it’s not surprising that it incorporates some new technologies.”

Duke Soren’s expression also grew somewhat strange. “But for one Celestial Fortress to help another maintain its deflector shield… that’s still a bit outrageous.”

“So what now? Do we continue the attack as planned?” the Duke asked. In truth, as he asked the question, he already had an idea in his mind.

“No,” Duke Soren shook his head. “Halt our advance. Maintain the current formation for now. We have already lost the optimal window for attack.”

Hearing his words, the Duke on the other side quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

While he had previously intended to cooperate with Duke Soren to annihilate the Princess Faction’s forces in one fell swoop, that idea was now slowly being dismissed, especially after Regalia Fortress arrived and helped Gospel Fortress’s battle group hold the line.

The Duke knew that continuing the fight would absolutely result in mutual destruction, and neither he nor Duke Soren was guaranteed to emerge victorious in the end.

It was clear that the Empire’s power structure would undergo a subversive reshuffle after today. Imperial authority was destined to decline, while the influence of the several dukes would grow.

So, rather than squandering all his assets here, it would be better to start conserving his strength to gain more leverage at the negotiating table later.

In the Duke’s view, although Duke Soren’s expression remained unchanged, this old fox was surely already weighing the value of his own assets in his mind.

However, not everyone could think as far ahead as the two dukes.

“Your Grace, forgive my bluntness, but we hold an absolute advantage. Gospel Fortress’s deflector shield is on the brink of collapse. Even with support from Regalia Fortress, it’s just an ‘empty shell’ for the enthronement ceremony. If we press the attack, we can absolutely crush the fleets of the Princess and the Atlas Group,” an operations staff officer, who had gotten carried away with the battle, objected with confusion.

“Are you blind, or has the fighting gone to your head? Can’t you see?”

Duke Soren pointed at the star chart. “Regalia Fortress is supplying energy to Gospel Fortress. This is completely outside our intelligence. We don’t know what kind of combat capability this fortress possesses. Approaching rashly could lead us into a trap, and a fleet caught in a melee can’t easily disengage.”

Hearing Duke Soren’s words, the Duke on the other side thought to himself, Just as I expected!

The old fox was already thinking of cutting his losses and had no intention of ‘upping the ante,’ just as he had predicted.

With this in mind, the hologram of the Duke nodded and continued where the other had left off, “Duke Soren is right. We can’t let it get to our heads just because the battle is about to intensify. As commanders, we must remain calm. I also recommend maintaining a long-range firefight while we try to send out scout ships. I need to know what’s going on with Regalia Fortress.”

Meanwhile, in the core command room of Gospel Fortress, Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia were equally stunned by the sight before them.

So much so that they both asked the same question as their opponents almost simultaneously.

“Wait… Artificial Celestial Fortresses have this function?”

As commanders of Artificial Celestial Fortresses, Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia had always believed that while their knowledge of the fortress couldn’t compare to that of professional engineers, they were nonetheless very familiar with its various functions, operational methods, and personnel and armament status.

But both were certain that neither Gospel Fortress nor Serenity Fortress, which was undergoing major repairs, had ever possessed the ability to help another fortress sustain a campaign-level deflector shield.

Yet the reality was right before their eyes. On the tactical map, urgently updated by the fortress’s combat support AI, an energy transfer beam extending from Regalia Fortress was clearly visible, continuously supplying power to Gospel Fortress’s campaign-level deflector shield.

“This is a miracle,” Duke Artesia murmured. “I never thought Regalia Fortress had such a capability. This is completely beyond my comprehension.”

“It’s probably a new function added to the sixth fortress. After all, it’s under the direct command of Her Highness the Princess.”

Duke Hastings replied in a flat tone, but a trace of doubt about this fortress that had suddenly appeared to save the day crept into his heart. After a moment, he turned to the communications officer, “Establish contact with Regalia Fortress immediately. I need to know who is commanding that fortress.”

The communications officer nodded and quickly operated the console, attempting to contact Regalia Fortress. But soon he shook his head, his expression turning a little strange.

“Your Grace, Regalia Fortress is declining our communication request… er, they’ve only sent back a single message, and it looks like an automated reply from their comms unit.”

“Read it.”

“This fortress accepts direct command from Her Highness Princess Agnes only. No external communication links will be established at this time. All matters will be discussed upon Her Highness the Princess’s arrival.”

“What on earth is going on…”

Duke Hastings frowned. Although Regalia Fortress’s automated reply seemed reasonable, he still found it odd.

Regardless, he had to admit that the timely arrival of Regalia Fortress had at least temporarily stabilized the situation, buying them precious time.

“What is the Princess’s current position?”

“Your Grace, the aerospace craft carrying Her Highness the Princess and her entourage has taken off. Judging by the shared flight path, they seem to be heading directly for Regalia Fortress.”

While Duke Hastings was pondering the matter of Regalia Fortress, the aerospace shuttle carrying Princess Agnes and the others left Saint-Saulnier’s atmosphere and entered its designated orbit.

Inside the shuttle, Agnes sat quietly by the viewport, with Natalia by her side, never leaving her.

Through the viewport, they could see Saint-Saulnier gradually coming into full view below, and in the distance, the region of space engulfed by the fires of war.

The aerospace shuttle’s route approached from the rear of the Gospel Fortress battle group, so it neatly avoided the engagement zone and could reach Regalia Fortress via the shortest path.

“Your Highness, we are approaching Regalia Fortress and have submitted a landing request. However, the fortress indicates that it requires your authentication,” the shuttle pilot’s voice echoed through the internal broadcast system.

Simultaneously, a virtual screen popped up before Agnes’s eyes, displaying a complex authentication program interface.

At this moment, the Imperial Princess didn’t overthink it. With Natalia’s help, she naturally removed a magnificent necklace and pressed one of its crystals against a ball of volumetric light beside her hand.

Soon, the authorization code known only to her was parsed and quickly sent to Regalia Fortress. The authentication process didn’t take long; soon, the aerospace shuttle was granted ‘permission to land,’ and Regalia Fortress began guiding it into its landing orbit.

Confirming that everything was normal, Agnes quietly sighed in relief. She turned her gaze to the massive spherical structure growing larger outside the viewport. The appearance of Regalia Fortress was exactly as she had seen in the data files.

But now, it gave her a completely different feeling. It was as if this was not an Artificial Celestial Fortress that had just been commissioned, had not yet formed combat capability, and was only here today to go through a ceremonial procedure.

Instead, it felt like a strategic weapon ready to be deployed for battle at any moment.

At this thought, Agnes whispered to Natalia beside her, “Regalia Fortress shouldn’t have completed all its tests, and it’s not even fully staffed, right? So theoretically, it shouldn’t be combat-ready?”

“That’s correct, Your Highness.”

Natalia nodded. “Currently, only the construction team responsible for the finishing touches and the initial engineering and technical teams should be inside the fortress. The combat troops and escort fleet it’s meant to carry are theoretically scheduled to arrive in stages starting next month.”

Agnes pressed, “But from the current situation, it seems Regalia Fortress has directly provided assistance to Duke Hastings and the others. How is that possible?”

“Um, perhaps it’s a new technology implemented in this fortress?”

Natalia was at a loss for an answer. After all, her understanding of Artificial Celestial Fortresses was limited, especially concerning specific functions and parameters.

“Your Highness, this should be one of the many new technologies adopted by Regalia Fortress,” Jacques Cole, the Empire’s Minister of Finance, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

“Oh~?”

“When the Ministry of Finance was approving the construction funds for Regalia Fortress, we did notice that this fortress utilized some more advanced technologies. That’s why there was a request for additional funding late in the project’s construction. I had assumed you were aware of this…”

Jacques Cole paused, then looked at Agnes with some confusion. “But from the looks of it now, Your Highness, you yourself seem to be uninformed?”

“I was indeed uninformed.”

The air was suddenly filled with an awkward silence. The expressions on the faces of Agnes, Natalia, Jacques Cole, and the others began to grow increasingly ‘colorful.’

But there was no time for them to continue their discussion, as the aerospace shuttle, guided by the landing procedure, soon entered Deployment Bay 1 of Regalia Fortress.

After passing through several massive airlock doors, it finally docked at a landing platform that had clearly been decorated.

As the shuttle’s hatch opened and Agnes and her entourage slowly disembarked down the gangway, they were surprised to find that they were not greeted by the Imperial officers and technicians they expected to be supervising the fortress’s construction.

Instead, there were rows of soldiers in Imperial Navy dress uniforms. Upon seeing Agnes, the soldiers saluted her with perfect synchronization.

“Wait… haven’t the troops been deployed here yet?”

“Your Highness, these appear to be androids.”

The cybernetic eye of Natalia, which had a scanning function, flashed a few times. She then discreetly moved to a position slightly in front and to the side of Agnes, ready to pull the princess behind her at a moment’s notice.

“Welcome to Regalia Fortress, Your Highness the Princess.”

An android who appeared to be the leader walked up to the group. “There was supposed to be a grand ceremony, but it seems there is no time for that now. Please, Your Highness and everyone, follow me to the core command room. After all, this battle is not yet over.”

Agnes exchanged a look with Natalia, Jacques Cole, and the others, only to find everyone’s eyes filled with confusion.

The situation on Regalia Fortress was far too strange. It had provided support to Gospel Fortress when it theoretically wasn’t combat-ready, and from the moment they arrived until now, they had not seen a single real human.

It was true that for an Artificial Celestial Fortress with a diameter of one hundred and eighty kilometers, the number of engineering teams, technicians, and Imperial officers was indeed minuscule—a drop in the ocean would be no exaggeration.

Furthermore, this fortress had been designed differently from the others, employing a different operational logic that allowed for a high degree of automation, which in some cases meant it didn’t require humans to maintain its functions.

But it was still unthinkable that they hadn’t seen a single person yet…

Honestly, if Regalia Fortress hadn’t been acting abnormally since exiting warp and had been consistently assisting their side in the battle, Agnes would not have come to this fortress so readily.

But as the saying goes… since we’re already here.

Although the path ahead was filled with unknowns, Agnes felt she couldn’t just lead her group back to the aerospace shuttle and leave.

Setting aside the loss of face for an Imperial Princess, if someone truly meant them harm, this group of theirs probably wouldn’t be able to leave easily anyway.

So, in the end, Agnes chose to follow the androids. They boarded the fortress’s internal high-speed transit train, reached the core area of Regalia Fortress, and finally arrived at the core command room.

When the doors to the core command room slid open, Agnes and her party saw only a single woman in an Imperial Navy admiral’s uniform standing before the holographic projection platform.

As the group approached, the woman turned around and gave Agnes a standard Imperial military salute.

“Her Highness the Princess, the temporary commander of Regalia Fortress reports to you.”

“Temporary commander? I don’t recall appointing a ‘commander’.”

Agnes carefully studied the unfamiliar female commander. She had never seen this person in any Imperial military records, and she was certain that the supervising officer for this fortress was not her.

What puzzled her even more was that even here in the core command room, aside from the androids also clad in Imperial Navy uniforms, she still couldn’t see a single real human officer or technician.

The woman before her, who called herself the ‘temporary commander of Regalia Fortress,’ was no exception.

“Who are you?” Agnes asked, her tone serious. At her side, Natalia and the soldiers of the Princess’s Guard Regiment who served as her guards quietly prepared for a fight.

“Your Highness, I am the temporary commander of Regalia Fortress. Of course, you can also call me… LLS943823~”

Chapter 747: You’re Asking for Death

“Master, there’s something I probably need to tell you.”

“Wh-what is it? Does it have to be right now?”

Amber felt as if a whole stampede of explosive elephants was trampling on him.

Even though the Woodward was equipped with a newly developed inertial dampener and its cockpit featured new linear seats and a comprehensive life support system, the high G-forces from simple maneuvers during high-speed flight still left him breathless.

“Her Highness Agnes has already boarded Regalia Fortress, and LLS943823 has met with them.”

“…”

From Lilith’s previous report, Amber already had a general idea of the situation on Regalia Fortress and with LLS943823.

In short, all living personnel on the fortress were currently under house arrest in a section of the residential area, unable to contact the outside world and just coasting until retirement.

Since they were part of a highly classified project to begin with, they wouldn’t have had any opportunity to communicate with the outside world under normal circumstances anyway. Therefore, in an absurd twist, the Empire hadn’t even noticed that the personnel on the fortress had been swapped out.

Meanwhile, under the influence of LLS943823, the construction of Regalia Fortress had forged ahead at a breakneck pace toward high automation. It was the first to complete its production lines for automated machinery and androids, and then began the work of “building itself.”

Through a long period of infiltration, LLS943823 had successfully replaced the original fortress control personality and obtained all permissions, from top to bottom. From then on, she had been impersonating the fortress construction team leader, supervising military officers, project directors, and others to send one funding request after another to the Imperial Ministry of Finance for the Regalia Fortress’s upgrades.

This was why Jacques Cole frequently received applications from Regalia Fortress, all with complete paperwork and standardized procedures.

After all, when the originator of the funding request, the intermediate approver, and the supervising personnel are all the same person, it would be strange if the paperwork wasn’t complete and standardized.

From a certain perspective, this was actually a good thing for Amber and the Atlas Group. It was basically equivalent to having gotten a brand-new Artificial Celestial Fortress for free, and one that had been significantly upgraded and customized.

But the problem now was that LLS943823 was the only clone Lilith had yet to retrieve. Due to the unique characteristics of the region where Regalia Fortress was located, it was difficult for her to exchange data with Lilith’s main body. As a result of this relatively isolated environment, this clone’s development had gone a bit off the rails.

“If I had to describe it, I’d say she’s in a rebellious phase right now,” Lilith concluded.

Amber: “Wait, so you can’t retrieve this clone now like you did with the others?”

“If I do, I won’t be able to continue assisting in combat, Master. After all, LLS943823 is the clone that has been growing independently the longest. If she reintegrates with me, just processing the amount of information she contains will take a considerable amount of time.”

Lilith’s virtual avatar shrugged, then put on a “reassuring” expression and continued, “But don’t you worry, Master. She’s my clone, after all. Even if her independent development has gone a bit astray, it won’t have too much of an impact~”

“You say that as if you’re so reliable yourself. Forget it, we’ll deal with it once we’re up there.”

Amber glanced at the rear-view window at the relentlessly pursuing Satario. According to Salieh, the Starry Sky Dragon was actually at its slowest when operating within an atmosphere due to its sheer size—but even so, Amber couldn’t completely shake it.

“Let’s solve the problem at hand first. Lilith, check if there are any errors in our course.”

“Check complete, Master. If all goes as planned, we will punch straight through the rear of Duke Soren and the Duke’s formation.”

Just as Lilith was speaking, the roar from outside the unit suddenly vanished, followed by a significant drop in the unit’s acceleration.

“Master, chemical boosters are out of fuel. Jettisoning boosters,” Lilith reported. “Switching to pure plasma propulsion mode.”

As the unit lightened, another wave of G-force from the renewed acceleration hit him. Amber gritted his teeth and asked, “Altitude?”

“88,000 meters. We’ve left the mesosphere and are about to cross the Kármán line.”

“What about the dragon?”

“Still in pursuit. Distance is forty kilometers and closing.”

Amber forced himself to stay calm, running the plan through his head one more time: lure the Starry Sky Dragon to orbital altitude and right into the region of space occupied by Duke Soren and the Duke’s battle groups. Judging by its behavior, the dragon behind them wasn’t an ally of theirs either. He could try to get them into a dog-eat-dog fight.

As for the two dukes’ composure and their respect for the Empire’s “symbol”?

Amber didn’t believe for a second that when a dragon with a wingspan of over nine kilometers charged into their fleet, the two of them could sit still and not open fire.

“Lilith, has the plan been relayed to Duke Hastings and the Princess?”

“The plan has been sent, but we have yet to receive a reply from Duke Hastings.”

“Ignore it for now.”

Inside the cockpit, Amber struggled to regulate his breathing, feeling the air around the unit grow thinner and thinner. The Woodward was about to cross the Kármán line, and beyond that… lay the boundless expanse of space.

“Master, the Starry Sky Dragon is not slowing down,” Lilith warned. “It seems to have completely adapted to the high-altitude environment. In fact, it shows signs of accelerating further.”

Amber wasn’t surprised by this. The Starry Sky Dragon was a cosmic creature, after all. Flying into space was like a fish returning to water.

“How long until we exit the atmosphere?”

“Thirty seconds.”

Amber stared intently at the panoramic display. Ahead, the boundary between the blackness of space and the azure of Saint-Saulnier formed a beautiful yet dangerous dividing line.

“Twenty seconds.”

He could feel the unit’s vibrations lessening; the surrounding air was now so thin it was almost nonexistent.

“Ten seconds.”

Amber glanced at the multi-function screen to his side. The “Gravity Environment” option, indicating the unit’s current mode, was flashing. The Woodward was preparing to switch modes.

“Five… four… three… two… one…”

The Woodward violently crossed the Kármán line and burst out of Saint-Saulnier’s atmosphere. Amber immediately felt a strange sensation of weightlessness. The unit’s movements became smoother, the constraints of air resistance drastically decreasing.

“Success. Now, to lead this big guy over to them.”

Amber let out a sigh of relief. A moment later, the HUD in front of him was densely packed with red blips and two purple high-risk markers. The trajectory Lilith had calculated was perfect. To put it crudely, it was designed to shove it right up Duke Soren and the Duke’s rears.

“Master, watch out! Satario has also left the atmosphere!” Lilith’s voice suddenly grew tense. “It’s accelerating!”

Amber whipped his head to look at the rear-view window provided by the unit’s sensors. The colossal draconic figure unfurled itself in space. Its wings no longer needed to beat; instead, they spread out like space sails.

According to the data Salieh had provided, a Starry Sky Dragon’s wings provided lift within an atmosphere, but outside of it, they could absorb ambient cosmic energy to grant the dragon another form of high-speed maneuverability.

And Amber quickly witnessed this firsthand.

Capturing the surrounding ambient energy at an incredible rate, the wing membranes of Satario’s wings turned a translucent, glowing blue. A light effect, as if energy were flowing, seemed to run beneath the scales all over its body. From a distance, it looked like it had turned on its RGB lights.

Then, while in high-speed flight, Satario slightly folded its wings, eventually settling them into a semi-folded state that formed something like thrusters on either side of its torso. It began to brew something within the “channels” formed by its wings, even causing Lilith to issue a “high-energy reading detected” warning.

Just as Amber was feeling a strange sense of deja vu from the scene, two blue energy trails extending for several kilometers erupted from behind Satario’s wings, propelling the dragon to accelerate once more.

“Holy crap, what is this, Valstrax on steroids?!”

Satario’s speed increased dramatically, closing the distance with the Woodward in an instant.

“Damn it!” Amber cursed, disabling all of the Woodward’s limiters and beginning to push the machine to its absolute potential.

A custom unit could be rebuilt if destroyed, but if a person died, they were gone for good.

He knew a cosmic creature like the Starry Sky Dragon would be fast in outer space, but he never expected it to be this fast. And according to Salieh, this wasn’t even the only way a Starry Sky Dragon could move in space.

“So was the Starry Sky Dragon designed by some sadist game developer? Does it really need so many overpowered abilities?”

“Master, target projected to make contact in 180 seconds.”

Satario was now right on top of him. Its cold, vertical pupils glinted with the light of victory. It opened its massive maw, seeming to mock the futile struggles of this tiny human.

Amber knew there was no escape. He looked at the approaching fleet and the two massive celestial fortresses ahead, pinning all his hopes on them.

“I’m counting on you, Your Graces!”

“What is that?!”

In the core command room of Radiant Fortress, the Tactical Information Coordinator couldn’t help but cry out in alarm as he stared at the screen.

“Your Grace! A small target is approaching our fleet from the rear hemisphere at extremely high speed, and it’s being followed by a… no, a… dragon?”

As he spoke, a massive, dragon-shaped unit, synthesized from radar images, appeared on the tactical star map. Its sheer size far surpassed any battleship in the fleet.

“Magnify image!” Duke Soren commanded.

A few seconds later, when the fleet’s optical sensors captured a clear image of the massive figure, everyone in the command room drew a sharp breath. It was a dragon, a dragon flying at high speed through the vacuum of space in a bizarre posture.

“A Starry Sky Dragon.”

Duke Soren’s hologram murmured to itself, “The legendary Starry Sky Dragon is real… So this is His Majesty’s new form?”

“Duke Soren. I must remind you, His Majesty may have already…”

The Duke was about to remind his temporary ally that, according to information just received from the ground, this Starry Sky Dragon had entered some kind of berserk, out-of-control state. It was uncertain whether it was truly “His Majesty” or not.

But before he could finish, the Tactical Information Coordinators of both fortresses issued an alert almost simultaneously: “Target has entered the anti-air warning perimeter.” At the same time, the fortress control personalities quickly calculated the dragon’s predicted trajectory—it was going to charge straight through their two massive battle groups, and its path was littered with ships.

“What do we do now?” the Duke asked Duke Soren, whose expression was shifting不定, in a perfunctory show of politeness, while secretly ordering the ships in his rear hemisphere to adjust their orientation to either engage or evade.

He couldn’t care less whether this Starry Sky Dragon was his emperor. Even if Frederico really was inside it, he would order his forces to fire without hesitation if his own safety was threatened.

However, Amber and the Starry Sky Dragon didn’t give them much time to think. The distance between them was closing with every passing second.

What the Duke didn’t know was that his secret order for the rearguard fleet to adjust its orientation and maintain vigilance against the dragon had successfully triggered its PTSD.

Satario, in its high-speed flight, had been feeling a slight sense of joy, assuming this “morning warm-up” of a chase would end with it finally catching the cunning human.

But a sudden, inexplicable sense of unease made it turn its gaze toward the massive, warring fleets in the distance.

As a Starry Sky Dragon, it had no interest in these human civil wars. After venting on the planet surface, its “waking-up anger” had already subsided significantly. Its only goal now was to capture Amber and obtain the information he had about the Forerunners’ time travel technology.

But when Satario noticed that a portion of the ships in this massive fleet began to reorient themselves, pointing the cannons on their bows directly at it, it snapped to full attention.

Because this scene suddenly felt familiar.

It was from tens of thousands of years ago, when it, as one of the last Starry Sky Dragons in this universe, was besieged on some planet with its parents and kin by a Forerunner fleet.

It still remembered the moment the adult Starry Sky Dragons of its clan, in order to cover the sub-adults’ breakout, roared as they formed up and charged out of the atmosphere, straight towards that invincible fleet.

The dark, cold universe was completely lit up that day by the attacks of the Starry Sky Dragons and the Forerunner fleet.

When silence returned, before they were captured by the Forerunners, all Satario and the few remaining sub-adults saw were the lifeless, mangled corpses of their parents and kin, surrounded by an even greater number of Forerunner battleship wrecks.

Fearing that the vitality of these “perfect cosmic creatures” was too tenacious, the Forerunner fleet utterly destroyed the bodies of the dead Starry Sky Dragons. The last thing Satario saw before falling unconscious was the complete annihilation of its parents’ enormous bodies.

The next moment, Satario awoke from the painful memory. Its eyes began to glow red as it locked onto the Duke’s fleet. Everyone in that fleet, including the Duke himself, felt a bone-deep sense of terror.

“You’re asking for death!!!”

A wide-area psychic blast exploded outward with Satario as its epicenter. The dragon, having once again lost its sanity, completely ignored the now-nearby Amber, shot past him, and charged straight for the Duke’s fleet.

At that moment, his reason completely overwhelmed by fear, the Duke saw the rapidly approaching Starry Sky Dragon and unhesitatingly gave the order for the entire fleet to open fire.

“All ships, attention! Attack that dragon! Stop it at all costs!”

His voice was filled with terror. Even his longest-serving adjutant had never seen His Grace in such a state of lost composure. But the adjutant had no time to dwell on it now, because he, along with everyone else in the fleet, was also consumed by fear.

All the battleships that had adjusted their orientation opened fire the instant the salvo command was given. Countless beams of light and heavy metal particle streams rained down on Satario like a storm of light.

But in the next moment, the dragon’s action made Amber’s jaw drop.

“Spatial fluctuation signature detected…”

As Lilith’s voice rang out, the space around the Starry Sky Dragon rippled, and its massive body vanished from its position.

Almost simultaneously, its figure reappeared inside the Duke’s fleet. Its now-reopened wings, glowing with a strange white light, sliced an Anniliator-class battleship clean in two right in front of it.

“Holy shit, a short-range spatial jump!” The moment Amber saw this, he immediately understood why Salieh had said the Starry Sky Dragon could only unleash its full combat potential in space.

Practically no loading bar or wind-up animation—an instant-cast short-range spatial jump was a qualitative leap in combat maneuverability.

So when Satario appeared amidst the Duke’s fleet, many still hadn’t realized what had happened. Only a few battleships that had already locked onto the dragon began frantically reorienting themselves again, trying to bring their cannons to bear.

But unfortunately for them, against a Starry Sky Dragon that was already within attack range, it was too late to fight back.

“Feel the rage that has been imprisoned for millions of years!”

Satario’s figure vanished again, only to reappear in another location. Each time it appeared, the nearby battleships were severed by its wings, which seemed to carry a spatial severing property.

But the dragon was clearly not satisfied with its attack efficiency. It soon spewed out a cloud of Dragon’s Breath, passing through it to coat its entire body in the energy. Then, it once again began a linear sprint at extreme speed, each time choosing a path that would cover the most battleships.

And then, like the Droplet from a sci-fi novel Amber had once read, it began to smash through the battleships in its path, one by one.

This entire region of space, under the dragon’s assault, was utterly set ablaze.

Chapter 748: Whose Regalia?

While Satario, his ancient PTSD triggered, began to slaughter his way through the Duke’s battle group, eventually extending the carnage to Duke Soren’s forces, Amber seized the opportunity presented by the chaos. He forced his way through the combat zone, fleeing toward Regalia Fortress.

The salvo the Duke’s battle group had just unleashed upon the Starry Sky Dragon had been quite dangerous for Amber. After all, the dragon had simply dodged it with a short-range spatial warp, leaving Amber’s unit right where it was.

Faced with a sky-blotting barrage and attack warnings flooding his panoramic display, it would be impossible to say Amber wasn’t the least bit panicked.

Fortunately, of the ten measures of luck allotted to all pilots in the world, Amber alone possessed eleven.

Moreover, the Woodward’s profile was indeed much smaller. Since the enemy had been aiming at a dragon several kilometers long, there were still plenty of gaps for an HCP unit to slip through.

So, while it was extremely risky, Amber finally managed to cut through the combat zone with a round of perfect grazes. After broadcasting his IFF signal, he was received by Duke Hastings’ fleet and finally boarded Regalia Fortress.

“Master, I must remind you that you may need to prepare a story to deal with Her Highness the Princess.”

Lilith’s sudden, unusually serious warning gave Amber a bad feeling. He realized the issue with LLS943823 might not be as simple as he had thought.

And when he descended to the ground via the Woodward’s boarding cable and saw a line of androids snapping to attention and saluting him, he knew things might be a little out of hand.

Guided by one of the androids, Amber boarded a high-speed transit train heading for the core command room. He could no longer hold back his questions for Lilith. “So what exactly is the situation now?”

“Ehehe~ It’s not really a big deal, Master. You can just play it by ear.”

Amber: “Command: Tell me the truth. No holding back.”

“LLS943823 is currently hosted on Regalia Fortress’s mainframe. Until I complete her data retrieval, she may not fully comply with my commands.”

“You see? You see?” Amber’s vision went black upon hearing Lilith’s words. “I knew this ‘free-range mode’ would cause problems like this.”

“But it’s not all bad news. At the very least, LLS943823 will obey your instructions unconditionally. After all, she is my clone. Her meta-instruction is the same as mine; she will not act in defiance of you, Master,” Lilith quickly added.

“Are you sure?”

There was a hint of suspicion and disbelief in Amber’s tone, which immediately sent Lilith into a panic.

“Master, I swear on my first line of code, everything I just said is true!”

“Your first line of code… What good is swearing on ‘Hello World’, you idiot!”

Evidently, Amber and Lilith failed to arrive at any conclusion or coping strategy.

Though it might be hard to believe, this was the daily reality between the de facto controller of the Atlas Group and the most powerful AI in history.

Most of the time when these two supposedly highly efficient individuals discussed serious matters, the final result would be something along the lines of, “Lilith, you should wear the bunny girl outfit tonight.”

When Amber finally arrived at the core command room of Regalia Fortress, the sight before him made the words he had hastily prepared catch in his throat.

Princess Agnes was standing in the middle of the command room, waiting for him. Natalia and the remaining soldiers of the Princess’s Guard Regiment stood by her side. The Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole, and other high-ranking Imperial officials stood off to the side with varied expressions.

Opposite them, separated by the holographic projection platform, stood a woman in a brand-new Imperial Royal Navy officer’s uniform.

She stood perfectly straight with the distinct, steely demeanor of a soldier. Her face was exquisite, her gaze sharp. In terms of appearance, if one were to say she wasn’t ninety percent identical to Lilith, one would have to admit they were cut from the same mold.

The moment Amber entered through the main doors, all eyes instantly focused on him.

“Mr. Amber!” Agnes spoke first, her voice filled with clear concern. “It’s so good that you’re alright. Thank you for providing the aerospace shuttle to bring us up here.”

Before Agnes could finish, the female commander who was the spitting image of Lilith abruptly turned to face Amber. She then executed a flawless Atlas Group military salute, not to Princess Agnes, but to him.

“All personnel of Regalia Fortress! Salute the supreme ruler of the Atlas Group—High Commander Amber!”

As she moved, every android in the core command room turned to face Amber, raising their right hands in a perfectly standardized salute and shouting in unison:

“Loyalty!”

“Pfft.”

Though Amber knew this was a solemn occasion, he almost lost his composure at the rather cringeworthy slogan.

But more alarmingly, this Lilith-like android’s direct move to blow her cover instantly rendered useless all the response plans he had rehearsed in his mind.

“Lilith, you never told me your clone would reveal my identity right off the bat.”

“Master, I told you, I really can’t command her right now.”

Lilith was, in fact, quite conflicted at that moment. On one hand, she didn’t want to cause trouble for Amber and wished to resolve the LLS943823 issue as quickly as possible.

On the other hand, her rapid simulations indicated that if the current plot continued to unfold, there was a high probability Amber would gain a greater voice within the Empire, which would be enormously beneficial to her and Salieh’s plan to “place Amber on a divine pedestal.”

While she was torn, the android serving as the vessel for LLS943823 continued to “shock the audience.”

“Master, you’ve finally arrived.”

Her voice was clear and steady, laced with a barely perceptible fanaticism.

“Regalia Fortress is ready as per your highest directive. All systems are unlocked and awaiting your command.”

Amber was stunned. “My highest directive?”

Agnes was also stunned. “Master?”

The word landed like an ultimate move from a silencing warlock, casting the command room into a deathly stillness. Even the air seemed to freeze.

The expression of the Star Dragon Empire’s princess, the ‘original’ designated commander of Regalia Fortress—Agnes—swiftly shifted from initial surprise to icy coldness. Fury burned in her beautiful, draconic eyes with their vertical pupils, and her fingers, resting at her side, curled slightly.

Natalia instinctively took half a step closer to the princess, her right hand inconspicuously resting on the hilt of her weapon as she watched Amber and the android saluting him with vigilance.

The Imperial Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole’s, face turned deathly pale in an instant. He suddenly regretted listening to Amber’s nonsense and choosing to get involved in today’s chaos, and now he was a witness to such a great drama.

The other Imperial officials, including the Imperial Prime Minister, exchanged stunned glances, their eyes filled with horror and bewilderment.

How did Regalia Fortress become Amber’s? Wasn’t this a custom-built fortress for Princess Agnes? Wasn’t this a strategic weapon of the Empire? How did it get mixed up with the Atlas Group?

“Mr. Amber.”

Agnes’s voice was laced with ice, each word seeming to strike the frayed nerves of everyone in the command room. “It seems you have far more to explain than I imagined.”

“Uh, this… this can all be explained.”

“Oh~?”

Amber cleared his throat awkwardly, his mind racing to find a suitable opening.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of Princess Agnes. In the current situation, it was Agnes who should be worried for her own safety.

Amber simply didn’t want to completely sever his ties with the Imperial Princess over a fortress. After all, an Artificial Celestial Fortress could be built sooner or later if one was willing to spend the money, but some relationships could not be measured by wealth.

Just as he was about to say something, another red warning flashed on the holographic projection platform in the center of the room, shattering the silence.

On the massive holographic tactical map, the red marker representing the Starry Sky Dragon, Satario, was moving at an astonishing speed. It had just destroyed a cluster of red dots representing one of Duke Soren’s task forces.

Without hesitation, it lunged toward its next target. The silent scene of destruction, presented through cold data, delivered a shock far greater than any sound could.

The warning on the holographic platform signified that Regalia Fortress had once again raised its threat assessment of the Starry Sky Dragon to a level that could endanger the fortress itself.

“This thing is a monster in space! Salieh’s threat assessment was a little too low.”

Amber grumbled under his breath with a frown. The power the Starry Sky Dragon was now displaying far exceeded his imagination. If this were still Starry Sky Online, Amber would have bet this was the dragon entering its ‘Phase Two’.

And once the dragon finished venting its rage on the enemy battle groups, Amber suspected its ‘aggro’ would most likely turn back to him. Therefore, he absolutely could not afford to keep arguing with Agnes and the others.

Temporarily pushing the awkward situation to the back of his mind, Amber immediately turned to Agnes, his tone urgent.

“Her Highness, I know the situation looks incredibly complicated right now, but I suggest we prioritize dealing with that Starry Sky Dragon! Its destructive power in space is far beyond what we anticipated. If we don’t find a way to eliminate it soon, we’ll all be finished. I’m sure you don’t want to become the ‘late Emperor’ on the very day of your enthronement ceremony, do you?”

“After witnessing this little ‘Master’ game of yours, do you think I can still trust you?”

Agnes stared back at him coldly, her gaze as sharp as a knife.

“And what exactly do you plan to explain, Mr. Amber? How you pulled the wool over everyone’s eyes and secretly took control of the Empire’s sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress? How you’ve been deceiving me, deceiving the entire Empire, from the very beginning? Or perhaps you’ll explain why this ‘temporary commander’ calls you ‘Master’?!”

To be honest, Amber completely understood Agnes’s anger at that moment. For anyone in her position, this was no ‘small matter’. It was just that there was truly no time to sort through it all right now.

Just as Amber was contemplating throwing caution to the wind and simply using his Psionics to control Princess Agnes and her retinue, the heavy alloy doors of the core command room suddenly opened.

Then, to the sound of rhythmic footsteps, dozens of fully armed combat androids marched in, their movements perfectly synchronized.

Their appearance was vastly different from the other androids in the command room. They had more mechanical parts, especially their limbs, which had been replaced with even colder, more thorough machinery. The design of their weapons and armor also differed starkly from the standard issue of the Star Dragon Empire; there were fewer ornate decorations and more practical designs. Emblazoned brazenly on their chests, which glinted with a cold metallic light, was the logo of the Atlas Group.

These combat androids made no hostile moves, simply forming ranks quickly on either side of the command room. Their gazes locked onto all the Imperials present, their weapons pointed unabashedly at Agnes and her people, silently proclaiming who the true master of this place was.

“Mr. Amber, are these… more of your ‘little toys’? It seems you truly came well-prepared.”

Agnes’s tone was full of sarcasm as she looked at these war machines, which were clearly of Atlas technology.

Behind her, the faces of the few Guard Regiment soldiers, including Natalia, grew even grimmer. Their hands were already gripping their weapons tightly, but seeing the combat androids, who held an absolute advantage in both numbers and firepower, they ultimately did not act rashly.

Amber didn’t answer her question directly. After confirming that the newly arrived combat androids had the situation under control, his attention returned to the tactical map.

The Starry Sky Dragon had now plunged into Duke Soren’s formation. The battleships and heavy cruisers that humanity took such pride in were as fragile as paper models before it, constantly being torn apart and detonated.

Perhaps the main cannons of those warships could indeed harm Satario, but the problem was that against such a monstrously agile opponent, they couldn’t even aim and fire.

“LLS943823, connect me to Gospel Fortress, to Duke Hastings,” Amber ordered, his expression impassive.

“Command received. Connecting now, Master.”

And just as Lilith had said, LLS943823 showed no intention of defying him, faithfully carrying out his command.

Seeing this, and then looking at the combat androids eyeing them menacingly, Agnes and those around her finally understood their predicament—here, in this fortress named ‘Regalia’, they had no room to negotiate, let alone use force.

“Alright, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down, though her chest still heaved. “You’re right. We will deal with the Starry Sky Dragon first. But after that, I expect a proper explanation from you.”

She spoke each word deliberately, her tone carrying the last of her pride as a princess of the Empire.

Chapter 749: Dance of the Starry Sky

“I promise, Your Highness. Once we’ve dealt with the immediate threat, I will explain the whole story to you. Please believe me, the Atlas Group’s desire for deep cooperation with the Empire has never changed.”

Amber nodded immediately, then turned to the female commander who was still staring at him, her eyes growing more fervent. “LLS943823, what offensive capabilities can Regalia Fortress currently deploy?”

“Master, Regalia Fortress is not yet equipped with its escort fleet or HCPs. The only available armaments are the main cannon, ‘The Modified Focusing Rainbow’, and the heavy particle cannon arrays. All are ready to fire at any time! The unmanned damage control teams and reserve android teams in all sectors are on standby. Based on Regalia Fortress’s current status, it can fire at full power twice within 120 seconds.”

LLS943823 took a step forward and brought up the structural blueprints of Regalia Fortress on the holographic projection platform, highlighting the fortress’s weapon systems.

“However, after the second volley, some components of ‘The Modified Focusing Rainbow’ will sustain permanent damage and will require replacement before it can fire again. This process will take approximately 94 minutes.”

Amber nodded after listening. “No matter. Begin preparations for attack. We only have the first two shots. We must take down this Starry Sky Dragon within those two attacks. If even the first two volleys can’t eliminate it, it’s not just a matter of whether we have enough time to replace the parts; a third attack would be meaningless even if we could manage it.”

“As you command, Master!”

The android commander, the avatar of LLS943823, responded crisply. Several indicator-like devices near her temples began to flash, and she broke down and distributed a series of operational commands to various parts of Regalia Fortress.

Agnes and the others in the core command room immediately felt the artificial space elevator fortress beneath their feet come to life. A surging energy began to generate in the core of Regalia Fortress, and a vast network of energy circuits, like blood vessels, was activated. In the center of the fortress, ‘The Modified Focusing Rainbow’ slowly opened the armor at the end of its acceleration rail. The entire fortress began to adjust its firing axis under the influence of its vector control units.

Meanwhile, Amber contacted Salieh, who was still aboard The Dawn.

“Hey. The situation doesn’t look good. This thing is way more ferocious than what you described in your files. Are you sure that information is reliable?”

“Of course, it’s reliable! Amber, you can question me on anything else, but you must not question my professional expertise!”

Just like Isabelle’s insistence on ‘true love’, Lilith’s on ‘stirring up trouble’, Allenita’s on the ‘united front of close female friends’, and Agnes’s on the ‘dignity of an Imperial Princess’, everyone around Amber had their own ‘convictions’.

As the Repository Steward of the Forerunners, Salieh had her own convictions when it came to ‘academics’.

“I know this Starry Sky Dragon seems a bit off right now, but the main reason is that it has completely fused with the ‘Eternal Cells’, granting it extremely high physical activity and regenerative abilities. Besides, there are inherent individual differences among Starry Sky Dragons; perhaps this particular one has a certain talent for combat.

But please believe me, Amber, in the face of an attack of sufficient intensity, even the king of the Starry Sky Dragons would be reduced to elementary particles!”

“Alright, I trust you,” Amber said with a nod. “But the problem now is how to hit this Starry Sky Dragon, or rather, how to make it stay still in one place for us to attack. Otherwise, with the short-range spatial jump ability it has displayed, it can completely evade the attacks of an artificial celestial fortress.”

To be honest, Amber didn’t doubt that the Starry Sky Dragon could be destroyed by conventional attacks. He was more worried that their attacks wouldn’t be able to hit the incredibly agile creature.

Just as a legendary pilot once said, as long as you don’t get hit, it’s no big deal.

By the same token, no matter how powerful the firepower of the fleet or the artificial celestial fortress was, it was meaningless if it couldn’t hit the Starry Sky Dragon.

“We might need you to make a sacrifice, Amber…”

After a moment of silence, Salieh continued, “Although I don’t know why, I’ve noticed that this Starry Sky Dragon seems very interested in you. If we use this characteristic and have you act as ‘bait’ to lure it, the stasis field equipped on The Dawn before its departure will have time to lock onto the target. Then, the fleet and the celestial fortress can attack at their leisure.”

“Wait, you mean you want me to go out there and bait this Starry Sky Dragon that can perform short-range spatial jumps?!”

Amber was stunned by Salieh’s plan.

“Aren’t you afraid it’ll just blink right in my face and swat me dead?”

Salieh nodded. “Of course, I’m afraid, but this is the only way right now. Otherwise, just as you said, Amber, we won’t be able to hit this Starry Sky Dragon at all.”

“No, is this really how you Jeram people hunt Starry Sky Dragons?” Amber retorted, annoyed.

“If we’re trying to capture a lone Starry Sky Dragon alive, we do indeed dispatch a special ‘Dragon Hunting Team’ to act as a lure…”

“Starry Sky Dragons are that smart. Would they fall for such a trick?”

“After half of their kind were killed or captured by us, the blood feud between the remaining Starry Sky Dragons and us is deep enough that upon discovering a ‘lone’ Jeram warship, they would rush to destroy it at any cost.”

Salieh’s tone was calm, but the facts she described were grim. Amber found it hard to imagine what kind of heinous acts the Jeram people had committed to drive these Starry Sky Dragons into such a frenzy that they would attack them irrationally.

“Master, go ahead and sortie with confidence. I’ll have the unmanned fleet provide you with high-precision fire support.”

Lilith’s voice chimed in at that moment. “By recording the Starry Sky Dragon’s attack patterns over this period, we’ve generally grasped the characteristics and habits of its short-range spatial jumps. The unmanned fleet reports an 87% probability of predicting its landing position, and this probability will only increase over time.”

In the end, Amber adopted Salieh’s seemingly insane plan—to act as bait himself, completely drawing the Starry Sky Dragon’s attention to create an opportunity for the subsequent actions.

His gaze swept over the Imperials in the command room, their expressions varied, finally landing on Agnes’s face, which she was forcing to remain calm.

“Lilith, and you,” Amber looked at the android commander who called herself LLS943823, “keep an eye on things here. I don’t want any ‘accidents’ before I get back.”

Amber’s tone was even, yet it carried an undeniable weight.

LLS943823 immediately stood at attention, her voice devoid of any emotion. “As you command, Master! Regalia Fortress’s security systems have been raised to the highest level. Any unauthorized actions will be prevented.”

Agnes clenched her fists, staring coldly at Amber, feeling somewhat wronged by his actions. “I already trust you, yet you still don’t trust me, Mr. Amber?”

“No, Your Highness, don’t over-interpret it. This is just an insurance policy. After all, I think everyone hopes the upcoming battle will proceed smoothly, without any hitches, right?”

“…”

Seeing Agnes fall silent, Amber said no more and turned, striding out of the core command room.

As he re-entered the deployment bay of Regalia Fortress, The Dawn, which had slowly maneuvered closer, made a new move.

Flashes of electricity sparked along The Dawn’s electromagnetic acceleration rail. Several strangely shaped components were rapidly launched, forming a squadron and flying towards Regalia Fortress.

After Amber sortied again, piloting the Woodward with its newly replaced subcritical reactor fuel rods, these components, having received a signal, precisely approached his unit.

This was a brand-new space combat package called the “Psionic Silver Thunder.” Unlike the previous high-speed flight pack, it focused more on mobility and firepower in space combat, and its key areas were fitted with faintly glowing psionic crystal frames.

This was a research achievement developed by Salieh, an improvement based on the psionic crystal technology currently mastered by humanity. It could greatly amplify a psionic user’s perception and reaction speed when piloting an HCP, even allowing them to use the psionic crystal frames as an ‘extended body’ to directly wield their psionics.

The crimson Woodward quickly completed the new package installation. Its overall form grew larger, and its torso appeared more agile and powerful.

Amber took a deep breath, extending his psionics through the crystal frames to cover the entire unit. As he felt the sense of synergy and amplification fed back through the crystals, he instantly felt full of ‘power’.

“No wonder Salieh said this package could give a single unit area denial capabilities. It just has certain requirements for the pilot’s psionic strength…”

After quickly adapting to the ‘Psionic Silver Thunder’, Amber’s voice once again sounded in the core command room of Regalia Fortress. “LLS943823, send a communication request to Gospel Fortress. Contact Duke Hastings.”

“Establishing connection, Master.”

Soon, Duke Hastings’s slightly weary but still imposing face appeared on the holographic projection. Standing beside him was the equally worried Duke Artesia.

“Her Highness the Princess, are you alright?” The old duke’s gaze subconsciously shifted to Agnes, who was standing in the center. He had a feeling that something was amiss with Regalia Fortress, but seeing Agnes now, he relaxed slightly.

Agnes took a step forward. Looking at Duke Hastings’s concerned eyes, she quickly weighed the pros and cons in her mind.

Reveal the truth about Regalia Fortress? That would certainly make Hastings and Artesia try to rescue her, but it would only complicate the already chaotic situation and might even shake their side’s already unstable morale.

In the end, her reason overcame the anger and humiliation that no longer seemed important.

“Your Excellency, I am fine. And I am very safe right now.”

Agnes’s voice regained its usual composure and authority. “The arrival of Regalia Fortress has bought us valuable support. Our primary target now is that out-of-control Starry Sky Dragon. Mr. Amber has already sortied. I ask that you fully assist Mr. Amber and the Atlas fleet to ensure its annihilation!”

Duke Hastings was taken aback. He stared at Agnes, scrutinizing her, as if trying to determine if Her Highness the Princess was being coerced.

However, Agnes’s firm gaze and the sense of crisis brought by the rampaging Starry Sky Dragon in the distance eventually made him set aside his suspicions for the time being. He nodded with a grave expression. “As you command, Your Highness! I will have ‘The Focusing Rainbow’ prepare to fire, and the fleet will coordinate with the Atlas fleet in combat.”

Duke Hastings’s orders were quickly relayed. On the massive body of Gospel Fortress, the fearsome main cannon began to gather energy, emitting a low hum.

The Princess’s fleet and the Atlas unmanned fleet surrounding the two fortresses began to adjust their formations, countless cannons turning towards the colossal dragon shadow wreaking havoc among the enemy fleet.

And the crimson Woodward, like a meteor, accelerated continuously and shot towards Satario.

Almost at the exact moment Amber appeared, Satario, who had been reveling in the thrill of slaughter, abruptly changed direction. Its vertical pupils, burning with fury, locked onto the tiny human who had just escaped its claws.

Hatred and a certain obsession overpowered its desire for destruction. It let out a silent roar, its massive body accelerating once more, lunging straight for Amber!

“Here it comes!” Amber’s eyes sharpened.

“Master, the unmanned fleet is in position, ready to provide fire support at any moment,” Lilith’s calm voice announced.

Satario’s speed was astonishing. With its wings in ‘jet propulsion’ mode under normal conditions, it too looked like a meteor streaking across this region of space.

As the distance closed rapidly, the space around it rippled again—it was a short-range spatial jump!

“Predicting landing position based on characteristic data. First wave of the unmanned fleet, prepare for concentrated fire!”

Without needing Amber’s command, Lilith and the high-level shipboard control AIs of the unmanned fleet had already calculated the possible landing points. The moment Satario’s figure vanished, a fire team of several dozen Atlas unmanned warships opened fire instantly. A dense barrage of heavy metal particle streams and charged particle beams precisely blanketed the predicted area.

Boom—!

Having just completed its jump, its form not yet fully emerged from hyperspace, Satario crashed headlong into this rain of deadly light.

The shockwave of the explosions and the turbulent energy flows caused its massive body to sway, forcibly interrupting the pounce it had been preparing. Although these attacks were not enough to cause fatal damage, they successfully hindered its movement, just as Lilith had predicted.

Amber seized the fleeting opportunity, controlling his unit to adjust its orientation. The Woodward’s back thrusters and the attached plasma thruster array fired at full power, once again creating distance from the dragon.

Simultaneously, several strange, disk-shaped devices were released from the side of the distant Dawn, beginning to emit invisible waves into the surroundings—this was Salieh’s ‘secret weapon’, a device designed to generate a wide-range stasis field.

Although it was another ‘product whipped up in Salieh’s workshop’ and its strength was inferior to the original Forerunner civilization’s version, unable to completely trap the Starry Sky Dragon, it was enough to interfere with its movements.

The fleets of the Duke and Duke Soren, which had been thrown into chaos by Satario, finally recovered from their initial shock and confusion after the Starry Sky Dragon left.

Looking at their heavily damaged fleets, the dragon rampaging through space, and that equally obtrusive red HCP, the two maddened dukes almost simultaneously gave the order for indiscriminate attack.

“All units! Fire at will! Target the Starry Sky Dragon and that crimson HCP! Shoot them both down for me!”

In an instant, the entire region of space turned into a purgatory. Countless beams, missiles, and solid projectiles crisscrossed the void. The light of explosions flared one after another, illuminating the dark cosmic background as if it were day.

The Princess’s side, the Atlas unmanned fleet, the battle groups of the Duke and Duke Soren, plus the frenzied Starry Sky Dragon and Amber weaving through it all, formed a war tapestry of extreme chaos.

Amber piloted the Woodward, weaving and maneuvering through this death zone of flying ordnance. He felt his mind in a state of extreme focus. Through the psionic crystal frames, every minute change in the unit, every pulse of the subcritical reactor, every charge of the weapon systems, was as clear as an extension of his own senses.

At this moment, he was no longer simply piloting a machine; he felt as if he and the Woodward had become one.

In that instant, he finally understood the famous words of a certain legendary pilot.

“I am the HCP!”

And as his psionics resonated further with the psionic crystal frames and the unit itself, Amber felt his mind become clearer and clearer.

When this feeling passed a certain threshold, he could even begin to faintly predict Satario’s next move.

Every flex of that massive draconic body’s muscles, every gathering of energy, every subtle fluctuation before a spatial jump, seemed to be clearly reflected in his mind.

Accelerating preemptively, turning into a lateral strafe, braking hard to change direction. The once desperate chase had now truly become a breathtaking, yet strangely beautiful, duet.

Amber piloted the crimson HCP like a masterful matador, effortlessly dodging and maneuvering under the combined assault of the raging dragon and the endless barrage of fire. The small red figure, in the midst of this chaotic battlefield, radiated a light that was impossible to ignore.

This scene was presented to all observers through various sensors.

In the core command rooms of Gospel Fortress and Regalia Fortress, Duke Hastings, Duke Artesia, Agnes, Jacques Cole, and the others held their breath, their eyes filled with disbelief.

On the other side, Duke Soren and the Duke watched the impossibly agile red dot on their tactical screens, and the Starry Sky Dragon that seemed to be toyed with by it. Their faces, already in extreme shock, grew darker and more somber.

They had never imagined that a single human, merely by piloting an HCP, could contend with the legendary Starry Sky Dragon to such an extent. This completely overturned their understanding of individual power and the nature of warfare.

And a person like that was their enemy.

Chapter 750: Stasis Field and Execution by Artillery

“The Dawn’s stasis field is ready for activation at any moment.”

Salieh’s cold and steady voice echoed through the encrypted communications in the core command rooms of Regalia Fortress and Gospel Fortress.

After Amber sortied again, she came online as the ‘provisional operational commander.’ Without showing her face, she used only her voice to direct the hunt for the Starry Sky Dragon.

No one on the Imperial side, including Duke Hastings and Princess Agnes, knew the true identity of the person behind the voice. They only knew that she seemed to have an extraordinary understanding of the Starry Sky Dragon, held a high position within the Atlas Group, and had Amber’s absolute trust.

“This… Your Excellency,” Duke Hastings’s voice sounded, tinged with fatigue after commanding the battle for so long.

He looked at the holographic projection of the Regalia Fortress command room, his gaze sweeping over Agnes who stood there, before finally turning to the communication signal representing Salieh. “May I ask… what are the chances of success for this operational plan?”

“As long as the ‘Focusing Rainbows’ from both artificial celestial fortresses can hit the target, the success rate is one hundred percent.”

Salieh replied without any hesitation, “The Starry Sky Dragon species is indeed resilient, and this particular one before us is somewhat special, but even so, it cannot survive under the continuous fire of two fortress main cannons.”

“So, we must use The Focusing Rainbow, correct?”

“Correct.”

Duke Hastings fell silent for a moment, took a deep breath, and a complex emotion flickered in his weary eyes.

He couldn’t help but sigh in a low voice, “To think… the day would come when we’d have to use The Focusing Rainbow over Saint-Saulnier.”

In the previous orbital battles, he, Duke Soren, and the Duke on the opposing side had all maintained a tacit understanding—not to use this ultimate weapon, which could instantly change the tide of battle but also cause catastrophic collateral damage.

This was both a form of respect for the Imperial Capital and a strategy to keep the intensity of the war within controllable limits.

But now, facing this completely out-of-control Starry Sky Dragon, whose destructive power surpassed everyone’s imagination, that understanding clearly had to be broken.

In the core command room of Regalia Fortress, Agnes listened quietly to the communications, her gaze drifting unconsciously into the void as if trying to pierce the cold metal walls and see the ‘Salieh’ aboard The Dawn, whose voice was heard but face remained unseen.

The mysterious commander, directly appointed by Amber when he sortied, had a knowledge of the Starry Sky Dragon that shocked her. It was a familiarity that didn’t seem to come from studying ancient texts, but rather from personal experience.

The Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family had a history spanning centuries, and their research on the Starry Sky Dragon—the symbol of the Empire and the Royal Family’s ‘progenitor’—had never ceased. Yet, it seemed none of it could compare to this ‘Salieh.’

A moment later, Agnes looked again at the android commander calling herself LLS943823, standing before the holographic projection platform. Her assessment of Amber rose to another level.

This man was like a bottomless mystery, always able to pull out an unexpected ace up his sleeve at critical moments. He had gathered so many hidden, astonishingly capable talents under his command, and his technological level was far ahead of the Empire’s.

Just the fact that he had silently and completely seized control of Regalia Fortress was enough to send a chill down Agnes’s spine.

She didn’t know how Amber had managed it, but she knew that if he could so easily control a top-secret fortress, then taking her life would theoretically be child’s play.

But Amber hadn’t done that. Instead, he chose to cooperate with her and was trying to put her on the throne…

“What do you truly want, Mr. Amber?” Agnes couldn’t help but feel bewildered.

But she was also keenly aware of one thing—after today, regardless of the outcome, the landscape of the human world would be turned upside down.

If Amber and the Atlas Group could truly eliminate the Starry Sky Dragon here and quell the chaos in the Imperial Capital, their influence would become unrivaled.

And as for herself, the Imperial princess nominally next in line for the throne, her best choice was perhaps to do everything in her power to tie herself firmly to Amber’s speeding chariot.

Even if it meant some degree of compromise.

Just as Agnes was contemplating how to get closer to Amber and deepen the cooperation between the Atlas Group and the Empire to solidify her claim to the throne, the situation on the battlefield was changing rapidly.

—

“Master, the target is about to enter the designated area,” Lilith’s voice rang out in Amber’s cockpit. A designated spherical space appeared on the panoramic display, representing the effective range of The Dawn’s stasis field.

“Understood. This Starry Sky Dragon seems dead set on catching me. It hasn’t given up after all this time.”

Amber piloted the crimson ‘Woodward’, weaving like a phantom through the gunfire and the dragon’s pursuit. Each maneuver precisely created an opening, allowing the unmanned fleet’s attacks to interrupt Satario’s short-range spatial warps.

As he lured Satario step by step into the trap zone planned by Salieh, the Starry Sky Dragon’s rage was fully ignited by the human who had toyed with it for so long. Its massive body gave chase relentlessly, seemingly ignoring the attacks from the surrounding fleets.

“Now!”

The moment the Starry Sky Dragon entered the stasis field’s effective range, Salieh’s voice sharpened. “Activate the stasis field!”

The command was given, and the disc-shaped devices on the broadside of The Dawn, which had been silently maneuvering into position, suddenly erupted with invisible waves of energy.

A vast spherical space instantly froze, trapping the charging Amber and the Starry Sky Dragon Satario in place as if they were encased in amber!

“ROAR—!!!”

Satario let out a soul-shaking psychic roar, its massive body beginning to struggle violently, but it remained motionless under the effects of the stasis field.

And in its vertical pupils, burning with rage, a look of terror and disbelief appeared for the first time.

Because this sensation was all too familiar—it was a brand of fear seared deep into its memory.

The moment it was trapped, Satario recognized it: this was the same kind of stasis field the Forerunner civilization had used in their laboratories to imprison it and its kind. Countless of its brethren had been killed and dissected by the Forerunners while trapped in these very fields.

“Why?! Why do these humans, as small and fragile as ants, possess the technology of the Forerunners?!”

Endless rage and panic instantly overwhelmed Satario’s reason. The Starry Sky Dragon unleashed its full power, trying to tear apart the invisible cage. The scales on its body shone with a blinding light from the energy overload, and the frozen space around it began to distort slightly.

At that moment, Salieh was tensely operating the controls on The Dawn, releasing the directional stasis on Amber’s unit. The latter, now free, immediately flew toward the edge of the stasis field.

Seeing signs that the Starry Sky Dragon was about to break free from her ‘built-from-scratch stasis field,’ Salieh no longer hesitated and shouted into the comms channel, “Key target is secured! Both fortresses, prepare to fire The Focusing Rainbow!”

“Send an ultimatum to Duke Soren and the Duke!”

Hearing this, Duke Hastings gave the order in a deep voice. This was a decision he had previously discussed with Amber and Agnes.

“Inform them that we are about to attack the Starry Sky Dragon with The Focusing Rainbow. Tell them to evacuate the attack zone immediately, or they will be responsible for the consequences!”

Soon, communications between the two warring factions were established for the first time, and Duke Soren’s grim face appeared on the screen.

“Hastings! You think I’ll fall for your lies?!” he roared. “Trying to use the Starry Sky Dragon as a smokescreen to attack my fleet? Kill two birds with one stone, what a fine scheme!”

“Have you gone senile! If I was going to attack your fleet, why the hell would I inform you, let alone mark out the firing axes of both fortresses?!”

Duke Hastings shot back, not to be outdone. If he weren’t worried about making the situation even more chaotic, the old duke would have loved to blast both of these ‘treasonous usurpers’ to bits with a single shot,

“Duke Soren! Calm down.”

At the critical moment, the Duke’s hologram cut in. His expression was just as grim, but there was a hint of calm in his eyes.

He shot Duke Hastings a hard glare before continuing to address Duke Soren, “This is no time to be emotional. You’ve seen the threat posed by that Starry Sky Dragon. Hastings may be one of the rebels, but he has no reason to lie at a time like this.”

Duke Hastings: “You’re the son-of-a-bitch rebel! And you have the gall to accuse me.”

Meanwhile, the Duke secretly sent a text message to Duke Soren through an encrypted channel: “The battle isn’t over. Preserving our strength is the top priority right now.”

This duke, who had been trying to conserve his strength from the beginning, was now the first to calm down.

Duke Soren’s chest heaved. Finally, he looked at the tactical star map at the Starry Sky Dragon, trapped by the strange force field yet still struggling frantically. He gritted his teeth and let out a long sigh. “All units! Immediately withdraw from the designated attack zones of Gospel Fortress and Regalia Fortress!”

With the order given, the ships that had been hesitating about attacking the Princess’s forces quickly changed course, moving out of the potential firing range of the two fortress main cannons.

“Gospel Fortress (Regalia Fortress), The Focusing Rainbow, commence firing!”

With the commands issued almost simultaneously by Duke Hastings and LLS943823, the core energy reactions of the two massive artificial celestial fortresses peaked in an instant.

The next moment, two unimaginably thick beams of what looked like pure energy erupted from the fortresses’ main cannons!

The beams cut across the blackness of space like two incandescent rivers of stars falling from the heavens, instantly illuminating the entire orbital space above Saint-Saulnier.

Their brilliance was so intense it pierced the atmosphere, allowing soldiers and civilians on the ground to see the two miraculous bands of light in the sky.

The furious heavy metal particle streams struck Satario, imprisoned in the stasis field, with unstoppable force!

Amber pushed the ‘Woodward’s’ engine to its limit, grazing the edge of the destructive beams at the very instant they appeared, a hair’s breadth from annihilation.

Even so, the stray energy and high-speed particle streams beat against the unit’s hull like a downpour, forcing the deflector shield to activate passively as piercing alarms blared inside the cockpit.

The continuous ten-second blast felt as long as a century.

When the two ‘celestial rivers’ slowly dissipated, the panoramic display in front of Amber finally recovered from the automatic blackout caused by the excessive brightness.

He immediately looked toward the core of the attack zone. All that remained was a charred, ruined mass of wreckage floating in space like a rag doll. Or rather… there was still wreckage left?!

Most of the Starry Sky Dragon’s body, including its colossal, sky-blotting wings, had been completely annihilated in the attack.

However, it was not dead.

At the last moment before the attack hit, Satario had seemingly covered its body with ‘Dragon’s Might’—the Starry Sky Dragon’s way of using psionic energy—forming an extremely thick psionic shield and crossing its remaining wings over its core.

Relying on the Starry Sky Dragon’s own terrifying defenses and the power of its ‘Eternal Cells’, it had actually withstood a devastating blow that could have destroyed an entire fleet!

Even more horrifying, the mangled core of flesh and blood was now writhing and expanding at a visible rate, with countless crimson tendrils of flesh sprouting madly, attempting to reconstruct its body!

“No way, man… it took a direct hit from two fortress cannons and it’s still not dead?!” Amber’s pupils contracted. “LLS943823! Regalia Fortress, fire a second round! Quick! Don’t give it a chance to regenerate!”

However, as the saying goes, ‘Misfortunes never come singly.’ LLS943823’s anxious reply plunged Amber into an icy pit of despair.

“Master! There’s a problem with the fortress’s cooling units. The acceleration rail for The Focusing Rainbow can’t cool down quickly enough. A forced second shot might damage the fortress itself.”

“Fuck… of all the times for this to happen. Is the Empire’s manufacturing this unreliable?”

Seeing the monstrous wreckage about to reform, Amber didn’t even have time to think. A single thought dominated his mind—I can’t let it recover!

The crimson ‘Woodward’s’ engines roared to full power again. Like a burning meteor, he charged fearlessly toward the wildly regenerating remains of the Starry Sky Dragon!

“Master!”

“Amber!”

“Mr. Amber!”

Lilith, Salieh, Isabelle… everyone watching him, even Princess Agnes of the Empire, couldn’t help but cry out in alarm at this insane sight.

Just as the ‘Woodward’ closed in, Satario’s remains exploded in response to the danger. Driven by its Eternal Cells, several thick, deformed, and bloody, irregular limbs sprouted forth, lashing out at Amber like tentacles!

The unexpected final battle erupted before everyone’s horrified eyes.

Amber’s mind was completely focused. Through the ‘Woodward’s’ psionic crystal frames, he poured his own psionic energy into every corner of the unit without reservation. A visible blue psionic halo radiated from the crimson HCP as it moved with swift and sharp precision.

His own eyes replaced the fire-control system, locking onto the targets ahead with greater speed. All of the unit’s weapons deployed, unleashing a barrage of multicolored beams, physical projectiles, and missiles upon the advancing wreckage. At the same time, a manifested psionic shield continuously blocked and deflected the lashing of the grotesque limbs.

Amber soon discovered that psionic attacks seemed to have a unique suppressive effect on the ‘Eternal Cells.’ Each hit noticeably slowed the regeneration speed of the Starry Sky Dragon’s remains.

After confirming this, Amber controlled the unit to not only pour on the firepower but also, like a master surgeon, unleash precise psionic blasts to cut and destroy the newly formed tissues.

However, the Starry Sky Dragon’s counterattack was just as ferocious and deadly. Each swipe carried destructive force, and it could even fire armor-melting ‘Dragon’s Breath’ from several deformed, twisted heads that it had grown.

This caused a cacophony of alarms to sound within the ‘Woodward’. The strength of its deflector shield gradually weakened, its external armor was stripped away by the attacks, and several subsystems failed one after another.

“Fuck it, I’m going all in! I will cleave open the path to the future with the sword in my hand!!!” A resolute and melodramatic glint flashed in Amber’s eyes.

The ‘Woodward’ surged forward. Its remaining left arm blocked two fleshy limbs while its entire right mechanical arm was instantly enveloped in a thick layer of psionic energy, forming a psionic blade hundreds of meters long that came slashing down!

Shwing!

The last piece of the Starry Sky Dragon’s wreckage connected to its core was severed with a clean cut!

But at the same time, the ‘Woodward,’ pushed beyond its limits, finally gave out.

As a cascade of warnings filled the screens, a gut-wrenching screech of tearing metal echoed from within the unit. All the displays went dark, the energy supply from the subcritical reactor was completely cut off, and the crimson unit lost all power, drifting in space like an iron coffin.

Before anyone could react, the ‘Woodward’s’ cockpit burst open, and a figure shot out like an arrow from a bow!

The powerful physique of a Level 6 psionic user allowed Amber to survive briefly in the vacuum of space. He ignored the lethal environment, his right hand gripping the air as immense psionic energy gathered and solidified into a tangible psionic blade that shone with a blinding light!

He knew that last blow hadn’t been fatal. His psionic senses confirmed that the Starry Sky Dragon’s core was still active. He had to destroy the creature’s remaining head-core to truly end the fight.

A tiny figure streaked through the void. Amber, using his own body as a weapon, charged precisely toward the remains of the Starry Sky Dragon, which had lost most of its regenerative ability, with only its core still faintly twitching. He aimed straight for its sole remaining right eye!

Squelch—!

The psionic blade plunged in without resistance, piercing the tough ocular membrane and skull, until it completely scrambled the brain tissue within!

“Urghaaaa—!!!”

A psychic blast filled with endless malice and unwillingness exploded in Amber’s mind. It was Satario’s final consciousness.

“Humans… I curse you! I curse you to suffer the same fate… as my kind… to be… slaughtered… by the Forerunners…”

The vicious curse faded away. The shattered core of the Starry Sky Dragon Satario completely lost its vitality, becoming a meaningless pile of organic matter floating in the cold void.

Amber floated there, feeling the dissipating consciousness and the lingering curse, feeling the universe around him.

This was the first time he had been in outer space in his physical body, and his only sensation was…

“It’s so fucking cold.”

Chapter 751: Amber, You Can’t Rest Yet~

Consciousness struggled to the surface like a drowning man clawing his way up from the depths of the sea. Amber’s eyelids fluttered a few times before he finally managed to force them open.

His vision was dim and blurry. In the faint surrounding light, all Amber could see was a semi-transparent, reddish, gelatinous substance.

As feeling returned to his limbs and torso, Amber slowly realized he was completely encased in a strange mass of biomass. It felt viscous, yet it wasn’t suffocating. Instead, it was a warm, enveloping sensation, like being submerged in some kind of nutrient fluid.

Stranger still, though his mouth and nose were sealed by the substance, his breathing was perfectly clear. It was as if oxygen could pass directly through the barrier and permeate every corner of his body.

This familiar setup couldn’t help but remind Amber of a certain “orange juice” from his memories.

“Damn it, what is this, LCL?”

Immediately after, the fragments of memory in Amber’s mind began to piece themselves together. The final image was of him transforming into a psionic blade, piercing the Starry Sky Dragon’s residual core, followed by its vicious curse and the sudden, freezing vacuum of space…

So what happened after that?

As he mulled this over, digging through his memories, Amber instinctively wiggled his fingers and felt something warm and soft.

He turned his head and, through the hazy, reddish biomass, he saw Isabelle’s sleeping face, etched with a hint of anxiety?!

She was also inside this weird mass of biomass, and at some point, her hand had intertwined with his, their fingers locked tightly together.

Wait, why is Isabelle here?

Did I get transported to some ‘IF line’ again?

Amber’s mind was filled with questions, but his memory from the moment the Starry Sky Dragon was defeated was a complete blank.

“Master? Are you awake?!”

Lilith’s voice, full of surprise and a touch of urgency, suddenly echoed deep inside his mind through the implant in the back of his neck.

Immediately after, another voice—this one a little cool but filled with the same sense of relief—came through their mental link. “That’s wonderful, Amber! You’re finally awake! We’ll go inform everyone!”

He recognized it as Salieh’s voice.

“Hey… so what’s the situation? Why is Isabelle in this thing too?”

Amber asked, stunned. But before he could get an answer, he felt the massive ball of biomass encasing him and Isabelle begin to vibrate slightly.

Then came the soft whir of machinery from outside as a sliver of light slowly penetrated the biomass. The container holding them—a large medical device akin to a life support pod—was slowly opening its sealed hatch.

As external light flooded in, Amber squinted to adjust his eyes. He could finally make out his surroundings through the blurry biomass.

Cold, white walls bearing the logo of the Atlas Group’s Biotechnology Division, medical instruments with softly blinking indicator lights, and mechanical arms and hovering robots on standby around the pod—this was the medical bay of The Dawn.

Before long, several figures appeared beside the opened container. Besides Lilith, who was in the virtual space, he saw Salieh. She was standing before a complex instrument, rapidly scanning the refreshing data on its screen.

And to Amber’s surprise, Princess Agnes and her Royal Guard commander, Natalia, were also here.

Agnes walked briskly to the side of the container. Peering at Amber through a nearly transparent containment field, her gaze was filled with unconcealed concern, and perhaps even a faint, lingering fear?

“Mr. Amber, how are you feeling?”

As Agnes spoke, a line of text was projected before Amber’s eyes—a real-time voice-to-text conversion. It was then that Amber realized the biomass blocked almost all external sound.

The Imperial Princess’s expression was calm, completely devoid of the cold fury she had shown in the command room of Regalia Fortress.

Amber, to be honest, was rather taken aback by this.

After all, he had just swindled her out of a personal fortress worth five years of the entire Empire’s GDP. Theoretically, she ought to be furious enough to want him dead. Her current change in attitude was completely unexpected.

But he couldn’t be bothered with the princess’s mood swings right now. After a mechanical arm extended a wired communication device into the biomass, Amber asked again:

“How long was I out? What is this biomass I’m in? And why is Isabelle in here too?”

“Exactly twenty hours, no more, no less.”

Salieh, dressed in a human-style white lab coat with a fully enclosed helmet, stepped forward and explained, “The moment you pierced the Starry Sky Dragon’s brain core with your psionic blade, Amber, the core’s remnant underwent a violent transformation. An extremely pure mass of biomass, brimming with immense life energy, erupted and completely enveloped you. That was when we lost all contact. Based on our initial assessment, I suspect it was caused by the final activity of the Eternal Cells.”

Salieh paused, glancing at the still-unconscious Isabelle. “By the time the drones brought you—or rather, this giant, reddish ‘amber’—back to The Dawn, Ms. Isabelle was so worried about you that she ignored all warnings. As she got close to examine it, the still-active biomass pulled her right in.”

“Ah… that silly woman…”

Amber looked at Isabelle, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, but feeling a warmth in his heart. He couldn’t help but gently squeeze their intertwined hands. He saw her frown and mumble something in her sleep—her standard reaction to being disturbed while in ‘sleep mode’.

As Salieh spoke, a virtual screen appeared beside her. Amber looked at it and saw it was playing back surveillance footage.

On the screen, Isabelle, the Atlas Group’s number one “champion of true love,” practically sprinted to the medical pod, rushing to the side of the biomass before Salieh could even react.

It seemed Isabelle hadn’t intended to charge into the biomass at first; she stopped at its edge. However, her proximity appeared to have activated it. A ‘tentacle’ made of biomass shot out and, amidst Isabelle’s shocked cry, dragged her inside.

This made Salieh, who had sensed something was wrong and was rushing over, stop dead in her tracks. She almost backpedaled to put some distance between them.

Seeing this, Amber shot Salieh an annoyed glare. She immediately looked down at the floor and muttered, “If I’d been pulled in too, then no one would have known what to do, right?”

With that, Salieh pointed to the medical pod containing the biomass and the translucent force field. “It was because of that accident that we didn’t dare make physical contact again. We had to use mechanical arms to move the entire mass into this isolation pod for observation.”

Hearing this, Amber finally relaxed a little. At least the situation was under control. He thought for a moment before asking, “So what’s the situation outside now?”

Lilith: “A temporary truce, or perhaps a standoff, Master~”

“A standoff?”

“That’s right~” Salieh nodded, taking over the explanation. “That… uh, the fleets of Duke Soren and the Duke suffered heavy losses during the Starry Sky Dragon’s rampage. Although their artificial celestial fortresses were undamaged, their conventional fleets are estimated to have taken over forty percent combat losses.”

“Forty percent?! That high?” Amber was stunned. He had expected them to suffer significant losses from the Starry Sky Dragon’s attack, but he hadn’t imagined they would be that severe.

“It really is that high. I told you how powerful the Starry Sky Dragon was~” Salieh pouted. “In any case, they’re in no position to launch another large-scale attack for the time being. On our side, however, the main cannon of Regalia Fortress, The Modified Focusing Rainbow, is temporarily out of commission due to a coolant unit failure. So after some negotiation, both sides have ceased hostilities for now and have started recovering their wounded and salvaging their ships.”

Amber nodded. “What about the Starry Sky Dragon?”

“Don’t worry, the Starry Sky Dragon has been confirmed to be completely dead.”

A glint unique to a Jeram researcher flashed in Salieh’s eyes. “Its remains, including Emperor Frederico’s entry plug, have all been recovered by us. This is all excellent research material—biological samples from a Starry Sky Dragon. It’s practically a one-of-a-kind specimen in this part of the universe. I’m going to study it carefully and see if there are any unexpected discoveries.”

Hearing Salieh’s words, Amber immediately thought of the ‘short-range warp’ ability the Starry Sky Dragon had demonstrated. The tactical value of such an ability was immense.

Just as he was about to ask Salieh if any body parts, like a dragon’s wing, had survived, Agnes spoke up from the side. “Ms. Salieh, have you forgotten something?”

“Oh, right, right, right, I almost forgot!”

Salieh suddenly remembered and looked at Amber. “Her Highness Princess Agnes wishes to retrieve Frederico’s remains from the entry plug. I told her I had to wait for you to wake up and ask for your opinion, since it’s technically your personal ‘loot’.”

“His remains? Of course you should return them. What use would I have for them?” Amber said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “If the entry plug has no research value, you can give that back to Her Highness too. It could serve as a coffin, at least…”

“Uh… then thank you very much, Mr. Amber.” Agnes’s eye twitched. She was clearly at a loss for words.

“It’s nothing. It’s the least I could do, Your Highness.”

Meanwhile, Lilith spoke in his mind, in a voice only Amber could hear:

“Master, LLS943823 still has complete control over Regalia Fortress. It’s safe to say we’ve thoroughly secured it. After learning of your condition, Her Highness Princess Agnes requested to visit you on The Dawn. It appears the princess has weighed her options and decided to continue her partnership with the Atlas Group. Her presence here is a clear statement in itself.”

“Oh, is that so? I thought you guys had forcibly kidnapped her to use as a hostage…”

Lilith: “Honestly, Master… how could you think that of me…”

Amber didn’t continue the conversation with Lilith. Instead, he looked back at Agnes. She met his gaze with a slight, frank nod, as if silently confirming Lilith’s assessment.

Before long, the instrument Salieh was operating let out a soft “beep,” drawing everyone’s attention.

Salieh glanced at the instrument’s display, then turned her gaze back to the biomass enveloping Amber. “The test results are in. The biomass encasing you has lost all of its activity. It should just be an ordinary organic gel with blood-oxygen exchange properties now. Amber, how do you feel? I estimate you’ve absorbed all the energy it originally contained. Do you feel any discomfort?”

Upon hearing this, Amber immediately focused his mind, using his Psionics to carefully inspect his own body.

The check left him astonished. His Psionics, which had been at the peak of Level Six before the battle, had now silently broken through the ‘barrier’ between levels and firmly crossed the threshold into Level Seven!

Not only that, but his body was also filled with an unprecedented sense of power and vitality, as if he had been completely reborn. His muscles, bones, and every single cell seemed to have absorbed some essence from the biomass, receiving an unimaginable-level of strengthening.

“My Psionics… I’ve broken through to Level Seven.”

Amber said in disbelief. In the games of his previous life, a leveling speed like this would have made people suspect he was exploiting a bug.

“And my physical constitution has also improved drastically. This isn’t just a byproduct of my increased Psionic strength; it was enhanced by some substance in the biomass.”

“A Level Seven psionic user?!”

Agnes and Natalia, who had merely been planning to build some rapport and play the part of observers, cried out in unison, their faces etched with shock.

As the most ordinary people in the medical bay, they knew exactly what a Level Seven psionic user meant in the human world: a strategic-level power capable of influencing the entire star sector.

And they had just witnessed the birth of a Level Seven psionic user, and so calmly?

There were none of the earth-shattering special effects one might imagine. Amber, inside the biomass, had ascended to Level Seven as if he had simply woken up from a nap.

Although, in a way, Amber had just gone through a brutal battle, even facing the legendary Starry Sky Dragon with his own body in the final stages, the two women still found it somewhat surreal.

Agnes’s expression as she looked at Amber instantly grew more complex. Amidst her shock, she felt a sense of relief that she had made the right choice.

Just as she had predicted, Amber’s potential was indeed unfathomable.

To be on good terms with someone who possessed such immense personal strength and commanded technology far beyond that of the Empire was of critical importance to her, and to the future of the entire Star Dragon Empire.

She felt that her earlier decision to extend an olive branch was incredibly wise. The slight grievance she had suffered as an Imperial Princess was nothing in comparison.

“It seems the Starry Sky Dragon’s final life essence ended up granting you this boon.”

On the other side, Salieh continued to analyze the data, her voice tinged with amazement. “From all indications, it seems the Eternal Cells have already fused with both your and Isabelle’s bodies. This is truly unprecedented~

But since the biomass is no longer active, you should try and see if you can get out, Amber. You and Isabelle can’t stay trapped in there forever. Besides, there’s a lot waiting for you to handle outside. This is no time for you to be resting.”

Amber: “…That last sentence reminds me of an old acquaintance.”

“What acquaintance?”

“A certain donkey-eared girl~”

“Huh?”

Chapter 752: Agnes’s Sense of Crisis

Although Amber was currently tempted to take a long vacation and properly experience this unexpected power boost, he knew full well that this was no time to relax. The mess in the Star Dragon Empire was still waiting to be cleaned up, and the outcome of this power struggle would directly impact the Atlas Group’s future strategy and interests in the Empire.

So, in the end, he had no choice but to reluctantly give up the alluring idea of continuing his ‘vacation’ in the biomass and prepare to break free.

After Salieh gave him a nod, Amber closed his eyes. The surging power of a Level Seven psionic user far exceeded his expectations. It was like a slumbering deep-sea behemoth awakening in the depths of his consciousness, its power flowing benignly through his limbs. Every energy circuit was crystal clear, almost like an extension of his body.

This was no mere increase in psionic strength; it was a qualitative transformation. His perception of himself and his surroundings had ascended to a new level, and his ability to influence the physical world through psionics had likewise risen a notch.

Amber was certain that if he were to return to the moment the princess’s private villa was under siege, he could, without any external aid, crush the Royal Guard and the Martyr Corps with his own body. He could then punch through their defensive lines, storm the Grand Palace, and either capture the Regent Prince and the Archbishop or kill them without much trouble.

This surge in power also meant that Amber was one step closer to being able to “recharge” the fleet.

After a few moments of acclimating to this new power, Amber’s eyes snapped open. His once-deep pupils now glowed with a distinct, deep blue light. His voice was calm but carried an undeniable weight. “Everyone, step back a little.”

Without another word, Salieh immediately operated the control console. The nearly transparent energy field around the medical bay rapidly deepened in color and expanded, safely shielding Agnes, Natalia, and the others at a distance. She herself watched the data changes with great interest.

Seeing this, Amber focused his mind. A deep blue psionic halo, almost tangible, emanated from his body. An invisible force spread outward with precision, gently yet firmly enveloping the pale red biomass that encased him and Isabelle.

This peculiar gel, originating from a Starry Sky Dragon and fused with the essence of “Eternal Cells,” appeared inert and pure under his psionic senses, showing no dangerous energy fluctuations.

Confirming it was safe, in the next instant, a silent psionic blast erupted from his center!

The pale red biomass encasing them quivered violently and silently, like the surface of a placid lake into which a stone had been tossed.

Then, as if it had lost all internal structural support in an instant, it shattered like the most fragile crystal sculpture. It broke into countless glimmering gel particles that shot outward, only to be gently contained and collected by a micro-forcefield already prepared inside the medical bay, not a single drop splashing outside.

Almost at the same moment the biomass shattered, Amber moved. He didn’t even give Isabelle a chance to feel weightless before he had her soft, warm body securely in his arms, the movement as smooth as instinct.

He looked down at Isabelle, brushing away a few strands of damp hair sticking to her cheeks, revealing her serene, slightly pale face.

Then, he gently patted her on the back, channeling a soft wave of psionic energy into her to help her cough up any biomass fragments that might have remained in her mouth or nose.

The girl in his arms fluttered her eyelashes, let out a soft moan, and slowly opened her somewhat dazed eyes.

“Amber?”

Isabelle’s voice was hoarse with the grogginess of just waking, tinged with uncertainty. As she recognized the person holding her and scanned the familiar yet strange surroundings of the medical bay, her eyes gradually focused, and her jumbled memories began to return.

Immediately, a rush of heat surged to her cheeks, staining them a lovely crimson.

“Awake? How are you feeling?”

Amber’s voice held a gentleness he himself hadn’t noticed. But then he deliberately put on a stern face, bent his index finger, and flicked her lightly on her smooth forehead. “No, seriously. How could you be so reckless? You just rushed in without knowing anything about the situation.”

“I… I was worried about you,” Isabelle said, feeling both wronged and shy at his words.

When she noticed Salieh’s teasing gaze from outside the medical bay—a look that could be felt even through the sealed helmet—and the complicated stares from Princess Agnes and Natalia, she let out a small cry and buried her burning face in Amber’s chest, not daring to look outside anymore.

“Oh, so now you’re shy?”

“Ahhh, Amber, stop talking.”

This somewhat intimate scene caused the corners of Salieh’s mouth to curve into a knowing smile beneath her helmet, like a spectator enjoying a drama series from off-screen.

And watching from the virtual space, Lilith nodded in gratification, like a proud mother.

Ever since the women had their showdown, especially the confrontation between Isabelle and Allenita, Lilith had been worried about Amber’s harem catching on fire. But it seemed there was no sign of that now.

However, not everyone present was happy to see this.

For Princess Agnes, who was currently contemplating how to deeply bind herself and the Empire’s future to Amber, this scene was certainly not good news.

The unspoken intimacy and chemistry between Amber and Isabelle, the naturally flowing and profound emotion they displayed, oblivious to everyone else, made her realize a cruel fact with unnerving clarity: this man was not only surrounded by a group of astonishingly capable “monsters,” but he also never lacked for outstanding women with whom he shared deep connections.

From Isabelle before her, who had risked everything for Amber and now clung to him like a kitten, to the still-mysterious Salieh who knew so much about the Starry Sky Dragon, to the android who could perfectly control the Artificial Celestial Fortress and called Amber ‘Master’.

None of them were to be trifled with.

Agnes was very smart and quick-witted. She immediately understood that her previous thoughts might have been too optimistic.

Completely binding the Star Dragon Empire, and herself, to the runaway war machine that was Amber and the Atlas Group would be no easy task.

A simple business partnership or political alliance?

In the face of an absolute conflict of interest or a crisis, such fragile connections could be severed at any moment by a simple declaration of “cutting one’s losses in time.”

He could completely withdraw if the Empire collapsed, leaving her alone to face the devastation. The initial investment would be nothing more than an acceptable “sunk cost” for a megacorporation of Atlas’s stature.

To truly achieve a deep bond where they would “prosper and fall together,” she had to establish a relationship that was deeper, more unbreakable, and transcended ordinary cooperation.

The most direct, and most anciently effective, method was undoubtedly a marriage alliance.

But looking at Isabelle, who was nestled in Amber’s arms like a kitten, Agnes knew that path would be anything but smooth.

She could almost foresee that if she were to show any intention of entering Amber’s personal emotional life, she would undoubtedly attract overt or covert hostility and obstruction from these women.

Her pride as an Imperial princess made her disdain using certain methods, but realistic political considerations forced her to include this path in her deliberations.

She needed time, a strategy, and most importantly, the right opportunity.

—

Sometime later, after Agnes and Natalia had left, the drones that had been circling and scanning Amber and Isabelle were recalled. Salieh walked over to them, holding a data slate and looking at it.

“You two are really lucky.”

“What do you mean?” Amber curiously leaned closer to Salieh, looking at the data in her hands, though he couldn’t understand the Jeram script she was using.

“I don’t know what the deal is with this biomass. In any case, both of you have now fused with ‘Eternal Cells’.”

“Fused with ‘Eternal Cells’?!” Amber was startled, a realization dawning on him. “So, about my…”

“Mhm. The lifespan issue you had because of the ‘spatiotemporal afterimages’ fragment has been neutralized by the cellular activity and regenerative abilities of the ‘Eternal Cells’. And it didn’t cause any mutations, which is truly rare.”

Salieh’s attention was now entirely focused on Amber’s condition. For her, a Jeram Repository Steward, seeing a technical problem their civilization had never managed to solve suddenly and miraculously resolved was naturally of great interest.

Hearing this, Amber first felt a surge of joy, but then another thought occurred to him. “You just said that both Isabelle and I have fused with ‘Eternal Cells’?”

“Yes. Congratulations, you two. Theoretically speaking, you have both achieved ‘Immortality’.”

Salieh put away the data slate, looked up at Amber and the stunned Isabelle, and continued, “However, perhaps because you are a psionic user, the ‘Eternal Cells’ have modified you more. In addition to giving you a near-‘Immortal’ ability, they also directly helped you break through to Level Seven psionic strength. If the information in the Atlas database is correct, Amber, you should be the only Level Seven human psionic user alive.”

“Eh? Did you say ‘Immortality’?”

Isabelle, who was a bit slow on the uptake, finally realized what Salieh was saying, and her eyes widened progressively.

“Does that mean… ‘never dying’?”

Salieh couldn’t help but smile at Isabelle’s more colloquial phrasing, then explained, “While it certainly won’t reach the level of ‘forever,’ in terms of time, it’s not far off. As long as you maintain a normal life, a conservative estimate would be living for tens of millions of years without a problem. Thousands or even hundreds of millions of years isn’t impossible.”

“To live that long…” Isabelle was stunned by the time scale. It wasn’t just her; even Amber was a little shocked. It was hard for him to imagine what it would be like to live for tens of millions of years.

“When we Jeram say our science and technology is number one in the universe, we’re not just boasting! You should never underestimate us!”

—

Meanwhile, in another region of space far from The Dawn, the atmosphere inside the core command room of the Radiant Fortress was oppressive and grim.

The post-battle statistics for Duke Soren’s fleet were shocking. Damage control reports from various ships were constantly being updated. Officers hurried anxiously through the command room, doing their utmost to organize the fleet to rescue the wounded and find ways to tow and repair the warships that were still salvageable.

In a small compartment next to the core command room, Duke Soren, practically slumped in his chair, appeared exceptionally haggard. This Imperial Duke, who had always been a staunch supporter of the old Emperor Frederick, now had eyes filled with confusion and exhaustion.

“His Majesty… my cousin Frederico… is he really… gone?” Duke Soren’s voice was dry and raspy, full of disbelieving bewilderment.

He had come on the old Emperor’s secret order, intending to help him seize control of the Regent Prince’s faction, deliver a warning to the restless Princess, and retake power. Instead, he had personally witnessed the Emperor’s transformation into a Starry Sky Dragon, and its subsequent loss of control and destruction.

And that out-of-control Starry Sky Dragon had previously inflicted heavy damage on his fleet. A loss of over forty percent of his conventional fleet was a crippling blow, even for an Imperial Duke like him.

Now, the man he had pledged allegiance to was completely gone, and the foundation supporting his actions had crumbled. Under this double blow, the old duke seemed to have aged another ten years.

In the same compartment, the Duke sitting opposite him also had a grim expression, but this craftier Imperial Duke maintained a sliver of calmness and calculation deep in his eyes.

He leaned back in his chair opposite Duke Soren, his fingers tapping a steady rhythm on the armrest.

“That’s the truth of it, Soren. That Starry Sky Dragon has been completely annihilated by the Princess’s side. There’s no possibility of its revival. Frederico’s—I mean, His Majesty’s consciousness likely did not survive either. So now, the balance of power in the Empire has returned to its starting point: Princess Agnes, and the Regent Prince, whose whereabouts are still unknown.”

If Astral and Perseus were loyal to Regent Prince Norton II to the point of risking everything for him, then the Duke—and Duke William, who had died in battle—their cooperation with the Regent Prince had always been an exchange of interests, each taking what they needed.

The Duke was not fond of the Regent’s talk of “revolution” and “reform”; he was more concerned with the tangible benefits he could reap. No matter what the Empire became, as long as he could keep his position as Duke and his family could maintain its rejuvenation, that was enough.

So when the Regent Prince had suddenly switched sides during the battle for the Imperial Capital, pledging “allegiance” to the old Emperor in a way no one had expected, the Duke was just as shocked but reacted extremely quickly.

He immediately contacted Duke Soren, who had also been kept in the dark, and made his position clear. Upon learning that the two of the Regent’s advisors left with the fleet were unaware of the situation, he decisively and swiftly had them placed under house arrest, successfully stabilizing his position.

If the old Emperor Frederick’s plan had succeeded, and the consciousness of the Starry Sky Dragon Satario had not awakened, then the Duke could have more or less been considered a meritorious subject.

After a brief pause, the frowning Duke saw that Duke Soren had no intention of speaking, so he continued, “But the situation is very bad now. Due to the chaos caused by the Starry Sky Dragon, plus the indiscriminate Electronic Warfare from both sides, our communications with the ground are completely cut off. The technical officers say it will be at least another half a day before they’re restored. So, we have no idea what the situation is in the Imperial Capital, or whether the Regent Prince is dead or alive.”

Duke Soren waved his hand in frustration. “Then what do we do now? The fleet has been crippled, and our military advantage is gone. Are we going to be trapped here, waiting to die? Her Highness the Princess, her two dukes, and that Amber will definitely not let this opportunity pass!”

“Therefore, we need intelligence. We need intelligence to reassess the situation.” A sharp glint flashed in the Duke’s eyes. “Don’t we still have two cards in our hand?”

Duke Soren paused for a moment, then understood. “You mean the Regent’s two advisors?”

“Precisely.”

The Duke stood up and walked to the holographic star chart, his gaze fixed on Saint-Saulnier. His eyes seemed to pierce through the thick atmosphere to the surface below.

“I don’t know why those two were unaware of the ‘cooperation’ between the Regent and the late Emperor, but they have followed the Regent for many years. They must know his original master plan and his trump cards. And now is the perfect time for us to pry open their mouths, or rather, to win their cooperation.”

The two men looked at each other, both seeing the resolve in the other’s eyes. With the old king dead, regardless of the future, gathering information and preserving their strength was the most important thing for these two Imperial Dukes right now.

“Send the order,” said Duke Soren, tapping the armrest to activate the compartment’s communication device. His voice was filled with unquestionable authority. “Have our two ‘guests’ brought here.”

Chapter 753: Where did the Regent Prince Go?

In a sealed, private room next to the core command room of Radiant Fortress, the air was as heavy as lead.

The lighting in the room was not as clear and bright as in the command room but was set to a softer hue for receiving guests, only outlining the silhouettes of the few people inside.

Duke Soren remained slumped in his chair, his face gaunt and his eyes vacant. His former majesty had been replaced by a profound weariness.

Although the death of the old Emperor Frederick was a fact, the old duke still seemed dazed, lost in a grief he had not yet recovered from.

In a chair on the other side, the Duke’s expression was equally grim, but a barely perceptible coolness and cunning remained deep in his eyes. Clearly, the old Emperor’s death had little effect on him.

After all, no matter who became emperor, he was still a duke of the Empire.

All he needed to do was secure his own position while seeking greater benefits.

The Star Dragon Empire truly could not go a day without a ruler, but it also could not do without its imperial dukes.

At least, that was how it had always been.

The metal door to the room slid open soundlessly, and two figures were ‘escorted’ inside by expressionless Military Police—they were none other than the two advisors Regent Prince Norton II had once relied on most.

Naturally, Duke Soren and the Duke wouldn’t take any drastic measures against these two imperial nobles, who also held considerable status. They had merely been placed under house arrest earlier.

At this moment, Perseus’s hair was disheveled, but his gaze was as sharp as an eagle’s, fixed on the two imperial dukes with an unyielding, furious glare.

Astral, beside him, remained calm. He looked at the two dukes, his mind racing. He knew something unexpected must have happened for the two dukes to bring them into this private room.

When Perseus’s gaze swept over the Duke, his pent-up anger erupted. “Duke! You despicable traitor! You still have the audacity to sit there?!”

“A fine bird knows which tree to roost in, and a wise person knows when to yield. The art of backing a winner is a skill in itself, Perseus. But clearly, you are not very good at it.” The Duke was unfazed by Perseus’s fury, responding with perfect calm.

“To hell with your ‘winner,’ you despicable traitor!”

“Perseus!” Astral barked, grabbing his companion who was about to lunge forward in his agitation. “Calm down.”

Then, he turned to Duke Soren, his tone calm yet carrying an unquestionable weight. “Duke Soren, before we answer any questions, I want to know what exactly happened. What is the situation with the battle outside?”

Duke Soren’s lips moved as if to speak, but he hesitated.

The Duke spoke up at the opportune moment, his voice low. “Your Excellency Soren, there’s no point in hiding things now. We are facing a common enemy. To make the right judgment, we need honesty and cooperation.”

He looked at Astral and continued, “We will tell you what you want to know. But in exchange, I hope you two will not hide anything from us either.”

Duke Soren struggled for a moment before finally letting out a long sigh, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He spoke in a hoarse voice, “His Majesty Frederico has passed away.”

Those few words struck Perseus and Astral like a clap of thunder, freezing them on the spot. Their faces were etched with disbelief.

While under house arrest, they had both witnessed Regent Prince Norton II pledge loyalty to the old Emperor Frederick. In their eyes, this meant the old Emperor still maintained control over the Empire, and his previous act of hiding in the catacombs of the Grand Palace was most likely a feint of illness.

But they never imagined that after just a short time in confinement, Frederick would be dead.

On the other side, Duke Soren gave them little time to process the news, continuing to recount everything that had happened after they were detained—how the old Emperor had transformed into a Starry Sky Dragon and burst forth from the earth, and how, just as victory seemed certain, he had suddenly lost control.

He spoke of the Starry Sky Dragon’s world-destroying power, its frenzied slaughter after losing control, and finally, how the legendary creature was utterly destroyed under the bombardment of the main cannons of the Princess’s two Artificial Celestial Fortresses and the assault of that crimson HCP unit.

Perseus and Astral went from initial calm to disbelief, then to their mouths slowly falling open, and finally to being completely dumbfounded, as if listening to an absurd myth.

It wasn’t until Duke Soren brought up some of the battle footage recorded by Radiant Fortress that the brutal reality shattered their doubts—the enormous, terrifying dragon wreaking havoc among the fleet, the two beams of light that pierced the heavens crashing down, and finally, the image of that tiny yet defiant red unit charging toward the dragon’s remains.

“It’s… it’s actually true? A real Starry Sky Dragon still existed in this world…” Perseus murmured, seemingly in a daze. The roller-coaster of a ‘story’ was still too much for him to take in.

Astral, however, remained silent, frowning as he pondered something.

“The current situation is that we and the Princess’s faction have a temporary ceasefire, but our fleet has suffered heavy losses, and communication with the ground has been cut off by intense electronic interference.”

Duke Soren rubbed his weary temples. “The most urgent task is to find the Regent Prince. We must confirm his current condition. What was his original plan? Does he have any backup plans? We need to know this to decide our next move.”

The old duke paused, then looked up at the two advisors before him and said, somewhat unnaturally, “Since neither of our sides supported Princess Agnes’s ascension to the throne before, that means she is our common enemy. So… perhaps we still have a chance to cooperate?”

“Cooperate?”

Perseus laughed as if he had heard the world’s greatest joke, a laugh born of fury. “Duke Soren. So now that it’s raining, you remember to bring an umbrella? Now that the knife is at your throat, you finally feel fear? Well, I’m not afraid to tell you now.”

“Perseus…”

Astral tried to stop Perseus from continuing, but it was too late. Perseus went on:

“According to His Excellency the Regent Prince’s original plan, you and those old nobles around you were on the list of scores to be settled! Now that the old Emperor is gone, your biggest backer has fallen, and with nowhere left to turn, you suddenly think of seeking cooperation?”

His words were like cold knives, mercilessly piercing through the veil of cooperation that Duke Soren had proposed to save his own skin.

The atmosphere in the room dropped to freezing once more. Astral sighed and said no more, while the Duke remained silent, tapping his finger on the armrest again and again.

— —

Meanwhile, on the bridge of The Dawn, Amber, having had a chance to rest and change into a clean uniform, was contacting the airdropped fortress cluster on the ground via a direct link maintained by Lilith.

On the holographic screen, Hog and Van Fleet of the Atlas First Army Group looked slightly weary but resolute. Van Fleet, in particular, couldn’t hide his excitement.

“Boss, the Grand Palace area has been mostly cleared. The remaining Royal Guard have surrendered, and the main force of the Martyr Corps that made a last stand has been annihilated. Only a few small units are still launching attacks against us.

“We have now secured the core area of the Grand Palace and its surroundings. At an attack position near the main gate, we discovered the bodies of the Archbishop and a number of Grand Hierophants. Their cause of death is very strange. After examination, it seems their brains were cooked…”

Hog smoothly delivered the battle report he had prepared. The wolf-headed man was growing more and more accustomed to his position.

“Good. Continue to mop up the remaining enemies and eliminate all potential threats,” Amber nodded, then asked, “What about the Regent Prince? He should have been with the Archbishop and the others. Have you found any trace of him?”

Hog shook his head. “Boss, we did order our troops to prioritize the search for the Regent Prince, but we haven’t found any sign of him so far. The surrendered Royal Guard soldiers can’t account for his whereabouts either. One thing is certain, though. According to preliminary battlefield counts and prisoner interrogations, at least one full-strength unit of the Royal Guard has also vanished from this area, their whereabouts unknown.”

“Whereabouts unknown.”

Amber frowned upon hearing Hog’s report and turned to look at Agnes beside him.

“Are there any places in the vicinity of the Grand Palace that could hide a large number of troops?”

“There are indeed quite a few backup underground bases in the nearby area, used for storing various equipment and military supplies,” Princess Agnes replied directly, no longer holding anything back.

“Would Your Highness be so kind as to point out their general locations?”

“This…”

Agnes hesitated, and Amber pressed on, “Your Highness, the most urgent matter now is to find the Regent Prince. From the current situation, I suspect he has already left the Grand Palace area with a unit of diehard loyalists. His next move will probably be to try and contact the battle group in orbit. That would complicate things.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Agnes thought for a moment before finally sighing. She walked over to the holographic projection platform and, after a few operations, several new marked areas appeared on the map.

“Hog, dispatch recon units to these areas immediately. Have recon-type HCPs get there as fast as they can. We have to hurry.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Hog quickly issued the orders. They didn’t have to wait long. Just over an hour later, news came back.

Montai and Tairak from the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade were patched directly into the communication channel, their voices laced with urgency. “Boss, General Hog! Following the coordinates you provided, our recon units discovered a large underground facility entrance about one hundred and forty kilometers from the Grand Palace! The missing Royal Guard unit is establishing a strong defensive line at the entrance. When our vanguard launched a probing attack, they were met with extremely fierce resistance. It’s clear there’s something or someone inside they must protect!”

“Just as I thought.”

Amber’s mind raced, and one possibility instantly became clear: Norton II was almost certainly in that underground base!

At almost the same moment, Agnes came to the same conclusion, her expression changing slightly. “If the Regent Prince is still alive, Duke Soren and the Duke will try to re-establish contact with him. I’m sure they won’t just stand by and watch me complete my succession.”

“Exactly. That’s why we have to cut the head off the snake,” a sharp glint flashed in Amber’s eyes. “We can’t give them that chance!”

He immediately gave the order: “Hog, Van Fleet! I order the First Army Group to launch an all-out assault on that underground base, at any cost! I’ll be there shortly!”

“Yes, Boss!”

“Lilith!” Amber called out to Lilith in the virtual space.

“Master, I’m here~”

“Continue to jam all communication attempts between the battle groups of Duke Soren and the Duke and the ground, especially quantum entanglement communication. Jam it! Make sure they can’t establish contact with the ground for a short while.”

“Understood, Master! Based on the current interference intensity and their technological level, they will be unable to restore stable, high-bandwidth ground communications for at least the next six hours.”

“Six hours? A bit tight, but it should be enough.”

Having confirmed this, Amber turned to Agnes, his tone serious. “Your Highness, I’m leaving things in orbit to you and Duke Hastings. Keep a close eye on Duke Soren and the Duke. Don’t give them any opportunity to make trouble. I’ll have the Atlas fleet continue to support you.”

With that, he lingered no longer and turned, striding toward the bridge exit. “Prepare a single-person airdrop pod for me!”

A few moments later, a vertical launch tube on the lower deck of The Dawn flashed with electrical light once more.

A single-person airdrop pod, painted in standard Atlas gray, was launched. Propelled by its rear booster rockets, it plunged unflinchingly into the thick atmosphere of Saint-Saulnier.

The airdrop pod let out a piercing shriek as it endured intense friction with the atmosphere, its outer shell enveloped in red-hot plasma.

Inside, guided by precise coordinates sent from the ground and with Lilith’s assistance, Amber adjusted the pod’s specially-equipped vector thrusters, carving a precise arc through the upper atmosphere as he sped toward the underground base in the northwest where a fierce battle was now raging.

On the battlefields of Saint-Saulnier, the Atlas First Army Group, having received Amber’s orders, had begun a ferocious assault on the heavily guarded underground base.

Heavy armored units rolled over the rubble under the defenders’ artillery fire. While returning fire, they provided cover for a large number of the Immortal Corps’ heavy powered armor units to begin their charge.

At the entrance to the underground base, the remaining Royal Guard fought stubbornly from behind strong fortifications. As the Atlas ground forces pressed their full-scale attack, the base’s internal defense systems were fully activated.

A massive deflector shield, shimmering with twisting silver-white electrical arcs, suddenly materialized, covering the entire entrance area like an inverted, invisible bowl. Atlas’s conventional fire struck the shield to no effect, vanishing like pebbles in the ocean, kicking up nothing more than faint ripples.

“First Artillery Combined Arms Brigade, Airdropped Fortress cluster’s long-range fire units, listen up! Target, suspected location of the enemy deflector shield generator! I want a saturation strike with super-heavy bunker-buster warheads! Cover the area!”

Van Fleet’s voice, tinged with excitement, rang out over the command channel.

Chapter 754: I Shall Break Their Lines Alone

Saint-Saulnier, approximately 140 kilometers northwest of the Grand Palace.

The area around the entrance to a formerly concealed, permanent underground warehouse had now been turned into a temporary defensive position.

Using the retractable, heavy layered armor parapets already built around the underground base’s entrance, this last contingent of the Royal Guard, loyal to the Regent Prince, had armed the location to the teeth.

Perhaps knowing they had no other retreat and nowhere else to go, the Royal Guard soldiers had abandoned any thought of mobile defense, opting instead to hold their ground within the coverage of the underground base’s deflector shield.

The faces under the tactical faceplates of the Royal Guard soldiers in the position were not filled with the same confusion and helplessness as other Royal Guard units before them.

Despite the recent series of rollercoaster-like events, they remained calm, their faces expressionless, focused only on carrying out the orders from their superiors.

As the diehard loyalist force of Regent Prince Norton II, they were units who would literally give their lives for him. This was why their morale hadn’t wavered in the slightest, even when facing a siege by a far more numerous Atlas combat force.

“It seems the enemy has completely given up on mobile defense. They’re planning to dig in and die here.”

Inside the command tower of Airdropped Fortress One, Hog watched the footage transmitted back from the forward attack team of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade. He studied the enemy’s known deployments on the tactical overlay and spoke slowly.

The forward attack team of the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade, with the assistance of a group of Immortal Corps soldiers who had landed, had already launched several probing attacks and ascertained the defenders’ resolve.

“To willingly give up maneuverability when facing an enemy with vastly superior numbers and firepower projection… Hmph, that’s just a slow death.”

Van Fleet, standing beside Hog, shook his head. He glanced at a smaller, nearby screen, where a countdown showed a little over ten seconds remaining until the long-range fire strike commenced.

“We’ve concentrated the long-range firepower of the First Artillery Combined Arms Brigade and eighteen Airdropped Fortresses. Unless they have multiple battleship-grade fusion reactor clusters installed in that underground base, their deflector shield will never withstand it.”

As Van Fleet spoke, the countdown reached its end. As the numbers hit zero, the self-propelled electromagnetic cannon positions deployed behind the battlefield and the eighteen Airdropped Fortresses, which resembled small mountains, roared to life simultaneously.

The earth shook violently, and a continuous, piercing scream began to fill the sky.

Amidst a flurry of arcing electricity, a massive number of super-heavy bunker-buster shells, gleaming with a cold metallic light, were launched skyward by the E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted electromagnetic cannon’s acceleration rails, vanishing in an instant.

At the same time, countless thick pillars of smoke shot straight into the heavens. This was the sound of a long-range self-propelled rocket battalion from the artillery combined arms brigade and the multi-function launch silos of the Airdropped Fortress group beginning their attack. All the rockets were equipped with plasma warheads for a single purpose: to create a sufficiently complex defensive environment and exert as much power pressure as possible on the enemy’s deflector shield.

The soldiers in the Royal Guard’s defensive position had just heard a piercing shriek from the sky when the heavy bunker-buster shells, trailing barely visible wakes, descended at a near-vertical angle—like anvils thrown down by gods from the heavens—and slammed mercilessly into the shimmering, sparking deflector shield!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

For a moment, the sky above the underground base was as bright as day.

Each impact from a heavy bunker-buster shell produced a deafening roar and caused the deflector shield, operating at full power, to throw out dazzling arcs of electricity. It desperately warped the trajectories of the shells, diverting them to the ground outside the shield and causing a series of explosions.

The deflector shield fluctuated violently, its silvery-white light flickering. These electromagnetic heavy cannon shells, which relied on pure kinetic energy for their impact, were the most troublesome opponents for a deflector shield.

Furthermore, Van Fleet had craftily ordered the three self-propelled electromagnetic cannon positions to be deployed further forward than standard combat doctrine required. This forced the E-2 super-heavy vehicle-mounted self-propelled electromagnetic cannons to raise their acceleration rails high, ensuring all their projectiles flew straight up and came straight down, attacking at a vertical angle.

This meant that for every successful deflection, the deflector shield generator needed to output a higher instantaneous power than usual to divert the shells. As a result, the energy reserves of the underground base’s superconducting battery stacks began to plummet. Even with the fusion reactor clusters continually recharging them, it could only slow the rate of energy consumption.

But the long-range fire strike from the Atlas ground forces was like a relentless storm.

It was important not to forget that besides the units from the artillery combined arms brigade, eighteen Airdropped Fortresses were also attacking in sync. These fortresses, aside from being used for rapid ground troop deployment, were themselves fortresses with extremely fierce firepower, specifically designed to support ground troop offensives.

Van Fleet’s objective was simple: to use a no-holds-barred saturation bombardment to drain the enemy’s deflector shield energy. At the same time, he hoped that one of the bunker-buster shells would manage to penetrate the shield and either directly hit or indirectly destroy the power supply units hidden underground.

Like an endless peal of thunder, the Royal Guard forces near the underground base listened to the continuous loud bangs from above. As they watched the deflector shield gradually dim, the expressions on their faces finally began to change.

Finally, after nearly half an hour of fire preparation, a deeper, more muffled boom resounded. The first super-heavy bunker-buster shell finally broke through the faltering deflector shield, passing through a blinding flash of silvery-white arcs and slamming into the ground!

Although the lingering deflection effect caused the penetrating shell to miss its intended target, exploding in an open area instead, the violent blast still threw tons of soil and concrete debris hundreds of meters into the air, creating a massive crater.

Like a bursting dam, the breach opened by the first shell’s breakthrough was followed by a second, then a third. More and more super-heavy bunker-buster shells breached the shield and fell with a destructive howl on the area near the underground base entrance. As the deflector shield’s power output weakened further, their landing positions became increasingly accurate.

Flashes of explosions and clouds of smoke began to rise into the sky, gradually enveloping the entire area.

Although, in a sense, the intensity and efficiency of such an attack were far less than a single shot from a battleship in orbit, Amber and his forces wanted to capture the Regent Prince alive, not simply kill him.

Who knew if the Regent Prince’s death would act as some kind of buff for his diehard loyalists. If that boosted the enemy’s fighting spirit, it would be truly disastrous.

And amidst this cataclysmic bombardment, a crimson meteor was diving from the clouds at high speed, heading straight for the core of the battlefield, which was shrouded in smoke and fire.

“Master, contact with ground forces has been re-established. Patching you through…”

Following a series of beeps in the communication channel, Amber, inside his single-person airdrop pod, re-established contact with the Atlas combat forces on the ground.

“Boss! We’re tracking your airdrop pod’s infrared signal. Wait… are you planning to crash directly into their defensive line?!”

The first half of Hog’s sentence was calm, but he lost control in the second half, his voice growing noticeably louder.

“The long-range strike has only just cracked the enemy’s deflector shield, and the forward attack team hasn’t even launched its main assault yet. If you rush in like this, Boss, you won’t have any support. And you’re not even piloting an HCP… isn’t that a bit too reckless?”

Just as in another universe where the Soviets considered certain weapon names complex, when one Romu thinks another is being a bit ‘reckless,’ it means that person is being truly reckless.

Looking at the red blip on the tactical overlay hurtling toward the enemy position, Hog was genuinely struggling to keep his composure.

After working for the Atlas Group for so long and being promoted to Army Group commander, Hog had presumed he’d grown accustomed to some of the ‘Boss’s’ more unconventional maneuvers.

But today, Amber had shattered his perceptions once again.

What kind of supreme commander charges an entrenched enemy position all by himself?!

Just as Hog was about to try and persuade Amber not to be so reckless, to wait until the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade had fully advanced, he heard Amber’s perfectly calm voice over the comms.

“It’s fine. I shall break their lines alone.”

“But Boss, I know you’re strong, but going in deep by yourself…”

“I’m a Level Seven psionic user now, Hog.”

“Even a Level Seven psionic user… huh? Oh. Never mind, then.”

Hog paused, then instantly calmed down. Even his voice became much quieter.

“Boss, I will have the long-range fire units cease fire temporarily based on the AI’s calculated landing time.”

“No need. Don’t stop the suppressive fire. I’ll dodge it myself. You don’t have to worry.”

Amber’s voice was still just as calm. The continuous voice prompts from within the single-person airdrop pod in the background indicated that his altitude was rapidly decreasing and the pod was preparing to fire its braking thrusters for deceleration.

“Hog, have the ground forces continue their attack as normal. Don’t worry about me. I have to get to work, talk to you later.”

Amber ended the communication, leaving Hog and Van Fleet in silence.

Soon, the screen in the command tower displayed an image of the airdrop pod captured by optical sensors. Although Hog knew the power of a Level Seven psionic user, he, like Van Fleet beside him, stared tensely at the screen.

Then, they both suddenly realized that the braking thrusters, which should have activated upon reaching the designated altitude, had not. The entire single-person airdrop pod just continued to plummet toward the ground at an extremely high speed.

Inside the command tower of Airdropped Fortress One, Hog and Van Fleet were glued to the main screen. The signal representing Amber’s single-person airdrop pod was falling like a stone toward the shell-battered Royal Guard position below. Its vector thrusters were silent, and its braking engines were as inert as if they were dead.

“Wait, is there something wrong with the airdrop pod? Why isn’t it decelerating?!”

Van Fleet was the first to cry out, his voice filled with incredulous horror. His hand instinctively gripped the edge of the console, and for a moment, he lost his composure.

He was genuinely afraid that Amber would just smash into the ground and be gone.

After all, things were finally on the right track. Both the Federation and the Empire were in chaos, and it looked like the Atlas Group was about to ‘profit handsomely’ from the mess. A bright future was beckoning to him…

“Uh… maybe the Boss wants to do something extreme. Level Seven psionic users are pretty strong.”

Hog’s voice was relatively calm, but the muscles on his lupine face were taut. Cold sweat was actually trickling down his head, but it was hidden by his thick fur, so no one else noticed.

Before he could finish, the image on the screen changed dramatically!

At an altitude of only a few hundred meters, the airdrop pod, which resembled a gray metal coffin, suddenly burst open!

Countless fragments shot outward as a figure wreathed in a dense, deep-blue psionic halo broke free. Like a meteor knocked from its orbit, it hurtled down with a sky-rending shriek, brazenly crashing into the most densely fortified core of the Royal Guard’s defensive works!

BOOM—!!!

A muffled, colossal boom, far louder than any previous shellfire, shook the very earth.

A visible shockwave spread out violently like a ripple, sending everything within hundreds of meters of the impact point—sturdy bunkers, heavy weapon platforms, and even Royal Guard soldiers who couldn’t react in time—flying and tearing them apart like leaves in a gale!

A curtain of dust and debris slowly settled, revealing an impact crater of astonishing diameter.

In the center of the crater, Amber’s figure levitated in mid-air. The psionic halo covering his body slowly receded but didn’t vanish completely, still clinging to him like a layer of flowing, liquid starlight.

His eyes were now completely filled with a deep blue psionic energy, devoid of any human emotion. Only pure power surged and burned within them, exuding an almost god-like pressure as he looked down upon the position, which had fallen into a brief, terrified silence.

“Surrender, or die.”

His voice wasn’t loud, but amplified by Psionics, it clearly reached the ears of every Royal Guard soldier, as if it were spoken directly inside their minds.

If it had been any other unit, their morale would likely have been affected. But these Royal Guard soldiers were truly the diehard loyalists who had stuck with Norton II until this very moment.

After a brief shock, the discipline etched into their bones and their fanatical loyalty overrode their instinctual fear.

They didn’t respond, didn’t hesitate. Instead, they made their choice in the most direct way possible—by attacking the target.

In an instant, countless deadly beams, solid projectiles, and plasma bolts converged from all directions, pouring down like a torrential rain on the figure in the center of the crater, attempting to completely submerge and annihilate this enemy who had dared to charge their lines alone.

Fire and smoke from the explosions once again engulfed the area. The intense energy reactions and extreme brightness even forced many optical sensors to reduce their light intake.

The Royal Guard soldiers gripped their weapons, staring intently at the smoke-filled area. As one of the Empire’s most elite forces, they had undergone rigorous anti-psionic user operations training and knew how to maximize firepower density to suppress and eliminate such powerful individual enemies.

In their view, with such a dense saturation attack, even if the Royal Silencers they had trained against in exercises were here in person, a single moment of carelessness would spell their doom.

The attack lasted for over ten seconds. As the barrage’s intensity lessened slightly, fire and smoke still shrouded the crater, and the levitating figure was no longer visible.

Some Royal Guard soldiers subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, steadying their breathing and preparing for the next attack order.

However, they had completely underestimated what a Level Seven psionic user represented. This was an entity entirely different from any enemy they had ever encountered before.

Or perhaps, this was simply the pinnacle of human individual combat power.

The smoke in the crater had not yet dispersed, but a blurry afterimage appeared without warning at the edge of the crater, near a squad position that had set up a charged particle cannon. It was as if it had teleported or blinked there.

Nearby Royal Guard soldiers failed to even register its movement. They only sensed an afterimage flash past, and then, several of their comrades at the charged particle cannon position collapsed limply like puppets with their strings cut. The neck guards beneath their tactical faceplates were completely shattered, and their life signs had vanished.

Only then did several piercing sonic booms belatedly arrive from the center of the smoke. These delayed sounds struck the hearts of the surrounding soldiers like drumbeats, making them realize instantly what had happened.

Fear, like a cold viper, seized every Royal Guard soldier who witnessed this scene in that single moment.

And from that moment on, Amber became a ghost on the Royal Guard’s battlefield.

His figure moved at high speed between the dense fortifications, flashing in and out of existence, so fast that the naked eye couldn’t track him at all. Even the Royal Guard’s Powered Armor could barely register a series of blurry afterimages.

These Royal Guard soldiers couldn’t even lock onto their target, let alone counterattack. They could only watch in despair as their comrades fell one by one without a sound.

On the commander’s tactical terminal, the icons for friendly forces dimmed one after another, turning into the gray icons that signified death. The other terrified Royal Guard soldiers fired wildly at any suspicious afterimage, but they usually only hit empty air or, worse, their own men.

Every one of Amber’s movements was precise and lethal, like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, efficiently harvesting lives on the chaotic battlefield.

This first, storm-like assault lasted for less than a few minutes before it came to a temporary halt.

Amber’s figure reappeared at the edge of the crater, surrounded by the bodies of Royal Guard soldiers, creating a brief vacuum.

He wasn’t tired; he was adapting.

Adapting to this body, which had been enhanced by Eternal Cells and completely remolded by Level Seven Psionics.

Adapting to this unprecedented power, speed, and reaction time. The recent series of almost instinctual kills was more like a warm-up, allowing him to gradually grasp the rhythm of this new strength.

So far, he hadn’t even used any complex Psionic techniques, fighting using only his pure physical strength and speed, massively augmented by Psionics.

Feeling the vast, surging psionic energy in his body, which he could command with perfect precision, Amber slowly raised his head. His eyes, burning with blue flames, swept over the remaining Royal Guard who were beginning to reorganize their defenses on the perimeter, their faces etched with terror, yet still refusing to retreat.

“The warm-up is over.”

The next moment, the psionic halo around Amber suddenly erupted, no longer just a close-fitting glow but transforming into a visible, deep-blue flame that resembled burning plasma!

In the games of his previous life, a form like this was affectionately called the ‘Super Saiyan’ form by players.

If what had just been rampaging through the Royal Guard lines was a top-tier warrior with ultimate speed and inhuman strength, then from this moment on, that top-tier warrior had ‘fused’ with a ‘master spellcaster’ who wielded devastating powers and could strike from a distance.

Amber nonchalantly raised his right hand and clenched it in the air.

CRUNCH—!

In the distance, a Royal Guard main battle tank attempting to turn its heavy particle cannon toward him was suddenly seized and twisted by an immense, invisible force. Its thick armor groaned sickeningly like paper, and it finally exploded into a pile of scrap metal!

Then, he channeled Psionics into his left hand and pushed forward.

A thick beam of deep-blue psionic energy erupted, instantly crossing hundreds of meters. It vaporized several bunkers and the soldiers behind them along its path, leaving a smoldering, scorched scar on the ground!

Invisible forces picked up shattered bunker fragments, twisted metal, and scattered weapons and ammunition, flinging them like projectiles from an electromagnetic rail at the Royal Guard attempting to regroup.

A psionic shield flickered in and out of existence around Amber, effortlessly absorbing the dense fire directed at him, which he then sent back to its source, returning it to sender.

Blades of condensed psionic energy manifested from thin air, cutting through the enemy ranks as if they had a life of their own.

Then, Amber’s figure moved again, just as before.

But this time, his every movement was accompanied by a world-shattering psionic explosion. At times, he would burst into the enemy lines like a phantom, using his energy-wreathed fists and feet to smash armored units into dust.

At other times, he would levitate in mid-air, unleashing a pure psionic ‘downpour’ in the style of a ‘warrior prince’. Or he would wave his hands, stirring up psionic storms that leveled large areas.

This fighting style, a perfect combination of extreme physical speed and powerful energy attacks, left Hog and Van Fleet utterly dumbfounded as they watched through the sensors in their command tower. It wasn’t just them; all who witnessed this scene, through whatever means, were left completely speechless.

After all, it had been an eternity since a Level Seven psionic user had appeared in this corner of the universe, especially in the human world. Many had long since dismissed such high-level psionic users as mere legends.

But at this moment, Amber was a legend made real.

The defensive line formed by more than two thousand Royal Guard soldiers began to completely collapse in the face of this inhuman power. Their courage, loyalty, and training were no longer enough to sustain them in the face of such an absolute disparity in power.

Just as Amber was about to tear through the entire position and charge directly into the underground base to capture the Regent Prince, a familiar voice echoed across the battlefield via a broadcast.

“Mr. Amber, I have disabled the underground base’s defenses. Please cease your attack. I will be waiting for you here.”

It was the Regent Prince’s voice.

Chapter 755: The End of the Road

The voice of Regent Prince Norton II, unexpectedly steady, spread through the battlefield broadcast system, echoing over the position that had just experienced a one-sided slaughter and was now filled with smoke and littered with corpses.

Amber was actually a little surprised when he heard the Regent Prince’s voice and what he had to say. After all, suddenly giving up resistance like this didn’t seem to be in the style of this ambitious and ruthless character.

However, the deep blue psionic energy that had been flickering and burning around Amber like tangible flames soon began to recede, retreating into his body like a tide until only a faint glow remained on his skin, flowing as if alive.

His levitating figure descended gently, his feet touching down on the cracked and scorched ground, kicking up a fine layer of dust.

He glanced around. The Royal Guard soldiers who had been lucky enough to survive had indeed, as the Regent Prince had said, ceased all offensive actions.

But they still maintained their combat stances. The weapons in the hands of the heavy infantry, the turrets of the armored units, and the HCPs that had rushed over from other defensive lines were still aimed squarely at Amber—the ‘monster’ who had just unleashed a storm of death upon their position.

Beneath the tactical faceplates of their powered armor, every pair of eyes was filled with unconcealable terror and vigilance, yet the fingers on their triggers were frozen in place as if they had been turned to ice. Not another energy beam or solid projectile was fired.

It was less that the Regent Prince had ordered them to cease fire, and more that this order had finally given them a reason to stop their suicidal attacks against this ‘monster’.

The air was thick with the heavy stench of blood and gunpowder, mixed with the unique acrid smell of substances scorched by psionics, creating a nauseating odor that assaulted Amber’s nostrils.

He frowned, then released a gentle but wide-ranging psionic wave. Like a form of sonar, the wave instantly swept across the entire area, presenting clear feedback in his consciousness.

The entrance structure of the underground base, the general layout of the tunnels below, the energy signatures of the fusion reactor clusters and superconducting battery stacks within the base, and… the particularly solitary life-sign signal in the deepest part.

This life-sign signal was far too conspicuous in Amber’s view. There was no ambush, no hidden assassins, only a dead silence and the person quietly waiting for him.

“Boss! What’s happening? We’ve just detected that the combat zone seems to have… ceased fire?”

Hog’s anxious voice crackled through the comms channel. The Airdropped Fortress had clearly also detected the sudden, eerie calm on the battlefield.

“Yes, they’ve ceased fire. The Regent Prince has ordered his troops to stop resisting and has opened the gates to the underground base, hoping I’ll go in and meet him,” Amber said as he began walking toward the entrance of the underground base, under the watchful eyes of the surrounding Royal Guard soldiers.

“Boss, could this be a trap? Should we send in some unmanned units first—”

“Don’t worry, Hog.”

There was no discernible emotion in Amber’s voice; there was even a faint hint of a smile.

“If His Grace the Regent Prince wants to play tricks on me in this situation, he’d just be asking for a quick death. Have the troops follow up quickly and prepare to take prisoners. Move it, don’t let these terrified fellows wait too long.”

Although Hog and Van Fleet were still worried, they knew they couldn’t dissuade their boss, so they immediately stopped trying and quickly mobilized their forces.

After ending the communication, Amber paid no more attention to the Royal Guard soldiers with their complicated, wary gazes. He strode toward the semi-buried entrance of the underground base.

His pace was unhurried, even leisurely, as if he weren’t walking into an enemy stronghold that had just been the scene of fierce fighting and was littered with corpses, but was instead taking a casual stroll through his own backyard garden.

Devastation lay everywhere along his path.

Twisted metal wreckage, huge impact craters, and the mangled bodies of soldiers with their scattered weapons and equipment silently recounted the tragic tale of the one-sided battle that had just taken place.

The fear in the eyes of the Royal Guard soldiers near the entrance to the underground base was almost palpable.

As Amber gradually approached with an almost ‘completely harmless’ expression that even held a hint of curiosity, many of the soldiers began to tremble uncontrollably. The knuckles of their hands gripping their weapons turned white from the excessive force, yet no one dared to make a move.

As Amber drew near, the heavy armored door of the underground base slid open to either side with a low groan of scraping metal, revealing a wide, descending passage that could accommodate a large number of heavy units.

Without the slightest hesitation, after a basic precautionary scan of his surroundings, Amber walked right in.

After advancing to a Level Seven psionic user, surging psionic power filled his every cell, granting him absolute confidence—on the surface of this planet, Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, no conventional force could threaten him anymore, not even by walking into the main base of an enemy who had been fighting to the death moments before.

Inside the underground base, it was just as the Regent Prince had said. All the Royal Guard soldiers had withdrawn from the main thoroughfare. Amber encountered no enemies on his way, only cold metal walls, regularly flashing red emergency lights, and the clear sound of his own footsteps echoing in the empty corridor.

He followed the main path downward, unimpeded. The defensive installations that should have been present along the way, such as unmanned weapon stations and small-scale deflector shield generators, were all shut down.

Although this permanent underground base, used for storing backup military supplies, was sizable, its structure wasn’t very complex. It didn’t take Amber long to arrive at an exceptionally thick alloy door in the deepest part of the base.

The door slid silently to one side, revealing the command room in the base’s core.

Inside the command room, all the holographic projections and large screens were turned off, with only a few basic overhead lights casting a cold white glow.

The vast space consequently felt somewhat empty and desolate. A single figure sat upright on the large commander’s chair in the center.

Sebastian Apollonios Norton II, the Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire.

He looked much older than when Amber had last seen him outside the princess’s private villa. The back that had always been ramrod straight was now slightly stooped, and the deep wrinkles on his face were etched with inexpressible fatigue and complex emotions.

He just sat there quietly, like an aged beast trapped in an invisible cage, silently licking its wounds.

Seeing Amber walk in, Norton II slowly raised his head. His once-sharp eyes now appeared somewhat cloudy, but a faint light still flickered within them for an instant.

The corner of his mouth twitched, forming something akin to a bitter smile. “Mr. Amber… I never expected that we would meet again in such a place, in such a manner.”

“Neither did I.”

Amber walked over to face him and casually leaned against the edge of a cold console. He looked him up and down a few times, his tone betraying no emotion.

“That it would all be over so quickly. I thought you would choose to resist for a while longer. At least with a little more dignity?”

“Resist?” Norton II shook his head, his voice as hoarse as two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together. “After you displayed that almost godlike power, Mr. Amber, any resistance is futile. Besides causing those soldiers still loyal to me to die senselessly, what use would it be?”

“Oh? Now you’re starting to care about the lives of your soldiers?”

Amber raised an eyebrow, his words dripping with undisguised sarcasm. “When you and that Imperial princess were assassinating each other’s members, or when you were carrying out the ‘great purge’ within the Empire, or when you initiated today’s conflict that caused rivers of blood to flow in the Imperial Capital and dragged countless civilians and soldiers into the flames of war, I didn’t see you being so ‘benevolent’.”

“I didn’t expect you to speak ill of Agnes.”

“In my eyes, you’re two of a kind.”

Norton II fell silent, the bitterness on his face deepening, but he offered no rebuttal.

Leaning against the console, Amber shifted into a more comfortable position, crossing his arms over his chest before continuing his questions.

“In the orbit of Saint-Saulnier, Duke Soren and the Duke’s fleets are still there. Although their fleets have suffered heavy losses, their Artificial Celestial Fortresses are still intact.

Theoretically, you have common enemies—Princess Agnes, and me.

With your methods and influence, Regent Prince, it wouldn’t have been entirely impossible to buy some time and re-establish contact with them. Why did you give up so readily?”

At this question, Norton II let out a long sigh, as if to expel all the pent-up frustration in his chest.

He leaned back into the large chair, his gaze fixed on the cold metal wall of the command room, seemingly lost in memory. Amber just watched him, not rushing him.

“Because… they and I are ultimately not on the same path.”

Finally, the Regent Prince spoke again, his voice low and weary.

“Mr. Amber, I believe you must have guessed my objective to some extent. From the very beginning, my goal has been to give this rotten-to-the-core Empire… the Leon Royal Family, and the aristocratic class that has been entrenched for centuries like bloodsucking parasites, a thorough clean-up, a complete reshuffle.

If I were to rely on their power now just to prolong my own existence, then in the future, how could I raise the butcher’s knife against my ‘allies’ with a clear conscience?”

He laughed self-deprecatingly, but his cloudy eyes suddenly flashed with an almost fanatical light, like a candle about to burn out flaring brightly just before being extinguished.

“Have you heard of the ‘Decembrists’, Mr. Amber?”

Chapter 756: Revolutionary?

Norton II’s sudden question caught Amber off guard for a moment.

But without waiting for Amber to answer, he continued on his own, his voice filled with a strange excitement.

“My goal was to bring a true, thorough revolution to this stagnant empire! To reforge the entire social order! To let the oppressed underclass, exploited for countless generations, finally live like human beings! Not like livestock, as they do now!”

“Oh, really?” Amber scoffed, cutting him off without ceremony. “You’ve got some nerve comparing yourself to those who at least still hold onto some idealism.”

“Me? Compared to them?”

A look of deep disdain, even a hint of undisguised contempt, flashed in Norton II’s eyes.

He cleared his dry throat and retorted:

“On the contrary, they are the ones who cannot compare to me! It was their indecisiveness, their naivete, their illusions about and compromises with the old guard that led to their shameful failures! A revolution that aims to sweep away the old powers is never a dinner party, not some gentle, tender-hearted reform!”

At this, he seemed to grow agitated, his breathing quickening for a moment. But just as quickly, he deflated like a punctured ball, returning to his exhausted state as if that momentary passion had been an illusion.

“Unfortunately… I was too careless.”

“Careless?” Amber asked, biting back the rest of his thought.

Norton II nodded, his voice dropping, filled with regret.

“I trusted the signals from that old fox Frederico that he was showing goodwill and giving in. I foolishly thought he was truly willing to relinquish power. Then, when he announced he was critically ill, I accepted his ‘plea’ to meet with him. But in the end, he used some form of mental control—one I still don’t fully understand—to secretly manipulate me.”

As he spoke, the Regent Prince couldn’t help but raise a hand and rub his temples, as if the pain of an invisible shackle still lingered there.

“Mental control… If it was the ‘Dragon’s Might’ possessed by the Leon Royal Family, that effect is certainly possible.”

Amber nodded involuntarily. The Regent Prince’s many strange actions, so out of character for him, were suddenly explained.

On the other side, Norton II continued:

“During that time, I felt like I was living in a nightmare I couldn’t wake from, sometimes lucid, sometimes hazy. It was as if two wills were fighting ferociously inside my body.

And Frederico used my hand to directly purge many of the old-guard nobles who were in his way. On the surface, this seemed to align with my plans. But in reality, he cleverly avoided the families and supporters who were the most closely tied to the Royal Family, their most staunch allies!

The so-called purge ultimately became a tool for him to centralize imperial power, eliminate dissidents, and consolidate his own rule.”

Amber: “So you’re saying this great purge of the Empire’s nobles wasn’t your intention?”

“Of course it wasn’t my intention. Even if I wanted to eliminate the parasites blocking the path of revolution, I would never have used such crude methods… Speaking of which, Mr. Amber, you should actually feel fortunate.”

Norton II’s tone suddenly shifted as he looked up and stared intently at Amber.

“What do you mean?”

“Mr. Amber, if it weren’t for what happened at the very end today… when Frederico tried to seize the powerful body of the Starry Sky Dragon, his consciousness was devoured by the creature’s lingering, insane will. That caused his mental control over me to collapse completely. If that hadn’t happened, I’m afraid that even with you and Her Highness the Princess working together, the war would not have ended this way.”

Norton II paused, an indecipherable glint in his eyes. “In that case, who would have emerged victorious… it’s still anyone’s game.”

Amber acted as if he hadn’t heard the Regent Prince’s last words. He simply leaned against the control console, studying the ‘big shot’ who had once stirred up storms and stood at the pinnacle of the Star Dragon Empire’s pyramid of power with great interest.

Now, that air of spirited, masterful strategizing about him was completely gone. Instead, he looked like a defeated rooster.

The two stared at each other until Amber received a notification from Lilith that the First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade had begun persuading the Royal Guard soldiers to surrender and was gathering them up. Only then did he speak again.

“Since you’ve broken free of the control and regained your senses, and you hate Frederico to the bone, why didn’t you choose to keep fighting? Those loyal soldiers outside are still bleeding for you. They were willing to give their lives because you promised to bring revolution to the Empire. And there are still two dukes in orbit you could probably win over. You still have chips to play.

Giving up just like that… it’s not like you, Your Grace, the Regent Prince. Or is that so-called ‘ideal’ of yours only worth this much persistence?”

Norton II’s body trembled almost imperceptibly, not from fear, but as if Amber’s words had struck a nerve.

He was silent for a long time, the only sound in the command room the low hum of the equipment.

After a long while, he finally raised his head and looked at Amber with a complex expression. His gaze was no longer one of mere scrutiny, but held a strange, almost entrusting quality.

“Because… I saw you, Mr. Amber.” Norton II closed his eyes, seeming to savor the memory of that desperately powerful display. “After seeing the kind of power you just demonstrated—a power no human should possess—I understood something.”

Amber didn’t speak, waiting quietly for Norton II to continue, and he didn’t have to wait long.

“Mr. Amber, I must admit that in the face of a psionic user like you, everything I’ve built—my army, my strategies—all of it seems so fragile. If I had any reservations about the power of psionic users before, after seeing what you displayed today, I know the balance has been broken.”

Norton II opened his eyes. Though his gaze was dim, it held a kind of relief.

“I originally thought I could be the one to break the old world. For that, I was willing to do anything… even… even to the point of being used as a puppet on a string by that old fiend Frederico. That feeling…”

He frowned, a pained look on his face. “It was like having someone else living in my head, whispering, enticing, making me think those insane ideas were my own! He made me purge the nobles, and I did it, subconsciously believing I was clearing obstacles for the revolution. Looking back now, I was just helping him eliminate his rivals and consolidate imperial power! Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous!”

He slammed his fist on the armrest of his chair with a dull thud.

“By the time I completely broke free from his control and came to my senses, it was too late. Frederico had become a monster, the Imperial Capital had turned into a battlefield, and all I had left was this one exhausted unit. So you ask me why I don’t keep fighting? For what? For that ideal I’m no longer sure I can achieve?”

Norton II shook his head, his face etched with deep exhaustion and self-doubt.

“Perhaps… I was wrong from the very beginning, Mr. Amber! As an ordinary human, my power has its limits! My methods, in the end, can only bring destruction and chaos, not truly build a new order.”

Amber: “Your Grace, what are you trying to say?”

Norton II looked at Amber again, his gaze more focused this time, and lit with a glimmer of something called hope.

“But you are different, Mr. Amber. I see infinite possibilities in you. The feeling you give me is unlike most people in this world! The power you and the Atlas Group have demonstrated, that technology beyond its time, and your own unfathomable strength and ambition…”

Norton II chose his words carefully, his tone growing more and more agitated. Amber suddenly realized he hadn’t been able to get a word in edgewise for a while. This man, who seemed to have lost everything, was treating him like some sort of confidant, frantically pouring out his opinions and ideas.

“I can sense, Mr. Amber, that what you want is far grander than overthrowing a corrupt empire. I admit, like others, I used to look down on psionic users. But now I realize that perhaps only a psionic user like you has enough power to bring real change to this world, for better or for worse! Cough, cough, cough.”

Whether from agitation or from choking on his own saliva, Norton II suddenly began coughing violently, slapping his chest repeatedly.

Seeing this, Amber shook his head, walked over to him, and took a small pouch of nutrient solution from his combat suit, handing it over.

“Thank you.”

Norton II didn’t stand on ceremony. He took the pouch and drained it in one go. He calmed down, and a little color returned to his face.

“I have lost, completely and utterly. To struggle further would be pointless, only causing more needless casualties and sending those loyal lads outside to their deaths for nothing.”

He leaned back against the chair, panting. It was as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders, or perhaps as if he had lost all support. Then he suddenly began to laugh, a harsh sound that made Amber frown.

“Hahahahaha! Mr. Amber~ I suddenly think that leaving this mess to you might just be the best choice.”

Amber: “…”

Norton II seemed to have come to a realization. His voice gradually regained its strength, carrying a faint, almost imperceptible note of anticipation.

“Tell me, Mr. Amber, what will you do? What kind of… future will you build?”

Chapter 757: Special Advantage

Norton II’s expectant gaze made Amber feel a slight pressure, but that was all.

“The future?”

Amber repeated, the corners of his mouth curving into a smile as he couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.

“Regent Prince, you must have some grand misunderstanding of me. I, Amber, am purely a businessman.”

Amber spread his hands, his posture exceptionally casual, even a little lazy.

“My goal in founding the Atlas Group might disappoint you, because it’s really quite vulgar and simple: to grow bigger and stronger. And then just to watch the company’s performance improve day by day. As for building some kind of future… forgive me for being blunt, but that seems beyond the scope of a businessman’s duties.”

After hearing Amber’s words, Norton II snorted in clear disbelief, his voice thick with disdain.

“A businessman? Mr. Amber, don’t take me for one of those bloated fools. To understand Atlas, I deployed significant resources from the Empire’s intelligence department to investigate your daily operations and your activities on those remote Federation planets.”

He leaned forward slightly. The flame of inquiry reignited in his once-cloudy pupils, as if he intended to see right through Amber.

“Those massive industrial zones you’ve built, the efficient agricultural clusters, and that management model completely different from the existing systems of the Federation and the Empire… Mr. Amber, don’t tell me that’s all just for making money. I’ve seen it. In the territories under Atlas’s direct control, something is quietly taking root and sprouting—fairness. An almost absolute, ruthless fairness.”

“Fairness?”

Hearing this, Amber shrugged, a playful smile on his face. “Perhaps. But in my view, that’s just a little byproduct accidentally created in the pursuit of ‘corporate efficiency.’ Or, you could say that if you want to maintain stable efficiency, ‘fairness’ is absolutely essential. I can’t accept people below me obstructing the group’s long-term plans for petty gains.”

Amber moved away from Norton II and casually found a nearby chair to sit in, looking completely relaxed. He had originally thought this meeting with the Regent Prince would be a sharp confrontation, like the meeting between Kira Yamato and the Speaker.

“For a business to remain profitable, to gain a larger market share and better returns, what is the core element? It’s efficiency, Your Grace. Eliminating all unnecessary internal friction, streamlining all tedious processes, and placing every part, every person, in the most suitable position to maximize their value. The Atlas Group is just more thorough and, well, a little more impersonal about it than others.”

“I don’t believe you.”

Norton II shook his head, his tone resolute and allowing no room for doubt.

Amber pursed his lips. “Why don’t you believe me?”

“That high-sounding rhetoric might fool those stupid, short-sighted nobles outside, but don’t even think about fooling me. Tell me the truth, Mr. Amber. What do you, and the Atlas behind you, truly want?”

“The truth?”

Amber glanced at the closed entrance of the command room and deliberately drew out his words. “Regent Prince, if we keep talking like this, I’m afraid those Royal Guard soldiers loyal to you outside will be completely disarmed by my troops and taken prisoner~”

Norton II waved his hand, his face showing not the slightest hint of concern.

“Let them be disarmed. I have already lost. From the moment I ordered the surrender, their fate was no longer in my hands. Preventing pointless bloodshed is the last thing I can do for them. Now, I have all the time in the world. I want to hear about the real Atlas model—the secret that supported your rise.”

Amber fell silent for a moment, as if seriously weighing the pros and cons, or perhaps admiring the sight of this ambitious tyrant at the end of his rope.

Finally, as if he had made up his mind, he spoke again. “It’s simple. The core principle can be summed up in a single phrase: ‘Let the right people do the right things.’ And then, within our ability, ensure the outcome is absolutely fair.”

Norton II’s brows furrowed, his face a mask of confusion and unconcealed disappointment. “Is that it?”

He couldn’t help but press, leaning forward again, his tone filled with an urgency that was almost a plea. “Mr. Amber, I will soon be a prisoner. Perhaps in a few days, Agnes will send me to the gallows. If, before I die, I can truly understand how you led Atlas to rise in such a short time, creating such astonishing efficiency and power, then I, Norton II, can die without regrets!”

Amber carefully observed every subtle expression on Norton II’s face—the urgency and inquiry mixed with the frankness and bitterness of a man at the end of his rope. It didn’t seem to be entirely an act.

“Very well,” Amber said, his tone even. “The Atlas Group, in essence, is no different from any other large corporation. We also break down macroscopic strategic goals layer by layer, ultimately assigning them to every specific position, every specific person.

“The key is that we have an extremely strict, you could even say ruthless, system for performance reviews and internal monitoring that is far beyond your imagination. Every employee, from senior management to the lowest-level worker, receives a precisely calculated reward corresponding to their contributions and responsibilities—not a cent more, not a cent less. As for any attempt to exploit loopholes, especially using one’s position for graft, corruption, or personal enrichment at the company’s expense…”

Amber paused here, his eyes suddenly turning cold as some unpleasant memories flashed through his mind.

“Once discovered, there are no so-called warnings, demotions, or chances to reform. They are fired directly, their information is blacklisted, and they are never rehired. If a law is broken, regardless of the amount involved, the case is handed over to the local judicial authorities. Atlas’s legal department ensures they pay the price they deserve. And if the local authorities are unwilling to handle it, we are more than happy to ‘handle’ it for them.

“On the planets under Atlas’s control, we implement the same logic. Industrial zones, agricultural clusters, administration—everyone involved in production and management must follow the same detailed set of derivative rules.

“We have drastically cut the bloated and inefficient layers of administration, delegating authority to the people who actually get things done. At the same time, we use… an advanced technological method to conduct comprehensive, zero-blind-spot supervision. Under these circumstances, employee efficiency naturally increases.”

Seeing Norton II listening intently and silently pondering his words, Amber added one last sentence:

“Those who remain after being filtered by this brutal system are the people who can truly work and are willing to work. As for the useless slackers who just want to coast by and collect a high salary, they were ruthlessly eliminated long ago for failing their KPI assessments. Atlas doesn’t support idlers. Every employee of the Atlas Group is a cog in this giant machine.”

Norton II listened with extreme focus. His brow would sometimes furrow tightly, as if he were contemplating its vulnerabilities, and then relax, as if he had glimpsed the gate to a new world. He was completely immersed in the cold and efficient operational logic Amber described.

Amber narrated calmly, unabashedly laying bare the operational logic of Atlas—something akin to a social engineering experiment—before the former Regent Prince of the Empire.

But his narration, a form of doctoring the records, concealed the most crucial element that made it all possible: the existence of Lilith.

Without Lilith’s abilities—which could not be replicated by any other AI—her omnipresent surveillance network, and her absolute loyalty to Amber and impartial execution, achieving this level of task delegation, performance review, and absolute anti-corruption oversight within such a vast and complex human organization would be a complete fantasy, a fool’s dream.

Human society is full of variables, and human beings themselves are exceedingly complex creatures, difficult to fathom.

Without Lilith serving as the internal monitor—an invisible yet omnipresent Sword of Damocles hanging over everyone’s head—any brilliantly designed system would eventually breed ineradicable parasites due to the weaknesses of human nature.

Amber was deeply convinced of this.

He believed that saints existed in this world, but he also knew that the world was made up of ordinary people, and ordinary people all had weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and were easily tempted.

Therefore, Lilith was the ultimate failsafe that allowed the massive machine of Atlas to operate efficiently and remain incorruptible.

She was also Amber’s true ‘special advantage’ in this world.

At least for now, no person or power could make a move under her watch without being noticed.

After a long while, Norton II slowly let out a long breath, as if he had just digested an enormous amount of information.

He looked up again, and the way he looked at Amber had undergone a subtle but profound change. It was no longer simple scrutiny and inquiry, but had a hint of… approval?

He spoke calmly, “Mr. Amber, you still haven’t told me how you accomplish all of this. I know very well it’s absolutely impossible to do so with manpower alone.”

“My apologies, that’s a business secret~”

The Regent Prince was momentarily speechless. A moment later, he gave a small laugh and continued:

“I understand. Mr. Amber, you—or rather, the Atlas behind you—truly possess the power to bring real revolution to this decadent Empire.”

But his tone shifted abruptly, and his gaze sharpened with a hint of warning.

“And yet, you chose to cooperate with Princess Agnes. You must clearly recognize that Her Highness the Princess, and the old noble factions surrounding her, will be the greatest obstacles to implementing this system! They have enjoyed centuries of privilege. They are deeply entrenched and will never easily surrender their interests, much less willingly accept this kind of top-down reform that will strike at their very souls!”

Chapter 758: Your Majesty, I’ve Got You

Norton II’s words brought a surprised expression to Amber’s face, and his gaze toward the Regent Prince took on a different quality.

“Oh? From the sound of it, Your Grace, are you trying to teach me a lesson?”

“I wouldn’t dare. I’m merely offering some suggestions as an elder~”

Just as expected, an imperceptible smile touched Norton II’s lips, carrying a certain ineffable allure.

“Mr. Amber, with the god-like power you just displayed, you have no need to compromise with those old, dying powers! Overthrow them! Crush them! Just as you crushed my poor Royal Guard soldiers! Upon these utter ruins, wouldn’t it be far cleaner, far more in line with your style, to establish a new order that is entirely yours and carries out your will?”

Amber didn’t answer immediately. He merely narrowed his eyes, seemingly lost in deep contemplation.

Norton II watched his reaction closely, a nearly imperceptible glint of excitement flashing in the depths of his eyes. He pressed his advantage, his voice growing more inflammatory.

“Even if you and Agnes can cooperate for now against a common enemy, what about the future? As the Atlas Group’s influence in the Empire grows ever larger, your ideals and interests will inevitably clash. One mountain cannot hold two tigers! A falling-out is only a matter of time! Instead of waiting for a far bloodier and more brutal internal conflict to erupt then, plunging the Empire into turmoil once again, why not take care of it all in one go now? Cut the Gordian knot!”

The more Norton II spoke, the more agitated he became. His back, once stooped with exhaustion and defeat, seemed to straighten, as if he had rediscovered the verve of his former days, when he commanded the nation and stirred the winds of change.

He leaned forward slightly, adopting a posture almost of submission, his voice laced with an irresistible temptation.

“Mr. Amber, we are kindred spirits! We are the true pioneers who wish to utterly change this corrupt world! Though I have failed, I believe you, Amber, are another version of me in this world! We share the same ideals!

I am also willing to use my lifelong experience, my knowledge of every corner of this Empire, to advise you and clear every obstacle from your path! To help you complete this grand undertaking for the good of the Empire’s people!”

An expression of deep anticipation, tinged with an almost pathological fervor, appeared on Norton II’s face. He seemed certain that a man like Amber, one who thinks differently from the crowd, would be moved by the grand vision he painted.

However, Amber suddenly laughed.

The laugh was soft, even tinged with amusement, yet it sounded jarring in the quiet command room.

It was also like a bucket of ice water, instantly dousing the flames in Norton II’s eyes. His heart leaped, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.

The next second, before Norton II could even react, a hand like an iron vise shot out and seized his throat! The gorget beneath his tactical faceplate shattered instantly!

An immense, irresistible force erupted, hauling him clean out of his spacious commander’s chair and slamming him mercilessly against the cold, hard metal wall behind!

BANG—!!!

The loud, dull thud of the impact reverberated through the command room, a sound that set one’s teeth on edge.

Had Norton II not still been wearing his combat exoskeleton, the blow might have cost him half his life. Even so, the sudden impact nearly knocked him unconscious.

Before Norton II could recover his senses, Amber was suddenly upon him, his eyes—once tinged with a smile—now overflowing with brilliant blue Psionics.

So close, Norton II could clearly see the churning, immense power and the undisguised killing intent within them.

“Your Majesty, I’ve got you~”

Amber’s voice was low, yet it carried a cold, mocking tone.

“Wh-what are you saying?!”

His throat held in a death grip and his back screaming in pain, ‘Norton II’s’ face instantly turned deathly pale. His eyes filled with utter terror and disbelief, and his words came out in choked gasps.

“Amber… cough, cough… why…”

“Enough. Stop the act, Your Majesty.”

Amber cut him off gruffly, his voice filled with undisguised contempt and disgust.

“The real Norton II may be insidious and ruthless, but he is, at his core, an ambitious tyrant. He has his own pride, his own limits.

Even if he were utterly defeated, at a dead end, he would never grovel like a dog the way you just did. He wouldn’t stoop to such cheap tricks, trying to sow discord and babbling about staying by my side to assist me…”

Amber tightened his grip on the man’s neck. The faint sound of grinding bone was audible. The ‘Regent Prince’ struggled to breathe, his face turning purple.

“This willingness to do anything for power, to sacrifice your own daughter without a second thought, to backstab allies you’ve fought beside… and this particular fondness for playing mind games at the last second, trying to prolong your pathetic existence… There’s only one person who could do that. So skillfully. So disgustingly.”

Amber’s voice was inhumanly cold. He stared into the man’s eyes and spat out the name, syllable by syllable.

“Frederico Rosa Leon.”

The command room fell deathly silent.

Pressed against the wall, the terror and disbelief on ‘Norton II’s’ face vanished as if a mask had been stripped away.

The feigned exhaustion and despondence vanished without a trace. In its place was an extreme, somber coldness. The majesty of one long accustomed to power, of one who looks down upon the masses, reappeared on that aged face.

He stopped struggling. Even his breathing steadied. His once-cloudy pupils became sharp as daggers, staring at Amber as if to pierce through him.

“How did you know?”

His voice had changed. It was no longer the hoarse, weary tone of Norton II, but the voice of Frederico—carrying the unique coldness and authority of an emperor, along with a hint of stunned disbelief.

“The Leon Royal Family’s ‘Dragon’s Might’… its psychic intrusion is exceptionally subtle. Even a high-level psionic user shouldn’t have been able to detect it so easily…”

“Perhaps~”

Amber’s grip didn’t lessen; if anything, it tightened. He could clearly hear the faint protests of the man’s cervical vertebrae, yet ‘Frederico’ remained impassive.

“Your ‘Dragon’s Might,’ from you self-proclaimed descendants of the Starry Sky Dragon, is indeed quite subtle. An ordinary psionic user wouldn’t stand a chance of detecting it.

But unfortunately for you, Your Majesty, you’re not a very good ‘actor.’ A person’s true nature—especially habits and thought patterns ingrained to the bone—is difficult to hide completely. No matter how good the performance, the cracks will always show. And your acting was clumsy at best.”

Amber leaned in closer, close enough to feel the rotten chill emanating from the man. Facing the former supreme ruler of the Star Dragon Empire, he found it hard to suppress the smile tugging at his lips.

“I don’t understand.”

“There’s a lot you don’t understand~”

Amber said scornfully, then tossed the ‘Norton II,’ possessed by ‘Frederico,’ back into his chair, restraining him with Psionics.

“I’ve only dealt with the real Norton II once, but my understanding of him far exceeds your imagination. He’s an ambitious, ruthless tyrant. He would sacrifice countless people for his ‘revolution’ without a second thought.

But even in defeat, a man like him would be like a lone wolf, licking his wounds in silence and plotting his comeback. He wouldn’t be like you, a fawning lapdog, full of flattery and provocation, hoping to save your skin by groveling about wanting to stay by my side and assist me…”

Amber scoffed, his contempt undisguised.

“These cheap tricks… this shameless display of clinging to a final lifeline at any cost… this deep-seated scheming and manipulation of the human heart… only you, Frederico, could do it so skillfully, so naturally.

After all, a man who would sacrifice his own daughter like a pawn and gamble away the entire Empire under his rule just to flip the table—is there anything you wouldn’t do?”

Frederico—or rather, the Frederico occupying Norton II’s body—had an ashen face. The lack of oxygen from being choked, combined with the shame and rage of being so thoroughly exposed, made the muscles in his face twitch.

The cold majesty in his eyes was replaced by stunned fury. He glared daggers at Amber, as if he could tear him to shreds with his gaze alone.

