193: Chapter 193 Swaying in the Fire

"What a bumper harvest..."

"You've had a harvest, but when will my wallet ever get one?" Li Ming tucked his wallet away helplessly. "With all this, will it even fit in our fridge?"

"Ahaha..." Kano scratched her head. "Commander Li Ming, shall we go?"

"Yeah, let's head back."

The two of them strolled leisurely to the shore, where Kano deployed her rigging.

"Fujian should be arriving in Edenia today."

"Ms. Fujian..." Kano recalled the two days she spent picking up Li Ming. "She truly is a respectable lady."

"The sarcasm is strong with this one." Li Ming rolled his eyes.

"I'm not being sarcastic!"

"She only looks serious; she actually has a lot on her mind and isn't all that reliable."

"Uh... ahaha..."

The two of them returned the way they came.

"Actually, I'm quite grateful to you."

"Eh? Why?"

"Thank you for being willing to put up with those two girls' antics and for cleaning up after them. If it were just the two of them, God knows what would have happened."

"Oh, it's a small matter. We were going to investigate anyway, so handling it along the way was no big deal."

This time, Kano turned her head toward the sea to hide her emotions.

---The reason she turned toward the sea was that the direction of their voyage had changed.

She felt her face heating up; it seemed like it had been a long time since anyone had praised her. Over the years, many of her actions had become routine, losing any sense of accomplishment, to the point where she hadn't even noticed them herself.

"You can't say that. Your work is your work, but my failure to keep them in line was my dereliction of duty. Therefore, my gratitude to you is sincere."

"It's what I should do, mm, what I should do... hehe."

She gave a silly laugh, looking like a total ditz.

They returned briskly to the beach in front of the academy dormitory area. Li Ming took the opportunity to quickly jump off the turret, lest she retract her rigging without noticing and leave him sitting on his butt in the sand.

Li Ming was still the one cooking tonight. He started early again, so they should be able to eat sooner.

——————

"The 1507th Mage Alliance Annual Meeting now begins. Fellow scholars, the first item on the agenda is a discussion of insights regarding the power that has appeared to the south. Representatives of the Nature Academy, please lead the way."

A bonfire burned slowly in the corner, providing some warmth to the vast, cold hall.

The candles on the table burned slowly, as if they would never burn out.

An aged but still spirited man, dressed in deep red mage robes, looked at his colleagues around the table.

"Very well, Your Excellency the Grand Chancellor." A young woman in deep green mage robes bowed to the old man and then organized her thoughts.

"According to information obtained through public channels by our academy, this power related to Horizons Edge possesses highly advanced technology. They also have Ship Girls and their associated organisms. Although their state of existence differs from ours, they remain highly similar to us."

"However, as of now, we do not have sufficient information to indicate that Horizons Edge possesses magical abilities. Therefore, we speculate that Horizons Edge may have a technological system completely different from ours. Given their communicability, we believe we can send envoys for a cooperative trial; perhaps we can gain some surprising harvests and knowledge."

The old man nodded. Seeing she had nothing more to say, he asked, "Fellow scholars, are there any other opinions?"

"Chancellor, we have something to say," said a middle-aged man in orange-red mage robes.

"Scholar from the Core Academy, please speak."

"The Core Society and the Federalist Alliance believe that Horizons Edge is a significant threat. As an entity primarily composed of Wisdom Cube organisms, it will greatly impact the Federation's own cultural existence."

"Currently, the so-called Ship Girl Bureau has already established a nearly independent political system. Now, with the appearance of Horizons Edge—even if they harbor no hostility—their lack of magical signs and their highly independent posture are themselves a massive threat."

"Therefore, our opinion is to launch a full-scale infiltration of Horizons Edge to uncover all their secrets."

Whispers broke out around the table.

These people came from different schools of thought, but the Core Academy still appeared somewhat radical.

"It seems everyone's opinions are... in clear conflict." The old man raised his hand for silence. "Are there any other opinions?"

"Grand Chancellor," spoke a young man in yellow robes sitting opposite the old man.

"Scholar from the Alchemy Academy." The old man nodded. "You have always been known for your neutrality. Please, speak."

"Based on the current contact situation, Horizons Edge should have had several exchanges with the Ship Girl Bureau before we discovered them."

"Our opinion is to first observe the communication between Horizons Edge and the Federation before making any plans. If they meet the expectations for communication, we can then make contact. What do you all think?"

"Mhm, very good." The old man nodded. "Any other opinions?"

Silence.

"Then let us vote."

Naturally, the result was a compromise.

"Alright, next is our next agenda item..."

The middle-aged mage in orange-red clothes lowered his head, a strange light flickering in his eyes.

——————

"Our personnel reintegration progress has barely reached 65%. To be honest, this speed is still a bit slow."

Colonel Pierre flipped through a booklet and said, "Currently, for main mechanics and auxiliary members, we are still using Manjuu as replacements. But on the front lines, they, with their single-specialized work abilities, cannot exist as frontline personnel."

Lafayette turned off his phone screen. "After all, it seems bio-chambers are currently only established in a few industrial bases in the rear. And if I remember correctly, those bio-chambers still have to keep producing these little Yellow Chickens."

"I know that, of course. After all, this place is a window to the outside world; it's right not to display certain forbidden technologies." Colonel Pierre closed the booklet. "But no matter what, our armed forces are more than enough to defend this port."

"I guess you're about to say 'but'."

"But." Pierre closed his eyes. "Have you noticed the equipment we've been issued and the updated organization?"

"Yeah, I guess you're thinking the same as me, Old Pierre."

"We are a heavy combined arms brigade, even an augmented heavy brigade," Pierre analyzed. "In other words, we are definitely not meant for daily security operations, but rather..."

"Ha, looking at it that way, our days ahead won't be too easy."

"It's a soldier's duty, Lafayette." Pierre curled his lips. "Perhaps in the future, after we've started families again, this will be the capital we use to brag to our kids."

"That sounds pretty good."

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