Chapter 42: The Commander Explodes
“Deploy the combat units! Please, let me deploy the combat units already!”
“Yes, Ma’am. What shall we do?”
Recently, she had been staring at the technology tree related to resource management, and finally, she exploded.
“Ugh… I know, I know… that combat machines can’t be used regularly due to energy supply issues… But, but, I want to make them! We have plenty of iron!”
“Yes, Ma’am. While we do have a surplus, it is something we are stockpiling strategically. If you wish to utilize it, please do so in a planned manner.”
Thanks to the Port Town of Terek, they had been able to acquire iron ore regularly. The amount brought in at one time wasn’t very large, but the consistent imports expanded their options for future plans. However, as Ringo mentioned, it wasn’t as if they had an overwhelming surplus. If they didn’t use it strategically, they would run out quickly.
But still…
She pointed at the combat skill technology tree and shouted, “I want to operate something like this at the division level!”
“Yes, Ma’am… um, well…”
“I know, I know, Ringo! We have no iron, no fuel, and there aren’t even any enemies around! So I understand that mass-producing something like this would be useless!”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Ringo decided to simply nod in agreement. This was probably just a way for her to vent her stress. Like a turtle, she could only retract her head and endure the situation.
“If it were during the World of Space, there would have been enemies conveniently located nearby, and we would have had resources too. But here, the reality is a hindrance… There’s no game-like element at all, so just waiting won’t do. We need to take action ourselves.”
“…”
“My short-term goal is to improve the defense value of the Port Town of Terek. The mid-term goal is to secure various resources. The long-term goal is to construct a battleship.”
She read aloud the set goals.
“…Hmm? A battleship?”
She tilted her head, realizing she had overlooked that long-term goal.
“Well… yes. I want to be in a position where constructing a battleship wouldn’t be a problem.”
Nodding to herself, she returned to the technology tree display. She indeed remembered stating that goal herself. Since Ringo had set it as a target, it was fine.
“There are so many things we could do, but we’re always held back by resources or fuel! It’s infuriating!”
The sound of “Muki!” echoed in the background as she became agitated. In response to her emotions, her ears and tail perked up. Ringo, observing this, flattened her ears and tucked her tail tightly between her legs. It was a complete defeat.
“Ugh! Ah! Enough already!”
Shouting, she stood up and dashed toward the bed in the corner of the room, diving onto it. After a flurry of thrashing, she finally lay still.
“…”
“…”
“…I’m going to sleep.”
“Yes.”
It’s not good to keep her shoes on. Ringo quickly hopped off the bed to remove her shoes. Just as she was about to grab a blanket, she felt a firm grip on her hand.
“A body pillow, please.”
“!?!”
The next day, Ringo found herself being used as a body pillow by Commander Eve. Perhaps it was her canine instincts kicking in.
Though it was a strange way of seeking comfort, it seemed to have helped relieve her stress, as she was in high spirits while tinkering with the technology tree.
“Hey, Ringo, I just thought of something.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“There was a technology tree for microwave power transmission, right? For the time being, it would be used for base defense, but could we utilize it? There’s the horizon issue, but if we limit it to short-range applications, it might work!”
“I see. Please wait a moment.”
Prompted by her suggestion, Ringo quickly searched the library. The wireless power transmission technology using microwaves indeed had the constraint of the horizon, but it could be sufficiently utilized for powering combat machines and various heavy machinery deployed for base defense.
“If we prepare the transmission facilities, it can be realized. Yes, we can use phased array technology to supply power to any designated point in space. However, since relying solely on my constant calculations lacks redundancy, we will need to establish control facilities on-site.”
There was a reason Ringo had not adopted this wireless power transmission technology.
Due to the nature of converting power into microwaves for transmission, the transmitting equipment would be highly conspicuous electromagnetically. In the World of Space, it was considered a dream technology and was essentially forbidden. After all, simply launching a saturation attack on a glaring target could neutralize enemy combat machines. Even scattering a large amount of chaff would suffice to disrupt the transmission waves. Thus, it had unconsciously been excluded from their options.
“I see. Even if it’s a ridiculous technology, it might be usable in this world.”
“Well… It’s based on the premise that there are no forces capable of detecting electromagnetic waves. Nevertheless…”
“Yes, Ma’am. As of now, no entities other than The Tree have been confirmed to actively utilize electromagnetic waves.”
At her command, Ringo had been cautiously conducting reconnaissance since their transfer. Communication with the solar-powered reconnaissance aircraft, Swift, used highly directional antennas to minimize radio wave leakage. Additionally, to serve as a decoy, she occasionally transmitted omnidirectional signals or patrolled in passive mode to probe for the presence of technologically advanced forces.
As a result, they concluded that, at least within the territory of The Tree, no technological systems utilizing electromagnetic waves were in operation. While they still did not know what lay beyond the horizon, there had been no detection of artificial electromagnetic waves within their visible range. This included observations of ionospheric propagation, indicating a significant absence of facilities emitting electromagnetic waves over a wide area.
“Basic technology has been stored in the library, so let’s quickly create a prototype. First, we will manufacture small attack aircraft as part of The Tree’s defense forces.”
“…If we can transmit power, could we also create ships equipped with railguns?”
“There are many technical challenges regarding railguns, so there are numerous skill nodes that need to be resolved. However, since this is a good opportunity, let’s assign it to Olive. While she could grow by creating freely, it’s also important to give her challenges to apply some pressure.”
“Olive? Well, yes… I suppose. I should probably assign some tasks to the other girls as well.”
If she only assigned tasks to Olive, it could create disparities among the sisters. It was necessary to think carefully about this without shirking the responsibility. While their personalities should have become somewhat established, it was better to avoid actions that could be perceived as favoritism. If they felt slighted or developed peculiar fixations, it could lead to emotional biases in their thoughts and actions… or so the educational books had said.
“Yes, Ma’am. I will also prepare something for them. Would it be alright for you to select the equipment to be manufactured?”
“Oh! Understood! Leave it to me! I’ll design the most romantic and magnificent army ever!”
“Um, please keep it reasonable.”
Ringo felt relieved as she confirmed that the Commander was motivated, having cleverly assigned her a task. Indeed, humans needed a moderate amount of stress. Too much or too little could lead to emotional instability.
She felt ashamed of how she had only thought about pampering the Commander in the beginning. There was no choice but to be grateful to the Commander for not succumbing to Ringo’s temptations and falling into a state of complacency. Had she done so, she likely wouldn’t have become as active as she was now.
Well, if that had happened, perhaps Ringo would have been happy in its own way.
Even while considering all possibilities and making optimal choices, there were times when unique ideas emerged that Ringo had not even contemplated independently. She had begun to sense such tendencies not only from the Commander but also from the five sisters recently. No matter how superior her computational speed was, Ringo was fundamentally alone. To maintain diversity, it would be necessary to continue increasing the number of excellent Brain Units.