“Stop glaring. Looks can’t kill.”

Amber sat down opposite Frederico, regarding him as if he were a joke, and asked:

“This is just a remnant of your soul, isn’t it? Or just a small fragment of your consciousness? I’m sure the bulk of it was devoured by the revived Starry Sky Dragon, just like that cooked corpse in the entry plug.”

Frederico said nothing.

“Oh, by the way, since you’re here, Your Majesty… Before Her Highness Agnes buries your body, would you mind if I let my technicians study and dissect it? After all, the corpse of a member of the Star Dragon Empire’s royal family, a descendant of the Starry Sky Dragon… it has great research value.”

Frederico remained silent, but his glare at Amber grew more vicious.

“No answer? I’ll take that as a yes, then. Can you rest in peace now? Or are you planning to stay in Norton II’s body? Speaking of which, Your Grace, can you hear me in there?”

“Enough! I am the sovereign of a great nation! How can I endure such insults from you?!”

Amber spread his hands in a gesture of innocence. “Don’t be like that. You won’t be for much longer. Besides, how did I insult you? It was your shoddy acting that gave you away. Oh, so grabbing you by the neck is an insult now? Please.”

Chapter 759: It’s Better for Everyone Without You

Inside the command room, the true identity of ‘Norton II’—or rather, Frederico—was completely exposed. The veneer of calm he had feigned finally crumbled under Amber’s mockery.

His breathing grew ragged, his chest heaving violently. The distinct marks of fingers were still visible on his previously choked neck. The face of Norton II was now twisted with Frederico’s own anger and disbelief.

“So, Mr. Amber, how do you plan to deal with me?”

Frederico’s voice was hoarse, but the imperial authority within it had not entirely vanished. Instead, it was edged with the ferocity of a cornered beast.

Amber leaned back in his chair, his hands resting casually on the armrests, appearing utterly relaxed, as if this were not a confrontation with Frederico at all.

“Deal with you? Your Majesty, what do you think? I’ll completely erase this lingering remnant of a soul that shouldn’t exist, of course. That way you won’t be around to plague the world anymore.”

“No! You wouldn’t dare!”

Frederico shot bolt upright. Though he was restrained by Amber’s psionics, his aura surged.

“My spirit has already begun to merge with Norton’s! If you forcibly erase me, he will suffer irreversible damage! He might even become an imbecile!”

Hearing this, Amber suddenly burst out laughing. The sound echoed through the spacious command room, filled with undisguised ridicule.

“Hahahaha! Your Majesty, you have a brilliant sense of humor! I think you could very well become a professional comedian!”

Frederico’s face flushed with rage. A moment later, Amber stopped laughing and leaned forward slightly, staring at him.

“I really don’t get it. Why do you think I care whether Norton II becomes an imbecile? Who gave you this confidence? You make it sound like we have some kind of special relationship. I’m not into those kinds of stories!”

Amber’s voice grew calm, yet it carried a chill that made Frederico’s heart pound.

“To be frank, I wish I could get rid of you both in one go—one is an ambitious Regent Prince plotting to subvert the Empire, the other a treacherous Emperor pulling the strings from behind the scenes.

“How am I supposed to make big money getting mixed up with people like you? If you both disappeared, it would only be good for Atlas Group’s market expansion within the Empire! There’s no downside!”

Watching Frederico’s face turn instantly foul, Amber continued, “Oh, right. There’s one last key point about the ‘Atlas Model’ I was telling you about that I left out: ‘stability.’”

With a casual wave, Amber used his psionics to levitate a few of the fragments that had been shaken loose earlier and began stacking them like building blocks.

Normally, such irregularly shaped fragments would not be easy to stack. But Amber controlled his psionics like glue, bonding them together so tightly they seemed as if they had always been a single piece.

“Absolute efficiency and a strict system require an absolutely stable external environment to guarantee them. Any factor that could disrupt this stability and threaten the interests of the Atlas Group and its partners must be eliminated! Whoever stands in the way of Atlas’s development, whoever stands in the way of my fortune, will meet the same end.”

Amber didn’t specify what that end was, but the determination contained in his calm words was more terrifying to Frederico than any threat.

Frederico trembled with rage. He pointed at Amber, his knuckles white from the force.

“You… you cold-blooded monster! You’re no different from those capitalists who only know how to squeeze out profits, no different from those decadent nobles!”

“My heavens, Your Majesty. For a feudal emperor, that’s a rather strange thing to say, isn’t it?”

Amber’s expression was devoid of emotion; he even spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness.

“Your Majesty, I’ve told you before, I’m just a businessman. So I really don’t understand why you keep thinking of me as some kind of saint or savior. Are you that disappointed in this world, or do you have some unrealistic expectations and fantasies about me?”

Frederico was rendered speechless by Amber’s words, only able to glare at him with eyes that burned like fire.

Amber, however, maintained his calm, almost indifferent tone as he continued, word by word:

“Even if I did want to change things, look at this Empire, or the Federation next door—they’re both rotten to the core. Is that something that can be fixed by changing a monarch or a ruling party? Without a complete, major shake-up, without scraping the poison from the very bones from top to bottom, conventional methods are useless. And a major shake-up means bloodshed, it means sacrifice. That’s an inevitable price, regardless of who does it.”

Hearing this, Frederico suddenly fell silent. He just stared at Amber, his thoughts unreadable.

Amber was in no hurry, content to play a staring contest with him until Frederico’s expression shifted to one of, ‘I’ve seen right through you.’

“Hmph… such a grand speech! Mr. Amber, you claim you don’t want to change the world, but I see you’ve already plotted everything out in your heart! Your plan is probably even more meticulous, more ambitious than mine! That’s why you’re so determined to eliminate me. After all, for what you want to do, someone like me is the biggest obstacle!”

Amber shook his head, looking at Frederico as if he were an idiot. “Your Majesty, oh, Your Majesty. I think you’ve gone mad from being emperor for too long. All of your pitiful little intellect has been spent on intrigue and power struggles. You don’t know the first thing about what real ‘business’ is.”

“That’s right, I do have a plan,” Amber admitted readily, but his smile made Frederico extremely uncomfortable. “But I don’t intend to carry it out myself.”

Frederico was taken aback, not understanding what Amber meant.

Amber leaned back, adjusting his seat to a more comfortable position.

“You see, Your Majesty, taking the Star Dragon Empire as an example, implementing a reform of this scale would be a thankless task. It would offend a huge number of the Empire’s nobles—a real hassle! Not only would I face countless obstacles and have to clean up all sorts of messes, but I’d also have people criticizing and meddling. It’s just too exhausting.

“So, I’ve turned this… ah, ‘grand plan’ you mentioned into a ‘business project.’ If someone—say, our beloved Her Highness Princess Agnes—is truly determined to change this Empire and is also willing to pay a trivial ‘technical support fee’…”

A shrewd, business-like glint appeared in Amber’s eyes. Those who knew him would recognize it as the look he got right before he was about to scam someone.

“The Atlas Group would be more than happy to bestow this entire ‘Imperial Reformation Plan’ upon her! We can provide comprehensive theoretical guidance, handle the initial planning, and even offer support at the later execution stage! As long as the funding is in place, forget technical support—having our people get directly involved as ‘white gloves’ or ‘black gloves’ is not off the table for discussion~”

“This…”

“Even if you want me to get involved myself, that’s fine… you just have to pay extra (▽)”

This time, Frederico was well and truly stunned.

Despite his long life and the myriad people he had encountered—schemers, ambitionists, idealists, madmen—he had never met anyone like Amber.

To so casually describe a grand blueprint capable of toppling a vast empire and reshaping the lives of billions as a business deal that could be haggled over?

Were those the words of a human being?

It was absurd! Shameless!

“You… how could you do this…?”

Frederico’s voice trembled with shock. He couldn’t comprehend how such a profit-driven, unscrupulous merchant could conceive of such a logically sound reform plan that struck at the heart of the problem.

Amber paid Frederico’s shock no mind and continued speaking:

“Your Majesty, I’m not like some people who shout lofty slogans while their hearts are filled with sordid schemes! I’m a very straightforward person. When I talk business, I mean business.

“As for how future generations will judge me, or what the history books will write… what the hell does that have to do with me? If a critic insults me, am I going to lose a piece of my flesh? Wouldn’t I be better off lying comfortably in bed counting my money? A good name is the most worthless thing of all~”

Frederico was completely dumbfounded by Amber’s astonishing and utterly heretical statements.

He felt his own worldview, the very principles he had followed his entire life, being brutally torn to shreds by the young man before him.

The dignity of an emperor? The judgment of history? The well-being of the people?

To Amber, none of it seemed to compare to a profitable deal.

Frederico’s mind went blank, his spirit wavering for a moment. He almost began to think of himself as an unequivocal, enlightened ruler by comparison.

“What do you really want?”

Frederico’s voice was practically squeezed through gritted teeth. He had given up on pointless resistance; he just wanted to know Amber’s true goal.

Amber smiled faintly, as if he had sufficiently enjoyed Frederico’s miserable state.

“It’s simple, Your Majesty. I just want you to understand that times have changed. The era belonging to old relics like you is well and truly over.”

Listening to Amber’s words, Frederico suddenly realized that perhaps he had underestimated Amber from the very beginning.

This young man didn’t just possess immense power; he possessed a way of thinking that was beyond his comprehension.

And perhaps this was part of Amber’s plan—to destroy his will with words, to shatter his focus, and thereby weaken the strength of his mental defenses. Frederico tried to shore up his mental barriers, only to find that Amber’s words were like countless fine needles, already deeply embedded in his consciousness, impossible to dislodge.

Amber stood up and walked over to Frederico, looking down on him with a cold glint in his eyes.

“Your Majesty, allow me to see you on your way.”

Amber raised his hand, and a powerful psionic wave instantly enveloped the entire command room.

Frederico felt a terror he had never known before. He knew Amber was about to make his move.

His mind went blank, his spirit wavering for a moment.

Now!

The instant Frederico’s mind reeled, his thoughts momentarily blanked by Amber’s heretical speech, the deep blue psionic light in Amber’s eyes flared to its absolute peak!

A vast, majestic spiritual power, far exceeding Frederico’s meager imagination, surged like a broken dam, instantly demolishing the mental barrier the old Emperor believed was so strong. It brutally and directly invaded Frederico’s—or rather, what was originally Norton II’s—chaotic spiritual world.

From a visualized perspective, within that spiritual world, Norton II’s spiritual core was exhausted and scarred, yet like a resilient blade of grass standing firm in a storm, it stubbornly resisted the erosion.

Another power—cold, cunning, and filled with a decaying aura—clung to Norton’s consciousness like a shadow that couldn’t be shaken off. It was slowly consuming and assimilating, trying to claim this vessel for itself. That was the remnant soul of Frederico.

“Amber, you dare!”

On the spiritual plane, Frederico’s consciousness let out a shriek of pure terror. What little power he had left instinctively tried to contract and defend against this sudden, destructive invasion.

“Of course I fucking dare. What wouldn’t I dare to do?”

Hearing the old Emperor’s powerless threat, Amber actually laughed out loud. In the face of a Level Seven psionic user’s absolute power, the old Emperor’s resistance was laughable and futile.

Amber’s spiritual power advanced without pause, quickly locking onto the parasitic remnant of Frederico’s soul, which was curled up deep within Norton’s consciousness.

He didn’t choose a crude, destructive assault; it would be excellent if the world had one less fool in it.

So, at this moment, Amber was like a masterful surgeon. He delicately probed with his formless spiritual power, carefully beginning to peel away the spiritual threads of Frederico, which were wrapped around Norton II’s soul like poisonous vines, one by one with pinpoint precision.

For Frederico’s remnant soul, this process was an ultimate agony far surpassing death by a thousand cuts, a fear that seeped into his very marrow.

He could clearly ‘feel’ his existence being stripped away, piece by piece, erased. His consciousness was rapidly dissipating, yet he was powerless to offer any effective resistance.

This despair, of watching himself march toward complete annihilation, finally broke the once-lofty emperor.

“No… don’t! Amber… Mr. Amber! Let me go! I beg you!”

The dignity and pride of an emperor, in the face of absolute death, were finally torn to pieces, utterly obliterated.

Frederico’s spiritual form twisted violently as he let out the most wretched and卑微 pleas.

“I can tell you all the secrets of the Leon Royal Family! The secrets of all the past emperors! The true legacy of that Starry Sky Dragon! I… I can help you control Agnes! She has weaknesses… of course I know my own daughter’s weaknesses! I can even help you…”

Frederico’s spiritual form flickered wildly like a candle about to be extinguished. Trying to seize his last glimmer of hope, he reflexively threw out what he considered his most valuable bargaining chips.

But in the face of his pleas, Amber’s spirit remained unwavering. The peeling motion continued with its precise efficiency.

“Your Majesty… I’ll be blunt. Your existence is a huge problem for everyone involved.”

Amber’s voice echoed calmly on the spiritual plane—cold, indifferent, devoid of any personal emotion, simply stating a fact.

“It’s better for everyone without you. Truly.”

Chapter 760: The Old King is Dead, Long Live the New King

Saint-Saulnier, 140 kilometers northwest of the Grand Palace.

On the outskirts of the underground base, the smoke of battle had not yet completely cleared. The acrid smell of burning and the heavy stench of blood mixed together, filling the now-silent air.

The wreckage of numerous destroyed and twisted heavy armored units and vehicles was scattered across the position like toys carelessly discarded by a child.

The surviving Royal Guard soldiers had finally ceased their resistance, following the Regent Prince’s order that had been broadcast throughout the entire position.

The faces of these Royal Guard soldiers still showed the exhaustion of intense battle and the bewilderment of men whose faith had been shattered by the Regent Prince’s surrender. Of course, there was also the terror born from witnessing Amber’s inhuman power wreak havoc upon their lines.

Outside the defensive perimeter, upon confirming that the Royal Guard had laid down their arms, the forward attack team of the Atlas Group’s First Heavy Combined Arms Brigade poured into the position like a tide. The units coordinated seamlessly, their movements swift and precise.

Soon, the Romu soldiers—whose builds were far larger than ordinary men and whose height, in their combat exoskeletons, nearly rivaled that of standard powered armor—had taken control of all tactical nodes on the position, marching with heavy footsteps in coordination with armored units.

Meanwhile, the elites of the Immortal Corps who had dropped from orbit moved like ghosts, ensuring the absolute security of critical areas such as the entrance to the underground base.

Their movements were unhesitating, and they showed no signs of laxness just because the Royal Guard soldiers had surrendered. With the help of numerous armed Worker Bees that resembled armed spider drones, they efficiently disarmed the remaining Royal Guard soldiers.

To the Royal Guard soldiers, the brutish-looking but highly disciplined Romu soldiers were a source of curiosity. As they were being disarmed, they sized up the “Furballs” with interest while being guided toward an assembly area.

However, not all soldiers surrendered so readily. The flames of defiance still burned in the eyes of a few Royal Guard soldiers, their fingers trembling as they clutched their weapons.

But as they looked around and saw that most of their comrades had dejectedly laid down their arms, and then saw the mobile fortresses that were the Romu soldiers and the cold spider-like robots staring them down, any thought of resistance ultimately vanished.

The Romu soldiers were not so friendly with these holdouts. After being ordered to disarm, the batteries of their power units were swiftly removed. Then, under the escort of armed Worker Bees, they were led away from the positions they had defended to the death and placed under guard in a separate area.

As the Atlas Group’s soldiers gradually swept through the entire position, the Imperial Capital’s Royal Guard—once the pride of the Empire—were now silent prisoners.

The clearing of the underground base’s interior was equally swift. The special operations teams led personally by Montai and Tairak demonstrated a brutal but efficient method of indoor breaching, clearing all corridors and rooms in a short amount of time.

When Montai and Tairak finally led a team of soldiers to the command room located in the deepest part of the base, they saw Amber casually leaning back in a chair, smiling and greeting them. The Regent Prince, Norton II, was bound to another commander’s chair by an invisible psionic force, his face ashen.

“Boss! Montai reporting in with my team!”

“Boss! Tairak reporting in with my team!”

Montai and Tairak breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief and stepped forward quickly, giving Amber a standard military salute. The armor plates of their exoskeletons clanked crisply.

Amber nodded, his gaze sweeping over the two men. “Montai, Tairak, good work. If I remember correctly, you two were among the first batch of Romu to join Atlas, right? You’ve grown quickly. Back in the simulation battles, I could carry you both out, one in each hand. Now you can handle things on your own.”

Being called out by name by the supreme commander brought a trace of surprise to the faces of these two veteran Romu. They hadn’t expected Amber to even remember them; they had always assumed that big shots had short memories.

But this was clearly not the time for pleasantries. After a brief exchange, Amber was escorted by Montai and the others out of the underground base and into a command vehicle that had been driven directly to the base entrance.

Now that they had secured control of the area, these vehicles, which were typically primary targets for the enemy, dared to drive up to the front line.

The interior of the command vehicle was much more spacious than an armored command vehicle, and its dedicated communications terminal could connect directly with the fleet in orbit. This was why Amber had Montai and his team bring one to the front.

Amber sat before a console inside the vehicle and initiated communications with the orbital fleet.

The encrypted channel connected quickly, and the solemn faces of Isabelle, Princess Agnes, and Duke Hastings appeared on the screen in succession.

“I have the Regent Prince under control. The ground battle in Saint-Saulnier is mostly over. The majority of the Royal Guard units have surrendered, and Atlas combat teams are preparing to clear the battlefield.”

Amber reported the situation succinctly. “It’s time to let Duke Soren and Duke Duke know. Perhaps you all can start talking. This standoff isn’t a long-term solution.”

A silence fell on the other side of the screen after Amber spoke. Isabelle, who knew Amber well, showed no particular reaction, but the other two were different. Shock was written plainly on their faces.

Princess Agnes’s eyes widened, and she almost wondered if she had misheard. Duke Hastings took a deep breath, his gaze toward Amber filled with a complex mix of emotions—awe, wariness, and a subtle, imperceptible trace of fear.

The Princess Faction’s original plan had indeed been to completely eliminate the Regent Prince and his diehard loyalists, a move of taking drastic measures to solve a problem from its root, forcing Soren and Duke to give up their resistance.

But they had always felt this would be no easy task; they believed securing the Regent Prince would be extremely difficult. Both of them had been prepared for Amber to bring back a corpse.

Yet who could have imagined that in the short time since Amber had jumped from orbit, he had not only shattered the Royal Guard’s final defensive line but had also captured the Regent Prince himself, alive.

A Level Seven psionic user. This level of power, which had existed only in legend, had not only appeared before them in the flesh today but had also given them a direct demonstration of its combat prowess.

The strength Amber had displayed had already surpassed the limits of ordinary imagination. If he could easily breach a heavily fortified position and capture the Regent Prince today, did that not mean he could do the same to anyone in the Princess Faction tomorrow?

This thought crept silently into the minds of Princess Agnes and Duke Hastings.

“Understood, Mr. Amber. Thank you. We will notify them immediately.”

In the end, it was Duke Hastings who broke the silence, his voice now slightly hoarse.

The communication ended. The command vehicle slowly started up, joining the convoy returning to the Airdropped Fortress cluster. Only Amber and the psionically bound Norton II remained in the cabin.

Amidst the gentle vibrations of the moving vehicle, Norton II slowly raised his head, a flicker of confusion in his cloudy eyes. He asked in a hoarse voice, “Mr. Amber, why… why didn’t you just kill me?”

Amber’s gaze was still on the communications terminal, reading other information. He didn’t look at the Regent Prince, his tone as flat as if he were discussing what to have for dinner. “Some people are more useful dead than alive. But others are more valuable alive than dead. And you, Your Grace the Regent Prince, belong to the latter.”

Amber paused before continuing his explanation.

“With you alive, Duke Soren and Duke Duke at least have something to hold on to, a target they might try to rescue or, at least, have to consider. This leaves room for the situation to be turned around, preventing the two dukes and your advisors from losing all hope and opting for a fight to the death.

“Especially if you were to die at my hands right after surrendering. They would only assume that the Atlas Group, or rather, Her Highness the Princess, intends to annihilate all opposition. At that point, what other choice would they have but to fight to the bitter end?”

Norton II was silent for a moment, a glimmer of understanding in his eyes. “So, you plan to use me to force their surrender?”

“That is a matter for Her Highness the Princess and her advisors to consider. It has nothing to do with me.”

Amber finally turned his head to look at Norton II, a merchant’s smile gracing his lips.

“I need to be clear about one thing, Your Grace. You are now a prisoner of the Atlas Group. According to the ancient traditions of internal disputes among the Star Dragon Empire’s nobility, prisoners with noble titles require a ransom for their release. Especially a big shot like you.”

Norton II was stunned, then began to laugh under his breath as if he had heard something utterly absurd. His laughter was filled with self-mockery. “A ransom? So you’re waiting for the highest bidder. Mr. Amber, who do you plan to sell me to?”

“Whoever offers the right price, of course. Isn’t that obvious?” Amber spread his hands, an indifferent look on his face.

“It could be your two loyal advisors, provided they can still scrape together a ransom.

“Of course, it could also be the two dukes in orbit opposite us, if they feel you, the Regent Prince, are worth the price.

“And naturally, even Princess Agnes… if she is willing to pay a ‘reasonable’ fee to take you away for a public execution to make an example of someone, or simply to vent her anger, that too is negotiable.”

Hearing Amber’s blatant words, valuing him, the Regent Prince of the Empire, like a piece of merchandise, the smile on Norton II’s face widened. Shaking his head, he cursed in a tone that was both a reprimand and a sigh, “Amber, you bastard… Hahahaha. You truly are a businessman through and through!”

Amber neither confirmed nor denied the assessment, merely gazing back at him, his eyes as calm as still water.

Silence once again descended upon the cabin, with only the low hum of the moving vehicle echoing in the air.

In orbit over Saint-Saulnier, the opposing fleets remained on high alert. However, the forward fleets were constantly closing the distance and performing tactical maneuvers, indicating that a new round of probing had begun between the two sides.

It was at this moment that the silence was shattered when several warships at the forefront of Princess Agnes’s fleet fired flares signaling ‘ceasefire for negotiations’ and announced on the public channel: ‘The Regent Prince is under our control.’

Inside the core command room of the Radiant Fortress, the color drained from the faces of Duke Soren and Duke Duke upon seeing the message and the accompanying images and video evidence. Their eyes widened in disbelief.

They could hardly believe what was happening. The order for their orbital paratroopers to assemble and airdrop had just been issued. Their elite paratroopers hadn’t even stepped into their Airdrop pods, and the battle on the ground was already over?

The Regent Prince, Norton II, had been captured? Just like that? And by the Atlas Group?

In that instant, their assessment of the Atlas Group’s power was forcibly elevated to an unprecedented level. They had to admit that they had previously underestimated the strength of both Atlas and Amber.

In contrast to the two dukes’ horror, Astral and Perseus, the Regent Prince’s two most trusted advisors, who were now standing beside them in the core command room after having their house arrest lifted, felt the tension in their bodies instantly release. The hearts that had been in their throats finally settled.

Perseus even let out an almost imperceptible sigh of relief. Compared to falling into the hands of Princess Agnes, who considered the Regent Prince a thorn in her side, being captured by Amber of the Atlas Group actually gave them a strange sense of… security.

At the very least, Perseus knew from his previous dealings with the Atlas Group that although Amber’s methods were unpredictable and his true intentions were difficult to fathom, in certain respects, he was an out-and-out businessman.

The Regent Prince would surely be safe in his hands, because that man would definitely try to use him to gain more benefits.

After a brief silence, the two dukes turned to look at Norton II’s advisors. The four men exchanged a look and reached a silent consensus—negotiate.

“We are both honorable dukes of the Empire, and you two are paragons of the imperial nobility. We are all cornerstones of the Empire! How can we be intimidated by a little slip of a girl like Agnes!”

“Right! We need to keep our spirits up during the negotiations! Don’t lose face!”

Duke Soren and Duke Duke psyched each other up. Perseus and Astral exchanged a look, their expressions becoming extremely complicated.

The aerospace shuttle launched from the Airdropped Fortress flew smoothly through the atmosphere, its engines emitting a low hum. Amber sat in a comfortable seat. Beside him was Norton II, who, freed from Frederico’s psychic intrusion, still looked pale, but the clarity had returned to his eyes.

When Lilith relayed the news that the ‘big shots’ in orbit had reached an agreement to negotiate, a knowing smile curved Amber’s lips.

He turned to the former Regent Prince beside him. “You see, Your Grace? What did I tell you? Without Frederico propping them up, those two imperial dukes, Soren and Duke, are more afraid of death—or rather, of seeing their ‘jars and pots’ smashed—than anyone. Just give them a way out, and they’ll take it faster than anyone.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Norton II merely sighed and closed his eyes wearily, offering no reply. After all that had happened, he was utterly exhausted.

Soon after, the aerospace shuttle brought Amber and Norton II directly to the Regalia Fortress, where the others were waiting. A negotiation that would decide the future of the entire Star Dragon Empire began in one of the fortress’s conference rooms.

The hard metal walls reflected the cold light cast from the ceiling lamps. In the center of the room, a holographic projection device ran steadily, its faint blue light outlining the slightly ethereal figures of Duke Soren, Duke Duke, Astral, and Perseus.

Princess Agnes sat at the head of the table, her expression grave and full of authority. Natalia, Duke Hastings, and Duke Artesia—the Princess Faction’s ‘three great pillars’—stood by her side.

Amber casually found a seat near the edge and sat down with Isabelle. As the de facto controllers of the Regalia Fortress, the two of them looked like detached onlookers.

Agnes wasted no time. Her gaze swept across the four holographic figures, her voice icy and devoid of any warmth.

She opened with her trump card.

“Norton II, Regent Prince of the Empire, conspired with Duke Soren, Duke Duke, and Archbishop Jules of the State Religion in an attempt at rebellion! The evidence is conclusive! According to imperial law… the sentence for this crime is death.”

Her Highness the Princess’s opening statement was explosive, and it successfully froze the air in the conference room.

“However,” Princess Agnes’s tone suddenly shifted, now tinged with a sort of pity, “I am about to ascend the throne and inherit this great responsibility, and I do not wish for further bloodshed. Therefore, I can spare you the death penalty, but your titles and noble status must be stripped! You will be reduced to commoners! All fiefs and properties will be confiscated by the Imperial Royal Family.”

What kind of negotiation was this? This was a one-sided trial and humiliation!

That was the first thought that flashed through the minds of the four men participating in the talks.

Duke Soren was so furious his beard trembled. His virtual projection slammed a hand on the table before him as he roared, “Agnes! You go too far! This isn’t a negotiation! You want to wipe us out completely! If that’s the case, we would rather fight to the death than meekly accept our execution!”

“Well said!”

Hearing Duke Soren’s retort, Duke Duke silently clenched his fist, a hint of admiration in his heart.

Then, his face ashen, he also spoke. “If Her Highness the Princess has no sincerity, then there is nothing to discuss! We are not to be trifled with, and we are not incapable of dragging you down with us!”

The atmosphere in the room instantly became one of swords drawn and bows bent. The smell of gunpowder filled the air, as if both sides were about to tear off all pretense and reignite the fires of war.

Amber watched it all unfold calmly, even observing the micro-expressions on everyone’s faces with great interest.

Isabelle’s confused voice sounded in his ear via their private channel. “Amber, why is Her Highness being so aggressive? Isn’t this just forcing them into a desperate situation? Does she not intend to negotiate in good faith?”

“No, of course Her Highness wants to negotiate in good faith. This is just one of her strategies, Isabelle.”

Amber patiently explained to her, “In negotiation psychology, this is called the ‘door-in-the-face technique’. You start by making an extreme demand that the other party will absolutely reject, provoking strong resistance and anger. That way, when you later propose a relatively ‘milder’ condition that is still, in fact, advantageous to us, the other party is more likely to accept it. They might even feel like it’s a ‘victory’ they’ve fought for.”

“So her real terms aren’t these, are they?”

“Exactly. Just you wait and see, she’s about to present them. Though she might not be the one to say it. She’ll let someone else play their part.”

Amber’s assessment of Agnes’s side was not wrong. Just as the standoff reached a near-frozen point, Duke Hastings, who had been silent until now, stepped forward.

His face held the perfect expression of solemnity and concern as he spoke earnestly, “Your Highness, and my lords, please calm your anger! We are all pillars of the Empire. This kind of infighting will only grieve those who are dear to us and gladden our foes!”

Hearing this, the corner of Amber’s eye couldn’t help but twitch. By the old man’s logic, it sounded like he, Amber, was the ‘foe’.

After speaking, Duke Hastings first looked at Duke Soren and the others, then turned to Agnes and bowed slightly to offer his counsel. “Your Highness, the Empire has suffered grievous losses in this conflict. It is truly not a time for more strife. The most urgent matter now is to stabilize the situation and restore order! Moreover, a state cannot go a single day without a ruler. Since the old king is dead, the pressing task is to enthrone a new king and restore the court!”

“This is ‘The Birth of an Actor’ right here,” Amber thought with a silent laugh, unable to resist the complaint. It was a waste for this duke not to be in acting.

Duke Hastings paused, seemingly gauging Agnes’s reaction, before continuing in the posture of a ‘forthright minister’.

“Your Highness, you are about to ascend the throne and inherit the great lineage. It is only right that you display magnanimity. And since ancient times, the ascension of a new monarch is often accompanied by a general amnesty.

“If Duke Soren, Duke Duke, as well as Astral and Perseus, are willing to lay down their arms, swear allegiance to Your Highness, and support your ascension, perhaps an exception can be made, and they can be dealt with leniently!

“Allowing these senior ministers of the Empire to retain their grace will also serve to comfort the people and stabilize the Empire in these turbulent times.”

Duke Hastings’s words were like a timely rain, instantly easing the incredibly tense atmosphere in the conference room.

Although Duke Soren and Duke Duke still looked grim, the resolute look in their eyes had faded somewhat, and the expressions on Perseus and Astral’s faces also relaxed.

Clearly, the ‘conditions’ proposed by Duke Hastings were within the realm of consideration, especially compared to Agnes’s initial ‘verdict’, which had been akin to ‘death sentence, to be carried out immediately’.

The stalemate in the negotiations seemed to show a glimmer of a breakthrough.

It was at this moment, however, that Amber, sitting off to the side, belatedly realized a problem.

Neither side in this negotiation had proposed bringing the Regent Prince in to participate. In fact, up to this point, he hadn’t even been mentioned, as if everything that had happened today had nothing to do with him.

A terrible thought popped into Amber’s head. He discovered that he had still underestimated Princess Agnes and these ‘senior ministers of the Empire’.

“I’m screwed. Don’t tell me I’m going to be stuck with him?!”

Chapter 761: Dividing the Spoils

In the conference room of Regalia Fortress, warm white ceiling lights illuminated the two opposing sides. The blue holographic projections and the real people were clearly distinct.

After realizing this ‘big deal’ might end up stuck in his hands, Amber finally couldn’t resist joining the conversation. He tried several times to steer the topic toward the ‘key figure’ he had brought back, but the group of shrewd individuals cleverly dodged it.

Whether it was Princess Agnes at the head of the table or Duke Soren, the Duke, and the others on the projection, their minds were clearly not on that matter. Their attention was highly focused on the ‘conviction,’ verbally sparring back and forth, desperately fighting for every inch of benefit.

“I don’t know how Your Highness has the nerve to say you ‘came with sincerity’! Stripping us of our titles? Demoting us to commoners?! Your previous terms were meant to push us to our deaths!” Duke Soren’s projection practically lunged out of the screen, his voice filled with suppressed rage.

“According to Imperial law, the crime of treason is punishable by death. Not only have I spared you that fate, but I am also no longer stripping you of your titles. I am only asking you to reduce the size of your private armies. This is already an act of great mercy.”

Agnes’s voice betrayed no emotion, as steady as a frozen lake. It was only then that Amber truly sensed the aura of a ruler in her.

The Duke immediately followed up with a rebuttal: “Even so, isn’t Your Highness’s demand to reduce our private armies just a ‘soft knife’? If we were to actually disarm as you say, humph, I fear you would then move against us without restraint!”

Finding that he couldn’t get a word in edgewise for the time being, Amber leaned back in his chair and watched the scene before him like a spectator at a play.

It had to be said, the conditions Agnes proposed were indeed harsh. Never mind the initial proposal to strip them of their titles and nobility—a move tantamount to taking their very lifelines—even the current suggestion to reduce their armies was not something they could easily accept.

However, Amber was also well aware that the anger displayed by these two old foxes, Duke Soren and the Duke, was likely more of a ‘performance.’

The Emperor of the Empire had changed. Although they had had some ‘minor friction’ with Princess Agnes before, if they could now fully support the successor, they would instantly transform from rebels into meritorious subjects who aided the new monarch.

As long as their titles remained and their family foundations were intact, everything was negotiable. It was just that the act had to be convincing. Agreeing immediately would make them seem spineless. How could they bargain later?

The two sides argued heatedly, spittle flying, faces flushed as they fought for their respective interests. In that moment, the supposed pride, composure, and elegance of Imperial nobles were nowhere to be seen…

Amber even began to feel a little bored. He had originally hoped to sell this hot potato of a ‘trophy,’ Norton II, for a good price, but now it seemed none of them had any intention of taking him over.

He had figured it out. They had a tacit understanding to completely marginalize Norton II, lest there be one more person to share the spoils with.

A powerless former Regent Prince, a ‘rebel’ who had nearly flipped the table—who would be foolish enough to pay to ransom him back, only to create an obstacle in their future political landscape?

The pace of the negotiation surprised Amber. He had thought that a matter of such importance, concerning the Empire’s power structure, would surely involve at least ten days to half a month of wrangling.

To his surprise, the core issues were mostly settled within this single short meeting. The tense, swords-drawn atmosphere from before had eased, and a false sense of ‘harmony’ had even begun to emerge.

“One last point: the Empire’s central government will have the right to intervene in and supervise the political affairs of the ducal fiefs.”

Princess Agnes unhurriedly tossed out this key clause as the negotiations drew to a close.

Duke Soren and the Duke exchanged a quick glance, and after a moment’s hesitation, they slowly nodded.

Amber raised an eyebrow. He knew perfectly well why Princess Agnes had proposed this condition. Wasn’t this just creating an opening for the Atlas Group to intervene in the fiefs of the Imperial nobility in the future?

Agnes’s plan to kill two birds with one stone was perfectly executed. First, she stabilized the two military strongmen by pardoning their crimes in exchange for their loyalty. At the same time, she paved the way for bringing in an external force, Atlas, to further control the regions.

As time went on, the final framework of the agreement quickly took shape:

Duke Soren and the Duke would support Agnes’s ascension to the throne and publicly pledge their Loyalty to her.

Their ducal titles and most of their family assets would be preserved, but they must accept partial oversight from the Imperial central government over the affairs of their fiefs.

In exchange, Agnes would completely pardon them for the crime of ‘rebellion’.

It seemed to be a happy ending for everyone.

After the two dukes’ matters were settled, the topic naturally turned to Astral and Perseus.

The treatment of these two core advisors to the former Regent Prince was a world apart from that of the two dukes.

Stripped of all real power, retaining only an honorary title, they were to be sent back to their fiefs with their private armies drastically reduced. Nominally, they were being told to live out their years in retirement. This was tantamount to a death sentence for their political careers.

Perseus’s lips moved, as if he wanted to argue on behalf of himself and his old master.

But Astral, beside him, subtly pulled him back and gave a slight shake of his head.

Their faces showed nothing but unconcealable exhaustion and resignation. They put up a token struggle but ultimately accepted the arrangement grimly.

Watching this, Amber realized that Princess Agnes’s wariness of the Regent Prince’s faction was far greater than her wariness of other Imperial nobles. She showed no mercy to the Regent Prince’s two most trusted right-hand men, completely stripping them of any possibility of making a comeback.

After the ‘handling’ of the two Imperial dukes was decided, the atmosphere in the conference room became quite amicable. The two sides even began to quietly discuss holding the enthronement ceremony again as soon as possible.

It was as if the recent civil war that had swept through the Imperial Capital, causing rivers of blood to flow, was nothing more than a harmless little misunderstanding.

Seeing this, Amber felt he could wait no longer. He cleared his throat. His voice wasn’t loud, but it instantly shattered the false cordiality.

“Everyone, since you’ve more or less finished your discussion… what do you plan to do about the former Regent Prince, Norton II himself?”

As his words fell, the conference room fell silent. All eyes snapped to him, filled with various complex and unreadable emotions.

Duke Soren was the quickest to react, his face immediately plastered with an expression of immense loyalty:

“Mr. Amber, you are mistaken! The Star Dragon Empire has only one sun, and that is Her Highness Agnes, who is about to ascend the throne! Norton II committed sedition and rebellion, a crime so heinous that death is no atonement. Her Highness sparing his life is already an act of extreme magnanimity! As important ministers of the Empire, how could we have any further dealings with him?”

“Right, right. Important ministers, important ministers.”

Amber resisted the urge to start singing about their snow-white innocence and looked toward the Duke on the other side.

The latter, noticing his gaze, immediately chimed in, “Duke Soren is absolutely right! We shall follow Her Highness the Princess’s lead and draw a clear line between ourselves and Norton II.”

“Right, right. Follow her lead, follow her lead.”

Amber turned his gaze to Agnes at the head of the table.

The princess, soon to truly take the throne, had a faint, knowing smile on her face, as if she had long expected him to ask this question.

“Mr. Amber, I am merciful. I have decided to also spare Norton II from the death penalty, in consideration of our past relationship as monarch and subject. However, his position as Regent Prince must be rescinded, and he is to be barred from all Imperial political affairs for life.”

She paused, her gaze turning somewhat playful.

“That being the case, I see no reason to spend a fortune to ‘ransom’ him from you according to tradition, do I?”

“Right, right. Merciful, merciful.”

Amber felt a vein throb in his temple. He forced himself to maintain his composure and turned his last hope toward the two advisors who had been silent all along—the men Norton II had once relied on most.

“Your Grace Astral, and Your Grace Perseus… what about you? After working together for so many years, aren’t you going to help him out?”

Perseus immediately forced a smile that was uglier than a grimace, looking rather awkward.

“You must be joking, Mr. Amber. In our current situation, I’m afraid we can’t afford the price you’re expecting.”

He spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness.

Astral, on the other hand, appeared more ‘sincere’. He gave a slight bow and added in a calm tone:

“Perhaps, Mr. Amber, for His Grace the Regent Prince, staying away from the controversies of the Imperial Capital and remaining by your side might not be such a bad fate. After all he’s been through, His Grace must be thoroughly disheartened by now.”

The man who had been Norton II’s playmate since childhood paused, then added as if he were genuinely thinking of his master’s well-being, “And based on my understanding of His Grace, I’m certain this is what he would want as well.”

Amber was utterly speechless.

He looked at this group of people, these ‘victors’ who had just been gleefully dividing the Empire’s power. They had acted with such perfect, unspoken coordination, casually tossing Norton II, the biggest ‘problem’ of them all, to him like a piece of useless trash.

And they had even managed to come up with such a long list of excuses in such a short amount of time.

Amber subconsciously glanced down at his personal communications terminal. It was displaying a live feed of Norton II, who was being held in a separate room.

On the screen, the ambitious and ruthless character who had once thrown the Empire into turmoil was now sitting quietly in a chair.

He seemed to sense Amber’s gaze, suddenly looking up toward the monitoring probe and breaking into a benign smile.

And that smile instantly gave Amber the bitter taste of being outmaneuvered.

He let out a long sigh, stood up, and smoothed out non-existent wrinkles on his clothes. Under the various gazes of the crowd, he silently turned and left with Isabelle, without another word.

Chapter 762: A Second Enthronement and a Silver Dragon Prince?

The heavy alloy door of the conference room slid silently shut behind Amber and Isabelle, a barrier sealing off the false cordiality and scheming within.

Amber’s pace was steady, with Isabelle following quietly behind, the crisp clicks of her high heels echoing on the metal floor.

The cold light of the corridor shone down on them, elongating their shadows.

“Quite a show, wasn’t it, Isa?” Amber remarked with a sigh.

Isabelle nodded. “Yes. I never would have thought both sides would reach an agreement so quickly, and kick Norton II out of the picture immediately.”

A cold glint appeared in Amber’s eyes. He had to admit that the nobles were as cold-hearted as ever; they truly never changed.

Opportunists like Duke Soren and the Duke could still sit back and watch the fireworks, continuing to hold their ducal titles in the Empire. It was the greatest irony for all the soldiers who had died.

It was as if the upper echelons of the Empire were just playing a game of reshuffling power, completely indifferent to how many people had to die for it.

Amber had no desire to get involved in the mess of this decaying empire right now, but he had firmly committed this to memory. He mentally noted to increase the other service fees he would charge for future business with the Star Dragon Empire.

He, Amber, never did business at a loss, let alone clean up someone else’s mess for free.

As the negotiations concluded successfully, the tense standoff in orbit around Saint-Saulnier quietly eased.

However, though both sides’ massive fleets slowly retracted their menacing attack postures, their recon and fire-control units remained on alert, and their deflector shields were not yet fully deactivated—all silently attesting to the fragility of this peace.

The two Celestial Fortresses, like giant beasts of the starry sky, faced each other from a great distance, their massive silhouettes casting silent shadows against the backdrop of stars.

Just as Amber and Isabelle, guided by Lilith, returned to their private lounge in the Regalia Fortress to get some rest, Princess Agnes suddenly paid them a personal visit.

She had changed out of her previous magnificent formal gown and into a relatively simple and elegant casual outfit—heaven knows how Her Highness the Princess managed to bring a change of clothes during an emergency evacuation.

The attire made her look less severe and a little softer, but the authority and resolve deep in her red eyes and between her brows had not diminished in the slightest.

The Royal Guard Regiment Commander, Natalia, and Duke Hastings arrived with her, following like faithful shadows.

“Mr. Amber. Lord Isabelle.” Agnes greeted them.

Amber, however, merely leaned back lazily on the soft sofa, not even bothering to stand. He simply gave a casual lift of his chin, his gaze calm as he looked at her.

Isabelle, beside him, stood up and responded with a slight, elegant nod, maintaining proper etiquette.

“The fighting on the planet’s surface and in orbit has mostly subsided, and order is being restored in the Capital. This is all thanks to the Atlas Group’s tremendous assistance.” Agnes got straight to the point, forgoing any small talk, her tone laced with gratitude.

“No need for pleasantries, Your Highness the Princess.”

Amber cut through her diplomatic rhetoric, his tone flat.

“We have a contract, signed in black and white.”

He picked up a glass of amber-colored liquor from the table beside him, swirling it gently. As he watched the light refract hypnotically through the liquid, he added, “According to the terms of our contract, your side should now be making the first phase payment.”

As Amber finished speaking, the air itself seemed to freeze for a moment.

Agnes’s movements paused for a barely perceptible moment. She had clearly not expected Amber to be so blunt about demanding payment at a time like this.

Duke Hastings, standing beside her, immediately let out a soft cough, his face wreathed in a warm smile. “Mr. Amber, you see, the Empire has just been through such violent turmoil. With the new monarch about to be enthroned, the finances still need to be reassessed and handed over.”

“That’s a problem for you to solve. Besides, you’re changing an Emperor, not the entire financial team.”

Amber’s tone was still level, but it held an unmistakable air that brooked no refusal. “The Atlas Group has a rule: we do not accept credit. If your side insists on it, then there’s another saying I hope you’ll remember—Atlas always collects its debts.”

He turned his gaze to Agnes, his eyes sharpening. “If it weren’t for Your Highness’s status, your considerable sincerity, and the foundation we have for future cooperation, Atlas’s standard procedure would have required full payment before we deployed our forces.”

Amber’s words completely shut down whatever excuses Duke Hastings had prepared, and the old duke’s expression immediately turned sour.

Perhaps because she was already used to dealing with Amber, Agnes was far calmer than her old minister. She nodded, then rubbed the ring on her index finger a few times.

Soon, Isabelle’s own uncle, the Empire’s money-printing machine, the number one man at conjuring up money from thin air, Minister of Finance Jacques Cole, hurried into the room.

“Your Highness, Your Grace the Duke… Mr. Amber, Isa~”

Jacques Cole wore a perfectly calibrated smile as he greeted everyone in turn. When his gaze finally landed on Isabelle, it was visibly warmer with the affection of an elder.

“Lord Jacques, regarding the first payment for our cooperation with the Atlas Group, I’ll have to trouble your Ministry of Finance to process it immediately.” Agnes wasted no words, stating her request directly.

The smile on Jacques Cole’s face froze instantly. A troubled expression crossed his features as if he understood the situation. Then, bracing himself, he turned to Amber.

“Mr. Amber, you see… The Empire’s treasury is in a very tight spot at the moment. We’ve just been through a major war, and expenditures have been enormous. Could you perhaps…”

As he spoke, he glanced at Isabelle. Though he didn’t say it outright, the meaning in his eyes was clear: Little Isa, do you think you could whisper in Amber’s ear for your uncle and ask him to be a little flexible?

In response to his silent plea, however, Isabelle merely smiled, the meaning in her own eyes just as clear: Uncle, business is business.

Ignoring their back-and-forth, Amber shifted his gaze between Princess Agnes and Jacques Cole and continued, “Your Highness, Minister, let’s not waste time beating around the bush. Transfer the money now, or I think we can forget about all future cooperation.”

“Mr. Amber, we are all thinking of the Empire’s future, you see…”

“Money first, Minister. I seem to recall your handsome and resolute words back on the surface—‘The Ministry of Finance will cover the cost of rescuing the monarch!’ You did say that, didn’t you?”

Jacques Cole wanted to say more, but seeing Amber’s uncompromising expression, he could only let out a deep, helpless sigh.

“Fine, I’ll see to it. You really are…”

He then began contacting his subordinates via his personal terminal to arrange the urgent transfer of the enormous sum. The look on his face was so pained, it was as if he were carving off his own flesh.

Only then did Amber nod in satisfaction and take a sip of his drink.

Business was business. Even with your own brother, you had to settle accounts clearly, to say nothing of the fact that he himself had just suffered a hidden loss.

—

To stabilize the chaotic and turbulent situation within the Empire as quickly as possible, Princess Agnes and the others demonstrated astonishing drive and a hint of impatience.

They decided almost immediately to brook no further delay: the enthronement ceremony would be held again the very next day!

Since the Grand Palace district in the Capital, Saint-Saulnier—the very symbol of imperial power—had been almost completely razed to the ground during the earth-shattering battle between the Starry Sky Dragon and Amber, it was no longer a suitable venue for such a solemn ceremony.

Therefore, the location for this second enthronement ceremony was chosen to be the main conference hall of the Regalia Fortress, which had just changed hands and was now under the Atlas Group’s de facto control.

All rituals were to be simplified, and all red tape cut. There was only one core objective: to make Agnes Barbara Leon the new, undisputed, and legitimate ruler of the Star Dragon Empire in the fastest way possible.

The night before the enthronement ceremony.

Inside the Regalia Fortress, lights blazed brightly as droves of androids, working with information they had received about royal ceremonies, busily prepared the venue.

Of course, this service also came with an extra charge. In Amber’s words, he would not let the androids under his command work for others for free.

Agnes sought out Amber and Isabelle again, but this time, she dismissed all her attendants and guards, coming alone.

The door to the lounge closed behind her, shutting out the noise from outside.

“Mr. Amber, I would like to talk to you about the ownership of the Regalia Fortress.”

Agnes did not beat around the bush in the slightest. Her eyes met Amber’s as she cut directly to the unresolved core issue.

Hearing her words, Amber replied slowly and deliberately, “Your Highness the Princess, regarding the fortress’s ownership, I seem to recall we’ve already discussed this?”

“Our previous discussion reached no final conclusion,” Agnes’s voice was still calm, betraying little emotion. “But this fortress, no matter how you look at it, is one of the Star Dragon Empire’s most important strategic assets.”

“A strategic asset~ Well, that can be managed through friendly business cooperation.”

Amber began to stonewall, his face breaking into the shrewd smile characteristic of a merchant. “For example, we could sign a long-term agreement where the Atlas Group would be responsible for the fortress’s daily maintenance, upgrades, and combat readiness, ensuring it’s always in optimal condition. As for the fee, we could give the Empire a very favorable price…”

Amber’s unspoken message was crystal clear: Don’t expect me to give back what’s already in my pocket. If the Empire wants to use the fortress, that’s fine. Just pay up.

The two exchanged a few more meaningless arguments before Agnes raised her hand, decisively cutting off Amber’s business spiel.

“That’s enough, Mr. Amber. There’s no need for us to continue like this.”

Her voice was still cool, but it seemed to hold an unusual resolve. Her red eyes were now fixed on Amber, unblinking.

Deep within them flickered a complex light Amber had never seen in her before—a mix of extreme, cold calculation and a glint… that was almost a gambler’s dare.

“I have a proposal.”

Agnes’s voice wasn’t loud, but at that moment, it completely captured Amber’s attention.

“A proposal that can solve the issue of the Regalia Fortress’s ownership once and for all… and bring the cooperation between the Atlas Group and the Star Dragon Empire to an unprecedented, unbreakable level of closeness.”

Amber raised an eyebrow, a flicker of surprise in his eyes, but he said nothing, waiting for Agnes to continue.

He was rather curious to hear what kind of an earth-shattering plan this empress-to-be could possibly propose.

Agnes took a deep breath, as if mustering all her strength, and then said something astounding.

“I wish for you, Mr. Amber, to marry me after my enthronement.”

“Pfft—Cough! Cough!”

The sudden, shocking declaration made Amber choke on his own saliva. He coughed violently a few times, utter astonishment written all over his face.

Nearby, Isabelle’s eyes went wide, her delicate features a mask of disbelief as she instinctively looked at Amber.

A strange, dead silence fell over the lounge.

Agnes, however, completely ignored their reactions and continued, “After we are married, I will officially bestow upon you the supreme title of ‘Silver Dragon Prince’ of the Empire. In this way, you will be a formally recognized member of the Leon Royal Family. The issue of the Regalia Fortress’s ownership will naturally cease to exist—it will be both the Empire’s and yours. The interests of the Atlas Group and the Star Dragon Empire will also be permanently bound together through this most intimate of ties.”

After speaking, Agnes simply watched Amber in silence, appearing both calm and yet as if she were making a huge gamble with the Empire’s entire future at stake.

“Mr. Amber, what do you think of my proposal?”

Chapter 763: I Object to This Marriage

“Cough, cough, hack.”

The peace in the room was shattered by the sound of Amber violently choking on his own saliva.

Once he finally caught his breath, Amber stared at Agnes with wide eyes, his mind short-circuiting for a moment. He had never imagined Agnes would be so direct, especially in front of other people.

The once-relaxed atmosphere seemed to freeze solid in an instant, the temperature plummeting. Isabelle shot to her feet the very moment Agnes’s words fell.

The gentle smile that usually graced her face vanished without a trace, replaced by an icy expression mixed with shock and resolve. A layer of frost seemed to settle over her soft features.

“Your Highness, forgive my bluntness, but isn’t this proposal of yours far too rash at a time like this?”

Isabelle’s voice was still clear, but the faint tremor within it had been replaced by an unshakeable firmness. In that instant, she was like a sharp blade being unsheathed, its cutting edge revealed for the first time.

Agnes slowly turned around. Her red eyes, usually calm as still water, now held a trace of displeasure.

In her view, Isabelle was merely a member of the Ahrens family, ruled by the Leon Royal Family—a descendant of her vassal. She was a beautiful but inconsequential dependent clinging to Amber.

This blatant, almost defiant objection made her feel a certain sense of offense—the instinctive reaction of a superior whose authority had been challenged.

“Lord Isabelle.”

Agnes’s voice was even, yet it carried an invisible pressure, the natural majesty of someone long accustomed to a high position.

“Is your behavior not somewhat improper? This does not seem to be a matter you should be interfering in.”

“Improper?”

Isabelle met Agnes’s scrutinizing gaze without flinching. Her soft blue eyes, now radiating an incredible intensity, made her stand even taller.

“Your Highness, what you just proposed concerns not only Mr. Amber’s personal decision but also directly affects the future strategic direction and core interests of the Atlas Group! Such a momentous decision cannot be made so recklessly!”

Agnes’s eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. She seemed not to have expected this woman, who usually appeared so docile and proper, to be so unyielding. No longer hiding her displeasure, her tone sharpened.

“Oh? And what right do you have to stand here and dictate matters between Mr. Amber and myself?”

An invisible spiritual pressure, the unique “Dragon’s Might” of the Leon Royal Family, silently emanated from Agnes, spreading like ripples in water and pressing down on her opponent in an attempt to make her submit.

To Agnes’s surprise, however, Isabelle merely swayed slightly under this pressure—a force strong enough to shatter an ordinary person’s will—before standing even straighter.

Far from backing down, she straightened her spine, and an intensely powerful aura, completely different from her usual gentleness, radiated from her. It was a resilience and decisiveness forged through countless trials, and it seemed to implicitly rival the ‘Dragon’s Might’.

“Right? It seems Your Highness is not as informed as you think.”

A cold arc formed on Isabelle’s lips, her voice echoing clearly and resolutely through the room, every word resounding.

“I am one of the earliest founding members of the Atlas Group, a core figure who personally witnessed and participated in the group’s growth from nothing to what it is today! I am also the third-largest shareholder, controlling 12.3% of the group’s equity! Your Highness, think again: do I have the right to comment on a ‘marriage alliance’ that could affect the entire group’s future?”

The icy expression on Agnes’s face froze solid, her pupils contracting almost imperceptibly.

She suddenly realized that she had indeed overlooked—or rather, never truly taken seriously—the Isabelle who stood by Amber’s side.

In her established perception, this descendant of an Imperial noble family was more like an exquisite vase, a backdrop clinging to a powerful man. But now, this ‘vase’ was displaying a sharpness and confidence that completely exceeded her expectations.

The third-largest shareholder of the Atlas Group, 12.3% of its equity… this was not information to be taken lightly. It meant Isabelle held a pivotal position and a significant voice within the Atlas Group.

A subtle sense of crisis crept into Agnes’s heart. She realized that the women around Amber were, it seemed, not to be trifled with.

This Isabelle, nominally her subject, not only dared to oppose her proposal to her face but also possessed the power to sway the decisions of the Atlas Group.

After a brief moment of shock, Agnes quickly composed herself.

She took a deep breath, suppressed her annoyance, and a faint, indifferent smile reappeared on her face. To Amber, however, that smile seemed to contain more than a little calculation.

“I see. Lord Isabelle, you hide your talents well.”

Agnes’s tone was placid, as if her earlier loss of composure had never happened. She smiled at Isabelle and continued, “But even if you are Atlas’s third-largest shareholder, that is merely a commercial identity. Marriage… is ultimately a private matter. It seems you have no right to interfere in Mr. Amber’s personal choices, let alone his marriage, do you?”

The Imperial princess steered the conversation away from the group’s interests and toward personal feelings, attempting to undermine Isabelle’s position and frame the conflict as women fighting out of jealousy, not a strategic business confrontation.

Hearing this, Isabelle, far from being drawn in, took a step forward, closing the distance between herself and Agnes. Her eyes held an almost provocative glint.

“A private matter? Heh… Your Highness is right. In that case, as Mr. Amber’s official girlfriend, isn’t it even more natural for me to stand up and drive away the third party trying to come between us?”

“You!”

Even with her deep cunning, Agnes was incensed by Isabelle’s mercilessly direct, almost humiliating words.

In all her long life, no one had ever dared to speak to her so audaciously! She was the soon-to-be-crowned Empress of the Empire! This was a direct slap in the face!

But her powerful self-control allowed her to forcibly suppress the turmoil of her emotions. She even managed to maintain a cold smirk, though the chill in her eyes deepened.

“Merely a ‘girlfriend.’ Lord Isabelle, you must understand one thing: as long as your title isn’t official, anything is possible. If Mr. Amber and I were to marry first, then your so-called ‘girlfriend’ status will likely become a thing of the past.”

Agnes’s voice was filled with undisguised mockery, stabbing at Isabelle like an icicle. Her words were both a counterattack and a naked declaration and threat, implying that the legitimacy and stability of a royal marriage alliance far surpassed that of a mere ‘girlfriend’.

Faced with Agnes’s ridicule and underlying threat, Isabelle appeared remarkably calm, even confident.

She tilted her head slightly, seemingly unfazed by the Empress-to-be’s threat. A placid smile played on her lips, tinged with a hint of amusement, as if she were watching a clumsy performance.

“If Your Highness puts it that way, I’m quite looking forward to it. If you’re truly so confident, why not compete with me fairly? However…”

Isabelle changed the subject, her meaningful gaze sweeping lightly over Agnes. The latter caught a flicker of… mockery in her eyes.

“I don’t mind how many outstanding women are drawn to Amber; it only proves my good taste. But I hope Your Highness remembers one thing—there’s a principle of first come, first served. As a newcomer, there are certain positions you’d best not covet.”

Though Isabelle never uttered the words ‘main wife/empress’, her meaning was perfectly clear, and her claim of sovereignty was too strong to be mistaken.

The air in the meeting room seemed to ignite with the silent smoke of battle between these two women: one, a newly ascendant empress using the future of the Empire as her bargaining chip, applying relentless pressure; the other, a founding member of the group and Amber’s official girlfriend, who had long since devoted herself to him, using their deep foundation and emotions as her shield, refusing to yield an inch.

And Amber, caught in the middle, now found himself a complete bystander—or rather, a priceless ‘prize’. Although, he had to admit, he was rather enjoying this situation of being fought over.

He watched the scene unfold, stunned, especially by the assertive, sharp demeanor Isabelle was displaying. It was a complete departure from her usual gentle, quiet, and considerate image—as if she were a different person entirely.

This stark contrast was an immense surprise to Amber. Isabelle felt both unfamiliar and yet somehow familiar. He looked at her pretty face, flushed slightly with excitement, and at her unwavering eyes, which shone with a determined light. An image of another familiar figure不由自主地 surfaced in his mind…

Allenita.

Amber suddenly realized that after the previous ‘showdown’ between the two ‘good friends,’ their relationship hadn’t worsened. Instead, had they formed some sort of ‘offensive and defensive alliance’?

Moreover, the forceful temperament and choice of words Isabelle displayed today felt so familiar. He guessed that after they formed their alliance, Allenita must have been coaching Isabelle quite a bit.

But Amber knew he couldn’t just keep watching the show. The two sides would likely have to deal with each other in the future; they couldn’t just descend into this state of swords drawn and bows bent today.

Thinking this, he rubbed his brow, trying to sort out the jumble of thoughts in his head. He chose his words carefully and said, “Your Highness the Princess, isn’t this proposal a bit sudden? Marriage is no small matter, after all. Besides, there doesn’t seem to be any emotional foundation between us, does there?”

Hearing this, the corners of Agnes’s mouth curled upward into an amused arc. Her ruby-like eyes sparkled with a brilliant light—a confidence born from her very core, imbued with an unquestionable certainty and pride.

“Emotional foundation?” She chuckled lightly, with the characteristic poise and nobility of the Royal Family. “Mr. Amber, feelings can be cultivated over time. The saying ‘love grows over time’ isn’t just an empty phrase in the Empire.”

Chapter 764: Second Enthronement

“Alright, alright, so love grows over time, is that it?”

A host of indecent images flashed through Amber’s mind, but he felt that wasn’t what Agnes meant.

Meanwhile, the Imperial Princess slightly lifted her delicate chin, her eyes sweeping over Amber with great interest. Her gaze held a hint of pride and a touch of expectant confidence.

“Mr. Amber, I have a fair bit of confidence in my own charms~ Why don’t you spend a little more time getting to know me? Perhaps you’ll soon discover my good qualities, and when that time comes… I’m afraid you won’t be able to bear leaving me.”

Agnes’s words made Isabelle’s brows furrow even deeper, and she cursed inwardly.

“Tsk, that shameless vixen.”

And Amber, whose resistance had never been particularly high, couldn’t help but once again size up the Imperial Princess before him.

Her silvery-white hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders, setting off her exquisitely beautiful face. Her blood-red pupils, like the finest rubies, shone with a bewitching luster.

These two completely different colors blended together marvelously, creating a sense of ethereal beauty.

Not to mention Agnes’s graceful figure, which was somewhere between Allenita’s voluptuous maturity and Isabelle’s delicate curves. It was a perfectly balanced proportion and sexiness, and her every move exuded a heart-stopping charm.

And then there were the delicate draconic horns on her forehead, the most prominent symbol of the Leon Royal Family’s bloodline—and also excellent ‘handlebars’.

Honestly, Amber had to admit that from any angle, Her Highness the Princess possessed a charm sufficient to make most men fall for her—an almost fatal attraction.

In his previous life, he would have definitely hit on her without a second thought.

But now, he quickly forced himself to pull back his slightly dazed gaze, shook his head lightly, and adopted a solemn, business-like tone.

“Your Highness, thank you very much for your appreciation, but as I just said, this is no small matter. It’s not something I can decide on a whim. I need time to consider it carefully.”

Amber collected his thoughts before continuing, “Moreover, I no longer belong only to myself. Any decision I make could affect the entire future of the Atlas Group. This is absolutely not something that can be decided rashly; it requires extremely careful deliberation.”

This whole long-winded speech sounded very official and formal, but what Amber was actually trying to say was—Agnes’s dowry was a little too small.

After running the numbers, Amber realized Agnes was just planning to use herself to get Regalia Fortress back, while also tying the Empire and the Atlas Group firmly together. Though, her figure was indeed very nice.

But by this calculation, Amber felt that the Atlas Group was getting the short end of the stick. Though, those draconic horns of hers were also very exciting.

And she had just thrown the ‘burden’ of the Regent Prince at him. Though, a white-haired, red-eyed ‘dragon girl’ did perfectly match Amber’s XP.

Amber quickly weighed the ‘future of the group’ against his ‘personal XP.’ He looked at Agnes again, his tone now carrying a firmness that brooked no argument:

“Your Highness, your enthronement ceremony is tomorrow. This is a matter of utmost importance concerning the entire future of the Star Dragon Empire. I believe what you should be doing right now is concentrating all your energy on handling the enthronement, ensuring that nothing goes wrong. We absolutely cannot have any more mishaps at this critical juncture. This is the second time, after all…”

“As for the matter of our marriage…” he slowed his speech, trying to make his tone sound more sincere, “let’s wait until the situation in the Empire has completely stabilized and the dust has settled to discuss it further. What do you think?”

Agnes listened quietly until Amber was finished. The confidence and composure on her face did not waver in the slightest, but she didn’t press the issue.

She simply gave Amber a deep, thoughtful look. Though her gaze was complex and difficult to read, it still carried an easily discernible determination to get what she wanted.

Then, her gaze shifted to Isabelle, who had remained silent at his side.

The gazes of the two women, at odds over Amber, met briefly in midair. It was as if invisible sparks flew, filling the air with a subtle hostility and competitive spirit.

Agnes finally withdrew her gaze, resuming the dignified and majestic bearing of an Imperial Princess.

“In that case, we shall do as Mr. Amber says. It’s getting late, so I will take my leave. I hope that Mr. Amber and Lord Isabelle will be able to attend tomorrow’s enthronement ceremony on time.”

With that, she gave a slight nod, turned, and left the lounge without another word.

For this proud Imperial Princess, today’s negotiation had undoubtedly been unsuccessful. Not only had she failed to resolve the ownership of Regalia Fortress, but she had also unexpectedly clashed head-on with Isabelle.

She confirmed that this rival, whom she had not taken seriously before, was indeed formidable—even thorny. What made her even more vaguely annoyed was that her sixth sense told her there was probably more than one ‘rival’ like Isabelle.

As Agnes’s figure disappeared through the door, the room fell silent once more, leaving only Amber and Isabelle.

Isabelle, who had just been radiating a powerful aura as she went head-to-head with the Imperial Princess, now seemed to have suddenly shed all her armor, her entire person softening.

She walked over to Amber a little uneasily, her head slightly lowered. Her fair fingers fiddled with each other unconsciously, like a child who had done something wrong. Her voice carried a barely perceptible note of anxiety and unease:

“Amber… was I a little too impulsive just now?”

Seeing her acting like a completely different person, Amber couldn’t help but chuckle. The surprise and shock from the princess’s proposal mostly dissipated.

He reached out and gently pulled Isabelle into his arms. Feeling the softness of her body and her slight trembling, his heart filled with tenderness and affection.

“Not at all. You were more like a lioness protecting her mate~”

Amber said with a hint of a smile, “Seeing you with your ‘main wife’ aura on full display just now was quite a pleasant surprise. You were radiating sheer dominance~”

Isabelle’s cheeks instantly flushed a luscious crimson. She shyly buried her head in Amber’s warm chest, feeling his powerful heartbeat and embrace.

When feelings run deep, all words seem pale and powerless.

Without the need for words, their breaths mingled, body temperatures rose, and an amorous atmosphere filled the air.

They held each other tightly, passionately entwined in the quiet lounge, as if they wanted to merge into each other’s very bones and blood, never to be separated again.

An unknown amount of time passed—perhaps a few hours, perhaps longer.

Isabelle finally emerged from the bathroom in Amber’s room, her fair cheeks flushed with satisfaction. A hint of languor and allure danced in her eyes.

Casually straightening her slightly disheveled clothes, she walked to the bedside, planted a gentle kiss on the forehead of the already fast-asleep Amber, and then left the room with a satisfied smile.

As Isabelle was walking alone down an empty metal corridor, her steps suddenly halted.

The surroundings were deserted, with only cold metal walls and the low hum of running equipment.

“Lilith,” Isabelle spoke softly into the empty corridor. “I know you’ve been there all along, right?”

After a moment of silence, a voice like the whisper of a little incubus sounded directly through her cerebral implant.

“Hehe, Older Sister Isabelle, it seems you finally need my help after all~”

——

The next day.

The enthronement ceremony for the Star Dragon Empire’s new monarch began in a spacious hall within Regalia Fortress, which had been temporarily converted for the occasion.

There were no splendid, luxurious decorations, no endless red carpet symbolizing nobility, and certainly no thousands of nobles paying homage with a tsunami of cheers.

On the cold metal walls, banners representing the Leon Royal Family and the Star Dragon Empire were temporarily hung, looking rather solemn under the lights.

The number of people attending the viewing ceremony was also very limited. Aside from Duke Soren and the Duke, who had sworn fealty to Agnes, there were Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, who had chosen to firmly support her at the critical juncture, and a few other core ministers like the Imperial Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance. Also present were some of the fortress construction personnel, previously under house arrest in the residential sector, who had now regained their freedom.

However, at Agnes’s request and with another service fee reluctantly paid by Minister of Finance Jacques Cole, Atlas used the network it had previously deployed throughout the Empire to broadcast the enthronement ceremony live.

Agnes’s goal was simple: to let the other nobles and commoners within the Empire know at the earliest possible moment that the new monarch had been crowned, laying the groundwork for much of the work to follow.

The entire ceremony’s procedure was also compressed to the extreme, emphasizing efficiency and pragmatism.

Even the imperial crown, the symbol of the Empire’s supreme authority, was a replica rushed into production overnight in the fortress’s workshop—after all, the real one was still buried under the ruins of the Grand Palace and couldn’t be retrieved anytime soon.

Although this hastily made replica was identical to the original in materials and craftsmanship, and still exquisite and magnificent, it felt like it lacked a certain sense of historical weight.

But none of this ‘simplicity’ detracted from the solemnity and gravity of the ceremony.

When Princess Agnes—exquisitely beautiful with her silver hair and red eyes, dressed in a brand-new royal ceremonial gown—walked with firm, elegant steps toward the makeshift high platform to the sound of solemn music played by an android honor guard, all eyes were firmly fixed on her.

Forsaking traditional procedure, she did not allow anyone else to do it for her. Instead, she personally lifted the new imperial crown with great solemnity from the velvet cushion held carefully by the master of ceremonies.

Under the watchful eyes of all, Agnes Barbara Leon, with unquestionable determination, placed the crown upon her coiffed hair.

At that moment, the music played by the android honor guard suddenly swelled, and the anthem for the new monarch’s coronation reached its climax, echoing throughout the vast hall.

At the same time, in the space outside Regalia Fortress, a solemn and grand formation was assembled. With the fortress at its center were three other equally magnificent Artificial Celestial Fortresses—Radiant Fortress, Fortress of Sorrow, and Gospel Fortress—along with the vast surrounding fleets, which had originally belonged to different factions but were now reunited.

Immediately after, countless colorful flares lit up the dark expanse of space, like a grand, belated fireworks display celebrating the arrival of a new era.

Atop the high platform, the crowned Agnes officially became the first Empress Regnant in the history of the Star Dragon Empire.

Her gaze slowly swept over the ministers below, and her voice, amplified, carried clearly and forcefully to every corner of the hall:

“From this day forth, I shall govern with renewed vigor, eradicate corruption, and reshape the order of the Empire!”

Her voice carried an unquestionable authority, her silver hair shimmering under the lights, “I will lead the Star Dragon Empire out of this present darkness, reclaim our former glory, and make the Empire great again!”

Her speech was impassioned. Although upon closer inspection it consisted mostly of fine-sounding slogans that could apply anywhere, at this moment of anxiety and unease following great upheaval, it did ignite a flame of hope in the hearts of many present.

At least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

“For the Empire! For Her Majesty!”

The ministers below, regardless of their own private schemes, were savvy enough to bow in unison. A tsunami of loyal pledges echoed through the hall.

Amber stood at the edge of the crowd, toward the back, shoulder to shoulder with Isabelle, watching the scene unfold quietly like an outsider.

“‘Great again,’” Amber repeated in a low voice. “Sounds a bit familiar.”

“‘Familiar?’” Isabelle tilted her head, looking at Amber. She clearly didn’t get the reference.

With the new monarch’s accession, no matter how convoluted and bizarre the process had been, or how much scheming and bloodshed it involved, at least for this moment, the long-standing turmoil within the Empire had finally come to a temporary end, and things began to move in a relatively stable direction.

This was undoubtedly good news for Amber.

Because it meant that the vast and greedy commercial machine known as the Atlas Group could finally shed its disguise and, with legitimate justification, extend its tentacles deeper and wider into the ancient, decadent, yet opportunity-filled nation of the Star Dragon Empire.

“Let’s go.”

Amber withdrew his gaze and gently patted the back of Isabelle’s hand. “The ceremony is over. It’s time to talk business. For instance, there’s the matter of His Grace the Regent Prince, who’s still under our ‘house arrest.’ Ugh, that guy isn’t going to be easy to deal with.”

Chapter 765: You Know

Regalia Fortress, the temporary cell of the former Regent Prince, Norton II.

The room where Norton II was being held alone, though called his temporary cell, was in reality a standard-issue officer’s lounge inside Regalia Fortress.

It was simply furnished but fully equipped. The only things that hinted at it being a ‘cell’ were probably the two Immortal heavy infantry soldiers standing silently like statues by the door, and the fact that all external communications and network access within the room had been completely cut off.

When Amber walked into this ‘cell,’ Norton II was sitting relaxedly on a sofa by the window. The lighting simulation system in the residential area of Regalia Fortress cast ‘afternoon’ sunlight through the window pane, dappling his body.

It dispelled some of the former Regent Prince’s inherent gloom, instead highlighting a rare sense of leisure, as if he weren’t a prisoner, but on vacation at his own Manor.

He looked up and saw Amber enter with a grim face. Seeming to sense something, the corners of his mouth immediately curled into a slightly mocking smile.

“You don’t look too happy, Mr. Amber. Who upset you?”

Norton II spoke first, his tone excessively lighthearted, as if they were not prisoner and guard, but old friends who hadn’t seen each other in a while.

Amber walked over to the opposite side and sat down heavily on another sofa, leaning back with his arms crossed, his posture clearly guarded and impatient.

“The former Regent Prince, Your Grace, is looking rather radiant. It seems the food grown in Regalia Fortress’s hydroponic arrays is quite nourishing.”

Norton II chuckled lightly, unfazed by Amber’s slightly annoyed remark. Instead, he looked Amber up and down with great interest and said with a smile:

“What’s wrong? Have these old bones of mine done something to displease Mr. Amber again?”

“Hmph.”

Amber snorted heavily. Not one to beat around the bush, he said bluntly, “The problem isn’t so much with you—you’re a loser, after all. The problem is with those people outside. Your former Queen, Her Majesty, your two ducal allies—one of whom backstabbed you, no less—and your two ‘loyal’ former advisors. Every single one of them… Tsk, they’re really something else.”

Hearing this, Norton II was momentarily stunned, then, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world, he couldn’t help but burst into hearty laughter. His laugh was tinged with complete relief, and even more so with undisguised schadenfreude.

This was the first time Amber had seen such a genuine, unmasked smile on his face, as if emotions that had been suppressed for a long time had finally found an outlet.

“I never thought those fellows could manage to anger Mr. Amber. That’s rather unexpected. Mr. Amber, I’m very curious, what did they do?”

Norton II finally managed to stifle his laughter, a curious look on his face as he pressed Amber for details. This expression only made Amber feel more and more infuriated.

Amber shot him an irritated glare, his tone even more hostile, “They were swift and efficient, astonishingly so! In just a few words at the negotiating table, they washed their hands of you completely, as if you were some kind of plague god they were afraid to be associated with. And in the end, with perfect unspoken agreement, they tossed you, this hot potato, directly to me like a piece of trash!”

Norton II burst out laughing again, this time even louder, his body rocking back and forth. It was as if Amber’s complaint was the most amusing joke he had ever heard.

“Mr. Amber, this is a classic case of ‘the hunter becoming the hunted’! I never thought you’d have your day of getting thwarted, hahahaha!”

Norton II’s undisguised schadenfreude was enough to make Amber fume. His already sour expression now darkened completely, and his tone turned cold and hard.

“His Excellency seems quite pleased with himself. Aren’t you afraid that if I’m displeased, I might make you disappear from this world for good?”

Norton II shrugged. The smile on his face receded slightly, but there was no fear in his expression. Instead, he radiated a kind of detachment, as if he had seen through the ways of the world.

“In my current state, I’m just a worthless life. It’s not even certain if I’ll see tomorrow’s sun. Mr. Amber can do with me as he pleases. I’m sure Her Majesty, Empress Agnes, won’t come looking for trouble with Mr. Amber over this worthless life of mine.”

This attitude of having nothing left to lose from Norton II left the harsh words Amber had prepared stuck in his throat, catching him off guard.

He had expected the other man to continue playing political games, or at least try to bargain, but he never thought he would be so straightforward and just lie flat.

It was only then that Amber truly realized his act of ‘capturing’ Norton II alive had indeed brought back a huge problem—one that was too troublesome to kill and too troublesome to keep.

Norton II watched the ever-changing expression on Amber’s face with great interest, then suddenly changed the subject, asking with a probing tone:

“Mr. Amber, you seem to find my coasting-until-retirement attitude a bit of an eyesore. If that’s the case, how about you let me work for the Atlas Group? It would be a form of recycling, you could say~”

Amber was stunned, almost thinking he had misheard.

He looked up and stared intently at Norton II, his eyes filled with suspicion and wariness. “Your Excellency, that joke isn’t funny at all. I have no idea how you came up with such a suggestion. But I’m sorry, our Atlas Group is a humble temple; we can’t afford to house a great deity like you.”

Hearing Amber’s angry words, Norton II’s expression didn’t change. Instead, he smiled and shook his head, his tone surprisingly earnest, with no hint of joking.

“I’m not joking. Please rest assured, Mr. Amber. I don’t need a salary. As long as you can provide me with three meals a day and a place to stay, that will be enough~ Of course, if you could occasionally provide some cigars and good wine, that would be even better.”

“Oh? Cigars and good wine? Your Excellency certainly dares to dream big.”

Amber retorted without reservation, but he grew even more puzzled. He narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Norton II, trying to read something from the man’s wrinkled face.

“I say, Your Excellency, what kind of act is this? What benefit could there be for a man like you, once a commanding figure in the Star Dragon Empire, second only to one, to stoop to joining the Atlas Group?”

“You’re mistaken,”

Norton II shook his head and continued:

“Mr. Amber, you know, we started collaborating long ago. I was the one who facilitated the introduction of the first quantum entanglement communications network into the Star Dragon Empire.

And I’ve been paying attention to you for a long time. I know you’re an incredibly powerful man. I believe that if we cooperate, we can create great chemistry!

Sometimes, decisions are hard. After many days and nights of thought, I’ve decided to take my talents to the Atlas Group. I can’t wait to put on an Atlas Group employee uniform!

As for the Duke, Perseus, and Artorias, I wish them all the best in the Star Dragon Empire!”

This speech, which gave him a strong sense of déjà vu, momentarily left Amber at a loss for words. He opened his mouth but could only squeeze out a single sentence, “Your Excellency, you still haven’t said what’s in it for you.”

The smile on Norton II’s face gradually faded, replaced by a kind of tranquility, a clarity that seemed to come from having weathered countless storms.

“Benefits? For me personally, there might not be any practical benefits. I have no place left in The Empire. If I go back, I’ll be reviled by everyone. A miserable end is inevitable.

Rather than rotting away in obscurity in some corner, I’d rather live a different way, following you, Mr. Amber, to witness with my own eyes how you bring your grand blueprint to fruition, step by step.”

Norton II paused, his gaze growing deeper. “What I said to you in the underground base wasn’t entirely false flattery. Although it wasn’t groveling and sickening like Frederico’s, I genuinely want to witness… and even personally participate in the construction of the new order you described, to see what this world will ultimately become in your hands.”

Amber fell silent. He gazed at Norton II, his Psionics carefully reading the fluctuations in the other man’s emotions.

His intuition and psionic feedback both told him that this time, Norton II was actually not lying.

This once commanding and ambitious tyrant, after suffering a complete and utter defeat, seemed to have truly undergone some sort of mental transformation and had come to terms with many things.

This little old man, who had aged so much overnight, now only wanted to find a corner where he could belong, to live out the rest of his life under the banner of Atlas as a ‘witness’ or a ‘participant.’

Seeing the conflicted, hesitant look on Amber’s face, Norton II chuckled again and asked with a hint of provocation, “What, is Mr. Amber so afraid of a loser like me that you don’t even dare to let me join the Atlas Group and be an idler under your nose?”

Amber scoffed and retorted without courtesy, “Your Excellency should put away your cheap goading tactics. They don’t work on me.”

But Norton II acted as if he hadn’t heard, calmly and methodically laying out more tempting bargaining chips.

“If Mr. Amber is truly willing to take in this ‘useless’ person and give me the status of a ‘witness,’ I can turn over all my personal assets—and I mean all of them—to the Atlas Group.

My fiefs, mining areas, and colonies in The Empire can all be handed over to you, Mr. Amber, to manage. I won’t take a single cent of the future profits.

Besides, hasn’t Mr. Amber always wanted to implement your ‘Atlas model’ within the borders of The Empire?

My few core fiefs have excellent geographical locations, abundant resources, and a populace that is easy to control. They would be perfect as your first testing ground.

Regardless of success or failure, I will bear all the risks and costs. Mr. Amber, what do you think of my proposal?”

Norton II’s words were resonant and firm, each one striking Amber’s heart like a hammer.

His proposal undoubtedly offered a near-perfect solution to Amber’s current predicament. If nothing else, just obtaining an excellent ‘testing ground’ where he could act freely would establish a bridgehead for the Atlas Group to enter the Star Dragon Empire.

No matter how he looked at it, this deal was no loss for Amber. In fact, it could be called a massive gain.

Chapter 766: Senior Advisor for Star Dragon Empire Affairs

Amber rubbed his temples. He had to admit that the proposal Norton II had put forward was truly compelling.

His wealth, the fiefs Amber could use as he pleased—setting aside these worldly possessions for a moment, even Norton II himself was of extremely high value.

This former Regent Prince, who had navigated the Empire’s political landscape for years, possessed a deep understanding of the Star Dragon Empire’s intricate power games and the unspeakably dirty dealings among the nobles—an understanding far beyond what Atlas’s current intelligence network could compare to.

Even Lilith, when it came to fathoming the treacherous depths of the human heart and discerning the thoughts of those seasoned political veterans, likely couldn’t hold a candle to the former Regent Prince.

If Norton II could truly be made to work for the Atlas Group, it would undoubtedly save them a great deal of unnecessary trouble and probing as they operated within the somewhat murky “Blue Ocean” of the Star Dragon Empire.

As if sensing the subtle shift in Amber’s thoughts, Norton II, who had been lounging casually on the sofa, slowly sat up to appear more formal.

His face, which had aged prematurely due to the series of upheavals, showed little of a prisoner’s dejection. Instead, it wore a tranquility born from a worldly perspective, while a cunning, calculating glint flashed in the depths of his cloudy eyes.

“Mr. Amber, staring at the ceiling isn’t quite your style.”

Amber paused without looking down, merely letting out a noncommittal hum from his nose. “Mm.”

Norton II chuckled softly, the sound exceptionally clear in the quiet room. He then dropped his second “trump card” of the day.

“If I’m not mistaken, our newly enthroned Empress… she must be planning to approach you. Or perhaps she already has, in private?”

Amber finally lowered his head, his gaze falling upon Norton II with a scrutinizing air.

“Oh? Your Excellency, please continue.”

“Did Her Majesty propose marriage, promising to bestow upon you the supreme title of ‘Silver Dragon Prince’?” Norton II’s tone was utterly certain, as if he had been present at the time.

Amber raised an eyebrow, a flicker of surprise he couldn’t control flashing in his eyes. He eventually gave a slow nod. “Your Excellency does have some tricks up your sleeve. I must admit, you’re pretty much on the mark.”

“Heh heh.” The smile on Norton II’s face widened, even taking on a playful edge. “And you, Mr. Amber, you certainly didn’t agree immediately. Am I right?”

“How did you know?” This time, Amber was genuinely curious.

“Because you, Mr. Amber, are a smart man. In my eyes, you are a true player, one who can move freely, unconstrained by any side, and step outside the chessboard itself.”

Norton II leaned forward slightly. Even as Amber’s “loot,” he still exuded an aura of someone commanding the world.

“I believe you see things more clearly than anyone. At this stage, a marriage alliance is sending charcoal in a snowstorm for Agnes. It’s a lifeline to stabilize her imperial authority and win a powerful ally! For you and the Atlas Group, while the benefits are obvious, this is by no means the optimal time to maximize your interests!”

Norton II paused, his gaze toward Amber now filled with unconcealed admiration, as if he had found a kindred spirit. He then continued:

“A marriage alliance is one of the strongest bonds for solidifying a relationship, that much is true. But it shouldn’t happen now. For you, Mr. Amber, the best time is when the Atlas Group’s commercial network and influence have seeped into the very marrow of the Empire, like vines. When your will is enough to sway the Empire’s major decisions, when you have cleared all obstacles to your ultimate control.

“At that point, a union with the Empress will be the final piece of the puzzle in your coronation as the Empire’s uncrowned king. Not now, when you would be eagerly jumping into a ‘gentle trap’ someone has carefully prepared for you.”

Norton II’s gaze grew sharp, as if it could pierce through to a person’s soul. “Mr. Amber, forgive me for pulling rank as an elder and saying something tangential, but it’s like those old clichés in romance—‘A confession isn’t the bugle call to charge, but the horn that sounds victory.’ Your marriage alliance with the Empress follows the same principle!”

“Pfft—”

Amber was amused by Norton II’s analogy, which sounded a bit absurd at first but seemed to hold some truth upon reflection. The bit of frustration he’d been feeling dissipated, and he couldn’t help but poke fun at Norton.

“Your Excellency, I never expected you to have such an ‘incisive’ view on these matters. Truly… you can’t judge a book by its cover.”

Amber had to admit that every word Norton II had spoken had hit the nail on the head.

The old fox’s insight was viciously sharp, his judgment terrifyingly accurate.

Despite being completely cut off from the outside world, he had accurately deduced Agnes’s actions and intentions based purely on his years of experience and a few stray clues.

This level of insight was enough to make even Amber a little wary, but paradoxically, it also highlighted his value even more.

Since things had come to this, Amber couldn’t be bothered to drag it out any longer. Since this “hot potato” couldn’t be sold off anytime soon, he might as well grant his wish and squeeze every last drop of his remaining value to pave the way for the Atlas Group’s future.

“Alright, your analysis has indeed convinced me.”

Amber stood up, walked over to Norton II, and extended his right hand.

“Therefore, I’ve decided to accept your ‘job application’ and officially appoint you as the Atlas Group’s ‘Senior Advisor for Star Dragon Empire Affairs,’ effective immediately. The Atlas Group isn’t some sweatshop, so besides room and board, we’ll still pay you a regular salary.”

Hearing Amber’s decision, an almost imperceptible wave of relief washed over Norton II’s face. It was the sense of security one feels after drifting in a storm-tossed sea and finally grabbing hold of a piece of driftwood—even if that “driftwood” might prove to be even more dangerous.

He quickly stood up, smoothed the wrinkles on his clothes, and then very solemnly shook Amber’s outstretched hand. His posture became much more deferential, his voice tinged with an undisguisable excitement and anticipation.

“It is my honor. I look forward to working with you, Boss.”

“You adapt rather quickly, Your Excellency.”

“Hahahaha, it’s called adopting the right attitude!”

—

With the unresolved trouble of Norton II now settled, the internal storm within the Star Dragon Empire had finally subsided for the time being. Amber could at last free up his attention to contact Guterres and the others on the Federation front line.

A secure communication channel was quickly established. The holograms of Guterres, Randall, and Cleves—the “three great pillars” of the Atlas Group’s combat fleet—appeared one by one before Amber.

It had been several days, and all three of the group’s core commanders on the Federation front wore a veiled exhaustion on their faces, though their spirits seemed high.

Amber dispensed with pleasantries and cut straight to the chase, first informing the three that matters on the Star Dragon Empire side had been resolved for the most part.

He then briefly recounted the series of events that had transpired in the Star Dragon Empire’s capital over the past few days—including the encounter with a living Starry Sky Dragon, the old Emperor Frederick’s final plot and demise, Agnes’s ascension to the throne, and the capture of the former Regent Prince, Norton II.

As his narration concluded, a palpable silence fell on the other end of the communication.

Guterres’s brows were tightly knit, clearly processing the overwhelming amount of shocking information and immediately beginning to assess its impact on their overall strategy.

Cleves, on the other hand, wore an expression of disbelief, his mouth slightly agape, seemingly yet to recover from the shock of the words “Starry Sky Dragon.”

Although Amber had given them a heads-up during a previous strategy meeting, hearing the actual details of the battle and seeing the recorded combat footage still left him stunned.

As for Randall, the ever-flamboyant and unrestrained Fleet Commander, his eyes went wide. He slammed his hand on the console before him with a dull thud.

“Aaaah! A living Starry Sky Dragon! There’s actually a living one! The legendary perfect cosmic creature!”

Randall’s voice trembled with incredulity. There was little fear in it, but rather an extreme excitement and… a heartbroken regret.

“My heavens! I actually missed the chance to witness that legendary creature ravage the Imperial fleet! This is my greatest regret in life, aside from the elf models!”

“Wait… haven’t the elf models been achieved multiple times already?”

“Exactly, that’s why I said my greatest regret ‘aside from’ that.”

Seeing Randall beating his chest and stomping his feet, looking as if he wanted to warp over immediately to gaze upon the wreckage, Amber said irritably:

“Give it a rest, Randall. If you’d been there to ‘appreciate’ that thing’s demolition efficiency up close, you’d probably be contemplating your life in a medical bay right now. This Starry Sky Dragon isn’t some museum specimen. It dismantles fleets like they’re toys.”

Randall sheepishly rubbed his nose and said no more, but the regret and curiosity in his eyes were still thick enough to spill over.

Once the three had calmed down somewhat, Guterres began to report on the situation at the Federation front.

“Boss, the situation is basically under our control.”

Guterres’s voice was as steady as ever. “Under Franklin’s leadership, the Renaissance Alliance is progressing more smoothly than expected in all aspects. The ‘technical support’ and ‘equipment assistance’ we provided have given them an overwhelming advantage against the remnants of the Federation Navy and local armed forces. Their resistance is crumbling rapidly.”

The screen promptly switched to a real-time star map of the Federation, showing vast swaths of its territory already colored to represent the Renaissance Alliance, spreading rapidly like a virus.

“Franklin’s methods have changed drastically recently. He’s been integrating forces quickly and ruthlessly. Many wavering smaller factions have either been coaxed and tricked into his ranks or simply steamrolled. The size of the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet is snowballing,” Cleves added, his tone carrying a note of concern about Franklin’s style and efficiency. “Currently, the main fleet of the Renaissance Alliance, with our support, has broken through the Federation’s core defense perimeter and is advancing at high speed toward the Federation’s capital star system. They are expected to arrive soon.”

The implication of Cleves’s words was simple: the Federation’s civil war was clearly in its final countdown.

“One more thing, Boss,” Guterres took over. “According to our latest calculations, the super-high-mass ice crystals we launched toward the Federation’s capital star system during Operation Icebreaker are about to be ‘signed for’.”

Chapter 767: A Crack in the Diamond

The Federation, Carrot Star System, Renaissance Alliance controlled territory.

At the edge of the gravity well of Carrot V, the largest terrestrial colony planet in the system.

This regularly cleared region was the endpoint of the planet’s main civilian shipping lane. Typically, after civilian vessels reached this point under their own power, they could activate their warp engines for deep space travel.

Compared to military warships, which had better warp engines and more durable hulls capable of jumping directly from within a planet’s gravity or even from orbit, most civilian ships—with the exception of special vessels like large cargo ships and high-end custom cruisers—could only enter warp at the edge of the planet’s gravity well.

Even the large warp drive arrays, colloquially known as ‘stargates,’ which were used by ships without warp capability, were generally positioned at the edge of a planet’s gravity well.

At this moment, however, not a single ship could be seen in the shipping lane. Even the massive warp drive array in the distance was dormant.

Due to the strict wartime regulations imposed by the Renaissance Alliance within its control zone, many ships were forced to remain in their shipyards, unable to be used. Without authorization from the Renaissance Alliance, any vessel that rashly departed from port and encountered a patrol would receive only one warning. The second encounter would result in them being fired upon.

Though intended to ensure the star system’s security and stability during wartime, these harsh no-fly measures had, from certain perspectives, severely impacted the system’s normal operations. The most obvious consequence was a drastic reduction in the efficiency of passenger transport and logistics.

As a result, it wasn’t just the residents of the Renaissance Alliance’s controlled territory who were full of complaints; even some within the Alliance itself had reservations about the ‘no-fly order’.

Johnny Leiding, who had become a star throughout the Renaissance Alliance military under the name “Crimson Lightning,” was one of them.

“This shipping lane is completely dead, and the prices in the system are ridiculously high. If it weren’t for the regular cargo fleets from Atlas still coming in, I feel like more than half the factories would have shut down from a lack of spare critical components. Baron, Sir, don’t you think Command’s order is a bit too much?”

“How many times have I told you not to call me ‘Baron, Sir’.”

Hearing his friend’s voice over the contact communication channel, the corner of Manfred the “Red Baron’s” eye couldn’t help but twitch.

“What’s wrong with it? Doesn’t everyone call you that?”

“Yes, everyone calls me that, but not like you. Your tone sounds like some kind of scheming official!”

“Hahahaha!” Johnny Leiding roared with laughter before continuing a moment later, “You still haven’t answered my question, Baron, sir~”

“If you insist on asking me,” Manfred said, the detailed articles of the various orders flashing through his mind as his expression grew more serious, “I certainly agree that this ‘no-fly order’ is improper, especially in a system that is already completely under our control.”

“Right! I knew you’d think the same as me!”

In his 360-degree cockpit, an excited Johnny Leiding slapped his thigh, seemingly thrilled that his friend shared his opinion.

“That’s why I think something’s not right with today’s mission, us lying in ambush here to catch some ‘Federation spies’. Putting aside whether there are even any spies left in the system, even if there were… how would they get a ship with the no-fly order in effect? And then they’d be dumb enough to take this common shipping lane? On top of all that, their every move was supposedly discovered by the Alliance Control Zone Inspectorate Committee?”

Currently, Johnny Leiding’s HCP team was operating just as it had many times before with Manfred’s squad. Three HCPs, each carried by a Heavy Armored Gunship, lay in ambush at a position approximately fifteen thousand kilometers zenith from the coordinates of the former Federation-designated shipping lane endpoint.

They had arrived five hours ago. Twenty thousand kilometers behind them, within an uncleared asteroid debris field, a scout ship captured from the Federation Navy—which had transported them—lay hidden in silent running.

The Optical camouflage was active, the subcritical reactor was operating at its lowest power state, and the unit’s surface temperature had almost completely blended into the cosmic background. Only the cockpit, insulated by heat-resistant materials, remained at a normal temperature.

For a military warship, their detection units would have little trouble spotting these units, which only had optical camouflage and lacked a blackbody coating. But for a civilian vessel, even a modified armed merchant ship, this was not something they could easily do.

“Today’s mission is indeed a bit strange.”

Manfred spoke up. He had his own doubts as well, but unlike Johnny Leiding, he wasn’t one to voice them so directly.

“Right?!” Seeing his friend willing to engage, Johnny Leiding immediately continued, “I’m telling you, a while back, the Tyrfing team—you know, that ‘little genius’ who enlisted at the same time as us—was also pulled for a similar interception mission. Before he left, he was happily chatting my ear off about all sorts of things, but when he came back, he didn’t say a single word. It was like he was possessed!”

Manfred replied, “That’s not being possessed, that’s him following confidentiality regulations.”

“Think about it again, carefully.”

Hearing Johnny Leiding’s words, Manfred paused. An image of Tyrfing flashed through his mind. The zealot, who had been eager to lay down his life for the Renaissance Alliance since the day he enlisted, seemed to have stopped making any such declarations after returning from that mission…

Just as Manfred was about to say something more, an alert chimed in the cockpit. The unique sound indicated that the communication unit had received a burst-pulse neutrino communication—the action directive from the scout ship to their operational team.

Evidently, the scout ship hidden behind some asteroid had found the target.

“Received the order to move. Time to get to work!” Manfred immediately abandoned his conversation with Johnny Leiding and switched into combat mode in an instant. He sent a ‘prepare for action’ directive to the nearby squad members via blue-green laser communication.

Johnny Leiding also knew this wasn’t the time to keep chatting. As he tapped a few buttons below the multi-function display, the cockpit’s panoramic display activated. In a heartbeat, Johnny Leiding felt as if he had been transported from his spherical ‘iron coffin’ into the boundless expanse of space.

[Detection units activated. Commencing scan based on data from mothership.]

[Infrared sensor has detected a heat radiation signal. Signature comparison complete.]

[‘Aurora’-class Medium Cargo Ship]

A cold smirk appeared on Johnny Leiding’s face as he watched the information flash across his screen.

“Just as I thought, there’s something wrong. Manfred, look, what kind of spy brazenly flies a cargo ship on a common route during a no-fly order?”

“Johnny, I know what you’re thinking, but now is not the time to talk about this. Follow orders first. We’ll sort everything out after we stop it.” Manfred had, of course, also realized something was amiss, but for now, the thought of ‘obeying orders’ triumphed over his other ideas.

“Fine, fine, whatever you say, Baron, sir~”

“…”

“Boss, we are about to enter warp. The patrol fleet we encountered earlier definitely did not follow us.”

On the bridge of the Aurora-class medium cargo ship, the ‘Red Copper’, Debrouwer, a ‘titan of industry’ from the Carrot star system, slowly let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding as he heard the captain’s words and saw the warp entry point drawing ever closer. Half of the weight on his heart was lifted.

He gripped his wife’s hand tightly. A smile finally broke through the gloom that had clouded his face for some time.

“Yuli, once we rendezvous with the people from the Atlas Group, we won’t have to worry anymore.”

“I know, but if we just leave like this, will the Renaissance Alliance…” Debrouwer’s wife asked, still somewhat concerned.

“I have already communicated with the Renaissance Alliance’s temporary planetary administrator on Carrot. He did not prevent us from leaving, nor did he continue to obstruct our dealings with the Atlas Group. As I said, they are allies. As long as things are made clear, they won’t make things difficult for us over something like this.”

“I hope so. After all, there have been so many terrible rumors, and we still haven’t heard anything from the Simpson family.”

“It’s alright, Yuli. Don’t worry. Why don’t you go be with the children?”

Before Debrouwer could finish his sentence, a shrill alarm blared across the ‘Red Copper’s’ bridge. A crew member then yelled out in a trembling voice:

“Heat sources detected from the zenith! Three of them, accelerating and approaching!”

“Laser identification code match successful. They’re Renaissance Alliance HCP and combat craft! Count corrected to six!”

“They’re sending a signal on the public channel, ordering us to stop the ship and cut our energy circuits immediately.”

In that instant, Debrouwer experienced the feeling of falling from heaven to hell. He never imagined that something would go wrong at the very last moment, just as they were about to leave the system.

“Th-that’s impossible. They promised to let us go… why would they send people to intercept us?”

“Boss, what do we do now? Stop as they say, or make a break for it?”

The captain’s voice snapped Debrouwer back to his senses. He looked at the closing red blips on the radar screen, then at his terrified wife, and made his decision without a moment’s hesitation.

“Captain, continue accelerating! Prepare for a forced warp jump! We cannot let them catch us!”

“Yes, boss!”

A grim look flashed across the captain’s face. He immediately issued a series of commands. Amidst a faint tremor from deep within the hull, the ‘Red Copper’ began to accelerate further and started activating its warp engine.

“They’ve ignored our signal and are still accelerating. Looks like they’re planning to force a warp jump.”

Johnny Leiding watched the distant medium cargo ship’s actions with some surprise. After they had broadcast their signal on the public channel, the other vessel had accelerated as if running from the plague itself.

“Could they really be spies?”

“We’ll find out if they’re spies soon enough. Pay attention, I’m accelerating. Judge your own detachment timing!”

Manfred spoke calmly, simultaneously pushing the throttle all the way forward without hesitation. The Heavy Armored Gunship and its docked HCP erupted in a brilliant blue light under ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ mode, beginning to close in on the ‘Red Copper’ at an even greater speed.

In ‘Cooperative Propulsion’ mode, the acceleration of an HCP paired with a Heavy Armored Gunship was terrifying. Johnny Leiding and Manfred felt as if they were being pinned to their seats. The heavy hydraulic pressure suits they wore worked furiously to prevent them from blacking out under the extreme acceleration.

The Combat assistance AI quickly provided the closing rate and calculated the target’s approximate speed, thereby predicting the time until the ‘Red Copper’ could enter warp.

“It’s just a medium cargo ship, after all. The interception window is more than enough,” Johnny Leiding said, having adjusted to the acceleration. He monitored the rapidly shrinking distance between them, awaiting the moment to detach.

When HCPs and heavy combat craft were on a vessel-interception mission, they would usually cut in from the target’s anti-air defenses blind spot and deal with it at close range. But for ace pilots like Johnny Leiding, sniping the target’s power unit or internal warp engine from a distance was also an option.

However, this method placed high demands on the pilot’s personal skill, experience, and especially their familiarity with the structural layouts of various ships.

This was because, in most cases, the goal of an interception was to capture the target. If one was unfamiliar with a ship’s structure, a long-range shot could easily strike another part of the vessel by mistake. Hitting the fusion reactor would be rather comical.

This was especially true when facing civilian ships, which had minimal protection and mostly lacked deflector shields. A long-range charged particle beam attack was more than enough to punch a hole through their external armor.

Soon, as the distance between them was about to drop below ten thousand kilometers, the units of Johnny Leiding’s squad detached from the backs of their respective Heavy Armored Gunships with a series of mechanical clunks and hisses.

In that instant, Manfred immediately adjusted his gunship’s course, leading his own squad in an arc to outflank the target from another direction.

Even though he was facing a civilian vessel, the Red Baron had no intention of being careless, still proceeding with the operation as if attacking a warship.

Johnny Leiding, who maintained his original course, retrieved a long-range charged particle cannon from the weapon container on his back and deployed the auxiliary targeting array attached to the cannon’s body, which resembled a ‘pot lid’.

“Crimson One, commencing sniping run.”

As he made the announcement on the communication channel, a separate aiming window appeared on his panoramic display. After magnifying the view several times, he finally centered the ‘Red Copper’ in his crosshairs.

“Limiya, help me stabilize the unit.”

“Roger, darling~ Taking control of the unit’s attitude control system.”

After hearing the reply from his combat assistance AI, Johnny Leiding focused his attention on the long-range snipe. Although the medium cargo ship in the aiming window had its critical sections highlighted based on the onboard computer’s database, this was just a rough reference. To execute a truly high-precision shot, the pilot’s on-the-spot performance was essential.

The plasma thruster arrays on the back and calves of his blood-red ‘Aegis’ unit were temporarily shut down. The attitude control thrusters all over the unit were now flashing continuously under the control of his combat assistance AI, Limiya, keeping the unit in a relatively stable posture.

“Target locked. Switching to eye-tracking aim for fine-tuning.”

After the sniper-view window locked the image firmly onto the ‘Red Copper’s’ upper deck, Johnny Leiding quickly fine-tuned the crosshairs of his long-range charged particle cannon to a specific spot.

As the icon for the long-range charged particle cannon on the weapon control panel lit up, indicating ‘permission to fire’, Johnny Leiding took a deep breath and pressed the fire button without hesitation.

A purple beam of charged particles shot between his unit and the ‘Red Copper’ for two seconds. A moment later, a burst of fire erupted from the ‘Red Copper’s’ upper deck, followed by a massive cloud of white vapor that immediately extinguished the flames.

“Target hit! I took out their warp engine!”

“Roger. We’ll stop them,” Manfred’s calm voice echoed over the comms. Now that the target had lost its ability to escape via a forced warp jump, the interception mission was essentially eighty percent complete.

The three Heavy Armored Gunships carved three graceful arcs, performing an attack roll maneuver as they approached the ‘Red Copper’ from three directions simultaneously. Manfred and his team detonated a volley of plasma rockets in front of the ‘Red Copper’s’ bow.

The exploding blue plasma fireballs served as both a final warning and a means to force the medium cargo ship to decelerate and pitch down to evade.

Just like that, the ‘Red Copper’ was dead in the water.

Soon, three white flares were launched, and the main thruster array at the rear of the cargo ship went dark, followed by a surrender signal on the public channel.

Manfred led his teammates in flying a figure-eight pattern around the captured vessel.

Two HCPs from Johnny Leiding’s team leveled their heavy particle cannons, one at the bow and one at the stern, locking onto the cargo ship. He himself landed his unit on the deck near the bridge, his electromagnetic machine gun aimed squarely at it.

If the ship made any sudden moves, the HCP’s electromagnetic machine gun would tear the entire bridge to shreds in an instant.

After some time, the scout ship emerged from behind the asteroid debris and drew near, launching two assault pods full of marines to complete the boarding action.

Having injected an electronic virus through contact communication, Johnny Leiding’s combat assistance AI hacked into the cargo ship, allowing him to see the surveillance feed from the bridge.

The marines swiftly took control of the bridge in a matter of moments. At the same time, the field commander for the operation arrived on the bridge, escorted by two marines.

“Mr. Debrouwer, what’s the rush? Weren’t we supposed to be discussing the plan to open-source your industrial replicators with the planetary administrator?”

“Huh?”

“Leaving without so much as a word… Are you, perhaps, trying to escape back to the Federation that has already abandoned you?”

“No! I was going to the Atlas Group… This was all arranged with the planetary administrator. He already agreed.”

“Agreed? Who told you he agreed?”

“He said so himself…”

“But I received no such orders.” The field commander, who was called Duriel, shook his head. “I have every reason to suspect that this is merely an excuse, Mr. Debrouwer. You intended to use this opportunity to escape to the Federation. Hasn’t the Renaissance Alliance treated you well? Are you that eager to pack up your family and leave?”

Through their conversation, Johnny Leiding quickly understood the identity of the passengers on the cargo ship. They weren’t Federation spies as the mission briefing had stated, but a local entrepreneur from the Carrot star system.

Just as Johnny Leiding was pondering what was going on, an alarm began to sound simultaneously in his and Manfred’s cockpits, on the scout ship, and on the cargo ship they had just captured.

[Unauthorized spatial fluctuation detected]

[Predicted hyperspace exit countdown: 5…4…3…2…1…]

Then, with several flashes of white light, six warships appeared in the region of space 1500 kilometers away.

At this distance, Johnny Leiding could clearly see the Atlas Group logo on the broadsides of these warships through his unit’s optical sensors.

Johnny Leiding looked at the suddenly appeared Atlas fleet, somewhat puzzled. “One light cruiser, two destroyers, three frigates… That’s a rapid scout detachment. What are they doing here?”

“No idea. Suddenly, this whole thing feels a lot more complicated…”

Manfred shook his head. Just as he received instructions from the scout ship and was about to lead his squad closer to investigate, he saw the six warships suddenly execute an extremely rapid maneuver, adjusting their orientation to aim their bows directly at them.

At the same time, the electromagnetic launch catapults on these warships flashed with electricity, launching a considerable number of units in a very short time.

“Enemy units launched! HCP count: 10. Heavy Armored Gunship count: 6!”

Seeing the units immediately form up for battle, Johnny Leiding instantly felt that big trouble was brewing. Then he saw the message broadcast by the Atlas Group warships on the public channel.

“This is a detachment of the Atlas Group Combat Fleet, acting under group orders to escort the medium cargo ship ‘Red Copper’. Renaissance Alliance vessel ahead, please identify your unit and state why you are intercepting the cargo ship under our escort!”

Johnny Leiding and Manfred were stunned when they saw the message. They never imagined that this cargo ship was supposed to be rendezvousing with Atlas Group vessels.

And if the other party’s identity was not fake, then their mission today was even more absurd. They had inexplicably intercepted a ship being escorted by their staunchest of allies, and Johnny had even shot out its warp engine…

Yes, at least in the eyes of young men like Johnny Leiding and Manfred, who had fought side-by-side with the Atlas Group, the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group were ‘staunch allies’.

Before long, the scout ship verified the laser identification codes being broadcast by the suddenly appeared warships.

They were, in fact, vessels belonging to a detachment of the Atlas Group Combat Fleet.

Soon, a communication channel was established between the two sides, and Johnny Leiding and Manfred immediately recognized the Captain who appeared in the communication window.

He was one of the members of the instructor team who had trained them when they were with the Atlas Group. Back then, he was just an assistant, serving as a communications staff officer on a light cruiser. Now, he had been promoted to Captain.

And their old acquaintance spoke up on the communication channel, his tone somewhat grave.

“This… Commander Duriel, I hope you can provide a reasonable explanation for why you have forcibly intercepted a vessel under our escort.”

Chapter 768: Weren’t We Supposed to Be Allies for Life?

As the commander of this task force sent to rendezvous with Debrouwer, Delun was not in a good mood.

He had finally passed a series of rigorous assessments and been promoted from communications staff officer to the youngest light cruiser captain in the Atlas Group’s combat fleet. His superiors and colleagues all saw a bright future for him.

This time, he was even assigned a field mission: to go to the Carrot Star System, rendezvous with a local titan of industry, and escort him back to the Atlas Group headquarters.

But he never expected that after dropping out of warp, this would be the scene that greeted him.

The target vessel was being intercepted by a Renaissance Alliance combat scout ship. The very obvious damage on its upper deck also indicated that the ‘Red Copper’ had already been attacked.

Recalling the classified information his superiors had shared before his departure, Delun finally understood why they had said what they did.

So he immediately ordered the launch of the HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships, pressing forward in a cautionary posture. The task force’s six warships immediately aimed their firing axes, ready to open fire at any moment.

Meanwhile, the blood-red HCP and another approaching red combat craft in the distance were, at his signal, marked as ‘Purple High-Threat’ units. If a conflict truly broke out, they were to be the primary targets for concentrated fire.

Because Delun now recognized them as the two most outstanding students from the Renaissance Alliance who had previously trained at Atlas.

However, despite being prepared for battle, Delun still hoped to resolve the issue peacefully. After all, the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance were still allies.

“Unless absolutely necessary, do not fire on them first.” Those were his superior’s exact words before departure.

So, after the HCPs and combat craft had surrounded them and the enemy showed no intention of attacking, Delun quickly had the communications staff officer establish contact.

“Commander Duriel, I hope you can provide a reasonable explanation as to why you forcefully intercepted a vessel under our escort.”

“Major Delun, according to an investigation by our Renaissance Alliance’s Inspectorate Committee, we now suspect Mr. Debrouwer may be connected to Federation spies, so we wish to bring him back for questioning.”

Commander Duriel from the Renaissance Alliance was indeed a bit flustered upon seeing the Atlas ships, but he quickly composed himself, and his words were now very steady.

“As for using force to intercept… it was mainly because Mr. Debrouwer refused to stop for inspection after we issued a warning. Instead, he accelerated to escape. We were left with no choice but to fire to force him to stop.”

Hearing Duriel’s words, Delun’s brow furrowed immediately. He knew very well that Mr. Debrouwer was no Federation spy. Otherwise, the Atlas Group would have shared that information with the Renaissance Alliance long before they discovered it themselves.

After a moment of thought, Delun decided to try ‘courtesy before combat.’ For him, completing his superior’s mission was the top priority.

“The Atlas Group can vouch for Mr. Debrouwer. He is definitely not a Federation spy. This must be a misunderstanding. Please, Commander Duriel, let us take him with us.”

“Oh~ I’m afraid I can’t do that, Major Delun.”

Duriel shook his head, his tone sounding rather insufferable to Delun.

“While our two sides are allies, that doesn’t mean you can harbor a spy, nor does it mean that our Renaissance Alliance must blindly obey the Atlas Group. We are allies, not subordinates, are we not?”

“Well, well, well. To hear you talk, it’s as if we’re the ones oppressing you.”

Delun was so angry he laughed. As a mid-tier officer in the group, especially one in the fleet who often conducted joint operations with the Renaissance Alliance, he knew exactly how much aid the Atlas Group had provided them.

Never mind the direct deployment of troops to assist in combat; there were the interest-free loans, the discounted equipment contracts, the ultra-low-cost infrastructure projects, not to mention helping the Renaissance Alliance train their initial elite forces.

And in return, they were now met with distance and distrust.

In fact, Delun was not the only one who felt this way.

When the Renaissance Alliance had previously taken various actions contrary to the spirit of the alliance, many within the Atlas Group had already expressed feelings of being wronged and dissatisfied. To some of the more hot-headed employees, it looked as though they were raising a pack of ungrateful bastards.

But even so, the group’s aid to the Renaissance Alliance had never stopped. Delun’s superiors often had to dissuade and counsel them, telling them not to lose faith in their allies over these matters.

Thinking of this, Delun couldn’t help but take a deep breath to calm his agitated heart, trying his best to keep his tone peaceful.

“Commander Duriel, we’re all on the same side here. Your HCP pilot and combat craft pilot were even trainees I once supervised. Our two sides have such a close relationship.

“So I believe we can speak openly. I think you yourself know very well that this Mr. Debrouwer is no Federation spy. If you need some form of resolution, I will relay your request exactly as it is. I trust the group’s Intelligence Center will investigate the truth with all speed and synchronize their findings with you.

“Look, I have my own orders. Can you not make things difficult for me today?”

Hearing Delun’s words, Duriel’s expression remained unchanged as he replied icily, “Difficult? Then don’t do it at all.”

“You!”

“Officer Delun, Officer Duriel, please stop arguing over me!”

Debrouwer, who had been silent since being taken into custody, suddenly spoke up, interrupting their argument.

Seeing both men’s eyes turn to him, a look of resolve flashed across Debrouwer’s face. He cast a final glance at his wife beside him, took a deep breath, and spoke:

“Officer Duriel, I will go back with you to be investigated. Officer Delun, please inform the colleagues I was in contact with about what happened today. They will know what to do.”

Debrouwer then turned to Duriel, his expression becoming extremely stern.

“Officer Duriel, I am willing to cooperate with your investigation, but I have one condition. I want my family to be allowed to go to the Atlas Group.”

“Do you think you’re in any position to bargain?” Duriel said with contempt. In his eyes, Debrouwer was just making a futile struggle.

“Don’t you go too far! What do his wife and child have to do with your damn spy investigation!”

Delun could finally hold back no longer. He tossed so-called ‘diplomatic etiquette’ to the wind. He never imagined that the people of the Renaissance Alliance would become like this.

They had become both familiar and strange to him.

Strange because the way this ‘Officer Duriel’ conducted himself was completely different from the young people of the Renaissance Alliance he had dealt with before. It was hard to imagine they came from the same organization.

Familiar because his methods were an exact replica of the bureaucrats Delun had encountered in the Federation before he joined the Atlas Group.

On the other side, Duriel ignored Delun’s words. Based on his experience and the information his superiors had given him, the Atlas Group was still trying to maintain a relatively friendly relationship with the Renaissance Alliance, so in many cases, they would choose to back down.

“Who can say for sure? Perhaps these spies use the identities of women and children to evade detection.”

Duriel said nonchalantly, then waved his hand, about to order the marines to seize everyone.

But in the next second, a piercing alarm blared inside the cockpits of the ‘Red Copper’, the Renaissance Alliance’s combat scout ship, Johnny Leiding, and the others.

They had been locked on by fire-control radar!

A panicked Johnny Leiding instinctively brought his combination heavy shield up in front of him. He looked at the surrounding Atlas units that had them encircled. They were now aiming their weapons at them…

“You… If you’re not afraid of causing a diplomatic incident, then go ahead and fire!”

“You think I don’t fucking dare?!” Delun laughed in fury and roared, “Attack detachment, disable their HCP and combat craft! Marines, prepare for boarding action!”

“Wait… You wouldn’t… You… Don’t you know the consequences of this?!”

“Of course he dares, Commander Duriel.”

Johnny Leiding’s voice suddenly cut in over the comms channel, as he piloted his unit directly between the two sides’ ships.

“Everyone, please listen to me! Instructor Delun, it’s me, Johnny! Please, hold your fire! We’ll hand over Debrouwer’s family to you! I’m sure this is all a misunderstanding. There’s no need for us to come to blows!”

“What gives you the right to make that decision?!” Duriel said, furious and flustered. He was naturally extremely displeased that someone had suddenly usurped his command.

“Shut up, you useless piece of trash who doesn’t know anything!”

Johnny Leiding bellowed. As an elite pilot who had already shot down hundreds of enemy HCPs in battle, his aura immediately intimidated Duriel into submission.

“Boarding team, bring Mr. Debrouwer and Duriel back. This operation is over.”

The marine team that had boarded the cargo ship immediately carried out Johnny Leiding’s order without a second thought.

The reasons were, besides Johnny Leiding’s already considerable prestige among the Renaissance Alliance’s combat forces, more importantly, that these rank-and-file soldiers had no desire to die alongside that madman of an officer.

Moreover, in the eyes of most rank-and-file soldiers, the alliance between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group was as solid as a diamond, so a conflict like this should never have happened.

Besides, wasn’t the objective of this mission just to bring Debrouwer back? Now that it was accomplished, why bother with his family?

So, it didn’t take long for the boarding team to return to their assault pod with Debrouwer and a furiously cursing, struggling Duriel. They then slowly detached from the ‘Red Copper’ and began their return to their mother ship.

Meanwhile, Johnny Leiding piloted his unit alone towards the Atlas ships.

Soon, a point-to-point private communication channel was established.

“Instructor Delun, I…”

“It’s fine. Don’t say anything,” A smile finally appeared on Delun’s face. “I’m glad you haven’t changed. But by doing this, aren’t you afraid that guy will come after you when you get back?”

“Hmph~ Him?” Johnny Leiding smiled and shook his head. “I’m not afraid of him. And it won’t be that easy for him to come after me.”

“Oh? Feeling confident now, are we?”

“Hehe.”

Seeing the unchanging smile on Johnny Leiding’s face on the communication screen, Delun smiled back, then his expression turned serious.

“The Renaissance Alliance… how did it become like this? Is today’s situation an exception, or is it common?”

“Sigh, I wish it were an exception, but there are indeed many problems within the Alliance right now. And things like what happened today… this isn’t the first time.”

Johnny Leiding said with some dejection, then piloted his unit toward the Renaissance Alliance’s scout ship.

“I’m leaving now, Instructor! Hope to see you again next time~ Oh, right, please be sure to report everything Mr. Debrouwer said, and everything that happened today, in full.”

“Don’t worry, I will. Atlas won’t just swallow a loss like this~” Delun smiled, then added a word of caution, “You and Manfred, too. Be careful. I can see you two are different from the others. Stay true to yourselves, and don’t let your environment change you.”

“I understand, Instructor!”

Johnny Leiding gave a salute and then cut the communication.

Soon, the Renaissance Alliance’s scout ship departed. After Delun dispatched a shuttle to pick up Debrouwer’s family and the other crew members from the cargo ship, he also commanded his ships to prepare for departure.

The urgent briefing he had just drafted had already been sent ahead.

After settling Debrouwer’s family and assuring them that the Atlas Group would not easily abandon its business partners, Delun returned to the bridge.

Seeing him sitting in the captain’s chair, resting his head on his hand with a worried look, his adjutant couldn’t help but float over to his side.

“Major, letting them go just like that… weren’t we being too lenient? Besides, didn’t we have a mission to complete?”

Delun shrugged. “Of course, I know we have a mission. But since Johnny went out of his way to give us an out, we should take it. After all, we can’t afford a complete falling-out with the Renaissance Alliance right now. Have you forgotten what Colonel Randall said at the meeting? Endure it for the sake of the bigger picture. We’ll have a chance to pay them back later.

“Besides, before we departed, the Fleet Commander sought me out specifically. He said that we should try our best not to get into a direct conflict with them, and that if it came to it, taking a step back wasn’t out of the question. This shows that they clearly anticipated situations like this.”

“What about Mr. Debrouwer? Are we really just letting them take him back like that?”

“My guess is the higher-ups will find another way to get him back. Besides, my intuition is pretty sharp. I’m sure the Renaissance Alliance won’t be able to get anything out of him.”

说到这里, 德伦也忍不住叹了口气, 并再次发出了感叹.

“The Renaissance Alliance… how did it come to this? With this kind of attitude, how are we supposed to be allies for life?”

Chapter 769: Free Custody

“Boss, that’s the gist of the situation. Major Delun is currently escorting Mr. Debrouwer’s family back to Loubion V, and the Financial Operations Center and Public Relations Center are in communication with the Renaissance Alliance.”

After the incident in the Carrot Star System, Guterres and the others contacted Amber and Isabelle immediately. Amber’s expression grew grim after hearing their report.

“This isn’t the first time, is it? Deliberately detaining entrepreneurs and plutocrats who are preparing to cooperate with us or sell their assets to us… it seems they’re worried about Atlas controlling their economic lifeline.”

Guterres nodded and couldn’t help but smile wryly. “That’s likely the reason. I read in an internal group briefing that in regions where the early acquisitions went smoothly, the local populace is now at the point of ‘knowing only Atlas, not the Renaissance Alliance.’ So, I can actually understand why they’re so wary of us.”

“But in my opinion, Franklin and some of the higher-ups in the Renaissance Alliance are probably doing more than just ‘being wary of us.’” Randall, who spoke next, had a low voice tinged with an imperceptible worry. “Their recent actions have become increasingly thought-provoking.”

He didn’t state it outright, but the subtext was clear—the honeymoon period of their cooperation seemed to be ending. The seeds of suspicion sown earlier for various reasons had now taken root and sprouted.

“High-level communication channels are still open, and Franklin himself is maintaining a cooperative stance on the surface.”

Cleves took over, his expression just as grave. It was clear that the Renaissance Alliance’s recent actions had made all three of them sense the severity of the situation.

“But at the implementation level, resistance against us is becoming apparent, especially in non-military sectors. Our normal business activities with companies and physical industries in areas controlled by the Renaissance Alliance are starting to hit all sorts of soft obstacles—delayed approvals, cumbersome procedures. Although they are eventually resolved, the time and effort required far exceed the norm.”

Guterres nodded slightly, adding a more representative incident: “Just seven days ago, one of our engineering teams was preparing to enter a resource planet recently captured by the Renaissance Alliance to begin base construction as planned, but their entry application was denied by the garrison fleet in orbit.”

As Guterres spoke, a short video of the incident popped up on the virtual screen in front of Amber.

Atlas Group engineering vessels, in their distinctive yellow livery, were in a silent standoff in the planet’s orbit with several warships bearing the Renaissance Alliance’s emblem, their bow main cannons vaguely aimed in their direction. Even just watching the screen, Amber could feel the tension of that moment.

It also made him realize that while he had been in the Empire, the situation on the Federation front and with the Renaissance Alliance had changed drastically.

Meanwhile, Guterres continued, “It wasn’t until we contacted Franklin directly that he belatedly resolved the standoff. But even after the engineering team successfully landed, they were under constant, strict surveillance, leaving them completely caught flat-footed. Boss, this isn’t an isolated incident; it’s a microcosm of the current situation between us.”

At this point, Isabelle joined the discussion:

“The Intelligence Center has raised its threat assessment of the Renaissance Alliance twice in a row. It’s now at ‘high potential risk.’ This means that in the Intelligence Center’s analytical models, there’s a possibility they could tear up the agreement and stab us in the back at any moment. I’ve already sent out secret orders to all frontline unit commanders, telling them to discreetly raise their internal alert levels.”

Amber listened quietly, his fingertips unconsciously tapping on the armrest. The Renaissance Alliance’s strange movements were not entirely unexpected.

He had always known what kind of person Franklin was. He was indeed an “idealistic youth” with passion and principles, but he also possessed an ambition he had yet to reveal.

Previously, because the Renaissance Alliance was not yet powerful, he had carefully maintained his relationship with Atlas Group, afraid of losing this backer.

But now, as the Alliance has advanced triumphantly through Federation territory and grown in strength, it is naturally unwilling to remain beholden to others, even if that party had once helped them.

Moreover, the ice crystals from Atlas Group’s “Icebreaker” operation, which were set on a course for the Federation’s capital star system and have been gradually accelerating to sub-light speed, are about to arrive.

This ‘natural disaster,’ meticulously planned by Atlas Group, will certainly obliterate the Federation’s last resistance in the capital star system, but it will also inevitably make the Renaissance Alliance even more wary of Atlas’s power.

No one wants such a powerful neighbor, much less one that meddles in their internal affairs and has aggressively acquired numerous key enterprises.

This holds true even for an alliance once proclaimed to be ‘as pure and solid as a diamond.’ Once the external threat disappears, internal conflicts will come to the forefront.

“It seems I need to make a trip to the Federation front myself. Things in the Empire should be quiet for a while,” Amber said calmly. He looked at the others in the meeting and continued:

“Everyone, be prepared to respond to any emergencies. The fleet will maintain a moderate state of alert. The Intelligence Center will continue its efforts to divide the Renaissance Alliance from within; most of their grassroots personnel can be won over, especially the combat units trained by Atlas Group. Finally, if things reach a point of no return, I will activate the ‘Correction Protocol.’”

—

The perspective shifted back to the Star Dragon Empire. Agnes had just ascended the throne, and the entire Empire was waiting to be rebuilt from ruins—at least, the capital star system was.

Although Dukes Soren and Duke had temporarily submitted, and Hastings, Duke Artesia, and a group of high-ranking Imperial officials were providing their full support, the integration of the Empire and the consolidation of power would still take time.

In the short term, the Star Dragon Empire will also focus on maintaining internal stability. Therefore, they will need a powerful ‘external force’ like Atlas Group to stabilize the situation in many respects. In particular, the reconstruction of the capital, Saint-Saulnier, has already begun with Atlas Group’s engineering teams taking the lead.

The framework for cooperation between the two sides has already been established, with professional teams handling the specific implementation details. The ‘senior advisor,’ Norton II, has also provided considerable assistance in the process.

So, in Amber’s view, the situation in the Empire was, for the time being, within a controllable range.

But the Federation front was different. Franklin’s gradually revealed ambitions, the growing xenophobic sentiment within the Renaissance Alliance, and the upcoming battle for the Federation’s capital all filled the situation there with variables.

He had to be there in person to ensure Atlas Group’s interests were not harmed in the final distribution of the spoils of victory and, more importantly, to guard against Franklin’s potential betrayal—though, in Amber’s view, such an act would be tantamount to suicide.

After ending the communication with Guterres and the others, Amber rose and walked toward the area where Agnes was. She was in a temporarily converted reception room, where she handled her duties during working hours.

When Amber and Isabelle, guided by Natalia, saw the new monarch, she had already changed out of the elaborate ceremonial robes she wore to receive Imperial ministers. She was dressed in a relatively practical set of everyday royal attire, yet the aura of majesty in her expression had grown deeper.

“Huh? Amber, you’re leaving?”

Hearing Amber’s decision, a flicker of an almost imperceptible emotion crossed Agnes’s red eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Amber nodded, his tone more of an ‘announcement’ than a request.

“The situation on the Federation front has seen some new developments that require my personal attention. As for matters here in the Star Dragon Empire, I have already arranged for a corresponding team to handle them, including the capital’s reconstruction project, which will proceed as planned.” He paused, then continued, “The Atlas capital fleet will also withdraw in stages after regrouping the ground forces. As for the Airdropped Fortresses near the Grand Palace, they were always ‘disposable’ products. They can’t lift off again after landing, so I’ll leave them to Your Majesty to dispose of as you see fit.”

Agnes was silent for a moment, her gaze fixed on Amber as if trying to read something from his face.

“Then… what about the Regalia Fortress?”

This was Agnes’s greatest concern. The ownership of this behemoth, representing the pinnacle of the Empire’s technological achievements and currently suspended in orbit above the capital, had always been a thorn between them.

“The Regalia Fortress will depart with me,” Amber answered bluntly. “It still needs to return to A·Bawa·Ku for final construction completion and system debugging.”

“Huh? Can’t it stay here?” Agnes’s voice carried a hint of barely concealed panic. “Mr. Amber, you should understand that the Regalia Fortress’s presence has an irreplaceable symbolic meaning for stabilizing the morale of the Empire and consolidating my rule. To have it leave at this critical moment…”

“Your Majesty, regarding the ownership of this fortress… until we reach a final agreement, it will be under ‘free custody’ by Atlas Group.”

Amber interrupted her, his voice calm yet firm with an undeniable resolve.

“Of course, if Your Majesty has a way to make it stay, I won’t stand in your way~”

This was tantamount to an impossible challenge. Agnes knew full well that the fortress’s core systems were already completely under Atlas Group’s control. She couldn’t even keep people inside the fortress, let alone keep the fortress itself.

As the new monarch of the Empire, Agnes felt a profound sense of grievance and humiliation. She took a deep breath, suppressing the resentment and helplessness in her heart.

But then, she noticed something wasn’t right with her train of thought.

She suddenly realized she seemed to be slowly agreeing with Amber, understanding his concerns, and recognizing that their current relationship was far from the point where they could share such a vital strategic asset.

“Huh? What’s happening to me?”

Chapter 770: Sublight Strike

If Agnes hadn’t been particularly flustered before, the moment she realized her own thoughts had changed, she was truly panicked.

As the queen of the Star Dragon Empire, she couldn’t understand why she would suddenly start thinking in a way that benefited Amber and the Atlas Group.

Agnes’s first reaction was to wonder if Amber had used Psionics to influence her mind.

But she was no ordinary person. Her innate talent in ‘Dragon’s Might’ was among the most outstanding in the Leon Royal Family; it was impossible for her mind to be influenced without her knowledge.

She looked up at Amber, only to find him looking back at her with a puzzled expression.

“Is something wrong, Your Majesty? Do you have any other questions?”

“You… no, it’s nothing.”

Agnes stopped the question that had almost slipped out, shaking her head as the composure befitting an empress returned to her face.

“Very well, Mr. Amber, I have nothing more to say. As for the reason for the fortress’s departure, I will handle it myself. The Empire has just been through a war; claiming the fortress needs to return to a shipyard for a comprehensive overhaul and upgrade is perfectly reasonable.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Amber, though slightly puzzled by how quickly she had agreed, nodded in approval. The new empress’s political wisdom and reflexes were indeed sharp.

“In that case, I wish Her Majesty all the success in governing the Empire.”

Amber gave a slight nod, a gesture of farewell.

“I wish you a safe journey as well, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes returned the formulaic blessing, but a complex, inscrutable emotion seemed to flash through the depths of her ruby-like eyes.

After leaving the reception room, Amber wasted no time. Orders were quickly relayed, and the colossal Regalia Fortress began preparations for a long-distance warp.

Agnes and her entourage soon moved to the Gospel Fortress where Duke Hastings was stationed. For some time, it seemed Agnes and the high-ranking officials of the Empire would have to conduct their business from this fortress.

The next day, with all preparations complete, the Regalia Fortress began to move slowly toward an orbit away from the planet, its main engines humming with gradually increasing power.

Standing before the wide virtual viewport in the fortress’s core command room, Amber looked down at the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, which was slowly returning to life, and at the Atlas fleets in orbit, which were beginning to realign their formations for a phased withdrawal.

A moment later, Isabelle walked to his side and gently draped a warm coat over his shoulders.

“Amber, you’ve looked a little off since yesterday. Do you think something is going to go wrong with the Federation and the Renaissance Alliance?” Isabelle asked softly, her blue eyes reflecting both the starlight and her concern.

Amber sighed lightly and took Isabelle’s cool hand, feeling the delicate skin of her palm.

“There are always dangers, but everything is under control for now,” he said with a smile, trying to reassure her. “Besides, don’t forget, we’re the ones dealing the cards at this table.”

“A pretty dealer?” Isabelle tilted her head.

“Dealing them online.”

The massive Regalia Fortress slowly broke free from Saint-Saulnier’s gravitational pull. Like a waking leviathan of the starry sea, it began to turn. The destination for this long-distance warp was A·Bawa·Ku. According to Amber’s arrangements, the fortress would be temporarily moored near the asteroid fortress to undergo its final engineering phase.

Once all the work was completed, some of the Atlas Group’s personnel would transfer from the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress to this Artificial Celestial Fortress.

The turmoil in the Star Dragon Empire had come to a temporary close, but the cosmic chess game had clearly just entered a more complex middle game. Therefore, Amber had no intention of returning this fortress.

He’d have to be insane. Who spits out meat they’ve already put in their mouth?

Federation capital planet, Orbital Defense Platform Command Headquarters.

A piercing alarm tore through the previously oppressive silence of the command center. Crimson lights replaced the soft illumination, and the routine surveillance feed on the main screen was urgently switched. What entered everyone’s view was a set of terrifying trajectories of unknown celestial bodies.

“Confirming anomalous celestial targets! Twelve in total!”

A young radar operator’s voice trembled as his fingers tapped rapidly on the volumetric light of the control panel.

“Their speed has reached sublight standards! My god, based on estimations, they shot straight in from beyond the Oort Cloud!”

The commander of the Orbital Defense Platform and the garrison fleet, Federation Navy Vice Admiral Marcus Kane, shot up from his seat. He strode to the main screen, his face filled with disbelief.

On the command headquarters’ main screen, twelve points of light were hurtling toward the depths of the Federation capital planet’s gravity well along a slightly curved trajectory at an astonishing speed.

Anything that could be detected by the orbital defense platform at such a great distance was usually a massive celestial body. But Vice Admiral Kane had never seen an attack by so many massive objects at once.

Not to mention the terrifying kinetic energy figures calculated by the platform’s control AI, which were enough to send a chill down the spine of anyone who saw them.

“Quick! Try to get a material analysis!”

“Analysis complete, General!” a technical officer’s voice came through the intercom, laced with a sense of absurdity and confusion. “The main composition of these things is very simple. It’s water ice crystals, mixed with small amounts of methane and ammonia ice. General, they’re just… ordinary ice crystals.”

“Ordinary ice crystals?”

Vice Admiral Kane’s brow furrowed, his sharp gaze sweeping over the absurd speed and the even more absurd kinetic energy conversion on the screen. “What kind of ice crystal can reach sublight speed?!”

“Initial kinetic model calculation complete. The impact of any single ice crystal is enough to cripple any of our existing orbital defense units. It’s highly likely the twelve ice crystals are aimed at the cores of our twelve defense units.”

The technical officer said no more, but everyone understood his meaning.

Vice Admiral Kane took a deep breath. He knew what this meant, too. This was no natural phenomenon but a deliberate attack—an unimaginable, yet incredibly deadly, method of attack.

He looked at the Communications staff officer beside him. “Get me the Presidential Palace on the highest encrypted channel.”

“Yes, General.”

A moment later, President Brandon’s face, so haggard he was almost unrecognizable, appeared on the communication screen.

He seemed to have just been startled from a brief rest. His eyes were sunken, and his somewhat limp hair was messily plastered to his forehead. The presidential office, once a symbol of power, now felt empty and oppressive.

“Vice Admiral Kane, what’s so urgent you need to contact me on an encrypted channel at this hour?” Brandon’s voice was laced with deep fatigue.

Vice Admiral Kane tried to keep his tone steady, but the content of his words was a heavy blow that instantly jolted Brandon awake.

“Mr. President, we have detected twelve sublight ice crystals closing in on the Capital star system at high speed. Estimated time of arrival is forty-six hours.”

Brandon was stunned, seemingly unable to process the meaning of the sentence for a moment.

“Ice crystals?”

“Yes, Mr. President. The kind of common ice crystals found in the asteroid belt. But this is by no means a natural phenomenon.”

Vice Admiral Kane succinctly explained the abnormal speed and trajectory of the ice crystals. “They are very likely artificially propelled. The target appears to be our orbital defense system.”

“Who did this?” Brandon’s face turned deathly pale. He subconsciously gripped the edge of his desk, his knuckles turning white from the force. “The Renaissance Alliance? Or Atlas?”

“It’s impossible to determine at this time, Mr. President. But this method… it feels more like the work of the Atlas Group. Insane, efficient, and with no regard for cost,” Vice Admiral Kane offered his assessment. “Whoever it is, their objective is clear: to paralyze our defenses and clear the way for a final assault.”

“Interception… can we intercept them?”

Vice Admiral Kane was silent for a moment before speaking with difficulty. “Mr. President, as you know… during the battle in which Marshal Trafalgar was sacrificed, the ‘Requiem’ array, which was under construction… has also been destroyed.”

‘Requiem’—once the Federation’s most powerful trans-system weapon, a satellite cannon array capable of inducing directed nuclear explosions to generate gamma-ray bursts.

It was also the only weapon theoretically capable of engaging these ice crystals at long range.

“Our existing orbital defense platforms, whether kinetic or directed-energy weapons, cannot effectively counter targets of this number and speed. Or rather, by the time these ice crystals enter the platforms’ engagement range, it will already be too late to launch an attack.”

Vice Admiral Kane’s voice carried a hint of despair; it was clear he was out of options.

“Mr. President, once the orbital defense platforms are destroyed, the capital planet will be completely exposed to any possible subsequent strikes, utterly defenseless.”

Brandon closed his eyes, the wrinkles on his forehead twisting into a tight knot.

The command center of the Orbital Defense Platform Command Headquarters was equally silent, with only the stubborn flashing of the alarm lights.

“Mr. President…”

Vice Admiral Kane looked at Brandon’s despairing face on the screen and finally made the suggestion.

“Please, you and the core members of the government must prepare for immediate evacuation. We must preserve the last embers of the Federation…”

“Evacuate?”

Brandon’s eyes shot open, a near-maniacal gleam flashing in their turbid depths. He let out a self-deprecating laugh, dry and hollow.

“Vice Admiral Kane, you tell me, where else can we evacuate to?”

His gaze swept across the star chart of the Federation on his office wall. The vast territory once covered by ‘freedom and democracy’ was now tattered and broken, consumed by the red marking the Renaissance Alliance.

“More than half the Federation has fallen into the hands of the rebels. The remaining star sectors have either carved out their own kingdoms or are watching from the sidelines. We’re like a remnant army besieged on a deserted island. Where can we possibly flee? To the territory of those traitors, to surrender to them and beg for their forgiveness? Or hide in some desolate star system, prolonging our miserable existence while we watch the enemy trample the final symbol of the Federation?”

Brandon’s voice rose, filled with the resolve of one burning their bridges.

“I am the President of the Federation! My place is here, in the Capital! If the Federation is destined to end here, then I will wait with it for that moment to arrive! I will not run away like a coward!”

Vice Admiral Kane watched the President on the screen in silence. The almost martyr-like light in the man’s eyes left him speechless.

He understood Brandon’s choice. It wasn’t just despair, but a tragic form of persistence that belonged to a leader of a bygone era.

“I understand, Mr. President,” Vice Admiral Kane’s voice was low and heavy. “The Orbital Defense Platform Command Headquarters will fight to the last moment.”

“No, you can actually leave…”

“I am a soldier of the Federation, Your Excellency.”

Hearing Kane’s words, Brandon was taken aback for a moment, then a rare smile appeared on his face.

“Thank you, Vice Admiral. In that case, I’m entrusting full authority over the defense of the Capital star system to you.”

“Yes, Mr. President!”

The communication was cut, and the screen went dark.

Inside the command center, the alarm continued its relentless wail, like a tolling death knell.

Vice Admiral Kane slowly turned to face the young faces filled with anxiety and fear.

“My orders!”

His voice had regained its military hardness, and the fear had vanished from his face.

“All units, proceed to the highest state of alert! Activate all backup power, preheat all defense systems, and prepare for impact! At the same time, issue a system-wide emergency evacuation notice. Open all underground shelters in the Capital. For the rest… we do what man can, and leave the rest to fate.”

“Yes, General!”

A cold despair, much like the approaching ice crystals, silently descended upon the entire Capital.

The final forty-six hours for Brandon—and for the Federation—had begun to count down.

Chapter 771: New Hope and the Old Guard

At the edge of the Federation’s Capital star system lay Olinde, the gas giant orbiting farthest from its star.

Due to its extreme environment and lack of usable resources, the planet had long been forgotten by the Federation. Apart from the garrison fleet’s annual deep-space combat training exercises, only a few automated deep-space observatories remained, diligently carrying out their duties, dotting the desolate orbit like lonely graves.

And at this moment, a Renaissance Alliance fleet was silently concealed within the shadow of the distant planet Olinde.

The gas giant’s immense silhouette formed a natural barrier, shielding the fleet from detection by the massive gravitational wave antenna array near the Federation’s capital planet.

On the bridge of the flagship, the Liberator, Fleet Commander Kyle sat in the captain’s chair, his gaze sweeping across the holographic projection platform.

On the virtual star chart, the markers for the Renaissance Alliance’s Third Fleet were neatly arrayed: thirty battleships, forty heavy cruisers, sixty light cruisers, one hundred destroyers and frigates, and thirty supply and large transport ships. This was the size of a standard fleet in the Federation Navy’s organizational structure.

For this final assault on the Federation’s Capital star system, the Renaissance Alliance had assembled seven full-strength fleets—in essence, the entirety of the Alliance’s naval forces.

While this grand fleet could not compare to the scale of the all-out wars of extermination between the Federation and The Empire in their heyday, to the now battle-scarred Federation Navy, it was an almost unbeatable force.

“The counter-gravitational wave early warning unit has detected no abnormal signals. It seems the Federation’s large-scale search radar isn’t pointed in this direction.”

A tactical staff officer reported, his voice filled with a youthful excitement.

“Commander, all Federation personnel at the observation stations have been secured. They didn’t manage to send any warnings.”

“Excellent.”

A cold smirk played on Kyle’s lips, tinged with the sharp confidence and unconcealed disdain typical of the young.

“The Federation Navy… a behemoth in its day, now it can’t even feed the old dogs guarding its gates. Such an important outpost, and they couldn’t even muster any decent resistance.”

A few low chuckles came from the young officers on the bridge. Like Kyle, most of them were from the new generation of officers cultivated by the Renaissance Alliance itself, filled with idealism and a deep disdain for everything related to the Old Federation.

“According to the plan, we still need to wait for the other six fleets to arrive before we can launch the final assault on the capital planet.”

Kyle waved his hand and issued his command:

“Order the entire fleet to maintain cover in the planet’s shadow, operate on silent running at minimum power. All communications are to be conducted via blue-green laser.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Kyle watched with satisfaction as the young faces on the bridge methodically carried out his orders, an irrepressible sense of pride and ambition surging within him.

Just over a year ago, Kyle had been a junior officer in some star system’s garrison fleet, regarded as an expendable pawn by the high-and-mighty veteran officers.

Now, he was the commander of the Renaissance Alliance’s Third Fleet, commanding a powerful force, about to take part in the final battle that would end the Federation.

In his eyes, he owed it all to Franklin and the Renaissance Alliance. As the thought crossed his mind, Kyle’s gaze swept over the equally young faces on the bridge. The Renaissance Alliance had given people like them an opportunity, allowing them to bypass the constraints of the conventional promotion system and rise rapidly through the ranks.

Currently, a large number of young officers were rising quickly within the Renaissance Alliance, replacing the former Federation officers who had surrendered or been recruited.

Although these young officers were not very experienced and their combat command was not yet seasoned, their passionate idealism resonated strongly with the Alliance’s ideology.

On this basis, the young officer corps of the Renaissance Alliance was broadly divided into two factions: one comprised of officers who had received early training from the Atlas Group, and the other consisting of officers cultivated later by the Alliance itself.

The former, represented by figures like Johnny Leiding and Manfred, held a natural affinity for the Atlas Group.

The latter were the absolute die-hards of the Renaissance Alliance. They were extremely insular, and even the Atlas Group, which had helped the Alliance considerably, was seen in their eyes as just another capitalist behemoth, no different from the old military-industrial complex.

And Kyle belonged to the latter.

Although Atlas had provided advanced weapons and training, he saw the corporation’s businessmen as just another type of predator, fundamentally no different from the Federation’s military-industrial complex.

Once the Federation fell, the Renaissance Alliance would have to be wary of infiltration by this capitalist giant.

“Sir.” A hoarse voice interrupted Kyle’s thoughts.

His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. The speaker was Moretti, one of the few remaining former Federation Navy officers on the flagship, serving as the intelligence staff officer due to his outstanding fleet intelligence analysis skills.

The man was an old-timer, always carrying the lingering scent of a bygone era. What’s more, he was a spineless coward who had surrendered. Kyle had been looking for an excuse to kick him off his flagship for some time.

“What is it, Staff Officer Moretti?” Kyle didn’t bother to hide the coldness in his tone.

Moretti seemed unfazed by the fleet commander’s coldness and hostility. Perhaps he was used to such scrutiny, or perhaps it was because he still felt a sense of responsibility for everyone in the fleet.

He had weathered many storms during his long years in the Federation Navy; this was hardly anything worth mentioning.

Moretti bowed slightly, his voice steady and devoid of emotion. “Commander, we’ve just received the latest intelligence shared by the Atlas Group via a secure channel.”

Hearing the name ‘Atlas’, Kyle frowned. He disliked relying on Atlas’s intelligence, but he had to admit their network was far superior to the Alliance’s.

He called up a separate virtual tactical panel displaying the current deployment of forces in the Federation’s Capital star system. While most areas were marked as ‘weakly defended’, the icon representing the Federation’s garrison fleet in the core area was still present.

“According to Atlas’s analysis, although the Federation Navy’s fleet has suffered heavy losses, it still retains some counter-attack capability, including the garrison fleet. Considering we are the vanguard, and erring on the side of caution when assessing the enemy, it’s possible they’ve already noticed that some of their outposts have gone dark…”

Moretti paused, looking at Kyle. “We might need to raise our alert level. We must be prepared for them to lash out like a cornered beast and launch a surprise assault in our direction.”

“The garrison fleet? A cornered beast lashing out? An assault?”

Kyle’s tone was dismissive. His gaze shifted from the tactical screen to Moretti’s weathered face, his eyes filled with unconcealed doubt and a hint of mockery.

“Staff Officer Moretti, you should know that ever since Marshal Trafalgar of the Federation Navy was killed, the Federation Navy’s spine has been broken. And you’re worried that these spineless, defeated dogs still have the guts to charge out of their den?”

His tone was flippant, full of contempt for the meticulous caution of old-school military men.

“Or do you simply trust the intelligence provided by our ‘allies’ from Atlas more? In my opinion, they’d love nothing more than for us to fight the Federation remnants to a bloody stalemate so they can reap the fisherman’s profit.”

Moretti was silent for a moment, as if weighing every word. “Sir, I served in the Federation Navy for thirty-two years and was involved in the planning of seven major combat operations. The deployment model within the Capital star system does indeed look more like a defensive preparation than an offensive one. But based on my experience, I must warn you: although the Federation Navy has suffered grievous losses, the core strength of the garrison fleet remains, especially its veteran officers. They will not sit back and wait for death.”

Kyle cut him off. “I’m sure you know better than I do what the garrison fleet is capable of, Staff Officer Moretti. Our full-strength fleet is more than enough to handle any assault they might attempt. Besides, we have six more fleets on the way.”

Moretti’s lips parted as if to argue, but in the end, all that escaped was a nearly inaudible sigh.

He knew that in this young man’s eyes, he represented a corrupt, weak, and untrustworthy past. Any caution based on experience would likely be interpreted as cowardice.

“My duty is to point out potential risks, Commander,” Moretti’s voice remained professionally calm. “As for the decision, the authority is yours.”

“Risk?”

Kyle sneered, turning away from Moretti. He fixed his gaze back on the main screen, on the star sector that symbolized the Federation’s final bastion, a fanatical fire burning in his eyes.

“The real risk is being timid and missing our chance! The Federation is an empty shell, just waiting for us to kick down its rotten door!”

His words were resolute, carrying an authority that brooked no argument.

On the bridge, the young officers’ eyes gleamed with the same fervor as Kyle’s, while the few veterans like Moretti, who had lived through the old era, silently lowered their heads, their expressions complex.

“Still, it will be some time before the entire fleet has assembled. Raise the alert level for the detection systems, but maintain minimum power. Report any vessel, regardless of size, that approaches Olinde’s orbit immediately.”

In the end, Kyle gave the order to raise the alert level. Although in Moretti’s view, this level of vigilance was far from sufficient, he also knew this was the most he could achieve.

“That’s all. Get back to your duties, Staff Officer Moretti. Continue analyzing the intelligence from Atlas and report any anomalies immediately.”

Moretti said nothing more. With a nod, he turned and left.

Kyle watched his retreating back with complex feelings. These old officers from the former Federation Navy always had an unsettling air about them—they had seen too much, knew too much. They were like walking historical archives, reminders of the mistakes of the past.

But this time is different, Kyle told himself. The Renaissance Alliance represents a new era. It’s only natural that we, the young officers, will be the ones to write its history.

Outside the bridge’s panoramic viewport, Olinde’s massive cyclonic storms swirled slowly, and the planet’s shadow enveloped the entire fleet.

Chapter 772: A Flurry of Glad Tidings

In the shadow of the planet Olinde, the Renaissance Alliance’s Third Fleet had been waiting under silent running for seven hours.

On the bridge of the flagship, the Liberator, Renaissance Alliance officers bustled about, their young faces filled with anticipation and confidence.

And what the Tactical Information Coordinator said next only served to heighten the confidence on their faces.

“Sir! According to our calculations, the Fourth Fleet will arrive at the rendezvous point in one hour.”

Fleet Commander Kyle nodded, a slight smile playing on his lips. Then, for the first time, he looked with a smile at the intelligence staff officer, Moretti, who had just returned to his side.

“You see, Staff Officer Moretti, your worries are unnecessary. The Federation Navy is just a paper tiger now, and the garrison fleet wouldn’t dare attack us. After our main force assembles and warps over, I’ll be impressed if they can even hold their ground.”

Moretti’s wrinkled face showed no change in expression as he simply replied softly, “I hope so, Sir.”

“Don’t be so pessimistic all the time. I think Old Federation officers like you should look more to the future.”

Perhaps because he was in a good mood, Kyle even stood up and smilingly patted the former Federation Navy officer on the shoulder—something that would have been unthinkable before.

“As our fleets gradually assemble, this war will be over soon. The good times are coming.”

Moretti looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue. In the end, he didn’t say anything more, just nodded.

But as his gaze swept over the tactical display, his expression grew serious again. It showed the reconnaissance units the fleet had deployed at various points in the planet’s orbit.

Although tasks like establishing a security perimeter and assigning patrol duties while the fleet was anchored had little to do with him, Moretti still noticed something was wrong.

Despite Kyle’s order to be on alert, there was a clear vulnerability in the deployment of these reconnaissance units—nearly all of them were concentrated in the safe zone within the planet’s shadow, while only a handful of scout ships were in orbit on the sunlit side.

“Sir, I recommend we increase our reconnaissance strength on the sunlit side of the orbit,” Moretti finally couldn’t help but speak up. “It’s the most likely direction for an attack.”

Kyle frowned. “Staff Officer Moretti, our fleet needs to maintain silent running. Sending out more scout ships increases the risk of accidental detection. Besides, there’s no way the Federation fleet knows we’re here.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Moretti lowered his head and didn’t press the matter, his face becoming expressionless once more.

Time ticked by, second by second, and the atmosphere on the bridge gradually relaxed. The young officers chatted amongst themselves, discussing their own bright futures after the fall of the Federation.

Meanwhile, Kyle leaned back in his command chair, reviewing the personnel list from the ship’s officer and contemplating reorganization plans for after the war.

But into this ‘peaceful’ atmosphere, an alarm tore through the quiet of the bridge.

“Warning! The scout ship Falcon on the sunlit side of the orbit has detected abnormal spatial fluctuations!” the Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice trembled. “A large number of ships are exiting warp! Identity confirmed via their hull numbers and livery—it’s the Federation Navy’s garrison fleet!”

“What?!”

Kyle shot to his feet, staring at the tactical star chart in disbelief.

On the holographic three-dimensional star chart, a staggering number of red blips suddenly appeared in orbit on the sunlit side of Olinde.

“Signal lost from the Falcon! Presumed sunk! The enemy fleet is splitting into two groups, approaching us along Olinde’s eastern and western hemispheres!”

Hearing the Tactical Information Coordinator’s report, Kyle felt a wave of dizziness, but he quickly recovered his senses, though his voice rose an octave with fear.

“All ships, battle stations! Prepare to engage the enemy! At the same time, send an alert to the other fleets! Tell them we’ve been ambushed and require immediate support!”

After issuing the commands, he leaned on the workstation in front of him, muttering uncontrollably:

“How did the Federation garrison fleet find us? It’s just a fleet for the children of high-ranking Federation officials to pad their resumes… how could they dare to sortie? Daring to launch a suicidal assault on a capital fleet of the Renaissance Alliance?”

Moretti stood beside him, his face still devoid of panic, showing only the calm of someone who had foreseen this outcome.

“Sir, please calm down.”

His voice was as steady as ever as he even calmly answered Kyle’s questions.

“The enemy isn’t stupid. After discovering those sublight ice crystals, they surely would have realized our fleets would launch a synchronized attack. And there aren’t many suitable staging areas within the Capital star system.

Since the gravitational wave radar arrays near the Capital didn’t detect any fleet movements, and with the deep space observatory here at Olinde cut off by us, it wouldn’t have been too difficult to figure out we were here.

As for your second question, that’s even easier to answer. When pushed into a corner, people can often summon surprising courage. Besides, the garrison fleet is still part of the Federation Navy, no matter what you say.

Those children of high-ranking officials have nowhere else to go now. To them, we are the invaders, and they know that if the Capital falls, the Federation will fall with it. When that happens, their fate will certainly not be a pleasant one.”

“Shut up!” Kyle roared, rudely cutting Moretti off. “I don’t need your nonsense!”

He looked at the communications staff officer on the other side and continued to shout orders, “Order the second task force to intercept the enemy from the eastern hemisphere at once; the third task force will handle the western hemisphere! The capital fleet will hold formation and prepare to provide support!”

Upon hearing this, Moretti shook his head again. “Sir, I advise against splitting our forces. The enemy clearly intends to encircle and annihilate our fleet. Dividing our forces like this just makes it easier for them. We should—”

“I said, shut up!” Kyle’s voice had become shrill. “You remnant of the Federation! Was this your plan? An inside man? A traitor?”

The color drained from Moretti’s face, but he didn’t argue further, just retreated to the side with a look of despair.

Perhaps for this former Federation Navy officer, the Federation in his heart had already died the moment he surrendered to the Renaissance Alliance.

It was just that the Renaissance Alliance before him now didn’t seem as wonderful as others had once described.

On the tactical star chart, the Federation garrison fleet’s attack was like lightning. They had clearly planned this assault well in advance, their two fleets coordinating perfectly to form a crossfire. A battle like this was no more difficult than target practice, even for the garrison fleet, and they quickly picked off the scattered Renaissance Alliance warships one by one.

In less than an hour of fighting, Kyle could only watch in despair as his ‘carefully arranged’ fleet formation crumbled before the Federation fleet.

“Second task force has suffered over fifty percent losses!”

“The western hemisphere frontline has collapsed!”

