Super Mothership
She took a deep breath and looked toward the various officers, whose expressions differed from one another.
“Submit the communication records from just now to the council. As for this matter… let’s see what decision the council makes.”
“…Yes, Commander!”
The heavy-hearted group failed to notice someone in the corner, whose expression kept changing—sometimes frowning, sometimes deep in thought…
If nothing unexpected happened, Gemini would probably back down this time.
Could he really just watch helplessly as the duck he had his eyes on was carried away by someone else?
No! The situation probably wasn’t that bad yet.
As the saying went, a blessing may come from a disaster. Since the other side could use threats, why couldn’t he use incentives?
Perhaps, rather than causing trouble for him this time, the other side had actually cooked the duck for him in advance and done him a huge favor…
His thoughts raced. His expression gradually changed from gloomy to cheerful, and his eyes grew increasingly bright.
“Huh? Lord Arthas, did you just smile?”
“Uh… Sorry, I lost control of myself a little. I was just thinking about how our mighty Gemini has actually been extorted so shamelessly. I became so furious and sorrowful that I couldn’t help myself.”
“But just now, you seemed to…”
“Haven’t you heard? Smiling through tears… hurts the most!”
Renault: “…”
……
One hour later.
Gemini Council.
“No wonder the other side was willing to mobilize their entire force to launch a second attack within such a short period. It seems that this ‘Vector Engine’ is extraordinarily attractive to them.”
“Damn it! If we had known this would happen, we shouldn’t have used the ‘Death God’ back then!”
“Exactly. Some of our scientists warned us long ago that artifacts created by advanced civilizations had a certain probability of arousing the enemy’s greed. They advised us not to expose them whenever possible. What do you think we should do now?”
“Hmph! Not expose it? Given the circumstances at the time, if we hadn’t prepared the ‘Death God’ in advance and caught the enemy’s first fleet off guard, the Gallente Star Zone would probably have already fallen completely!”
“And what good did it do? It was merely drinking poison to quench our thirst. We didn’t drive the enemy back, and instead attracted even greater trouble.”
“Enough!” Cruze shouted angrily, his face dark as still water.
The entire room immediately fell silent.
“This is not the time to argue over who was right or wrong. Tell me, should we accept the other side’s conditions for a ceasefire?”
A wave of whispered discussions spread through the room, but no one spoke up.
Not accept?
Were they really going to gamble the fate of their entire civilization on the possibility that the enemy was merely exaggerating and bluffing?
Were they going to bet that the other side wouldn’t dare leak the information at the risk of destroying both sides?
Even the most aggressive factions advocating war didn’t dare take such a risk lightly.
But what if they accepted?
If they handed over the Vector Engine, only to discover later that the other side had merely been bluffing, wouldn’t Gemini become the greatest fool in the entire universe?
“The problem is that we have no way of determining how much of what the other side said is true and how much is false.”
In the end, Victor, the leader of the Sea Race, was the one who broke the silence.
Intelligence! They needed intelligence!
Without sufficient intelligence, Gemini had no way of judging the current situation and could easily make the wrong strategic decisions.
The problem was that their only reliable source of intelligence had already been completely cut off because the wormhole was sealed.
“Regarding this matter, Commander Isabel has provided us with a suggestion. Perhaps we could try purchasing some intelligence from the All for One Society,” Cruze said.
“Buy intelligence from them?” Victor’s expression became hesitant.
Because of Gustav’s “betrayal,” the Sea Race generally held little goodwill toward the All for One Society and lacked trust in the organization.
It had always been a mysterious organization whose allegiance was unclear and whose true strength remained unknown. It had even infiltrated the interior of their civilization. In terms of danger, it might not be much less threatening than the Woolf Empire.
“I support giving it a try!” Assad suddenly spoke up.
“During the previous intelligence transaction, that Black Steward already demonstrated a certain degree of goodwill. Although he joined other groups for profit, when the survival of a civilization is at stake, he should still be able to distinguish right from wrong.”
When Nie Yun sold The Woolf Empire Encyclopedia, he had deliberately made two copies, allowing Arthas and the All for One Society to profit from both sides.
However, Nie Yun had indeed offered Gemini a considerable discount at the time. His price had been absolutely fair, practically an opening-sale bargain.
Not only had he proactively provided the precious intelligence Gemini urgently needed, but he had also refrained from taking advantage of their difficult situation by inflating the price.
This had undoubtedly given Assad Leon, the intelligence officer in charge of the Gallente Star Zone, the illusion that he had encountered a “patriotic businessman.”
This analysis had evidently also reached the ears of the Assad family patriarch through internal family communications…
“Hmm… Let’s give it a try for now.” Victor finally nodded slowly.
“Good! This time, we’ll personally negotiate with the other side. I’ve wanted to meet that mysterious Black Steward for a long time…”
Councilor Cruze narrowed his eyes slightly…
……
Through Kala Star’s “Free Trade Zone,” Gemini quickly contacted the person in charge there, the “White Steward.” After several rounds of relaying messages, they finally reached the even more mysterious figure behind the scenes—the “Black Steward.”
The environment remained extremely dim. Two clusters of dark-blue flames floated in the air, flickering and burning.
The legendary Black Steward sat upright on a tall stone chair. Only a vague outline of his figure could be seen.
“You’ve come to purchase intelligence, correct?”
The moment he opened his mouth, the Black Steward struck the nail on the head as if he had already known everything in advance!
All the senior officials of Gemini, including Councilor Cruze, froze.
How long had it been since they had made this decision?
The news had already reached the other side?
What did this mean?
It meant that there might very well be one of their people among Gemini’s senior leadership!
At the thought of certain possibilities, even someone as composed as Cruze couldn’t help feeling a chill run down his back.
