Interastral Peace Corporation—a name known throughout the universe. According to their public image, the Corporation is a colossal conglomerate advocating free trade with operations spanning the cosmos.
Since its inception, the Corporation has relentlessly expanded its market through various means, pushing its own currency, the 'Credit,' aiming to make it the universal—no, the sole—currency across the galaxy.
After all, their ultimate goal is to spread Credits everywhere, seize complete control over pricing, and then... put a price tag on every mine, every plant, even every living being in the universe.
Following the end of the Swarm Disaster, the Corporation grew rapidly. After the long Amber Era, it had become a behemoth spanning the entire universe. This rapid expansion wasn't without setbacks. Conflicts with various factions, border star trade wars, several Emperor Wars...
And now, on Planet Balmung, the former capital of the Glamoth Republic, the Corporation's expansion plans had once again hit a snag.
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In a dimly lit room, a somewhat imposing, aged voice echoed. Eagle-like eyes stared coldly at the person responsible for the recent incident, Osvaldo Schneider.
"The unwarranted destruction of a Cornerstone... Every Cornerstone belongs to [Preservation], belongs to the Amber Lord. They are priceless treasures of the Corporation. Not to mention... this comes alongside an intolerable failure. Osvaldo, you understand this is unacceptable for the Corporation, don't you?"
"...Yes, I understand."
"Diamond has already reported this matter. You must provide a satisfactory resolution before the Board convenes, otherwise..."
"You know what needs to be done."
Just as conflict existed between Osvaldo Schneider and Diamond, and their respective Market Development and Strategic Investment Departments, the Corporation's seven-member Board of Directors was not a picture of harmony either. Among them were members who didn't adhere to Preservation and greatly favored Osvaldo's 'simple and efficient' methods. Undoubtedly, they formed Osvaldo's base of support in his competition with Diamond for the Board seat.
However, regardless of their preference, the principle of impartiality demanded they cast a fair vote in this competition.
There was no place for failures within the Corporation.
If Osvaldo couldn't properly handle this 'major incident,' even the directors leaning towards him would have to make the more rational choice. They wouldn't back a losing investment.
Understanding the implications perfectly, Osvaldo slammed his fist on the table after ending the projection call, viciously sweeping a wine bottle off, sending it crashing!
"Somado, that incompetent fool! Idiot! Dying wasn't enough!" he roared, wishing he could personally torture the man to death. Osvaldo had poured immense effort and resources into competing with Diamond for that Board seat. Yet, at this critical juncture, his own moronic subordinate had handed Diamond such perfect leverage!
A complete, utter, humiliating, and painful failure... and the idiot even requested help from Strategic Investment... leading to that android from Strategic Investment witnessing the entire debacle firsthand. This eliminated any possibility for Osvaldo to cover it up.
Given the history between him and Diamond, Diamond would absolutely not miss this golden opportunity to crush him!
"Lord Osvaldo, what should we do next?" his aide asked tentatively.
"..." Osvaldo was agitated, thinking for a moment. As the Board member had warned, he had to resolve this properly before the Board meeting. Otherwise, forget the Board seat; even his position as Department Head might be demoted.
The destroyed Cornerstone was irretrievable. That being the case, according to Corporation rules, the only way was to redeem himself through merit, achieving greater results to compensate for the loss.
"Order the fleets in that star region: forget all negotiations, proceed with maximum speed!"
Although the Market Development Department's methods were extremely 'crude,' considerations for influence and various factors meant they didn't always resort to brute force against every 'target.' Some targets possessed significant strength. In such cases, Osvaldo would usually try to divide and conquer, incite internal chaos, and let them destroy themselves.
But after this incident, Osvaldo no longer cared about minor losses. He needed to produce as many substantial results as possible, as quickly as possible, to offset his blunder. Otherwise, even his supporting Board members couldn't save him. Just get through this crisis first!
Additionally...
"Have Chandrar take the main fleet, capture that Glamoth Iron Cavalry, and finish the job Somado failed! Once it's done, cleanse that planet! I don't want to hear about any survivors from that place afterward!"
Like Somado, the individual named Chandrar was also one of Osvaldo's confidants, a trusted right-hand man. While Osvaldo's trust in Chandrar wasn't as absolute as with Somado, that was simply because Somado was more obedient and better understood his intentions.
Chandrar... that Halovian race fellow was his most capable fighter, far surpassing Somado in combat prowess.
"It's reported that the planet seems to have a powerful Emanator," the aide mentioned cautiously.
"Don't worry about that. I have other arrangements," Osvaldo snorted, showing no concern.
Emanators were indeed extremely powerful beings in the universe. But they weren't enough to make him afraid. After all, history showed Emanators had fallen to mortals before.
So-called Emanators were just humans with a bit more power. With proper preparation, they weren't terrifying. Especially a lone Emanator—in his eyes, no different from a stray dog on the street. If he feared Emanators, he wouldn't be competing with Diamond for the Board seat in the first place.
