A Certain Pirate's Wonderful Retirement Life

Kolev never imagined his life could be so carefree.

Oh, right, he went by 'Machir Hatun' now. He was a well-known rich man in the Kashi Federation, contemplating how to invest in some idealistic youngsters and start new industries that would still be making him money even after retirement.

The first ray of dawn filtered through the gaps in the curtains, falling onto Kolev's aged face, signaling his well-rested brain to wake up.

He opened his eyes to a ceiling covered by a starry sky nautical-themed oil painting.

Two maids in the corner left their charging stations.

They had fair, delicate skin, lively, bright eyes, and nimble limbs indistinguishable from a human's. The only difference was at their knees and elbows, where legal regulations mandated silver-white alloy knobs to distinguish high-simulation robots from humans.

Though this often excited some mechanical enthusiasts.

Aside from the four alloy knobs, they were otherwise identical to real people. In fact, when their soft little hands made contact with their single male owner, they would trigger a shyness subroutine and then give him a suggestive glance.

These were hidden programs within high-end maid robots.

The manufacturers' primary goal in setting up such programs was to make single men spend money and upgrade them into higher-tier, fully adaptive companion robots.

Once the owner started upgrading, these companion robots would constantly hint that their chests could be bigger and softer, their waists thinner and more elastic, gradually emptying the owner's wallet.

They even had comparison subroutines, jealousy subroutines, and emotional index assessment subroutines, demanding the owner constantly upgrade their components, get better Positronic Brains, softer, younger skin... and so on.

It was a bottomless pit.

The wise Kolev wouldn't fall for their tricks.

Kolev stretched and stood up, spreading his arms. The two maid robots busied themselves, standing and squatting, helping their master complete his face washing and dressing.

Then, Kolev padded across the soft leather carpet, leaving the over one hundred square meter bedroom adorned with various industrial decorations. He walked down the hallway, admiring the nearly identical self-portraits.

A cleaning robot tidying up bowed its head in greeting.

A butler robot not far away held a network terminal, ready to report on the estate.

Kolev ambled to the elevator and ascended to the third-floor fitness area of the villa. Attended by his maid robots, he took off his shirt and lay on a micro-electronic massage chair, letting magnetic fields and electric currents activate his muscle fibers. He was then transported by the chair's conveyor belt into a warm swimming pool, where he floated freely to music while undergoing a comprehensive check-up.

When Kolev sat up, stretching, he had already left the semi-solid pool. He took the soft jacket handed to him by a maid and sat in an anti-gravity sofa that could move freely within the castle. By the window, he basked in the warm stellar light, examining his health report.

"Now this is living,"

Kolev muttered, lit a cigar, and began to puff away.

"It's just a bit boring."

"My esteemed master," the butler's voice, tinged with metallic resonance, sounded beside him, "several young individuals with excellent ideas await your audience."

"Is there any message in my number three mailbox?"

"No, master."

"Oh, well, my daughter still doesn't want to come over," Kolev shrugged, resting his legs on the coffee table. "Let them in. They're all guys trying to get money from me, no need to be too polite."

"You are truly a great philanthropist," the butler said with a chuckle.

Kolev cursed, "Get lost! I'm an investor! I want to be a greedy capitalist!"

"Very well, master, you are a great greedy capitalist!" the butler declared enthusiastically.

"That sounds much better."

Kolev snapped his fingers, and the butler immediately bowed, catching the cigar butt Kolev flicked with his alloy hand.

"How long have I owned you?" Kolev asked.

"We have been working for you for seven months."

"Seven months," Kolev murmured, "It's been eight months since I parted ways with that brat. Oh, time flies for old people."

The butler chimed in, "Yes, master, time truly flies... The guests have arrived, master."

Kolev nodded, suppressing his thoughts. He placed his hand over the spherical button, and the sofa rotated on its own.

Several young men and women stood nervously in the spacious room. Upon seeing Kolev, they offered greetings somewhat out of sync.

"Hello, Mr. Hatun."

"Hello," Kolev smiled, raising an eyebrow. He glanced at a young woman with glasses and cute freckles before focusing on their leader.

He was a tall, thin young man, his eyes burning with ambition.

Kolev looked at the young man a few more times. At first glance, he thought the young man bore some resemblance to that person, which earned him a little favor.

"Let's begin. You have five minutes," Kolev said with a smile. "Whether you can scam fifty thousand Kashi coins in angel investment from me depends on how eloquent your tongue is."

The young people became even more nervous.

The leader frowned. "Esteemed Mr. Hatun, we are not here to scam money. We have brought a product our team has been developing for three years. This is absolutely a groundbreaking product that will create a huge wave in the field of companion robots!"

Kolev leisurely picked up the warm tea beside him and took a sip.

The butler, dressed in a crisp tailcoat, tapped his chest. A green countdown appeared.

"Alright! Make it quick!"

The leader turned and urged them on. The group quickly divided their tasks, took out several instruments from their backpacks, fiddled for half a minute, and set up a projection screen, opening a graphic display interface.

"Our product concept is to identify a niche market for companion robots, grasp market deficiencies, cultivate them deeply, and strive to explore! Do what other manufacturers haven't done! That's the opportunity!"

