As Lin Lan stood on the yacht deck waving goodbye to the residents of the outer district, his deck was already piled high with river delicacies and various gifts.
"Who would've thought? You're pretty popular for a familiar."
After the yacht had sailed some distance away, August stepped out of the cabin with a faint smile.
With a wave of her hand, she stored the hill-like pile of river delicacies into the storage space of his rigging.
"I didn't expect this either. I just did what I was supposed to do."
Lin Lan shrugged as he spoke. He truly hadn't expected that just a brief stop in the outer district would lead to being noticed and showered with gifts.
Even he didn't expect to be so well-received out there.
"Later, have Nürnberg take all this to the cafeteria. It's not worth much, but after all, it's a token of goodwill from so many people."
Lin Lan looked at August, whose long ash-purple hair was blowing in the wind. Then, as drowsiness crept over him, he let out a yawn and stretched.
"Alright, I need to go back to the cabin and catch a bit more sleep. Wake me up when we get to the port."
"Hehehe~ Do you need a lap pillow?"
"Spare me. If I sleep on your lap, I'll probably lose all sleepiness immediately."
Of course, in the end, he didn't escape the fate of resting on a lap pillow—though it was provided by today's secretary ship, Tirpitz.
Under the gentle caress of the lonely northern queen Tirpitz, Lin Lan drifted into a deep sleep.
…
Haifeng City, Battleaxe Military Industrial Mecha Production Base.
Heavy clouds loomed oppressively in the sky, and the air was filled with a mixture of metal and gunpowder residue.
Thick black industrial exhaust was being pumped into the sky through towering chimneys in the factory zone, staining the already gloomy sky even darker.
In this oppressive industrial district, the noisy hum of machinery echoed without pause, and delivery vehicles came and went in an endless stream.
Inside the factory buildings marked with the Battleaxe logo, busy workers were fully focused on operating various machines.
Sparks from the cutting of steel flared constantly, a sign that the facilities were running at full capacity.
As the Orland United States had a centuries-long history of mecha manufacturing, it had long since developed a mature industrial system capable of producing mechas.
However, due to the scarcity of rare raw materials and the destruction of many vital classified blueprints during the Siren raid, the major conglomerates of the Zhuhai Maritime Trade Association had ultimately abandoned plans to build Overlord-class mechas.
Even so, the various models of combat mechas could still grant pilots combat power several times greater than their own.
One after another, mechas bearing the Battleaxe logo were assembled on the production lines.
After passing quality inspections, they were lined up and loaded onto transport trucks, destined for different cities.
To prepare for the imminent outbreak of war on the Western Continent, Battleaxe Military Industries had already begun mass production of combat mechas and all kinds of weaponry.
And at this moment, the head of Battleaxe Military Industries, Ye Zhanke, was sitting in the central meeting room of the Battleaxe Tower in Haifeng City, conducting a pre-war voice conference with regional representatives from various cities.
Dressed in a black suit that emphasized his broad-shouldered, V-shaped physique, Ye Zhanke made the more than ten officials seated elsewhere in the meeting room appear especially frail in comparison.
Though his eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses, they could not conceal the fierce and menacing aura he exuded—an aura born from countless battlefield experiences.
Behind him stood his personal bodyguard, a cold-faced man also wearing black sunglasses, a sword at his waist, standing tall and straight like a pine tree.
"That concludes the reports on the military forces each city possesses. Boss Ye, please deliver your remarks,"
a senior official from company headquarters said cautiously after the regional representatives finished their reports.
Clearing his throat, Ye Zhanke straightened from his previous relaxed position and removed his sunglasses, revealing his eyes.
He swept his razor-sharp gaze across the officials present and the silent online voice indicators of the city representatives on the large screen before finally speaking:
"Gentlemen, I'd like to take this opportunity to say a few words."
"This Western Continent has witnessed no fewer than dozens of large-scale wars over the generations. Right and wrong are difficult to determine."
