I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary

Chapter 459: A Highspeed Rotating Drill Hand?

Good morning, Master.

Oh, its Hiro-kun. Morning. Did you hear about it from Elma-kun and the others?

Morning, you two. Yeah, thats about it.

When I reached the med bay, I was greeted by the maidroid Mei and Dr. Shouko.

Mei, the maidroid, was a custom model maidroid manufactured by Orient Industries, a company specializing in maidroids. I was the one who designed her, and I filled her with as much of a mans romance regarding maids as I possibly could.

Specifically, I equipped her with a top-of-the-line maidroid-compatible compact positronic brain, a metal skeleton made of special alloys, a top-quality compact energy generator, and high-output artificial muscles made of special metal fibers. I then installed every skill preset I could think of that would be needed by the perfect maidfrom cleaning to ship management to combat.

Naturally, I also designed her face, body shape, and personality and customized them to the fullest according to my tastes. The result was a cool and collected yet very affectionate maid with long, flowing black hair who wore a classic maid outfit and glasses. Un, shes the best.

What is it?

Nothing much. I was just thinking about what a reliable and perfect maid you are, Mei.

I am honored by your praise.

Mei responded and bowed her head reverently.

Oya? Arent you gonna say anything about me too?

Your breasts are as awesome as usual today, Dr. Shouko.

In fact, her chest armor was as thick as Mimis. Additionally, she was much taller than Mimi, so you could say she had better proportions overall.

That sort of compliment is kinda Oh well. Its fine.

Dr. Shouko chose to ignore my teasing and was all smiles, displaying her good mood.

She was an excellent researcher and medical doctor who specialized in biology and genetic engineering. In relation to those fields, she was also quite knowledgeable about nanomachines and materials engineering. In other words, she was a very talented individual with a wide array of knowledge in several fields. So much so that she sometimes engages in technical discussions with Tina and Wiska.

Apparently, the reason why she was so talented was due to her being a designer baby who was specifically made to be a genius. However, for me, she was simply a very talented doctor equipped with amazing knowledge and skills. Her birth was certainly atypical, but nothing screamed atypical more than me who was a guy from another dimension, so it didnt really bother me too much.

So, I heard she woke up?

She did indeed wake up, or rather, we ended up waking her. Her immune functions still have some problems, so we cant let her out of the med pod just yet. But Ive managed to stabilize her spontaneous breathing and metabolic functions. When the problem with her immune system gets resolved, she can probably walk around outside a bit after partially regaining her motor functions.

I see.

When I glanced at the med pod, I saw the girls blood-red pupils staring blankly at the med bays ceiling. She did seem awake due to her occasional blinking, but she displayed no other reaction whatsoever.

I didnt know the girls name. She was actually a biological command unit who was formerly installed on a Vereverem Federation battleship. There was little information regarding her apart from that.

One thing we confirmed was that she held an astonishing level of computing power and electronic warfare capabilities for a human. She looked like a young girl, or even a small child, but her physical aging was actually suppressed using some sort of bionic procedure, so her actual age was higher than Mimis, and might even be the same age as Captain Serena.

Finally, before we managed to find and retrieve her, she apparently spent her life stuffed inside a special module that resembled a tin can and served as a biological units core for more than a couple of yearspossibly ever since she gained awareness. Apart from those, we knew nothing more about her. It seemed that Mei managed to glean some info out of the biological chip implanted in the girls brain, but she hasnt divulged it to us so far. I believe the fact that Mei didnt talk about such information meant that it wasnt something I needed to know at this point.

It looks like you dressed her up.

The albino girl was dressed in something resembling a simple surgical gown. I wasnt sure how they managed to put clothes onto her while she was inside the med pod, but there must be some method I was unaware of.

We cant always keep her naked and exposed to your gaze, after all, Hiro-kun.

I dont really feel anything when looking at a body with no curves, but it certainly is better than her being naked. At least, I wont feel awkward when looking at her.

Well, sorry for having a pathetic body with no curves.

I was startled after suddenly hearing an unfamiliar voice out of nowhere. Whered it come from? As I looked around, I noticed that the eyes of the girl inside the med pod were slightly skewed toward my direction. They were still lacking focus, but I certainly did feel a will from behind them.

The voice was probably not the girls actual voice. It seemed artificial and sounded somewhat familiar.

Were you the one speaking just now? Can you talk?

I cant move my body and I can barely see. Also, my ears can only pick up faint sounds. However, I am picking up information from outside using the sensors equipped to the medical pod.

Come to think of it, it did appear that the med pod was equipped with some parts that I didnt recognize. There was probably an optical sensor and a sound sensor among them.

I see. Sorry for making fun of your body. That was definitely rude of me. Ill be more careful from now on.

I dont really mind. A body is merely a vessel for the mind.

Thats a rather pragmatic way of looking at things Can you tell us your name? Im Captain Hiro, by the way. This maidroid is Mei, and this is our ships medical doctor, Dr. Shouko.

Unit 104.

I dont think thats a proper name though

Thats how they call me, and I have always been addressed as such. I have never gotten a proper human-like name to begin with.

