"But…" he paused, his eyes sweeping across them, "this cannot be free. Even though we are in an alliance, you should all be well aware of the value of these two void stones. They cannot be used on a whim. And they are not mine to give—they belong to the association. So… it will co at a cost."
Hearing this, the others grew a bit gloomy, but none could refute his words. He was being reasonable. Not only were void stones incredibly rare and valuable, they weren't even his personal property to offer.
After a brief silence, they all nodded.
"Whatever your demands may be, Lord Corvus—as long as they are not excessive—we should accept them," Kashki said, glancing at the others, who nodded in agreent.
Seeing that, Kashki gave a firm nod and didn't give Corvus a chance to respond.
"As for the Celestial Star Crystal… leave that to . My empire will provide it. And yes, it will cost more—for it is far more precious, even compared to void stones. Everyone here should agree to that."
Everyone's lips twitched slightly, but in the end, they could only nod while rolling their eyes.
Yeah… go ahead, ask for a bigger share of the Holy Region. No problem at all…
Inside, they felt like crying. Why were we so stupid? If only they hadn't held back last ti, they wouldn't be losing even more of their share now.
If there had been soone truly aware of everything—soone who could see the full picture—they would have simply rolled their eyes and said, Too late to realize that mistake. And that's not even your main problem. This entire mission you're part of is cursed from the very beginning. You're bound to fail… to suffer… and to die.
Rest in peace.
Soon, a long discussion followed, where all of them once again argued over the distribution of resources.
After more than four hours of back-and-forth, they finally settled on their shares.
Kashki made significant gains for his empire, increasing his share from seventeen percent to twenty-two percent. Corvus also saw an increase, his own share rising to nineteen percent. Lord Cojack's federation gained a bit more as well, moving from seven to nine percent.
Lord Tempa held seven percent, and the orcs were left with around five percent.
Those who gained were satisfied.
Those who didn't… were not.
But none of them voiced any objections. If they wanted more, they would have to contribute more—and that was sothing they simply couldn't afford right now.
After all, troubled tis lood over their federations, empires, and republics. Enemies lurked in the shadows, waiting for even the smallest opening to strike.
Because of that, they couldn't risk deploying more of their forces into what was, at its core, still a gamble.
And they were in this gamble for one simple reason—what if they struck rich? That possibility alone, along with a few other promised benefits—so of which had already been delivered—was enough to keep them seated at the sa table.
It was because of those crucial resources, now made available to them, that all of them sat together on the sa bench despite their differences.
This was sothing both the Star Empire and the Association had learned from their last failed alliance—one that had been built purely on promises of great rewards that were never realized.
Corvus observed their unnatural, bitter-sweet expressions and felt a quiet sense of satisfaction. With such agre contributions, you still dream of a large piece of the pie… he thought, though none of it showed on his face.
"Now that everyone is satisfied with this new arrangent," he said calmly, "I hope you are all prepared for the move."
Everyone nodded. Even though they weren't truly satisfied—but as he said, they had agreed. And more importantly, they were already here.
"Good," Corvus nodded, clearly pleased.
Before the mont could settle, soone asked, "When are we to move, Lord Corvus?"
Corvus fell into thought. The timing was still undecided, and it wasn't a small matter.
While he pondered the timing—calculating the weeks required for transit—Kashiki who also had this thought full look on his face suddenly spoke, his Emperor's words echoing in his mind like a command of god.
"Kashiki, I want the fleet to strike on the very day of their foundation," the Emperor had declared his intention clearly then to him. "I want their hope for a better future to be dashed at the exact mont they proclaim their Empire."
He knew that the logistics: establishing a stable hyper-point would take a full month if those technicians work efficiently as they are supposed too . With nearly two months or a bit less than that remaining before the Void human empire foundation establishnt day, So the window was narrow but viable to full fill the wishes of his emperor.
And knowing, That the specific timing had yet to be formally debated as to when would the be moving and staring there campaign.
Realizing he could use this gap to his advantage, he saw a way to fulfill his sovereign's dark wishes while appearing purely pragmatic.
Adopting a thoughtful expression and keeping any ntion of the Emperor's specific decree to himself, he addressed the room. "I have a proposition to make regarding our timing," he said calmly. "If everyone allows, I would be glad to share it."
"Ohhh". Corvus, wearing a thoughtful expression, leaned in with genuine interest. Beside him, Francis—a feline beastkin representing the Eyrnodro Empire—flicked his ears and nodded encouragingly.
"Why not?" Francis purred, his voice smooth but sharp. "Please, speak your mind, Kashiki. If your plan accounts for the variables we face, I'm sure we will find ourselves in agreent."
Corvus added his support imdiately. "Indeed. Just as Lord Francis says, let us hear what you have calculated."
Kashiki offered a respectful nod to the cat-kin and looked around at the gathered leaders and begun. "It would take about a month to establish the hyper point… and there is still a little over a month—close to two—before the humans formally establish their empire."
"Oh?" Corvus's interest sharpened at the ntion of the Void Humans establishing their empire—sothing he knew of, but had never given much thought to.
It also drew the attention of the others, who leaned in slightly, a look of interest appearing in their eyes.
"Continue on" said Corvus .
Kashiki offered a nodded and continued "In just under two months," he began, his voice steady, "the Void Fleet will officially proclaim their empire. We all know the nature of such ceremonies—the pomp, the distractions, the arrogance. They will be in a state of celebration, their guard lowered by the festivities of their foundation."
He paused to let the weight of his words sink in. "Because they are unprepared and completely unaware of our intentions, their reaction ti will be crippled. If we strike then, we can inflict massive damage on their primary forces before they even realize a war has begun. It is the perfect window to establish our foothold with minimal resistance."
"From that foothold," Kashiki continued, his voice dropping to a low, cold edge, "we can dismantle them piece by piece. It is perfect. All of this will unfold under the cover of darkness. As the mana storms around the Holy Region finally dissipate, we will be there—waiting to 'welco' the others who were too cautious to move until the skies cleared. By the ti they arrive to invade, the prize will already be in our hands."
The room fell into a charged silence. The eyes of the commanders began to twinkle like distant stars, caught up in the vision. They could almost see it: slipping into the Holy Region undetected, the sudden flash of steel against a backdrop of human fireworks, the shattering of the Sol Region's defenses, and the quick, brutal establishnt of their dominion.
The excitent was infectious. While a few realists among them harbored a quiet caution—knowing that everything hinged entirely on securing that first, precarious foothold—even they could not deny that the future looked blindingly bright.
Corvus nodded slowly, a dark satisfaction settling over him. He relished the thought of crushing those "lowly" humans who had grown so arrogant, jumping across the galaxy simply because they had tasted a sliver of strength.
"This is more than acceptable to ," Corvus stated, his gaze sweeping across the assembly. "What say the rest of you?"
One by one, the leaders gave their consent, heads nodding in grim agreent. "We have no objections."
"Brilliant," Kashiki declared, his expression hardening. "Then it is settled. I expect all your forces to be assembled in this system within one month. But mark my words: this must remain hidden. We cannot allow any other faction to catch wind of this. If our intent cos to light, everything we have built goes down the drain—and I suspect none of you wish to see that happen."
Francis, the cat-kin representative of the Eyrnodro Empire, stood up from his chair, a sly but proud glint forming in his eyes.
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