Chapter 166: Chapter 131: Modification System, Merchant Nobility, Lady Catherine
Although Reinhardt’s tactical operation to abduct the Grand Interrogator had been executed flawlessly, the consequences were immediate. The garrisons surrounding Rebino World mobilized in full force, closing every Cosmic Net Path connected to the Imperial Administrative Region and rigorously inspecting all passing starships.
However, this was all part of the Vengeance Angel Squad’s initial plan.
Meanwhile, the Punisher Battleship remained hidden in the depths of space.
「After a long thirty-day wait.」
They transferred to an evacuation merchant vessel that had been pre-arranged by the Imperial Administrative Region. After a number of setbacks, they finally departed the territory of Kles.
Although a team of Lord Knights and an Interrogator wielding Wizard’s Power boarded to search the vessel, the terrifying extent of Raphael’s abilities as a Mind Mage was demonstrated to its fullest in this war of intelligence, a battlefield without smoke or fire.
He didn’t even need to forcibly break through their minds. A perfectly placed psychological suggestion was enough to convince the Knights and the Interrogator that the Vengeance Angel Squad were simply the Clan Knights escorting the merchant ship.
With the ship’s captain from the Capet Family personally offering an explanation and presenting the Interrogator with a handsome gift, securing passage proved to be effortless.
The Merchant Nobility were the ones who pioneered new routes for the Radiant Empire, a group possessing all manner of special business privileges. It could be said that every one of their families was fabulously wealthy.
Even the poorest of the Merchant Nobility possessed enough wealth to easily purchase five extremely resource-rich mining worlds with a Four-star Rating.
For rating worlds like these, the Empire employed the most straightforward and easily understood method: a Star Rating System.
Worlds were rated on three criteria: mineral wealth, agricultural value, and strategic advantage within their Star Zone. The ratings ranged from a minimum of One-star to a maximum of Seven-star.
A mining world with a Level Four Rating was nearly the highest score a world excelling in a single dimension could achieve.
Reinhardt had rarely interacted with the Merchant Nobility, but rumor had it that the leaders of these powerful families were neither Mortals nor Knights or Wizards in the traditional sense.
Their Extraordinary Power stemmed from modifications using Witchcraft Technology from ancient times.
Expensive Wizard’s Secret Treasures were implanted in their bodies, their skeletons and musculature were fused with Alchemy Technology, and their blood was even mixed with the power of Scaya Pure-blooded Dragon Descendants or other Ancient Creatures.
Strictly speaking, if one were to scrutinize them, the National Church Court could easily brand the core members of the Merchant Nobility as Aliens of impure blood.
The curious thing, however, was that the history of the Merchant Nobility might be even longer than that of the National Church. Furthermore, their modifications had been permitted by a decree personally signed by the Emperor himself during the era of the Great Expedition.
A Merchant Family often had more than ten core members. The branch families that extended from them numbered in the hundreds or even thousands. Subdividing further, they could form a ten-thousand-strong Legion without any issue.
Thus, the Merchant Nobility was not a monolithic entity. For instance, the captain of the Capet Family warship that Reinhardt and his squad were aboard, Lady Catherine, was a staunch member of the Empire’s Loyalist Faction.
During the journey, she received Reinhardt’s party with the highest honors. She even appeared personally to hold a simple funeral for Romana, the fallen Master of Internal Affairs, and had her body temporarily placed in a coffin.
Although Lady Catherine was over one hundred and seventy years old and a member of the Capet’s core family council, she still maintained her youthful appearance.
Her long, flaxen hair was styled in an ornate coiffure befitting a noblewoman. Her body, clad in a black ship’s uniform, was slender and elegant. Faint traces of modifications were visible on her face, but they did nothing to detract from her traditional beauty.
The curved, Scaya Dragon Descendant horns extending from her forehead even added a touch of exotic, Alien Race charm.
Even though the members of the Vengeance Angel Squad, Reinhardt included, disliked banquets, they couldn’t resist Lady Catherine’s repeated and enthusiastic invitations.
At the banquet, Reinhardt sat to the left of his host as the guest of honor.
Lady Catherine’s gaze was soft and gentle—or rather, it was utterly inscrutable, making it impossible for others to discern her true thoughts from her eyes or expression.
She glanced at Reinhardt’s rather plain Armor, then raised her wine glass with a smile. "Reinhardt... the Grand Governor has mentioned you to me on more than one occasion. But truly, if the Administrative Region is short on funds...
...I could personally sponsor a suit of Power Armor for you. Consider it a gift for our first meeting."
Raphael, despite being a Combat Priest of high standing and seated to Lady Catherine’s right, was attending a noble banquet of this caliber for the first time.
For Raphael, who had always revered simplicity and ascetic practice, every second he spent here was uncomfortable. He was especially incensed by the fawning sycophancy of the surrounding Merchant Nobility and their hypocritical praise of the Divine Emperor.
But Lady Catherine was, after all, a secret ally of the Lord Governor, so he had to show her some respect.
Manon, the Emperor’s Shield Knight, simply buried his head in his food, completely ignoring the flattery and praise from those around him. As for Matthias, his status as a former Ash Guard of the Death Battle Group was enough that just by sitting at the table, his murderous aura extended ten meters out. He didn’t speak, and no one dared to approach him.
Seventy-Six and Technician Soldier Agate didn’t come at all.
One was a member of the Assassin Court, under the sole command of the Grand Governor; the other was a mechanical Cultivator who worshipped the God of All Machines. If they didn’t want to attend, no one could make them.
Reinhardt had only agreed to attend the banquet for Sedon’s sake.
Whatever conflicts they may have had in the past, their current interests and goals were aligned.
Faced with Lady Catherine’s generous offer, Reinhardt, much like Manon, focused on eating his fill. Only at the end did he respond coolly, "That won’t be necessary. The Power Armor for Raphael and me went into production in Aquitaine a month ago."
"Is that so?"
Lady Catherine propped her fair cheek on her right hand, a smile on her face as she quietly watched Reinhardt. If one didn’t already know that this lady was one hundred and seventy years old, one of the leaders of the Capet Family, and possessed a formidable Mighty Power equivalent to that of a novice Earth Knight...
...anyone else seeing her expression would have mistaken her for an innocent young maiden smitten with love—her gaze was that intense.
After watching him for a moment, Lady Catherine whispered, "Can we speak privately after the banquet?"
Reinhardt frowned slightly.
"About what?"
"A business proposition. I’ll give you the details later."
Lady Catherine’s left hand rested, as if by chance, on Reinhardt’s arm. "And the compensation will be very generous."
Reinhardt didn’t refuse her outright. During his years of quiet cultivation with Geoffroy, he had learned that advancing to Earth Knight was no longer something that could be achieved through combat and ascetic practice alone, as it had been at the Official Knight Military Rank.
To advance further on the path of a Knight, he would need the support of vast resources and wealth.
Although the Imperial Administrative Region provided most of the resources he required for his service in the Vengeance Angel Squad, there were some rare items that he would have to find a way to acquire on his own.
That was why he wanted to see what kind of compensation this Lady Catherine, with her ulterior motives, had to offer.