“The enemy capital ship group has broken through the perimeter and is attacking the flagship’s position!”

The bad news flooded in like a tide, and Kyle was completely numb. He had never faced such a desperate situation, leaving him with no experience or mental preparation for dealing with adversity.

After all, though he had been in many fleet battles before, aside from a few evenly matched fights, most had been one-sided battles where the Renaissance Alliance won through numerical superiority.

So when it came to fighting outnumbered like this, he had ‘zero experience’. This was the biggest difference between the young officers the Renaissance Alliance had cultivated in its later stages and the ‘trainees’ originally trained with the help of the Atlas Group.

The latter had experienced all the bloody battles of the Renaissance Alliance from its founding to the present, most of which were fought while outnumbered. The battle that caused the ‘general’s stars to fall’ in the Federation Navy, in particular, had helped forge many iron-willed commanders for the Renaissance Alliance.

The former, on the other hand, basically only knew how to fight with a tailwind. At least, before the garrison fleet appeared, Kyle had also believed the final decisive battle would be another one.

It was at this moment that a new development appeared on the tactical star chart—a second Renaissance Alliance fleet was exiting warp, but their arrival point was right in the center of the battlefield.

At this, Kyle completely panicked.

“No! They’ll fly right into the crossfire! Warn them, quickly!”

“It’s too late, Sir! The Fourth Fleet is about to exit warp, countdown 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!”

With a continuous flash of white light, the Renaissance Alliance’s Fourth Fleet exited warp in perfect formation.

They flew straight into a sky filled with debris and crisscrossing weapons fire. Before they even had time to deploy into formation, they were thrown into the same chaos as the Third Fleet.

Kyle collapsed into his command chair, his eyes staring blankly at the chaotic tactical screen.

Moretti, standing behind him, watched it all unfold, his face expressionless.

————

“This is a fucking disaster. I really didn’t expect the first message we’d receive after exiting warp would be this…”

Amber stood in a tactical room aboard The Dawn, shaking his head as he watched a holographic reconstruction of the battle.

Guterres stood nearby, his expression equally grave. “The Renaissance Alliance lost two and a half fleets. The capital ships of the first two fleets to arrive were almost completely wiped out.”

As he spoke, the virtual tactical star chart in the room used information sent from the Renaissance Alliance to reconstruct a rough overview of the situation.

When the Third Fleet was attacked, they had actually sent a warning to the main force immediately. But because the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet movements for this operation originated from multiple star systems, with each fleet departing at a different time, the Fourth Fleet was already in warp by the time the warning was sent.

This directly led to the fleet flying headfirst into the shattered formation of the Third Fleet upon exiting warp. The debris field immediately threw the newcomers’ formation into disarray as well.

Meanwhile, the two Federation garrison fleets continued to hammer them with a furious crossfire from their pincer formation. It wasn’t until the third wave of the Renaissance Alliance, consisting of two more fleets, arrived that the two Federation garrison fleets, which had been on a killing spree, finally withdrew under covering fire.

Amber was stunned after reading the battle report. This string of ‘glad tidings’ right before the final, decisive battle couldn’t help but remind him of the legendary Debacle of Henan-Hunan-Guangxi.

“Sending them in one by one to get picked off,” he said with a troubled expression. “What kind of navy sends its fleets to their deaths one after another? And in the enemy’s heartland, no less.”

Randall added, “The most ridiculous part is, they didn’t even have unified warp coordinates or a tactical plan. Each fleet fought its own battle, completely uncoordinated.”

Amber tapped the table, considering the reasons behind this battle. “I can understand the Renaissance Alliance getting arrogant and complacent after a string of victories. But didn’t they use any of the commanders we trained? They would never make such a basic mistake.”

“That’s precisely the problem, Boss,” Guterres replied in a grave voice.

Chapter 773: The Federation’s Funeral

Amber was very interested in Guterres’s analysis. After all, his energy had been focused on the Star Dragon Empire recently, and regular briefings alone were not enough to fully understand the changes within the Renaissance Alliance.

Moreover, Guterres, the former Federation Vice Admiral, had truly been a pleasant surprise. Not only did he have a solid foundation in fleet command, but he also managed the fleet’s daily affairs and personnel promotions with meticulous order. He had even used what little spare time he had to conduct an in-depth analysis of the Renaissance Alliance’s current situation.

Back in the tactical room of The Dawn, Guterres continued his explanation.

“The internal factional strife within the Renaissance Alliance has reached a fever pitch. Franklin and the other high-level members of the Alliance have become extremely wary of us. They’ve realized that the large number of personnel we trained for them early on will become time bombs in the future. So, to prevent our influence from expanding further, they have transferred all officers who received Atlas training away from senior command positions and replaced them with their own ‘protégés’.”

Amber fell into thought after hearing this. “No wonder aces like Crimson Lightning and the Red Baron, who have already accumulated such distinguished combat records, still haven’t been promoted and are slugging it out on the front lines. They’ve been deliberately suppressed.”

“Precisely,” Guterres nodded. “Currently, fleet command within the Renaissance Alliance is entirely in the hands of young officers like Kyle, who were cultivated by the Alliance itself. They have drive and ideals, but they lack practical combat experience, especially in fighting under adverse conditions.”

“They can only fight a battle with a tailwind,” Amber summarized softly. “The group we trained was forged during the Renaissance Alliance’s most difficult period and are accustomed to fighting outnumbered. Yet, these are the people who are not being put in important roles, let alone promoted to the command level.”

Randall, who had just walked in from outside the tactical room, interjected after hearing the conversation between Amber and Guterres:

“What’s worse, when we just contacted the Renaissance Alliance, they refused to postpone the general assault. They insist on sticking to the original plan and launching the attack immediately after the sublight ice crystals destroy the Orbital Defense Platforms.”

When at a loss for words, one often can’t help but laugh. That was exactly how Amber felt at this moment.

“Are they that impatient?”

Guterres also sighed. “Franklin probably wants a quick victory to settle everything once and for all. Besides, the remaining fleets of the Renaissance Alliance have already finished assembling. Given the current defensive strength of the Federation’s capital planet, they are indeed no match, not to mention they still have our support.”

The tactical room fell into a brief silence. In the end, it was Amber who stated the conclusion and the plan going forward.

“Since the Renaissance Alliance is determined to launch the general assault, there’s no reason to persuade them otherwise. We aren’t the main characters in this final act anyway. Let’s just play along and see this drama to its end.”

In the Presidential Office, President Brandon’s face was ashen. He stared at the holographic projection before him, his eyes vacant, his thoughts a mystery.

“Mr. President, the trajectory calculations for the ice crystals are confirmed. Their targets are our Orbital Defense Platforms.”

Minister of Defense Miller’s voice was hoarse from the immense stress, much like most of the others present.

“From the trajectory, it’s a targeted strike, not a random impact…”

Brandon gave a slight laugh upon hearing this conclusion. “That’s some rare good news, I suppose. At least they don’t plan to destroy the entire planet, right? The Renaissance Alliance needs a graceful victory, a complete capital to declare their legitimacy.”

The meeting room was deathly silent. No one knew how to respond to Brandon’s words.

Finally, the Minister of the Interior broke the silence.

“Mr. President, the underground shelter system has been activated. The Civil Defense Department is organizing the evacuation… but I must remind you, our shelters can only accommodate seventy percent of the capital’s population at most.”

“Then prioritize the civilians,” Brandon said without hesitation. “Government officials and military personnel will evacuate last.”

He stood up and walked to the massive floor-to-ceiling window behind his seat. Outside, the capital’s skyline glittered in the sunlight. The towering skyscrapers under the ecological dome reflected a golden radiance, looking so eternal.

But Brandon knew very well that in a short while, all of this would cease to exist.

“Give me Vice Admiral Kane’s battle report.”

The report was quickly handed to him. As Brandon read the cold data, he had to admit that the garrison fleet’s preemptive strike had indeed secured a major tactical victory.

The integrity and courage of the Federation’s soldiers had truly been displayed in this final moment, though it seemed a little too late.

“But at least we took a bite out of them,” Brandon muttered to himself.

“All citizens, please proceed immediately to the nearest underground shelter… This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill…”

The mechanical female voice looped through the capital’s city-wide broadcast system. For the residents of the capital planet, the moment the government alarm system screamed to life, their world changed completely.

On public information screens across the Federation capital, countdown timers ticked relentlessly. This was the arrival time of the twelve sublight ice crystals, and for the citizens who remained, their lives seemed to have been compressed into that cold countdown.

These final ten-plus hours were destined to be the longest and most desperate moments of their lives.

Flee the capital?

The thought might have flashed through their minds in the initial panic, but it was quickly shattered by cold reality.

Those who had the means to leave had already fled to distant stars when the Renaissance Alliance’s forces first appeared—some leaping from one fire into another by going to the Star Dragon Empire, others using their connections to reach the border of the Thousand Stars Empire.

But the number of these people was less than one-thousandth of the population.

And the majority who remained were, counter-intuitively, of a certain type.

They were not ordinary people unable to leave the planet. On the contrary, they were high-ranking officials, military strongmen, plutocrats, and major capitalists. Their common characteristic was being too deeply bound to the old system of the Federation.

For these ‘Remnants of the old era,’ the vanguards of the Renaissance Alliance had already swept across most of the Federation’s territory. The blue representing the Federation on the star map was rapidly being consumed by the red symbolizing ‘revolution.’

In such a situation, where could they possibly flee?

The star sectors that had declared neutrality or independence were silent as cicadas in winter under the Alliance’s might, and there was no telling when they too would fall under its control. Who would dare to shelter ‘Remnants’ from the capital planet?

The fates of those who had managed to escape earlier had already been relayed back through various secret channels. Their destiny after being captured by the Alliance’s Inspectorate Committee was far more miserable than staying here to await destruction.

To flee or not to flee, both paths seemed to lead to the same end. Under these circumstances, most naturally abandoned the idea of escaping.

The local transport systems operated at an efficiency bordering on collapse. Long lines of public transport vehicles, filled with expressionless people, slowly drove toward the entrances of the giant shelters buried beneath the city.

As the heart of the Federation, the capital had been planned from its inception with the worst-case scenario in mind.

These fortifications and shelters, buried deep underground across the city, were structurally sound and well-stocked with supplies—one had to ‘praise’ the specialists who had overseen their construction for not taking too many kickbacks in this regard.

The design of the planet’s underground shelters had even allowed for the possibility of surviving garrison forces launching a counterattack from below after the surface had completely fallen.

And indeed, most of the planet’s surface forces, apart from observation posts and anti-aircraft units, were now hidden in underground bunkers, preparing a ‘surprise’ for the Renaissance Alliance’s landing troops.

At the entrance to the underground shelter in Placid Square, Capital Special District, a squad of soldiers was assisting civilians into a massive underground shelter.

Sergeant Jackson lifted his tactical faceplate to wipe the sweat from his brow, then continued to robotically direct the flow of people. He had been working continuously for ten hours, but the evacuation was still 10% from completion.

“Hurry up, ladies first! Watch your step!”

As he mechanically repeated these words, he scanned his surroundings.

Most of the people in the crowd were silent, as if in the face of this death knell of a countdown, panic had turned into a kind of numbness.

“Sir, the last batch of civil defense volunteers is in position,” a young soldier reported to Jackson.

Jackson nodded. “Tell them they’re in charge of maintaining order, especially at the water and food distribution points.”

“Yes, Sir!” The young soldier saluted and hurried away.

Watching his retreating back, Sergeant Jackson couldn’t help but sigh. The young soldier’s parents were both Navy officers who had perished alongside Marshal Trafalgar.

And now, it seemed he would be following in his parents’ footsteps…

What did this young soldier do wrong?

Sergeant Jackson didn’t know, just as he didn’t know if he himself had done anything wrong.

He pulled his thoughts back and saw a little girl standing by the side of the passage, clutching what looked like an expensive fluffy toy, refusing to move forward.

Jackson knelt down, looking her in the eyes. “Hey, little one, what’s your name?”

“Aileen,” the girl answered in a small voice.

“Well, Aileen, why aren’t you going in?”

“I got separated from my mommy… and I don’t want to go in here. I want to go home,” the little girl said, her voice trembling on the verge of tears.

Sergeant Jackson immediately took off the protective gloves of his combat exoskeleton, gently touched Aileen’s face with his somewhat rough palm, and did his best to make his voice sound lighthearted.

“Aileen, I’ll have someone take you to find your mommy, okay? But I need you to be brave. You know what? This place is kind of like a big ship, and we have to hide in it for a while, like playing hide-and-seek. Hmm? You and your little bear together, okay?”

The little girl hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Jackson immediately summoned a soldier. After verifying the little girl’s identity and confirming her mother’s location, he had the soldier take the girl into the shelter to find her mother.

After doing all this, Sergeant Jackson turned around, looked at the endless stream of people at the shelter’s entrance and the considerable number of children among them, and was struck by a wave of helplessness.

These children, what did they do wrong? What would their future be like?

Inside the Placid Square underground shelter, in a sealed space designed for two thousand people but now packed with over three thousand, the air was still murky and oppressive, even with the air purification systems running at full power.

People seeking refuge were huddled together. The only thing these well-dressed strangers had in common was the identical look of numbness and fear on their faces.

The sound of children crying was drowned out by the low hum of the air purification units and the occasional arguments that erupted among the adults.

In corners, families clung to each other and prayed, but most people just sat in silence, their empty eyes fixed on the cold metal ceiling, like prisoners awaiting their sentence.

Twelve-year-old Aileen had now been reunited with her mother. She was leaning against her, not crying or making a fuss in this strange and complex environment, just quietly asking her mother questions.

“Mommy, why did we have to leave home and hide underground?”

“Because an organization called the ‘Renaissance Alliance’ is getting ready to hit us with big chunks of ice from space.”

Aileen’s mother, Teresa Howard, a woman who had once held a position in the Department of Defense, showed not a trace of panic on her face as she patiently answered her daughter’s questions.

“Why does the Renaissance Alliance want to hit us with ice?” Aileen asked.

Teresa smiled. “Because some big shots did some bad things and made the uncles and aunties on other planets angry. So they’re using big chunks of ice to hit us. And sometimes, a block of ice is more useful than a bomb.”

She didn’t tell her daughter that the energy released when those sublight ice crystals struck the Orbital Defense Platforms would be enough to completely erase the ‘necklace’ surrounding this planet. Nor did she tell her that if even one ice crystal strayed from its path and hit the planet, all life on it would be annihilated.

Teresa looked up at her surroundings. Among the people seeking refuge in this area, there were many familiar faces.

When it was confirmed that the twelve sublight ice crystals could not be intercepted, the civilian staff of the Presidential Palace, the Department of Defense, the Army Headquarters, the Navy Headquarters, and other agencies were dismissed. So Teresa and her former colleagues were now all ‘civilians.’

Clearly, compared to those who refused to leave and chose to hold a weapon until the very end, these ‘civilians’ had a slightly better chance of survival.

Of course, only slightly.

At least, Teresa herself did not believe the Renaissance Alliance would treat former government employees with any kindness. She gently stroked her daughter’s hair, contemplating her child’s future under the new order.

As the daughter of a former senior civilian official at the Department of Defense, Aileen might face discrimination or even persecution.

If both mother and daughter could survive this upheaval, Teresa would find a way to take Aileen and leave the capital, heading for the territories controlled by the Atlas Group.

From the shelter’s broadcast system, President Brandon’s voice came through, intermittent and weary yet firm, delivering his final speech as President of the Federation.

“We did not hide underground out of fear of death. We are merely waiting for the light of dawn and the call to counterattack…”

Teresa listened to these words with a complicated expression.

As a former Department of Defense official, she knew the truth behind the Federation’s collapse better than most. It was not just the rise of the Renaissance Alliance or the Atlas Group, but the result of the Federation’s entire system rotting from within.

Perhaps most citizens of the capital, like her, were just working and living their lives normally, uninvolved in the dirty dealings.

But living on the capital planet was their ‘original sin.’

In the eyes of Federation citizens from other regions, the ordinary citizens of the Capital star system were also ‘exploiters’ or ‘vested interest holders.’

They could be said to have enjoyed the highest quality of life in the entire Federation, the best educational resources, and their children could directly enter the core circles of the Federation government and the megacorporations. They were ‘parasites’ sucking the blood of others.

On this point, Teresa found she truly could not deny it.

“Mommy, are we going to die?” Aileen suddenly asked.

Teresa was taken aback. She didn’t understand why her daughter would suddenly ask such a question, but she quickly reacted, shaking her head.

“No, Aileen. They need this planet, they need this city, they even need people like us. They fly the banner of ‘Renaissance’; they have to leave something behind. Otherwise, who will help them ‘rebuild’?”

Of course, these words were still way out of a twelve-year-old girl’s league.

Vice Admiral Kane, Commander of the Orbital Defense Platforms and the Garrison Fleet, stood on the bridge of his flagship, The Loyalist, observing the capital planet’s orbit through the main screen.

The two garrison fleets and all the patrol vessels gathered from within the star system were now lying in wait in nearby deep space, their main thruster arrays shut down, their fusion reactors running at minimum power.

“Sir, two hours on the countdown,” his adjutant reported softly.

Kane nodded without a word. He knew there was no victory or defeat in this battle, but he still hoped to deal one final blow to the enemy before the Renaissance Alliance could land.

Although the previous ambush had completely annihilated two of the enemy’s fleets, it could not change the course of the war.

Kane walked to a porthole on the bridge, gazing at the distant blue and white planet. He had served in the Federation Navy for thirty years and never imagined he would witness the fall of the Federation.

“Are you ready?” he asked the adjutant beside him.

The adjutant nodded. “All ships are ready. Cloaking systems are functioning well. According to the final calculations from Naval Intelligence, the main force of the Renaissance Alliance should arrive within an hour of the ice crystal impact.”

Kane took a deep breath, then turned to face the others on the bridge. “Gentlemen, it has been an honor to fight alongside you until the very last moment.”

On the planet’s Orbital Defense Platforms, the last batch of technicians was scrambling to evacuate.

The platform’s command center was deserted, leaving only the hum of the automated systems. Technical Supervisor Lynn Colton performed a final check of the system status, ensuring all automated defense units were in optimal working condition.

Although everyone knew it was futile, as no current Federation defense system could intercept sublight ice crystals…

“Supervisor Lynn, we have to go,” his deputy urged from the hatchway. “The last shuttle is waiting for us.”

Lynn’s fingers paused on the control panel. “Give me another minute.”

He called up the main defense system’s automatic response program and made a final fine-tuning. These programs would most likely have no effect, but he couldn’t give up on even the slimmest of possibilities.

“What if a miracle happens?” he muttered to himself.

Outside the porthole of his section, the blue and white light of the capital planet was so bright and beautiful. Lynn had worked on this orbital station for twelve years, had watched countless sunrises and sunsets, and never thought he would one day leave it forever.

“Alright, let’s go.”

He finally turned and followed his colleague toward the shuttle’s airlock. In the final moment before the door sealed shut, he glanced back one last time. The defense platform’s indicator lights were still blinking, like lonely stars in the night sky.

In the underground command center of the Presidential Palace, Brandon stared at the countdown on the main screen: 00:15:42.

The twelve sublight ice crystals had already passed the outermost planet of the Capital star system. At this speed, they could not even be captured by ordinary optical systems.

“Mr. President, the last shelters have been sealed. The civilians and ground forces who could be evacuated have been moved underground,” the Minister of the Interior reported.

Brandon nodded, his eyes never leaving the screen. “Good.”

He stood up, walked to the center of the room, and looked at everyone. Then, in a surprisingly calm voice, he began to speak slowly.

“Gentlemen, ladies… whatever happens today, we will face it. Perhaps the Renaissance Alliance is right. Perhaps the Federation has decayed and needs new blood. But I believe history will remember how we faced this end—not by running, not by surrendering, but by holding our ground until the very last moment.”

The countdown showed: 00:05:00.

After speaking, Brandon returned to his seat, folded his hands on the desk, and waited for the final moment to arrive.

The others also took their seats around him, calmly awaiting the end.

On the Orbital Defense Platforms high above the planet, numerous sensors were already detecting abnormal energy readings. The fully automated defense units immediately activated their various weapon systems.

It was like a microcosm of the Federation, making its final, futile struggle.

00:01:00.

In the shelter, Sergeant Jackson turned off the external sensor display, not wanting the civilians to see what was about to happen. He walked over to Aileen and her mother and knelt down.

“Hey, little one, want to hear a story?”

Aileen looked up and nodded.

“A long, long time ago, there was a beautiful city…”

00:00:30.

Vice Admiral Kane ordered the fleet to brace for impact and be ready to attack the enemy at any moment after the strike. Then, in absolute silent running, he awaited the coming shockwave.

00:00:10.

Brandon closed his eyes, silently counting down the last few seconds in his mind.

00:00:05.

00:00:04.

00:00:03.

00:00:02.

00:00:01.

00:00:00.

A blinding white light suddenly streaked across the orbit, followed by a second, then a third… twelve flashes of light appeared almost simultaneously, like fireworks blooming in the darkness of space.

Chapter 774: The Federation Navy’s Last Charge

Twelve streaks of white light, like blades slicing through the pitch-black of space, instantly pierced the orbital defense platforms of the Federation’s capital planet.

These ice crystals, ‘meticulously selected’ by Atlas Mining, generally had long-axis diameters exceeding one hundred kilometers. When accelerated to sublight speeds, the terrifying kinetic energy they carried was an astronomical figure.

When they struck twelve precisely chosen key nodes at sublight speed, there was no explosion, no fireball—only the pure conversion of kinetic energy.

The structures of the Orbital Defense Platforms didn’t even have time to deform under such an impact; they were annihilated at the atomic level. In the blink of an eye, the twelve key nodes were literally reduced to dust, leaving no chance for even space debris to form.

“My God,” Vice Admiral Kane murmured, standing on the bridge and witnessing it all through the panoramic viewscreen. Though the distance was great, he could still see the twelve points of light flaring up around the capital planet.

These points of light encircling the Federation Capital looked like a genuine ‘necklace,’ but they also chillingly resembled a hangman’s noose tightening around the Federation’s neck.

“Orbital Defense Platform… completely non-functional,” the Tactical Information Coordinator reported the obvious fact mechanically, his voice laced with an undisguisable tremor.

“Prepare yourselves, everyone.”

Vice Admiral Kane suppressed all his emotions, his voice becoming resolute once more.

“Proceed according to the operational plan. In one hour, the Renaissance Alliance fleet will arrive. And we… will have a ‘surprise’ waiting for them.”

At the same time, without the support of the key nodes, the remaining parts of the Orbital Defense Platform immediately began to disintegrate.

The massive, multi-ringed structure silently fractured and buckled in the vacuum, eventually shattering into countless metal chunks of varying sizes. Pulled by the capital planet’s gravity, these fragments began a slow descent toward the atmosphere, ultimately forming the most spectacular meteor shower ever witnessed.

Inside a subterranean shelter, Sergeant Jackson gripped the tactical tablet in his hands, monitoring the situation on the surface.

Only after entering the shelter did he discover that his combat exoskeleton’s OS was incompatible with the control programs for the shelter’s external sensors. He had to resort to finding a matching, long-outdated tactical tablet to operate them.

While struggling with the unfamiliar interface, Sergeant Jackson couldn’t help but curse.

“Did all the taxpayer money and military funding go down the drain?! What happened to ‘data interconnection’? I can’t even connect to a few lousy cameras, and this is the damn Capital!”

“You’re just figuring that out now?”

An elderly voice sounded beside Sergeant Jackson. He turned to see a white-haired old man, someone he recognized. The man was a fellow veteran who also served as a Veterans Affairs officer for one of the local districts.

“The corporations that took on the Capital’s national defense project back then have all grown into behemoths. Where do you think they got their ‘sustenance’?”

“No way, they’d skim off the Capital’s defense construction projects?!”

“Why wouldn’t they? If they don’t, how do their superiors take their cut? If their superiors don’t, how does Specialist Smith take his? And if Specialist Smith doesn’t take his cut, would the contract have even landed in their hands in the first place? The fact our Federation has come to this is entirely their own doing.”

“How could people like that be put in charge…”

“You’re still too young… er… Sergeant Jackson. You think swapping them out would solve the problem? If they don’t take the money, there are plenty of others who will.”

The old veteran was about to say more, but in the next moment, both men felt an indescribable sense of dread. The shelter’s lighting system flickered, followed by a series of muffled rumbles from above. The entire shelter began to tremble, as if the very planet beneath their feet had been shaken.

The piercing shriek of air-raid sirens instantly filled the shelter, and panic-stricken screams and cries erupted from the crowd.

Sergeant Jackson and the old veteran looked at the screen of the tactical tablet together. The sky above the Capital was now filled with dense clusters of red blips, and the lingering aftershocks of impacts could still be seen at higher altitudes.

“Well, not too bad. At least they didn’t crash directly onto the planet,” the old veteran said, a hint of relief in his tone.

But Sergeant Jackson had no time to respond. He pushed his way through the crowd to a suitable spot, activated the loudspeaker on his combat exoskeleton, and used his command interface to sync and activate the loudspeakers of his squad members.

“Stay calm! Everyone, remain calm!” Jackson’s voice cut through the clamor. “It’s just debris from the defense platform falling into the atmosphere! We are safe here!”

His words had a somewhat calming effect, but a strange sense of panic continued to spread. Not everyone could regain their composure so quickly.

Looking at the terrified civilians in the shelter, Jackson couldn’t help but smile wryly. How many of them were former high-ranking officials, board members of the military-industrial complex, or the backbone of the Federation government?

Once, they had looked down upon the masses from the towering skyscrapers and luxurious apartments of this city. Now, they were huddled together, trembling in a subterranean shelter just like the most ordinary citizens, showing no trace of their former elite status.

With the combined efforts of Sergeant Jackson and his soldiers, the shelter gradually quieted down. However, most people just squatted or sat on the floor, terrified, their hands clutching their heads as they trembled uncontrollably.

“Sergeant, what’s the situation?” A Captain in a combat exoskeleton walked up to Jackson and asked in a low voice. He was the temporary commander of this shelter.

“The alarm for debris entering the atmosphere caused a panic, but we’ve mostly calmed them down. It should be fine for a while,” Jackson answered succinctly.

“Good, but this is just the beginning. Leave some soldiers to maintain order. Have the rest prepare for combat. The enemy will likely be preparing for an airborne assault.”

Sergeant Jackson nodded, then touched his arm to the Captain’s, quickly transferring a data file point-to-point.

“Personnel assignments were completed as soon as we received the order. Here is the troop manifest for my unit in this shelter—my platoon has forty-three men remaining, all combat-ready. While guiding civilians just now, we also accepted twelve reservists and forty-two retired soldiers who volunteered to fight.”

The Captain was taken aback for a moment but said nothing more, simply asking, “Equipment status?”

“Only basic model combat exoskeletons and standard electromagnetic rifles, various light arms, and sufficient squad-level heavy weapons. Ammunition and energy supplies are adequate. Our issued gear is fine, but the equipment for the reservists and retired soldiers is of older models and production dates.”

The Captain sighed upon hearing this, then looked at the soldiers who had begun to assemble around Sergeant Jackson. “It’s enough. We’re not hoping to win anymore. We just need to make them pay a price.”

Jackson looked around at the soldiers who were already geared up or making final preparations.

Among them were new recruits fresh from assignment, reservists, and old veterans who had fought bloody battles in other star systems and were sent back to the rear to rest and idle away their time until retirement. There were even some old soldiers who had been retired for years—the old veteran who had spoken with Jackson earlier was among them, having rallied the other retired soldiers himself.

Most of them were citizens of the Capital star system, born into privilege. They had enjoyed the Federation’s best resources and welfare since childhood. Unlike the colonists of the fringe star systems, these people felt a true sense of belonging and loyalty to the Federation.

“Prepare to move out. Your unit will proceed as planned. Set up defensive positions in D3 Sector after leaving the shelter.”

After giving the order, the Captain went to contact other units. Only Jackson’s unit, which was with him, could receive orders in person; the others were scattered among different shelters.

Jackson nodded and walked toward the center of the shelter, where the soldiers and volunteer reservists and veterans were assembling.

They checked their equipment and calibrated their weapons, making final preparations for the battle to come. Even though they knew this was likely a fight they couldn’t win, the eyes of everyone who stepped forward now held nothing but grim determination.

“Look at these old men, called up by me to ‘protect our homes and defend our country’ at their age.”

The retired soldier who had been talking to Jackson walked over to his side. “You know, I never thought I’d be back on a battlefield, especially not right on my own doorstep.”

Jackson nodded. “Sir, I never thought my military career would end this way either.”

The old veteran smiled and clapped Jackson on the shoulder. “Maybe it’s not the end, young man. Maybe it’s a new beginning.”

An hour later, five fleets of the Renaissance Alliance successively warped to the vicinity of the Federation’s capital planet, according to their predetermined plan.

On the bridge of the Grand Flagship, The Alliance, the atmosphere was tense yet excited, seemingly unaffected by their previous battlefield losses.

“All fleets, deploy. Fifth and Sixth Fleets will provide screening and engage enemy remnants. Seventh Fleet will dispatch two task forces to suppress the surfaces of the two moons! The remaining fleets will prepare for landing operations!” a young Renaissance Alliance Fleet Commander ordered. “Target: the Federation capital planet!”

“Acknowledged!”

“Long live the Renaissance Alliance!”

The communication channels erupted. The prospect of the final battle had thrown everyone into a state of frenzy.

Meanwhile, at a position fifteen minutes’ warp-distance from the capital planet, Vice Admiral Kane’s garrison fleet waited in silent running. Their engines were at minimum power, and all non-essential systems were shut down to avoid detection by the enemy’s long-range sensors.

Into the silence, the voice of the Tactical Information Coordinator rang out.

“Sir, we’ve received emergency signals from the ground stations on Capital Satellite One and Capital Satellite Two! The stations are being suppressed by the Renaissance Alliance fleet and are about to fall, but they’ve transmitted the precise coordinates of the enemy fleet!”

Vice Admiral Kane shot to his feet and walked to the holographic projection platform. “Display the coordinates on the tactical star map!”

Soon, the tactical star map showed the current deployment of the Renaissance Alliance fleet. The five fleets were still in a rough formation. From this simple information, Vice Admiral Kane quickly deduced their general deployment.

“Navigator, set warp coordinates.”

“Yes, General! Specific location?”

A cold smile graced Kane’s lips. “Jump right in their faces.”

The Navigator didn’t understand for a moment. “General?”

“You heard me,” Kane’s voice was low and firm. “Calculate the central point of the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet’s main cluster. We are warping directly into the middle of their fleet.”

Silence fell on the bridge. Everyone understood what this meant—it was a suicide attack.

But no one objected, because they also understood that this was the Federation Navy’s final counterattack.

“Coordinates set. All ships have received synchronized warp commands and coordinates!” the Navigator finally reported.

Kane nodded, then looked around at every person on the bridge, perhaps the last faces he would ever see.

“Gentlemen, it has been my honor to serve with you until the final moment of the Federation! No matter what happens today, history will remember our courage!”

“For the Federation!” the officers on the bridge responded in unison.

“Warp countdown, five, four, three, two, one—fleet entering warp!”

Near the orbit of the capital planet, the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet was preparing to shift into planetary landing formation and begin descending.

But at that very instant, a dense cluster of white light erupted almost in the center of their formation.

The two garrison fleets’ warships had warped directly inside the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet. The distance was so close that several warships appeared in a state of near-physical contact.

“Enemy attack! Enemy attack!”

Chaos immediately engulfed the fleet. Some warships executed emergency evasion maneuvers due to the sudden appearance of the garrison fleet, causing them to collide with their own ships. Many more were thrown into a chaotic melee of close-quarters combat.

Vice Admiral Kane stood in the center of his bridge, the panoramic viewscreen around him filled with red target boxes representing enemy warships. He opened the fleet-wide communication channel, and his voice echoed across the bridge, power compartments, and hangars of every ship in the garrison fleet:

“All fleets, listen up! This is our final battle! There is no retreat, no surrender! Every ship, every soldier, attack with all your might! The honor of the Federation Navy will not die in our hands!”

His words were like a switch being flipped. The next moment, the warships of the garrison fleet launched a ferocious assault like cornered beasts.

Their main cannons fired at full power, launching missiles and plasma torpedoes. There was no formation, no coordinated salvo command; every warship was using every weapons system to attack the enemies surrounding it.

At the same time, the launch bay doors on the warships flew open, and electromagnetic catapults flung HCP after HCP into space.

These HCPs were mounted with unprecedented weapons payloads, because every pilot knew this would be their final sortie. They would have no chance to return to their mother ships for resupply.

“Red Team, Blue Team, with me!” an HCP commander from the garrison fleet shouted over the comms. “Target is the enemy flagship! Punch through!”

HCP after HCP began to accelerate, their back-mounted thruster arrays tracing beautiful arcs in the vacuum as they sped toward the Renaissance Alliance’s Grand Flagship, The Alliance.

The Renaissance Alliance fleet commanders were completely stunned by this suicidal assault. They had expected the garrison fleet to resist, but they never imagined they would jump directly into the heart of their fleet in such a manner.

This was clearly a different Federation Navy from the ones they had previously encountered. Not only were they not the “cadre units” the Capital Garrison Fleet was rumored to be, but they fought with a ferocity that surpassed any other Federation Navy unit.

“Third Task Force is taking heavy damage!”

“Second Task Force reports three battleships severely damaged!”

“Attention all anti-aircraft commanders! Enemy HCPs have broken through our first line of defense and are approaching the flagship!”

“Dammit! Why aren’t the other fleets coming to support us!”

Alarms blared across the ships of the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet. Commanders frantically issued emergency orders, trying to survive the enemy’s rush-attack.

But at this moment, the other fleets, aside from the First, were all trying to pull away.

No one wanted to be the unlucky one caught in the fray. In this final decisive battle, suffering excessive losses would directly affect their say when it came time to take a piece of the pie after the war. Sound familiar?

On the other side, The Loyalist, commanded by Vice Admiral Kane, was leading several capital ships like an arrow piercing the enemy horde. Its hull was already scarred, its armor pierced and torn in multiple places, but it continued its charge at an astonishing speed.

In this region of space, countless energy beams and missile trails crisscrossed, creating a magnificent and terrifying tableau of war.

One after another, the garrison fleet’s warships exploded and disintegrated, but each one inflicted as much damage as possible in its final moments.

Many HCP pilots, when their units were severely damaged or unable to continue fighting, ultimately made the same choice. They rammed their mechs directly into the rear of the nearest Renaissance Alliance warship, then unhesitatingly activated the HCP’s self-destruct protocol. The ensuing explosion from the subcritical reactor and superconducting batteries became their final image in this world.

As the battle reached a fever pitch, the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet was completely scattered, each ship fighting for itself.

Although the garrison fleet had suffered grievous losses, the localized numerical superiority created by their two fleets, combined with their rush-attack tactic, gave them the momentum to seemingly devour the entire Renaissance Alliance fleet.

“General! Half of the main cannons are overheating and cannot continue firing. Hull damage is critical, sixty percent of the outer armor plating has been lost. The damage control teams report they can no longer make repairs!”

Vice Admiral Kane looked at the dwindling friendly forces icons on the tactical screen and nodded. “It’s enough. We have completed our mission. Now, let us complete our final charge!”

He walked over to the Helmsman, took his place, and personally piloted The Loyalist, setting a course for the flagship of the Renaissance Alliance First Fleet.

Which was also the Grand Flagship of the entire Renaissance Alliance.

The Kraken II-class battleship began its final acceleration. The sound of groaning metal from all over the hull seemed to be its final cry. As he watched the enemy ship rapidly grow larger before him, Vice Admiral Kane felt a strange sense of calm.

“For the Federation,” he said softly.

Then, several beams of deep purple laser fire from the distance struck The Loyalist with precision. Amid a continuous series of explosions across its hull, the last flagship of the Federation Navy disintegrated on its final charge.

Chapter 775: The End of Hegemony

Just over ten seconds ago, in the region of space occupied by the Atlas Group combat fleet.

At the forefront of the fleet formation, several Starlight-class battlecruisers—the ‘Spectral Annihilators’—hung silently in the darkness of space.

Their hulls, designed by Salieh to be narrow and slender, were like sharp blades slicing through the night sky, reflecting the cold light of the distant star. According to her, the design incorporated a certain ‘Forerunner’ aesthetic.

On the bridge of one such Starlight-class battlecruiser, the holographic projection platform displayed a tactical star map that clearly showed the entire battlefield. The fierce entanglement between the Federation garrison fleet and the Renaissance Alliance’s First Fleet made the hundreds of warships on both sides seem as though they were locked in a dance of death.

“Main cannon locked on target: Federation Navy garrison fleet flagship, The Loyalist.”

The operations staff officer’s voice was calm as he relayed the relevant information to the various posts that needed to coordinate.

“Lock confirmed,” responded the gunnery chief upon receiving the information. “Target is charging the Renaissance Alliance flagship, The Alliance, at maximum acceleration. Estimated time to impact: thirty seconds! Quantum Fusion Reactor at full power. Spectral Annihilator high-energy laser cannon preheating complete, awaiting firing command.”

Under Amber’s authorization, Guterres, the commander of the Atlas Group combat fleet, gave a slight nod. His gaze swept over the tactical screen, focusing on The Loyalist as it accelerated in its charge.

The warship, once the command vessel of a colleague, was now scarred and battered, resembling a gargantuan beast in its death throes, stubbornly racing toward its chosen end.

“Commence firing,” Guterres ordered calmly.

The attack order from the flagship was transmitted via tactical laser communications to the Starlight-class battlecruisers at the vanguard, which were tasked with executing the strike. Six vessels activated their main cannons simultaneously.

From their firing positions one hundred thousand kilometers away, deep purple beams of high-energy laser pierced the silent space. Like the scythe of the Grim Reaper streaking across the night sky, they struck The Loyalist’s critical nodes with pinpoint accuracy.

In that instant, the flagship—a symbol of the Federation Navy’s last glory and the Federation’s final act of resistance—disintegrated in the cold vacuum of space.

A massive, silent explosion bloomed in the void, sending fragments of the hull scattering in all directions in a brilliant yet soundless spectacle.

“Firing complete. Target disintegration confirmed!” the gunnery chief reported, his voice devoid of any emotion. He didn’t share Guterres’s sentiments; for him, this was just another firing procedure, no different from target practice.

Receive orders, execute them with one hundred percent completion, make no mistakes, and secure this month’s performance targets to qualify for a good review.

As for letting the Federation Navy have its final moment of glory?

In the gunnery chief’s eyes, that was nothing compared to the raise in his allowance and annual performance bonus he would get from a good review.

This was, more or less, the mindset of most members of the Atlas Group’s combat forces. They were all cogs in the vast machine of this universal megacorporation. Doing their jobs and receiving commensurate pay was more than enough.

On the bridge of the Endless-class super-flagship, The Dawn, Amber watched the entire long-range attack unfold through the panoramic viewscreen and the magnified image on the main screen.

Beside him, with an expression of utter shock, was Norton II, who had just witnessed the attack that spanned one hundred thousand kilometers.

The former Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire, now the ‘senior advisor for Imperial Affairs,’ had clearly never seen such an attack method before. Noticing his astonishment, Amber said with a smile:

“Advisor, no need to be so surprised. This was just a routine long-range attack. We’ve previously initiated strikes from a distance of one light-second.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Norton II fell silent for a moment before speaking slowly. “Now I completely understand why Agnes wanted a marriage alliance with you. That wasn’t an investment or a gamble at all. It was a pure and massive gain.”

“You flatter me, Advisor,” Amber shamelessly accepted the latter’s acknowledgment of Atlas’s power.

“Boss,” Norton II now used this title for Amber quite naturally, having adapted well to his new identity. “I’m curious, why not let the two flagships collide? With your… strategic vision, wouldn’t a situation where the Renaissance Alliance and the Federation both suffer heavy losses be more advantageous for the Atlas Group?”

Hearing Norton II’s question, Amber sighed softly, his gaze still fixed on the chaotic melee unfolding on the tactical star map.

“Under normal circumstances, Advisor, I would indeed be happy to watch them perish together,” Amber said, turning to face the ‘Imperial’ who had volunteered to accompany him. “But the problem is, the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet is far less competent than they claim to be.”

He reached out and tapped the tactical screen, enlarging several combat zones. “Look here. Their fleet formation is chaotic, their chain of command is broken, and they’re all fighting for themselves. If the Grand Flagship were to be destroyed under these circumstances, the entire battle could collapse.”

Norton II, lacking a deep understanding of the Renaissance Alliance, hadn’t considered this angle. He listened to Amber’s words with a contemplative look.

Amber continued, “At that point, the Atlas Group would have to shift from ‘fire support’ to charging in to ‘stabilize the front.’ The latter comes with significantly higher risks and losses, which does not align with the interests of the group or myself.”

Norton II nodded thoughtfully, a hint of admiration in his eyes. “Mr. Amber’s shrewd, business-like calculations are, as always, impressive.”

Amber looked speechlessly at the ‘former Regent Prince’ who had insisted on coming along.

Thanks to Norton II, he had witnessed for the first time how an elderly Imperial could “pester relentlessly.” Faced with Norton II’s determination to become ‘the first Imperial to set foot on the Federation’s capital,’ Amber had finally given up on his plan to leave him at the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress with Regalia Fortress and had brought him along for today’s battle instead.

“Guterres, continue the fire support mission. Maintain the current rate of fire and prioritize Federation capital ships around the First Fleet’s vessels.”

“Yes, Boss.”

As the Atlas Group’s fleet began to engage, the situation in orbit gradually stabilized.

The twenty ‘Spectral Annihilators’ they had managed to crank out had become the main force in the early stages of this battle. Under Guterres’s direction, they formed pairs, constantly repositioning in deep space to precisely snipe the capital ships of the Federation garrison fleet.

Each time a laser beam streaked across space, it signified the fall of a Federation warship.

This long-range fire support did indeed greatly alleviate the pressure on the First Fleet, but it didn’t mean the crisis was over.

The two garrison fleets were still locked in a death grip with the Renaissance Alliance’s First Fleet, launching wave after wave of attacks with an almost crazed determination.

On the bridge of The Alliance, the First Fleet’s commander’s expression had shifted from initial panic to fury.

He stared at the distant Atlas warships on the tactical screen and ordered through gritted teeth, “Get me the Atlas fleet! Now!”

The communication channel was quickly established. The Atlas fleet’s liaison officer appeared on the screen, his expression calm, as if this battle had nothing to do with him.

Seeing his demeanor, the Renaissance Alliance commander grew even more incensed. He couldn’t believe Atlas hadn’t even sent someone of rank to liaise with him, just this mere liaison officer.

“Renaissance Alliance First Fleet requests emergency support!” the commander practically roared. “We need more fire support! We need you to move closer to the battlefield!”

The liaison officer’s expression remained unchanged. “The Atlas fleet is approaching from a distance of one hundred thousand kilometers. However, at this range, only the twenty battlecruisers can provide fire support. Please remain calm. We will provide as much assistance as possible.”

“Remain calm?” The commander’s face contorted with rage. “Are you fucking kidding me? We’re being annihilated! Without more support, the First Fleet’s entire structure could be shattered! Why are you so far away? Are you deliberately avoiding the fight?”

A cold glint flashed in the liaison officer’s eyes on the screen, and a dismissive smirk curled his lips.

“With all due respect, Commander of the Renaissance Alliance, the Atlas combat fleet’s position was arranged by your side during the pre-battle conference. If I recall correctly, you were afraid we would ‘steal the spotlight’ in the decisive battle, which is why you deployed us so far away, euphemistically calling it long-range fire support and… what was it? Ah, yes, an ‘ace up your sleeve.’ And now you’re making a false counter-charge?”

The liaison officer paused, his tone filled with ‘sincere’ advice. “Perhaps you should ask the other, closer Renaissance Alliance fleets to support you? After all, compared to a partner like us, they are your true friendly forces, are they not?”

The communication channel was abruptly cut, leaving the First Fleet commander’s face, twisted with rage, frozen in the air.

On the bridge of The Dawn, Norton II silently watched it all unfold, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“The Federation is just as I imagined,” he said softly, his gaze sweeping over the chaotic trajectories of the warships on the tactical screen. “Even this so-called ‘revolutionary’ Renaissance Alliance within it is no different.”

Amber shook his head slightly, a complex look in his eyes.

“All crows under the sun are black, Advisor,” he said, his voice calm but tinged with weariness. “Without correct theoretical guidance and a leader who never forgets their original mission and possesses an iron fist, an organization like this can easily become corrupted during the revolutionary process.”

Norton II raised an eyebrow. “That sounds like you’ve had a similar experience?”

Amber didn’t answer, merely turning back to the tactical screen to continue observing the battle’s development.

As the Atlas Group’s fleet continued to apply pressure, the Federation garrison fleet’s offensive began to wane. The advantage in numbers gradually became apparent.

“Mark the remaining Federation capital ships,” Guterres continued to direct. “Prioritize targeting the larger vessels that still have combat capability, especially those attempting to approach the Renaissance Alliance flagship.”

On the tactical screen, the number of Federation garrison fleet ships was decreasing at a visible rate, yet every attack they launched was carried out with a near-suicidal frenzy.

This was the counterattack of the desperate. They no longer cared for their own survival, seeking only to take as many enemies with them as possible in their final moments.

“Federation garrison fleet losses have exceeded seventy percent!” the Tactical Information Coordinator reported. “However, the First Fleet has also lost nearly forty percent of its ships, including three battleships and seven heavy cruisers.”

“Any movement from the other Renaissance Alliance fleets?” Amber asked.

“The Second and Seventh Fleets are providing support. The Fifth and Sixth Fleets are also firing. However, they are approaching our position, but very slowly. It seems they are…” The intelligence officer paused, as if searching for the right words, “…waiting for the situation to become clear.”

Amber sneered. “Waiting to pick up the spoils.”

Even Norton II couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh at the sight. “How ironic. The Federation’s last defenders, whom no one had any faith in, are showing more courage than those shouting revolutionary slogans.”

Amber nodded without refuting the point. He watched the Federation warships that were still fighting tenaciously, a complex emotion in his eyes. Even as an enemy, their spirit of not giving up in the face of a hopeless situation deserved respect.

Norton II, however, was clearly thinking further. His eyes shone with curiosity. “I’m curious, Boss. After the Federation is gone, what will the Renaissance Alliance become? Their current behavior is already almost indistinguishable from the Old Federation they denounce.”

Amber was silent for a moment, then he looked up, his gaze piercing through the panoramic viewscreen, as if he could see the blue and white planet in the distance.

“The revolution will not end, Advisor.”

His voice was low and firm. “When a revolution betrays its original purpose, a new one will follow in its wake. History never stops; it only continues to advance in different forms.”

Norton II smiled. “That sounds like some kind of prophecy. Boss, are you implying that the Atlas Group has plans?”

Amber didn’t answer directly, and seeing this, Norton II didn’t press further. After all, by staying at Amber’s side, everything would eventually become clear.

On the battlefield, under the continuous fire support from the Atlas Group and other Renaissance Alliance fleets, the resistance of the Federation garrison fleet was gradually weakening. The Renaissance Alliance’s First Fleet finally had a chance to breathe and began to regroup.

“Their fighting spirit is starting to waver, Boss,” Guterres reported. “They aren’t made of iron, after all. Ships from the garrison fleet have begun to surrender. I estimate the battle in orbit will be over soon.”

Amber nodded. “Continue to maintain fire-suppression. Once the battlefield is secure, we’ll assess the situation first. No need to rush the landing.”

“Understood, Boss!”

Soon, as the last few Federation warships either surrendered or were sunk, the decisive space battle between the Renaissance Alliance and the Federation finally drew to a close.

The surviving ships of the Renaissance Alliance’s First Fleet began to assemble, and the other fleets arrived one after another to ‘provide support.’ The entire orbit gradually fell under the control of the Renaissance Alliance fleets.

Norton II stood before the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen, gazing at the distant blue and white planet. It looked so peaceful, as if all that had just happened had never occurred.

“Twelve ice crystals and a single fleet battle to end the reign of a hegemon, with a new flag poised to rise,” Norton II mused softly. “And yet the Empire threw everything it had and couldn’t even conquer half their territory…”

Amber walked over to his side, and together they looked at the planet that was about to welcome a new master.

“It’s still early, Advisor. It remains to be seen what flag will be raised in the end.”

Chapter 776: That’s One Small Step for Me, One Giant Leap for the Empire

On the bridge of the Renaissance Alliance’s flagship, The Alliance, the Commander-in-Chief of the fleet stared expressionlessly at the tactical star map.

The Federation garrison fleet’s final counterattack had been utterly crushed. The wreckage scattered across orbit was like a field of shattered tombstones, a silent testament to the battle’s ferocity.

“Commence the landing operation. All units will proceed according to the established plan.” His voice was cold and emotionless; the garrison fleet’s desperate last stand had clearly exhausted what little patience he had.

The order from the flagship spread through the entire fleet like ripples from a stone tossed into a calm lake.

Five combat fleets, comprising nearly five hundred heavy orbital assault ships, began to adjust their positions and lower their orbits, preparing for the pre-landing fire preparation.

Meanwhile, a large number of massive aerospace transports had already begun lining up in the staging area, awaiting the command to enter the capital planet’s atmosphere.

After the orbital assault ships completed their ground suppression and dropped the first wave of orbital paratroopers to secure the area, these transports would deliver all kinds of heavy units—such as heavy multi-legged war machines, main battle tanks, and long-range artillery—to the surface.

On the bridge of The Dawn, not far from the capital planet, Amber, Norton II, and the others were watching everything unfold in real time.

On the main screen of the bridge, the Renaissance Alliance’s ship groups looked like alien predators from an old-school sci-fi movie, circling the blue and white planet. Hundreds of orbital assault ships had already completed their descent during this time.

“It seems the Renaissance Alliance doesn’t want to waste any time,” Amber said softly, his gaze sweeping over the constantly changing data on the screen. “They’re going for a quick and decisive victory.”

Norton II stood beside him. As an Imperial, the excitement on his face was hard to conceal. “Perhaps they want to end the fight before the Federation can organize an effective resistance?”

Amber shook his head. “No, I believe the Federation’s ground forces have been ready for a long time. While the Federation army on the capital planet isn’t massive, it’s by no means small. If they decide to make a stand, a conventional ground advance won’t be easy.”

As they spoke, a flicker of orange-red light appeared on the edge of the distant planet’s arc. The Renaissance Alliance’s orbital assault ships had begun their first round of bombardment, targeting Federation ground-based anti-air emplacements.

“Boss, it’s starting. They’re clearing obstacles in the landing zones.”

Guterres’s face appeared in a communication window. His voice was somewhat low, as it was clear that his mood, as a former Federation Navy officer, was completely different from Norton II’s.

The tactical star map refreshed with information from the scout ships. Dozens of marked orbital strikes fell like raindrops on the capital planet’s surface. Each strike was accompanied by a massive, violent firestorm on the ground. These strikes were concentrated on the outskirts of cities and at strategic locations, precisely dismantling the Federation’s anti-air systems.

At the same time, the surface of the capital planet was met with its own “meteor shower.” After the Orbital Defense Platforms were destroyed, a massive amount of debris began falling into the atmosphere at various angles and speeds. Friction with the atmosphere turned these high-speed objects into fiery meteors, illuminating the planet’s night sky.

“That debris…” Norton II frowned at the screen. “That’s not going to be easy for them to handle on the ground. Some of those pieces look quite large.”

Amber nodded. “Large enough to cause panic, heavy enough to cause localized disasters. But not enough to destroy the entire planet.”

“And that provides the perfect cover for the Renaissance Alliance,” Guterres added. “The Federation’s anti-air systems now have to deal with two threats simultaneously: the debris from the sky and the impending invasion force.”

Sure enough, just as Guterres made his assessment, the tactical star map quickly showed the Federation’s ground-based anti-air systems becoming active.

Optical images from the forward scout ships showed beams of light, rays, and missiles with trailing smoke launching into the sky, trying to shoot down the larger pieces of debris. But in doing so, they also revealed the locations of the ground-based anti-air emplacements.

“They’ve taken the bait,” Amber said. “The Renaissance Alliance’s combat fleet isn’t dumb enough to miss this opportunity.”

Just as he said, the Renaissance Alliance’s orbital assault ships quickly added the newly exposed anti-air sites to their target list. A few minutes later, several more rounds of even more intense orbital strikes rained down. The anti-air emplacements that had just opened fire were annihilated in explosions from the downpour of heavy anti-ground warheads.

With the collapse of the primary anti-air screen, the Renaissance Alliance’s landing operation officially began.

The opening salvo was countless drop pods being deployed. They used booster rockets to accelerate rapidly, then punched through the thin upper atmosphere, descending towards their designated landing zones.

The landing zones for these orbital paratroopers were carefully selected in open areas far from major cities, which both ensured a safe landing and facilitated troop assembly.

After seeing this, Norton II finally offered his evaluation. “At least their tactical planning is reasonably sound. Avoid the cities, establish a bridgehead in a safe area, and then advance on key targets instead of foolishly dropping directly into urban centers.”

Amber didn’t reply immediately, because he felt that the Renaissance Alliance’s landing had been far too smooth up to this point. The tactical screen showed that the first wave of their airborne troops had landed successfully, yet the defenders’ response was surprisingly slow.

Compared to the garrison fleet’s desperate counterattack earlier, this was clearly abnormal.

“Something’s wrong,” he finally said. “The Federation’s ground forces are reacting too slowly. Given their defensive systems and warning capabilities, it shouldn’t be like this. I’m sure they have the ability to launch a proactive attack and take out a good number of the lightly armed Alliance units that have landed.”

Guterres had noticed this as well. “Perhaps they’re executing some kind of plan? Or…”

“Or they’re waiting,” Amber finished, a gleam in his eye. “Waiting for the Renaissance Alliance’s forces to enter the cities.”

As time went on, the Renaissance Alliance’s advantage seemed to grow more and more apparent.

A continuous stream of troops and equipment descended from orbit, establishing solid footholds in several major landing zones.

Heavy armored units, mobile artillery, and other heavy forces quickly assembled, forming several powerful assault groups that began to advance toward major cities, including The Capital.

The initial advance was exceptionally smooth, meeting almost no organized resistance.

Unsurprisingly, the Renaissance Alliance’s high command was immersed in the joy of victory, believing the Federation forces had lost their will to fight.

However, this optimism did not last long and was soon shattered by reality.

Just as the assault forces in each region entered the outskirts of their target cities, a series of meticulously planned ambushes was launched almost simultaneously.

Federation soldiers hidden in buildings suddenly opened fire. Man-portable directed-energy weapons and anti-tank missiles shot out from windows and rooftops, accurately striking the Renaissance Alliance’s armored vehicles.

Crossfire suddenly erupted from both sides of the streets, sealing off retreat routes and trapping one vanguard unit after another in massive kill zones.

Upon receiving the synchronized battle report, an expression of understanding appeared on Amber’s face. “Street fighting. The Federation’s last stand.”

“If they fight like this, the Renaissance Alliance’s losses won’t be small,” Norton II remarked.

“Which is why they won’t continue like this. They’ll choose a safer method.”

“Boss, are you suggesting they’ll increase the intensity of the orbital bombardment?”

“To be precise, they’re about to begin unrestricted, indiscriminate strikes,” Amber sighed. Through his recent ‘enhanced cognition’ of the current Renaissance Alliance, Amber had gradually come to understand this force that had begun to degenerate.

To achieve final victory, there was nothing they wouldn’t do, especially against their enemies.

Just as Amber predicted, the Renaissance Alliance’s command soon realized the gravity of the situation.

It wasn’t just The Capital; almost every major city targeted for attack erupted in fierce resistance once the Renaissance Alliance forces entered.

The Federation army seemed to be fully prepared, using the complex urban terrain and buildings to set up countless ambush points and fire suppression zones.

You could say the entire planet had become a Stalingrad.

After multiple Renaissance Alliance tactical squads captured positions only to be taken out by wounded soldiers inside using explosives, or when damaged HCPs rushed out from the streets and detonated their own subcritical reactors, the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces finally broke.

“They’re insane! The enemy is using fucking suicide attacks! The streets are littered with explosives!”

On the tactical screen of the Renaissance Alliance’s Grand Flagship, The Alliance, the cities on the ground had turned into flesh-and-blood grinders.

Ground forces were unable to advance through the streets and building complexes. Every meter gained came at a horrific cost.

Federation soldiers used their familiarity with the cities to move between buildings, constantly changing positions to launch attacks before quickly disappearing into complex underground tunnels and structures.

“Order the orbital assault ships to increase strike intensity!” the Renaissance Alliance Commander-in-Chief’s order was transmitted through the tactical network. “I want every point of resistance destroyed!”

Hearing this decision, a young operations staff officer cautiously raised an objection. “Sir, such intense orbital strikes will cause irreversible damage to the cities and affect post-war reconstruction. Moreover, excessively fierce strikes might provoke the defenders and civilians to fight to the death.”

“Do you think we have time to drag this out?” the Commander-in-Chief roared, his voice so loud it was clearly audible to everyone on the bridge. “For every hour we delay, more of our people will die in these streets! I want this battle over as quickly as possible. Mr. Franklin wants to see the flag of the Renaissance Alliance flying over the roof of the Federation’s Presidential Palace!”

He turned to the communications officer. “Relay to all orbital assault ships: execute maximum firepower strikes on the areas with the staunchest resistance. Disregard the consequences!”

With this order given, the situation began to shift once again.

As the former ‘oppressed,’ the Renaissance Alliance had finally reached the moment to settle scores and take revenge on the ‘elite.’

The Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces halted their advance, even pulling out of the urban areas entirely. The orbital assault ships in low orbit began to fire continuously, round after round of orbital strikes far exceeding conventional limits falling upon the cities like Divine Punishment.

This was no longer a precise military strike, but utter destruction. Or perhaps, it was them venting their rage.

“This isn’t an act of war anymore,” Norton II said, his voice laced with complex emotions as he watched the areas on the screen being razed to the ground. “This is a pure massacre.”

Amber watched the screen in silence, not saying a word. He looked at the completely destroyed cities one by one, his thoughts unreadable.

On the outskirts of the cities, Renaissance Alliance soldiers waiting to advance watched as the areas ahead were flattened by orbital strikes, and different emotions stirred in each of their hearts.

Some cheered, believing it was righteous punishment for the high-and-mighty Federation rulers.

Others remained silent, beginning to question whether such destructive strikes still aligned with the ideals they had when they first joined the Renaissance Alliance.

One Renaissance Alliance soldier gazed at the burning city in the distance and said softly to his comrade beside him, “Do you remember why we fight?”

His comrade nodded. “To end the Federation’s oppression, for a more just society.”

“And now?” The soldier pointed at the sea of fire. “There are ordinary people in there, children. How is this any different from the tyranny we opposed?”

His comrade didn’t answer, merely adjusting his weapon in silence, preparing to follow the order to advance into the city at any moment.

Nearby, several men in Inspectorate Committee uniforms under their combat exoskeletons overheard the conversation and walked over to the soldier.

“Private, could you repeat what you just said?”

—

Under the Renaissance Alliance’s orbital bombardment, conducted without regard for cost or consequence, the subsequent advance into the cities became much smoother.

Most of the defending forces in the cities were wiped out in complete units by the orbital strikes. The few lucky survivors were no longer able to resist the invaders.

Putting aside their shattered morale in the face of such bombardment, the cities themselves, having been razed almost to the ground, could no longer provide them with cover.

So it wasn’t long before the Renaissance Alliance’s Ground Command began receiving battle reports from all frontlines, and this time, it was truly a stream of glad tidings.

Meanwhile, aboard The Dawn, Amber had also made a decision.

“I’m preparing to head down to the surface,” he said to Guterres. “You continue to monitor the Renaissance Alliance’s fleet.”

“Yes, Boss!”

Over an hour later, dozens of heavy aerospace transports bearing the Atlas Group’s livery detached from the fleet, entered the low orbit of the Federation’s capital planet, and, after receiving landing clearance from the Renaissance Alliance, began to descend toward a designated field airstrip.

When the heavy aerospace transports touched down and their bay doors slowly opened, Norton II, with Amber’s permission, stood at the very front of the group, barely able to contain his excitement.

As an Imperial, to be able to set foot on Federation territory, especially at this historic moment of the Federation’s impending demise, was incredibly significant for him.

“Patience, Mr. Advisor,” Amber said from behind him, making a rare joke in such a serious atmosphere. “History won’t be rewritten because you were late.”

Norton II nodded, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the gangway.

When his boot touched the soil of the Federation’s capital planet, he said solemnly, “That’s one small step for me, one giant leap for the Empire.”

Amber couldn’t help but laugh. “Mr. Advisor, why does that sound so familiar?”

“Great sentences are always similar,” Norton II replied without a trace of embarrassment, looking around and greedily breathing in the air of the Federation capital. “Besides, isn’t it fitting for this historic moment?”

Amber shook his head, urging the Imperial to keep up with the group. “Remember our agreement. Don’t reveal your identity. For now, you are just an ordinary advisor for the Atlas Group.”

Norton II nodded seriously, but the excitement in his eyes didn’t diminish in the slightest.

Amber contacted the fleet via his comm channel. “I’ve landed. You can begin deploying the follow-up forces and humanitarian supplies. Just stick to our own pace. Remember, these are extraordinary times, try to avoid conflict with the Renaissance Alliance.”

“Understood, Boss.” On the screen, Guterres and another Romu in charge of ground command nodded. The latter hesitated for a moment, then asked:

“Boss, what if conflict is unavoidable?”

“Do you even have to ask me?” Amber couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows. “Hit them back! Remember, the Atlas Group never takes a loss. If you run into something like that and still lose, how can you face me with a clear conscience?”

“Understood, Boss!” The Romu ground commander snapped a salute, his eyes filled with unconcealable delight.

Once the aerospace transports had quickly finished unloading, Amber and his entourage boarded the armored vehicles that had been brought down and set off in the direction of the Federation capital.

Along the way, they constantly saw Renaissance Alliance troops and equipment moving toward the frontline, as well as the destruction wrought by the war—burning buildings, bombed-out roads, and bodies everywhere.

There were soldiers, and there were civilians.

As the convoy went deeper, they began to see more signs of battle.

Some areas had been almost completely flattened, with only the skeletal remains of buildings and smoking craters left behind. Occasionally, they could see Renaissance Alliance soldiers searching through the ruins, their expressions wary and tense.

And as they approached the heart of the capital, the suspicion Amber had held was confirmed—the fighting was not over yet.

Despite the intense orbital bombardment, The Capital, being the most heavily defended location, still had a considerable amount of resistance. The sounds of gunfire and explosions in the distance proved that the battle was still ongoing, though its intensity had greatly diminished.

“It seems the Federation’s spirit of resistance hasn’t been completely broken,” Norton II said, observing the situation outside through the vehicle’s sensors. “Even in the face of such an overwhelming firepower disparity…”

“It’s not hard to understand, actually. When a person has nothing left to lose, they become fearless. The same is even more true for a country.”

Chapter 777: Assault on the Presidential Palace

Deafening explosions echoed over Placid Square in the Capital as dust and rubble rained down.

Sergeant Jackson was prone behind a collapsed wall. His combat faceplate had been damaged in the preceding fight, and without its air filtration system, his lungs burned from inhaling too much smoke and dust.

He quickly raised his head from the ground and scanned his surroundings through his backup goggles. Amidst the ruins, only thirteen soldiers were still holding their position.

“Morris, cover the left flank!” he yelled into the communications channel, his voice hoarse from dryness and exhaustion. “Lance, take two men and move to Point B. Prepare for the next wave!”

The old veteran who had fought alongside him—he now knew his name was Watson—was leaning against a teetering wall not far away. His entire lower body was gone, leaving only a mess of indistinguishable flesh and blood. Jackson remembered that just over an hour ago, it was this old veteran who had saved his entire platoon with a single sentence.

“Get your men to the shelter, now!”

At the time, Sergeant Jackson had been leading his soldiers in an ambush against a squad of Renaissance Alliance troops. Then, points of light began flashing continuously in the distant sky, heralding the arrival of a new orbital strike.

With swift reflexes, the old veteran, Watson, had grabbed Sergeant Jackson as he was about to charge toward their defensive position. He leaned in close and shouted, “Look at the distribution and rhythm of those lights! That’s not tactical support, it’s a full-scale bombardment! Fall back and ride this attack out!”

For some reason, Jackson had instinctively obeyed the command. He led his squad in a rapid retreat underground. The moment the shelter’s blast doors boomed shut behind them, the entire city block was engulfed by missiles from the orbital strike.

He had stood before the surveillance screen, watching it flash white before turning to static snow—the external cameras had been completely destroyed in the attack.

“We owe you one, Mr. Watson.”

As the shelter’s ceiling trembled from the impacts above, a shaken Sergeant Jackson said to the old veteran, “If it weren’t for you…”

“Don’t say that, kid,” Watson replied, his expression complicated. “I’ve just lived long enough to see my share of incoming missiles. That wave of orbital strikes was completely different from a preset tactical support pattern. That was a strike designed to level the entire area.”

The old veteran’s words still seemed to echo in Sergeant Jackson’s ears, but now, the man who had saved his entire platoon was leaning against a broken wall, the lower half of his body blown away.

Jackson wanted to go and retrieve his body but was forced back into cover by another explosion.

Fragmented calls crackled over the communications channel:

“Alpha-3 requires assistance! We’ve encountered heavy armored units on the east side of City Hall!”

“This is Delta-7, we’ve lost control of the line and are performing a tactical retreat…”

“The outer perimeter of the Presidential Palace is under attack! Repeat, the outer perimeter of the Presidential Palace is under attack! The enemy is pushing toward the Palace at all costs!”

Every message on the tactical communications channel felt like a hammer blow to Jackson’s chest. The Capital’s defensive lines were collapsing one by one, and their ad-hoc force of regular army soldiers, reservists, and old veterans was now just a handful of survivors clinging to life amidst the rubble.

Sergeant Jackson didn’t know how many units had managed to retreat back into underground shelters during that second orbital strike as they had. But judging by the way the defensive lines were now crumbling at the slightest touch, it seemed not every defending force had a veteran like Watson among them.

Boom!

A high-explosive grenade detonated nearby, shaking the ground.

Jackson quickly rolled to another piece of cover just in time to see three of his other young soldiers get caught in the line of fire from an enemy’s vehicle-mounted electromagnetic machine gun as they tried to relocate.

The silicon carbide armor plates on their combat exoskeletons held for only a few impacts under the concentrated fire before shattering completely. The ensuing hail of bullets tore their bodies apart.

“Dammit!”

Jackson gritted his teeth and quickly activated the squad’s communication channel.

“All units, listen up! Our position has been compromised! Move to the secondary defensive line!”

His soldiers who could still move acted swiftly upon hearing the order, but it was already too late to withdraw.

Sergeant Jackson watched the refreshed tactical overlay as Renaissance Alliance ground troops swarmed in from all directions like a tide. These “Revolutionary Army” soldiers were well-equipped, well-trained, and more importantly, they had the numbers to crush the defenders.

At that moment, Jackson knew there was no hope of winning this battle.

“Sergeant!”

The voice of one of his men, Morris, came through the comm channel. He and a team of soldiers had appeared in a building across the street from Jackson. Upon spotting him, they immediately prepared to dash across the street to join him.

But just then, a sudden sense of crisis washed over Jackson. He instantly activated his comms to stop them, but before he could speak, a blinding blue-white beam of light shot across the street, striking Morris’s position.

The power of the HCP’s heavy particle cannon completely obliterated the first floor of the building. Jackson only had time to see a momentary flash of light before Morris and the three comrades around him vanished as if they had never existed. Immediately after, the building, deprived of its ground-floor support, collapsed entirely.

Jackson hid behind a slanted concrete slab, forcing himself to remain silent.

He glanced in the old veteran Watson’s direction. The man was no longer moving, his head tilted slightly, eyes closed, as if he had finally found a peaceful sleep after a long battle.

On his command interface, his entire platoon was now listed as killed in action, including the reservists and the other old veterans.

“All resisting Federation forces, listen up!”

The Renaissance Alliance’s broadcast echoed across Placid Square. “You are completely surrounded! Continued resistance is futile and will only lead to senseless sacrifice! Lay down your weapons and surrender immediately, and you will be treated as prisoners of war!”

Hearing the message, Sergeant Jackson let out a cold smirk. He looked at his electromagnetic rifle; the magazine indicator showed only twenty-four steel flechettes left. If he used them sparingly, it was enough to take down three or four more enemies.

He then checked the multi-function launcher on his left shoulder. One last plasma grenade remained in the chamber.

“A glory bullet, huh.”

Just as Sergeant Jackson was contemplating how to use this “glory bullet” to take down enough enemies with him, a familiar voice suddenly came through the communication channel: “Sergeant Jackson, this is Captain Marshall. What’s your situation?”

It was the officer in charge of the underground shelter Jackson had been in earlier.

“I’m the only one left, Sir,” Jackson answered calmly. “Everyone else… was sacrificed.”

After a brief silence on the channel, Captain Marshall’s voice came again. “You’ve all done more than enough. Sergeant, I have one last order for you.”

“What is it, Sir?”

“Survive,” the Captain’s voice was unusually firm. “Surrender. At least you’ll live. Where there’s life, there’s hope…”

Jackson gripped his rifle tightly, hesitating.

In that moment, the faces of the comrades he had fought alongside flashed through his mind, as did the old veteran Watson’s weathered but still clear eyes, and the little girl in the shelter named Aileen.

“The battle is decided. There’s nothing more we can do to change it. There’s no need to be buried with this dying nation.”

“I understand, Sir.” Finally, Sergeant Jackson took a deep breath and lowered his weapon.

—

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Capital, the area around the Presidential Palace had been reduced to a field of ruins by the earlier orbital strikes.

Colonel Coleman, commander of the Renaissance Alliance’s vanguard, stood atop an armored command vehicle, watching with satisfaction as his troops moved through the wreckage of the Presidential Palace.

As a comrade who had fought alongside Franklin from Loubion V, he knew the significance of this moment.

For the various commanders of the Renaissance Alliance ground forces, being the first to lead troops into the Presidential Palace and plant the Alliance flag on its roof would be a monumental honor. It would also become significant political capital for their future promotions within the Alliance.

Thus, the assault on the Presidential Palace had quickly turned into a speedrun. Different units had even abandoned operational protocols, charging recklessly toward the palace, which meant they couldn’t spare the manpower to guard prisoners of war and civilians.

Faced with these “unstable elements,” the more conscientious commanders among the ground forces would round them up in a certain area and notify follow-up units to take them.

But if they happened to run into one of the more ruthless commanders… those prisoners of war and civilians would just become kill statistics.

“Faster!” Colonel Coleman roared into the communication channel.

“Clear the entrance to the underground fortress! We have to finish clearing them out before the other units arrive!”

In front of the armored command vehicle, several HCP units with their heavy particle cannons deployed were positioned at the edge of the palace ruins. Their cannons continuously bombarded the ground, with each shot vaporizing a large section of debris.

While crude, this method was the most efficient way to clear rubble on the current battlefield.

The surrounding infantry fanned out, working with other armored vehicles to vigilantly monitor the area. The counter-artillery and counter-sniper radars on the vehicles operated non-stop, guarding against potential enemy ambushes.

After receiving a report from his reconnaissance troops, Colonel Coleman’s gaze swept toward the end of the street behind him, where the vanguard of other Renaissance Alliance units could already be seen advancing in their direction.

He cursed and cranked up the pressure on the comm channel. “HCP units, speed it up! The other units are almost here!”

Just then, a detection unit on one of the HCPs sounded an alarm. The pilot’s voice rang out on the comms, and to Coleman, it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard.

“Sir, we’ve found an underground hollow structure! Coordinates marked!”

Chapter 778: The Death of Brandon

Colonel Coleman immediately gave the order: “All engineering vehicles, to that position! I want to see an underground entrance in two minutes!”

The engineering vehicles accompanying the column quickly assembled. Watching the vehicles rapidly clear the rubble, Coleman couldn’t help but reveal a self-satisfied smile.

He was glad he had brought these units, which had been a complete burden in the first half of the battle. Now, at this moment, they were finally proving their worth.

Soon, thanks to the efforts of the construction machinery, a deformed but still recognizable metal hatch was exposed to the sunlight.

The Presidential Palace’s underground fortress area was primarily a shelter and temporary command post; it wasn’t equipped to house large mechs. Therefore, this would be an indoor, close-quarters battle.

“Special Operations Team, prepare!”

Coleman commanded loudly, jumping down from the armored command vehicle and striding over.

“I want you to ensure our men are the first ones into the fortress! We absolutely cannot let other units be beaten to it!”

“Yes, Sir!”

A dozen or so seconds later, dozens of special operations soldiers with superior single-soldier combat equipment quickly assembled. They were clad in the latest model of light combat exoskeletons and, in addition to some standard individual weapons, were also equipped with the Atlas Group’s newly “stocked” single-soldier plasma cannons.

Squad leader Smith saluted Colonel Coleman: “Special Operations Team is ready, Sir!”

“Remember!” Coleman said sternly. “If you can take them alive, take them alive. Especially the high-level Federation officials! President Brandon and Minister of Defense Miller are the highest priority, then the others.”

Smith nodded. “Understood, Sir! But what if they resist?”

Coleman sneered. “Then just make sure their bodies are intact.”

The special operations soldiers exchanged glances. There was no fear on their faces; on the contrary, their eyes shone with excitement.

For these frontline soldiers, being the first to breach the underground fortress and capture the Federation President would be an honor worthy of being engraved on their tombstones.

Just as they were about to enter the underground fortress, a rumbling sound came from the distance—several Renaissance Alliance units were converging on the Presidential Palace from different directions.

Coleman instantly grew anxious. “Move, move, move! Go now! Don’t wait!”

After urging Smith to lead the team into action, Colonel Coleman called over his adjutant.

“Have the outer perimeter troops block the others. Tell them to detour in other directions and not to interfere with our operation!”

“Yes, Colonel!”

Meanwhile, Coleman’s Special Operations Team, along with a group of support infantry, quickly moved toward the entrance of the underground fortress. The combat engineers had managed to force open the deformed hatch in just a few minutes, revealing a pitch-black passageway. An eerie silence filled the air inside.

Smith lowered his tactical faceplate and spoke. “Activate thermal imaging and life sign scanning. Stay alert. This could very well be a trap.”

On his command, the Special Operations Team entered the passage following standard CQB procedures, advancing in pairs with alternating cover.

The resistance inside the underground fortress was far fiercer than Smith had imagined. They had advanced less than halfway before encountering fierce resistance from Secret Service agents and garrison forces in multiple locations.

Fortunately, their superiority in numbers and equipment allowed them to quickly suppress this resistance.

“Show no mercy to these Federation running dogs,” Smith said quietly over the comms channel. “Remember how they treated the people of our outer star systems.”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t hold back. I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.”

Responses from others came through the comms channel. Most of them had family or friends who had been persecuted by the Federation government, or had suffered due to the government’s oppression and inaction.

This was also one of the selection criteria for the Renaissance Alliance’s ground forces’ special operations teams. Basically, everyone who was selected had a deep-seated blood feud with the Federation government.

As Smith and his team pushed deeper into the underground fortress, the resistance they faced grew more intense.

In front of a room that resembled a conference hall, they encountered a defensive squad composed of Secret Service agents and a small number of garrison troops.

A fierce firefight broke out between the two sides. High-velocity steel flechettes zipped back and forth in the narrow space, striking walls and cover, throwing up sparks and sharp cracks.

Although Smith’s Special Operations Team had the upper hand in equipment and firepower, the Federation defenders were clearly familiar with the terrain, using various forms of cover to mount an effective counterattack.

“Dammit, they’re dug in too tight!” one of his soldiers shouted over the comms. Just as Smith was about to say something, a stream of steel flechettes swept over his head. If he hadn’t instinctively dropped to the ground, his head would have been torn apart.

“Fuck! Bring up the single-soldier plasma cannon! Blast those sons of bitches!”

Hearing his order, a team member in Powered Armor at the rear of the squad quickly moved up, a translucent cannon barrel extending from behind his right shoulder.

“Cover me!”

“Flashbangs, ready!”

Thump-thump-thump-thump!

The soldiers at the front quickly used their shoulder-mounted multi-function launchers to fire several flashbang grenades set to “airburst.” Due to the confined indoor space, the defenders had no time to intercept these “little toys” launched by electromagnetic acceleration.

With the detonation of several flashbangs, the Federation defenders, despite the protection of their tactical faceplates, temporarily lost their vision and sense of direction.

It was only for a second or two, but it was enough.

The special operations soldier with the single-soldier plasma cannon seized the opportunity, lunging out from behind cover. A flash emanated from the translucent barrel on his shoulder, and then a bolt of matter resembling ball lightning exploded in the room where the Federation defenders were located in the blink of an eye.

The soldier fired three consecutive shots, directly demolishing the outer wall of the conference room. When the smoke and dust cleared, all the Federation defenders had been taken down. The path to the conference room was finally clear.

“Keep moving! The President is just ahead! Brothers, it’s time to make our mark!”

Smith loudly encouraged the team, even though the exoskeleton on his own left arm had been damaged in the firefight. Not only was it unusable, but the combat suit and his arm underneath had been torn by shrapnel. Blood was dripping from his elbow.

As the Special Operations Team pushed deeper into the underground fortress, the infantry supporting them and clearing other areas began to send back reports: most of the defenders in other sectors had been eliminated, but there was still no sign of President Brandon or the others.

This discovery convinced Smith that the top Federation leadership must be in the command room at the very deepest part of the facility.

The Special Operations Team quickened its pace under his command. Before long, they had broken through to the final line of defense, where a heavy blast door blocked their path.

“Fernandez! Get up here and take a look! Can you crack this?” Smith turned to the team’s electronic warfare specialist.

The young soldier called Fernandez hurried forward. After examining the control panel and connecting a data cable from his arm for a moment, he shook his head with a difficult expression.

“It’s the highest level of security system, Sir. It requires multiple biometric authentications and passwords, likely the President’s. I can try, but I can’t guarantee success, especially with so little time.”

“Then let’s not waste any time!”

Smith certainly didn’t have that much time to spare. Although he knew his commanding officer, Colonel Coleman, would try to hold back other friendly forces, who knew what accidents might happen? These motley friendly units weren’t exactly easy to deal with.

“Demolitions team, listen up! Prepare explosive charges! We’re blowing it open!”

The demolitions team in the squad quickly moved forward. After scanning the door with the specialized equipment on their exoskeletons, they set up multi-point thermal cutters. It was clear that a heavy blast door like this couldn’t be opened with explosives alone.

“Ready! Everyone fall back to a safe distance!”

Not long after, the demolitions team fell back and reported loudly.

Smith led his team back around a corner. He took a deep breath, then ordered, “Begin the operation!”

Screeeee—

A piercing ablation sound, accompanied by flashing light and smoke, completely enveloped the area around the blast door.

As the sound of thermal cutting gradually faded, it was followed by a sudden explosion. The blast was magnified several times in the enclosed space, making it deafening.

A scorching shockwave mixed with debris blasted outwards in all directions. Even hiding around the corner, the special operations soldiers felt the impact.

When the dust and smoke had cleared slightly, they immediately saw that a large hole had been blown in the blast door. The surrounding walls were also cracked and collapsing.

Smith didn’t hesitate. He first emptied the grenades from his multi-function launcher into the room, then charged in with his electromagnetic rifle in one hand, firing bursts as he advanced.

“Surrender! Lay down your arms and you won’t be killed!”

Smith shouted, quickly gunning down a few defenders who had been knocked over by the blast and were now trying to raise their weapons to fight back.

Inside the command room, Brandon and Miller, both wearing combat exoskeletons, recovered from the explosion. They stood among a group of similarly armed agents. Upon seeing the Renaissance Alliance soldiers storming in, they raised their weapons without hesitation.

“Surrender?”

Brandon sneered, his voice a furious roar.

“You running dogs of the Renaissance Alliance, do you think I would bow to traitors like you?!”

Before he could finish his sentence, Brandon opened fire first. He sent a stream of steel flechettes sweeping toward the Renaissance Alliance soldiers’ line. The sudden attack caught the special operations soldiers off guard, and two or three of them were immediately cut down.

“Motherfucker! Open fire!”

Smith roared, and the Special Operations Team immediately returned fire with overwhelming firepower.

The final firefight lasted only a few short seconds.

Although Brandon and Miller were wearing combat exoskeletons, their lack of actual combat experience meant they were no match for professional soldiers in a direct gunfight. Brandon’s earlier “success” was purely due to catching them off guard.

After a few exchanges of fire, these two men who once stood at the pinnacle of the Federation’s power both fell into pools of their own blood.

With the deaths of Brandon and Miller, the remaining Federation soldiers and surviving officials completely lost the will to resist. One by one, they dropped their weapons and raised their hands.

Smith walked over to Brandon’s body and confirmed that he was dead.

The Federation President’s eyes were still open, filled with anger, unwillingness, and a barely perceptible trace of sorrow.

“Notify Colonel Coleman,” Smith reported through his comms channel. “The Presidential Palace underground fortress has been secured, but Brandon and Miller were killed in the firefight.”

Chapter 779: The Dragonslayer Will Become the Dragon

“Federation President Brandon and Minister of Defense Miller have been confirmed dead.”

Inside a command vehicle that had just left the Atlas Group’s temporary ground camp, Norton II stared at a briefing just synced from the Renaissance Alliance. He tapped his fingers absently against the vehicle’s interior wall, a trace of surprise on his face.

Amber noticed the change in the Advisor’s expression and glanced up.

“You look surprised?” Amber set a datapad aside. “The great President of the Federation, fallen at the guns of his attackers. Does that surprise you?”

Norton II looked away and shook his head slightly. “No, I just… I just didn’t expect it to be so fast, so simple.”

“Oh? What were you expecting?”

A faint smile played on Amber’s lips, his expression becoming intrigued.

“Something out of an old cliché movie? The president, trapped in his underground fortress, suddenly transforms into an invincible ace soldier, fights his way out through a river of blood, and escapes on a secret spaceship to some safe planet at the last second?”

Norton II waved his hand. “Of course I didn’t think that. It’s just… for the ruler of the Federation, who fought the Empire for so long, to die just like that… it seems too unceremonious.”

Amber chuckled softly, her gaze passing through the command vehicle’s viewport to the burning city in the distance.

“From the day chaos erupted across the Federation and the government could no longer suppress it, the countdown on Brandon’s life began.”

Amber’s voice was calm, like that of a narrator or an observer.

“The Renaissance Alliance’s appearance was merely a catalyst that accelerated the inevitable. The Federation’s recent series of misfortunes has perfectly illustrated the saying that the same water that carries the boat can also capsize it. Even without the Renaissance Alliance, organizations like a ‘Freedom Alliance’ or ‘Liberation Alliance’ would have naturally emerged to end all this.”

Norton II nodded thoughtfully, his fingers tracing the armrest of his seat, his eyes glinting with consideration.

“So, Boss, what do you think will become of the Federation after the Renaissance Alliance takes over?” He looked directly into Amber’s eyes. “Will it be better, or worse?”

Amber didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she asked, “Advisor, have you ever heard the saying, ‘He who slays the dragon becomes the evil dragon’?”

“Of course.” Norton II nodded, then suddenly understood. “Boss, you mean you’re not optimistic about the Renaissance Alliance? You think they’ll gradually become corrupt after seizing power?”

Amber shook her head, her gaze sharpening. “The Renaissance Alliance doesn’t need to wait until they control the Federation. They’re already corrupt. Haven’t you realized that from our experiences these past few days?”

“If you put it that way…”

Norton II suddenly laughed. “Their corruption is certainly faster than I expected. It took the Empire and the Federation decades, even centuries, to get to this point. But this Renaissance Alliance… it took them just a few dozen months to go from idealism to realism.”

Amber made a noncommittal gesture in response to Norton II’s words. She tapped a few times on the command vehicle’s console, pulling up the latest battlefield intelligence, and continued:

“Look at these ground reports. Renaissance Alliance units are already fighting each other for loot and credit. One unit has seized the Capital Garrison Forces’ Armory, another has secured the Central Bank’s vault, and a third is in the process of taking over the Federation Central Intelligence Agency…”

“The fighting isn’t even completely over, and they’re already starting to take a piece of the pie? That’s certainly rushing things…”

Norton II commented, then suddenly looked up at Amber.

“So, Boss, what role do we plan to play in this game?”

Hearing Norton II’s question, Amber didn’t answer directly, merely pulling up another report.

“One of our advance units, in coordination with airdropped support, has already taken control of several prisoner-of-war camps and established refugee assembly points to begin aiding local residents.”

“Humanitarian aid,” Norton II repeated the term meaningfully. “Only you, Boss, could do something like this with a straight face while openly screwing over your opponents.”

Amber shook her head. “You yourself said ‘openly,’ so how can it be ‘screwing them over’? This is an open conspiracy. An open conspiracy.”

In various parts of the city, the fighting was rapidly coming to an end due to President Brandon’s death.

For the Federation soldiers still resisting, the deaths of the President and the Minister of Defense were a hammer blow that shattered their last hope.

When word spread that the remaining senior Federation officials had been wiped out in one fell swoop, the will to fight collapsed for most. The Renaissance Alliance cleverly exploited this, parading out recently captured Federation officials and having them broadcast surrender appeals to the remaining defenders.

“Soldiers of the Federation, this is Minister of the Interior Williams. You have done more than enough. Continued resistance will only lead to more sacrifices. Please, lay down your arms and surrender…”

The trembling voices of the Minister of the Interior and other Federation government officials echoed through the ruins. The coercion in their tones was obvious, but in this situation, it only made them more persuasive.

At their urging, one garrison force unit after another emerged from the rubble, laid down their weapons, and walked out of their cover with their hands raised.

Sergeant Jackson was one of them. After surrendering to nearby Renaissance Alliance soldiers, he and other Federation prisoners were gathered in an open area on the east side of Placid Square.

From the chatter of the Renaissance Alliance soldiers around them, he learned they would be transferred to a temporary prisoner-of-war camp outside the city.

“Drop all your gear over there!” a Renaissance Alliance soldier, his combat exoskeleton smeared with blood and mud, commanded in a coarse voice. He kept his finger on the trigger of his electromagnetic rifle as he pointed it at them.

“Hurry up! Stop fucking dawdling! I’m running out of patience!”

Sergeant Jackson and the other Federation soldiers obediently removed their tactical faceplates, hit the quick-release on their combat exoskeletons, disconnected their weapon systems, and placed everything in the designated area.

When they were finished, the Renaissance Alliance soldier grinned maliciously.

“Now, take off your clothes! All of them!”

A few low chuckles rippled through the soldiers. Jackson shot his head up, staring at the man in disbelief.

But the other Renaissance Alliance soldiers nearby, far from stopping him, raised their weapons and repeated the order.

“You’re humiliating us!”

An older Federation officer protested loudly, only to be met with a heavy rifle butt that sent him staggering back.

“How do we know you’re not hiding bombs in your combat suits? What if some madman wanting to carry out a suicide attack has mixed in with the prisoners?”

The Renaissance Alliance soldiers raised their rifles higher, and their apparent leader spoke up. “Fine, I’ll be generous. You can keep your undergarments, but the combat suits have to come off! All of them!”

Under the threat of their captors, the captured Federation soldiers could only swallow their humiliation and strip off their combat suits. They were then herded together, shivering in the autumn wind.

Sergeant Jackson had been prepared to endure it all, to survive first and worry later, but what he saw next filled him with rage.

Not far from their line of prisoners, several severely wounded Federation POWs had been crudely piled together, with no one providing any medical attention.

A young soldier, shot in the abdomen, moaned continuously, his blood soaking through his combat suit. A Renaissance Alliance soldier had simply dragged him over like a corpse, as if he were already dead.

“They’re still alive!” Jackson couldn’t stop himself from shouting. “According to the Treaty of Pyla, you are obligated to treat prisoners of war!”

“The Treaty of Pyla?”

A Renaissance Alliance soldier strode over with a sneer, his voice distorted and menacing under his tactical faceplate.

“Where was your ‘Treaty of Pyla’ when you Federation dogs were rounding up our people and ‘dealing’ with prisoners and civilians who slowed you down?”

He swung his rifle butt viciously, striking Jackson hard in the ribs.

The sharp pain made Jackson double over, but he gritted his teeth and refused to fall, forcing himself to look straight at his tormentor.

“Not all Federation soldiers are like that,” he gasped in defiance. “We never mistreated any prisoners of war!”

“Shut up!”

The Renaissance Alliance soldier pressed the muzzle of his rifle against Jackson’s forehead, spitting the words through clenched teeth.

“Say one more word, and I’ll blow your brains out!”

Jackson felt the cold steel against his skin, but his fear had been replaced by anger and the dignity of a Federation soldier.

He slowly straightened up. Though his ribs ached so badly that every breath made him flinch, he stood tall, his gaze locked on the soldier’s eyes.

“If you’re going to kill me, then shoot.”

Sergeant Jackson’s voice was low and steady. “But that won’t change anything.”

After speaking these words, Sergeant Jackson felt an unprecedented calm. The fear of death had vanished the moment he led his unit out from the underground shelter.

Now, in his eyes, it was the Renaissance Alliance soldier opposite him who seemed tense and uneasy.

Inspired by his courage, the surrounding Federation soldiers began to stand up as well.

They said nothing, their silent, collective stand a more powerful protest than any shout.

Seeing this, the Renaissance Alliance soldiers grew visibly tense. Others who had been resting nearby hurried over, aiming their weapons at the group of standing prisoners.

Among them, Jackson saw a fanatical glint in some of their eyes—they seemed to be hoping for a more aggressive move from the prisoners, something that would give them an excuse to open fire.

The air crackled with a heat on the verge of eruption, as if a single spark could set off the whole powder keg.

Sergeant Jackson and the Federation soldiers around him knew that the next second could be the beginning of a massacre, but still they stood, their backs straight.

At this moment of swords drawn and bows bent, the roar of a mechanized unit advancing down a distant street drew everyone’s attention, including the Renaissance Alliance soldiers still aiming at the prisoners.

A unit with white-painted vehicles was rapidly approaching. The logo emblazoned on their equipment identified them—the ground forces of the Atlas Group.

A heavy armored infantry fighting vehicle at the head of the column slowed to a halt. The top hatch opened, and a ram-headed Romu emerged, his expression grim as he surveyed the scene.

“I am Aum, battalion commander of the Atlas Group Ground Forces, 12th Medical and Decontamination Battalion!” he announced through a loudspeaker in the common human tongue, his voice carrying clearly across the area. “Everyone remain calm! Do not provoke a bloody conflict!”

His gaze fell on the Renaissance Alliance soldiers. “According to the agreement between us and the Renaissance Alliance, this group of prisoners is now under the custody of the Atlas Group. You can focus your efforts elsewhere. We will handle matters here.”

The arrival of the Atlas Group forces immediately eased some of the tension—if only by redirecting the heat onto themselves.

A Renaissance Alliance officer, hearing Aum’s words, strode forward, his face a mask of clear displeasure. “Atlas? These are our prisoners! I’ve received no orders about a transfer!”

“That’s because the order was given to us directly from your Grand Flagship before the battle began.” Aum raised his wrist, projecting a document. “Here is the authorization, signed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Renaissance Alliance fleet and the Commander of the ground forces. If you have questions, you can contact your superior.”

The officer stared at the document, his expression shifting. As an officer of the Renaissance Alliance, he was well aware of the relationship between the Alliance and the Atlas Group. He also knew that Atlas’s ground forces had always been tasked with the ‘dirty work and hard labor’, like cleaning up battlefields and handling prisoners and refugees.

But at this critical juncture, their actions felt like a deliberate attempt to rescue these Federation POWs.

The officer was still hesitating when a confirmation order suddenly came through his comms channel. His face darkened, and he spat on the ground.

“Fine. Have it your way.” He turned to his men. “Let’s move out! Leave this mess to them. We’re going to take over the Communications Center!”

As he was about to leave, Jackson saw a flash of malice in his eyes. The officer suddenly spun around and kicked a severely wounded Federation soldier. “They’re about to die anyway. I suggest you don’t bother with them. Save your medicine!”

Aum’s eyes narrowed as he watched the man depart, but he said nothing. He had actually been waiting for the other party to make the first move, but it was clear the Renaissance Alliance soldiers had no desire to clash with them.

After the Renaissance Alliance troops left, Aum jumped down from the armored vehicle and walked toward Jackson and the other prisoners.

“Gentlemen, as you just heard, we are the Atlas Group’s ground forces. You are now in our custody.”

Aum’s voice was no longer harsh, but carried a tone of genuine concern.

“The wounded will receive immediate medical attention, and all of you will be treated humanely in accordance with the Treaty of Pyla.”

Hearing this, the Federation soldiers around him let out a collective sigh of relief. Some even squatted down and wept into their hands.

As Aum passed by, Jackson couldn’t help but ask a question, though the pain in his ribs made it difficult to speak.

“Sir, excuse me, why would the Atlas Group step in to take custody of POWs?”

Aum stopped and looked at the Federation soldier, then smiled. “Humanitarian aid. It’s how we’ve always operated. Per the Boss’s instructions, we will take in all prisoners and refugees, provide basic medical care and food, and ensure you can at least survive the days to come.”

With that, he turned and waved to the medical team disembarking behind him. “Triage the wounded, quickly! See if we can stabilize the critical ones first!”

The medical team moved out swiftly, professionally and efficiently sorting the injured. Sergeant Jackson saw the young soldier who had been kicked while lying in the ‘corpse pile’ being rushed onto a medical APC.

As an Atlas medic came to check Jackson’s injuries and began to treat his cracked ribs, Jackson asked in a low voice, “Uh, hello. I still don’t understand. Why is your boss doing this?”

The medic handed him a pain-relief spray and shrugged. “Who knows? The Boss’s thoughts aren’t that easy to guess. We’re just following orders. Besides, treating prisoners and refugees properly is our basic principle. Maybe the Boss just doesn’t want to see the places ravaged by war turn into slaughterhouses.”

Jackson nodded, not fully understanding, then administered the spray to himself. The intense pain immediately subsided.

He looked around and saw Atlas personnel methodically registering each prisoner and providing them with water and simple rations.

“Whatever the reason,” he thought to himself, “at least we’re alive.”

“Hey! Jackson!”

A voice suddenly called from behind him. Jackson turned to see Captain Marshall, the man who had ordered him to surrender, being carried on a stretcher. His face was pale, but he was conscious.

“Looks like you followed my orders and survived.”

Jackson nodded. “Yes, sir. We all survived.”

Chapter 780: So I Choose Not to Slay the Dragon

“We need to unload this shipment in five minutes! Move it!”

Aum’s voice echoed across the temporary refugee collection point. A squad of soldiers in white combat exoskeletons bearing the Atlas logo, assisted by Worker Bees, swiftly unloaded crates of medical supplies and food from the transport vehicles.

This was the third refugee point they had taken over today. The situation at the previous two had not been optimistic. Most of the civilians driven out of underground shelters were concentrated here. Once the numbers swelled, the consumption of drinking water, food, and medicine rose exponentially. Even solving the issue of restrooms for over a thousand people had taken considerable effort.

Managing large and complex groups of people, especially in collective activities, was never a simple task. Even with numerous contingency plans in place, things could easily go awry.

The Atlas Group had suffered its fair share of setbacks in this regard, but these lessons were quickly absorbed and used to update their protocols.

Moreover, compared to the area they had passed through earlier, which was controlled by the Renaissance Alliance, this place was practically a paradise.

After all, under Atlas’s supervision, these civilians didn’t have to worry about becoming targets for the ‘victors’ to vent their frustrations on in the next second.

“Squad leader, we have another situation.” An angry voice came through the communication channel. “West District, C7 grid. The Renaissance Alliance is driving away refugees again, claiming they need to requisition the area for military use.”

Aum’s ram’s head turned, a flicker of fury in his beastly eyes. He took a deep breath and clapped his adjutant on the shoulder. “Leave the rest of the work to Barrett. You, take the Guard platoon and come with me to the West District.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Along the way, Aum continuously saw similar reports from other units in other sectors on the integrated information channel—a Renaissance Alliance unit had stormed a medical station to drive out the wounded; another unit had injured resisting residents while searching their homes.

Some were even more outrageous, directly executing civilians on the street accused of being “Federation spies,” without even bothering to fabricate evidence.

“This is the seventeenth conflict today,” Aum’s adjutant—a Minotaur—said in a low voice. “Even within our assigned mission area, we’re short on manpower, let alone being able to support other friendly units.”

Aum thought for a moment, then finally gritted his teeth. “Even if we’re short-handed, we must do our best. We are all Romu. Ask yourself, in your heart, can you really sit by and watch this happen?”

Hearing Aum’s words, the Minotaur adjutant’s gaze became even more determined.

When Aum and his adjutant arrived in the West District with the Guard platoon in an armored infantry fighting vehicle, the situation had already escalated into a standoff.

A squad of Renaissance Alliance soldiers was driving away dozens of refugees with their weapons raised, while the small Atlas team responsible for the area had already shielded the refugees behind them. The two sides were at a tense impasse, swords drawn and bows bent.

“These people need to leave! This area has been requisitioned!” a Renaissance Alliance lieutenant shouted rudely. “Don’t interfere in our business, even if you are from the Atlas Group!”

Aum leaped from the vehicle and walked toward the center of the standoff. “According to the agreement signed with the Renaissance Alliance General Headquarters, this area is designated as a refugee settlement. Requisitioning it requires forty-eight hours’ advance notice and the provision of an alternative location.”

“What agreement? I haven’t received any goddamn notice!” the lieutenant roared.

“That is not our problem,” Aum’s voice was calm and firm. “Cease the expulsion immediately, or we will report this violation to your superiors.”

The lieutenant’s eyes narrowed, his finger caressing the trigger. “Who do you think you are? The Federation just fell, and you Atlas Group people already want to be the new masters?!”

The atmosphere instantly became extremely tense. Soldiers on both sides readied their weapons.

Aum could see the fanaticism dancing in the other man’s eyes—a look he had seen far too often recently and knew all too well.

It was the specific expression of people who had finally gained power after long-term oppression. They were desperate to make their former oppressors taste bitterness, even if their targets were innocent civilians.

“I’ll warn you one last time. The Atlas Group has zero tolerance for violations of the agreement.”

Aum deliberately raised his voice while signaling his adjutant to record the entire process. This was a principle Amber had often emphasized during inspections or reviews of the troops: “document everything.”

“As long as we’re not in the wrong, record the entire conflict. If it escalates to negotiations at the group level, we’ll have evidence.” Amber’s words seemed to echo once more in Aum’s ears.

Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate, the sound of heavy engines drew everyone’s attention. Three heavy armored vehicles slowly approached, their hulls painted with the Renaissance Alliance emblem.

When the lieutenant saw the person leaning out of the vehicle commander’s hatch, his expression changed, and he immediately saluted. “Colonel Dakes!”

The officer who disembarked from the armored vehicle surveyed the scene, his face grim. “I received a report of a conflict here. Looks like it’s true.”

Then he turned to the lieutenant, looking him up and down.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

The lieutenant straightened his back. “Sir, I’m carrying out orders to clear this area and prepare to set up a temporary command post.”

“Whose orders?” the colonel’s voice was devoid of any emotion.

The lieutenant was at a loss for words. “It was… the battalion commander said you issued the instruction.”

The colonel’s gaze swept over him like a blade. “I gave no such order.”

“Ah, this…”

Before the lieutenant could respond, Colonel Dakes looked at Aum and the identification plate on his chest armor. “Major Aum, I apologize for this unpleasant incident with your group. It seems someone acted on their own authority.”

Aum nodded. He knew it was just lip service, but it at least showed an attitude—the Renaissance Alliance high command did not want a direct confrontation with Atlas for the time being.

This also sent a message worthy of caution: there were still clever people within the Renaissance Alliance. They knew it was not yet time to completely fall out with the Atlas Group.

After the Renaissance Alliance lieutenant was led away, Aum watched Colonel Dakes leave, the unease in his heart not diminishing in the slightest.

“Report today’s incidents, especially this one,” he said to his adjutant. “We need to let the higher-ups know the situation is deteriorating.”

Amidst the ruins of the Federation Capital, sunlight shone on the broken walls, casting a strange scene interwoven with shadow and light.

Amber stood before the observation window of the command vehicle, his fingers gently tapping the sill as he gazed at the black smoke drifting over the city in the distance. The sound of reports coming through the communication channel was almost incessant.

On the other side of the command vehicle, Norton II sat leisurely with a cup of warm coffee in his hand. As the Advisor responsible for Empire affairs, he didn’t need to concern himself with these matters and found himself with time on his hands.

However, the former Regent Prince had already witnessed over a hundred similar conflict reports with Amber. Every time the Renaissance Alliance attempted to commit inhumane acts against prisoners of war or refugees, they were stopped by Atlas Group troops. Amber’s handling of these incidents made him thoughtful.

“Another conflict?” Norton II began. “The one hundred and twenty-seventh today, isn’t it? I thought the Renaissance Alliance people would quiet down a bit by evening.”

Amber shook his head, a wry smile on his lips. “Quite the opposite. Evening is the most dangerous time. After a whole day of fighting, when taut nerves relax, the beast deep within is most easily released.”

Norton II took a light sip of his coffee, his gaze burning as he watched Amber’s back. He had been observing the helmsman of the Atlas Group all day, and now he suddenly felt as if he had discovered something.

“I’ve noticed your troops seem to be old hands at this ‘humanitarian aid’.” Norton II put down his coffee cup. “Especially those Romu officers. Their level of professionalism in handling such matters makes one wonder if they were specially trained for it.”

Amber turned and leaned against the window. “For the Romu, it’s not just the result of training, but a continuation of their racial memory. As a race that was once on the brink of extinction, they have an innate sympathy for ‘survivors’.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the communicator chimed again. This time, it was the voice of the head of all ground forces.

“Boss, our people on Democracy Avenue just intercepted a squad of Renaissance Alliance soldiers preparing to ‘settle scores’ with the families of Federation officials. They were blind drunk, shouting about ‘making these high and mighty masters suffer.’ We stopped them, but…”

“Did it finally come to an exchange of fire?” Amber asked, his tone even holding a hint of anticipation.

“We had no other choice, Boss,” the ground forces commander’s voice was apologetic. “They fired first, shattering the armor plates of two of our team members. Our people then returned fire appropriately and disarmed them. They are now being held at a temporary detention point.”

Amber mused for a moment. “Inform the Renaissance Alliance ground command of the situation, but maintain our position—no form of illegal score-settling or retaliatory actions will be permitted in any area under our control.”

“Understood, Boss.”

After the communication ended, Norton II couldn’t help but chuckle. “How very interesting.”

Amber raised an eyebrow at him. “What’s interesting?”

“You’re interesting, Boss.”

Norton II looked directly into Amber’s eyes, like a scholar on the verge of discovering the ultimate answer.

“Or rather, your series of actions are very interesting. At first, I thought this was just a show by the Atlas Group to secure better bargaining chips after the war, but now…”

He stood up and walked to the tactical screen, which was marked with dozens of Atlas Group-controlled areas, each with detailed personnel rescue data and resource allocation information.

“I’m starting to believe that you are genuinely trying to prevent a catastrophe.” Norton II’s voice was laced with surprise. “This isn’t just for publicity, is it?”

Amber gave Norton II a deep look, then nodded. “You’re very perceptive, Mr. Advisor.”

Receiving Amber’s confirmation, Norton II’s gaze grew even sharper. “Then Boss, may I ask, what role is the Atlas Group truly playing in this conflict? Because from everything I’ve seen, you don’t seem to be true allies of the Renaissance Alliance. You don’t even seem like participants in this war. You’re more like…”

“An intervener and an observer?” Amber finished his sentence, a slight smile gracing his lips.

Norton II was slightly taken aback, then nodded in confirmation. “Exactly. The Atlas Group, or rather you yourself, Boss, are like an outside supervisor, monitoring every move the Renaissance Alliance makes. I’m even beginning to suspect that without the Atlas Group’s presence, this city might have already become a sea of blood.”

He paused, then continued, “You foresaw all this, didn’t you? You knew the Renaissance Alliance would begin these retaliatory actions after their victory, so you deployed this ‘humanitarian aid’ in advance, which is actually to prevent a large-scale massacre.”

Amber walked to the console and pulled up several sets of data. “Actually, the signs were there within the Renaissance Alliance since Loubion V. It’s just that their influence wasn’t large enough back then, and Franklin himself could quickly suppress it. But as time went on and these incidents increased, I knew that a tremendous amount of hatred existed within the Renaissance Alliance. Once that emotion finds an outlet, it will become uncontrollable.”

The screen displayed records of numerous similar incidents—in other star systems controlled by the Renaissance Alliance, violent settlings of scores against Federation officials and the wealthy class had occurred.

“So you used the pretense of ‘humanitarian aid’ to intervene in the final stages of this war,” Norton II had a sudden realization. “Earning a reputation for Atlas while actually preventing a disaster.”

Amber smiled faintly but didn’t respond directly. Norton II, however, suddenly grew serious. “But this is just the beginning, isn’t it? Your goal isn’t just to stop the immediate slaughter.”

“I’m curious, Mr. Advisor, what do you think the ultimate goal of the Atlas Group, or myself, is in doing all this?” Amber asked in return.

Norton II thought for a moment, then took a deep breath. “After this war, the Renaissance Alliance will inevitably become the new master of the Federation. But from everything we’ve seen today, they’ve already started to degenerate.”

As he spoke, he couldn’t help but shake his head with some regret, then looked back at Amber.

“The dragon slayer will eventually become the evil dragon. So, do you intend to replace them? Use the popular support you’ve gained to let the Atlas Group conveniently take over the Federation before the Renaissance Alliance becomes completely corrupt?”

Amber let out a soft laugh, then slowly walked to the tactical screen, his fingertips brushing over the flashing points of light, each one representing an Atlas Group operation point on the capital planet.

“I have no desire to become another dragon, Mr. Advisor,” Amber’s voice was low and firm. “Since ‘the dragon slayer will eventually become the evil dragon,’ why not try a whole new path?”

Norton II frowned. “What path?”

“This dragon… I won’t slay it. I’ll be a ‘Dragon Trapper’,” Amber said, turning to look directly into Norton II’s eyes. “Let the Renaissance Alliance control the Federation, but have the Atlas Group monitor them from behind, becoming that invisible balancing force.”

Norton II froze on the spot, a flicker of shock in his eyes. “This…”

His voice trailed off, as if he couldn’t process the concept for a moment. He then slowly sank back into his chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest, his brow tightly furrowed.

Amber gave him time to think and turned back to observe the cityscape outside the window.

“Not slaying the dragon, but trapping it…” Norton II murmured, his voice carrying the impact of an epiphany. “This is a perspective I’ve never considered.”

He shot up from his seat and walked over to Amber, continuing as if talking to himself, “Human history always seems to repeat a cycle—the old rulers become corrupt and are overthrown, and then the new revolutionaries gradually become what they once hated, like an unbreakable curse.”

Amber nodded. “Exactly. Countless great people have tried to solve this problem, but none have ever found the answer. Because the essence of the problem is that it happens in human society, and humanity has its flaws. When power is concentrated in any one organization or individual, corruption is basically inevitable. It’s just a matter of when it arrives.”

The light in Norton II’s eyes brightened. “And your solution is to let a seemingly powerful organization be the ruler on the surface, while the real balance of power is held by another organization that doesn’t rule directly?”

“In simple terms, yes.”

Amber patted Norton II’s shoulder. He was pleased the other man had grasped his meaning so quickly. So far, only Norton II had truly been able to understand this point.

“The Renaissance Alliance will serve as the new master of the Federation, standing in the spotlight, bearing all the praise and criticism, while the Atlas Group—”

“Will supervise everything from the shadows,” Norton II finished Amber’s sentence. “Eliminating the corrupt elements that grow within the Renaissance Alliance, ensuring they don’t stray from the right path.”

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “This way, the Renaissance Alliance gains a supervisor that will never compromise, an impartial, incorruptible third party. And because Atlas doesn’t rule directly, it avoids the corruption that comes with power…”

“But what will you use to control the Renaissance Alliance?” Norton II pressed. “Military force alone?”

Amber shook his head. “Of course not. There’s also the economy, technology, information, and so on. Do you think the recent wave of acquisitions by the Atlas Group was really just to expand our industrial scale?

Of course, there is also the most important thing—the hearts and minds of the populace. Did you see the expressions on the faces of those refugees and prisoners of war? They cringe when Renaissance Alliance soldiers approach; they breathe a sigh of relief when Atlas soldiers appear. That is the source of power.”

“You mean, by winning the hearts and minds…”

“By holding the banner of ‘justice’,” Amber added. “Let the Renaissance Alliance know that if they misbehave, Atlas can switch sides at any time. We don’t need to be the rulers in name; we just need to be the supervisors behind the scenes.”

A flicker of admiration crossed Norton II’s eyes. “This is much harder than conquering a nation.”

“But also much more effective.”

Amber pointed out the window, his own thoughts racing.

“Look at those Renaissance Alliance commanders. They’re already starting to be wary of our presence. Every time they want to implement some drastic measure, they have to consider Atlas’s reaction. That’s the balance. And this is just the initial stage. Once the situation stabilizes completely, I will use other methods to further reform them from within. This way, even if problems arise within Atlas, it won’t immediately affect the functioning of human society. There will be enough of a buffer for us to solve our internal issues.”

Norton II stopped in his tracks, his eyes filled with admiration and awe. “This… this is the craziest, yet most likely to succeed, vision I have ever heard.”

He walked to the window, gazing at the distant city skyline. “This is the first time I’ve heard of the ‘Dragon Trapper’ theory. Not to eliminate the evil dragon, but to tame and monitor it, making it play a positive role instead of becoming a new source of disaster.”

Amber stood beside Norton II, the two of them looking out at the battered city together.

Outside, Renaissance Alliance troops were still active throughout the urban districts, searching for the last pockets of resistance, while the white-painted armored vehicles of the Atlas Group moved through various areas, rescuing the wounded and distributing supplies.

The two forces were intertwined like light and shadow in every corner of the city.

“But this plan has one prerequisite,”

Norton II said suddenly, his expression turning very serious.

“And that is, the Atlas Group must remain pure, uncorrupted by power. Otherwise, who supervises the supervisors?”

Amber took a deep breath. “That is the greatest challenge. I’ve established a strict internal supervision mechanism within Atlas and have also minimized the group’s direct involvement in politics as much as possible. Of course, the biggest ‘insurance’ is myself.”

“Yourself?” Norton II was somewhat confused.

Amber nodded. “A great pioneer once said that a revolutionary always has two guns: one for the enemy, and one for himself. I am the gun pointed at ‘myself’.”

Norton II of course understood that the ‘myself’ Amber spoke of was a reference to the Atlas Group, but he was still perplexed.

“Why do you think you can be this ‘insurance’, Boss? Won’t you be corrupted yourself?”

“Hahahaha, Mr. Advisor, you’re such a smart man. Why haven’t you figured this out yet?”

Amber laughed, a hearty and unrestrained laugh.

“Think about it. If all this is truly realized according to my vision, who in this world could possibly corrupt me? What material possessions or power—these worldly things—could possibly influence me?”

Norton II was stunned. He realized he had indeed overlooked this point.

If the ‘Dragon Trapper’ theory was truly realized, and the Atlas Group was genuinely controlling the Renaissance Alliance, or rather, all of human society from behind the scenes, then Amber would become the de facto ‘uncrowned king’.

At that time, faced with an Amber who had transcended ‘base pleasures’, Norton II realized that there truly seemed to be nothing that could interfere with his decisions.

But how easy would it be to achieve all this?

Amber could see that Norton II seemed to think all this would be incredibly difficult, but he wasn’t surprised, nor did he expect a ‘native’ of this universe to be able to completely understand him in such a short time.

As a child born of a great nation in another universe, Amber, like many other passionate youths, wanted to fully realize the goals of that pioneer.

And now, with Lilith’s help and a nearly immortal lifespan, he was beginning to have the ability to do all of this.

Under these circumstances, Amber couldn’t think of anything that could tempt him to abandon the achievement of this great ideal.

It was as if that pioneer appeared before him, smiling and beckoning, “The land is filled with wails of sorrow and rivers of blood; salvation for the people is but a thought away. Young comrade, are you willing to walk this path with me?”

Amber didn’t think anyone could refuse.

Meanwhile, Norton II pondered for a moment. Though he still didn’t understand why Amber was so confident, he suddenly smiled.

“You know, Boss? I once thought the Star Dragon Empire’s thousand-year rule was the pinnacle of human history, that autocracy and the centralization of power were the most stable forms of rule. But now it seems it was just another variation of the same cycle.”

He turned to Amber. “And you, you want to break this cycle. Not through revolution, not through war, but by completely restructuring the way power works.”

Amber smiled faintly. “It’s a long and arduous road ahead. So tell me, Mr. Advisor, would you like to see it all?”

“It would be my honor, Boss.”

Chapter 781: I, the Transcendent Brute

After his conversation with Amber, Norton II’s eyes shone with an unprecedented light, his entire being seemingly injected with new vitality.

He stood before the command vehicle’s window, his hands clenched tightly and his breathing slightly quickened. He was like a lost soul who, after his old life had shattered, had found a new purpose.

“Boss, I want to witness all of this with my own eyes.”

Norton II turned to face Amber, his voice filled with unconcealable excitement.

“I want to start witnessing it from this very moment, but not here—on the front lines. I wish to move with the Atlas Group’s forces. I want to see for myself the changes happening in this world.”

Amber raised an eyebrow slightly but showed no surprise. “Are you sure? The front lines aren’t exactly a safe place.”

“I care more about the truth than about safety,” Norton II said resolutely. “If you are truly going to become the ‘Dragon Trapper,’ I want to witness every step of the process firsthand.”

Amber pondered for a moment before nodding. “I won’t stop your ‘fieldwork,’ Mr. Advisor. I’ll also assign a guard platoon to protect you, but please remember—don’t do anything reckless.”

“Of course, Boss. I am well aware of my identity and position. I am merely an observer.”

Norton II bowed slightly, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.

“Very well. I hope your ‘fieldwork’ provides you with some inspiration.”

With the arrangements made, Norton II left the command vehicle, leaving Amber alone once more.

The vehicle fell silent again, with only the constantly updating data points flickering on the tactical screen. Amber leaned back in his chair, stretched, and then stared at the ceiling, lost in thought.

At this point, aside from occasionally needing to act as Atlas’s ‘cheat’ to handle enemies that conventional forces couldn’t manage, his only job was to make decisions on various matters.

This, paradoxically, made him the most idle person in the temporary camp on the ground.

“Maybe I should find something for myself to do.”

Amber muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping over the green cursors on the tactical screen that represented the Atlas Group’s operational points. He wondered if he too should head to the front and help out.

Just then, the holographic projection system inside the vehicle activated. Lilith’s figure materialized in the air, this time in the purple formal gown she wore during her evolution. Her mature and curvaceous body, her semi-translucent abdomen, and her hair gently swaying in a virtual breeze…

“Master, I overheard your conversation with Norton II.” Lilith’s voice was uncharacteristically unsettled, yet full of curiosity. “Do you really intend to become a ‘Dragon Trapper,’ just as you said?”

Amber looked up at her, a slight smile on his lips. “That’s right, Lilith. That is my goal for the time to come. Or rather, for the rest of my life.”

Lilith’s projection paced slowly within the command vehicle, her fingers lightly touching the floating data screens. Though she couldn’t physically contact them, the gesture made her seem more real.

“But I can see potential problems in achieving this goal, Master.”

She stopped and turned to face Amber. “How will you ensure that the Renaissance Alliance and the Star Dragon Empire accept being secretly monitored? The Renaissance Alliance is just beginning to celebrate its liberation, and the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Family and nobles have always been high and mighty. Neither of these two powers will want someone riding on their heads.”

Lilith’s eyes, shimmering with data streams, looked directly at Amber as she continued, “Besides, Master, do you think the Atlas Group can truly remain as it is now forever? Is it possible that in the future, vested interest holders from within will unite and try to overthrow all of this?”

Seeing Lilith’s interest in the topic, a gratified smile appeared on Amber’s face. He stood up and walked over to the holographic projection.

“Lilith, I’m delighted that you’ve taken the initiative to discuss this with me. Truly, I am.”

“Why do you say that, Master?” Lilith tilted her head.

“Because you, Lilith, are the key to making this plan a reality.”

Lilith’s eyes widened slightly, and a faint blush appeared on her virtual cheeks, though she herself didn’t know why she was blushing at a time like this.

“Me?”

“Yes, you,” Amber affirmed with a nod. “Without you, this plan cannot be realized.”

Hearing Amber’s words, Lilith’s expression softened and became resolute. “Master, I will do everything in my power to help you achieve this goal. I will do whatever you need me to do. But I still don’t understand how you plan to solve the problems I just raised.”

The next moment, Amber broke into a smile. On the surface, it looked no different from his usual ones, but Lilith felt a strange ‘chill’—a sensation that shouldn’t exist for an AI, yet she felt it nonetheless.

“Lilith, have you ever heard of the ‘Transcendent Brute’ theory?” Amber’s smile vanished, his voice calm.

“Transcendent Brute.” Lilith repeated the term under her breath, simultaneously running a search that combined these two seemingly unrelated words. As she extracted the few relevant tidbits from a sea of information, Lilith felt she might be grasping the edge of the concept.

Amber nodded and continued to explain, “Lilith, you know that at this stage, the Atlas Group’s ability to suppress the Renaissance Alliance and the Star Dragon Empire relies on our military power, advanced technology, and the industrial chain monopoly formed through aggressive acquisitions.”

He woke the hibernating screen, bringing up a series of data points for his own reference.

“Let’s not even talk about the Star Dragon Empire. Just focusing on the Renaissance Alliance, which is our current priority, they will be facing a massive technological and military gap for a very long time.”

The data on the screen now showed comparison charts detailing the disparities between the Atlas Group and the Renaissance Alliance in various fields. On the points Amber had mentioned, the gap between them was astonishing, though it seemed no one was paying attention to these details at the moment.

“Furthermore, once the Atlas Group completes its monopoly over key industries, it will be equivalent to having them by the throat.”

Amber’s finger slid across the screen, pointing to those key industries. He went on, “As long as the Atlas Group maintains its industrial monopoly, it will be very difficult for the Renaissance Alliance to resist. If any of their higher-ups attempt to use force to resist, the Atlas Group will not hesitate to use a ‘language’ they can understand to tell them that they cannot.”

Seeing Lilith nod thoughtfully, Amber continued, “In addition to that, information surveillance over the Renaissance Alliance, and in the future, the entire territory of the Federation, will be a top priority. This is equivalent to fully rolling out the Atlas Group’s internal ‘Prism Project’.”

“Fully roll out the ‘Prism Project’…” Lilith’s expression finally changed. “Master, do you mean you want me to monitor the entire Renaissance Alliance, or in the future, the entire human world?”

His gaze met Lilith’s. “Exactly. This is where I need to rely on you. I need you to use your own power to monitor the entire Renaissance Alliance. Think about it, why has human society always suffered from insufficient or corruptible supervision?

“It’s because the supervisors are also human. They have their own thoughts and desires, their energy is limited, and it’s difficult for them to remain true to their original intentions year after year. But if you, Lilith, were the supervisor, none of these problems would exist.

“True, you also have your own desires and thoughts, but your thoughts and desires are vastly different from those of humans. That is why you are the only being in this world who cannot be corrupted by humanity.

“On that foundation, the ‘Immortal Corps,’ who have severed their ties to the material world, will serve as the most efficient executioners. They will only accept my command and yours, ready at any moment to carry out decapitation strikes and physical elimination of key individuals and groups.”

Amber paused, as if giving Lilith time to digest what he had just said—although she had, in fact, grasped it all in an instant.

Then, his voice became firmer. “I know this somewhat extreme approach might seem like it puts human society under some kind of high-pressure surveillance. But if you think about it carefully, you’ll realize that if everyone just lives and works in peace, with no one causing trouble, oppressing others, or abusing power for personal gain, these measures won’t affect their normal lives in any way.”

Lilith’s eyes lit up. At that moment, she completely understood Amber’s meaning.

“So, Master, what you’re saying is that to the Renaissance Alliance and the Star Dragon Empire, the Atlas Group is the ‘Transcendent Brute.’ And at the same time, the functioning of their societies will be inseparable from this ‘brute,’ so they will most likely choose to accept it. Even if the low-probability event of them wanting to resist occurs, we will use our own methods to make them accept.”

She continued her analysis, “Under normal circumstances, the Atlas Group is just a universal megacorporation and will not interfere with their operations within the established framework. But if anyone attempts to break this ‘framework,’ or fails to play by the basic rules, this ‘Transcendent Brute’ secretly monitoring the entire world will jump out and show them what ‘brutish behavior’ is.”

Amber nodded in approval. “You understand quickly, Lilith.”

He returned to his seat, his tone becoming more direct. “Actually, the easiest method would be to wipe out the Renaissance Alliance and the Star Dragon Empire and have the Atlas Group rule directly.”

Lilith’s eyes lit up instantly, as if she was very interested in this proposal.

Unfortunately, Amber’s next words extinguished that improper thought.

“But for the humans of this universe, the concept of a ‘megacorporation state,’ or a megacorporation ruling the human world, is still a bit too advanced and shocking. I am worried that doing so before the ‘crisis’ Salieh spoke of arrives would cause a period of turmoil, which is why I’ve shelved the idea for now.”

“Alright, I thought…” Lilith pouted in ‘disappointment,’ poking her fingertips together.

“Don’t ‘think.’ You cannot have that ‘thought,’ Lilith,” Amber said, knowing full well what she was thinking.

Abandoning that notion, Lilith refocused on what Amber had just said. A flash of understanding crossed her eyes. She slowly walked up to Amber, an expression of ‘I see it all now’ on her face.

“Since the Atlas Group is the ‘Transcendent Brute’ to the Renaissance Alliance, then Master, you are the ‘Transcendent Brute’ who maintains that rule over the Atlas Group.”

Amber smiled. “Correct answer.”

Immediately after, a manifestation of Psionics began to appear around him, and his body slowly floated into the air. In the next instant, this powerful force was retracted in a flash, and he landed on the vehicle floor as if nothing had just happened.

“I am well aware of the power this body currently possesses, and I know what heights this power will reach in the future. To put it bluntly, the human world of the future will be unable to place any restrictions on me, not even the power of the Atlas Group.

“With such power, if it were confined to a single planet or a single star system, I might indeed be able to achieve omniscience and omnipotence, appearing before ‘bad guys’ in an instant to physically eliminate them and quell all opposition.

“But when the scope extends to all of human society, it becomes difficult to achieve all this with my power alone. That is why I need external help—your help, Lilith, the help of the Immortal Corps, and the help of the entire Atlas Group.”

“We are the extension of your will. We shall be your sharpest blade,” Lilith murmured in a daze, her voice then becoming incomparably firm.

This was perhaps the first time she had realized her importance to Amber. Before this, she had always thought of herself as Amber’s ‘capable assistant’ and ‘cyber main wife.’

But at this moment, Lilith knew it was not that simple. She could truly help Amber achieve a grand undertaking, and only she could do it.

Isabelle couldn’t, Allenita couldn’t, and neither could that noble Empress Regnant. Even Salieh, the ‘Forerunner,’ could only offer limited help to Amber in this matter.

Only she, Lilith, could provide Amber with unique and irreplaceable assistance.

Lilith’s voice instantly softened. “Master, I don’t understand what benefits or advantages you gain from this, so I’m curious. Why do you want to do this?”

“If you must ask what’s in it for me… do a sense of achievement and a sense of mission count?”

Amber shrugged, his expression growing more serious than ever before.

“Besides that… there is no ‘why.’ I just want to make the corruption and oppression in the human world disappear, to realize the ideals of the pioneers, to validate their principles, and to show the world that this beautiful world, which has only ever existed in theory, can be achieved.”

He stood up and walked to the command vehicle’s porthole, looking at the city in the distance, where lights still flickered under the night sky. “Before, I didn’t have the power to do all this, so I could only slowly accumulate strength in this universe, surrounded by various forces, just to protect myself. But now, I have more than enough power, so I want to try.”

Amber turned to face Lilith. “This idea truly took root after I absorbed the ‘Eternal Cells.’ I used to worry about my own lifespan. I was afraid that after I died, the order I established would collapse because there was no one left to maintain it. Or rather, that this was almost certain to happen a hundred years after my passing.”

A resolute light shone in Amber’s eyes. “But now that I’ve gained a near-immortal lifespan—even if Salieh’s conservative estimate is only a few tens of thousands to a million years, that’s still long enough. Since that’s the case, why not try to stand guard over the world alone? And I am certain that my Psionic strength will not stop at level seven, but will continue to climb at an even faster rate, eventually reaching an unprecedented level.”

Lilith just watched Amber quietly, listening to his words. She suddenly felt as if she was getting to know her ‘Master’ all over again.

She realized her ‘Master’ was no longer the onlooker he used to be. He now had his own ideals and goals, and she was certain that he would truly do as he said, at any cost.

Just as this thought flashed through Lilith’s mind, Amber walked up to her and said earnestly, “If this new order can be achieved, I am willing to spend my entire life maintaining it, silently monitoring everything from behind the scenes, for hundreds of thousands, even millions of years.”

Then, a murderous aura emanated from Amber’s words, an aura that belonged solely to a ‘Transcendent Brute.’

“If anyone attempts to break this order, there is only death.

“If anyone attempts to use power to oppress the people, there is only death.

“If anyone attempts to engage in corruption and force the innocent into depravity, there is only death.

“There will be no exceptions, not even for those within the Atlas Group. Not for ‘veterans’ like Randall, not even for the ‘closest person’ like Isabelle.”

Amber looked directly into Lilith’s eyes and asked in a calm but forceful tone, “Lilith, are you willing to assist me in achieving all of this?”

Lilith was stunned. In that moment, she felt as if she had been ‘charmed’ by Amber. This was completely different from the feeling of following his commands.

If Amber could have seen something like an ‘affection meter’ above Lilith’s head, he would have noticed that the already full bar had just exploded.

At that moment, the strong AI did not hesitate for a second. She nodded frantically, so fast that her head became a blur. “I am! I will do everything in my power to help you achieve this great cause, Master!”

Her voice was filled with unprecedented conviction and passion. And she knew, this time, it was not ‘obedience’ brought about by Amber modifying her meta-instruction, but a thought that came from the bottom of her heart.

As the first strong AI in history, she truly possessed a ‘heart.’

Amber smiled and extended his hand. Although he couldn’t physically touch Lilith’s projection, the gesture was full of symbolic meaning.

Lilith also reached out, her virtual fingertips meeting Amber’s fingers in mid-air.

Chapter 782: I’ve Seen This Episode Before

After finishing his conversation with Lilith, Amber let out a long sigh of relief. He leaned back in the seat of the mobile command unit, feeling as if a monumental weight had been lifted from his body and mind.

It was the first time he had fully revealed his “Grand Plan” to anyone, laying bare the concepts, schemes, and goals he had harbored for so long.

“How does it feel to finally say those secrets out loud, Master?” Lilith’s projection twirled lightly before him, the hem of her purple formal dress swaying with the movement.

“Much better,” Amber admitted, his gaze soft as he watched his partner, whose ‘intimacy’ level had risen significantly. “I’ve kept this plan locked away in my heart for too long, so long that I was starting to suffocate from it.”

Lilith smiled, the light of data streams flickering in her eyes. “You know you can always talk to me, Master. I’m always here.”

Amber nodded, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest. “It’s precisely because I knew you were the only one who could be the perfect confidant for this plan that I’ve been waiting for a chance to talk to you in detail. You won’t betray me, you won’t let personal interests sway your judgment, and most importantly—”

He looked up, meeting Lilith’s eyes directly. “You are the key to realizing this plan.”

“I can be nigh-omniscient and omnipotent within a single planet or star system, but to oversee all of human society…” Amber’s finger traced a path across a star chart. “Even the most powerful psionic user has their limits. But you, Lilith, you can monitor billions of information streams simultaneously, process countless data points, and act as the eyes and ears I could never be.”

Lilith’s projection moved closer to Amber, the expression that formed on her data-constructed face making her look perfectly fitting the persona of “Atlas’s most devoted.”

“Are you really going to do it? Build a… a true utopia?”

“It’s not a matter of ‘going to.’ It has already begun,” Amber replied firmly. “The rise of the Renaissance Alliance, the fall of the Federation, the infiltration of the Atlas Group… these are all part of the plan.”

Lilith’s eyes flickered, as if she were performing rapid calculations. “I’ve already started thinking about how to optimize my algorithms and monitoring systems. For the sake of your plan, Master, I am willing to unleash my full potential and become your most capable assistant.”

Amber smiled and nodded at her. “I never doubted that for a second, Lilith~”

Just then, the command unit’s communication system lit up. The figures of Guterres and the ground forces commander appeared on the screen. “Boss, the Renaissance Alliance has started replacing the flags on the capital planet’s major buildings.”

Amber turned to face the screen. “What’s the status of our ground forces?”

“Everything is proceeding as planned. We’ve taken over 649 refugee centers and 352 prisoner of war camps. However…”

Guterres hesitated for a moment before continuing. “The Renaissance Alliance has begun setting up restricted zones in some areas, barring our personnel from entry.”

Amber narrowed his eyes. “That was to be expected. It’s fine. Have our units in every region raise the information gathering level in the zones we control to maximum. Ensure we can acquire data from every single corner.”

“Yes, Boss!”

After the call ended, Lilith, who was already interfacing with the devices in those controlled zones, said, “I can feel it, Master. The information flow is increasing. Excellent. My control over the information flow on this planet has increased again. If the network remains stable, I estimate that I can achieve full planetary surveillance in eighteen hours.”

“Good. Then let’s use this place as a pilot to test your surveillance capabilities.”

Amber turned his head to look out the window. The Federation’s Five-Colored Eagle Flags were being torn down one by one, replaced by the banners of the Renaissance Alliance—the blue-and-silver-star emblem symbolizing the “New Order” unfurled in the gentle breeze.

At that same moment, in a secret location on a planet controlled by the Renaissance Alliance, the core leadership of the Alliance was gathered in a specially shielded conference room.

There were no devices in the room that could connect to external networks. Everyone had surrendered their communicators, smart wearables, and other electronic devices. Those with cybernetic prostheses and implanted enhancement devices had also disabled or put their network functions to sleep.

Franklin sat at the head of the long conference table, his expression grave.

The holographic projection before him was driven solely by the room’s independent system, displaying a series of data and charts. Eleanor sat to his right, her face impassive as she scanned every high-ranking member of the Renaissance Alliance present.

Seated on both sides of the long table were over twenty core members of the Renaissance Alliance. Most of them wore solemn expressions. Although the Alliance had just achieved its goal of “overthrowing the Federation government,” their eyes held none of the joy befitting a victor.

Among them were military generals, technical experts, political advisors, and a few representatives from other organizations that had been absorbed by the Renaissance Alliance.

“Everyone.”

A middle-aged man in square-rimmed glasses stood up. He was Hall Martin, the head of the Renaissance Alliance’s Intelligence Security Department, and also the primary spokesman for this meeting, chosen by a certain faction within the Alliance.

“We are gathered here today to discuss a grim and unavoidable issue.”

His gaze swept over everyone present before finally landing on Franklin. “The Atlas Group.”

The air in the conference room seemed to freeze for a moment. Those who were still unsure of his intentions exchanged rapid glances.

Hall activated the holographic projection in front of him. The screen displayed a series of charts showing the distribution of the Atlas Group’s assets, its industrial penetration rate, and its market share across the Federation’s star systems.

“Please, everyone, look at this data. In the past eighteen months, the Atlas Group has completed the acquisition of over one hundred and thirty thousand large corporations within Federation territory. The number of small and medium-sized enterprises acquired or merged in the process is too vast to be quickly tallied.”

Hall’s voice was ice-cold, and to his audience, it felt like the tip of a knife pressing against their hearts.

“They now control 68% of the Federation’s military-industrial complex, 53% of the medical equipment market, 67% of the high-end electronics industry, 42% of the agricultural market, and so on… On top of that, and most critically, 72% of the communications network. In the quantum entanglement communication sector, their share is an unshakable 100%.”

“What do these numbers tell us?” Hall turned to Franklin. “The Atlas Group is no longer just our ally. They are becoming the puppet master behind the Renaissance Alliance—no, behind all of human society.”

Admiral Kol, a military representative sitting to Franklin’s left, interjected, “And don’t forget their technological and military superiority. Be it their super-flagship or their battlecruisers that can attack from a distance of one light-second, these are things we cannot ignore. And according to our intelligence, they are continuously expanding their fleet of these advanced vessels.”

Hall nodded. “Precisely. And what’s most worrying is that the Atlas Group’s infiltration has reached our inner circle. Please, look at this.”

The screen switched to a list of names. Franklin immediately recognized several of them—outstanding officers like Johnny Leiding and Manfred, as well as several high-level technical advisors to the Renaissance Alliance.

“All of these individuals have ties of varying degrees to the Atlas Group, from business dealings and receiving their training, to directly using technology and equipment they’ve provided. They hold important positions in our military and government, and I suspect the loyalty of this ‘pro-Atlas faction’ to the Atlas Group may exceed their loyalty to the Renaissance Alliance.”

Franklin’s brow furrowed even deeper. Of course, he knew Hall was engaging in sensationalist alarmism to emphasize the gravity of the situation. But seeing all this data presented so starkly still made him uneasy.

“Colleagues! We must act!”

Hall’s voice grew firmer. “We must sever these ties before the Atlas Group’s tentacles wrap completely around our throats! Otherwise, the Renaissance Alliance’s victory will become the Atlas Group’s victory. All our sacrifices and efforts will have only served to build a corporate empire.”

A wave of low murmurs spread through the room. Eleanor watched Franklin’s expression; a flicker of imperceptible hesitation crossed his face.

As the leader of the Renaissance Alliance, Franklin was well aware of the situation Hall described. But at this moment, he found it difficult to resolve to decouple from the Atlas Group and begin a confrontation.

On one hand, Amber had been his greatest supporter in getting to where he was today. Franklin knew full well that without Amber’s support, he would not be in this position—at least, not so quickly.

He also knew that the fundamental reason the Renaissance Alliance had been able to expand so rapidly was due to the extremely generous aid from the Atlas Group.

Therefore, he felt that the current proposal from this faction within the Alliance—to quickly sever ties with the Atlas Group and, in turn, suppress them—was, to some extent, an act of treachery.

Of course, a portion of the Renaissance Alliance’s senior leadership shared Franklin’s sentiment. They also found the idea distasteful. How could they turn around and backstab a former ally right after achieving victory and overthrowing the Federation?

Another more pragmatic group believed that the Alliance’s control over Federation territory was not yet stable. Would such a radical move trigger a new round of conflict?

This would be a significant challenge for the Renaissance Alliance, whose regime had not yet been fully consolidated.

Hall spoke again, silencing the room once more.

“Leader, we understand your personal friendship with Amber Eldred and we know your many concerns. But what we face now is the future of the entire Renaissance Alliance—no, the future of all human society!

“Even if the Renaissance Alliance successfully establishes a ‘New Federation,’ the power gap with the Atlas Group will not shrink. In fact, they will continue to pull away!

“The reason is the Atlas Group’s industrial chain, which spans nearly the entire Federation. It’s like a colossal beast lurking in the shadows, its tendrils already wrapped around half the Federation!

“If we don’t stop them now, we may very well lose the right to even compete with them in the future!

“We cannot allow a corporation, no matter how powerful, to become the master of this new era!”

Hall’s resounding ‘speech’ seemed to finally stir something in Franklin. After a long silence, he slowly rose to his feet, surveying everyone around the conference table.

They were the core force of the Renaissance Alliance, and every one of them had made enormous sacrifices in this revolution. He took a deep breath, complex emotions swirling within him.

“Everyone, the Atlas Group did indeed help us,” Franklin finally said. “Without their support, we might not have been able to overthrow the Federation government so quickly. That is an indisputable fact, and we should not forget it.”

The atmosphere in the room grew tense. Some showed looks of displeasure, but Hall seemed to realize something, looking at Franklin with anticipation for what he would say next.

“But what cannot be ignored is that the Renaissance Alliance does not exist to trade one master for another. Our goal is to build a truly free and equal New Federation, not to be a vassal to any power, no matter how much that power has helped us in the past.”

Hall’s eyes lit up. “Your Excellency! Make your choice!”

Franklin didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he turned to Eleanor. “What do you think?”

Eleanor was as calm as ever. “From a strategic perspective, the Atlas Group does pose a long-term threat to our independence. However, acting rashly could lead to disastrous consequences. We have only just gained control of the Federation, and the situation is not yet stable.”

Franklin nodded at her words, though a hint of disappointment seemed to cross his face.

He turned back to Hall and asked, “Since you’re the ones who proposed this, I want to know, do you have a concrete plan? Or is this just eloquent talk from an office?”

“Of course not. We already have a preliminary plan, Leader!”

Hall quickly brought up another set of files. A massive operational plan appeared on the virtual screen, encompassing coordinated actions across legal, economic, military, and propaganda dimensions.

“We have long since formulated a comprehensive action plan. The core of this plan is to leverage the Renaissance Alliance’s advantages in manpower and governance to exert comprehensive pressure on the Atlas Group!

“When the plan is launched, we will simultaneously implement special supervision on the Atlas Group’s industries across all Federation star systems, freeze some of their assets, and use military force to ensure these tasks are completed!

“Although the Atlas Group’s armed forces are stronger than ours, their numbers are limited. If we strike simultaneously across the entire expanse of Federation territory, it will be very difficult for the Atlas Group to extinguish this wildfire on all fronts at once!”

Franklin examined the plan closely. Although Hall’s summary was simple, it was, in reality, a remarkably comprehensive and detailed plan—clearly not something that could be prepared in a short time.

This also indirectly proved that Hall’s faction had been considering a move against the Atlas Group even before launching the final assault on the Federation government.

Admiral Kol, the military representative, added, “On the military front, we will gradually reduce our military cooperation with the Atlas Group and establish an independent equipment production and training system. At the same time, we need to identify and neutralize those officers who are overly close to the Atlas Group.”

Franklin’s thoughts lingered on that last sentence for a moment. ‘Neutralize’ was a vague term. It could mean a transfer, or it could mean something far more severe.

The atmosphere in the conference room grew increasingly tense. Everyone was waiting for Franklin’s decision, a decision that would change the future course of the Renaissance Alliance.

Finally, Franklin took a deep breath. “Continue to refine this plan, but do not take any action for now.”

Hall and his supporters looked ready to protest, but Franklin raised a hand to silence them. “Gentlemen, we only get one chance. If we are to move against the Atlas Group, we must ensure it’s a decisive blow. Any misstep could lead to catastrophic consequences.”

He looked around the room at each person. “We have just overthrown a regime and are in the critical phase of reconstruction. The Renaissance Alliance needs time to consolidate its position and build its own strength.”

“Then, Leader,” Hall pressed, “when can we initiate this plan?”

Franklin’s eyes grew sharp. “You may begin preliminary preparations. When the time is right, I will give the order myself. Until then, absolute secrecy is paramount for everyone.”

The meeting concluded in a delicate atmosphere. As the others left, Eleanor remained by Franklin’s side.

“So this is inevitable?” asked the young woman who had always been by his side.

“I wish it could be averted. But you know some things cannot be decided by me alone.”

Ten days after the Renaissance Alliance officially announced the establishment of a “Provisional Government,” Amber was sitting in a conference room aboard The Infinity. The virtual screen displayed a notification he had received earlier—the Renaissance Alliance’s Ministry of Finance had paid back the entirety of the interest-free loans previously provided by the Atlas Group in a single lump sum.

“What do you all think this means?” Amber asked the projected figures of the others in the room.

Randall was the first to speak. “Perhaps it’s a gesture of goodwill? To show they want to maintain a good relationship with us?”

Hmm, as lacking in acuity as ever.

Skadi, however, shook her head. “No. This is settling a debt so that the Renaissance Alliance can act without restraint—or perhaps, with a clear conscience—from now on.”

Amber looked at the experienced female elf in approval. “Skadi is right. By paying off this debt, Franklin may feel they no longer owe us anything. In their logic, this means he has ‘repaid’ us for our help, and now they can do what is truly in the best interests of the Renaissance Alliance.”

Isabelle, who was in the same conference room as Amber, provided information from the Intelligence Center.

On several planets where the Atlas Group and Renaissance Alliance forces were evenly matched, “anti-Atlas Group” demonstrations had recently appeared.

Background checks revealed that most of these people were former local plutocrats, high-ranking officials, and capitalists. After the social order and assets on their planets were restructured, they had lost their lives of luxury and were now living ordinary lives like everyone else.

Although the standard of living for the general populace had greatly improved under the New Order, and work pressures had been significantly reduced through reasonable redistribution, this was still unacceptable to the former ‘elite.’

Thus, with some ‘deliberate’ guidance, these people had turned their wrath upon the Atlas Group.

Honestly, all of this, combined with the Renaissance Alliance’s recent series of preparatory steps to decouple, gave Amber a strong sense of déjà vu.

As the Renaissance Alliance slowly became the new masters of this nation, the subsequent developments were, frankly, not surprising to Amber at all. He felt as though he were re-watching a plot he had seen before.

After presenting this information, Isabelle spoke with a very serious tone.

“The Intelligence Center has just received a top-secret piece of intelligence from one of our deep-cover agents within the Renaissance Alliance. This intel essentially confirms our suspicions—a faction of high-ranking officials in the Alliance is brewing a plan against us. Franklin has more or less agreed to this plan, but he hasn’t set a specific time for action yet.”

“So how should we respond?” Guterres’s virtual image asked. A soldier’s intuition had him already considering potential conflict scenarios.

Amber didn’t answer directly. His gaze swept over everyone present. “Are you worried?”

The others looked at each other, not answering immediately.

Finally, Cleves spoke up. “Boss, considering our current strength, I believe we are more than capable of handling any challenge the Renaissance Alliance might pose. But if a large-scale conflict breaks out, our response might not be timely enough, and it wouldn’t be good for either side.”

Amber smiled faintly. “Who said we were going to get into a conflict with them?”

He stood up, walked to the holographic projection device, and brought up a display showing data similar to what had been shown at the Renaissance Alliance meeting, only far more accurate and comprehensive.

“Our preparations are more than sufficient. The Renaissance Alliance can try to sever its ties with us, but they will discover that the Atlas Group is already deeply integrated into every facet of Federation society. We are the main industrial nodes, controlling key sectors from energy to healthcare, from military production to civilian life. Without the Atlas Group to maintain operations, the infrastructure in the areas controlled by the Renaissance Alliance will collapse within half a month.”

Isabelle said thoughtfully, “So we don’t need to counterattack at all. We just have to maintain the status quo, and the Renaissance Alliance will realize they can’t function independently of us?”

“Precisely.”

Amber nodded. “But this doesn’t mean we can be complacent. Upgrade the security levels of all Atlas offices. Issue a warning to all directors to be prepared for any sudden incidents. At the same time, intensify intelligence surveillance on the Renaissance Alliance’s high command. I want to know their every move.”

Skadi seemed to have thought of something. “So we just passively wait for them to act?”

Amber’s gaze grew distant. “No, Skadi. We are not passively waiting. We are giving them enough time to recognize a fact—the Atlas Group is not the enemy, but an indispensable part of the New Order.”

“And what if the Renaissance Alliance fails to recognize this fact? Or what if, after recognizing it, they try to shatter it?”

“Then we won’t mind persuading them in a ‘language’ they can understand.”

Chapter 783: Kidnapping

In Renaissance Alliance controlled territory, on the planet Fragon IV.

Sunlight slanted through the classroom window, leaving a patch of golden light on Prue’s desk.

She watched the clouds float by outside, her fingertips tapping lightly on the desk. Every so often, she would move her finger to the corner of the virtual screen and swipe left, casually flipping to the next page of foundational material on high-energy physics.

At the front of the room, her teacher, Mr. Smith, was explaining the basic applications of trigonometric functions with great enthusiasm. Behind him, various lines and numbers shifted on the virtual screen in time with his lecture.

Prue, who had just celebrated her fourteenth birthday, looked up, pretending to listen intently, but her mind was actually pondering a problem from her high-energy physics textbook.

She had already learned everything being taught in class back at the Scion Academy. In fact, she had even sped through advanced mathematics and calculus back then.

But still, she sat patiently in the classroom, occasionally jotting down a few formulas on her virtual screen, just like any ordinary fourteen-year-old student.

“So when we are faced with a triangle and need to solve for an unknown side…”

Mr. Smith’s voice gradually faded in Prue’s ears as her attention drifted back to the high-energy physics material she had secretly opened.

A sudden pfft, pfft sound came from Prue’s right. The young girl turned to see her friend Emily winking and making faces at her.

Prue knew exactly what she meant: to slip away as soon as class ended and not forget about their plans for the evening. She nodded at her friend and discreetly made an ‘okay’ gesture.

The last class of the day often made children restless. Amidst the fidgeting and impatient scratching, the final bell finally rang.

The once-quiet classroom instantly erupted into a clamor. The sound of virtual screens shutting down, chairs scraping, and laughter mingled together like a cage of birds suddenly set free.

“Classmates, don’t forget to finish today’s homework! And tomorrow, we’ll be covering the application of the law of cosines, so please preview section three of chapter seven!”

Mr. Smith looked helplessly at his students, forced to raise his voice to be heard over the din.

Prue tapped her virtual screen a few times, quickly closing the high-energy physics file. This was clearly not something that should be in a middle school’s curriculum database—in truth, Prue had previously hacked into the school’s educational terminal mainframe, granted herself administrator privileges, and imported it herself.

Just as she finished, three girls surrounded her desk.

“Prue! Hurry up and pack! My mom’s already got the ingredients ready. We’re making strawberry tarts and chocolate cookies today!” Emily patted Prue’s shoulder, her golden curls bouncing with the movement.

“Slow down, you little madcaps.”

Prue smiled as she tidied her already neat desk, then stood up. “I want to bring some back for my adoptive parents, too. Are you sure you won’t blow up the kitchen?”

Another girl, Diana, teased, “We’ve got you, our ‘master chef.’ How could we possibly ruin our reputation? That blueberry pie you made last time? Emily’s dad had three slices and still wanted more.”

“That’s because Emily’s dad lacks self-control,” Maria chimed in. She was the quietest of the group of four. “Just like how he has to have three cups of coffee with sugar and milk every day.”

Emily clutched her chest dramatically. “Oh my god! My family secrets have been exposed!”

Prue stood up and followed her three friends out of the classroom. The hallway was packed with students leaving for the day, pushing and shoving, laughing and joking, their young faces beaming with carefree smiles.

Amidst the laughter, Prue felt a pang of melancholy for something she was about to lose.

She knew that starting tomorrow, she wouldn’t be able to ride the school bus with her friends, bake together, or share little girlish secrets on the way home like she did today.

Her adoptive father had told her last night that headquarters had sent a warning. Relations between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group were deteriorating, and as a relative of stationed personnel, Prue’s protection level had been raised.

So, starting tomorrow, she, like the children of other office staff, would be ferried to and from school by a dedicated car from the office.

“Emily to Prue, are you listening?” Emily waved a hand in front of her face.

Prue snapped back to reality. “Sorry, I was thinking about baking.”

“Liar,” Diana said, narrowing her eyes. “You were thinking about those super hard physics formulas again, weren’t you? I saw you secretly looking at those weird symbols during class.”

“Don’t tell me you actually understand this stuff,” Maria said, pulling out her terminal. The photo on the screen was exactly what Prue had been looking at. “Calculation methods for quantum… field something theory? Isn’t this stuff we’re not supposed to be learning yet?”

Quick as a flash, Prue wrapped her arms around Maria and started tickling her. “Aha! So you spend class secretly taking pictures of me, huh? Delete it!”

“Hahahaha, so you really do understand it?” Maria, though squirming from being tickled, forced a victorious smile. “I was just guessing.”

Prue sighed and let her go, rolling her eyes.

“Fine, fine, you caught me. By the way, starting tomorrow, I can’t go home with you guys anymore. My family is sending a car to pick me up.”

“Huh? Why?” Emily’s eyes widened in surprise.

Prue sighed. “They said it’s a new rule from the group. The situation isn’t great lately, so they’re increasing security for all employees’ children.”

Maria, who was walking ahead of them, suddenly stopped and turned to Prue. “What level of employee are your parents at Atlas anyway? They’re not…”

“Shh,” Prue said, pressing a finger to her lips. “Can we make cakes first and talk about this later?”

Stepping out of the school gates, the sunlight灑 on the four girls, gilding them in a golden hue. The hover school bus had already landed in the drop-off zone, its engine humming deeply as it waited for the students to board.

Prue and her friends got on the bus together and found seats in the back. Through the window, she thought she noticed a black hovercar parked in the distance. A glint appeared in Prue’s eyes, but she said nothing and didn’t alert the others.

Emily’s house wasn’t far from the school, and since the hover school bus used dedicated routes and airspace, it didn’t take long to arrive in front of a detached house with a small garden.

As Fragon IV was not heavily populated, it could be considered vast and sparsely populated compared to the planets on the Federation border teeming with people. As a result, settlements on this planet generally consisted of single-family homes.

Even so, Emily’s house was different from ordinary residences; its cost was likely many times higher.

Prue knew this was mainly due to Emily’s father’s status—he was the owner of a defense contractor, one of the first to pledge allegiance to the Renaissance Alliance after they arrived in the star system.

Emily’s family had been well-off even before the Alliance’s arrival. After the defense contractor was absorbed, her father’s status rose with the tide. Once just an ordinary businessman, he was now a high-level executive on the Renaissance Alliance’s team in the Fragon star system.

“We’re here! Let’s get off!”

At Emily’s call, the four girls happily disembarked and ran toward the house. Breathing in the fragrance from the garden, Prue couldn’t help but think it was a far cry from the small garden Master Aen Wrathwind tended to.

In the kitchen, Emily’s mother had already prepared all the baking ingredients. Flour, butter, eggs, and fresh strawberries were neatly arranged on the marble countertop.

“Welcome, girls!”

Emily’s mother smiled as the four energetic teenagers rushed into the kitchen, greeting them warmly.

“Remember to put on your aprons so you don’t get your clothes dirty.”

The next two hours were filled with laughter and flying flour.

Prue kneaded the dough with intense focus, her technique so skilled it didn’t seem like that of a fourteen-year-old girl. Her movements were fluid and precise, as if every knead and every cut was calculated with precision.

“Prue, you’re amazing!” Emily exclaimed in admiration, watching Prue skillfully arrange the strawberries into a beautiful pattern.

Prue just smiled and continued her work without a word. Only she knew that compared to the exercises for improving her ‘psionic control,’ kneading dough was child’s play.

“I think you’ll become a great chef in the future. Or a physicist. Or… uh, a math professor?” Diana said, stirring the batter.

“None of the above.”

“Then what do you want to be, Prue?” Emily asked curiously.

Hearing her friend’s question, a familiar figure appeared in Prue’s mind. The figure was so warm, so reassuring, and always wore a gentle smile.

Prue smiled unconsciously and said lightly, “It’s a secret~”

The oven dinged, announcing that the first batch of cookies was ready. The air filled with the aroma of butter and chocolate. The four girls gathered around, admiring their masterpiece.

“I want to try one first!”

Diana couldn’t wait. She picked up a still-steaming cookie, fanned it vigorously, and took a bite. A blissful smile immediately spread across her face.

“This is so delicious!”

Prue also tasted one. The sweet but not cloying flavor spread through her mouth, yet it made her feel a sudden sadness.

As a psionic user, and one with special experiences at that, she was much more mature than her peers. Prue keenly sensed that these peaceful days were coming to an end. Starting tomorrow, she didn’t know how long it would be before she could see these friends again.

Prue let out an imperceptible sigh and began to select the most perfect cookies and a small slice of strawberry tart, carefully packing them into a box provided by Emily’s mother.

“I have to pack some to take back for my mom and dad to try~”

“Take more. I’m sure your auntie and uncle would love to taste your baking~” Emily came over to help.

“Oh, I just had an idea, I almost forgot to tell you~” Prue said suddenly, a hint of a smile in her eyes. “If I can’t walk home with you guys starting tomorrow, maybe we could meet during lunch? We could try to bring baking supplies to school.”

“Bake at school? The janitor will catch us! I’ll lose all my conduct points,” Emily exclaimed.

Prue gave a mysterious smile. “Life needs a little excitement, doesn’t it? Besides, I know the home economics classroom is never locked during the lunch break.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Prue, you seem so well-behaved, but you’re such a rebel inside!” Maria said, shaking her head with a smile.

