129: Chapter 129 Contemplation

Edenia.

Verres was reviewing the document Kano had sent over.

She had been on her lunch break, but Kano's phone call had completely washed away the precious nap time she had finally managed to get.

However, there was no doubt this document was worth it.

"How does that kid's brain work?" Verres tossed the document back onto the table. "How come we never thought of something this simple?"

Or perhaps they had never even considered thinking in that direction? After all...

There was industrial inertia. A whole web of vested interests and social connections existed, so how could they move easily?

But...

"Shipping containers..."

She didn't go to the Director, nor did she ask Persephya.

She called Leica. Logistics was her area of expertise.

"Shipping containers..."

Leica, who was lying at her workstation playing a game, tossed her controller aside upon hearing Verres's explanation.

"It's a really solid idea. Our current logistics system genuinely needs it."

"Explain the specifics. If we want to convince the bigwigs."

"If this entire concept is realized, our cargo loading and unloading efficiency will skyrocket. Dock labor costs could be minimized," Kano said, opening the document Verres had forwarded. "...Our logistical efficiency would be vastly improved. Most importantly, according to their theory, it could also drive the development of large ships and other related industries. And the technical barrier isn't actually that high; it's a case of small investment, huge returns."

"That's the upside. What's the downside?"

"The initial investment is massive," Leica said. "The capital needed for a complete industrial chain is no joke. Then there's the lack of flexibility. The tricky part is we have too many traditional cargo ship owners and small boat operators. The vested interests are unlikely to support it. We can only hope to communicate effectively with the large shipping companies."

"I see... Leica, what's your personal take?"

"Me personally? I have no objection. I'm just a runner," Leica slumped back. Through the phone, Verres sensed her voice growing quieter. "I just know that if the logistics troops could have arrived faster back then... I wouldn't have had to charge the Siren fleet with Reis and Reilly... Minister, you were already the Minister when I was a small fry. Do you still understand what I mean?"

"...You've been through a lot, Leica," Verres ended the conversation. "I'll find a way to push this forward."

"Naturally, you're the one who's been through more~"

Verres hung up the phone.

Leica gave a bitter smile. What she said sounded a bit sarcastic, but it was the truth.

In the decades of fighting, Verres was among those who had lost the most.

On the other end, Verres stood up, stuffed the document into a folder, left her office, and took the elevator straight to the top floor.

Without Kano around to help, she was now so busy her feet barely touched the ground. It wasn't that she didn't trust her working groups; it was simply because they were even busier than she was.

The External Liaison Department, nominally the Foreign Affairs Department, functioned as half the Administration Department. Ship Girls called it the most miserable department, bar none.

The department's most famous motto was, "I'll take the scolding, I'll do the work, I'll shoulder the problems, I have the most tasks."

Verres was quite helpless about this too. After all, the reform proposals had been around for so long, and the Director at home who refused to work had probably never even glanced at them...

Top floor, Director's Office.

It was still... as messy as ever.

But at least their Director was actually working at her desk, which was a decent improvement.

She quietly closed the door, as if Aussie hadn't noticed her...

Was she playing a game?!

"My dear Director~ It's barely past lunch break, isn't it?"

"Wah!... Verres, you scared me!" Aussie seemed genuinely startled. Her phone flew up, and she scrambled to catch it before letting out a sigh of relief. "What's the matter..."

"Sigh... I have something for you. A small suggestion from that Li Ming."

"Huh?"

Catching the folder Verres tossed over, Aussie swept a pile of documents off the desk onto the floor and pulled the materials out of the folder to examine.

A few veins throbbed on Verres's forehead, but she sighed and started picking up the files, sorting them.

"Hmm... His idea has no issues," Aussie put the document down. "What if I said I want to buy out the patent?"

"You wouldn't do that," Verres paused her actions, then placed the sorted files on the desk. "You hate troublesome things like that the most. If you really did it, there'd be endless haggling."

"Sigh, true..." Standing up, Aussie looked out the floor-to-ceiling window at Edenia bathed in light. "But I can't agree directly."

"Oh?"

"Verres, you've forgotten something," Aussie was calculating in her mind. "Do you know how many people are in the dockworker community?"

Verres was taken aback. Her job didn't involve coordinating that kind of information.

"A large port averages tens of thousands," Aussie's gaze fell on the distant Port of Edenia—still incredibly busy, a picture of prosperity.

Verres walked over to the window, following Aussie's gaze.

"But I strongly support advancing this technology," Aussie added. "With development... especially after our contact with Horizons Edge, we can't avoid the changes brought by bulk ocean trade, even if it's full of growing pains."

"So, what's your meaning?"

"Tell that clever little fellow he'd better be able to provide more, and..." Aussie turned her head. "Our industries can continue expanding a bit. We've accumulated resources for so long; if we don't use them, are we just waiting for them to turn into land tax payments? You prepare for a regular meeting. Get the Commerce Department, R&D Department, Production Department, and Logistics & Medical Department to draft a plan. Since there's already a ready-made proposal, I demand that new transport ships become a reality in the shortest possible time!"

"Understood, Director. How should we respond to Oronia, then?"

"Didn't that clever little guy also approach the Academy? I recall Axiom is on good terms with that little princess from Oronia, right?" Aussie thought for a moment. "Bring that little princess in. I'll take 40% of the profits in your name. The remaining 60% can be split between her, the Academy, and that clever little fellow."

"How greedy, Director," Verres said helplessly. "And you don't want to leave any possible bad reputation either."

"What's wrong with that?" Aussie sat back in her executive chair, utterly nonchalant. "I didn't even say I'd swallow it all, and with you here, I'm reassured."

"Alright then, I'll relay that."

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