69novels Chapter 41 Visitors
Chapter 41 Visitors
Before the Black Pearl set sail, Liu En went to fulfill his promise—he had promised Vera Nazari that he would visit her at her home.
The Nazari family's ancestral home is located in the Pinnacle of Fel Maxim. The Pinnacle is the highest level of the hive, home to planetary governors, high nobles, and the heads of massive industrial conglomerates. They live in secluded, luxurious palaces, enjoying simulated sunlight, artificial gardens, and clean air, a stark contrast to the filth and darkness of the lower hive.
Liu En ascended the elevator from the parking area. The cabin transitioned from the dim light of the lower compartment to the crowded middle compartment, then to the bright light of the upper compartment, finally gliding into the soft, cool white glow of the apex. The air, filtered through multiple layers, carried a faint, artificial frankincense scent. Huge murals adorned the walls on either side of the corridor, depicting scenes of the empire's great victories—each meticulously maintained, the paint as vibrant as new.
Stepping out of the elevator, I walked along a wide corridor lined with neatly trimmed low shrubs. At the end of the corridor, before a large cast-iron gate stood a family statue made of black iron. It depicted an ancient warrior clad in armor, his face mostly obscured by a helmet, wielding a longsword and a gear. The base was inscribed with the Nazari family motto. The statue's surface was covered in rust, yet under the cold, dim lighting of the spire, it gleamed with a hard, unyielding luster.
Vera said: There is a statue of the Black Iron Family in front of the door, so it's easy to find.
The old butler was already waiting at the door. He was dressed in a traditional dark suit, his hair was neatly combed, and his back was ramrod straight. He bowed slightly and led Liu En through the front hall.
The Nazari family crest is embedded in the wall at the very center of the foyer—a double-headed eagle with wings outstretched from a gear, holding an astrolabe in its beak, identical to the emblem on Vera's robe. Below the crest is a plaque inscribed in High Gothic: "Beginning in M33, serving the Emperor, forever unwavering."
The old butler's voice was deep, as if recounting a long-forgotten sacred text: "At the height of the family's power, we produced three sector governors and two admirals. We also had a slight connection with the secondary seat next to the Highlord Council. That was—a long time ago."
He pushed open the door to the tea room and stepped aside to let Liu En in.
Vera was already waiting inside. She wore a deep red robe befitting a second-tier technical craftsman, hoodless, with her light brown hair tied in a neat high ponytail, and a slight smile playing on her lips. She was exactly the same as when she met Wandering Harbor—enthusiastic, direct, and averse to formalities.
"Captain Cohen! You're finally here." She strode over and led Liu En into the tea room. "I thought you were going to stand me up."
Liu En followed her inside. The tea room was small and simply furnished, with teaware and a steaming teapot already set on the table. Several yellowed portraits hung on the wall, depicting figures dressed in aristocratic robes from different eras, their features bearing a resemblance to Vera.
"Won't."
"That's good." Vera pulled out a chair and sat down. Without waiting for the old butler to greet her, she picked up the teapot and poured a cup for Liu En, then poured one for herself. "How was the journey? Is the Black Pearl still in the dock?"
Liu En picked up his teacup: "It's still here. It'll be leaving port in a couple of days."
"Another trip through the void?" Vera's eyes lit up. "Where to this time?"
"Dullob Sander, then go to a spaceship."
Just as Vera was about to ask further questions, the door to the tea room was pushed open.
The old man from the Nazari family entered. He was a lean man, a fifth-tier civil sage, holding the title of liaison officer in the Ministry of the Interior. His robe was well-tailored, trimmed with the uniform golden gear pattern of the Lucis Temple, but the side pockets were torn. His face bore some resemblance to Vera's, with deep wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, and an old mechanical prosthetic eye embedded in his right eye, its blue halo slowly expanding and contracting. He was an old sage who had lived for over a thousand years—his subcutaneous tissue was implanted with nano-life-sustaining units, with a mechanical replacement rate exceeding sixty percent; from the voice module to the spinal interface, everything proclaimed that this body had long surpassed the limits of mortals.
"Cohen Severus." His voice carried the synthetic resonance of the Mechanicus. "I've heard so much about you."
Liu En stood up and nodded slightly: "Sage."
"Sit down. No need to be so formal."
Vera chimed in from the side, "Father, could you please stop being so formal the moment we meet?" She pointed at Liu En, "He's not this polite when he's in battle."
The old gentleman didn't reply. He sat down opposite Liu En, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
He glanced at Vera first, then his gaze fell on the yellowed portraits on the wall.
"The surname Nazari isn't common in the Empire. But in Lucis, in the Misty Starfield, quite a few people know it." His tone was unhurried. "In M33, the family produced its first sector governor. At that time, the Empire was in the Jericho Golden Age—M32 to M35, when the entire Empire expanded to the peak of its power and influence. Nazari's caravans followed the expeditionary fleet eastward, from the Misty Starfield to the edge of the Limitless Starfield. At its height, the family controlled three main trade routes and more than a dozen armed merchant ships."
