"You're pathetic," Red Hair snapped, pinching Ziye's cheek hard. "Look at the market price for a Dreadnought."

Before Ziye could reply, Little Sprout immediately bounced up. "The current market price for a Fanatic-class Dreadnought is four and a half billion. They're virtually unavailable; custom orders require a thirty percent down payment, deliverable in three months."

Red Hair nuzzled Ziye. "Hear that? One hundred billion only buys you two Fanatic-class ships."

Even if they weren't Fanatic-class, other models of Dreadnoughts fluctuated around a similar price range.

Ziye scratched her head. "Mine only cost me a little over a billion. If you take out the cost of the raw metal, it’s less than a billion." Red Hair patted her shoulder. "Take this money and spend it on yourself."

Ziye clutched the card, suddenly remembering she hadn't paid for the metal, and the manufacturer’s production fees were still half owed... She had produced twenty Dreadnoughts in total; this hundred billion seemed like it wouldn't even cover it.

A faint sadness washed over her. She grabbed Red Hair’s shoulders. "I’ll give you five Dreadnoughts. Can you sell them and recoup the funds within ten days?"

Red Hair raised an eyebrow. "How many did you make in total?"

Ziye giggled and held up two fingers.

Red Hair guessed, "Two?"

Ziye shook her head. "Twenty!"

Red Hair’s eyes lit up. She feigned annoyance. "You only gave me one out of twenty?"

Ziye shrugged. "Didn't I think the Wolf's Lair needed military strength?"

Red Hair twisted her cheek again. "Once you can build them, everything else is easy. Give me ten. If I put them on the black market, the money will be back in three days. Tell me, are you in debt?"

Ziye looked embarrassed. "No need to spell out the painful reality."

Red Hair smacked her on the head. "You dared to build twenty Dreadnoughts all at once, weren't you afraid the debt would crush you?" Red Hair wasn't someone who was easily fooled. "Why would the Air Force Assembly Workshop extend credit to a little sister like you?"

Ziye became even more flustered. "The shadow boss behind the Air Force Assembly Workshop is from the Angel Domain. I had aliens provide a guarantee."

Red Hair shook her head and smiled, the expression tinged with a slight melancholy.

She felt a surge of pride, like seeing the Wu family's daughter finally bloom, yet at the same time, she felt remorseful that she couldn't be Ziye's pillar of support, forcing her to seek help from An Junlie. In the end, she hadn't fulfilled her duty.

Red Hair was deeply saddened by her own dereliction of duty, feeling as if a substance named CH3COOH was fermenting inside her, sharp and sour, making her deeply uncomfortable.

However, she understood that Ziye must have had behind-the-scenes backing to accomplish all this. That person could only be An Junlie. Thinking along those lines brightened her mood considerably. Returning to the main topic, she asked, "What is your target price?"

Ziye smiled. "Lower than the Interstellar Federation's price is fine. My production cost isn't high either. It would be great if we could disrupt their Dreadnought market."

Red Hair nodded, sent a burst transmission to Nine Hands, asking him to contact Dreadnought buyers, and then continued chatting with Ziye. "What's your next goal? An Aircraft Carrier or a Command Ship?"

Ziye held a finger to her lips, shaking it gently, and whispered three words: "Marauder Ship."

Red Hair was surprised. "Marauder Ship? You’ve already built Dreadnoughts; why build a Marauder Ship? Just go straight for the Carrier."

Ziye fully understood Red Hair’s perspective. Although the Dreadnought was the simplest flagship, it still fell under the Dreadnought category, offering a clear path for further development into a flagship role. No matter how powerful a Marauder Ship was, it was only one step above a Battleship, far beneath a flagship.

Ziye firmly stuck to her own idea and explained, "I built the Dreadnoughts using half-copying and half-research methods; there are many things I'm unfamiliar with. I built them just to quickly boost the Wolf's Lair's combat strength. If we secure sovereignty, and those non-sovereign legions get provoked by the Interstellar Federation to cause trouble, at least we'll have a means of response. Don't you agree?"

Red Hair naturally understood this point, but her focus wasn't there. "This has nothing to do with why you're building a Marauder Ship."

Ziye countered, "I spent more time researching Marauder Ships than Dreadnoughts. If I build the Marauder Ship, we can advertise it widely, claiming we possess the independent research and production capability for Marauder Ships. From then on, we can openly take Marauder Ships out to fight. Isn't that better?"

Red Hair gently patted her shoulder with profound earnestness. "You’ve grown up. Do what you want. If you run short of money, tell me; I'll always find a way to get it for you."

If not, she could always go block the entrance to the shipyard at the Talmar system station again. This time, Red Hair wasn't planning small stakes. The brothers in the Talmar system needed money and equipment, the Wolf's Lair needed construction funds, and since everyone else was walking the straight path, she would bear all the negative consequences!

Ziye hesitated for a moment. "Red Hair, there's something I need to tell you."

Red Hair snapped back to attention and was surprised to see Ziye looking hesitant. She couldn't help but ask, "Don't tell me you're pregnant with an alien's child?"

"Pfft!"

Ziye almost choked on her saliva, her face flushing scarlet. "How is that possible! We aren't even familiar with each other yet."