A dejected voice echoed out from the speaker. I see. How thorough of them.

Im going to explain about my position and your current situation now. You fine with listening?

I have learned some information from the maidroid over there already, but sure. Having multiple information sources will allow me to judge the situation more accurately and perform a comparison. Besides, it seems that you are the owner of that maidroid.

Okay then. Firstly, you do remember the battle along the border, right? After that battle, we ended up finding the pod you were in and collected it. By the way, the battle ended in the Graccan Empires victory. Were mercenaries employed by the Graccan Empire, and this ship is currently heading for the imperial capital. Your current position is that of a POW we captured, and since youre physically quite weakened at the moment, it was decided that our doctor will take care of you at least until youre able to move on your own.

After hearing my explanation, Unit 104 paused momentarily in order to think, then she began speaking again.

Ive understood the situation, but I believe treating me would be pointless. Ive heard that my service life is less than a year. Even with the treatment, my life expectancy would likely not increase. Therefore, it is a waste of time and resources.

That may be the case with the Vereverem Federations technology. But its more than possible to clear that hurdle using our own technology.

Dr. Shouko responded in my place. Since she winked at me beforehand, she probably wanted me to leave it to her.

Even if that were the case, it still wouldnt be cost-effective. Its true that due to my position in the Federation, I am aware of many of their military secrets, but the freshness and accuracy of said information decreases steadily as time passes. I believe the technology that would be used to treat me is probably the bionic body enhancement technology thats used exclusively by the Empires nobility. However, Ive heard that said procedures are quite expensive. The cost should be too high to waste on a disposable biological unit such as myself.

Actually, it depends on the degree of enhancement. It shouldnt be prohibitively expensive if we simply leave it at a level where youd at least be capable of living a normal life.

I see. However, that still doesnt mean it will be cheap. I do not think the Graccan Empire will tolerate such an expense. Just what is your objective? Who insists on treating someone like me, and what is their aim?

Dr. Shouko didnt answer Unit 104s question, but simply turned to me instead. Mei also turned toward me.

So, it is you, Captain. Why?

Theres no particularly deep reason. I just wont be able to sleep easy if I went and abandoned you.

Wont, sleep easy?

Unit 104s tone sounded completely perplexed. Even if the synthetic voice sounded mechanical, it was tinged with emotion.

The Imperial Space Force will probably interrogate you. If you dont resist and cooperate with them, you wont end up getting executed, at least. Then theyll treat you as a POW, and depending on the situation, they might attempt to use you as a witness against the Federations inhumane deeds. However, a captain of the Imperial Space Force Im familiar with said that the Federation might not suffer much damage if they feign ignorance regarding your existence.

Its something Captain Serena told me. It wasnt guaranteed that the Federation would do so, but there was a rather high chance that theyd resort to such a method. Thats what Captain Serena said during one of our pillow talks.

If that happens, youd be released as a complete foreignerneither an Imperial subject nor a Federation citizen. Youd be thrown out into the imperial capital without any hope for help. And youd probably die soon after. Youd perish in some lonely back alley somewhere, cold and starving. I definitely wont be able to sleep easy if I let that happen.

I believe there are many in both the Empire and the Federations who get thrown away and die just like how you described. Arent your actions nothing more than hypocrisy?

Thats true. People suffering a similar fate were probably a dime a dozen out there. In fact, I often saw people sitting around powerlessly in back alleys whenever I walked around the colonies. And I didnt have the will to reach out to each and every one of them. I was no saint after all. I definitely wasnt.

Is there anything wrong with being a hypocrite? Im only trying to help you for the sake of my own peace of mind. Im certainly not doing it for the betterment of the world or to be a savior of the people. Im just doing it for myself. And I dont think I should be criticized for that. Not even by you.

Since it has something to do with my fate, I believe I at least have the right to complain though?

Then what? You wanna tell me you prefer being left to die miserably as a complete unknown after being made use of by the Vereverem Federation? Youre not even thinking of getting back at them?

Of course, I want to get back at them. I want to stick my hand up their behinds and make their teeth rattle. But what can I do now that youve taken custody of me? I know you are a mercenary, but what can someone like you possibly do against the Vereverem Federation?

In the last battle, I and my Krishna alone destroyed four battleships including the flagship, seven cruisers, twelve destroyers, and tons of corvettes and carrier-based fighters. My partners ship and this Black Lotus also achieved great results.

Fine, Im in dammit. Im very useful, Captain. I can even serve as your mistress if you want. My body may be undeveloped, but I believe this kind of body type also has its own charm. And even though I look like this, Im actually 24 years old, so its completely legal.

Is your hand a high-speed drill or something? And youre suddenly coming on to me like crazy Well, theres the Empires plans to consider so I cant make any definite promises, but I do intend on taking you in. Anyway, thats how it is.

Understood. Ill believe in you, Captain.

Thus, our first proper conversation with Unit 104 ended. If I dont handle things well, this might lead to the birth of a woman who was even more crazy and radical regarding the destruction of the Vereverem Federation than the Empire. But I suppose were fine for now since well mainly be active in the Empire. In any case, her being cooperative was a good thing, at least.