A Gift Is Small, but the Sentiment Is Great

News that Cultists were spreading had the whole of Revival City scrambling.

Yet the governor, the one who'd started it all by exposing the conspiracy, wasn't in the slightest bit anxious.

Early the next morning, he began working to solve his territory's food shortage and contacted the Quintet again.

Yelicia still wasn't giving him a warm reception.

Gu Hang didn't take it to heart. In fact, he understood perfectly.

If he were in her shoes, constantly having people take advantage of him, he'd have reacted even worse than Yelicia.

Since I'm being so understanding, how about you give me the synthetic starch technology?

Of course, Gu Hang knew he couldn't just ask for it outright. He had to offer something in return.

"Commodore Yelicia, I've brought you another piece of good news!"

At those words, Yelicia remembered the three thousand servants she'd lost, the three hundred Servitor soldiers, all that weaponry and equipment, and four Strider Vs.

It hurt.

And what about the Marine captain she'd given away before that?

Had that happened? She couldn't remember.

Yelicia kept a straight face. "Your good news always comes at a steep price, Governor."

"How could that be? I'm sharing our achievements with my best partner."

"If you have something important to say, get on with it."

"I've made some headway investigating the heretical Cultists taking root on Nuxiao Planet. I caught one, and he turned out to be a high-ranking official in the planetary government!"

Yelicia's expression turned grave. "Things have gotten this bad already? Tell me where the enemy is, and I'll destroy them."

"No, no, it hasn't come to that yet. I'll soon find the Cultists' exact whereabouts. When I do, I may need you to send in an elite Marine force, or even bring in the forces from the shipboard chapel, to help me purge the heretics."

"That can be arranged, but it would be best if you could create an opportunity for me to carry out an orbital bombardment."

"I'll do my best."

Yelicia had no reason to refuse. Orbital bombardment was the most convenient option, but she wasn't opposed to deploying ground forces either, as long as it earned her merit.

Besides, sending Marines on a mission was nothing like the earlier arrangement, when she'd called it a "loan" but had practically given Gu Hang the troops outright. The people "loaned" to him had worked under his command long-term. On a mission, whether to fight and how to fight were still under the starship's command system. Gu Hang would at most provide a target and some advice.

The two situations were entirely different.

Yelicia's expression softened, and she felt a little more at ease.

At last, there was some hope that her investment in this governor might pay off.

Clearing heretical Cultists out of a planetary government's capital was at least something she could report.

It wasn't much, but a return meant there was something to look forward to—and she still had two years ahead of her.

In a better mood, Yelicia asked a question she would later regret. "Good. Anything else?"

"Sure. I need the synthetic starch technology."

Yelicia's face stiffened.

I thought you were just here to report some news. So you came to ask for something after all?

"I'm only responsible for fighting the Empire's enemies," Yelicia said. "Supporting development isn't my job."

"But this is about fighting the Empire's enemies!" Gu Hang argued. "What's at the heart of a Cultist outbreak? People have no hope. When they can't even get enough to eat, they're easy prey for Cultists. Synthetic starch technology could help us solve that problem."

Yelicia thought Gu Hang had a point, but... would saving people this way count as a Navy achievement?

As she pondered it, Gu Hang continued. "Commodore Yelicia, please understand: naturally, we need to crush our enemies with overwhelming force. But if the situation deteriorates beyond control, and only total destruction can save anyone, that may not be a good outcome."

"Would it be better to say that a city was destroyed after Cultists corrupted it, or that the heretics spread to terrifying numbers but were wiped out under your command, saving hundreds of thousands of the Empire's subjects? Which sounds better to you?"

A destroyer, or a savior...

The first did sound cooler, but within the Empire—at least in the Pegasus Sector—the second carried more weight.

And being seen as a savior fit Yelicia's mission better. She'd come to Nuxiao Planet to spend two years in orbit, not to hunt down and destroy some enemy, but to help the governor revive the planet.

By this point, Yelicia had to admit that Gu Hang's argument had swayed her once again.

She began to weigh how she might give Gu Hang the synthetic starch technology, and whether it would cost her much.

The conclusion: not much.

The starship certainly had the technology. On long interstellar journeys, supplies were hard to come by, and the ability to recycle almost any organic matter into edible starch blocks was an important auxiliary technology.

But though it was important, the starch machines didn't see much use. Outside of wartime, when the starship could resupply without much trouble, few people wanted to eat starch blocks.

The Quintet's food stores were still fairly abundant; they had enough to last for years.

And there was more than one starch machine aboard. Sending one down wouldn't be a problem.

Of course, Gu Hang wanted the technology, not just a machine. But that wouldn't be difficult either. She could send down a logistics technician from the starship with a machine and some spare parts. That should meet Gu Hang's needs.

In theory, that would be enough for Gu Hang to produce starch machines on his own, provided he had some industrial capacity.

If he didn't, then there was nothing Yelicia could do. I'm not your mother. I can't just feed you myself.

"Agreed."

Yelicia finally gave in. A transport ship brought a technician and equipment down to the surface, and on its return, Gu Hang loaded it up with a good amount of supplies.

According to him, they were a thank-you gift for Commodore Yelicia, local specialties from Nuxiao Planet. In reality, they were simply a small portion of the food and textiles brought over from Revival City.

It wasn't entirely pointless. The supplies would improve the starship crew's meals and replenish their stores.

At least it showed that the governor wasn't taking without giving anything in return!

As for the difference in value... a gift might be small, but the sentiment was great! After watching the transport ship disappear into the distance, Gu Hang plunged back into his grand plan to expand production.