"Based on this, we solemnly present to you our product, which has completed three phases of line construction and simulation experiments.

'Son Robot!'"

Pfft!

Kolev turned his head and spat out a mouthful of hot tea. A maidservant quickly stepped forward, gently wiped the corners of his mouth, and gave him a flirtatious wink.

"What in the world?" Kolev frowned deeply. "Son Robot?"

"Yes, sir!"

The young man leading the presentation pushed up his glasses, his breathing slightly rapid.

"Nowadays, aging is still a serious problem facing all the countries in the galaxy. Only the Sherman Empire has mandatory birth laws, while other countries follow the 'test-tube baby public upbringing' regulations. This undoubtedly places a huge burden of elder care on the entire society.

"Who will satisfy the emotional needs of lonely elderly people?

"The answer is our product—the Son Robot!"

Kolev's eyes were a little glazed over.

The young presenter grew even more excited, as if he wanted to stuff the speech from his mind directly into the angel investor's head.

"Our product has three main features, which are also its three major profit points.

"First, age upgrade.

"In our plan, this robot is divided into five stages: infant, child, adolescent, youth, and middle-aged. Guests can directly purchase a complete package, and they can enjoy the product experience of raising this robot from a little baby.

"They can also purchase it step by step starting from infancy, but they must purchase the child stage service after a few years.

"Of course, our robots cannot grow directly at this stage, but we can develop these five specifications of robots. Reuse is definitely not a problem. Moreover, in the first few years, we can only produce infant-stage robots, then child-stage ones. Then, we can launch trade-in activities for them. For infant-stage robots, they only need to pay a little more money to exchange for a child-stage robot. This guarantees our secondary profit!

"Second, the allowance system.

"We operate on the principle that the robot is your son, and we advance with the product. Our customer service and maintenance personnel can also be your adopted sons..."

"Hey! Hey!"

Kolev interrupted the other party's incessant speech, frowning, "May I ask a question?"

"Of course," the young presenter swallowed nervously.

"Do you know about social welfare institutions?"

"Yes, sir, I do."

Kolev asked, puzzled, "If it's to satisfy the emotional needs of care and companionship, why wouldn't I adopt a child to care for?"

The young man replied earnestly, "That's different, sir. When young people grow up, they leave their elders."

"Then what do you think is the difference between this and them?" Kolev pointed at the maid robot.

"You haven't instilled fatherly love in her, sir."

"Then how can I instill fatherly love in your product?"

"This..."

"Get them out," Kolev waved his hand, full of disappointment. "Please thoroughly research the ethical regulations in various regions before determining the direction you want to develop! This thing won't make it to market, believe me."

"Mr. Hatton!"

Several burly, well-fed mechanical guards rushed over, covered the mouths of the young men, and dragged them out of the reception hall.

Kolev watched the young men being driven out of his manor, speechless. "Young people nowadays don't even know how to swindle an old man."

"I actually think their idea is quite good. I might need a son like that," the robot butler said with a chuckle. "Have you ever been swindled, Master?"

"Of course," Kolev sighed faintly. "It was also a young man. In a few words, he swindled assets worth fifteen million from me, and later caused me nearly a hundred million in losses."

"Wow, that's a big swindler! You should have called the police!"

"Called the police?" Kolev gave a wry smile. "I don't even know where he went."

The robot butler opened his mouth. "Mas..."

He and the maid robot beside him suddenly lost their luster, their heads slowly drooped, and the ring on the back of their necks began to flash gently—the standby indicator.

Kolev, however, fell into a memory, muttering:

"In a few words, he ruined my assets worth over a hundred million.

"Even my daughter cried when she heard about his accident. He almost won my daughter's heart. Oh, he... what's wrong with you guys?"

Kolev looked up at his butler and maid.

He suddenly became alert, his hand reaching into the gap behind the sofa, and pulled out a handgun.

In the manor, several guard robots heading back also stopped in their tracks, lowered their heads. Two gardener robots were in a similar state, and several patrol mechanical dogs simultaneously entered standby mode.

The lights in the reception hall flickered gently.

Kolev narrowed his eyes slightly.

He had been hacked?

Was it revenge from those young men?

Hehehe, then they've picked the wrong person!

"Mmm-hmm~"

A man's humming echoed through the corridor.

Kolev leaped up nimbly, gripping his Laser Pistol and rushing towards the drawing-room door. He held his breath, his Adam's apple bobbing as he calculated the distance to the hummer.

Just like Hanton taught him, count a few numbers.

Three, two… one!

Kolev burst out like an old leopard, the Laser Gun in his hand with the safety off. He roared towards the left, "Freeze! Haha! Caught… urk."

The place was empty.

Click.

A cold metal tube pressed against Kolev's neck.

"Oh! Don't shoot! Oh!"

Kolev immediately raised both hands. "I swear, I was a bit rude just now. I shouldn't have rejected your idea. It's good for young people to have aspirations, I can invest in you."

The person behind him chuckled. "Invest in that son robot?"

That voice?

Kolev froze for a moment, then his entire body trembled.

That familiar, damn, young man's voice!

Hanton!

To get back to the story, a basic writing technique card [Flashback] was used.