Was it a failure?
The scout ship was half-destroyed.
*Whoosh!*
Flames erupted here and there.
I thought things had been going a bit too well for me lately.
“Captain. It’s a transmission!” the Vice-Captain called out.
Did Diana Jyot survive?
*Beep!*
**[Success!]**
Was the explosion intentional?
It seemed they succeeded in neutralizing the protection system of the supply warehouse. My heart, which had gone cold, began to race again.
“Whole fleet, assist in firefighting. Hurry.”
“Yes, sir. Relaying orders. All ships, approach and extinguish the fires!”
The fleet immediately approached the adventure ship.
“Tell those who surrendered to come and help as well.”
“Understood.”
those of the alien tribes who had surrendered rushed over immediately.
Even so, it took quite a while to bring the flames under control because the adventure ship was so massive.
**[Full control of the supply warehouse has been secured!]**
“Good!”
Now I was rich.
If I assembled all the parts in there, I could become a respectable warlord.
“Only the Vice-Captain and Sudongtae will follow me. The captains of each ship are to keep their subordinates in line.”
I immediately crossed over to the warehouse.
Several sturdy bulkheads had been destroyed. It looked like they had been breached in an instant. The large explosion likely occurred during that process.
“Wow!!!”
This was a jackpot.
The parts warehouse was packed to the brim. Of course, they couldn’t be used immediately. Since they weren’t the standard specifications of our Empire, they required modification.
‘I need a skilled mechanic.’
There would be a loss rate when converting them to standard specifications. It would vary wildly depending on the mechanic’s skill. Even so, I could salvage at least 5000 ships. Furthermore, the supply warehouse also functioned as a factory. As long as materials were supplied, it would keep churning out equipment.
“Captain, this is an incredible amount!”
Even the usually calm Vice-Captain stood there with her mouth agape. She was losing her mind at the overwhelming quantity.
‘What should I do with all this?’
However, worry preceded my excitement. I still planned to sell the Lucifel territory and leave. There were too many jackals nearby.
To the west was the Imperium.
To the northwest was Dalip.
To the north was Kranoskan.
To the south were Humildas, Naparrr, and Uganaoda.
Wasn’t the south allied territory?
It would be a grave mistake to think of those guys as allies.
In the first place, it was foolish to trust any warlord in this world. The moment you showed a weakness, they would bite—that was the basic rule. If you had too much sentiment, you wouldn’t succeed as a warlord. Marshals and marshal candidates were all cold-blooded types.
“Even if we churn out ships with that, the crew will be a problem,” the Vice-Captain advised rationally after regaining her composure.
You couldn’t just put anyone in a crew. They had to be able to handle Force above a certain level.
Additionally, people in this world didn’t like enlisting.
Their lifespan exceeded 500 years. Why would they voluntarily get on a dangerous ship?
Unless it was incredibly hard to make a living, or they had massive debts, or many family members to support, or their lives were at a dead end, or they needed a huge amount of money, they wouldn’t board a ship.
There were ways to conscript people by force. When colonies were in danger, temporary forced mobilization sometimes happened. But you couldn’t forcibly conscript a regular army. Morale would hit rock bottom.
“First, we need to move some of this to Lucifel. Send a courier ship to my father and give him the news.”
The Lucifer Star Cluster would be able to absorb a little of it. Their production capacity wasn’t that great, but it was important to secure even one more ship.
“Yes, sir. Understood.”
“Damn it. I’ll have to defend this place as best as I can for now.”
I should temporarily postpone the plan to put the Mungom Star Cluster up for sale.
“Is there a way? The Mungom Star Cluster has too many routes leading into it.”
By the standards of my old world, the Mungom Star Cluster was like a vast plain. It wasn’t easy to block the Imperium in such a place. The Administrator knew that too, which was why he expected only looting and destruction. That was why he surrendered so easily.
“I’m going to build a fortress in the wasteland to change the flow of the wormholes.”
Wormholes flow between stars. Dark paths connect planets. Both could be altered to some extent. You just had to build a space station or a fortress.
“Is that possible? I heard that unless it’s a massive station, the change isn’t very significant.”
“There’s a way even with a small station. Though the conditions are strict.”
There was a sacred relic that could grant power.
“Ah, so that’s why you made such a request to the Head of the House.”
I nodded. Then I turned my head and gestured to the Mungom Administrator.
“Yes, Master Pak Yu!”
He approached me with a humble posture.
“Spread the rumors. Say that I hit the jackpot here.”