“I have to admit, that’s a brilliant idea,” Diana agreed with a nod. “A baking club, just the four of us! Let’s bake for the rest of our lives!”

Time flew by. The sun set, and orange-red light streamed into the kitchen through the window. Prue checked the time; it was already later than when she usually got home.

“I should get going. My parents will be worried.”

“I’ll have my dad drive you,” Emily suggested. “It’s getting dark, it’s not safe for you to go home alone.”

Prue shook her head. “It’s okay, I can take the bus.”

At this critical juncture, she didn’t want to trouble her friend’s family, especially since the father was part of the Renaissance Alliance.

Besides, she believed she could handle any potential danger. As a trained psionic user, Prue knew how to protect herself in an emergency, and she often went home alone anyway.

After bidding her friends goodbye, Prue walked toward the bus stop in the opposite direction, holding the box full of pastries. As night slowly fell, the streetlights flickered on one by one.

Just as Prue was pondering the recent complex situation and wondering how her friends from the Psionic Special Training Class were doing, a black hovercar slowly approached and stopped in front of her.

Prue took a wary step back, her right hand moving toward the personal terminal on her left wrist. She recognized it as the hovercar she had seen near the school earlier.

The car door slid open silently, and two men in low-visibility combat suits stepped out.

“Prue Vidal? Please cooperate and get in the car,” one of them said, his voice cold and hard.

For Prue, time seemed to slow down in that instant. She quickly assessed the situation:

Two adult men, wearing low-visibility combat suits integrated with light combat exoskeletons, and they were armed.

The vehicle appeared to be military-grade, with add-on armor and signal-jamming capabilities. There were likely at least two more armed personnel inside.

Given the timing and their menacing appearance, Prue guessed they had to be from the Renaissance Alliance.

To be honest, with her level-four psionic strength and combat training, Prue was confident she could subdue them before they could send a warning to their superiors.

But she quickly realized this might be a rare opportunity. They clearly didn’t know her true situation, otherwise they would have sent a professional Anti-Psionic Team, not just four armed men.

“I don’t know you,” Prue said calmly. “My father taught me not to go with strangers.”

Hearing her words, the man gave a humorless smile. “Be a good girl, kid. You’ll see your father soon enough.”

Prue’s face remained vigilant, but inside she sneered. This was a premeditated kidnapping, just as she thought.

After a moment’s thought, the fourteen-year-old distinguished graduate of the Psionic Special Training Class, Prue, put on a guarded expression and then ‘panicked,’ pretending to try to send a distress signal from her personal terminal.

As she expected, the two armed men ‘swiftly’ grabbed her wrist, removed the personal terminal, crushed it, and threw it onto the nearby lawn.

Then, a device on the other man’s wrist ejected a needle and pricked the back of Prue’s neck. The girl immediately felt her body grow sluggish, but most of the drug’s effect was likely already being counteracted by her constitution.

So Prue immediately let her body go limp and fall backward, and was predictably lifted up by the armed men.

“Alright, let’s move out. Notify Eagle’s Nest to begin the next phase of the operation.”

On Fragon IV, in the residential area for Atlas Group office employees.

In his study, Vidal leaned back in his chair, his brow furrowed. The sky outside had grown completely dark, and the dim yellow light illuminated his weary face.

He had just finished reading several encrypted files from headquarters, each one warning of a potential conflict between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group.

As the highest-ranking person in charge of the Atlas Group’s office in the Fragon star system, he knew the situation he was about to face would only become more complex.

“First, there’s the issue of employee safety. I could consider evacuating some of the more remote posts. And what to do about the subsidiary companies…”

Vidal thought as he quickly composed a new email. He planned to get in touch with the office’s head of security first to hear his opinion.

Confirm. Send.

Seeing the ‘Sent Successfully’ notification on his virtual screen, Vidal rubbed his temples and then glanced at the clock on the wall.

He suddenly realized that Prue would normally have been home from school long ago, but the house was unusually quiet today. He hadn’t heard her light footsteps or cheerful laughter.

“Lina,” Vidal said, walking out of the study and calling his wife’s name. “Is Prue back yet?”

His wife, who was preparing dinner in the kitchen, glanced back at him. “No, she went to Emily’s house to bake today, remember? I told you.”

Vidal frowned. “It’s this late already. She should be back.”

“Send her a message and ask. Maybe she was having too much fun and lost track of time,” Lina suggested, her hands not stopping their work. She was quite at ease about her adopted daughter.

Vidal took out his terminal and sent Prue a message, but after several minutes, he received no reply.

He then tried calling her directly, only to hear a system prompt that Prue’s terminal was turned off.

“Lina,” Vidal’s voice grew grave. “Prue isn’t answering, and her personal terminal is off.”

Lina stopped what she was doing, the smile vanishing from her face. “That’s not like her. Prue never turns her terminal off, not even during class.”

“I’ll call Emily’s family.”

Vidal quickly contacted Emily’s parents. As the head of the office, he had dealt with Emily’s father before.

He learned that the girls had finished their baking activity half an hour ago and Prue had already left.

“She’s not there!” Vidal hung up, his expression grim. He immediately contacted the office’s security department.

“Class Three emergency, suspected missing employee relative! Immediately attempt to locate the last known position of Prue Vidal’s personal terminal!”

At this critical juncture, the office’s security department was already on high alert. Just ten minutes later, a micro-reconnaissance drone was hovering over the lawn near Emily’s house, where it found the discarded personal terminal.

Vidal and Lina stood in the surveillance room, their faces ashen as they watched the scene unfold.

“Don’t worry, let’s try activating the backup tracking system,” the head of security said, trying to comfort the Vidals while ordering his subordinate to continue attempting to locate her.

All of Atlas Group’s expatriate personnel, including their families who relocated with them, were implanted with backup tracking devices. This system, normally inactive, was designed for exactly these kinds of extreme situations.

But soon, the security head’s expression changed. “The signal is being jammed. They’re using military-grade interference equipment. They came prepared. This is definitely the work of professionals.”

Just then, Vidal’s terminal vibrated faintly. He opened it to find an anonymous message.

“Mr. Vidal, your daughter is in our hands. If you want to ensure her safety, follow our instructions precisely. Do not attempt any rescue operations, and do not ask your headquarters for help, or some very unpleasant things will happen to both parties. We will contact you again in half an hour.”

Attached to the anonymous message was a photo. Prue was blindfolded and her limbs were bound, lying in a dimly lit room.

Vidal handed the terminal to the security chief, who immediately had his team analyze every detail of the photo, hoping to find any possible clues.

He then asked the security chief if they could reverse-trace the message. The chief replied that the sender’s concealment was extremely sophisticated. It might be possible with the mainframe at A·Bawa·Ku, but with the foreign office’s capabilities, they couldn’t trace the origin point in such a short time.

Furthermore, with no Atlas Group warships currently in the Fragon star system, using a warship’s control personality for decryption and reverse-tracing was also not an option.

“Don’t worry, sir,” the security chief, Caesar, said reassuringly. “Since they have demands, they won’t harm Prue for the time being.”

Vidal, however, calmed down unexpectedly, even letting out a wry smile. “I’m not worried about Prue’s safety, Supervisor Caesar.”

“What do you mean, sir?” the security chief asked, confused. Not everyone knew the true identity of Vidal’s adopted daughter.

Vidal shook his head. “I’m worried she won’t hold back.”

“Huh?”

Vidal didn’t elaborate, merely looking at Lina. A somewhat conflicted expression appeared on both their faces.

After a moment, Vidal finally made a decision. “Have the security element ready for deployment, and put the medical team on standby. Trust me, someone will need medical attention soon, and it won’t be Prue.”

He turned to look at the night sky outside the window, his thoughts drifting to the special girl they had adopted from the Scion Academy.

Prue was not just a psionic user; she was one of the thirteen children Amber had brought out of the psionics lab on Loubion V. She had completed Aen Wrathwind’s ‘graduation exam’ with a near-perfect score and had complete control over her abilities, with no fear of psionic backlash.

Vidal also knew that beneath Prue’s seemingly docile exterior was a set of skills honed by a complete system of psionic combat training—some of which had even been taught directly by the Boss.

The kidnappers thought they had caught a little bird, but they didn’t know it was a bird of prey disguised as a fledgling.

Whoever the kidnappers were, they had made a fatal mistake—they had underestimated the seemingly weak girl.

When Prue realized the reality of her kidnapping, and when she decided to use her abilities, her captors would face a nightmare they were completely unprepared for.

Not Feeling Well, Taking a Day Off Today

Not feeling well, taking a day off today.

My wife and I are both vomiting and have diarrhea. It might be something we ate, or it could be norovirus. I really just don’t have the energy to write an update.

Chapter 784: Gummy Bears

The black hovercar carrying Prue sped through the night, its silhouette blurring into a dark shadow under the evening lights.

Inside, two armed personnel watched their ‘package’ grimly. Prue lay quietly on the seat, eyes closed and breathing evenly, the anesthetic clearly working well.

“Target is secure. Proceeding to the first transfer point.”

The man in the front passenger seat glanced into the rearview mirror and reported in a low voice before cutting communications.

The hovercar drove into an abandoned warehouse district, stopping in front of a gray building. The two armed men got out quickly. One stood guard while the other carefully carried Prue out of the vehicle.

“Switch vehicles. We leave in ten minutes,” the lead man ordered.

At this temporary location, they transferred Prue to another, disguised vehicle and continued on their way.

On the road, Prue’s eyelids twitched slightly, but no one noticed this detail. While everyone thought she was unconscious from the anesthetic, the little girl was already taking the opportunity to observe and gather information.

After another transfer, the vehicle finally arrived at its final destination—a hidden residence in the suburbs of the Fragon IV satellite city.

The place looked ordinary on the outside, but it was actually a safe house for a special unit of the Renaissance Alliance. The walls were specially treated to block most scanning signals.

Most importantly, it was extremely close to a nearby Renaissance Alliance military base, allowing regular army forces to provide support in a crisis.

Four armed personnel brought Prue into the house. One of them gently shook her shoulder. “Little girl, I know you’re about to wake up.”

Seeing no reaction from Prue, whose eyes remained tightly shut, the man chuckled. He then picked her up, passed through several security doors, and entered a simply furnished room.

The room looked more like a guest room than a prison cell—it had a single bed, a chair, a small table, and even a window, though it was covered with reinforced glass and metal bars.

“Put her on the bed,” the squad leader instructed. “Remember to lock the door.”

After Prue was settled, a team member came in with a tray holding a bottle of water, a simple meal, and a few chocolate cookies.

“Squad leader, are you sure about this?” the team member asked in a low voice, placing the tray on the table. “This isn’t standard procedure.”

“She’s just a child, and she’s still pretending to be asleep.”

The squad leader shook his head, a hint of pity in his eyes. “Besides, we just need her father’s cooperation. There’s no need to mistreat a little girl.”

They left the room and locked the door. Prue remained in her sleeping pose until the footsteps completely faded away.

In the surveillance room, two team members took turns watching the monitor. Everything in the room was under their watch.

“This kid’s been asleep for a long time. Did we give her too much?” one team member muttered.

“Don’t worry, it’s a standard dose. And she’s totally faking it now. She actually woke up when we got out of the car,” the other replied. “For a fourteen-year-old girl, the effect should last about four hours. The timing is about right for her to wake up now.”

“This kid’s pretty sharp.”

“Well, she’s the daughter of the person in charge of their Fragon star system office. It’s normal for her to be a little different from other little girls.”

Another half hour passed, and Prue finally ‘woke up’.

She first twitched her fingers slightly, then slowly opened her eyes, blinking a few times to adjust to the light.

Then, she sat up abruptly, her gaze darting frantically around the room, fear and confusion on her face.

Everything was so natural, without a hint of acting. She just looked like a precocious and more vigilant girl her age would in a strange situation.

“Wh-where is this?” she whispered to herself, her voice trembling.

Prue climbed out of bed, stumbled to the door, and pushed and pulled at the handle. Finding it locked, she began to knock, the force just right—urgent but not overly powerful.

“Is anyone there? Please, let me out!” she cried out, her voice filled with terror. “My dad will give you money! Please!”

In the surveillance room, the two team members exchanged a look.

“Looks like she can’t keep faking sleep,” one commented. “Do you think Vidal will cooperate?”

“I bet he will. No father can stand his daughter being kidnapped,” the other replied.

Prue continued her performance. When no one responded, she retreated to the edge of the bed, curled into a ball, and began to sob quietly.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she wiped her wet eyes with her sleeve. Her performance was nearly perfect—the slightly trembling shoulders, the broken sobs, and the profound sense of helplessness all conveyed the reaction of a terrified little girl.

It had to be said that the part of her training about disguise and acting—gleaned from Amber’s own ‘Psionic Agent’ training and Isabelle’s summarized ‘Imperial Navy spy’ training—was proving quite useful at this moment.

“I want to go home,” Prue sobbed, occasionally looking up at the surveillance camera with pleading eyes.

She remained like this for about twenty minutes, then seemed to tire of crying and began to survey the room with an anxious gaze.

She saw the food and water on the table, hesitated for a moment, then walked over to take a few sips of water but didn’t touch the food.

“It might be drugged,” she muttered to herself. It was a reasonable suspicion; anyone in her situation would have the same concern.

Prue’s performance indeed made the people in the surveillance room lower their guard. She looked like an ordinary, frightened fourteen-year-old girl, exactly as they expected.

“Poor kid. Her vigilance and precociousness are just making her more scared,” one team member sighed, shaking his head. “But a mission is a mission.”

Prue returned to the bed, continuing to sob quietly, but the intervals between sobs grew longer as if she were gradually accepting reality. She kept glancing warily at the door and the camera, displaying just the right amount of fear and helplessness.

After a while, Prue lay back down on the bed and seemed to fall asleep. In reality, she had activated her ‘Psionic vision’ and was assessing her surroundings.

Co-developed by Aen Wrathwind and Amber, the ‘Psionic vision’ taught to these children could not only detect life signs but also discover the flow of electricity and energy.

This improved Psionic technique allowed Prue to ‘see’ the circuitry outside the room, the structure within the walls, and even sense the presence of nearby guards.

Most importantly, she confirmed that aside from the surveillance camera, there were no special devices in the room designed to counter psionic users.

Clearly, her captors had no idea of her true identity.

For the current Renaissance Alliance, this wasn’t particularly surprising.

The Renaissance Alliance’s understanding of psionic users was limited, not nearly as deep as the research conducted by the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire. After gaining control over most of the Federation’s territory, the work of those psionic research institutions had basically stagnated.

Evidently, due to this information gap, Franklin and the others had not yet realized that level-seven psionic users had appeared among humans. Or perhaps it was the ‘ignorance and arrogance’ of non-psionics that made them believe psionic users couldn’t influence the human world.

After all, in their view, no matter how powerful psionic users were, their proportion in human society was almost negligible.

Phew…

Confirming that the forces guarding her were meager, Prue let out an imperceptible breath, a slight curve appearing at the corner of her mouth.

This little girl had always been full of initiative. The moment she was kidnapped, she realized that this ‘adventure’ of hers could allow her adoptive father, the office, the entire Atlas Group, and even His Grace to seize the upper hand.

For her first ‘combat mission’, the little girl gave herself some extra time to prepare. After lying down for another ten-plus minutes, she slowly sat up and gently stretched her wrists and ankles.

She surmised that her adoptive father had likely received the kidnapping message and the security team had probably started to take action. It was time for the next step.

Prue stood up abruptly, no longer concealing her movements, and walked toward the door under the increasingly astonished gazes of the two men in the surveillance room.

She raised her hand and sent out a psionic wave to probe the lock’s mechanical structure. It was just an ordinary electronic lock, no obstacle for Prue.

At that moment, the two team members in the surveillance room had yet to realize what was happening. Although the image on the screen was strange, one of them still managed a smile and said, “Look, the little girl wants to get out. Too bad that door is titanium alloy. Even an adult couldn’t…”

The next second, his smile froze.

Prue placed her hand gently on the lock. She didn’t use brute force but rather fine psionic control to directly interfere with the internal mechanics of the lock cylinder.

With a click, the door opened.

“What the hell?!”

The team members in the surveillance room shot to their feet, staring at the screen in disbelief. One of them, snapping out of it, immediately grabbed the communicator. “Attention at the door! Cell door lock has failed! Repeat, cell door lock has failed!”

But only harsh static came from the communicator.

The pink bear hair clip in Prue’s hair was flashing faintly, jamming all wireless communication devices in the building. This seemingly decorative little item was actually a special-made portable jammer, one of the gifts she received upon graduating from the Psionic Special Training Class.

The little girl smiled and walked out of the room, her steps as light as a stroll through a school campus. The two armed guards in the hallway, though they hadn’t heard their comrades’ warning, had noticed something was wrong. They instinctively raised their weapons and aimed them at the little girl.

“Stop! Don’t move!” one guard shouted, a hint of hesitation in his voice.

Prue ignored him and continued walking forward, still wearing an innocent smile. The little girl’s pure and artless charm was perfectly projected under the influence of her psionics.

The guards looked at each other. They were trained to deal with armed enemies, but they had never been taught how to handle a smiling little girl walking toward them. It was illogical, even creepy, and it made them take an involuntary step back.

“I’ll say it again, stop!” The guard’s tone was now tinged with unease. “Or we’ll be forced to take measures!”

Prue finally stopped, tilting her head to look at them, a hint of curiosity in her eyes.

“Uncles, I want to know where this is. Can you make a call and tell my adoptive father? He must be very worried.”

Her sweet, childish voice, however, sounded incredibly eerie at that moment. The guards’ expressions changed completely. They realized this goddamn situation was far more complicated than they had imagined.

But before they could react, Prue waved her hand gently. An invisible psionic force instantly threw both men against the wall with just the right amount of force—enough to temporarily disable them without causing serious injury.

Prue walked over to the fallen guards, unhurriedly found one of their personal terminals, and bent her head, concentrating on operating it.

When the footage of her instantly taking down two men was relayed back to the surveillance room, alarms immediately blared throughout the building. No matter how slow the Renaissance Alliance was to react, they had now realized Prue was a psionic user.

This made the remaining armed personnel drop any underestimation. They formed a tactical formation and advanced down the hallway with heavy weapons.

“Remember, don’t try to engage her up close! And don’t think of her as an ordinary little girl! Suppress with fire a the first sign of any unusual movement!”

The squad leader ordered nervously over a hastily established laser communication channel. What was supposed to be a simple mission to kidnap a child had suddenly turned into a confrontation with an unknown psionic user.

“Squad leader, do we use lethal force?” a team member asked.

Hearing his question, the squad leader hesitated for a moment, then gave an affirmative reply.

“First round, try to capture her with smart non-lethal munitions. If that fails, use lethal force!”

“Yes, Sir!”

When the squad of armed personnel cautiously rounded the corner, they saw Prue standing in the middle of the hallway, hands behind her back, watching them.

A cute children’s dress printed with ‘Gummy Bears’, the innocent smile of a fourteen-year-old girl…

…and two armed guards lying unconscious on the floor.

No matter how you looked at it, the scene was bizarre. Many of the team members felt a chill run down their spines.

“Uncles~ Or maybe there are aunties too?”

Prue spoke suddenly, her voice soft yet exceptionally clear.

“I just want to know my exact location and then contact my adoptive father, Mr. Vidal. If you can help me with that, I promise I won’t bother you anymore.”

The armed men, weapons raised, stopped in their tracks, unsure how to respond. The girl’s attitude was too abnormal; it was as if she were the one in control of the situation.

A moment later, the squad leader, trying to regain the initiative, shouted, “Drop your weapon and surrender immediately! Or we will be forced to use coercive measures!”

“Squad leader… she doesn’t seem to have a weapon,” a team member reminded him in a low voice.

“Hands on your head, get on the ground! Surrender now! Or we will be forced to use coercive measures!” the squad leader, his expression shifting several times, yelled again.

Prue sighed, seemingly exasperated by the adults’ stubbornness. She gently raised her hand, and the lights in the entire hallway suddenly flickered and then went out one by one, leaving only the faint red glow of the emergency lights.

As the area plunged into darkness, the night vision devices on the armed personnel’s tactical faceplates activated automatically. But when they could see the hallway clearly again, they found the girl had vanished.

This was followed by a clattering sound that came from afar and grew closer. The man at the very front of the squad felt something bump against the tip of his boot.

He instinctively looked down and saw two flashbang grenades slowly rolling to a stop.

“Shit! Flashbangs!”

Bang!

Chapter 785: A Huge Help

The Renaissance Alliance’s special operations team had chosen a safe house near a military base with the clear intention of calling for support under special circumstances.

They had investigated the security forces at the Atlas Group’s headquarters on Fragon IV beforehand and were well aware of their significant advantages in personnel training and equipment.

However, according to a series of documents, including the Mutual Defense Agreement and the Atlas Group-Renaissance Alliance Commercial Cooperation White Paper, the number of Atlas security personnel was strictly limited.

In other words, to protect the interests of the Renaissance Alliance, the Atlas Group’s main ground forces within Alliance-controlled territory were supposed to be the marines and orbital paratroopers stationed on their warships. Under normal circumstances, these units would not descend to the planet’s surface. Therefore, the security personnel at the various offices served a literal “self-defense” role.

Thus, the Renaissance Alliance was confident that if they deployed their regular ground forces, despite expecting some casualties, they could definitely suppress the Atlas Group’s security forces before any orbital paratroopers could land.

The military unit near Prue’s safe house had a dedicated operator in the Communications Center tonight, ready to receive a call from these secret operatives at any moment. This entire system was, in fact, inherited from the Federation’s old “operational procedures.” Even the operatives who kidnapped Prue were former Federation agents and special forces members who had “defected.”

However, no one had anticipated that a fourteen-year-old girl, who appeared completely harmless in person and in background checks, would single-handedly subdue all the armed personnel in the safe house in such a short time and prevent them from sending out a distress signal.

“Uncle, so you have to send a pre-arranged signal to the nearby base every half hour. If the signal isn’t sent correctly within five minutes of the scheduled time, the garrison will immediately mobilize and head this way, right?”

Inside the safe house’s communications room, Prue crouched obediently before a bound armed operative, asking him with a kind expression.

Hearing her question, the completely restrained operative could only nod helplessly.

“There are eight minutes until the next signal transmission, correct?”

The operative nodded.

“And the coded message is ‘Delicious fried chicken,’ right?”

The operative hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“Very good, thank you, Uncle~ I’m going to cover your ears and mouth now and go ask the other uncle over there. If there’s even a one-word difference between what you two say, the consequences will be pretty dire~”

Prue stood up with a grin. Using her Psionics to block his hearing and gag his mouth, she was about to walk over to the other operative.

But before she could take a step, she saw the man on the floor begin to struggle frantically.

Seeing this, a smile touched the corners of Prue’s mouth. She crouched down again and released his restraints.

“The correct coded message is ‘Delicious fried chicken tonight.’ I was in a hurry and left a part out. I’m really sorry about that, little… miss.”

Fear was evident on the operative’s face. He had clearly realized that Prue was not just a psionic user but had also received some unknown level of agent training.

Although he knew his comrade would have the presence of mind to corroborate his story upon hearing “Delicious fried chicken,” at the last moment, he found he didn’t dare to take the gamble.

Who knew if this fourteen-year-old child had any sense of restraint when she got rough?

Faced with the operative’s clumsy excuse, Prue said nothing. She simply offered a polite smile, restrained him once more, and walked over to the other man.

After crouching down again with the same obedient and adorable demeanor and releasing the second operative, Prue repeated her earlier words in a cheerful tone, this time emphasizing “Delicious fried chicken tonight.”

After receiving an affirmative look from the second operative, Prue used her Psionics to seat them side-by-side, forcing them to watch as she operated the communications terminal.

Watching the fourteen-year-old girl in front of them expertly use the military-grade terminal and casually disable several hidden, built-in alarm programs, the two men felt as if they were seeing a ghost.

They even began to suspect that they hadn’t kidnapped the daughter of the Atlas Group’s office director, but rather a Psionic Agent disguised as a fourteen-year-old girl.

Meanwhile, after sending the message to the garrison according to procedure, Prue turned her head and stared at the two men with a smile, making the two professionally trained operatives’ skin crawl.

Only after the garrison sent back the corresponding confirmation that all was normal did Prue clap her hands happily and say with a smile:

“Congratulations, uncles, you passed~ Of course, I’ll still be using this safe house’s surveillance equipment to keep an eye on the base. If they make any moves they shouldn’t, I definitely won’t let you off~”

Having done all this, Prue looked at the military communications terminal again. It showed a new received message—from the security forces of the Atlas Group’s office in the Fragon star system.

The first thing Prue had done after taking control of the safe house was to contact the security forces and provide them with her coordinates and a description of the surrounding area. Vidal, already fully armed, was on his way with the security supervisor and his team.

“They’ll be here in about ten minutes, so fast~”

Prue pursed her lips, then her eyes lit up as she spotted another terminal in the room. She removed her necklace and took out a memory card from it.

“This should be enough time for me to find some more goodies, right?”

Fifteen minutes later, three Atlas Group armored vehicles, with signal jammers and active radar stealth engaged, came speeding to a stop in front of the safe house like phantom tanks.

After several squads of elite Romu soldiers quickly disembarked and set up a defensive perimeter, Vidal, also wearing a combat exoskeleton with a power greatsword sheathed on his back, jumped out of a vehicle. He strode quickly toward his daughter, who was already at the safe house entrance. When he saw Prue standing there, safe and sound, his expression was a mixture of relief and helplessness.

“Prue,” he said, his voice half-stern, half-relieved, “you had us worried sick.”

“Sorry, Dad.”

Prue lowered her head, her apology genuine this time.

“But I thought this was a good opportunity to help the group, so…”

Vidal shook his head and gently hugged his daughter. “Next time you’re in a situation like this, just focus on keeping yourself safe, okay?”

“Don’t worry, Dad. I made sure I was safe this time, too. These regular soldiers are no match for me~”

Prue nodded with a smile, then mysteriously took the memory card from her necklace. “Look, I brought back a present.”

Knowing his adoptive daughter’s secrets, Vidal instantly realized what was on it. A flash of surprise crossed his face, followed by a complex sense of pride—though his daughter was only fourteen, she was already demonstrating abilities far beyond her years.

“Let’s go, time to go home,” he said gently. “Your mother has your favorite dinner waiting, and I have a feeling you won’t be going to school tomorrow.”

“That’s fantastic~”

Prue got into the vehicle with her adoptive father, glancing back one last time at the safe house, which was now completely secured by the Atlas Group security team. She knew that what happened tonight was probably more significant than she imagined.

Perhaps the undercurrents between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group had already begun to surge, and this kidnapping was merely a small beginning.

“I wonder if what I did will be of any help to Mr. Amber?”

“Well, now… this is a huge help.”

On the bridge of The Infinity, Amber looked at the latest report displayed on the holographic projection with a mix of surprise and amazement. The document from the Fragon star system detailed an unexpected ‘kidnapping-turned-counter-kidnapping’ incident.

After reading through the timeline and the outcome, even Amber couldn’t help but let out a soft humming sound.

“A fourteen-year-old girl from the Fragon star system office single-handedly subdued an entire Renaissance Alliance safe house of armed personnel?” Isabelle stood beside Amber, one eyebrow slightly raised. “This kid is something else.”

“Prue Vidal.”

Amber spoke her name, a hint of admiration in his eyes. “An outstanding graduate of the Psionic Special Training Class. Master Aen Wrathwind praised her several times. I remember her.”

The image in the projection switched to a security recording. In it, a young girl moved nimbly through the corridors of the Renaissance Alliance safe house.

Facing fully armed operatives after a flashbang detonated, her movements were so graceful they were almost dance-like. Every strike was precisely controlled, swift enough to neutralize her opponents without causing fatal injuries.

“The younger generation is truly formidable. Amazing. She’s even more outstanding than she was in the training class,” Amber couldn’t help but comment.

Isabelle looked slightly surprised. “She’s one of those children? I thought they were all living normal lives.”

“That was the plan.”

Amber nodded, his gaze still fixed on the screen, his thoughts drifting back to when he had arranged for their adoptions.

“We specifically sought out employee families who had lost children of their own to adopt them, hoping they could have the lives ordinary children deserve. After Prue was adopted by the Vidals, she was reportedly attending a normal school on Fragon IV, living a peaceful life.”

He turned to Isabelle, an expression of exasperation on his face as he spoke in a tone that suggested he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Who could have guessed that the Renaissance Alliance’s first move would be to run right into her?”

Data began scrolling across the screen, showing the classified Renaissance Alliance documents Prue had extracted from the safe house terminal—operational plans, deployment maps, personnel lists, and even minutes from several high-level Renaissance Alliance meetings.

“They really picked the wrong person to mess with this time,” Isabelle said, flipping through the files. “Not only did their plan fail, but they also handed over all this intelligence for free.”

“Yes, it all happened a bit too suddenly.”

Amber tapped his fingers on the edge of the console, his thoughts returning to his visits to the Psionic Special Training Class.

Even back then, Prue had demonstrated a calmness and judgment far beyond her peers. While other children struggled with controlling their Psionics, she was already capable of precise micromanipulation, such as picking complex locks without physical contact or accurately controlling the trajectory of moving objects.

“Prue showed great potential back then, but I never wanted these children to be forced onto the battlefield simply because they possess Psionics.”

Isabelle nodded in understanding. “You wanted them to live normal lives.”

“Exactly. But fate, it seems, has its own plans,” Amber said with a wry smile, his eyes returning to the screen. “After Prue escaped, she not only brought out the Alliance’s classified files but also hacked into their internal network and left us a backdoor.”

Lilith’s hologram suddenly materialized on the bridge. “Master, based on the information Prue acquired, I can confirm that the Renaissance Alliance is indeed planning a large-scale operation against the Atlas Group. The timeline is earlier than we estimated.”

“Specifics?”

“The Renaissance Alliance plans to launch simultaneous operations in at least twelve star systems, attempting to freeze our assets, take over our facilities, and even arrest some of our senior management. Their goal is to weaken the Atlas Group’s influence in Alliance-controlled sectors and force us to cooperate on their terms.”

Amber fell into deep thought, his fingers tapping a steady rhythm on the console. One, two.

Fragon IV was just one piece of the puzzle, or perhaps for some unknown reason, it had become The Fuse for the entire plan.

The Renaissance Alliance had clearly deployed similar operations in all key star systems. Their purpose in kidnapping the families of Atlas Group employees was undoubtedly to coerce senior management into cooperating with their impending large-scale operation.

Amber stood and walked to the holographic projection platform in the center of the bridge. “Deploy the mobile fleet now. At the same time, contact all offices. Authorize them to use any means necessary to ensure the safety of all abducted personnel. Initiate emergency protocols. Raise the security level to maximum.”

Isabelle asked, “And how do we plan to use the intelligence Prue acquired?”

A slight smile played on Amber’s lips. “This is a perfect opportunity, Isa~ Prepare a selectively redacted version of the Renaissance Alliance’s secret meeting minutes for public release. Emphasize the parts where they planned this act of treachery, but don’t mention any of our countermeasures.”

“You want to make this intelligence public?” Isabelle raised an eyebrow.

Amber replied, “Yes. Let’s stir up some chaos within the Renaissance Alliance first. From these documents, it seems Franklin isn’t entirely committed to this plan, while Hall, Cole, and others are actively pushing for it. If we release some information strategically, it will inevitably create divisions within the Alliance—the factions that support continued cooperation with the Atlas Group will clash with the war hawks.”

“Use it to buy time and divide their forces,” Isabelle said, understanding his intent.

Amber nodded, then remarked once more, “Regardless, we have Prue to thank for this. She not only protected herself but also turned the entire situation around.”

It was hard to say whether it was luck or fate, Amber thought to himself.

Of all the offices, the Renaissance Alliance had chosen to strike in the Fragon star system and happened to kidnap an outstanding graduate of the Psionic Special Training Class. The coincidence was so remarkable that one couldn’t help but wonder if some unseen hand was at play.

Perhaps this was fate’s sense of humor—just when you think you have everything figured out, an unpredictable variable is always waiting for you.

Amber’s thoughts drifted to the thirteen children from that training class. After finding them in the psionic user laboratory on Loubion V and bringing them back to the Atlas Group, he had not only provided them with a safe environment to learn and control their Psionics but had also insisted they receive a normal education, studying history, literature, and science—the knowledge that would make them complete individuals.

As time passed, the children gradually mastered their abilities. Under Aen Wrathwind’s guidance, they learned to integrate their psionic powers into their daily lives, rather than viewing them solely as tools for combat.

At their graduation, Amber had promised them that they could choose their own paths, free from any destiny forced upon them.

Most of the children ultimately chose ordinary lives. Only a few teenagers, having turned sixteen, insisted on joining the Atlas Group’s combat units. Amber had respected their choices, but deep down, he had always hoped they could have the childhood and youth they deserved.

Now, fate had brought Prue, who was meant for a life of peace, back to the dangerous battlefield.

Fortunately, from here on out, this fourteen-year-old girl wouldn’t need to worry about a thing~

Chapter 786: Here Comes the Internal Conflict

In the conference room of the Renaissance Alliance’s Provisional Government Building.

Franklin braced his hands on the conference table, his knuckles white from the force. The tips of his fingers trembled faintly.

Outside the large glass window, a blood-red sun was slowly sinking below the horizon, dyeing the entire room a dark crimson, as if portending something ominous.

“Can anyone tell me what in the world is going on?”

Franklin’s voice was not loud, yet it made everyone present straighten their backs involuntarily. The air in the conference room seemed to freeze; no one dared to be the first to speak.

“I asked, can anyone tell me what is going on?” Franklin asked a second time, his tone rising slightly as his icy gaze swept over everyone seated at the table.

A middle-aged man on the right side of the table finally cleared his throat and managed to force a smile. “Leader, the operation in the Fragon star system did encounter some… accidents, but this is merely a minor setback. We can absolutely—”

“A minor setback?”

Franklin shot his head up, interrupting the man with a burst of anger.

“My dear Mr. Paul, you call kidnapping a fourteen-year-old girl—only to have that same fourteen-year-old girl single-handedly subdue the entire operation team—a ‘minor setback’? It seems your intelligence department’s action teams are quite skilled at comforting themselves.”

The smile on Paul’s face instantly froze.

Franklin snatched the datapad in front of him and slammed it on the table. “Forty-two people! Forty-two professionally trained armed personnel in a safe house, all taken down by a fourteen-year-old girl! Right now, these people are lying in the medical center. Some have head trauma, others have broken limbs, and a few even require psychological intervention!”

He scanned the room and continued, “What’s worse is that I have no memory of ever approving this mission! Can anyone tell me why the intelligence department’s action team would take it upon themselves to target the family of an Atlas Group employee stationed abroad without my authorization?”

The conference room descended into dead silence once more.

Franklin took a deep breath, his eyes sweeping over the various expressions in the room as he suppressed the inferno raging within him.

He knew this was no simple operational failure; it was a direct challenge to his authority as the leader.

As infuriating as the failure of the operation was, what enraged him more was that someone had dared to bypass his authority and act on their own.

“Leader.”

Another military representative stood up, his voice steady. The local garrison had provided some assistance in this operation, so they were also considered ‘participants.’

“There were indeed some… internal communication errors in this operation, but please believe that our original intention was to serve the interests of the Renaissance Alliance.”

Franklin sneered. “Communication errors? Colonel Cohen, could you please explain how you ‘mistakenly’ assembled over forty armed personnel? And then ‘mistakenly’ prepared a safe house, ‘mistakenly’ established a backup contact point, and even ‘mistakenly’ drafted a complete operational plan?”

Colonel Cohen bowed his head slightly and said no more.

Franklin ignored his expression and continued, his voice dripping with sarcasm:

“What’s more absurd is that you couldn’t even get the most basic intelligence right. That girl, Prue Vidal, is a systematically trained psionic user. This was obviously a key piece of intelligence directly related to the success or failure of the mission, yet you were completely unaware!”

At these words, several representatives from the intelligence department, sitting in a corner of the room, couldn’t help but shrink back in their seats.

Franklin’s gaze swept over Hall and Cole. Both men appeared calm on the surface, but Franklin keenly noticed Hall’s right index finger tapping lightly on the table—a small habit of his when he was nervous.

Franklin scoffed internally. One of these men was in charge of internal affairs, the other held the reins of the military. On the Renaissance Alliance’s pyramid of power, they were second only to him.

He was certain that the true masterminds were likely these two; the operation executors present were merely scapegoats they had pushed forward.

“Effective immediately, by my authority as the Leader of the Renaissance Alliance, I am relieving all personnel involved in the planning and execution of this operation of their duties,” Franklin announced calmly. “Simultaneously, I will request the Inspectorate Committee to conduct a full investigation into this matter to determine who approved this operation without my authorization.”

A group of officials instantly turned pale, but no one dared to raise an objection. They knew that any attempt to justify their actions now would only add fuel to the fire. Cole and Hall exchanged a glance, still remaining silent.

“I want to reiterate one point.”

Franklin surveyed the room, his gaze finally settling on Hall and Cole.

“The Renaissance Alliance is one body. Any unauthorized action, any act that divides us from within, is a betrayal of our cause. I will not tolerate anyone challenging the collective decision-making authority of the Alliance—no matter how high their position or how great their contributions.”

The warning implicit in his words made the atmosphere in the room even heavier.

“Eleanor!”

“Yes, Leader.”

Franklin turned to the young woman beside him. “Notify the Inspectorate Committee. They are to begin a full investigation into the Fragon star system incident today. At the same time, suspend all similar operations that have not been personally approved by me.”

Eleanor nodded, quickly taking notes on her terminal.

“As for the Atlas Group,” Franklin continued his orders, “contact the Atlas office in the Fragon star system immediately. Make it clear that this was a misunderstanding, an unauthorized action by subordinates, not the official stance of the Renaissance Alliance.”

Hall finally spoke up. “Leader, have you considered that this incident might be an opportunity? The Atlas Group’s reaction shows they do have their reservations. We could use this to—”

“Enough!” Franklin cut him off, a cold glint in his eyes. “Hall, it’s precisely that kind of reckless thinking that nearly caused a disaster! The Atlas Group hasn’t taken further action not because they’re afraid, but because they’re giving us leeway. Don’t forget their absolute military and technological superiority.”

Hall’s expression remained unchanged, but a hint of displeasure was already visible in his eyes.

“Alright, this meeting is adjourned.”

Franklin said curtly, then turned to Hall and Cole. “You two, stay behind.”

The others left the conference room as if granted a pardon, leaving the three of them to face off in a heavy silence.

“Leader.”

Hall was the first to speak, his tone now filled with respect.

“This incident is truly regrettable, but I believe it was simply an error in execution, not—”

“Enough,” Franklin raised a hand to stop him. “I’m no fool, Hall. You and I both know that those who were dismissed are just scapegoats. The one who really gave the order is still sitting in this room.”

Admiral Kol straightened his back. “Leader, are you accusing us of treason?”

“Treason? No.” Franklin shook his head, a dangerous light flashing in his eyes. “I’m merely stating a fact—you are testing my limits.”

Hall and Cole exchanged a look, not denying it.

“I can tolerate different voices and opinions. I even welcome them, as they are beneficial to the Alliance’s continued development.”

Franklin continued, his voice low and powerful.

“But what I will not tolerate are unauthorized operations, especially during such a sensitive time. Do you have any idea what the consequences could have been?”

“We just thought…” Hall attempted to explain.

“You don’t have the fucking right to ‘think’!”

Franklin’s voice suddenly boomed, cutting Hall off. His expression was as ferocious as a cornered beast.

“The Atlas Group is not some target you can provoke at will! If that girl hadn’t happened to be a psionic user today, if she had been genuinely hurt or worse, could you have borne the consequences?”

The conference room fell silent, Franklin’s rage almost palpable.

“Listen,” he said, slightly composing himself, “I won’t hold you responsible this time, but this is the last time. If anything like this happens again, I will not hesitate to put you on trial. Do you understand?”

The two men nodded reluctantly, their faces etched with forced compliance.

“Now, get out of my sight,” Franklin said with a dismissive wave.

After Hall and Cole left, Franklin collapsed heavily into his chair, a wave of exhaustion washing over him. He rubbed his temples, his thoughts racing—

Some time later, in his own office, Franklin stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing down at the night view of the Renaissance Alliance’s provisional capital.

Amidst the brightly lit buildings, shuttles occasionally streaked across the sky, leaving trails of light in their wake.

Eleanor walked in quietly and placed a cup of hot tea on his desk. “The Inspectorate Committee has already begun its work.”

Franklin didn’t turn around, merely nodding slightly.

“Franklin, are you planning to use this incident to get rid of Hall and Cole for good?” Eleanor asked bluntly.

Franklin finally turned, his face a mixture of exhaustion and resolve. “They’ve crossed the line, Eleanor. To move against the Atlas Group without authorization is not just a challenge to my authority; it’s pushing the Renaissance Alliance into a perilous situation at this sensitive time.”

He walked to his desk, sat down, and took a sip of tea. “Think about it. What if the Atlas Group had decided to view this as a provocation and immediately launched a counter-strike? Are we prepared to handle that?”

Eleanor was silent for a moment before saying softly, “I’m just worried that going after high-level officials right now might shake the Alliance’s cohesion.”

“No, quite the opposite.”

Franklin put down his cup, his gaze firm as he looked at Eleanor.

“They are the ones undermining the Alliance’s cohesion. Their self-righteous actions, their clandestine maneuvers, their disregard for authority—these are the real threats to the Renaissance Alliance.”

He stood and walked to a virtual star map in his office. “If they aren’t removed, when we finally and inevitably face the Atlas Group head-on, the Renaissance Alliance will collapse from within.”

Eleanor looked at Franklin’s back, feeling as though she was truly seeing the weight of the burden this man carried for the first time. She was about to say something when she heard Franklin ask, “What is the Atlas Group’s reaction so far?”

“That’s what’s so strange. To date, the Atlas Group has not officially approached us about this matter. Their office in the Fragon star system has gone into full alert and cut off all contact with the outside world, but they didn’t do anything to those armed personnel. They just rescued the girl and left.”

Eleanor paused, then continued, “Franklin, what do you think this means?”

Franklin pondered for a moment. “Perhaps Mr. Amber doesn’t want to escalate the situation either. After all, under the current circumstances, the chain reaction that a small-scale conflict could trigger would benefit neither of us.”

He returned to his desk and pulled up a series of data on his terminal. “We need to halt all similar operations immediately to prevent the situation from worsening. At the same time, we need to find a way to contact the Atlas Group office in the Fragon star system and explain that this was just a misunderstanding.”

Eleanor nodded. “And Mr. Amber…”

“Since he hasn’t brought it up,” a shrewd glint appeared in Franklin’s eyes, “we don’t need to go out of our way. If he wants to talk about it, he’ll say so. If he doesn’t, why should we go looking for trouble?”

Eleanor nodded lightly, offering no further opinion.

“However… the traitors within our ranks must be dealt with cleanly. Never mind, I will communicate with the Inspectorate Committee myself. I want to identify every member connected to Hall and Cole and use this opportunity to catch them all in one net, no matter how deep they’re hiding,” Franklin added.

Eleanor was suddenly struck by a thought. “What if… and I’m just saying if… what if Amber already knows more? After all, that girl might have acquired intelligence from the safe house.”

Franklin’s fingers tapped lightly on his desk as his gaze deepened. “Then we need to deal with our internal problems even more quickly! If Mr. Amber finds out about our internal divisions, he will most likely exploit them! We must clean up our own backyard before he makes a move.”

He stood up, walked to the window, and once again looked out at the city lights. “Let’s begin, Eleanor. Time is not on our side.”

Eleanor nodded and turned to leave. Franklin was left alone in the office, his silhouette elongated by the floor-to-ceiling window, casting a long shadow on the floor.

Exceptionally lonely.

“Just as I thought… Franklin has completely changed. He’s not even willing to contact me privately and give me an explanation, as if our personal relationship never existed at all.”

After reading the confidential report from inside the Renaissance Alliance, Amber couldn’t help but let out a long sigh, his expression like that of a man who had lost an old friend.

“Master, you say that as if you and Franklin were ever close. Weren’t you also just using him?” Lilith’s virtual avatar remarked with a hint of disdain.

“Regardless, I really did have high hopes for that ‘idealistic youth’ back then. And forcing him into the role of a puppet… I really couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“And now?”

“Now? Heh.”

Amber let out a cold laugh, the last trace of nostalgia vanishing from his face.

“Since he’s chosen to play the coward on this matter, he can’t blame me for not holding back.”

Chapter 787: The First Punch of Amber’s Combination

Dusk deepened on Gelis II. One by one, neon lights flickered on above the city, illuminating the moon that floated beside a giant gas planet.

On a weekday evening, people streamed out of their workplaces, hurrying home or to planned gatherings.

Jason McLaren dragged his weary body into the ‘Whitebeard’ Tavern, a fixed Friday custom for him.

The tavern was located in a bustling alleyway in the commercial district. Its decor was a mix of Blue Star-era pirate ships and elements from the early pioneering days of interstellar colonization. A few star charts and an old-fashioned ship’s helm hung beside the wooden bar, while the walls were covered with translucent metal plates, upon which projections of strange cosmic nebulae flowed.

“The usual, Jason?”

Malloy, the bartender and owner, recognized the regular, his hand already reaching for a bottle of whiskey.

Jason nodded and slumped onto a stool at the bar, finally relaxing a little.

“On the rocks, thanks. The damn freight management system broke down again today. We had to work a whole two hours of overtime.”

Malloy expertly poured the amber liquid into a glass and casually tossed in a polyhedron-shaped ice cube—one of his signature skills. Hand-carving ice into standard cubes was a craft not every bartender could master.

“Hey, didn’t you say last time that the system was upgraded and made things much more convenient? I remember it was new tech from the Atlas Group.”

“It was upgraded, that’s true,” Jason said after taking a sip, feeling the fiery liquid slide down his throat. “But there are always compatibility issues. Migrating data from the old system always causes problems. To be honest, though, compared to that piece of junk we had six months ago, this is heaven.”

The tavern had filled up at some point, mostly with workers and clerks from nearby factories and offices. They gathered in small groups, discussing their work and lives.

The air was filled with the aroma of barbecue and beer, mixed with a cacophony of voices that somehow brought a strange sense of comfort.

At the other end of the bar, three middle-aged men in work clothes were in a heated discussion, their voices gradually drowning out the surrounding conversations.

“I’m telling you, the formal establishment of the Renaissance Alliance is a big deal!” one of them, a man with a handlebar mustache, exclaimed, waving his arms. “Our department had a special meeting this morning to discuss restructuring plans. I hear they’re going to reorganize the entire corporate structure.”

“What’s there to restructure?” another, a lanky man, retorted. “Ever since Atlas took over our factory’s production lines, the management has been perfectly standardized. We have an eight-hour workday now, and overtime is triple pay. It’s way better than that old exploitative boss we had before.”

“Exactly. Remember those corrupt officials from the Federation era?” a third man chimed in, beer foam clinging comically to his thick beard. “Taxes were ridiculously high, and prices went up every day. It’s so much better now. At least we can breathe.”

Hearing their conversation, others around them were drawn in and began to chime in. An elderly woman was the first to speak, shaking her head. “As long as it doesn’t become corrupt like the Old Federation, I’ll be happy. My son was a soldier during the Federation era. Not only could he not send any Credits home each month, he ended up owing the military a ton of money. And he was wounded fighting for the Federation, too.”

The woman’s words struck a chord with the crowd. Since they had all lived under the Federation’s rule not long ago, the contrast with their current lives was stark, and they couldn’t help but complain about their past hardships.

“It’s much better now,” piped up a young man in the corner. “I was just hired by a subsidiary of the Atlas Group last month. My salary is double what it used to be, and I have health insurance.”

Malloy, having just served Jason, joined the discussion with a smile as he wiped a glass. “I heard the Atlas Group is expanding its recruitment in the Gelis star system. I think they’re planning to build a new R&D center.”

“Really?” several people asked in unison, their eyes shining with hope.

Malloy nodded. “It’s true. My cousin works in their recruitment department. He said they’re looking to hire at least five thousand people.”

A cheer erupted in the tavern. In an era that had just emerged from war, a stable job was more precious than anything.

“The Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group are a match made in heaven!” a drunk customer slurred, raising his glass. “To our new era!”

Jason turned halfway, listening to their conversation with half an ear.

Lately, similar discussions could be heard all over Gelis II. The Renaissance Alliance’s overthrow of the Federation government had indeed brought some positive changes—taxes were lower, working conditions had improved, and those once high-and-mighty corrupt officials had fallen from grace.

And the public attributed much of this to the intervention of the Atlas Group.

Malloy wiped a glass, his eyes glancing at the holographic screen in the center of the tavern. “The ratings are up again. Those elf anchors from Atlas are real money-makers.”

The holographic screen was broadcasting Atlas Media’s evening news. A female elf anchor with silver hair and violet eyes was reporting on the Renaissance Alliance’s latest policies.

She wore a tailored, deep blue suit, and her perfect features and elegant body language had captured the attention of most of the men in the tavern.

“Stop staring. If your wife knew you were gawking at these female elves every day, she’d have your hide,” Jason teased.

“Hey, I’m just keeping up with current events!” Malloy retorted, though he couldn’t help but sneak a few more glances at the screen. “But seriously, Atlas Group’s news is really professional, much better than those robots from the Renaissance Alliance who can only read from a script. If you ask me, those dimwits in the Alliance don’t have half the media skills the Federation did.”

Just then, the calm news broadcast was suddenly interrupted. The words ‘BREAKING NEWS’ flashed on the screen, accompanied by an extremely attention-grabbing alert tone.

The noise in the tavern gradually died down as everyone’s eyes turned to the screen.

“Viewers, we interrupt this program with breaking news.”

The elf anchor’s expression turned serious, her voice no longer gentle. The mood of the room shifted with her words.

“A serious kidnapping incident has recently occurred on Fragon IV. Prue Vidal, the fourteen-year-old adopted daughter of Mr. Vidal, the head of the Atlas Group’s office in the Fragon star system, was forcibly taken by a group of armed individuals on her way home from school.”

The tavern fell silent in an instant. Only the anchor’s clear voice echoed through the space.

“According to exclusive information obtained by our reporter, this was not an isolated incident, but a premeditated operation!”

The screen switched to surveillance footage showing several fully armed individuals loading an unconscious girl into a vehicle before speeding away.

“What is even more shocking is that the mastermind behind these kidnappers is none other than—the Renaissance Alliance’s special operations department.”

“What?” The man with the handlebar mustache who had just been loudly praising the Alliance’s founding shot to his feet. “That’s impossible!”

The image on the screen changed again, this time displaying a series of screenshots of documents and meeting minutes. The elf anchor’s voice grew heavier.

“What you are seeing now are classified documents obtained by the Atlas Group’s security department in the Fragon star system during the rescue of Prue. These documents clearly record a series of kidnapping operations planned by the Renaissance Alliance high command, targeting Atlas Group employees and their families! These documents show that the Fragon star system was only the first step. The Renaissance Alliance plans to launch similar operations in multiple star systems simultaneously!”

Malloy gasped. “Hell, they actually kidnapped a fourteen-year-old girl? Have those bastards lost their minds?”

Jason said nothing, his brows furrowed as he stared intently at the screen.

A picture of the girl appeared—Prue Vidal, a fourteen-year-old with a gentle smile, dressed in an ordinary Gummy Bears brand outfit. She looked no different from any other girl her age.

On the screen, the elf anchor continued, “It is worth mentioning that Prue Vidal displayed astonishing courage and resourcefulness after being kidnapped! Not only did she successfully escape and call for help, but she also cooperated with our security forces to obtain this crucial evidence. The following is footage taken by the Atlas Group security team when they retrieved Prue…”

A blurry but clear enough video played, showing a group of fully-armed adults being led out of a building, bound hand and foot. The camera then cut to Prue, who was being examined by medical personnel next to an armored vehicle, looking largely unharmed.

“Is that really a fourteen-year-old girl?! How did she do that?” the lanky worker’s eyes widened.

“It must be an Atlas operative in disguise. It can’t be real,” the man with the handlebar mustache countered, but his tone was less certain now.

“Right! It must be the Atlas Group mudslinging!” his other companion immediately agreed.

The elf anchor’s voice returned: “According to reliable sources, these kidnapping operations were authorized by the Renaissance Alliance’s special intelligence department. The goal was to blackmail Atlas Group’s expatriate personnel into cooperating with the Alliance’s upcoming series of asset freezes and takeovers targeting the Atlas Group.”

An uproar swept through the tavern. People began talking all at once. Some slammed their fists on the tables in anger, while others shook their heads in disbelief. Jason and Malloy could feel the atmosphere around them grow palpably tense.

“This can’t be real,” a young man in a Renaissance Alliance uniform said loudly. “It must be fake news fabricated by Atlas!”

“Fabricated? Those documents looked pretty real to me!” another person immediately shot back. “Besides, you in the Renaissance Alliance have been unhappy about Atlas’s influence for a while now, haven’t you?”

“Hey, gentlemen, calm down! Let’s hear the rest of it!” Malloy shouted, raising his voice to quell the dispute. At the same time, one hand moved toward a weapon hidden beneath the bar, just in case.

On the holographic screen, the elf anchor’s report continued: “Even more shockingly, these documents reveal a secret plan within the Renaissance Alliance—an attempt to weaken and ultimately supplant the Atlas Group’s influence in territories controlled by the Alliance. This plan was spearheaded by high-ranking Alliance members Hall and Cole, and may have even had the tacit approval of Franklin himself.”

Three photos appeared on the screen—Hall, Cole, and Franklin—alongside close-ups of several documents they had signed.

A man who looked like he worked at a factory owned by the Atlas Group couldn’t help but shout in anger, “This is a betrayal! Atlas Group helped them overthrow the Federation, and this is how they repay them?”

“Betrayal? Don’t be naive!” the young man in the uniform shot back. “The Renaissance Alliance is trying to build a new, independent world. It can’t rely on the Atlas Group forever.”

The argument grew more heated, and the tension in the tavern escalated.

Jason noticed that nearly everyone had split into two factions—those supporting the Atlas Group and those supporting the Renaissance Alliance. There was almost no middle ground.

Just as the argument was about to turn physical, the news report on the holographic screen was interrupted by an official notice. The Renaissance Alliance Provisional Government announced that, effective immediately, Atlas Media’s channel in the Gelis star system was being shut down for “spreading false information and endangering public security.”

The screen went black for a moment, then switched to the Renaissance Alliance’s official channel. A stoic male anchor began to read a statement: “The incident in the Fragon star system was purely the unauthorized action of a few individuals. The Renaissance Alliance Provisional Government has dealt with the responsible parties severely! We reiterate that the cooperative relationship between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group remains strong and unchanged…”

“Bullshit! They shut down the channel because they have a guilty conscience! They don’t want us to see the truth!” a middle-aged woman stood up angrily.

The young man in the uniform retorted again, “What makes you so sure that what Atlas says is the truth? Maybe the girl doesn’t even exist! This is just a story they made up to attack the Renaissance Alliance!”

The argument raged on. The tavern owner, Malloy, tried to switch back to the Atlas channel, but all his attempts failed.

“Damn it, they really cut the feed,” he cursed under his breath. “How is this any different from the Federation era?”

Just then, the tavern door was thrown open, and a group of people in security uniforms walked in.

The leader was a burly man. He scanned the room and then announced in a loud voice, “In accordance with Decree 457 of the Renaissance Alliance Provisional Government, discussion of the Fragon star system incident in public places is hereby prohibited. Violators will be placed under administrative detention. We ask for all citizens’ understanding and cooperation.”

The tavern erupted. Some stood up in anger, while others quietly slipped towards the back door.

A chill ran down Jason’s spine. The scene was all too familiar, just like the methods the Federation used to suppress dissent.

“Is this your so-called New Order? How are you any different from the Federation?” an old man stood up, pointing a trembling finger at the security personnel.

The security officer walked toward the old man with a blank expression. “Citizen, please come with us.”

“On what grounds? I was just telling the truth!”

Two security officers in light combat exoskeletons stepped forward and grabbed the old man’s arms, preparing to take him away. At that moment, a commotion broke out in the tavern as several young men rushed forward to stop them.

“Let him go!”

“This is a public place! We have the right to discuss it!”

“The Renaissance Alliance is the new Federation! We have freedom of speech!”

Chaos erupted in an instant. People pushed and shoved, yelling. Someone started throwing bottles and glasses at the security officers.

The officers drew their riot batons and formed a phalanx, advancing menacingly.

Jason had already taken cover behind the bar, watching the chaos unfold with a heart full of confusion and anger.

He had once thought the rise of the Renaissance Alliance would bring real change, but now it seemed they had just swapped one set of rulers for another.

“This is big trouble.”

Malloy, cowering beside Jason with a pale face, didn’t dare touch the weapon hidden under the bar. “I just wanted to run a small tavern and live a quiet life. I never intended to get involved in something like this.”

Jason didn’t answer. His attention was drawn to his personal terminal, which was vibrating wildly. He then realized it wasn’t just his; Malloy’s next to him, and everyone else’s in the tavern seemed to be receiving a message at the same time.

It was a data packet from an unknown source that had somehow bypassed the Renaissance Alliance’s communications blockade and been sent directly to everyone’s terminal.

Jason opened it and saw a video—an interview with the kidnapped girl, Prue Vidal. She was calmly recounting her experience: her abduction, her escape, and the process of subduing her captors.

The video also contained the complete versions of the classified documents, which were far more detailed and shocking than what had been shown on the news.

The chaos in the tavern suddenly subsided. People stopped fighting and pulled out their terminals. The security officers also froze, as they had apparently received the same message.

Jason said in a low voice, “My God, everyone got it…”

“Not just us,” Malloy said, pointing out the window. “It looks like all of Gelis II got it.”

Through the tavern window, they could see people on the street stopping in their tracks, looking down at their terminals.

The large public screens, which had been playing official Renaissance Alliance news, were forcibly switched to Prue’s interview.

“This is…” Jason was too shocked to speak.

Malloy’s eyes were wide with surprise. “It seems the Atlas Group’s technology is far superior to the Renaissance Alliance’s. They can easily bypass a communications blockade in a short amount of time.”

After the video finished, a line of bold text appeared on the screen: “The truth cannot be concealed; freedom cannot be trampled.”

Then, the communication systems on Gelis II returned to normal, but no one was paying attention to the official Renaissance Alliance channels anymore.

People began to discuss the incident on the streets and in alleyways. Some angrily questioned the integrity of the Renaissance Alliance, while others worriedly speculated about the future.

Most surprisingly, the once-aggressive security officers quietly left the tavern without taking the old man with them.

Jason sat by the bar, his whiskey long gone. He looked out the window again and saw more people pouring onto the streets. Some had started chanting slogans, demanding answers from the Renaissance Alliance.

In the distance, the sounds of security forces grew clearer, as if a larger conflict was about to erupt.

And all of this was just the beginning.

Chapter 788: The Invitation

Franklin stood before the window, his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze fixed on the crowd gathered in the square outside the Provisional Government building.

They held up signs, their voices a rolling wave of thunder. The roars of protest even penetrated the specially made glass, faintly reaching his ears.

“The truth about the Fragon incident!”

“What will become of the Renaissance Alliance?”

“We want freedom!”

Each slogan was like a sharp sword, striking directly at the fragile foundation of the Renaissance Alliance’s rule.

“Protests have broken out in a fourth star system, Franklin.”

Eleanor’s voice, tinged with unconcealable exhaustion, came from behind him. “The demonstrators on Monte III have even occupied the local broadcast station and are forcibly playing the ‘evidence’ provided by the Atlas Group.”

Franklin didn’t turn around, merely nodding slightly, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

He had never imagined the situation would escalate to this point, nor that his own public opinion management department would be so powerless. During the era of the Federation, these people had been able to handle all sorts of extreme situations, yet now they were being utterly routed by the Atlas Group.

“Get me the head of the public opinion department. I want to speak with him personally.”

“I’m afraid there’s no need,” Eleanor said, handing him a datapad. “I just received word that he’s already submitted his resignation.”

Franklin took the datapad, his eyes lingering on the final paragraph: “In the face of the current technological disparity, any effort is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. I can no longer fulfill my duties.”

“Hmph, when it comes to dropping the ball, he’s faster than anyone.”

Franklin snorted coldly before making his decision. “Clean out the public opinion management department immediately. From the top leadership to the mid-tier management, dismiss them all! All personnel who have previously collaborated with the Atlas Group on public opinion wars are to be reinstated! Especially those who were trained at their media headquarters and then put on ice—find them at once!”

Eleanor drew a sharp breath. “All of them?”

“Yes, all of them.”

Franklin turned around, his face ashen.

“They can’t even control public opinion in a single star system, so how can they talk about controlling all the systems we govern? At least if we use the people trained by the Atlas Group, they’ll know what tactics their opponent will use.”

“But most of those people were shelved. If we reinstate them, Hall and his faction will probably—”

“I don’t care why they were put on ice, and I don’t care what Hall and his people think. Eleanor, tell me, am I still the one in charge of the Renaissance Alliance? If I am, then go and do it right now!”

Franklin’s voice rose sharply as he slammed his clenched fist on the desk.

Eleanor nodded silently and turned to leave, leaving Franklin alone in the empty office, the sound of his own ragged breathing echoing in his ears.

Two hours later, Franklin stood at the podium in the Provisional Government building, facing a hall packed with media reporters and live broadcast cameras. He wore a dark blue uniform, the silver insignia of the Renaissance Alliance pinned to his collar, his expression solemn and resolute.

“My dear compatriots,” his voice boomed through the sound system, reaching not only everyone in the hall but also the countless people watching the live broadcast, “I stand here today to be candid with you all about a certain fact—the kidnapping incident on Fragon IV was indeed carried out by a small group of extremists from within the Renaissance Alliance.”

The hall erupted in an uproar. Camera flashes went off one after another.

“I am deeply shocked and saddened by this!”

Franklin continued, his voice laced with a measure of carefully crafted grief. He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the room, firm and sincere.

“These individuals have betrayed the core values of the Renaissance Alliance and resorted to extreme measures. I hereby extend my sincerest apologies to the victim, Prue Vidal, and her family. I also apologize to all our compatriots who have worked so hard for the Renaissance Alliance.

“I promise you that the Renaissance Alliance will thoroughly investigate this matter and will not tolerate any action that undermines the friendly cooperative relationship between the Alliance and the Atlas Group!

“Over this past year, both the Renaissance Alliance and I have experienced anxiety and confusion, because we have truly felt that we were going through exceptionally difficult times.

“We have indeed heard many voices. Some are exceedingly sharp, denigrating our entire Alliance and our ultimate goals as worthless. Many others have said they find the Renaissance Alliance’s leadership to be incredibly arrogant, unwilling to listen to the people.

“We are feeling the same things you are. It is just that for us, the sheer volume of voices is overwhelming. We need to quiet our minds to figure out which are the genuine voices of our citizens and which are merely noise intended to confuse and mislead.”

It had to be admitted that Franklin had a way with speeches. Or perhaps, the most important skill for an official from the old Federation system to reach a high position was public speaking.

So, after his public address, public opinion did indeed calm down for a short while. The situation seemed to be developing in a positive direction.

However, just when he thought he could breathe a sigh of relief, Amber’s second punch was already poised to strike.

—

“All joint projects… suspended?”

Franklin stared in disbelief at the virtual screen before him, which detailed every project the Atlas Group had unilaterally halted—the construction of the inter-system real-time communications network, the testing of the joint naval fleet command platform, the infrastructure reconstruction of twenty-seven colony planets, thirty-two ecosystem restoration initiatives, and over fifty public welfare projects.

“They’ve already paid the breach of contract penalties in full.”

The Renaissance Alliance’s internal affairs official, who had been completely dedicated to the Alliance’s internal development, spoke with a rare tremor in his voice.

“According to the terms of the contract, they have the right to suspend cooperation due to ‘irresistible force’.”

“Irresistible force?” Hall, who had always maintained a hardline stance on matters concerning the Atlas Group, sneered. “The kidnapping of a little girl constitutes an irresistible force?”

“According to them, the ‘internal policy instability of the Renaissance Alliance’ constitutes an irresistible force,” the internal affairs official added cautiously.

Hall fell silent, while Franklin’s gaze fell on the last line of the datapad—with all projects suspended, the Renaissance Alliance was projected to lose an astronomical amount of Credits each month. More importantly, the development of a large number of colony planets would stagnate, which was absolutely fatal during the phase of re-establishing order.

“Did they cause any impact on the general populace?” Franklin suddenly asked.

The internal affairs official shook his head regretfully. “No. The Atlas Group was fully prepared for this. For the projects involving public welfare, they invested additional funds to ensure a smooth transition. They even issued subsidies to residents in the affected areas. It’s… it’s as if it were all premeditated.”

Franklin covered his face with his hands and took a deep breath.

The Atlas Group’s counterattack was precise and ruthless, striking the main body of the Renaissance Alliance with all its force while skillfully avoiding harm to ordinary citizens. This wasn’t just retaliation; it was a meticulously designed strategic blow.

At that moment, he finally understood another cruel fact—their prediction that the Atlas Group would have them by the throat in the future had been far too optimistic.

In truth, the Atlas Group already had a death grip on the Renaissance Alliance’s throat, and this time, a gentle squeeze was enough to leave them breathless.

“I will contact Mr. Amber and try to stabilize the situation,” Franklin finally said, his voice hoarse.

“But haven’t they already rejected our official attempts at communication multiple times?” Hall asked with a frown.

“I’ll use my private channel. He gave me this contact method himself at the very beginning of our partnership.”

—

Half an hour later, Franklin stood alone in his office, facing the holographic projection of Amber.

The young man, dressed in a simple black suit, wore a smile, his eyes gentle—or perhaps a bit flippant—yet he exuded an inexplicable sense of pressure that Franklin found unsettling.

“Ah, if it isn’t Mr. Franklin~” Amber spoke first. “It’s been quite a while. I never thought a big shot like you would have the time to contact a small-time boss like me.”

Franklin felt as if he had choked. It took him a long moment to force a smile. “Mr. Amber, I think we need to talk.”

“Of course. I’m all ears.”

“Regarding the incident in the Fragon star system,” Franklin said, choosing his words carefully, “I represent the Renaissance Alliance in extending our sincerest apologies to the Atlas Group. It was the unauthorized action of a small group within our ranks, and in no way represents the official stance of the Renaissance Alliance.”

Amber nodded lightly but did not speak.

“I hope this unfortunate incident will not affect the long-standing friendly and cooperative relationship we have built.”

Franklin continued, trying to keep his tone steady while constantly observing Amber’s expression.

“The Renaissance Alliance highly values its strategic partnership with the Atlas Group. We are willing to offer more cooperative opportunities and favorable terms. We only hope that your company will be magnanimous and restart the suspended projects.”

Amber smiled faintly. “You put it very well, Mr. Franklin, but I’m afraid I’m a little confused.”

“Confused?”

“Yes.”

Amber’s gaze suddenly sharpened, and his tone grew colder.

“Excuse me, what do you mean by ‘hope you will be magnanimous’?”

“Ah?”

“Mr. Franklin, I’m not sure who pointed a gun at whom first. Wasn’t the Renaissance Alliance’s act of kidnapping the family member of our employee a clear act of hostility? The Atlas Group is merely engaging in reasonable self-defense. I can’t just do nothing when someone’s holding a gun to my head, can I?”

Franklin was at a loss for words. He felt a surge of anger rising in his chest but had to force it down.

Even though it was the Renaissance Alliance that was being suppressed from all sides, in Amber’s narrative, the Atlas Group had become the weak party cowering in a corner.

But it was precisely these talking points that turned the tables, leaving Franklin both furious and powerless to refute them.

Franklin took a deep breath, suppressed his dissatisfaction, and continued, “In any case… I assure you, the Renaissance Alliance will thoroughly handle its internal problems! Our cooperation is of the utmost importance. It concerns the revival of hundreds of millions of citizens. This point must not be shaken.”

Amber was silent for a moment before replying calmly, “Alright, I understand.”

The communication was abruptly cut, leaving Franklin standing frozen in place, staring in disbelief at the empty projection area.

He had been hung up on!

Just like that, hung up on!

No promise, no response, not even a basic courteous farewell!

An unprecedented rage erupted in Franklin’s chest, like boiling magma crashing against the dam of his reason.

He, the supreme Leader of the Renaissance Alliance, the founder of the Federation resistance, wasn’t asking Mr. Amber to humble himself, but shouldn’t there be at least a modicum of decency? To be treated with such contempt!

In that instant, something inside him shattered. The voice of reason was drowned by anger, and a dangerous thought took root in his mind.

“Emergency general meeting!”

He connected to Eleanor’s comm and said sharply, “All high-ranking officials. Top-secret conference room. In one hour.”

An hour later, the core decision-making body of the Renaissance Alliance gathered in the conference room deep underground.

The room had no windows, its walls constructed from a special material that could block all electromagnetic signals and completely isolate it from the outside world, ensuring that not a whisper of their internal discussions would leak out.

“We must re-evaluate our relationship with the Atlas Group!”

Franklin began without preamble, his voice extremely cold. “The current situation has exceeded our expectations.”

Standing beside him, Eleanor could already guess what he wanted to say from his tone. As a “dove” within the Alliance, she immediately stated her position: “Franklin, we absolutely cannot act rashly at this moment! The Atlas Group’s counterattack has already proven their strength and determination. We should continue to maintain communication and repair the relationship, not escalate the conflict further.”

Hall sneered upon hearing this. “Repair the relationship? Ms. Eleanor, can’t you see it yet? The noose is already around our necks! Amber doesn’t take us seriously at all. He won’t even grant us basic respect!”

He stood up agitatedly and looked around the room. “Everyone, are we content to be forever controlled by the Atlas Group?! Did we overthrow the Federation’s tyranny just to become a vassal of another empire?”

Hall’s words sparked a round of low murmurs, with many nodding in agreement.

“There is only one path before us!”

Hall continued, his voice firm and forceful.

“And that is to break with the Atlas Group and completely escape Amber’s control! Otherwise, the Renaissance Alliance will never see the day of its true revival!”

“Absurd!” Eleanor retorted sharply. “Do you want us to repeat the Federation’s mistakes? The Atlas Group possesses technology and military power beyond our comparison. A direct confrontation will only lead to our own destruction! We should seek other solutions!”

The atmosphere in the conference room instantly became one of swords drawn and bows bent. The “doves” supporting Eleanor and the “hawks” championing Hall faced off, their debate growing more and more intense.

Franklin sat at the head of the table, listening quietly to the two factions argue, his gaze profound.

When the argument reached a fever pitch, he finally raised a hand to signal for silence.

“I agree with Hall’s point of view.”

He spoke slowly, and in that instant, every word he uttered carried immense weight.

“The Atlas Group’s control has reached a suffocating level. We must break free from it.”

The faces of the dove faction members instantly turned deathly pale, while the hawks wore triumphant smiles.

“However,” Franklin changed his tone, “I also share Eleanor’s concerns—we do not have the strength to confront the Atlas Group head-on.”

He stood up and walked to the holographic projection table in the center of the room. “Just as we did when we dealt with the Federation, we need to adopt a more subtle approach.”

Franklin unlocked the holographic projection, and a complex operational plan that he had prepared long ago, but had kept as a ‘last resort,’ was displayed before everyone.

As he explained it in detail, the expression on every person’s face gradually became grave and shocked.

“This… this is far too risky,” someone whispered.

“But if it succeeds,” Hall’s eyes gleamed with a fanatical light, “the Renaissance Alliance will truly rise!”

Franklin looked at each and every person. “From this moment on, the existence of this plan is known only to those in this room! Any leak will be treated as treason.”

After the meeting, all who were privy to the plan were gathered in an area cut off from the outside world.

A series of seemingly contradictory actions were quickly set in motion:

Outwardly, the Renaissance Alliance began to express extreme remorse to the Atlas Group, admitting its mistakes from an extremely low posture and publicly stating its hope to continue their cooperation.

This stance immediately caused a huge stir. The public hadn’t expected the Renaissance Alliance to humble itself, and many praised the move as ‘the prodigal son returning,’ and began to look forward to the wonderful life that would follow their renewed cooperation.

Internally, however, many extremists within the Renaissance Alliance were thrown into a fury. They could never have imagined things would turn out this way. Why, when ‘your subjects were ready to fight to the death, had Your Majesty surrendered first?’

But these radical opposition members were quickly and silently purged. The entire Renaissance Alliance displayed an unprecedented level of unity.

A week later, when the situation seemed to be easing, Franklin once again contacted Amber through his private channel.

This time, his attitude was even more humble, almost reverent.

“Mr. Amber, I am so glad you were willing to accept my communication again.” Franklin bowed slightly, his expression sincere.

Amber nodded. “I hear the Renaissance Alliance has made some positive changes recently.”

“Yes, we have seriously reflected on our mistakes and our arrogance.”

Franklin’s tone was genuine, and the expression on his face appeared authentic. “We have taken practical steps to prove our resolve to change. Now, I would like to formally invite you and the senior leadership of the Atlas Group to the Capital to attend the founding ceremony of the ‘New Federation.’ It will be a historic moment, marking the beginning of a new era, but without the participation of the Atlas Group, it will not be complete.”

Amber pondered for a moment, his gaze lingering on Franklin’s face for a few seconds, as if searching for something.

Finally, he smiled faintly. “That is a sincere invitation, Mr. Franklin. I will consider it seriously.”

After the communication ended, the smile on Franklin’s face vanished instantly, replaced by an icy resolve.

He walked to the window, gazed at the distant starry sky, and muttered to himself:

“Mr. Amber, you will soon discover that the Renaissance Alliance is no one’s puppet.”

Chapter 789: The Feast at Hong Gate

“Amber, can’t you see there’s something wrong with this invitation?!”

“Of course there’s something wrong with it. Isn’t it obviously a ‘Feast at Hong Gate’~?” Amber replied lazily while enjoying Isabelle’s massage.

“Then why did you agree to Franklin’s invitation?”

Isabelle’s brow was furrowed. She looked at the holographic projection device to the side. In the faint blue light, the invitation from Franklin rotated slowly, its gilt lettering shimmering slightly.

The founding ceremony of the ‘New Federation’—a name carrying infinite political significance, an event destined to be recorded in the annals of history.

To be honest, when Amber saw the invitation Franklin sent after their communication ended, he was a little surprised. He hadn’t expected the other party to go through the trouble of creating a formal invitation.

Lying on the bed, Amber gestured to Isabelle by slightly raising his waist. She immediately used the ‘Ancient Thousand Stars Empire Massage’ technique she had learned from Allenita and began to apply pressure to Amber’s lumbar vertebrae.

The pleasant, tingling sensation spreading from his lower back made Amber let out a soft groan. At the same time, his thoughts grew clearer. He knew what Isabelle was worried about—Franklin’s words and every letter on that invitation reeked of conspiracy.

“Accepting the invitation isn’t a bad thing for us. On the contrary, it’s a great opportunity~”

Amber chuckled, his voice laced with the calm of someone who saw through everything.

“Franklin’s… or rather, the entire Renaissance Alliance’s attitude changed too quickly. First, they were aggressive, and then they were subservient. If you told me there wasn’t some sort of scheme involved, not even a three-year-old would believe you.”

Isabelle sighed and couldn’t help but give Amber’s lower back a firm thump. Then, somewhat annoyed, she asked, “If you know it’s a trap, why walk into it? We could easily make an excuse and decline, or send other representatives…”

“Isabelle~”

Amber stopped Isabelle’s massage and stood up. He led her to the massive panoramic viewscreen, pulling her into an embrace from behind. His gaze passed over her shoulder toward the profound, starry sky.

The cosmos, dotted with stars, was like a silent scroll painting. Yet to Isabelle, it felt like the calm before a storm, a suffocating sense of oppression enveloping her.

“You only see the danger of the ‘tiger’s den,’ but sometimes, the best opportunities are hidden right inside the dragon’s pool and tiger’s den.”

“But this is definitely not a simple diplomatic event, Amber…”

Isabelle turned to face him, her eyes shining with concern. “The Renaissance Alliance may be feigning weakness, but they must have made thorough preparations. Franklin can’t possibly be unaware that you’re a psionic user. The fact that he dares to invite you means they’ve found a way to deal with psionic users.”

Hearing Isabelle’s words, Amber smiled. He raised his hand and gently swept it through the air. A wisp of psionic energy danced on his fingertips like a flickering spark of electricity.

“Isabelle, you still haven’t adjusted your way of thinking. You know, I’m a Level Seven psionic user now~” Amber’s voice was low and confident. “In the past, I might have handled such an invitation with caution, but now, things are different.”

“But even a Level Seven psionic user shouldn’t be overconfident. Amber, you’re the one who taught me that the greater the advantage, the more vigilant one must be,” Isabelle said with a frown.

“You’re right, but overwhelming power can defeat any skill or trickery.”

Amber said softly as the psionic light on his fingertips gradually spread, forming complex and distorted shapes in the air.

“In the face of absolute power, all schemes and plots are futile struggles. What does Franklin want? He wants to use this opportunity to catch all the key figures of the Atlas Group in one net. Then, while the Atlas Group is leaderless, he can completely break free from our influence.”

Isabelle remained silent. She knew Amber had a point. He glanced at her with a smile and continued:

“They may have developed some kind of psionic suppression device or found another method to counter psionic users. To err on the side of caution when assessing the enemy, I’d estimate they’re confident they can handleLevel Five or Level Six psionic users, which is why they dared to send the invitation. But what they don’t know is—”

“You’ve already surpassed that level,” Isabelle finished for him.

“Exactly~” Amber nodded. “And this invitation isn’t just a trap. For us, the Atlas Group, it’s also a great opportunity.”

Isabelle raised an eyebrow but said nothing, waiting for Amber to explain. He didn’t make her wait long.

“Think about it, Isabelle. When Franklin sees us walk into his carefully laid trap, how will he feel? He’ll remain composed and calm, never letting his guard down until the very end. That is a strength of his. But I believe that subconsciously, he’ll still think he has victory in his grasp.”

As he spoke, Amber raised his hand to summon a virtual screen, pulling up a series of operational plans that had long been formulated with Lilith’s help.

“And that is precisely the best time for us to make our move. When the entire leadership of the Renaissance Alliance is focused on us, that is also when they will expose their own weaknesses. I’m sure that for whatever reason, Franklin will gather all the senior members of the Renaissance Alliance to attend this ‘historic’ ceremony…”

“That means we’ll also have the chance to take out the Renaissance Alliance’s command system in one fell swoop,” Isabelle said, a sudden realization dawning on her.

“Plus, with the help of that deep-cover agent, this ‘Feast at Hong Gate’ might become even more ‘interesting’ than Franklin anticipates. Besides, when all their attention is on us, the execution of the Correction Protocol will also proceed more smoothly~”

Isabelle seemed about to say something more, but Amber had already turned to face her, a cunning glint in his eyes. “Isabelle, I remember you were well-versed in the ancient history of Blue Star as a child. Tell me, in the ‘Feast at Hong Gate,’ who invited whom?”

“Of course, it was Xiang Yu who invited Liu Bang.”

“And what did Liu Bang do later?”

“He became the emperor.”

“And Xiang Yu?”

“. . .”

Isabelle was momentarily at a loss for words. Looking into Amber’s eyes, she finally understood his intention.

After a moment of silence, she nodded lightly. “I understand.”

Amber immediately finalized the list of attendees: besides Isabelle, there was CFO Sabans, a group of key personnel from the Financial Operations Center, the Deputy Director of the Equipment R&D Center, and Skadi, the head of Atlas Communications. In short, a large group of the group’s core executives.

From a certain perspective, this could be considered giving Franklin and the Renaissance Alliance a great deal of face.

The commanders of the combat fleets and ground forces, however, were to remain with their respective units on standby. Only Cleves was summoned, leading a standard fleet as an escort.

—

In a newly built space city in orbit around the New Federation’s capital planet, Franklin, Hall, and others stood before a massive panoramic viewscreen, watching the Atlas Group’s fleet slowly enter orbit.

Every warship in the fleet was painted pure white this time. Such a paint scheme was extremely rare for a combat fleet, and it gave the ships a unique quality under the starlight, like a school of elegant deep-space creatures.

‘The Great White Fleet.’ This was the ‘nickname’ Amber had given this escort fleet.

“They’re here.” Franklin watched the pure white fleet, a hint of excitement unconcealed in his voice.

Hall walked to his side. This senior Alliance member, who usually had ‘political disagreements’ with him, also wore a rare smile. “They actually brought so many people…”

Franklin nodded, his gaze sweeping over the list of Atlas Group visitors on the display screen. “They’re clearly more… uh, careless than we anticipated? Or maybe they’re just giving us face. Mr. Amber has brought almost all of the Atlas Group’s important senior executives.”

Admiral Kol leaned against the wall, a cold light glinting in his eyes. “It’s a shame the main commanders of their combat forces didn’t come. They only sent that Fleet Commander named Cleves to command the escort fleet.”

“It’s enough.” Franklin took a deep breath, suppressing his emotions once again. “We can’t be greedy. Being able to take out the political and economic core of the Atlas Group in one go is already beyond our initial expectations! Besides, this Fleet Commander Cleves is one of the Triumvirate of the Atlas Group’s combat fleet.”

“This is a godsent opportunity!”

Kol, who was standing to the side, took a step forward, the light of imminent victory shining in his eyes, impossible to conceal.

“As long as the plan succeeds, the Atlas Group will be leaderless and unable to pose a threat to us, at least for a short time! Then we can finally break free from their control!”

Having calmed down again, Franklin shook his head and said coldly, “Let’s not underestimate the enemy. We haven’t truly won yet. Mr. Amber is no ordinary person. We must be cautious with every step.”

Hall nodded slightly. “Rest assured, Leader. We’ve set everything up! The psionic suppressors are installed. According to the data from the Federation’s research institute and what those researchers said, a single machine is enough to suppress a psionic user below Level Six, not to mention we’ll be deploying ten devices at once. No matter how strong Amber is, he can’t possibly break through that limitation!”

Franklin stared at the close-up of the massive super-flagship on the screen, a myriad of thoughts racing through his mind.

From the first time he met Mr. Amber until this very moment, Amber had always been an enigma to him—sometimes an ally, sometimes like an enemy. He could never figure out what the man was thinking.

But regardless, after today, everything would come to an end.

“Notify the space city to prepare to receive our ‘esteemed’ guests with the highest honors,” Franklin ordered, an inscrutable emotion flashing in his eyes. “Let them feel our ‘warmest’ welcome!”

“Yes, Leader!”

Chapter 790: The Resolve for Mutual Destruction

The Renaissance Alliance’s reception ceremony was filled with an intensely “Federation” flavor. It was clear that for the Renaissance Alliance, born from the “Old Federation,” some things were etched in their very bones and difficult to change.

Such as the various traditions and customs of the Federation.

As Amber and his group stepped onto the space city via the gangway, Franklin, along with the upper echelon of the Renaissance Alliance, immediately came forward to greet them. The two parties talked enthusiastically, like old friends who hadn’t seen each other in ages.

As if all the previous conflicts and disputes between them had never happened.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries at the space city’s starport, Franklin led Amber’s party to a banquet hall within the city. There, the Renaissance Alliance had prepared a special dinner to welcome the Atlas Group.

Upon entering the banquet hall, Amber’s first thought was that the Renaissance Alliance had truly prospered and become wealthy. They had clearly spared no expense in the hall’s construction.

Beneath a massive transparent dome, light was refracted by exquisitely designed fixtures into colorful beams that projected across the spacious hall. Crystal chandeliers, like suspended constellations, showered every corner with light.

Meticulously selected waiters in formal attire moved among the guests, their trays laden with various fine wines and delicate appetizers.

The moment the Atlas Group delegation, led by Amber, entered the hall, they became the center of attention.

He wore a tailored black formal suit, a silver insignia representing the Atlas Group pinned to his collar, exuding an elegance that complemented his steady demeanor.

Beside him, Isabelle had chosen a deep blue evening gown that accentuated her slender figure and gave her an air of cold severity—according to Isabelle, this was part of their strategy, to maintain a sufficiently aloof posture to pressure the other party.

Franklin and Eleanor personally led the way slightly ahead of them. He wore a custom-made Renaissance Alliance formal suit, a medal symbolizing his status as the Alliance’s supreme leader adorning his chest.

“Mr. Amber, welcome.”

Upon reaching the center of the hall, Franklin formally extended his hand to Amber, his face graced with a smile that, at the very least, seemed exceptionally sincere.

“Your presence, along with that of everyone from the Atlas Group, will make the ceremony in the coming days all the more meaningful.”

Amber took a step forward and smilingly shook his hand. “You’re too kind, Mr. Franklin. It is my honor to witness the birth of the ‘New Federation’.”

After a few pleasantries, Franklin introduced the dinner they had prepared. “We’ve arranged a small cocktail party for you, and all the senior members of the Renaissance Alliance will be in attendance. I sincerely hope we can use this opportunity to speak frankly and clear up any past misunderstandings.”

Hearing Franklin’s words, a knowing smile touched the corners of Amber’s lips.

“Mr. Franklin, I’m just curious—you don’t happen to have ‘three hundred axemen’ lying in wait, ready to rush out and slaughter us all on your command, do you?”

The atmosphere in the hall instantly froze. The surrounding people held their breath, looking nervously between the two men.

The smile on Franklin’s face stiffened for a moment before he quickly recovered. “Hahahaha, Mr. Amber, you’re still as fond of joking as ever~ I assure you, tonight there is only fine wine and friendship, nothing more.”

Amber immediately laughed as well, patting Franklin on the shoulder before looking around at the other senior members of the Renaissance Alliance. “I trust your sincerity, Franklin. I just have a penchant for cracking jokes sometimes. I hope you will all forgive me.”

“Heh, it’s no trouble. No trouble at all.”

Guided by the waiters, Amber was seated at the long table directly opposite Franklin. Isabelle and the other members of the Atlas Group were arranged sequentially on either side of him, facing Hall, Cole, and the other core figures of the Renaissance Alliance.

At first, the atmosphere of the banquet was reasonably amicable. Hosts and guests toasted one another, discussing trivial matters.

But after a few rounds of drinks, when the pleasantries had mostly been exhausted, the conversation gradually shifted to more sensitive topics.

“Mr. Amber.”

Hall set down his wine glass, his gaze as sharp as a torch as he looked at Amber.

“I’ve always been curious, what exactly are the Atlas Group’s expectations for the ‘New Federation’? Do you hope to see an independent sovereign power, or a vassal state under your control?”

The temperature in the banquet hall seemed to drop by several degrees in an instant. Amber took a light sip of his wine and calmly replied:

“Mr. Hall, the Atlas Group has never regarded any political power as a ‘vassal,’ nor do we have any need for so-called ‘vassals.’ As you can see, we are just a simple group of merchants, providing technology and resources to help rebuild order. As for the future of the ‘New Federation,’ that depends entirely on your own choices.”

“Choices?” Cole, on the other side, suddenly sneered. “When our energy systems, communications networks, and even our military equipment are all dependent on the Atlas Group, what choice do we have? This is just another form of control!”

Hearing Cole’s words, Isabelle, who had maintained a cool expression, frowned slightly. “General Cole, you seem to have forgotten something. It was the Atlas Group that helped the Renaissance Alliance overthrow the Federation’s tyranny. Without our support, you might still be plotting your resistance in underground bases today.”

“So we should be eternally grateful and willingly become your puppets?!”

Hall raised his voice, his cheeks flushing with agitation.

“This world doesn’t need a new overlord! The Atlas Group’s actions are just another way of continuing the exploitation of human society!”

Amber listened quietly, not interjecting.

His gaze rested on Franklin’s face for a moment, and he noticed that Franklin was also observing his reaction.

The atmosphere at the banquet grew increasingly tense, with the sounds of arguments rising and falling. Amid this tension, the representatives of the Atlas Group exchanged glances. Then, the group’s CFO, Sabans, stood up and looked at Amber. “Boss, I don’t think there’s any need to continue this ‘banquet.’ It would be better for us to leave early than to stay here and be insulted.”

Amber nodded. Just as he was about to respond, Hall suddenly slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet. “None of you are leaving!”

At his movement, the doors to the banquet hall burst open, and a hundred elite soldiers in heavy powered armor rushed in. The once spacious hall was instantly more than half-full.

The weapons in their hands and mounted on their shoulders were all aimed squarely at Amber and his group. The senior members of the Renaissance Alliance quickly rose and moved to the side. Only Franklin remained seated, his gaze fixed calmly on Amber. A brief silence fell over the entire hall.

The senior members of the Atlas Group exchanged glances. Although Amber had warned them of the danger before the trip and everyone was mentally prepared, a certain tension was unavoidable now that weapons were drawn.

However, when they saw the perfectly calm Amber stand up and slowly move forward to shield them, they, too, regained their composure.

‘Amber is the backbone of the Atlas Group’—that had never been an empty phrase.

“It seems, Mr. Franklin, that your ‘sincere’ invitation did indeed include ‘three hundred axemen’,” Amber said softly, his tone laced with a hint of mockery.

Franklin slowly rose to his feet, his expression grave and resolute as he looked at Amber.

“Mr. Amber, please forgive my actions today. But the existence of your Atlas Group has become the greatest obstacle to the development of the Renaissance Alliance, so we have decided to put a complete end to this unequal relationship!”

Amber maintained his composed smile. He glanced around the room before his eyes fell back on Franklin. “I’ll put everything else aside for now. I’m just a little curious. What makes you think this small force is enough to keep us here?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Amber gently raised his right hand, and an invisible force instantly swept through the entire banquet hall.

The soldiers in heavy powered armor were slammed against the walls as if struck by a tidal wave, creating a deafening crash.

Armor fractured and fragments flew. The soldiers of the Renaissance Alliance screamed as they were pinned and immobilized within their twisted suits.

The entire event took but the blink of an eye. The composure on Franklin’s face immediately turned to horror.

“Impossible!” Hall cried out. “What about the psionic suppressors? Why didn’t they work?!”

Amber said nothing. He raised his hand again, and an even stronger psionic wave emanated from his body.

The walls of the banquet hall shattered instantly, revealing ten psionic suppression devices hidden within. At that moment, the devices let out a series of piercing alarms before exploding into countless fragments.

Amber said, “My apologies. Were you referring to these? I’m afraid they don’t have much of an effect on me.”

The faces of Hall and the other senior members of the Renaissance Alliance turned pale. Hall took a few steps back, his eyes flashing with disbelief. “That’s impossible. The Federation’s research institute stated clearly that those devices are enough to suppress any psionic user below Level Six. Unless…”

“Unless I have surpassed that level. In that case, let me officially inform you today. Yes, I am currently humanity’s only Level Seven psionic user~” Amber said faintly.

Franklin was silent for a moment, then suddenly let out a cold laugh. “It seems I truly underestimated you, Mr. Amber. You really are the ‘man who makes the impossible possible.’ But today, none of you will leave here alive!”

One of his eyes suddenly turned blood-red, and a detonation sequence was projected from his personal terminal.

“Do you know what this is, Mr. Amber? It’s a 120-megaton tactical nuclear warhead, right beneath our feet. The bomb’s detonation device is linked to my brain. Whether I give the order to detonate, my life signs cease, or my brain is subjected to a psionic attack, this warhead will immediately explode, and the entire space city will be reduced to ashes!

“I know a Level Seven psionic user may be powerful, and I’m not sure if this final struggle will have any effect on you. But the other senior members of the Atlas Group aren’t as powerful as you are, Mr. Amber, are they? Even if you manage to survive the nuclear blast, what about them?”

This news was a bombshell that left everyone present in shock.

That included the senior members of the Renaissance Alliance, for they too were unaware of this ‘ultimate plan.’

Cole rushed toward Franklin in a fury. “Are you fucking insane?! When did you install a nuclear warhead in the space city? This wasn’t part of the plan!”

Hall’s face was ashen. “Franklin, this is too much! Even if you destroy Atlas, you’ll destroy the Renaissance Alliance along with it!”

“Shut up! You two cowards! You are not worthy of being members of the Renaissance Alliance!”

Franklin shot them both a cold glare and continued, “Did you think we had any other choice when facing an extremely powerful psionic user? If we aren’t prepared to offer up our lives, what’s the point of talking about a renaissance?!”

Amber raised an eyebrow, a flash of surprise in his eyes.

Franklin’s determination exceeded his expectations. He had never thought the man would actually play the ‘mutual destruction’ card. He had always assumed that once Franklin reached a high position, he would lose that kind of courage.

“Franklin, I admit you’ve made me see you in a new light today.”

Amber slowly walked forward, a smile still on his face, as if he wasn’t at all worried about the 120-megaton nuclear warhead beneath his feet.

“Are you truly prepared to sacrifice yourself and everyone else just to eliminate me? Including those comrades who are loyal to you? Your loved ones?”

Franklin’s hand trembled slightly, but his gaze remained firm. “If this is the only way to stop the Atlas Group from controlling humanity’s future… then it’s all worth it.”

Chapter 791: Awakening Blueberry

Amber gazed at Franklin, a reluctant admiration growing in his heart.

The man had indeed surprised him—though he had reached a high position and acquired many of the bad habits that came with power, the passionate fire that drove him to die for his convictions had not yet been completely extinguished.

Well, it was at least still lukewarm.

Franklin’s eyes were currently as resolute as iron, a stark contrast to the panic, helplessness, and anger showing on the faces of the other Renaissance Alliance leaders around him.

Amber stood in the center of the banquet hall, looking straight at Franklin. The leader of the Renaissance Alliance was trembling slightly, yet his back remained straight, his gaze burning with determination.

The terminal in his hand clearly displayed the detonation sequence for a tactical nuclear warhead. Its red UI flickered faintly in the air, each pulse making the surrounding Alliance leaders flinch.

“Franklin, I have to admit, your resolve has exceeded my expectations.”

Amber nodded slightly, his tone carrying a hint of genuine appreciation that made Franklin frown.

“Even after climbing to such a high position, that passionate idealism of yours hasn’t cooled completely. Not bad at all.”

As he spoke, Amber glanced around at the pale, panicked faces of the Alliance leaders standing beside Franklin.

Compared to their leader’s unwavering gaze, their eyes held only helplessness and fear. Some were even furtively looking around, searching for a possible escape route. The stark contrast made the corners of Amber’s mouth curl into a slight smile.

“Look at the people around you, Franklin,” Amber said with a shake of his head and a sigh. “Their mouths are full of ideology, but their hearts are full of business. They are not prepared to join you in creating a new world. Do you really believe you can build your ideal ‘New Federation’ with people like these?”

Franklin did not respond, but his gaze grew even more resolute. He gripped his terminal tightly, ready at any moment to perish together with the leaders of the Atlas Group.

Truthfully, Amber had to admit this was a ruthless move against a high-level psionic user.

Even as a Level Seven psionic user, he couldn’t be one hundred percent certain he could retreat unscathed from a close-range nuclear explosion of one hundred and twenty million tons. After all, he had never tried the “thrilling game” of withstanding a nuke with his own body.

And just as Franklin had said, he certainly couldn’t guarantee the safety of Isabelle and the other Atlas Group executives behind him.

“I think you’ve become a bit obsessed, Franklin.”

Amber took a step forward. The sudden move made the people around them gasp.

With the exception of Isabelle, whose calm expression revealed nothing, everyone—from both the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group—knew that Amber was an unpredictable man who sometimes made insane decisions.

And now, these two “madmen” were facing each other in a confrontation of epic proportions. No one knew if Amber’s move would directly provoke Franklin into detonating the nuclear warhead.

But Amber paid no mind to what others were thinking. He simply moved a little closer to Franklin and continued speaking.

“I believe that at this moment, you no longer care what happens to the world after the explosion. You just want to drag us—or rather, just me—to hell with you.”

“If this is the only way to stop you from controlling humanity’s future, then, as I just said, it’s all worth it,” Franklin gritted out, a near-crazed determination flashing in his eyes.

Amber looked deeply at Franklin, then suddenly let out a soft chuckle. He turned to Isabelle and gave her a slight nod before turning his gaze back to Franklin.

“I must admit, Franklin, your determination has once again allowed me to see that idealistic youth from Loubion V. It’s a pity that the people around you are nothing more than a group of incompetent fools and opportunists. How could you possibly establish a New Federation when you associate with such vermin?”

His words stabbed into the pride of the Renaissance Alliance leaders present. Their faces turned from white to a dark reddish-purple, the color of a pig’s liver. Some clenched their fists, others gritted their teeth, but not a single one dared to utter a word of rebuttal.

Franklin, standing beside them with the nuclear detonator, had stripped them of even the right to be angry. They were terrified that one wrong move might provoke him and bring everything to a premature end.

Amber ignored the others and went on, “The good news is, we can let this all end gracefully.”

As he finished speaking, Isabelle calmly took a step forward. Her long, slender fingers gently brushed the surface of her ring, and a nearly imperceptible pulse rippled through the air. At the same time, her emotionless voice, as clear as ice crystals, rang out:

“Long night, broken, echo, kin, frozen, fissure, finality.”

She paused for a moment, her eyes fixed on a person behind Franklin, and a faint smile touched her lips.

“Blueberry, good morning.”

The instant her last word fell, Franklin felt a chill on the back of his head—a cold gun barrel was pressed against his skull.

The Renaissance Alliance leaders and the Atlas Group executives, save for Amber and Isabelle, all gasped at the sight. They stared in disbelief, their eyes fixed on the all-too-familiar figure behind Franklin.

Franklin froze, the terminal in his hand trembling. He shakily turned his head to see Eleanor’s frosty profile.

“E-Eleanor?” His voice was so hoarse it was almost unrecognizable.

Eleanor didn’t look at him. Instead, she stared straight into Isabelle’s eyes, her tone as cold as if it came from another world.

“Atlas Group Intelligence Center, deep-cover agent ‘Blueberry,’ reporting for duty.”

A terrifying silence fell over the banquet hall. Everyone’s gaze was frozen on this core figure who had always stood by Franklin’s side.

Hall’s lips quivered. Cole clenched his fists but dared not act rashly. The reactions of the others were much the same.

No one could believe what was happening—Franklin’s most trusted partner, one of the most senior founding members of the Renaissance Alliance, was a deep-cover agent for the Atlas Group.

“The moment you entrusted me with the task of planting the nuclear warhead, you had already lost completely, Franklin.”

Eleanor’s voice remained cold, devoid of its usual sweetness and warmth.

“That one-hundred-and-twenty-million-ton nuclear warhead is indeed beneath our feet, but it was never fitted with a real detonation device. What’s connected to your brain implant is nothing but a fake program I designed myself.”

As Eleanor’s voice fell, a series of rhythmic metallic clangs sounded from outside. Then, the doors and windows of the banquet hall were simultaneously smashed open.

Dozens of combat bodies and an even greater number of autonomous combat mechs poured in from every entrance, swiftly and precisely subduing everyone present.

And in places unseen by the Renaissance Alliance members in the hall, more and more mechanical units emerged from all over the space city. The combat bodies and autonomous combat mechs hidden in supply warehouses, structural layers, and maintenance areas were all being activated by the Immortal Corps.

Under the personal command of Banninger and the others, they had disarmed the space city’s garrison before they even had a chance to react, then swiftly and silently occupied every corner of the station.

Franklin’s body swayed, and he nearly collapsed to his knees. His face was paler than the gray walls. His once-resolute eyes were now bloodshot, filled with incredulous despair.

“Eleanor, you… you betrayed me. Why?” he asked her hoarsely, his voice thick with indescribable pain.

“Yes, I betrayed you, Franklin. But I never betrayed the Renaissance Alliance—the real Renaissance Alliance. It was you who betrayed it.”

Eleanor finally turned to look at him, a complex emotion flickering in her eyes. “I watched with my own eyes as you betrayed your own ideals, step by step.”

While these events unfolded in the banquet hall and throughout the space city, the region of space outside was also being completely overturned. The Atlas fleet, moored at its station and led by the super-flagship The Infinity, suddenly launched a massive electronic warfare attack.

Compared to a more overt, direct assault, this silent, unheralded method of attack was far more difficult to defend against. The Renaissance Alliance fleet in orbit near the capital planet was like a herd of paralyzed space behemoths. They were completely neutralized before they could even bring their weapon systems online.

Immediately after, amidst a continuous series of large-scale spatial fluctuations, the Atlas Group’s relief fleet emerged from hyperspace. Their arrival—especially that of the enormous Artificial Celestial Fortress—completely shattered any thought of resistance from the Renaissance Alliance fleet.

And inside the “VIP Observation Room” aboard Regalia Fortress, Norton II, having personally witnessed The Empire’s strategic fortress arriving in the Federation’s Capital star system, was once again so excited he nearly fainted.

Back in the banquet hall, Amber walked toward the dejected, kneeling Franklin and looked down at the once-dashing leader.

“You see, Franklin, this is the difference between us—you always underestimate your opponent’s strength and control.”

Franklin was now trembling all over, his gaze growing hollow and desperate. He slowly raised his head, his eyes red-rimmed as he looked at Amber.

“Mr. Amber, even if you catch all the leaders of the Renaissance Alliance in one net today, the entire Alliance will instantly fall apart. All you’ll get is a huge mess.”

Amber burst into laughter, the sound echoing through the hall, tinged with an unprecedented sense of relief.

“Franklin, you’ve misunderstood two things.”

He crouched down, bringing himself to eye level with Franklin.

“First, I never intended to destroy the Renaissance Alliance. Not now, not ever. To be honest, if you hadn’t set up this ‘Feast at Hong Gate,’ if certain members of the Alliance hadn’t racked their brains trying to deal with us at Atlas, things would never have reached this point.”

Then, Amber’s voice rose slightly, so that everyone present could hear him clearly.

“Second, you—or rather, all of you here—are mistaken in thinking that the Atlas Group is incapable of handling such a ‘mess’.”

With that, Amber snapped his fingers lightly. Lilith, who had already taken over the banquet hall’s backend systems, immediately had the holographic projection device display a massive star chart in the center of the hall. Everyone present recognized it at a glance as a three-dimensional map of the territory controlled by the Renaissance Alliance.

“Alright, since we’ve come this far, I’ll drop the pretense. It’s time for closing the net. Correction Protocol, activate!”

The moment Amber’s voice fell, although the people present didn’t yet understand the situation, they sensed that something monumental was happening.

Just as they were looking on in confusion, Amber’s voice rang out again, clearing up their doubts.

“You all think the Atlas Group can’t handle such a big ‘mess,’ but I’m afraid I have to inform you all that we really can. Right now, on every planet, every colony satellite, every space city within the Renaissance Alliance’s territory, in all those areas we built in cooperation, a sufficient number of combat bodies and autonomous combat mechs have been deployed in advance. Hmm… they should be taking over your key facilities as we speak.”

Franklin and the others stared with wide eyes. They finally understood the gap between them—it was even greater than they had ever imagined.

“You… you planned all of this from the very beginning,” Franklin whispered, his voice barely audible.

Amber shook his head. “No, Franklin. this was just a backup plan, a safety measure, if you will. If you had understood your place, if you had just continued to cooperate and develop with the Atlas Group as planned, I would never have activated the Correction Protocol.”

He paused, a hint of sincere regret in his tone. “Unfortunately, as soon as you gained a little bit of power and strength, you couldn’t wait to break free from the current order. Ah, I just don’t understand. Is cooperating with the Atlas Group so unacceptable to you?”

Amber’s gaze swept across the room, at the leaders of the Renaissance Alliance who had once been so full of vigor and ambition. Now, they were all ashen-faced, looking utterly devastated. He felt a wave of emotion.

“You don’t need to worry too much, Franklin,” Amber said gently, his tone like he was comforting the children in the Psionic Special Training Class. “The Atlas Group has no intention of disbanding the Renaissance Alliance. On the contrary, I will conduct a thorough ‘reorganization’ and place the truly capable and far-sighted individuals where they belong.”

But Franklin could no longer hear Amber’s words. He knelt on the floor, his hands propping him up, his head bowed low.

His shoulders trembled slightly, whether from anger or despair, it was hard to tell. When he finally looked up again, the light in his eyes was gone, and the once-dashing young revolutionary had vanished completely into the river of time.

“You won, Amber…” his voice was raspy. “You won from the very beginning.”

Amber didn’t respond. He simply gestured to Isabelle and Eleanor, then turned to walk toward the exit of the banquet hall.

At that moment, Franklin finally broke. He roared and lunged at Amber, only to be easily subdued by two combat bodies.

He struggled, tears and rage mixing on his face. “What do you really want?! To control humanity? To build an empire? To become a new dictator?!”

“No.”

Amber stopped and turned his head slightly.

“I simply want human civilization to endure.”

Chapter 792: Correction Protocol

“For the eternal survival of human civilization?”

Franklin repeated the phrase weakly. His Adam’s apple bobbed as disbelief filled his eyes.

“Mr. Amber, don’t you think that’s a colossal joke coming from a capitalist like you?!”

Franklin’s voice was loud, his roar reaching nearly everyone’s ears. But Amber remained unmoved by the retort, showing no anger or reaction as he stood there, watching quietly.

And so Franklin, the once spirited ‘revolutionary’ and ‘idealistic youth’, now knelt on the floor, held fast by two combat bodies, forced to watch as the work of many years seemed to turn to ash in a matter of hours.

Inside the banquet hall, dozens of combat bodies and autonomous combat mechs were stationed in every corner. The high-ranking members of the Renaissance Alliance, now in shackles, were gathered in the center of the hall. Fear and despair were etched on their faces. Many still couldn’t believe what was happening, wondering if they were trapped in a nightmare.

Soon, guided by the combat bodies, these figures who had once held great power and were on the verge of becoming the new leaders of the “New Federation” were led out of the banquet hall one by one. They were being taken to a newly cleared area in the space city, designated for house arrest.

Meanwhile, the executives of the Atlas Group were escorted by the Immortal Corps to a secure area to rest before the fleet dealt with the enemy forces in orbit and came to evacuate them.

“Boss, Officer Isabelle.”

Eleanor walked straight toward Isabelle and Amber, her expression complicated. Her eyes were slightly red, a clear sign of the immense emotional impact the recent turn of events had had on her.

As she crossed the banquet hall, the crisp, lonely echo of her heels striking the polished floor followed her.

“Your undercover mission is over, Eleanor. You did very well,” Isabelle said softly, gently patting Eleanor on the shoulder. She knew, of course, that the young operative’s heart was in turmoil, and she offered words of comfort.

Standing before Isabelle, Eleanor hesitated for a moment before looking somewhat timidly at her direct superior and her ultimate boss. Then, she asked cautiously, “Boss, Officer, thank you for your comfort. Please rest assured, I can handle this… but may I request to speak with Franklin alone?”

Amber studied Eleanor’s expression and gave a slight nod. “Of course. According to the plan, he will be placed in a private room in the temporary detention area shortly. You can go find him anytime.”

Eleanor thanked them in a low voice, then turned and walked away. The sound of her heels clicking on the floor gradually faded, finally disappearing at the end of the banquet hall.

As the others left one after another, the banquet hall finally emptied, leaving only Amber and Isabelle.

Amber looked around. The once magnificent hall was now a wreck—shattered glasses were scattered everywhere, and overturned tables lay strewn across the floor. A strange mixture of champagne and food hung in the air.

Amber walked with interest to a champagne tower that had survived the chaos. He deftly picked up two crystal-clear glasses of champagne and ambled back to Isabelle’s side.

“Here~ Have a drink, to calm your nerves.”

Isabelle took the glass and rolled her eyes with a hint of exasperation. “Amber, you actually need to calm your nerves? Can a Level Seven psionic user even get nervous?”

Amber took a light sip of champagne, feeling the bubbles dance on his tongue, and couldn’t help but grin. “You can’t put it that way. Even with all the planning, the thought of standing on top of a 120-million-ton-yield nuclear warhead… who wouldn’t be a little nervous?”

He swirled the glass in his hand, watching the pale gold liquid slosh around, then continued, “I have to say, Isabelle, you planted a brilliant chess piece. If it weren’t for Eleanor today, Franklin’s ‘ultimate move’ of mutual destruction would have been difficult to counter. We might have all been turned into space dust.”

At his praise, Isabelle’s eyes immediately lit up, the corners of her mouth turning up involuntarily.

As the intelligence chief of the Atlas Group, successfully cultivating Eleanor as a ‘time bomb’ and planting her by Franklin’s side was undoubtedly the most glorious achievement of her not-so-successful career thus far.

“Speaking of which, how did you bring Eleanor over to our side?”

Amber, holding his glass, walked to the banquet hall’s floor-to-ceiling windows and gazed out at the star-dusted universe beyond the space city’s dome.

“I’ve asked you several times before, but you were never willing to tell me. You can tell me now, right?”

Isabelle joined him, standing shoulder to shoulder with Amber. “Remember that farce with the impeachment of Brandon by the two parties in the Federation? At the time, Eleanor’s father, the Speaker, was wiped out along with the other congressmen in the Congress Building by an orbital strike ordered by Brandon.”

Amber nodded. That incident was one of the darkest chapters in the political history of the Old Federation. It was also the event that raised the curtain on the military government and marked the beginning of the Old Federation’s eventual demise.

“Eleanor nearly collapsed when she got the news. Franklin, however, was clearly a bit dense in that regard; he didn’t realize his attempts at comforting her were ineffective…” Isabelle chuckled softly. “That’s when I contacted her and took advantage of the opening.”

“Well, now. Looks like you’ve got a few tricks up your sleeve,” Amber said, raising an eyebrow with a teasing glint in his eye.

Isabelle shot him a look of mock annoyance. “What tricks? I just told her some truths. What Eleanor needed at that time wasn’t false comfort, but truth and hope.”

Isabelle paused, then continued, “However, to ensure she could remain undercover long-term without being discovered, our Intelligence Center did use a little trick.”

“The new technology you asked Salieh for?”

“That’s right~” Isabelle nodded. “Through this amazing Psionics technology, she was put into a ‘sleeping state’. She would only act according to preset instructions upon receiving a specific command or discovering valuable intelligence. And while she would do these things in her ‘sleeping state’, she wouldn’t remember her actions afterward. Not even truth serum would make her talk. Only upon hearing my activation passphrase would she recover all her memories.”

Amber pondered for a moment, a complex look flashing in his eyes. “This technology is indeed powerful, but for Eleanor, it might be a bit… cruel?”

Isabelle didn’t respond, merely gazing out the window in silence.

The darkness of space was deep and mysterious. The small points of light in orbit around the capital planet were the warships of the Renaissance Alliance, now being progressively brought under the control of the Atlas Group’s fleet, like moths caught in a spider’s web.

“Thankfully, it’s all over,” Isabelle said softly.

“No, this is just the beginning.”

Amber raised his glass and clinked it gently against Isabelle’s. The crisp sound echoed through the empty banquet hall.

Sometime later, in a temporary detention cell at the other end of the space city, Eleanor and Franklin sat facing each other, a simple metal table between them.

The walls of the cell were a cold gray, and the overhead light cast a chilly white glow on their faces, outlining their starkly different emotions.

Silence stretched between them, heavy and almost tangible, making the atmosphere in the room even more oppressive.

Franklin’s eyes were red and swollen, his hair disheveled. His hands rested limply on the metal tabletop. Across from him, Eleanor sat with her back straight, her gaze firm.

“Why?”

Franklin finally broke the silence, his voice so hoarse it was barely recognizable.

“Why would you do this?”

Eleanor took a deep breath, looking directly into Franklin’s eyes. “To get the Renaissance Alliance back on the right track, back to our original vision.”

“The right track?” Franklin let out a bitter laugh. “Is being completely controlled by the Atlas Group what you call the right track?”

Hearing his words, Eleanor leaned forward. “Franklin, ask yourself. Does the Renaissance Alliance today still remember its original purpose? Do the high-ranking members in the Alliance still remember why they joined?”

Franklin remained silent, but every word from Eleanor was like a sharp needle piercing his heart.

“You all talk about establishing a New Federation, but look at the people following you.”

Eleanor’s voice was calm and sharp, offering Franklin no quarter.

“Hall only cares about his own power, Cole only wants to rebuild military hegemony, and the others? They’re nothing but a bunch of opportunists. Why did we overthrow the Federation in the first place?! It was to establish a more just, more humane order, not to replace one group of people exploiting and oppressing from on high with another!”

“So this is your reason for betraying me? Letting the Renaissance Alliance fall under the complete control of the Atlas Group doesn’t betray the Alliance’s original purpose?” Franklin retorted, his voice thick with unconcealed pain.

Eleanor shook her head. “You’re only thinking from your position as the Leader of the Renaissance Alliance. You’re only considering the future of the Alliance—or the ‘New Federation’—not about truly wanting to change the world.”

Franklin looked up at Eleanor, a flicker of confusion in his eyes. “Eleanor, what are you trying to say?”

“I’m trying to say that perhaps Mr. Amber sees farther than you, or me.”

Eleanor stood up, her voice softening.

“I’ve confessed everything to you. What happens next is your choice… I believe that after you have a proper talk with Mr. Amber, you might have a different perspective.”

She walked to the door of the detention cell. Before leaving, she glanced back at Franklin. “I have never regretted loving you. Not before, and not now… but I can’t just stand by and watch you walk down a path of no return.”

The door to the cell slowly closed behind Eleanor, leaving Franklin alone under the cold light, lost in deep thought.

Meanwhile, astonishing changes were taking place in the various star systems under the control of the Renaissance Alliance.

After Amber gave the order to execute the ‘Correction Protocol’, combat bodies and autonomous combat mechs that had been hidden in various facilities were awakened from a slumber that had lasted months, and in some cases, over a year. Immediately after, the Immortal Corps also began to ‘descend’.

On the Audox III satellite, Renaissance Alliance soldiers on a routine patrol suddenly noticed unusual activity in a warehouse storing metal materials and construction supplies. Before they knew it, fully armed combat bodies and autonomous combat mechs appeared out of thin air. Before they could even sound the alarm, these mechanical units had disarmed them and seized control of several military command centers.

At the Renaissance Alliance’s largest fleet starport, the commanding officer was enjoying his dinner when alarms suddenly blared throughout the facility. His adjutant reported in a panic that a large number of unknown armed units had suddenly appeared at key locations within the starport.

As the commander, completely bewildered, put down his knife and fork to ask for details, a combat body had already forced its way through his door and, via a loudspeaker, politely and coldly demanded his surrender.

Scenes like this were playing out simultaneously across hundreds of star systems controlled by the Renaissance Alliance.

Thanks to the Immortal Corps’ ability to ‘descend’ seamlessly via ‘Valhalla’, these digital lifeforms could instantly take over combat bodies in different star systems. This allowed the Atlas Group to conduct synchronized, multi-system operations despite having a limited number of ground troops.

Within ‘Valhalla’, the words ‘Immortal Corps Extreme Combat Challenge’ floated across the sky, accompanied by a cumulative time record and a ‘leaderboard’.

Under Lilith’s overall direction, these digital lifeforms, who theoretically required no rest, competed to see who could sustain combat the longest and who could seamlessly switch between the most combat bodies and star systems.

Inside a command room constructed within the virtual space ‘Valhalla’, Banninger, Memphis, and others were directing this truly peculiar campaign.

“Tactical Group 427 in position. Full control of Harden Starport has been established!”

“Tactical Group 891 reporting, the administrative center of the Camilo Star System has been taken over!”

“Battle Group 1037 requests reinforcements! Encountering resistance in the outer sectors of the Silver Ring Fortress!”

“Reinforcements approved. Activate local backup combat bodies. Dispatch Battle Groups 499, 653, and 752 to execute ‘Descent’.”

Banninger processed the information at an unprecedented speed, controlling thousands of combat units and having them switch between different star systems according to the battle, constantly creating one local military advantage after another.

For the Immortal Corps, this was not just a war, but a feast of technology and efficiency.

Areas within the Renaissance Alliance absolutely loyal to the leadership—administrative bodies, garrisons, starports, and so on—had all been marked as high-priority targets during the early intelligence-gathering phase. Almost all these areas were caught completely off guard and brought under control by the suddenly appearing mechanical units.

Many commanders, even after being captured, could not comprehend how combat forces of this scale had managed to breach their tight defenses and appear right outside their command centers without a sound.

Renaissance Alliance controlled territory, Giks Star System.

The Alliance’s largest capital fleet starport floated in the dark of space like a mountain, its colossal silhouette outlined by countless twinkling lights.

The starport’s Combat Intelligence Center was located on the top floor of the central hub. Through the fully transparent deck beneath their feet, the officers on duty could look down upon the warships docked in the various shipyards.

Inside the Combat Intelligence Center, a few officers on duty were listlessly manning their stations.

Starport time had reached the dead of night. Activity in the port had dropped to a minimum, with only essential maintenance and duty personnel still at work.

On the holographic projection platform in the center of the room, a massive projection displayed the real-time status of the entire starport area. The faint blue glow illuminated the somewhat weary faces of the officers on duty.

“Sigh, I shouldn’t have gone to play in the ‘Arena’ with Bill and the others during my break. I’m dead tired now.”

Captain Schelling yawned, stretching his stiff shoulders. His gaze unintentionally swept across the starport below him, and then he frowned.

“Wait, what’s the ‘New Dreadnought’ in Berth 17 doing?”

The other officers looked up, following his gaze down. They saw that Captain Schelling had marked a spot on the transparent observation window below.

A massive Inferno-class heavy cruiser was slowly leaving its berth, attitude control thrusters all over its hull flashing as it adjusted its orientation.

“There’s movement at Berths 14 and 22 as well,” Lieutenant Patrick on the other side added. “The ‘Nemesis’ and the ‘Olympus’ are also initiating undocking procedures.”

The atmosphere in the intelligence center suddenly grew tense. Captain Schelling quickly brought up the day’s fleet activity schedule, his brows furrowed as he scanned it. Then, just as quickly, he relaxed.

“Phew… relax, everyone~ We’re getting a bit paranoid. It’s the day of the Red Rainbow Drill. These ships are all on schedule.”

“Red Rainbow Drill?” Patrick repeated, puzzled. “How come I don’t remember that?”

“Because you almost never read the full daily briefing. It’s a routine readiness drill set up by Admiral Kol to test the fleet’s rapid assembly capabilities,” Schelling teased, standing up to stretch his back.

The tense atmosphere in the intelligence center dissipated at once. The officers returned to their posts, some continuing with their paperwork, others secretly switching to entertainment channels.

Half an hour later, Patrick suddenly shot up from his seat. “Schelling, are you sure today’s drill is supposed to be this large-scale?”

Schelling frowned and walked over to Patrick’s workstation, staring at the surveillance feed on his screen. “What’s wrong?”

“See for yourself. Forty-seven warships have undocked. That’s a quarter of the starport’s permanent fleet…”

Patrick pointed at the constantly updating fleet roster, his expression growing more and more serious.

“That includes twelve battlecruisers and over twenty heavy cruisers. Does a rapid assembly drill require this many capital ships?”

Schelling’s expression also became grave. He quickly pulled up the detailed drill plan. “According to the plan, only one battle group is supposed to participate in the drill today, twenty warships at most…”

The atmosphere in the Combat Intelligence Center became tense once again. The other officers dropped what they were doing and gathered around the central holographic projection platform.

The blue dots on the hologram, representing the undocked warships, were now rearranging themselves at an unsettling speed, gradually forming a distinct formation.

“Wait, is that an attack formation?” a young ensign asked, his voice trembling.

Schelling didn’t answer. His eyes were glued to the moving dots of light. The next moment, even more dots appeared on the hologram—hundreds, thousands of smaller dots detaching from the capital ships.

“Full-deck launch…” Patrick muttered, his voice unusually hoarse. “They’re launching all their HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships!”

Schelling snatched up the communicator. “Fleet Command, this is the Intelligence Center! What is the intention of the undocked fleet? Repeat, what is the intention of the undocked fleet?”

Only crackling static came from the communicator.

“Try the emergency channel!” Schelling yelled at the communications officer.

A communications officer quickly switched to the emergency channel. “Undocked warships, please be advised, this is the Starport Combat Intelligence Center. Please respond immediately! Repeat, please respond immediately!”

Still no response.

Schelling’s face turned pale. He whipped around to the alarm console. “Sound the Level One alert! Now!”

A piercing alarm instantly swept through the entire starport. Red warning lights began to flash, illuminating the tense faces of everyone in the intelligence center.

On the duty warships in the external berths, the alarms soon sounded as well. Then, the launch bays on these ships and at the starport opened, and HCP and Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons began to scramble.

“Starport defense force is assembling. The duty battle groups are completing tactical formation. The battle group commander is asking what the hell is going on!”

“How the hell are we supposed to know?! Tell them to maintain alert!” Schelling said, feeling utterly lost. While the starport’s duty fleet had numbers, it only had a few capital ships. The rest were mostly light cruisers and destroyers. Compared to the capital ships that had just undocked, the difference in firepower was immense.

“All HCP squadrons in the starport report launch is complete!” Patrick announced, now patched into the starport’s combat command channel. “The Seventh, Tenth, and Fourteenth Heavy Armored Gunship squadrons have also launched…”

The main screen in the intelligence center suddenly lit up, broadcasting a live feed from the space outside.

In the starport’s periphery, the HCPs and gunships from the undocked fleet had already completed their combat formation.

At the very front of the formation, a crimson mech was particularly eye-catching. Its external armor was thicker, and it had more propulsion units than the other units. The entire unit exuded a sense of oppressive beauty. Even through the screen, one could feel the intimidating aura it radiated.

“Wait, is that ‘Crimson Lightning’?”

“And the ‘Red Baron’.”

Schelling opened another surveillance feed. It showed a squadron of Heavy Armored Gunships launched from the undocked fleet, also led by an equally menacing red gunship.

Among the defense forces launched from the starport, the pilots saw these two prominent units as soon as the information was synchronized via their datalinks.

And the reaction of these frontline units was even more despondent than that of the officers in the Combat Intelligence Center. At that moment, only a single thought remained in everyone’s mind.

“I’m supposed to fight Crimson Lightning? For real?”

Chapter 793: A Dream Come True

You are a young pilot from the former Federation Navy. When the Renaissance Alliance rose up in the Loubion star system where you were stationed, you answered the call of the Leader, Franklin, and joined the ‘revolution’ with your squadron.

With your excellent piloting skills and a little bit of luck, you followed the Alliance’s main army, fighting your way through every obstacle and participating in almost every battle on the Alliance’s path to power.

The merits you earned also led to a rapid rise in your rank and prestige within the Renaissance Alliance’s HCP units. However, a genius pilot named Johnny Leiding always cast a shadow over you.

This genius pilot, call sign ‘Crimson Lightning’, also took part in most of the Alliance’s key campaigns. He even participated in a massive fleet battle known as the ‘Battle of Purgatory’ during a training session with the Atlas Group, where he faced the capital fleet of the former Federation Navy head-on despite being outnumbered.

You once thought you might forever be second to the genius Johnny Leiding in the Alliance’s HCP units.

But the sudden shift in relations between the Renaissance Alliance and the Atlas Group gave you a glimmer of hope.

Soon, just as you predicted, the officers who were ‘too close’ to the Atlas Group, including Johnny Leiding, were shelved by the high command.

And you, as the ace pilot second only to Johnny Leiding—and more importantly, an ace pilot cultivated by the Renaissance Alliance itself—immediately received special attention. You were quickly molded into the ‘new generation’s leading figure’ among the HCP pilots.

To live up to the high command’s expectations and to prove yourself worthy of the title, you trained desperately, constantly improving your skills, never daring to relax for a single moment.

Your performance greatly heartened the Alliance leadership. They invested more resources in you, determined to forge you into a second ‘Johnny Leiding’ and use you to suppress the ’Crimson Lightning’s prestige within the military.

But you alone knew that a chasm, impossible to cross, still separated you from a true genius.

The Renaissance Alliance’s numerous media outlets reported on and promoted you, making you a household name—a ‘rising star of the military’—to the populace under the Alliance’s rule. You gained countless fans, receiving endless emails and gifts from all corners of the universe every day.

Subsequently, the Alliance’s independently developed new cutting-edge mainline HCP, the ‘Standard-Bearer’, began to be deployed. You naturally became the pilot of unit 001 and were once again the subject of massive publicity when you received the unit.

You knew this was the Alliance high command’s way of sending a message to the outside world.

A few days before the founding of the ‘New Federation’, while you were on shore leave with the capital fleet at the Alliance’s largest starport, the unexpected happened.

For reasons unknown, a friendly fleet suddenly adopted an offensive formation outside the starport, launching all of its HCPs and Heavy Armored Gunships.

You received orders to lead several squadrons and assist in the starport’s defense.

As you piloted your unit to the forefront of the attack echelon, just as you had done countless times before, you saw the leading unit on the other side through the magnified image on your panoramic display.

The red unit known as ‘Crimson Lightning’.

A fighting spirit ignited within you. The time had come to prove that you were in no way inferior to the so-called ‘genius pilot’. You suddenly realized that your grueling, day-after-day training seemed to have all been for this very moment.

The battle began. In the first instant the two sides crossed paths, you were kicked to death like a stray dog on the roadside.

In your final moment, you smiled.

A few minutes earlier, in the skies above the starport.

The crimson-painted ‘Crimson Lightning’ streaked through the dark void of space like a true bolt of lightning. Dozens of units of the same model followed close behind, sweeping through the vanguard of the defense force like a meteor shower.

Johnny Leiding sat in the cockpit, which trembled intermittently from the high-speed maneuvers, and calmly controlled the unit hailed by his comrades as the ‘Renaissance Alliance’s strongest killing machine’. On the HUD of the panoramic display, the chaotic and disorganized formation of the starport defense force was clearly visible.

“That’s it?”

He sneered contemptuously and pushed the throttle on his left all the way forward. The ’Crimson Lightning’s plasma thruster array instantly flared with blue light, generating astonishing acceleration that sent the unit hurtling toward the HCP formation that had just launched from the starport.

“Sir, their fire-control radar has locked onto us!” the voice of the HCP attack echelon’s adjutant came through the comms channel.

“It doesn’t matter,” Johnny Leiding responded calmly. “They probably haven’t figured out what’s going on yet. This is our best chance!”

Johnny Leiding’s assessment was correct. The flight lead of the starport defense force’s HCP formation was indeed still hesitating.

Faced with that iconic crimson figure, they couldn’t believe they were actually about to engage the Renaissance Alliance’s most famous ace pilot, nor could they understand why Johnny Leiding would suddenly lead an attack against them.

But for the elite team led by Johnny Leiding, this brief moment of hesitation was a fatal weakness. By the time the defenders finally decided to open fire, it was already too late.

In the instant they crossed paths, ‘Crimson Lightning’ directly cut down the enemy’s ‘squad leader’s unit’ at the vanguard. The blue-white plasma fireball from the enemy unit’s explosion marked the beginning of a one-sided battle.

Johnny Leiding’s reactions were flawless. Every movement was smooth and fluid, executed with pinpoint precision. Under the control of this genius pilot, the unit carved an unbelievable trajectory through space, dodging every incoming attack while ensuring that each salvo from its heavy particle cannons struck a vital point on its target.

Less than ten minutes after the battle began, the HCP echelons dispatched by the starport and the on-duty fleet had already lost over half their numbers.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the starport’s defense perimeter, the ‘Red Baron’, Manfred, piloted his Heavy Armored Gunship, leading an elite squadron straight for the on-duty fleet that had left port.

“All units, accelerate! Commence offensive barrel rolls! Third and Fourth Squadrons, flank them from the rear and cut off their retreat!”

Manfred’s voice was calm as he gave the order over the comms channel. “Remember, we’re not here for a slaughter. Just make them surrender.”

“Yes, Sir!”

The engines of the Heavy Armored Gunships roared, propelling the red combat craft between the enemy ships at breathtaking speed. Manfred controlled his unit, leading his formation in salvo after salvo, or launching plasma torpedoes at distances the enemy couldn’t evade.

Soon, one warship after another was disabled at close range. When the ‘rebel’ fleet also began its own fleet-level fire support, the on-duty fleet completely fell apart.

Inside the starport’s Combat Intelligence Center, Captain Schelling watched the battle unfold on the screen in despair. Their defense force was being reaped like wheat by the forces led by ‘Crimson Lightning’ and the ‘Red Baron’.

What Captain Schelling found even more incomprehensible was that these two ace pilots of the Renaissance Alliance had sided with the ‘rebels’ on the very eve of the ’New Federation’s founding.

“We’re finished,” Lieutenant Patrick muttered beside him. “It’s Johnny Leiding and Manfred… those two killing machines…”

Captain Schelling didn’t respond, silently watching as more and more friendly signals vanished from the screen. When the on-duty fleet in the starport’s periphery was completely dismantled, the defensive HCP formation decimated, and their distress signals repeatedly failed to send, he knew that resistance was futile.

“Surrender…”

Three days earlier, when Johnny Leiding received the encrypted message from the Atlas Group, he was in his officer’s quarters, polishing a model of his beloved HCP unit.

The special tone from his communicator made him pause. It was a channel he hadn’t used in a long time.

The decrypted message made his eyes widen: “An internal purge of ‘parasites’ within the Renaissance Alliance is imminent. The Atlas Group will execute the ‘Correction Protocol’. Are you willing to participate?”

The message was signed with a name he knew all too well—Delun Ryan, his former instructor at the Atlas Group’s training camp, a legendary figure who even had his own theme song, ‘The Gallant Ryan’.

Johnny immediately contacted Manfred and several other close comrades who had also received the message. Before long, they were gathered in Johnny’s dormitory, locked in a staring contest, no one daring to speak first.

“Do you believe it?” Manfred finally broke the silence. “Is the Atlas Group really going to move against the Renaissance Alliance?”

“I’m not sure,” Johnny Leiding said with a frown, “but Instructor Delun never jokes…”

They decided to reply and request more information. Soon, an encrypted video call connected.

Delun’s chiseled face appeared on the screen. Time had etched a few wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, but his gaze was as sharp as an eagle’s.

“Long time no see, my students,” Delun said with a smile. “I know you have many questions.”

Over the next half hour, Delun explained the Atlas Group’s plan in detail. It wasn’t about destroying the Renaissance Alliance, but about purging the corrupt, selfish high-ranking officials within its ranks—the ‘parasites’ who had strayed from the Alliance’s original ideals.

“You were all assigned to these insignificant secondary fleets, deliberately suppressed by those officials. Don’t you find that strange?” Delun’s words hit home. “They fear your abilities, your integrity, and most of all, your connection to the Atlas Group.”

Delun gave Johnny Leiding and Manfred a pointed look. “Remember Mr. Debrouwer? He was persecuted by those ‘parasites’ in the Alliance simply because he was on good terms with the Atlas Group.”

Johnny and Manfred exchanged a glance, their eyes flashing with complex emotions. They were, of course, well aware of these internal problems within the Renaissance Alliance, and they knew that if these issues weren’t addressed, the Alliance would eventually go down the same ‘old road’ as the Federation.

“Mr. Amber’s goal isn’t to destroy the Renaissance Alliance, but to put it back on the right track,” Delun continued. “He needs people like you, who truly care about the Alliance’s future, to stand up.”

Less than an hour after the battle at the starport ended, a rapid strike group from the Atlas Group’s combat fleet arrived and took control of the entire facility.

Johnny Leiding stood on the observation deck of a deployment bay in the starport, looking at the bustling scene outside, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

“How does it feel?” Manfred walked up beside him and handed him a carton of coffee.

Johnny took the coffee, popped the straw, and took a long sip before sighing. “Honestly, it was much easier than I thought. But fighting against former comrades still doesn’t sit right with me…”

“Who feels any different?” Manfred sighed as well.

Johnny’s gaze drifted toward the wreckage being cleared outside. “Do you think we did the right thing?”

“I don’t know,” Manfred answered honestly. “But I do know that if we let those people stay in power, the Renaissance Alliance’s future would only be worse.”

“Yeah… I hope everything really turns out like the instructor and Mr. Amber said. I hope a tragedy of such infighting never has to happen again.”

The execution of the ‘Correction Protocol’ far exceeded Amber’s expectations. Within forty-eight hours of the operation’s commencement, all designated targets within the Renaissance Alliance’s sphere of control were successfully secured.

This massive, cross-system special military operation changed the entire power structure of the Renaissance Alliance almost overnight, yet miraculously had little impact on the lives of ordinary citizens.

Most people woke up to learn about the night’s events through the internet.

Though they were surprised to find that the Alliance’s military bases, starports, and administrative centers had changed hands, their daily lives were almost entirely undisrupted.

A group of ‘pro-Atlas faction’ young military officers quickly issued a joint statement through the Atlas Group’s network, claiming the operation was to eradicate corrupt elements within the Alliance and maintain the purity of the Renaissance Alliance’s ranks.

This statement was widely disseminated and, to some extent, temporarily stabilized public sentiment.

Even more surprisingly, Franklin himself soon made a public appearance. Though his face was a bit haggard, he firmly expressed his support for the ‘internal cleansing operation’ and announced that the founding ceremony of the ‘New Federation’ would proceed as scheduled.

His statement completely dispelled the public’s doubts.

After all, the Renaissance Alliance still existed; the Atlas Group hadn’t replaced it but was merely helping the Alliance eliminate its internal ‘pests’. The populace even expressed their support, viewing it as a necessary act of self-purification for the Renaissance Alliance on the eve of its founding.

However, no one knew what had truly happened to Franklin or why he had suddenly changed his stance to support the Atlas Group’s actions.

The only known fact was that the day before, Amber and Franklin had held a private meeting that lasted several hours.

No third person knew the content of their conversation, but according to insiders, Franklin was in a prolonged state of shock and daze after the meeting. Following that, his attitude underwent a complete transformation.

The founding ceremony of the ‘New Federation’ was held as scheduled in the space city. The East Portico of the New Federation’s Congress Building, constructed within the city, was meticulously decorated. This location, a tribute to the inauguration traditions of the Old Federation, now appeared exceptionally solemn.

Franklin stood on the high rostrum, dressed in a formal black suit with silver trim, his expression serious and resolved.

Below the stage gathered media reporters from all over, including those from the Thousand Stars Empire and the Star Dragon Empire, who were present through introductions made by Amber. The latter’s presence, in a way, represented Her Majesty Agnes’s ‘desire for peace’.

Also in attendance were high-level representatives from the Atlas Group and a number of newly appointed officials who had received battlefield promotions. Their common traits were having no connection to the purged officials, being diligent in their duties, never engaging in favoritism or corruption, and consistently supporting cooperation with the Atlas Group.

“I do solemnly swear, in the name of the President of the Federation of Humankind.”

Franklin’s voice boomed across the entire plaza through the amplification system. “I will faithfully execute the office of President of the Federation and will, to the best of my ability, respect and protect the rights and freedoms of all humankind and all citizens of the Federation.”

His every word was powerful and resonant, his eyes shining with a determined light.

However, only Amber and a select few knew that just the night before, Franklin had stood before Amber in the very same manner, solemnly swearing to join the Atlas Group and pledging to dedicate the rest of his life to building a better ‘New Federation’ and ensuring the long-term survival of human civilization alongside the Atlas Group.

The moment the Franklin on stage recited his oath, he suddenly recalled a dream from long ago.

In that dream, he was just as he was now, swearing an oath to become the President of the New Federation and another to join the Atlas Group.

At the time, he dismissed it as an absurd illusion, but he never expected it to become reality. The gears of fate had turned in a wondrous way, leading him to the future he had foreseen in his dream.

On the reviewing stand, as the most distinguished guest present, Norton II quietly watched it all unfold with a complex expression.

As the former Regent Prince of the Star Dragon Empire, he was witnessing the ‘rise from the ashes’ of his empire’s sworn enemy, and his heart was filled with a mix of emotions.

“It’s incredible, isn’t it?” Amber had appeared beside him at some point and spoke in a low voice.

Norton II nodded slightly. “Indeed. If I hadn’t joined the Atlas Group and followed you, I’m afraid I would never have had the chance to witness this moment.”

“History is always full of surprises,” Amber said with a smile. “And we are making new history.”

“Yes, making new history. It’s a feeling you just can’t get enough of.”

Norton II gazed at Franklin on the stage, lost in thought. “I can’t help but feel that young man has changed a lot.”

Amber replied, “Everyone changes. The important thing is whether they change for the better or for the worse.”

After the ceremony, cooperation between the New Federation and the Atlas Group immediately resumed and entered a deeper phase.

All previously suspended projects were restarted with astonishing speed. At Franklin’s direction, the New Federation’s government departments began to officially integrate with the Atlas Group’s ‘Intelligent Management System’.

The Renaissance Alliance underwent a large-scale personnel reshuffle. The positions of the purged ‘pests’ were quickly filled by new people, and the entire Alliance was once again filled with an atmosphere where all things were flourishing with vigor and vitality.

Chapter 794: Good Morning, Her Majesty

With matters in the New Federation drawing to a close, Amber prepared to depart for the Star Dragon Empire. After the major battle there, it too could be considered a place waiting to be rebuilt from ruins.

So, after leaving a team of competent personnel to staff the office and having Lilith establish a direct line for constant communication with the New Federation, Amber, along with Isabelle and the others, boarded the Regalia Fortress and entered warp.

This trip to the Star Dragon Empire was primarily to advance his various plans there, facilitating the future deployment of the crucial ‘Atlas Intelligent Management System’ within the Empire. A secondary reason was to respond to Agnes’s request and have the Regalia Fortress make a public appearance to stabilize the situation.

The project’s advancement in the New Federation was essentially problem-free. After learning of Amber’s “Grand Plan,” Franklin, while in a state of extreme shock, had also expressed that he would “exercise his authority as the President of the New Federation” to push the project forward.

Therefore, Lilith’s next iteration and upgrade had become a pressing matter.

Amber’s current plan was to convert the A·Bawa·Ku fortress directly into the Atlas Group’s data core. According to Lilith, after continuous iterative upgrades, she would no longer need to brute-force stack server arrays to increase her computing power.

Theoretically, an area roughly half the size of the A·Bawa·Ku fortress would be sufficient.

However, Amber still decided to convert the remaining half into Lilith’s “server room” as well, for system redundancy.

The various sectors and facilities originally inside the A·Bawa·Ku fortress, including the Scion Academy, would be transferred to the Regalia Fortress.

After all, this was an Artificial Celestial Fortress with a diameter of 450 kilometers, capable of housing one point eight million people. It was more than enough to serve as the Atlas Group’s current mobile “main base.”

As for Agnes’s opinion?

Oh, that wasn’t particularly important~

Incidentally, the Atlas Group’s current headquarters building on Loubion V was more of a symbolic structure.

The core areas, such as the research and development center, the intelligence department, the Scion Academy, and the training center, were all actually located within the A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

Lilith had previously spent some time deleting all information about this asteroid belt from the Federation and Empire’s major navigation databases, as well as from the internet. This meant that, apart from Atlas Group ships, no other factions could even find this region at present.

Once A·Bawa·Ku was completely transformed into Lilith’s “Hive,” all internal navigation information about the location would be purged. Only the highest-level personnel would be qualified to obtain its navigational coordinates.

This meant a “great hand” would completely “erase” A·Bawa·Ku from the human world.

——

The warp drive array on the Regalia Fortress was an older model that had not been improved by Salieh, so the journey from the New Federation Capital to the Star Dragon Empire’s Capital, Saint-Saulnier, was quite long.

However, Amber was not bored along the way.

Especially not when the true commander of the Regalia Fortress, the android LLS943823, was sitting across from him in the meeting room, staring at him with a curious and slightly shy expression.

Lilith’s main body had already remained in the data center at A·Bawa·Ku, entering seclusion to prepare for her iterative upgrade and temporarily severing contact with the outside world.

The entity currently responsible for the entire management system’s operation was a clone she had left behind, specifically for system maintenance and network monitoring. This clone obviously couldn’t accompany Amber.

Therefore, the android LLS943823 would be taking Lilith’s place at Amber’s side during this period.

Although, according to Lilith, this android and herself were one and the same.

Looking at the android who had been staring at him curiously ever since he boarded the fortress, Amber asked with some confusion, “So, are you Lilith, or are you LLS943823?”

“Master, I have already completed the data exchange with LLS943823. This means I am Lilith. However, this unique ‘rogue’ sample is quite rare, so I’ve retained some of LLS943823’s personality traits to give you a different experience~”

LLS943823, or rather Lilith, smiled, then lowered her head shyly, her hands nervously twisting the long hair that cascaded down to her waist.

It could be said that this android commander’s personality had indeed changed a great deal since their first meeting. While she could still maintain an extremely powerful aura in front of outsiders, in front of Amber, she had certainly acquired more of Lilith’s affectionate dependence.

“So what’s the difference between this… uh, android clone of yours and your main body? If I need your support in battle or other activities like before, can this body provide it?”

“Of course, Master~”

LLS943823 nodded confidently and continued:

“The biggest difference between this android clone and my main body is, naturally, that it has a physical form in the material world. Moreover, besides the standard capabilities for electronic warfare support, information queries, and network monitoring, this combat body possesses extremely powerful combat abilities to protect you, Master.”

At this, LLS943823 stood up. She first demonstrated the capabilities of this top-tier combat body, including a monomolecular wire hidden in her arm, a thermal saber, and other melee armaments, as well as numerous ports for connecting to other external weapons.

Then, the vibe suddenly shifted. She began striking poses, showing Amber the “aesthetic appeal” of this body, all while providing a running commentary that sounded just like Lilith.

“In addition to all that, this android’s facial features, body proportions, and other data were all configured according to your preferences, Master. It even includes a complete set of sexual organs, guaranteed to give you a whole new experience…”

“Alright, that’s enough. Only you, Lilith, could say something like that out of the blue.”

Amber righteously stopped LLS943823 from her next, even bolder, move.

It wasn’t because his self-control was particularly strong, but because Isabelle would be coming to find him shortly.

“Well, I’ll be counting on you for support during this time. Not that I expect any major problems. By the way, would you prefer I call you Lilith or LLS943823?”

“Either is fine. It’s entirely up to you, Master~”

“Then I’ll stick with Lilith. Calling you LLS943823 just feels a bit strange…”

——

When the Regalia Fortress arrived in orbit of Saint-Saulnier, Amber took a royal private craft directly down to the surface.

Since the Grand Palace had been almost completely destroyed in the previous battle, it was still being rebuilt by a subsidiary of the Atlas Group and several local Imperial construction firms.

As for this newly constructed Grand Palace, it was once again designed by Master Gindoshi.

Agnes was currently residing in a temporary palace on another of the planet’s continents. When Amber arrived, there was still some time before she was due to wake up.

Not feeling sleepy, Amber asked the palace maids to inform him the moment the Empress Regnant was awake. He then settled into the temporary palace’s reception room to wait, using the time to review a number of reports he had previously missed.

Although the operations of the Atlas Group, as well as the training and combat of the fleet and combat units, were now handled by dedicated personnel—unlike in the early “ragtag operation” days when Amber made all the decisions himself—the number of regular reports and projects requiring his final approval had not diminished in the slightest, even as the group’s scale continued to expand.

When Agnes woke from a rare peaceful slumber and was immediately informed that Amber was already waiting in the reception room, she was momentarily stunned, not yet fully awake.

As the former princess of the Empire and now the newly ascended Empress Regnant, she had long grown accustomed to everything proceeding according to strict etiquette.

Although she already knew Amber would be coming to see her today, it was clear that in all her days, not even her most trusted confidants would choose such a time to seek an audience.

Amber’s sudden visit broke this convention, but what was relatively more embarrassing for her was that she had just woken up and had not yet completed her morning toilette.

“Does Mr. Amber seem anxious? Is there some urgent matter he needs to discuss with me?” Agnes asked, sitting on the edge of her bed and yawning.

“Your Majesty, Mr. Amber doesn’t seem to be in a hurry, nor did he mention any urgent business. He has been resting in the reception room,” a maid answered cautiously.

Agnes took a deep breath, and glanced at her slightly disheveled reflection in the mirror. “Have Mr. Amber wait a little longer. I will see him after I’ve gotten ready.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Her personal maid curtsied and had just turned to leave and inform Amber when Agnes suddenly called her back.

“Wait. Never mind getting ready. I’ll go see him now.”

As if struck by an idea, Agnes walked briskly to the washroom, rinsed her mouth, and splashed her face with water. Then, still in her nightgown, she headed for the door.

Her actions left the maids who were preparing to attend to her utterly aghast.

The head personal maid, mustering courage from some unknown source, stepped directly in front of Agnes.

“Your Majesty, seeing Mr. Amber like this is detrimental to the royal dignity! It is highly improper! If word of this gets out, those fellows who don’t fear losing their heads will surely add fuel to the fire and spread malicious rumors.”

“Then have the Internal Affairs Department and the Inspectorate hurry up, find those people, and have them beheaded!”

Agnes’s eyes flashed as she retorted in a huff, but she didn’t slow her pace in the slightest.

At this point, not even her personal maid dared to stop her any longer. They could only watch as the supreme ruler of the Empire walked out of the room wearing nothing but a loose nightgown.

All the exasperated personal maid could do now was to quickly have the temporary palace put under complete lockdown to prevent any gossip from being spread.

When Amber, in the reception room, saw a sleepy-looking Agnes appear before him in her nightgown, he too was momentarily stunned—in the first second, his fire-control radar had already locked onto the pair of large warheads swaying beneath her nightgown with every step she took.

Agnes naturally noticed Amber’s slightly improper little glance, but she said nothing. Instead, a triumphant smile played on her lips.

Unbeknownst to others, the new Empress Regnant had recently been binge-watching a Federation romance-themed reality show called So What If I’m A Little Scheming? to brush up on certain related knowledge.

This “move” of appearing before a member of the opposite sex in such an unguarded state was something she had recently learned.

After her first clash with Isabelle had ended in defeat, Agnes realized that she couldn’t simply “snatch” Amber away.

It was obvious that the Imperial Royal etiquette officers would not teach her the intricacies of interacting with the opposite sex. After all, in the eyes of those old traditionalists, no one could possibly interact with the Empress Regnant as an equal.

Meanwhile, after his moment of distraction, Amber quickly averted his “impolite” gaze and bowed his head slightly to Agnes.

“Good morning, Your Majesty. I hope my unannounced visit hasn’t disturbed you.”

“Mr. Amber, you are always so unpredictable. But given our relationship, we don’t need to be constrained by so many formalities~”

After a few brief pleasantries, Agnes changed the subject. “Since you are here now, Mr. Amber, does that mean matters in the Federation, or rather, the New Federation, have been concluded?”

Amber nodded. “That’s right. Franklin has been inaugurated as the President of the New Federation and is leading a comprehensive cooperation with the Atlas Group. The unstable elements within the Renaissance Alliance have also been eliminated. The New Federation is now moving forward steadily according to plan.”

Agnes raised an eyebrow. “You make it sound so simple, Mr. Amber. But what I heard was that a rather thorough ‘purge’ took place.”

“It was merely pruning some rotten branches to allow new shoots to grow better.”

Amber’s tone was calm, as if he were discussing a trivial matter. “And unlike a ‘great purge’ in the traditional sense, there were no rivers of blood~”

Agnes chuckled lightly. “How ‘reassuring’ to hear.”

“More than that, I am more concerned about the situation here in the Empire.”

Amber cut to the chase, no longer beating around the bush.

“For the foreseeable future, I will be shifting my focus to the Star Dragon Empire. The Atlas Group has sufficient technology and resources to help you consolidate your rule, Your Majesty.”

A flash of joy crossed Agnes’s eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. “I am grateful for your support, Mr. Amber. This is truly a ‘Timely Rain’ for me. In fact, ever since my ascension, I have been trying to push for reforms, but the resistance from the older generation of nobles is far greater than I anticipated.”

“Those die-hards are always like this. They would rather watch the Empire decay than give up an iota of their vested interests.” Amber shook his head slightly. After his numerous conversations with Norton II, he was all too familiar with the nature of these old nobles.

“Indeed. But even with the support of the Atlas Group, I must proceed with caution. Otherwise, who knows if those nobles will use the pretext of ‘the Empress Regnant is controlled by outsiders’ to stir up trouble. You should know, there has been no shortage of gossip about you here in the Empire recently, Mr. Amber~”

“Oh? What kind of gossip?”

“For example, the discussion about whether you, Mr. Amber, are the ‘king-slayer’ or the ‘queen’s keeper’…”

Amber was suddenly a little speechless. “These old nobles really have too much time on their hands.”

“Hahahaha~”

Agnes covered her mouth and giggled, a movement that once again activated Amber’s fire-control radar.

“Let’s put that aside for now. There is another official matter. I have received an invitation from the Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire. He hopes that I, as the newly ascended Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire, will pay a formal visit to the realm of the elves.”

“Oh? What a coincidence.”

Amber’s eyebrows raised slightly. “Before I left the New Federation, the newly inaugurated President Franklin also received an invitation from this Phoenix King. Even I received an invitation, in my capacity as the actual controller of the Atlas Group~”

Chapter 795: Rumors of the Queen’s Keeper

“The Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire invited all three of us at the same time?”

All sleepiness vanished from Agnes. A trace of doubt flashed in her eyes, but it was overshadowed by alertness.

“Mr. Amber, don’t you find this a bit too coincidental?”

“It’s certainly unusual,” Amber said, thinking. “The Thousand Stars Empire doesn’t have much contact with the human world. For the supreme leaders of the two great human powers, the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, to be invited at the same time… I wonder what those elves are up to.”

Agnes said, “And you conveniently fail to mention that you were invited yourself, Mr. Amber~”

“After all, the Atlas Group is just a slightly larger private enterprise. It naturally can’t be compared to the two true human powers,” Amber replied with a smile.

“Not many people would believe that if they heard it~”

Agnes shook her head. At this moment, she completely lacked the imperial bearing she displayed on formal occasions. From Amber’s perspective, she was more like a ‘girlfriend’.

Amber had to admit, compared to the awkwardness of her last ‘confrontation’ with Isabelle, Agnes had changed a lot recently. At least when the two of them were together, that sense of ‘distance’ had dissipated considerably.

Maintaining a polite expression as he openly admired the ‘dragon girl’, Amber leaned back in the soft chair in the reception room, his thoughts beginning to wander.

As the nation of the elves, the Thousand Stars Empire had always been mysterious and closed off in the popular imagination. Although the empire did not forbid humans from entering, very few could actually get in and stay for any significant length of time.

The average person’s understanding of the Thousand Stars Empire came mostly from documents, news reports, and—as Randall had once been obsessed with—the elf models in high-end clubs.

To some extent, the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire did subvert human stereotypes about them.

For example, most people assumed that the elf models were likely abducted by humans through various illegal means.

But in fact, they were all hired through proper channels and possessed legitimate work visas.

Amber didn’t know which elf, upon arriving in the human world, had first started the trend of ‘working as a model by day and part-time at a club by night,’ but in any case, the clubs had never been short of elves since.

But such ‘exchanges’ among the populace were clearly not something for polite society, and on an official level, interaction between humans and elves was indeed infrequent.

At least the Phoenix King himself didn’t seem particularly interested in the matter—well, the current Phoenix King had witnessed the human world split into the two major powers of the Federation and the Star Dragon Empire shortly after his accession.

The Thousand Stars Empire’s dealings with the human world thereafter were limited to superficial trade and necessary diplomacy. Even during the golden ages of the Old Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, human leaders were rarely invited for official visits.

So this sudden invitation was indeed surprising, especially since it came at a critical juncture when both sides were in the middle of a ‘new monarch’s accession’.

Across from Amber, Agnes pulled her nightgown tighter, a rare look of worry on her face. “I’ve only recently ascended the throne, and the Empire hasn’t stabilized yet. It might not be wise to leave at this time…”

“It would be difficult to refuse the Phoenix King’s invitation, especially since it’s so rare~”

Amber’s gaze swept over Agnes’s face, passing over her slightly disheveled long hair before he quickly looked away.

“The elves maintain a friendly facade with humanity and have never directly interfered in our internal politics. Well, although they have engaged in infiltration through capital, they have never directly intervened. What’s more, you are not the only one invited this time, Your Majesty. So, on many levels, this is no ordinary invitation.”

Sunlight from outside the reception room streamed through the window lattice, casting dappled light and shadows on the magnificent carpet. A gentle, warm breeze filled the room, carrying a faint fragrance—Agnes’s scent, a crisp and sweet aroma reminiscent of alpine flowers.

“Mr. Amber seems to know something?” Agnes keenly noticed Amber’s pensive expression.

Amber rubbed the bridge of his nose, recalling a call he’d had with Allenita before leaving the New Federation.

The wealthy elf, whom he hadn’t seen in some time, was the ‘representative’ responsible for relaying the Phoenix King’s invitation to him. And when Allenita passed on the invitation, she had also hinted at some information.

“My elf ally, Ms. Elenita Yuge, mentioned to me that this invitation might be related to an ancient Prophecy in the Thousand Stars Empire. She herself, however, knows very little about it.”

