"Nana, upon this building plan.
"Have you made any reckoning of the budget?" Zhao Chen threw the question to Nana.
Nana, without a second word, opened a document. "I have reckoned it.
"The building budget for thirty T5 Galaxy-class Large Interstellar Industrial Bases and one thousand T5 Stellar-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ships stands at some 800 trillion star coins."
800 trillion star coins: this is a figure of vast size.
Nay, it takes up near the half of that super military-purchase order Zhao Chen signed with the Machine Race before!
"And this building budget — how long is it looked to run?" Zhao Chen asked as to the time.
"Upon that we must take an overall view of the case of those five Machine Race starship industrial production grounds; but in the main it should be finished before the end of this year, and it will not affect our other plans of production," Chief Engineer Nana answered in earnest.
Zhao Chen was silent a while.
Such a building plan as this spends 800 trillion star coins.
And there are besides the building plans of the two T6 classes; supposing that of the T6 Wrath-of-Heaven-Goddess-class Interstellar Heavy-Artillery Ship one only were built.
The cost of building these two T6 interstellar warships alone would want another 800 trillion star coins.
The two building plans laid together come to 1,600 trillion star coins!
And it must be remembered that the Machine Race's military-purchase order before was but 2,000 trillion star coins.
And this leaves out of the reckoning what must be laid out for the fighting with the Demon Race to come.
"If… there is a difficulty upon the side of raw materials, I can cut it down…" Nana had seen the misgiving upon the Commander's face, and put forward her thought at once.
But Zhao Chen cut Nana's words short, and fixed his eyes upon her. "If I agree to all these plans of production.
"And require at the same time that within half a year two T6 interstellar warships must come off the line and enter service.
"And that at the same time the supply of war stores the forward battlefields require be assured, together with the interstellar warship production tasks first laid down.
"And the plan first laid down of enlarging to twenty Owl Dragon legions completed besides.
"And beyond all this, the military-purchase orders of the Angel Race and the Machine Race completed as well.
"Do you hold that, leaving the condition of raw materials out of the account, you can accomplish this whole train of building tasks?"
Hearing the Commander's words, Nana understood the Commander's meaning at once.
She stood up straight and said, cutting the nail and slicing the iron, "Though we have not yet reckoned up the case of those five Machine Race starship industrial production grounds.
"Yet I have the confidence that, where the supply of raw materials is sufficient, we can accomplish this whole train of production tasks!"
"Good.
"Do you give me, in the shortest time that may be, a report of the plan in particulars.
"As for that matter of raw materials, you need not be troubled.
"I will think of a way to settle it," said Zhao Chen.
"Yes!" Chief Engineer Nana nodded in her excitement.
Chief Engineer Spider Queen Iris too said, stirred, "Who would have thought it — that we may truly build T6 interstellar warships now!"
Beside them Chief Engineer Annie covered her face with both hands, and there was no telling whether she rejoiced or wept.
Chief Engineer Nana and the rest were in haste to go and look into the case of those five Machine Race starship industrial production grounds, and so this meeting too came to its close.
Zhao Chen sat within the captain's chair.
Lilith, beside him, threw Zhao Chen a rolled eye, and said with a plaintive air, "And you agreed to it, just so?
"Do you know how much raw material lies behind those plans of production?"
The business of the money has all along been Lilith's doing.
There is no one who knows the case of Owl Dragon's finances better than she.
"Heh, heh, heh — did you not forbear to cut me short yourself, just now?" Zhao Chen caught Lilith's hand.
Lilith flung Zhao Chen's hand off without ceremony, folded her arms, and looked for all the world as though she came to call him to account. "Then let the Commander think well, now, how he is to fill up so great a pit.
"Though we had those two great military-purchase orders before, from the Angel Race and the Machine Race, they will not bear such tossing about as this of yours."
Zhao Chen raised a hand and opened the star chart.
It was the Demon Race's interstellar map. "When this campaign is ended, we can control outright every interstellar territory of the Demon Race.
"And then, whatever belonged of old to the Demon Race's royal house shall be taken in, every part of it.
"This alone should make up no little of our want of raw materials.
"And then there are those raw-material grounds within the Demon Race's territory.
"Before this, in the Demon Race's fullest time, their yearly output value ran as high as 200 trillion star coins; and if our advanced production equipment be added to it, that output value can be tripled at the least.
"And then it should just barely hold the balance between our supply and our need.
"And if it will not do at all, we can trade a little with the Angel Race and the Machine Race when the time comes.
"They are both of them short of interstellar warships now; we may very well produce interstellar warships and sell them to them."
"You and your notions.
"Every time, you can hardly wait to fling out every coin before it has had time to warm in the hand." Lilith curled her lip. As for why she had not stopped the Commander just now.
Upon the one hand it was because the Commander's authority stands where it stands.
And upon the other, because Lilith too carries a balance within her own breast, and she knows what Owl Dragon's limit is.
"There is no help for it with me either.
"You do not know what a secret I came to learn this time, over upon the Machine Race's side." Zhao Chen put his arms about Lilith's waist and leaned his head against her, and within his eyes were weariness and a look of many mingled things.
"What did you see?" Lilith asked it only now.
Before this she had never inquired into the Commander's going to the mechanical royal court, for in such a business, if the Commander wished to speak of it, he would naturally speak.
And if he did not wish to, neither ought they to ask.
Since the Commander had raised it himself now, that showed this was a thing they had the right to know.
Zhao Chen began to tell of the Gaia Empire, and of certain of the Machine Race's secrets.
As she heard these tales of legend, there was nothing but astonishment within Lilith's eyes.
And when she had heard it out, Lilith could not digest it for a long while together.
"Who would have thought it — that the Machine Race… should all this while have been such an existence as that…" Lilith's tone was a mingled one; for the moment she did not know how to weigh the Machine Race at all.
Zhao Chen sighed. "The right and wrong of the Machine Race I have no wish to weigh.
"But those invaders out of that other space of the universe, that Pitch-Black Legion fleet, undying and unperishing — it is that which troubles me.
"If these invaders out of another world truly come with our universe for their aim.
"And if not even the whole military strength of the Machine Race can withstand them.
"Then tell me — what surety have we?"
Zhao Chen's hand held Lilith's fast, and he said in a low voice, "And so I am in urgent haste to enlarge our Owl Dragon's military strength upon every side.
"Interstellar industry is our foundation, and it weighs very heavily.
"Only by holding a thick and solid foundation of interstellar industry can we produce more interstellar warships.
"So that when the day comes that we face the enemy, we may have the more heart and the more chance!"
Lilith too gripped the Commander fast; she knows that all of this of the Commander's is for their sake.
For the sake of their home.
"Whensoever it be, we are with you."