“What?! If you do that, people will attack from all sides to take this place.”
“That’s the point.”
For now, I kept my subordinates under control as much as possible. Only my inner circle and the Grey Human tribe had seen the interior.
It might look like I could control the information, but I discarded such arrogant thoughts. You never knew when or how information might leak.
“Don’t tell me… are you trying to make it look like a bluff?”
“Exactly. I intend to put our territory, including this place, up for public sale.”
People would sneer. They would think I was struggling to sell it at a high price. Even if they believed a supply warehouse existed here, they would think a few hundred ships were a lot.
“That’s a clever plan. Merchant ships will be coming and going, so rumors are bound to spread.”
Of course, I wouldn’t use external merchant groups; I would only use the Grey Human tribe. In that case, it would take a long time. I didn’t have that much time.
“I will leave the management of this place to you and your clan. You may even sell some of it. Your clan can keep 30% of the proceeds.”
“Is… is that true?!”
Thinking about it, this guy wasn’t bad at business. He would go from a mere Administrator to a nationally renowned merchant family. Of course, his son Diana Jyot was the one who achieved it, but this man’s contribution wouldn’t be zero.
“It’s on the condition that you continue to serve as Administrator.”
“I… I will definitely do it!”
Naturally. No matter how kind I was, there was no telling what would happen to his clan the moment he quit his post. I wanted Diana Jyot, but he wasn’t more valuable than the massive amount of parts here. If they could just dispose of it all, the Pak family could leap to a higher level.
‘Even if I only assemble half of it, no one will be able to look down on me easily.’
My current force was about 1500 ships. What if I added 2000 or 3000 more? I would become a full-fledged warlord.
‘With that strength, I could integrate Sector 24 immediately.’
I was prepared to struggle at first when I went to Sector 24. But with 3000 ships, there was no need for that.
While 3000 ships might seem like a small amount here, in a backwater like Sector 24, it was a grand army. The local influential families would have to unite to oppose me. If the numbers were similar, there was no way I would lose.
“I… I kept you waiting! Master Pak Yu.”
Just then, Diana Jyot arrived after meticulously inspecting the warehouse. He had a very handsome face for a Grey Human. Wearing glasses, he looked quite intellectual.
“Are you Jyot?”
“I… I am.”
His eyes were completely black, making it difficult to read his emotions. However, seeing his body trembling slightly, he seemed terrified. He probably thought he might be killed to keep him silent.
“Good work. I plan to entrust this place to your clan, and we’ve decided to sell part of it on the market.”
“Is… is that true?!”
Relief appeared on the boy’s face. He really must have thought I would kill him.
‘First, I need money.’
I gave up on the idea of assembling everything into ships. I needed money to recruit crews. On top of that, the salaries of my subordinates were an issue.
The territory held by the Pak family consisted of only two star clusters. If I maintained an army of over 1500 ships with the income from there, I would see a continuous deficit. The money accumulated thanks to that sucker would melt like ice cream under the sun.
“I’ve decided to give 30% to your clan.”
At my words, his eyes widened.
“Thank… thank you for trusting our clan.”
“I don’t mistreat capable people. I’m appointing you as the supply officer of my fleet.”
His mouth hung open slightly. Since he was a guy who rolled around as a merchant in the game, he would be good at supply management.
“I… I will work hard.”
However, he wore a hesitant expression. I knew why. So, for the sake of his morale, I gave him a goal.
“Let’s go treasure hunting together sometimes, too.”
“Really?!”
As expected, he reacted. This guy loved excavating sacred relics, holy artifacts, and treasures. However, he didn’t seem to have much interest in collecting them. If he did, he wouldn’t have sold off the items he worked so hard to get.
—This is a new item that just came in! I almost lost my life getting this.
—Ah. I see what kind of item you want. If the time and budget are sufficient…
Those were the lines he usually uttered in the game.
“I’m also very interested in the mysteries of the planets.”
I held out my hand. He grabbed it with a moved expression.
“I… I will be completely loyal.”
—
He boarded my ship. I arranged a suitable spot for him in the situation room. It was like a desk in an office.
However, he looked around and asked, “Is there no communications officer on this ship?”
You couldn’t find such precious talent. In the first place, computer experts didn’t want to leave their planets. The reality was that anyone with even a little knowledge was hired as a situation soldier. Of course, once the mid-game passed, communications officers would become somewhat available. As the Marshals’ power grew, they would create mandatory service laws.
“Then… may I take over temporarily?”
