"This here's the interstellar warship you've arranged for me?" The Fury Bear chieftain had his face all but pressed against the shuttle's viewport.
The flame in his eyes seemed to wish it could swallow that interstellar warship opposite, and the whole stretch of interstellar warships behind it.
"Hey, hey, hey — look all you like, but don't drool." Zhao Chen drew back several steps in horror, looking at the viewport this blind bear had slobbered upon.
Well, that's done it. This shuttle's no use now.
The Fury Bear chieftain gave a simple laugh and pointed at that most dashing interstellar warship opposite. "That interstellar battleship, it's called the Blue-Eyes White Dragon? You're truly willing to give it to me?"
"Its full name is the Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship. And it is not given to you. It is only for you to command; you may use your own tribe's crew, and may serve as captain, and you hold the right of use of this interstellar warship. But its ownership remains mine, and its right of command lies at present in the Hundred Beasts Alliance's hands. So upon the field, if you would command this fleet, you must take your orders from the Hundred Beasts Alliance's supreme leader. And the premise of all this, of course, is that your Fury Bear tribe declares itself joined to the Hundred Beasts Alliance. Is that clear? Understood?" Zhao Chen said.
Lilith beside them laughed inwardly.
The Hundred Beasts Alliance's supreme leader — was that not Charlotte?
So after all this circling about, this blind bear was still working for Zhao Chen.
"No trouble at all. I'll declare my Fury Bear tribe joined to the Hundred Beasts Alliance this minute!" Without another word this blind bear sold his own tribe.
Though this was chiefly because this Fury Bear chieftain acknowledged the Hundred Beasts Alliance's present system in his heart, and was content with it.
"Let me set it out for you in detail. This is the fleet establishment our Owl Dragon has built for the Hundred Beasts Alliance's Hundred Beasts Legion. The Hundred Beasts Legion's present fleet establishment falls into three tiers. This is the first tier — and the strongest, an elite fleet! T3-series interstellar warships without exception, with a small number of T4-grade interstellar warships besides. The whole fleet comes to above 3,000 interstellar warships, holding 10 T4-grade interstellar warships. Chiefly three classes: besides this flagship, the T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship, the other two are the T4 Paladin-class Heavy Interstellar Missile Frigate and the T4 Skeleton-King-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Destroyer. The remaining T3-grade interstellar warships are chiefly composed of the T3 Flame Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer, matched with the T3 Triceratops-class Interstellar Heavy Assault Frigate and the T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser. Its combat power will assuredly crush a Dragon-folk fleet group of the same order of numbers!"
Zhao Chen clapped the Fury Bear chieftain upon the back. "You should know this is the first fleet the Hundred Beasts Legion has built to this standard, and the Hundred Beasts Legion's First Legion Fleet besides. I have had Charlotte give this fleet over to you to command. Well? Handsome enough of me? In future this fleet, as a main legion fleet, will have yet more T3 classes in service — and even T4 classes!"
Lilith looked at her own Commander-in-Chief. He was painting this blind bear a great pancake.
The Hundred Beasts Legion First Fleet's strength was indeed very great; in that the Commander-in-Chief had told no lie.
But set against the Owl Dragon Legion it fell far short, and it fell a tier short of the Dragon-Tiger Legion's elite fleets besides.
And most of all, no few of those ships were in fact cast off from the Dragon-Tiger Legion.
The present arrangement being: interstellar warships the Owl Dragon Legion discards go to the Dragon-Tiger Legion; interstellar warships the Dragon-Tiger Legion discards go to the Hundred Beasts Legion.
And after that, they are sold within the Starlight Empire.
And all of them the most fully mass-produced within the Owl Dragon's present manufacturing system.
That T3 Flame Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer above all had a very high value against its cost!
Though the Owl Dragon Legion's own use was the T3 Wolverine-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Destroyer.
That T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship was the exception; though it had been through war and had major refits several times, by rights it would never have been assigned to the Hundred Beasts Legion.
But if one wished this blind bear to follow along, one must give the blind bear a little sweetness, must one not?
At the least, a fleet of this strength was, within this little patch of the Warhammer's ground, second to none.
And left the strongest fleet the Fury Bear tribe had raised themselves behind by more streets than anyone could count.
"Well, Chieftain? Are you satisfied?" Zhao Chen looked at this Fury Bear chieftain with a smile.
"My lord, you're too courteous by half. I like this fleet mighty well. And you needn't call me Chieftain hereafter; it sounds distant. They call me Bear the Eldest; if you don't mind it, just call me Big Bear. From this day on, we of the Fury Bear tribe are members of the Hundred Beasts Alliance! You've put this fleet into my hands, and I'll not fail your trust." This Chieftain Big Bear said it in earnest.
Zhao Chen exchanged courtesies with this Big Bear.
Though in fact he had no anxiety whatever within.
Handing over such a fleet to another — how should he not leave himself a hand in reserve?
As the common saying has it: harbor no wish to harm another, but lack no guard against another.
For it must be understood that in those interstellar warships sold to the Starlight Empire in earlier days, Zhao Chen had left himself a hand in reserve too — which made the enemy suffer greatly in the Starlight Empire's civil war.
If this Chieftain Big Bear fought sincerely for the Hundred Beasts Alliance, then Zhao Chen would naturally let his Fury Bear tribe have a place in the Warhammer to come.
And if not…
At this point the shuttle entered the hangar of that T4 Blue-Eyes White Dragon-class Heavy Interstellar Armored Battleship.
Whether from the paintwork outside the hull or from within.
One could not tell that this interstellar warship had been through several great battles, and undergone major refits besides.
For even an interstellar warship the Owl Dragon had greatly refitted was a great deal finer than those coarse, rough-styled interstellar warships of the Warhammer's.
"Then go quickly and bring your people to take over these interstellar warships. Lose no time in growing familiar with handling them; hereafter you must go and garrison the Dragon-folk tribe's northern territory besides. I shall go back first," Zhao Chen said.
"Right you are, I'll go this minute! Mind how you go — and come and visit our Fury Bear tribe when you've leisure. I can introduce you to the lasses of my tribe besides; the lasses of my tribe are fine and plump." Chieftain Big Bear waved without cease at the shuttle as its door shut.
Whether it was on account of Chieftain Big Bear's words there was no telling, but that hatch closed a good deal faster at the last.
Then Big Bear came, unable to wait, to this Blue-Eyes White Dragon's bridge, and sitting in the captain's chair, felt it all a dream.
When had he, Bear the Eldest, ever thought to command so mighty an interstellar warship!
Set beside this class, that T4 Ankylosaur-class Medium Interstellar Frigate of the Warhammer's was not fit to carry its shoes.
At this point Big Bear thought of something, and used the communications to reach his own younger brother.
"Second — did you not always want to command our Fury Bear tribe's most elite fleet? I hand the Fury Bear tribe's First Legion Fleet over to you this minute. Mind you don't disappoint me." Chieftain Big Bear listened to his brother's excited tone across the communication.
And after cutting it off.
Chieftain Big Bear looked over this flagship of his again, and looked at the fleet about him.
Happiness had come as suddenly as that.
And on the other side, because of the Fury Bear tribe's formal joining, Zhao Chen's quarterly task requirement was met as well.
He prepared to claim the quarterly task reward ahead of time.