Free Web NovelWhen he opened his eyes again, they had already reached the outer perimeter of the Arctic Fox Starport. A few more minutes of travel and the Arctic Fox Starport would be in sight.
As soon as the Starships returned to normal cruising speed, Zhao Chen immediately contacted the female manager designated CC11.
"Sir, you're back?" The female manager covered her mouth, her eyes wide with shock as she looked at Zhao Chen.
It had been barely five hours from the time the fleet left until its return.
"Am I not welcome?" Zhao Chen teased.
"No... I... I didn't mean that... It's just... the battle at P331 Asteroid..." the female manager asked curiously. This question actually violated the reception protocol, as they weren't allowed to pry into the guests' affairs. freewebnσvel.cѳm
However, since no detailed news from P331 Asteroid had been sent back yet—or perhaps because her rank wasn't high enough to know—she was curious. What exactly did the 'Black Dragon Fleet' do to return so quickly after accepting a bounty mission?
"The matter has been settled," Zhao Chen said flatly.
Settled?
The simple answer only served to pique the female manager's curiosity further.
"Help me renew the lease on my original Starship workshop for another month. Also, I need the raw materials on this order; they must all be delivered within three days. Part of them will be used for repairing the Starships. According to the bounty mission, the hull wear and combat consumption from this battle are to be borne by the issuer. I've listed that part separately."
Zhao Chen sent over a list of raw materials.
"The one million star coins for this order can be deducted from my bounty. If it's not enough, a sum of funds should be deposited within a few days."
"Alright... yes..." the female manager said.
The communication cut off.
What on earth happened?
The female manager was wondering to herself when a communication request came in. It opened directly without needing her consent.
This was a high-level internal communication.
The female manager immediately straightened her posture. She was shocked to see that the person on the other side of the video window was the General Manager of the Arctic Fox Starport.
"You just received the Black Dragon Fleet, didn't you?" the Starport General Manager asked directly.
"Ye... yes."
"Did they make any requests?"
The female manager relayed Zhao Chen's words.
"Waive the one-month usage fee for the Starship workshop. Arrange the raw material order for them within one day. Furthermore, the bounty and the other sum of funds will be deposited into that gentleman's account within 12 hours. You can send [N O V E L I G H T] a brief message to that gentleman," the Starport General Manager said solemnly.
The female manager was astonished. Who was that gentleman exactly? To have the Starport General Manager personally look into the matter and even 'expedite' every single item.
"From now on, you are promoted to Deputy Director of the Arctic Fox Starport Reception Department. You can hand over your other guests to someone else; you are now specifically responsible for that gentleman's Black Dragon Fleet. Any requirements they have, fulfill them as much as possible as long as they aren't excessive. If there's something you can't satisfy, contact me," the Starport General Manager commanded.
"Deputy Director of the Reception Department?" The female manager felt dizzy. One must understand that before this, she was just an ordinary Starship reception manager—to put it bluntly, a customer service representative.
Now, becoming the Deputy Director of the Reception Department meant she had been promoted several ranks at once.
"Tha... thank... thank you, Sir."
The Starport General Manager said, "If you want to thank someone, thank your luck for meeting such a guest."
"Um... Sir... this Black Dragon Fleet... what is their background exactly? To make you treat them so seriously. Could you give me some details so I can be more careful?" the female manager inquired cautiously.
"The background isn't quite clear yet, but they successfully completed the bounty mission, leading the Imperial Army Fleet in the safe evacuation combat operation of P331 Asteroid," the Starport General Manager said in a low voice.
The female manager sucked in a breath of cold air. A mission that none of the private fleets were willing to take—he actually finished it.
Though she had speculated about this before,
she could hear crucial information in the General Manager's choice of words.
He said 'leading' the Imperial Army Fleet to complete the mission, not 'helping' the Imperial Army Fleet or 'assisting' the Imperial Army Fleet.
Don't underestimate these three different terms; their meanings were completely different.
'Assisting' would feel like a subordinate helping a superior.
'Helping' would be when both sides were on equal footing.
But 'leading' meant that the battle was fought with the Black Dragon Fleet as the core, with the Imperial Army Fleet assisting and coordinating on the side!
"Furthermore, a very important person has inquired about the Black Dragon Fleet's information, and they will be visiting our Arctic Fox Starport soon. That important person is not someone we can afford to offend. Even if the Lord of the Arctic Fox Star System were here, he would have to greet them with a warm smile," the Starport General Manager said somewhat nervously.
Someone even the Lord of the Arctic Fox Star System had to treat with a warm smile?
The Lord of the Arctic Fox Star System was a renowned Imperial Earl, who even had hopes of being granted the title of Marquis within the next ten years!
For the Black Dragon Fleet to be connected to someone that an Imperial Earl had to treat with such caution...
The female manager swallowed hard.
"Anyway, just treat this guest with all your heart. Report any issues to me immediately." After the Starport General Manager finished speaking, the communication was cut.
At that moment, the two Starships of the Black Dragon Fleet had slowly entered the visual range of the Arctic Fox Starport and were entering their berths in the Starship workshop according to guidance.
The female manager pulled up the video feed, and she could see the two Starships.
One was a t2 bee queen-class heavy carrier starship with a predominantly yellow exterior, and the other was a Starship of an uncertain class.
The latter's condition was quite severe; the entire bow was dented, the hull was covered in craters that looked like they were from meteorite impacts, and there was a dented gash dozens of meters long on the port side.
This was actually the trauma left behind when it scraped past the T2 Zerg Hive Mothership.
"What on earth did they go through?" the female manager muttered. freeweɓnøvel.com
...
As the two Starships sailed into the workshop berths, the T2 Iron Hammer-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ship was still docked in its original place. Additionally, nearly a hundred Half-Beastman female crew members, who didn't have formal post assignments yet, stood in formation to welcome their return.
"Phew..." Lilith breathed a long sigh of relief as she watched the Starships dock smoothly.
After years on the run, this was the first time she had participated in an interstellar battle in her role as a Starship Adjutant, and it was a battle against the Interstellar Insectoids at that.
Although she had appeared very calm on the surface, she had been quite nervous inside.
Now that it was over, she could finally lay her heart to rest.
"Arrange for the wounded on Blizzard Zero to receive treatment. If the injuries are severe, use the Starport's Medical Pods; the fleet will cover the costs. At the same time, the T2 Iron Hammer is to begin work on repairing Blizzard Zero's hull. Also, construct the Interstellar Drones lost by the t2 bee queen-class heavy carrier starship to restore the T2 Queen Bee's combat readiness as quickly as possible."
"I'll take personal charge of this; you'll be responsible for assisting me."
As soon as Zhao Chen arrived, he began delegating tasks.
