I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary
Chapter 558 「Isn’t That Kinda Unfair? Totally Unfair, Right?」

The day after I arranged for data from the shipbuilders registered in the Windas Star System—covering drone carriers, space-capable drones, and small unmanned combat ships—Chris finally arrived at the Grakkius Secundus Colony. Naturally, she didn’t come alone. With her were her grandfather, Earl Dareinwald, her bodyguard Edeltrud, and quite a few attendants. Actual maids, too—not maidroids.

「Chris?」

「…Just a little longer.」

「I see…」

And that brings us to the current situation. What situation, you ask? Chris is hugging me tightly, her face buried in my chest. She’s got quite the grip. It doesn’t hurt, but I can feel a strong will behind it—like she’s determined not to let go, no matter what.

「Looks like Chris-chan’s got a lot built up inside…」

「Well, being a planetary governor’s a tough gig. And with the wedding coming up, she’s probably had to handle all kinds of arrangements too. Must’ve been exhausting.」

「In terms of sheer workload, she definitely had it rougher than me.」

Seeing Chris clinging to me like that, Mimi, Elma, and Serena exchanged looks of sympathy and amusement. Serena didn’t have it easy either, but she didn’t have to do the day-to-day work of a system governor, and she had a whole family she could rely on—parents, siblings, grandparents.

Chris, on the other hand, has basically lost everyone aside from her grandfather, Earl Dareinwald. She’s had to shoulder everything largely on her own: handling the duties of a system governor and planning her own wedding. That’s a tall order for anyone.

「Hiro-sama.」

「Yes?」

「Let us retire to the bedroom.」

「Whoa, those eyes are way too intense… Look, we’re still in someone else’s house, and it’s broad daylight. Not a great time or place, yeah? Someone could interrupt us at any moment.」

Chris looked up at me like a predator eyeing its prey. The cute black kitten from before has evolved into a sleek, black panther. Seriously, Chris’ development has been dramatic. Sure, she’s probably just hitting a growth spurt, but the girlish innocence she had when we met is steadily giving way to a more mature allure. Her longer hair plays a part, but her figure’s definitely changing too.

「Fufufu… But Hiro-sama can no longer resist my pow—huh? I can’t move you. What is this?」

「Fufufu, who knows~?」

It’s true that, purely physically, I can’t compete with Chris, who’s undergone enhancement surgery fit for a future Earl. But I’ve got psionic power. Right now, I’m using telekinesis to lock myself in place. Even with power armor, there’s no moving me from this spot!

…Well, if she really goes all-out, my body might literally get crushed, so I’d rather she didn’t. Seriously, Chris-san, that’s starting to hurt. Please stop.

「Hiro-sama… don’t you seem less and less human each time we meet?」

「The fact that I can’t even deny it anymore hurts, but yeah, you’re mostly right. Anyway, I do want to have fun with you, too, so let’s just hold out until tonight, okay?」

「Okay… Tonight, then.」

「Y-Yeah.」

Her starving-beast stare made me flinch a little. Someone is bold today, huh? Well, even when we first met, Chris was already trying to barge into my room at the first opportunity she had. Mimi pushed her a bit, but still.

「You’re not gonna stop ‘em?」

「A healthy married life is a good thing. Truly.」

From a little distance away, Edeltrud was drinking tea with Tina and the others, deliberately avoiding eye contact with us. Technically, she’s Chris’s bodyguard, but at this point, she’s practically family too. That explains why she’s taking it easy over there.

「So, the wedding’s in four days, huh… The arrangements for landing in the Imperial Capital by ship are all done, right?」

「Yes, Master. Thanks to the cooperation of the Houses of Marquis Holz and Viscount Willrose, the process has gone extremely smoothly. Everything is in order.」

「It’s a shame we can’t bring the Antlion with us, but I guess there’s no helping that.」

「It’s way too big to fit inside the Black Lotus. Maybe it’s time we seriously considered investing in a large carrier that can dock medium-sized ships.」

「Yeah, especially if we’re also adding Serena’s future drone carrier to the mix. That kind of ship is about the size of a typical medium-sized combat ship, right?」

「Seems like it. All the designs are pretty eccentric, but I don’t hate them.」

「Could you not choose a warship based on looks…?」

Chris was still nuzzling against me, but that didn’t stop us from continuing the conversation about Serena’s drone carrier. As far as the wedding goes, most of it’s out of our hands by now. Sure, it’s our wedding, but since it’s being held in the Imperial Capital, it’s heavily influenced by the Holz family and the Imperial House.

We’re basically expected to stick to the script we’ve been given. Not much point in resisting it, and we don’t have any real reason to, so we’re just going along with it.

With the Emperor himself attending, it was as formal a ceremony as one could wish for. The cost was being covered by the bride’s families and the Empire itself.

Honestly, considering that even Mimi and the others—who are technically just supporting roles—are getting dresses that could buy a brand-new non-custom maidroid, if I were footing the bill, my savings would be obliterated. So I’m extremely grateful. I’m not the type to rebel against governments, nobility, or megacorps. I’m more of a ‘go with the flow’ kind of guy.

As long as none of them harm me or my family, anyway.

「A ship’s aesthetics are important for motivation, you know.」

「Exactly. Hiro just doesn’t get it.」

「It’s killing me how my very reasonable preference for performance over looks keeps getting shot down…」

I mean, Serena’s the one who’s going to be piloting it in the end, so she should choose what she likes. But we still haven’t decided who’s footing the bill. If it’s coming out of my wallet, I’m definitely having a say.

「…It’s not fair.」

「Hm?」

「I want to go with Hiro-sama too… Isn’t it unfair that only Serena gets to go?」

Chris looked at Serena and Elma with teary, sulky eyes. Then she turned those same eyes up at me.

「Isn’t that kinda unfair? Totally unfair, right?」

「Yeah, well, you’ve got obligations… But if we end up setting up a base in Earl Dareinwald’s territory, I promise to let you have a big say in everything…」

「Hmph… That doesn’t sound like a proper consolation at all.」

And with that, Chris snuggled up against me again and buried her face in my chest in a pouty sulk.

Yeah… there’s no easy solution to this. There’s no way we can just free Chris from her duties as a planetary governor. And she is the next Earl Dareinwald. It’s not like she can just run away and live free and easy.

Honestly, unless we get Mei to rig up some kind of administrative AI to take over governance, I don’t see a way around it. And who knows whether the Empire would even approve of that.

There are plenty issues in the horizon…Yeah, marriage really isn’t the finish line. It’s the start of a whole new game.