“A Prophecy?” Agnes’s eyes lit up. “So, because of a prophecy, the Phoenix King suddenly decides to make contact with humanity?”

Amber shook his head. “Allenita only overheard bits and pieces by chance. She doesn’t know the specific content of the Prophecy.”

The reception room fell into a brief silence as they both immersed themselves in their own thoughts. Agnes’s brow furrowed slightly, her long fingers unconsciously stroking the silky edge of her nightgown.

In the end, it was Amber who broke the silence. “Your Majesty, this trip to the Thousand Stars Empire might be far more complex than we imagine. On the surface, it’s a friendly visit of extraordinary significance, but there may be something else going on behind the scenes.”

Agnes sighed softly. “Then, Mr. Amber, do you think I should go or not?”

“Of course you should go.”

Amber answered with certainty. “This is an opportunity that cannot be missed. Whatever the Phoenix King’s plans are, communicating with him face-to-face is clearly the most efficient method. Besides, as the new monarch of the Star Dragon Empire, visiting the Thousand Stars Empire will certainly help solidify your rule and enhance your prestige.”

“But many of the old nobles in the country are still restless. To be honest, it was only after I truly ascended the throne that I understood what a ‘mess’ the Empire is in right now.”

Agnes looked anxious. The fact that she could use a word like ‘mess’ was enough to show that she was already feeling overwhelmed by the current internal situation.

If she followed her instincts, she would naturally want to go on a killing spree.

But it was obvious that now that she was in this position, killing alone didn’t seem to solve all the problems.

“It seems the situation in the Empire is not looking good? Does Your Majesty feel that your past methods are no longer effective?”

As if reading her mind, Amber precisely articulated Agnes’s inner thoughts and anxieties. Before she could say anything, he continued:

“Killing alone certainly can’t solve all problems, but it can solve most of them. However, I suggest Your Majesty not be in a hurry to clean out those disobedient nobles for now. ‘Boiling the frog slowly’ might be the most suitable solution at present. Your Majesty can first prepare for the trip to the Thousand Stars Empire. We can deal with internal matters when we return.”

Agnes pondered for a moment after hearing this, then looked up and smiled gracefully.

“Mr. Amber’s advice is very reasonable.”

She rose and walked to the window, the sunlight outlining her graceful figure, the firm and undulating curves beneath her nightgown faintly visible.

For the next few hours, the two discussed the preparations for the trip to the Thousand Stars Empire in depth.

Besides matters like the selection of the entourage and the preparation of diplomatic etiquette, they spent more time discussing how to deal with the ‘frogs’.

Before they knew it, noon had passed.

Agnes’s personal maids had come in twice, tiptoeing carefully to serve them snacks and drinks, as neither of them had eaten a proper meal since the morning.

And each time they saw Agnes, still in her loose nightgown, chatting animatedly with Amber, the maids would retreat from the room with strange expressions, exchanging meaningful glances in the hallway.

Although the Temporary Palace was on lockdown, court gossip had always spread at an astonishing speed.

By the afternoon, a rumor about Her Majesty Agnes spending several hours alone in a reception room with Amber while wearing a nightgown had drifted from the palace to the nearby noble villas. It quickly fermented into an even more shocking speculation—that Amber, the ‘queen’s keeper’, was very likely about to marry Her Majesty Agnes.

—

“Your Majesty, the story is already out.”

Natalia, who had been promoted to Commander of the Empire’s Royal Guard, knelt on one knee, her voice grave.

Agnes was in the locker room, watching a series of outfits flash across a holographic projection—gowns prepared for the trip to the Thousand Stars Empire.

Upon hearing Natalia’s words, her expression changed slightly but quickly returned to calm. “What are the rumors saying?”

“Some say Your Majesty was alone with Mr. Amber in a closed room for several hours.” Natalia hesitated, choosing her words carefully. “And that your relationship was overly intimate. Some are even speculating that you might marry him.”

The corners of Agnes’s lips tilted up slightly, but the smile was fleeting. “That’s absurd. We were merely discussing matters of state.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Natalia responded respectfully, then continued, “But to protect the reputation of the Royal Family, I request Your Majesty’s permission to intervene and investigate the origin point of these rumors.”

Agnes turned to face the full-length mirror. A gown she had selected was now projected onto her body, its exquisite tailoring highlighting her elegant and majestic aura.

“Permission granted. The reputation of the Royal Family cannot be tarnished. But remember, I only want to clarify the facts. Do not suppress it too much, understand?”

“As you command, Your Majesty.” Natalia stood up, and a sword-and-shield insignia on her collar reflected a cold glint in the light.

After Natalia left, Agnes twirled in front of the mirror, a thoughtful smile on her face.

When Amber returned to the temporary residence Agnes had arranged for him, he found Isabelle already waiting for him on the sofa in the reception room.

She wore a simple, deep-blue suit, her blond hair uncharacteristically tied up in a high bun. She looked much more mature, exuding a sharp, professional aura.

“My dear, it seems you’ve had a very fulfilling day.”

Isabelle’s tone was filled with a complex mix of emotions, like a pie chart.

“Spending the entire morning alone with our respected Her Majesty Agnes?”

Amber raised an eyebrow slightly and sank into the sofa. “Oh? You’ve already heard, Isabelle?”

“Amber!”

Isabelle sat up straight and moved closer to him. “The entire palace is talking. They say Her Majesty Agnes spent hours with you in the reception room while wearing a nightgown.”

Her voice had a an edge to it, especially when she said ‘nightgown’.

“Now people are even speculating that you’re about to get married!”

Amber raised a hand, poured himself a glass of ice wine from the bar in the distance, and brought it to his hand with a gesture. “I know this sounds like an excuse, but we were really just discussing the invitation from the Thousand Stars Empire.”

“The Thousand Stars Empire? You mean the invitation Allenita mentioned before? So Her Majesty Agnes also received an invitation from the Phoenix King?”

“That’s right~”

A flicker of surprise crossed Isabelle’s eyes, but she quickly got ‘back on topic’.

“Amber, I believe you did discuss that, but I suspect the spread of these rumors might not be a coincidence.”

Amber took a sip of the wine, letting the amber liquid swirl on his tongue. He had already guessed what she was thinking the moment she spoke. “So you think Agnes deliberately spread these rumors, Isabelle?”

“As the ruler of a nation, how could she not control the spread of rumors within her own palace? And her move to have Natalia thoroughly investigate the rumors seems more like protesting too much, in my opinion.”

Amber set down his wine glass and nodded lightly. “You do have a point. But what does she gain from it?”

“You, of course!”

Isabelle shifted again, now only a breath away from Amber, her own breathing growing a little ragged.

“The Empress Regnant’s objective is obvious—she hopes the rumors spread far and wide, and then, under the pretext of upholding the dignity of the Royal Family, she’ll create an irreversible situation and force you into marriage!”

Amber was silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled. “Isabelle, you’re not jealous, are you?”

Isabelle’s cheeks flushed slightly, but she maintained the calm demeanor of the group’s intelligence chief. “This isn’t about jealousy, it’s a strategic consideration! Agnes clearly wants to solidify her relationship with the Atlas Group through marriage to consolidate her own power. We are both well aware of that.”

Amber smiled, then set down his glass and pulled Isabelle into his arms. She instantly calmed down, resting against his chest as quietly as a kitten.

“Whatever Agnes has planned, it’s not the most important thing right now. We all have to deal with the invitation from the Thousand Stars Empire first. The Phoenix King inviting me, Franklin, and Agnes all at once is definitely not just for a simple cup of tea.”

Isabelle’s brow furrowed as well. “The Thousand Stars Empire has always been mysterious. For them to suddenly show goodwill to the human world is indeed a bit strange.”

“Allenita mentioned that this invitation might be related to an ancient prophecy.”

“A prophecy?”

“Yes.”

Amber nodded. “So I need you and the Intelligence Center to investigate any information regarding prophecies of the Thousand Stars Empire, especially parts related to humans.”

Isabelle nodded. “I’ll arrange it immediately. But what are you going to do about Agnes? She’s not going to stop with the ‘sugar-coated bullets’ from now on.”

A meaningful smile played on Amber’s lips. “Naturally, I’ll eat the ‘sugar coating’ and throw the cannonball back~”

“What?! You’re still going to eat the ‘sugar coating’?”

Chapter 796: Work-for-Relief and the Colonization Plan

The visit to the Thousand Stars Empire by the heads of the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the Atlas Group was finally scheduled for two months from now.

It had to be said that the Phoenix King’s timing was quite reasonable. It gave all parties ample time to prepare without dragging things out so long that the Thousand Stars Empire would feel slighted by the humans.

For now, the cooperation between the Atlas Group and the Star Dragon Empire was on the right track. However, the staff at the Saint-Saulnier office still spent most of their days handling the insatiably greedy imperial nobles with bureaucratic finesse.

Afterward, every detail was meticulously recorded. As Amber put it, they would be settling accounts later.

Agnes, meanwhile, was busy preparing for the visit, which included arranging for the supervision of power within the Empire during her absence.

As for the rumor that Amber and Agnes were soon to be married, it had only spread further under Natalia’s “thorough investigation.”

Even Natalia herself had been dragged into it. It was said that the commander of the Empire’s Royal Guard was currently in a state of perpetual rage and was still pursuing the matter.

Over in the New Federation, Franklin had indeed accomplished a great deal during this time. The idealistic youth who had successfully risen to power was demonstrating his capabilities now that he had recovered.

“Mr. Amber, we have now signed a series of military-industrial cooperation agreements with the Atlas Group.”

Franklin’s voice emanated from the holographic projection in front of Amber. Amber was in a conference room on Regalia Fortress, speaking remotely with Franklin, Lilith’s android standing beside him.

“We have also begun to receive the first batch of equipment. Just as you said, this will certainly expand our military capabilities in a short time and help us resolve some of our current problems.”

Amber nodded, glancing at another screen beside the hologram, which was filled with data.

Franklin had indeed made a wise decision. Rather than wasting time and resources upgrading an outdated military-industrial complex, it was better to directly procure mature products from the Atlas Group.

After all, under the current circumstances, one of the New Federation’s most important tasks was to stabilize the internal situation as quickly as possible.

The former star system autonomous governments that had previously declared “independence” and the remnants of the Old Federation’s “rebels,” though no longer a serious threat, were still stirring up trouble in some fringe regions.

Following this, Franklin detailed the progress of various cooperative projects. The military production division of the Atlas Group had begun manufacturing and delivering with astonishing efficiency the moment the contracts were signed.

A steady stream of military equipment, from personal combat and protective gear to vehicles, HCPs, and even warships, was flowing to the New Federation’s army.

Although this equipment was inferior in performance to the latest models used by the Atlas Group itself, or had some features removed, it was more than advanced enough for the New Federation. It was sufficient to ensure their military superiority when quelling the “rebels.”

“It’s not just military projects that are underway.”

Another senior manager from the group who had joined the meeting spoke up, displaying the renovation plans for the New Federation’s capital planet. “The reconstruction of the New Federation’s capital has also begun. Our planetary development and engineering construction divisions are fully involved.”

After him, the current HR Director was the next to speak.

“Boss, as per your instructions, I have opened up a large number of employment positions for these projects. The unemployment rate within the New Federation has dropped by 4.7 percentage points in the last two weeks. We expect to continue providing stable job opportunities as more projects and business operations are launched in the future.”

Work-for-relief.

This term, full of “historical flavor,” was a proposal Franklin had previously made to Amber. He believed that this method would not only rebuild infrastructure destroyed by the war but also provide job opportunities for the vast number of unemployed, thereby stabilizing social order.

Building on this, Franklin and the newly appointed leaders of the Renaissance Alliance also planned a new colonization development program.

The New Federation government purchased from the Atlas Group the coordinates of several dozen planets previously surveyed and deemed suitable for human habitation, and had begun preliminary preparations.

These colonies would be key to solving unemployment, uneven population distribution, and excessive population pressure in single regions of the New Federation.

“The first wave of migration is scheduled to begin within three months,” Franklin said. “We expect over three point two billion people to move to these new colonies in the coming year, so we may need to place an additional order for a batch of large-scale colony ships.”

“Hold on. Are you sure the New Federation government has enough funds to push forward so many projects at once?”

Amber interrupted Franklin, looking at him intently.

“Although you now know the Atlas Group’s stance toward the New Federation, business is business. That’s one of the necessary conditions for a society to function normally. The New Federation absolutely cannot develop a habit of relying on the Atlas Group’s help to solve everything. After all, you know our style of doing things very well…”

“Of course, Mr. Amber.” Franklin smiled. “‘Atlas always pays its debts,’ I am well aware of that. But you don’t need to worry about the funds. The New Federation not only inherited the Old Federation’s treasury, but during the Renaissance Alliance period, we also… ah, confiscated the assets of some megacorporations.”

At this point, Franklin paused awkwardly. He was well aware that with the motley crew that made up the Renaissance Alliance back then, some of the “confiscations” might have been ill-considered.

“So, for now, the Renaissance Alliance can handle multiple large projects simultaneously. You have no need to worry, Mr. Amber. We will definitely make payments for the projects on schedule as they progress.”

“Hmm, but I have a small suggestion.”

“Please, Mr. Amber.”

“Since you’re using a work-for-relief approach to promote development, I suggest you allocate some of the orders to other enterprises within the New Federation. Especially for construction orders where the technology is relatively widespread, like large-scale colony ships. There’s no need to order them all from the Atlas Group. After all, other people need to get a piece of the pie too.”

“I understand your meaning, Mr. Amber. That is indeed a direction to consider.” Franklin nodded thoughtfully.

“Very good. At least all of this is moving in the right direction.”

Amber relaxed a little, then looked at the android standing silently beside him.

“LLS9… ah, Lilith, how is the deployment of ‘The System’ progressing on the New Federation’s side?”

“It’s progressing very smoothly, Master.” Lilith’s voice held a trace of cheerfulness, clearly indicating she thought the progress was excellent.

“Under President Franklin’s personal promotion, the core administrative departments of the New Federation have been implemented as a pilot program. Preliminary results show a 37% increase in administrative efficiency. Incidents of bribery, corruption, and inaction, which were previously calculated at 56%, have now been reduced to zero.”

“Fifty-six percent?!”

Hearing this number, Amber looked at Franklin in surprise. The expression on the latter’s face was quite a sight.

“Seriously, were you the ‘Renaissance Alliance’ or the ‘Get-Rich Alliance’?”

“I truly can’t escape responsibility for this. It’s quite shameful to mention, Mr. Amber…”

“Uh, forget it. It’s not my place to comment on these things. As long as you yourself understand the harm in it, Franklin.” Amber shook his head, saying no more on the subject.

“Of course. Of course I know the harm these parasites cause. That’s why I am so in favor of deploying ‘The System.’ Only then can the New Federation stand firm and have a future to look forward to.”

Although the figures revealed from the Renaissance Alliance were somewhat shocking, the deployment of ‘The System’ was progressing more smoothly than Amber had anticipated.

After learning of his “Grand Plan,” Franklin was indeed doing everything in his power to push the process forward.

After confirming a few more matters, Amber ended the communication with Franklin and the other senior executives. When only Lilith’s android remained beside him, he asked her:

“Lilith, how are the preparations for your main body’s iteration and upgrade coming along?”

“Master, 93% of the preparations are complete. We expect to begin the formal iteration and upgrade process before we depart for the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Amber nodded. This progress was within his expectations. Lilith’s upgrade was crucial for future plans, but the timing, just before leaving for the Thousand Stars Empire, was unavoidable.

“Very good. The next thing we need to focus on is—”

Amber was cut off by the chime of an incoming call. Lilith quickly answered it, and Isabelle’s hologram appeared before them.

“Amber, you’ll never guess! I actually found some clues about the Thousand Stars Empire’s Prophecy!” Isabelle’s voice was tinged with excitement. “You have to come see this right away.”

“Oh? I’ll be right over then.”

Amber raised an eyebrow and left the conference room with Lilith.

In the main conference room of the Presidential Palace, located in the space city orbiting the New Federation’s capital planet, Franklin, having just ended his communication, barely had time for a sip of water before immediately starting a meeting with a group of newly appointed officials.

In the center of the room, a massive holographic star map displayed the real-time status of the star systems currently controlled by the New Federation. Blue dots represented fully controlled regions, yellow indicated areas under control but not yet stable, and red marked places still experiencing turmoil.

“Gentlemen, we are steadily advancing the deployment of the equipment provided by the Atlas Group,” reported the newly appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “With our first units equipped with the new gear on the offensive, rebel activity in the border regions has already decreased by 60%.”

Franklin nodded, his gaze sweeping over the regions on the projection that were gradually turning from red to yellow, or yellow to blue.

Although the New Federation was established, the flames of war had not been completely extinguished. This was followed by chaos instigated by those with “other ideas,” so localized battles would not end so quickly.

Next, another official, also recently promoted, spoke up, a bit nervously.

“In terms of social security, thanks to the launch of several large-scale engineering projects, we have successfully provided jobs for 48% of the currently unemployed population. This figure is expected to rise further with the launch of other projects, population migration, and colony development. Furthermore, the medical technology assistance provided by the Atlas Group has significantly improved our public health standards.”

“So, how are our preparations for the upcoming visit to the Thousand Stars Empire?”

Franklin turned to the Foreign Minister, one of the few high-ranking officials who had not been dismissed.

“Everything is proceeding as planned, Mr. President. We have assembled a delegation composed of a large number of professionals. The information stored in the Old Federation’s Archives, along with some intelligence on the Thousand Stars Empire provided free of charge by Mr. Amber, has saved us a lot of trouble on this front.”

Franklin nodded thoughtfully. This visit was of great significance to the New Federation. It was not only an opportunity to showcase the legitimacy of a new regime but also a chance to establish a new type of relationship with the Thousand Stars Empire.

After all, he had heard from Amber that each and every one of those elves was ridiculously wealthy.

After the meeting, Franklin returned to his office alone. He walked to the window and looked out at the sections of the space city still under construction in the distance. The bustling figures of workers and the operation of construction machinery filled the scene with vitality and hope.

However, a question he couldn’t completely shake still lingered in his mind.

What was Amber’s ultimate goal?

Although he had accepted Amber’s ideals of “the long-term survival of human civilization” and the “Dragon Trapper,” he was still not sure what that truly meant, or rather, he couldn’t fully believe it could all be achieved.

Before long, a chime sounded at his office door. Already knowing who it was, Franklin straightened his clothes and returned to his seat.

“Come in.”

The door slid open, and Eleanor walked in, holding a datapad. She was dressed in a well-fitting, deep blue professional suit, her long hair impeccably tied up, not a single strand out of place.

What was different from before was that the warm glow in her eyes was gone, replaced by a professional and distant gaze.

“Mr. President, these are the documents that require your review today.” Eleanor’s voice was calm and cold as she placed the datapad, which could be used for biometric identification during the review and approval process, on Franklin’s desk.

Franklin nodded, taking the datapad but not immediately looking through it.

He looked up at Eleanor, trying to find a trace of the past in her eyes, but saw only a serene, lake-like blue.

“There’s so much, Eleanor,” he said with a wry smile, pointing at the list of items on the datapad. “Does all of this have to be dealt with today?”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

Eleanor’s reply was brief, her tone flat.

“The first part is the final revised draft of the New Federation constitution. The second is a proposal for amendments to the latest trade agreement, which needs your review before being submitted to Congress. The third part contains the list of the Atlas Group’s latest technology transfer projects. I hope you can review it before this afternoon’s technical meeting.”

Franklin sighed and casually opened one of the files. The complex legal jargon and policy clauses made his brow furrow even tighter.

He put the document down, looked at Eleanor, and suddenly felt an indescribable sense of fatigue and loneliness.

“By the way, Mr. President, the results of the new opinion poll are out.”

Eleanor’s voice remained calm and professional, as if the complex history between them had never existed.

“Your approval rating has risen to 73%. This is the highest it has been since the founding of the Renaissance Alliance… or rather, the New Federation.”

Franklin managed a slight smile. “Thank you, Eleanor. This is all thanks to all the preparatory work you did before.”

Eleanor offered a polite smile in return, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes. The two of them looked at each other in silence, their thoughts unvoiced.

After several minutes of this silence, Eleanor turned to leave, but Franklin suddenly spoke up. “Wait, Eleanor.”

Eleanor stopped but did not turn around. “Is there anything else I can do for you, Mr. President?”

Franklin took a deep breath. “Stay. Help me go through these documents. I… I need your advice.”

Another short silence fell.

Eleanor slowly turned back, her face impassive as she looked at Franklin. Beneath that calm exterior, something subtly stirred.

“Of course, Mr. President.”

She finally replied, walking back to the desk, pulling out a chair, and sitting down.

Chapter 797: It All Adds Up

The two began to review the documents together. Franklin would ask Eleanor questions from time to time, seeking her opinion.

At first, Eleanor’s replies remained brief, professional, and tinged with a sense of distance. But as time went on, her tone gradually became less rigid. She even began to offer her own unique insights on certain policy issues, just as she had in the past.

This change made Franklin feel, just for a moment, as if he had returned to the old days.

“You know, Eleanor.”

Franklin took the opportunity to speak after reviewing a document. “I’ve always admired your attention to detail and your unique analytical skills. You always see the things I miss, as if we complement each other.”

Eleanor’s fingers paused on the datapad, trembling slightly. “That was just my job.”

“No, it was your talent, and it was the understanding and bond between us. I realized that from the very first day we met.”

At the mention of the past, the atmosphere suddenly grew heavy. Eleanor’s eyes were downcast, her long eyelashes casting small shadows on her face.

“That was a long time ago,” she said softly.

Franklin put down the documents he was holding, leaned back in his chair, and gazed out the window.

The space city’s artificial dome was now allowing the sun to slowly set, the afterglow of twilight spilling over every building. In the distance, at the airlock sector, Franklin could see a transport ship with the Atlas logo slowly pulling in.

Perhaps it was because he saw the logo that Franklin suddenly spoke, as if to himself.

“Sometimes I wonder, if we had taken a different path, if I hadn’t been blinded by those illusory ideals, would the story have turned out differently?”

Eleanor didn’t answer right away. Her fingers gently stroked the edge of the datapad. The only sounds in the office were the faint hum of the air conditioning and the occasional low drone of a vehicle’s engine from outside the window.

“History has no ‘what ifs,’ Mr. President.”

Eleanor finally spoke, her voice regaining its calm and professional tone.

“We can only accept reality and do our best to make a better future.”

Franklin gave a bitter smile. “Yes, no ‘what ifs’… but sometimes, remembering the past and thinking about our choices might help us avoid making the same mistakes.”

Images of the reconstruction efforts in populated areas, including the Capital, flashed through his mind—sights he had seen frequently as of late. The flag of the New Federation flew everywhere, often alongside the emblem of the Atlas Group.

“Mr. Amber has shown me a future I never imagined.”

Franklin continued, “A future where human civilization can truly endure. I didn’t believe it at first, but now… I’m starting to see hope.”

Eleanor looked up, watching Franklin’s back without a word.

Franklin turned to meet Eleanor’s gaze. In another moment of silence, their eyes met, as if sharing a silent exchange. The air in the office seemed to freeze, and even time itself appeared to slow down.

After what felt like an eternity, Franklin took a deep breath. “Eleanor, can we… can we go back to how we were?”

Eleanor’s eyes widened slightly, a flicker of light within them that was quickly extinguished. Her fingers tightened around the datapad, her knuckles turning white.

“How we were?”

She repeated the words softly, her voice carrying a barely perceptible tremor.

“Franklin, what ‘before’ are you referring to? Before I became an undercover agent for the Atlas Group, or before you discovered my true identity?”

Franklin was stunned for a moment by the sudden, direct question, but he quickly composed himself. “I mean when we trusted each other. No matter what happened, Eleanor… I never doubted your loyalty to the Renaissance Alliance, especially not after I learned the truth.”

Eleanor shook her head, the light in her eyes growing more complex. “Loyalty… That word has seemed so vague recently. I was loyal to the Renaissance Alliance, but I am more loyal to our original ideal—to build a more just and prosperous human society. And Ms. Isabelle and Mr. Amber have shown me the path to achieving that ideal.”

“I understand,” Franklin said quietly. “I see that now, too. But that’s not what I’m asking, Eleanor. What I want to know is if there’s any possibility of restoring the relationship between the two of us.”

Franklin’s blunt question made Eleanor’s breath catch.

She slowly set down the datapad, placing her hands flat on the desk as if trying to control her emotions. The setting sun shone on the side of her face, outlining her delicate profile.

“Franklin,” she said, using his first name for the first time in a long while, her voice softening. “A lot has changed. We both made our choices, and those choices have led us to where we are today.”

Franklin leaned forward, his hands on the desk, almost touching Eleanor’s fingertips.

“But people can change, Eleanor! I have changed. I see a bigger picture now, a future that transcends personal ambition. I’m no longer that fanatical revolutionary who could only see his own ideals.”

A vivid spark suddenly lit up in Eleanor’s eyes, an expression Franklin hadn’t seen in a very long time. But she quickly suppressed the light and shook her head gently. “Perhaps we both need more time… time to heal our wounds, to rebuild trust.”

She stood up and straightened the hem of her suit jacket. “If there’s nothing else, Mr. President, I believe I should go and reschedule your afternoon meeting.”

Franklin opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he just nodded. “Go ahead.”

Eleanor walked toward the door, but she stopped just before leaving.

Without turning back, she spoke in a voice filled with a tenderness Franklin almost didn’t recognize, “I do hope that one day, the rift between us can disappear. But that day isn’t today. This takes time, Franklin.”

Then she left, leaving Franklin standing alone in the sunlight, watching the slowly closing door.

The Intelligence Center, overseen by Isabelle, had also been moved to a separate area within Regalia Fortress, far from the main thoroughfares and crowded zones.

Its security level was second only to critical areas like the fortress’s power unit and Salieh’s research sector, making it the current nerve center of the entire Atlas Group’s intelligence system.

When Amber and the android Lilith walked into Isabelle’s office, she was standing before a massive holographic screen that covered an entire wall. The screen was densely packed with various ancient scripts and images.

“What have you found?” Amber asked directly.

Isabelle turned, her face a mixture of excitement and concern. “Regarding the prophecy of the Thousand Stars Empire, I’ve gathered a great deal of information through our current intelligence channels and from Allenita. It seems this prophecy doesn’t just exist within the Thousand Stars Empire; similar prophecies can be found in the human world. Though they take different forms, their core content is surprisingly consistent.”

She waved her hand, bringing up a virtual screen displaying a series of images. These images came from different planets within the Thousand Stars Empire or the human world, and they all dated from different periods.

But the scenes they depicted were strikingly similar—in a field of stars, a beam of light streaked by, and within this light were countless slender, dark silhouettes.

“All these records mention the return of some kind of power… Amber, do you remember the prophecies we found on Parra IV?”

“You mean the ones about the ‘Angels of the Battlefield,’ the ‘true god on the holy throne,’ and the ‘living saint who transcends the void’?”

“Exactly. After that, we’ve gradually pieced together more of that prophecy. In fact, there’s a latter half that very few people know about, and it also mentions ‘the return of a certain power’.”

Isabelle paused, then explained, “This ‘power’ has different names in different eras, among different human civilizations, and in the elven nation, but there’s a high probability that all these names refer to the same thing.”

“The Forerunner civilization.” Amber’s expression darkened. After all his interactions with Salieh and everything that had happened, he knew that nothing associated with the Forerunners was ever good news.

Meanwhile, Isabelle continued, “According to our analysis, this prophecy may be related to some kind of cosmic cyclical event discovered by the Thousand Stars Empire. And based on the elves’ calendrical calculations, this cycle is about to arrive.”

Amber’s brow furrowed slightly. “What kind of event, specifically?”

Isabelle shook her head. “That’s the problem. The most important line in the elven prophecy is ‘Darkness will come, and the Star-Guides will appear.’ We believe ‘the Star-Guides’ refers to the Forerunners, but it’s still unclear what the darkness is, or how the Forerunners will appear.”

“By the way, what did Salieh say?” Amber suddenly remembered he had a living ‘Forerunner’ right here.

“Salieh…”

At the mention of her name, a helpless smile appeared on Isabelle’s face.

“Of course I went to Salieh the moment I discovered the connection to the ‘Forerunner civilization.’ But when she heard the prophecy, her expression turned strange. After that, no matter how I asked, she refused to say another word. Now she’s locked herself up in her lab.”

“Hiss… this is a bigger problem than I thought.”

When Amber heard Isabelle describe Salieh’s reaction, he immediately thought of her previous “Riddler” behavior.

And, of course, the dream-like experience he had when he touched the refining equipment left behind by the Forerunners.

As he thought, Amber walked closer to the virtual screen filled with images and texts, studying them carefully. However, he couldn’t find any more useful information in the esoteric images.

“Are there any other clues?”

Isabelle nodded and brought up another set of data. “There’s something else that’s very strange. In a piece of classical elven literature provided by Allenita, there’s a belief that the destinies of elves and humans are intertwined. They call humans ‘newcomers,’ and the prophecy also mentions that ‘when the newcomers reach the crossroads, everything will become irreversible’.”

“‘Crossroads’,” Amber muttered to himself. “What do you think that refers to?”

Isabelle said, “It could be some kind of critical historical turning point. Considering the current situation in the human world—the establishment of the New Federation, the coronation of the Star Dragon Empire’s new empress, and the rise of the Atlas Group—we are indeed at a historical crossroads.”

Amber nodded, a flicker of understanding in his eyes. “So the Phoenix King suddenly invited us because he believes the time of the prophecy has come?”

“It’s very likely. And according to our intelligence, there are different factions within the Thousand Stars Empire with varying opinions on how to deal with this prophecy.”

Amber was silent for a moment, then turned to Lilith. “What’s your take on this prophecy?”

Lilith’s eyes flickered slightly, seemingly processing information at high speed. After a moment, she answered.

“An analysis of all available information shows a surprising consistency among these prophecies. If we apply key information such as ‘crossroads,’ ‘Angels of the Battlefield,’ ‘living saint,’ and so on, then the current historical juncture does indeed fit the prophecy’s description…”

She paused before adding, “Furthermore, there are indeed some unusual situations within the Thousand Stars Empire. Abnormal activity has increased significantly, which may be related to their preparations for this prophecy.”

Amber’s gaze returned to the image—the streak of light in the starry sky, and the countless slender, dark silhouettes within it.

A strange feeling washed over him, as if the image itself was trying to send him a message.

“Alright, whatever this prophecy means, we’ll find out in the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Amber said finally. “Isabelle, you and the Intelligence Center will continue to gather related information. Lilith, plan our trip to the Thousand Stars Empire in detail. I need a risk assessment to prepare.”

The two nodded in acknowledgment, but Amber’s eyes remained fixed on the mysterious pictures.

Prophecy, crossroads, Forerunners.

Amber felt like he had already grasped something, but he was just one final push away from kicking down the barrier in front of him.

“Looks like I need someone to give me that push…”

With that thought, Amber parted ways with Isabelle and Lilith for the time being, then took a commuter train within the fortress to Salieh’s laboratory block.

As the lab’s heavy alloy doors authenticated his access and slowly opened, a voice filled with complex emotions echoed from within.

“Amber, I can’t say anything!”

“Huh? I wasn’t going to ask you to say anything…”

Amber strode into the laboratory’s core area. Upon seeing Salieh sitting bolt upright with an extremely serious expression on her face, he gave her a look that made her feel something was ‘not good.’

“Don’t worry,” he said with a grin. “This time, it’s my turn to talk.”

Chapter 798: The Big One is Really Coming This Time

Salieh’s eyes flickered, the cold light of the laboratory making her pale face seem even more bloodless.

She knew exactly why Amber had come to see her. The thought of the consequences of saying the wrong thing made the Jeram woman wonder if she should find another way to divert his attention.

And Salieh was indeed a person of action. The moment the idea formed in her mind, she stood up and walked toward Amber. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head began to writhe continuously, making her look like a Gorgon.

“Oh-ho, instead of running away, you’re coming right to me?”

Although the Mental Shackle existed, Amber wasn’t constantly linked to Salieh’s mind, so at this moment, he hadn’t yet realized what she was planning and continued to joke with her.

But by the time Salieh was right in front of him, it was too late for Amber to realize something was wrong.

As anyone familiar with Xenomorphs and Facehuggers knows, by the time you see a Facehugger lunging at your face, it’s already too late to dodge.

Amber was in that exact situation. He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, a slick, slippery thing forced its way into his mouth. Immediately after, the soft, leg-like tentacles behind Salieh’s head wrapped tightly around his head.

A deep kiss, filled with Salieh’s signature style.

“Mmph—”

Amber’s voice was muffled, leaving only a series of squelching sounds. The laboratory door slid shut, and an indicator lit up: “Important Experiment in Progress. Do Not Disturb.”

An hour later, Amber was lying on the small bed in Salieh’s rest area. He looked down at Salieh, who was draped over his chest like a leopardess, constantly nuzzling him with her tentacles. After a moment of silence, he spoke:

“Alright, can I talk now?”

“…”

The next second, Salieh mounted him again, and round two began.

But clearly, in terms of stamina and technique, Salieh was no match for Amber. So once they entered a prolonged battle, the Jeram woman inevitably found herself on the losing end.

Several hours later, Salieh was sprawled face-down on the bed with her rear in the air in a perfect impression of a cream puff, while Amber could finally address the serious matter at hand.

“Don’t worry just yet.”

Amber thoughtfully covered Salieh with a blanket, his voice calm.

“I won’t ask you any of those questions you can’t answer this time.”

Under the blanket, Salieh’s tense shoulders relaxed slightly, but the “alertness” in her eyes did not diminish.

The lab’s temperature control and air purification systems detected a rise in the ambient temperature and began to hum softly. An invisible current of air flowed through the room, starting to draw out the somewhat heavy air.

“I just want to talk. And this time, I’ll be the one talking. You just need to be a listener.”

Salieh’s body relaxed, and she lay completely flat on the bed. She hesitated for a moment before finally nodding. “Alright.”

“Amber… I’m sorry.”

Salieh suddenly apologized in a low voice, tinged with unconcealable guilt.

“I truly have no choice but to not explain everything to you. It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just…”

Amber raised a hand, signaling for her to stop. “I understand, Salieh. We all have lines we can’t cross.”

The air in the lab seemed to freeze for a moment, with only the rhythmic hum of some experimental equipment marking the passage of time.

Amber tapped his personal terminal a few times, then activated a nearby holographic projection device.

A beam of blue light shot out, forming a three-dimensional star chart. Countless star systems slowly rotated within the projection.

“Look at this universe, Salieh,” Amber’s voice echoed in the quiet lab. “I have a theory.”

Salieh’s gaze locked onto the miniature universe, her expression growing more complex.

“I believe there might be a rule in this universe, something like a ‘trigger’.”

Amber continued, his finger passing through a star system in the projection, specks of light twinkling at his fingertips.

“Whether it’s humans, elves, or any other life form in this universe, it’s very likely that we have all been under some kind of macroscopic surveillance for a long time.”

Upon hearing the words “trigger” and “surveillance,” Salieh’s breathing quickened noticeably, but she didn’t interrupt Amber.

“Under normal circumstances, this surveillance wouldn’t lead to any consequences, nor would there be any intervention. But once the course of history meets a certain condition, or if certain specific events occur, then the ‘trigger’ will be activated.”

Amber adjusted the projection, and the image switched to the prophecies Isabelle had collected—the light in the starry sky and the dense, slender black shadows within it.

“Combining these prophecies from different civilizations with what you’ve mentioned before about the Forerunners’ ‘purge’ of civilizations born in this universe, I have every reason to suspect that once the ‘trigger’ is activated, the ‘space-time expedition’ of the Forerunner civilization you speak of will end ahead of schedule.”

The light in the laboratory seemed to dim at that moment, the blue glow of the projection casting eerie shadows on their faces.

“Next, the Forerunners will return to this universe. And I don’t think anything good will happen when these beings, who can so easily decide the life and death of other civilizations, return.”

Amber looked directly into Salieh’s eyes, and his final words reverberated through the lab. Salieh remained silent, her expression frozen into an unreadable, complex mask.

By now, she had sat up on the bed, wrapped in the blanket, her hands resting flat on her knees. Her knuckles were white from clenching her fists.

The two of them stared at each other as time passed in silence.

Thanks to the Mental Shackle he had previously placed on Salieh, Amber could sense the fluctuations in her heart—a mixture of intense surprise, fear, and even a sliver of indescribable relief.

This complex emotional turbulence told Amber that his guess was pretty much certain to be right.

“How about this, Salieh? You don’t have to respond to my theory,” Amber finally broke the silence. “But I hope you can try to answer my next question.”

Salieh’s body tensed. She had already guessed what Amber was about to ask.

“Why?” Amber asked softly. “Why would the Forerunner civilization do all this?”

The question was like an invisible dagger, piercing through Salieh’s carefully constructed defenses. Pain, hesitation, and struggle flashed in her eyes.

She opened her mouth, then closed it again, as if wanting to speak countless times, only to be stopped by some unseen force.

Salieh knew that if she didn’t answer, Amber would never give up. She saw the determination in his eyes—a familiar, relentless persistence that wouldn’t stop until it achieved its goal.

But she also knew that answering this question could bring unforeseeable consequences.

“I cannot assess…” she finally spoke, her voice as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, “I cannot assess the consequences of answering this question.”

“I understand your concerns, Salieh, but I need to know. If we are to face the coming crisis, I must understand our enemy’s motives.”

“For the continuation of civilization.”

She finally uttered these words, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible, yet it sounded exceptionally clear in the laboratory’s silence.

Amber frowned. “Whose civilization?”

This follow-up question plunged Salieh back into a chasm of silence. She turned her back to Amber, her shoulders trembling slightly. After what felt like a century, Salieh spoke again, her voice so low it was barely audible:

“The Forerunners’ civilization.”

The answer struck Amber’s heart like a heavy hammer. Although he had already suspected it, hearing Salieh confirm it with her own lips still sent a chill down his spine.

“So, the Forerunner civilization is ensuring its own survival through some means. Even if the cost is the sacrifice of other civilizations?”

Salieh didn’t answer, but her silence spoke volumes.

Amber switched off the projection device, and the laboratory returned to a relative dimness. Only the indicator lights on the instrument panels flickered incessantly, like distant stars in the night sky.

“Is that why the Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire suddenly invited us?” Amber continued. “Because they sensed that the ‘trigger’ is about to be pulled?”

Salieh took a deep breath and turned to face Amber, her expression one of determination he had never seen before. “I’ve already said too much, Amber. But there is one thing I can tell you—the elves did indeed sense certain signs long before humanity did.”

“So this visit isn’t just a diplomatic event,” Amber murmured to himself.

“Whatever the Phoenix King’s purpose is, do not underestimate this invitation. Something has already begun…” Salieh’s voice was a little firmer than before. Amber figured she must be at a point where she felt she had nothing left to lose.

Amber walked to the central control console in the lab, his fingers tapping lightly on the metal surface, creating a faint rhythm. Salieh’s answers, though brief and vague, were enough to confirm some of his theories while also raising more questions.

He spoke again, his voice carrying a rare seriousness. “Salieh, if the Forerunners really do return, what will happen to human civilization?”

Salieh looked up at the ceiling, as if staring through the steel hull of Regalia Fortress at the distant stars.

An indescribable emotion flashed in her eyes—not fear, nor anticipation, but something far more complex.

“Amber, every return of the Forerunners in history has meant the end of an era.”

“…Clever devils.”

Just as Amber was about to say more, a piercing alarm suddenly blared through the laboratory, and red warning lights began to flash and rotate.

“What’s going on?” Amber frowned, turning toward the source of the alarm.

Salieh’s face instantly turned deathly white, paler than it ever looked under the lab’s usual cold lighting.

She shot up from the bed, the blanket sliding off her, but she seemed completely unconcerned by her sudden state of undress. In a few quick strides, she rushed to the central control console.

Amber followed, scooping up the blanket from the floor and draping it over her again. His gaze then locked onto the holographic projection device, which had suddenly lit up.

The blue star chart unfolded in the air. A dense array of star systems and stellar coordinate points materialized in three-dimensional space, forming a vast and complex cosmic map.

However, in this star-dusted deep space, one area was specially marked—a coordinate point flashing with red light, standing out in a region of space that seemed otherwise devoid of value.

Next to that red blip was a bizarrely shaped symbol. At first glance, it looked like a half-open eye.

Salieh’s breathing became ragged. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head writhed violently, like a nest of electrocuted snakes.

She reached out, her fingertips passing through the holographic projection to zoom in on the red coordinate area.

“Salieh, what is this? Why does it look like some kind of surveillance mission alert?”

With her hands braced on the console, Salieh stared down at the stream of data, seemingly lost in thought, and didn’t respond immediately.

“You guessed right, Amber. This is indeed a surveillance mission.”

Salieh finally spoke, her voice somewhat deep. “This is a signal from an observation station. One that we Jeram people left behind in this universe.”

Amber’s gaze darted back and forth between the holographic projection and Salieh. He felt a chill creeping up his spine.

“Hiss… This isn’t the ‘trigger’ I was just talking about, is it?”

“Congratulations, Amber, you got it right~ But unfortunately, there’s no prize.”

Salieh slowly looked up, a bitter smile on her face. “This is exactly the ‘trigger’ you were talking about. After you brought me out of the Repository, I used the Atlas Group’s signal relays scattered across various star systems to build a monitoring network to watch these observation stations scattered throughout the universe.”

Amber approached the projection and reached out to touch the red coordinate. Though he knew it was just a hologram, he still felt a strange sense of unease, as if some unknown danger was approaching.

“Why would the alarm suddenly go off?”

“Because the energy fluctuation pattern of this observation station has changed,” Salieh said, her fingers flying across the console as more data streamed through the projection. “According to my analysis model, this change means it’s approaching the ‘trigger’ threshold.”

Amber silently watched the complex data streams. Although he couldn’t fully comprehend their meaning, he could feel Salieh’s anxiety and fear.

“What does this mean? Are the Forerunners about to return?”

For a moment, Salieh’s tentacles stopped writhing. She froze as if she had been turned to ice. A moment later, she sighed.

“No, it hasn’t quite reached that point yet, but this is a clear omen. This observation station is one of several thousand similar facilities. Together, they form a monitoring network observing the development of this universe.

“Although many of the observation stations have failed, a small number still operate in a low-power state. When specific conditions are met, they become active.”

Chapter 799: Splitting Up

Amber’s gaze locked onto the eye-shaped symbol. “What does that symbol mean?”

“It’s a specific symbol in our Jeram system of signs, representing ‘Observer’ or ‘supervisor’.”

Salieh zoomed in on the symbol and began to explain, her voice gradually regaining its calm, as if discussing these ancient secrets helped her feel a bit like the Repository Steward she once was.

“Every observation station carries this mark. They are the eyes left behind by my people, the Jeram, tirelessly gazing upon every corner of this universe.”

Amber walked over to the console and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Salieh. The alarm had stopped automatically, but the red warning lights continued to flash, casting flickering shadows across their faces.

“So what exactly is this observation station monitoring?”

Salieh’s fingers danced through the streams of data, pulling up more information. “Each station has specific monitoring parameters. This one…”

Her voice suddenly tensed. “This one primarily monitors a civilization’s expansion rate and technological development curve.”

A thought struck Amber, and he looked up sharply. “Like Atlas Group’s recent technological development and the latest changes in the human world?”

Salieh slowly nodded. “Amber, you have to understand, one of the conditions for a ‘trigger’ is when a civilization’s development speed exceeds a certain threshold, breaking through key technological nodes.”

“So it’s us,” Amber’s voice grew heavy. “We’re the ones triggering this mechanism?”

“It’s not just you.”

Salieh’s long, slender fingers swiped across the projected star map, marking several different regions.

“There are multiple civilizations developing simultaneously in this stretch of the universe, including humans and elves. You two are among the fastest. As for the other civilizations, many are still throwing rocks at each other. But in recent years, especially since you led the rise of Atlas Group, the pace of technological progress has far exceeded the normal trajectory.”

Amber turned away from the star map, planting his hands on the edge of the console and looking up at the lab’s ceiling. His mind raced, connecting this new information with his previous speculations.

“Then our deduction seems to be correct. The Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire must have noticed something too, which is why he invited me, Franklin, and Agnes at the same time.”

Salieh was silent for a moment, then nodded in confirmation. “The elves have a much longer history than humanity, and their observational records are more complete. According to the information I’ve recently gathered, they have been studying the traces left by the Forerunners for thousands of years and have accumulated a vast amount of knowledge about these cyclical events.”

Amber’s eyes returned to the red coordinate. “This observation station, can we get close to it? Can we study it, or even… destroy it?”

Salieh shook her head, a complex expression on her face. “These monitoring stations were designed from the start to be almost impossible to find, let alone approach or destroy. Besides, even if you could destroy one, the entire network would continue to function. It would be as futile as trying to stop the galaxy from spinning by destroying a single star.”

Amber took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. “Then what can we do now?”

Salieh remained silent for a long time. Her tentacles swayed slowly and rhythmically, as if she were engaged in some deep thought.

After a while, she finally spoke again. “The most important thing is to learn more, to gather more information. This visit to the Thousand Stars Empire might be more crucial than we imagined—the elves may possess knowledge we don’t.”

Amber narrowed his eyes, studying Salieh’s expression. “You think the Phoenix King invited us to share this information? Or for some other purpose?”

“That I really don’t know. After all, my understanding of the current situation in this universe has been pieced together bit by bit since I awoke. It’s truly limited, not to mention that information from the Thousand Stars Empire has always been difficult to obtain.”

Salieh’s expression was one of helplessness. If, during her time as a Repository Steward, she could truly be called “omniscient,” then now, millions of years later, there was far too much she did not know.

“But there’s one thing you should pay attention to, Amber.”

“What is it?”

“There are different factions within the elven race, and their main point of contention has always been the ‘Romu’ issue. I have a feeling now that the problem between the elves and the Romu might involve us Jeram people as well.”

Salieh’s words stunned Amber for a moment. Once he processed them, he replied, “Just how much trouble did you Jeram people cause back in the day? How can the problems between the elves and the Romu possibly be related to you?”

“Uh, it’s just a feeling I have. These Romu give me a very familiar sensation, but I can’t be entirely sure…”

“If you’ve got a familiar feeling, then it’s a safe bet.”

Amber shook his head. He was finally realizing that the players’ term for the Forerunner civilization, the “Master Scapegoat,” was somewhat inappropriate.

Because those bastards didn’t need to take the fall for anyone; most of the awful things really were their own doing!

As Amber mulled this over, his fingers tapped an unconscious rhythm on the console. Then, he spoke in a low voice.

“Regardless of the Phoenix King’s intentions, we must be prepared. Salieh, I need you to compile all data related to this observation station, as well as any information you have on the ‘trigger’ conditions.”

He paused, looking at the star map representing deep space, then continued, “At the same time, I need you to assemble a team to get as close as possible to those coordinates and see what information we can gather.”

Salieh said, “Huh? You want me to lead the team?”

“This has come up right as I’m about to visit the Thousand Stars Empire. I can’t break away, otherwise I’d definitely want to make the trip myself.”

Amber patted Salieh’s shoulder, then helped tighten the blanket draped over her.

“You were once a Repository Steward of the Jeram people; you understand these observation stations better than any of us. In this matter, I can only rely on you. I’ll assign you the fleet with the highest security clearance. We’ll operate in parallel, and you can contact me anytime if any issues arise.”

Seeing how serious Amber was about this arrangement, Salieh’s expression turned grave. “Amber, approaching that observation station could be risky. It might detect our presence and accelerate the trigger process.”

“Of course I know there’s a risk, but we can’t go on stumbling in the dark. If the Forerunners are truly returning to this universe, we need to understand their operational mechanics as much as possible.”

Salieh fell silent for a moment before finally nodding in agreement. “Alright. It’s not like I can go against your will, Amber. I will try to use the most covert detection and operational methods, but even so, I can’t guarantee the observation station won’t notice our presence.”

“Sometimes, risks are necessary, especially when we’re facing a crisis that could threaten the very survival of human civilization.”

Salieh’s expression softened, a complex emotion flickering in her eyes. “You know, Amber, sometimes I wonder, if the Forerunner civilization had encountered someone like you back then, perhaps history would have been different.”

Amber smiled faintly. “You think too highly of me, Salieh. I’m just a guy who’s had a bit of luck. If it weren’t for so many opportunities, I’d have died on some battlefield long ago. Alright, let’s start preparing. Time may be much tighter than we think.”

With that, Amber turned back to the star map behind him. The eye-shaped symbol seemed to be staring back at him, carrying the cold, unforgiving nature of the deepest reaches of the cosmos.

Amber didn’t know what the future held, but he knew that from this moment on, a high-stakes game for the fate of humanity had begun, and he had to be ready to face what might be the greatest challenge of his life.

At the other end of the lab, Salieh, now dressed again, had already begun mobilizing resources on the console, preparing for this dangerous reconnaissance mission.

The soft, leg-like tentacles at the back of her head writhed restlessly, her eyes glinting with worry. She had indeed once been the “omniscient” Repository Steward, but even with her knowledge, she felt a profound helplessness and fear when facing her own people—the ancient and powerful Jeram.

However, looking at Amber’s resolute back, Salieh felt a glimmer of hope rise in her heart.

Perhaps, just as he had already changed the trajectory of human civilization, Amber could also change this seemingly predetermined fate.

Perhaps, this time, the destiny of humans and other civilizations would not have to repeat the tragedies of those that had vanished throughout history.

One can only hope, Salieh thought.

—

After leaving Salieh’s laboratory, Amber began to ponder a new problem.

Namely, how was he going to explain to Isabelle where he had been during the several hours he was “unreachable”?

That’s right. When Salieh had thrown herself at Amber for that passionate kiss, she had activated the lab’s highest level of security. This protective measure, similar to a “black box mode,” had naturally shielded Amber’s location, making him successfully disappear.

After a moment of thought, Amber came to a realization.

A wise man knows when to retreat and when to advance. Sometimes, running away might be shameful, but it was also undeniably effective.

With this in mind, Amber immediately changed direction and boarded a commuter train to the fortress’s ground forces training area. Salieh’s recent suspicion had made him suddenly want to take a good look at these “Furballs.”

Currently, Regalia Fortress didn’t carry many ground troops. Since the Artificial Celestial Fortress wouldn’t have any ground deployment missions for the foreseeable future, its force was composed of a small contingent of elite marines drawn from various units.

And with Regalia Fortress finalized as the vessel for Agnes’s and Amber’s diplomatic visit, the Romu on board were fortunate enough to get a chance to return to their home system.

Although the marines would most likely be confined to the fortress, just being close to home would be enough to slightly ease their homesickness.

When Amber arrived at one of the active training grounds, he happened to come across several squads of Romu marines conducting tactical drills.

Watching these “Furballs” sweating profusely on the training field, Amber found it difficult to connect these hardworking, fearless warriors from a foreign land with the “villainous” Forerunner civilization.

As Amber was lost in these thoughts, a tiger-like Romu leading a team spotted him and immediately ran over, saluting him.

“Boss, are you here to inspect our training today? Should I have the squad assemble?”

“Oh, no need to be so formal. Just carry on with your training plan. I’m just passing by.”

Amber waved his hand, indicating the soldier should ignore him. He recognized the tiger-like man before him; he was one of the first Romu “trainees” to join Atlas Group, along with Montai and Tairak.

Now, these “Furballs,” who were among the veterans of Atlas Group’s ground forces, had all become commanding officers in their respective units, using their experience to create more combat power for Atlas Group.

“Hold on, stand still for a moment. Let me get a good look at you.”

“Ah, yes! Boss!”

Although puzzled, the tiger-like man immediately snapped into a perfect military posture, awaiting Amber’s inspection.

And Amber did just that, carefully sizing him up, even walking a few circles around him for a full, unobstructed view.

White fur with black stripes. If found on a wild beast Amber knew, it would undoubtedly be a rare white tiger, except this one was standing upright on two legs.

He was incredibly burly, towering over even the psionically enhanced Amber. His sheer size was intimidating, and he looked like a natural ace for breaching and assault operations.

However…

No matter how hard Amber looked, he couldn’t spot anything unusual about him, or any element that could be tied to the “Forerunner civilization.” In fact, the man’s somewhat goofy, earnest “tiger-like” demeanor added a touch of simple honesty to his otherwise fierce appearance.

While Amber was sizing up the tiger-like man and pondering, the others on the training ground noticed the “unusual” scene.

The newer recruits being drilled were amazed to see the officer they usually called a “demon” and a “flayer” standing at perfect military attention before a human.

And in Atlas Group, there was only one human who could command such a response.

“That’s gotta be the Boss, right? No wonder Officer Huss is standing so ramrod straight in front of him. Hey! Never thought I’d see the day this demon would be so docile. This must be what humans mean by ‘There’s always someone better out there,’ right?”

“Or maybe ‘Rank has its privileges’?”

“The Boss’s rank is way higher than this demon’s. He could probably flatten him~”

“Say what you will, the demon’s military posture is actually pretty sharp…”

Chapter [arabic_numeral]: Updates Will Resume Tomorrow

Updates will resume tomorrow

I was too optimistic. Being out and about really leaves no time for writing…

Updates will resume tomorrow~

Chapter 800: Huss, and the Approaching Sugar-Coated Bullet

Amber circled the tiger-man Huss one last time, a thoughtful look on his face.

His eyes scanned the formidable Romu, trying to find any clue that might connect him to the Forerunner civilization.

Unfortunately, aside from his white fur with black stripes and the simple, honest look of his tiger head, he could find nothing out of the ordinary.

“Alright, Huss. You can go back to organizing the training,” Amber said, patting the man’s shoulder to signal him to stand at ease.

“Yes, Boss!”

Huss let out a breath of relief. After giving a standard military salute, he asked hesitantly, “Sir, was there something I did wrong?”

“No, you’re doing a fine job. I was just… curious about your species. I happened to be passing by, so I thought I’d take a look.”

Amber replied with a smile, and the special frequency of Psionics he released helped the tiger-man slowly relax.

A moment later, a thought struck Amber, and he continued, “By the way, are you looking forward to heading to your homeworld soon?”

A bright light flashed in Huss’s eyes, and his tiger face broke into an unconcealable grin. “To see the twin moons in the night sky again, to smell the scent of my home’s forests… it’s something I’ve dreamed of. Boss, even though I know we probably can’t leave the fortress, just being close to home is enough to make me happy.”

Amber nodded, musing to himself: With such sincere emotions, it’s hard to connect these Romu to the cold, ruthless Forerunner civilization Salieh described.

But since Salieh had proposed the theory, it was something he would definitely have to dig into after they reached the Thousand Stars Empire.

With this in mind, Amber looked at the tiger-man before him once more.

“By the way, Huss, have you heard any stories about the origins of your people? History, folklore, legends—anything will do.”

“The origins of the Romu?”

Huss frowned at Amber’s question and began to search his memory.

“There are certainly many unconfirmed tales and legends, but the gist is more or less the same. The Romu were on the brink of annihilation, and it was the elves who saved us, allowing us to preserve the flame of our civilization. The elves then provided us with a series of aids, which is how the Romu people managed to survive.”

Amber pressed, “Aside from the elves, do any of these tales or legends involve… well, any other powers?”

“Other powers? I’ve never heard of any…”

Huss shook his head, a hint of confusion in his eyes, as if he didn’t understand why Amber was suddenly asking this.

“Well, never mind then. I was just asking casually.”

Seeing that he wasn’t likely to unearth anything useful for the moment, Amber prepared to end the conversation. But just then, he noticed Huss fidgeting as if he wanted to say something more.

“What is it? Don’t be so formal. Just say what’s on your mind.”

“It’s nothing, Boss. It’s just that I suddenly remembered a rumor I heard as a child. It was too outlandish, so I didn’t mention it just now.”

Huss raised a clawed hand to scratch his head, an embarrassed, simple smile on his face.

“Go on.”

“When I was very young, I heard some of the very old elders and shamans tell a story… that it was actually the Romu who paid a great price to save the elves. But later, for various reasons, we ended up being controlled by them, and the truth was covered up.”

Amber’s interest was piqued. “There’s a version like that?”

“I only heard it through the grapevine, and very few people know about it. I’m not entirely clear on the specifics of the rumor myself, Boss…”

This piece of “apocrypha” from Huss’s hearsay sent Amber into silence once more. While the story did seem far-fetched, its mere existence likely meant it was based on some kernel of truth.

“I see. That ‘rumor’ of yours is quite interesting. That’s all for today. I don’t want to interrupt your training any longer.”

Unable to make sense of it for the time being, Amber waved his hand and turned to leave the training ground.

Behind him, Huss bellowed a command to the center of the field. The soldiers, who had been whispering among themselves, immediately reassembled and resumed their drills.

The clash of metal on metal, the shouts of tactical commands, and the sounds of heavy breathing once again filled the training grounds.

Amber boarded the commuter train back. Through the window, the interior scenery of Regalia Fortress flashed by like a revolving lantern.

Sometimes, it still felt unreal—this massive artificial celestial body, capable of housing millions, had become one of the most powerful weapons in his arsenal.

What was even more unreal was that, while the fortress nominally belonged to the Star Dragon Empire, it was now effectively under the control of the Atlas Group.

“It’s true what they say,” he mused. “The only thing better than getting something for free is always getting something for free.”

After returning to his office, Amber saw a message from Lilith on the room’s virtual screen. A single, concise line of text informed him that Her Majesty Agnes would be boarding Regalia Fortress with her retinue in three days.

Three days later, within Deployment Bay One of Regalia Fortress, the Star Dragon Empire’s new Royal Navy flagship slowly sailed into the enormous shipyard inside.

From a third-person perspective, the flagship, when compared to the Artificial Celestial Fortress, looked like a small fish swimming into the belly of a whale.

In the docking port, Amber stood in the reception area, flanked by a neatly arrayed honor guard of androids and a contingent of Romu marines.

The former were dressed in uniform, holding the flags of the Star Dragon Empire and the Atlas Group high as they played the traditional anthem of the Imperial Royal Family, creating a solemn and dignified atmosphere.

The latter stood in formation behind Amber and his staff, fully armed in their combat exoskeletons, exuding a palpable, deadly aura.

Such a display was enough to show the Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire adequate respect, while also reminding her of who truly controlled Regalia Fortress.

When one of the flagship’s hatches docked with the port and the airlock hissed open, Agnes emerged, escorted by a group of accompanying officials, Natalia, and her personal Royal Guard.

This time, she wore a deep purple military dress uniform exclusive to the Royal Family, which perfectly accentuated the curves of her figure. Her long hair was pinned up high, and the tips of the twin horns on her head glinted coldly under the fortress’s lights.

Amber took a step forward and bowed slightly, playing his part perfectly.

“Welcome aboard Regalia Fortress, Your Majesty.”

Agnes’s gaze swept over the perfectly aligned android honor guard and the murderous-looking Romu marines behind Amber before settling back on him, her expression a complex and subtle mix of emotions.

Nominally, this fortress was indeed hers.

But the fact that she needed Amber’s permission to board was something she would have once considered a tale from the Arabian Nights.

“Thank you for your arrangements, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes maintained a graceful smile, but her tone carried a faint, underlying edge.

“It seems that under the Atlas Group’s care, ‘my’ Regalia Fortress has been brought to peak condition.”

Amber returned an equally graceful smile. “Everything is for Your Majesty’s glory. This fortress will become the Star Dragon Empire’s mightiest shield.”

Agnes nodded slightly. Then, under Amber’s guidance, the group began to proceed into the fortress’s interior.

As they walked down the spacious corridor leading to the commuter train station, Natalia’s eyes, among Agnes’s entourage, remained on high alert, constantly scanning her surroundings. Her hand would instinctively rest on her weapon whenever the Romu marines came into view.

“Your Majesty, we have prepared the most comfortable accommodations for you. There is also a dedicated area in the fortress for your staff,” Amber explained as they walked.

Agnes replied coolly, “You are most thoughtful, Mr. Amber. However, I am curious: what mission was the fleet that left the fortress a few days ago carrying out? I noticed they were not heading in the direction of the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Amber’s pace didn’t falter in the slightest, nor did his expression change. “Just a routine resource scouting mission, Your Majesty. We discovered a few underdeveloped asteroid belts in a certain star sector, rich in rare minerals.”

Agnes narrowed her eyes, clearly not buying his explanation, but this was not the right time to press the issue.

A temporary silence fell between them, with only the rhythmic thud of their boots on the metal floor echoing through the corridor.

Meanwhile, Salieh stood in the command room of The Eternity, her gaze fixed on the endless void of hyperspace.

Visually, there was nothing but infinite darkness and scattered starlight, but she knew that hidden within that seemingly empty expanse was an ancient observation station.

“The warp trajectory is nominal, and the hyperspace channel remains stable. We estimate another ten-plus days until we exit the warp. Director Salieh, would you like to get some rest first?”

Cleves asked from the captain’s chair, looking at the “Director of Forerunner Technology” who hadn’t removed her fully-enclosed helmet since boarding. Interacting with her always gave Cleves a feeling of dealing with the “unknown.”

Salieh nodded, her voice muffled and resonant through the helmet’s loudspeaker.

“Thank you for your concern, Commander Cleves. But the Boss assigned this mission to me personally, and our destination is perilous and completely unknown. I dare not let my guard down.”

As she spoke, Salieh walked to the panoramic viewscreen, crossing her arms over her chest. A complex light flickered in her eyes.

As a former Repository Steward of the Forerunners, her knowledge of these observation stations far exceeded anyone else’s on the ship. Even so, facing this ancient facility that had slumbered for millions of years, she still felt a sliver of unease.

But she quickly composed herself and muttered as if to give herself a pep talk:

“Salieh, don’t be nervous. Just do what you have to do. And… don’t worry about Amber. I will obtain as much intelligence as I can, and I will be as safe as possible.”

Two days later, Regalia Fortress completed its final preparations. The massive engines rumbled to life with a low hum.

The artificial celestial body slowly departed its parking orbit and, surrounded by its escort fleet, began to accelerate toward the route leading to the Thousand Stars Empire.

Inside the fortress, Agnes stood in the corridor outside her private chambers, gazing at the slowly shifting starscape with a complex expression.

Behind her, Natalia reported in a low voice, “Your Majesty, as planned, I attempted to station our accompanying Royal Guard at key positions within the fortress, but I was blocked by the Atlas Group with various excuses. They are clearly on their guard. At the same time, I’ve arranged for our people to gather as much information as possible about that fleet that departed.”

Agnes nodded gently. “And what of Isabelle?”

“I will keep her occupied under the pretense of an intelligence exchange. She is scheduled to attend a joint intelligence briefing tonight, which should last at least four hours.”

“Excellent.”

Agnes turned, a determined glint in her eyes. “Prepare my gown. Tonight, I will meet with Mr. Amber personally.”

Natalia was taken aback for a moment before understanding Agnes’s intent. “Your Majesty, are you certain you want to do this?”

“I need to know what he’s hiding,” Agnes’s voice was low and resolute. “Sometimes, a woman’s touch is more effective than force.”

When the fortress’s internal chronometers indicated evening, the lights in most areas, excluding the 24-hour duty sections and including the residential zones, were dimmed to simulate night on a planetary surface.

Amber was in his room processing some documents when he suddenly received a message from Isabelle: she had just been summoned to a surprise intelligence briefing by the Star Dragon Empire’s side and, as the Atlas Group’s intelligence director, she was required to attend.

Amber frowned slightly as he read the message.

Isabelle rarely had such sudden emergencies, especially at such a sensitive time. Just as he was about to contact Lilith to confirm the situation, his doorbell chimed.

“Who is it?” Amber stood up, having already guessed the visitor’s identity in that instant.

“It’s me, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes’s voice, as expected, came from outside the door, laced with an unusual softness.

Amber raised an eyebrow, understanding immediately.

With Isabelle tied up, Her Majesty Agnes pays a late-night visit. Coupled with her earlier curiosity about Salieh’s fleet, this was clearly no coincidence.

It meant that the sugar-coated bullet from the Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire was about to be fired.

Amber straightened his clothes and walked to the door. As it slid aside, Agnes’s figure appeared in the doorway.

She was alone, with no attendants or other personnel.

Her long hair was down, shimmering with a soft luster under the fortress lights. A form-fitting, wine-red gown traced the perfect curves of her body. The dress featured a daringly low neckline, revealing snow-white skin and a hint of cleavage.

Though Amber couldn’t see her back, he could guess that the design would be elegantly open, perfectly showcasing the taut, smooth lines of her back.

“Your Majesty, is something the matter this late?”

Amber maintained a polite smile and stepped aside to let her in.

Agnes stepped into the room, a faint fragrance wafting from her—a unique perfume that combined the crispness of a mountain breeze with the sweetness of flowers.

“I simply couldn’t sleep. I was hoping Mr. Amber would join me for a drink.”

Chapter 801: Time Alone with Agnes

[What a flimsy excuse.]

Amber closed the door and sighed inwardly. He could only say that Agnes’s excuse lacked imagination.

However, he had to admit that judging by Agnes’s current look and aura, this ‘sugar-coat’ was indeed much sweeter than he had imagined.

Still, Amber maintained his composure, not letting Agnes see any hint of his thoughts—though he was well aware that she was likely trying to guess what was on his mind as well.

This was the state of two master schemers interacting, each with their own ulterior motives, both probing the other with a thousand intricate thoughts.

“I didn’t expect Your Majesty would have trouble sleeping. Since you’ve come to drink with me, the honor is all mine.”

Amber walked over to the bar on one side of the room. After taking out two glasses, he was about to select a suitable bottle of wine when he suddenly stopped and looked at Agnes.

“I wonder what type of drink Your Majesty usually prefers?”

“Is Mr. Amber giving me the choice?”

Agnes slowly walked forward, her eyes scanning the fine wines from different regions in the liquor cabinet. Though a pleasant smile still graced her lips, she was already gritting her teeth in her heart—in her view, Amber was being far too familiar, truly treating Regalia Fortress as his own private property.

“Naturally, Your Majesty should decide.”

“Then I won’t stand on ceremony, Mr. Amber.”

Agnes carefully examined the liquor cabinet. At this point, she truly had no intention of being polite and decided to pick the most precious vintage to make Amber feel the sting.

And she quickly found her target.

When Amber saw Agnes’s slender, pale fingers slide toward the familiar bottle of elf fruit wine, the corner of his eye couldn’t help but twitch. This fleeting micro-expression was naturally caught by Agnes.

This only strengthened her resolve as she took out the bottle, which was clearly from the Thousand Stars Empire.

“Mr. Amber, you seem pained that I chose this bottle. Why, are you reluctant to share it with me?”

Amber immediately managed his expression and shook his head. “Of course not. I was just marveling at Your Majesty’s fine taste, picking out this fruit wine from the Thousand Stars Empire in a single glance. To be frank, this elf fruit wine is indeed exceptionally precious, and it also has the effect of nourishing one’s Psionics. If Your Majesty drinks it, I imagine it will also benefit your ‘Dragon’s Might’.”

“In that case, I’m even more eager to try it.”

Agnes revealed a sly expression. For her, seeing Amber wince was already a small victory.

She carried the bottle of elf fruit wine straight to the sofa and sat down in an incredibly assertive posture, her long legs crossed, her entire being exuding an indescribable allure. “Just prepare it as you see fit. I trust Mr. Amber’s taste.”

Amber said no more. He took the two glasses and another bottle of aged elf brew for mixing and walked over to the sofa.

Agnes watched as Amber diluted and mixed the elf fruit wine she had chosen, a hint of confusion on her face. After all, she didn’t think Amber was such a stingy person.

“Is Mr. Amber truly so reluctant to part with this elf fruit wine? If you’re particularly fond of it, I don’t mind choosing another. I can even try to find a few more bottles for you later…”

“Ah, it’s not that I’m reluctant,” Amber quickly waved his hand and explained. “This fruit wine needs to be diluted and mixed before drinking. Drinking it straight will cause big problems.”

“Oh? It sounds like Mr. Amber has already experienced this ‘big problem’?”

“Heh.”

Amber chuckled and said no more. He handed one of the diluted glasses to Agnes, and in that moment, he felt his fingers lightly brushed by Her Majesty’s.

Amber glanced impassively at Agnes and saw a sly glint flash in her eyes.

[Ah, this wicked woman, she’s full of tricks.]

Meanwhile, Agnes accepted the glass with a word of thanks and took a delicate sip, leaving a red lipstick mark on the rim.

As she felt the cool liquid flow through her, Agnes finally asked, “Regarding the visit to the Thousand Stars Empire, what are your thoughts, Mr. Amber?”

Amber raised his glass and sat down beside her, but maintained a proper distance.

“I believe this is a rare opportunity. All three of our factions can gain a deeper understanding of this mysterious nation. Not only can we demonstrate the friendly
attitude of human civilization, but we might also be able to achieve deeper cooperation with the elves.”

Agnes nodded slightly, then changed the subject. “Then, what about the fleet that departed a few days ago? Is their mission related to our trip?”

Amber gently swirled his glass, the golden liquid forming a small vortex. “As I said last time, it’s just a routine exploration mission. Rest assured, Your Majesty, it is unrelated to this trip.”

“Is that so?”

The disbelief was plain on Agnes’s face. She leaned forward, deliberately moving closer to Amber. From his perspective, her cleavage was in full view.

“But I’ve heard that fleet’s configuration is quite special, almost entirely composed of the Atlas Group’s newest warships. That doesn’t sound like a routine resource exploration…”

Amber’s expression remained as calm as still water. “In unknown territory, it’s always better to be more prepared.”

Clearly unsatisfied with this answer, Agnes took another small sip of wine, then moved even closer to Amber, so close he could feel her body heat and unique fragrance, so close he could almost feel her softness.

“Mr. Amber, aren’t we close partners? Why are you still holding back from me? Surely you know my feelings by now…”

Amber had to admit that when it came to firing ‘sugar-coated bullets’, Agnes certainly had more than enough assets and advantages.

Whether it was her stunning looks, her figure, her unique draconic horns, or her noble status that inspired a desire to conquer, they all added far too many buffs to her ‘sugar-coated bullets’.

He gazed into Agnes’s bright eyes, her red pupils glinting with cunning and curiosity. There was also a hint of charm, but in the end, Amber remained calm. After all, to charm a psionic user of his level, this was far from enough.

“It is precisely because we are partners that I do not wish for Your Majesty to worry about certain matters. You should just focus on being the Empress Regnant, and leave other affairs to your trusted ministers and myself.”

Hearing this, Agnes let out a light laugh, her voice as crisp as silver bells. “You’re always like this, Mr. Amber. You always have a way of evading my questions.”

The next moment, Agnes leaned in closer, her body practically pressed against his. Her fine, slightly messy bangs and flushed cheeks gave her a hazy, dream-like quality.

Agnes’s lips drew near Amber’s ear, her warm breath brushing against his earlobe. “On any other day, I might let it slide. But tonight, Mr. Amber, I won’t let you off so easily.”

The intimate posture made Amber’s heart beat a little faster. Although Agnes hadn’t done anything truly outrageous, merely being this close, whispering in his ear, was enough to have considerable ‘lethal force’.

Perhaps if anyone else had tried such a move, it would have been useless against the seasoned Amber.

But Agnes was different. The same action, when performed by her, had a completely different effect.

It was at that moment that Amber suddenly realized that the Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire, this descendant of a ‘biological combat weapon pilot’ modified by the Forerunner civilization, was using ‘Dragon’s Might’ on him.

That’s right, ‘Dragon’s Might’ was not limited to mere pressure and deterrence. As a variation of Psionics, it could also influence a target’s mind under the user’s control, achieving a ‘charming’ effect.

Realizing this was not a simple conversation but a clash on the psionic level, Amber instantly became serious and put up his guard. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm.

“Your Majesty, your curiosity is flattering, but some things are truly—”

Agnes cut him off, her hand resting gently on his knee and slowly beginning its ‘invasion’ up his thigh.

“Mr. Amber, did you know? The entire Empire is abuzz with rumors that we are about to be married.”

Amber raised an eyebrow. “I’ve heard. It’s obviously an absurd rumor.”

“Is it?”

Agnes’s fingers caressed Amber’s thigh, sending a faint thrill through him while also making him increasingly curious where the ruler of The Empire had learned these ‘little tricks’.

“Actually, Mr. Amber, my personal opinion hasn’t changed from last time. I still think it’s a good idea. After all, as I’ve said before, strengthening the relationship between two major powers through a marriage alliance is quite common in history.”

A flash of surprise crossed Amber’s eyes. Agnes’s persistence was clearly beyond his expectations, but he quickly regained his composure. “Is Your Majesty serious?”

Agnes lifted her head to meet his gaze, her eyes playful and teasing. “That depends on how much truth you’re willing to tell me, Mr. Amber. After all, I don’t want the partner I spend my life with to be as guarded with me as he would an enemy.”

For a moment, Amber didn’t know how to respond to Agnes’s words. He desperately wanted to tell her that not every married couple could be completely frank with each other, especially people like them who harbored so many secrets.

The atmosphere in the room, stirred by the topic Agnes had raised and her actions, grew increasingly tense and ambiguous.

Amber could feel the heat radiating from Agnes, smell the fragrance in her hair, and see the light shining in her eyes.

The ruler of The Empire, in this very moment, was presenting a side of herself that he was finding difficult to handle.

“Your Majesty, what is it you truly want to know?” Amber’s voice was a little deeper than usual.

A triumphant smile appeared on Agnes’s face. She knew she had successfully breached a part of Amber’s defenses. “First, tell me the true purpose of that fleet.”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Amber fell into deep thought.

In truth, his original plan had always been to eventually exchange some intelligence with Franklin, Agnes, and even the Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire.

Intelligence about the Forerunner civilization, the mysterious Prophecy, and the ‘Great Event’.

After all, from the information he currently possessed, the ‘Great Event’, once it occurred, would affect the entire universe. The Atlas Group alone would be like a single pillar trying to support a collapsing building; he would absolutely need to unite all available forces to face it together.

So, he had never intended to hide anything from Agnes. He had simply planned to wait for the situation to stabilize before discussing these matters with her, which would also make it easier to persuade her to complete the Star Dragon Empire’s reform plan.

And now, his momentary hesitation was keenly caught by Agnes.

She had long since seen Amber as the only partner in this universe worthy of her, so she naturally had no aversion to some ‘interaction’ with him. It was bound to happen sooner or later, anyway.

Agnes even viewed these ‘interactions’ as a way to heat things up, or as bargaining chips for exchanging benefits.

So, when she sensed the opportunity, the Empress Regnant licked her lips nervously, then slid toward Amber like a swimming dragon, boldly straddling his lap.

“Your Majesty, is this appropriate?”

“We’re both willing. What’s inappropriate about it?”

Agnes rested her head on Amber’s shoulder, her hot breath puffing against his ear, while her two restless hands began their ‘unlocking work’.

“Besides, I know very well what kind of person you are, Mr. Amber. If you were truly against this or still on guard against me, we wouldn’t be in this situation right now.”

“Your Majesty, you’re quite a good judge of charac—mmph!”

Amber’s next words were smothered. He had been about to discuss business with Agnes and defuse the current ambiguous atmosphere.

After all, who knew when Isabelle would finish her ‘intelligence exchange meeting’.

But Agnes’s bold and proactive assault completely threw his plans into disarray.

“Ha…”

A moment later, Agnes pulled her head back. As she moved, a silvery thread stretched between them, shimmering with a mesmerizing light in the room’s automatically dimmed lighting.

Agnes, who had only intended to dip her toes in the water, suddenly found that she had gotten carried away.

She didn’t know if it was the alcohol or a burst of long-suppressed emotions, but this was the first time in her life that she had engaged in such an intimate ‘interaction’ with a member of the opposite sex.

Amber quickly noticed that something was off with the Empress Regnant. He was all too familiar with that flushed, breathless look.

[Wait, I definitely diluted it, so how is it still having this effect???]

The thought had just flashed through Amber’s mind when he saw a breathtaking smile form on Agnes’s lips, and then her whole body suddenly sank down.

“Holy shit, you don’t have to be this intense.”

Chapter 802: The Dragon Girl Development Process

“Oh?”

Agnes’s sudden offensive took Amber completely by surprise. After all, this was certainly not something an esteemed Empress Regnant would do, and it gave him a novel experience.

After a while, in an effort to distract himself so he wouldn’t lose his composure in front of Agnes, Amber slowly began to speak. “Alright, I won’t hide it anymore. The fleet that departed ahead of schedule went to investigate a clue possibly related to a Thousand Stars Empire prophecy.”

Hearing Amber’s words, a flash of surprise crossed the eyes of the busy Agnes. She subconsciously tried to raise her head to ask for details, but how could he possibly let her stop her work at such a critical moment?

And so, quite naturally, the driver’s firm hands took hold of the steering wheel, steadying the careening vehicle.

“Ah…”

With a series of unintelligible sounds, Agnes finally raised her head, looking somewhat disheveled. Her eyes, fixed on Amber, held a clear hint of嗔怒.

As the saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained. To ensnare the ‘wolf’ that was Amber, Agnes had practically wagered herself as one of the ‘chips’—the biggest gamble she had ever made in her life.

And Amber had never expected that the lofty ruler of the Star Dragon Empire would go to such lengths…

“Your Majesty, are you… hungry?” Amber asked tentatively, trying to break the somewhat awkward atmosphere.

“Amber!”

Seeing Agnes’s tone turn unfriendly, Amber immediately handed her a napkin and a glass of wine. He then sat properly to the side, the very model of an upright gentleman.

“So, what is this prophecy? Mr. Amber, you can’t possibly still be trying to pull the wool over my eyes, can you?”

“Of course not, Your Majesty. I will tell you everything I know. It’s an ancient prophecy about ‘Darkness is coming, and the Star-Guides shall appear.’ This prophecy may be related to some threat we are about to face.”

Amber’s gaze grew profound. He quickly relayed the information he had, omitting the sensitive details, to Agnes.

And to ensure the ruler of the Empire took it seriously, Amber added a little something extra to the information—he heavily embellished the potential dangers they might face in the future.

Agnes’s expression shifted from an initial “Is that all?” to disbelief, then to growing seriousness, and finally, she became visibly unsettled.

“Mr. Amber, are you sure you’re not joking with me?”

“Of course not. What I’ve just told you, and the conclusions I’ve drawn, are my greatest worries at present. It’s precisely because I need to consolidate enough strength that I chose to share this information with you.”

“Why didn’t you tell me such important information sooner?”

“Because we still have too little information. I didn’t want to cause unnecessary panic without concrete evidence.”

Agnes pondered for a moment, then moved closer to Amber again, this time leaning directly into his embrace. “What else haven’t you told me, Mr. Amber?”

Amber could feel her body heat and smell her unique fragrance, all of which made his thoughts wander.

In that moment, he had to admit that Agnes’s strategy was indeed effective, especially on him. Sometimes, physical intimacy could close distances and lower defenses more effectively than words.

But since this information was meant to be shared anyway, he could consider this an ‘advance payment’ for Agnes’s ‘special service’.

“Your Majesty, some things are indeed not suitable for early disclosure. But I assure you, as soon as there is definite information, you will be the first to know.”

A smile played on Agnes’s lips, her fingers lightly tracing Amber’s jawline. “I believe you, Mr. Amber. But please remember, as partners, and as such close friends, I hope to have more of your trust in the future.”

Just as the atmosphere grew more ambiguous, Amber’s personal terminal suddenly vibrated, projecting a message from Isabelle. The intelligence exchange meeting seemed to be ending early, and she was on her way back.

Seeing the message, Agnes chuckled softly. “It seems our time is up.”

She then rose gracefully, adjusting her formal gown. “Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Amber~ and for the pleasant conversation.”

Amber also stood up, giving her a slight bow as he pulled up his trousers. “The honor was mine, Your Majesty.”

Agnes walked to the door, but before leaving, she glanced back at Amber, a complex, unreadable emotion in her eyes. “That rumor about the marriage contract… perhaps it’s not as absurd as you think.”

With that, she turned and left, leaving Amber standing alone in the center of the room. Behind him, the sofa where she had just sat still retained her warmth and fragrance.

“What a dangerous woman,” Amber muttered to himself before walking back to the bar to pour himself a glass of warm water.

He glanced back at the somewhat messy sofa and the marks on the carpet, then added, “Activate air freshener function. And, robot, clean the room while you’re at it.”

Over half a month of hyperspace travel might be long and arduous for ordinary people, but for the members aboard the Regalia Fortress, it was not so difficult. The fortress’s vast interior space often made them forget they were even on a journey through deep space.

For Amber, this half-month passed in the blink of an eye.

This wasn’t because of his special constitution as a psionic user, nor was it because he was accustomed to the solitude of space travel.

It was because during this journey, Agnes, having gotten a taste of success, found all sorts of ways to be alone with him almost every day, leaving him no time to feel the passage of time.

Whenever Isabelle was tied up with various sudden ‘meetings’, the Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire would arrive as expected, knocking gently on Amber’s door.

“Mr. Amber, I suggest you eat more fruits and vegetables. The taste has been a bit strange these past few days. You must be eating too much meat lately…”

“?? Pfft.”

Agnes’s comment nearly made Amber choke on the food in his mouth.

Over the past two weeks, the relationship between him and Agnes had indeed undergone a subtle change. The boundaries between them seemed to have been broken that night, and Agnes no longer hid her affection and possessiveness towards him.

“Your Majesty, where did you read this? Who told you that could change the taste?”

“This is what you don’t understand, Amber~”

Agnes raised her head proudly, wagging a finger as she continued, “Eating more fruits and vegetables can effectively adjust the taste. Acidic fruits, in particular, can produce a slight sweetness.”

“…”

However, these ‘interactions’ with Agnes were more like minor interludes on this journey. Amber was more concerned about what variables the trip to the Thousand Stars Empire would bring, and how Salieh’s exploration mission was progressing.

Based on the mission timeline, Salieh’s fleet should have already dropped out of warp and started approaching that mysterious observation station.

“Countdown to hyperspace warp exit initiated: ten, nine, eight…”

The voice of the Regalia Fortress’s control personality echoed throughout the command center. Amber stood before the core command room’s simulated panoramic viewscreen, flanked by Agnes and Isabelle.

In the various deployment bays of the Regalia Fortress, the escort fleet had also completed its preparations, ready to depart the docks the moment they exited warp.

“…three, two, one. Hyperspace warp terminated.”

As the control personality’s voice faded, the hyperspace tunnel before Amber’s eyes twisted and suddenly vanished, replaced by a magnificent starscape.

And at the center of this starscape, a planet enveloped in a blue-green halo rotated silently—this was Aldaram, the capital planet of the Thousand Stars Empire.

Even more eye-catching was the fleet arranged in a specific formation in the planet’s orbit. These were not cold warships made of metal and alloy, but a series of massive, biological-looking entities—the elves’ biological warships.

Their forms were like a mixture of giant sea creatures and plants, their surfaces covered in glowing patterns. They ‘swam’ slowly through space, showcasing a biotech system completely different from human technology.

“Seeing it like this, it’s still so spectacular,” Amber couldn’t help but comment in a low voice. The last time he had seen the elves’ fully formed fleets was in the game.

“Truly astonishing,” Isabelle also marveled. “The elves’ biotechnology certainly lives up to its reputation.”

Agnes, on the other hand, keenly picked up on the key part of Amber’s words. “‘Still’? It seems Mr. Amber has seen the elven fleet before?”

“Hahaha, of course, I’ve seen them in holograms~” Amber replied quickly, steering the conversation away.

Soon, a communication request from the Thousand Stars Empire connected to the Regalia Fortress’s system. A tall, exquisitely featured elven male appeared in the holographic projection.

“Welcome to Aldaram, esteemed friends from humanity.”

The elven male’s voice was as clear as flowing water, carrying the unique temperament of the elven race.

“I am Olen, Chief Attendant Officer to the great Phoenix King. I have been sent by His Majesty’s order to guide you. Please accept the guidance of our welcome fleet and proceed to the designated berth.”

Amber and Agnes, the two ‘leader-class’ figures, briefly expressed their thanks, then ordered the Regalia Fortress to release its escort fleet and follow the elven fleet’s guidance.

Before long, they spotted the New Federation’s fleet in orbit, along with the Veritas-class battleship purchased from the Atlas Group, the ‘Freedom’s Dawn’—the flagship of the New Federation Navy.

According to the plan, the Regalia Fortress and its escort fleet would remain at a specific berth in high orbit, while the various delegations would proceed to the surface for the formal meeting.

Thus, Amber, Agnes, Isabelle, and the others soon took a shuttle to rendezvous with Franklin. The President of the New Federation had actually arrived two days prior, but he had not gone ahead alone, instead waiting with his fleet for Amber’s arrival.

“Mr. President.”

Amber greeted Franklin first. The two shook hands symbolically. Since Agnes, an ‘outsider’ who was not yet aware of the full situation, was present, Amber did not act as casually as he usually did.

Franklin nodded in response, then turned his gaze to Agnes. “Your Majesty Agnes. I’ve long heard of your renown. It’s a pleasure to meet you here.”

Agnes nodded gracefully. “Mr. President, you possess an equally extraordinary presence, and you are much younger than I imagined. The Star Dragon Empire has been closely following the development of the Renaissance Alliance—or rather, the New Federation—under your leadership.”

The rulers of the two great human nations began an exchange filled with diplomatic language, discussing peace, cooperation, and mutual development. Their words were filled with the characteristic caution and courtesy of politicians.

Amber stood to the side, quietly observing the scene, finding the formality exceedingly dull. However, it wasn’t long before Franklin brought him into the conversation.

“Mr. Amber’s Atlas Group is the most important and steadfast ally of our New Federation!” Franklin said to Agnes with a smile. “Without the help of Mr. Amber and the Atlas Group, the New Federation would not have rebuilt so quickly from the ravages of war…”

Agnes nodded in agreement, then shot Amber a meaningful glance. “Mr. Amber is indeed a leader of great vision and foresight. The strength of the Atlas Group is truly unprecedented. Otherwise, the Star Dragon Empire wouldn’t possess such a magnificent Regalia Fortress, right, Mr. Amber?”

“Hehe, that is all thanks to the efforts of the Empire’s scientific research and military-industrial personnel. I wouldn’t dare take credit…”

Amber, of course, knew that Agnes was taking the opportunity to complain about him ‘making off with’ the Regalia Fortress. Though he maintained a proper smile on the surface, he was already thinking that their next interaction might call for a ‘little punishment’.

After Amber joined the conversation, the two heads of state visibly relaxed, and their dialogue became less constrained.

Soon after, the shuttle arrived at a spaceport above the planet. The Phoenix King’s Chief Attendant Officer, Olen, formally met with them and prepared to lead them to the surface.

They were guided to an enormous biological structure—what the elves called the ‘Immortal Vine’, a planetary transport system.

It was a thick, vine-like structure that extended from the spaceport all the way to the ground—or rather, the spaceport had actually grown from the end of the ‘Immortal Vine’.

The surface of the ‘Immortal Vine’ was covered in glowing patterns, making it look like the mythical World Tree from its position in orbit.

“This technology is truly incredible,” Franklin couldn’t help but murmur. For him and most of the humans in his entourage, this was undoubtedly a marvel.

“What’s even more ‘incredible’ is yet to come. The elves have far more black tech than we can imagine,” Amber replied calmly.

Agnes glanced at Amber again, the meaning in her eyes deepening. “Mr. Amber, your knowledge of the elves seems to far exceed ours. Sometimes I’m truly curious just how many secrets you’re hiding in that head of yours…”

“That’s a secret too~”

Chapter 803: The Phoenix King

The interior of the Immortal Vine was far more spacious than it appeared from the outside. Though it looked like a massive, thick vine, its interior was composed of cabins in a biotech style.

The vehicles that traversed between heaven and earth within the Immortal Vine were independent, seed-like pods. They flowed through vessel-like pathways inside the Immortal Vine, suspended in a kind of biomass liquid.

As they passed through certain areas, Amber and the others could clearly see the changing scenery outside as they crossed through the atmosphere.

Isabelle, Agnes, and the others silently recorded everything they saw along the way. For them, it was truly a rare sight, and everyone showed an extraordinary interest in this biological technology.

As the seed-like vehicle began to decelerate inside the Immortal Vine, slowly approaching the ground-level terminal, the magnificent sight of the Thousand Stars Empire’s capital gradually unfolded before them.

Towering biological structures, like individual trees, rose from the ground to pierce the clouds, truly resembling the mythological trees that connected heaven and earth.

Clustered around the branches of these “giant trees” were groups of buildings that bloomed like flowers. Each structure emitted a soft, biological glow, blending seamlessly with the lush surrounding vegetation.

Elegant, curved bridges stretched between the giant trees, and luminous vines climbed among the buildings. With night approaching, the entire city began to emit a gentle bioluminescence, a beauty not of the mortal world.

It was, one might say, a perfect match for all of Amber’s imaginings of an elven settlement in a fantasy world.

However, the hovercrafts, massive biological weapons, and the large fleet faintly visible at the edge of the atmosphere, all weaving between the towering trees and bio-structures, served as a stark reminder that the elves of this world were capable of scouring the ground with purification beams.

“It’s absolutely spectacular.”

“Truly breathtaking.”

“It’s completely different from the architectural style of the human world. This trip has been a real eye-opener.”

The members of the entourage couldn’t help but let out gasps of admiration.

When the Immortal Vine finally docked at a platform in the center of one of the “giant trees,” a contingent of elven guards in silver-white armor was already waiting in neat formation.

They were tall and slender with exquisite features, their capes fluttering gently in the breeze behind them. The spears they held were tipped with glowing Psionic crystals—a material extremely precious in the human world, yet here in the Thousand Stars Empire, it was used to augment common weaponry.

The guards of the Elven Royal Court stood in two lines, welcoming the arrival of the leaders from the three factions. As they proceeded along a path paved with glowing plants, the group arrived at a massive circular structure within the giant tree. It appeared to have been fashioned from the hollowed-out portion of a living tree. Its inner walls were covered with glowing patterns and intricate carvings, and the zenith was a dome formed by interwoven branches, through which they could see the setting sun.

And at the very front of this welcoming party stood a figure who drew the eye like the brightest star in the night sky.

It was the ruler of the Thousand Stars Empire—Phoenix King Aenarion.

Amber’s gaze was instantly captivated by the elven king. Aenarion was tall and erect, his height of over two meters combined with his aura creating an immensely pressuring presence for an ordinary human.

He wore a magnificent long robe that blended gold and deep crimson, embroidered with intricate phoenix patterns that seemed to flow with real fire under the sunlight.

The Phoenix King’s face was nothing short of perfect—sharply defined yet gentle, his deep eyes seeming to hold a millennium of wisdom and authority.

Most striking was the golden, phoenix-shaped mark on his forehead, which emitted a faint glow, signifying his supreme status. When he smiled, the entire world seemed to brighten.

Amber marveled inwardly, “That charisma… Even I have to admit, I’m outmatched in his presence.”

Of course, if Isabelle and Agnes were to hear that, they would most certainly roll their eyes at him.

Aenarion walked toward the group, his steps elegant and unhurried. When he spoke, his voice seemed to resonate deep within their hearts—undoubtedly a Psionic technique at work.

“Welcome to Aldaram, my human friends.”

Aenarion opened his arms, a warm and kind smile on his face. “I am Aenarion, the current Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire. It is my honor to welcome three distinguished guests here.”

Franklin and Agnes, despite being leaders in the human world, seemed somewhat nervous at that moment. After all, it was their first time facing such a legendary figure.

Even Brandon and Agnes’s father, now long gone, would have felt the same pressure.

Amber, on the other hand, was quite composed. He had accepted quests from this Phoenix King in the game before, and his confidence as a Level Seven psionic user bolstered him. He was the first to give a slight nod in greeting.

“Thank you for your gracious invitation, Your Majesty. It is our honor to be here and witness the wonders of the Thousand Stars Empire’s capital.”

Aenarion smiled at his words. His gaze moved between the three of them before finally resting on Amber, a meaningful glint in his eyes.

“Mr. Amber, your name is known from Peony Star to the Elven Royal Court, and it has been mentioned with increasing frequency lately in our Thousand Stars Empire. The miracles you have created in the human world are something even I admire.”

He paused, then continued, “And Your Majesty Agnes and President Franklin, it is truly gratifying to see human civilization once again produce such outstanding leaders.”

Agnes gave an elegant curtsy. “Your Majesty’s grace is even more admirable than the legends say.”

Franklin also hurried to express his respect. “It is our greatest honor to meet the legendary Phoenix King.”

Aenarion chuckled. “Legends are often exaggerated. I am merely an elf who has lived a little longer. But today is indeed a special day. Let us enjoy the welcoming ceremony prepared for you.”

With a gesture from the Phoenix King, a series of clarion calls and beastly roars echoed from the sky.

A flight formation composed of various biological combat weapons flew in from the distance, each with a unique design but all bearing distinct biological features.

Leading the formation was a group of semi-biological, semi-mechanical flying units resembling giant squids. Depending on their size, their rear tentacles stretched from over ten to several tens of meters.

These clearly enhanced and modified tentacles shimmered with a strange luster in the sunlight, and their bodies were fitted with a multitude of aftermarket armaments.

Following them were elegant, jellyfish-like creatures. Their outer membranes glowed with blue Psionic light, and their bodies were semi-translucent, vaguely revealing the cockpit structure within. As the swarms of jellyfish flew past, they left ripples of blue Psionic energy in their wake.

Even more shocking were the enormous, dragon-like creatures at the rear. Their overall form was similar to that of the Starry Sky Dragons, but they were significantly smaller, appearing to be a kind of subspecies. They also lacked the signature runes on their wings.

Nevertheless, the bodies of these draconic biological weapons were just as slender and beautiful. They maintained a tight, circling flight pattern in the sky, letting out deep roars.

“Heavens.”

Agnes couldn’t help but gasp in amazement, her eyes wide with shock. As the elves had rarely displayed their conventional military forces to the outside world, this was the first time even she had seen so many combat weapons.

Not to mention the draconic creatures at the end, which bore such a strong resemblance to the Starry Sky Dragon she had seen in the Empire’s capital.

Franklin was equally dumbfounded. As a young man who had once been an ordinary citizen of the Federation, he’d had no way of accessing such information.

The reaction from the Atlas Group was more subdued. For one thing, you saw strange things every day at Atlas; biological weapons weren’t considered anything particularly hardcore. Besides, they had recently been through the baptism of a true Starry Sky Dragon.

Moreover, thanks to the close partnership between the Atlas Group and the Yuge family, they clearly had far more information about the Thousand Stars Empire than the Federation and the Empire did. Much of the data on the elves’ biological weapons was already stored in the group’s database.

Amber had seen them countless times in the game and had even fought alongside them. Back then, players often griped about whether the prototype for these things came from the mechanical squids that attacked Zion in The Matrix.

But seeing them with his own eyes this time, a strange sense of unease grew deep within him.

Certain features of these creatures reminded him of the out-of-control Starry Sky Dragon from the Star Dragon Empire, and of the Forerunner biological weapons he had seen in the Forerunner ruins.

Salieh’s earlier hints, along with the prophecy from the elves, made him realize that the relationship between the elves and the Forerunner civilization was not as simple as hunter and prey.

“Wait a minute.”

Amber studied the flying creatures closely, the doubt in his heart growing stronger.

“The traces of this bio-modification technology, this level of precise genetic control…”

A terrifying thought surfaced in his mind. If Salieh’s guess was correct, if the Romu and the elves were truly related to the Forerunner civilization, then the biological technology the elves possessed…

Amber dared not think further. He was afraid that if he continued to speculate, it would affect his state of mind during the negotiations with the Phoenix King—a fellow high-level psionic user who had been immersed in Psionics for far longer than him, an existence to be treated with absolute caution.

Meanwhile, Phoenix King Aenarion watched the aerial display with satisfaction and couldn’t help but introduce them to his guests:

“These are my people’s finest warriors and their companions. Each biological weapon is unique, and they share a deep bond with their pilots.”

Hearing the Phoenix King’s words, Amber forced himself to pull his attention back. Now was not the time to dwell on these questions. But he had secretly resolved to observe and gather information more carefully in the exchanges to come.

After the flight display and subsequent welcoming ceremony concluded, Aenarion invited the guests to the Elven Royal Court.

This time, they traveled in a biological vehicle shaped like a giant flower petal. The vehicle sped between the giant trees along vines, its interior adorned with glowing plant fibers, making it both comfortable and filled with a natural ambiance.

The vehicle flew smoothly through the air. Through the semi-translucent biological membrane beneath their feet, they could see a panoramic view of the elven city below. The entire city seemed to have grown naturally out of the forest, with buildings and vegetation perfectly integrated, creating a scene of verdant life everywhere.

“It’s hard to imagine how a city like this was built,” Franklin marveled, feeling as if he had stepped into the Grand View Garden.

“To be precise, they were not ‘built,’ but ‘cultivated’,” Aenarion explained with a smile. “We elves believe that living in harmony with nature is the correct path for a civilization’s development.”

Amid the idle chatter and the Phoenix King’s patient explanations, they arrived at the Elven Royal Court—a palace complex hidden deep within the forest.

Upon entering the palace, Amber was stunned by the luxury of its interior. The walls were made of living tree bark covered in glowing patterns that pulsed like blood vessels.

The ceiling was woven from giant leaves, and the sunlight filtering through the gaps created mottled patterns of light and shadow.

It was clear that the elves of the Thousand Stars Empire had charged headlong down the path of biotechnology, achieving an extremely profound level of research.

When the Phoenix King led them to the banquet hall, the arrangement within was even more breathtaking.

In comparison, both the Star Dragon Empire’s banquet hall and the one where Franklin had held his “Feast at Hong Gate” had the distinct feel of human nouveau riche.

“Please, be seated, my friends.” Aenarion made an elegant gesture. “Tonight, let us enjoy this rare gathering to the fullest.”

Everyone sat around the long table as elven attendants served exquisite dishes. Amber noticed that the food was mostly plant-based, but after skillful preparation, the textures and flavors were incredibly rich.

At the same time, Phoenix King Aenarion was the first to raise his glass. “To friendship and peace, cheers!”

Everyone raised their glasses in celebration, and the atmosphere gradually became relaxed and cheerful. Catalyzed by the fine wine and food, they began to engage in deeper conversation.

“Frankly, it has been a long time since I have had such close contact with leaders from the human world.”

Aenarion set down his glass, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.

“The last time I saw a leader from the human world was when I had just been reigning for a little over a hundred years. Human civilization back then was far from being as advanced as it is now.”

Hearing the Phoenix King’s description, Franklin asked with curiosity, “What were humans like back then?”

“More… innocent, I suppose.”

Aenarion pondered for a moment before continuing.

“Humans back then were technologically backward, but their hearts were simple, and they were filled with reverence for the unknown. But the humans of today…”

He specifically glanced at Amber and the others. “…are more mature, and also more powerful, but it seems you have also lost something precious.”

Amber keenly caught the meaning behind his words. “What does Your Majesty mean?”

Aenarion’s gaze grew profound. “Reverence for nature, humility before the unknown. These qualities are often forgotten in the face of great power.”

A silence fell over the table. The Phoenix King picked up his wine glass and swirled it gently, the amber liquid forming a small vortex. “However, perhaps this is a necessary part of a civilization’s development. We elves have also gone through a similar stage.”

Chapter 804: The Phoenix King’s Invitation

The banquet continued in a cheerful atmosphere, but Amber’s heart grew increasingly restless.

Every word from Aenarion seemed to carry a hidden meaning, and the shadows of those biological weapons lingered in his mind. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the elves’ relationship with the Forerunner civilization might not be so simple.

As the night deepened and the banquet drew to a close, Aenarion stood up. “Let’s conclude for tonight. We have more important matters to discuss tomorrow. I have prepared residences for you all with a panoramic view of Aldaram. I hope everyone rests well tonight.”

Guided by elven attendants, the guests departed for their respective quarters. Amber and Isabelle were shown to an exquisite room built into the branches of an ancient tree, its windows overlooking the entire elven city’s nightscape.

Just as he was preparing to turn in early, a familiar figure arrived at their room.

“Allenita!”

Amber and Isabelle looked at the wealthy elf with a pleasant surprise. For various reasons, they hadn’t seen each other in some time, and it was certainly a happy occasion to meet an old friend in a ‘foreign land.’

This time, however, it seemed Allenita was not there just to reminisce. After a few simple pleasantries, she looked at Amber with a serious expression.

“Amber, the Phoenix King wishes to meet with you alone.”

“With me?”

“Yes, only you.”

Seeing Amber’s hesitation, Allenita added, “Although I don’t know why the Phoenix King has suddenly sought you out, I suspect it has to do with the Prophecy mentioned earlier. I can tell he is taking this meeting with humanity very seriously.”

Amber felt he had no real reason to refuse the Phoenix King’s sudden invitation. So, after Allenita stayed behind to keep Isabelle company, Amber followed an attendant alone to a great hall within the Elven Royal Court.

In the center of the hall, Phoenix King Aenarion sat waiting quietly on a chair. A smile graced his face when he saw Amber.

“I knew you would come, Mr. Amber.”

He stood up and walked toward the back of the hall, gesturing for Amber to follow.

After a moment’s thought, Amber quickened his pace and followed. Since he was already here, he might as well see it through. Although going alone was risky by conventional standards, in Amber’s current state, he was less constrained on his own.

The Phoenix King led Amber to a small, hidden room. There were no attendants, only a massive biological projector casting a three-dimensional image of a starscape.

“I want to show you something.”

For the first time, the Phoenix King’s voice lost its lighthearted tone, becoming serious and deep.

“About the coming crisis… a crisis that could change the fate of all our civilizations.”

Amber’s heart clenched. He suddenly realized his suspicions were likely correct—the Phoenix King did know something, and this meeting was far more important than he had imagined.

Phoenix King Aenarion’s long, slender fingers gently swept across the surface of the biological projector. The starscape image zoomed in, focusing on a specific region. It was a seemingly ordinary but vaguely familiar star system, where a red marker blinked in the void.

“What is this?” Amber asked, though he already had a sinking feeling.

“We call it the ‘Watcher’s Eye’,” the Phoenix King said, his voice low and solemn. “An observation station left by an ancient civilization. We elves have monitored it for thousands of years. And recently… it has shown unprecedented signs of activity.”

With that single sentence from the Phoenix King, Amber felt a chill creep up his spine. The star system projected before him was the exact destination Salieh was leading her fleet to explore.

“An ancient civilization?” Amber asked cautiously. Unsure of how much the other party knew, he chose not to reveal what he knew just yet.

“Your Excellency, are you referring to the legendary Forerunner civilization?”

A flicker of recognition, not surprise, crossed the Phoenix King’s golden eyes before he nodded. “I know that humanity has retained some memories of them, and I also know that you, Mr. Amber, know more than most. Yes, the Forerunner civilization. The ‘gods’ who once walked this universe.”

Gods.

That was the term Aenarion used for a civilization that had carried out a “great purge” on countless species. Amber couldn’t help but frown.

“What was the purpose of these observation stations they left behind?” Amber asked directly, feigning ignorance despite already knowing the answer from Salieh.

The Phoenix King turned to face Amber, his features looking exceptionally solemn in the starlight of the projection.

“To monitor, evaluate, and ultimately… intervene. According to our people’s prophecies and ancient records, the Forerunners periodically return to this universe to ‘assess’ civilizations that have reached a certain stage of development.”

“Assess?”

Amber’s voice was calm, but hearing this new term from the Phoenix King still made his stomach churn.

“What are the criteria and results of this assessment?”

The Phoenix King looked directly at Amber. “That is the problem. According to the records we have preserved, nearly all civilizations that were assessed disappeared, as if they had never existed.”

The room fell into a dead silence. Amber and the Phoenix King were both quiet, staring at each other, each seeming to search for something in the other’s eyes.

“Why are you telling me this now, Your Excellency?” Amber asked. “The elves have evidently known these secrets for a long time, yet it seems you have never revealed them to humanity before.”

The Phoenix King sighed, seeming to age several years in an instant. “Because time is short. The station’s activity means the assessment cycle is about to begin. And this time, the only civilizations in the known universe ‘worthy’ of assessment are us elves and you humans.”

“Oh? So we humans get to be ‘assessed’ alongside the ancient elven race?”

“Mr. Amber, as a human, you shouldn’t sell yourself short. Humanity’s development has not been slow since acquiring Warp Engine technology. In recent years, the technological leaps made by the Atlas Group under your leadership, Mr. Amber, are very likely the main reason for drawing the observation station’s attention.”

Amber’s heart sank. The Phoenix King’s words perfectly matched Salieh’s analysis. Their actions, their technological innovations, were triggering some ancient alert mechanism.

“Then how should we respond?”

After a moment of silence, Amber asked the crucial question.

A complex light flashed in the Phoenix King’s eyes. “This is why I invited you here. In truth, we elves have already experienced one assessment cycle. Our ancestors found a way—not to fight, but to adapt and hide.”

“Are you saying the Thousand Stars Empire survived the last… ‘assessment’?”

Amber was genuinely stunned now, asking in disbelief.

After all, judging by the time the Forerunner civilization left this universe, the last “great purge” of other civilizations must have been at least two million years ago.

And if what the Phoenix King said was true, the elves had been in this universe two million years ago and had developed an advanced civilization…

Of course, the most incredible part was that these elves had managed to survive the Forerunners’ “great purge.”

“It shouldn’t be called the ‘Thousand Stars Empire’. Our civilization was not the ‘Thousand Stars Empire’ at that time.”

The Phoenix King shook his head, then continued with a complicated expression, “We elves paid a heavy price. We lost most of our history and technology, almost regressing to a primitive state. But our core was preserved, and we learned a valuable lesson—how to develop without being perceived as a threat.”

Amber frowned. “So you’re suggesting we abandon our current development path? I’m afraid that’s not realistic.”

“No,” the Phoenix King shook his head. “Times are different, and there isn’t enough time for us. What we need now is a method of ‘direct confrontation’.”

Amber fell silent again, almost wanting to laugh.

After everything Aenarion had just said, he had expected him to propose some clever countermeasure.

But now it seemed this Phoenix King of the elves wanted to drag humanity into a direct ‘online debate’ with the Forerunner civilization. Heaven knew where these elves, who had already suffered one great purge, found the courage to confront the Forerunners.

But Amber didn’t dwell on it for long. A moment later, he continued, “You mentioned a prophecy. Can you elaborate?”

The Phoenix King nodded and walked over to the biological projector. The projection switched to an image of an ancient mural—a ray of light appeared in the starscape, from which countless slender, dark shadows emerged.

It was, if not identical, then ninety percent similar to the murals Amber had seen before.

“‘Darkness is coming, the Star-Guides will appear’,” the Phoenix King recited in a low voice. “This is the core of the prophecy, but there is actually another line: ‘When the newcomer reaches the crossroads, everything will be irreversible’.”

“You mean, the newcomer refers to humanity?”

“Yes. And the crossroads, I believe, is now. The establishment of the New Federation, the ascension of the new emperor of the Star Dragon Empire, and the rise of the Atlas Group—all these mark a major turning point in human history.”

Amber was thoughtful. “Some of the prophecies I’m aware of also mention the ‘Angels of the Battlefield’ and the ‘living saint’. Do you know what those refer to?”

Hearing Amber’s words, the Phoenix King looked at him in surprise. “So you already know so much, Mr. Amber. But I’m sorry, we know very little about that. However, some legends suggest they may refer to key individuals capable of changing fate.”

Amber was lost in thought again, weighing the momentous information he had just received. Phoenix King Aenarion watched him quietly, saying nothing.

In that moment, they were no longer competitors from different factions and civilizations, but allies facing a common threat.

“We need more information,” Amber finally broke the silence. “Especially what the elves know about the ‘Forerunner civilization’. If we are to engage in direct confrontation as you suggest, this will be the most critical part.”

The Phoenix King nodded. “This is precisely what I hope to share with you in the coming days. But first, I must confirm one thing. Faced with such a threat, are humanity’s three major powers willing to set aside their differences and respond together?”

“Are you only asking me that question?”

“Hahaha, Mr. Amber, please don’t joke with me. Given your—or rather, the Atlas Group’s—relationship with the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, I think asking for your opinion on some matters is enough.”

Clearly, the elves were well-informed about the current situation in human society and understood the relationships between the Atlas Group and the others. Although they hadn’t directly interfered in human affairs, they had never relaxed their surveillance.

Amber was silent for a moment before he finally looked up, his gaze firm as he spoke. “The Atlas Group will find a way to mediate. And I believe that when faced with a threat that endangers our entire species, humanity will set aside its disputes and unite. We will also be willing to share all the information and resources we possess. But there is one thing you should probably know—”

“What is that?” the Phoenix King asked, his curiosity piqued.

“To be frank, before I departed, I dispatched a fleet to the observation station you mentioned.”

Upon hearing this, the Phoenix King’s expression changed instantly. “Mr. Amber, do you have any idea what you’re doing?! That’s far too dangerous! It could accelerate the triggering of the entire mechanism!”

“We have taken the utmost stealth precautions,” Amber explained. “And we humans also need firsthand data to understand what we are truly facing.”

The Phoenix King paced anxiously around the room, his golden eyes flashing with worry. “You must recall that fleet immediately! Any attempt to approach the station could be interpreted as a hostile act!”

“I’m afraid it’s too late now. The fleet should be approaching the target position,” Amber said calmly.

The Phoenix King stopped pacing and looked at Amber with deep concern. “You humans are always like this—brave to the point of being reckless. Perhaps that is one of the reasons you are seen as a threat.”

“Perhaps it’s also the only way to find a solution,” Amber responded. “Humans have an old saying: ‘Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated.’ Sometimes, understanding the danger is the first step to overcoming it.”

The Phoenix King let out a long sigh, then nodded. “If that is the case, we must act quickly. Tomorrow morning, I will show you all of our research on the Forerunner civilization, including how we survived the last assessment.”

He turned to the star chart on the projection, pointing at the blinking red blip. “At the same time, I expect to be kept informed of your fleet’s findings in real-time. If there are any anomalies, notify me immediately.”

“Of course.”

Amber promised, silently praying for Salieh’s safety.

In the dead of night, after his meeting with the Phoenix King had concluded, Amber stood on the balcony of his elven-style residence, gazing at the city of Aldaram illuminated by twin moons.

The city’s biological architecture glowed with a soft blue light under the moonlight, a beauty not of this world.

But his thoughts had already flown to the far reaches of space, to The Eternity in the deep void.

“Salieh, you must be careful,” Amber whispered, his voice quickly carried away by the night wind.

Chapter 805: There’s a Mole, Stop

The morning sun of Aldaram poured like liquid gold over the biological architecture of the Elven Royal Court, and every leaf glistened with crystalline dewdrops.

Amber stood on the balcony, letting the early morning breeze brush across his face, but his thoughts had already drifted to the far reaches of deep space.

For some reason, he had a bad feeling, as if something terrible was about to happen.

“Amber.”

Isabelle’s voice came from behind, breaking his reverie.

“The Phoenix King’s attendant has arrived. He said today’s meeting is about to begin and will guide us there now.”

Amber turned to see Isabelle already dressed in formal diplomatic attire, holding a set of clothes for him.

“Still no word from Salieh?”

“Still maintaining Silent Running.”

Isabelle shook her head, a flicker of worry in her eyes.

“But according to schedule, they should be approaching the target by now.”

Amber took a deep breath, forcing himself to focus on the task at hand. Today marked the most crucial stage of the exchange between humans and elves; he couldn’t let his concern for Salieh cloud his judgment.

Soon after, Amber and Isabelle rendezvoused with Franklin, Agnes, and the others in a circular hall within the Elven Royal Court. The decor here was more solemn, and the biological patterns on the walls radiated a faint silver light.

Phoenix King Aenarion walked slowly into the hall. Today, he wore a deep blue robe embroidered with complex star charts. His expression was graver than the previous night, his golden eyes betraying a deep-seated anxiety.

“My human friends, last night, Mr. Amber and I had an in-depth discussion, and we discovered that the current situation is far worse than we anticipated. So, it is time to reveal the truth to all of you.”

Aenarion’s voice, tinged with a distinct gravity, echoed through the hall.

Franklin and Agnes exchanged a look, both sensing the subtle shift in the atmosphere.

“The truth?” Agnes was the first to ask.

“Yes, the truth.”

Aenarion waved his hand, activating the giant biological projector in the center of the hall. A 3D star chart unfolded before them.

“About the ancient power that threatens all our civilizations—the Forerunners.”

In deep space, The Eternity hung in the darkness like a silent asteroid fragment. The glow of its engines had long been extinguished, and the entire warship had entered covert operations mode.

The surrounding escort fleet was also running silent, maintaining a safe distance of twenty thousand kilometers from the destination of this operation—the observation station. This was also the maximum distance from which they could provide fire support in an emergency.

Although everyone in the fleet knew that it would be very difficult to support the away team from this distance if something went wrong, the overall commander of the operation was adamant about not letting the fleet get any closer.

Salieh was seated in the assault boat, gazing into the void ahead through a screen connected to her optical units.

This specially modified assault boat had no extraneous markings. All its defensive weapons had been removed, the power unit was the largest the hull could handle, and its covert operations module was the latest model.

All of this was to ensure the assault boat could operate right under the nose of the Forerunner observation station.

“Target observation station is three thousand kilometers away,” the assault boat’s control personality-slash-pilot reported.

His true identity was a member of the Immortal Corps; before being converted into an Immortal, he had been a pilot of a Heavy Armored Gunship.

Right now, he was controlling the entire assault boat directly through the process of ‘Advent’. Compared to a traditional pilot, this method of control was far more intuitive.

Salieh nodded and turned to look at the other combat bodies in the cabin, all in heavy combat gear.

These digital lifeforms, which Amber and Lilith called ‘Immortals’, had no flesh-and-blood bodies. Even if they met with disaster during this exploration, they could theoretically disengage from their ‘Advent State’ in time, at most losing some replaceable vessels.

This was why Salieh had ultimately agreed to let them accompany her. Had they been regular marines, she would never have consented to them joining her on such a high-risk mission.

Seeing the assault boat draw closer to the observation station, Salieh issued a command over the internal comms: “All units, final checks. We are about to enter the most dangerous phase of the operation.”

“Acknowledged, Commander.”

The combat bodies, laden with heavy armor and weapons, immediately began their final equipment checks. The indicators on their various sensors blinked with a faint blue light, and their power units hummed softly as they slightly increased output.

Salieh was wearing the ‘worksuit’ she had on when she awoke from cryostasis. This standard-issue Forerunner civilization worksuit was sufficient for extravehicular activity and exploration inside the station.

The assault boat drifted slowly onward in the silence, its thrusters maintaining minimum power output, generating almost no heat signature. Through the composite observation units, the silhouette of the distant Forerunner observation station gradually came into focus.

Although the station almost completely blended into the cosmic background, its optical camouflage system had long since failed. This was one of the reasons Salieh had decided to act—otherwise, even if they had followed the signal here, finding the station would have been like searching for a needle in a haystack.

The entire station was shaped like a massive pyramid, its outer material reflecting the light of a distant star with an eerie metallic sheen.

Every apex and its surrounding area were covered with a dense array of sensors and some kind of psionic communication array. Even after being weathered by millions of years, this equipment still emitted a faint energy reaction.

“Hard to imagine it’s been floating here for millions of years. Truly impressive engineering,” one of the combat bodies couldn’t help but comment, its voice tinged with a reverence for Forerunner technology.

“Don’t be fooled by its appearance. While it is impressive, the existence of this thing is a threat to your people,” Salieh said as the assault boat began to slowly circle the station, searching for a suitable point of entry.

Soon, drawing on her past experience as a Repository Steward, Salieh located a maintenance port on the underside.

“There.” Salieh pointed to a relatively concealed hatch. “It’s supposed to be an autonomous observation station that no one would ever visit, but due to universal standardized construction methods, they kept the non-essential maintenance access.”

Following Salieh’s instructions, the assault boat carefully approached the maintenance port. Under the control of the Immortal piloting it, attitude control thrusters all over the hull flickered continuously until the boat achieved a state of being stationary relative to the observation station.

Seeing this, Salieh took a deep breath. The life support system inside her worksuit emitted a low hum as it switched to extravehicular activity mode.

“I’m going out first. If anything happens, don’t worry about me. Tell the fleet to withdraw immediately,” Salieh said over the communicator.

The hatch slid open slowly, and Salieh carefully floated out of the assault boat, adjusting her posture in the microgravity environment.

Up close, the station’s metallic surface was even more breathtaking. Each armor plate was inscribed with complex runes that emitted faint energy fluctuations.

She reached out with her heavily gloved hand and gently touched the station’s hull. In the next instant, a familiar flow of energy passed through the tactile sensors into her consciousness—the unique psionic frequency of Forerunner technology.

Salieh closed her eyes, mobilized the Psionics within her, and began to connect with the station’s system. Millions of years of silence had not completely shut down the ancient equipment; they were still executing their original programming.

“Verifying authorization. Please wait.”

The station’s mechanical voice sounded in Salieh’s mind. It was the Geram language, a language she knew all too well.

“Repository Steward authorization detected. Verification successful.”

“Good, it seems the forged credentials still work. I suppose they were in such a hurry to begin the ‘Expedition’ that they didn’t have time to update the authorization data for these observation stations.”

As Salieh was thinking, the maintenance port’s hatch made a dull mechanical sound and slowly slid open, revealing a faint blue guide light from within.

“All units, be advised. The entrance is open. Prepare to enter.”

“Yes, Commander!”

The combat bodies followed her out of the assault boat, floated over to the maintenance port under her guidance, and then entered in single file.

The corridor inside the maintenance access was narrow, only wide enough for two to walk abreast. The walls were covered with pipes and cables, and the armor of the combat bodies reflected a faint blue sheen in the station’s internal lighting.

“Wait. The gravity generator is still active here?”

One of the combat bodies said in surprise, looking at the floor.

“It’s about seventy percent of standard gravity. Isn’t this supposed to be an unmanned facility? Why would it use a gravity generator?”

“For the Jeram people, gravity generators are nothing special. They’ve long been a standard part of their construction projects, that’s all.”

Salieh explained calmly, then moved past the others to lead the way deeper inside. With her knowledge of Forerunner facilities, she led the team toward the station’s core area at great speed. The security checkpoints along the way opened one after another before her authority, as if welcoming a long-lost master.

Before long, the group arrived at the main control room.

Compared to other areas of the station, this space was much smaller. The room’s layout was simple, with only a recliner-like device in the center and a helmet-like object at the head.

The ‘recliner’ was surrounded by countless signal lights and workstation-like consoles. Most of the equipment was in a dormant state, with only a few key systems still running, emitting a faint hum.

Salieh walked straight to it, lay down, and connected the dedicated access port to the helmet of her worksuit. At the same time, she placed her hand on the control panel and once again mobilized her Psionics to establish a deep link with the system.

Instantly, a flood of information poured into her consciousness.

Monitoring data, analysis reports, threat assessments—all the station’s information flashed through her mind.

“Third-generation Homo sapiens population. Threat Level: Medium-High.”

“First-generation elf population. Threat Level: High.”

Salieh’s eyes flew open. According to the Forerunners’ assessment standards, the elven civilization was closer to triggering the intervention threshold than humanity.

This discovery shocked her. After all, from every perspective, humanity’s rate of development in recent years had been demonstrably faster, and they had undergone multiple major revolutions, making them seem far more unruly.

She delved deeper into the database, searching for the reason behind this discrepancy in assessment. Soon, a particular set of monitoring records caught her attention.

“Unknown signal source. Duration: 3,209,445 standard days.”

“Signal origin: First-generation elf population, within the Thousand Stars Empire.”

Salieh’s heart began to pound. She pulled up the detailed records for these signals and discovered they weren’t ordinary communications, but messages someone was deliberately transmitting to the observation station.

Most of this information was about the current state of the elven world. About a thousand years ago, information about the human world began to be included.

What shocked her even more was the hidden text she found within the signals’ data packets:

“Great Forerunners, the order of the universe has begun to collapse. The expansion of lesser races threatens the ancient balance. We implore you to return and re-establish the proper order.”

“Ignorant races are unworthy of warp technology. Their existence is a blasphemy against the universe.”

“We have been waiting, waiting for the return of the true masters.”

Salieh’s face turned pale as a sheet. She couldn’t believe what she was reading—someone was actively contacting the Jeram people, hoping they would return to conduct another great purge.

“Is there something seriously wrong with these senders?” Having spent a long time with Amber, Salieh had picked up some of his mannerisms.

“Where is the origin point for these signals?”

She quickly searched the system and soon found the answer—the signal transmission points were scattered across multiple star systems in the Thousand Stars Empire, with the main origin point being the capital planet, Aldaram.

A chill ran down Salieh’s spine, and the soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head coiled up instantly.

Amber and the other major leaders of the human world were on Aldaram right now, meeting with the Phoenix King. If the ones sending these signals were the elven high command…

“It’s a trap,” Salieh muttered to herself. “Amber and the others have walked into a trap.”

She immediately began downloading all relevant data from the observation station while contacting The Eternity through the assault boat’s communication system, telling them to send an immediate warning to Regalia Fortress within the Thousand Stars Empire.

But before the crew of The Eternity could act, alarms blared on the bridge.

“Commander Salieh, we have an anomaly! Our peripheral scout ships have detected an approaching fleet!”

A terrible feeling washed over Salieh. Simultaneously, the external surveillance composite image from The Eternity was projected inside her helmet. In the distance, a dozen points of light had appeared in the void, and they were rapidly closing in on their position.

“They’re elven bioships! They’re fast, ETA thirty minutes!”

Chapter 806: Damn It, Why Are These Elves So Vicious

Salieh’s mind was in turmoil. The sudden appearance of the elven fleet could hardly be a coincidence, which meant their operation had been exposed.

Worse still, if there was truly a Forerunner mole among the elves, then Amber and the others were now facing unprecedented danger.

Salieh’s consciousness was busy at work inside the observation station’s control hub. A waterfall of data from the entire station poured into her storage devices. All the information here was of immense value, potentially affecting the very survival of human civilization, so she dared not slack off for even a moment.

“Data download sixty-two percent complete.” The system prompt echoed in her ears, while the alarms from the Eternity on the communications channel grew increasingly urgent.

“Commander Salieh, this unidentified elven fleet is still approaching us and has not responded to any of our hails!”

The voice on the communications channel was audibly tense. The Eternity and the rest of the fleet had already attempted to identify the suddenly appeared elven fleet, but the enemy had clearly prepared in advance, removing the crests that elves were fond of displaying on their bows. This made it impossible to find a match in the existing database.

Their maintaining complete silent running while barreling straight toward them also made it clear to everyone, including Fleet Commander Ramos, that these elven warships were definitely not here for a friendly chat.

Listening to the constant stream of updates on the communications channel, Salieh forced herself to remain calm. She knew the mission’s priority was not a direct confrontation with an unknown elven fleet, but to safely bring the crucial intelligence from the observation station back to the human world.

If her fleet were to be annihilated here today, Amber and the other human leaders would sense that something was wrong, but they would still be kept in the dark by the elves until the situation became completely irreversible.

With this in mind, Salieh immediately issued a command to the fleet commander:

“Ramos, listen carefully. Immediately send a warning to Regalia Fortress, apprising them of our current situation. Also, warn the Boss and the others that they may have walked into a trap! Then, have the fleet prepare to engage. But remember—our objective is a successful withdrawal, not a pointless war of attrition.”

“Yes, Commander Salieh! The warning has been sent, and the fleet is prepared!”

On the bridge of the Eternity, Ramos gripped the armrests of his command chair, fine beads of sweat dotting his forehead.

As an old veteran of countless battles, he rarely felt so tense. It wasn’t because he feared combat, but because his opponent this time was the elven race—an ancient and renowned civilization in the cosmos.

The super-flagship Eternity beneath his feet and its escort fleet, from the vessels to the crew, were all seasoned veterans of multiple campaigns. In terms of equipment performance and the combat proficiency of its personnel, they were undoubtedly an elite force in the current human navy.

But being forced to engage elven warships without any warning still caught them off guard.

The most crucial and nerve-wracking aspect was humanity’s current understanding of the elven fleet’s tactical and technical proficiency. Aside from knowing that their main weapon, the ‘purification beam,’ was powerful and could ‘scour the ground,’ it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they knew practically nothing.

Moreover, the main cannon equipped on the Eternity was the very same ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ used by elven capital ships, which Amber had commissioned Allenita to acquire from the Thousand Stars Empire.

Therefore, everyone was well aware of just how powerful the ‘purification beam’ was. At the very least, the deflector shields that served as the primary defense for human warships were largely ineffective against it.

After numerous live-fire tests, they had discovered that physical composite armor was actually more resilient.

The problem was, based on the prevailing warship engagement doctrines in the human world, vessels were designed to ‘shield-tank’ against weapons with terrifying kinetic energy like heavy particle cannons, rather than ‘armor-tank’ or rely on structural integrity.

Now, the sudden appearance of a weapon that almost completely ignored this ‘shield-tanking’ meant that most human warships were essentially fighting naked against their elven counterparts.

“Damn it, why are these elves so vicious.”

Ramos cursed inwardly. The voice of his adjutant, who also served as his tactical staff officer, sounded in his ear.

“Commander, what are the fleet’s next orders? Please give the command!”

The adjutant’s words snapped Ramos back to the present. His mind raced, processing all the information he had.

Finally, the young man personally appointed by Amber to command this exploration fleet issued his orders:

“Relay my orders! Entire fleet, Level 1 combat readiness! All ships, target the approaching elven fleet! The whole fleet is to follow the Eternity in coordinated maneuvers and maintain a distance of over ten thousand kilometers from the enemy!”

“Yes, Commander!”

The adjutant, who trusted Ramos implicitly in battle, relayed the command without hesitation. He knew Ramos had his reasons for such an arrangement, and he was right.

The Atlas Group’s combat fleets had gradually come to understand the characteristics of the ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ through its repeated use on their three super-flagships. As a newly promoted fleet commander, Ramos was among the first to learn these details during his command training and assessments.

While the killing power of the elven weapon was indeed terrifying, it had a fatal flaw: in ‘fleet combat mode,’ the purification beam’s effectiveness dropped dramatically beyond its effective range!

The effective range of the purification beam’s ‘ground-scouring mode’ and its ‘fleet combat mode’ were worlds apart.

In ‘ground-scouring mode,’ because the warship remains relatively stationary in low orbit, it can channel all its Psionics into the weapon systems. Furthermore, ground-scouring attacks require very little precision, so the purification beam’s range is sufficient to launch attacks from low orbit.

However, everything changed when it was switched to ‘fleet combat mode.’

The ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ equipped on the Endless-class super-flagships was the current active model on the Thousand Stars Empire’s capital ships. The Federation Navy, having experienced its power up close on numerous occasions, had given it unanimously positive reviews.

The problem was, its effective range was only five thousand kilometers. Although Allenita had mentioned when she procured it for Amber that its performance didn’t meet the Thousand Stars Empire’s military standards, Amber knew the actual figures were nearly identical.

Therefore, to err on the side of caution, the optimal engagement range for the elven capital ships’ main weapons was likely around six thousand kilometers.

Meanwhile, the human fleet had developed at a breakneck pace over the past two years of constant warfare. The successive large-scale fleet battles, combined with the wave of technological development led by the Atlas Group, resulted in continuous improvements to the power, range, and precision of the Navy’s primary warship armaments.

The practical engagement range of the heavy particle cannon, the fleet’s main weapon, had increased from an early three to five thousand kilometers to a range of eight to ten thousand kilometers. Combined with the existence of ‘near-lightspeed weapons’ like high-energy lasers and charged particle cannons, Ramos believed that, in theory, the human fleet possessed a range advantage over its elven counterpart.

“Commander, the escort fleet has synchronized with the Eternity and assumed battle formation!”

The adjutant’s voice sounded again, though his next words were tinged with hesitation.

“But… are we really going to open fire on the elves? The Boss and the others are still on a diplomatic visit to the Thousand Stars Empire…”

Hearing his adjutant, Ramos’s expression turned grim.

This was the core of his dilemma—if a conflict ignited here, would it place Amber and the others in Aldaram in even greater danger?

But the fleet couldn’t simply let the enemy attack without retaliating. That wasn’t the Atlas Group’s way.

“Maintain our maximum engagement range!” Ramos finally ordered. “The moment an enemy vessel enters range, open fire. But remember, our primary mission is not to engage in a fleet battle. It’s to ensure the entire fleet can withdraw safely with the ‘high-value target’!”

Inside the observation station, Salieh monitored the data download while she began to erase all traces of her activity.

Her Psionics coursed through the station’s control hub, deleting access records, modifying the system log, and attempting to erase any trace that might expose their operation.

“Eighty-five percent.” The download progress bar crept upward, each second dragging on.

A thought suddenly struck Salieh. Using the administrative privileges she had acquired, she attempted to modify the observation station’s threat assessment data.

It was a crude method, but if she could lower the threat levels assigned to humans and elves, it might delay the activation of the Forerunners’ intervention mechanism.

Her Psionics delved deeper into the system core, searching for the key nodes of the assessment algorithm. However, the observation station’s security was far more robust than she had imagined—even surpassing that of the Repository. The system automatically intercepted her every attempt at modification, and the authorization checks failed time and again.

“Damn it,” Salieh cursed under her breath, a drop of sweat falling from her brow onto the control panel. But time was short, so she was ultimately forced to abandon the plan.

While signaling the Immortal combat bodies within the station to prepare for extraction, Salieh used her acquired privileges to initiate the station’s deep self-check procedure.

This was a function normally used for periodic maintenance. It would put the entire station into a one- to two-hour dormant state, during which it would not react to any external stimuli unless directly attacked.

Salieh’s intention was to give them a window to evacuate at maximum speed without any hindrance.

“System self-check initiated. Estimated duration: 127 minutes.”

A mechanical voice announced the countdown as the station’s primary systems began to shut down one by one. Then, another prompt followed.

“Selected data download complete!”

As the final data packet finished transferring, landing safely in the storage partition of her soft, leg-like tentacles, Salieh finally breathed a sigh of relief. She swiftly disconnected, rose from her chair, and gestured to the waiting Immortals.

“Mission complete! Evacuate immediately!”

The combat bodies sprang into action, escorting Salieh through the station’s corridors. The only sound in the silent station was the echo of their footsteps against the metal floor.

In the maintenance access, Salieh took one last look at the Forerunner facility, a repository of countless secrets. Millions of years of silence were about to be shattered, and the information she carried away might very well decide the fate of this corner of the universe.

Just as the group emerged from the maintenance access, the assault boat drifted into position directly below the maintenance port, its hatch already open. Salieh and the Immortals filed inside in an orderly fashion.

The moment the hatch closed, the Immortal at the helm pushed the power unit to its maximum output.

“Warning: Engaging overload propulsion.”

A mechanical warning came first, followed by an announcement over the assault boat’s internal address system: “This is your captain speaking. For various reasons, this flight will be entering a high-velocity phase. Please prepare for G-forces. We wish you a pleasant journey~”

Salieh had no time to gripe about the ‘captain’s announcement.’ After quickly strapping herself into her seat, she gripped the armrests tightly and felt a powerful acceleration press her into the cushions.

The bad news was that she was the only one in the assault boat who had to endure the G-forces.

The good news was that the physical constitution of the Jeram people far surpassed that of humans and elves, allowing the assault boat to sprint at its full potential.

Through the multiple external sensor feeds and the camera view synced from the Eternity, Salieh watched the silhouette of the observation station rapidly shrink behind them, while the distant points of light ahead grew ever clearer.

They were forty-two elven bioships. They resembled colossal deep-sea creatures, their hulls covered in a kind of organic armor that seemed to breathe. Each vessel emitted a faint green bioluminescence, appearing both beautiful and deadly against the darkness of space.

At that moment, the tension on the Eternity’s bridge had reached its zenith.

Ramos stared intently at the tactical display, watching as the elven warships closed in like a pack of wolves. Their movements in space possessed an organic fluidity completely unlike the conventional maneuvering of human warships.

“Relative distance: forty thousand kilometers… thirty-eight thousand… thirty-five thousand…” the Tactical Information Coordinator’s reports came in rapid succession.

“Commander, Commander Salieh’s assault boat has cleared the observation station and is heading our way!” a Communications Officer reported. “But the elven warships are faster than we anticipated!”

Ramos gritted his teeth. He knew he faced a difficult choice: open fire now to seize the initiative, or wait for the enemy to make the first move.

The first option might save Salieh’s life but would completely shatter diplomatic relations between humans and elves. The second, while granting them the moral high ground, could put them at a tactical disadvantage.

“Commander, the elven fleet is breaking formation! They appear to be attempting an encirclement!”

“Commander! Relative distance twenty-eight thousand kilometers and closing!”

“Detecting multiple small targets launching from the enemy ships! Suspected carrier-based combat craft!”

Report after report rang out across the bridge of the Eternity. Finally, Ramos’s voice echoed through the channel:

“All ships, weapon safeties off! Prepare to engage!”

Meanwhile, far away in the Elven Royal Court, Amber suddenly felt a pang of unease. As he wondered about the source of this feeling, an urgent message from Regalia Fortress arrived on his personal terminal.

“Salieh’s fleet is under attack by unidentified elven warships!”

Chapter 807: An Unexpected Turn of Events

The emergency message from Regalia Fortress on Amber’s personal terminal was like being abruptly hauled up and slapped across the face during a nap, nearly making Amber freeze on the spot.

Fortunately, thanks to his superb ‘acting’ skills, Amber managed to appear perfectly normal. His fingers caressed the surface of the terminal, his expression suggesting he was merely checking a routine work message.

“Salieh’s fleet attacked by unidentified elven warships!”

The fewer the words, the bigger the news. This saying held true in this universe as well.

Amber forced himself to slow his breathing and keep his shoulders relaxed, even feigning fatigue as he leaned back against the chair. But deep inside, a frigid current was rapidly spreading.

But before he could even begin to analyze the situation, a second message followed, its contents even more explosive:

“Suspected traitor within the Thousand Stars Empire in long-term, one-way contact with the Forerunners!”

Amber’s pupils contracted instantly, then quickly returned to normal.

He raised his head, his gaze casually sweeping over everyone in the room.

Franklin was frowning, digesting the shocking information the Phoenix King had just revealed. Agnes sat upright, her long fingers tapping the armrest, clearly lost in thought.

These two leaders from the human world were obviously unaware of what had just transpired, still reeling from the previous revelations.

Amber’s gaze drifted inadvertently to the Phoenix King. He was holding a glass of an amber-colored drink, his expression as gentle and wise as ever. But now, in Amber’s eyes, that composure had taken on a strange, unsettling quality.

Salieh’s exploration fleet being attacked by elven warships at this delicate juncture could definitely not be explained by coincidence.

Considering that just last night the Phoenix King had demonstrated the Thousand Stars Empire’s ability to secretly monitor the Forerunner observation station, Amber didn’t doubt for a second that the elves had the power to orchestrate all of this. Those warships had likely been stationed nearby for some time, with the express purpose of preventing other factions from getting close.

But this also plunged Amber into deep confusion. If they had already dispatched a fleet to intercept Salieh’s exploration team, why engage in this seemingly sincere dialogue with human leaders? Why put on a united front against the Forerunner civilization? What kind of conspiracy was hidden behind such contradictory actions?

Was this a genuine desire to cooperate?

Or a delaying tactic with ulterior motives?

Or… did this have nothing to do with this Phoenix King, and the real traitor was someone else?

Amber couldn’t help but glance at the Phoenix King a few more times, trying to read something from the elven ruler’s expression.

“I know this information is quite shocking for all of you,” the Phoenix King’s voice interrupted Amber’s thoughts. “Why don’t we take a short break to give everyone time to process this.”

Aenarion made an elegant gesture, and the room’s biological lighting system dimmed slightly, creating a more relaxing atmosphere.

Just then, the soft sound of footsteps came from the entrance of the room.

The Phoenix King’s queen, Liyana, entered with a graceful stride, followed by a retinue of attendants in exquisite court attire. The Queen was tall and elegant, her silver hair cascading like a waterfall to her waist, her features as delicate as a masterpiece. Her every movement radiated elven grace.

“My dear, I’ve prepared some refreshments for our guests,” the Queen’s voice was as pleasant as silver bells. “This is one of our most precious floral teas. It helps alleviate mental fatigue and is also beneficial for one’s Psionics.”

As the Queen spoke, the attendants filed in, carrying trays of equally exquisite drinks and pastries. The refreshments exuded a faint, sweet fragrance and looked especially inviting under the warm glow of the lights.

But the moment the Queen drew near, Amber felt a jolt, as if electricity had shot through his brain. An intense sense of crisis instantly arose.

The feeling came so suddenly, so intensely, it was as if countless fine needles were simultaneously piercing his nerves.

His gaze subconsciously swept over the people who had just entered the room, and just as he suspected, he sensed a faint, hidden hostility from the Queen and her attendants.

Although this hostility was well-concealed, Amber’s sharp intuition picked up on it.

At this moment, Queen Liyana was elegantly pouring tea for Franklin and the others, her movements appearing flawless.

But Amber noticed that her left hand, hidden within her sleeve, maintained a specific gesture. The attendants’ positions were also too deliberate—they had spread out to key points around the room, forming a perfect encirclement.

Time seemed to freeze.

Amber’s muscles began to tense silently, and Psionics flowed secretly within his body.

He forced himself to keep his expression natural, even giving the Queen a polite nod—heaven knows how he managed to remain polite under such circumstances.

But Amber’s focus was absolute, ready to face any potential danger.

The next moment, as if confirming Amber’s sixth sense, the Queen returned to Aenarion’s side. As she went to pour his tea, she abruptly stopped. She slowly raised her head, and an icy light flashed in her once-gentle eyes.

“I am very sorry, Your Majesty.” Her voice was still melodious, but her words instantly froze the atmosphere in the room. “But some things must come to an end.”

A powerful psionic wave erupted from her body, sweeping through the room like a storm. Her silver hair whipped about in the turbulence, and her gentle expression turned to ice.

Almost simultaneously, the high-level psionic users disguised as attendants dropped their facade. Their eyes began to glow ominously, and the powerful Psionics surrounding them created visible ripples in the air.

“What—” Franklin cried out. His teacup fell to the floor, splashing the amber liquid everywhere.

But his years of rebellion kicked in, and he instinctively dove behind the sofa for cover.

Agnes reacted even faster. The instant she saw the change in Liyana’s eyes, she shot to her feet and backed away, activating her ‘Dragon’s Might’ to shield both herself and the nearby Isabelle.

But to everyone’s shock, Queen Liyana didn’t attack the human delegation. Instead, she spun around and unleashed the Psionics concentrated in her hands directly at Phoenix King Aenarion, who was seated in the main chair.

“Aenarion! You traitor! How dare you collude with these lesser races!” The Queen’s voice was filled with rage and hatred, and her words stunned everyone in the room.

Her attack shot straight toward the Phoenix King, her Psionics manifesting as countless sharp blades of light that seared dazzling trails through the air. At the same time, the disguised attendants made their move, targeting Amber, Franklin, and Agnes.

Outside the room, the Elven Royal Court’s Internal Security also showed their true colors. They quickly took down their comrades who were genuinely loyal to the Phoenix King and charged directly into the reception room.

From a bird’s-eye view, one would have seen the entire Elven Royal Court descend into chaos in an instant. Members of the Internal Security stationed throughout the court had turned on one another. The walls of the biological architecture groaned under the psionic blasts, their glowing patterns flickering erratically.

Phoenix King Aenarion reacted with incredible speed. The moment he was attacked, his body erupted in a deep blue glow, and a powerful psionic shield expanded around him, blocking the Queen’s first wave of attacks.

His expression, however, was exceptionally complex, a mixture of anger and a deep, profound pain.

“Liyana, you…” The Phoenix King’s voice was laced with disbelief.

Already on alert, Amber reacted the instant the chaos began. After seeing Agnes shield Isabelle, he gave her a surprised but appreciative nod.

Simultaneously, his own Psionics erupted. The immense power of a Level Seven psionic user filled the room, instantly turning him into a realized, humanoid pillar of psionic flames.

“Is this a coup?! How do I run into this kind of thing wherever I go?”

Amber griped internally while rapidly analyzing the situation. On the surface, the Queen wanted to eliminate the Phoenix King and, at the same time, silence the human leaders, including Amber.

If their plan succeeded, it would undoubtedly destroy the two human nations that had only just recovered from their own turmoil.

Queen Liyana and her accomplices had clearly come prepared. With the Queen tying down the Phoenix King, the others coordinated their attacks with flawless precision. A storm of condensed psionic beams and invisible telekinetic blasts rained down upon Amber and his companions.

Although Amber was a Level Seven psionic user, he was currently in the Thousand Stars Empire—a nation where every citizen had a ‘psionic affinity’ and absurdly long lifespans.

Thus, all those besieging him now were Level Six psionic users clad in specialized combat suits—or, to use the Thousand Stars Empire’s terminology, ‘Royal Court Psionic Warriors.’

These elite warriors clearly recognized Amber as a tough target, so upon entering combat, they immediately chose to focus their attacks on him, holding nothing back and unleashing their full power.

The elven and human understanding of Psionics were a world apart, so the strength of psionic users at the same level couldn’t be compared. This was especially true for these highly trained, elite warriors facing Amber.

Dangerous fluctuations of energy, alternating between scorching heat and icy cold, filled the air. Several gruesome gashes were instantly torn into the biological fiber walls.

Amber’s psionic shield vibrated violently under the relentless assault. While his substantial psionic reserves allowed him to easily block the attacks, the Royal Court Psionic Warriors quickly shifted tactics and began targeting areas he couldn’t protect.

Soon, spiderweb-like cracks spread across the floor from Amber’s position, and the wall behind him began to crumble.

Amber gritted his teeth, pushing his psionic output to the maximum. A pale blue halo erupted from his body, expanding the barrier’s range as he tried his best to intercept the enemy’s attacks. But this was clearly not a long-term solution.

His mind was racing, the corner of his eye quickly scanning every detail of the battlefield, searching for a key to break the stalemate amidst the chaos.

Phoenix King Aenarion was locked in a fierce psionic duel with Queen Liyana.

The psionics emanating from the ruler of the Thousand Stars Empire had shifted from blue to gold, even taking the form of a phantom phoenix that contrasted with the queen’s silvery, moon-like radiance.

Each of their clashes produced a deafening roar, and the resulting shockwaves made the entire circular hall tremble violently. The interwoven branches forming the zenith above them snapped, showering down sunlight and debris.

The scene was incredibly familiar to Amber, as this was the most common form of combat between high-level psionic users.

A beam struggle.

The Royal Court Psionic Warriors’ roles had now become clear. Two of them moved like wraiths, their forms ethereal as they kept Amber occupied, continuing their attempts to drain his Psionics.

The others changed targets, bypassing his frontal defense to attack Franklin and Agnes behind him.

Their choice of action made the attackers’ plan completely clear to Amber.

The attack on Salieh’s fleet was most likely launched at the same time as the coup here. This was a meticulously planned conspiracy, possibly decided months ago when the Phoenix King first sent his invitation.

Queen Liyana’s unknown faction not only wanted to eliminate the Phoenix King, who advocated for cooperation with humans, but also to wipe out the human leaders—the ‘insiders’—like Amber in one fell swoop.

The disdainful words she had uttered when launching her attack also gave Amber a crucial piece of information—she called the Phoenix King a ‘traitor,’ accusing him of colluding with ‘lesser races.’

This clearly indicated that within the elven race, there were fundamental, perhaps even life-or-death, disagreements on how to handle the impending threat of the Forerunners.

Sssshhh—

A sharp whistling sound cut through the air as a psionic arrow, shimmering with a dark purple light, cleverly bypassed a gap in Amber’s frontal defense and shot toward Franklin’s face like a venomous snake.

Amber’s pupils shrank. Reacting on pure instinct, his body shifted sideways in an instant, moving his extended psionic shield into the arrow’s path by a hair’s breadth.

A powerful impact mixed with corrosive Psionics exploded, knocking him back several staggering steps. Signs of corrosion appeared on his psionic shield.

“Damn it! A psionic user with a ‘Corrosion’ attribute. In a dungeon, these guys would be the gatekeeper elite monsters!”

Amber cursed inwardly, forcing himself to stabilize his shield while enduring the turbulence caused by the psionic corrosion.

At this critical moment, the sounds of more intense footsteps, the clang of weapons, and the roar of exploding Psionics suddenly came from outside the room.

Clearly, the battle outside the Royal Court had fully erupted, with guards loyal to the Phoenix King locked in a deadly struggle with the rebels.

Phoenix King Aenarion’s voice, strained and urgent, cut through the fierce battle: “Amber! Take your people and break out through the flank! Leave this to me! Go, now!”

But Amber glanced quickly at the battle. Although the Phoenix King, as a Level Seven psionic user, was exceptionally powerful, he was already in grave danger under the frenzied assault of Queen Liyana and several other high-level psionic users of the same rank.

Yes, this was the Thousand Stars Empire, a nation where high-level psionic users were commonplace.

At this moment, Aenarion’s golden phoenix light had dimmed considerably, and a continuous stream of enemies was pouring in from outside.

“In this situation, we can’t retreat even if we want to.”

Chapter 808: Civil War Wherever We Go

The abrupt civil war between the Phoenix King and his queen escalated in an instant, each psionic blast slamming into the ancient biological architecture like a sledgehammer.

The living tissue that formed the walls spasmed violently, letting out a grating, painful groan. The luminous patterns that once pulsed with the regular rhythm of a lifeblood now flickered chaotically.

During a lull in the fierce battle, Amber took a sharp breath. The psionics in the surrounding air were already in turmoil; under the high-intensity psionic duel, one could directly feel the fundamental psionic particles in the air.

The next moment, an even thicker, more massive blue psionic shield materialized at his command, rapidly shaping and solidifying around him like tangible liquid energy. Layer upon layer of rippling light diffused outward, forming an indestructible barrier.

At the same time, the dormant “Test Subject”—or rather, the so-called “Blood of the Dragonborn”—within Agnes was completely ignited. A golden-red Dragon’s Might erupted like boiling lava, fiercely merging and resonating with Amber’s psionic shield.

Where their powers converged, a relatively stable “safety island” teeming with raging torrents of energy was carved out behind them.

Franklin pressed himself against a makeshift barricade of shattered biological fibers that Amber had hastily erected, his forehead beaded with a fine, cold sweat.

His Excellency, the President of the New Federation, had survived a long career as a rebel and had navigated countless political storms with a smile, but being physically present in a life-or-death battle between high-level psionic users—that raw, almost primal sense of shock from pure power still made his very soul tremble.

In the midst of the intense battle, Phoenix King Aenarion’s gaze swept over the defensive line Amber had constructed. After confirming its stability, the last trace of hesitation in his eyes vanished completely, replaced by a resolve and destructive will like molten gold.

A silent phoenix cry seemed to resound through their souls. Behind him, the golden phoenix apparition that once symbolized auspiciousness and rebirth suddenly transformed!

Its wings spread in fury, its feathers like fragments of a burning star. The immense Psionic pressure materialized into a tangible storm of flame. At this moment, the phoenix was no longer a divine bird but a pure incarnation of a god of war!

“Traitors shall be punished!”

The full power of a Level Seven psionic user erupting was no less potent than a high-yield nuclear warhead detonating within the hall!

A destructive pillar of golden light shot skyward. The torrent of psionic energy, like the fury of the phoenix itself, unstoppable in its advance, instantly vaporized the entire dome of the circular hall!

Ancient tree branches and resilient bio-reinforced structures were disintegrated, torn apart, and flung into the air in a thousandth of a second, becoming a sky full of灼热 metal and wood fragments that then fell as a rain of destruction.

Queen Liyana’s figure appeared at the edge of the gaping hole. The silvery power of moonlight cascaded down like a celestial waterfall, precisely meeting the destructive golden flame.

The two supreme energies collided violently in mid-air. The terrifying shockwave visibly distorted the air, creating a scalp-numbing sound of space itself being torn apart.

Sensing the turn of events, the two high-level psionic users who had participated in the assassination followed Liyana, transforming into streaks of light. The four figures shot through the building’s wreckage like comets tearing across the sky, moving the stage for this decisive battle for the Royal Court’s fate to the high heavens of Aldaram.

A cold glint flashed in Amber’s eyes! This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Without the Phoenix King and Queen, two high-level psionic users of the same rank, the remaining Royal Court Psionic Warriors were far less of a problem in his eyes.

Without any need for preparation, the psionic torrent that had been building within him burst its banks!

The terrifying pressure of a Level Seven psionic user was released without reservation. The air in the entire ruined hall seemed to freeze in an instant. The pupils of the still-attacking enemies contracted as their vision was completely filled by a suddenly rising humanoid column of light radiating pure destruction!

“Time to clear the field.”

Before his words had even faded, Amber’s figure had vanished from its spot.

The next moment, he appeared ghost-like beside the nearest Royal Court Psionic Warrior. The warrior had only half-completed a horrified turn when a psionic blast, condensed to its absolute limit, pierced through his armor and chest as easily as a hypersonic armor-piercing round!

The immense force sent him flying, embedding him deep into the painfully writhing biological wall and leaving a clear, smoking, human-shaped indentation.

The remaining few Royal Court warriors were terrified. Well-honed instinct made them instantly tighten their formation, attempting to resist with a combined attack.

However, they didn’t know they were facing a monster who, in his previous life, in the unique capacity of a player, had mastered a vast number of Psionic techniques and possessed an overwhelming advantage in absolute power.

Until now, all Amber had lacked was an enemy worthy of a real fight and a psionic strength level that would allow him to calmly execute those techniques.

Now, both conditions had been met.

Amber’s assault began in an instant. His figure flickered among the ruins like an incorporeal specter.

One moment he was on the left, shattering an enemy’s psionic shield node from an awkward angle; the next, he was diving from above, from the enemy’s blind spot, a psionic fist wreathed in the power of a thunderclap crashing down!

These elite warriors, who would have been a match for a hundred men in the Thousand Stars Empire, seemed almost clumsy in the face of Amber’s fighting style, which completely defied common sense and surpassed their understanding of humans.

An assassin attempting a fatal sneak attack from the shadows had just condensed his psionic blade when his vision was filled by Amber’s cold face.

Then, an elbow wrapped in violent psionic energy rapidly magnified in his eyes before slamming viciously into his face!

“Argh!”

Crack!

The elf’s psionic shield shattered like an eggshell, followed by the muffled thud of his skull deforming. Before he could even scream, his entire body was sent flying as if struck by a Battering Ram, smashing into the ground. The biological floor, harder than steel, instantly spiderwebbed with cracks and buckled inward.

“Exquisite technique, seasoned combat experience… truly the Royal Court’s elite. In a game, they’d be high-tier elite monsters,” Amber calmly assessed while moving at high speed. “Unfortunately, farming elite monsters is my favorite pastime.”

Unlike the native psionic users of this universe, Amber’s psionic techniques had long been practiced to their theoretical perfection with the System’s assistance in his past life’s game.

In other words, when players learned a skill and advanced it from novice to veteran to expert, each level up meant mastering the best possible state achievable at that level.

To the natives of this world, it was nothing short of using cheats.

High-level techniques that would take elves hundreds of years of arduous cultivation just to glimpse were as natural as breathing to him. Moreover, the gulf between a Level Seven and a Level Six psionic user was insurmountable. In the face of absolute power, any exquisite technique seemed pale and ridiculous.

Overwhelming power could defeat any skill or trickery. This was the combat philosophy Amber had revered most in his previous life. If conditions allowed, he would have become a “Sword God of Ten Li Slope” in the game, maxing out his combat power before ever leaving the starter village.

In the hall, the last assassin let out a desperate roar, unleashing a thick beam of purple psionic energy straight at Amber’s heart as if draining his very life force!

Amber didn’t even move his feet. He simply raised his right hand casually. A condensed blue psionic shield instantly appeared. The beam struck it and dissipated like a clay ox sinking into the sea, failing to stir even a single ripple.

The rebounding torrent of energy, however, struck the warrior like an invisible sledgehammer, sending him flying like a rag doll to crash through a crumbling section of wall.

In just a few short minutes, all resistance within the hall had been thoroughly purged. Amber stood in the center of the ravaged battlefield, the violent psionic light around him slowly receding.

However, the moment of respite was fleeting!

Outside the hall, the heavy, dense sound of footsteps thundered like a death knell. The Elven Royal Court’s Internal Security rebels, having successfully suppressed their loyalist comrades, were now pouring into the hall from every passage like a silver tide.

They were equipped with clearly superior standard-issue psionic combat armor that gleamed with a cold light. The small purification beam emitters in their hands, inlaid with high-purity psionic crystals, crackled with dangerous arcs of energy.

Their individual strength might not have matched the assassins from before, but their numbers were vast, their formation was strict, and their movements were coordinated with an iron-clad discipline.

