Ever since those giant spaceships arrived at the Erem island chain, Hilda and the ministers around her had been in a constant daze. Hao Ren had to admit that the captains he'd gathered through 883's connections were truly birds of a feather. Their shared way of doing things had caught the elves, who had been determined to carry out a high-profile diplomatic operation, completely off guard. The welcoming ceremony had been scrapped, the diplomatic speeches had been canceled before they were even read, and a whole group of diplomats had been left standing around on the platform. The starship captains hadn't even gotten their footing before immediately starting work. Their swift and forceful attitude was even more impressive than Hilda's.
Then again, it made sense. Most normal privately owned spacecraft captains probably acted this way—they had come here to drum up business. To them, this was just an ordinary day at work. Who had ever heard of someone taking a taxi and bathing and changing clothes in advance?
Fortunately, Hilda had more or less anticipated this situation. The necessary drills for her subordinates had all been carried out. Although Erem's various functional departments had been momentarily stunned at first, they quickly got back on track and began transferring supplies and personnel according to plan.
Hao Ren and Hilda stood on a high balcony in the Royal District, watching the busy city below. Looking at those faces filled with nervousness, anticipation, or confusion, it seemed the elves were still somewhat caught off guard. Although they had begun preparing three days ago, when the giant fleet truly appeared out of nowhere above the floating island, everyone still felt as if it were unreal. Even Wim couldn't help gripping his ears. "Hey... This isn't a dream..."
Vivian looked at Hilda. "At a time