I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary - Chapter 427

Chapter 427: Game Changer

“I really don’t feel like doing this......”

“If Master truly isn’t agreeable to it, then I shall inform the other party.”

“No...... I don’t feel like doing it, but I don’t have any intention of breaking my promise either.”

The next day, I headed out to meet with Hartmut along with Mei and some combat bots. It’s not like I was intent on participating in the raid. It’s just that when I made an appointment with the other party, I was told that all the relevant info would be gathered soon, so I decided to bring an attack force with me just in case.

I had the combat bots and Mei’s laser launcher kept at the checkpoint between the upper and lower blocks, then proceeded to the governor’s office where Hartmut was.

“Someone like me advising that extremely handsome Hartmut about relationships between men and women? What kind of joke was this? Who the heck am I to offer such advise anyway......?”

“You’ve built smooth, harmonious, and mutually beneficial relationships with multiple women already, Master. So, aren’t you in the lead when it comes to those matters?”

“Isn’t that just because everyone is paying so much attention to me with you in the lead, Mei? I’m aware that I’m completely relying on you guys when it comes to our current situation......”

Well, maybe I was a few percent ahead when it comes to moral character, but was I really gonna talk down to Hartmut with merely that as a basis?

“Well, there’s no point in worrying about it now. Let’s just say hello and get this over with.”

It’ll be bad for my mentality if I let this matter drag on for too long, and nothing good would come out of that.

“Good day, Lord Hiro. The report should be coming in soon, so please take a seat. I will bring you some tea.”

“Thanks.”

In any case, Hartmut seemed full of motivation today. I can’t exactly put it into words, but...... it’s like the sparkle in his eyes was different. Morale MAX! Something like that.

“So, what is the matter today? We could have simply exchanged information through holo transmission......?”

“Ah–...... I’ll cut straight to the point then. It’s about Airia.”

Hartmut quickly reacted to my words. Please don’t suddenly turn expressionless like that. It’s hella scary.

“Don’t jump to conclusions, okay? I have no intention of declaring her as my woman or anything of the sort. In fact, I’m actually rooting for you, Hartmut.”

“......I see? Please elaborate.”

Well, he seemed to be willing to listen, at least. But the pressure he’s giving off was no joke. His motivation and seriousness were overwhelming.

“First, let me tell you why I decided to get involved in this matter. One of my crew members used to live in this colony and is very close to Airia. Just to be clear, my crew mate is also a woman.”

“Please continue.”

“Okay. So, in other words, my crewmate was worried about her. You’re a viscount’s eldest son and the governor of this colony, after all, Hartmut. That’s a great burden to Airia who’s born a commoner. And you’ll also be the one who’s gonna be taking care of the orphanage from now on. That’s why if you make a demand of her, there’s a good chance she’ll say yes even if it’s not actually in line with her wishes.”

“......”

“Calm down...... I’ve had a proper talk with Hartmut, and in the end, he told me he’d keep my words in mind and act accordingly. However, he also told me he wanted to make Airia happy, and that he liked Airia not only for her looks but also her virtuous disposition, so I don’t think there’s a need to worry so much. The rest is up to the two of them.”

“Nn...... I got it. Thanks, Boss.”

“Yer welcome.”

I gave Tina headpats. She had to be persuaded quite a bit, but she seemed to understand properly in the end. I guess it’s time to say goodbye to this colony. I’ll have to send Linda back to Airia as well.

“By the way, what happened to Dr. Shouko? I feel like I haven’t seen her at all for the past two days.”

“She’s holed up in the lab. Shall I call her over?”

“No, it’s fine as long as she’s okay...... Just what is she up to though?”

My curiosity was piqued, so I decided to pay Dr. Shouko a visit at the lab. What on earth was she doing that needed her to shut herself inside the lab for two days straight?

“Dr. Shouko? What are you...... Uwah.”

“Hm? What’s up?”

Dr. Shouko’s lab was filled with mushrooms. Well, they weren’t growing all over the place, but were instead properly stored inside individual cases, but there were a lot of those cases. There weren’t just ten or twenty of them.at

“What’s up with this?”

“Oh, this? I wondered if it was possible to breed these pathogenic mushrooms and make them harmless. I went through a lot of trial and error. I was able to create a specific vaccine for curing humans, but if we don’t completely eliminate the source of the infection, there will always be a risk of the pandemic erupting again, right? That’s why I was tinkering around to see if I could create a strain of mushrooms that would be able to eliminate the pathogenic ones.”

“I see......? Is it going well?”

“Hmm, let’s see. It looks like it’ll work, but we’ll have to re-contaminate the colony with the new strain. I don’t think we’ll get permission.”

“There’s no way that’ll go through.”

“Yeah, not a chance.”

Dr. Shouko guffawed with laughter.

“Well, I’ve finished designing nanomachines that’ll specifically target and purify the pathogen in question, so I suppose we’ll just use them instead. Hm. As I thought, it’s difficult to control living organisms.”

“I see......? Hm? So, what about the pandemic in the colony?”

“I believe things will settle down quickly if we use the special medicine and the purifying nanomachines together. Oh, and I’ve compiled the data and samples, so I’ll leave them to you. I suppose I’ll take a shower and go for a nap. Fuaaa......”

After saying so, Dr. Shouko handed me an armful of sturdy-looking containers and left the lab while yawning.

“......Actually, ain’t Dr. Shouko the most dangerous person on this ship?”

I was shaking all over as I felt the weight of the containers I received.