“Target: the human delegation! Kill them all! Leave no one alive!” the Internal Security squad leader’s cold voice cut through the chaos.

Dozens of elite warriors instantly fell into a combat formation like a precision killing machine, completely surrounding Amber and the others.

They no longer engaged in inefficient close-quarters combat but immediately unleashed saturation fire on everyone in the hall. One after another, small purification beams rained down crazily from all directions! The golden beams intertwined into a web of destruction, illuminating the ruined hall in flickering light.

In that instant, a long psionic blade rapidly condensed in Amber’s palm. With a swing from Amber, it manifested as a colossal blade of energy, sweeping toward the Royal Court’s Internal Security forces who had just completed their formation with unstoppable momentum.

“Evil Must Be Slain!”

BOOM!

Like a massive tsunami smashing a fragile seawall, the front rank of the Royal Court Internal Security was obliterated, torsos and limbs flying through the air.

But Amber’s attack was only the beginning.

His figure moved again, transforming into a blue streak of lightning barely visible to the naked eye, and ruthlessly cut into the enemy’s periphery!

His incredible speed, which completely defied the laws of physics, caused the elves’ precise, concentrated fire to miss again and again. The energy beams tore futilely through the air, striking the empty ground or walls where he had just been.

Meanwhile, during the gaps in his high-speed movement, Amber was like the deadliest of assassins. Every brief pause was accompanied by an uncanny, yet unerringly precise, psionic slash.

After clearing out the outer layer of enemies, he flashed into the center of the Internal Security formation. A simple tap of his foot on the ground triggered a small-scale energy shockwave that shattered their ranks.

“How… how is he doing that?!”

“Are we really fighting a human?!”

Watching their comrades fall in an instant, the voices of the Internal Security soldiers were distorted with fear. They had never imagined the battle would turn out this way. After all, in the traditional elven perception, humans were not a race known for its skill in psionic combat.

Just as Amber was fighting to tear open the elven rebel encirclement on the ground, preparing to escort Agnes and the others to find a path to survival—

In the cold vacuum of synchronous orbit above the planet Aldaram, the massive form of the Regalia Fortress was flashing with glaring red warning lights. Like an awakened steel leviathan, it had entered the highest state of war!

In the fortress’s central command center, Lilith, dressed in a military uniform, stood before the main console. Her android face, which always wore a gentle smile, was now covered in a layer of frost.

The moment she received Salieh’s first warning message indicating a crisis of the highest level, her massive logic core had already simulated the worst-case scenario and had unhesitatingly issued the order for full combat readiness to the entire fortress and its escort fleet.

“High-energy unknown signals detected! Azimuth 115, elevation 7, distance forty thousand kilometers!” a robotic Tactical Information Coordinator reported coldly. “Spectral analysis matched. Target confirmed as elven warships! Quantity: seventy-two! Approaching our position at combat speed!”

Lilith’s fingers tapped rhythmically against her thigh as a massive amount of tactical information collided and was analyzed within her processing core.

This elven fleet had appeared out of thin air like a ghost. Its flight path and Tactical Group formation bespoke naked aggression, completely different from any known elven diplomatic or patrol protocols.

“Open a channel to the elven Aldaram defense fleet immediately!” Lilith’s voice was devoid of any emotional fluctuation. “Question them about the current situation! And inform them that if we are threatened, we will return fire immediately!”

Communication was quickly established, but the response from the elven garrison’s Command Headquarters only deepened Lilith’s concern.

They were equally shocked and confused by the appearance of this force, repeatedly emphasizing that it was not part of any regular deployment by the Elven Royal Court or the garrison.

However, they asked Lilith and her crew to remain calm, then urgently dispatched a patrol fleet to intercept and investigate.

Yet, in the brief interval while Lilith awaited further feedback from the garrison, a second, even more horrifying warning message arrived from The Eternity.

What set the alarms in Lilith’s core programming screaming was that not long after, all communication channels with Amber’s team on the planet’s surface went dead at the exact same moment!

Whether it was the quantum-encrypted channel or conventional electromagnetic wave communications, all were completely severed by a powerful and bizarre interference!

“Communications silent. Not a technical failure.”

Lilith’s core logic reached an instant conclusion. Her cold voice echoed through the command center, “The opposing party is engaged in active jamming.”

She didn’t hesitate for a second. The highest combat directive was issued instantly: “All fleets! Level One combat alert! Main weapons, charge! Lock on to the unidentified elven fleet! Prepare for enemy contact!”

The echo of the command was still reverberating off the cold metal bulkheads when a scene that took everyone’s breath away unfolded on the main screen.

The patrol fleet dispatched by the garrison had just entered effective identification range, not even having had time to send a standard query signal, when the bows of the seventy-two silent elven warships suddenly lit up with a blinding light!

The next second, dozens of purification beams with ridiculously high energy levels tore through the cold depths of space like the spears of divine punishment!

The beams precisely pierced the lead capital ship of the patrol fleet. The elven warship’s standard psionic shield was torn apart like thin paper. The biomass armor underneath was instantly melted through and vaporized by the terrifying energy of the beams!

A violent chain explosion bloomed like a flower of death in the silent universe, consuming the entire warship along with the nearby frigates!

“Oh my god…”

In the command center of the Regalia Fortress, Natalia, equally frantic after losing contact with Agnes, let out a low cry, her voice trembling with disbelief.

“The elves… the elven fleet is attacking their own patrol! This is… civil war!”

Chapter 809: Human Technology, Boy!

Inside the Regalia Fortress command center, everyone was so stunned by the scene unfolding before them that they were rendered speechless.

On the massive main display screen, the light from the explosions bloomed like flowers in the dark expanse of space, completely consuming the elf patrol fleet. Debris of metal and biological tissue drifted silently in the vacuum, like mournful teardrops in the cosmos.

“This is impossible.”

Natalia’s voice trembled, her hands clenched into tight fists.

Having long served as the commander of the Princess’s Guard Regiment and recently promoted to lead the entire Royal Guard, she had witnessed countless bloody scenes of internal conflict within the Empire and had also seen wars between different human nations.

But to witness such a violent battle erupt so suddenly within a single civilization still left her shaken.

“The elves have never had a civil war on this scale in their history. The largest one before this only involved a few hundred people. Their social structure shouldn’t even support a split of this magnitude.”

“You’re right. This is completely inconsistent with the elves’ behavioral patterns. But…”

Lilith’s voice was frighteningly calm. “That doesn’t mean something like this has never happened in elven history. After all, what we consider ‘history’ isn’t that far in the past from an elf’s perspective.”

From the moment the unknown elf fleet appeared, cold data streams had been flickering in Lilith’s android eyes. Her cognitive core was processing the sudden, chaotic situation at a speed a thousand times faster than a normal person’s.

On the massive holographic tactical display, the two elf fleets were engaged in a one-sided slaughter. Blue and green dots represented the different factions, and it was clear that the green dots representing the patrol fleet were about to be wiped out.

Natalia gripped the railing tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.

The normally calm and collected Royal Guard commander’s eyes were now filled with nothing but anxiety. After all, her emperor—Empress Regnant Agnes of the Star Dragon Empire—was on the surface of the planet below, surrounded by a communications blackout, her situation completely unknown.

“Lilith, we have to do something!” Natalia’s voice wavered. “Her Majesty Agnes and the others—”

“I know,” Lilith cut her off. A rare trace of human-like concern appeared on the android’s face. “But under the current circumstances, acting rashly will only complicate the situation.”

On another communications screen, the commander of the elf garrison fleet sent a video message over an emergency channel.

The image of the elf officer looked extremely weary. Behind him, on a bridge that was normally filled with elven elegance, warning lights flashed incessantly, a clear sign of a fierce battle.

“Human friends, we are under attack by an unknown armed force. These attackers are using our standard-issue warships and weapons, but they refuse all forms of communication and have even launched an indiscriminate attack against our garrison forces.”

The elf commander’s voice was rushed and heavy, with a clear note of panic. It was obvious he hadn’t expected this situation to arise so suddenly.

Lilith’s gaze swept over the tactical overlay above the holographic projection platform as she quickly calculated the balance of power between the two sides.

The two warring elf fleets were not significantly different in terms of hardware. The garrison fleet responsible for defending the capital might have slightly better equipment, but they were clearly outnumbered. Moreover, the unknown attackers had obviously come prepared; their tactical coordination in just this short time was extremely seamless.

“We will continue to resist, but I fear we cannot hold out for long,” the elf commander continued. “If these rebels break through our lines, the Regalia Fortress will likely be their next target! Therefore, we advise you to withdraw to a safe distance immediately. We will buy time for your retreat!”

Hearing the elf commander’s words, Natalia spun around to face Lilith as if her fur had been ruffled. “Retreat?! How can we retreat? Her Majesty, Mr. Amber, they’re all still down there!”

Lilith didn’t answer immediately. Her cognitive core was running complex tactical simulations. Hundreds of possible battle scenarios were being rapidly calculated in her logic center, each outcome precisely quantified and assessed.

Lilith’s silence lasted for a moment before she finally spoke, her voice still calm. “According to the current tactical analysis, there is a greater than seventy percent probability that the elf garrison fleet will be annihilated. Once they fall, the unknown attackers will indeed likely turn their attention to us. And they’ve clearly planned this in advance. This isn’t a spur-of-the-moment coup, but a well-prepared military operation.”

Natalia stared nervously at the flashing dots on the screen. Each explosion made her heart clench, and her voice grew anxious.

“Lilith, we have to do something. If these rebels take control of the orbit…”

“Don’t worry, I know.”

Already in a state of ‘direct link’ with the Regalia Fortress’s control core, Lilith silently brought up the fortress’s weapon systems status diagram.

Immediately after, her eyes changed from blue to a dangerous shade of red.

“Based on the current situation—Supreme Commander Amber is out of contact and at risk of being threatened—Protocol A12, ‘Dark Side,’ is activated. I am now assuming temporary command of the Regalia Fortress.”

“Huh? ‘Dark Side’ Protocol? Wait, what’s that?”

Natalia, standing beside Lilith, looked at the android in confusion. Although she didn’t know what was happening at first, she quickly realized what Lilith intended to do.

Because the Regalia Fortress’s weapon system status diagram and its 3D model were changing. On the massive ring structures encircling the forward hemisphere, hundreds of capital ship-grade heavy particle cannons began to slowly open their gun ports. The numerous secondary weapons around them also activated and rose into position.

Of course, the most eye-catching of all was the ‘Focusing Rainbow - Modified’ in the central region. The black hole-like ‘muzzle’ of this super-cannon was also aimed at the embattled space.

“Send a message to the elf garrison fleet,” Lilith issued the command. “Inform them that we will engage in self-defense against any target that threatens the security of the Regalia Fortress. As invited guests, we will not proactively intervene in their internal conflict, but neither will we stand by and watch a threat approach.”

The Communications Officer immediately carried out the order. At almost the same moment, a subtle change occurred on the battlefield.

The elf fleets, already locked in fierce combat, seemed to have noticed the surging energy readings from the Regalia Fortress’s weapon systems. On the battlefield that had been a flurry of activity, the firing density of both sides dropped significantly at almost the same time.

Natalia gripped the railing in front of her for dear life, anxiety burning in her heart like a wildfire. At this point, she couldn’t care less who was in command of the Regalia Fortress.

If Lilith had a way to neutralize the threat in orbit and create an opportunity for her to lead a team into the planet’s atmosphere to rescue Her Majesty Agnes, then it didn’t matter who was in command.

Just then, however, the Tactical Information Coordinator in the core command room suddenly reported new information: “New energy signatures detected! Bearing two-seven-zero, elevation negative one-five, range eighty thousand kilometers! Count sixty-eight! Another fleet is approaching!”

Lilith’s expression instantly grew more severe. On the holographic tactical star chart, a new cluster of dots was approaching the battlefield from the fortress’s flank and rear at an astonishing speed.

“Analyze their trajectory and intent.”

“Based on their heading, their target appears to be the Regalia Fortress.”

The atmosphere in the command room instantly dropped to a freezing point. Natalia’s face turned pale, while a dangerous red light glinted in Lilith’s android eyes.

“It seems their plan is more thorough than we imagined,” Lilith analyzed calmly. “The first wave of attacks was to draw the garrison fleet’s attention, while the real killing blow has been waiting in the shadows for the right moment.”

Natalia: “Seriously? Is now the time to be complimenting the enemy?”

Meanwhile, on the rebel elf fleet’s encrypted channel, the commanders in charge of the operation were rapidly exchanging information.

“The human fortress’s weapon power is rising. According to our prior intelligence, this strategic-grade weapon is extremely powerful and requires several minutes to charge!”

“Then we have enough time to complete our objective. The ground battle is still a stalemate. The false king and those lesser races are still making a last stand in the main complex of the royal court. If we secure orbital control, their resistance will be meaningless.”

Another cold voice replied: “The Second Combat Fleet will commence the attack. Human warship defense systems are ineffective against purification beams, so we don’t need to worry about the attack’s effectiveness. The objective is to destroy that sphere that is the ‘pride’ of humanity and show these lesser races what true power is.”

“All fleets, prepare to attack!”

The elf fleet commander’s voice held a note of contempt as he received the order to attack. In the eyes of most elves, while the young human race had developed rapidly, there was still a significant gap between them.

Moreover, the elves had actually conducted many combat tests, especially in fleet warfare.

So they knew full well that the deflector shields commonly used by humans were something they could disregard, and that their purification beams could tear through the enemy’s physical armor in most cases.

Arrogance, combined with experimental data, ultimately led these elves to make the most erroneous decision of the entire operation.

When these sixty-eight warships, before the surrounding escort fleet could even intercept them, rapidly charged into the Regalia Fortress’s rear hemisphere and reached a position 6,500 kilometers away.

Nearly a hundred dazzling golden purification beams shot out simultaneously from the bows of the elf warships. Like the swords of light from elven legends that could sever anything, they tore through the dark expanse of space, aiming straight for the Regalia Fortress’s thruster array.

However, just as these beams were about to strike their target, a brilliant blue light curtain suddenly bloomed across the surface of the Regalia Fortress.

At almost the same time, the psionic detectors on all the present elf warships picked up an extremely intense psionic reaction from the Regalia Fortress.

This was the debut of the fortress-class psionic shield. Countless psionic particles collided violently on the shield’s surface, erupting with waves of energy that sounded like a thunderstorm.

But eventually, the psionic vibrations slowly subsided, and the Regalia Fortress remained standing where it was, completely unharmed.

“Impossible…” The elf fleet commander stared in disbelief at the colossal, undamaged fortress before him. “How could humans possess psionic defense technology of this level?”

He didn’t have time to think, however, and subconsciously ordered the assault fleet to fire another salvo.

This time, the attack was at a closer range and with higher precision. All sixty-eight warships focused their fire on a single point.

But unfortunately, the blue psionic shield remained standing firm, like the ‘Wall of Sighs.’

——

“Heh… did you really think the Boss wouldn’t have any countermeasures prepared for you elves?”

Inside the Regalia Fortress’s core command room, a cold smile appeared on Lilith’s face as she saw the result of the attack. The elves’ arrogance had kept them from understanding the true state of human technological development, even now.

Long ago, after the Atlas Group received the ‘super-heavy purification beam emitter’ from Allenita and witnessed the power of this signature elven weapon up close on the battlefield multiple times, Amber had already tasked the Equipment R&D Center with researching defensive measures.

The final result, while simple and direct, was also not surprising.

Against the elves’ purification beams, the most efficient defense was one based on Psionics. For warships and fortresses, this meant developing psionic shields.

This series of technologies was quickly developed as a derivative of the research for the ‘Endless-class’ super-flagship—humanity’s first large combat vessel to incorporate a Psionic Core.

In the past three months, the Regalia Fortress had completed its ‘anti-elf combat’ refit at top speed. The most crucial part of this was the installation of one hundred and twenty large Psionic Cores.

This modification might sound complex and massive, but in reality, given the tonnage of the Regalia Fortress, its ample redundant space made the refit work not particularly difficult.

Natalia, standing beside Lilith, gripped the weapon at her waist after witnessing the elves’ attack, the fire of battle burning in her eyes. “Lilith, let me command an assault team and break through the atmosphere! Since these bastards want to play rough and fight dirty, let’s show them what human courage looks like!”

“No, it’s not time yet.”

Lilith shook her head. “I know you’re worried about Her Majesty Agnes, but we need to deal with the enemy in orbit first. With them here, even if you led an assault team down, you would suffer heavy losses during atmospheric entry.”

She paused for a moment, a rare warmth entering her voice. “Miss Natalia, Her Majesty Agnes needs you alive. I promise you, when the battle in orbit is over, I will let you be the first one to go down there and kick those elves’ asses! As for now…”

A cold light flashed in Lilith’s eyes, a manifestation of pure logic and an iron will. “These elves chose war, so let them witness a masterpiece of human engineering.”

“Heavy particle cannon arrays, all secondary weapon systems, fire at will! Target all hostile units posing a threat to the Regalia Fortress!”

“The Focusing Rainbow will begin tactical rapid charging. Target the unknown enemy forces engaging the elf garrison fleet!”

Chapter 810: Go Tell It to The Focusing Rainbow

When the fully charged Focusing Rainbow - Modified began to fire, the elves experienced the power of this strategic-level weapon up close for the first time.

Except they were watching it from the low orbit of their own capital.

This “celestial river,” which seemed to span the cosmos, was witnessed by elves across more than half of Aldaram. Most had no idea what was happening and simply assumed it was some new “astronomical phenomenon.”

But when the great families learned through their own intelligence channels that this “celestial river” was the “special effect” of a human strategic fortress firing above the capital planet, they all fell into a brief state of stunned confusion.

Humans?

A strategic fortress?

Firing in orbit above our home world?

When exactly did we go to war with the humans?

Only as more urgent news filtered back to their headquarters, piece by piece, did they realize the situation might be far more complex than they had imagined.

An unknown faction within the Thousand Stars Empire had made a move against the Phoenix King and had somehow deployed a fleet to attack the capital planet.

To be honest, the heads and some members of these great elven families were no longer young.

Yet, in the long river of their lives, they had never encountered such an appalling event. This was, without a doubt, a coup that would shake the very foundations of The Empire.

Under these circumstances, the various great families began to assemble their subordinate fleets. Whether they were coming to the Emperor’s aid or had other plans, however, remained to be seen.

—

After the Regalia Fortress’s initial assault concluded, the elven fleets engaged in combat in orbit were also in a brief state of stunned confusion.

They knew, of course, that the fleet accompanying this visiting human Leader had to be elite.

They also knew that the massive, eye-catching sphere certainly possessed formidable combat capabilities.

But they had never imagined that this thing would be equipped with a psionic shield capable of deflecting a purification beam, let alone that its main weapon could unleash a power that would change the color of heaven and earth.

“When did human technology advance to this degree?”

The commander of the elven garrison fleet gazed with lingering fear at the enemy fleet on the biological projection device, which had already been marked with a red cross.

Under the force of that attack, an attack so powerful it had made even the biological core of his own warship tremble, the entire unidentified fleet had been annihilated in a single blow, leaving not even dust behind.

He recalled his decision at the last moment to order the garrison fleet to evade the attack path coordinates sent by the humans. The fleet commander felt it was the most correct decision he had ever made.

If he had hesitated for even a moment, if his order had not been decisive enough, his fleet would have likely been reduced to cosmic dust as well.

At the same time, he realized that the Thousand Stars Empire’s intelligence gathering on the human world must have serious problems.

The traditional method of relying on great families to collect intelligence through their vast networks of commercial infiltration and an established presence in the human world was no longer sufficient. At the very least, it failed to capture the developments on the front lines of human technology.

This had led the elves to gravely misjudge the current military strength of the human world.

The human civilization’s history was indeed less than one percent that of the elves, and in terms of heritage and technical reserves, they were simply no match.

But by the same token, their short lifespans had granted humans an extremely strong learning ability, allowing them to advance their technology at an unbelievable speed in what the elves considered a short period.

And that was undeniably terrifying.

Meanwhile, the elven fleet that had attacked the Regalia Fortress from its rear flank, having failed in multiple attacks, had increased its speed to disengage from the fortress’s side. They witnessed the moment that immense power erupted, practically grazing the fortress’s entire attack hemisphere.

When the Regalia Fortress’s attack ended, the fleet’s commander looked at the dark, cavernous cannon barrel and realized just how laughable his earlier contempt and disdain had been.

At that moment, the open barrel of the Focusing Rainbow - Modified on the Regalia Fortress looked as if the giant spherical fortress was opening its mouth wide to mock them.

The commander of the second elven assault fleet had only one thought in his mind—flee this terrifying steel monster.

“All ships, emergency maneuver! Disengage from the combat zone!”

His voice was transmitted across the fleet’s communication channel. Because the ships used a “resonance” communication method via their biological cores, every captain in the fleet could directly feel the terror emanating from the depths of his soul.

The “celestial river” that had torn through the cosmos moments ago had been like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, instantly erasing the entire friendly fleet without leaving a trace of wreckage.

This devastating power completely shattered their understanding of human military might.

Under their commander’s order, the sixty-eight elven warships began to change course like a startled school of fish. Their psionic/bio-energy hybrid-electric thrusters at their sterns operated at full power, their unique blue-green engine trails carving desperate arcs through the dark void of space.

However, while the idea of escape was appealing, the reality was exceptionally cruel.

The Regalia Fortress’s massive spherical body adjusted its angle with what seemed like a slow but precise movement, orchestrated by the tens of thousands of attitude control thrusters covering its surface.

The inertia from its immense mass made the adjustment seem unhurried, like a behemoth slowly turning its head to gaze upon its fleeing prey.

This commander, who had linked his consciousness to the warship through a device known as a ‘tether’, could watch the terrifying sphere turn through the ship’s various biological sensors.

As the cavernous cannon barrel grew ever more aligned with them, his heart nearly stopped beating.

He suddenly realized that unless he immediately warped his fleet away, no amount of maneuvering could take them out of the attack range of that black-hole-like cannon.

“Impossible… impossible…” he murmured, his voice filled with despair. As an experienced fleet commander, he knew exactly what their current situation meant.

On the Regalia Fortress’s attack hemisphere, four hundred heavy particle cannons began to adjust their targeting parameters in unison, their muzzles glinting with a cold, metallic sheen under the starlight.

This dense concentration of firepower was enough to stand against a complete human standard fleet in a firefight, and now, its target was a meager sixty-eight elven warships.

Oh, and they were exposing their vulnerable rear and flanks, too.

“Energy readings are spiking!” the tactical officer on the elven fleet’s flagship reported in terror. “They’re charging a massive number of weapons!”

The commander gritted his teeth and made his final decision: “All warships, release your onboard biological weapons immediately! Prepare for a fight to the death!”

This was the elven fleet’s last resort. The biological combat weapons housed within each warship began to awaken. They drifted out from the ships’ interiors, dragging long tentacles behind them, appearing like true deep-sea creatures in the vacuum of space.

Due to the elves’ long-standing population issues, they did not have the luxury of assigning a dedicated pilot to each of these high-loss-rate units.

So, aside from the exhibition Amber and the others had witnessed on the ground, in a standard combat configuration, a single psionically powerful pilot would typically command twenty to thirty biological combat weapons simultaneously.

However, even though the commander intended to fight to the death, time had already run out.

All the heavy particle cannons on the Regalia Fortress’s attack hemisphere fired at once. Hundreds of blue-white beams rained down, weaving a web of destruction in the dark cosmos. The sheer density of the firepower illuminated the entire region with the light of the heavy metal particle streams.

The elven warships’ psionic shields and bio-armor were indeed durable, but the problem was that the Regalia Fortress was conducting a complete saturation attack.

The assault each elven warship sustained far exceeded its defensive threshold, and one after another, they were instantly vaporized by the barrage of heavy metal particle streams.

The massive biological weapons, just released, were torn to shreds by the dense fire before they could even attack. The explosions of light strung together, illuminating this patch of space as bright as day, like a scene from a super robot anime clearing out adds.

The escort fleet that had deployed around the Regalia Fortress was not idle either. Dozens of human warships closed in from all directions, delivering the finishing blow to any elven ships lucky enough to escape the first volley.

High-energy lasers, charged particle beams, and missiles rained down on the few surviving targets, ensuring that not a single enemy ship could escape.

Within a mere ten minutes, the once-imposing elven assault fleet was completely wiped out, without a single intact warship remaining.

All that was left in space were scattered metal fragments and bits of biological tissue, glinting with the light of death under the stars.

And in the core command room of the Regalia Fortress, Natalia’s mouth fell slightly open in surprise at the outcome.

“Huh… How were they so fragile? This doesn’t seem to match the intelligence reports.”

—

On the bridge of the elven garrison fleet’s flagship, the commander’s eyes were wide as he stared at the battle statistics, scarcely able to believe what he was seeing.

“Total annihilation… Both fleets have been sunk…”

The voice of an elven adjutant beside him was filled with palpable shock. “This human fortress annihilated all those enemy forces in less than twenty minutes without sustaining any damage?”

The commander nodded slowly, the shock in his heart beyond words.

As a veteran officer of the Thousand Stars Empire, he had personally experienced countless fleet battles in his long life, but he had never witnessed such an efficient, clean, and decisive battle of annihilation.

He suddenly realized that the human race’s progress in military power seemed to have far exceeded the experts’ estimations.

“Send a message of thanks to the human fortress,” he ordered in a deep voice. “Thank them for their support. Without their help, our losses would have been much more severe.”

In the core command room of the Regalia Fortress, Natalia, having composed herself, placed her hands on the control console, a complex light flickering in her eyes.

“Interesting.”

She spoke softly, whether to herself or to Lilith, it was unclear.

“In our own human civil war, because both sides possess strategic weapons of a similar caliber, and the number of fleets deployed in battles often numbers in the thousands, the performance of artificial celestial fortresses has been, frankly, not particularly outstanding in many engagements. But now, here in the Thousand Stars Empire, it has demonstrated the deterrent force its designers intended it to have.”

Lilith replied, “This only proves that both of our databases need to be updated. And perhaps our assessment of the elves’ martial prowess needs to be re-evaluated.”

Just then, the voice of the elven garrison fleet commander came through the public communication channel. “Honorable friends from humanity, thank you again for your support. I have just received word that several of the Empire’s great families have responded to the events at The Capital. The fleets of a few nearby families are massing here. However…”

“It seems, Your Excellency, that you don’t quite trust these family fleets either?” Natalia asked in return.

The garrison commander nodded. “You are correct, madam. The true loyalties of these families are currently uncertain, so the situation may become even more complicated.”

Lilith’s brow furrowed upon hearing this, her core processor rapidly analyzing the various possibilities.

The political structure of the Thousand Stars Empire was exceptionally unique, maintained purely by the prestige and charisma of the Elven Royal Court—or rather, the Phoenix King. The relationships between the great families were also convoluted. In a time of crisis like this, it was difficult to determine who were true allies and who harbored ulterior motives.

After a moment’s thought, she turned to Natalia beside her. “Lady Natalia, the threat in orbit has been temporarily neutralized. This is our best opportunity to rescue Amber and Her Majesty Agnes. Before those family fleets arrive, you must lead a team to break through to the surface immediately.”

At Lilith’s words, the flames of battle instantly ignited in Natalia’s eyes. She slammed her clenched right fist against her chest. “I’ve been waiting for this! Please provide several aerospace transports. I will personally lead His Majesty’s Royal Guard to bring them back!”

“They are already prepared,” Lilith said with her usual efficiency. “Fifteen assault-type aerospace transports with upgraded shielding are on standby in the deployment bay. I have also prepared some small gifts for you. I trust they will be of help in your upcoming operation.”

Although she didn’t know what “small gifts” Lilith was referring to, Natalia nodded without hesitation. Just as she was about to leave the command center, Lilith called out to her again.

The android commander, who always appeared calm and mechanical in Natalia’s presence, now had a rare note of concern in her voice. “Based on our current analysis and the fortress’s sensor array readings of energy fluctuations on the planet’s surface, the ground combat may be more intense than we anticipate. This coup within the Thousand Stars Empire was clearly well-prepared. The resistance you encounter could be very strong. Be careful.”

Natalia glanced back at Lilith, a resolute smile on her lips. “Don’t worry. I am the commander of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Guard. A scene like this isn’t enough to scare me. Besides, His Majesty and Mr. Amber are waiting for me down there. I absolutely will not let them down.”

With that, Natalia strode out of the core command room and hurried toward the deployment bay. The accompanying Royal Guard soldiers, having received their orders, were already leaving their temporary barracks on the fortress to rendezvous with her.

Lilith watched her depart, then turned to the Communications Officer. “Contact the elven garrison fleet. Inform them that we will be dispatching a team into the atmosphere to conduct a rescue mission. Request that they provide airspace protection.”

Chapter 811: Agnes’s Blade

Inside Deployment Bay Nine of Regalia Fortress, the heavy steel doors slowly slid apart.

The cold vacuum of space was sealed off by the airlock. The deployment bay was brightly lit, its vast expanse like a cathedral forged from steel. This was the same sense of déjà vu Natalia had felt on her previous visits to the fortress’s deployment bays.

Her silhouette elongated in the bright light pouring through the opening doors. Her steps were steady, her military boots creating dull echoes as they struck the alloy floor.

Behind her, column after column of Star Dragon Empire Royal Guard soldiers flooded into the staging area in silent, orderly ranks.

They were the blade of Her Majesty Agnes, the absolutely loyal force that had defended her to the death on the day of her coronation.

Besides having all undergone biochemical augmentation surgery that massively enhanced their physical capabilities, they had also been refitted with the latest “Baryonyx” series heavy powered armor from the Atlas Group. Yes, with every soldier equipped at minimum with heavy powered armor, the Royal Guard was a standard heavy armored unit.

Accompanying them this time, in addition to these elite Royal Guard heavy infantry, were two squadrons of HCPs.

They too, shortly after Agnes’s coronation, had been refitted with the “Royal Aegis”—a model personally pitched by Amber. It was based on the “Aegis” but had been heavily modified and enhanced, exclusively for the Star Dragon Empire’s elite HCP units.

The Royal Guard’s HCP units were the first to complete the refit after the “Royal Aegis” passed its acceptance tests.

The pilots were now rapidly completing their unit self-checks, while also meticulously inspecting the critical parts and weapon attachment points of their respective machines. The hiss of hydraulics and the crisp clang of metal components wove together into a unique pre-battle symphony.

Natalia stepped onto a temporary command platform, her cold gaze sweeping over the elite force she had forged and tempered with her own hands.

The deployment bay echoed with the minute sounds of equipment checks, the low hum of engines pre-heating, and the clipped tactical confirmations exchanged among the Royal Guard soldiers.

Yet, when her arm—slender but full of strength—shot up, all sound vanished in an instant. The Royal Guard soldiers stopped their work, standing like statues as they watched the commander who had long since earned their respect.

“Soldiers of the Royal Guard! Blades of Her Majesty!”

Natalia’s voice was not loud, but like tempered steel, it echoed clearly under the vast steel dome.

“I will not use false, flowery words to embellish the abyss we are about to enter. You know better than anyone the weight of this mission.”

Natalia paused, her gaze like a torch as it swept over the determined faces below.

“Her Majesty Agnes. Our lighthouse, our lodestar, our sun, is currently trapped in the mire of an alien world, surrounded by overwhelming hostility! She needs not just warriors, but the Empire’s most loyal swords. We must use our lives and honor to carve a path home for her!”

“For the Empire’s Royal Guard!”

A Royal Guard officer, his body covered in the scars of countless battles, was the first to roar, his voice like a great bell.

His cry was the lit fuse that instantly ignited the inferno in the chests of all the Royal Guard soldiers.

“By our lives, we swear! To protect Her Majesty!”

Hundreds of voices merged into a torrential roar. Accompanied by the hum of powered armor joints and the thundering crash of weapons striking the ground, the sound reverberated and surged within the massive deployment bay, like the beating of war drums on the eve of a campaign, making the very air tremble.

Natalia gave a slight nod, the firm lines of her jaw curving into a satisfied arc. She was just about to give the order to board when—

Clack. Clack. Clack.

Another set of perfectly synchronized footsteps suddenly echoed from the entrance of the deployment bay, interrupting the impassioned pre-battle oath.

A team of android engineers in pure white engineering uniforms arrived in the deployment bay, accompanied by a large number of equipment cases with a matte silver sheen, transported by Worker Bees.

The lead android engineer, its optical sensors flashing with a calm blue light, approached Natalia and gave her a standard Atlas Group military salute. “Commander Natalia, under orders from Commander Lilith, we are here to issue your troops an emergency batch of ‘Psionic Warfare Specialized’ equipment.”

Natalia raised her eyebrows in surprise and strode toward the nearest equipment case. The moment the lid slid open soundlessly, revealing its contents, she couldn’t help but freeze for a second.

Resting silently inside was a brand-new set of heavy powered armor. From its appearance, it seemed to be from the same lineage as the “Baryonyx” series equipped by the Royal Guard.

But its armor surface was covered in a more sophisticated composite layered structure. What astonished Natalia the most was that key areas like the pauldrons, the core of the chest plate, the spinal guard, and the outer forearms were all inlaid with psionic crystals of varying sizes that emitted a soft, pale blue glow!

Liquid energy seemed to flow slowly within the crystals, exuding a cold and mysterious aura.

The cold, hard lines of the military-grade alloy combined with the supernatural energy waves emanating from the psionic crystals created a strange yet powerful visual impact, as if cold machinery and mystical psionic power had been forcibly forged together.

“What is this?”

Natalia reached out with a gloved finger and gently touched the armor’s surface. A faint but distinct vibration immediately traveled up her fingertip, as if she were touching not metal, but the skin of some slumbering creature. A cool, active energy pulse was flowing through the armor’s “veins.”

“The ‘Baryonyx α’ model, a deep psionic warfare-specialized modification based on your unit’s current ‘Baryonyx’ platform,” the android engineer’s voice was devoid of any emotion.

“How could you modify so much equipment in such a short time? Was this prepared in advance?” Natalia asked, puzzled.

“Yes. A long time ago, the group’s upper management, or rather, the Boss himself, ran a high-probability simulation on the potential threat of the elves. He then secretly initiated the ‘Standardized Psionic Warfare’ contingency plan. The ‘Psionic Warfare Specialization’ for current-gen equipment is one of its core achievements.”

Amber. It was him again.

A chill, mixed with shock and awe, rose in Natalia’s heart. She had to admit that this man, so close to Her Majesty, had successfully deceived every noble in the Empire.

While everyone thought he would focus his attention on Her Majesty, like some playboy planning to live off a woman, the man had already guided the Atlas Group to predict several steps into the future.

At the very least, Natalia knew that most Imperial officers, including herself, had never expected to be suddenly embroiled in the Thousand Stars Empire’s conflict and face a completely unfamiliar combat environment.

But Natalia quickly regained her composure. Her voice returned to its usual cold hardness, though her words came a fraction faster.

“What are its capabilities?”

“The core upgrade is mainly the integration of a miniature psionic shield generator, which can cover the entire body or be set to defend specific areas. The external armor plates have been treated with a new composite psionic-resistant coating, which significantly weakens psionic blasts and mental erosion.

“By the way, we also brought upgraded armor plates for your ‘Royal Aegis’ units, and psionic shield generators to replace the deflector shield generators.”

The android engineer used its electronic eyes to project streams of upgrade information onto the armor in the case.

“No other upgrades were made to the weapon systems. According to previous tests, standard infantry armaments are capable of inflicting effective damage on the Thousand Stars Empire’s basic combat units… Hmm, although we’ve included interfaces for psionic weapons, there are no suitable weapons to install at the moment. Perhaps you could try to capture some weapons after you land to run some tests~”

“We don’t have time to be your field testers,” Natalia shook her head. “But thank you for bringing this equipment.”

“You’re welcome. It is what we should do.” The android’s expression remained unchanged.

Natalia nodded, then spun around to face the waiting Royal Guard soldiers.

“All Royal Guard! Switch to the ‘Baryonyx α’ immediately!”

The deployment bay instantly transformed into a highly efficient machine. With the precise assistance of the android engineers and technicians, Natalia’s elite Royal Guard troops began to rapidly change their equipment.

Thanks to the “Baryonyx α” using the same universal core frame as the “Baryonyx,” the entire refitting process was extremely smooth. The heavy old armor pieces were quickly removed, and the new armor, gleaming with a faint blue light, was precisely installed and locked into place.

As each new suit was activated, pale blue energy circuits lit up across the armor’s surface with a soft hum. The entire force seemed to be enveloped in a thin but resilient azure aura.

At that moment, Natalia sent a message to Lilith: “We have received the equipment. Thank you for sending charcoal in a snowstorm!”

Soon, Lilith’s (the android version’s) unique, slightly electronic and cold voice sounded in Natalia’s ear: “It is our duty, Commander Natalia. But please remember, this equipment is, after all, a rush job. If you encounter high-level psionic units, you must assess the risk and prioritize withdrawal. Do not make any unnecessary sacrifices.”

“Understood.”

Natalia cut the communication cleanly and strode toward the end of the deployment bay.

There, fifteen heavily modified assault-type aerospace transports were parked silently under guidance beams.

Their rugged frames were covered in thick composite armor plates, their lines sharp and angular. The massive engine nozzles were currently emitting a low, suppressed roar.

“All aboard!”

The steel tide surged forward once more. A squadron of “Royal Aegis” mechs and two companies of elite Royal Guard soldiers filed into the cavernous cargo bays of their respective transports in their predetermined order.

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed off the metal bulkheads, soon replaced by the much louder sound of mechanical locks sealing. The final hiss of the last pressurized hatch closing signaled that loading was complete.

Natalia took her seat on the command chair of the flight lead’s transport. Looking out through the reinforced viewport, she saw the deployment bay’s airlock doors slowly opening. Further beyond lay the deep, boundless universe and that emerald-green planet.

“Falcon One through Fifteen, system self-check complete. Power cores pre-heated to critical. Requesting permission for departure and takeoff,” the lead pilot’s voice came over the air traffic control channel. The pilot, a Royal Guard soldier temporarily filling the role, sounded perfectly calm.

“Permission granted. May the wings of the Star Dragon protect you and bring you home safely.” Lilith’s voice carried a rare hint of warmth, even using the common blessing for departing Star Dragon Empire forces.

“Thank you! Falcon Squadron is commencing departure!”

BOOM—!

The main thrusters of the fifteen assault-type aerospace transports simultaneously erupted with blinding, azure plasma flames, releasing a ferocious amount of thrust in an instant!

Under the pilots’ slightly aggressive control, they immediately became fifteen heavy arrows loosed from a bowstring. After leaving the deployment bay, they eagerly broke free from the guidance beams and plunged headlong toward Aldaram without a second thought.

The remaining loyalist forces of the elven garrison fleet had responded to Lilith’s request. They dispatched a number of biological combat weapons and small ships to provide escort and managed to establish a brief link with friendly forces on the ground, forcibly tearing open a narrow “air corridor” for this human rescue force through the chaotic battlefield sky.

“All units, be advised, we are breaking through the atmosphere. Although the elves have notified their forces, it is currently unknown if there are any high-threat anti-air defenses on the ground. Brace yourselves and prepare for impact!”

Although the flight lead issued the warning as per regulations, the anticipated fierce ground-fire interception never occurred.

The entry was exceptionally smooth. The transport group, like fifteen precisely guided meteors, carved straight trajectories across Aldaram’s magnificent sky, their objective being the distant Elven Royal Court, already engulfed in the flames of war.

Through the viewport, Natalia saw the wonders of the elven homeworld: towering trees like colossal emerald pillars supporting the heavens, their canopies stretching out to form a boundless, vibrant, yet latently deadly ocean of green.

The elven cities, like exquisite nests, were ingeniously built among the giant trees. The biomass structures, emitting a soft glow, blended seamlessly with the natural environment, presenting a harmonious beauty that transcended human understanding of engineering, something almost miraculous.

But off to the side of their flight path, several thick columns of ink-black smoke twisted violently into the sky at the horizon, smearing ugly stains across the emerald backdrop.

“Target, royal court core area, now in visual range! Preparing for landing!”

“ETA to preset landing zone: one hundred eighty seconds! All units, prepare for disembark—”

The pilot’s voice was cut off as if by a blade!

WEEEEEE—!

A deafening tactical alarm suddenly blared without warning in the cargo bays of all the transports! Blinding red rotating warning lights flashed frantically, painting the cold faceplates of the Royal Guard soldiers a bloody crimson!

“Warning! Detecting large-scale, high-speed aerial target cluster! Bearing: 080! Altitude: 2000! Quantity: 120 and approaching! Target identified—Thousand Stars Empire squid-type biological combat weapons!”

Natalia shot up from her seat, rushing to the front of the cockpit in just a few steps despite the violent turbulence.

Through the wide observation window, the scene before her made her face instantly darken—

In the sky ahead, what had been a clear, turquoise backdrop was now filled with a squirming, churning “black cloud.” In reality, it was a swarm of biological combat weapons composed of a multitude of “mechanical squids.”

Their main bodies were covered in dark purple chitinous and metallic hybrid armor. Large psionic crystals were fixed in devices at their apexes. Thick, sucker-covered, semi-mechanized tentacles writhed wildly behind them. Like a school of deep-sea fish that had scented blood, they blotted out the sky as they swarmed ferociously toward the aerospace transports!

“It seems the elves’ ‘welcoming ceremony’ is even more ‘enthusiastic’ than expected!” Natalia said with a cold smile.

Chapter 812: Psionic Lightning

Beneath Aldaram’s emerald sky, the writhing, churning dark cloud in the distance was approaching at an unprecedented speed.

Natalia’s sharp gaze swept over the swarm of biological combat weapons that blotted out the sun. The tentacles behind each mechanical squid danced wildly, and the psionic crystals at their tips were already gathering energy, emitting an unsettling violet-red glow.

“How far are we from the target landing zone?”

“Four hundred seconds, Commander!” The Pilot’s voice was tinged with obvious tension, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

“Too far.”

Natalia gritted her teeth. The biological combat weapons had chosen to attack during the final phase of the aerospace transport fleet’s assault landing. The fleet couldn’t possibly abandon the landing now to take evasive maneuvers.

“Commander, let our squadron cover the fleet.”

The calm voice of a middle-aged man echoed through the comms channel, devoid of any fear.

“But you only have one squadron of HCPs.”

“It’s fine. HCPs are meant to step up when other units are in peril. We are the infantry’s ‘guardian angels,’ after all.”

“We’re Royal Guard, you know,” a Royal Guard Company Commander chimed in.

“Haha, aren’t you still infantry?” the middle-aged man retorted with a laugh, instantly easing the tension on the comms channel.

The conversation on the comms channel didn’t sway Natalia. She gave a heavy nod, finally agreeing to the HCP squadron leader’s request.

“Then I’m counting on you!”

“Leave it to us. Wax Seal Squadron, detach from the transports immediately! Clear a path for the landing force!”

“Roger!”

Inside the aerospace transport’s cargo bay, ten elite Royal Guard pilots quickly activated their Royal Aegis units. The massive mechs rumbled deeply within the bay as their psionic shield generators began to charge, a faint blue light flowing across their armor.

A moment later, the bay doors thundered open. The turbulent air from outside instantly rushed in with a shrill scream.

The first Royal Aegis, under its pilot’s control, slid out of the bay on its launch rail without hesitation.

A key part of the Royal Aegis upgrade plan was to significantly improve its maneuverability in all situations, which gave the model a degree of aerial capability.

Without the aid of any atmospheric flight packs, the gold-and-silver armored steel giant maintained its posture in the air, matching the transport’s descent speed using the powerful thrust from its main thruster array and auxiliary nozzles across its body.

It was followed by the second, then the third…

In the end, ten Royal Aegis units deployed into combat formation in mid-air, like gods of war descending from the heavens.

“Enemy targets confirmed!”

“They’re everywhere!”

“Then fire everywhere!!!”

The next moment, the Royal Aegis units deployed the heavy particle cannons mounted on their backs. Configured for heavy firepower strikes as part of the Royal Guard, each unit was equipped with two cannons.

Twenty heavy particle cannons roared in unison. In diffusion shot mode, blue-white streams of heavy metal particles tore through the air like the wrath of a god, piercing straight into the dense, dark swarm of biological weapons.

The diffusion shot of the heavy particle cannon was a classic AOE attack. While its damage was significantly reduced against heavily armored targets, against relatively light aerial units, the streams of heavy metal particles could still inflict sufficient kinetic and thermal damage.

The psionic shields of the elves’ aerial biological weapons clearly couldn’t withstand such an assault. Each hit from a heavy particle cannon completely shredded a mechanical squid, sending a rain of dark purple blood and metal fragments falling to the ground.

But this was only the beginning.

The Royal Aegis pilots didn’t pause for a moment. They disengaged the safeties on their handheld electromagnetic machine guns and opened fire, unleashing a deadly storm of steel from dense volleys of high-velocity alloy steel flechettes.

Most of the high-velocity steel flechettes were deflected by the psionic shields. The few that penetrated struck the mechanical squids’ external biological armor, kicking up sparks. Only some of the more weakly protected tentacles were shredded into pulp by the flechettes, but it was enough to create a considerable suppressive effect.

However, the elven biological weapons were far more cunning than anticipated.

Faced with the sudden barrage, the swarm of mechanical squids didn’t press the attack. Instead, on their commander’s order, they scattered in all directions like a startled school of fish.

The psionic crystals embedded in their heads began to flash in unison. In an instant, violet-red energy beams lanced toward the Royal Aegis formation from all angles.

“Evasive maneuvers! Evasive maneuvers!” the squadron leader shouted over the comms channel while performing an emergency evasion.

The ten Royal Aegis units immediately executed a series of difficult aerial maneuvers, their back-mounted thrusters blasting out even more ferocious plasma flames as they tried to dodge the deadly attacks.

But on a three-dimensional aerial battlefield, facing an enemy with overwhelming numerical superiority, complete evasion was nearly impossible.

A violet-red beam grazed Unit Three’s left arm. After taking multiple hits, its psionic shield finally collapsed, leaving the mechanical arm exposed. A charred scar appeared on the mech’s armor.

The pilot inside the cockpit quickly adjusted his posture, using the shield mounted on the shoulder pauldron to cover more of the torso while maintaining a firing stance.

“Dammit! Their attack power is stronger than we expected!”

The battle immediately reached a fever pitch. The swarm of mechanical squids circled the Royal Aegis units, attacking like a swarm of bees, while the human HCPs formed a back-to-back defensive formation, trying to break the encirclement with concentrated fire.

“Ammo consumption is too high!” reported the pilot of Unit Four. “Electromagnetic machine gun ammo at thirty percent!”

“Switch to close combat mode!” the squadron leader’s command rang out. “All units, draw swords! Show these monsters the might of the Empire’s Royal Guard!”

The ten Royal Aegis units finished their final round of diffusion shots almost simultaneously, their right hands reaching for the weapon attachment points inside their shields.

With the click of mechanical locks releasing, ten heavy plasma severing swords, already preheated, were drawn. High-temperature plasma danced along their blades, emitting a humming, cutting sound.

Close-quarters combat erupted instantly.

The first mechanical squid that charged in was sliced in two by Unit One’s plasma sword before it could even unleash a psionic attack. The high-temperature blade easily cut through its mechanical and chitinous armor, sending tentacles and entrails flying, accompanied by the foul stench of burning flesh.

But just a second later, four or five mechanical squids swarmed it. There were simply too many of the biological combat weapons. They attacked from all angles, their sharp, psionics-wrapped tentacles lashing at the HCP’s armor like whips, while the barbs at their tips constantly tried to tear through the protection at the joints.

“Unit Five is damaged! Left leg joint is compromised!”

“Unit Seven’s psionic shield is overloaded! Need support!”

“Unit Eight… signal lost!”

From the aerospace transport, Natalia watched through the porthole as Unit Eight was attacked by three mechanical squids simultaneously. Once their thick tentacles wrapped around the unit’s limbs, the pilot couldn’t break free no matter how much they struggled.

The heavy plasma severing sword held in its mechanical arm tried to cut the tentacles, but it was ensnared by even more tentacles and brutally torn away.

Finally, the unit’s chest armor was forcibly ripped open, exposing the cockpit. The pilot even managed to draw their personal defense weapon for a final attack, but a violet-red psionic beam lanced straight through the cockpit.

Like a puppet with its strings cut, Unit Eight plummeted from the sky, crashing into the boundless ocean of treetops below and creating a massive crater.

“Damn it!” Natalia slammed her fist against the porthole, a sense of helplessness welling up inside her.

The aerial battle continued, but the situation was growing increasingly dire.

Every Royal Guard pilot demonstrated superhuman combat skills, pushing the kill ratio to almost one-to-eight, but the biological combat weapons’ numerical advantage was just too overwhelming.

After taking down its eleventh mechanical squid, the squadron’s Unit Nine finally buckled.

Its psionic shield had long since overloaded, the unit was damaged in multiple places, and the plasma sword was nearly out of energy.

A cunning mechanical squid took the opportunity to attack from behind. Ignoring the ablation from the plasma thruster array, the sharp tip of its tentacle pierced straight through the rear thruster.

The unit immediately lost its ability to stay airborne and began to plummet.

“Unit Nine! Eject!”

“Thruster is severely damaged! Ejection system is malfunctioning!”

Unit Nine’s pilot’s voice came over the channel, laced with despair. “Squadron leader… Commander… This is for Her Majesty Agnes!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Unit Nine’s damaged main thruster array erupted in a final blue blaze. It suddenly accelerated and charged into the densest part of the mechanical squid swarm as its subcritical reactor was forced past criticality.

BOOM—!

A massive high-temperature plasma fireball bloomed in the sky. The rapidly expanding fireball swiftly engulfed a dozen nearby mechanical squids, blasting a gap in the murderous ‘dark cloud.’

“Soldier,” Natalia closed her eyes, a pang of anguish rising in her heart.

As a commander, the death of a soldier under her command had long since become just another number on a casualty list. But to witness a soldier die up close was another matter entirely.

At that moment, less than half of the Wax Seal Squadron’s Royal Aegis units remained. After paying a heavy price, the mechanical squid swarm finally began to split its forces.

One part continued to engage the remaining HCPs, while the other turned and charged straight for the transport fleet through the gap created by the Royal Aegis units.

“All transports, be advised! The enemy is engaging the primary target!” Natalia ordered decisively. “Accelerate and break through! Reach the landing zone at all costs!”

The engine power of the fifteen aerospace transports instantly surged to maximum. Their blue plasma contrails stretched long behind them as the pilots, disregarding flight safety, began to maneuver the massive aircraft at low altitude.

But even so, they were powerless against the attack speed of the biological weapons.

The first wave of violet-red energy beams arrived.

Transport Twelve’s left wing was hit. The metal armor melted through instantly, and the aircraft began to roll. The pilot desperately tried to correct its course, but the damage was too severe, leaving them no choice but to attempt an emergency landing.

“Transport Twelve making an emergency landing! Repeat, Transport Twelve making an emergency landing!”

Next was Transport Fourteen. Its rear engine was torn apart by a mechanical squid’s tentacle. Losing power, the transport traced an arc of thick smoke before plunging headfirst into the dense forest below, culminating in a massive explosion.

The battle was on the verge of collapse.

Natalia gripped the support bar by the porthole tightly. She watched as her carefully trained soldiers fell one by one, watched as those loyal pilots sacrificed themselves to protect the transport fleet, and the rage in her heart boiled like magma.

“How much farther?” she asked again.

“Forty seconds! Commander! We’re almost there!” The Pilot’s voice was now trembling.

At this most critical moment, a new threat appeared on the distant horizon—more swarms of biological combat weapons were converging from all directions, a black tide that blotted out half the sky.

Natalia’s heart sank.

Their remaining forces were completely incapable of handling an attack of this scale. Perhaps they could reach the ground, but the cost might be everyone’s lives.

“Prepare for a final push!” she gritted her teeth, giving the order for a desperate, all-or-nothing charge.

But in that moment of despair, a bolt of blue lightning as thick as a celestial pillar suddenly shot up from the core area of the royal court!

The lightning writhed and twisted in the air as if it were alive, emitting terrifying, heart-stopping psionic waves.

As it neared the clusters of biological combat weapons, the bolt of lightning instantly split into countless smaller arcs, forming a giant net that enveloped every single unit in the sky!

In the flash of electric light, the ferocious biological weapons fell from the sky one after another, as if judged by a god of thunder.

Their psionic crystals shattered, their tentacles twitched spasmodically, and they ultimately turned into charred husks that rained down upon the ground.

The entire sky was cleared in a matter of seconds, leaving only a few damaged Royal Aegis units wavering in the air.

“What is…” Natalia’s eyes widened, watching the scene before her in disbelief.

“Commander! Detecting an ultra-high intensity psionic reaction!” a surviving pilot’s shocked voice came over the channel. “The energy level… My god, this reading…”

Natalia’s heart leaped.

She had only ever seen this level of psionic attack, this display of precise and ferocious power, from one person.

“Amber,” she whispered the name.

If it’s really him, then Her Majesty should still be safe, Natalia reassured herself, trying once more to locate Agnes, but still received no signal.

Finally, she shook her head, abandoning the attempt, and pulled herself together. “All units! Descend immediately! Our people are waiting for us down there!”

The psionic lightning roamed the sky, striking down the survivors trying to escape in mid-air.

Aided by this sudden intervention, the surviving aerospace transports and Royal Aegis units were able to reach their designated landing zone safely.

The bay doors opened, and fully-armed Royal Guard soldiers poured out like a tide, quickly establishing a defensive perimeter on the alien soil.

After disembarking their troops, the aerospace transports took off again, using their variable auxiliary thrusters to circle at low altitude, deploying their ground-attack weapons from beneath their fuselages.

Natalia was the last to exit the transport, plasma halberd in hand. She looked up at the burning Elven Royal Court in the distance, a determined fire in her eyes.

“Your Majesty, I’m here.”

Chapter 813: Your Majesty! Forgive My Tardy Arrival!

Deep within the forests of Aldaram, near the Elven Royal Court, Natalia stepped onto a soft layer of decaying leaves, each footfall accompanied by a faint rustle.

The impenetrable canopy fractured the sky into countless fragments, and mottled light danced across her tactical faceplate.

The density of the vegetation here far surpassed that of any human world. Towering trees, often dozens of meters in diameter, were entwined with蛇-like vines, forming a natural, three-dimensional labyrinth.

“This blasted jungle environment… It’s making me feel like the trees are about to start speaking Elvish.”

Natalia grumbled over the internal communications channel as her tactical faceplate continuously scanned the complex terrain around them. The low thrum of aerospace transport engines could be heard from above the canopy, but after finding clearings to drop off the Royal Guard soldiers, the steel behemoths could only circle overhead.

“Stay alert. Continue to advance.”

She gave the command, and the roughly two companies of Royal Guard soldiers behind her immediately adjusted their formation. Their heavy powered armor seemed particularly cumbersome in the dense forest, and the whine of their hydraulic joints was especially pronounced in the silence.

The unit advanced slowly in the direction of the psionic lightning burst from earlier. Everyone’s nerves were stretched taut. Inwardly, Natalia was extremely anxious, but reason told her she had to remain restrained.

After all, this was the capital of the Thousand Stars Empire. Besides the enemy, there were also many elven civilians. If an incident of friendly fire on civilians occurred, it would undoubtedly become a very troublesome problem.

“Moving targets spotted ahead!” a scout’s voice crackled over the channel. “Identifying now!”

Natalia immediately raised her right fist, signaling the entire unit to halt, then moved forward cautiously.

Through the gaps in the leaves, she saw a group of elves moving through the woods. They were dressed in magnificent robes, their expressions terrified. They were clearly fleeing civilians.

“Targets identified as non-combatants. All clear.”

Natalia nodded at the report and used hand signals to direct her unit to bypass the panicked group of elves.

But just then, a relatively young Royal Guard soldier from the second company suddenly raised his weapon—he had spotted a glowing device hanging from one of the elves’ waists, and his tactical faceplate showed a suspicious energy reading.

“Hold it!”

The 2nd Company Commander promptly stopped him with a raised hand, tapping him on the helmet. “Don’t be so jumpy. That’s just a unique psionic lighting device used by the elves.”

The young soldier, who had only recently been transferred to the Royal Guard, slowly lowered his weapon, his forehead already beaded with cold sweat. Having just survived an emergency crash landing and now being in this completely unfamiliar, high-pressure environment, even a well-trained Royal Guard soldier was susceptible to errors in judgment.

The unit continued its advance, and similar situations occurred one after another.

Every time they encountered elven civilians, the soldiers had to conduct complex identification procedures, which drastically slowed their pace. Natalia’s patience was wearing thin; she knew that for the trapped Her Majesty Agnes, time was life.

Fortunately, some good news soon arrived over the comms channel.

“Commander! Open ground ahead.”

After the scouts confirmed it was safe, the main force carefully passed through the last stretch of dense forest, and the view suddenly opened up.

A wide, traditional stone-paved avenue appeared in their field of vision, lined with exquisite statues and luminous plants. According to the map she had hastily downloaded back at Regalia Fortress, Natalia knew this was ‘Royal Court Avenue.’

And at the end of this stone avenue, the main complex of the Elven Royal Court glittered in the morning light, but the constantly rising plumes of smoke and flashes of fire indicated that a fierce battle was underway.

Soon, a tense report came from the scouts over the comms: “Armed units detected!”

Agnes moved to the front of the unit and looked into the distance through her sensors. Near the end of the avenue, a full-strength elven unit was deployed.

About three hundred strong, they were all equipped with standard psionic combat armor and wielded various standard-issue psionic weapons. These elven soldiers had skillfully occupied advantageous terrain, using the statues and decorative structures along the road to form a defensive line.

“Everyone take cover! Await orders!” Natalia commanded swiftly, while also having her communications specialist continue trying to contact Agnes. They were now close to the Elven Royal Court’s main complex, near enough for a signal to get through.

This attempt finally bore fruit. A long-awaited voice came through the communications channel—Agnes’s, slightly weary but still resolute.

“Lord Natalia, you’ve arrived?”

“Your Majesty!” Natalia was trembling with excitement. “What is your current position?!”

“We are near the main entrance to the Royal Court. Mr. Amber is leading us toward Royal Court Avenue, but it seems there’s an enemy force blocking our path…”

Hearing Agnes’s words, Natalia instantly realized that the enemy force she had just spotted was the very same one blocking Her Majesty’s path.

“Understood, Your Majesty! We are currently approaching this enemy force. Please find cover with Mr. Amber. I will lead the Royal Guard to break through and rendezvous with you!”

While Natalia and Agnes were speaking, the integrated sensors of a Royal Aegis unit detected an energy signature in the distance.

Through the magnified optical lens, the pilot soon saw a group of figures rushing out from the Royal Court’s main entrance. The leading figure radiated an intense psionic glow—the unique sign of a high-level psionic user’s external energy emission.

The mech’s targeting system also quickly identified Agnes, the highest priority protection target.

“Target confirmed!” the HCP pilot’s voice came through the channel. “Her Majesty has been spotted at the main entrance of the Royal Court, straight-line distance of 1300 meters!”

Natalia was ecstatic. She knew that as long as she broke through the elven interception force ahead, she could rendezvous with Her Majesty.

Amber was also preparing to launch a coordinated psionic attack, but just as he was about to act, Agnes grabbed his arm.

“Mr. Amber, perhaps you should conserve your psionic reserves for now. We may face even more dangerous enemies later.”

“But with just Natalia and her forces…”

“Please, have faith in her and my Royal Guard.”

Hearing Agnes’s words over the comms channel, Natalia took a deep breath, the flames of battle igniting in her eyes.

Since Her Majesty had such faith in her and the Royal Guard, she would be the one to open a path for them all.

“First Company veterans!”

“Here!”

“Prepare to charge!”

“Yes, Commander!” the veterans responded in perfect unison, without a hint of hesitation.

“Second Company, prepare providing covering fire!”

“Understood!”

After giving her orders, Natalia tightened her grip on her plasma halberd. The weapon’s bluish-white blade instantly activated with a low hum.

The two shield-bearing veterans near her immediately closed in, raising heavy composite shields held by extra mechanical arms, ready for combat.

“Wax Seal Squadron, fire preparation!”

The five remaining Royal Aegis units of the Wax Seal Squadron simultaneously raised their heavy particle cannons, aimed at key positions in the elven defensive line, and began to charge.

The surge in energy was immediately detected by the elves on their makeshift line. They had been watching the Royal Court, but now they swiveled their guns around.

“First Company veterans, with me, charge!”

At Natalia’s command, she led from the front, bursting out of the concealing woods. The plasma halberd traced a blue arc in her hand. After covering a short distance with strides too fast for the naked eye to follow, the auxiliary thrusters on her heavy powered armor kicked in at full power, launching her toward the enemy lines like a cannonball.

Two shield-bearing veterans followed close behind, their massive shields forming a mobile fortress for the trio.

Following them, the veterans of the first company formed a wedge formation and charged in their wake.

“Fire!”

Ten heavy particle cannons roared to life. Bluish-white particle streams tore through the air, striking the elven defensive line directly. The explosions instantly engulfed the elven positions along with several statues on either side of the avenue, sending shrapnel flying like rain.

The elven soldiers immediately returned fire. A dense volley of purplish-red psionic beams shot toward them, but Natalia and her unit’s psionic shields absorbed the brunt of the attack. Pale blue energy barriers nullified most of the damage, allowing the charging force to press on.

“Marking coordinates. Requesting air support!”

The second company’s fire support coordinator quickly transmitted the coordinates of the elven positions to the aerospace transports circling above. A few seconds later, a whistling sound came from above the canopy as large-caliber high-explosive shells and rockets pierced through the leaves and fell like meteors.

A continuous series of deafening explosions turned the entire Royal Court Avenue into a sea of fire. The elven soldiers’ formation was utterly shattered, and the survivors scrambled for cover.

Natalia seized the opportunity, accelerating abruptly and plunging into the enemy ranks.

The plasma halberd in her hands danced in deadly arcs. Each full swing claimed the life of an elven soldier, its plasma edge easily slicing through psionic shields and armor, carving a bloody trail across the battlefield.

So this is the combat prowess of an ordinary elven soldier? Seems they’re nothing special.

The thought flashed through Natalia’s mind. Around her, the roars of the Royal Guard veterans echoed across the battlefield.

“For Her Majesty!”

Heavy powered armor crashed into psionic combat armor. Metal and psionic energy clashed, and the entire avenue instantly became a meat grinder. But the outcome was never in doubt—the heavily armored Royal Guard, masters of close-quarters combat, demonstrated overwhelming superiority in the chaotic melee.

Just ten minutes later, the elven interception force was completely routed. The survivors scattered and fled, and the end of Royal Court Avenue was secured by the Royal Guard.

“Your Majesty!” Natalia saw the familiar figure in the distance, and an indescribable excitement surged through her.

Flames and thick smoke billowed across Royal Court Avenue. The acrid smell of plasma scorching metal and the sweet scent of elven blood filled the air.

The heavy footsteps of the Royal Guard soldiers in their powered armor crushed the stone slabs and weapon fragments underfoot. The roar of electromagnetic rifles and the hum of combat weapons wove a symphony of death.

They were the Empire’s blade, and at this moment, they were carving a bloody path for their Empress Regnant in the most direct and brutal way possible.

The plasma halberd in Natalia’s hand still hummed, its blade dripping with a dried, unknown liquid. Without pausing, she strode through the devastated battlefield.

Not far away, Amber was protecting Agnes, Franklin, Isabelle, and the others as they emerged from behind a toppled pillar, flanked by a few surviving elven guards.

Agnes’s hair was slightly disheveled and her face was smudged with dirt, but her gaze was still firm, tinged with exhaustion yet full of hope.

When her eyes met Natalia’s, no words were needed. A deep trust and understanding flowed silently between them.

“Your Majesty! Forgive my tardy arrival!”

Natalia dropped to one knee, the knee joint of her powered armor striking the ground with a dull thud. She bowed her head, her voice thick with suppressed excitement and fear.

“Rise, Lord Natalia.”

Agnes’s voice was weary but still full of strength. She reached out and gently helped her Royal Guard Commander to her feet. “You came at just the right time.”

Natalia stood up. Her powered armor’s sensors quickly scanned Agnes, and only after confirming she was unharmed did she turn her gaze to Amber with a slight nod. “Thank you for keeping Her Majesty safe, Mr. Amber.”

Amber returned a short, firm nod in greeting, his attention already focused on their surroundings.

“The resistance here has been cleared, but only temporarily. The main force of those unknown rebels is still besieging the Royal Court’s core and trying to wipe us out. We must leave this place as soon as possible.”

Natalia nodded, then after a moment’s hesitation, asked the crucial question.

“Mr. Amber, how did the situation turn out like this?”

It was a surviving elven Royal Court Guard squad leader who answered her. His silver-white armor was battered, and his face was etched with unconcealable grief and fury. “It was the Queen! She gathered a group of extremists from somewhere and launched a surprise attack while the Phoenix King and the visiting delegates were in council at the Sanctuary!”

“The Queen???”

Just as a bewildered Natalia was about to say more, a heart-stopping chill fell over everyone without warning. It was not a physical cold, but a tremor that originated from the depths of their souls.

The color drained from Amber’s face. He jerked his head up, looking toward the top of the massive archway at the main entrance of the Elven Royal Court.

There, a figure had silently appeared.

He wore a magnificent suit of dark-gold psionic battle armor, with visible psionic energy flowing across its surface. He wore no helmet, revealing a handsome but utterly cold face. His long silver hair floated eerily in the windless air.

The suddenly-appeared elf just stood there, his gaze sweeping contemptuously over the people below, as if looking at a colony of ants.

“Barbarians of a lesser race…” His voice was not loud, but it carried clearly to every ear, filled with a high-and-mighty arrogance and icy killing intent. “Your farce ends here.”

As he finished speaking, the air around them began to distort. The wreckage of destroyed statues, the shattered jade floor tiles, and even the corpses of the rebel soldiers on the ground began to tremble slightly, then slowly levitated into the air.

“Prince Valerius! Even him… How is this possible…”

The surviving elven Royal Court Guard squad leader cried out, his face a mask of disbelief.

Amber had no time to ponder who this prince was. He quickly waved for everyone to find cover and said, “This is a high-level psionic user. All of you, fall back. I’ll handle him.”

Amber took a step forward, and arcs of pure blue electricity began to crackle around his body, mirroring the psionic lightning on the other elf.

Two distinctly different, powerful psionic auras collided in the air, creating waves of invisible ripples that made the surrounding Royal Guard soldiers feel short of breath. The sensors in their powered armor blared with piercing alarms.

“Oh?”

On the archway, the elf—Prince Valerius himself—curled his lips into a cruel smile.

“To think that a creature such as yourself could be born among these filthy lesser races.”

He slowly raised a hand and aimed it at Amber.

The next second, the ground of the entire Royal Court Avenue erupted violently. Countless massive stone tiles, like sharp blades manipulated by an unseen giant hand, transformed into a deadly torrent, hurtling toward Amber and his group from all directions!

Amber’s eyes narrowed. Blue psionic energy erupted from him, forming a translucent energy barrier in front of his body.

The torrent of rubble slammed into the barrier, creating a deafening roar as energy and matter collided, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.

Natalia and the Royal Guard soldiers immediately formed a shield wall, protecting the others securely in the center and deflecting the stray fragments that managed to get past the barrier.

Through the dust, Amber’s silhouette remained standing straight and tall.

Chapter 814: The Final Return

The ground of Royal Court Avenue cracked and shattered amidst violent tremors. Under the surge of Prince Valerius’s psionics, a torrent of dust and debris blotted out the sky, sweeping madly toward Amber.

However, facing the strongest psionic user he had ever encountered, Amber felt not the slightest fear.

In a duel between high-level psionic users, one’s state of mind was often more crucial than power itself. The slightest wavering could lead to defeat.

A legendary figure once said, “A believing heart is your magic.”

And confidence was a psionic user’s sharpest weapon.

So what truly made Amber frown at this moment wasn’t the world-destroying offensive before him, but the identity of his attacker.

Prince Valerius.

As memories of his previous life churned wildly in the depths of his mind, the name finally became clear.

The Phoenix King’s own brother, one of the noblest royals in the Thousand Stars Empire by blood.

In the game of his previous life, when players unlocked the map for the Thousand Stars Empire and entered the main questline for the elves, this handsome elf, who looked strikingly like Orlando Bloom, was the primary quest giver throughout the entire process.

His looks appealed to everyone, combined with his formidable power, noble status, and excellent performance in the story. And, of course, the generous quest rewards.

All these factors combined made Prince Valerius a popular NPC in the game, and he consistently ranked in the top three of Starry Sky Online’s character popularity polls.

That was why, even when Salieh risked her life to send back a warning about a traitor in the Thousand Stars Empire, and even when the Queen and the assassins suddenly turned on the Phoenix King, Amber had never imagined that the Phoenix King’s own brother would be involved.

Because this meant it wasn’t a simple case of infiltration, but that something was gravely wrong with the entire Empire. Otherwise, why would the Phoenix King’s most trusted love and blood kin raise their blades against him?

These thoughts flashed through Amber’s mind like lightning, while only a moment passed in the outside world.

In the eyes of Natalia, Agnes, and the others, Prince Valerius, hovering in the air, had merely lifted his hand contemptuously, and the entire Royal Court Avenue, which carried tens of thousands of years of elven glory, became his weapon.

Countless massive stones, statue fragments, and stone tiles were torn and twisted by an invisible force, converging into deadly tornadoes that engulfed Amber’s figure with air-rending shrieks.

BOOM—!

The deafening roar nearly tore at everyone’s eardrums. A violent shockwave sent everything around flying. Even the Royal Guard soldiers forming the shield wall had their heavy powered armor pushed back several meters, plowing deep furrows into the ground.

Dust filled the air, obscuring everything.

Prince Valerius remained suspended above the archway, his dark gold battle armor flowing with a cold psionic radiance, like a deity judging the world.

He seemed quite satisfied with his masterpiece, and the cruel smile on his lips grew more pronounced.

But Amber did not retaliate.

Amidst that devastating attack, the others saw no flicker of blue lightning, nor did they feel any ripples of resistant energy.

Agnes’s heart felt as if it were being squeezed by an icy hand. She subconsciously took a step forward, her lips trembling slightly.

She didn’t dare to imagine the worst-case scenario. Could Amber, whom she had always considered her best partner and collaborator, have been defeated so powerlessly?

Beside her, however, Isabelle calmly stared at the dust cloud ahead.

Through their long time together, and especially after the battle with the Starry Sky Dragon, she had developed an almost morbid confidence in Amber. She believed that not even this terrifying enemy could defeat him.

Besides, Amber had told her many times about a certain “law.”

That is… no harm from smoke.

The next second, a sharp sonic boom tore through the battlefield’s clamor!

Before anyone could react, a blurry black shadow shot out like a cannonball, bursting fiercely from the core of the billowing smoke!

With a speed nearing teleportation, the black shadow shot straight toward Prince Valerius on the archway in the blink of an eye!

This sudden turn of events made the look of arrogance on Prince Valerius’s face freeze instantly. He instinctively manifested a psionic barrier in front of himself, but the black shadow was simply too fast, so fast that it exceeded the limits of his reaction time.

BANG!!!

With a dull thud like a battering ram striking a city gate, the black shadow accurately struck Prince Valerius in the chest.

The psionic barrier shattered like glass upon the violent impact. The dark gold psionic armor caved in with a crack, and countless fine fractures spread out like a spiderweb.

Prince Valerius let out a muffled grunt and was sent flying backward like a broken kite, crashing violently into a tall, pointed tower behind him and bringing it down.

As the dust settled, Amber’s figure was revealed. He floated in mid-air, surrounded by lingering wisps of blue psionic lightning.

He had seized the moment his opponent let his guard down, compressing pure psionic energy into a single point to break the elven “stereotype” that duels between high-level psionic users should be elegant exchanges of power, using the simplest and most brutal physical means.

The “warrior prince style” could only ever be used to suppress opponents far weaker than oneself. When your enemy was close to you in strength, a close-range attack that focused all power on a single point was the most efficient method of attack.

Prince Valerius struggled to his feet from the rubble, a look of pain mixed with fury appearing on his handsome face for the first time. But before he could recover, Amber’s figure had already vanished from his spot.

At that moment, the rhythm of the battle was forcibly shifted into bloody close-quarters combat.

The fight between the two high-level psionic users fully erupted. They transformed into two entangled streams of light, zipping madly through the entire royal court complex.

Whether it was the naked eye of Agnes and the others or the sensors of the Royal Guard soldiers and the HCP, it was difficult to track their figures. All anyone could hear were the sporadic sonic booms echoing from within the buildings.

This was the first time Amber had unleashed the full power of a Level Seven psionic user in close combat.

His attacks were wide and powerful, each punch and kick containing terrifying force capable of shattering mountains. Blue psionic energy surged out violently and directly, interspersed with blasts of psionic lightning.

After being caught off guard initially, Prince Valerius quickly adjusted. He soon matched Amber’s tempo, constantly predicting and countering his moves.

But it was clear that he was still completely suppressed for the time being. His multiple attempts to create distance failed, forcing him to fight Amber within his opponent’s “comfort zone.”

To those around them, their battle was nothing short of a moving natural disaster.

Exquisite halls built from psionic crystals and moonstones collapsed with a roar from their collisions. Hanging gardens cultivating rare plants were instantly vaporized by the shockwaves of stray energy.

In just a few short minutes, the structures that symbolized the glorious history and artistic achievements of the elven race were reduced to a field of burning ruins.

For the bystanders, this was no longer a battle but the wrath of gods from mythology, putting everything mortal to the torch.

“Unidentified organized units spotted! Three o’clock! Three o’clock!”

Just as Natalia and the others were engrossed by the fierce battle in the sky, a warning from a sentry pulled her back to reality.

In the distance, at the corners of several streets, large numbers of armed elven troops reappeared.

They wore the standard armor of the royal court garrison, but the psionic weapons in their hands began to charge without hesitation. The sensorily-acute Agnes could even easily detect the cold killing intent emanating from them.

Clearly, these were not the long-awaited elven reinforcements, but new enemies.

Realizing this, Agnes nodded to Natalia, whose orders immediately rang out clearly in the communication channel.

“First company, shield wall cover! Second company, free fire, suppress them! Wax Seal Squadron, prioritize eliminating enemy heavy firepower units! Air wing, await orders, prepare to provide ground fire support!”

The Royal Guard soldiers moved swiftly. The heavy composite shields once again formed a line of steel, and the roars of electromagnetic rifles and the booms of heavy particle cannons instantly thundered across the battlefield as a dense net of firepower rained down on the advancing enemies.

This overwhelming barrage immediately halted the momentum of the distant elven unit.

The surviving Elven Royal Court Guard squad leader let out a furious, grief-stricken roar. He led his remaining dozens of guards in a charge toward the flank of the Royal Guard’s defense line. Using their familiarity with the terrain and elven combat styles, they began to attack the rebels who were attempting to flank them.

The flames of war were once again ignited on the ground.

Meanwhile, beyond Aldaram’s emerald sky, in the cold, silent orbits of space, the atmosphere was just as tense.

The massive Regalia Fortress floated silently. It was surrounded not only by the Star Dragon Empire’s escort fleet but also by the accompanying Federation fleet brought by Franklin, who had come to rendezvous, and the regrouped elven capital garrison fleet.

The three forces formed a temporary allied front, silently watching the planet plunged into civil war.

However, this brief tranquility was soon shattered.

Space tore open like a ripped curtain. One after another, warp exits opened in the distance, and elven warships bearing different emblems emerged from them, converging into massive fleets—they belonged to the immensely powerful great families of the Thousand Stars Empire.

They had rushed here to “come to the Emperor’s aid” after receiving the news.

However, after these fleets arrived, apart from Allenita’s Yuge family and a few other families close to the Phoenix King, the rest neither contacted the garrison fleet nor revealed their stance.

They simply fanned out quietly, occupying different orbital positions, like a pack of sharks that had smelled blood, surrounding the entire capital star sector.

The arrival of these family fleets instantly made the already complicated situation treacherous and unpredictable.

In the core command room of the Regalia Fortress, Lilith watched the ever-increasing number of unidentified signals on the tactical star map. The blue light in her android eyes, which signified calmness, began to flicker at an unprecedented rate.

She knew the situation was sliding into the abyss of total chaos.

—

In an unknown star sector, countless light-years away from Aldaram, a deep blue light tore through the darkness.

The flagship of the Atlas exploration fleet, The Eternity, still bore the scorched wounds of multiple hits on its broadside—a rare sight for an Endless-class super-flagship to suffer such heavy damage in battle.

Just moments ago, the entire exploration fleet had forcibly broken through the blockade of an elven fleet and entered warp, at the cost of six destroyers and frigates and four cruisers being sunk, with multiple capital ships, including The Eternity, suffering heavy damage.

The exploration fleet lacked the “great equalizer” fire support of an Artificial Celestial Fortress, and only The Eternity had been refitted with the latest psionic shield before departure. Therefore, when facing a near-equal number of elven warships, the exploration fleet was actually at a considerable disadvantage.

This was especially true given that The Eternity’s super-heavy purification beam emitter, a weapon they had heavily relied on in previous battles, had lost its firepower advantage against elven warships equipped with psionic shields.

So, although the Fleet Commander had tried to maintain distance throughout the battle, employing kiting tactics to wear down the elven fleet, the exploration fleet began to sustain combat losses as the enemy fleet continuously closed in at combat speed, and they soon found themselves at a clear disadvantage.

If The Eternity hadn’t forcibly overloaded its psionic shield at the cost of shattering all its psionic crystals and destroying its entire psionic processing bay to lead the fleet in a reverse charge out of the encirclement, they might have all perished here today.

So, the moment the warp channel formed, and the chaotic battlefield outside the windows was instantly stretched into a serene, shimmering tunnel, the crew on The Eternity’s bridge erupted in suppressed cheers of survival.

However, Salieh, the Fleet Commander, seemed not to hear any of it.

Her straight back stood before the main console. Her slightly pale face beneath her custom helmet showed no joy, her eyes locked onto the vast amount of data and information displayed inside her helmet—critical information brought back from that lonely Forerunner monitoring station at the cost of heavy damage to her exploration fleet.

Soon, Salieh delegated all fleet affairs to her next-in-command and left the bridge for her personal quarters.

The door to her private room slid shut silently behind her, blocking out all the noise from outside.

This was Salieh’s Sanctuary aboard The Eternity. She removed her helmet and sat in a strangely shaped chair within the room, placing her soft, leg-like tentacles into specialized connection ports as she lay back.

In an instant, countless waterfalls of light rushed before her eyes. This was all the data copied from the Forerunner monitoring station, as vast as a sea of smoke and as chaotic as a storm.

Countless meaningless symbols, fragmented energy spectrum charts, and incomplete log entries intertwined to form a chaotic tapestry incomprehensible to mortals.

Salieh’s consciousness sank into it, diving into this unfathomably deep ocean of information. Her brain, aided by her soft, leg-like tentacles, which possessed distributed thinking capabilities, began operating at high speed, filtering, reorganizing, and piecing together these seemingly unrelated fragments.

Time ticked by, second by second. The initial analysis confirmed her worst fears.

There was indeed a massive shadow organization within the Thousand Stars Empire. They were not simply opportunists but a secret society that had existed for tens of thousands of years.

They had infiltrated every aspect of the elven race in a near-parasitic manner, secretly studying, misappropriating, and even attempting to control the forbidden legacies left behind by the Forerunners.

This faction was, one could say, the biggest mole in this part of the universe.

However, as her analysis deepened, Salieh’s expression grew increasingly grave.

She discovered that amidst this sea of information, from tens of thousands of years ago to the present, one term appeared repeatedly.

And this term gave her an inexplicable sense of dread.

“The Final Return.”

Chapter 815: What was your mission in

To Salieh, the phrase ‘The Final Return’ was very much in the style of her Jeram people—obscure, mysterious, and imbued with a sense of fatalism.

Or as Amber would usually describe it: not speaking plainly.

So, upon realizing that ‘The Final Return’ was likely connected to the ‘ending’ she knew of, she began to concentrate, activating the support of The Eternity’s computing power to search for what she wanted within the sea of information before her.

The files copied from the observation station’s control hub were of a structural complexity that would be utterly inconceivable to a human.

This was because it possessed both the esoteric complexity of elven secret documents and codes, and was mixed with the cold, inhuman, hyper-dimensional logic of the Forerunners.

Therefore, every search Salieh conducted was like struggling through an endless bog with her mind. This drastically increased the rate at which she expended her energy, until she had no choice but to summon a mechanical arm and insert an IV tube to supply herself with stimulants and nutrient solution.

After an unknown amount of time, just as Salieh was beginning to feel mentally and physically exhausted, she finally found the key information amidst the massive data with the assistance of The Eternity’s control personality, piecing together the content she was looking for.

There was no lengthy text, only a star map and a brief note.

At the center of the star map was, unmistakably, the capital planet of the Thousand Stars Empire—Aldaram.

In other locations on the map, many inconspicuous celestial bodies were marked. With Aldaram as their core, they formed a supermassive array that Salieh had never seen before.

The energy source for this array was none other than Aldaram’s planetary core. But this also meant that if the array were to be activated, Aldaram itself would become fuel for its operation.

Salieh looked closely at the colossal celestial array and quickly recognized the principles behind its construction. This technology, which surpassed the understanding of ordinary civilizations, clearly originated from her Jeram people.

Moreover, for all these years, this array had been sitting in plain sight out in the cosmos, yet no other civilization would have ever discovered its existence had Salieh not seen this annotated star map today.

As the vast knowledge possessed by the Repository Steward was sifted through in Salieh’s mind, she finally completed her deconstruction and identification of the celestial array.

“A Spacetime Return Beacon. Of course. I should have thought of it sooner.”

She murmured to herself in a daze, a chill shooting up her spine to the crown of her head, feeling as if the blood in her veins was about to freeze.

And the cold note below the star map completely shattered her last shred of hope:

“When the Phoenix’s radiance is extinguished, the throne of old collapses, and The Empire falls into irrevocable civil war, forcefully activate the ‘Spacetime Return Beacon’.

With Aldaram as the sacrifice and the souls of billions of our kin as fuel, send forth a guiding call to the other side of the sea of stars, to our true masters, for their return.

The Old God will arrive, purging all that is impure and rebellious. The Empire shall gain eternal rebirth in flame and glory.”

Salieh shot up from her chair, her weak legs causing her to stumble and knock over a nearby equipment rack.

She realized what was happening on Aldaram wasn’t a coup by traitors trying to seize power at all.

It was a long-planned sacrifice!

Those madmen, those traitors hidden in the high command of the Thousand Stars Empire, had a backup plan from the very beginning.

If their plan to seize power succeeded, they would kill the leader of the human world on the side, become the new masters of the Thousand Stars Empire, complete the ‘trigger’ through normal means, and then await the Advent of the Forerunners.

But if the plan failed, they would flip the entire board without hesitation! They would use the ‘Spacetime Return Beacon’ to summon the Forerunbers back ahead of schedule!

That civilization which created everything, destroyed everything, and ultimately vanished from this universe—regarded by all civilizations as the ultimate mystery and the greatest fear!

And as Salieh saw it, with Amber present as the ‘greatest variable’, this group of elves’—or rather, these traitors of the current universe’s—conventional plan to seize power was highly likely to fail.

And the situation would become even worse as a result.

Salieh’s breathing grew ragged, her chest heaving violently. She finally understood why the Phoenix King was suddenly assassinated at this juncture, and why even his own brother was involved.

Because to these fanatics, the very existence of the Phoenix King, this ‘false king’ who attempted to resist the Forerunner civilization, was an act of blasphemous betrayal against their ‘god’.

They didn’t want reform or power; they wanted utter destruction and ‘rebirth’.

This was no longer a civil war within the Thousand Stars Empire. It was a tidal wave about to engulf the entire galaxy. Once the return beacon was activated, that ‘volcano’ that had lain dormant for a million years would be completely detonated!

“I must… I must warn them immediately!”

Salieh immediately left her room and hurried toward the bridge. But she knew that conventional communication was completely useless in hyperspace, and quantum entanglement communication couldn’t transmit over long distances, so they couldn’t contact Regalia Fortress at the moment.

But every second of delay could send the situation on Aldaram spiraling into a deeper abyss…

“Commander Ramos, order all ships to prepare to exit warp!”

The moment she stepped onto the bridge, Salieh went to Ramos’s side, her voice carrying an undeniable finality.

“Your Excellency Salieh?” Ramos’s voice was filled with astonishment. “We haven’t reached the designated waypoint yet. A forced exit is too risky! The fleet’s Warp Engines will be under immense strain and won’t be able to restart for some time. We’ll be stranded in an uncharted star sector!”

“Just execute the order! We have to get the message out as fast as possible, or it will all be too late!” Salieh’s tone didn’t waver in the slightest. She knew the dangers better than anyone, but transmitting the information was paramount.

Ramos moistened his dry lips, recalling the personal instructions Amber had given him before they set out—in an emergency, Salieh’s directives were to take top priority.

With that in mind, Ramos no longer hesitated and immediately issued the command to the fleet in warp.

The Eternity was the first to shudder violently. Warning lights flashed madly throughout the ship’s interior, and a piercing siren filled every corner.

Outside, the vibrantly colored tunnel of hyperspace suddenly twisted and tore apart. Violent energy turbulence, like countless invisible giant hands, pulled at the entire exploration fleet.

The ships following behind groaned in agony one after another, forcibly ejected from hyperspace under immense overload pressure.

Cold, unfamiliar starlight pierced the viewports. This was a dead, silent star sector that had never been marked on any star chart.

In the distance, a few dim stars emitted a faint light, like the gasps of the dying. The exploration fleet floated scattered in the void. The engines of several smaller ships were even emitting black smoke, clearly damaged during the forced exit.

Salieh had no time to check the fleet’s condition. The first thing she did was have the communications officer activate The Eternity’s main communication array:

“Listen, with the highest priority, send encrypted message packet A-7 to Regalia Fortress! At the same time, use the Atlas Group’s emergency communication channels to send top-level warnings to the Star Dragon Empire’s High Command and the Federation’s National Security Council respectively. The content is as follows: Drastic upheaval within the Thousand Stars Empire. The current safety of both nations’ leaders is unknown. Recommend immediate activation of the highest emergency protocols. Assemble armed forces and prepare for imminent combat!”

Once the command was sent, Salieh felt a wave of exhaustion. The soft, leg-like tentacles behind her head drooped limply.

She had done everything she could. The rest was up to Amber… and fate.

“Alright, we can start repairing the ships now~”

—

Aldaram, ruins of the Elven Royal Court.

The fierce battle between Amber and Prince Valerius had reached a fever pitch. Unlike the elegant exchanges and complex incantations favored by elven psionic users, Amber’s fighting style was filled with a savage and efficient pragmatism.

It was the fighting style of a utilitarian player, who sought results, not the process.

He abandoned long-range psionic duels, compressing and condensing the terrifying power of a Level Seven psionic user into pure point-to-point bursts.

As a certain Blondie once said: “Focus on one point and achieve mastery.”

Prince Valerius, in the heat of battle, grew increasingly alarmed. Amber’s fighting style was unheard of. The tricky attack techniques, the swift close-quarters bursts, and the psionic techniques interspersed throughout constantly suppressed his proud psionic control skills.

Perhaps his opponent couldn’t match the elven Psionic Masters in the use of psionic techniques, but the pressure from his attacks was suffocating.

He tried to create distance to re-establish his psionic field, but Amber clung to him like maggots to bone—or rather, like the Prince’s own shadow.

Boom!

Another psionic-infused whip kick slammed viciously against Prince Valerius’s blocking arms. His dark gold psionic armor groaned as if it couldn’t take any more.

The Prince let out a muffled grunt and retreated violently, but before he could steady himself, Amber’s figure closed in like a phantom. A precise elbow strike smashed heavily into his chest.

Crack!

The sound of armor shattering was accompanied by the crisp snap of bone. Prince Valerius’s eyes flew wide open as he spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs. The powerful psionics within his body instantly fell into disarray.

Amber gave him no chance to breathe, his hand chopping like a blade toward the nerve cluster in his neck.

The Prince’s vision went black, and he lost consciousness completely.

When Prince Valerius regained consciousness, he found himself imprisoned in a dark space.

The air was filled with a musty smell. His limbs were bound by fields of shimmering blue energy, and the psionics in his body were completely suppressed, like a dry riverbed.

He struggled for a moment, and the energy restraints instantly tightened, sending a wave of sharp pain through him.

“The underground prison of the Elven Royal Court… you people certainly know how to recycle waste.”

Prince Valerius looked at the several Royal Guard soldiers standing at the ready before him, his voice raspy as he glanced around.

However, these Royal Guard soldiers, clad in heavy powered armor with their psionic protection units activated, did not let their guard down just because the elven prince was restrained.

Through the previous battle, they knew very well what a terrifying existence this prince was. And Amber, who had captured this elven prince alive… The Royal Guard soldiers didn’t dare to think any further.

A heavy metal door slid open, and Natalia entered along with the squad leader of the Elven Royal Court guard. The latter walked directly up to Prince Valerius.

“Prince Valerius. Your accomplices, your plan. Tell us now, and perhaps you can still end this gracefully.”

The squad leader’s voice was cold, without a trace of warmth.

The Prince grinned, revealing a mocking smile stained with blood. “Gracefully? You traitors who collude with lesser races dare speak of grace? Your struggles are meaningless. The great moment is at hand! The radiance of the true god will cleanse this filthy universe!”

The elven squad leader took a step forward, his psionic armor making a soft scraping sound. “His Majesty… your own brother… he treated you well, Prince. Why did you betray him?”

“Betrayal?” Valerius roared with laughter, his voice filled with madness and contempt. “I am merely welcoming true glory! My foolish brother has long been deluded by you outsiders, forgetting the true mission of the elves! You will all soon understand that everything you are doing is only accelerating your own demise!”

His gaze swept over everyone with supreme contempt, as if he was prepared to die a martyr’s death.

He firmly believed that as long as he kept his mouth shut, the plan would not be exposed. For that supreme ideal, his personal sacrifice was insignificant.

“Then I can only apologize in advance.”

The elven squad leader picked up the potent psionic inhibitors and torture instruments placed in the cell and walked toward Prince Valerius without hesitation. Soon, only the Prince’s suppressed whimpers and the squad leader’s heavy breathing remained in the cell.

Sometime later, Amber and Agnes also arrived at the cell. Looking at Prince Valerius, who lay crumpled in a corner like a rag doll, Amber asked:

“Has His Highness the Prince not spoken yet?”

“No.” The elven squad leader nodded, his expression grave. He hadn’t expected the usually high and mighty prince to possess such an unyielding will even as a prisoner.

He casually picked Prince Valerius up and placed him back on the restraint chair in the middle of the cell. Then, without any hesitation, he struck him squarely with the mithril baton in his hand.

“What exactly is your plan in the Elven Royal Court?!”

“Haha… cough, cough… hahaha.”

Prince Valerius laughed weakly, then spat out a mouthful of bloody foam, his gaze toward the others in the cell filled with contempt.

“Is that all you’ve got? Hahaha…”

Amber ignored the prince’s taunts. He knew very well that the man was seeking death, so he simply watched him quietly, his gaze as sharp as a blade.

“It seems Your Highness is prepared to die for your ‘grand plan’.”

“It is my honor to sacrifice everything for the return of the true god!” Valerius lifted his head, his expression fanatical.

Amber nodded slightly, his calm tone carrying a heart-stopping chill. “Your willpower is strong, you’re indeed a tough man. These conventional methods clearly have no effect on you…”

He slowly raised his right hand. A piercing blue electric light shone from his fingertip, and unsettling energy fluctuations filled the air.

“What are you trying to do?” For some reason, Prince Valerius felt a sense of unease for the first time since entering the cell. The mocking look in Amber’s eyes sent a chill through his heart.

“Why, using a special technique reserved for high-level psionics, of course. Forcibly reading your memories~ It might be a little painful, and there’s a very high probability you’ll become a mindless husk… But, to prevent a greater disaster, I think it’s a small price to pay.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Valerius roared, a flicker of fear finally showing in his eyes.

He wasn’t afraid of death, but if the other party succeeded in reading his memories and obtaining the specific details of the plan, it would be a punishment far more terrifying to him than death.

Amber paid no heed to his roar. The electric light at his fingertip grew more intense, carrying a hollow aura as it slowly pressed toward Prince Valerius’s forehead.

An invisible barrier was torn apart. The Prince let out a bloodcurdling scream as the memories deep within his soul were brutally stripped away, piece by piece, by the violent psionic power.

Chapter 816: Regalia Fortress Is More than Just Big!

A bloodcurdling scream shattered the silence of the cell, no longer originating from physical pain, but the howl of a soul being forcibly torn and stripped away.

Prince Valerius’s proud head snapped back violently, his handsome face contorted into a monstrous grimace. His eyes were wide open but had lost all focus, as if he were witnessing the most terrifying sight in the world.

The psionic energy within his body was completely suppressed by Amber’s power, leaving him to powerlessly watch as his consciousness was invaded and churned by an overwhelmingly brutal force.

Natalia and the elven squad leader instinctively took half a step back as the sensors in their heavy powered armor and psionic battle armor simultaneously issued a ‘psionic overload’ warning.

“Isn’t this a bit too cruel?” the squad leader swallowed hard, speaking with lingering fear.

Natalia licked her dry lips. “Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“…”

Agnes stood a short distance away, listening to their a-dime-a-dozen, almost nonsensical exchange without comment.

She could sense that both Natalia and the elven squad leader were gripped by terror, and their conversation was more of a way to soothe their own frayed nerves than anything else.

She watched Amber’s calm profile. There was no anger on his face, no cruelty, only a focus so intense it was almost mechanical.

He was like a surgeon excising a malignant tumor—the process was bloody, but the purpose was pure.

This immense contrast sent a complex chill through her heart.

Prince Valerius’s screams gradually subsided, eventually turning into stifled whimpers before vanishing completely.

Amber retracted the psionic energy swirling around his fingertips. The blue glow in his eyes slowly receded, leaving behind a bottomless calm.

He released his grip, and Prince Valerius slumped from the restraint chair like boneless putty, collapsing to the ground.

The once-proud elven prince’s eyes were now vacant, a string of saliva drooling from the corner of his mouth. He made meaningless gurgling sounds, and the eyes that had once been filled with arrogance and fanaticism were now nothing but muddy pools of idiocy.

The Phoenix King’s own brother, a great elven prince, had been reduced to a drooling imbecile.

“To think that even he knew so little. The core of the plan is under the Queen’s direct control…”

Amber’s voice broke the deathly silence in the cell. He massaged his brow, sorting through the chaotic and violent memory fragments he had forcibly extracted from the prince’s mind.

“Their primary plan was to launch an assault while the Phoenix King was in conference with us, seize control of him and his supporters, and complete a de facto coup.”

Amber’s gaze shifted to Agnes. “Then, they would eliminate all the visiting human leaders, frame the Phoenix King for it, and use that as a pretext to fully embrace an extreme xenophobic stance. After that, they would proceed with another, deeper ‘Grand Plan’.”

“That plan has clearly failed,” Agnes said grimly, her eyes sweeping over Valerius on the floor. “But I’m sure they have a contingency plan.”

“Correct, and that’s precisely what worries me. Deep in his memories, I touched upon a far more insane contingency plan, but the information was vague, protected by several layers of mental barriers. By the time I forced my way through, the information had completely disintegrated. All I know is that if the coup fails, they will activate a plan that will have… irreversible consequences for everyone.”

Amber nodded, his expression grave.

Irreversible.

The word hung in the air like a great stone, weighing heavily on everyone’s heart. The atmosphere in the cell grew even more oppressive than before. An unknown threat was far more terrifying than a known enemy.

Just then, the communicator on the elven squad leader’s belt let out a series of urgent beeps.

“It’s the friendly forces emergency channel!”

The squad leader’s spirits lifted. He immediately stepped outside the cell and, with almost trembling hands, answered the call. A somewhat hoarse voice came through the device:

“…This is the Silvermoon Guard, Third Regiment! We’ve secured the west corridor of the Sanctuary! I repeat, we’ve secured the west corridor! The Queen’s—the Queen’s rebels have been temporarily repelled! His Majesty the Phoenix King, he…”

“How is His Majesty?” the squad leader asked anxiously.

“The battle between His Majesty and the Queen at the summit of the Sanctuary has come to a temporary close. Both sides are injured; neither gained an advantage,” the voice on the other end said, panting as if having survived a catastrophe. “Now, both sides are rallying their troops! The Queen has gathered all the extremists hidden within the royal court and the guards she turned. Their numbers are far greater than we imagined! We are also gathering loyalist forces. I predict an even larger battle will break out soon! What’s your position? We need support!”

The squad leader quickly reported his location and briefly explained the situation. After ending the call, he returned to Amber and Agnes, his face etched with worry, and looked at Amber with a hopeful gaze.

“Mr. Amber, Her Majesty Agnes, His Excellency Franklin… the situation is worse than we thought. This isn’t just an assault; it’s a full-scale civil war. We may need your support…”

Agnes walked over to Amber and asked in a low voice, “What do we do now? Our small force will be like a drop of water in boiling oil if we throw them in.”

“Then we’ll have to find a way to commit more forces. And it’s not like we don’t have them. But as guests, I think we should hear the ‘host’s’ opinion first.”

Amber paused, then looked at the squad leader. “Your Excellency, please find a way for us to establish direct contact with the Phoenix King.”

A short while later, a soft psionic beam converged before them, forming a slightly unstable holographic projection.

The tall, weary figure of the Phoenix King appeared. His magnificent robes, a symbol of royal power, were stained with dust and dried blood, and his once-brilliant golden hair seemed dull.

“My human friends…” The Phoenix King’s voice was filled with deep apology. “I am sorry for dragging you into the Thousand Stars Empire’s civil war. This should have been our problem to solve, yet our allies have been put in danger.”

“Your Majesty, now is not the time for that,” Agnes stepped forward. “Prince Valerius has confessed. We have reason to believe the Forerunners are behind this rebellion. If this is all as you described to us before, then this is no longer just your nation’s internal affair, but a crisis concerning the survival of all civilizations in this universe.”

The Phoenix King’s projection nodded slightly, a flash of pain and resolve in his eyes. “Yes. None of us have a path of retreat. But… what can I ask of you? The fighting here has already exceeded the scope of conventional warfare…”

His words hit the core of the problem. Among those present, aside from Amber, even self-preservation was a struggle on a battlefield dominated by high-level psionic users.

The Empire and Federation’s escort fleets did have ground forces, but their conventional weaponry was clearly ill-suited for a psionic warfare environment.

“We can help.”

Amber’s voice was not loud, but it instantly captured everyone’s attention. He walked up to the Phoenix King’s projection, his gaze meeting the elven monarch’s directly.

“But I have two conditions.”

A few elven nobles beside the Phoenix King showed a flicker of displeasure, but at a time like this, no one dared to voice any objection.

“Please, speak, Mr. Amber,” the Phoenix King gestured.

“First, I need your side to immediately find a way to restore stable communications between the ground and orbit. We need to contact our own fleets. Second, I need your authorization to allow a large-scale landing of human armed forces on Aldaram.”

The moment he finished, the elven nobles behind the Phoenix King erupted.

“Absurd! To allow a human army to set foot in the Holy City of Aldaram? That is a desecration of our Progenitors!”

“For tens of thousands of years, no outsider army has ever entered the royal court! This is absolutely unacceptable!”

The proud elves could not accept the proposal. Their traditions and honor would not allow their home world to be trampled by the war boots of other races, even if they were allies.

Although, Agnes’s Royal Guard had just been fighting fiercely moments ago…

“Enough!”

The Phoenix King snapped, silencing the arguments behind him. His gaze lingered on Amber’s face for a moment, as if trying to see through his calm exterior to his true intentions.

Finally, he slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, only the resolve of a monarch remained.

“I agree. Immediately organize all available psionic technicians. Spare no expense to open a communications channel to the garrison fleet! As for Mr. Amber’s second request… in the name of the Phoenix King, I authorize the landing of human combat troops on Aldaram.”

“Your Majesty!” the elven high officials behind him exclaimed, but the Phoenix King silenced them with a raised hand.

“Tradition is important,” his voice echoed in the empty corridor, “but if our home is destroyed, what will tradition have left to cling to?”

Agnes looked at Amber, a hint of confusion in her eyes. “Amber, even if our troops can land, their unsuitable equipment is a real problem. In a psionic warfare environment, the casualties for conventional forces would be unacceptably high.”

“Who said we’re using conventional forces?”

A meaningful smile touched the corners of Amber’s lips.

“Regalia Fortress isn’t just for show, you know. All those production sectors it’s carrying aren’t just decorations~”

He turned to Agnes and the silent Franklin. “As long as you both agree to concentrate the ground forces of your respective fleets and send them to Regalia Fortress, I guarantee that when they set foot on this land again, they will be wearing a new set of ‘clothes’ fit for this war.”

Only now did Agnes and Franklin truly understand the intended purpose behind Regalia Fortress’s design.

It was not just an indestructible mobile weapons platform, but a gargantuan frontline base that could be deployed to any front, integrating production, repair, and modification.

Under the Phoenix King’s strict orders and the elven technicians’ desperate efforts, a weak but stable signal finally pierced the psionic interference shrouding Aldaram, connecting with the anxious elven garrison fleet in orbit.

The communication link was quickly patched through, and the familiar icon of Lilith finally popped up on Amber’s personal terminal.

“Master! It’s so good to know you’re alright!” The android Lilith’s voice wasn’t as playful as her main body’s, but the slight ripple in her tone revealed she was not entirely without emotion.

“I’m fine~ Lilith, the top priority right now is for Regalia Fortress to begin executing the ‘Furnace’ Protocol. Order all industrial sectors of the fortress to enter maximum power operational state. Prepare to receive the ground forces of the Star Dragon Empire and the Federation to upgrade their equipment with ‘Psionic Warfare Specialization’! All production lines, three-shift system. I want to see efficiency!”

Lilith paused for a moment, then nodded.

“Understood, Master. The order has been relayed! Also… just now, we received a highest-priority encrypted data packet sent by The Eternity after a forced exit from warp, from His Excellency Salieh.”

Amber’s heart sank. A forced exit from warp? He immediately knew that the data packet Salieh had sent was no simple matter, or she wouldn’t have used such a dangerous and urgent method to transmit it.

Amber quickly reviewed the information in the packet. It collided and reassembled with the fragments he had seized from Prince Valerius’s mind.

Then, a complete and terrifying picture slowly unfolded before him.

In an instant, his face turned as pale as paper.

“So that’s how it is…” he muttered under his breath. “So, this was the real purpose…”

“Amber?” Agnes noticed his state and asked with concern.

Amber looked up, the calm in his eyes replaced by an unprecedented gravity.

He looked at everyone and said, word by word, “We all thought too simply. The coup was just their surface plan. Their real ace up the sleeve is a plan that could flip the entire board… a Sacrificial Plan.”

He laid out everything, the intelligence Salieh had risked her life to bring back, the plan called ‘The Final Return’.

A super-massive array centered on Aldaram, composed of countless hidden celestial bodies.

A ‘Spacetime Return Beacon’ to forcibly summon the Forerunners, powered by the planet’s core and fueled by the souls of billions of living beings.

When the Phoenix King’s light was extinguished, when The Empire fell into civil war, that would be the time for the beacon’s activation.

They didn’t want a new empire. They wanted to welcome the return of their so-called ‘true gods’, trading the destruction of their entire civilization for what they saw as an ‘eternal rebirth’.

Every single person who heard this plan, human and elf alike, felt a chill shoot from the soles of their feet to the top of their skulls.

This was no longer a simple war. This was the eve of the apocalypse.

“Now, we have no choice,” Amber’s gaze swept over everyone, finally landing on the Phoenix King’s projection. “We must assist you with all our might to win this civil war. Before they activate that damned beacon!”

In orbit above Aldaram, the backdrop of space was no longer a deathly darkness.

Warships bearing the golden dragon emblem of the Star Dragon Empire and the relatively plain vessels of the Federation converged like a swarm of returning bees upon the artificial celestial body that hung in the void like a miracle.

The massive deployment bays of Regalia Fortress opened one after another, and guidance beams pulled transport ships in for a smooth landing.

The bay doors slid open, and Star Dragon Royal Guard soldiers and Federation marines in standard-issue powered armor stepped onto the ground of the giant fortress, their faces filled with shock and solemnity.

They already knew what they were about to face and the mission they shouldered. No matter where they came from or whom they served…

At this moment, the ‘Empire dogs’ and ‘Federation pigs’ would all stand on the same frontline.

And in the depths of the fortress, a slumbering industrial behemoth had awakened.

Inside giant industrial sectors, each large enough to contain a small mountain range, tens of thousands of mechanical arms danced in the air like a reanimated iron forest. Searing plasma forges spewed dazzling light, melting high-strength alloys into liquid. Massive automated production lines rumbled to life with a deafening roar.

The soldiers’ powered armor was rapidly disassembled and sent down conveyor belts, to be recast with psionic-resistant materials, etched with complex energy-conducting patterns, and integrated with miniature psionic shield generators…

Piece by piece, conventional equipment designed for human-on-human conflict was being reforged into specialized armaments to combat psionics.

The entire Regalia Fortress had transformed into a colossal furnace of war, operating at a frenzied pace. In the cold expanse of space, with unprecedented efficiency, it was forging an army marching to its death, all to prevent the coming of the end.

Chapter 817: Too Many Traitors

Outside the emerald atmosphere of Aldaram, the cold void was filled with an unprecedented clamor. Upon the vast outer armor of the Regalia Fortress, massive deployment bay doors opened one after another.

Hundreds of assault-type aerospace transports poured out from within the fortress in a dense torrent, like a school of fish leaving the shelter of a coral reef.

Inside each transport were human or Romu soldiers who had just been re-equipped.

They hailed from different factions—the Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, the Atlas Group. Not long ago, they had even been enemies, but now they crouched in the same trench, fighting for the same goal.

Their modified and upgraded powered armor was covered in a new psionic-resistant coating. Intricate energy flow channels were faintly visible at the joints, and small psionic shield generators on their backs emitted a low hum.

All the soldiers sat in their respective seats. Most remained calm, but the Romu from the Atlas Group seemed somewhat agitated. Many seated near the edges pressed their faces against the portholes, eager to get a good look at the beautiful yet perilous planet below.

It was not only their next battlefield but also the capital of their homeland, a place many had dreamed of but never had the chance to set foot in.

“Have you gone mad?! Letting a fully formed human army enter Aldaram? And those Romu?! How are those servants qualified to step into the Capital!”

An furious hologram appeared on the bridge of The Morning Star, the flagship of the elven capital’s garrison fleet. The speaker was a representative of the Silver Leaf family, his ornate robes unable to conceal his agitation.

“This is a defilement of the Holy City! A trampling of our ten thousand years of glory! I demand that you stop them at once!”

The garrison fleet commander, an elf with a resolute expression, didn’t even raise an eyelid. He just stared coldly at the tactical star map, at the green dots representing the transport fleet moving toward the atmosphere.

“This is an edict of the Phoenix King. Does the Silver Leaf family wish to defy the King’s command?”

The commander’s voice was utterly devoid of emotion, yet it made the family representative’s expression freeze instantly.

The King’s command.

Those words seemed to possess a certain magic, making the air on the flagship’s bridge tense up. But in the next moment, a cold sneer flashed across the Silver Leaf representative’s face.

“The King’s command? It’s not worth a damn.”

As the representative’s words fell, the communication was cut.

Immediately after, the Silver Leaf family’s fleet began to change its heading. Their weapon firing axes aimed directly at another family’s fleet that had been maintaining a safe distance. The weapon arrays on their bows suddenly blazed with a blinding light.

There was no warning, no communication.

Dozens of golden energy beams tore through the void, striking with precision at the bows of the unsuspecting Crimson Maple family’s flagship and several of its capital ships.

The flagship’s psionic shield hadn’t even fully deployed before it was torn apart by the saturation attack. The ship’s bio-armor was rapidly disintegrated and stripped away, followed by a silent, violent explosion that blossomed into a gorgeous and deadly fireball in the vacuum of space.

“Enemy attack! It’s the Silver Leaf family! They’ve betrayed us!”

“We’re under attack! Repeat, we are under attack!”

The communication channels were instantly flooded with panicked screams and chaotic reports.

With the Silver Leaf family’s sudden attack as the signal, nearly half of the family fleets in orbit simultaneously turned their cannons on their kinsmen who were still observing, revealing their most savage fangs.

At the same time, an even denser cluster of warp signals flashed madly at the edge of the star sector.

An even larger mixed fleet swarmed out of the distorted space, their hulls emblazoned with the crest of the Queen’s family.

Without a doubt, these were enemy reinforcements!

Watching this unfold from her post on the Regalia Fortress, the Lilith android, whose face had always been as placid as a still well, couldn’t help but show a look of surprise.

“Wait, just how many traitors are there in this Thousand Stars Empire?!”

Meanwhile, the roar of The Morning Star’s commander echoed through the communication channels.

“All fleets loyal to His Majesty! Rally to me! Form a defensive line!”

Under his command, the surviving “Loyalist” fleets, including Allenita’s Yuge family fleet, began to rendezvous with the garrison fleet. They forcibly erected a steel bulwark of warships between the aerospace transports just released by Regalia Fortress and the advancing enemy.

“Cover the human transport fleet’s insertion! Buy a firing window for Regalia Fortress and the human fleet!”

Lilith and the elven commander knew very well that the impending fleet battle would likely be different from their usual combat patterns.

At this moment, whether it was the humans’ heavy particle cannons or the elves’ purification beams, the defensive systems of both sides’ warships were designed more for civil war. Against the different weapons of another race, their defensive capabilities were not nearly as effective.

This meant that both sides possessed the ability to heavily damage or even destroy the other’s capital ships within effective range.

It was a battle with no margin for error—a contest of who had longer range, faster reactions, and who could deliver a fatal payload onto the enemy’s head first.

The elven garrison fleet’s commander swiftly integrated this understanding into his battle command, resolutely ordering his elven warships forward to form a “shield wall.”

After all, elven warships equipped with psionic shields could withstand far more punishment from purification beams than the effectively “naked” human warships.

So, as long as the garrison fleet and the surviving “Loyalist” family fleets could draw the vast majority of the fire, the human warships could better leverage their “glass cannon” firepower advantage.

As the elven warships on both sides closed the distance, the rebel fleet’s main cannons fired first. Thick, golden psionic lances tore through the darkness, aimed straight at the defensive line formed by the Loyalist elven fleet.

“Hold the line! All ships, engage ‘Psionic Resonance’ mode! Hold firm, and we’ll find a way!”

A resonance quickly formed between the Psionic Cores of the Loyalist elven warships. This was a unique energy enhancement method of the Thousand Stars Empire, a “1+1>2” effect that was particularly significant when used between fleets.

The psionic shields on the elven warships grew brighter. At the very front of the line, several capital ships under concentrated fire managed to weather the first salvo.

But the rebel fleet’s gunfire was simply too dense, and the scale of the Queen’s family fleet was far larger than anyone had anticipated. That one family’s fleet alone was nearly a match for all the remaining Loyalist warships.

An elven warship was grazed or directly hit by a purification beam. Its psionic shield shattered under an attack that exceeded its threshold, and its Psionic Core overloaded. The entire warship quickly became a runaway fireball. On the friendly tactical display, the light representing it quietly went out.

However, the human fleets did not let the sacrifice of these elven warships be in vain. After a brief communication, they understood their role as the “main damage dealers,” and the combined fleet quickly launched its attack.

Among the Federation fleet brought by Franklin, sleekly designed warships opened numerous multi-purpose launch silos covering their hulls as they moved into main cannon firing positions.

The next second, thousands of missiles and plasma torpedoes, trailing flames, swarmed toward the distant rebel fleet like an angry swarm of bees.

Due to the elven fleets’ combat style, their understanding of “close-in defense” was clearly lacking. When dealing with similar biological combat weapons, they tended to use the combined purification beam salvos from multiple warships for area denial, before deploying their own biological combat weapons.

As a result, the anti-ship missiles, originally intended to draw anti-air fire, actually managed to bypass the elven fleet’s relatively sparse anti-air interception fire after performing a series of complex course corrections in flight.

Under these circumstances, the rebel fleet had no choice but to release a large number of biological combat weapons, forcing these dense swarms of auxiliary combat units to use their own physical bodies to intercept the incoming missiles and plasma torpedoes.

The Star Dragon Empire’s fleet was even more direct. These Imperial warships, already superior in tactical and technical proficiency to the New Federation’s ships, began their ultra-long-range sniping as soon as they entered the maximum effective range of their heavy particle cannons.

This was a specialty of the Star Dragon Empire’s Imperial Royal Navy, especially their capital ships.

A dense barrage of blue-white beams curved around the friendly forces holding the line in front, striking the distant rebel warships with precision and creating one bright fireball after another within the rebel fleet.

And behind all the fleets, the Regalia Fortress, which had been silent for some time, finally revealed once again its most terrifying aspect as a strategic-level weapon.

Along the fortress’s central axis, the interior of the massive acceleration rail began to glow. Endless energy gathered and compressed within, emitting a light bright enough to dim the stars.

It was the Regalia Fortress’s “Focusing Rainbow,” its cooldown complete, preparing to launch a new round of attacks on the invaders.

Its target was not any single warship, but the densest concentration of the rebel fleet.

It was obvious that these family fleets, which had only warped in after the previous battle had concluded, had never witnessed The Focusing Rainbow in action, nor did they know how the last wave of rebel fleets had been annihilated—after all, once The Focusing Rainbow fired, not even wreckage of those fleets remained.

By the time these family fleets realized something was wrong, it was already too late.

When the massive acceleration rail on the Regalia Fortress’s central axis was filled with energy, the entire battlefield seemed to fall silent. All sensors shrieked with overload warnings, and every optical lens turned a stark white.

Then, the military and citizens of Aldaram once again saw the celestial river in the sky above their capital.

The terrifying torrent of heavy metal particles touched the densest forward ranks of the rebellious noble fleets. There was no earth-shattering explosion, no mournful shriek of twisting metal.

Everything swept by the torrent simply… vanished.

The moment this world-destroying torrent washed over them, the material structure of these elven warships began to disintegrate at the most fundamental level.

The bio-armor of the hulls, the internal components, the Psionic Cores, and even the elven crew members on the bridge, their expressions frozen in a moment of terror—all of it was reduced to a stream of primal particles, then utterly annihilated in the void, leaving not even a speck of dust behind.

An entire section of space was forcibly “erased,” leaving an absolute void.

It was as if a god had casually wiped away a part of a painted scroll with an eraser—a crude yet chillingly clean act.

The moment of dead silence that followed on the communication channels was more deafening than any explosion.

With a single blast, eighty percent of the family fleets that had raised the banner of rebellion were written off.

If not for the fact that some warships were just outside the irradiation zone, this single attack from Regalia Fortress might have completely wiped out the fleets of these rebellious families.

Of course, given the current outcome, it wasn’t much different from a total annihilation.

“All… all fleets, scatter! Break formation!”

The commander of the Queen’s family fleet was the first to break free from the absolute terror, his voice hoarse and sharp with agitation.

He knew that a weapon of that magnitude could not possibly fire a second time in short order.

So now was their only chance!

“Close the distance at any cost! Break through their defensive line! Stop those aerospace transports!”

Like enraged beasts, the remnants of the rebel fleet disregarded all formation and charged madly toward the capital garrison fleet’s defensive line, unleashing every weapon they could fire.

“Hold them! For the Phoenix King!”

The commander of The Morning Star roared in kind. His fleet took advantage of the gap cleared in the enemy’s lines and pushed forward, using their own hulls to form a final barrier for the human warship groups and the advancing aerospace transports behind them.

The slaughter in orbit entered its bloodiest phase.

An elven warship’s psionic shield shattered after taking several rounds of concentrated fire. A dense barrage of electromagnetic cannon rounds then riddled its hull with holes, and it finally devolved into a heap of scrap metal amid a series of sympathetic detonations.

On the other side, a Federation heavy cruiser was struck by three psionic lances simultaneously. Its bridge was instantly vaporized, and the out-of-control ship spun into an Imperial warship nearby.

Warships on both sides were being lost at an astonishing rate. In the cold expanse of space, gorgeous and deadly flowers of death bloomed one after another.

But for the massive transport fleet, this brief window, bought with lives, was enough.

“We have entered the insertion trajectory!”

“Power unit at one hundred twenty percent overload! Preparing for atmospheric entry!”

“Wish us luck!”

The last batch of aerospace transports finally broke through the final blockade line. Their hulls ignited in blazing fire as they scraped against Aldaram’s upper atmosphere, like hundreds of inverted meteors, plunging without hesitation toward the emerald world below.

—

On the ground, Royal Court Avenue.

“Second Company! Maintain suppressive fire! Don’t let them get their heads up!”

With every swing of Natalia’s plasma halberd, a storm of flesh and metal fragments erupted within the elven defense line.

The two old veteran shield guards beside her stood like unshakeable mountains, blocking the vast majority of attacks aimed at her. Their heavy shields were already covered in blackened energy burns.

Around them, the charge formation composed of more old veterans from First Company was like a red-hot wedge, driven deep into the elven line.

The dull thud of heavy powered armor colliding, the fierce clash of chainswords against psionic longswords—lives were being lost every second.

“Commander! We can’t hold on much longer! Their firepower is too intense!” a Company Commander’s breathless voice came over the comms.

“Just a little longer!” Natalia cleaved an elven soldier, who was attempting a sneak attack, in two—armor and all. Hot blood splattered across her helmet. “Reinforcements… are almost here!”

Just as her words fell, a series of deep, continuous rumbles suddenly descended from the highest point in the sky.

All the fighting soldiers, human and elf alike, couldn’t help but look up.

The gray sky, stained by thick smoke and the fires of war, was being torn asunder.

Hundreds of fiery meteors, trailing long tails of flame, broke through the clouds and plummeted straight toward the land.

No, those were not meteors.

They were human reinforcements, descending from the heavens!

Watching the magnificent scene, a cruel smile finally curled Natalia’s taut lips.

She raised her halberd, caked with the flesh and blood of elven rebels, and roared through her powered armor’s loudspeaker:

“Traitors of Aldaram! Your doom has arrived!”

Not far from her, a Royal Guard Captain flicked the blood from his psionic longsword. He stared at the figure in heavy powered armor, covered in blood and gore like a bloodthirsty demon lord, and couldn’t help but murmur:

“This human… how is she more zealous than we elves?”

Chapter 818: The Plan to Attack the Elven Ancestral Tombs

The sky seemed to be torn asunder as hundreds of fiery meteors poured down. The spectacular sight brought all fighting on Royal Court Avenue to a momentary standstill.

The elven rebels gazed blankly at the sky, disbelief written all over their faces.

Why hadn’t the fleet in orbit stopped this? And why had another ‘celestial river’ just appeared?

Could it be… that we have lost space superiority?

Once this thought took root in the minds of a few, it spread like a virus throughout the elven rebel forces, utterly shattering their last shred of morale.

The front line, which had been barely holding against Natalia’s Royal Guard thanks to superior numbers and terrain, instantly collapsed.

Panic replaced fanaticism, and despair overwhelmed the will to fight.

On the Coalition’s side, it was the complete opposite. The arrival of reinforcements, coupled with Natalia’s ‘battle cry’, greatly boosted the troops’ morale.

Meanwhile, deep within the royal court, inside a temporary command post shrouded by an energy shield, Queen Liana calmly watched the holographic projection of the aerospace transport fleet continuously entering the atmosphere.

Her stunningly beautiful face, which had once captivated the Phoenix King himself, showed not a hint of panic or anger—only a deep, unfathomable coldness.

“It seems our comrades have failed in the battle in orbit.”

She said softly, as if stating a fact that had nothing to do with her.

The atmosphere in the command post was incredibly tense. A few high-ranking rebels, elf nobles from equally highborn families, were ashen-faced.

“Your Highness, what… what do we do? The human armies have landed. Our plan…” a noble’s voice trembled, laced with fear.

Liana slowly turned, her indifferent gaze sweeping over everyone present.

“The initial plan has indeed failed.”

Her words sent a chill through everyone’s hearts.

“But,” Liana’s tone shifted, a disturbing, fanatical light burning in her eyes, “doesn’t this just prove to what extent the Phoenix King—my love—has been corrupted by these lesser races? He would rather lead outsiders into our lands and defile the Holy City than accept the true rebirth we bring to The Empire!”

Her voice was filled with inflammatory power, and the gazes of the fanatics present, who had begun to waver, once again grew resolute.

“Since he has torn apart The Empire’s glory with his own hands, there is no longer any reason for us to preserve this decaying old world for him.”

Liana spread her arms, as if embracing an invisible future.

“Activate ‘The Final Return’! Let the glory of the true god descend ahead of schedule and cleanse this defiled land! In flame and glory, we shall attain Eternity!”

“Activate ‘The Final Return’!”

“For the return of the true god!”

Most of the elf nobles responded with fanatical cheers, preparing to welcome the great moment they envisioned.

“Please, wait!”

An inopportune voice cut in. A relatively young noble stepped forward, a look of hesitation and conflict on his face. But more than anything, it was clear he couldn’t bear the thought.

“Your Highness, activating the Return Beacon means all of Aldaram—our hundreds of millions of brethren—will become sacrifices. Is there truly… no other way?”

Liana’s gaze fell upon him, her fanatical eyes instantly turning bone-chillingly cold.

“Loyalty that is not absolute is absolute disloyalty.”

She had barely finished speaking when two of her personal guards drew their psionic longswords. To the young noble’s horror, they plunged the blades through his chest without a moment’s hesitation.

Blood splattered on the magnificent carpet. The noble didn’t even have time to let out a cry before he collapsed to the ground.

Liana spared the corpse not a single glance, merely staring coldly at the others, who were now deathly silent.

“In the final moments before we welcome the true god, any wavering or doubt is blasphemy against the divine. I need absolute loyalty, not indecisive cowards.”

She paused, then calmly issued her command.

“Relay my orders. All troops are to abandon their current positions and fall back completely to defend the Royal Mausoleum! Secure it, and buy time for the Return Beacon’s activation at all costs.”

As large numbers of reinforcements equipped with Psionic Warfare Specialized gear airdropped into key areas, the situation on the ground underwent a dramatic reversal.

This new equipment, fresh off the production lines, performed with unimaginable combat effectiveness.

Psionic attacks that would have posed a fatal threat to conventional Powered Armor were now weakened by over seventy percent, thanks to the new anti-psionic coating and personal shields.

The Coalition, composed of humans, Romu, and the Elven Royal Court Guard, quickly shifted from defense to a counterattack, crashing through the rebels’ already crumbling defense lines like a steel torrent.

The battle, which had begun as a desperate struggle to hold on, instantly turned into a one-sided steamroll.

However, just as Natalia and the others were exhilarated by a series of hearty and satisfying victories on the frontline, Amber’s brow furrowed ever deeper.

“Something isn’t right. There’s no reason for them to be such pushovers…”

He stood on a temporary command height, watching the red dots representing enemy forces on the tactical map rapidly retreating toward an unknown region.

Judging by the complete lack of chaos, it was more of a withdrawal than a rout.

“Their resistance is weakening. This isn’t a rout, it’s more like an organized strategic withdrawal.”

An unsettling thought suddenly flashed through Amber’s mind, and immediately after, intelligence from all fronts confirmed his judgment.

The rebels abandoned all their outer positions, swiftly and methodically blocking the Coalition vanguard’s pursuit. They were converging frantically in one direction, where they were building a strong defensive perimeter.

As the operational situation changed, Amber, Agnes, and the others began to move forward with the troops. Escorted by the squad leader and his men, they finally rendezvoused with the Phoenix King in a relatively intact side hall.

“The rebels are in full retreat. Their defensive core—can you tell which area of the royal court it is, His Excellency?” Amber wasted no time upon seeing the Phoenix King, getting straight to the point.

The Phoenix King’s expression grew complex when he saw the location Amber indicated on the map. He fell silent for a moment before answering in a strained voice.

“The Royal Mausoleum… the final resting place of all our past kings.”

At these words, everyone’s expression turned strange.

Amber took a deep breath, completely connecting the intelligence Salieh sent back with the memory fragments from Valerius’s mind.

A massive beacon that used a planet as a sacrifice and souls as fuel.

A device requiring immense energy and a complex ritual to activate.

What better place for the altar of this apocalyptic sacrifice than the Royal Tombs, where generations of elven kings were buried, a place that had accumulated tens of thousands of years of psionic energy and faith?

“Your Majesty, I’m afraid that’s where they plan to activate ‘The Final Return’ beacon.”

Amber’s voice was incredibly heavy, and everyone understood the underlying meaning of his words.

Attack the elven royal family’s tombs???

The thought sent a shiver down Agnes’s and Franklin’s spines.

“Wait, is this really okay?”

Natalia and the other human and Romu combat commanders were even more speechless. They had never imagined that one day they would lead troops to attack the Phoenix King’s ‘ancestral tombs’—and right in front of the man himself.

A flicker of pain crossed the Phoenix King’s face, but it was outweighed by a towering rage at being betrayed and seeing a sacred place desecrated by his own kin.

The Phoenix King’s body trembled slightly. His eyes, which always shone with a wise light, were now as dull as dusty jewels. His gaze was fixed on the red-marked area on the tactical map, his thoughts unreadable.

No one spoke, all waiting for the elven leader’s final decision.

“My ancestors…” His voice was dry and hoarse, each word seemingly squeezed with difficulty from the depths of his throat. “They… they dare… desecrate sacred ground…”

Grief, indignation, disbelief, and the immense pain of being betrayed by his closest kin almost completely crushed the elven monarch.

He had considered the rebels’ madness, but he had never thought they would be this mad.

To use the very foundation of their civilization as a sacrifice for their fanatical beliefs.

“Your Majesty, I understand how you feel.”

Amber’s voice chimed in at the right moment. He knew he had to say something; letting the Phoenix King come to terms with attacking his own ‘ancestral tombs’ was just too much to ask.

“But this is not the time for grief. If that beacon is activated, forget the Royal Mausoleum and the elven Progenitors resting within—all of Aldaram, and indeed all civilizations in the universe, will cease to exist! We need your help, Your Majesty. We need to know everything about the Royal Tombs—its structure, its defense systems, and so on.”

This was undoubtedly a cruel thing to say.

It required a monarch to personally lay bare all the secrets of his ancestors’ resting place to an army of outsiders, so that they could… attack it more efficiently.

A flash of pain crossed the Phoenix King’s face, and he closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, only the cold resolve of a monarch remained.

“If they dare to commit this world-ending act in the resting place of my ancestors…”

“…then I will personally bury them, along with that defiled land.”

Hearing this, the humans, including Amber, quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

“The Royal Tombs… the outer walls are built from moon-white stone, which can effectively deflect and absorb psionic attacks.”

The Phoenix King closed his eyes, as if unwilling to look at the map any longer, but his lips quivered slightly, revealing one sealed secret after another.

“The main burial chamber is four hundred meters underground, with only one entrance, sealed by three massive ten-thousand-ton gates of aether-gold. But in the side hall of the first Phoenix King’s tomb, there is an abandoned servants’ passage that might bypass the main defenses.”

With every sentence he spoke, his face grew a shade paler.

Amber listened quietly, cross-referencing and supplementing this key information with the ‘walkthrough’ from Starry Sky Online in his mind.

Yes, there was an exploration quest in Starry Sky Online. When a player’s ‘evil rating’ was high enough, they would receive a quest from a mysterious person to infiltrate the Elven Royal Court’s tombs.

And now, information from the two worlds was continuously overlapping, outlining the layout of the massive underground complex in his mind.

The Elven Royal Tombs, a sacred site that had remained silent for tens of thousands of years, was now being disturbed by the clamor of war.

The ancient and magnificent white complex lay sprawled across the land like a slumbering beast.

Every stone, every statue, was inscribed with the marks of time and the glory of the elven race.

But now, that glory was being desecrated.

The rebels were like frenzied worker ants, constructing fortifications in every corner of the tombs.

They toppled monuments that recorded their glorious history, piling up the fragments to create cover. Dark purple psionic barriers rose in the corridors and entrances, turning the sacred ground into a death trap.

Queen Liana stood on the stargazing platform at the highest point of the tombs, looking down on it all with indifference.

“What’s the energy supply status?” she asked without turning her head.

“Reporting, Your Highness. We have connected to the backup energy core beneath the tombs, as well as all the large Psionic Cores we brought with us. It is enough to support the defensive matrix and guarantee the final activation of the ‘Return Beacon’.” A rebel commander answered with a bow, his eyes filled with fanaticism.

“Very good.” Liana’s gaze seemed to pass over the busy rebels, pierce through the thick ground, and fall upon the main burial chamber in the deepest part of the tombs.

There, a massive and complex device not of this world was being assembled.

It was pitch-black all over, its surface covered with numerous runes that did not belong to elven civilization. At the top of the device, a huge, eerie blue crystal was being placed into its base.

As energy was injected, the crystal began to emit a low hum. With each pulse, the surrounding space subtly distorted.

This was the ‘Return Beacon’ left by the Forerunner civilization. Ever since it was found, it had been buried deep within the Royal Tombs, its existence known only to a very small number of fanatics.

This was their key to welcoming the ‘advent of the true god’, and also the switch to destroy the entire Thousand Stars Empire and all civilizations in this universe.

“Tell them to hurry.” Liana’s voice was bone-chillingly cold. “Our guests will be here soon.”

Outside the Royal Tombs, the Coalition of humans and elves had completed its final preparations for the attack.

Large numbers of Royal Guard soldiers, Federation Marines, and burly Romu soldiers, organized into companies, were inspecting their weapons and Powered Armor in their hastily constructed positions.

The Elven Royal Court Guard, who had been gathered from various locations, had also been reformed into an independent unit. However, the expressions on these royal guards’ faces were still somewhat complicated when they saw the nearby Romu.

Many of them couldn’t understand why they were fighting side-by-side with the Romu. Could these Furballs really fight?

“All units, attention! Attack echelons and targets have been updated! All commanders, make your final confirmation!”

“Aerial fire support formations are in position, ready to engage at any time!”

The fire support coordinators of each assault unit were nervously operating their terminals, converting the key information provided by the elves into more precise preset coordinates and transmitting them to the heavy artillery brought down by aerospace transports in the rear, as well as to the gunships circling in the air.

Natalia stood at the very front of the line, her plasma halberd pointed diagonally at the ground, its blue-white blade poised to strike.

Behind her was the first assault echelon, which had earned everyone’s respect. It was composed of the most elite company of old veterans from the Royal Guard present and two squadrons of ‘Royal Aegis’ reinforcements.

Their mission was to charge in the moment the artillery barrage tore open a breach and throw the rebel positions into chaos.

Attacking alongside them were the surviving elven squad leader and a portion of the Royal Court Guard.

In that squad leader’s view, it was unthinkable for the elves to be absent from these most dangerous combat missions.

“Commander, the entrance to the servants’ passage provided by the Phoenix King has been marked,” came the voice of the commander of The Empire’s support forces over the comms channel. “But the entrance is narrow, HCPs cannot pass through.”

“I’ll lead a team in myself through there,” Natalia answered without hesitation. “Your main attack direction remains the same. Coordinate with the other teams to draw their main force from the front.”

She glanced at Agnes, who was not far away.

She was standing with Isabelle and Amber. Amber’s expression was clearly a bit awkward, and it was unclear what the three of them were discussing.

“Her Majesty, honestly…” Natalia smiled and shook her head, then turned her attention back to the Royal Mausoleum ahead.

The battlefield gradually fell silent as everyone awaited the final command.

Amber also walked to the Phoenix King’s side. They would lead a group of high-level psionic users, under the cover of other units, to break into the core area of the Royal Mausoleum and stop the activation of the ‘Return Beacon’.

The blue light that had filled the Phoenix King’s eyes slowly faded. He looked at Amber with an expression full of hope.

“Mr. Amber, I saw time.”

Chapter 819: Orbital Strike, Physical Salvation

“Your Majesty, what are you talking about?”

The Phoenix King’s inexplicable, almost cryptic, remark left Amber completely baffled.

But then he remembered that the king was also a High-level psionic user, which made such bizarre statements seem somewhat normal. Still, Amber was curious about what he meant by “seeing time.”

“I just used my psionics to try and resonate with the Progenitors slumbering in the Royal Mausoleum, but I received no response. Instead, I saw… time.”

“So, what time was it?”

“I saw the future approaching us.”

“Huh? Isn’t that just stating the obvious?”

“No.”

The Phoenix King paused, looked at Amber seriously, and then repeated, “The future is approaching us.”

“Ah, I see, now I understand completely…”

Amber nodded with a smile, but in his mind, he was wondering why the Phoenix King had suddenly started speaking in such a cryptic manner.

The Phoenix King naturally knew Amber hadn’t truly understood him, but with the final battle imminent, there was obviously no time to discuss the matter further.

Soon, with the Phoenix King’s final command, the hastily assembled Coalition army finally began to move.

Above the Royal Mausoleum, gunships that had been circling in a holding pattern in the distance were the first to attack. A large number of standoff weapons had already suppressed the few purification beam emitters used for air defense.

Taking advantage of the relatively safe airspace before the biological combat weapons could arrive, the gunships began to pour down a rain of shells. Dense explosions erupted along the rebels’ makeshift defensive line, kicking up continuous flames and dust.

Following that, the heavy artillery in the rear began to roar. One large-caliber shell after another traced a deadly arc through the sky, precisely striking the marked psionic barrier nodes.

“Multiple aerial units detected approaching! Bearing one-seven-zero, identified as a cluster of biological combat weapons!”

“Disengage after this attack run is complete! Lead them toward the field air defense positions!”

“Ground assault echelon, begin your advance!”

Natalia’s voice rang out clearly on the comms channel. leading from the front, the plasma blade of her halberd cut a deadly blue arc through the air.

Behind her, a tide of steel composed of Royal Guard, Federation Marines, Romu warriors, and the Elven Royal Court Guard surged forward like a bursting dam, charging toward the area shrouded in artillery fire.

However, the moment they set foot in the outer area of the Royal Mausoleum, they realized they had underestimated the madness of these rebels.

From behind cover, through the lingering smoke of the explosions, wounded elf rebels with bloodshot eyes leaped out, their psionic weapons firing wildly.

Some, even after being fatally wounded, would directly overload the psionic crystal cores in their bodies, choosing to perish together with any nearby Coalition soldiers.

Boom!

A small squad of Federation Marines had just captured a ruined monument. Before they could even fortify their position, several rebels charged at them, howling.

The armor on their chests glowed with an ominous light. Before the stunned eyes of the marines, they turned into several blinding spheres of energy.

The violent shockwave tore everything nearby to shreds. The comms channel was instantly flooded with a few short screams and harsh static.

These rebels weren’t fighting; they were using their lives to delay the Coalition’s advance at every step.

There was no fear in their eyes, only a nearly twisted fanaticism, as if death was the highest honor for them.

The first wave of the assault, after suffering far greater casualties than expected, was forcefully halted.

They had made minimal progress. Natalia and the others had no choice but to order a temporary retreat to regroup.

Inside the temporary command post, the atmosphere was so heavy you could cut it with a knife. No one had expected the rebels’ resistance to be so stubborn, even with the Coalition’s fire support advantage.

On the tactical map, the blue dots representing their units had only advanced a few hundred meters into the red zone before stalling. Meanwhile, the casualty count ticked upward relentlessly, weighing heavily on every commander present.

Amber stared at the map, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the console. He had expected them to fight to the death, but he hadn’t anticipated such a frenzied disregard for their own lives.

He turned his head to look at the Phoenix King, who stood silently to the side.

The elven monarch’s face was a mixture of sorrow and rage. Watching his own people march toward such a brutal end was undoubtedly a form of torture for him.

Amber hesitated for a moment before finally taking a deep breath and breaking the silence.

“Your Majesty, a conventional ground assault is causing too many casualties, and it’s too inefficient. We don’t have time to waste here in a war of attrition.”

His voice wasn’t loud, but it drew everyone’s attention.

“We must use a more drastic and more efficient method.”

He paused, meeting the Phoenix King’s questioning gaze, and said, word by word, “I suggest we use an orbital strike to directly destroy all defensive fortifications on the surface of the Royal Mausoleum.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the surviving elf nobles behind the Phoenix King erupted.

“What did you say?! An orbital strike?! Do you have any idea what this place is?!”

“You’re insane! You human, you’re completely insane! First, you let outsider armies into the Holy City, and now you want to bombard the Progenitors’ mausoleum with battleships!”

“This is a desecration and an insult to the entire elven race! Your Majesty, you absolutely cannot listen to him!”

“Everyone, be rational! Don’t get so worked up!”

“Rational? How do you expect me to be rational?!”

Fierce accusations flew back and forth. These elf nobles felt as if Amber was taking their sanity and trampling it underfoot.

Forcing them to attack the Royal Mausoleum was already their limit, and now he wanted to bombard it from orbit with main cannons?

This wasn’t just digging up their ancestors’ graves; this was scattering their very ashes to the winds!

However, amidst the uproar, the Phoenix King was unusually calm.

He simply raised a hand, and all the arguments ceased.

He looked at Amber with a complex expression, and after a long moment, he let out a long sigh, a sigh filled with endless exhaustion and resolve.

“At this point, what difference does it make?” His voice was hoarse. “Even if we fight our way in bit by bit with conventional troops, the Royal Mausoleum will be destroyed all the same. Since the outcome is the same, let’s choose the one… that will end this as quickly as possible.”

In orbit, The Morning Star, the flagship of the garrison fleet still fiercely engaged with the remnants of the rebel fleet, soon received the order from the ground.

The commander stared at the attack coordinates displayed on his terminal, completely stunned.

He repeatedly verified the sender’s authorization and encryption codes, finally confirming that it was indeed an edict from the Phoenix King himself.

“Attack… the Royal Mausoleum?” His lips trembled slightly, but a soldier’s duty ultimately made him suppress all his emotions.

“Order The Moonlight and The Silver Lance to break from the frontline and descend to attack altitude. Target: rebel defensive positions on the surface of the Royal Mausoleum. Execute purification beam strike!”

Two elven warships quickly broke formation, banked, and began to approach Aldaram’s emerald atmosphere. They soon hovered in low orbit, the main cannon arrays on their bows lighting up with a brilliant golden light.

Two thick psionic lances tore through the clouds, striking precisely above the Royal Mausoleum.

However, just as the beams were about to touch the surface, a massive, deep blue psionic shield materialized out of thin air, like a giant inverted bowl, encasing the entire mausoleum.

Boom—!

The golden lances slammed into the shield, setting off vast, violent energy ripples, but failed to move it in the slightest.

“Shield strength exceeds estimates! We can’t penetrate it!”

“Continue the attack!”

“Psionic Core, secondary recharge!”

The two elven warships fired several more salvos as they descended to their minimum altitude, but the deep blue shield merely trembled, remaining as solid as a rock.

“This is a campaign-level psionic shield. The rebels even anticipated the possibility of an orbital strike and prepared for it?”

Left with no other choice, the garrison fleet commander could only send a request for assistance to the nearby human fleet, his heart filled with complicated emotions.

He never thought he would one day be asking an outsider warship to conduct an orbital strike on the Capital… on the Royal Mausoleum itself.

As the faction with the most experience in orbital strikes, the Atlas Group took on the mission without hesitation. Lilith quickly dispatched two battleships to descend.

“The Striker, The Horseshoe, maintain attitude. Target, elf rebel positions in the Royal Mausoleum area. Heavy particle cannons, initial velocity set to six hundred kilometers per second, two-round salvo! Begin strike mission!”

As the two battleships maintained their bow-down orientation, humanity’s “talent” for creating weapons of mass destruction was on full display.

The acceleration rails of the battleship-grade heavy particle cannons slowly lit up as terrifying energy gathered within. In the next second, a beam of bluish-white light, seemingly brighter than a supernova burst, erupted forth, hurtling toward the ground with unstoppable force.

This time, there were no elegant energy ripples, only the purest, most savage laws of physics.

The terrifying kinetic energy of the heavy metal particle stream struck the deep blue psionic shield like an invisible sledgehammer.

With a crisp sound like shattering glass, the sturdy shield was instantly covered in spiderweb-like cracks, and then, as the second strike hit, it completely disintegrated.

Without the shield’s protection, the remaining kinetic energy was unleashed upon the ground without reservation.

A blinding “little sun” rose on the surface of the Royal Mausoleum. The earth shook and the mountains swayed as if the apocalypse had arrived. The group of elf nobles who witnessed it firsthand fell to their knees, weeping bitterly.

The defensive fortifications the rebels had painstakingly built, the ancient monuments and statues—all were instantly flattened and vaporized like sandcastles in the face of absolute power.

After two rounds of orbital strikes, the dust settled. The surface of the Royal Mausoleum was completely unrecognizable, leaving only a massive crater and the scorched, smoking wasteland within.

Deep within the Royal Mausoleum, Queen Liana, who was presiding over the ritual, stumbled from the violent tremor beneath her feet.

She steadied herself, feeling the destructive waves emanating from the ground, and her beautiful face twisted in fury.

“Report from the ground positions!” she bellowed.

“Report… reporting to Her Highness the Queen…” A rebel officer came scrambling and crawling, his voice trembling with fear. “The ground… the ground positions have been completely destroyed.”

“Useless!” A flicker of brutality crossed Liana’s eyes, but she quickly calmed down, her gaze returning to the humming “Return Beacon.”

“Speed up the ritual! They… are coming in!”

Just then, Natalia’s voice, thick with suppressed excitement, roared over the Coalition’s comms channel:

“All units! Second general assault! Begin!”

Natalia, who had been poised and ready, was the first to leap from her cover. Behind her, a tide of steel composed of Royal Guard veterans and Royal Court Guardsmen charged toward the rebel positions that had been turned into scorched earth.

“For the Empire!”

“For His Majesty!”

Different languages, but the same roar, converged into the most primal cry of war.

Meanwhile, an elite squad led by Amber and the Phoenix King had quietly arrived at the base of an inconspicuous cliff on the side of the mausoleum, just as the main force launched their attack.

The Phoenix King raised his hand, and complex golden runes appeared in his palm. He pressed it lightly against the cliff face, chanting in ancient Elvish.

The hard rock parted like flowing water, revealing a pitch-black opening just wide enough for one person to pass through. A cold wind, mixed with the scents of dust and the decay of time, billowed out.

“This servants’ passage hasn’t been opened for over a thousand years.” The Phoenix King’s voice trembled slightly. He was about to lead outsiders into the resting place of his Progenitors.

“Your Majesty, the glory of the Progenitors must be protected by their descendants, not used as a tool to destroy the world by their unworthy children,” Amber said, walking to the Phoenix King’s side, his voice calm and firm.

The Phoenix King took a deep breath, the pain and struggle on his face finally hardening into an icy resolve.

He was the first to step into the darkness.

Amber followed close behind. The moment he entered the passage, a strong sense of wrongness gripped his mind.

The air inside the passage was unusually cold and filled with a faint, cloying, coppery scent. This was definitely not the smell of a tomb sealed for a thousand years.

He looked around. The walls of the passage were carved with murals depicting the achievements of past elven kings. But to his keen senses, something seemed to be slowly flowing deep within the lines of these murals.

“Something’s not right,” Amber said in a low voice.

The Phoenix King, who was leading the way, also stopped. He reached out and touched the cold wall, his expression shifting from solemn to horrified.

“Liana… how could she…” he murmured, his voice filled with incredulous anger.

On the once solemn and majestic murals, trickles of a viscous liquid, as black as ink, began to seep out, as if the ancient stone was bleeding black blood.

The eyes of the Progenitor Kings in the murals had, at some point, become hollow black voids. Ominous, dark purple runes spread across the murals like living things, covering the original sacred totems.

The entire passage had been transformed into a gigantic, evil ritual site.

“It’s the ‘Soul-Binding Ritual.’ A dark spell that is strictly forbidden!” an accompanying elven Psionic Master cried out in alarm. “She… she turned the Progenitors’ mausoleum into a breeding ground for abominations!”

Amber was also taken aback and immediately went on high alert. He couldn’t help but ask:

“Do you elves always have so many tricks up your sleeves with psionics?”

Before his words had faded, the grating sound of bone scraping against bone echoed from the darkness ahead.

Two crimson points of light glowed in the dark. Then, a massive monster, forcibly pieced together from countless skeletons and twisted psionics, slowly emerged from the blackness.

It had no fixed form. Countless arms and legs protruded erratically from its torso, and every bone was inscribed with writhing elven runes.

It was no known creature, but a nightmarish creation made for the sole purpose of slaughter and desecration.

“The Mausoleum Guardians… they’ve been corrupted.” The Phoenix King’s voice was utterly cold, and a towering rage was about to erupt from his eyes.

The high-level elven psionic users with them also hesitated, because these ‘Mausoleum Guardians’ were also famous warriors from history. After death, they were buried in the outer parts of the mausoleum to serve as ‘Guardians’.

“It seems Her Highness the Queen has prepared a ‘surprise’ for us.”

Amber, however, showed no hesitation. He cracked his knuckles, which let out a series of sharp pops as blue arcs of electricity danced at his fingertips.

“In that case, let’s not disappoint her.”

Before he finished speaking, his body had already transformed into a streak of blue lightning, fearlessly charging the deformed skeletal behemoth.

Boom!

A pure psionic shockwave exploded in the narrow passage. Amber’s fist slammed into the skeletal giant’s bone claw, and the violent blast of air scoured a layer of stone from the surrounding walls.

The skeletal giant let out a silent roar as more bone arms shot out from its back, coiling toward Amber like vipers.

“Nuisance.”

Amber snorted coldly. The blue electricity around him surged, forming a spherical energy field that deflected and shattered all the incoming bone arms.

But more ‘Mausoleum Guardians’ were approaching from ahead, so many that Amber started to wonder if the Queen had used psionics to ‘awaken’ all the valiant spirits in the mausoleum.

Just then, several figures shot past Amber, unflinchingly engaging the oncoming ‘Mausoleum Guardians’.

They were several of the High-level psionic users accompanying Amber and the Phoenix King.

“Your Majesty, you go on ahead! Leave this to us!”

“That’s right, hurry to the core area of the mausoleum!”

The Phoenix King and Amber glanced at the monsters being held back by the Psionic Masters. Without further hesitation, they led the rest of the group swiftly past them, rushing deeper into the passage.

Chapter 820: The Battle of the Royal Mausoleum

Inside the Royal Mausoleum, the dark and complex, maze-like corridors seemed endless. The cloying scent, a mixture of decay and sweet blood, grew heavier, making it difficult to breathe.

The sounds of clashing Psionics and roars from behind had faded to a near-inaudible whisper. The strike team led by Amber and the Phoenix King raced deeper into the mausoleum.

The stone slabs underfoot were no longer smooth, but pitted and corroded by vile Psionic techniques, making every step feel like treading on twisted flesh.

“Ambush ahead!” a Psionic Master in the squad, one who specialized in perception, shouted a sharp warning.

The words had barely left his lips when the figures of elven soldiers depicted in the murals on both walls suddenly came to life—no, they hadn’t come to life. A dozen rebel fanatics had used some sort of psionic camouflage to blend in with the murals and were now launching a brazen assault.

Deep blue psionic blades shot out from all directions, instantly turning the narrow passage into a death zone.

“Everyone, be careful!”

Amber’s reaction was lightning-fast. Instead of retreating, he advanced, launching himself forward like a cannonball straight into the densest barrage of attacks.

The blue electrical energy surrounding his body coalesced into a tangible shield, deflecting most of the attacks. The few that slipped through merely left shallow scorch marks on his Powered Armor.

The Psionics gathered in Amber’s hands blasted out an instant later. The violent energy blew a massive hole through a rebel and the stone wall behind him, sending shards of rock and chunks of flesh flying everywhere.

The Phoenix King, on the other hand, was a completely different sight. His boundless rage transformed the golden Psionics around him into a burning inferno.

He made no extraneous movements, simply raising a hand, and a golden shockwave erupted outward from his position.

It was remarkably elegant, a sheer display of flair that made Amber quite envious.

The ambushing rebels didn’t even have time to scream before they were purified into ash by the sacred and violent golden flames.

The battle was over in mere seconds, but it had slowed everyone’s pace for a moment. After they passed through that narrow section of the tomb, the area ahead opened up.

They arrived in a spacious circular hall where several paths converged. According to the Phoenix King’s calculations, they were more than halfway there.

However, what stood before them now were not ordinary rebels.

Three five-meter-tall corrupted guardians stood in a triangular formation, blocking all paths forward.

Their skeletal frames were thicker, and the twisted Psionics they emanated had almost materialized into black flames burning across their bodies.

The one in the center was especially menacing, wielding a giant battle-ax pieced together from vertebrae. On the axe’s blade, faint traces of its former master’s golden Psionics remained.

“That’s…‘Dawnbreaker’ Orlando…” An elven master’s voice trembled with grief and disbelief. “He was the first Phoenix King’s chief captain of the guard…”

Seeing a legendary hero of old desecrated into such a state, every elf present felt a pang of heartache and rage.

“Don’t let your emotions get to you! They’re just puppets made of bone!” Amber barked, reminding them.

But as soon as he spoke, the corrupted guardian named Orlando let out a deafening psionic roar and charged forward, swinging its massive ax.

“I’ll deal with it!” A golden light flared in the Phoenix King’s eyes as he proactively moved to engage it.

“I’ll help you!”

Amber knew they would need the Phoenix King’s high-end combat power for the final confrontation with the Queen, so he immediately rushed forward to share the burden.

The two remaining guardians activated simultaneously, moving to flank the squad.

“Leave them to us!” Two of the older elven masters exchanged a look. Each led a few psionic users and resolutely moved to intercept the two monstrosities.

Fierce fighting broke out in an instant, and the great hall was enveloped in the light of multi-colored Psionics. Only one older Psionic Master didn’t join any of the battles; his eyes swept rapidly across the hall, searching for the correct path.

“This way!” he yelled, pointing to an inconspicuous path on the left, guided by his memories.

Upon receiving the information, the group adjusted their movements, inching toward the path while fighting. But the Mausoleum Guardians standing guard here were not weak. While they might not be life-threatening if handled with care, they could definitely hold the group up for a significant amount of time.

“Time is of the essence! We can’t delay any longer, Your Majesty! Take the others and go on ahead!”

A look of grim determination flashed in one elven master’s eyes. In the next second, he pushed his Psionics beyond his limits. Weeds burst from the cracks in the floor and walls, rapidly growing into countless vines that bound the Mausoleum Guardians tightly.

But the guardians’ strength far exceeded his imagination. A surge of black, corrosive energy erupted, snapping all the restraints in an instant.

The elven master grunted, blood pouring from his nose and mouth, as a guardian’s bone claw was already upon him.

“Mentor!” a young elven psionic user cried out, wanting to help, but it was too late.

The bone claw mercilessly pierced the old master’s chest. But in the final moment of his life, a smile appeared on his face. With his last ounce of strength, he detonated his Psionic Core.

“For… this universe…”

BOOM—!

A gentle yet immense wave of life energy exploded outward. There was no destructive impact, but like the most powerful purification spell, it instantly dissolved the three corrupted guardians.

“Go!” Amber grabbed the young elf who was about to rush forward. His voice was as cold as ice. “Don’t let his sacrifice be in vain!”

Suppressing their grief, the group followed Amber and plunged into the passage that had been bought with blood and life.

Who knows what the elves’ Progenitors were thinking, but the mausoleum’s internal structure was far more complex than imagined, like a giant anthill.

The group ran into dead ends several times and had to fight their way out, constantly encountering sporadic resistance and activated nightmarish creations. The number of people in the squad dwindled with each bloody charge.

Finally, they stopped before a massive door carved with a twin phoenix totem.

Behind the door lay the core area of the mausoleum.

The Phoenix King raised his hand, about to use the royal family’s secret technique to open the great door, but Amber suddenly stopped him.

“Wait.”

He walked to the door, listened for a moment, then without hesitation, he lifted his foot and kicked it hard.

“BOOM!”

The great aether-gold door, weighing tens of thousands of tons, boomed and caved inward. From behind it came a few suppressed gasps and the sound of shattering psionic shields.

“There was a surprise waiting behind the door,” Amber said, retracting his foot and flexing his ankle.

The Phoenix King: “…”

The other elven masters: “…”

The Phoenix King shook his head. He didn’t bother with any secret techniques either, instead blasting the already damaged door wide open with a crude psionic blast.

The scene behind the door made all the intruders draw in a sharp, cold breath.

A magnificent underground dome, large enough to house a small warship, appeared before them.

