From cannon fodder to sweeping across thousands of stars.

Chapter 578 Reactions from all parties (End)

Baron Basf is actually a rare "conservative" among the aristocratic bourgeoisie of the Star Dragon Empire, and he never gambles on major decisions.

But this time, when it came to the "business" involving the Atlas Group and Her Royal Highness Princess Agnes, the Baron took a huge gamble.

He had already placed his life and property on Her Highness Agnes' shoulders, and this time he chose to gamble that the Atlas Group could win the battle and have a "bright future".

To this end, he even brought his fourth newlywed wife, the daughter of the former prime minister of the empire and also Princess Agnes' childhood companion. The two of them came directly to the A. Bava Ku Fortress under the pretext of a visit.

If he came alone, Amber and the others would only think that the Baron was very serious about cooperation.

But now he even brought his wife with him, which seemed to be like treating himself and his wife as 'hostages'.
In a carefully decorated "viewing suite" specially prepared for Baron and his wife BASF, Baroness Mona took Baron BASF's hand and watched the Atlas ships coming and going outside the fortress with him, while speaking softly but firmly:
"Don't be nervous. I said I won't regret sticking with you."

"Mona, you didn't need to get involved in this matter." Baron BASF said with some hesitation: "Even if you stay here as a 'hostage' to express my sincerity, leaving me alone is enough."

"You are my husband, and Her Highness Agnes is my best friend and my lord. If I can help you in this way, I will have no regrets."

The daughter of the former prime minister smiled and turned around to adjust his tie.
"And didn't you also say that you thought Atlas Group had a better chance of winning? If you had shown enough sincerity before the other party won, I believe that the cooperation between this giant company and you and His Highness would be smoother."

Baron BASF was moved when he heard his wife's words.

This man, who was once considered a playboy in the aristocratic circle, has undergone significant changes in his personality since marrying Mona under the latter's subtle influence.

Many people said that he no longer had the domineering temperament he once had. Even Agnes, who was the matchmaker for him, said that he had become much more restrained.

Thinking of this, the Baron couldn't help but gently hold his wife's face with his hands.

"Mona, meeting you is the greatest luck in my life."

However, such affectionate words obviously failed to impress Mona. Instead, she raised her eyebrows and asked in a playful tone:
"Oh~ The luckiest outcome is becoming your fourth wife, not your first?"

"Cough cough."

BASF coughed awkwardly twice and wisely avoided the topic, then took his wife's hand again and led her to the door of the room.

"Let's go meet Ms. Shikoti first. She said that this is your first time here, and she must take you on a tour. We don't want to keep her waiting for too long~"

Baron BASF had just finished speaking, before he could take any action, when he suddenly heard a special reminder tone from his personal terminal, different from the usual ones.

"Hurry up and take a look. Don't miss any important information."

Mona said naturally, and at the same time temporarily left BASF and began to look at the decoration in the room.

Baron BASF was already familiar with the actions of his "virtuous wife", so he did not hesitate and immediately opened his personal terminal.

On a virtual screen projected by the terminal that only he could see, an encrypted message was being quickly decrypted.

When the baron saw that the sender of this encrypted message was a spy ship that had been lurking in the Rubion galaxy for some time, his breathing became rapid, because he had realized that this encrypted message was the result of the battle between Atlas and the Federation.
As the progress bar representing 'decryption' reached the end, BASF could not wait to open it, then closed his eyes, held his breath, and read the first sentence of the message.

"The Atlas Group's combat fleet and the Federation Navy's large fleet (about 4-5 main fleets) engaged in a head-on exchange of fire in the space near Rubion V."

"Sure enough." Baron BASF calmed himself down and continued to look down.

"Due to the high-intensity wide-area electronic confrontation between the two sides, our ship was unable to obtain detailed combat information and was driven away by the outer warships. However, five days ago, our ship detected the attack characteristics of the 'proton annihilation bomb' near the battle area, and it is inferred that the Federation Navy is very likely to have used this strategic weapon again in the battle."

"Even the 'proton annihilation bomb' has been used. It seems that the Federation is really serious this time. Isn't the Atlas Group's combat fleet in danger?"

A drop of cold sweat ran down Baron BASF's forehead, and his complexion began to look worse.

The Baroness in the distance also began to become a little worried after seeing her husband's expression, but she did nothing and just watched her husband quietly from a distance.

The Baron on the other side took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, slowing down his heart rate which was already close to the red line.

"No matter what, I'm here"

Thinking of this, Baron BASF calmed down and looked at the next sentence. Then his eyes widened and his mouth lost control and began to open slightly.

Seeing her husband's reaction, Mona couldn't help but ask with concern:
"What's wrong?"

Hearing his wife's question, Baron BASF did not speak, but walked silently to Mona and looked at her.

Just when Mona thought something had gone wrong and was wondering whether she should say something to comfort her husband, she saw Baron BASF suddenly grinning and hugging her.

"Ah! What are you doing~"

Mona, who had not expected such a reaction from her husband, exclaimed with a red face.

Baron BASF, with an excited look on his face, threw all the key words such as aristocratic etiquette, reserve and elegance to the back of his mind, and kissed Mona's smooth face.

"Hahahaha! I won! Atlas actually won. Mona! My bet was right!"
-
The capital of the Star Dragon Empire, Saint-Saunière.

It was late at night, but inside Princess Agnes' bedroom, through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, several soft lights could still be seen.

"As of the time of this message, this ship can confirm that the battle between the two sides has ended and the Atlas combat fleet has won."

The hand of the Imperial Princess Agnes, who was holding the personal terminal, was shaking slightly, causing some luxurious pendants hanging on the crystal-like terminal to tinkle.