With intelligence-gathering capabilities like this, their movements in front of the other side were probably no different from a live broadcast!
“Don’t misunderstand. The war in the Gallente Star Zone has deteriorated badly, and as a member of Gemini, I naturally pay close attention to it as well.
“Therefore, I guessed that under these circumstances, the only matter important enough to bring the councilor here personally would probably be the intelligence network of our all-pervasive All for One Society, right?”
Cruze: “…”
Was that an explanation or a warning?
His gaze swept across the councilors present, and a seed of suspicion quietly took root…
However, this was clearly not the right time to root out internal traitors.
Cruze steadied his mind and asked:
“Since Lord Black Steward already knows why we have come, may I ask whether, at this critical moment concerning the survival of our civilization, you can provide us with some assistance in terms of intelligence?”
“Of course. If the skin is gone, what can the hair cling to?
“It is true that I am a member of the All for One Society, but my prosperity and downfall are tied to those of Gemini’s civilization. To simply watch our civilization perish would be equivalent to destroying my own foundation!”
“As expected of someone who understands the greater good. Then, regarding the price of the intelligence…”
“Eh? I’m doing all this out of pure patriotism and a heart full of passion. And you want to talk about money? That would hurt our feelings!”
This…
Cruze and the others exchanged glances, each seeing a strange expression in the other’s eyes.
This Black Steward… was unexpectedly easy to deal with!
“Don’t you need to report this to your superiors?” Cruze asked tentatively.
The other side had agreed far too readily, which instead made them somewhat uneasy.
“Oh, that? Because of my outstanding performance, headquarters just promoted me to become the president of the Gemini branch. So, I’m the one who makes the decisions here now!”
Report to his superiors?
Report to whom?
I already have enough alternate identities to keep me busy. My schedule is almost completely full. Please, don’t make me create another one!
Promoted to branch president?
The crowd was initially stunned. Then, they gradually came to terms with it.
Come to think of it, this fellow could be considered the most active member of the All for One Society within their civilization.
He had established the Earth branch, facilitated the energy crystal trade, and developed Kara Star’s Free Trade Zone…
Meanwhile, the other three stewards in the star zones were so inconspicuous that nobody even knew their surnames or colors. They barely had any presence at all.
With such remarkable achievements and such an enterprising spirit, who else should become president if not him?
“Then we really should congratulate you, Black… President.”
“You’re too kind. Speaking of which, I owe this promotion to all of you, so please don’t stand on ceremony. Whatever intelligence you need, just ask!”
“Hmm… In that case, thank you very much!”
Cruze then proceeded to explain Chloros’s conditions for peace talks and the threats he had issued.
“We want to know whether the situation he described will really occur if he spreads the existence of our ‘Death God.’ Will it truly attract more powerful enemies?”
After a brief hesitation, Nie Yun let out a deep sigh.
“Alas! Although it pains me to say so, things are indeed as he described.”
“Several thousand years ago, a wondrous artifact gave rise to the Star Cross Knights and ushered in the glorious era of the Woolf Empire.
“A thousand years ago, the imperial royal family once again used a secret treasure to behead Gaia, the leader of the Mechanical Race. This caused the Mechanical Race to split apart and solved a major threat to the Woolf Empire.
“From these two incidents alone, you should understand the strategic importance that cosmic wonders hold in their eyes.
“Even an artifact with relatively limited practical value, such as the ‘Vector Engine,’ will undoubtedly attract the attention of the Woolf Empire’s top powers.
“Furthermore, according to the intelligence I possess, the second-largest shareholder of the Locke Consortium is none other than His Highness, the Empire’s Second Prince.
“In other words, there is a certain possibility that the other side already knows about the existence of the ‘Vector Engine’ and may very well have already set its sights on this place…”
Nie Yun’s words caused the hearts of every councilor to sink.
They had originally believed that Chloros might have been exaggerating and trying to frighten them.
But why did it seem that the situation was even more serious than he had described once they heard it from the Black Steward?
And now the Second Prince had been dragged into the matter?
In that case… there was probably no way they could keep the artifact.
For a moment, no one spoke. Everyone silently digested this depressing news.
Cruze’s mental composure was extraordinary. He quickly recovered from his shock and noticed something suspicious.
“Lord Black Steward… it seems you had already prepared all of this and were simply waiting for us to come asking?”
Cruze stared intently at the figure on the communication screen.
Upon hearing this, the others also came back to their senses.
That was right!
The other side hadn’t even needed time to gather intelligence. Instead, they had presented all kinds of information and secrets with such familiarity, as if reciting treasured family possessions.
It certainly didn’t look like something they had prepared at the last minute.
Even the legendary Iron-Gallant Divine Marquis would need to send over a little note if he wanted intelligence, right?
You didn’t even make a phone call. Wasn’t that a little unreasonable?
“Of course! In fact, from the moment the ‘Death God’ appeared on the battlefield, I had already roughly anticipated today’s situation. Naturally, I made preparations long ago.”
The divine fortune-teller Nie Yun began boasting.
“Then… if you’re willing to tell us all of this free of charge, what exactly is your objective?”
Cruze’s expression was solemn.
From the very beginning, he had never believed that there was such a thing as a free lunch.
“Heh heh! The Locke Consortium are businessmen. They want to pursue short-term profits and one-off deals. We’re businessmen too, but we want to pursue long-term cooperation. Everyone can benefit from one another, and we can develop together!
“So, what do you think? Would you be interested in taking a look at our cooperation proposal?”
Nie Yun revealed a sincere smile…
So what if he had a royal flush?
This game wasn’t heads-up Texas Hold’em.
It was a three-player game of mahjong!
You discarded the winning tile?
Sorry about that…
I’m calling ron!
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