Thinking about it, he needed hacking skills to neutralize the supply warehouse anyway.
“As expected of a graduate from the Imperial Central University!”
For the record, the work of a communications officer wasn’t simple. First, they managed the ship’s central control system alongside the medical officer.
Why alongside the medical officer?
The ship’s central control device wasn’t a mechanical computer. That was because computers on ships traveling through wormholes had very short lifespans. No matter how well you made the shielding, the moment it broke down, the ship was in danger.
Therefore, ship computers were mainly made from the brains of the Brain Tribe. They were giant slug-like creatures, and they became ship computers in exchange for breeding. As long as they were allowed to breed, they didn’t have much attachment to their physical bodies. However, breeding was tricky and cost a lot of money.
“I haven’t learned it formally, so I’m lacking.”
“No. Just having a communications officer can shorten maintenance time.”
This was very important. A communications officer had to periodically manage the data of the biological computer.
“And now we can communicate with peace of mind.”
If you communicated, your location could be tracked. But communications officers could hide transmissions within the fluctuations of dark energy. This alone raised the quality of operations.
“Thank you!”
Somehow, I ended up with a supply officer, communications officer, and treasure hunter all in one.
“First, we return to the Mungom Star Cluster.”
—
We arrived at the Mungom Star Cluster. I leisurely had a cup of tea at a cafe in the station.
“Captain. A new article is out. A courier ship from a news agency just stopped by.”
Even in the Great Space Age, articles were delivered in analog format. I skimmed through the article.
—Marshal Humildas’s forces shrink.
—Complete defeat in the war against Marshal Imperium.
—Suffered massive damage during the pursuit.
—A rejuvenated Marshal Ugo-girl?
Then, the last article caught my eye.
[She, who hadn’t released her energy for a long time.
What happened to her in this war?
Where did she use the blessing that so many wealthy men craved?
An exclusive interview with her!
Subscribe right now.]
The reputation of the Succubus Tribe was notorious within the Empire. So, interest was very high.
But no soldier welcomed fighting them. The moment you were captured, hell unfolded. If you were lucky, you’d be released for a ransom. If not, you would suffer physical and mental pain until death.
[I simply gave a gift to the primary contributor of this war.
The night with him was the best day of my life.
I say this on my name: he is the galaxy’s greatest playboy.
He is likely the only man who can satisfy the Succubus Tribe.]
I slapped my forehead!
She hid the fact that she was almost violated by Imperium’s son-in-law. Since that would show her incompetence as a Marshal, she used me as a shield for the reason she looked younger. People knew why succubi reversed their age.
â”” As expected of Pak Yu!
â”” Wow… he satisfied a succubus? And Marshal Ugo-girl at that? Is that even possible?
â”” An expert calculated that to satisfy a succubus of Ugo-girl’s level, you’d have to make love all day long.
â”” He’s practically the best in the Empire.
â”” I guess he has a strong stomach.
â”” It might be because he’s the galaxy’s greatest playboy.
â”” Even if Marshal Ugo-girl says so, it doesn’t seem true.
â”” Highly suspicious. Giving away gathered energy so easily to someone who isn’t even a warlord. There’s no benefit from Marshal Ugo-girl’s perspective.
â”” Pak Yu must have done something we don’t know about.
â”” He’s not called a playboy for nothing.
The article was accompanied by comments from subscribers in other regions. My face turned red for no reason.
*Rustle! Rustle!*
People passing by glanced at me. They didn’t dare look openly, but it seemed to be because of the article. My face grew even redder.
‘I saved her life, and this is how she repays me?’
She turned me into a playboy. Oh, I guess I was already famous as a playboy.
“Young Master!”
Sojin came running from afar, his wings fluttering. His movements were like someone jumping on the moon.
“Did you find it?”
“Yes! I was able to specify the star system with the conditions you gave me, Young Master.”
I thought it would take more time, but he was indeed a first-class navigator. Recalling my game knowledge, I told him where to build the fortress. Without Sojin, I would have had to search one by one based on rumors.
“Vice-Captain. Prepare thirty light mobile ships.”
“Yes, Captain!”
The place I was looking for wasn’t a colony. It was an undeveloped planet currently undergoing colonization.
I would build a fortress there.
‘That Imperium bastard is in for a surprise.’
By now, he would have heard the news that the Mungom Star Cluster was attacked. He was probably snorting in derision. This wasn’t an easy place to defend.
But I…
‘I’m going to build a freaking awesome fortress.’