I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary

Since we had nearly finished all of our departure preparations, we were set to leave the Grakkan Empire the next day without any issues. Inaba-san, who had decided to take up my proposal, had already transferred over to the Black Lotus yesterday. She seemed very satisfied watching the documentary featuring me alongside Mimi and Kugi.

That said, I really wish they wouldn’t watch it in the lounge area. With something that embarrassing being played, there’s no way I can go anywhere near that space.

「So, that’s why you’re hanging out here, huh?」

「Yeah, that’s exactly it.」

I answered Dr. Shouko, who looked a little exasperated, as I spun around in one of the swivel stools installed in her lab. You know, when you’re sitting on a stool with a spinning seat, you just have to spin around on it, right? Though if I overdo it, I’ll end up dizzy.

「Any comments on my sexy naked body, Captain? You are the only one allowed to see it in all its glory.」

「Not really. Just focus on getting better, alright?」

「Is annoying when you don’t show any reaction.」

Neve’s disgruntled voice came from inside the tank-like contraption that looked straight out of a sci-fi movie, standing right in front of me and Dr. Shouko. She was floating naked in the pale green liquid that filled the device, with cables and cords attached to various parts of her body. Even though I’m told this is part of her treatment, I have no idea what is this thing actually doing.

「I don’t think is proper for you to stare at a lady’s naked body while she is being treated, don’t you have any other places to be?」

「Well, being cooped up in my room all by myself is boring…」

「Why don’t you join the others and relive your grand achievements, Captain? I’m sure they’ll shower you with praise.」

「Who would want to be on the receiving end of such an embarrassing situation?! I don’t have that kind of fetish」

Instead of receiving such humiliation, I’d rather sit here and blankly watch Neve’s naked body. Her body, which had looked like it would snap apart just by touching it, seemed to have improved. Her skeletal structure looked more solid now, and she had gained a little bit of flesh, no longer looking like she was just skin and bones.

「How’s Neve’s treatment progressing?」

「We’ve finally laid the foundation for her to be healthy. Her internal organs which were in terrible shape have finished healing. That was the biggest issue and what took the most time. Now that her life is in no danger anymore, we just have to strengthen her skeleton and increase her muscle mass accordingly. She’ll be fully recovered soon.」

「Yay, Captain! Once my body’s healed, I’ll give birth to lots of your children just like I promised!」

「Maybe we can put that off for a while…」

Even though Neve is older than what she looks, she still looks like a kid… Well, after getting involved with Tina and Wiska I have little persuasive power, but even so…

「As her physician, I definitely can’t recommend her getting pregnant so soon. Until her condition is completely stable, make sure you use proper protection.」

「Tch. But if we use protection…」

「Okay, stop. Let’s just end this conversation here, alright? Instead, is there anything you want to eat? I’ll do my best to get whatever you want.」

「That’s a rather blatant change of subject…」

Dr. Shouko gave me a wry smile, but continuing that line of conversation any further would definitely lead to trouble. It isn’t something that needs to be rushed anyway. I really just want Neve to focus on getting a healthy body first.

☆★☆

As for the journey itself, it was incredibly smooth and uneventful, free from any troubles. After departing from the Neeparc Prime Colony, we synced our navigation with the fleet of the Holy Vuelzarus Empire and passed through the gateway. After crossing the gateway, we were already in the territory of the Holy Vuelzarus Empire.

「If it were just our ships, we could shorten the trip with spatial jump travel, but…」

「The Black Lotus doesn’t have anything that fancy… By the way, is that something that can be installed on a ship using the technology of the Grakkan Empire?」

As I mentioned, the Black Lotus wasn’t equipped with something as convenient as a psionic jump drive, so we had no choice but to use the standard hyperlanes for interstellar travel. As a result, even the Holy Vuelzarus Empire’s escort fleet, which did have jump drives, was leisurely traveling through the hyperlanes along with the Black Lotus as we made our way to our destination—the core star system of the Holy Vuelzarus Empire.

「Hmm… Even if it could be installed, I’m not sure it would be usable. From what I’ve heard, it’s something that requires the crew’s potential to be stored in the ship regularly. Only when enough potential is accumulated the jump drive can be used.」

Inaba answered my question tilting her head slightly, not completely sure of her answer.

Next to her, the brainiacs from our crew were deep in thought, frowning as they considered the complexities of the technology.

「Hmm… Depends on the size of the Holy Empire’s jump drive, but if it needs psionic power to run, we’d have to hook up two different energy systems on one ship, right? Even for a ship as big as a Skidbladnir-class, that might be pushin’ it.」

「If we reduce the cargo space, it might be doable, but then the ship’s overall weight would become an issue. Unless the Holy Vuelzarus Empire has thrusters that are more powerful and fuel-efficient than what we’re using now, that would be a hard issue to fix.」

「But even if we solve that, can we maintain it properly? The tech systems are different, so upkeep would be a pain, and there’s also the question of whether our replicators can even produce the repair materials.」

The mechanic sisters and Dr. Shouko were deep in discussion, glancing at the Holy Vuelzarus Empire fleet, which was traveling at faster-than-light speed alongside the Black Lotus. It seems you guys are contemplating possible modifications to the Black Lotus but… If we go that far, little will remain of the original Skidbladnir-class isn’t it? Are we going to be okay? We still have an exclusive contract with Space Dwerg.

「This is… real inari sushi…」

「Yes, the sweetness of the fried tofu and the vinegared rice blend together so harmoniously… It’s delicious!」

「I might be a bit lacking as a snack to eat while drinking alcohol.」

Not far from us, Mimi, Kugi, and Elma were snacking on inari sushi. Apparently, it was a gift from the shady commander of the escort fleet, Karasu. He said it was a gesture of kindness towards Kugi, who had been away from her home for a while… but why does everything about him feel so suspicious?

Well, I doubt he sent this out of pure goodwill. In fact, Kugi seems genuinely happy, and I can’t help but feel like I should at least consider returning the favor if he ever asked for something.

「But, I’ve got to say, it’s unusually quiet and peaceful, isn’t it?」

「Hiro! What are you doing? Don’t you know what happens when you say something like that?」

「Hiro-sama, are you secretly enjoying the prospect of trouble?」

Elma and Mimi both immediately shot back at me. It’s not like I want trouble, but when things are this peaceful for too long, you can’t help but start feeling anxious, right? Besides, something always seems to go wrong at times like this.

「Master, it seems the escort fleet has found something. They’re stopping faster-than-light travel to deal with it, but please remain cautious just in case.」

Just as I thought, something really did happen. All eyes in the lounge turned toward me.

「My bad.」

Sometimes, you’ve just got to own up and apologize.