His optical lens extended or retracted slightly.
"Later, as the empire grew larger, the competition intensified. The merchant ronin dynasty was more adept at acquiring territory. A branch of the Navara family, it is said, had an ancestor who obtained a merchant license personally signed by the Emperor during the Great Crusade. This license was passed down through generations, and by the time of M33, they had surpassed our accumulated wealth of thousands of years by relying on that Imperial license to traverse the star sector. The family's territory was thinned, fragmented, and forgotten during the power shifts. By my grandfather's generation, almost nothing remained except the surname, this old house, and the statue at the entrance. —By the Emperor, there's not much to complain about."
He took a sip of tea.
"The collateral branches are still in Terra, with people in the Ministry of the Interior and the Naval Logistics Department. But they don't have much contact with us anymore. Later, I joined the Temple and settled down in Lucis, so I stopped trying to curry favor with them."
Old Nazari put down his teacup.
"My position, to put it bluntly, is one where I'm neither side. Terra thinks I'm one of Lucius's, and Lucius thinks I have connections in Terra. In reality, I'm just a mouthpiece. Fortunately, my old bones can still function, and I still recognize a few names, so I can find records in the Temple archives that others can't. Although the Mechanicus emphasizes technical ranks, internally it's still the same old system—whoever knows the most people, whoever can retrieve the names of the dead from dusty archives, sits in that chair. My title of 'Sage' is half based on my skills and half on my family's reputation in Lucius that has been established for thousands of years. So, for now, this chair is not for anyone else."
"When I was young, I also thought about going back to Terra. I worked in the Ministry of the Interior for more than ten years, finally reaching a decent rank, but I was reviewing documents from morning till night, and I went through several pairs of glasses. Later, I realized that in this life, being able to have my own office in Lucis and raise my daughter is already a great achievement."
His tone was calm.
Vera held her teacup and listened quietly.
Old Nazari's gaze fell on her and lingered for a few seconds.
I only have one daughter.
Vera's expression changed slightly.
"How did she come to be—the Mechanic Church doesn't practice marriage. My genetic sample was taken from the family gene bank, using my sequence as the base, and it was formed in a culture tank. By the Emperor, that was the most inexplicable experience in my more than a thousand years of destiny."
He paused.
"That child was different from a young age. At six, she could recite the identification codes of all the ship types in the family archives by heart; at twelve, while her peers were still kneeling and reciting machine spirit prayers, she was already independently processing equipment alarms on the assembly line of the temple's machine servants. She wanted to board the ship, wanted to venture into the void—I couldn't stop her. She wanted to step into the abyss of the warp, and I couldn't stop her either. All I could do was stuff her into a cabin that... didn't look like it would be swallowed by the giant maw so quickly."
“The supply ships are at the rear. She feels ashamed.” Old Nazari’s voice was steady. “I’ve told her many times that the casualty rate on supply ships is no lower than that on front-line combat ships—but that’s just data. She’s not in that position. What she wants is to stand on the bridge and watch enemy ships be destroyed by the guns she orders.”
Vera put down her teacup: "That's because you never let me face the true void."
"Yes." Old Nazari did not avoid her gaze. "She has not received systematic training in combat command. The aptitude of the Mechanicus limited the ceiling of her resume. Technical craftsmen without combat experience are among the first to be sacrificed. It's not that she lacks ability, it's that I never let her go down that path from the beginning. This was my choice."
The tea room was quiet for a few seconds.
Old Nazari turned his head, his optical lens facing Liu En.
“Cohen. I didn’t invite you here today to make any promises.” He took a data panel from the inner pocket of his robe and pushed it towards him. “The Nazari family still has some long-established connections in Terra. I’m more familiar with the procedures of the Imperial administrative system than most people. On Lucis’ side, I have influence in the Temple Archives and the Logistics Dispatch Center. These things—you can use them.”
Liu En glanced at the data panel but didn't pick it up immediately.
Old Nazari adopted a more serious tone.
"There's one more thing. Garros—your industrial world—the development application has been approved. Although it hasn't been made public, it can't be kept secret from those who are interested. Someone who climbed up from the bottom nest dares to pioneer on the border of the Empire; he must have powerful backers and ships. I've investigated all of this. Not to offend, but according to the rules. I'm betting my daughter's future on this, so I need to see the big players' cards clearly."
Liu En picked up his teacup but didn't say anything.
