Nearly everyone, in every corner of the planet, heard this planet-wide broadcast.
Evacuation assembly points?
Drawing lots for a chance to evacuate?
Though they found this sort of evacuation plan quite strange, at present this Owl Dragon Fleet was their one and only hope of evacuation. In an instant, a great mass of people began surging toward the evacuation assembly point nearest them.
But among them there was a small handful who would not take it lying down — and those, naturally, were that lot of the privileged class.
"Draw lots? We're nobles — on what grounds should we draw lots together with that pack of lowborn wretches? We ought to enjoy the privilege of priority evacuation!" a so-called person of noble standing, one with no title, complained.
"Just so, just so! And if it comes to it, I can pay money for a ship-ticket! It's we outstanding sorts who ought to be evacuated first!" a merchant said too.
"Set your minds at ease. This so-called announcement is, by my estimate, merely a means of that Owl Dragon Fleet's to quell the chaos among the common people. Wait till we reach the evacuation point and report our standing, and among all those lottery slots there'll naturally be a 'ship-ticket' for us!" another rather self-important man said with a frivolous air.
Within the Jiang family estate.
Jiang Xiong, the family head, looked, with a complicated expression, at the interstellar warships overhead that belonged to the Owl Dragon Fleet. A year ago, by all estimates, he'd never in his wildest thoughts have imagined that one day his Jiang family would, of all things, be hoping for the Owl Dragon Fleet to come to their rescue. That lord-fleet they'd once looked down upon — just now it had become their one and only hope!
"Father, what are we to do now?" Jiang Shasha said, her expression complicated.
"Go to the evacuation point; this is, at present, the one method by which we can leave this place." Jiang Xiong, the family head, said helplessly. Though there were some complicated emotions at work in his heart, this was indeed the one method to be had at present.
Before long, the Jiang family head led his Jiang family off from the Jiang estate once more, and set out for the nearest evacuation point. Along the way they could see the wretched scenes upon the streets, bugs everywhere to be seen, and here and there the remains of people.
Hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss.
Suddenly, several thousand interstellar hive-race possessed of the ability to fly at low altitude seemed to lock onto this convoy of theirs as their target, and came swarming. The Jiang family convoy began to open fire, but there was nothing to be done — their munitions were nearly spent, and just as they looked to be on the verge of being devoured by the bugs, that patch of interstellar hive-race was torn to shreds by a curtain of fire; the splashing remains of the bugs even landed right before the Jiang family head. Every one of the Jiang family wore the look of one snatched from disaster; they looked to one side. There was a black interstellar mecha, the Owl Dragon Fleet's emblem painted upon its body. This black interstellar mecha, having destroyed this batch of bugs, then set off to patrol other areas.
"It's truly very hard to believe that in this year and more that we were away, that Zhao Chen could, of all things, come to possess an interstellar fleet like this — and such advanced T2 interstellar mecha, besides." Jiang Xiong, the family head, said in wonder.
Those Jiang descendants who'd always poured cold scorn and sarcasm on Zhao Chen said, just now, not a word more. When they'd left the Owl Dragon System, every one of them had said with their mouths that they'd sit back and wait to see just how that Lord Zhao Chen would run the Owl Dragon System — reckoning that after their Jiang family departed, the Owl Dragon System's trade order would collapse. Whether the Owl Dragon System had collapsed or not, they didn't know — but just now, their own hearts were collapsing.
Under a strange, uncanny atmosphere, the Jiang family evacuated to the nearest evacuation point.
"Halt!" A squad of soldiers barred the Jiang family's way.
"We want to enter the evacuation point." Jiang Xiong, the family head, stepped up to communicate.
"You may enter, but the vehicles and the weapons in your hands must all be left outside," the squad captain said, weapon in hand.
"On what grounds! Just who are you people!" a Jiang family member said, indignant.
The captain pointed at the T2 black interstellar mecha standing guard at this evacuation point not far off. "On the grounds that we're a squad temporarily conscripted by that Lord of the Owl Dragon. We were originally soldiers belonging to this planet; and just a short while ago, we received the star-region Governor's order to unconditionally obey this Owl Dragon lord's commands. And the order we've received is to stand guard at this evacuation point — while defending against the bugs' invasion, all common people who enter the evacuation point must disarm; save for their own persons and the things carried on them, everything else must be left outside, all of it."
Hearing this, the Jiang family's faces changed on the instant. For, mind you, loaded onto the vehicles was no small amount of the Jiang family's wealth; if these things couldn't be carried away, then the Jiang family's losses would be more grievous still.
"We're the Jiang family, in the interstellar-trade business — the Jiang Group, you've heard of it, I take it?" Jiang Xiong, the family head, tried to communicate.
The captain said disdainfully, "Don't go spinning me that useless stuff. Just a moment ago, even a woman claiming to be the sister-in-law of this planet's governing consul, wanting to bring her convoy in, was stopped by me. The Owl Dragon lord's very words: either do as he says, or find your own way off this planet."
From his words, one could see that this captain admired the Owl Dragon lord greatly. For to be able to treat nobles and lords with the same measure as everyone else — on that one point alone, this lord was mighty and domineering indeed!
"But this is our private property! Why can't we be allowed to bring it in!" Jiang Shasha couldn't help saying.
The captain pointed at the row of vehicles. "Look at that convoy of yours — a dozen-odd vehicles, and large cargo trucks among them. I don't know what it is you've loaded inside, and I have no interest in it either. But I do know that if I let you bring these things in, then there might be several hundred people inside with no place. And at the time of evacuation, aboard the interstellar transports there might well be 1,000 and more people with no place."
Jiang Shasha was left with no words.
In their eyes, their own wealth and goods were naturally more important than that pack of lowborn wretches — but this was a thing they'd not, for their lives, dare speak aloud at a time like this.
"Have you got it wrong or what? My sister is the Owl Dragon lord's fiancée! Our Jiang family is nobility from the Owl Dragon System, no less!" Jiang Ziwen couldn't hold back at this point, and stepped forward, striking a pose of we're a very great deal indeed.
And it had to be said — these words genuinely did bamboozle this captain.
"Wait a moment." The captain seemed to be getting in touch with someone or other.
"Ziwen, what are you saying!" Jiang Shasha pulled at her younger brother; she and Zhao Chen had long since had no connection whatsoever, and to throw out this layer of identity now — was that not exceedingly base and shameless?
"Sis, what are you afraid of? What matters now is keeping our property!" Jiang Ziwen said, not caring in the least.
"Sir, I have a group here claiming to be the Owl Dragon lord's fiancée." The captain reported cautiously to the one on the other end of the comm. He, naturally, had no way to reach the great personages of the Owl Dragon Fleet. The one he was contacting just now was the pilot of that T2 Black Knight-class Light Interstellar Combat Mecha in charge of this evacuation point of theirs.
"A fiancée? Our lord has no such thing as a fiancée." the woman-soldier pilot said, puzzled.