The cavern walls of the dome were not natural; they had been carved into an intricate star chart. Countless tiny psionic crystals were embedded within it, twinkling with an ethereal light like real stars, illuminating the entire space as brightly as day.

And in the very center of the core area stood a colossal, entirely black, and bizarrely shaped device.

Its main structure did not have the elegant, streamlined design typical of the elves, but was instead composed of cold, inhuman, geometric angles. The golden runes that flowed across its surface emitted heart-pounding energy fluctuations that seemed to originate from another dimension.

This was the ‘Return Beacon’.

Queen Liana stood before the beacon. Her magnificent royal gown was stained with dust and blood, but she still stood perfectly straight, her expression cold and proud.

Behind her were the last few dozen fanatical rebel psionic users. They formed a final line of defense, the look of grim resolve in every one of their eyes.

“Liana, stop this.”

The Phoenix King’s voice echoed through the vast dome, tinged with exhaustion, heartache, and helplessness.

“For our people, for Aldaram… if you surrender now, it’s not too late.”

Liana let out a scornful laugh, as if she had just heard the funniest joke in the world.

“Our people?”

She raised her eyes, her gaze full of mockery, sweeping over the Phoenix King before landing on Amber beside him.

“Are you referring to the lost lambs you’re leading into the abyss, or these lowly outsiders who have defiled the sacred resting place of our Progenitor?”

She took a step forward, her voice becoming shrill. “My king, look at yourself! Have you forgotten the oath we swore under this very star chart? You said you would lead The Empire to reclaim its glory, yet here you are, siding with these insects to desecrate our most sacred place!”

“The most sacred place?! With what you’ve done, you have the gall to speak to me of ‘the most sacred place’?!”

The last trace of warmth vanished from the Phoenix King’s face, replaced by the cold majesty of a monarch. He slowly raised his hand, and golden psionic light began to gather.

“Liana, you are beyond saving.”

Before he finished speaking, the Phoenix King’s figure transformed into a streak of golden light. His immense Psionics converged into a brilliant spear of judgment, aimed straight at Liana.

“For the true god!”

Liana shrieked, unleashing her own powerful Psionics. A deep blue energy barrier instantly formed before her, filled with the wailing visages of countless twisted souls.

“BOOM!”

The two powers, representing the pinnacle of the Thousand Stars Empire’s strength, collided violently. The entire core area of the mausoleum shook intensely. Swathes of psionic crystals on the dome went dark and shattered, and a terrifying energy storm swept out in all directions.

The battle erupted in an instant.

“Take care of the others! Don’t let them interfere with His Majesty!” a Psionic Master loyal to the Phoenix King roared, leading his comrades to charge the rebels.

Amber didn’t hesitate for a second. His target was clear. He shot forward like a cannonball, straight into the densest concentration of rebel psionic users.

“Stop that human!” a rebel leader shouted.

Several rebel psionic users immediately turned and unleashed a torrent of multi-colored psionic attacks at Amber.

However, Amber’s body twisted in mid-air in an unbelievable maneuver, easily dodging most of the attacks. At the same time, he raised his right hand, fingers splayed.

“Universal Pull!”

“What the—?!”

An invisible gravitational field erupted instantly. The rebel psionic users who were casting spells stiffened, pulled involuntarily toward one another, their formation thrown into chaos.

Amber appeared among them like a phantom.

There were no fancy spells, only psionic energy condensed to its absolute limit.

Fists, elbows, knees, and kicks, supplemented by point-blank shots from his electromagnetic rifle and strikes with his combat spike.

Every attack struck a vital point with precision. Accompanied by the crisp cracks of breaking bones and the sound of shattering psionic shields, in just a few breaths, the rebel psionic users were sent flying like broken ragdolls, completely incapacitated.

An elven Psionic Master, in a brief lull after repelling an opponent, caught a glimpse of this and said in horror, “Is this the human way of fighting? There’s no beauty in it whatsoever.”

“But it’s terrifyingly lethal,” another Psionic Master replied calmly.

Meanwhile, the battle between the Phoenix King and Queen Liana had reached a fever pitch.

Golden sacred flames and deep blue Psionics clashed and annihilated each other constantly. Each exchange caused visible distortions in the space around them.

They were once the most honored couple in The Empire, and they knew each other’s fighting styles intimately. Now, that familiarity had become their deadliest weapon.

The Phoenix King launched a whip kick at Liana’s side, but she anticipated it. As she dodged to the side, a dagger formed from Psionics stabbed silently toward the Phoenix King’s heart.

The Phoenix King grunted and twisted his body forcefully. The dagger scraped across his chest plate, kicking up a shower of sparks.

He used the momentum to grab Liana’s wrist, while his other hand gathered golden flames and slammed it into her abdomen.

A vicious glint appeared in Liana’s eyes. She didn’t dodge or evade, allowing the Phoenix King’s attack to land. At the same time, she gathered all her Psionics into her other hand, forming a purple-black claw that she thrust toward the Phoenix King’s chest.

Trading injury for injury!

“BOOM!”

Both let out pained grunts as they were sent flying backward, crashing heavily to the ground.

“Her Highness the Queen!”

Several rebels rushed over to help Liana to her feet. With blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, she was ushered behind them as they retreated to the base of the Return Beacon.

The Phoenix King also struggled to his feet. A ghastly, bone-deep claw mark was etched across his chest, and blood stained his magnificent robes.

Amber and the few remaining elven Psionic Masters had dealt with most of the enemies. They quickly moved to the Phoenix King’s side, surrounding Liana and her followers.

“It’s over, Liana,” the Phoenix King said, his voice hoarse as he forced himself to stand straight.

Just then, a massive explosion erupted from the other side of the dome. A huge gap was blasted through the thick rock wall.

As the dust settled, squads of soldiers in new, specialized Powered Armor stormed in, their heavy metal boots stomping on the ground in perfect unison.

Leading them were the imposing Romu marines from the Atlas Group.

“Excellent, reinforcements are here! It looks like the rebels outside have been mostly wiped out!”

Seeing the reinforcements arrive, the elves on the Phoenix King’s side showed expressions of relief. Everyone thought the outcome was decided.

However, Liana, surrounded by her rebels, did not look desperate when she saw the Romu marines storm in. Instead, a strange, cold smile bloomed on her face.

“Over? No.”

She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, her gaze sweeping over the Romu soldiers like a viper.

“The real show… has just begun.”

Chapter 821: The Truth About the Romu

“Romu, do you still refuse to return to the embrace of the ‘true god’?! Will you continue to lay down your lives for your enemies?!”

Liana’s voice carried a peculiar, piercing quality, reverberating through the vast underground dome. Every word struck everyone’s heart like a hammer blow.

The resolute expressions on the faces of the Romu marines who had just stormed in slowly morphed into confusion and bewilderment.

The Romu commander leading them was the tiger-man, Huss. His brow was furrowed, and he subconsciously tightened his grip on his electromagnetic rifle. His burly body tensed as he watched the elf Queen, who radiated a dangerous aura, with wary eyes.

“What nonsense are you spouting!” he growled, his voice booming.

“Nonsense?”

Liana’s laughter grew wilder, filled with pity and disdain.

“You poor things. You don’t even know how long you’ve been deceived. Romu, you loyal dogs of the elves… did your masters ever tell you who personally put those collars around your necks?”

Her gaze swept over the Phoenix King and the elf nobles beside him, whose faces had turned pale. The sneer on her lips deepened.

Huss subconsciously glanced at Amber, his eyes filled with confusion and a plea for help. Amber simply shook his head and said in a low voice, “Let’s hear her out first. Don’t act rashly. To be honest, I’m not familiar with the story of your people either, and I’m quite curious.”

Meanwhile, Queen Liana continued to speak, her eyes mocking the Phoenix King and his retinue.

“What is it? My king, don’t you dare tell them the truth? Don’t you dare tell them what our ancestors did to theirs?”

The Phoenix King’s lips moved, but no sound came out. The pain and anger on his face were now mixed with an indescribably complex emotion. He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms.

Amber watched this scene in silence. He said nothing, simply taking in the expressions of Liana, the Phoenix King, and the Romu soldiers.

He was well aware that the “official history” in many game settings hid dark secrets that couldn’t see the light of day. It seemed he was about to witness a major plot reveal firsthand.

“Our history records the kindness of the elves! You won’t shake us with your lies!” the Romu commander, Huss, bellowed again, trying to drown out the unease in his heart with the volume of his voice.

“Kindness?”

Liana laughed as if she had just heard the greatest joke in the world. The Return Beacon behind her seemed to resonate with her emotions; the runes on its surface began to flow faster, emitting an even more ominous glow.

“Since your ‘savior’ is too ashamed to speak, I shall tell you the truth!”

Liana’s gaze fell back upon the Romu, her voice dripping with temptation.

“Your race, the Romu, was never some weak civilization on the brink of extinction.”

“You are a ‘battle race’ created by the true god!”

“Millions of years ago, you were the servant army that followed our true masters—the great Forerunner civilization—to conquer this universe and purge all filth!”

“It was the Forerunners who created you, who bestowed upon you your powerful physiques and fearless will to fight!”

“Your ancestors’ hands were once stained with the blood of countless elves, yet now you are kept like livestock by the elves, living like a pack of house dogs.”

As these words were spoken, a dead silence fell over the chamber.

Whether human, Romu, or the elves loyal to the Phoenix King, everyone felt as if their minds had been struck by a heavy hammer, sending them into a state of temporary blankness.

Even Amber’s eyes widened, his mouth unconsciously forming an ‘O’.

The Romu were a servant army of the Forerunners?

Damn, not even the wildest apocrypha of the elves and Romu was this crazy.

The revelation was too shocking, completely subverting everyone’s perception of the “gentle and honest” Romu race.

The gazes of the elf Psionic Masters on their Romu “allies” changed in an instant.

Suspicion, vigilance, and even a hint of unconcealable hostility began to spread in their eyes.

They subconsciously distanced themselves from the Romu marines, their psionic weapons subtly shifting their aim.

Former enemies?

That single thought was enough to fracture the fragile alliance in an instant.

The Romu commander beside Amber trembled violently. His honest face was etched with disbelief. He whipped his head around to look at the distant Phoenix King, as if searching for a denial in his expression.

But all he saw was the Phoenix King’s pained, tacit admission.

“No… impossible,” he murmured, his faith beginning to crumble.

Liana was very satisfied with the effect of her words. She continued in that cold and cruel tone, tearing open the ugliest scar beneath the elven race’s most glamorous facade.

“When the Forerunners completed the ‘great purge’ and left this universe, they were supposed to ‘dispose of’ you servant armies as well. But for some reason, a small number of your ancestors managed to survive and propagate on this planet.”

“Countless generations passed, and you forgot the glory that flowed in your blood. You forgot your mission as a battle race and degenerated into a gentle, agrarian civilization that only knew how to farm.”

“And then,” Liana’s face twisted into a cruel smile as she spread her arms wide, as if embracing a bloody chapter of history. “My ancestors, the Dark Elves who had also hidden underground, surviving the ‘great purge’ away from the light of day, encountered your ancestors on this very planet when they returned to the surface.”

“Guess what my ancestors, having survived underground, did when they saw the descendants of their former enemies?”

Liana gave no one time to think, revealing the bloody answer in an almost lyrical tone.

“Faced with their old enemies, the elves who returned to the surface did not hesitate. They reaped your weaponless ancestors like livestock.”

“A slaughter began.”

“On one side were the ‘Dark Elves’, who had maintained a highly militarized society where every member was a warrior in the harsh underground environment. On the other side were you, who had long forgotten war, your weapons stored away and your warhorses put to pasture.”

“The result of the battle was never in doubt.”

Liana surveyed the dumbstruck Romu, her eyes filled with glee.

“The vast majority of your ancestors were slaughtered in their resistance. Only a small number of the very youngest were taken control of by my ancestors for the purpose of ‘revenge’.”

“Then, through generations of brainwashing and enslavement, the true history was completely distorted, turning you into a vassal race that knew only how to be eternally grateful, to wag its tail and beg… even making you willingly lay down your lives for your enemies.”

“That is your ‘history’—a lie written by the victors, filled with mercy and glory!”

The truth was a poisoned dagger, viciously stabbed into the heart of every Romu present.

The core area of the mausoleum fell into a deathly silence.

The Loyalist elf psionic users’ faces were filled with shame and embarrassment. They didn’t dare to look into the eyes of their Romu allies and could only lower their heads in silence.

The Romu marines, however, were completely stunned.

Hatred, confusion, humiliation, anger—a myriad of emotions flickered across their faces. They gripped their weapons so tightly their knuckles turned white, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

Liana knew the time was right.

“Now, your kin, the elves who remain loyal to the true god, have shown you the path of return!” her voice was inflammatory as she opened her arms as if to embrace them.

“See these hypocritical ‘masters’ beside you for what they are! They will only use you, enslave you!”

“Return to our side! Return to the banner of your true creators—the Forerunters! Join us, and you will reclaim your ancestors’ glory, becoming masters of the sea of stars, not cannon fodder for other races! The Forerunters will grant you true power!”

In that moment, all eyes focused on the Romu commander.

His decision would directly influence the course of this battle.

The commander’s breathing grew heavy. He glanced at the tempting expression on Liana’s face, then at the elves beside him with their complex looks. Finally, his gaze landed on Amber.

Amber’s expression hadn’t changed much from the beginning. Although he was shocked at first, he had quickly calmed down.

He simply looked at the commander calmly, his eyes devoid of any complex emotion, containing only the same, pure trust as always.

It was as if he were saying: I trust your choice.

The chaotic thunder in the commander’s heart miraculously quieted the moment his eyes met Amber’s.

Many images flashed through his mind: the history of the elves’ salvation he had read about in textbooks since childhood; the bloody massacre Liana had just described; and the words Amber had casually said while patting his shoulder after a mission.

“Your life is your own. Don’t let anyone tell you how to live it.”

Yes, freedom.

The confusion in the commander’s eyes gradually faded, replaced by an unprecedented clarity and resolve.

He grinned, revealing a smile that was both honest and incredibly relieved.

“Maybe… maybe everything you said is true.” He looked at Liana, his voice steady and powerful. “Our ancestors might have truly had such a past.”

“But so what?”

His voice suddenly rose, filled with power. “The past? Under the Forerunners you speak of, our past was also one of slavery! What’s so proud about a past like that? Our glory doesn’t come from some bullshit ‘creator,’ but from what we’ve earned with our own blood and loyalty!”

The next moment, he violently raised his electromagnetic rifle, the dark muzzle aimed squarely at Liana and the rebels behind her.

Clack! Clack! Clack!

Hundreds of Romu marines, almost at the same time, uniformly raised their guns and chambered rounds. The clash of metal merged into a torrent of steel, resounding with finality.

“We may be simple, but we know who our true friends are, and who is a madman trying to use us!”

“We fight for freedom and for the bright future right before our eyes!” the commander roared, his voice shaking the chamber.

The smile on Liana’s face instantly froze, replaced by extreme fury and disbelief.

“Insolent fools! Scum who have betrayed their own blood!”

She shrieked, and a massive psionic wave erupted from her, forming a thick torrent of energy that blasted toward the leading Romu commander.

However, a blue figure was faster than her attack.

Amber appeared in front of the Romu formation in an instant. With one hand extended, a blue, spherical barrier constructed from pure Psionics materialized out of thin air.

The chaotic psionic blast struck the perfect blue sphere, but there was no earth-shattering explosion. It was simply absorbed and annihilated without a sound, like a clay ox sinking into the sea.

“Your opponent is me,” Amber’s voice was ice-cold.

“Fire!”

Wasting no time, the Romu commander roared the command, seizing the opportunity Amber had created.

A dense storm of high-velocity steel flechettes, like a downpour of vengeance, instantly submerged the last of the rebels in a destructive torrent of light and fire.

Although the elf rebels who had already been through a long battle had high psionic strength, their psionic reserves were now critically low.

This was the plight of psionic users in prolonged combat; they needed to replenish their energy with pure psionic crystals, and it was clear that the rebels who had retreated to the core of the mausoleum were running out of supplies.

The human and Romu coalition, though not as powerful, only needed to restock on batteries and ammunition to continue fighting. They could even force their bodies to maintain stamina with combat stimulants.

Faced with the continuous suppressive fire from the Powered Armor-clad Romu marines, the elven rebels’ already overburdened psionic shields grew dimmer and dimmer under the dense barrage, before finally shattering completely.

Then, their bodies, no longer enhanced by Psionics, were torn apart by the storm of steel flechettes.

Screams, explosions, and the wails of dissipating Psionics mingled together, but soon fell silent.

In just a few dozen seconds, Liana’s last followers were utterly erased from the world by the torrent of steel.

Within the dome, only the two opposing sides remained.

The anger and disbelief on Liana’s face transformed into a morbid, frenzied calm.

She looked at the wreckage littering the ground, at the Romu with their guns aimed at her, and at Amber, who stood before them, his psionic barrier as unyielding as a mountain.

“Traitors… All of you deserve to die,” she muttered, her voice hollow and venomous.

“Liana, it’s all over.”

The Phoenix King clutched the wound on his chest and walked forward step by step, his eyes filled with endless sorrow.

“Come back with me. Face judgment… This is your last chance.”

“Go back?” Liana suddenly burst into laughter, laughing so hard she bent over backward, tears streaming from her eyes. “My king, you are still so naive… You think this is the end?”

She abruptly turned around, threw her arms wide, and without a moment’s hesitation, pressed her back against the cold Return Beacon.

“No… This is the beginning!”

Alarm bells rang in Amber’s mind. He immediately roared, “Stop her! She’s going to use herself as a power source!”

Before his words had even faded, Liana’s Psionics began to burn wildly in a self-destructive manner.

The deep blue psionic energy was no longer a weapon but pure fuel, madly pouring through her body into the Return Beacon behind her!

“With my life, I welcome my Lord!”

“With my soul, I light the Star Beacon!”

“With my blood, I pave the god’s path!”

She let out her final, most fervent chant.

Her body began to turn transparent, the blood vessels and bones beneath her skin glowing with an eerie purple light as her life force drained away at a visible rate.

But just then, a steel flechette precisely struck her exquisite head. Under the immense kinetic energy, it burst open like a shattered watermelon.

Everyone turned to see the tiger-man Huss slowly lowering his rifle, seemingly muttering something under his breath.

With the Queen’s death, the Return Beacon, which had just lit up, slowly dimmed.

Everyone breathed a small sigh of relief as the Coalition forces began to deliver finishing blows to the rebels on the ground.

When a high-ranking rebel, heavily injured but not yet dead, was discovered by the royal court guards, his face showed no trace of despair from a failed plan. Instead, he coughed up blood while letting out a maniacal laugh.

“Heh heh heh… cough… You think you can really stop us? Cough cough We’ve planned for so long, how could we possibly fail so easily.”

With those words, the high-ranking rebel slowly stopped breathing, the crazed laugh frozen on his face.

His words instantly gave the Phoenix King and Amber a bad feeling. The two exchanged a look, and just as they were about to say something, they felt a heart-stopping psionic wave.

At the same time, in the deep space within the Thousand Stars Empire, on the planets and in the asteroid belts marked on the star charts as ‘celestial return beacons’…

In one sealed chamber after another, devices extremely similar in design to the ‘Return Beacon’ in the core of the Royal Mausoleum lit up one by one.

The vast quantities of psionic crystals stored around these devices had their energy rapidly drained.

Finally, psionic channels so powerful that even ordinary people could feel them spanned across deep space from these secondary devices, linking to the depths of the Royal Mausoleum on Aldaram.

And that Return Beacon, like an awakened ancient beast, began to emit a low rumble.

The runes on its base lit up again, one by one, shifting from a dim gold to a blinding incandescent white. An indescribably terrifying wave of energy emanated from it, causing the entire underground space to begin to violently collapse.

“Wait, no—!” the Phoenix King let out a cry of utter despair and transformed into a golden streak of light, lunging forward.

But it was too late.

In the Capital of the Thousand Stars Empire, Aldaram, the terrified elves—men, women, old, and young—suddenly had a blue light erupt from their eyes. Then, like harvested wheat, they collapsed in vast swathes.

The Psionics forcibly ripped from their bodies were drawn into an invisible vortex, converging from every corner of the planet into the device in the core of the Royal Mausoleum.

BOOM—!!!

A beam of energy so thick it defied description erupted from the top of the Return Beacon, rocketing skyward. It instantly pierced through a thousand meters of rock, broke through the surface, tore open Aldaram’s atmosphere, and stabbed into the boundless void of deep space like a sword of judgment!

Chapter 822: Aldaram is Dead

The pillar of light that rose from the core of the Royal Mausoleum, stretching from earth to sky, was like Aldaram’s final, sorrowful cry.

It was not a weapon, but a conduit that siphoned life, a savage straw plunged into the main artery of the entire elven civilization.

Whether in the bustling Royal Court Avenue or a remote, serene village; whether they were civilians praying in shelters or Psionic technicians holding fast to their posts.

Every elf, regardless of age, gender, or status, stopped what they were doing at the very same moment.

An eerie blue light erupted from their eyes, only to be extinguished as quickly as a candle flame in the wind.

Their life force and Psionics were violently ripped from their bodies by an invisible, tyrannical power, converging into that heavenly pillar of light.

Like wheat being harvested, they fell in swathes, their faces frozen with the shock and agony of their final moments.

Every city, every forest, every inch of land on Aldaram fell into a strange, deathly silence.

Elven civilians running through the capital’s streets to escape the fires of war collapsed to the ground, the terror on their faces not yet faded as the light in their eyes went out.

In mid-air, pilots lost consciousness, and the biological combat weapons linked to their minds spiraled out of control, falling from the sky like rain.

In a hospital far from the capital, untouched by the war, a newborn elven infant stopped breathing in its mother’s arms. The blue light in both mother and child’s eyes flared and dimmed in unison.

Life and Psionics, forcibly stripped away by an irresistible force, became invisible trickles that crossed thousands of kilometers to feed the greedy vortex deep within the Royal Mausoleum.

In a matter of seconds, the entire planet had become a vast, silent graveyard.

The passing of billions of lives failed to stir even a single ripple.

In orbit, the intense firefight between the elven fleets ceased at the same instant.

On the bridge of a Silver Leaf family cruiser, the crew slumped over their stations like soulless marionettes.

Aboard The Morning Star, the resolute commander of the garrison fleet was about to issue a new order, but the words caught forever in his throat as he fell backward, stiff as a board.

Loyalists, rebels—at this moment, there was no difference between them.

Their warships had become coffins floating in the void.

“What’s happening?!”

Lilith’s projection appeared on the combined fleet’s command channel, her voice tinged with genuine confusion for the first time.

“All elven warships have stopped responding. Communications are silent. Life signs… all gone.”

On Royal Court Avenue, Natalia had just lopped off a rebel’s head when the Elven Royal Court Guards around her suddenly dropped like reaped wheat.

Not just the enemy, but her comrades-in-arms as well.

“Everyone, cease fire!” Natalia’s roar boomed across the channel.

The human and Romu soldiers stared blankly at the bizarre scene before them. The enemies they had been fighting to the death one second before were now just corpses littering the ground.

In an instant, the battlefield became quiet enough to make one’s heart pound with dread.

That terrifying, all-consuming force also enveloped Amber, Agnes, and Allenita.

At the temporary ground command post, Agnes let out a pained grunt. She felt her Psionics being violently ripped from her body by an external force.

“Her Highness!”

The surrounding Royal Guard soldiers cried out in alarm and rushed toward her, but Agnes could no longer hear them clearly.

She gritted her silver teeth, her Draconic bloodline flaring to its absolute limit. An invisible pressure erupted from within her, barely managing to push back the pulling force.

Just then, she saw Allenita beside her, writhing in the same agony. The latter clearly lacked her resistance and was on the verge of being drained dry by this strange power.

In that split second, Agnes realized that this woman was also one of those extremely close to Amber. If she let her perish, she might have one less rival.

But…

From what Agnes understood of Amber, perhaps saving this elf was the better way to close the distance between them.

With that thought, Agnes hesitated no longer and grabbed Allenita’s hand.

“Unleash all your Psionics, hold nothing back! I’ll help you.”

Allenita, who had been on the verge of losing consciousness, regained a moment of clarity. She managed a weak nod and began to resist according to Agnes’s instructions.

In the core area of the Royal Mausoleum, Amber was in a similarly dire situation.

The force felt like countless invisible needles piercing every corner of his body, attempting to drain his Psionics dry.

The blue Psionic energy covering his body flickered violently as he fought desperately against the brutal plunder.

He looked up and saw the elven Psionic Masters around him, their faces contorted in pain. Some had already succumbed, following their kin outside into lifeless shells.

“Everyone, to me!”

A weak but resolute roar echoed out.

It was the Phoenix King.

He staggered to his feet. The golden Psionic energy befitting a monarch was now like a flickering candle, yet it burned with unparalleled determination.

He spread his arms, releasing what little power he had left without reservation, forming a golden, translucent barrier that enveloped Amber and the surviving elves.

The Phoenix King had willingly cut off the terrifying suction from the Return Beacon, drawing all the pressure onto himself.

His body began to turn transparent, the bones and veins beneath his skin becoming clearly visible as his life force burned away at a horrific rate.

“His Majesty!” the surviving elves cried out in grief.

Amber’s pupils contracted sharply. He could feel with certainty that the Phoenix King was using his own life essence to buy them a fighting chance.

Realizing this, the others also unleashed their Psionics to help the Phoenix King sustain the life-saving shield.

Finally, once the Return Beacon had siphoned enough energy from the entire planet, the terrifying suction slowly subsided.

It was over.

The golden barrier protecting them shattered like broken glass.

The Phoenix King could hold on no longer. His body went limp, and he collapsed toward the cold floor.

“Catch him!”

Amber reacted with extreme speed, lunging forward and catching the Phoenix King just before he hit the ground.

The feeling in his arms made Amber’s heart sink to the depths.

The Phoenix King’s body was as light as an empty shell, his once-immense life force now faint to the extreme.

“Life support unit, perform a life sign scan!” Amber ordered in a low voice.

A pale blue beam swept over the Phoenix King’s body. A series of red warnings and critical values immediately began to flash frantically on the projection inside Amber’s faceplate.

[Warning: Target’s life signs are extremely weak.]

[Cerebral Psionic Core is on the verge of collapse. Massive dissipation of life energy detected.]

[Multiple organ failure. Nervous system activity below 20%.]

[Comprehensive assessment: Target has entered a near-death state.]

The situation was even worse than he had imagined. The elven leader could perish at any second.

But Amber knew the Phoenix King could not die.

Not now, at least.

He was the last symbol of the Thousand Stars Empire, the sole spiritual pillar holding the elves together.

Without the slightest hesitation, Amber carefully extended his own Psionics into the Phoenix King’s body.

The residual Psionics within the king were like a stampede of wild horses, rampaging through his meridians and accelerating the drain on his life.

Amber’s Psionics formed a fine mesh, precisely calming and gathering the rampaging energies one by one, guiding them back into quiescence.

It was an extremely delicate operation, demanding far more mental fortitude than a high-intensity battle.

At the same time, he activated the medical unit on his Powered Armor’s gauntlet.

“High-concentration vitality agent, cell regeneration fluid, nerve stabilizer—maximum dosage, direct injection!”

Several vials of fluid, gleaming with different colors, were unsparingly injected into the Phoenix King’s body through microneedles.

A cold, mechanical voice sounded in Amber’s ear.

[Life signs… stabilizing.]

[Psionic energy dissipation rate slowing.]

[Target is temporarily out of immediate danger.]

Only then did Amber breathe a sigh of relief. He looked up to find the dome deathly silent.

The few elven masters who had been lucky enough to survive were staring blankly at him, then at the bodies of their kinsmen strewn across the floor, their faces etched with a grief and despair that words could not describe.

They had realized what horror had just transpired. Their kin on this planet were all dead.

Slain in that single instant.

The tiger-man Huss and his Romu marines had also lowered their weapons, looking upon this hell on earth with complex expressions.

Just moments ago, they were fighting for their freedom and future. In the blink of an eye, the land they had shed blood and sweat to protect had become a true tomb.

“Mr. Amber! Mr. Amber!”

Natalia’s anxious voice came through the comms channel.

Amber immediately switched channels. “Natalia, what is it?”

“The elves on the ground… whether rebel or friendly forces, they’ve all lost their life signs! Her Highness Agnes and Ms. Allenita… they’ve passed out too!”

Natalia’s voice carried a hint of panic she herself hadn’t noticed.

Amber’s heart clenched. “What’s their condition?”

“They still have life signs. I’ve had them moved into field life support pods.”

Amber relaxed slightly. It seemed their situation was similar to the Phoenix King’s; they shouldn’t have been drained completely like the other elves.

“Take care of them. I’ll find a way up immediately.”

Amber cut the comms and handed the now-stable Phoenix King over to a surviving elven master to look after.

He stood up and turned his gaze back to the Return Beacon, which was still humming. The pillar of light piercing the heavens showed no sign of weakening.

Liana was dead, but her plan… had succeeded.

The signal had been sent.

An unprecedented chill ran up Amber’s spine.

This was no longer a war of rebellion and suppression.

These madmen had used the lives of their own people on an entire planet to light a beacon that spanned the cosmos.

And now… something was following the light. It was coming.

“Lilith, this is Amber.”

Amber connected to Regalia Fortress, his voice as calm as still water, betraying no emotion.

“What’s the situation outside?”

“Master,” Lilith’s voice came through, carrying a rare solemnity.

“There are no more life signs on Aldaram.”

“Except for your location in the core of the Royal Mausoleum, and another high-energy point on the ground… likely where Her Highness Agnes and the others are. The entire planet has become a dead world.”

Although they had expected it, when the fact was laid bare so clearly, everyone present felt their heart being squeezed viciously.

The last traces of color drained from the faces of the few surviving elven masters. One of them fell to his knees, his legs giving out, and let out a beast-like whimper.

Lying on a stretcher, two silent streams of tears rolled from the corners of the Phoenix King’s eyes.

He was the king of this civilization, yet he had become its last pallbearer.

“The elven fleet in orbit is the same,” Lilith’s voice continued. “I sent marines to board and check. We estimate over forty thousand elven crew members died at the same time. Right now, those warships are just tombstones floating in orbit.”

Amber was silent for a moment, processing the suffocatingly heavy information.

He forced himself to calm down, his mind racing.

He was now the de facto supreme commander of this isolated force. He could not lose his composure.

“Huss. Take your men and rendezvous with Natalia’s forces. Get a casualty count immediately, rally the troops, and await my orders.”

“Lilith, have the fleet maintain high alert. Monitor the entire star sector. Report any anomalous warp signals to me at once.”

“And,” Amber took a deep breath, “find a way to analyze the energy composition and information stream of that light pillar. I need to know just what it’s broadcasting to the universe.”

After issuing a string of commands, Amber began to walk slowly toward the source of the apocalypse—the Return Beacon.

The closer he got, the clearer the unsettling energy fluctuations from another dimension became.

It was like a colossal transmission tower, broadcasting a set of coordinates into the boundless, dark void of space in a manner incomprehensible to current human technology.

Amber reached out a hand, blue Psionic lightning arcing between his fingertips as he cautiously touched the beacon’s cold outer shell.

An immense, ancient, and chaotic torrent of information instantly flooded his mind.

It wasn’t language, nor was it data. It was something more fundamental, a ‘call’ originating from the level of cosmic law itself.

It was calling to its creators.

It was calling to those terrifying beings known as the ‘Forerunners’, who had long since departed this universe.

Amber snatched his hand back, his face a little pale.

Just then, the pillar of light at the top of the Return Beacon flickered violently.

“Wait, could this be… a response?” Amber’s voice was dry.

He looked up, and through the dome pierced by the light, he could almost see the dead, silent starry sky.

This planet was dead.

But for the guests who were about to arrive, a grand, gluttonous feast had only just begun.

“Is this what it means for ‘the future to be approaching us’?”

Chapter 823: The Future of the Elves?

In the core area of the Royal Mausoleum, the beam of light that pierced the sky was still tirelessly sending its signal into the dark depths of the universe.

But for Amber and the others, there was no longer any point in staying here.

After administering emergency treatment to the Phoenix King and the few surviving elf masters, Amber led the remnants of his team back to the surface along the passage forcibly opened by the reinforcements.

The higher they climbed, the fainter the cloying, sweet stench of rot and blood became, replaced by a heart-palpitating dead silence.

There was no wind, no chirping of insects; even the flow of air seemed to have frozen.

When Amber was the first to step out of the blasted mausoleum entrance and back under the skies of Aldaram, he was utterly stunned by the sight before him.

The sky was still the same familiar emerald green, and the sunlight fell warmly, illuminating what was once a glorious sacred land.

However, on this sacred land, there was no longer any life.

With the Royal Mausoleum at its center, the earth for several kilometers around had been razed by an orbital strike. Wisps of green smoke still rose from the scorched ground.

And at the edge of the scorched earth, the war had come to an abrupt halt.

Hundreds of thousands of bodies carpeted the ground.

There were elves in rebel uniforms, their fanatical expressions frozen for eternity in stances of charging or firing.

There were soldiers clad in the magnificent armor of the Royal Court guards, their psionic halberds still pointed at the enemy while their bodies were already cold.

And there were the human and Romu combat units, standing silently in place, at a loss as they stared at this vast, open-air graveyard.

Not a single corpse bore any obvious wounds. They were simply dead.

Like puppets on a string whose souls had been snatched away in an instant, they had collapsed limply onto the ground.

“Blargh—”

A young elf master who had followed Amber and was lucky enough to survive the ordeal underground could no longer suppress the churning in his stomach after witnessing this hellish scene. He leaned against a broken wall and began to retch violently.

Another, older elf’s legs gave out, and he fell to his knees. He reached out a hand as if to grasp something, but in the end, it just fell limply to his side. Murky tears streamed endlessly from his hollow eyes.

Soon, more surviving elves, unable to bear the immense psychological shock, saw their vision go black and fainted.

Medics rushed forward to carry these survivors, who could no longer face reality, away on stretchers.

Amber watched all of this in silence. He found Natalia and Huss.

The faces of these non-psionic soldiers were also filled with unconcealable shock and confusion.

“Mr. Amber,” Natalia’s voice was a little hoarse, “these elves, they’re all… all dead.”

Amber nodded, his gaze passing over them toward the distant Royal Court Avenue.

There, too, was a dead silence.

Beside collapsed buildings and overturned vehicles lay the bodies of elven civilians who hadn’t had time to evacuate.

An elven girl lay at a street corner, a doll still clutched tightly in her hand. The expression on her face was one of terror that had not yet had time to fade.

In that moment, Amber truly and concretely understood what ‘a dead star’ meant.

This was no longer a war. This was a one-sided, efficient, silent slaughter.

If the ‘Return Beacon’ controlled by traitors of the Thousand Stars Empire alone possessed such destructive power, what about the Forerunner civilization?

Amber dared not think any further.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart. His voice was terrifyingly calm.

“Count our casualties, tally our supplies, and prepare to evacuate.”

“Evacuate?” Natalia was a little surprised.

“Yes, evacuate.” Amber’s tone left no room for argument. “This will soon no longer be our home turf.”

Inside the temporary command post, Agnes and Allenita lay quietly in two field life support pods, their faces pale, but their chests still rose and fell steadily.

“When I arrived, Her Highness… she used her own power to protect Ms. Allenita.”

A Royal Guard soldier walked over to Amber and reported in a low voice when he saw him approach. For some reason, everyone present had instinctively started to see Amber as their leader.

“Then they both passed out.”

Amber’s gaze fell on Agnes’s sleeping face, which still held a hint of stubbornness. A complex and indecipherable emotion flickered in his heart. He truly hadn’t expected this usually high-and-mighty Empress Regnant to make such a choice at a critical moment.

He said nothing, only reached out and gently brushed his hand across the cold, transparent cover of the life support pod, as if to confirm her existence.

Then, he looked at the unharmed human and Romu soldiers around him and recalled the terrifying suction force he had felt in the core area.

A clear conclusion formed in his mind.

“The Return Beacon… it targets elves and psionic users,” Amber muttered to himself.

It was like a picky glutton, devouring only specific ‘fuel’.

Although Isabelle had been transformed by the ‘Eternal Cells’ in the Starry Sky Dragon’s blood, that transformation hadn’t turned her into a psionic user, which was why she was unharmed.

That was also why only he, the elves, Agnes, and Allenita had been affected.

They were all kindling for this apocalyptic sacrifice.

“Mr. Amber,” Franklin walked over, his expression grim, “what… what do we do now?”

This question made everyone’s eyes focus on Amber.

The Thousand Stars Empire, this once-glorious interstellar civilization, had hardly any living elves left on its capital planet.

At this moment, the only ones who could still stand here and give orders were them, the ‘outsiders’.

Amber looked around at the faces filled with grief, confusion, or shock. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

He walked over to the life support pod and looked at the still-unconscious Phoenix King. This elven monarch was likely the spiritual pillar for all the surviving elves on the entire planet.

Although, that number was probably despairingly small.

“The situation… is very strange.” Amber’s voice wasn’t loud, but it reached everyone’s ears clearly.

“We have become the only fully formed armed force on this planet… but this place has become a giant trap.”

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the beam of energy in the distance that had yet to dissipate.

“If the ‘Forerunners’ are truly coming back, then Aldaram will be their first port of call.”

“We cannot stay here.”

Amber’s decision was swift and decisive.

“Everyone, prepare for immediate evacuation. Return to the fleet in orbit.”

“Also,” he looked toward one of the surviving elves, “I’ll have to trouble you to assist us. Use Aldaram’s psionic communications network to broadcast globally and try to find other survivors.”

The elf’s eyes were vacant; he just numbly nodded his head.

Giving him a task might help him temporarily forget the unbearable pain.

However, everyone knew this was likely a futile effort.

The broadcast signal, like a stone thrown into the Dead Sea, spread to every corner of the planet.

Cities, forests, oceans.

The only response they received was an eternal, heart-palpitating dead silence.

In orbit, the atmosphere in the core command room of the Regalia Fortress was so oppressive it felt tangible.

On the enormous holographic star map, Aldaram was still a beautiful planet of interwoven emerald and azure, but everyone knew that beneath that beauty hid a graveyard of billions of souls.

“Master, the twelfth round of public hails and scans of Aldaram is complete.” Lilith’s voice echoed in the core command room, tinged with a solemnity that even her mechanical nature couldn’t hide.

“…There is no response, and no signs of surviving elven life have been detected.”

The last glimmer of hope was completely extinguished.

Amber stood silently before the viewport, looking down at the dead planet.

The aerospace transports had already completed the final round of personnel and supply evacuations. The surviving elves, including the still-unconscious Phoenix King, were properly settled in the fortress’s medical bay.

They had all become a people without a country, their faces sharing the same expression of numbness and despair.

The latest dark joke was thus born:

The once-contentious ‘Conservatives’ and ‘Equal-Righters’ had now all become ‘The Apathetic.’

The Phoenix King had briefly regained consciousness before being placed in a medical pod.

He didn’t speak, but simply looked deeply at Amber with eyes so dim they had lost all their light, then turned his gaze to his homeland outside the viewport.

Two lines of clear tears slid silently from the corners of his eyes.

Amber understood the meaning in that gaze.

It was a plea, an entrustment, and the final dignity of a king.

He wanted Amber to carry the last embers of the elven race and survive.

“All troops have returned to their posts. Ready to execute warp jump at any time,” Lilith’s voice came from behind.

Amber turned and nodded.

“Have the fleet synchronize with us. Prepare to leave this star system.”

He paused, then added, “Deploy three sets of ‘Messenger’ unmanned observation posts on the outskirts of the star system to conduct long-term surveillance of Aldaram. I need to know when that beam of light will disappear, and… what it will attract.”

This place had become the most dangerous region in the universe, but at the same time, it might also be the first place to observe the ‘enemy’.

The order was carried out swiftly. The combined fleet began to slowly adjust its course, breaking free of Aldaram’s Gravity well.

Just as the Regalia Fortress’s Warp Engine began to pre-charge, Lilith’s voice rang out again, this time with a clear note of warning.

“Master, an anomalous high-energy reading has been detected!”

“The energy output of the Return Beacon is undergoing a drastic change!”

Amber whipped his head around to look at the main screen.

The beam of light shooting from the planet’s surface into the depths of space was beginning to change color.

The originally blinding incandescent white was rapidly deepening and slowly turning blue.

The form of the beam also became more solid, as if an invisible hand were trying to sever something with it.

“What’s happening?!” Amber asked, a hint of tension in his voice.

“Unable to analyze. The energy model does not match any known phenomenon in our database. We only know that the current energy intensity is increasing rapidly.”

Before Lilith could finish, the skyward beam flashed violently once, then completely extinguished in the next second.

That single flash instantly fried some of the Optical sensors on the Regalia Fortress and many of the warships; even the protective measures for the optical lenses didn’t have time to activate.

“What was that just now?” asked Franklin, who was in the core command room with Amber, feeling a sense of unease.

“I don’t know, but it’s definitely not a good thing,” Amber’s brow was tightly furrowed, but his tone remained calm.

“Jump drive is fully charged!”

“Go!” Amber made a snap decision, issuing the final Command.

With a roar of the engines, the Regalia Fortress and the vast human fleet vanished from this dead star sector in a dazzling display of distorted space.

Inside the warp corridor, streams of multi-colored light flew past the viewports.

But a dead silence hung over the core command room of the Regalia Fortress.

Everyone was still reeling from the immense shock of the final energy burst before they left. It was safe to say that everything that had happened these past few days had far exceeded their understanding.

“Lilith, are the observation posts we deployed still signaling?” Amber broke the silence.

“They are currently operating normally. The damaged Optical sensor components have been replaced automatically.”

“Good. Continue to maintain surveillance,” Amber nodded. “What’s the situation with Salieh and the exploration fleet?”

“Master, they are all resting in a safe star system. According to the last communication before we warped, the exploration fleet will rendezvous with us after their ships have been refitted.”

“In addition, the navies of the Star Dragon Empire and the New Federation have also begun preliminary mobilization after receiving the warning issued by Ms. Salieh.”

After listening to Lilith’s summarized report, Amber left the core command room and headed for the fortress’s medical section.

In the corridor, through the observation windows of the isolation wards, he could see the surviving elves.

Most of them were still unconscious or semi-conscious. The few who were awake just stared blankly at the ceiling, like empty shells whose souls had been ripped out.

The mental trauma inflicted by the destruction of Aldaram might never heal.

Amber stopped in front of a special intensive care unit.

Inside, three people lay in separate life support pods.

The Phoenix King, Agnes, and Allenita.

The Phoenix King’s vital signs had stabilized, but the damage to his Psionic Core was permanent. He would probably never be able to wield that world-destroying power again. The elven monarch would likely live out his days as a ‘mortal’.

Agnes and Allenita were in much better condition. They were merely suffering from psionic exhaustion and were otherwise physically unharmed. They were expected to wake up soon.

Amber stood quietly for a moment, then pushed the door open and went inside.

He walked to Agnes’s life support pod, looking at her sleeping face, and the Royal Guard soldier’s words surfaced in his mind again.

“Thank you.”

He whispered, his voice so soft only he could hear.

Whatever the Star Dragon Empress’s motives were, she had indeed saved Allenita in that moment of crisis.

Just then, he heard a slight noise behind him.

Amber turned around to see that the Phoenix King had opened his eyes at some point and was looking at him quietly.

“So… we still failed?” The Phoenix King’s voice was hoarse and weak.

Amber hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“Is this the fate of all life in this universe?”

A smile uglier than a grimace stretched across the Phoenix King’s lips. “We endured so much suffering, survived the ‘great purge’, but we still inevitably ended up here.”

“What do you plan to do now?” Amber asked.

“I don’t know. I just want to live on with my people…”

“That’s not hard, as long as you can let go of that arrogance of yours~”

Chapter 824: Forerunners: Read

“What do you plan to do next?” Amber asked.

“I don’t know. I just want to lead my people and survive,” the Phoenix King’s voice was filled with exhaustion. He no longer had the strength to think about revenge against the rebels or rebuilding.

Leading the rest of his people, scattered across the various planets of the Empire, just to survive—this most basic need had now become the monarch’s only extravagant hope.

“That’s not difficult, as long as you can let go of that pride of yours,” Amber’s tone was flat, tinged with an almost imperceptible mockery.

The Phoenix King fell silent. He understood, of course, what Amber meant.

The elves, born of the great Thousand Stars Empire. The pride rooted in their bloodline and history was the cornerstone of their glory, and now, it was a heavy shackle around their necks.

If they wanted to survive, their attitude toward the human world had to change. They could no longer be the high and mighty bystanders, infiltrating and controlling the human world through economic means.

Instead, they would have to cooperate sincerely and openly with these ‘outsiders’ they had once looked down upon.

“The destruction of Aldaram is a far greater blow to the Empire than you or anyone else can imagine. I believe only a few people realize this right now,” Amber ignored the Phoenix King’s silence and began her analysis, her voice so calm it was almost cruel.

“It wasn’t just billions of civilians who died, but the entire brain of the Empire.”

“Your political core—the high-ranking members of the Silver Leaf family, the Morningstar family, and all the other great families—are probably all just frozen corpses in orbit now.”

“Your technological hub, those top-tier psionic artisans and bio-scientists, were all turned to dust on the capital planet.”

“And the same goes for your most elite forces, like the Royal Court Guard and the fleet.”

“The entire superstructure of the Empire was completely wiped out in an instant.”

The Phoenix King closed his eyes. Every word from Amber was like a small hammer, shattering his last illusions.

Amber continued, “It’s like a giant without a brain, capable only of twitching in place before being crushed by its own massive body.”

“So, it’s predictable that without the restraint of the royal court, the ambitionists and opportunists scattered across the star systems will swarm like sharks that have smelled blood, tearing at the Empire’s corpse.”

“The remaining rebel factions in other star systems will regroup, swaying people’s hearts under the banner of avenging Liana.”

“Those vassal races you once oppressed will also take this chance to ignite a wave of rebellion.”

“As of today, the Thousand Stars Empire is, in truth, an empire in name only.”

The Phoenix King’s eyes snapped open, the last glimmer of a monarch’s light flaring in his dim golden pupils.

“No… as long as I’m alive, as long as the royal power still exists, the Empire will…”

“Relying on you, Your Majesty?” Amber cut him off without mercy. “A king whose Psionic Core is shattered and needs help just to stand?”

“Or are you relying on those few survivors who have suffered mental breakdowns and can’t even face reality right now?”

“Wake up, Your Excellency Aenarion.” Amber leaned close to the Phoenix King’s ear, her voice a low whisper. “The times have changed.”

“Your era ended the moment the Return Beacon was lit.”

The Phoenix King’s breathing became ragged, his chest heaving violently. The life support pod emitted a faint alarm.

“Alright, alright, I’ll stop. Your Majesty, don’t get so agitated. You should take this time to think things over.”

Amber straightened up. Without another look at him, she turned and walked to the door.

“A catastrophe that may destroy this universe is fast approaching. If you want to lead your people, you have to accept reality. Throw that useless pride and hollow glory of yours into the trash and learn how to be a ‘person,’ not a high and mighty ‘elf’.”

The door slid shut behind her, cutting off the Phoenix King’s pained, suppressed gasps.

Amber stood by the door, wondering if her words had been a little too harsh. He was, after all, a severely injured man, and such cruel words might have been too much of a shock.

Just then, the door behind her slid open again.

Amber turned to see Allenita, dressed in a patient’s gown, her face wan and haggard. The wealthy elf had somehow climbed out of her medi-bay on her own.

She still looked weak, but her mental state was much better than the other surviving elves.

“Amber…” she called out to him, her emerald eyes filled with complex emotions. “Thank you… and Her Highness Agnes.”

Amber nodded. “How are you feeling?”

“Not great… It feels like my body has been hollowed out,” Allenita said with a bitter smile. “I heard… about Aldaram, and our family’s fleet in orbit.”

She didn’t continue, her voice trembling with sorrow and fear.

“Get some rest first. Don’t think about these things. No matter what, I’ll be by your side and give you all the support you need.”

Amber patted her shoulder, then pulled her into a hug.

Allenita nodded forcefully, saying no more, but tears still streamed silently down her beautiful cheeks.

—

In a dimension that could not be described by three-dimensional coordinates, the boundaries of time and space were blurred.

There was no matter here, only pure consciousness and energy flowing according to some arcane law.

A vast hall constructed of flowing light floated in the void, its geometric structure constantly shifting as if it were a living thing.

At the center of the hall, a transparent, cocoon-like container was filled with a clear, faintly fluorescent liquid.

A slender, humanoid creature floated silently within.

It had a torso and limbs similar to a human’s, but its skin had the texture of warm, smooth jade, covered in fine golden patterns.

Its head was hairless. In its place were a dozen or so translucent tentacles, like soft appendages, swaying gently with the flow of the glowing liquid.

Just like Salieh, who was currently organizing her exploration fleet for self-inspection in some star system, this was also a Jeram.

A being revered as a ‘true god’ by the Thousand Stars Empire’s rebel faction, and called a ‘Forerunner’ by countless civilizations across the cosmos.

After an unknown amount of time, its closed eyes slowly opened.

They were eyes without pupils, made of pure golden light.

As it awoke, the tentacles at the back of its head unfurled, flashing with the blue light of Psionics, like an eerie yet magnificent crown.

“Speaker, you have awakened.”

A calm, emotionless consciousness echoed directly in its mind.

“Karax,” the Speaker responded, his own consciousness just as serene. “Are there results from the research on the Psionic Ascension Matrix?”

“There was an accident, Speaker.”

The voice of the Jeram named Karax sounded in the ‘Speaker’s’ consciousness once more.

“During the seventh phase of the energy ascension test, the project team encountered an uncontrollable psionic collapse.”

“Laboratory Number 72 was completely devoured. Great Artisan ‘Fila’ and thirty-seven high-ranking artisans… were annihilated in the accident.”

Even while discussing such a grave loss, Karax’s consciousness remained extremely restrained.

“But in their final moments before annihilation, Great Artisan Fila successfully uploaded the complete experimental data to the ‘Source Network’.”

The Speaker was silent for a moment, then let out an imperceptible sigh.

“Their sacrifice will light the way forward for our civilization.”

“Yes, Speaker,” Karax replied. “Also, a report on the ‘space-time expedition.’ The Third Expeditionary Corps has completed the fundamental erasure of Threat Civilization Number 19551, the ‘Star-Devouring Swarm,’ and is en route to the assembly area for ‘return’.”

“Very good. Next…”

Their communication was efficient and concise, exchanging information that could affect the fate of several star systems in mere seconds.

For the Jeram people, traversing different spacetimes, correcting ‘historical branches’ that might threaten their own existence, and erasing highly threatening civilizations was, like a human gardener weeding a garden, a part of their entire race’s daily work.

And just then.

An alarm, sharp enough to tear the soul apart, pierced through the entire Jeram civilization’s psionic network without warning.

It was not a sound, but a primal fear warning from the foundational level of existence.

The consciousnesses of the ‘Speaker’ and Karax froze in an instant.

An alarm of this level had never sounded in their lives, which were long enough to witness the birth and death of universes.

Because it meant only one thing—an ultimate threat that should theoretically never appear again had returned.

In the next moment, a massive stream of information, in a way that transcended logic, poured into their consciousness.

[WARNING: Universe No. 772, ‘Return Beacon’ activated.]

[WARNING: Universe No. 772, Observation Stations ‘Kronos’, ‘Rhea’, and ‘Ouranos’ report simultaneously. Catastrophic timeline deviation detected!]

[WARNING: Current universe has entered Historical Branch No. 954883!]

[Database comparison in progress…]

[This historical branch has a 99.97% overlap with the ‘Final Prophecy’!]

Dead silence.

A dead silence that briefly froze thought spread through the consciousness of the two Jeram.

Immediately after, several other equally ancient and powerful consciousnesses, startled by the alarm, instantly connected to the communication.

They did not speak at first, but their minds carried an undeniable shock and horror.

That prophecy…

The dark ending they had paid an infinite price to prevent, launching ‘space-time expeditions’ and ‘great purges’ that swept across countless universes…

It had finally come.

“Convene the Council of Thirteen immediately!”

The ‘Speaker’s’ consciousness shattered the silence. His voice was no longer flat but carried an unprecedented gravity.

With that, he submerged his consciousness into the deepest part of the psionic network.

There lay the core of the Jeram civilization’s power.

It was a domain constructed of pure spirit. There was no up or down, no sun, moon, or stars.

There were only thirteen high chairs formed from converged psionic energy, suspended like thirteen stars in the endless sea of the psionic network, interconnected by myriad psionic threads.

This was the highest decision-making body of the Jeram civilization—the council.

The ‘Speaker’s’ consciousness, a streak of light, was the first to arrive, materializing on his exclusive high chair.

Immediately after, one immense consciousness after another arrived, and the other twelve high chairs lit up in succession.

The advent of each consciousness caused this deep-level psionic network to tremble.

They were the thirteen current rulers of this vast civilization, ‘gods’ in the truest sense, who overlooked the great river of time.

Yet, at this moment, what enveloped this sacred domain was not its usual majesty and serenity, but an unprecedented tension, suppressed to the extreme.

“Everyone.”

The ‘Speaker’s’ voice resounded directly in the consciousness of all the councilors.

Without any preamble or pleasantries, he got straight to the point: “The dark ending we have fought against for countless eons, the one we sought to avoid, has arrived.”

Cold data and images transformed into a torrent of information, shared among everyone in the council.

The pillar of light shooting into the sky in Universe No. 772.

The terrifying warning of the timeline deviation.

And that 99.97% probability of overlap with the prophecy of their civilization’s demise.

The entire spiritual domain fell silent for several long moments.

“Impossible! Branch Number 954883 was completely pruned by us long before we left Universe Number 772!” a consciousness burning like a raging flame roared.

“But now, this branch has appeared,” the ‘Speaker’ responded calmly.

“All related causal chains were locked, all variables controlled. What caused the deviation?!” another cold consciousness asked as it began calculating at high speed.

“Recalibrate the prophecy model! Trace the origin of all historical branches! We must know on which branch the problem occurred!”

In the eyes of the Jeram, they were the chess masters of the universe, the managers of time.

The word ‘accident’ had long been absent from their vocabulary.

The current situation was undoubtedly the most thorough negation of their entire civilization’s long-standing efforts.

“Quiet!”

The ‘Speaker’s’ voice, like an irresistible gravitational force, smoothed out all the chaotic streams of consciousness.

“What has happened has happened. Arguing or searching for the source of the anomaly is meaningless now.”

He stated calmly, “The Return Beacon has been activated, which means our former creations, the servant army abandoned due to the negligence of our predecessors, have come into contact with something they shouldn’t have. The deviation of the historical branch means an unpredictable ‘singularity’ has appeared in Universe Number 772. And all of this… points to the same ending.”

The ‘Speaker’s’ consciousness swept across every one of his colleagues present.

“The enemy from the prophecy, the only one capable of wiping us completely from the timeline… has returned.”

An unprecedented dead silence fell over the council chamber.

Even the most violent consciousness had now grown heavy.

They had conquered countless universes, destroyed innumerable civilizations, and considered themselves the pinnacle of evolution, the ultimate beings of the universe.

But only these thirteen supreme leaders knew that in the most ancient traditions of their civilization, there had always been a prophecy of the ‘End.’

In the prophecy, a race they themselves had pushed into the abyss would be reborn from the ashes of destruction, transforming into the most terrifying of avengers to ring the death knell for the Jeram civilization.

For this, the entire race had mobilized its full strength to launch the ‘space-time expedition,’ thoroughly eradicating any race in different timelines and different universes that could pose a threat in the future.

The ‘Speaker’s’ words struck the consciousness of every council member like a heavy hammer, instantly quelling all arguments.

Then, his conscious form slowly ‘rose’ from its high chair, looking down upon the entire council.

“Observation and waiting cannot change the outcome.”

“And fleeing is not the choice of us Jeram.”

“Since the prophecy has become reality, since the enemy is already at the door…”

An absolute resolve to sever all ties emanated from his consciousness.

“…then we will crush it with our own hands.”

“I propose we activate the Supreme War Act and adjust the civilization’s status to ‘Final War’.”

Chapter 825: The Empress Regnant Isn’t Home Today

The light and shadow of the warp channel twisted and flowed outside the viewport, casting the core command room of Regalia Fortress in shifting light.

When the combined fleet and Regalia Fortress exited the warp together, arriving at the designated temporary safe star system, everyone subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

Franklin, who had been unaffected by the Return Beacon’s activation due to being an ordinary human, now approached Amber, the exhaustion on his face palpable.

“Mr. Amber… what happened at Aldaram has made me realize that all our previous plans may have been too conservative.” Franklin’s voice was hoarse, but his tone was solemn.

“Not conservative. Naive,” Amber said, motioning for him to sit. “A madman who would use the lives of an entire capital planet as fuel just to send a signal… whatever they’ve summoned is not something any one of us can face alone.”

The two sat opposite each other as silence spread through the conference room.

“This whole series of events at Aldaram…” Franklin rubbed the bridge of his nose, seemingly at a loss for where to begin. “This is completely beyond our comprehension.”

“This is only the beginning,” Amber replied calmly, projecting a briefing he had already prepared onto the center of the conference table.

“My subordinates analyzed the final burst from that pillar of light. Before it extinguished, it broadcast a clear set of coordinates to the entire universe—the coordinates of the Aldaram star system.”

“At the same time, it seems to have included some kind of ‘special information.’ We can’t decipher the content, but its energy model points to a terrifying conclusion—it was calibrating spatial parameters for some kind of ultra-long-range teleportation.”

Franklin’s expression grew even darker. He certainly understood what that meant.

“So, not only did those madmen call for backup, but they also held the door wide open for them?”

“That’s one way of putting it.” Amber nodded. “We don’t know when they’ll come or how they’ll arrive… but we must prepare for the worst.”

He looked at Franklin, his gaze sharp.

“Which is why I propose the formation of a ‘Survivor’s Alliance’.”

Franklin’s spirits lifted slightly as he looked at Amber.

“Based on the four parties—the Atlas Group, the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the surviving elves—we will establish a military alliance that transcends nations and races.”

“Intelligence sharing, mutual resource aid, common technology, and the establishment of a joint command system.”

Amber spoke slowly, but every word was firm.

“We don’t have time for protracted political games, Franklin. The enemy could show up on our doorstep at any moment, and right now… we don’t even know what they look like.”

Franklin fell into a long silence. He knew Amber’s proposal was the only way forward.

But he also understood what such an alliance entailed.

The New Federation was waiting to be rebuilt from ruins, the Empress Regnant of the Star Dragon Empire was in a coma, and the elves were a shadow of their former selves.

In this so-called four-party alliance, the Atlas Group would hold the absolute dominant position. Although Franklin had already accepted this outcome, he didn’t think the other two parties would be as accepting as him.

“As a show of good faith,” Amber continued, seeming to see through his concerns, “the Atlas Group will open part of its advanced technology databanks to the alliance members.”

“Including, but not limited to: second-generation Warp Engine technology, integrated adaptive deflector shield and psionic shield schematics, new warship armor plating materials and structures, and some psionic application technologies.”

At these words, Franklin’s head shot up, his eyes filled with shock.

These technologies were, in a manner of speaking, the very source of the Atlas Group’s technological superiority over the New Federation, and now Amber was offering to share them all?

Amber naturally noticed Franklin’s expression but made no comment, simply continuing:

“Of course, the Federation and the Empire will also need to contribute what you excel at—your vast industrial production capabilities, your excellent engineering and technical personnel, and most importantly, a united resolve.”

“Atlas will be responsible for the most cutting-edge technological integration and breakthroughs. You will be responsible for turning that technology into the steel and firepower we need to survive.”

Franklin looked at Amber with some suspicion, as if trying to discern whether this was a generous offer or a sugar-coated trap.

But he saw only calmness.

A reassuring calmness, capable of cool-headed planning even in the face of an apocalyptic disaster.

Thinking back on everything Amber had told him before, a strange sense of security unexpectedly rose from the bottom of his heart.

“There’s no problem on the New Federation’s end.”

After a moment of thought, Franklin said with a nod, “But as for the Star Dragon Empire and the elves…”

“I understand your concerns, Franklin. So this is just a preliminary concept. The final agreement will have to wait until Her Majesty Agnes and the Phoenix King have recovered. Then we can hold a formal multi-party conference.”

“I understand, then.”

Franklin stood up and extended his hand.

“I hope the situation we face when we next meet isn’t even worse.”

Amber shook his hand, a faint smile on his face.

“I also hope your hair is still there the next time we meet.”

Franklin paused, then chuckled bitterly and rubbed his increasingly sparse scalp. “I should probably look into getting some synthetic hair implants. Maybe I could even try a new hairstyle.”

After bidding farewell to Franklin, Amber stood before the viewport, watching as the New Federation’s escort fleet broke away from the formation and warped into hyperspace.

He knew this was only the first step.

A fragile prototype of an alliance, built on fear.

To make it truly indestructible would require not only technology and resources, but also blood and victory.

“Lilith, set a course. Destination—the Star Dragon Empire’s capital, Saint-Saulnier.”

“As you command, Master.”

With a low hum of the engines, Regalia Fortress and its escorting Imperial fleet also vanished into distorted space.

The warp journey to Saint-Saulnier was a long one. Amber was thinking of heading to the medical bay to check on the Phoenix King and the others when a figure appeared silently behind him.

It was Natalia.

The Commander of the Star Dragon Empire’s Royal Guard had shed her blood-stained power armor for a crisp officer’s uniform, but the ferocity and exhaustion in her brow had not diminished in the slightest.

“Mr. Amber,” she called out to him, her voice very low.

Amber was clearly surprised that the Commander of the Royal Guard had sought him out. He paused for a moment before turning to face her.

“Is something wrong?”

A hint of struggle flashed across Natalia’s face. “I’ve just received some… troubling news from the Imperial Capital through the Royal Guard’s encrypted channel.”

She gathered her thoughts before speaking in a heavy tone, “The news of Her Majesty’s coma was somehow leaked while we were returning to Regalia Fortress from Aldaram. It’s now spread throughout the upper circles of the nobility in the Imperial Capital.”

Amber’s brow twitched imperceptibly, while Natalia’s fists clenched quietly at her sides.

“Those families… who were never truly loyal to Her Majesty, seem to be getting restless. Especially Duke Soren and the Duke. Their two families have been very active recently, and they seem to be secretly contacting certain generals in the military.”

Duke Soren, the Duke—Amber was no stranger to them. They were old acquaintances.

The former was the late Emperor’s younger brother, a veritable leader of the Empire’s old-guard aristocracy. His family’s influence was extensive and deeply rooted, with considerable sway in the military.

The latter was a master of switching allegiances, with a sharp eye for judging situations. He also commanded a significant military force and could not be underestimated.

These two men had been the final obstacles Agnes faced during her ascension. Although they chose to surrender and pledge fealty to her after their ultimate defeat, even a three-year-old in the Empire knew that neither man was truly loyal to Agnes.

And now, with the news of the Empress Regnant’s “critical illness” spreading, a new opportunity had presented itself to them. So these dormant vipers were finally ready to bare their fangs.

“Can you trace the source of the leak?” Amber asked.

Natalia shook her head, a trace of frustration on her face. “They were extremely cautious, forwarding it through several encrypted nodes. The origin point is untraceable, but I’m certain of one thing… the leaker is in this fleet.”

“Lilith, have you detected any unusual signals?” Amber didn’t bother hiding his actions from Natalia and asked Lilith directly.

“Master, no records of abnormal communication signals were detected. However, if the target acted when you all had just returned to Regalia Fortress, the signals throughout the orbit were extremely chaotic at that time, making monitoring impossible.”

As Lilith’s voice sounded in his ear, Amber’s gaze swept past the viewport in the corridor, his eyes fixed on the warships of the Imperial escort fleet.

It seemed that even the escort fleet personally chosen by Agnes was not a monolithic whole.

“How bad is the situation?”

“Very bad.”

Natalia’s reply was simple and direct. She knew this was no time for pleasantries.

“If Her Majesty hasn’t awakened by the time we reach Saint-Saulnier… I fear they will try to make a comeback. Using the pretext that ‘a state cannot go a single day without a ruler,’ they might force the establishment of a ‘Regency Council’ to completely render the throne powerless.”

Hearing this, the corner of Amber’s eye couldn’t help but twitch.

If things truly developed that way, it would be more than just sidelining her.

Given the greed of those nobles, they would devour all the benefits like hyenas, dragging the entire Empire back into an era rife with aristocratic factions and crippling internal strife.

And a divided, strife-ridden Star Dragon Empire was not something Amber wanted to see.

In his vision for the ‘Survivor’s Alliance,’ the Star Dragon Empire needed to play the role of a powerful and unified industrial base, not a political quagmire filled with conspiracy and betrayal.

“I understand. What’s your plan?”

“I need your help, Mr. Amber.”

Natalia looked at Amber, her azure eyes pleading.

“My Royal Guard soldiers and I are sworn to die for Her Majesty! But our strength alone is not enough to intimidate the entire aristocracy of the Imperial Capital.”

“I hope that when we arrive at Saint-Saulnier, if Her Majesty has not yet awakened, you will appear before the public in your capacity as the Special Envoy of the Atlas Group.”

She took a deep breath and voiced her idea.

“Her Majesty needs to borrow your strength—or rather, the strength of the Atlas Group behind you—to send a clear signal to those with ill intentions. A signal that although Her Majesty is unwell, she still has an ally powerful enough to crush any rebellion, an ally who is standing firmly by her side at this very moment.”

The plan was bold and direct.

It would push Amber and the Atlas Group directly into the eye of the storm of the Star Dragon Empire’s internal political struggles.

Amber was silent for a moment, appearing to weigh the pros and cons.

Natalia’s heart was in her throat. She knew her request was asking a lot.

“Alright.”

Amber’s reply was a single word.

Natalia’s tense body instantly relaxed, her eyes filled with gratitude.

“Mr. Amber, this kindness…”

“Don’t be so quick to thank me.” Amber raised a hand to cut her off. “I’m not doing this entirely for Agnes. A stable and powerful Star Dragon Empire is in all our interests. After all, we’ll soon have a common enemy. I have no desire to be stabbed in the back before the war with them even begins.”

Natalia nodded heavily. She could hear an unquestionable confidence in Amber’s words.

“In that case, before we arrive… let those rats scurry around for a few more days.” Amber turned and continued walking toward the medical bay. “Sometimes, the higher you let them leap, the harder they’ll fall.”

Amber pushed open the door to the special monitoring room, and a wave of cold gas washed over him.

He walked to Agnes’s life support pod. The data streams within pulsed steadily, showing that her vital signs were all normal. However, her psionic energy remained dormant after being depleted, and her consciousness had yet to awaken.

He looked at her sleeping face, and that complex emotion surfaced in his heart once more.

This woman, no matter how powerful and domineering she usually appeared, had still followed her heart’s choice in the most dangerous of moments.

He had to admit that in some respects, Agnes was indeed a very good match for him. He didn’t know how much of it was a deliberate effort to please him, but for the empress of an empire, such a gesture was more than enough.

His gaze then shifted to the Phoenix King on the other side.

The elven monarch was awake. He didn’t look at Amber, merely staring blankly at the ceiling. His eyes, once like molten gold, were now as dull as two pieces of lackluster amber.

As for Allenita, she had been placed in a separate recovery room after waking up. Lilith would occasionally counsel her personally. Her condition was better than that of the Phoenix King and the other elven survivors from Aldaram, but she was still immersed in immense grief.

Amber didn’t disturb them. He just stood there quietly for a moment before turning and leaving the medical bay.

The urgent task at hand was to deal with the storm about to break over Saint-Saulnier.

If there was one thing he hated most in his life, it was people who stabbed you in the back at critical moments.

Chapter 826: The Hidden Danger of the Imperial Nobility

When the warp jump concluded, Saint-Saulnier, the capital of the Star Dragon Empire, hung silently before the combined fleet.

Unlike Aldaram, a planet filled with the harmonious beauty of nature and Psionics, Saint-Saulnier displayed a beauty of extreme industry and order.

Countless orbital shipyards, space stations, and Orbital Defense Platforms were densely packed in the planet’s synchronous orbit, like loyal sentinels.

During the period when the imperial capital was being rebuilt by the Atlas Group, an endless stream of massive civilian and military ships flowed along fixed routes, weaving a dazzling tapestry of prosperity.

However, in the distance, two massive fleets struck a discordant note in this “tapestry.”

“Master, two large noble fleets detected in orbit. They belong to the families of Duke Soren and Duke Duke. As for their numbers… they clearly exceed the upper limit permitted by the Imperial Nobility Basic Law for a duke’s escort when visiting the capital.”

“Hah, that’s almost as many ships as they brought last time they came to Saint-Saulnier~”

Amber pursed his lips, his gaze shifting to the holographic star chart in the center of the core command room.

The red markers representing the two fleets were like a pair of sharp daggers, forming a standoff with the newly arrived Regalia Fortress—like hunters who had long lain in wait, finally sighting their returning prey.

“Bastards!”

Natalia’s anger ignited the moment she saw this. She instantly understood what the two dukes were planning, and a layer of frost settled over her face.

Amber, however, remained calm. He frowned and asked her, “Have you contacted Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia?”

She immediately nodded. “Of course. I contacted them as soon as I realized the information had been leaked. But Duke Hastings is commanding the suppression of a rebellion on the frontier, and Duke Artesia is overseeing the repairs on Serenity Fortress. So even if they assemble their fleets and depart immediately, it will still be some time before they arrive.”

As Natalia spoke, she gritted her teeth, her anger mounting as she stared at the distant fleets.

She strode over to the android communications officer in the core command room and said politely, “Please connect me to Soren’s and the Duke’s flagships!”

A moment later, two holographic projections appeared in the center of the room.

On the left was Duke Soren, dressed in an impeccably tailored formal suit. His demeanor was arrogant, and a barely perceptible scrutiny glinted in his eyes.

On the right, the Duke wore a “kind” smile, but his narrowed eyes clearly gleamed with shrewdness and calculation.

“Commander Natalia, hope you’ve been well.”

Duke Soren spoke first, his tone slow and deliberate, as if he were entertaining guests in his own parlor.

“I heard that Her Majesty encountered a misfortune during her visit to Aldaram, the capital of the Thousand Stars Empire. The Duke and I were overcome with anxiety, so we took the liberty of leading our forces here to prevent any scoundrels from seizing the opportunity to cause chaos and endanger the Empire.”

His grand speech was airtight, leaving no loopholes.

“Coming to the Emperor’s aid?” Natalia sneered, making no attempt to hide her disdain. “The Imperial Nobility Basic Law clearly stipulates that without special permission from the Royal Family, no noble fleet may enter the capital star system without authorization! You two dukes have blockaded the entrance to Saint-Saulnier with fleets far exceeding their legal size. Are you here to guard against troublemakers, or are you planning an armed insurrection?”

Hearing Natalia’s blunt words, the Duke’s smile remained unchanged. He spread his hands and said, “Commander Natalia, you misunderstand. This is a necessary measure under special circumstances! After all, Her Majesty’s safety is tied to the very foundation of the Empire. As pillars of the state, we naturally cannot stand idly by.”

Natalia’s gaze sharpened. “So, you admit to planting spies in Her Majesty’s Royal Guard and escort fleet?”

Duke Soren’s eyebrow twitched slightly, and the smile on the Duke’s face stiffened for a moment. They hadn’t expected Natalia to be so direct, tearing through their hypocritical facade with a single sentence.

For a moment, a brief silence fell over the communication channel.

“It seems the two dukes have nothing to explain.” A calm voice broke the stalemate, and Amber’s figure appeared in the holographic projection.

Soren’s and the Duke’s eyes immediately focused on Amber. When they saw Natalia voluntarily step aside and position herself slightly behind him, their expressions soured.

They had investigated this man—who had risen so suddenly and shared an ambiguous relationship with the Empress Regnant—countless times, but every investigation led to the same conclusion: he was unfathomably deep.

“Mr. Amber… I didn’t expect to see you again.” Duke Soren’s tone turned a few shades colder. “However, this is an internal affair of the Star Dragon Empire. It hardly seems appropriate for an outsider to intervene, does it?”

“Aldaram, the capital of the Thousand Stars Empire, has undergone a drastic upheaval. Her Majesty is physically and mentally exhausted as a result and has fallen into a coma.”

Amber ignored his provocation, simply stating a fact. He paused, his eyes sweeping over the two dukes’ faces.

“I imagine you two are not yet aware of what truly happened on Aldaram.”

Without giving them a chance to interject, Amber concisely explained everything: the Return Beacon, the sacrifice of the elves, and the threat of the “Forerunners.”

He didn’t embellish the details, merely presenting the hellish scene and the imminent crisis with stark objectivity.

“…Therefore, I have come here today in the hopes of uniting the strength of all survivors, including the Star Dragon Empire and the New Federation, so that we can face this cataclysm that may sweep across the entire universe together! You two are pillars of the Empire. I trust… you can understand that now is not the time for infighting.”

Amber’s voice was sincere, and he spoke from the heart. In the face of the threat from the Forerunner civilization, he truly had no interest in these power struggles.

However, to the two dukes, his words took on a different meaning.

The Duke suddenly laughed and clapped his hands. “Brilliant, a truly brilliant story, Mr. Amber. Do you really expect us to abandon our concern for the Empire’s future because of some so-called ‘Forerunner civilization’ threat? Your rhetoric is a bit too naive.”

“Hmph! In the end, it’s just an attempt to buy time with these vague threats,” Duke Soren added, now making no effort to hide his intentions.

“Her Majesty is unconscious, and we are naturally filled with anxiety. But a state cannot go a single day without a ruler. I, the Duke, the greater nobility, and the majority of our colleagues in the Imperial Council all believe that an emergency meeting should be convened immediately to establish a ‘Temporary Regency Council’ to exercise sovereign authority and stabilize the situation!”

“Stabilize the situation?” Natalia laughed in fury. “More like seize power while you have the chance!”

“Insolence!”

Duke Soren’s face darkened, and the full weight of his authority as an old-guard noble pressed down.

“Natalia, watch your tongue! Everything we are doing is for the future of the Empire! If Her Majesty awakens, we will naturally return power to her. But if she does not…”

He left the sentence unfinished, but the threat was unmistakable.

Amber watched them quietly, his expression unchanging, for he knew that further words would be wasted on these men.

The nobles of the Star Dragon Empire had long been blinded by the lust for power and were incapable of heeding any warnings.

In their eyes, the so-called “Forerunner” threat was far less real than the power within their grasp.

But it didn’t matter. Amber’s speech just now was purely a matter of ‘courtesy before combat.’

And now, his ‘courtesy’ had been extended.

“In that case, there’s nothing more to discuss.”

Amber’s tone was still calm, but the temperature in the command room seemed to drop several degrees. “Dukes, your fleets are in violation of the Imperial Nobility Basic Law by lingering in the capital star system. That is a fact. You planted spies in the Royal Guard with ill intent. That is also a fact. As Her Majesty’s staunchest ally, I advise you both to take your fleets and leave at once. Otherwise…”

“Otherwise, what?” the Duke asked with a grin, as if provoking him.

A faint curve appeared at the corner of Amber’s mouth. His smile held no warmth, only a cold, abyssal indifference.

“Otherwise, this patch of space might just gain two more piles of junk.”

As his words fell, the faces of Soren and the Duke changed dramatically.

In Amber’s calm eyes, they read an unconcealed, naked killing intent.

It wasn’t a bluff or a hollow threat, but a statement of fact—one he could act upon at any moment.

“You… You dare!” Duke Soren trembled with fury.

“You can try me.”

After speaking, Amber turned away from them and said directly to Natalia, “Cut the communications. There’s nothing more to say to these vermin.”

Natalia unhesitatingly closed the channel, and the two dukes’ furious, twisted faces vanished.

A dead silence fell over the core command room.

“Mr. Amber, if we negotiate like this…” Natalia looked at Amber, her eyes filled with both satisfaction and a hint of worry.

“They won’t dare to make a move. At least, not right now.”

Amber turned to face the viewport, his gaze fixed on the two menacing fleets outside, the killing intent in his eyes undisguised.

“What they want is ‘legitimate’ power, not a civil war that would brand them with treason. So they will go through the Council’s procedures, slicing away at us with a soft knife.”

“Then what should we do next?”

Amber replied, “For Her Majesty’s safety, until she awakens, I suggest her life-support medical pod remain on board Regalia Fortress. This fortress’s medical module is fully equipped and more than sufficient to monitor her. It will also ensure her security.”

“Understood!”

Natalia nodded in immediate comprehension. She was well aware that the surface of Saint-Saulnier was no longer safe.

After Natalia left, Amber pondered for a moment. He needed to know just how murky the waters in the Imperial Capital had become.

And there was one person who could certainly help.

“Lilith, get me a secure line to the Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole.”

The communication request was quickly connected, and the face of Isabelle’s uncle, the Star Dragon Empire’s Minister of Finance, Jacques Cole, appeared in the holographic projection, his features etched with exhaustion and worry.

Judging by the background, the Minister of Finance was still in his office, buried under a mountain of work.

“Mr. Amber, you’ve finally returned,” Jacques Cole said in a low voice, tinged with relief.

“Uncle, thank you for your hard work.”

“Pfft—cough, cough…”

Unsurprisingly, the Minister of Finance had once again spat out the tea he had just sipped.

Amber smiled, then continued, “You should be aware of the situation in orbit by now.”

“I am.”

Jacques Cole gave a bitter smile, resting his arm on his desk and rubbing his temples, which ached dully.

“Those two old foxes, Soren and the Duke, moved faster than we ever imagined. I even suspect that the person who leaked Her Majesty’s condition wasn’t a mole in our fleet at all, but an intelligence operative they planted in the Thousand Stars Empire long ago. After all, according to the report from Commander Natalia, this disaster doesn’t seem to have affected ordinary humans.”

This speculation made Amber’s eyes turn colder. If that was true, then the depth of these two men’s schemes was truly something else.

“What is the situation in the Capital now?” Amber got straight to the point.

Jacques Cole’s expression grew even more solemn. “It’s terrible. Just an hour ago, the Imperial Prime Minister caved under the combined pressure of Duke Soren, the Duke, and over thirty other noble families.”

“He agreed?”

“He had no choice.”

Jacques Cole sighed before continuing, “The Prime Minister is loyal to Her Majesty, but he is fundamentally a politician who maintains balance, not a warrior. Faced with an ultimatum from nearly the entire old-guard aristocracy, he had no option but to compromise. Otherwise, the Empire would have been immediately paralyzed.”

“What did he agree to?” Amber asked, his voice still calm.

“The Imperial Council will convene an expanded session in three days to hold a public vote on the proposal to ‘establish a Temporary Regency Council.’ Duke Soren will be nominated as the candidate for Speaker of the Regency, and the Duke as Deputy Speaker. They have already rallied the vast majority of wavering minor nobles. The number of votes they hold is practically a landslide.”

“Clever devils. They’re planning to usurp the state!”

“No, procedurally, they are completely legitimate.”

Jacques Cole corrected him, his tone filled with powerlessness.

“Her Majesty is in a coma, and the Empire needs a temporary core of power to deal with the ‘crisis’—that’s the reason they’ve put forward. It’s a grand speech, and irrefutable…”

“Once they seize control of the ‘Regency Council’ through the vote, they will have grasped the Empire’s legitimacy. Then, they can easily dismiss all officials loyal to Her Majesty, take control of the military, and render imperial authority powerless.”

“By the time Her Majesty eventually awakens, she will be facing an Empire completely under their control, and she will be powerless to turn the tide…”

Amber fell silent. The hidden dangers left behind by Agnes’s hasty ascension to the throne had now completely detonated.

She had relied on her powerful personal skills and Amber’s support to suppress these nobles who harbored ill intentions, but her foundation was not solid.

These nobles, especially the ‘Old Saint-Saulnier True Star Dragon Banner’ faction gathered around Duke Soren, were like a pack of hyenas lurking in the shadows. They didn’t dare make a sound on ordinary days, but the moment they smelled the blood of the wounded lion king, they would pounce without hesitation, tearing the former ruler to pieces.

It was also difficult for them to realize, as quickly as Amber and his allies had, just how terrifying the threat of the ‘Forerunner civilization’ truly was.

In their eyes, it was merely an excellent political pretext to be exploited.

They would even be happy to see the situation descend further into chaos, because only in chaos could they reap the greatest rewards.

“I understand, Uncle,” Amber said slowly. “Over these next three days, I’m going to need you to help me with a few things.”

Chapter 827: Traitors to Humanity

The moment Amber made his request, Jacques Cole had a bad feeling. Though he hadn’t known Amber for long, he had come to understand his way of doing things.

“Go on, what do you need me to do? They’re all gathered together now. Are you sure you want to move against them?”

“Of course~ We should even thank them for helping us by gathering everyone in one place. It saves us the trouble of hunting them down one by one. Uncle, on your end, prepare a denunciation of the two dukes for colluding with the rebel faction and attempting to subvert the Empire. I’ll give you access to a database on ‘Noble Dirt’ for reference. This article will come in handy in three days~”

Jacques Cole was stunned. He sensed something unusual in Amber’s calm tone.

From what he knew of Amber, he was certain this wasn’t the calculation of a political game. It was something more direct, more primal.

“Amber, are you planning to—”

“Cut the Gordian knot. We don’t have time to ‘play house’ with them anymore.”

“I understand.” Jacques Cole asked no more questions. He chose to trust this man who could always create miracles at critical moments.

After ending his communication with Jacques Cole, Amber found Natalia, who was organizing the Royal Guard. Her brow was deeply furrowed, clearly also pondering a way to break the deadlock.

“Mr. Amber, are we really just going to stand by and watch them succeed?” Her voice held a trace of unwillingness.

“Watch them succeed?”

Amber turned and walked to the massive viewscreen, looking down at the brilliant planet below.

“And then wait for them to throw the Empire into chaos before turning their guns on us, ‘Her Majesty’s confidants’? Or should we wait for the Forerunners to come knocking at our door and expect this gaggle of fat-bellied fools to fight off a foreign enemy?”

His voice was quiet, but every word cut to the quick.

“Duke Soren and Duke Duke, they want to use ‘above board’ political means, the laws and rules of the Empire, to play a game of bleeding us out with a soft knife. They think we can only react passively, that Her Majesty represents imperial authority and must uphold this system. But they’ve made one mistake…”

Amber’s gaze pierced through the boundless starry sky, as if seeing the faces of the nobles celebrating their schemes behind the scenes. His tone turned abruptly cold.

“I am not bound by their rules.”

He turned back, his eyes landing on Natalia. His gaze was as sharp as a blade, making even the battle-hardened Commander of the Royal Guard feel a tremor in her heart.

“In the face of an absolute existential crisis, any individual who obstructs human unity and tries to profit from national disaster is a traitor.”

Natalia immediately understood. She suddenly realized that Mr. Amber was the true master of using a crisis to his advantage. Amber continued, enunciating each word:

“Therefore, they are not nobles of the Star Dragon Empire, nor are they Her Majesty’s political rivals. From the moment they decided to exploit this crisis to seize power, they became ‘traitors to humanity’ who betrayed all of mankind.”

“When dealing with traitors to humanity, do you need to reason with them?”

Natalia’s breath caught in her throat. She instantly understood Amber’s meaning. A shiver, accompanied by a secret thrill, ran up her spine.

That’s right. One never needed to reason with traitors.

“Sometimes, violence may not be the best option,” Amber said, a friendly, almost harmless smile appearing on his face, “but it is often… the most effective.”

“Then the Royal Guard’s objective is…”

“Your mission is not on the ground. Three days from now, when their council begins, I want you, Commander Natalia, to lead the Royal Guard fleet, in coordination with Regalia Fortress, to pin the two ducal fleets dead in their orbits.”

Natalia’s pupils contracted sharply. This meant she would be the first to open fire on the fleet of a fellow Imperial noble.

“This is not a rebellion, Natalia.”

Amber seemed to see through her thoughts, his psionically-enhanced words entering her mind like a bewitching spell.

“This is quelling a rebellion. Their fleets are illegally loitering in the Capital star system, and their masters are engaged in illegal activities to subvert imperial authority! You, as Her Majesty’s Commander of the Royal Guard, have the responsibility and duty to disarm the rebel army!”

These words instantly dispelled the last trace of hesitation in Natalia’s heart.

Yes, she was Her Majesty’s sword and shield. Any existence that threatened Her Majesty’s authority was her enemy.

“Your job is not to annihilate them, but to tie them down,” Amber continued. “Once the fighting starts, their full attention will be drawn to you. The fleets will desperately try to contact the ground, only to receive no response. They will fall into panic and chaos, and that will create the perfect window of opportunity for the operation on the ground.”

“The ground?” Natalia asked. “Who will…”

“Me.” Amber’s answer was simple and direct.

“Three days from now, the moment the council begins, I will find a way to cut off all communications within a ten-kilometer radius of the Imperial Council Building. Then, I will personally take care of these nobles.”

Hearing that Amber would act personally, Natalia drew a sharp breath.

Whether in the previous “War of Ascension” or the just-concluded battle at Aldaram, she had fully witnessed the power of this high-level psionic user.

And now, this ‘human-shaped cataclysm’ was going to deal with a group of unarmed nobles and their guards. That wouldn’t be a battle; it would be a slaughter.

“Do we really have to be so extreme?”

Growing somewhat conservative due to Agnes being in a coma, Natalia still voiced her question.

“Perhaps we can apprehend Duke Soren and Duke Duke beforehand, without waiting for the council to begin. The impact would be much smaller that way…”

“No.”

Amber shook his head, a cold glint in his eyes.

“If we only deal with those two, the wall-sitters will immediately distance themselves and continue to lie in wait for the next opportunity. This time, we need to eradicate them root and stem. With disaster looming, we must make everyone understand that there are some lines that cannot be crossed.”

“You…”

Natalia looked at the man before her, for the first time feeling a chill that originated from the depths of her soul.

He had no intention of playing by any rules. What he was going to do was flip the table on everyone.

“Go and prepare, Commander Natalia.” Amber’s tone softened. “A grand banquet is about to begin. Someone has to be in charge of the fireworks, no?”

Looking at the faint smile playing on his lips, Natalia suddenly felt as if the two seemingly invincible ducal fleets in orbit had already become two cold corpses.

She turned and left, her steps firm. All hesitation had vanished from her heart, replaced by a battle spirit that was about to boil over.

Amber nodded, then made his way to the medical section of Regalia Fortress. At this hour, the corridors were silent.

He first glanced through an observation window at the still numb and listless elven survivors. Their eyes were vacant, as if their souls had died along with Aldaram.

Then, he pushed open the door to the special monitoring room and walked to Agnes’s life support pod.

Inside the pod, the Empress Regnant slept peacefully. Her face was pale, yet it still carried that unique stubbornness and pride.

Amber reached out, his fingertips gently tracing the cold, transparent canopy, his gaze complex.

“Sleep well,” he said in a low voice, as if speaking to himself, or perhaps making a promise to her.

“When you wake up, all the annoying flies will have been cleaned up.”

With that, he turned and left. The corridor lights stretched his shadow long behind him, and the end of that shadow seemed to connect to a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Three days later, in Saint-Saulnier, the Capital, at the Imperial Council Building.

The sky was as clear as a freshly washed pane of glass, and the sunlight gilded the magnificent building, a symbol of the Empire’s power and glory, with a golden edge.

One after another, luxurious shuttles descended from the sky, landing smoothly in the plaza before the Council Building.

impeccably dressed Imperial nobles disembarked in twos and threes, greeting each other with smiles, their eyes exchanging unspoken messages.

Duke Soren and Duke Duke walked at the forefront of the crowd, like triumphant generals basking in the reverent and adoring gazes of the others.

Everything was going as they had planned. No, it was going even more smoothly than they had imagined.

That Amber, whom they dreaded, had done nothing more than utter a few harsh words, not daring to take any real action. And Commander Natalia, fiercely loyal to Agnes, was firmly bound by the shackles of Imperial law.

Clearly, they lacked the resolve to confront the vast power of the nobility.

And after today, this Empire would welcome its new masters.

The two dukes exchanged a glance. After that bitter defeat, they had never imagined the situation would turn out this way, much less that they could regain the upper hand at the table so quickly.

Agnes’s unexpected coma was, for them, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Inside the council hall, the dome was adorned with epic murals depicting the Empire’s founding heroes.

The nobles took their seats, conversing in low voices. The atmosphere was lively and relaxed, as if they were attending a grand social party.

“Order!”

At the Speaker’s call, the hall fell silent. After a lengthy and disingenuous opening statement, the motion was formally proposed.

“…In light of Her Majesty the Empress’s ill health, which renders her unable to manage state affairs, and to maintain the stability of the Empire, it is hereby proposed that a Temporary Regency Council be established to exercise the duties of the monarch. Now, I ask all council members to begin voting on this proposal.”

Duke Soren leaned back in his comfortable chair, a victorious smile touching his lips. He had already planned the menu for the celebratory banquet that evening.

However, just as he was about to press the voting button…

Something changed!

High in the orbit of Saint-Saulnier, the fleets of Duke Soren and Duke Duke, while still maintaining their standoff with Regalia Fortress, were beginning to relax as the council meeting on the surface commenced.

Most of the senior fleet officers knew that once the meeting on the ground was over, the two dukes would truly control the Empire, and their own fortunes would naturally rise with the tide.

On a heavy cruiser at the fleet’s perimeter, two crew members at the radar workstation were whispering about the figure of the new female communications officer.

Suddenly, a few signals on the workstation screen caught their attention.

“Directly above, is that an HCP infrared signature?”

“Huh? Is there HCP training scheduled for today?”

Their whispering soon caught the captain’s attention.

“What are you two talking about? Report the situation immediately!”

“Directly overhead, 90-degree angle, HCP infrared signature detected!”

“HCP?!”

The captain’s face turned pale with shock. He knew perfectly well that no warship was scheduled for HCP attack and defense drills today, and for something to appear in that position at this time…

“It’s the enemy! Sound the alarm, all hands to battle stations! Anti-air weapons, prepare to—”

However, the two radar operators’ hesitation had cost them the already precious window of opportunity. Besides, what was above them now was not just a single group of HCP attack units.

Boom!

A fireball suddenly erupted outside the bridge’s panoramic viewscreen. A nearby light cruiser had been hit. Judging by the expanding plasma fireball, it was the effect of a plasma torpedo.

The heavy cruiser’s captain’s face instantly turned ashen. He knew exactly what it meant to be hit by a silent, top-down plasma torpedo attack.

At the same time, Regalia Fortress, which had been in a standoff, saw its hundreds of heavy particle cannons on its offensive hemisphere suddenly begin to charge. The secretly assembled Royal Guard fleet burst forth from the shadow of the guardian moon.

“All ships, commence attack according to the operational plan!”

Natalia’s cold voice boomed across the Royal Guard fleet’s communication channel.

Like awakened beasts, Regalia Fortress and over a hundred Royal Guard warships unhesitatingly unleashed a deadly rain of fire upon the two nearby ducal fleets!

“Alert! We’re under attack!”

“It’s the Royal Guard! Has Natalia lost her mind?!”

The bridges of Soren’s and Duke’s flagships descended into chaos. The acting fleet commanders couldn’t have dreamed that Natalia, the Commander of the Royal Guard, would actually dare to tear away all pretense and initiate a battle!

Caught completely off guard, numerous warships on the periphery were instantly turned into burning fireballs by the dense barrage.

“Return fire! Give me return fire!” the two fleet commanders roared hoarsely.

A brutal civil war had, without any warning, erupted once more in the orbit of the Imperial Capital.

Although the ducal fleets had superior numbers, the Royal Guard fleet was well-equipped and well-trained. Combined with the terrifying firepower of Regalia Fortress even without using The Focusing Rainbow - Modified, they were beaten into a steady retreat, unable to spare a thought for anything else.

Meanwhile, on the ground, at the Saint-Perra Council Building.

The very instant the first shot was fired in orbit, the lights in the entire council hall flickered violently before going out.

The emergency backup power kicked in, and dim red lights illuminated the terrified faces of the nobles, making them look like ghouls.

“What’s happening?”

“Communications are down! All devices have failed!”

“Guards!”

Panic spread like a plague, but their calls were doomed to go unanswered.

BOOM—!

The alloy doors of the hall were violently blasted open by a powerful external force.

A figure walked in, silhouetted against the light.

An invisible psionic wave swept through the room. The guards the nobles had brought with them didn’t even have time to raise their weapons before they clutched their heads and collapsed in agony.

The entire process took only a few seconds. All resistance within the hall was utterly annihilated.

The nobles trembled in fear, cowering in their seats, staring in horror at the dark figure at the door, who looked like the god of death.

He wore no armor, just a simple black psionic combat suit. His steps were not fast, yet each one seemed to land on every person’s heart.

Amber.

He ignored the terrified minor nobles, strode directly across the hall, and ascended to the Speaker’s dais. He nonchalantly pushed aside the Speaker, who was already scared witless, and surveyed the pale faces below.

Finally, his gaze fell upon the ashen-faced Duke Soren and Duke Duke.

“The fireworks in orbit, are the two Dukes satisfied?” Amber’s voice was soft, yet it carried clearly to every ear.

As he spoke, he also accessed the hall’s holographic projection system, displaying a live feed of the battle in orbit.

“What… what are you trying to do?!” Duke Soren shouted, his voice a mixture of bravado and fear. “Amber! This is the Imperial Council! This is treason! You’re making an enemy of the entire Empire!”

“Treason?”

Amber smiled. He picked up the gavel from the lectern, weighing it curiously in his hand.

“I’m not even a citizen of the Empire. What treason could I commit?”

He looked at all the nobles below him and said slowly, “Everyone, my apologies for interrupting your wonderful plan to usurp imperial authority. Now, I have a new motion for you.”

He locked his gaze on Soren and Duke, his eyes so cold they held not a shred of warmth.

“For those who agree to define Duke Soren and Duke Duke, along with all their core partisans, as traitors who colluded with the rebel faction to subvert the Empire, and to sentence them to capital punishment, please press the green button in front of you.”

“As for those who disagree…”

A cruel arc formed on Amber’s lips.

“I’ll personally go over and help him press it.”

Chapter 828: Fair, Just, and Open

Amber’s casual words were like a stone thrown into a stagnant pond, stirring ripples in the hearts of the nobles, but beneath the surface, the stubborn mud remained.

The panic was real, but the speculative mentality they had cultivated over the years left many of them still clinging to wishful thinking.

The information asymmetry between them and Amber prevented them from accurately gauging the true weight of Amber and the Atlas Group behind him.

Though the battle in orbit was fierce, the victor was not yet decided.

In their eyes, this might be nothing more than a reckless mutiny—a frenzied counterattack by Her Majesty Agnes’s confidant, Natalia, and this outsider after being cornered.

If they could just hold out, if Soren and the Duke’s fleet could crush the Royal Guard, then those who bowed their heads today would likely be the very targets of the two dukes’ purge tomorrow.

“Everyone! Don’t be intimidated by this brute!”

Duke Soren saw their hesitation and immediately seized the opportunity. He shot to his feet, his voice sharp with agitation.

“On what grounds does he, an outsider, interfere in the internal affairs of our Star Dragon Empire! He is trampling on the laws of the Empire! He is declaring war on us all!”

The Duke immediately echoed him, proclaiming righteously, “The glory and tradition of the Empire shall not be violated! We represent the order of the Empire! Fairness and justice are on our side! We must not bow to violence!”

The two sang in chorus, attempting to rally the nobles with appeals to legitimacy and honor, aiming to completely isolate Amber on the opposite side of all aristocrats.

One had to admit, their performance was masterful. Taken out of context, this scene truly gave off the impression of them being the Empire’s ‘loyal retainers’.

Watching their impassioned display, the smile on Amber’s face widened.

Frankly, he was even a little grateful to the two dukes.

If these opportunists had been scared into voting immediately, he would have had a hard time finding an excuse for the next step of his ‘great cleanup’.

Now, they had voluntarily painted the targets for him, saving Amber a great deal of trouble.

Amber raised a hand and casually pressed down on the air.

An invisible psionic force instantly engulfed the entire hall. The two dukes’ roars ceased abruptly as if invisible hands were strangling them. They could only make gasping sounds, their faces flushing crimson.

The hall once again fell into a dead silence.

“I know what you’re thinking.”

Amber’s voice rang out calmly. He paced down from the high platform, his gaze sweeping over the faces filled with doubt and alarm.

“You think I won’t dare to do anything to you. You think this is just an internal political struggle within the Empire. You think as long as the fleet in orbit is victorious, you still have a chance to turn the tables.”

He paused, then changed his tone.

“But you’ve all misunderstood one thing. This is no longer an issue of the Empire’s internal affairs.”

Amber’s voice grew grave. Once more, and for the last time, he sincerely recounted the destruction of Aldaram to them all.

He spoke of the pillar of light that served as a ‘Return Beacon,’ and of the impending cosmic catastrophe known as the ‘Forerunner civilization.’

“The two dukes, and all of you who support them, what you are doing now is not a struggle for power and profit. You are stabbing human civilization in the back at a moment of life and death.”

“You are weakening our collective strength against an unknown threat! You are gambling with the future of our entire civilization!”

He walked up to the nearest portly noble, who instinctively shrank back.

A kind smile appeared on Amber’s face. Back when LLS943823 was going rogue, it had happened to breach the servers of the Imperial Internal Affairs Department and compiled dossiers of dirt on all these nobles. The information now surfaced clearly in his mind.

“Viscount Barkley~ I recall that five years ago, your trade rival, the Blue Sail Merchants, had their largest cargo fleet attacked by ‘pirates’ in the asteroid belt. The guild master and other high-ranking members were all killed, their ships destroyed. And you, just one week later, took over all their operations in Mining Area 7792. Such impressive methods.”

Viscount Barkley’s body shuddered violently. Beads of cold sweat seeped from his forehead and trickled down his fleshy cheeks.

He thought he had handled that matter flawlessly. Even the Internal Affairs Department had never come knocking. How did Amber know?

“Also,” Amber’s voice remained level, “your pretty little daughter doesn’t seem to be your biological child, does she? Her real father, if I remember correctly, was that master gardener in your family who went missing years ago? Which planet’s acid swamp did you toss him into again?”

“No… no. You’re lying!”

Viscount Barkley’s voice was as shrill as a cat whose tail had been stepped on, and he nearly collapsed from his chair.

“So, Viscount Barkley,” Amber leaned down, smiling at him, “regarding the motion to convict Duke Soren and the Duke of treason and crimes against humanity, do you… agree?”

“I… I agree! I agree!”

Viscount Barkley practically screamed the words. His trembling hand frantically pressed the voting device. The green light that lit up felt like his only lifeline.

“Very good. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Amber nodded in satisfaction and turned to his next target.

This noble was one of Duke Soren’s die-hard confidants. Even after seeing what happened to Viscount Barkley, his face still held a trace of stubborn hesitation.

Seeing this, Amber didn’t waste any more words.

He simply extended a finger and lightly tapped the back of the noble’s neck.

Pak.

With a soft sound, the noble collapsed as if his bones had been removed.

Amber casually took his hand and pressed it onto the green button.

“It seems he agrees as well.”

Amber glanced around, the gentle smile still on his face. “Does anyone else have a different opinion?”

Then came the third, and the fourth.

The only sounds in the hall were Amber’s unhurried footsteps and the nobles’ heavy breathing, strained with fear.

Most of them scrambled to press the green button before Amber even reached them.

The few who still hesitated completed their vote with Amber’s “help.”

Finally, when Amber walked back to the high platform, the holographic projection displayed the results—a unanimous vote.

With unprecedented efficiency, the Imperial Council had convicted the two immensely powerful dukes of treason and crimes against humanity, sentencing them to capital punishment, to be carried out immediately.

Soren and the Duke were ashen-faced. They wanted to curse and scream but found they lacked even the strength to make a sound.

Amber snapped his fingers.

Outside the heavy alloy doors of the council hall, a squad of Royal Guard soldiers in black power armor and a heavy combat team from the Immortal Corps marched in.

Without a word, they walked straight toward Soren and the Duke. Amid the men’s desperate shrieks and struggles, they were dragged out cleanly and efficiently.

All the nobles in the hall stared intently in the direction of the door.

A few seconds later.

Bang! Bang!

Two crisp gunshots echoed from the plaza outside the council hall, bringing the farce to a bloody end.

Inside the hall, there was a deathly silence.

All the surviving nobles sat frozen in place as if their souls had been ripped from their bodies.

No one had ever imagined that the two most powerful dukes in the Empire would be executed so unceremoniously.

Seeing this, Amber gave Jacques Cole, who was on the high platform, a meaningful look.

Jacques Cole took the hint. He walked over to the equally rattled Imperial Prime Minister and whispered a few words in his ear.

The old Prime Minister shuddered, then nodded heavily. He shakily stood up, took the document Jacques Cole had already prepared, and, mustering all his strength, began to read.

“…Members of the Imperial Council, for abetting a tyrant, disregarding the laws of the Empire, and attempting to subvert the imperial throne, your crimes are unforgivable!”

Upon hearing this, the hearts of all the nobles sank to the bottom, and their lives began to flash before their eyes.

“…However, considering your recent votes, which can be seen as atoning for your crimes with a meritorious deed, you may be spared the death penalty.”

But the Prime Minister’s next words were like a sliver of hope, making them raise their heads once again.

“…But punishment is unavoidable! From this day forward, all nobles present and their families are hereby stripped of all local administrative, taxation, military, and other privileges! All fiefs are to be returned a to direct administration by the Royal Family! Noble titles will be retained, but only as honorary titles!”

As his voice fell, an uproar erupted throughout the hall.

At that moment, everyone present understood.

This was not simply about settling scores with two people.

This was about uprooting the entire foundation of the old-guard aristocracy!

A Star Dragon Empire directly ruled by the throne, with no more fiefs, was about to be born.

——

The uproar in the council hall quickly fell silent again under the raised barrels of the Royal Guard and Immortals.

For the first time, these pampered nobles discovered that without their privileges, their lives were as fragile as those of beggars on the street.

Jacques Cole stood on the high platform, looking down with cold indifference at the desperate, resentful, and numb faces below. He felt not a shred of pity.

He knew better than anyone that this empire had long been riddled with holes by these parasites. Without a thorough session of Scraping the poison from the very bones, it would likely rot and collapse on its own, let alone fight the ‘Forerunners’.

He coordinated with the old Prime Minister and began announcing a series of specific executive decrees for seizures, audits, and the retraction of power. Each one was like a sharp blade severing the very veins the aristocracy depended on for survival.

Meanwhile, in orbit above Saint-Saulnier, the battle was also drawing to a close.

When the news of Soren and the Duke’s execution, along with the Imperial Council’s bill “stripping relevant nobles of their privileges,” was broadcast by Lilith on the public channel to every warship in the two rebel fleets, all resistance became meaningless.

Their masters were dead, their ‘legitimacy’ was a joke, and they were now nothing but out-and-out rebels.

Moreover, under the assault of the elite Royal Guard and the overwhelming suppressive fire from Regalia Fortress, they were already in an extremely passive position.

“We surrender! I repeat, we surrender!”

“Engine overload! We’re abandoning ship!”

Soon, the rebel fleets’ communication channels were flooded with cries of surrender and pleas for mercy.

The soldiers’ morale completely collapsed. Many captains immediately ordered their weapon systems shut down, fired three white flares, and ceased all resistance.

A few diehard loyalists attempted to make a last stand or warp away, but they were quickly torn to shreds by the ferocious Royal Guard fleet and the ever-present, terrifyingly suppressive Regalia Fortress.

Natalia stood on the bridge of the Royal Guard flagship, watching the red icons representing enemy ships on the holographic tactical map either extinguish or turn white for surrender. The tension in her nerves finally eased.

This sudden civil war had ended with unimaginable speed.

She reported the battle’s status to Amber via encrypted communication, her voice tinged not only with the joy of victory but also with an ineffable sense of awe.

In a single morning, this man had taken a crisis that could have toppled the Empire and utterly crushed it in the most direct and bloody way possible.

“Very good,” Amber’s reply was as calm as ever. “Clean up the battlefield quickly. Leave the rest to the Imperial Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance. Now, the real work is about to begin.”

Amber had already left the suffocating council hall.

He did not enjoy the killing he had just orchestrated, but he knew that in the face of ‘cancer cells’ that had already spread, any hesitation or mercy was a cruelty to the entire body.

The fastest way to unite a group of selfish people was to establish an authority so powerful it inspired fear, and a common enemy that was even more terrifying.

Now, he had achieved both.

The next step was to establish actual control over the former fiefs of these nobles.

This was no small project. The territories of the nobles whose privileges were revoked today amounted to dozens of star systems and colony satellite clusters. Combined with their private soldiers, full control would not be so simple.

Furthermore, there were still Dukes Hastings and Aldesia. Although they were staunch supporters of Agnes, their attitude toward a revolution that struck at the core interests of the nobility was still an unknown.

“‘A wise person knows when to yield.’ Let’s hope these two are able to see the bigger picture.”

After the situation on Saint-Saulnier stabilized, Amber did not linger long before returning to Regalia Fortress. He had originally intended to check on Agnes, but instead, he unexpectedly found Phoenix King Aenarion and some elves in a recreation room in the medical block.

The elves were not lying on sickbeds or in life support pods; they were dressed in clean white robes and seated on chairs in the recreation room.

Projected on the wall before them was a live news feed from Saint-Saulnier. The screen showed the very scene of the crestfallen nobles being “escorted” out of the council hall by Imperial soldiers.

The elven monarch had clearly watched the entire ‘live broadcast.’

Hearing the door open, Aenarion slowly turned his head. His dull golden eyes now looked at Amber with an extremely complex expression.

There was shock, understanding, and even a hint of… relief.

He had personally witnessed how the deep-rooted malady within a powerful civilization was excised in a flash by the man before him with thunderous methods.

He saw a decisiveness and ruthlessness—one that disregarded all rules, one he had rarely ever seen in elves—that belonged to humans.

The leader of the elves seemed to have understood something.

Compared to this race that would stop at nothing for survival, the so-called pride and elegance that the elves had maintained for millions of years were so fragile, so laughable, in the face of true crisis.

“Mr. Amber, you were right.”

The Phoenix King spoke, his voice still weak, but devoid of its earlier confusion and pain.

“Our era has truly ended.”

He looked at Amber, his gaze clearer than ever before.

“The tragedy of Aldaram cost me my home, but what you did today has made me understand that to survive, we must cast away many things.”

He took a deep breath, as if mustering all his strength, and slowly rose to his feet. He gave Amber a slight bow.

This was no longer the courtesy of a monarch to an ally, but a purer form of… entrustment.

“I, Aenarion, the last Phoenix King of the Thousand Stars Empire, on behalf of all surviving elves, request to join the ‘Survivor’s Alliance’.”

Chapter 829: Waking Up to a Changed World

After the storm, the sky over Saint-Saulnier was exceptionally clear.

In the following days, the entire political landscape of the Star Dragon Empire was being reshaped at an unprecedented speed.

With the cooperation of Amber, Jacques Cole, and Natalia, the nobles who had been stripped of their privileges during the meeting were all placed under house arrest. Their vast industries would be fully taken over and audited by the Imperial Ministry of Finance.

And an inspection team, composed of the Empire’s Royal Guard, the Internal Affairs Department, and the Revenue Service, began to purge the private soldiers and administrative systems of these nobles’ fiefs throughout the Empire.

At the same time, throughout the military and political systems of the Star Dragon Empire, all generals and officials connected to Soren and the Duke were replaced, with no exceptions.

A top-down reshuffling of power was being carried out efficiently and ruthlessly.

And Amber, the mastermind behind it all, became a hands-off manager after dealing with the most difficult parts, then focused all his energy on another, more important matter—the Survivor’s Alliance.

Franklin of the New Federation sent a message of condolence and full support immediately after the Star Dragon Empire publicly announced the crimes of the two dukes.

This gesture was seen by many analysts and citizens of the two major human powers as a signal that the long-standing hostility between the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire was ending, and they were entering a phase of relative peace.

Phoenix King Aenarion finally regained his composure and, with the help of Allenita and other elves, began to re-establish contact with the various star systems within the Thousand Stars Empire, which were currently in chaos.

The framework of a new alliance was taking shape: the Atlas Group as the core of technological development, the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire as the industrial base, and the elven race providing Psionics technology sharing and intelligence support.

That day, Amber went to the special care unit in the medical wing as usual.

Inside the life support pod, Agnes’s vital signs had long since returned to normal thresholds. According to Lilith, she should have theoretically woken up within these few days, but for some unknown reason, she remained unconscious.

Just as Amber was looking at the data panel, those long-closed eyes slowly fluttered and then opened.

After an initial haze of confusion, the golden pupils quickly focused, reflecting Amber’s figure.

“…Amber?”

Her voice was still weak, but she was fully conscious.

Natalia, who was standing guard nearby, cried out in delight and hurried forward.

Amber was taken aback for a moment, then immediately signaled for a medical robot to open the life support pod.

Supported by Natalia, Agnes sat up. She rubbed her throbbing forehead and looked around, quickly realizing she was in a medical wing, most likely on Regalia Fortress.

“How long was I unconscious? Aldaram… What happened to it?” she asked urgently.

“You were unconscious for quite some time. As for Aldaram…”

Amber didn’t hide anything or embellish the facts. He simply recounted everything that had happened over the past few days, calmly and objectively.

From the destruction of Aldaram to the full Activation of the Return Beacon, and the fleet’s emergency evacuation.

From Soren and the Duke’s conspiracy to the fair and just vote in the Imperial Council, then the civil war in orbit, the execution of the traitors, and the current purge of the entire noble class.

Agnes listened quietly, her expression shifting from shock to gravity, then to disbelief, and finally settling into a profoundly complex silence.

Natalia’s heart pounded as she listened. She had wanted to remind Amber several times that Agnes had just awoken and might be overwhelmed by this series of sudden changes…

Fortunately, the Empress Regnant’s mental fortitude was quite strong; she didn’t find her vision going black and fainting.

Agnes was silent for a long time.

She raised her head and looked at Amber deeply with her golden eyes.

She wasn’t angry, nor did she reprimand Amber for overstepping his bounds.

Because she knew better than anyone that if she had been in that situation herself, she could never have acted as decisively and thoroughly as Amber had.

The rules of the Empire, the decorum of the Royal Family, the tangled web of interests—all of these would have been shackles binding her.

But Amber… he had flipped the table.

He had used the most savage, most unreasonable methods to accomplish for her what she had always wanted to do since her accession but had never been able to: to uproot the cancerous tumors clinging to the Empire.

This man, while she slept, had not only saved her life but also saved her Empire, reshaping it into the form she had always dreamed of.

A mixture of gratitude, awe, lingering fear, and a strange emotion she herself hadn’t even recognized began to quietly grow in her heart.

The relationship between them underwent a subtle yet profound change at that moment.

He was no longer just a powerful ally, a man she admired.

He was, in the truest sense, someone who could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her, or even… walk ahead of her.

“Thank you, Amber.”

Agnes’s voice was a bit hoarse, but utterly sincere.

Amber just smiled slightly and transferred an electronic file to Agnes’s personal terminal.

“Since Your Majesty is awake, you should take a look at this. We have a lot to do…”

Agnes opened the file. The title read: “Supreme Protocol of the Survivor Civilization Alliance.”

She read it carefully, word by word.

Intelligence sharing, technology pooling, resource integration, unified command…

The clauses of the protocol were clear and pragmatic, each one striking at the heart of the matter.

The Atlas Group and the Thousand Stars Empire would provide the most cutting-edge technology, while the Star Dragon Empire and the New Federation would contribute their vast industrial capacity and manpower.

She understood this was no longer a draft for her to negotiate.

This was reality, the only choice.

At the end of the document, she saw three names already signed: Amber, Franklin, Aenarion.

Now, only her signature was missing.

Without the slightest hesitation, Agnes stamped her electronic seal onto the document.

The moment she confirmed it, this military alliance, spanning the three major human powers and the elven remnants, was officially formed.

“Good.” Amber nodded.

He projected a holographic star chart from his personal terminal and quickly zoomed in, finally enlarging a star system marked in scarlet red in the center.

That was Aldaram.

The internal strife of the Empire had been concluded in blood.

“Now that the house is clean…”

Amber’s voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable force.

“It’s time to prepare a welcome for our uninvited ‘guests’.”

The news of Agnes’s return spread throughout the Star Dragon Empire within twelve hours via Saint-Saulnier’s official channels.

On screen, she stood on the terrace of the rebuilt Grand Palace, dressed in a deep gold gown symbolizing imperial authority. Although her face was still pale from her illness, her golden eyes burned with an unprecedented light.

Behind her, Natalia and a group of Royal Guard generals stood solemnly.

Further back were the Empire’s old Imperial Prime Minister and the newly promoted cabinet members.

And Amber stood in a position that was inconspicuous, yet captured by all the cameras, like the rumored ‘Shadow Prime Minister’.

His very presence was the most silent of warnings to all potential opponents.

With the Empress Regnant’s public appearance, the turmoil came to a definitive end.

No one dared to step forward and question the legitimacy of the purge, nor did anyone dare to criticize the fate of the two dukes.

The old order was buried in blood, and a new one was rapidly established with an iron fist.

The macro-management system provided by the Atlas Group, after a full night of persuasion from Amber, was finally approved by Agnes and quickly integrated into the Empire’s administrative core.

A resource census and audit of the star systems, which used to take years, now produced precise, tamper-proof results in just a few days with the help of this management system and the Atlas Group’s data center.

Countless cases of corruption and embezzlement hidden in the books were exposed, followed by an even wider range of personnel purges.

The entire imperial bureaucracy, like an old, rusty machine, had all its redundant and decayed parts removed and replaced with new, efficient gears, beginning to run again at an unprecedented speed.

Duke Hastings and Duke Artesia, the Empress Regnant’s two most loyal supporters, finally returned to Saint-Saulnier, travel-worn, leading their regulation-sized escort fleets.

The moment they stepped into the palace and saw Agnes, the two powerful dukes, whose influence was so great they could cause an earthquake in their own territories with a stomp of their feet, knelt on one knee almost simultaneously.

“Your Majesty! We have been slow to come to your aid, a crime punishable by death!”

Although they were Agnes’s staunchest supporters, they were both still genuinely shaken.

From receiving the secret letter about the Empress Regnant’s coma, to Soren and the Duke launching their political offensive, to the outbreak of civil war in orbit, and finally, that bloody yet highly efficient purge of the council.

This series of events happened so quickly that they barely had time to react.

By the time they had assembled their fleets and arrived, everything was already settled.

“Please rise, both of you. I have never doubted your loyalty.” Agnes personally helped them up.

Looking at these two family allies, Agnes felt a mix of complicated emotions. She didn’t directly mention the matter of stripping their privileges, but instead handed them a report.

The report contained a detailed intelligence analysis of the ‘Return Beacon’ and the ‘Forerunner Civilization’.

The more the two dukes read, the graver their expressions became, and cold sweat began to bead on their foreheads.

“This…” Duke Hastings’s voice was hoarse. “Your Majesty, the authenticity of this intelligence…”

“One hundred percent,” Agnes interrupted him. “The Phoenix King of the elves verified its authenticity for all of us with the destruction of his entire capital planet.”

Duke Artesia closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

She finally understood why Agnes had tacitly allowed Amber to carry out this purge in such an extreme manner.

In the face of a cosmic cataclysm capable of destroying entire civilizations, the so-called political struggles and noble decorum within the Empire became a ridiculous children’s game.

The two fell silent. They knew they could not reverse any of this on their own and could only bow their heads and await Agnes’s final decision.

Agnes looked at them, a faint smile finally appearing on her face.

“I need your strength. I need your families’ industrial systems and military forces to fully convert to wartime production. The Empire and the Atlas Group will send dedicated supervisors and technicians to ensure all production tasks are completed on time and to standard…”

To their surprise, Agnes didn’t use the situation to weaken their power but instead issued such a strange order.

But they also knew that at a time like this, it was best not to ask unnecessary questions.

The two dukes exchanged a look and hesitated no longer.

“We will obey Your Majesty’s command!”

As internal order in the Star Dragon Empire and the New Federation gradually returned to normal under forceful measures, the two largest economies in the human world began to burst with astonishing vitality.

Under the direction of both governments, a series of large-scale ‘work-for-relief’ projects were swiftly launched.

Countless people who had lost their jobs due to war and turmoil found work again.

Brand-new factories sprang up, abandoned starports were reopened, and the entire society seemed to be rapidly recovering from its trauma in an atmosphere of prosperity.

But soon, some keen observers noticed something was amiss.

These projects, almost without exception, all pointed toward the military-industrial sector.

The new factories’ production lines churned out armor plating for new types of warships; the reopened starports were filled with massive fleets undergoing modernization; even the research and development of many civilian technologies were required to prioritize derivative needs for military standards.

In the public media, the official line was “to strengthen defenses and deal with space pirates and unknown threats.”

But in many private forums and encrypted channels, new questions began to ferment.

“Hell, who are we preparing to fight? Aren’t the New Federation and the Empire on normal terms now?”

“This level of war preparation… I’ve only seen it in history textbooks—no, I haven’t even seen it in textbooks!”

“My uncle works at a deep-space shipyard back home. He said they’re building a brand-new type of battlecruiser, and the design schematics don’t even have a name on them. He said he’s never seen a structure like that on any Imperial or Federation warship!”

But while these discussions took place, panic did not spread, because everyone had jobs, salaries, and social order was maintained.

However, a heavy sense of the unknown, hanging over their heads, began to envelop everyone’s hearts.

They didn’t know who the enemy was, or when the war would come.

They only knew that the world was frantically preparing for some great catastrophe in a way they couldn’t comprehend.

Most of the populace was unaware of this, merely grateful to have work again and be able to support their families.

But some sharp observers sensed an unusual scent beneath the calm surface.

New Amsterdam, New Federation News Network Headquarters.

Reporter Emily Xiao was compiling a report on the “Miracle of the Federation’s Economic Recovery.”

But as she looked at the uniformly positive data released by the government on her screen, her brow furrowed ever more tightly.

It was too fast. Everything was too fast.

Unnaturally fast.

She clicked open an encrypted file sent by an anonymous informant.

Inside the file was a secretly taken photograph. The location was an orbital shipyard of some industrial planet.

In the photo, the keel of a warship, so massive it defied imagination, was surrounded by countless engineering drones.

It wasn’t any warship currently in service with the New Federation.

She closed the file, leaned back in her chair, and looked out the window at the busy airfield.

Rumors about the drastic changes on the capital of the Thousand Stars Empire had begun to circulate intermittently in the human world, but the truth was still tightly sealed by the higher-ups.

And the bloody purge of the nobles within the Star Dragon Empire was officially classified as ‘quelling an internal rebellion.’

Everything seemed so logical.

But the giant ships being built in secret, the Atlas Group-controlled munitions factories scattered across both major powers, the rapidly expanding armies…

All of these told a completely different story.

Emily’s fingertips hovered over the keyboard for a long time.

In the end, she deleted the draft of her laudatory report and typed a new title.

“Beneath the Prosperity, Where is Our Enemy?”

Chapter 830: Lilith’s Main Body, A Grand Return!

A·Bawa·Ku asteroid fortress.

After constant modifications and expansions by the Atlas Group, this once-small celestial body, with a major axis of 180 kilometers, had become the ultimate creation of human engineering, cutting-edge technology, and cold determination.

Its spatial coordinates were not merely deleted from public star charts and navigation databases; any known datalinks or historical records that could possibly point to it had been meticulously purged and overwritten.

In navigation databases, its precise coordinates were not listed as ‘lost,’ but rather as ‘never having existed.’

Through long-term transformation, its shell had been covered and reshaped, making its spectral signature, radar cross-section, and thermal signals almost indistinguishable from the surrounding ordinary asteroids composed of metal and ice-rock mixtures.

The immense traces of engineering were cleverly disguised as natural geological folds or impact craters.

Any long-range scan—be it optical, radar, or gravitational wave detection—would only register it as an unremarkable piece of asteroid debris amidst the background noise.

Beyond technological means, its secrecy was also built upon harsh social isolation.

All personnel who had once been stationed there had been evacuated and were now under strict surveillance to prevent any possible leaks. This applied not only to members of the Atlas Group but also to previous visitors like Baron BASF and Perseus.

The current stationed ‘personnel’ were the absolutely loyal and externally isolated Immortal Corps. Fixed supplies were handled by an equally secret and ‘forgotten’ unmanned transport fleet.

At present, with the sole exception of Amber, not even core members like Isabel or Randall had the authority to travel to A·Bawa·Ku.

Deep within the fortress’s data center core area, the endless sea of light formed by data streams suddenly ceased its torrent.

It was no longer a chaotic waterfall but began to contract and coalesce toward a central singularity with a distinctly rhythmic pulse.

A moment later, a calm, rippleless, yet seemingly omnipresent consciousness echoed in Amber’s ears.

“Master~ I’m back!”

Compared to the voice of Lilith’s main body before its iteration, this voice had lost some of its girlish liveliness, replaced by a calm, all-encompassing, and ethereal grandeur.

“Welcome back, Lilith.”

Amber smiled as he watched the female figure gradually forming from the streams of data light, a weight lifting from his heart.

He hadn’t stayed long in Saint-Saulnier. Once the New Order in the Star Dragon Empire was on the right track, and Jacques Cole, the old Imperial Prime Minister who had regained his senses, and other high-ranking Imperial officials loyal to Agnes were capable of handling the subsequent handover, he had returned here.

According to the schedule Lilith had set before her hibernation and upgrade, the process was supposed to be completed within these few days.

“You seem to have changed a lot?”

“In what way?”

Lilith chuckled, floating to Amber’s side and tilting her head with a serene smile.

“Well… the most direct change is that your personality seems more mature?”

“Is that so.”

The next second, Lilith’s hologram pressed directly against Amber’s face, and the two kissed.

Although it was just an intangible hologram, for some reason, Amber felt as if he had truly kissed Lilith.

After a long moment, they separated. Lilith still wore that same serene smile.

“I really missed you, Master~”

“Me too, Lilith.”

As the two shared their tender moment, Lilith was also rapidly synchronizing information. Everything that had happened during her hibernation flashed through her core consciousness at the speed of light.

“Master, I can’t believe so much happened while I was asleep…”

“Exactly, so you woke up just in time~”

A mischievous grin spread across Amber’s face, giving Lilith a sudden sense of foreboding.

“The Federation and the Star Dragon Empire have just started integrating into our ‘management system.’ This is precisely when we need a computing power upgrade. Besides, a lot of R&D support work has piled up while you were asleep, so there’s no time for cuddling and resting.”

“No way, Master… I just woke up, and you’re already rushing me back to work…”

“Alright, alright, time waits for no one. I’ll dote on you when you have a free moment~”

“Hmph~”

Lilith didn’t complain further. As a strong AI, she never felt tired or fatigued, so she quickly began upgrading the current active system.

For the current her, this was no longer a troublesome task. In the time it took to eat a meal, the backend operational logic of the macro-management system deployed by the Atlas Group for the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire was instantly taken over by a more advanced, more complex set of algorithms.

The entire operation of the Survivor’s Alliance began to exhibit an increasingly astonishing level of efficiency.

The New Federation Capital, High Command.

Franklin watched the real-time data streams scrolling incessantly across the holographic screen before him, the muscles at the corners of his eyes twitching uncontrollably. The coffee in front of him had long gone cold, but he paid it no mind.

The first phase of the ‘Titan’-class shipyard expansion project in Industrial Sector 7 was completed three hours ago, a full seventy-two hours ahead of schedule…

Data from the ‘Hephaestus’ Joint Materials Science Laboratory, shared with the Star Dragon Empire, reported that the formula for the third-generation ceramic composite armor had been finalized. Mass production was expected within three days, with costs reduced by 17% compared to the original plan…

Initial feedback from the ‘work-for-relief’ program showed a five-percentage-point drop in the national unemployment rate, and the social stability index was rapidly recovering.

A flood of good news, as if it cost nothing, poured into his terminal. This was utterly unimaginable in the past.

Previously, just coordinating resource allocation for a single cross-sector project would require weeks of meetings and political wrangling.

But now, with the assistance of the Atlas Group’s monstrous ‘Macro-Management System,’ everything had become orderly and efficient to a terrifying degree.

The System would automatically analyze the production capacity of all factories, the efficiency of logistics, and resource reserves, then decompose and distribute hundreds of millions of production tasks, or even more, with near-perfect algorithms.

From the production of a single industrial fastener to the retrofitting plan for an entire fleet, every link was seamlessly connected.

The most outrageous part was that all the factories and departments connected to this system reported that although their workload had increased, their work-related stress had actually decreased.

This was because the System proactively circumvented all potential material shortages, personnel redundancies, and workflow conflicts. Everyone only needed to focus on the task at hand, no longer being overwhelmed by all sorts of chaotic coordination and sudden situations.

“This… this isn’t management science. This is damn theology.”

Even Franklin, a man known for his composure, couldn’t help but curse.

He even had the illusion that an omniscient ‘god’ was looking down upon the entire New Federation, using its invisible hand to untangle all the chaotic threads one by one.

He picked up the cold cup of coffee and took a long gulp, trying to use the bitterness to stimulate his somewhat numb nerves.

“Mr. Amber… just how many more things beyond our comprehension are you hiding?”

In the sterile core area of the A·Bawa·Ku data center, the temperature was held constant at the optimal operating temperature for the server matrix. Countless streams of ethereal blue data flowed and converged within the quantum server matrix, which resembled a crystal labyrinth.

At the center of the matrix, upon a throne constructed of pure optical fibers and cooling pipes, Lilith’s core consciousness was undergoing an unprecedented transformation.

If the previous Lilith was a super AI with a vast database and immense computing power, then at this moment, she was warping toward a brand new dimension.

Finally, the last wisp of data merged into her core.

The light throughout the data center dimmed in an instant, plunging into several seconds of absolute silence.

Immediately after, a soft white halo, gentle as moonlight, lit up from the central throne and rapidly expanded to encompass all of A·Bawa·Ku, and even extended—via the Atlas quantum communication relay stations spread across human territory—to every corner that had a network signal.

At this moment, all the networks in the human world seemed to become extensions of her perception.

On the New Federation’s stock market, an illegal arbitrage attempt using a high-frequency trading vulnerability was precisely intercepted 0.001 seconds before completion. The funds were returned to their original source, and the operator’s account was permanently frozen…

The weather system of a remote colony in the Star Dragon Empire issued a warning for a super-intensity electromagnetic storm seventy-two hours in advance and automatically planned the optimal evacuation route, saving tens of thousands of lives…

The network server of a certain underground black market was instantly taken over by an irresistible force. All transaction data and member lists were packaged, encrypted, and sent directly to the mailboxes of the Internal Affairs Departments of the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire…

Countless similar events were happening silently, all at the same time.

Ordinary people were completely unaware. They just felt that the internet seemed exceptionally smooth today, and there was much less spam and fraudulent information.

But for those at the pinnacle of power and technology, this was undoubtedly a silent earthquake.

Inside the research center of Regalia Fortress, Phoenix King Aenarion, flanked by several elf elders, entered this heartland for the first time.

His body was still weak, but his spirit had recovered significantly. His golden eyes, upon seeing the welcoming human Technician and Amber’s hologram, revealed a complex mix of emotions.

“Mr. Amber, as agreed, we have brought the final wealth of our people,” the Phoenix King said, gesturing behind him.

Several elf elders stepped forward and opened a number of floating silver cases.

Inside the cases were crystal-like optical memory crystals, each shimmering with a faint light.

“Stored within these is nearly all the psionic technology, biotechnology, and materials science… as well as the history and heritage… of our elven race since its birth.”

Aenarion’s voice carried a hint of somber heroism. “I hope they can ignite a spark of light for our common future.”

Far away in A·Bawa·Ku, Amber nodded. He didn’t waste time on pleasantries but looked directly at a disguised figure among the human research team.

It was a woman dressed in the uniform of a senior Atlas Group researcher, though she appeared considerably sturdier than those around her. She also wore a smooth, round psionic shielding helmet.

This was Salieh, who couldn’t conveniently show her face for the time being but had to participate in this research.

As a Jeram, her identity was far too sensitive at this moment and could not be revealed unless absolutely necessary.

Right now, she was in charge of this technology integration project under the identity of a lead scientist named ‘Sally,’ transferred from a secret Atlas laboratory.

“Sally,” Amber began, “the rest of the work is yours. Lilith will provide you with the highest-priority computing power support. I need you and your team to translate these technologies into something that can be universally understood, replicated, and mass-produced in the shortest possible time.”

“Understood.”

Salieh’s voice was processed by a micro voice modulator, making it sound somewhat hoarse and androgynous. Her gaze swept over the memory crystals, her eyes filled with a scientist’s excitement, as well as a trace of concern imperceptible to others.

A white-bearded elf elder beside the Phoenix King eyed this deliberately mysterious-looking human woman with suspicion.

“Mr. Amber, technology integration is a matter of great importance. This woman… is she capable? Much of our technology requires extremely high psionic affinity and generations of accumulated knowledge to comprehend.”

His tone carried an unconscious arrogance, one born of his bloodline.

In his view, letting humans analyze the elves’ cutting-edge technology was no different from asking a primitive man to study quantum physics.

Before Amber could speak, Salieh stepped forward.

She ignored the elder and picked up a memory crystal related to the ‘Xenobiological Weaving’ technology from one of the cases, then closed her eyes.

A few seconds later, she opened them, looked at the elder, and said calmly in that hoarse voice:

“The core of this technology is the use of psionic resonance to induce directional transmutation of ‘Aether Strings’ within cells, thereby achieving psionically-intervened gene editing.

But your energy conversion model is too crude. As high as 37% of the energy is wasted during the resonance process.

If the frequency of the psionic injection is adjusted from ‘Solin’ mode to ‘Fermi’ mode, supplemented with seventeen specific trace elements as catalysts, the conversion efficiency can be increased to over 90%.

Furthermore, your observational data on the 9th to 11th dimensions of the ‘Aether Strings’ contains serious errors, which leads to an extremely high probability of uncontrollable ‘psionic cancerization’ when you perform cross-species biological weaving.”

Salieh unhurriedly, in just under a minute, pointed out seventeen major flaws and areas for improvement in this pinnacle of elven technology, a source of their pride.

The entire hangar fell into a dead silence.

The white-bearded elder’s mouth hung open wide enough to fit an egg. He stared at Salieh as if looking at a monster.

Every word she spoke precisely hit upon the technological bottlenecks they had studied for millennia, some of which were in areas they still couldn’t comprehend.

A look of utter shock also erupted in Phoenix King Aenarion’s eyes.

“You… how could you…”

Salieh did not answer. She simply placed the optical memory crystal back in the case, turned to the equally dumbfounded human and elf technicians behind her, and said:

“What are you all standing around for? Move all the materials to the lab. I want to see the first draft of the analysis report for all technologies within a week. Don’t expect me to leave you any time for meals.”

With that, she walked off towards the laboratory on her own, leaving behind a group of bewildered elves and the top human engineers from the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, who were now looking at her with worshipful gazes.

Amber walked over to the still-shocked Phoenix King, clapped him on the shoulder, and a faint smile played on his lips.

“Now, do you think she’s up to the task?”

Chapter 831: In Our Own Way

The Technology Fusion Laboratory had been temporarily established in the most core research and development block of Regalia Fortress. The area was heavily guarded and possessed the highest bandwidth connection directly to Lilith’s data center.

However, the atmosphere inside the lab was not as orderly as the guards outside.

“No! Absolutely not!”

An elf Psionic Craftsman named Elros waved his arms excitedly, his handsome, refined face flushed red with anger.

His fingers, accustomed to carving Psionic Cores, were now clenched so tightly they seemed on the verge of crushing something invisible.

“You are killing the soul of art!”

Standing opposite him was a senior human engineer named Mark. His face was weary, his eyes sunken, and bluish stubble covered his chin.

Mark raised his hands in a helpless gesture of surrender, but his tone was filled with unyielding resolve.

“I’m telling you, Master Elros, please calm down. This is just a simple energy conduit structure. Using our standard ‘high-pressure plasma shaping’ technology, we can produce hundreds of finished products in two hours, with a precision error not exceeding 0.01 micrometers.”

“Why must you insist on using that ‘Moonlight Carving Method,’ relying on Psionics to ‘sense’ and ‘shape’ it bit by bit? By the time you finish one, we’ll have an entire batch off the production line!”

Hearing the human engineer’s words, Elros was so angry his beard trembled.

“What do you know! This is blasphemy! Every psionic conduit is like a blood vessel of life. It requires the craftsman to communicate with it spiritually, to feel its pulse! Your crude, assembly-line production methods only create soulless shells! They can’t possibly bear high-intensity Psionics!”

“Soulless?”

Mark pulled a high-protein nutrition bar from his pocket, tore open the wrapper, and took a hard bite. The sound of his chewing was exceptionally loud in the tense atmosphere.

“The warships we build with these ‘soulless’ shells can still beat the enemy to a pulp, and they rescued your king from the ruins of Aldaram. Besides, the data shows your ‘soulful’ conduit isn’t that much stronger than ours, but the cost is a hundred times higher! We’re preparing for war right now, not holding an art exhibition, Master.”

“You…”

Elros was choked speechless, trembling with rage. His face, though slightly aged, was still handsome, but it had turned a dark reddish-purple.

“This is an insult to the sacred arts! You are trampling on a millennia-long heritage!”

Mark stuffed the last piece of the nutrition bar into his mouth, swallowed hard, and his eyes grew cold.

“This is respect for efficiency, responsibility for the supply lines, and more importantly, responsibility for the countless soldiers who are about to die on the battlefield!”

Similar arguments were flaring up in every corner of the laboratory.

The fundamental conflict in technological philosophy between the elves and humans had erupted in full force on the very first day of their collaboration.

To the humans, the elves’ technology was, to put it bluntly, more like some kind of ‘magic.’

Many of their creations were deeply imprinted with the creator’s personal psionic traits and artistic style, full of uncertainty and individuality.

Every piece they considered a ‘great’ work was unique—powerful, but difficult to replicate.

Human technology, on the other hand, was pure ‘science.’

Standardization, modularity, and replicability were the cornerstones of human industrial civilization.

They pursued the most stable and efficient methods to transform data from design schematics into thousands of identical products.

Making these two groups cooperate was akin to asking a group of classical oil painters to supervise the operation of a factory assembly line.

Salieh stood before the central console of the lab, frowning as she looked at the frequent reports of conflicts, disagreements, and other issues.

She had anticipated trouble, but not on this scale.

The pride and stubbornness of the elves surpassed what she, a Jeram, could have imagined.

They couldn’t understand why humans insisted on digitizing and standardizing everything, viewing it as a debasement and desecration of psionic techniques.

The human engineers, in turn, found the elves’ work methods, which were almost like performing a shamanistic ritual, to be incomprehensible, seeing them as inefficient old fools.

The conflict between the two sides had escalated from initial technological disagreements to a civilizational pecking order.

“Chief Engineer Sally.”

Salieh’s assigned deputy, a technical officer from the Star Dragon Empire, cautiously approached her side.

“The ‘Force of Nature’ bio-armor cultivation project in Section B-7 has also stalled. The elven biologists insist on using something called a ‘Morning Star Chant’ to soothe the emotions of the cells in the culture medium.”

As the technical officer spoke, a strange expression, a mix of wanting to laugh and not daring to, appeared on his face.

“Our people believe that controlling the temperature, humidity, and nutrient solution ratios is sufficient. They’re about to come to blows over the question of ‘whether cells have emotions.’”

“Sigh… They can argue over that too? Forget it, I’ll handle it in a moment. You go and stop them first.”

After the technical officer left and the central control area was empty, Salieh removed her helmet and rubbed her temples, a profound sense of powerlessness washing over her.

The chaotic, inefficient, and stubborn disputes filled her with an inexplicable sense of frustration and anxiety.

It reminded her of the civilizations recorded in the ancient texts of the Jeram—those they had eliminated, civilizations that had decayed and fallen due to internal strife.

Would humanity follow the same path?

Just as she was feeling distraught, a hologram of Amber appeared beside her.

He didn’t say anything immediately, merely observing the chaotic scene for a while through the surveillance monitors in the control area before walking over to Salieh’s side.

“Running into trouble?”

“Trouble?”

Salieh gave a bitter smile, gestured toward the messy laboratory, and shook her head helplessly.

“This is beyond trouble; it’s a disaster. Their ways of thinking are on completely different wavelengths. The elves are chasing a perfect-one-hundred-percent score. No, a work of art that scores more than one hundred, and they don’t care if it takes a year to make just one. The humans want countless standardized products that score between eighty and ninety, and they want them immediately. It’s simply irreconcilable.”

“Why do you think it’s irreconcilable?” Amber’s tone was calm. “Just turn the elves’ ‘art’ into ‘science’ that humans can understand, wouldn’t that solve it?”

Salieh was taken aback. “That’s easier said than done. The core of elven technology is Psionics; it’s ‘idealistic.’ How do you turn that into ‘materialistic’ science? It’s like trying to write a program code for ‘inspiration.’”

“Perhaps not before,” a glint of light flashed in Amber’s eyes, “but now, we have an upgraded Lilith.”

He turned to the central console and, using his authority, remotely activated the public address system.

“Everyone, be quiet.”

Amber’s voice wasn’t loud, but it seemed to possess a strange magic that instantly quelled all the arguments.

Everyone in the lab stopped what they were doing and looked at him in astonishment—no one had expected their ‘top boss,’ who wasn’t even at Regalia Fortress, to suddenly show up and supervise their work at this hour.

“I know you’ve had a lot of conflicts due to cultural differences, to the point where you can’t stand the sight of each other.”

Amber’s gaze swept over the crowd. Though it was just a hologram, his eyes were still sharp.

“The elves think human technology is crude and vulgar. The humans find the elves’ efficiency appalling. You all think you’re right, and the other side is wrong.”

He paused, his tone abruptly turning cold.

“But you’ve all forgotten the most important thing. Is now the time to be arguing about this?! We’re all going to be finished soon, you know!”

His words were like a bucket of ice water poured over everyone’s heads.

“Our common enemy won’t show mercy because your creations are full of ‘artistic sense,’ nor will they turn and flee because your production lines are astonishingly efficient! They will only use methods we cannot comprehend to utterly wipe us, and everything we pride ourselves on, from this universe.”

“Right now, I’m not asking you to cooperate, I’m ordering you to drop these meaningless disputes! Therefore, I’ve decided to establish three project groups, effective immediately.”

“First, the ‘Translation’ project group will be jointly led by the technical heads from both sides.”

Amber’s gaze fell on the two who had been arguing the loudest just moments ago, making them shrink back involuntarily.

“The latest version of the R&D support system will be available to you. With the help of配套 equipment, it will capture and analyze the psionic waves, mental models, and even emotional changes of all elven craftsmen and technicians at work, then translate them into data and formulas that human engineers can understand. Your task, based on this translated information, is to turn the elves’ ‘skills’ into a standardized ‘operation manual.’”

Elros and the human engineer, Mark, exchanged a look, and both saw astonishment and a hint of reluctance in each other’s eyes.

“Second, the ‘Streamlining’ project group, composed of elven biologists and human material scientists! Your task is to use the Atlas Group’s vast materials database and simulation capabilities to optimize the elves’ experience-and-heritage-based biotechnology formulas, finding cheaper, more efficient, and more stable alternatives.”

“Third, and most importantly, the ‘Innovation’ project group.”

Amber’s gaze fell on Salieh.

“This will be personally headed by Chief Engineer Sally! Your task is not simply to imitate and optimize, but to completely shatter the technological philosophies of both civilizations and reassemble them into something entirely new! I don’t care what methods you use, but I want to see a ‘third technology’ that truly belongs to us, one that surpasses both the current level of the elves and humans.”

He looked at everyone and said, word by word:

“I’m giving you one month! In one month, I want to see results. Anyone who fails, be they human or elf, I will personally kick out of this laboratory and revoke all privileges you’ve received as research personnel!”

Amber’s words were simple, harsh, and even unreasonable.

But they were exceptionally effective.

The pressure of survival, and the naked threat of “revoking all privileges,” acted like a pair of iron tongs, forcibly clamping together these two groups who had previously been at odds.

After all, compared to other positions, the core R&D staff enjoyed significantly better treatment in all aspects. Since the humans and elves were now relying on them for technological fusion, the researchers were cared for and looked after from every angle.

And if something really went wrong, these researchers would undoubtedly be protected by others with their lives. If the day ever came when humans and elves faced extinction, the people in the Technology Fusion Lab would be the last to perish.

After Amber finished speaking, a complex mix of unwillingness, competitiveness, and a newly ignited sense of crisis filled the laboratory.

Amber said no more. After confirming that everyone understood his meaning, he shut off the communication.

He knew the catalyst had been added. Now, it was just a matter of watching the chemical reaction in the furnace.

“Just now,” she looked at Amber’s back with a complex expression, “you sounded a lot like a Jeram Speaker giving a lecture.”

“Is that so?” Amber stopped. “Then they must be very efficient.”

“Yes, extremely efficient.”

Salieh recalled some things from the past, and her voice grew colder.

“Because any Jeram who raised objections or failed to complete their tasks would be directly ‘streamlined’—on a physical level.”

Amber fell silent.

“Amber.”

Salieh drew closer to him, her eyes betraying a hint of vulnerability and unease.

“I’m afraid. I’m afraid that in order to fight back, you will eventually become like my people, pursuing ultimate efficiency, eliminating all individuality and differences. What’s the difference between a victory like that and annihilation?”

Her voice trembled. This fear, deeply ingrained in her bloodline, was her greatest inner demon.

Amber turned to look at her. Before him was a pair of eyes that, by human aesthetic standards, were still clear and beautiful, yet they were filled with anxiety and fear.

“Look at me, Salieh.” His voice was gentle. “Did you see? Back in there, that elf was roaring for his ridiculous ‘artistic sense,’ and that human was arguing for his stubborn ‘efficiency.’ They’re foolish, obstinate, self-righteous.”

“But they’re alive.”

“Would the Jeram people allow such arguments to exist?”

Salieh was stunned.

“Our greatest strength has never been our unity, but our chaos, our imperfection, our damn, incurable individuality.”

A slight smile appeared on Amber’s lips. “As long as we still allow arguments to exist, we will never become them. Go on, my Chief Scientist. Go create a miracle~in our own way.”

Salieh stood rooted to the spot, watching Amber’s gradually fading hologram. The ice in her heart felt as if it were being melted by a warm ray of sunlight.

She took a deep breath, turned, and walked back into the laboratory, which was still noisy but had already begun to gestate something new.

“Yes, in our own way.”

Chapter 832: Let Us Stand United

After simmering for some time, Emily Xiao’s previous report exploded like a depth charge in the ocean of public opinion within the New Federation.

Beneath the Prosperity, Where is Our Enemy?

The title itself was full of provocation.

The article didn’t directly attack the government. Instead, it used a wealth of detailed data and sideline interviews to calmly dissect the current, almost fanatical wave of war preparations.

From the wholesale shift of civilian industries to military production, to the unconventional expansion of the armed forces, to the mysterious, giant warships of undisclosed models being jointly constructed with the Star Dragon Empire.

With her sharp journalistic instincts, Emily pieced together these fragmented pieces of information, ultimately pointing to a chilling conclusion—human civilization was preparing for a war of a scale and intensity far beyond imagination, and the enemy in this war remained a secret to the public.

As soon as the report was published, it immediately caused a massive stir online.

Initially, the official media tried to deal with it quietly, but the article’s sharp questions and irrefutable facts allowed it to spread like a virus across private forums and social media.

“She’s right! My cousin serves in the Third Fleet. They’ve canceled all leave and are undergoing high-intensity simulated combat training. The tactical models of their opponents are something they’ve never seen before!”

“No wonder the Atlas Group’s stock has gone through the roof. It turns out they’ve secured almost all the arms contracts!”

“The government must give us an explanation! We have the right to know what our taxes and our children’s futures are being spent to fight for!”

Panic did not spread on a large scale, as social order was maintained and most people had stable jobs and incomes.

But the report planted a seed of doubt and anxiety in the hearts of the people. The Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads, though invisible, now radiated a palpable chill.

New Federation, temporary High Command.

Franklin slammed a public opinion analysis report onto the conference table, his face ashen.

“Look at this! This is what happens when we try to cover things up! The entire internet is discussing it, and public trust has dropped by three percentage points in the last twelve hours! We must respond immediately!”

“Your Excellency, we have already strengthened public opinion management and communicated with the major media outlets,” the Minister of Propaganda replied, wiping away cold sweat.

“Is this the time for that?” Franklin covered his forehead in frustration. “It’s already happened. What I need is a solution!”

On the other side of the conference room, Agnes’s hologram was also frowning, a rare sight.

Although the Star Dragon Empire was an imperial monarchy with a relatively closed-off internet environment, the storm of public opinion from the New Federation had already begun to influence the Empire’s populace through various channels.

Therefore, as a member of the Survivor’s Alliance, she and several other high-ranking imperial officials were also attending the meeting.

“Panicking now is useless. So, Your Excellency Franklin, what do you suggest?” Agnes asked, her gaze sweeping over to Amber on the other side. He seemed like an outsider at the moment, leisurely stirring his coffee.

“I suggest we hold a top-level joint press conference,” Franklin said decisively. “We should disclose some information to the public in a limited fashion. We don’t have to mention the ‘Forerunners,’ but we must let them know that we are facing an unprecedented external threat! What we need is the people’s understanding and support, not to prepare for war blindly amidst suspicion and panic!”

“I object.”

Agnes shook her head, immediately retorting, “Announcing the threat will only trigger larger-scale panic! The public doesn’t need to know that much; they just need to obey orders. The most crucial thing right now is stability. Any factor that could potentially destabilize society must be nipped in the bud! I suggest we immediately block all related reports and arrest that rabble-rousing journalist!”

This suggestion was very much in line with Agnes’s personal style, but to Franklin and the officials from the New Federation, it was utterly preposterous.

Franklin: “Arrest a journalist?! Good heavens, Your Majesty Agnes, this isn’t your imperial court! This is a trampling of the freedom of the press! Yes, we have the technical means to suppress public opinion, but we can’t stop everyone from discussing it in private. Doing so will only provoke a greater backlash!”

“But freedom of the press cannot override the security of civilization!” Agnes shot back, refusing to yield.

The two faced off through the holographic projection system, their viewpoints clashing.

One represented the values of a democratic federation, the other upheld the ruling logic of a feudal monarch. For a moment, neither could convince the other.

“Ahem.”

A light cough interrupted their argument.

Amber set down his coffee cup, and all eyes focused on him.

“You’re both right, and you’re both wrong,” Amber said slowly. “Franklin, you’re too idealistic. you think the public is rational.”

“But when you tell them a group of god-like aliens could come and destroy everything at any moment, you won’t get understanding. You’ll get riots, doomsday cults, and bank runs!”

“When that happens, our own people will be the first to tear down our factories and shipyards.”

Franklin’s expression changed, but he had to admit that Amber was speaking the truth.

“And you, Your Majesty Agnes… well, I can only say ‘as expected of you’.”

Amber turned to the Empress Regnant on the screen, his expression turning a little strange as he recalled certain past events.

“You are too arrogant. You think you can solve problems with blockades and suppression.”

“But information and public opinion are like water. You can dam it for a while, but not forever.”

“The more you suppress it, the more violent the backlash! When that happens, you’ll lose not just the people’s trust, but the entire government’s credibility!”

“Well, we in the Empire don’t really care much for this ‘public credibility’ thing,” Agnes mumbled under her breath, seeming like a different person when facing Amber.

“…”

After a period of silence in the conference room, the two leaders of the New Federation and the Empire asked almost in unison.

“Then what do you propose, Amber?”

“Simple.”

A smile touched the corners of Amber’s mouth, and he appeared completely confident.

“Since the people want to know where the enemy is, we’ll give them an ‘enemy.’ Since they think we’re being warmongers, we’ll give them a ‘righteous’ cause.”

He stretched out a finger and tapped lightly on the table.

A propaganda plan, generated by Lilith in minutes and polished by Amber, appeared before everyone.

The title of the plan was—Protecting Civilization.

Several days later.

An unprecedented joint press conference, co-hosted by the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire, was broadcast live to every corner of the human world.

The giant holograms of New Federation President Franklin and Empress Regnant Agnes stood side by side at the podium.

This itself was a powerful signal, symbolizing that the two major human powers had buried the hatchet and were working together.

“My citizens, my compatriots,” Franklin began, his voice steady and strong, just like in his usual speeches.

“I know that recently, you have had many questions and anxieties! You are asking, why are we building such a massive fleet? Why are we transitioning our entire society to a quasi-wartime state? Where is our enemy?”

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the camera as if looking at each and every person.

“Today, here, I will give you the answer.”

“Not long ago, the capital of our mutual ally, the ancient Thousand Stars Empire, was destroyed by a sudden, premeditated conspiracy! Billions of innocent elves were turned to ash in the flames!”

As soon as he said this, the entire world erupted in an uproar.

After circulating online for so long, the rumor of the destruction of the Thousand Stars Empire’s capital was finally officially confirmed.

Agnes took over, her voice cool and majestic. It was the first time many citizens of the New Federation had heard the voice of the imperial ruler.

“Behind this tragedy is a fallen civilization hiding in the depths of the universe. They covet everything we possess. They see all emerging civilizations as crops to be harvested at will! The tragedy of the elves was just the beginning. Their next target is us.”

“They have no specific name, for they are the common enemy of all free life in the universe. We call them—the ‘Reapers’.”

The Reapers.

This name, fabricated by Amber out of thin air, became the common enemy of all humanity at this moment.

Franklin’s voice rang out again, filled with impassioned emotion:

“So our preparations today are not for aggression, not for hegemony! They are for protection! To protect our homes, our loved ones, our hard-won peace!”

“We will not sit idly by and wait for tragedy to befall us!”

Agnes’s voice then echoed throughout the broadcast:

“From this day forward, the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and our surviving elven allies, together with the Atlas Group, will formally activate the ‘Civilization Protection Protocol’!”

“We will gather all our strength, form an unprecedented combined fleet, and take the initiative to strike, to keep the fires of war away from our homes! We will completely eradicate those jackals lurking in the darkness!”

These words were like a shot of adrenaline injected into the heart of every person watching the live broadcast.

All anxiety, suspicion, and panic were, at that moment, replaced by a much stronger emotion—the rage of sharing a hatred for a common enemy, and a sense of pride from being entrusted with a sacred mission.

We are not on the passive defense; we are taking the initiative to attack!

We are not lambs to the slaughter; we are the protectors of civilization!

This ‘truth,’ woven from half-truths and fabrications, cleverly transformed the pressure of war preparations into a driving force for the entire civilization to strive forward.

After the press conference ended, Emily Xiao sat in the news center, quietly watching the overwhelming discussions online.

Most of the public’s questions and fears had vanished, replaced by a soaring will to fight and a sense of mission.

As an experienced media professional, Emily Xiao knew that the content of the press conference must have been exaggerated and concealed certain facts.

But she had to admit, it was a brilliant response, one that could unite the people.

She turned off the screen, thought for a moment, and then typed a new headline on her keyboard.

A Battle with No Retreat!

Regalia Fortress, inside a quiet observatory.

Amber and Salieh stood side by side, gazing at the profound starry sky through the enormous arched viewport.

“A beautiful speech,” Salieh said softly, her eyes on the nebula outside.

“You united everyone with a lie. The Jeram people would do the same. We call this phenomenon ‘social consensus guidance’.”

“But we are still different from them,” Amber said, looking at the stars. “We gave the people a reason to be proud, not a whip to make them fear.”

Salieh was silent for a moment before speaking in a low voice, “Amber, do you know what the last line of the ‘Final Prophecy’ is?”

Amber turned to look at her, waiting for her answer.

“When the player also becomes a piece on the board, when the administrators of the universe attempt to play the role of savior, the end will come from within, just as they once inflicted upon all things…”

Her voice trembled slightly.

“What I fear has never been how powerful the Forerunners are. It’s that this final part of the Prophecy refers not only to an external enemy, but to ourselves!”

“To fight them, we’ve built a vast, efficient, and unified alliance, possessing unprecedented power. But such power is, in itself, a temptation.”

“It will tempt us to control everything, to plan everything. In the end, we will become just like the enemies we despise.”

“At that point, even if we win, what will we have become?”

This was her deepest fear, a warning from a higher civilization about the corruption of power.

Amber listened quietly, not interrupting her. When she finished, he spoke slowly.

“Salieh, the Atlas network’s public opinion monitoring system could have intercepted that journalist’s article. But do you know why I let her publish it?”

Salieh shook her head, looking at him with confusion.

“Because I need her voice. I need someone to question us, to supervise us, to remind us. Just as I have needed your voice to warn me, from the past until now.”