"The ship my daughter is on now, I got it by trading my old face." Old Nazari's voice wasn't loud, but every word was heavy. "The Truth Seeker is an asset of the Forging World. According to her qualifications, she doesn't even have the right to board it. I dug out a transfer order from hundreds of years ago in the Temple archives, and got a few old friends to sign and endorse it, before I could give her the title of 'person in charge.' The ship isn't hers, the crew isn't hers, and she doesn't even get to decide the route. The Forging World can take back the ship at any time and replace her with someone else. She'll always be an outsider there."
He paused.
"You're different. The 'elder' behind you can give you the Black Pearl—one more ship won't hurt. I don't have that ability. But I have connections. Garros wants to build an industrial world, but what it lacks isn't blueprints, it lacks people. Crew members, technicians, skilled workers—the Foundry World has plenty of these, but going through the formal channels involves layers of approvals, and it might take three to five years to get people released. On Lucis' side, I have connections in various guilds and labor agencies. If you need people, I can help you poach them. You don't need to wait for the Foundry World's approval."
He raised his mechanical prosthetic eye, and the blue halo slowly expanded and contracted.
"That's not all. In Terra, the old relationship between the Department of the Interior and the Naval Logistics Bureau can occasionally get things done. You need approvals, coordination, or someone to take the fall for you in a critical moment—I can still lend a hand with my old face."
Old Nazari put down his teacup and leaned forward slightly.
"There's only one condition. Vera needs a ship that can fight, run, and build up her resume. She'll be the captain, and she'll have the final say. Whether you cooperate or she joins Garros's fleet, it's up to her. But the ship has to be hers. Not a supply ship like the Truth Seeker that just moves supplies from the rear—it has to be a real combat ship, capable of warp jumps and engaging in firefights. She needs to be on the bridge, not hiding in the cargo hold."
He glanced at Vera.
"This child's lifelong dream has been to have a boat that truly belongs to her. I can't help her, but with such a boat, she can gradually climb to that position. The old members of the Nazari family in Terra can also see through this boat that this younger generation of the family is not just a good-for-nothing who lives off his parents."
He paused, a hint of helplessness in his voice.
"Building a new warship capable of jumping into the subspace would take at least ten years. Competing to fill someone else's spot is too disruptive to the rules. There are a few decommissioned armed merchant ships on the secondhand market, but their condition is not reliable. Either their engines are aging or their hulls have hidden damage. The cost of buying them and repairing them would be enough to buy half a new ship."
Vera added in a low voice, "I'd rather wait than accept that junk."
Old Nazari looked at Liu En and said, "So there's nothing I can do about this."
Liu En picked up his teacup, took a sip, and put it down.
"The ship isn't urgent. Let me return to Lucis and then we'll see how things go."
Old Nazari's mechanical prosthetic eye suddenly contracted. Vera's fingers paused on the rim of her teacup. Father and daughter almost simultaneously understood the meaning behind those words—not mere politeness, but an implication that "if that person agrees, there might be a turning point in the ship's situation."
Old Nazari's lips twitched slightly: "That's enough."
Vera rolled her eyes, but a slight smile appeared on her lips.
Liu En put the data tablet into the inner pocket of his robe. The visit ended, and he stood up to take his leave.
Vera saw him to the door. The corridor in the spire was softly lit, and the black iron statue outside the door cast a heavy shadow under the cold lights. The inscription on the base was worn and blurred by time, but the high Gothic characters were still legible: Death conquers all.
"That's just how my father is; everything is about self-interest. Don't take it to heart," she said in a low voice.
"Won't."
She smiled, the same smile she had during the dinner at the Wandering Harbor: "I'm waiting for your news."
"understood."
Vera waved her hand, turned around, and walked back into the house. Her ponytail swayed gently behind her.
Liu En stood beside the statue, watching the rusted sword blade point towards the sky.
He touched the data panel in the inner pocket of his robe.
Old Nazari said he still had connections in Terra and Lucis. He knew the Imperial administrative system better than most—and that was true. He had Enpu working tirelessly on construction in Garros, and the Black Pearl recovering technology on the border, but in the quagmire of the Empire, one couldn't go far on their own. Obtaining permits, navigating procedures, and smoothing things over—he could do it all, but it was too slow. No matter how strong a person is, they can't be in two places simultaneously overseeing every single document. Even if the Nazari family's old connections in Terra were only occasionally useful, it was worth accepting that favor.
It wasn't because he needed Vera's combat record, but because he needed someone who could keep an eye on things for him within the vast network of officialdom. And those crew members, technicians, skilled workers—Gallos needed manpower for its expansion; if the official channels weren't working, he'd have to go through connections. Old Nazari's reputation was more effective than money.
As for Vera herself—cheerful, enthusiastic, and unpretentious. In an era where everyone wears a mask, her face, unable to hide anything, makes her seem genuine. He wasn't unaware of certain possibilities. It's just that climbing up from the bottom of the nest, there's never enough time; one thing after another comes up.