nucmednet Chapter 420 Life is as fragile as wild grass
Chapter 420 Life is as fragile as wild grass
"So, sir, how did you get involved with her?"
Central Star Region Aquamarine Star "House Cleanup" Operation
Rafis paused for a moment, as if recalling that afternoon long ago, Alice's innocent face, that invitation, and her vow in reply, and the responsibility she bore.
She chuckled softly, her calloused hands now gloved, trembling slightly.
“Long ago, long ago, before this era had become what it is today, she made a vow to me, and I made a vow to her.”
"I was a knight, she was a princess, but later, the knight was no longer just a knight, and the princess was no longer just a princess."
"The Scarlet Empire era? That's truly ancient..."
One team member sighed, saying that most of these young people were born in the post-Alice era, an era in which Alice had just disappeared and the future was uncertain.
They did not experience the darkness, that era of human ignorance.
"Alright, enough talk. Check your equipment, turn on your anti-gravity devices, and get ready."
The cabin was bright and bustling. Through the portholes, the starship lanes outside were crowded with cargo ships. Every day, tens of thousands of ships from the core planetary region of the Empire would crowd into these lanes. Large cargo ships moved slowly along the lanes, while small merchant ships maneuvered around. Some space peddlers on the lanes broadcast their wares on public channels.
"Execution troops, here is the intelligence you requested—once the ships are anchored in orbit, you will use ODST equipment to directly raid the United Food Building. The list has already been sent to your personal terminals."
"What a grand display! Even Commander Rafis has come."
“Executioner-1, remember this number. I am your direct superior.”
Raffis handed everyone a deck of cards, each one bearing the name of a different person—every high-ranking official and founder of United Foods, they all deserved to die.
ODST equipment, or orbital entry equipment for short, is a military product that uses anti-gravity technology and orbital delivery and return technology. This orbital entry capsule is used to transport combat teams to the field and can also be used for orbital assaults by heavy troops.
"They want to murder Alice, then let them answer that question!"
Rafis dons the exoskeleton. The Executioner Squad is a professional small-scale decapitation unit, with most members selected from the "Magic War Maidens." These ruthless young female magicians are trained to be dangerous soldiers who can fight using military experimental magic exoskeletons. In addition to conventional firearms, some new magic tactics are also used in their battles.
Over the past few centuries, the magic that invaded this world was used on Amelansi IV. Early mages could not have imagined that today, with the assistance of mathematical models and AI, every incantation and spellcasting by mages would be more precise, and the mathematical models of spells would be clearer.
"Executioner 2, ready. Squad, prepare to land."
"Executioner 3, ready. Tactical aircraft secured. Squad, prepare to land and begin combat."
Rafis secured herself inside the ODST crew capsule and snapped her fingers at her team members—Aquamarine is a planet with a complete orbital defense system, and on the ground, there are countless corporate lackeys.
This is where the empire began, and where the company now reigns supreme—after the administrative center moved, the company began to gradually take control of this planet, right up to this day.
She took a deep breath, then pressed PTT and commanded, "This is Executioner 1, descent preparations complete."
Hailanxing, United Grain Zone – United Grain Tower.
"That new Crown Princess, Alice, killed all of our people in New Yanjing, and those lowly commoners seized our company's assets... Even the Crown Princess can't be this arrogant—"
The CEO of United Foods took a deep breath. In the dark-toned conference room, men and women in suits sat. This was the core of the company. This largest concern in the star system was quite influential within the Empire. They had their own factories, their own rules, and even their own armed forces.
"The company may need more methods to deal with her—it is clear that what the new crown prince has done in the new Yanjing is not only a declaration of war against us, but also a means of asserting his own dominance."
“Our agents have investigated this crown princess—she’s not one of those naive girls like the third or fifth princess, but a true power player. She has her own fleet, her own star system, her own industrial system—and she has a shocking secret.”
The face of the head of the company's special missions department disappeared into the darkness under the light. She casually turned on the projector—it was the border star region, the Amelansi system.
“Those places marked as Alice’s fiefdoms are not star systems previously controlled by the Empire, nor are they simple fiefdoms. Neither we nor our rival companies have ever operated in those places, nor has the Empire. According to intelligence shared by our partners in the Empire’s Armed Forces, the Empire’s expeditionary fleet was defeated there.”
“Those places are essentially entire countries. They previously possessed advanced technology, but their scale couldn't compare to the Empire. But now—”
"Alice, the new crown princess, has given them an opportunity."
“Our informant in New Yanjing also mentioned something else—it wasn’t Alice’s troops who helped her illegally embezzle company assets, but those contracted farmers—look at these red flags.”
At a high-level meeting of the United Grain Products Company, Alice was repeatedly discussed. New Yanjing was an important asset of the company, and the flour produced there was enough to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in profit for the company every year.
But they had no idea that Alice had already taken action right above them.
A piercing shriek rang out as company security guards protected their VIPs inside the conference room—the first time in centuries that such an alarm had been heard.
The entire building shook, and a series of muffled rumbling sounds rose and fell, followed by a strange mix of explosions and gunshots.
"Get them out of here! We've been infiltrated! The enemy has breached the Joint Food Tower from the rails...! Security systems are activated!"
Well-dressed men and women scattered and fled, but the line of fire was approaching them at an extremely fast speed—the strange high-voltage electricity of the electromagnetic rifles and the sound of friction with the air were getting closer and closer.
A fully armed response team filed out of the emergency exit, raising their automatic rifles and unleashing a barrage of fire in the direction of the intruders.
But the next second, they were pierced through; the tungsten steel warhead, accelerated to hypersonic speeds by electromagnetic orbit, tore through their ridiculous bulletproof vests and helmets, turning them into corpses on the ground.
After the smoke cleared, in the narrow corridor, a steel construct about two meters tall appeared before everyone's eyes—the "Dauntless Warrior," a small tactical machine that had been reverse-engineered since the Church Wars, appeared before them carrying a large shield and a heavy electromagnetic armor-piercing cannon.
"I heard... you were discussing how to deal with Alice?"