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Under the orders of Osvaldo, Head of the Market Development Department, the Glamoth star system, containing Planet Balmung/Nottung, along with several neighboring star systems spanning light-years, entered a state of lockdown. Simultaneously, a heavily armed Corporation fleet slowly approached the massive planet.
...
"Whoa, the Corporation's putting on quite a show!"
Silver Wolf instantly detected the approaching IPC fleet towards the Nottung system via Aether Editing. Chewing on a lollipop, she couldn't help but remark, "One ship, two ships... nearly thirty... all Market Development's. Did Osvaldo empty his entire piggy bank for this?"
These weren't the small starships that came before. Arrayed in the void were large, heavily armed warships belonging to the Corporation's Market Development Department—the kind usually only brought out during wartime. Normally, dealing with a standard planet, deploying even one was considered significant.
Thirty of them... it spoke volumes about the Corporation's immense wealth. Just one business expansion department could field so many large warships.
"Are these warships strong?" [Firefly] asked curiously.
Silver Wolf explained with some pride, "According to the Corporation's database, they're pretty tough. One of these warships is supposedly equivalent in combat power to an Antimatter Legion Doomsday Beast."
"That Strategic Investment Department... like those Stonehearts earlier, each gets assigned only one. Market Development has almost double their number here."
"See? Didn't I tell you that Osvaldo guy went all out?"
"Indeed." Such a deployment was practically equivalent to fighting a border star trade war. Even against Emanator-level opponents—unless they were particularly troublesome types or exceptionally powerful—this fleet stood a chance.
"Then, let's issue them a warning first."
"If they persist..."
"Let the Corporation become the first sound announcing the Glamoth Empire's arrival in the universe." The silver-haired girl in green slowly clenched her fist, gazing at the reflection of the Corporation fleet sailing through the stars, her voice tinged with coldness.
Silver Wolf cheered instantly, "Alright, leave it to me! Let me say hello first~ Processing those damn documents was suffocating me! Hope they put up a bit of a challenge." She eagerly opened her Aether Editing interface. For the thrill-seeking Ms. Silver Wolf, the slow pace of empire building was just too boring.
Compared to patiently accumulating resources to build a massive fleet for a steamroll victory, she much preferred early aggression. The Corporation showing up now was like someone delivering a pillow just when she felt sleepy.
The Corporation fleet naturally had personnel dedicated to network offense and defense. However, compared to Silver Wolf, they were leagues behind. They couldn't even put up the minimal resistance Topaz had managed—after all, the Market Development Department rarely faced opponents like this.
"Network breached."
"Establish link... entering special combat mode. Activate Aether Interference Device." The leading Halovian male remained calm, issuing decisive orders coldly. The Market Development Department's methods were crude, but they weren't stupid. They at least assessed their opponents' information correctly, especially during combat operations.
Having experienced numerous Emperor Wars and having had contact with Punklorde, the Corporation couldn't possibly lack defenses against technology like Aether Editing. Headquarters at Pier Point used immense computing power and chained subsidiaries to prevent core secrets from leaking.
Fleets operating externally could also achieve a degree of immunity through large-scale network chaining, making Aether Editing significantly harder to employ effectively.
"Activated... Lord Chandrar, the opponent left an email."
"What is it?" Chandrar asked, curious, and took a look.
Then, he froze.
It was, unmistakably, a declaration of war.
Skipping most of the content, the remaining message was incredibly simple:
Effective immediately, the Glamoth Empire enters a state of war with the Interastral Peace Corporation.
"...A declaration of war?" Chandrar was bewildered. Lord Osvaldo didn't say this was about starting a war! It was just supposed to be simple planetary cleansing and apprehending Corporation fugitives... How did it turn into war?
Of course, what confused him most was the signatory.
Glamoth Empire? What kind of faction is that? He knew of the Glamoth Republic, but that nation was long gone. And an Empire...
Puzzled, Chandrar tried searching for it, only to discover that the so-called Glamoth Empire seemed to be something fabricated by the Glamoth Republic itself.
He instantly burst out laughing in anger. Are you trying to fool ghosts here! Something made up in stories declaring war on the Corporation, giving him a fright...
Just as he dismissed it as a bluff meant to scare him... one of his subordinates suddenly reported with a face full of terror:
"Lord Chandrar! Unidentified warships are rapidly approaching all around us! It looks like we're surrounded!"
Indeed, on the previously empty screen... somehow... numerous silver warships had suddenly appeared. Their design resembled the Firefly armor, but their size easily matched the Corporation's warships.
And their numbers were several times that of the Corporation fleet!
Their origin? Clearly marked as the Glamoth Empire—the one that supposedly only existed in stories.
In that instant, Chandrar was completely dumbfounded.
Only one thought remained in his head.
Oh crap, did the Faction of History Fictionologists just attack?