Trivial Matters, Arrangements

Tap, tap, tap.

Ina Sandra drummed her fingers against the desktop, her beautiful yet stern face full of frustration. Finally, she looked at Luke, who was sitting across from her with a tablet in hand, working through the White Queen, and spoke helplessly. "Aerospace? Do you have any idea how many projects we've launched recently? How much capital has gone out? How much manpower we've committed?"

"There's no helping it. It concerns our future security and Hebron's future development. This is urgent." Luke looked up at Ina Sandra, whose expression said she could do nothing about him.

"It's only a few satellites. We could outsource them to someone else. Stark Industries has satellite launch services, along with customization options." Ina Sandra tried to persuade him. "I know you want Hebron to become a major industrial conglomerate without any weaknesses, but time is simply too tight. In five years, growing Hebron to its current scale is already unbelievable."

"Are there any difficulties? Or have more competitors appeared?" Luke was not completely ignorant of such matters. He understood Ina's difficulties, but the same still held true: once he made up his mind about certain things, it could not be changed.

"Competitors don't matter. At our stage, no matter what industry we enter, we'll have more enemies than friends. The key issue isn't that. It's what exactly you want to do." Ina Sandra waved a hand dismissively. Luke handled the technical matters while she handled everything else. That had been their tacit agreement from the very beginning, so she did not care about that. Those were the problems she was supposed to face, bear, and solve.

What she cared about was that Luke had too many ideas, too much inspiration, and his technology advanced far too quickly. It was so fast that even someone as proud of her own abilities as she was could barely keep up with him.

"An experiment. A very important experiment," Luke said seriously.

"This planet can't contain you anymore? Are you already gazing toward the boundless stars?" Ina Sandra was so angry that she laughed. "Do you know how much I have to prepare just because of one casual sentence from you? New departments, new personnel, new investments, new directions for technological applications and future planning. I'm already busy enough, Luke! Lately, I've been so busy I wish I could split myself into two or three people!"

"I thought the White Queen could help you." Luke shrugged. "I created her for exactly this moment."

"If it weren't for the White Queen, you wouldn't have seen me here two years ago! My workplace wouldn't be here either—it would be in a private hospital, in my own private ward!" Ina clawed at her hair in frustration. She had always thought of herself as someone calm, so calm that she was harsh, detached, and emotionless. But Luke alone could effortlessly break through all her defenses.

When Ina thought Luke was still playing around on the ground, he suddenly told her he wanted to go into space!

"Really no way?" Luke still tried to struggle.

Looking at Luke's face, the frantic Ina suddenly calmed down. "You can access the company's Data Information and cash flow through the White Queen. Do you know how many new projects you've started in the past two months? Most of them are still in laboratories, or have been sealed away as Hebron's technological foundation. They've taken up enormous amounts of funding. This year's research budget has long since gone over budget..."

"Isn't the research budget going over budget an annual tradition?" Luke raised a hand, earning himself a vicious death glare from Ina.

"We can't establish an Aerospace Department immediately. No money, no manpower, no time. At the very least, you'll have to wait until I finish dealing with what's on my plate." As in their previous arguments, Ina Sandra compromised. Of course, as always, she also voiced her own opinion while compromising.

"Fine, fine. But what you said about Stark Industries?" Luke picked up his tablet and stood.

"That's what I said. I'll contact Stark Industries immediately and have them rush your big toy into outer space." Ina waved him away, signaling for Luke to leave quickly.

At the Weapon Testing and Security Training Ground in Hebron Industrial Park, Snoke was leading a twelve-man squad through recovery and adaptation training. Seeing Luke arrive from afar, Snoke immediately abandoned the squad members who were still testing and training and went over to greet him. His life during this period had felt like a dream. Though he had not returned to the battlefield he knew so well, after living at Hebron for two weeks, he had actually begun to find it rather nice.

There were all kinds of unexpectedly advanced technological products here, all sorts of new weapons and equipment that could not be found anywhere else, as well as matching training methods. He also had a group of subordinates again.

"Boss." Snoke came to Luke's side, stood ramrod straight, and called out.

"Looks like you've recovered well. How's the new arm?" Luke examined the revitalized Snoke, his eyes lingering twice on the silver metal arm visible beneath the right sleeve of his clothing.

"Great." Snoke remained as concise as ever, but the gleam in his eyes revealed his inner satisfaction. Perhaps afraid that those two words would not satisfy Luke, after a brief pause, Snoke added, "I like it very much. They like their new limbs too."

"If you mind, you can cover them with a layer of bionic skin." Luke looked at Snoke's mechanical arm. Yes, mechanical arm, not metal arm. It was a model Luke had specially customized for his Security Squad. The mechanical limbs contained Micro Energy Battery Cores, along with equipment such as electric shock devices, Signal Receivers, Jamming Chips, Special Magazines, and muzzles. This ensured that even without combat suits or other weapons, Snoke and his men could maintain a certain degree of combat capability.

"No need. We all like them." Snoke emphasized it again.

Luke shrugged and turned his gaze toward the squad in the distance.

"Those are the people selected from the filtered list you gave me. Most of them have their own specialties. With full equipment, I don't believe anyone can break through their blockade and harm the people under their protection." Snoke spoke confidently. "Of course, by fully equipped, I mean equipped with Hebron gear."

"Very good. Roughly how long will their training take?" Luke asked, narrowing his eyes.

"They're already excellent, so they only need to regain their condition, familiarize themselves with working together, and get used to their newly acquired equipment. They'll form combat capability very quickly. If you're in a hurry, Boss, I can guarantee they'll have a certain level of combat capability within three days," Snoke assured him.

"Then three days. Also, what about the other people who signed contracts?" Luke was referring to those who had signed ordinary confidentiality agreements and security contracts.

"After the Red Queen confirmed that their identities were temporarily trustworthy, Miss Ina stuffed some of them into the Security Department." Snoke grinned. It was only after joining this department that he learned Hebron's Security Department had recently undergone a major personnel purge, dismissing a large number of its former security staff. This batch of retired soldiers who had come to have prosthetic limbs installed had been directly drafted into service.

Of course, Snoke did not think that was a bad thing. At least these people now had legitimate jobs. The company was good, and the pay was good too. It was better than being driven into a corner and joining gangs.