"The Federation Navy suffered heavy losses in the battle, and the surviving warships have been captured by the Atlas Group. At the same time, the Atlas fleet split up and launched a raid on the deep space infrastructure of the entire Rubion system. It is estimated that more than 80% of it has been controlled."

"Huh" Agnes's originally wrinkled face finally relaxed, and her whole face seemed to have regained its spirit. This change made Natalia, the captain of the guards and confidant opposite her, more curious about the content of the secret letter, but she still suppressed her curiosity and stood there quietly waiting.

"Atlas Amber!" Agnes gradually calmed down and walked back and forth slowly in the bedroom. "This magical man really created a miracle."

"Your Highness, do you mean that Atlas won?" Natalia asked cautiously.

"They won, and it was a big win, although we still don't know how they did it."

Agnes passed the secret letter to Natalia and continued:
"Although Atlas's combat fleet also suffered heavy losses, the losses of the Federation Navy were even more serious. Basically, it can be said that the four fully staffed fleets lost their combat effectiveness. In addition, Atlas also took this opportunity to complete the actual control of the Rubion galaxy."

Natalia: "Does this mean that Your Highness can continue to discuss the cooperation with Mr. Amber or the Atlas Group?"

Agnes nodded. "Of course. Besides, the potential shown by Amber and this giant company makes me want to invest more in him."

"Your Highness, do you want to have a deeper cooperation?"

"Don't you think this company or this man has the potential to make me 'increase my stake'?" Agnes looked up at her guard leader. "At first I thought he could win, but I didn't expect him to win so thoroughly. So I had to raise my 'evaluation' of Mr. Amber and this company in my mind~"

The princess paused, then turned and walked to the French window, looking at the brightly lit imperial capital and the huge palace covered with "stars" in the distance.

Even though there was a layer of soundproof glass between them, she knew that the place was still bustling with people, and the prayers of the fanatics resounded through the heavens and earth.

Thinking about the recent series of actions by the Regent and the various strange moves by the Grand Palace, although she knew that the coronation ceremony was getting closer, Agnes still felt an atmosphere of impending storm.

After a moment, she said calmly:

"You also know what has happened recently, Lady Natalia. In this situation, I think we really need an ally with enough weight to support us."

Natalia, who had quickly read the contents of the secret letter and recovered from the shock even faster, organized her words carefully and then looked respectfully at Agnes beside the bed.

"Your Highness, do you think Mr. Amber will accept the cooperation? The last time he discussed with Baron Bass, I felt that he must be a greedy guy, and..."

"And what?"

"And he spoke rudely to you."

"Hahahaha~"

Agnes suddenly laughed when she heard this, and after a moment she continued:

"Mr. Amber is a businessman. Since he is a businessman, greed is a 'trait' that is very consistent with his identity. This is not surprising~
As for "rude words", I think those who oppose me in the empire are the real "rude words" compared to what Mr. Amber said. Believe me, the words those insects used to make up about me are much more vicious. I don't even want you to see the records handed over by the Inspectorate. "

"Why doesn't Your Highness want me to see this?"

"Because I'm afraid that after you finish reading it, you will immediately rush over with the imperial guards to confiscate their property, hahaha~"

Agnes didn't seem to care about the rumors about her within the empire, and she even used them to joke with her own captain of the guard.

Only after seeing Natalia's cheeks begin to turn red did the imperial princess stop joking and speak seriously again:

"This time, BASF gave me a surprise. I didn't expect that he would bring Mona to the asteroid fortress in Atlas."

"Before the outcome of the battle is known?"

"Yes, before the battle results came out." Agnes nodded. "Compared to rushing to congratulate the other party immediately after they win, showing goodwill in advance when the outcome is still unknown. Even bringing your closest people along, the effect is much better."

"But in this case, wouldn't our attitude appear a little too humble?"

Natalia frowned. Although she admired Baron BASF's actions, she was still a little worried that such an action would put the princess in a passive position in subsequent cooperation negotiations.

Agnes: "It's not a big problem. These gestures were made by BASF and do not directly represent our gestures. They are just to let Mr. Amber feel our sincerity."

"So what should we do next?"

"Let BASF wait in the asteroid fortress. If you want to put on a good show, you have to do it in full. When Amber returns to the asteroid fortress, I believe he will be happy to have a good chat with BASF~"

"Yes, Your Highness."
-
"Atlas won?"

A low voice came from behind the dimly lit desk in the study.

"Yes, sir. According to the emergency report we just received, although we don't know the exact number of casualties, we can confirm that the Federation Navy's large fleet has suffered a devastating blow, and Atlas has now completely controlled the Rubion system."

Astral, who was usually calm, had a rare slight fluctuation in his tone at this moment. After all, he was not optimistic about Atlas before the war, because the news he received at that time showed that the scale of the federal fleet was much larger than the former.

"It seems that I have underestimated the ability of Mr. Amber. It will be difficult to stop the rise of Atlas."

Norton II behind the desk hid the upper part of his face in the shadow, making it impossible for Astral to see his expression clearly. He could only see his lips moving up and down.

"But the good news is that after this battle, the Federation has completely lost the possibility of a large-scale armed conflict with us in a short period of time. The negotiations in the border galaxies are expected to have results in a short time. We can also focus on the 'plan' with more peace of mind."

Having said that, Norton II focused his gaze on Astral, who could even see from the shadows that the regent's eyes seemed to emit a faint golden light.

"The 'Purge' is almost over. Speed ​​up the process. Once the 'Purge' is over, the troops that need to be mobilized can also start to be organized. Remember! Go slowly according to the plan and don't let others notice anything unusual."

"Yes, my lord!"

(End of this chapter)