The T4 Boreas-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship![1]
Hull length 7.8 kilometers!
Mass over 30 million tons!
Its offensive weapon systems took in two bow giant cannons, 36 main guns, and 144 secondary guns!
The two bow giant cannons were T4 Boreas heavy cluster-laser bow cannons!
This ship was one of the mere handful of T4-tier interstellar warships the Starlight Empire possessed, and the earliest T4 interstellar warship the Starlight Empire had ever owned — it had laid the foundation of the Starlight Empire's standing within the Galactic Alliance; a ship of merit, one might well call it!
Spearheaded by the Northern Star Region's imperial military, it had been jointly researched and built by the Chu River Star Region, the North Wind Star Region, and the starship-technology research institute of their subordinate Northstar Starship Military Academy.
With a host of T3 ships ringed about it, before this T4 Boreas-class Heavy Interstellar Battleship they were so many dear little brothers, meek and small.
"If one day I could have a T4 interstellar battleship of my own…" Zhao Chen, at this moment, wore the very look of a besotted fool, falling to imagining the scene of himself owning a T4 interstellar warship.
"Commander…?" Lilith called to Zhao Chen several times beside him before she managed, at last, to pull him back from his reverie.
"Ahem, ahem, ahem… what is it?" Zhao Chen had lost himself utterly a moment ago; he feigned composure and looked at Lilith.
"We've arrived. Per the imperial military's requirement, you need to go in person to the task-issuing department to take up this task. They'll also brief you in detail on the task's particulars," Lilith said.
"Arrived? So soon?" Only now did Zhao Chen realize their ships had already berthed within a starport.
Across the whole of No. 3 System, starports were beyond counting; how else could it hold so many imperial-military ships?
And the starport they'd docked at was one on the rather outer fringe.
"You stand by aboard; I'll go have a look." Zhao Chen rose from the captain's chair and walked out of the bridge.
Lilith watched Zhao Chen's back, then looked to that distant T4 Boreas, and couldn't help but mutter within: over these several months, never once had she seen the Commander wear, toward her or any other succubus, that besotted-fool look of a moment ago.
Today, of all things, he'd gazed at a ship with such yearning, his eyes full of some kind of desire…
For reasons she couldn't name, a trace of defeat rose, of all things, in her heart.
Before a man — she, a proud succubus, ranked below a ship?
……
Zhao Chen came down from his ship, and soon an imperial soldier was there waiting for him, a video window hovering beside as well.
"You're here to take up that escort task, yes? Hello, I'm the imperial-military officer in charge of you this time, a fourth-class sergeant-major. You're the last to arrive." The sergeant-major in the video window slid Zhao Chen a glance, his tone one of looking down from on high.
A fourth-class sergeant-major — that is, a fourth-grade NCO, ranking just below a field officer, with the byword of "minor noble."
"That's right," Zhao Chen answered.
"Here's the detailed material for this task. On learning you'd arrived, I've already notified the other few collaborators to come take part in a meet-and-greet. My soldier will bring you over; you'll need to meet with the other few mercenary-fleet commanders." The sergeant-major finished and cut the comm.
At the same time, Zhao Chen received a data packet.
"Sir, this way, please." The soldier's tone, by contrast, was a good deal milder; he led the way ahead of Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen cut a glance at his insignia.
A fourth-class soldier — also called a soldier-leader.
The Starlight Empire's rank system ran four tiers and 17 grades.
Soldier, one tier; NCO, one tier; field officer, one tier; general, one tier.
The first three each had four grades, first the lowest, fourth the highest.
Generals had five grades — one-star the lowest, five-star the highest.
"Is it not only our fleet taking up this task?" Zhao Chen asked the guiding soldier-leader as he walked, checking over the material.
"That's right. This task calls for a small fleet of 30 ships to serve as escort. Because your fleet, sir, has only six ships, you'll carry out this task together with the other fleets." the soldier-leader answered.
"Then isn't the pay to be split evenly?" Zhao Chen tossed out offhand.
The soldier-leader answered, "Yes. It's split according to how much each contributes to the escort task."
Zhao Chen, in truth, didn't much care about this pay — a few hundred thousand star coins, when he'd just had 20 million land in his account.
What he prized was the academy's assessment credits.
Soon, under the soldier-leader's guidance, Zhao Chen walked into a meeting room.
Several people were already seated within, and the appearance of one of them made Zhao Chen start.
The other party saw Zhao Chen too, and was likewise surprised at why Zhao Chen should turn up here.
"Please, sit; shortly our sergeant-major will confirm with you all some of the particulars of this escort task." The soldier-leader finished, walked out alone, and shut the door.
At this moment, only four people were left in the room.
Two men and two women.
Zhao Chen walked over and sat down beside one of the young women; he cut her a glance. "What a coincidence."
"Mm. What a coincidence." Shen Bing made no attempt to hide the fact that she knew Zhao Chen — this task, after all, was no secret one.
That was right!
The acquaintance who'd appeared here was none other than—
—the monitor of Zhao Chen's class, one of the academy's commoner reigning beauties, Shen Bing!
"You two know each other?" the woman across the way, in a black skin-tight leather outfit, spoke up.
"We're classmates," Zhao Chen said of his own accord.
For those who took up this task together, the participants' basic information was open to mutual view.
What power each came from, how many ships their fleet had, and so on — all there.
Zhao Chen could see the information on the two across from him as well.
The middle-aged man and this leather-clad woman both commanded private adventurer fleets, each with a dozen-odd ships.
Shen Bing, meanwhile, was in a rather sorry spot — she had but a single T2 ship.
"Little brother, I see your file says you've got six T2 ships?" The leather-clad woman rose of her own accord, came and sat down beside Zhao Chen, and deliberately leaned toward him.
Zhao Chen cut a glance at the leather zipper drawn down to her belly. "That's right."
"This T2 Black-Rhino-class Interstellar Heavy-Assault Frigate and this T2 Queen Bee-class Heavy Carrier Starship — what classes of ship are they? How is it I've never heard of them?" the leather-clad woman asked in curiosity, leaning in closer still.
Just then, a screen window appeared at one side of the meeting table — it was that sergeant-major.
Only now did the leather-clad woman let Zhao Chen be, and sit up straight.
Zhao Chen looked at this sergeant-major; by the look of it, he truly cared nothing for this meeting — unwilling even to come in person, using a video comm outright.
"Good day, all. To keep it short: the four of you have accepted this escort task. The task is to set out on the 20th and deliver the materials of an interstellar transport fleet safely to the Quicksand City Interstellar Fortress. There are two days to the 20th; over this time you may rest, or ready your fleets. If you need any military supplies, you may purchase them right here, at the outside market price. The rest of the material has all been sent to you; if there are no questions, then I'll leave it here. Discuss among yourselves. I won't concern myself with the process of the task; I look only at the result." The sergeant-major swept a glance over the four and ended the comm.
A short speech — and honestly, no different from having said nothing at all.
The meeting room fell at once back to the earlier standoff of four people.
The leather-clad woman set her eyes on Zhao Chen again, and just as she made to go on "chatting him up"—
—the middle-aged man across the way lit a cigarette, blew out a lungful of acrid smoke, and fixed his eyes on the three across from him. "Now let's settle this task first — who's the leader."