The Exiled Count Acquired the Space Fortress of a Super Advanced Civilization - CH 24

There were so many things that Settsu had to do.

Even though Mitsuki would take care of all the mechanical operations, Setsuko would have to make the policy decisions.

“I don’t have the authority or the capability to make decisions.”

Mitsuki would not budge.

“The Earth Federation was destroyed when it turned everything over to AI. As a result, I was designed not to make decisions, and not to change myself to make them. Therefore, the decision must be made by You.”

That was Mitski’s explanation. He would interpret and respond to even some rough decisions, but he never said he would do anything on his own.

Thanks to this, Setsuko had to go through several proposals and explanations from Mitsuki in a day, and each time he had to make a decision.

The Varasskirb fortress is currently locked in position within the Ossicle system.

The fortress was located at the gravitational equilibrium point between the star and a giant gas giant named Ossicle-c. The fortress was here to stabilize its orbit against the star and to build external facilities.

In order to gather pirates and build a makeshift fleet, it was necessary to set up a spaceport outside the fortress. This was for the security of the fortress, to prevent any more information about the fortress from leaking out than necessary, and for physical limitations.

In the Earth Federation, where there was no external enemy, the fleet was not very large.

The number of ships that can be accommodated in the fortress is five hundred.

From the perspective of not increasing the size of the opening, the number of ships that could arrive and depart at one time was limited to a few. It was not a good idea to operate a fleet in a fortress port.

Therefore, it was decided to stabilize the orbit of the fortress and build a port and ancillary facilities to berth the ships in the nearby space.

The basic structure is a square bar.

I lined up a tractor beam oscillator there so that I could lock onto the spacecraft.

The space inside the bar is equipped with entertainment facilities such as bars and casinos that pirates love. These entertainment facilities are operated by those who used to open stores in the pirate spaceport of the Kingdom of Mars-Camino.

The recruitment of pirates was going well. It had been a month since Kitty had gone out to talk to the pirates, and now 100 ships had gathered in the Ossicle system.

Three countries decided to accept the Set’ proposal, and negotiations are underway with five others.

The production of component parts for equipment outside the fortress, the production of armaments for pirates, and the construction of naval vessels for independent nations. The fortress’ production facilities are in full operation.

Kitty returned a month and a half after she left, with a fleet of fifty ships accompanying the Black Silver Glory.

Fifty pirate ships are led by one pirate.

His name is Vido Glorious. He is a well known man in the pirate world.

“My dad was a pirate.”

Kitty told me about a man named Glorious.

“I’ve been doing this for 30 years, and all of my men are battle-hardened. Many pirates have their eyes on him, so he’s a good guy to bring in. I like women anyway.”

Settsu was to meet the head of this pirate fleet inside the fortress.

Glorious came into the reception room, accompanied by Kitty.

Glorious was a tall, slender, well-proportioned man. With his gray hair and flashy, almost primary-colored clothes, he was a man who would catch your eye just by walking around. He had a cool, confident smile on his face.

“I’m Setsueto Vayel, commander of the fortress. Although I ostensibly go by the name Seer-Azuna. Welcome to my fortress, Headmistress Glorious.” [TN: Not sure if it is supposed to be a man or woman…]

“Thank you for the invitation, Commander.”

It was a soft and graceful bow. He almost forgot that he was the head of the pirates.

“Please have a seat.”

Setsueto proceeded to seat Glorious, but Glorious did not move and stared at his face.

“…… something wrong?”

“I see.”

Glorious nodded slowly.

“I can see why Kitty is so fond of him. He looks like a good man with a promising future. He reminds me of myself as a boy.”

Kitty pinched Glorious’ arm.

“You don’t have to say anything.”

“It’s important. Raja has asked me to take care of Kitty for you, I-“

“In your dreams.”

“In my dreams. But no doubt Raja would have asked me to do it if he had the chance. There is no one else he could have asked but me.”

“You can count on Keuk more than you can count on me.”

“How can you not understand this love that watches over you from afar? Kitty, you need to work on your womanhood a little more.”

“Yes, yes.”

Kitty quickly sat down on the sofa. Next to Setsuko. She seemed to be saying that this was her fixed position.

“Excuse me.”

Glorious also put down his shattered mood and sat in front of Setsu. He was sitting cross-legged at a slight angle. Even the way he was sitting was in style.

“I’m glad to see you’re getting along so well.”

“I’ve even changed diapers in our relationship.”

“Vee, do you want to be thrown into a reactor?”

Kitty’s words were a thorn in my side.

“When you’re my age, you’ll survive that long.”

Kitty is being distracted from her pace. Settsu felt that he had seen something unusual.

“Can we get down to business?”

Glorious came back to the point exactly.

“Yes, of course.”

Settsu nodded. The tension in the place was easing thanks to his interaction with Kitty. I wonder if he did it on purpose.

“Thank you. Whatever it is, you want to hire us by providing us with armaments.”

“Yes, sir. I can promise you the equivalent of what is on Dragoon. It’s not something you can get for money.”

“If I hadn’t seen the current issue of the Black and Silver Glory, I’d laugh at it, but I have to believe it. It’s certainly more attractive than half-baked money.”

“We’d love to have your help.”

I don’t think it’s a “yes, I understand” kind of thing. If that’s the case, there’s no need to meet.

What additional demands will they make? Settsu prepared herself in his mind.

“Before we go any further, let me ask you, what do you want to do with the rest of the universe?”

“What do you mean?”

“If you do not intervene in this war, there is a good chance that the Empire will lose. What do you seek and what do you hope to accomplish by intervening? I would like to know.”

Glorious looked straight at Settsu and questioned him about it.