Climbing out of the medical pod, Leona at once called up a mirror surface and examined herself within it.
The face that had been swollen into a pig's head had by now recovered at last, and could be shown to people.
"Your Highness, your injuries this time were exceedingly severe. 39 fractures upon the body, three of them comminuted, three ruptured internal organs, two major vessels hemorrhaging… Had this been an ordinary Dragon-folk warrior, he would presumably have breathed his last long since. What did you meet with?" the attending physician beside her asked curiously.
"What should not be asked, do not ask. What should not be said, do not go saying." Leona glared ferociously at her own attending physician.
The attending physician shut his mouth at once, knowing his question a moment ago had overstepped.
Chiefly because he too was very curious as to who on earth could have injured Her Highness so gravely.
Leona walked out of the infirmary with a darkened face, and the adjutant waiting outside at once fell in behind her.
"Your Highness, have your injuries all mended? Would you not do better to rest a while longer?" the adjutant asked with concern.
Leona halted, fixed her eyes upon her adjutant, and said coldly, "Mark me: this business is not to be spread abroad. Whoever dares run their mouth — you know what is to be done."
The adjutant's body gave a shudder, and she nodded obediently to signify she understood.
Leona walked on, and asked as she went, "How stands the business of the handover?"
"The handover of the 400 billion star coins is 70% complete; the remaining 30% can be wholly handed over in another 10 minutes. But what the other side requires is 410 billion star coins — 10 billion more… and they said besides that if we have any question about it, we are to ask you directly." The adjutant looked at Princess Leona in puzzlement.
Princess Leona's body gave a shudder, as though she had called some unpleasant memory to mind.
She halted once more, drew a deep breath, took a crystal card from her pocket, and handed it to the adjutant. "This is my account; there are 10 billion star coins in savings within it. Transfer it over to the Owl Dragon Legion."
"Yes… yes." The adjutant was curious why these 10 billion should be paid out over and above; but she dared not ask further now, and could only obediently go to take that crystal card of 10 billion star coins.
But she found that Her Highness's hand gripped the crystal card firmly, with not the least intention of letting go.
"Princess…" The adjutant looked at Leona in surprise.
"Take it…" Leona said so with her mouth; but her gaze remained upon her own crystal card, reluctant to part with it.
That was her little treasury.
The little treasury she had scraped together with no small trouble over all these years.
And she had never thought that she should now be handing it over for nothing to that damnable man.
At the thought of it, she felt her heart dripping blood.
In the end the adjutant drew that crystal card out of Her Highness's hand after all.
In that instant Leona felt as though a piece had been hollowed out of her heart.
"And there is one thing further. When we come to use the star gate in the Black Tiger Star Region's First Star System to return, the gate's managing party requires us to pay a gate usage fee… You know how it is — the Dragon-folk Tenth Fleet Group's 30,000 interstellar warships, and all of them combat-type at that. This usage fee will not be cheap." The adjutant said it in a small voice.
Leona clenched her fists, and that crafty man's smile rose before her eyes.
That fellow is a swindling merchant! A money-grubber!
"This fee — let that dear uncle of mine pay it!" Leona said through gritted teeth.
The ransom of 400 billion and more that uncle of hers could not pay.
But this gate usage fee her uncle's little treasury should be able to bear.
In any case, let no one think of getting another cent out of her now.
"And besides — convey to that dear uncle of mine. That I am exceedingly concerned for his safety, and beg him by all means to come and see me." Leona spoke the words in no kindly tone.
The adjutant had not yet grasped the meaning within them.
Leona added a line: "When my uncle comes, take him straight to the dueling ground."
This beating she had taken, and the great bleeding of money besides.
All of it on account of this uncle; how should Leona not find some chance to work off her temper?
"Ah-choo." Robert's body gave a shudder; he looked at his niece's fleet in the distance and felt a deep warmth in his heart.
At last he could leave this cursed place.
And at the same time he received his niece's message of invitation.
See there — it is still my niece who feels for me; she even bids me come over for a visit.
————
After the Dragon-folk Tenth Fleet Group departed the Black Tiger Star Region, the situation in the Warhammer Interstellar Commonwealth suddenly grew quiet.
Though beneath the surface the several tribal fleets were all hastening their own interstellar warship construction and procurement plans.
Yet upon the surface there was, of all things, no outbreak of fighting whatever.
And this lasted a full month.
In the blink of an eye the time came to the end of August.
Though no dispute broke out over this stretch, to an onlooker there was a feeling of a greater storm brewing.
The longer this calm held, the greater the storm that would come down after.
And during this time Zhao Chen had not been idle either.
Beneath the surface he had already signed compacts with several great tribes.
First came the Spider Queen tribe and the Harpy tribe, in the first batch — and that Spider Queen Iris did not so much as appear for the signing, but gave the whole business over to her subordinates.
As for the lady herself.
She was at present in the Owl Dragon star system's industrial base, immersed in the manufacture of new technology, and had long since forgotten to think of home.
Thereafter, the second batch to sign compacts with Zhao Chen were the Fox-folk tribe, the Frost-Wolf tribe, the Siren tribe, and the Fury Bear tribe.
As for the neutral faction's Golden Leopard tribe and Hound tribe, they remained in a state of wavering indecision.
By the look of things they meant to see which way the next stage of the campaign went before deciding which side to take.
At this Zhao Chen was unconcerned.
This pack of lackeys — when the time came he need only fit them with a 'collar,' and they would obediently work for him all the same.
So long as the 'gun' was in his own hands, they would fawn and wag their tails at him.
And during this time Zhao Chen had good news besides.
The T5 Creator-class Starship, Number One Ship, was completed in its construction, and stood at present in its trial-navigation testing phase.
At the fastest it would be put into formal use at the beginning of September.
Lilith had already marked out near 100 planets within the Owl Dragon star system as this year's first batch to receive remaking.
By that time the Owl Dragon star system's degree of prosperity would reach a point past belief!
Though set against the T5 Creator-class Starship's completion.
Zhao Chen's attention was fixed rather upon another child.
And by the word Annie sent over, this child too would roll off the line and enter service within the coming month.
As for why it could be so fast — it had to be said, that Spider Queen's operational ability was very strong indeed.
And at the same time, Zhao Chen had long since sent a secret order down to the Owl Dragon star system.
This secret order was bound up closely with that child about to be born.