Chapter 417: Progress and Sudden Raid

Chapter 417: Progress and Sudden Raid

I was planning to sell off the spoils we got from the pirates at Reemay Prime, which was currently short of essential supplies, and stockpile the starship parts and equipment, which should be in low demand, in Black Lotus for the time being. However–

『Can you please sell some starship parts to me?』

Apparently, Hartmut had heard that Mimi and the others asked around to find out whether or not we could sell off starship parts at Reemay Prime for a good price, so he quickly got in touch.

“I don’t really mind, but why?”

『Because we prioritized securing food and medical supplies first, we are now experiencing a shortage of machine components......』

“I see. Alright then. We’d get to dispose of some of our goods early, so it’s fine.”

In other words, they want to buy some scrap parts from us. Tina and Wiska did mention that starship equipment could be used as spare parts for colony maintenance when disassembled.

“If you’re going to use them as spare parts, there’s no need for us to perform an overhaul on them, right?”

『I believe that will indeed save both of us from some trouble.』

“You’re gonna have to pay a reasonable price for them though.”

『I wouldn’t dare to be stingy when it comes to something like this.』

Hartmut laughed heartily on the other side of the holo-screen. Umu. He really was quite the handsome guy...... Well, most imperial nobles were relatively good-looking. I suppose it’s the result of unbroken, longstanding lineages mostly composed of beautiful men and women.

『By the way, what is the progress regarding the effective countermeasure against the pandemic that you mentioned a few days ago? Is there any result?』

“Oh, that? Our resident expert has already finished the analysis, and she’s currently conducting simulations to see if the countermeasure she developed can be safely applied to humans and other races. From what I’ve heard, she’ll likely be done with it today.”

『I’m not really a specialist on the matter. What would be next after she is done with the simulations?』

“I believe we’ll skip clinical trials since the simulations can provide highly accurate results anyway, so we’ll immediately proceed with manufacturing a cure, but...... Shall I get our ship doctor to participate in the call?”

『I’m sorry, but can you please do so?』

At Hartmut’s request, I connected the call to Dr. Shouko who was currently busy in the lab so she can participate in the conversation. Anyway, what Hartmut wanted to know was how feasible and safe Dr. Shouko’s findings were.

『Since the accuracy of the results will be comparable to what we’d get from my old employer’s lab, I don’t think there will be any problems with using the cure right away. The vaccine will let the body exhibit an extremely high immunity against the infection source, so there will be no symptoms even if a person gets infected, and it will also prevent the infection source from spreading further.』

『Is mass production possible?』

『It is, with suitable equipment and facilities. We can also manufacture it in our lab, albeit on a small scale.』

『How much can you make?』

『As long as we have the materials, we can produce enough vaccines for 200 people per hour at full capacity – meaning a daily output of 4,800 if we manufacture nonstop.』

“Oh, right. Could you please tell Tina and Wiska to stop overhauling the equipment we stripped from the pirate ships? They can finish working on the ones they already got their hands on, but our client seems to want to use the equipment as scrap parts.”

“Understood. I’ll message them.”

With my head still on top of her lap, Mimi started operating her tablet terminal. Umu. Nice. Very nice. I’m not gonna elaborate, but anyway, it’s nice. This is happiness itself...... Nay, this is the truth of the universe......!

“......Mimi-san, would you like to cooperate with me in caring for My Lord?”

Perhaps mentally sensing something from me, Kugi suddenly made a wonderful proposal. What a great suggestion. However, how is Mimi gonna respond? She sometimes seems to be competing with Kugi.

“Sounds good!”

Looks like we got the go-ahead. In other words, I’ll be taking on two people. Alright then. I won’t run or hide. Come at me, you two. What? Wasn’t I exhausted; you ask? Well, I am, but if the two of them are gonna service me, then I’m sure I can surpass my physical limits with sheer willpower.

As I got healed by Mimi and Kugi’s passionate care, Elma relaxed while having a drink as usual, Dr. Shouko fussed over the data samples she managed to collect from me, and Tina and Wiska performed maintenance on the stripped starship parts and sorted them together with Linda. However, something unexpected happened.

It made me get up in a flash.

“Master, an attack was launched on the facility in the lower block.”

“What!?”

After enjoying a shower with Mimi and Kugi, Mei suddenly reported something shocking, and I couldn’t help but do a double-take. Well, we did expect something like that to an extent, and that’s why we left some combat bots to guard the place, but I didn’t really think they would actually go through with it. After all, even I’d hesitate to attack a place that was guarded by four military-grade combat bots.

“There was indeed an attack on the facility where we stationed combat robots. However, the attackers were successfully repulsed by the combat robots and the local guards we hired, so please rest assured.”

“Yeah, but......”

“The children weren’t hurt, were they?”

“No, Mimi-sama. No one was injured, including the local guards.”

“I don’t get their motive...... Well, maybe they simply wanted to plunder supplies.”

I can’t really think of a possible motive apart from that. They did say that the mafia gang that was running the facility in the shadows was mostly destroyed, so I don’t think the attack was related to them, but...... Wait. What about the ones who weren’t supporting the orphanage facility? Was it possible for them to have launched the attack? I suppose that apart from them, no one else would have dared to attack the facility under such heavy guard. If the mafia gang that was managing the facility made a comeback, they’d probably try to settle things with the attackers the first chance they got after all.

“Can we get in touch with them?”

“Yes. It’s possible to contact them through the combat bots.”

“I see. Then ask them about their situation and the details of the attack first......”

I was finally in a great mood, and something like this happened. Are we going to get caught up in something troublesome again......? What to do, I wonder. Since it’ll be troublesome either way, why not just clean everything up? Literally.

I headed for the break space together with Mimi and Kugi while mulling over the situation.