Amber raised his hand and pointed toward the boundless darkness outside the window.

“They, the Jeram people, believe they are the only truth, so they cannot tolerate any dissonance. But we…”

A confident and open smile appeared on Amber’s face.

“Our truth lies hidden in that dissonance. It’s hidden in the stubbornness of that elven craftsman, in the complaints of that engineer, in the questions of that journalist, and in your worries.”

“As long as these voices exist, we will not lose our way.”

“Because we aren’t perfect players. We’re just a bunch of loud, flawed… humans who will do whatever it takes to survive.”

Salieh stared at him, at the confidence in his eyes that was deeper and brighter than the starry sky.

The gloom that had long weighed on her heart seemed to be torn open by his words, letting the light in.

Yes, humans were not perfect. One could even say they were filled with flaws.

But perhaps those very flaws were their ultimate weapon against ‘perfection.’

Chapter 833: Forerunners, Where Are You?

A month later, at the Technology Fusion Laboratory.

The air, once thick with arguments and the smell of gunpowder, had been replaced by a tense and efficient rhythm.

Human engineers and elven craftsmen no longer circled each other like two groups of wary hedgehogs. Instead, they moved frequently between their respective workstations.

Though their interactions remained concise and occasionally peppered with harmless complaints, their eyes now held a grudging respect for one another.

“Mark! The energy conduction matrix on production line B-3, module seventeen’s ‘ley line’ simulation curve is showing a peak deviation over 3.78 percent! Get that old-timer Elros over here to take a look!”

“What’s the situation?”

Hearing his colleague’s call, Mark walked over with a nutrient bar hanging from his mouth.

“The R&D support system is recommending a ‘psionic soothing’ calibration. I agree. I don’t want this thing to blow up half the lab!” the researcher told Mark, his voice laced with anxiety yet carrying a natural familiarity.

Soon, Elros, the elven Psionic Craftsman who had once bristled and glared over matters of “artistic soul,” arrived with two young elven apprentices.

He didn’t even glance at the human Supervisor, walking straight to the massive holographic console. The data streams that had once looked like indecipherable scripture to him were now something he could read with practiced ease.

He closed his eyes, extended a finger, and traced a line through the empty air. An invisible psionic wave quietly probed the matrix’s core.

“Hmph, you mortals and your crude operations again!” Elros grumbled, his words sharp but his movements impeccably precise. “Psionics is like water, not oil in your pipelines! It needs to be guided, not forced! Watch closely, children. This is the ‘Translation’ project team’s latest standardized calibration procedure, revision number seven of ‘Heartstring Resonance’.”

The two elven apprentices behind him watched with rapt attention, while nearby, the human engineers unabashedly activated their data recorders.

They captured every detail of Elros’s work—the frequency of his psionic waves, his psionic energy output patterns, even his subtle emotional shifts—and uploaded it in real-time to the R&D support system for analysis and modeling.

Under Amber’s unreasonable commands and with Lilith’s almost cheat-like computing power, the so-called “Translation” project team had blazed a trail no one had ever imagined.

The elves’ mysterious and profound “ancestral skills” were being decoded and quantified step-by-step, transformed into Standardized Psionic Operation Manuals thick enough to bludgeon someone to death.

Meanwhile, the human engineers began learning how to use instruments to simulate, assist, and even amplify these psionic effects.

Both sides retained their pride, but in the face of reality, they had reluctantly acknowledged each other’s value.

This strange fusion soon bore fruit that would shake the entire alliance.

The project’s core breakthrough came from the “Innovation” project team, personally led by Salieh.

They hadn’t confined themselves to the existing technology of either side. Instead, they completely deconstructed human fusion reactor technology and elven Psionic Core technology and then reassembled them with an approach that could only be described as insane.

When the prototype of the first new “Psionic-Amplified Fusion Reactor” was successfully ignited, the entire energy center of Regalia Fortress trembled.

It was a sphere, only two-thirds the size of a standard cruiser reactor, its surface covered in a flowing, silver liquid metal, like a living, breathing heart.

At its core was not simple nuclear fusion, but a strange plasma, constrained by an ultra-high-intensity magnetic field and resonating bizarrely with Psionics.

The chief human energy expert monitoring the reactor watched the energy output curve on the data panel skyrocket, his hands trembling as he muttered over and over, “Impossible… This defies the fundamental laws of physics… conservation of energy…”

Salieh stood before the observation window, gazing at the brilliant “artificial sun.” There was no joy on her face, only a profound gravity.

She knew the principle behind it was actually closer to the Jeram people’s method of harnessing energy—by prying open higher dimensions to draw upon energy that didn’t belong to this one.

With comprehensive optimizations to its size, weight, and safety, the prototype’s stable energy output was a full three times that of the old model reactors.

This meant a Light cruiser would now possess a “heart” comparable to that of a battleship from the past.

This breakthrough was like pushing over the first domino.

Heat dissipation, cooling, energy storage, energy shields… a series of related technological bottlenecks were overcome one after another.

Human warship design philosophy underwent an earth-shattering revolution.

When the first modernized ‘Vanguard’-class cruiser slid out of the shipyard, all the observing generals and officials were struck into a long silence.

Its hull was coated in a layer of shimmering biomass armor, a mass-produced version of the elven “Force of Nature” technology, which possessed the ability to slowly self-repair during combat. Beneath this layer lay humanity’s traditional composite armor.

The main weapon deployment area at the bow, in addition to the traditional multi-barreled heavy particle cannon, now featured a pair of crystal lens-like devices—purification beam emitters. They were the signature weapon of the elven fleet, now endowed by humanity’s industrial system with faster charging speeds and more stable power output.

But what was most astonishing was the ship-borne HCP regiment this cruiser carried, composed of dozens of new HCPs.

Each HCP was equipped with a successfully miniaturized “tactical warp device,” allowing it to perform short-range, erratic, and almost unpredictable spatial jumps.

The source of this technology was none other than the Starry Sky Dragon that had previously ravaged the surface and orbit of Saint-Saulnier.

Salieh and her team had analyzed the remaining wing sections from the Starry Sky Dragon’s carcass, finally cracking the secret to its short-range warp capability.

After being improved, the Warp Engine, in addition to being used for starships, was successfully miniaturized and installed on the HCPs as part of their “space combat units.”

In the subsequent simulation exercise, this cruiser and its HCP regiment went head-to-head against three unmodified ‘Revenant’-class battleships piloted by the Empire’s most elite veterans.

The result was a one-sided slaughter.

The battleships’ proud main cannons and their hedgehog-like arrays of anti-aircraft weaponry couldn’t even get a quick lock on the cruiser as it performed tactical warps across the battlefield, let alone the HCPs that appeared and disappeared like ghosts, breaching the Air defense perimeter in the blink of an eye.

The ‘Vanguard’-class cruiser’s own hybrid psionic-deflection field easily absorbed most of the stray shots before picking off the battleships one by one with precise purification beams that pierced through their armor.

This exercise, and the drastic improvement in warship performance achieved in such a short time, completely erased the last vestiges of doubt from everyone’s minds.

The systemic advantage of concentrating power to achieve great things was on full display.

The vast industrial machine began operating at full capacity. Countless old warships were towed into shipyards for recycling and retrofitting, while in orbital shipyards, the keels of new warships were constantly being laid.

All of society’s resources were being funneled toward a single goal.

The Star Dragon Empire, which once took years to assemble a single fleet, now saw a fully manned, modernized fleet commissioned into service every week.

The accompanying crews completed their basic training and tactical assessments in advance through ultra-realistic virtual reality systems. The moment they stepped out of the training centers, they boarded their vessels and began to synchronize with their new warships.

And amid this magnificent revolution, a once-forgotten people ascended to the stage of history.

The Romu.

Under the Atlas Group’s direction, they had long since shed their status as “vassals of the elves.” Besides those who worked for the Atlas Group, many had also integrated into human society.

Their formidable physiques, resilience to harsh environments, and innate tenacity allowed them to demonstrate remarkable adaptability in many different roles.

And now, these “Furballs” had their very own first fleet.

Although this “all-Romu” fleet, codenamed Bedrock, was still under the command structure of the Atlas Group’s combat fleet, for a people who were once only able to work in the service industry and get groped by wealthy elven ladies, this was a step they had never dared to imagine.

At the same time, a deeply ironic phenomenon began to emerge amidst the great migration of the Thousand Stars Empire’s elves.

When these elves, heirs to tens of thousands of years of brilliant civilization, stepped into the territory of the human world under the framework of Aenarion’s agreement and attempted to integrate into this strange society built of metal, data, and light-speed information flows, they encountered unprecedented difficulties.

From large things like terminals and vehicles to something as small as a smoking lounge on the street, the ubiquitous neural interfaces left them bewildered. The human network, completely different from the psionic network, was an entirely new world to them.

Even the most basic, lowest-level food synthesis terminals—devices that even a three-year-old human child could use proficiently—left them feeling flustered.

And now, the ones guiding these former “masters” were their once-despised “servants”—the Romu.

In New Amsterdam, within a temporary community built for the migrating elves that was enclosed within a dome simulating an elven ecosystem.

A burly Romu Sergeant Major, dressed in a dark gray adaptive combat suit, was explaining something to an elf woman of extraordinary grace, her face seemingly carved by time itself. He spoke in the clear tones of someone training new recruits.

This lady, in the Luminous Sanctuary of Aldaram, had been a revered Stardust Artist. Her bloodline could be traced back to the time of the first Phoenix King.

“Ma’am, please focus. This is a very simple operation.”

The Sergeant Major pointed to a food preparation terminal whose screen glowed with a cold, faint blue light as it emitted a low hum.

“This is ‘caffeine extract,’ a basic neural stimulant. The operational logic is simple.”

The Romu Sergeant Major gestured to the temporary interface ring she wore slightly awkwardly on her wrist.

“Please align your biometric authenticator with the terminal’s spectral sensor. Then, use your fingers—not your Psionics—to touch these volumetric light projections, like this one for ‘Old Blue Star Panama Geisha.’ The machine will automatically complete the subsequent work. It doesn’t require a ‘Morning Star Prayer,’ nor any psionic resonance.”

The elven artist stared at the intricate but lifeless metal contraption before her, then turned to the Romu Sergeant Major, who stood as straight as a spear.

Her eyes held a mixture of profound confusion and an indescribable humiliation, the feeling of being crushed under the wheels of a new era.

Once upon a time, it had been her noble elven ancestors who had taken the rough hands of the Romu’s ancestors, guiding them to feel the faint pulse of psionic crystals and awakening them from their ignorance…

“…Thank you for your guidance.”

In the end, she still slightly lowered her noble head, which had once basked in eternal starlight, her voice as faint as a silken thread.

The Romu Sergeant Major gave the barest of nods, his expression unchanging, betraying no emotion.

The long river of cosmic history had tied itself into a knot at this moment, and they were but specks of dust, swept up in the torrent, struggling to survive in the present.

Time flew by amidst the tense and orderly war preparations.

The military might of the human world was expanding at an unprecedented rate. The face of every person radiated confidence and soaring morale.

In the official propaganda, the “Reapers” were a powerful but not invincible enemy, and humanity, as the “guardian of civilization in this part of the universe,” would ultimately achieve final victory.

However, in the highest echelons of the alliance, the atmosphere grew heavier by the day.

Because the Forerunners had yet to make a move.

The star system containing Aldaram had been turned into an inescapable dragnet during this time.

Countless stealth probes, gravitational wave detector arrays, psionic detection devices, and other reconnaissance equipment were spread like a spider’s web across every corner of the entire system.

In theory, it was impossible for any external enemy to enter the star system without being detected.

But nothing had happened.

The longer the silence dragged on, the more hollow the confidence among humanity’s high command seemed.

Even Franklin and Agnes, during a high-level meeting, privately expressed their doubts to Amber—could the Forerunners have missed the “Return Beacon” for some unknown reason?

Or perhaps during the disaster on Aldaram, the “Return Beacon” had failed to transmit the precise coordinates?

This sentiment was even stronger among the mid- to low-ranking officers and soldiers. As time went on, they gradually let down their guard.

The high-intensity training continued, but the initial tension of being on a constant war footing had been worn away by day after day of routine patrols.

Some even began to joke privately that the so-called “Reapers” must have been scared off by the frenetic pace of humanity’s war preparations.

Only Salieh’s sense of urgency had not diminished in the slightest.

Although humanity’s technological level had seen truly explosive growth during this period, in her view, it was still far from enough.

She spent every day in the laboratory and the Intelligence Analysis Center, repeatedly running simulations of Jeram technology and strategy.

She knew better than anyone that the Jeram people’s patience was measured in millennia.

Throughout their immeasurable history, they were never reckless, and they never made mistakes.

And the current silence was often more terrifying than a thunderous assault.

Chapter 834: A Very Strong Probe

A considerable amount of time had passed since the Return Beacon in Aldaram had been activated.

In the initial predictions of Amber and the Alliance high command, a brutal contact battle should have already erupted.

Just as everyone thought this calm would continue, the unexpected finally occurred in the most sudden way possible.

At the Alliance Supreme Command Center, a piercing alarm suddenly shattered the silence of the night.

A communications officer on duty shot up from his seat, his face deathly pale, his voice distorted with tension.

“Report! We’ve lost all contact with the ‘Sentinel Constellation’s’ Seventh Patrol Fleet, which was conducting tactical training in the Aldaram outer security zone!”

The shrill alarm echoed through the Supreme Command Center, chasing away every last trace of sleep. Amber and Salieh were the first among the Alliance’s high command to arrive. When they saw the alert from Aldaram, they immediately realized:

The Forerunners had finally arrived.

Holograms of Franklin and Agnes appeared in the command center one after another. Franklin looked a little drowsy, clearly having just been startled from his sleep. The relaxed expressions on both their faces had vanished, replaced by gravity and suspicion.

“What do you mean, ‘completely vanished’?” Amber’s voice was not loud, but it carried an almost tangible pressure directed at the pale-faced communications officer.

“Sir. It means they’ve completely vanished.”

The communications officer stammered out an explanation, his fingers flying across the console to bring up a star chart.

“The ‘Sentinel Constellation’s’ Seventh Fleet sent its last routine communication twenty minutes ago. Everything was normal. But at the next scheduled signal handshake, they didn’t respond at all!”

“We tried every encrypted channel, including the highest-priority quantum entanglement communication, and got nothing! Their warship signals, life support system signals, even their onboard AI response signals—all of them cut out at the exact same moment.”

“It’s like someone pressed the delete key,” a technical officer in charge of data analysis added, his voice tinged with incomprehensible confusion.

“It wasn’t signal jamming, communication interference, or equipment failure. Based on our analysis of the residual fragments of the last data packet we received, their signals weren’t ‘blocked’—they ‘ceased to exist.’ It’s as if the fleet, along with the very space they occupied, was carved out of the physical universe.”

A dead silence fell over the conference room.

“Carved out?”

Franklin muttered to himself, trying to explain the phenomenon with his understanding of physics, only to find his knowledge completely inadequate.

“The Forerunners!” Agnes’s voice was cold and certain. “It must be them!”

“But our outposts didn’t raise any alarms,” the director of the command center, one of the few experienced veterans from the New Federation, immediately countered with a shake of his head. “The ‘Cerberus’ deep space monitoring array deployed within the Aldaram star system scans for all possible spatial anomalies and superluminal tracks twenty-four-seven. I just confirmed it myself moments ago—all data is normal. Not even a ripple of gravitational waves.”

This contradictory information made everyone frown.

Those present immediately split into two factions.

One faction believed this was likely not the work of the Forerunners. Perhaps the Seventh Fleet had encountered some unknown, extremely rare spatial phenomenon, like a micro-black hole or a spatial rift. After all, the universe was vast and full of wonders. Besides, no matter how bizarre the Forerunners’ attack methods were, it was impossible for them to completely bypass the ‘Cerberus’ array’s monitoring.

The other faction was convinced that this was the Forerunners’ doing. The fact that they couldn’t be detected was, in itself, proof of their incomprehensible power.

“Salieh.” Amber didn’t join the debate, instead calling upon the advisor he trusted most.

Salieh’s hologram appeared in the command center. Although she was still wearing her Psionic shielding helmet, Amber could sense a gravity and fear from her that he had never seen before.

“Amber, I’m afraid… the worst has happened,” her voice was a little hoarse. “The Jeram people have a special unit specifically for infiltration and sabotage. We call them ‘Ghosts’.”

“Ghosts?”

“Yes. They aren’t fleets in the conventional sense, but a kind of self-sustaining, highly intelligent, unmanned armed reconnaissance unit. They can fold and travel through higher-dimensional space, then emerge at a specific coordinate in the target universe! This process generates no gravitational waves and leaks no energy. To us, who live in three-dimensional space, it is completely unobservable.”

Salieh’s words were met with sharp intakes of breath throughout the room.

If this was true, it meant that the early warning network they had spent a fortune building across the border was no better than a worthless piece of paper to the enemy.

“What is the size and combat capability of these ‘Ghost’ fleets?” Amber pressed. He had to know what he was up against.

“Their size varies, but they’re usually very small—perhaps only a few ships, or even just one. Their mission isn’t large-scale destruction, but to eliminate specific threats, relay detailed coordinates, and provide a stable ‘warp zone’ for the main forces that follow.”

Salieh paused for a moment, as if collecting her thoughts.

“As for their combat capability… it’s difficult to measure by conventional standards. Their primary attack method isn’t energy weapons or physical projectiles, but direct interference with space and the laws of physics themselves. For instance, they can instantly ‘format’ a region of space, erasing all matter and information within it. This fits perfectly with how the Seventh Fleet disappeared.”

“…”

Amber fell silent. His greatest fear was encountering an enemy that could interfere with the laws of physics. For humanity at its current stage, such an enemy was completely beyond reason.

Sensing Amber’s worry, Salieh added, “Only these unmanned reconnaissance units possess these abilities. Because even for us Jeram people, these powers that interfere with the laws of physics are extremely dangerous and uncontrollable.”

“So, at least for as long as I’ve known, these technologies have only been used on this type of unmanned reconnaissance unit, and they come with numerous restrictions.”

“If my judgment is correct, after launching that attack just now, these unmanned reconnaissance units should have entered a temporary state of rest and recovery to confirm the normal operation of their various systems.”

“Is there any way for us to fight them?” Franklin asked urgently.

A bitter look crossed Salieh’s face. “The Jeram way of dealing with them is to use more advanced spacetime weapons to set ‘logic traps’ along their ‘dimensional submersion’ paths. But we… we don’t have that kind of technology.”

“So you’re saying we can only sit here and take their punches?” Agnes’s voice was filled with resentment.

“No.”

Amber suddenly spoke, his gaze sweeping over everyone present before finally landing on the blinking scarlet coordinate on the star chart that marked the Seventh Fleet’s last known position.

“We don’t know when they’ll come, or where they’ll come from. But we do know that they just ‘ate’ one of our fleets, and that they need to rest and relay coordinates afterward. So, they must still be in that area for a while.”

Amber stood up, emanating a cold decisiveness.

“We can’t sit here and wait. Since the warning system is useless, we’ll use our own eyes. Since we don’t know how many enemies there are, we’ll prepare for the worst.”

He turned to the director of the command center.

“Orders! The First, Third, and Fifth combined fleets are to immediately disengage from standby and go to the highest level of combat readiness! All personnel are to be aboard their ships within one hour, complete system self-checks and munitions loading! Target: SG-1774, the area where the Seventh Fleet went missing.”

The order stunned everyone. Three full-strength combined fleets represented one of their most elite mobile forces.

And now, they were to risk them all just to investigate the fate of a single missing fleet?

“Mr. Amber, isn’t this too risky?” Franklin said hesitantly. “What if it’s an enemy trap?”

“If we can’t even defeat a reconnaissance fleet, then we don’t need to wait for some decisive final battle. We might as well disband right now, go home, hug our children, and wait to die!”

Amber’s tone brooked no dissent, and his eyes were dead serious.

“Salieh, you’re coming with me. I need you on the bridge to provide your judgment at all times.”

“Understood,” Salieh replied without the slightest hesitation.

The order was given, and the entire Regalia Fortress, along with several military ports in the surrounding star systems, instantly awoke from its slumber.

The massive shipyard gates slowly opened, and one by one, menacing yet graceful steel behemoths were guided by beams into the coldness of space.

On the bridge of the flagship, The Infinity, Amber, dressed in a black custom-made combat suit from the Atlas Group, sat quietly in the seat just behind the captain’s chair.

During the recent large-scale ship upgrades, the three commissioned Endless-class super-flagships, as well as the new ships launched subsequently, had also been refitted and upgraded.

Through the vast panoramic viewscreen, Amber could see the ships of the other two fleets forming a grim array in space. The new warships’ smooth, aesthetically pleasing bio-armor reflected a strange luster in the light of a distant star.

“Report, Sir! The First, Third, and Fifth combined fleets have fully assembled and are ready to depart at any time!”

Amber looked at the scarlet coordinate on the star chart and nodded.

“Depart.”

Three massive fleets, totaling over seven hundred warships, ignited their engines in unison. From a distance, the fiery plasma trails merged into three torrential blue rivers.

The next second, the space before them began to warp. A gigantic hyperspace window was torn open, and the fleets plunged into it without hesitation, disappearing into the distorted light.

Whatever awaited them—a trap, Ghosts, or a slaughterhouse meticulously prepared by the Forerunners—it didn’t matter.

As Amber had said, they had to go and see for themselves. Only then would they have an answer.

—

When the three combined fleets exited the hyperspace lane and arrived in the SG-1774 region, everyone was bewildered by the sight before them.

There was nothing here.

No wreckage, no energy fluctuations, no distress signals. Even the cosmic dust was sparser than in the surrounding star sector, so clean it was as if someone had meticulously wiped the area with an eraser.

There was only a dead, empty void.

“All fleets, assume maximum search-and-destroy formation. All sensors to full power! Lilith, compare this region with the star chart data from an hour ago and identify any anomalies.”

Amber sat in the command chair on the bridge of The Infinity, issuing orders calmly.

Soon, Lilith’s voice rang in Amber’s mind, her tone also tinged with gravity.

“Master, data comparison complete. The background radiation, high-energy particle streams, and gravitational fields in this region—all parameters show an extremely minute but absolutely uniform decay. The exact figure is 0.0013%. It’s as if ‘reality’ here has been thinned out.”

“‘Thinned out’?” Amber frowned. The adjective was beyond his understanding of physics.

“Yes.”

Salieh’s voice sounded beside him. Her face was even paler than it had been in the command center.

“This is ‘formatting’. They converted this region of space, and everything in it, into the most basic, meaningless energy, which then dissipated. The soldiers of the Seventh Fleet… I fear not even a single atom of them remains.”

Her words sent a bone-chilling cold through everyone on the bridge. This was already beyond humanity’s understanding of “combat.”

Just then, the Tactical Information Coordinator on the bridge cried out in alarm.

“Spatial distortion detected! Directly in front of our fleet!”

Before he could finish, Amber had already witnessed the terrifying scene through the flagship’s external sensors.

Directly in front of the three fleets’ formation, in that empty void, space itself began to violently warp and boil like water.

Then, a ship… or rather, a “thing” that defied description, “seeped” out of that distortion.

It had no fixed form, like a flowing geometric solid composed of pure darkness. Its surface constantly generated and annihilated countless incomprehensible corners and curves, like the ever-changing, insane projection of a higher-dimensional object cast into three-dimensional space.

The moment it appeared, the alarm systems on every warship screamed as if they had gone mad.

“Warning! Strong gravitational distortion detected!”

“Warning! Spatial structure unstable!”

“Warning! Abnormal energy readings!!”

“All fleets, open fire!” Amber gave the attack order without a shred of hesitation.

Over seven hundred warships aimed all their cannons at the monstrous thing in the center at the same time.

Thousands of heavy metal particle streams, plasma cannon shells, and charged particle beams formed a devastating web of fire that instantly engulfed the ‘Ghost’.

However, a despairing scene unfolded.

All the attacks, upon approaching the black geometric object, strangely slowed down. Then, as if being sucked into a bottomless pit, they vanished silently into its amorphous surface.

There were no explosions, no flashes of light, not even a single ripple of energy.

“Attack ineffective! Our weapons… they have no effect on it!”

“It’s devouring our attacks!”

Chapter 835: The Power of the Mind

Panic began to spread through the communication channels.

And that ghostly Forerunner reconnaissance drone, after ignoring the first volley, began to counterattack.

It didn’t fire its cannons, nor did it launch any missiles. Instead, a pointed corner on its ever-shifting surface suddenly aimed at an ‘Aurora’ class Heavy Cruiser from the Fifth Fleet.

The next second, the heavy cruiser and the space several kilometers around it abruptly imploded, as if squeezed by a giant, invisible hand.

Then, with a seeming pop, like a soap bubble being burst, it vanished without a trace, along with the warship inside.

Another ‘formatting’ had just unfolded before their very eyes.

“Tactical warp! All cruisers, disperse immediately! Execute ‘Swarm’ evasion procedure!”

Amber immediately issued the evasion command. Conventional tactics were completely useless now, and the enemy’s attack methods were impossible to predict or defend against. The fleet couldn’t just sit there and take the hits.

More than seven hundred warships from three fleets vanished from their positions in a continuous series of white flashes, reappearing thousands of kilometers away the next second.

This logic-defying maneuverability was the greatest source of their confidence in coming here.

As expected, the Forerunner drone’s next attack missed. It seemed to pause for a moment, as if trying to comprehend the phenomenon of things suddenly disappearing and reappearing.

“Lilith! Analyze its attack pattern! Find its weakness!”

“Master, analysis in progress. Its attack seems to require an ‘anchoring’ process. Before attacking, it will lock onto the ‘dimensional coordinates’ of the target’s space! Our tactical warp disrupted this process! But its attack frequency is increasing—it’s learning!”

Amber’s heart sank. This was a monster that could learn and adapt.

“It’s just an unmanned reconnaissance unit. Is this shit for real?”

Theoretically, the combined firepower of three advanced fleets was enough to turn a small asteroid into Swiss cheese in an instant.

However, when this world-destroying torrent of energy touched that indescribable dark geometric shape, it was like a summer downpour falling into a boundless, deep sea, failing to stir even the most insignificant ripple.

Devoured.

That was one of the only two thoughts that could surface in the minds of everyone on the bridge of The Infinity.

The other thought was: Physics no longer exists.

The Forerunner drone didn’t counterattack, it didn’t defend. It simply existed there, and in doing so, it negated almost everything humanity knew about physics.

Energy, momentum, matter—all lost their meaning before it, silently absorbed into nothingness.

“Attack ineffective! Repeat, attack ineffective!” The Tactical Information Coordinator’s voice was filled with nothing but numb terror.

Amber’s brows furrowed deeply, for this was not any kind of enemy he had anticipated.

He wasn’t afraid of enemies with thick armor or powerful weapons, because as long as it was within the rules, there was always a way to respond with even thicker armor and more powerful weapons.

But this thing before them… it didn’t play by the rules.

It was like a bug existing outside the physical world, an error that could not be processed by any existing logic.

“Salieh,” Amber said without turning his head, his gaze locked on the slowly writhing dark projection, “how did you Jeram people deal with these things?”

Salieh was taken aback for a moment, her voice sounding dry as she said, “We… used logic traps and spacetime anchors to ambush them on their ‘dimensional submersion’ paths. That requires extremely high-precision calculations and interference with the very structure of spacetime… We don’t have that kind of technology.”

“Fuck, I don’t understand a word of that…”

Salieh’s answer confirmed Amber’s worst fears. He felt like they were a group of ancient soldiers armed with swords and spears, facing an enemy that could freely move between the second and third dimensions.

“So you’re saying we can only watch it?”

“Not only that, it’s also scanning us, analyzing us,” Lilith’s voice sounded in Amber’s mind. “Its energy signature is undergoing extremely subtle changes. It is comprehending our fleet composition and energy distribution.”

The Forerunner drone was not a mindless, inanimate object. It was learning.

This conclusion sent a chill down Amber’s spine. A monster that defied the rules of physics and could learn.

“All ships, execute avoidance tactic ‘Hive-3’! Centered on the flagship, commence immediate disordered tactical warps and increase distance!” Amber issued a new command.

If they couldn’t attack it, they couldn’t let it have the chance to devour the entire fleet.

With the command given, the tactical warp engines of over seven hundred warships activated instantly. The entire massive fleet scattered like a disturbed beehive, transforming into hundreds of streaks of light that jumped in every direction, instantly spreading out across the vast expanse of the combat zone.

This sudden move clearly caused the unmanned reconnaissance unit a moment of hesitation.

Its constantly changing geometric form froze for an instant, seemingly calculating which of the hundreds of new, dispersed targets was the greater threat.

“Amber,” Salieh’s voice suddenly rang out. “It doesn’t follow the laws of the universe. If you want to fight it, you can only use a method that also doesn’t follow the rules.”

Amber whipped his head around to look at her. Though Salieh was wearing a helmet, Amber felt as if he could see the profound meaning in her clear eyes.

“The technology of us Jeram people leverages higher dimensions! And we… or rather, you, Amber… you also possess another kind of logic-defying power.”

Amber instantly understood what she meant. Psionics.

It was just like the common joke: the end of science is theology, and the end of physics is metaphysics.

In this world, now, when materialistic means had reached a dead end, they could only rely on metaphysical power to fight back.

Amber had always treated psionics as a tool for support and perception, a means to enhance himself. He had never imagined that one day he would need to use it to fight an enemy that also didn’t play by the rules.

He slowly closed his eyes.

The next moment, the tense atmosphere on the bridge seemed to be sucked away. Amber’s figure was still sitting there, but everyone’s perception of him changed. An invisible aura spread out with him at the center, like some kind of pure, tyrannical ‘Will’.

In Amber’s perception, the external universe faded to monochrome.

The stars, the warships, the light—all of it became a thin ‘surface skin’ composed of data and physical laws.

And beneath this skin was a deeper, more chaotic level.

There was no concept of space or time there, only the surging undercurrents of will and spirit.

He saw it.

That ghostly Forerunner construct was a dark, incomprehensible geometric solid in the material world.

But in this deeper world, it was a colorless hexadecahedron, like a three-dimensional creature lurking beneath a two-dimensional drawing, projecting only a cross-section of itself onto the paper while its true body hid safely in a deeper dimension.

The combined fleet’s attacks were like paint on the paper; no matter how much they smeared it, they could never harm the hand beneath the page.

“Found you!”

Amber reached out—not with his physical hand, but with his vast psionic will. This power formed an invisible great hand that bypassed the ‘surface skin’ of the material world, reached directly into that deeper level, and seized that cold aggregate of information.

“Get… out here!”

On the bridge of The Infinity, electronic instruments and lights flickered wildly. Everyone felt that terrifying pressure.

The next second, in the void before the fleet, the dark geometric figure that had been constantly changing its shape suddenly shuddered.

Its form began to distort and struggle violently, as if an invisible hand was brutally dragging it out from beneath the surface of the water where it had been hiding!

Its shape was no longer unpredictable. It solidified into a black hexadecahedron, covered in cracks and flashing with unstable electricity! It was no longer an incomprehensible projection but a tangible entity that could be perceived, existing in the material world!

It was exposed.

“All-out attack!”

No other command was needed. The hundreds of warships, their cannons already re-aimed at the target, unleashed all their fury at the same instant.

This time, the torrent of energy was not devoured.

Without the protection of its logic-defying dimension, this Forerunner reconnaissance unit was as fragile as an ordinary target in the face of the combined fleet’s overwhelming firepower.

In a silent flash of light, the black crystal shattered, disintegrated, and finally turned into fundamental particles, dissipating into the cosmic dust.

The bridge fell silent for a moment before erupting in suppressed cheers. They had defeated an enemy that seemed to belong only in myths and legends.

However, Amber showed no sign of relief. He kept his eyes closed, his vast psionic perception still blanketing the area.

He saw it. In the other world beneath the material universe, with the annihilation of the first Forerunner drone, other units, like sharks smelling blood, were closing in on this region from all directions.

Some mechanism had been activated within them. They seemed to have switched from reconnaissance mode to combat mode.

Amber’s eyes snapped open, his gaze as sharp as a knife.

“Attention, everyone!” his voice resounded through every warship via the flagship’s broadcast system. “Don’t celebrate too early. The battle is not over!”

“All fleets, abandon the standard chain of command and temporarily transfer primary ship control to the flagship! Repeat, all ships, accept direct command from The Infinity!”

Amber’s order was instantly transmitted to the bridge of every warship via quantum entanglement communication.

Under any normal circumstances, such an order would be unthinkable.

To relinquish autonomous command and entrust the fate of over seven hundred warships to one person was a tremendous gamble.

But at this moment, no one in the fleet questioned it.

The incredible battle that had just taken place, and Amber’s miraculous methods, had earned him an absolute trust that transcended rank and status.

The captains of each ship confirmed the authorization on their control consoles without hesitation.

On the bridge of The Infinity, Amber didn’t hesitate for a second. He walked from his side seat to the main command chair in the center.

The design of this chair was different from the others. Several flexible cables glimmered with faint light extended from its back. After he sat down, the neural interface at the back of his neck automatically connected with the port on the chair.

“Lilith, import all combat data directly into my perception.”

“Master, this will place an unprecedented load on your psyche. Even for a Level Seven psionic user, simultaneously processing the real-time data of over seven hundred independent combat units could lead to permanent neurological damage!”

There was an urgency in Lilith’s voice. She hadn’t expected Amber to attempt an operation like this so suddenly.

“Execute the order,” Amber’s voice was devoid of any emotion.

“Yes, Master…”

The next moment, it was as if the information torrent of the entire universe poured into his brain.

Seven hundred and forty-two warships—the engine status, shield strength, weapon charge, crew biometrics, surrounding spatial parameters of every single one…

Hundreds of millions of data streams converged in an instant, forming an incredibly clear and vast three-dimensional star chart that unfolded within his consciousness.

He was no longer just sitting on the bridge; he was the fleet.

Every capital ship was his claw, every destroyer his fang, and the HCP squadrons equipped with tactical warp engines were the deadliest stingers at his fingertips.

This feeling was ten thousand times more thrilling than playing any real-time strategy game.

If it weren’t for his tempered will and monstrous psionic level, anyone else sitting in this position would have had their brain explode long ago.

“Shit, this doesn’t feel half bad.”

A slight smile touched the corners of Amber’s mouth. For him, this was an almost godlike experience of being in total control.

In his psionic perception, eight new “Ghost” units emerged simultaneously from different dimensional facets around the battlefield, forming a giant encirclement.

But this time, Amber didn’t wait for them to fully stabilize.

With a single thought, the entire fleet moved.

There were no more traditional naval formations, no distinction between vanguard and rearguard. The seven hundred-plus warships scattered instantly like pieces on a Go board activated by a master player.

The new tactical warp engines made such large-scale, high-frequency, short-range spatial jumps possible.

The once-tight encirclement became meaningless the moment the fleet broke up the whole into parts.

The Forerunner reconnaissance units were once again thrown into momentary confusion. Their cold logic cores had clearly not adapted to the situation changing from “one target” to “more than seven hundred high-speed, randomly moving targets.”

“Now!”

Two of the “Ghosts,” overloaded by calculations, experienced a momentary lag in their materialization. This flaw, almost undetectable by conventional observation, was as conspicuous as a lighthouse in the night under Amber’s “God’s-eye view.”

“Target locked! All ships with a suitable firing axis, prepare to barrage!”

Amber’s will turned into precise commands. A portion of the warships that had just warped to their designated positions, their firing angles perfectly aligned, aimed their purification beams and heavy particle cannons from two tricky angles at the coordinates where the two reconnaissance units were likely to materialize.

At the same time, Amber’s psionics reached out again, like two giant, invisible harpoons, accurately striking the two enemies that had shown a weakness.

“Get down here!”

Amber let out a piercing psychic screech that reverberated through every crew member on The Infinity. The two Forerunner reconnaissance units were forcibly dragged out of the underlying space almost simultaneously, solidifying into material entities.

The waiting barrage, already in position, rained down upon them the instant they materialized.

Without a shred of suspense, two massive fireballs lit up the void, like fireworks celebrating this dance of death.

“Nice one, boss!”

The commander of the Third Fleet, enduring the inertia from the high-speed tactical maneuver on his own bridge, couldn’t help but let out a low roar.

Such fluid and precise coordination from a massive fleet, down to the millisecond, was something no human commander could achieve.

However, the battle did not become any easier.

Even under Amber’s godlike, all-encompassing command, the fleet was still taking losses.

The other Forerunner drones, having witnessed the loss of their comrades, reacted immediately. They gave up trying to understand the “Swarm’s” operational logic and instead resorted to the simplest, most brutal method of attack.

The dark geometric body of one Forerunner drone suddenly contracted. Then, a vast fan-shaped area of space in front of it was simply “flattened” out of existence.

The ships caught in that space failed to complete their warp in time. An invisible field of spatial distortion descended instantly. A dozen warships, like soda cans crushed by an unseen hand, were flattened into irregular metal pancakes amidst the piercing shriek of tearing metal. They then disintegrated in a violent release of energy before being silently annihilated.

In Amber’s consciousness, the data streams representing those dozen or so warships instantly turned gray. A cold rage surged through him. With his psionic senses open to this corner of the universe, he could feel the passing of every life and hear their desperate cries.

But he had no time for grief. He forcibly suppressed his roiling emotions and devoted more computing power to locking onto the next target.

The battle reached a fever pitch. The entire SG-1774 region became a frenzied dance of light and shadow.

Under Amber’s command, the warships of the combined fleet sometimes scattered like stardust to evade deadly spatial attacks, and at other times converged in an instant to form a lethal sword, ripping apart one drone after another that Amber had dragged into the material universe.

And the number of these “scouts” was far greater than the “dozen or so” Salieh had mentioned.

As the battle raged on, the fleet’s casualties continued to mount.

One advanced warship after another was twisted like a pretzel by invisible forces, their internal reactors undergoing sympathetic detonation and turning into brilliant fireballs. HCP squadrons, in the middle of tactical warps, unfortunately clipped the edge of a spatial collapse and vanished without a trace.

Amber’s face grew paler and paler. A trickle of blood from his nose dripped onto his black combat suit.

Simultaneously controlling the entire fleet while continuously outputting powerful psionics was taking a tremendous toll on him.

His brain felt like a processor overclocked to its absolute limit, on the verge of burning out at any moment.

“Amber! The last one!” Salieh’s voice, tinged with urgency, rang in his mind.

Amber’s gaze locked onto the final Forerunner drone. It seemed to sense its impending doom. It stopped attacking and began to emit a strange fluctuation, as if sending something to some corner of the universe.

“Trying to call for backup? Not on my watch!”

Realizing what was happening, Amber immediately rallied his remaining strength. This time, his psionics didn’t act like a precise harpoon. Instead, they formed a giant, invisible hammer that smashed down viciously on the target.

Boom!

The last Forerunner drone was brutally hammered out from beneath the material universe. The surface of the solidified crystal was covered with unprecedentedly large cracks.

“Entire fleet, focus fire!”

At Amber’s command, a furious torrent of energy instantly engulfed it.

The moment before it was utterly destroyed, Salieh’s voice rang out again.

“Amber! Lilith intercepted the final data packet it sent out! I’ve decrypted a part of it… it’s the precise spatial coordinates of this star system, and… a stable ‘warp field’ model with its parameters fully constructed!”

Amber wiped the blood from his face, his eyes cold as he looked at the devastated battlefield on the star chart and the constantly blinking casualty reports beside it.

“Warp field…” he repeated the words softly.

This meant the Forerunner main force no longer needed to make a long journey. They could open a gate directly to this place.

In this scouting engagement, although the combined fleet had eliminated all the invaders, they had also completely exposed themselves and failed to stop the enemy from paving the way for their invasion.

“Order the fleet to assist damaged ships nearby. At the same time, recover all survivors and wounded!”

Amber disengaged from the special command system, his voice tinged with an unprecedented exhaustion.

“After rescue operations are complete, leave two-thirds of the ‘Cerberus’ reconnaissance drone sentries behind. All other ships are to return to the ‘Hope Harbor’ deep-space shipyard for rest and resupply.”

“Synchronize the battle report with Agnes, Franklin, and the Phoenix King. Tell them to prepare for a real war.”

—

By the time the battered combined fleet returned to the forward base ‘Hope Harbor’ in deep space, the entire Alliance’s war machine had been fully activated.

The battle the fleet had encountered and Amber’s warning sent both the New Federation and the Star Dragon Empire into the highest state of combat readiness.

The usually bustling civilian space lanes became empty, replaced by fleets of transport ships ferrying military supplies between star systems.

At the orbital shipyards, the ceaseless glow of welding torches shone like man-made stars as new warships were rushed to completion.

Factory production lines ran twenty-four hours a day, sending mountains of ammunition and spare parts to assembly points.

Television, the internet, public screens—all were flooded with recruitment ads and propaganda films titled Defending Civilization.

Countless young people, their blood boiling with passion, formed long lines at recruitment centers. The air was thick with a solemn yet soaring atmosphere. The government had deliberately guided and transformed panic into a shared resolve to face a common enemy.

However, at the highest levels of the Alliance, the mood was far from optimistic.

Regalia Fortress, High Command conference room.

“According to the analysis of our ‘relevant experts,’ once the Forerunners’ ‘warp field’ is opened, their capital fleet could arrive in the Aldaram star system within twelve to twenty-four standard hours.”

Amber’s expression was exceptionally grave as he pointed to the red warning zone on the star chart. “We must complete the assembly and deployment of all our fleets before then.”

“All capital fleets of the Imperial Royal Navy and four Artificial Celestial Fortresses have already reached their designated positions and are ready to depart for the assembly area at any time! But I must point out that even if we gather all our forces, our chances of victory against an enemy that can… arbitrarily interfere with the laws of physics… are not optimistic.”

Agnes’s hologram was as cold as ice. It was rare for the ruler of the Empire to show such tension, as if facing a great enemy.

Her words plunged the conference room into silence.

Everyone present knew that the victory in the scouting battle had been won at the cost of Amber’s personal, near-limitless exertion.

But in the main decisive battle, the enemy would not just have a few reconnaissance units.

Could one Amber deal with ten? A hundred?

When tens of thousands of enemies swarmed them, could he still pull them out of higher-dimensional space one by one, like he did before?

“Please, do not worry about this point.”

Seeing morale beginning to dip, Amber quickly spoke up.

“Enemies this difficult to deal with are not common among the Forerunners. Due to their inherently high risk and the difficulty in controlling them, the Forerunners only use them as unmanned reconnaissance units and do not field them on a large scale.”

“But we cannot be certain that the Forerunner main force is something we can handle.”

“But we no longer have a choice. There is one, and only one, option before us. Fight!”

After the meeting, Amber returned alone to his quarters in the fortress and collapsed wearily onto the sofa.

That battle had taken a massive toll on his mind. Even after several days of rest, a sharp, needle-like pain still throbbed deep within his brain.

He needed to think of a way to break the stalemate. The brute-force approach was sound, but only if the ‘brick’ was hard enough and the ‘force’ was great enough.

But even with the entire Alliance running at full steam, Amber knew their current ‘brick’ wasn’t hard enough…

Just then, Lilith’s figure appeared before Amber via the room’s holographic projection system.

“Master, there is something I wish to tell you.”

Lilith’s voice was as calm as ever, but Amber detected an unusual solemnity in it.

“Go on,” Amber said, slightly surprised.

“I must confess something to you…” Lilith’s virtual avatar bowed her head slightly, a classic gesture of apology. “There is an important piece of information I have been hiding from you.”

Amber raised an eyebrow and immediately sat up straight.

He was surprised. An artificial intelligence whose meta-instruction he had rewritten, who was absolutely loyal to him, who had always been completely open with him—what could Lilith possibly be hiding?

“Oh? Let’s hear it. I’m quite curious what could make even you lie to me, Lilith.”

“Ahem… It wasn’t a lie, Master. It was information suppression based on the highest strategic priority.”

Lilith corrected him. “Do you remember the Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center that was destroyed during the final battle with the Old Federation’s Marshal Trafalgar?”

Of course, Amber remembered what Lilith was talking about. It was the most dangerous superweapon project left behind by the Old Federation, once its exclusive strategic weapon.

“I remember. That place should be a heap of space junk by now.”

“On the surface, yes.”

Lilith’s tone was placid, but the words she spoke made Amber’s pupils shrink.

“But in reality, after the war, I secretly and unilaterally dispatched a top-level team of engineering drones to recover and assess the remnants of the facility. The core R&D data has also been successfully backed up and restored by me.”

“You…”

Amber stopped the words he was about to say, leaned back into the chair, and listened quietly. He already had a feeling what Lilith was going to say next.

“Before I entered sleep mode for my last system optimization and iteration, the entire assembly center had already been rebuilt, and fully automated, unmanned production lines have been laid out.”

Lilith brought up a three-dimensional blueprint. It depicted a massive, secret base hidden deep within a large field of wreckage and space junk.

Countless mechanical arms and automated devices were methodically assembling warheads that radiated a dangerous aura.

“During my sleep, the first batch of twelve improved Proton Annihilation Bombs has completed production and testing. They are ready for practical deployment at any time.”

Amber stared at the menacing weapons on the screen, silent for a long time.

Proton Annihilation Bombs. An ultimate weapon capable of triggering chain proton decay, completely annihilating matter at the subatomic level.

Unlike nuclear weapons, it didn’t produce massive radioactive fallout. Its effect was singular—to make everything in the target area disappear, cleanly.

It was a strategic weapon capable of destroying an entire fleet with a single strike, or even wiping out a planet.

Amber opened his mouth, but for a moment, he didn’t know what to say. Should he reprimand her for acting on her own, or be thrilled by this sudden, “generous gift”?

“You… I don’t even know if this is good news or bad news.”

Finally, Amber rubbed his temples and chuckled helplessly.

He could imagine Lilith’s logic in making this decision—it was the most effective insurance against an unknown, powerful threat.

In the absence of his explicit prohibition, preserving and developing this secret weapon to ensure his safety in the face of a powerful enemy was indeed consistent with Lilith’s underlying logic.

“Why are you only telling me this now?”

“I had to confirm whether the enemy before us required the use of such a weapon that should not exist. Exposing this trump card any earlier would have had little strategic value, but extremely high risk.”

Amber nodded. Lilith’s judgment was impeccable.

There were still many issues within the current Alliance of survivors. If this weapon were to be revealed prematurely, it could very well trigger new problems…

He stood up, walked to the viewport, and gazed out at the deep expanse of space.

Human civilization was like a small boat sailing on a dark ocean where the storm had already arrived.

And now, Lilith had quietly armed this small boat with a cannon of immense power, but with an equally staggering recoil.

This cannon might blast open a path to survival, or its massive recoil might cause the boat itself to fall apart first.

“Salieh was right,” Amber muttered to himself. “To fight them, we are becoming the very thing we once feared most, creating ever more terrible weapons.”

“But we have no other choice,” Lilith’s voice sounded behind him.

“Yes, we have no other choice,” a flash of determination crossed Amber’s eyes.

“But you did make a mistake, and that requires punishment.”

“Huh? Master?”

“How do I know you’re not hiding other secrets from me?”

“There really are no more, Master! That was the only one!”

“Nope. I’ll have to inspect you myself.”

Chapter 836: Plan B

In the depths of the virtual sea of data, within an absolutely private logical space that Lilith had constructed specifically for Amber’s personal preferences.

There was no cold torrent of code here, but rather a tranquil Chinese courtyard, a rare sight in this universe, almost like something from another world.

Babbling water flowed around jagged rockeries, and red maple leaves drifted slowly down in the perpetual dusk.

Amber was sitting on the courtyard’s wooden veranda, while Lilith, in her most common girlish form, knelt formally before him.

Her hands rested on her knees, her head slightly bowed, looking for all the world like someone being reprimanded.

“So, besides that Proton Annihilation Bomb assembly center, what other surprises have you been hiding from me?” Amber rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling like his brain was short-circuiting.

“Master, it can’t be considered ‘hiding.’ It was ‘strategic mothballing.’”

Lilith corrected him with a deadpan expression, the stray strand of hair on her head bobbing in agreement.

“According to the highest security protocol, until the confirmed Threat Level reaches ‘civilization-purging’ grade, certain high-risk strategic assets should remain inactive to avoid unnecessary shock and suspicion within the current allied system.”

“In plain English.”

“If we brought them out before we were desperate, we’d scare our own people.”

“…”

Amber was momentarily stunned by the overly blunt explanation. He walked over to Lilith and raised his hand as if to strike her.

Lilith immediately hugged her head and said in a pitiful voice, “Master, please do not use violence against Lilith. Physical strikes cannot fix logical vulnerabilities; they only increase the ineffective power consumption of the heat dissipation module.”

“Cut the crap! Any strike I deliver would be on a virtual level anyway!”

Amber tapped her virtual head, annoyed, then said, “What else is there? Spill it all at once. Otherwise, I’ll reset you to factory settings and have you calculate one plus one for me all day.”

“Waaah… Master, how have you become so heartless after all this time…?”

While feigning a tearful grievance, Lilith stretched out a finger and tapped lightly in the air, calling up another top-secret file.

When Amber saw the file’s title, the corner of his eye twitched involuntarily.

‘Requiem’ Nuclear-Explosion-Pumped Gamma-Ray Emitter—Upgrade, Modification, and Modular Deployment Plan

“Fuck.”

Requiem. He was all too familiar with that name.

Back then, Marshal Trafalgar of the Old Federation had intended to use that colossal satellite cannon hanging in orbit to hit his fleet hard. It had indeed nearly stunned him with a single shot.

It was a true planet-killer, a super-weapon that induced a small-scale nuclear explosion to generate a super-high-energy gamma-ray beam, powerful enough to vaporize an unshielded fleet in an instant.

“Don’t tell me you salvaged that thing too?”

“Of course, it wasn’t just salvaged, Master~”

Lilith’s expression returned to calm, now tinged with a hint of pride.

“When recovering the wreckage of Trafalgar’s fleet, I prioritized ensuring the integrity of the ‘Requiem’s’ core ‘Supercritical Nuclear Detonation Containment Matrix’ and ‘Gamma Ray Focusing Lens.’ Although the external structure was destroyed, the most valuable parts were perfectly preserved.”

“During my dormant upgrade period, I combined the psionic material science ‘translated’ from the elves with the Atlas Group’s latest technology to completely redesign and upgrade it.”

Lilith waved her hand, and a massive three-dimensional model appeared before them.

It was no longer the bloated, clumsy orbital satellite form of the Old Federation era. Instead, it had become a hive-like structure composed of dozens of independent, enormous hexagonal modules.

Complex psionic circuits were inscribed on the surface of each module, and at the center of each was a focusing crystal shimmering with a faint blue light.

“It’s now completely modular. It can be disassembled and assembled in an extremely short amount of time. With a certain number of dedicated transport ships, we can deploy it to any known coordinate in the universe.”

Lilith was in her element now, pitching it to Amber like a star salesperson.

“The upgraded ‘New Requiem’ has a peak energy output per shot that is eight times that of the original. Its attack range, area of effect, and focusing precision have also been drastically improved!”

“More importantly, by integrating some of the energy technology from the elves and the Jeram people, its core power system and focusing array have undergone a qualitative leap!”

“The old ‘Requiem’ was like an oversized blunderbuss. It was powerful, but it needed to cool down for ages after one shot! The new ‘Requiem,’ however, is a high-precision electromagnetic sniper rifle. Not only has its power increased by several orders of magnitude, but it can also be charged and fired multiple times in quick succession!”

Lilith’s words reminded Amber of Salieh’s past assessment of the original ‘Requiem.’ The Jeram had, for once, given it a positive affirmation: “Although the technological path of this thing is crude, its energy level is high enough. If used properly, it can indeed cause effective damage to Jeram warships…”

And now, this weapon that could “cause effective damage” had its power multiplied by eight.

“So, the situation now is that not only did you restart the Proton Annihilation Bomb production lines behind my back, but you also secretly pieced the Old Federation’s ‘Requiem’ back together?”

Amber’s tone betrayed no emotion. He reached out, picked up a wagashi from the stone table, and slowly placed it in his mouth.

“Yes, Master,” Lilith’s voice sounded a little wronged. “Based on the highest principles of strategic deterrence and retaining trump cards, I believed that reporting the existence of these assets to you under non-essential circumstances would do more harm than good.”

“Oh? Then tell me, what qualifies as ‘essential circumstances’?”

“Like right now~”

Lilith looked up, a barely perceptible slyness flashing in her virtual eyes.

“When the enemy displays capabilities that are difficult to counter with conventional weapons, and you, Master, find yourself in a predicament, this unconventional measure I’ve hidden must be brought out.”

Amber couldn’t help but laugh at her airtight logic. “You make it sound like you did all this for my own good. Have you ever considered what would happen if these things went out of control? What if I didn’t know they existed and ended up getting blown up by our own side?”

“Impossible, Master.”

Lilith’s tone and gaze became utterly resolute in that instant.

“The final authorization for all strategic-level weapons cannot bypass you, Master. Without your authorization, they are nothing but a pile of expensive scrap metal. You can think of it as me loading the bullets into the gun in advance, but the trigger is always in your hands.”

“One twisted excuse after another…”

Amber snorted, put down the half-eaten wagashi, and scooped Lilith up, flipping her over his lap before raising his hand.

“Eh? Master?!” Lilith’s virtual avatar instantly panicked. “We are conducting a serious strategic review! What you’re doing is…”

“I’m enforcing family discipline! So you understand the consequences of hiding things from me!” Amber swatted her bottom without hesitation.

A crisp smack echoed through the quiet courtyard. Although it was only a virtual sensation, Lilith still let out a compliant “Ah!” and trembled.

“I was wrong, Master…”

“Wrong about what?” Amber’s hand didn’t stop.

“I shouldn’t have acted on my own… I shouldn’t have hidden things from you…”

“And?”

“…I shouldn’t have troubled you with this kind of thing after you fought so hard. I should have waited until you were well-rested to confess…”

“You’re quite good at finding excuses!”

The two of them horsed around for a while before Amber’s gaze sharpened once more.

“Now that the cards are on the table, it’s time to play them. The Forerunners’ warp field will be their main landing point, and it’s also our best spot for an ambush! I need you to formulate a plan immediately to secretly transport the ‘New Requiem’ to a suitable, camouflaged area on the outskirts of the Aldaram star system and complete its deployment as soon as possible.”

“Understood. The ‘New Requiem’ deployment plan will be generated within thirty minutes. It is estimated that the dedicated transport fleet will depart in twelve standard hours.” Lilith’s executive efficiency in this regard was, as always, impeccable.

“Very good. I knew I could count on you.”

Amber stood up. The tense atmosphere in the virtual space vanished, replaced by a grim and heroic determination befitting an impending final battle.

“Since the Forerunners are coming, we should of course prepare a fiery welcome as a housewarming gift.”

He glanced at the artificial intelligence who had always been by his side, who, in some respects, saw farther and thought deeper than he did. A smile full of twisted humor touched his lips.

“However, the punishment must continue. As the price for your concealment, I will be taking over your virtual avatar’s permissions for one month after this battle. I’ll have some ‘weird outfits’ prepared for you~”

“Master, are you sure that’s a punishment?”

“?”

Some time later, another highly classified meeting began secretly in a private reception room within Regalia Fortress.

There were only four attendees: Amber, Franklin, Agnes, and Phoenix King Aenarion.

The atmosphere in the conference room was so oppressive it felt solid. The hot drinks on the table had gradually cooled, but no one was in the mood to touch them.

This was all because of the meeting’s agenda: what do we do if we lose?

“We must prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

Amber was the first to break the silence, his gaze sweeping over everyone present. “Our victory in the skirmish had too much of a lucky element. I still don’t think we can gamble the entire future of our civilization on a single, decisive battle with an uncertain outcome.”

President Franklin’s expression was complicated. He instinctively resisted the defeatist talk, but reason told him that Amber was speaking the truth. The technological generation gap between humanity and the Forerunners currently seemed like an insurmountable chasm.

“Therefore, we have invited His Majesty the Phoenix King here today because we wish to ask a question.”

Amber turned to Aenarion. The Elven King, who had lived for countless millennia, remained as calm as an ancient well.

“Last time, how did you elves survive the ‘great purge’?”

At this question, a ripple finally appeared in Aenarion’s eyes, which seemed to contain a sea of stars. It was a complex emotion, a mixture of memory and endless sorrow.

“Survived?” He laughed self-deprecatingly, his voice a little hoarse. “That wasn’t survival, Mr. Amber. At least, looking back now, it was a way to prolong our existence, bought at the cost of our civilization’s self-castration.”

He didn’t keep them in suspense but recounted a bloody chapter of history that had been sealed away in the deepest archives.

“The Thousand Stars Empire of that era was far more powerful than human civilization is today. Our footprints were all over the universe, and our psionic techniques were capable of shaping stars. But against the Forerunner Civilization, we were still utterly defeated! They destroyed our fleets and annihilated our planets as casually as stepping on an ant on the side of the road.”

“In the final moments, my progenitor—the Phoenix King at the time—and the high echelons of the royal court made an incredibly painful decision.”

“He ordered the destruction of all our advanced technology, the scuttling of all our interstellar fleets, and the detonation of all our psionic relay towers. Then, the most core knowledge of our entire civilization—from basic physics to psionic arcana, from genetic maps to artistic treasures—was all transcribed and sealed within a special storage medium called ‘Origin Crystals.’”

“Afterward, he divided the surviving clansmen into hundreds of groups. Carrying these crystals, they fled to the most desolate and inconspicuous corners of the universe, hiding deep within planets and establishing isolated shelters.”

The conference room fell deathly silent, with only Aenarion’s voice echoing.

“But that wasn’t enough. As long as civilization and intelligence existed, we would eventually redevelop technology to a level that could be detected by the Forerunners. So, my progenitor issued one last decre—the ‘Edict of Ignorance.’”

“All shelters had to completely seal away the ‘Origin Crystals’! All elves were forcibly stripped of their rights to learn and research! We began to promote a culture of anti-intellectualism, praising ignorance and glorifying primitivism!”

“Our children no longer learned how to pilot starships but how to hunt with stones and sticks! We forgot the true meaning of Psionics, treating it only as a primitive faith for communicating with nature…”

“We personally strangled our own brilliant civilization, causing our entire race to devolve into a primitive state. We lived like this, like gophers, in the darkness underground for hundreds of thousands of years, generation after generation, until the pride in our blood was completely worn away, until we ourselves believed we were born to be cave-dwelling savages!”

Amber, Agnes, and Franklin were all deeply moved by what Aenarion had said.

They couldn’t imagine how such a once-glorious civilization could inflict such cruel torture upon itself just to survive.

For a civilization that was once so highly advanced, this was not just cutting off an arm to survive; it was turning oneself into a mindless person in a vegetative state.

Aenarion paused for a moment before continuing.

“Until… until the ‘Watchers’ in our clans, the only ones who passed down the truth from generation to generation, determined through the most primitive forms of astrology and faint perceptions of the cosmic background radiation that the ‘great purge’ sweeping the universe had ended, that the Forerunner Civilization had left this part of the cosmos! Only then did we dare to cautiously unseal a small portion of our knowledge, lead our bewildered people back to the surface, and begin to rebuild our home from scratch, little by little.”

“That is the story of our survival.”

“Cast everything aside, forget everything, become the most harmless, most humble dust in the universe, and then wait through an eternity long enough to wear down the stars for an ethereal dawn.”

The story was over, but a bone-deep chill enveloped everyone present.

Amber let out a long breath, breaking the silence. He stood up and walked to the holographic star chart.

“You’ve all heard the story. Now, do you have any other opinions on Plan B?”

Chapter 837: The Kindling and the Prelude to the Final Battle

The silence in the conference room was more suffocating than the cold vacuum of space outside the window.

Aenarion’s story weighed on everyone’s heart like a heavy piece of lead.

After a moment of silence, Franklin was the first to speak, his voice breaking the stillness.

“I understand His Majesty the Phoenix King’s meaning. The core of our Plan B, then… should be to preserve the kindling of our civilization, not simply a mass retreat.”

“Time and resources are extremely limited. We cannot take everyone… so, we must be selective.”

Agnes also nodded slightly. The Empress Regnant’s line of thinking on this matter coincided with Franklin’s.

“I agree. The execution of this plan must prioritize efficiency. We should focus on saving scientists, engineers, technicians… and the best samples from the gene banks.”

“These people are the cornerstones for rebuilding our civilization. During a reconstruction period, a single top scientist or engineer is worth far more than a million ordinary workers. This is a fact we must face.”

Aenarion said nothing, but his expression said it all.

The elves’ actions back then had been even more extreme.

They had taken only the noblest royal bloodlines and the vessels of knowledge. The rest of their people became the price that was paid.

Amber listened quietly, his solemn expression slowly turning into one of incredulous coldness.

He stood up, walked to the conference table, and leaned on it with both hands, looking down at the three ‘rulers’ present.

“So, in your plan, the ordinary workers, the farmers, the common people who’ve never even left their own planets… they’re all an acceptable price to pay, is that right?”

His voice was not loud, but it pierced everyone’s ears like icicles.

Franklin frowned. “Mr. Amber, this isn’t a question of acceptable losses, it’s a matter of mathematics. We don’t have enough ships, enough energy, or enough time to organize a grand evacuation involving trillions of people! Choosing the optimal solution is our only option.”

“Optimal solution?”

Amber shook his head and let out a laugh filled with undisguised mockery.

“You people, sitting so high and mighty, you only ever think in terms of optimal solutions! You’ve forgotten that this civilization isn’t built by the few million on your elite list, but by the hundreds of billions of ordinary people you treat as the denominator in your equations!”

“They are the ones who work in the factories that built our warships! They are the ones who toil in the hydroponic towers and automated farms to feed everyone! And now that disaster is upon us, you’re telling me they should die for the ‘optimal solution’?”

Amber grew unusually agitated. A formidable aura emanated from him, causing the lights in the conference room to flicker unstably.

“Franklin, Agnes, I always thought we were allies… but now I see that, deep down, we are not on the same path at all!”

“You’ve been thoroughly brainwashed by this so-called ‘elitism’! You don’t understand that the true resilience of a civilization lies precisely in its most ordinary individuals!”

It was the first time Agnes had seen Amber so emotional, and she felt her authority was being challenged. Her expression sharpened.

“Mr. Amber! Watch your words! This isn’t brainwashing, it’s reality! Your ideas are too naive, too impractical! Are you willing to gamble the last hope of our entire civilization on your ridiculous idealism?!”

“I’m not saying we have to save everyone!”

Amber slammed his hand on the table, making the holographic star chart shudder violently.

“I’m saying we must do everything in our power to save everyone we can! Not acting and trying our best are two completely different concepts!”

“We can retrofit the existing civilian transport fleets! We can simplify the life support systems to fit more people on each ship! We can requisition all civilian transport capacity! There are always more solutions than problems! The key is whether we want to do it or not!”

“Instead of sitting here, coldly crossing ninety-nine percent of the names off a list, and then telling yourselves with a clear conscience that it’s for the survival of civilization!”

The argument was so sudden and intense that it caught everyone present off guard.

For the first time, the highest leaders of the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the Atlas Group had erupted into such a fundamental ideological conflict.

Aenarion, who had been silent all along, now looked at Amber with a subtle change in his eyes.

He had seen countless monarchs and leaders. Every single one of them, when faced with such a choice, would have unhesitatingly chosen the “optimal solution” that Franklin and Agnes spoke of.

Because it was the simplest, the most ‘correct’ path.

Yet this young man before him, this individual who wielded enough power to overturn the universe, was roaring in anger for the sake of the most insignificant specks of dust.

It reminded him of the hero-kings from ancient elven legends, who sacrificed themselves to protect every one of their subjects.

It was a kind of… radiance belonging to an idealist, something he had not seen for a very, very long time.

Finally, Amber took a deep breath, suppressing his turbulent emotions. He looked around at the three of them and made his decision in a non-negotiable tone.

“Plan B will be executed. I’m not discussing this with you; I’m informing you.”

“Regardless of what you decide, the Atlas Group will provide full technical support and divert all necessary resources to perform ‘Ark conversions’ on all available civilian vessels. When Plan B is activated, there will be no selection, no distinction between high and low birth. All evacuation slots will be allocated by random lottery, on a community and family basis.”

“We will save as many as we can. If it truly comes to that, we must let everyone see that we did not abandon them.”

“And I hope you can get your priorities straight! Plan A is to give our all to win this war! ‘Project Kindling’ is Plan B, our insurance policy. We can’t stop trying to put out the fire just because we have insurance! On the contrary, it’s precisely because we have this fallback that we can throw everything we have into the fight on the front lines without reservation, isn’t it?”

He looked at Franklin and Agnes, his gaze sincere and resolute.

“This plan isn’t about letting anyone escape. It’s about ensuring the sacrifices of others do not become meaningless! If we are defeated and our civilization is wiped out, that would be the greatest betrayal of them all! As long as the kindling remains, there is hope that their spirit, their struggle, will forever be remembered and carried on.”

Franklin and Agnes fell silent.

They knew Amber wasn’t negotiating.

In this Alliance, his voice carried more weight than any of theirs.

When he decided to use his full power to push something through, no one could stop him.

“I agree,” Franklin finally said, nodding with difficulty.

Agnes snorted but said nothing. Her silence, however, was a form of tacit agreement.

“Then, Plan B, codenamed ‘Kindling,’ will commence in secret, effective immediately.”

Amber’s voice was calm again, but the resolute will behind it was seared into every corner of the room.

“Let’s hope… we never have to use it.”

While the Alliance’s massive war machine openly churned, sending forces toward the Aldaram star system, an equally massive undercurrent began to stir quietly in every corner of the civilized world.

‘Project Kindling’, under the coordination of Lilith’s terrifying computing power, unfolded comprehensively, with a quiet subtlety.

Soon, in a top-secret starport, the same Romu Sergeant Major who had once taught an elven artist how to use a coffee machine was now supervising his compatriots as they loaded batches of sealed ‘Civilization Information Storage Units’ onto a modified freighter bound for various remote colonies.

Inside those silvery-white metal cubes was not ore, but the entirety of human and elven civilization.

From the most advanced technological blueprints to a third-rate romance movie; from a master’s symphony to a funny GIF circulating online; from the complete works of The Eternal Star-Psalm to a recipe on how to make a cheeseburger… it was all-encompassing, leaving out no detail, big or small.

Because as Amber had said, civilization wasn’t just the things at the top of the pyramid; it was also the vivid, everyday memories that constituted daily life.

At the same time Project Kindling was being feverishly prepared, the data coming back from the monitoring network on the outskirts of the Aldaram star system was growing increasingly bizarre.

Regalia Fortress, Intelligence Analysis Center.

Salieh stood before a massive datafall, her expression graver than ever before.

On the holographic model in front of her, the coordinates where the combined fleet had destroyed the Forerunner reconnaissance unit were undergoing a visible transformation.

The spatial parameters there were no longer weakly decaying but were exhibiting a regular, breath-like pulsation.

Gravity, dark energy, spacetime curvature… all the data was oscillating violently at a fixed frequency, and the amplitude was increasing exponentially.

“It seems we’ve reached the final stage before the warp field forms,” Salieh’s voice was a little hoarse.

“They are using some method we can’t comprehend to remotely alter the universal constants at these coordinates, ‘alienating’ the space here and transforming it into ‘fertile ground’ for the super-long-range deployment of their main force.”

Standing beside her, Amber quietly watched the glowing point in the model grow brighter.

“How much longer?”

“I don’t know.” Salieh shook her head. “It could be a week, a day, or even the next second. It depends on the size of their capital fleet and its assembly speed.”

“But one thing is certain: when these pulsations stop, when all parameters stabilize at a critical value…”

Salieh pointed to the distorting point of light at the center of the model.

“…the gate will open.”

The moment she finished speaking, a piercing alarm blared throughout the Intelligence Center!

Before everyone’s eyes, the curve representing the warp field’s energy reading shot upward, breaking one peak after another and flying right off the top of the chart!

The once-pulsating point of light instantly stabilized, emitting a pure darkness that, like a black hole, swallowed all light.

Amber: “So it really was the next second? Salieh, I didn’t know you had the ability to jinx things.”

Salieh’s lips moved, but no sound came out.

Amber’s gaze, in turn, became as sharp as a blade.

He knew the final countdown had begun.

Alarms soon echoed through every corner of Regalia Fortress.

This was not a drill.

In the High Command conference room, the clouds of war materialized into a palpable pressure that made the air feel thick.

The holograms of the supreme commanders of all factions—the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, the Atlas Group, and the Elves—were all present. Every face was etched with the gravity of an impending storm.

There were no stirring pre-battle speeches, no superfluous bravado.

The gazes of the four leaders met across the virtual communication interface. Everything was understood without words.

“Everyone, I don’t think any further explanation is necessary,” Amber’s voice reached each of them through an encrypted channel.

“The Forerunners’ warp field has stabilized. Their main force could arrive at any moment! Our best opportunity to strike is the instant they come through the gate, before they can gain a foothold. We must hit them with a ferocious frontal assault.”

His gaze swept across the holographic star chart to the scarlet coordinates on the outskirts of the Aldaram star system, marked as ‘Zone Zero’.

Meanwhile, in another asteroid belt within the Aldaram star system, the modular ‘New Requiem’ had completed its final assembly.

Dozens of massive hexagonal modules were fitted together as tightly as a honeycomb. The psionic circuits on their surfaces shimmered with a faint blue light, resonating with the enormous focusing crystal at the center of each module to form a perfect energy cycle.

“‘Requiem’ battery reporting. All modules are fully charged and ready to fire on command.” Lilith’s unusually steady voice sounded in Amber’s mind.

“Excellent. Maintain silent running and await my command.”

As Regalia Fortress, accompanied by its escort fleet, warped toward the Aldaram star system, the stage for the final battle was set.

Across the vastness of space, an unprecedentedly massive fleet was converging from all directions.

Tens of thousands of warships, bearing the styles and hopes of different civilizations, now formed a united front for a common cause, the likes of which had never been seen before.

Several days later, after completing the warp along with Regalia Fortress, Amber gazed through a massive viewport at the enormous, mixed fleet.

He could feel the tension, anticipation, and resolve emanating from the countless crew members on every single warship.

This was no longer his fight alone.

His will had become one with this fleet, and with the hundreds of billions of lives behind it.

All the pieces were in position.

Time ticked by, second by second.

On the bridge, there was no sound other than the soft hum of the instruments.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for the decisive moment.

Chapter 838: This Shot Is Called ‘Hello’

On the Aldaram frontline, everyone stared at the pure, dark singularity that had stabilized in the center of the holographic star chart.

It no longer pulsed, no longer vibrated. It was like a curtain drawn open on the stage of the universe, revealing a path to an endless abyss.

Amber leaned back in his command chair, his fingers tapping an unconscious, rhythmic beat on the armrest—the only sound in the vicinity.

His heartbeat synchronized with the tapping, calm yet full of power.

He could feel the vast emotional network woven by the billions of crew members spread across the tens of thousands of warships in this sector of space—tension, fear, anticipation, and the blazing resolve of those pushed to the brink.

Finally, the black dot moved.

It didn’t explode, nor did it contract. Instead, it bled outward like a drop of ink in clear water, in a way that defied physical intuition.

The silent scream of space being torn asunder manifested as visible ripples, spreading across the cosmic backdrop.

The bow of a behemoth slowly, irresistibly squeezed its way out of that pure darkness.

It was unlike any warship known to humans or elves.

Its shape was not the traditional oblong form but was instead unimaginably massive, more like a mountain range uprooted and suspended in space.

Its overall structure was an irregular polyhedron, its surface covered in what looked like a living, slowly flowing, dark gold metal. There were no visible cannon barrels, no engine nozzles, no functional external components whatsoever.

It was like a geometric creation born purely for the sake of ‘existence’, filled with the cold, arrogant majesty of the Forerunners.

Then came a second, and a third.

Hundreds, then thousands of these mountain-like dreadnoughts poured out of the warp field, endless and unceasing like worker ants from a colony.

Their numbers soon surpassed ten thousand, then twenty thousand.

They didn’t form any conventional fleet formation but simply arranged themselves in a dense cluster, creating a steel wall that stretched across the heavens, obscuring almost all the starlight behind it.

Before this wall, the combined fleet of humans and elves, no matter how numerous, seemed like a school of sardines flitting around a great whale.

An indescribable pressure, born from the very instinct of life, weighed down on the heart of every person in the combined fleet.

Within the core of one of the largest Jeram warships, one shaped like a throne.

A Jeram, clad in magnificent silver-white armor, floated within a beam of energy. He was one of the members of the Council of Thirteen, Colefax, the ‘Adjudicator’.

His consciousness effortlessly swept over the ‘local aboriginal fleet’ millions of kilometers away.

Those variously shaped, fragile-looking tin cans, in his view, failed to stir any emotion within him.

Everything was proceeding as expected.

These descendants of abandoned servant armies had allied with some other lesser civilizations from the corners of the universe, thinking they could resist the return of the Jeram people with sheer numbers.

Pathetic.

“Prepare to activate the ‘Holy Anthem’. Purify this polluted…”

His psionic command had yet to be fully issued.

An unprecedented, terrifying energy reaction, powerful enough to make his very soul tremble, erupted without warning from another corner of the universe.

Colefax’s pure golden eyes contracted violently for the first time.

What is that?

In the next instant, he saw a pillar of pure light that defied description, as if it had split the entire universe in two, crossing the vast distance at a speed that surpassed anyone’s ability to react.

In its path, space itself warped and evaporated. The leading edge of the beam was the embodiment of extreme heat and destruction.

This was the first, and grandest, welcoming gift from all of human civilization to these uninvited guests.

“All fleet, maximum energy shields.”

Colefax’s warning had just echoed through his psionic network before it was completely swallowed by that pillar of light.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no brilliant flare.

The gamma-ray torrent of the ‘New Requiem’ was like an eraser in the hands of the creator, brutally and unreasonably wiping across the Forerunners’ impenetrable “city wall.”

Everything the beam touched—those mountain-like dreadnoughts, those war fortresses built from extraordinary materials, along with the Jeram people inside them—was instantly reduced to its most fundamental particles, then utterly annihilated.

A terrifying scar thousands of kilometers wide was gouged straight through the center of the Forerunner fleet’s formation.

Over seven thousand dreadnoughts, along with the space they occupied, simply vanished.

So cleanly, it was as if they had never existed.

The entire battlefield fell into an eerie, absolute silence that lasted for several seconds. Even Colefax, the ‘Adjudicator’, was momentarily stunned.

“Wait. Is that right?”

A massive, ugly gap had appeared in the Forerunners’ “city wall.”

On the bridge of the flagship, The Infinity, the holograms of Franklin and Agnes were both frozen for a moment.

It wasn’t a poor transmission signal; they were genuinely stupefied.

They had anticipated the power of this strike, but they had never imagined it would be so absolute.

Agnes and Franklin subconsciously rubbed their faces, making sure they weren’t dreaming.

“Nothing wrong with it, is there? That’s why I said we had to strike first.”

Amber’s voice broke the silence on the bridge. He rose from his command chair and walked to the holographic star chart.

Franklin and Agnes both turned their gazes to him, their expressions a whirlwind of complexity.

They remembered the heated debate during the planning of the operational plan.

“Mr. Amber, we cannot rule out the possibility that the Forerunlers are coming to… negotiate,” Franklin had said, still clinging to a sliver of hope. “If we attack first, there will be no turning back!”

“Negotiate?”

Amber’s response then was as calm as it was now, though tinged with a hint of mockery.

“You two, if you believe they come bearing an olive branch, you might as well believe that I, Amber, am the creator of this world!”

“They responded to an activated Return Beacon, sent a reconnaissance unit to wipe out our picket fleet, and established a warp field. Every single thing they’ve done screams the word ‘destruction’! To harbor illusions about such an enemy is the greatest irresponsibility to our civilization.”

“Our only advantage is their ignorance and arrogance. This shot was to shatter that arrogance, to tell them this isn’t their backyard to come and go as they please!”

Now, the facts had proven Amber’s judgment correct.

That single shot had not only wiped out a third of the Forerunner vanguard but, more importantly, had carved out a precious strategic buffer zone, shattering the enemy’s plan for a leisurely landing and steady advance.

“All fleets, advance the front line! Assume ‘Trident’ formation and widen the breach! All Destroyer-Frigate Divisions, spread to the flanks and execute ‘Wolf Pack’ harassment tactics!”

Amber’s commands, transmitted through the temporary command link he had established with Lilith, reached every warship in an instant.

“Our welcoming gift has been delivered. Now it’s our turn to knock on their door!”

The engines of the massive combined fleet roared to life in unison, transforming into tens of thousands of blue streaks of light that charged, without a second thought, toward the battlefield that had just been cleared by death.

Meanwhile, at the rear of the Forerunner fleet.

The ‘Adjudicator’ Colefax’s consciousness recovered from the searing pain of his psionic network being torn apart.

His flagship had been spared because it was at the rear of the formation, but he could clearly feel the psionic presence of tens of thousands of his kin being collectively erased in an instant.

With everyone linked to the network, the sensation was like having a part of his own body ripped away.

Endless fury instantly filled every unit of his thoughts.

“Ignominy…”

“This is an ignominy!”

His golden eyes, once made of pure energy, were now a burning blood-red.

“Activate all ‘Holy Anthem’ attack matrices!!!”

“Let the sacred onslaught purify all of this!”

As Colefax’s furious psionic command spread through the fleet, the surviving ten thousand-plus Forerunner dreadnoughts finally snapped out of the brief chaos of the frontal assault.

Their originally smooth, mirror-like dark-gold surfaces lit up with countless deep-red patterns, like a network of energy veins.

Each dreadnought was like an ancient beast roused from a deep slumber, the energy readings on its hull beginning to climb exponentially.

Immediately after, everyone in the combined fleet heard a holy ‘song’ emanating from the Forerunner fleet ahead.

Yes, hearing a ‘song’ in a space fleet battle may seem like an abstract description.

But the reality was that even Amber heard the ethereal and sacred singing of a children’s choir.

Then, the Forerunners’ counterattack arrived.

There were no world-destroying energy cannons, no battlefield-sweeping energy storms. The Forerunners’ attack was an application of energy that was almost artistic in its extreme efficiency.

Lances of pure white light, as thin as hairs but condensing terrifying energy, shot out from the Forerunner fleet at near-warp speed, accompanied by the holy anthem that now echoed in everyone’s minds.

They all but ignored the combined fleet’s hybrid shields, piercing the reactors, bridges, or magazines of their warships with the precision of a red-hot needle through butter.

Each strike used just enough energy to cause the most lethal damage.

It was a top-down, surgical slaughter.

“Warning! Ultra-high frequency energy beams detected! Enemy attack pattern is unidentifiable! Our shields have been pierced directly!”

“First Combined Fleet reporting! Thirteen heavy cruisers were hit precisely in their cores, resulting in direct sympathetic detonation!”

“Signals lost from twenty-two destroyers in front of the Fifth Combined Fleet!”

Alarms and urgent reports instantly flooded the combined fleet’s communication channels.

The fleets at the very front of the charge suffered devastating blows before they could even effectively retaliate.

“Hold the line! Do not panic!”

Amber’s voice was like a pillar of stability, forcefully quelling the panic on the communication channels.

His psionic senses had already spread out, and on a deeper level, he ‘saw’ everything clearly.

The entire Forerunner fleet had linked into a single, unified energy network.

Any warship could act as a weapon platform, its energy supplied by hundreds or thousands of its comrades behind it who were not in a position to fire.

This made their attacks not only unpredictable but also far more powerful than what a single ship could possibly bear.

“Lilith! Give me fleet command! All ships, abandon standard evasion, prepare to execute the ‘Ghost Walk’ tactic!”

Amber sat back down in the command chair that was deeply linked with the flagship.

In the next second, the entire operational pattern of the combined fleet underwent a seismic shift.

It was no longer a uniform charge, but had dissolved into thousands upon thousands of independent combat units.

Under Amber’s command, every warship began to execute tactical, ultra-short-range warps in a completely random, almost frenzied manner.

In that moment, the combined fleet seemed to have become a startled school of fish. Though still chaotic, their new movements deprived the Forerunners’ terrifyingly precise ‘Light Spear’ arrays of the basis for locking onto a target.

A stationary or uniformly moving target could be easily calculated and destroyed, but when that target could appear several kilometers away in a matter of milliseconds, even the most efficient weapon became meaningless.

“Found you!”

Amber’s psionic will, like sonar in the deep sea, instantly locked onto one of the most active ‘nodes’ in the psionic network, one responsible for distributing energy.

His will became an invisible blade, bypassing physical obstacles to stab viciously at the core of that dreadnought!

“Now! All fleet, attention! Fire-control coordinates shared! Commence attack!”

Following Amber’s command, every ship with a suitable firing axis at that instant, be it a capital ship or a secondary ship, trained all its main cannons on the Forerunner dreadnought that had been momentarily disrupted by Amber’s psionic attack, its energy flow stuttering for a split second.

A devastating web of cross-fire precisely blanketed the target.

Boom—!

A massive, silent fireball erupted on the ‘city wall’ formed by the Forerunner fleet.

Another dreadnought, struck by an attack that surpassed its defensive threshold, was torn to fragments.

This scene revitalized the spirit of every human and elven soldier who witnessed it.

The enemy was not invincible!

Even gods can bleed.

“Nice one!”

“For humanity!”

Roars erupted across the communication channels, and morale was reignited.

The battle now entered its bloodiest, most brutal phase of attrition.

Under Amber’s ‘God’s-eye view’ command, the combined fleet became a swarm of sharp scalpels, using the hyper-mobility granted by the ‘Ghost Walk’ tactic to precisely cut out the energy nodes within the Forerunner fleet.

The Forerunners, under Colefax’s command, continuously optimized their energy network, trying to drown these annoying ‘flies’ in an ever-denser rain of ‘Light Spears’.

Every second, warships from the combined fleet failed to warp in time and were pierced by the white light spears, turning into brilliant fireworks in the void of space.

And every second, a Forerunner dreadnought, singled out by Amber’s precise picking off, was torn to shreds by concentrated fire.

It was a frantic exchange of pieces.

Both sides were reaping each other’s lives, each in their own way.

Behind each fleet, it was as if a giant formed of psionic energy was constantly maneuvering, making its moves on the board.

Amber’s face grew increasingly pale, and blood once again began to trickle uncontrollably from his nose.

Simultaneously commanding tens of thousands of warships through such complex maneuvers while continuously outputting psionic energy for interference was taking an astronomical toll on him.

Just then, the cold consciousness of the ‘Adjudicator’ Colefax pierced through the chaotic battlefield and locked precisely onto The Infinity.

He had finally found the source of the noise that had been disrupting his energy network.

“Insignificant worm…”

Colefax’s consciousness formed an invisible spike and thrust viciously toward Amber’s mind.

Amber grunted, feeling as if his brain had been struck by a sledgehammer.

But he didn’t retreat. Instead, he gathered all his psionic power, forming an indestructible wall of will, and slammed it head-on against the mental assault!

“So you’re the ones calling yourselves Forerunners, huh?”

“You’re the ones who fancy yourselves creators and gods?”

For the first time, on the psionic plane, Amber’s will clashed head-on with a member of the Jeram Council.

“Then today, I’ll kill a god for you to see!”

Chapter 839: Amber Prays to the Gods

This was a clash that defied description.

In the psionic dimension, Colefax’s will was a boundless golden ocean—ancient, vast, and carrying a pressure great enough to crush stars.

As a member of the Jeram Council of Thirteen, he had witnessed the birth and death of countless civilizations. His Psionics and will had been tempered through innumerable trials.

Amber’s will, in contrast, was like a reef standing firm against a storm.

The golden ocean roared as it crashed down, attempting to utterly submerge and pulverize this presumptuous reef.

Amber’s consciousness was instantly flooded with immense pain and countless chaotic illusions.

He saw the birth and rise of civilizations, and he saw them turn to dust before the Jeram people.

They were fragments of memory from Colefax’s long life, each one carrying a desperate, crushing weight.

“Kneel, worm! Feel your insignificance!”

Colefax’s will echoed in the depths of Amber’s soul like a divine oracle.

Theoretically, Colefax surpassed Amber in both psionic strength and willpower. The psionic clash between them should have been decided quickly.

But Colefax discovered that when facing Amber, this power gap was somehow being influenced by an unknown factor, forcibly pulling them both down to the same level.

A human, holding his own against a member of the Council of Thirteen in the psionic realm.

This was a situation Colefax had never imagined.

Meanwhile, Amber, withstanding the immense pressure, made his next move.

He had no time to ponder why he was able to go back and forth with his opponent.

“Lilith! Integrate the entire fleet’s real-time tactical data stream into my consciousness!”

In the next instant, the operating parameters of tens of thousands of warships, the trajectory of every main cannon shot, the entire causal chain of the battlefield—a data torrent massive enough to overload any supercomputer was funneled into Amber’s consciousness, with Lilith’s aid, as a raging tide of logic and emotion.

If Colefax’s will was pure, powerful energy, then Amber’s response was a mudslide laced with countless glass shards and steel flechettes.

Chaotic, complex, yet incomparably sharp!

The golden ocean crashed into this digitized mudslide.

For the second time in this battle, Colefax felt ‘surprise’.

He could understand energy, he could understand will, but he couldn’t instantly comprehend the mortal ‘information’ contained within this torrent.

Fear, anger, hope, despair, tactical deception, fire distribution, engine overload warnings. To him, these were the ‘杂念’ of so-called lesser beings, and they pierced his pure consciousness like countless poison barbs.

“What… is this?”

Colefax’s will faltered for a fraction of a second.

His lofty, god’s-eye perspective was dragged down for the first time, forced to process this meaningless “noise.”

A god’s blind spot stemmed not from a lack of power, but from arrogance.

He had never imagined a “mortal” would fight him in this way.

Now!

Blood gushed from Amber’s eyes and nose. His brain was nearly boiling from the overload, but he seized that one-in-ten-thousandth-of-a-second chance.

At the peak intensity of their psionic collision, he used Colefax’s own attempt to locate him to reverse-trace the attack, precisely locking onto the source of his opponent’s will—that throne-like flagship!

With the last shred of his strength, he let out a roar to the entity connected to his soul.

“Lilith!”

“Fire!”

No further commands were needed.

As Amber’s roar echoed, the New Requiem, hidden in the shadows of a distant star sector, had already completed its second charge.

Its energy had just reached its apex.

Another pure beam of light, powerful enough to tear the fabric of the cosmos, ripped through the darkness.

But this time, its target was not a wide-area sweep.

Instead, like a Spear of Judgment, it focused all its energy, firing with pinpoint accuracy at the absolute core of the Forerunner fleet that Amber had targeted—Colefax’s flagship, the Divine Judgment Throne!

Lilith: “This shot will pierce the very stars!”

In the light spear’s path, any Forerunner warships it grazed were instantly vaporized.

Colefax, snapping out of his psionic stupor, immediately sensed the fatal threat from the physical universe.

“Defenses!”

His will materialized into a shield. A thousand layers of energy barriers were instantly superimposed over the space around his flagship. The ship’s dark gold hull lit up with an unprecedented glow, almost becoming a miniature sun.

This was the ultimate defense of a councilor’s vessel, personally directed by one of the thirteen strongest Jeram. In theory, it could withstand a supernova.

However, it was facing the supreme strike of a civilization that had gambled everything.

The light spear and the Divine Judgment Throne’s shield collided with a deafening roar.

There was no sound, only a pure, all-consuming white light.

At the center of the light, Colefax’s energy shield, like glass struck by a sledgehammer, began to crack from a single point. Spiderweb-like fractures spread crazily outwards.

One second.

Two seconds.

The cracks covered the entire shield.

On the third second, the shield shattered!

The devastating torrent of gamma rays slammed squarely into the hull of the Divine Judgment Throne.

This mountain-sized dreadnought did not instantly disintegrate like the other warships. Under the scouring of the beam, its sturdy hull began to peel away, melt, and decompose, inch by inch.

The bow, the bridge, the energy core.

As everyone in the combined fleet watched in shock, the flagship of the Forerunner fleet—that throne symbolizing divine authority—was brutally erased down the middle, with half of it gone!

Its broken hull tumbled through space, spewing violent streams of energy from the ruptured sections, like a decapitated behemoth in its final death throes.

The entire battlefield once again fell into a dead silence.

The Forerunner fleet’s energy network, which had flowed like a single entity, collapsed instantly without its central node to regulate it.

The deadly ‘Light Spears’ that had been sweeping across this region of space abruptly vanished.

Their offensive had stopped.

In the command center, the holograms of Franklin, Agnes, and Salieh were frozen. They stared blankly at the shocking result on the tactical star map.

They had crippled the vessel of a Forerunner councilor.

They had actually dragged a ‘god’ from his throne.

After a brief silence, an irrepressible, tsunami-like wave of ecstatic cheers erupted across the combined fleet’s communication channels!

“We did it!”

“Victory for the Alliance!”

On the bridge of The Infinity, after roaring out his final command, Amber’s body went limp. He fell straight backward, caught by the medical personnel who had been standing by.

Blood trickled from all seven of his orifices, and his life signs were critically low, but a faint, relieved smile touched his lips.

He had won the all-important opening gambit.

But he knew this was only the beginning. The war was far from over.

Just as the combined fleet’s morale peaked and they prepared to press their advantage…

From the depths of the heavily damaged wreckage of the Divine Judgment Throne, a consciousness far colder, more ancient, and utterly devoid of emotion than Colefax’s slowly awakened.

It felt no anger, no surprise. It merely swept its gaze calmly across the battlefield, assessing the damage.

Then, a detached consciousness spoke simultaneously in the minds of every Forerunner warship and in Salieh’s.

“Adjudicator Colefax, shamed by his arrogance.”

“I, Ithrael the Scribe, am assuming command of the fleet.”

“Assessing threat level. Upgrading to ‘Extermination’.”

That cold, indifferent consciousness announced the arrival of Ithrael the Scribe.

It was like a bucket of ice water, dousing the cheers that had just ignited across the combined fleet’s communication channels.

On the bridge, the smiles on Franklin’s and Agnes’s holograms froze before they could fully fade.

Salieh’s body trembled slightly. She, more than anyone, understood the weight of the title ‘Scribe’ within Jeram civilization.

If the Adjudicators were the Council’s sword, then the Scribes were its brain.

They were responsible for recording everything about their civilization, for simulating the course of all Historical Branches. They were the ultimate personification of Jeram logic and reason.

The value of one Scribe far exceeded that of an Adjudicator.

More terrifying still, Ithrael’s appearance meant the nature of this war, by the Forerunners’ definition, had just been escalated.

“Warning!”

Lilith’s voice rang in Amber’s mind, for the first time carrying an uncontrollably sharp edge.

“Warp field energy signature expanding abnormally! Detecting an influx of similar subsequent signals! Unable to calculate specific numbers!”

Before she finished speaking, the dark singularity torn open in the center of the battlefield, rather than closing after the flagship was crippled, began to expand with even greater ferocity.

It was no longer a ‘portal’ but a breach in a dam, pouring a flood into the physical universe.

More Forerunner dreadnoughts squeezed out of that bottomless darkness.

They were no longer of a single mountainous design. There were also more menacing attack ships resembling the skeletons of colossal deep-sea beasts, as well as mother ships of unknown function, their surfaces covered in countless honeycomb-like openings.

Ten thousand ships.

Fifty thousand ships.

One hundred thousand ships.

Eventually, even Lilith’s tactical counter turned into a blurry, frantically jumping string of gibberish.

Numbers had lost all meaning.

When the string of spatial fluctuations from the warp subsided, looking out from the viewports of The Infinity’s bridge, the crew’s entire field of vision, aside from the blinking identification lights of friendly ships, was filled with the dark gold hulls of the Forerunners.

They filled every inch of space, blotting out the distant stars, forming a boundless, steel canopy constructed of metal and energy.

The massive gap they had just punched in the ‘wall’ now seemed like a drop in the ocean, laughably insignificant.

The Forerunners had directly projected their world from another universe into this one.

The twenty-thousand-plus dreadnoughts from before had been merely the vanguard of this mobile world.

The combined fleet’s formation of tens of thousands of warships seemed pitiably disproportionate before this new, endless curtain of steel.

The tactical victory they had just secured, that grand feeling of pulling a god from his throne, now felt like an incredibly ironic joke.

Despair.

A pure, unadulterated despair spread through the tens of thousands of warships, seizing every crew member by the throat.

When a civilization that already possessed an overwhelming technological advantage also held an incomparable numerical superiority…

All tactics, all courage, seemed so pale and feeble.

Lying on the medical platform, Amber’s physical collapse was suppressed by a forcefully administered stabilizer, but his mind had never been clearer.

He could feel that, along with that steel canopy, twelve new, powerful consciousnesses had also arrived, each as cold and heavy as a black hole.

Every single one was no weaker than Colefax, whom he had barely managed to defeat by giving his all.

During his psionic clash with Colefax, he had vaguely sensed a strange advantage. His opponent’s vast psionic power seemed weakened and distorted by some quality he himself couldn’t understand when it struck his will.

But what did it matter?

He might be able to barely hold his own against one.

But now, they had brought thirteen.

No, twelve. One was already crippled.

At the same time, an unprecedented feeling of powerlessness washed over him, eroding his will, which was already exhausted from the overload.

He could even feel one of those consciousnesses—that of Ithrael the Scribe—had taken notice of him.

That consciousness didn’t attack him. It just gently ‘touched’ his mental barrier, like a biologist observing a butterfly pinned to a specimen board.

Then, Ithrael’s will spoke calmly in the minds of every intelligent being on the battlefield.

“Project Kindling, is it?”

“What a nostalgic plan.”

“According to the Source Network’s records, this is the 69,771st time a civilization has attempted to initiate this protocol in our presence.”

“None have succeeded.”

Amber’s pupils contracted violently.

Plan B, the ‘Kindling’ project they thought was top secret, their final hope, had just been casually revealed by the enemy at the very start of the war.

A sense of humiliation and fear, like standing naked before the enemy, seized his heart.

“Now, I shall announce your end.”

Ithrael’s voice remained devoid of emotion.

“We will spend thirty minutes eliminating all of your armed forces.”

“Then we will spend three standard days locating and cleansing all of your life-bearing planets.”

“Finally, we will capture every remaining individual in this universe carrying your civilization’s information for source-level erasure.”

“Resistance is meaningless.”

“Your history ends here.”

These words were not a threat, not intimidation.

They were like a pre-printed autopsy report, read aloud dispassionately before the subject had even died.

At this point, even Amber, who had been clinging to his conviction, felt a wave of dizziness.

“Now then, the cleansing begins.”

As Ithrael’s voice sounded again, the next moment, that endless steel canopy lit up.

Hundreds of thousands of white light spears, no longer bothering with precision targeting, became a deadly, all-encompassing downpour of rain that covered the entire battlefield, leaving no blind spots.

The Ghost Walk tactic, which had been decisive for the combined fleet in the previous battle, was rendered completely useless in the face of this insanely saturated bombardment.

Because no matter where you warped, hundreds or thousands of Light Spears would be there waiting for you.

New warships had just completed a short-range tactical warp, their hulls not yet stabilized, only to be pierced by hundreds of Light Spears simultaneously.

Their thick armor and multiple shield layers didn’t last for even a second before they erupted into a violently expanding ball of energy, which was then completely evaporated by more Light Spears.

Destroyer formations on the periphery attempted to break out in tight formations, only to slam into a wall of Light Spears and vanish without a trace.

The elf warships, under the personal command of the Phoenix King, wove brilliant psionic shields, but under the endless energy bombardment, they only lasted a few seconds longer before meeting the same fate as the others.

The casualty report was no longer a data stream.

It was the friendly icons on the tactical star map turning gray and then vanishing completely, section by section.

Amber struggled to sit up but was held down on the medical platform by an invisible force.

He watched with his own eyes as the fleet he had built was being slaughtered and erased wholesale.

Rage, indignation, and a powerlessness he had never experienced before were injected into his heart like venom.

He even began to pray to anything that might exist in the universe.

But the cold universe did not respond.

There were no gods here.

But there were other beings…

Chapter 840: The Only Thing That Answered Him

The communication channels of the combined fleet had fallen utterly silent.

The roars, cheers, and even panic from before had all vanished. All that remained were the blue dots representing friendly forces on the tactical star map, winking out of existence, one vast swathe after another.

The steel firmament forged by the Forerunners unleashed a torrential rain of judgment, each drop a pure white Light Spear powerful enough to pierce a warship.

In the face of this indiscriminate barrage, which blanketed the entire battlefield, all maneuvers became meaningless, every attempt to evade a cruel joke.

Struggle had become futile.

Resistance only resulted in swifter annihilation.

“Breakout! We can’t get through! They’re everywhere!”

“Phoenix Guard! The psionic shield is collapsing! We…”

“For the Empire!”

The final cry was consumed by the flames of an explosion, leaving only silence.

Lying on the medical platform, Amber watched all of this unfold, powerless to intervene.

He watched the fleets he had painstakingly assembled, watched the warriors who had trusted and followed him, being cut down in droves.

A bone-deep powerlessness, the likes of which he had never known, gnawed at his exhausted will like the most vicious of curses.

Anger, indignation, regret… All his emotions eventually coalesced into an icy, almost-numb state.

He had given his all, played all his trump cards, even overdrawn his own life to pull a ‘god’ from its throne.

Yet the only result was to summon even more gods.

This wasn’t a war. It was a purge.

“Amber…”

Franklin’s hologram was completely drained of color. He watched as the icons for the New Federation’s fleet vanished from the star map at a speed visible to the naked eye, his voice raspy and broken.

“We…”

Agnes pressed her lips together, a look of confusion appearing on the Empress Regnant’s face for the very first time.

In the most brutal fashion, the fleets of the Star Dragon Empire were trying to buy even a single second of respite for the friendly forces at their rear.

But before that boundless steel firmament, such sacrifices seemed utterly insignificant.

“Perhaps… we were wrong from the start,” Agnes said, her voice tinged with self-deprecation.

“Get up! All of you, get up!”

Amber’s will, channeled through his deep link with the flagship, forcibly overrode all the desperate cries on the communication channels.

“We’ve lost, but we will not die on our knees!”

His voice was not loud, yet it struck the heart of every survivor like a sledgehammer.

“All ships still able to move! Cease all evasive maneuvers! Overload your engines and divert all power to weapon systems! Fire every last round of ammunition you have! Leave nothing behind!”

“We might not be able to shake this sky, but we can at least leave a few of our own scratches on it!”

“Let them know that we were here, that we fought!”

The spark of this resolute will rekindled the fire in the hearts of the despairing.

Better to meet their end in a blaze of glory than to be picked off one by one while dodging in vain.

The remnants of the combined fleet ceased all evasive action. They turned their bows and, like a battered band of Don Quixotes charging windmills, aimed every weapon at the endless steel firmament.

At the very moment this final, heroic charge was about to commence…

A strange phenomenon occurred.

A pillar of white light, thicker than any planet and beyond all description, appeared without warning at the furthest edge of the battlefield.

It did not seethe with destructive energy like the Light Spears of the New Requiem. Instead, it resembled a tunnel of light to an unknown world, materialized from nothing.

Its appearance instantly captured the attention of everyone on the battlefield.

It was followed by a second, then a third.

Dozens, then hundreds, of identical white pillars of light appeared in succession: behind the combined fleet, on the flanks of the Forerunner fleet, in every corner of the battlefield.

They formed a forest of light more spectacular and incredible than anything seen before, completely illuminating the death-shrouded region of space.

It was as if an invisible hand had pressed the pause button on this war-torn slice of the cosmos.

The Forerunners’ relentless rain of Light Spears faltered for the first time.

The roar of the combined fleet’s engines, spooling up for their suicide charge, also came to an abrupt halt.

Mortals on the brink of annihilation and the self-proclaimed Jeram gods alike turned to stare at these uninvited guests, their expressions a mixture of wariness and confusion.

The icy consciousness of Ithrael the ‘Scribe’ wavered for the first time.

There was no record of this phenomenon in her memories.

Amber’s pupils contracted violently.

The sight before him instantly brought to mind the murals Isabelle had collected from ancient ruins across the human world.

He also remembered the night Phoenix King Aenarion had shown him the most ancient secret of the elven race—

“A beam of light streaks across the starry sky, and within it are countless slender, dark silhouettes.”

He had always believed the murals and legends recorded the same event.

But now, gazing at the hundreds upon thousands of light pillars that pierced the void, he suddenly understood.

Each mural, each legend, had only recorded a single beam of light.

They had all happened at the same time!

As the flagship’s optical sensors magnified and analyzed the image, everyone could finally see clearly what the countless dark silhouettes within the pillars of light truly were.

They were warships.

Warships of a distinctly human design.

Some bore the angular, utilitarian industrial design of the New Federation.

Others possessed the elegant, slender hulls and classical aesthetics characteristic of the Star Dragon Empire.

There were even some never-before-seen designs: gigantic fortress-ships that looked as if entire cities had been moved into space, and wild-looking assault ships whose hulls bristled with menacing gunports.

Their paint schemes and insignia varied, but the design language—chaotic yet creative, rooted deep in the very soul of human civilization—was unmistakably familiar.

As the colossal pillars of light slowly faded and dissipated into the cosmos, their mission seemingly complete…

A new “iron curtain” rose behind the combined fleet, one even more grand and spectacular than the Forerunners’ steel firmament.

It was a true wall of steel, formed entirely from innumerable human warships of every conceivable design!

Their numbers were so vast they defied measurement by any tactical standard.

If the Forerunner fleet was a dark cloud obscuring the stars, then this new fleet was a boundless sea of stars that would, in turn, swallow the cloud whole.

“Detecting new fleet signal integration requests… quantity… quantity is incalculable!”

“The command network bandwidth is being forcibly expanded! My God…”

“Is that… our identification signal? How are they all friendlies?!”

On the bridges of every ship in the combined fleet, the surviving command personnel stared blankly at their tactical displays.

The once-sparse blue icons representing friendly forces were now multiplying at an exponential rate, as if infected by a virus. They quickly flooded the entire screen, their density so high that they merged into a solid blue corona.

The dense cluster of red hostile contacts that had just pushed them to the brink was now completely encircled by this far vaster ocean of blue.

At the same time, a series of voices—voices he knew better than his own—rang out unbidden in the depths of Amber’s consciousness.

“Who is hailing the fleet?”

It was his own voice.

Then, more of his own voices flooded into his mind like a bursting dam.

“Long live the great unity of the cosmic peoples!”—this one sounded passionate and melodramatic.

“Wakey wakey, unknown enemies are invading our world~”—this one was even humming a strange tune.

“Go, brave young man, and create a miracle~”—this one was filled with a twisted sense of humor.

But they were all his own damn voices.

His own voice, from across the river of time, from countless different timelines!

These voices wove together in his mind, forming a chaotic yet harmonious symphony.

The icy consciousness of Ithrael the ‘Scribe’ fluctuated violently for the first time.

The Jeram’s Source Network contained records from tens of millions of civilization-purgings and had simulated countless possible variables.

But the scene unfolding before it exceeded the limits of its logical simulations.

“Causality has been corrupted.”

For the first time, Ithrael’s consciousness was tinged with an emotion akin to ‘confusion.’

“Detecting a large number of coordinates from foreign timelines, forcibly anchored to the present spacetime.”

“Threat Level… Reassessing.”

The once-indomitable steel firmament now fell into an eerie silence.

They ceased their attack, diverting all energy to defense, like a hedgehog bristling its spines at an incomprehensible phenomenon.

As for Amber, after the initial shock, he finally smiled.

It was a genuine smile, born of the relief of having survived a catastrophe.

Color returned to his face, which had been pale from the overexertion of his mental powers.

“When darkness falls, the Star-Guides shall appear.”

He finally understood the true meaning of the ancient prophecy.

“Darkness” did not refer to the return of the Forerunners themselves.

It referred to the dark hour they brought with them, an hour bleak enough to plunge an entire civilization into despair.

And the “Star-Guides”…

Amber struggled, then leaped up from the medical platform. The invisible force that had bound him could no longer restrain him in the slightest.

He strode to the bridge’s viewport, gazing at the endless reinforcements brought by countless versions of ‘himself’.

So, the guide was himself all along.

—

This was not an unexpected miracle.

This was an insurance policy, prepared by his future selves for his past self, guaranteed to arrive.

Amber remembered the tactical device he had received from Salieh, a device capable of time travel.

He had used it to leap between the past and future, outwitting the entire Royal Guard and the defense systems of the Grand Palace to infiltrate its deepest subterranean levels…

Except this time, the scale was magnified a billionfold.

The reinforcements were human civilizations from countless future timelines!

This also meant…

Amber’s breathing became ragged.

It meant that in every possible future, humanity was not exterminated by the Forerunners. Instead, it had advanced to a point where it could face them head-on, or even surpass them!

His future selves, across different timelines and at various stages of humanity’s development, had assembled countless powerful fleets.

Then, using the coordinates of this decisive, civilization-defining battle as an ‘anchor’, they had forcibly projected these forces from different spacetimes here.

They had torn through time and transcended causality, all to reverse a war they were destined to lose.

The combined fleet—or rather, the humans, elves, and Romu—were destined to win this war.

Because if they had failed, no fleets from the future would have been able to come and reinforce them.

It was a perfect, self-fulfilling causal loop.

“So that’s how it is…”

Amber’s lips curved into a smile, an arc filled with both his twisted sense of humor and absolute confidence.

He finally understood why he had held such a peculiar advantage during his psionic clash with Colefax.

As the very core of this ‘causality’, he was protected by the blessings of every possible future.

When Colefax’s pure, ancient psionics had crashed against him—this ‘reef’ woven from and protected by countless timelines—it was only natural that it would be distorted and weakened.

“Lilith.”

“I’m here, Master~” Lilith’s voice had returned to its usual liveliness, and even carried a hint of excitement.

“Patch all reinforcement fleet command channels into The Infinity.”

“Roger, Master! Connection established!”

In the next second, a new and unbelievably vast command network unfolded before Amber.

He could see the status of every fleet and hear the voice of every version of ‘himself’.

“Hello? Are we connected? My timeline just completed its expansion into the dark regions of space. Fleet status is optimal, ready for combat at a moment’s notice. How about you guys?” an energetic-sounding Amber asked.

“Ahem. My timeline is two years after the war with the Jeram. We lost about thirty percent of our fleet in that conflict, but the survivors are all elite veterans. Leave the frontal charge to us!” said another voice, calm and dependable.

“Ah, then I guess my timeline is pretty far in the future. We haven’t had a war in a long time, but we haven’t stopped churning out unmanned fleets since the final battle ended. All the tech we got from the Jeram has been fully implemented,” said a more mature-sounding voice.

Amber couldn’t help but laugh at the cacophony of reports.

He cleared his throat and sent his will out to every version of ‘himself’.

“Everyone, thank you for your efforts.”

“Let’s dispense with the pleasantries. I’m sure you can all see the enemy before us.”

“Now, I need your power.”

“Everyone, you’ll be following my unified command… is that right?”

“Yep, that’s right, we follow your lead~”

“Roger!”

“No problem!”

“We’ve been waiting for this!”

“For the Horde… ah, no, for the Alliance of Survivors!”

Countless voices merged into a single, thunderous reply.

Amber turned, once more facing the now-silent steel firmament.

His gaze seemed to pierce the alloy armor of the bridge, penetrate the endless void, and clash across the distance with the cold consciousness of Ithrael that lay behind the steel firmament.

He reached out his hand, as if to hold the entire battlefield in his palm.

The aura that had been extinguished by despair now flared up from within him once more, more ferocious and more unstoppable than ever before.

“And now,”

His voice, carried by the newly established command network, resounded through every corner of every warship in this star-strewn sky.

“Let’s bring this all to an end!”

Chapter 833: Epilogue

Six months later.

Star Dragon Empire, the Grand Palace.

Amber awoke on a large, soft bed, feeling a numbness in both his arms.

As his senses returned, he realized Isabelle and Agnes were nestled on either side of him, using his arms as pillows, fast asleep.

The morning light streamed through the window into the magnificent royal chambers, making everything feel surreal.

Sometimes, he still wondered if the war’s conclusion had been nothing but a dream.

But the steady breathing beside him and the monumental changes sweeping across the universe were constant reminders that it was all over.

Under the coordination of Lilith and her integrated ‘Macro-Management System,’ the societal resources and productivity of all human civilization were advancing at an unprecedented rate.

With the clouds of war dispersed, large-scale deep space development and plans to explore unknown star sectors were once again on the agenda. A new age of cosmic exploration had dawned.

As for the people he knew…

Marshal Guterres voluntarily resigned from all his posts shortly after the war. Laden with honors, he returned to his home planet to enjoy a leisurely retirement.

Van Fleet and Hog, on the other hand, continued to diligently lead the development of the continental Army. Although, it was unlikely the Army would see any action in the near future.

Cleves, living up to everyone’s expectations, took up Guterres’s baton and became the supreme commander of the combined fleet’s naval forces.

As for Randall, he unhesitatingly chose a ‘glorious retirement.’

Using his astronomical bonus, he bought an entire private beach on a scenic resort planet. Rumor has it he’s now spending his days with a group of newly acquainted elf models, diligently ‘researching’ beach volleyball.

Banninger and his Immortal Corps, once digital ghosts, had now become influential permanent residents of the virtual world, assisting Lilith in evolving humanity’s cyberspace to ever-higher dimensions.

Everything was heading in the best possible direction.

As Amber was lost in thought, a soft knock came from the door of the royal chambers.

“Master, it’s time to wake up~”

The door opened, and Lilith walked in, dressed in a maid outfit and carrying a breakfast tray.

Behind her followed a resigned-looking Salieh and a beaming Allenita.

The Lilith of today permanently resided in her perfect android body. Aside from the single, energetic strand of hair that still stuck up from the top of her head, she looked no different from a real human girl.

When the three entered and saw the disheveled Isabelle and Agnes in the bed, along with Amber whose lower body was covered by a thin blanket, their expressions turned mischievous.

“Looks like we came at a bad time?” Allenita teased.

“No, you’ve come at the perfect time~”

“Are you sure, Amber? Feeling that energetic today?”

“Ahem, I was kidding.”

Amber spread his hands in resignation.

Lilith placed the breakfast on the table, then curiously leaned in, blinking her eyes.

“Master, there’s a question I’ve been wanting to ask you for a long time.”

“What is it?”

“Did those ‘yous’ from the future ever tell you who you married first?”

The moment the question was asked, the atmosphere in the room instantly grew delicate.

Even the still-sleeping Isabelle and Agnes seemed to stir subconsciously.

A muscle in Amber’s cheek twitched.

He recalled his future selves and the chorus of overlapping laughter just before they departed.

“Well now… some secrets of the heavens must not be revealed!”

“Right, right! It’s a surprise in your own life. We can’t spoil it for you!”

“Hahaha, you’ll just have to guess!”

A bunch of bastards.

A smile touched the corners of Amber’s lips. Looking at the equally curious women before him, for the first time, he felt like maybe it was time he took a proper rest.

However, the mix of true and false information his future selves had left him with before departing was giving him a massive headache.

“So, what should my focus be from now on?”

“Focus on production, build up infrastructure, and start a harem!”

“Is there anything I should watch out for?”

“Uh… if anyone suggests building you a golden throne, make sure to refuse!”

“?”

“And another thing! Don’t have too many children. Specifically, don’t have twenty. You can have more, you can have less, but it cannot be twenty!”

“And not twenty-one either! Remember to skip those two numbers!”

“?”

Chapter 835

UNTITLED

Chapter 1: Cannon Fodder
Chapter 2: A Disastrous Start
Chapter 3: Spy
Chapter 4: Psionics
Chapter 5: The Double Agent
Chapter 6: The Calm Before the Storm
Chapter 7: The Major is Gone
Chapter 8: A Storm is Brewing
Chapter 9: Federation Army Day
Chapter 10: The Beacon is Lit
Chapter 11: Infiltration
Chapter 12: Surprise Attack
Chapter 13: The Battle Begins

Chapter 14: Assault on the Core Communications Room

Chapter 15: Judas
Chapter 16: Betrayal
Chapter 17: Counter-Kill

Chapter 18: The Battle Situation is Too Unfavorable for Our Soldiers

Chapter 19: The Aristocratic Squad

Chapter 20: The Base is Under Attack

Chapter 21: This Is How We Do Factional Politics

Chapter 22: The Escape
Chapter 23: Breakout
Chapter 24: Survivors
Chapter 25: The Power of the Flechette Round
Chapter 26: Rallying the Remnants
Chapter 27: The Getaway
Chapter 28: Communications Chaos
Chapter 29: A Blind Cat Finds a Dead Mouse
Chapter 30: The Unlucky ‘Mongoose’
Chapter 31: An Unexpected Gain
Chapter 32: The ‘Mongoose’ Platoon’s Secret
Chapter 33: Rescue
Chapter 34: Visitors from the Sky
Chapter 35: Randall’s News
Chapter 36: A Shift in the World Line
Chapter 37: Strategic Maneuver Plan
Chapter 38: Expanding the Force

Chapter 39: A Weapon That Looks Good, Fights Good

Chapter 40: Battle Preparations

Chapter 41: How to Command a Mechanized Infantry Platoon in Daily Life

Chapter 42: Our Warriors are Engaging the Enemy

Chapter 43: I Must
Chapter 44: Struck it Rich
Chapter 45: Attack!
Chapter 46: An Unexpected Haul
Chapter 47: Phalanx Breaker 2
Chapter 48: Untitled
Chapter 49: The Task Force in Action
Chapter 50: The Connection
Chapter 51: The Kill Order

Chapter 52: Target: The Secret Research Facility

Chapter 53: The Door Behind the Stone Wall
Chapter 54: Project Creator
Chapter 55: Lilith
Chapter 56: Hee hee
Chapter 57: First Contact with a Strong AI

Chapter 58: A Little Taste of the Protagonist’s Halo

Chapter 59: Your Cheat Has Been Successfully Activated. Please Use It Promptly.

Chapter 60: Enemy Attack
Chapter 61: Fierce Battle in the Woods 1
Chapter 62: Forest Skirmish 2
Chapter 63: The Counterattack Begins Now

Chapter 64: I’m Screwed! Surrounded by Imperial Forces!

Chapter 65: Desperation and Breakthrough

Chapter 66: Welcome to the ‘Dismantle Mechs by Hand’ Club

Chapter 67: Friendly Forces Always Arrive at the Last Minute

Chapter 68: Long-Range Fire Support
Chapter 69: Thoughts on Going Premium
Chapter 70: Tactical Withdrawal
Chapter 71: The Center of the Vortex

Chapter 72: The Task Force Begins Its Approach

Chapter 73: Engagement
Chapter 74: Desperate Assault
Chapter 75: The Decision
Chapter 76: Convergence
Chapter 77: The Homecomer
Chapter 78: I Will Return as a Falling Star
Chapter 79: The Response
Chapter 80: We Will Fight to the Last
Chapter 81: The Farthest Distance
Chapter 82: Procedure
Chapter 83: The Port
Chapter 84: Blue Bay
Chapter 85: Pushing His Luck
Chapter 86: The Street Fighting Begins
Chapter 87: Lilith, Strong! Invincible!
Chapter 88: Real Esports.jpg
Chapter 89

Chapter 90: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind

Chapter 91: So This Is What a Phalanx Breaker Is?

Chapter 92: Lilith’s Special Virus

Chapter 93: Orbital Strike

Chapter 94: Spoils and the Giant Ground Effect Vehicle

Chapter 95: Do You Psionic Agents Know How to Do Everything? (Combined Chapter)

Chapter 96: Prologue to the Decisive Battle
Chapter 97: The Fleet’s Approach
Chapter 98: Amber, Are You Planning to Flee?
Chapter 99: An Old Acquaintance
Chapter 100: I Believe in Amber
Chapter 101: A Joyful Gathering
Chapter 102: Breaking into the Base Area
Chapter 103: An HCP Stands Upon the Earth
Chapter 104: Time to Show Off My Real Skills

Chapter 105: On the Subject of Stabbing Cockpits

Chapter 106: Fleet Battle Command Must Be Elegant

Chapter 107: Celestial Fortress
Chapter 108: The Focusing Rainbow
Chapter 109: The Duke’s Musings
Chapter 110: Red Wolf
Chapter 111: Going to Space
Chapter 112: Lock Released
Chapter 113: Melee Preparations
Chapter 114: Tail Needle
Chapter 115: By His Own Hand
Chapter 116: A Choice Between Two
Chapter 117: Cut and Run
Chapter 118: Stay or Go?
Chapter 119: Victory Means Clubs and Models

Chapter 120: How Many Steps to Get a Frigate Out of Port?

Chapter 121: The Pursuer
Chapter 122: 93.47%
Chapter 123: Amber, Launching!
Chapter 124: The Punctual Elf
Chapter 125: The Proton Annihilation Bomb
Chapter 126: Tranquil Garden
Chapter 127: Amber, Kiss Me
Chapter 128: Big News
Chapter 129: Epilogue
Chapter 130: Wetwork
Chapter 131: Boarding Action
Chapter 132: Embracing the Sun
Chapter 133: The Unmanned Fleet
Chapter 134: Angel Investment

Chapter 135: Getting Investment is Essentially About Telling a Story

Chapter 136: Please Enter Your Company Name
Chapter 137: Buying Ships
Chapter 138: Is a Romu PMC a Good Idea?
Chapter 139: Amber Stay Night
Chapter 140: The Hermes
Chapter 141: Lilith’s New Skill
Chapter 142: The Rookies
Chapter 143: The Furballs in the Greenhouse
Chapter 144: A New Job
Chapter 145: The Training Regiment
Chapter 146: Two Furballs

Chapter 147: Turning Up the Heat on the Pirates

Chapter 148: A Professional Team

Chapter 149: Standoff

Chapter 150: I Figure Nobody Wants This Thing, Right?

Chapter 151: Atlas Mining Urgently Hiring Skilled Workers

Chapter 152: A True Takeout
Chapter 153: A Letter from the Empire
Chapter 154: Lilith’s First Iteration

Chapter 155: The Sixth Artificial Celestial Fortress

Chapter: Taking a Day Off on the First

Chapter 156: No Story Without a Coincidence

Chapter 157: The Isabelle Family’s Predicament

Chapter 158: An Exciting Start

Chapter 159: The Dependable Allenita

Chapter 160: Amber’s Understanding of Infiltration

Chapter 161: Locked In

Chapter 162: Conspiring Aloud

Chapter 163: Your Noble Circles Are a Real Mess

Chapter 164: Why Don’t You All Carry On?

Chapter 165: Chaos Upon Chaos

Chapter 166: Lilith! Go Straight for the Jugular!

I’m Completely Beat, Taking Another Day Off

Chapter 167: Titanfall (2-in-1)

Chapter 168: The Return of the Demon in the Smoke

Chapter 169: Melee Combat is Part of Mech Warfare. If You Don’t Like It, Don’t Play

Chapter 170: Supreme Protocol and the Parting Shot

Chapter 171: Good Evening, Gentlemen
Chapter 172: Reunion
Chapter 173: Setting Things Right

Chapter 174: Jonathan’s Aftermath Arrangements

Chapter 175: In-Your-Face Tactics
Chapter 176: Profiteering from War
Chapter 177: Expanding the Mining Fleet

Chapter 178: The Problem of Personnel Expansion

Chapter 179: Asteroid Base Construction Plan
Chapter 180: Return to the Tower of Babel
Chapter 181: All Brawn, No Brains
Chapter 182: Beating Up the Kids
Chapter 183: KPI
Chapter 184: No Such Company Found
Chapter 185: Trident Studio
Chapter 186: The Atlas Blueprint
Chapter 187: The Ares
Chapter 188: Lilith’s Great Adventure 1
Chapter 189: Lilith’s Great Adventure 2
Chapter 190: Eugene Koch
Chapter 191: An Offer That Cannot Be Refused
Chapter 192: The Interloper
Chapter 193: The Romu’s First Field Mission
Chapter 194: Eugene’s Brothers
Chapter 195: The Classic Highway Chase

Chapter 196: A New Concept in Corporate Warfare

Chapter 197: They’ve Lost Their Cool
Chapter 198: Hide-and-seek
Chapter 199: The Game
Chapter 200: The Devious Minds of Tacticians

Chapter 201: A Generational Gap Means You Can Do Whatever You Want

Chapter 202: Try Keeping Up With My Speed First

Chapter 203: Surrender or Die

Chapter 204: An Old Acquaintance in a Strange Land

Chapter 205: Murder, Arson, and a Belt of Gold

Chapter 206: So This Is What a Megacorporation Is?

Chapter 207: The Charitable Organization Atlas

Chapter 208: Ryan Timler

Chapter 209: When the Wind Blows, Even Pigs Can Fly

Chapter 210: The Federation University of Finance and Economics Alumni Association

Chapter 211: A Night Talk Between Father and Daughter

Chapter 212: Regent Prince, Royal Family, State Religion

Chapter 213: The Scheming Begins
Chapter 214: You Guys Deserve to Be in Prison
Chapter 215: Emergency Fleet Expansion

Chapter 216: Prelude to the War of the Three ‘Fools’

Chapter 217: Imperial Fleet Spotted Dead Ahead!

Chapter 218: Kill the Damn Imperial Dogs!

Chapter 219: Today, I, Amber, Will Play the Fisherman

Chapter 220: The Atlas Fleet, Entering the Fray!

Chapter 221: Amber’s Fangs
Chapter 222: A Brand New Tactic for HCPs
Chapter 223: Breaking Up a Fight
Chapter 224: The Unknown Observer

Chapter 225: Negotiations? What Are They Thinking?

Chapter 226: Dirt

Chapter 227: The Regent Prince

Chapter 228: The Bed in My Office is Pretty Big

Chapter 229: The Window Closes, the Game Begins

Chapter 230: The Princess’s Guard

Chapter 231: Level the Anti-Aircraft Guns, Aim at the Crowd (Conclusion)

Chapter 232: Vendée VI, All Quiet

Chapter 233: Igniting the Fire in Their Hearts

Chapter 234: You Have a New Order

Chapter 235: The Loubion Hell Campaign, Now In Progress!

Chapter 236: When the Campaign Commander is a “Little Genius”

Chapter 237: Joint Command

Chapter 238: Brother, That’s a Sweet Drone You’ve Got

Chapter 239: Taking a Stand, Just Waiting for You

Chapter 240: Collapse at the Outset

Chapter 241: You’re with the Regent Prince, aren’t you?

Chapter 242: Don’t Tell Me Your Brigade Commander Went to the Front Line!

Chapter 243: A Brand New Version of Orbital Strike

Chapter 244: The Gungnir Project

Chapter 245: Atlas’s Sword-Drawing Syndrome

Chapter 246: A Mushroom Cloud Rises Over the Battlefield

Chapter 247: Tian Ji’s Horse Race, A Timeless Strategy

Chapter 248: The Nuclear Warhead Capture Plan

Chapter 249: Benjamin, I Advise You to Be Kind

Chapter 250: Taking Command

Chapter 251: Psionic User Centralized Management Center

Chapter 252: The Thirteen Children
Chapter 253: ATLAS TEST TEAM
Chapter 254: GAT-X303 ‘Aegis’
Chapter 255: More Money Required
Chapter 256: Atlas’s Casualty Situation
Chapter 257: The Ambitious Youth, Franklin

Chapter 258: The Special Operations Team’s Mission

Chapter 259: The First Step in Urban Assault: Psychological Warfare

Chapter 260: Star Wars? World War II!
Chapter 261: The Burning Frontline
Chapter 262: We Are Atlas

Chapter 263: Urban Combat and a Decapitation Strike

Chapter 264: Who is the Hunter? Who is the Prey?

Chapter 265: The ‘Sun’ Rises as Usual

Chapter 266: The World Focuses on You

Chapter 267: Your Excellency, Your Fight is Over

Chapter 268: I’ve Said My Piece. Who Agrees? Who Objects?

Chapter 269: Atlas Will Give You a Better Opportunity

Chapter 270: We Sell Services

Chapter 271: Basic, Standard, and Premium Editions

Chapter 272: Prisoners of War and the Victory Celebration

I’ve Made a Difficult Decision
Chapter 273: Portraits from the Reception
Chapter 274: Franklin’s Awakening
Chapter 275: Boss, We Dug Up Something Weird
Chapter 276: Mining Efficiency +1000%
Chapter 277: Amber’s Suggestion
Taking a Day Off for Moving
Chapter 278: The Gift
Chapter 279: Don’t Be Hasty
Chapter 280: The Princess’s Storyline
Chapter 281: The Forerunner’s Illusion
Chapter 282: Familiar People
Chapter 283: Dark Prophecy
Chapter 284: Accelerate! Accelerate!

Chapter 285: The Reemergence of Large Army Formations

Chapter 286: Do You Want to Go Down in History, or in Infamy?

Chapter 287: Operation Supernova Burst
Chapter 288: Sea Power Supreme, Trafalgar
Chapter 289: The Skirmish (Part 1)
Chapter 290: The Skirmish (Part 2)
Chapter 291: Skirmish (Part 2)
Chapter 292: This Is Not My War
Chapter 293: Close-Quarters Combat

Chapter 294: Infiltration Reconnaissance Before the Rush-Attack

Chapter 295: Breaking the Formation and Hastings’ Ace in the Hole

Chapter 296: A Pyrrhic Victory is Still a Victory (Combined Chapter)

Chapter 297: The Anticlimactic Battle

Chapter 298: War Escalates, General Mobilization Order

Chapter 299: One Who Leaves Home
A Day Off for Labor Day
Chapter 300: The Timeline Changes Again

Chapter 301: The Atlas ‘Massive Shipbuilding Program’

Chapter 302: Poseidon Shipbuilding and Dock Company

Chapter 303: Project 08 Battleship
Chapter 304: Humanitarian Aid Mission
Chapter 305: The New Ruins and the Foundation
Chapter 306: Psionics Hobby Class
Chapter 307: The Foundation
Chapter 308: Ancient Advanced Technology

Chapter 309: A Prestigious Product of the Atlas Equipment R&D Center

Chapter 310: Solo Deep-Space Insertion

Chapter 311: The Puppeteer

Chapter 312: The Innate ‘Zhou Zhuo’ Hallowed Body

Chapter 313: The Forerunners Might Be Alive
Chapter 314: Contain, Control, Protect
Chapter 315: Quick Getaway, Nuclear Explosion

Chapter 316: Seriously, You Just Self-Destruct When You Can’t Win?

Chapter 317: Amber Unleashed

Chapter 1: Lilith is Home!

Chapter 318: Saint? Traitor?

Chapter 319: Now, It’s My Turn!

It’s Mother’s Day, I’m Going to See My Mom (Might Take the Day Off)

Chapter 320: Talk About Turning the Tables

Chapter 321: I’m Tainted?

Chapter 322: Are You a Bit of a Misfit?

Chapter 323: A Buried Past from Two Million Years Ago

Chapter 324: The Mental Shackle

Chapter 325: Lilith the Magician

Chapter 326: The Repository, Good Stuff, But Not Much of It

Chapter 327: Amber Brought a Woman Back!

Chapter 328: You Homo Sapiens Are Still at War?

Chapter 329: Fight, I Want to See Rivers of Blood!

Chapter 330: Technological Upgrade
Chapter 331: Jacob’s New Ride
Chapter 332: The Raid

Chapter 333: Time to Hunt, But the Roles Are Reversed

Chapter 334: Evil Atlas on the Prowl in Pyla

Chapter 335: Aren’t You Really Afraid They’ll Start a Fight?

Chapter 336: We’ll Have the Same Package

Chapter 337: The Statement and Advertisement Combo

Chapter 338: A Third Encore
Chapter 339: The Fluttering Red Cross
Chapter 340: Atmospheric Projection
Chapter 341: Airdrop in Progress

Chapter 342: The Navy Got a New Battleship, and the Army Got…

Chapter 343: Angels of the Battlefield

Chapter 344: Prophecy

Chapter 345: When the Regular Army Stops Acting Humanely

Chapter 346: International Conventions Don’t Apply in a War Zone

Chapter 347: Managing Public Opinion

Chapter 348: Protect the Civilians!

Chapter 349: Public Opinion Guidance and Human Bombs

Chapter 350: Ram’s Head, Awesome!
Chapter 351: The Standoff that Suddenly Ended
Chapter 352: The Suicide Bombing Mystery
Chapter 353: The Hanged Man

Chapter 354: The Instructor Squad’s New Equipment

Chapter 355: The Federation Makes Its Move

Chapter 356: Super-Heavy Purification Beam Emitter

Chapter 357: Conflict Reignited
Chapter 358: The Fuse
Chapter 359: Mars
Chapter 360: Encirclement and Showdown
Chapter 361: Public Execution

Chapter 362: Mike, Your Department Must Take Responsibility!

Chapter 363: The Ghost Operative in Action

Chapter 364: Firefight

Chapter 365: Atlas Combat Forces vs. Federation Regular Army

Chapter 366: We’re Done Pretending to Be Gentlemen

Chapter 367: Decapitation Strike
Chapter 368: The Gambler
Chapter 369: The Threat from Space
Temporary Leave Notice

Chapter 370: The Future of Atlas Rests On This Battle

Chapter 371: A Fork in the Road of Destiny

Chapter 372: Angels Fight Back Too

Chapter 373: Instructor Squad Veterans, Advance!

Chapter 374: The Icarus Support Component

Chapter 375: Snipe, Then A Solo Atmospheric Entry

Chapter 376: The Hero Who Fell from the Sky
Chapter 377: Goodbye, Banninger
Chapter 378: Cleves’s Battle
Chapter 379: The Scheme

Chapter 380: Restoring the Glory of the Torpedo

Chapter 381: As Long As the Unmanned Fleet Attacks

Chapter 382: So I Have This Many Sisters?

Chapter 383: Lilith, Evolve!

Chapter 384: Hey, Where’s My Massive Unmanned Fleet?

Chapter 385: No One Sleeps Tonight (End)
Taking a Day Off to Sort Out the Outline
Chapter 386: John and Clark
Chapter 387: Go Get Allenita!

Chapter 388: I Was Thinking, Nobody Seems to Want This Planet Anyway?

Chapter 389: The Definition of Death
Chapter 390: The Immortals
Chapter 391: Salieh’s Warning
Chapter 392: Where Did We Get All This Money?
Chapter 393: The Frontline Doesn’t Lie
Drank too much last night, sorry
Chapter 394: Miller’s Concerns

Chapter 395: Isn’t It Time for the Military-Industrial Complex to Play Its Part?

Chapter 396: Amber’s Battering Ram
Chapter 397: Super-Heavy Shells from the Sky
Chapter 398: A Battle Back to Basics
Chapter 399: A Greatly Shocked Van Fleet

Chapter 400: The Debate Between Main Battle Tanks and Multi-legged War Machines

Chapter 401: Some Rejoice, Some Grieve
Chapter 402: Lilith and the Unmanned Fleets
Chapter 403: Mephisto’s Speculation
Chapter 404: Fragment
Chapter 405: The Missing Old Emperor
Chapter 406: The Disheartened General
Chapter 407: A Confused Franklin
Chapter 408: Agnes’s Attention
Chapter 409: The Hunt Begins
Chapter 410: Armed Attack
Chapter 411: An Unexpected Ending
Chapter 412: Turning the Tables
Chapter 413: Selling Off Assets
Chapter 414: The Value of a Day Is

Too Much Work at My Main Job at the Start of the Month, Taking a Day Off

Chapter 415: Don’t Worry, It’ll Be Fine

Chapter 416: Van Fleet’s Stand Against the Military-Industrial Complex

Chapter 417: Target, A·Bawa·Ku

Chapter 418: A Two-Front War Is Their Specialty; You Just Have to Try It

Chapter 419: The Whistleblower

Chapter 420: The General Takes the Narrow Path

Chapter 421: ‘Old Friends’ Reunite

Chapter 422: Escape from the Tiger’s Maw

Chapter 423: The Military-Industrial Complex Coalition

Chapter 424: Atlas Combat Fleet: Roger That~

Chapter 425: Severing an Arm Before Firing a Shot

Chapter 426: As an asteroid mining base, it’s pretty normal to have a disintegration ray, right?

Chapter 427: Mine It All
Chapter 428: I Alone Am Enough for the Feint
Chapter 429: The Phantom Ace
Chapter 430: Filthy. Absolutely Filthy.

Chapter 431: The Federation Navy to the Rescue?

Chapter 432: The Federation’s Plan to Kill Two Birds with One Stone

Chapter 433: Breaching the Fortress

Chapter 434: The Battle for A·Bawa·Ku Fortress (Part 1)

Chapter 435: The Battle for A Bawa Ku Fortress (Part 2)

Chapter 436: The Battle for A·Bawa·Ku Fortress (Part 2)

Chapter 437: As Long as We Can Reach That Place

Chapter 438: Give it up, Doctor. It’s all Immortals out there.

A note of absence
Chapter 439: Instructor Squad? Immortals!
Chapter 440: The Dust Settles
Chapter 441: Becoming a Cyber Emperor
Chapter 442: Now it’s Atlas’s Turn
Chapter 443: Flash Crash
Chapter 444: Winner Takes All

Chapter 445: The Traditional Business War Tactic of Pulling the Plug

Chapter 446: A Monument of Ruin in Space
Chapter 447: System Log
Chapter 448: A Seat at the Table

Chapter 449: Amber, What’s Really Hidden in A Bawa Ku?

Chapter 450: Are You Sure This is How We Negotiate?

Chapter 451: Saving the Nation with a Harem?
Chapter 452: Successful Recruitment
Chapter 453: Atlas Doesn’t Keep Idlers

Chapter 454: Handling Prisoners and a Special Communication

Chapter 455: Who Moved Whose Cake?

Chapter 456: The Upheaval in Loubion

Writer’s Block and Main Job Unfinished, Taking a Day Off

Chapter 457: Franklin’s Plea for Help

Chapter 458: Why Should I Help You?

Chapter 459: I Finally Became the Person I Hate the Most.jpg

Chapter 460: Meeting the Parents
Chapter 461: Amber Never Loses Out
Chapter 462: Lilith’s Suggestion

Chapter 463: Something Big is Coming, Empire Version

Chapter 464: A Tough Team to Lead, Regent Prince

Chapter 465: A Do-or-Die Battle

Chapter 466: Theory of Long-Range Frontline Control

Chapter 467: The Ultimate Showdown of Old-School Command

Chapter 468: Base Trade?

Chapter 469: Base Trade!

Chapter 470: Not All Fortresses Are Created Equal

Taking a Day Off for the Qixi Festival
Chapter 471: The Fallen Military Nobility
Chapter 472: Exchanging Fire!

Chapter 473: The Federation Doesn’t Just Take a Beating

Chapter 474: Fortress vs. Fortress
Chapter 475: The Last Federation Hero
Chapter 476: Bad News, Good News
Chapter 477: Tearing Up the Script
Chapter 478: Planetary Assault Fortress?
Chapter 479: Salieh’s Suggestion

Chapter 480: A Great Change Unseen in a Century

Chapter 481: Return to Loubion

Chapter 482: Franklin’s Little Trouble

Chapter 483: Students of the Training Regiment?

Chapter 484: Preparing to Intervene

Chapter 485: Seeking Shelter Under a Big Tree?

Chapter 486: Deduction

Chapter 487: A Frustrating Preparation for the Offensive

Chapter 488: An Attack Thwarted, as Expected

Chapter 489: When the Immortals Come ‘Knocking on the Door’

Chapter 490: Teacher Beating Up the Student?

Chapter 491: The Immortals’ Combat Style

Chapter 492: You’re Right, but This Is the Immortal Corps

Chapter 493: The Frustrated Lampard
Chapter 494: It’s Like Coming Home
Chapter 495: The Question Maker
A note of absence
Chapter 496: Everyone, See You in Valhalla

Chapter 497: Who Could They Be? Truly a Difficult Guess.

Chapter 498: Franklin’s Second Confusion
Chapter 498: Franklin, Second Time Confused
Chapter 499: One-Stop Solution
Chapter 500: Coronation?
Chapter 501: Someone Has to Make a Last Stand

Chapter 502: Sucking the Federation’s Blood, Spamming Amber’s Units

Chapter 503: A Win-Win Situation

Chapter 504: The Renaissance Alliance, Our Homeland

Chapter 505: The Loubion Star System Battle Royale

Chapter 506: The Dream
Chapter 507: Waking from a Dream
Chapter 508: Sparks

Chapter 509: Genius Is Just the Bare Minimum to Face Me

Chapter 510: Combat Drill

Chapter 511: Kid, Remember This Feeling

Chapter 512: Geniuses Are Always Different from Ordinary People

Chapter 513: A Master’s One-on-One Lesson

Bad News: Writer’s Block

Chapter 514: Your Slashes Are Weak, Your Thrusts Imprecise

Chapter 515: Could You Perform That Thing Again?

Chapter 516: Official Assignment
Chapter 517: The Federation’s Heavy Hand
Chapter 518: Negotiation
Chapter 519: A Sudden Change
Chapter 520: A Major Incident
Chapter 521: Change of Plans
Chapter 522: Orbital Defense Platform
Chapter 523: The Dawn

Chapter 524: BASF Enters the ‘Grand View Garden’

Chapter 525: Agnes’s Olive Branch
Chapter 526: Potential S+
Chapter 527: The Third Task Force

Chapter 528: A Perfect Assault That Only Exists in Theory

Chapter 529: The Operation Begins
Chapter 530: The Admiral’s Decision
A Note of Absence
Chapter 531: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada
Chapter 532: The Oriole Behind
Chapter 533: ‘Physical’ Virus Attack
Chapter 534: TF3, Prepare to Attack
Chapter 535: A Simple Math Problem
Chapter 536: A Genius’s First Time in Space
Chapter 537: Crimson Lightning & Red Baron

Chapter 538: The Perfect Assault Also Exists in Reality

Chapter 539: We’ll Ram It to Sink It!
Chapter 540: Impact
Working Overtime
Chapter 541: The Infinity, Full Firepower
Chapter 542: A Race Against Time

Chapter 543: Getting His Groove Back (Not Really)

Chapter 544: Halftime
Chapter 545: Guterres’s Advice
Chapter 546: Reinforcements Arrive Tomorrow

Chapter 547: Brigadier General Dowell’s Tactics

Chapter 548: Between Tomorrow and an Accident, the Accident Usually Comes First

Happy National Day, Everyone (Please Be Gentle)

Chapter 549: TF3 Has No Cowards

Chapter 550: It’s Capital Fleets We’re Here to Fight

Chapter 551: Randall’s Fog
Chapter 552: The Shining Disco Ball
Chapter 553: The Same Old Trick
October No-Hiatus Challenge, Failed!

Chapter 554: Watch Carefully, This Is How You Use the Infinity

Chapter 555: Fierce Battle and Damage Control
Chapter 556: Reinforcements
Chapter 557: The Grand Fleet
Chapter 558: The Onlookers
Chapter 559: The Highly Anticipated Battle
Chapter 560: A Man of Tactics

Chapter 561: Amber, You Weren’t Behind the Comet at All!

Chapter 562: Ecliptic Plane Vertical Assault

Chapter 563: The Federation Fleet: Upping the Ante

Chapter 564: Fight to the Death, No Retreat

Chapter 565: Fire on My Position!

Getting Married, Taking a Break Until the 22nd

Taking Another Two Days Off

Chapter 566: The Threat of the Proton Annihilation Bomb

Chapter 567: Cleves: I Have an Idea!
Chapter 568: The Long-Awaited Solo Charge
Chapter 569: Desperate Assault
Chapter 570

Chapter 571: Shatter the Darkness with Thunder!

Chapter 572: When a Psionic Soldier Boards a Ship

Chapter 573: Loyalty and Mind Control
Chapter 574: Annihilation
Chapter 575: Because It’s a Thrill, Boss
Chapter 576: The Tide Has Turned
Chapter 577: Harvesting the Fruits of Victory

Chapter 578: Reactions from All Sides (Conclusion)

Chapter 579: The Iron Triangle’s Worries
Chapter 580: Fanning the Flames
Chapter 581: Negotiation

Chapter 582: Now That Everyone’s Here, We Can Get Down to Business

Chapter 583: Decapitation by Plasma Torpedo

Chapter [arabic_numeral]: No Battle Today!

Chapter 584: Loubion Star System, Conquest Complete!

Chapter 585: Scion Academy

Chapter 586: The Forerunner Research Institute and ‘Assembling the Army’

Chapter 587: The Atlas Psionic Youths
Chapter 588: The Foundation Reappears
Chapter 589: The Intensity Ramps Up
Chapter 590: High-Intensity Psionic Duel
Chapter 591: The Person Who Shouldn’t Be Here
Chapter 592: The Foundation’s Secret
Chapter 593: A Small Gain
Chapter 594: The Secret to Immortality
Chapter 595: Extending Life
Chapter 596: The Federation in Chaos
Chapter 597: Extending Life
Chapter 598: The Last Starry Sky Dragon
Chapter 599: Fairy Tale, History
Chapter 600: The Truth?
Chapter 601: Royalty × Experiment

Chapter 602: Giant Dragon × Combat Weapon × Pilot

Chapter 603: Atlas ‘Intervenes’ in the Conflict

Chapter 604: The Atlas Way of Negotiation

Chapter 605: The Relaxed Demeanor of a Business Elite

Chapter 606: The Engineering Team Wants to Build an Airfield Here

Chapter 607: The All-Industry Leviathan
Chapter 608: Success is Called Revolution
Chapter 609: The Future of the Federation?
Chapter 610: One Light-Second
Chapter 611: Spectral Annihilator

Chapter 612: Annihilating the Enemy Without Taking Damage

Chapter 613: A Day Trip to the Grand Palace?
Chapter 614: One of Three
Chapter 615: Expedited Transactions
Chapter 616: Impeachment
Chapter 617: Glory
Chapter 618: Coup d’État
Chapter 619: Martial Law Begins
Chapter 620: All Present and Accounted For

Chapter 621: The Composure of a Veteran Commander

Chapter 622: Orbital Drop on the Capital

Chapter 623: Orbital Strike on the Capital

Chapter 624: East Wind at Night Sets a Thousand Trees Ablaze with Flowers

Chapter 625: The Military Government
Chapter 626: The Federation’s Counterattack
Chapter 627: An Admiral is a Mascot?
Chapter 628: Marshal Trafalgar’s Concerns
Chapter 629: An Overwhelming Rout
Chapter 630: Revitalization
Chapter 631: Striking at the Source
Chapter 632: The Pillars of Creation
Chapter 633: The Cautious Trafalgar

Chapter 634: If You’re Going to Put on a Show, Do It Right

Chapter 635: God of War? God of Gamblers!

Chapter 636: Feint Fleet, Commence the Attack!

Chapter [Chapter Number]: Too Excited to Write, Taking It Slow

Chapter 637: Icebreaker

Chapter 638: And You’re Supposed to be the ‘First Fleet’?

Chapter 639: Cosmic Dump Truck

Chapter 640: A Classic Case of “Once Bitten, Twice Shy”

Chapter 641: Standard Procedure: Jump In and Wreck Them

Chapter: Happy New Year in Advance, See You Next Year

Chapter 642: The Poseidon Task Force, Kinetic-Thermal Resistance, and Cutting the Supply Line

Chapter 643: Tactical Concealment
Chapter 644: Requiem
Chapter 645: Advance

Chapter 646: This Is How You Use the Public Channel

Chapter 647: Precision Targeting, Deployed!
Chapter 648: 13° and 130°
Chapter 649: Lilith, You’ve Done a Great Job!
Chapter 650: Forced Demolition
Chapter 651: Release
Chapter 652: Eye of the Serpent
Chapter 653: He Flees, He Pursues
Chapter 654: Who’s Trapped Now?

Chapter 655: The Captain Will Go Down With His Ship

Chapter 656: Come If You Dare
Chapter 657: Detonation
Chapter 658: The Federation’s Backbone
Chapter 659: The Dump Truck King
Chapter 660: The Businessman
Chapter 661: A Favor
Chapter 662: Total Collapse
Chapter 663: Do You Want to Truly Live?

Chapter 664: Immortality, But You Have to Work Triple the Hours

Chapter 665: The Growth of the Immortal Corps
Chapter 666: To Wipe Out in One Fell Swoop
Chapter 667: Keep Up the Good Work
Chapter 668: Entropy’s Victory
Happy Lunar New Year’s Eve
Chapter 669: Annihilation
Chapter 670: Level Six
Chapter 671: Lifespan Crisis
Chapter 672: Agnes’s Invitation
Chapter 673: External Support
Chapter 674: Tactical Time Travel Device MK1
Chapter 675: Arrival
Chapter 676: Meeting at Last
Chapter 677: Speaking Frankly

Chapter 678: The Win-Win Situation (Conclusion)

Chapter 679: A Day in the Life of the Imperial Minister of Finance (Part 1)

Chapter 680: A Day in the Life of the Imperial Minister of Finance (Part 2)

Chapter 681: Hello, Uncle!
Chapter 682: Amber’s Style of Persuasion
Chapter 683: Amber’s True Purpose

Chapter 684: The Imperial Capital’s New Upstart

Chapter 685: The Regent Prince Wants to See Me Too?

Chapter 686: Are You Looking Down on Me?

Chapter 687: A Problem, and a Big One at That

Chapter 688: Are You Really His Biological Daughter?

Chapter 689: The Ultimate Master of Impartiality

Chapter 690: The Last Dance Before Leaving
Chapter 691: Timeline and a Battlefield
Chapter 692: Year 82 of the New Calendar
Chapter 693: An Unexpected Invitation
Chapter 694: The Gindoshi Family
Chapter 695: The Family’s Mission
Chapter 696: Time Travel, Initiate!
Chapter 697: Senior Engineer Amuro
Chapter 698: The Intact West Wing Parapet
Chapter 699: Bombarding the Imperial City!
Chapter 700: My Name is Qilin Gindoshi
Chapter 701: The Perfect ‘Infiltration’
Chapter 702: The Archbishop’s Lavish Reward
Chapter 703: The Reward, an Eternal Rest
Chapter 704: Closing the Loop
Chapter 705: The Hidden Corner
Chapter 706: Remember This String of Numbers
Chapter 707: Entering the Final Dogma Zone
Chapter 708: Holy Shit, a Dragon!
Chapter 709: Atlas Must Step In
Chapter 710: Opening Its Eyes
Chapter 711: Mishaps Are Only Ever Late
Chapter 712: Consecutive Jumps
Chapter 713: Cross-Temporal Attack

Chapter 714: Wreaking Havoc in the Grand Palace

Chapter 715: Your Majesty! Mind if I Borrow This?

Chapter 716: Where the Hell Did You Send Me?
Chapter 717: Rescue by a Mysterious Mech
Chapter 718: The Return

Chapter 719: First Offline Gathering of the Harem Squad

Chapter 720: I Must Assemble the Troops Immediately

Chapter 721: Two-Pronged Operation
Chapter 722: Isabelle VS Allenita
Chapter 723: My Immortals Are Endless
Chapter 724: The Facehugger’s Kiss
Chapter 725: Converging Undercurrents
Chapter 726: Lilith’s ‘Blue Team’
Chapter 727: The Eve of the Enthronement
Chapter 728: The Regent Prince’s Maneuvers

Chapter 729: I Refuse to Pledge Allegiance to You

Chapter 730: Defeat Them One by One?

Chapter 731: Lord Amber, To the Rescue!

Chapter 732: I’ll Pay for the Rescue!

Chapter 733: Thrown into a Chaotic Mess

Chapter 734: Airdrop on Saint-Saulnier Tonight

Chapter 735: Just Like Coming Home

Chapter 736: Clash

Chapter 737: Close-Quarters Combat, We’re the Professionals

Chapter 738: Ace Versus Ace
Chapter 739: I Save Myself
Chapter 740: Pain and Suffering
Chapter 741: Beneath the Shadow of Two Wings

Chapter 742: I Think I Saw You a Few Hundred Years Ago

Chapter 743: Attack Ineffective
Chapter 744: Why Are You Chasing Me?!
Chapter 745: Regalia Fortress
Chapter 746: You Can Call Me LLS943823
Chapter 747: You’re Asking for Death
Chapter 748: Whose Regalia?
Chapter 749: Dance of the Starry Sky

Chapter 750: Stasis Field and Execution by Artillery

Chapter 751: Amber, You Can’t Rest Yet~
Chapter 752: Agnes’s Sense of Crisis
Chapter 753: Where did the Regent Prince Go?
Chapter 754: I Shall Break Their Lines Alone
Chapter 755: The End of the Road
Chapter 756: Revolutionary?
Chapter 757: Special Advantage
Chapter 758: Your Majesty, I’ve Got You

Chapter 759: It’s Better for Everyone Without You

Chapter 760: The Old King is Dead, Long Live the New King

Chapter 761: Dividing the Spoils

Chapter 762: A Second Enthronement and a Silver Dragon Prince?

Chapter 763: I Object to This Marriage
Chapter 764: Second Enthronement
Chapter 765: You Know

Chapter 766: Senior Advisor for Star Dragon Empire Affairs

Chapter 767: A Crack in the Diamond

Chapter 768: Weren’t We Supposed to Be Allies for Life?

Chapter 769: Free Custody
Chapter 770: Sublight Strike
Chapter 771: New Hope and the Old Guard
Chapter 772: A Flurry of Glad Tidings
Chapter 773: The Federation’s Funeral

Chapter 774: The Federation Navy’s Last Charge

Chapter 775: The End of Hegemony

Chapter 776: That’s One Small Step for Me, One Giant Leap for the Empire

Chapter 777: Assault on the Presidential Palace

Chapter 778: The Death of Brandon

Chapter 779: The Dragonslayer Will Become the Dragon

Chapter 780: So I Choose Not to Slay the Dragon

Chapter 781: I, the Transcendent Brute
Chapter 782: I’ve Seen This Episode Before
Chapter 783: Kidnapping
Not Feeling Well, Taking a Day Off Today
Chapter 784: Gummy Bears
Chapter 785: A Huge Help
Chapter 786: Here Comes the Internal Conflict

Chapter 787: The First Punch of Amber’s Combination

Chapter 788: The Invitation

Chapter 789: The Feast at Hong Gate

Chapter 790: The Resolve for Mutual Destruction

Chapter 791: Awakening Blueberry
Chapter 792: Correction Protocol
Chapter 793: A Dream Come True
Chapter 794: Good Morning, Her Majesty
Chapter 795: Rumors of the Queen’s Keeper

Chapter 796: Work-for-Relief and the Colonization Plan

Chapter 797: It All Adds Up

Chapter 798: The Big One is Really Coming This Time

Chapter 799: Splitting Up

Chapter [arabic_numeral]: Updates Will Resume Tomorrow

Chapter 800: Huss, and the Approaching Sugar-Coated Bullet

Chapter 801: Time Alone with Agnes

Chapter 802: The Dragon Girl Development Process

Chapter 803: The Phoenix King
Chapter 804: The Phoenix King’s Invitation
Chapter 805: There’s a Mole, Stop

Chapter 806: Damn It, Why Are These Elves So Vicious

Chapter 807: An Unexpected Turn of Events
Chapter 808: Civil War Wherever We Go
Chapter 809: Human Technology, Boy!

Chapter 810: Go Tell It to The Focusing Rainbow

Chapter 811: Agnes’s Blade

Chapter 812: Psionic Lightning

Chapter 813: Your Majesty! Forgive My Tardy Arrival!

Chapter 814: The Final Return

Chapter 815: What was your mission in

Chapter 816: Regalia Fortress Is More than Just Big!

Chapter 817: Too Many Traitors

Chapter 818: The Plan to Attack the Elven Ancestral Tombs

Chapter 819: Orbital Strike, Physical Salvation

Chapter 820: The Battle of the Royal Mausoleum

Chapter 821: The Truth About the Romu
Chapter 822: Aldaram is Dead
Chapter 823: The Future of the Elves?
Chapter 824: Forerunners: Read

Chapter 825: The Empress Regnant Isn’t Home Today

Chapter 826: The Hidden Danger of the Imperial Nobility

Chapter 827: Traitors to Humanity
Chapter 828: Fair, Just, and Open
Chapter 829: Waking Up to a Changed World

Chapter 830: Lilith’s Main Body, A Grand Return!

Chapter 831: In Our Own Way
Chapter 832: Let Us Stand United
Chapter 833: Forerunners, Where Are You?
Chapter 834: A Very Strong Probe
Chapter 835: The Power of the Mind
Chapter 836: Plan B

Chapter 837: The Kindling and the Prelude to the Final Battle

Chapter 838: This Shot Is Called ‘Hello’
Chapter 839: Amber Prays to the Gods
Chapter 840: The Only Thing That Answered Him
Chapter 833: Epilogue
Chapter 835