Red Hair laughed heartily. "Tell me, whatever it is, I can handle it."

Ziye’s expression turned serious. "I plan to take a leave of absence from school."

Red Hair froze instantly. "Why?"

Ziye took a deep breath. "I’ve thought it over. The Wolf's Lair has finally taken root, but it’s still too weak. It needs to develop during this period. Lately, I haven't been able to concentrate on classes anyway. Rather than wasting time there, I’d rather focus on developing the Battleships and Marauder Ships and finishing the Dreadnoughts first to boost our military reserves. Then I can go back to school with peace of mind. Right now, I can neither focus on class nor help the legion; it’s a complete waste of time."

Red Hair sighed heavily. "We’ve implicated you. At your age, you shouldn't be living in fear every day with fighting and killing. You should be like the ordinary students on Kaga, talking about celebrities and chasing handsome guys. Forcing you to follow us is too hard on you."

Ziye's voice was firm. "No, it has nothing to do with my age. The moment I joined Silver Emblem, I stepped onto this path. Don't try to persuade me. Once I finish developing the strategic weapons sector, I will go back and complete my studies."

In Silver Emblem, life consisted of three meals a day, researching simple weapons, fighting with a few familiar people, and virtually no pressure for survival. Since they lived far apart, there was hardly any time to sit down and have a heart-to-heart talk. After leaving space, their goals aligned, and they strove forward together, but their paths diverged so much that they never had time for a proper conversation until now.

But after this chat, Red Hair suddenly felt an urge to find some pretty boy from the B-class and give him a thrashing!

Hearing Ziye’s words, something in her heart gave a 'thud'—a piece of it shattering! She had always hoped Ziye could have a stable and happy life. She thought that as long as she carved out a bloody path and protected Ziye, Ziye could live carefree under her protection. However, reality had slapped her hard! Ziye had ultimately chosen this road.

Red Hair looked at her sitting there, holding a cup and drinking water, feeling utterly lost. A sharp pain wrapped tightly around her heart. It was only at this moment that she recognized with a shock: Ziye had grown up. The lines of her face were still as soft as ever, but her eyes were now as sharp as a warrior's.

The most terrifying thing in the world wasn't life or death, but fighting to the end to protect someone, only to realize that person no longer needed protection. Red Hair suddenly felt the ultimate sorrow of a parent. She couldn't utter a word, only patted Ziye’s shoulder, turned around, and strode away.

Her heart was pulverized into dust!

Ziye watched her retreating back, feeling a bit down. "Bean Sprout, why did she leave without saying anything to me?"

Little Sprout opened its optical screen and calculated rapidly. It finally concluded, "This master believes that your taking a leave of absence will be a great boon to the Wolf's Lair, providing outstanding contributions to strategic weaponry and equipment. As the Combat Director, she should be happy. Perhaps this is just her way of showing happiness."

Bean Pod heard its voice and lifted its head with a "Jee~" sound.

Ziye looked at it, then at Bean Pod, clenched her fist, her gaze firm. "Regardless of whether Red Hair approves or not, I’ve already decided. I must do this!"

Over a month had been consumed building the Dreadnoughts, and there were only a few days left of the summer vacation. Ziye remembered her plan before the break: the Out-of-Sheath team was supposed to travel together. Because something happened with the Wolf's Lair, they hadn't dared to rush her, so the trip had been postponed until now. Since she had decided on the leave of absence, and she might not have much time with them in the future, with the Dreadnoughts launched and tested, and her mood somewhat relaxed, she contacted Li Chunyu. "Senior Brother Chun'er, weren't we supposed to go traveling? Are we still going?"

Li Chunyu was filled with mingled surprise and joy upon receiving Ziye’s burst transmission. "Ziye, is there something you need help with?"

Ziye wiped her forehead. "Can't I contact you if I don't need anything?"

Li Chunyu felt reassured. "So, you’re done with your work?"

Ziye nodded. "Mm, thank you for your help."

Li Chunyu waved it off. "No problem, I’m glad I could assist."

Ziye felt a little embarrassed instead. "I borrowed your ship for over a month and still haven't returned it. I’ll bring it back in a few days."

Li Chunyu chuckled. "Great. Once school starts, you’ll have a period of ease too. Oh, little Ziye, don't burden yourself too much with your legion's affairs. Some things aren't determined by what we want; they take time."

Ziye felt a pang in her heart, suddenly not daring to tell him about her plan to take a leave of absence. Forget it, she’d tell him after the trip.

She changed the subject. "Okay. Can you contact the others first? Once the time and place are set, there aren't many days left before school starts; it'll be difficult if they’re busy."

Li Chunyu agreed; it made sense. The two divided the labor, contacting the remaining members of the Out-of-Sheath team.

No one blamed Ziye for being a month late to join her teammates, but they also didn't dare offer easy comfort, fearing they might upset her. Ziye looked at them, feeling a warmth in her heart. After the Wolf's Lair incident, they had all helped her in different ways. Seeing them now, it felt like the vacation had just started yesterday, everything as bright as sunshine. She rediscovered the feeling of truly belonging among people.

-RS

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