"But I trust anyone with a decent understanding of Orland history knows—this Western Continent has always been the stage where the rise and fall of powers and conglomerates was decided. One rises, another falls."
"Hence the ancient saying: 'To dominate Orland, one must first secure the Western Continent.'"
"It was twenty years ago that I started from nothing and founded Battleaxe Military Industries.
I monopolized the arms market and built the most powerful military industrial conglomerate on the Western Continent."
Ye Zhanke's hoarse, deep voice echoed through the silent conference room.
At the same time, his voice was transmitted via the conference call to the offices of Battleaxe's regional representatives in cities across the nation.
"Many of you have doubts about my decision to go to war against the Tian'ou Group and the Navy Department. I've long been aware of that."
"I don't understand why everyone keeps talking about how powerful the Tian'ou Group is, how formidable the Navy's shipgirls are, or how the Siren might take advantage of the chaos to strike inland."
"It's as if this war is already doomed to go badly for us."
At this point, two headquarters officials seated in the meeting room began trembling in their chairs.
Because that was exactly what they had been whispering about in private.
Ye Zhanke caught the expressions on their faces and sneered, then continued:
"Fourteen years ago, when we joined the Zhuhai Maritime Trade Association, I personally led tens of thousands of mecha troops and, with overwhelming momentum, crushed the old Orland regimes all across the Western Continent within just a year."
"Wherever our mecha forces marched, the people welcomed us with open arms. We truly held the favor of Heaven."
"That vitality and prosperity from back then still feels fresh in my memory."
"And now, just fourteen years later, are we to let this mighty Battleaxe Military Industries come to a halt—content to share the Western Continent with the Tian'ou Group and the Navy?"
As Ye Zhanke's voice rose with fervor—
Far away in the Battleaxe Tower office in Lianjiang City, a regional representative of mixed Liao Continent and Orland descent showed a scornful expression.
In the dialect of Liao Continent, he muttered to his Liao Continent assistant:
"What a joke. All bullshit. Who's following him if not for the money?"
The assistant gave a similarly contemptuous smile.
But just as this representative thought his low muttering hadn't been caught, Ye Zhanke's voice suddenly rang out, making the man—named Feng Yuan—instantly break out in cold sweat.
"Feng Yuan, what did you just say?"
Interrupted mid-speech, Ye Zhanke had noticed whose voice indicator had lit up and immediately shouted the Lianjiang representative's name with a vicious glare.
In that instant, both the officials in the meeting room and the regional representatives in other cities held their breath.
The entire voice channel fell into dead silence.
Feng Yuan felt his heart leap to his throat, never having imagined the headquarters' comm system would be this sensitive.
But time waited for no one. Feng Yuan's brain spun rapidly, and suddenly he came up with something.
With an ingratiating smile and overly flattering tone, he quickly said:
"Boss Ye, I was just telling my Liao Continent assistant that you truly have great foresight. Your insight is unmatched."
Clearly, Feng Yuan's bootlicking hit the mark. Ye Zhanke's previously fierce expression softened a bit.
With a light snort, he dropped the matter and continued:
"We possess the strongest and most efficient military industrial production line in all of Orland.
To prepare for war, we've already begun full-scale production, sending mechas into the army one after another."
"Our allies in the Eastern Continent's trade coalition have also promised to provide substantial aid and resources, helping us crush and annex the opportunistic Tian'ou Group and force those Navy Department fossils to recognize reality!"
At this point, Ye Zhanke stood abruptly and slapped the table, his tone passionate as he shouted:
"No matter how you look at it, this war will see Battleaxe Military Industries, with its mighty mecha onslaught, sweeping through the Tian'ou Group and the Navy Department.
The advantage is ours!"
"Boss Ye has keen insight!!!"
Applause erupted after a moment of silence. All the officials and city representatives of Battleaxe Military Industries shouted in unison.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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