Over the several attempts that followed, whenever there was any fault whatever in Leona's manner over the video communication—
Zhao Chen's side would cut the connection outright.
And after every cut they would leave the other party hanging for 10 minutes.
"It seems this Princess Leona's temper is not very good." Lilith said it teasingly from beside him.
"And what if her temper is not good? The initiative is in our hands now. If she would rescue that Dragon-folk fleet group, she must learn to behave." Zhao Chen said it calmly.
Lilith said from beside him, "That we hold so great an initiative we owe besides to our T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ships. In the fighting across several fields this time, the T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship has performed most outstandingly as well."
With Lilith's praise Zhao Chen was in full agreement.
In this military operation against the Black Tiger Star Region, one might put it this way.
The T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship deserved at least a third of the credit.
First there was their capacity for intelligence-gathering: on the strength of their own formidable stealth technology, and their ability to penetrate an intelligence network without a soul the wiser.
Any deployment or arrangement in the Black Tiger Star Region was, one might say, right under the Owl Dragon Legion's eyes.
That earlier ambush of the Black Tiger King Legion and the two accompanying Black Tiger legions bound for the relief of the Black Tiger King Naval Port rested precisely upon knowing their route of movement in advance, and laying the ambush strategy well beforehand.
Which was what allowed the Black Tiger King Legion to be destroyed entire in the least possible time.
And besides these capacities for intelligence-gathering and for lying hidden.
The T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship had one further hidden capacity, and that was electronic warfare!
While penetrating an enemy's communication systems, the T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship could at the same time launch electronic attacks against certain software within the enemy's interstellar warships.
Electronic-warfare attacks that could achieve jamming, paralysis, and even outright destruction!
Which was why, among the Dragon-folk Tenth Fleet Group now encircled, there should be great numbers of interstellar warships with their internal programs ruined.
All of it the T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship's doing.
Though for the ability to execute this operational mission with such efficiency—
thanks were owed besides to Zhao Chen's newest subordinate.
Spider Queen Iris!
The Spider Queen tribe carried the overwhelming majority of the Warhammer Interstellar Commonwealth's production industry; and though they might not necessarily grasp those interstellar warships' core technologies—
they could still know roughly the vulnerable positions of such starship modules as the transmission systems, energy systems, life-support systems and the like.
Which furnished the T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ships with a detailed map of approach, and greatly lowered the difficulty of their attacks upon these interstellar warships.
And so made possible the present feat of hemming in the Dragon-folk Tenth Fleet Group.
"Hereafter we might consider raising an electronic-warfare force, composed of this T4 Banshee-class Light Interstellar Stealth Scout Ship. Dedicated to opening harassment of this kind against certain enemy fleets. It can affect an enemy fleet's combat power." Zhao Chen rubbed at his chin and muttered it.
Lilith agreed. This time had been no more than a trial test, but the effect had proved astonishingly good!
Beep beep beep.
"Commander-in-Chief, that princess is calling in again." Lilith looked at Zhao Chen with a smile.
Zhao Chen gave a mischievous laugh and raised a hand. "Put her through."
The video window appeared once more.
And this time Leona opposite was wholly unlike the first.
She sat bolt upright and formal, and upon her face no expression of provocation, dissatisfaction or arrogance was to be seen.
"Es… esteemed Owl Dragon lord… Your Excellency, I come by command to negotiate with you concerning the… ransom question of the Dragon-folk Tenth Fleet Group." Leona spoke the words with a somewhat stiff expression.
She was controlling her feelings and her bearing as far as she might.
Or else this fellow opposite might well find some outlandish reason again to refuse the parley.
And just now she would have liked nothing better than to plant a kick on that uncle of hers, who was of no use in accomplishing anything and every use in ruining it.
Were it not for his mess, need she be swallowing humiliation here?
"That… I wonder, as to this ransom… what requirements have you?" Having had the earlier experience, Leona no longer dared speak lightly, and could only ask after the thoughts of that man opposite.
Zhao Chen said, serene as a light cloud in a calm wind, "Our requirement is very simple. We have no wish to add needlessly to the killing; but neither can we possibly let these interstellar warships go for nothing. After all, these interstellar warships of yours came bursting in all at once and gave my soldiers a great fright, and my interstellar warships have had to maintain order over them. Whether it is the cost in time, the cost in manpower, or the cost in money, someone must be answerable for it, must they not?"
"You… you may say straight out how much you want." Leona clenched her fists, forcing down her impulses.
The corner of Zhao Chen's mouth rose slightly, and he spoke his terms.
"Our requirement is not much either. We shall simply set a price upon each of your interstellar warships, upon each crewman, and upon their military ranks. Here is a schedule; you may look it over yourself." So saying, Zhao Chen sent over a schedule document.
Leona clicked it open, and a detailed ransom schedule appeared before her.
Upon it was clearly set out what it would cost to ransom an interstellar warship of each different grade and model, or a soldier or officer of each different rank and post.
The T4 Ankylosaur-class Medium Interstellar Frigate among them, for instance, required an astonishing ransom of 1 billion star coins!
And it must be understood that by Leona's knowledge, the procurement and building cost of such a T4 Ankylosaur-class Medium Interstellar Frigate to their Dragon-folk tribe would not exceed 3 billion star coins.
So this ransom came to a full third of it!
The ransoms for the other interstellar warships were essentially in similar proportion — around one fifth of an interstellar warship's original build cost.
For this ransom schedule, thanks were owed again to Spider Queen Iris's friendly support, which had furnished Lilith detailed data and so produced these exceedingly finely judged figures.
Besides these there were the ransoms for the ranked soldiers.
And the figures in the ransom's contents astonished Leona greatly as well.
The ransom for the captain of a T3-grade interstellar warship, for instance, came to a full million star coins!
Which was near enough that captain's annual salary for a year!
And it must be understood that within a Dragon-folk fleet group the number of captains at that grade came to a full 2,000 and more.
Which meant 200 million star coins in ransom.
And that was the post of captain alone; there were besides the secretaries, adjutants, staff officers, bridge petty officers, the heads of the several departments, and so forth.
For it must be understood that an interstellar warship holds several hundred people at the fewest, and above 1,000 at the most.
Piled together, these figures came to a truly terrible sum.
And then Leona saw that name she hated past all bearing.
Robert's ransom: 5 billion star coins.
Leona's very lips were trembling. Where was this Robert worth 5 billion star coins!
This useless weakling — Leona would have grudged him five star coins.